1898 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
559 
took first premium at the Vermont State Fair last 
year for the largest amount of butter fat from one 
day's milking. There were 13 cows in competition. 
The following notes are from breeders : 
The Ayrshires are very rugged, never being troubled 
with any ailment except milk fever, cf which we have 
had some cases, as they are so liable to get too fleshy 
before calving. Tuberculosis, I believe, is almost un¬ 
known among the Ayrshires. Their milk is especially 
adapted to the city retail trade, testing well, and of 
good color, never looking' blue. With me, they are 
very persistent milkers, giving a good flow of milk 
to within six weeks of calving, and then being very 
hard to dry up ; a number of my cows have not ceased 
to give milk since their first calf. To keep up the 
quantity of milk contracted, I have bought cows, 
mostly Short-horns and Holsteins, in order to turn 
off for beef after a time ; but the big cows, while eat¬ 
ing much more, could never keep up with the Ayr¬ 
shires in either quantity or quality of milk, after a 
couple of months from calving. e. m. spencer. 
Rockport, O. 
Ayrshires will do well in any country. They are 
hardier than Jerseys, and more profitable because they 
will stand more feed. They are better than Holsteins, 
as the quantity of milk is all right, and the average 
is much better in quality. We cannot afford to raise 
beef here, but the Ayrshires are of good size and put 
on flesh quickly. I have bred and raised the others, 
but prefer Ayrshires. p. k. bacon. 
Campello, Mass. 
I always endeavored to leave a little of each kind of 
meat on each piece. 
Chances for Good Men. —The deserving young 
men who are willing to work and know how, soon 
begin business for themselves, while the indolent, 
careless and ne’er-do-wells remain as laborers, and 
many of them will not earn their board unless under 
the eyes of the farmer. I employed one man over 30 
years of age who claimed that he had always worked 
on a farm ; but he could not do anything properly. 
He would break almost every tool with which he 
worked, and never put a tool back in its place. We 
have a half acre of nice sward between the barns and 
house lawn. On returning home after three days’ 
absence, I found this sward covered with plows, har- 
rows, cultivators, sleds, etc. I invariably had to 
store the tools away myself, for his eyesight was so 
poor that he never could see anything to do outdoors, 
though he could always see the best dishes on the 
table, and would always see that each spoonful of 
rice, or oatmeal, or berries was balanced up with three 
spoonfuls of sugar. 
If G. L. G. knows of any honest, industrious men 
who will do faithful service 10 hours each day, at twice 
or thrice the price per hour he names, he should send 
them to Ohio, where they can have good beds, square 
meals and certain employment. But he need not send 
us any who study how to kill time, who never try to 
do work well, who swear, drink, smoke, chew tobacco, 
lie in bed till breakfast, or sleep by the plow side in 
the field. joiin it. SUAWVKR. 
Shady Nook Farm, Ohio. 
F 
- HARD LIFE ” OF THE HIRED MAH. 
AN EMPLOYER TELLS IITS SIDE. 
Stories About Shirks. —G. L. G., of Connecticut, 
in The R. N.-Y. of July 9, has either had his lot cast 
in a hard-hearted community, or he has drawn upon 
his imagination to a large extent. It has been my 
lot to serve a number of farmers as a hired 
hand, and also to be the employer of a number 
of men, and I never knew of a case parallel to 
his. Good farm hands can always get a good 
place. It has been my lot to have but one 
hired man who would get up at 4 o’clock, and 
he did it of his own accord. Most of them have 
felt no twinge of conscience to lie in bed while I 
get up, put on the fires, feed the hogs, cows and 
calves, get up the horses, feed and groom them, 
while wife gets breakfast, and when the break¬ 
fast bell rings, come down rubbing their ej es 
as though they wondered why we should disturb 
their rest. Then to make up for this disturbed 
rest in the morning, I have seen them lie down 
in the shade of a tree in the field and doze half 
an hour or more, come in at half past 11 to 
dinner, and forget to go out again till 2. 
One hand usually waited at noon for me to 
get out the team and hitch up, and would then 
have me %vait while he went to get another 
drink of water. I left a hand one afternoon to 
build some rail fence while I went to town. 
When wife began supper at 4 o’clock, she thought 
she saw his coat hanging over the fence, but she 
could see nothing of the man. At 5 o'clock, the 
coat was still hanging over the fence, but when 
she rang the supper bell, the coat straightened up and 
made good time for the house. Whether the man was 
asleep in that position, or whether he had grown so 
faint with hard toil as to be unable to continue work, 
is not known ; but the fact remains the same, and the 
first tap of the supper bell revived his drooping spirits. 
Sleeping' and Eating-. —As to sleeping apartments, 
we formerly gave them a bed in the main house, but 
they would leave their clothing scattered over the 
floor for wife or hired girl to gather up, carry straw, 
chaff and dust in their boots, which would be emptied 
out on the carpet, turn up the lamp so high as to 
smoke the ceiling, etc. So when building a laundry- 
room, dairy-room an 1 children’s play-room, we built 
a hired-man’s room in connection. It is becoming a 
rule, when strange men must be employed, to give 
them a room separate from the main house, with clean 
bed, springs, and abundance of blankets, for it is 
risky to take them in with the family. Some of them 
will pilfer, and some will do things even worse. 
As to eating, we always want to see a man eat well; 
but that is no excuse for some of them making hogs of 
themselves. The lazy man is always a big eater. A 
good hand must eat sufficient to maintain his strength. 
But real hoggishness is disgusting. One man would 
take his bread, place a piece of butter the size of a 
hickorynut on one corner, on this place a similar 
amount of jelly, jam or honey, take off a bite, then 
repeat the performance. Another would always set 
special dishes down beside his plate instead of passing 
them on around the table. One would cut the fat 
meat off from the lean, leaving the fat on the plate for 
others, while he would take the lean, doing this half 
a dozen times each meal, though in carving the meat, 
CURRANT CULTURE IN ILLINOIS. 
NOT A PROFITABLE CROP. 
Slow of Sale. —The currant is but little in demand 
here except for red jelly, therefore is not planted 
heavily for market. As a rule, the more northern 
IVE-YEAR-OLD AYRSHIRE COW, ROSE CLENNA 11153. 
Fig. 260. 
States seem better adapted to the raising of this fruit 
than the southern, so the surplus should, usually, go 
south. There is a limited demand for cheap pies and 
sauce. It is a curious fact that the white varieties, 
although as good (perhaps better) in quality, sell for 
only about half as much as the red, and in fact, are 
hardly worth picking for market after they are grown. 
I have tried them in many markets, from green to 
fully ripe, and the result is the same. They sell, not 
like “ hot cakes ”, but more like Juneberries, drawing 
down averages on sales, and disgusting alike com- 
missionman and seller. So I repeat, currants are 
wanted here only for making red jelly. 
Not Like Strawberry. —The currant never will 
be “everybody’s berry” like the strawberry, a fact 
which planters would do well to remember—unless 
indeed, the raising of them for evaporating may be 
made profitable ; as to this I cannot say. It is a fruit 
easily raised ; probably four cents a quart would leave 
some profit. Although it responds to good soil and 
treatment, yet neglect is not so fatal as with many 
other small fruits. Among the obstacles may be 
noticed heavy, continued rains during the blooming 
period ; hail, which injures currants as any other 
fruit, blight, borers, aphides and the currant worm. 
Last year, in a small way, a new disease appeared here 
that was somewhat similar to the rot of the peach, 
plum and cherry. This year, it was much worse, and 
I shall be obliged to try some of the fungicides next 
season ; probably a spray of the Bordeaux Mixture 
this Fall would not be amiss. Specimens sent to the 
State Experiment Station brought no satisfactory ex¬ 
planation. 
Drawbacks and Seasons.—With some varieties, 
notably the Fay, the borer is quite a drawback, but 
with others, as Victoria, the trouble is not serious. 
Currant worms have steadily increased in number in 
this county, until this year, they seemed numerous 
enough to destroy the crop. Having a limited amount 
of hellebore and pyrethrum, and plenty of London- 
purple, I tried all three of the remedies, and obtained 
good results from all of them. Yet of the three, I 
prefer the hellebore and water in the usual propor¬ 
tion, applied with a good spray pump. Where arsenic 
is used, the result seems slow, but if rains do not 
come, it is sure. Only one thorough application was 
made, and this a few days after the first appearance 
of the worms. Scarcely one per cent of the worms 
escaped. 
The crop here was a medium one ; bunches were not 
full, owing, I think, to the excessive Spring rains. 
Prices ranged from 60 cents per 24-quart crate for 
the whites, to 81 or $1 25 for the reds. Long Bunch 
Holland, the latest variety I know of, brought still 
more. This variety, valuable only because it strikes 
a bare market, has paid me better than any other 
kind. It is remarkably stocky and vigorous, a moder¬ 
ate producer of long bunches and medium-sized sour 
berries. Its large, thick, dark leaves have always 
been the abode here of countless aphides which curl 
and twist the leaves, and give the upper side a pur¬ 
plish hue, yet seem to do little damage. This variety, 
so far, has been the only kind affected by the rot 
before spoken of. The currant season corresponds 
closely with that of raspberries, and usually lasts 
from fifteen to twenty days, but may be prolonged 
fully a week by planting the Long Bunch Holland. 
A Talk of Varieties. —Among the earliest, are the 
Red Dutch and White Grape, and they are both very 
productive ; but the former is small, and the latter, 
although of good size in berry, has a short, small 
bunch that has so little stem that it is difficult to 
pick. Victoria and Fay are a few days later. These 
two varieties are the opposite of each other so far as 
vigor is concerned. Fay has a weak, straggling 
growth, the canes breaking down badly, with a 
bunch, and especially berry, of the largest size. 
It will bring the “ top of the market,” but it 
may not be planted here. Victoria is very 
vigorous and healthy, the bunch and berry are 
of fair size, and attractive with its deep red. It 
is a profitable kind. These are all the varieties 
I have planted for market so far, but I shall 
add two more soon as fast as I can propagate 
them. Among the other varieties that I have 
fruited in a small way, are Raby Castle (which 
seems the same as Victoria) ; White Gondouin, 
which is small but of the best quality ; Goodale 
(red), which is not large, acid, and not promis¬ 
ing ; Red Defiance, not any better ; London 
Red, which has so far not distinguished itself 
in any way ; Moon’s Select (red), which seems 
to me to be as promising as any variety I 
know ; Wilder, much like above, but I think 
perhaps distinct. The last two have fruited 
only a few years, in a small way, but as they 
are vigorous, healthy and very productive, and 
in bunch and berry large and attractive, and 
the quality very good, I shall increase my plant 
of these varieties. 
I see it stated that the Wilder is as large as the Fay, 
but it certainly is not here ; yet 1 think it will prove a 
profitable kind. North Star I should think too small, 
judging from a few specimens. Cherry has never 
been sufficiently productive here; Versaillaise is 
usually liked by those who have fruited it; it is not 
in my collection. Black currants were, I suppose, in¬ 
vented by somebody, for what purpose, except for a 
repellant, I cannot imagine. Saunders seems as pro¬ 
ductive (of evil) as any variety I have fruited. The 
Rocky Mountain currants (some larger than pinheads 
and yellow), have still another flavor, perhaps like a 
BENJ. BUCKMAN. 
WHEAT GROWING IN OHIO. 
PART OF A SYSTEMATIC ROTATION. 
Great Benefit from Thorough Tillage. 
Must Have Wheat Land. — Several important 
points must have careful consideration, if a farmer 
expect to grow wheat with profit. The first important 
factor is the land itself. Some land is spoken of as 
good wheat land naturally on account of good average 
crops that it yields. Such land is usually of a sandy 
nature, warm and dry ; but as few of us own this 
kind of soil, we must, by artificial means, make wheat 
land of what we have. 
About 15 years ago, I decided to make wheat one of 
the crops grown in a regular three-year rotation of 
corn, wheat, and clover, following each other in this 
order. Probably, 40 years ago, one field on the farm 
gave 30 bushels per acre, when the land was compara¬ 
tively new, and under most favorable conditions. 
During the period intervening, till I commenced the 
rotation, 20 bushels per acre was the highest yield, 
and this on the best natux-ally-drained land. What I 
