1898 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
695 
strength. The next layer is of proteid 
or gluten, a dark substance which con¬ 
tains the nitrogenous or flesh-forming 
element, nitrogen, in addition to the 
three elements contained in starch ; also 
the phosphates and other mineral mat¬ 
ters which assist in making up the bony 
parts of the body, as well as the fat, 
which gives the odor to wheat, as it is 
partly volatile. The outside is the bran, 
or the haru, indigestible part of the 
wheat. 
We see at a glance that the best part 
of the wheat is the gluten or proteid, and 
that is the part we should keep in our 
flour ; but because it is dark, it is gen¬ 
erally got rid of to a large extent, that 
we may have white bread, when the 
wheat containing all the gluten would 
give much more strength to the body, 
besides getting the extra mineral mat¬ 
ter. This we have in our so called whole¬ 
wheat flour, which, however, is erro¬ 
neously named, as the only real whole 
wheat is Graham flour, which not only 
takes all that the so-called whole-wheat 
flour does, but the outer layer of silica 
as well. 
Using much Graham flour will weaken 
one's digestion, as the coarse part of the 
bran, which cannot be digested, rushes 
through the alimentary canal, carrying 
with it much of the food in an undigest¬ 
ed state. The coarse parts of the wheat 
or the bran irritate the intestinal tract, 
hence hasty transmission of the food, 
and its constant use impairs the use of 
the muscles governing that part of the 
body. 
The more gluten a bread flour has in 
it, the darker it will be, and the better 
food stuff it is. The gluten in wheat is 
a light brown when dried, is tough and 
elastic, consisting mostly of vegetable 
fibrin. One can easily collect the gluten 
from a given amount of flour by putting 
some dry flour into a piece of cloth and 
washing it up and down in a pan of cold 
water. The starch will wash out and 
the gluten remain in the cloth. Collect 
it, and dry. When dried, it resembles 
glue. The tough, elastic property of the 
flour determines its quality. 
EDITH F. MCDERMOTT. 
On the Wing. 
CATS OF HIGH DEGREE. 
PERSIANS AND PUPPIES AT SPARROWS 
ROOST. 
[editorial correspondence.] 
Cat Kennels. —Mrs. Barker’s kennels 
are wooden buildings, like ordinary 
poultry-houses with ample outdoor runs 
inclosed in wire netting; they are heated 
by stoves in severe weather. Cold, dark, 
or cramped quarters are prejudicial to 
the health of the cats. It must, also, be 
borne in mind that the cats are intended 
to be pet animals; they must be trained 
to cleanly habits, and accustomed tc 
human association. The best results in 
cat-breeding are obtained, apparently, 
when there is no attempt to raise them 
by wholesale, but where they can be 
trained, from earliest kittenhood, as pet 
animals, being given the freedom of the 
house and grounds ; they are thus thor¬ 
oughly house-broken, friendly in dis¬ 
position, and possess good constitutions. 
The imported cats appear to suffer when 
first brought to this country, until fully 
acclimated ; the Summer appears harder 
on them than the Winter. Their most 
noticeable weakness is a delicacy of the 
lungs, leading to pneumonia. 
Variations in Breeding —So far, it 
does not seem possible to mate these cats 
so as to be absolutely sure of results. 
There is much yet to be learned in this 
line. If a breeder could be actually sure 
of color variations, his work would be 
simple; but this does not seem possible 
as yet. There is usually a diversity of 
color in every litter. A white cat like 
Mrs. Barker’s Banshee will, of course, 
produce some white kittens, but there 
will be colored kittens in every litter. 
Black, white and blue are called inter¬ 
changeable colors, having a tendency to 
appear in the same litter, but yellow and 
rufous shades are unlikely to appear with 
them. Mr. Barker had formed the im¬ 
pression that cat-fanciers abroad were 
disposed to work upon the same theories 
in breeding cats as in breeding poultry. 
There is need of more accurate informa¬ 
tion in this line. An ideal coloring, 
which Mr. and Mrs. Barker would like 
to secure, is a yellow tabby barred with 
black, giving a suggestion of Mr. Kip¬ 
ling's clouded tiger. So far, this mark¬ 
ing has not appeared. Tortoise-shell 
Persians, in which the yellow and black 
are broken up, are not uncommon. 
Buying Kittens —I asked Mrs. Barker 
whether she would recommend a pur¬ 
chaser to buy a young kitten, or a mature 
cat. 
“ Purchasers very often want to buy a 
young kitten, because the graceful, frisky 
little animal attracts them, but this 
usually results in disappointment. Dur¬ 
ing the transition period when the ani¬ 
mal is losing its kittenish furriness, and 
gaining its adult coat, it becomes ragged 
and disheveled-looking, and the pur¬ 
chaser feels as though it is losing all its 
beauty. Its health suffers at this period, 
because, in licking its coat, some of the 
hair is swallowed, and this is liable to be 
impacted in the digestive organs, so that 
the animal appears to be out of condi¬ 
tion.” 
“ Do you give any medicine to remedy 
this?” 
“ Nothing but a little olive oil. How¬ 
ever, a purchaser would better select a 
cat past this age, that there be no disap¬ 
pointment.” 
Sale and Shipment.— “ Do you send 
your cats to purchasers at a distance ?” 
I asked Mrs. Barker. 
“ Yes, I sent a fine animal to Chicago 
yesterday. When shipping, I put the cat 
in a box with a slatted cover. A cushion 
is put in the bottom, and a drinking-cup 
fastened in one corner. A loosely- 
wrapped package of meat is also put in.” 
“ Are customers secured by advertis¬ 
ing ? ” 
“That has hardly seemed necessary 
w th me. Our picturesque neighborhood 
is much visited by strangers and, my 
kennels being well-known, they are 
visited as an object of interest. One 
tells another of the Sparrow’s Roost 
cats, and this leads to outside sales.” 
Cat-Breeding for Women. —“You 
would think, then, that cat-breeding 
would be a satisfactory source of money¬ 
getting for women ? ” 
“ Without going so far as to say that 
a woman may make this her livelihood, 
she could certainly earn a respectable 
amount of pin-money in this way. But 
I would not advise any beginner to start 
on an extensive scale ; a pair or trio of 
cats is ample. Good specimens should 
be selected to found the family.” 
“Can one keep to one color or type 
only, in so breeding?” 
“ There is sure to be variation, no 
matter what the mating, but some varia¬ 
tions are rarer than others. Solid black, 
without any admixture of other tint, is 
rare and valuable. A brown tabby, 
evenly marked with white on feet and 
chest, is very handsome, and some shades 
of blue are very uncommon. The ‘blue’ 
cats vary from faint lavender gray to 
deep slate, like the ordinary Maltese.” 
Washing the Cats. — I asked Mrs. 
Barker whether it is necessary to wash 
these cats. 
“ It is not necessary, or advisable, for 
they are clean and dainty in their habits, 
and keep their coats in order. Washing 
tends to destroy the fine gloss of the 
hair, hut the coat may be brushed with 
a good hair brush. Sometimes it seems 
necessary to wash a white cat for some 
special occasion^ but pussy must be kept 
MOTHERS.—Be sure to use “Mrs. Wins¬ 
low's Soothing Syrup ” for your children 
while Teething. It is the Best.— Acto. 
in a warm place until fully dry, or pneu¬ 
monia may be developed. After wash¬ 
ing, a white cat should be rinsed in blu¬ 
ing, like a white garment, the result 
being fairly dazzling. White dogs are 
improved by a similar rinsing.” 
One little point that an amateur 
breeder is likely to overlook is the fact 
that it is impossible to keep several male 
Persians unless they are confined in sep¬ 
arate runs; if they meet one another 
while at large, the result is a row that 
would pale the record of the Kilkenny 
cats. 
Farmed-Out Cats —It is the practice, 
with some of the large cat dealers, to 
farm out their stock, instead of keeping 
them in extensive home kennels, as their 
customers suppose. They buy promising 
families and send them to a country 
home to be cared for. This is certainly 
an excellent thing for the constitution 
and health of the cats ; the disadvantage 
is that the seller knows little about the 
cats, and cannot always fill an order 
satisfactorily in consequence, thus dis¬ 
appointing the buyer. There is also 
some uncertainty as to whether the 
farmed-out cats are house-broken, and 
properly cared for as to their coats. 
Mr. Barker’s Dogs. —The dogs, which 
are brought up harmoniously with the 
cats, are Collies and French poodles, all 
fine pedigree animals. The poodles, Mr. 
Barker says, are not now so fashionable 
as they once were, though very intelli¬ 
gent and companionable. They are good 
field dogs, though they do not seem to 
be given much recognition in that capac¬ 
ity. The Collies are among the bi st of 
farm dogs, hardy, faithful, sagacious 
and good-tempered. I asked Mr. Barker 
whether he had bred Fox terriers, but 
he declared them too full of mischief to 
be safe companions for the cats. 
Buff Frizzled Fowls. —This is the 
only breed of poultry Mr. Barker keeps, 
and he has much to say in their praise. 
They are early and persistent layers, ap¬ 
pearing to equal the Leghorns in this 
particular, and their oddity always 
makes them attractive for exhibition. 
This is an African breed, originally com¬ 
ing, I believe, from Mosambique, and 
the buff color is a later development in 
this, as in other breeds. I heard a woman 
at the last New York poultry show de¬ 
scribe them as “those scared-looking 
chickens,” and this description is not at 
all inapt, considering their disheveled 
curls of feathers. They receive exactly 
the same treatment as other fowls. 
E. T. R. 
B.&B. 
price 
is nothing till you see the goods. 
The way this store makes its prices of 
advantage to you is with choice styles 
and qualities — better goods for the 
money — large assortments to choose 
from. 
CHOOSE FOR YOURSELF. 
We usually advertise a specimen bargain from 
one of‘our catalogues, but we don’t do so in this 
advertisement because we're perplexed. Our 
furniture catalogue consists of 160 pages, every 
page filled with bargains. Now, how are we to 
select one? We say to you, if there’s anything 
on earth in the furniture or carpet line that 
you want, you'll find it in our catalogues at 
least 40 per cent, cheaper than you can buy it 
anywhere else. 
Would we spend our money advertising our 
furniture and carpet catalogues (they’re abso¬ 
lutely free, not even a stamp necessary) if they 
weren't worth having? Not much. If you 
get these catalogues you'll see for yourself 
what an enormous amount you can save by 
buying from mill owners and furniture manu¬ 
facturers like we are. 
That carpet catalogue that we are so anxious 
you should have, is the finest thing an artist 
ever designed, and you can select carpet from 
it just as though you were in the sample room 
of one of our mills, because it’s lithographed *n 
ten colors from hand painted plates. 
We couldn’t exaggerate the value of our fur¬ 
niture cataloge if we tried. Just think of 160 
large pages devoted to furniture, and every 
page filled with bargains. Will you be a friend 
to yourself? Will you write for those cata¬ 
logues at once? Address (exactly as below.) 
JULIUS HINES & SON, 
Dept. 330 Baltimore, Md. 
t 
♦ 
J 
JIL$9.50 BUYS AS VICTORS'** 
| Adapted to Light and Heavy Work. Reliable and Finely 
Finished; Guaranteed for 10 Years. Write for 32 Page 0 dia¬ 
logue. Attachments Free. 30 DAYS FREE TRIAL Address 
l Dept. 629,VICTOR MFG. CO., 295-297 Fifth Ave., Chicago. 
MACKINTOSHES. 
Men’s all wool Tricot, $5.00 
Ladles’ cashmere two-cape, $4.00 
These waterproof garments would cost you $10.00 
each in any retail store. Send money order for 
sample, stating bust measure and length. Agents 
wanted everywhere. Address, 
M. F. REESE SUPPLY CO., Setauket, N. Y. 
Here are 44 first-class tools for repair¬ 
ing shoes, rubber, harness and tinware. 
We are going to give no arguments why 
you should have them. The reasons and 
uses are apparent to every one. There 
is nothing like mending a bole, putting 
in a stitch, or driving a nail in time. It 
always saves time and money. It often 
saves lives. The price is $2.50 alone, but 
it need cost you only SI.50. Send us S3.50 
with one new subscription, and we will 
PUNCH 
SOLDER 
SOLDER IRON 
WHENCE.. 
HEELPLATES 
BRISTLES 
■ 
HEELPLATES 1 
RIVETS 
NEEDLES 
Rubber 
CEMENm 
HOME 
REPAIRING OUTFIT N2 1 
Shoe.Harness andTinwareRepairing . 
send you the outfit complete. As you 
get $1 for the new subscription, the out¬ 
fit will cost you only $1.50. This is about 
what it costs us at wholesale, but we are 
willing to give you the benefit in order 
to get the new subscription started. 
We will send you this outfit free for a 
club of six subscriptions, new or renewal, 
at $1 each. 
Send for samples neat all-wool Dress 
Goods Novelties and Mixtures, 35c. 
yard—goods and prices will show we’re 
determined to get business by making it 
pay you to buy here. 
Hundred styles fine Dress Goods, 35c. 
yard —compare with any at 75c. And 
nobby styles 85c., we’d like you to 
compare with any at a dollar and see 
what you’ll save here. 
42-inch all-wool Black Jacquards, 35c. 
—made to sell for not less than half a 
dollar. 
Fine Silks 50c. to $3—200 pieces plain 
and striped and plaid Taffetas 75c. 
yard —superb quality for the money. 
Send your name and address for the 
new catalogue, ready soon. 
BOGGS & BUHL, 
Department C, 
ALLEGHENY, PA. 
QUO VADIS. 
This is, no doubt, the grandest his¬ 
torical romance of the century. It is a 
tale of the time of Nero, and gives an 
intensely graphic description of the cus¬ 
toms and daily life in Rome during his 
time. We see Rome in opulence, with 
her mercenary politicians and alien rab¬ 
ble. We follow the great apostles Peter 
and Paul in their daily ministrations 
among the early Christians, and learn 
from the purity and sanctity of their 
lives the secret of the rapid growth of 
the new religion of charity and love. 
We witness their trials and sufferings, 
and martyrdom. We see the gladiatorial 
combats, and realize the iniquities and 
rottenness of the empire, which fore¬ 
shadow its certain fall. The author is 
the Polish Henryk Sienkiewicz, and the 
translation has been done with great 
care into the clearest English. It has 
had the greatest sale of modern books. 
Price, in cloth, postpaid, 75 cents; paper, 
25 cents. The paper edition will he sent 
free to any one who sends one subscription 
to The R. N.-Y. for a neighbor with $1. 
The Rural New-Yorker, New York. 
