1901 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
6i5 
HOPE FARM NOTES 
This appears to be examination week 
for the Hope Farm man. The questions 
come in thick and fast, and 1 am not 
sure that I shall be able to “pass." We 
will try it anyway. 
Tail, Holdeus. —Here is a tale of a 
troublous tail from New York State; 
We have a horse which has the habit, 
of years’ standing, of catching the rein 
with his taii and hugging it very tightiy; 
this habit took him off a narrow bridge 
and into the creek last night, when hitched 
to a reaper; no serious harm resulted, but 
the next wrong move may not prove so 
fortunate, and now will you tell me how 
the bad habit can be remedied? We have 
been advised to have his tail drawn tight¬ 
ly up over his back and left for 12 hours, 
when the ability to hug the rein will be 
removed and the horse not harmed, n. i. 
Our old Major has just that trick. Ha 
is as expert with his tail as a boxer is 
with his arms. He will go jogging along 
apparently half asleep. The driver will 
touch him up with the whip, and quick 
as a flash that old brown tail will dart 
over one of the lines and hold it so tight 
that the horse will nearly turn himself 
around—especially when he is going 
away from home. We have done noth¬ 
ing for it except to hold the reins high¬ 
er and watch his tail! A number of 
remedies are suggested. A single strap 
longer than the crupper may oe buckled 
or tied around the tail about eight 
inches down from the root, and fastened 
tight to the back strap, so that the 
horse cannot crowd his tail down. The 
veterinarians, I am told, sometimes cut 
a muscle on the underside of the tail 
so that the horse loses power to press 
down upon the reins. This does not in¬ 
terfere with the side motions. I have 
heard of a loose bandage with tacks in¬ 
side being placed around the tail so that 
when the horse tried to “grasp the 
lines” he would see the point at once. 
Now some one will get up and say: 
“Why don’t you try some of tnese 
‘cui’es’ on Major’?” The fact is, that 
Major is too old a horse to do much mis¬ 
chief. The trick is not dangerous with 
him—simply annoying. With a younger 
horse 1 should certainly try “prohibi¬ 
tion”—with knife, tack or strap. 
FEATiiEJtED Cannibals. —Here is a 
question that beats me: 
I would like the Hope Farm man and 
other readers of The R. N.-Y. to tell me 
how to prevent young chickens from eat¬ 
ing each other. We have about 200 Black 
Minorcas that were hatched in an incuba¬ 
tor in May and June, and for the last 
three or four weeks they kill and eat each 
other, as high as three in one day. They 
have a roomy house and yards 20x60 feet 
to each 50 chicks. They are fed a variety 
of food, and green cut bone once a week. 
Can anyone give me a remedy? s. h. o. 
We have seldom had chickens act in 
that way. The little roosters fight some¬ 
times until one is killed, and I have 
known the rest to eat the one that was 
defeated, but that, with us, happens 
only now and then. We found the Min¬ 
orcas inclined to be quiet and peaceable 
—more so than the Leghorns. Several 
years ago a so-called “new breed” was 
offered, and it was claimed that they 
would kill and eat sparrows, rats and 
squirrels. These claims were pretty well 
founded, for the birds would fight like 
tigers. They had blood of the Javas 
in them. If I had these cannibals 1 
would separate the roosters from the 
pullets at once, as I think the former 
are doing most of the mischief. As 
soon as they are large enough I would 
sell every rooster that is not wanted, 
feeding them more meat and keeping 
them either at large or in smaller flocks. 
I do not think the pullets alone will do 
much damage. 
Damaged Wheat. —The following let¬ 
ter comes from Pennsylvania: 
What would you do in my case? I have 
300 bushels of wheat damaged by rain. 
Millers only offer 40 cents per bushel. I 
do not want to sell it for 40 cents, and I 
purpose to feed it to hogs, horses and 
cows, using oats and corn, along with 
good corn fodder and bright oat straw. 
Give me a balanced ration out of this feed. 
or should I feed something else along with 
it? A. s. 
That wheat Is certainly worth more 
than 40 cents a bushel. If I had it I 
would lay aside 100 bushels for chicken 
feed. We have never found anything 
better tnan whole wheat for chickens. 
I would take 50 bushels more for feeding 
little pigs and shotes. Scatter it in the 
yard or pasture where the pigs run, and 
they will get every kernel of it. Some 
people think a pig cannot pick up such 
a small grain. What a mistake! That 
wonderful under jaw of the pig will 
pick up clover seed if need be. I met 
a man out West who feeds all his wheat 
in this way, and the pigs pay him more 
than the millers. For work horses and 
cows I would grind two parts wheat, two 
parts oats and one part corn. For hogs 
1 would leave out the oats, and grind 
equal parts of corn and wheat. Oats are 
for the workers, and the cow works as 
hard as the horse does. This feed, with 
good, bright cornstalks, will make a 
fair ration, but as I am situated it 
would pay me to feed in addition to 
each cow daily a pint of oil meal, and 
the same to the horses three times a 
week. 
Gbubs ^vnd Potatoes. —^The following 
note came from North Carolina with a 
sample of the insect: 
i planted a small piece of land in pota¬ 
toes which proved productive of fair-sized 
tubers, but a “grub” or some kind of a 
black-headed worm has eaten them three- 
fifths to such an extent that they are 
ruined. Can you give me the name of the 
insect and state a remedy? Sample of 
potato and grub mailed under separate 
cover. w. J. w. 
The insect proves to be the common 
white grub. Our own potatoes are alive 
with them. We have found one or more 
in every hill thus far, and they are like¬ 
ly to get more potatoes than we are. 1 
have seen them on potatoes before, but 
never knew them to do so much damage 
as they have this season. They have 
destroyed the strawberry plants, but 
have not seriously damaged other crops 
for me before now. I regret to say that 
there is no practical way of fighting 
them. Of course the potatoes should be 
dug as soon as they are ready. Con¬ 
stant cultivation through the season 
will set the teeth of the next generation 
of white grubs on edge, and Fall plow¬ 
ing, leaving the ground exposed, will 
kill out many. But what is the use of 
talking “constant cultivation” when you 
can’t get into the field without rubber 
boots? I regret to say that you will 
have to let those white grubs fatten on 
the tubers until they are ready to dig. 
Cloveu Hay. —Another farmer in 
Pennsylvania presents this problem; 
Last Spring we seeded a six-acre lot to 
barley, and with it one bushel of clover 
and one of Timothy seed. At this writing 
we have the finest growth of clover I ever 
saw. What shall we do with it? It is 
now in full bloom. Shall we pasture it, 
make hay, or let it fall on the ground? 
if the latter, I fear the plants w'ill bo 
smothered out. It will be a difficult task 
to make hay at this time, as we are having 
so much wet weather. How would you 
handle it if it was on Hope Farm? 
J. T. R. 
If I had that clover I would do just 
as I shall try to do with the clover in 
the orchard—cut it when ready. I need 
more hay. I don’t believe in letting the 
first growth of clover die down. I 
would clip it anyway even if I had to 
leave it on the ground. We could feed 
a good deal of it to the stock without 
curing. It is not so hard to cure clover 
hay in damp weather if we go at it just 
right. The “curing” must be done in 
cocks, and it won’t do to let it go half- 
cocked, either. In good-sized firm piles 
the clover will “sweat” out much of the 
moisture in the stems—provided the 
leaves are not dried out early in the 
game. I would feed such clover out 
early to the cows, but I would try to 
cure it anyway. 
Frogs and Mushrooms. —Here is a 
Jersey man with a suggestion for some 
of the agricultural croakers: 
Can you give me any information about 
the raising of frogs for market, or can you 
direct me as to some reading by which I 
can receive such information? I shall be 
giateful if you can give me some knowl¬ 
edge of the business. I also wish to learn 
something about the cultivation of mush¬ 
rooms. ■. z.. J. 
The best Information I can give is 
that “frog farming” is one of the theor¬ 
ies that burst at a puff of practice. 
There is a fair demand now for frog’s 
legs in the best markets, and it is a 
favorite scheme for the man who knows 
nothing about it to figure the vast 
profits of frog farming. It looks easy, 
but the trouble with frog farming is the 
fact that Mr. Frog himself is remark¬ 
ably fond of frogs’ legs! It is quite 
easy to hatch out the little fellows, but 
almost impossible to protect them from 
their relatives. The older frogs devour 
the little ones and ruin the business. A 
pamphlet on frogs will be sent on ap¬ 
plication to the United States Fish Com¬ 
missioner at Washington. Of the great 
quantities of frogs that come to market 
practically all are caught one at a time 
in ponds and streams. A book that will 
give you an idea of mushroom culture 
is. Mushrooms—How to Grow Them, by 
W. Falconer; price $1 from this office. 
We have never attempted the culture of 
mushrooms. I have seen them growing 
in dark cellars, but have always felt 
disposed to leave their production to 
those who are specially fitted to handle 
this special product. 
Loafing Hens. —Here is a man from 
North Carolina with a question that 
never dies: 
What would you advise to make hens 
lay that have open field and woods to run 
In? We have about 15 and hardly get an 
egg a day. o. j. h. 
I don’t believe you can make those 
hens lay until they get I’eady. We have 
now about 35 hens, and they lay from 
four to six eggs per day. They have be¬ 
gun to moult, and we presume your 
bens are also calling in Nature’s dress¬ 
maker to fit them with a new Winter’s 
suit. An old married man with several 
years’ experience in family matters will 
tell you that when Mother anu the girls 
are getting ready for the dressmaker 
he must expect plain fare and little at¬ 
tention. He will tell you that it will 
all be made up to him later when those 
dresses fit. It is about so with a hen. 
Some people tell how easy it is to crowd 
a hen through her moulting season and 
make her forget that she ever had 
feathers, but I have never been able to 
do it. We have fed meat, sunflowers 
and oil meal. A few of the hens seemed 
to lay even when they were so bare that 
they had no place under which to lay 
their head, but most of them shut up 
shop completely no matter what they 
are fed. My opinion is that those hens 
will do little laying beside laying off 
until they get their new clothes on. 1 
should either line my soul with patience 
and wait, or line the stomachs of my 
family with chicken pie—and wait not! 
Farm Notes. —The rain still keeps up. 
A day without at least one shower is as 
rare as an angel’s visit is said to be— 
though most of us entertain angels un¬ 
awares every hour. We have scarcely 
been able to turn a furrow all through 
August. I hoped by this time to have 
the wheat land all plowed at least. The 
lower part of the farm is nearly knee 
deep in mud. We have cut off the weeds 
where we could not plow them or pull 
them up. . . . The second cutting of 
the “Clark” grass will not amount to 
much. Rain and fertilizer will do much, 
but they cannot do it all without sun, 
and grass will not give satisfaction un¬ 
less the sun shines on it. . . . The 
corn crop is very promising—that is, the 
stalks are tall and of good color. We 
shall have a large amount of fodder, 
but unless the weather changes, it will 
be impossible to cure it properly. The 
grain is forming well, though I shall not 
be surprised if there are few kernels on 
many cobs. . . . Lima beans and 
melons are largely grown by farmers 
in this section, but this year they are 
minus quantities. In former years we 
have made entire meals out of Lima 
beans and bread and butter, but this 
year the best we can make is a “suc¬ 
cotash” of sweet corn and a few Limas 
to give it a little color. However, we 
don’t starve—not by a good deal. There 
are 25 or more young roosters out in the 
coop, and a sure supply of apples, plums, 
pears, beets, cabbage, onions, potatoes, 
peppers, tomatoes and turnips. We have 
had from 12 to 17 people in the family 
all Summer, and so far as I know they 
have all had enough to eat. 
Few have skipped a meal, for in spite 
of the constant rain, the soaking ground 
and a wet cellar this has been a healthy 
Summer. Me have had no serious sick¬ 
ness. On the other hand, Hope Farm 
has been able to provide a refuge for 
several good people whose nerves and 
muscles gave out in the fierce strain of 
fighting society for a living. They will 
go hack to their work with clearer eyes, 
stouter hearts, well-packed bones and a 
little bunch of the Madame’s faith and 
hope under their Jackets. If I could put 
a market value on some of these thipgs 
we could figure out a fortune this year. 
H. w. o. 
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