THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
EEB i5 
father bought and moved on a farm in 
Wapping, East Windsor, Hartford County, 
Connecticut. Before moving to Windsor, 
my father followed the sea. After 1829 he 
went on a steamboat from N. Y. to Hart¬ 
ford until the fall of ’36. Meanwhile grand¬ 
father and a hired man carried on the farm, 
father being home during the winter. My 
father kept a number of cows and a large 
flock of sheep. He used to cut a large 
amount of hay and it was cut with a scythe. 
I remember it used to take a long time to 
get the haying done. I have seen occasions 
when my grandfather, if he saw a shower 
coming up, would go and put two poles 
under a pile of hay and- the boys and men 
would take hold and carry the hay into the 
barn, to save it from getting wet. He 
raised rye, oats for feed, corn and potatoes. 
About the first thing I remember doing to 
help on the farm was learning to milk dur¬ 
ing haying and harvest. Being the oldest 
child, I had to get up the cows at night, 
and then help to milk. One summer, I 
milked 10 cows at night, and eight in the 
morning. I liked to do it and used to be 
afraid the men folks would get through 
their own work and want to help. There 
is not so much improvement in that kind 
of work, I believe, as there is in everything 
else pertaining to farm labor. 
During harvest grandpa used to take 
down his scythe and start for the field to 
reap the rye and oats. I used to go and 
watch him and think I could help also. 
He was called a fast reaper. I do not know 
what a day’s work was; but my husband 
says an acre was a day’s work. My father 
kept a yoke of oxen and one working horse. 
He had a big two-wheeled cart and when 
he drew the grain or hay two wide ladders 
were put at each end of the cart. He had a 
small V-drag with—I believe—wooden teeth, 
a wooden plow, rakes, forks, a shovel or 
two and two or three scythes. These tools 
would not make much of a show by the 
side of Mr. Terry’s farm implements. 
I don’t know which made the more on 
the farm—my father or mother. Mother 
made butter and cheese to sell, and she 
used to get a big price for her butter. She 
used i o make cloth to sell and for the fami¬ 
ly for winter clothing. I was the oldest of 
a family of eight children. In 1837 and ’88 
we lived in Hartford. Father sold his farm 
in ’37 and went West in ’38 and the chil¬ 
dren went to school. In the spring of ’39 
we left our native home and came to Ohio, 
near Sandusky. Father purchased a farm 
for $25 per acre, and I have lived on a farm 
ever since. The first cradling of grain I 
ever saw was after we came to Ohio, in the 
summer of ’39. I thought that was the 
greatest kind of an improvement as they 
could cut the wheat so fast. The first 
thrashing machine I saw at work was in 
1840. My father hired one to thrash his 
wheat and oats. They had on eight or 10 
horses; but no straw-carrier and it did not 
clean the wheat, but then it was a great im¬ 
provement on the flail. 
Well, I guess they were there four or five 
days. Some part of the machine would 
break and they would have to stop and go 
to town and get something done, and then 
go to work again. Father had to feed the 
horses and 12 or 14 men who did nothing 
but stand around when the machine stopped 
working, and one can imagine how an old 
sea captain sometimes talked under such 
provoking circumstances. 
In 1847 great improvements had been 
made in thrashers. My husband was help¬ 
ing a neighbor to thrash, and the thrasher- 
men told the latter they had a machine 
that would thrash and clean the wheat and 
carry the straw away from the barn all at 
the same time. The neighbor said that 
that was impossible, and that it could 
never be done. That man was a mechanic, 
and quite a genius too, he thought. Now 
they take the separator on the road with a 
traction engine, thrash and clean the grain, 
measure every bushel, and do as much in 
one day as they used to in four or five. 
I was married in 1842 to Wm. R. Covell, 
and have had a family of eight children— 
three sons and five daughters. I have al¬ 
ways done my own work except when sick¬ 
ness prevented me. I have at all times 
done all my own sewing and taught my 
girls to do housework and their own sew¬ 
ing. We used formerly to raise more* wheat 
than we do now. Wheat, oats, corn and 
potatoes were our main crops; but for the 
last 20 years we have raised small fruits, 
strawberries, raspberries and blackberries, 
vegetables for market, potatoes, tomatoes, 
cauliflower, cabbages, celery, onions and cu¬ 
cumbers for pickles, squashes and melons. 
This year has been a bad one. The potato 
beetle was not satisfied with potatoes, but 
was determined to take all the tomatoes 
too, so we had to plant over two or three 
times. 
Since we have carried on gardening I 
have worked more or less out-of-doors, not 
because I was obliged to, but because I like 
it. There are a great many things I can 
do. I think my health is better when out 
in the open air and I love to see everything 
growing. We raise our own wheat for 
bread, and some to sell. We raise oats 
and corn and sell some oats, but feed the 
corn to stbck. We keep horses, cows, and 
hogs. I make butter to sell. I don’t 
have to buy chickens or eggs, but gener¬ 
ally have some to sell. We have had some 
trials and some misfortunes, but in all 
God has been with us. We have taken the 
R. N.-Y. for a great many years, even when 
it was Moore’s Rural New-Yorker. 
My husband takes a good many farm jour¬ 
nals, but he likes the Rural the best of 
all. I also take great interest in the part 
devoted to woman’s work, domestic econ¬ 
omy and Sunday-evening talks at the 
Rural Grounds: it is all good and in¬ 
structive. 
MRS. ANNIE C. DUNN. 
NINTH PRIZE. 
[Mrs. Dunn’s report of her yield and how 
it was raised apoeared on page 836—De¬ 
cember 21. Eds.] 
the droppings of the winter from 15 hens 
counted for nothing. Entire expense 
$10.00. The seeds sown or planted, compris¬ 
ed peas, cucumbers, summer squash, water 
and musk-melons, sweet corn, lettuce, po¬ 
tatoes, onions and turnips. The plants set 
were cabbages and tomatoes. The flower 
seeds sown were portulaca, petunia, phlox, 
dwarf nasturtiums, poppy, gladioli, castor- 
oil bean and marigold. The dates of plant¬ 
ing, germination, bloom and picking are 
presented below : 
Plowed garden, May 4. Planted one pint 
Burpee’s Extra Early Peas. 
May 13. Appearance above ground, nine 
days. 
June 1. Bushed them ; 18 inches high ; 
28 days. 
June 4. Bloomed ; 31 days. 
“ 22. First mess. 
July 4. Eleventh mess; pulled vines; 
two months. 
Yield, 10 pecks. Fertilizer, hen manure. 
Sod ground, no mildew. 
July 1. I planted one pint of Burpee’s 
Extra Early Peas. 
July 5. They^ appeared above ground 
four days from planting. 
July 23. They bloomed in 21.days. 
August 6. First mess. 
They mildewed and amounted to nothing. 
I had an idea that early peas planted late 
would be as good a crop as late peas planted 
early; but, although the same peas yielded 
Mrs. ELIZA DAY. Fig. 38. See First Page. 
I was born about 60 years ago in the 
County of Ayr, Scotland. I was more oc¬ 
cupied with needle and scissors than with 
anything else till I came to this couutry 
11 years ago. The first season after coming 
here I planted a few early potatoes near 
the house and was so delighted with the 
produce that ever since I have taken charge 
of the early potatoes, and knowing that 
good crops could be grown here I entered 
for the contest. 
A WOMAN’S GARDEN NOTES. 
Our back yard, measuring about 70 by 90 
feet, was plowed and harrowed on the 3d 
of May, 1889. Within it grew two pear, 
three maple and a quince tree, and a broad 
walk 24 inches wide and 90 feet long, is laid 
through it. The ground was sod, not rich, 
and poorly plowed. The seeds, purchased 
of Burpee, of Philadelphia, cost $7.30; 
plowing, $1.25; bone-dust, $1.00; cabbage 
and tomato plants, 45 cents. My work and 
well when planted in May, they were al¬ 
most a complete failure when planted in 
July. This year I shall know better and 
plant Champions or some other late variety. 
May 8, I planted packages of Burpee’s 
Hard-Head Lettuce. 
May 17. It germinated nine days after 
planting. 
July 4. First picking ; 56 days. It did 
not ripen seed. 
May 6. I planted Early Rose Potatoes. 
May 17. They showed sprouts 11 days 
after planting. 
June 11. Bloom ; 36 days. 
July 4. Eatable ; 59 days. 
“ No crop at all.” The R. N.-Y. can 
understand why. 
On May 11,1 planted one pint each of 
white and yellow onion sets. 
May 16. They sprouted. 
July 1. They were of eatable size—49 
days after planting. 
I harvested about three bushels in the 
fall. 
July 1. Planted White Globe and Early 
Red Turnips. 
July 5. Germinated in four days. 
I harvested about three and one-half 
bushels in the fall. 
June 18. I set 25 cabbage plants. 
December 2. I pulled 18 good cabbages. 
The land was fertilized with bone-dust. I 
picked off the worms and used the spade 
freely among the plants. Cut-worms de¬ 
stroyed four or five. 
On May 8, I planted 12 hills of Burpee’s 
Hungarian Water-melons. 
On May 15, they germinated—seven 
days after planting. 
June 29. They were in bloom; 52 days 
after planting. They were fertilized with 
night soil, and though the vines were luxu¬ 
riant and bloomed well, I did not get a 
melon. 
On May 8, I planted 12 hills of the 
Emerald Gem Musk-melons. 
On May 15, they germinated: seven 
days after planting. 
On June 26, they began to bloom—in 49 
days. They were fertilized the same as 
the water-melons, and gave a large crop. 
On May 19, I planted 12 hills of Early 
Russian Cucumber. 
On May 15, they germinated—in six 
days. 
On June 17, they showed bloom; in 39 
days. 
On June 30, they were eatable, being 
three inches long; in 52 days. The yield 
was large, the cucumbers were firm, with 
few seeds. They were fertilized the same 
as the melons. 
On May 8, I planted a package of Giant 
Summer Crookneck Squash. 
On May 17, they germinated—in nine 
days. 
On July 3, they were in bloom—in 56 
days after planting, and were eatable on 
July 3—63 days after planting. They were 
fertilized with hen manure. The squashes 
were few, but they were of excellent qual¬ 
ity and large size. 
On May 10, I planted one quart of 
the Cory Corn in a shady sod fertilized with 
hen manure. 
On May 11, it germinated, seven days 
after planting. 
On June 21, it bloomed, 42 days from 
germination. 
On July 14, a few ears were fit for the 
table—58 days from germination. 
On July 19, a full mess. We had a good 
yield. 
On June 22, I planted Cory Corn: the 
ground was fertilized with rich hen-yard 
dung. 
On June 29, it appeared above ground, 
and on August 1 was in bloom. 
On August 23, we had a mess for dinner. 
The yield was not as good as the earlier 
crops; but it continued to bear until 
September 16, wheu the last mess was eaten. 
The flowers were grown successfully, and 
were a source of great pleasure. The 
whole garden—as will be seen—was small, 
but I think that the yield could be fairly 
estimated as worth at least twice the out¬ 
lay upon it. My work counted as nothing, 
the flowers and my good health compensat¬ 
ing for it. A. TROMAN. 
Westfield, N. J. 
form Copies. 
CANADIAN NOTES. 
Silage as feed for horses: tomatoes for 
cows; effect of fiost in the silo; the 
Canadian thistle as fodder; agriculture 
in Canada. 
Reading over the correspondence in the 
R. N.-Y. of December 25th on the subject of 
feeding silage to horses, reminds me of the 
fact that I promised to send you the result 
of my experiments in siloing Canadian 
thistles as a winter feed for stock. In a 
previous letter I described how I siloed 
three heavy wagon-loads of thistles with 
a small percentage of spring wheat mixed 
through them, the thistles being in bloom 
and the wheat in the milk stage. The ex¬ 
periment has proved to be a complete suc¬ 
cess. Milch cows, horses and young stock 
eat the thistle silage greedily, and the cows 
especially seem to relish it as a change from 
the corn. I am wintering 12 horses, seven 
of which are working animals, two colts, 
and my driving horse. They have not eat¬ 
en a pound of hay this winter; they are fed 
entirely on silage composed principally of 
green oats, vetches and peas, the balance 
being thistles, mustard, lamb’s quarter and 
other weeds that grew on an exceedingly 
rich and dirty piece of ground, mixed with 
cut sheaf oats. They get a very small 
ration of bran and provender, and are all 
in good condition. One team that had been 
in a lumber camp for two months and 
