THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
February 24, 
i5o 
Papering Painted Walls. 
I). V. 11. (No Address ).—We have been 
having considerable trouble with wall paper 
coming loose from painted plaster walls. In 
fact a number of people in this vicinity have 
had the same trouble. Is it possible to pa¬ 
per such walls and be sure that the paper 
will stick? We have followed the usual di¬ 
rections as to washing walls with ammonia, 
etc. 
A NS. —Walls that arc painted with oil 
paint can be papered, and the paper will 
adhere perfectly if the walls are washed 
or coated with diluted ammonia, one part 
ammonia to three parts of water; over 
that a thin coat of glue size, or if coated 
with elite size with a little sal soda it will 
usually keep paper tightly on painted 
walls. On plastered walls, not painted, a 
thin coat of glue size is all that is neces¬ 
sary. 
Gas By-Products for Fertilizers. 
G. It., Proctor, B. G .—I am in recent 
receipt of a communication from a local gas 
works relative to their output: in by-products 
of fertilizing elements. They report that 
they can put their output of ammonia on the 
market in two forms (1) “as a semi-coucen- 
trated gas liquor of say 10-ounce strength” 
or (2) "as sulphate of ammonia,” which they 
explain is the gas liquor treated with sul¬ 
phuric acid. The company gives the nitrogen 
content of sulphate of ammonia as 21.2 per 
cent as against 10.4 per cent in nitrate of 
soda. The nitrogen content of the gas liquor 
they do not state, but strongly advocate its 
use on the land in the liquid form. As to 
price, tlie gas people say that they are pre¬ 
pared to place their products on the market 
“well within the price charged for imported 
fertilizers.” I would like to ask as to the 
merits and demerits of these two fertilizers— 
the gas liquor and sulphate of ammonia—if 
better or as good results are likely to be ob¬ 
tained as by the use of nitrate of soda at an 
equal price and what losses, if any, would 
he entailed by the application of the gas 
liquor, and what “10 ounce strength” means. 
Ans. —The term “as a semi-concentrat¬ 
ed gas liquor of say 10-ounce strength” 
probably means 10 ounces of ammonia 
per gallon of liquor. From one ton of 
gas liquor of this strength 400 pounds of 
sulphate of ammonia may be obtained 
as a rule. Ammoniacal liquor is, how¬ 
ever, an impure solution of carbonate and 
acetate of ammonia, and is liable to vary 
somewhat in its composition. Sulphate 
of ammonia is derived from this gas 
liquor by driving off the ammonia gas 
in the liquor, and allowing it to pass into 
a lead-lined tank containing oil of vitriol 
of about 1.512 specific gravity. This salt 
is washed and purified, recrystallized, and 
when pure does contain 21.20 per cent 
of nitrogen, as compared with 16.47 per 
cent of nitrogen in pure nitrate of soda. 
Commercial sulphate of ammonia and the 
commercial nitrate of soda are not pure 
salts, the ammonia containing, on the 
average, about 20 per cent of nitrogen, 
and the nitrate containing 15.5 to 10.0 
per cent of nitrogen. The ammoniacal 
liquor may be used as a top-dressing for 
grass lands, though it should be diluted 
from eight to 10 times its bulk, and 
should the weather prove dry, the ten¬ 
dency would be to burn the grass. It 
may also be used as a top-dressing for 
cereal crops, and it has also been used 
for destroying moss in grass lands, and 
for this purpose it has proved of more 
benefit than lime. 
I should, however, recommend that the 
ammonia be used in the form of a sul¬ 
phate, rather than in the form of a 
liquor. Experiments have shown that 
sulphate of ammonia is one of the best 
sources of nitrogen, and- is nearly equal 
to nitrate of soda. Tn wet seasons, it 
would be likely to prove quite as valuable 
as nitrate, whereas in dry seasons the 
nitrate would be superior. If nitrate is 
sold at $50 per ton, a ton of sulphate of 
ammonia should cost, at the same rate 
per pound of nitrogen, about $65 per 
ton. There can be no question as to the 
value of sulphate of ammonia used as 
such. There is a question as to whether 
it would pay better to use the ammoniacal 
liquor on account of the expense t f ap¬ 
plying and the danger of its use, pro¬ 
vided unfavorable conditions follow. 
E. B. VOORHEES. 
New Jersey Exp. Station. 
Keeping Bees on Shares. 
J. it. P., Jermyn, Pa .—There is a man 
here in the town who has eight hives of bees. 
He wishes to sell them or let them out on 
shares. Whut are they worth to buy at this 
time of year, or on what condition could I 
take them on shares? 
Ans. —Bees in midwinter usually do 
not bring as good a price as in the Spring. 
This Winter, until within a few days, 
has been comparatively mild, and this 
would have a bearing upon the value of 
the bees. Colonies in box hives should 
not be worth more than $2 for the best 
of them. Those in frame hives, if in fair¬ 
ly good condition and of good strength, 
would be worth anywhere from $.'! to $5. 
If the man who has the bees for sale does 
not care much for the bees he probably 
has not given them much attention, and 
$25 should be a good round sum for the 
lot. If your correspondent desires to keep 
them on shares he can do so, but we 
would strongly urge him to buy the bees 
outright, because keeping bees on shares 
has not proven to be very satisfactory, 
as a rule, to either party. The basis of 
division wc advise is about as follows: 
The owner of the bees furnishes the lo¬ 
cation, hives, implements, bees and in re¬ 
turn shares equally in the honey and the 
wax, and in addition all the increase in 
the way of swarms. The other party per¬ 
forms all the labor, sharing equally in the 
wax and honey, and both parties share 
equally in the cost of shipping cases, 
honey boxes and honey packages. 
E. R. R. 
Building an Icehouse. 
IT. L. U., Newport, Pa .—I wish to build an 
icehouse, 10 x 10 inside, about eight feet 
high. Would it be advisable to build it of 
stone? We would cement the sides and 
bottom inside and have the drainage into 
a snringhouse. Would it be necessary to 
have a double wail with air chamber; if we 
build it of solid stone? And would we need 
to put sawdust around the edges in packing? 
We think sawdust not necessary, and thought 
we could just pack it in solid. 
Ans. —If your correspondent builds and 
fills his icehouse in the manner he con 
templates, 1 fear , that his ice supply will 
not last him long. Stone, being a good 
conductor of heat, is a poor material for 
icehouse construction. If the house is 
made of two walls with a dead-air space 
between, and if sawdust is packed be¬ 
tween the ice and the wall, probably it 
would work all right. But an icehouse 
can be built more cheaply out of rough 
lumber, using studding two by ten inches 
and double boarding. Pack sawdust 
tightly in this space, and also pack about 
eight inches of sawdust between the inner 
wall and the ice. Pack ice lightly, ar¬ 
range for drainage so that warm air does 
not get under the ice. and provide for 
ventilation above the ice, and you have 
the main essentials for keeping ice. Cover 
the ice with one to two feet of sawdust. 
But I would advise building the house 
larger. The size indicated is too small to 
keep ice all the season in that climate. It 
should be 12x12x12 at least. g. d. 
Tut: Eikie Apple. — I noticed several weeks 
ago some one enquired about the Ikey 
apple. He probably meant Eikie, a Nebraska 
seedling which is being successfully fruited 
in northwest Iowa. l. a. c. 
Storm Lake, Iowa. 
Farm Horses.— Most of the farm horses 
here are raised by farmers. The are satis¬ 
factory, and cost from $150 to $200. The 
blocky type from 1,200 pounds up, and nearly 
all bred from Percheron sires, seem to suit 
best. Western horses do not seem to last 
1 had a |>a ir that were both used up with 
heaves at about 13 years old. l. j. c. 
Baldwinsville, N. Y. 
Depec’-’ye Wire. — I think you are on the 
right trac. in your conclusion that the fault 
with modei;. wire is in the material of which 
it is made, and not as some claim the poor 
quality of the galvanizing. We have black 
No. 0 wire never even painted in some of our 
picket fences that is now in good condition 
after 16 or IS years use, and a roll of No. 1” 
galvanized poultry netting in good condition 
after 16 or 18 yars use, and a roll of No. 1” 
wire that has never been in use yet. although 
galvanized, is ready to drop to pieces after 
two years’ exposure to the weather up off 
the ground. d. e. r. 
I’ayson, Ill. 
The official report of the Connecticut Experiment Station for the year 1904, contains the analyses of over two hundred brands 
of mixed fertilizers (samples taken in the market). In this report of analyses the MAPES MANURES are given the highest valua¬ 
tion of all and on the ordinary basis of figuring “ valuations; ” no benefit is received by theMapes Manures for the superior and more 
costly forms of Potash, Nitrate of Potash and Carbonate of Potash (eight cents instead of five cents per lb.) nor of the superior 
forms in Peruvian Guano. 
The Mapes Complete Manures 
Contain the Highest Grade Materials and the Most Soluble and 
Valuable Plant-Food Forms Known 
No. i Pure Peruvian Guano Rectified (by our special treatment to improve its solu¬ 
bility, without acidity), Bone, nitrate of potash, carbonate of potash, nitrate of soda, sul¬ 
phate of ammonia, etc., etc. Without knowledge of the sources or character of the materials 
used in making a mixed fertilizer the chemist is unable to determine the plant food value 
of the ingredients, particularly organic nitrogen, phosphoric acid insoluble, and all forms of 
potash. The following are the official analyses issued by the Connecticut State 
Agricultural Station, 1904-1905: 
Mapes Top Dresser, full strength *See note. 
Official Number. Ammonia. Phosphoric Acid. Potash.* 
11775 Found 12 17 7.92 6 51 
14191 Found 11.97 8 44 5.41 
Guarantee 12_ 8_ 4 
Mapes Top Dresser, half strength (Half Plaster) 
17757 Found 6.52 4.08 3.10 
143~4 Found 6.01 4 54 2 83 
Guarantee 6 4 9 
Vegetable or Complete for Light Soils 
11730 Found 7.55 8 16 
14193 Found 6 48 8.66 
Guarantee 6 8 
JSee note. 
Official Number. 
11591 
11913 
12130 
14441 
Tobacco Manure, Wrapper Brand 
Found 
Found 
Found 
Found 
Average 4 Samples, 
Ammonia. 
Phosphoric Acid. 
Potash.* 
8.00 
5 68 
10 21 
8.14 
5 39 
10 50 
7 90 
5 35 
11 10 
7.89 
6 96 
11 08 
7 98 
5 59 
10 72 
J 7 50 
4.50 
10.50 
Nearly all soluble. 
'Ammonia total 12.17 insoluble (organic) 0.43. Phos. acid total, 7.92, insol. 2.14. Potash 0.51. All soluble, 
t " ” 7.55 " “ 0.C1.. 8.10, “ 1.99. " 7.35. " 
For highest scientific testimony on the practical dangers and 
loss to the fanner from acidity, see pages 6, 7, 8, in theMapes 
Descriptive Pamphlets, 190G, (mailed free). 
See reports in advertisement in next week’s issue Rural New-Yorker on record crops, 
wheat, oats, potatoes, corn, etc., grown with the Mapes Fertilizers. 
