89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
December 1, 
made that will not let the hens scatter feed, and they 
either stick in their feed or run too freely. This 
trough, Fig. 400, may he made any length; we use 
A 
A 
ci: ^ 
<---; 
TIIE BURR POULTRY TROUGH. Fig. 400. 
them from three to seven feet long; they are made 
from six-inch siding and the cover is four inches 
above edge of feed box. The turned-in edge is three 
inches wide, and absolutely prevents “side-swiping” of 
feed. The cover swings open to allow filling, and they 
are filled every two days. The feed before the hens 
at all times was H. O. poultry feed and best sweet 
beef scrap mixed in equal parts, and mixed grains, 
barley, oats, cracked corn and wheat; clean, fresh 
water at all times. In the Winter carrots, sugar beets 
and steamed clover or Alfalfa. One man took care 
of four houses, making the labor charge for each 
house $15 per month, and the interest or rental and 
depreciation also $15 per month. Some of these pul¬ 
lets were moved to average the other houses, some 
were sold and some new ones brought in. You will 
note these each month : 
Month. 
Number 
of Hens. 
Died. 
Removed 
or Added. 
Eggs. 
Cost of 
Feed. 
January .. 
.. .990-940 
0 
38 
8,327 
$74.59 
February .. 
.. .940-942 
4 
Feed cost per dozen, . 
0 9,012 
1008 c. 
75.10 
March. . ... 
...942-758 
4 
180 
11,510 
09.45 
April . 
. ..758-098 
10 
50 
12,475 
70.91 
May . 
.. .098-720 
12 
Feed cost 
added 42 
per dozen, 
12,338 
.073 c. 
01.20 
June . 
. . .720-718 
8 
11,190 
■ 70.59 
July . 
.. .718-702 
10 
7,840 
59,38 
August . .. 
. . .702-591 
12 
170 
5,185 
50.94 
September . 
11 
3,802 
42.13 
Feed cost per dozen .1272 cents. No account is 
made of the lawn clippings and other green feed used, 
as the manure is worth 30 cents per hen per year, and 
more than pays for it. These figures show the profit 
from a flock of hens kept in the “Burr” house where 
they have unlimited fresh air without draft, are dry, 
cool in Summer and comfortable in Winter, with 
clean, dry, airy sleeping quarters; no cocks to bother 
them, no pens to worry them, with a chance to balance 
their own ration. Some green bone was fed during 
the Winter and as soon as our engine is installed we 
will feed it every day this Winter, as it is a great egg 
producer. The labor involved in caring for this flock, 
cleaning houses, gathering eggs, etc., was less than 2 / 
hours per day on the average, buchanan burr, m. d. 
Maryland. 
RAW FISH AS FERTILIZER. 
We understand these goods contain about 90 per 
cent of water, and when put in the hill to grow corn 
or other crops, the maggots are almost sure to get 
into the fish and destroy the crop. If we had a surplus 
of that material for practical use on a farm we would 
compost the material with a layer of fish, and a layer 
of dry soil, covering the whole with a small coating of 
land plaster. If a farmer could get a good supply of 
this material, undoubtedly he could make it pay best 
to use a little portion of sulphuric acid, just enough 
to preserve the material from rot, and then pile it 
into some closely-packed corner in an open shed or 
barn, leaving it several weeks, and then drying and 
adding acid phosphate and potash. Of course a screen 
would be necessary to put it in mechanical condition 
to apply to the soil, or it could be mixed with loam 
and spread broadcast on grain or any crop that could 
be harrowed into the soil to get the benefit of the 
same. We have had no practical use of this material 
for a number of years. Outside of the fish heads it is 
weak material. w. B. ken ball. 
Maine. 
Much of our land is normally sour but porous, so 
that any soluble acid would soon be washed out. It 
is well to bear in mind that land is plenty and cheap. 
One man used to grow an acre of turnips on a five-acre 
lot, allowing four acres to be idle each year. Com¬ 
posting has never been much in favor from the amount 
and quality of labor involved, also because of dearth 
of desirable material for composting. It has always pro¬ 
duced good results. Our older generation used to 
spread dogfish on the land in Summer and plow the 
next season for turnips; very satisfactory if you don’t 
consider the stench and flies. In 1885 I used quantities 
of small herring, spreading on grass land; on dry land 
the fish was not entirely consumed at haying. Good 
crops with many dried fish raked in hay, but very good 
stock hay—no waste. No apparent detriment to land. 
Fresh-plowed always gives good results in corn. In 
1892 or 1893 I sowed oats and peas after plowing in 
fish compost; a fine crop. Drought on replowing for 
cabbage; dust in clouds; I planted cabbage seed July 
11 . It was nearly a failure from drought and stump- 
root. 
One Winter I carted lots of cod heads and put them 
in a long, narrow grave like a shallow railroad em¬ 
bankment. In June 1 dug up the whole mass and 
broadcast on wet grass land. There was a good 
crop; too many bones in the hay, as that particular 
field is always sold for horse hay. For several years I 
WELL-ARRANGED FARMER’S SHOP Fig. 401. 
have carted during the Winter several hundred barrels 
of cod or pollock heads, and used for potatoes princi¬ 
pally. One Winter when heads were scarce I chopped 
large frozen heads in two and three pieces with wood 
ax, placed in potato trenches, on corn, cabbage or 
turnip stubble three feet apart and hilled up potatoes 18 
inches apart, making one head or piece to two hills. 
I used some commercial fertilizer and sometimes some 
sulphate of potash extra. I can trace the potato rows 
in grass for years. Now I am unable to get cod heads; 
they afc shipped to glue factory. The last two Win¬ 
ters I could only get pollock heads, and liable to lose 
them any time. They furnish less meat and do not 
seem to force so active growth. I believe that con¬ 
tinued use of fish on same land will render land un- 
A LAZY WINTER’S DAY. Fig. 402. 
productive. If I could carry out my ideas I would store 
the waste in cemented pits on side hill and preserve 
with kainit or muriate of potash, and would broadcast 
on grass with manure spreader if I could endure the 
flies thereby bred. Otherwise I would spread late in 
Fall and plow in Spring or Fall if considered desirable. 
I have no experience with conditions (especially labor) 
that seem to me to warrant composting. E. L. small. 
Cape Cod, Mass. 
LAND PLASTER AND ACID PHOSPHATE. 
What is the difference between land plaster and acid 
phosphate? I called at a seed store some time ago and 
made inquiries relative to the matter, but the foreman was 
unable to explain. i„ f. 
Cincinnati, O. 
We have explained this several times. Land plaster 
is sulphate of lime—a combination of sulphur and lime. 
It contains some water. If you heat it so as to drive 
this water away you have plaster of Paris, which we 
know will form into a solid if we add water enough to 
make a paste. Then if we grind up this solid we have 
land plaster again. 
Acid phosphate is very different. It is made from 
phosphate of lime. Ages ago, as it is supposed, large 
numbers of animals died in certain districts in South 
Carolina, Florida, Tennessee and elsewhere. Their 
bones accumulated and in time became fossilized or 
changed to a form of rock. To understand what this 
means we remember that bone is an organic substance, 
that is; made by growth. As these bones lay in the 
soil for ages there was a gradual change. The organic 
substance passed away and minerals took its place until 
the lime and the phosphoric acid appeared, not as in 
the bone, but as if in a stone. These remains of bone 
are dug out of the soil and called phosphate rock. 
They are first ground .into a fine powder known as raw 
phosphate or floats. In this raw phosphate each particle 
of phosphoric acid is combined with three parts of lime, 
and when in this form plants can use it slowly, if at all. 
In order to make the phosphoric acid more available 
“acid phosphate” is made by mixing the “floats” with 
sulphuric acid. This acid breaks up the combination 
of lime and phosphoric acid, takes two parts of the lime 
away, and leaves one of each, in which form it is solu¬ 
ble in water. Acid phosphate, therefore, is the soluble 
form of phosphoric acid, made so by using sulphuric 
acid on phosphate of lime. We take the time to repeat 
this because acid phosphate is the chief source of phos¬ 
phoric acid in fertilizers, while experiments are being 
made with the raw phosphate as plant food. 
BRINGING WATER TO THE HOUSE . 
Part IV. 
Pipes and Their Arrangement 
"What kind of pipe shall I use?” is the next ques¬ 
tion. That depends upon how big a pipe you want, 
how much pressure there is to be, and the cost in dif¬ 
ferent localities, which is governed not only by cost of 
material but by freight. In figuring on large pipes the 
cost of laying is also an important item. For diameters 
less than two inches galvanized iron is no doubt best, 
for it lasts indefinitely, will stand a heavy strain, is 
easily laid and offers less friction. On the subject of 
laying pipe H. Stewart, page 807, advises care against 
bending pfye lest it flatten at the bend. I have bent 
J4-inch galvanized pipe in a coil 10 inches diameter 
without injuring it. The bending was done by a hand 
contrivance, and was made as near uniform as pos¬ 
sible. I have seen (/-inch pipe bent by machinery to a 
coil 12 inches in diameter. I saw yesterday a piece 
of two-inch pipe which was bent to a diameter of about 
five feet. In neither of these cases was the pipe in¬ 
jured. If pipe will not stand bending this amount it is 
not good quality, and should not be used. In view of 
these experiences I would say, if the pipe does not fit 
the ground bend it, being careful of course not to make 
the bend too short. For diameter larger than two 
inches there is no question about the value of cast- 
iron dipped pipe. On the Pacific Coast, however, it is 
being largely superseded by wood stave pipe, which costs 
less, is lighter to handle and can. therefore, be hauled 
and laid much cheaper." When wood is kept constantly 
wet it has been known to last hundreds of years. Ac¬ 
counts of wood dug from the ground which must have 
been buried many thousands of years are by no means 
rare. Stave pipe is made in sections, and wrapped with 
galvanized wire in diameters up to 24 inches. Con¬ 
tinuous stave pipe is made in larger diameters and 
banded with iron rods which are fastened with clamps. 
Inasmuch as wood (kept wet) is everlasting it is safe 
to say that the life of the pipe is the life of the iron. 
Wood pipe is not an experiment, having passed that 
stage many years ago. 
A recent article calls for more remarks on the sub¬ 
ject of air in water. Fish culturists have to take this 
into consideration, especially in raising trout, as they 
seem to require more air than other varieties. If we 
were taking water from a “babbling brook” there might 
be enough air in the water to cause trouble, particu¬ 
larly if there was a summit in the pipe. Even then I 
would consider reference to the hydraulic grade line 
of more importance than guarding against air in the 
pipe. Of course if the head is low a summit in the 
pipe will hold air and retard the flow. If the head is, 
say 20 feet or more, and no part of the pipe is above 
the hydraulic grade line, I think that the flow of the 
water will soon clear the pipe of air, and if the water 
is taken from a tank or well there will be little trouble 
from air. T know that a hose will do this, and why not 
a pipe? One correspondent advises keeping a force 
pump in readiness to be attached to the lower end of 
the pipe to pump out the air. Rather than a pump I 
would advise an opening at the summit as the same 
writer recommends. This can best be done by a tee 
at the summit to which can be attached a short piece of 
pipe ending in a simple service cock or faucet. 
E. J. H. 
