1000. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
936 
A TALK ABOUT WOOL. 
Soil, climate, food and skillful farm¬ 
ing all affect the character of the wool 
produced by any particular breed of 
sheep. Large as the quantity of Austra¬ 
lian wool shipped to this country is, its 
value and importance can only be un¬ 
derstood when its quality and fineness 
is taken in consideration. Such are the 
superior clothing properties of their 
wool that only the finest clips of this 
country can take its place. The high re¬ 
pute which the Australian wool secures 
is due to the Merino sheep. British 
wools are divided into two classes, the 
long luster wool and the short staple 
wool. In- the former are included Lin¬ 
coln, Leicester, Romney Marsh and the 
Black-face breed, while South Downs, 
Hampshire, Oxford and Norfolk Downs 
are the most important of the latter 
wools. South Down is one of the most 
valuable of short staple wools. Hamp¬ 
shire Down is somewhat longer and 
coarser in staple, while Oxford Down 
is of a more open growth still. Norfolk 
Down is comparatively a soft fine wool. 
As a rule these wools are made into 
worsted yarn. 
Now we have a lot of the above- 
named breeds in this country, most of 
them being imported from England, and 
we ought to command as high prices as 
some of our English cousins. As a rule 
wool grown in this country is marked 
different from imported stock. You will 
see wool marked blood, Y blood, and 
so on. One-half blood means Merino 
and Yt. some other breed; blood 
means Y Merino, j4 some other breed. 
The Western wool growers have found 
from experience that cross-bloods are 
more profitable than straight bloods. 
They usually shear a heavy fleece and 
commands a fair price. In the East, 
where we figure on early lambs as well 
as wool, some of the coarse wool breeds 
would give better results. w. N. S. 
Waterville, Me. 
CACTUS FOR FEEDING STOCK. 
The question of cactus feeding is one 
of considerable interest to the farmers 
and cattle raisers in the arid regions; 
not so much, however, to the farmer as 
to the cattle raiser, for the reason that 
where there is sufficient moisture even 
to farm by the Campbell system Kaffir 
corn, Milo maize and sorghum will pro¬ 
duce more and better forage than the cac¬ 
tus. It is only in the dry country that 
the cactus thrives, and the growth is so 
slow that in the opinion of those who 
have observed for years, it will never 
be of practical use to attempt to culti¬ 
vate it. In parts of Arizona, New Mex¬ 
ico and Western Texas cactus has been 
fed to cattle; especially is this true in 
Western Texas. As a matter of fact, 
many of the so-called cacti are nothing 
more nor less than the old-fashioned 
prickly pear that grew on the plains of 
the West. In Texas they grow thickly 
and rank, and when fed are prepared by 
cutting in great quantities and burning 
until the stickers are pretty much de¬ 
stroyed. 
On the arid plains of Texas, New 
Mexico and Arizona there grows a vari¬ 
ety of plants closely allied to the cactus; 
amongst the most common are the Yuc¬ 
ca (Spanish bayonet), the sotol and the 
mescal. All of these last-named plants 
are eaten by the range cattle during ex¬ 
treme drought's, and often their tongues 
are cut and swollen from the stickers 
that are on these plants. There are other 
plants and shrubs that grow on the arid 
plains that arc means of saving cattle 
during drought, but it is the opinion of 
men of experience that none of these, 
including the cactus, will ever be of suf¬ 
ficient value to stock growers in the 
United States to warrant cultivation. 
I he spineless cactus, when subjected to 
an examination, is found to be closely 
allied to the family known as the “Won- 
derberry”. and the Alaska wheat. 
New Mexico, w. h. H. llewellyn. 
ARGUMENTS FOR ALFALFA. 
Yesterday, September 27, just com¬ 
menced to cut third crop of Alfalfa, 
which will be left on ground. On about 
half of ground it is simply fine. This 
is a subject that ought to be pounded 
hard by The R. N.-Y. Why? Because 
it discounts Red clover 25 to 50 per cent. 
First, it will make more growth and 
actual weight in same length of time— 
to first cutting, second cutting is 50 per 
cent better, and third cutting is 100 per 
cent better, because Red clover is a 
“quitter” in August of second year. Al¬ 
falfa is richer in feeding and fertilizer 
value. By mixing in Alfalfa seed with 
Red clover, the soil often becomes in¬ 
oculated without so much fuss and 
worry. T. E. martin. 
Monroe Co., N. Y. 
R. N.-Y.—Another Alfalfa argument 
is found in Bulletin 60 of the Arizona 
Station. It seems that for many years 
sheep have been driven into Southern 
Arizona to winter there. The conditions 
on the range,* or public pasture, became 
so bad that stockmen have bought per¬ 
manent pastures under irrigation. Two 
years ago about 250 sheep were pastured 
on Alfalfa in this district, but this year 
the number will increase to 25,000. 
With the development of Alfalfa grow¬ 
ing this business of pasturing sheep will 
increase wonderfully. The Alfalfa, 
when well managed, makes a fine sheep 
pasture. Some experiments were tried 
to show the value of pasturing com¬ 
pared with feeding hay and green grass. 
On one part of an Alfalfa field the crop 
was cut and made into hay. On another 
it was cut green and fed and on another 
the sheep pastured. The hay gave food 
enough from one acre for 50 sheep 141 
days. Where the grass was cut and fed 
there was food for the 50 sheep 125 
days, and where the sheep were pastured 
124 days. This does not mean that 50 
sheep should be put on one acre. The 
limit would be about 15 to the acre, and 
no single pasture larger than 20 acres. 
The figures show the immense amount 
of food that an acre of Alfalfa will 
produce. _ 
FOR KILLING HEN LICE. 
A bulletin from the Iowa Exp. Station 
gives the following methods of making live 
destroyers : 
I.ice Powder. —An excellent powder at 
low cost may be made as follows: To a 
mixture of three parts gasoline and one 
part of crude carbolic acid stir in all 
of the plaster of Paris it will moisten. 
When enough plaster has been added the 
powder will be dry, brownish pink in color, 
and have a pronounced odor of carbolic 
acid and gasoline. 
Liquid Lice Kidder.—A good disinfect¬ 
ant for painting tlie roosts for lice and 
mites is made as follows: Shave one 10- 
cent cake of laundry soap into one pint of 
soft water. Heat or allow to stand until 
a soap paste is formed. Stir in one pound 
of commercial cresol and heat or allow to 
stand until the soap paste is dissolved. 
Stir in one gallon of kerosene. Cresol 
is a coal tar product and may be obtained 
from the druggist at about 30 cents per 
pound. Care should be taken not to get 
any of it upon the hands or face, as it 
will cause intense smarting. For use as a 
lice paint, apply undiluted. 
Ruptured Colt. 
A colt, four months old, has had from 
birth a navel rupture, about the size of a 
walnut, easily pressed back in small open¬ 
ing. I would like to know of treatment, 
whether incurable or not. Colt is well and 
a fine one. h. j. s. 
New Jersey. 
The small umbilical hernia referred to 
will in all probability disappear without 
treatment as the filly grows, but it is usual 
to blister such rupture with dilute sul¬ 
phuric acid or a blistering ointment now 
and then to encourage recovery. Where 
enlarge the common method 
is to put hack the bowel by 
with the lingers; then pull 
W ex you write advertisers mention The 
K. N.-Y. and you'll get a cpiick reply and 
“a square deal.” See guarantee page 10. 
CRUMB'S 
IMPROVED 
WARRINER 
STANCHION 
Henry H. Albertson, 
ington, N. J., writes: 
Bnrl- 
“My 
new Suinchiona iitiil j-reatly 
to the comfort of my cows." 
WHY TORTURE 
yours with rigid stanchions? 
Send for specifications 
of inexpensive yet sani¬ 
tary cow stable to 
WALLACE It. CRUMB, Box Mil, Foreatvtllc, Conn. 
C CHAIN HANGING 
1 CATTLE STANCHION 
The Most Practical 
CATTLE FASTENER 
ever invented. 
Manufactured and for 
sale by 
O. H. KOIIKRTSON, 
Forest.viUe, Conn. 
EXCELSIOR SWING STANCHION 
Warranted the Best. 
30 Days Trial. 
Unlike all others. Stationary when 
Open. Noiseless. 
THE WASSON STANCHION CO. 
Box GO, Cuba, New York. 
yle’s Steel Stanchion 
THE ORIGINAL 
Lined with wood,with Thumb Pott Latch 
DURABILITY B«t Material and 
Workmanship. Built to lut i lifetime. 
COMFORT Hung on chain* allow¬ 
ing full freedom of neck. No weight to 
carry. 
CLEANLINESS Keep, .he cow in 
place. Forward when lying Jowb. Back 
when atanding. 
Paof/rt lAxxWn# MoJtl Dairy RiMi— 
fit** 1‘rtmt «|A_ Jtimrlt (or intllnf 
~ ~ - Price*—Fm 
Slenthten Fremtt - 
SOLE MAKERS 
.AiwLJAS. BOYLE & SON 
W _ SALEM. OHIO. U S. A. 
Dairymens Supply Co., Philadelphia, Pa, 
The Burr Starkweather Co.Rochester,N.Y 
they tend to 
of operating 
manipulation 
up the slack 
include these 
good rubbing 
week also 
cases. 
skin and sac of hernia and 
between wooden clamps. A 
with iodine ointment once a 
tends to cause 
repair in slight 
a. s. A. 
Star Belt Grinders 
“Strictly all right In every re- 
npeet an<l very aath.fnctory,’* 
says a man who KNOWS the 
Star. That is the only kind you 
can afford to buy. Built to grind 
ear corn and small grain—and 
does It. Sizes to suit power. 
Write for FREE illustrated 
descriptive booklet and prices 
TIIK STAR MANUFACTURING CO. 
13 Depot St., New Lexington, Ohio. 
By increasing quantity and quality of your milk and butter, 
Badger Dairy Feed substantially increases your profits. 
From H. L. Low, Wallkill, N.Y. 
1 have one cow that it eating 20 Ibt. 
of Badger Feed, and producing 80 lb*, 
of milk per day, alio a 3-year old that 
i* eating 18 11m. and producing 70 lb*, 
of milk per day. That'* the real proof of 
how good your Badger really ia. 
From A. GueJras, Copley, Ohio. 
My cows are in better condition, 
give more milk than they ever did 
before and I get 10% more butter 
at less feeeing cost than before. 
Fifteen day’s feeding of your poorest milker, 
keeping account of cost of feeding and in¬ 
crease of milk and butter yield, will prove how 
Badger Dairy Feed increases dairy profits. 
Free Booklet: Full of scientific instruc¬ 
tion and dairy pointers—of J 
utmost value to every 
owner of cows and live 
HOW BADGER FEED 
MAKES DOLLARS FOR YOU 
