1908. 
THE RURAI> NEW-YORKER 
621 
Galvanized Iron Cable. 
N. A., Portage, 0■ —I note what J. S. 
Woodward says on page 437 regarding gal¬ 
vanized cable. I want to know what gal¬ 
vanized cable is; if he means common 
galvanized ■wire such as we make fence 
with, and where cable such as ho writes 
about can be purchased. Why not use 
barbed galvanized wire? 
Ans. —The galvanized cable mentioned 
as to be used for lightning rods should 
be about 7-16 to 9-16 inch diameter and 
made by twisting a number of galvan¬ 
ized wires together. Such cables are 
used for transmission of power and also 
for guys to the posts of telephones, and 
can be purchased from almost all dealers 
in wire and wire goods. 
J. S. WOODWARD. 
Land Plaster and Floats. 
IF. IF. C.j New London, Conn .—Can you 
tell me something about land plaster and 
floats? What are they made of? Which is 
the better for both land and to be used for 
poultry droppings, and which is the cheaper 
for use when plaster costs 50 cents per 
100 pounds and floats 70 cents per 100 
pounds? 
Ans. —Land plaster is sulphate of 
lime. When it is heated so as to drive 
off the moisture it is known as plaster 
of Paris, and by wetting it forms in 
hard lumps. “Floats” is a name given 
to finely ground phosphate rock. This 
contains phosphate of lime, and the 
phosphorus is a fertilizer, though slow 
to act in this form. The plaster will 
probably act quicker to prescr\\dlxe am¬ 
monia in the hen manure, but the floats 
add phosphoric acid, and at the prices 
named we consider the “floats” cheaper. 
How Lime Acts on Soils. 
IF. IF., Massachusetts. —Can you tell me 
something about the action of lime on light 
and heavy soil? 
Ans. —On a light, sandy soil lime acts 
somewhat as it does in forming mor¬ 
tar. It binds the soil together, makes 
it more compact, and thus better able to 
hold moisture. On a heavy clay soil the 
action of lime is quite the opposite. The 
trouble with the clay soil is that it is 
too sticky or compact. The particles 
are small and they pack close together 
so that air cannot work through or 
water drain away. Thus they are cold 
and wet, or bake like a hard brick. The 
lime acts to unite the little soil particles 
into larger ones, thus leaving the soil 
coarser and more open. If you take a 
mud puddle full of brown-colored water 
and scatter lime in it you will find in a 
short time that the water grows clear. 
The muddy color is caused by the little 
particles of clay, so small and light that 
they float in the water. The lime draws 
them together and they are then heavy 
enough to sink to the bottom. Much 
the same thing is done by lime in clay 
soils. 
Questions About Electric Power. 
A. J. P., Campbell, N. C. —Some one asked 
some questions not long since in reference 
to electric power. That is a subject I 
want to learn something about. Is the 
machinery quite delicate; easy to get out of 
repair? If run by water power would 
it require a man at the power house, or 
would it run by the week, month or year, 
with only the necessary oiling? I do not 
refer to the water wheel; I understand 
that feature. What would be the approxi¬ 
mate cost of the electric generator and 
motor for about 50 horse power? What is 
cost per mile for wire? Would it need to 
be copper and insulated? Could the elec¬ 
tricity from the same wire be used for 
power and lights? 
Ans. —It may be said at the outset 
that electrical machinery, if seriously 
disarranged, can only be repaired by an 
expert. The handy mechanic who has 
had no training along these lines will be 
helpless when confronted with the maze 
of coils and wiring that go into a dyn¬ 
amo armature. At the same time they 
are, under good care, long-lived ma¬ 
chines, and should not need repairs un¬ 
less some accident happens. I can say 
from experience that the small direct 
dynamos will run practically by the 
month without attention, a little clean¬ 
ing of the brushes or commutator being 
all that is required. However, with a 
large machine the possible danger from 
a hot bearing or a runaway on the part 
of the governor might result in so much 
damage that it might be better to em¬ 
ploy an attendant. Where as much as 
50 horse power is to be developed, if 
will practically require some kind of a 
high potential system unless' the place 
where it is to be used is near at hand. 
To carry 50 horse power for any long 
distance at the voltage used in the incan¬ 
descent lamp would require a copper 
conductor so heavy and expensive as to 
be practically prohibitive. Electrical 
conductors are usually of copper or oc¬ 
casionally of aluminum, and are gener¬ 
ally insulated, although this is not indis¬ 
pensable. A 50 horse-power plant is 
quite a proposition in several respects 
and ought not to be undertaken without 
the service of a good engineer. But 
the tiny two dozen light plant for home 
use will give you lots of pleasure in 
working up and if you are your own 
engineer, you will know a good deal 
about it when you are through. 
JARED VAN WAGENEN, JR. 
Snails in Cold Frames. 
II. II., Richfield, N. Y .—I am bothered 
with snails in my cold fimmes. Any small 
plants, like celery or carrots, they will 
clean off as fast as the seed comes out of 
the ground. I have used tobacco dust and 
other remedies, but without any success. 
What can I do? 
Ans. —Snails feed mostly at night, 
and it is often practicable to hand-pick 
them with a lantern while they are at 
work. They often succumb to applica¬ 
tions of salt, soot, ashes or lime. I do 
not know if it would be practicable to 
apply these substances in the infested 
cold frames. Many of the snails can be 
attracted to certain spots by placing 
large leaves or pieces or board on the 
soil. Pieces of turnip and cabbage 
leaves are said to attract them. A bran 
mash is also recommended to attract 
them where they may be collected and 
destroyed at night. Some also report 
that a strip of salt around the bed will 
prevent the slugs from getting access 
to it. A correspondent states that he 
has used tobacco dust. I should think 
if this were applied at night when the 
snails were out and at work that it 
might prove quite effective. It must be 
applied directly to the bodies of the 
snails and is a good fertilizer, but must 
be applied very freely. 
M. V. SLINGERLAND. 
Action of Nitrates. 
J. R. 8., Glenshaw, Pa .—Some time ago 
The It. N.-Y. said: “If we were to use 
nothing but nitrate of soda we might lose 
much nitrogen by drainage, since it is all 
soluble.’’ Now, is this really known to be 
true, or is the retentive power of the soil 
not sufficient to hold such soluble matter 
until needed for plant food? Are the ni¬ 
trates largely spent or leached out of the 
soil each yea'r, and need to be renewed 
again or depend upon the action of the 
next year’s heat acting upon the organic 
forms of nitrogen found or supplied? Will 
a sufficient supply of nitrate, together with 
other elements, applied at time of planting 
of, say sweet corn and potatoes, be avail¬ 
able for the needs of the crop, or will the 
niti-ate leach away faster than the growing 
crop can use it? Would ground bone added 
with the mixtui’e become available in time 
for early sweet corn or early potatoes? 
Ans. —The question cannot be an¬ 
swered definitely for all conditions; the 
best one can do is to point out a few 
of the principles involved, which are 
here briefly considered: First, nitrate 
of soda, which is the commercial source 
of nitrogen in the form of nitrate, does 
not combine to make any fixed com¬ 
pounds in the soil. Theoretically, there¬ 
fore, as soon s nitrates are formed 
from organic nitrogenous compounds in 
the soil, or as soon as nitrates that are 
applied are distributed throughout the 
soil, the natural tendency would be for 
them to pass out in the drains when 
rains follow, which are heavy enough to 
carry the water that falls through the 
soil, into the drains. In nature, how¬ 
ever, this is not liable to occur, as 
plants will occupy soils in which food 
exists, and as the nitrate is soluble and 
immediately available to the plant, it is 
absorbed. Hence, losses of nitrates from 
soils are usually diminished in just the 
proportion that the soil is occupied by 
growing plants. Second, where applica¬ 
tions of nitrates are made in excess of 
the requirements, the natural tendency 
would be for more or less of the nitrate, 
to disappear. This tendency, however, 
is not so great as theoretical considera¬ 
tions would seem to warrant, for al¬ 
though nitrates do not form insoluble 
compounds in the soil, the soil possesses 
a great retentive power for water con¬ 
taining salts, and unless continuous 
heavy rains follow the application, the 
movement of the water in the soil 
carrying the salts would be quite as ef¬ 
fective in bringing the nitrates from the 
lower levels to the surface again as soon 
as the weather was favorable for rapid 
drying, which would cause an evapora¬ 
tion of water from the surface of the 
soil. Practically, therefore, the losses 
of nitrate need not be greatly feared, 
except, first, upon lands uncropped; 
second, upon lands possessing poor 
holding properties (for example, very 
coarse sands or gravels), and third, 
where heavy applications of nitrates are 
made previous to or at the time of 
planting, and before the plants are able 
to absorb food. It has beeen frequently 
recommended in the use of nitrates that 
fractional applications be made, in order 
to avoid losses that might occur. This 
practice is recommended, largely be¬ 
cause quick growing crops require con¬ 
siderable quantities, which, if applied 
at once, might result in loss or might 
cause too rapid an early growth. 
N. J. Exp. Station, e. b. voorhees. 
Vetctx and Crab Grass.—R esponding to 
your call for experience would say that 
I have had some experience with vetch; 
but have never been able to make It grow 
rankly enough to get the better of quack 
grass or any other persistent weed. It Is 
a good catch crop for Winter, between sea¬ 
sons of Spring crops; but I am inclined to 
think the western seedsman’s statements 
should be taken with a large grain of allow¬ 
ance. For choking out weeds I can do 
much better with oats and peas sown early 
in the Spring. Vetch will not be trouble¬ 
some as a weed. R. D. s. 
Fabius, N. Y. 
I am not sure that my experience with 
vetch will fit the conditions of O. C. of 
Stanley, N. Y., page 471, nor have I had 
any experience sowing vetch in Spring, but 
I think if he will sow Hairy vetch the 
first of September on that rich sandy loam 
he will have a growth the next Spring that 
will smother any low-growing plant. In 
fact mine is actually smothei-ing the Win¬ 
ter turf oats with which it was sown in 
some places. Then if he is not too far 
north for cow peas to thrive, and will 
mow the vetch for feed when the pods 
begin to fill, and at once plow the land and 
sow cow peas, they will make life a burden 
to the quack grass until frost comes, and 
improve the land at the same time. The 
vetch may not make a good growth the 
first year for want of the proper inocula¬ 
tion, but the second year it will be all 
right. JOHN B. LEWIS. 
Norfolk County, Va. 
WEEKS 
SCALES 
Accurate, Simple, Durable. 
No expert Scale builder required to 
set them—no weights that can bo lost 
or stolon. Three to twenty tons capa¬ 
city. Catalogue on application. 
WEEKS SCALE WORKS, Iluffalo, N. Y. 
DON’T ROST FARM FENCE 
Bold direct to farmers at man¬ 
ufacturers’ prices. Catalogue 
tree. Freight prepaid. 
THE WARD FENCE CO. 
Box 885 Decatur, Ind. 
A Good Eye 
for Fence 
AU 
No. 
9 
Wire 
can’t get away from the big steel 
wires, the strong splice, the lock¬ 
ing of stays and laterals, and 
the heavy galvanizing of 
Fence. That’s 
everything in 
the fence question but 
the price. And we’ve 
got that right, too. Sell 
direct from factory only, 
wholesale price. 
V/E PAY THE FREIGHT 
We want the little orders; they lead to 
big ones. You need long lasting Empire 
Fence. Let’s get together. Address 
Bond Steel Post Co., Adrian, Midi. 
80 BALES AN HOUR 
IS EASY 
and they are smooth and solid. It’s an all- 
steel press, angle steel frame with angles 
turned out. Strong where strength la needed. 
I Automatic Friction Clutch 
stops press Instantly. FOOT BUTTON BLOCK 
DROPPER, drops right time and right place. 
Returns automatically. “Now Idea” feeder- 
no play or lost motion and no rolls to run 
through. When you start up with an Ohio 
Bower Press the work goes right along. No 
chance for breakage and no repair bills. No 
question but that It Is the press ot durability, 
speed and economy. Send for catalog and 
Investigate. 
THE OHIO CULTIVATOR CO., 
DEPT. 23 BELLEVUE, OHIO 
Our two-horse self feed press ts the best built. 
68 TONS BALED 
IN lO HOURS 
the COLUMBIA 
DID IT 
Will maintain 
that record day 
after day with 
, competent help. 
Simple, strong, 
extremely light 
running. 
Gasoline or 
horse power / // 
ANN ARBOR 
MACHINE 
, COMPANY 
| Box 80, 
' Ann Arbor, Hllch* 
IT MAKES A. 
H BALE THAT 
EVERY HAY 
BUYER 
WANT5 
THE “NEW WAY” PRESS 
Is a horizontal press. It bales 1% to tons per hour. 
Feed hole 40x50 inches—easy to feed; no tramping, 
fork only used. Revolutionizes the loose baling system. 
Makes the very desirable eastern market bale. Beats 
all Box and Upright Presses by doing 100 per cent 
more work. Stands at work just as you see it in theeut. 
Very portable. Adapted to bank barn work. We also 
make Horse and Belt Power Presses. Write for catalog. 
SANDWICH MFG. CO., 157 MAIN ST.. SANDWICH, ILL. 
BALES I 5 a t Say HAY 
—often 18 and 20 tons. Such wonderful records 
aro possible because our Gem Pull Circle Steel 
Baler has a largo feed opening, automatic 
brake device, small trip lever and long pitman 
travel. Either two or three stroke, and self¬ 
feed if desired. We will save you $25 or moro 
In first cost and much more every year in 
repairs. Drop us a postal for prices and a 
our “Baler Book. 
Headquarters for Mowers, Hay Rakes and Ted- 1 
ders, Hay Carriers and outfits complete. Horse and 
hand sprayers, also a complete line of Blizzard and 
Famous (’utters and Boss Potato Diggers send for 
I Huh. Cat. It. J. S. WOObHOUSE, 180-91 Water St., N. Y. City. 
PORTABLE HURDLE FENCE 
Made of Split Ches- 
nut. Hurdles are 8't 
ft long and 4 ft. high 
when set. Four Bar 
Hurdles 85c. ea.; Five 
Bar $1: Six Bar $1.20. 
Write for Catalogue. 
R. C. REEVES CO., 
187 Water St., N. Y. City. 
EASY TO BUY 
Superior Fences, absolutely 
strongest and best made. Only 
heavy gauge 8. 9 and 10 High 
Carbon Colled Spring 
Steel Wire used. Liberal terms. 
Low prices. Write for Pre© Cata¬ 
log and full information. 
THK SUPERIOR FEYfR CO. 
Dept, Cleveland, Ohio 
HEAVIEST FENCE MADE 
, All No. R Steel Wire* Well galvanlzod. Weighs 
h moro than most fences. 15 to 85c per rod, 
* delivered* WosendfYcesninplcforinspoction 
and test. Write for fouco book of 133 styles. ‘ 
The Brown Fence *fc Wire Co. 
Cleveland, Ohio* 
rprr Writeatonceforourmoney- I 
DaJVIa mtt saving plan on buying the I 
latest styles of Ornamen¬ 
tal Feneo nt the lowest 
prices, saving all middle¬ 
men’s profit. Write— . 
Anchor Fence & Mfg. Co. 
Sta. o, Cleveland, O. 
