1858. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
219 
Mr Thomas’ Design for an Octagon House. 
Messrs. Editors —Perceiving from the inquiry of 
your correspondent, Mr. John Tanner, in the Country 
Gentleman of April 15, that octagon dwelling houses 
are attracting some interest in the public mind, I here¬ 
with forward you a sketch of what I consider an im¬ 
provement in the arrangement of the first floor of Mr. 
Mann’s octagon house, which appeared in the same pa¬ 
per on the 7th Jan. last, whereby, without altering the 
locality or capability of any of the rooms as arranged 
by him, superior facility of access will be gained to 
any part of the house, without passing through or 
making a passage way or entry of any of the rooms. 
EXPLANATION. 
A. Parlor—B. Library—C. Closets—D. Dining-room—E. 
Nursery—F. Hall and stairs—G. Entrance Hall—H. Kitch¬ 
en—I Bath-room — J. Pantry — K. Store-room—L. Ice¬ 
house. 
In the accompanying first floor plan, you will per¬ 
ceive that I have removed the front entrance hall, and 
placed it so that it leads directly into the staircase hall, 
from which free access can be had to any part of the 
house without entering any other room before the one 
you require to be in. In making this suggestion in his 
arrangement, I trust Mr. Mann will pardon me, and 
also hope that be will agree with me that it is an im¬ 
provement. T. Thomas, C. E. Milwaukee. 
To Preserve Fresli Fruit, &c., in Cans. 
Messrs. Luther Tucker & Son — I observed in the 
last No. of the Co. Gent., you request information as 
to the best method of preserving fresh fruit, &c., in 
cans, and if you think the following worthy a place in 
your columns, it is at your service. It is reliable, for 
I have tested it some years, and find it every way su¬ 
perior to the old method of putting the fruit in the cans 
before heating, and then immersing in boiling water, 
&c. I have preserved in this way, tomatoes, peaches, 
cherries, pears, quinces, apples, and pumpkin for pies, 
and find all to keep for two years as fresh as when put 
up. 
Select good, sound, ripe fruit, and put it up as speed¬ 
ily as possible after it is gathered. Peaches, pears, 
sweet pumpkin for pies, tomatoes, and berries of all 
kinds, can be preserved fresh for years, if the following 
directions are observed :— 
Prepare the fruit by paring, and stoning, or coring 
where necessary, and put it over a moderate fire in a 
brass or porcelain kettle, (the latter is best, as it does 
not discolor fruit,) with sugar enough to make sufficient 
syrup to fill all the cavities in the can when the fruit 
s in. Have ready your cans, and as soon as the mass 
is thoroughly heated through, skim out the fruit and 
put it in the cans quite hot, and pack it as tight as 
practicable. Then pour in syrup till it is as full as it 
can be, and permit the covering to be soldered on. 
I use round tin cans holding about a quart each, 
with a round aperture in the top from two to three in¬ 
ches in diameter. I have circular pieces of tin cut a 
little larger than the aperture in the cans, with a small 
hole punched in the center of each piece. As soon as 
the can is filled, solder this piece of tin over the aper¬ 
ture, then a drop of solder over the little hole in the 
center, and the thing is done. I think the old-fashioned 
tin cans, soldered as I have described, the most relia¬ 
ble—though it is, perhaps, a little more trouble to use 
them than some of the self-sealing cans, as they are 
are called. The object is to have the article preserved, 
thoroughly heated through, and to fill the cans full, or 
as nearly so as possible; and if these two requisites 
are observed, and the can then sealed, I think the fruit 
will keep as long as the can remains 'perfectly air-tight. 
It is necessary, sometimes, when fruit is not sufficient¬ 
ly juicy to form syrup enough to fill the cans, to add a 
little water. Tomatoes need no sugar nor water. It 
is very convenient in filling, to have a very wide¬ 
mouthed funnel that just fits the aperture in the tops 
of the cans; and it is best not to use an iron ladle or 
skimmer to stir or dip out the fruit, as it will discolor 
peaches and some other fruits. G. W. C. Delaware . 
Ashes and Hen Manure. 
Messrs. Editors —Recently I had occasion for using 
compost, and decided on trying the expei’iment of a 
compound of wood ashes and hen manure. Knowing 
that either in itse'lf was considered an excellent fertil¬ 
izer, I thought a combination might add to their value. 
But I soon discovered my error, for the instant the 
ashes came in contact with the manure, the ammonia 
was driven off so rapidly as to almost choke me. I am 
satisfied with Mr. Bartlett, in Co Gent. May 13, and 
Mr. Childs, June 10, that the practice is unwise and 
improper, although there are those here who profess to 
be posted in such matters who maintain an opposite 
opinion. W. L. James. Westchester , Pa. 
■ -- 
To Preserve Vines from Bugs. 
Messrs. Editors —After reading the many reme¬ 
dies to prevent bugs from destroying vines, in the last 
no. of your paper, I would like to mention the simple 
remedy I tried last season with great success. It is 
simply applying equal parts of common red pepper 
(powdered of course,) and plaster to the vines, when 
the dew is on. This remedy is so simple and reasona¬ 
ble that I think your readers will be induced to try it, 
and thereby be convinced of its efficacy. C. D. G. 
Pine Hill , N. Y. 
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The Yates Co. Ag. Society are to hold their 
next Fair at Penn-Yan, Sept. 23, 24. 
