1883.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
325 
properties. This liquid is lime-water, that 
is, water holding in solution all the lime that 
it can possibly dissolve. At ordinary tem¬ 
peratures, lime requires 700 parts of water to 
dissolve it. That is, a lump of lime weighing 
a pound, requires 700 pounds of water, or 
about 88 gallons of water, to dissolve it. Lime- 
water is a saturated solution of lime; in other 
words, it contains all the lime it can be made 
to take up. A pint of lime-water, at 60% has in 
solution between nine and ten grains of lime, 
most substances dissolve more readily in hot 
than in cold water ; lime, on the contrary, is 
less soluble in hot than in cold water. At 32° 
water dissolves twice as much lime as it does 
when heated to 212°. 
If we take perfectly clear lime-water in a 
wine-glass, and by means of a straw, a glass 
tube, or any similar tube, breathe into it, 
throwing the air from our lungs through the 
tube, so that it will bubble through the lime- 
water, the liquid will soon be cloudy, then 
milky, and if set aside, the lime that was in 
the lime-water will settle as carbonate of 
lime. The carbonic acid in the breath having 
changed the lime into insoluble carbonate. 
If we expose lime-water to the air, a film 
will soon form upon the surface; this will 
sink to the bottom: another film will be 
formed, and so on, until the liquid shows no 
trace of lime. The carbonic acid, which is 
always present in the atmosphere, changes 
the lime in the lime-water into the carbonate 
of lime, which is nearly insoluble in water, 
and forms a film. 
The Sheep Scab. 
Scab in sheep is one of the most trouble¬ 
some diseases with which the shepherd has 
to contend. The cause of the disease is a 
minute insect, Acaris scabiei, which bur¬ 
rows under the epidermis, producing irri¬ 
tation of the skin. Small watery blisters 
soon form, which finally become dry and en¬ 
crusted, forming the scab proper. These be¬ 
ing produced in various parts of the body, 
cause the wool to become matted, and tbe 
sheep, to relieve the itching or irritation, rub 
against fences, posts, etc., and tear their 
wool into shreds, giving them a wretched 
appearance. The disease is rapidly spread 
in a flock where healthy sheep come in 
contact with these fences, posts, etc., for the 
eggs of 'the mite, or the mite itself, may 
be readily transferred from the sheep to 
the fence and from the fence to sheep again. 
Hence it will hardly be necessary to caution 
against allowing healthy sheep to be in the 
same pen or field with scabby ones. The 
only method of ridding the diseased sheep of 
the scab is, to dip them into a liquid which 
will penetrate and soften the scabby portions, 
and even then it is often necessary to rub 
these places with something rough, to open 
the scabs, and let the liquid take effect. A 
sheep dip made of one ounce of sulphur and 
four of tobacco to a gallon of water, has been 
found very effective. In the water, which 
should be at the boiling point, steep tobacco 
stems or leaves, and add the sulphur later; 
then allow the liquid to cool down, when the 
sheep may be immersed. J. W. D. 
Many farmers do not fully appreciate the 
value of peas for pigs. Swine make rapid 
growth when fed on peas, and when fatten¬ 
ed they produce firm pork and lard. In some 
localities the pea-weevil does so much damage 
that the cultivation of peas on a large scale 
has been abandoned, but even then, if the 
peas can be fed out before November, the 
presence of the insects in them does not 
effect their making a good feed. Peas are 
easy to raise, and to save the trouble of 
handling them, the pigs may be turned into 
the field, if desirable, while the vines are 
green and before the peas become hard. This, 
however, is not so economical a method of 
feeding as cutting the vines when the pods 
are well formed. Peas and corn in equal 
quantities make an excellent grain ration for 
fattening purposes. Pea-vines properly cured 
make first-rate fodder for sheep, and the ma¬ 
nure made by stock fed on this ration is very 
rich. Where peas are grown on a large scale, 
there should be two or three sowings, especi¬ 
ally if they are to be fed on the vines and 
while green. A trial of this method of fur- 
nishing good food to swine is usually repeated. 
A Gate Latch. 
Mr. “A. J. M.,” Washington, Pa., sends us a 
sketch and description of a gate fastening. It 
is simple, easily constructed and applied, and 
very durable. It can be made of old buggy 
springs,or any flat steel,and should be one inch 
broad by 3 /i 6 -inch thick, and about 18 inches 
long, at the distance of four inches from the 
lower end. The lever is slightly bent, and has 
two screw or bolt holes for fastening (fig. 2). 
Fig. 3. 
Fig. 2. 
Eight inches of the top portion is rounded and 
bent at right angles. The upper part passes 
through a narrow mortise in the head-post of 
the gate (fig. 1). A flat staple, large enough to go 
over the spring, holds it in place. An iron hook 
(fig. 3), driven into the post, holds the latch. 
A wooden lever, bolted to the top board of 
the gate (fig. 4), enables a person on horseback 
to open or close the gate. This latch can be 
applied to any kind of a gate, and is especi¬ 
ally desirable in yards or gardens, when, 
by the addition of a chain and weight, one 
Fig. 4k'.— LATCH WITH TOP LEVEK. 
may always feel that the gate is securely 
closed. The latch does not cost more than 
50 cents, and if properly made and put on 
will last as long as the gate. 
The Variegated White-rock Cress. 
It is not often that we meet with a plant 
which is equally ornamental in both leaves and 
flowers. The variegated form of the White- 
rock Cress (Arabis albida) performs this part 
as completely as any plant within our ac¬ 
quaintance. There is much difference among 
European writers as to the proper name of 
the plant, some calling it Arabis albida, and 
others A. alpina, but the name White-rock 
Cress, avoids all difficulty. The ordinary 
form of the plant has dull green leaves, 
which in the variety are distinctly edged with 
white. The leaves form very handsome, com¬ 
pact and regular rosettes, which well adapt 
it to growing upon rock-work, or for use as 
edgings for small beds. The plant is a native 
of the mountains of Europe, and appears to 
be perfectly hardy. Indeed we have had it 
for the last 12 or 15 years in all sorts of 
localities, and have found it to be quite at 
home wherever placed. It is especially use¬ 
ful upon rock-work, where it adapts itself to 
the situation, and if placed where it can fall 
over the edge of a ledge, it is especially beau¬ 
tiful. In early spring the rosettes of leaves 
throw up stems about six inches high, at the 
top of which is a cluster of large flowers, 
which are especially noticeable for their pure 
whiteness. When the flowers disappear, the 
main plant forms other rosettes, the leaves of 
which, being broadly edged with white, are 
showy all through the season, and serve to 
make the rock-work attractive. It is a plant 
that may be easily forced, and if the clump 
is potted and kept cool, during the early part 
of the winter, and then brought into a mod¬ 
erate heat, it will soon show its copious clus¬ 
ters of pure white flowers. Still its chief use 
is upon a rock-work, and as a plant for such 
situations it has no superior. 
Poultrymen are sometimes troubled with 
partial blindness in their young chickens, oc¬ 
casioned, possibly, by too little variety in their 
food. The eyelids in the morning are stuck 
together so firmly, that the chicken can not 
open them without assistance. When both 
eyes are in this condition, the chicken can 
not feed with facility, as it has to be guided 
by hearing and smell: therefore loses flesh 
for want of food, droops, and dies. These 
drooping chicks can often be saved by having 
their heads dipped in clean water and the eyes 
washed open. They then see readily, devour 
their rations greedily, and begin to gain flesh. 
