342 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Oct. 
perly balanced, form a man perfect in every respect. 
Farmers often complain that their boys, instead 
of following in the “good old way,” are glad of 
a chance to learn a trade, or get behind the counter. 
Now I do not wonder at this in the least. We ex¬ 
pect too much of them. They are made to work 
with no inducement but that of necessity, and then 
we wonder that they “hate farming!” The less boys 
are required to work beyond their inclinations, the 
better. Not that they should lie dormant, but let 
them have proper inducement, and there will be lit¬ 
tle danger of laziness. They require those energies 
for growth, which grown people can expend in labor ; 
consequently if we require hard labor of them we 
injure their health, and induce premature decay. 
Excessive labor, even if it does not break down their 
constitutions, has a brutalizing effect, as it extin¬ 
guishes all love of study, and renders them capable 
only of animal feelings and enjoyments; thus turn¬ 
ing into a curse, what, properly regulated, is man’s 
greatest blessing, and most prolific source of enjoy¬ 
ment. Sylvanus. 
Mole Trap. 
In answer to several inquiries for a plan of a mole 
trap, we give the accompanying cut and description, 
which was originally furnished for the Horticultur¬ 
ist. Eds:. 
This newly invented trap consists of a frame, com¬ 
posed of two uprights, a a , about 22 inches high, 
joined by a top board, b —the whole fastened on a foot 
or base c C c. d is a heavy piece of scantling or block, 
which by means of grooves is guided along the up¬ 
rights up and down. In the lower part of the block 
are inserted a number of sharp steel pins, about se¬ 
ven inches long in the clear. In the part C, of the 
foot-board, is attached a small piece of thin board 
in the manner of a pedal of a piano forte, which, 
when the trap is set, crosses the passage of the mole. 
f is a wooden latch, suspended by a wire from the 
cross-piece of the frame, and terminating with a 
wire hook, g, at the lower end, somewhat flat¬ 
tened. In the upper part of the latch is cut a 
notch or shoulder, ( i ,) as a rest for the pin block 
when the trap is set. 
Set the trap lengthwise over the passage draw the 
block up and fasten it by the wire hook, k. to prevent 
accident to the trapper; place the apparatus over 
the passage of the mole in such a manner that when 
the block falls it will come exactly in the middle of 
the passage. The ground under the trap in the pas¬ 
sage should be taken out and the bottom levelled, 
and the sides padded and made hard. The ground 
taken out should be freed from obstructions, and 
placed again loose in the passage; but before this is 
done, the block should be tried if it operates well, 
and falls right in the passage. Then hang the hook 
of the latch into a similar hook, projecting upwards 
from the pedal, so that they may seperate upon the 
slightest touch, by the lifting of the ground on either 
side by the mole, which in an instant brings down the 
block and pierces the animal through. 
Drying Fruits. 
We cannot better comply with several requests 
for information on the subject of drying fruits, than 
by the insertion and description of the annexed cuts. 
The apparatus was made in Germany, and was de¬ 
signed chiefly for drying prunes, but it will answer 
equally well, with slight modifications, for drying 
peaches, or apples. It is described as follows: 
“ The vault or exterior of the oven, four and a 
half feet long, is surrounded by a brick wall one foot 
thick, so that the whole stove, abed , is exactly 
six feet every way; the front wall, n, being only 
half a foot in thickness. At the top, the vault is arch¬ 
ed over with six inches of brick work at the crown 
of the arch. The flues, i i, are about fourteen inches 
square. The hurdles or trays, m m, for containing 
the prunes, rest upon shelves, fixed upon two bearers. 
It would be better if they rested upon rollers , so as 
to admit of their being pushed in, and drawn out, 
with greater ease. These lines of trays are placed 
at a distance of six inches from the furnace, so as 
to keep the fruit from too great a heat; they maybe 
made entirely of wood, but it will be better if the 
bottoms are of open work, like sieves. Their weight 
is such that they may be easily managed by a 
woman ; but in preparing prunes on a large scale, 
let them be made of greater length and breadth, so 
as to just come within the strength of a more robust 
person. 
“The wooden frame, h h, is that on which the 
two doors are hung. The door, g, which covers the 
