1874] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
99 
end of the rope is passed through a block of 
wood and knotted so that it can not be drawn 
out. This end hangs down below the ring. 
The other end is also knotted in such a way 
that the knot can not slip. This end of the 
rope is passed around the horns of the cattle 
so as not to be too tight, and the knot at this 
end is put through a loop made in the rope at 
A SAFE CATTLE TIE. 
such a distance from the end as to leave suffi¬ 
cient length to go around the horns. When 
the cattle are up the slack of the tic is drawn 
down by the weight of the wooden block, mak¬ 
ing it impossible for the animal to get its foot 
over it. When they are lying down the block 
is drawn upwards, but still keeps the rope 
safely out of the way. We have found this tie 
equally useful for horses. 
Three-Horse Whipple-Trees. 
A set of three-horse whipple- trees is shown 
in the engraving here given. They are ar¬ 
ranged upon a compensating plan, by which 
the middle horse has twice as great a length of 
the whipple-trees as each outside horse, thus 
THBEE-HOBSE WHIPPLE'TREE. 
equalizing the amount of draft. The engrav¬ 
ing shows this so clearly that it is only neces¬ 
sary to follow the plan exactly in making the 
whipple-trees. They are connected together 
by ordinary clevises and bolts. 
-——■» — ■ —- 
Mixed Grass. —At the annual meeting of the 
Mass. Agricultural Ass., a paper was read 
upon growing grass. In the discussion which 
followed it was remarked that farmers should 
be careful to sow together only those grasses 
which ripen at the same time. This is a mis¬ 
taken idea. The chief reason why a variety of 
grasses should be sown is that there may be 
a constant succession of growth. The weakest 
point of our meadows is that the grass ripens, 
fades, and suspends growth for the season, 
leaving a brown, withered, or bare surface. If 
there were a succession of consecutively ripen¬ 
ing grasses there would be a continued green¬ 
ness and verdure, and if the pastures were only 
not overstocked this would be as great an ap¬ 
proach as we can make with our peculiar cli¬ 
mate towards a permanently green meadow or 
pasture. But if all the grasses ripen at once 
we may as well continue to grow one single 
good grass as several good and bad ones. 
Butter and Cheese Dairying. 
We have watched with great interest the 
progress of the “ dairymen’s conventions ” 
which were held during the month of January. 
Feeling the importance of these institutions to 
the interests represented by them we devoted 
some time to attend them. We may say that 
we were particularly interested and gratified 
with the energy, enterprise, and intelligence 
exhibited by the Associated Dairymen. The 
papers read at these meetings were of great 
merit and usefulness, and the speeches and dis¬ 
cussions which followed the remarks of the 
orators were marked by great practical experi¬ 
ence and intelligence. This fact promises well 
for the continued success of the dairy interest, 
which now represents an annual value of nearly 
500 millions of dollars. The cheese manufac¬ 
ture of the country is expanding with great 
rapidity, and its expansion is but the natural 
consequence of a vast improvement in quality. 
The renowned Cheshire and Cheddar cheese of 
England is to some extent met and vanquished 
upon its own ground by American cheese. 
Many brands of American make are sought for 
■with avidity by English dealers. Twenty years 
ago American cheese was a drug in the English 
market. But the factory system has not only 
changed all that, but it has from its inherent 
value and excellence forced its recognition and 
adoption by English cheese-makers. And this 
is but the beginning of the existence of the 
cheese industry of this country, for the home 
consumption has hardly as yet been created. 
To stimulate this growth and encourage an ex¬ 
tensive home market the attention of dairymen 
needs now to be turned, and the tastes and de¬ 
mands of consumers must be learned and met. 
As regards butter, dairymen have much to learn, 
especially those of the West. The quality of 
the butter that comes to market is in large part 
wretchedly bad. Thi3 is the consequence of 
faulty feeding, of careless churning, but in far 
greater part of improper packing. The produce 
dealers are also to blame to some extent for 
this. It is true that low-priced butter is need¬ 
ed for a portion of the consumers who are poor 
and can only afford to buy a cheap article; but 
it costs no more money to make a fair tub of 
butter than a poor one, while its value is about 
double that of the poor one. The secret is 
almost entirely in cleanliness—clean feeding, 
clean milking, clean keeping and churning, and 
last, but really the most important of all, clean 
packing. We are glad to believe that the meet¬ 
ings of the dairymen will gradually lead to im¬ 
provements in these respects, and we propose 
to work for that end along with them. 
Permanent Grass. —Water meadows are 
amongst the most productive of permanent 
grass lands. But the management of water 
meadows .is very frequently injudicious. No 
cattle should be allowed upon an irrigated 
meadow, nor should the water be permitted to 
run continually over one spot. A meadow 
thus treated very soon becomes a morass, and is 
then spoiled. A dressing of bone-dust is re¬ 
markably beneficial to water meadows, greatly 
thickening the grass and improving the quality 
of the hay. An application of plaster the next 
year still further improves the meadow. As 
soon as the hay becomes inferior in quality and 
decreases in quantity it is restored by a repeti¬ 
tion of this treatment. The opportunities for 
making water meadows are frequent, and as 
their value becomes appreciated they will be¬ 
come much more common than they now are. 
The Valtte of Skill.— In the report of the 
Ayrshire Agricultural Association recently held 
in Scotland, we read of an Ayrshire dairyman 
who had been in the habit of making Dunlop 
cheese, the common cheese of the country, but 
on changing his makfe to that of Cheddar cheese 
realized an additional profit of $5,000 in five 
years. The Cheddar is classed amongst the 
fancy cheeses and brings a high price; but as 
there is nothing needed in its manufacture but 
an extra amount of care and skill, we see how 
the exercise of these qualities pays in compari¬ 
son with simple labor. Amongst ourselves there 
is a great opening for the profitable exercise of 
skillful dairying in the making of cheese, to 
meet a large demand for something of extra 
quality and attractive and convenient form. 
In and in Breeding. —In building up a 
breed or race of cattle some of the most noted 
and scientific breeders have resorted to very 
close breeding. They have not scrupled to use 
bulls upon their own dams or heifers when by 
doing so some desired point was to be secured. 
But it by no means follows that this practice is 
to be adopted as a rule. A scientific and suc¬ 
cessful stock breeder is one of a thousand, and 
while he may be successful in some of his ven¬ 
tures—and, as it must be remembered, we do not 
hear of his failures, the evidence of which he 
instantly destroys to save his reputation—others 
may find that his methods may be to them 
merely playing ignorantly with edge-tools. 
--■ O OP * -» ■ -- 
Salt for Hogs. —The unrestrained appetite 
of swine will often lead them to consume things 
that are highly injurious to them. Cases of 
poisoning by partaking of excessive quantities 
of salt often occur amongst hogs at this season 
when beef and pork barrels are emptied of the 
old brine and refuse salt. A case in which 
several hogs were thus lost in England, was re¬ 
cently noted. Hogs require a certain amount 
of salt as do other animals, but it should 
be given to them with caution, and either 
evenly mixed in their feed or scattered very 
thinly about their troughs, so that one more 
greedy than another can not take more than 
its proper share. 
-— — m i — 
A Punch for a Bull’s Hose. 
The uncertainty of a bull’s temper renders it 
necessary that he be held in safe control. He is 
only safe when held by a strong ring in liis nose. 
We have before described one method of ring¬ 
ing a bull (American Agriculturist , June, 1872). 
We now figure a punch for piercing the hole in 
the cartilage between the nostrils by which the 
operation is rendered easier and safer. It is 
made of similar shape to a pair of common 
pincers of large size. One of the jaws is pro¬ 
vided with a hollow punch of conical form 
which takes out a round piece of the cartilage. 
The bull should be tied by the horns and seized 
