1874.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
177 
would do the work in half the time of the plow. 
The annexed engravings show the forms of 
the teeth generally used and the smallest-sized 
grubber. Fig. 3 is a tooth intended to fit upon 
the bars of the frame by 
means of a key which 
passes through the bar, 
and to carry a winged 
share which penetrates 
and lifts and loosens the 
subsoil. Fig. 2 is a tooth 
which is clamped upon 
the frame by means of 
bolts, and simply stirs 
the soil. Fig. 1 shows 
the frame, which is sim¬ 
ilar to that of an ordi¬ 
nary cultivator, and to 
which either of the above forms of teeth may 
be affixed. We know of no person who makes 
these implements at the present time, but as 
the teeth are of wrought iron any fair black¬ 
smith should be able to make them. The frame 
is made of timber strengthened by bolts. A 
farmer whom we visited some time ago was 
using a similar implement, the teeth of which 
were ordinary picks, and he expressed himself 
as being very much pleased with its effect, both 
in preparing for crops and cultivating them. 
How to Make Hurdles. 
The picture in April of the “ lamb creep ” 
formed of hurdles has brought us several 
Fig. 1. —MAKING A HURDLE. 
inquiries as to the best method of making 
the hurdles for portable fencing. For this 
purpose they are very useful, and as they 
are quickly and cheaply made and last, when 
taken care of, many years they are very eco¬ 
nomical. The material is generally such as 
is of little or no use for any other pur¬ 
pose. Brush from fence rows, swamps, river 
or creek banks, or the undergrowth of woods 
Fig. 2.—A HURDLE SET UP. 
is what is wanted. The thicker portion of this 
is cut into stakes five feet long and trimmed of 
all branches. A piece of scantling 10 feet long 
is provided, and holes 18 or 24 inches apart are 
bored in it. The stakes are set upright in these 
holes, and while in this position the smaller 
brush is interwoven between them. Figure 1 
shows the method in which this is done. When 
the hurdle is completed it is set up in the fence 
in the following manner. The stoutest of the 
stakes are reserved and pointed at each end. 
These are driven into the ground at such dis¬ 
tances apart as may be needed, so that the hur¬ 
dles may be fastened to them. Generally one 
at each end of the hurdle is sufficient, or an¬ 
other in the middle of each one may be used. 
The hurdles are then tied to the stakes by 
withes, cords, or wires. Holes are left in the 
hurdles at each end for this purpose. Figure 2 
shows the method of setting up this fence. 
A Lard-Oil Press. 
The home manufacture of lard oil is a pro¬ 
cess that may profitably be 
carried on under some circum¬ 
stances. Those who may find 
it convenient to make their 
own lubricating or burning oil 
or manufacture it for sale may 
make use of the simple con¬ 
trivance here described by 
“E. K. G.,” of Holliston, 
Mass. It consists of a frame 
made by fitting two pieces of 
timber 4x6 inches thick 
from the floor to the roof or 
ceiling of an apartment at least 
10 x 20 feet in size. Holes 1} 
inch in diameter are bored 
through the timbers 15 inches 
apart, and an iron bolt is 
made to fit them, 
bed is then made of plank 
three inches thick, 18 inches 
wide, and four feet long, with 
a gutter cut out all around 
it, which leads to a pipe that passes into a 
cistern below. The bed is placed in front 
of the upright pieces. Two other upright 
timbers 4 x 10 are placed upon the bed three 
feet apart and framed into it and fastened 
above. A guide one inch thick and two 
inches wide is fastened to the inside of each 
of these uprights, and a follower, shown 
at a in the engraving, is made to fit them. A 
lever 15 feet long and 4 inches thick, 10 inches 
wide at one end and 6 inches at the other, is 
made; and a hook affixed to the small end, on 
which a box may be hung to receive a burden 
of stone or other heavy material. The press 
is then ready for use. The lard is prepared by 
being packed in a box 10 inches square and 
3 inches deep, in which a small sheet of strong 
cotton cloth has been laid. When the box is 
packed full of lard the cloth is folded over the 
top of it. The package of lard is then taken 
out and laid upon the press bed. More lard is 
prepared the same way, and the packs. are 
placed in pairs, a piece of board being laid 
upon each pair. When enough has been pre¬ 
pared, a heavy follower which fits the guides is 
placed upon it, and a wooden saddle or rocker 
is put upon the follower, and the lever is then 
arranged so as to press upon the saddle. 
Weights are then placed in the box. The oil 
which is pressed from the lard runs down 
through the pipe into the tank beneath. As 
the lard is pressed down the pin at the end of 
the lever is lowered one or more holes as may 
be needed. The oil made iu such a press in 
the winter time will be of the best quality. 
- l —3-0-— - 
An Underground Cistern. 
A capacious cistern is next in value to a good 
well, and is better than a failing one. It may 
be constructed with but little labor, and the ex¬ 
pense, as compared with its convenience, is 
small. If every western f .rm had a cistern at 
the barn and one near the house we should 
rarely see stock driven several miles each day 
through clouds of dust and in intolerable heat 
to get water, which, while it saves the lives of 
the animals, is in many cases unwholesome and 
unfit to drink, and is doubtless the cause of 
many deaths among stock. Frequently the 
cost of a cistern, which would be filled by one 
heavy spring rain and replenished by every 
shower afterward, would be saved during every 
month of a summer drouth. The sum of $40 
would be sufficient to build such a cistern as is 
here described, 8 feet in diameter and 10 feet 
deep, which would hold 105 barrels, or 10} 
barrels of water, or 375 gallons for every foot 
in depth. This quantity of water would sup¬ 
ply a moderate number of stock for three 
months; at least it would give one barrel of 
SECTION OF A CISTERN. 
water a day for 100 days, even should no con¬ 
siderable shower fall within that time. If a 
larger supply were needed we would rather build 
several cisterns than one large one, as being 
more secure against accident. The most eco¬ 
nomical cistern, both as to cost and space, is 
a cylindrical one, that is, a round one with 
straight sides. In a clay soil such a one may 
be very safely made, but where the soil is 
A LARD-OIL PRESS. 
