'Ih* RURAL NEW-YORKER 
How to Wind Up the Plow Reins 
F ARM AND HOME, an English agricultural paper, 
prints the picture shown at Fig. 31 as showing 
how to wind up plow reins. In England these reins 
are generally made of hemp cord, and when the job 
is done, at noon or night, they should be wound up 
so as to be out of the way and not dragging on the 
ground or floor. The loop in the line is taken from 
the bit and run through the ring on the back band of 
the harness. Then the double ropes are wound as 
shown in the first figure, and wound up after the 
plan of the three following figures, leaving them 
coiled and fastened as shown at the right of the pic¬ 
ture. Plowboys in England seem to practice this cn 
a piece of string until they get exactly the right 
twist, and then become expert in handling the lines. 
Engine With Cracked Water-Jacket 
I have an engine with a frozeu cylinder, or rather 
water jacket (12 horsepower). The water squirts out 
every time the pump forces water into the jacket. Can 
you tell me how to mend the leak? I. F. 
Denver, Pa. 
CRACKED water jacket is a common occurrence 
at this time of year, and while it does not, 
aside from exceptional cases, seriously lessen the 
strength of the engine, it is still cpiite a serious 
trouble. There are several ways of repairing this 
trouble, and where there is a garage equipped with 
an oxy-aeetylene welding outfit that can be readily 
reached, one of the best is to have the crack welded 
by this process. The crack is heated to the welding 
heat by the flame of the acetylene torch, and a 
quantity of iron or steel wire melted into it in much 
the same manner that solder is used in repairing 
tinware.. When well done the repair is as tight and 
strong as the original casting. Brazing with a 
spelter is a second method that is somewhat similar 
to soldering that can be used where the necessary 
equipment is at hand. 
Where the crack is very small three or four coats 
of orange shellac and alcohol worked well into it. 
and allowed to dry, will sometimes be found effective 
in stopping the leak. If inaccessible from the 
outside the water jacket may be filled with a satur¬ 
ated solution of copper, water in which blue vitriol 
has been dissolved until it will hold no more. To 
dissolve the vitriol suspend it in a sack in the upper 
part of the container holding the water, for if placed 
in the bottom it will not go into solution readily. 
This solution works into the fine cracks and fills 
them with copper. It should be left in the jacket 
over night, or long enough for the cracks to be filled. 
Larger cracks can sometimes be 
closed by the so-called “rust joint” 
method. The crack is thoroughly 
cleaned and filled with a paste made 
from sal-ammoniac and water. Iron 
filings are sometimes added to this 
paste as well. When this is used the 
engine must be left idle while the crack 
is filling with rust. 
As a repair that can be made in the 
ordinary blacksmith shop to cracks 
that are too large for any of the above 
treatments, a patch may be applied as 
directed below. First drill through the 
jacket at each end of the crack .to pre¬ 
vent it from extending farther, then 
with a sharp cold chisel carefully cut 
out a Y-shaped groove from end to end 
of the crack. Cut a piece of thin iron 
stock, to serve as a patch, about one 
inch larger on all sides than the open¬ 
ing it is to cover, and carefully fit it 
ic the curve of the jacket. Drill holes 
about an inch apart around the edge 
of this patch, and using it for a pat¬ 
tern mark and drill corresponding 
holes around the crack in the jacket 
that the patch is to cover. Tap these 
out to take a small cap screw. Clean 
the paint from the cylinder over the 
area covered by the patch, and till the 
crack with white lead paste. Into this 
place a piece of asbestos wicking soaked 
in white lead paint to fill the V groove, 
also plugging the holes drilled at the 
ends of the crack, and over all place a piece of sheet 
asbestos, with holes punched to coincide with tho. 
in the patch, soaked in water, covering this with 
the metal patch that has been prepared, and draw¬ 
ing up snug with the cap screws. After this has 
been done leave the engine dry and quiet until the 
joint has set. In some cases the patch can be 
secured with bands or clamps placed around the 
cylinder,, either shrunk or drawn up with bolts, or 
a temporory repair may be made by wrapping the 
patch with wire and twisting up snug. 
How Plow Reins Are Wound Up. Fig. 31. 
The first repair mentioned, acetylene welding, is 
the most reliable and workmanlike, however, and 
should bt used where possible, as the cost is not 
great and the resulting repair is as good as new. 
r. h. s. 
The Value of Alsike Clover 
W E find that Alsike clover gives better results 
when seeded in wheat land in the Spring than 
the ordinary Red clover. In our section, where we 
A Hatful of Spring Babies. Fig. 32. 
have no underlying limestone rock, our soils are 
slowly turning toward a more acid nature, in which 
most of the clovers are unable to produce a satis¬ 
factory stand. With Alsike clover this acidity does 
not seem to mean so much, and it produces a good 
growth at even a much cheaper rate of seeding. 
Alsike is generally cheaper per bushel, and, being 
a much smaller seed, one needs only to use about 
half the amount to the acre as compared with Red 
clover. This will place a sufficient number of seeds 
or plants to the square foot to guarantee a good 
141 
stand. When Alsike is usect h combination of other 
seeds may be used, iu which some Alfalfa, Red-top. 
White clover or Timothy may be mixed. A few 
years ago we were in the habit of mixing Alsike 
with some of the other grasses, but of recent seasons 
we have conducted most of our grass seeding on 
land that has not been sown to Alsike. 
Alsike when used in this manner plays the role 
of a filling-in grass when it is impossible for the 
farmer to lime or to drain the land sufficiently to 
be able to grow the Red clover easily, or even to get 
o good crop of Alfalfa started. We find that we 
can grow' Alfalfa where we drain and lime the soil 
sufficiently, but on wheat land, where this has not 
been done, we can be sp.re of a crop of hay by using 
Alsike. 
Alsike clover ripens a little earlier than Red clover 
and makes a very nutritious hay when cut in the 
right stage. It should not be allowed to get too 
ripe so that the leaves begin to shrink, as much of 
the palatability and feeding quality will he lost. 
There is no aftermath to speak of from Alsike, such 
as one gets from Red clover, but the first cutting 
makes excellent hay, and if not cut for hay it will 
provide good forage. clabekce m. baker. 
Ohio. 
Sweet Com Stover; Best Methods of 
Handling 
IIE sweet com growers in Maine are feeling well 
over the sweet corn situation, and seem to be 
planning for a record crop in 1920. At five cents a 
pound the crop is a paying one under average good 
conditions of soil and culture, and it is confidently 
expected that the price will continue for the coming 
year. The Sweet Corn Growers’ Association of Maine 
has recently held a meeting with the .State Packers’ 
Association, with results that seem to he gratifying. 
The matter of price, methods of taking test, time of 
payment, supervision of testers, handling of seed and 
various other matters of mutual interest seem to 
have been discussed with entirely good feeling and 
a desire upon the part , of both the growers and 
packers to get at a full understanding of The busi¬ 
ness from the viewpoint of both sides: The crop is 
a peculiar one, in that it is at the same time a cash 
and a fodder crop of no mean proportions. Although 
some growers make the practice of plowing down 
the fodder, and depending upon that for the humus 
for succeeding crops, the large majority depend upon 
it to increase the stock-carrying capacity of the farm 
and to add variety to the Winter feed. 
The value of an average acre of 
sweet com fodder, if cut without frost¬ 
ing, I believe to be fully equal to two 
tons of average mixed hay. This esti¬ 
mate is based on experience of years 
of feeding with a fair amount of other 
roughage sufficient to afford a good 
variety. The best way of feeding, of 
course, is from the silo. This affords 
a method of feeding without waste, 
either in storing or iu feediug, for if 
cut in short lengths in the silo, there 
is none of the fodder to be wasted, and 
the loss in storage is less than by dry¬ 
ing. even under the most advantageous 
conditions. No one has put the bene¬ 
fits of the succulence in silage into 
figures, but it is something, and should 
be considered. Possibly it will nearly 
offset the loss in curing. I am willing 
to leave it there. 
If a silo is not available the fodder 
should be carefully shocked in the 
field, the tops of the shocks well tied 
to protect them from the weather, and 
then left there as tong as possible. I 
have fed sweet corn fodder from the 
field; after snow came with good re¬ 
sults and with no waste. If sufficient 
room is available to allow of standing 
the bundles of fodder snugly under 
cover this is ideal. If such a space is 
not available the next best plan is to 
pack the fodder in oat straw, first a 
layer of straw, then a layer of fod¬ 
der. about in even thicknesses when packed. I am 
now feeding fodder packed iu this way with but 
little waste in the cribs and none in the mow. 
Maine. b. walker mckeen. 
R. N.-Y.—Cornstalks packed in the mow without 
some filling of straw or other drying substance are 
almost certain to mold and be seriously injured in 
feeding value, even though they seem bone dry when 
packed away. The stalk contain so much moisture 
that a long time is needed to get it safely dry Stand¬ 
ing the bundles on end is best. 
