The RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
50a 
How to Tan Woodchuck Hides 
When tanning woodehuck and other 
hides, does the time of skinning the ani¬ 
mal after killing, whether they are bled 
or wliat treatment can be given, have 
effect in preventing the fur from coming 
loose from the hides? Woodchuck hides 
tan so nicely, are so tough and so useful, 
they fit in along the Hope Farm man’s 
idea of producing on the home farm a 
great many things we now buy. My 
idea after this will be to take their hides 
for damages, instead of smothering them. 
I notice a great difference in the hides 
about the hair coming off, and cannot 
account for it in any way. excepting that 
some of them were not skinned promptly 
after catching them, the time of year 
when necessary to catch them being a 
busy one, and sometimes I had to skin 
them in a strong wind, and noticed also 
that when the blow-flies got at them 
when hung up to dry, the hair pulled out 
easily in those spots. Lot all hands turn 
in and take the woodchucks’ hides for 
damages. They make gloves that stand 
heavy, hard wear, and no wind gets 
through them when used as lining for 
Coats. A hide that does not lose the hair 
in tanning is pretty anyhow. I. c. R. 
New York. 
A woodchuck skin is at its best late in 
the Fall, just before the animal goes into 
its Winter quarters and early in the 
Spring just after it emerges, but as soon 
as warm weather comes, the old hairs 
loosen and fall out, and are replaced by 
the new growth, which does not become 
thick and soft until late in the Fall. 
Meantime the fur is of comparatively lit¬ 
tle value, and, if killed while the animal 
is shedding its coat, the hairs will, of 
course, fall out. Again, if the skin is not 
removed before decomposition sets in the 
hairs will loosen and fall out. although 
the skin may not be injured for the mak¬ 
ing of leather. Also decomposition may 
attack the skin after removal, if hung in 
a warm, damp place, and this will loosen 
the hairs just as readily as though the 
skin remained upon the decaying carcass. 
Lastly, if the tanning liquor is too hot, 
the hairs will ultimately loosen, although 
the trouble may not be apparent until 
later. The temperature of this should 
never reach 90 degrees during any pro¬ 
cess. 
The right way to handle the woodchuck 
is to bleed the animal as soon as killed, 
remove the skin, the entrails and the yel¬ 
lowish glands on the breast as soon as 
possible after the animal is dead. Then 
soak the carcass for twenty-four hours 
in salt water. Pour off the water, add 
fresh water, set upon the stove and bring 
just to a boil. Pour off this water and 
cook the carcass as you would cook a 
chicken, and you will have a dish that 
you need not fear to set before your 
hired man, provided you can do so with¬ 
out his mistrusting what kind of meat is 
being served. As for the skins, while 
they may be tanned when fresh from 
the carcass, it. is best to dry them and 
hold them until a sufficient number to 
make it worth while to tan them, are 
secured. Dealers will pay something for 
them, if shipped on consignment, but the 
price is so low that it will pay better to 
use them in the home manufactory. The 
use of alum or of hemlock bark in tanning 
will have a slight tendency to tighten the 
hair. but. there is no process that is of 
any value if the hair is loosened by a de¬ 
terioration of the skin. In such cases 
it will he better to remove the hair en¬ 
tirely, and tan the skin for leather. 
The skin of the common rat may be so 
tanned as to bear a close resemblance to 
kid. The skin of the mouse makes a soft 
fur, of tender wearing qualities, but suit¬ 
able for cap-ears, wristers and light edg¬ 
ings. The skin of the mole, of the va¬ 
riety commonly known as the “rooter,” 
has a market value of from 15 to 25 
ceuts, greater than that of the fox when 
the comparative sizes of the animals is 
taken into consideration. Leather made 
from the skins of snakes and frogs is of¬ 
ten used to cover the curious little Ja- 
paese artirles sold by the dealers in fancy 
notions and novelties. c. o. ormsree. 
Cleaning Ditch with Tractor 
Will some of your readers who live on 
black land tell me if they know of any 
homemade tool that can be used with a 
tractor to clean out a drainage ditch? 
Ditch will be from one to two feet deep 
and about five feet wide. The ditch is so 
long that to use a team and scraper is 
very laborious and takes a great deal of 
time. j. HENRY. 
T-’xas. 
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Uniform Cooling Keeps 
The Engine on the Job 
T HE cooling system of a tractor gets its real test 
during the heat of harvest and early fall plowing. 
It is then that you can rely upon the Waterloo Boy— 
the pump, fan and radiator system of cooling always 
keeps the engine on the job. 
firnmnim 11** 
A centrifugal pump, four* 
blade fan, and large size, 
honey-comb type radiator in¬ 
sure positive cooling on the 
Waterloo Boy, 
John Deere Implements, 
Waterloo Boy Tractors and 
Kerosene Engines are distrib¬ 
uted from all important Trad¬ 
ing Centers. Sold by John 
Deere Dealer* everywhere. 
To secure uniform power you must 
have uniform cooling. The pump, 
fan and radiator system used on the 
Waterloo Boy positively assures uni¬ 
formity in circulating cooling water. 
It holds the engine at the right temper¬ 
ature for proper lubrication, and main¬ 
tains sufficient heat to insure complete 
combustion and full power from the 
fuel. 
An even temperature is maintained at 
all operating speeds because the speed 
of the pump and fan is automatically 
controlled by the speed of the engine. 
You get a big radiator on the Water¬ 
loo Boy. It holds thirteen gallons. 
You won’t find it necessary to stop in 
the field every few hours on a hot 
day and fill it. 
The cooling system is but one of the 
Waterloo Boy’s superior features. Its 
simplicity and accessibility, its powerful 
12-25 H. P. engine, its ability to burn 
kerosene and bum it right, its Hyatt 
roller bearings that eliminate friction, 
and a drawbar shift lever that gives 
you the correct line of draft on all 
tools, all contribute to make it a real 
farm tractor. 
Wa want you to read a booklet deacribing the Waterloo Boy. 
Writ. for it today. A •’ J -e»» John Deere, Moline, Illinois, and 
ask for Booklet WB-640. 
JOHN sDEERE 
THE TRADE MARK OF QUALITY MADE FAMOUS BY GOOD IMPLEMENTS 
WMiiniiiilj 
Gold Coins Thrown Away 
Northampton, Mass., Feb. 12.—Silver 
and gold were thrown away yesterday to 
illustrate a talk ou the waste represented 
by carelessness among factory workers of 
the McCallum Hosiery Company. George 
B. McCallum. treasurer of the company, 
told the operatives that in a week 11,760 
needles, worth 1*4 cents each, had been 
lost. 
The effect was the same, he said, as if 
.$147 was thrown from the shop window, 
whereupon the treasurer took from his 
desk a pile of 147 silver dollars and 
tossed them out of the window. 
Silk scattered under foot was as much 
destroyed as if thrown away, he added. 
Estimating the amount of loss from this 
cause last week at $50. he tossed a shower 
of gold coins among the workers. Some 
listened to the treasurer’s later remarks, 
others scrambled for the gold, while many 
rushed out of doors to search for the silver 
in the snow. 
I F YOU are not adding 
Phosphorus to your 
stable manure, YOU are 
throwing away Gold 
Coins every day. 
The addition of a 
moderate amount of 
BARIUM- 
phosphate 
Will Double the Val¬ 
ue of Stable Manure 
Writa for Our Booh 
‘ ‘PHOSPHORUScnd MANURE” 
Witherbee, Sherman & Company, Inc. 
2 Rector St., New York City 
393 Main St., Worcester, Mass 
When you write advertisers mention The R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a 
quick reply and a “square deal. ” See guarantee editorial page. 
Before you buy a 
silo send for the 
Globe Catalog. 
The Globe 
Silo with its extension 
roof, insures a full silo. Five 
or six ft. more of silage means 
using the full capacity of the 
silo, using every foot of silo 
you pay for. 
The Globe Silo Company was 
first to introduce the extension roof 
idea. Today it is the only silo ex¬ 
tension roof with side walls so 
nearly straight that silage will set¬ 
tle level—no heaped up silage ex¬ 
posed to v .he air to spoil. 
Write today 
Globe Silo Cg., 2-12 Willow St. Sidney, N. Y. 
AGENTSWANTED ary, to take subscrip- I 
i ttons for Rural New-Yorker in Ohio. Prefer 
men who have horse or auto. Address 
C. MULHOLLAND. General Delivery. Columbus, Ohio 
HE RURAL NEW YORKER 333 W 30th St.NewYorkCityl 
