446 
JOURNAtj  OP  HORTtCtlLTUnE  ANb  COTTAGE  GARDEE'ER. 
Ko-<^ember  4,  199?. 
In  case,  too,  of  infectious  complaints,  the  hospitals  are  open  and 
free,  and  there  is  always  the  hope  that  the  outbreak  of  any  complaint 
may  be  confined  to  the  patient  who  Avas  removed  in  an  early  stage  to 
comfortable  quarters,  where  all  that  science  and  nursing  can  do  will  be 
done.  Now,  in  the  villages  and  solitary  farm  houses  there  is  still  much 
to  do.  Take  the  water  supply  alone.  How  often  it  is  sadly  defective, 
both  as  to  quantity  and  quality  ! 
There  is  not  public  enterprise  enough  for  waterworks,  and  each 
house  and  each  group  of  cottages  has  to  depend  on  a  Avell  or  spring, 
very  much  on  the  surface,  water  easily  contaminated  by  dangerous 
matter  from  foldyards,  cesspools,  and  badly  arranged  pigsties  and 
other  AA'orse  abominations.  Then  again,  the  supply  (pure  or  otherwise) 
is  by  no  means  certain.  We  have  known  cases  of  Avater  having  to  be 
led  ten  miles  to  satisfy  the  stock  on  a  1400  farm  !  What  would  happen 
in  case  of  fire  ?  Nothing  could  absolutely  be  saved.  We  know  of 
another  farm  where  the  available  supply  Avas  a  large  pond  (which  got 
very  low  and  dirty  in  summer),  and  a  pump  where  the  Avater  was 
highly  impregnated  Avith  iron,  so  much  so  as  to  seriously  disagree 
with  most  bipeds,  and  which  put  all  the  horses  sadly  out  of  condition. 
Much  is  written  and  said  now  about  impregnated  milk.  Certainly 
on  some  farms  the  poor  cows  do  not  have  much  chance  of  any  fairly 
pure  Avater.  Whether  their  huge  bodies  act  as  filters,  and  enable  the 
milk  supply  to  be  pure  and  Avholesome,  is  a  subject  we  had  rather 
leave  alone,  it  is  too  wide  and  too  vast  for  us. 
There  Avas  an  Act  passed  in  1885  regulating  the  condition  of 
dairies,  coav  houses,  and  milk  shops,  and  insisting  upon  the  registration 
of  such  people  as  coAvkeepers  or  milk  sellers.  Now,  certainly  as  far 
as  Ave  know,  no  retail  milk  dealers  ever  receive  either  a  visit  from  an 
inspector  or  are  registered.  This  may  be  all  right  in  the  main,  but  it 
leads  to  much  carelessness  in  (1)  the  housing  of  the  cows,  (2)  the 
storing  of  the  milk.  The  wmter,  too,  used  for  cleaning  pails  and 
pancheons  is  anything  but  free  from  suspicion  ;  and  it  is  a  well-known 
fact  that  milk  is  one  of  the  most  easily  tainted  of  foods,  and  has 
often,  alas  !  been  the  vehicle  for  carrying  deadly  disease.  We  have 
been  interested  lately  in  seeing  a  bottle  of  impurities  extracted  from 
milk  in  a  SAvedish  creamery.  The  mihe  is  forced  through  a  layer  of 
fine  granite,  which  is  afterwards  purified  by  fire,  and  the  wonderful 
and  curious  sediment  was  an  object  lesson  indeed. 
Of  course  in  the  case  of  private  milk  sellers  we  do  not  look  for  such 
excessive  care,  but  Ave  do  ask  that  ordinary  precautims  should  be 
used,  ordinary  cleanliness,  attention  to  coav  house  and  dairy,  and  to 
the  Avater  supply.  So  much  Avaste  is  often  permitted  by  the  perco- 
la'ing  of  the  liquid  part  of  manure,  a  most  valuable  substance  in  the 
right  place,  and  a  most  pernicious  one  in  the  Avrong.  Some  farmyards 
are  so  badly  constructed  that  this  Avaste  seems  inevitable ;  others, 
again,  are  fitted  with  tanks  and  cesspools.  In  buildings  which  are 
unguttered  there  is  Avaste  in  several  Avays.  We  lose  the  excellent 
soft  AA'ater,  which  is  often  so  bountifully  provided  ;  we  alloAv  it  to 
dilute  our  manurial  agents,  and  the  drip  from  the  eaves  is  highly 
detrimental  to  brick  and  woodAA'ork.  The  ordinary  farm  labourer  is  a 
bit  stolid,  and  Avill  alloAv  and  enjoy  his  pig  much  nearer  his  back  door 
than  is  good  for  health.  We  suppose  the  constant  play  of  fresh  air 
round  the  cottage  minimises  the  bad  smell,  or  habit  becomes  second 
nature. 
There  is  often  far  too  much  carelessness  as  to  the  disposal  of  such 
dead  animals  that  are  not  Avorth  taking  to  the  fellmongers.  These 
possibly  are  thrown  into  a  corner  of  the  stackyard,  to  become  the 
source  of  a  great  nuisance,  if  not  danger. 
Of  course  it  is  a  difficult  thing,  AVell  nigh  impossible,  to  put  all 
farm  buildings  into  good  sanifary  condition.  Landlords  fight  shy  of 
improvements  which  bring  them  no  present  benefit,  and  the  farmer  is 
still  less  willing  to  lay  down  good  money  on  another  man’s  property. 
Hoav  many  stables  do  AA'e  find  dark  and  ill-ventilated  ?  This  is, 
hoAvever,  quite  as  much  a  toAvn  as  country  failing.  A  horse  is 
peculiarly  susceptible  as  to  its  bronchial  arrangements,  and  many  a 
case  of  “  roaring  ”  or  broken- Avindedness  can  be  traced  to  a  close  foul 
stable.  No  animal  can  thrive  in  dirt  or  discomfort,  in  extremes  of 
heat  or  cold ;  but  Ave  speak  often  to  very  deaf  ears. 
There  is  a  very  Avide  field  for  reform  in  the  treatment  of  several 
complaints  incident  to  cows  and  sheep.  In  coavs  particularly  there 
exists  a  severe  form  of  lung  consumption  ;  often  even  Avhen  suspected 
the  ailing  animal  is  not  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  herd  till  too 
late.  Of  abortion  aa^c  hope  to  deal  in  another  article — it,  alas  !  is  far 
too  prevalent.  If  the  inspector  gets  Avind  of  it,  he  looks  afcer  the 
scabby  sheep.  But  there  are  several  other  ailments  that  call  for 
timely  attention  and  isolation  that  pass  all  but  unnoticed. 
We  think  liver  complaint  is  confined  to  man,  and  some  will  be 
surprised  to  hear  what  a  victim  the  barndoor  foAvl  is  to  this  disease. 
So  it  is;  but  as  a  foAvl  is  not  ruinous  matter,  we  advocate  for  the 
stopping  of  the  spread  of  this  complaint  a  sharp  knife. 
WOKK  ON  THE  HOME  FARM. 
The  summer  of  St.  Luke  has  extended  into  November,  and  has  proved 
a  friend  indeed  to  the  farmer  of  arable  lands.  Such  a  fine  dry  October 
without,  absolutely  without,  frosts  we  cannot  remember,  and  when  we 
come  to  look  back  to  our  experience  of  last  year,  AAuth  its  constant  water¬ 
fall,  heavy  labour  bill,  and  disastrous  effects,  Ave  have  much  to  be  thankful 
for  at  the  pi’esent  time. 
The  late  Wheat  is  going  in  splendidly  ;  in  fact,  on  light  soils  the  con¬ 
ditions  are  almost  too  dry,  and  may  tend  to  encourage  the  growth  of  such 
small  weeds  as  the  Poppy  and  the  wild  Convolvulus,  which  like  a  fine  dry 
seed-bed;  so  we  must  keep  a  sharp  look-out  in  February,  and  miss  no 
opportunity  of  giving  the  young  Wheat  a  light  harrowing,  which  will  kill 
the  AAmeds  while  they  are  small  and  in  the  first  leaf. 
Though  it  would  be  bad  policy  to  neglect  any  crop  if  it  is  worth 
growing  at  all,  yet  the  prospect  of  fair  if  not  good  Wheat  prices  for  at 
least  another  twelve  months  gives  encouragement  to  every  farmer  to  lay 
out  both  money  and  time  in  the  attempt  to  produce  a  good  crop.  The 
early  soAvn  Wheat  has  come  up  quickly  and  Avell,  and  has  made  a  most 
satisfactory  start. 
The  trade  for  pigs  is  very  slow.  This  is  partly  owing  to  swine  fever 
restrictions,  but  more  to  a  likelihood  of  a  scarcity  of  pig  food  Potatoes 
are  such  a  miserable  crop  that  even  the  chats  and  cut  tubers  Avill  be  scarce 
and  dear  ;  this,  added  to  the  higher  price  of  barleymeal  and  sharps,  Avill 
have  a  depressing  influence  on  store  pigs.  There  is,  however,  a  gi’eat 
probability  of  pork  being  dearer  as  Christmas  approaches.  We  must 
remind  our  readers  that  attention  is  most  important  m  pig-feeding.  The 
animals  should  not  have  more  food  given  them  than  they  will  quickly 
clean  up  ;  and  instead  of  filling  the  trough  morning  and  evening,  as  so 
many  people  do,  the  pigs  should  have  five  or  six  meals  per  day— small 
quantities  at  regular  intervals.  They  should  nev'er  be  kept  waiting 
beyond  the  usual  time,  but  fed  to  tbe  minute  ;  they  will  thus  keep  (^uiet, 
and  not  fidget  about  and  get  agitated  at  being  kept  waiting.  “A  con¬ 
tented  mind  is  a  continual  feast,”  and  it  goes  a  long  Avay  toAvards  the 
fattening  of  all  animals. 
OUR  LETTER  BOX. 
Fowls  Picking  out  Each  Other’s  Feathers  (  W.  Smith). — Fowls  in  con¬ 
finement  are  much  addicted  to  this  habit.  Watch  the  birds  on  a  sunny 
day  (unseen  by  them),  and  you  will  probably  detect  tbe  culprits.  Remove 
them  and  place  them  in  coups  for  a  few  days.  Probably  all  the  fowls 
will  be  found  to  be  troubled  b}'  “nits,’  this  is  the  beginning  of  fowl 
pecking.  Give  plenty  of  green  food,  such  as  Cabbage  and  Turniptops,  a 
fresh  supply  of  dry  earth  and  lime  for  dusting  purposes,  and  if  the  fowls 
be  very  full  of  vermin  dress  with  some  harmless  insect  powder,  Avhich  any 
chemist  Avill  supply. 
METEOROLO&ICAL  0BSERVAT10X8. 
Camden  Square,  London. 
Lat.  51°  32'  40"  N. ;  Long.  0°  8'  0"  W.;  Altitude  III  feet. 
Date. 
9  A.M. 
In  the  Day. 
1897. 
October. 
^  rt  > 
So -,2 
Hygrometer. 
Direc¬ 
tion  of 
AVind. 
Temp 
of  soil 
at 
Shsde  Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature. 
c 
'5 
b  ”  rt 
MS-i! 
Dry . 
AVet. 
1  loot. 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
Sun. 
On 
Grass. 
Sunday  .... 
24 
[nchs. 
30-257 
deg. 
51-4 
deg. 
48  6 
N.E. 
deg. 
50-4 
de?. 
5H*9 
deg. 
46-0 
deg. 
8T2 
deg. 
40-4 
Inchs. 
Monday  .... 
25 
30-240 
42-8 
42-8 
N. 
49  1 
56*  1 
40-1 
82-2 
33-4 
0-092 
T  uesday 
28 
iO-3-28 
46-7 
46  4 
N. 
47-9 
57*2 
39-0 
72-6 
33-9 
0-03) 
AVednesday 
27 
30-318 
47-1 
47-0 
N. 
48-7 
54-0 
44-3 
65-0 
38-4 
— 
Thursday . . . . 
28 
3'|-284 
45-2 
45-2 
N. 
48-4 
48-a 
43-3 
53.5 
37-2 
Friday  . .  . 
2 
30-  I.Ah 
44-8 
44-7 
N. 
46-9 
61- H 
37-7 
80-8 
;3i-9 
_ 
Saturtiay  . . 
3  1 
5  -166 
45-0 
44-  t 
N. 
46-3 
61-2 
39-0 
85-4 
33-6 
— 
3  -250 
46-1 
45-7 
48-2 
56-6 
41-3 
74-9 
35-5 
0M22 
REMARKS. 
24th.  — Cloudy  early  ;  almost  cloudless  from  10  a.m. 
25th. — Fop:  early,  clearin';  about  .30  a.m.,  and  sunny  after. 
26th. -Rain  irnm  6.30  a.m.  to  lO.S'i  a.m.;  almost  continuous  faint  sunshine  from 
11.30  a  m.,  but  spots  o  rain  at  1.3".  p.m. 
27th.  — Dull,  with  more  or  less  lop:  almost  throughout,  but  a  gleam  of  sun  at2  p.m. 
28th.-  Fog  all  day,  slight  lor  several  hours  in  the  middle,  with  the  sun  showing  through. 
29th.— Fog  early,  with  sun  visible  ;  bright  sun  Irom  11  a.m.  to  sunset. 
SOtb. —  Fog  till  11  a.m  ,  with  the  sun  visible;  then  bright  sun  till  about  3  p.m.;  fine  night, 
Another  fine  week,  with  m  ore  log  than  usual.— (J,  J.  SVIIONS, 
