502 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
November  28,  1901. 
rices  are  more  approximate,  the  taste  for  the  pork  joint 
as  been  acquired  and  sticks. 
We  think  we  could  not  do  better  than  give  in  a  shortened 
form  the  suggestions  and  recommendations  contained  in  the 
leaflet  before  us  : — 
I.  — There  must  be  co-operation  between  the  farmers,  pig 
dealers,  and  the  Government  officials.  That  is,  if  the  disease 
.is  to  be  stamped  out. 
II. — It  is  well  to  remember  that  swine  fever  is  never  spon¬ 
taneous  in  its  origin.  There  must  be  a  “  first  cause  ”  some¬ 
where,  either  contact  wiui  a  diseased  pig  or,  even  as  in 
tynhoid,  with  the  excreta. 
III. — Infection  is  carried  from  centre  to  centre  by  persons 
who  have  been  engaged  on  or  about  ailing  pigs. 
IV. — Clean  sties  and  suitable  food  serve  to  keep  pigs  in 
healthy  condition,  and  thus  enable  them  to  resist  disease. 
Y. — The  proper  disinfection  of  all  carts,  crates,  nets, 
ropes.  &c.,  used  in  the  conveyance  of  swine. 
VI. - — The  necessity  of  a  fortnight’s  quarantine  for  newly 
purchased  pigs  before  allowing  them  to  associate  with  the 
home  stock. 
VII.  — Don’t  disseminate  disease  by  moving  pigs  from  any 
premises  where  there  is  any  sign  of  disease. 
VIII.  — The  Diseases  of  Animals  Act  makes  it  obligatory 
on  the  owner  or  caretaker  to  separate  infected  animals  at 
once  from  those  free  from  disease.  On  no  account  should  the 
same  person  attend  to  the  sick  and  healthy. 
IX.  — Prompt  notification  of  suspicious  symptoms  to  the 
police  constable. 
X.  — The  Board  only  pay  compensation  for  swine 
slaughtered  by  their  instructions,  and  the  slaughter 
is  ordered  in  the  interests  of  the  public  -alone  in 
cases  in  which  it  is  considered  by  the  Board  to  be  neces¬ 
sary  in  order  to  prevent  the  spread  of  the  disease.  Com¬ 
pensation  is  never  paid  merely  with  the  view  to  indemnify 
the  pig  owner  for  the  loss  sustained  by  him  by  reason  of  the 
outbreak  of  disease  amongst  his  swine. 
XI.  — Although  swine  may  not  be  moved  alive  from  an  in¬ 
fected  place,  there  is  nothing  to  hinder  the  removal  of  a 
sound  carcase  with  a  written  permission  of  an  inspector  of 
the  local  authority. 
Some  of  these  clauses  require  a  little  comment.  The  first 
we  touched  upon — viz.,  co-operation  of  pig  owners  with  the 
local  authority.  The  second  clause  goes  to  prove  that  this 
malady  is  an  entirely  preventable  one,  and  therefore  it  is  a 
great  blot  on  our  management  these  continual  outbreaks  of  a 
serious,  and  to  the  nation  costly  disease.  It  is  not  like  rin¬ 
derpest  or  anthrax,  that  comes  without  warning  and  takes 
the  healthy  and  sanitary  as  well  as  the  low-conditioned  and  . 
dirty. 
Regarding  the  third  clause  we  are  strongly  reminded  of 
the  great  rinderpest  visitation.  At  that  time  it  was  proved 
beyond  doubt  that  the  fatal  seeds  were  carried  from  farm 
to  farm  by  (I.)  persons  on  business,  (II.)  persons  who  came 
merely  out  of  curiosity,  and  (III.)  by  dogs.  There  can  never 
be  too  much  care  exercised  in  cases  where  there  is  the 
slightest  doubt.  In  an  affected  district,  allow  on  no  pretence 
whatever  the  visits  of  strangers  to  the  piggeries.  If  the 
visits  of  a  farrier  or  vet.  are  necessaiy,  see  (if  they  are  not 
alive  to  it  themselves)  that  th  y  are  well  disinfected  before 
they  begin  their  work  of  examination.  Nailed  boots  easily 
convey  germs,  as  do  dirty  hands  and  clothes.  An  overall 
well  impregnated  with  carbolic,  or  other  disinfectant,  should 
be  worn. 
As  to  No.  IV.,  we  are  always  preaching  cleanliness  in 
season  and  out,  and  it  has  been  our  endeavour  to  point  out 
the  economy  of  good  wholesome  food,  not  only  for  pigs,  but 
for  all  stock.  We  are  perfectly  certain  as  regards  No.  V. 
that  carts,  crates,  &c.,  will  not  disinfect  themselves,  and  the 
question  arises,  Are  there  enough  inspectors  about  to  see  the 
work  effectually  carried  out?  VI. — A  precaution  of  this 
sort  always  pays.  VII.  This  is  an  instance  of  love  and 
regard  to  one’s  neighbour.  This  love  and  regard  for  his 
interest  must  be  made  compulsory.  VIII.  and  IX. — 
Separation  and  notification.  Well,  this  is  not  done  as 
promptly  as  it  should  be.  The  symptoms  of  the  disease  are 
often  obscure,  and  the  Englishman  hates  any  officialism. 
Can  this  be  because  the  official  is  often  very  officious  and 
scant  of  courtesy?  X. — We  almost  wish  slaughter  were  the 
rule.  It  would,  we  think,  be  the  most  certain  method  of 
really  “  stamping  out.”  Slaughter  and  quicklime,  the  cost 
would  be  heavy,  but  the  result  (if  properly  done)  would  more 
than  repay  the  cost.  We  fear  there  are  cases  where  pigs  are 
supposed  to  recover,  only  to  remain  active  agents  for  dis¬ 
semination  of  disease.  We  know  these  views  of  ours  are 
not  allowed  in  high  places,  but  we  think  the  result  would 
more  than  justify  the  outlay.  After  all,  valuable  as  he  is  as 
a  food  product,  it  does  not  take  many  sovereigns  to  cover 
his  cost. 
fork  on  the  Home  Farm. 
The  rain,  which  lasted  nearly  three  days,  and  totalled  alto¬ 
gether  a  fall  of  about  5in,  ceased  very  suddenly,  and  was  suc¬ 
ceeded  by  three  nights  of  frost,  more  severe  than  we  can  recall 
under  similar  conditions.  After  10  degrees  to  16  degrees  of 
frost  for  three  nights,  ice  2in  in  thickness  was  formed,  so  it  may 
be  readily  imagined  that  root  crops  have  suffered  considerable 
damage.  The  soil,  being  in  a  saturated  state,  was  frozen  to  a 
depth  of  Sin,  and  though  the  frost  went  as  suddenly  as  it  came, 
we  fear  the  full  extent  of  the  damage  will  take  some  time  to 
fully  display  itself.  Swede  storing  is  indefinitely  postponed,  for 
it  would  be  useless  to  spend  money  on  damaged  roots  which 
would  not  keep.  We  must  wait  until  we  can  distinguish  sound 
from  bad  ones.  We  hope  no  one  had  any  Mangold  left  out,  for 
they  must  have  suffered  severely. 
Potato  heaps  unsoiled  have  been  frozen,  notwithstanding 
good  and  usually  sufficient  coverings  of  straw,  in  one  case  at  least 
3ft  in  thickness.  Potatoes  are  being  marketed  very  freely,  and 
in  most  cases  our  report  is  as  last  week,  very  good  ;  but  there 
are  sinister  accounts  from  a  neighbouring  and  very  important 
district,  at  least  one  half  of  the  crop  on  some  farms  having  gone 
bad  since  it  was  taken  up.  Disasters  of  this  kind  again  raise 
hopes  of  better  prices  in  the  future,  but  they  will  have  to  be 
multiplied  many  fold  before  supplies  are  seriously  affected. 
What  with  rain  and  frost,  work  on  the  land  has  been  entirely 
suspended,  and  the  horses  not  engaged  in  delivery  of  produce 
are  having  a  rest.  They  are  still  receiving  the  full  allowance  of 
Corn,  as  well  as  the  crushed  linseed  for  the  water  tub,  which 
latter  is  very  necessary  when  they  are  on  dry  food. 
The  stress  of  autumn  wrork  being  over  is  having  at  last  the 
natural  effect  of  easing  the  labour  market.  A  fortnight  ago  men 
were  difficult  to  obtain ;  to-day  the  supply  exceeds  tire  demand, 
and  at  the  Martinmas  hirings  there  is  a  distinct  tendency 
towards  lower  wages.  We  know  also  of  several  instances  of  men 
returning  from  the  towns  with  the  intention  also  of  staying  in 
the  country  if  they  can  secure  employment.  Farmers  will  be 
very  thankful  for  a  change  in  this  respect,  for  the  labour  trouble 
has  been  enough  to  make  many  despair  as  to  the  future.  High 
winds  have  made  the  hedger’s  work  difficult,  and  have  blown 
about  the  light  brush,  making  it  difficult  to  collect.  We  do  our 
best,  and  hope  there  may  be  no  punctures  for  cyclists.  If  there 
are,  they  must  blame  the  wind. 
WHEAT  IN  KANSAS. — Kansas  is  now  the  banner  Wheat 
producing  State.  This  year  over  5,000,000  acres  of  land  were 
sown  in  Wheat,  and  the'  crop  now  being  harvested  is  estimated 
at  from  80,000,000  to  90,000,000  bushels,  which  will  give  the 
farmers  50,000,000  dollars,  or  500  dollars  to  every  farmer  in  the 
State.  Last  year  the  crop  was  76,000,000  bushels,  and  the  year 
before  50,000,000.  Next  year  even  more  land  will  be  planted  in 
Wheat. 
AGRICULTURE  ALONG  THE  YUKON— The  outlook  for 
gardening  and  some  agriculture  in  the  cold  interior  region  of 
Alaska,  along  the  Yukon,  is  made  quite  encouraging  by  official 
reports  recently  received  at  the  U.S.  Department  of  Agriculture 
at  Washington.  Professor  C.  C.  Georgeson,  who  is  in  charge  of 
the  Alaska  experiment  stations,  has  spent  the  summer  in  the 
interior  and  along  the  Yukon  Valley,  visiting  the  experiment 
stat'on  established  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture  last  year 
at  Rampart,  just  outside  the  Arctic  Circle,  and  other  points 
where  experiments  were  arranged  for.  Good  gardens  were 
found  all  along  the  route,  especially  at  Eagle  City  and  Holy  Cross 
Mission.  Although  the  season  was  unusually  late  this  year,  new 
Potatoes,  Cabbage,  Cauliflower,  Beets  and  other  vegetables  were 
ready  for  the  table  before  the  middle  of  August,  and  Lettuce, 
Radishes,  and  Turnips,  grown  in  the  open,  have  been  in  use  for 
some  weeks.  Flower  gardens,  containing  a  large  variety  of  annuals 
grown  from  seed  furnished  last  year,  wore  in  full  bloom.  At  the 
station  at  Rampart,  Rye  seeded  the  previous  fall  wintered  per¬ 
fectly,  and  was  ripe  in  Ju'y.  Spring-seeded  Barley  had  ripened 
about  the  middle  of  August,  and  there  was  quite  a  prospect  for 
Oats  and  Wheat  to  mature.  Extensive  areas  of  excellent  land 
were  found  on  the  Lower  Yukon,  upon  which  there  w-as  an 
abundant  and  often  luxuriant  growth  of  grasses  over  6ft  in 
height.  The  abundant  moisture  and  long  days  during  the  summer 
months  account  for  the  surprising  luxuriance  of  vegetation  in  the 
far  north  region.  One  of  Professor  Georgeson’s  assistants  will 
make  a  trip  overland  from  the  Yukon  Valley  to  Prince  William 
Sound,  taking  the  trail  from  Eagle  City.  This  will  afford 
opportunity  for  a  reconnoissance  of  that  region,  which  is  re¬ 
ported  to  contain  large  tracts  of  land  well  suited  to  agriculture. 
report  of  this  trip,  and  of  the  season’s  operations  of  the  Alaska 
stations  as  a  whole,  will  be  submitted  to  Congress  in  the  early 
winter. 
