Democratic Sentinel, Volume 14, Number 42, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 November 1890 — FACTS FOR THE FARMER. [ARTICLE]

FACTS FOR THE FARMER.

MATTER OF INTEREST TO THE AGRICULTURAL CLASSES. Practical Information tor the Stockman, the Poultryman, the Nurseryman, the Farmer and the Farm in General. THE FARM. Moisture in Food. The advantage of ensilage consists largely in the fact that it is a-palatable way of preserving food in moist state. This adds greatly to its digestibility. In the silo the moisture to which the entire mass of corn fodder is subjected makes even the butts of the stalks palatable, while by ordinary methods they are thrown into the manure pile. Potash in Corn Cobs. A considerable portion of the mineral manure required in growing corn is potash, and most of this is found in the cob. It makes a stronger ash than does the grain, most of the latter being starch or carbon and passing off in smoke. Housewives long ago learned that ashes from corn cobs made a strong lye, and this indicates the value of corn cobs for manure wherever potash is required. The Cattle tn Winter. Cold, inclement weather will soon drive the stock indoors as it were, and the matter of arranging the barn and yard for them will become an Important one. Too often this work is neglected and improperly attended to. Excessive warmth or else imperfect protection from the cold are the rule rather than the exception in stock yards. Neither is conducive to robustness, health or profit. If excessive warmth is obtained the animals will become diseased, impure air will poison the blood, and the warmth will so dry the skin and open the pores that the slightest draft will produce dangerous colds. Throat diseases, pleuro-pneuino-nia and like diseases are sb re to find their way into such cattle houses. On the other hand, imperfectly sheltered cattle will succumb to disease through exposure. Jlrafts blowing on them during cold, wintry nights will bo sure mes°engers of insidious diseases. If snow and rain are allowed to drift in through large cracks and holos, the health of the animals Is greatly deteriorated. The excessive amqunt of heat which they have to throw off to warm their bodies is a great drain on their systems, and it invariably reduces their vitality, so that they easily succumb to the attacks of disease. All of this effects the milk supply too, and is a most important fact for the dairyman. Many recommend to keep the cows in barns or sheds artificially heated by stoves, and to give them nothing, but warm water. All of this is founded upon wrong hygenic laws. The animals need cold, bracing air when: the weather is clear, and during storms or excessively cold weather they ne.ed to be kept in barns comparatively,' temperate. They need good food, moderately cold water, but not icy water. Drafts should be avoided, but the air should be changed every day, so that they will not be breathing over the same air hour after hour. The sheds should also be kept clean, and it is well to keep near at hand such absorbents as dry swamp muck or fresh leaves or sawdust. Any fine mateyjal such as these will absorb the liquid, and prevent disease and make good manure for the following season's crops. In the Winter time the importance of a regular and constant supply of salt is not fully appreciated by all stock growers, and especally by those who keep only a few animals. The average farmer gives the salt to the animals when he happens to think of it, and this sometimes is not very often. The best results can be obtained from rock or lump salt placed in the feed boxes. The danger from taking too much salt comes not from having it on hand all of the time, but from denying the animals of it for a long period. Then in their eagerness to satisfy their natural cravings they will sometimes eat morg than their systems really require. It Is seldom that an animal will take in more food or water than they really require. They know when to stop, even if their masters do not. Salt is an essential constituent of the blood, and salt hunger may lead to excess when the animal is suddenly permitted an opportunity of supplying its lack. Wild animals will travel long distances to obtain it, and their resorts to the “salt-licks” frequently leads them into a trap for the hunters. - Many of the common foods given to the animals are lacking in salt constituents, and hence this essential must be supplied artificially. Animals on one farm will need more of it than on another, for on some soils it is lacking in the soil itself, and the grains grown on it must necessarily be deficient, Salt is also a common constituent of milk, and if not given to the cow it must be drawn from that stored in her blood tissues. This cannot be done without seriously impairing the health of the animal. One cannot thus tell how much the anhnals need. Thfc quantity must be left to them, and this can only be done by keeping rock salt near them all of the time. — E. P. Smith, in American Cultivator.

THE DAIKI', When studying cheap feed, remember that it is not feed that Is cheap because poor; that feed is dear at any price. Cheap feed is the best feed, so combined as to produce the best results for the money outlay. Clean milking, from a standpoint of getting all the milk at one sitting is of the highest importance, and to accomplish this ought to be the earnest aim of all milkers, and no cow should be left until the last drop is drawn. If you have a variety of feed for your cows, don’t feed all of one kind this month, another in December, and another in February. Mix them—except feed the pumpkins before they freeze, and save some of the best hay till spring. A new separator is about to be introduced to America from England. It is made in several sizes. The most important is the hand-size, skimming 400 pounds per hour with as little power, it is claimed, as is required by an ordinary barrel churn. J. H. Monrad says, in Germany the milk delivered by peddlers is kept in cans which are loaded in a locked refrigerator wagon, with only the faucets! protruding, thus preventing the driver from being too liberal to the pretty servant girls and making up the quantity by adding water on the route. *Unaerated Milk, says F. D. Curtis, is the mother of most floating curds and cheese spoiled in this wajr. In shut-up cans it is worse. It is the potent father

of tyrotoxicon poison. It is the great enemy of infants, and the direct cause of a great deal of cholera infantum, which sweeps away so many helpless children. Judge Cleveland, of Franklin, Vermont, has been retaining and breeding from his best butter cows only, the past few years, and the gain in the average butter yield of his herd per cow shows the wisdom of such a course. The average number of pounds of butter per cow in 1884 was 170, in 1886 200, in 1887 228, in 1888 235, and in 1889 250. The cows have good pasturage in summer and good hay in winter, with a moderate allowance of grain in the spring before being turned to grass. The judge is taking a great interest in the matter and expects to increase the yield of his dairy to 300 pounds per cow.

THE HORTICULTURIST. Notes on Gardening. Use fresh mold for potting plants. Don’t forgot that petunias make good winter bloomers. It may not be a new idea to you, but cut flowers keep better in a cool place. —Apples should not be stored in a warm cellar till freezing weather; then a cool cellar is better. Window gardening is carried to almost universal adoption in England, palace and humble dwelling alike having boxes of sweet flowers upon the window ledges. Dr. B. D. Halstead road at Indianapolis a paper on rot of the sweet potato, urging that it demanded instant attention. He had sent questions to over 300 growers in New Jersey. Replies showed that a large proportion suffer from this cause, it has been known many years, is worse some seasons than others; that variety, soil, climate, etc., are all modifying agents, and that the disease is not understood. The “soft-rot” is due to the growth of a mold (Rhizopus nigricans,) which spreads through the potato and then to others. The “dry-rot” is probably due to the growtli of a blue mold (Penicillintn.) Experiments with drying with heat show that when affected potatoes arc well dried, the “soft-rot” is exceedingly contagious. Hot water is a clean, safe and effective means of destroying green fly on pot plants. To the amateur, whose stock of plants might be small, or who might not have accommodations for fumigating, says Farm and Garden, It would be found a convenient remedy. There is a margin of many degrees between the lowest temperature that will destroy this insect and the highest that a plant can stand with impunity. One hundred and thirty degrees is a proper temperature, or as hot as the hand can bo held in two seconds. The plant should be plunged into and withdrawn from the water instantaneously. The smaller body and more delicate skin of the insect is acted upon more quickly than that of the plant. Should anyone be afraid to employ the remedy let her, If she has several plants affected, try it on one first, and the next day when she sees it has suffered no injury, she will have no misgivings about treating the rest In the same way.— Farm, Field and Stockman.

THE RANCH. The Feed and Management ot Horses. The horso-ear companies have an association known as the American Street Railroad Association. From time to time they get together to disc ass matters of general interest to them all. At a recent meeting the care and feed of horses was tho subject for consideration. The Country Gentleman prints a report of the meeting given by Henry Stewart, from which we take the following: “The feeding, as might easily be thought, is most carefully managed. The food consists of cut hay, slightly moistened, with mixed ground feed (corn and oats) added, given In small quantities at short intervals. A small quantity of loose hay is thrown to the horses when they are brought in from work, then, when the regular feeding hour arrives (which is never soon after or Just before a trip) six to eight quarts of ground feed, with five pounds of cut hay, are given. The horses are always fed by the same feeder, when possible, and the feeder gives close attention to each particular horse to know how much food Is eaten and how much Is left so that tho quantity given can be gauged exactly. After every feed the mangers are thoroughly cleaned out, and for this purpose cast-iron shallow bowls, or enameled kettles of sufficient size, are used, In which no food left over can gather in the corners and get sour. These round troughs must be rust-proof, and arc cleaned out with a wet sponge by the stableman twice a day. The result is that food is eaten clean, and none is wasted by reason of offensive troughs. Moreover, since these feed troughs were Introduced into the Chicago stable colic and other forms of indigestion have practically disappeared. “The water is even more particular than the feeding. In some of the New York stables it has been found necessary to filter the water given to the horses. The filter used consists of a barrel filled with coarsely ground charcoal with small brush and gravel to keep it in place, and with some sulphur added. The sulpher came into use from the fact which became known to one of the large stock owners that in the neighborhood of Richfield Springs the farmers had found the sulphur water exceedingly beneficial to their horses; and experience has proved that the filtered and sulphured water has been drunk by the city road horses with much advantage, and is preferred by the animals to any other. Under the microscope it is found perfectly free from all Impurity. A gentleman from Chicago stated that while, using tho city water the horses were often sick, and S2O a month was usually spent for medicine, and much time was lost besides. The water from a clear spring was brought to the barn at a cost of SI,OOO, and after its use the trouble stopped, no medicines were needed, and no time was lost through sickness.”

THE HOUSEHOLD. The Care of Lamps. There are a great many people who have used lamps all their lives who know absolutely nothing about their proper care. They wash chimneys with soap and water, and cut the wicks down beyond the charred part, and lean back with satisfaction, believing that their work has been well and properly done. In point of fact, the chimney of a lamp should never be touched with water. A few drops of alcohol, or even kerosene oil, will remove the dimmed, smoky effect, and make the chimney bright as possible when it is polished with a soft flannel or chamois skin. There will then be no danger of any moisture being left in the chimney, so it will crack when the lamp is lighted. . i AH parts of the burner of a lamp'

should be thoroughly clean. A Uttl» kerosene or alcohol on a cloth is as good for this purpose as anything else to clean the burner, providing it is polished clean and dry afterward. Neglected old burners may be boiled up in soda and water, and renew their usefulness though not their appearance, as this process removes the lacquer put on most brass. It is not necessary to allow a burner to get in such a condition that it must bo boiled in this way to clean it, but if it does, there is no better remedy. Every part of the outside of a lamp should be rubbed dry and free from oil when it is filled, daily. Do not cut the wick of a lamp after it Is first put in and has been evenly trimmed once, but each day brush off the charred portion. The wick will last longer and the light be evener and clearer If this last rule is strictly adhered to. Metal or porcelain lamps, in which the oil is put in a font of metal resting within the porcelain, are the most deshable and least dangerous lamps to use. Always avoid filling a lamp to the brim or burning it when the oil is nearly exhausted. There is no special economy in turning down a lamp; nearly the samo amount of oil is consumed, what is not burned in the blaze passing off in gas, which is often strongly noticeable on going into a room where the lamp has burned low for some hours. In case only a little light is desird, a night-lamp, adapted to a small wick, should always be used.— New York Tribune. Hints to Housekeepers. Tenderloins broil better if first brushed over with olive oil. To prevent tin pans from rustipg, rub fresh lard on them, and sot in a hot oven until thoroughly heated. Scalding water should never be poured into dishes which have held milk until It has been removed by cool water. Every housekeeper knows how important it is to keep the refrigerator clean. Wash the shelves and Ice racks In soap, ammonia and water. Vinegar and water will remove every stain from the zinc. Very few housekeepers understand bow to cook succotash properly. The Lima beans should be cooked at least an hour, with just enough water to cover them, before the corn is added. The corn should be cut carefully, not too close to the cob, and added to the beans and the mixture cooked ten minutes. Then a large teaspoonful of butter and a scant teaspoonful of floyr must be added to every pint of succotash, and stirred In carefully so us not to break the beans. The succotash must now bo seasoned and cooked ten minutes longer. Some persons add salt pork to this dish, but it gives a course, greasy flavor not agreeable to a refined taste. A very good substitute for castor oil, • for use In young children, is the aromatic syrnp of rhubarb. This contains about one-tenth us much rhubarb as tho aromatic tincture. The dose of the aromatic syrup Is one teaspoonful for a child about one year old. It is especially appropriate in colicky cases, which require a laxative. Beside this and castor oil there can wisely be kept In the nursery medicine chest the mixture of rhubarb and soda. It Is an old preparation which could scarcely be improved. In order for It to produce a cathartic effect tho dose must bo quite large, hence castor oil would bn preferable in many cases. But this mixture will act best where merely a laxative effect Is desired. It Is especially applicable to cases, of constipation in which there Is trouble with tho stomach, as dyspepsia. THE KITCHEN. Meringue Pudding, Line a deep pudding dish with slices of sponge cake, cover with rich fruit jam, pour over custard and bake, ice like cake, set In the stove to dry, take out and cover with meringue. Serve without sauce. Custard Pudding. Take a pint of milk, one cup of sugar and six eggs. Beat the sugar and eggs together, flavor with vanilla. Pour the milk In a pudding dish, mix in the eggs and sugar. Bake half an hour. Eat with sauce. How to Boil an Egg. To boil an egg properly put It in a. vessel, cover with cold water, place over the fire, and the second the water begins to boll your egg is done. The white is as delicate as a jelley and as easily digested, and nutritious, as it should be. How to Cook Cranberries. Recipes adopted by the American Cranberry Growers’ Association. 1. Wash them clean, aqd' remove all stems and leaves. 2. Always cook in a porcelain-lined kettle or stewpan. Never cook in tin or brass. 3. The sooner they are eaten after cooking, the sooner you will know how good they are. Sauce No. I—Ono1 —Ono quart berries, on» pint water, one pound granulated sugar. Boil tenminutos; shako the vessel, donot stir. This means a full, heaped, dry measure quart, which should weigh fullyseventeen ounces. Sauce No. 2—bne quart berries, one pint, water, one pound granulated sugar. Bring sugar and water to a boil; add tho fruit; and boll till clear, fifteen or twenty minutes. Sauce No. 3 —One pound berries, one pint (scant) cold water, one-half pound granulated sugar. Boil together berries and water ten minutes; add sugar, and boil five minutes longer. Strained Sauce —One and one-half pounds berries, one pint water; threefourths pound sugar. Boil together berries and water ten to twelve minutes; strain through a colander, and add! sugar. Cranberry Jelly—One and one-half pounds berries, one pint of water. Boil, fifteen minutes; strain through jelly bag: or coarse cloth; cook the juice fifteen minutes; add as much sngar as you havejuice, and boil again fifteen minutes, and turn into forms or jelly cups; dip forms into cold water to prevent sticking. r Cranberry Tarts—Either of the sauces above will make delicious tarts. Strained, sauce generally preferred. Cranberry Pics—For pies with upper crusts the berries should be used whole and cooked in the pastry in the following proportion: four parts berries, three parts sugar, one part water. Steamed Batter Pudding Stir tho cranberries with a light batter; steam, two hours; serve with liquid sauce. Steamed Cranberry Dumplings—Use cranberries tho same as apples; steam about one hour and serve with sauce. Frozen Cranberries —Some prefer tho flavor of frozen cranberries. E> ’erethem solid and throw into hot wate) | use one-fourth less sugar than in 'foimer recin*