Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 March 1894 — OUR RURAL READERS. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

OUR RURAL READERS.

SOMETHING HERE THAT WILL INTEREST THEM. " ■ / “Small Fruita as Martgage 1.1 ft era" Wheat aa a Side Product—A Harness Horse - Convenient Milk-Room DeviceSubstantial Farm Gate. A Milk-Room Device. What housewife has not had trouble again and again to tell just how old is the milk in each pan in her milk-room? When the same number of pans are used at each milking, and these can be "always placed in regular order upon the shelves, there may be little danger of getting Tuesday morning’s milk mixed up witn that of Monday night; but sometimes there is room for only a part of the pans upon one shelf, and so some must lie placed out of order or an unequal number of pans may be used; and in these ways uncertainty often arises as to the age of the milk. The trouble may be

obviated by the device shown In the illustration, which is from the America Agriculturist Slips of wood, narrowed at one end and having a slit Just large enough to slip upon the edge of a pan, are made as shown in the sketch. Let there lie a sufficient number so that as many may be marked “Monday morning” as would ever be wanted to accoiudate a single milking, and lot an equal number be marked “Monday evening, “Tuesday morning,” and so on through the days of the week. By this means a housekeeper,can always be sure before she disturbs a pan whether it contains doub.e or triple cream. An AU-Purpo«« Horae* To the average farmer an all-pur-pose horse or term is an absolute ne-cessity-economy and general utility considered. The theory that farmers must necessarily have large horses, weighing 1,600 to 1,800 pounds, had a long and impartial trial, but after due deli lieration it was pronounced impracticable. Most farmers do not need or require a horse of huge dimensions, and not many farmers can afford to keep specialty teams and riding horses. The farmer usually desires a horse or team that will answer ail purposes; that is, work to the sod breaker, the mower, the hay rake, the farm wagen, the light or spring wagon, the buggy, and the road cart. Now, there are many who, of necessity, require all those desirable qualities of their limited number of horses. This work may be satisfactory, or it may be performed in such a way as to g ve only partial satisfaction, owing to the kind of horses employed. If the number df horses be limited, as is usually thio case, it is easily seen that the heav|y draught horse will not answer the purpose to any reasonable drgree of satisfaction. This style of horse is emphatically a specialty horse; and as such, not the kind the average farmer should own. In his special sphere the draught horse is both useful and profitable; but, outside this sphere, be cannot work to the satisfaction of his owner. Yet for the heavy draught horse there is a good market and ,a steady demand, and generally fit figures that are remunerative. Fdr the farmer the most profitable horse is neither the largest nor the smallest, but one of that weight and symmetry which will enable him to perform all kinds of work; he should weigh from 1,150 pounds to 1,250 pounds.—Tribune. Substantial Farm Gate. This gate has the merits both of a handsome and imposing appearance, and of solidity and permanent uprightness. With a frame of this sort it is impossible for a gate to “sag,”

or to become inclined to either side out of a vertical line, as the footpieces of the framework hold the frame constantllv In a vertical position. Such a gate, if built of good material, and kept well painted or whitewashed, will last almost a lifetime.—Country Gentleman. Large Profit* Irom Fruit. “Sipall Fruits as Mortgage Lifters,”'was the taking title of a paper read at the Barnesville Institute by one grower, m 1890 he bought 104 acres of land that was Industriously producing elders and briers. A portion of It was cleaned up and planted in berries. In 1892 the gross receipts were , $2,451, and the net receipts, after all labor and supervision were paid for, says the Hartford Courant, amounted tolß percent upon capital Invested in farm stock and implements. and no account was taken of the milk, butter, eggs, poultry, and fruit consumed on the farm, nor the food for stock. In 1893 the net receipts of the farm amounted to 23} percent, upon the capital—ss,ooo— As to varieties that had found favor with him, the speaker said “We have twenty-three varieties of strawberries, but Warfield Na 2 and Bubach No. 5 for shipping, am} Haverland fertilized with Enhance for home market, are the best. We have sixteen varieties of raspberries, but Gregg, Palmer, and Hilborn are hard to excel. Of six varieties of blackberries the Snyder -heads the list. Of five varieties of currants the Cherry and Victoria have gi ven best results.” The owner of the farm, Mr. Cowan, thinks that ho could make twenty acres of good

berry land, at SIOO an acre, uay for itself within a few years. It is hi* experience that berries are “mortgage lifters.” Variation* In Plant*. Botanists generally have but a faint idea of the breadth of variation com mod to all plants; and can only attribute a striking departure from the “normal type"—that is to say from the specimen from which the first description was drawn—as being the result of hybridization. “Supposed hybrids” abound in botanical literature. Mr. Eugene Schieffelin of Tivoli-on-the-Hudson, has a beautiful form of the common hemlock spruce, the branches of which have a cruciate character. The leader does not drop as in ordinary hemlocks, but is stiff and erect, and it has verticils of four branches at regular interval*. Those who aie familiar with hemlocks on a large scale know bow wide is the variation—this particular one of Mr. Sch effelin, is, however, unique. When our botanical friends get done naming and describing “hybrid” oaks, the hemlock offers a rich field for the extension of botanical nomenclature.—Ex. The farmeri Work* It is the business—we may say the fate—of all to work. We cannot escape that Some work by their hands and some by their heads, and the latter work is many times more valuable than the farmer’s. Hand work on the farm is the least of the lalior without the brain work to guide the hand with skill to succeed. Those farmers who are working with their heads are making no complaint, and whatever is heard of this kind comes from the handworkers, and only from the least skillful of these. What is wanted on the farm is contentment with the good things we enjoy, enterprise to Improve the work, perseverance to carry it through, economy to make everything count, patience under little disappointments, and thankfulness for all the enjoyments we possess over and above the generation which has gone before, and whose labor made for us what we now have.—New York Times. For Me ndlng Uarne**. The Orange Judd Farmer, Inara, cent issue, illustrates a device which is very useful in mending harness. The bench or main part is made frem a 3-lnch board 4 feet long and 1 foot wike. Put in legs, round off the edges and ends so as to form a comfortable seat. If the top is padded, so much the better. For the clamps use two pieces of 2-4 white oak lumber, about 15 iches long. Shape as Illustrated in the illustnatlon and fasten the end on the right firmly to the bench. Secure the other with

two hinges so that It can be moved back and forth. Pass a strong leather strap from this through a hole near the top of the opposite part of the clamp, down through another in the bench and attach to the foot lever. The piece of harness to be mended Is put between the clamp* and securely fastened by means of the lever and strapi Wheat a* a Side Product. The wheat crop will not wholly go out of the rotation even in localities where it no longer pays directly. This grain is one of the very best to seed with, and there are many localities where the difference between a good and poor seeding of clover is more than what the farmer loses by the grain crop. Where land is most valuable the wheat straw has n market value that Is greater than Its worth to make Into manure.". Wheat straw is purchased for bedding by the keepers of livery stables. It is liked because it is stiffer than oats straw and the manure of grain-fed horses being mostly dry It does not adhere to the straw, which thus can be used several times before becoming badly so led. &. Destroying tbe White Grub. The white grub is the especial enemy of strawberry growers, because the two-year-old clover-sod, which it is generally advised to plow under for making a strawberry bed, is usually filled with these pests. The best way to get rid of the grubs is to turn a lot of young, active hogs into the patch, fencing it in so as to confine their rooting to the plot that is to be plowed. Feed the hogs some milk and wheat middlings, and then let them root for the white grubs. They will clear the patch sooner than it can be done in any other way and at less cost. We think, too, that the rooting helps to keep hogs healthy, and if they are fed as advised their droppings mixed with the upturned so.l will.help to enrich it Odd* anil EncMf You can drive a nail into hard wood without bending them if you first dip them in lard. Vials which have been used for medicine should be put into cold ashes and water, boiled, and allowed to cool before they are rinsed. A ijttlk salt sprinkled in starch while it is boiling will prevent it from sticking. Before using, add a small piece of tallow; stir thoroughly. A beefsteak cut an inch thick will be cooked rare in ten minutes. A mutton chop cut three-fourths of an inch thick will cook in eight minutes. To remove rust from kettles or other ironware rub with kerosene and let them stand. Keep a day. then wash with hot water and soap, repeating if necessary. When molasses is used in cooking it is an improvement to boil it and skim it before you use It. It takes away unpleasant raw taste and makes it almost as good as sugar. For a break/ in the skin, whenever found, is no remedy like benzoin, it is not only a rare healer but an antiseptic as well. For general use have one ounce of the compound tincture of benzoin mixed with four ounces of glycerine. It may be applied several times a day.

LABELS FOR MILK PANS.

SUBSTANTIAL GATE.

A HARNESS HORSE.