Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 November 1894 — HOME AND THE FARM. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

HOME AND THE FARM.

A DEPARTMENT MADE UP FOR OUR RURAL FR ENDS. Th* Experience of Farmer* with Homs Mixed Commercial Fertiliser* Select heed Corn H hlle llnflttni Drinking Trough for Calves—Agricultural Matters in Uenentl. Commercial Fer: illxers. When it Is realized that the farmers of the United States buy * 0,000,i 000 wo.th of commercial fertilizers every year, the need of analysis of ' fertilising materials will be uifder- ! stood. The standard- required by \ law in the different States, vary, so ; that the valuations contained in bulj letin Ma 102 of the New Jersey station, are only of use inside the limits !of that State. In other respects the bulletin will prove an exieilent guide to farmers in ail sections. The fact I that “it pays quite as well, proporI tionately to u?e good business in the purchase cf fertilizer supplies as in the sale of produce" is not grasped by the general farmer who does not realize that “those who carefully study the source of supply and make up their orders early, and purchase con-! sideraole quantities are able to get better quotations than those who buy at the busiest season of the year, in small lots at a time and of tho nearest dealer.” Inquiries as to the advantges of home mixing brought replies from sixty farmers, fifty three of whom tlnd that it pays them well lo huy raw materials and mix for themselves. But three farmers report any disad- \ vantage. One states That there was considerable loss from handling, j another that it is difficult to procure I the materials in small quantities at a \ reasonable price, while a third con- ! siders It a disadvantage to pay cash. 1 This summary of practical experience j should be sufficient evidence of tho ! vaiue of home mixing and of the I adoption of this method of purchas- j ing supplies. Drinking Trough for Calves. The drawing represents a handy pen for feeding calves. It consists .simply of a plank trough raised to :i convenient drinking distance from ! the floor, with partitions in it. The stalls are made from each partition large enough to admit the calf without allowing it to turn around and are made high enough to prevent

Stealing from or interfering In any way with its neighbor. The advantage of this arrangement is the calves do not have to be taught to drink. Take them from the cow, turn them into the stall, put in the milk and they will soon learn to drink without aid.—Farm and Home. Tho Fodder Shooks. Corn cut off at tho ground and shocked after heavy rainstorms, is apt to become twisted, and some of the shocks will corkscrew and fall over. All such shocks should be broken down as soon as they have dried d»it, and the : talks set round the upright shocks. If left partly fallen down, they cannot dry out, the fodder will mold, and then the grain will become heated and will quickly spoil. Tnis Is a little matter where only a few shocks are lost, but it is a great loss when the shocks blown over are many. Each large corn shock will husk from a half to a barrel of corn. The fodder is also valuable. Corn, owing to the shortage in the "West, will tornmand better prices this winter, and clean, bright fodder is worth 85 per ton; tberefo.e, it is well worth saving in the best possible manner.

Feeding mouldy grain, or mouldy fodder, is dangerous; it is injurious to the stock. If fed to milch cows it Injures the quality of the milk, and if the grain is fed to hogs It is apt to produce disease. Horses will not eat mouldy corn. Fodder shocked properly will shed water readily, and neither fodder nor grain will be damaged, even after ral days’ rain. Good twine tarred makes an excellent tying mater al. It is strong, easy to handle, and costs hut a lew cents per pound. It can be used for tying the shocks first, and then, after the corn is hu-ked, it is useful for tying the fodder in bundles. If cared for, it will lad; two years.—Baltimore American. Better for tlfte Business of Farmers. Farmers’ boys have, as a rule, succeeded in all occupations, but how much more able, influential and respected would the farming community be to-day if it were made up of those same talented and educated sons, asks the Farmer's Review. If my education will aid me in other vocations, while will it not serve me as well as a farmer? That is a fallacious doctrine which teaches otherwise. Is not the knowledge of agricultural chemistry, methods of plant giowth, and the nutritition of so ds of practical use? An educated mind —that Is, an athletic mind—is trained to think. Hoes it not pay thp farmer to think? rolished Moldboards. A plow that will not scour is a vexation of spirit, and the fault generally lies with the previous user, who did not wipe off the moist soil, or else left In the furrow, or with the polished surface upwa: ds to catch the r»in. When stopping work, both at noon and night, the plow should be taken out of the furrow, wiped bright with a bunch of grass and turned over on the edge of the share with the land-side up, to prevent injury to stray stock and to keep the moldboard dry. When the plow is to stand unused for a time, it is well to coat the polished surface with castor oil to prevent rust. Beef for Kngland. The value of our English market for beef is shown i y jthe f;<ct that wc exported to Great Britan 31,500 tons of dressed beef and 106,000 live cat tie during the first five months of 1 his year, valued at 822,500,0:0, or 815,000,000 for live cattle and $7,-

I 50% 000 for dressed beef, a consider' able increase over the exports for the corresponding time last year. Added to this is 65,000 sheep, valued at ! $600,000. The export of hog products for the month of May was 28,445,000 I pounds. The total value of ail pro- | visions and live stock exports Tor May was 815,045.000, or $2,U00,000 more j than May, 1893. The But Way to Batcher. Butchering is a piece of work that must l>e done once a year among ' farmers. To kill the porker .the best way is to use a gun, says the National Stockman* A breech-loading rifle is best and handiest, as the loadsare all alike. I use 22 caliber with short shells. Shoot in forehead in line about an inch above the eye. When shot roll on back, start the knife, which should have a keen edge, about four inches front of breastbone and in center, holding knife at about halt pitch. Cut toward breast, four inches is deep enough. Take a sled or scaffold, make right height, place scalding barrel on end, put in water enough to go fully half way upon hog. But in about quart of wood ashes to soften water, also about tablespoonful of pi-e tar. Have derricks with hioks on inside of outside p»eces, lay derricks on ground with hog between, slip hamstrings on hooks, and two men can hoist any ordinary hog with case, need no gambrel stick and take down half of hog if wished. Select Bf<»d Corn While Hiuklng. The progressive farmer always breeds from his choicest stock, and plants seeds selected from tho best of the crop. By this means he overcomes the constant tendency to degeneration, and secures strains of varieties and breeds which are best adapted to the soil and climate of hls farm. This is especially true of maize, of which only the best filled ears from vigorous stalks should be used for seed. Athusking time, this selection can do made to the grouted advantage. Whenever a choice ear from a good stalk is found, tho husker should throw it into a separate pile, or into the front part of the wagon. When unloading, these best ears may be thrown into barrels or boxes, and when re-sorted may bo stored in a dry room for the winter. Such continuously selected seed corn will soon make a neighborhood reputation for improvement. Country Road*. Roads should be surfaced every time they become rutty and uneven. By cutting out and (jpenlhg the waterways on the sides 6f the road the first great thing in building or rebuilding a road is accomplished. After a roadway is put in proper shape, if it can he rolled over four or Uvo times with a heavy roller of live or seven tons in weight, It will form a crust from four to six Inches thick that is so hard tha tho prints of a horse’s foot or the wheels of a hea. y loaded wagon will hardly make an impression and will prevent rutting for a long time to any great extent Country roads should bo gone over with these machines as early as possible In tho spring after the frost is out to prevent deep ruts from forming.

Hugar Tlio Nevada station has issued a bulletin containing its final report on the suitability or the sail at that .State for the growing of sugar beets. This industry is excitinggroat attention all over the world. The Eng. lish farmers wore the last in E.uropo to interest themselves in the subject But they are now aroused, and say that with proper government encouragemeut they could cultivate enough beets to supply the country with sugar. This would enable them to give up raising grain to a considerable extent and would furnish work to the large number of laborers now out of employment It would also enable them to retain the $70,01)0,000 now sent out of tbo country for the purchase of sugar, mostly in France and Germany. Food for the Horse. The horse’s natural food is grass. There is nothing else upon which he will no so well or live so long. Ills internal ec nomy can accommodate itself to the dried, seedless stalks of winter, the luxuriant foliage of spring or the highly nutritious seed pods of summer. The stalks preserve his health, the green foliage fattens him and the seed pods invigorate and fftrengthen him. No horse, however lightly worked, should be fed on bay alone. The ration should includegrass or roots, and when the work is hard enough a suitable quantity of grain. No. horse that is lightly worked should be highly fed on grain. It is a common and costly practice which causes many a horse to be discarded long before his time.

Milk Typhoid. The recent enormous extension of the creamery business, involving, as it does, the mixture of the milk from whole districts, evidently brings with it many dangers. Formerly milk typhoid was characterized by • sudden outbreaks, widely spread I among the consumers of infected : farms, but under the creamery system. by which each farmer receives back his proper proportion of skim milk from the general stock, enteric fever on any one farm tends to be ; rapidly distributed throughout the | dairies served, by the creamery, and j it becomes quite obvious that* if the creamery system is to be safely worked, a very careful and thorough system of inspection of the farms must go along with it Year's Wheat Crop. According t>o the Agricultural department at Washington the world's wheat, rop of 1893 was 7,000,000 bushels less than in 1892 and more than 21,00 c, 000 bushels greater than the world’s crop of 1891. But the crop of .North America was; last year only 447,000,000 bushels, as against 574,134,000 bushels in 1892 and 084,- | 500,000 bushels in 189]. The greati est Increase was in Europe from I 208,680,000 bushels In 1891 to 1,433,i 600.000 bushels last year, and In South America, which increased from 50,0. 0,000 bushels la 1891 to 81,040,000 bushels in 1893. Ne.uily every liar out West has promised to semi us a mess of ycung prairie chickens.