Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 182, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 August 1911 — Page 2

Sheep in Indiana

By D, O, THOMPSON, Animal Husbandry Department

PUREBRED SHEEP IN INDIANA

\ \ BREED NUMBER VALUE Medium Wool SHROPSHIRE 6774 $81,433 OXFORD ... 1743 22,568 HAMPSHIRE 658 9,727 TUNIS 509 9,618 SOUTHDOWN.... 341 4,668 CHEVIOT 315 ..* 4,900 DORSET 160 2,151 SUFFOLK 12 104 Lone Wool COTSWOLD 1202 16,844 LINCOLN 21 265 UECESTER 1 20 Fine Wool DELAINE MERINO 1072 1*586 RAMBOUILLET 470 5,763 AMERICAN MERINO 70 1,870 Total 13348 ...$173,517

The United States department of agriculture states that there are about one and a quarter million sheep within the borders of the state of Indiana, representing a total value of about dz and a third million dollars. Distribution. Prom data gathered by Purdue university experiment station it is evident that these sheep are distributed on approximately one-third of the farms within the state, there being quite two-thirds of the farms with no * sheep at all upon them. It further appears that the number of sheep per farm varies widely, a farm of 110 acres reporting two ewes, and another farm of 360 acres reporting 150 ewes, the largest number reported from any one farm. The average number of breeding ewes per 200 acre farm reporting sheep was about 26 head. Were the total number of sheep reported distributed equally upon all of the farms reporting, including those from which reports on livestock other than sheep were received, the average number of breeding ewes per farm would be about 8.5 head. The size of the flocks of breeding ewes range on the average from twenty to fifty head. The great majority of farmers report that their flocks are an efficient aid In controlling the weeds of the farm, and that they return an income from triple sources, lambs, wool and manure. The state statistician in 1907-8, as a result of investigation by his office,

Sorrel an Indication of Add Soil

By JOHN B ABBOTT. Aimcmn to Soda JW*. Unttmn*,

(Purdue Experiment Station.) Sorrel, Rumex Acetosella D, a blossoming plant of which one is shown in the accompanying cut, is often said to he in indication of sour soil. This statement is not strictly true, for the weed is often found growing on perfectly sweet soils. So far as our observation goes, however, It has never become a particularly troublesome weed on other than sour soils, and if the statement that sorrel is an indication of soil acidity be construed to mean sorrel as a serious pest rather than as an occasional plant. It is undoubtedly true.

Cultivated plants and grasses for the most part, do not thrive on acid soil, so sorrel, which apparently does not object to soil acidity, easily crowds them out and gets possession of the land. This battle for possession of the land can best be observed in grass land in June, as the sorrel is blossoming and making seed at this time of the year and is very conspicuous. Sorrel in itself Is not a particularly troublesome weed, but so far as clover and kindred plants are concerned it Is, as has been aptly said, “the red Sag of danger.” If a serious pest, it naans soil acidity, aad soil acidity means poor success with plover; so •orrel Infested land should be limed at once, not so much to get rid of sorrel as to get clover. Lime does not act as a poison. Immediately killing the sorrel; but rather fits the soil for the growth of cultivated plants, par ticularly clover, which with the aid Of cultivation and fertilization will soon crowd it out, Two tons per acre of finely ground limestone or air slaked limp, spread broadcast and well

(Purdue Experiment Station.)

A Popular Mutton Type.

reported pure-bred and registered sheep in all except five of the ninetytwo counties of the state. There were at the time of his report a total of 13,348 pure-bred males and females in the state, representing a total value of $173,517. Of these, 10,512 of the medium wool breeds represented a value of $135,169; 1,224 long wools, a value of $17,129; and 1,612 fine wools a value of .$21,219. The Shropshire, the Cotswold and the Delaine Merino were by far the most numerous of Shropshire; the Cotswold and the Delaine Merino were by far the most numerous of the medium, long and fine wool breeds, respectively. The Shropshire exceeded in number by 200 head all other breeds combined, and represented approximately 47 per cent, of the total value of the purebred sheep within the state. This breed had pure-bred representatives in all except nine of the counties of the state. Most of the fourteen breeds of sheep within the state are represented by numerous individuals and flocks which by their winnings at the state and national shows have called marked attention to the fact that Indiana can and does produce sheep the equal of and better than any others in the world. In view of this fact and the small percentage of farmers now keeping sheep, it would seem that one of the greatest opportunities before the Indiana farmer is that of starting a moderate sized flock of pure-bred sheep on his farm.

disked in, is sufficient to correct the acidity of any ordinary sour soil. Farmers as a general rule overlook the fact that high, well drained sandy loams are even more apt to become acid than cold, heavy clays which are commonly spoken of as sour. Nevertheless such is the case and the reason is not far to seek. It takes

Sorrel Rumex Acetosella, L. A Plant That Does Not Seem to Mind Soil Acidity.

time to keep soils sweet and sandy soils which allow rapid percolation of rain water lose their lime by leaching and hence becpme acid. It is this type of acid soil which is most frequently marked by the growth of sorrel to the exclusion of timothy and clover.

MULE COLTS ARE PROFITABLE

Past Becoming Large and Moat Important Industry In Several Status Throughout Country.

Mule raising la fast becoming a large and moat Important Industry throughout the United States, and it may be said that it is (me of the principal lira stock industries in certain sections—namely, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, Illinois and Virginia. While in the states where the largest number of mules are raised the conditions are well salted for the industry, there li nothing to make it a special business more than could be done in a number of other states, except that the farmers got into the business long ago, and it proved contagious and spread over'a considerable territory, and dealers, finding it out, naturally went there to buy them. On the other hand, horse colts are raised to a considerable extent in all the states where the conditions are favorable to live stock growing. If many of the mares used as brood mares in different states for producing horse colts were bred to Jacks instead of stallions it would be found more profitable and in every way more satisfactory. This idea was suggested by a well-known breeder for the benefit of any who are doing anything in the way of raising horse colts, for the reason that he believes mule colts will be found more profitable to any owner of good sired mares that will foal colts that have the qualities that make them salable. Mule colts have decided advantages pver horse colts In a general way. We all know that at the present time a horse colt or a young horse to be salable at a profit must possess some qualities of high character. Good drivers, good saddlers, good draft horses and some other classes, as army horses, will sell at a profit, but “plugs" are not wanted a£ figures that pay to raise them.

Of course, there may be “plug" mules as well as “plug” horses, and no doubt they will average less profitable than “plug” horses. Small and crooked mules cannot be made to pay any profit in any region where it costs a reasonable amount to raise a colL So in breeding mares or mules-it is foolish to use small and defective mares or to use a small and inferior Jack.

THE SUMMER COMPOST HEAP

Complete Directions for Preparing and Handling Stable Manure for Use on Grass Lands.

If the stock is stabled at night the droppings should be cleaned out every morning and then mixed with earth. Sprinkle each foot layer of fresh manure with plaster, then cover with six Inches of good loam. Make a compact heap. Weeds and rubbish of every kind should be added to the heap. Keep the heap moist. The drainage should be spread over the pile. By this method a~rich, wellrotted, fine compost may be had to spread over the meadows at very little cost As soon as the hay is off is the most favorable time to top dress grass land. A fine compost containing six loads of yard manure mixed with ten loads of good, rich woods earth, or soil from the head lands, with 100 pounds of plaster and six bushels of wood ashes spread over the earth as it is piled, will make a rich compost for either clover or timothy. This quantity will be sufficient to cover one acre. By keeping the fresh manure plastered and covered with earth, there will be no breeding place for flies. Flies are a great annoyance to the stock. They alscy:arry the germs of disease into the farm home, which is a very serious matter, especially where there are children or invalids exposed to their attacks.

Rutabagas.

For one located near the right kind of a market, rutabagas make a very profitable crop, especially if one has cows to use up the tops. One advantage it has is that, being a full crop, it occupies the ground but half the season, thus’giving opportunity to secure an early crop from the same land. Then, too, its growth and harvesting coming so late in the season gives profitable employment to farm labor when most other crops are out of the way.

In some markets there is a prejudice against home-grown rutabagas, 3nd the Nova Scotian product crowds them out.

Fruit Raising.

Care should be taken to remove all weeds, grass or other litter which might harbor mice. It is frequently advantageous to wrap the tree trunks with wire netting, tar paper or thin boards to protect them from mice or rabbits.

For success in fruit-growing it Is absolutely necessary to keep the trees free from all Injurious insects and spray again.

Blackhead In Turkeys.

Blackhead in turkeys has destroyed In Massachusetts the business of raising turkeys. It is found in every county in the state. The protozoa are bred in the soil. In the intestines of chickens, and are carried from place to place by sparrows and other birds.

Select Seed Potatoes.

While the potatoes are In full bloom, showing which vines are strong, vigorous, and most likely to propagate a sturdy plant next so&soh, stick small boards beside these choicest hlUs, and dig them separately for seed this fall.

MAKING PROFIT IN TURKEYS

On New Farms They Are as Hardy as Chickens If Given Proper Care While They Are Young.

1 The turkey likes t a good range in woods and pasture during the summer and fall, and as they are great insect destroyers they will find a large part of their Hying in that way besides benefiting the crops by' removing many of the insect pests either as moth or grubs. They do best on land where turkeys have not been kept for ■ome years, as the diseases which often affect them while very young, or the blackhead which attacks those of larger size are not so apt to develop there as where turkeys have been kept for years. On new farms they are as hardy as chickens if given proper care while yodng. (They are not troublesome in the garden or orchard,- says a writer in the American Cultivator.

By feeding them near the house every night they can be taught to' roost near home, and two or three weeks of grain feeding will fit them for market. What is home without a turkqy at Thanksgiving time, and must we eat Inferior poultry from Europe instead of our native birds? Probably the best turkey to grow for our markets is a Cross of a bronze male upon hen turkeys of either the common black turkey or the less common speckled turkey sometimes called the Cambridge turkey. The purebred bronze grows much larger without * consuming much more grain feed, but when a turkey weighs over twenty pounds dressed weight, it is larger than the average consumer cares to have especially at the prices they sold for last year. A yearling male with hens two years old gives as strong, vigorous young as any mating, and one male is sufficient for a dozen hens at least Yet some keep the same flock to breed from until five or six years old, and three-year-old hen turkeys have been known to lay forty to sixty eggs in a year, if the eggs were taken away and hatched under hens. And they usually do better under the hen’s care while small, than If hatched by hen turkeys. When the hen gives them up the hen turkey and sometimes the old male turkey will adopt them, lead them to the field and back again, and generally bring ttpn up as they should be.

SELECT A PURE-BRED SIRE

Best Results Can Only Be Obtained Through Bull’s Daughters—CoOperative Breeding Helps.

Before selecting a pure-bred sire to head the herd of cows, It is necessary to canvas the situation thoroughly. Select the breed best fitted for special work, and stick to this line of breeding. The Holsteins, Guernseys and Jerseys have beed bred for generations for milk production, until their characteristics have been fixed, and one is much more likely to find high production among these special dairy breeds. The farmer, when deciding from which breed to select his dairy bull, should consider to some extent, the choice of his neighbors, that he may*co-operate with them for. the breeding of better stock. The best results, in the average farm community, can be obtained only by results obtained through the bull’s daughters. Through co-operative breeding, sires may be kept in a locality throughout their entire period of usefulness, or discarded if their tested daughters do not prove to be better than their dams. Co-operative breeding /also brings buyers to the locality, lyhich gives a better market for surplus stock. For this reason the advantages gained should be considered In making the selection of a herd bull.

Prevention of Disease.

The value of a single fowl is ordinarily so small that it will not pay to attempt a cure. The best recourse then for the poultryman is prevention of disease. Give the flock, advises Dr. Paige, of the Massachusetts experiment station, wholesome food and drink in proper amount, furnish it with a Suitable house and range, provide plenty of fresh air and sunshine with opportunities for enough exercise, and most of all secure cleanliness, a clean floor, clean roosts and a clean soil, and good results will follow. Remove at once from the flock any diseased bird and keep up the vigor of all the birds.

Red Clover With Alfalfa.

Success with alfalfa in "6ur eastern states is more largely dependent upon thorough soil Inoculation than many people realize. We may apply some inoculated soil and do the work as well as possible and yet not have thorough inoculation for years. This crop is bound to come into somewhat general use with us, and there should be more general efforts to secure inoculation of all well-drained land by adding a little alfalfa seed to the red clover wherever red clover is sown. In most instances some alfalfa plants will grow and will have the right bacteria, and these plants will live during the time that the sod stands.

A Big Litter.

A sow belonging to William M. Massive, of Nicholas county, Ky„ recently farrowed a Utter of $1 pigs. This is this sow’s fifth litter and she has produced 86 pigs in the flve Utters.

Tapeworm in Poultry.

The most common example of parasites Injuring poultry is the tapewdrin. Poisons are frequently eaten by poultry running at large. Injuries from external causes are many.

The Boy Puzzle

By DR.J.S.KIRTLEY

He and His Teacher

If he has a brother and sister. If not, he is a most unfortunate creature, almost as unfortunate as If he had no parents. If the home is full of children, all the better; and best of all, if they are as near to his age as they conveniently can be. They will do more to train him than the average parents and almost as much as the best of parents. The trouble of bringing up an extra boy or two will be more than justified by the extra boyhood they will produce In each one of them.

An only child is at a very serious disadvantage, especially If he is a boy, for a girl can stay in and become a companion of her mother, but a boy has a fermentation going on inside him that he must have some help with, or the house will become too small for him, unless he happens to be not a boy, but only a sissy of the male variety. The "only boy" Is apt to be spoiled. His parents will concentrate all their attention on him. Instead of distributing it out to a half dozen. He grows up without that friction between himself and other children, which is so necessary to enable a child to find himself. He hds no one to quarrel with, and that is an Irremediable loss. He will have a hard time to learn his rights or the rights of others, all by himself, and will need some very excellent parents, to repair the deficit.. It must not be said that the “only child" Is foredoomed to failure. To be sure, from larger families most of our great men and women have come, and families with an "only child"* have furnished more than their ratio of the useless v and criminal classes, and yet some “only" children have been great .and good. We are only taking averages and Indicating probabilities. An older brother Is simply indispensable to the little boy’s happiness, and the little brother is an important part of the older boy’s llfd, especially if their ages are close together. If some years are between them, they are both to be pitied. The little one will be pathetically tagging after the older one whose tastes and companions are in advance, his heart aching to follow and breaking because he cannot follow. The older will get out of patience and be rough, but, even so, it is better for either one than to be an only child. With his sister be cannot well be a perfect comrade for the simple reason that she is a girl and he is a boy, yet there are great enjoyments and training for them both, as they play to-

His Brother and Sister

His infatuation with school work is not always immediate and irremediable. Sometimes it comes just as his opportunity for going to school is vanishing and all the rest of his days he will have periods of penitence over his folly, and will frequently wish the teacher or his parents had taken the big stick to him unflinchingly. Sometimes he never cares for what he has missed; but we seldcm find that sort of a man. His teacher, as an essential part of the school system, may fall under the same reprobation, till his period of incorrigible antipathy for schools is over and then that same teacher will rise into heroic stature before his eyes. He may naturally take to schools, with the teacher thrown in, asking no questions on that point, but plenty of them on other points. In that case he makes fair weather with parents, teacher, school board and the public generally. Such a good reputation so absolutely awaits any boy who will go after it in that way we wonder how it ever fails to be a greater attraction to him than any amount of fun or self-will can be. But all the mysteries have not yet been solved, even with the sacred assistance of psychology and pedagogy. Between those two extremes there is a golden and practicable mean into which a boy can often be guided, if the right kind of a teacher gets hold of him, especially if that teacher has the co-operation of the right kind of parents. In order to be a success with him, the teacher must have a couple of eyes, good for not seeing as well as for seeing, an active child element In her own nature, a hand that is fine as well as firm, and a spirit that is always fair and always friendly. These things would make her a paragon and such she ought to try to be, at least. The boy will like her and show it in his own way, not as a little girl would, by putting his arm around her and telling her how he loves her. You never catch him at that The terms In which he expresses his appreciation of her may not always be classical ' literature, but they oonvey his Idea clearly. A boy I know speaks of his teacher. Miss A., as “dandy,’’ and even sometimes as “peachy.” The American boy averages only four years in school .before he is twelve and not many after that age. It is hard to hold him. A natural dislike for school, the need of his services at home, the necessity of working to support the family, the distracting fascinations of money-getting, all militate against his completing the

gather and do other things in com-j mon. One peculiar thing is that he gets! the benefit of the other children’s presence in the house, without being fully"; aware of it; he may even sometimes think they are undesirable members' of the family. From the way they:; often talk we might imagine they regard each other with deadly and incurable hatred. The showers of verbal missiles they rain down on each other’s heads surely portend lifelong disaster to their friendship. Bad the next moment it is “dear shining; after rain.” They are, again, confidential allies against foeß within andi without, whether the older, who foolishly interfere, or another child that! dares to taunt them. Disagreements and quarrels they do not regard as incompatible with friendship or good! manners. It is not the quarreling that'is always wrong. The'noise may, be unendurable and require suppression. If a snarling nature is foundi in a child, it is tragical, a horrible inheritance, likely to become permanent, if daily tested and trained by thei example of older members of the family. God have mercy on them and! send in some good friend from the outside to steer their lives into peaceful waters. s

Discord seems unavoidable, and there come two very valuable compensations. One Is that they know; how to end their troubles without injury, except to the ears and fears of thp Innocent bystander. Nature attends to it Interference with their logomachy is usually a failure, and brings only artificial results.

The other compensation Is that the children are training each other, even when discordant, provided the discords are only ocacslonal. They are getting experience in applying the principles they have been taught; and they usually succeed, to the satisfaction of both affirmative and negative, plaintiff and defendant, especially, if the principles taught have been illuminated in the practices of their parents. These are contests in skill, and wit and strength that augment those qualities, for through such things, each child learns, by experience, where his rights end and the rights of others begin ;| he learns self-control and learns how to take defeat without whining or tale bearing; learns how to meet outside children and take care of himself, while respecting their rights. In a family of several, no child can be boss or get all he wants or have his own way, as in the “one child” family..

course. But the teacher may hold him at the breaking up time; and, if not, she should be able to say she did all she could for him.

The best thing she ever does for him Is what she doss with him and through him. And when she enters into the work she assigns or guides him in choosing for himself, and becomes his coworker, she reigns as queen in that school. When he knows her mind is traveling with his mind, In Its toilsome journey through the fields of knowledge, he learns to put her valuation on the work, because he puts a high valuation on her. If she only has sent enough to let him do a little dreaming with her entire approbation, he Is sure to think she is competent to guide his dreams Into their embodiment in deeds. If his plans are of any interest to her and she will encourage him to tell about them, she has him on her side. Where vocational training is given, as is now being done in some places, and will be done a great deal more In the future, the teacher and he will have much more In common. The schools are now considering the whole child as at school, not his mind alone, and we may expect a great deal more for the boy, from that foot. Even personal problems are within the teacher's observation, and he may be much assisted by frank talks, if she knows how to invite confidence and clear up difficulties. He has a special fondness for teachers who can make use of the general knowledge he has as a starting point for further knowledge, especially in the subject they axe studying; and for the one who can find practical uses for the things they are studying, especially if it is constructing machinery, or even literature, he has a still greater fondness; and the one who can connect up the studies, vith the activities of the calling he aspires to follow, is on the pinnacle of honor. When she can use figures In engineering, chemicals in photography, projectiles In the study of war, the teacher Is educating him In the true sense. When the teacher knows the crises through which he passes In all their stages and struggles. In all their symtoms and suggestion., and gives him something positive father than negative, makes wholesome things attractive and wrong things repulsive, encourages individuality and proves a good friend as well as a capable teacher, snob work wins him forever. After a oertain stage, In the early teens, that teacher ought to be a man.