Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 59, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 December 1908 — HINTS FOR FARMERS [ARTICLE]

HINTS FOR FARMERS

The Cara of Stable*. j Only about one farmer In five adjheres strictlj- to maintaining the propier degree of cleanliness about the cattle and horse stall,-* and the hog sheds. jThe filth that is usually found around ’the barn and sheds is wholly inexcusable. It is the forerunner of many 'forms of disease and various kinds of vermin. There is more or less dampness in stalls where animals are kept even If careful precautions are adhered to. When carelessness i»ermlts it to (accumulate this is only intensified. All the stalls and beds should be kept perfectly clean and the bedding changed often. At least twice a week (the bedding should be removed from |the floor and a thorough disinfectant sprinkled on it. As cheap and effective disinfectant as can be used is air slaked lime, to which may be added a small amount of crude carbolic acid. Sprinkle this on the floor of the stalls and cover with dry bedding. Germs and odors cannot exist long where such treatment is given.

Selecting the Brood Sow. A breeder who knows fils business thus describes the desirable brood sow: She should have a forehead Jbroad between the eyes, throat clean and trim, neck moderately thin, shoulders smooth and deep. Imck wide and straight, chest deep and wide, to provide ample room for the vital organs, with well sprung ribs and deep body all along. There is a general belief that long bodied sows produce the most pigs, but it is not always true. The only way to know about the number of pigs Is actual test, and those that have small litters can be made into pork. When n sow turns out well, has a good sited litter of pigs and is in all respects a good mother it is best to keep her at least for several years. 4nd then if some of her sow pigs snow all 'the general good qualities they should l»e selected as breeders.— Farm Progress.

Molasse* as a Stock Feed. Concerning the comparative feeding value of molasse* and corn, very much will depend on the combination in which they are to be fed. It would not be possible to have molasses take the place of corn entirely in a feed ration, the basis of which Is without doubt alfalfa hay In Colorado. Pew if any eon-luMve experiments have been conducted with niolasses as a feed for live stock in this country. The Germans consider one pound of <om the equivalent of two and a half pounds of molasses in fattening steer*. They have determined there as we have here that steers should be started very gradually on molasses as a feed, say one |*ound per bead dally, and that six pounds per day is the maximum amount that can be safely fed to a pound steer.—W. L. Carlyle. Colorado Agricultural College, in Breeder's Gazette. To Tell a Fowl'* Age. In culling out the old fowls, if they : re not punch marked. It is sometimes difficult to tell the age of a fowl from its appearance, says Denver Field and Farm. The head is the Lest indication of age. The underbill of an old hen is so stiff that it cannot be bent, and the comb is thick and rough. In a young hen the underbill is soft and the comb thin and smooth. If a hen’s spurs are hard and the scales on the legs rough she is old. A young hen has only the rudiments of spurs; the scales on the legs are smooth, glossy and fresh colored, the claws tender and short and the nails sharp.

Mixing Concrete. The best concrete is made from high grade portland cement, clean, sharp sand and broken stone or gravel property mixed, the mixture being dependent upon the class of work for which the concrete is to be used. If gravel is used it should be thoroughly cleaned and free from dirt. With broken stone some contractors do not seem to be as particular as others In regard to the material being washed, but It Is best in all cases with broken stone to see that there is as little as possible of the fine dust clinging to the particles of stone.—Denver Field and Farm. Pumpkins For Live Stock. Pumpkins as a feed are of a bulky nature because they contain a large percentage of water; hence a pig could not be fed exclusively on pumpkins. As a feed, however, in combination with other feeds they are most excellent and are worth at least $3 to M per ton.—William Dietrich, Illinois Experiment Station. Boot Tops and Pulp Silage. Beet tops and beet pulp can be preserved In silos for an indefinite time and m*ke very good silage, but not an exclusive feed. Dry forage of some kind should always be fed In connection with silage. Neither beet leaves nor beet pulp, if fed In reasonable amounts, will injuriously affect milk. Wood Ashes For Alfalfa. There is probably nothing better for starting alfalfa than wood ashes. Ashes contain both lime and potash, with more or less phosphorus. AU these the soil needs. One of the best fields of alfalfa ever seen on Woodland farm had a dressing of wood ashes.— Joseph E. Wing in Breeder’s Gazette. Rye as a Dairy Food. The Pennsylvania experiment station has discovered that rye meal as a part of a properly balanced ration for milk cows Is as efficient in milk and butter production as an equal weight of cornmeal. No Injurious effect upon the quality of the butter was noticed. His Face Not His Fortune. In the wilds of the North Island, among the members of the Arawa tribe, there lives a Maori whose faee In bygone days carried with it conditions that the owner Is pleased were not fulfilled. An artist looking for “subjects’* was struck with the exceptional elaborate tattooing on the man’s cheek, nose and forehead. The artist at once selected him as a type of the aficient Maori, but the members of the tribe, however, said that he was a “nobody" and did not deserve)the honor accorded to him. They explained that be bad been a slave and that his face had been splendidly tattooed In order that his head could be sold at a great price In the days when traffic in dried heads was a lucrative calling for the chiefs and notables. The man evidently circumvented the commercial instincts of his master until the grewsome trade was abolished, and after that, of course, his face was no longer a menace to his head.—Wairarnpa Times.