Rensselaer Republican, Volume 19, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 January 1887 — RURAL TOPICS. [ARTICLE]

RURAL TOPICS.

Some Practical Suggestions for Oar Agricultural Readers. « —- Information of Yalne to the Farmer, Stock-Breeder, Housewife, and 4 Kitchen-Maid. THE FARMER. Com and Pork. The |0!<1 rule need to be tlmt every increase •often coats a buehtd for corn represented or required an increased price of one cent per pound in pork, few farmers feeding corn exclusively could make porn by this rule. The prevalent boliet of most Eastern fanners is that beyond tho. number of bogs needed to cat up refuse that would otherwise bo wasted, pork costa considerably more than its market priqe.' They grow enough for home use; but excepting f'armors who have large orchards aud keep pigs aa an incidont to fru.t-growing, the fewer they have tho better for their profits. ' Those who can secure cheap supplies of city swill have an advantage in their favor. Potash rind Orchards. Light soils are apt to be deficient in potash for any crop, and this deficiency is apt to be ono reason wliy other manures do not produco full effect *i hut in the orchard there is apt to be lack of available potash whatever the character of the soil. The seeds of fruits require potash for their development, and failure to provide it is one reason why the crop falls off or becomes mildewed beforo maturing. Vine dressers in France often use no mannro for tneir vineyards except potash. They burn all the trimmings from the vines and return tho ashes to the soil. In this country, if any fertilizer is to bo applied to the vineyard, potash is likely to be the last thought of. Old apple orchards always need more potash, and th.s should be applied with other manure.

Cabbages for Stock. Few Western farmers have given any attention to cabbages as food for animals and fowls. They throw the loose leavos taken from the heads that are eaten in the house into the poultry yard, and notice that the fowls leave their grain to pick at them. If cattle or sheep find their way into the garden they eat cabbage in preference to any other vegetable they find there. Hogs at any age are fond of cabbages. Ducks and geese will eat them, both in the raw and cooked state. That cabbages are very valuable food all admit, That they are not generally raised for animals and fowls seoms somewhat strange. Much less labor is required to produce a crop of cabbages than one of roots. Nearly all the work of cultivation can be done with a horso. Tho seed for a crop of roots must bo planted very early intlio spring when there are many tilings on the farm that require attention. . The thinning and weeding of beets, turnips and parsnips must be done by hand, and at a time when several other crops make demands on the farmer’s time. Cabhjjbs designed for stock food should not be set out till after other field and garden crops are planted, and it is not desirable to have them come to maturity till- late in tho fall. On this account cabbages constitute a convenient as well as a valuable crop. The soil for cabbages should bo well drained, tolerably dry, and friable. A tenacious •clayey soil is nusuited for this crop. It is very bard to work and will give a poor roturn for the labor bestowed upon it A light load is much better than a hard clay soil. Tlia ordinary soil of the prairies is good; it is so situated that water will not stand on its surface after a heanry rain. It should bo plowed deep *nd well pulverized. It is best to plow land intended to produce cabbages in the fall, and -to plow it again a few days before the plants are set out. By adopting this course tho soil becomes well pulverized, and is free from ' weeds at the time the young plants aro set out Tho seed for late cabbages should be planted about the last of May. It is best to sow the seed in long rows about a foot apart The ground for tho seed-bed should be rich and well pulverized. After the seed is sown in the rows and coverod. the soil should be pressed down. Young plants will appear in a few days, and will grow rapidly if the soil they occupy is kept light by the use of the hand-hoe. During the latter part of June the plants should be set out in the field. It is best to select a time when the soil is moist for transplanting. The lower leaves should be cut off before they are set out. An opening -being made in the soil that will hold all the roots without pressing them close together, the earth should be drawn back and pressed down by the foot Treated in this way nearly every plant will grow. The distance between the plants should depend on the method of culture proposed. If the soil is to bo worked with the noe they can stand-within eighteen inches pf each other. If a horse cultivator is to bo ufeed between the rows, the plants can staud eighteen inches apart in the rows and tho rows be three feet apart from each other. By setting out the plants three feet apart each way nearly all the work of stirring the soil may bo done with a ■ horse cultivator. Tho occasional use of tho band hoerfaowever, will produce much larger heads. No crop shows the advantages of good culture bettor than cabbages. Very large, compact heads of cabbago can only be produced by high manuring and hand hoeing. All market gardeners make thoir cabbagepatches vory rich. Some cover the ground with a coaung of well-rottod manure two inches thick and turn it under with plow. Fowls during the winter derive great benefit from cabbages. Raw or boiled cabbages are Very valuable for hogs when the chief food is raw corn. Young cattle and sheep relish an occasional feed of cabbage when they have little to eat but dry hay and straw. The difficulties .in koeping cabbage till late in the winter have been greatly overestimated. With weather no more severe than it has beon this > season they may be kept from freezing by piling them in tho barn and covering them with chaff and straw. —Chicago Times.

THE STOCK BREEDER A Good Word for Ayrshires. Mr. A. C. Winslow, Secretary of the American Ayrshire Breeders’ Association, writes to the Breeden' Gazette: I have received from Mr. Robert M. Carrons, of Washington, Pa., an account of the yield of milk and butter from his herd of five Ayrshire cows and heifers, for the year ending Nov. i, 1885. Two of these were two-year-old heifers, and calved in August previous to the beginning of tho test The feed was grass only in summer, and in winter hay, with a grain feed of two'poands of bran and one pouucl of oil meal oacli day, fed in two feeds. The milk was set in a Coolery creamery and the cream churned in a “Boss” chum Whatever milk, cream, and butter was wanted in a family of five persona was takon from these five cows, and the rest sold. Tho milk was weighed from each cow, and a daily record kept, and the yield averaged seven thousand pounds. The sales of butter, after supplying tho family, amounted to a little ■over 1,500 pounds, or an average of 300 pounds per cow. This, it must be remeihl ered, was with no extra feed in summer, and in winter only what should be given to any dairy breed. The large yields of our tested cows are of interest and value as showing what cau be done by feeding, but after all the great and important point with dairymen must always be what returns will these cows give when placed in the hard work of tho actual dairy, and that cow or that breed which will give the largest .returns above the coat of proiluction is the one which in tho long run is certain to be retained and prized because of tho dairy dividend she declares to her owner, nml we are giad of the ode isioiiAl proofs of the strong point of ex- - cellenc-- in the Ayrshire cow, which will ever make her of value to (he common dairyman—viz., a large per-entago of dairy products for tho food consumed, --i——J Vnthreshed Oats for Horses. Unthreshed oats ate a better feed for houses than the grain alone, or the grain and stiaw both fed, but separately. The albuminoid ratio of the grain of oats is 1.01, of the straw of oats 1.29 U The food for horses at ordinary work should have all albuminoid ratio of 1.70. Hence, tho grain of oats should be mixed with food having a lower albuminoid ratio. We might get a ration—having the proper ratio —by using corn w th the oats. > . But’it is well known that for grain to be well digested it must be eaten with some sort

of stover to form the neoessary bulk In the stomach. For stover we might uie timothy, which has an albuminoid ratio of LBl, and would give the neoossarydiulk. Bnt it is much bet.at to have the gra n and blover eaten together, and moisten the mixture; but we accomplish the same thing more economically by feeding unthreshed oats, for then the grain, ail the chaff, and a good part of the straw are masticatod together. By thus feeding oata we not only improve tho albuminoid ratio of the ration and provide the necessary forage masticated wi:h the grain, but we save the expense of threshing. Oats to be fed in tlim way should bo cut before they are quite ripe; cured thoroughly, and then the moved away. They are just the feed for winter, when tlie hor.sei require carlso hydrates; and bocause of their manner of feeding are so well digested and so wed sititxl to tlie wants of the horse that he will do a great deal better upon them than ho would upon almost any other food. —American Agriculturist.

THE POULTERER Poultry Notes. Light, warmth from the sun’s rays, thorough ventilation, and an interior that canalways be kent dry, are tho pr.me needs for a good, healthy fowlliouse. The situation tor the fowlhouso should always be chosen in a dry place; better still if placed upon elevated ground. It should face east and south, if poss.ble, in order to catch the rays of the morning sun, and that the flock may enjoy tho sun warmth in tho afternoon in winter. ~~C Stagnant or damp soil beneath the henhouso is bad for poultry. Thoy cannot be kept healthy in suoh a situation. Tho best soil for the hennery to occupy is a dry, saudv, or gravelly one. A wet, soggy foundation to the hennery is fatal to the well-being of the stock confined in it. No doubt the hens like the range of a barn in winter. They can pick hayseed and clover leaves much to their advantage. The best method, however, is to gather up the dried blossoms, leavos and seeds, with other chaff, and deposit the same in the poultry-house where tlie fowls can scratch it over at their leisure. Vakiety in food is an indispensable requisite of success. Fowls may be made to live when fed upon any s ngle article of diet, but profits under such circumstauces are not to be expected. Variety in diet promotes health, and health secures thA activity of tlie reproductive organs. Fresh water is indispensable. Foul water leads to disease. Fowls should never bo allowed to enter barns or stables, as they will foul more liay and feed than their eggs are worth. Thoir domains should be entirely separated from those of horses and cattle. Not only are vermin from poultry sometimes communicated to horses stabled in their neighborhood, but tho specially filthy and offensive excrements of the fowls dcfiles the hay aud grain. It is well to season lightly the food of all fowls both young and old. " The digestive organs of all animals abhor a flavorless article of lood. Some sort of stimulant is necossary. to gently urge the digestive organs whilo at their work. • A very little salt, pepper, mustard or ginger, and other things of alike nature, is sufficient to give a flavor to the poultry mush or to the cooked vegetables. A young and nervous horse, unused to fowls, is often frightened if, by accident or otherwise, a cackling, scratching troop of hens finds entrance to his stable, and ho will resign his oats to the petty thieves and stand trembling while they devour his well-earned dinner. Be sure that stable doors and windows are so arranged that neither domestic fowls nor pigeons can enter and annoy the rightful occupants.

THE APIARIST. Bee Moths. The bee moth is a small miller, of a rusty brown color, which deposits her eggs in the hives of weak colonies during the night time. These millers may often be found lyiug perfectly motionless during the day on the corner of the hive or under the projecting edge of the fop, their favorite place being the corner. Their color so nearly resembles that of weather-beaten wood as to deceive a porson unless ihey are examined carefully. They are very active upon the wing, their speed being much greater than that a honey bee. Their favorite place of depositing their eggs is within the hive upon the comb. When the hives contain strong colonies of bees they generally succeed in driving the moths out of the hive before they have deposited their eggs. Failing in their efforts to use the combs for their brood, they resort to the crevices of the hive lined with the dust and chips that fall upon the floor board of a young swarm. It is the great number of worms hatched from these eggs that cause the damage. If the dust is kept brushed from the bottom of the hives it will prevent the bees from carrying the eggs to the comb upon their feet, as they are believed to do, and also render it impossible for the worms hatched upon the bottom of the hive to reach the comb. When one of these worms finds lodgment in the comb containing brood, it makes its way to the center between the heads of the young bees in the cells and sealing, and eats its passage through the comb, lining its way with a silk-like substance. When the combs are tilled with honey, however, the worms work only on the surface, eating tho sealing. To prevent the ravages of these worms, efforts have been made to devise moth-proof hives, but that seems an impossibility. The surest remedy known is strong swarms of bees. The Italians are much less liable to injury from moth worms, according to Quimby, ’than natives. “Their disposition to defend themselves vigorously is an invaluable ally to the careful-beekeeper. With the frequent handling of movable combs in the various operations incident to the season, a worm in any part of tho hivo can readily be detected and disposed ot, hence thore is'little excuse for allowing them to becomo numerous. A knife or other sharp-pointed instrument should bo at hand to administer speedy justice, as every one not destroyed soon becomes a host. Combs taken from hives in which bees have been wintered, aud later in the season such spare combs as the moth may have had access to, should be examined, aud if signs of its work are seen the combs should be placed in a box and subjected to the fumes of brimstone. Any brood worth saving should be cut out and preserved, while the combs unfit for any purpose should be burned. It should be distinctly understood by all beginners that the moth is not the cause of reducing a healthy stock to a poor one, but simply takes advantage of the weakuess induced by other causes, therefore the obvious remedy'ls to keep every colony strong, and destroy every moth, larva or chrysalis at sight,— American Cultivator.

THE HOUSEKEEPER. To Keep a Stove Clean. Astor a stove has been blackened it oan be kept looking very well for a long time by rubbing it with paper every morning. Rubbing with paper is a much nicer way of keeping a teakettle, coffee-pot, and teapot bright and clean than the old way of washing them in suds. Rubbing with paper is also the best way of polishing knives, tinware, and spoons; they shine like new silver. A Place for Everything. There is no reason why boys should not be taught habits of carefulness as well as girls. The latter are instructed that it is not ladylike to keep their sleeping and sitting rooms in such condition that they would be ashamed to invite spectators to inspect them. Why should not hoys receive similar training? Why should they not be schooled to handle broom and duster as deftly as their Bisters? There is no degradation of a bey's manliness in atrch occupat ons. He need not be obliged to make his own bod, although that is an accomplishment practiced by many young men in their college days. He should learn, bowover, that the proverb, “A. place, for everything and everything in its place,” is not restricted m its application to feminine possessions alone, but embraces things masculine as wclL He should be made to realize that derangement of hooks, papers, and underclothing is no less disgraceful in a boy’s room than in a girl's; that dust and dirt are as objectionable in one as in the other, and that it is a man’s business to keep his surroundings in a well-regulated condition himself, without cawing the burden of his untidy habits upon any woman. What numberless wives would arise and call their husbands’ lumbers blessed if this discipline had been maintained with the meu of this generation! Under such a system the periodical housecleaning would be shorn of many of its terrors.

Even with existing methods there is JitHe reason in having a wholesale destruction of the peace and oontfort of a home and family each spring and fall. Unless a housekeeper is exceptionally slovenly in her management everything does not get dirty at once. The orthodox houseoleanmg apparently takes it for granted that an absolute lack of broom, iuop, and scrubbing pad has prevailed for six months, and that cleanliness must be restored vi et armis. Lot it be noted that these violent purifyings seldom take place in the honses where the usual state of affairs would justify such a demand for soap and water, but are nearly always confined to the homes where neatness is the rule and Untidiness the exception. f There aro oertain duties about ovory house that cannot be confided to any servant, but roSuiro the personal supervision of the mistress. no of theso, jxptty in itself, but, like so many petty tilings, Paving a decidod bearing upon individual comfort, is the proper care of tho soap dish. Without exaggeration it may be stated that not one sorvant in fifty ever remembers of her own accord to wash it In the dressing rooms of members of the family > this is of less importance, as they would have no hesitation in calling a maid’s attention to the oversight But in the guest chamber it is a different matter. Here the mistress should see for herself that all tho appointments of the wash stand are as they Should be, includ- / ing abundance of fresh water and towels. In rogard to finger marks on paint and glass, cloudy, smeared, or specked mirrors and windows, and dingv water faucets, the housewife must be on the alert A koen eye for dirt results from cultivation and is hard to iuipl >nt in the ordinary servant Patient watchfulness is the only safeguard against neglect It is attention to theso minor details that stamps the really good housekeeper, while their oversight—sometimes unjustly—produces an improssion of carelessness.—Chicago Tribune.

THE COOK. Some Useful Recipes. Bananas cut in thin slices may bo added to boiled custard just beforo serving. A very good cake is made in this way: Half a cupful of good butter mixed with one and a half cupfnls of sugar; add two-thirds of a cupful Of milk, in which is dissolved half a spoonful of soJa, two .cupfuls of flour, sifted, with ono teaspoonful of croam of tartar and three eggs. Flavor to taste and bake in a quick oven. Fob breakfast or lunch cold meat of any kind may he used in this way: Mince the meat very fine; mix it with an equal quantity of broad crumbs that have been soaked and pressed rather dry and one finely chopped onion Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg, and allspice. Mold with beaten egg, form into balls and fry in boiling fai Minced Beef au Gbatin.—Two cups cold beef minced fine, one cup mashed potato whipped light, with half a cup of milk, a teaspoonful of butter and an egg. Put the minced beef into a greased pudding-dish, first seasoning it well A little made mustard or a teaßpoonful of some good sauce is an improvement Moisten it thoroughly with gravy and cover with the mashed potato, which must be entirely free from lumps. Sprinkle with fine crumbs and brown in a quick oven. This is an agreeable variety on *the reappearance of the cold meat, and is very appetizing made from corned beef.

THE FAMILY DOCTOR. For Rheumatism. An English physician says that mustard and pepper are good preventives of attacks of rheumatism. / Bleeding from the Nose. The best way of checking the bleeding from the nose is to apply cold water to the neck and face. Hold a sponge saturated with cold water! to the nostrils, or, if this does not succeed, dissolve a little alum in a basin of water, and inject or sniff of this up the nostril's. Hold the head back, and do not attempt to blow the nose. Colds. Of the ordinary precautions against catching cold I need aay little. To dress with sufficient warmth in winter, to avoid suddenly checking the perspiration in summer, to guard against accidental uncovering during sleep, to avoid draughts, and to keep warm in the cold, all these precautions wo know and practice more or less carefully, and yet many persons, in spite of them all, are among the greatest sufferers from colds. Who are these unfortunate persons ? They are of all temperaments, habits and ages. No ago, no country has not heard their sneezing; and the chorus will never cease until the sufferers learn the lesson, which should bo embroidered on every pocket-handkerchief in Christendom: “It is not enough to protect yourself against the cold. You must also harden yourself against the cold.” The people, then, who catch cold are those who depend too much upon precautions and too little upon hardening, and the more they protect themselves without hardening the tenuerer they becomo and the likelier to catch cold. It is like banking up a river; tho higher you build the levees the worse will be the overflow when it cornea Those people who de'fend themselves only by artifice against colds aro the worst sufferers from colds.

Now, what regimen can be recommended to these sufferers? Certainly no extremo or Spartan measures, for many of those who suffer the most from colds are delicate ladies, invalids, children, or aged persons. To such it would often be dangerous to recommend cold plunge baths or long walks in rain or snow. These 'are good tonics for some, but they are for the strong and not for the weak. But the principle of treatment is tho same for all. These sufferers generally have One trait in common. They have coddled themselves so warmly as to have an oversensitive skin, and this is the great source of colds. Happily, it is a condition that can be rationally treated and usually cured. t How does the trouble begin? Very often, perhaps usually, in childhood. An anxious mother wishes to be sure that her child shall not take cold, “and if I can only keep him warm enough,” she says to herself, arguing from tho name of the thing—“if I could only keep him warm enough, surely he will never catch cold. ” So tho child is burdened night and® day, summer and winter alike, with wraps and covering that keep him in perspiration a great part of the time, and this causes such tenderness of the skin that catching cold on the least exposure is inevitable. It is quite, true that a cnild should be keot warm, but the anxious mother should bear in mind that in a warm room or on a hot day he does not need as much clothing as when it is cold. Overheating, in a word, is the surest preparation for colds; but with each new attack the ignorant mother can think of nothiug better than to make the house warmer' and the clothing thicker Of course the little sufferer’s skin becomes still more tenderer, and the colds more frequent Many an active little fellow thus coddled has to spend the bright days of winter in watching from his bed-room /windows the sports of happier children who are not so tender but that they can face the snow without danger. Now what is to be done in such cases? The treatment needed is simplo enough, though it needs intelligent care in the application. These are my five rules for hardening: 1. Cold plunge baths for the comparatively few who can bear them. 2. Cold sponge baths daily for the majority of healthy persons. . 3. As much outdoor exposure, summer and winter, as possible, always with clothing according to the season. . 4. Avoid sleeping too warm at night; the golden mean in the matter is the bo-t. 5. Many persons tako cold by having cold feet, and for these the cold douche to the feet is a moat effective cura It -stimulates the norves and the arteries of the feet, and produces a brisk reaction of warmth. A single application will sometimes set cold feet glowing that have not been warm for a whole winter. In practiee l havo found ibis a moat effective remedy, and while it is not to be used absolutely without precautions of times andand seasons, yet there are few persons so delicate as not to bear perfectly well this moderate local exposure to cold or to profit by it Often it will cure the life-long affliction of cold feet. The colder the water ihe better; and if one has not the convenience of a douche it will serve fairly well to stand in a tub or basm filled,to six inches deep with tho coldest water at command. The warm reaction is essential. In this matter of colds an ounce Of prevention is worth at least a pound of cure.— Dr. Titus Munson Coan, in Harper's Bazar. i !' J ■