Rensselaer Republican, Volume 19, Number 32, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 April 1887 — Page 3

HUSBANDRY AND HOUSEWIFERY.

Matters of Interest Relating to Farm and Household Management. Information for the Plowman, Stockman, Poulterer, Nurseryman, and Housewife. t Tho Growth of Corn Moot*. * There is good reason in the different habits of growth of corn and potatoes for plowing corn ground much more shallow than that intended for potatoes. Roots of com naturally run only a few inches below the snrface, seeking warmth nnd only anch moisture as is brought by frequent light rains. This indicates that manure for corn should be put on or near the surface, and that cultivation, especially late in the season, should be shallow. Com roots extend horizontally ns far as the height of their stalk, nnd usually run over into adjoining rows before cultivation ceases. I.oad Fence*. Wherevor roadway fences are required by law they should be good ones. In fact, whether the law does or does not require that owners of stock should fence against animals on the highway, good fences should be kept up against stray cattle. Losses that will never be repaid will more than offset interest and repairs especially on a much-traveled road. In byways where there is little travel, fences along the roadside may often be entirely dispensed with, or a line of fruit trees be set just at the edge of the road, nud wires, either barbed or plain, fastened to the trees as a protection against passing stock. I.net of Hay In Stacks. In a bulletin recently issued by the Missouri Agricultural College, Prof. Sanborn says: Against my conviction that stacking hay is not an economical method of preserving it, I am forced to stack it in the Open air, according to the prevailing practice. Hay continues, in the dry as w:ell as in the green state, matter that is soluble in water. For this reason all exposed hay on the exterior of stacks is subject to having washed from it such soluble matter. In round stacks the amount of bay thus exposed is much larger than is usually supposed. A body one foot in diameter contains only one-fourth the matter that a body two feet in diameter does. Thus six inches from the circumference toward the eenter will contain four times as much matter as the central pnrt of a round body two feet in diameter will contain. A stack of hay twelve feet in diameter and six feet to the point of its drawing in and five feet more to the top of its cone, will contain on its outside foot, at 450 feet to the ton, 287.57 pounds of hay, while the interior will contain 580.49 pounds. Thus 33 per cent, of the hay of the ordinary round stacks of the State is found on the outside foot of those stacks. A heavy proportion of this food is obviously subject to loss by leaching rains, by molding and actual rotting in badlyconstructed stacks. It was said by one who handled hay during last year that onejialf of the hay of his county, was so damaged as to be virtually worthless. August 9, 1884, I put up a well-made stack of second-crop clover. It was in good style to shed rain and capped with other material. It was built over rails laid down as a foundation, and alt done up in about the usual style, save that it w r as perhaps a little below the ordinary size. Notwithstanding this fact, it was not injured internally by water; as vve often see ia poorlyfmade stacks. It weighed August 9, on stacking, 6,514 pounds. It was tested for water content by the water bath, and found to contain 32.5 per cent, of water. March 3 it was again all weighed with much care to prevent loss of hay in handling-. Its weight was 4,548 At this time it contained 16.14 per cent, of water. The change in water eon tent is quite noticeable, and places us, as was anticipated, under the necessity of ascertaining the dry matter of the hay, both in the fall and in the spring: 6,515 pounds less 32.5 percent, water is 4,397 pounds (fall weight of dry matter); 4,548 pounds less 16.14 percent, water is 3,814 pounds (spring weight of dry matter). Loss of organic matter until March 23, 583 pounds. Per cent, loss for seven and one-half months, 13.2.

THE DAIRY.

Keeping the Cows Clean. GTcat caro sould be taken in bedding in •winter tiino, and in cleaning the stables. Unless extra pains are taken foul smelling stables will be the result; consequently the milk will be more or less affected. l am well satisfied that filthy stables and filthy “habits of milking are the chief causes of so much poor butter being made in winter and in spring. I am well aware that butter made in winter lacks in flavor and color, but with proper care it can be made sweet and clean. Very much depends upon the the cows eat; in order to have color, corn-fmeal, with beans and ground oats fed liberally; and a little oil-meal added, is about as near perfect rations as can be given in winter, with plenty of good, bright timothy hay and a mixture of clover. It is quite a common sight to see in this part of the country cows in winter time with their hips loaded down with manure, their bags ditto, also their backs covered with hayseed and dust. The brush and card are never seen in the cow stables; to them the cows are total strangers. Now, this is all wrong. As a rnlo the cows aro well fed; some havo bank barns, but there is a want of care in grooming and handling. It pays to card and brush the cows daijy. They look better and nre better, and certainly the milking can be done more cleanly. -A ' 1 Hitter Cream . Among the important causes of bitter cream we find the following condensed in the Albany GtMivator: Ragweed- in the pasture. This is a frequent cause just now, when cows are fed in stubblo or mowing lands. The flavor given by ragweed is a disagreeable, intense bitter, quite different from that caused by fermentation of the milk. Mildew, but especially the red, spotted mildow, which forms upon the •cream in damp cellars, and appears in spots about tho size of a split pea. This is •caused by the impregnation of the cellar with spores of the mildew, and is very difficult to get rid of. The only way I have succeeded in doing it is by burning sulphur in the cellar, which is kept tightly closed for a considerable time until the walls are saturated with it, and afterwards by keeping the air dry by means of a box of freshly-burned lime kept in it until it is air-slaked. Keeping the milk too long without skimming, until the whey separates, and the cream too long without churning. Thirty-six hours is long enough for euher, which makeß the cream three days old when it is churned. Imperfect and leaving curd in the seams or corners. Putrid caseine has a bitter flavor and very > rapidly communicates the same to milk and cream, the cream appropriating nearly the whole of it. The farrow condition of the cow or advanced tate of pregnancy will cause this trouble. Sometimes the addition of as much powdered saltpeter 1 as will lie on a silver three-cent piece, or about five grams to a six-quart pan of milk, will prevent the bitterness, and to give the cow a

done of two dram* a dos for a week will have the same effect. I have found two grains of an I icy lute of soda to four quarts of milk will prevent mold even in a musty cellar. Bat Jam inclined to think that at this season the cause of it, nine times out of ten, is in the feed, especially if it is aftermath or stubble grass. In this cose the remedy is obvious.

THE POULTRY-YARD.

Jtresslny Font try. There are mauy ways in dressing poultry. Where very large numbers are to be dressed, it is a common practice to Hit spend them by the legs from a siring or wire over a floor covered with dry sand of sufficient depth to absorb all the blood. The skillful picker is nrmed with a kuife having u sharp, slender blade, like that of a penknife. Opening the victim’s mouth with the thumb and finger of one hand, the operator introduces a keen blade with the other hand, penetrates the brain to produce unconsciousness, then intakes a quick, clean cut entirely across tho roof of the mouth, or just behind the eyes, severing the blood vessels on both sides. While the fowl is bleeding, the operator' instantly commences to remove the feathers, beginning on the breast, next the back, and so on. doing the most difficult parts first, lest the feathers should set. 'lbis they seldom or never do if tho sticking is properly done. The tail and wing feathers are thrown in one direction, those worth saving going in nnother, and iu a short timo the fowl is ready for the pin featherers, who are equipped with ordinary shoemakers’ knives, having the edge thoroughly blunted, and the point slightly rounded to prevent injuring the flesh of the fowl. They tnke the fowl in their lap, and with the knife and thumb pin feather against the grain. For the picking of a few fowls where the farmer is obliged to do the work alone, first select an old-fashioned woodenbottomed chair, if one can be found. Remove it to the picking quarters and saw off the back even with the seat. Next, saw a flour-barrel, or, what is still better, a large sugar-barrel, in two, just above the middle, making a large tub- Select the spot for the chair nnd place the tub in front of it and touching it. Tack cleats or blocks of wood to the floor-, holding the tnb firmly in place, that it may resist any lateral pressure fiom your knees when holding the fowl in position. Scatter dry sand over the floor, having it quite deep at the left of the tub. On the outside of the tub in front, tack a piece of leather to hold the pin-feathering knife that it may be found readily and handled instantly. In dressing poultry, all movements should be qnick without lost motion. On the left of the chair nnd tfeside the operator, have a pail containing two inches of dry sand. Into this bleed and also “draw” the fowls. Near this pail, axd within easy reach of both it and the chair, have a sheath for your sharp-pointed knife and nnother for your gutting knife, also a nail upon which to hang a clean cloth lor wiping the fowls. On the extreme left have the coop of fowls. In the center of the top should be a door on hinges, easily opened and closed, an 4 large enough for the passage of the fowl without 'rubbing its skin. The fowls Bhould have had nothing to eat for at least twelve hours, and twenty-four hours would be still better. If their crops are empty they need not be removed, and this omission will add much to their appearance when dressed. If the crop does contain any food it must be removed. This is as necessary ns removing the intestines, and if either is allowed to remain the fowl will sour and spoil. If the fowl is cropped, take it from the back, which makes much neater work. On the right have a clean bench covered with paper to receive the poultry when dressed.— IF. H. Rudd, in the Poultry World.

THE ORCHARD.

Frnit \otes. We have had evaporated apples for years, and in all our experience have never succeeded in getting over 10 to 12 cents per pound, and then we had to pay 30 to 50 cents per bushel for the green frnit. The bushel of apples we use averages five pounds of evaporated apples, with a post to evaporate, including help, coal, and machinery, of at least 15 cents per bushel. For five or six years past we have obtained but 6 to 8 cents per pound. The old way of setting and growing orchards is proving a failure. To yield an abundance of fruit, trees must have room. One needs but to see the apple tree that stands alone to be well satisfied of its superiority over the usual orchard tree. The past year we cut down three out of four trees in onr apple orchard, leaving the trees four rods apart, instead of but two as originally planted out. In mild weather is a good time to look for and destroy the eggs of certain insects. A sharp eye run over the young twigs should detect the rings of tent caterpillar eggs on them near their ends, also of cocus insects when present. Remove all that can be found. Each ring of caterpillar’s eggs destroyed now is equivalent to lessening the next season’s caterpillar crop by some hundreds. Great benefit is derived from laying down the most commonly cultivated grape vines on the approach of winter, even sorts reputed to be bardv. The work has been easily done by holding them in their prostrate position with short sticks of wood and without covering, and where they obtained some warmth froni the earth and were out of reach of severe winds. It is found that peach trees growing near the house, where dish nnd wash water nre thrown out, are long-lived and free from worms and disease. A hint can be taken from this, showing that salt and alkali are the valuable factors. There is enough waste from houses of liquids which, if properly saved, would give sufficient fertilizers for an acre of ground. Grafts for spring setting may be cut during any spell of mild weather. The greatest care should be observed to label each kind correctly, trusting nothing to memory. Such shonld be packed in sawdust or sand until used, the former being preferable, as then there will be no dunger of grit to dull the grafting knife. The present is a good time to haul out manure and throw a little aronnd each raspberry plant, or scatter under the fruit trees. A fine place for wood ashes is over the strawberry beds. Do not throw away wnste water. It is a good fertilizer, especially, if thrown over a pile of coal ashes, basin-shaped at the top. Manure may be carted out much better over frozen ground than to wait until soft spring weather. By spreading at the same time under trees, extra protection is provided and with benefit to the roots.—A. M. Purdy, in Popular Gardening.

THE HOUSEHOLD.

JHah ir<u hlng awl Xruralgta. One last ■word as to the heallhfulness of dish washing. Therein no finch certain cure for a poor circulation; the constant and varied exercise with hauds in hot water sending the blood to the extremities swiftly and freely, and neuralgia will fly before it. A young lady, who is an enthusiastie pianist, tells me her fingers are never so supple as on Monday morning when she has a pan of hot water brought into the sunny breakfast room and “takes Katie’s place washing up the breakfast things.” Do not be afraid of it, only let

your dish washing be done decently and in order.— Trebor Uhl, in Good Honttckeeping. --- , £ How to Select Meats—Culinary Datntiis. In selecting beef, choose that which has a loose grain, easily yielding to pressure, of a clear red, with whitish fat. If the lean is purplish and the fat yellow, it is poor beef. Beef long kept tarns a darker color than fresh-killed. Stall-fed beef has a lighter color than grass-fed. Ox beef is the best, and next, that of a heifer. In cold weather it is economical to bay a a hind quarter; have it cat up, and what is not wanted immediately pack with snow in a barrel. All meats grow tender by keeping. Do not let meats freeze: if they do. thaw them in cold water, and do not cook it nntil fully thawed. A piece weighing ten pounds requires ten or twelve hours to thaw. In selecting veal, take that which is firm nnd dry tho joints stiff, having the lean a delicate red, the kidney covered with fat, nnd the fat very white. If you buy the head, see that the eyes are plump and lively, and not dull and snnk in the head. It you buy the legs get those which are not skinned, as the skin is good for jelly or soup. In choosing mntton, take that which is bright red and close-grained, with firm and while fat. The ment should feel tender nnd springy on pressure. Notice the vein in the neck of the fore quarter,whichshould be a fine bine. In selecting pork, if young, the lean can bo easily broken when pinched, end the skin can be indented by nipping with the fingers. The fat also will be white and soft. Thin rind is best. In selecting hams, ran n knife along the bone, and if it comes out clean, the ham is good; but if it comes out smeared, it is spoiled. Good bacon has white fat, and the lean adheres closely to the bone. If the bacon has yellow streaks, it is rusty, and not fit to ase. In selecting poultry, choose those that are full grown, hut not old. When yoyig and fresh killed, the skin is thin and tender, the joints not very stiff, and the eyes full and bright. The breastbone shows the age, as it easily yields to pressure if young, and is lough when old. If yOung, you cau with a pin, easily tear the skin. A goose when old, has red and hairy legs; but when young they are yellow', and have few hairs. The pin feathers are the roots of feathers, which break off and remain in the 6kiu, and always indicate a young bird. W’hen very neatly dressed they are pulled out. In selecting fish, take those that are firm and thick, having stiff fins and bright scales, the gills bright red, and the eyes fall and prominent. When fish are long out of water they grow soft, the fins bend easily, the scales are dim, the gills grow dark, the eyes sink and shrink away. Be sure and have them dressed immediately, sprinkle them with salt, and use them if possible the same day. In warm weather put them in ice, or corning for the next day. Shell-fish can be decided upon only by the smell. Lobsters are not good unless alive, or else boiled before offered for sale. They are black when alive and red when boiled. When to be boiled they are put into boiling water, which is the quickest and least cruel way to end life. In hot weather, if there is no refrigerator, then wipe meats dry, sprinkle on a little salt and pepper, and hang in the cellar. Or, still better, wrap it, thus prepared in a dry cloth, and cover it with charcoal or ashes. Mutton wrapped iu a cloth wet with vinegar, and laid on the ground in a dry cellar, keeps well and improves its tenderness. Hang meat a day -or two after it is killed before corning it. Frozen meat must be thawed in cold water, and not cooked until entirely thawed.

Making Good fiounekeepers. Miss Bentley gave an exhibition of her garden pupils. The class consisted of twenty-four little girls, ranging in age from twelve to fifteen, and representing almost every European country. Their long, white pinafores, Anted muslin caps, and prim little ties gave them an appearance that was very refreshing. They entered the room in single file to a military march, carrying minialnre tables and boxes. In the latter were linen, cutlery and small table furniture. Brought to a halt, Miss Bentley put the little housewives through a catechism of domestic literature, from which the following quotations were canght: “How often should a room be 6wept?” “Thoroughly once a week,” answoretj a wee bit of a Swede, with a voice bigger than himself. “What kind of a broom is best for the corners nnd edges of a room?” “Whisk broom,” sang out a mnid with yellow pigtails, who seemed to be having "her throat sawed by the well-laundered tie under her chin. “Why is a dust rag better than a feather duster?” “Becnuso the feathers scatter the dust instead of gathering it,” and such queries of similar practicality. After this part of the program the girls took out their little table cloths, the piano struck np a series of popular tunes and the board was spread in a manner that was calculated to charni v aii epfeurian. Before the little beds were made the class had an oral recitation, one question being: “What three things are necessary for nice bed making?” The answer being: “Level mattress, smooth clothes,and square corners.” Then the mattresses were whipped into shape, the pillows knocked in form, nnd in an incredibly short time every bed was as flat as the nap on a fifteen-dol-lar ulster, and the children retired under a murmur of applause. On their return they carried trays, with which they went through a series of pretty maneuvers, the werds being suggested by the trip in “Patience.” Dishes were washed, and after the place was ‘Tidied up,” brooms were used for an exercise in calisthenics. It is needless to say that the exhibition was enthusiastically received. The little girls have been under the instruction of Miss Bentley for the last two years, the school session being held Saturdays only. Ab soon as her pupils have completed the prescribed coarse it is the teacher’s intention to provide each graduate with a position in some first-class family, where the intelligence of tho girl will be appreciated. A feature in the course is compulsory education, no pupil being allowed to take a diploma who is not able to read, write, and understand enough arithmetic for practical economy. —Chicago Tribune.

THE KITCHEN

Choicn Jlrrript*. Scrapple.— Boil a pig’s head until bones will strip from the meat; chop meat fine, skim grease from liqaor, return meat, senson highly with salt and pepper, add corn-meal until the consistency of mush. Cook slowly one hour or more, pour in pans and set in cool place. Slice and fry for breakfast. To Scour Tins, Coppers, Etc.— Wash in hot suds, then dip a wet rag in fine sifted coal ashes, scour well and then polish with dry ashes. Coppers, if much stained, can be cleaned w ith vinegar and salt, or oxallic acid. Put 10 cents worth of acid in a quart of water and bottle. Label poison in large letters and keep for use. It is a dangerous article, vet very useful to have at hand. Keep it by itself in some place inaccessible to children.

SHERMAN ON THE SOUTH.

Tho Poor Negro Still at the Mercy of tho Uomocrkfo—Vote* Counted an Hest Suit tho Purpose of tlie . \ Bourbon. i r ... \ [Pittoburg cor. Chicago Tribune. 1 Senator Sherman in the course of an interview here was asked what he thought of tho Southern people, and said: “Well, in order to work for their own good, the colored vote ought to be reoognizod. There iWno disputing it, tho great mass of the negro vote of the South is either not counted or counted to suit the tastes of the Democratic bosses. Yon may think that where the negroes predominate they would force their rights; bat, strange ns it may seem, such places are the most tyrannical sections in the country. The talk that the negro votes voluntarily for the Democracy is buncombe; the negro vote is naturally solidly Republican." “How were you struck by the Birmingham incident?” “Forcibly, indeed, yon may say, bnt not injuriously. When Proprietor Cowan, of the hotel, refused to admit a committee of colored men who called, he was guilty of a bigotry which is not shared by the more refined white people of the South. The committee consisted of two c>ergymen, two barristers and a real-estato agent, all intelligent men. As an instance of the fact that Cowan’s conduct was not approved by the better element of whites, I will cite you the conduct of Governor Aiken, He was conversing with me when a colored dele gation called to pay me their respects, and he turned, greeted them cordially, and warmly shook their hands. ” “What are the prospects of the Republican party in the South?” “ Tho party is growing just as fast as the South grows. You will find that the growth of the country, the development of its resources, must go baud in hand with the increase of our party. I find that the free-trade policy of the Democratic party is weakening it. The whites are joining the Republicans, rapidly recognizihg the Republicans ns the champions of the tariff issue. The Southern people are as anxious to subserve their interests as we are to subserve ours, and they are not slow in falling to the fact in manufacturing districts that the defeat of the free-trade party is their salvation.” He thought, from extended observation, that the business boom in the South has come to stay.

After the Texas Bulldozers.

The first returns from the recent Congressional inquiry into the charges of intimidation in "the Texas elections have began to come in, and they are not very favorable to the Democratic party. The United States Grand Jury has indicted Judge Kirk and several other citizens.„of Washington County, Texas, on the charge of intimidating voters, and they nre bound over for trial. The fact that a jury in the State of Texas has found three bulldozers deserving of trial, with reasonable ground to expect them guilty, is pretty good proof of their subsequent conviction. The investigation before the Senate Committee showed a condition of things that reflects shame upon American institutions and disgrace upon the Democratic party that is responsible for it. It was brought out then that armed men stood about the polls frightening voters away. That in some instances they forcibly stopped the balloting and closed the election loDg before the time required by hw. That they used intimidation, supported by violence, to compel men to vote the Democratic ticket, or refrain from voting at all. These facts were brought out in the preliminary examination, and yet the Democrats in the Senate stoutly insisted, when an investigation was proposed, that there was no occasion for it, and that the charges wore manufactured for the purpose of making capital for the Republican party. The Grand Jury iu Texas evidently doesn’t take that view of it, and there is good ground for believing that the jury that has finally to pass upon the charges will not consider them untrue or trifling. And yet with this indisputable evidence of forcible interference by the Democratic party with the right of citizens to vote, with plenty of proof that the Democratic party of the South is a constant t conspiracy against the honesty of elections,' and for the forcible and fraudulent usurpation of the right of suffrage, sentimentalists like Grady gush about a “new South,” and denounce any reference to these crimes against society and government as waving the bloody shirt, and an attempt to perpetuate sectional animosity and strife. If the Democratic party wants a clean bill of health in the South, let it repudiate and suppress the crimes against the ballot that are committed in its name. Nothing will do more to create public belief that there really is a new South, where justice and respect for law go hand in hand with the genius of enterprise and progress, than the assurance that in all its borders the right of every man to cast his vote and have it fairly counted is sacedly preserved and enforced, whether be be rich or poor, black or white. When that assurance can be truthfully given there will lie some occasion to acknowledge tho existence of a new South; but not till then.— Des Moines Register.

General Black’s Appointees.

The political statistician of the New York Tribune has been analyzing General Black’s distribution of patronage, and he finds that the General is t&kiug good care of his Congressional district primarily, and of the State of Illinois secondarily. In less than two years he has made forty appointments and fourteen promotions of Illinois people in his bureau. Ho lives in the Fifteenth Congressional District, which is represented by a Republican. That district has received eleven of the forty appointments and two of the fourteen promotions. and Is represented in the salary list by the pretty sum of $22,430, as compared with $55,900 for the remaining nineteen Congressional districts. The ten Democratic districts have received twenty-three appointments and promotions, with salaries amounting to $30,400, about one-third going to the two districts represented by Springer and Townshend, who are stanch friends of Black, and only ouo appointment at $1,500 a year to Col. Morrison's district. Col. Morrison evidently is not a Black man. The nine Republican districts aside from the Fifteenth, in which Black lives, have received eighteen appointments and promotions with salaries amounting to $21,400 per year. Out of one hundred men appointed by him as special examiners, fifteen, or more than one-seventh, are from Illinois, while the remainder are distributed among the other thirty-seven States, and of the fifteen Illinois appointments five are credited to the district in which Commissioner Black lives. Bot—“ Mister, do you wanter hire a boy?” Young doctor (dubiously“ What can you do? Read, write, cipher? Have you a recofhmendation from your last employer?” “No, sir; but I’m a dreadful liar, and I know every bill-collector in the city.” “Come around to-morrow morning at nine.” A man by the name of Doodle, from Conneotiout, got full of fighting whisky over in a Canadian village, and the whole town was up in arms about it. \ aukee Doodle always did wake up the Britishers.

THE DOG AND THE THIEVES.

A Sa"»»ileu» Animal's Frequent Efforts to , Want Hts Master of (Banger. A friend residing on Staten Island, whom I was in the habit of frequently visiting, had a very handsoml Irish setter, says a writer In the Brooklyn , Eagle. During the month of December, about, five or six years ago, the dog manifested an unusual degree of restlessness. He had been permitted to run at large in tho garden, and, until the time in question, seemed satisfied with this measure of liberty. Bnt .on Sunday morning he showed a strong desire to follow his master and mistress out at a gate as they were leaving to go to church. They drove him back, and instead of receiving the repulse kindly, lie protested in a series of piteous howls. In the afternoon his master took him for a stroll, greatly to the delight and satisfaction of the animal. Their wav skirted an uninclOsed lot about 300 feet distant, in which stood a deserted frame shanty. Bruno, when they came opposite it, darted off and ran round and round the building, pausing at intervals nnd gazing toward his master, who tpok no particular notice of his actions and continued the walk. After that the dog followed reluctautlv and would from time to time turn back, as if it was his intention to retrace his steps. These peculiar movements my friend recalled subsequently, although they did not excite his curiosity at the time. On Monday and Tuesday ensuing he betrayed the same eagerness to get out and attempted to follow when any member of the family left the premises. On Wednesday I was a visitor at the house. In tho afternoon my friend and 1 went out together, accompanied by tho dog. He acted, on passing the uninclosed lot, just as he had done three days before. His efforts to attract our attention were so marked that I humored him by walking across the lot. He led me directly up to the shanty, and then ran around it with his nose <‘lose to the ground several times. I could discover no reason for his singular maneuvers, and, attributing them to some idle freak, rejoined my friend and thought no more of Bruno and his eccentricity. Nevertheless the sagacious animal was wiser than either of us, although to our dullness his dumb show of knowledge had no significance. On Saturday night following, my friend’s house was broken ihto by burglars and about $2,000 worth of property carried off. But what connection had the burglary with the dog’s pertinacious visits to tlie shanty ? The police discovered it in less than thirty minutes after their examination of the premises. A narrow lane ran back of the garden from a side street to the open lot whfere the shanty stood. The burglars had made their approach by way of this lane. Footpi'ints in the wet snow were clearly visible. The officers traced these prints back to the north side of the shanty, and there the secret of tho dog’s curious behavior was disclosed. A few feet underneath the building was a kit of burglar’s tools, which had been stored there in preparation for the robbery, and which the burglars, in the hurry of their- flight, had not had time to carry off. A jimmy and pair of false keys lay close to the hole and revealed tlie exact spot where the kit had been hidden. The question of interest suggested by this remarkable case is: How did the dog know there was something concealed there for an improper purpose. That ho had such knowledge there is not tho slightest doubt. There is no other way to explain his eagerness tp draw his master’s attention to it. Moreover, this very eagerness raises a presumption in favor of the belief that the animal not only had a sense of the unlawful character of the enterprise, but a consciousness that it threatened the interests of his master.

Tlie Effect of Despotism on Russian Literature.

In other lands the national energy is absorbed and scattered in a thousand necessities and opportunities that lead men into various fields of action and adventure which here are closed by a rigid despotism. In the rest of Europe the trifling novel of mere amusement has sufficient reason for existing, but in Russia life is too serious; entertaining fiction has to be .imported along with champagne, and silks, and ribbons, and the native who writes speaks for the whole compressed anguish of a people in chains. Mere entertainment would be a degrading aim for a Russian novelist —that is, tlie luxury of ease and security, and not even the masters in that country know either 'of these. All writing is under the control of a vigilant censorship pstudents are forbidden access to what are regarded as dangerous books; yet the novel, by confining itself to the representation of familiar or possible facts, manages to elude repression. Even the sharpest-eyed censor does not; read what is written between the lines; but it is this part, printed as it were in invisible ink, that helps to fill out the terrible picture of despair that almost every Russian novel contains. Not merely, then, are the literary hobgoblins dead; they have never lived long; their shoulders were too weak to bear the burden of expressing real suffering and hopeless misery. Their absence is certainly a natural result of the condition of affairs; for just as cruelty begets deceit, so the despotism of that unhappy laud lias taught men td attack the abuse of power byportraying its results without uttering an aggressive word of abuse or criticism. Indeed, as a valuable means of drill in the technicalities of literature, despotism has never received, from writers upon education, half the praise that it deseryes. The writer is sure to be careful in his phraseology when a rash word may mean life-long exile; and one of the results of the terrors of the Russian penal code was that novelists learned compression and vigor, as well asall the possibilities of seriousness. We find this forcible reserve even during the brief flowering-time of rbmanticism, which is yet enriched by precise and vivid realism. —Thomas Sergeant Perry, in Scribner’s Magazine. Troth is coy and retiring; and to be fairly won must be ardently wooed; but, though shrinking from the gaze of the world, she rarely flies from her sincere and devoted worshipers.

INDIANA STATE NEWS.

—Patents have been granted Indianfauur as fellows: Charles E. Anderson, LaPorte, fence machine; Aronomona B. Anstin, Fort Wayne, dnst-pan; John B. Bennett and F. W, Snmnele, Indianapolis, target trap; George G. F. Boswell, assignor of twofiftlis to J. E. Boswell, Indianapolis, stalk harvester; Henry L. Brown, Indianapolis, air pnmp; William H. Brown, Indianapolis, assignor to C. H. Sparks, Chicago, jail or prison; George 8. Claw, North Indianapolis, scythe snath coupling; Mary E. Cory, sleeve-protector; Elizabeth E. Fisher, Delphi, ward-robe hook; George W. Immel, Logansport, door clamp; Francis M. and 8. C. Love, Sbelbyville, wire fence machine; Amos Mendenhall, Unionport, gold-mining device; James N. Loo re and A. L. Minor, Lowell, car-coupling; Orvico K. Patterson, Willis Grove, assignor of one-halt to J. K. Patterson, Petersbnrg, combined sqnare nnd bevel; Charles E. Sweeney, assignor to C. R. Long, M. E. Sweeney, Pierceton, and T. J. Keagy, Kosciasko County, corn-planter; Henry H. Wilson, Huntington, table-leaf support. —Mr. Wm. Gorham, who has been a guard at the State Prison South for twentyeight years, and daring that time filled temporarily all the official positions in that institution, and recognized as one of the most competent nnd faithful employes, was asked to resign. Mr. Gorham tendered his resignation at once, which was immediately accepted. From the ontiook it is probable that all the employes under the Howard administration will also be set aside. Another guard named Knackley, who is a brother of the Vincennes postmaster, was also discharged, on the ground that there were more men than were needed. The State owes both of these gentlemen nnder Warden Howard’s administration four months’ salary, or $240. Mr. Patton paid Mr. Gorham for his services since he took charge of the prison. —A pamphlet has been issued by State Fish Commissioner Reed containing tha laws in reference to fish. With the laws thns distributed, he says that ignorance can be no longer set np as a defense by those who violate the statutes. The first act of this nature passed in 1852, related to the poisoning of fish and the stretching of nets across the Ohio River within one mile of its month. Fifteen years later an act was approved defining the time when fish conld be trapped, netted or seined. Following these came amendments and codifications which are set forth in the pamphlet. In connection with this, the Commissioner has sent out a circular asking for the cooperation of all citizens in enforcing these laws. It is his determination to prosecute all violators to the fullest extent the statutes warrant —lntelligence of the successful transfusion of blood from the veins of a husband to those of his wife has been received from, Elkhart County. Mrs. Daniel Slonder, residing near Goshen, has been very ill for several months of anaemia, and her condition became so critical that the operation was decided upon as the last resort. Mr. Slonder consented to supply the blood, and the physician, after placing Mrs. Slonder nnder the influence of ether, opened a vein in her left arm, inserted the end of a rubber tube, the other end of which was inserted in a vein in the arm of Mr. Slonder. The blood flowed freely for over half an hour, when the tube was withdrawn and the orifice closed. The patient showed signs of improvement immediately, and the doctor is now confident of her recovery. —The Delaware County Stock-breeders’ Association held its annnal meeting for thd election of officers recently. - Lewis Moore* of Hamilton Township, was elected President for the ensuing year. A committee of five was appointed to co-operate with the Mnncie Board of Trade for the advancement of the interests of Mancie and Delaware County. —At Columbus, a colored lad nameft William Foster, about sixteen years of age, from Gallatin, Tenn., while attempting to steal a ride on a freight-train out of the city, was caught nnder the wheels and hie leg crushed so that it had to be amputated. He was sent to the county poor-honse, and is in a precarious condition. —John Hanses, saloon-keeper at Wanatab,on the Fort Wayne road, committed sui<cide by getting down on all fours and thrash ing his head on the rail while a freight train was passing. * The wheels cut his bead off. The cause in unknown, but be had threatened snicide for several weeks. —Argus Dean and the Hon. J. H. Stotsenberg, who own about fifty thousand peach trees near the bonndry line between Clark and Jefferson connties, report the buds all safe so far, and the prospecti good for an abundant yield of the frnit next summer. j.;—John Mc.Hale, a fireman on the Panhandle between Logansport and Bradford, was killed at Deceased was a nephew of Patrick McHale, one of Looansport’s most prominent Irish citizens, and had only been in America four months. —As an outgrowth of the Woodworth meetings at Greensbnrg, the newly-organ-ized “Church of God” has bought a corner lot three squares from the Conrt-house, and will proceed to erect thereon a neat honse as a place of worship. —A young daughter of John Shenkel, living several niileß from Huntington, was playing abont a sugar-camp, when her clothes canght fire, and she was so horribly burned that death followed in a few minutes. - - —By the bursting of a grindstone in Pratt A Son’s carriage works at Elkhart, Henry Stair was struck and 60 badly injured that death resulted in a short time. —Louis Lingg, of Logansport, committed suicide by throwing himself nnder tha wheels of a moving freight-train. —At Colnmbns Millard E. Gray, an old freight conductor, who had a leg crashed some time ago while coupling cars, has brought suit against the Pennyslvania Company for SIO,OOO damages, —The Bierbusse Manufacturing Company of Morris, have begun to remove the debris from about the old port-hoase, at Martinsville, preparatory to removing the factory to that city some time in Jane. —Property to the value of $16,000 has been burned at Ligonier, the losses being borne by ten or twelve persons and firms. The cause of the fires is unknown.