Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 36, Number 69, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 April 1904 — FARMERS CORNER [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

FARMERS CORNER

The Fin Coniter. The put herewith illustrates a style ts plow coulter which is often used in the West. It is made from high-grade i rucible steel about three-eighths of an inch thick, and cuts through the soil easily. There are certain conditions under which the rolling coulter will not work well, and then the fin coulter can often be used to good advantage. Years ago the land side of the share was always dovetailed and the cutterset in level, but later manufacturers and blacksmiths have simply riveted orJiolted the steel to the share without dovetailing. This is cheaper than dovetailing, but the latter method causes the plow to run better than when the cutter is bolted to the side. The cutter is always slanted well back hint is rounded back at the top. When made in this form, wear does not so soon impair its usefulness as if the edge were made straight like a cutter .which is cast on the share. A fin cutter mad 6 with a straight-cutting edge

and rounded forward at the top would soon wear so that grass, roots, trash, etc., would not readily pass upward and off at top of coulter. A few years ago I bought a plow with fin attachment, the cutter having been put on by the manufacturers. It was such a clumsy affair that I would have done much better to have bought the plow and had the smith put the cutter on, for it was over one-quarter thick and stood forward at top so mueh that it would not work at all until it was remodeled. There was one nice feature about this cutter, in that it was bolted on with stove bolts, so it could be taken off and put on agaln v as conditions required.—Geo. T. Pettit, in St. Louis Republic. Co-Operatve >litk Selling. The Springfield (Mass.) Co-operative Milk Association is regarded as something of a model of its kind. The association received during the year 4.210,321 quarts of milk and paid the farmers $123,297.77 for their product. This lack's a small fraction of being "three cents a quart for the year round paid for the milk furnished. The volume of business done during the year was not far from $300,000. A report was made on the creamery established by the association in Washington County, N. Y., from which it now receives its supply of cream and butter. In eight months the product amounted to one hundred thousand pounds of butter. The association received 579.000 quarts more of milk this year than last, and paid the farmers about $18,900 more than last year. The farmers were paid on the whole product about one-sixteenth of a cent more per quart than the preceding year.— American Cultivator.

Bheep for a Weedy Farm. A Kansas correspondent has a weedy farm, wishes to try sheep, and wants to know what breed is best to start with in a section where but few sheep are grown and the surplus would have to be sold to the local butcher. We would get as good a type of mutton sheep ns we could conveniently without inquiring particularly ns to the breed. We would not take Meri-

nos, however, unless they were pretty , well graded up with some of the mutton breeds of which the-ts Shropshire is the most generally known and a very popular breed. We would not get more than twenty-tive or fifty to start with and would use a buck of the mutton breeds that we could get most conveniently: Shropshire, Southdown, Hampshire or Oxford. If the butchers do not give enough we would kill the surplus and sell them to the neighbors. Where a man has weedy pastures or weedy lands, any kind of sheep will pay even if lie has to sell the surplus fit low prices.—Wallace's Farmer.

Cattle and Meat Inspection. The departmental report of the Bureau of Animal Industry from which Secretary Wilson prepared that part of Ills annual report relating to live-stock matters will show' an increase In the number of government meat inspection depots from nine in 1891 to 15U In 1903. During this year 11.900,000 live cattle were Inspected by the bureau agents. 14,000,000 sheep, 1,040,000 calves, 31/HKi.OOO hogs and a few horses. Of these animals about 125.000 were rejected, subject to the result of post mortem examination. The post mortem Inspections for the year show practiceUy # the sumo figures* a total of 37,201,029 carcasses, of which -78.472 carcasses were condemned nnd 04.480 parts of carcasses condemned. The figures show' 344 horses slaughtered for food purposes.

Good Point* of Macaroni Wheat. Macaroni wheat is a drought resistor, a heavy ylelder, an early maturing grain, and has another good point for poultryinen—lt lias a large kernel. This grain sown by itself, or with oats, and kept In the bundle makes a poultry ration hard to beat. We would auggeat getting the smooth varieties, as the strong barb on some of the beared varieties might he objectionable when fsd in the bundle. Mixed with oats.

as many do now for horse feed, thli heavy-yielding grain certainly bids fair to be a good one.

Testing the Seed Corn.

The Illinois Agricultural College authorities are urging the importance of testing seed corn, and have found in their tests samples from farmers ranging in vitality, from 63 to 97 per cent. The importance of testing seed corn cannot be too strongly urged. The following is an extract from a letter received from j Professor A. W. Hume, of the Illinois College on this subject:

‘'lf. as seems probable, we are compelled to select seed corn for next spring from a crib having a large percentage of frosted ears or of ears which for various reasons will not grow, the question is what can be done to help insure our stand of corn for the coining year? It will hardly do t,o plant seed on valuable land with a certainty that one-fifth will not grow. The best suggestion the writer has to offer to corn growers is that they make a most careful inspection of corn, which they expect to use for seed, whether it be purchased from reliable growers or selected from their own storehouses. We believe it would be possible for every ear of corn planted in Illinois to be tested for vitality. If an ear does not come to the required standard, it may be possible to discard it, thus reducing the amount of seed which will not grow and materially increasing the stand of our corn crop the coming year.” Selecting a Good Laye*-. An old country poultrymau makes the following suggestions as a help in selecting good layers: “There are certain individual characteristics, one of which is the shape of a bird. If a straight line be drawn from the back of the head to the toes, the hen which is likely to be a good layer will usually have the hinder half of her body largest, whilst a hen which may be suspected of being a poor layer will show more in the front; the reason being that a poor layer makes a better table bird, and, has a larger, longer breast, whilst a good layer makes a poor table bird, and has a comparatively small breast, whilst the egg organs are more fully developed. Birds which are good layers are usually very active. They always look healthy, and in most cases their combs are usually fully developed, t particularly if they belong to the long-combed varieties, which are reputed to be the best layers. A hen with a long comb may usually be regarded as a good layer, and if she is not there must be some special reason for the contrary.” Five-Horse Equalizer. A. J. Ratan, of Treesbank, Man., writes the Nor’-West. Farmer inclosing a sketch of a five-horse equalizer. He says: “I have had considerable experience in breaking up grub land and have found that the very best results come from a good strong fourteen-inch grub plow. Two men, an ax, brush scythe and five horses comprise the best outfit that can be obtained for any field. In order to equalize the combined strength of lh4 horses an evener is made on the plan shown in the illustration. A piece of timber 3x5 and fifteen inches long is'selected. An inch hole is bored three-fifths of the distance from the end for the clevis

which attaches the timber to the plow ring. A tliree-horse attachment is fastened to the short end, a chain is attached to the long end of the piece of timber running between the two ofT side horses through their neckyoke ring and attached to a double-tree clevis for the lead team.”

Use for Cottonseed Hulls. Taper from cottonseed hulls is the latest utilization of a waste product. A factory has been established at Niagara Falls. It-is said that a good quality of paper can be made from this material. The diminishing supply of*\vood and other materials for paper stock has caused a search for substitutes. If the utilization of cottonseed hulls in this way proves a success, It will mean a new Industry for the South. Now that the mills have found an honest use for hulls, it Is hoped they will keep the stuff out of the meal which they send North.

Setting a Gutc Post. Have a large solid chestnut post to begin with. Then aim to make the l>ottom of the post immovable. Tamping near the surface Is of llftle use. Make the hole large enough to leave a sixdneh space all around the post. IMaoe the post, brace It straight, then put In about eighteen inches of broken rock, and pour liquid cement (three parts Portlund cement, two parts sand) into the spaces, making a solid masonry setting. The rest of the hole may be filled with rocks and earth.

CTrowth of Pigs. Foster nnd Merrill in Utah made two tests to Compare the relative fattening values of harrows and sows. In the first test of ninety-one days, six barrows made an average dally gain of nine-tenths of p pound, and three sows an average daily gain of eightythree one-hundredtlis of n pound. In the second test of 133 days, three barrow’s made an average dally gain of seven-tenths of a pound, and six sows an average dally gain of eighth-eight ooelinndrrflths of a douq<L

PLOW SHAKE WITH FIN COULTER.