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Las diagrammes suivants iliustrant la m4thoda. 1 2 3 32 X 1 2 3 4 5 6 a ^^^ Farming for Profit. A Hand-Book for the American Farmer. -"^■VWSi&Gwi 4 Praciical Work. Devoted tot, itiil f^ Agrlonlture and Mechanics, Fruit-Growlnir and €^^^Xl2*^ Live-Stock. Business Princlnir SS^^?^'***^^' Principles, Home Uie. AND SHOWING HOW TO MAKE MONEY, PRESERVE HEALTH AND SECURE HAPPINESS "B^^^TH >«*03S- 0711^ B'Aiej^.^*^ BY JOHN E. READ, f « T«a Yean Associate Editor of the " w^.u- d ' "Ohio banner,. ..X.^S^-,^-;-^^^^^^^^ ILLUSTRATED WITH ,. ii-xr^,. wiiH I40 ENGRAVINGS. BRADLEY, GARRETSON & CO., BRANTFORD, ONT. iS8o. copyright by John E. Read, 1880. ^\ 'HE a t»> tl work de to which belonors. Preface. HERE are many valuable books for the farmer already in the market, but the author believes t^. that tliere is both room and a call for another work devoted specially to the interests of the class to which nearly half of the population of the country belongs. The present is a time of rapid progress, and the man who makes no effort to keep up with the times will soon be left far behind his competitors. Times have changed since a work of this description has been published. Foreign markets . have been opened, and the wants of home consumers have been gready modified. New theories of tillage and new methods of fertilization and cultivation have been advanced and tested. Competition has become closer, and the necessity for a better style of farming has been' made evident. Farmers have also become more willing to read and study, and have found that the practical agricultural writer is both a helper and a friend. This book is not sectional in its character, but treats of the various interests of farmers in all parts of the country. It contains the results of an immense amount '-U^!.^i^'fe.';:, 4 rREFACE. bLl?r'''"T"''"'°"- ^'- ■'-' -*orieics have ™.a. ,e,.p„e.ca,a„.,„3.™ec,ve. SpecLca. has bee taken to „,ak. it attractive and valuable to tl,e bo^a„d,ot,„,™e„,v„oa.con,in,npo„t,.esta,eo; :::„;:;■ '-' -'- -- '° ^^ "-^ ^--^ <>; tne This will be found a .«„/..,„„,,, „„,, ^„ n;::7'^^'r'"'°°-™'--™stan,t of nformat,oa wl>,cl, will be of practical value The :i:eC:rr^^^"°'^°"-^'°-'-'-'-a- I • Winers oiten overlook, but whiVh have an important bearing upon the 1, ■ cess of the farmer » °, '''""'■'' '"^ ='"=- . ^ '^™'"' ^'•'^ =>'» noted. There are manv "1 to the beginner, while there is much which will „Z he consideration of those who have been Ion. i„ h service. ^ ^ The teachings of this book have been adapted to the present condition nf ^i • , ^^ptea to cou«,ry,.jTZ "^"""""-"^ ""^'■-'s of ike dav cal K ^^" '° '^''"^ """^ *= '■='™er of to- day can achieve success in his work Th • . 'he wife and children have notle!' f '^ °' believed that in the pa^es o ^ T'""' ""' " ' i ^e>es of this work each member PREFACE. ' of the household can find so,ned,i„g of personal i, ' terest. . The author is a practical farmer, acquainted with the deta,ls of far,„ management, and tl,oroughly u.sed to manual labor. He has had many years experience as a wr„er lor the Agricultural Press, and his articles have been very favorably received. He has also had evten- mve opporttmities for observation in different sections of this country and Canada. Written by a farmer, for farmers and their families, the Book ,s sent out with the hope d.at it will prove mterestmg and useful to all who shall read its pa.es ACKNOWLEDGMEN TS. Of the Massacluisctts Agricultural College. work-. ''^^ '*"" ^'^t-'tl Iiim in his Special acknowledoirTients arc due to R- J. H.SHHu.,D.D..P.esident or Amherst College. Hox. Levi Stockmkiogf I^Ror. c. A. GoicssMAx P'o ci;:;:,;:j,y ;i;;::;:^i^::i7"""^ "• "■•^ i-n-pi- stateii^ 24-35 _ LARGE OR §MALL FARMS. farmers want (00 miicli Ian, I—Snprl, I ni r -Larger farms n.o,l..l West al.^Sm !' 1 ^./^'r k'" "'^-!^%^ '-«« n,.-m be mo( .l.ed \>y an,o..,U of l.elp-A.iv u .' es ,/ ^Tr^''"" "^ '^^"■'" '^'"'"'J of small fa,-msa.>,i a,^^n,naees of lir ,e > ""^' ' '^^"■'"^-f >i-^'lvanta..es co.pe..te-An.o.,,u of ca^aUlIS ^:^":;[- ->^-" '^'■— should -All the capital sl.ould .,ot l,e investt-,1 ", ^,^1. '''^"^'"""'"Ji M.e of farm 36-44 ,, ., ,. ''ARM BUILDINGS. Biiilcings necessary_N„mi,er renuired ?.\-n • - ocat.on-IIouse sho,.ld be '" ea '';i,e "r^R""," '■' "'"^ *" '''-^"'-t ven,ent-Si.e shot.ld be reguS -7 e'^l^r^'^rf'"'^'' ''-'''''"S^ in^on- n,dd>ngs-A,laptatio„ to p..m.,sc . I -h fl '' f ""-' "Wner-Heigln of for i.uil.lin.s-Cost-Kepa ,'i^U , .;'\'''7,.^'-<^ ^'^'^i^^'>-'- to serve-Pla,?. tu^ of Plans-Xeatness iml Co .^^Svum ^^V^'''^'^ HotrsK-Modifica: --Sta.rs-Roofs-Chimneys-Eave tro.,;i tT;- ,'''''"^ rods-V enn lation-I„,e.ior arr , '.S ^ "'""■; - ''i'^^^^-I-islnning. Grana.y-The Hog ho..se-ire,;2, "' A\^ , '^'^ '''";- '"'•• HARN-TlTe and vaults-Tool l.ousc--Repai; sh^Uw^']:';;::''-^^ "-' bouse-Closets 44-121 A , , ^"^ CAPACITY OF A FARM -.^La„d_...d_.,-r-:;^^^^ 121-127 ANALYSIS OF SOILS expcncico and observalio,. proves a giSt ai,' '"''■^'■^^'""•>-Combi„e(l u-i,h 127-131 (7) co.vvAxrs, PUNT LIFE AND GROWTH. ri;^>J;;r,Hvil, nr,n,K,liv.,,r„a.. FERTILIZERS. I.?2-fSO -( ) 151-20.^ ""'"' "iipit^i'ifiUs ic(|iiire(i '. " ■ "' ""^ '■"'1' " 203-215 THE CHOICE OF CROPS. oni.'-- soil a nuKlifyi„,;p ,,;i^'[:^^ ;^- ;[/' '-^^"uukc '-i.i.e.l-Clhar L " 'he crops ,0 .. coi.uj.-.,..,i:w:- ,:i:::;i!etSi;;s^^ ^"" ^^^'"^ '^^ 215-225 ROTATION OF CROPS. to supersede the use of manure.. . . . '. . ';''"" •'«'---l^^^^--^^-'--M-^ Rrowinfr-W„,.,,T._Varie,ies_Goo se^lT fV-n^ . -Wheat Drill-Wheat H.-e-rnemies irl r'''"'~,^'^''''"''' "^ «<'«'ins BKANS-Soil-Cul.ivaiion-IInr^c" in^-l^io ' rr'''*^'~ i'"'''^ CRoPsi rvestiiK. and c "t,^^? /l?''!^-^-'"*--^-^ COA-7£.Vrs. c varieties of il,c turnip. 2j5_^o., DRAINING. y . Ul ^ t') IDa ;on 1,,^.,:.,.. r_ . " Oood water neccssnrv for r " ^"''P'-Y. workings of home ' , ' ~'^"'"-es indepentlence r> ,T' V"^""'^"" "^''in- *» '"^ ^^''-=' aiul most ])ro- VV,se selection of crops recp,i,,cl-F, ■431-44& requent 10 CONTENTS. changes injurious— Remedy for evils of over-production to be found in the securing of a higher grade of products— The best will always sell. ..... .447-44^ GOOD SEED. No one thing will insure the production of good crops— The selertion of seed imporlaiit— Too often neglected— Qualities of good seed—ViTAllTY— Seed shoul.l be carefully stored— Injury c.used by an excess of moiMure—Vlucu— Many seeds weak-Will grow but will not be very productive— Seed from the strongest plants should be selected— Pkrmanknce oi- Ciiakact! RlSTics — Important ciuality— Secured by careful selection of seed-Considerable time requirecl— J'.Aii-movca '' 462-474 Farmers economical in use of ECONOMY OF LABOR. „, . , '"0"ey—La'ior equivalent to money-Labornot always economized— Methods by whi.^h it is wasted '• " '^"'''^' ""' Incfticient teams — Negl —Want of ski .,,,.,- , , Use of poor tools— Neglect to do work at the proper time-Frequent changes ings and badly arrSS^^^s" "' """ '"° "-'y-I"-nvenient build- 47S-4CO FARM TEAMS. A team needed on every farm-Best animals for the purpose-Relative cost ' 481-4SJ FARM FENCES. Fences necessary-Expensive— Cost - . - - "'oncy and waste Innd-Roadsidc fences -Different slyl.s of fence-Rail fence-Post and rail-Post and boa u! W wall-IIedge-Embankmen.-Wire fe.ice-Fences shoul.l be well 4S4-4S9 FARM ROADS. Farm roads a preat convenience-Farmer can make them-Method of con- struction-Objeetions answered-Time and labor saved and aecidems r°" vented by having good roads aLLuicms jn,,. 490-492 TIMBER CULTURE. Timber a great necessity-Setting timber trees- Varielies-Innuence of forests upon rain-fall, climate, and soil-Iufluence upon the health of the ;j;;i"45.4c,5 POWER ON THE FARM. Var arious kinds of power for farm purposes-Dog or sheep power-!Io,se and ;o:;^l{::;niiiS'r:^r?:'::"!.r!:.'°^ ""^'-^ n,L/^n.chines4^:;:; 4yO-5tt) CONTENl'S. w Machines on the Wrr.-cJ"^^ IMPLEMENTS. Harrows and ;« to.^Jl^nLs";rr^'-i'-'^|""^ "' ^"/;°- kinds-Rdler- Fanning miUl-Corn hua-Pr r . ^^ hreshers-Clovcr-hea.l gatherer- Cider n.iIl-R.ot tfe - sTr^^^^i^'^^'s'TP"""^ " ^ "'» -'"- Hoisting nu.chinc_I.W.cJ^^rs s!,,r .'^'^''w''"'--'^'"^ Wa.hingn,achine-Ciothes-wr:geT-Mn::i ''T~''"" do not save labor but transfer .^^'^J^llt^llJS;-^'-!;^!-;:- .^^^ Pm II -Live-Stock. LIVE-STOCK ON THE FARM. Importance of live-stock intpmc n . y ■ serve-Classes wSsh^l I'b i;;^;!!:^ 1^,"'-'^"^^^^ ^^^^^ -i-'^ t^Ktpi ui,lj good animals are profitable.. .527-531 ^ , THE HORSE. '^t:uSnr5S;~;^^SL^.'^'TJ:;'"-f7«-^'^'^P-i'--Strength- -Unsoundness-li/d .e.';;'er-i;;]i ' ^'^'^^The'"/"'' !;.'-■'""-«''' "«e '"■eeding marc-Care of t he coU-( W-- m s'-'c- 1 reatment of the grade, stallions should be kept-Nid i '",'7 1 ■^' ""T"""'^-'^'"'. "^ '"sl' ing-Uniform kindness to be own V „ '^.^"^'^'IV^^^-l^'-^'aking and tram- working-Feeding. drivinl. d c^,7 , f ","" ' """""- ^'«-'^i'-ablc-A^'e for -Diseases of the unse^^sVou Id nn 1 /•'•" ""■' ^'T''~^'^'' stable-Shoeing o bleeding-I„nan,ma,io "of he bow:i:'","- "r'^ treated Colic-Mannc? of the water— Good care wil ,,c iT ^^'''""''"'^'''— ^^"''ms— .Slonna-e horses .;_ _";^^_ ^'^] "^"''"y P'-event disease-Treatment of dd THE MULE. •531-575 p ■ •11. ITIUI.C. ^ 575-579 V, ,, CATTLE. ^^^^^^-t^^^^t^^^^^-^^^^ Short-Horn-The Holstein_TI,e ild^rnev-Th ~ .^^ Herefor,,„,,;j'' 7,^1'!-;;;-^^^^ -Lice-Dise.ases and aec ,lenls P> "^';-'."-fJ"'l"y of food-Water-.Salt -Garget-IIoven-. 'l o V ""Vnw r^' "''/■''"^ ilo.uAU -M'lk fever-Importance of good care. .579-62S All farmers interested in da' 1 "^"^ ''*"'^" fmnre-Good cows should I.e'S-T'fJn '"' depression-rrospect for the the value of cows-Rdative ,ro 7' "',"'"■' ■'''""'<' '"-^ ^old-Testing * snudl cows-t;ood heahl ; rn'lo^r T' °' '^«I-'.':-I--ge o? cows-A variety of foo.i neede i-Co , im/f 'l 'n ^""'' "•""^-I'^eding nKmt-.Soreteats-M„,K,N,;_cieul ; N 7'Y'^"''^''^'--I^i"'l "e.U- kecp.ng m,Ik sweet-C'irr.KsrM k vr VA ''°''°''-^"'^"'^'^ "<" ''«•■>>■- factor,es-Ki,„,smadeon the faim-^h/^ ,;:'';'■>'• "■•. "^'■g'''-'hood m.anu- uac ure-Curing cheesc-I!,;, t k .^ ' S- "''"{ ••eqinred-M.,,,,,,, of man- Shallow pans-Deep setting-! ar'eon'r'^^''''"*^"'^ "'"^""i"K crean,- SYSTLM and the i/ar,„n M, ■ ' Pn ( T, .'"'"'^7^ '-«<> cans-Co,„,F,Y Time reqtured for chnrning_{vo k.^' '''''«- [,'-"'"l'"'->t'''e of crean,- '^^"- '" !•'!" Hectning iJ^-The H l i i ■ '''-"^'";'^ ''"llcr-rad^ng hy.mprovmg the quality of the products- "''' '''"' '"•" '"^"''-' P™'i'''''ie 6JI-67G 12 CONTENTS. . ,. SOIUNG CATTLE. 676-679 ENSILAGE. .i<^c. to he sccurccl-^re,hod to I^ pursnc,l-Re,.„v- dis- I>i^^covcry of llic system— Ol ing fo.hitT from silo— Experiments of Mr ,V"'"-" 'V'n ''"'""'•■"-'''e covery ' """-^ "' '^T- Moms— Influence of this SHEEP. .679-682 'B-?-?"'r— S ^:j^:inb' K' i—- c..p„.. Choice a„"^bs -J-eedjnj._Weanin!T_.SuMM,.R At i ' " ^ '""'"^^"'^'^'"f^-Cnslration sheep-Sn^.ll flocks the most prSeVr'^'TV"" "^ "'^■'^'^ «"^1 ^'d wa.eru,s-Snh-Exercise-DsSsio7;V '''>''' ""''"'-I''«"''i'^^ an -Garfjet-Gruh in the he^ H ' f , ''',?P-^''"-'"'h-('"!ic-Dia,Th«-a I.ps-Dogs-Shecp ou tL prii!!"!:"'-^ °'-"--^-b-Sore eyes-S^^^^ 6S3-724 ^ . , SWINE. Lssex-Berkshire-Use and "n rnf .h" 'r.^''^'^' '" ^'^''^'"'' t:hinn- stock-Age for breeding-Cn,e f beldi.'""^ '"'i'"'^-'^^'"""" "^ '""^ n. Castration-Spaying so^vvs^Fa tk^ n '"i^.c^'r'r^"'-' "^Pig'-^eeding^ O.ve plenty „f room-Salt-ClIan i^ " . '^-X"''^ of ^ood required- ven ,on better than cure-" I focr cl de ^^ n °f ''"« '^""d-DisEASts-Pre- -Mange-Lice- Rheumatil^r- 'i se.vmg„>eat-Salting-Smoki„g-<^ringhA'7w:ath:r ""'"'^ '"°'- J^^ Tuc .Mr- 724-755 THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. ijcns — tiood place rpnn;i-.»rl \^ 1 breed ,0 ^^P-R^I^S-^^S::!^-^!!!^:^" -ny together-Which -Old hens— Male birds-Treatment of ;t""'^~"^"« ^°' laying Turkeys-Care of the young-ir rs-ieirif;, erBTe?"^''^'"^' ^i" , '-y iices 756-768 P^f^r f//-Fmf-Gmm- FRUIT ON THE FARM p TRANSPLANTING TREES '"' ■~ -^ 7^2-774 CULTIVATION AND PRUNIN-J. „,,,,„, , THINNING fruit! '■ ""'"' CONTENTS. 1^2^11 S^::::SnI1i:ir!;,:t!:"^^;f re.ec,y-0,^ectio„s .„swere„-. of the fruit " ;'^'"'""« "^""— i hinning increases the size and value 776-777 GATHERING FRUIT. f^ wTntT; t^'r.^^ ;r'^"'^^^-^--''"g-^'-P-ing r-^ .arket-Stonn, 77«-779 DRYING FRUIT. Common method of nreservalinn T.,,,-, _r . , , .u"g frutt expenstvLTd'ut til "'CmSi^f '■- °'^^^>-^'-^-C-- -■«ew metnou of evaporation 780-781 . DISEASES AND ENEMIES. rruit trees exposed to various rvil^ r„l,: .■ Bliglu-L J lilight-BlaXkno rY^.t^ -Caterpillar-Tent cnterpi 1.,^-,^ Tw^''''''^7-p'^'^"'^^-^"'^"lio slug-Apple worm-Rose' burr-Currn nf ^"""~^^"I'. var.etie.s-I-,,AK.s-lJ warf . 792-Soo v.ues-Var.eties-l,ybrids-s;:;iHng:^ SMALL FRUITS. THE FARM-GARDEN. TT't"'" ^V^g^ted-COLD FRAMES-Tra Soo-807 n^ ^ S07-815 PART IV. -Business Principles. „ . BOOK-KEEPING. accounts-Gives accurate kn "wleT." f hf 7 ^^^^''^ .'^^ ^'''"'''' '^f'""'^' '^«-"ep to good business habits-Sl fi. ''^•''"''"^■'^r' '■'^^*^''^ losses- Leads neht=-n,' -..r. I- "^""^ 'o l<«'ep linn onf of debt- p.„ ,1 - > ■ • uem., ,.n(, ,., edits— •• larmer's Accoui t Honl. " r 1 -^"^"■—/^O'^l--^ iccjuirca— -Inventory-Profits of farm business -Ledger-Balancing accounts "" 819-823 ^'^ CONTENTS. FALSE ECONOMY. ^^^^^^^^^15:%^^ '"fr^^ -^.papers-Keeping poor ' grown at home- Gucssuhj "-DepVnZrupr ':^J?s."'^. ^:t^r^'^ ^^ , „ , A GOOD REPUTATION. ''^ M,ni 1 , INSURANCE. iWankind exposed to many dan.rers— Insunn,-. n InMirance— Fire Insuiinrp x...\\ i"^"'-^"*-*- t'ffers compensat ons— r,ife insured . ...!'. ~^';";''"' l»>^""ncc-I,nportance of keeping 827-8^0 USEFUL TABLES. ^^^^:^ ^^^T^f-'^^^^^ of fbods ,.r ca..,e-Age firowthof animals-QcfanUyof see '" °^ ''T''^'''^ animals-Life and Standard weights of gnn-Ouanttvif' ""^'^-Q^nn.ity of seed in r.nvs- vveights of grL, see'ds and^egS^i " iNl r,!'!.""'; '"' ? *^'^'^", ^P-<^-Legal square foot if used on an acre 01 H d X' /,'".''' '" ^ ''"^''«' '^"'' per and heaps per ]oad_N,,m,!r i^"''-^^ '"''^'^^'- of loads of manure per acre iand ploL J .id. rurrou. "o d £i:n:'i£'" I-- u,"'f '"'^ ^'' •''"r'^--^ "^ for measuring grain in -i bin " "•; <^"^/^'^"'i— Ki'le for measuring hay-Rule of ho.es-NV^efghts ind mea~sw "l en":f"7'"^ ''"■", '" '^' ^''^'-'■^Pnci.y pound-Weight of diffa™ t k''ri'"« ';, "',,?"' "^''^, ""'1 ""n,her in a wood-Amount of one do hr nt °L 7-^^ ''^^^ °'^ ^'"^■'■^'" J^'"'"^ of ^"««sat compound i„terest-^^.,^.Si:;:;;sr;£2^ /My?/- y~Home Life. PLEASANT SURROUNDINGS. -, "-ABOR, RECREATION, AND REST ^^^^'*° X^:S:i2ZSi^^^Ji;;S'----^^-i"«-vLiting-Sa.urday HEALTH AND DISEASE.' ''°"''' liealth a great blessing—Care of the siVL- Qi.i a .-Good food-1'ure v'a er_c othini~f . f'' '''^'"ll preventable-Pure Sleep-Obedience to mo.•al^aws^. *'~ "''""'"^""^ "f" "'e teeth- boys' ON the' farm! '''"''' 1 00 many boys leave the farm— A srient evil \vi .u , then. ,0 ren,ain on .he farm-Boys^should 1 TS I^f '■'~"?^' •° '"''"'^'^ Must bo .nterested in their work-Fn,- „ 1 t ^^ '^?™'"^' ''^ honorable- p. s should be taught ,0 .-es, ect f.rn i, , , ' " "J'V '= P'easant-Far.nc.V la.lc land-Should be consulted aboufhlto'rVsh' H P'"' '^" "^^ "^ "^ of respons.b.lity and trust work— Should be given jwsitions •™sfort'he"ho'useand'farm. '''"'" A coUeCon of useful recipes and suggestions ^ , . RED-LETTER DAYS. ^^'"^^" Signification of the red letter_M,.r» j, i- 1 , -Marriageanniversaries^lS^^Hlralld'feSSti;:,^^-^'^-'^'"^'^^ "■■' 855-856 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. FRONTISPIECE— 5/<'i'/. ... 1. Ground Plan of BuildiH^s... rV 2. Kaim- House ' 3- rian of Ground-Floor 4- Cottage 5' ''leap Hay Darn 6. Ingeisoll Ifaiul-Picss. 7. Dedcrick Power-Press 8. C 77 78 So 103 104 'OS 134 • • ^fier Ilening. 3f- Sugar Evaporator. 38. Plantation Cane- Mill. 39- iJiickeye Mower 40- Eureka Mower 4'- Bullard Hay-Tedder 42. Taylor Wheel-Rake. ;...■."■■ V^-^^ 43- Sterling Revolving-Rake....'." 382 44- F,nist's IIay-I,oader.... .c. 340 342 376 377 379 termination of Corn j,, 9. Young Corn Plant ..." ,.. 10. Ancient Egyptian Method of Plowing . . 11. A Modern ImproVemen't ! .' .' ! " ' l]! f, p ""^^''^^ 12. Hand See.l-Sower ' ^ ''""'' T''<= ""^ Collar, 13. Power Seed-Sower ^"^^ ' '^^^ ''^"'" '^"*^ J8j 45- Birdsell Clover-Separator " ' ^sg 46. Slone Drain " 14. Wheat sow.;Broadea;;::::.:- Ifo I" fi"': "j:""''-- 15. Wheat Drilled ' . ^ ' •^^'■'' W, re Fence 16. Iloosier Grain-Drill .'.'.' T ^'' ^^"-•^"^^^'- ^ 261 17- gravis Wheat-IIoe ,5 18. W.A.Wood's Reaper.." let 19. W. A. Wood's Self-Binding Harvester ■; 20. Prout's Hoeing Machine.".'.'.'.".' 21. Cotton-Gin 22. Cotton-Press 23. One-IIorse Drill 24. Double-Row Corn-Planter. 200 25. Corn Drilled '" / 26. Corn in Hills ' .' ' " ^°' 27. Pl.-^neljr. IIorse-Hoe.!! 28. Walking or Riding Cultivato'r! 29. improved Corn-Harrow. ,t 30. Doul,le-Row Stalk-Cutter 31. Combined Drill and Hoe '"' "Tc 32. Wheel- Hoe ■" ^ 33- Potato- Planter, 26S 273 2SS 290 299 301 302 303 304 305 3 410 410 412 412 412 488 496 497 497 500 501 502 53- Horse- Po we 54- Wind-Mill [ 55- Portable Engine.....'. 56. Firefly Hand-Hoe... . 57- "Peace-Maker" I'low S8. Gale Chilled Plow 59- Adamant Plow 60. Slip-Point .'....'.'." ^°^ 61. Oneonta Clipper Plo'w." 1°^^ 62. Sulkey Plow ^^ 63. Steel Gang- Plow. "■■ l°l 64. Roller 5°S 65. Clogged Harrow-Tooth ..." 66. Thomas Smooihing Harrow! 67- Spring-Tooth Harrow 68. Acme Leveler and I'ul 69- Randall Harrow, iverizer. 505 505 505 507 509 — ...... ,..uer... ^'f 70. Horse Hay-Fork;.";:;::::"--- 12 34. Double Mould-Boar'd Plow"""' C H' ^r^"'"'-^"- ''^*^1""'- ■.'. 5, 35- Potato- Digger. . . ,1^0 , ., t ,„ver Seed G.iiherer ^i 36. Victor Cane-Mill 332 73- Rockaw.iy Fan J 339 1 74. H.and Corn-Sheller '."■.■.■.■ ^, (lo) ■"" 2 512 16 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 75. Shuck-Sheller 76. Farm-Mill 77. Koot-Cutter 78. Sickle-Grinder 79. Slump-Puller 80. Hoisting Machine 81. Portable Forge 82. Lightning Buck-Saw 83. One Man Cross-Cut Saw 84. Lightning Hand-Saw 85. Family Scale 86. Portable Scale 87. Standard Farm Scales 88. Suction and Force Pump 89. Beebe Washing Machine 90. Clothes- Wringer 91. Mangle 92. Horses (3) 93. White Percheron — K&rnian Horse 94. Black Percheron — Norman Horse 95. Cleveland Bay Horse 96. Short-Horn Bull 97- Ayrshire Cow 98. Hereford Bull 99. Holstein Cow lOO. Jersey Cattle loi. The Perfect Milk.Pail 102. Dairyman's Scale 103. Cooley's Portable Creamery. . . 104. Sectional View of Can and Creamery 105. Davis' Swing-Churn 106. Motion of Crenm in Churn.. .. 107. Eureka Butter- Worker 108. Oxford Down Yearling Lambs. 109. Cotszuold Lambs no. Sheep- Shearing Machine HI. Chester White and Esse.r Swine. n 2. Maffie or Poland- China Swine. 113. Berkshire Bigs 5'3 5H 514 S'S 5<7 5'S 114. Brown Leghorn Fowls,' and IVhite Holland liokeys. . . 757 115. Pekin Ducks and Plymouth Rock Fowls 765 n6. Jersey Bull 768 117. Berkshire Pigs 768 118. Fruit Evaporator 7S0 119. Layer 7S9 510 I 120. Sprouts From Layered Cane. . 7S9 SiS I 121. Cutting a Bud 790 51S 122. Prepared Stock and Bud 790 51S 123. Wiiip-Grafting 791 520 124. Cleft-Grafting ■/9i 521 125. Colored Fruit Plate. Larger 522 Fruits 795 523 126. Colored Fruit Plate. Small 524 Fruits Sol 539 127. Transplanter 808 128. Cold Frame 809 545 129. Home Adornment — Shrubs, Evergreens, and Flowers. . . 809 546 130. Tomato Frame 815 549 131. Bastian's Half-Long Blood 583 Beet 816 589 132. Early Half-Long Scarlet Carrot 816 593 ^3i- Early Jersey Wakefield Cab- 599 bage 816 629 134. Green Citron Netted Musk- 649 Melon 816 652 135. Egyptian Blood Turnip Beet. . 816 664 136. Improved Large Purjile Egg- Plant 816 665 137. Biistian's Extra Early Red 667 Beet 8j6 667 138. SmallGherkin, or BurrCucum- 670 ber 816 689 139. Early White Scallop Bush- 699 Squash 8j6 709 140. Dwarf Celery 816 727 141. Martynia 816 731 I 142. Dreer's Selected Trophy To- 73S i «.mato 816 I Fowls, ' and id Itiikeys.. . 757 nd Plymouth 765 768 768 7S0 7S9 yered Cane. . 7S9 790 nd ]iud 790 791 79' 'ij/c. Larger 795 late. Siiiiill Soi 808 809 '/ — .S/ii n/'S, d Flowers. . . 809 8'S -ong Blood 816 scarlet Carrot 816 keficld Cab- 816 stted Musk- 816 'iirni|) IJoet. . 816 rmple Egg- 816 Early Red 816 Burr Cucum- 816 illop Bush- 816 816 816 rrophy To- 816 AGRICULTURE AND MECHANICS. a7) CONTENTS OF FAHT !• FARMING AS AN OCCUPATION. "WHERE TO FARM. LARGE OR SMALL FARMS. FARM BUILDINGS. THE CAPACITY OF A FARM. ANALYSIS OF SOILS. PLANT LIFE AND GROWTH. FERTILIZERS. TILLAGE. THE CHOICE OF CROPS. ROTATION OF CROPS. MONEY CROPS. FARM AND FODDER CROPS. DRAINING. THE "WATER SUPPLY. HOME PRODUCTION. OVER-PRODUCTION. GOOD SEED. THE SELECTION OF SEED. ECONOMY OF LABOR. FARM TEAMS. FARM FENCES. FARM ROADS. TIMBER CULTURE. POWER ON THE FARM. . FARM IMPLEMENTS. (18) f Farming for Profit. HEN man was created in the image of God and given dom.n.on over all the earth, he was directed by his Creator to dress and to keep the beautiful Garden in which he found a happy home. Thus at the very beginning of the history of the race God placed the stamp of His approval upon the labor of tilling the soil. And after the Fall, with all of its ruinous consequences, when man was driven out into the world, he was directed to continue the same employ- ment. In due time he received the promise that the earth should be cursed no more, and that seed-time and harvest should not fail. As this is the original work which God gave to men. we have the best of reasons for supposing that it is a form of employ- ment which is especially suited to their requirements. And the history of the race to the present time has proved this belief to* be well founded. Although as men multiplied upon the earth It seemed necessary that some should engage in other callinc^s yet agriculture has continued to hold a very prominent place' among the industries of the world. As civilization has advanced, agriculture has become more and more necessary to the welfare of society. Although there have always been a few who have affected to despise manual toil and to look down upon 20 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the laborer as a social inferior, this feeling has not lately been general, even among those who have not been compelled to work with their hands, and is now rapidly passing away from the minds of those who were once foolish enough to cherish it. As a class farmers are becoming more intelligent, thus fitting themselves for greater usefulness, and compelling the few who may have laid claim to social superiority to yield them the trib- ute of genuine respect. It certainly is not meet that the wealthy and educated clas.ses should look with disdain upon the farmers, to whom, under God, they are indebted for their daily bread. Neither should the farmer rely upon the great benefit which his labor confers upon society as his sole claim to recognition and respect. All classes should remember that no mere employment has the power to make a man true and honorable. Character is something which is distinct from occupation. Some men would be true and noble, if they were compelled to engage in the most menial toil ; while others would show no .spark of manhood if they were invested with all of the rights and privileges of the most sacred calling. If a man is truly good, he will be good without regard to his occupation. He will be just as good as a farmer as he would if he were a merchant, a manufacturer, or a preacher. His employment will not make hjm either good or bad. If it is honest, it may be made an aid to the building and sustaining of a good character; but the motive and the will, the resolution and the action, which are the vital forces in the ,case, must come from the soul of the man himself, and are wholly outside of, and foreign to, his occupation. It is true that a dishonest calling will tend to make a bad man grow worse, but that it has no power to make a good man evil is evident from the fact that no really good man would have engaged in such an occupation. The man was bad before he entered the busi- ness. There are some honest callings which incidentally throw a man in the way of temptation, but they have no power to compel him to do v.Tong. Other callings surround a man with good FARMING AS AN OCCUPATION. gt influences and shield him from temptation, but they eannot make h.m good. If his heart is corrupt, it will be altogether beyond the power of any calling to make him an upright and honorable . man. Consequently no farmer should lay claim to respectability merely because he is a farmer. This is good as far as it goes, but It IS not enough. He ought to strive by a noble character and a hfe above all reproach to confer honor upon his chosen occupation, rather than seek by the aid of his calling to attain a degree of social recognition which his actual merits do not warrant. Still he should always remember that his calling is one which was given and sanctioned by Goo; that there is noth- mg in It to degrade, but. when properly followed, very much that ■s elevating and ennobling. He should never blush to own that he IS a farmer, or be ashamed of the fact that he tills the soil. While the influence of agriculture upon the individualis good Its beneficial effect upon national progress and prosperity is' marked to a much greater degree. History shows us that as nations rise, agriculture is more and more honored and respected while as they decline, and keeping a very even pace with their downward progress, it falls into disrepute and decay. It was so with Rome, the greatest of all ancient powers, and it has been so with states and empires of lesser note. So it will always be • for agriculture is the only safe and sure foundation upon which a nation can be reared. It is plain to be seen that a nation which should produce none of its food supplies would be constantly dependent upon foreigners, and in case of war might be almost utterly helpless. Not only does a well-developed agriculture give a nation influence and power abroad, but it is also one of the greatest possible aids to a high state of civilization at home It may never have occurred to the eminent artist and the brilliant scientist that but for the combined skill and labor of many farmers, they would be obliged to spend their time and strength working with th.ir hands instead of following their 82 FAR At ma FO/f PROFIT. chosen pursuits. But this is a fact which all professional hien should remember, that they are deeply interested in the pro^rress of agriculture, because upon ti^v*; success of farmers depends the possifciiity of their being able to work with their minds instead of their hands. For if agriculture were to decline to a point at which each farmer should produce only food enough to supply his own wants and those of his family, there would be no food for the non-producing classes, and they would be obliged to leave their professions and trades to engage in the cultivation of the soil. This would be the only way in which they could avoid starvation. Thus it will be seen that the better the agriculture of a country is managed, the higher the point to which civilization can bs carried. The farmer as well as the thinker is a power to advance the civilization of the world. Not only is it for the benefit of society that the agricultural interests of a country should be well developed, but it is also essential to the securing of the highest success by the farmers themselves. If the crops are properly chosen, there will be little danger of over-production. The higher the rate of production can be carried without glutting the market, the greater the sur- plus which the farmer can sell, the more leisure time he will have, and the greater the number of luxuries which he can en- joy. The highest development of our agricultural interests will prove an immense benefit to the farmers, the professional classes, and to the nation at large. By bringing to his aid tho knowl- edge which is within his reach, and doing all that ut , , :• ;o elevate, and make successful and remunerative, his '..u oCvUpu- tion, the farmer is also helping the great army of laborers in the fields of literature, science and art. ^V'aile the advantages which have been enumerated are of great -^o-'.^nce, the fact that farming gives a man almost uneour'j;. ; cp'-ortunities for becoming independent, furnishes anotuoi- ,... ( ,. strong in ucement for choosing this occupation. There are v.-ry few kinds of business in which a small amount issional men the proj^ress depends the linds instead le to a point cnoiij^h to would be no J be obliged e cultivation they could better the lie point to well as the world, agricultural t it is also the farmers .vill be little production ter the sur- ime he will he can en- itercsts will nal classes, the knowl- lit I , V ;o fVii occupu- >rers in the ted are of an almost furnishes occupation, ill amount FARMING AS AJV OCarpAT/OAr. jS of capita! can be as .safely invested, and still y.elj ns ,ood re- t^.rns as .t w.ll m a farm, and there are very fe. occupation, in vvh,ch a man can en,a,c with an equal certainty of always havmg plenty of work, and work which is so sure to b. fairly renuuKrated. In order to become a lawyer a man nmst give many o( the best years of his lif.. f.^ fi, . ., • - ■^ "^ '"^ *" the acquirement of an edu- cation, winch will cost a large sum of money, and he must then labor constantly and earnestly in order to secure anything like u reasonable degree of success. I„ the great majority of cases the .same amount of money invested in buying a farm wh, h mu.st be .spent in educating him. and an equal amount of hard work afterwards, would give him more money, and ten times more happiness as a farmer, than he ever ran secure as a lawyer There are brilliant e.xamples of success in all the professions." but the majority of professional men never reach eminence nor obtnin wea th. Considering the amount of money which is ex- pended in fitting them'for their positions, and in helping them to get started in life, they are no more successful dian farmers VVe are well aware that many utter the chronic complaint that " farm- ing don t pay," but we are sure that they do not know whereof hey do affirm. VVe know that there are many half-hearted farmers, menwho have no faith in their business and but little in themselves, who are always ready to sell out. and con.stantly want- ing to get into other business because they are not doing well where they are. But if these men were to showno more energy and sknl in other business than they do in farming, they would not improve their condition by changing their occupation. Here asm regard to character, very much depends upon the man him- self Some men do not get along well terming, and they would not get along w^ell doing anything else. Other men make money on the farm. Thoy would probably do well at other work Stili some men have a special talent for certain kinds of business. In following their desires in this respect they will us. v be more happy and more successful than chey will if their wishes are not 24 FARMING FCR PROFIT. regarded. But a taste for many kinds of work, and especially for farming, can easily be cultivated. While it is not the duty of every man to follow this calling, it is an occupation which most men can learn to like, and in which none except those who, by reason of ill-health, or of heavy burdens outside of their work, need wholly fail. The great majority of men whom inclination has brought, or necessity has driven, to the farm, may secure not only a reasonable but a highly satisfactory degree of success. If they will give their earnest attention to the business, and use the helps which are easily within their reach, they can make farming Pay. To aid his readers in this work, and show them how it can be performed, will be the aim of the writer in the following pages. 1 ' N a beautiful story by Longfellow, a highly educated man is represented as desiring to write a romance. Month after month and year after year he sought in the realms of the imagination for the materials of which to construct the plot. Vague ideas filled his mind. Splendid visions sometimes came, but he was always seeking something far away; something a little better than he had yet secured. So it came to pass that the years fled away while he was dreaming, and the romance which he had fondly hoped was to immortalize his name was never even begun. Yet, during the time which he thus idled away, the materials for a splendid romance, even a tragedy involving terrible grief, heroic endur- ance, and Christ-like fortitude, were accumulating close to his very door. But his eyes were turned so far away in an effort to penetrate the mysterious and the unknown, that he neither saw the opportunity, nor realized that he was throwing away the greatest help to his cherished work which it was possible for him to receive. And it came to pabS that all his dreams faded, WHERE TO FARM. 25 h.s years of anxious thought were vainly spent, and the confi- dence of h,s friends in his superior ability was destroyed, all because he would not use the materials within his reach but was constantly seeking something so intangible and unreal'that .t always eluded his grasp. In looking over the record of such a life, with its glorious opportunities thrown away it is very easy to see the mistak^, and by far too easy to con:iemn. Yet this ,s only a picture o\ a multitude of lives. Look where we W.11 we can find men who have neglected the best of chances because, by the dazzling light of something far away, their eyes were c osed to the benefits by which they were fairly surrounded In lookmg over his past life many a man can see where he made' a ternble mistake in seeking fortune in the distance and the future, mstead of accepting the opportunities which were close at hand. And. as human nature remains the same, we find that the same scenes are constantly being re-enacted. The young do not always learn from the experience of the old. They prefer to push out into life for themselves. They insist upon drinkin^ the bitter water before they will acknowledge that it is unpleasant and unwholesome. This is the case with too many of the young men of to-day. But there are many who are open to reason, who will listen to argument, and who will hearken to instruction. For their benefit, and also to strengthen in the fa.th some of our older readers, who may be wavering, we will devote a little space to a consideration of the subject of this chapter. Farmers in this country are divided into two principal classes, those who are both the owners and managers of the farms upon wh,ch they hv= forming one, and those who wor!< for oLr farmers comprising the other class. There are a very few who do not properly hold either of these positions, but an inter- med,at.- one, being managers, but neither owners nor laborers But the two classes named above comprise nearly all of the farmers m the country. As a general rule they have the power 26 FARMING FOR PROFIT. of choice as to the place in which they will farm. They cannot change without some expense : in a multitude of instances a change of location would involve quite a lieavy loss; but to almost every one such a change is possible. The question, then, to be considered, is whether a change is desirable. The fact that a change would involve some expense is not an unanswerable argument against a removal from the present location. Almost everything of value (as well as many worth- less articles) costs something. Buying a reaper is expensive, but it is often a necessaiy expense, and one which proves a source of great profit in the end. So with many other expenses which the farmer is obliged to incur. Now if a removal holds out a certainty of great and permanent improvement, with no drawback which shall neutralize the apparent gain, the fact that it is somewhat expensive should not prevent its being made. But in case that a change of location means only a change of evils— if in leaving one unpleasant feature the farmer must accept another equally bad, and perhaps much worse, in his new home —it does not seem possible that the expense of removal can be justified. Probably ninety-nine farmers in every one hundred have something unpleasant in their surroundings, and it is ver>' likely that a large part of them have a vague and indefinite idea that if they could only move to some other town, or some other State, they would be happier and more prosperous than they possibly can be while remaining in their present homes. There are some things which these farmers should have in mind, but which, unless they have been around in the world considerably, they arc almost sure to overlook. One of these, and it is a very important consideration, is the fact that there is a great law of compensations which is in force everywhere, and which balances many evils with equal and corresponding benefits. The farmer in Maine will suffer severely during the long and unpleasant winter, and he may envy the farmer in Georgia, who is not exposed to the terrible cold. But while the Southern farmer WHERE TO FARM. is comfortable when the Northern farmer is almost afraid that he Ta^T^i^^r^^ ^ '"= "'^ ''■-"^-- - - - In the summer the Southern farmer suflers from the broiling eat, wh„e. with .he exception of a few days, the Nor r! rmer ,s ,n,te eomfortable. Both parties have their time pleasan surroundmgs and their seasons of discomfort On suffers from the cold, the other from the heat. Both sufe a^d no one can te„ which suffers the most. So with al, other hi; The man who delights in mountain scenery and gratifiesl^ des,res must put up with the inconvenience, and perform many extra labors, which hving in a mountainous r^jln 7 2 /'■\'^™" '■""' «=-- a retired p.ace, far atZ fom the busy haunts of men, can easily find one. but in set. Z there he must g,ve up schools, and churches, and mail facilities and socal privileges. If these things are too valuable to him to be saenficed, he must be content to live near other peo^ and g.ve up the ,dea of a home in the wilderness. If a farmer"s determmed to grow sugar-cane, he must go where the growin.^ season ,s very long and extremely hot If he does not Le and w 1 not endure the heat, he must give up the idea of grow ng I.mate^ If he wants to produce a large quantity of maple sugar, he must locate where the nights, even in the sprin. time »re so cold that the ground will freeze. Otherwise hLs-effort'' W.II beof no avail. The same principle governs everywhe" No location can be found in the civilized world but what has eertam advantages, and there is none so favored that it has no draw aeks. The s.nn of the advantages in one locality m.ay be greatly ,„ excess of the sum of those presented by anoU.er but the poorest of all places in which a man can live will be' .key to have something to reco.nmend it which more favored ocahfes do not possess. The farmer should always keep the fact .n mmd that there are drawbacks eve^where. By cha^g 28 FARMLVG FOR PROFIT. ing his location he can escape the difficulties with which he is now beset, but it is absolutely true that he will find plenty of other things to make him trouble. Perfection, either of character or location, is not to be found in this world. The mere fact that things are not just to his liking where he is, does not furnish proof that he will find relief from his difficulties by a change of place. In many cases it is a change in the methods of doing business which is needed. This a change of location would not secure. Many a man is spending a great deal of time, in- dulging many useless longings, and building many castles in the air, and imagining that if he were only somewhere else he could do a great deal better than he has ever yet been able to do, whose eyes are closed to splendid opportunities for making money on his own farm. These men are not doing very well- never have done very well. They are dissatisfied because they do not get along any better, and think it must be all owing to their unfavorable location. The truth of the matter, in many of these cases, is, that these farmers do not understand the resources of their own farms and do not see the opportunities which are constantly running to waste. They fail to realize that the present is the one grand opportunity which God gives to men, and that, as a general rule, those who fail to improve where they are would do little, if any, better if they were differently located. Success on the farm depends far more upon a man's character than it does upon his surroundings. If he has no energy, and skill, and judgment, he will remain poor on the best farm in the world, while, if he possesses these qualities, he will be reasonably successful under adverse circumstances. Now every man has his character, and this character will be likely to stay with him wherever he goes. If a man is energetic and industrious at the East, he will be likely to exhibit these traits if he goes West to live; but if he lacks these elements of character at the East, merely going West will do nothing to secure them for him. If he manages a New England farm by 1 which he is ind plenty of r of character Here fact that s not furnish a change of ads of doing ation would of time, in- y castles in here else he been able to for making very well — ecause they ill owing to 2r, in many erstand the pportunities 1 to realize 1 God gives to improve they were more upon If he has •oor on the ualities, he umstances. :er will be s energetic 'libit these 'ements of lothing to id farm by m/£Jf£ TO FARM. sitting in the village store, or the blacksmith's shop, while his boys o the work, or it remains undone, he will be Iry Jl ever obtain one. I. is a fact ,vhich should be impressed upon the mind of even- farmer, and every farmer's h^.r fi,^* i does not and cannot, never did, and never will, d.ange the eharaeter or the disposition. It is ve^ important to ke^ this .n mmd. It w,ll not on,, counteract a false idea which has .ken possess-on of many minds, but it also furnishes the keyto a solu ,on of the problem which is under consideration The man who ,s restless, dissatisfied, and eager for a change of some k.nd. a„x,ous to get away from where he is. but having no defi- n.te ,dea where he had better go. thereby acknowledges t t there ,s some.lung about himself which is wrong It ha, been shown that location cannot change the eharactert-cannot m a d, ferent man-therefore it follows that the difficulty is not with the locat^n. but w,th the man himself The true remedy is not a removal but a reconstruction. Instead of going away from his old home and fnends. let the dissatisfied farmer take a calm view of he s,tuat,on look the truth fairly in the face, and find just wher the trouble l.s. He will probably find one or mori of th e d,ffie„lt,es. Either he does not get along well with his ^2 h.s crops are poor, or his income is not sufficient to meet what' par "onhr t"'"""^ "''="^^=- '"''' '™-™' "> ^ ^'«--<-- troubles. If a farmer cannot get along with his work where he ■s, he cannot manage it satisfactorily anywhere else. His true remedy for this d.fficulty is to carefully study how he can do hi work to better advantage. A little thought will enable many farme, to see how he can save a great deal of useless labor and how he can make available much of the time which does' no. seem to y,elda return. If be would study to make the most of h.s opportu„,.ies. and do evetything to the best advan"! h 30 FARMING FOR PROFIT. would be enabled to accomplish a great deal more with the same amount of time and labor. But if the difficulty is not due to this cause, if the work can be managed well enough, but the re- sults are unsatisfactory, if the crops are light and unprofitable, there is no call, on this account, for leaving the present location. Good crops do not produce themselves. Even on rich land the farmer has something to do to secure large returns. The farmer who can grow paying crops in one part of the country can do the same in any other section, while he who fails in one place will be very sure to fail elsewhere. Consequently, removal is not a remedy for the difficulty now under consideration. The true course for the farmer who is suffering from this cause is to study the requirements of the various crops, learn which are the best fertilizers, and how to apply them, the best methods of cul- ture— learn these things and put them in practice. When he does this his special trouble from this cause will vanish. In case that the farmer succeeds well with his work, obtains good crops, but still does not get along because his expenses ex^'ceed his receipts, removal is not at all in the line of what is needed, and will not make him successful. Here the trouble is with his' business habits. Either he does not understand selling his crops and buying supplies, or else he docs not practice economy in his purchases. In either case the remedy is to be found in a careful study of business principles, and a determination to live within his income, even though much self-denial may be required. One of the great difficulties with a multitude of firmers is that they do not understand doing business. It is one of the things in which boys on the farm should be instructed, and which the farmer who is deficient therein should make his careful studj-. The earlier in life these principles are mastered the better, but it is "never too late to mend," and a man is never too old to learn. Such are some )f the difficulties with which many farmers conicad, and such are the remedies therefor. The difficulties ■ miEKE TO FARM. •vith the same :s not due to h, but the re- unprofitable, sent location, rich land the The farmer Lintry can do in one place ^ removal is ration. The s cause is to hich are the ;hod.s of cul- When he vanish. In )btains good nses exceed : is needed, : is with his ng his crops nomy in his in a careful live within .lircd. One is that they -; things in which the cful study, better, but too old to \y farmers difficulties • 31 y uy a change of practice. Not onlv ;« „^ change of ,oca,,, .,„,.„,„,, ,„ ,„ ™'^ ; - .n.pose an additional burden „,o„ .I.e farme. ',f „e IZlt epnse lose some ..me ■„ going, and nu,ch n,ore in learning hab.ts and customs of .Lose among whom „e locates, an ' -V take a long t,me for hi„, to become thoroughly amilia - i. .he character and capacities of the soil, a-td the bt . ethods of ,ts cultivation. Thus. a. the very outset he s P ace at a great disadvantage, and Hnds himself much „or f .han he .as u, his old location. As a general rule we 11 Je the ,dca of handu,g down a farm fron, father to son through ucccss,vc generations. ,t is better to fccep a farn, "h. ^ ftnnly than to be constantly roaming around. ,f propel anaged, money can be made on the old place.and more h^p, ncss can be secured there than elsewhere. The associ.t l^eep the ..rave o t ; T ' "' '^""''°" '""'''"'■ ^^ matL of : , , ;: " ;;""-"^ «-■ ^his is not merely a progress of re, " . "Z I " ""'^- ''^''^ ""^" *'' ■ "- are largely dependent rplt,'":^"™" "' ""' "'' "^"°* those who have the 7 retammg of the homesteads by Who have the same .nterests which our forefathers labored ].A 32 FARMING FOR PROFIT. to preserve. In some parts of New England the native popu- lation has, in a great measure, withdrawn. Many of the smaller farms are in tlic hands of foreigners. Others are deserted, and tlic land has been turned into pastures. If the process goes on much longer there will be many towns in which the foreign vote will decide all local elections. The new-comers are generally kind neighbors and industrious people, but the majority of them are not in sympathy with our free schools, they do not believe in our religion, they have no desire for, or faith in, intellectual prog- ress, and they will not make these towns centres of thought and influence. Agricultural societies will receive no help from these inhabitants, and an intelligent and progressive system of farming will not be pursued. There should enough Americans remain to control town affairs, and to cast the town influence in favor of right and progress. On the same principle the homesteads of the farmers at the West and South should be kept in the hands of Americans, and as far as possible, in the families to which they now belong. Room should be made for foreigners who are willing to come among us and obey our laws, they should be kindly treated, and should be encouraged to do' well; but they should not be allowed to supplant American insti- tutions, or to come into possession of our present homes. That it is harder work to cultivate some of the stony farms in New England than it is the fertile plains of some of the Western States is very true. And it probably is easier, as many assert, to take a new farm on the frontier, than it is to restore to its original fertility one which has been exhausted by a bad system of cultivation. But the great law of compensations, to which attention has been called, her'e comes into play; and when all thmgs are taken into the account, there will not remain a balance in favo^ of the pioneer. Still, some must go out from our homes to people the wilderness and establish churches and schools Their mission is a noble one ; and, if faithful, they will not fail of their reward. e native popu- of the smaller ; deserted, and rocess goes on ic foreign vote are generally jority of them not believe m ;llcctual prog- " thought and ;lp from these sm of farming ricans remain cnce in favor c homesteads kept in the le families to or foreigners ir laws, they i to do well ; lerican insti- omes. ony farms in the Western many assert, •estore to its bad system is, to which tid when all in a balance our homes nd schools. I not fail of I fV//£/^£ TO FARM. 33 ■•-irto .,.ose who laborf leJ, r; '""T "^"^"'^ location with less trouhl. , ^ '" "''""«>-• ""•■''• ca„i.a, invested rc!>st,ofr"^ "" """ ""° "^- .-.cm where they aV t^ „„, d 7 "" "" ''^'''' "'' '° '^'^ can receive a L - Z^ion tTeinrard ^ 7 ''7 21 -"" - "*- P-P'^-- There are thoralTof ^l t^ of them young men, in each of our larrrc cities ..U life .nd K ''''""'' '° professional and business ra^s^irrerc:—^'"^^ c.-..-es in hope of «„di ^ re rotb r "°^''''' '"'° ""= employment would go back too tl - "'"" ""^=""' needed and rightfuHy bin h 'l:! ^ ^ ''^^ "^ tamense benefit to themselves their Z T ''™'' '" which they leave and the . , ''"P'°>'<''-^. *e cMes y luave, and the towns to which they would m T some sections of the countrv „„, ti • ^ ' '" Bn.and, there is air ca^rs^r ^f IHir: "^ who have no rnm;i;nc i , 'aoorers. Those roHaboL,thei::r:-:::r:::i:rr'""' which they would like to e,^ga.e ""f"^' ''"= °">"-"=» i" of cattle they should go to h^ We, r if '" '" "^'"^ "^^ while if they ,vould like to 1 ^,""" States, or to Texas; -. 3ho jgo .o2i:t;r LT::r .:: i7r"^ ^^.nit^i—err °^ '^-^^^^^^^ 34 FAKMhVG I'OR PROFIT. Of the countr>'. But much of tliis very desirable knowledge can be obtained by reading, and the restless spirit which frequent changes encourage must not be allowed to become dominant. A . rover is not usually a good farmer. Though he may know something of many branches, he wii. be master of none and will be an ineflFcient laborer. Besides, an established reputation for honor and integrity is very valuable, but it can only be secured by remaining with people long enough to enable the parties to become thoroughly acquainted. It is better both for the employer and the employe that they remain logcther for several years. Too frequent change of location indicates an unstable character and a discontented frame of mind. Such arc some of the general principles which should have an mfluence in deciding the farmer's choice of a location. As there are exceptions to all rules, so there will be exceptions to the general application of these principles. C.i account of the ill health of a farmer, or of some member o! his family, fcr which a change of climate seems to be the best, if not the only remedy, it may be much better for him to leave his present home than it will to remain. There are also families-some may be found in every section of the country— who for gener- ations have stood at the foot of the social scale. The present members of these families feel that they have little encourage- ment to attempt to make any improvement where they are. Yet there are some who would be glad to do better and work' their way up to social recognition. If they could get away from the old acquaintances who have always despised them, and the evil companions who constantly try to keep them down to their own level, and locate where they are not known and their past bad name would not affect them if they conducted themselves properly-where the cost of living is small and labor IS fairly rewarded-they might reform, and become able not only to respect themselves but also to win the respect of others They would c^rxy thei^^ld characters with them, it is true and iblc knowlcdpfc : whicli frequent c dominant, A ]ic may know ;r of none and shed reputation t can only be to enable the better both for 1 together for 1 indicates an ind. 1 should have location. As exceptions to ccount of the is family, fcr ■ not the only 2 his present milies — some ho for gener- Tlic present e encourage- where they lo better and y could get lys despised D keep them ; not known y conducted small and )me able not t of others, is true, and IVIIERE TO FARM. 38 I /t ll.c,r ,mprovcme„t would be only gradually cfctcd, but thcy could bo no worse ofT for goiug, „„d some of the principal ...nucnees winch have tended to keep them down would be re- n,oved. freed from old companions, thrown upon their own resources, n.ade in some degree to feel their own responsibility and commgm contact with strangers, the result of the change' woudbe h,ghly beneficial. The young people espeeialV would feel the force of the new surroundin,s, and might make |^ap,d advances in knowledge and in busine skill and n.anage- There are also men belonging to the better classes who have a strong desire to engage largely in a certain line of forming or wh.eh they have both taste and skill. In order to gra.if; h,s des,re they will be obliged to leave their present homes Ir, many cases ,t may be well to gratify the wish, while in others .t should be sffled. The farmer has a duty to his family, as we as to h,mself,a„d could not be justified in depriving his Ife atantm::."'°°™--*-'"--°-"''-ow: In any and eve.y ca.,e, before leaving his present home for anotl^r location, let the farmer carefully eonsLr the gue .ion whether on the whole, it will be any benefit for him to m'ak proposed change. Let him remember that wherever he go he wdl be obhged to submit to many discomforts, that there a e drawbacks evervwhere inH tl„t ■ ■ j of the Dtst a I T '" ° " '" '■'="'''=™ ""^ fe'l^res .° needed tm!,' '" "'*°* °' "'^""^■"S >■- business need d far more than a change in his location. Let him con s.der h.s present privileges and opportunities as w I, T, T, e" npleasant creums.ances which trouble him. The bes tn L o h,s famdy should be considered, and the whole subject Z^ be examined in all of its bearin,,. If ■ • . decision n„t t„ , ™ '"S"- 'f' '" a majority of cases, a in e esTed r T"""" """ *"= "^^'''''' "^ """'= *= -*- 3G FARMING FOR I'A'OF/T. , J^RG^E OR SMAEi; FARMS. g^ F farmers were in the habit of follouinjr the principle cm- •^tl bodied in the old tailor's plan of cutting a coat large or small according as there was a large or a small supply of V2> cloth for the purpose, there would be no necessity for a consideration of this subject. I3ut, as a class, farmers are not in favor of applying this traditional method to the management of their business affairs. This is especially true in regard to buying land. Instead of limiting their purchases by their means they too often buy to the full extent of their desires. Many are more ready to buy land on credit than they are most other things because they have an idea that they can make the land productive enough to pay the interest, meet all the expenses of cultivation, and make an annual reduction of the principal. The fact that a multitude of farmers have made this attempt, and been wholly unsuccessful, does not seem to deter others from making the effort. To many men there is a sort of fascination in buying land, which they do not resist, and which leads them to financial ruin. These men seem to think that because it is a good thing for a man to have a little land it must be much better for him to have more— a very simple line of reasoning but one which often leads to bad results in practice. There is such a thing as having too small a farm; but the tendency with American far- mers is to go to the other extreme and buy too much land. The fact that one man has been very successful in the manage- ment of a large farm is not a good reason for supposing that any other man will be equally successful if he can obtain as large an area of land. Some men have special talents for the management of great operations. They have good judgment combined with a large degree of executive ability. They think quickly, and are both energetic and skilful in action. They have peculiar abilities, with which the majority of men have not been favored, and which qualify them for the management of principle cm- i coat large or nail supply of icccssity for a mcrs are not manaj^emcnt in re<;arcl to y their means s. Many arc ; most other ake the land expenses of ncipal. The ipt, and been from making Dn in buying 1 to financial I good thing :tter for him t one which h a thing as mcrican far- much land, he managc- posing that 1 obtain as ■nts for the I judgment They think on. They n have not gement of LARGE OR SMALL FARMS. 37 large estates. But there are many men who do well on farms of moderate size wh, could not manage large ones profitably This question of ability is of very great importance. It should be considered first in order when the question of a large or a small farm is to be determined. We give it preference even to the pecuniary condition in which a man may be placed. For if a man has in a special degree the peculiar ability necessary' for the management of a large farm, he can go in debt for one and make his business a success, while a man who is deficient in this respect may have plenty of money with which to buy a large farm and still not be able to make it pay the running expenses of its cultivation. The section of country in which the farm is located will also have much influence in determining its size. At the East where land sells for high prices and is hard to cultivate, smaller farms should be bought than at the West and South, where land can be had for lower rates, and where, by the use of im- proved machines, one man can cultivate as much land and pro- duce as large crops as three men can manage in New England At the West and South, where the prices of produce are very low. it is necessary that the farmer should secure larger crops than the Eastern farmer grows. Otherwise, the income from his farm would neither pay the interest on his land nor support his family. The Western farmer who sells corn for twenty cents a bushel needs to grow a great deal more to obtain a cer- tain income than the New England farmer who sells for eighty or ninety cents. The amount of help which the farmer has. and the particular line of farm business which he designs to follow, should also be determining elements in deciding the size of a farm. If he has several boys who are large enough to work, and who like farm- ing, he can safely buy a much larger farm than he can if he has no one to help him. If he designs to grow corn, wheat, and other crops which require considerable working of the land, the 1 i 38 FARMING FOR PROFIT. farm should be smaller than one devoted principally to th? grow, mg of live-stock. There is neither economy nor safety in buying land which cannot be put to some practical use. Although real estate has long been considered one of the safest forms of in- vestment, the experiences of the past few years have proved that even with this there is danger of overloading. Many a man has lost a fortune because his money was locked up in real estate which was not productive, which he could not sell, and on which he was constantly obliged to pay heavy taxes. In good times some men have made money by buying land and holding It for an advance of prices. But many lost instead of made • while, in times of financial depression, multitudes have been utterly ruined by having too much land and too little money with which to hold it. It is an eminently safe course for a farmer never to buy land which he does not need, and which he cannot make immediately available. That there are certain advantages in having small farms can- not be denied. They require less capital, less hired help less teams and tools, and there is less care and anxiety about their management than is the case with large ones. Many a man can buy a small farm, cultivate it well, himself and family doing all of the work, and obtain crops enough to make them comfortable If he gets the ,dea. as many men do. that he must get rich, and ^n, .t"r '" '''' '''^ P^^'^'^"^ '^- -•" -"-va y with him, and that his days of happiness are passed. The farmer who as doing well, who can comfortably support his family,and educate tnt r"'. "'' be thankful that he is so highly favored ^a ; t^:^^^^^ 7""' ^'"^ ''''-' -' ^-^^^-^' ^'^ ^'-^d cu ture he K ''rPP^^""'^'-- ^^ ^-ng more thorough culture he may be able to increase the amount of his produc- tions, and thus add to the promts of his business. But th re s no necessity for the purchase of more land. And in the gr^ majority of cases the owners of medium-sized farms da LARGE OR SMALL FARMS. 39 great deal better by improving their methods of culture and choosing more profitable crops, than they can by enlarging the area under cultivation. Yet there are some men-a great many m all-who- do not have land enough, and who can make it pay them well to increase the size of their farms. But the average American farmer does not err in this direction. He goes toward the other extreme. He buys land without carefully considering whether he really needs it, and can make it a source of profit Wiiile there are some things which point to small farms as the most profitable for the average worker, there are also manifest disadvantages connected with them, and certain respects in which larger farms are the most profitable. The cost of buildings which are needed on a large farm is but little more than the expense of those which are required on small farms. In the older States a farm of sixty acres should have at least fifteen hundred dollars invested in buildings, while on a farm of one hundred and eighty acres but little, if any, more than two thousand dollars will be needed for this purpose. The house for the small farm will do well enough for the large one. The barn, wagon-shed, and granary for the large farm must be con- siderably larger than will be needed on the small one, but the cost of these buildings is comparatively low, and the necessary mcrease of siz6 will not involve a very great additional expense But it zvill make a great difference in the profits of the business whether a large or a small proportion of the capital invested is put into property which is not directly productive. This is a mattpr of great importance, and should be considered with care Suppose the land to be worth fifty dollars per acre. Then we have, as the cost of the small farm, sixty acres of land worth three Uiousand dollars, and buildings worth fifteen hundred dollars— a total expense of four thousand five hundred dollars. The large farm has one hundred and eighty acres of land worth •nine thousand dollars, and buildings ^vorth two thousand dollars— a total cost of eleven thousand dollars. 40 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The large farm costs less than two and one-half timea as much as the small one, but it contains three times as much land, from which an income can be obtained. With money at six per cent, the interest on the large farm would be six hundred and sixty dollars per year, while on the small one it would be two hundred and seventy dollars. Here the expense is less than two and a half times as large in the case of the large farm as it is on the small one, while the productive power is three times greater. On the small farm one-third of the whole capital IS not only producing nothing, but is a constant source of expense. Interest, insurance, taxes, and repairs will be constant outgoes, of which the land must bear the expense. On the large farm the proportion of this unproductive property to the whole capital is only two-elevenths. On the small farm the mterest equals nine per cent, on the value of the productive property, while on the large farm it is reduced to seven and one- third per cent. These are very evident reasons why many men who have bought quite small farms have not been as successful as they hoped. They have put too large a proportion of their money where they receive no direct return. There are some other things, closely connected with the above ui wh:ch the large farm has the advantage of the small one' As a rule the taxes on a farm which is nearly all productive' property are l.ghter in proportion than they are where much of he capital is invested in buildings. The fencing of a large farm can be performed at much less proportional cost than wJll be possible on a small one. and ^ labor of cultivation can generally be managed much better in large than it can in small fields. The cost of tools for a small farm is very much higher m proportion to the work done with them than it is on a l!rge twentv 7 " --/farmers who cut only fifteen or twenty acres of grass each of whom had a mowing-machine, a hay-tedder and a horse-rake. These machines would have done all the work required of them on iarms three times 'lalf times, as lies as much ith money at i six hundred i it would be sense is less le large farm )vver is three v'hole capital t source of be constant 5c. On the perty to the 11 farm the productive sn and one- many men 5 successful on of their the above, small one, productive e much of of a large t than will 'ation can n in small ch higher 3n a large fifteen or lachine, a uld have times as Z^/^G£ OR SMALL FARMS. ^j large, and would have lasted a great many years. If only a few acres of grain are produced, the farmer needs plows of different patterns, harrows, planters, cultivators, and harvesters For these he has to pay just as much as the large farmer who can get from three to six times as much use from them The sma 1 farmer does not require quite as many tools in number as the large one, but he is obliged to buy a great many ,br which he has but comparatively little use, and the total cost of the implements which he needs when compared with the total value of the crops which he grows is many times larger than the expense incurred by the large farmer. To some extent, though m a somewhat less degree, the same is true of the cost of teams for the performance of farm-work. Another disadvantage of a small farm may be found in the fact that its owner is obliged to do a very small business-a business not small merely in the aggregate but exceedingly small in its details. He may have many things for sale, but they are in such small quantities that buyers will not come to him to purchase, and he wastes much time in carrying small quantities of produce to market It IS just as much work, takes just as long, and requires a team just as much, to take five hundred pounds of straw to a customer as it does to take fifteen hundred pounds. The work of loading and unloading is a little greater in one case than the other, but the cost of weighing and the other expenses are just the same, while the money received for the large load is three times the amount of that obtained for the small one. It takes just as long to go to market with ten pounds of butter as ,t does with one hundred, but there is a great difference in the amount of money received. When the farmer has to go to market every week with a small quantity of produce he spends much time for which he receives but little pay. He could just as well carry three or four times as much, if he had it, and then there would be a nearer approach to profit in the operation. If a man produces a large quantity of anything which is in -■Tl: 42 FARMING FOR PROFIT. m demand, buyers will call on him, and a sale can be effected without spending much time; but if the quantity which is produced is small, the grower must go where the buyers are. The man who has a large farm ought to have a large quantity of products, but the small farmer cannot be expected to produce very much of any one thing. In many neighborhoods the small farmers might profitably arrange so that one of their number should go to market each week and carry the produce for the whole company. By taking turns each one would bear his rightful share of the burden, while he would save a great deal of time and trouble. But even here the large farmer would have the advantage. 'AH the products would be his own, he would be able to judge accurately of their quality, and he would feel at liberty to sell for any prices which to him seemed best. Still by means of the co-operation suggested above, the advantage of the large over the small farmer would be reduced to the lowest point. "Last, but not least," we must consider the question of capital as affecting the size of farms. This is an important point, though, as already suggested, it is far from being the only one which should receive attention. In order to buy a farm safely and manage it successfully, a man ought to have some money at his command. That some men have bought farms almost wholly on credit, and then got trusted for the stock and tools which they needed, who have eventually suc- ceeded in paying their debts, and thus becoming the owners of the property which they had nominally held, is true, but they are exceptional cases, and should not be taken as examples. Unless a man can pay quite a proportion of the purchase- money, he had better work for another, or else hire a farm, than to buy. Few conditions in civilized life are more pitiable than that of a man who has invested his little all in a firm, worked on It many years, and when old age is coming on, fin h that he can hold It no longer. A slight depreciation in the price of LARGE OR SMALL FARMS. . ^g real estate often swallows up the entire capital of men who have bought farms largely on credit. In many instances these men have made extensive improvements on the land, but by reason of ,11-health or loss of crops are unable to keep up the u^terest, and the mortgages are foreclosed, leaving the farmers and the,r fam.hes without a home. It is much pleasanter to own a farm than ,t ,s to work for another man, but it is not as safe a thmg for a poor man to do. On this account we would not adv.se he buymg of a farm without considerable ready money Wlnle a man who is qualified for the position can do better on a large farm than he can on a small one, and much of the busmessof a large farm can be managed to better advantage than that of a small one, there is altogether too much risk in buymg a large farm, or enlarging a small one, on credit Better mcur the extra expenses of a small business than run the nsk of losing everything in a large one. It is often quite easy to figure out a profit in the operation of buying a large farm, but when it comes to working it out the case seems very different. In estimates on paper the expenses are usually put too low. and too little allowance is made for unfavorable seasons, damaged crops, low prices, sickness, accidents, and other losses which, to some extent, almost every' farmer is obliged to sustain. Although in buying a farm it is desirable to pay as large a proportion of the price as possible, it is not wise for the pur- chaser to invest all of his money in land. He needs a team and tools, and stock, just as much as he does land, and it is better for him to pay for these and get more .redit on the farm than It is to pay a larger part of the purchase-money for the' land, and run in debt for small amounts at several different places. It is bad enough to be in debt to any one for any purpose, but it is better to have the debt in one large amount m one place, than to have an equal amount of indebtedness' scattered in many different places. These smaller purchases 44- FARMING FOR PROFIT. can be made to much better advantage for cash than they can- on credit; the buyer will be more careful in making his trades if he pays down for all that he buys ; if his indebtedness is all in one place he will know exactly how much he owes, and will not be in danger of forgetting many little items, while the general influence of the transaction, both in its present and its future bearings, will be much more favorable to his permanent success if he avoids small debts entirely, and incurs large ones with extreme caution. Such are some of the principles which should be regarded in deteVmining the size of farms. Many other things, of smaller importance but still worthy of regard, will enter into the account. Circumstances should be considered and duly weighed. Com- mon sense should be used and allowed to lead to, or lo modify, conclusions according to its own dictates. But it will bp well to always remember that a large farm involves a great deal of care and responsibility, and that a large debt, for whatever pur- pose it has been incurred, will invariably prove a heavy and a tiresome load. ^N order that its business may be managed in an economi- cal and successful manner, and that the comfort and welfare of the farmer and his family may be secured, it is absolutely necessary that there should be several buildings upon each and every farm. The exact number which will be required will depend upon various circumstances. The size of the farm, productiveness of the land, and the special department of business which is carried on, niust be considered. But there are a {q^ particular buildings which each farmer abso- lutely needs. Of these, the house is the most important, and is usually the most expensive. In our variable climate, with its frequent and sudden changes and its great extremes of heat and FAUM BUILDINGS. 45 cold, houses are indispensable to the comfort and health of the people. In large sections of the country there is also a neces- sity for providing shelter and protection during several months in each year for domestic animals. On this account, and also to provide a place in which food for their sustenance during the winter can be kept, barns must be furnished. On farms which to aay extent are devoted to the growing of the cereals, a build- ing, called a granary, should be provided lor the safe storage of these valuable products. There should be a small house for the hogs, and another for the sole use of the hens. A shed, close to the house should be used for storing fuel, while another,' and larger one. should shelter the wagons, carriages, farm imple- ments and machines, when they are not in actual use. As has already been suggested, it is a strong objection to small farms that the cost of the necessary buildings bears a vety high proportion to the value of the whole farm. But it is an objection which the owners of small farms cannot avoid. If they have the farms they must also have the buildings. Some farmers attempt to mitigate the evil by making one building answer the purposes of two or three. They make the barn serve also for a granary and a hog-house. The wagon-shed shelters both the wagons and the hens, and the wood-shed is merely a back room in the house. In this way the cost of farm buildings is greatly reduced, but the plan cannot be commended. Low cost is an item of great importance, it is true, but it is not the only thing which should receive attention. There must not only be something in the form of buildings, but, if the business is to be made profitable, these buildings must be so constructed and arranged as to answer the purposes for which they were designed. In order to reduce the cost of a farm it is not wise to attempt to get along without things which the experience of generations of farmers has shown to be absolute necessities. When a choice of evils is given we ought always to choose the least. Consequently, although the cost will thereby be some- 46 I FARMING FOR PROFIT. what increased, we believe in having a separate house for the hogs, another for the hens, a wagon-shed devoted, as far as the ground floor is concerned, to the one purpose of storing wagons, and a granary in a building distinct from any other. We favor this arrangement on the principle that no man can work advan- tageously without having something to do with, and having things convenient for the management of his business. In the long run it is not profitable to try to get along without suitable buildings in which the in-door part of the work can be carried on. If a farmer keeps hens, he ought to furnish a house in which they can remain undisturbed. If he keeps hogs, he should provide a building which is adapted to their special wants. Whatever kind of stock is kept there should be conve- niences for caring for it, and the surroundings should be so arranged as to make it a source of profit to the owner. To the general rule, that without room and without conveniences for carrying it on, no kind of business can be made to pay, farming is not an exception. Economy on the farm is a good thing if it is properly directed ; but when it leads the owner to do with- out suitable buildings it proves an unsafe guide. Such a saving is like the course of a man who should put only one kernel of corn in a hill because he wanted to prevent an undue expense for seed. Instead of leading to success, such a course would involve an utter fail- re. The size of the farm should, to some extent, govern the number and should regulate the size of the buildings thereon. The house, however, should be governed more by the size of the family of the owner, and the amount of help which he designs to keep, than it should by the size of the farm. But the size of the barn, the granary, and the wagon-shed, should be proportioned to the amount of land cultivated and business performed. When farms are extremely large it is sometimes better, as well as more con- venient, to have two or more barns and granaries on different parts of the farm than it is to have only one building, and that FARM BUILDINGS. tm one excessively larjje. devoted to e. ,.. purpose. In addition to the buildings needed upon a small farm, the owner of a large one should have a tool-house, in which to store his farm imple- ments and machines when they are not in actual use. a repair shop, in which worn or broken tools can be put in order, and little jobs of carpenter work, which are so often needed on the farm, can be performed, and also a building to be used for the purposes of a general storehouse. If any special kinds of busi- ness, not included in ordinary farming, are carried on, it may be necessary to erect buildings in which these industries may re- ceive attention. Where many cows are kept, and there are no butter or cheese factories in the vicinity, or it is not thought best to patronize them, a milk-house will not only prove a great con- venience, but will also be a great help in the profitable manage- ment of the dairy. On farms where tobacco is one of tlie standard crops, buildings for drying and curing it will be re- quired. In the production of flax, or hops, or the manufacture of maple sugar, and other industries of a similar nature, special biMldings may be required for the particular kind of business which is added to the ordinary work of the farm. LocATiox.— This will have a powerful influence upon the happiness of the farmer and his family, and it is, therefore, a matter of very great importance to have the buildings properly located. If the house is far back from the road, and the kitchen and sitting-room, as is too often the case, are in the farther cor- ner of the house, it will be a difficult matter for the wife or the children to be happy, or even contented. The farmer and his i grown-up boys will not mind this enforced retirement as much, because a large portion of their time is spent in the fields, but they will fail to receive the cheer and sunshine which a better location of the living rooms would insure, and all who live in the house will sufifer from its too great isolation. For many reasons a house in a village is not desirable for a farmer, but the location should be near a road where there is, at least, an occa- 48 FARMIXG FOR PROFIT. :« :; sional passinrr team and where all the inmates of the house can often sec men and women from otlier families. It is possible to have the house too near the highway, but many farmers go to the other extreme, and locate their homes in the fields instead of near the road. To this undue isolation, together with hard work and poor health, the latter in a great measure caused by the monotony of a retired life, much of the insanity among farmers' wives can be directly traced. If there are but P.nv com- panions, if no strange faces are seen, and a ceaseless round of duties must be performed, there is danger that the mind will prey upon itself, and lose its balance and power. The tendency in this direction may be, to some extent, counteracted if preven- tive means are at hand, and are employed before the mind be- comes diseased. But this does not make it any less the duty of the farmer to choose the brightest and pleasantest location which he can find for his home. Even if terrible evils are avoided, an unduly isolated life is not as happy, and will not be as useful', as one spent under more favorable circumstances. It may seem a little matter whether a house is located near a road or ten rods away from it, but it makes an immense amount of difference with the happiness of the inmates. Even though no word is ever spoken to a passer-by, it makes life more cheerful to see an occasional team, and to have the evidence of the senses that other men and women are living and moving in the world. We have no hesitation in expressing the opinion that one of the great requisites of a good location for a farm-house is prox- imity to a travelled road. This being secured, it is desirable . that a dry and slightly elevated ploc of ground should be obtained. In a great many instances this can easily be secured on some part of the farm lying near the highway. But in some cases the land is flat and wet, and there is no good site for a building on the whole frontage of the farm. In these instances skill and labor should be made to overcome natural obstacles. The best location which can be found should be chosen and house can 3os.siblc to icrs go to ds instead with hard caused by :y among f<-\v corn- round of mind will tendency if prevcn- mind be- ; duty of on which oided, an jscful, as y seem a ten rods lifiference word is o see an ses that ■Id. t one of is prox- lesirable )uld be secured in some te for a istances •stacles, en and FARM BUILDINGS. 49 thoroun-hly drained. When thk I,n • i .11 I ... "'^'' "*^^'" 'iccomp ishcd the cellar .sliould be du"- a tmo.Iu-.li i -i . • ' u^. a ^ooU uall laid and raised con.siderablv above the surface ofthesurroundinLx soil A re • ''"''>^ vicinity of til .,„ '""-'nchnKs as far as tl,c i.nmcdiat. ic„„ly of the house „ concerned. There are but verv few fj u . . ^'' ^^ secondary to the location of t. iJic work of the owner will he n-mfl^r u.\ i . a =.i.ab,e lo.tion of these h,.i,di„,, o. ^^:tr" ^ T^^Z of "'°"- "'^ '"™ ""^ ^^ - --^ - -cau a great deal of unnecessary travel thus in,,^! • ,. , ^ wavLj, inus mvolvinrr a w.-mf-n nf t.me and strength, neither of which the ordinary far^ ca, afford to lose. If placed where the barn-yard 1\ ZT L every time it rain., there will always be eal ! T'^^ choice of the .site. Merely the nnn "'= '^'=''*'""° ■'egrcl the i.avin, to walk .hr^^ f ^, '' l"; t^e 7 '■"""^™'™^° "' obliged to do in warn wea.he wi, b "'" °'^" ''' burden. It is no great m Me J ,. ' '" '™'' ^ "™^ yard and then Cea! the™ Vr^: "^ 7"^' ' """'' going into the mud many time, a da!' ! """ '" .-. Win be found ye,, unplLan; d h"e eZLr^ " "^^^ considerable time will haye been spent in th.Tl "'"■' ™d which was loaded on the b or h«f MosTf"'"'"^ could deyise fully as pleasant =„ ' '""""^ that work which would „ ""^^"Pa""", and it is certain upon eyeo-tm B t .his™™ ""T ''™"'^"= ""•^'■' "' ^-"'f yard. If-^he !„:: ill f ^T^ ^''^""^ "•'"' ' ^ ™ With water, much of th^eplrr-fr*::;—^^ 50 FARMIXG FOR PROFIT. furnish to the crops, will be leached out and wasted. Upon some farms a very heavy loss is sustained every season from this cause alone. Then, too, the labor of the teams in carting it to the fields, and the work of the men who load and unload the water-soaked material, will be increased from one-third to one- half, and in some cases in a still greater proportion, thus making a great waste of time and strength. When wet manure is carted upon the farm, its weight causes the wheels to cut into the turf, thus greatly increasing the draft of the load, and seriously injuring the mowing lots and grain-fields across which it is ■drawn. Other objections might be named, but the ones already given should be sufficient to deter the farmer from placing his barn upon a wet site if a dry one can be secured. When the .best location on the farm is wet, the owner must make the best •of a bad matter. The land chosen lur the site should be thor- 'oughly underdrained, the barn set up a little above the sur- rounding level, as directed for the house, and the yard should also be slightly elevated. The same general rules should be followed in the selection and fitting of a location for the other farm buildings. But in the efifort to secure dry yards and good drainage, the t3wner should not place any of his buildings very far from the road, or on a steep hill-side. Since this chapter was commenced, we called upon a farmer whose house and barn are nearly at the' top of a large and steep hill, and are reached by a .lanting road some twenty rods in length. Such an arrangement of the buildings is very inconvenient, and is a great objection to a farm. It is not wise to build so far from the highway, and not at all pleasant to be located on such a steep side-hill. A steep hill must always be a very objectionable place upon which to build a barn. For, if the barn is near the top, most of the hay and grain must be drawn up the hill, while if it is near the foot these crops can be drawn down; but nearly all of the manure must rted up the grade. No one i ' be JS tu be told that it IS FARM BUILDINGS. hard work for a team to tnke a load either up or down a steeD .s a cvel field. While it may sometimes seem best to us" c::;, 4 ■ n, ::: 'r "'r r: ""^^ '° --' l„, •■ , • °°'°'^° ""^"y dccicliiif. upon a locafon mueh careful thought should be given to tire sublet an t e best possible place on the farn. should be selected ' If the buddmgs were already located before the present owner came mto possession of the place, and he finds that they are „o where they should be, the question of moving them to bet" B,.cs should be considered. It is a somewhat expensive ot .on to move farm buildings, and the work should Zl att mpted w.thout good reasons exist for making the change But when the reasons are sufficient to justify the course, afd he means of pay,„g fo. the work are at hand, there should be n delay m effecting .he change. We do not advocate such a X„:;t °" *= .^^™"'' of 'Appearances, though, if a farme has plenty of money, „ will „„, be a„ altogether useless expen- ..ure, e,ther of time or means, to arrange his buildings so that they w,|| present a beautiful appearance. The rich man can afford to do considerable in the way of improving the looks of h.s buddmgs and surroundings. But in the cases in which we recommend the moving and re-arranging of their buildings by farmers of mo,. crate means, we make the suggestion for the sake of securmg happiness to the family, a greater degree of economy labor, the saving of the strength of men and teams, and the prevenfon of the waste which otherwise will inevit.ably occur We would not advise the removal from one location witl-,ut a cer^amty of improvement in another place. Farmers have been known to move from a site which did not give entire satis- fac ,o„, and find, when they had got settled in the new place ' hat ,t was not as good as the old. In avoiding a hiil-side, some farmers have built close by the bank of a stream. When the p 62 FARMING lOR rROI-IT. water was not unusually high, all went well ; but when heavy rains came, when the stream overflowed its banks, their cellars were filled with water, and their gardens and door-yards covered with sand and gravel, they found there were inconveniences in the new location as well as the old. These locations upon the banks of streams arc not always the most healthful, as there is frequently a great deal of fog in the morning, which, with the dampness of the evening air in such places, is injurious to people whose lungs are weak or who suffer from neuralgia or rheuma- tism. A location which is not exposed to the gales which so often sweep over high hill-tops, and which is also free from dan- ger by overflowing streams, is far more desirable than either of these can be made. Relative Position. — Thus far we have spoken of the gen- eral location of farm buildings. We ought also to consider their location with reference to each other. The house should have the most prominent position and the best location. With the front view from the house no other buildings should interfere. Neither should any of the buildings be so located as to cut off a view of the road from either the kitchen or the sitting-room windows. Very few farmers would think of putting the barn directly between the house and the highway; but there are many farms where some of the buildings obstruct the view from the windows. There is no necessity for this, and, as long as it inter- feres with the comfort and pleasure of the family, while answer- ing no possible purpose for good, it should not be allowed in the location of new buildings. Whether it will pay the farmer to remove those which are already located will depend upon his financial condition, and also upon the peculiar circumstances of the case. It is a great deal easier and cheaper to locate new buildings just right than it is to remove old ones and place them where they ought to stand— a fact which is very evident and which should be kept in mind by farmers when they are choos- ing new locations. len heavy :;ir cellars Is covered niences in upon the IS there is , with the to people r rheuma- which so from dan- either of the gen- ider their )uld have With the interfere, o cut off ing-room the barn ire many from the 5 it inter- '. answer- lowed in e farmer upon his ances of :ate new ice them lent and e choos- /^AJiAI BUILDINGS. 58 Taking care to give the house a prominent and, as far as the highway is concerned, commanding position, the attention should next be directed to a location for the barn. This should not be so near the house as to permit the offensive odors of the stables to trouble the family or allow the drainage of the yard to reach the well. On the other hand, the barn should not be so far from the house as to make a great deal of unnecessary travel in going from one to the other. In bad weather, and especially when there is a great deal of snow on the ground and paths have to be shovelled, it makes a great deal of extra work to have the barn a long distance from the house. Besides, the distance furnishes an excuse for hired men, or boys, who may be dis- posed to be negligent, for not attending to the cattle as they ought. The granary should be near the barn in order to save the work of carrying the grain a longer distance than is necessary. It makes a great difference with the work of carrying the corn from the barn, where Northern farmers husk it, to the bins in the granary, whether these buildings are within ten feet of each other or are four rods apart. In the ordinary methods of farm- ing at the North, there must be a great deal of passing from the barn to the granary and back. If these buildings are far apart there will, in the course of time, be a great amount of work and travel utterly wasted. This fact has been so evident to some farmers that they have had a room for- tiie granary finished off in the barn, and thus kept the two under one roof To this plan there are some objections, and it has not met with general favor. ^It is not convenient, perhaps not possible, to give as free access of air and as thorough ventilation as is needed to secure the rapid drying of the grain. Rats, too, are likely to be much more- troublesome if the grain is kept in the barn than they are when it is stored in a separate building. This is because they almost invariably congregate about a barn, and also because, when the granary is a separate building, precautions against their inva- 1 64 FARMING FOR PROFIT. sions can be taken which are not possible when a room for the purpose is done off in the barn. The location of the wagon-shed also claims careful thought. If it is correctly chosen, the fanner will be able to do much of his work to better advantage than he otherwise could. Here, as elsewhere, convenience is a matter of a great deal of importance. The idea which some farmers seem to entertain, that it is unwise to attempt to save labor, and that such an effort is a sure sign of laziness on the part of the one who makes the trial, is utterly wrong. The farmer ought to try to save labor just as truly as he ought to be careful in his expenditures of money. In reality labor is equivalent to money. The money value of an article is in a great measure determined by the amount of labor required for its production. The farmer who is busy doing work which is unnecessary, which adds nothing to the comfort of himself or his family, and nothing to the value of his farm or any of its products, is really throwing his labor away. Work which amounts to nothing had better remain undone, for it involves a useless wear of the system, and a throwing away of vital force which can never be recovered. The man who is too lazy to work, when that work is sure of bringing its reward, is to be condemned; but the one who declines to perform labor which can by no possibility benefit himself or any one else should be accounted wise. Let it be constantly kept in mind that a waste of labor IS a waste of money, and let all the buildings on the farm be so arranged that every step may be turned to some account. Upon this principle the wagon-shed should be near the barn and granary in order that when a team is wanted, and when grain is to be taken to market or to mill, no time or travef shall be wasted in getting the horse to the wagon and the wagon to the granary. To determine the best location for the hog-house will h, more difficult. There are advantages in having it near the barn while there are also certain disadvantages connected with such a loca- ' / I T;';;;:i!::;!!!'!'!'!"!'!;i!i!!''y;_,„.,»wyTll i ili ,,, "'--w '"',::ii;B;"| ;,I,::J| :,i|. ||ll 1 11!! :l i:,| ;, ■ ! ;,;:||li Hii;ili!i:;;i > :'!'!l!i rl,lll"'i ■ * ''Wp^' Nli-iiiiiHiiiiiii::;::;.' lMESiS;ii|iiilii|||i !:i!!!:Ijli!ii!lii;i'»!-ll!k -*«^. ?< FARM BUILDINGS. ^>j tion. If the hogs are to be allowed to run in the barn-yard, they should have a house near the barn and close to the yard. ' But if they are to have a yard of their own it will be better to have It. in connection with their house, at a little distance from the barn. We know that some farmers, even at the North, have no separate building for their hogs, but keep them in a shed pro- jectmg from the barn on the side in which the stables of the cows are placed. This is open to very grave objections. The same .s true of the method, adopted by many farmers at the South and West, of aljowing hogs to roam at will in the woods and in uncultivated fields. If properly managed, the hogs can be made very profitable, and they ought to have a house and yard of their owr, and to be treated like useful and valuable animals. We prefer to have the house for the hogs at a little distance from the barn, and to have the hen-house quite near the one for the hogs. The only remaining building, on a small farm, is the wood-shed, which should be joined to the house so that wood can be obtained without going out of doors. In the accompanymg cut we present a ground-plan for the location of farm buildings. Size of Buildings.— Unlike the tenement build.ags in our large cities, there is among the country farm buildings but little uniformity of either size or appearance. It is best to have some variety in the appearance of farm buildings, and that their size should vary with the requirements of the owner. But these matters should not be left to caprice or chance, hut should be governed by some law which will insure the atta.nment of the object desired. Before putting up a new, or remodelling an old building, the owner should carefully consider the purpose for which he wants the building, and how much room he really needs. For, building by guess, or chance, is very expensive work, and will almost certainly fail to give satisfaction. If larger buildings are erected than are really needed, the extra cost for construction and repairs will be heavy and will be 58 FARMING FOR PROFIT. utterly ,,sted. But if the buildings are too small, they will prove unsatisfactory and unprofitable far!!e7.rr- T:^ ""r "^ ^ '^'"^-"^^ ^"-""e ^ew England fo TsmaU f ""■'^ i'""" ^""''^"^-'^ '^^Se. Many a house for a small fam.ly was built nearly, or quite, forty feet square an w,t timbers heavy enough for the strongest ba™. C' H^^ fashion has departed, there still seen. ,o be a tendency o make the houses altogether too large, and the extra size ,ot only costs for building and repairs, but the expense of fur hi g ■s ^nsi erable, and the work of keeping ,he interior clean and asn„„ ■ "'^^*^' » '"'ee. oversown house is not as pretty as a cosy cottage, and its effect upon the home-life of .3 mma tes will be depressing rather than cheering. Th 1" -n or large rooms, in which some of our ancestors ind Ige rooms, but there is no necessity for having the rooms in an ordinary farm-house extremely large. We ifave bought ca" rrrrfT-v""^"^*^"" ^°""'' •'-»■■* 'Hei:: X ra cost of furnishing, quite an expense. The rooms might St as well have been of a size requiring only twenty yaL of carpeting and the co.,. of furnl,,hing them would thus hve been reduced one-third, as well as the labor of cleaning and h ha h°o r' ,"'™ '=""'°''- ^""= ^'-"' ^ -°- -"Ugh ■1 a house, but they should not be too l.irge ^ In some sections the New England style of putting up large small, with but very few rooms, and barns have been sm ,11 still, or else wholly wantins This ev, other Tr ;„ I "-""^ '' "^"'^^ ""an the other. It involves constant mconvenience, and insures a con ^ ual loss of both happiness and money There is no eess l" rdfiMeTd '°"^' '"'" ="^^"^=- ""y --^"' * 4tf be avoided. I„ building a barn, however, some allowance should FARM BUILDINGS. 69 be made for a possible increase of crops, and some more room may be safely provided than is absolutely needed at the time of building. A farm ought to become more productive each year t'.iat it is cultivated. Too much allowance should not be made, as it is to be hoped, and expected, that as the products of the farm increase in quantity and value, the ability of the owner to make additions and improvements will also become greater. But room enough should always be secured. It involves a great loss to keep hay or grain out of doors. Other crops are ofteri seriously injured by undue exposure to the elements. Unless he has determined to sell his farm, the man who finds his barn room insufficient for the proper storing of his crops should make haste to either enlarge the old or else put up a new building. If the present buildings are strong, and in good repair, it will probably be better to enlarge them than it will to either pull them down and build larger ones, or to build other small ones to be used in addition to the old ones. A tendency toward many small buildings upon.'a farm is not to be encouraged. To obtain a certain amount <|froom in one large barn costs much less than it does to obtain the same amount in three different struc- tures. Not only is the first cost of the three small buildings much larger, but the expense for repairs is very much greater. . A still stronger objection than either of these may be found in the fact that the room in small buildings cannot be used to as good advantage as it can in larger ones, and that in the use of several small ones convenience must very often be sacrificed. We would much rather add twenty feet in length to a good barn already built than to put up a new one twenty feet square. A few large buildings are not only better, but they also present a more attractive appearance than a whole cluster of small ones. The barn is not the only building which farmers sometimes have altogether too small. Cn many farms the granary is a lilLlc •• tucked-up " building not more than half as large as it ought to be. There are not bins enough to hold the grain, be- 60 FARMING FOR PROFIT. oo.-. one of.heb„„d;„gswWch ra™ers:„I';:rr^':'' desire to make a ereat d„»l f„ „ ™ " ''''"""^ wagon-shed, which we, tj™"- ^^= <">« '>^W b.,ld a It was too short and J '^'" '°° ™»" <^^<:h way. get out, afte ;•„„„?: r™'" "'^' " ™^ »'-- ™POssib,e to dustyor™„dd;;i,:r; '"•"""-' ^^"'-^ "- "■>«- could stand, h.t'not rol I ^^Irrit .' ^"'t '"^ ^"^""^ without a great deal of in. S° '"''~''^<^" ">em =heds have been buH in , r"™'™"' ^ """"■""'^ "^ ""-er other ways, are p o „; a eonlT"' "\"'°"'^'' ^°°' ^^^^ because they are so sm'a, Tst ""^ °^:--™ "'■ -S-t fe hog.house, where there to^tZZT"" ''' ^°"^' any other of the out-buildings Sole 6 ^ " '"' *^" . not given room enourt to tt' ' "^ ''°'"''- '»ve -".•3hed good-si.ed ht:, xr g'Lr "' "- ^-= canng for them, and the better thrM ofT ""'™"--"- "f constantly obtaining their reward Th ■ ""'™"' ""^^ ''^'-■ onritted .together.^ rre^^Xu^r: -^-;.. » o^en done by design, but because a crreat m,- V ' " "°' how much room the hens requ, ^7;:: ^;:r.'" " """' bear confinement well anrJ f L ? """^^' ^^'^ "ot ■■" too Cose ,uarte: '; : le": ""^'"^ ^ ^^P «>em hopes or expects. Diseases of v "^ """"'"^ "' "''" ^' he to thin out his flock brca^"!:™."^ "'"'^ ""' ^= ve^ hkely ir there is any one th,nrX,fe • "'°^' ^'^^^^ =P«imcns. -en,onstratcd, it is that aly '^C "'■" "™^ ''' '^'"y made to thrive. "' ™°'" or they cannot be Height op Buildings — ti,„ t surface which a building ^ .:T':[TT'^' °' ''''"''' capacity or its usefulness Tl *' """"^ "^=' of its It makes a great difference with n be made, e at a dis- igon-shed, a chronic 2d b,;.Jda we found, -ach way. ossible to 2 clothes - wagons ■en them of otlier enough d regret ts gone, ze than e, have y have nee of ey are • often is not eah'ze II not them as he ikely lens, iirly 'tbe und its rith FARM BUILDINGS. 61 both of these essentials, whether the building is high or low That a high building will cost more than a low one of equal size in other directions is very true. But it should be remembered that rootn under cover is one of the great objects for which a building is erected, and that a great deal of extra room can be secured by merely increasing the height of the structure. Take a barn forty feet long and thirty feet wide, with posts fourteen feet in length. Aside from the gables, this barn will contain sixteen thousand and eight hundred feet. With the same size on the ground and the use of posts sixteen feet long, the barn will have a capacity of nineteen thousand and two hundred feet; thus by the addition of two feet in height adding one-seventh to its size. The first cost of this increase in capacity will be very small, and the extra expense for repairs will be next to nothing. It will cost no more to keep the roof in repair, and but little more to keep its sides covered. In this way a large amount of room is secured at a very trifling cost. A wagon-shed with posts eight feet long will do very well for this one purpose, but it will be good for nothing else. If the posts are thirteen feet long, quite a room can be had over the wagons. This will be sure to be convenient for the storage of rowen, beans, corn-fodder, or other farm crops. In a building thirt>^ feet by twenty, there would be room on the ground for a wagon- shed, while in the loft from four to six tons of hay could be easily stored. A shed for open wagons will not need to be more than seven feet in height from the floor, but the part designed for top carriages should not be less than eight feet between the floors. The granary should also be built higher than manv,.^«,vlr -. buildings have been made. Here there is not as large i^g,ftA?A "^/^ . room as in the other buildings which have been namec&,e]^^ bins for wheat, oats, and similar grains, should not %^ ^i^i^^^, very high. This, partly on account of the inconvenidrtciv D^ VT^ filling and emptying them, and in the case of wheat and shelled 62 ''■IK.U/.VC /.OS ritOflT. corn, partly because of the «r„n„ quantity would ,^,„ ^ "' ■''""e f-^-'e which a vepK large containing ears of c„™ HhVo , "' "= ''"• ^"^ "* ^^ ' '".".or than the usua ,^7 1" ^r""" "" "^■" ''--"■^■'' l«Wer this can be conv-nienH I . ""^ "' '^ ^'^ '^'cp- ^ l.'sh grana^ does To^ Zt" '■'■ ""V""^"' "^ -" '" ;•"; one, it is stin a ^^.Z^Z ""''' '' ' ' '" ' ''."Wing cannot be secured at 7 """"^'' '" ""'' " ''oiKht than it can by enlar^intr Ih. '' T ^^ '"creasing the P^« "f the roon,, around r!ie o" T^' ^"= "»- oat bins, might be used fo tl f """' '^ "'" ""-' >"« f*es n,ight be ar 'tgTd .tr^::;;?'^^ ^''--'.-^ Keeping „,a„y ,i.,„ ,^,^,^^ *;'; ";;"' <•--<. a p,aee for connection with the growirt^ ,1, °" " '"™ '" If «.ese buildings atrb e ^r '■ """ *""'"S °^ en.in. ■ndicated by their nal!^ L 'T "° °"'" P"P°- "-an are notbebuiltveryhighb ; „ ,f^^^°"''^ """ ''™-''°"- "eed ™°- for a tairn„!„ 't^::;' "^r'-eshouldbeabundant 'o««t part of the buildVg tv r° "' '"' '"' °"' '" *= these purposes, in which even a sho T' '''" ™"^ '""'"'"Ss for With one of then, we have had an T", ""'" ""' *"" erect, of which have been anything btt^ltr "^™"'=' ""^ --e^""^ ADAPTATtoN.-A verv il ' '"'"''^etory eitherbui,dingnew.orren,„dr,C'tru:r'" ^ ""'■*-" ■" been erected, is adaptation to 7 '""^•'=1' havealready ■lesigned A barn should be 30 1/:''''""'^ '" *'"^'' *ey ate purposes for which the owner wantrr"" ''" *° ™™" "> *= "e built for thi. one special pu::? ^'r™' ^ ""S-house should wb/ch are „ade to Lsweffr: J rr""™'™ buildings, according as the owner is suoollT . '^°'' '""' °' =beep, ^'ecK, are not desirable. TW 2 Tf '"= "*- «nds o' knives, designed to answer raanv n '' '°"' P"'*™' P«ket- of the. well. These bull ing? rar^' '" "^""'"'^ -« -" >^eep in .epair as good ! e. : f.^tr ""'^'- '" ""' "P "'"■ *"''e m practical use FAft^r ita/LD/jvGS. 63 hey prove ve^^ unsatisftco^.. Upon this object some curious 1 ■; T, "T,'"-"-*"'- ^ '■^^ y»- aso a man recon,. ::: ;' ^ t ■ """■" "^- ■'■•°'"'''^'' '° ^"•'". -«: "luci, .a. confident would give .,a.i,ftc.io„. Thi.s barn was to be hi. of stone, was to be one hundred feet square, and h.ave a fl... roof I „.as to be merely a covered shell, into which the owner couW dnve throuah large doors, and then go where pl. ased. Hay was to be thrown off wherever he took a fancy on,e years ,„ one place and others in another He thought ife' cnuhl "clap up a horse-stall " when and where he chose, ad c ange the ocation of the stalls for cattle when and ^s h pleased. A long description of this plan appeared in one of the leading papers. Merely in the point of a theoty it was a cunous production, but it did not po.sse.ss the slightest practical V lue. The firs, cost of such a building would exceed the value of a good ftrn, and after it was built it would have no sort of ad ptat,on to the wants of a farmer, or any one else. In .his latter pomt, however, i, differed but little from some barns which have been erected since this theorist's day. For many farn.ers have a ,„, ,,,„,^^,^^ ^^ ^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ V selec ed somethmg which looked nicely, or was higMy recom- mended, who ave found, when it was too late to remedy t^e m,stahe,that their fine-looking buildings were not adapted to their circumstances and wants. Not that architects and plans are useless. On the contra^. hey are great helps. But there should also be a clear idea i^ he mmd of the owner as to just what he wants, and just what h.s busmess requires. Of these points no one can judge as we 1 as h.mselC He needs the architect or the plan for an aid stv I°lf' II '° ." ''*"^ '""""''■ T"= <■«' «■»' a certain tyle of barn has just suited one farmer, gives no reason to suppose th . ,t will be perfectly satisfactoty to another who hves m a different town, and whose style of farming may be altogether different. I„ order to .ecure a building ;hich wH ^'^ FARMING FOR PROFIT. graiiury which s suitable for ^ i. c ^ K« u 11 "'"'taoic lor a large farm at the West wnnlH buildings adapted ,o .he slyfe of f '"■'", """ '""'^' section, while LfarmewlTlds 7.'"^. ^''"''•''' ''" *" buiWings so that they >W , t dapt d a" Tl' ''""'' '""' the methods i„ use in th ''""'>' "' ?"=''"''= '<> Cos. o. B:,:rs.-;:rr;rr : -' *^ ^°""'- judgment or the average ^ZX Z^TrZl """'' ''' mating the cost of erecting new h^^ '" '"'■ ^cmodehng those whij e'o ^^ 7 ''''""' '""'' anyspceia, wan. of penetration on I pa; of 7 ""' T''' same charge can be justly brought 1 1 ™"'' " ""^ other occupations. Even ZZrT""^''^'''''"'''"y are quite oL at fault, ^ " °^ "•" ''•''""^« '""^'^If . , , oiten a. fault, and h,s estimate proves but linl. „ nght than the fanner's guess Alm„=, ''"" cost of either building '""*' °"= ''"°« '^at the exceeds h7 , ^ " ^ '■'^"'""5 ">= "'^ "dually greatly exceeds the estimates of the owner and- the architcc. 1^ been said .o be a good rul,. f« „ r „ "'""tcct. I. has material and labor, .fgeLr wi.l a^h ' """^'= '"- ^°=' °^ can be .hough, of and fe 7l """' °' """'"'' "•■'^'' "ne-.hird.oLe-ha:f of h : rrnd'^'':? '" """ the architect often seem a .rerr', u "^ "" "«"" <>' tha. .hey cover he Z V '"■^''' " ""'""" ''Wens thisresul. ItofteuT "^"T" """ "P"^" """""g about ut. " "te" happens .hat changes are made ;„ ,1.. , These, .hough small ,„ ,i,e-,-i„- • /"'""=''="• the plan. ""■ '"'"'"'''". "1 the aggrega.e consid- FA/iAf BU/LDLVGS. 6ff erably increase the expense. Lumber is not always bought to the best advantage. Then, too. many workmen are not as careful as they should be, and by their negligence considerable waste of material is effected. The cost of building or remod- el.ng depends far more upon the honor and skill of the work- men than many employers imagine. Then, too, the degree of ornamentation of a building has a great influence upon the cost Several hundred dollars can be used upon a house in this manner, and not make a great deal of display either. Upo,i some houses, which have been crectci by farmers for their own use. the cost of the ornament..; f.-.tures bears a large proportion to the expense for what was re. 11; aecc..-,ry for the construction of plam but comfortable struct:,, s. As an almost invariable rule ornamental work, whether outside or inside, If it is really nice, will be quite expensive. Compared with the plain but tasteful work, which seems specially appropriate to a farmer's home, .t is very costly. An excessive amount of ornament is not only terribly expensive, but is also wholly out of place upon a farm-house. Very few farmers have the means which they can safely use for the purpose of making their houses as elegant as those of their city neighbors. Good, substantial work ,s what the farmer needs. This will cost something for all good work is somewhat expensive. There can be' no excellence in any department of industry without .ome cost But ,f the plan is carefully made, good materials secured and good men are employed to do the ^vork, suitable farm buildings can be erected, and the cost kei|t within the means of the prosperous farmer. In some sections it costs as much again to erect buildings as it does in others, because lumber, nails br>cks, and other materials have to be transported long distances, and paid for at the high rates which scarce commodi- ties always command. Therefore no specific sum can safely be stated as the cost of a certain style of building. An estimate may be too high for one section, and too low for another. But I i 66 FARMING FOR PROFIT. an estimate should bo made by the proposed builder, and be carefully examined by the one who is to pay the bills. In case- it seems unreaioiiabiy high, another contractor should be con- sulted, and :he figures of the two compared. In his excellent work on "CuLMKV Homes," Mr. Todd assures his readers that professional builders aim to keep people very much in the dark concerning the real cost of all kinds of edifices, and that it is customary with the profession to place the estimate for a house at from one to four thousand dollars higher than it should be. And there is a great deal of force in his suggestion that an inex- perienced man, who is about having a building erected, should carefully examine every item for which the contractor estimates, and make sure that the n.rticles are all needed, and in the quan- tities indicated, or else require him to reduce the price demanded for the work. The quality of the material which is used will also have much to do in determining the cost of buildings. If evc^'thing abbut the building is to be of the finest quality, the cost must be greatly in excess of what it would be if lower grades of material were used. While it is the very poorest style of economy to use poor lumber for either outside or inside work on a house, or for many parts of other buildings, it is still true that a great deal of lumber which is not strictly first," or even second, class can be worked in where it will answer every practical purpose as well as the very best. All parts exposed to the weather, and the in- side of rooms in a house, should be covered with well-seasoned material of good quality. Inhere low-priced lumber will last just as long, and answer every practical purpose just as well it should certainly be used. Where it will not prove durable and useful it should just as certainly be rejected. When farmers get out their own lumber, they are very apt to be in too much hurry to allow it to get fliirly seasoned. But in using it green they make a great mistake, and one which they will always regret. When the materials are to be purchased, it will pay to J FARM BUrLDINGS. 67 employ an honest and careful joiner .o make the selection and do, or assist m, the buying. Some farmers attempt to save themselves both time and trouble by employing some one ,„ take the whole charge of the plan and construction. Others try to secure the performance of the work in an honest manne by employmg men by the day, and paying ,hem for all the time spent upon the building. If all the parties are strictly honest e,ther way will give satisfaction to all concerned. Bur if either' party ,s d.sposed to overreach, there will be plenty of opportuni- t.es m Cher method. The . contractor can slight his work enough to make several hundred dollars difierence for himself m the cost of putting up a house. He can make slight changes m the plan, use poor material, or in other ways avoid expense and put money into his own pocket. The man who is hired by the day can work slowly when his employer is away, or can do a great deal of work which is wholly unnecessary, and charge full rates for „s performance. On the dther hand, the man who. hires the work done can hinder and worry the workmen so that they W.11 not be able- to do as well as they hope and desire Such conduct, upon either side, is worthy of unsparing conde,„: nation. The man who is about to build should take pains to- employ none but honest workmen who will not need watching and should treat them precisely as he would want to be treated m an exchange of positions. Before commencing the erection of new buildings, or the re- modelmg of old ones, the farmer should deliberately and care- ully count the cost. He should make his estimates not only of the dollars and cents involved, but should consider the wh,ch the proposed improvement will exert upon his future- prosperity as a farmer. He should carefully consider whether he an safe y withdraw from his active business the amount .f ^ap,^ wluc his building project will require. Otherwise he W.I1 be very hkely to make a ruinous mistake. There is danger FARMING FOR PROFIT. Of getting too much money invested in buildings. Upon this rock many a farmer has been wrecked. When men go beyond their means in building, they place themselves at the mercy of the first financial storm, and become liable to lose not only their opportumt.es for obtaining wealth in the future, but also a large part of their past accumulations. It is a great deal better as well as safer, for a farmer to live in an old but comfortable house and be free from debt, than it is to have a fine, new house with a heavy mortgage on the farm. A short road to financial ruin has often been entered when the farmer put up a much more expensive house or barn than he could afford. It should never be forgotten that money which is invested in a house or barn for ordmary farm purposes, is wholly unproductive. If the amount mvested does not exceed the actual necessities of the case the money is not wasted. If it does not bear too high a proportion to the productive capacity of the farm it is not unwisely used For bu.ldmgs are necessary as a protection for life and property They confer happiness, preserve health, and save the farm crops from waste, and often from total loss. But their various benefits mny be secured without the use of an excessively large amount of money. The buildings should be neat and nice, but they should also be plain and substantial. A really nice hou^e is not a gaudy one, and need not be very costly. The surround- .ngs can be made pleasant, and a plain house will then give a feehng of contentment which a highly ornamented one will fail to supply. An excess of ornament is wholly out of place on a farm-house. The grounds may be made ornamental and be in good taste, but a farm-' .use modeled after a hotel, or a summer boardmg-housc, is not at all appropriate. And the income from ■but very few farms will justify the erection of expensive build- mgs. Farmers often over-estimate their financial ability and find, when ,t .s too late, that they have drawn too heavily upon the.r capital, and crippled their resources bv nuttin. up '.. costly houses. If a man has money in the bank, or^drawing l'AK.,I L'L/LDI.VGS. 3n this rock eyond their srcy of the t only their ilso a large 1 better, as able house, house with mcial ruin luch more 3uld never 'r barn, for le amount ; case the •roportion sely used, property, irm crops s benefits 2 amount but they house is urround- 1 give a will fail ace on a id be in summer Tie from i build- ty, and !y upon up too [rawing 69 mterest elsewhere, and uses thi3 in building a house or barn he thereby not only loses all the interest from the money thus invested but he also puts it where, even in case of an emergency he cannot use it. The only way in which he can realize any- thmg fron. .t is to sell his farm, and experience has proved that farms w,th nearly new buildings will command but little higher prices than those on which the buildings are old. As far as getting any cash return from it while he lives on the farm the money is just as securely locked up a. it would be ii it were in a vault which could only be opened by one key. and that key were lost where it never could be found. If the farm is sold in order to obtain the money, it is highly probable that only a very small proportion of it will ever be received. If a farmer is vvillmg to take the principal and interest of his money in com- fort he can put it into buildings, but it will not be wise for him to invest it in this way with a design of obtaining any cash return. ^ But the majority of farmers who have a strong desire to put up new buildings have little or no ready money, and will be obliged to borrow of others if they carry out their cherished plans. Such men ought to "make haste slowly." With them the case is not nearly as favorable as it is with those who have money. It may be easy enough for them to borrow what money they need, but it will be difficult for them to pay it. In putting borrowed money into buildings they assume a heavy burden They know that many men have borrowed money with which to buy land, and that they have not Snly kept up the interest but have also paid the principal. From this they infer that they can borrow money with which to put up buildings and soon get out of debt. This is a great mistake. There is a vast difference between buying land for cultivation and investing money in farm buildings. Land is productive property and can be made to furnish the means of paying for itself. Year by year it may be made to not only return money enough to pay the interest but 'm 70 FARMING FOR PROFIT. considerab' more, and, fn time, a skilful manager may be abL to pay for it wholly from the receipts from the sale of articles grown thereon. But money which is invested in a house or barn not only returns no int .est and makes no payment on the prmcipal, but is a constant source of expense. Interest must be paid, and the money with which to pay it must come from the farm. It is neither wise nor safe to withdraw too much capital from the land where it i^ productive and invest it in buildings which are a constant source of expense. The wise farmer will have plain buildinjs, and invest the remainder of his capital, if any, m developing the productive powers of the soil. REPAiRs.^Farm buildings are subject to the natural law that 'all things hasten to decay." Consequently, frequent repairs become a matter of necessity for .securing their preservation There are various reasons why these re^'. should be made promptly and well. In order that the farm may present a fine appearance the buildings shculd be constantly kept in repair The expense of repairs will also be greatly reduced if they are made promptly and thoroughly. Besides, the buildings will be kept in a much better state of preservation if repairs are made as soon as their want becomes apparent than will be possible if they are long delayed. Every one knows that the longer a ragged coat IS worn without being mend. , he greate, the amount of work, and the larger the quantity oi material, which will be required to put it in good order. It is also known that if repairs are delayed too long the coat will become so badly damaged .ha .t will not be wo^ mending. The veiy same principles apply w,th almost equal force to the repairing of farm buildings f a house needs painting, the sooner the work is commenced the less will be the cost. If too long neglected, the surface be- comes so rough and weather-beaten thai it cannot be painted well, and it will be ver, diflRcult to paint it at all. If a roof is shingled as soon as the need of shingling becomes appa.«nt. the building wdl not be injured; but i^ the old roof is leff y -^e nay be ablv. : of articles a house or lent on the :st must be e from the ich capital buildings 'armer will capital, if il law that nt repairs servation. be made ent a fine in repair. they are js will be made as le if they a ragged lount of will be f repairs lamaged "inciples lildings. menced face be- painted roof is "nt, the aler FARM BUILDINGS. 71 year, continually growing worse, there is danger that the whole frame will be weakened and decayed by exposure to the weather and that all parts of the building will become involved in one' common ruin. Nothing is to be gained by neglecting necessary repairs, but a great deal will inevitably be lost. Not only should repairs be made promptly, but they should be attended to in a thorough manner. If a roof needs shingling, let it be shingled well, .f a house needs painting, let it be well painted. While domg the work, it will cost but little more to do it well than it will to slight it, but good work will last as long again as that which is poor and give much better satisfaction Painting Farm BuiLDiNos.-Probably the great majority of farmers paint their houses and neglect to paint their barns Many in all, but still a very small proportion of the whole num- ber, paint both house and barn, a v^vy few paint all of their buildings, while a great many leave all their buildings unpainted The design of painting is two-fold. It tends to preserve the timber to which the paint is applied, and it adds to the beauty of the buildings which it covers. In some cases the motive for painting is the design and desire to make the buildings present a finer appearance, in others the paint is applied merely as a preservative, while many farmers have in mind both these advan- tages which painting is supposed to secure. That a building which is well painted looks much better than it otherwise would cannot be denied It is also true that paint will tend to preserve the woodwork to which it is applied. If the farmer is able to do It he should keep his house painted merely for the sake of appearances. It will give a great deal of satisfaction to have a clean and nicely painted house. The wife and children will rejoice in the freshness and beauty which paint w.ll insure Painted buildings indicate a certain degree of refinem r> and prosperity, and the man who can easily afford it should not fail to keep his house painted. But the former of small means, who IS often brought face to face with the question, "Will it pay" 73 ' h 1 FARMING FOR PROFIT. .h C rjf "'"" '° *"'"' "'^ ''■"""■"^- '" h'^ case .he m...u.r of appearances must be put over to a brighter day If pa,„t,„g the house w.ll n,ake its covering ,as, eno,,,., X„,l, lea s b cash outlay, an. the interest thereon, it sho.U i., .^ m ans be performed. If i, .,„ „„, ^^^ ,, ,,^ ^^^^ - ^ W.II exceed the cost of recovering the house, when ,.„ch : eourse becomes necessary, it should not be attempted. Whether « w,ll pay or not dej^nds „po„ ,he cost o,' iumber and lablras compared >vi.l. .hat of paint. I„ some sections, .aintin.tou d 2- q-'e profitable, while in others it wo :,!d not pa,,,. , , cal d"ml '! . ," ' '"""P^'^''-'^ short time, what are caned m,xe. ,^ „ave b„ „ p„, upon the market and come Cheap and good. Tnough many professional painter, onnosed the,r mtroduction, they have already proved quite po ,,,7 B, rildr ^T "' ^"'" -'' '- ' '"* =^"' »■''■ -' can readily do h,s own painting. Thus the cash om'v f pa.ntmg a building is greatly reduced. Before these ™, *n-ted the farmer "sually hired a paintlr ^ .Hh;:: ::SToTi.:rrthr'H?=r-- ''™--^" Which hTwthetTo'^p::: 7r rv""- °' "■= """^'"^ neededtocover , buyTst that '" t '"^ '""^'' "'" ^^ or shade desired, ;hlh si, adT ' "' '"'" "' "" """' himself. A very few doll u'' ""' °"' '"'' ^='" ^ly it of suitable .hlerta: oT r'"' ^'' ^'^ '"" -''• is at all expensi . 'J; Z TZ7 ^ '"' ^""^ '"-"" paint for thTsalce ;f ~',T' °'."°"°™^ '° '^'" *<= We do not say th^hr: ^ "l":""^ °^ "' '■°-' '-^-" Pa5"t3 arc better :'nn ♦ old- rfm^msi0.ka. FARM BUILDINGS. 73 fashioned white lead. Some of them we know are not as good Other brands have worn well and given perfect satisfaction. Much of the white lead is badly adulterated, and paint made by its use is very poor. There seems to be as much certainty of securing a good article by getting a well-known brand of mixed paint as there is in buying lead and oil, and there is the great advantage of having it in a good condition to use whenever it is wanted. One fact which should not be lost sight of in this connection is, that while the farmer can paint his house he can- not clap-board it, and this must be taken into the account, in estimating the relative expense of painting or re-covering. If he paints, the cash outlay is merely for the material and a brush with which to apply it; but if he desires to put on a new cover- ing when the old is decayed, he must not only pay for the lumber, but a workman must be employed to put it on. As the cost of boarding a barn is much less than that of a house, upon which clap-boards are generally used, painting merely for the .sake of preservation will not be as much of an object. But in many places, where lumber is expensive, it will be profitable. The same rule applies to the other buildings. Ability to piint well must be obtained by practical effort far more than by reading. A few general directions can be given, but a certain amount of practice will be needed to make any one a rapid and skilful painter. Still a few suggestions may prove useful. The surface to be painted should be clean and smooth. If it has become soiled, it should be washed and allowed to dry; while if it is rough, it should be smoothed with sand-paper, or some more effective material. Where it is very rough, the surface may be rubbed with pumice-stone. For ordinary outside work, there will probably be but little need of this labor, but it is often required for inside painting, which is designed to have a nice finish. The outside of a i.ouse which has been long neglected frequently fails to hold the paint well", and it rapidly scales off. This is caused by a separation of the' ^ !' \ 74 FARMING FOR PROFIT. oil and lead, of which the paint is composed Th. «-i the wood and the lead falls off ThTcl ^e '^"T!." anMK,;«„ ^^^ °^ prevented bv pply g one or two coa^of chcap oil before .he paint i. p„^ Le ,h t r "■"' °' "■' ""''■^■'' l-'"'^ »- - should be done ,„ good weather, either in the spring or fall one of the necessary articles, and a good strong ladder a clean -pa.., and a hook by which it can be suspended fronl ont put on at a t,mc, as .t ,s no advantage to the building and makes he work ™„ch harder. It is not well to attempt o reacTtoo 6r from the ladder, and special pains should be Len to br h over the laps, where the "works meet," smoothly, so that he bu,ldmg will present a uniform appearance. Neglect of this precaution is the cause of a laree oart nf ,1,. done by farmers and Hiechanicf wrlrhrbrr,! experience in using the brush. * The color of firm buildings is a subject worthy of at least' passing notice. Several years ago, that accomplished schohr and traveller, Mh. B.v.ho T„.ok, called attentfon to t e that a veo- large proportion of the houses in the countiy wlikh were painted at all were white, and he endeavored in vario ^ newspaper articles, to influence owners to use coi s^ would give a greater variety of appearance, and do away w h the unpleasant glare of white buildings in sunny days. wLI r as the result of his efforts we cannot say, but it is a fl/ . , since that «me .1.= softer tints have come L J^l^^J^ for outside work upon houses. As far as proL.ion t" ,h buildings is concerned, this change has involved o loss whUe the appearance of the villages an,, hamlets to which S Tnn! vation has spread has been greatly improved !!„!,. best taste to have all of the houses'n a village paL ted color, but, if they were all to be alike, wh itXo^^no T 7 best complexion which could be selected "'" FA/iAf BUJLDINGS. ^- 75 In the winter, white does not furnish a sufficient contrast with the covering of the ground in the Northern States, while in the b. ight sunhght of a midsummer day the glare of an unsubdued white is both painful to the eyes and displeasing to the taste In the choice of colors and shades there is an opportunity for the display of considerable skill and a cultivated taste. The body of the house can be painted one color, and the cornices, corner- boards, and casings another shade, thus producing a ve^^ fine effect and involving little or no additional expense. The house may be painted one color, the barn another, while still different colors or shades are used on the other buildings". If care is taken to select colors which harmonize, the effect of these many CO ors and shades will be highly satisfactory. As variety of color will add much to the beauty of the work without materi- V t'ri7 it^:^ '''" " ^^^^"^^ °^ p^'"^'"^' '^ --« veo^ desirable that farmers who paint their buildings should make a careful selection, and have the work done in a manner which will give a beautiful appearance as well as furnish a pro- tection against the destructive influences of the weather H--«-e practical man may say, all this is very good as far as appearances go ; but how can it be made profitable ? If painting .s to be done m order to make a building last longer, one kind of paint IS just as good as two or three sorts, while, if it is not an object to paint merely to preserve the timber, all the money and labor are thrown away. To this it may be replied that we have not advocated extra expense merely for appearance, except when the parties were abundantly able to meet it; that the cost of painting with two or three different colors is but very little in excess of that of using plain pain, and also that. wherJ men are able to do It. money is not thrown away which is used to im. prove and beautify the appearance of their homes. A farmer w o e.restokeep his boys with him on the old homestead W.11 be a great de . ,ore likely to succeed if he keeps the build- ings mcely pam.c. and his surroundings pleasant, than he will 76 J'AKMING FOR 'PROFIT. and they have an id. . fh . ^ ''''^ surroundings, / rtVL an id( a that somewhere in fl„. . u . rounding, can b. obtni;;. ' T '""^ '"'- at hon.e, they are v.y ,i^,, ,, go dsX'^'T;;'"": ''^^^'"^ make a great mistal-e in .1 .f ^^^^^^here. That they often a" a,.„ L. facT:::' ;tL :,-,: r^' '-' "■'■' '^-^ -- - arc u„„eccs.ariU- u„„loi„7 ,r7 '"""'""'••'S^ which the fa™, ,> „,ay pa"t 7 ^ " °'^'-"' '° ^^^'•^ "-"> »" , may pay to do some th ptc vv!.i-1- ,i. j • expense involved in "fixi... ^o " h , ^ '"■"• ^^^ ful tastes . ,r, be wi hW . "^' ^° ^^^^^ ^ ^°>' °^ ^-'th- " DC wiUmg to stay on the farm w.ll k invested. The fatlier u-Jll , ''^ '^rm, wiJl be money well i'ii. latnci wiil never have cnncn f^ -ay be tl,„ n,aki„s: of the son Th! ^^ ^^' "' ""'' " the „K.a„. f„, .i,t.r it, "'■■'■ *'™^" "•-'"' have ■"on. , laid 0, . 1 1 '""T "™^= °f "- fact .hat a li..,e farm L .,o.7 ,1 nj >' .'T K ''"'"'"'' "' '"' ""^^ "•' anU w.hcfo.he„iTf:::;:'i:::::-^^^^^ 3ho::hc";:rnc"';/::t::r::r^;' r^ ^ '■-"-'-- sued must be considered. The section „f ° """""■"""= Pur- a Village and ,en,th of time :h:r: ^^ ' t^ f^ :ie::T:^e::T°'"^ ''■'"- -""-^ house for a farmer T , ^ ^^^'. "'"'■■ """ "" -<--- the ground-floor an . " " ' arrangement of rooms on - .ui .he ..eciurnrrtrr;^. "" r ^^^^"^ -"-^^ cheap, but a,so neat and con^l^eo..::; ' '""" ' '"^'" ^^ VVe do not present elaborate plans fnr ' ^ then, of special value to the farm 7' r l^ M "^ ""''" -aded to build after a certain m:;: c , 't "t- '^ ^^^^^■ pronounced it good. The owner shou-- b. T ,' ''' ^'' own .vants than by th^ general 'l"^ ^e gu,ded more by hi. y general plans which other men have * •use to become : surroundings orld such sur- things pleasing 'hat tliey often lis does not at undings which J^-ecp tf leni on ' rfosire. TJie )oy of health- e money well grct it, and it srs who have : that a little e hon e and the better it farm-house 'ncr and his cy which is 5 to be pur- -tancc from s construc- modifying expensive, rooms on 'ily varied plain and consider be ]!or- itect has 'e by li en jjavc FARM BUILDINGS. 77 ■t designed. Many . „e„ l.ou.se is u„,a.isfac.o,y beeau,e tl,e owner d,d no. ,„.„. „p„„ ^^^^,^^ ,,^. ^,^,^,^^^ so that ,t would su,t his own tastes and needs. We once nofccd some peculiarity in the arrangement of a barn and remarked to the owner that such a plan was not common \ ou secon. He rephed that he had the barn arranged for his own specal eonvcn,encc. The carpenter who built \ did not il 1- -ggest,ons,and wanted to follow the ordinal model bu FIG. 2.— FARM-HOUSE. the owner told him that for many years he had worked fo- ther men, and worked as they wanted he should, and now that ^e was able to gratify his own taste somewhat, he was determined to have his barn made ju.st as he wanted it. He carried his pomt. and the barn suited him a great deal better than it would If he had allowed the carpenter to go on without regard to his special tastes and wants In ni,ff;«^ u hnt-M- *u- P ^ "P ^oxx%^s, and other DUildinrrs this ev-.^„i„ -i. - • . . - ,, -^ , inis e.,,.„p,^- -,,juujQ -g followed. Of course in certain departments of the work, the ideas of the farmer should 7< fAKMlNa /-OH rsofiT. "« be opposed to ehose of the skilled „,\ • 'o 'he mness of certain K,„ds of t tal^.T"^"" . '" "^^'^ «re„g,h of material, and m.„ 2 """" "*»• "■« ^■■iueation and cxperil-n" o, T "' " '"*= "^"'-. ">= -«-ed. B. wL ::;irr ;;"""" ^^ rooms, the location „f ,he doors and .h """""^ "' "" -e debated, the fanner should lit ' T "' '"= '"'"">-• If '.i^ house does not look u hL "^ ! \T '° ''^"^*- -■.Obors, it may suit hi„, ju s w | rth^'T^.'"^ '° '"» ^^^^j «*» wen as though it were an 1 W.'HOUflB 1 10 X SO • y 9 )i( 10 1 L 1 KITOHEN '2 X' 18 I OININO ROOM 1 B.ROOM ' • MO MX,. f— 1 ^i^i^'iiiiifmriTP 1 1 -_ 1 ' •■ ROOM «XIO 1 PARLOR 1 <7 X 18 1 ^ORCH 0X9 t\ ""■ •'—"•AN or ORomo^pLOOR. exact copy. Not only should h. ...• , l-ut the tastes of his w^^fe h *,'"'' ''"'"' "-= P'-" himself - -uid be «f ;: .J ''tetf-r ^ ""-'-■ 'secure a house which will L f, ""^ ■"=« "V^ to a plan, and make any^ l,! it""^ '^ "°' ""'^ "> ""tain the special needs of .he ne wo . k"'" "' ^ '^'^''"^ ■"V houses of some of t e „e 11 " . r "'"' """' '"" '° ™" *e »- By seein, a ho"::^::;';^ ^ tr — >- of Its convenience ,„,. ,j_ "X ">"", a much betteridea ''^''"'"" "" •- =-"«d than will be- 'c. In regard tain uses, tJic c nature, the 'er should be Jfnber of the the w indow's, :ht to decide. "&'ng to his f» it were an /VTA" J/ BUILDINGS, 70 ' himself, onsulted, ways to 3 obtain lired by I'isit the •ecently ter idea m\\ be Bes,dc., pracucal use is the grca, ,». of house.,, and by i„„u " . can be ascenained whe.he. certain s.y.es „av. ^7Z dcs,rab:e Thus a great expense, and „„,ch troub e a"d d,s pp„,n.n,en, „,ay be saved. ,t is well for people ,o lei™ both fro,,, .he successes and .he failures of o.hers For, .hoi, IXTSonal experience is a ve^ good .eacher in so^e re.sp^ .s ,h expense of obtaining kncvled.o by i.s aid is grea.erTan .t ma^omy of people can ,eal,y alTord .o incur, 'wt t p" expenence of o.hers can be made .o answer Jus. as wel as T" sonal .r,al, there can be no reasonable excuse for in ■ . te-s.i„g .he ma..er irain Th °'7'"^''"' I"'' '"''"tuig upon ,„in X, ,r. ^ ™"" '"'"' "■^"'^ '° buiW a house >v,l do well .o examine several houses which appear ,o be the best adapted to the purposes which he wishes Tser^ , 'a b n ,s to be erected, the man who is to build should not onlv o .a,n a plan, but should examine barns which have b „pt up by h,s acquaintances. The same rule applies to th, strucion of o.her buildines Fv.„t, ' ''°"" uuiiuings. £,xcellencies and defects K«tK Some of the requiremen.s of a eood farm l, ,. , briefly considered They can nearlvaMK "'™"'"""^ ^'""'l'' ^ word,, NE.XKHSS and Com o."!; h "T' "" '" ""= '"° because it is to be the hor^of tie f " "'" '°°' '"^''^• neat and pre..y house Z^^.'^l'^ZL T f ""^- ^ "pon i.s i„ma.es. I. i, k ' ,,! I '^"^ "' '"""'"'^'^ »l«bby one if it is p d or rr.r*rd' , K ' °"' ""'■'^'' ^ and is more desira'ble Z: 1^^ 'Z^! ^T T"""' financial ruin to i.s owner bJT r " ''™"«'" t^e main thing .o be sec red ^Zrwro"^"'"' '°''''"'' anxious .o keep up appea„„ces. Y^r .rll ^ T ^""'^"^ .Hough the great idea of obtaining a ho^ .r e Im™' mm gQ FARMING FOR PROFIT. to secure a comfortable home for himself and his family, when he comes to build, the average man neglects to secure the com- fort which he might just as well, and without extra cost, obtain. If any one doubts this let him examine the rooms in an average house, and he will find ample confirmation of the truth of the r FIG. 4. — COTTAGE. Statement. If comfort had been one of the principal things in the mind of the builder, the rooms would have been very differ- ently arranged. Instead of having the kitchen and pantry some ten or fifteen feet apart, they would have been adjacent rooms, and both th^- wood-house ard the cellar-stairs would have been , when 2 corn- obtain, verage of the hings in y differ- try some t rooms, ave been FARM BUILDINGS. 81 close to the kitchen. We know of a house in which the pantry is some six feet and the cellar-door twelve or fifteen feet from the side of the kitchen nearest to them. The unnecessary distance travelled and labor performed by the housewife under such an arrangement is immense. As one of our common-sense archi- tects, Emory A. Ellsworth, Esq., has well said : " Need wc wonder, when we consider the many useless, weary steps thrt must be taken, and the stock of vital strength that is continually wasted in the performance of the household duties, that so many ambitious farmers' wives are broken down in health and spirits at thirty-five, and must then remain for the rest of life the suffering victims of thoughtless, careless, interior household arrange- ment." We wish these words could be indelibly stamped upon the mind of every man who has charge of the arrangement of rooms in farm-houses, and that every man who either builds a new, or remodels an old, house would strive to make the in- terior as convenient as possible for the wife and daughters \\\\a are obliged to do the work. Life is too short to waste in use- less and aimless pursuits, and the burdens which rest upon the farmer's wife are too heavy to justify any unnecessary in- crease. In the Northern and Western States warmth is one of the prominent requirements of a comfortable house. In the sum- me: , and for a few weeks previous to its coming, and succeeding its departure, this is not of great importance, but for about one- half of the year it is absolutely indispensable to the highest degree of comfort, as well as necessary in order to promote the health of the inmates. A cold house is not a comfortable house in which to live, and it is almost impossible to make it pleasant during the cold season. Upon such houses radical repairs arc badly needed. For the cold from which the inmates of these houses suffer cannot be kept out, or sufficiently sub- dued, by fires, and it proves not merely a great discomfort but also a positive injury. The "hard winters" of New England m 4 'i l< ''I im in 32 FARMING FOR PROFIT. would lose much of their severity to a great multitude of farmers' wives and children if they could have really warm houses in which to live. No one who has never lived in one of the old liid loosely boarded houses which are occasionally seen in country places, has any idea of the degree of suffering which is inflicted upon the inmates by the cold. That there is such a thing as having a house too close and warm we admit, but we think that very few such houses can be found in the possession of farmers. So far as our observation extends, farm-houses go very far toward the other extreme. Cold air blows upon the inmates through cracks and crevices, causing many colds and laying the foundation, in a great many cases, of serious diseases. There is not only discomfort involved, but, if special care is not taken, it is absolutely dangerous for a person with weak lungs, or with a strong tendency toward pulmonary complaints, to live in such a house. When a house is built it should be made so well that even when it becomes old the winds will not penetrate its walls. If built of brick, or stone, there will be no difficulty in securing tins protection from the wind. If wood is used as the principal material for construction, a good quality should be secured for the covering, and it should be put on in a workmanlike manner. The space between the outer and inner wall should be filled with bricks, except where posts, studs, and braces are placed. For an ordinary-sized farm-house quite a quantity of bricks will be required, but second-hand ones can be used, or a low grade of new ones, and thus the cost be kept from being a very large item in the bill for materials. No special skill is required to lay them. They answer various good purposes. B} keeping out the wind they keep the rooms a great deal warmer than they otherwise would be, and, by filling up the space, they effectually prevent rats and mice from taking up their abode in this most difficult of ,^!! places from which to dislodge thciTS. For the last named purpose alone they are worth five times their cost. If FARM BUILDINGS. go any one thinks this valuation too high, let him try to sleep for one night in an old-fashioned house which is infested with rats and before morning he will probably be convinced that instead of being too high the figures are altogether too low. All the work about the house should be done well. It will take a little longer to fit every board cxactlj- to its place, but the house will give much better satisfaction if thi.. is done than it can if the work is slighted. It is not a difficult matter to build a house so that the wind will not penetrate it and it will not be cold; but when a house has been badly built, it is difficult to repair it in such a manner as to make it comfortable. The inside walls of a house should be well plastered, a.id the ccilmg should be finished as nicely as possible. Though it is quite common to cover the walls with paper, there should be no slighting of the wor!,: in plastering them. If well covered with, good mortar they can be papered more easily, and th. paper will look better than will be possible on a poorly-finished surface The mop-boards should be well fitted, and all the lumber used in the inside of the best rooms should not only be well seasoned but should be kiln-dried before being used. This precaution would have prevented many unsightly cracks in some otherwise nice houses. Windows arc always considered as necessities in a house- but they are not always arranged in the best possible manner.' and the number and size are not always chosen in accordance with the requirement of either beauty or comfort. We think there is. a tendency to use too fcw windows. The sunlight is not allowed as free access to our houses as the health of the inmates requires The power oi sunlight to promote health and make people cheer-» ful and happy is not fully recognized by the farming community Yet we all know that a succession of cloudy days will depress the spirits of cheerful people and increase the suffering of inva- lids. Too njany families have. ..hut out the light from their homes altogether too much. The parlor is not opened to the 84 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ll ij il $1 sun for fear that the carpet will be faded by his powerful rays, and even the kitchen and sitting-room are guarded against the intrusion of too much light. Living in darkened rooms, and being often worried and overworked, it is not a matter for sur- prise that many farmers' wives lose both beauty and health in comparatively early life. In sections of the country where women are more in the open air and receive the benefit of the sunshine, they are much more healthy than they arc where cus- tom or necessity requires them to keep in doors nearly all of the time. The dullest observer knows that plants need the sunlight, that those which are kept in the shade are imperfectly developed and lack both vigor and freshness, and that fruits which grow in the shade never present the rich and rosy appearance of those which are ripened in the sun. And it seems as if the observer •who could see all this could also reason that, if the sun is such a life-giver and invigorator to plants, his influence upon the human family must also be powerful for good. Prominent phy- sicians often recommend sun-baths for the cure of certain forms of disease. As prevention is always easier than cure, it is fair to infer that sunlight would do much toward keeping people well. It is well known that people living in dark, damp cellars are terribly afflicted by disease, and we are justified in believing that the want of sunlight is one of the producing causes of many of their maladies. We believe in having a house into which the sun can shine, and in having the kitchen and sitting-room in the sunniest part of the house, Windows should be plenty in number, and of a size to cor- respond with the dimensions of the house in which they are placed. Very small windows do not look well in a large house, while large windows look almost as badly in a small one. The windows should not be placed too high in the rooms, as is the case in some of the old-style houses, neither is it very conve- nient to have them come down to the floor as some modern builders pixjijobc. Medium-sized glaR? gives a farm-house win- FARM BUILD TN^GS. „- 86 dow a better appearance than either ve^^ large or very small panes It .s much less work to keep such windows clean than .t Ks those which are composed of small panes, while they are less expensive than very large ones. Not only is the expense of wmdows increased by using extremely large panes of glass but m case that one is broken, a large size cannot always be' obtamed at country stores, will cost considerably more than the medium size, and the difficulty of setting will be increased In buymg glass always be sure and obtain a good quality A wmdow in which there is not a pane of clear glass is a miser- able thmg to look at or to try to look through. It will cost a very httle less than a window with a good quality of glass but •t Will always be a source of vexation and discomfort The sashes should be made of heart timber, and should be well put together, and thoroughly painted upon both sides. Some kind of fastening should also be used upon all the windows in a house. Many people use fastenings upon the windows of their lower rooms, in the vague hope that they may prevent the entrance of intruders, but in the upper stones get along with sticks, wooden buttons, or some other inconvenient arrange- ment. There are a great variety of patent springs and fasteners .n the n^arket. Of these many are very good indeed, while some are. as any one of common sense ought to know without trying, m.serably poor. A fastening should be secured which w 1 hold the sash either down or up, or at any desired point between the.se extremes, and which will not mar the calgs. The windows should also be made to lower at the top as well as to allow the lower sash to be raised. This in order to admit of easy ventilation, and also to make the rooms cooler in summer. In arranging ,he Doors considerable skill will be required to place them so that they will give convenient access to all part, oi the house, and still nnf in^z-Wpr- --fi- --l many doors v..,ll increase the first cost of a house, and always 86 FARMING FOP. PROFIT. render painting the rooms more expensive than it otherwise would be, it is not well to attempt to reduce the number below the point which comfort and convenience require. Too few doors make a house inconvenient, and will add greatly to the labor required to keep it in order, and care for the comfort of the family. The doors should not only be enough in number and well arranged, but care should also be taken to have them of the proper size. In many farm-houses the doors are much too narrow, and a great deal of inconvenience is caused thereby. There is no necessity for using very small doors, and no one .■should allow them to be used in an ordinary house. The doors will require something in the line of fastenings. There are various styles in the market. Of these we think the combined catch and lock, with a knob on each side of the door, is much the best. That the first cost of fitting all the doors in a house with these fastenings will considerably exceed that of using the old-fashioned latch and catch we admit, and some readers may be inclined to regard the change as an extravagance. But, as we have already pointed out, convenience, which is another word for economy of time and labor, is often worth far more than its cost. If a convenient arrangement saves work, it thereby saves what is equivalent to money. If it saves health and strength, it saves what is worth more than money. Human life and strength are both limited, and the strongest person has neither time nor strength to waste. The door-fastenings we have recommended will save much time. They also furnish, what the door of each of the principal rooms below and all of the sleeping-rooms should have, the means for securelj/' fastening it from either side. But the principal reason why we favor these fastenings may be found in the fact that they are not liable to catch and tear the clothes. In a large family the saving effected in this one direction would be sufficient to replace the old-fashioned latches with the knobs and locks which we have recommended. Our own clothes have been torn. FARM BUILDINGS. 87 and aJl the members of our family as well as occasional visitors have had clothes damaged by being caught on the old style of fastening. Experience has taught us that good door-fastenings are really cheaper than clothes. The Floors of a house should be made of good material and carefully put down. The supports should be ver, strong and .t is a good plan to have the boards an inch and a half thick Few persons whose attention has not been specially called to the subject are aware how severe a strain sometimes coa.es upon the floor of a house. When there is a social gathenng. quite a crowd is often collected in a single apartment In a room fourteen feet square it is not difficult to find standing places for from eighty to one hundred grown persons, and a man who knew nothing in particular about such matters would not thmk any trouble would be caused by allowing them to enter. But eighty persons of average size will weigh not less than>. tons. This is a great strain, and a weak floor will be very hkely to give away under it. It is true that such a weight IS not often brought upon a floor in a farm-house. But it is hable to be heavily loaded, and, consequently, should be made very strong with direct reference to emergencies. In old houses, in which the strength of the boards and joists in the lower rooms has become somewhat impaired by age or by want of thorough ventilation of the cellar, supports should be placed under the floors of rooms which will be likely to be crowded. These may be easily and cheaply made by using posts at each end of the floor, one end of each to be placed upon a solid stone foundation in the cellar, and the other mor- t.sed mto a stick four by six inches. This stick should come up tight to the bottom of the joists, and the posts should be supported at the bottoms so that they cannot move in any direction. Where floors are very weak they should be taken up, and ne^v joists supplied. If it is thought that the floor had better remain, and that the supports suggested are insufficient. 88 FARMING FOR PROFIT. a frame, about three-fourths the size of the room, with a four- inch stick in the middle, across the top, running crosswise of the joists,, may be used, in the cellar. If this is properly made, and put up, it will last a great while, and make the floor per- fectly save. In selecting timber for joists and floor-boards, care should be taken to get that which is well seasoned and which is free from shakes and knots. This because it is important that timber used in either of these positions should possess both durability and strength. It has become quite fashionable to use very poor boards for floors, and then cover the defects with carpets. This does not seem to be in good taste, and it tends to compei men to buy carpets who are not really able to do so. Not every farmer can spare the money required to carpet all his rooms. Better have a floor that will look well itself Then when the owner is able he can cover it ; but there will be no excuse for his running into debt for a carpet. For floor-boards, yellow pine is one of the very best kinds of timber. These boards should be nearly, or quite, an inch and a half in thickness and not exceed four inches in width. If well laid upon a good foundation, this will make a very fine floor of which neither farmer nor gentleman need be ashamed. In modern houses Stairs are not only conveniences but are absolutely necessary for the comfort of the occupants. In some houses which we have seen, appearances indicate that the stairs were considered "necessary evils," and were crowded into as small a space and put as much out of the way as possible. WTiile it is very desirable to economize room by using it to the best possible advantage, it is not well to make the stairs too narrow or place them where thej' will be inconvenient of access. Any one who has had experience in carrying furniture up narrow, steep, or winding stairs will heartily second our recommendation that all the stairways in a house, thnse from the back-room just as truly as the front-stairs, should be FAUM BUILDINGS. 89 made w.de, straight, with a slow elevation, and with a strong raihng at the side opposite th^ wall. Stairs which rise six feet m a distance on the ground of .vee feet and a half are an abom- -nation, yet they are often seen in old houses. For women and invalids to climb such stairs is terribly hard, while for children they are still more dangerous. The winding stairs which are frequently used are much better than the old style of steep and narrow ways, but these are quite inconvenient about carrying urmture either up or down. For ordinary farm-houses they are far mfenor to the straight, wide, and slowly rising stairs which we recommend. If any reader is tempted to think this a matter of small importance because a farmer does not often change his residence, and. consequently, is not often obliged to carry furniture over the stairs, let him remember that the occasional mconvenience which is almost sure to arise might and ought to be avoided, that a house ought to be so constructed that a man can get an ordinary lot of furniture up the stairs without a great deal of difficulty, and also that in a common farm-house much of the work of the woman who cares for it must be done m the chambers. This work cannot all be done at once but requires attention at various hours of the day. To .^o up and down a pair of steep stairs several times every twenty-four hours - enough, of itself, to tire a woman who is not very strong The farmer who is what he should be desires to have an abun- dance of labor-saving machinery, and to arrange his work in the most convenient manner possible. He knows that in saving time and strength he is saving money. He ought to be just as ready to arrange the house so that the work of his wife can be easily and rapidly performed, as he is to invest labor and money in securing convenience in managing his own work One oi the ways in which he can aid her is by arranging the staj- so that the labor of passing over them will be reduced to — »e .o^'est possible point. RooFs.-Whether the roof of a house shall he flat or sloping 90 FARMING FOR PROFIT. -^ will depend upon the style U the house, the amount of room required, and the tastes of the owner. For ordinary farm-house we do not favor flat roofs. With a given ground-surfiice they furnish less room than the ordinary style, and we know of no advantage which they possess which can render them general favorites. At the North, especially, where large quantities of snow fall, they need a greater amount of care in the winter than most farmers are willing to bestow. For covering roofs three kinds of material are in very common u.se, while iron, straw, gravel, and various preparations of felt and tar are employed to some extent. But wood, tin, and slate are principally used by farmers. Various kinds of wood are used and various sizes and styles of shingles are employed. Cedar, pine, and spruce make splendid shingles if no sap-wood is used, and will last from twenty to fifty years. But if a very little of the sap is allowed to remain, the roof will leak in eight or ten years. It is always economy when buying shingles to get the finest quality, as it costs no r s-iiv to lay them than it does poor ones, and, as they last froj t f»vo to five times as long, the cost of several rc-shinglings x% av-iJed. Tin roofs, if well made and con- stantly kept painted, will last a long time ; but in most sections the cost is very much greater than that of wood, and on this account tin has not come into general use as a roofing material for farm buildings. Slate, so often seen upon public buildings, is frequently used in New England and the Middle States upon farm-houses and barns. Being close to the quarries, the cost is not excessive, while, if the roof is very strong and the slates are well laid, a very durable roof is obtained. In order to make a good roof with slate, the boards upon which they are laid must be perfectly tight, so as to prevent the penetration of rain and snow when the wind blows, and the rafters must be so strong that no amount of snow which falls upon the roof will deflect them in the least. If the rafters are so weak as to allow the roof to settle, the slates will be pried up as surely as a man FARM BUILDINGS. 91 could do it with a crowbar. Being very brittle, they will fre- quently break when subjected to such a strain. If they do not break, the nails will be loosened and the slates will come off When wood is used for roofing purposes the application of some cheap paint has been found an excellent preservative The shingles to which this paint is applied should be well sea- soned, and should be perfectly dry whu. the paint is used The presence of sap in the wood, or of dew on the shingles will cause the paint to scale off in a short time. V.-, prepara- tions for painting roofs are in the market. Probably u.e cheapest material is crude petroleum. This is an excellent preservative Whitewash is often used, but is too liable to wash off Roofing paints having a large proportion of tar are highly recommended by some, but do not always give satisfaction. Those with slate or asbestos for their basis would seem to be better adapted to the purpose. Whenever roofs are painted, an effort should be made to secure a fireproof article as well as one which will pre. serve the shingles. CHiMNEVs.-The old style of building only one chimney for each house, and making that as large as a good-sized room, is extremely bad and should never be followed in a new house. All house chimneys should be of small size and conveniently located. Stovepipes ought never to traverse a long distance from the fire to the chimney. Many farmers in the older settled parts of the country have taken down the immense piles of brick which once answered for chimneys and built new and smaller ones. We never knew a man to regret making this change. The use of a larger number of smaller chimneys gives much more room in the house, much less stove-pipe is required, the draught of the flues is greatly increased, the danger from fire is very much diminished, and the general plan and appearance of the house is improved. Chimneys should be built with the utmost care, and only the very best and most conscientious workmen should be employed in their construction. A great ,%. ^. ^,''^0. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) k A A4^ 1.0 I.I ^1^ 1^ 11:25 i 1.4 IP, 1.6 V v; ^> Fhotographic Sciences Corporation iV ^ '^ <^ ^^ -!>\ ^P?<\ ^i\^ <(^^ «> und on the farm — sources from which thousands of deaths result every year, and by which the seeds of disease are sown in the systems of thousands who do not at once i^uccumb to the evil, but baffle it for a while, yet only in a multitude of cases to be defeated in the not distant future. These are the fouling of the air and the poisoning of the water. Many of the clos- ets have no means of deodorization, and no effort is made to prevent the liquid portion of their contents from passing freely into the ground. In the former manner the great majority of these closets work an immense amount of mischief, but an amount which they would greatly exceed in the other respect, were it not for the fact that they are located so far from the houses and wells. But many of them are near enough to wells to taint them and work deadly mischief. The earth possesses the power to filter poisotious liquids to some extent, but this power is gradually lost, a: ' in time the soil becomes filled with poison and then cannot pv- v. a vif^r passing through it. Thus it happens that ther .;;■- ■: .i:,.: trouble w-'.h the well at a FARM BUILDINGS. 117 new house. Even though the cl .set may be dang' rously near, the soil, for a while, wards off the evil. But the time comes when .ill the earth between the closet and the well is foui, and the day of reckoning is then at hand. The inmates of the house mysteriously (to them) lose their health. Headaches, neuralgia, liver troubles, blood-poisons, and typhoid fevers, become frequent and dangerous visitors. The doctors are called and medicines are poured down. As the invalids drink but little cold water a t«.'n.poiary relief is obtained. Those who drink water only after it has been boiled partially escape. Rut ill-health is the rule, and untimely deaths will bj almost sure to occur. That terrible scourg,-. diphtheria, is often caused by foul wells and a poisoned soil. Probably not one farmer in a thousand realizes the tremendous danger attending these old-fashioned closets. If far from the house, they are, in bad weather, practically in- accessible to the women and younger children ; they foui the air, and if located above the level of the house and the soil is porous, a communication is soon established with the well. If near by, the air is poisoned and the water is soon spoiled. This is a terrible evil. Physicians realize it, but there are few men who have not made a special study of the matter who have any adequate idea of the amount of the evil which has already been accomplished, or the danger which is lurking in the present and the future. But all this evil can be avoided in new places and remedied in old localities. But little expense need be involved. Care and skill are the main requisites. The closet should be placed in some spot which is sheltered from the ''torms ai'd hidden from the road. It should be reached without going out of doors. If this is impossible, thick rows of ever- greens, or a high, tight fence may serve as a wind-break, and also shield the passer from observation. The vault should be cemented upon the bottom and all its sides. Dry muck, road dust, or coal-ashes, should be used every day as a deodorizer and absorbent. -mfc^ 118 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The closet should be large enough to hold two or three bn'^ ^^^^B ' jf'jif ^^M i' ^^^KB -B -i - ^^^pB %% Ti ^^^kH AM. ^^^^HbuJIH ■3>**mLh success. The next year the experiment was repeated, and a good crop was secured. Other farmers tried the same plan and were successful. The land which was supposed to be very poor has now been growing corn, oats, and grass for thirty years, and is considered more valuable than some of the fields which were formerly thought to be far superior. The experiment of this farmer in planting land which was thought to be unsuited to cultivation, not only proved a great benefit to himself, but also opened a large tract of really good land for culture and gave many other farmers an opportunity to largely increase the profits of their business and add to the value of their farms. It is not to be expected that every experiment will result as favorably as this, but there are a great many farmers who might largely increase their crops if they would test the capacity of their land. Too many farmers work after the manner of their fathers, and have an idea that because certain crops never were grown on their land, therefore the land is not at all suited to their pro- duction. But it is not at all certain that this will be the case. Because no wheat has ever been grown on a certain field, it does not necessarily follow that no wheat ever can be produced there. Neither does the fact that the farmers of former generations thought certain tracts of lands would not grow certain crops, prove anything upon the subject. Even if they had tried these crops and been unsuccessful, this would not be absolute proof that efforts now made in the same direction would result in failure. There have been certain climatic changes since their day which may exert a favorable influence. These changes have been, apparently, very slight, but they have been sufficient in some sections to considerably modify the results of culti- vating certain crops. This modification may make it still more difficult to grow the doubtful crops, but there is an equal chance that it will prove beneficial. Again, the methods of cultivation now in use are much more perfect than those with which our predecessors were acquainted, and this difference alone may THE CAPACITY OF A FARM. 125 make all the variation which will be necessary to turn utter failure into brilliant success. Another respect in which the farmers of the present day have an immense advantage over those of the past is to be found in the great improvement of varieties which has been secured. It is now easy to obtain much hardier and more productive varieties of wheat than any which our fathers ever saw. These varieties will grow, and ripen, and be very productive on land where the old kinds would not succeed. The same principle applies to corn and oats with equal force. Except in the case of crops which are wholly out of their sphere, and which from the very nature of the case cannot be grown, the only way in which to determine whether any particular crop will be successful in a certain field is to put the matter to a practical test. Actual trial is the only way in which there can be anything like a correct settlement of the question. This trial need not be made on a large scale. It is not necessary to plow the whole of a twenty-acre field in order to prove that the land can be plowed. And in testing the adaptation of any special crop to the soil, it is not best to do too much at once. A small area will determine the question as well as a large one. If the experiment is a success, the crop can be grown the next season on a larger scale. If it fails, a repetition should.be made, as the failure maybe wholly owing to local and unusual circumstances. But in no case should the first experiment with an untested and an uncertain crop be made on a large scale. There are many farms which are specially adapted to the production of certain crops, but which are not valuable for ordinary farm purposes. The farmer who owns such land, and understands its capacities, is sometimes enabled to obtain very large returns. The cranberry lands of New Jersey and Massa- chusetts were once considered almost worthless. But when the owners came to understand the capacity of these "bogs" and " flats," they found that they had some of the most pro- I ■ Ai III 126 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ductive land in the country. There are other crops which are not adapted to general cultivation, but which will thrive in some peculiar soils and which can be made very profitable for the farmers who engage in their production. Not only should those who seem to have special privileges in this direction make careful experiments in order to determine the capacity of their farms, but those who have only the common soils, and grow only the ordinary crops, should not be contented with the present yield of their products unless they have proved that the limit of profitable production has already been reached. Many a man is cutting only a ton, or a ton and a half of hay per acre each year from land which might just as well produce two tons. Others are buying the brcadstuffs for family use, while they have plenty of land on which they might grow good crops of wheat. Some who have followed the old system of farming have very little idea of the increase of crops which they might secure if they would, by the application of fertilizers, and by thorough cultivation, test the productive capacity of their land. We think that there is such a thing as crowding up the rate of production too high, but not one farmer in a thousand ever errs in this direction. The great majority are too well satisfied with a low yield. If they obtain a ton and a half of hay from an acre, they do not think o{ asking whether the same land might not be made, without much extra cost, to produce two tons. If they get fifty bushels of corn per acre, they do not ask whether the land is capable of yielding seventy-five bushels. Neither are they as careful as they should be to determine whether their land is best adapted to corn, or wheat, or some other crop. In short, they have not thoroughly tested their farms, and do not know the productive capacity of their land in regard to the quantity of the crops which they grow, and have not determined the important question from which of the crops they do or can produce they can obtain the largest percentage of profit. On this account many farmers are working at a great disadvantage. ANALYSIS OF SOILS. 127 They. are very much in the dark concerning their business. They know that if a merchant made no effort to sell those classes of goods which pay a fair profit he could not succeed. They ought to see that it is just as important that they should obtain a profit on the crops which they produce. If they know just what crops will pay them the best, and then grow those crops to the best advantage, they will be very sure to obtain large returns; while if they are ignorant of the capacity of their farms, or neglect to obtain from their land all that they might and ought to secure, their business will not be profitable, and they will soon be complaining that " farming don't pay." iiwamirsis OF SOI1L8. >VVENTY-FIVE years ago it was thought, by men who had made scientific agriculture a close study, that by '^y'- "^'^^"^ °^ ^" analysis the degree of futility of any soil -G could be accurately determined. It was supposed that by this method the chemist could tell the farmer which crops would yield him the largest quantity per acre, which were best adapted to each particular field, and what kind and quantity of fertilizers would be needed to keep his land constantly pro- ductive. But when brought to the great test of practical application, there were found to be two objections to the plan. In the first place it was very expensive. Unless there were a reasonable degree of certainty that a great deal of practical and useful information could be obtained, the farmer could not afford to invest the amount of money which is required to make anything like a complete analysis of the soil in the different fields of his farm. But the second objection was still stronger than the first. Not only was it costly, but it was also just about useless. It did show the farmer the constituents of the soil, but it did not show him, what it was fully as important for him to know, what elements were in a condition in which ijfi illl ill 128 FARMING hOR PROhiT. they could be assimilated by the crops. It had been supposed that if a soil contained Ir. ge quantities of the elements of which the crops to be grown were composed, it would certamly be very productive. But in practice it was found that because a certain field contained large quantities of potash, or phosphoric acid, or lime, it did not follow that it would produce large crops The chemist, with his powerful agents, can obtain from certain soils the elements of fertility in great abundance, while a large proportion of these elements exist in such a condition that the plants can make no possible use of them. For all present prac- tical purposes these soils are barren, but if they were to be judged by the results of a chemical analysis, they would be considered extremely valuable. In order to be productive the soil must not only contain the materials of which plants are composed, but must have them well distributed throughout the surface of the land, and they must be in a condition in which they can readily be used by the crops. The mechanical con- dition of the soil has very much to do with its productiveness. Of this fact the chemical analysis makes no account. But in a practical point of view it is one of the determining forces which regulate the yield of the crops. If a soil is extremely liard, it is easy to see that the weak roots of plants cannot easily pene- trate it. No matter how much plant-food it may contain, a very large proportion of it is locked up in the soil beyond the reach of the crops, and is, therefore, practically useless. On the other hand, a soil may be quite deficient in the elements which plants require, and yet be so loose and open that the roots can reach every part of it and obtain all the food which there is. According to the chemist such a soil would be nearly worthless, but for practical purposes it would be more valuable than the other. Again, it has been often proved that a mixture of difierent soils, such as clay and sand, has produced much larger crops than either kind had grown before the change was made. Although the chemist would have said that the lit ANALYSIS OF SOILS. 129 clay was by far the most fertile, and it would naturally follow that an intermingling of a poorer kind of soil would instantly deteriorate its quality, yet the invariable effect of such an operation is a large and immediate increase of its productive power. From this it will be seen that, as far as a thorough analysis of the soil is concerned, the farmer has but very little to hope from the aid of iho chemist. It must not be inferred, however, that the farmer is not indebted to the chemist, and that the great science of chemistry can throw no light upon the course which the farmer should pursue. Far from it. Chemistry '^annot do everything, it is true. In some respects it has fa ;d 'CO do all which it was hoped would be accomplished by its aid. But in many respects it has proved an immense advantage to the farmer, and it is every day aiding him in his work. Even though the direct analysis proves imperfect, chemistry teaches the farmer how to test his soils so as to determine the character of the fertilizers v/hich they require. It shows him the com- position of the various plants which he cultivates, and the quan- tities of each of the fertilizing elements which an average crop abstracts from the soil. In many other ways it also proves a great help in the work of the farm. That every farmer ought to know what elements of fertility his land contains in excess, and in what ones it is deficient, is so plain a truth that it needs only to be stated in order to be generally accepted. And because chemical analysis fails to give all the knowledge which is desired upon this subject, it by no means follows that this knowledge cannot be obtained. Not only is it not beyond the reach of the careful and intelligent farmer, but the results of chemical analyses make its attainment com- paratively easy. Chemistry teaches us that plants take a large part of their constituents directly, or indirectly, from the air, and the remainder from the soil. Though there is a great difference in the quantity of materials, both classes are abso- lutely necessary for the growth and perfection of the plant ill i 3 I I ^ I i 130 I'.tk'MfXG FOR PROFIT, Even if there were an unlimited amount of the atmospheric and organic elements within reach of the plants, they would not thrive if the sui)ply of a single one of the mineral ingredients were deficient. Theie might be more nitrogen in the soil than ten crops could require, and all in a condition to be used, together with a 'a-ge over-sup])ly of most of the mineral elements, yet if there were a deficiency in any one of the constituents of the plant the growth would be imperfect, and large crops could not be produced. It is also impossible for an excess of one mineral to counterbalance the deficiency of another. Potash and phosphoric acid arc both required in certain well-defined quan- tities, but one cannot take the place of the other, and too much of one will not in the least help a short supply of the other. Consequently, if any one of the principal elements of plant nutrition becomes exhausted, or so nearly exl^austed that it cannot furnish an adequate supply, the crops will be small until this element is restored to the soil. The element to be supplied in any given case is not to be determined by an analysis, as was formerly supposed, but by careful experiment. Only a very few of the elements are at all likely to become exhausted. Of these the principal mineral ingredients are phosphoric acid and ' potash, while nitrogen is the only organic element which the farmer needs to supply. It is, therefore, very easy to test the requirements of a field. By applying nitrogen upon one plot, phosphoric acid upon another, and potash upon a third, and carefully noting the cfiTcct, the owner can very soon tell which of these materials the soil needs the most, and can form a very good estimate of the proportions in which they should be applied. In some cases the application of one of these elements will be suflRcient, while in others all three may be required. This point can be readily settled by intelligent observation. The expense involved in making these experiments is very small. The pub- lishers of the American Agriculturist, Professor Atwater, of Connecticut, and the " Mapes Formula and Peruvian Guano ANAL VSIS OF SOILS. 131 Co.," have made an arrantjcnicnt whereby this question of the needs of the soil may be very casi'y answered. The various fertilizers fur suppiy.ng the different elements of plants are put up in small quantities, sufficient for one acre of land, which is to be divided into ten equal parts, and sold at cost, rull instructions for use accompany each sample which 's sent out. To the farmer who has soils which are partially exhausted, this is one of the greatest aids which has ever been offl-red. and it can also be made very useful to those whose land Ks m good condition, and who wish to keep it constantly pro- h pre ers. select h.s own materials and t^ his experiments with- out e.t er mstruction or aid from others. He can obtain and use ZtL f'rr' '" ^'^ ^-"-^-o^-a-^hes. he can obtain quanfty of fish-guano and thus supply his land with nitrogen, and he can buy a lot of bones and obtain phosphoric acid Bu .n e latter method there is much uncertainty' and though th ^ PP . cat. on of any. or all. of these materials will be almo^ sure o be h.ghly beneficial son. tune, it will not enable the farmer to determme e.ther readily or accurately just what are the pnJt requirements of his land If ;« n^f ^^^^^ present whirh f , , °^ ''" economical manner in' which to conduct h s exocrlmonf,: xk t. .u , . experiments. Though very much better he can pursue. He need, to know no. merely what will .nakc pan. g but wat particular elements of plant-food his soir needs at the present t,n,e. The results of general experiments w,ll no. prove sufficiently accurate .o be a safe guide in fu.ure- and more extensive operations. "e in mture ' II 111 132 FARMING FOR PROFIT. PI^ANT UFS AND GROWTH. J HEN wc approach the subject of plant life and growth, we *?| f I *^°"^^ *"*° ^^ presence of a great mystery. We cast a «(5^ small seed into the earth. For months, perhaps for •^ a) years, that seed has been lying dormant. As far as mere appearance is concerned it seems as devoid of life as the stones in the field. But its dull and lifeless covering contains a germ which under certain favorable circumstances will be developed into a complete organism. The moisture of the earth . causes the seed to swell, and, in a short time, a tiny stalk pushes itself toward the light and air, while a little root starts down- ward into the earth. The dormant seed has become a living thing, and, if no untoward event befalls it, will produce a plant which will ripen many seeds, each after its own kind, and each possessing the mysterious powers of life and reproduction. The development of the little seed into the larger plant, its growth, its ripening, and its provision for an unbroken succession of the plants of its kind, are, in themselves, simple operations, but they indicate the existence of a Creator, an Infinite One, whose -wisdom is utterly beyond our comprehension, and who is pos- sessed of almighty power. We can see the various processes of growth, and we can facilitate or retard them if we choose. Man can stimulate the growth of the seed and can make the plant far more productive than it was in its natural state. By care in saving and storing them he can preserve the life of many kinds of seeds for a long period ; but when, from any cause, the •seed has lost its vitality, he can no more supply the life-giving principle than he can create a world. We know that under cer- tain circumstances seeds which have not been injured will grow, and we also know that certain conditions, many of which we can cont>-ol, are highly favorable to the rapid development cf plants. 'Of the knowledge at our command we should make all the prac- tical use which we possibly can, for, upon our attention to, or - the roots to make a very rapid growih. The loosening of th.* soil also acts beneficially in time of drought, as it tends ^ to condense the moisture of the air in the tbrm e taken this year, and if the land has rest, or crops which use *ut a small quantity of this element are grown, more can be taken in the future. By the action of the sun, and rain, and atr, chenucal and. mechanical changes are constantly being made :in the soil. Day by day the disintegrating process goes on. The land is absorbing nitrogen from the air, potash and phos- ^Aoric acid are being set free in the soil, and thus a supply of plant-food is constantly being provided by nature. A frequent change of crops draws more equally upon the supplies which are thus made ready for the plants, prevents the mpid deterioration of the land which must otherwise result, and also secures a larger percentage of profit from their production than xould be obtained if no change were effected. While plants very closely foUow the law that like produces like, It ,s Htill true that man is dble lo exert a Teiy strong modi- k '4. 142 FARMING FOR PROFIT. fying influence upon them. By careful selection and skilful culture, plants can be bred as truly and as exactly as animals. Their time of reaching maturity can be hastened or delayed, their size can be largely increased or diminished, the form of their flowers can be changed, and they can be made much more prolific than they are in their natural state. The gardener and the florist make constant use of their powers in these directions, and the practical farmer often finds it beneficial to avail himself of the results of their efforts, and to supplement these with his own labors in the same field. The principal changes in the character of plants which farmers desire are those affecting their size, time of maturing, and their yield of valuable products. These changes are secured in various ways. V^hen single specimens are wanted, as a dwarf maple or walnut, the Japanese method of severe root-pruning and frequent transplanting may be adopted. The union of different trees by grafting will some- times accomplish this result. The dwarfing of the pear by grafting it upon the quince is a very common practice, and furnishes a good illustration of the principle under consider- ation. Garden plants may be dwarfed by frequently cutting the roots, or by occasional transplantings. By following this plan for several years, and carefully saving the seed of these plants, the dwarf habit will probably become fixed. But for practical purposes it is usually found better to increase rather than check the ordinary development of plants. By selecting the largest specimens which can be found for seed, planting them on rich land, using the very largest specimens which result from this planting for seed for the next crop, and continuing this course year after year, the size of almost any variety of grain can be largely increased. Rich land, high culture, and careful selection of seed, will be very certain to accomplish the desired result. A change in the time in which any kind of grain will mature its seed can be effected in a somewhat similar manner. For, altliough plants are specially adapted to certain conditions, they PLANT LIFE AND GROWTH. 143 have considerable flexibility in adapting themselves to the cir- cumstances in which they may be placed. A variety of corn, which in Canada will ripen in ninety days from the time of planting, if taken to the Middle States, will gradually grow larger ;:nd ripen later. Finding that it has much more time in which to mature, it will grow with reference to a longer season than the ones to which it had been accustomed. So rapid is this change that farmers in Southern Massachusetts, who want a variety of corn which will ripen early, frequently send to Canada, or to Northern Vermont for seed. The first year after planting, the corn ripens very early, sometimes as soon as the middle of August, but the second year it is later, and in a few seasons it becomes so thoroughly acclimated as to require as much time in which to mature as the ordinary varieties need. On the other hand, if corn is saken from a warm to a colder climate, if the change is not so great as to wholly prevent the ripening of the seed, a directly opposite change will take place. The corn will ripen earlier than it did in its Southern home, and thus adapt itself to surrounding circumstances. This is on the supposition that natural laws are allowed to have their full influence, and man makes no effort to check or change their workings. But by skilful management the tendency which has been noted can be fully controlled. If desirable, some progress can be made toward the other extreme. By selecting the ears of corn or heads of wheat, which ripen first, using them for seed, and from their crops obtaining the earliest specimens, and fol- lowing this course several successive years, all tendency to ripen later in the season can be overcome, and a very early ripening variety be secured. By the opposite course in selecting seed the grain can be made to ripen much later than its natural time. Other things being equal, those specimens of grain are the most valuable which are the meet prolific. Consequently the skilful farmer makes an effort to increase the yield of his crops. i 144 FARMING FOR PROFIT. not merely by increasing the fertility of his land, or hy sowing* an excessive amount oi seed in order to secure a very large number of plants, but by selecting the most prolific plants which he can find. These other methods have often been tried, but they are defective both in theory and in practical applf- cation. It is necessary to have the land in good condition, and to use a suitable quantity of seed in order to secure a good crop. But after reaching a limit which is not far beyond the general practice of the better class of farmers, an increase in the former direction does no good, while an increase in the latter works positive evil. The main hope of the farmer who is to improve the quality and increase the yield of his grain lies in the line of a careful and intelligent selection of the seed from which his crops are to be produced. The quality of yielding large crops can be made a permanent characteristic just as truly ?s that of early ripening. The seed from a very prolific plant will be likely to produce other prolific plants. The farmer who will take advantage of this characteristic of plant-growth will be able to do much toward making his business very successful. In their natural state, and when left to follow out their own inclinations, the smaller plants seem to live and grow for the one end of reproduction. When they have matured their seed, and thus provided for a succession of their kind, they seem to have fulfilled their mission. Soon after this end has been secured, the plants -perish and are succeeded by others. The larger class of plants, including trees, which require many years in which to mature, generally produce seed annually for many successive years. But the plants in which the farmer has the deepest interest are comparatively small in size and short-lived. Their reproductive functions are exercised the first or second year of their growth. They are divided into three classes : annuals, biennials and perennials. The former, of which corn, oats and beans are examples, grow from seed, produce flowers, and ripen is no way by which they their seed in a single se.^son TU. PLANT LIFE AND GROWTH. 145 can be kept alive more than one year. Biennials live only two years: beets, carrots and onions, are familiar examples of this class. In severely cold climates many biennials need protection during the winter, or they will be destroyed by the frost. During the first season these plants store up a large amount of nutritive matter in bulbs or roots, with the design that this material shall be used the next year to supply the wants of the plant during its exhausting efforts to mature its seed. The second season, if the plant reaches it unharmed, one or more seed-stalks are thrown up, flowers are produced, the seed forms and is ripened, and when the pod which contains it tails off, or by splitting open allows the seed to reach the soil, the plant dies. The bulb which grew the first year does not grow during the second season ; and the stores of food which had been obtained and stored within it are exhausted in the pro- cesses of flowering and seeding. Theoretically, perennial plants are " ever living." But many of the plants which the farmer cultivates become weakened by age, so that it is found profitable to ignore, to some extent at le^st, their perennial nature. Some of our best grasses are perennial, but the hay crop can be largely increased by re-seeding the land every four or five years. The same is true of some other plants. Climate also has some effect upon this haracter of plants. This is illustrated bv the cotton plant, which is an annual in this country, but a perennial in hot climates. Whatever the length of time which a plant has to live, it will follow a fixed order of growth and development. When it has attained a certain age, it will, if the surroundings are favorable, blossom, and from the flowers then put forth produce its seed. In some cases, as the apple, there is a fruit with the seed enclosed. In others, like the pea and bean, there is only the seed. The flowers of some plants are perfect, and provide for their own fertilization and the perfection of their seed. The apple-blossom furnishes a good illustration. Other plants produce different flowers which 146 FARAflNG FOR PROFIT. are imperfect alone, but, if both are allowed to develop, are perfect together. The common corn is a fine specimen of this class of plants. The "tassel" is one flower; the "silk" the other. One fertilizes the other, and secures the production of seed. But neither one alone would be useful. If all the tassels were removed from a field of corn as soon as they were fairly out of their leaves, and there was no other corn m the vicinity, there might be a fine growth of stalks and plenty of cobs, but n-t a single kernel of corn would be produced in the whole field. The preservation of the "tassels" and removal of the " silk " would also secure the utter barrenness of the plants. Some varieties of the strawberry have imperfect flowers, and, though the plants may be very strong and look nicely, when planted by themselves they will produce but very little fruit. By setting a vigorous perfect variety in every third or fourth row, all the plants may be made fruitful. It will be seen that the flowers are very important organs, and are essential to the reproduction of the plant. If the blossoms are removed or destroyed, neither fruit nor seed can be obtained. If they are weak, or imperfect in any respect, the fruit and seeds both suffer in consequence. The essential organs to plant-reproduction are the stamens and pistils. Plants which are perfect have both, either in one flower, like the fertile varieties of the strawberry, or in two, like the corn plant. The stamens secrete a fine dust called pollen, which is received and absorbed by the pistils, which are fecundated thereby. The pollen is scattered upon the pistils by the winds and by insects, which in great numbers spend much of their time in going from flower to flower. The experiment of artificial fertilization has often been tried, but has seldom proved beneficial. Nature seems to have made ample provision for the preservation of the different varieties of plants. In order to change the character of varieties, horticulturists sometimes resort to a process c^WeA hvhWci.zaH-" 'T-hJ- -•- - PLANT LIFE AND GROWTH. 147 " crossing " of two varieties which belong to species which are very closely allied. These are the only kinds with which it can be effected. The method which is adopted is to remove all the stamens from the flower of one kind which is to be " crossed " before they have deposited their pollen, and dust the pistils with pollen from the other variety. This is done in the hope of combining the fine qualities of both kinds in a single plant. With fruits the qualities of hardiness and earliness possessed by one kind can sometimes be united with the fine flavor which distinguishes another, and thus a variety greatly superior to either of the parents can be established. It is a difficult matter to obtain any great degree of success in these efforts, but they are sometimes very well rewarded. Rogers' Hybrid grapes, some of which are very fine indeed, are examples of the successful result attending some experiments inthis direction. Lest some of our practical readers should feel that we have devoted too much space to describing how plants grow, and imagine that we have lost sight of our expressed intention to. try to show how farming can be made not only a pleasant busi- ness, but also how it can be made to pay, we will briefly allude to some of the points which have been brought out, and show that they have as thoroughly practical a bearing as any one can- desire. Still, we think if this were omitted, and even if the processes of plant-growth had no particular bearings of a practical nature upon a farmer's work, the space devoted to a consideration of this subject would be far from wasted. Knowl- edge is valuable, and its possession makes a man happier than he could be if he remained in ignorance. It gives him some- thing about which to think. There are men so ignorant that they work very much like their horses and oxen. Such men are not usually successful in any sense of the t^5»i-^&-. farmer spends a large part of his waking hours itilk^ianarJ'c'. laboratory of nature. He knows that plants grow, ^SV ^^S\ % tlie operation going on all around him. But this shfeilj^^^ 't? 148 FARMING FOR PROFIT. enough. He ought to inquire how they grow, and by what means their progress can be increased. Especially should the boys who work on the land be made acquainted with the prin- ciples of plant life and growth. A little knowledge upon this subject would make their work seem lighter, and give them a taste for agricultural pursuits. We have seen that the well-developed seed, which has not been injured, is possessed, in some mysterious manner, of the undeveloped powers of life and growth. Though man 'cannot impart vitality to a seed which has lost its power of germination, he can do much to insure the prompt germination of good seeds' and hasten the growth of the plants produced therefrom. The fact that in the first stages of development plants are very weak, should lead the farmer to carefully prepare his land for the reception of the seed. For if the land is not in good condition, the plants will not be able to obtain nourishment enough to give them a vigorous start, and on account of this deficiency in the early and critical stage of their growth, they will always be -weak, and will be comparatively unproductive. As the plant is sustained upon the nourishment which is stored up in the seed until its roots are sufficiently developed to -obtain food from the soil, and its leaves reach the light and air, it is a matter of great importance that the seed shall not be planted too deeply; while the fact that a certain degree of moisture is necessary to insure the rapid germination of the seeds, and hasten the growth of the plants, makes it evident that covering to a proper depth is essential As an excess of moisture utterly destroys the seed, the benefit of draining land that is excessively wet is apparent. Because seeds must have moisture before they can grow, it does not follow that they shoujd be planted in the water or in a water-soaked soil. The "knowledge that germination can be hastened places within Teach of the farmer the power to insure the growth of certain •crops, which if planted after the ordinarj.' manner are very likely \ PLANT LIFE AND GROWTH. 149 to fail. It also enables him, when obliged to plant late in the season, to obviate some of the difficulties in which he would otherwise be involved. A knowledge of the way in which plants grow shows the farmer the great benefits which result from a frequent and thorough cultivation of the land. By loosening the soil around • the plants he enables the air to penetrate it to a greater depth, thus insuring its rapid absorption of the fertilizing gases of the' atmosphere. He also aids and hastens the disintegrating pro- cess which nature is constantly carrying on, and by means of which the elements of fertility which are locked up in the soil are made available. Frequent stirring of the soil makes its parfcles fine, allows them to b. easily dissolved by rains and dews, and thus sets free th t-food which they contain. And •f the ground is kept lo... and open, the roots of the crops can readily penetrate it in search of food, and thus a rapid growth of the plants can be secured. By knowing something of the methods of plant-growth the farmer u able to labor intelligently to destroy the insects'and prevent the diseases which prey upon his crops. Ignorant effort would avail but little. But the farmer who knows that it IS possible to feed J.is plants so well that there will be sufficient food for plants and insects both, can easily avoid most of the evil effects of their depredations. The farmer who is wise enough to soak the seed of his grain crops in something which will destroy the germs of disease, will thus prevent a great loss, and be far more successful than one who thinks but little and reads less. The farmer who knows that the weeds which grow m cultivated crops are sustained by plant-food which the crops ought to have will labor more intelligently, and with greater perseverance to destroy them than one who regards them merely as obstacles to the easy harvesting of his crops The man who knows that corn and potatoes take the various elements of plant-food from the soil in very different proportions 160 FARMING FOR PROFIT. will not commit the mistake of growing either crop on the same land year after year, but will alternate these and other crops, and will thus prevent the exhaustion of any of the elements from the soil. In his change of crops .e will labor intelligently, and if he is a careful reader, he can very accurately adapt his crops to the condition of his land and the quality of the fertilizers which he is able to apply. His knowledge of the methods of plant-growth will take his work out of the realm of chance. He will not be obliged to "guess," but can be able to know what crops to raise and how to grow them profitably. The fact that knowledge concerning this department of his business will enable the farmer to modify the size of his plants, vary their time of ripening, and make them more prolific, is abundant proof that the information given about the methods of plant-growth is not merely theoretical, but is thoroughly practical. While it may confer pleasure and satisfy curiosity, it also yields great practical benefits. A knowledge of the method in which the reproductive process of plants is carried on places within reach of the farmer, who has time and patience for the work, the means of greatly increasing the value and productiveness of his crops. It is this knowledge worked out into practical experience which has given the farmers of this country their best varieties of grain, their finest fruits, and the improved potatoes which are now so com- monly grown. It enables the farmer who does not feel able to obtain new varieties to select seed in the best possible manner from those which he already has, and to rapidly improve both their yield and quality. Instead of being merely theoretical, and calculated only to gratify curiosity, knowledge upon the subject of plant life and growth is of immense advantage to the practical man who will u.ie it aright, and it ought to be secured by every one who tills the soil. I lERTILIZERS. 151 I FSRTXLIZSH8. JE have endeavored to show that plant-growth is not a creation, but a gradual formation, by certain well- defined processes, of plants out of substances which are contained in the soil and air. While man is utterly powerless to give life to a seed which has lost its vitality, or to restore to vigorous growth a plant that is dead, it is possible for him to do much to promote the growth and increase the yield of plants which are alive. Some of the methods by which he can accomplish this result have been already alluded to, but their importance demands a much more careful consideration. It is not enough to know that plants obtam food from the soil, though this knowledge is valuable and may be made the base' for effective action. Neither is it enough to be acquainted with the methods of plant-growth. We must go farther, and make our knowledge available for practicrl use. Several of the pecu- liarities of plants are of sufficient in.portance to warrant a careful consideration by themselves. Of these, the kinds of food which are required, and the method -five parts in every one hundred are required. Of the latter, only the remaining five 162 FARMING FOR PROFIT. one-hundredths. The organic elements can be destroyed by fire and under the influence of a high degree of heat will disappear m the form of invisible gases. The inorganic elements were improperly named, for they are as essential to the organization of the plant as the organic. When a plant is burned, these inorganic elements remain in the form of ash. Though orly a very small part of the plant, this is all the substance which it derived directly from the land. It has been estimated, however that on account of the existence of all the atmospheric elements' m the soil, plants really derive about one-half of their material from the earth. The organic elements of which plants mrl.e use are four in number: oxygen, hydrogen, carbon and nitro- gen. Of these all except nitrogen are furnished in sufficient quantities by nature, and this is also supplied to some extent. As we shall have occasion to refer to this element many times, it may be well fo say that it is always obliged to undergo a chemical change b '^re it can be used as food for plants. Uniting with oxygen it forms nitric acid, while in union with hydrogen it forms ammonia. Both of these are powerful fertilizers, but it is in the latter form that nearly all of the nitrogen which plants use is made available. Consequently, nitrogen and ammonia are often used as interchangeable terms.' When ammonia is spoken of, it always indicates nitrogen in a condition immediately available for plant-food; but nitrogen may be what its name implies, and yet be in such a form that it cannot be used for a long time. Some authorities consider the nitrogen in organic matter worth only three-fifths as much as actual ammonia. This point should always be kept in mind when the relative value of fertilizers is under consideration. Otherwise serious mistakes will be made. The inorganic elements, though forming such a small propor- tion of the substance of the plant, are eight or ten in number. But with several of these the farmer has but little to do, as there J3 a great abundance in ali soils, and he never needs to supply 4 FERTILIZERS.. 153 them. As far as plant-food in itself is considered, there is not often a necessity for applying soda, or sulphuric acid, and except in occasional instances, or. for special crops, there is no call for the use of magnesia. In large sections of the country there is no need of applying lime for the purpose designated. The elements which are in almost universal requisition, which are needed almost everywhere and almost always, and the only ones for which there is anything like a general demand, are phosphoric acid and potash. With this knowledge of the materials of which they are composed, it jeems as if it would be very easy to insure the rapid growth and perfect develop- ment of plants. It is reasonable to suppose that if man will supply an abundance of the raw materials, nature will elaborate them and convert them into living structures. Practical experi- ments continued through many successive years prove that this is as true in practice as it is evident in theory. If man furnishes the proper materials \a sufficient quantity and in a suitable condition for use, and will take good care of his plants, he will be amply rewarded by -a bountiful crop. It is now in order to consider the Sources of Supply of these elements of which plants are composed. These are several in number, and diverse in character. Of some of these materials the Atmosphere furnishes an inexhaustible supply. These are distributed everywhere. Man can neither increase . nor diminish the supply, and there is not the slightest need of his making the attempt. It is wonderfully compounded, and is perfect in its action and its effects. V/hether the soil is rich or poor, whether the plants are well supplied with mineral ele- ments, or are starved for want of them, there will be no scarcity of the atmospheric materials which are required for their growth. Still, it is possible for man to cut himself off from the benefits so liberally bestowed. If he grows l,is plants in such dense masses that the air cannot obtain access to them, they will not thrive as they ought. The sunlight and air are 164 FARMING FOR PROFIT. absolutely necessary, to the securing of rapid and healthful plant- growth. It is utterly useless to attempt to grow plants without them. For, though there are materials enough in the air to supply all the elements in rich abundance which ever come from that source, there must, of necessity, be room for the circulation of the air, the admission of the sunshine, and space enough between the plants to allow the rapid evaporation of water which may fall in heavy showers or long-continued storms. If he will simply give room enough to allow the fulfillment of th 3e conditions, the farmer may rest assured that all the oxygen, hydrogen, and carbon, which his plants require, will be fur- nished free of cost. Of the remaining organic element, nitrogen, the atmosphere also furnishes a co,,^ idcrable quantity,' but not enough to supply the needs of plants. Some of these elements are used in the form of water, others are inhaled by the leaves, while the remainder pass from the air to the soil before being used by plants. Water may also be considered as one of the sources of supply of food for plants. As plants receive their food from the soil in a liquid, soluble form, and cannot make use of it in any other way, it is evident that water plays an important part in plant life and growth. It is composed of oxygen and hydrogen, and furnishes both of these elements to the plant. It brings down, when falling as rain, nitrogen from the air, and also absorbs it during diy weather. Many plants are very largely composed of water, and could not flourish • without large quantities were constantly supplied. The cabbage plant is neariy nine-tenths water, and potato-tubers owe three- quarters of their weight to the same material. Other plants use much smaller proportions, but cannot grow without some water is supplied. As water serves the riple purpose of supplying plant-food in its own constituents, absorbing it from the air, and acting as a vehicle for carrying to the plant the food already contained in the soil, it can be readily seen that the success of the former will be largely influenced by the water- FERTILIZERS. jg- supply of his plafits. The regulation of this supply is also a matter of great importance, and will be considered in due time. The sources from which plant-food are obtained which have been already considered are subject to the control of man in only a small degree, and many of the elements which are thus provided are furnished in such abundance as to need no effort on the part of the farmer to increase the quantity which nature bestows. It now remains for us to consider the Soil as not only an important, but. as far as man is concerned, by far the most important of any of the sources from which food for plants can be obtained. A large part of his labor is devoted to its cultivation, and to the soil he adds the fertilizing elements which he uses to increase the growth of his crops. In itself the soil is a great storehouse of plant-food, and it is constantly absorbing valuable elements from the air, and securing them from the decomposition of vegetable and animal substances in and upon the land. The supply of plant-food is not uniform in all soils, but in those which have not been injured by the removal of successive crops without an adequate return of fertilizing materials, or which, on account of some peculiar local causes, are barren, there is a large quantity of materials which are' capable of being converted into plant-food. If we consider their formation, we shall find that soils have within themselves a wonderful recuperative power, and that those which have been 'exhausted can again be made fertile by means of the changes which are wrought by time. It will also be evident that all soils now in good condition can be easily kept up to their present state of fertility. It is supposed, and this theory does not conflict with a reverent acceptance of the Bible, that the land which is now capable of being cultivated was once solid rock, and that ages ago, long before man was created upon the earth, this rock was ground, and scratched, and scoured, by vast fields of ice which m the form of glaciers flowed over the continents; that by the SP! 166 FARMING FOR PROFIT. mean, of tcrnfic storms, by the alternations of cold and heat and the vanous chemical and mechanical changes which were thus effected, the rock was fitted for the production of certain plants of a low order. These sprung up, matured, and decayed Others succeede,] them in the same course. When sufficient orgamc matter had been formed, a higher class of plants ap- peared. These in turn absorbed from the air vast quantities of those elements of plant-food which it is its office .u supply drew from the earth the mineral elements necessary for theii perfection, and in due time perished, leaving all their rich aeeumulations of plant-food in and upon the soil. Meanwhile c ,mat,c changes had been going on, and the earth was being fitted for man. During these ages the soil was not only fitted to produce the plants which are useful to men, and which now cover the earth, but vast quantities of carbon were taken from the air by the dense vegetation which at some periods covered the world, and were stored up for the use of men and plants in the future The great beds of coal which are found in various I«rts of the world are stores of carbon which were gathered by Plants ,n the olden time. This coal not only proves of immen^ value for fuel, but when it is burned it sets free a large quantity of carbomc acd which goes into the atmosphere and furnishes food for the support of plant-life. Thus even the coal, which the farmer would „a.un>lly suppose could be of no benefit to h,m except keep him warm, becomes an active agent for supp y,„g h,s plants with one of the elements of thL food whch, hey need m large quantities. The rocks which had been pulvcr.ed furn.shed mineral food for plants, the decay of vas" masses of vegetation supplied carbon and ammonia, and the air and water furnished oxygen and hydrogen in great abundance. In th,s way the world was slowly adapted to become the abode of man, and to produce those plants and fruits which are necessary to promote his comfort and happiness Soils vao' greatly in color and in some of their other FERTILIZERS. 167 characteristics. This diflbrcnce is caused by the difierent nature of the rocks of which they were composed. The sandstone, granite, and limestone rocks have been converted into diflbrcnt colored soil, but this color, while showing the origin of the soil, does not furnish an index to its fertility. In addition to the soils which were formed from the underlying rocks there are in many localities, tracts of land the surfaces of which have bcm' formed wholly by deposit. These are usually very productive Where they are still subjected to an annual overflow of rivers and deposit of the impurities of the water, they produce good crops without manure and retain their fertility. But ordinary soils cannot endure this treatment without injuty. They will produce crops which, if allowed to deca> where they grow, will make the land more fertile, as they will return not only all which they have taken from the soil, but also all the organic materials which they secured from the atmosphere. But when man removes a crop, he thereby takes from the soil all the mineral elements contained in what he secures. If he returns nothing, his soil grows poorer and poorer with the growth of every crop,' and in time will become unproductive. Some soils become deficient in one ingredient while having plenty of the other ele- ments which are needed, while from others a different element is first exhausted. Therefore it is necessary to know something of the formation of an exhausted soil, and the cropping which it has received, before it will be plain what particular fertilizers to apply. In some measure the soil can be made self-fertilizing. The rocks of which our soils have been made contained the mineral elements of plant-food. By the grinding, and pulverizing, and chemical changes through which they have passed, these rocks have been fitted for the sustenance of crops. But this has been done in a very gradual manner, and in this way the process is still going on. Only a very slight proportion of the soil is yet fitted for plant-food. The weight of an ordinary- soil on one acre of land, calling it six inches deep, is about six hundred 108 t^AKAtma FOR PKOFIT. tons. The weight of inorganic matter removed from the soil in per acre without manure AnH tK» c i laiiurc. And the failure to produce lirm> needed .o produce .his yield, in a form In which they could^ appropriated bv the crnn tu^ -. ^ ^ not yield well L T "■" '"''" °" "''"■<^'' "''=« ^oes about sixtv .1 ,, "' '"'■ P"P='''>' <««ri'>u.ed, only used, in a whole acre oflanH p , " "^ and the death „f *^ ""'"' °^ "'= '"'^"J' °f Plants, byth oi anrT"' '"^^^'^■'"^^'•"Wfll absorption n.a.eHa;:t: Te cre^l Z^X ''''7'''' ""' °'«=-= going on .lowly, but suT 1 , T T' """^" ^°"'^""^ which plants requi. , Se !ld a. ; ''""' *™^"'' a wise provision for nrev 7 decompos.fon of the soil is man, and ^1!'!'"^ '''"''' '^ *' ""''"""^ "^ generation oXn'asrr; ""''' °' "^ ''''' "" -- inexhaustible as ar a ts "f 7\ "''"'"■ """= ''"' '^ '^''y mav hP h,^i 7 '"^' '^'""■'"'^ "' concerned. It — u.c js Cwnatanuy cariying on. FERTILIZERS. 160 I "111:^'^ " ""■"' " '" '"^^'^^ '-^ ^-^* --te of these Clements, bu he can secure all that the largest crops which can be grown W.I1 require. The method is simple, and consists in merely ollowmg. on a smaller scale, the processes which nature ns so long carried on. Pulverizing the soil will certainly un- ock stores of plant-food which otherwise had remained un- ava.bble. By taking a peck of soil from a common field which has been long under cultivation, drying and sifting it. it w.il be fend that much the larger part will remai. .n U. l.. of l^ ments of rocks, gravel, and hard lun.ps oi e.rd, w; .h will n!t ^ss a fine s.eve. It is only the very fine , a. icle. . hich are in any cond.t.on to yield the plant-food which .., y contain. Con- sequently, only a small proportion of the soil has its plant-foud n an ava able form. But the fragments of rocks, the pebbles the gravel, and the lumps of earth, all contain some of the elements wluch plants require, and will surrender them just as soon as Wiey are pulverized and rendered soluble. This pulveri- zation must be largely done by nature, but man can hasten the work. By using the plow, harrow, clod-crusher, cultivator and hoe. he can break up the lumps of earth and so open the so.l that the carbonic acid from the air can fix "its corrosive teeth " m the atomi of granite, and limestone, and other rocks and break them in pieces for the use of plants. Mechanical and chemical changes are constantly going on, but the more the so.l ,s stirred, and the freer the access which the air can have the more rapid will be their progress. So much can this process be hastened that some farmers have insisted that frequent culture was fully equivalent to manure, and that if the land could have an occasional rest and be thoroughly cultivated it would produce good crops without the addition of foreign sub- stances. We do not favor this extreme view, but there can be no reasonable doubt of the truth of the supposition that the chemical changes which are constantly going on in the soil are continually setting free some of the elements of plant-food 160 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ::.«" ^^'"" "^"'^ .-„ facilitated and, Wed b. On many farms the Sonso.L is also capable of furnishing a supply of plant-food. Many farmers have an idea that this is a wholly .nert substance, and good for nothing except to furnish a fou„da.,o„ upon which the surface soil can res,. They have very earcuily avoided plowing it, as they thought its admltu would certamly weaken the land which they were in the habit of cu,t,vat,ng^ Others have tried the e Jriment of th:ow ng ^p me of the subsoi., and have not been pleased with th! e ul . Thcr crops have not been increased. In some cases they have been very perceptibly diminished. These men have no fa,th ,n m,x,ng the subsoil witj, the surface, and do not beheve that .t will furnish plant-food if loosened and left where olef !, "f f "'" "^ ''"""' ^"^ '*" 'he plan, and are P^ ased w. h the results which were obtained. Some plowed up he subscl, thus exposing it to the iniluences of the light and 'i^ t t'7r'' '°°""^' ■■' "■•"■°"' '="-«'"'^ '- ---e pos, on The different effects which have been obtained as the result of pracbcal experiment can be traced to various caused Promment among these may be named the fact that the s.,bsoii luZ, TT': ve,y different from that of other sections. Wh,le that of one field may be rich in the elements which plants n^^_thao another may be very deficient or may contain L„gs wh,ch w,ll be positively injurious. Again, some so„s need an admixture of their subsoils to make them mcr. retentive o^ moisture, more compact, or to produce otuer mechanical changes .ntheir texture. There are al,,o some fields in which a loos^! ng of the subsoil proves very advan-geous in the removal of urplus water. On the other han 1. .'.re are fields which are in a much better mechanical condl.:,, .^,„ .„ey would be if their oZc77 "I""""' """^ -*-^and others in which a compact subsoil is of very great ..dvantag. in preventing the FERTILIZERS. ,„, leaching of manure beyond the reach of the roots of plants Consequently, it is not at all certain that subsoiling will benefit any and every field which the farmer owns. It may benefit one and mjure another. As far as supplying plant-food is con- cerned, .t seems as if it might be of great benefit. The subsoil as a general thing, is composed of the same rocks as the surface S0.1. and should be rich in mineral elements. It is almost cer- tam that the inju^^ which some farmers have thought resulted from mixing the subsoil with that above it was caused by the use of too large a quantity ai a time. When first plowed up the materials of the subsoil are in a crude state. They need to be warmed by the sun and be chemically acted upon by the light and a,r before they are fitted for supplying the wants of plants If a large quantity of these crude materials is thrown upon the soil at once, a thorough mixture is utterly impossible and tem- porary evil will almost certainly result. In some cases, where the quantity of subsoil thrown up did not seem excessive a very perceptible diminution of the crops has resulted for several suc- cessive years, while in others a marked improvement in the yield was noticed the first season and seems to have become perma- nent. It ,s certain that the subsoil is one of the sources of sup- ply of plant-food, but there are difficulties and disadvantages connected with its use which in some localities, and under some circumstances, make it practically unavailable. Unless the char- acter of the soil is such that common sense will readily show that such an effort will be utterly wasted, practical ex, criir -nt must determine whether subsoiling can be made to pay in any particular field. These great natural sources for the supply of food for ..lants -the atmosphere, water, soil, and subsoil-are sufficient to cause a luxuriant growth on nearly all the land which is so situated as to be adapted to cultivation. Under the undisturbed reign of nature the products of the land would neither decrease m quantity nor be impaired in quality. There would be no 162 FARMING FOR PROFIT. " running out." The process of disintegration which is con- stantly going on in the soil would furnish the mineral elements as fast as they would be required, while the air and the decay of plants in the soil would supply plenty of the organic materials. But in his effort to secure large crops, and to grow plants on soils 'Inch are not their natural homes, man destroys this equi- librium. Instead of allowing the vegetable products of the land to decay thereon and return to the soil all the mineral elements which they had abstracted, and increase its stores of organic matter by the addition of that which in their growth they had secured from the air, man carries off a large pioportion of the plants which are produced. In this way he removes, with every crop, both organic and inorganic materials. The disintegrating processes of nature are not carried on rapidly enough to supply this waste, and, if he makes no return, the farmer will find his land steadily growing poorer with each crop which he removes. Consequently, he must seek other sources of supply than those which nature provides if he wishes to grow good crops and keep his land uninjured. We have found that all the organic elements except nitrogen will be supplied by tfie atmosphere, water, and the soil, and that many of the mineral elements exist in such abundance in the land that it is very seldom that the farmer needs to supply them. But there will usually be a deficiency in the soils which have long been under cultivation of both phosphoric acid and potash. These three elements, nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash, the farmer who is to manage his business either intelligently or profitably must supply. For certain crops he may occasionally need to furnish some of the other elements which plants need, and he may also find it profitable to use some of them for another purpose than that of directly furnishing plant-food from their own substance. Where shall he obtain the materials which he needs in addition to the quantity furnished by the natural agencies which have been considered ? This is a very important r FERTILIZERS. 163 question to the farmer, and one with which the profits of his business are intimately connected. It is of no consequence to the plants where the materials come from or what they cost If they are only in a condition to be used, the plants will take them without regard to their original character. It makes no dif- ference with the plants whether the nitrogen which they receive IS furnished by barn-yard manure or by Peruvian guano; but it may make a great difference with the profit of a .op whether the farmer uses manure which was made on his own farm or is obhged to pay a high price in money for the food which the plants require. The only thing with which the plant is con- cerned is that the food shall be furnished in an available form With the farmer there is the added consideration of the cost which will be involved. There are sources of supply which are altogether too expen- sive to be drawn upon by the practical farmer. These we have neither time nor space to notice, but will devote our efforts to a consideration of those sources from which either the great, majority of farmers can obtain sufficient food for their plants, or which, at least, large classes will find useful for this purpose.. It must not be forgotten that the circumstances of farmers in different parts of the country are veiy diverse, and that, on this account, materials which the increased crop will well repajr one farmer to purchase may be altogether too expensive for another. If other things are equal, or nearly so, the farmer who can obtain a dollar a bushel for his corn can afford to pay much higher prices for plant-food than one who is obliger] to sell for twenty cents a bushel. The man who has a ready and convenient market, and can sell for high prices all the crops which he can raise, can use materials which a man in opposite circumstances can in nowise afford to buy. The man who is obliged to sell his crops for a low price must grow them at very small expense for fertilizers, or he will lo.se money by the operation. He must not only secure something which will 164 FARMING FOa PROFIT. make plants grow, but he must also obtain it cheap. Neglect of this very evident principle has involved v^"rxy a farmer in loss. Too many men have taken it for granted that if a certain fertilizer would make crops grow, it must be a good one for them to obtain. Against this error it will be well to guard. We shall not be obliged to go very far back in the history of agriculture to fina a time when almost the sole reliance of the farmer for fertilizers was placed on Ani'^al E.xcrement. The barn-yard, pig-.'-ty and sheep-fold, were the places where the plant-food used upon the farms was accumulated. Here it remained until it was wanted for use, and it was not diluted by the admixture of any foreign substances. Neither composting nor the importation of concentrated fertilizers had to any extei.'- been attempted. These old sources of supply have not gone out of date, but they have been largely supplemented by the use of materials which our forefathers either considered worthless, or else knew nothing about. Men of the present day have learned how to grow crops without the use of materials which our prc- •decessors called manure, but they have not rendered these materials worthless, nor shown us how to farm to the best advantage without them. We need all the fertilizers \v\ h can be made on the farm, and can often profitably avail ourselve.. of some outside sources of supply. Everything in the form of manure should be carefully saved. A waste of manure, either in point of quantity c quality, is fully equivalent to a waste of money. For the money which the farmer receives is obtained ifrom his crops, and the quantity, quality and value of the crops will depend largely upon the liberality with which they are manured. If the manure is carefully saved and used, large and profitable crops may be obtained ; while if it is wasted, the crops must be small and will fail to pay a fair profit. There are two principal ways in which a great deal of manure is wasted by tho-e who design to be careful farmers. These are fcy undue exposure to the weather, and by uncontrolled fermcn- t / f FERTILIZERS. 165 •-us exposed ^^C,^ Z^TtT '" ^'"'' " '^ extent, leached out and lost ^Cl^V: ^/"-"'-'"e universal method of negleetin., th. J ""'' ^'"''^' class of farmers at L . ^"^bk-manure, but the better stahKorsil^Iott^^e^Zl'^irir*'^ """" *' protected from both sunshine :;;3t™ LT " ''""^ nature ought always to be provided 0,H ^°"'t'"^ "' '"" of the manure will be lost ZZ "' ""'' P'" carting and applyin, it w , b d "°'''' "' "" *= ''^°' "' It costs the farme • rstl ml ,„ ";' ■: "™' '"■'^^™'«^«^- which the best eleme, , If 'r "'"' " '°'" °' """"'-^ «•■'■" leached, a, doeT ' ^ '''" '=^" '"'=°-"<' -<» ,as ,t does an equal quantity which has n„f k mjured But the results of th,^ labor 1„ ''" sometimes quite, double what hi Jill InTh "17 '^ ""'^• excessive fermentation sometimeT I e placets '"" "' heat, but more frequently because nothL of .^/t T""' vided The horse-manure is speciallv iLh, , " '"■°- cause, and often becomes so '^d '^ o" ;reT:r *'' value. To nrevcnf fl,;<= „ . ^ "^'^ °^ »ts water to the'c wi^^rirrrb^^r"' '''"-'- °' horse-manure which is v. u '""^ '' '° '"'^ ^^e cow-manure, ;b!::\::r;rwr^rr ^^^^^^^^^^^^ p-«cahie, or it is d^^d Ji ^z rro^r"^^ '^ ■•"■■ separate, a frequent .reading of Ae 0,110 """"■•' sohd mass, and almost who ly p eve„t """" " '"'° ^ Not only are the solid e^L^T"^ '"'""■'^' I iV ■■■^ i^d FARMING :0R PROFIT. useful. The urine of the horse is more valuable than the solid manure. That of the cow is much inferior to ho r solid excre- ments, but is still very beneficial to plants. Th o urine from an ordinary cow in one year will weigh about two thousand pounds, and is considered worth nearly three dollars. This is quite an item among the various products of the cow, and, like all other liquid manures, ought to be carefully saved. Yet on a great many farms, even in New England, where economy is con- sidered a great virtue, and where the facilities for saving urine are much greater than they are either at the West or South, this valuable material is almost wliv'y waited. We know of farms which are managed by very cconouucal men — men who are too " saving " to take an agricultural i^aper, «>r buy an agri- cultural book — who do not make the slightest effort to utilize the liquid manure made in their stabler, and yards. After their grain has been harvested, they carcfull)' rake the fields in order to obtain the small number of heads which were scattered, and thus save a t.ifle which would otherwise be wasted; but they allow the most valuable part of the manure of t'-^ir horses, and much of the fertilizing material which they might obtain from their cows, to run to waste without an effort to retain and make it useful. Even some of the most intelligent farmers, men who read and study papers and books which treat of their special business, do but little to save the liquid manure, which ought to enrich their land, and feed their crops. Thqir neglect is not due to ignorance or to carelessness, but is caused by a failure to see how the waste can be easily prevented. The plans, proposed by some writers, of having troughs, and tanks, and pumps, seem so complicated, and involve so much labor, that the average farmers think they cannot afford the expense. While something of this kind may be very desirable for large stock-fartns, we think it possible : •. a man who only keeps a few cattle and horses to follow . lore economical method, by which equally good results may be secured. If a \ ^ * FERTILIZERS. st-mcient quantity of dry earth is used for "bedding" and a httle planter is added at proper times, nearly all of the manure both .olid and liquid, can be saved, and can be retained for an mdefin.te length of time without injuo^. In carrying out this plan, considerable labor is involved, but the results will amply justify its expenditure. The best material, all things considered for th.s purpose is muck or peat This should be dug from its' bed. and exposed to the air for several months before being used. This is necessary, because in its crude state it contains a large proportion of water, and various acids which render it unfit for use in stables. The process of decomposition can be hastened considerably, and the water can also be evaporated more rapidly, if the pile is shoveled over every k^ weeks If time and labor for this purpose cannot be spared, the muck may be treated with lime. The lime should be slacked with water and three or four bushels (the measure before slacking) evenly mixed with a cord of muck. The addition ofa bushel of salt to the hme is said to be very beneficial. This should be dissolved m the water in which the lime is slacked. If lime cannot be obtamed. fifteen or twenty bushels of unleached wood-ashes may be used in its stead. This preparatory process should never be neglected, for, until the water with which muck is filled, and the acds which are always present in vegetable deposits which lie in the,r original beds, and which are only partially decomposed, are disposed of, the material is totally unfit for use. The water must be evaporated, and the acid condition must be corrected The former can be done by exposure to the air, and shelter from rams, while the latter requires either considerable time or the aid of lime or ashes as suggested above. Having pre- pared the muck, the next thing to be attended to is to store it m a convenient sh.d or stable from which it can be taken when wanted. If the material is thoroughly dry, only a small quantity per 6:iy will be needed to absorb the liquid manure of each animal. 166 FARMING FOR PROFIT. In order to utilize what might otherwise be waste products of the farm, and also to increase the quantity and value of the fer- tilizer, broken straw, coarse hay, and corn-butts, should be used in connection with the muck. These materials should be run through a feed-cutter before they are spread on the stable-floor. This to hasten decomposition, increase their action as absorb- ents, and make it easier to load and unload the manure. A small quantity of the muck and a little of the strawy material should be scattered upon the stable-floors before the cows are let in at night. Early in the morning the manure and litter should either be thrown out upon the pile, or else a light sprinkling of muck should be thrown over it. When the cows are turned out, the stables should be cleaned, and care should be taken to mix the muck, manure, and straw, as thoroughly as possible. We greatly prefer this to the method which some farmers have adopted, of cleaning the stables only at long intervals, and keeping the animals clean by the daily use of considerable quantities of bedding. But in no case should the manure be thrown into an open yard where the sun will shine upon it, and the rain from the eaves, as well as what would naturally fall upon it, leach • out its most valuable inorganic elements. If there is no cellar in which to store it, a shed for the protection of the manure will pay for itself in a very short time. In addition to the materials already mentioned for common use, plaster can be advantageously employed. A small quantity may be sprinkled in the stables every day. It is, in itself, of some value, as it contains sulphuric acid and lime, both of which materials are used either as plant-food, or to prepar** food for plants. In the stables it absorbs ammonia (the valuable element of nitrogen) and retains it, thus proving a great help in pre- venting the waste which would occur without the use of this or some other powerful absorbent. It is specially valuable in horse-stables where the liability of loss is greatest. In most FERTILIZERS. 169 sections its low price renders this an inexpensive aid in saving th volatile elements of the manure. Sheep-manure is also a very valuable fertilizer, and should be carefully saved. It is much more efficient in producing crops than either horse or cow-manure. This is owing more to its better mechanical condition, than to a superiority of the materials of which it is composed. Considerable bedding may be used in the sheep-pens to good advantage. For this pur- pose either straw or coarse hay. cut into short lengths, will do very well. Although it will remain uninjured for a long time ,f It IS let alone, sheep-manure is subject to violent fermen- tat.on when it is forked over and exposed to the air. Conse- quently it should either be composted or else plowed into the ground as soon as it is removed. It should never be used in the hill, or near the seed of any plants, before fermentation is completed. The pig-pen ought to furnish quite a quantity of good manure It is one of the merits cf the pig that he is capable of manu- factoring a large quantity of manure for a comparatively low price. Give him plenty of muck, straw, and other materials, and he will patiently mix and work them over. When properly managed, the manure from the pig-pen will produce heavy crops of corn, and its good effects can be seen many years after the crop to which it was originally applied has been removed. Many farmers take advantage of the industrious habits of the pig and keep him in a shed into which the manure from the horse and cow-stables is thrown. This he thoroughly works over and greatly improves. Sometimes large quantities of muck or sand are added, and are thoroughly incorporated into the mass by the labors of the pigs. This course insures a large quantity of valuable manure, but ,> is open to many objections. We very much prefer the plan or having a house and yard ,^cially for the hogo. In this yard muck and other material may be thrown and converted into manure. As it is constantly 170 FARMING FOR PROFIT. worked over, fermentation will proceed very slowly and can do no harm. The great things for the farmer to att r.'i ;^ are to keep a propor quantity of material ready for "se anJ luinish a sufficient, but not excessive, supply of moisture. The first of these requirements is easily complied with, but to arrange the latter in a perfectly satisfactory manner is a matter involving greater difficulty. If the yard is left open, and there are no eav-* troughs to the house, so that all the water which falls on one- half the roof as well as what naturally belongs there, is poured into the yard, there will at tii.i'js be so much moisture as to make it very muddy. Though yigs like an occasional vvallow in the mire, they do not pre fer a muddy place for a permanent home, and will not thrive a.; well if kept in a filthy place as they will if they have clean, dry quarters. The quality of the manure is also injured by the presence of too much water. But if the yard is covered with a roof it wHl soon become too drv , and will need the addition of water from a well or cistern. Some farmers roof over part of the yard and leave the rest uncovered. This furnishes a partial remedy for the evils caused by too much or too little moisture. In some way the quantity of water which enters the yard should be controlled, and the material therein kept constantly moist, but never soaking wet. Poultry-manure is also of considerable vak.c and should be carefully saved. As farmers usually allow their hens free range during the day, the quantity which can be sr. urcd from this source is comparatively small. A good shed, or house, should be provided for their night quarters, and the droppings should be removed often enough to keep the room clean. Dr\ -th may be occasionally sprinkled over the floor, and be mr to add to the quantity without greatly injuring the quality u, the manure. It should ah..'.>3 be mixed with earth before it is used, and ought to be scattered broadcast and harrowed in lightly. I I « FERTILIZEKS, 171 Human excrement is one of the most powerful fertilizers, and though only a small quantity can be obtained, it should be carctully saved and used. The Chinese make great use of this material, and have proved themselves the most successful farmers on the globe. Although we do not want to live as the Chmese do. though our people could not live and carry on their great industries without better food than the Chinese have, yet their example in growing vast quantities of useful plants on small areas, without importing fertilizers, and without diminishing the productive capacity of the soil, although this process has been going on for ages, is worthy of our imitation; and their success, working as they have without scientific knowledge, is one of the welders of the a-ricultural world. In the use of this fertilizer in its crude state there is danger of injuring the plants, but if it is properly composted it will promote a luxuriant growth. There should be a daily addition of a little dry earth, or charcoal-dust, to the contents c »' the privy. If the material is dry, as it ah ays ought to be, it v answer several important purposes. It will prevent all offensive odors, will absorb the urine so that it will not poison the well x will increase the quantity of the fertilizer, and the whole mass will bv r better quality than any part of it would have been without the addition of foreign material, it will make it directly bejieficial to the plants, and will also make it as inofll nsive to handle as any yard-manure. It should be remembered that the value of animal excrement will depend largely upon the cone tion of the animal and the food which it receives. The manure of a fat cow will be much richci in the elements which plants require than that of one which gives large quantities of milk, for in the latter case con- siderable of the nitrogen and phosphates of the food are used in the production of the milk. A growing animal also requires these elements to build up the bodily structure, and its manure Will thercrt;re be coirparativcly deficient in thcr.i. Fat animals which are fed v th laige quantities of Indian-meal, oil-meal, or 172 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Similar substances, furnish vory valuable manure. But all the manun made on the farm, from each and every source, should be carefully saved. It is the capital of the farmer, and if wasted will greatly reduce the profits of his business. Tl?e following estimate of the quantity and value of the manure made in one year by some farm animals and man was published by Mr. Bruckner, in his valuable book on 'American Manures : " Amount. y.lue. Horse , nna lbs « Cow 2.000 lbs ^5^ Pi„ '^ I'^i- Sheep 30 " uman iqq k 50' In the last three we think the quantity is too small, and the value much too low. By judicious composting the value can certamly be .nore than doubled. Manure from fat oxen is con- sidered much more valuable than any noted in the table. Some farmers in New England who buy oxen in the fall, feed them heavdy during the winter, and sell them in the spring for beef consider the manure which they obtain during this period to be' worth ten dollars per ox. We consider this a fair but not at all leanmg toward an excessive valuation. CoMPosTma-The easiest methods of composting have a ready been indicated. The use of plenty of d^^ earth, or other absorbents, in the stables, pig-yards, and privies, if attended to at the proper time, will give good results in saving the urine and preventing the escape of fertilizing gases. But as different methods are sometimes preferred, it may be well to note some of those which seem likely to be the most useful. When no absorbent but straw is used, much of the urine in the stables will run through the cracks in the floor into the cellar, or upon the ground beneath. By throwing a k^ loads of dn. muck under these floors in the fall an evrellpnf f^rtili-r — v ••-riuii^r can Dc sccurcd the next .pring, Pkofessok Pendleton, of Georgia, saves the '\ F n FERTILIZERS. 173 liquid manure i„ a tank, under .he .table-floor, in which a quan- t ty of ground phosphate and sulphate of lin,e (plasterTi. P^c . Wh..„ „e„ saturated the materia, is roLt tn I XJirr ne " *;;::,: --- —^ -^'- useful hn, '^'°^''^ """"'S"^ 'W' will be ven- posse s, and the rap.d.ty with which the work is performed it often happ..ns tha. the result, are not ve^ satisfalty f h, had enough to do with, the farmer could obtain betterTesu ,s in compostmg. Still many farmers are convinced that it wi -y one who keeps stock to also have a ompo: help 7„ pos The 6bject m v.ewis ,o rapidly d.,ompose the substaLJs ■n the p,le, and decomposition cannot rro on to . under water. The heap should be «ve orl r Lt.r. ^f .Hick, may ^ Xc:^ rroiri^rra^ ':r;i "' ^Pd .,, ,.. . . °''^' ^"^ "^°^s. soap-suds, brine, sawdnc. "n:l:^ma7B:obrd!:^r"1^^™" --'^^^^^^ -=. o help 1^ . he prrr;;ti:;rr "*-'"-- 174 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The addition of two hundred pounds of a good superphos- phate of lime to each cord of the other materials, if well mixed with the whole mass, will prove of immense benefit. This material most farmers would be obliged to purchase. Those who can obtain it without paying excessive rates for transporta- tion will probably be gainers by using it. Finely ground bone is also a very good addition to a compost heap, and if the super- phosphate cannot well be obtained, this may take its place. Of course, the top of a compose heap should be covered with muck or loam. In a few days, if the weather is reasonably warm, fer- mentation will set in. This will gradually increase to a certain point and then slowly die awuy. Some farmers attempt to con- trol this fermentation by the use of water which they apply liber- ally if they think the pile is getting too hot. Others consider water an injury and rely upon the plaster to keep the contents of the heap uninjured. In itself, this fermentation is a great advantage. The only danger is that it will proceed too rapidly and cause the loss of some of the most valuable elements. If this takes place it will be indicated by the escape of vapor which has a strong, pungent odor, similar to hartshorn. If this odor is not apparent the heap is suffering no loss. But when it does appear, ammonia begins to escape, and the value of the material will be rapidly reduced if the fermentation is not at once retarded. There are two ways of checking this evil. The ap^,lication of water, or, still better, a covering of plaster and a fir- 1 light coating of dry earth. Some guard against too rapid fermentation by making the compost heap in October and rely upon the cold weather to retard decomposition. When this is done, the t. :ap should be shovelled over once or twice in the spring. When any other system is followed, it is also a good plan to throw over the heap before it is used. Sometimes freshly slaked lime is used in compost heaps, but the practice is not to be commended. It will h.asten deccm.position and get the heap in condition to use r;'jch sooner than it otherwise could FERTILIZERS. 175 b. b„t i, involve, the loss of .„„ „,uch f^^ ^.„,,^^ ., profitable S, V3% i<-^ The ti„,= required for the proper comp^«^fe||,,/4 „.„ vary greatly with the quality of the ."ateriaft^>^-f„3,d the way in which they are handled, and thi4?s used for the purpose. Before sowing any crop with a view to ennch the soil by means of green manures a small quantity of we.l-rotted manure, or two hundred pounds of guano, bone-dust or grass fertilizer should be applied to each acre of land in orde; to give the plants a start and feed them until they get well . rooted After getting the land so that it will produce a good crop of clover, tlie preceding crop should be turned in and a fair quantity of clover seed sown. If manure enough is used to give ^t a vigorous start, clover may be used as the first crop in the course of improvement. It ought always to be used before the course ,s completed. This will be evident from a brief con- s.derat.on of the method by which green n.anures fertilize the soil The substances of which they are composed must be prin- apally drawn from some .ource outside of the soil. Otherwise ^here would be no benefit in growing these crops for manure' The land would not need them, for it would iust .e ^..v. „.„,,. crops for the farmer to use. '' •JWMonuMma FERTILIZERS. plane pe„e...e .He ,a.. s!:, ^'a :;!.:t ^ ^T'"'- crops, havin, .,Ho«e. o. wea.e. .o„: t; r.: t" t^ opponenrs of ,hi, system of fertilisation claim th! r , continued the subsoil will become exhausteH 1. '°"^ «o improve the land will fail But on h . """^ thought that the decay of 1 '"•°"."'= °"'" hand, it is hastens the d,sinte.ra,„/ T °' ™°'^ '" "'^ -^soil ----stC!^tTrh:tt~rr worn-out soilf "n ma T "° ''°'"" ""' ^" '"-3' au.ho„V,caUsdove° e" r " ™ ^'''""'^■"''S^'' Although it has long b en !s d fjrT:'',"' """ " '"""''^■" Covet does no. seem to h f cl If^" "'" T ^ ""™'' purpose. That it will K. ,°"""""' Seneral use for this Mh to be hope: :" tp:::,'T'^ TV" *^ "'"- '^ - the ..•.cu;;rb:r:;c;;::: "^ ■■^-'=''" '"^ of using. And it is •, „„,• m improper method to the use o ;le„ c '" "'^' ^""^ ^'"' ''' "W"-" •■or use as a fer 1 11:: I ^'T ^l^ '; '''^ °' ^™^'"S " ""■e danger of iniurious^Lt .ati!: t^ u?*'" "^ '^ «- •s true in heavy soils if tl,. , , °' 'akmg place. The same covered i„ such sin, P'°™e '"hallow. But if deeply For these so it ' r""'^^' "' ^«"-" ™V ^^ observed =-over be cu. w „ ^ " --'-"ded that the first crop of erow up througint^d'at^T "/"""'' ""^ ="°-'"° ™-;-,-tshoufdbev:;::r,,i:t:;::rr:^^^^^^^^^^^^ "--.devoted to the production of a. ^opw,:':;-::: 178 FARMING FOR PROFIT. removed. By following this plan all the evils will be obviated and nearly all the benefits will be secured. Or if it is desirable to plow oftener, a coating of lime may be sown upon the clover, and it can be turned in without injury. The principal objection which can be brought against clover is that it is sometimes difficult to get it started. The young plants are feeble, and if the weather is unfavorable many of them die. Some seasons we have splendid success with it, while in other years the seed fails. This is a quite common complaint. Dr. Harlan, in his small but able and comprehensive work on " Farming With Green Manures," has suggested as a remedy that buclnvheat should be sown with the seed. When the buckwheat is in blossom it can be cut, will mulch the clover, and be a great aid in securing a good crop. Another important consideration is whether clover can be used constantly and be made to supply the place of barn-yard manure. If it can, it mu.st be evident to all ob.servers that it is a great desideratum for farmers who own land at a distance from their buildings, to which it would be both laborious and expensive to apply the contents of the barn-yard, and for all who have an insufficient supply of yard-manure. If used with care we see no reason why it may not be used continuously. Hon. George Geddes said, a few years ago, that he had a field which for seventy-four years had been manured with nothing except clover grown upon it and plov/ed in ; that he has grown wheat, corn, oats, barley, and grass, on this field ; that the clover has for fifty years been regularly treated with gypsum, and that the land is increasing in fertility. Other fields have been treated by less noted writers for shorter periods, but long enough to prove that a judicious use of clover can be long continued and .steadily produce the best of results. Some farmers mow the first crop, use it for h;\y, and plow in the second, while others, on good land, mow and feed tv/o crops and merely plow in the roots. Of course, the greater the quantity of material j PERTILIZEKS. Which is left upon, or plowed into the soil, the greater will be he benefits resulting from the green manuring. Doubtless the land may be improved by taking off the tops of a good clover crop and plowing in the roots, but the increase in fertility will of necessity, be comparatively slow. To get large crops and' improve the land at the same time and by the same means is a somewhat difficult operation. Too much in this line should not be attempted. We have treated thus at length of clover because we consider .t the representative crop for all purposes of green manuring. Man: farmers favor the use of corn, others of millet, and still others of the various other crops which we have named in con- nect.on with this subject. Under certain circumstances, some of these crops may be superior to clover. This has already been suggested in relation to buckwheat. No special directions are needed for these crops, except the caution that when some of them are grown, care should be taken to either plow or cut the: first crop before it matures its seed. ^ Although not produced for the specific purpose of furnishing iood for plants, sod is a very valuable fertilizer for the ordinary farm crops. We call attention to it here because we think its value IS greatly underrated. We know many farmers who keep the.r land in grass as long as they can obtain fair crops-some- times until it is almost " run out." If they realized the great value of a heavy turf for plant-food they would plow their grass, lands while they were quite productive. Probably many far- mers have noticed that some of their best grass fields produced better corn when planted upon the inverted turf than they did durmg the succeeding seasons who have not traced this effect to. Its cause. They have not thought that in the roots and stubble of the grass vast qu^antities of food for the corn were contained There seems to be little doubt that the weight of this material will range from fifty tons per acre in light turf to one hundred tons m a heavy sod. Such a vast quantity of material, containii.g as \ 1' 180 FARMING FOR PROFIT. this does, the elements of fertility in a high degree, cannot decay in the soil without furnishing an immense amount of plant-food. The substances which we have thus far considered as the sources of supply — animal excrement, compost, green manure, and sod — are all in the line of complete manures. Some are better than others, but each one is supposed to contain, to a cer- tain degree, all the elements which it is necessary to supply to the soil in order to promote the growth of plants. In addition to these there ire several valuable fertilizers each one of which furnishes only a part, but a very important part, of the elements required. One will supply the farmer with potash, another with phosphoric acid, while others will supply other elements which the plants need. Wood-Ashes ought to hold an important place among the manurial resources of the farms in those sections in which wood is used for fuel. They furnish large quantities of potash in an easily available condition, act quickly, energetically, and with a consideraole degree of permanence. They ought to be carefully saved, and should be kept quite dry until they are used. Ashes from hard woods are much better than those from the soft spe- cies, though these are very useful. Leached ashes upon some soils give good results, but for general use they are much inferior to those which remain in their natural condition. Leach- ing removes nearly all of the potash, together with a part of the phosphoric acid and lime, but enough of the latter remain to make them very useful to crops in which potash in large quan- tities is not an essential ingredient. Coal-ashes are of but little value for fertilizing purposes, but are said to be useful in small quar !:ities around pear trees, and they sometimes improve the mechanical condition of heavy soils. Marl, a soil containing clay, lime, and other materials, is also a source of supply for farmers living in the vicinity of its depositf?. Some )>eds of marl contain larger quantities of clay than others, ■ee, cannot amount of red as the :n manure, Some are 1, to a cer- t supply to n addition i of which e elements 1, another ■ elements mong the liich wood tash in an nd with a t carefully ' 1 Ashes - soft spe- pon some are much 1. Leach- >art of the remain to rge quan- but little I in small jrove the Is, is also deposits, m others, FERTILIZERS. -g- and it is, in other respects, of variable composition. The green- sand marl of Nhw J.ksbv, the best which has yet been dis- covered, conta.ns lime, potash, silicic acid, sulphuric acid, and Common Salt supplies plants with soda and chlorine-both ally needed from outside sources, while the latter is seldom rcqu,red m larger quantities than can be furbished by the soil wh.ch the so. may contain more available. Not more than five or S.X bushels per acre should be used at a time, and thi apphcat.on will not need frequent repetition. There are many ' scls, too, wh,ch contain silicic acid (common sand) in abun- dance, but m which it does not appear in an available condition. Th,s ,s especally true in sections where grain-growing has long been a promment industry. It is .ade apparent by the weak ness of the straw and the consequent falling down, or lodging, of he gr.n. When this occurs, salt should be applied toL oil to combme wrth the sand and make it available for the plants There rs no need of applying sand to any kind of soil merely fo; P ant-food For this purpose there is enough there already. If it can be made available it will furnish all this kind of food which ,s required. Ashes, or potash in other forms, will tend to make it available, but will usually be found much more expc.ns.ve than .nit. On stiff, heavy soils the application of sand m order to improve their mechanical condition is some- times advisable, but for merely feeding plants it is far better to use an alkali to act upon the sand already in the land. Plaster, or Gvpsum, supplies plants with sulphuric acid and w.th very small quantities of .ulphur. But its principal value is a= an aDsorbc.ri of ammonia. It is useful to sprinkle in stables pnvres. and the compost heap. On many soils its applicatioa I i 182 FARMING FOR PROFIT. produces an immediate effect in increasing the yield of crops, while on others it seems perfectly useless. Where its effect is beneficial it needs judicious handling. Within sight of the window by which we are writing there are many worn-out fields, which the older inhabitants say have been ruined by plaster. It was found that plaster alone would produce good crops upon this land, and the owners cropped it year after year until plaster had no effect, and the crops were not worth the cost of gather- ing them. Here plaster acted as a stimulant. It seemed to unlock all the treasures of plant-food which the soil contained, and finally left it utterly barren. If clover had been grown and plowed in once in two or three years, or if manure had been occasionally applied, so as to return to the soil the elements which the crops removed, plaster might have been used with good results. But alone it proved like the whip to a jaded horse — making him go until the last possible moment, and leaving him worthless. It is much better to feed and rest a tired horse than it is to keep him going by means of the whip. Precisely the same principle applies to the use of the land. Upon soils which show no immediate improvement under the use of plaster it will not pay to apply it. We have seen it sown upon a nice field in strips which were liberally coated, but upon which the succeeding crops shov/ed no increase over the rest of the field. We should never buy plaster to use on such fields. Bones furnish large quantities of phosphate of lime, together with considerable nitrogen. Consequently, they are extremely valuable for fertilizing purposes, and produce good results upon nearly all soils, and with nearly all kinds of crops. In their natural state they act very slowly. Therefore they should be subjected to some process for making them more immediately available. The finer they are made the more rapidly and profitably they will act. There are various methods of reducing bones to a finer state. Burning accomplishes the purpose, but it drives off the nitrogen and thus diminishes the value of the Id of crops, its effect is ght of the n-out fields, by plaster, crops upon intil plaster : of gather- seemed to contained, grown and i had been e elements used with to a jaded jment, and and rest a f the whip. " the land. • under the ;en it sown 1, but upon the rest of :h fields, e, together extremely jsults upon In their should be nmediately ipidly and )f reducing jrpose, but ilue of the FERTILIZERS. jgg material. Grinding, in a mill made for ^Se purpose, is very, much to be preferred. The finer the po. ..er into which they are made the better. If no mill is at hand, bones can be reduced by composting with ashes, but considerable time and some care .s required. A water-tight barrel, or hogshead, should be used Into this bones enough to fill it three inches in depth should be placed, upon them an equal quantity of the best wood-ashes then more bones, covered as before, until the supply gives out or the barrel is full. These should be kept always wet A httle plaster, or weak sulphuric acid, may be occasionally thrown upon the mass with good results. Bones treated in this way w. 1 not be ready for use in less than a year. When thoroughly softened they should be taken out. broken into fine pieces, and applied to the land. The ashes will also prove an excellent fert.hzer. By adding sulphuric acid to the ashes of bones super- phosphate of lime is obtained. This is a valuable fertilizer-one of the most valuable which can be obtained. It is very readily dissolved, and consequently can be easily used by plants It supplies phosphoric acid in a form in which it can be taken by plants m the early stages of their growth, while its action is lastmg enough to carry them through the season. For grain crops and pastures this fertilizer is of special value. On many soils the addition of this one element will, for years, produce good crops, while without it. though manures deficient in this substance may be applied, the land will yield but very small returns for cultivation. We do not approve of using one element alone to any great extent, but call attention to the fact that this one can be so used in order to show its immense importance to the practical farmer. In obtaining this substance there are two difficulties with which the farmer will have to contend. One is the difficulty of obtaining bones without being obliged to pay more than they are worth, while the other is found in the daneer « nanuiu»g .uiphuric acd. A very few bones can be saved'on the farm, but ti.e quantity to be secured in this way v, q., ie 164 J.' ARMING FO,K TROFIT. limited. They can be bouglit in the cities and largtj towns but fertihzer manufacturers ;tre generally ready to pay well for them The acid needs handling with the greatest care. We have spoiled too many clothes, and had our hands made sore oo often to recommend the use of this nuterial without giving a caution concerning its use. As a general thing wo think it is better for the farmer to buy his superphosphate ready made Men who are engaged in the business on a large scale, and have iaciht.es for its prosecution, can mnke as good an article and do it much cheaper than the farmer. But care must be taken to secure it of well-known, or fully responsible, manufacturers, for a great deal of miserably poor material has been palmed off upon our farmers for genuine superphosphate. Thanks to the fertilizer laws in many of our States, such swindles are now much more difficult to perpetrate than they were a few years ago, and are quite likely to involve the unscrupulous dealer and maker in a great deal of troubl. . Another source of supply .! r ],osphoric acid is furnished by the mineral phosphates xvh.ch ar . /bund in various parts of the world. One of the largest depo.ats yet discovered is in South Carolina, near tlie city of Charleston. These mineral phos- phates should be treated with sulphuric acid, as they arx: not soluble to any extent in water. When properly managed they are capable of producing the best of effects upon crops, and it is highly probable that the discovery of this material will have a very beneficial influence upon the agriculture of the Southern States. LiME.-AIthough the use of lime is considered by many farmers, and by some agricultural writers, as the very foundation of successful farm-business, it is by others believed to be useless if not actually injurious. We do not think it as valuable as it has many times been called, but believe it may, in many sections, be very useful. As far as the mere feeding of plants tf concerned, we consider its apphcation useless-^ertainly so ge towns, but i^ell for them. • We have ade sore oo out giving a ''0 think it is ready made, lie, and have rticle and do be taken to facturers, for palmed off lanks to the es are now a few years i dealer and imished by Mrts of the s in South leral phos- ley are not Jaged they )s, and it is vill have a Southern by many foundation be useless able as it in many of plants rtainly so FERTTLIZERS. It •! ^°^ on all so,ls of granite or of limestone formation. Only a very ;™." ""r"'^ "l "■- •» "-" by plant,, and enough to s^pZ har wan,, can be found in almost any .soil. But it often prov« a great a,d to the fam,er by ha.„cni„g the decay of veg'tabk matter wh.ch is already in the land, but in a co„,Lon ,n wh^h .. ,s u„a.aiUble for p,a„t-food, ,t thus furnishes J r: t l.b ratc» the mmeral elements which crops require. Up s^s wh.ch contain too much acid, and produce sor., „d other weeds better than they do con, and wheat, lime is espe' c.a% useful, as it corrects the acidity, and fits the land fo The product,o„ of useful plants. The idea which many have , a l.n.e exhausts the soil is no, supported either by theoV o prac ,ce. When properly applied, lin.e will work such chaTg m the so, as will make the fertilising elements immediatdJ avadable. but wdl not allow their escape in the air. The crops been applied always mean exhaustion to the soil. But in such ases the exhaustion is caused by the crops, of whilh he farmer has the full benefit. Lime should always be sown upon the surface-never plowed ■n. It smks m the soil, and should be only slightly covered !r not covered at all We stron„l„ <■ . V'ny covered or an. we strongly favor usmg small quantities at frequent tn.ervals. Ten bushels per acre on ordinary o, U enough to begin with. If the effect is favorable, the san e or a larger app, cation can be made in two or thn. years Upon sods w ,ch are badly worn, and contain but Lie orgfrn" ma ter. hme should be used quite sparingly, if at all; wW^on and contammg large quantities of organic material it can"" apphed more freely. ShelMime is considered the best but in Obtemed. It should be slacked with salt water before bein^ apphed. except in those cases in which it is used mere^to •.1^ v> ^"^^, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) k A ^/ ^ >% A <.5^" C ^' ^ fA fA 1.0 1^128 |2.5 K4 ii£ u U4 2.2 I.I I "^ i£i IL25 i 1.4 I 1.6 Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STRIET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ^ \ iV \\ s^. '^ s ■"^.^"^ ^ .^ ^^' «?/, ^ (/. w 186 FARMING FOR PROFIT. decompose organic matter in the soil. For this pu^jose it may be apphed without slacking. GUAN0-I„ addition to the supply of nitrogen furnished in various forms by the atmosphere, and the decay of organic material in the soil, guano furnishes one of the great sources from which this important fertilizer is obtained. For, although some brilliant writers have claimed that there is no necessity for he farmer to supply nitrogen to the land, the results of a mul- titude of experiments seem to prove beyond question that the addition of this material will largely increase the yield of our pnncpal farm-crops. On some soils its effects are better than upon others; but where the land has been long under culti- vation. Its judicious application can hardly fail to be beneficial Land which is greatly deficient in mineral elements will not be perceptibly benefited by the addition of nitrogen a one, but nitrogen in connection with the wanting inorganic elements will usually produce better and more permanent results than can be secured by the use of only the mineral matters. We do not favor the using of guano alone, but consider it a valuable fertilizer when properly applied The same should be said of the sulphate of ammonia, which fur- nishes a great deal of nitrogen to crops. Near the sea-coast large quantities of fish are used for fertilizing purposes. In some places the oil is removed, but this does not seriously mjure the material as a fertilizer. The refuse is broken up by mach,nery, and sent out in bags and barrels under the name of fish guano." It furnishes large quantities of nitrogen in one of Its cheapest forms, and also considerable phosphate of lime It should be mixed with twice its bulk of dry earth, scattered broadcast and immediately harrowed in, or else covered by a shallow plowing. In no case should it be used in the hill The quantity to be used will depend upon its condition. The less water it contains the less weight will be needed n.r acre We have used the " half dr^ " at the rate of about ten^hundred FERTILIZERS. 187 pounds per acre with good results. For us it is cheaper than Peruvian guano, but, as it is less concentrated, it would not be 'as cheap for farmers living far inland, and in some places the freight would be too expensive to justify its use. Nitrogen is also obtained from many of the waste products of the farm. It is present in leather, but, as this decomposes very slowly, a long time is required to make its fertilizing qualities available. Old boots, shoes and harnesses may be buried under fruit trees and prove of some value. The same is true of woollen rags. When an animal dies, the body may be made to furnish both nitrogen and phosphate of lime for the use of crops. It should be cut in pieces, and mixed with a large quantity of dry muck or loam. But this should not be done near buildings, and should 7tever be attempted in the case of an animal dying from a virulent disease. In all such cases the body should be deeply buried at a distance from any house or barn, and then be forever let alone. The Leaves of trees can be made to supply small quantities of plant-food. Those from the walnut, oak and horse-chestnut trees are better than leaves from the beech, fir or pine. Leaves furnish small quantities of phosphoric acid, potash and lime. They should be gathered when damp with dew or rain in order to facilitate handling them, but they ought to be dried before being stored for use in the winter. The best way to use them seems to be to throw them under the cattle for bedding, though some prefer to put them into the compost heap. We think some writers have greatly overestimated the value of leaves as a fertilizer. They have been misled by confounding the effect of manure with that of covering the soil, and have ascribed to the former what was chiefly due to the latter. Both for the sake of neatness, and also on account of their real value, leaves which fall or are blown around the buildings should be gathered and converted into manure, but we do not think it will pay to go long distances to obtain them. '88 FASMma POK PSOFIT. W. have thus indicated so„,e of the sources from »hich ,he fermer may obtain .he necessary materials for promoting p,a„. growth. ,n the list we have included several of what ateWn as commercal fertilizers;. The latter may be made very Z ful, or may cause the farmer a heavy l„... Much will depend upon h,s selection of the kinds, and his skill in using them "^ ..e buys mtrogen when phosphoric acid is what his ;iants need :::::rL=:;iit^:::::r'r-- ..ould make the most of his L ^r es, 'iTl^ ^ Z:^l""l rf' '" '"' ''^' ^''-"'^- A fanner who d^ould buy hay of h,s neighbor and never cut that which grew rTned ;""."■ "°""' ""= -^^"^-^ ^^ ^o'-h and soon J who H u K "■■""" "°"" ''"-'y-e-ble that of one wo should buy commercial fertilize,., while neglecting to secure the greatest quantity and best possible quality of manure from his own farm. ^ / i nidnure When certain lines of farming a„= pursued, it is not always poss.ble to ob,a,n all the manure from home sources which n..ght profitably be used. Where g™„ is sold from theTal large qua„t,t,es of phosphoric acid are removed. The sameTs m,lk busmess ,s made a specialty. I„ these and similar cases he ordmao. system of farming, even where considerable care' ■s taken to save all the manure, will no, prevent a g,.dua exhau,t,on of the soil. Consequently, from some out^Me sources fert,l,zmg material should be obtained. Until quUe recently the doubt „h,ch most farmers felt about ,vhat mater I o use, he manner of its application, and also the certainty Tf ttw f ^r""«'"^-. "- P--"'ed a general call for any thmg of the kmd. But science and careful experiment have ~ *; ''' "' '"= -■--. and by providing w'hat a cal JJ to ?\ ™"""" ""'' ""'™ "im what to u,,e and how to make the application. To the farmer who has not a suffi FERTILIZERS. )m which the loting plant- Jt are known tde very use- will depend ig them. If plants need, ic acid when ny case he use all the farmer who which grew id soon be hat of one jlecting to of manure not always rces which I the farm, he same is tvhere the Jlar cases, rable care a gradual ■ outside itil quite t material "tainty of ! for any- ent have re called and how a sufB- 189 cent quantity of manure to feed all his crops these special fertilizers are an immense benefit. They are made upon the pnncple that different crops take the elements of plant-food from the soil in different proportions, and that if the farmer will supply to any particular crop just those materials which it needs, he can invariably obtain large returns. This system not only supplies just what the plants want, but, what is almost as important, furnishes their food in the best possible condition Here is where special fertilizers have a great advantage over barn-yard manures. While the latter contain all the needed elements, they are not in a condition in which they can at once be used by crops. Before they can be made available various chemical changes must be passed through. The phosphoric acid, potash, and other mineral elements, must be rendered available by means of the carbonic acid which is generated by fermentation. Now if green stable-manure is applied to the com crop m the spring and the weather is very wet and cold fer- mentation is checked, and the elements of fertility are no more available than they would be if they were in another field The corn looks yellow and sickly, and does not grow, because, though there is a liberal supply of manure within reach, that manure is not in a condition to be used, and the crop has nothing upon which to feed except what it can obtain from the soil. Thus when the plant needs manure the most ic does not have any In a warm season this does not occur, as fermentation goes on rapidly enough to keep a supply of food constantly ready for the plants. It is on account of the slowness with which barn- yard-manure decomposes that its effect is perceptible in the soil so long after its application, often lasting many years. Special fertilizers are not designed to last more than one or two years and as interest on the money invested inci^ases with great rapidity, it is best for the farmer that they should not be made 3o as to have a permanent effect. As Mr. Waring has said in his "Elements or Agriculture" formers are apt to attach "too j much importance to th^ lasting auaI,>.V« r " "> ■>= '""<=»'=<) in a fertilker, it is best th ! : """"'y a q-ck te.u.„ should be obtJed ^^r.;"! "'''^'' -^':" ^'^ There are cases in which if „, . . *° 6'^"="' '•"1<=- permanent in its efetf bT "^ "■^'"'=' '''■■■''■ -" ^ ^houid be obtained for a low pie """' ""'"^ ^'^'^ The objection has sometimes been n,ised • ferhhzers that the quantitv annli.^ ^«"'"" 'P^^^' a>e farmer that the large IdTorb '^ "'"'^'"'- " ^^^^ '<> ■•" *e habit Of nsing m'uscoll'aTrrt "'""''= ^■''"' "' '' While the small bags of special 2«if '"°""""'''''"'-'"°°''' "« '.ttle. Even if a„ th^; ter^ '7^" '"'^^"'>' -"-■- were pure plant-food he thintc T '^'"^' '"^"'^"^ We crops could not be t*"^ 7'" ,^= ^ ««'= "' '' '"at considering bulk eau.V.l. . . ^^ ^'^^^ '"''stake of -o popular mLrp:::;;r.rt thr- '? ^-''' - quantity of material from the sd ll """ '""^'^ ^ '"^e manure is nearly all pure ferti "er ' T™ *« barn-yard- «.at while a medium crop of c . """"^ ^''°« "^ pounds, only about thrrhundrd "" ^ '''°"' '■'' *""-"<' Which it is composed arC^m ^I'l "V^: " "^ ammonia— much of whi^h . ■ ^°"- This mdudes the ■•' will be seen that Th^ a ^ ' ""'^ '"■" '"' '"'■ Tl>us weight and M.t; cl: elZs^T "^"'^ ^" °' '''^ posed to doubt this let hi '^ ^ ""'' '^^''er is dis- o'her crop, and ct:^ tei h^brir^^ ""'' "^ ^^ quantity ve,y small, bu't T will e;^;:^ "[ Th" """ ""^ - ".an .af x:;:':r t: 'rt "v^ -"'^ pounds Of common ba—rrrtrt::— ■*l FERTILIZERS. 191 hundred and fifty-six pounds of water and one hundred and thirty-eight pounds of sand— articles which for the farmer to apply for merely fertilizing purposes are worthless. There then remain three hundred and thirty-two pounds of carbonaceous matter which has the same value as muck, and "only seventy- four pounds of active fertilizing material which has a money value." Prof. Stockbridge put the truth indicated in these figures in a very clear form when he said that he could take a basket on his arm and carry into the field a quantity of material which would not weigh more than twenty-six pounds, but in which should be more plant-food than would be contained in an ox-cart full of the best barn-yard-manure. Except upon some soils which need to be made more open and porous, the great bulk of barn-yard-manure does no good. Upon all other soils this extra bulk is used at a disadvantage, for it involves the carting and handling of a great mass of material in order that a small quantity of really fertilizing matter may be secured. The f-.mer who allows his manure-heaps to lie out in the rain and be exposed to the sunshine, still further increases this disadvantage. For he will be obliged to handle a great deal more water, and the manure will contain a much smaller quantity of really fertilizing matter than would be the case if it were kept from undue exposure to the weather. Barn-yard-manure should be saved with the utmost care, and muck, or similar material, should be used to increase the quan- tity and improve the quality; but when the supply is exhausted, the farmer may be sure that he can obtain fertilizers equally good, by purchasing those which are compounded by respon- sible parties for the production of special crops. We much prefer the use of special fertilizers to the application of single elements. If properly made, the special manure will certainly (if no disease or accident, to which all crops are exposed, destroys it) produce a fair yield, but if the farmer tries single' elements, he will be liable to make great mistakes. He may if 192 FAJiMmc FOR PROFIT. men/ f L T " '"■*'"«'y "'"=f"ted by an exDeri ment of the celebrated Mr Lawf» „f o f^ Upon ,and which without 1^"^;, p.„rT"' ''~''"™- of wheat oer ».r. ! . produced sixteen bushels -eluding .,, the mine, elet 't ^ Lr ," "'''"^"' require, and only raised th, u ''^ "°P ''<"'''' acre. But by addin J .' "" '" '""""'""^^ '"'^'•'^'^ Per yield was b': ':^^::t °/ "■■'™^- P- acre, L -..Lyietr::^;— :-^^^^^^^^^ ^is permanent enacts were nmhaKi,, ^ l those of the chem.V.ic t Z ^'^''^^'y '""ch greater than 3HOUM .?:jrtr L t:n : ;:rr" ^^^-^^ '"'•^'-^- '-^ our own and that whT ! ^ '' ^""^ ^^^'^""^ ^'^m potash and . ? " '"°^'" '''""' "" ^' ^-'"-"ded there potash and phosphoric acid seem to be required her. • , proportion. squired here in larger crdi^erLta^: 'Tu r::.'t;,r"*"°™^^^^^^^^^^ s "■ me kind, the fertilizers which are n,=j. r ■ . crops. They will cost him less keen bis I !, T ''''''=' and give him larger crops Bv , 1 '" '"" '^''"*'«°"' occasionallyapplJin/Xraf ::!;:r::r""^" ^"'' «^"-o or oarn-)^ ard-manure, or a FERTILIZERS. -.- complete commercial fertihzer, .he land can be made to produce large crops and also be kept in a high state of fertility. The pec,al er„.ers have been tested for years upon all Ids of ~Jc ^'°"''"'"^-' "f '■'e Massachusetts AoZ cutTURAL COLLEOE, a great deal of credit is due for his careful .nvest,ga.,ons and experiments which have resulted in the dis cove,y of the fertilizers which bear his name. We believrthat whe „ the land has been exhausted by excessive cr^' lade.!;" ™""" """"' "^ "='•■ «■=- "■"«"-- Z^ made the d.rect means of bringing the soil back to it, orighal • Fo\ ^e; t"' ": rf ^ ''"'"'^^'' -^^ "= --" *= •■Mape? .- r" ""^ '^'°'"=^ J*- '"""<■="■='<. and the Vm2s ■itrr'^"""' ^°™"'- P-'--" ^yCHAE^Es bv W H « •^T''°'"°°'"^"'"™'f''=""-'=dP"ncipaIly H I Ba 7T * ^°- "' ''°'™~' *= "FOEKESTER" by a X BAKEa & Bko., of New Yoek, and the " Mapes " by the Mapes Foemuea a™ Pehuvmk Guako Co., of New /okk chemist Ther ,'■ ""* ^■'"=''™ ^S""""™! of f™ Lrfflr "■ , ""^ ""■"''^' '"^ P""^"'^' ™n"<-acturers dene r LI- r;;"'^'- ^'^^ "= ^" "-*y ^^ -««- abo Ik se oth ''''■ '■''' "' *= '■"^'"■"'^ --<< tions r '^"'^ ""'"="^''' '"" '" different propor- tions. Some mVe nnta^h -. u- \ . p'"por- c.n,« 1 • ^ ^'^''^'' P'^*=e than others while r :r;;r " "^^^= -- ""-- - p^-'--" poinds'"?'" I" "' ^™— - fertilizer are carried out in C;pLt Ld '°. t" ^'"'>' '°- "■"="• - -*er how ^& plant-food .s required, when it is all in a form in which it rthriir:,-:::;'-'-'-----— rorafe: '^■* FARMmc FOR PROFIT. INDIAN CORN._/i,^««W,;.,. N'trogen Actual Potash '"^^ ^ '|f ' Soluble Phosphoric Acid..'.'.".'. " ^ " The ai,ove elements are contained' in' from VoitoV.ooo pound, of the crude materials, and are designed to produce fifty bTheU " of shelled corn more than the natural yield of the land. "f^n-EtK-l.—ForanAcre. Nitrogen Actual Potash ..'!!..!!!!.'.'!'.." 1'. ' '^''!''' Soluble Phosphoric Acid *'*" of wheat m excess of the natural yield of the land. OATS.— /J,r an Acrg. Nitrogen Actual Potash...... '.".",' .".".' .WW ^^ '^^'• Soluble Phosphoric Acid ^° " Int^Ti?' '"/"'" ^°° '" 4~"p<^«nd;'o;"cr'u'd'e Uerial, Intended to produce an increase of twentyfive bushels. RYE. — For an Acre. Nitrogen Actual Potash. ..... . ...'.' .....".'.*.* ^^ ',^' Soluble Phosphoric Acid ..!!!!!!!!' ^g " Requiring from 300 to 400 pounds' of" cnide 'm'aterials an,4 destgned to yield an actual increase of twenty bushds POTATOES.-/br an Acre. Nitrogen Actual Potash ..... .......'.',".*.*."." * ,^' Soluble Phosphoric Acid ^^ ," Obtained in from 400 to 500 pounds' of "cru'd'e'^terials «.A designed to yield an increase of one hundred busheTs ' Nitrogen " A Y.-/i,r an Acre. Actual Potash .......".".".". .".".".'.'.".' ^*^ 'J'* Soluble Phosphoric Acid .' ^g " suit:!;:, '2::ta:r^i:^- -^- fi,» r^ J I... , ^" "^"^ '^" '^nat they present exactly X r ir "'"'' """'■"■ '"" ^'^° '° *» being ™de ax re„,e,y fi„e; a condition into which all plant-food must come before it can be used. f'EKTlL/ZERS, 195 For Sugar-Canc and Cotton, wc believe no special fertilizers are cc t, phosphor, acid, and si. ,o cigh. per cc„.. of potash Ths : z: 'T' "" '"'" "■= ^-"-' -- - "-50!^: an w,„ ^ , ,„„^,.,^^ ,^^ ^^^^^^ of saccharine ma„cr in 2 per cent nf °"' ^^"""^ *° ^^ree and a half pTosXH2rr"r,r°:r" -r- "-^"^"'^ That..nf .u V '''' '^'^'^^'^E 's also manufactured mat sent out by the Mappq r^ „ .. • . ^<-"'cu. nf n,^ • ^°- ^°"tains six or seven per cent of ammonia, ten or twelve ner coni- ^r i , • or four nnr . . r ^ of phosphoric acid, and three r.™:=ic::.jc=r.r'T; Application of FERTiri7PDc: t ^l /• in the preceding renl 1 T ^" ^°'''""'^" ^"°^^^' ^"^ va.y wi.h the quah'ty and ki d f 1 r ,r "' '""' "■=" "''^ of the land Th, , ''''^" ^"'^ *= -condition sink de ;: ■ i„,?;f:r Tr °' ■"""'=' '= '° ^^^-"^ app.icati:n is tttrlil ^ '17"'' ■""'"' '"" ^"*=^ tion that, when exposed to t= air !o ' Vt,"'" '" '" "'''''- manure ought to Lt,- "" """"""'^ ''''i'^l' ^ ought to contam ,s evaporated, and thus the quahty o£ 196 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the fertilizer is Injured. Twenty years ago this was considered an insuperable objection, and almost every farmer was careful to cover the manure which he used deeply in the soil. In our earlier farming days it was the common custom to plow in the manure even on sod-land. When the sod was heavy and deep plowmg was practiced, the manure made but little difference with the crops the finst season, and a large part of its fertilizing elements got washed down so low that subsequent crops failed to reach them. Experience demonstrated that this was a very unsatisfactory way of using manure, while the results of experiments which a few leading farmers had carried on seemed to pomt to surface application as very much to be preferred Tins seems to be the most reasonable way in which to use manures. In the early stages of life, plants need to have their .food very near them. Their roots are short and can go but a J.ttle distance for nourishment. If there is plenty of good rood in a readily available condition, the plants will grow with great rapidity and obtain a start which will do much toward ■carrying the crop to a successful issue. But if their food is at the bottom of the furrows, the plants will grow very slowly until the roots reach that depth. Then the growth will become more rapid, but it may be too late to secure the best yield which •might have been obtained. John Johnston once favored plowing in manure, but ex- perience taught him that it was not the best way in which it 'Could be used. After using it only as a top-dressing for twenty- SIX years he said that he considered one load used in that way •"worth far more than two plowed under on our stiff land." That it makes more difference upon heavy than it does upon 5ight soils probably all advocates of top-dressing will admit But the great principle that it is best to put plant-food within reach of the roots of plants in the early stages of their growth is always to be kept in mind. Surface manuring answers this re- ^uiremeat. aad as the roots of plants increase in length the rains as considered was careful to soil. In our 5 plow in the avy and deep tie difference its fertilizing t crops failed is was a very 2 results of :d on seemed be preferred, ^hich to use to have their :an go but a ity of good 1 grow with luch toward ir food is at slowly until ecome more yield which re, but ex- in which it for twenty- in that way land." does upon will admit, food within r growth is ers this re- h the rains i'ERTILlZERS. «vash their food down to them. But if plowed IS so far off that the plants can mak time, and very much of it will be e no 197 in, the manure use of it for a long carried -e meory that .ho fenili.ng elements >vhich arc" dZiv buried will be broueht arrain i,. .!,„ r i ^^ ,i„„ H ^ '"' '"'''^" •>>■ capillary attrac- tion do« not seem to hold good „, practice. There a„= manure hghtly, but we doubt if deep covering is \Z Z economical method. r i, 's ever an Where green manu,. is used, and it is desired that fermenta- .on should take place in .he soil, light covering is benZa but deep plowing would grea.ly re.ard, if „o. entirely de ea ' the purpose for which it was tried. This is true of gre™ which are plowed unde, for ,ertili.ers, and also of gfeen, tile CO se would prevent the rapid decay of the roots and stubble wh ch ought to be converted into plant-food. Lime sinKs veil -P.dly, and ought always to be used upon the surface pZZ ncial effect when .--owed broaHracf a u special fertilizers, and neariy a .hf T""' ''" "''""' ci, ij u , nearly all the agricultural chemicals should be harrowed in before the seed is sowed With T „„' and some of the stronffer cheminU .f ■ k . """ B"'™. eoual hnll, „f A 1 . ^''™'"'"' " " best to mix at least an equal bulk of do- earth before the sowing is attempted. The waste which has been supposed to be inseparable fron, surface applications of manure has been greatly I:,'-™^ ^ Alternate sunshine and rain will nearly spoil manure Ilh is W during the process of fermentation there is not a great loss by means of exposure to the air. Consequently whe„ manure IS spread upon the surface of the land thisvei^l enahlpc ft,^ . ' "'^ ''*"°. tn's very exposure hell of r", "'" "' ''"''""« "^--'^ Oi-'ly to ■n tl.e air ,s far more than balanced by the increased effect of 198 PARMiNG FOR I'ROF/r. ii fi the remamder. Every farmer has noticed that manure dries qmckly after being spread. Just as soon as it is well dried chemical action ceases, and there is no further loss. The dews' and ra.u will dissolve and carry it into the soil. When green s able-manure is spread upon grass land, a n.oderate coatin-. of Phster should be sowed upon it as soon as the spreadinl^ is done Th.-s will both hasten decomposition by absorbing mois- ture from the air. and also prevent the escape of ammonia before «.e ma ,3 ,,^ ,^ ,^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ _^ ^^^ way, but have seen splendid results from it upon son.e soils Thh guA,TiTv WHICH SHOULD BE USED will depend upon^the quahty of the manure, the condition of the soil, and the require- ments of the crop which is to be grown. The securing of a large crop ,s not the only thing which the farmer should keep >n mmd. but, while very important, must be subordinated to profitable cult.vation. There can be no doubt that there is a im,t not only to the yield of farm crops, but also that the •m.t of profitable production falls considerably inside that of the possible yield. By applying a vast quantity of manure we could probably grow one hundred and twenty-five bushels of shelled corn upon an acre of land, but it is much better for us not only as far as the present corn crop is concerned, but also when considering the products of the land for the next four or five years, to put this manure upon two acres and obtain from sixty to seventy-five bushels per acre. After reaching a certain hmit eveo' additional bushel of corn is grown at a largely in creased expense. Until that limit is reached every additional bushel is secured for a low price, and brings a large percentage of profit. Thus a field which produces only thirty bushels per acre may be brought up to fifty bushels for so low a price that the cost per bushel of the extra twenty bushels will fall far below the cost per bushel of the original thirty. But after reaching a yield of fifty, or possibly sixty, bushels, the cost per bushel will rapidly increase. The same principle applies to all e: I FERTILIZERS. 199 farm crops. It ,s not. as a general rule, policy to grow either small, or excessively large, crops, and fertilizers should always be used with this fact in view. In the formula for special fertd,zers which we have quoted, a certain quantity was stated as bemg required to produce a certain yield. Many farmers have applied two or three times the formula, and secured largely .ncreased crops. But there is a limit beyond which sun- shme. a,r. and water cannot go. Room is also necessary for the developn^ent of plants, and- the cash outlay for extra fertilizers •s so large that the experience of both farmers, and those who have merely conducted experiments, goes to prove that it is not best to attempt to obtain too much from a small ar of land Besides, an excessive use of manure involves an acc.al waste" P ants can use only a certain amount of food. When that quan^ t.ty .s furnished, it is useless to give them more. When a man has all the food he can eat. he is just as well supplied as he would be . he had placed before him food enough for an army. Precisely the same may be said concerning a plant. Now if twenty-five loads of manure per acre will supply all the food wh,ch corn can use. and furnish it in good condition for the crop ,t ,s easy to see that the application of thirty loads will mvolve a loss. The extra five loads can do no possible good where they are. but would have manured one-fifth of another acre of land so that it would have been very productive But while it is possible to err in this direction, we think there are ten farmers who apply too little manure per acre where there ,s one who uses too much. Every farmer knows that it i, worse than useless for him to keep more pigs than he can feed properly. He can see that it is better for him to have a dozen nice, thrifty, fat pigs, than it is to have twenty lean, coarse and starving ones. It should be just as easy to see that it does not pay to try to grow any more plants than there is manure enough furnished to feed. It saves time and labor, and is better f;r both the farmer and the soil, to obtain fifty bushels of com K'W j I , ^iA 200 FARMING FOR PROFIT. fron, one acre of land, than i, is ,o go over two acres for the same quanfty. While it is possible to lose money by using too much manure, it is also possible to lose no. only money" Z Tthex "' rV^""" '" '""""^' ^^ ^"P'^'-S '- i'"'e. iioth extremes should be carefully avoided The Summer FAixow.-Although it is an indirect method for accomphshmg the result, the old English system of summer fallowmg should be mentioned among the resources for increas- ing the fertility of the soil. Some writers assert that the mere restmg of the land can do no good, but the results of the process md.cate that certain advantages can be obtained from its use The theoo. of this system is. that the soil contains large quan- tities of plant-food in a condition which prevents their bein^ at once available for the use of crops. When a crop is removed the land has been drained of the elements which were ready' for Its food. The disintegrating process which is constantly gomg on will unlock and make available more food before time for another sowing or planning; but. if the land can remain uncropped during the next summer, the quantity of food which can then be furnished will be greatly increased, and. conse- quently, „,uch larger crops can be secured. Liebig considered tlT) . t'T''"^ ^-tility" highly important." and said tha the fact of ,ts beneficial influence had " been fully established by the experience of several thousand years." In this country .t has never been extensively followed, although some of our best farmers have been aware of its benefits. John Johnston has practiced .t upon some of his wheat fields with great success. But most of our farmers, even those who are anxious to keep the ferfhty of the land up to the highest point, and who also desire to obtam large crops, think the end can be secured with ^ss expense by following a suitable rotation of crops. In this we think they are correct, though there are many cases in which the fallow will pay. The following improvement upon the rmerely resting the land has been suggested by Dr Har- pla FERTrLIZEi SOl LAN. As the success of the fallow is largely increased by occa- s.onally plowing the land, there is an opportunity to use green manures at a merely nominal cost. By sowing clover buck- wheat, or some other crop, when the land is plowed, the expense will be but slightly increased and all the advantages of green manuring will be secured. The plowings should be at least six weeks apart if nothing is grown. Upon good land this will give plenty of time to secure the growth of quite a quantity of material for fertilizing purposes. This seems to be a better plan than that of leaving the land entirely idle. Covering the SoiL.-This is one of the most effectiye of all the mdirect methods for restoring old fields or maintaining the fertility of those whose productive power has not been impaired It should not be used alone, but in connection with the applica- tion of some material containing plant-food. With green ma- nuring it produces highly beneficial effects. Probably every farmer has noticed that when a pile of old boards has- been removed, the soil has sent up a large growth of plants. The land upon which muck has been piled becomes very productive when the heaps are taken away. Probably much of the benefit caused by top-dressing is due to the shading of the land which It involves, and the fact that covering the soil causes it to pro- duce large crops is a strong argument in favor of surface manur- ing. It IS also an indication that the spreading of straw upon gram fields is one of the best possible uses which can be made of this material. The benefits of mulching trees have long been acknowledged. Perhaps the coming farmer will be as careful to mulch his wheat as the nurseryman of the present is to mulch his httle trees. In some experiments in England the use of one and a half tons of straw per acre spread over the land .^creased the grass crop to from two to three times its usual y.eld. Yet the climate of that country is much more moist than our own. and it is natural to suppose that the same use of straw would give our farmers still better returns. We know of no m I ''^. ■% 202 FARAtmc FOR PROFIT. large experiments in this line, but small nno= i, .he ™e. coven„, of .he soU wi„ tg ^ ^tlrr ^^ which it can produce. increase the crops The reason why covering the land is beneficial \. t^n.r u probacy duet ^Z^T ""• "'" ''"''"'' '«"-' '^ the moisture and Z ^"""""^ evaporat,o„ and thus retaining iand i. Ie7 ar f or?""":? ""'"" " '" "" ^°"- ^^"^ "- :-^.4Tr:^:::rrett:r:r:;:r almost constant,, rising to the doud: "''" """^'' ''^ We believe the subject of fertihzers to be one of th. . nothing. If he has but littl . ™" "" "'" S "' '""= """""re. he will be almost certain to have a poor farm, and, if no pains are taken to in ^se ! ^"pply, the land will probably keep growing poorer and T u become almost, if not wholly, unproductive' BuT the man wt abors ,„d,cious,y to increase the quantity of fertililg „" I for h,s farm w,ll be almost sure to produce good crops and a ' improve his land. He certain Iv l,„. . erops and also upon this he can build a ^ !ZL ' °""'"'°"' ''" TILLAGE, TI^Ii&GE. 203 Thas long been acknowledged by the leading men who have given much thought to agricultural subjects that to a certam and considerable extent tillage is equivalent to manure. Some have gone so far as to insist that if the land were allowed to lie idle every other season, and were properly tilled, it would never need manure and would never fail to produce good crops. This we consider an extreme and unwarranted inference. It demands altogether too much of fllage-more than it can possibly supply. Even if the plan suggested would do all that is claimed for it by its advocates we do not think it would be the wisest course which could be pursued. It would involve the use of twice as much land as could be cropped, and it does not seem best for a farmer to allow half of his land to remain constantly idle. We think it is very much better to keep the soil constantly producing some valuable crop, and supply the drain which such production must make by the u.. of suitable fertilizers. When hoed crops are grown, these fertilizers should be supplemented by careful tillage For. wh.le not accepting as truth all that has been claimed for t. lage. we recognize its gfeat benefits and believe that by means of Its use the crops of the average farmer can be largely and cheaply mcreased. We have already alluded to the fact that the soil contains the mineral elements of plant-food in rich abundance. But these elements are almost wholly locked up in the so.,, an 1 are in a condition in which plants can make no use of them. The sunshine and storms, together with chemical processes, are constantly, but ver, slowly, disintegrating the soil and settmg these elements free. If the action of these forces were rap.d enough, there would be no necessity for man to supply mmeral food for his plants. The soil contains a vast, almost unhm.ted quantity, while- the crops remove but a very little But when left to themselves these processes go on too slowly to If IS ■i 11 204 • FARMING FOR PROFIT. furnish food enough for croos Tn c Tret:: zz. ^- ^ — p-- ^. the so,-, co„.a, ^; ::::^f ;■- "> '-ep.a„t-roodwh- h ■•" *e ,a„d from an unav 11;^ ^ ""^^ ™'^™'^ ^'^^^ be readily used I. Ts " ' ""'^ '" '""■'^'' "«=>' "" of these Lthod; b . Ulh L'l"'""^ ■•'^'^ "P°" -"- -he release or p,a«:r„trL" ::?:;■';, '" r^" various good results ca„..H K ^ '' '^"^""^^^ ^^ t'^'age there are been published. He CaLs I , ' "' '" "'^"">' a n>ore direct action of r:'/,':™^ * V"' ^"'"^^ " "> ■•ng properties are " made .o e ,1^ .!'^';"'' '^'' '"^ "^ f"'"- the land wears it out and thtT ^ "" ">'' P'°™S ".ore he exhausts the s" I„ !„ " 'Tr"" "'""^ " '"» to the soiis Which havet;nr,*:raLd:nrhr "l"'"'^ ^rridt r^rir -^^'r- »^ tTfo^Tn r to his theory the „T. Tolr • """"'' ""''="■ ^--*"S ,uent pwf„,;ri:r; z^TiTf^''-^ '-■ barren. He lays down th„ K f ^ '"'"" *= '="<" preparation ofThe soHb f 7 ''™''""'™ "'^' """^^Sh and there,,, not only Ju^rrt f^ '^"'""''- '' It seems to us that thi T f ''■"'■niches the crop. "otatal, suppose y a J^Llr ^ °"-^"'=''' ^"^ '^ land to the acNcn of tL ? *^ *= ""' "P"^" 'he do not be lev" th-t it „ " "' ''"'°^'"'"' ^' ^""'^' ""' we uciicve mat It necessitates t^^^ ^o ,. .. . the escape of its fertihzing TILLAGE. 205 elements. On the contrary^, it is because tillage exposes the soil to the action of the air that we advocate it so strongly. That it does not involve the loss of fertilizing elements may be inferred from the fact that the experience of many years has proved beyond all question that top-dressing is the most economical method of applying manures to grass. If manures are not injured by this exposure, the soil certainly cannot be harmed thereby. Besides, the elements which are set free in ordinary soils by tillage are principally inorganic. From the very nature of the case it is impossible that the sunlight and air should dis- sipate them. The only organic element in which the soil is deficient, and which can leave the land poorer by its escape IS mtrogen. That this may escape from newly plowed fields in the form of ammonia is possible. But this escape can be only m a very slight degree, and it has been proved by the researches of chemists and the experiments of farmers that newly olowed fields not only give off a little, but that they also absorb \ great deal, of ammonia. Thus the soil is actually improved by cul- ture. When the field which is to be plowed is covered with stubble, or weeds, which will decay in the soil, the amount of organic matter which it contained will be considerably increased. If the claim that plowing land " wears it " were correct, the fact would not be of great consequence, because, as we have shown, the land is full of the mineral elements of plant-food which are made ready for use as rapidly as the disintegrating process is carried on. The supply is inexhaustible, and no fear of its failure by this means need ever be entertained. Neither are the mineral elements liable to be washed away from the reach of plants The theory that the soil contains just so much fertility and when that is gone the land is wholly and forever ruined has already been shown incorrect. Our soils were, doubtless, once ground out of solid rock by the action of immense glaciers, and they arc therefore full of mineral elements. As each crop only removes a veo^ slight quantity, there will be an abundance of 206 FARMnVG J^OR I'ROFIT. these elements even xi the Ir,n^ • i tion u„.i, the end of ^e Th " '''" ""^" ^--^^ -Wva- plan.-food is so. free. There will T" ',' '' T*'" *"-' """= e"' "^ *= But if this is trL,e, how is the great fact tl„, h , sands of aeres of land in thi. "*'''= '"'«"'"- under cultivation a er;t ZTT'""''^""" ""= ™'^''- P'eeeWorn out, to beaee :„:::: ?;7T '° ""^ "■"■ are exhausted is the one „ ! "^^ "'^' ""-''"^ fi<^W» ""age, and is the o L I ibr.t "'™"' "' ""= ""^--'^ "' appearanee of beinrcI^VtirB^ .«-,--"■=- jumped altogether too far and , T • '" ""' "''>■ '"ve -ns. Thesfworn-out tid a nlr 'h" '^"^ "■^'^ '°"""- "ntaining no plant-food. nsteZ, o h '''. '" "' """ °' fertilizing material they still TT- '^ ^""='' "P =11 their for untold ages. TheTh Tt" "°"''' '° '==" ^^^'^ "°P= by an, othef form orcultne" ,f "".r"^"'^' "' "'"-"S " cultivate them, they wouM «■„ " » '""' '''='^'' ''°"c but We have already refe'd to '"™'" """ °"'^™' ^""■'■■'>'- -n from our windo J Uot"! 7™'°"' "'"' ^'"'^'^ "" "^ 3ame room, we can get a di m ' * r™T '"°""^ ™<'™ h "-e ■■" a town which hast s t"eT„ ^ ^ '"'' °^ '^"'' '^■"S and land which has been y a ,1 cr„ V''" '^™ "''"''-'' y-". but which is now one o fte m'o t ^1 "'"' "" '™^*="°<'' of the Mississippi. Now if cr ■''"' '° ^ '"°'"«' East «es.ructive, thirind wo^' Id Jrthir' '"""' '^"= ■■"-•'='">' •be highest price of any land ^I Ihrgir "' ""■"'^"*"- been pursued. If the fa ts ,d be ;?' ''^'™ °^ ^''""- ^as be found that eve,, exhaus 0^ e« whtTh' '' ™'"" ''°"'*"=- by some great flood, or by someth f , "°' '"="' ™'ncd Of man to prevent, has b^ ^r^ ^Z. '"°"'' '"^ '-"" gnt into Its present condition ■a«a!S^ TILLAGE. 207 continued many by a bad system of culture which has b successive years. The elements of fert sinatnH h„ . 1 ■ icrt...^, .,.,ve not been d s- ^.patcd by sunsh.ne, or scattered by tillage, but l,ave been removed n, the form of crops. Year after year erops I a J K grown upon the same land without manure Ti e e oT . sought out the elements of bI,„, f„„ , ^ ''"'"-" the o«n,.r l„ ■ . , P'""'-'°°''. appropriated them, and the owner has earned them ofll He has done this, too, without 6 v,ng the so,l the beneflt of thorough tillage. Cons quent y has been too slow to meet the demands of the crops Proper cu t uM ,,,, ^^ ^^ ^^^,_ ^^ ^^^^^^ ^.^rr^ 1 e onh"",""' "' "^ ■"" "^"^' '^'^' '°"« --8h to allow mo of the e ements to be unlocked from their present com- b nations, or else there must be the liberal use of fertilizers. If he farmer had returned the mineral elements to the soil in the form of n,anure, all this trouble would have been avoided. But bo h.as been taking from the soil and giving nothing back. Vir- ua ly, he has year by year been selling his land. Eve^, erop 1.^ bas grown has carried part of it away. The farmers who have grown erops which they eould feed, and who have fed them and appbed the manure which they obtained to the soil, have not worn out their land. Yet their land has been tilled as long as a.e exhausted fields. These facts prove that it is not the tillage but he removal of crops which has absorbed the elements of lerlihty and impoverished the soil. While we do not in any ease favor tillage as a substitute for manure, we do most emphatically urge its employment as an au.x.l,ao,. That the tillage alone may be made thorough enough o seeure the production of good erops evety other year we have ■ no the s ghtest doubt. On many soils, which are easily broken down, ..llage may be made to produce fair erops evety year. nght kmd, to promote the growth of crops. There need be no i i'},fi v| *^* FARMING FOR PROFIT. granted that, if this could be done fho « "^ nection with tillage than it is to H V ' '" '°"- A m.n r n • ""^P^""^ "P°" cither one alone We do no app^L. ' ' """^ ""^^ ^"^ — * styled imp Z a d . ;"'"^'° "' '"' '""^ """ ™>' "= labor, of ;,..: :i' ;rrr °V= -;■• ^^^ 'njudicou. «"age is „o exeep.io„ B. ^s'f :;' r ^ ""'■ J" '"' ™'^ rr:fi:::'-rr-=-~ f vviien Jand is improper v tilled th^..-^ • .• and consequent loss, of iabor I „ f V ' "'"'' ^'^"=' not bring the food, w ich t will b T '°° '"'^ " '""^ ' P.an.s, into an assi.ilabt c nd In illrt?! ".r"'"^ ''' good. A farmer ,^ u ... ^^^°" t° ^o the intended cutting his h yc orL/r ' "^ '"' "'"" '" ""S"' •" "= proper^imeX Co:?!?'"' '° '■^""' "'^ ">>' =" '-e By getting overZt K ^"'"'" '°'' *^" ^' ™^S™«. ™ar'etpr.^e:r fredl 7a: ' ''', ''''"^^^■' •■- '•-*"^. '- -d the gain „po„ ...tr^, ^^ *; ^ -•■"•^ -p wi„ far e.. -..ona.e„.anagedfar.::ra„tr::rg:'nr::: TILLAGE. ^^- and the farmer should study not only the best methods, but also to avail himself of the best opportunities for doing this work It should also be remembered that different soils require different degrees of tillage. A loose, open gravel requires but Lttle working compared with a stiff clay soil. If fallowing is practiced, tillage will be a great aid. Still it is not usually given The vast majority of farmers do not sufficiently till their crops' It would be altogether too much of a strain upon faith to expect such men to till their land while it is lying idle. If they will not cultivate the soil thoroughly when it is productive, they certainly will not do much to it while it is resting. Yet some of our best farmers have found this form of tillage very profit- able. Upon some of his fine wheat fields John Johnston does a great deal of work in the line of tillage while the land is fallow. He plows, harrows, and rolls these fields two or three tm.es during the season. Joseph Harris declares himself un- able to "dispense with summer fallowing" on heavy land and he often uses the plow and harrow in order to unlock the treasures which his soil contains. Now if it pays to till the land while it is resting, it must be a matter of great importance to give it thorough culture while it is producing a crop Oxygen, carbonic acid and water are the great liberators of plant-food in the soil. The more loose and open the land is kept the more readily these agents can penetrate it. and the greater the efficiency with which they will act. Stirring the soil allows their entrance, and the breaking of the clods, and mixing of the various portions of the soil which is accomplished by the use of the cultivator, will also prove of great benefit to the crop LiEB.G. noticing the great benefits of culture, remarked that "the influence of the mechanical operations of agriculture upon the fertility of a soil, however imperfectly the earthy particles may be mixed by the process, is remarkable, and often borders upon the marvellous." This test of practical effect is the one to which every theory should be subjected. Ui m 210 F^RA. ?/G FOR FROfiiT, fi. 1 • system Js correct fv^n ..» I.«l.t w. fi„u U,o s..o„Bc,,. argument, in i Jfavor T .L armcrs, and ,|,c farmers who rais,- tho I, . thorough culcurc. The fact tint ,h "°'''' '^"'"" ncction with it doc, not , T^ "'" "'""'"" '"^''^ '" "^o"' .- Of ...o^rtii^^e^^Ltt::-^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "■= 'it.e nas really accomplished. Manufacturers nf r fi- M't'"- mat ccrtam laree vic\d■ ,, I " '"'P"'^=" ''^ '» -egeneralprinciplesl. :;, ! ,^::^;^';, f * *— — < ... be constaudy kept in mind. TILL/^S, 2H The so,l must be thoroughly fittc-d ,o receive tl, ■ seed N a.n..u„t „f ,,i,f,„ ,.u„re afterwards can atone for c^.,t P-i.are the land before the planting is done. The seeds o flm crops are comparatively sn.all and weak. When placed H poorly prepared soil, which is full of lu.nps and clods, i, take, a lo"B wh,le for them to get fairly started. Their sn a 1 tel, -.lets cannot p,.nc.,«e ,l,o clods, and it is with difficu iy t It hey find e.thcr r,.„n, or food. ,„ all the early stages of growth nt": ■■",■ 'Tf " ' ^'™' "'"^"""'^s^' -" - "^' 8™ o contend w„l, d,fficulties which the farnCT ought not to In e allowed to exist. Sub.se.uent culture may bLk these c and g.ve , e plants both room and food, but it will cert in t come too late to allow them to do a, well as they wo d if eveothmg had been favorable from the beginning. ,f . , .s „e wl.„ the .seed ,-s planted, growth will be prom,^: regular There w,ll be no delay from want of food, and no t.n e w,ll be lo.s. in t,ying to find room. The plants w licl s.« m l„s „,anner will be strong and vigorous, and will bo farkss H- >y to be attacked by disease than those which start slo„ y and have a hard fight in order to obtain a hold upon life .nterest, of the former to have his crops grow as rapidly a', poss.ble; and for this reason, oven if there were no other good ..liage should be given. ,f his corn comes up promptly' d .rows rap,dly, the plants will soon be large enough to rulLa^ T,..s eultur, wdl cau-o them to grow still faster, and in an _-.nary s=..on, ,t may be possible to get the third hoeing out of the way before the haying season arrives. This is qute an object for the farmer, and the early culture will prove a g ea be ofit to the crop. But if the corn comes up slowly, and doe not grow much for two or three weeks after it do s appear Ts be T , '"' ''""" '"' *^ "™ '" g-*. ""J ''cfore I has been fa,rly attended to once the haying needs -o be com- if I I 11 w*m -^ 212 FARMING FOR PROFIT. menced. With wheat, oats, and similar crops, the results of a slow grovi'th during their early stages are still worse than they are with the corn crop. The plants being weak, are destroyed in large numbers by climatic changes and insects, while the weeds, which are more hardy than the grain, take possession of altogether too much of the land. Upon most farms these crops are not hoed, and when they fail to get a good start, the weeds attain a large' size, starve the grain, injure the soil, and ripen their seed. If the' grain had started vigorously, it might have overcome the weeds, but starting late, and being placed at a great disadvantage, it must take the second place. It will always pay, even though it may involve some delay about planting or sowing, to get the land in the best possible condition to receive the seed. It is much better to wait a few days until the soil can be finely pul- verized, than it is to hurry in the seed before the land is properly prepared. The plants will grow enough faster to more than make up for the delay, and, being much more vigorous will produce larger crops than can be obtained if the land is not in a suitable condition when the seeding is done. While early planting is often of great importance, it cannot be more neces- sary than a thorough preparation of the land. In order to secure the full measure of benefit which tillage is able to confer, it is necessary that the culture of the plants should be adapted to their particular wants. Both corn and potatoes are greatly benefited by tillage, but it must be performed in a very different manner for one of these crops than It IS for the other. It is possible to injure plants by bad tillac^e We have seen a corn crop seriously damaged by having too much d.rt thrown upon it at once. But such facts as these arc no renection upon the benefits of tillage itself Improper food has killed many a fine horse, but no one thinks it wrong to feed horses because some have been destroyed by bad feeding And if a farmer has cultivated his com in an improper manner TILLAGE. 213 and injured it by so doing, he should not lay the blame upon the tillage, but charge it to his own ignorance or carelessness. The special wants of each particular crop should not only be studied and supplied, but it should also be remembered that, at different stages of their growth, some plants need different forms of culture. Experienced cotton-growers recommend deep culture when the crop is small, and shallow culture when it has become large enough to cover the ground. Probably the majority of corn-growers, who favor deep culture during any stage of the existence of this plant, believe it is best to cultivate shallow after the roots have reached far out between the rows. With some crops the dirt should be turned away at the first hoeings, and brought toward the plants at later ones. It may be accepted as a sound proposition that suitable cul- ture will not injure any of our farm crops. If crops have been injured by culti- vation, it is a pretty sure proof that the method em- ployed was defective. In- stead of giving up all hope from tillage, the unsuccessful farmer should study the demands of his crops more closely, and try to adapt his methods to the natural tendencies of the plants. If the right methods are adopted, tillage will give any and every farmer a great deal of efficient aid. Another great essential to success in growing large crops by the aid of tillage is the possession and use of suitable imple- ments with which to do the work. In the lack of these implements may be found the principal reason why so many farmers do not succeed in making what they call tillage highly successful. They have no implements which are capable of doing the required work. What they have called tillage has not been worthy of the designation. The farmers of to-day FIG. lO.— ANCIENT METHOD OF TILLAGE, \ [ ■Ill ii iiiin H ilill |l •: I 214 FARMING FOR PROFIT. think with pity of the ancient husbandman, whose only plo-.v was a crooked stick, and rejoice in the advances which have been made in the construction of agricultural tools and machines. In this the average farmer does well. But he should remember that when compared with the possibilities of cultivation, of which some of the expensive machines for pul- verizing the soil have given us indications, his own methods are still very rude, and there is a vast field for improvement in his own immediate neighborhood. His implements are vastly better FIG. II. — A MODERN IMPROVEMENT, than those of his forefathers; but they are not the best in the world, and, what is much more to the case, he does not always make the best possible use of them. The very best implements for pulverizing the soil are driven by steam and are too expensive for the average farmer to own, but there is no reason why he cannot have good ones with which he can work out a high degree of success. If he will obtain the best implements within his reach, and use them faith- fully, he will secure the benefits of tillage in a degree which THE CHOICE OF CROPS. 215 will give him both pleasure and profit. But he must not, for a moment, suppose that the occasional use of an old and nearly worn-out cultivator, or horse-hoe, or any other implement which was never good and is not now half as effective as it was when new, is tillage, or anything closely resembling t. In order to till the soil in the way it should be tilled it is absolutely neces- sary to have good implements and to use them thoroughly. And until a farmer has faithfully tried it in this way he ought not to condemn tillage as a method for securing good crops. If farmers only realized the importance of this subject and would make the best possible use of the implements which they have, or which they can readily obtain, we are confident that they would larr;.-; increase the yield of their crops and make their busmcss much more profitable than it has ever been in the past. The accompanying illustrations show the difference between ancient and modern methods of tillage. Figure lo represents the plow and team used by the Egyptians in the olden time. Figure 1 1 exhibits a Western team attached to one of the Furst & Bradley " Garden City " gang-plows. THS €H0£€& OF CBGPS. ^HERE are few things of a purely intellectual nature which do so much toward determining whether the far- r5>'5r mer shall succeed or fail in his business, or which are so influential in fixing the degree of success or failure as the choice of the crops which he will produce. Though suc- cess in farming depends upon a great many different things, and cannot be secured by the most careful attention to any one or two of the items if the others are neglected, yet there are certain foundation principles which must be observed or failure will be certam and absolute. Neglect of some points will diminish the profits of the business, while if others are disregarded no profits can be secured. The choice of crops is one of the essentials. |f , i 216 FARMING FOR PROFIT. A mistake here is radical and may be fatal to success No amount of diligence in business, and no quantity or degree of skd ul culture can atone for an error in this department of the work of the farm. The choice of crops is to the farmer what the selection of goods is to the merchant. Eve:y one knows that ,f a merchant is to succeed he must keep a stock of goods of the kmd and quality which his customers want. If he lays ma stock of silk when his customers want calico, or chocolate when they want cofifee. he will not be able to sell his goods hose who have been his patrons will go to other stores where' heir wants can be supplied, and the merchant, having lost his trade, w.ll be obliged to shut up his store. If a merchant can- not, or will not. supply the wants of his customers, he must expect to lose their trade. If a maa wants a certain class of goods he will not long remain satisfied to take a different kind simply because the merchant with whom he has traded is out o. what he needs and has a surplus of what he does not want Now th.s same principle, which is so clear in its application to the merchant, is of equal importance to the farmer. Both mer- chant and farmer depend for their living upon the sale of articles The former obtains the goods which he sells, by purchase. The latter secures his as the result of labor and skill in the cultiva- tion of the soil. The one must buy what he can sell or he will not succeed. The other must produce what he can sell or he w,ll certainly fail. It requires some skill in a merchant to deter mme just what goods, and what particular grades his customers Will want. The farmer needs an equal degree of skill to enable him to supply the popular demand for his productions The market for the farmer's p,-oducts fluctuates in its special de- mands almost as much as that for the products of the manufac- turer s skill. The fact that a certain kind, or quality, of farm products is popular just now is not the slightest indication that the popularity will be permanent. The farmer must not go on year after year growing something which was in style twenty 1:1 THE CHOICE OF CROPS. 217 years ago. and paying no regard to the present demands of cus- tomers, A i^^ years ago the local dealers in pork, in this vicinity wanted large and heavy hogs. Now they do not want the weight to exceed two or three hundred pounds. The producers who have changed their methods of feeding, so as to supply the demand, can sell readily and obtain the highest market rates But the few who have paid no attention to the change in the wants of customers often have hard work to dispose of thei^ products, and frequently are obliged to sell for less than the ruhng price, because their hogs are heavier than the buyers want. When we commenced growing onions for the market we produced about equal quantities of the red and yellow varieiies. We had been told that the red ones would sell the best, but that the yellow ones would ripen soonest. But we soon found that our customers much preferred the yellow ones-that we could sell these without difficulty, while very i.^ wanted the red ones Consequently we gave up growing red onions and cultivate the' yellow var-ety exclusively. Whether the yellow ones are better than the red ones we cannot say. It is a question for our customers to decide. We care nothing about it either way. The kmd which will sell is the kind which we shall grow and as long as our customers demand one particular kind we shall not trouble our mind with the question whether it is better or worse than some other sort. This is the principle which must govern the farmer who is to be successful. He may believe that the Snowflake potatoes are far superior to the Early Rose but .f buyers want Early Rose and do not want the Snowflake it' js useless for him to insist upon growing the best ones .imdy because they are better than the others. The consumers are the ones to judge of the quality, and it is safe for the farmer to rely upon their choice. The farmer may also believe that it is a great deal better for people to eat but if the people who do the buying want the It IS to use pork; pork and will not HI t '■ I! i if 218 FARMING FOR PROFIT. eat the mutton, the producer should waste no time in trying to force buyers to take the meat which they do not want. If buyers pay their money, it is but just and right that they should take their choice. Like all other principles this is liable to abuse. It may be carried too far. We strongly recommend it so far, but only so far, as it can be followed in perfect honesty, and without encour- aging an evil course on the part of buyers. When moral principles become involved, the right, and not the popular demand, should be the standard of choice. We would never convert cider into brandy because a custdmer preferred the brandy to vinegar. Neither would we allow our grain to be converted into whiskey because a buyer preferred the whiskey to flour or meal. But within certain well-defined and easily de- scribed limits it is not only wise, but is very important that the farmer should grow those crops which will supply the popular demand. No evil habits should be encouraged and no vitiated tastes should be gratified. But in all questions such as the particular variety of potatoes, or onions, or apples, the choice of pork, or beef, or mutton, the growth of corn, or wheat, or oats, the wants of the consumers should be the court of final resort. As far as himself and his family are concerned the farmer may profitably grow the particular crops and varieties which they consider the best, but for market these preferences should be waived, and those of his customers be allowed to govern his choice. In order to aid him in making a proper selection of crops the farmer should keep himself constantly informed concerning the state of the markets in which he deals. He should note not only the prices which are paid, but also the tendencies of these markets. It sometimes happens that a demand for a certain kind of vegetable, or fruit, will commence on a very small scale and gradually increase to large proportions. The farmer who sees the opportunity at the beginning, ard improves it, may thus THE CHOICE OF CROPS. 219 add a very profitable item to his business. Still, care must be taken not to over-do the production of any article which is just becoming popular. There will be a limit t:> the demand, and no one can tell how soon it will be reached. The men who start first in the matter will secure and can retain customers, but those who begin when the market is full will have great difficulty in disposing of their products. The pop-corn business m some of our large cities furnishes a fine illustration of this principle. The production of fine crab-apples is another line in which the early and skilful producers are highly successful. The man who is ready to supply the demand for such articles as soon as it arises does well, but it often happens that those who go into the business after the supply equals the demand are losers thereby. Any business of this kind should be com- menced on a small scale, and increased only as the state of the market demands. There should be no giving up of standard crops on account of " great expectations " from new ones. A merely temporary demand, which is caused by some unusual occurrence, must not be construed as an indication of a permanent change. If the potato crop is a partial failure, and prices reach an extreme figure, many families will buy turnips instead of potatoes. This will cause an unusual call for turnips, and prices can be obtained which will make them a profitabfe crop. But from this fact it will not be safe to expect high prices for turnips to rule permanently. Just as soon as potatoes are plenty, the families who substituted turnips because they were cheaper will give them up. and go to using potatoes There are many farm products which will always sell to a limited extent which, in time of the scarcity of some promi- nent crop, may be used as a substitute therefor, and thus tem- porarily be in great demand, but which, from the very nature of the case, can never be extensively used or sold. To force the production of such crops is worse than useless. It will involve a loss on the part of farmers with no corresponding gain to 220 FARMING FOR PROFIT. any one else. The wise farmer will not enter upon their culti- vation on a large scale until he is satisfied that there will be a local demand, the supply of which he can in some measure control, and that the call is not merely temporary, to serve some incidental purpose, but will be steady and permanent. It is very much better for a farmer never to vary his round of crops in the least than it is to be constantly changing from one to another, and trying every new plant which makes its appear- ance. We have alluded to the fact that the farmer and the merchant are both interested in supplying the popular demand for the various articles in which they deal. In disposing of their goods both parties stand on equal terms. But in obtaining them the farmer finds himself at a great disadvantage. The merchant can go into the wholesale markets and buy just what he wants. He can obtain one class of goods just as easily as another. If his customers v/ant cotton-cloth, he can get it without trouble or delay. If they prefer the finest silks, he can get them just as well. But with the farmer the case is different. He finds him- self under certain limitations. Instead of going to some whole- sale market, and calling for anything which he wants with the certainty of obtaining it at once, he must go to the soil, and determine by a practical trial whether the required crop can be produced. Many farms have been badly cultivated, and thus rendered incapable of producing certain crops. There are many sections in which the land is specially adapted to the growth of some plants, and entirely unsuited to the production of others. Therefore, in making his choice of crops, the wise farmer will not only take into consideration the wants of his customers, and the tendencies of the market, but also the char- acter of his land, and its adaptation to the growth of particular plants. If his land is not all adapted to the production of wheat, he will grow some other crop even when wheat is selling for a high price, and there is a great demand. The farmer THE CHOICE OF CROPS. 221 ' ■ whose land is light and xvarm should chose crops which 'ar|:^^'" '^ ->> adapted to that kind of soil, while the one whose land is h^j.^1?^ i^^ and inclined to be wet. should grow an entirely different W'^'.W. ' of plants, or else thoroughly drain his land, and cultivate Hrjiji''-'^^ ridges so as to almost wholly change its nature and condition ' '"*' - Aside from these natural characteristics of the land, there will be found a great difference in the quality of the plant-food which soils contain, and thus their adaptation to special crops will be greatly modified. If a soil is naturally, or by a bad system of cultivation has become, deficient in potash, it will not be adapted to those crops which require a large proportion of this element. If it has become deficient in silicic acid, it will not be adapted to the production of wheat or rye. If phos- phoric acid is deficient, it will produce none of the grain crops to good advantage. The same principle applies to a deficiency of all the other elements. The crops should be so chosen that they shall require only in a very slight degree the elements in which the soil is deficient. This, for farmers whose land has long been cultivated, is a severe limitation, and if there wero^n^v.-^ t.. way in which it could be safely modified, would perm(r%m ¥^a growth of but very few kinds of .plants. g^ *¥ C ^* Fortunately, by the use of fertilizers, it is possible to ^^^^^^^ deficiencies which may exist in the land, and thus prepare S-t ttt'v.iVttt produce crops for which it is not naturally adapted. Where only barn-yard-manure is used, the special adaptations of the land will stand out with considerable prominence. This manure, when it has not been damaged, is a complete fertilizer, and. to some extent, supplies all the elemtnts which plants need. But if a soil is deficient in potash, and a crop is grown which needs a liberal supply of this element, the yield will be measured very closely by the amount of potash contained in the manure. If the same crop is grown upon equally good land which also con- tains an abundance of potash, and is manured the same as the other field, the yield will be greatly increased. The same is •4" 222 FARMING FOR PROFIT. true in regard to each of the other elements. When no fertihzer is used, and when only barn-yard-manure is applied, the yield will be greatly influenced by the degree of the adaptation of the land for the particular crop under cultivation. Consequently, it is a matter of great importance for the farmer who relies upon farm manures to make a wise selection of crops. While it f necessary that he should choose some crops which he can either use or sell, it is also necessary that he should select those which he can grow. No matter how well a crop will sell, if a fair yield cannot be secured there should be no further efforts to grow it, but the farmer should turn his attention to something which he can produce. Farmers need more individuality. As a rule, in wheat-growing towns all the farmers raise wheat, in corn-growing sections all produce corn, and whatever other crop may be the leading one in other places the farmers all grow it, and do not stop to think whether it would pay better to grow some other crop. It may happen in a wheat country that there will be a few farms which, on account of a peculiar formation of the soil, or by reason of bad management, are not so well adapted to wheat as they are to some other product. The owners of such farms ought to recognize this fact, and choose their crops with reference to it. Independent thought, aided by careful experiment, would be a great help to a multitude of farmers who have got into the ruts. It sometimes happens that the crops which the land is best fitted to produce are not the ones which will find a ready market, or which the farmer prefers to grow. In such cases the fertilizers for special crops may prove of great value, and enable the farmer to obtain a good yield of the crop which he wants to produce. We have no doubt that land which is not very well adapted to onions may be made quite productive by the use of a good fertilizer made for this special crop. In all cases it is better that the land should be naturally favorable to the crop to be grown, but it often pays to use manure which supplies just what the THE CHOICE OF CROPS. 223 plants want, and thus, practically, fit the land to the crop instead of choosing the crop with reference to the capacity of the land. A farmer may be so situated that he could make Iiis business very profitable if he could grow potatoes, but finds that his land has been so nearly exhausted that it will not produce a paying crop. He may not be able to obtain large quantities of manure", and by its use improve the soil, or he may not wish to incur the trouble and expense which such a course would involve. But if he will use a liberal quantity of a good potato fertilizer he can secure paying crops, and not make his land poorer Sy • l.cir removal. The discovery of special manures removed one of the greatest restrictions from which farmers had suffered. Until they came into use there was, in many places, but little liberty about the choice of crops. Now, with skilful manage- ment, crops can be grown where they would not have succced^'cd under the old methods of culture. Another point to be considered in choosing crops is the cost of production, and its proportion to the value of what is secured. A neighbor recently said that the potatoes which he grew last year cost him a dollar a bushel. He could have bought nice potatoes for less than half what it cost him to grow them. Many a crop has cost the grower much more than it was worth. It is one thing to securea good yield, and quite another thing to make the crop pay. And this fact must be kept in mind when an cfibrt is made to grow certain crops on land not specially adapted to their production. It is not an object for the farmer to grow large crops, or crops which will sell readily, if the cost exceeds their value. But with careful management we think that almost any crop may be grown upon land which is not decidedly unfitted for it, and be made to pay. We know that by the use of suitable fertilizers, by thorough preparation of the land, and careful cultivation of the growing plants, the natural inadaptation of some soils to certain crops can be over- come, and money can be made in their production. An accu- 9> 1 224 FARMING I' OR PROFIT. rate account should be kqpt with each and every crop which the farmer grows, so that he can be sure which crops pay him the best and which are unprofitable. The cost of fertilizers, expense of culture, harvesting, and marketing, should all be noted. If the crop is sold, its value can be easily ascertained, and a balance can be struck which will show the amount of the profit or loss. If the crop is to be consumed at home, its value should be carefully estimated, taking the ruling cash price as a standard. The principal crops which arc grown upon a farm should be those which can be used at home if there is no demand for them in market. Many farmers have been brought into financial difficulties by their neglect of this principle. Men who have made tobacco their standard crop have often been obliged to make great sacrifices which might have been avoided if, instead of devoting all their energies to this, to them, useless plant, they had attempted to grow it only upon a small area and had obtained hay and grain from the remainder of their land. When itobacco sold well, these farmers had but little trouble. They took the money obtained for their tobacco and bought family supplies, grain for their teams, and hay for their stock. But when there was no sale for tobacco, and farmers had to keep what they had grown until it was two or three years old, those ■who had no other crop were very badly off They could not make the tobacco available. It would neither supply the wants of their families nor feed their cattle. These farmers had often said that it did not pay to grow corn, but they found that a few of their neighbors who had held to the old-fashioned crops were much better off than themselves. It is always safe to grow corn, and oats, and grass, for if there is no sale for them they can be largely, and as a general thing profitably, used on the farm. When wheat is plenty it will sell for something, and for use as food it is just as necessary to the family as it ever was. A crop which can be either used or sold is always far preferable KOTATIO.W OF CROPS. 226 to one which cannot be used and which docs not at all times find a ready sale. If these principles are followed, the farmer can determine which are the best crops for him to produce. The knowledge thus obtained will prove of great benefit. It will give him the advantage of working in the light. It will take him out of the realm of guess-work and teach him to rely upon facts and figures. It will enable him to select his crops with reference to the capacities of his land, or, when it will be more profitable for him to do so, to adapt his land to the crops which he wishes to produce. If he makes a wise choice of crops, he thereby takes a step in the straight road which leads to success. Having started right, he can, by high manuring and thorough cukurc, obtain large yields and secure a large percentage of profit. The' experience of past generations has taught that the choice of crops is one of the main dividing lines between success and failure on the farm, and that wisdom requires the farmer to give this subject his earnest attention. <^ BdTiiTrOH OF GROFS. ^CJjT is not only necessary that the farmer should make a !^1: wise choice of the crops which he will produce, but it fp wise choice of the crops which he will produce, but it is also important that he should follow a system of rota- tion. It is for want of such a system that many fields are now unproductive. The one crop method has been pursued until the crops have failed to pay the cost of production. A suitable system of rotation would have long deferred the time of exhaustion. In connection with the use of fertilizers it would have prevented any and all injury to the soil. Nature follows a course of rotation. When an oak forest dies, or is cut off by man, other varieties of trees spring up, and mstead of another oak grove the owner of the land will find pine, and chestnut, or some other trees which are very much unlike the original oak. I '^ *l *i t! ': i f^il -i^ 226 FARMING FOR PROFIT. From this fact we may draw the inference that an occasional change of crops is demanded by the soil. Experiments have proved this inference correct. It was once thought that plants were in the habit of throwing off their waste substances, and that these poisoned the soil for all plants of a similar nature, but left it uninjured for those of a different class. This theoiy has been generally abandoned, and there is but very little evidence by which it can be sustained. The opinion now held is that different crops take the elements of plant-food from the soil in different proportions, and that this fact accounts for the great benefits resulting from a change of crops. It is true that some crops require more of some elements and less of others than certain plants which are differently con- stituted, but this explanation does not seem to cover all the ground. Each of our leading farm crops takes nitrogen, phos- phoric acid, and potash from the soil. None of them can be produced without a supply of all three of these elements. It has been proved that land will produce wheat, corn, and oats in succession much better than it will three successive crops of wheat. But the difference in the demands for plant-food can hardly account for all the difference which is manifested in the crops. It has something to do with it, but probably is not the only reason. When a crop which makes a large use of potash is followed by one which requires but little of this element it is easy to see why the change should be beneficial. The former crop used the potash as fast as it could get it, and if planted the next year would need a larger quantity than the land could supply. But with the other crop the changes going on in the soil will set free as much potash as is required. For this crop there is plenty of potash, and a surplus may be left In the soil for future crops. But this principle is not of very extensive app' -ation to our leading crops, because they all require con- siderable quantities of each of the elements of plant-food In which soils arc likely to be deficient. ROTATION OF CROPS. 227 Probably one of the reasons why a rotation of crops is so use- fu maybe found in the fact that some plants are much more dehcate feeders than others. The wheat plant Is not able to take as large a proportion of the plant-food which the soil con tains as rye and oats. Consequently, either ^^e or oats will follow wheat to much better advantage, as far as the yield of the crop is concerned, than two successive crops of wheat can be grown. Another reason why a change often proves bene- ficial is to be found in the fact that some crops demand and receive, a great deal of cultivation, which allows the air to pene- trate the soil and hastens the liberation of plant-food while others admit of little or no culture after the seed is sown' Still another reason may be found in the fact that while some crops hke corn, are almost wholly removed from the land upon which they have grown, others, like oats, are partially left, in the form of stubble, and furnish considerable organic matter to the soil This does something to prevent the great waste of nitrogen which results when both grain and stalks are wholly removed A directly opposite reason may sometimes be the one which, renders a rotation of crops beneficial. Upon very rich clover fields this crop sometimes fails to do well. This Is not at alL because the land is exhausted of the elements which clover needs, but because successive crops of clover have left suck large quantities of vegetable matter in the soil that the land is overloaded with this material in all stages of decomposition To a certain extent it is of great value, but in order to be useful, It must first be decomposed. When rich lands are kept long b clover this organic matter accumulates faster than it can be used and fills the soil with fermenting substances to such an extent as to make it sour and unproductive. But if the land Is plowed this organic matter will be rapidly decomposed and will furnish valuable food for plants. That which on account of its great abundance was an evil in the land devoted to clover will prov- a splendid fertilizer for the corn crop. After the land has been m> ! ''i 4^ II I i 228 FARMING FOR PROFIT. plowed a few times, and thus exposed to the action of the air, it can again be made to produce fine crops of clover. These we consider the principal reasons why a rotation of crops is so useful to the farmer. Whether they cover the whole ground or not, we think they account for most of the changes which take place under such a system. And the fact remains that a wise rotation proves of great utility. Whether the methods in which it operates can be explained or not, the fact that it is a help to the farmer is too evident to be doubted, and the wise farmer will accept and act upon it without requiring a perfect description of the manner of its working. In choosing the crops which he will grow in the successive seasons occupied by the rotation, the principles stated in our consideration of the subject of the choice of crops should be applied. Four of five of the best crops should be selected, and the land devoted to each in its regular order. Grass should be •one of the leading crops in every system of rotation. This may be followed by corn. The next year the land may be devoted to potatoes, or carrots, turnips, or sugar-beets. The next season green forage crops, principally oats and corn, may be grown, and winter rye sowed in the fall. The next year this rye may be cut while green, for fodder, and other forage crops be grown •npon the land which is earliest cleared. In the fall of this year wheat should be sown, and the land seeded with timothy and clover. The next season the grain is harvested and the grass is allowed to remain. To each of these crops a liberal quantity of manure is to be applied, and the year after the seeding is done the land will produce two heavy crops of grass. This is the rotation, \\'A\\ a very slight modification, which is followed by Mr. Waring, at Ogden Farm. We pay less attention to roots and to green forage crops. In the Northern and Middle States grass followed by corn, than a green fodder crop, then wheat, then grass again, would be a good rotation. We Ihave often grown corn two years in succession, and, when the ROTATION OF CROPS. 229 turf is very heavy, we consider it a good method, provided a sufficient quantity of manure is applied. Instead of the corn potatoes, or green fodder, may be grown to good advantage' upon an ordinary sod. Oats or rye may sometimes talWes. By getting a good variety from the mountains, and care- fully growmg a sm,.ll field specially for the production of seed the Southern farmer can grow his own seed-oats and keep the ' hrghesl quahty of the variety unimpaired 246 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Oats will thrive on almost any kind of soil which is not very wet. Standing water is death to the plant, and it will not do well if the land is constantly soaker^. On good land a much larger yield can be obtained than can be secured from a poor soil, but something of a crop can be obtained from land which is very far from being fertile. This crop is sometimes grown on an inverted sod, but this practice is not considered the best. Oats follow corn or potatoes very well. No green barn-yard- manure should be applied to the land, but it is a great mistake to suppose that all fertilizers are injurious to the crop. Well- rotted compost may be harrowed in, and it will pay well to use it for this purpose. Special fertilizers for the oat crop may often be made very profitable. They are especially valuable on land- which has long been cropped. On many soils two or three bushels of salt per acre may be advantageously used. When oats are grown on sod, this application of salt should never be omitted. Oi. land upon which grain is likely to lodge it will also prove useful. The oat crop has obtained the reputation of being very exhausting to the soil. This is a bad name which is wholly undeserved. An analysis of the plant shows that it requires quite a quantity of nitrogen, but does not take as much phos- phoric acid and potash from the soil as several of our other crops. The amount of nitrogen is not excessive, and the actual exhaustion of the soil is less than it is in the production of either wheat or corn. The idea that oats rapidly exhaust the soil probably comes from the fact that seeding with oats often proves a failure, and that grass following oats does not give as large crops as when it follows corn. But an ample reason for these things can be found without resorting to the theory that the oats have impoverished the soil. We have little trouble in seeding with oats, though rye is a better crop for the pur- pose. The difficulty of seeding with oats results from the fact that the oat is a strong growing plant, and it shades, and some- \ ■ ( c e P o: bi V to ki mi \ ' J^AI^Af AND FODDER CROPS. times smothers, the weak grass plants. The cause of th , \ being m poor condition after the cro. • ^^ '^""^ oats as well as it is for . '^ manured for . early i„ .he .eason-jull o„„ VT'"" ^'""*"' "= ''°- -<< war. .„ .pH„,/ ;^: ~j \r 'T'^T'' mvariably light and poor. ^ ^'^ ^''"^^^ We would prefer to sow when the land is rather cold than to wait until late in the season for it to become warm. At the South many oats are sown in the fall. At the North the severe cold of winter destroys the plants. A hardy variety a"::;":: :,:r ^"™ ■•- ^^ -— - ^-ssee. culture will be ^ener.!! . ^ ' ^^^tl^er their wm De generally successful as far Nnrfh oc fu- extensive trial must determine AfTer tL ^^ u"' ' "°''' prepared, the seed may be sL K ^ ' " "'°™"S'"y one to four bushels peTacre We ^ Z ^ "" "' '""^ bu.He, but ,e„era„'y LH J^^ sr^l^.d^ ^ ""^ '■th alight harrow and th. l j , ^ ''°"=''e<' .0 bake'should b^::, .o , d ^'^'^ ''* " ''=' ^"^ -'--^ kinds of grain which a s^Iir? "*'' ^"'^ °*^^ much better work U,an cafr f .'" ' ' ™'^'""' *"' ^'' rK man can be performed by hand, and also do FIG. 12. 248 FARMING FOR PROFIT. it very rapidly. Fig. 1 2 represents a hand-machine which will sow from four to six acres, and Fig. 13 a horse-machine sowing from twelve to fifteen acres per hour. Both machines are made and sold by Benson, Maule & Co., of Philadelphia. Oats should be harvested when the lower part of the stalk has turned yellow and the kernel has fairly passed out of the milk. If cut at this stage the grain will be plump, and the straw will be good for fodder. If allowed to stand longer, the quality of the straw will be impaired, and the grain will be very likely to '1 I m FIG. 13. shell in the field. Great losses are often sustained by allowing this crop to become too ripe before it is cut. When grown on a small scale the oats may be cradled, allowed to dry a day or two, and then bound in small bundles, which should either be set up in small stooks in the field, or stored in a well-ventilated loft in the barn. It is yery important that lie oats should be quite dry before they are packed away. Otherwise they will heat badly and the grain will be discolored. It is also highly necessary that they should be got in without much exposure to rains and heavy dews. The grain is easily discolored by ram, I f a e V c a b si d( f J^^JfAT A^D FODDek crops. .,^^ weather is cloudy it is sometime., best to put uo th -a„ stooks, and allow it to stand a week o" two T.'T '" should be exposed to the sun a few hours befoeZ b 1 packed away in mows, ,t is always bes't c ' th" " good we-.ther, dry it well befor, w a- "°P '" haul it a. once t!thebr„o ;:"*:"' "''^" ' ' '°""'' -t Should be Where ,ar,e .^ of l^.l ZZ L" ^e st^slX """^ ^* °"'^ ^"^ "-^ ""^'^ -' "P ^" -^ The oat is liable to but few diseases. The straw n,=,l, excellent fodder, and the grain is one of the Is tZ^: Z r :r, ■ "^"^ ''"'"'^ P-"-^^. " f°™^ one f't most healthful and nutritious kinds of food for man. When the crop ,s des,gne, for fodder it should be cut early and cu!!:, hay. In th,s form ,t makes a splendid food for cows which are g.v.ng milk. It is also valuable for feeding to o.hl o espec,any to sheep. Either for g^in or fodder the oat s a valuable p ant and is well worthy of the best cultivation con^^," ^'""'""'' ^"'''"' '"" '°-"' P-'^ °f this counto- ^o„.derable attention is paid to growing peas as a field cro^ Here they have not become a prominent crop, though many feedmg to hogs, sheep, and hens. They will grow in aln^ost any so.l, but yield much larger crops on rich land than they do elsewhere^ No green manure should be used, but a coating and r r "'°"" '^ •"°"''' '» ^ ""derate depth broad r: r ' "'" ""'"'•'''■ T"' -^' '^ --"y sown' broadcast at the rate of from two to three bushels per acre It should be covered with a small plow or a cultivator A htrol does not cover deeply enough. After the seed is covered tie 250 FARMING FOR PROFIT. land should be rolled. This must not be neglected, as the labor of gathering will be much increased if the surface of the land is rough. Some farmers sow peas with oats in order that the latter may furnish a support and keep the vines from the ground. But as the two do not ripen together, and as the oats are not strong enough to fully answer the purpose for which they are sown, many growers prefer to sow the peas alone. Peas are often grown in the corn fields. Here they are di illed in between the rows of corn. This practice obtains more at the South than it does elsewhere. The best farmers prefer the month of May for sowing peas in corn fields, but some growers wait until June. At the North the planting should be done as early as the first of June. If wanted for feeding green, the first planting may be in April, and later ones at intervals of three weeks. This will give a succession through the fall. The varieties most in use at the North are the marrowfat, a large and rather late pea which needs a strong soil, and the small yellow pea, which is a favorite in Canada and will thrive on light land. At the South the large cow pea is extensively grown for stock. The " Pindar," a leguminous plant resembling both the pea and the bean, is also a favorite in this section. The vines are good for fodder, and the seeds, which to the amount of from twenty-five to fifty bushels per acre ripen beneath the surface of the land, are excellent for fattening animals. When ripe the pods are loosened with a fork and then pulled with the vines, turned out with a light plow, or else the hogs are let into the field to harvest the crop as they want it for food. This crop is often grown for market. The method of its cultivation for this purpose will be considered in the proper place. The ordinary peas may be fed fiom the time when they are half grown until they are fully ripe. If cut and cured while green, they make good hay for cows and sheep. Some grow- ers turn their stock into the fields, but this is a wasteful prac- 1 s f< FARM AND J-ODDER CROPS 2ol mav h. c 1 ^ "- """^"^^ *° ^-" of" corn. Thcv n^ay be soaked m „.i,k or water until they are soft and d think it \i:: z: z z '"'"" " ^^-^^ ^•^^^^"^' -^ to use the peas alon^ Th^J J s T '^'''T '^^'" '"' '"^ when sowed late it is of trl T V """"^ '^'^'^^"^ting. and larc It IS of great value for giving the soil -, err. a covering during the hot weather. ^°°^ ^'^^^^ — ^^^^ cultivation of nV/» ;« *u- * confined within quite „1, ta, " ThV7"'7 """""'^ perfection a moist soil wh h can be H^ """"^ '"' "' hot climate I, can hi '' '"""''«'■■<'. and a cannot thl'e be Id '" '""' '■"'™' ™ "P'""*' ""' of Sou™ cln^ ■">"<= a very profitabie crop. I„ the swamps o e o he^" oa "'"'"' " '" '"' >'™''""'-. -<• '» -r .,ni.ed fo;;;: z::r:;:z:::;::^-^' -if^Trfiivr^rrrr^'"-"-^^^ nree leet apart. The land should be kept free from weeds by the use of the cultivator and hand-hoc. ^'t U v * ..cs of nee succeed much better in lowlands than they do la comparatively dry soil. ^ ^ The rice field should be so arranged that it can h. • is to be done in March A ^ '"P'™'"'' T'''^' ne March. After sowmg, a little water is let on This remams two or three dav, Tl,. ■ , swell and the water is withd^atr ^/Z^::-T '" four inches high, water is let on until all" but the ;; 'LlTa: 262 FARMING FOR PROFIT. covered. This remains until about two weeks before harvest- time, when the water is drawn off in order that the stalks may harden, and that the process of ^athcrin^ the crop may be facil- itated. This is the simp.cst method of culture which can be made successful. Some growers do a great deal more work. They draw off the water, and weed and hoe the plants three or four times during the season. If the land is full of strong grow- ing aquatic plants, this course may be necessary. Otherwise it can hardly be made to pay. RvE. — This crop is extensively grown in the Eastern and Middle States, and is frequently produced on those wheat fields of ^hc West, which, from severe cropping with wheat alone, have become partially exhausted. It is a hardy plant, and succeeds in a large variety of soils, and in different climates. Wet land is not adapted to its production, and should be drained before this crop is tried. Rye will grow on very poor land, but fertile soils will produce much larger crops. It is not very exhausting, but when it is grown upon the same land year after year, and no manure is applied, the soil at length becomes extremely poor. It does not require a large proportion of the principal elements which the other grain crops use. Conse- quently exhaustion goes on slowly. Some farmers have claimed that for an indefinite time rye can be grown year after year without manure, and without either diminishing the yield of the crop, or impairing the fertility of the soil. The only thing needed to prevent exhaustion is the turning under of the stubble as soon as a crop is removed. That this opinion is erroneous must be evident to the man who will give the subject attention. The course proposed, and it is followed by many farmers, involves the removal each year of all the grain, and almost all of the straw, which the land can produce, without the slightest return of any substance with which to repair this inevitable waste. The disintegration of the soil, which in nearly exhausted fields is going on very slowly, is the only FAXM AKD foDDEIt CKOfS. jSS source from which ,ho mineral clcn,c„U which .he crop r=qu.rcs can be obtained. If w. .,ei„,ate .1,. crop a. only J bushels per acre, .here will be a removal of five hundred .„d ..xty pound., of grain, and about ten hundred pounds of „raw for which no equivalent whatever is rendered. Under such' treatn,ent the land must inevitably grow poorer year by year Even th,s small crop would take from the land each season about fifteen pounds of ammonia, seven pounds of r',,, • Soric add and eleven pounds of potash. 1. also withdraws s'ev, oThe; em..nts wh.ch are not easily exhausted, but in vl.ich, m r a bad systen, of culture, the soil may become dcVf^, Such , course can have only one end, and that is barrenness. We hav cultivated exhausted rve fields '^r.A r ^ ., Rve ..\\\ .- ' "^ '^""'^ ^'^'-^"^ terribly poor Kye will continue to crow on hnrl f^ «- crop .han itself LCrat'^rUrrr: given, or a heavy expense must be incurred R.m --iit a ru ;;:: p^!^"■ " -- "- -" '- ^ '^- manure. ^ ^'°"'" ™ P"" '""'I "''"•out P.ain. Much la^ "an. . ^ ^"T" ' """ '"^ ^"^ ^"""^ The straw 1, v '^^"""'""-^ ^an be grow,, upon a rich loam, the straw ,s very strong, and will bear a heavily filled h ^ without lodffine Tho T,„j l "^^^ily filled head tmg. iho land may be manured with well rnM.^ compost, ashes, or chemical fertilizers Cr.. "'"■™"='' h^hly beneficial to this crop. Th^^d sh bTwTpC i^TnXtrbr— r--- -" rye is to be grown, the sowjpr. oU^.-ij , , between thr^ m.^M e * -'-•n-i, ^nouiu be aone 'he middle of August and tiie first of November. M 254 FARMING FOR PROFIT. except on very poor land, where it may be attended to as early as the first of August. For good land we prefer the middle of September. We have known the seed to be put in so extremely late that it did not grow until the next spring. It then came up well and produced a good crop. But this late sowing is not advisable. When the plants make only a very slight growth before .inter, there is considerable danger that they will be destroyed by the cold weather, and the heaving of the ground. The spring rye, which is a modification of winter rye which has been caused by very late sowing in the fall for many suc- cessive years, should be sowed when the ground is in a suitable condition to receive the seed. In some localities where spring rye was once largely grown, it has almost entirely disappeared, and winter rye has taken its place. We much prefer the winter grain. In the East, ry^ frequently follows corn and receives no fer- tilizer. The seed is sometimes sown before the corn is ripe, and is covered with a cultivator and hoes. In this way the corn receives a late hoeing, and the rye obtains an early start. A much more common method is to cut a few rows of corn, plow a narrow strip of land, sow it to rye, and then stack upon the plowed land the corn which has been cut. These strips are plowed at convenient intervals. Then the remainder of the corn is cut and stacked upon these strips, and the rest of the land is plowed and sowed. Some farmers take an opposite course. They cut their corn and set it up, making as few rows of stacks as possible, and then plow and sow all the land except what the rows of stacks occupy. When the corn is cured, the stacks are drawn to the barn, and the land upon which they stood is plowed and sowed. As the corn must be carried quite a distance in order that it may make but a few rows and occupy as little land as possible, this course ii^volves some extra work. The rye will not ripen on these strips at the same time that it does on the rem.ainder of the land, and the harvesting must be FAXM AND FODDER CROPS. 055 perfon.ed at different times, or else conside^ble of the grain w,n be wasted. Many farmers consider the advantages gained by early sow,„g much greater than the inconvenience which e,ther of these methods involves. Our own course has been to Zr' T^rZ "1 '"" " P°"*'=' ^°"=""- ^t-cking it in another field, and then sow the rye. The quantity of seed required depends somewhat upon the character of the land and the time of sowing. On light land 2" r r ^t: '""'' "-''' "" -- ™^ "= -«=i'- On' good land sowed m moderate season, a bushel will be better If he sowmg is very late and the land has not been put in needed. But .t ,s much better to fit the land well and sow a ^ ona e quanfty of seed early i„ the season, than it is to wa,t un.,1 almost wmter and then tr, to atone for the delay by acre w I be needed on ordinary land. If grown for fodder veo' th,ck sowing will be the best. Three bushels of seed pT; acre should be used for this purpose. '^ The principal disease to which rye is subject is the ergot-a f ngo,d growth-which causes the heads of the g,ain t! turn black, and send out long spurs which are quite poisono s „ W. several epidemics have been traced to L use of J affected by ergot, and in this country many cases of sickneTs both of men and animals, have doubtless been caused in J same way. The mills in which rye is ground are now so much ..proved that most of this poison is sepa^ted from the gr i , and kept out of the flour, but still there is risk in using g^m wh.ch has been thus affected. In any quantity it is . ti!le„ P .son to domestic animals. No cure for this disease is knoC Prevent,on must be tried. Only the finest kernels should be used fo, ,^ , p„3,,,^^ ,^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^ be ficM .n wh,ch the disease did not appear. Before sowing, ,hc should be p„, into strong, hot brine, thoroughly sLd field seed 256 FARMING FOR PROFIT. then spread on a floor and dusted with lime. The hght kernels, which rise to the surface when the grain is put into the brine, should be skimmed off and thrown away. With this care in selecting and preparing the seed there should be but little troubi in obtaining a healthy crop. The color of the grain and its quality for making flour will be greatly modified by the soil upon which it is grown. Dry, sandy plains furnish the nicest-looking rye. The grain is very white, and the flour made from it looks nearly as well as that from wheat. It is by some called the white rye, in distinction from the black rye, which is grown upon heavier soils. But if seed is obtained from these plains and grown upon the meadows, quite a pro- portion of the product will be the ordinary black rye. The second year the change will be more strongly marked, and in a few seasons all trace of the white rye will be lost. It is possible that the use of chemical fertilizers in place of barn-yard- manure would retard this change. The cutting may b'=' done with a reaper, or the rye can be cradled by hand. When the color of the straw changes and the kernel passes out of the milk, it is time to cut this grain. If free from weeds, it can be left a day or two to dry, and then bound and put into the stack or the barn. But if weedy, or the weather is bad, the rye may be bound and set up in stooks of ten or twelve bundles each. Some farmers leave it out until they are ready to thresh it, but it is much better to be placed under cover as soon as it is dry. Rye straw is very useful for bedding ..tiimals, and usually sells higher than other kinds of straw. It is very tough, and usually grows quite long. Many farmers use it for binding corn. For this purpose it is much better if cut before it is ripe. It will be very .strong, but it will not hurt the hands like the straw of wcU-ripened grain. In some localities rye straw is in demand at paper mills. It is valuable for manure, but will often seii for more than it is worth for this purpose. As a soilmg fASM AND FODDER CROPS. j.j :Z "p ■■" '^'^ "=■'*""'■»" •■" ^h-P. S-n „.e is a valuable crop R,e ,s one of .he best of all .he grain crops „i.h whth 'o get ,„ grass-seed. The seed should be sown after .he !e has been covered wi.h a harrow, and .hen ei.her bushed no ™ w,.h a heavy roller. On ligh. land both .he b si ng and rolling would be beneficial W„HAT.-This is one of the leading crops no. only of .hi, Pa^of .hevas. population o^f C::, ^r--: '^ ^e and other grains, furnish food for n,ulti.ude of the hu" „' of d,et of .he mos. powerful and the mos. .horoughly civilized n .,ons of .he earth canno. be denied. I. has been, and i. w ibe Wheat can be grown ,n a large variety of soils, and has the power of adapting i.self .o either cold or warn, din, tes. But i a. rh""' Tf"'^' '"""^ '■" "•= '-P— ones, audi a Some of :r ", r "' "■■'• ^""^ ^^^ "'^">' <"■«•-"' ---«- Some of these kmds are more hardy than others, and from the .of cultivated sorts .some can be ..und which are Jel adap ed to any section of the Uk.t.d Stat^. The Jnl w .ch g,ve the best resuUs at the So„„ arc not hardy en :^ .or .he North and the Northwest, but there are plenty :f good var.t,es which will do well in these sections. By mean of a gradual change in .he .ime of sowing, whea. has been obtained which need not be sown until sprint In loeali.ies where it succeeds, winter wheat is usually con- s.dered he best. I. makes a stronger growth of straw Id But bv. ? " " """ "°^^ "'^" *= ■'P™^ varietieT But by the Pat-t "new process- of grinding, the fine.,., ualiV Jliest-priced flour is obtained from spring wheat Man^ and 258 FARMING FOR PROFIT. of the winter varieties are not hardy enough for t^'; extreme North. In unfavorable seasons they "winter-kill" badly. This is sometimes owing to imperfect preparation of the land, out much of it is due to the tenderness of the plant. Where the winters arc long and severe there will be considerable risk in sowing wheat in the fall. For such localities the spring varieties are safer and better for the farmer to produce. Of both winter and spring wheat there are many different varieties. Among those which have been very popular may be named the Diehl and White Mediterranean (white), the Golden Straw (amber), and the Mediterranean Red, a red variety. For spring wheat the Black Sea and the Rio Grande have proved quite valuable. Among the later and probably very much better kinds may be named the Clawson (white) and the Fultz (red) for winter, and the Champlain and the Defiance for spring varieties. Although it is doubtful if any variety will ever be found which will do equally well in all sections, it is probable that some one of the four kinds last named can be made profitable in any part of the country. The Defiance is very hardy and will succeed at the extreme North. We think the CI. 'son and Fultz will both succeed at the South. Although it is a very important item, the securing of a good variety is only one among several things to which the successful wheat-grower must g'/e his attention. More than with almost any other crop the preparation of the land is one of the determining influences which govern the yield of grain. When it gets well started wheat grows rapidly, but it is not a very vigorous plant, and cannot fight its way as well as many of our cultivated grains. In order to make success reasonably certain it is necessary that the land should be very carefully fitted to receive the seed. If the soil is very rich, it is all the better. If the land has been partially exhausted, an abundance of plant- food must be supplied. This food must be in a condition for immediate use. Coarse m.anures will do little "Qod. The «">eat plant is a delicate feeder and its f ,' ^^ P-pa,ed. A large crop of ^Z! Z^^ ""' '^ ""^""^ coatmg of lime and plaster mav f, T ''"^ '''^^'vecl a good before the wheat is sol and 2h " ' ''^ "-''^ good food for the crop, u!:^,: V" "'" " '"^^ ^--■" °f clover sod until it has go. well se ,m "'77 "' "^™« "''» ^ "> which to decay. Wheat If "'° "^'' ^ ''"'^ '""e -de very Wch t^r the l^ L: 4 ^ ^t "™ ■'' '"^ '»'' "as -Pe. In this case, however some ch Z™™'' ''^ ""o" ^^ 3l.ouId be used. In a„v !^ """"'" f^^ili^er for wheat -de rich, and the plant-food wwIhTtr, "' '"' ^"°"" ""^ ^ur.'ace. For this crop we h7 "' ""*"' '"•' "'^^'^ *= fer.ih-.ers.and also in 'hlcorp ^ ^"" ''^' °' '-"> » ^P-^' bx.he manufacturers of IhT; ^ ~ ^^ ^ - out ordmary farm-yard-manure does not ^ , ' '""=' ""^ Sive its best results to the crop to Tk '' ^" """"""^h to Much of it remains in th s„ , to b t " ' ""■""^ ^^^""'^ e«-ects are often visible ^^ ^:^'''^ "^^^ '- -seethe wheat crop is not suffi.- J ^hen this alone is. food enough in the'soil, b tit not ' ""T"'"' ^"^^^ »^^ "= wheat crop is partially stallej tT7 '^ ""'"'' """ ""^ an abundance of food in » fi„ J ^ .'='"=»""1 manures furnish They cost — :.; -st :r ;:;:r --^ r - Take a corn field which was no. i Z ^ '^''^ *^^ ^'"^P- -.w any rertiii.r.';ro:i :trar:r"T.*^^^^ way eveo- year. The result is that in T '°""' "" ""^ -sons the crop yields from tel I '1,^"'"^'^'^ "vorable bushels per acre. Now take thrsal , T' ''°"*'^ '"="*> -wing apply four hundred . .C":' ^"'' ^' '"= ''- ^^ wheat fertilizer, or the same Vua„ tv f ''°™'' °' ' ^''^^'"' -ing from eight to fifteen dl lar ^d ^T^ ''''"""■ -ased from twenty to thirty bushels " 't, *'" '^ "" ahnost incredible, but it h-i^ h. ^^ "'^J' ^eem or a large number of o bes^f '""' '"" "^ '"= "P-™- our best farmers. In the first instance tl,.^ Bi urn 260 FARMINl, FOR PROFIT. ■^■• crop had but very little food and the yield was light. In the latter the crop had the same quantity of food as the other plan provided, and, in the form of commercial manures, surplus food enough, in an immediately available condition, to bring up the yield to a high figure. The application of ten dollars worth of available fertilizers often returns twenty or thirty dollars worth of grain. It is very important that the surface soil should be made extremely fine. Wheat .should be grown, when possible, upon land which has been deeply cultivated and underdraincd, but for the wheat the ploughing sho id be .^hailow. The work should be well done, the harrowing should be very thorough, and plenty of plant-food ought to be fyrnshed near the surface. FIG. 14. FIG. 15. Then the seed may be sowed at the rate of two bushels per acre, if broadcast, and of from one and a fourth to one and a half, if drilled. Figs. 14 and 15 were designed to show the relative appearance of broadcast and drilled wheat. Fig. 16 represents the Hoosier Grain-Drill, a first-class machine, manufactured Ly the Hoosier Drill Company, Riciimond, Ind. Too much stress can hardly be laid upon a thorough prepara- tion of the soil. Under the common system of management all that can be done towards making the crop is finished when the sowing is performed But implements for he cultivation of wheat have been invented, and it is to be i ; , d that they will soon come into general use. By their use the average yield per acre of wheat planted in drills can be largely incfeased. i h s tl ti /v/^.J/ A.VI, ,-oDDE^ CROPS b<=« result. With spring wheat it i, • »«d as early as tl,e state „f he 'V^P""""' '° 8=' '" the "« 'and wil, ad„,it. CI f '" '""^ "'^ -"*-" of «- «.c..<=.d ., the appeara„::;:r;~-v' '"■"'■ ^iciiian tly — Jate sow- 262 FARMING FOR PROFIT. V \ ing being adopted in order to avoid the ravages of this small but destructive enemy. The diseases of wheat are more serious than those to which rye is subject. The most destructive are smut and rust. The former is a fungoid disease, propagated by spores, and utterly ruins all the wheat plants which it attacks. The microscopic plants absorb all the nutritive juices of the stalks to which they are attached, and while preventing the full development of the grains, convert them into a highly poisonous substance. As it first attacks the weaker grains, it is important to use only the largest and nicest kernels for seed. If possible, seed should be obtained from an unaffected field. Before sowing, soak the seed in very s^.rong hot brine, stir it several times, letting it settle between, and skim off all the light and imperfect kernels which rise to the top. Then roll the seed in slaked lime and sow at once. The rust which attacks the wheat plant is also a microscopic fungus and often works an immense amount of evil. Winter wheat is more likely to suffer from the attacks of this disease than spring grain, and some varieties are more readily affected than others. This disease is also more likely to attack weak plants than those which are strong, and may be partially prevented by using the best seed from fields which have not been attacked. The seed should be put into brine as directed for smut, then rolled in slaked lime and sowed at once. Prof. Pendleton recommends the use of a solution of bluestone (one- fourth of a pound to a bushel of wheat) for both rust and smut. The brine may be used first, if desired, and the v/heat allowed to remain in the bluestone solution several hours. The insect enemies of the wheat plant are very formidable. They are members of the different classes of flies, weevils, cater- pillars, bugs and worms. The most destructive are the chinch- bug, and the Hessian fly. The former resembles the bed-bug in appearance, and attacks both wheat and corn. It begins to work on these crops about the middle of June. The Hessian t ■■ FARM AND I^ODDUR CHOPS. fly lays its eggs on the leaves of the wlieat nl . ^^^ and provides for two or thre I T ^ ^"'' "'"'" '^^ ''^^^> b-d appears i„ A;nran!; ^ ':^^^^^ ''''' ^^^ ^^^ first' August, and so.eti.es a third a^pea ^ ^^^ ^ ^"^^ ^"^ four to ten days after the e^.s . 7 ^^^'- ^" ^'''^ -e.aggotsap;ar.andwJ.r::t :^^^^^^ '^^ '-- and the stem to a joint H. 1 '^^^ between the sheath . or these n,agg„is attack the sam ll ^^ S<>™«'n,es several «.= plan, breaks down a. this pie 'xhe """" " ^° '"« s«, passes into the pupa s,,, , , "^S"' '""<=ases in fi«' of August. Such a dlr """ °"' ' "^ ="'°"' *^ injurious, and it often happen tllT! "'^ ''''°' ^'°'"'' ""^ *=reby. The various rem'd "3 a e , 7°"' '" """'^ "'"=" wheat, mowing, roUinir -ind h u '"'""^' P^^'^ring the ■Vdofcrred un«, th ''h: .JJ^ ":""=■ '^'"^ --"^ «- Wood; hut whea't ^t ta ^t;' ^d"""""^""^^ *= •tart, and is quite likely to winter ki'ir ^''' " «°"'' '«ncd into the field to eat down t e 1 „ „ "" """'^" "- n>ost of the eggs will be destroyed M "T '"° "^^^^ f-ding them .„ 3.„,^ ,„^^ mTto kV '""^^ """ hatching. Rolling crushes n,ar of he ' V' ""'^ stubble in the summer, as soon as hi '^''- """"^ ""' more efficient remedy. But all Z 1 ^"'" " ""■ '^ ^ ^''« disadvantages, and none of thl r u "'°"'°'"' "'"" "«^'' Thegrowershould «ake tte t^ .^^'^h tt '' T"""' every possible advantage in order thaf > ^'"^ "" ^"i" growth, and be able not onlv to ""^ ™''' " "porous "Pon it, but also to blmr^^r T *": ""'''' -"''' ^^^ crox in spite of their depredation! k r-' """ *"''" " ^ood CAN Aa«,cu„„K^, Cot^oBin " i - '"'°'=' "' "'= *"™- 'ha. the flies will lay .^° 1 '" " '"'"' "•-" *i= ^"bject, said '^Oioh they can finTatrtra-T f 'T "'""'= "'-'' «»<< none which d,ey think Cu/ar :; V '' '' *^^ "» answer the purpose, they wil] i ! 264 FARMING FOR PROFIT. wait a while. He recommends the sowing of" \ narrow strip of wheat about each field in August or early m September, and to put off, as long as the season permits, -,o>"ing the wheat that is to be raised. Most of the eggs will th. ,i be laid upon this early wheat, which should be plowed under deeply as soon as the later wheat is planted. This outer strip may then be sowpH again." This seems the best plan which has yet been pi ^posed for saving the wheat, and destroying the fly at the same time. In case the insects appear in the spring, resort must be had to pasturing with sheep, or ...owing and removing the tops. These precautions, in conneciion with careful selection of seed, the choice of the strong ^lOwing varieties which stool largely, and high manuring, will usually enable the farmer to grow a good crop of wheat in spite of its insect enemies. Until quite recently ho effort has been made in this iMi T!^!^"^^AJLA 1. 1' WIJ^ country to cultivate wheat '^^ ^— ^^=^- '•""--• ^ ■ — ^ *" ■ during the period of its FIG.I7.-TRAV.S' WHEAT-HOE AND SEEDER, growth. But a fcw ycars ago Mr. A. B. Travis, of Brandon, Michigan, invented a machine for doing this work, which seems destined to p ove quite useful where the seed is put in wi: drilL In Fi^,. 17, we present an illustration of this implement combined as a seeder and hoe. The teeth and arms of the hoc are attached to the head by means of clips, and can easily be attached to any make of drill, and adjusted to any width of row. It is claimed that the use of this machine will prevent lodging of tb grain, and will larg-ly increase the quantity of the cro; M; y practical farmers have tested this hoe, and been highly pleab<.d with its work. It has also received diplomas at various State Fairs, and at the Centennial Exposition. The different varieties of wheat will mix very readily if planted near each other, and the mixture almost always proves T r FARM AXD J'X>DDEJi CROPS. ' «^i ■njunou. ,o ,he charac.cr of the g^ain. If ,.„ ,,.„,3 ,„ „ .he,, should b= ,„ diflbrc.„. and distant fields. The vaZ' w .ch se=n,s the best adapted to the chmate, soil and c tt va.,o„„.,„eh ea„ be given, should be selected, and ot n , kept s net,, p„,e, but an effort should be n,ade to in,p„ve t ll.e wheat for seed should be ..own in a p|„t set aside for the -pose and should have the best ca. and ™os. skilful c '•lr„est and nicest grams should be selected for the seed of ih. n«t season, crop. ,t is so.e wor. to do .1,, but t wi, p''! large crop o wheat canno. be grown from inferlr d But Harvesting r . t be done when the stmw „. .,, turned yellow and the interior of theT T^ ^ ^™'""'"'" the ^ilk into the ,i. -h sta I ,7" """'' '"■" wi.. be more valu..ble" o dde bT thl " "^ '"= ^'"" giv. small measure and ,i,.. ,vt'h' f I T\ T *™'' ^"^ -<1 become hard and the gran wi, //j ^''"f' ^'"^ 'h^'-w in the field If onlv a fl ''"'^ ""'' ""^ '>'='='='' It is better to hire a rp-.,..,. ,t -mpt the cutting ^:^ l^^Z X^: d" wor. Will inevitably be slow, and, while' t i going o mue;! the grain will get ovcr-rio" a,„l „ •. , ""^ tained. When cut,, ! ' ' °'' "'" "'"^ ^ '"»- stacked oMflwbf '" :" '= '"""" ="'' =""" farmers pr;fer I: ^ mSlT:' "™-" '^" '^™' ^"- .eenweeds,or,s;otwe,,re:ris;he::sf::r-:: 1 ■i^ I %M ^•AKAI AND FODDEK CKOPS. Stocked, the straw and tr„,„ „■„ "'■ ^'«^" »'l'<--at is sidcraWc heat will be evolved n°°" .'"""•' '''"'P ^"'' ""- "O. well be threshed as i ! , '"' '"" ''"'•" ""•• 8™" can- a few days the "swl" i! "",'T """■'^ '° "■= ^'™- ^fcr "ndcrgone a change, and that it tl " ""^ ''""^■' '"- «-■ grain was stacked T^^ J ^^^ '" "" "'"' " "» "'-" fron, the stalk an :^|| ^^^^ "f "'^°'^^'' "'-•■- -«- p.ed and no risk should be „n I h'"""""" '''°""' '^ S'i". .vheat is a standard crop, and::,,";^ "'" '"'" '"^^^^'• Porary gluts, will always be fn delld 1^^^"°'' °' "•■"- ■' "'".out too great inconvenience twil T"" "" '"' extremely low unless there is Zl "^ "'" '" ="=" depression in price will T ' ^ ™™'' '° "''•"'^^ '"at the oTered Tor the-'erop T. il 1~: J^.t.^ ^ -> P^e i. along. ^ "^ ^° ^*^" >t than to carry it as a farm cr™ x T ^"="'^="'-'. « will consider Beaks large quanffcs o'f'bTat 'Z 7^f "^'^ «™™ •■- «P°"^ are u. d by our own people. They 268 FARMING FOR PROFIT. form a veiy nourishing article of diet, and are among the cheapest kinds of food which the farmer can produce. At the same time they are very easily grown, and can be furnished at a profit for a > g Q S « a o o < I o price which makes them one of the best kinci^ of food for the consumer to obtain. They are the best known substitute for animal food. The kinds of field beans in ger;eral cultivation are the small white, the kidney, ai.l the marro^v. --he former is ,. ir 4 PARM AND FODDER CROPS 2fiQ very small, ripens early yie'ds w.ii ^ «- Th. Sidney bea:,-::;;::': ;:;;; ^^ '^^p' ^ 'o„, -d does „o. yield . wen. L Z^T:^^:^ ""' "/"'^ ver, fine-looking bean, of as good guarvl, '■°" ' '"" high price ,■„ „arke., yields p4 weH b^, ."'' ""™"* ' time in which to mature ^ "^'^"' '"■"^'=q""-« considerable quantity of organic mattor O i, ""'"'"'"S ^ '»"-g'= to vine. The sameTs •?k "^ ""' " '^ '"=""='' '° ™" We applied su e™ p' C^ "CX 'h™^""- '^ "-^- We pounds of nitrofjen thirtv fhr.. . fifty-three twentypoundsofs^lute p tl*:: 7'"'"^' ''°'^*' ^^ a return of twenty bushds of h "" '"''' '"" '-"P^-^'^ of the land. ''''"' ■""= "'''" «-= "'"^ural yield When planted alone, beans may be either in WIT. ^ ■„ - an open question which is the best W °'' '"" " can grow a good crop in either «! M T ''°"' """ half to two feet a^ar^ .n^ u "^^ *"= ™= ""^ a Rows sh:,uid be c t :i'':'";"rT "^ "" ■•" ^ '■■"■ distance apar; -nd the T, '''™''' ^ "'= ''ame the cultiva^t^n :,:: 1~:-;;-'^.-* Nearly an This crop should never be L:::ir:r:i.::rr or ram. If the v/no^ moi ^'*"^'' <^*^^v me vines make an excessive rrrowth tl.^ ^ he cut with sheep-shears, or a sharp corn « ' w T "'^ the vines twice in one season. Thif hasten "f ^^ '^''*'= •="' crop. Beans should not be plant^^ u t , ""'7r' "' "^' passed in the soring .n^ i ,/'""'''" <'«"ecr of frost has f^ostappearsTarrt.: ::::::r*=t"'^^^^^^ Hpe, than to allow it to be fr ted tL , "7 "" " '' 'h- -..cather ,s fine, the vines should be s„„,. „, .^, ^^^^^^ and 1 r / dry for two or three days. D uring this time 270 FARMING FOR PROFIT. they may be turned over, if necessary. If they were nearly ripe, they will soon be ready to go to the barn. If quite green, or the weather is foul, they must be put up in small stacks in the' field. These stacks may be made as follows : Set two stakes, each five feet long, in the ground about two and a half feet apart! Between these stakes lay a block of wood, a large stone, or a pumpkin, and upon it lay the beans, with the roots in the centre. When the stakes are three-quarters full, they should be tied with a cord or wire, to prevent spreading apart. Tlitn they may be filled to the top with vines. If beans are well put up in this form, they will dry rapidly. In two weeks the vines may be spread out to the sun a {^^ hours, and then drawn to the barn. As beans heat very easily, and heating proves a great injury, it is important that they should be very dry when packed away.' It is a good plan to spread them thinly on a scaffold, or over the great beams. Or, if well dried before they come to the barn, they may be threshed at once. This should be done with wooden flails. The beans should then be run through a fanning- mill and spread thinly in a dry and moderately cool place. If they have been carefully grown and harvested, they will be very free from imperfect specimens. Still, a ic^ discolored beans will be found in almost every lot. These should be picked out. The work can be done some rainy day, or as odd jobs, when it will not prove a great expense. It will pay well, for a pint of discolored beans in a bushel of nice ones will make the whole lot look badly, and reduce the selling price at least twenty per cent. If the curing will be carefully done, beans may be pulled when quite green. They will be small, but very white, and the vmes will make good fodder for sheep. If there is no danger of frost, the crop should be allowed to ripen, but it .'-■hould never be sacrificed to a frost because it is not fully grown. This is very often grown as a "stolen crop." We do not recommend the practice, but we sometimes plant beans between the hills of corn. One of our neighbors planted six quarts of a ™ach,-„e w,e„ ^: ^ Z:^^ '' " '™^ =•- '^'"■ fvalicn „,. done by horse-powc/ The h '"'' ^"'"^ '^'^ -1- ■■•«>e time, and ,„e aCud cost of ih Jh ™ '"^ '''^"'■■•'='' '''" In a few of *e eent.a, sZ'^^Z ^f ^^ "s"'- a limited extent. Tliis is a t™.' 7 T " "^"'""M 'o well at the North. It I'd b '"'■ '"' *" "°' -««=> «-mi.ar cultivation to t,fc 'cTl" '" f" ""^ ""^ ^'=-- feet high, and yield tj,;;; ^ .^^^tt r '^° °"'--= acre. This crop can onlv h / ^ ""='' °'' ""^^ns per and soil are favor h^ 'd ^ 1'° ''^^ "'-^^^ ""'^ ^'™ate at which the beans can h Z " ' ""' '" "« "-"ity ucdns can be used. We !,-,,,« . growingas curiosities in MAss^cHusETT^a d I " "'"" a- use they answered ven, '''"""'""'""='•'<. and for grown farther South. "^ P""' *<^y "ust be Beoom CoRN._This is a variety of ,h. Q t been grown for a long peHod It d , r"''^ ""• """ '■^™S and fineness of the seed he ' "™" '° *= '=ng.h the sweetness of he^^^^; ts":*-' ''""'■ ="" ^"■*-" -gard to *at of the NORTH..: ; r T " r *"""="' ^^°" wa. formerly confined a>n,!s J o , t^NHW e"" "' '"' "°' now become ve^ extensive at A wZ r ''' '"' ''" thi^ is a valuable crop Where «! s^ '" '"^ >°"''«- quality of brush can be Tbt" , d the t ""^^ "^" ^"'' ^ ^^ P-ftable. At the extreme "1™,. ''™'"^'' "= ""■'= a-nn-t of the ripening of .1 sZ' tanT We''^ '"'''"' who make a specialty of the finest brush d„ .T ^™""^- to get riiK. As there is ,1 , ' ""' ^"°>" "'= "^"d -.itute has b:rfo„'x;r::r T^''™^'''-- without great expense it is 11 r '" " "" ""^ B'-^" produce. "^ ■ " ' ""•'^ '=«•• "°P for the farmer to This crop is not confined to any partic... t-Hj ,, . . ., , P"^^-'- of ^claptatfon to different climates. I — I i t 272 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Any land which is reasonably warm and dry can be made to yield a fair crop. We have seen it growing on a gravel knoll, and also in a reclaimed swamp. It succeeds in the sandy loams of the river bottoms of the older-settled States, and the fertile prairies of the West. Unless the land is quite rich, fertilizers must be used. Any good manure, which is fine and well rotted, will answer. Plaster often proves a great help. Guano is much better. Ashes give good returns. The manure may be applied broad- cast if something is used in the hills to give the plants a strong and early start. The preparation of the land should be similar to that which good fa/mers make for their corn. The rows may be from three to four feet apart. If a large variety is grown, on a rich soil, four feet is near enough. The seed may be scattered along in drills, or planted in hills three feet apart. As the seed is very small and weak, a large quantity is usually put in a hill. Many farmers put in enough to make from seventy- five to a hundred plants. If good seed is obtained, -as it always should be, twenty seeds in a hill are enough. The planting should be done when the soil is dry and warm, and all danger of frost has passed. The seed should be put in as soon as the land is prepared, in order that the moisture of the newly cultivated soil may hasten its germination. At the West, corn- planting machines and wheat-drills are used' for getting in this seed, but in New E.ngland the work is generally done by hand. Two quarts of good seed is sufficient for an acre. If much of the seed is imperfect, a larger quantity should be used. As the young plants are very weak, we consider excessive seeding not only useless and wasteful, but decidedly injurious. The first hoeing should be given when the plants are small, as stirring the soil will tend to promote their growth, and hoeing will also keep down the weeds, which are deadly enemies to this crop while ia its early stages. For use in cultivating this crop we consider Prout's Hoeing Machine (Fig. 20), m^ide by the FARAf AND FODDER CROPS. 079 ' Belcher & Taylor Agricultural Tool Co., Chicopee Falls Massachusetts decidedly .he best of anything which we ha^' een or of w ,ch we have been informed. At the first or second hoemg the th.nning, which is the worst part of the workof growng this crop, should be done. From four to six stalks should be left in a hi,,. If in dri„s, the sta,ks shou,d bTLf three or four inches apart. The Dwarf variety wil, bear rather c oser planting than the Early Mohawk, and this can be grown closer than the Missouri Evergreen, which frequently reaches a he,gh. of fifteen feet. The crop should be k'ept cLn during Ac V, , ok season, and will be benefited by an occasional stirring FIG. 20. Tl.e time for harvesting will depend upon the use' to be should be done as soon as the blossoms begin to fall. Thit wll secure bru,,h of a green color. If allowed to .stand a few days longer, the brush will have a reddish cast, and will lose somewhat ,n weight. As the green brush sells much higher than the red, ,t ,s an object to secure the crop when it will retain !r f r J''" "^'•f "••" '^ harvested by pulling the brush out of the sheath Oy wh.ch it is surrounded. This must be done w,th a sharp jerk, and is said to be a very disagreeable operation. The taller kmds are "tabled- Tl,;. • „„ ^ iauien, ihis operation reaKing oowii the stalks ul two rows towards one m 274 FARMING FOR PROFIT. another, diagonally, so that the stalks of one row will cross those of the other, and thus form a sort of plaform or table with the tops projecting about a foot on each side." This is necessary with the tall varieties, as it would be impossible to cut the brush without first bringing it nearer the ground than it grew. The stalks are broken over at a height of about two and a half feet from the ground. Each two rows are tabled in the manner aoove described, thus leaving a space in which the cutters can work between the tables. The brush can be cut with a common shoe-knife, and should be la.d m small bunches upon the tables. No leaves should be left on and only eight inches of the stalk. If exposed to the sun, the brush will have a tinge of recj, even though it may be quite green when cut. Consequently the curing should be done under cover. Exposure also injures the quality of the brush and makes it more liable to break when used. If only a small qur ntity is produced, it can be cured in a loft over a shed or on a scaffold in the barn. If a large area is grown, a drying house must be built, or some existing structure fitted up for the purpose. The roof should be tight, but many of the boards used for covering the sides should be hung on hinges, so that they can be opened whenever a free circulation of air is desired The interior of this building should be fitted with a large number of racks upon which the brush can be spread to dry The floors of these racks should be made of narrow strips of boards, with spaces between, in order to admit the air freely. The brush should be spread very thinly. There should be a space of six or eight inches between these floors. The ven tdating doors should be kept open in fine weather, but should always be closed in a storm. When large quantities of green brush are produced, the seed must be removed before the crop is stored in the drying house. This can be done with a threshing machine by holding the heads to the cylinder, but not allowing the brush to h. d.awn D< J'ARM AA^D FODDER CROPS. off b, „„„,„, ,„ „,^,^ .h„ug,' ;;*; "It 'rf™ pieces of flexible irnn -t, . r '^ "'"'= "' *ree and co„„„, ncaH;S;7;:f;,f--"t^^'*-°P. f-nd ver, disagreeabie vol 1'; '°"°".'- ^"'^ ^ >"-= sonous about the dust a„H , ■'■° " ''™=""ng Poi- any soreness of the e,es, sboL a™,: 't aTo ^ ^"'™'°"' °^ ■•■' f""y dcv'-ope '■ u„ :" t '"' "" '""^ """' "-^ =-^ Nort„h™ State, it is not ,- L T'^ ""'■ "'"■^'' » "«= wl.ne before the seed s 1 o^ ' T' "^ ''™" ""^ ^ rate it until ,vi„,er Tl ! r " ^"^^ ''° "<" ^<=Pa- ^- has .pened ;:„ not' ^ ^11*; '""' "^™ "'■'^^ decidedly inferior, but a good ^ of ^ '"'"""" ™" "= able fir fteding to ho,., c«,l T . " ^'''^ ^°"^'*'- fc, lu nogs, cattle and sheon Tf d, i i t mixed with soma of the con.m "^ '^'"'"y^ ^^ wbcn .nixed .ith co": r™: Tz rr','^ ^™"^- equal quantity of oats As if- • ,• k, ""^ntious as an thoroughly dn-cd bcft bd J ' t V '^ '"^' ' ^^^^"^^ ^^ ^•s clone, the brush can l^Z^Z ^ ""''' ''' '''^'-^^ and .^orcd In a .h^d or h ^^"venient sized bundles. a 1,.. d, or barn, until wanted- for use or f. to market ^' °r to carry ;poned seed should :ij:::z^,::T''°-'^'^ for planting, the highest culture shou'ld b" TTTu 1^ I !!i 276 FAR MI JVC FOR PROFIT. corn. As th.s plant mixes very easily with several somewhat similar productions, it is absolutely necessary for the securin^x of pure seed that the plants grown for this purpose should be strictly kept by themselves. CoFFEE.-This is a product of warm climates, and in this country can be grown successfully only at the extreme South It is said to flourish in the peninsula of Florida. Probably it would succeed in Southern Texas and California. Farmers in these sections may do well to experiment with this crop The plants should be allowed to attain a height of only five or SIX feet. By cutting down to this level the production of fruit will be mcreased. and it can be easily gathered. Plants should stand m rows five feet apart each way, and the land should be kept free from grass and weeds. At three years of age they should produce fruit; at five, come into full bearing; and for twenty years tliereafter, yield two and a half pounds of coffee per plant. CoTTON.-Thls is one of the most valuable of all of our culti- vated plants. It was known in the early ages of the world and was used to some extent by the ancients. As far back as the commencement of the Christian era cotton, was one of the articles of commerce. The cotton plant is a native of warm climates, and will succeed in no others. India was formerly the principal source of supply but during the past century the Southern States have taken '.the first rank in its production. Early in the history of our country the plant was found growing wild in the Mississippi Valley. Its seed was planted by the early settlers, and it was long cultivated as a garden plant. In 1748 the first e.xport of cotton from this country of which we have either "record or tradition" was made from Charleston, South Carolina. It was a small beginning-only seven bags being sent out. but the business rapidly grew in importance until cotton became the leading croo for pvnnr*- o«^ k-— "^^ _ l . , • ^- ■' -— — X— '-; "- of the land which he cultivates. It makes a great difference with the yield and value of the crop whether common seed is use d or that from a very prolific kind. We can readily understand why so many farmers have but little faith in improved cotton seed. There have been so many varieties of seed sold for extremely high prices which proved far inferior to the claim made for them, that it is not strange that the advertisement of any new kind of seed is quite generally regarded as a speculation. But we cannot believe that the conclusion to which many growers have arrived that " one kind of seed is u , good as another " is correct. On the ( >ntrary we assert, both on general principles and also as the lcs.son of many careful experiments, that the use of the best seed (not always the seed which sells for extravagant prices) will largely increase the quantity and value of the crop. "V^HHr^)? --. this, as with all other crops grown from seed, the finest.;5ca^^^ '^'^^^ of the best varieties adapted to the circumstances in whiclf!th^-^" ; '\ V* are to be grown, will certainly produce the best paying cro^p' 'n'^i^^M^^^ If properly managed, the cotton plant will thrive on quite j*'i a t7^ variety of soils. The best kinds for upland cotton are said to be clay loam and silicious soil on a clay subsoil. On sandy soils, underlaid by sandstone or limestone rocks, and also on rich bottom land, the cotton plant can be made quite productive. Other soils can be made to grew cotton if they are properly treated; but land containing large quantities of vegetable matter which is not thoroughly decomposed, and in which ,:he mineral elements are deficient, is not at all adapted to the crop, and should not be selected for its production. Cotton has a long tap-root which penetrates the subsoil, if it is not too hard, and draws part of its food therefrom. On this account, deep plowing is one of the essential operations in a 1 ;|. ^ v\ •^;^ '^ 4fC» // y. % O A. '^ 280 FARMING FOR PROFIT. suitable preparation of the soil for this crop. In addition to this, soils lying upon stiff clay also need underdraining. The cotton plant needs moisture, but standing water around its roots proves very destructive. As underdraining will carry off the surplus \\ater, and yet allow the soil to be kept quite moist by the retention of the heavy dews which fall in the South, it proves of immense advantage to the crop both in wet and dry seasons. When this cannot be given, open drains will prove highly bene- ficial. In case nothing in the line of draining can be done, the land should be cultivated in ridges, and a water furrow left between each two rows. Though not nearly as valuable as underdraining, this will give some of its advantages, and in a wet season may save the crop from utter destruction. " For uplands which wash badly under heavy rains, and from which much of the manure which is applied is carried off, as well as the most valuable parts of the soil itself, what is called circle-ditching and circle-ploughing has been strongly recom- mended by the best cotton-growers who have had experience in such locations. It is claimed that by these means lands which have not been spoiled can be kept from injury by wash- ing, while the exhausted soils can be reclaimed. The circle- ditch is made on the principle of a mountain road, which enables the height to be gained by a long and gradual incline. In employing this system of drainage, the lowest point for an outlet must be found. From this a ditch, with a bank of earth firmly laid upon the lower side, and rolled down, should be made which shall gradually wind around the hill in such a manner as to furnish a slight and uniform descent for the water. The ditch may be made by ploughing two or three furrows which should lap over each other, and cleaning out the last one with a hoe. The ridge thus formed should never be disturbed, and in plowing the field the furrows should always follow the curves of the ditch. The rows of cotton should also follow the same direction. In this way the land can be kept from injury FAUM AND FODDER CROPS. 281 by heavy rains, as the water will have only a slight fall, and the fertilizers which are applied can be used for the benefit of the crop, instead of being washed away. A great deal of the cotton-land in this country has become very poor under the combined action of repeated croppings and the washing away of the fertilizing elements by the heavy and frequent rains. On this account fertilizers are absolutely nec- essary to the production of profitable crops on old land, and should be used in the newer fields to prevent the exhau'stion which will otherwise be inevitable. For this purpose various articles are used. The quantity to be applied will depend upon the use which is made of the crop. If the stalks, leaves and burrs are left on the land and plowed in, and the seeds are also returned to the soil, so that only the lint is really taken away, the quantity of fertilizer needed will be much less than will be' required if the cattle run over the fields in winter and the seed is sold off the farm. But the removal of the lint alone makes it necessary for the farmer to return something in the shape of a fertilizer, or else he will certainly diminish the fertility of his land. As the seed often is removed, the average cotton-grower needs to manure his fields well, in order to keep up his land, and also obtain good crops. The mere removal of the lint exhausts the soil slowly but certainly. When the seed is removed, the exhaustion is about twenty-five times as rapid, and is fully equal to that caused by the growth of corn or wheat. Manure from grain-fed cattle is a first-rate fertilizer for this crop, but a large supply cannot be obtained. Ordinary stable-manure contains all the elements of fertility, and gives good returns. A good compost is also a quite effective fertilizer. Commercial fertilizers are often used with profit. The principal mineral element removed by cotton and which must be supplied by the growf-- is phosphoric acid. Potash and lime are also removed in small quantities. Organic matter must also be supplied, in the form of nitrogen, to all soils which are badly worn. Prof. II 282 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Pendleton has found, by means of numerous experiments, that nitrogen in connection with soluble phosphate of lime will not only make the worn-out soils productive, but also bring them up, as far as the growth of cotton is concerned, to their original . state of fertility. He recommends the use of an ammoniated superphosphate of lime for this crop. Gypsum, bone-dust, and guano are sometimes used with benefit to the crop. But barn- yard-manure, or some fertilizer containing ammonia, phosphoric acid, potash and lime, is probably the best. The quantity to be applied will depend upon the condition of the land, and whether the seed is removed or not. While it is possible to use more manure than is profitable, the great majority of farmers err in the other direction, and apply too little. The fertilizers should be applied in March, and plowed in deeply if barn-yard-manure is used, and lightly if commer- cial fertilizers are employed. In the latter case the fertilizer should be covered by a second plowing, as the first one should be quite deep. Or, if preferred, it may be used in the drills instead of being spread over all the land. If this is done care should be taken to cover it well before the planting is done, or It will destroy the vitality of the seed. Planting should not be attempted until the land is quite warm. With this, as well as with other crops, there are grower? who advocate very eariy planting, others who plant very late, while many choose an intermediate time. But there seems to be no possible use in planting extremely early The land must be warm before seeds will grow, and \{ the soil is too cold and wet, the seed will rot in the ground. On poor land earlier planting is needed than is required on richer soils or those which are well manured. When the land is rich 'the planting can be deferred until the middle or twentieth of May while the poorer soils should be planted a month eariier The advantage of the late planting consists in a great saving of labor and a more thorough utilization of the fertilizers. If rich lands 'J lARM AND FODDEK CROPS. 283 are planted early, they send up large quantities of grass which feed upon the manure, injure the cotton, and require a great deal of work for their removal. Consequently it is better to plant nch soils rather late in the season. But this course must not be attempted with poor land which is not manured, as here the plant grows slowly, and if the seed was planted late the crop would fail to mature. The rows should be from two and a half feet apart in poor scls to three feet and a half in rich land. Some growers place the rows sul farther apart-from four to six feet in rich bin. so,ls. The land should be plowed in ridges, so that each row of cotton will stand upon a narrow elevation, with a furrow for the water between each row and its neighbor. These ridges should be thrown up some weeks before the time for planting, in order that the ground may become well settled before the seed is depos>ted. When the time for planting arrives, the tops of these ridges should be pulverized with a fine harrow, after which they JK>u d be opened with a light plow, or some implement wh.ch wdl make a small but clean drill. The seeds should be planted in this drill. If soaked a day or two before planting, and then rolled in gypsum, they will germinate sooner than they will if planted dry. The distance apart of the hills varies from eight inches to three feet. When the longer distances are chosen, several seeds should be planted in each hill. The seed will be injured by deep covering, but it is of great importance that this and all of the operations of planting should be well done. A machine which would work as perfectly with cotton as some of the corn-planters operate would be of immense advantage to the cotton-grower. Machines which do pretty fair work have been invented, but many growers prefer the certain methods of hand planting. It is ver,' desirable that the rows should be quite straight, and a uniform distance apart, as this will greatly facilitate the after cult '" ' ^ ^ ure of the crop. !iM I ffll <. ^ ! |i. 284 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The cultivation of the cotton plant has a powerful influence upon its development. About fifteen days after planting, a light plow should be run close to the line of plants. This will tear up grass and weeds. The plow should run only to a moderate depth, and men should follow with hoes, smoothing the earth and cutting between the plants in the rows. If seed is used in the drill as a fertilizer, many of the plants must be cut out. Two weeks later a careful hoeing and thinning should be given. The finest plants should be saved, and all the surplus ones removed. Fresh earth should be drawn around the roots and all weeds and grass should be removed from the ridges. After this much of the work can be done with plows which should be used frequently, and should always be run shallow. Hand-hoes must be used occasionally, and on no account should weeds or grass be permitted to grow. Good culture is one of the great essentials of success in cotton-growing, and the crop must be hoed often enough to keep it clean. Plowing is sometimes benefical when there are no weeds, as it promotes the growth and hastens the development of the plants. Care should be taken not to cut or bruise the plants, as they are very tender and if mjured will not be productive. The enemies of the cotton plant are of several kinds and often prove very destructive. In the early stages of the growth of the plant the cut worm nips off many of the specimens. A top dressing of ashes mixed with the earth around the roots will sometimes check his depredations. The cotton louse attacks the plant in its growing state and sucks the juices from the leaves, which turn yellow and drop off These lice are very small and have many enemies, but being veiy prolific, they often do a great amount of damage llanters have sometimes attempted to drive them off by sprink- Img poisonous powders upon the leaves, but the labor and expense of treating a whole field in this wav is so great as to make it unavailable. The best way to ge't rid of them is to MHWaaaaaKiii, lARM AND FODDER CROPS. 285 ■ encourage the presence of the birds, and of the other insects which prey upon them. The cotton caterpillar is one of the most destructive of all the enemies of the crop. It is peculiar to this plant and lives only where cotton is produced. It is said that in a single fortnight in i8;3 this caterpillar damaged the cotton crop to the amount of twenty millions of dollars. The most effective agent for the destruction of this foe is the Paris green, which is so largely used at the North for killing the Colorado beetle which injures the Irish potato. The green is a violent poison and should be very carefully handled. It should not be allowed to come in contact with the skin, and the dust should never be inhaled. Care should also be taken to keep cattle out of the fields in which it has been used, and the pails and dishes in which it has been placed should never be used for any other purpose. The poison is usually applied dry. It should be mixed with thirty times its weight of flour, or gypsum, and shaken upon the plants from a tm box with small holes punched through the bottom, or from a sieve made for the purpose. The sieve should be fastened to a stick several ftet long, so that there shall be no danger that the operator will breathe the dust. It can be shaken over the plant, or a light blow from a short stick held in the right hand will cause enough of the mixture to fall out. A good hand will go over quite a field in a day. and as only a veiy light dusting is required for each plant, the quantity of poison needed will not be very^ large. A single pound of the green will be sufficient for several acres. Although this is a cheap and efficient remedy It IS open to the disadvantage of being equally injurious to the' friends of the planter as it is to his enemies. Many birds may be destroyed by eating^ the poisoned worms, and numbers of insects which destroy the caterpillar will also be killed. It may in bad seasons, be the best method which can be followed, but It IS to be hoped that a better one will some time be devised. The boll worm is an insect foe of the cotton plant which 286 faj<:ajja,'g for pkojit. W wo ks upon the small bolls, or buds, causing them to fall off and thus senously diminishing the rate of production. Valul rc.ned.es are employed. The easiest, and it is said to be ui e e^cctjve, .s the planting of occasional rows of corn through fi Id late m the season. The miller which produces the wor prefers corn and w.ll attack it in preference to cotton Fires are somet^mes built at the edges of the field, and in them n any m^rs are destroyed. Sometimes the hands pass through the fields early n. the n.orning and toward nigh, and with pLdles knock the mdlers off the plants, or catch them in small nets and kll then. Another method of preventing their injuries is to chp off the ends to the branches. As the eggs are generally laid in th,s position, a great many may be destroyed in this manner. The pruning is said to be beneficial to the plant There are several other insect enemies of the cotton plant but the mjuries which they inflict are slight when compared with those which have been named. Thorough culture, liberal ma- nunng. and the multiplication of birds, would be great aids in the work of ridding the cotton plant of all its insect foes. The diseases which attack the cotton plant are few in number though often working considerable evil. There is a rust which attacks the plant in the Southern States, which is similar in its cause and effects to the same disease which proves so destruc- tive to the wheat plant at the North. The parasitical plants fasten themselves upon the stalk, absorb its juices and weaken Its vitality. They thus diminish the productiveness of the plants which the owner desires to have grow, and use the food which belongs to them for their own advantage. The remedy for this disease is to be found in the selection of strong-growing sorts careful culture and liberal manuring. There are several other forms of disease, all coming under th6 general head of rust, which prove injurious, and sometimes ruinous, to the crops' which are affected. They can all be traced to one common cause-the want of suitable plant-food in a condition in which '■4mtmm aomammmn FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 037 it can be immediately used. Even the true parasitic affection is due to th,s cause-the foreign growth absorbs the juices of the plant to such a degree th.t its health and vigor are saerifieed. The common rust, which appears in the Northern cotton regions, does not appear until some critical time in the life of the plant. As long as there is plenty of food for it in the soil and rams are frequent but not unusually heavy, all goes along well, nut let the fertilizer, or one of its leading elements, become exhausted, or let there be a drought which cuts off the supply of food (which must be in solution in order to be efficient, and wh.ch cannot be dissolved in time of drought because there is not sufficient moisture in the soil), or let the quantity of water be excessive, so that the food which the plants need is dissolved m th>ee or four times the quantity which they can use-under any of these circumstances the plant is imperfectly nourished and the rust makes its appearance. The obvious remedies are the application of a liberal quantity of plant-food, thorou^^h dramage of the land, and clean cultivation of the crop On many of the soils at the South, which have long been under cult.vat.on. the organic elements are first exhausted. The ap- phcation of fertilizers rich in nitrogen, the rotation of crops allowing the land an occasional rest, or the plowing in of green crops for manure, are among the best means which can be em- ployed to prevent the exhaustion of the organic elements in the so.l. and thereby prevent the forms of exhaustion or disease of the plants which are known to the growers by the general name of rust. Not only is it important to devote a great deal of time and labor to the planting and culture of cotton, but there must also bo efficient management in securing the crop. As soon as it is r^ady the gathering should be commenced. The best hands and plenty of them, should be engaged in season. It involves a great waste to gather the cotton crop with insufficient, or inex- perienced, help. The laborers should be encouraged to gather 288 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the cotton as rapidly as possible, but should always be kindly treated and well paid for their work. In the early part of the season, when the weather is fine, the work should be pushed as rap-dly as possible. The cotton picked when wet with rain or dew should be dried before being packed away, but ought not to be exposed to the sun longer than is necessary. Preparing the cro,« for market is also an important part of the cotton-grower's work. If he consults his own interests, the FIG. 21. planter will see that all the details of this work receive careful attention. Vast sums of money have been lost by Southern planters by sending off their cotton in poor condition for the market. This seems to be one of the great difficulties with a large class of farmers all over the cotton-growing region and only loss and evil can result. If a cotton gin is owned, the planter should see that it is put, and kept, in perfect order. Veo^ much depends upon this. Then the cotton must be properly prepared for the ginning process. Ginning cotton FAUM AND FODDER CROPS. OSO when it is damp, and feeding i„ large, tangled masse.,, are pro- l.fie sources of heavy loss. In all eases speed should be .seeon- dary to good work. While it is possible to run through eight bales a day, it is better to attempt to elean only from two to four The eolton should never be fed in faster than it ean be mcely e leaned. A^ood press is one of the necessities of the thnfty planter He can bale his cotton just as well as the com- nms,on merchants, and do it for one-quarter the price which . hey charge. A press suitable for this purpose will not be ve„ expe„s,ve, and will be ve^ u.seful for many other operations. We thmk very highly of the plan recommended by the late OSLJH B. LVM« of Lou.s™., of building ..neighborhood ^ h uses ,„ „,„.,h„,,„ ,„,,,„„3 ^„ ^^ ,^ ^ ^^^^^^^ e farrnrng eommun,.,es." Here the most perfect gins and press!' could be employed, all needed power could b! furnished, n^ tie work could be done in the most perfect manner. Al the planters m the neighborhood could bring in their cotton and prepare rt for the market in the best possible manner and at a much less cost than they could furnish machines themsel s TC^r'' '"""" """^ '"^" "'■" "- -' «- means' for buddmg expensive gin-houses to grow cotton profitably wou. draw m many settlers from the No«x,,and won d pj^v :: fully tend to develop the material resources of the So.™ l„ F.gure 2, we give an illustration of the Universal C.,.on'Gi„ manufactured by R. H. Allen & Co., of New York. i-vL ,' repr<.en.s Dederick's Patent Cotton Press, made by P. K Dede nek & Co., of Albany, N.Y. ■ iv. uede- When the cotton is ready for the mnrWf .t j„ -J • . ' market the grower must whlh h ""V^^^"""'' '"''■«'"'^"'^'' "y ^" *= knowledge and abroad, and the prospects for the future, should be his guide able to hold h,s crop, and is confident that prices will go no 290 r\RMtNG FOR PROFIT, lower, wliilc hope- ful that they will advance, it may not be best to sell at once, fiiit if he needs money, and must borrow and pay interest until he can sell his cot- ton, it may be bet- ter for him to sell g at rather low rates ^ than to wait in g hope of a slight S advance. As a H general rule, to I which there are o many exceptions, wjien a crop can E be sold for a fair price — a price which will pay all expenses and give a reasonable per- centage of profit — it does not p..y to hold on for an advance. In no case should tlu grower be led to engage in any speculations with his crop. He must not take great risks in the hope of securing great gains. Such a course will not kv.d to success, but it very often precedes financial ruin. ^A/tU .tXn lODDER CROPS T ..-. 291 in addition to the fibre tlio ^^»f <...a„.i.y of ..cd of .v„i ,,:",: "::j°"" ""■ >»- » T/>is seed ,.. ...„ „... r. va.;: pt „,:"'\ r:;",""- boo,, extracted and sold, the ,eed I,„ I r T' "' C I "''^ L><-*-''l fl-'d to stock- c\n fli« nnniire TI, ' '"''"^^ ^^^''"'^'''^ ''•'^^-' "'^^•J it for ;::: e ,•„ trrr:, °' ^^^ ^^'^ --' ■-'^ - -=d. liut >vl e„ . ' , ''" "'"■" '" "" """ "- "pon whi .': '^: ;; : ™r"''^- ™""= "> --" - *e field., sou™., cotton rrrtHrtrrr"'""^"'^- from which to obtain fertili.in, ZZ for T ""f" crops, as well n<; fhn i,- u • ^'^'"^nts Jor the growth of plain tha tt. be ' :tr'" °^^°"'™--' —- , i. .een,s .heir cottonl!^^ ^ZCl .'" ^''f T' '''"'''' "" P"' »'.-. that the re^oj':: ;:,,'""''• ,'"= ''■^^^' "'-^^^ very little while th. / ■■' ""''^"""^ "'e soil but ." cUiir .t.-: . Ter,r tr 7 "'^"'^-^ tl.c be,t and easiest w.v i„ ' , ''''' "=™= '° >== Prod„ctive and sti ' " ' "'' '""'' '^"'' ""^ ™-* •'.0 crops.' cizrr rirr ''•^•'^■™°-'°^ better the condition in whi h tl e 7 , T ''"'''''"• "" P^fitable its cnltivation w, eo^ 'td't T' '^ ""^^ only secures hr^. ^ . ^°°^ *="^t"''c not becLin;:;;::,™';::- :: t "-v^, ■-■ -- crops in the future ' ^'°'''^^ *^^ P'-^^^^ble ."^:::::o:n:r"r r ^^^^^^ - - - °- grasses, is a native „r A ^^ '° ""^ '"'''e'- of andon'thisaccl ee^r;r;:r ""'''''' "^ '"^ '^™--^- It will grow in ,„T'l Tu '"'°°"'""'''"^°-"'- U~™d s™ Jb7/r °' *= ^""■•-'''l portions of the tbirty-hfthTn"' fori 1 ""' ^""°"™''^' '■"™ "— "- y tth and forty-second degrees of latitude. It readil;. 292 FARMING FOR PROFIT. adapts itself to changes of climate and soil. Consequently it is an universal favorite. The value of the corn crop produced in this country in a single year exceeds five hundred and eighty millions of dollars. Large quantities are exported, it is the leading article for fattening pork and beef, and it is used to quite an extent for human food. Although the corn grown in different parts of the country presents very different appearances, but little care has been taken to keep varieties pure. The consequence is that we have but very little really pure-bred corn. In many of the corn-growing districts the only difference recognized is in the color of the grain, and white corn or yellow corn is called for without regard to any other name. And as it readily mixes with different kinds grown in the vicinity, and also adapts itself to the soil and xlimatc in whicli it is produced, it is somewhat difficult to keep a variety pure and unchanged when removed from its original Jiome. There are varieties which arc very small and ripen very early. In ninety days from the time of planting the seed, the crop may be dry enough to be shelled and ground. If grown in Maine, or in any of the extreme Northern- States, these ■characteristics will be permanent. But plant this variety of corn .a few years at the South and it will lose its present distinguishing features, will grow quite large, and ripen very late. We have often seen these changes going on. Year by year the corn .would grow larger and ripen later, until it had perfectly adapted itself to the climate to which it had been taken. As a general rule the small "flint" corn, with from eight to twelve rows per ear, and ripening very early, is grown only in New England, northern New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Farther South the "dent," or gourd-seed, is .almost exclusively grown. There are several pretty well- marked varieties of the flint corn which are really valuable, and many others which are more or less distinct, but which cannot be clas:^cd as superior. The best of these kinds which we have FARM AND FODDER CROPS. ^g^ variety, the Holden, possessing the same characteristics but more productive, and K,.os»™Vs Exc..„o., an earrylw weive-rowed kind, which mate a larger growth of bo h Ij ad g.,„ ,Ha„ .he preceding varieties. The .wo latter t^d North. Of .he large Southern and Western corn there arc Plan.,ng. The Wh.te Gourd-Seed, Southerk B,g Yeleow LO.O JOHN, and Iee.kcs Yeeeow. are all largely grown xTe' Ev«s, PRocoa Bre... and Chester Co„/xv M.mmo™ a extremely large, and, on rich soil, very productive variet There are, also, many intermediate kinds, which have merely locadcs,gnat,ons, and which are specially valuable in the be' of coun.^ j„3t north of where the large kinds easily ripen ad south of .he line above which i. is necessa^ .o grow the ;ari; r,pe„,„g k,nds. The Co.»hct.cut Vaeeev Cor. and its Zv vanafons belong to this class. This is largely g.owntco" -CT,cux and M.ss.cusExrs. It is much larger Z^L early vane.es, but smaller .han .he large gourdied sort .pens m abou. four months from .he .ime of planting, yields a large crop „ nice, yellow grain, and a large ,ua„.i.;of st.'! .0., are valuable for fodder. This variety has been tested t^ *e northern part of Iee..o,s, and proved quite valuable. We beheve ..would pay .he farmers of some of .he Northern corn growmg States to cultivate .he large, yellow corn of Ma Jc„" SETTS and New York, ins.ead of .he gourd-seed varie.ies. The q»l,ty of this corn is far superior, and .he s.alks are worth considerable for fodder. Dr. N,c„o.3 claims that a caref d analysis shows .ha. a bushel of Nor.her„ corn on .he cob is shetd '™'"°" ''"'' '° " '"''=' "' *=^'"" -™ '"=" - The average yield of corn in (his coun.ry is verv far below wha. ,. ough. to be, and wha. i. migh. easily be m^de. ol 294 FARMING FOR PROFIT. with all its advantages has only averaged a fraction over thirty- four bushels per acre for the past twenty years, while the esti- mated average for the country is less than thirty bushels. In some of the States, in which good crops might be grown, the average rate of production runs down to ten bushels. It would be a very easy matter to largely increase this average, and the interests of the farmers would be greatly promoted by such a change. Under favorable circumstances, and with skilful culti- vation, immense crops have often been produced. And though practical farmers look with distrust upon reports of excessive yields, and while the truth of many of these reports has not been as fully certified as it should have been if they were strictly true, yet there can be no doubt that more than a hundred and twenty bushels of sound, shelled corn per acre has many times been produced. We have never been able to reach this yield, but wc do not live in the best section for the production of the corn crop. We have no doubt that fi )m sixty to eighty bushels of yellow flint corn per acre have been grown by many different farmers, and we have full confidence in tjie statement of Mr. Sturtevant, of Massachusetts, that from his thorough bred seed of this variety he has obtained one hundred and twenty- three bushels of sound, shelled corn per acre. There are, also, duly attested reports from Bucks County, Pa., of a corn crop yielding one hundred and thirty-six bushels, and of another of one hundred and eight bushels per acre. In these instances the large gourd-seed variety was planted. The assertion has been made that two hundred bushels ^f shelled corn per acre have been grown, but it is the general opinion that this is a highly exaggerated statement. The great majority of first-class farmers find it difificult to obtain one hundred bushels. But the pro- duction of the latter quantity should be the aim of every farmer who is favorably situated for growing this crop. The use of first-class seed will do much toward securing this yield, while good land, liberal manuring, and skilful cultivation, will be very I FARM AND FODDER CROPS. OQ- efficient and necessary aids. The best methods of growing seel will be considered in a separate chapter. If good seed is not grown upon the farm, the owner should purchase some of other part.es. He cannot afford to use poor or even second-rate seed Corn will grow in almost any kind of soil, but will give the best results in one which is warm and rather dry We have grown ,t in gravel, and in muck, and in the various intermediate kmds of land. Though it does better in land which is well suited to Its wants, no farmer n,ed despair of growing corn on account of the character of his soil. If he can grow any cultivated crop, he can easily fit his land so that it will produce good crops of corn. If extremely wet it should be drained, and \i very cold .t should be cultivated in ridges. The variety to be grown should be selected with reference to the quality of the land If the sod ,s cold, an early ripening kind of corn should be planted It IS one of the great advantages of this crop that by means of careful fitting of the soil, and a skilful selection of the variety corn can be grown over.a vast extent of country, on almost all kmds of land, and under a great diversity of climates and tem- peratures. It is, when properly grown, less affected by varia- tions of the seasons than almost any other crop. An excess of water is injurious, but seldom proves destructive, while an ordinary drought is borne with comparatively little injury. The corn plant is a strong feeder, and will make use of almost any kind of plant-food. Decomposed barn-yard-manure, hog- manure, and sheep-dung are especially valuable. On some soils plaster proves very beneficial. Ashes are excellent for this crop. Chemical fertilizers, either the special formula for corn or the complete manure, are almost sure to give good results The quantity of manure to be applied per acre depends upon many circumstances. With a little manure some corn can be obtained from almost any soil. But the crop can utilize a lar^e amount of food, and the more liberal the application of manure up to a point which but {^^n farmers reach, the larger will be the' 296 FARMING FOR PROFIT. crop. Here the farmer who uses only barn-yard-manure is very liable to make a mistake. He finds that a moderate application of manure not only secures the growth of a fair crop of corn, but also that the effect of the manure is visible for three or four of the succeeding years. The crops which follow the corn are con- siderably larger than they would have been if the land had not been plowed. Consequently, the farmer concludes that he has applied more manure than the corn required, and that it is this excess which stimulates and feeds the succeeding crops. But this is an error. The corn would have used more food if it could have obtained it in a suitable form, but much of the manure did not get into an available condition until long after the crop was removed. It should alvVays be remembered in deciding the quantity of manure to be used on corn land that the ordinary grades of this fertilizer contain much plant-food which will not be in a condition to use the first season, and that, on this account, an extra quantity should be applied, or else yomc commercial fertilizer should be»used in connection with the manure from the yard. Many farmers use only twelve two- horse loads of compost per acre, while some of their more suc- cessfur neighbors apply from twenty to forty such loads of a much better quality of manure. The method of its application will have some influence in determining the quantity of fertilizer to be used. When the New England method of putting the manure in the hill is fol- lowed, a less quantity will do than will be needed if applied broadcast. Except for very poor land it is much better to spread the manure over the whole surface of the ground. Corn roots go a long distance in search of food, and it is not wise to put all the manure directly under the plant. When a liberal quantity of manure is spread on the surface and worked in to a depth of a few inches, and a small quantity of manure, or com- mercial fertilizer, is used in the hill in addition, the best results will be obtained. But, on account of the great amount of labor FARM AND J-ODDEJi CROPS. 297 involved, this is generally considered impracticable. When the planting is done by hand it is best to. at least, throw a handful of plaster and ashes in each hill. This will give the corn a strong and early start, and keep it growing until the roots reach the manure which has been plowed or harrowed in. When fer- tilizers are used in the hills they should be slightly covered before the seed is dropped. Some corn-planting machines have an arrangement for dropping plaster, or other fertilizer, near the seed. It is, in some sections, a very common method to spread the manure upon the land bef-re it is plowed. On dry, light land, which is only plowed four or five inches deep, this will give' good crops if a fertilizer is used in the hills. But if nothing else is done, the plowing in of a broadcast application is not a good way in which to feed the crop. If spread upon a heavy sod, and wc have often seen this done, and the plow run quite deep' the corn will obtain but very little, if any, benefit from the manure. Succeeding ^rops may be benefited, but for imme- diate use the manure is not available. Even when the plowing is quite shallow, we do not believe it pays to put the manure in the bottoms of the furrows and cover it with sods. We consider it much the best way to spread manure upon the surface after the land has been plowed and work it in with a harrow. If the manure is fine, it can easily be got in with a common square harrow. If it is coarse and strawy, a wheel-harrow will answer the double purpose of fining the manure and pulverizing the soil. If chemi il manures arc used, they are to be sowed broad- cast and harrowed in, except the fertilizers which are made specially for use in hills or drills. . The following is a good method for manuring corn. If sod land is to be planted, a liberal application of stable manure shoulc' be made after the land has been plowed. This should be thoroughly harrowed in. A light application of some special fertilizer for corn should then be made and covered with a har- i- !! 298 FARMING FOR PROFIT. row. In the hills or drills a small quantity of ashes and plaster, or some other quickly acting fertilizer, should also be used. If stubble land is to be planted, a liberal quantity of manure may be plowed in. not more than five or six inches deep, and the commercial fertilizer used as recommended above. But if only a small quantity of manure can be had, and the farmer does not choose to buy commercial fertilizers, the land should be plowed and harrowed, the rows marked with a small plow, and the manure placed in hills or scattered along in the drills. If put in drills, the manure can be covered by turning back the furrow which was laid out, and the corn may then be planted with a one-horse machine. But when manure is used in this manner the planting is usually done by hand. The seed should never come in contact with the manure. When thoroughly decomposed material is used, this rule is often disregarded. But it is better that the fertilizer should be covered with a little fresh earth. This in order that the nat- ural moisture of the land may hasten the growth of the seed, and also to prevent all possibility of injury to the germ by heat- ing of the manure. It is not safe to plant directly in unfer- mented material, while a bed of well-rotted manure is not a good place in which to start the corn plants. When corn is planted on very wet land which is imperfectly drained, the manure should be put in hills, or drills, in order to elevate part of the roots of the plants above the ordinary level of the soil. But it is much better to drain the land, or even to plow it in rid"-es than it is to build up the hills. The time for planting varies with the location and with the character of the season. In an ordinary year the planting of this crop in the South is best done in March ; in the Middle States, and those in the same latitude, from the first to the middle of May; in Massachusetts, and the States with a sim- ilar climate, from the tenth to the last of May ; while at the extreme North, the corn is not planted until June, In some J^A/iM AND FODDEJi CHOPS. 299 FIG. 23.-NEW YORK CORN AND SEEDTLANTKR. MANUFACTURED BY N. CO., NEW YORK CITY. Y. PLOW FIG. 24.— nntrnLE row cornplanter. manufaci I'Ih 1 1 '"*^ 1 M 1 " m m 1 m 1 m ! ^ 11 1 ^'Mp 1 i^H i YORK, PA. UK ED BY A. B. FARQUHAK, 300 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ''\ I I ■ '< seasons the seed can be safely planted a week or ten days earlier than the usual time, while in other years, which are cold ind wet, the work must be delayed until the weather and tem- perature are favorable. There is not the slightest use in putting in corn long before the ground is dry and warm. The seed cannot grow until the ground is warm ; and if planted sooner it is liable to decay. But it is well to do this work promptly when a suitable time arrives. Early planting, if not too early, will usually give better crops than late planting. There is the additional advantage of having the corn large enough to culti- vate before the time for haying arrives. At the North, early ripening is desirable in order that both grain and fodder may escape injury by frost; and this must be secured, if at all, by early planting, or else by the use of a very early variety. We have known farmers to put in their corn so late that the plants did not get large enough to hoe until time for their grass to be cut. Then they were under the necessity of cither neglecting their hoeing or their haying. The result has usually been that their corn became very weedy and their grass got over-ripe. A light crop of corn and a damaged crop of hay can often be traced to late planting of the corn. Figures 23 and 24 repre- sent some excellent planting machines. Whether the planting should be done in hills, or in drills, is a question upon which there is a diflerence of opinion. A great many practical farmers favor the old method of putting the seed in hills, while others consider the newer method of drilling an improvement. When it is done in squares, hill-planting allows the corn to be cultivated both ways. This is certainly an advantage. But when the corn is grown in drills, the plants are more evenly distributed over the ground, all crowding is avoided, and the sun and the air have free access to them. The advocates of drill-culture claim that these benefits more than offset the gain secured by running the cultivator both ways when the planting is done in hills. Figures 25 and 26 show u.£M FARM Ai\D 1-0J)DER CROPS. 301 FIG. 25. —CORN DRILLED OR PLANTED, 9 IN. APART. ria. 26.— CORN IN HILLS. \l\ ^>ut!.\ria. 302 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the relative appearance of corn grown by these methods. Many of the best planting machines can be adjusted to drop the seed either in hills or in drills. In order to be highly successful with the corn crop, the farmer must give it frequent and thorough cultivation. Whether it should receive level culture or be hilled will depend upon the character of the land and of the fertilizers which were used. On dry land we believe in keeping the surface as nearly level as possible. On wet land it is almost always best to make the hills a little higher than the surrounding level, and when coarse manure is used in the hills, it is necessary to make them of considerable size. With these exceptions we much prefer level culture. ' The first cultivation of the crop should be given when the plants are quite small. This for the double purpose of checking the growth of the weeds which have started and promoting the growth of the crop. We do not favor the *'^" ^7- old-fashioned method of hand- hoeing, which is still largely practiced in New England. It does not pay. With a good cultivator more real benefit is conferred upon the crop, and the cost of the work is much less than that of hand -hoeing. Prout's Hoeing Machine has already been noticed as an excellent implement. In Figure 27 we give an illustration of Allen's Planet Jr. Horse-Hoe. This simple, cheap, yet effective implement is made by S. L. Allen & Co., of Philadelphia. Figure 28 represents the Garden City Riding or Walking Cultivator, made by the Furst & Bradley Manufacturing Co., of Chicago. Figure 29 illustrates the Improv<;d Corn Harrow, manufactured by the Warrior Mower Co., of Little Falls, N. Y. Either of these implements can be made to do almost all the work which it is necessary to perform. FAKAf AXD FODDER CROPS. gpg A hand-hoe would bo a httic nice, but hand-work is too costly After the first hoeing, the corn may be cultivated with profit once a week until the tassels are out. The latter part of the ^me the cultivator should not run very close to the hills. Neither should the culture be very deep. V,y uay of ex- pcnment it may be well, on a small part of the field, to disregard the last suggestion and try the effect of root-prunin^ By P owmg out a small lot of corn when it is in the silk, letting the plow run deeply, the crop .,ay be greatly increased. It will pay to give this plan a trial. FIG. a8. HARvi^TiNc-Various methods are employed. The New England method requires considerable time, but it enables the farmer to secure his crop in the best condition. When the kernels are thoroughly glazed (if there is danger of frost it is done sooner) the corn .s cut at the roots, bound in bundles con ammg the stalks of from twelve to sixteen hills, and from S.X to ten bundles are set up in a stack. The tops of the stacks are firmly t.ed and the corn left in the field a few weeks to cure Some farmers tie the tops of a couple of hills together, cut and set up a dozen hills around them and tie the whole at the top fill 304 f.kMi//ArG FOX PROFFT. After these stacks h icd >l while, the ccnti. )iills arc cut and the whole stacks taken l« *hp barn, or else husked in the field. IJy following cither of these ^Un>^ the fodder is all saved, aild the grain is secured in the best possible condition. The old method of topping the corn has been pretty generally abandoned. It has been found that after the tops and leaves arc removed there can be no farther elaboration of plant-food, and that the grain does not improve. But if the plants arc cut at FIG. 29. the roots before the grain is ripe, the sap in the stalks will carry on the ripening process to some extent. Many farmers at the We3t are now making an effort to save their corn-fodder. The Ohio ' \rmf.r has done good service in calling the attention of its re?.dc. ) ''e fact that this fodder is quite valuable and ought to be ;d7; .. O^'icr papers have taken the same position, and many of the Iv >t ;'irmers hpA found that they cannot afford to waste this excellent material for stock-food. The method, so long practiced at the West, of merely gathering FARM AS'D tODDi:K CROPS. 306 the cars of corn, and leaving the stalks to be tran,plcd down by the cattle, to be burned, or plowed in. will nut nu.ch longer be very generally followed. At least part of the fodder should be saved on every fann. When the stalks are not gathered they should not bo burned, hut cut and plowed into the lani They w.ll be worth son.ething as plant-food for the succeeding crop. iMgure 30 represent, a niachine. with a roller attachment for cutt.n;, stalks and getting them out of the way of the plow It .s made by tii. Eureka Manufacturing Co.. of Rock Falls. 111.' VVhen U.e stalks are to be fed. the harvesting of the crops should be done as soon as the corn is fully ripe. The grain will be just as good, and the f< dder much better than it will be if the plants stand too long. When the stalks are well dried, the corn should be husked, the cars stored in suitable bins, or cribs, and the fodder stacked near the yards, or packed away in a barn or a spare shed. The corn should not be shelled and measured for at least three months after it is ripe. Careful experiments have proved that corn shrinks. Loth in weight and measure, for several months ■^.tc- i. ,s husked. In one instance in which corn was weighed and measured in November and again the succeeding August the last trial indicated a loss of eighteen and six-tenths per cent' m bulk, and twenty-two and six-tenths per cent, in weight. Corn is usually considered merchantable the first of January and is often sold earlier in the season; but it continues to lose' both weight and bulk until April or May. The farmer who sells his corn early saves quite a los5 in this respect. This crop is subject to the attacks of worms of various kinds. FIG. 30. — EURF.KA ncU'llM- ROW STALK- CUTTER. i f| !» - I I 306 FARMING FOR PROFIT. IXxc cut-worm works when the plants are only a few inches high. He cuts the stalks off near the surface of the ground. W'c have found this worm more destructive on sod-land than on stubble. When but little corn is grown, these worms can be dug out of the hills in which there are indications that they are at work. When large crops are produced, it has been sug- gested that a pair of old wheels be fitted with projections on the rims, which will make holes four inches deep when the wheels are run upon the land. The worms will attempt to follow the smooth tracks made by the rims of the wheels, fall into the holes, and be destroyed by the hot sun. It is a wise course to build bonfires near the corn fields in the evenings of summer in order to destroy the insects which produce these worms. Wire-worms are often quite destructive. They usually do the most harm when the plants are small, but they sometimes keep working until the crop is fully matured. Various prepa- rations have been recommended for use in the hills, but we know of nothing effectual which can be used on a large scale. Where only a very little corn is grown, a piece of potato may be pi:t in each hill, examined daily, and the worms which have entered be destroyed. This is a method in use to some extent in ExciiAM). It is said that if a piece of cob is placed in each hill the worms will enter the pith and can be killed. A mix- ture of equal parts of plaster and ashes, the whole to be satu- rated with night-soil, and half a pint placed in the bottom of each hill, has been highly recommended. This would make it necessary to plant the corn by hand, and would not, on this account, be applicable to large fields. We have but little faith in anything of this kind. As far as our experience goes, it is of but little use to try to fight the worms in this way. They are hardy creatures, and not easily disgusted with their sur- roundings. Anything which will kill them will also kill the corn, and they are not readily frightened away. As they .v'ork most where the land is wet and cold, the best method of N inches ground, md than )rms can that they )cen sug- tis on the le wheels oUow the into the course to ammer in s. iually do ometimcs us prcpa- >, but we rge scale, o may be lich have lie extent d in each A mix- 3 be satu- ottom of J make it t, on this little faith goes, it is y. They their sur- 3 kill the hey .v'ork icthod of /-^^^/ ^.VD FODDER CROPS. -3^^ an excess of ^Jl '^Z' ^T '""'^ '''"'' '' cause «,e. ,s so .„e„ ™ J'^r; r/Ur^Vf '"'', '^■ '-" a ye„o„,sicK.,y color, and „,„ .^IZ^Jlf:!: becomes drier Th;« .r ^ '^"^ draining tit . '''" ''" ^'^ ^^^^°">' P'-^-^-ted by drammg the land, or partially by cultivating it in ridges ciX'tir"' T-', ""^^^'■' ^'^---hich in some seasons, espe- : 'of ci It r^^^ ars o, corn. It has been suggested that sowing salt uoon th. com crop. T ,c cows a„d blackbirds will sometimes „„|| ,he ':te : : ''rr^ "- ■""- ■■'«'■• ■■- -- •- *- Ihc corn is in ^f occas.onally attack a field when, corn ,s m the m,lk and work a great injur,. When the u destroys the e)jgs and young of many better : :;:; ;i!"= r, ■" ^'■-^' ^^ p-^'-^- But tijcr^r: C aU„; ;, .• " ■''""" '= '"^"'^-^^ '■''•"- ">- killed. Coatmg the seed-corn with eoal-tar will usually prevent birds ■i rSfr 'iti .•}08 FARMhWG FOR PKOJJT. \ \ f.oni pulling the plants. If the work is done early, the corn cm be planted with a machine. We put from four to six quarts of corn in a leaky pail, turn on some warm water, and stir the corn thoroughly. When all of the kernels are wet we drain off the surplus water, dip a stick into a dish of tar and with it stir the corn again. Only a very little tar is needed to cover the corn well. A quart of tar will cover several bushels of corn. After it is coated with the tar, the corn is spread in the sun. When it is nearly dry, it is spread under cover and left until wanted for use. Corn treated in this way can be planted in a machine just as well as it could if it had not been tarred. Corn which is to be planted at once may be covered with tar and then rolled in plaster. If planted with a machine, the slides must be open farther than usual, as it will not drop freely. In order to prevent depredations later in the season, and some growers take this course to prevent the pulling of the corn, "scarecrows" are oQ^en erected in the fields. Images of various kinds frequently prove effective with crows, but the blackbirds are not as easily frightened. Small pieces of polished tin, sus- pended from a pole by a string, are very good. Pieces of look- ing-glass, hung in the same way, are still more efficient and will be likely to keep all birds from the corn. On small farms the husking is done by hand. It should be attended to early in the season. This, because the work can be much more easily and rapidly performed in warm weather than it can in cold days, and also in order that the corn and fodder may not be too long exposed to the sunshine and storms. Where large quantities are grown, a machine for husking, or one for shelling ears which have not been husked, will be found a great convenience, and will save much time and a great deal of hard work. Before feeding, corn should be shelled and ground. This is a much more economical way than it is to feed it on the ear. Many farmers are in the habit of having both corn and cobs FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 3^9 ground. This saves shelling, and many feeders say that it grea ly ,n.proves the quality of the meal. Other men. of equal rlT^wT''""" -^--^h'-^.and sometimes injurious, for food. We have never found it profitable, though we hav c^et.mestned the experiment, to feed cob-meal. We believe that the cob contains but little nutritive matter, that it is almost -possible to grind corn- and cobs together as finely as they T ^'^"'"'^ "'"^^"^' ^"'^ t^^-t f^r a fattening animal so arge a quantity of the mixture is needed that the sfomach will an.mal rap.diy. very rich food is required. If it is desired to arry on .he rattening process slowly, a small quantity of meal hould be g.ven It is quite expensive hiring the cobs ground We consider them worth more to put in the hog-yards for manure than they are to grind into meal. They are also good for fuel though it is said they are injurious to the stoves in wh.ch they are burned. As they contain considerable potash they are quite valuable for manure, and ought, in some form to be saved and returned to the land. The stalk crop is of such importance that it should be considered in this connection. We are strongly in favor of growmg corn for feeding both in a green and a dry state For green food in the summer, corn is one of the best crops which can be grown. For drying for use in cold weather, it is almost equally valuable. We prefer the sweet corn for this purpose. It .s not as large as some kinds, but. if properly grown, the cattle will eat qu.te a proportion of the stalks. There is not half the waste to this fodder that there is to the gourd-seed varieties. We plant m drills, with a machine, three feet apart Not more than ten or twelve kernels per foot should be dropped Th.cker planting will make more fodder, but the quality will be much' poorer. As soon as the plants are two or three inches h'gh, a cultivator should be run close to the rows. During tlr^ I) 1 ']l I; 1 310 FARMING FOR PROFIT. season the crop should be culfvated several times. When two feet high it will do to feed green. That which is to be dried should be allowed to stand until the kernels on the c-ns are well formed. It should always be cut before a frost. It should dry a day or two, and then be bound in small bundles and set up in small stacks.' These should remain until well dried. Then the bunJl.s should be set out in the sun a few hqurs. after which they may be drawi. to the barn or stacked near the yards. If the land is good, and a fair quantity of manure has been used, a large amount of very good fodder will be secured. Broadcast sowing will give double the quantity, but the quality will not be as good. Almost every farmer who keeps stock can make it pay to grow this crop every year. The Ensilage of corn fodder, by means of which the stalks can be kept fresh and green for an indefinite time, will be considered in a separate chapter. Hops. The hop is a perennial plant which sends up a long, ' twining stem, and bears its fruit in clusters. The stem is killed by frost, but another grows the succeeding year. The fruit is useful in medicine as a tonic, and it probably possesses a nar- cotic property. Hops wet in warm water are among the most efficient remedies for that terrible disease, neuralgia. We have used them for this purpose with great success. Nervous, wakeful people often derive great beni-'fit from sleeping on a pillow made of hops. But the great use of hops is for making beer. On account of this perversion they prove an injury to the human race. But they are so extremely valuable for use in cases of neuralgia, for making yeast, and other household purposes, we have concluded to give brief directions for growing them on a small scale and for home use. Any good corn soil will grow good hops. If very wet, the land should be underdrained. If not, rich well-rotted compost should be applied. Lime is often a valuable fertilizer for this crop. If the land is very stony, it should be cleared of these obstructions before a plantation is started. A location sheltered FARM AND FODDER CROPS. ^, . from strong and cold winds should be chosen. The plowing, should be done in the fall, and should b. qu.te deep. In spring manure should be applied and harrowed in. The surface should be made very mellow, marked out in squares with the rows per- fectly straight, and at a distance of eight feet apart. ' Between these rows corn or potatoes may be grown the first season The underground runners from old vines are used for plantin-^ About two bushels of good trimmed sets will be needed for an acre. The runners should be cut into slips, each containing two or three buds, and kept moist until wanted for plantin- The runners from the male and female plants should be kept separate. Only eight or ten of the former will be needed on an acre. Four slips may be put in a hill. They should be covered from two to three inches deep with fine soil. Many growers put a shovelful of compost manure in each hill before P'antmg, while others make the land rich enough by spreading fertilizers on the surface. If the land is dry, the latter course is preferable. If r.ther wet land is used, manuring in the hills will be a benefit. During the first year some growers cultivate sufficiently to keep down the weeds, but they do not s- t the poles, and they make no effort to obtain a crop until the second season. Others put up the stakes, and secure a partial crop the first year When the latter plan is followed, poles eight feet long should be used. They should be set one foot in the ground. AH the Vines in a hill should run upon one pole. Good cultivation should be given. Poles for permanent use may be from eighteen to thirty feet long. Various kiads of wood are used Cedar are the most durable, but are quite costly. Poles are apt to be blown down or broken off by the wind, and thus injure" the crop. On this account horizontal yards are preferred hy many • growers. One stake is set at each hill. These stakes are sawed an inch and a quarter square, nine feet long, and covered with coal tar. A row of stakes should be set eight feet outsid ^ I ' i; I 312 FARMING FOR PROFIT. of the hills all around the field. The tops of all the stakes are connected with strong, tarred twine. At the male hills poles eighteen or twenty feet long should be used, so that the wind can blow the pollen over the whole plantation. The horizontal method is much cheaper than the use of long poles : the hops grow better, and the crop is gathered with less work. When the vines get two or three feet long, they must be tied to the poles or stakes. Frequent cultivation should be given, and no weeds should be allowed in or near the hills. As the vines grow they will need tying occasionally to the stakes, and, if the horizontal method is employed, when they get a little above the top they must be laid on and wound around the strings. If small poles are used, two may be set in each hill, but about fifteen inches apart. In the fall a shovelful of well-rotted manure is to be thrown upon each hill. In the spring this is carefully hoed away, the root-stocks are cut off, and saved for use or sale, and the old vines should be trimmed off above the sprouts with a sharp knife. If any grubs are in the hills, they should be got out and destroyed. After cultivation should be sufficient to keep the field clean. It is not well to hoe this crop when in blossom, but no injury will result from hoeing after the hops are set. As soon as the seed becomes hard and its color changes to purple the hops are ripe, and picking may be commenced at once. When the horizontal plan is pursued, the hops can be nicked directly from the vines. If grown by the other system the vines are cut with a sharp knife, the poles taken up and laid over a box at which two or four pickers work. The hops should be picked off clean and no leaves, or pieces of the vines, should go with them into the box. Some growers cut the vines from three to five feet irom the ground. Others cut them closer. When the boxes are full the hops are shovelled into sacks and carried to the kiln. If only a small quantity of hops are grown, the drying can be done in a store-room, or any convenient place. ! r % FARM AND FODDER CROPS. gjg But When this crop is grown on a large scale a kiln will be required. The hops should not be packed until they are thoroughly dried, and if dried in a kiln they must also be allowed to cool. When thoroughly dry and cool they may be put mto sacks, pressed, and stored or sold. ONioNs.-Although at the South onions cannot be grown from the seed in one season, but must have two years in which to mature, the great value of the crop at the North and West gives It a strong claim upon our consideration and an honorable position among the products of the farm. Though largely grown by market gardeners, there are many farmers who make this crop a specialty, and many more who choose it as one of their principal money crops. At the South it is a quite com- mon custom to grow this crop from sets. The hot summer prematurely checks the growth of the plant started from Southern seed, and the stalk dies down long before the plant has attained Its normal size. The bulbs which are thus formed are very small and of no value for the table, but if set out the next spring they will grow into onions of a fair size and passable quality. They npen earlier than onions grown directly from the seed, and on th.s account the first year's growth, or sets, are in demand at the North for use instead of seed by growers who desire to supply the market very early in the season. The onions grown •n th.s way are not as good keepers as those which are secured from seed, and this method is not recommended except for those who want a very early crop. Southern grown sets are much better than those which are produced at the North It has recently been proved that seed grown far North will, under favorable conditions, mature a crop at the South' the first season but th.s result cannot be attained with native seed To grow good sets the land should be plowed, lightly ma- nured, the surface made very fine and smooth, and the seed sowed early in the spring in drills ten inches apart. These drills should be broad and shallow, and seed should be usee r ♦ i' 314 FARMING FOR PROFIT. rate of thirty pounds per acre. When the crop is mature, the onions must be pulled, cured, and then stored in a cool and well-ventilated loft. The next spring these sets are put out, in rich land, in rows ten or twelve inches apart and two or three inches apart in the row. They should be lightly covered, and, during the season, should receive sufficient cultivation to keep down all the weeds. The farmer who lives near a large city may be able to work off some onions of this class, but in small villages they do not sell in any except very small quantities and we do not consider it an object for those who must depend upon such markets to attempt their cultivation. The Rareripe is another form of the onion, though often mis- taken for the set. This is still less desirable than the set, and its production is not to be generally commended. It is merely a mature onion which has been kept through one winter and is ready to devote its energies to the production of seed. If kept from seeding, the bulb will increase in size. Many farmers keep their very small onions for use in this way. Large onions which have become badly sprouted also answer the same purpose. The small ones grc w to a much larger size, and, in common with the large ones, send up seed stalks. These should be cut off as soon as the swelled growth is exhibited and just below where the stalk begins to enlarge. The plants should be kept free from weeds, and, with the exception of requiring a little more room.when large specimens are used, arc to be treated in the same manner as a crop grown from sets. These onions will mature early, but are not very good. The Potato onion is a variety which multiplies in the soil. This kind is easily grown, but is too poor to become a general favorite. The Shallot is similar to the Potato onion, but better in quality and an extra keeper. The bulb which is planted divides into several irregular-shaped onions which never attain a large size. Top onions are large, coarse, and decidedly poor. They are FARM AND FODLl^K CROPS. uJo vej poor keepers, bu. a, they are early. „ave „ very „„|d flavor, and are ea,,ly grown, .hey are more eommon than .heir ac.ua merits wou d cad one to evnrrt Tk„ h„lh. „ .,■ T ^ ^ """ P™P'>B'"^J i'Y little b .lbs, ,vh,el,, ™„,et,mes to the number of a dozen, grow on to-, of a seed ..a ,. They grow in .he same place and Way as c ordinary seeds, but are miniature onions instead of black seeds T ese b ,s are to be ga.hered when ripe and spread in a coo, en to fourteen inches apa-t and cultivated enough .o keep them free from weeds. ^ We now come to a consideration of >ke genuine onion i„ its best form. This ,s grown from the black seed which is pro- duccd ,n a sort of head on top of a tall stalk which is thrown up during the .second year of the life of the bulb. The quality the seed w*,ch ,s u,,ed will have a veiy strong influence upo^ the yield and quality of the crop which will be ob.ained. Many growers of onion seed use for this purpose an inferior lot of b bs. Often those which are badly formed, or are too small to seUre used for seed stock. A few growers select the finest bulbs and grow seed therefrom. Seed from the best stock is he only kind which should ever be used. A diflirenee of hun- dreds of bushels per acre is often made in the yield of a crop ^.mply by the quality of the seed. I. is „„. only necessary .f secure seed from good s.ock, but it is of great importance Lt .t shou d be fresh. Seed three years old is good for nothing and at wo years of age but a very small proportion of ordinary -cd w I gerniinate. If very carefully kept, perhaps one-half of a lot of strictly first-elass seed will grow when two years old but even then there is a great deal of risk. Consequently, it is' -uch better to ob.ain new seed .han to place the slightest dependence upon that which is old. I, is a great damage to be obliged to plant over, and the grower can better aflbrd to pay double price .for good seed than to go through this op.ra.ion even thoug., the seed for his Hrst sowing eo,,ts him nothin. i 1^ f J 316 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Early sowing is one of the essentials of success with this crop. The onion land should be plowed and got in condition for sowing as early in the seasoii as possible. The best soil for onions is neither very heavy nor very light ; is not too dry, and is far from being wet. A sandy or gravelly loam will gener- ally give good crops, but many other kinds of land will yield pretty well. Unlike most crops, onions do better, and it is much less work to grow them, when planted on the same land year after year. It is a good plan to grow carrots on the pro- posed onion-bed as a sort of preparatory crop. When onions are to be grown, a liberal application of first-rate manure should be made. Well-rotted stable-manure, hog-manure, or night- soil, will give good results if freely used. As a general thing farmers do not make their land rich enough to give the best results with this crop. It is a strong feeder, and must be well fed in order to be made profitable. The manure should be extremely fine, and should be plowed in to a depth of four or five inches. Not less than eight cords of strictly first-class manure should be used on an acre. After the land has been plowed, it must be rolled if it is inclined to be lumpy, and then harrowed. If the soil is reasonably fine, the rolling may be omitted. Wood-ashes at the rate of from one to two hundred bushels per acre, or a liberal quantity of some special onion fertilizer, should be sown and harrowed in. If there are any stones on the surface, they must removed. After the har- rowing, the land must be carefully raked with a fine-toothed hand-rake. This in order to get out small stones, and crush or remove any lumps of earth which may remain. It is consider- able work to fit an onion-bed to receive the seed, but it is very important that this work should be faithfully performed. The yield of the crop largely depends upon the manner in which this preparation is made, and the labor attending its after cultiva- tion will be modified thereby in a still greater degree. An extra day's work on one-eighth of an acre of land before sowing may FARM AXD FODDER CROPS. 317 »avc several days' time afterwards, and will certainly save a Crea. deal of very „ard labor. Until .he surface s is L„ perL;ySd. '"" "" "^ "•"' ^"°"«'- ""«' '"= '-< i^ When .hi» stage is reached, the seed should be sown The quantuy required will be fro., three to four pounds per acre f he seed ,s perfect; and fron, four to five pounds if if 2 ap r of course n.ore seed will be needed than will be required I the spaces are eighteen inches wide. We think ,L .no .es is far enough apart, and do not belieJth s put the rows nearer together. For sowing, a machine of si Kind should a wavs he nspr? t^ * i o.o„.seedhyij,::::LLr:::o:rtr:;;:: proportion of t is vvn«h>rJ ti ^ ^ ^ F wasted. There are machines made for tliis po feet ly. But ,t ,s better to obtain a eonAined drill and hoe VV,.h Ins maclnne not only the sowing but also a large part of the eul.,vat,o„ of the crop can be done. ,f but a sn,an qu il of on,ons are grown, a ^..v neighbors can buy one of these dr Is m company, and thus make the individual expense vej^ After tl^ seed ,s sown a light hand-roller n,ay be run oTerThe land. Most seed-drills have a roller which paLs over d e row and when they are used this operation is unnecessa J Pi^ : 3. represents the celebrated Plane. Jr. Garden-Drill Wheel by S. L. Allen & Co., of Philadelphia. We have used one of lee ,n,plen,e„.s several years, and found i. first-.te for each of .he vanous k.nds of work which it is intended to perforn, le .s never well to grow this crop on weedy soil. If the pro- posed onion bed is weedv it is better ,„ „ ^' '^"" 'o g™w carrots, or even corn. „p„„ , „„„ „,„ ^^^^ ^_.^ _.^^^^^ . .he character of the land in this respect .he,, will be wtl f.: w^B^M ivB Ii^^^^n \'i '■: i ' p iHQH M ■KSj " 1h * '' H ' A 9HH (J/« ^^^H J'^o] WM 318 FARMIXG FOR PROFIT. cnouyh, and they will make their appearance very soon after the hind is worked. Just as soon as the rows can be phiinly ■ seen, a wheel-hoe should be run between them. This will bene- fit the crop, and destroy a multitude of weeds. If only a small business in this line is attempted, the com- bined machine, shown in Fi^jure 31, will answer every purpose. Hut where onions are extensively grown, the Planet Jr. Double Wheel-Hoc, Wheel-Plow and Cultivator, made by the same Company, will be found better. This machine is illustrated in Figure 32. It will not do to delay cultivation until the weeds get well started. Such a course will involve an immense FIG. 31. — PLANET JR. COMUINED DRILL ANl> IIOE. FIG. 32. — PLANET JR. WIIEEL-HOK. amount of needless labor. We have sometimes raked the rows lencthwisc with an iron tooth-rake, and in this way destroyed many of the feeble weeds without injuring the onions. As soon as they are large enough the onions must be weeded. Whoever does this work must get upon his hands and knees and expect to have a tiresome job. The work should not be slighted. One good weeding is worth two imperfect ones. During the season this process will need repeating two or three times. No weeds should be allowed to grow at any time upon land devoted to this crop. When the crop is nearly ripe, the tops of the onions will begin to fall upon the ground. For a little while after this the FARAf AXD FODDER CROPS. bene- i\ bulbs SID is w.II ,.row very f.st. Then they u 11 ripen, and the tops . W.I1 cJ.c. Sometimes a crop matures unevenly. Some of the tops fall over, while many remain upri^Hu. When this occurs It .s best to roll an empty flour-barrel over the rows in order to bend down the tops, and thus hasten the ripenin,. process on the part of thost plants which would otherwise remain .rcen too long^. When most of the tops arc dry where they join the bulbs, the onions should be pulled. If allowed to remain lonK'er, they may be^Mn to grow again and very soon be .spoiled The omons may be pulled by hand, or. if very ripe, raked out W.th a comn,on hand-hay-rake. They may be put in windrows five or six rows in each, and allowed to dry. If the tops are' green they should not be stirred for several days, but if quite npe they may be raked over, carefully, with a hay-rake, every fair day. In a short time the tops will die down and the bulbs W.11 feel hard and be quite solid. When this stage is reached the crop is well cured. Unless they are to be sold at once care must be taken that the tops become dry r/os, to the bulbs ' The end of the tops almost to the onion will often seem quite dry when the necks are green. It will not do to cut the tops in this state, as the onions will " bleed " and very soon decay The dry.ng must go on unfil the top is dead throughout its entire length. When this stage is reached, the tops may be cut close to the bulbs, with a sharp knife, or, what we like much better a pair of old sheep-shears. The onions can then be carried 'to market or stored for winter. The small ones should be sepa- rated from the large ones. They are good to eat. but on account of the extra work of fitting them for the table they will sell for only half or two-thirds as much as the large ones. The veo^ small ones-those not larger than a hazel-nut-will some- times sell at full rates to parties who want them for pickling. We have made it an invariable rule to push off this crop as soon as possible after it is ripe. Other growers, who are dif- ferently situated, often find it for their interest to hole 320 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the middle of October, and some keep their crops until the next spring. The latter course is sometimes the best. We have known onions to bring extremely high rates in the spring. But there is a great risk in keeping them. They sometimes decay, and when they do not they are often plenty and prices are very low. We have known growers to almost give away large quan- tities of onions late in the spring. No one would pay much for them, they were beginning to sprout, and many showed unmistakable signs of decay. If it is thought best to put the crop into winter quarters, the onions should be spread, in an exposed building, about a foot and a half deep, upon the floor. A space of two feet should be left all around the pile between the onions and the boards. When the onions are frozen hard, the pile should be covered with sheets, or cloth of some kind, in order to keep the bulbs clean, and then hay should be packed between the pile and the sides of the building. The top of the pile should also be cov- ered to a depth of two or three feet. A lattice-work bin a little inside of the outer wall would be a still better place for storage. In the bin the onions should be covered, as before directed, and hay must be placed around the outside of the slats in order to fill the space between the bin and the wall. In some sections the large growers have fitted up buildings for the special purpose of keeping this crop frozen thrdugh the winter. After the onions are frozen they should be let alone until they thaw in the spring. Then they should be spread and dried as rapidly as possible and sent to market without delay. If it is only desired to store a few onions for winter use, they may be put in barrels which have had several pieces chipped out of their sides with a hatchet, and allowed to stand in a cool room until nearly time for heavy frosts. Then they should be removed to a cool and well-ventilated cellar. The tops of the barrels should be covered to keep out the light. As soon as the crop is got off, the bed should be cleared of FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 321 all weeds, decayed onions, and tops, and harrowed thoroughly. If any weed seeds have ripened, this working of the soil will cause them to germinate at once. In a few weeks the land should receive another harrowing. This will destroy the weeds, and these two harrowings will save an immense amount of work t!ic next year. Late in the autumn it is a good plan to plow the ground in order that the frost may make it fine and mellow. It may need plowing again in the spring, but the fall plowing will prove highly advantageous. If the land is quite mellow, the spring preparation may be made with a cultivator. If this is designed, a liberal quantity of manure should be applied before the fall plowing is performed. In this case, we might say in any case, ashes should be used in the spring with an unsparing hand. In plowing land for onions the cultivation should always be shallow. Never plow deeper than five inches, and, on many soils, four is still better. If the land is light, always roll it in the spring after plowing and before it is harrowed. In all the operations with this crop a great deal of eare is needed. If the bulbs are cut, with a hoe or knife, they are spoiled. Careless handling when the crop is grown is very wasteful, as it will cause many of the onions to decav. All dis- eased bulbs should be. removed from the land as 'soon as the trouble is discovered. If the maggot appears, a little guano may be sprinkled along the rows, or unleached ashes may be applied in the same manner. Some years this pest proves very destruc- tive, while other seasons it does but little harm. We usually buy our seed of the man whom we consider the best grower in the country. Occasionally we grow a small quantity. There is no trouble in obtaining seed enough. Any one can do this. But it is not every one who can grow first- class onion seed. To do this, a careful selection of bulbs, of the exact form which it is desired to produce, must be made, and they must be set very early in the season in good land and care- fully tended. During the various hoeings, the earth should be t ! '^nji' 'ii|ii4iw[.>cfisr..Si:a; 322 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ,! " heaped around the stalks to a height of eight or ten inches, or else a framework of slats, or some stakes and strings, should be put up to support the heavy seed tops and keep the stalks from breaking over. When the seed-stalks turn yellow near the ground and the seed-cell;; begin to crack open, the tops, with about I'.ix inches of the stalks, should be .cut, spread in a warm chamber to a depth of only a few inches, and frequently stirred. When thoroughly dry the seed may be shelled and stored in a dry place. The cleaning may be done with a fine sieve, and the imperfect seeds may be removed by putting the whole into water and skimming off all those which come to the top. The seed should be stirred while in the water, and, though a few of them might grow, it will be best to throw away all seeds which do not sink. After this is done the seed must be thoroughly dried. This is very important, as a great deal of seed is spoiled by being put away too damp. The drying may be done in a warm room, but not very near a fire. Some growers prefer, what is certainly a safer (and they claim almost as effective) way, to winnow their onion seed in the wind. This will take out most of the defective seeds, and there will be no danger from an excess of moisture. There are several varieties of the onion which are grown from t!ie black seed. The Early Red Globe is a very good and pro- ductive early onion, and the Early Cracker is a fine, light col- ored, but not a remarkably prolific .sort. Of the late kinds the Large Red Wethcr.sfield is very large and productive. It is a flat variety, requires a long .season, looks nicely, and is a favorite in the New York market. The Early Round Danvers Yellow is an early globular bulb, ripens in a short season, is very hand- some, and extremely prolific. It is the favorite in Boston, and dealers say that in point of quality, appearance and yield, it easily stands at the head of all the kinds grown at the North. There are several other sorts, some of them great favorites in certain localities, which are not well adapted to general cultiva- nUM AND FODDES CHOPS. g^j e.3, but .hey are „„. ,„ be recommended for cultivation '„„ L Stale, Ti,„, I , , "°™ *<>" •" the .Southwestern States. Though formerly grown largely at the South for feed- mg to hog, and even now (as mentioned under the head of Phas) used to some extent for this pun^ose. the peanu. ha become an art.cle of great market value. Almost whot ! known at the Nohxh twenty years ago, it is now for In" neari^^every V lage. and town, and city, in .he land. Whe u . ^"™'=;:/"°-'"^. "« cultivation of this crop is not diffi- an if 1 "■' ^*' """^ ■•'=™"^'">' ''y ^'>-M be chosen, : n rove t;r b':,t r?^ ""= '"=*^'' = ■■■^'■'-'°-'' -" ,n,t ,, , , ' '"''■■'"'° " <''"■'< ''"il colors the pods and though .Ley are just as good for all practical purposes the ark pods will not sell as readily as the light-eolo ed Jnes Lra> .seems to bo a specific manure for this plant thourt t : "coitt'^r T'- '"' '■" =°""="'°" ™-* " «-''.-''' ol compos,. The plowmg should be done early in the sprint and should be only four or five inches deep. The surface must be made very mellow by means of a harrow or cultivator Thel uIL'T t r''' ""'■ """ "'' ""-'■ '^y P'-vin. algh J maT "r " """' °"'' ^'*- ™'^ ™" "«^ ">= — n a Ml \Tr" '"""' ""= "'^^ *°"" "== P'-'^d. '«- "ne „t'; ; " '"' ^P"'- ^"^ P-'-e *ould not be Upt m llowand free from weeds, but after the vines begin to spread they must not be disturbed. The earth may be carefully drawn up to the hills, but care must be taken not to covert v.nes at any time. If .here are vacant places in the rows, they P" 324 FARMING FOR PROFIT. I [ j! may be filled by transplanting from a row in which an extra quantity of seed was planted, in order to supply such a demand When the vines have been killed by frost, the harvesting may be done. The earth can be loosened with a fork, and the vines, with most of the pods adhering to them, be pulled by hand, or the earth may be loosened by driving between the rows with a plow having a sharp knife coulter which should be run near the hills. When they are pulled, the vines must be spread upon the ground. They should remain there for several days. When lairly cured, they may be carted to the barn and spread upon any convenient loft, or the nuts may be picked off at once. When the ground has been cleared, thq hogs should be turned on and aUowed to gather the nuts which remain in the soil. Some growers prefer flat culture, but we consider the ridges a wery frreat improvement upon this method. This crop cannot be eoommendcd for market much farther North than Virginia, i)ut for home use it can be grown in almost any State in the Jnion. It has been grown in Massa- chusetts with considerable success. When grown at the North, ridge culture should always be employed and very warm loca- tions selected. The plaivts may be started in a cold frame, or in boxes in the house, and put out when all danger from frost is past and the ground has become quite warm. Potatoes. — Although it was with great difficulty that the civilized races were persuaded that the potato was good for food, and the time when large farmers raised only a bushel or two per year has not yet passed from the memory of aged people, it has gradually won its way into the popular favor and become one of the leading crops in this country and also in foreign lands. Until the appearance of the "potato rot," this was a very pro- ductive crop and was grown at very small expense. Since that time the yield has greatly decreased and the cost of production has rapidly advanced. But it is a crop for which there is always a demand in market, and which is needed in every family. Con- ' \ FARM AND FODDER CROPS „«^ sequently i. finds a place on almost every fa™. In that part of the country where it succeeds, the I„,s„ potato is gen-rally faTJ .J^"''='-/°™ "'^ Sweet potato is extensively cult.^ ir /^f ""^'""""fg^-'-S 'hi^ crop is very simple, and the amount of labor required is not excessive. As these different k.nds need different treatment, we will consider them separatelv _ The IK,SH potato will grow in a great variety of soils, but th .ves best ,n warm and fairly dry land. If land which is naturally wet ,s to be planted with potatoes, it should be thor- oughly drained. Quite a quantity of potatoes may be grown in a wet field, if other things are favorable, but their quality will be poor and they will present an inferior appearance. The land for th,s crop should be plowed in the spring. Weil-rotted yard- manure, or compost, may be spread on in liberal quantities and plowed m, or the manure may be scattered directly under the seed. If a machine is used for planting, it will be best to spread the manure. When the planting is done by hand, we prefer to put at least a part of the manure in the hills. By spreading about twenty loads of good yard-manure a;,d using about eigh! hundred pounds of a good chemical fertilizer in the hills The •.OXY best results, both as regards quantity and quality, may be secured. We consider this altogether the best way in which to grow th,s crop, and, while it involves some expense, think it pays better than any other plan with which we are acquainted. It is a well-known fact that, on new land, potatoes yield largely and are very free from disease. Some growers have thought that this w,s owing to the fact that the new soil contains large qua„t,t,es of potash-an element which the potato requires, and wh,ch ,s very likely to be deficient in land which has long been under cultivation. The chemical fertilizers which are made for th,s crop contain quite a proportion of potash, and they almost ■nvar,ably prove highly beneficial. Wood ashes, too, conUin vtZ ""' '"■""'' " '""""= '"='""'= f" ""= potato. If home resources are entirely relied upon, let the land be well f 326 FARMING FOR PROFIT. coated with yard-manure and a large handful of ashes be put in each hill. On many soils a mixture of plaster and ashes, in about equal quantities, proves very useful. But we much prefer to use a special "potato fertilizer" in addition to the yard- manure. We consider old land better than sod, but this crop can be grown on the latter, if desired. Deep plowing is not necessary, but it is very important that the soil to a depth of four or five inches should be very fine and mellow. A wheel-harrow is a good implement for fitting sod for this crop. True's Potato-Planter, manufactured by Nash & PIG, 33. — true's potato-planter. Bro., of New York city, is shown in Figure 33. This imple- ment marks the rows, cuts, drops, and covers the seed at one operation. If the planting is to be done by hand, the rows should be marked with a plow which will make a small furrow, two or three inches deep. If the planting is to be in drills, no further marking is needed, but if hill culture is required, rows should be marked across the field, so that the planting can be done in squares. For the smaller kinds of potatoes the rows and hilU need not be more than two and a half feet apart, but for the larger sorts three, or three and a half, feet will be better. >e put in ishes, in :h prefer le yard- this crop tant that fine and ting sod Nash & lis imple- ed at one the rows ill furrow, I drills, no lircd, rows ing can be the rows apart, but [ be better. r.i/iM /yi) ^?ODDER CROPS. 327 If planted in drills, the rows may be the same distance apart as when grown in hills, but the pieces of seed potatoes may be placed only ten or twelve inches apart. We have tried both methods and find that with equal chances the yield varies but little. On the whole we prefer growing the crop in hills. After the marking is done the fertilizer is distributed and covered. This covering may be done with a plow, and if strong manures are used, should not be neglected. Contact with concentrated fertilizers will injure if not wholly destroy the seed. For planting, the very best potatoes should be used. Those of medium size, which are perfect in form and condition, should be selected and cut in pieces of from two to four eyes. One or two pieces should be placed, the cut side down, in each hill. We can remember when it was the custom to put one large, or two small, potatoes in each hill for seed, but we are glad to say that a more reasonable method is now in vogue. But we think there has been a tendency to go to the other extreme and not use seed enough. Cutting to single eyes and using but one or two pieces to a hill, seems too light seeding for a field crop. Too much seed is ruinous, as it will give an immense number of very small and almost worthless tubers, while too light seed- ing cannot possibly produce a full crop. Afi:er the seed has been dropped, it can be covered with a light plow or with band-hoes. As a general rule it is best to plant early in the season. When we first began to work on a farm, it was the usual practice to plant the potatoes after the corn had all been put in. Now it is the general custom to plant the potatoes first. It requires con- siderable time for the potato to get through the ground, and it seems to come along almost as rapidly if planted in May as it does in June. As soon as the ground is warm, and danger from frost has passed, the seed for the main crop may be safely planted. For an early crop the seed must be got in as soon as H will possibly do, and if there is danger of frost, the young 'gmm 328 FARMING FOR PROFIT. % ^ plants may be lightly covered with earth. This can be done with a one-horse plow, arid will not be injurious. As soon as the crop is well up a cultivator should be run between the rows, and also between the hills if the planting was done in squares, and tlie potatoes hoed by hand if necessary. It is a good plan to throw a handful of ashes and plaster, with which a little salt has been mixed, upon each hill. In ten days or a fortnight run a plow between the rows near the hills, turning the earth away from them. The furrows thus made should be four or five inches in depth, so as to leave the hills FIG. 34.— DOUBLE-MOULD BOARD-PLOW. mere "squares of earth" upon which the sun can shine, and which the air can readily penetrate. When the vines are six or seven inches high another plowing should be given. This time a double-mould board-plow should be used, and the dirt thrown towards the hills. Figure 34 represents one of these plows made by the New York Plow Co., 55 Beekman street. New York city. Cultivation should never be given after the blossoms appear, as it will cause the setting of a new lot of tubers and thus prove very injurious. ^ Another method requires the use of guano alone as a fertilizer. After the land is plowed, one-half of the quantity which is to be l\ rARM AXD FODDER CKOrs. applied i, so*cd broadcast and harrowed in. Drill,, are then n.ade w,.h a large plow, and-in ,he bottom and on the sides of the furrow, thus forn,cd one-half of the remainder of the guano .. .owed. The pieees of seed-potatoes are dropped and eovered two ,nehes deep, but the drills are left open e«ep. where the eed ,s plaeed. When the shoots begin to crack the tops of the .Is, the remainder of the guano is sowed along the drill and all covered over evenly with the ground. This plan was devised by Mk. W.,.ua„ H^r, op Connecticut, who has followed It with great success. A few years ago the directions which have been given would ave een sufficient for the cultivation of this crop.Ld its c until the time for harvesting. But the Colorado Beetle or, as more commonly designated, the potato-bug, has made his' appearance ,n nearly al, the places in this countiy in which potatoes are produced, and made it necessary for the farmer to take vigorous methods for protecting the growing crop. This pes. often attacks the plants when they are quite smdi. The female potato-bug bys some seven hundred eggs. These are usually deposited upon the under side of potato 'leaves. In a few days these eggs hatch into larva., which feed upon the plant and prove terribly destructive Tf „ „. , , . ' Destructive. If no preventive measures are taken these pests will in a short time eat all of the eaves, and thus utterly destroy the crop. There are three broods each year, and as the eggs are laid at intervals the bugs can be found in all stages of development at almost any time during the warm weather. Various methods have been devised for destroying this enemy of the farmer. Some potato-growers pick off and burn the leaves upon which the eggs a,, deposited, and gather and destroy, either by crushing, burning, or scalding, the larvae and the ful-grown bugs. This requires a great deal of time and needs frequent repetition. Consequently i, proves too expensive. Another p'an ,s for a man to take an old pail, or pan, hold it 4 330 FARMING FOR PROFIT. one side of a hill and strike the vines on the other side with a short stick or an old broom. In this way most of the bugs are shaken into the vessel, and they may be easily destroyed in either of the ways noted above. A machine for gathering the bugs and which can be used with horse-power has also been invented, and when the vines have attained a sufficient size proves quite effective. But It is necessary to do something in the line of protection while the plants are very small, and this method is not applicable at that time. The only plan which has yet been devised which is at once cheap and fully reliable is to apply some poisonous substance to the vines. There are some non-poisonous mixtures sold for this purpose. Our o.vn ex- perience, and also our reading, inclines us to believe that these cannot be fully trusted. We were very reluctant to apply poison, and followed hand-picking for a long time. We also applied various substances, which were supposed to be safe for men, and which proved to be just as safe for the bugs, in hope that we could grow potatoes without resort to this dangerous expedient. But the force of circumstances was altogether too strong and we finally commenced using the poison. It is to be hoped, and expected, that some non-poisonous compound will be made which will be efficient. Just as soon as such an article is introduced it should be used in preference to poison. At the present writing, so far as we have been able to learn, Paris green is the best thing for the purpose which has yet been discovered. Although it is a deadly poison it can be used v/ith safety to the farmer, and with a certainty of destroying the bugs without injuring the plants. It has been in use many years at the West, and is recommended by the leading growers of the potato crop, and by the highest scientific authorities. There are several grades of this poison. The pure article is more expensive by the pound, but it is a great deal more effi- cient than the cheaper kinds. It may be applied in the form of a powder, or may be mixed with water. When used diy, it FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 831 should be carefully and thoroughly mixed with thirty times its weight of flour. Great care must be exercised in this mixing, as the poison is a very dusty material, and it is extremely dangerous to breathe the dust which will be almost sure to arise when the mixing is performed. If a low grade of Paris green is used, a less quantity of flour must be added to it. From fifteen to twenty times the weight of the low qualities of the poison will be sufficient. This material is to be sprinkled upon the vines when they are wet with dew or rain. The flour will cause the poison to adhere to the leaves, and in the course of their depredations the insects will take it into their systems and be destroyed. Quite a number of " dusters " with which this poison can be safely applied are now in the market. Some farmers fasten a tin box, in the bottom of which they have made several small holes, to the end of a long stick, and use it for dusting the vines. It is not well to apply the poison in this way when the wind blows, as the operator will then be liable to inhale the dust. Anothe- and we think a safer way is to dilute the poison with water. A tablespoonful of the poison to a gallon and a half of water will be f^ufiicient when the green is pure. When the plants are small, only a little of this mixture should be applied, and an excessive quantity should never be used. This form oi the poison can be applied by means of a common watering-pot with a .sprinkler attachment. The poison will tend to settle at the bottom. Consequently the mixture must be frequently stirred. Several sprinklers have been invented which are much easier to manage, and which use the material more economically. The poison will remaia on the vines for some time, unless washed off by rains. Only a few applications will be needed during the season. When the plants are small, it is a good plan to gather the bugs by hand. As soon as the eggs begin to hatch in large numbers, poison may be applied. The war with this enemy should be kept up until the close of the season. Some growers .(■", 332 FARMING FOR PROFIT. have kept off the bugs until the tubers were nearly grown, and then let them take their course. But the destruction of the leaves at this stage is a serious injury, and will certainly prevent the ripening of the crop. Paris green should always be handled with the greatest care. No dish in which it is placed should ever be used for any other purpose ; no package of the poison should be left within reach of children or domestic animals, and care should be taken not to scatter any of the mixture for use on the potatoes, on grass or vegetables. As soon as the crop is dug in the fall, the land should be plowed, and the potato vines turned into the bottoms of the furrows. FIG. 35. — POTATO-DIGGER. Harvesting the potato crop by hand is quite hard and slow work. The tubers may be dug with a hoe, a potato-hook, or a six-tined fork. The work can be done much faster with the fork than with the other implements. Some farmers run a plow close to the hills. This turns out many of the tubers, but as it covers some and injures others, the method is not very gener- ally followed. A good machine for digging potatoes is almost a necessity where this crop is largely grown. In Figure 35 we present an illustration of an excellent implement for this pur- pose. It is made by A. Speer & Sons, Pittsburgh, Pa. Potatoes should be dug soon after the} are ripe. If allowed to remain a long time in the ground af'er they rre matured, the FA/iM AND FODDER CROPS. 833 quality will be injured, and many of the tubers will decay. Be- sides, as the days become short and cold, the difficulty of har- vesting the crop will be increased. It is very desirable that the ground should be dry when the digging is performed. The potatoes should be picked up and put in heaps in which they can go through the sweat. The practice, which is common in some sections, of leaving the tubers exposed for a few hours to the light, and to the burning rays of the sun, is very injurious to the quality of the potatoes. The heaps in which they are placed to sweat should be kept constantly covered with straw. When the sweat is over, the potatoes may be carried to the cellar and piled on the ground, if it is perfectly dry, or in bins if the ground is wet. They should be covered with earth or a light cloth. During all the operations of harvesting, great care should be taken not to bruise or injure the tubers. If large quantities are to tfc kept over, they may^r huried in the ground. For this purpose a dry side hill .should be chosen, and several pits holding from ten to twenty Inishels each should be excavated. Or a long, shallow trench may be dug. This should be cut up and down the hill so that there shall be no trouble about drainage; As it is not well to have too many potatoes together, it is best to put in fifteen or twenty bushels at the lo\^cr end, filling the trench as full as is desirable, then at the end of the pile thus formed put in a few bundles of straw and a little dirt, then more potatoes with straw and dirt as before. The trench will thus be filled in sections. This will insure the better keeping of the tubers, and also make it safe to open the trench in winter if only a few bushels are wanted. A few furrows may be plowed at each side of the trench. They will carry off the surplus water, and furnish the dirt uaed to cover the potatoes. There is some risk in covering potatoes in the soil, for if covered too closely they will decay, while if not covered enough they will be spoiled by freezing. Mr. Compton, if :>• I 'I i 4< % 334 FARMING FOR PROFIT. i: Ml of Pennsylvania, one of the most successful growers of this crop, recommends covering the potatoes in the pits with clean straw to the depth of six inches, and upon this throwing five or six inches of earth, except over a small space which should furnish an opening at the top which will be needed in order to give sufficient ventilation. Upon this opening a flat stone or a board, elevated at one side, should be laid in order to take off the rain which falls upon it. When the weather becomes cold a wisp ol straw should be placed in this opening, and the pit covered with more earth or with coarse manure. On a large farm it would pay to have a pit constructed, near the house, which should be walled like a cellar, covered at the top with planks and earth, with a large <^oor at one side. In this room vegetables and fruit could be stored. They would keep much better here than in pits in the field, while the danger of storing large quantities of these articles under the house would be \\^olly avoided. » The varieties of the potato are almost numberless, and those which are in popular favor are constantly changing. The kinds which stood at the head of the list twenty years ago have been almost entirely superseded. Those which are now popular will probably soon go by and new ones will take their places. We ■ are confident that, with proper care in the selection of seed, varie- ties can be kept up to their original standard of excellence for an indefinite time. Still, as many of the new sorts are said to be great improvements upon the old, there is not the motive for retaining the old kinds which there otherwise would be. The late Rev. C. E. Goodrich, of Utica, N. Y., spent fifteen years in developing and perfecting new varieties of the potato, and to him the people of this country owe an immense debt of gratitude. Other cultivators have taken up the work and accom- plished a great deal. To them, also, great praise is due. From the Garnet Chili, one of Mr. Goodrich's seedlings, Mr. Albert Bresee, of Vermont, grew the Early Rose, which for many FARM AND FODDER CROFS. ogg years has stood at the very highest place among the varieties of the potato. Although it seems to be now rather going by, it has been one of the most popular potatoes ever grown^and' it well deserved its popularity. Mr. Pringle, whose new varieties of wheat are very popular at the North, has also originated many new, and some valuable, varieties of the potato. The Alpha which is probably the earliest potato in the world, is one of his seedlings. A large number of other growers have introduced valuable varieties and done much for the benefit of all who grow this crop. Sweet PoTATOEs.-Until quite recently the cultivatfon of this crop has been confined to the Southern and Middle States but wthm a few years it has been grown at the North with a' very fair degree of success. This crop has proved quite reliable in Massachusetts. Northern growers are obliged to take better care of it than Southern growers, but they can secure a fair crop every year. The following method of growinf can be fol- lowed with success in almost any part of the country. At the South the precautions against frost will not be required. Other- wise, the cultivation may be the same. Unlike the Irish potato, the sweet potato is grown from sprouts, or plants. These may be bought of dealers or be grown at home. In order to grow them a hot-bed, or a cold- frame, will be required. Consequently, if but few plants are wanted it is better for the farmer to buy them than to attempt to grow them. If they are to be grown in a cold-frame the soil should be covered to a depth of two inches with sand, the seed potatoes cut lengthwise and placed, cut side down, quite near each other on the sand. These pieces should be covered with from two to four inches of sand which should be kept moist and well aired. When the plants are four or five inches high they may be separated from the potatoes. This must be done with the thumb and forefinger, carefully, so as not to move the pota- toes. When these sprouts are removed the same pieces will , ; « < 1 -' : ! ' 1 ' J i :j : 336 FARMING FOR PROFIT. send up another lot of plants. The bed should be started from the first to the last of April, according to the locality. In favorable seasons plants can be grown, in a frame which is left open days arid covered with boards at night, but it is much safer and better to have sashes with which to cover the bed. It is a good plan for those who want to grow plants to save some of the ripest and finest specimens for seed. They should be dug in a fine day, dried a few hours in the sun, then spread in a warm loft for several days, after which they should be very care- fully packed in boxes or barrels, with dry sand, and put in a warm, dry place for the winter. Only perfect specimens should be saved for seed, as the slightest bruise or defect will cause them to decay. It is utterly useless to j attempt to save seed potatoes by merely putting them in a bin in the cellar. Even with all the care which we have indicated, potatoes grown at the North cannot always be kept sound until spring. Sweet p(^toes can be grown upon quite a variety of soils, but one which is dry, warm, and sandy will give much the finest quality. The land should be plowed to a depth of six or seven inches about the first of May, harrowed thoroughly, and marked out with a large plow in rows four feet apart. In the furrows thus made, a liberal quantity of well-rotted stable-manure should be scattered. This is to be covered by plowing a furrow each side toward the row and turning the dirt upon the manure. Then with a hand-hoe the ridges thus made should be smoothed and their tops spatted down. These ridges should be at least a foot high. It is not well to set the plants at the North until the last week in May or the first week in June, but the ridges should be made two or three weeks earlier in order that thej'^ may have time to settle before the plants are put out. When the ground is quite warm, and there is no danger of frosts, the plants may be set, upon the tops of the ridges, from fifteen to eighteen inches apart. If good plants are obtained and are carefully set FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 337 almost every one will grow. During the summer the land must be kept free from weeds, but the ridges must not be hoed down. If any weeds appear near the plants they should be pulled. Cutting with a hoe will be likely to destroy the earliest and finest tubers. These start very near the surface and are easily injured. Between the rows a common cultivator may be used to keep the land open and destroy weeds. When the vines attain a length of two or three feet they will root down at many of the joints. At the North these must be pulled up or the crop will be ruined. Wherever these roots start a large number of potatoes will set. They will not come to any size themselves and will take nearly all the productive power from the hills The vmes may be loosened with the hands or with a wide fork This work should be done se ■ ' times during the growing season. ^ When the potatoes are sufficiently matured, or after the leaves have been killed by frosts, the crop should I* harvested. If allowed to remain in- the ground during cold, wet weather the quality of the tubers will be seriously impaired. If ^^ossible a dry time should be chosen in which to harvest them The' vines may be cut with a sharp corn-knife near the hills, and thrown to one side of the piece. A plow may then be run each side of the ridge, but" not near enough to interfere with the tubers. This will lighten the labor of digging, but it is not absolutely necessary that it should be done. The best im- plement which we have found for throwing out the potatoes is a s.x-tincd fork. They can be dug with a hoe or a pointed shovel. Care should be taken not to bruise or cut the tubers as the slightest injury will cause speedy decay. After lying in the sun a short time, the potatoes should be spread in a warm room to dry. After remaining here a week or two, they may be packed in sand as directed for seed-potatoes The tubers are very easily chilled, and when chilled are utterly spoiled. It is rather difficult to keep those grown at the North ; 338 FARMING FOR PROFIT. later than the first of December, but there is no reason why for three months previous to that time almost every farmer should not have an abundance for family u -*. We have set plants in Massachusetts the first day of June, and had our first potatoes the seventh day of September. If we had grown an early variety, we could have had them at least ten days sooner. There are but few varieties of the sweet potato. Of these the Nansemond is the most extensively grown. The Early Peabody is a better kind for Norther: growers. It is large, productive, and of good quality. We once obtained a good crop from plants .set the twenty-fifth of June. The great essentials to success in growing this crop at the North are liberal manuring, ridge cultui-e, and frequent loosen- ing of the vines. Sugar. — As the cane, the roots and the trees, from which sugar is obtained, all are, or may profitably be, planted, it is proper th^ this important product should receive attention in this connection. While sugar may be made from a large num- ber of very different substances, the principal sources of supply are the sugar-cane, the sorgo-plant, the beet-root, and the maple tree. These we will consider in the order in which they are named. The genuine tropical plant known as the Ribbon-Cane {Sac- charuvi officinanim) is the best of ^\\ the sources from which sugar is secured. It is a perennial, but is easily killed by frost and does not thrive in cool climates. The Northern limit of profitable production is said to be the thirty-second degree of latitude. Even here the plant dies down each year if not cut before frost." It does not flower as far North as Louisiana, and the seed does not ripen well in the West Indies. Propa- gation is carried on by cuttings, and by importations of seed from Otaheite. The cuttings are taken from the main stalks, planted in trenches either in the spring or fall, and send up shoots which in from eight to fourteen months are large §nough FARM Ai\D FODDER CROPS. 339 to be cut for the sugar which they contain. There are several varieties of the ribbon-cane. All of them " rattoon," or send up a growth from the roots when the stalks are cut. In Louisiana the plantations need renewing every two or three years, but in the West Indies they last from five to ten years. It is very important that the propagation should be from first-class qualities of cane. Neglect of this very simple and reasonable FIG. 36 VICTOR CANE MILL requirement has entailed an immense loss upoix the sugar- planters both in this country and the West Indies. Much of the cane has also been deteriorated by want of proper cultiva- tion and sufficient manure. The growers have not been in a condition to reach the best results with this crop. But there are indications that a better system will soon be adopted The land should be well drained, and deeply plowed. Cut- i h!: 2 FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 341 tings from the sweetest and best cane should be secured and set m rows from six to eight feet apart. For this plant chemical manures are the best. They should be liberally applied to the surface of the land, and worked in with a harrow or cultivator If yard-manure is used, it can be spread in large quantities and plowed in. The stalks should stand quite near each other in the row. and should receive frequent cultivation in order to pro- mote their growth and keep down the weeds. The last hoeing ' of the season should be given early in June. At this time, the cane may be hilled up about four inches and then left unflit is ripe. When the cane is ripe, which will be clearly indicated by Its appearance, the tops must be cut as far down as the leaves are dry, the leaves pulled off, and the stalks cut close to the ground and carted to the mill. If it cannot be ground at once the cane may be cut close to the ground, three rows placed in a smgle line, or windrow, the tops of one hill being thrown over the butts of the preceding one, and thus piled up to a height of three or four feet. When this plan is pursued, the tops should not be cut until the stalks can be ground. In this way the cane may be kept three or four weeks, and will not be injured by an ordinary frost. In order to express all of the juice very powerful machinery i. required. A lack of suitable mills has been one of the great, drawbacks to profitable sugar production. Careful men estimate that forty per cent, of the sugar which was contained in the cane which has been grown during the past few years has been wasted for want of strong mills for crushing the stalks. Some veo' perfect mills are now in the market. They are, necessarily quite expensive, but will in a short time enable the owner to ob'.in enough more sugar to pay the difference between their price and that of poor ones. Figure i^ represents the Victor Cane Mill, made by the Blymyer Manufacturing Co, of Cincinnati, Ohio. This is designed to be driven by animal power, and is an efficient mill « H FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 343 for grinding either the Sorgo or the Ribbon cane. Figure 37 shows a first-class Evaporator made by the same company iMgure 38 represents their powerful Double-Geared Plantation Cane Mill. We strongly favor the purchase of a set of first-class machinery by a company of small planters. This neighborhood system has been recommended by able writers at the South and we are confident that it will give good results. It would easily enable the farmer to grow the cane in connection vTith other crops-a much better method than the production of this alone Durmg quite a proportion of the year labor to any great extent IS not required in the sugar grounds. The hands might then be at work on the cotton crop. If four-fifths of the cultivated area ,s devoted to the cotton crop and the remaining fifth to the sugar cane, the work can be done to good advantage, and the profits of the business will almost certainly be larger than will be the case if only one of the crops is grown. The fact that the people of this country are now paying one hundred and seventy-five millions of dollars per year for imported sugar and molasses, which might just as well be produced at home-even in the one State of LouisiANA-ou^^ht to mduce farmers who are now engaged in producir.g these articles to give a greater degree of attention to this department of the,r labor. Many other farmers who are suitably located m.ght also find it for their interest to grow the sugar cane, an : thus do something toward supplying the home market with articles produced on our own soil. There is always a ready market for sugar, and the intelligent producer may be very sure of obtammg fairly remunerative prices. The SoRoo (also called the CnmESE sugar cane, and the Northern cane) can be grown in nearly all parts of the country From small beginnings it has already become a very popular crop, and is destined to take a high rank among our national productions. In addition to the sorgo there are several varieties m /I 344 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ■'I ii of the African cane. These are properly called Imphees, but are often confounded with the sorgo. Although resembling the genuine sorgo they are not as hardy, and therefore not as well adapted to cultivation at the North. In growing sorgo it is highly important that good seed should be secured. This necessity is emphasized by the fact that the seed of this plant readily mixes with broom corn, millet, and similar plants. Every stain of mixture deteriorates the cane for the production of sugar. It has been found that seed grown in a cold climate will not produce as valuable cane as that which is produced farther South. This crop can be produced on any good wheat or corn land. The best results are obtained upon sandy uplands which were well fertilized in the fall with yard-manure, or upon which chemical fertilizers, lime, or wood-ashes, are used in the spring. Deep plowing will be beneficial, and if the land is wet, ridge culture should be adopted. As soon as the soil is warm in the spring, the seed should be planted in rows four feet apart, with the hills from three to four feet apart in the row. The seed should be soaked in warm water for a day or two before it is planted. Twenty or thirty seeds should be put in each hill ,nd they should be only slightly covered. When the stalks are a few inches high they may be thinned. From seven to ten should be left in each hill. The young plants are very weak and should receive careful attention. No weeds should be allowed to grow. The cultivation is about the same as that recommended for corn, except that it should all be given early in the season. After thr plants are three feet high, the cultivator should not be used at all or should be run very lightly between the rows. At the South two cuttings can be obtained from the plants each year, but at the North it requires some skill to get a single crop well ripened. With some of the early varieties there is no great diificulty in an ordinary season. Kenney's FAUM AND FODDER CROPS. 345 Early Amder cane has proved highly satisfactory in Min- nesota, where it yields a large quantity of syrup and ripens its seed. It has also given good results in Massachu- setts. When the seed of the sorgo is in the dough state, and that of the imphees is in the milk, the time for cutting has arrived. It is the best way to grind the cane as soon as it is cut, but if this is impracticable, the tops may be cut off, removing one or two joints, and the canes then cut and stacked like corn, or stored in a well-ventilated shed or barn. The leaves had better remain upon the stalks until the grinding can be performed, though some growers remove them before the stalks are cut. If cut before frost, and cured with the leaves on, cane can be kept several weeks without injury. The tops should be dried, and the seed shelled and fed to stock. When well ripened the seed is considered worth more per bushel than oats. Sheep will eat it on the head, but for other animals it should be shelled and ground. On good land from twenty to twenty-five bushels of seed per acre can be secured. By far the largest part of the sorgo grown in this country is converted into syrup, though sugar is also made to some extent. A good quality of both these articles can be secured from this plant. For their manufacture, good mills and evaporators are required. We think that where farmers grow this crop for their own use, several should club together, obtain all the necessary machinery, and use it in common. Or they might induce some one who had power and conveniences to buy a mill, and manufacture the syrup and sugar for a specified price. We are strongly in favor of the cultivation of the sorgo. We are confident that it places within the reach of farmers in the Northern and Middle sections of the country the means for producing on their own farms a large proportion of the sugar and molasses which they need. We do not advise growing the sorgo on a large scale, as a commercial enterprise, but simply m 844 FARMING FOR PROFIT. in sullRcicnt quantities for home use, and in order to prevent tlie necessity of paying out money at the store. This plan would not interfere with the one ' ;;gested in regard to the increase of the area devoted to the culti\ation of the Southern cane. There is ample room for both these plants. The population of the country is increasing, and with it the demand for sugar will inevitably be augmented. Besides, if we should produce more than is needed at home, we could readily find a foreign market for all the surplus. The Beet-Root. — In Europe large quantities of sugar are annually produced from the beet-root, and an effort is now being made to induce farmers in this country to grow beets for the same purpose. Many experiments have been made which, as far as producing good sugar is concerned, have been fully successful, but in too many instances the cost of production has exceeded the value of the product. But recent improvements in the machinery and methods employed have greatly reduced the expense, and it is now thought that sugar can be produced from this source with profit to the grower and the manufacturer. The sugar-beet will thrive in all the Northern States. It will also grow well enough at the South, but in warm climates it becomes deficient in saccharine matter. For the South, the ribbon-cane seems to be pre-eminently the sugar-producing plant. Farther North the sorgo flourishes, while at the extreme North the beet-root and the maple tree seem to be the best adapted for this purpose. There are many varieties of the beet from which sugar can be made, but those which have smooth, long, and tapering roots, which do not grow above the surface, which are smooth, white, and hard, and which do not grow extremely large, are decidedly the best. The White Silesian seems to answer these purposes as well as any, in some respects is superior to others, and is quite generally preferred by manufacturers. But as the owner of the mill at which the sugar is made will probably either furnish \ FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 347 se -d. or recommend his favorite kind, the farmer need have but little difficulty in detcrmininjr what variety to produce. Land which is free from stones, which does not contain mineral salts in large proportion, and which is neither wet nor clayey, should be chosen for this crop. Light, sandy, but rich so.ls are the best. A loose sub-soil is desirable, and a dark surface, if not colored by metallic elements, is to be nreferred Beets should not be grown upon sod. but on land uh.ch h- - had clean cultivation. In the fall a heavy coverin , of ma. .re should be given and the land plowed to a depth o." «. . or sr> en mches A few weeks later another plowing, with a i, g. plow and a heavy team, should be given. This time the depth should be from twelve to fifteen inches. This deep plowing is neces- sary m order that the beet may develop wholly beneath the soil If the plowing is shallow, part of the root will grow above the surface. This is worse than useless for making sugar, as it con- tarns no sugar in itself, but furnishes acids which will lessen the quantity which can be extracted from the remainder of the root The part which grows above the ground is always cut off and fed to stock or else thrown away. After plowing, the land is harrowed and left until spring. As soon as the soil is dry and warm it must be plowed again. This time the depth should be about eight inches. If the furrows can go across those turned m the fall it will be better than to turn them the same ^vay. If the land is wet it should be drained, thrown up in ridges, or else devoted to some other crop. After plowing, the surface soil must be made very fine with a harrow. Then the land must be rolled, or. what some consider preferable, the harrow must be turned over and used with the teeth the upper side. When the land is in a suitable state, which at the North is usually in the last part of April, the seed should be sown The seeds should be rubbed over a screen so as to separate those which stick together and reduce them to a uniform she They should then be steeped five or six hours in a mixture of sul- 348 FARMtNG FOR PROFIT. phate of potash (nine ounces) and sulphate of lime (nine ounces) dissolved in four or five quarts of warm water, to which five or six gallons of cold water should be added after the materials are dissolved. Enough of this mixture should be used to cover the seeds. After they have been steeped the water should be turned ofi and the seeds dried by mixing them thoroughly with plaster or slaked lime and then spreading in a warm room. When dry enough so that they will not stick together the seeds may be sown. There are several hand-machines, and some drills which are drawn by horses, which will sow beet seeds well. The rows should be from fourteen to twenty inches apart, the seeds covered about two inches deep, and ten or twelve pounds of seed per acre should be used. The land should be rolled as soon as the sowing is finished. As soon as the plants are up, if any weeds appear, as they probably will, cultivation should be commenced. For a small field, a wheel-hoe will be an excellent implement for this pur- pose. For large operations, a machine drawn by a horse will be required. If the ground close to the roots is hard it should be loosened with a light hoe, and the beets must be thinned to twelve or fourteen inches apart in the rows. If there a/e vacant places, transplanting can be successfully performed. The thinning may be done either at the first or second hoeing. If there are weeds in the rows, they must be carefully removed. Weeding must be done whenever needed — generally from three to six times — during the season, and by freq lent hoe- ings, either by machines or by hand, the earth must be kept loose around the roots. If any roots begin to grow above the surface they may be hilled up in July. When the leaves are large enough to shade the soil no further cultivation will be required, except the pulling of any iTay weeds which may appear, and the cutting of the flower-stalks of the few plants which may seem inclined to produce seed. If any plants throw up seed-stalks when small they may as well be pulled, but FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 349 when the roots are large they may be saved by removing the stalk. The harvesting should be done before hard frosts, and, if pos-* sible, during fair weather. When ripe, the leaves wither and fall off If the land is dry and the weather good the quality of the roots is improved by leaving them in the ground for a while, but if wet weather comes on it proves highly injurious. The roots may be dug with a pointed shovel, a strong fork, or may be turned out with a plow. If the dirt adheres, the beets must be struck together in order to get it off The roots should be thrown into windrows and the tops cut off with a sharp spade or a knife. If the root grew beneath the surface the leaves should be cut close to the crown, but if any part of it grew above the ground that portion must be cut off with the leaves. When this is done the roots may be drawn in wagons, or carts, directly to the factory. They should be handled carefully, as' wounds and bruises induce fermentation which lessens the quantity of sugar which can be obtained and also causes the roots to decay. ' Beets may be preserved in pits, similar to those described for storing potatoes, or in piles on the surface of the ground. Or they may be frozen if they are kept steadily in this condition until wanted. When kept in piles a dty spot should be chosen, a shallow ditch dug around it for drainage, the beets piled to a height of five or six feet and covered with earth. The beets which form the walls of the pile should be carefully laid with the crowns outside, but the interior may be filled by throwing in the roots. If piled at all, the work should be done as soon as the beets are dug. When the crop can be disposed of at once it will usually be better for the farmer to draw his beets directly to the factory than it will to attempt to preserve them. The Sugar Maple has become an important source from which sugar is obtained. It is a beautiful tree and deserves to be more extensively planted both for its sugar, its beauty, and its 360 FARMING FOR PROFIT. sfiade. It is a hardy tree and can be easily grown in nearly all parts of the country. At the South, however, it will not yield as much sugar as at the North on account of the absence of a sufficient degree of frost. The sugar is nfiade from the sap of the tree in the latte. part of the winter and early in the spring. When the weather becomes warm enough for the sap to run, the trees are " tapped," usually with a bit or small auger, and wooden spouts are inserted in the holes thus made. These spouts conduct the sap into buckets which are placed upon the ground or hung upon the trees. Once or twice a day the sap is gathered in barrels and drawn upon a sled to the sugar-house, a little build- ing fitted up for the purpose of sugar-making, or the arch kettle at the house. Some makers use an evaporator in preference to a kettle and find it much easier to manage. The sap should be boiled over a steady fire, and as it evapo- rates, a fresh supply should be added. After boiling from eight to twelve hours, stirring often and filling up as required, the con- tents of the kettle should be converted into syrup as thick as can be conveniently strained. All the dirt and scum which rises dur- ing the boiling process should be removed with a skimmer as fast as it appears. When the syrup is thick enough, it should be strained into a clean tub and allowed to settle. When well set- tled, it should be turned into a clean kettle and subjected to further boiling. During this stage care must be taken to prevent boiling over. A piece of butter the size of a walnut is some- times used as a preventive. Some makers dip in a piece of fat pork. If these methods are not tried, or prove inefficient, the fire must be kept so low that while the syrup will boil steadily, it will not run over. To determine when the boiling should cease, a little of the material is put upon some snow. If it cools in the form of wax on top of the snow, it is in good condition to be put into tubs, but if to be made into cakes, it should be boiled until it will brealc like ice when cooled in this manner. If no snow = « . ^^^^" ^"<^ will be go. Lo .heTand st .7" "^""^ °""" ^'^'^ "-' for jfa.:: .o : :: r B " '^ °"^ "i'"^ =="^''^' "^ =" "°<- and .case ..e ^uan./r ^^ ^Ir^rZ ^a''-"'^ natural influenc., .o ...alce .hi. crop .he slcTof a ' profit source of a generous The cultivation of the ffrass rrm t,. i the No«x„ a. a>e basis ofls: cess , 7^ "" ■^^"''^•' ^' .•-ow,ei„g „ui.e .e„era„,e~^l7:fear;'''''=^ heat of a,e summer mon.hs, it is more difficult to grow .his Z ■n perfecion than it is a. the Nortb n . "^ South grass, of excdien. "l ^ T "!"' '"'""^ confident that i.s gene.l m^ ITas ,7^^' ^'"* "' ^'^ ve^ gtea.,, increase .he profits of the I„~:7 "o"'" .uar^r of .he care and sXi,, .hich .he No^h^X^, ^ to the corn crop, and the Southern farmer i.iv^. , J would insure a high degree of success ' '" ^°"°"- One of the important conditions of the .successful culture of e grass crop is a proper selection of varieties. Th "ar nrt,es are cultivated .„ England, but only abou. .hirty sor,, cou„.ry. Of .hese we will mention and d«.riK, , I FARM AND FODDER CROPS. «^- the leading sorts, as we consider a statement nf f i, • • , highly nutritious. I„ the So„™l >' "^r'"''" '"" from t.,. g„ss command;.':::; ;::Lr!.^^ .^^^ sect! ns it is always a standard iT "^ ? ""'° '" """ -p...esi a,.y:i'i::~:r:;r^^ , and also on g.Co, k„o s :t:„f::L:" ^ T' '"''• account does not yield much .^.^^Zl iT^^' °° "':^ s very ^ood Af fJ.« m • • pasture grass it - .own aCrcXx;:!::;-^^ a"i::=':::ara3t:a "--'■^--"-- & db lar as the hay is concerned hm- .•^ r, i a more nprmanonf ^ r ""v-cniea, out it makes xhe.mTyr-rtZrj::or;r^^^^^^ in weight if it is allowed to ripen a^dh -, " '"""'' this state, but when matured s ratht toT ". "' " "^" '" cows. If used al„„„ r ° ''"'' ^"'^ """^y for per acre sho^d i!::';:™ "^^ " "™'^*" '-- °' -^ wh!lrfil::i:;:r;::;r's'-,'""'''; >-""•.., perennial grass, writers conside , ^^ a "J ^v" h'^, '" "^ °"^=- =-"= hay is of poor qualZ mTu °""" ^"'^ "-« *= p"»xs .;™.t,T„, ra! s itTr;:f r °" "°"""' -ends sowing the two together ^ . !:: V!" ;7"'" -e,ve to ...een ,„arts of seed per acre" .;o:,: 1':^^ t- 368 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ^ke ,1 very much for permanent pastures, especially for those -h,ch are moist, but, on account of the difficuUy w.A which rt can be subdued, we do not like to sow it in culj 1^ t^ ' n^me o7h ' d 7™ '" "' ''"°" ''"■' S""™-" ^'ates by the name of Herds Grass-a title which in the New Encland sLs IS often given to Timothy. " cou«"";?"'-™^ ^^'=^ 'X""'^''- '"^-Shout the whole rema kabi 7\ ' '" "" ""=*■ '"" """- brought remarkably well. It npens at the same time as clover. For hay « should be cut before the seed is fo™,ed, and is betterlaT admixture of meadow oat-g,.ss .„d clo;er It sol!" quickly after bcii,,- r„f ,„^ • ,j sprmgs up =i , J, =• ' '"^'•'^ " Sood crop of rowen It i, also valuab e for pasture and „, i, . ™wen. it is „ J ■ pasture and may be o.uite closely fed Th^ seed IS extro.nely light and Cham, c ;j - When thi giss i/.txxras';;:::t 0..T GK.,^._This is a large-growing variety which starts early m the spring and is veiy good for either hay or past^ It .s quite permanent. The seed is light and two bushetp^' are should be used. The seed ripens while the staik isTe B.een, and a crop of seed can be secured in connection Tith a n e^sThlkr^'"'"""'- ™" ''^'' '""-' ■■" "'-'- "^ lu,dency. It IS well adapted to rich land, and will give two good crops per year. For furnishing winter pastures at tie South, this is one of the veo' best of plants Blue G«,;ss.-This grass flourishes on rich uplands and where soil and climate are favorable, gives excellent ht; and permanent pastures. 3y some writers the June g Js ofZ En«..o and the Mipp.e Sr„.3 is said to L the same as blul g-s. b,.t others deny its identity. If the same, it do.^, no reach ,h.« degree of perfection i„ other localities which it atca.ns m the limestone soii« ^r v^..,-. t. . ,. . . -1 „.,„Tv^^^__ it IS liable to be i ( FARM AND FODDER CROPS. g.. afiected by severe drought, but otherwbe endures vicissitudes u otT'd " Jl" " "'"^ ^'''^^- " ="-"' "<" be toZ "pon and wh.ch is often plowed. It starts very slowiyald needs four years i„ which to become fully developed The firs' veo. small and fine. The next season there will be a little more .t wll make a luxunant growth. On account of this slow development orchard grass seed and clover, or oat gra should be sowed with the blue grass. The oth. grasses tl.t' down the weeds and give abundant shade. The blu gr"s W.1I m t,me, overpower the other varieties and take Ml p session of the soil Onl,, r P"' an ,c„ p r ^ ' '""'^' °' ^'==<< '' required for and r " "™""^' "" ''"'' ''"'"'' ^e made very rich and the surface should be finely pulverized. This gL t o« of the veo, best for pastures and ought to be more^:;:: weriaT h"""-^"'^ " '" »^'ye-s which thrives on ^s ura'' '"t,!T ' ':•!' '^"""'y •" ^^y - "^n as excellent pasturage. Mr. Flint highly recommends it Fowl MEADow.-This is a valuable grass for moist soils It ^ very .any, but. unlike almost all oth^r varietie , t emain good for several weeks. If g,ow„ on rich land, t« cropTp year can be obtained. The quality of the hay is ve,y Z ' S.^ SC..XHO VeH«L G..SS contains an immense amount of w... aM ,s ,ot desirable for mowing-lots. It is vety sweet «ar,s early m the spring, and makes a steady growth On these accounts it is well liked in pastures. A liftle of the se°d doi buTr-ir"" "■" "' "''" ■■■■"* --- p-'-- . e^ room h "''' '" '°" ■' '°° '*"="'^. - -o^t of the rntate ' '' """"" "''"' '"' "^ "-<' ^ ■»-" better Bermuda Gi,As5._Concernine this ™s, .k— =~ - - . difference of opinio. ,. was i„,roduced°fr;m the'^W to^^ 370 FARMING FOR PROFIT. and has become thoroughly acchmated throughout the South To the cotton-planter it has made an immense amount of trouble, and unL.l quite recently it has been pretty generally condemned But at the present time many writer' among whom .s Mu. HowAKo, consider it a valuable plant, it is pre en.ncntly a permanent plant Once in the soil it resists all ordmary efforts for its eradication. Cattle like it. and will hr.ve when kept upon it. It is said to make a fair quality of i^a). It produces a very heavy sod, which is valuable to turn •n as a fertilizer for other crops. In connection with clover and blue grass, which are fresh when the Bermuda dies down it makes an excellent pasture, which will keep fresh at the Sou^h durmg the whole year. Notwithstanding that many writers in the papers seem to fear its introduction, and wish that it could be utterly destroyed, we think that it will pay the farmers of the South to experiment with it. on a small scale at first, and fully test ,ts character. It may prove one of the most useful plants which can be obtained. In addition to the kinds which have been named there are many others which are of different degrees of value. There are marsh gft^sses which grow only in very wet soils, prairie grasses wh.ch grow wild at the Wkst. and several native grasseslhich appear at the South. As a general rule the native grasses are of mfenor quahty. and should be superseded by the finer culti- vated varieties. It never pays to grow a poor kind of grass where a much better one can easily be produced We will now consider some of the general principles upon wh,ch the culture of the grass crop should be conducL. The Pkep.kat,on ok the Soi. is a very important matter-one which hes at the very foundation of the whole system. Prob- ably the great majority of farmers throughout the country sow nearly al, of their grass seed in connection with grain. They fit he. land for the grain crop. and. with the exception of covering it. do nothing more to the land th.„ .k. Z^ T ^ i FARM AND FODDER CROPS. grass seed had not been ouf In tu ^^^ '•^- wi.,. . „op Of .::„r: •„/::■': rr^r '° ^^-^ grass seed alone no .im„„ , ■ "''' '^'^ '" ='°»' -n»=, .science ::::^^Zl '^'^''t '""'■ ^°'"™™- ».»n s^ss is .o be .^o.r o, .f. ";;;:! :';" ■■' ' ^-^■' ""■* it a stronger croo to f 7 ' """ " '* '° P"' .- sn«-ers . dLbH; /'^ ^ ■' ^ '""t '^ '"™- ""^- or the land and annrnn • / , ^ °P ^^''^^ possession 'iecure. Then the ninnt, ^"'' P'"""'^ ""u'" 1° "aving been shade 1^7 '' '"\ ^"^ -"^'^ o/? and, b-ning rays of the sun 7' ' "' """ ""'■'"■''' ">" «■'-• ^HadehasbLn re.:." N",;:„r ""'f '""'■^"^'' *= grass with' grain is an . ., , " '^™""d„,it that sowing consider ieY: : ^Ll "^f "■"° ^°'- "■■'^ method' "l.ich to proceed If ZT, , """ "° ''""='• "V '": fClow a - «-"' from the land u-ith the leasf ' Z "'"' '° «=' ^" "«>' "- smallest possible ouanf r' ' """'' °' ''^'''' ""^ "><•■ system of se;*! Wt,"" ?""" ^""=''°^^' «« P-™' -0. When it fo r: ' "'""'■""y """"-■ ■■" "-"on U'i,„_ prcpaied to receive the se^H When grass seed is used alone it mav t,» , the spring or late in (h. *^ '°"''='^ '='""='• » cerned, the form r mav be -T ^' ''' '' '"= ^-^ - -n- the plants a long: period ^T^' ''"^ ''^^' ""'^' ^ " ^'■- cut and enables aemroh '° '"''"^ ^^f"- "-y are. this requires the :of"he tnVt"""'" '"'' "'"'" "^^- ^"' «>c crop Which shou, L' o ::e;T^'"r""°'"■" ;ater seeding, which permits th'e "l of rrop'^e"?:""^' 's usually preferred. The best time f ,t "^ '' ^■'-■"' ™onth of August at theNoT , Tnd S "^ " '"""^ ""^ Sod latKi .s oilen turned ^ve fcrM!r Tl I""':'""- 24 r^seeding. The land she .-id! I I 372 FARMING FOR PROFIT. be plowed to a medium depth, a fair coating of manure should be spread upon the plowed surface, or guano or grass fertihzer should be sowed broadcast upon it, and a wheel-harrow, or some other very efficient pulverizer, should be used until the surface soil is extremely fine. The seed may then be sowed, covered with a bush-harrow, and the land thoroughly rolled. As a general rule, to which the culture of Timothy is the promi- nent exception, it is much better to mi ; several kinds of grass seed than it is to sow any one of them alone. The quantity of seed required will depend upon the varieties to be grown, and the purposes for which the grass is designed. Light seeding makes large, coarse stalks, and invites a growth of weeds. Heavy seeding makes finer stalks, and nicer hay for cows or sheep. There are extremes in both directions, and 'both should be avoided. For pastnr'^s, we favor sowing several idifierent kinds and using seed \\'X\\ a liberal hand. This is much more important with p*i than with grass which is grown for hay. The pasture ren-iin?- long in grass, and it is desirable that it should produce as large a quantity as possible. This is aided by the use of several varieties of seed. One kind alone will not furnish as many plants or make as vigorous growth as a mixture of different sorts. Besides, some kinds ripen earlier than others, and by sowing several a succession may be secured, and the pastures be kept green much longer than they otherwise could. Add to these reasons the fact that cattle like a variety of food better than any single kind, and thrive better when furnished with many sorts than they do on one alone, and no further evidence will be needed that it is not wise to seed pasture-land with only one kind of grass. In mowing-lots a larger quantity of hay can be secured and the fields will remain longer in grass, if several kinds of seed are used. But in using these different kinds, a wise selection should be made in order to secure a good quality as well as a large quantity of hay. The varieties which are sowed should ripen at the same time, UJ FARAf AXD FODDER CROPS. and be grown in suitable 373 e proporfons. For feeding to horses. "^J!::!.'"!'-^ -—"--;;;:-: grown without admixture of any kind, but for cows and sh..n ^ " • "" is to be preferred. Th. r.M....:__ ._ • . """^ ''^"'"P '" ^^"^ty are highly recon Each mixture is designed for'one acre of land. ■='"^>-^' .i variety .r. u- u, followmg mixtures, with .light chancres a;e^h.ghly recommended by various agricultural\uthoriL For Mowing-Lots. Red Clover. ,, .. ^^^^J Rye Glass For Permanent Pastur Meadow Foxtail 2 lbs Orchard Grass 6 •' White Clover , „ Red Clover.... .. •5 lb». .6 lbs. •4 " ES. Rye Gmss. . Timothy. . . . Blue Grass.. Rough Stalked Meadow Grass 4 " Meadow Fescue. Red Top .4 lbs. •4 " ■4 " •4 " .4 " T,. ,^ "^^ '""' Pasti;re Combined. Iimothy /. ,, June Grass....:::; ''^ ^°-' ^^-dow Grass 4 ,b,. •4 " White Clover ^ „ Orchard Grass Rye Grass. Perennial Clover. Sw;;; sVe„ted VeL. Gra"!::'' ''''''' MeadowGross. 2 lbs. For the South Mk. How.ko recommends the following: For Rotation and Improving the Soil. Red Clover. 4qts, Meadow Oat Grass. Timothy. White Clover Orchard Grass , j,u I bu. For Meadow Land. ' Pk. Herds Grass . . . .4 qts. Add 4 quaru of Red Clover. IH;:;;,,^- .^^.^ „^ ^^.^^^ For Summer Pastures. Crab Grass. r^j clover. Natural Grasses. For Winter Pastures. Rlue Grass. Red Clover .4 qts. Bermuda Grass, Herds Grass Meadow Oat Grass , ^u Orchard Grass... ', „' '^'"''nmT--*'"-'"' " White Clover ' Not to be crazed later than June or earlier than '^{sini:. 4 qts. 4 " 4 " For mowings at the North we favor a much more libe«. of T,mothy than any of the tables use given above require. In IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) fe {./ /( -% A ^ii^ r^^^ /. IL f/- 1.0 I.I 11.25 ■^|2j8 |2.5 2.2 us 1.4 — 6" Photographic Sciences Corporation 1.6 •a WIST MAM STRitT Wfl$nR,N.Y. I4SW (71.) 172.4503 \ k % '^ <> '^ ^0 ^. m i \ !!' I I 374 FARMING FOR PROFIT. connection with Red Top and Meadow Fescue for moist land, and with Orchard Grass and Clover for early cutting on dry soils, we consider it almost invaluable. It has been asserted that this grass will not thrive on dry uplands, but our experience with it upon these soils has been quite satisfactory. It has a bulbous root, and, on this account, is more liable than some grasses to be injured by extremely dry weather if it comes immediately after the hay crop is removed. We do not favor cutting this grass as close to the ground as is sometimes done. Neither should it be allowed to ripen its seed unless the land is soon to be plowed. When cut in the blossom and properly cured it makes splendid hay, and wc have no hesitation in recommending it for extensive cultivation. The care of permanent grass fields, or fields which for several years are to be kept in grass, is very simple. It is one of the great merits of the grass crop that it can be grown with but very slight expense for labor, and with only a moderate quantity of manure. The main things to be done arc to give suitable protection, avoid too close cutting, and provide a reasonable quantity of plant-food. Mowing-lots ought never to be grazed. To neglect of this rule a large part of the partial failures with the grass crop are due. In New England it is a very common practice to mow the grass as soon as ripe ; a few weeks later, if there is enough to make it an object to do so, the rowen is cut very close to the ground, and early in the fall the cattle arc turned into the fields and allowed to gnaw the grass to the roots until the ground is either frozen or else covered with snow. Thus the grass roots must endure the rigors of a Northern , winter without other protection than the snow. This frequently does not fall until after the ground has been severely frozen and the roots seriously injured. No other crop could endure a tenth of the exposure, neglect, and abuse which the grass receives, and maintain its hold upon life. Yet farmers expect their grass to not only " -, but also to yield them a large profit. It !l tl FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 375 loist land, n dry soils, d that this nee with it a bulbous grasses to nmediatcly utting this . Neither is soon to •ly cured it immending for several one of the th but very [juantity of vc suitable reasonable be grazed, liliircs with ry common :ks later, if owen is cut : cattle are rass to the 1 with snow. Northern 5 frequently frozen ^md lure a tenth ss receives, xpect their ^ profit. It k ought not to be a matter for surprise that when treated in this manner grass lots do not long yield good crops. It is a wonder that they prove so permanent when subjected to such adverse influences. Then, too, the average farmer robs his grass land to feed his hoed crops. The hay is fed out on the farm in order that it may furnish a supply of manure. But when the manure is obtained it is not returned to the grass fields from whence it came, but almost all of it is used on the hoed crops. Year after year the drain goes on. It is true that after the hoed crops are removed grass is grown on the land to which the manure was applied, but the hoed crops have taken nearly all of it, some- times every particle of it, from the soil. In some cases the grass obtains a degree of benefit from the manure, while in others the land is not in as good condition for the production of this crop as it would have been if no manure had been used and no other crops grown. It sometimes happens that a little manure is left after the other crops are provided for. When this is the case the surplus is spread upon the grass. Frequently the poorest manure is used for this purpose, and only a very slight coating is applied. Such is the too common custom of farmers at the North. There are many in all, but few comparatively, who pursue a much more liberal policy. It is very- true that grass obtains much of its znaterial from the air. But this is also true of corn and other hoed crops. All good farmers know that it is not wise to grow corn without manure. For the same reasons which apply to the production •of corn, the grass crop should not be grown without the use of fertilizers. Both mowing-lots and pastures should be occasionally manured. If the latter can be plowed and occasionally seeded, it will be a great benefit except in cases of the fields, which are occasionally seen, in which the best qualities of grass are productive and permanent, and which would be injured instead of improved by reseeding. On all pastures which it is not desirable to plow, manure of some kind (generally com- ^■BiBBsainKUbai I i ! i fl ii! !: I 376 FARMING FOR PROFIT. mercial fertilizers, such as the special manures made for this crop, guano, plaster, and ashes) should be occasionally used. If these are applied when the cattle are in the fields, care must be taken to use those which will not prove injurious if eaten. In England some very fine cattle have been poisoned by fertilizers used in the pastures. If there is any doubt about this matter it will be wise to sow the fertilizers in the fall, after the cattle have been FIG. 39.— BUCKEYE MOWER. taken out for the winter, or to use only small quantities at a time and apply just before a heavy rain, keeping the cattle off until the rain has dissolved, and carried down the fertilizers to the roots of the plants. Upon mowing-lots the manure can be applied late in the fall or early in the spring. We consider the former decidedly the best time for using yard-manure. The frost will crumble the lumps, if there are any. and the manure will prove a protection FARM AND FODDER CROPS. ui " this crop, If these t be taken England rs used in it will be have been ities at a attle off lizers to the fall idly the iblc the atection ". to the roots. The dissolving snow will carry it down to the roots very early in the season— just when it is needed to make a quick and vigorous growth. If the manuring is delayed until spring, the land is usually soft and is badly tracked by the teams and cut by the wheels. There is danger that it will not be attended to early enough to give the best results, and the press- ure of work is so great that the manure will be more likely to be left in lumps than it will if the less hurrying time of autumn is chosen. With commercial fertilizers we think it makes less difference, but prefer using them late in the fall upon all lands not liable to be washed. It is better to use manure in moderate quantities quite often than it is to make larger applications at long intervals. If the grass fails to return large crops when it is well manured the land should be ploweu at once and reseeded. Grubs may be eating off the roots, or it may have become turf-bound. In either ^,^ .^ v-iiucr FIG 40._EUREKA MOWER. case a fresh seeding is desirable. Extremely close cutting of the grass crop should be avoided. On dry land, and particularly in a dry season, Timothy should be cut rather high. The rowen crop is often shaved close to the ground. Such close cutting late in the season, when the plant has been struggling for life since the first crop was taken off, is very injurious. It need not be cut extremely high, but it ought never to be cut very close to the ground. Pasturing mowings in the fall is a ruinous practice. A little grass is obtained and the cattle are kept along upon it for a few weeks when they would, but for this, have to be fed at the barn. But by this means the roots of the grass are left unprotected i^ rnfTilTiiaiWmBi I I W 378 FARMING FOR PROFIT. through the winter and many of the plants are destroyed. Others are enfeebled so that they can produce only a small quantity of grass the succeeding year. The late growth ought to be allowed to remain, fall down, and cover the roots. It is a protection which nature designed and which ought always to be given. It is much better for the farmer to grow an extra quantity of fodder crops, to be used both green and dry, and keep his cattle out of the mowings, than it is to turn his grass land into pasture in the fall. That this can be done easily and orofitably some of our best farmers have proved by many prac- tical tests. Mr. Cheever, of the New England Farmer, has not allowed cattle in his meadows for twenty years. Many other farmers, in different sections, have tried the plan for less time but with uniformly good results. A few words concerning the cutting and curing of the hay crop should find a place in this connection. Except when grown specially for seed, grass should be cut before the seed has matured. As a general rule, grass is at its best when in the blossom. If cut much sooner it is very watery and innutritions. If allowed to stand much longer it becomes woody and much of it is indigestible. Ripening the seed is also a severe drain upon the energies of the plant, and proves fully as exhausting as all of its previous growth. For this reason land upon which grass stands very late often fails to produce good crops for sev- eral successive seasons. The only hope of securing permanence on fields which are treated in this way is to keep them very rich and allow considerable of the seed which is formed to shell upon the ground. At the North there has been a great change in the time of cutting the hay crop. Twenty years ago but very little grass was cut until after the fourth of July. Now large quantities are cut in June, and some farmers get in nearly their whole crop in this month. Fine weather is one of the great essentials of success in curino- the hay crop. Too many farmers work in cloudy weather the FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 379 same as when it is fair. It is much better to work in the corn fields or attend to some other crop. In cloudy weather hay dries very slowly and is likely to be got in without sufficient curing. There is also liability of rain, which is always injurious to grass which is partially dry. As a help in deciding upon the weather, the farmer should have a barometer and thermometer, and should be a careful observer of the sky and clouds. It is to be hoped that the Government will also establish signal FIG. 41.— THE BUtLARD HAY-TEDDER. stations in the great agricultural districts (similar to those for navigators on the great lakes and the ocean), which, during the harvest seasons, may furnish the farmers with the results of scientific observation. It is not well to attempt too much at a time. Cut only what can be properly managed. Upon Saturday attempt less than upon other days, so that the work may all be finished in good season. For cutting the grass use a good mowing-machine. I i III 380 FARMING J- OK J'ROJ-JT. Figure 39 represents the Buckeye Mower manufactured by Ariance, Piatt & Co., of New York city. This machine is simple, safe, strong, and very durable. It draws easily and does perfect work. Figure 40 shows the Eureka Mower, made by the Eureka Mower Co., Towanda, Pa. This is a " direct draft " machine, the cutting apparatus as well as the gears being directly behind the team. It cuts a wide swath, does good work, and is very highly commended by those who have given it a prac- tical test. Grass dries much more rapidly if cut after the dew is off than it will if it is wet when the mowing is done. During the first part of the season two days will be needed for properly curing heavy grass. Later, when the grass is nearly ripe, it can be cured in one. In order to obtain the best quality of hay, rapid drying will be an absolute necessity. In order to secure this a good Tedder will be found indispensable. Figure 41 represents the Bullard Hay-Tedder, made by the Belcher & Taylor Agricul- tural Tool Co., of Chicopee Falls, Mass. We have used this machine many years, and found it a splendid implement. It fully deserves the many medals which have been awarded at State and other trials. After the hay is dry, a horse-rake will be needed for gathering the hay. Figure 42 represents one of the best of the wheel- rakes. It has the best of wire-teeth, can be operated by hand or foot, is simple and strong, and can be managed by any boy who can drive a horse. It is made by B. C. Taylor, Dayton, Ohio. Figure 43 represents a cheaper form of rake. It is harder to operate than the wheel-rakes, but will do good work on land that is reasonably smooth. It is made by the Sterling Manufacturing Co., Sterling, Illinois. On large farms a hay-loader will be very serviceable. Figure 44 represents a machine of this description, which is made by Stratton & Cullum, Meadville, Pa. With this implement, II (881) I i I 382 FARMING FOR PROFIT. which is attached to the rear of the wagon, a ton of hay can be pitched from the windrow in from three to five minutes. By its use a great saving of hard labor is effected, and in showery weather the farmer is often enabled to secure hay which under the old system of gathering by hand would be damaged by rain. A horse-fork for unloading hay at the barn or stack will also prove a very useful implement. The degree of drying which it receives will greatly modify the quality of the hay. We can remember when hay was dried nearly twice as much as it is now. We think the change which has been made is a great improvement. But we do not believe in getting in hay, or rather grass, without any drying. Too little drying is worse than an excess, as it will cause the FIG. 43.— STERLING REVOLVING-RAKE. hay to " smoke," and it may heat so much as to be utterly ruined. It is best to dry just enough so that the hay will keep well, and come out bright and nice in the spring. All the drying which is given after this point has been reached is a decided injury. We think barns should always be provided in which to store the hay, though a good workman can stack it so that it will receive but little injury from the weather. For stacking employ a skilful workman, and put up quite a quantity at a time. Instead of drawing from the lot each day, the hay, when nearly dry, may be put into the cock, and allowed to remain until quite a quantity is ready. Then, during a fine day, turn over the cocks so that the dampness in the hay which was near the ground will dry out, and draw to the place where the stack is FARM AND FODDER CROPS 383 to be located. When finished, the top of the stack must be well covered with straw, which should be very carefully put on. Although hay will keep well if properly stacked, we should much prefer, if we could not afford to put up a large one, to build a small barn, and by the use of a hay-prc-^^ get the whole crop under cover. Growing grass for seed is a very simple operation. Many farmers who rai.se their own grass seed do nothing more to the land or crop than the extra work of harvesting. But it is much FIG. 44. — FOUST's HAY-l.OAUER. better to take special pains to keep the land free from other grasses than the kind of which seed is wanted, and also to keep it liberally manured. When the seed is ripe, which may be easily known by the changed appearance of the plant, and especially of the heads, the grass should be cut. The cutting may be done with a grain- cradle or a reaper. It should be done in the morning while the dew is on, in order to prevent a waste of the seed by shelling in the field. After moderate drying, it may be put up in small I 384 FARMI]\rG FOR PROFIT. stooks. and allowed to remain until perfectly cured. Or it can rcma.n unbound until the curing process is complete. In all he oporat.ons with this crop, care should be used in order to prevent shelling of the seed. It can be threshed with flails. orshelled w.th a thresher, and the seed cleaned in a common ^.nnmg m.I. w.th a fine screen. The seed is sometimes spoiled by stackmg the grass while the stalks are too green. The mass heats enough to destroy the vitality of the seed, though it does not a, , , ..„.^^^ ,^ ^^^^^^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^^^ _^^ ^^^^ The stalks wh.ch have yielded a crop of seed are often fed o horses As they are tough and woody, they should not be used alone, but fed in connection with better hay and grain When the tops are cut with a cradle, the stubble may be cut w.th a mower, and used the same as the tops of the stalks BROMus-Every little while somebody recommends some member of the bromus family as a forage plant, and sells the seed for high prices. There are several varieties, but none of them are worthy of cultivation, while some of them are to be opposed with as much vigor as the worst weeds with which the farmer is obliged to contend. Of the latter, the common chess or. cheat." as it is usually called, is one of the principal sorts.' It .s a cheat" in the full sense of the term. Many farmers thmk that wheat sometimes turns to cheat. This we think is a mistake. It is true that under certain unfavorable conditions the fields which the farmer has sowed with wheat produce noth- ing but cheat. But it by no means follows that the cheat was grown from the seed which he sowed. He did not sow the seeds of other weeds which appeared in his grain fields, and he .s confident that they did not come from the wheat which he used for seed. He might safely have the same confidence con- cernmg the cheat. A standing offer of quite a sum of money has been mude for many years to any one who would produce a quantity of cheat with proof that it was grown from wheat but the pnze has never been awarded for want of evidence that such FARM AXn FODDER CROPS. 385 a change has occurred. Men have been able to produce cheat upon land sowed with wheat, but they have not been able to prove that it was produced from the seed of the wheat. When an oak forest is removed, a vigorous growth of pine trees often appears. No one sows the seed of the pine, and no pine tree has grown upon the land for generations. Probably the seed had been lying dormant in the soil for a long period, merely waiting for a flivorable opportunity to grow. In some such way cheat is doubtless produced. That it can be grown from wheat we consider an impossibility. If the farmer will drain his land, feed his crops, give good culture, and always sow good seed, we think he will never reap a crop of cheat. As a forage crop the bromus will make quite passable green fodder, considerable hay, and a fair pasture. But once on the farm it will be almost sure to mix with the wheat and spoil it, and will greatly interfere with other crops. It should never be allowed a place upon a cultivated field, and we .should not want it in a pasture. There are plenty of other plants which are better for all purposes, and which are free from the objections which lie against this one. Consequently, whether it is recom- mended under the head of chess, or cheat, or rescue grass, or any other grass or weed, it will be well to let each and every form of this plant entirely alone. The seed has often been sold for high prices and will, probably, be kept in the market by interested parties. Doubtless there are also many farmers who have recommended this plant, in the honest belief that it was a valuable addition to the list of our forage crops. Longer ac- quaintance will dispel the illusion. Mr. Flint, whose work on grass is a standard, declares that "Not one of the brome grasses is worthy of a moment's attention as a cultivated agricultural grass, and the cleaner the farmer keeps his fields of them, the better." All members of this family should be ranked as weeds to be de^itroycd, and never treated as plants whose growth is to be encouraged. ti I '■ i i I 386 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Clover.— This is one of our most valuable agricultural plants. It is usually called griss,but is a leguminous plant, unlike grass in its appearance and its manner of growth. There are a large number of varieties, of which the Red, White, and Alsike arc of the greatest \alue to the farmers of this country. The red clover is the most extensively grown and is regarded as the standard. Although grown from a small seed, and at first quite tender, it soon becomes a hardy, vigorous plant which sends its long roots down into the subsoil, and spreads its still longer braches above the surface of the land. The seed can be sowed upon the snow in the spring and be allowed to work its way into the soil— with grain in the spring or the fall— or alone, or with other grass in August. It is important that there should be considerable moisture in the surface soil at the time of sow- ing, and that some protection should be afforded from the heat of the summer sun when the plants are small. It often happens that clover sowed in the spring with grain succeeds better than that which is sowed alone. The grain grows quickly and shades the tender plants from the sun. Dr. Harlan recommends sow- ing buckwheat with clover when it is desired to grow only the latter. The buckwheat will afford shade while the clover is feeble, and if cut when in the blossom and allowed to remain on the land, will also mulch the clover and prove of great advantage to the crop. The quantity of seed to be used depends upon the soil and the purpose for which the crt^p is to be grown. From eight to sixteen pounds may be considered as the extremes. The more seed the finer the stalks, and the better the quality of the hay which can be made from them. The preparation of the land must be as fine as was recom- mended for grass seed. Upon this being thoroughly done, suc- cess will in a great measure depend. For fertilizing this crop, both lime and plaster seem to be specifics and to have a wonderful effect. Lime should be FARM AND FODDER CROPS. gg- applied to the land as for other crops. The plaster should be sowed upon the plants in the spring when they are a few inches high. Clover is a biennial, and although, by means of seeds which shell upon the land, it often attains a more permanent character .t IS best to plow land which is wholly devoted to this crop once every two years. The soil is then well filled with roots and ,s m a good condition to be used for the production of grain C over is better suited to d^^ land than to that which is wet' Its long roots enable it to resist the influence of drought to a h.gh degree. On land whi heaves badly in the spring clover cannot well be grown, as the roots will be either thrown out of the sod or else injured so that they will not produce a good crop Drammg will prove an efficient remedy for this difficulty Clover should not be pastured when very young. The cut- ting of a crop for hay should be done when the heads begin to, turn brown, but while most of them are green. After the hajr IS removed, plaster may be sowed upon the land and thus ^ heavy second growth may be induced. This crop will be.r much closer cutting than Timothy. Curing for hay is bettor accomplished in the cock than by spreading in the sun. If dried, in the ordinao' way for other crops, many of the leaves will fall, off and its value will be greatly reduced. After the mowing has been done the clover should lie long enough to get well wilted be turned once, in order to wilt the lower side of the swaths' and then put into small cocks which can stand several days' The curing will thus be effected gradually and a valuable quality of fodder will be secured. The day upon which the clover is to be drawn to the barn the cocks should be turned over, so that the dampness may dry from that which was close to the ground After remaining in the sun a few hours in this inverted position the clover can be safely put into the barn. In order to prevent ■njury to this crop by untimely rains, the farmer should provide a quantity^f hay caps with which to protect the clover during H JfT ■BlBaiBiliiHiB ! ■ i 388 FARMING FOR PROFIT. bad weather which may occur while it is standing in the cock. These caps will also prove useful in protecting the hay crop. When clover seed is to be grown, the first crop should be cut quite early, and no plaster should be used upon the land after its removal. When two-thirds of the heads of the second growth are brown the crop should be harvested. This can be effected with a machine for the purpose which simply removes the heads, or the cutting can be done the same as it is with the grass crop. It should be cured as soon as possible, without much stirring, and then taken to the barn. The threshing can be done with flails, but a threshing-machine — especially a clover huller and FIG. 45. separator — is very much better. Figure 45 represents a standard machine for this purpose. It is made by the Birdsell Manufac- turing Co., South Bend, Indiana. Of the value of this crop for a fertilizer we have already spoken. But comparatively few farmers yet realize its immense importance for this purpose or i.ave even a faint conception of the ease with which they might by its aid enrich their land. That it is destined to become extremely popular we have not the slightest doubt. Farmers who have neglected it thus far should lose no more time in testing its efficacy and proving its value. The white clover is quite useful at the South for cutting and FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 389 curing. Either alone or mixed with various kinds of grass ^t will yield quite a quantity of excellent hay. At the North it is chiefly valuable as a pasture plant, though in connection with grass it is often used for hay. The quality of grass and hay afforded by it is superior to that of red clover. The white clover pastures are among the most valuable which can be found. Upon dairy farms they are especially prized, while for sheep and lambs they have no superior. The Alsike clover ig a perennial plant which was introduced from Sweden into this country, and from which much was _ hoped. But the expectations of its friends do not seem to have been realized. Although it succeeds well in some localities it has not become generally popular, and probably will always hold an inferior position. It seems to be an intermediate variety between the red and the white clover, and was supposed to be very hardy and also to be well adapted to wet soils. We have tried it only on a small scale and have not been successful in its cultivation upon either dry or wet land. It will be well to try it as an experiment, but we do not recommend any one to attempt its cultivation on a large scale without first testing it on a small one. If it does well in a small field it can then be sowed in a large one. If it does not thrive, the small field will be large enough. Still, it may be best to try it more than one season, as it may. on account of some peculiarity of the weather, fail sometimes in localities where it will usually prove ver>^ successful. Grain CROPs.-Several of the crops which are usually grown for their grain are often sowed for the fodder which they will produce. The value of corn as a fodder crop we have already considered. Rye and oats are extensively grown for this pur- pose. Rye is usually fed green and furnishes an excellent sub- stitute for grass. It should be used before the heads appear. A constant supply through the growing season may be obtained by sowing in the fall for - arly spring feeding, and in the spring, L ! if i! 390 FARMING FOR PROFlT. at various times, for summer use, Oats make excellent fodder if cut when in blossom and cured like hay. Peas are also good for feeding green or curing for winter fodder. The preparation of the land for these crops should be the same as when grown for their seeds. As a general rule, a larger quantity of seed should be sowed, and the crop must always be harvested earlier in the season. The great objection to these crops for feeding purposes is to be found in the fact that the plants are annuals, and, consequently, the seeds must be sown every year, while considerable preparation of the land must be made before the sowing can be done. Lucerne. — This is a perennial plant which flourishes in warm climates and rich, deep soils. The roots grow long and large, and when once started in a favorable location the plants will produce an immense amount of fodder for many successive years. Under the various names of Lucerne, French Clover, Brazilian Clover, and Alfalfa, this plant has been introduced into this country from foreign lands. In California and the South it gives splendid results. Mr. Howard considers it " very far superior to all others " as a forage plant in the Southern States. At the North, Lucerne does not always succeed. The climate is not adapted to its culture. Still, it has been grown in Maine, and with sufficient care it can, probably, be produced in nearly all the States. But the disadvantages under which it labors at the North are too great to justify an effort for its extensive cultivation. At the South it should be largely grown. Lucerne may be fed either green or in the form of hay. When used green it ought always to be cut a day or two before it is wanted in order that it may have time to wilt. It is v^t^ nutritious. Horses, cattle, and even hogs thrive when fed upon it in its green state, and all animals that eat hay not onlj' iike it but do well when fed upon it after it has been dried. For this crop the land should be well prepared. It is best during the year preceding the sowing of Lucerne to grow some FARM AMP FODJ>^R CROPS. 39^ crop which requires clean culture. This in order th;^t the weeds and grass already in the land may be eradicated. The soil should be reasonably dry and the ground deeply plowed If sub-soiled it will be all the better. A heavy coating of well- rotted yard-manure, or a liberal application of bone-dust, gyp- sum, or ashes should be harrowed in and the surface soil should be made very fine. Rich land and thorough preparation are essential to success. The seed should be sowed in February at the South, and as late a^ May if an attempt is made to cultivate this crop at the North. It may be scattered broadcast or sowed in drills. As it is a feeble plant when small it is better, unless the land is very free from weeds and grass, to put it in drills about a foot apart If in drills il; can receive cultivation whenever needed. If sown in this way, from eight to ten pounds of seed should be used. If sown broadcast, from twelve to sixteen pounds will be required. It should be lightly covered with a roller or a bush-harrow. If put in with a good seed-sower, or drill, the machine will cover it sufficiently. If weeds or grass appear they should be removed. • and it will pay to stir the soil, occasionally, between the drills. Manure should be applied every third year. It can be worke4 in with a small plow if the plant is grown in drills. If the lan4 remains mellow the fertiliser may be left on top of the soil where the sowing was broadcast, but if the surface becomes hard a har- row should be used for covering the manure. The cutting should alwaiys be done gis soon as the plant blossoms. If longer delayed, the quantity of fodder will b? increased, but the quality will be badly impaired. If at any time the tops turn yellow, the cutting should be done at once. The curing of Lucerne for hay is to be done as directed for clover. Long exposure to the sunlight is injurious to its quality, amj will cause the loss of a large proportion of the leaves. This plant requires three years in which to attain its full development, but yields exceedingly^ large crpps the first seaspij. 392 FARMING FOR PROFIT. When well established, on rich land and with good culture its yield is enormous. It should never be pastured, as cattle Ind horses will destroy the plants, but should be kept to furnish either green fodder, or hay, to be used at the barn or the feeding yards. MiLLET.-Of this plant there are several varieties. Of these the one commonly called Hungarian Grass has been the most extensively grown in this country. It is a rapid and rank- growing annual, producing large quantities of green food, hay, or seed. We have only grown it for hay. The Golden millet is recommended as greatly superior, while the newer introduction under the names of Egyptian, East Indian, or Pearl millet promises to be still better. It aiay be sowed in drills, or broad- cast. The land should be rich, well fertilized, and the surface should be made very fine and mellow. The sowing should not be done until the nights are warm. At the North the last of June is generally a favorable time. If sowed broadcast from a bushel to a bushel and a half of seed should be used. This will g.ve a better quality of fodder than can be obtained from thin seedmg. The Egyptian millet, however, is said to tiller extensively. This should be sowed in drills. Only two or three quarts of seed will be required per acre. The common mdlet W.11 be ready for cutting in from four to six weeks after the seed is sowed. It can be cut with a mowing-machine and dned the same as common hay. Horses like the hay made from this plant, and will fatten rapidly when kept upon it. But it IS very rich food, and growers generally prefer to mix it with tTT . ";•. ^'" " "P^"^"^ *^"^ ^^'^ •■' '^^ g°- to seed. Then It should be fed in only small quantities, as a large amount wi 1 be as injurious as so much unthreshed wheat. It should be cut before the seed is ripe, but not until the heads are well formed. For green food it can be cut during its various stages of growth. While the sowing should not be done until L weather is quite warm (both during the day and at night) it I i FAKAf AND FODDER CROPS. 393 must not be so long delayed as to expose the crop to the influence of the early autumn frosts. As it produces a he.vy yield this crop should be harvested while the days are warm and long. We not only esteem this plant for its value as forage both for horses and catt' .-, but also on account of the time of the year at which it may be sown. If for any reason the hay crop comes in light, the farmer can turn over a few acres of sod make the surface mellow, apply fertilizers, and by means of sowmg this crop he can fill his barns to overflowing with an excellent quality of dry fodder. By this method he can always grow fodder enough to keep his stock through the winter While nearly all other crops must bfe put in early, with this one the farmer can wait until he knows the amount of his hay crop, and he can then sow much or little according as the yield of the ordinary grass shall be light or heavy. The principal objections to this plant are, that, being an annual, the ground must be prepared, and the seed must be sowed each year, and the danger attending the feeding of large quantities after the seeds are ripe. But these objections will weigh very lightly with a farmer who has once grown this crop. Its great value will far more than repay all the labor required, and the danger may all be avoided by cutting before the seeds are ripe, or by feeding but small quantities at a time. For Northern farmers we recommend this plant as worthy of extensive cultivation. Pricklv Comfrev.— Of this claimant of popular favor as a forage plant we have but little to say. Our own efforts to grow it resulted in complete failure, as the cuttings appear to have lost their vitality before they were planted. This variety of the comfrey is "^ hardy perennial of gigantic growth," and was introduced into England, from Caucasus, as an ornamental plant. After a while it engaged the attention of agricultural writers, and was grown to some extent for the purposes of forage. It was introduced into this country, and for the past four years 394 f ARMING FOR PROFIT. t k! l\ I has been extensively advertised. That it will produce an im- mense amount of fodder per acre, take full possession of the land, survive extremes of heat and cold, drought and mois- ture, and resist the encroachments of all other plants, there is no doubt. It comes early in the season and remains very late. It is propagated from the roots, which can be cut in small pieces and planted like corn, at any time except during cold weather. It should be grown in rows, three feet and a half apart, with the plants about three feet apart in the row. About four thousand plants per acre will thus be furnished, and will produce, on good land, from eighty to one hundred and twenty tons of green fodder per year. Parties interested in its sale assert tha; the leaves are very Valuable for feeding purposes, both for increasing the milk of cows and fattening stock. Some who have tried its merits speak favorably of it, but many have complained that their cows would not eat the leaves as long as they could find anything else to eat, and that when eaten the plants seemed to do no good. Probably after the Icavos get very large they are not as palatable as they are when they are small. There are certain objections to this plant. Once in the land it remains like so much dock. It costs considerable to start a field, and it is only with great difficulty that it can be eradicated if the land is ever needed for any other purpose. But it will afford several cuttings each season, and in dry years it will prove of special value for furnishing an abundance of green food. If the cattle will not eat it, there will of course be no benefit from growing the crop. We think that most cattle will soon learn to eat it, but there may be instances in which the dislike is too strong to be overcome. Whether it will pay the farmer to grow this crop will depend upon the character of his land, and also upon the other resources for green fodder which he <;an command. Jf cattle will eat the leaves, there are sections in which this plant will prove of great value. In all cases, if tried at all, it should be tried upon a small scale. If the first FAfiM AND FODDER CROPS, 395 expenment proves successful, a larger area of land can soon be devoted to the crop. But if the cattle do not like the plants there will be little inducement for extending its cultivation. Root CRops.^These are among the "main stays" of the English farmers, and are gradually winning their way into the confidence of farmers in our own land. For farmers, wherever located, who are largely interested in stock-growing, these crops arc of special value. It is not safe to argue that because the English find root crops indispensable, therefore they must be grown by American farmers who desire to be successful Our climate and soil are so different from theirs, that what will be the best crops for English farmers may not be the best for farmers here. The argument for the production of root crops must be based upon different grounds than the fact that they are very successfully grown in other countries. But there are plenty of reasons why our farmers should devote more attention to these crops than they have done in past years. For use as an exclusive, or even as a principal, article of diet for animals roots are not recommended. But our long winters make it highly important that a certain proportion of green food should be given. For fattening animals roots are not as good as corn and it is very probable that the English farmers would not devote as much attention to the growth of roots as they now do if they were able to grow corn. In this country hogs have been fed too exclusively on corn, and cows and steers have been lim- ited too closely to hay and meal. Experiments have proved what the physiologists have long asserted, that the fattening effects of farinaceous food are much greater when it is used in connection with a liberal proportion of succulent material than they are when this food is used alone. Dairymen have found that they can make more and better butter in winter when they feed roots to their cows than they can when only liay. meal and bran are used. Thq color of the butter is also greatly improved by the addition of roots to the diet of the cows. 396 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Roots take the place of grass to a great extent, and by their use cows can be kept very' productive during the cold weather The constipation which so often attends the long-cont.nucd use of dry hay is wholly avoided by the addition of roots to the diet. The health of animals is promoted by the use of roots in connection with hay. and for this reason alone, if there were no other, stock-owners would find it for their interest to grow them. This, in connection with the fects that immense quantities can be grown on small areas of land, and that roots contam a fair proportion of fat and flesh formers, furnishes an unanswerable argument in favor of the production of these crops upon each and every farm. The amount of land which should be given to root crops will depend upon the amount of stock which is kept, the character of the land, and the circum- stances of the farmer; but there are very few men who culti- vate the sod who cannot profitably devote part of their time and land to the growth of roots. These crops can be ^rown so as to improve the cattle to which they are fed. increase the value of the land upon which they are grown, and also promote the financial interests of the farmer. The crops belonging to this class which can be successfully grown in this country are not many m number, though they are of great importance. The leadmg ones we will briefly consider. • ARTicHOKE.-This crop is used both for its roots, or tubers and also for its stalks, though it is for the former that it is prmcipally grown. The quality of the roots is somewhat lower than that of some of the other crops of this class, but the immense yield of the artichoke makes it a very profitable one to produce. Still the analysis of this root shows that it con- tains considerable nutritive matter. And the fact that all kinds of stock do well when they are furnished with a reasonable quantity of artichokes fully sustains the conclusion which has been drawn from the analysis. An immense amount of food may be grown upon an acre of land. And with this crop FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 397 there is one advantage which most others do not possess: it can be harvested by the hogs, and thus considerable labor may be saved. For this crop the land should be deeply plowed and well harrowed. It should be marked with a small plow, in rows four feet apart. The hills may be from two to four feet apart Manure may be spread broadcast and harrowed in before the marking is done, or it may be put m the hills. Still the arti. choke will thrive, and is very often grown, without the use of fertilizers of any kind. Only a small quantity of seed will be required. Three bushels per acre will be sufficient. The roots should be cut into small pieces, and not more than two of these should be put in a hill. The covering may be done with a light plow, or with a hand-hoe, and need not be very deep. The planting should be done early-as soon as the ground is warm. When the plants are a few inches high, they should be either plowed or cultivated, and hoed. During the season three or four more plowings should be given. In August the plants blossom, and very soon afterwards the tubers begin to form. The growth is very rapid, and continues until frost kills the stalks or they are cut down. The stalks are sometimes cured and used for fodder, but are generally cut and burned. The harvesting of the roots' is done easiest with a plow, which should run deeply and turn all of the land. By covering with earth they can be kept during the winter in a common cellar, or in trenches. When grown specially for hogs they should be in a lot which is enclosed, into which the hogs can be turned and allowed to do their own' har- vesting. Those which are not used in the fall will be good in the spring. It is the best way to plant every year, though many growers start a plantation and allow the hogs to gather what they choose. In the spring a large number of plants will appear. These are sometimes allowed to grow as they spring up. Some growers :"-"if.u. | ij.] i iH i ;;! I li i I FAJiM/NG FOR PROFIT, plow through the fields so as to leave the plants standing In rows. Thi. is much better than it is to leave them all over the land. There are several varieties. Of these the Jebusalem is largely grown, though it is an inferior sort. The best kinds arc the Red Brazilian and the Improved White French. In color and general appearance the former closely resembles the Jerusalem, but is much better in quality and a great deal more productive. The yield varies greatly, but on good land which is well cultivated is always large. Eight hundred bushels per acre are often grown, twelve hundred are occa- sionally reported, and as high as two thousand bushels have been claimed. \ When fed freely with artichokes, hogs will both grow and fatten. One experiment which has been reported claims a gain of nearly two pounds per day for each hog. Milch cows and sheep do well when fed upon the roots and stalks. The health of all animals which arc fed upon artichokes seems to be pro- moted by their use. . It is sometimes objected to this crop that it is very difficult to eradicate. But this need not prove a serious matter. If the habits of the plant are understood, it can be easily destroyed. By mowing them during the la.st week in August, most of the plants will be killed. Or they can be destroyed by plowing the land when they are about a foot high. Beet.— Of this vegetable there are many vaiit(ie.s winch are excellent for the table, and a few which are o/ special value for feeding to stock. Some growers prefer the former to the latter kinds, even for feeding purposes. The fine varieties can be grown, it is said, as cheaply as potatoes, and the same area of . 1 '. vvMl produce foyr times as many bushels. For these varie- t^c . v,/i,»r grown for cattle, the land should be plowed in the C;-l '^'der that U iyrface may be made fine by the frost. In ,ao spring some fine manure should be spread, in liberal quan- J'AflM AATD FODDER CROPS. ggg titles, upon the surfa.. and harrowed .... If yard-manure is not to be had. bone dust, superphosphate, or puan.>. „ny be used i„ Its stead The surface soil must be made extremely fine. About he m.ddle of May the seed should be sown in rows about fif- teen .nches apart. The seed ought to be covered to a Jepth of one and a half or two inches. Four pounds per acre will be a sufficent quantity. As soon as the plants come up. the wheel- hoe should be run between the rows, and weeds close to the plants must be removed by hand. Early weeding is important and when they are small the plants are benefited by stirring the ground. When a few inches high they should be thinned to from four to six inches apart. Care must be taken not to cut the roots or injure the leaves. When growing in large quantities the preparation of the land should be the same as above. described, unless the Ion r k.^ds are produced. In this case the manure may be covered at the second plowing, to a depth of four or five inches, and th, rows may be from eighteen to thirty inches apart. At the lattc - dis- tance horse-power can be used in the cultivation of the rop As soon as the beets are well up. the cultivator should be run between the rows and a light steel hoe should be used to lo.sen the d.rt close to the plants. When they are a few inches h. .h the thinning should be performed and vacant places should be filled by transplanting. The plants should be left only ten or twelve mches apart. This will allow the production of omy inoderate-s,zed specimens, but the quality will be far superior to that of very large roots. Some growers recommend the sowing of from five to ten bushels of salt per acre, or a mixture of salt and plaster, when the fourth leaf appears. Most of the thinning can be done with a hoe. Until the leaves get quite large, fre- quent cultivation should be given. When ripe, or there is danger of frost, the crop should be harvested. The leaves fur- nl«h irnrxA C^r-^ f~- Mangold Wurtzel .. a variety of the ucet which is largely 400 FARMING FOR PROFIT. \\ \\ grown for stock. The roots grow to a large size and are " coarse in structure," but are formed of the same materials as ordinary beets. Whether they will furnish more nutritive matter per acre than some of the finer varieties of the beet is a ques- tion which is in dispute. When harvested, the beets, or mangolds, may be put into a cool cellar, in piles two or three feet in depth, and lightly cov- ered with earth, or they rriay be stored in pits or trenches, as already described for potatoes and sugar beets. It is not well to feed mangolds until tht niddle of winter, as a ripening process goes on until about that time, and the starch which they contain is converted into sugar. They should be fed after the turnips (if any are grown) are used, and at first only small quantities should be given at a time. Chufa. — This plant belongs to the sedge family and has its home near the Mediterranean* Sea. It is cultivated for its "nut-like, sweet-tasted" tubers, or roots, which are called chufa. There are many varieties. Some of them are considered per- nicious weeds, as they multiply rapidly by means of the tubers. These plants are hard to eradicate, especially from the sandy soil of the South. The " coco grass," which is there common, and also detested, belongs to this class of plants. The be?t variety (we think that only one sort is extensively grown in this country) is very prolific, is easily grown, and furnishes a good quality of food for hogs or poultry. The land should be well plowed and harrowed. The tubers may be planted in rows two feet apart, and one foot apart in the row. One tuber should be placed in each hill, and covered two inches deep. The planting should be done at the same time as it is for corn. When small the weeds must be kept down, and during the season the cultivator should be run between the rows several times. This crop thrives best at the South, and is not at all to be recommended for Northern cultivation. Carrot. — This is one of the best of the roots which are FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 401 grown for feeding to stock. When young the plants are quite feeble, but they are liable to but few diseases, and can be grown without great difficulty. The roots are much superior to the common turnips, and better than the ruta baga. If the land is well, manured, this crop can be grown upon the same field for many successive years. Carrots are of great value for feeding to horses. The effect of these roots upon the digestive organs is excellent, and they give a sleek appearance to the coat. They promote the health of all animals to which they are fed. Their laxative properties are beneficial, and tend to counteract the constipating tendencies of exclusive feeding with dry hay. When fed to cows carrots improve the quality of the milk, and increase its quantity. The color of the butter which is produced is much richer than that which is made from cows which are fed with- dry hay, and, when other things are favorable, its quality is very fine. Carrots should be grown upon good land which is free from stones, and which is neither wet nor very dry. It must be made quite rich, but most of the manure should be applied in the fall. The plowing should be very deep, but the manure ought to be used upon the surface. Both the manure and the surface soil should be made extremely fine. Bone-flour, super- phosphate, or guano, may be applied in the spring in addition to the yard-manure which is used in the fall, or may be used in case of a deficiency in the quantity of that material. The land should be plowed early in the spring, and plowed again just before time for sowing the seed. This in order to kill the weeds and pulverize the soil. The sowing may be done from the tenth of May until the tenth of June. On some accounts early sowing is to be pre- ferred, while on others it is better to sow rather late. The plants are weak when they first come up, and if the ground is dry and the sun extremely hot they are liable to be destroyed. But if the seed of the early sorts is put in early in the season, ri' : h 402 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the carrots are likely to ripen too soon, and to decay during the winter. The rows may be only twelve inches apart, for the small kinds, and fifteen for the large varieties. One and a half pounds of seed, if it is fresh and good, is sufficient for an acre. But much of the carrot seed which is sold is poor, and four pounds per acre are used by some growers of this crop. As soon as the plants come up, the wheel-hoe should be run as close to the rows as possible, and all necessary weeding must be given. During the season frequent hoeings and weedings should be given as they are required. When the plants are small they should be thinned to three or four inches apart. No weeds should be allowed to get a start, and if any of the carrots show a disposition to go to seed, the stalks should either be cut off, or else the roots must be pulled and thrown away. There are several varieties possessing very different qualities, and ripening at different periods. Of these we think the following are the best for cultivation on the farm. The Early Short Scarlet Horn is very early, and of quite good quality. The roots are short, but on good land quite a yield can be secured. The Short Horn is a similar variety, but a little longer and later. The Long Orange is one of the most popular varieties which has been introduced. It has long been a standard sort. Both the quality and color are very good. The greatest trouble is with the length of the roots. Being very long the labor of digging is much greater than that of harvesting the short kinds. The Danvers carrot is an intermediate variety which has been established by the large growers in Danvfrs, Mass. It is longer than the Short Horns, but shorter than the Long Orange. The roots are smooth and handsome, and of a rich orange color. From twenty to forty tons per acre can be grown. This is destined to be a very popular variety. The Large White Belgian is a large variety which is grown exclusively for stock. It yields largely, but chc quality is poor, and we think it will pay much better to grow some of the other varieties which have been named. I **n«« FARM AND FODDER CROPS. 403 The harvesting should be done as soon as the tops indicate that the plants are matured. If the weather is cold and there IS danger that the ground will freeze, this work may be done before the roots attain their full growth. The tops should be cut with a light, sharp hoe. If a little of the crown is removed the roots will keep just as well and not be quite as likely to -sprout in the winter. They may be dug with a fork, or a plow may be run close to each row and the roots pulled by hand We have sometimes pulled the Short Horn carrots without either digging or plowing. Carrots should be stored in a cellar which is cool and dry in piles not more than two and a half feet deep. They should not be placed upon the damp ground, but should always be laid in bms or upon a floor. Probably they can be kept in trenches m the ground if they are stored in only small quantities and are fully protected from the damp and frost. When seed is to be grown, the best roots should be selected, -those which are of good form and color-and set out by the- middle of April if danger from freezing is past. The land should be deeply plowed, and, if the roots are long, holes mav be made for them with an iron bar. The rows should be three and a half feet apart, and the roots placed a foot and a half apart in the row. The roots should be set deep enough to bring the crowns, even with the surface of the ground. During the season they should be hoed occasionally and all weeds should be kept down. The seed ripens unevenly and will need cutting at different times. When the branches become dry, and the seeds turn brown, the heads should be cut with shears and stored in a cool, dry room. Carrots should be run through a root-cutter before they are fed, and should always be put in the mangers. Cattle will eat them if they are cut and spread upon the grass. But it is much better to put cattle into the stable before giving them roots of any kind. If the roots are put in the mangers, cattle will eat 'ItV I ■ I! \' r ;i 4C4 FARAfING FOR PROFIT. them quietly and will not be as likely to get choked as they will if fed in the field. Parsnip. — This crop is not as extensively grown as it should be by those who make a business of growing roots. It is excel- lent for feeding to stock, and is one of the best of all roots to keep late in the spring. The parsnip should be grown on good land which is heavily manured, deeply plowed, and thoroughly pulverized. The seed may be sown either early or late in the season, but is likely to fail if the weather is very hot and the ground very dry. As a general rule, moderately early sowing will give the best results. The seeds are rather weak, and, on this account, should be thickly; sown. The cultivation should be the same as has been recommended for carrots. The har- vesting should be done late in the fall, though all the roots which are to be used in the spring may remain in the ground luntil that time. For seed-growing the same process should be pursued as is taken with carrots. Like the carrot, parsnip seed ripens unevenly, and several cuttings will be needed. Two seeds grow together. When they separate they are ripe, and the heads ■should be cut and spread in a cool loft to dry. With this crop, rich land and care in the early stages of the growth of the plants will be required in order to obtain a good yield. Turnip. — This is the most extensively grown of all the root crops, and is very popular in Europe as well as in the root- growing sections of this country. Both the common turnip and the ruta baga are great favorites with nearly all those farmers who grow root crops. While they may be advantageously grown, we do not think that they should be produced to the exclusion of all the other roots which have been named. They are of special value for feeding to sheep. For cows and horses carrots are much better. It is best to plow the land to a medium depth about the time of plowing for corn, to harrow it occasionally in order to destroy * it msk w inches of the bottom, and there wedge against the sides strongly enough to allow the trench above to be filled without settling into the channel. This form is not at all to be commended. no. 46. STONE DRAINS. piG. 47. Boards or planks are often used. If well laid, they will prove effective drains, and will last many years; but the material is of too perishable a nature, and should not be generally employed. The two leading materials in use are stones and tiles. Of these, the former are often vcrv abundant on farms which need draining, while the latter must be either bought or else manu- factured on the place. Stone drains can be made so that they will be very durable, and answer all the requirements of first- class structures. But. in order to be good, they must be very carefully made. There are several different forms in use. The particular one to be laid in any special instance must depend upon the shape of the stones of which the drain is composed. DRAINING. 411 It IS very desirable to have flat stones to lay upon the top and form the roof of the drain. These answer the double purpose of keeping out dirt and preventing the entrance of vermin For the same reasons flat stones ai the sides are of great value Stone drains arc very liable to become choked with sand and fine earth. The water passes through these drains very slowly and there is not strength of current enough to wash obstruct t.ons along. Frost is more likely to interfere with stone than with tile drains, and there arc various other reasons why tiles ^ are very much the best. Men who have had practical experi.. ence with both kinds almost invariably prefer the tiles. Mr Waring declares that tiles are much cheaper than stones and l.kely to be much more durable. He has shown, and many others have done the same, that when there is an abundance of stones on the farm, the owner will almost always find it for his interest to use tiles. The amount of time and labor required to get the stones together and select them for use is very great. The cost of digging the trench for stone drains is greatly in excess of that of making one for tiles. This because it must be very much larger, and it is also much slower filling with stones than it is to lay the tiles. But if the reverse were true, and it could be proved that the first cost of tile drains would be' considerable more than that of those made of stones, we should strongly favor tiles on the ground of their permanence. Still, a farmer may be so situated as to make it necessary for him to have stone drains if he has any. In these cases the stones should be used as the best material which is available. But as a general rule tiles will be both cheaper and better. Figure 46 reprosents a common form of stone drain. A much better one is shown in Figure 47. Figures 48 and 49 ' show the best form of tiles for ordinary drains. They are made of many different sizes. Figure 50 represents the " Y " form of the sole tile. This is to be used when two drains come together at an angle, and is a great improvement on the ordinary -fTW" 412 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Style which must be fitted as it is used. The common tiles can be fitted, but with the tools which the farmer usually has the operation is a somewhat difficult one to perform. The " Y " and every other desirable form is made by the Moorhead Clay Works, of Philadelphia. This Company received the Ccnten- nial award for tiles and all other articles made of clay or its compounds. Upon the principle of expediency merely, there are some farmers who can make use of the Mole-Plow for underdraining with manifest advantage. This implement is not at all adapted to general use, as it will only do good work in strong clay soils, and in some of these it is not very successful. For a man who FIG. 48.— ROUND 11 LK AM» COLLAR. ; : FIG. 49. FIG. 50. — SOLE " V " TILES. can do no better this plow will be a useful implement, but it should not be used with a view of obtaining permanent results. Where it works well, the drains keep open a few years and remove the surplus water from the land. But they are very liable to cave in from the top and sides, and thus become useless. In some parts of Ohio these drains have been quite successful, and they have been used with varying results in England and in different clay soils in this country. For a poor man to use as a makeshift until he can obtain something of greater permanence they may be recommended, but they should never be used when tiles can be afforded. There is a great deal more land in this country which needs draining than many people suppose. Not only the extremely DRAINING. 413 wet, swampy fields, but many tracts which are only occasionally too wet would be greatly improved by a thorough system of drainage. Fields containing many springs, sandy or other porous soils with clay, or other hard and impervious sub-soil, and all clay soils may be said to need thorough draining. That swamps, and land full of springs, need draining is too evident to require an argument to support the assertion. Soils which are only occasionally too wet need draining in order to insure the regular production of good crops. In dry seasons they may do well, but in wet years the yield is usually very light and the quality is inferior. It often happens that the heaviest rain-fall comes at a time when the farmer is in a hurry to work the land, and that great loss is occasioned by the delay which is thui; necessitated. Planting is often delayed ten days, or longer, by this cause, and the crop much diminished in consequence. Sometimes the rain comes just as the farmer wants to cultivate his crop. Then the work must be put oflT, haying soon .comes on, and the crop suffers greatly from neglect. These hea\*y rains also keep the soil very cold— a condition highly unfavor- able to the growth of plants. The average rain-fall in the United States is about three inches per month. In some States (and some which have a very compact and retentive soil) it averages about three and one- third inches. A large proportion of this immense amount of water must leave the soil either by drainage or evaporation. In order to be in a good condition for crops, the land must be moist but not wet. Therefore there is a great deal of water to dispose of If the soil is retentive and the land is level, almost all of this water must be evaporated. If the soil is porous, but the sub-soil is impervious, a large part of the work of removal must be done in the same manner. Let us consider for a moment what the removal of this water by evaporation involves. Evaporation consists in the conversion of water into vapor. From undrained land the water must be removed, in this way, ll %V\ : Ifl' ' I 414 FARMING FOR PROFIT. by the heat of the sun. To convert water into vapor requires about four times as much heat as is needed to bring it to the boihng point from a temperature only just above the freezing point. An inch of rain, equal to three hundred and sixty hogsheads of water, frequently falls upon an acre of land in a single shower. If this land is not drained, there must be heat enough from the sun to bring nearly fifteen hundred hogsheads of water from a freezing to a boiling point, in order to remove the surplus water furnished by this one shower. Take the average autumn and spring rains at ten inches each, and the winter rains and snows at eight inches, and consider the immense amount of heat required to fit an undrained soil for planting. But a small proportion of the autumn rains can be evaporated when they fall, because the weather is so cold. The same is true of the rains and snows of winter. Therefore in the spring this vast accumulation of moisture must be removed. Instead of warming the land, as it would if the soil were reasonably dry, the heat of the sun must be used for evaporating the water, and the undrained fields will be cold and wet long after those which are drained are warm and dry. Thus draining the land enables the farmer to do his planting early in the season, and cultivate his crops at the proper time. It also makes the land so much warmer that the autumn frosts will be delayed, and more time will be given for the corn to ripen, the rowen to grow, and other crops to mature. Draining also acts as a powerful agent in preventing injury to crops in time of drought. A well-drained .soil is not only drier in a wet time, but contains more moisture than an undrained one when the rain-fall is insuflScient. The draining loosens and deepens the soil, and allows it to condense and absorb a much larger quantity of moisture from the air and dews than an undrained soil. The roots of plants are also able to penetrate to a much greater depth, go nearer the point of constant n.ois- ture, and present a much larger surface to the action of the DRAINING. 4j(- earth and air. It has often been noticed that land which has been deeply plowed withstands the drought much better than the same kind of soil which has been cultivated shallow. What deep plowing does, in this respect can be accomplished by thorough undcrdraining. When they go together the very best results are obtained, and by their aid injury from any ordinary drought may be wholly prevented. During a severe drought in New Jersey, in 1855, the fences on the land of Prop. Mapes were found to be the boundaries of its influence. The land all around this farm was parched, and the crops were being spoiled, while the land inside the fences was unaffected, and the crops' were in splendid condition. This was not caused by any difference in the natural character of the soils, but by the thorough drainage and deep culture of the farm belonging to Prof. Mapes. Draining makes a damp location much more healthful for men and animals, as well as for crops. It prevents the accumu- lation of surface water, which soon stagnates and becomes a prolific source of disease. Drainage of wet districts in cities has greatly reduced the annual death-rate, and decreased the amount of sickness which is not fatal. In the country attacks of malarial diseases are much more frequent and severe in wet locations than they are in dry ones. Veterinarians have called the attention of fat-mers to the fact that many diseases of sheep and cattle are either directly caused or greatly aggravated by wet pastures. This fact furnishes a strong argument in favor of draining pastures, although the increase in quantity, and improvement in quality of the grass which it will produce, would seem to be a sufficient inducement for the owners of the stock to undertake the work. We have already alluded to the fact that our cultivated plants will not make a healthy growth in standing water. If much water stands upon the surface of the land the plants will die. If there are a {q^ inches of stagnant water under the surface, resting upon an impervious 416 FARMING FOR PROFIT. subsoil, the roots will go to this water-line and stop. The plants will present a yellow and sickly appearance, and will yield either a light harvest or none at all. But if the land is drained, the plants will make a strong and vigorous growth, the soil will be so open that the rains will carry down the soluble elements of plant-food to the roots, leaving the land moist without flooding it, and the crops will be comparatively free from the diseases which are likely to attack plants which grow in wet localities. Draining also prevents the winter-killing which often proves so injurious to wheat and rye. When the subsoil is impervious, the autumn rains make the surface soil very wet. In the winter the water in this soil freezes and thaws, causing the land to " heave," and breaking and uncovering the roots of the grain. If this process is often repeated it proves very destructive. Many a field of wheat which looked finely in the fall has been utterly ruined by this cause. If the water is not allowed to accumulate, as it will not be on well-drained land, there will be but very little trouble from this source. The grain will not only look nicely in the fall, but will go through the winter without injury, and be ready to grow rapidly in the spring. Since draining has become general in England, the average wheat yield has more than doubled. This increase has not been so much in the direction of excessively large crops, as it has in the line of making it more certain that a crop shall be produced. Failures, which before were quite common, are now very rare, and almost all the land devoted to the production of this crop adds something to the amount of grain which is actually grown. If every acre devoted to wheat in this country could be made to produce merely a medium yield, the total amount grown would be immensely increased. For there are now thousands of acres which produce only a very little, which count in the report of acres, but produce so few bushels of wheat as to make scarcely an addition to the figures representing the quantity grown. DRAINING. 417 In this way the average production is brought very low. Thorough draining would make most of these fields productive, and thus largely increase the yield of grain, and the profits of growing it. Another effect of thorough draining is to greatly increase the efficacy of the fertilizers which are applied to the land. This end is accomplished in various ways. The drained soil absorbs the fertilizing elements which the water contains or which may have been washed from manures. But in the undrained soil much of this fertilizing material is lost. Water flows from the land, and, being so completely saturated, the soil cannot absorb anything from it. It is supposed that plants receive their food in a state of solution— dissolved in water. If this is the case it is easy to see why an excess of moisture is detrimental to crops. Their food is so diluted that they can obtain but a very little. A plant can take only a certain quantity. If the food which should be dissolved in a pint of water is spread through a quart, twice the time which ought to be sufficient will be required for the plant to obtain its supply A calf that was obliged to drink a barrel of water to obtain a pail of milk which had been stirred therein would grow very slowly. Every one knows better than to feed a calf in this way. But when the farmer attempts to grow his crops in a wet, undrained soil, he tries to feed his plants upon the same principle. It is plain that no great success can attend such efforts. In very dry seasons, manures which are used upon undrained lands are not as efficient as they are upon drained soils of the same nature. This is due to the fact that the former are very compact and do not allow the small quantity of rain which falls to pass freely through them, while the latter are mellow and porous and allow the rain to wash down the elements of fertility to the roots of the plants. In a wet season, manures applied to wet land do not prove of much benefit because the presence of an excess of water prevents the decomposition without which W m III 111 # 418 FARMING FOR PROFIT. manure cannot be made available for the use of crops. The flict that there is much less waste of fe.tilizing elements from a well- drained soil than from one which is full of water also accounts for the increased permanence in the effect of manures which has so often been observed. The cost of draining will vary greatly with the character of the soil/the kind of drains, the depth at which they are placed the cost of labor, expense of materials, and various other items which in different sections command different prices. We have already indicated our preference for tile drains. We consider them altogether the best, and believe that in those sections where land is valuable most farmers who can afford to drain their land at all can afford to use tiles, and that, when per- manence and efficiency are considered, they will find tiles much cheaper than either stone or wood. But where land is too cheap, or the owner cannot afford tiles, let him use the best material which he can secure. Even brush drains are a great deal better than none. The same may be said of turf drains and open ditches. Because a farmer cannot have the best is no reason why he should do without drains. If he cannot afford tiles, let him commence draining in an inexpensive manner, and the profits of his business may soon increase so that he can use better materials. The subject is one in which farmers throughout the country are deeply interested. To those of the South it may be said to have a special importance. Prof. Pendleton has called atten- tion to the fact that much of the hilly land in some of the best farming sections has become impoverished by a bad system of culture, and by continual washings away of the soil and manure which have been swept into the valleys which are now too wet to be serviceable. He says that many valuable bottoms have been lost to cultivation, and malarial fevers have become much more prevalent than they formeriy were. These lands, if well under- drained, would become the most profitable of any in the South. THE WATER SUPPLY. 419 "The uplands need an annual outlay of money for manures, more than the ditching would cost." When once done as it should be, the underdraining will last an age, and the land will long be productive without requiring an excessive outlay for fertilizers. Here seems to be an opportunity to make a per- manent improvement and still save money by the operation. If part of the money now paid for fertilizers to be used on the uplands were to be invested in draining the lowlands, which are already rich, they would immediately become more productive than the other fields, larger crops would be obtained at a reduced cost, and the cash value of the farms would be greatly increased. Unlike some permanent improvements draining makes an im- mediate return. Upon heavy clay soils the best effects will not be observed until the second year, but much benefit will be obtamed the first season. When once thoroughly done, if the land is valuable, draining pays a large percentage upon the cost of Its performance. This work is not done merely for the pres- ent, but also for the future. It makes returns immediately and will continue to make them every season for an indefinite time In many cases the draining of his wet land will be one of the safest and best paying improvements which the owner can make on his farm. m >sl 1 1 IX THE WaTEH S^FFI^ir. OTH the comfort and the henlth of the farmer and his family, and the thrift of his domestic animals, will de- pend, in no small degree, upon the quantity and quality of the water which is furnished on the farm. To be without an adequate supply of water, even for a short time at any season of the year, causes a great deal of suffering and involves losses and injuries of various kinds. When the quan- tity ,s ^abundant but the quality is poor, the evil is greatly M ! 1 f 11 . M Hi f "^ 1 1 1 r FAI^.VIXG FOR PROFIT. increased. Tlie danger is constant, and though the results of exposure are not always at once apparent, they are pretty cer- tain to become manifested sooner or later and to bring a great deal of suffering in their train. For while it is impossible to live without water, and very unpleasant to be obliged to get along with an insufficient quantity, it is absolutely dangerous to use water which is very impure. Too many farmers regard the water supply as merely a convenience. They are glad if they have good water, and sorry if they have poor, but they do not appreciate the one nor realize the danger involved in the use of the other. Probably nine out of ten farmers who have only a poor quality of water on their farms regard it as merely an inconvenience, and think of a supply of _c ood water as they do of a silver-plated harness — a good thing to have, but one which the average farmer can get along well enough without. The idea that it would pay, not merely in convenience and comfort, but in dollars and cents, to make an effort to obtain good water, has never entered their minds. They will probably be inclined to doubt our assertion that it will pay — an assertion which we •do not hesitate to make — until they have given the matter a little careful thought. Then they will be thoroughly convinced that it is just as important to invest money, if need be, to secure good water, as it is to be at great expense to obtain houses and barns. The sources of supply of water for the farm are but {cw in number, and upon most farms but one or two are in practical operation. A very k\v farms are so situated as to have running water at the house and barn, or at either one of these buildings. When this water flows from a good spring, through a good con- ductor, and care is taken to divert the waste from the buildings. all the advantages of a water supply may be secured and its ■dangers can be almost wholly avoided. When the spring is impure, the water must be bad. When it is taken from a small, stagnant, dirty frog-pond, the water becomes an element of Tim WATER SUPPLY. 421 rom a small, element of danger. Water flowing through a lead pipe, even though the water at the spring may be first-rate, often brings poison into the house and undermines the health of the inmates. This is especially true of water which acts strongly upon lead, and of those cases in which the water runs quite a distance and with considerable rapidity. Not only are the inmates of the farm- house poisoned by water which has become impregnated with lead by flowing through a pipe of that material, but the cattle often sustain severe injury from the same cause. Many cases have been observed in which cattle failed to do well, and the cause wa.s traced to the use of water passing through lead pipe. That water flowing through lead pipes is dangerous to the health of both man and beast there is an abundance of medical and chem- ical evidence which we have not space to present, but which ought to be sufficient to prevent the use of this material for con- veying water which is to be used for drinking purposes. Careful observation of the health of families and animals using water which flows in lead pipes should be a means of inducing others to let such water alone. The slow but certain accumulation of poison in the system must work the greatest injury to the health. We should never favor the use of lead for conducting water which is to be drank by man or beast. Wood is not as con- venient or as durable, but is usually cheaper than lead, and has the immense advantage of being safe. Iron is often used, and generally gives satisfaction. Other materials are sometimes employed. But for ordinary farm-use we prefer wooden pipes, made of good material, and carefully laid. The advantages of good running water to the house and barn are much greater than are generally supposed— but water should never be taken from a poor spring to be used about the buildings. The farmer who has a never-failing spring of good water conveniently located has a treasure which is worth far more than it is usually estimated by owners or their neighbors. Such a I t ' !; 5 1 gree of success, while many other men, of good education and superior ability, have neglected this point while attending to many others and have not been able to succeed. There are theories which have been veiy nicely elaborated and which prove, as far as theories can, that an enlightened and strictly first-class style of farming demands the cultivation of only a few kinds of crops by the individual farmer. We have been very often told that scientific farming requires a man to find what crops his land is the best fitted to produce, and then devote himself with all possible zeal to the grov/th of those par- ticular products. A great many farmers have been carried away with the idea, and are now growing their " specialties" with very indifferent success. The theory which looked so plausible on paper docs not give as good practical results as were both ex- pected and desired. There are certain places where it works very well, and if there were a good market for everything at every man's door there would be no difficulty in its general acceptance. But such markets do not exist and cannot be made. We are obliged to take things as they are, without regard to what they ought to be, or to what they might be under different circum- stances. Wisdom requires us to deal with facts to a much greater extent than we do with theories. Of all the facts which have a direct bearing upon the business of the farmer, few are more clearly set forth by the experience of the past than that, as a rule applicable to all sections, home production of articles needed for home consumption is the surest way in which to win success. Where one man has succeeded in the cultivation of special crops, probably ten men have been successful in following a course of mixed husbandry. The latter run much less risk and average much higher profits than the former. In times of general business depression the man who produces a large proportion of his own household necessities has an immense advantage over his neighbor who grows but a few crops and is no ME PRODUCTTO2V. 433 obliged to buy nearly everything which is used in his family. At such times the difference between the results obtained by these methods appears greater than it does when all kinds of business are good, but at all times the man who is obliged to buy but little, even though he has but little to sell, is the one who is on the direct road to success. This principle of home production is the only one upon which farmers can act with the assurance of becoming really indepen- dent. We read and hear a great deal about the privations of the pioneer settlers, and there is no doubt that they are obliged to give up many things which would make them more comfort- able and happy. At the same time there is abundant proof that these settlers, who have to fight their way with nature, who have but few tools and but little to do with though they have many obstacles to overcome, are very likely to succeed in securin"-. homes c.nd obtaining property. There is no secret in the way in which they secure their desired ends. They work hard, it is true, but this can also be said cf most of the farmers in the older settled portions of the country. They arc economical, and so are a multitude of farmers who do not get along in the world. The main difference between the pioneer and the man who has always lived in a thickly settled region is to be found in the fact that the former grows upon his own land almost everything which himself or his family consumes, while the latter i? constantly buying of others things which he needs, .-nd which he ou"-ht to but does not, grow for himself It is tr"e that the man living in a community is obliged to incur some expenses which the pio- neer does not have to meet. He cannot, and he ought not to try to live just as the pioneer does. With the progress of civil- ization the expenses of living will, for a while, increase. But with these extra expenses come many compensations of both a moral and a pecuniary nature, and every one should rejoice in the progress which has been made. Viewed in a moral light it is of immense importance, both to the individual and the I h M ■f •i ■I 14 If 434 FARMING FOR PROFIT. community, that the benefits of churches, and schools, and post- offices, should be extended to all the people in our land. From a pecuniary standpoint we find that though the neces- sary expenses of living are somewhat increased, the opportunities for accumulation are also enlarged, and that the same principles which were followed in the wilderness will icad to, at least, an equal degree of success on the farm in the vicinity of a village or town. The farmer who lives in a civilized community needs money for more purposes than the pioneer, but as he has many more ways of obtaining it, th.^ can hardly be considered a dis- advantage. . He will be obliged to modify the details somewhat, but the same general principles should be allowed to govern his course. If it is objected that the difference in circumstances and surroundings between the pioneer and the farmer in a thickly settled community is so great that no legitimate comparison can be instituted, we not only reply that the objection does not seem to be well founded, but also that plenty of examples can be found in the older communities which prove, beyord all chance of cavil or doubt, that home production is the key to success on the farm. If he will only look around him, probably every farmer will find examples of the success Avhich has been secured : / adopt- ing this principle. There are men in almost every hamlet who have year after year been striving to supply their wants from their own farms. They are, as a general rule, very quiet men. They do not attend conventions and their voices are not heard in public meetings in which the problems of the farm are dis- cussed. Their silence has been the means of causing their work to remain almost unnoticed. They do not carry on an immense business. Other men seem to be doing a great deal more than they. But when it comes to the profit, which is the end in view, they are far in advance of their more prominent neighbors. There are no mortgages upon their farms and they have no large outstanding bills. They are not obliged to buy HOME production: 435 largely on the credit of a crop yet to be grown, and they are never eft a.- the mercy of dealers in a certain kind of grahx or compelled to risk everything upon the success or failure of a single crop. We are well aware that those who are opposed to this view present some very plausible arguments against it. but we also know how the two theories work in practical experience, and we are strongly inc'ined to favor that which gives good resu'ts .n practice in preference to a plan which is ably supported by arguments but which breaks down under a practical test. Dur- ^ng the past fifteen years we have seen the workings of the spccalty system on an extensive scale. We expected apartial fa. ure. but the results were far more disastrous than we antici- pated. In one of the finest farming sections of this broad land he specialty system, in connection with evils which naturally follow m .ts course, has brought hundreds of men. who under the old system of culture were doing well, into circumstances of financial embarrassment, while many have been sold out of liouse and home by the sheriff Twenty years ago the farmers in the Connecticut Valley were dou,g a small but a reasonably profitable business. They cul- fvated a variety of crops, produced on their own farms a large par of their household necessities, and had no debts which they could not pay. But in an evil hour some venturesome spirits found that tobacco would pay a large profit. The price advanced rap.dly. the demand increased, and a multitude of farmers wha had been in the habit of growing corn, potatoes and hay, turned H h,ch m olden t.me well-nigh ruined the staid old inhabitants of HoLLAKn th,s tobacco mania seemed to fairly possess the souls of men who had been regarded as wise counsellors and worthy examples. Young men thought they saw the way to fortune very clearly n,arked out. and bought land for the culture and rut up^bu.ldmgs for the curing of tobacco, going into debt for Nri' ■II . ft 6 if? ' II'' m. t fl Hi II mm I II Ml 436 FARMING FOR PROFIT. both land and buildings with a recklessness almost sublime. Land rapidly advanced in price. In some ections land which was barely worth one hundred dollars was sold for fi^'e hundred dollars per acre. Men seemed to think that by making a spe- cialty of tobacco they could afford to pay almost any price for land. Not only did they buy ! nd at fearfully inflated prices, but they bought almost everything else. They had but little money, and soon were deeply in debt ; but by growing tobacco they expected to make money enough to pay for everything which they wanted to buy.. Those were golden days for dealers in sewing machines, parlor organs and pianos. Sales could be easily effected at prices which were highly satisfactory to the agents and their employers. The idea also became firmly fixed in a great many minds that the tobacco-grower could buy all the ordinary farm-products cheaper than he could grow them. Many a farmer, who in former times had made money in growing corn for half what was then its selling price, was convinced that it would not pay him to grow corn, for he could buy it for less than the actual cost of cultivation. The same reasoning was applied to almost all of the other old-fashioned crops. As the inevitable result of such a course, farmers not only had nothing but tobacco to sell, but, far worse than this, they were constantly obliged to buy things which they had formerly grown at home. After a few years, the farms began to show an unmistakable decline. The few acres which had been devoted to tobacco, and to which large quai lities of fertilizers had been applied, were in fine con- dition, but all the rest of the farm had been robbed in order to make the tobacco fields rich enough to produce a good crop. Still farmers seemed to have implicit faith in the future of tobacco, and though their debts remained unpaid, and their bills at the village store were daily increasing in amount, they were not alarmed. Once a year they sold their tobacco. For a few HOME PRODUCTION. ^g.^ days they had considerable money. But when the store bills were settled, and the interest on their borrowed money was paid, they were, in a financial point of view, pretty well reduced. In a short time the old credit system was again adopted. They bought freely, promising to pay when they sold their tobacco. Large quantities of fertilizers were bought to be paid for when the crop to which they were applied was ripe and sold. Sound busi- ness principles seemed to be forgotten by buyer and seller alike. All parties who were engaged in the business failed to see that tobacco-growing not only possessed all the weakness which is inherent in the one crop system, but certain elements of danger not necessarily connected with the growing of a specialty. But in time their eyes were opened. When it was too late their mistake became evident. Tobacco proved to be a very uncertain crop. In good seasons, when the land was of a suitable nature and was well prepared, there w^s no great difficulty in securing a good yield. But some seasons were not favorable, and the crop did not do well. One summer an untimely hail-storm utterly destroyed the whole crop for many farmers who had made it their chief reliance for the support of their families for a year. Some seasons drought seriously injured it; at other times the tobacco- worm was terribly destructive; and when these evils were avoided or overcome, others seemed to be ready to carry on the ruinous work. Then, too, when the growth of the crop was all that could be desired, the curing process was not always safely accomplished. In some cases, after the cost of growing and harvesting had been sustained, a defect in the curing almost ruinei the product. After a while a time came when the demand for tobacco ceased Unlike corn, or wheat, or many other crops which are some- times grown as specialties, this product could not be consumed at home. For all practical purposes it was wholly worthless. Unfl it would sell it was good for nothing. Prices rapidly 3' r;, % ir i '. f I I' ill pil ! 438 FARMING FOR PROFIT. went down, and the dream of the tobacco-grower came to an end. Many farmers found debts pressing heavily upon them with no means of payment. " Hard times" came on, and property depreciated rapidly in value until it came to a point where prices were merely nominal. Some of those who had done the largest busin-ss and been considered wealthy men went through bankruptcy, and jxiid but a few cents on a dollar. Others compromised with their creditors, while some sanguine men attempted to pull through. Like the growth of Jonah's gourd, the prosperity of this industry was sudden and brilliant ; while like the decay of that vine, whose history will be immortal, its failure was sudden, unexpected and complete. It was a terrible revelation, but it came with all the force of solemn truth. Perhaps some reader will be inclined to assert that all this loss and evil was due to the peculiar times and the extra- ordinary circumstances by which these men were surrounded rather than to their devotion to a special line of farming. But this suggestion is shown to be wholly at fault by the fact that scattered through the various towns in which this tobacco mania raged, were many farmers who did not deviate from their old style of managing business, and who have gone straight through these troublous times without financial embarrassment, whose work has paid them well, and who are now regarded as successful farmers by men who a few years ago thought them " old fogies," and were sure that they were lacking in enterprise as well as in judgment. The test has been very severe, and the lesson is well worth remembering. Let no one think that fancy has heightened the colors of this sketch of the tobacco interest. We have lived in the midst of the excitement, and have seen the results. We know whereof we do affirm, when we assert that the making of tobacco a specialty was a ruinous experi- ment. Yet many things were favorable for its cultivation. A very fine quality of leaf was secured, and when tobacco was in no ME PRODrCTlON. 439 demand this grade sold for a high price. Probably some tobacco might have been grown without involving pecuniaiy loss. Merely from a financial standpoint it might have paid well. The trouble was chiefly caused by making its produc- tion a specialty. And trouble of like nature, though of loss extent, will be liable to come to farmers who engage in any specialty to the exclusion of all other productions. The idea, advocated by the specialist, that the man who gives his whole time and attention to the production of a single crop can grow that crop to better advantage than he could if he gave it only part of his time and attention, is undoubtedly correct. The weak place in the argument is to be found in the fact that when this crop is grown the owner has only one product on hand while he needs many. For him to obtain these products is not merely a matter of convenience, it is a case of necessity. Then, too, the specialists have an idea that certain crops can be bought cheaper than they can be raised, and they bring this reasoning to bear upon almost every crop which the farmer can grow. They seem to think that they can prove by figures that each and every farm-crop costs more to produce than it sells for in market That this is false reasoning is abundantly proved by the fact that the average farmer supports a family and pays taxes without running into debt If the theory of the specialists were true, the harder they worked the more money the farmers who grow the ordinary crops would lose. It is not uncommon to hear farmers in the older States assert that it costs a dollar a bushel to grow Indian corn while it can be bought for sixty-five cents, and to reason from this that a farmer had better not try to grow this crop. That there is a mistake in their figures is proved by the fact that our most successful farmers are corn-growers. If any other crop is taken as an example, men will be found in every farming community who will assert that its selling price is far below its real cost It is generally impossible to convince these men by I 1 ; ''Hi l' l^fF I f 440 FARMING FOR PROFIT. taking a single crop for an example, but even they can sec that the farmer cannot buy everything which he uses. Unless he cul- tivates some crop which he can cither sell or use he will speedily find his way to the poor-house. As a general rule, the nearer he can come to supplying his own wants the more successful the farmer will be. We think there is a very strong tendency in all parts of the country to abandon all exclusive specialties and adopt a system of diversified farming, and we are glad to note that many of the leading agricultural journals strongly f;i or this change. In some sections it is becoming almost a necessity for the farmer to increase the number and variety of his crops. The specialties which have long been almost exclusively grown have nearly exhausted the soil of the particular elements of which they are composed, and the crops which are now secured are small and rapidly becoming unprofitable. A system of rotation of crops will give a great deal of aid in restoring the fertility of the land and increasing the quantity of its productions. Not only does home production secure a fair reward for his labor, but it also insures to the farmer a good degree of inde- pendence. This is an important element and must never be omitted from the account when the profits of various methods of farming are under consideration. The farmer who is doing a large business in one direction and attempting nothing else is not as independent as the one who does much less but grows many different crops. At first glance it may seem as if this division of his energies would be a ruinous thing, but closer inspection will prove it to be very beneficial. In order that our meaning may be clear we will suppose two cases. The first is that of a farmer who makes wheat-growing a specialty. As far as farming is concerned, his whole attention is devoted to the production of this one crop. He strives to grow it as cheaply as possible, and bends all his energies to the accomplishment of this one aim. He is an intelligent man and HOME PRODUCTION. 44^ is reasonably successful in his endeavor. He grows a large quantity of good wheat and has no difficulty in selling it when there is a call for this kind of grain. Occasionally, when the prices are very low, he holds on for an advance. As a general rule this docs not prove a good method, and he usually sells for the market rates. In order to grow as large a quantity as he desires he is obliged to keep several horses and x few hired men. Both the hovvjs an i the men must be fed, but neither of them can subsist c i rvheai i, one. Meal must be bought for the team and many an ol*: ; for th : men. Even hay is purchased by some farmers who aru '!?£;jged in growing specialties. While the income from the sale nf the large lot of wheat is considerabli', it is secured at a great disadvantage. The soil, as already shown, will either be rapidly exhausted of some of the most valuable mineral elements of plant-food or else these elements must be furnished by the owner at a great and con- stant expense. It makes a great difference with the profit of a crop whether the manure which is needed for its growth can be obtained from the farm, without any direct expense, or must be purchased at high prices and paid for in cash. If a man is obliged to pay several hundred dollars every year for fertilizers it will not only reduce the profits of his business, but, in a few years, this money with the accumulated interest will amount to a large sum. In order to return this money with interest, and over and above these items pay for the labor which is performed, interest and taxes on the land and other capital invested, and keep this capital unimpaired besides paying the other and inevit- able costs of production, the wheat crop must return a very large sum. After deducting these items many wheat-growers would have but little, if any money left. But whjn this crop is made the only reliance, the farmer and his family must be supported from its proceeds. It should return enough not only to pay all the expenses 0/ its production but also to keep the family in comfort for at least a year. This ;■ 1 1 • 1 ( ifil 1 ' ' ill m ill ffi ' 1 >;| ffi ' 'in ^ fll 442. FARMING FOR PROFIT. is not all. On a farm managed in this manner the labor is per- formed at a great disadvantage. Much of the time both men and teams are comparatively idle. There is nothing which can be done for the wheat, and there is nothing else to do anything for. But the pay of the men and the expense of keeping the teams go on without reduction. When time for work comes the labor is very hard and exact- ing, but it must receive prompt attention or else great loss will result. This way of working is not as conducive to health as the slower and steadier methods of toil which are followed where many different crops are grown. Again, in selling the wheat crop and buying family supplies there is quite a percentage of loss which it is usually impos- sible to avoid. This will appear when we reflect that the wheat which the farmer disposes of to the dealer is sold for the lowest wholesale rates. Every man through whose hands it passes charges a profit thereon, and by the time it reaches the consumer the price is much higher than the farmer was able to obtain. The same principle governs the sale of all other products. Consequently, while the farmer sells his wheat at the very lowest market quotations, when he comes to buy the products of other farms he becomes a consumer and is obliged to go to the other end of the scale and pay the high retail rates. Had he pro- duced these things hiitiself, he could have had them all at whole- sale prices, but in preferring to grow wheat with which to pay for them he loses the difference between these two extremes. This is a matter of no small importance. It costs a great deal to supp^"t a family M'hen the purchases of supplies are all econom- ically made and the average farmer has no money to waste or to \c '^. in unprofitable exchanges. With the present styles of living and dressing there will be a necessity for as much buy- ing as the f .mcr ought to do if he produces all that he can at iiome. HOME PRODUCTION. 443 at hs C^n at Let us now consider the method adopted by the farmer who believes in home production. He does not devote his whole attention to the culture of any particular crop, but endeavors to grow many kinds and grow them well. He desires to obtain a good grass crop, at a cost not exceeding its real value. To secure this he keeps a good stock of cattle to which the hay is fed. The manure from these cattle is an.ilied to the various cultivated crops, and much of it remains to enrich the soil and produce grass after the crops to which it was originally applied have been removed. Good wheat is succeeded by good grass which remains productive for several yc.rs. As milk and butter are wanted for family use, a few good cows are kept to furnish a supply. Corn is grown for the purpose of feeding the hogs and fcr fattening the beef which is needed in the family. Oats sre frequently wanted for horses and young stock, and are produced on the farm. Either wheat or rye, and in many cases both, find a place in sufficient quantity to furnish the family with bread. Roots and vegetables are also grown in abundance, and poultry is kept to furnish eggs and meat. In short, almost every vege- table and animal production which the farmer needs and can grow is given a place on his farm. This adds considerably to his work, it is true, but it also greatly reduces the household expenses. The farm, as a whole, is kept in much better con- dition and at a much less expense than is usually done under the one crop system, and much of the extra work which is required is done at those times in which both men and teams would otherwise be unemployed. By this system many of the wants of the farmer and his family are not only supplied, but there is often a surplus of the various products which can be exchanged for articles which cannot be produced on the farm. Eggs can be exchanged for tea and coffee, and butter can be made to pay for many of the little things which the grocer must furnish. Poultry can be exchanged for other meat, if desired, and vegetables are often given in pay- '1! alii i B|' 1 444 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ment for other classes of goods. Thus, instead of being obliged to sell all that he grows and pay cash for all that he buys, the farmer can exchange many of his products for things that he needs. Of course, these products cost him something, but they do not, at least do not need to, cost him as much as he receives for them. Thus there is a direct profit on the articles which he exchanges as well as a saving in furnishing these things instead of money. Take the hens for an illustration. — It costs some- thing to keep them, but if they are properly managed this cost is considerably below their selling price. Then, too, the hens pick up a great deal of material which they can utilize, yet which but for them would be wholly washed. The production of sugar on the farm is another good illustration of the profits of home growing of all the household necessities that the farm can supply. If the farmer attempts nothing of this kind he is obliged to pay quite a sum eyery year, often several dollars every month, for sugar and molasses. But if he has a maple orchard, or, where this is impossible, grows sorgo or the sugar cane, he can obtain nearly all of these materials which he will need for a very small outlay in money. Some labor will be required, but it will be labor which is well rewarded. If either sugar cane or sorgo is g^own and the business of the farmer is not large enough to warrant the purchase of a mill, there can generally be found neighbors enough to club together and buy one to be used in common, or else some one in the vicinity already possessing a mill will ^ rk up the cane for a share of the product. In either of these ways, one of which will be found feasible in all sections where either the Sugar (Ribbon) Cane or Sorgo can be grown, the home production of sugar can be made very profitable, while the manufacture of sugar and syrup from the sap of the Maple tree requires so small an investment that any farmer who has a good sugar orchard can easily obtain the few and simple Implements whic!» he will need for making it rsroductivc. • Other illustrations might be given, but enough has been said HOME PRODVCTION. 446 to show the far greater degree of independence of the farmer who attempts to supply his household wants, than can be enjoyed by the one who makes a specialty of a single crop and gives all his time and skill to its production. But this chapter ought not to close without calling attention to the great risk which the specialist is constantly obliged to r-.m. If his hopes are all cen- tred upon the wheat ci >, and all of his income as well a^ all the material for supplying his household necessities must come from this one product, and for any reason wheat proves a failure his loss is very heavy. We all know that wheat sometimes fails to produce a paying crop and that oLier grains are subject to similar risks. From this we should infer that farmers would much rathei grow several crops than to stake everything upon a single one. If a man grows wheat, and corn, and oats, and potatoes, there is no probability that the season will be so unfavorable as to destroy all of these crops. The wheat may be injured, and the other crops saved. Or one or two of the other crops may suffer, and the remaining ones still do well. This matter of comparative safety is a very important one to all farmers of limited means, A wealthy farmer does not like to lose all the crops of a whole season, but he will not be wholly ruined by such a loss. The poor man, however, who has all that he can well do to keep along when things go reasonably well, cannot afford to take any extra risks. With him safety and certainty should be the principal conditions and recomm.endations to be required in the selection of his crops. The man who follows this course will not handle as much money as the specialist will obtain in favorable seasons, but he will have much more comfort and less anxiety, and will be very likely to find more real profit when he balances his books for the year, than the man who has grown only one crop can show. For it is not, by any means, the amount of money which men receive which makes them rich, but the amount which they are able to save, and a small (i| .(I ^'.'. 1 I i lis m I' ! i I 446 FARMING FOR PROFIT. business which is properly managed, and in conducting which but few expenses are involved, will often pay much better than a large one in which the expenditures are both large and constant. Th-^ old proverb, " a penny saved i;; a penny earned," has a great deal of truth in a very small compass. If by growing, an acre of wheat the farmer can save the payment of twenty dollars for flour which his family needs, he has really secured as much as though he had earned that amount of money, and then exchanged it for flour. This principle has a wide range of application, and should always be remembered by the man who desires to be - oessful farmer. Not only docs the general principle of home production seem to be a safo and desirable one for the farmer to follow, but the tendencies of the present time, and the condition of the soil in large sections of the country, both point to its adoption as far preferable to any other plan of cultivation which has yet been tested. It is not as easy to obtain money now as it was a few years ago, but the great necessities of food and clothing are in just ?i ^ood demand, and are just as truly required as they ever were. That they always will be needed is evident, and it also seems clear that the man who labors to supply them, as far as possible directly from his own farm, is taking the wisest course which he can pursue. The worn out tobacco-lands of Virginia, the exhausted cotton-fields of several of the Southern Statks, the rapidly decreasing yield of the • great wheat-fields of the West, and the exhausted rye-fields of New England, all seem to demand a system of diversified farming which shall check this ruinous exhaustion of the soil, and at the same time secure to the husbandman a higher reward for his labor, and a greater cert^ ' of success in his business than the present methods enabiv i . v > obtain. O VER. PR OD UCTION'. OlTBH-FRaDUCTION', 447 'HIS is one of the great evils with which the farmers of the present day are often obliged to contend. It is an evil which it is somewhat difficult to modify, and still more difficult to remove. Owing to their great numbers, the want, if not the impossibility, of close organization, the wide differences in the soil and climate, and the constant fluctuatioiis in the demands of both the local and the foreign markets, together with the fact that they are scattered over a vast area, the farmers are, more than any other class, exposed to losses from over-production. In order to modify, and if possible prevent, the evils re- sulting from over-production, a wise selection of crops should be made. The farmer must decide for himself which crops shall be grown, and the quantities in which they shall be produced. But his judgment should be based upon sound and extensive knowledge. He should take the papers which give accurate market reports, and should carefully study the figures which they present. He ought to be informed concerning the crop prospects, and in regard to any extensive changes which may be going on in different sections of the country. But he should not often change his crops in hope of securing those which sell for the highest rates. There are many farmers continually changing crops in order to obtain high prices. This would be bad, even if the desired rates were secured. But it generally happens that those who rush after the spoils are a little too lr.:f They increase the. supply to such a degree that the price goes extremely low. Meanwhile some other crop, the culture of which has been abandoned by many farmers for that of the one which was selling high, becones scarce, the price rises, and another change is made. Then there are a few years in which the crop which the changing ones left sells well, while the one which they have ; , > 8! i!- ip 1 .- :i- 1 448 FARMING FOR PROFIT. W i: selected follows ';he course of all such crops when the supply largely exceeds the demand, and the price runs (Ujwn below a paying figure. In this way some farmers arc constantly t^oing the rounds, always a little too late to get the highest prices, and holding on long enough to sell for the very lowest ones. This is a ruinous course. The farni' r has to sell his crops for less than they are worth. The constant changing preve.;ts tue following of any suitable system of rotation, uitd t'le cost of production is largely increased. Of ct ;irse, there may be ci' 'unista-ices in which it will be best to change the ordinary rotation of crops. But frequent changes which are made to gain the btrii.;]; of high prices are v^ry unprofitable. Hov siiall the farmer protect himself from the evils which, often in spite of his individual action, over-production threatens to bring upon him ? We know of but one method which promises to be effectual. That is by furnishing only the best grade of articles. It is sal I if 460 FARMING FOR PROFIT. aOOB B£SB, »-i T must be evident to every thinking man that there is no I one thing which the fanner can do with perfect cnn- 'a fidence that it will insure the production of a good crop. There are many operations which are essential to suc- cess, and while no one of them alone can meet all the require- ments of the case, no one of them can safely be left out. It is absolutely necessary that the land should be well prepared, but if nothing else were done the best preparation in the world would not produce a crop. It is also necessary that good seed shou! \ be used, but even this alone will amount to nothing. Thers must be a good soil, a suitable preparation, and proper culture of the growing plants, in connection with the use of good seed, if the best results are to be securexl. For some reason which is not plain to be seen, the selection of the seed as one of the leading elements in the production of large and profitable crops, has never received the at:ontion which it has deserved. Other matters seem to have engrossed the attention of most of the men who have made agriculture a special study. They have been engaged in try.ng to discover new varieties, to learn the best methods of fitting the soil, and in devetoping new systems of cultivation. Meanwhile the practical farmers have gone right along in the old way of using seed from their own crops, and without making a careful effort to select that which was the best fitted for their purpose. There have been some individual exceptions to this rule, but the general practice has indicated a great lack of interest in this very important part of their work. The study and thought which have been given, and the experiments which have been made in these other directions, have led to valuable results. The labors of men who have been engaged therein should be gratefully recognized, and farmers should cheerfully avail them- selves of the benefits which have thus been placed within their reach. GOOD SEED. 451 But in addition to all the light which has been obtained and all the advantages which have been secured in these direc' tions, there is need of a clearer realization of the fact that the seed exerts a controlling influence upon the quantity and quality of the crop. It is for want of attention to this fact that so many efforts to obtain large yields have failed of success In some of these cases all of the conditions except this one seem to have been complied with, but the seed which was used was not the best, and the best results were not obtained. Just as long as effect follows cause, just so long will it be impossible to secure first-class crops from second-class seed. We know that in the animal world the character of the offspring is deter- mined by that of its parents. We can have the same assurance concerning the individuals of the vegetable kingdom. The seed as surely determines the character and appearance . f the crop which it produces as parents impress their characteristics, upon their children. Let us consider some of the powers and qualities which are or should be, possessed by the seed of our ordinary farm-crops' In some inexplicable manner there is hidden in every well- developed seed a mysterious quality called Vitalitv This, quality enables the seed, when placed under certain favorable conditions, to germinate, and thus commence the series of changes which will result in the production of other sper.p.ens o{ Its kind. As long as the seed is kept intact this povv v I.cs dormant. When it becomes active, a change in the character and appearance of the seed is manifest. The interest of the farmer requires that this change shall take place only in those specimens which he uses for the production of future crops, and that .».y shall remain in their natural condition until, or very nc„ , until, the time when they are cast into the soil. For. the process of growth injures the seed for other purposes, and if it takes place long before the seed is planted, spoils it for repro- . di' :^ion. Consequently, it is fearance. In this respect an im- mense amount of seed which farmers use is deficient. Instead of taking pains to have their corn all of one variety, or if differ- ent kinds are cultivated to plant them in fields distant from each other, too many growers allow several different kinds to mix and make no effort to secure purity of the seed. In a few cases this may be due to the impression, which some farmers have, that corr will "do better" if several sorts are mixed than it will if only one ' -riety is planted. This idea is wholly without a reasonable foundation, and the more farmers read and study, the GOOD SEED. 467 less .t will prevail. In most cases the use of mixed seed is due to a want of thought and care rather than to any belief that it as superior to that which is pure.' Instead of being better the •mpure seed is far inferior to that which is unmixed. To any one who will think carefully upon the subject this will be evident. Take a case for illustration. Suppose in a certain lot of seed- corn there are .nixed four or five varieties. These sorts do not hybridize, that is, do not unite to form new and perma- nent varieties, but merely mix. and the result is that on one ear many kernels of each of the kinds which are represented in the field may be found. Now as these kernels are not alike it is almost a necessity, and it is certainly a fact, that some of them W.1 be superior to others. If this is the case, it follows that wh,le part of the mixture is good, part of it is. and must be mfenor. Consequently, as a whole, the corn obtained is not first- class. In order to be first-rate, all of it should be equal to the kmd to which the best specimens belong. Thus, as far as quality goes. ,t is plain that the best grade cannot be secured from mixed grain. Part of th. lot is superior to the rest, and the moment the poorer grades are left out and only the best one is used, the mixture is destroyed. Another thing to be considered in using mixed seed is the fact that the various kinds which are represented cannot all npen at the san)e period, and that when part of the grains are npe enough to harvest, the remainder may be altogether too green. As it is of great importance to have grain ripen uni- formly, this objection against mixed seed should carry consider- able weight. But the principal reason why strict purity of seed should be secured and preserved may be found in the fact that this would enable the grower to obtain quite an increase of the price which his mixed grain now commands. This .s not a mere supposition but a solid truth, and one in which farmers who are engaged in 4 Ill J S 5. I ^,JW. ii ft 458 FARMING FOR PROFIT. growing grain are deeply interested. It is a fact which dealers have long recognized and to which they have often called the attention of farmers. Several years ago the Board of Trade in one of our Western cities issued a circular to the farmers in the corn-growing section, in which they complained of the mixing of different kinds, and stated that the price which the grain would command in market was at least three cents per bushel less than it would be if the corn was all of one color and be- longed to some one variety. In this circular farmers were advised to be more careful in selecting their corn for seed, and were urged to attempt to secure a greater degree of uniformity in the character and appearance of the crop. Some farmers fol- lowed these recommendations, but that they were too generally disregarded the present appearance of Western corn places beyond doubt. The way is still open for improvement and the need of it is beyond dispute. If corn-growers could be made to realize that their grain would command three cents per bushel more than they can now obtain for it, they would, doubtless, be willing to make an effort to obtain better seed. The men who buy corn judge of it very much by its appearance. They do not want to pay high prices and they make use of every imperfection as an argument in favor of low rates. If a lot of corn is neither white nor yellow, and does not belong to any known variety, buyers will not be willing to pay as well for it as they would if it was pure. On a single bushel the increase in price which could be secured, if sufficient care were taken to grow pure and good varieties, would be small, but on the quantity which a large corn-grower will raise in a period of ten years it would amount to quite a sum and would add considerably to the profits of the farm. An ad- vance in price of three cents \»ix bushel on the corn crop of one year would put at least six millions of dollars into the pockets of the farmers in the one State of Illinois. The expense involved in securing this immense amount of money would be very small. GOOD SEED. 459 There would be no extra cost for planting, cultivation, or har- vesting. The extra price of seed woula be but a trifle for the first year and nothing afterwards. Almost the whole amount would be clear gain. In several of the other corn-growing States from one to tliree millions of dollars per year might be made by the farmers, if they would give proper attention to the selection of corn for seed. Here is an opportunity for those who will give a little time and thought to the selection of seed to make a larger profit on the corn crop than they have yet been able to secure. Productiveness. — This is another quality which should be sought in selecting seed. There can be no doubt that some seed possesses this quality in a high degree, while other specimens, which to all appearance are just as good, are very deficient in this respect. This point has not received the attention which it deserves, and many farmers are slow to believe that there is any particular difference in seed as far as its productive powers are concerned. They know that certain trees are more fruitful than other specimens which are as favorably situated, and they cannot escape the conviction that there is a quality of productiveness which is inherited by different trees in different degrees of inten- sity. But when they are told that plants also possess this quality, and that the yield of a crop will be largely determined by the degree in which it has been inherited by the seed, they are incredulous. Variations in the yield of corn they ascribe to difference in soil, or variety, or fertilizer, or the time of planting, rather than to any power in the seed itseii. But sometimes when in adjoining fields, in which the .soil is as nearly alike as soils can be, the same varieties are planted, and there is no difference either in the cultivation or the manuring, but a great difference in the quantity of grain which is .han'ested, they are almost corr.pelled to ackncwicugc that there is a difference in the productive powers of seed which belongs to the same variety, but is produced by different specimens oi slants. ;t m 1 1 11 460 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Careful experiment has , proved to the satisfaction of all unprejudiced parties who have studied the results that the quality of productiveness is strongly developed in some plants, and possessed in only a slight degree by others, and that the' plants communicate these characteristics to the seed which they produce. In the Scientific Farmer for May, 1877, is the record of an experiment with different grades of corn which looked equally well, and which were planted on a field which had given good and uniform crops. The field was divided into three plots. One of these received no manure. The remaining two were well-fertilized. Upon the ore without manure and one of the two upon which manure was applied, the same kind of seed was plj«ited, while upon the remaining manured plot another kind was used. The result was that the land without manure, upon which the most productive seed was used, yielded at the rate of sixty-eight and three-fourths bushels per acre, the manured plot planted with the same kind of seed produced one hundred and ten bushels per acre, while the manured plot on which another kind of seed was used only yielded fifty-five bushels per acre. Here the evidence is clear and convincing that the seed made a difference of thirteen and three-fourths bushels per acre over and above the influence of the manure, and that the difference in the seed made all the difference between the yield of the two plots which were manured— a difference of fifty-five bushels per acre. With the same kind of soil and culture, and an equal quantity of manure, the best seed produced just twice the amount of grain which was obtained from the inferior seed. Yet these two kinds of seed did not present any evidence in their external characteristics hy which one could be proved better than the other, and it is highly probable that the poorest .seed used jn this experiment was in every respect jual to a largi: proportion of the seed used — -III. \v.\ -_..-,iipajat!vcJy Jew lariiicrs oDcam aii average yield of more than fifty five bushels of corn per acre. GOOD SEED. on of all that the me plants, i that the hich they 77, is the 5rn which eld which 'ided into remaining nure and iame kind ured plot d without i, yielded acre, the uced one I plot on fifty-five mvincing e-fourths manure, liiiference lured — a : kind of )est seed obtained did not ►y which 5 highly t was in ;ed used average 461 This experiment also throws some light upon the question of economy in buying seed. Only one peck of corn is needed to plant an acre. Many farmers do not use as much as this. But if a peck is used, and the common quality of grain is selected and carefully shelled, it will be worth somewhere from fifteen to twenty-five cents. If the very best seed is obtained, the cost, with transportation charges, may be two dollars. The difference in the cost of seed enough for an acre will be from one dollar and seventy-five to one dollar and eighty-five cents. The cost of planting and cultivating will be the same, but the difference in the yield will be from forty to fifty-five bushels. We do not believe that a farmer should buy everything that is offered for .sale, but we are confident that if the varieties of grain which he is growing do not yield wcl!, that if with as high manuring and as good cultivation as his neighbors give, he cannot obtain as large crops as -they secure, it will be wise for him to change the seed with a view to obtaining some which will be more prolific. We have experimented somewhat with various kinds of corn, and have found a great difference in the yield of varieties which looked quite well. And we have found that some farmers have grown corn year after year which was very handsome, and which they supposed was a very fine variety, when it was greatly inferior in productiveness to kinds which produced just as good grain, and which were grown in their own neighborhoods. In order to be sure that his corn is reasonably productive, every farmer should keep an accurate record of the yield per acre each year. Otherwise he may be deceived, and think he is doing well when his crops are far below what should be their average yield. If he has a prolific variet)', he should be careful in selecting seed and do all that he can to stimulate and develop this quality. If he is growing a variety which i.s not as pro- ductive as it should be, it will be greatly for his interest to make a change as soon as possible. P *!] i ni: ii'lii 11 ij hi 462 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The same principle applies with equal force to other farm crops. We used the corn crop merely as an illustration. In many States other crops are of still greater importance. What- ever the crop which the farmer wi.shes to grow, and whatever the facilities which he may have for its production, he may accept it as a settled and forever unchangeable principle that good seed is an essential element in its successful cultivation. Without this he cannot obtain the best results, or anything approaching them, and it is utteriy useless for him to make the attempt. If at any time he feels that the price of first-class seed is too high to justify him in purchasing, he should reflect that whatever good seed may cost it is absolutely certain that he cannot afford to use inferior seed even though it costs him nothing. THE SEX^CTEON OF SEEB. 4^^IKE all other things of value good seed has its price, and %M °"ly by the payment of its price can it be obtained. It pg is not produced by chance, and it does not perpetuate " "i itself certainly and for an indefinite length of time. Knowledge, care, and skill on the part of the grower are all absolutely necessary to its production. It is only by a patient, careful, and wise selection of the plants, or roots, or bulbs, that the finest seed can be secured. The careless, hap-hazard way in which many fkrmers and gardeners save the seed which th,y plant, accounts, in a great measure, for the poor quality of the seed itself and the light yield of the crops which they obtain therefrom. Good seed is not produced by every plant, and if no care is taken in selecting the plants for seed, the choice of many inferior ones will be mevitable. The average product of an ordinary field is vcrv i^r hplnu; wha* care is inferior ordinary lard by j which can be obtained are none too good for the production of seed The man ivho saves the poorest part of every crop for seed will soon have very small crops. When the average product of the field is saved the yield does no more than hold its own and keep up the average. It is only when the finer plants are saved for seed that the yield increases and a manifest improvement of the quality is secured. Even then, if there has been no careful guarding of the plants, during the period of their growth, against the various adverse influences which inevitably surround them and no thorough culture has been given, the quality of the seed secured will fall far below the grade which might have been obtained. It very often happens that men are careful in saving the largest and finest ears of corn for seed and yet fail to obtain as good crops as they think they have a right to expect. The ■ cause of their want of success is easily explained. The kernels of the fine ears in which they placed so much confidence were ferfl.zed by the pollen of inferior stalks. A mongrel calf may look as well as a thoroughbred, but no one who understands physiological laws, or who has had much experience with cattle would have any confidence in such a calf as a breeder. How- ever fine the individual may be, it does not possess, and con- sequently cannot transmit, any fixed characteristics. It is a slow process to form a distinct breed of animals. There are so many sports and reversions that even the experienced and skilful breeder finds the obstacles to success almost insurmountable It .s fully as difficult a matter to breed plants to a desired form But th,s can be done by the sk.lful cultivator. It may take a long t.me-perhaps a longer period than the life of anv one man may be required in order to bring the plant as «ear i^kxtion as poss.ble-but t,me. and patience, and skill will develop a won- derful improvement. The great difference between the potato and the tomato H.ll ^^erve to illustrate the modifying power of cultivation and breed- 1 1 1 1 r i i 464 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ing. These plants are alike in their botanical structure. Both, in their natural state, bear fruit on top of their vines. The potato balls have not been used by man. His efforts for the improvement of the potato have been directed to the tubers. The balls, which are a similar product to the tomatoes, have been left to take care of themselves. But with the tomato a very different course has been pursued. The efforts of a large num- ber of cultivators have been directed toward the development and improvement of the fruit of the vines. The result of this different treatment is indicated by the difference in size, appear- ance, quality, and productiveness of the vines of the potato and the tomato. The finer sorts of the tomato when compared with potato balls show what can be done in the line of improving the fruit of plants. ' ; As a large part of the profits of the farmers' business come from the growth of plants and their sale, or the sale of their products, it is a matter of great importance that they should secure the very best plants which can be obtained, keep them up to their present standard, and make a constant effort for their improvement. In order to be fully successful in this work it is necessary for the farmer to begin at the beginning. By starting at an intermediate point some benefit may be secured. But the results will be far more uncertain, much time will be wasted, and frequent failures will be inevitable. The first thing to be done is to get the best seed which can be obtained. Some variety adapted to the soil, climate, and mode of cultivation pur- sued should be selected. If the farmer has good seed of this kind he can use it, but if he has only an inferior grade he should obtain a supply elsewhere. The good seed may not be good enough to transmit its good qualities in perfection. Like the mongrel calf, it may be good itself and yet not be able to breed true to its own characteristics. But there is more hope in breed- ing from a good calf than there is from a poor one. The good one is rieafef the mark than \X\t other and will be much mot^ re. Both, les. The ts for the le tubers, toes, have ato a very irge num- 'elopment lit of this ;, appcar- otato and ared with nproving • ;ss come of their y should :ep them for their I'ork it is ' starting But the : wasted, ng to be . Some :ion pur- i of this t should ije good -ike the to breed 1 breed- tie good h more THE SELECTIOIV OF SEED Ikely to pro.-, e good stock. The same is true of plants In to pass and the road .s more direct than will be the case if we start way back with a poorer specimen. The first t^g tlen to be done when an improvement in the yield, quahty "; appearance of plants is desired, is to either select f^om tme Resources or obtain from abroad the very finest and nicest seTd which can be secured. In selecting seed from wl.ieh to dev'elop a better class of pants care must be taken to secure that which prescn s th a strong tendency toward beauty of fom, and appearance others are very fragrant, while the leading character' L of othe P oducfveness. Now, if a man wants to develop the elemel o cauty he should start with a plant which is'^.lrcady bit ..ful. If fragrance ,s desired, the most fragn>„t flower should be taken as a startmg point for increased development. If produc ,vencss,s specially desired, the most productive plants in the field should be selected and their fruit saved for seed with which to mcreasc and extend the productive power. These varied quahbes m,gh. be secured if plants were taken which did not posses., , hem in an unusual degree, but it would require more skdl and several years longer time to secure the desired result The stronger the impress of the wished-for peculiarity which the plant already bears, the more certain and powerful will be its manifestation in the productions of that plant in the „e.xt gene- ration. There may be difficulty, and much time may be required, even when strongly marked .specimens are used for propagation, but the diflSculty will be less and the time will be shorter than will be needed if only ordinary plants are taken. The double rose is a fine example of what can be accom- plished in tl,e line of beauty by careful culture and thorough breeding The structure of ,.- rose flower is, n.aturally. like that of the common apple-t,! .oin. The form of the original .1 466 FAk'AffXG FOR PROFIT rose was, and the form of many of the wild, uncultivated roses is, with the exception of size, the same as the blossom of an apple tree. No effort has been made to charge the form of the apple blossom, but gardeners have long been at work upon the rose, and have succeeded in obtaining perfect double blossoms entirely destitute of stamens and pistils. When this point is reached, perfection has been secured. The skill of man can go no farther. But with this perfection, the reproductive power of the plant is obliterated. There are no seeds from which to pro- duce new specimens. Many kinds of plants can be brought to this stage. But the species can be kept, and plants can be rapidly propagated by layers, cuttings or budding. The same care which has been bestowed upon the rose would have made a great difference in the form of any other flower. But the reader may say that mere form is of no consequence tf Itjc ordinary farmer. It is true that it is not a' essential to \\\' !,u^;cess as it is to the gardener's, but it is not a matter of iniiiffcsence to the farmer. The form and color of wheat has considerable influence in fixing its market value. The same is true of corn, oats, potatoes, fruit, and nearly everything which the farmer grows. The power to change these features is worth a great deal. But these are only a part of the qualities which can be modified by skilful selection. The vigor of the plant and time of ripening the seed can be varied, and the capacity for production can be largely increased. Each and every prominent trait of our cultivated plants may be greatly changed by careful management. It is to this fact, and the labors of many horticulturists and farmers, that we arc indebted for our best varieties of grain and fruit. By making a careful selection of the materials with which he will work, the farmer may accomplish great results. We know of two farmers, each one of whom has made a great improvement of the variety of corn which he has grown for the past ten years. We know of others who have hardly been able to keep their THE SELECTION OF SEED. lat.^ were not „, f„„u„a.e in .h.ir cl.oico. Mk. C. G Pk, J.. liui.iioes, nas been vcrv surrf>«afiii ;« • ■ ^ ^'"' '" iinprovinir old and onVl "^"."S new .arie.,c, of grain an,- ^e.able. ,,.. ifa If ," ™na«or, and „as a .I.orough k,„ „e of .,.. „.,,:; ^ sciCLUd tliL' varieties to be imurovcd Tl,« rx proved too tender for our cold winters n„^ • iT^, wheat \T.. Po,. , ^^'"ters. But in the Champlain Wheat Mk IKINULE has secured a combination of the hard, qualities of the Black Sea wheat w>h .1 c ^ GolCen Drop, and ,.as pro; ^ J^ ' ^ "Zl^ "' ■ T -.P.ca . „ee. .,.e wan. of Nc^rl^.^tlr H :; he crossed some weak-growing variety .it,, ti,e Gold™ d"p I new k,„d would have been a failure at the No,..,, B^tTj followed the rule which all successful growers must L 7 , selected as a basis for his experiments van^esllra " possessed the desired characteristics '"^^ sho'uid'be""''" T ? '° "'"'■"•'' '"' «- P-^-tionof seed should be grown by themselves, and cultivated for this specTal purpose. This is necessary in order to „uard rl, r a..e.ei„„„ences to which they would oC, Te ^os 7 For ,f ,t ,s sown in the open (ield, the finest seed ,7 duce a good crop, and may fail to perpe, ZT' ''°' In one of his lectures, Hov P A C Tnl "='"™'"'stics. length upon the modifi ati n of cor^by b""" ^'t' '' """^ -- W imperfect s,cin,ens or ^.2:'™: T^^; III ^>. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) h /. y.. 1= 11.25 UilM 12.5 ^ 1^ 12.0 U 11.6 '/] ■VJ /. % Ir^ '> Hiotographic ^Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) 872-4503 i 468 FARMING FOR PROFIT. that, " The fact that seeds that look just alike, and were raised in the same place, give us much different results, is not always owing to the soil. I have no doubt that those germs are won- derfully sensitive, far beyond anything we have ever dreamed of There are many things in our experiments that lead me to suppose this. I believe, also, that the action of this pollen is very much more far-reaching than has generally been sup- posed." He exhibited some specimens of corn which illus- trated the liability of variation of the product of plants grown without special care to shield them from untoward influences. Th3re were six ears — three white and three red ones — all of which grew from a white ear. The seed which produced these very diverse specimens was planted far from any other corn, so that all possibility of a mixture should be prevented. The year before the seed-corn was all white, but about half the ears which it produced were red. Sometime the white corn had, doubtless, been fertilized by pollen from a red variety grown in another field. Probably every farmer has noticed cases in which the variety which was planted was strangely modified. Sometimes there will be an occasional ear of a totally different kind. In other cases only a few kernels of another variety will be found upon an ear which is nearly all of the ordinary sort. Sometimes a few kernels of sweet corn will be found upon an ear of some common field variety. Corn which is grown in a field which is near any other variety, will be very liable to become mixed. It will be utterly impossible to maintain the absolute purity of any variety, if a different one is planted near by. A farmer may buy the very nicest seed of the most prolific variety in the world, but if he plants it in a field which joins one in which his neighbor plants another sort, he cannot keep the variety pure. He will either be obliged to buy seed every year or else plant a mixed and inferior kind. When seed-corn is selected from the field, several neighbors should agree to plant one THE SELECTION OF SEED vanety of corn. In ,hi. „y the inju,y from fixture which now occurs would be considerably reduced no.^« anio bl "'"""'"^r'"' *«•"-' kinds upon one fam, i, .n. res. d T"" ' " '' '"^■""""^ '° *= farmer's own mteres, and makes ,t still more difficult than it otherwise would J: r f ^^ " ^™ *^ "'"'' '-'"■='■ «-X desire tp duce. The d.stance to which the pollen is carried is not cer tamly known, but it is probably greater th-,„ f s^cse^ we once found a b^/htt; :!:;!- 7^1 r.ercrdtf:r:rx:trT„r;"''- no red corn ,rown o„ the adjoining farm.!:, b^n tlTt Z a farm upon which there was a small field of this colored vil The red ear must have been fertilized by pollen from Z 7 fied. There hav, h. •■ "J' PO'i™ Irom this distant prove that . s T ''^""^'^ ""'*'='' ^--. ='"d they TJr: "'""" "■^" - "-^"y *-»"'" -X ' wira?ii:r;::r"';t"--"---eofat ;^^ey and other ki„dLr:u:ro7tL"r;r:;r this distance should be doubled. " ' But contact with other varietieq ;« n^f fi , =ced corn is deteriorated f om I ' "^ '" ^'''"'' fTn to bf m"" "■'■^ '"""^ =" "^'" -d y=' "^ "kernel uptthreed."^-^ "^^ ''"' ""'■"' '■- ■•-•■--'^ '•- c'--ter p.«h':Zry"ix:Tviir: °""^"=' "^'-^^ -^ feet ears No m.tf T """"^^ ''^"" ^"^ '"^^er- cuUivation whicTtt c i^ir^^r ' "^ ^"'^ *°^°-^ '^= rop receives, these specimens will appear. \U-i iU \' 'h. I C : ,1 1 I . i ; I i 470 FARMING FOR PROFIT. They are the legitimate fruit of seed produced on ears whicH had been fertilized by pollen from inferior plants. In order to prevent such a result the farmer must give more attention to that part of the crop from which the seed is to be taken than is usually bestowed. The corn for seed should be planted by itself, in a field quite a distance from any other corn. If this is impossible, a plot of ground between the two pieces should be planted with broom-corn, or sugar-cane. It will be well to put a strip of broom-corn, a few rods wide, close to the field which is not to be saved, provided the fields are within eighty rods of each other. The broom-corn will hinder the free passage of the pollen, and thus diminish the liability of a mixture of different varieties or fertilization by the pollen of inferior specimens. If only a small quantity of corn is to be saved for seed, the plot on which it is planted should be in the form of a square. If a few long rows are planted, the pollen cannot be so evenly distributed as it will from several short ones. The land should be rich and the best cultivation should be given. Another important item was mentioned by Mr. Chadbourne in the lecture from which we have quoted. He expresset opinion, " That in order to raise good prolific seed-corn, ii. :A be necessary for a man to plant the best seed he can procure ; and before the corn tassels, before it produces polkn, to go along the rows and cut out every mean, miserable stalk, so that every ear shall stand on a proper stalk (that is, have a proper mother) and shall be fertilized by pollen that has come from a strong, healthy, corn-producing stalk." Before the tassels form, all the suckers should be cut, and the inferior stalks removed. If these things receive attention at the proper time, the seed- corn will have a vigorous and healthy parentage. If the same course is followed year after year, a great and permanent im- provement will be effected. By this means the average yield of the corn crop in this country might be greatly increased, and the profits of its production would be greater than have yet been obtained. THE SELECr/OJ\r OF SEED. 471 With the wheat crop equal care is needed in order to secure the finest seed. The best grain which is available should be sown on a rich and thoroughly prepared piece of ground. It should be sown in rows, or drilled in, far enough apart to allow the hoe to be used between them. All weeds should be kept down, and before the blossoms appear all the inferior stalks should be cut out. With the potato crop there has been more trouble on account of poor seed than there has with almost any, perhaps we might say with almost all of the other farm crops. Varieties have I' run out " in a kvf years wherever they were planted. Chang- ing the seed has been resorted to by multitudes of farmers, and has given temporary relief, but no permanent good has been accomplished. The complaint is general. It has been so often made, and for so long a time, that some writers consider the deterioration as Inherent in the potato itself, and recommend the mtroduction of new kinds, and the discarding of the older varieties when they begin to fail. We do not think this theory IS correct. We are confident that by a careful selection of seed with good culture, the varieties of potatoes may be as per- manent as those of corn. We have kept the Early Rose up to Its original standard. There is a great deal of complaint that this variety is deteriorating. Probably the men who find it "running out" have not been very careful to select the nicest seed, and supply the best manures. Many farmers plant only the little, immature specimens which are neither fit to eat nor to sell. They seldom plant any which are even half grown. Now if corn for seed were selected in this way, there would be as much complaint about the deterioration of corn, and the "running out" of varieties, as there has been about the failure of the potato to keep up to a uniform standard of excellence. In order to obtain good potatoes for seed, the finest tubers of medium size should be planted on dry land which has been well manured. Chem^ical fertilizers we consider the best for 472 FARMING FOR PROFIT. this purpose. The plants should be carefully cultivated, and when the tubers are ripe they should be dug, and the best specimens of a medium size should be selected for seed to be used the next year, and stored in a cool, dry cellar. The different varieties of the potato should be grown in plots which are quite a distance apart. Mr. William Hunt, of Conn., read an article on the general subject of potato cul- ture before the Conn. State Board of Agriculture, in 1877, in which he claims to have discovered the fact that the deterioration of varieties often results from their mixing by means of the flowers. He claims that the pollen is carried a considerable distance by the wind, and that where two or more kinds are grown near each other the potatoes will mix, and the product will usually be inferior to that of the parent stock. The first year the quality is not affected. The second season changes are manifest in the tubers, and in succeeding years the deterioration is rapid. This theory accounts for changes which have often been observed, but which could not be satisfactorily explained. Mr. Hunt picks all the flower buds before they open, from the plots on which he grows potatoes for seed — a practice which may be safely and profitably followed by all who are engaged in producing this crop. Such are some of the general principles which should govern in the selection of seed. We have attempted to illustrate them by reference to particular crops. With other plants the methods pursued must be modified by their condition and character. But with all crops the same careful and patient effort must be made to get the best possible grade to start with, to give it the best possible chance, and then to guard the plants from all untoward influences. After the seed is grown, there still remains a work for the cultivator in gathering and storing it. For the best seeds are just as likely to be wasted or injured by exposure as the poorest ones, and a little neglect at the time of ripening may cause the loss of nearly the whole lot. When THE SELECTION OF SEED. 473 the plants are well-matured, and the seeds are ripe, which any- observant person can easily determine by their general appear- ance, the harvesting should be performed. Imperfectly ripened seed will often grow, but it will not produce as hardy, vigorous plants as that which is thoroughly ripe. If the cutting of the seed-plants is too long delayed a great waste is involved by shelling in the field, and some seeds are damaged by exposure to the weather. With plants which ripen their seeds unevenly, a middle course is to be pursued. The onion belongs to this class. The heads should be removed when about half of the seed-cells have opened. Wheat, corn and other grain, should remain until thoroughly ripe, should be carefully cured, and ought not to be shelled until it is perfectly dry. Great care should be taken, both before and after shelling, to prevent all injury by heating. The curing should be done, if possible, in bright weather, and the stalks should be stored in a cool, dry place. When thoroughly cured and dried the seed may be shelled. If it is necessary to wash it, care should be taken to dry it perfectly before it is put away. Seeds, with a few exceptions, such as nuts, which should be kept in sand, should be kept in a cool and dry room. Putting them in papers or bags when they are damp, is one cause of the difficulty which some farmers have in getting seeds which they have raised to grow. Another cause is the keeping of seeds in a damp place, or a place which is occasionally damp. To be constantly damp will prove their ruin, while occasional moist- ening and drying will work equal harm. The seed should never be kept in large quantities, subjected to extremes of tem- perature, or allowed to become damp. The length of time for which it will retain its vitality will vary with different kinds. Even with the best of care onion-seed is very doubtful when two years old, and worthless when three ; while cucumber-seed will grow when it is from seven to ten years old. Wheat and corn will grow when they have been 474 FARMING FOR PROFIT. kept many years. But if the seed is kept where it gets damp, its vitality is soon destroyed. It is said that squashes, cucum- bers, and similar crops, are better when grown from old seed, as they will run less to vines and be more prolific. This may be true, but in our experiments in this direction we have found it difficult to get old seeds to germinate well, and have thought the plants were more tender than those from newer seed. We believe it is generally admitted that old seeds are weaker and produce less vigorous plants than fresh ones. Imperfect flower- seeds often give the finest flowers, but this is not an argument for the use of weak seeds of vegetable plants. On the contrary it is a strong argument against this course. For from the flower man desires only beauty. Utility is not considered. The increased beauty of the flower is obtained by changing the stamens and pistils into leaves. In some roses this change is complete. We now have a splendid sun-flower in our garden in which there are but a very few seeds, nearly all of the large flower being a mass of beautiful petals. Such a change makes a beautiful flower, but it would not be wise to try its effect upon vegetables. For when carried to an extreme it is ruinous to the species. Reproduction by seed becomes impossible, and it is only by means of layering, budding, or some other resource of the gardener, that the varieties can be continued. With vege- tables we do not need beauty of blossom, but we are in want of a strong tendency to produce seed. And as old seed tends to the production of finer flowers at the expense of the vitality and seed-producing power of the plant, we think its use will be found unprofitable. The purest and best seeds, which are fresh and uninjured, should always be obtained for use in the garden and on the farm. (^^ ECONOAfY OF LABOR. SCON^OMir OF ^ilBOR. 475 ^S a class, farmers have obtained a high reputation for economy in the use of money. This reputation has been honestly earned. The average farmer is very «^ careful about spending his hard-earned dollars. He does not lightly allow them to pass out of his possession. He takes a great deal of pains to obtain them and is anxious to keep them when they have been secured. But with labor the case is very different. Of this he is prodigal. He rejoices in his ability to perform a great deal of work. T!ie average far- mers in this country are very hard workers. They toil more hours than almost any other class, more hours than they require their cattle to work, and they make longer days and more of them than the men whom they hire. So far they are very faithful laborers. But they have not succeeded in systematizing their work so as to manage it to the best advantage. They are careful about their money, but very careless about their work They lose sight of the fact that labor is a standard of value, and that the price of an article is, in a very great degree, determined by the amount of work required for its production. There are various methods in which labor is wasted on the farm. A few of the principal ones we will endeavor to point out. The use of poor tools, or tools poorly adapted to the purpose for which they are designed, is a prolific source of waste of labor on the farm. The man who insists upon cutting his grain with the old-fashioned cradle instead of using a reaping machine for the purpose, wastes, in addition to a large quantity of grain a great deal of labor. His horses could do more in one day thin he can in many days, and do it better. He has the horses and must feed them just the same as he would have to if he had them cut the grain instead of doing it himself He ought to have his horses do this, and in the days which they save to him he can be doing something else. The man who furnishes poor 476 FARMING FOR PROFIT. shovels, and forks, and other tools for his hired men thereby wastes a great deal of time and labor for which he is obliged to pay. With poor tools a man cannot do as good work, or as much of it, as he can with good ones. Even good tools when pi)orly adapted to the purpose for which they are used involve a great loss of labor. The man who makes his team draw a heavy harrow over a field in which a light one would do just as well thereby throws away the extra labor of the team. Similar examples might be given in large numbers. The use of inefficient teams is another way in which much labor is wasted on the farm. We have often seen two able- bodied men plowing with one slow yoke of oxen. The two men and the team would succeed in plowing one acre of land per day. One of the men with a pair of horses cou4d have plowed an acre and a half per day while the other man might have be.en doing other work. Or, if it seemed desirable to use oxen instead of horses, the team might have been trained so that one man could both hold the plow and drive the cattle We have plowed alone with oxen a great many days, and any one can do it who will properly train his teams and be gentle with them. There are places where a driver may be needed with ordinary cattle. But on smooth land one man ought to be able to hold the plow and also drive the team. Sometimes oxen which are not good to work are used and labor is wasted because they will only draw from half to three-fourths of a load at a time. When balky horses, or weak, lame animals are employed, the work is, and must be, done at a great disadvan- tage. With such a team economy in this branch of labor can- not be secured. The neglect to do work at the proper time is another prolific source of waste of labor on a farm. If before the rains come, the farmer digs plenty of ditches to carry off the water, he will have much less to do to drain his field than he will if he waits until the land is soaked and then attempts to open drains. The ECONOMY OF LABOR. 477 man who plows when the land is dry will save a great deal of labor for himself and his team. In drawing dirt there is often a loss of from one-third to more than one-half of the whole amount of labor performed. When a man draws dirt from which the water runs in streams through the cracks in his cart, he has probably got a greater weight of water in his load than he has of dirt. The water is useless material. Consequently more than half of the labor of loading and unloading on the' part of the man, and of the draft on the part of the team is absolutely thrown away. In the cultivation of farm crops, labor IS often lost by delay in attempting the work which should be promptly begun. And with many kinds of farm labor a great savmg can be made by doing the work at the proper time. Frequent changes of work are also a prominent means of wasting labor. The man who commences one kind of work in the morning, soon thinks of something else which ought to be done and changes off to that, and in the course of the day works at half a dozen different jobs, i^o one of which he has completed IS very wasteful of his work. He may hitch up his team many tmies a day to do things which might all have been done with- ' out unharnessing. The man who mows a little rowen when the dew is on, then picks a few appi digs a ic^ potatoes, and draws a load or two of muck to h.s yards, all in one day does not economize his labor. He keeps a great many things on the works at once, in #11 stages of development, but nothing is finished and he is always at a loss to know what to do. His constant changes involve him in a great loss of time and travel. Everything goes slowly because he tries to carry everything along at once. If he would make up his mind what work needed doing first, and then give his undivided attention to its completion, the changeable farmer would be much more econ- ical of his labor, and, consequently, much more successful in his business. Want of skill is one of the great difficulties with many farmers 478 FARMING FOR PROFIT. in their cflTorts to economize labor. They work very much by guess. Some men arc naturally much more skilful than others, but all may learn to manage farm business well. Many young farmers exhibit this want of skill. It is to be expected that they will make mistakes. Experience is a great teacher. More men have become good farmers by means of the les.'ons taught by experience than ever hare reached success by means of any natural aptitude for the business. No one should despair because his past has not been satisfactory. Study and care will yet lead him to success. By observing how his most successful neighbors economize labor,, reading the best agricultural books and papers, and studying the lessons of his own experience, he will be able to manage his buiness better and become, in time, a skilful farmer. The old saying, "It is half to calculate," is as applicable to farming as it is to almost anything. A well-planned effort in any line of business is the most likely to be successful. It should be one of the aims of the young farmer to learn to plan his work well. Skill in laying out work and inefficiency in executing it, sometimes, but very seldom, go together. As a rule the man who is skilful in planning M'ill be an efficient worker. Carelessness is one of the hindrances to economy of labor. Many farmers mean to save all their time and employ their work to the best advantage, who are careless and negligent and who are, on this account, continually incurring .losses and meeting with disappointments. They forget to do things which they fully intended to perform. Very often a rainy day will come- and the farmer and his hands will be almost wholly idle for want of work which can be done under cover, but in a few days it will be found necessary to do a job which might just as well have been attended tc at that time and thus allowed the men to be doing other work in clear weather. Sometimes there are days in winter when certain kinds of outdoor work might be easily performed if they were thought of, but which are only ECOA^OMY OF LABOR. 479 remembered when the opportunity has passed away. Then, in the hurrying days of spring, time has to be taken to do what might just as well have been done when there was nothing else on hand. Hesides. it often happens that by delay the amount of work required is largely increased. Failure to economize labor often results from the performance of unnecessary work or the doing of ordinary work in too elaborate a manner. One of the kings of Macedon spent many years of his life in making lanterns. The important interests of h.s kmgdom were neglected because he was too busy to attend to them. He was not an idle man, but his work amounted to nothing because he wasted his labor. Many farmers spend a great deal of time and labor in doing work which will prove of no benefit to themselves or to any one else. There are also many who are very particular about their methods of doing work. They hoe their potatoes as carefully as a mason builds a wall. Their corn might be cultivated just as well, as far as the good of the crop is concerned, by horse power, but they will have every hill nicely hoed by hand two or three times during the season. We dislike to see work slighted, and never advise runnmg over it, but the great fact that labor costs and that the man who wastes labor thereby wastes money, ought to be kept constantly in mind and should prevent that extreme nicety in the performance of farm work which requires much extra time but yields no corresponding return. Another reason why so many farmers fail to economize labor IS to be found in the fact that their buildings are very inconveni- ent and their farms are poorly laid out. The amount of extra work required on a farm which is not well arranged and has inconvenient buildings is very great. One farmer will grow his green fodder crops near the yard in which he feeds them, while another will put them far off in the field. All through the months when this kind of fodder is needed, one of these farmers will simply cut and throw into the yard what is wanted at once. ■ I t ■• 480 FARMING FOR PROFIT. spending only a few minutes about the work, while the other will be obliged to hitch up a team, drive into the field, and be gone quite a length of time. One man will have his yards so arranged that when his team draws a load of manure into the field, a load of muck can be brought back. Another man has his yards so laid out that the manure must be carted out before material for compost can be brought in. Some farmers have convenient places of storage for all their crops and tools, while others are constantly cramped for room. On some farms the buildings are so inconveniently arranged that the work of doing the chores in winter is just about doubled. On other farms everything is convenient and work can be rapidly performed. It will pay well to study convenience in the arrangement of fields and buildings, and even to be to some expense to secure it. The man who has things "handy" will get along faster, better, and easier, with his work than the one who is constantly hampered by inconvenient surroundings. There are many other ways in which economy of labor can be secured, but as we must limit oar attention to general prin- ciples, with illustrations thereof, we will not pursue the subject further. We will only remark that as the excessive spending of money for needless purposes is ruinous, so the waste of labor which is so common in all parts of the country is proving a great and constant burden. The honest farmer must work hard. From this necessity there is no exemption. When he obtains a Suitable reward he can labor with a cheerful spirit, but to work hard and be constantly unsuccessful is very disheartening. By carefully economizing his work the average farmer can secure a very gratifying degree of success. Without this careful saving of labor and time, he will be almost certain to fall far below his hopes and expectations. FA.^Af TEAMS. V^Mm T£i&^S. 481 '^^h^ '^^^^' °^ ^^"^^ ^'"'^' ^^^""y ^^'■"^er must have. He «^ '"^"""^ '^^ ^'' "^^'^ "^'^''""^ °"^' ^""^ "^'^^'''' borrowing )^ nor hiring can be depended upon to furnish one just e) when its services are required. The principal animals used in this country for teams are the horse, mule, and ox. For many places and purposes the horse IS much the best. The mule is hardy, long-lived, and can be easily kept, but for various reasons has not become as popular as the horse. There are places where neither horses nor mules can work to good advantage, but in which oxen can be profitably employed. But on the road oxen are very slow, and cannot successfully compete with either horses or mules. Which of these animals it will be best for the farmer to keep for a team must depend upon his circumstances and the character of his land. On some farms oxen would be wholly inefficient, while on others they would be the most profitable animals for a team which the llxrmer could employ. For most purposes either the horse or the mule-team is better than an ox-team. But it does not follow that every farmer ought to keep horses or mules. A steam-plow is better than a horse- P ow, but not every farmer can have one. It is faster and pleasanter travelling on the cars than it is on foot, but many people are obliged to walk because they cannot afford to buy fckets of the railroad companies. There are farmers who would hke to use horses or mules, but who are under a sort of necessity to keep oxen because they cannot afford a better team Still, there are many who prefer pleasure to profit, and who keep horses although oxen could do their work at a much less expense. In New ICnclano there has been a great clian^e m this direction. Twenty years ago oxen were extensively used but they have been, to a very great extent, superseded by \ it \ u M • > I;' 482 FARMING FOR PROFIT. horses. Some farmers have found the change profitable, but many have lost money by the operation. The horses make a better team, but many of these farmers could have got along with oxen, and saved quite a sum both in the first cost of the teams and in the expense of keeping them. If teaming were the only kind of work to be done on a farm either horses or mules would be needed. Oxen would require more time than the farmer could afford to give. But on many small farms the team is not constantly employed, and oxen could do the work. In the great grain-growing sections horses or mules will be absolutely needed. It is of great importance to get the land fitted, and seed sown at the proper time, and delay, though only of a {*i\\ days, will involve a heavy loss. Oxen are too slow for use in such places, and for work on the road. On farms where grain-growing is not a specialty, the owners may be better able to furnish th^ extra time required to work with oxen than they are to pay the higher price which a better team will com- mand. There are a few places in which oxen are the best team. On steep hillsides, and in the mud, they are decidedly superior. But for most purposes horses or mules are greatly to be preferred. On the one hand there is the greater degree of efficiency of the horse and mule, while on the other there is the lower price of the ox. The cost of keeping and shoeing a horse or mule- team is much in excess of that required for the ox-teanrl. Then, too, the horse r. id the mule rapidly decrease in value until old age renders them worthless, while the ox depreciates but little for several years, and at any time can be fattened and sold to the butcher for almost, if not quite, as much as he was ever worth. If a horse or mule is accidentally injured, a part, and often the whole, of its value is thereby destroyed, but if an ox gets lame he can be fattened and but little loss will be sustained. The expense of fitting out a horse or mule-team is much greater than that required for an ox-team. The harnesses and FA/iM TEAMS. 483 wagons required for the former costs a great deal when pared «,a, the Xo.e, eha.s, and cart, wHlL ^edl^^ oxen. Whether the ovfn f;rr.„ ■ i . uic extra time required in uslno- ih^ ^, worth as much to the farmer as the e.tra cos "^ " mule-team, the increased expense of keepZ the h . " " wagons and harnesses, deprecation in 7:, e of tl:: "' -"l=-.eams, and the interest on the extra amount of cap aTthu ■n-ted. is a question to be considered by those vofa'r ~::;^-rrC:„dr::-=f ™:=, he can perftrm aU th fafml^rrCfthT """ '°"'' "' beuer to keep the extra one than it isto C I XXreT ^^ and thorou-hlv buf fh. . ^ '''°''' promptly or mule involves its own.r • '''^ '^'^ ^^°''^^ --.o.eep:n:r:,;rr:r/"°^'-"-' expense is paid by labor, while in the ofte^M, "" "" "" A good team, fully able to do al hfwork V?"-"'""' should be kept on every farm h, 7\ n '^° " "="• >^eep a .arger'numberoTal;, f j:" "" "'^ '"= °™" '° -ded for its aecomplishmr "■"■""" """ ^''^ --""^ 31 • 'i 484 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ■^O quite an extent farm fences are nccessaiy. There must be a fence around the pasture ; there should be a fence j^jS'* on the boundary h'ne of the farm, except where it joins ^^ the highway; and if cattle are allowed in the mowings in the fall, it will be useful to have the grass-land divided into two or more fields. It is also well to hav;> fjnces so that cattle can be kept off the grain fields when tie/ would be liable to track the land and injure the crop. But it is not necessary, and it is not desirable, that the whole farm should be cut up into eight or ten-acre fields, according to the practice of some of the New England farmers of a former generation. Such a course involves an immense cost for fencing, and a great waste of land. The cost of the fences now standing in this coun':ry is far beyond the estimate which a man not acquainted with the facts would make. We know of firpis which are cut up into small fields by heavy stone walls. The work of gathering die stones and building the walls could not now be hired for the whole value of the land and crops and buildings. There are thou- sands of farms in New England which will not sell for enough to pay fair day's wages for the work wljich has been done in fencing them. It has been asserted that the fences in this country cost more than all of the houses, including those in cities; more than all manufactories with their machinery; and more than any other single class of property, except real estate. The annual cost of fences, including interest on the investment, is said to be from one to two hundred millions of dollars. Whether these estimates are accepted as exact or not the "Teat fact that a vast amount of money is already invested in fences remains beyond dispute. It is equally evident that a large number of these fences are wholly useless. On account of the great expense and the loss of land involved in their construction, we do not favor having as many fences as temporary fence cm h. , 7 "'''">' ^^^^^^ ''^ some of el,e States it will al,„ be „ *""""• '" ::or:ir:Lr:;r-------^^^^^^^^^ fences, have been "moved tT°" '"'™"°''' "•■"^' °' P'^^^^' also or the towns h°h ■■""'™""" °' ""= '"=™-- ="" The .inCs of f^ce in cl„ l" r'lrr/*! >f ' Mil, post and board stone w,ll I , ' ''" ''"'' ™'' fence. The con.2. fr ' ^ ^'' ""''='"'<""-•■" and wire requiring „::! oT. 7' '^ "'"" '° *= *^'-"°- °f and or b;„: el :;: :iT;r tr ^ "=^' *" " ■-^' tions of this stvle of f : " ™"°"» modifica- c..eap,saw™i,flee h'"" ''"' '^ P'™'^' '■™^- these orn,s™ vbTIl K,"°"°^ '"" ""' abound, so„,e of ordinarv "^ '^ ""P'^y"^* I*"' as a rule under ord,nary creumstances, and especially where land !, I, some other style will be more desirable. ""'■ The post and rail fence is nn J.^ already described fl,o T u ^"^P'-°^^"^^nt on the style - rcL :r s^tXt::: r/itr ™t "^ rrfetrr.;rr;T'-"^^^^^^^ the holes Lrh *="°'"^ *= P°^' ''°'-. ">«."? fitting;: .irrr ";"-"■' "■- ™* -^ *= -"-.and o? landtv^rL :::t :t:™ -■'' — ^- °" ..on .s taken to prevent the evil. If a large hole is dug'!:;: m 486 FARMING FOR PROFIT. piece of board two feet long is nailed to one side, near the bottom, and another piece on the opposite side a little higher ' up, and the earth firmly packed down, the post will rise and fall with the soil, and will not be thrown out. Such a fence, if well built, will last many years without repairs. The post and board fence looks better than the post and rail. In some sections it is cheaper, while in others it is more expen- sive. Posts seven feet apart, with four six-inch boards placed six inches apart and firmly nailed, make a good fence. This style requires but little land and very few repairs. The stone wall is a very common fence in New England, and is used to some extent in other sections. When well made it is quite durable, and will turn cattle and horses, but will not keep sheep without a rail, or something of the kind, placed on top. It takes considerable land, and makes an almost immovable fence. No matter how much a farmer may want to change the size of his fields, if his land is cut up into little lots divided by heavy stone walls, he must leave them as they are, or else be content to perform an immense amount of work. On very stony farms it may pay to make the boundary fences of stones. This, not because it will be a cheap style, but merely in order to find a place to put the stones. The inside fences of a farm should be made of lighter material which can be more easily removed. Live fences have attracted much attention, and been exten- sively introduced at the West. In New England there are also many hedges. We do not like these fences, but it may sometimes be well to make a virtue of necessity, and use them for want of anything better adapted to the circumstances of the farmer. Our own experience has been with a species of the willow brought from Ohio, and very highly recommended. It makes a strong fence, but, being a vigorous grower, requires much trimming, it looks badly, and takes a great deal of plant- food from the land. Many farmers have used the buckthorn, FARM FENCES. 487 , near the tie higher se and fall ice, if well it and rail, ore expen- rds placed tice. This 5LAND, and made it is 1 not keep ed on top. immovable :hange the its divided ire, or else On very 5 of stones. in order to of a farm nore easily leen exten- ) there are but it may d use them nces of the cies of the ommended. er, requires al of plant- buckthorn, arbor-vitae, hemlock, and pine. Each of these will make quite a fence, but they require manure and cultivation to insure a strong and uniform growth when young, and much pruning to make them look decently when they have attained considerable size. They are also subject to the adverse influences of extreme drought and severe cold. As they cannot be removed without being destroyed, they are not well adapted for inside fences, while if neighbors choose to quarrel they may cut the roots' upon their own sides, and thus injure the boundary-hedges. In the Middle and Southern States the Osage orange is a better hedge-plant than those we have named, but it will not endure Northekn winters. The honey locust is one of the best hedge-plants for all sections. Embankments are often used in England for fencing between two farms. A large, open ditch is dug on the line, and the dirt piled up in a high wall upon one side. Of these fences Loudon says the earth taken out is " formed into a bank, the height of which when added to the depth of the ditch forms a tolerable barrier." But he does not recommend them as highly as he does the double ditch, in which the earth from an open ditch on each side is piled upon the line of the fence, and a hedge is planted on top of this embankment. Where the land is very wet, and underdraining is impracticable, one of these methods may be adopted. We recommend it only for very wet land, and consider its value as an instrument of drainage to be far in excess of its merits as a fence. The wire fence is now quite popular, and seems destined to come into extensive use in all parts of the country. Some years ago plain wire was used at the West for fencing pur- poses. It possessed many merits, but was defective in some important respects. Various improvements have been effected and patented. The most important of these have been bought by the Washburn & Moen Manufacturing Co., of WoRCEbXEK, Mass., and united in the Glidden Steel Barb Fence. This 1 ' r ' .'l il 488 FARMING hOR PROFIT. fence possesses many advantages over any other style. The wire is very strong, being made of two strands, and will sustain a weight of fourteen hundred pounds to each line. It is easily CO w 11 v. n W Hp l^i^ l^iH^fWM^ \filfflf« ^^-M 1 |U|i^^BH|n 1 |M< ] :^' Viii!ii' ' fl' 8^ 1 1 iii'i l*';,|l|j rli J '^ ■V'vS:^'^ ■;*■ jAn.' ^■^■■i'-'P^® '§m I.- ■K'*5L --^:^i^ mm ra mmfi /'ll'" < m i$ ij 'lihlll ! !" Ill I' seen, and, having many barbs, cattle find it impassable. When once well put up it remains in place through all extremes of heat and cold. This wire makes a very cheap fence. Four r.lRAf l-EXCES. 489 lines can be put up at a cost for materials of only seventy-five cents to one dollar per rod. and make a fence through which no an.mals, large or small, can pass. The barb wire fence is repre- sented in Figure 5 i. Such a fence can be put up very rapidly will not be destroyed by prairie fires, will not be blown down' and will neither cause drifts nor be injured by snow. This wire' can be used in connection with old or new wood fences if desired. We have tried stretching one line on top of an old ViKG.MA fence which the cattle often used to throw down It has worked to perfection, and made the old fence safe at a very shght expense. This wire is well adapted for use as a temporary fence for keeping cattle out of grain fields in the fall. For this purpose posts can be set quite a distance apart, and only two or, at most, three lines of wire will be needed. In making a fence which is designed to remain for any length of tune It is best to use good materials and do the work well Por a Virgin,., fence wooden blocks will prove much better than stones for foundations for the corners. The former will decay in tune and must be replaced. The latter will last but W.11 soon sink into the ground and become useless. Stakes should be.made long enough to be re-sharpened and used again when the ends in the ground decay. They should also be large enough to keep the fence in place. From rails, stakes, posts and boards, all the bark should be taken before they are put into the fence. When the bark remains the timber will last but • little. If any, more than half as long as it would if the bark had been taken off. Sound timber should always be chosen and when a post and board fence is made, heavy nails should be used. It does not pay to have too many fences, but it is best when making one designed to be permanent to use <^od materials and put them together in the best possible manner I- k 490 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Y'fe\RM ROADS arc a great convenience, though not an ^S\\ absohitc necessity. Many farmers have nothing of the ^(^j kind. They drive all over the fields, wherever they want ^ J to go, and make no effort to secure a good road in any part of the farm. The result is that their mowing lots and grain fields are cut up with wheel tracks and trodden by the team, the labor of drawing the loads is increased to such an extent that the teams are obliged to work extremely hard, while the work is so severe, especially when the land is softened by rains, that much smaller loads must be taken than could be drawn if good roads were provided. Roads will cost some labor, but in the end will save both labor and time. The former and his help can easily make them. On every farm there should be one good road which, with its branches, shall lead from the barn to each field. On dry land the farm road is easily constructed. Many farmers rely merely upon a cart path. Rut such a path soon becomes rutted. Very little grass will grow between the tracks, and the land had better be devoted wholly to the purposes of a road. The ruts cause the loads to draw very much harder than they would on a good road, while they are also liable to cause wagon wheels to be unduly wrenched and twisted. A team will draw a heavier load on a good road than it can in the ordinary cart path, and wagon and cart wheels will last much longer- advantages which will soon compensate the farmer for the labor required in making the road. The farm road should be elevated a little above the level of the land, and in order to let the water run off it should be made a little higher in the middle than it is at the sides. The ground should be plowed, graded, and rolled. If it is nearly level, an open furrow may be left on each side. Where the land is wet the labor will be increased. The ground should be thor- Mi 1 ; I h not an ng of the Lhcy want ad in any and grain team, the dent that the work rains, that 'n if good 3oth labor ikc them, hich, with i. Many path soon the tracks, poses of a ardor than ie to cause L team will e ordinary 1 longer — r the labor he level of it should the sides. it is nearly re the land lid be thor- /■//A-yJ/ ROADS. ougMy u„dcrdrai„cd. If s.ones arc plenty, ,h= earth ™ay be .own out to a depth of two or three feet and the treneh Led w th eobb es, upon uhich the dirt may be plaeed. The centre of the road n,u.,. be .,on,e ,,i,d,cr than the edge.,, and at the .ide! an open furrou, or a trench filled with stone,,, should bo made road. VVIcn h., course ,s impracticable, the road should be con .derab y elevated and large ditches at the sides should be made to take off the w.ater. In some places several farmers could profitably unite in buying a machmc for making road.,. The cos, to each would be s/gl f w ...e a I the .advantages of single ownership would be secuf d The Champ,on Road Gnader, made by the Eureka Manufac- urmg Company, of Rock Falls, 111., is an excellent implement for makmg farm roads. It may be objected to farm roads that they will be in the way when .1. fields are plowed. This has little force, for the roadi can eas,ly be avoided. They will often prove ve^ useful. AIanv-.?Vn:,. ., aloadof hay has been shaken off while being drawn overi ".' ;» S'^ rough cart path which would have stayed on, and all the lalfc ■? $^-f \ o reloadmg, with its loss of time, would have been avoided i; «,vM' - here had been a good road where it was drawn. A man and' " ' " H^ team cartrng out manure in the wet weather of .spring will accomp hsh a great deal more if there is a good road than they can„,.honyacommonpathtodr.awitover. On a good road ' he team w.ll draw as much at twice as can be taken at three '! times m a cart path on soft bnd The use of poor roads thus mvolves a loss of the ti„,e and labor of one day out of every throe m which the team is used. Not only this, but the liability of accident is greatly increased by poor roads, or by driving in the ruts where no roads are pro- vided. Many a horse has been made lame for life by injuries received while drawing loads m a muddy cart path. Thus the horse ,s obliged to endure a great deal of suffering, while the FARMING FOR PROFIT. «>irner must sustain quite a loss. If a good road had been fur- Wc-iit'f/, i/'^th of these evils would Iw*""^ been avoided. The loss of labor is another consideration which should have considerable influence in inducing the farmer to keep good roads. We have already shown that labor is equivalent to money. And it is easy to sec that there is not only a great U)ss of time in- volved by using poor roads, but also a great deal of labor. The team may be required to draw only two-thirds as much on a poor road as it would have to take on a good one, but the labor is greater than it would be with a full load. This increase is not merely in the aggregate amount of work, in the necessity of working three days to do two days' labor, but each and every load, though only two-thirds as large, draws much harder than a full load should. On dry land it will pay to furnish good roads for the team, while on wet land a heavy and consta.it loss will be incurred by the farmer who uses a cart path, or drives where he happens to, instead of making a good road over which loads can be easily drawn. TIMBEB CULTURE. HE setting of timber trees has often been recommended and in many places can be made quite profitable. The Wkstern firmer needs wood for fuel, and timber for building and fencing purposes. Ilis house she ad Jiave trees around it to purify the air, and his cattle need shade in their pastures. In New England there arc many firms upon whic'n 'o.s are needed for these purposes, and many tracts of compa'-a« . / ' astc !ind which can be made useful by their product, ■;^ A'' 'lie South there are many places where trees would ic'-p. j\. t'.e land, n, ,kc the locations more healthful, and supply a great want of nice timber. In all sections of the country there are a multitude of farmers been fur- lulcl hiive Dil rt);itls. cy. And time in- )or. The uch on a the labor ISC is not :essity of nd every rder than he team, urred by ppcns to, be easily mmcndcd dIc. The imber lor 3ukl iiave shade in rms upon • tracts of 1 by their lore trees thful, and of farmers TlMIiER ariTURE. t. 1. , 493 Who. by dovotin,. an acre or more of Ian.' to the growth of n •'Or!. can be hastened in their dcvclonment V T ^ few succeed nc vcari T -.r^l, . . '' and a servin ,«=, T " fansplanted from the nur- sery ,„ ,853 were forty feet in height, and ten or twelve inches o tree aUo made a verv rapM growth. About three-fourth, of i,e trees were obtained from seed sown where the/^r L stand, some were imported, while others were started in ,h! :r7b "T" " •"= ^'^'^ ""•■ «"-" Of :■ The; tr would be much more rapid than it is at the East tree. It grows very rap.dly and the wood is one of the most durable k,„ds known. Mk, Su.. Fosx.k, of low., say ,Z are two vanefes, one of which occasionally winter kills a ,h! No«.„^whi,e the other seems to be as ha^^y as the ma l oak. We know of a.few trees in Mass, which when small were som w at ai^^ced by severe winters. Probably the hardy sort «uld do well m all parts of the country This tree grows so ap,dly that it soon becomes large enough for bean p!les and ■n s,x or e,ght years will do for fence stakes and many ;.her pulses. The trees are healthy and not liable to be attacked by msects. For railroad ties, bridges, fences, and other pur- poses for wh.ch p..rman,.nce is required, this timber is of great value. It aUo takes a fine polish and is useful fo'r cabinet work and (imshmg the interior of buildings. There are many other varieties of trees which grow rapidly »d succeed .„ largo sections of the counto^. The white ash^ HI i! 494 FARMING FOR PROFIT. walnut, European larch, locust, chestnut, and pine can be easily and successfully cultivated in most of the States. The white oak is also a very valuable timber tree and will adapt itself to a wide range of soil and climate, but is of a slow habit of growth. A few trees of this sort might well find a place in a timber plan- tation. It is better to set several different kinds of trees than to use only one variety. These trees may be started from seed planted where they are to grow, from seed in the garden and the trees transplanted when three or four years old, or tl, ,y may be obtained directly from a nursery. We think it is decidedly better to follow either of the other plans than it is to plant the seeds where the trees are expected to stand. The distance apart at which the trees should be placed will depend upon the pur- poses for which they are to be used and the size which they are expected to attain. It has often been asserted that the removal of forests greatly diminishes the rain-fall, affects the climate unfavorably, and injures the soil. On the other hand, the claim has been made that when taken in periods of twenty years the rain-fall is nearly uniform, that it is not changed to any extent by the presence or the removal of forests, and that the changes of climate and soil which have been observed in connection with the clearing off of vast forests are due to other causes. It is probably true that the average rain-fall of a country in periods of twenty years is about the same, but when quite a pro- portion of the land is well covered with trees the rain is much more evenly divided than it is when there are no forests. If the land is bare, a large part of the rain falls in heavy storms and runs into the rivers and seas without proving of much use in watering the land. But when there are plenty of forests the clouds are frequently intercepted, rain falls often, and, coming in small quantities, refreshes the earth and keeps it from becom- ing parched. In this way forests prevent both floods and TIMBER CULTURE. be easily riie white itself to a if growth, iber plan- lan to use :d planted the trees ■ may be decidedly plant the ince apart t the pur- hich they ts greatly ably, and sen made [ is nearly ■esence or 2 and soil earing off :ountry in lite a pro- n is much ts. If the ;orms and ich use in brcsts the d, coming m beconi- loods and 495 droughts. Forests must also exert quite a modifying influence upon the climate of a country. They break the force of the cold Winds which prevail in winter and cool the hot ones which blow in summer. By these modifications of the rain-fall and. climate 'it will be seen that the clearing off of large forests must unfavorably affect the soil. The removal of large bodies of timber dries up the httle mountain streams, breaks the uniformity of the rain-fall makes the planting seasons late and cold and the summers hot and dry. The maintaining of a proper balance between the area m forests and under cultivation seems to be one of the important conditions upon which the highest success in agriculture depends Another important matter connected with this subject is the influence of the changes wrought by the removal of forests upon the health of the people. The changes of temperature become more sudden and violent, and invalids find the climate mcreasing in severity. Trees are also needed to purify the air They should not be so close to buildings as to prevent Ue shining of the sun upon them, but they ought not to be very far removed. There are places in Italv which were once very pleasant and healthful localities, which after the removal of the surrounding forests gradually became unhealthy, and at certain seasons of the year were considered unsafe. In some of these localities trees have been planted, and the original purity of the a mosphere has been secured. Doubtless there are many P aces m this country which would have been healthful instead of malarious, if the forests had been preserved Timber culture offers to a large class of farmers a field of profitable labor. By growing timber trees in sections destitute of wood or by carefully selecting from the forests which remain the specimens which have matured and keeping the young and vigorous ones for future use. the farmer may secure for himself and for tho. who come after him a great and per- manent benefit. o ^ >. 11 I '■ li 11 ! i 496 FARMING FOR PROFIT. 4 FO'STER ON" THE Fi&HM . HERE arc many purposes for which power is needed on a large farm, and it is often very convenient on a small /J'/pr one. The principal kinds which are adapted to the ^Ca purpose are horse-power, wind and steam Water- power is useful where it can be obtained, but on most farms this is out of the question. For light purposes, such as churning, dog or sheep-power is often used. As horses are kept on all large farms, their services are very often employed. Wind is also used to quite an ex- tent, and a few of the largest farmers are making some use of steam. But the majority of farmers who use power must choose between that of the horse and the wind. The object to be attained is the substi- tution of the cheap power of horses or wind for the more costly labor of men. Each of these kinds of power has its advantages. Horse-power is movable, and can be set up and used at home or abroad. It can be readily attached to the various machines which it is desired to use. It can be easily regulated, and used whenever it is wanted. The cost is also within the means of a large class of our successful farmers. Wind is a variable power — some- times altogether too .strong, while at others it accomplishes nothing. A wind-engine once erected is stationary, and must remain where it is placed. As its location is usually on top of a building, or a high tower, it cannot be so readily attached to the various machines to which its motion is to be communi- cated as the horse-power. But while the horse-power has some FIG. 52. — DOG-POWER. — MADE BY N. Y. PLOW CO., N. Y. CITY. POWER ON THE FARM. FIG. 53— HORSE-POWER. ^lANUFACTURU) "iri^'AriT^ZS'S^^r'''^^^ ". >v. UKAY S SONS, MIDDLETOWV SPRINGS, VT. t ■r FIG. 54-— \VI.\D-MU,L, MANUKACTLRKD BY F.CLIPSE WIND MILL CO., I3EL0IT, W IS. 498 FARMING FOR PROFIT. advantages over wind, the latter also has some points in which it is si'perior. For pumping water in distant pastures it is the only available power. The farmer can neither go with, nor send his horse-power there to pump water, and if he could the expense would be greater than that of erecting a wind-mill. By the use of suitable tanks, a supply can be provided for calms ; and by means of an automatic arrangement, the pump will cease to operate when these tanks are full, and begin again when they are empty. Many farmers have used wind-mills for pumping water in their pastures, and found them very profitable. For the other purposes to which power is applied on the farm, the wind-engine should be near the barn. A good one may be used for shelling corn, threshing grain, grinding feed, and sawing wood. A light wind will be sufficient to drive it, and the inconveniences attending the use of this power can be offset by the low cost for which it can be supplied. The mechanical part of the horse-power is not very costly, but the power itself must be furnished by horses at a considerable expense to the owner. It is true that horses must be kept on the farm for other purposes, and that they can often be driving machinery when they would otherwise be idle. But the more the labor of the team is increased, the greater will be the cost of keeping, the liability of accident or disease, and the sooner the animals will be worn out. Many farmers who have other work enough for their horses prefer to use wind as a power rather than keep a larger team. Others have horses enough to do all the farm work, including the driving of the machines which they need to use. Consequently, some will find it profitable to use wind-mills while others will prefer the horse-power. A very good stationary steam-engine for farm purposes can be had for a comparatively low price, and in sections where fuel is abundant steam may be largely used as a motive power for driving farm machines. The use of steam will require buildings POll^EJi OAT THE FARM. ' ^^g help or else the personal attention of the owner. A good wind 2'"e, properly arranged, „i„ pre„y „„ch take ca^of e^' Horse-power o.,gh. to have a carefu, „,anager, but ca L ha^^.„g does not involve as n,.ch danger! it wouldt^ steam The engmes may be made nearly self.reg.la.i„g 30 as o avoid great Lability of explosions, but if the manager I are ^ess the machine may be ruined and a heavy loss' in X Eu n sp,te of some drawbacks, steam gives certain advantals wh,ch can be secured by no other power adapted to the firm Byahttle additional expense the food for the cattle IT' ste^med and roots can be cooked, if desired ; ^t;, ■ntelhgent farmer who once makes a practical trial of steam power, ,f he gets a good engine, will be perfectly satisfied w.U :rr:rer!i;r---------pr:mt as"! '2,7': ""T '' ''""■"'■'"^ '''"'=™'"g ^'-"-Power as a means of performing the heavy work which usuallv ^vo.vcs upon teams. ,t is generally known that in Eh ! " ° ^■"-"e'"" are ve^ often used .0 draw the plow STATES of our own country We do not refer to me expenments. but ,0 the practical operations of the Tttm plow. The great seedsmen, D. Un„r.t„ & Sons of PHr xr^t^^Xerm-'T^"'- -'■■^-■- —"- ^"P.oved,anditm:::::,x:::e"r^^^ years shall pass the treat prairies of the w4t "l ? "" "^ tilled to a great depth by steam tL r "'°™"8l.ly .ang of piows will'also I Zj'Z oThriroTl "t eng,nes will not be used by the smaller farm on alunt : the,r expense, but there are many large la be able to cultivate their farms at a less 32 ■ge land-holders who will cost by the use of steam 600 FARMING FOR PROFIT. than they can with horses. At the South, on account of the difficulty of securing labor, the steam-engine will probably become a great reliance of the progressive farmer. In many places the plan of neighborhood ownership may be profitably adopted. Several farmers living near together, and each doing too small an amount of business to justify the PIG. 55, puRTAULE ENGINE, MADE UY BLYMYER MFG. CO., ClNClNNAll, O. expense of separate machines, could purchase a horse -power, or steam-engine, in company, and thus, at a very moderate cost, secure nearly all of the advantages of individual possession. There are many different styles of horse-powers, wind, and steam-engines. The illustrations which we give represent standard machines. int of the probably p may be ther, and jstify the FARM IMPLEMEN-TS. 601 INATl, U. -power, or erate cost, lession. wind, and represent '<^ fillTHIN the past thirty years macl)ines have largely taken I the place of hand-labor on the farm. By their aid the ^ work can be performed much faster, and some kinds ^ much better, than it can be done by hand. As they enable a man with a small amount of capital to do a much larger busmess than e could carry on without them, and also preven a great deal of waste which would otherwise occur, tl'y are usually cons.dered both cheaper and better than hand-power To the small farmer they arc a -- great convenience, while the large farmer finds them in- dispensable. The machines which the average farmer needs are divided into several classes, those of each class being fitted for the performance of FIG. S6.— FIREFLY HANDHOE. some special line of work Onf> ^u • ^ • fi , , ^ ^'^^^ '^ designed to preoare preparmg the products of the farm for use or for the market Other machines are used because by their aid work c!n b d :::~:7 T ," -- '^ '-"■ -^"«= >--ho,d l;: incnts lorm a class by themselvp« \\r u , o„^ -11 . . , "'emseives. We have already described ::::rxraCr---------e3er:: J: :.:;:dti::;nrsri;rT^. "^- differenf fnrmc ^ r '^ ^^^^ '" many to say* ht h • h . °" ""'^ °' '""'=™'- To attempt to say wh,ch ,s the best plow in use would be a foolish eflbr, y are mferior. The buyer should obtain a ii , i 31 ■i ■ M* iii 502 J'AA'MJA'G 10 K J'Jilar ,o that of a wagon 1,„ ' Th ''"'''"■" " n.-.e..er,a„d.rean,L:dedtt:::;:';:rT roller, and fnTjalnr"'""""^^ '^ '^'' «°' '" "'''- cases it will prove a vciy useful implement. If the farmer owns but little land, and fccIs unable to purchase an iron roller, it will cer- tainly pay him to make a good wooden one. Some farmers construct rollers of £^m,JKm^ U '"^^.4lS'lK^^ pJanl:, and make very good ^%Z^^^ **^^^r^^ ones. The.se rollers should ^^^*^' — kJj^f^^ be made in two sections for convenience in turning "-• ^r-spRmc tooth harrow :::^oLt„rn:;~r°°-™^'---- The le„,.„ and si ^the Ir: T:' " '"'"'' '°^- --ng*ofthe.ea,„which • t drat t K "T" '° ""-' one of the best iron rollers ^'"■" '^'* '''^P'^^'^'"^ and for different p'pl: Z^^T"""~Y ''"""" ^°™' ronns have been LL^T^^^Xu "'"' '"''"" form of a letter A »n^ I, ,'■•"»■''=' harrow, made in the A, and havmg large, long teeth, has always I -■t ■ ; 11 H ;i? 1 HH 1 , i ^iJEH^^^lH I'll PH^BInll ifi ^^^B^H £■ '"^ ■M^^^^^^^^l II m ^Hl 508 FARMING FOR PROFIT. im been a favorite for use among stumps, stones, or on very rough ground. The square harrow has many more teeth, is hghter, does not draw as hard, is better to handle, and on smooth land will do better work. It should be made in two sections, joined at the sides by hinges which can readily be separated. Both these styles are open to the objection of being very easily clogged. Figure 65 shows the too frequent condition of the teeth. When clogged they accomplish but little, while the labor of the team is greatly increased. By the use of slanting teeth this difficulty is wholly avoided, the efficiency of the implement is very greatly increased, while the draft is considerably reduced. This form of harrow is represented by Figure 66. It was invented by J. J. Thomas, Esq., the well-known author of several valuable agricultural books, and one of the editors of the " Country Gentleman," and is manufactured by the Thomas Smoothing-Harrow Co., Geneva, N. Y. Figure 67 shows a new style of harrow made by G. B. Olin it Co., Perry, N. Y. This form readily adapts itself to uneven land, can be adjusted to work deep or shallow, draws easily, while the teeth readily pass over obstructions. Figure 68 rep- resents a combined clod-crusher, pulverizer, and leveler, which is manufactured by Nash & Brother, of New York city. The leveling bar breaks down the lumps, and levels the surface, while the curved steel coulters cut the soil, and leave it very loose and fine. This is a valuable implement, especially for use on inverted sod, and on hard and rough fields. Figure 69 shows the Randall Harrow, made by the Warrior Mower Co., Little Falls, N. Y. This convenient and wonderfully efficient implement is too well known to need description. It can be used either as a stiff or a jointed harrow, can be set at different angles, and will pulverize the soil rapidly, and leave it in excel- lent condition. Planters, cultivators, and harvesters have already been illus- trated. For use on large farms, a Horse-Fork is almost indis- fARM IMPLEMENTS. FIG. 68 ACME CLOD CRUSHFB ,»„ CRUSHEK, LEVELER AND PCLVERIZKR. "' i- if' ^. no. «9 -RASDAU. HABKOW. large surface on the mow if desired Tk c . « of hard labor, and do .hTwo J '' ''"= ' ^^-' be advantageously used in bu dil! J"^ "''■'"^- ^^y ^-- unloading a. ehc barn. l^l'Z '■'"'-^'^^'''' «' -" - for stacking hay by „ea„s of .h^ ^1^^""' "" "'*'"' °' 610 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Mi In order to shell and clean the vast quantities of grain now produced, machines for the purpose are an absolute necessity. Many different kinds have been invented, and several have come o > O z !lLjiiiiiiillii!iii|i^l!i!l^''1li!iS!!l!!!l|l into extensive use. Many farmers who grow a large quantity of grain prefer to hire their threshing done, rather than buy a machine and run it themselves. Hence there are, in the grain- growing regions, many men who make a business of threshing for others. In some r^ ^^^ -hile in others this co>,Tdl"'„"^'*" '° "'""■= ™* ^one, farm there should be a " eTlf "™ "*'""=■ «" ^ '-ge " c-'eaper than he can '^..e "t lel, ^ ~™* -" "-^"x ^o "Should be taken to obtain o„ ,• ''"^■'"e a machine care "-able, and which wi^ Zthe T" ™"' '^''y' ""ich is --"cnt machines in the J^ J' r" ^""^ -= -vera, Faniuhar Thresher and Cleane'r n , !''""■' " ""P"''"'' *« ^a. This n,achi„c recciv d , ' f, ^ ''^ "' ''^^^^''". Voric, '-.-cntennia.andatthlt-^CLr'-''^''^^'*^'"™- When the bus,^i: ■:;;;:=:-•" ■•' "«*■' - ever, farn,. •° i-«r, the expense 1 s c™:;;:™"*^' '' "^ -' -n, ™y unite in the purchase of a good nTm a'"d "^""' "'""""^ F'g-= 73 shows Montgomery's Ro" '"" "'""°"- Dorsey, Moore & Co., BaUimorTMd"™^ "^"^ "^"^ "^ A good Corn-Huslcr is saving regions, ani woumTI rreari!,'" f" '"^ '"^^= -™- ^armers doing only a sn,,,, business A, %'° ^ 7'"'"^^ "^ J^a"-. ■" >879, a machine of this H. P^-'ylvania State attracted considerable aim „ T'™ '^^^ -'>*"ed, and adapted to the work which i, J, d T"" '" ■="= P^r^^V -■"'Pic n,achine,and not i , , ^^"'^ '° ""f"™- I' is a "7=' at ".c barn or taken i,!" , f,!: "T T " ^=" "^^ "«<> «.= machine and carried but s 7 J '*' "'■'= "'■■'"™ ' '» a pair of corrugated " nd " T'""' ''' =" ™^'-' ^P"" »'a>k-s through and push , he I '°""'' ^"^'^ *" «>= "-ine can be run 'by lid ot Jo,: t/''^ ''"^'■^- ""'^ p. -d. The cost of the smaller sizes is fifty ' d^;' ^c"d ■1^ » t'.t p !• ^f I ii gj2 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Richardson & Co., of Philadelphia, Pa., are the owners of the patent. The same company also exhibited a Corn-Harvester, which is a valuable implement for use at the West and South. This machine is to be used in the field. When the corn is fully ripe, the machine is drawn through the field-the horses walking between the rows. It cuts the stalks near the ground, throws them into the machine where they are drawn between rollers, yj*;, yi. — THRESHER AND CLEANER. FIG. 72. — CLOVER-SEED GATHERER. FIG. 73.— ROCKAWAY FAN. and the ears hu.sked in the same manner as with the Corn- Huskcr. The ears can be dropped into a hopper, carried by an elevator to chute, and thence to a wagon drawn behind the machine. The stalks are made into bundles, and dropped upon the ground. This machine costs about two hundred dollars. With a good team, eight or ten acres of corn per day can be harvested. The Corn-Sheller is a machine which- is needed on nearly «I1 farms where corn is grown. Figure 74 shows an excellent FARM IMPLEMENTS. simple and durable machinn "'"' ^^^- This O'- after it has .ee„ „„3ked. a do I: r" *^- '""'^^ °" Fa. .e farms, and soon pay for themselves If onlv . I'ght one IS wanted, and the cost W n f •, ^ ingenious farmer can buy a '"'^ '° '^ "^^^' ^^" knife and make a machine which will answer his purpose. The costwill then be very small, and the machine will be likely to answer until the owner be- comes better able to buy one. It is well known that the efficiency of a mower or reaper, as well as the degree of power required to operate it, will largely depend upon the con- dition of the knives. The best machine with dull knives will draw hard and fail to do f5rst- nice y, the kn.ves must be frequently ground. Not only t J^ s one at th nght angle, m order that the grinding may be in the nght d.rect,on. and also to prevent an undue grLdin'aw perk^ct^ true, the implement represented by Figure 78 and made by Powell, Stevens & Douglas, Waukeean 111 useful. ^vauKegan, ill., is very In some sections of the country a Sttrtp p... 33 ^^untry a ^sTuirp-PuLLER is a great I-IG. 7S.— SICKLE-GRINDER, I H 11 '■temfumieitmm^ x.i/*.-. 516 FARMING I' OR PROFIT. FIG. 80.— box's portable HOISTING MACHINE. i^./iP.l/ rMPLEATENTS '•ai»e fifty ,|,o„,,„d pot,„d. For ouH- V ^^"' ""■' ''" roc^s ,.,i3 i. a valuable ^ple..!;:' ' ' ^'"""'^ '"'' """' ra™.''3^'"-: ""'"'■^■'= ^'— -often needed npon .ar^c la n,.. and ,s frequently useful upon s„,a„ one. Tl.erc : many purposes tfiaate ^ ^'^ for which such a machine is re- quired, and its use would save many heavy lifts and miicli hard labor. Figure 80 shows a machine which attracted a great deal of at- tention at the Pennsylvania State Fair, in 1879, and which received the first premium there, and at the Mis- nc. 8,.-kmpirh portable forge souri State Fair. With fl,;. -enton. XHe^leMdtrirrr^™''"'" but lowers rapidly when started by .„ ope ^to T, "' T'' .3 ™de by Alfred Bo. & Co/pbilade ^ p/ J^T -on, and durable, and Is „„, „,,, , J„„; ^-^2. " '"' s..irn,:rd;:re"r " '-':-■ -^ - - - uses many tools He mav ! "" ''''° °™= """■ '••""' ""'J y ools. He may get along without it, but not without P 3;' I in m ill 518 FARMING FOR PROFIT. FlOi 82. — LlCrfNING BUCK-SAW. FIG. 83. I t ! FIO. 85. — FAMILY SCALE. FIG. 86.— PORTABLE PLATFORM-SCALE. FAr?M iMPIEAfF.XJS. u*^ incurring con,,de,abk. !„»,, „,„,.by. The ingenious farmer who " ' y™''' I"-- "■"l""---'' to 'ake it to tl,e blacland, a great many jobs could be done at home. There vou^d a udod, but the repairs ^vould be more likely to receive oromM a ^„.,o„ than they would if the wagons or m'achins Zr to b sen. to a blacksmith. In this way a great deal of useless wear would be saved One bolt put in at the very beginningoran m .ca„o„ that it is needed is worth more than half a'do, bolts put m after the parts have worn loose and got enti elv oj; fcrm. Th.s, w,.h many other styles, is made by the eJZ Portable Forge Co, Cohoes, N. Y. n 'd "Tf "'""' '■" "'"■='' "'""' '^ "S'^d for fuel, saws will be'^^ swthifh "'"'''°^*^"°^^- ■'^e -re 8. represents a J o^ sMe We h^^^T ''""'"""'^"' °''' ""= ""--''-'oned found ,t a valuable implement. Figure 83 shows a sa v for cuttmg off logs. Figure 84 shows a hand-saw for use Z pruning trees and cutting boards. All these saws are made by E. M. Boynton, New York city. Scales for weighing the products of th^ farm are ver>- fmpor- . "em"" wT': "?" '""" *°""' '^ '° S=' along without o-^e, m different ways, and in the course of a year he will be fortunate if he does not lose for want of them more ^I the g20 FARMING FOR PROFIT. scales would cost. On a large farm scales weighing at least two tons should be placed in the barn-floor, and there should be small ones at the house for weighing milk, butter, poultry, and similar articles. On a small farm there should be scales which will be convenient for weighing lambs, calves, and grain, while some light ones in the house should be kept for weighing the articles which are sold from the dairy, and the lighter class of goods from the farm. Without a good scale it is impossible for a man to thor- oughly test the yield of his cows, to carry on care- ful experiments, and to do many other things which the careful FIG. 87 i I farmer will desire to perform He cannot tell whether his grocer deals fairly with him or not, will be obliged to " — '' the weighs to - e u - _..,„ proH'.scts. and he will often be put much inconvenience when no great pecuniary loss is i^airbanks scales ,n operation on the farm farlTl"?.'"/'^^ '"'"''^ ^'^^"' ^^-"'^ l>e found on every farm, and ,t ,s desirable that it should be a re-illv „ 7 laborious, while in cold weather the poetiy connec- ted with the bucket will utterly fail to compensate for its manifest disadvan- tages. As the wife and children are often obliged to draw water for use in the house, the farmer should provide a pump wlucii will work easily, and also raise water with a reasonable degree of speed. It is quite desirable that the pump should be suitable for throwing water upon the buildings in case of fire. ™. ^^-v.y.c^^^^^tl^Z^^^Z^c^. figure %Z represents a ''"^'"''- c ■ ^' ""^^^^^ ^^'^ter rapidly and has n As .t s put together with bolts it is easy to eet at the valves .„ case it should be desirable to change. h!^ TW pump IS mnnufarhirrr! V„ /- - ^ "'^ phia,Pa. ""•''"'" by Coopc.. Jones & Cadbu^-. Philadel- M 522 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The class of household machines is not very large. Among the best implementa of the kind are machines for washing, wringing, and ironing clothes. Of Washing Machines there is an almost unlimited number, and, if we except the single implement of the churn, there are more worthless machines of this description than of all other kinds put together. There are a very few good patterns. But most of the washers give satisfac- tion for only a short time, and are soon laid aside. Either in the cellar or garret of a large number of farm-houses can be found FIC. 89. — BEEBE WASHING MACHINE. one or more discarded washing machines which have been tried and proved defective. Farmers have bought so many poor ones that they have come to look with a great deal of distrust upon every new washer which is brought to their attention. But, while the market is flooded with poor ones, there are machines which are a real help, and every farmer's wife ought to have one. Washing is hard work, and, in connection with the other duties of the house, is too heavy for one woman to do b}' main strength. With a good machine the work can be done FARM IMPLEMENTS m less time, and with but little very, hard wort p- 1 ' CO a washing machine. There mnv k excuse for the farmer who does not keen 1 . '°"^' machine, but the man who ne.lects to n / ""''"^ wringer does a great wron^ C I ^ ' ' ^°°' ^^°^^^'--^- low prices Th!v ^'■'"^''■^ ^^" ^^ ^^^^''-d for hard wo k T ev ' '"'' '"' °' '"^^' ^"'^ °^ --^'".-ly useofiteiMri::;^^^"^^^^^^^^^^^^ --'^'"^ ^-^' but tiiey are necessities to all women who are obliged to wash, and who can pos- sibly afford the expense. One of the best, as well as l best known, styles is made by the Metropolitan Wash- ing Machine Co., of New York city, and is represented by Figure 90. To those who can afford to buy one, and a great Co., of Boston, Mas. The u^Tof «1 . ""'^^ "''^'""'"^ irons .he clothes without hi sa ""' ''^'' ^"^ '' .-.an. .oes not ^,1 ::iz:: : h^:tn?a',::;:": ^-^ a" who have not bought bu twhl c r , "^ '"""" '" '1.CSC machines. The prices hx , " '"'^'" '° ''""'^h abic %u.e, and it Z sit "T"-" -''"-<' '° a reason. FIG. 90.— CLOTHES-WRI.VGER. the last excuse for not 624 FARMING FOR PROFIT. buying a sewing machine had been taken away. With, a good machine the farmer's wife can do her sewing easily and rapidly, and will be able to occasionally find a few minutes at a time in which she can sit down to rest without feeling that she is neglecting some pressing duty. Such a list as we have attempted must, in the limits assigned for this purpose, necessarily be incomplete, but we have named some of the lead- FiG. 91. \ ing implements which are either needed universally, or else in large sections of the country. Many of the farm machines have been incorrectly termed " labor-saving " implements. They do not save labor. All the work must be performed with them that would be needed if they were not used. But the labor is transferred from man to be performed by animals, wind, and steam. But these machines do save time, and crops, and health. By their aid the farmer can do a great deal more than would be possible without them, and can secure crops which under the old system would inevitably suffer a great waste. Then, too, the saving of health is one of the greatest of the various economies secured by the use of machines. The labor can be performed with less physical exhaustion, and more time for rest can be secured. This is a matter of great importance both to the farmer and his family. It is not only infinitely pleasanter, but it is a great deal cheaper to buy machines for doing the work than it is to employ doctors and purchase medicines in order to regain health which has been lost by excessive labor. LIVE-STOCK (525) CCNT5NT8 OF PART 13. LIVE-STOCK ON THE FARM. THE HORSE. THE MULE. CATTLE. THE DAIRY. SOILING CATTLE. ENSILAGE. SHEEP. SWINE. THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. (526) LIVE. STOCIC ON THE FAJiAf. ^^^ ON THB K«B^. 627 \ «-t they have „or ha;? '^ "'*"' '■"™ '"= f-' ^' dollars invested i„ al ,■ ""'' ^ '"'"" '^""""^ of "-cl upon the ac.ua, se,.-:::^: "Tf ^''■■' -'-ate ,s of the hVe-st„ck business fro„ .l "m ™' "" ''"'P°*"- ™' sum of money whicH """"■"' "^ ™"- 'f *= -t-nsafairrateofinteett he 'T""' '^ *=- -"-s their owners. If .^ey Zt, Z f " ' '"^' '""-^ 'o unwisely invested '''' '"'" ^ ■^"■™. the money is The facts that so larje a ,nm • -'s.and that from th'em the i I^ rff "^ "^--ni- this great amount of capital m, 7 ^ " ^'^'^'''''^d, upon ■•--ement for the o^r to^^t T^' f -[^ P- a stro^ oare and the closest attention Tt r"°* ""^ ''«' of largest possible profit is to be secured" V ""'' °"'^ "■'' ""^ and oversight many of the ani„„l > ™' "^ «>'■» "re "o benefit to their Twnel Ce ^ ^ °" °" "^^ ^^^ °^ te-t upon the capital which th XlTth ^\ '" '"" '"- expenses of their keeping, CertL ^s ^t ^^, ':^'-'''^ P ^ the to be secured, and the man „ho Ikn, "•'"'^' °"g'" f""y examine his methods Ju '"""'' " '^""'■^ «re- vvherein they can be improved r^r:" "^^*--' -^^ ""<< endeavor to point out the best IL ^^ ^"^ ''"'P'"'^ "^^ *all management. '"'' ""^ P'^fi'^tle systems of w|rhTni::s::ur;io::f:r';r'""'''"'^°- '- • labor ,vhieh they nerform I I "^ "" ™'"able for the Some, hlce the foC ^p :"„' '','i '"^ '°°' ^"'^^ '"ey supply '■•''e the pig, are onl^ ZT^Z "t" " '^''°^^^^- S"-' are valuable for both'la'bor aid Id ' " ^ f"^' '"' '"^ »' >»als are beneficial to the larmer in ^ha. «, **" ""'- '" '*=' ""^y oonvert the bulky • . 3 528 FARMIN^G FOR rROFIT. products of his land, such as hay and grain, into valuable material which occupies a much smaller space, and- thereby saves a great expense for transportation. The Western farmer can send h-s beef to the Eastern market and get well paid, but he could not profitably send all of his hay so far from home. The freight on a hundred pounds of hay would be as high as it would on a hundred pounds of beef, but the amount of money received for the latter would be five or six times as ;reat as it would for the forme-. Animals also convert various products of the soil which man cannot eat into some of the finest quali- ties of food for his support. Man cannot eat the hay with which he fills his barns, or the grass which clothes his pastures, but he can use the beef and mutton which are produced from them. A large part, of the fertilizers upon which the farmer's crops are fed are produced by animals. " No cattle, no dung : no dung, no corn," long ago became a proverb among the best farmers in the world. And though chemical fertilizers have been discovered which promise, and which are also able to perform, great things in the line of agricultural advancement, it is still true that merely for the production of manure domestic animals are of great value to the farmer. It may be accepted as a settled principle that upon every farm one or more animals should be kept, for at least part of the time, for the labor which they are able to perform. Tn thickly settled countries like China, where each man owns but a very small area of land, it is possible to do by hand the work which the farmers of this country need animals to perform. It is all very tiuc that a thoroughly spaded garden is, by means of the spading, got into a fine condition to receive the seed. If corn fields and wheat fields could be treated in like manner, very large crops might be secured. But our farmers cannot afford to use the spade for loosening and fining the soil. T attempt to prepare a good-sized field in this manner would expose a farmer to the ridicule and contempt of his neighbors, ito valuable md- thereby 'ERN farmer ell paid, but from home. IS high as it it of money I .jreat as it as products inest quali- i hay with lis pastures, duced from lie farmer's o dung : no g the best lizcrs have Iso able to ncement, it e domestic ipon every jast part of :rform. Tn owns but a d the work erform. It y means of : seed. If ic manner, ers cannot : soil. T iner would neighbors, ^^^^■SroCA' O.V THE J^ARM, and involve him in a heaw fin • , ' ^^D f-'gho.. price which the owner 71\ '°S=tl,er above the I" 'his "une^yopera.ion::;;;'': ,"'""" ''"'"' ^"PV. g-a,deaj cheaper than, hey cafn u "'"' '' P-for„,ed a - very „ece.ary .hat ^Uo/Z^T^^ "^ '°"' "^ '-"• ' "-' be fitted for .he rec p. ^r™: '^" ^ *'a.ned, .he Jd -compiishin, this p„p J ,,;;"'= -eO- Bu. as a „eans for ^--ion. To ,he ord- ,ar; tin" " ^"°^""" °- "^ '«- ---table. ,. „ ^, „,^, ,^/'™" !'--Pow- also is wholly -"d eoodness, has given .o Tn f ' °°°' '" '""""^ '-lorn "-;' look for ,he „ea„s of Z.Z , "" "" ^=™« ">»' we S; -ing .he harvest when i ' % " '-"/- '"e seed, and for °f «>c,r o.hor uses, and of ,he c„ ^ ^'"'^ ''=''''= "" ttouM,. -^ "ihin, 3ervant, we e : "tlr"™""' "^""^ --" *ong »'*0"t these „„i„,„. „,;-'" ""» °"= "™ of labor, see .ha° ^V;* *e spade he coJa,^Z::T, "' ""■'^- '■^"i"- -^M^. or .he cradle, he co!Zl ' '""= '^"''' ^^^ -"■ the "■=. --^ of the animals o.^^^:^ «'= ^™- Witho„. ""'"r °f '■- W... unbroken :,', ""'"""' "■^- S-' '™"M con,e .o a speedy end I ,' ca „ """^ °' ^^"^ kind "oc6ssi.y of help r„„, „,^ am™ c" >" '"'""°" '^ "■- ff-at of n,an withont this aid, we ho" e .o '' "' '° "'° "^'''-s °- -adcrs no. only He f, t Tf ,'?"" "P"" '"e minds of -'>-h patiently lab^r for 1 aT^'^'^'^-^^ '° «- creatures ■"'=■■0* of their owners, but „,o1r"'T""' °' ''"= '"="=™' "•-t these animals with the i 1 "™''™ " ^™* "f duty to they deserve. ""• '""""^s and consideration ,vWch Ofthe animals which ar„ t . P- - being «tted for ; d ^ ^ ^J ^ ''' "'= "='■" "- ">o greatest value. In certrC 7 ' '^' """ P« "'= of 7" 'o grow and fatten the t „ : I™; V' """'^^ '' P'^^ places the winte. are so long and ' ' °"*'-''- '" «'■" 'o»e and severe, and the soil so poorly 530 lAKMING lOR rROl'IT. adapted for pasturage in the summer that the expense of keeping animals is very great, and it does not pay to attempt to conduct the live-stock business with special reference to supplying the market with animal food. At the West, where the land is cheap, corn sells for an extremely low price, and ^/ass and hay can be had in abundance, meat can be furnished very much cheaper than it can in New England. In Texas, with its vast territory, its luxuriant pastures, and its mild climate, beef can be produced for a much lower price than it can even in the most favored parts of the West. It is not wise for the New England farmer to attempt, on a large scale, to compete, in this line of business, with the cattle owners of Texas and the W^est. Twenty years ago it paid Eastern farmers weH to fatten oxen for the New England market. But since the We.st and South have gone extensively into the work of growing live-stock and sending it all over the country, the prices of various kinds of meat have declined and the demand has been more than supplied. The Eastern farmer can still furnish the meat needed in his own family and sell to some extent in the home market, but he will hardly be able to compete in the large city markets with stock-owners who are much better situated for its production. It is possible, however, that the trade in meat with Great Britain, which is assuming large proportions and now seems to be firmly established, will divert the surplus products of the West and S'^xn to such an extent as to open the Eastern city markets again for supplies from their own section. If this proves to be the case. Eastern stock-owners should accept the opportunity and strive to build up a profitable business. The same principle which governs in the production of beef, which as a matter of convenience has been specially consmered, also applies to the other kinds of animal food. The live-stock business offers to almost every farmer an opportunity for financial gains. But these gains are to be THE ItORSE. ered sufficent that the kcepinrr „f „, !' "'"''' ""^ *"= ■=<>"»'•<)- '-■ By carefu, attcntl: t! th "'"f '■"™'^" "° *-' average farmer can obtain a be t T °' '"'""'•"e "'e -I' his inrerior anin-als andmi 2 '7 "' ^'°*- " "^ »" can e' ^ -«-•-' --on — "'"'rise at the poor grade of horses which are found on our farn,s. The great wonder, to one who has studied the subjec. is that there Je so A' ■. ! i 542 FARMING FOR PROFIT. many horses which are good, and so few which are.wlsolly useless. A great many farmers have used for breeding pun'oses the very poorest stock they had on hand. Cases are numcious m which a farmer has kept a mare until she was old and par- tially disabled, and then, when she had the heaves, and stumbled, when the sense of sight was failing, and all the powers of life were rapidly on the decline. u.:ed her Ir.r breeding. It is a common remark among farmers when speaking of an old. unsound, and worthless mare, that she "wiii do to raise colts." Such marcs often are used for this purpose, and here we find an ample reas. n for the low grade of the ordinary farm horse, .bid what increase, thc: difficulty, and makes a matter already bad many times uo,,i', Is the fact that these mares are taken to stallions which are very much like themselves.. If the colt could have strong constitution, and vigorous blood on one side of its parentage, there would be some hope that he might be worth something. But the farmer thinks that to take such an old mare to a really excellent stallion will be too expensive. So he casts away all the be^t chances of success, and obtains a colt from a well-mated, b..t miserably poor, pair of animals. There are cases in which all this is done ignorantly. Mr. Murray has said that there is more than one man who hopes to obtain "a Dexter or a Goldsmith Maid" who breeds a mare worth less than fifty dollars to "a horse that is not worth fifty cents." It is not surprising that there are poor colts in the world, but it u astonishing that men will go on breeding horses in such direct violation of all physiological laws, and all the teachings of common sense and experience. We have alluded to the fact that a great many farmers do not use mares for breeding purposes until they are old and, at least partially, disabled. Now old age alone o\ to be a disqualification fo^ I ceding purposes. We h^ve s' • n that the farm horse needs ngth, endurance, and ar Is the colt likely to inherit these vigorous qualities from i ^^tn which is in .\ THE HORSE. 543 the declining years of life? Common sense answers with an emphatic no. It is useless to say that the mare has been smart, and fleet, and strong. It is not what the mare has been, but ■what she is while carrying her colt which is to determine his constitutional powers. In the human line we find that the children of aged parents are deficient in vital power. It often happens that in the period of youth the children of such parents begin to show the marks of old age. Their teeth decay, their hair falls out, their eyes grow dim, and all the sen- sibilities are dulled. The same principles which govern in human life also apply to the brute creation. The ordinary life of the horse cannot be said to exceed twenty-five years, while man lives to be seventy. The children of parents' fifty or sixty years of age will inevitably bear the marks of weakness and premature decline. These often appear in infancy. Sometimes they are delayed but they are not prevented. The offspring of aged parents bear the stamp of old age when they should be in the vigor of active life, and their vital powers show signs of failure when they ought to be in their fullest strength. Now at the age of fifteen the ordinary horse is, comparatively, as old, and the vital powers are as greatly diminished, as a man at fifty. In a multitude of cases the horse is older at fifteen than mrn at sixty. Yet there are many farmers who do not begin to use their horses for breeding until they are fifteen years of age. This we hold is a great mistake. It is an error which entails a loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars upon our farmers. If the serviceable life of the average horse could be prolonged five years, it would be an immense benefit to all owners of this animal. Such an increase, we firmly believe, might be secured by the use of young inst'-ad of old mares for breeding. Unsoundness is a very great obstacle to the breeding of really good horses. There are many sound mares which are used for breeders, but the great majority of them are altogether too val- 644 FARMING FOR PROFIT. uable to be owned upon the farm. But few of the mares which bring the colts into the world which are to furnish farm horses are young and sound. Old age is joined with other dis- qualifications very often. And when a farmer is found using a young mare for breeding purposes, there is considerable reason to suspect that there is something wrong about the beast and that on account of this difficulty she has been withdrawn from active farm labor. There are exceptions to this rule, but they are very few. Farmers have not yet been brought to realize the immense importance of a sound parentage. All around them are the evidences of the transmission of disease. The consumptive mother brings forth consumptive children, and the scrofulous father taints the blood of those whom he begets. Many forms of disease have been handed down from father to son for generations. And this tendency to transmit disease is not only as strong in animals as in man, but, owing to the alleviating and counteracting circumstances which the intel- ligence of men can bring to bear upon their own condition, is still more likely to be permanent. If a mare has the heaves, her colts, if she has any, will almost surely be weak in their organs of respiration. If she is lame, even though the lameness may have had a purely accidental origin, it is quite probable that i^he colts will in early life also become lame. If the lameness is caused by disease or weakness, it will almost surely be passed down to the colts. Blindness is very sure to be handed down to succeeding generations. And any infirmity, disease or defect is quite likely to place its mark upon the colts produced by the unsound parent An animal having a bad temper and a vicious disposition should never be used for breeding. These defects are not only perpetuated, but are very likely to be aggravated in the offspring. It has been Well said by Mr. Murray that " It is a crime to breed an ugly dam either to an ugly horse or a good-natur horse." If either parent is cross or ugly the colt will be almost THE HORSE. 645 • certain to inherit this evil quality, while if both parents are bad- tempered an ugly colt may be looked for with a great deal of cortamty. As a good disposition is one of the essential requisites of a good farm horse, it is not too much to assert that it is one of the important qualities to be required in those animals which are to determine the character of the horses which are to be produced in the future. The particular breed of horses which the farmer should keep v/ill depend upon various circumstances. Figure 93 represents a White Percheron-Norman stallion which was imported from France in 1868, and belongs to M. W. Dunham, Wayne Du FIG. 93.—" SUCCESS." 45 2. Page Co., 111. The Percheron horses have long been noted for their power and endurance, and their ability to move rapidly with heavy loads. This breed is very desirable for farm and driving purposes. The Cleveland Bay is an excellent English breed suitable hx the farm and road. There are a few other breeds which possess many good qualities and prove quite satisfactory for the general uses of the farm. On account of the cost, and also the trouble and expense of keeping a :-r 'lion, most farmers will feel obliged to take their mares tc = .^ owned by some dealer, or large breeder of horses. There may not be just the breed of horses which he would t il 646 FARMING FOR PROFIT. prefer near enough to h'" y^^c^ to warrant 'lis securing the desired blood. In sucl^ a case lie must tak(- the best which can be found or else buy a stailiun of the breed which he prefers. Most farmers wiH choose the former course. Although there is a great deal more difficulty in obtainmg, in country towns, a thorough-bred stallion than there is in finding a male represen- tative of any particular breed of r :. .., may he wanted, it is not unusual to find one which is well bred, which possesses a good, though not alway ^ perfect, pedigree, and which has the reput?* on of getting good colts. Then there are many more stallio'i? without either pedigrees or any specially valuable FIG. 94. — " EUORADO." 657. Black Percheron-Norman Stallion. Imported from i ranee, July, 1878 by M. W. Du:;ham, Waym Du Page Co., 111. traits. The cost of taking a mare to one of the latter class is much less than that of securing the services of the better ones. Ana as the mares vvhich a large class of farmers use for this purpose are very poor, it is only natural that the service, of the poorer class of stallions should be i' .: most in demand. This breeding of worthless dams < nserable sires is a cheap way of obtaining colts, but the coU re ^ 1 cheaper than the method which is employed to secure them. While it is very important to have a good and sound mare, it is of equal, if not greater, moment to have an excellent sire, it is not necessary that the sire should be a thorough-bred, though if THE HORSE. 547 he belongs to a race of horses suitable for the farm it is very desirable, but it is important that he should be well bred, and be able to transmit the excellencies which he has inherited. He should be sound and kind, of good s.ze and appearance, and should possess the qualities which the farmer most desires his horses to have. It is a general, and probably a correct, impres- s.on that the strength and endurance of a colt, as well as his temper and disposition, are much more strongly impressed by the sire than they are by the dam. This fact should not lead the farmer to be less particular than he otherwise would be about the character of tl mares from which he raises colts, but It should impress upon Ins mind the fact that it is //.z/r^ allow- able to use a poor sire. If it is impossible to .secure the .services of a really good stallion, the farmer had better give up all idea of obtaining colts from his own mares. It is better to buy a good stali.on than to hire a poor one. If he cannot afford to buy. and IS shut up to the choice of hiring a poor one or none at all he had better give up the horse business and raise some other kind of stock. Poor colts are a great deal worse than none, and the wise farmer will have as little to do with them as possible. -- mare usually goes with young from forty-seven to fifty weeK —sometimes not more than forty-four weeks, and occa- sionally as long as fifty-six weeks. It is very desirable, both for the benefit of the mare and the sake of the colt, that the fcali^g should occur wjien the u-cather is mild and th- -. ,i.s an abun- dance of green grass in the pastures. The firsthalf of th. r.onth of June ,s the best time for this purpose. During all the period m wh.ch she is with foal, the mare should be well fed and treated with extreme kindness. Blows, or even angry words, may cause her to slink the foal and thereby sustain a great .nd permanent mjuo^. She should have roots in the winter in connection with the best of hay. In the summer, she should have ^rass or green corn for part of h r diet. During the period of g;station. hght and regular labor will not only not be injurious but will -I i R 648 FARMING FOR PROFIT. prove .1 positive benefit Excessive labor should, of course, be avoided, and when at work the quantity of food which she receives should be increased. During the whole period she will need more and better food than she would under other circum- stances, as she is obliged not only to sustain her own life but also tiiat of the fcttus. During the last few weeks of pregnancy, the mare should be worked only enough for exercise, and toward the last part of the time this should be very gentle. Many owners allow the marc to run in the pasture, and some allow the colt to be dropped there. While it is well to let the mare have some liberty, wc do not think it best to leave her to bring forth her young in the field. When the time for labor, which when all goes well is short but very severe, approaches, she should be put into a large box-.stall which is light and com- fortable and the floor of which is deeply covered with straw. She should be treated with kindness, and no one except the owner should be in sight. Everything around should be kept as quiet as possible. In case of a wrong presentation, or any other difficulty, the services of an educated veterinary physician should be obtained as soon as possible. In nearly all cases, if the marc has been properly treated during the period of gestation, she >vill get along well at this critical period. Very young or very old mares, those which have been kept poor and over-worked, and those which have been united with males which, from their excessive size or some ,other inadapta- tion were altogether unsuitable, are the ones with which trouble is to be feared. It is of great importance that the best of care should be given, as it may save the life and health of both the mare and her colt. Care of the Colt.— If the colt is strong, as he will be likely to be if the directions given for the treatment of the dam have been followed, he will not require a great deal of special atten- tion. It may be well to help him to get on his feet, and get a little used to standing up, but this is not absolutely necessary, ^1 course, be which she od she will icr circum- iwn life but pregnancy, ercise, and cry gentle. and some 1 to let the ;ave her to : for labor, pproaches, t and com- vith straw, -'xcept the should be ntation, or veterinary nearly all the period :al period, been kept nitcd with ' inadapta- th which it the best health of [ be likely dam have cial atten- and get a necessary, Imported by George E. Brown & Co. Au™,af5n.''''° ""' ''"*'" ''^ ^'""^- THE HORSE. ool and :f the dam is restive, is not desirable. If ,I,e foal is weak and can ne.ther get np himself nor stand up when he is set upon 1... legs, „e must be attended to at once. If fct alone, he may m t,me get up, but he will be about as likely to die. If weak he should be held up and his legs rubbed with a woollen cj: wh,ch has been dipped in pretty warm water. After a little me they should be rubbed with a d^ cloth and then with th Z\ T '" '° '^^ ""= """^ ^"■■^"'""■"S well through *e who e .system, and especially to attract it to the extremitil The fnc ,o„ „ .,1 also give strength to the muscles, and enable While" 1 Z " ."' ^"""^'^ -"''■ '° -°" ^'-^ alone. Wh,Ie th,s rubb.ng ,s going on, or at intervals during which it s ceased, the colt should be held up to the dam and allowe to ::::::::„:' Vr7 rr ?= "" -■- *-•■• --" one. for a few days the n.are and colt should be bor. The colt may go with her if desired, though .^ is bett to keep h,m ,n the stable or the pasture. It willbe easier fo, fte colt than ,t will to be chasing after the team, and he ca be w aned w,th much Ie,,s trouble than will be involved .f he i a^bwed to go everywhere with the dam. He should be weaned vhen s,x or seven months old. but should first be tau.ht o eat ne hay and oats and to drink water. It is best to re^ov h m from s,ght and hearing „f the dam, and if another colt c b"- put w,th h,m he will do much better than he will alone Now comes the critical time in the life of the colt 'and it is for the owner to decide whether he shall grow into L s.ro 1 ro ust, - energetic horse, o, into a weal and undeCd beast. Good care and food are absolutely necessar, if a iod horse .s to be grown from the colt now in hand It wil not d„ o leave h.m exposed to all the cold and snows of winter o t e burmng heat of the summer sun. ,„ cold weather ' Z^ when t° , '""■*' '■" *' "">■""'-■ '"'° -"-" 0' can go when he des.res to do so, and a comfortable stable a. night fei d! 552 FARMING FOR PROFIT. His food should consist of fine hay, a few oats daily, some roots which have been cut fine, and occasionally a little oat or rye meal. Pure water should be furnished in abundance. At this time it is possible to over-feed the colt, but the great majority of farmers err in the other direction. It is not well to stimulate the production of a large quantity of fat, but it is best to keep the animal growing, and feed him so that he will constantly be in good condition. In the summer the colt should be turned into a pasture, in which there is plenty of good food and water and a shed which will give protection from the burning sun. It is not well to turn a colt into a pasture with cows or young cattle. Sometimes colts ,are hooked and spoiled by the cows, while at others the case is reversed and the cows arc kicked and spoiled by the colts. Neither is it best to put a colt into a pasture alone. Two or more colts do much better in a pasture together than they do ■when kept separate or put into pastures with cattle. During all the period of the growth of the colt he should have good food, good water, and the best of care. It will not do to take good care of him until he is two years old, and then make him .shift for himself From the hour of his birth until he is completely developed the formative .stage extends, and any neglect, or any error in feeding, during any part of this time will certainly detract from the value of the animal when he is matured. If at any time the colt is badly kept he will surely be injured thereby, and he will carry the marks of that injury until his dying day. Once .stunted the colt will be •damaged for life. This may seem a - eeping statement, but it represents a truth which the vast majority of horsemen accept. Evidences of this fact may be seen everywhere. Sometimes a colt which has been poorly fed comes up into a pretty good horse. Such a thing is possible. But even here the rule holds good. The horse is better than might have been expected, but he iS ■very far from being as good as he would have been if he had THE HOUSE. ees received the care and attention which he deserved If a man wants to bring a colt into a powerful and hardy horse, he must ^ e care of h,™ during a., the time he is growing. The idea that s„b,,,„„g 3„ ^„,.^^, ,^ ^^^^^^ ^.^^ ^^^^^^^^^^ ^^ ^^ ^^^ of the most preposterous which ever entered the head of a man who was not insane. Does a general fortify a city by pulUn. down all o„s walls . No. He goes to work and makerthl^e walls as strong as the labor of his most energetic workmen directed by the skill of his ablest civil engineers renders po.ssible. And rhe breeder who wants to make his animals strong and 1 ardy must bu,ld up their constitutional vigor instead of tearing contend ,f he devotes all his energies towards strengthening the v,.al powers The argument for exposure which many denve from the habit of the I»,ans of r, quiring their childre!; to go barefooted in the snows, and depriving them of clothing even m the coldest weather of our Northern winter, has no we,ght at all. This comparison of the hardy savage with the refined and educated white man is not at all to the point The Phys,ca and mental constitution of the savage is altogether d fferen, from that of the civilized man. We might just as well talk of a frog as being " tougher " than a lamb. The argument also fa,l, from the fact that the plan is not a success even with the I»,«s. The terrible mortality among their children does not offer much encouragement for other races to try the methods wh,ch y,cld such fearful results. Besides, as the I™,a» rises in he scale of manhood, he throws off these methods of slow torture and protects his children from, instead of exposing them to, the cold. There is no possibility of making a child or an annnal better by unduly exposing him to e.- ^h- ^l- V would be that he would eet «;nlenHiH .r.u -r i." ""* '*"" ^uiu get splendid colts if he were as much VI 566 FARMING FOR PROFIT. below the average as he now is above the common standard. The best thorough-bred horse, of a breed and form fitted for farm purposes, is the best one in the whole world for the farmer to use with his mares. If the services of a thorough-bred cannot be secured, then a stallion whose breeding has been very good should be obtained. The nearer he is to being " full-blooded " the better. We have no leanings toward the race-horse as such. We do not approve of racing. And we consider the breeding of horses for the track one of the most uncertain and unprofit- able pursuits in which a man can engage. But for years we have made this subject of breeding a study, and we have been forcibly impressed by the fact that excellencies are to be trans- mitted, if at all, by animals which have received them from a long line of ancestors, and which have them so strongly devel- oped that they will impress them upon their offspring. Those farmers who con^iider thorough-bred horses as good for nothing except for " fancy " and trotting, should heed the suggestion of Mr. Herbert that " not only is it not true that speed alone is the only good thing derivable from blood, but something very nearly the reverse is true. It is very nearly the least good thing. That which the blood-horse does possess is a degree of strength in his bones, sinews, and frame at large, utterly out of proportion to the size or apparent strength of that frame. The texture, the form, and the symmetry of the bones— all, in the same bulk and volume, possess double, or nearer four-fold, the elements of resistance and endurance in the blood-horse that they do in the cold-blooded cart-horse." The same author, than whom there is no better authority, asserts that in point of muscular development, the construction of his respiratory organs, and the formation of his nervous sys- tem, the blood-horse has a still greater degree of superiority. In proportion to his size and weight the thorough-bred horse possesses greater vital power, strength, and endurance than any other animal. Not only is he superior in himself, but he has THE HORSE. 557 the power, when united with a sound and well-formed female, of imparting these excellencies to his colts. The man who takes a good marc to a good thorough-bred horse has a reason- able degree of certainty that he will secure a colt of great excel- lonce. But if he takes the same mare to a stallion in whom these good qualities are lacking, or are only accidentally present, he will be almost sure to obtain a colt of no special value, iherefore, we are strongly in favor of using only the very best of males for perpetuating the race of horses. And it is on this account that we advise the farmer not to keep for breeders the colts which, though accidentally good themselves, came from a low and inferior parentage. Nicking and Docking were formerly practiced almost uni- versally. The former process is now unfashionable, and it is to be hoped will always remain so. It is a barbarous operation, causes a vast amount of inconvenience to the animal and much severe pain, and does no possible good. It disfigures a horse, and ought to be prohibited by law. Docking is still followed to some extent, but is going out of date. We shall not describe the method, as we consider it a useless, cruel, and unjustifiable operation. Breaking and Training.— Much of the difficulty which is so often experienced in breaking a colt is the result of neglect and careless usage. It is true that some colts are naturally vicious and cannot be easily managed. Such animals should not be kept upon the farm, but ought either to be killed outright or else put upon the stage or horse-car routes, where the labor will be constant and severe, and the anima! will be kept in proper subjection. There are, also, some men who can train a colt much more successfully than others. They have a high degree of skill, much of which is usually inherited, and possess a pecu- liar aptitude for this work. Some men acquire quite a dcjjree of skill who have no natural talents in thafr Hlr^/^f-v^r, ti..j. ;» .„ not every man who is fitted to break a colt, and the one who is 668 FARMING FOR PROFIT. unqualified had better let him alone. His attempts will be pretty sure to make the colt worse and may prevent, his ever becoming a good and well-trained horse. In order to manage the colt aright a nian needs an unfailing stock of patience and must be uniformly kind. One harsh word may frighten the colt and cause an injury which can never be repaired. The farmer may, and should, give the first lessons, but we think it wise to employ some kind, experienced, and skilful horseman to give the finishing touches to the educating process. This may seem a needless expense, but it will be the means of greatly improving the character and appearance of the animal, will add very much to the comfort and safety of those who use him, and will largely increase his selling price. A great many farm horses which are kind animals and good to work are so awkward and ungainly that it is a trial to drive them on the road. They have never been half-trained, and their habits are now formed so that they never will be. But the colt can be trained well, and it is im- portant that he should be, at least, fairly educated. The educational process should commence early in the life of the colt. Familiarity with man is one of the first lessons to be learned. There should never be any harsh language used to or around him. He should be frequently fed from his owner's hand, and often petted and caressed. When only a few months old he should be taught to lead and to be tied up. Nothing should be done which will awaken the emotion of fear. A frightened colt is a seriously injured animal. It is necessary that the colt should realize that man is his master, but he must also understand that he is to be ruled by kindness and not by violence. He must learn that man is his superior, but this les- son must not be enforced by blows or any other severe method. The colt should not only be led around and tied with a halter, but should have his feet taken up and be taught to lead by the forelock Ht' should learn to carry something on his back. A strap with a thick pad may be buckled around him at first, and THE HORSE. 559 larger things put on after he has got well used to this Care should be used to put on something which the colt cannot pos- sibly get off by .;. own exertions. It should be put on so gently that it will not scare nim, but so firmly that it will stay there until the trainer sees fit to remove it. Many colts have become confirmed in a very bad habit by being allowed to shake off something which was laid upon the back. A few lessons will make a colt quite expert at this business and may get him so that he will never be safe for a man to ride. In all the processes of breaking and training the colt should never be allowed to obtain the slightest advantage. Uniform kmdncss and uniform mastery should never be separated. The man must never, for a single moment, allow the tolt to i.nagine that he is stronger than his trainer. If care is taken never to frighten him, and never to get angry with him. there will not be much difficulty in this respect. But it should always be remem- bered that anger is a sure sign of weakness, and that the colt will be very likely to profit by any exhibition of it which his teacher may make. Harnessing should not be attempted all at once, but should be effected by degrees. A few straps should be put on at a time and the colt allowed to get accustomed to them. Then a few more may be added until the whole harness IS used. When not more than one or two years old the colt may be harnessed by the side of a horse and gently driven around. As he grows older and gets used to going in the har- ness the pair may be attached to a light wagon. When this ' lesson has been well learned the coJt may be hitched into a single wagon and taught to drive alone. One thing which a colt should always be taught is to back This is often neglected. In order that he may learn this lesson easily the colt should be taught when ve:y young to step back by the word of command and a slight pull upon the halter. When np hac loornp'' <•'» rr- \- -t'- - ' .... .^..rne^ t^ g^^ i,: ;.ijj: .j^j.j----^^.jj^ ie^ion should be repeated, using as a signal a light pull on the reins. After r?y;" "- ' '' ' ^ '' ^ 660 FARMING FOR PROFIT. being well taught to draw light loads he should be attached to a wagon and taken to some natural incline where t e v. agon will of itself tend to run down hill. Here he can easily be made to understand the lesson which is then in hand. When he will back readily down an im lined plane he ma be tried on level ground, and, in time, a light weight may be laid upon the wagon. The weight should be gradually increased as the colt learns to back. A very common error in the training of colts is the drawing of their heads t > high. The effort is made to induce the animal to hold up his head and yield to the pressure of the bit in his mouth. Some horses arc so formed that they cannot carry their hea'ds high, and the effort to force them to do so is as unmerciful as would be an attempt to compel a child to walk upon its heels or in any other unnatural position. No bitting harness should be put on until the colt is well used to the bit, and then the r'^eck-rein should allow him to carry his head in the natural i.o.sition. If the head is carried too low, a gradu.il shortening iA ihe check will, in a year or two, make a marked improvemej-!r But this shortening must be only a very little at a time, and should never be carried to an extreme. If it is not natural for the horse to carry his head up let him hold it down. A tight check is an injury and an abuse. The mouth soon becomes toughened by the strong and constant pressure of the bit, so that the horse cannot be easily reined, and he is made to suffer an immense amount of pain by means of this unnatural and inhuman method of treatment. Instead of the old style bitting harness, some good trainers place the colt between two pillars in the stable and have straps from the rings of the bit attached to rings in these standards. Only a very light strain is put on at first, and it is increased only as the progress which the colt is making seems to require. This is a much safer method and much^asier for the colt than the use of the bitting harness. THE HORSE. 561 sell 1 ^T""" ^ "" ""' ^^-^ '°'"™''" -"■ -" «rength, „ze. and disposition. There is no doubt that the majonty of fa™ horses are put at work too youn,. l^^X We a e well aware that it is pretty expensive keepin. a four- year-o d m eo^parative idleness, bu, we believe that it wdl 1 a great deal better than u will to put hi. to hard woTk At th.s age he has no. attained hi., full si.e. His bone, are stU Brow,ng, and his n,u,cular develop^c ,o. complete. R ■vely he ,s ,„ a condition s,„ilar to a ,,.,-ge boy. ',f si.e w e the only cntenon we should .say of many a boy of fifteen ye of age that he could do .he full work of a man But eve Jon Ws that for a boy to do a man. work for any length on.™ .s utterly rumou.,. The same principle applies fully to the cl of the cot. Light work will be beneficial, but hafd labor cl only result ,n permanent injuty. If a colt is worked hard he w,ll become an old horse when he should be in his prime The ordmao' horse is no. capable of doing full work without' being njured unt, he is about six years old. If farmers were willing to wa,. a l,..fe longer before securing .he reward for .heir labor and pams .hey would receive a grea. deal more in the end The,r horses would be much be..er and would last seven,i years longer .han .hey do when hard work is required of them in early life, Feedixg HoRSE3.-There are not many ways in which farm horses are so often and so seriously injured as they are by im- proper feeding. And this injur, is almost always inflicted unmtent,onally and ignorantly. Nevertheless its efiects both upon the health of the horse and the financial condition of the owner are anything but satisfacto^.. A great many unsound farm horses are said to have worked too hard, and this is the reason wh.ch .s usually given when inqui^^ is made concerning the ca..e of the disease. In a few cases, and only a few. this i! the true and only cause. In the vast majority of cases hard 'A I' ;ll'' r il)i IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) u /> ^.^^. 4^ Z/. 1.0 in £2 112.2 SB*" 1.1 f "^ 1^ 1.6 IL25 1 1.4 Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. MS80 (716) 872-4503 I/. '/. & Itt^ffe^v^^'' 562 FARMING FOR PROFIT. work in connection with improper feeding has done the mischief. If the horses had been carefully fed, they would have done all the work which has been required of them, and still have remained sound. We have already alluded to the fact that the hours of labor of the farm horse are very irregular, and that, on this account, he is fed at irregular intervals. This unsystematic fjcding is the prolific source of great evils. It leads directly to indigestion with all its attendant disorders. Its indirect results are also bad in themselves, and pave the way for those which are still worse. Now at all times, and especially when he is at hard labor, the horse should be fed with the utmost regularity. He should have food three times a day, and these times should be the same one day that they are another. If he is working hard he should receive a better quality of food, but should not have it more frequently than he does when he is idle. This is the general rule, to which there may be a few but only a few exceptions. But it is a rule which the majority of the owners of farm horses never attempt to apply. Too many farmers feed their horses when and as they happen to find it convenient. When they first go to the barn in the morning they throw a lot of hay into the mangers, and perhaps give a few quarts of meal to each horse. When they go to turn out the cattle, if Ae horses are in their stables, another lot of dry hay is given them. At noon the manger is filled up again. When the cattle are put up at night, at milking time, and when the owner feeds the cattle in the evening, the same process is repeated. If the horse happens to be in the barn, he is kept eating hay a good share of the time from morning until late in the evening. He is fed just as though he were a cow, with the exception that he receives a larger quantity of food. But some • days he is required for work. Then he is not fed nearly as often and receives much less food. It would naturally be supposed that the days when at work the horse would need more nourishment than he does when doing nothing. But the quality of his food THE HORSE. 563 is not changed, and he really obtains only about half as much of it when at work as he would if standing still in his stable. Not only does irregular feeding prove very injurious in that the horse .s not fed at all according to its needs, but the bulky food which is given also works a great deal of mischief A horse which is fed in the manner above described is never in a condition to work either easily or safely. When stuffed full of dry hay. often smoky hay at that, a horse is no more fit to work than is a gluttonous man at the close of a three days' feast While in this condition he cannot safely draw a heavy load or travel much faster than a walk. His lungs have not room in which to expand, his whole digestive system is overloaded and clogged, while all the nervous energies are weakened and depressed. In this condition multitudes of farm horses are taken from their stables for drives and also for hard work. And it is because they are used when in this condition that so many farm horses have the "heaves " and various other diseases. A good authority has asserted that at least one-half of the diseases to which the horse is liable are directly caused " by bad food, or good food badly administered." In order to feed a farm horse lo that he can work safely and comfortably, it will be necessary^ to give less hay and more grain than most farmers furnish. The hay should be cut and moistened with warm water. If meal is fed, it should be sprinkled upon and mixed with the cut hay. If oats are used instead of meal, they may be given with the hay or after it has been eaten. The feeding should be regular and no dry hay should be furnished between meals. When the horse is hard at work, the quantity of meal or oats should be increased, but no more hay should be given than usual. A few roots will be a good addition to the diet. Carrots are specially beneficial. After extreme hard work, a warm mash m.^y be given with benefit. Still, it is not best to drive or work horses up to the f I- 664 , FARMING FOR PROFIT. point of exhaustion. It will certainly injure and may spoil them. Pure water, in a clean pail, should be given in moderate quantities at least three times a day. The horse is very sensitive about the quality of the water which he drinks, and it is an abuse to make him take it from a dirty pail. The pail used for watering the horses should be kept just as clean as the one used in the house for holding the water which the inmates drink. The horse should not be put to hard work for an hour after he has finished eating, and should always have at least an hour in which to rest at noon. He should never -be fed, nor freely watered, when either hot or exhausted. New hay, new oats, and especially new corn, should never be fed to a horse ekcept in very small quantities if anything better can be obtained. The habit of some farmers of feeding soft corn to horses is extremely bad, and this practice has caused the death of many valuable animals. Old corn is very much safer, and is better in every respect. For most horses oats are better food than corn. They are not as heating, and are easily digested. When a farm horse is required to go a journey, he should be allowed to take his own time for its accomplishr. He ought not to be hurried. Travelling is very different from the work to which he is accustomed, and it will be likely to prove very wearisome. The majority of farm horses are not natural travellers, and their habits and education, as well as their tastes and inclinations, absolutely unfit them for fast or long con- tinued driving. If it is necessary to go a long distance in a day, it is best to feed two hours before the horse is wanted, take an early start, and drive moderately until ten or eleven o'clock. Then stop for two hours. Let the horse be unharnessed, curried, rubbed well with a stiff brush or a woollen cloth, and then allowed to stand half an hour and rest. He may then be fed with a liberal quantity of clean oats. At the expiration of the two hours from the time of stopping, he may be started on THE HORSE. 565 the road, but for the first hour or two should be driven slowly If the point of destination is not reached early in the evening the horse should be again put in a stable and treated as before. After a good rest he may be driven a few miles farther. Upon reaching the end of the journey, the horse should be thoroughly cleaned and rubbed, put in a comfortable stable, and allowed to rest for an hour. Then he may be sup- plied with food and water and left for the night. While on the road it is well to give the horse water, in small quantities, several times during the day. It is not well to drive the farm horse after he has had his supper, and it should only be done in a case of importance. If he has travelled all day, he has done enough, and should be given the evening and the night for rest. When at work on the farm, horses need more care and atten- tion than they usually receive. Not only should their feeding and watering be carefully arranged, but they should be kept clean and comfortable while in the stable. After working in the mud their legs should be washed clean, wiped, and rubbed until dry. We are not much in favor of blanketing farm horses. If the stable is comfortable, it is not necessary; while if it is cold, the blanket does not give the desired protection. The difficulty with a horse that is cold is to maintain a uniform circulation of the blood. If this could be effected, the trouble would wholly cease. But the blood does not go freely to the extremities. Put a blanket on the body and the blood is still more strongly thrown to the chest. The extremities needed the blood. There was already too muah in the body and the internal organs. Blanketing under such circumstances is liable to cause congestion, and may lead to very serious results Again, the horse that has a blanket in the stable is sure to feel the cold more severely when he is out of doors. He is often required to stand around in the cold after having been worked or driven. Then he needs a blanket, and it should always be put on. But a blanket is not needed in a suitable J \ 5QQ FARMING FOR PROFIT. stable — except for a while after the horse is put in, tired and ex- hausted — any more than a man needs to wear an overcoat while sitting in the house. Of course, if a horse has become accus- tomed to 1 'ing blanketed in the stable, he will need to have the practice continued. But in the case of a colt, we think it better that he should be kept comfortable by being in a warm stable rather than by wearing clothing. It is a common opinion that blanketing will make the hair lie smoother and give a finer appearance to the "coat" of the horse. But experience has proved that in order to make much improvement in this direc- tion the clothing must be extremely warm. This will often prove injurious. But the same end can be secured, not only without injury but with positive benefit, by rubbing the horse thoroughly every day, and being careful to keep him perfectly clean. Blanketing for the mere sake of appearances should not be performed. The Stable. — The character, value and efficiency of a horse will very greatly depend upon the condition of the stable in which he is kept. We are sorry that it is so, but it is a fact that three-quarters of the stables in which farm horses have their homes are utterly unfit for the purpose, while many of them are not good enough to be inhabited by hogs. The horse has very delicate sensibilities, and is easily injured in many ways. Nearly all stables are too low, and the doors leading to them are both low and narrow. When a horse is startled by any unusual noise, he is almost sure to throw up his head. If he strikes it against the beams, or the floor above, he will receive a direct and very likely a severe injury. This will frighten him still more, and the more he is hurt and the more frequently he throws up his head, the worse he becomes. Many good horses have been ruined by this habit, and the injuries thus received. No horse-stable should be less than nine feet between the floors, and some writers recommend twelve feet. TffE HORSE. 567 The doors should be so wide and high that the horse can go in and out with a harness on, and not touch the sides. We have used a horse which was gentle in other respects, but which would plunge like a tiger out of his den when he was led out of the stable door. He had at some time been frightened by bemg led through a narrow door, and had got so that it was difficult to get him through a wide one without injury to him- self and the man who was leading him. We tried for years to conquer the habit, but did not succeed. The ground outside of the stable should be nearly level with the floo/ on the inside. There are stables in which the floor IS from one to two feet higher than the ground. Such stables are very mconvenient to all horses, and positively dangerous to mares which are with foal. Many cases of sprains and lame- ness can be traced directly to these high steps, and many horses wh.ch go in and out of the door as if they were afraid of some severe injury, were brought into this habit by the same cause The horse-stable should be both light and vyarm. Too many horses are kept in dark stables. This is very unpleasant, and also injurious. The sense of vision is soon injured, and in, some cases is destroyed. Much suffering is also caused to the horses by taking them from dark stables into the full glare of the strong sunlight. The cost of window, wnicn ;-\\\ lighten the stable will be slight, and ought tr be cheerfully incurred Warmth should be secured by boarding the frame of the stable outs.de and inside, and filling the space between the boards ^v'^h tan-bark or dry sawdust. Warm stables are not only more- comfortable, but also more healthful than cold ones. Standing in a draught of cold air when warm and tired often induces senous disease. The cost of keeping will also be much less in warm stables than it will in cold ones. The whole barn should be well ventilated, and plenty of pure air furnished for the horses. Another requirement is that the stables shall be kept clean. '||MHiM^'~ 668 FARMING FOR PROFIT. In many stables there is a strong ammoniacal odor. ,This may be prevented by cleanliness, and the use of plastci each day sprinkled over the floor. Whenever this odor can be detected, there is abundant evidence that the stable is in an unhealthy con- dition. Allowing the horse to stand upon large piles cf wet litter and fermenting manure is a prolific source of disease. The horse is naturall>- a clean animal, and will neither be com- fortable nor remain long in health if kept in a filthy stall. Twice every day the stable should be cleaned and dry litter supplied. Shoeing the Horse we consider a sort of necessary evil. When badly performed, by ignorant and brutal smiths, it causes various diseases of the feet, and sometimes spoils the horse. There are writers who advocate the disuse of shoes, but such a course seems hardly practicable. In the North, during the winter, sharp shoes are necessary. Without them the animal is in danger of frequent accidents. In warm weather shoes are almost as necessary in all places where the land is stony and rough. There may be a few horses which can-^ go in the summer without shoes, but the great majority have too tender feet, and will need to be shod. As to the method of shoeing we shall have little to say. Each smith has his own ideas upon the subject, and if he has learned his trade thoroughly, he is supposed to know more about it than the farmer. It does not seem to be just right for the farmer to give instruction to the man who has studied a subject of which he has no practical knowledge. Still there are many ignorant smiths— men who "know less about the structure and needs of the feet of a horse than they do about physiology, of which they know nothing at all. Such men should never be allowed to shoe a horse. But there are many good shoers, men who are kind, and work intel- ligently. They are the ones who should be employed. To shoe a horse well a man needs knowledge and experience. Any one can shoe a horse badly, but ther6 is danger that the THE HORSE. 5g^ bungling work of an ignorant shoer will ruin the horse. As to exact methods scientific workmen are not fully agreed. There- fore it must not be taken for granted that a man does not shoe well because he does not follow the plan of some other shoer who was known to be good. But when a smith does not use common sense, when he is harsh and brutal, and when horses are lame or go badly after he has shod them, there is sufficient evidence that some other workman should be employed. Diseases of the Horse. — To treat fully of the diseases of the horse would require a whole volume, and should be the work of an experienced veterinarian. Some work upon this subject should be in the hands of every man who owns a horse. Dadd's Modern Horse Doctor, Law's Farmer's Veterinary Adviser (treating also of diseases of cattle, sheep, and swine) are both excellent books. There arc, also, many others which possess a great deal of merit. To treat a sick animal safely and successfully requires not only a knowledge of the name of the disease with which it is affected but also a clear understanding of the whole animal structure, of physiological laws, and of the uses and various action of remedies. When a horse is merely out of health, he should be carefully fed and allowed to rest. When he is attacked by an acute disease, a veterinary physician >. -uld be sent for at once. Delay will be dangerous, and the administration of powerful remedies by the farmer or by some ignorant " horse-doctor " will be likely to make a cure utterly impossible. For farmers who are far removed from a good veterinarian we recommend the purchase of the sets of remedies, which are put up by Homceopathic physicians of acknowledged ability and skill, for the various diseases to which the horse is subject. With each set there are full directions. The quan- tities required are small and the sets are not expensive. They can probably be obtained of wholesale druggists in any of our large cities. ! I 570 FARMING FOR PROFIT. There are a few diseases for which a description of the rcme- dies which arc commonly employed by those who keep no stock of medicines on hand should be given. Of these, Colic is one of the most violent and dangerous. It comes on suddenly, the pain is very severe, there are intervals of rest, and the horse remains strong and is usually very violent in his movements. It is important that remedies should be given immediately. If attended to at once the following treat- ment proves beneficial : One tablespoonful of chloroform mixed with a gill of whiskey and a pint of warm water is to be given. Then inject a pint of warm soap-suds. If the chloroform cannot be had, use a pint of very warm water in which as much salt as possible has been dissolved. In case the treatment has been long delayed, bleeding must be resorted to before the above remedies are given. The medicine can be given by means of a long-necked bottle, though a drenching-horn is better. For bleeding, a fleam should be used, unless the one who attempts it is a practiced surgeon, in which case a lancet may be better. The horse must be blindfolded on the side from which the blood is to be taken. Then at a point on the neck, about two inches from the angle of the jaw, the jugular vein should be found, the hair moistened and smoothed and a gentle pressure applied with the fingers of the left hand in which the instrument should be held. The vein will enlarge at once. The edge of the fleam is to be placed in a direct line with the course of the vein and over its centre. It may be struck with a stick, or the fist, but the blow must not be so hard as to cut the opposite side of the vein. A good-sized blade should be used, as a small quantity of blood drawn quickly is more beneficial than a larger one which flows slowly. When a sufificient amount of blood has been taken, the edges of the wound should be brought exactly together, a small, sharp pin passed through to keep them in place, and a kwi hairs from the mane of the horse wound around the ends so as to completely cover the wound. The horse. gyj The horse must then be fastened so that he cannot rub the wound. In twenty-four hours the pin may be carefully with- drawn. Such arc, substantially, the directions given by the celebrated Youatt for bleeding the horse. There are times when bleeding is necessary, but in the great majority of cases it is injurious. The blood is equivalent to the life, and its with- drawal must have a very depressing effect upon the vital forces. Very similar in many of its symptoms to colic, and sometimes mistaken for that disease, is Inflammation of the Bowels. There is this difference, however, which will enable any careful observer to distinguish between them. In an attack of colic the legs and ears are of the natural temperature, relief is obtained by rubbing the belly, and from motion, there are intervals of ease, and the horse retains his strength. But in a case of inflammation of the bowels the legs and ears are cold, the belly tender and painful to the touch, there is constant pain which is increased by motion, and the strength is greatly diminished. For inflammation of the bowels bleeding must be resorted to at once. Six or seven quarts of blood may be taken at first, and, if relief is not soon obtained, two or three quarts more should be drawn. Injections of thin gruel in wh-ch half a pound of epsom . salts, or half an ounce of Barbadoes aloes, has been dissolved should be given. Warm ,. .el should be given for drink, and cnce in six hours warm water with a drachm or two of aloes. The belly should be blistered with tincture of cantharides, and the legs kept warm by rubbing and bandaging. For a few days the horse should be kept on gruel and bran-mashes. As he gets better he may be very slowly returned to his oats and hay. This is a very violent and dangerous disease, and we do not recommend the farmer to treat it when a competent physician can be obtained. But there must be no delay, and the owner may very properly bleed the animal and give injections while his hired man is gone for the doctor. CosTivENESs is not immediately dangerous, but it leads to 672 FARMING FOR PROFIT. many diseases which sometimes have a fatal ending. Mild cases can be readily subdued by feeding roots and giving bran- mashes. Obstinate constipation will require more powerful action. Aloes is the best— indeed, Herbert declares it to be the only safe purgative for a horse. It should be new, as it loses its strength by age. Its administration should be pre- ceded by the use of bran-mashes for two or three days— these being the only food which the horse is to receive. After this preparation, a light dose, four or five drachms, of aloes will be very effective. Aloes may be mixed with olive oil and molasses into the form of a ball, which the horse can be made to swallow as follows : Tie the horse in the stall with his head well up, draw the tongue out gently with the left hand, and hold it there by pressing the fingers against the side of the lower jaw. " The ball is then taken between the tips of the fingers of the right hand, the arm being bared and passed rapidly up the mouth, as near the palate as possible, until it reaches the root of the tongue, when it is delivered with a slight jerk, the hand is with- drawn, and the tongue being released, the ball is forced down into the oesophagus." If it does not pass immediately down the throat, which can be readily seen by watching the left side, a light tap under the chin will cause the horse to swallow it at once. It is not well to give either castor or linseed oil alone to a horse. Olive oil is very inefficient. Salts frequently prove of little power, except in doses which render the medicine almost as dangerous as the disease. Worms often prove a source of irritation to a horse, and in large numbers are quite injurious. To remove them, give a ball containing two drachms of tartar emetic, one scruple of ginger, and molasses and linseed oil enough to get the materials into good shape for administration. One of these balls should be given every other morning half an hour before the horse is fed. Only a few doses will be required. We have known saleratus to be used with success even in bad cases. A THE HORSE. 573 tcaspoonful given with the cut feed each morninij will be likely to effect a cure in from one to three weeks. Simpler than either of the above remedies, and much to be preferred if it will prove efficient, is the plan of keeping the horse for three or four days upon corn-fodder. If the ears are not all taken off, it will be all the better. No othjr kind of food should be given, and the horse should not be worked or driven hard while kept in this manner. We had no faith in this remedy, but, after witnessing its good result in a case which had obstinately resisted the ordinary remedies, we must say that it is worthy of a fair trial. To remove the small worms which irritate the large intestine, an injection of an ounce of aloes dissolved in a pint of warm water will be useful. Stoppage of the water can usually be remedied by giving sweet spirits of nitre in one-half ounce doses. In mild cases only ons dose will be needed. If this proves ineffectual, repeat in a few hours. Should this fail to give relief, and the animal is in considerable pain, a competent veterinarian should be called at once. We do not think it necessary to describe all the diseases to which the horse is liable, or give a list of all the remedies wMch • are used therefor. Except in the manner already indicated, the farmer is in no condition to doctor a horse that is sick. He can give the Homceopathic remedies to which we have referred, or pursue the treatment specially indicated for the particular diseases we have named. But unless he has read much upon the subject, he is not qualified to treat acute diseases, and his experiments will usually make a bad matter worse. The horse- owner needs to have, and to study, some book devoted specially to the diseases of the class of animals in which he is interested. And we feel the more strongly disposed to pass this point lightly from the fact that if the directions which we have given for taking care of, and feeding, working and driving, are fol- lowed, but very few horses will get out of health. We fully 574 FARMING FOR PROFIT. believe, with a writer already quoted, that, " if a horse be of good, sound constitution, and be judiciously fed, regularly worked, warmly yet not too warmly clothed and stabled, in a building properly ventilated and aerated; and, above all, if he be kept scrupulously and religiously clean, there will for him be but little need of medicine of any kind." In the vast majority of cases, the loss occasioned by the sickness of a horse is a direct tax upon the owner for his want of care and skill in using and feeding. Accidents excepted, a good horse can almost invariably be kept well and strong if he is properly man- aged and cared for. We ought not to close this chapter without a few words upon the treatment of old and disabled horses. It is a custom alto- . gether too well established for the farmer to keep a good horse until he gets well along in years and then sell the faithful crea- ture to a jockey, who will trade him to some one of that large class of men who are too poor to own a good horse, but who always keep some half-starved animal which they both abuse and neglect. Many a noble horse after a long life of patient toil, which has fairly earned for him the right to an honorable dis- charge, has been traded arouna by jockeys and idlers, and been compelled to drag out a miserable and painful existence. It is absolutely cruel and unjust for a farmer to treat the animals which God has given for his service in such a manner. The few dollars which are obtained in such a case are the price of cruelty, ingratitude and neglect. This course has often been pursued thoughtlessly, but even this fact cannot be considered a valid excuse. We hope the custom will not long be tolerated. Let the jockeys understand that when a horse has faithfully served his master through a long and useful life he is not to be put into their hands. Let the horse perform labor adapted to his strength as long as it pays to keep him. Then get some good marksman to lead him. into a field, and with a well-directed fifle-ball end his days in a quiet, decent and painless manner. THE MULE. 875 Give the body a decent burial, and consider the approval of conscience worth infinitely more than the few dollars which some brute of a man would have paid for the noble horse. THE MU^K. ^(^N this country the mule has not yet become a vciy popular animal. Though there are, in all, a great many mule teams, they are very few when compared with the horse teams. There is a strong prejudice against the mule, but he is winning his way in the South and West, is frequently found in th ' :iddle States, and occasion- ally in New England. Although he has some peculiarities which sometimes make him unpleasant to handle, he also has some positive merits-enough to justify a brief consideration of the animal in this work. It is not every man, even though he may be pretty intelligent, who can tell just exactly what a mule is, and whence he sprung.' The parentage of the mule and the hinny is, to many people, rather obscure. The mule is the offspring of the male ass,' usually called a jack, and the female horse or mare. The hinny is the offspring of the male horse or stallion, and the female ass The mule resembles the ass in form, temper and voice, thoucrh often larger than either parent. The hinny resembles the hor'se m all these respects much more closely than the ass. The hmny has certain merits, but they are not equal to those of either the horse or the mule, and it is not a profitable animal to breed in this country. Neither does it pay to keep the ass for any purpose except to cross with mares. Not, by any means, because the ass is a worthless animal, but because there are other kinds which will be more profitable. The mule is a hybrid, and cannot breed either with its own or with other classes of animals. This is the almost invariable rule. Consequently it is necessary either to breed or import the 676 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ass in order to keep good the stock of mules. It' has been a common custom to use anything in the shape of an ass no matter how inferior, for breeding purposes. This has proved very mjurious to the quality of the offspring, and is a practice which ought to be speedily reformed. Some breeders have made a move in this direction, and have been well rewarded Probably it will be better to grow breeding stock here than it will to import it from foreign lands. It has been thought by competent judges that by selecting the best from the stock now on hand, or by importing a few fine animals, and using care and skill in their mating, and the development of their offspring, "a superior jack to any now existing for American breeding purposes " might be secured. In all cases the best jack which can be obtained should be used. The quality of the jack seems to have a great deal more to do with the character of the mule than that of the mare. A fine jack and a decent marc will almost invariably produce a better mule than a merely passable jack and the finest mare which can be found. Consequently it pays well to obtain a first-class jack, but it is a great loss to use fine-blooded mares for the production of mules. A mare possessing superior blood should be used for breeding horses, if anything. If coupled with a jack she will bring forth a mule which will never be worth half as much as a colt from a good stallion, and the con- nection with the jack will be very likely to prevent her ever giving birth to a pure colt. If bred to a stallion after having produced a mule, the mare will be almost sure to have a colt marked, to quite a degree, like the ass. This fact alone should be sufficient to deter owners of superior juares, from which they hope some time to obtain colts, from breeding them with the J3ck. A good, medium-sized mare, that has done service on the farm, and proved a good worker, should be chosen. Extra size is not desirable, and a bad temper, or any tendency toward a THE MULE. 677 vicious disposition, is a full disqualification. The best blood to be sought in a mare is the Norman. A half-blood mare of this stock, or even a good Canadian, if used with a first-rate jack, will be very likely to bring excellent mules. But the absence of this, or any other particular, blood need not be con- sidered as excluding a mare from this use. If she is really good in temper and' for work, sound, and of suitable size and form, she may be made available for this purpose. We have treated of this point more at length than we should have done if the common practice had been more nearly correct. Breeding lies at the very foundation of the business. A mistake here will be permanent in its effects. If any kind of a mare, no matter how poor, is bred to any sort of a jack, there will be no reasonable ground for expecting anything very good from their offspring. But if men want mules at all they want good ones. They can raise good horses, and had much better do it than to spend their time and invest their capital in the effort to secure a poor class of mules. When fully matured the mule is a remarkably hardy animal, but in his earliest years he does not seem to possess this excel- lent quality. While young he needs as good care as the common colt. The custom of keeping the mule colt half- starved is to be strongly condemned. He does not need corn and oats as much as the horse colt, but he should have good hay in a!)undance, plenty of pure water, shelter from storms, and protection from great extremes of temperature. While pam- pering would prove injurious, good feeding will be well repaid. If castration is to be performed, it should be attended to early. This is very important— much more so than in the case of the horse. It should be done before the mule is six months old, and it will generally be better to attend to it as soon as the subject reaches the age of four months. The operation should be performed with the same degree of care and skill which has been advised for the colt. A good mule colt, from good stock, 678 FARMmc FOR PROFIT. Should be fully as valuable as a horse colt, and the same degree of care ought to be taken to keep him from injury^, and make him useful. Breaking and Training.-As the mule is not, ordinarily used for travelling on the road, he does not require as complete' a course of training as the horse. But as far as it goes the education should be as thorough as possible. The mule need not be taught as much as the horse, but what he is taught ought to be perfectly done. Here is where the great trouble with the mule is usually found, and it is on account of the neglect of this principle that he has obtained a bad name. Let the same treat- ment be given the horse for ten generations which has been given to the mule during the same period, and at the end of the course the horse will be as ugly as the mule is at the present time. Not merely for fenerations but for ages the ass has been abused and neglected by those whom he has faithfully served. It is not strange that this treatment has had a bad effect upon his character, and made him obstinate, with a strong inclination to be vicious. But he is not as bad as might have been expected, and will almost invariably yield to kind treatment if it is given early and uniformly. Except when the parents are vicious the mule colt will be pleasant, and if treated as kindly as has been advised for the horse colt will never show an ugly disposition. Handle him early and often. Begin before he is an hour old and accustom him from that time to be handled and talked to. Teach him to lead, to be tied up. to have things put upon his back, and to feed from the hand of the owner. Never get out of temper and never yell at him. Show him that you are friendly and have no desire to hurt him. Be careful not to frighten him, and never give him any occasion to distrust his trainer. In this way the mule can be taught almost as readily as the horse. But the men who use only a club or a whip will CATTLE. 679 find considerable opposition. They ought to. When a man becomes a brute and attempts to cope with animals on their own ground he places himself at a great disadvantage. He not only demeans himself but the violence of his methods makes it impossible that he shall be successful. The mule colt which is always kindly treated will grow into a kind animal, but the one which is always abused will be obstinate and may become dangerous. The points of superiority of the mule over the horse afe greater physical strength and the ability to perform an immense amount of labor. The mule is a longer-lived animal than the horse, and will endure hard labor twice as many years. He can endure greater extremes of heat and cold, it costs less to keep him shod, and, while he ought to be well fed, the expense of keeping is very much below that of the horse. On these accounts he is, if properly treated, a valuable animal for use on the farm. CATTIES, 'O mankind in a civilized state cattle are absolute neces- sities. They utilize a great amount of material which would otherwise be wasted, perform a great deal of labor, and furnish an immense amount of food. They supply many pressing wants of the individual, and add largely to the national wealth. The income now obtained from cattle in this country is very large, and by judicious management can be greatly increased. By means of careful selection carried on for a long series of years a great improvement in the character and appearance of cattle has been effected. In this way several distinct and valuable breeds have been formed, and their representatives have been sent to all countries in which the livC:Stock interest is largely developed. The principal improved breeds which are 580 FARMING FOR PROFIT. kept in this country are the Short-Horn, Ayrshire, Jersey and Devon. There are also many animals belonging to the Hereford, Dutch, Holstein, Alderney, and Guernsey, and a i^^ of the Swiss. Brittany and other less common races. Each breed has certain characteristics which are strongly marked, and which separate it clearly from any and all other races. Each one has, for a long time, been bred with reference to the permanent establishment of certain qualities which their owners have desired to perpetuate. To discuss the question which is the best breed would be an utter waste of time and space. Probably there is no really best breed, /. e., a breed that everywhere and under all circumstances will prove better than any other with which it comes in competition. One breed is best for certain places and purposes, while for opposite conditions anotlier will prove much better. The most zealous advocate of the Jersey cattle would not think of favorably comparing them with the Short-Horns for beef. And it is no discredit to the Jersey stock that it is inferior in this respect. The race has been bred carefully and skilfully for its milking qualities, and \hz desired end has been secured. The man who wants beef should not buy Jerseys, but if he wants rich milk and nice butter, he will be pretty sure to obtain them from cows of this breed. As it is impossible to get the heavy farm horse and the fleet carriage horse in one animal, so it is useless to attempt to get extraordinary excellence in the two diverse departments of flesh and milk in any one breed of cattle. The two qualities are, in a measure, antagonistic and cannot be combined, in perfection in any one race of animals. Therefore, instead of attempting' to decide which is the best breed of cattle, we will describe the various characteristics of the breeds now common in this country, and endeavor to point out both their excellencies and their defects so that the individual farmer will be able to chose intelligently the one which will be the best for him to keep. CA TTLE. 681 We shall not give the historical matter which generally accom- panies such descriptions. What the practical farmer wants to know is not who bred a cow of a certain name to a particular bull one hundred years ago, but what are the merits and demerits of the breeds of the present day. In order to obtain the prac- tical advantages resulting from the wonderful improvement of live-stock which has been effected during the past century, it is not necessary to trace all the stops which were taken to secure it. To the general principles which should govern the breeder we shall allude at the proper time, but with the exception of illustrating and enforcing these principles we shall deal with the present in preference to the past and show what the different breeds are rather than how they were formed, and what they have been in the progress of their development. The Short Horn. — This breed has many excellent qualities. It is an old and well-established race, and for a hundred years has probably been more popular with the people at large than any other breed. It is a large breed, but matures reasonably early, and, with good feeding and care, proves very profitable. Good pastures in summer and liberal feeding in winter arc essen- tial to success in developing the best qualities of this breed. Perhaps the same might be said of every other valuable race of cattle. Still, we think that there are breeds which will be much more productive and profitable when poorly kept than the Short Horn. In the splendid blue grass region of Kentucky this breed finds everything adapted to its perfect development, and the animals grown here are unsurpassed in excellence. In Ohio and Illinois many fine herds of Short Horns are kept, and there are some fine representatives of this breed in nearly all the Western and Middle States and New England. While they thrive when well cared for, they will not endure neglect and short feed combined. Either one will soon tell disastrously upon them. We have seen some splendid animals of this breed in Mas- sachusetts and Vermont, and on the best farms in New England m\ fe 582 FARMING FOR PROFIT. they do very well. But there are many mtclligent farmers uho claim that a more hardy breed, which is smaller and which can subsist on less food, is better adapted to the Noktii. We have no doubt that in those sections in which nature has been profuse with her bounties, the Short Horn is justly entitled to stand at the head of all races of cattle. But in those localities where the pastures are poor and the hay crop small, some other breed may give better returns. When properly kept and cared for, the Short Horn cattle are excellent for all the purposes which this class of animals is designed to serve. For beef this breed has no superior. This will probably be admitted by all. No better beef, either in point of quality or in perfection of form, can be found than is produced by a well-bred Short Horn steer. The animals belonging to . this breed can be grown to a large size. A fat ox of this race will weigh several hundred pounds more than one equally fat from a herd of Avrshires. It probably costs considerable more to fatten the Short Horn than it does the Ayrshire, but the difference in cost is much more than compensated by the increase in value. Many breeders of this race of cattle have sadly neglected the milkmg qualities of the stock, and it has by this means come to pass that some of the finest cows in the world for beef and the production of beef cattle are very inferior milkers. Other breeders have not pushed their efforts for success in fattening so far as this, but have kept sight of the milking qualities while a so striving to develop the fattening tendencies. Still another class have bred particularly for the development of the milking pcnvers and have succeeded in obtaining very good results. Thus .t has come to pass that there are three classes of Short Horns: hose which have been bred particularly for beef production, those in which an attempt has been made to combine both the fattening and the milking qualities, and those in which the capacity for the secretion of milk has been fully developed .o I 3\ W^: -.=i^-^^-.;^--„...--Up.T ^ ^.^- j ^ ^, -- .jj. igent farmers !lcr and which North. We lire has been tly entitled to liose localities I, some other ORN cattle are of animals is or. This will ;r in point of I is produced belonging- to : of this race c equally fat Icrable more IRE, but the ted by the eglectcd the ans come to eef and the srs. Other fattening so ilities while till another he milking iults. Thus >RT Horns: production, e both the which the developed. ■MM CATTLE. Nft The first class are among the finest animals in the world for beef, the second are excellent for beef and very good for milk, while the third are very fine milkers and quite good for beef All these classes, however, need a good quality of food and plenty of it. This breed possesses a great advantage over sonic others in the fact that if the cows prove to be poor milkers they are worth considerable for beef. Also in the fact that their calves are worth more to the butcher than those of the smaller breeds which are kept distinctively as milking stock. In some sections of the country oxen are used for farm work, and it is important to have a breed of cattle from which good workers can be obtained. For this purpose the thorough-bred Short Horn is not very desirable. He grows ve»y fast, and. if kept as he should be, will soon become too heavy to work on soft land. He is naturally slow and cannot easily walk fast. In the deep snow with which a Northern winter covers the land he is. unwieldy, and in the summer he does not endure the heat very well. Still, there are many splendid ox-teams of Short Horn: blood. In many respects the oxen arc good, but they are not as good, as far as work is concerned, as those of some other breeds. The Ayrshire. — The breeders of this race of cattle claim that it is excellent for the double purpose of furnishing milk and beef. But it has been bred almost exclusively for milk, and this is its strong point. The Ayrshire cattle will thrive on shorter pastures than the Short Hokns. They are a smaller breed, are pretty hardy, and seem to adapt themselves to the climate and conditions of this country very readily. They are inclined ta be irritable, and this fact not only makes it important to handle the cows, and especially heifers, with care and treat them with uniform kindness, but is also an objection to the oxen as workers. The great excellence of this breed lies in its capacity for milk production. Give a representative cow of this breed s good pasture, and feed her well in the winter, and she will yield! 37 ill 686 FARMING FO^ PROFIT. a quantity of milk which .i .ow from no other Breed will be likeJy to surpass, uud which cows from only one or two breeds W/n very nearly approach. F«'>d her on poor hay in the winter, uid *keep her in a miserable pasture in the summer, and the quantity of milk which she will give will not be excessive, but it will far exceed that of the cows from the other breeds which attain an equal size. The Jersev. — No breed of cattle has had more opposition in this country than the Jersey, and no breed has grown more rapidly in popular favor. It is pre-eminently a breed for milk. The animals of this race are too small for beef, and, on account of their diminutive size and consequent want of strength, wholly unfit for working. Oxen are seldom kept, and there is no inducement for any one to experiment with them. In this breed it is the cow, and the cow alone, v/hich possesses special value. Whether she is tender or hardy is a question which receives a 'great deal of discussion in New Tvngland, where the climate is «o severe and many of the pastures so inferior that it is very desirable for the farmers to secure cows which will be at least moderately hardy. Many breeders assert that the Jersey cow is as hardy as need be, but tlie popular impression is that she is rather tender. She is quite small in size and may .seem more frail than she really is. There is no doubt that if properly cared ior— treated as well as the Short Horn, Ayrshire, or even an extra native should be— the Jersey will get along witliout any special inconvenience on account (A her want of vigor The Jersey cow is very small, and, therefore, wih not require •as much hay as a Short Horn. But, in order to do her best, she must have all the food she wants and the food must be of goc quality. It would be absurd to keep a Jersey cow on -swrmp X nd f xpect her to give as much and as rich milk as ■the pet t', 'R .;• the breeders produce. The better the food the better t:;<.. ;.rr duct— a i;ue which will apply to other breeds as well as to the one now under consideration. CA TTLE. 587 The quantity of milk guen by the ordinary Jersey is not lar^jc. In this respect she is surpassed by the other iniproved breeds, and even by the better class of natives. But, though small in quantity, the milk of the Jersey cow is exceedingly rich and more than makes up in the superiority of its quahty the deficiency in amount. The great use of the milk of these cows is for the manufacture of " gilt-edged " butter. The best butter sold in the country is made from the milk of Jerskys, and the price obtained is very much higher than can be secured for a fine quality which is made from other cows. The finest Jersey butter not only presents a beautiful appearance, but it also possesses a nutty flavor which makes it superior to .thcr kinds. The value of the Jersey cow as a butter producer has b en widely recognized, and even the Short Horn dairymen ^{ Great Britain, who consider their favorite breed almost per- fection, often keep one or two Jerseys in their herds for the acknowledged purpose of giving the butter a better flavor and a finer appearance than it would otherwise possess. In this country the superior quality of the Jerseys for butter produc- tion is readily acknowledged. They easily stand at the head , of all breeds in this respect, and certainly ought to be found upon a large number of our dairy farms. The Devon.— This is one of the most clearly defined and purely bred races of cattle in the world. It has long held a high place in the estimation of intelligent breeders of live-stock, and it possesses sufficient merit to assure its permanence. Of medium size, beautiful form, and good temper, the cows are well fitted for the dairy and the oxen for the yoke or for beef The Devon will thri\o on shorter pastures than some of the larger breeds, and seems particularly adapted to the mountainous regions. For all purposes for vyh?.-h cattle are want n the farm they have no superior. They are valuable for beef, as they gain m ici 588 /•AHA/JAC /-OA' PROFIT. rapidly and mature at an early age. It has beeh claimed by competent writers that "more meat can be made from them, with a given amount of food, than from any other breed." The quality of the beef is also superior, and well-fed Devon steers generally command the highest market price. For work on the farm the Devon oxen are the best which can be found. They are hardy, very strong, remarkably active when at work, and also good tempered, quiet and docile. In the sec- tions where oxen are largely used as workers this breed ought to be kept for the purpose of supplying this need. The Devon oxen are so much quicker in their movements .iian the native, or even the Short Horn, that they will do a great deal more work in a given time. They do this extra work without fretting, and if well fed will perform considerable labor and gain flesh at the same time. For milk the Devon cow holds only a medium rank. This is not so much due to the want of capacity for a high rate of milk secretion as it is to the fact that the efforts of breeders have been mainly devoted to an altogether different purpose. The Devon has been bred for beef and work. As a natural and in- evitable result the milking properties have been kept in the background. But the quality of the milk obtained is very good and there are families which, having been bred more care- fully for this purpose, are noted for the quantity which they pro- duce. On short feed they will probably do better than cows from larger breeds or from races which are more noted for their milking qualities. The Hereford is an excellent breed for beef. It has no special excellencies as milking stock, and therefore is not fitted for the dairy districts As the oxen are very large and heavy they cannot compare favorably with the Devons for working purposes. Their strong point, and their chief point of superi- ority. is in their fattening qualities. They take on flesh rapidly Wd make a good quality of beef. They need good keeping I. ! rMHiM MHM I claimed by i from them, breed." The Devon steers est which can r active when In the sec- breed ought The Devon m the native, it deal more hout fretting, gain flesh at ink. This is rate of milk •eeders have irpose. The tural and in- kept in the ned is very 1 more care- ch they pro- ■ than cows ted for their It has no is not fitted and heavy for working It of superi- lesh rapidly od keeping Ill !.'i CATTLE. 691 .ng with „a«ve s.ock for .he production TbJr^:"''r Herepords of Colorado sell higher than ,„ I ^ «.a. .ec.io„, an. i. ,, .,„„^,. t: trc;; r::™"" count,y on the east and the States and T.. Fountain U.is great range the m.^o.::rjyJ:~^.'''''' *" of cattle-owners ^ *' requirements good advantage. In thei; ol c^J rHr "^""""'""^ '" n.i..ers.and „a„, animals have bC Cid ^0^ pastures of Holland to the variable climate and still more vanable pastures of large sections of our own count J Is „o" prove favorable, but exerts a depressing influence, ^mit cla,med by their owners here that the Dutch cows yield ^ J can be madj. These cows are also said to be especially adapted to the cheese-producing districts sev!!?!' t T" ''"'' "= "''■■'= «°'"'' •"" »•>' >-«- than ev^., other breeds while inferior to some. The same may be sa.d concernmg working oxen. The animals reach an excessive zi a! r V """" "*" ^'""'^ *^y »- -' i*=>y to prove as popular as some other breeds. n Jr "T"" ""'' "" "■"'"''• '" "■' Dutch, and the two names are often used to represent the same cattle. The distinc m ' I m I (ill. 592 FARMING FOR PROFIT. tion between the Dutch and the Holstein is that the former name stands for the common breed of cattle in Holland, while the latter represents the breed kept in the Northern part' of the country which is called Holstein. The Holstein cattle are so nearly like the Dutch, they need no separate description Their breeders call them far superior, but this claim is rejected by the owners of the Dutch, The ALDERNEY.-This breed is so similar to the Jersey as to require no separate notice. Many Jersey cows are, improperly called Alderney. In reality there are but very few genuine' Alderney cows brought to this country. The GuERNSEY.-This breed also resembles the Jersey, with the exception of being considerably larger. It is an excellent breed for milk, though not as popular as the Jersey These three breeds. Jersey, Alderney. and Guernsey, are obtained from the British Channel Islands, bearing these names lymg off the coast of France. The Jersey is the best known' and for use in this country is much more promising than the' others. The Swiss cows in their native land are very good milkers and prove quite profitable to their owners. There have been only a few importations into this country. The owners of these cattle claim that they have positive merits which entitle them to a fa,r and extensive trial. But they do not become popular and are not likely to supplant the breeds which are now well estab- hshed. While there is no doubt that the Swiss are good cattle Jt^is a question whether it is best to continue the .Multiplication . o. breeds to a great extent. It may pay better to take care of the kmds of cattle already secured than it will to seek for others whose merits are likely to be inferior to those of some races which are already acclimated. The same principle applies to the Brittany cattle as well as the Swiss, with this exception, however, in favor of the former For the Brittanv there is a place which no other breed exactly ■tjcJUiL ^b^sua^ M 5 that the former Holland, while HERN part of the EiN cattle are so ate description, claim is rejected the Jersey as to are, improperly, ry few genuine he Jersey, with is an excellent [ersey. These ', are obtained these names, e best known, ising than the good milkers sre have been wners of these entitle them to e popular and 3W well estab- e good cattle, multiplication • take care of eek for others if some races ttle as well as >f the former. 3reed exactly i CATTLE. 598 fills. Bemg veo. small these cattle are neither useful for work nor for beef, but i„ short pastures, and hilly districts "e cows may be made to supply their owners with milk Tl e! n good da,o, repons. The only animals we have ever seen o^ h.s and of the Swtss breed were kept for a while at the Mass. wa r,ch, and ,ts quantity much greater than the diminutive si^e of the cow would lead a s.:.„ger to expect. Still when col pared with other breeds, the Bk,™„v was no. profitrb, had r™ ''^"^'=-^" '"= "-"^ which we have described had the,r or,g,n m EuaoPE, and most of them have been in . e process of formation and development for at least a hund d years. l„ „„ „„ ,„„„,^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^.^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ for the .mprovement of cattle have been by means of an infusion of h,s fore,g„ blood. All " thorough-bred " cattle, so called m trace to .mportations on both sides of their families. But th re are, m all parts of the county,, a great many cattle which be ong to no particular breed, and which are usually delm, na^ed "natives." The better Cass of the common cat:: called gn,des-a term which indicates that on one side of the famdy there has been a thorough-bred ancestor. But with he possible exception of Texas and vicinity, we have no gl L native cattle m the United States. The original "cattle" of this country were the Buppaloes wh,ch under a wasteful and wicked system of management have been nearly exterminated. But the so-called native cattle of th older settled States are descended from cattle imported by the s'eteTr", *"' '"""'"''' ^""''=°- T-^ -who settled the States came from nearly all parts of Eukope and brought cattle from their own homes. Many cattle were also .mported from the West I.„,es. At that time the principles of breedmg were less understood than they are at the present day f-ifi 596 FARMING FOR PROFIT. and the colonists in their efforts to subdue the wilderness, clear the forest, and protect themselves from the Indians, had little time and but few opportunities to improve their stock. In the course of time it very naturally came to pass that the leading distinctions which the various breeds had possessed were lost", and the cattle which were produced by so much intermixing of different bloods came to bear no resemblance to their pro- genitors, and to present but little similarity among themselves. Although very far below the "thorough-bred," many of our native cattle have good blood in their veins, and are capable of great and rapid improvement. The Texan cattle have been long in the country, and are nearer alike than the so-called natives of any other section. Their greater resemblance to each other may be accounted for on the supposition that while the cattle of the other sections are descended from several distinct breeds, which were brought from many different countries, the Texans had their origin in a single race of Spanish cattle, many representatives of which were brought into Mexico (to which Texas then belonged) some three hundred and fifty years ago. The nat'''e cattle of the Southwest are now sent in large numbers to our Northern and Western markets. They are very coarse, and greatly inferior to all other races of cattle known in the country. They ought to be superseded by some of the improved breeds. Perhaps it would be possible to improve them, but it would require a great deal of time to bring up these ungainly animals to a respectable position. Half-way measures might help some, but it would take a great while to secure anything like satisfactory results. Such are some of the characteristics of the different breeds of cattle which are the best known in this country. From the description given, it is easy to see that no one breed will be profitable in all places, and that no one breed is the best for all purposes. The breed which will pay the Kentucky farmer the CATTLE. 697 best may be one of the veiy poorest of all for the fanner in Maine. Again, the breed which will be the most profitable for the farmer who makes a specialty of beef will be likely to prove unprofitable to the one who is engaged in making butter or selling milk. The choice of breeds must be made with reference to the character and condition of the pastures in which the animals are to be kept in summer, and the quality of the food which they can have during the cold weather, together with the particular purpose which they are designed to serve. A large and hearty breed should not be selected for short pastures, and an extra breed for beef should not be chosen for the dairy. It is not well to have many breeds represented in one herd. When this is done, some of the classes must be much better, either intrinsically or by adaptation, than others; the poorer ones will not pay as well as their companions, and thus the average profit from the herd will be reduced. Besides, there is some difficulty in keeping several breeds together, and it occa- sionally happens that in a dairy the difference in the quality of the milk of different breeds of cows proves a positive disadvan- tage. This is not always the case, but it does sometimes occur. The question, "Are thorough-breds required ? " is often asked by dairymen, and by farmers who are anxious to obtain as large a percentage of profit from their live-stock as can be secured. It is a question in which every man who keeps cattle of any description is interested, and which he certainly ought to con- sider. There is a great deal of prejudice in many places against thorough-bred stock, but it is almost wholly founded upon a misapprehension. The idea which some farmers have that the blooded stock is superior only in the possession of a pedigree is erroneous. Thorough-bred stock is valuable in and of itself, while the pedigree is useful only as a certificate of careful breeding. The thorough-bred has inherited many good quali- ties from his progenitors. Good animals were chosen at first, and for many generations no poor ones have been permitted to :,i 698 FARMING FOR PROFIT. co-nc into the family. The good points are strengthoncd and intensified in each generation, and in time they become firmly fixed. They are then transmitted with a great deal of certainty. It is true that there arc a few exceptions. There are exceptions to every rule. There have been some thorough-bred cows, even in breeds which excel in their milking qualities, which were very poor milkers. These cows never should have been used for breeding purposes. They ought to have been fattened just as sc-on as possible after the discovery was made that the)' were not good milkers. Many breeders follow this course. But some men insist that a thorough-bred is a thorough-bred, and that though an occasional individual may be poor, yet the defective one may transmit the good qualities of its progenitors instead of its own deficiencies. This is not a safe course to pursue, and the fact that it is fipllowed to some extent has brought blooded stock into discredit with many farmers who would have been glad to obtain it if it had been uroperly bred. In a massive stone tower it is not enough that the great majority of the granite blocks are large and perfect. Every one must be right or the safety of the whole structure is endangered. One poor block may ruin the whole. So with blooded stock. The glory of this stock is that it will breed true. If a man has a native cow, he may obtain good calves from her or he may secure poor ones. The calf from a good native cow may inherit the good qualities of the dam, but is fully as likely to possess the evil ones. But in the case of properly managed tliorough-breds there is but very little risk. The calf of a good blooded cow is almost sure to be good, and to have the good qualities of the parents so strongly impressed that it can trans- mit them with a great degree of certainty. There can be no possible^ doubt that for breeding purposes thorough-breds are greatly superior to either natives or grades. Admitting that they are better, the farmer is still brought face to face with a great difficulty in obtaining thorough-bred cattle. igthcncd and ccomc firmly of certainty. re exceptions i-brcd cows, litijs, which J have been )ecn fattened do that thej' course. )rough-brcd, •oor, yet the progenitors "e course to extent has irniers who :)perly bred. :. the great Every one endangered. :h blooded tnie. If a rom her or native cow ly as likely y managed " of a good : the good can trans- can be no i-breds are ought face )red cattle. ill •ii a; 1 «)"' 'ft. : C/t TTIE. 601 The expense of filling his yard with this kind of stock puts it wholly out of the question. Besides there are not animals enough of this kind in the country to supply one farmer in a hundred if he should attempt to keep them exclusively. The plan of stocking our farm-yards with thorough-bred cattle is wholly impracticable. But a large proportion of the benefits to be secured from this kind of stock are still within reach of the ordinary farmer. We have shown that the great superiority of thoroughbreds lies in the fact that they breed almost absolutely true to the • good qualities which they possess. Now let the farmer select from his own herd, or buy of his neighbors, the best native cows, and commence the process of improvement. If he wants to raise beef cattle, he should select cows which have a strong ten- dency to fatten. If he wants to sell milk, the cows which give the greatest quantity of milk should be taken for this purpose. If he desires nice butter, let him select the cows which now furnish the richest cream. Then let him obtain a thorough-bred bull, of a breed noted for the particular purpose which he has in view (an Ayrshire, if he wants co sell milk, and a Jersc/, if he wants nice butter), and mate him with the cows he has selected. The first cost of a two years old bull will not be very great, and he can, for a few years, breed quite closely without bad results. Then he can exchange with some other farmer who is going through the same course. The blooded bull usually imparts his own characteristics in a great degree to his calves by native cows, and it is to be expected that the stock thus obtained will be much superior to the dams. The bulls should not be kept for breeding, but the heifers, even though they do not look very promising, should be carefully tested. If they^ prove to be . without special merit they should be fattened, but if they are good, as most of thpti -vill be, they should be kept until some- thing still better can be secured. Their calves will be likely to show a still greater improvement, and if the process is repeated I vm ^samam 602 FARMING FOR PROFIT. with successive generations, the time will come when the stock will be almost pure in blood, and, except for breeding, will be just as good as that which is purely bred. The number of poor animals in a herd will rapidly decrease with each generation until the proportion will be but little greater than it is in those which are strictly pure. Although it was once thought that " in and in " breeding would prove ruinous to the herds in which it was practiced, it has, in intelligent hands, proved the means of securing the finest animals. All the celebrated breeds have been formed in this way, and by this means the careful farmer may greatly improve his stock. But it should be carried to extremes only by the most skilful breeders. The farmer may safely use the same bull for two, or possibly for three generations, but it will usually be better to exchange with another farmer or breeder than to carry it any farther. If the farmer keeps but few cows and does not feel able to either buy or keep a bull, he may be able to get some of his neighbors to unite with him in the purchase, and to help pay the expenses of keeping. In this way the cost to the individual may be brought very low, and yet nearly all the benefits of sole ownership may be obtained. In all cases when a bull is bought for the purpose of improving native stock a good one should be obtained. Not merely a good-looking one but one from a good family, and one which is clearly marked with the peculiar points which distinguish the breed to which he belongs. A poor bull should not be taken as a gift. On the other hand it is not necessary to obtain members of the fashionable families. Animals from herds which are just as good for milk or beef^ . and which will breed with an equal degree of certainty, can be' had for moderate prices, and will prove ju.st as good for the purpose of improving the cattle with which they are used. A thoroughly good, but not fancy, bull should be obtained from an honest and intelligent breeder. Then the way will be opened CATTLE. 603 for a rapid and permanent improvement of the cattle kept on the farm. Probably no one will question the fact that thorough-bred cows are much better for milk and butter than the average natives, but there may be some who doubt whether it would pay to get blooded stock merely for the purpose of producing beef If they would read the reports of the sales of beef at any of the principal markets in the country, and trace the difference in the blood of the steers there sold, their doubts would vanish. They would find that grade steers not only average much heavier in weight than natives, but also that they frequently sell considerably higher per pound. The beef cattle which have been sent to England have shown the same variation in price. Those which were well bred have sold for from one-half to two- thirds more per pound than those of poorer quality. Thus there is a double gain in using high grade steers for beef They fatten much more readily than the natives and sell for a higher rate per pound. In order to obtain really good animals it is necessary to give them care and attention from their earliest hours. Good blood is an immense advantage, but it cannot atone for want of food and care. Many of the native cattle are far inferior to what they would have been if they had been suitably attended to while they were young. It pays to care for stock during all stages of its existence, but care seems a greater necessity in the dependent period of early life than it does after that time of weakness has passed. Feeding with reference to the perfect development of the animal should commence even before its birth. During preg- nancy the cow should be fed with a more liberal hand than at any other period. Not only is the waste of her own system to be sustained, and her usual quantity of milk to be furnished for several months, but the calf must be nourished, and its growth be made from food supplied to the cow. It is not well to feed 1' {;f! eo4 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the cow so that at the time of parturition she will be very fat, yet it is still worse to keep her on such short rations that she will be very poor. Good food in abundance, but not in excess, should be supplied. The length of time which she should go dry will depend upon tha milking qualities of the cow herself Some cows dry off three months before calving. These animals are generally un- profitable. Others give quite a quantity of milk until within about two months of the time to calve. There are a few cows which continue to give milk until the very time of calving. It seems to be best for both the cow and her calf, as well as most for the interest of the owner, that there should be a period of from six to eight weeks during which the cow should go dry. Most cows will gradually diminish the quantity of milk which they give and the flow will finally cease of itself But there are some cows in which the milking qualities are so fully developed that a special effort must be made to induce a cessation of the flow of milk. The best method for accomplishing this result is to draw the milk at irregular intervals. This is very much better than the common practice of taking only part of the milk at a time. When the latter course is followed, the milk which remains becomes thick and putrid and frequently leads to inflam- mation and other serious evils. The period between the milk- ings may be gradually lengthened, and should not be at all regular, but, when the milking is done, it should be as thor- oughly performed as at any other time. For some weeks after the cow is thought to be dry the udder should be frequently examined, as milk is often secreted in small quantities after the owner supposes the process to have ceased. If the cow has been properly fed and cared for she will be pretty sure to go through the time of calving without great difficulty. Still, there are some cases of wrong presentation of the foetus and of certain other difficulties. In these cases a veterinarian should be employed. He may be able to save CATTLE. 605 the life of both cow and calf. No ignorant, brutal help should be accepted. It is not well to allow the cow to calve in the pasture. She should be turned into a box-stall in which there is a larg^ quantity of bedding, or else under a comfortable shed. Whether the cow should be allowed to eat the " after-birth " is a question upon which intelligent owners are disagreed. Some strongly advocate its removal, while others just as strongly insist that the cow should be allowed to follow her natural in- stinct. We have often tried each plan and have never known either to be attended by bad results. Immediately after drop- ping the calf the cow should have a warm bran-mash. This will tend to produce an easy separation of the after-birth. If it proves ineffectual, tie a weight of one or two pounds to the pro- truding part. If no progress has been made after a lapse of ten hours, a dose of salts, four ounces, and ginger, two ounces, may be given. In case this does not secure the removal of the after- birth within twenty-four hours after calving it must be taken away by force. The right hand (the hand and arm being well smeared with oil, or fresh lard) should be introduced into the womb and the membrane separated with the thumb and fingers from its various connections. A great deal of care must be used in performing this operation, and considerable time may be required. All violent pulling endangers the life of the cow, and many fine animals have been killed by ignorant or brutal opera- tors. For a few days after this operation the cow should be fed on warm mashes and fine hay, have warm water to drink, and be carefully protected from cold and storms. No cold water should be given to a cow for several days after she has calved, even though she may have got along well. She should have water frequently, in small quantities, but it sh^ul^^ J* -r-^^ be warmed sufficiently to take off the chill. Neglect of •gi'i*^^ ^S^f\ very likely to cause an attack of milk fever, and by this Snejt^ , -^"^^ P* many nice cows have been lost ^•^■**^'^jL '^ till 1:: 4. C) »viar< needs without aid, but, in case of weakness. ,t should be held to the cow until it get, its food. In any case the calf should be allowed to stay with the cow for three or four days and take as much milk as he wants. The remamder of the milk should be drawn by hand at least twice 3 day. If the calf is designed for veal, he may, at the end of the time stated oe t,ed with a strap around the neck. At mornin. and n.ght he should have access to the cow. If she does nor give a 1 the m,lk the calf wants he may be taught to cat a little meal If Indian meal is given it should be cooked. Oat meal may be fed ether cooked or raw. Some live-stock owners prefer oil meal. Only a small quantity should be given at first, and tfe increase in amount should be very gradual. If the calf is to be raised, it should be taken from the cow at «.e end of the third or fourth day and tied in a stall which .s well out of her s.ght. It should be taught to drink, and for ^everal weeks, should have new and warm milk. Then, as most farmers consider this food altogether too expensive for perma- nent use, the new milk may be gradually diminished and the quantity kept good by the addition of milk that has been sk.mmed. After a while skimmed milk, which should always be warm when fed, with the addition of a little oat meal, may the calf should h.,ve a nice yard out of doors where it can stay dunng the daytime, and in which it can learn to eat grass and dnnk water. At night, and during hard storms, the calf should be t,ed m a clean stall in the barn. The milk and meal should be contmued until the first of winter, and in the case of late calves still longer. ^ If the weather is cold, so that the calf cannot be kept out of doors without discomfort, it should be tied in a war. stall in the bam, and, in addition to the milk and meal, should be sup- CATTLE. gQy plied with rowen hay. During the first year or two of its life, the calf should not be yarded with cows and large cattle. It is the best way to keep two or more calves together, and allow them a small yard of their own. In summer, after they are two years old, they can run in the same pasture with the cows, if a shelter is provided to protect them from storms and from extreme heat. Many farmers send their young stock to an " outland " pasture. This is often many miles from home, and the young cattle do not receive the attention which they need. If the season is favorable they may get food enough, but if there is a severe drought the grass will be of poor quality if not insufficient in quantity, and there is danger, in many pastures, of suffering for want of water. It is also the custom to turn into the pasture a " scrub " bull, and by him the heifers are got with calf From an ordinary .specimen of this stock no one has the right to expect a decent calf There is a direct loss on the first calf, and the heifer is injured for the production of good stock by the service of the scrub. Not only are small and coarsely made bulls put into these pastures, but sometimes those with still worse defects ar(? employed. We knew one case in which a badly deformed bull' was used. It ought to be a principle with the farmer never to allow a poor bull to serve one of his cows or heifers. If he does allow it, he throws away the chance of obtaining a good calf, and allows the cow to be permanently injured. Castratioi*.— Male calves, which are not desirable to keep for breeders, should be castrated when two or three months old ■ always before they reach the age of six u. .mhs. Good weather should be selected for the operation. The directions given by Mr. Allen in his work on American Cattle are excellent. We quote them, as follows : " Grasp the scrotum in the left hand, and bring the testicles down to the foot of the bag ; then, with the other hand, and a sharp, small knife— a sharp-pointed jack-knife is as good as any— cut a perpendicular slit in the 38 1 I J! 608 FARMING FOR PROFIT. back or rear side of each testicle, close to the bottom, and long enough for the released testicle to pass through ; then cut through the skin, and the inner case enclosing it ; push out the testicle, and gently draw the cord attached to it out one or two inches, and cut, or scrape, it off, and the work is done. Serve the other in the same way. Then put in a little salted, soft greese, and push it upwards towards the belly with the finger. If the weather b- hot, a {&\v drops of spirits of turpentine mixed with water may be washed just within and around the outside cut of the scrotum to keep off flies, and the calf may be set at liberty." If the scrotum becomes swollen and badly inflamed, the calf should be caught and the incisions opened sufficiently to allow the matter which has forhied to be discharged. Care should be taken to protect calves which have been castrated from storms, and they should have plenty of good food. Steers, which are designed for work, should be handled and trained at an early age. They should never be allowed to get wild, or to fear in the slightest degree the presence of man. While they are calves they should be accustomed to being led with a halter, and should be tied in the barn at night. If this is done, the "breaking" process will be short and easy. Quiet and submissive oxen will also be secured. But if all handling and training is neglected until the steers are three years old, it will be a very difficult matter to "break" them, and they will be likely to be violent and intractable in all their after lives. A small yoke should be obtained, and the steers brought under it as soon as they are a year old. Some good trainers begin at a :still earlier age. If care is used not to scare them, and a rope is put around their horns so that the driver can guide them a little, the steers will soon learn the lesson required. When they are well taught to walk around where the driver wishes, they may be put in front of some large cattle which are attached to a cart and given a few lessons. Then they may be fastened to a very light wagon and driven alone. They should ;, and long then cut sh out the me or two le. Serve aUed, soft the finger, ine mixed le outside r be set at inflamed, ufficiently zd. Care castrated 1. idled and 'ed to get ; of man. being led If this is ^ Quiet handling irs old, it they will ives. A under it egin at a a rope is them a When wishes, lich are may be ' should CATTLE. 609 be taught to back, as it is often a very great advantage to have oxen which will go backwards as well as forwards. The method of teaching is precisely the same as that which has been recommended for horses. Steers should never be hitched to a heavy load until they have been thoroughly taught to draw and have become large and strong. Most of the cattle that are not good to work have been made inferior by neglect of training, bad training, or by having been overloaded when they were young. For quite a while after the steers have been taught to draw a cart but little weight should be added. When they are well used to this, part of a load may be put in the cart, and this may be gradually increased, as the steers gain strength and skill, until a full load is readily drawn. The training should be so thorough that one man can readily use the oxen for plowing. One of the greatest wastes of labor which we have seen in New England, where things are usually viewed from an economical stand-point, is the use of a yoke of oxen which required the time and labor of a man to drive. Plowing in this manner — one man driving a single yoke of oxen, and another holding the plow — is a very expensive operation. There is no necessity for using such ineflficient cattle. If well taught when they are steers, and decently used afterwards, cattle can be driven by the man who holds the plow. Not only this, but they can be driven as easily and as well as an ordinary horse team. There are many such oxen, and we are sure that many of those which are now awkward and unmanageable would have been good workers, if they had only been properly trained and used. The Bull should be well fed and cared for, but should not be forced either to grow or fatten. While it is very bad to keep such a calf half starved, it is also bad to keep him stuffed and crowded with stimulating food. He ought to grow up naturally, and be developed at the time and in the manner which nature indicates. If this plan is followed, he will not look as well as H Wi U1 - i r ! 610 FARMIiVG rOR PROFIT. one of the same degree of merit which has been forced to make an excessive growth, and whose defects are well covered witli fat, but at two years of age, and from that time through life, he will be a more vigorous and serviceable animal. The bull should be used but very little for breeding until he is two years old. Earlier service would prove injurious to him, and his calves would not be as strong and fine as they ought to be. At two years of age he may safely serve from fifty to eighty cows during the season. After that, until he is ten or twelve years old, and his powers begin to fail, he may serve one hundred cows per season. If kept in a stable, he should be led around the yard for a while each day for exercise. It is better to keep him in a stable and small yard, and allow him to go from one to the other at will. He should not be turned into the common pasture with the cows. He ought to be well fed, but not kept very fat. During the first year of his age, a copper ring should be put in his nose. A light, strong stick, .seven or eight feet long, with two links of chain and a snap at the end, should be used for leading him. A rope tied into the ring is not safe, as the leader has nothing to prevent the bull from rushing upon him. Sometimes a bull that has always been kind will have a sudden turn of frenzy, and, if he is unprepared for an attack, the keeper will be seriously injured or even killed. Such cases are not very rare. Therefore, no matter how pleasant the bull may be, never try to lead him without a stick fastened to a ring, or some good substitute, in his nose. We have seen a "bull-leader" which could be instantly put in position or removed, and which does not require a hole to be made in the cartilage of the nose, or a ring to be inserted. It is very convenient, and if the keeper will remember and use it when the bull is pleasant as well as when he appears to be vicious, it may be an improvement on the common ring. Some, though not all, bulls which are cross are made so by CATTLE. 611 violent treatment. At all times, from the first day of his exist- ence, the bull should be treated kindly. Still he must be managed with a firm hand. The keeper must not let the bull think that he is afraid. Nevertheless he should be constantly on the watch lest the treacherous animal make an attack when least expected. If a bull becomes decidedly vicious, he should be sent to the butcher. No one will be safe in caring for him, and his calves will be liable to inherit his bad disposition. If he is a good animal, a sure stock-getter, and is not cross, the bull may be kept until he begins to fail from age. This will usually be at from ten to twelve years. Most farmers, and many breeders, fatten their bulls when four or five years old. But the best age for the bull as a breeder is when he is from five to ten years old. Then he is fully matured, and his powers are well developed. He will get stronger and better calves than one which is very young. In order that he may retain his powers, the bull should never be overworked. The practice of turning a bull and cow into a yard and leaving them together during the day is to be strongly condemned. One perfect ser- vice is not only just as good, but is a great deal better than half a dozen. When regularly serving many cows the food of the bull should be increased, and he should be well fed at all times. Winter Management. — In a large part of the country it is necessary to give special care to cattle during the cold season. And we think that in that belt of country lying between the cold region on the North, and the warm one on the South, where there is but little snow, and cattle can be kept out-of- doors nearly all of the time, it would pay well to give more attention to the cattle during the winter months. Although cattle can live outside of the barns (and the bams even are wanting in many places), yet they would thrive a great deal better, and give much larger returns, if they were protected from the storms, and could be properly fed when the grass in the pastures fails. At the extreme South the farmer can furnish I i' 111 y 612 FARMING FOR PROFIT. \\ excellent pasturage during the winter. The kirtds of grass suited for this climate and purpose have already been indicated. The expense of supplying this pasturage is very small when compared with that of wintering cattle at the North, and it should be cheerfully borne. The Stable.— It is a matter of great importance from an economical as well as a humanitarian point of view, that the stables for cattle should be light and warm, and that they should be kept clean. We have already shown that animals which have warm stables are much more productive, with the same amount of food, than those which are placed in cold quarters. The advantage of a light stable over a dark one is evident. Cleanliness is necersary in order to make the cattle healthy and keep them in comfort. The floors should be strong and frequently examined. When cattle break through a weak floor, the owner usually has to sustain quite a loss. We like a double floor under the cattle. Plank the floor in the usual way, and then lay short planks (four and a half or five feet long) the other way. These will be just long enough for the cattle to stand on, the manure will fall behind the short planks upon the long ones, and this arrangement will tend to keep the cattle clean. The floor overhead should be high enough so that a tall man need not stoop in the stable even when he has on a tall hat. The mangers should be well made, so that there will be no waste of the meal fed in them. Between their tops and the floor above a strong, smooth stick should be placed in order to keep the cattle from climbing into them. The fastenings should be strong and safe, but also as comfortable for the cattle as possible. Bows around the neck do well for young cattle, while stanchions, or chains around the neck, are preferable for larger animals. We like these methods better than tying with a rope around the horns. Plenty of bedding should be used on the floors. If the floor CATTLE. G13 descends a little from the mangers towards the back of the stable it will prove a help in keeping the cattle clean. In all respects while they arc in the stables the cattle should be made just as comfortable as possible. An easy way of getting into and out of the stables s'lould always be provided. There are many cases in which this is wholly neglected, and the cows have to climb steep steps every time they go into the stable. In some cases they are obliged to wade through mud and manure from one to two feet in depth, and then take a long step to get to the stable floor. We have seen cows hesitate long before they would take a step which re- quired so much exertion. This method of getting into the stable is very injurious to all animals. It is especially dangerous for cows which are with calf, and is quite likely to cause abortion with all of its attendant evils. There should be good steps whenever the surface of the yard — and by surface we mean something which will give a good foundation — is more than ten inches lower than the stable floor. It ought to be just as easy for the cattle to go into the stable as it is to walk on the floor after they are in there. The entrance to many stables, in mud time, and when there is ice on the ground and steps, is positively dangerous, and, many animals which receive no more serious injury are made lame by trying to pass from the yard to the stable. Although the Northern winters are very long, it pays well to commence feeding cattie quite early in the season. If the animals are kept out in the fields until snow comes, there will be quite a time during which they are very poorly fed. The grass becomes spoiled by the hard frosts, and long before the quantity of food begins to fail its quality is seriously impaired. Some farmers seek to mitigate the evil by throwing corn-stalks, or coarse hay, into the fields or the yards. This is well as far as it goes, but it is very far from removing the difficulty. It is much better to put the cattle in the barn and feed them once a 614 FARMING FOR PROFIT. day when the grass begins to fail. As it grows poorer, feed them twice a day, and when the frost has killed it, feed the cattle entirely in the barn. This course requires more hay than the one commonly pursued, but it keeps the cattle in so much better condition that it proves more profitable. Cows which are kept short for a few weeks decrease the quantity of milk which they secrete, and it is difficult to bring them back to the original yield. Young cattle which come to the barn thin in flesh are likely to go out in the spring in poor condition. Here as elsewhere a good start is a great help to a successful ending. The quantity of food given to domestic animals must depend upon their age, condition, and several other considerations. Some animals will need more in proportion to their size than others. The quality of the food will also greatly modify the quantity which is to be given. But all neat cattle should have food enough. None should be kept hungry. This because it is both wrong and unprofitable to keep animals without giving them sufficient food. It is much better, in every sense of the term, to keep a smaller number of creatures and give them all they want to eat, than it is to keep a large herd on short rations. Cattle should be fed several times a day, and, while they should have all they will eat, care must be taken not to give too much at a time. If the mangers are filled too full the cattle will eat what they want at that time and will breathe upon and work over the remainder in such a manner as to render it unfit to eat. In this way careless feeding causes quite a waste of fodder. The feeding should be done at regular hours. If cattle get in the habit of eating at certain times of the day they will be ready to eat when those times come, but, if they are fed irregularly, they will not know when to expect food and will not gain as much from its use as they would from the same amount if it was given at stated times. We usually feed cattle twice in the morn- CATTLE. G15 ing .ind twice at night in the barn, and once a day in the yard. The latter feeding is with corn-stalks, which are given when the cattle are turned out in the morning. When the weather is bad we feed more hay in the barn and do not put out the stalks. Many farmers feed their cattle in the evening. We believe it is an excellent plan to go to the barn just before bedtime and see that everything is right, but we are not sure that it is well to feed the cattle at this time. The animals will be lying down quietly for their night's rest and it hardly seems best to disturb them. The owner can see that they are all right without start- ing them up. If he does not feed them they will, certainly after they get used to his coming, remain wholly undisturbed. We believe it is better to leave them quiet than it is to get them up and feed them. The quality of food which animals should receive will depend upon many and varying circumstances. When an ox is at work he should have a liberal allowance of meal in addition to a suffi- cient quantity of hay. T<" 1 - to be fattened he should havr more meal and less „^ than he does while at work. If he is kept idle he should have plenty of hay and a few roots daily. Cows giving milk need a better quality of food than those which have no such drain upon their productive powers. Young cattle need a jood quality of hay and a few roots. A little oat- meal may also be given with good results. The idea that anything which will distend the stomach is good enough for young cattle is wholly erroneous, and has involved the large class of farmers who have held it in a heavy loss. If there is ever a time when good feeding pays, it is when the animal is growing. At this time the ordinary wastes of the system must be met, and the whole body ought to be rapidly increased in size. The meat and bones which should be formed must be made from the food if they are made at all. If that is of poor quality the animal can gnin b'-'.^ little, if any, because nearly all the food is needed to supply the waste. We do not ftssat/i-Aimmii- 616 FARMING FOR PROFIT. think it well to force animals at this stage of their growth. The use of large quantities of meal for their food is not wise. But good food and plenty of it is necessary to keep young cattle growing, as well as to keep them in good health and condition. Pure water ought to be furnished in abundance and at a place where all the cattle can easily have access to it. We have already treated of the importance of a full supply of water on the farm, but a few words upon this subject with special refer- ence to the live-stock interest will not be out of place. In every yard in which cattle are kept there should be a tub, or trough, for holding the drinking water of the stock. This tub should always be kept clean and well filled. It should be placed in a sheltered position, and so arranged that the stronger cattle can- not keep the weaker ones from the water. In some yards both of these points are disregarded. The tub is placed where the wind sweeps with the greatest power, and where the strongest animal can, and often does, stand guard and keep the others away. In this manner the weaker ones suffer from thirst, and, after they have had access to the tub, they feel still worse on account of having drank to excess. Where the tub is located so that one or two of the animals keep the others away it will pay to move it to a place in which there will be a fairer chance for all. If this cannot be done, the animals which make the trouble should be kept in the yard only long enough to drink. As soon as they have drank in the morning they should be put in the stable and kept there until the others are put in for the night. Then they may be allowed to drink again. This will prove somewhat injurious to the ones which are kept shut up, but it is better that they should suffer a little than that they should compel all the rest of the herd to suffer a great deal worse. At all times cattle should have a plentiful supply of salt. Some writers assert that this is unnecessary, but the best physi- ologists consider it indispensable to the health and comfort of '• jteafa.. CATTLE. 617 animals. It is well known that, in their wild state, animals make long journeys for the sole purpose of obtaining salt, and that under domestication they do not lose the craving for this inexpensive article. From many trials which we have made, as well as from reports of other trials, we are fully convinced that salt is not merely a luxury to cattle, but is absolutely necessary to their thrift and comfort. The fact that when used in excess it gives bad results is not proof that it is injurious. Too much green clover induces an attack of hoven and may kill the strongest animal. It has destroyed a great many very fine cattle. But no one claims that green clover must not be fed to cattle. All sensible people know that if it is not used in exces- sive quantities it is highly beneficial. The same principle exactly applies to the use of salt. If cattle have not had a supply for a long time they should be gradually accustomed to its use. A small quantity should be given each day until they exhibit no special desire for it. Then put a few quarts in a box under a shed to which they can have access daily and they will eat it as they feel the need of its peculiar properties. In this box a supply of salt should be kept constantly. The cattle will enjoy it and it will do them good. Lice. — These liitle parasites cause an immense amount of suffering to the animals upon whom they prey, and a heavy loss to the owners of the cattle which are infested with them. Some formers estimate the actual damage caused to the owner of the cattle by these pests to be not less than five dollars per year for each animal that is covered with them. This we do not con- sider an excessive estimate. The cow that is obliged to support an army of lice must give less milk and keep in poorer order than she would if free from her tormentors. With a calf the case is still worse, as he has less strength with which to combat the evil. It has often been asserted that lice were caused by neglect ■ ; 618 FARMING FOR PROFIT. and poor keeping of the animals on which they appear. While they are more frequently found in neglected herds than in those which are well cared for, and upon animals which are weak and thin in flesh than upon those which are strong and fat, it is still true that they frequently make their appearance upon thrifty animals and in well-kept herds. These pests are readily trans- ferred from one animal to another, and are often introduced mto a fine herd by one or more affected animals which the owner has purchased. As there is a constant liability that cattle will be troubled with lice, they should be frequently examined. Calves and young cattle need still more careful oversight than cows or oxen. The remedies which have been employed are various, and some of them, while very effective, have proved more dangerous to the cattle than the lice which they destroyed. Many cattle have been killed, and many others injured, by lapping off the poisonous ointments which have been applied to themselves or to some animal in the same herd. The use of these remedies is dangerous. If they are so applied that cattle cannot lap them off from themselves, some other cattle may do it for them and be poisoned. Even if it remains with the animal to which it was applied, it may be absorbed and cause serious injury. There is no necessity for using such preparations, as safer remedies will be equally effectual. A mixture of Scotch snuff and lard rubbed along the back, on top of the head, around the flanks, and between the hind legs, will answer the purpose without injuring the animal. Tobacco smoke is also effectual, but requires the use of a fumigator to render it pleasant or safe. Even with this instrument the work should be done in the open air, in order to prevent sickening the operator, and also to avoid all danger of firing the buildings. When this method is gufsued, the animal must be blanketed for a while after the operation, and the process must be repeated in CATTLE. 619 a week or ten days, in order to destroy the lice which hatch out after the first one is performed. In mild weather, a wash com- posed of one part carbolic acid and three parts of water proves both harmless to the animal and effectual for killing lice. It should be freely rubbed along the back, between the horns, and around the tail. Diseases. — Cattle are subject to various diseases, but nearly all of them are caused by some error in feeding or manage- ment. The animals which are kept poor and half-starved, and those which are highly pampered, are much more subject to sickness of various kinds than those which are well fed and cared for, but are not too rapidly pushed. Several of these diseases are to be successfully treated only by an educated veterinarian or physician. Of these we shall make no mention, except to :v ihat they can almost universally be prevented, and that f -■ -at hope of the farmer is in the use of preventive measures. Curing severe disease in animals is very doubtful, and the attempt to cure will be very much more expensive than the measures which would have prevented an attack. A few common diseases and accidents sh Duld be briefly mentioned in this connection. Abortion. — In some sections this disease is vcrj' prevalent, and causes an immense loss to farmers and dairymen every year. In this disease, the cow calves before her full time. The calf is lost, and the sickness of the cow renders her nearly useless for several months. In many cases, the cows die at once. As a rule, when a cow loses her calf she will never be a safe breeder afterwards, but will be very likely to have the same trouble with every calf The disease is not always confined to the cow first attacked, but frequently spreads through the whole herd. It is not contagious, but is almost as likely to spread as any disease with which cows are affected. Conse- quently, upon its appearance the greatest care should be used to prevent its increase. The affected cow should be secluded ^x/. If 620 FARMING FOR PROFIT. from all the others as soon as there is evidence that she is about losing her calf. The calf itself, and the after-birth,, should be deeply buried, and the cows should not be allowed to get sight of them at any time. In the stable in which the sick cow is confined dis iectants should be freely used. This is very important, as it is largely by reason of the foul smell and the consequent excitement of the cows that the disease is spread. There are cases, however, in which the disease spreads because it is due to some general cause to which all the herd are exposed. In such instances, while care should be taken of the individual cows, the cause of the difficulty must be removed before the trouble will cease. After a cow has lost her calf, she should be fed well and care- fully protected from extremes of temperature. She ought not to be allowed to have a calf for a long time, and if not an extra cow had better be fattened at once. When a cow once gets into the habit of losing her calf, she will not be profitable in herself and her presence will endanger the whole herd. The principal causes of abortion are injuries or frights — often caused by the brutal men or boys who milk and drive the cows, the use of impure water from stagnant ponds, the presence in the pastures, or near the yards, of putrefying animal substances, and the use of hay which is mouldy or which contains poisonous weeds. Sometimes one of these things, or something similar, and .sometimes two or more of them combined, bring on an attack. The owners of cows should be careful to avoid all exciting causes, and do all that they can to prevent the introduction of this disease. Choking. — This is an accident to which cattle are liable and which often causes death in a short time. It is usually caused by an attempt on the part of the animal to eat roots, fruit, or vegetables, too fast. When apples are plenty in the pasture the strong animals frequently drive the weak ones from under the trees. As they are leaving they seize one or more apples and CATTLE. 621 run. In their haste they attempt to swallow these apples without chewing and get choked in their efforts. When roots are fed to cattle in the yards, or without being cut, there is the same danger. All such things should be fed in the mangers, when the cattle are tied in the stables, and should be cut before being given. When an animal is choked the very best way with which we are acquainted is to turn down a pint of sweet oil. The old fashioned "whale oil," or even lard oil, effects the purpose just as well, but is not very palatable to the animals. This treatment will prove effectual in nearly all cases and is the safest, as well as best, of the common remedies. Those stock-owners who relieve a choked animal by holding up its head and pushing the obstruction down the throat with a broom-handle ought to be choked themsclvfs and "relieved" in the same way. With a good probang the careful operator can successfully accomplish the desired result. If the oil fails and no probang is at hand a very smooth, flexible stick may be used. But to use a straight and large stick is barbarous. Some farmers fire a gun under the animal and .-say that the fright will cause a sudden .spring and the removal of the offending substance. Others tie up one fore-foot and make the creature hop around on three feet. There are various other methods, but the ones described v . think will answer every purpose. Here the old proverb about prevention being better than cure has a very direct application. Most cases of choking might have been prevented and the suffering of the animals and the trouble and loss of their owners all been saved. Garget.— This is a disease to which cows are subject and which, as far as milking purposes are concerned, spoils a great many good animals every j^ear. In moderate cases it is a local inflammation affecting one or more quarters of the udder In severe cases the whole system becomes involved. It is caused in varioHs ways. Neglect when a cow is drymg off is very likely to produce it. Neglect just before, and ibr a icv^ days after, calving is still more certain to induce an attack. When ,H K m , 9H ^ ^H| H .^^H H ^^^H 'jP i^ A^^B 1 ' '^H 1 » ^^3 ' li StKk 1- i^^^Hf i':i .^^■B *«».-■»«*««,« il i I in 622 !'• ARMING FOR PROFIT. the udder is very much distended, and is hot and feverish, the cow should be milked even though she has not dropped her calf. The udder should be washed, often and thoroughly, with warm water in which a small quantity of Indian meal has been stirred. Rubbing is very efficacious. If there are hard bunches in the udder, and the rubbing and the use of the water and the meal do not reduce them, a liniment composed of equal parts of tincture of iodine and ammonia may be used in connection with them. This may be well rubbed in two or three times a day. Only a little should be used at a time, as a large quantity would cause a great deal of soreness. This is an excellent remecy and is also valuable for sprains and rheumatism. If the colorless tincture of iodine is used, the mixture is excellent for rheumatism and neuralgia in human subjects. We know of no other external application which, in all respects, is its equal for these purposes. In addition to the treatment already indicated the calf should be allowed to run with the cow. Draw part of the milk so as to keep the calf quite hungry and thus induce him to suck and "bunt" as much as possible. This is rather hard treat- ment of the calf, but it need be practiced only a few days and will do the cow an immense amount of good. If the inflammation becomes general, a high fever sets in and shivering fits come en, give five or six ounces of gin, or whiskey, in three or four quarts of warm water and cover the whole body with a quilt wrung out of hot water. Over this cover some drj blankets, which should be tied so as to keep in place, and give injections of warm water. This ought to induce a profuse per- spiration. After the cow has sweat for half an hour the blanket should be removed, the skin rubbed dry, and the animal then covered with a dry blanket. In order to relieve the local inflammation a rubber sack, made for the purpose, which will fit the udder, should be filled with moderately warm water and fastened with a strap over the back of the cow so th.nl: the udder can be kept constantly wet. When the water becomes CA TTLE. 623 very warm it should be changed. Instead of the water some writers recommend the, use of a poultice, with holes for the teats, fastened in the same way. Upon the poultice a little bel- ladonna should be sprinkled in order to relieve the pain. With this treatment injections of warm water must be used. Some- times matter forms in the swollen places. This should not be left to be absorbed into the system and injure, perhaps destroy, the cow. The sores should be opened with a sharp knife. This will give relief to the cow and may save her life. We think that after an attack of this disease, the cow is ever after predisposed to it whenever she calves. Some old cows which have had it lightly several times arc almost sure to be attacked at every time they calve, and they are likely to grow worse each time. It is not best to keep a cow that is subject to this disease, and a great deal of care should be taken of heifers when they are about to calve in order to prevent an attack. The idea that a cow will give as much milk from three teats as; she does from 'bur is wholly erroneous, and the men who are keeping cows which have lost one-quarter of their udders front attacks of garget, ar2 suffering a constant loss. The nearer perfect a cow is the better, and no owner should allow his cows to suffer from garget when he can prevent it. Even a slight attack involves a direct loss, and a severe one is quite likely^'to destroy the usefulness of the cow for milking purposes. HovEN.— This disease is caused by eating too large a quantity of green food, especially of clover, at a time. The stomach is overloaded, indigestion results, rumination is prevented, and the food rapidly decomposes. By this change a large quantity of gas is generated, and in a severe case, if relief is not quickly obtained, the animal will die in a short time. With this disease medicines are useless, unless given in the very first stages. If attended to at once, the administration of four drachms of chloride of lime in a little water may give relief. Or two ounces of ammonia in a quart of soft water given every fifteen minutes 39 m ■ ii ') ■' , '*mmmmmM 624 /•.//I'.V/AV FO/! PROFIT. may be tried. Injections of warm water are also in order, and cloths wrung out in hot water and applied to the skin may aid in giving relief. But in case there is no change for the better in a short time, an opening must be made into the stomach, and the gas allowed to escape. Veterinarians use an 'nstrument called a trocar, which consists of a sharp-pointed stilet, and a sheath. This is the best thing to use, but if one cannot be obtained soon (for there is not much time to lose in a severe case of this disease), a sharp-pointed knive will answer the purpose. The opening must be made on the left side. Mr. WiLLARD gives the position as follows : " The place of punc- ture is in the flank, about three inches below the spinal column, and mid-way between the last rib and the hip." At this point a small opening should be made. Into this opening a quill should be placed, and through this the dangerous gas will soon escape. After the gas has been removed, the edges of the wound in the skin ought to be fastened together with a stitch of strong silk. The prevention of this disease is easy and simple. It consists in never giving animals an opportunity to gorge themselves with succulent food. They should never have a sudden change of food, but should be gradually brought from hay to grass. "When turned into the " fall feed " (a bad practice, as has been indicated, but still a very common one) they should be allowed to stay only a short time. After feeding for a while they should either be turned into the pasture or else shut up in a yard. By allowing them in the rank grass only an hour in the morning and the same length of time at night, for the first two or three days, and gradually extending the time as they become accus- tomed to the fresh food, the danger of an attack of hoven may be entirely avoided. It is much better for the cattle, aside from con- siderations respectin this particular disease, that all changes in the quality of the food given to them should be gradual, and particularly that the changes from dry fodder to green grass, and from short pastures to luxuriant meadows, should be slowly CATTLE. 626 eflected. Neglect of tHis precaution has caused the loss of a multitude of valuable animals, and the serious injury of many more. Horn Ail.— This is an imaginary disease about which we used to hear a great deal, and which is still the " standby " of the ignorant cattle "doctor" when he is called to a case which he does not at all understand. This name has done service among these "doctors" for a great while. It has answered for all complicated forms of disease, as well as for some simple maladies, and for the results of neglect and poor keeping. That cattle which have been doctored for " horn ail " have been sick we do not question, but the idea that the horns were the seat of disease is wholly without foundation. The fact that the horns are either cold or hot when an animal is sick, is not proof that the disease is of a local nature. When a man has a high fever his feet will be hot, but the doctor who should say that the feet were diseased*, and that in order to effect a cure they must receive special attention, and that all remedies which are given should be selected with reference to their action upon the feet, would be justly considered a quack or a fool. The whole system is diseased, and if remedies are to do any good they must affect the whole body. All merely local efforts to control the disease will be of no benefit, and may make the matter worse. Now when a horned creature is sick, and the horns appear to be of an unnatural temperature, it will be worse than useless to bore holes in them, and stuff in the remedies which are often recommended. Let the horns alone and doctor the animal for fever. If the nose is dry, the legs cold, the breathing short, and the bowels constipated, the horns will be pretty sure to be hot. The use of wet blankets and warm water injections as described for garget will usually give relief, if tried soon enough. If the bowels do not move fn^ely, a dose of salts (four to six ounces) with a little molasses may be given. If this does not relieve the patient, send for a competent ■ i \\ ii 626 FARMING FOR PROFIT. veterinarian. There are plenty of other things which the farmer can do, but he had better not experiment farther. In typhoid fever there is usually a diarrhcea and great soreness of the bowels. These cases should be treated by a veterinarian. Rut if the farmer wants to experiment he can try the water treatment above recommended, and give one-fourth ounce each of Cayenne pepper and ginger in a little oat meal gruel. Milk Fever. — This di.sease carries oflT many fine cows every year. Many others are seriously injured. We have never known a cow to do well for a year after an attack, and in many cases the animal is spoiled for a milker. As a rule this disease can be easily prevented. A little care at the right time will be very sure to keep it off If it appears it should be treated at once. Violent cases must be helped very soon or not at all. Mild cases, if neglected, often become unmanageable in two or three days. The causes of this disease are various. Cows which are very fleshy, or which have been kept high for a few weeks before calving, are more likely to be attacked than those which are thin in flesh and which have not recently been fed with meal or allowed to run in luxuriant pas: 'res. A cow that is suffering from costiveness is also liable to have an attack. But we think that nine cases out of ten which occur in farm-yards are the result of undue exposure. As a rule farmers do not realize the great disturbance to the system of the cow caused by calving, and have no idea that for a few days afterwards she is in a condition which makes her peculiarly susceptible to attacks of disease. Our own knowledge upon this subject was gained at considerable expense, and we came very near losing a valuable cow by carelessness when we thought all danger was passed. Many farmers allow their cows to calve in the barn-yard in which there is an abundance of water. In the winter this water is ice-cold. The cow is always feverish at this time, and, of ij ^r^ BwiWH ^ ii i ii r i 'w tiiMii h CATTLE. 627 course, quite thirsty. There is nothing to keep her from drinking all the water she wants. She does drink, and thereby renders herself very liable to a violent attack of milk fever. Many cows are turned into wet yards. When the weather is cold this is a great exposure. Even in warm weather it involves considerable risk. Sometimes the cow is cared for a day or two and is then turned into the yard, in all sorts of weather, to fare the same as the rest of the herd. Exposure to a storm at such a time may prove fatal. It is true that many cows treated in this way escape the fever, and that many have it lightly. But a great many die very soon, and those which recover are injured for one season certainly and perhaps for life. The disease is dangerous and should be prevented whenever prevention is possible. Prof. Law gives the symptoms of this disease as follows : " Dulness, languor, uneasy movements of the hind limbs, a full, bounding pulse, red eyes, hot head and horns ; soon the cow becomes weak on its limbs, unable to rise, lays the head back on the flank or dashes it on the ground, breaking the horns if the surface is hard, and struggles convulsively with its limbs." These are the indication of the disease in its first stage. There is another form in which " the heat of the head, delirium and violence may be almost entirely wanting, the prominent symp- toms being the fever, accelerated pulse and breathing, elevated temperature, loss of power over the limbs, paralysis of sensation, inappetence, torpor of bowels and bladder. Both forms of this disease are exceeding fatal, almost all attacked within two days after calving perishing, and a large proportion of those taken ill during the first week." The treatment of this disease is to be commenced as soon as possible. When the ver}' first symptoms appear, if violent, send at once for a good veterinarian. If the attack is mild, give the cow eight ounces of salts with half an ounce of Cayenne pepper, give warm water injections, and use wet blankets. If no veterinarian or physician can be had, and it is absolutely neces- sary for the farmer to treat a bad case, and he has none of the , if a I" i i! 1 ' I. r i^ M 628 FARMING FOR PROFIT. HoMfF.oPATHic remedies put up ready for use, he may try the following course recommended for such cases by Prof. Law: " If the animal is seen before it goes down, bleed four or six quarts from the jugular, but never after the pulse has lost its fulness and hardness , apply ice-cold water, bags of ice or a solution of an ounce each of nitre and sal-ammonia in a quart of water to the head round the base of the horns, give a power- ful purgative (two pounds Epsom salts, one-half ounce car- bonate of ammonia, one-half drachm nux vomica) ; apply friction to the limbs, draw the milk off at frequent intervals, and repeat the ammonia and nux vomica every four hours. The nux vomica may be replaced by strychnia, one grain v ith two or three drops of vinegar in a teaspoonful of water and injected under the skin twice with four hours interval, or ergot of rye may be used instead. The fever may often be materially reduced by enveloping the whole body in a sheet wrung out of cold water, and covering up with one or several dry ones according to the season. In the second or torpid form of the disorder there is often no call for cold applications to the head, while purgatives and nux vomica are especially demanded." In leaving this subject we cannot do better than to again urge the importance of preventive measures for keeping off disease, and of good care for keeping domestic animals thrifty and making them profitable. The farmer who is careless with his animals thereby takes away all opportunity for making them profitable, and runs the risk of frequent and heavy losses by means of disease. Cattle that are strong and vigorous can resist depressing influences which would completely prostrate those which are poor and weak. Young cattle should be fed in such a manner as to keep them constantly growing, and those which are mature should be kept well and strong. There is no branch of farm business in which care and skill are better in- vested than in the live-stock department. Neither is there one in which neglect and ignorance are more severely punished. 1-' y.H it ' £m^^I|^^1^,- THE DAIRY. TBS BAIRir. 631 jURING the past twenty years the dairy business has been rapidly increasing in extent. Year by year its propor- tions have been enlarged until it has become an interest of great national importance. Not only is it a business in which the country has an interest, but it is also one in which the individual farmer holds a share. Almost every farmer, even the one who finds " five acres too much " land for lum to cul- tivate, keeps a cow, and herds of considerable size are veiy com- mon in all sections of the country except the extreme South. This is a line of business which can be managed profitably on either a- large or a small scale. The man who keeps only one cow can make her pay him well for all the care and cost of her keeping, while the one who has twenty cows can secure a large profit from the sale of dairy products. The business can be gradually enlarged or contracted without the great expense or the heavy loss which usually follows such changes in other lines of work. It is a very safe business, and one in which care and skill will be likely to find a prompt and liberal reward. The products of the daijy are standard articles throughout the civilized world and will always be in demand. Just now prices are depressed, and many farmers and dairy- men are feeling somewhat discouraged, and are inclined to give up, in a measure at least, this branch of their business. New England dairymen, too, have found strong and unexpected competition in an unlooked-for quarter. The West, which used to send a great deal of "grease" to the New York market, has been rapidly improving the quality of its dairy products, and the East now finds that its competitor is making some of the finest ■ butter in the world. At the South, too, there is an increased interest in the business of keeping cows, nice butter is being made, and more dairy products will come from this section than ever before. These facts tend to discourage many farmers who M 632 FARMING FOR PROFIT. make butter and cheese for the market. But they should not be alarmed. The fact that prices fluctuate is evident, but fluc- tuation is to be expected in this, and every other, hne of busi- ness. When business is dull, and almost all kinds of goods sell for low prices, it is perfectly natural that dairy products shall, to some extent, share in the prevailing depression. But there is no danger that these standard articles of food will long be sold for prices which will not pay the producer. We have a large foreign trade already, and it can be made a great deal larger. And, if a good article of butter can be made for a low p. ice, the rate of home consumption will be doubled in a very few years, while the demand for an extra quality will probably increase in a still larger proportion. This demand, too, will be for butter at prices for which it can be profitably made and sold. By following the best methods the farmer can manufacture good butter and sell it for a lower price than he has thought possible. That fair grades of butter will find a ready market in very much larger quantities than they have yet been offered may be considered as bej-ond all question. The farmer or dairyman who can make good butter for a moderate price can sell, in his nearest city market, for cash. From statis- tics published in the Cincinnati Commercial it appears that there are a multitude of people in that city who do not use butter at all because, and only because, they cannot afford it. The writer of the article in which the figures were given went so far as to say that " very nearly, then, one .'n three of our citi- zens never tastes butter, an article of food generally regarded as a necessity of life, anr^ one from which few, if anj^, would abstain except on account of pecuniary considerations." This will be generally considered an extreme view, but, after making all due allowances, the fact will remain that even in such a prosperous city as Cincinnati there are many thousands of people who cannot afford butter at present prices. In other cities the same State of things exists. Make the butter a little cheaper and THE DAIt^Y. 633 many who do not buy now will be able to purchase. Or make the butter a little better and sell it for the same price, and many who do not now buy because they cannot pay the prices for fancy butter and will do without rather than eat the poor grades W.11 become buyers. There is no doubt that good butter can be sold, both in this country and abroad, in immense quan- tities. And we are confident that it can be sold at paying prices. The methods to be pursued in order to secure this very desirable result will be duly consid -ed. Butter has been speci- fied, but the same principles apply to the production and sale of the other dairy products, milk and cheese. Furnish pure milk at a moderate price and an immense quantity can be sold in all our city markets, and a largely increascL' demand will come from villages and large towns. Supply a good quality of cheese at a reasonably low price, and the great foreign demand, the calls of our cities, and wants of village and town consumers will require a largely increased rate of production. Let no one say that prices are already so low that there is no profit in any of these lines of bifsiness. The improved methods of the present day make it possible for farmers to furnish these articles much cheaper than they could in the old times. Yet, even then, when prices were far below the present average and the cost of production much in excess of that of these days, far- mers obtained a fair profit from this department of their work. Besides, low prices are not greatly to be feared. Political econ- omists assert, and the history of the civilized world proves them correct, that moderately low prices mark the periods of steady and uniform prosperity, while inflated prices mean a temporary good to be quickly followed by a long period of depression. In order to furnish the products of the dairy at prices which will insure their ready sale and still leave a margin for profit it will be necessary to commence at the very beginning. Here is where the irreat maioflK- nf farmers, and a laree number of dairymen, have failed. They have been build large ing on a poor -f Iff H #^-T ;9^H t '" 'ii ^Ai it; ^^H ■ % SB liK '^^^B iSH .^Hh ■ ". i -^^ % 'vH ;;ij '^^^M 'if : 1 MM ;i Wm 9H^I I^D^H ^'i ^^H sl ^HhH •^H^^^^l 'i>. 13 ^RnM I li 634 FARMING FOR PROFIT. foundation, and all their efforts in the line of improvement have been directed to the superstructure. Consequently, these efforts have not been as successful as they should have been, and many parties have become discouraged. But here, as elsewhere, and everywhere, it is unprofitable to build upon an unstable founda- tion. A man must reap according to his sowing. He can have wheat or weeds just as he chooses. But if he wants wheat he must sow the seed and take care of the plants. If he does not furnish any wheat for sowing he cannot reasonably expect any wheat at harvest time. If he sows only half enough wheat, and allows half the land to grow up to weeds, he cannot look for a large ana valuable crop of grain. Now apply the same principle to tl-'e '^■i' y business and we have a " good and sufficient " reason why there is so much com- plaint that dairying is unprofitable. The farmers and dairymen are keeping too many poor cows. Take an average farmer for illustration. If he has ten cows he will probably say that there are two or three in the herd which are very much better than any of the others. Also that- there are two or three which fall considerably below the average, and that the medium ones are pretty fair cows. Now look at H - statement in a business point of view. Out of a herd of ten cowr 1 .ere are two or three which pay a large profit, two or three involve an actual loss, and from four to six which pay their way but are not very profitable. The gain on the two or three extra ones is used to pay the loss on the tw6 or three poor ones, and the middle class yield only a very small profit. It is not surprising that the dairy business does not yield very large returns when such a foundation is laid. Ten cows like the best ones would yield a large profit. It is from the best ones in a herd that the profits, if any are received, invariably come. But too often these profits must be used to make up the deficiency of the poorer cows. In ?h herds, and there are multitudes of them, the first thin^ : •, done to put the dairy business on a good basis is to :..uin some THE DAIRY. 636 better cows to take the places now occupied by the poor ind medium ones. Here the farmer will say that it is very difficult to buy good cows, and that if he could find plenty of them he could not afford to pay the prices at which they are held. It is true that first- class cows are not very^ plenty, but they are not so extremely scarce as many people imagine. In regard to the ability of the farmer to buy a good cow rather than a poor one there seems to be a great deal of erroneous judgment. The average farmer has no hesitation when the same principles are involved in buy- mg lanH. He can see clearly enough then. If one field which will barely produce crops of sufficient value to pay the taxes, interest, and labor, which expenses must be met, is offered for twenty dollars an acre, and another capable of yielding large crops which will a great deal more than pay these expenses is offered for forty dollars an acre, he thinks it is the part of wis- dom to purchase the best field. In this case he not only con- siders the relative cost of the land, but also its relative rate of production. The same principle should govern in the purchase of a cow. A twenty-dollar cow may just pay her way, while a fifty-dollar cow may yield a large profit. This is not always the case, it is true, and it must not be taken for granted that a high- priced cow is certainly a good one and will pay a large percent- age of profit. But it is a settled principle that a good cow at a certain price is more profitable than a poor one which can be obtained for half the money. But we do not advocate extensive and costly changes, all to be brought about at once, but a gradual improvement of the productive qualities of the herd. The poorer cows had better be fattened and sold for beef. Even though the ov. r .• does not feel able to buy any better ones he had better sell these. This may not leave him as many cows as he wants to keep, but he had better keep less than he wants than to have some which do not pay their vway. Take out the three poorest cows from a i"B1 W i |] j|a pp. 636 FARMING FOR PROFIT. I ; heiti of vcn, and the seven which are left will not make as much butter as they all did, but they will yield a much larger proiit The farmer cannot afford to keep animals which do i;o mcr: than barely pay the cost of iheir keeping. He had better sell his hay and grain and buy commercial or other fertilize^-; than' to do this. It is still better that he should sell his unproflable cows, and, if he cannot afford to buy good ones, fill his stables or pastures with steers to be convi^'ted into iiicef. A great mary herds which are owned by good dair>'men need tlus .satire pro- cess of weeding out the poor stock. Before any changes are made the owner should canMully ti st each and ever- one (.X his cows in order to determine accurately which ones pay hifVi the best. Too many farmers wholly neglect this coni:>i>>ii -sense requirement, and form their judg- ment of the actual and relative merits of their cows wholly by "guess." They are, in this way, very likely to make mistakes, and they often sell cows which they afterwards wish tliey had kept. We have known a man to sell the best cow from his herd when he thought, and told the buyer, that he was disposing of one of the second lass. Some cows which give a great deal of milk are supposed to be very profitable, while others which give less milk are thought to be much inferior. But the mflk of the one giving a large quantity is watery and poor, while that of the other cow is rich. In such cases, unless the owner sells milk, the cow giving the smallest quantity is really the best. There are some cows which give but little milk, and, because they give so little, their owners assume that the quality is so fine that the cows are valuable, when a careful test would prove that the milk was poor instead of rich, and that the cows cannot pay for their keeping. There is no way of " guessing " with any degree of accurac bout the value of cows, and a "guess," even by the s' . est observer, is often very ; . from the truth. At one time a gre. : leal of confidence was J^ced in an THE DAIRY. 637 m an instrument called a lactometer, but of late this has been proved unreliable. The only sure way of determining either the absolute or the relative value of the cows in the dairy is to keep the milk of each one by itself for a certain length of time, churn the cream separately, and compare the products. Even then allow- ance must be made for those which have been longest in milk since calving, but this seems to be the nearest to a perfect test of any. which can be devised. But though extremely valuable, the test of productive capacity cannot be called complete, and cannot alone fully settle the question which is the best paying cow in a given herd. The cost of keeping must also be considered. This is often overlooked. The farmer says that he feeds his cows alike, and, therefore, it must cost about the same to keep one that it does to keep another. But the manner of feeding on the average farm is not very accurate, and one cow may eat a third more hay than the one standing next to her, and yet the owner think that he feeds them pretty nearly the same amount. If a cow is very "hearty," the owner usually puts more hay into her manger than he does into the manger of one which does not have so good an appetite. He does it as a matter of course, and thinks but little about it. The one which eats the most hay may give the most milk, and yet not pay as well as the other because she may not give as much milk in proportion to the food consumed. Prof. Arnold has done a good thing in calling the attention of farmers and dairymen to this fact. This argument is mainly directed to the proof that small cows are more profitable than large ones, and he conclusively shows that it is very expen- sive keeping large cows for milk when small ones will answer the same purpose. The difference in the cost jf keeping two. cows, one of which weighs twelve hundred and the other eight hundred pounds, he places at ten dollars and twenty-two cents per year. This is probably below rather than above the average \i r": ni ill Hi I 638 FA RATING FOR PROFIT. cost Whether the large cow wil' give enough milk in excess of what the small one will produce to make up for this extra cost of keeping is one of the points upon which the question whether the large or the small cow is the most profitable must turn. If both cows give milk of equally good quality it js the point which must govern the decision. Trof. Arnold has given some illustrations of this principle in a description of three herds of cows which he has examined. In one herd of large cows, estimated to weigh twelve hundred pounds each, the annual yield of butter per cow was three hundred and fourteen and a half pounds. Another herd of native cows, estimated weight ten hundred and fifty pounds each, gave an annual yield of three hundred and two pounds of butter for each cow. Another herd of twenty-five small cows, Jerseys and their grades, the live-weight estimated at seven hundred and eighty pounds each, gave an average product of two hundred and thirty-four and a half pounds of butter in a year. The herd last named produced but a small quantity of butter when com- pared with the others, and most farmers would say, and very naturally, that the yield was too small to be profitable. But Prof. Arnold shows that it was the best paying herd of the three. The small cows produced three-tenths of their wcVht in butter, while the others fell considerably below this standard. As "the consumption of food is in proportion to live-weight," it is plain that the smallest cows were more profitable than the larger ones, and that the owners of the large ones were obliged to support much more live-weight than was either necessary or desirable. The test of cows, and thei. selection when bought, should be governed strictly by considerations affecting their dairy quali- ties, and without regard to their use for beef after age has impaired their productive powers. A good cow ought to be milked ten or twelve years, and it is not wise to make a gre deal of calculation on extra value for beef at the expiration of THE DAIRY, 639 that length of time. The extra value of a large cow over a small one for beef would not pay the extra cost of keeping three years, and it is plain that in the long term which the dairy cow ought to serve, the cost of keeping would be very much in excess of the value of the extra quantity of beef obtained. While it is an object for farmers to keep small cows in order to reduce to the lowest figure the expenses of maintaining them, it is very important that the cows should be healthy and vigorous, and possess strong digestive powers. The object in view is not to obtain animals which will live on the smallest possible quantity of food, but to secure those which will make the most profitable use of the food consumed. Dainty animals, which eat but little, and want that to be of the best possible quality, are not to be recommended. No animal can be pro- ductive without using considerable food. The good cow will usually eat heartily. The more she can eat, thoroughly digest, and economically use, the better. Good digestive powers are among the principal requisites of a really profitable dairy cow. Any animal that does not digest its food well cannot use that food to good advantage. It makes little difference whether the quantity is large or small, much of the food will' be wasted, and the animal will be unprofitable. As has already been intimated, it is one thing to decide v/hat style of cows are wanted on the farm, and quite another and a much more difficult one to obtain a sufficient number of those which will prove satisfactory. That the average cow is very far below the proper standard of excellence no one will deny. That better cows should be secured, if possible, is equally evident. To fully effect the desired improvement will take some time, but it can and should be accomplished. The best method has already been partially indicated. Beginning with the best cows which he has, or it jble to obtain, let the farmer raise his own calves and grow C i. into cows. Just as long as he depends upon the drovers for his cows, just so long will he have an inferior herd. S fil 640 FARMING FOR PROFIT. If he is selling milk, let him obtain, either aIon<- or in company with his neighbors, a po:(' \' rsuike or Holsxein bull. If he is making gilt-cdc:^- but - i good Jersey bull should be secured. By cardul brccdmg, in the manner already described, good cows, adapted to the special purpose for which they are wanted, can be obtained. Heifer calves should be raised which come from the best milking stock, but ^rsr>" from inferior cows, even though of good parentage on Uie other side, should be kept unless with the design of converting them into beef, if they do not seem especially promising after having the first calf A cow from r:,,!Iy good milking stock which does not do remarkably well the first season, should have a longer trial, as th'-re is, in mail}' cases, a great improvement during the second and third years. After a fair trial, any cow which is found wanting in good dairy qualities should be fitted for and sold to the butcher. Feeding Cows.— While there can be no success with poor cows, there is an equal impossibility in making the da^r/ business profitable, when the cows are poorly fed. Careful feeding will not make a poor cow equal to a good one which has an equal chance, but it will cover many deficiencies, and will give a degree of success with cows of moderate merit which cannot be obtained \s ith extra ones when this is neglected. If the cows are good, the rate of production will depend very closely upon the q ; ,ntity and quality of food which they receive. The best cow in the world cannot extract a great amount of richness front Lashes or from swale he ;.. She may have plenty of food of either of these descriptions, or a mixture of both, but she cannot give a large qi'autity of milk, and the quality of what she does produc vill be similar to that of the food from which it was made. liK ome cows will convert the same kind of food into milk ..;m wi.ich much nicer butter vvn be obtained than can be made from that of other cows, it is still true that the quality of the milk will be very greatly affected by the quality of the food and water which the cow receives. THE DAIRY. g^i At all times tlio food of the dairy cow should be sweet and clean. It should be rich in quality, and liberal in quantity. When the grass is fresh and abundant in the pastures, it will hardly pay to {cqA grain of any kind. It is true that the use of grain will largely increase the (low of milk and the quantity of butter, but we do not believe it is best to force production to so great an extreme. Many dairymen feed meal during the summer, and it may pay in those cases in which the i).istures are very poor. In other cases we think it must prove injurious to the cows. The present gain of such a course will be more than offset by a loss in the future. Cows which are crowded too hard give out much sooner t...n those of which too much is not required. With the highest feed, and crowded to the utmost limit, a cow will begin to fail at a time when she ought to be in her prime. When a cow reaches the age of nine or ten years, she will endure high feeding much better than she could have done earlier in life. But all crowding and forcing in early 'ife must be very injurious. That it may pay, under certain cir- cumstances, to crowd cows hard, and then fatten then; when th< / are seven or eight years old, we do not deny. We know a man w' i keeps his cows only two or three years. He buys those Wi. are matured, but which have never been fed very well, crowds them up to the highest possible rate of production, uses them up for milk in a short time, then sells them and buys a new lot. He thinks it pays him to follow this method. In some cases it may pay, but for the average farmer we consick r it a poor policy. The cows must be well kept, but the> r.ecd not be spoiled by over-feeding. In connection with this matter of feeding, the importance of good health of the cows is very evident. The milk of the cow is made either from her food or her flesh. The latter is not admissible as a source of supply, as the cow would grow poor very rapidly and decrease in value. From the food and water alor tne milk should b^ made. If the cow has strong diges- . 642 FARMING FOR PROFIT. tive powers, she will obtain much more* material for milk from a certain quality and quantity of food than she can if her health is poor and her powers of digestion are weak. But even here is where many farmers incur a loss. They have strong, hearty cows which eat whatever is placed before them, and no effort is made to lighten the work of digestion. Cows fed in this manner cannot do their best. All the vital force expended in the work of digestion is a direct loss to the work of production. The man who prepares the food of his cows so that it can be easily digested thereby secures from them a larger quantity of milk than could be obtained from the same amount of food if offered in its unprepared state. Many farmers keep their cows wholly upon hay, and they think that if the hay is good they are feeding very well. Others mix some straw with the hay, and think that such food is plenty good enough. But a cow cannot digest hay very readily. She certainly cannot digest enough to make a large quantity of milk. As for straw. Prof. Arnold has well said, if cows " give milk when eating straw, they draw much upon their own resources and little on the straw." Grass is much more easily digested than hay, and in this fact we have a partial expla- nation why cows do so much better in summer than they do when kept on nothing but hay in the winter. In the summer they have plenty of food and digest it all, while in the winter there may be food enough in quantity, but much of it is indigestible. The difference in temperature also exerts quite an influence, but in warm stables it does not account for all the falling off in production, which is noticed when only hay is fed. We do not think that either farmers or dairymen can afford to feed their cows with dry hay alone. No domestic animal does its best with any one kind of food. The more indigestible matter the food contains the greater will be the evil of giving only a single kind. We believe in feeding cows well, in giving them a variety of easil) ligested food, and THE DAIRY. <49 ilk from a • hc.ilth is en here is g, hearty o eflbrt is d in this ponded in -eduction. : it can be jantity of )f food if and they ery well, such food hay very i 652 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Farmers and dairymen who deliver milk at cheese or butter factories will find a good scale a great convenience. It will prove very useful in enabling the owner to determine the rate of production, as far as quantity is concerned, of each cow giving milk. By its use he can also find the quantity of milk which is given each week, and the aggregate during the entire season. For these purposes, Fairbanks & Co.'s dairyman's scale, Figure I02, is unsurpassed. Cheese-Making. — If this important branch of the dairy business is to be conducted on a large scale, the farmer should, FIG. I02. — dairyman's SCALE. by all means, patronize a cheese factory. If there is none in his immediate vicinity, let him talk the matter over with his neighbors, and induce them to unite with him in establishing one. This for various reasons. More cheese can be made at the factory from a certain quantity of milk than can be obtained at home. The cheese will be of a more uniform flavor, and the product will sell better in market. Last, but far from being least, the labor of cheese-making on a large scale is altogether too severe for the women of the household to perform. Many farmers do not like to buy cheese, yet they and their families want it occasionally upon the table. Such parties rnii n.i/A'V. 663 can make a small quantity <'unng the hot weather in summer without a great deal of labor or expense. Mr. Willard has suggested that when three or four neighbors are situated in this manner, they had better work in partnership, and deliver * a certain quantity of milk daily at some central nei^^hbor's house, where the cheese is to be made. There will be no very great trouble in this, and by assisting each other all may be supplied. As the labor in manufacture will be no more for ten pails of milk than for four, and as the cheese can then be made up at once, it will be advisable to associate together whenever practicable." This we consider excellent advice. In the handling of milk designed to be made into cheese, a great deal of care must be taken to prevent its becoming tainted. A slight taint of the milk injures the quality of the product, and a strong taint may utterly spoil it, making the cheese both unfit and dangerous for use as food. Care and cleanliness must be observed in all the various processes of manufacture. Boiling water— not warm water nor hot water, but water which boils — must be used freely for cleansing the vessels which are employed. Then, after the cheese is made, there will be need of watchful oversight to keep it from injury. The various kinds of cheese produced on the farm are made from the entire milk, from a mixture one-half of which is new while the other half has stood ten or twelve hours, and from which the cream rising in that time has been removed, and from milk which has parted with nearly all of its cream. Of these three kinds, when the making has been properly attended to and the materials were good, the first is rich, of good flavor, and an excellent article of diet. The second is dc .oid of the rich- ness which characterizes the first, but is reasonably healthful, and has a fair flavor. The third is an abomination. Those who like it, whose teeth are sharp and jaws are strong, and whose digestive poucrs no substance can wt*aki.'''. itre at perfect liberty to eat this kind of " food," but all other >, ties had better let it 1 1 . 1 i 064 FARMING FOR PROFIT. alone. It may be well for strong, active laborers who work hard in the open air ten or twelve hours a day, and whose food does not " stay by " them well to eat this kinl of cheese, but it is wholly unfit for children, and for all persons of sedentary habits and occupations. The following plan for the manufacture of cheese on a small scale we partly learned from experience and observation, and partly from Mk. 'Villard's excellent work on " PitACTicAL Dairy IIusdandry." For this work there will be needed a round cheese-hoop, ten inches in diameter and twelve inches high, with a follower ; a new wash-tub, or something which will answer the same pur- pose, and a press. None of these need be very costly. The farmer who understands the use of tools can easily make a press. The following directions arc given by Mr. Willard : "A very good r.c.-, may be made in a few hours from a twelve- foot plank, ■■■.■ -.i few pieces of scantling. About a foot from either end of fh,^ plank set up two short pieces of scantling four and a half inches apart. Fasten them firmly to the plank with bolts or pins. The lever may be a joist, four by four, or four by six, and fourteen feet long. One end is secured by a pin passing through the uprights at one end of the plank, and it is to move freely up and down between the uprights at the other end. A weight hung at one end of the lever, and you have a press that will do good service. The weights at the end of the long lever are a stone or two from the field. There may be another lever arranged for raising the long lever or press- beam, without removing the weights, which are stationary." The cheese is pressed by placing the hoop, containing the curd, , near the end of the press-beam which is fist, placing blocks upon the follower, and letting down the beam. A large bread- knife, or a long, thin wooden one, may be used for cutting the curd. Having brought the milk to the house in a perfectly sweet THE DAIRY. G5o rs who worlc d whose food cheese, but it of sedentary se on a small ervation, and " PliACTICAL 2se-hoop, ten . follower; a le same pur- costly. The sily make a :. WiLLARD : 3m a twclvc- a foot from of scantling o the plank by four, or secured by a 3lank, and it ights at the 'er, and you s at the end There may er or press- stationary." ig the curd, :ing blocks arge bread- cutting the fectly sweet and pure condition, free from all dust and foul odors, it should be strained in the usual manner, and then carefully strained through a cloth into the cheese-tub. A gallon (wine measure) of milk should make nearly a pound of cheese. The exact quantity used at a time should lie known. Part of the milk should be dipped into pans, which should be placed in kettles, or larger pans, containing a little water. This rdcr that the temperature of the milk may be increased wii,. ut scorching it. Enough milk must b- warmed to bring the heat of the whole, when it is all in the tub, up to eighty-five degrees. For coagu- lating the milk, rennet should be used. This should have been soaked for a while in water. Enough should be added to insure coagulation in forty or fifty minutes. The quantity of rennet required must be determined by experiment. Rennets diffjr greatly in strength, and a given weight which would be sufficient if the quality was good would be wholly inadequate if the rennet was weak and poor. The richness of the milk also exerts an influence. The poorer the milk the larger the quantity of rennet which will be required. Too much rennet injures the quality of the cheese and prevents its keeping well. Too little retards the progress of the work, and makes the cheese hard and sour. It is important that rennets should be taken only from healthy calves. If good rennets of uniform quality are used, the person in charge will soon be able to determine the quantity with a sufficient degree of exactness to secure a pretty good and even grade in the product. When the milk has coagulated, the finger may be put into the curd and slowly raised. If the curd readily breaks, it should be cut into blocks two inches square and allowed to remain for ten or fifteen minutes. During this time the whey will form. Then the curd should be gently broken with the hands, and allowed to remain another quarter of an hour. At the expiration of this time, part of the whey should be dipped :'i| I rv^ \ai IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) ^^ ./1^^'4. K^ ^° /^ \Xj la '■■ 1 1J= 1.25 2.5 us 2.2 2.0 18. 1.4 lim Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 \ iV Cv r<\^ <> ^\^ o^ 656 FARMING FOR PROFIT. ■i' off and heated in the same manner as has been described for warming the milk. The curd should be gently lifted and broken until tlie pieces are quite small. Warm whey should be added until the whole mass reaches a temperature of ninety- eight degrees. The curd should be broken and stirred while the warm whey is being added. Then the mass may remain for half an hour, when it should be stirred again. This must be continued until the curd is firm, and does not hold together well. When it readily fulls in pieces after being pressed in the hand, the draining process may be commenced. A cloth- strainer should be laid over the tub, and the whey dipped off down to the curd. Then put the strainer on a basket, or 3, hopper, the bottom of which is made of slats, and dip the curd into it to drain. It should be broken up with the hands, and, when nearly dry, salt may be added at the rate of four or four and a half ounces to ten pounds of curd; the whole mixed thoroughly, and then put into the press. After remaining here from two to four hours, it should be turned and again put into the press. The next morning the cheese may be taken out, rubbed with a little melted butter which should be fresh and used while warm. The cheese should be turned and rnbbcd every day until it is cured. If the rind becomes dry, a little butter should be applied as before. When a cheese of large size is made, a tight cloth bandage should be put around the edge, but there is no necessity for doing this with small ones. When but little milk can be had and a good-sized cheese cannot be made in a day, the milk obtained during two or three days may be used. That obtained each day is to be used as though there were enough for the purpose until the curd is ready for the hoop, with the exception that but little salt should be used. The curd made each day should be set in a cool place in the cellar. When enough has been secured, the curds which have been previously made may be treated with warm whey, broken THE DAIRY. 657 up, drained, mixed with the one just made, and all of them salted and pressed. In this way good cheese can be made by farmers who keep only one or two cows. After cheese has been made it must be taken care of or it will soon be spoiled. It should be kept in a cool, liglit room, upon clean shelves, and should often be carefully examined. If any cracks appear they should be filled up with cheese which has been crushed so that ft will spread like butter. After this is done a piece of thin but strong paper, which has been well oiled, should be laid over the place. The shelves should be' occasionally washed with hot whey and the room kept perfectl)i clean. The turning which has been recommended must not be omitted for a single day until the cheese is cured. The whole surface of each cheese should be thoroughly rubbed when the turning is done. This is necessary to prevent injury by the fly which deposits its eggs upon the surface, and especially in any unfilled cracks which may be found. These eggs soon hatch out into maggots or " skippers " which ruin the cheese. If the cheese is rubbed thoroughly and the cracks are promptly filled,, the fly will not do much harm. When the mischief has been done, the maggots should be cut out with a knife and destroyed. It is said that, if taken soon aiter the maggots appear, a thick oiled paper plastered over the part of the cheese which they inhabit will shut off their supply of air, and thus drive them to the surface. When this method is adopted the paper sliould be used two or three times in order to make clean work in destroy- ing the intruders. Good cheese will be fit for the table, if it has been properly managed, in from four to six weeks after it was pressed, but will improve fn quality for several months. It is claimed by some writers that cheese is a very valuable article of diet, that it is almost as nourishing as meat, and that in proportion to the amount of food contained it is cheaper than beef While it is hardly probable that it will, to any great extent, supersede beef^ 41 ! m ■■''■■. 658 FARMING FOR PROFIT. it is good food for those whose digestive organs 'do not resent its use, and it is certainly a luxury in the best meaning of the term. Butter-Making. — The butter which is made in this country comprises all grades, from the poorest which it is possible to produce to the very finest quality which can be found in the world. The quantity produced is immense. Not only is a vast amount consumed at home, but difring 1878 the quantity exported was worth fourteen millions of dollars. Not only is the aggregate quantity extremely large, but in a very large section of the country the business of its production is carried on at almost every farm-house or in some adjoining factory, and almost every farmer is pecuniarily interested in this branch of the dairy business. As a general rule butter is made in private dairies. The ■factory system which works so well in the manufacture of cheese has not been very extensively introduced. There are, in all, many factories, and they are quite successful. But there is no such pressing call for their e^ablishment as has been made for cheese factories, and, though they will '' me much more common than they are now, we doubt acy ever monopolize the business. Butter can be made at home, in small or large quantities, with less trouble than cheese, and the labor which devolves upon the women of the household, though often very severe, may, by means of the improved methods now being introduced, be made light and pleasant. Under the old system it was necessary to work hard and use a great deal of care. With the best systems now in use the work is very much less, and the constant watchfulness formerly needed is not required. More than this. With the old methods there was a great deal of uncertainty in regard to the product. Sometimes the butter would be very fine, but at others, when so far as the work was concerned nn equal degree of care had been given, the quality would be VQxy poor. THE DAIRY. 6.j9 The lack of uniformity in the quality of dairy products has been a great drawback to their profitable manufacture. The men who have been able to make good butter every week in the year have been able to sell for high prices. But the men who have carried good butter to the market one week and poor butter the next have not found a ready sale at prices which were wholly satisfactory. And it may be regarded as settled that the one great thing for which the butter-maker should strive is uniform excellence of the product. When this uniformity can be secured, and not till then, will the demand be steady, sales quick, and prices high enough to yield a large profit. Methods of Obtaining Cream. — There are many different ways of obtaining the cream for making butter. We have neither time nor space to consider them all, and it would be of no benefit to our readers if we had. The most common methods are the following. The use of shallow pans for holding the milk, the use of deep cans for the same purpose, the use of very large open pans so arrrxnged that the milk can be either warmed or cooled, and the use of closed cans submerged and cooled in ice water, or cooled partly by means of water and partly by cold air. The first method is in common use. The others are innova- tions. They have found their way to quite an extent into dairy districts, and are in use upon many farms. The old method is open to many objections. One of these, and one which deprives it of all claim to excellence, is to be found in the fact that uni- formity of quality cannot be secured. The butter will some- times be good, and often be of second or third quality. The weather does, and must, exercise a great influence upon the quality of the butter which is made from cream which is raised in shallow pans. In hot, muggy weather the cream will not be as nice as it is when the weather is cool and fine. Changes m the temperature, and particularly in the electrical conditions of the air, also modify the quality and influence the quantity of the l<"l JpMNWwo'' 660 FARMING FOR PROFIT. cream obtained. In this method of setting a largp proportion of the milk is exposed to the air. We have already shown that taints from foul air are readily absorbed by milk. They are still more rapidly taken by the cream. It has often been asserted that thorough ventilation of the milk room was an absolute necessity. If the air were always pure this ventilation might be useful, but when the ven- tilation brings air from the stable, the pig-sty, and the cess-pool, it does not add to the quality of the butter which is made from cream exposed to the odors which emanate from these sources. It may be said that the farmer should keep his premises sweet and clean. This will be admitted, but the fact that " the wind bloweth where it listeth " should not be forgotten. A man may keep his own premises all right, and yet, when this system of shallow setting in open pans is followed, have his butter dam- aged by foul air which comes from the neglected yards and stables of his neighbors. But even if the air could be kept reasonably pure there is no method which is not extremely expensive for controlling the temperature, and no means for preventing the spores with which the air is always supplied from coming in contact with the milk and hastening its decay. These germs of the microscopic fungi cause a great deal of trouble where their presence is not even suspected. It is true that by heating the milk to a temperature of two hundred and twelve degrees the germs in the milk at the time of heating are killed. But this, in a farm dairy, involves a great deal of hard work and requires a great deal of time. In addition to exposing the milk to the injurious action of the air, shallow setting makes an immense amount of work. All the vessels used in the business must be kept constantly sweet and clean. To effect this where a large number of pans are used requires much time and hard labor. Where many cows are kept> and no help is employed in the house, it makes the life of the farmer's wife a ceaseless round of drudgery and toil. THE DAIRY. 661 For these and various other reasons, shallow setting of milk is not to be commended. There is too little certainty about the quality of the butter, and altogether too much labor is involved. If an effort is made to control the temperature quite an expense must be incurred. If nothing of the kind is tried, the butter in cold weather will be very poor and there will be but little of it, while in hot weather a similar difficulty will also be encountered. Here we may be met by the inquiry, what shall be done by those parties who have, and must use, only the shallow pans ? To this we reply, have a room devoted to this special purpose. If the milk is kept in a room in which food is placed, or in which work is done, the butter cannot be uniformly good. If but few cows are kept, and the cost of heating a milk room in the winter is too great, a tight closet may be done off in the kitchen and in this the milk can be kept. We do not recommend this plan, but we have seen it tried with fair results and it is decidedly better than 'some methods which are employed. Be sure that the milk comes to the house perfectly pure, and then see that it is not injured afterwards. All the vessels in which the milk and cream are kept must be very clean. They need frequent scald- ing with boiling water. Never let the milk get very cold, and also protect it from extreme heat. Churn often, work the butter well, and do it up in attractive shape. In winter it may be necessary to add some coloring matter, carrots, or some prepara- tion which is known to be both harmless to people and effectual for coloring, though if the cows are good and are well fed with good hay, meal, and roots, this may not be required. Concerning the plan of deep setting but very little need be said. It was once thought that a certain quantity of milk set in shallow pans would yield considerable more cream than it would if put into deep vessels. But it has been found that this is a great mistake, and that if the proper temperature is obser\'ed, as much, if not more, cream can be obtained by the use of deep cans as can be secured under the old system. The advantages of this \\ if ' '■'m %^ 662 FARMING FOR PROFIT. plan are to be found in a saving of expense in buying pans, a great saving of labor in cleaning them, and in the possibility of obtaining a larger quantity of cream. Set in this manner, less of the milk is e;cposed to the action of the air, and there seems to be less danger of atmospheric taint than there is with milk in shallow pans. When, in addition to these benefits, there are the conveniences of cool spring water in which to set the cans in summer, and good arrangements for heat ^ the milk in winter, the improvement over the old method is still more marked. There has been considerable opposition to the deep- setting plan, but it has steadily gained in favor, and would, doubtless, have become popular upon its own merits if it had not been adopted in connection with other great improvements, and thus brought to the attention of people more quickly than it could have been alone. The use of large, open pans has been strongly recommended for large dairies where there were conveniences foi* heating and CQoIing the milk. These pans are made large enough to hold the milk of any number of cows which may be kept (not exceeding one hundred and fifty). Underneath, or by the sides and ends, there is a channel through which warm water flows in winter and cold water in summer, and by means of which it is easy to keep the temperature at the desired point. The use of these pans saves a great deal of hard labor, and we have seen excellent butter that had been made where they were used, but they are open to the great objection that quite a proportion of the milk is exposed to the action of the air. Still they are a great improvement upon the shallow pan system, both in respect to the labor required, and the quality of the butter which is secured. The last method to be considered is that in which the milk is kept in closed cans, which are usually deep, and are kept sur- rounded with ice or cold water in summer. The cans are kept in boxes similar in shape and outward appearance to the IJE DAIRY. 663 ordinary refrigerator. This method, with various modifications, has been patented by several different parties. Some submerge the milk in water, and claim that in this way only can the best results be secured ; while others, who use less water, claim that so large a quantity is not required. The object in view is to get as large a quantity of cream as possible from the milk while it is yet sweet, and to obtain it in a short time. The two principal methods of this description which are now before the public are known as the " Coolev System," invented by Mr. William Coolev, of Vermont, and the " Hardin Method," invented by Mr. L. S. Hardin, of Kentucky. We understand that another invention is approaching completion, and that it promises excellent results. But as it is not yet perfected, we can say nothing further of its merits. Neither do we wish to pass an opinion upon the relative merits of the two systems which we have named. Both are good, and an intelligent man can make first-rate butter, if he has good milk, with either one. Both have been thoroughly tested by competent parties, and been very highly recommended. That it will pay the farmer to obtain one of them, even though he may keep but few cows, we have no doubt. Before purchasing, the claims of each should be considered. There are some other systems somewhat similar to these, but, so far as we know, they have not '"■:en bfought to the degree of perfection which these have attauu d, and some of the best of these rival methods are said to be infringements upon patents already secured by the parties named. Both the Hardin and the Cooley methods require the use of a box and deep cans. The box resembles a refrigerator in looks, and produces a similar effect. In each the milk is cooled in order to prevent the growth of the fungi which cause souring and decay, and also to facilitate the rising of the cream. In fall, winter and early spring, they can be used without ice or fire. In the summer, ice should be employed, though cold water has f! B;iii 604 FARMING FOR PROFIT. been used to some extent and proved satisfactory. That butter of much better quahty can be made by this process than with any in which the milk is allowed to stand in open pans cannot be disputed, and the most perfect uniformity is obtained. With this plan, good butter can be made in August with just as much certainty as it can in June. As it is kept pure, and not allowed to ferment, the milk after it has been skimmed is much more nc. 103. valuable for feeding to calves or pigs than it would be if treated in the usual manner. Figure 103 shows the Cooley Creamery with the cans, and a thermometer to mark the temperature so that it can be seen without opening the box. Figure 104 gives a sectional view of the can and creamery. The implements used in this system are manufactured by the Vermont Farm Machine Co., Bel- lows Falls, Vt. The first cost of one of these portable creameries varies from THE DAIRY. 666 twenty-five to seventy-five dollars. This Is much less than the cost of a suitable room, and the expense of ice in summer is more than made up by the saving of wood in winter. The whole apparatus occupies only a little room — a few square feet — and can be kept in an apartment which is principally devoted to some other purpose. Then the extra quality of the butter will add from five to twenty cents per pound to ihe selling price. Besides, it has been proved that a larger quantity of butter from a certain quantity of milk can be secured than is possible with the other methods of obtaining the cream. The difference in the amount of labor and skill required with the open pans or the closed cans is very great. Every one who has had experience knows the trouble attending the use of pans. With one of the methods named, " the labor consists in getting ice once a day, lifting the cans of milk in the box and out again. The skimmer sits on a chair and uses a dipper." In the washing of utensils ther^' is •an immense saving, as only about nn, 104.— skctional vif.w of CCiOLEY CAN AND CREAMERY. one-quarter as much surf 'p is to be gone over, and that nut nearly as often as with open pans. When the small pans are used, the skimming must be done at just such a time, or the quality of the butter will be injured. But with these deep, submerged cans the milk will keep sweet, and the skimming can be safely delayed many hours after the usual time. Concerning the skill required Mr. Hardin well says : "Where milk is set shallow, and subjected to all the variations of the atmosphere, in order to get the largest possible yield of butter from the milk, it requires excellent judgment to tell just when 606 FARMfNG FOR PRO Fir. to skim, and I have had persons who were proud of their butter yield tell nie they often in hot weatlier got up at one or two o'clock at night to skim the milk, fearing it would be too sour by morning. With my method the atmosphere in which the milk is set is so pure and cold the skimming can be done whenever it is convenient, between thirty-six and seventy-six hours. A negro boy has exclusive charge of the milk of my dairy; he makes about three thousand pounds of butter a year; there is a wonderful uniformity in the butter he makes, receivinjr top prices, and the customers have never yet made a complaint, and yet I do not believe this boy could make a pound of good butter with the milk set shallow in the open air of summer." Certainly for inexperienced parties, for those who have no convenient place for keeping milk, and also for those who have all the work aside from butter-making which they are well able to perform, such a labor-saving method as that of Mr. Hardin's, or Mk. Cooley's, must commend itself as extremely valuable. In the CooLEV method the cans containing the milk are entirely covered with water, and the cream can be raised very quickly. It is claimed that all the butter from the milk can be obtained in foiir hoitrs if the proper conditions are observed. The capacity of the apparatus need not exceed that required for a single milking, as the cream can all be raised, taken off, and the cans got ready for use again between the usual hours for drawing the milk. In from ten to fifteen minutes the cans " can be removed from the water, set upon the bench, the milk run off", the cream emptied out, and the cans set back into the cooler, ready to receive another milking." Churning.— After the cream has been secured in good con- dition the work of butter-making, though well begun, is far from being finished, and it is possible, by a little carelessness or an error in judgment, to neutralize all the benefit which has up to this point been gained. If the cream is allowed to freeze, or to become unduly heated, or the churn is not perfectly clean, or THE DAIF.Y. 687 FlLi. 105.— DAVIS SWING-CHURS, constant care is not exercised to perform the remaining portion of tlie work in a neat and skilful manner, all the care which has been bestowed will be in vain. As already stated, boilinj^ water should be used for washing the churn and all the other implements for butter- making, and they must all be kept perfectly sweet and clean. The particular kind of churn which is used is not a matter of such great importance as some agents for pat- ented styles would have the people be- lieve. How it has been possible for inven- tors to obtain so many patents upon churns is altogether beyond our knowledge. Many of these churns are good — nearly as good as the old-fashioned dash- churn of half a century ago. Some of them are ttot good. A few are really excellent. We have used the Blanchard churn several years. It is simple and effective, cheap and durable. The butter can be thoroughly worked and salted in the churn if desired. We like this much better than the upright dash- churn. The " Davis Swing Churn," Figure 105, which is made by the Vermont Farm Machine Co., is also a first-class implement. This churn took the first premium at the International Dairy FIG. 106.— MOTION OF CREAM IS DAVIS CHURN. 3. I 668 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Fair in 1878 in competition with the leading churns in the world. It is quite simple, containing no floats or inside gear, and is very easily kept clean. Figure 106 represents the motion of the cream in this churn when in operation. There are a few other excellent churns, but the larger num- ber of the patents issued are either of no benefit or else positively injurious. It is a significant fact that the Orange County, New York, dairymen, whose butter has long been regarded as strictly first-class, have tried many patented styles only to lay them aside, and go back to the use of the old barrel dash-churn. This does not prove that there are no better churns than the old-fashioned kind, but it does indicate that there are many poorer ones. There are some churns which will make a larger quantity of butter from a given quantity of milk than can be obtained from it by others, and the butter will be of equally good quality. It is unnecessary to say that the one vvhich will make the most butter is to be preferred. Still, we have known a man to say, in reply to an invitation to buy a new churn, which it was claimed would produce considerable more butter from the milk than the- one which he was using, that it did not make much difference with his folks. Everything was saved, and if the butter did not all separate from the milk it was no loss, as the buttermilk was fed to the hogs. He seemed to think, because the butter which was left in the milk was not thrown away, it was all saved. But if he had considered the fact that he could buy a pound of new milk, from which no butter had been taken, for three cents, while a pound of butter was worth twenty cents, he would have seen that the saving in feeding his half-churned milk to the hogs was not as great as he imagined. But it is not safe to try every churn which the agent claims " will make more butter than any other." If this plan were followed, the farmer would soon have more churns than he would know what to do with or where to find room in vvhich to store. THE DAIRY. G69 A great many churns have been condemned, because they would not uniformly convert cream into butter without regard to the temperature or to any other conditions. The best churn in the world will not give perfect satisfaction, if no care is taken to havo the cream in good condition. If the cream is either too cold or too hot, the butter will be long in coming, and if the variation from the proper temperature is excessive, the quality will be impaired. The temperature of the cream should range from fifty-five degrees in warm weather to sixty-four degrees in winter. In summer the churning should be done early in the morning. A thermometer ought to be used in every milk room. One made ■specially for the dairy is the cheapest, and for this purpose iu the best. If the cream is too warm, it may be cooled by placing it in a refrigerator, or putting the jar containing it into a larger vessel which is partly filled with cold water. Either way is better than putt'ng ice directly into the cream. In winter the cream may be warmed by standing in a warm room (in a closely covered vessel), or by the addition of a small quantity of warm water. The churning should be steady, and no efibrt should be made to obtain the butter in less than from twenty minutes to half an hour in the summer, and from forty minutes to an hour in winter. Violent agitation will convert the cream into butter in a much shorter time, but the quality will be seriously impaired. The appearances which indicate that a larger quantity of butter is obtained in this manner are deceptive. If the cream is a few degrees warmer than the standard we have given, the butter can be made in less time, but the quality will be seriously injured. We have given the extreme limits of temperature at which it is safe to churn the cream when good butter is required. Mr. Hardin recommends fifty-eight degrees in warm weather, and sixty-three degrees in winter, and his success is an indication that he has regulated the temperature of the cream in the best possible manner. ■'H\ m ■. »,i Sl*OS*S(S»i,>ite»sN WOKKINO BurrER._Unles.s f.eed from the' milk whfch remams mingled with it, the finest butter would soon be spo.led. For accomplishing the desired separation, various methods are employed. The very worst, yet very common, one IS to work out the milk by squeezing the butter in the hands The cleanest hands in the world are not fit to put into butter. There will be a perspiration, either sensible or insensible to the operator, which will certainly injure the quality of the butter FIG. 107.— EUREKA BUTTER-WORKER. I and also prevent its keeping well. The best way where no machine is employed is to use a ladle made for the purpose, and a wooden bowl or tray. There are many implements in the market for working butter. Some of these are excellent, but a few of them are constructed upon wrong principles, and are liable to injure the quality of the butter. All machines which operate with fluted rolls are, to some extent, open to tTiis objection. Lever-workers, if care is taken to give an equal pressure the whole length of the machine, do very well ; but the THE DAIRY. 671 implements with smooth rolls are probably the most perfect which have been devised. Of the machines made in this style we think the Eureka, which is made by the manufacturers of the Cooley Creamery, is the best in the market. It is repre- sented by Figure 107. While it is important that the milk should be removed, it is possible to almost spoil the finest butter by simply working it too much. There should be an even pressure upon the butter, and all drawing and sliding motions are to be avoided. Some dairymen use brine in order to facilitate the separation of the milk from the butter, but this is not absolutely necessary. Much of the milk can be washed out if pure water is at hand. The following directions are from Mr. Willard's " Practical Dairy Husbandry." Gather the butter " with a wooden butter ladle in the tray or butter bowl, turn off the buttermilk and wash with fresh spring water. Gash it around the whole circumfer- ence, making channels lowest at either end, so that the butter- milk can readily run off Do not grind it down against the tray, after the manner of tempering mortar, for in this way you will be likely to injure the grain. It is not well to attempt to work out all the buttermilk at once. But very little manipula- tion is required in washing out the buttermilk ; then salt with pure, fine salt and set aside in a cool place for twelve hours, during which time the action of the salt will liberate more of the buttermilk. Then work a second time, either with the ladle or butter-worker, using precautions not to overwork or grind the butter by rubbing it down against the tray, and then the work is done and the butter is ready for packing." Salting Butter is usually considered necessary in order to improve the keeping qualities as well as to suit the taste of con- sumers. A nice grade of butter, properly managed in all the various processes of manufacture, can be kept a long time with- out salt. Still, moet people prefer salted butter, and a few words in relation to the method of salting will not come amiss. 'J^y^0^ W^^aiWWfe, 672 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The very best grade of salt should be used. A" great deal of good butter has been damaged by the use of an inferior quality of salt. As only a small quantity is required, the difference in cost between the finest and the ordinary grades of salt is not to be considered by the man who wants to make a really good article of butter. The salt should be intimately mixed with the butter so that the whole mass will be uniformly salted. The quantity used at the butter factories in the New Yokk dairy districts is eighteen ounces of salt for twenty-two pounds of butter. Packing BuxTER.-If butter is to be kept for a long time, or IS to be carried a long distance, it must be packed in jars' or tubs. The stone jars are best if the butter is to be used at home, but they cannot be safely transported. If tubs are used they should be filled with boiling water and allowed to soak for twenty-four hours. They should then be filled with strong brine which should stand in them two or three days. Then Tt should be turned out, the tubs rinsed with cold water, and the sides rubbed with fine salt. After filling the tubs nearly full of butter. lay a clean muslin cloth on top, put in the heads, and pour strong brine through the plug-hole in order to fill all the spaces and perfectly exclude the air. Then put in the plug and keep the tub in a clean and well-ventilated cellar. Even butter which has been packed in tubs must not be kept in the vicinity of decaying vegetables, soap, and many other things which arc found in too many house cellars. If the butter is to be kept long in very hot weather the brine should be changed once in two months. A still more perfect way of keeping butter was described, some time since, in the National Live-Stock Journal as fol- lows: " Make a muslin bag, a little smaller than the tub, so that when filled there will be a space of one inch all round, above and below. Pack the butter, when ready, into this muslin bag, and place the bag in the tub, when the head should be put in,' THE DAIRY. 673 if there is one, with an inch and a half hole in it. Fill the space around the bag containing the butter with strong brine, and then put in a plug reaching one inch below, so as to prevent the * sack of butter from coming to the top. The sack of butter will now float in the brine and be absolutely excluded from the air. An ordinary cover may be used instead of the head." Securing Ice. — As we have highly recommended those pro- cesses of butter-making which require the use of ice for their most perfect working, perhaps a few words upon the best method of keeping ice may be useful. A few years ago it was generally supposed to be quite difficult to keep ice through the summer, even at the extreme North, and an ice-house was con- sidered too expensive for the average farmer. But of late the idea that ice can be kept only in costly and elaborate structures has been proved incorrect, and the number of ice-houses has increased a hundred-fold. One ought to be found on each and. every farm, or else a good substitute should be provided. Some writers recommend ice-houses wholly above ground,, while others consider it best to have a room partly underground; Practically, either plan works well. If only a small quantity of ice is needed, a room may be done off in a wagon-shed, a corn- barn, or in a clean basement room in either of these buildings. A great many farmers have practiced these methods success- fully. A bin, with double walls and the spaces between them filled with saw-dust, or tan-bark, can be made to do good ser- vice. It should be nearly square, and the cakes of ice should be packed as closely as possible. Around the sides, and in the spaces between the cakes, saw-dust should be used, and the top. of the pile should be covered a foot in depth. Mr. Hardin,, though living far South of the line above which the principal part of the dairying in this country is done, uses an ice-house " which is about twelve feet cube, a mere hole in the ground with shed over it, and it has supplied an abundance of ice for the milk of fifteen to twenty cows." Farther North there would 42 674 FARMING FOR PROFIT. I be less waste of ice by excessive heat Ice costs but little, it is but little work to get it and keep it, and it is a real luxury as well as a very useful article. Therefore an abundant supply should be obtained. It will be useful for many other purposes than the special one for which it is provided. The quantity required for keeping the milk at the proper tem- perature will vary in different localities and with the degree of prol;,ection from heat which is given in other ways. Mr. Har- din uses about "one pound of ice an hour to the one hundred pounds of milk." Farther North less than this quantity would suffice. The Cooley system, using water in part, is said to be still more economical of ice, though this is doubted by some who have experimented in this direction. It is not a matter of much consequence which method requires the largest quantity, for any farmer can obtain ice enough without incurring much ■expense. For the benefit of farmers who are far from rivers or ponds which will furnish a supply of ice, and to whom the labor and ■expense of transportation would be obstacles which they would mot overcome, we quote Mr. Waking's description of a house which " is so simple, and involves so trifling an expense that no man need have an excuse" for being without a liberal quantity of first-rate ice. "Select a place on the north side of some building; lay a floor twelve feet square on scantlings, one foot from the ground. Set firmly in the ground, near each corner, two posts, from four to six inches square, and about eight or ten feet long. When the weather becomes cold, place on the floor saw-dust, tan-bark, or r>'e-straw, to the depth of eight or ten inches. On the top place another floor of the same size, putting a curb ittside the posts to keep the filling between the floors in its place. Next make a curb ten feet square and six inches deep, and fasten the corners with common gate-hooks. On a cold day place the curb on the centre of the floor, put in two ;inches( of, tan-bark, and idash water over the bottom until it forms 77//J jn.i/AV. Q,,- a coat of ice that will not leak. Fill the curb with water and let it stand until frozen solid. With boiling water thaw the curb loose, raise it to the top of the frozen mass, fill and freeze as before. Continue so doing until the mass is of the desired height. Place boards on the inside of the posts, and fill the space with tan-bark or rye-straw ; nail boards on the otUside of the posts and fill the space with rye-straw ; cover the top with tan-bark to the depth of ten inches. Over the whole put a roof, to shield from the sun and rain. Cut and take the ice from the top. Ice can be thus kept the entire season. If a stream of running water can be turned into the curb, the labor of filling will be much lessened." We believe that by following the methods which have been indicated it will be possible for the farmers and dairymen of the country to greatly improve the character and the productive capacity of their stock, and to obtain a great deal more milk than they now secure. The cost of this improvement and extra production will be so slight as to leave a large profit to the owner of the cows. The purity of the milk will be secured and its richness increased. With only a slight outlay, which in a short time will be all repaid by the saving which it will secure in other directions, the quality of the butter which is made can be improved to such an extent that all trouble in making quick sales will be avoided and the price will be considerably in- creased. By such a change both producers and consumers will be greatly benefited. If he will bring care and skill to his aid the farmer can fur- nish good milk and nice butter for prices which consumers will be willing to pay and which will yield him a liberal profit. The dairy business is not overdone, and as long as our population increases as rapidly as it has for a few years past, and the foreign demand continues, it will not be unduly crowded. If the quality of our goods is improved without advancing prices to an extreme limit, the foreign demand will not only be continued but will be (5Y(> FARMING FOR PROFIT. rapidly increased. All the butter and cheese we can make, and make well, can be sold at a profit to the producer and all who handle the goods. And the farmer who is wise will seek in the direction of improvement of the quality of his products for the increased price which he desires. It is useless to look for it elsewhere, but here it may be easily found. LTHOUGH not applicable in all parts of the country, or to all cases in any part of it, the system of soiling cattle has certain advantages which commend it to the attention of the owners of live-stock who find the common method of management inconvenient or unprofitable. Where land is very fertile or very cheap, the soiling system maf not prove advantageous. Many farmers are so situated that they would incur a loss by accepting its conditions. There are many others whose profits would be largely increased by i\s adoption. In the vicinity of villages and towns it will often pay. When the farmer desires to keep a large stock of cattle on a small area of land, no better method than soiling can be devised. And where manure is in great demand in order to improve the productive qualities of the land, the want can be at least partially supplied by means of the soiling system. The plan has been extensively tried in Europe, and been tested by many farmers here. The majority of those who give the system a fair trial report a great improvement over the ordinary methods. It is a very simple method, and yet it requires constant care and a high degree of skill to manage the soiling process to the best advantage. Upon this point the Hon. Josiah Quincy, who did more than any other man in his day to make the plan popular, said : " The soiling process, beyond all othcis, requifes vigilance and foresight." The man who adopts it for the sake of making his labor light will be I SOILING CATTLE. 677 sadly disappointed. He may make his labor a great deal more profitable, but he will not make a saving in the amount to be performed. The advantages of the system, as stated by its most earnest advocates, are " comfort, convenience and protection for stock and fodder." There is a saving of land and fencing, food is economized, the cattle are kept more comfortable than they usually are in a common pasture, an increased production of milk is secured, and the saving of manure is effected. The objections to the system are that it requires very close attention and skilful management, that neglect of cleanliness during hot weather will be likely to cause sickness not only among the cattle, but also in the families of their owners, and that it increases the difficulty of keeping the milk pure and sweet. If proper care is given, health can be preserved, and pure milk can be secured. But during the hot weather farmers are extremely busy, and are apt to neglect what they consider the little matters pertaining to their business. In many parts of the country the adoption of the soiling system would render much of the land entirely useless. Most farmers now have under cultivation all the land they can properly manage, and if they were to keep their cattle up during the summer, the land which they now use for pasture would be wholly unpro- ductive. In order to help those who may desire to try this plan, and give them a correct idea of the kind and quantity of crops to be grown for the purpose, we will quote Mr. Waring's state- ment relative to this part of the system. " Early in the autumn, sow three acres of winter rye, to be cut from May fifteenth to June fifteenth. Early in April three acres oats, to be cut from June fifteenth to July first. Late in April, two acres oats or barley, to be cut from July first to July fifteenth. Early in May, two acres oats or barley, to be cut from July fifteenth to August tenth. Middle of May, two acres corn, to be cut from August i 678 FARMING FOR PROFIT. tenth to September first. Middle of June, the three acres from which rye has been cut to be sown with corn, to be cut from September first until September twentieth. Early in July, the first three acres sown with oats to be resown with barley, to be cut from September twentieth until the harvest of roots and cabbages furnishes a stock of green refuse, which will suffice until winter-feeding commences." The above plan allows twelve acres for keeping twelve cows, and requires the growth of root crops outside of the regular operations of soiling. The roots which are grown are not to be fed until winter, but the tops are needed late in the fall. The reason fon devoting so much land to the production of soiling crops is to be found in the fact that the soil was not in a high state of fertility. In ordinary seasons there will be a large quantity in excess of the amount required. This surplus pro- duct of the land can be cured and used for winter-feeding without involving much loss, while the large area sown provides for severe droughts and other untoward events which may greatly reduce the quantity of food which will ordinarily be produced. In September three acres of the four which were sown in May to oats, or barley, and corn should be sown to winter rye in order to provide for the early crop of the next year. Aside from this the same order may be pursued in succeeding years. Mr. Waring is confident that if all the manure made during the soiling season is used on these twelve acres year after year, they can be made, in time, so rich that they will support thirty cows during the usual pasturing season. Many farmers who own considerable land will prefer to make a larger part of it good rather than keep a few acres exceedingly rich. This they can easily do by taking a new place every two or three years for the production of their soiling crops. In this way they can surely and rapidly increase the capacity of their land for pro- duction. ENSILAGE. (17!) Whether it will pay them to adopt this practice is a question to be decided after a careful consideration of both the advan- tages and the difficulties of the course proposed. Some men can make the soiling system extremely profitable, while others cannot. In many cases it will pay to feed green crops in the barn, and in others it will be best to plow them into the land without being to the expense of cutting and hauling. In many other instances the ordinary system of pasf^ring in connection with the tillage of half or two-thirds of the land, will be the best which can be followed. The circumstances and surroundings of each farmer should be taken into the account. No radical changes should be made without previous careful deliberation, and all such changes as the one under consideration should be gradually effected. H\ SNSIXiAaS. HIS comparatively new method of preserving green fodder crops is now attracting a great deal of attention in France, and being introduced to some extent in this country. To M. Auguste Goffart, of France, belongs the honor of the discovery .of this system, and by his persevering and skilful efforts it has been brought almost to perfection. For more than a quarter of a century he has been studying the problem which at length he has solved. In translating his writings, and bringing together many facts in relation to the subject of Ensilage abroad and at home, J, B. BrqwM, Esq., President of the N. Y. Plow Co., New York city, has done the farmers of this country a valuable service. Ensilage is a French word meaning " the act of compressing into pits, trenches, or compartments called silos." It is also applied to the green crops so preserved. " Silo " denotes a "compartment used for storing green fodder in an air-tight manner." It may be an excavation in the ground, or a building wholly above the surface. .■'%\ 680 FARMING FOf PROFIT. The object tci be secured is the preservation in a green statff of the fodder which is cut for the use of cattle during the cold Wi^rither. It is well known l"^t by the process of drying, con- sidejrable of the nutritive value of the fodder is lost. Grass is known to be superior to hay, and green corn-fodder is univer- sally recognized as superior to the dried stalks. That grass not only loses water but also passes through other changes is evident from the fact that it exhales agreeable odors while the process of drying is going on. The fact is also sufficiently proved by the difference in the effects of grass and hay when fed to cows which are giving milk. The diminution in the quantity of the milk, and the deterioration of the quality of the butter made therefrom, are abundant evidences that hay is much inferior to grass. Not only is the quality of the grass, or other fodder, injured by the process of drying, but there is a great deal of risk of damage by exposure to storms. Then, too, even when it is secured in the best possible order, the dry fodder is compara- tively indigestible. Cattle cannot masticate it as easily or as well as they do green food, and are not able to digest it as thoroughly, or assimilate it to as good advantage. Ensilage as a method of preservation can be applied to all kinds of crops which are used green. In this country it will probably be of the greatest value in its application to fodder- corn and grass. It is with the former crop that the largest number of experiments have thus far been made. In order to be fully succesbful in the preserv'itjon o,^ -^-een fodder, all fermentation must be prevented. This must be done by excluding the air. The fodder is to be cut into short k"gths, placed in a pit, or in a tight room, and the top closely CO ;■. d. When the silo is filled, the material must be closely piv'jc. " a jwr. In his earlier efforts M. Goffart followed this course. 'A :»e tops we- : covered with earth, and fissures which af^rwarG.v appeared were immediately closed. But there was always found, when the silo was opened, a vacuum between the ENSILAGE. 681 fodder and the covering. As a result of this vacuum, which was caused by the settling of the t'o'lder, the process of f'-nnen- tation speedily set in, and the material could be preserved but a short time. After many experiments, M. Gofi'art found that by greatly diminishing the quantity of dry straw which he had mixed with the green corn-fodder, or leaving it out,- by cutting the material into very short lengths, and by arranging so that it should receive a strong and continuous pressure, perfect success could invariably be secured. Pressure must be strong and constant. This, becaus.; the material in the silo contains a large quantity of air which, it not expelled, will cause fermentation and decay. When first put in, this material is so elastic that merely treading it down will be of but little value. But in time this elasticity diminishes, De material settles, and, if pressure is not applied, the destructive processes at once begin their action. Therefore, there shouU; be a heavily weighted plank covering for the top of each silo. A little space should be left between the joints of these planks for the escape of the air in the silo, and the covering should move so freely that it will follow the material as it settles, and thus maintain a uniform pressure. When preserved by this process, no drying is requir^^d. Exposure t.r> the action of the sun and air, even for a brief period, will be injurious. As soon as cut, the material should be brought from the field. It should then be run through a feed-cutter, which will make it very fine. The New York Plow Co. make a machine for this purpose, which can be adjusted to cut into pieces from one-fourth inch to one or two inches long. Forty-two one-hundredths of an inch is con- sidered the best length. As soon as a sufficient quantity is cut, the material should be packed into the silos, and covered an inch or two in depth with short straw. T ^ the plank cov- ering should be put on, c ,1, heavily weighte pro- *ft»iia,„>^„i^ ! ,!■ I III 682 FARMING rOR PROFIT. tect from the external air. and maintain a strong and constant pressure. When the material is to be used the silo should be opened at one end, or side, and cut down vertically. The quantity removed at a time should be sufficient for the stock for only one day. The material should be taken from the silo from fifteen to twenty hours before it is to be given to the cattle. This in order that fermentation, which will make it more palat- able, may commence. That the system of ensilage will be fully s-iccessful in this ■ country there can be no possible doubt. Mr. Francis Morris tried it with good results in 1876. The next season he secured a sufficient quantity to keep " nearly a thousand head of stock for over two months," while, in 1878, he more than doubled the quantity then obtained. Experiments by other parties, though on a smaller scale, have been equally successful. We believe that this discovery will have a powerful effect in advancing the interests of the farmers and live-stock owners in the colder sections of the country. As it will enable them to supply their cattle with green fodder during the winter it will prove of great advantage. By freely feeding this material they can keep their young cattle growing rapidly and their cows productive, while' a high degree of health will be secured to the whole herd. Then, by enabling the farmer to substitute green corn for grass, the capacity of his land will practically be very much increased. Land which now yields from one to two tons of grass may be made to produce many tons of fodder of a still better quality. Much larger herds of cattle can then be kept on a given area of land. As there will be more cattle there will also be a largely increased quantity of manure with which the grain and clover fields can be made extremely rich and produc- tive. In the various departments of the farm there will be a great gain, and the profits of the business will be correspond- ingly increased. SHEEP. )ng and constant 683 «ROM the earliest ages sheep have been regarded as indis- pensable to the comfort and welfare of the human race. ^1 As civilization has progressed their importance has been ^ t) more fully recognized and their numbers have been cor- respondingly increased. Long ago the English people realized the value of these animals, and gave a great deal of attention to their improvement. By growing the wool at home, making it into goods of which the whole civilized world was in need, and sending the manufactured product abroad to be sold for high prices, the English secured a very profitable trade with other nations, and, at the same time, rapidly advanced their agricul- tural interests. Stringent laws were passed with the design of protecting the trade in manufactured goods. In the reign of Queen Elizabeth " the exporter of sheep was, for the first offence, to forfeit his goods forever, to suffer a year's imprisonment, and then have his left hand cut off in a market town on market day, there to be nailed up to the pillory. For the second offence he should be adjudged a felon, and suffer death." In the reign of Charles Second, " it was enacted that no person within fifteen miles of the sea should buy wool without the permission of the king ; nor could it be loaded in any vehicle, or carried, except between sunrising and sunsetting, within five miles of the sea, on pain of forfeiture." These arbitrary and outrageous laws were long ago repealed, but the English have never lost their interest in the business of sheep-growing. At the present time sheep hus- bandry is said to be " the sheet-anchor of English agriculture," and the term does not over-state the importance of this depart- ment of the farm business in that country. In our own land sheep yield a large income to their owners, and add an immense amount to our rfational wealth. But here the business is hardly begun. What is now obtained from this - •»**»*««•*»««««- ,«efe. IT 684^ FARMING J- OR PROFIT. |i • source is but a fraction of what might be easily secured. Importations of wool and woollen goods now amount to many millions of dollars per year. This money ought to remain at home. Our people can grow all the wool they need, and their mills can turn out the manufactured goods for a lower price than they can be brought from abroad. There is now an opening for an immense and a profitable business. At the South and West sheep can be raised in immense numbers for low prices, and still yield a profit to their owners. Some of the leading men at the South see in this business a splendid opportunity to place upon a sure foundation the material resources of this section. At the West the business has already assumed large proportions, and proved a source of profit. In the East it must necessarily be conducted on a small scale, but sheep-raising is, and long has been, practiced by many of the leading farmers. In this business but a small amount of capital is required, and, if it is reasonably managed, the returns will be both quick and sure. There are three special purposes for which sheep may be kept. These are for their wool, for their flesh, and for improving the soil. In some places it pays to keep them for the wool alone, in others for their flesh and that of their lambs, and there are some instances in which the improvement of the land which they effect pays well for all the cost of their keeping, and is the prime motive for which they are kept. But in most sections at least two of these purposes can be served, and in some localities all three may be combined. Where both the wool and flesh are in demand, the profit is large. When in addition to these the land upon which they are kept can be improved there is a still greater gain. Although the price which wool commands in the market is quite variable, yet there is always a certainty that it can be sold for something near its true value. Wool is a standard article of commerce, and has a certain intrinsic value. It is not merely SHEEP. •■^685 a useful but it is also a necessary article. Besides, better than almost any other product of the farm, wool can be transported to all parts of this or to other countries. A car-load of wool represents a very much larger sum of money than a car-load of hay. Consequently the cost of transportation in proportion to its value is very much less with wool than it is with hay and other bulky material. The same comparison may be made with almost every farm product. At a time when the freight of wheat from Chicago to the seaboard cost eighty per cent, of its value, pork thirty per cent., and beef twenty-one percent., only four per cent, was required for the transportation of wool. Besides, as the people throughout the country are in constant need of woollen goods in large quantities, manufactories of these materials spring up in all sections. Even now in the distant State of Oregon woollen mills are turning out some of the finest kinds of cloth, and supplying them at prices which are remark- ably low. Probably the time will come, and it is very desirable that it should come, when the wool-grower in any particular part of the country can sell his wool to be worked up in mills located near his own home. Then a large part of the present low cost of transportation will be saved, and the great benefits which tnanufactures always confer upon agriculture when the two are closely united will be secured by our people in all sections. The flesh of the sheep is rapidly coming into general use. It is easy to digest, and is more healthful than most kinds of meat. There is a saying to the effect that as the standard of civilization of a country is raised the use of mutton for food will gradually increase. This rule seems to have been closely followed in this country, and there is a strong indication that in the future it will prove strictly true. In our large cities the demand for mutton has increased fully as fast as the wealth and numbers of the people could lead one to expect. The call for lambs in city markets increases year by year, and in some of the older-settled States it has become quite a business to supply this want. [^1 ^1 '■imietmx^^ I 686 FARMING FOR PROFIT. There can be no doubt that the flesh of sheep tind lambs will continue in demand, and that this demand will not only be permanent but will admit, and require, a steady growth in the line of production. There are certain reasons why this line of business, viewed merely from this one point, holds out special inducement for farmers who are in the vicinity of thickly settled towns and cities. The returns are both sure and quick. A lamb dropped in January or February can be got in good condition for the market the following June or July. A sheep can be sheared in the summer and fattened on grass and roots so as to be sold in December, or it may be fed with grain during the winter and sent off in March or April. With cattle the case is very dif- ferent. The calf must be kept from two to four years before it can be sold for a full price as beef The cost of keeping all this time is considerable, and there is quite a risk of accident and disease. If sold while a calf the price per pound is below that of a lamb, and the cost of keeping him the five or six weeks which are required to convert him into good veal will be greater than that of keeping the lamb until he can be sold. Again, sheep use the material which the farm supplies to much better advantage than cattle. It has been demonstrated that seventy-five pounds of food of any suitable kind, hay, pota- toes, turnips, or meal, will make as many pounds of mutton as one hundred pounds of the same food will make of beef Then, too, for supplying meat for the farmer's own table, sheep are very valuable and ought to be more extensively used. That mutton is a more healthful kind of meat to use in hot weather than pork there can be no doubt. Properly cooked, it is also very palatable. The farmer can furnish an abundant supply at a small cost. He can thus have some of the finest qualities of meat at a cheaper rate than he can buy the poorer grades from the butcher. There are many farmers who would find it profit- able to keep sneep for this purpose. SHEEP. C87 There are many States in which sheep might well bo kept in order to improve the land. There is an old Spanish proverb which asserts that " the hoof of the sheep is golden," and many others, of various nations, which convey much the same mean- ing. Many of these common sayings exceed the truth. Sheep cannot, alone, convert a desert into a garden. They cannot live and thrive without food. In order to do their best they must have an abundance of food, and it must be of good quality. The idea tliat sheep can be turned upon a barren field, which by bad cropping has been utterly exhausted, and from this field not only obtain their living, but also get material from which to grow heavy fleeces and produce fine lambs, and by their presence convert the land into a luxuriant pasture, is wholly erroneous. If they have sufficient food from other sources, and are kept part of the time eacTi day upon a run-down field, they will pick off" the weeds and scatter their manure, thus tending to make the land better. By feeding sheep well in the winter, spreading their manure upon the exhausted field, getting clover started, and then keeping the sheep upon it, the land may be rapidly improved. That land of moderate fertility may be made much richer by pasturing sheep upon it we do not doubt. If there is anything to do with, sheep will utilize it to the best possible advantage. If there is nothing with which to make a beginning, neither sheep, nor any other animals, can bring it into a high state of fertility until man has done something in the way of improvement. The farmer who keeps sheep in connection with grain and grass growing, and with other stock, can, as a general rule, obtain a large profit from them. Some of the largest crops, and succeeding these a marked improvement in the land, have been secured by the use of the manure made by sheep. Hon. George Geddes, whose opinion upon other subjects we have quoted, and who is universally recognized as an authority, in speaking of his own experience in keeping sheep in connection with grain- «*aww«»ssKM(«.. 688 FARMING FOR PROFIT. growing, has said : " With about one sheep to the acre of cul- tivated land, pasture and meadow, we raise more bushels of grain on the average than we did when we had no sheep to manufacture our coarse forage into manure, and to enrich our pastures to urcpare them for grain crops. While producing more crops on less acres, and at less cost than we did before we kept sheep, and, at the same time, constantly improving our land, we have the wool and mutton from our sheep in addition." In connection with the growth of clover, sheep can be made to bring land which is moderately fertile into good condition for producing wheat, and then keep it yielding large crops every few years and constantly increasing in value and productive capacity. The man who is willing to feed and care for his sheep can receive from them a great deal of help in securing good crops and making his land rich. But it is not safe for any one to engage in the business unless he is willing to take care of the flock and furnish an abundance of good food. And lest any reader should infer from the remark of Mr. Geddes, that the sheep manufactured his coarse forage into manure, that he kept them exclusively upon that kind of food, we will say that neither he nor any other man who has made money from sheep ever kept them wholly on refuse food. Good hay, bright straw, and a liberal supply of meal, have been the standard food. The coarse material has either been used as bedding or else cut and sprinkled over with meal. Sheep can profitably use a large quantity of bedding, and, by using it in this manner, coarse swale hay may be made of considerable value. The manure which the sheep make in the winter is very beneficial to crops, and that made in the summer is so much more evenly spread over the ground as to enrich the pastures to a much greater degree than that which is dropped by cattle. It is owing to this difference that, while pastures upon which cows are kept gradually become impov- erished, those which are devoted exclusively to sheep which are to the acre of cul- : more bushels of e had no sheep to and to enrich our While producing han we did before itly improving our sheep in addition." ep can be made to jood condition for large crops every we and productive for his sheep can curing good crops afe for any one to to take care of the od. And lest any [. Geddes, that the anure, that he kept all say that neither y from sheep ever bright straw, and a food. The coarse e cut and sprinkled large quantity of rse swale hay may e which the sheep , and that made in )ver the ground as ee than that which Terence that, while lly become impov- to sheep which are SHEEP. G91 properly managed and cared for constantly grow better. In England this one item of improvement of the land is thought a sufficient reason for keeping sheep. Some of the ablest writers in that country have asserted that there is no profit in the pro- duction of cither wool or mutton, but that, in spite of this fact, sheep husbandry is an "indispensable necessity as the sole means of keeping up the land." There arc many farms, both at the South and the East, upon which sheep might be made profitable for this one purpose and also yield a large income as producers of meat and wool. Breeds of Sheep.— There are many different breeds of sheep, and these breeds are divided into classes which are formed by means of the difference in the length of the wool. Thus we have a fine-wooled class, the distinguishing feature of which is very fine, short wool ; the British short-wooled class, comprising sheep whoi ; wool is of only moderate length and fineness; and the long-wooled sheep, whose fleeces are very long, and the fibre rather coarse. Then .there are all manner of grades and natives. Among these may be found some excellent and very profitable flocks. Also many which are not at all useful, and are very far from being ornamental. Of the fine-wooled sheep in this country the Merino is the " standard," and is altogether the best. It is hardy, prolific, and yields a large quantity of wool in proportion to its size and weight. The quality of the wool for many manufacturing pur- poses has no superior. When a Merino ram is used with a common ewe, the lamb usually has a fairly fine fleece, which is a great improvement on that of its dam. If with the lambs thus obtained a pure-bred Merino ram is used, the wool will be still better. In a few generations, the wool will be nearly, if not quite, as good as that of purely bred sheep. The finer the wool of the sheep which are crossed in this way the sooner the desired result will be accomplished. We do not advocate this plan, except in those cases in which* I '11 I 'II T" -^""■" i 692 /•///f.V/A"^ FO/! PROFIT. pure blood cannot be obtaincil. The method indicated improves the common sheep, but it does not make the lambs equal to Merinos. Even though the desired fineness of fleece may be secured, the other useful qualities of the old-established breed may be wanting. The man who has purely bred Merinos had better keep them so. All infusion of " native " blood will be a deterioration, and crossing with other improved breeds is not to be recommended. This principle also applies with equal forte to the other breeds of sheep. In a flock of thorough-breds the introduction of native blood will prove an evil. Natives are only to be used when an existing flock is to be improved. We should not recommend them for the formation of new (loci s. Thorough-bred sheep arc now sold for prices which place tliem within the reach of the average farmer, and they multiply so rapidly that a flock of moderate size can soon be secured from a single pair. Of the British short-wooled sheep the Oxford Down and the South Down are, for this country at leas., much to be pre- ferred. Though the wool is not as fine as the Merino, the quality of the mutton is very much superior. The lambs are Jarger and mature early. The sheep are fine in appearance and are quite hardy. They fatten readily, and where both wool and mutton are desired we consider them the best sheep which can be obtained. For the farmer who keeps only a small flock, they will answer all requirements. They also do as well as others in large flocks. We consider these breeds excellent for the shepherd, and as near perfection for the farmer as anything which can be devised. Of the long-wooled breeds the Cotswold and the Leicester are the best. They are large sheep, with very long and rather ux)arse wool. These breeds are so near alike in external appear- ance that " their distinction is difficult to the unpracticed eye." The Cotswold however, usually has considerable wool upon the forehead, while the Leicester is nearly bare-faced. SI/EF.r. 693 Each of these breeds is claimed by its admirers to be the best. The CoTswoLi) has been much more extensively introduced into this country than its competitor, and it has been more widely advertised. It is claimed that the Cotsvvold is more hardy than the Leicester, and the quality of the mutton is said to be slightly superior. On the other hand, the Leicester matures early and fattens easily. There is also a lustre to the wool which is wanting in other breeds, and which, for some kinds of goods, makes it very desirable for manufactures. The Cots- wold ewes are more prolific than the Leicester, and give more milk. We think that, of the two, the Cotswold is to be preferred by the farmer who makes the sheep interest only an incidental and gives most of his attention to other departments. But neither of these breeds can be successfully kept under all the conditions to which the other classes can be safely subjected. They are kept to some extent in Canada, but it seems to be admitted that they are not suited to the climate. They are excellent sheep for mutton in that they furnish a large quantity of meat for the food which they consume, and where mutton is a great object they may be made profitable in places where their other .qualities would not justify their introduction. But the conclusion reached by John L. Haves, Esq., Secretary of the National Association of Wool Manufactures, that the climate at the North " is too severe for the Leicesters," is probably correct, and it will pay the farmers in that section to obtain a hardier breed. The place for these sheep seems to be " where the lands are rich, not subject to drought, fitted for root culture, and where good city markets are easily accessible." Nearly the same statement might be made concerning the Cotswolds. Where the surroundings are favorable these breeds can be made very profitable. Where the climate is too severe, or the soil too poor, other races should be kept. Of the Native breeds of sheep but little need be said. As a jjyj FARMING FOR PROFIT. rule they arc far behind the breeds which have been named, and should be crossed with, or, much better, superseded by, them. The best natives may be used as the foundation for an improved flock, but the poorer ones should be sold and their places filled with a better and more profitable class of animals. Bkeedino.— In all efforts for i'Tiprovement a thorough-bred ram should be used. We have indicated the superiority of thorough-bred cattle to grades for breeding purposes. The same principle holds, to the same extent, in breeding sheep. The use of a grade male will give uncertain results, but they will generally be unprofitable. The thorough-bred male will be very sure to impress his own good qualities upon his offspring. The cost of a blooded ram is so low that the farmer has no excuse on the ground of expense for using a grade. He can buy a lamb, keep him a year or two, and then sell him for as much, if not more, than he paid. But if he keeps only a small flock and counts the cost carefully, he can unite with two or three neighbors in purchasing, or hiring, a thorough-bred. One ram can serve several flocks of a dozen sheep each without injury. Even a good strong yearling can serve half a dozen ewes. It is better to use older ones, however, when practicable. During the breeding season the ram should be kept in a pasture, or a pen and yard, with some wethers if there are any in the flock, and should have some oats or oil meal each day. The ewes should be served only once each, and when served should be marked with paint. Two rams should never be put in a pasture together, as they are almost sure to prove quarrel- some. It is well to handle them when young and teach them to be led by a halter and to be tied in a stable. But all "fooling" -with them, either by boys or men, should be carefully avoided. It is a very easy matter to get a pleasant ram so that he will attack any one who comes into the enclosure in which he is kept. When a ram once gets this habit., he is very danger- ous and ought to be blindfolded to such an extent that he cannot SHEEP, 606 sec in front of him without holding his head high in the air. Wc have been Knocked around a good deal by this class of animals, and feel justified in cautioning our readers to be careful to avoid either a pitched battle or an unsuspected attack. When in a field or yard with one of these animals, always keep watch -of him. If he attempts to strike, either spring sud- denly to one side, or, if he is seen soon enough, swing your hat and "alratc him with a terrible voyce; and beat him yourself with a good sticke upon the head between the ears," in the manner directed by the old tamer in Queen Elizadeth's time for subduing a vicious horse. Ihc motion of the hat and sound of the voice will sometimes confuse a ram so that he will give up an intended assault. If a battle is once begun, it should not be ended until the ram is thoroughly defeated. If he once obtains a victory, he will never forget it, but will become very cross and dangerous. No fear should be shown at any time, as this would induce an attack which might not be made if the man were self-possessed. At the same time it is necessary to keep a close and constant watch. A ram may be kept until he is seven or eight years old, provided that he is a good stock- getter and is not vicious. If his lambs are not well formed, if he is not sure, or if he becomes cross, he had better be made into mutton as soon as possible. Although it is not so essential that the ewes should be thorough-bred as it is that the rams should be of pure blood, it is better that they should belong to an improved breed. In any case, whether natives or blooded ewes are kept, only the very best ones should be used for breeding. The first lamb should not be brought until the ewe is two years of age. If the ram is allowed to run with the flock during the year, the ewes will bring forth their young at an earlier age, but the lamb is not likely to be first-rate and the dam is seriously injured, both in devcloom.ent and in constitutional vigor, by this early use of the reproductive powers. Very old ewes are also to be avoided for 51 ■• m. 6dG FARMING FOR PROFiT. breeding purposes. After eight years of age nearly every ewe is unfit for further service in this direction. She may look as bright and seem as strong as ever, but the vigor and elasticity of youth are gone and cannot be restored. With generous keeping and kind treatment many, in all, will breed until ten years of age. But there is a greatly increased risk, both to the ewe and the lamb, and both are often lost. The man who breeds sheep to the best advantage will keep no ewes after they are eight years old and will obtain the great majority of his lambs from those which are considerably younger. As far as this point is concerned, the method which has been pursued by the Carletons, of West Newfield, Me., is one of the best which can be named. From a letter received from Mr. J. L. Carleton, we will give a few facts concerning a small, but, in some respects, a very remarkable, flock of sheep. In 1804 a Mr. Carleton purchased the farm which has since been owned by his descendants. Of the man who had owned the farm he also bought six sheep. From these six animals those of the present flock are descended. The sheep now on hand are large frame, hardy, have nice wool, and weigh from one hundred and twenty-five to one hundred and fifty pounds each. The original sheep were supposed to belong to an " old English " breed. For seventy-three years no ram has been kept with this flock, but each year one has been secured for a few weeks. In this way many different breeds have been represented, and many kinds of " blood " have found their way into the present flock. For a long term of years fourteen sheep were kept. Every year the two oldest sheep were sold and two lambs were raised to take their places. Of late only eight sheep have been kept, but fourteen lambs have been obtained in a single year. While we do not approve of so much mixing of different breeds we do most heartily commend the practice of selling a certain number of the old sheep, and raising an equal number of lambs each year. This is the very best way for keeping a flock SHEEP. 697 always thrifty and vigorous. The man who sells all his lambs each year because they will bring more money than the sheep will soon have a worthless flock. Every ewe should be marked, and in a pass-book, kept for a sheep register, its age, weight of its fleeces, and number and weight of its lambs, should be recorded. Every year the oldest ones should be kept from the ram, fed with corn and roots during the fall, and sold for mutton early in the winter. The lambs which are kept should be the finest ones in the flock. The butcher will give more for these than he will for the poorer ones, but the use of inferior breeding stock is the direct road to ruin in the sheep business. Besides, the extra price which the finest lamb will command is soon made up to the farmer who keeps her. Each and every lamb which she has will sell for from one to three dollars more than could have been obtained for the lambs brought by the inferior ewes. As the sheep should have five or six lambs in the course of her life, the aggregate difference will be greatly in favor of the farmer if he keeps the best. Not only this, but if inferior ewe lambs are kept, their lambs will be still smaller and poorer, theirs, in turn, will degenerate, and soon the flock will " run out." The lambs which are to be kept should be petted, and all the sheep should be kept quite tame. This is easily done if they are always treated kindly. A wild flock of sheep cannot be as profitable as one, other-wise in the same condition, which is tame, and the labor of caring for the wild flock will be much greater and more troublesome than that of looking after the other. Begin with the lambs when they are quite small, handle them often, and never scare them. Feed them well, and take good care of them. If these things are done, the lambs and sheep will be tame and quiet. As the time for lambing approaches, the ewes which are the most forward should be separated from the flock, and put into a comfortable stable. From three to six may be put together. ;l M I in I if I 698 FARMING FOR PROFIT. If they have been well kept and properly mated, there will be but little liability of trouble at this time. Still careful attention should always be given, and help rendered if necessary. The long-wooled sheep are said to have much more difficulty at this time than the Merinos. Mechanical assistance should not be rendered until it becomes evident that the labor of the ewe will be in vain. In many instances in which nature is fully successful several hours are required. The labor pains in these cases come at intervals, and between them the ewe is up, and seems to suffer no great amount of inconvenience. But if her strength fails and her efforts diminish, help should be given at once. The natural presentation of the lamb is with the nose between the fore feet. If the feet protrude, the assistant should pull gently when the ewe makes an effort to expel the lamb. If the hind feet come first, there will usually be but little difficulty. When the head is turned back, or there is some other unnatural presentation, the lamb must be pushed back, and turned so that a better position can be secured. Only in a case of great emer- gency should an effort be made to obtain the lamb when the ewe is quiet. Aid must be given gently, but firmly, if required, when the ewe has her labor pains. If she is far gone when her case is discovered, and her pains have ceased, it may be best to attempt to secure the lamb without them. Such an effort may prove successful, and the ewe recover her strength, but it is not at all certain that this will be the case. In all cases when aid is to be given, the operator should oil his hand, and work quietly and gently. Old ewes are more likely to have trouble at this time than those which are younger, and the weakly ones than those which are strong and well. Conse- quently if there are any old or weakly ewes in the flock, they should receive extra food and care for a few weeks before the time for dropping their lambs. Care of the Lambs. — If he gets into the world without sd, there will be careful attention necessary. The difficulty at this nee should not labor of the ewe I nature is fully or pains in these e ewe is up, and nee. But if her ould be given at the nose between tant should pull :he lamb. If the t little difficulty. I other unnatural nd turned so that se of great emer- t lamb when the rmly, if required, is far gone when sased, it may be them. Such an ver her strength, the case. In all )uld oil his hand, ore likely to have /^ounger, and the nd well. Conse- in the flock, they weeks before the e world without SHEEP. 701 accident, or an unusual degree of hardship, and the ewe owns him, as she generally will, the lamb will pretty much take care of himself. The ewe will lap him dry, and he will very soon attempt to suck. It is a good plan to start the milk for him, and put him up to the teat. If he is weakly, this ought never to be neglected. If he does not incline to suck, rubbing with the fingers upon his back, and around the roots of the tail, will generally induce him to begin. A lamb is one of the most obstinate animals which man ever attempted to help. But quiet, persevering effort will in time succeed, and the worst lamb can be got sucking if he is rightly managed. In cold weather the lambs should be attended to as soon as they are able to be up. If they do not get some milk very soon they will become chilled and go beyond the reach of help. If the ewe does not own the lamb he must be wiped dry, and the dam must be held while he obtains his food. They should then be placed together in a pen by themselves. If the pen is dark, it will be better than a light one. The ewe must be held, and the lamb allowed to suck at least six times every twenty- four hours. In many cases the ewe will in a day or two own the lamb. In others a longer time will be required. When a ewe disowns her lamb, the fact should be noted in the register, and • if she does it two years in succession she should be fattened. After a lamb has been dropped, it should be car d for and made comfortable, but it does not pay to keep a ewe year after year which puts the owner to so much trouble. If the lamb is chilled when found, he should be taken to the house, wiped diy, and put into a prettv warm oven or in water as hot as can be comfortably borne by the hand. If water is used, the lamb should remain in it only a few minutes, and when removed be rubbed quite dry with a woollen cloth. If he seems bright he may be taken to his dam and allowed to suck, but if he does not fully revive he should have a small quantity of milk from a cow which has recently calved, and in the milk from ■* "wwi^iataiiK.' k 702 FARMING FOR PROFIT. one-half teaspoonful to a teaspoonful of whiskey, brandy, or gin. When fully restored he should be placed with his dam. If a lamb of a few days, or weeks, age is found chilly and drooping, a dose similar to that recommended above may save him without the trouble of removing him from the pen. One of the finest sheep we ever saw was so chilled when found in the morning after his birth that he could not stand. The treat- ment advised may not always be successful, but it is well worth trying, and will be sure to save many lambs. Raising by hand lambs which are disowned, or which have lost their dams, involves a great deal more of work and trouble than the inexperienced reader would imagine. It can be done and splendid sheep can be secured by the mean;, but it is very desirable that the ewes should look after their own lambs when possible. Some men put a disowned lamb with a ewe which has lost her own, or which has only one, and require her to look after it. When a sheep has just lost her lamb this does very well. The plan recommended when sheep disown their lambs is tried in order to make the ewe take to the stranger. Sometimes the skin of the lamb which belonged to her is laid upon the back of the new one, and the ewe is deceived into believing it to be her own. When a ewe already has a lamb it is not, as a rule, a good plan to make her support another. If the attempt is made .she should receive an extra quantity of food, and this should be of the best quality. If the lamb must be reared by hand, it should be either ki, with a spoon for a while, or from a bottle having an India-rubber nipple, but should be taught to drink when only a few weeks old. The milk should be obtained from one particular cow, and one which has only recently calved. Farrow cows' milk is not suitable, and lambs are almost sure to die when fed with it. If it must be used, a little molasses and water should be added. Milk should be warm when fed, but ought never to be scalded. Mr. Randall recommends feeding a new-bom lamb six times SHEEP. 703 per day "at equal intervals between sunrise and ten o'clock at night." After a few days five times will be sufficient. Some farmers hold the lamb up by a cow and milk into its mouth. This is a dangerous practice, and often Kils lambs of consid- erable size. In order to be at all successful in raising lambs by hand the owner must be very regular about feeding, and extremely careful in adapting the food to the wants and con- Uition of the particular individual which he has in hand. A comfortable pen should be i)rovided in some building near the house, and a reasonable amount of exercise should be allowed. •The whole process looks simple enough, but the difficulties are much greater than they appear. Still, it is not best to allow a good healthy lamb to die without making an effort to save it Many fine sheep have been raised in this way, and have paid well for all the time and trouble which were taken in caring for them. Docking, though often wholly neglected, ought to be performed when the lamb is only a few weeks old. When lambs are designed for the butcher there is not the necessity for this course that there is when they are to be kept upon the farm. But even then the long tails often prove troublesome. As it often happens that a lamb is kept which the owner designed to sell, it is best to perform the operation. A sheep with a long tail becomes a filthy animal, and its life may be lost solely on account of the neglect of its owner to remove it. Docking should be performed in cool, dry weather, and in the morning, before the lambs have had a chance to get their blood warm by running. A sharp knife is the usual instrument, but a broad, thin chisel is much better. If a knife is used, the edge should be placed the under side of the tail, and the cutting be upward instead of the very common method of cutting from the top downward. The tails should be left only two or three inches in length. It is much the best way to have one person hold the Iamb, and another do the cutting. When a chisel is iti 704 Farming j-om ihofjt used the tail should be laid upon a smooth block, the skin crowded toward the body, and the cutting be done by a single blow. When this plan is follou.d the skin slips back and partially covers and protects the cut surface. If the opera- tion is performed in hot weather an ointment made of tar butter, and turpentine should be applied in order to keep away the fly. .*^ ' CASTRATioN.-This Operation should be performed in the mornmg. and in cool, fair weather, if possible. It should be done when the lambs are only a few weeks old, as it causes much less pain, and less trouble afterwards, than it does when they are older. Mr. Randall describes the method to be pur- sued as follows: "An attendant holds the lamb (with a fore and hmd leg grasped in each hand) in an upright position, with its back placed against his own body. He draws the hind legs up and apart, and presses against the lamb's body with sufficient force to cause the lower part of the belly to protrude between the thighs and the scrotum to be well exposed. The operator then cuts off about one-third of the scrotum ; takes each testicle m turn between the thumb and forefinger, and. after sliding down the loose enveloping membrane to the spermatic cord pulls out the testicle with a moderately quick, but not violently' jerking motion." We think it much better to cut the cord with a sharp knife. The cord should not be left long enough to pro- trude from the scrotum, nor cut so short as to be drawn within the abdomen. We believe, with Mr. Allen, that the jerking process " is a severe and cruel way, and not so safe as the other " We have sometimes followed one plan and sometimes the other and have never lost a lamb by either method, but the pulling out of the cord seems both unscientific and barbarous. It is ver5^ true that the breaking of the cord prevents bleeding, and that clamps and the hot iron are inconvenient, but, when properly performed, cutting does not cause severe bleeding, and we have never found use for either clamps or irons. If the weather is s/ 705 warm, the mixture of tar, butter, and turpentine, recommended for use when docking is performed, should be applied. Feeding lambs must be. to some extent, dependent upon the purpose for which they are designed. Those which are to be kept upon the farm, to take the places of the older members of the flock, should run with their dams, have plenty of rowen hay, and fresh water. Those which are to be fattened for the butcher should, in addition to the above, be fed with meal. Indian meal answers very well, but oil meal is a great deal better. Not only is the latter a more efficient agent for accomplishing the purpose desired, but the lambs learn to eat it more readily than they do the Indian meal. If neither of these can be conveniently fur- nished, oats will be found quite useful. A small pen should be made in one corner of* the sheep-yard, and so arranged that, while the lambs can enter freely, the sheep cannot get in. A trough should be placed in this pen and the lambs taught to go in. At first only a little meal should be sprinkled in the trough, but as the lambs learn to eat it, and also increase in size, the quantity may be gradually increased until, when they are three months old, they receive nearly a quart of meal each per day. Feeding with meal should be commenced when the lambs are three weeks old and continued until they are sold to the butcher. When the lambs which are to be kept are about four months old they should be weaned. This is wholly neglected by many owners, but this neglect invariably causes bad results. The ewes are injured by being obliged to furnish milk for the lar^e Iambs, and the lambs are injured by depending upon the milk for food to the neglect of the grass which they ought to eat. At this time the dams should be put in their pen and the lambs into a stable, or other enclosure, as far as possible from the sheep. The dams should be fed with dry hay, in order to check the secretion of milk, and the lambs should have rowen and a small allowance of oats. Both sheep and lambs should be •"•'W'^miim.mii^ 708 FARMING hOR rROFIT. watered twice a day. It is a good plan to keep one or two old and tame sheep with the lambs. After two or three days the sheep may be turned into a shor* pasture, but they should be brought to the barn every night for a week and milked. After this they should be driven up once m two or three days for the same purpose. This should be done until the secretion of milk has ceased. Many farmers utterly neglect this precaution. They get up their sheep when they sell, or wean, the lambs, separate them, and then turn the sheep mto the pasture without milking them at all. To this neglect a large part of the difficulty with sheep which do not have milk enough for thefr lambs, or which have inflamed udders, may be directly traced. As soon as they are dried off they should be put into a better pasture and well kept until they are brought into winter quarters. When the lambs have been kept up two or three days they may, with the old sheep which are to be their companions, be turned into a nice pasture in which the feed is very fine and short. If no such pasture can be provided, as good one as pos- sible should be secured, and from one-half gill to one gill of oats per day should be given to each lamb. Early in the autumn when the pastures begin to fail, oats should be given each day until the lambs are put into winter quarters. It is very im- portant that the lambs should not be allowed to grow poor from the time when they are weaned until the last day of their lives. The way to make money with sheep and lambs is to always keep them well, and never allow them to lose flesh. If they are thin in flesh when winter sets in they will be very liable to die either from disease or weakness before warm weather comes again. The Summer Management of sheep is very simple, and in addition to what has already been suggested there is but little to say upon the subject. A good pasture, in which there is an abundance of good food and plenty of pure water, should be SHEEP. 707 furnished. A shed, open at one side, should be p....,,., ror she ter from the noonday sun and fro. stores. I^ this shUa trough should be placed in which a supply of salt should be constantly kept. We have long practiced keeping sheep in the same pasture with cows, but the plan is not to be commended If the cows are gentle, they will not often hurt the sheep- but the best of cows seem to hook sometimes, and there is constant danger that the sheep will be injured. A ram should not be allowed to run with the ewes, but should be kept m a separate pasture, or, if unruly, at the barn If al- lowed to go with the ewes, the owner will never know when to expect the Iambs, and they will come stringing along from late m the wmter. or early in the spring, until the sheep are turned out to .Tass. This makes bad work in many respects The lambs are not ready to be sold together, but must go m many small lots, the trouble of feeding is increased, as is also the d.ffic.alty of weaning the lambs and drying off the ewes, WASHiNG.-It used to be the almost universal custom to wash sheep m a brook or pond, from ten days to three weeks before they were to be sheared. Lately this practice has been growing unpopular, and we hope it will soon b. enti..ly abandoned. When washing is practiced at the North, the shearing must be put off too late, as the water in the brooks is not warm enough for the purpose as soon as the air is warm enough to admit of shearmg. To drive sheep a long distance in hot weather, and whde they are heated by the exercise, plunge them into a cold stream, must be a great injury to the animals. A large quantity of water remains in the wool and reduces the temperature of the body to a very low point. Not only is washing an injury to the health, but there is great danger that contagious diseases will be spread by its means Many a sound flock of sheep has become afilcted with the foot- rot, and many more with the scab, by being driven over the 708 FAKMIXG FOR rROFIT. -same road and shut into the washing pen which has been occu- piecl by sheep which were th'seased. Again, the ,nen who do the washing often contract h.ng diseases as the result of their exposure while working in the water. Rheun,atic troubles are also cither engendered or aggravated by the exposure, and various other difficulties have been knov/n to spring therefrom. While it involves n.any difficulties and some dangers, washine does not accomplish the purpose for which it w.-,s designed It does not secure anything .ipproaching uniformity in the con- d.t,on of the wool of various flocks. Some sheep, when un- washed, have cleaner wool than some others which have been through the ceremonial. Me,, are not always honest in doing th,s work and some have seemed to tr, to get as little dirt as poss,bIc from the fleece, and yet sell washed wool. Others have washed carefully and sold, at the same price per pound, wool wh,ch had been well cleaned. This is manifestly unfair. Again Me„,.o sheep will have a very large proportion of dirt and grease m their wool, even after being washed in a brook while from the South Down fleece ne.irly all of the foreign matter is removed. And as the manufacturer is obliged to clean the wool before he can use it. we see no reason why he should not be w.ll,ng to take it, at a fair price, without Seing washed. We thmk such a course would be much the best for all parties, and - glad that ,t seems to be gaining ground so rapidly and meetmg so much favor where it has been tried In this connection we should say that it is important to keep the sheep as clean as possible. They should not be I lowed to ge, burs, or twigs, or other foreign matter, into their hey should be ehpped off; before the ewes have lambs and thrown away. The owner should take an interest in kejp g l.ss|.ep^c,ea„,and have some pride in their presenting a';n! which it c-in h. „, . P" ^'' ''"'''^ o'^ "o \vay in .*ccp „.,„.„y ,,,,, ,„ U^ ; ;;; '•'^ -;f'^™e "Inch .he machine th.n i 7 ^ """'' ^^''"^ '^"^ ^^'^^ «^'-' imc th.ui ,t ,.s xvhcn common shears arc u^cd Th; machme is manufactured by C M Mosema. I i. . ' York city • ^°^^^^^ & Bko.. of New FIG. MO.— SIIEF.P.SHEARINC; MACiriNK. COMB. currtR, care and sk.ll. The men who are in a constant hurry who cut -d slash both woo, and s.in, ought never to be e nXed A ffS 0;*^ '""' 'T "'" ''''"' ^"' "°' -°- ''- «■= tose L ■ ■ '"'"'■*' "''""^' *""« ""^ ^■'"""='. "■I n,ay o e ,ts hfe ,n consequence. It paj,s to handle the sheep care- fully and to avoid cutting them. The work should be done on a smoott and clean floor, or on a platform made for the purpose. The latter we have never tried. It is highly recommended by some shearers. The sheep should be kept in th. pen but a ^ort t,me,as the shearing can be more easily performed, and w.th less trouble to the sheep, when they are well filled with grass than ,t can when their stomachs are empty. Before they 710 riRMING FOR PROFIT. are taken to the floor all the dirt and straw should be got off from their feet, and any locks of wool which are covered with manure should be cut off The sheep should be set on its rump, and the wool sheared from its neck and fore-shoulders, then laid upon one side and the upper side sheared, then turned over and the wool taken from the other side. The wool should be cut reasonably close, but care must be taken neither to cut the skin nor the teats. The shearer should be quiet and gentle, and keep the sheep in an uncomfortable position as short a time as possible. Good shears are necessary to the easy and rapid performance of this work. While we do not favor extremely early shearing we think it very important that this work should not be delaytd too long. In hot weather sheep which are covered with long wool are extremely uncomfortable, and the thick covering is very injurious. When the sheep are out in heavy rains the wool takes in a large quantity of water, and the evaporation of this moisture removes a great deal of heat from the system, thus inviting a severe attack of disease. Besides, when sheared late in the summer the wool does not get a good start before the next autumn, and the sheep is unduly exposed to the cold weather when it comes. For some days after being sheared the sheep should be protected from storms. Many sheep have been killed outright, and a multitude more have incurred disease which finally, after much suffering, resulted in death, by exppsure to a heavy rain soon after being sheared. The skin of the sheep is very loose and open, and after the wool is removed rain easily penetrates it. A heavy rain also removes much of the natural heat from the system, and causes congestion of the vital organs. The fleece IS a great protection, and after its sudden removal the sheep should be well cared for until the system has power to adapt itself to the change. The newly sheared sheep should not be lei out at night, during a rainy day, or a thunder-storm, but SHEEP. >e got off •ered with iet on its shoulders, en turned lol should ler to cut id gentle, Drt a time ind rapid e think it too long, wool are is very the wool in of this :em, thus :ared late efore the the cold lould be outright, lly, after :avy rain :ry loose :netrates From the le fleece le sheep to adapt I not be jrm, but 711 should be shut into their barns during these times. This makes some extra work, but it pays well to take care oi sheep at this critical period. TiCKs.-These parasites attack all neglected sheep, and many which are well cared for. We once bought a lamb, of a prominent breeder of sheep, which was covered with them and which distr.buted them to the whole flock. The ticks not only cause a vast amount of suflering. but they keep the sheep thin m flesh and lighten the fleece. After the sheep are sheared the ticks leave them and get upon the lambs. If let alone they will woro. the lambs so much that they will not grow fast, and will come into winter quarters in very poor condition. As these parasites can be easily destroyed, there is no excuse for allowing them to remain upon the lambs. Various methods are in use for exterminating the ticks The old standard remedy for lambs infected with ticks was a decoction of tobacco. This was put into a tub. or narrow box and the lamb immersed in the liquid. For this work two men are needed. One should hold the lamb by the fore legs with one hand while his other hand covers the mouth and nose so as to prevent the fluid entering them, while the other man holds the lamb by the hind legs. The lamb should be held in the fluid only a moment. Then it should be taken out, and all the liquid which it is possible to remove squeezed from the wool. During this process the lamb should stand in an empty tub in order to save the liquid which drips from the wool. If made too strong, or the lamb is kept in the liquid too long, the tobacco will sicken the animal, and may even cause its death. The rule is to chop into fine pieces from five to seven pounds of plug tobacco for one hundred sheep. This should be boiled in water until its strength is extracted. The liquid can be used either warm or cold. The smoke of tobacco is also an effectual agent for destroying ticks, and if a fumigator is at hand may be used in preference to 712 FARMING FOR PROFIT. the decoction described above. The same precautions should be observed in its use as were recommended when used for destroying lice upon cattle. Still better than either of the above is the Cresylic Sheep Dip, a kind of soap with which both cresylic and carbolic acids are compounded. This is used in much the same manner as the decoction of tobacco, but is not poisonous, and will not injure the animals or those who apply the liquid. In two or three weeks after the sheep have been sheared nearly all of the ticks which were upon them will have gone to the lambs to feed upon their more tender flesh, and hide in their longer wool. Then the lambs should be subjected to some method of treatment which will remove the intruders, and give the lambs an opportunity to thrive, and a chance to be com- fortable. Winter Management.— At the South sheep should be pro- vided with comfortable sheds, and, in those portions where light snows fall, or the freshness of the food is destroyed by frost, hay and roots should be furnished as required. At the North much more elaborate preparation must be made. Shelter and food must be provided constantly for several months, and the flock must be cared for not only daily but several times a day. The sheep should be brought to the pens early in the season. Nothing is gained, but much will be lost, by keeping them out too long. When the grass has been frosted, the sheep should be got up to the yard, and fed once or twice a day, but should be allowed to run in an adjoining field most of the time when the weather is good, until it becomes quite cold, or the ground is covered with snow. At the very first of the feeding season the oldest and poorest of the flock should be separated from the others, and put upon higher keeping. They should have grain in abundance, and be made ready for the butcher as soon as possible. If any of the sheep are too poor to justify this course. SHEEP. 713 they should be killed and skinned without delay. This is much better than it is to keep them till spring, and then have them die of their own accord. Too many sheep must not be kept in a single pen. The Merino bears herding much better than the long-wooled sheep, but even this may be kept in too large flocks. It was formerly supposed that the long-wooled sheep could only be kept in flocks of from fifty to one hundred, but some Canadian breeders keep three hundred Cotsvvolds together without bad results. Mr. Coleman, of Kentucky, a prominent sheep- breeder, says: "I have handled in flocks of one hundred and over. They will do well; but, like cattle, will do better in smaller '-N. This is also true of other breeds of sheep." ProbaI:Hy^ u they have plenty of room, good care, and abundant food, iarge flocks of sheep can be kept without trouble. But if the pens are small, or the food is poor, large flocks will soon ^ become diseased, and the owner will sustain a heavy loss. A good shed, which is comfortably warm and thoroughly ventilated, should be provided. Sheep will endure cold much better than they can impure air. Still they should not be exposed to the action of wind or rain, and the temperature of the pen should not run extremely low. Small pens, which are quite warm, should be provided for the use of sheep at lambing time, and for sheep which do not own their lambs. The feeding should always be under cover. A convenient rack, at which all the sheep can stand at once without crowding, should be placed in the middle of the shed. This rack should be arranged not only to hold hay but so that it can be easily cleaned, and so that roots or meal can be fed in it without waste. The bottom of the shed should be kept constantly dry. Quite a quantity of straw, or swale hay, can be profitably used for bedding. If nothing of this kind is at hand, or can be spared, the pen should be cleaned every day. // is not safe to allow the ground upon which the sheep and lambs are kept to 714 FARMING FOR PROFIT. become either wet or filthy. Better use the finest hay for bedding than to allow the sheep to stand on moist ground. Either col se would be extravagant, but one would only waste the hay while the other would spoil the sheep. On most farms plenty of coarse hay or straw can be supplied. Feeding should be done with great regularity. Many owners feed only twice a day — once in the morning and again towards night. Some feed again at noon. Sheep do not eat well in the dark. Const juently they should have their afternoon meal soon enough to finish it by daylight. Water should also be regularly supplied. Some writers assert that sheep do not need water in the summer, and others say that they do not require it in winter. We are convinced that they need it at all times of the year. There are sheep — we have seen a few— which eat snow in preference to drinking water, but nearly all those which we ever took care of drank water as regularly as horses and cows. Sheep seem to prefer to drink " little and often." Consequently they should either have constant access to a trough of pure water, or else should be allowed to run for an hour or two at morning and night in a yard where plenty of water can be obtained. Shallow troughs are better than tubs. When the water is low the sheep can get it better from troughs, and there is less danger that lambs will fall in and be drowned when they are full. The quantity of food will depend upon its quality. Nothing can be gained by short keeping. We always designed to give our sheep all the rowen hay they would eat, and when the ewes had lambs add some roots or a little meal to their rations. Some owners give good hay and straw, and one pound of turnips per day for each sheep. Others give one quart of oats with hay and straw, or, in place of the oats, a pound of corn or meal. An occasional feed of bright corn-stalks will be relished by sheep and do them good. It is not well to keep breeding ewes very fat, and it is absolutely ruinous to allow them to get SHEEP. 716 very thin in flesh. While a variety of food will be relished, and will give better results than any one kind which is continuously given, care must be taken not to overfeed at one time or under- feed at another. Such a course would injure the health and would damage the quality of the wool. Sheep which are uni- formly well fed produce wool of uniform strength and size of fibre, but those which are sometimes starved and sometimes stuffed will have fleeces of very uneven fibre, and wool-buyers will be likely either to reject such fleeces altogether or else make quite a discount from the ordinary price. Sheep which are to be fattened need more grain and less hay than those which are kept for breeding. They should be put into the winter-quarters early and fed with rowen, clover hay, or bright straw, and some kind of grain. The grain should be given in small quantities at first, and gradually increased to one pound of oil meal, or Indian corn, per day for each sheep. Buckwheat is ^.ometimes used instead of meal or corn. The same weight should be given. We much prefer the oil meal to any other food for fattening sheep, and consider good rowen and bright clover very much superior to straw or to most other kinds of hay. Salt should be kept in a box to which sheep can have access at any time. It seems to be necessary to their comfort, and we believe that it tends to keep them in good health. The cost is slight, and if it could be proved that no special benefit except the gratification of a natural appetite resultea from its use, it would still be best for the owner of the sheep to furnish all they cared to eat. But we think there is plenty of evidence that salt is a useful article of diet, and that it should be freely supplied to aU domestic animals. Exercise. — This is a very important matter and one which has not received the attention which it deserves. During the »»mmcr the sheep roam in pastures and travel around each day in quest of food. But in winter they are too often shut into 716 FARMING FOR PROFIT. close pens, or stables, and for several months have nothing deserving the name of exercise. This period of I'.nnatural con- finement comes at a time when, of all others, the breeding ewes most need the benefits of regular exercise. The results of this neglect must be injurious to both the sheep and their lambs. In order to counteract this tendency to close confinem-nt, some writers recommend placing the feeding racks at quite a distance from the pens. This would do well in fair weather and good travelling, but would be open to serious objections in stormy weaiher, when the snow is deep and when the ground is covered with ice. We have been in the habit of allowing the sheep to run in the cattle yards an hour or two each night. A larger yard and more time spent therein would probably be still better. The Diseases of Sheep which are properly bred and cared for are few in number, but neglected or ill-bred flocks are liable to a great number of maladies. Here, as has already been insisted upon in the case of cattle, prevention is worth infinitely more than cure. We are fully satisfied, not only from observa- tion but from an experience of many years, that there need be but little sickness in well-kept flocks of sheep. Having given directions for taking care of sheep so as to keep them well, we shall only consider a very few of the diseases to which neglected flocks are exposed. And even these diseases are sometimes better exterminated by destroying the sheep infected by them. Probably the majority of sheep-owners would do well to follow the course long since marked out by Mr. Peters, of Darien, N. Y. He says, in a letter to Mr. Randall: "After years of experience I discarded all medicines except those to cure hoof- rot and scab; and I finally cured those diseases cheapest by selling the sheep. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If sheep are well kept summer and winter, not over- crowded in pastures, and kept under dry and well-ventilated covers in winter, and housed when the cold fall rains come on, SHEEP. 717 there will be no necessity for remedies of any kind. If not so handled, all the remedies in the world won't help them, and the sooner a careless, shiftless man loses his sheep the better. They are out of their misery and are not spreading contagious diseases among the neighboring flocks." Unless the animals are particularly valuable, it will pay better to check the progress of disease which ass'jmes an aggravated form by killing the sheep than it will to attempt a cure. Catarrh. — This disease is more likely to affect the long- wooled breeds of sheep than it is any others. It is usually caused by some undue exposure to storms — by getting chilled after running, or by lying on wet ground. It is not often im- mediately fatal, but sometimes weakens the vital forces so that the sheep cannot go through the winter. Prevention is easy. Cure, except by good nursing, constant care, and extra food, is very difficult, and even these means are not always successful. Colic is a very painful and violent disease. It is brought on by improper feeding, drinking cold water when heated, and similar causes. Confinement to dry food for a long time causes constipation which frequently results in an attack of colic. Un- less relief is soon obtained this disease is likely to prove fatal. When a sheep is attacked with this disease it has, at intervals, paroxysms of severe pain, stretches itself, twists its head around, and gets up and lies down quite often'. Give, as soon as pos- sible, one ounce epsom salts dissolved in warm water, with a drachm of ginger and a teaspoonful of the essence of pepper- mint. Half of this quantity is sufficient for a lamb. In mild cases, warm thoroughwort tea, made very strong, may prove effectual. DiARRHCEA. — This disease is frequently caused by a sudden change of food from dry hay to grass. Sometimes it is brought on by a general disarrangement of the digestive functions. With sheep, the best remedy is a change of food. Lambs need more thorough treatment, and the disease often proves futal even when 1 in 1 '^^vHIn ^1 1 |HHB I^^H ^^W 1 ^^^^^B ^^B ^^B 1 718 FARMING FOR PROFIT. remedial measures are taken. It is usually caused, in lambs, by taking cold or by acidity of the stomach which leads to indiges- tion. Mr. Randall recommends giving one-fourth , * an ounce of prepared chalk in half a pint of tepid milk, once a day for tw. or three days, or until the disease has abated. In very severe cases, when mucus is voided with the dung, the first treatment should be the administration of a half-drachm of rhubarb, or a half-ounce of epsom salts. This sh- uld be followed by the chalk as directed above. Garget.— This disease is not as common among sheep as it is with cows, but sometimes proves very injurious. As soon as the udder presents an inflamed and swollen appearance, or seems to be sore, hot water in which a little opium, or laudanum, has beei steeped should be applied. This wash should be repeated mar.y times a day until a cure is effected. Treatment of this disease should be prompt, not only in order to cure the sheep, but also to save the lamb, which, unless fed by hand or put upon another ewe, may not be able to obtain milk enough to keep it alive. If this treatment, closely followed for two or three days, gives no relief, a liniment of iodine and ammonia in equal parts' should be tried. But, if taken in season, the hot water and opium will almost always effect a cure. Grub in the Head.— This name is made to do duty for various diseases the causes and action of which are unknown. Still there are some genuine cases, and they sometimes prove fatal. A fly lays its eggs in the nostrils of the sheep, and the eggs hatch into grubs which take up their abode in the head. In order to prevent their attacks it is well to plow a few furrows, in several different ph es, in the pasture about the first of July.' The sheep will put their noses into the fresh earth and thus keep the fly away. Some owners cover the noses of the sheep with tar. Others put tar in the salt box, sprinkle on a little salt, and let the sheep make their own application. ■ It is said that the grubs can be destroyed by blowing tobacco SHEEP. 719 smoke up the nostrils of the affected sheep. The bowl of the pipe is covered with a cloth and the smoke forced through the stem. Hoof-Rot.— This is the worst of all the diseases with which sheep are affected. It is very contagious, and a single sheep suffering from this disease is capable of ruining the whole flock to which it belongs. The disease is not incurable, but prompt and stringent measures alone will suffice for its extermination. If a cure is attempted all the sheep which show any signs of the disease should be wholly separated from the others and medical treatment commenced at once. But, if the sheep are not spe- cially valuable, we should prefer to sell the whole flock to the butcher for what they would bring, the sick ones being of no value except for their pelts, thoroughly disinfect the pens and yards, and, after the lapse of six months or a year, obtain a new stock. If a cure is attempted, the sheep should be driven to the pens immediately after a rain, if possible, as the hoofs will then be softer than they will in dry weather. The feet must be cleaned and the operator, with sharp knives, must cut away the horn which covers the diseased portions of the foot. No more cutting than is necessary should be done, but what is needed must be thoroughly performed, as the success of the effort to cure depends entirely upon the exposure of all of the affected parts. For this work a careful, skilful, and if possible an experienced, operator should be secured. The best remedies \M be useless if the foot is not properly prepared. When this has been effected the application of suitable caustics will effect a cure. Mr. Randall cured many cases by paring the feet and applying a solution of blue vitriol. He obtained about twelve pounds of the vitriol for one hundred sheep. This was dissolved in a quantity of hot water and placed in a washing tub large enough to hold two sheep. The liquid was as hot as could be endured for a mo- ment by the hand, and was kept at this heat by frequent addi- 720 FARMING FOR PROFIT. tions of the hot solution. "As soon as a sheep's feet were pared it was placed in the tub and held there by the neck by an assistant. A second one was prepared and placed beside it. When the third one was ready, the first was taken out, and so on. Two sheep were thus constantly in the tub, and each remained in it about ten minutes. The cure was perfect." Doubtless this is a much more efficient, and, on the whole, a more merciful method than the frequent application of caustic to the feet, but it seems cruel to make a sheep whose feet are terribly diseased, and have been pared down to the quick, stand for ten minutes in a strong, hot solution of blue vitriol. Stil), the common method of washing the feet with some caustic solu- tion is slow in its effects and often proves unavailing. The caustic does not touch all of the diseased parts, and, by contact with t'he ground, is almost immediately removed from the spots to which it is applied. This necessitates frequent painful appli- cations and involves great uncertainty as to the results. On the whole, if the sheep are to be saved, Mr. Randall's method is the best one which has yet been presented. This terrible disease is much laore prevalent among Merino sheep than it is with long-wooled breeds, and is also much more difficult to cure. This is due, in part at least, to a difference in the formation of the foot. Whenever the disease appears it should be eradicated at once, and a great deal of care should be taken not to expose neighboring flocks. Feeding in the same pasture, or driving over the same road with or soon after an infected Hock has passed, is almost sure to fasten the disease upon a large part of the animals thus exposed. Consequently in purchasing sheep care should be taken to obtain those which have no trace of this disease, and no exposure to it, however sWght, should be permitted whenever it can possibly be avoided. Poison. — Sheep and lambs are sometimes poisoned by eating laurel, both the narrow-leaved or " low laurel," and the broad- leaved or " spoonwood." St. John's Wort is also said to poison SHEET. 721 sheep rely. Soot which has been applied as severely, ouui wmcn nas ocen applied to grass or grain a fertilizer is sometimes eaten in sufficient quantities to destroy the life of the sheep. Laurel is the most common poison which sheep arc inclined to eat. Mu. Morkeli., in his work on Sheep, says: "After eating it the animal appears to le dull and stupid, swells a little, and is constantly gulping a greenish fluid which it swallows down ; a part of it will trickle out of its mouth and discolor its lips." He says that if in the early stages the greenish fluid is suffered to escape the sheep will probably recover. To effect the escape of the fluid he recommends the use of a gag made of a stick " the size of your wrist, and six inches long — place it in the animal's mouth — tie a string to one end of it, pass it over the head and down to the other end, and there make it fast. The fluid will then rur\ from the mouth as fast as thrown up from the stomach. In addition to this, give roasted onions and sweetened milk freely." We have never tried this method, but have relied upon the use of cathartics. The great difficulty with these is that they act so slowly that the poison gets distributed throughout the system. It is said that a strong decoction of white ash, made by boiling the bruised twigs in water for an hour, and given in quantities of from one-half gill to one gill, and repeated if necessary, will cure poisoning by laurel if administered within a day of the time the laurel was eaten. Sweet oil in six ounce doses, or one-half pint of linseed oil, will sometimes effect a cure. The immediate use of a stomach pump by means of which the poison can be diluted with water, and much of it removed, will be altogether the best method in all cases in which it Js available. When this cannot be employed one of the remedies named above should be tried. Scab. — This is a disease of the skin, similar to the itch in men, which causes an immense amount of pain, and, if allowed to run its course, kills the sheep. It is caused by a minute insect which burrows under the skin, hatches its young, and the II 722 FARMING FOR PROFIT. new generations come out only to burrow in fresh places to bring forth thoir famihes. The affected sheep rubs against posts and doors, bites itselt, and tears out its wool. Small red spots appear on the skin. These soon become sores and are covered with scabs. All infected sheep should be separated from the others, and the posts and all other places against which they have rubbed should be washed with strong tobacco water. If the wool is short the scabs should be rubbed from the infected sheep with a stiff shoe-brush, and the animals then dipped in tobacco water as directed for killing ticks, or what is a great deal better, the Crf.svlic Sheep Dip should be used. If the wool is very long it should be parted, and the latter remedy applied to all the sores. Short-woolcd sheep are not as likely to be attacked by this disease as the long-woolcd breeds, and healthy sheep arc much freer from it than those which economy. They utilize a great deal of what otherwise would be waste material, they furnish a vast amount of food, and, by concentrating its value, they enable the farmer who is so far from the cities and towns that he cannot afford to pay the transportation charges of bulkv material to get his grass and grain to a profitable market. They can be kept on large or small farms, in droves or smgly, as the sole representatives of live-stock on the farm, with the exception of animals kept for their labor, or in connection with cows and sheep. They save so much material which but for them would be lost, and furnish so large quantities of valuable manure, that it is difficult to see how any farmer, even the one who does the smallest business, can afford to be with r- it one or more of these animals. That t!;ere exists a prejudice against swine is very true, and many people will neither keep nor eat the flesh of one of these SWINE. 725 creatures. But the facts that the number of these animals in this country is about twenty-six millions, with a total value of one hundred and seventy-five millions of dollars, and that both number and value are constantly and rapidly increasing, indicate that the antagonistic feeling is neither very general nor very powerful. It is too late in the day to assert that pork is " not fit to eat." Nearly all civilized races make a large -ise of the flesh and products of the hog, and have done so for a long period. Invalids and persons engaged in sedentary employ- ments may not be able to eat large quantities of pork without injury, but, when properly cooked, the flesh of ;i well-fattened pig may be used with beneficial effects by the great majority of people who are in a fair state of health. Too much fried salt pork in hot weather is not well for any one to use, but this is no reason why pork should be wholly condemned. Neither do we regard the fact that the Mosaic legislation excluded pork from the diet of the ancient Jews as an indication that the improved pigs of the present day arc unfit for food.. There were various reasons which influenced that legislation which do not apply to our people and our conditions of life and society. The Jews were to be "a peculiar people," and to be. kept separate from the surrounding nations. Much of the legis- lation of the early period of their national history had for its end and aim the strict keeping of this separation, . It has also beea suggested that the swine in ancient Egypt and vicinity were badly diseased, and that the use of their flesh caused, or aggra- vated, the leprosy from which the people severely suffered. Whatever the reason, we think that it long since passed away and that all Christian people are at perfect liberty to eat pork if they desire to do so. And it is a noticeable fact that many who insist that the Mosaic prohibition was a sure indication that the flesh of swine is unwholesome, do not have the same regard for the other prohibitions of that legislation, but utterly ignore many of its most stringent provisions. 46 726 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Breeds of Swine. — Quite a number of different breeds are now very popular in various parts of the country, and there are several which have a general instead of a local reputation. Among those which, on account of their wide dissemination as well as their valuable qualities, have become generally known, the Chester White, Suffolk, and Yorkshire, among the .white pigs, the Magie, or Poland-China, white and black, and the Essex, and Berkshire, which are black, are the most promi- inent, There are breeds which may, when more widely known, rank higher than some of those named above. Each of the breeds we have named has excellent points. Some are bet- ter fitted to endure the exposure to which pigs kept in large droves are frequently subjected than others, which, when care- fully tended, are equally good. There are multitudes of good hogs which do not belong to either of the well-known breeds, but. are called "natives." Probably a still larger number of the ua:tive pigs are extremely poor and are unprofitable animals to Iceep. In order to obtain a fair profit, good pigs, of some kind, must be secured. The farmer who kept the same hog seven years because he was able to " eat all the sv/ill made on the farm," had a very imperfect idea of the end for which this class i:{ animals should be kept. What is wanted is a pig which will tnake the largest possible returns for the food which the owner Is able to supply. The man who has rich clover fields and thousands of bushels of "ten-cent" corn, and who ships his pigs to the city mark t, wants a very different style of an animal from the mechanic in a country village who only keeps one pig to utilize the waste of the household and furnish part of the meat for family use. Thus it will be readily seen that all good breeds, however different their characteristics, have their uses, .and may be made not only available but also profitable. The only caution necessary is that the right men get the right breed of pigs. Without giving a lengthy description of each breed, we will breeds are id there are reputation. miination as ally known, among the 1 black, and most promi- ie\y known, Sach of the me are bet- jpt in large , when care- dcs of good own breeds, mber of the i animals to ■ some kind, : hog seven lade on the ch this class g which will ;h the owner r fields and [lips his pigs f an animal seps one pig part of the hat all good 2 their uses, itable. The right breed reed, we will I f • ES==^-- -7^^ FIG. III. .. CHESTER WHITES PIGS ■■ King of Chester Cnu.Uy." and •• Model of Perfection/' Drawn from life. Owned by Benson, Maule & Co., Philadelphia, Pa. 2. ESSEX PIG, « brie • whi up' whi kno . pop of I • coir sam Wh the true ^ slig fam ) sho han The • in coa the , of < 1 son ' of J sho fav< and and cell \ got old. the] hur SWINE. 729 briefly mention a few of the leading characteristics of the ones which have been named. The Chester White is a " made- up " breed which originated in Chester County, Pa., and of which there are many different strains. The better class of pigs known by this name are entitled to a very high rank, but the popularity of the breed has been greatly clouded by the action of unprincipled parties who have sent out large numbers of the common pigs of that section (which were no better than the same class of pigs in other localities) as the genuine Chester White, and taken high prices for them. The better classes of the genuine breed have been well established and v/ill breed true, but many of the pigs sold under this name have not the slightest claim to a place with this, or any other specified, family. The real Chester is white, has a short head, thin ears, short and thick neck, long and deep body with a broad back, hams full and deep, coating thin, no bristles, and a small tail. The hogs can be made to attain a great weight. Mr. Harris, in his work on the Pig, says that this is "a large, rather coarse, hardy breed, of good constitution, and well adapted to the system of management ordinarily adopted by the majority of our farmers." The Suffolk is a small but valuable breed. Its hand- some appearance commends it to those who care for the looks of a pig, while the ease with which it can be fattened and the shortness of the time required to get it into condition make it a favorite with villagers and with farmers who keep but a few pigs and who are not particular about large size. It is very old and firmly established breed. Consequently the boars are ex- cellent for using with good native sows. When fed high, the pigs fatten at a very early age, and can be got into condition to kill at any time after they are six weeks old. If kept on short rations during the first few months they grow to considerable size, and can be made to weigh four hundred pounds. If given enough to cat they will stay at home, : yttmm^'-smmm^issi ^ "S^l^ISi H, 730 FARMING FOR PROFIT. and do nothing but eat and rest. They do well when kept ot grass, and require less grain than most other breeds. As ihuv are very quiet, they are not as useful for working; over nianurt: piles as some other pigs, but for making a large quantity of pork which contains but little waste from the smallest possible quantity of food they have no superior. Some advocates ->f this breed claim that the Suffolk pig contains as mucii meat that is eatable " as most hogs of double his wei;,>:ht, and which consume four times his food." This is, probably, an overstaU- rnent of the . -!se, but from cnr limited experience with these pigs we judge f.IiT.t flu y utilize their food to the best advantage, while it must bf. dear to every observer that the ijroportion of offal is extremely small. It is said that the Suffolk pigs, on account of their thin hair and tender skin, do not endure the exposure to which Western pigs are usually subjected as well as some other breeds. Also, that, on account of their strong tenaency to fatten, the sows are not as prolific as it is deoiral* they should be. Still this breed is rapidly growing in favor throughout the country, and it possesses merit enough to enable it to hold a high position among the very best breeds in the world. Yorkshire. — There are a multitude of pigs scattered through- out the country which are said to belong to this breed. They vary as much in everything except color, which is always white, as they do from other white breeds. There are " large," and " middle," and " small " Yorkshires, and it is even claimed •' that all the best white pigs of modern times " are indebted to Yorkshire blood for their excellencies. Several breeds which have a local reputation claim descent from the York? i e, and some declare the Suffolk to be only a modificati *" this breed. That many ^ ellent pigs are called by Sr' .me there can be no doubt, buc a title which covers large . ^,^3 uiid small pigs of various forms and different habits must b. .i-tty elastic, and the application of the same name to animals v/hicl- differ so /ell when kept on breeds. As lh'.y :ini; over twaiiUit: large quantity of : smallest possible ame advocates if ins .IS much meat veij:>ht, and which ibly, ai) overstRtt- rience with these le best advantage, at the !.>roportion ; of their thin hair o which SYestern ler breeds. Also, •tten, the sows are ;. Still this breed ; country, and it d a high position scattered through- this breed. They which is always There are " large," \ it is even claimed s " are indebted to /eral breeds which le York' r e, and lodificati ^ this by i •■ .oie there •gc > ~'>gs and small 3t b^ p' vtty elastic, lals vhi-: -iiTfer so 4 ■ wide! \ , sell V Ut new 1 well ' this 1 dispu credi SIVINE. 733 widely makes it very easy for those who are so disposed to sell white pigs of unknown origin as genuine Yorkshires. Magie, or Poland-China. — Although this is a comparatively new breed of pigs, the originators claim that they have got it so well established that the animals breed perfectly true, and that this breed " is unsurpassed." There has been a great deal of dispute concerning the origin of this breed, and who should have credit therefor. But it seems to have been proved beyond a doubt that its perfection, if not its origin, is due to the careful and persevering labors of D. M. Magie, and several other breeders in Ohio. After hearing the claims of various parties, the National Convention of swine-breeders decided that the name of this breed ought to be Poland-China, and that the dozen or fifteen other names which had been used should be dropped. The pigs of this breed are spotted black and white, are quite hardy, good feeders, fatten well, and under favorable circum- stances attain a large size. They are not as fine, and do not mature as quickly as some other breeds, but seem to be well adapted to supply the wants of Western farmers. The sows of this breed when bred to Berkshire boars bring forth finer pigs, which are said to mature early and fatten easily. Essex. — This is a small breed of pure black swine. It has not been extensively introduced into the great pork-growing sections, but has won considerable favor in the Eastern and /VIiDDLE States. With the exception of color and less trouble with skin diseases, this breed closely resembles the Suffolk, The pigs mature early, and fatten very easily either on grass or grain. The sows are not as prolific, and the pigs, when small, are not as hardy as those of larger and coarser breeds. They are generally considr .'^d too small to be profitably grown for packing, but they ji'n .ver very well for farmers who keep but few hogs, and villagers who grow pork only for their own use. The boars are extremely valuable for crossing on sows of larger and coarser breed.^. ^f«% 734 FARMING FOR PROFIT. II Berkshire. — Probab'v t'lis ib rmich the most popular breed of swine in this coui\^r> , and there can be no doubt that it is one of the most pro iiable. It is an old English breed, and, having been cartfuUy managed for a long period, its character- istics are firmly established. These pigs are bl-^-k, with white markings on the face and legs. They are very healt!iy atid vigorous, fatten easily, and attain a medium size. The sows are prolific an.l are good milkers, in these respects being much superior to 3;,veral of the other breeds, and the boars transmit their own good qualities when crossed with natives or with other breeds. The flesh of the Berkshire pigs is said to be superior, and, on this account, this breed would seem to be well adapted to the wants of those who grow pork for home use. While the breeds which we have name' possess many excel- lencies, and there are several others which are of considerable value, there are many pigs which have no recognized name which can be made profitable on the farm. It is not desirable that all the men who keep pigs should keep thorough-breds exclusively. Raising thorough-breds for the butcher would hardly pay, because these pigs n ;cd more care and better food than the average farmer gives, Also, ir the case of the small and refined breeds, and, i. some extent, ...c larger ones, because a cross of a thorough-bred boar with a gooti, large, and thrifty sow will be likely to give ; , iger pigs, which will possess the good qualities of the boar strengthened with the vigor of the sow, than would be obtained by the use of = purely bred sow. If the best of care could, and woi'1' be given, thorough-bred pigs would be the best. But, as Mj \R ^ has well rem.'-rked, " The aim oi" a good breeder of pi(,; is to ^'et a breed that will g:.o«.v rapidly and mature early. And the better the breed the more rapidly they will grow. But the best stove in the world cannot give out heat without a supply of fuel ; neither can the best bred pig in the world grow rapidly without food ; and the more thoroughly the power to grow rapidly has become estab- popular breed oubt that it is ;h breed, and, , its character- ~k, with white ' healt!iy and The sows are being much )oars transmit itives or with ; is said to be ;em to be ivell home use. ;s many excel- f considerable ognized name J not desirable horough-breds [)utc]ier would nd better food e of the small - ones, because ■ge, and thrifty /ill possess the ie vigor of the irely bred sow. thorough-bred well rem ked, breed that will p the breed the ve in the world neither can the food; and the become estab- ;"^****««'«*»*~«... .^.^,„ , siywE. 737 lishcd by long and careful breeding the less capable does the pig become to stand starvation." It is only natural that the ofispring of pigs brought up under adverse circumstances should be more hardy than that of pigs which have been very carefully bred. Besides, it is not neces- sary, in order that the desired end may be attained, to use thor- ough-bred sows. The writer just quoted says of the highly refined English breeds : " Their real value consists in their per- fection of form, smallness of bone and offal, and the great de- velopment of the ham, shoulder, cheeks, and other valuable parts; and added to this is their ability to transmit these quali- ties to their offspring. This ability is in proportion to ther> purity, and hence the value of pedigree. When one of theye pure-bred boars is put to a good grade or common sow we g(;t precisely what we want -pigs having the form, the refinement, the early maturity, smallness of offal, and tendency to fatten of the thorough-bred, combined with the vigor, constitution, appe- tite, and great digestive powers of the larger and coarser sow. In other words, as far as the production of pork is concerned, we get a perfect pig— and there the improvement ends. We have attained our object, and all that we have to do is to repeat the process." Here the case is plainly stated and a great deal of truth condensed into a few sentences. Get good grade or common sows and use only thorough^bred boars. This is a safe rule for farmers, and all who feed pigs for the butcher, to follow so far as this kind of stock is concerned. Of course, if this plan is to be followed, some one must raise thorough-bred piga ij> order to obtain the boars which will be needed, The farnie|! who keeps a large stock of hogs tan profitably dp this himself, He can keep a i^i^^ thorough'breds fpp \\\\^ spepial purpose, Those who keep but few pigs q^n bqy boarg pf breeders as they are needed, As already Indicated, this course is of much more imnortance- when the small ' reeds are kept than it »§ with th? larger pncs, I \ 738 FARMING FOR PROFIT. But even with the Chester White, Poland-China, and Berk- shire, grades obtained in the manner described will often be found superior, as far as the mere production of pork is con- cerned, to the thorough-breds. But it is all important to the success of this plan that the sows should be good animals and well adapted to the purpose designed. The " razor-back " and " race-horse " styles must be let alone, and the best specimens of good animals should be selected. Whatever the sow may be, by all means use a thorough-bred boar. A grade hog may look just as well, perhaps even better, but he is wholly unfit for breeding purposes. The qualities of the thorough-bred have been fixed by a long course of careful breeding, and he has power to impress them upon his oflspring, but the good qualities of the grade have no element of perma- nence, and nothing but disappointment to the owner and degen- eracy to the stock can come of his use as a breeder. Not only should the boar be purely bred, but he should be a good representative of the breed to which he belongs. There is a great difference in thorough-breds, and only the finest should b2 used for breeding. Some men who sell pigs weed out their s/ock and send the specimens which are not up to a fair standard o*" excellence directly to the butcher. This course should be pursued by all v/ho deal in breeding stock. Not only should good stock, both male and female, be selected for breeding, but the individuals should be allowed to attain a suitable age before they are used for this purpose. Here is where the majority of farmers make a great mistake. They do not wait 'mtil the pigs are fulJy developed, but aJlow them to breed before they are grown. Too many farmers allow a boar pig only a few months old to serve a sow of the same litter, or one still younger, then castrate the boar and fatten him, and, when the pigs are weaneJ, fatten the sow. By so doing they cannot secu 2 the best ciajs "f pigs. From half-grown parents only a second or third class of animals can be secured. Even L, and Berk- vill often be pork is con- >rtant to the animals and r-back" and 5t specimens horough-bred even better, qualities of se of careful lis offspriBg, It of perma- r and degen- should be a ;s. There is Rnest should ied out their fair standard i should be :, be selected d to attain a se. Here is e. They do low them to allow a boar me litter, or m him, and, doing they 3wn parents ured. Even SIVINE. rect loss. Pil L:', o !"" TT' ""= '' ^'""^^ ^" ^"*-- same care and 71 ^ " """ ■>"''="'' ''°"W' ''■'* *= .ha„ ro::iti ::;,■'—- '-- ..=„.., <,fp„,, parents of undeveloped powers. But it often P^.s are feeble, and from these and various other causes the em.rt to secure a good litter of pigs proves a failure. 7Z^l had been Icept until he was a year old before being put to s" v.ce a. all and allowed to serve but few sows un'rhe was a year and a half old, his pigs would have been n,uch mo el, ot., and would have taken on flesh with much greater rap*;. half old before bnngmg her first litter there would have been a spnng. Of the two ,t seems more important that the sow should be well developed than the boar WMe growing, it is all that the sow ought to do to perfect herself If, ,„ add,t,on to this, she is obliged to give much of her strength and vita, power to the productL of the yoZg h -owh „,11 be checked, her maturity retarded, and she wH, be ar-tendant upon .mmaturity, and weakness on the part of the ZZ'%7'° r'-' ' ^'■" ^-''- <'^^- of we'aknes on the part of their offspring. A boar may be kept for breeding until he is five or six years old, .f he ,s not cross and he gets good stock. If his pigs from good sows do not thrive, if he is not a sure getter, if he doe" not get p,gs „„,formly like himself, or if he becomes cross he should be castrated. But a good boar which is properi; kep w,ll get rnuch stronger and better pigs after he is two years old than he will h/.fr,re -m^ ^e -, — , , ^ „.f k .* • " ', """ ' ^'■■"'''■^^ ''"^*'' ^" oJd boar will get better pigs than one that is young. '•^*^«^«««-^^«^*«^:::r^^ V40 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Where farmers keep only from two to a dozen hogs, the cost of keeping a boar on each farm is quite an item. Here the principle of neighborhood ownership, which has already been explained and advocated, should be applied, Mr. Coburn, in his excellent work on "Swine Husbandry," advocates this plan, and says : "Among the benefits resulting from this method would be the use of a good boar, matured and fitted for good service; an improved class of pigs, and a generous rivalry, encouraging each of his owners to keep a better grade of sows, under improved and more profitable conditions." When sev- eral farmers own a boar in company, they can afford to keep him until he is too old to be serviceable. The cost to each on<; will be very slight, yet each one will have the advantage of taffing his sows to a first-class and fully matured boar, and will find the extra value of the pigs in a single season more than pa/ the whole expense in which he is involved. The sows which prove good mothers should be kept for several years. This is a much better way than the course often followed of fattening a sow as soon as possible after the pigs are weaned, and then choosing younger ones for breeders. The old sows will bear stronger and better pigs than young ones, will take better care of them, furnish them a larger quan- tity of milk, and be less liable to injure them. In every respect matured animals are better for breeding than those which are young. The degree of success which will be attained by the farmer who attempts to raise pigs will, to a great extent, depend upon the care which his breeding stock receives. If the animals are neglected and ha.lf-starved, the pigs will be very sure to be of inferior quality. If well cared for, there will be much more certainty that their offspring will be good. The boar and sows should not be allowed to run together, but should have separate pens and yards. The boar should be kept in a thrifty condition, but should not be allowed to get very fat. He ought to have a SWINE. 741 goodpen anda dry^rd. I. summer he should also be allowed The sow should neither be fat nor thin In flesh. Either e«ren,e ,s h.ghly injurious, and will exert a bad influence upon the p,gs. Both before and after being bred the sow which is to have p,gs should be kept separate fro™ the fattening s.^. she should be fed upon slops in which shorts and a moderate ,uant,.y of meal have been mixed Tn warm weather, runn^g .1. a clover pasture will prove highly beneficial hJr7 T' ^1 "'* ^°""^ f'-"" O"' '•™'^^«,Tn Hie«"e i-^inr "- ■—,■■ -- - i , - - . -....I. -ice „. in^ ..., .-=c. ur pucKCf, \m to hoid the pus formed during the healing process. It is not best to pcrfom: II :;■■■ •■■ ■"■„ :,'•■ V •*' .,ik. '•»««*«V«ia*^..,^.„ 744 FARMING FOR PROFIT. this Operation when the boar is very fat, or the weather too warm, as the risk is much greater." When a large number of hogs are kept and the services of some one who is competent to perform the operation can be secured, it pays to have the sows spayed when about three months old. Mr. CoBURn strongly advocates this, but says that " unless it can be done by a person understanding it, it is risky business," and expresses the opinion that there are " a thousand men who can do a tolerable job at castrating a boar, to one that is competent to properly spay a sow." On account of the difficulty, and, if not perfectly done, the danger of the operation, it will hardly pay the man who keeps only a few hogs to have it performed. The owner of a large drove can afford to hire some one who understands the best method, and it will pay him well to do so. Before undertaking this operation the beginner should, if possible, see it performed by some competent veterinarian. For the benefit of those who desire the infor- mation, but are not able to visit a surgeon, we will give the directions for spaying small animals which Prof. Law has furnished in his veterinary work. " The animal is stretched on its left side, the fore limbs and head being firmly secured, and the hind limbs extended backwards. The hair is shaved from the flank a little below the angle of the hip-bone, and an incision made from above down, extending to an inch in the pig or bitch, or sufficient to introduce the hand in the heifer. Then with the finger or hand, as the case may be, the womb is sought, backward at the entrance of the pelvis in the interval between the bladder and the straight gut. Being found, one horn or division is drawn up through the wound until its end is exposed with the round mass of the ovary adjacent. The latter is seized and cut or twisted off according to the size of the animal. Then the next horn and ovary are brought out and treated in the same way. The womi? ?= now returned into the abdomen, and the skin accurately sewed up." There are other methods of \ I performing the operation, but we consider this the best. After a sow has been spayed she must be protected from cold and storms. Turpentine or buttermilk should be applied to the wound if the weather is warm. If there is no danger from flies apply a little lard. Fattening Pigs.— In order to do this to the best advantage it is necessaiy to commence, and well to finish, the operation while the animals are young. It has been generally believed that old hogs would fatten more easily than pigs, but this is a great mis- take. Prof. Sanborn, of New Hampshire, who has given this subject considerable attention, advises the farmer to fatten his^ pigs by the time they are six months old, and believes that the man " who keeps a pig more than eight months loses twenty per cent." There can be no doubt that early maturity is advan- tageous, and that it is best to fatten pigs rapidly. Many farmers feed their pigs lightly in the spring and summer, just enough to keep them growing slowly, and do not really begin to feed well until fall. This is an unprofitable method. From the day when the pig leaves the sow until it is killed, it ought to be fed so that it will make a steady growth and take on flesh as fast as it increases in size. If the pigs have been fed while with the sow, as we have ad- vised, they will suffer but little when weaned. Having been taught to eat while with her, they will eat readily when taken from lier. At first they should be fed several times a day, early in the .Tiorning and in the evening, as well as in daylight. Milk, with a small quantity of corn meal which has been scalded, is the best food. If this cannot be supplied, slops and meal, or brai^ should be given. There should be a clean and comfortable pen provided, and plenty of fresh water should be supplied. In warm weather, access to a good clover pasture should be ^Ven, With the age of the pig the quantity and quality of its food should be stcudiiy increased. It often happens that two or three of die pigs in a Utter will 746 FARMING FOR PROFIT. be much smaller at wcaning-time than the others. Sometimes these pigs do not grow well, but we have known them to make the best hogs of the lot. They should have extra care and food It is best to let them remain a week or two longer with the sow. This will be a great benefit to her as well as to them, as it will cause the flow of milk to cease gradually. Many of the best breeders never take off all the pigs at once, but leave two or three after the others have been removed, and then take these ofif one at a time. This is a wise method for all growers to follow. A great deal has been said and written, and many experi- ments have been tried, in order to determine which is the best food for pigs which are being fattened. No great good ever has, or will, come out of these efforts. This because the pig, in common with all other animals, tiecds a variety of food, and no one article, however good, can in itself answer all the require- ments of his system. Many farmers, especially at the East, wholly overlook the fact that the pig is a grass-eating animal and likes fresh clover as well as the cow. At the West there has been a too exclusive use of Indian corn, and terrible visitations of disease have been among the results. Undoubtedly, when fed as it should be, corn is the best article for fattening pigs which we have, but it is altogether too heating and concentrated to use alone. Fed with grass and roots, of which artichokes are highly prized at the West, and plenty of slops, it gives the best results in proportion to its cost of anything which the farmer can use. When the fattening process is to go on slowly, and the owner prefers to have the pigs attain a larger size before taking on much flesh, the use of boiled potatoes and milk will prove an efficient means for attaining the desired end. We use small potatoes in this manner and think they are more profitable than when fed to cows. A diet of grass and water, with a little meal, will also be good in warm weather. When tile fattening process is to be hastened, the quantity of meal 747 should be increased or ears of corn should be fed. In order to provide for the summer drought, which usually ripens off the grass m pastures, some peas may be sown broadcast in the spnng^ These will not only furnish green food when it is most needed, but the peas will be found very beneficial. In Canada peas are extensively used for fattening pigs, and they will in' time, be more generally grown in this country It is not well to keep too many pigs in a single yard. Like all other animals, and to a greater extent than some, pigs need room. They want to exercise and they want to be clean. Though they like an occasional mud-bath, they do not like to be m mud all the time. When they have the opportunity they will keep as clean as any domestic animals. If large numbers are kept m filthy yards, or small pastures, disease is very likely to carry off a large proportion of them. Not only in order that the p.gs may be comfortable, but also for the profit of the owner they should always have plenty of room. When taken from grass and shut into the feeding-yards, where meat is to be made with the greatest possible rapidity, the change of food should be gradual. Bran slop with boiled potatoes and. a little meal should be given at first. Gradually increase the meal, or corn, and leave out the bran and potatoes. In a. short time the hogs can be brought to full rations of corn without injury. The fattening should be done before cold weather. We do not believe the average farmer makes it pay to feed pigs dur- ing the winter for pork. If he has pigs, as he should, he must feed them, of course, but the aim .should be to keep them thriftjr and growing but not to fatten rapidly. Salt should be given occasionally, and ashes should be placed within reach of the pigs. In all respects the animals should be made as comfortable as possible. They should always have food enough— all that they will eat clean--b*it should not be aslo'A'cd to leave any. The food should iwv . - be thrown mto the mud, but ought always to be given in a '.'can place 46 *" • , "*»*a,M«a-«««,» ih I 748 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Upon this point the National Live-Stock Journal well says : " No hog will thrive when compelled to eat and sleep in the mud. Dry dust is almost as injurious as nud. Conse- quently, when hogs are confined to a small lot or pen, it is always the best economy to provide a good feeding-floor of solid boards for them. There is no more wasteful practice in feeding than that often seen on our Western prairie farms, of hogs con- fined in an open pen, w, h the black prairie soil converted into a deep mud, in which they must both eat and sleep. Although all the grain may be sought out and eaten, no one ever saw hogs thrive under such treatment. The grain is simply wasted. It will pay to spend the price of a few bushels of corn in pre- paring good quarters at the beginning of the fattening season, and, when once prepared, the shelter and fccding-floor will last for several years. C-^ntent and comfort arc absolutely essential to a rapid accumiiJjidon of fat." Even when the enclosure is large enough to ^p'. e :>mple room, it is best to have a feeding- floor. If this is ri - k?cted, there will be many stormy days in which the ground will be soft, and the pigs must pick their food out of the mud. Besides, in cold rains and snow storms, they need the shelter which a well-constructed shed supplies. The hours of feeding should be regular, and ought to be very closely observed. Pigs which are always fed " on time " will gain flesh much faster than those which have the same quantity and quality of food, but which receive it at irregular intervals. Whether it pays to cook meal for hogs which are being fat- tened, is a question upon which " the doctors disagree " as freely as they do upon the same question concerning the food for cows. That it is best to cook meal for young pigs we have no •doubt, and there are many earnest advocates of cooking meal for pigs which are being rapidly fattened. Among the advo- 'cates are many very successful men who have had an immense amount of experience in the business of making pork. But many carefully conducted experiments go to prove that cook- Journal well at and sleep in mud. Consc- )t or pen, it is ig-floor of solid :ticc in feeding IS, of hogs con- onverted into a :ep. Although I one ever saw simply wasted, of corn in pre- ttening season, y-floor will last )lutcly essential le enclosure is lave a feeding- stormy days in pick their food )W storms, they supplies. The be very closely will gain flesh J quantity and intervals. I are being fat- igree " as freely g the food for igs we have no ' cooking meal long the advo- id an immense ing pork. But ove that cook- ing the meal does not oav At tl, t result of a careful trh, '' ^'"'■'■'^^ ^'"^ *= food. Me J r M n "' '"'"'■"^ "'""'" '" "°'""S *' e.peH™e„;o::r 4:::'::r '"'■■ --' «=" "■- With the same\es„,t. M .T";' ^^^ "t' """" low., whose ho,.pc„ cost nearly o''- th " 7? has a "steam-engine, corn-s.one, cor!!, X vats'Td '" convenience that money could purchase "a^'d J "^"^ number of hogs, tried cookin ,1, r T; '" * '"S* b . irita cookin their food for three or fn,,.. , ground all his grain and In, ■■. . '"ee or four years, -rei3noadltager::.:r;:^::::!r-t Maine Agkicultural Corrrrp , • . *"® .. last « i r editi: :rr ~ r::: tXto "'* °" ™" ="?=*"-• a'*°"sh con The surrounding conditions and circumstances have much 1' do ,„ deciding the question of economy; and while one f me' under certain circumstances, could feed a considerable porW^o ' cooked gram and secure satisfactoiy returns therefor a othe' Afferent y situated, though perhaps i„ the same neighhTr od «^„ ^' ^""^ a practice which wHI pay one man may involve his neighbor in a heavy loss !!,!■ r . ^^'°"' ^ "'^ "== "f ""healthy and badlv- n,ated breeding-stock. Here, as with other animi thet« reliance of the farmer trm-f K i , ^^^' diseases m J b . "^ "P"" Prevention. Many diseases maybe prevented which cannot be cured, and those ^>. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) fe ^/ :/.. 1.0 1.1 X US 12.0 11:25 i u 1.6 V] vl ^> Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ^' ^ -^ \«* <^ 750 FARMING FOR PROFIT. which are curable involve a great loss to the owner of the stock which inexpensive preventive measures would save. Besides a hog is one of the worst of all animals to doctor. Medicines are best given in his food. If so far gone that he will not eat, he may be turned out of his pen and left to his own devices, or, if desired, medicines may be poured down his throat. The former method we have tried successfully, the latter we have never tested. In summer when a pig refuses to eat, turn him into a field in which he can have water and shade. He will be quite likely to burrow a deep hole in the earth, get 'into it, and lie there from ten to twenty-four hours. Then he may come out of his trouble and remain perfectly well. In winter the sicTc pig must have a warm nest, plenty of fresh water, and gruel if he wants it. Among specific diseases the so-called " hog cholera," which sweeps off millions of dollars worth of animals every year, is the most dreaded and the least understood. That it is extremely contagious, and may be carried on the shoes or in the clothes of men visiting an infected herd, there can be no doubt. That aside from the contagious influence the disease might be prevented in any given herd seems to oe admitted by the best authorities. The men who feed properly, give plenty of room, and fresh water, would not be likely to lose hogs from this disease if they were not exposed in some way to the contagion. The two things to be done are to be careful about the feeding and surroundings, and to avoid all possible sources of con- tagion. Many remedies have been advertised for this disease, but a genuine specific does not seem to have been found. The editors of the National Live-Stock Journal have refused to advertise these remedies because they "honestly believe them to be practically worthless as cures for the disease. It may be that some of them possess value as tonics ; but the man who buys any of the so-called cholera cures, believing that he has some- SWINE. 751 th.ng that w,ll prevent hog cholera, or cure it after it has attacked h.s herd, ,s destined to disappointment." That some affected herds have been treated with a certain degree of success is true but we thmk the cleansing of the premises, the change of' d.et, and the mcreased attention that was given had much to do m secunng the good results which have been attained. Med.cme alone, without regard to diet and surroundings, will be tZrt mT" ''''' " ^"^ °^'^^' ^'''''' ^PP--' ^he sick an mals should be immediately separated from those which are weU. A good veterinarian should be employed when the Cholera first appears, and the pens and yards should be put m the best possible condition. Some of our most eminent vetennao. physicians have been closely studying in order to find the causes, and, if possible, a remedy for this disease. Part of them are still at work, and it is to be hoped that their investi- gations will lead to the discovery of means for preventing the fearful loss which for a few years past the farmers of the Wb^t have been obliged to sustain. Diarrhoea carries off many little pigs, and injures many whirh sumve Its attack. Improper feeding of the sow if the pigs are suckmg, and of the pigs themselves if they have been weaned IS the most frequent cause. Still many attacks are brought on by breathing impure air, drinking dirty water, and taking cold. When suckmg pigs are attacked, the sow should be kept on dry food for a few days. Pigs which have been weaned can usually be cured by giving dry food, but if this fails give a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful of prepared chalk twice a day. Keep the pen clean, using dry earth in summer and chloride of lime in wmter as a deodorizer, and secure thorough ventilation Constipation, though not immediately fatal, may, if neglected lead to serious results. A change of diet will usually be sumcent to efiect a cure. In summer give plenty of clover and roots. In cold weather warm bran mashes with the addition of flaxseed tea or slippeiy-elm water will be safe and reasonably ii ' 752 FARMING FOR PROFIT. sure. If these fail, an injection of warm soap-suds in which an ounce of Epsom salts has been dissolved should be given. Worms of various kinds give a great deal of trouble to pigs. The simplest treatment for an ordinary case is to give some soap-suds and wood-ashes in the swill. Measles, similar to the tape-worm in man, is regarded as an incurable disease, but can be prevented without great difficulty. No human excrement should be spread upon swine pastures, or used for growing roots which are to be fed raw, and pigs should not be allowed access to it at any time. Contact with an infected herd had better be avoided, though it might not communicate the disease. Mange is a troublesome disease similar to the itch in man. It is very contagious,' and, like the scab in sheep, may be spread by contact with a rubbing-post which has been used by a diseased animal. The affected animal should either be covered with soft soap, washed off three or four hours after its application, or else washed in tobacco water, or water in which caustic pot- ash has been dissolved in the proportion of one part potash td fifty parts of water. Two days after the first treatment wash the animal, thoroughly in strong soa ^s. The pen and fence should be washed with a strong sc. -.n of caustic potash. Lice may be removed by the use of tobacco water or a light application of kerosene oil. Carbolic acid with three times the quantity of water may be used instead of the above. The liquid should be rubbed upon the back, behind the fore legs, the flanks, and between the hind legs. Rheumatism.— This is almost invariably caused by exposure to dampness, sleeping on the cold ground, or lying in filthy pens. The preventive measures are cleanliness, warmth, and protection from storms. In the line of treatment, Mr. Coburn recommends a tablespoonful of cod-liver oil once or twice a day. This should be mixed with the food. For large pigs give twice the quantity. Keep the pigs warm and give soft food Curing Pork.— There are only two methods by which the SWINE. 763 irhich an to pigs, v^e some ar to the , but can cerement ing roots ;d access id better se. in man. >e spread sed by a e covered iplication, ustic pot- potash to wash the and fence tash. or a light times the rhe liquid the flanks, ' exposure J in filthy rmth, and R. COBURN ivice a day. give twice L which the average farmer can keep pork in a good condition for any length of time. One of these, which is by keeping it at a low tem- perature, can be used only in the winter. The other, which involves the use of some preservative substance, can be made successful during the larger part of the year. In the winter, fresh pork can be kept at the North for some weeks by packing in snow and placing where it will be kept frozen. After it has thawed the meat will keep but a short time. Salt and smoke, the two preservative substances in common use, can be applied at all times except when the weather is very hot. But if used in the summer a great deal more care and skill will be needed than is required in the winter. Before being either frozen or salted, the meat must be thor- oughly cooled. It is to the difficulty of effecting this that the main trouble with salting' pork in hot weather is due. After the hog is dressed he should hang until well cooled off, but must not be allowed to freeze. It is sometimes best to split the car- case down the back in order to facilitate the cooling process. When well cooled, the pork may be cut and the parts left in a cool place for a while so that all the animal heat may escape. The outsides of the thick pieces will cool much sooner than their centres, and meat often fails to keep well because, though well enough on the exterior, it was not cooled at the middle and around the bones. The fat pieces are best preserved with salt. They may be cut in any desired shape and packed closely into a barrel. Unlike some kinds of meat, pork will absorb no more salt than it needs. Still, there is no benefit to be secured from using an excessive quantity. Eight or ten pounds of salt for one hundred poun- : of pork will be sufficient. The easiest way to salt pork is to cut it into pieces of convenient size, cover the bottom of the barrel in which it is to be kept with a layer of salt half an inch thick, upon this place a layer of pork, then another layer of salt, fol- lowed by another of meat, and so on until all is packed. The 764 FARMING FOR PROFIT. pieces should wedge into the barrel in such a manner as to cover nearly all of the surface. If this is neglected, a large quantity of salt will be needed to fill the openings. The top layer of meat should be covered with salt, and a close-fitting cover placed upon the barrel. Many farmers prefer to use brine instead of relying upon dry salt. The pork is to be packe^d as directed above, and pure water poured into the barrel until all of the spaces are filled and the meat is well covered. A board which will just go inside the barrel, like a follower to a cheese hoop, should be fitted, with several holes bored through it, placed upon the meat and a weight put on to keep it in place. This is needed in order to keep the meat from floating in the brine. A method which we consider much better than either of the above is to use a prepared brine. The following recipe for making brine for one hundred pounds of pork is as good as any with which we are familiar: Dissolve in pure water, using just enough to fully dissolve the materials, four ounces of saltpetre, two pounds of good brown sugar, and seven pounds of salt. When thoroughly dissolved, the mixture should be boiled and all the impurities, which will rise to the surface, skimmed off. When this is cold it is to be poured over the meat and the board and weight put on as already recommended. The hams and shoulders can be put into a brine (made as directed for the salt meat) or be covered with a mixture of fine salt, molasses, and saltpetre, using, for one hundred and fifty pounds of meat, twelve pounds salt, two quarts molasses, and one-half pound saltpetre. Mix these articles well and rub the meat thoroughly, then lay away in a cool and dry place. Rub the meat again at the end of a week and once more a week later. The smoking process may then be commenced. This should be done slowly but thoroughly. About ten days' time will be required for pieces of ordinary size. Many people pickle the meat well in brine and use it without further curing. 765 bofhT/ " 'f ^''*^"' ' ^'''' '^'^ °^ '^-^ --t be taken both before and after the curing is performed, to prote the meat fro. flies. The smoked meat can be covered wit vas packed mt.ght barrel, or well buried in a bin of shelled corn dur ng dog days." That this is not a good time to salt meat must be evdent to any one, and. under ordinary circumstances the work should be delayed until a more favorable season But' as some of our readers may find it convenient to put down mea; ,V 'r''^'"""" ^'^' " "^''^°^ ^^'^J^ ^-^ reported, by a lady, m the American Cultivator. We have never tested the plan but .t was recommended by a worthy minister, and tried by the lady who sent the report, and is said to be safe and sure. The method is described as follows : " Put in plenty of salt and It W.1I be apt to keep. But if it should begin to hurt, take it out of the barrel, meat, brine and all. Then get a quantity of smart- weed and pack the pork with the weed back into the barrel- ay plenty of it all around each piece, or you can pack it in layers of the weed. Let it remain four or ftve day, then take It all out. throw away the smart-weed, and pack the pork in the barrel. Then pour on the brine, having previously scalded skimmed, and cooled it. Never put warm brine on meat. Your meat will then be all right." This plan is very simple and well worthy of a trial by those who salt pork in extremely hot and sultry weather. But it is much easier to prevent mischief than It IS to cure it. and. except under peculiar circumstance. It will not be wise to attempt to salt pork in the mid-summer months. r^ y -atj 766 FARMING FOR PROFIT. THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. HERE are a few classes of animals which can be profita- bly kept upon many farms, but which, owing to their small size, or the limited range of their usefulness, do not receive that degree of attention which is bestowed upon the classes which we have thus far considered. To these animals a brief space should be devoted. Hens are kept upon almost every farm, and may be made to pay well. But in order to be profitable, they should receive some degree of attention. If exposed to cold and storms, and kept half-starved, they can neither take on flesh nor produce eggs. A good house should be provided for their accommo- dation. This should be kept very clean. In it feeding-troughs and drinking-pans should be placed. These should be so arranged that while the fowls can eat and drink freely, they cannot get into the vessels. Roosting-places should be pro- vided, and instead of putting up the perches in tiers, the front one being the lowest, the next one a foot or two higher, and so on until the last and highest one is reached, they should all b*» placed on a level, and only three feet from the floor. This is very much better than the old method. When the perches are of different heights, too many hens will try to get upon th^ highest one, the weaker ones will fall or be crowded off, and falling so far may be seriously injured. The perches should be made of small poles of sassafras-wood or wild cherry when they can be obtained. Connected with the house should be a good-sized yard in which the hens can stay in pleasant weather. They like to get on the ground, and will be much more healthy if allowed to do so. If the garden is not close by, it will be well to let the hens out for an hour each day. Between four and five o'clock in the afternoon is the best time. When the orchard is pastured, it is well to give the hens a chance to run among the trees, as they be profita- ig to their fulness, do bestowed To these : made to Id receive :orms, and r produce accommo- ig-troughs Id be so eely, they i be pro- the front :r, and so lid all b(» This is rches are upon th^ d off, and hould be I'hen they I yard in ke to get 'ed to do the hens :k in the stured, it 5, as they FIO. 114. I. BROWN LEGHORNS 2. WHITK HOLLAND TURKEYS. THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. 759 will destroy a multitude of worms, but if the grass is to be made into hay they will tread it down, and do more hurt than good. Too many fowls must not be kept together. A larger number can be kept in a large house and commodious yard than can be safely put into close quarters, but there is a limit to the number which can be profitably kept in a single enclosure. Which Breed to keep is a question over which many farmers have a great deal of needless perplexity. Any good breed is better than hens belonging to no breed, but any one of half a dozen breeds will do well enough if they receive good care. If the farmer wants to raise chickens for the market, or his own table, the Brahma, Cochin, Plymouth Rock, or Dorking, will answer his requirement. If he does not care particularly for chickens, but wants eggs, the Leghorn, Houdan, or the Hamburg will give satisfaction. There are also several other excellent breeds which we have not room to notice. By purchasing a few eggs it is easy to obtain fowls of any desired breed for a low price. These should be bought as near home as possible, as transportation often destroys the vitality of eggs which were good when they were sent, and causes the seller to be unjustly blamed, as well as involves a loss to the buyer. T; is not necessary that the farmer should keep the breed perfectly pure. Many prefer to cross a pure-blood male with their finest native hens. Of course the chickens obtained in this way must not be sold for pure-blooded ones, but they may be just as good to fatten, or to produce eggs as the thorough-breds. Raising Chickens. — When a hen desires to sit and chickens are wanted, some fresh eggs should be obtained, and either put into the nest which she occupies, or else a nest should be made for her in a suitable place, the eggs put into it, and the hen put over them in the evening. It is a good plan to put some tansy into the bottom of the nest. Do not put in too many eggs. I I' 760 FARMING FOR PROFIT. A small hen should have only nine, and a large one not more than thirteen. Plenty of food and fresh water should be placed near the nest, so that the hen need not be off long at a time. In three weeks the eggs should hatch. The chickens should not be hurried from the nest, and they do not need food for twenty-four hours after they are hatched. Then give them a boiled egg, cut into in the middle so that they can pick out the meat. After this feed with soaked bread and oat meal pudding for a few days. Begin to feed cracked com gradually with the oat meal. Also give Indian meal pudding part of the time. Chopped meat is good for them, and green food, grass, lettuce, or cabbage leaves will be relished and prove beneficial. For a few weeks they must be protected from cold and storms. Give them plenty of ashes to roll in, and all the pounded oyster-shells and ground bone they want to eat. Feed well with a variety of food, giving grain, vegetables, and animal food in abundance. Furnish plenty of fresh water, and give them room in which to exercise. Feed regularly and keep them growing every day. When it is time to fatten them, if the chickens have been treated as above advised, the work will be already well begun, and may be very soon completed. The fowls should be shut into a house, or coop, two or three weeks before they are to be killed, and fed with Indian meal pudding given warm, and warm baked potatoes. The addition of barley meal to the pudding is beneficial. Fresh water should be supplied, and all the food the chickens will eat should be given. Fowls vhich have not been well fed should be shut up a much longer time. Hens for laying must be well fed or they cannot furnish a large number of eggs. They should have room, clean quarters, comfortable surroundings, fresh water, and a variety of food. Ashes, ground bones, pounded oyster-shells, and gravel should also be supplied. Food should be clean, of best quality, and a large variety of grain, vegetables and meat should be furnished. TItE rNFERJOK AXIMALS. 701 Oats fried in lard are excellent for part of the winter diet Corn should be given sparingly, as it tends to fatten the hens rather than make them lay eggs. Some breeds are better layers than others, but no breed will or can. lay all of the time. Hens must have rest as truly as other an.mals. There are some breeds highly recommended as wmter layers. These, generally, do not furnish ma..y eggs in summer. The hens which lay well in the summer will not lay all wmtcr. In order to have eggs at all seasons hens of dif- ferent ages must be kept, and it is well to have some of two different breeds, one of which is noted for winter a-l the other for summer laying. The latter is not indispensable, but the former is an absolute necessity. If the hens are all of the same age. they will all lay at about the same time and stop laying together. But if hens of several different ages are kept, some of them will lay while the others do not, and when one brood ceases another will be ready to begin. It does not pay to keep old hens. During the first year of life the hen lays more egg. than she does during the second, and the number produced gradually decreases as she grows older. The eggs of old hens do not give ... strong chickens as those of younger ones, and, except for sitting, the old hen is poor property. When chickens are to be raised, one male bird should be kept for each ten or twelve hens. He should be thorough-bred, and always well cared for. It is not well to keep him after he is two years old, but during the second year he will be better than he was before. If only eggs are wanted, no male need be kept. If properly kept, fowls will seldom be sick; but if badly fed, kept in dirty quarters, furnished only with impure water and foul air, they will be very liable to disease. The wise owner will prevent attacks of disease, as far as he can, by keeping the hens and their surroundings in as good condition as possible. ■WKWfiWSW**., '^""^imm-at-i^i.kir. t 762 FARMING FOR PROFIT. I 'I \ 1 ! . ! - I 1 If sickness conies, when the cause is evident that cause should be at once removed. If there is no apparent cause, if the feeding and surroundings are right, take the invalid to a block and cut off her head. It does not pay to doctor a sick hen. The chances are that she will die and also scatter disease and death among the whole flock. Some breeders feed chopped onions occasionally, in order to promote the health of their fowls. Others give half an ounce of sulphur in the food of twelve fowls two or three times a month. Either of these plans will prove beneficial. Lice are very likely to find a home on hens, and do a great deal of mischief. They may be kept away by dampening the bottoms of the nests and washing the perches occasionally with kerosene oil. If the house is shut up tight and some brimstone burned in an iron vessel placed upon the floor, then ventilated after two hours, and the inside of the building washed in a strong solution of potash, and then painted with kerosene oil, the old hay taken from the nests and new hay moistened slightly with the oil put in, the work of extermination will be complete. Eggs maybe kept for a long time, and be just as good as new, by packing in a stone jar, and covering them with a liquid made of four gallons of boiling water, one pint of lime, and one pint of salt. The lime and salt should be dissolved in the water, and the liquid used when cold. This plan is highly recom- mended by Mr. Burnham, of Massachusetts, the author of several valuable works on Poultry. Turkeys can often be profitably kept by farmers who live in thinly settled sections. The eggs should be put under a large hen. About four and a half weeks are required for hatching. Young turkeys are extremely tender, and must be carefully handled. A few hours after they break the shell, they should, with the hen, be put into a coop which stands in a warm and dry place. For at least a month they must be kept from the THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. 763 hot sun, must be shut into the coop in rainy weather, and must be kept m every morning until the dew is off the grass The coop must not be placed on grass land, and should not be close to the mowing-lots. The food should be carefully prepared and regularly given. Commence feeding the chicks, when six or eight hours old. with boiled eggs and crumbs of bread broken into fine pieces. After a few days, boiled sour milk with cooked Indian meal may be given. Uncooked meal should not be given to young chicks. A little meat chopped fine may be given occasionally, and oat meal dough will be good for a change of diet. Feed often and provide plenty of fresh water The latter sh( be so arranged that they can drink when they choose, but still be unable to get into the dish containing it Until they are three months old. the young turkeys must be kept dry and verj^ carefully fed. After this time they must be fed well, but will be able to look out for themselves to quite an extent. They may be profitably fattened at any time after they are five months old. When it is desired to fatten them ouickly they should be shut into a comfortable pen. and fed on cooked meal, boiled potatoes and oats. It is said that mixing a small quantity of charcoal, finely pulverized, with their food proves a great advantage. Plenty of pure water should be given, and clean gravel should also be supplied. Ducks require either a suitable locality or else very careful management in order to enable them to pay the expenses of their keeping. The former but very few farmers have, and the latter but very {q^ are willing to give. In order to raise them to the best advantage the farmer should have a pond on his premises or else live near a river, marsh, or large brook. The ducks will naturally take to water, and will wander away in search of it if it is not close by. When no pond or brook is convenient, large tubs of water should be put out for the ducks to swim in. The eggs may be placed under a duck or a common hen. " ^"*«*«i*Wi»i>hi.«;,i,i;,iii^;^ «««»«*«>«W1*»«,«-Wi«. i 764 FARMING FOR PROFIT. When hatched, the chicks should be put into a coop, and kept therein for a while unless the weather is very fine. Large but shallow pans of water should be placed close to the coops. These pans should often be emptied and filled again with fresh water. For food they should at first be supplied with bread- crumbs soaked in milk, and hard-boiled eggs chopped fine. In a short time they will eat boiled Indian meal and milk, boiled potatoes, and green stuff from the garden. By the time they are three months old they will eat almost anything which any fowl can swallow, and will need an immense amount of food. They may be allowed to run in the garden, where they will get many worms, but should be kept out of the grass which is to be cut for hay. Geese need water and green food, but if plenty of the latter is given they can be kept where there is neither a pond nor stream. Still, they do much better when they can sail on a pond at will. Whether they can be made to pay on the farm is a question which most farmers will probably answer in the negative. A few, who live near large cities in which the flesh can be readily sold, and who have v/ater on their farms, may make some money by keeping geese. An old breeder has said that the principal requisites for success with geese are "good housing mid feeding" Though they like to swim in the water, dampness about their houses proves very injurious. Geese should have a house by them- selves, as they are quite apt to quarrel with other fowls. A gander should be kept for five or six geese. Not more than six or eight of these b'rds should be kept in one house, and plenty of dry straw should be furnished. When a goose is about to commence laying, which will be evident by her gathering straw, she should be shut up. As she will be likely to continue laying wherever she drops her first ^%Zy '*^ 's quite an object to induce her to begin in her appropriate quarters. If the eggs are allowed to remain in the nest, the tp, and kept Large but the coops, n with fresh with bread- ed fine. In milk, boiled e time they f which any unt of food, hey will get lich is to be Df the latter a pond nor (1 sail on a I the farm is jwer in the ch the flesh farms, may iquisites for ." Though their houses e by them- r fowls. A ore than six , and plenty hich will be up. As she •ps her first * appropriate \ie nest, the FIG. 115 .. PEKIN DUCKS, ,. PLYMOUTH ROCK FOWLS, oivned by Benson. Maule & Co.. of Phi ladelphia, Pa. x THE INFERIOR ANIMALS. yg- out she w,ll lay many more. Whei she wants to set put fifteen eggs ,„ .he nest. She should have food and water nea the nest, so that she win not be obliged to be off long at a . tae token out of the nest as fast as they are hatehed, put into a basket of woo and covered with a cloth. When .he ha.e l^ .s completed, the little ones should be put back. Twelve hour! afterwards .hey should be fed with bread-crumbs sold ^ nnlk, bran puddmg and boiled potatoes. The food should be g.ven q„,te warm. They must be protected from storms, and should not go mto water until two or three days old Geese eat a great deal of grass, and like green food from the garden extremely well. In addition .o what they can pick up for themselves they should be regularly fed morning and night When they are to be fattened, grain should be given, and plenty of warm boiled potatoes, oat meal and milk, or else meal mixed w.th water. They should also have green food in abundance HON-EV BEES.-Farmers who have time, and a good location for keepmg bees, may make it profitable to try the business on a smal scale. But where it must be pursued at a disadvantage and the care of the bees is irksome, there is little use in making the attempt. ^ If any one choose.s to make a trial of the business of bee- keepmg, a {c^v things must be borne in mind. The very first thing to be done is to get a comprehensive work on bee-culture which is up to the times (King's Bee-Keepers' Te.xt-Book is' an excellent one, and is very cheap), and study it. This must be done in order that the work may be commenced intelhgently. and that mistakes involving heavy losses may be avoided. Then some good hives must be obtained. It is not necessary to get the newest style of expensive hives, but it is wasteful and fooli.sh to use the old boxes which were common thirty years ago. Good bees must also be secured. There is as much 7G8 FARMING FOR PROFIT. difference in bees as tliere is in the different breeds of cattle. When buying an effort should be made to get those which are the best adapted to the conditions under which they are to be kept. They may cost a little more than poor ones, but they will be three times as profitable. Provide a good place for them in the summer, and a dark, but dry and well-ventilated, cellar in which to keep them in the winter. Get a honey-extractor, knife, some rubber-gloves, a veil made for the purpose, and all other necessary implements and fixtures. Then take good care of the bees, study their habits, and supply their wants. Furnish them plenty of buckwheat and clover pasturage in summer, and do all that can be done to aid them in their work. FIG. ii6.— JERSEY BULL, LE BROCQ'S PRIZE 3350, Imported August, 1878, by Churchman & Jackson, Indianapolis, Ind. ' ml : FIG. II7.-BERKSHIRE PIGS. Owned by T. S. Coonii, Coopenbuig, Pa. FRUIT-GROWING AND GARDENING. (760) CONTENTS OF Fi&HT III. FRUIT ON THE FARM. TRANSPLANTING TREES. CULTIVATION AND PRUNING. THINNING FRUIT. GATHERING FRUIT. DRYING FRUIT. DISEASES AND ENEMIES. PROPAGATION. THE LARGER FRUITS. SMALL FRUITS. THE FARM GARDEN. (770) FRUIT ON THE FARM. FRUIT OW THE FABSX. 771 much of a family necessity as breirl T, f " "'""'" "« owners grow these same crom .n,? i ^ ""^ '^*'""'' ^"^ y^t the and pay Lr taxes There are'' '"'''^^ """"^^ «="°"fi'> '-"PPort their families. But L'this is Z'of I, :; re r* 'i;^.::;- ^•^^ l-™-' ^"^ ^^r very low prices! for this difficulty. Better car and mor t T "' "''' '^''' '' "^ P^"''" ^^-"^^^ between the beadng and n "it ul yrrsi " 1"^""' "" ""'^ "'^ '"'^^-"^ fruit, and increase . I price ;o;tLr"crb:i'' 7^:^^^^^^ ab ity that there wil! Hp a ^„ . ^'^ '^' ^'^°' « strong prob- b, Ih. „.j„,i,y of f„„,„. B.f \ ' °' ™ '"^- Th.s fae. ,. „„■ f.n, „,„„„ towards selling , ftm for . hi,h „H„ .t ' ^ "*""' "'" '''> ">»'« .-ereb, „u„ „ ,„„„„„ tap™ J^'o "^rjlt"";/™' '''f "V"'" *"■' out fruit trees will sell just a.s well a<= .. ^ e^/aiue. If he thinks a farm with- ment to be undeceived.' ll^Ji".", "^'' '" °"'^ '° '^ '''-^^^^^^ much more money, and can be sold m V " ''"'"'''^ "'"^ '^"" "-"^ '^ ^°"'' been no trees put out. "''' '""'^ '■"'^''^' *'»«" " «=o"ld. if there had Farming and fruit-growing naturally go together A f.rm •.., . r • cent in one of the finest products of the soil Of / "'°"' '^'"'' '* ''^'^- a manner that it will not pay ^he ale 't r"""''' '"■"" '''' "*' ^^°«'" "" ^"<='' would not be wise to cover'he les ha" Zf "" T^ °' ^" """^ "">-• '' two extremes of growing no fruit ^ al ^ ^'^ '""' "'"'■ ^"' ''^'^^^" '1^« a middle course which wil gi^,: tZt Ztf V^''^^ °":;^"^'^'^' ''''"' '^ and add quite a sun. to the fctual profiLof ^i^ busi;^?"' ^ ^"^' '^^^ °' ^°'"^°^' 77a FARMING FOR PROFIT. TXIAIOrSP^LANTINCir TBSS8. T is very important that the land devoted to an orchard should be thoroughly prepared, and that the work of transplanting the trees should be carefully performed. If the soil is wet, it should be well drained before the trees are put out. The soil should be made very fine and mellow. If this is neglected, and the earth which is thrown upon the roots of the trees is in coarse lumps, there will be many spaces into which the air and water will penetrate, and the ground will freeze much harder in winter than it would if the dirt was fine. The soil should also be very fine in order that the little fibres of the roots, which are the feeders of the tree, may obtain the nourishment which they need. Until a tree gets well started, it needs all the food which it can obtain. Removal from a nursery will be very likely to check its growth considerably, if it has the best of treatment which the buyer can give. If carelessly put out, the tree will grow but little for many years. The question whether at the end of ten years the orchard shall be productive and profitable, or the trees shall be small and stunted, with hardly fruit enough upon them to prove whether or not they are true to name, is, in a very great measure, decided at the time the trees are put out. It is very true that trees need care and food after they are set, and that no amount of skill or labor at any one period can atone for neglect rit all other times ; but it usually follows that a man who has put out trees in a finely prepared soil and done the work with the highest degree of skill of which he was capable does not stop there, but gives all needed care to his growing trees. On the other hand, the man who puts the trees out in a careless manner is very likely to neglect them ever after. They do not start very well, he thinks it is doubtful if they ever " come to much," and so he lets them go to their natural doom. Thus it happens that the time of setting is a critical nne in the life of the tree, and an important one in the relation which it bears to the financial interests of the owner. It is not best to use large quantities of stimulating manures in the vicinity of the trees. It is much better to make the land very rich before the trees are put out, and then fertilize moderately e.ich year. But in some manner the land must be made fertile if it is not already rich, or the orchard will not pay. Fruit trees may be grown on the farm and grafted when quite small, or, what is usually a better way, purchased of some reliable nurseryman who has a reputation to sustain, and who thoroughly understands his business. Buying of unknown ped- dlers has inv-lved many farmers in a heavy loss. There is no excuse for purchasing trees of irresponsible parties. There are plenty of reliable nurserymen, and trees can be packed so that they can safely be transported to all parts of the country. If trees cannot be set as soon as they are received, they should be taken to the garden, their roots placed in a trench and covered with earth. If they are to remain in this position several days, the tops should be shaded from the sun. In this manner they can be kept alive for some time, but it is better to set them as soon as possible. The method of setting trees is simple, but the work should be carefully performed. All the broken or mutilated roots should be trimmed with a sharp knife, and three- quarters of the previous season's growth of the bninches should also be removed. This is very important, as a large part of the root-surface has been removed, and the TRANSPLANTING TREES. 773 n. uro^ balance between the roots and the branches ha, been destroyed. A larne but not deep hole should be du,, and the roots of the tree dipped into a bed o Tn' mud 1 he tree should then be pa, in the place which U is L occupy. I Id not be set deejicr than it orij.'inaily sto<. l-t the pruning, is very injurtui, a tf n "?' """ '" ' ''""' ""''" "^'■' --' "^ !he operation i p^^ le'r wti Tori""" ' "'?"' ' ' '"^ '^^"^^ ""- ^^'''^•'^ taken from a tree ' '°''"'^ '"'""«"--'^' "° ' '''J'' branches need be The pruning should begin when the tree i< ^m »n i which are n.n wanted should be rem. cd F ' T """' '^""'^ *'"' "P"'"" be large enough to do ai, .be cutti::;;::; wi L^r^r^ ^ tr^'r'"'^ ^"' a larger size, pruning-shears and a fine saw will b n ^ i B "h ""T' constant watchfulness and an efT.vt . i i "'•«^''<-''- «'■( there must be a permanently on th re M^n^ luds ,' ."" ^'"°'^ "'" '' ■^^'-' ""' ^•^■■•^•'' be vacant. L be rulJrw,; 1 ' '^I'^t'-! ""' '" '"-' ^^'^^^ ought to off of a limb two or throe inc ^s' 7 ^ r inv 7 °" "" "■"■ "'^^ "^ ^"'""S forces of the tree It often r. , . ! '' ''' «'"' ■■ ■'"'"= "^ ">«= vital .oprematui-e :Ly ;:V C^lir^^T M^'"""''' '''''^ ''^^'' -" '^"^ of thelimb which is removed T, J ', ."' " " "'"'^ "' ^" "^« B^^'h H.ve added to the si;::;;^^./:: .^2;^;:.^;:;^: '"v^:^ ;i:r ^ first started, it could have been easily rubbed off A. .h. r u '"^ its g.owth, the shoot could have becn^l ' : J.;^ ,' ^r' '^ ^^^ ^ ^^ "^ It must be cut with a siw- nil ;,. .1 • ^' "'' " '^^^^ ye^^s tree and make^ n u ^'w „, T ' '^ ""'"'' "''"'' "' ^ «' -'"»'- the If he commences when it is small, the owner of a tree can do a great d^al townrd det rmin.ng us form when it is fully matured. He can decide wh he' he t shall branch very low or very high, and whether the top shall be late , s.. , Many people think that the trunk of a tree increases in Tength ps rapi „. id' circum erence. Acting upon this principle, they allow twigs, whic in , . e w" become the lower tier of branches, to start out only two or th^ce fee I " Tl^ f:X the", '"' 'r '''' ""' '"'^'' "-y -pectL, and when"., rLl2e Whether it is desirable to have fb^ fro« br,^.}, hirV - Iw., • »m b, d«,™,„,d by ,h. c.,.„„.,,„c;s of tch ,t;J r";:7",v I .S!^?^^-^--^ 776 FARMING FOR PROFIT. certain advantages in having trees short and low. When the land is to be culti. vated, the work can be more easily done if the trees branch some distance from the ground. It is mconvenient to get under a very low tree and still more difficult to prune, or pick the apples from, a very high one. _ In pruning a tree, all the sprouts which incline to grow crooked, and those which interfere wuh hmbs which are already established, should be cut out The top should neither be very dense nor very open. If the branches are so thick that the sun ight cannot entev freely, the fruit will not ripen perfectly, and will not be as fine y colored as it should be. If the top is too open, the branches are not protected as they should be from the severity of the winter winds, which dry the bark, and the burning of the summer sun, which scalds . The common method of cutting all the twigs from large limbs almost their whole length, and " leaving a little brush on the end of the limb like a cow's tail " is extremely pernicious. By this means the imbs are exposed to the action of the elements, and there are not enough leaves left to fuily elaborate the sap and keep the tree healthy and productive. Neither should the branches be wholly covered with twigs, as this would keep out the light and spoil the appearance of the tree. If the pruning is attended to promptly, year by year, there will be but liltle diffi- culty in keeping the trees in good shape. If neglected, the owner must suffer the penalty which neglect always imposes. A little work at the right time will prevent the necessity of doing a great deal at some other time, and the results will be much more satisfactory. THINNING FRXJIT. V^III^^ ^^^ '^""^'^ ^""^ '" ^^^ '"'^''' "'^ """"'"g their fruit, and to this fact may Cliilfl "": "'■''"'^ ""^ imperfection of a great deal of the fruit and the irregularity with which the trees are fruitful. Too often the trees are heavily loaded one year and produce but very little fruit the next summer. During the bearing season, the vital forces of the trees are strained to their utmost in growing and ripening an excessive quantity of fruit. Nature does her best, but is not always able to carry out all that has been begun. Much of the fruit drops from the tree before it is fully formed, and a large part of what remains is only imperfectly developed and ripened. But the parti.-xl failure to perfect the fruit is not the greatest evil which is involved in this over-production. The tree is so exhausted by its overload that it cannot recover at once. The wood which it has formed during the se.ison cannot be thor- oughly ripened and is frozen during the winter. The next spring but few blossoms are put forth and little or no fruit is formed during the summer. This is the natu- nil result of over-bearing. If the trees are left to themselves the trouble becomes permanent. One year there is a great excess of fruit, while the next year there is an equally great scarcity. The best, jierhaps the only, remedy is lo be found in thinning the fruit early in the season. It does no good lo apply stimulating manures. This would be like pouring oil on a fire. The natural method of checking the evil is to commence as soon as the fruit is fairly set and pick off a l-irge proportion of the specimens. It will not do to wait until the fruit is half grown, as the energies of the tree would then be seriously impaired. Some good would be done, but the remedy would be I is to he culti. stance from the lore difficult to nd those which out. The top > thick that the will not be as e not protected e bark, and the 1 of cutting all little brush on :his means the enough leaves ;tive. Neither p out the light but little diffi. nust suffer the le will prevent will be much I this fact may le irregularity leavily loaded During the beir utmost in ure does her h of the fruit lat remains is :h is involved hat it cannot nnot be thor- few blossoms s is the natu- ible becomes year there is fruit early in ould be like commence as ecimens. It z tree would Jy would be THINNING FRUIT. can ,. „<.„. n,.c,/ '/S'rirrJrzr "'■°" "" ■""""■ "■= »»* I...t, when Ihey are o.erloade.l klT ? """ """ '"' '" '» ""•' ''"■ b» ,..„, „Ae ca::xii:i ::;:tr.ra:c "" "•' "°" °" "• of 'binning ,„^. »: ^:z:i^: :';;z:^i!'t""'°'' °' "" "''""'■^'- tre-s was verv rrr«.t T, , , ■ ^^^"' '"°' "'e Ijenef t to the home Thkinv„i u ,^ ^'-"'"^'"' ^"" '"rger quantities are wasted at ';";« Zr ;\^^^^^^^^ ;s moinly caused by imperfect growth and would h\vi h , '"■"■''^'y "^'""^''' '^ '•'"•S« P^Portion of this loss well cared foi, neglect to thm the fruit is the principal cause of its imperfection. 778 FARMING FOR PROFIT. 'ARE in gathering tlie crop is one of the essentials of success in fruit- (^ ■ I g Jwing. Many farmers obtain good fruit in the autumn who do not suc- ^y ^ ceed in Iugh in the whole lot there may not be more than a single barrel of inferior specimens. When the fruit is placed in barrels, care must be taken not to bruise It. Slight bruises which do not break the skin cause speedy decay, while the larger ones start the process of fermentation still sooner. If the fruit is to be sold, the barrels should be gently shaken occasionally while being filled. The head should be pressed in by a lever and securely fastened It IS not safe to omit this pressure, .is the fruit will then shake in the barrels, and be badly bruised while being transported. If properly pressed, the fruit cannot move and will go safely any required distance. If the fruit is to be used at home, it should be gathered and assorted with as much care as though it were to be shipped, but the barrels need not be headed If this plan were followed, the complaints which farmers so often make, that their apples do not keep well, would not be so commonly heard, and the frequent "pickin.. over of the apples to get out those which are partially decayed could be abant doned. If proper care is used in gathering and packing, and the cellar is fairly good, the best apples will keep a long time without showing signs of decay But if large and small, ripe and unripe, perfect and imperfect, specimens are mixed togetlfer there will very soon be decayed apples in the barrels, and all the fruit must be sorted over in order to remove those which are spoiled, and are doing all they can to spoil those with which they are in contact. i- ! 1 '^Kwasswwteirri, n^ ii 780 FARMING FOR PROFIT, rr hM long been a common custom in all the fruit-growing sections to dry part of the fruit produced on the farm. Windfall apples, and those which showed signs of early decay, peaches, and other fruits have b^en dried in order to prevent loss to the owner, and preserve, as far as possible, the good qualities of the fruit. Berries have also been dried in immense quantities, and thus kept for an indefinite period. But the old-fashioned process of drying did not prove wholly satisfactory. It required considerable time, and involved a great amount of labor; and it did not fully answer the purpose for which it was designed. It secured the preservation of the FIG. 1 1 8. fruit, but did not keep its quality unimpaired. In too many cases the drying was about as injurious as the decay which it prevented would have been. The quality of much of the dried fruit found in farm-houses and in market is extremely poor. In order to prevent the deterioration in the quality of fruit, which seemed insep- arable from the common method of drying, many farmers and fruit-growers have fried the plan of canning fruit which they wished to preserve. This is a" great improvement, but it involves a great deal of labor and considerable expense. Besides, the results are not always good. Ma.iy cans leak, many glass jars do not seal tightly, and the contents are spoiled. The addition of quite a quantity of sugar is also required, and it is necessary to at least partially cook the fruit. What has long been needed is a process which should fully preserve the fruit in its natural state (». e., without cooking), and without the addition of foreign material. This need seems now to be fully supplied. Several machines for evaporating fruit ^rsr:.4SEs .iatd exemies. sections to dry nd those which : been dried in as possible, the :d in immense atisfactory. It it did not fully ;rvation of the le drying was The quality nely poor, eemed insep- growers have is is A* great 5e. Besides, t seal tightly, sugar is also he fruit in its ign material, orating fruit have been brought before the public On. f .u ^^^ l>y Figure „8. ' """• °"^ "^ "^« very best of these is represented In this machine the moisture of the <-ruit is n„! 1 1 hot air. The cell strucu.reof the frni, , ^ ^ '"''""'^^'^ ''y ^^rents of dry over-heating. or partial d!:!^ ^ ; "^Z:" T""^' '"' '''^ '^ ^ ^^^"^. common oven or in the su„i ght ',; f fl ''VI"'"" '""' '^ "-"^ ''> - Nothing but wa,er is removed.'a d 1 1 aS tio^'T '"" '' ''""^ ^^^'^-'l- original condition in size and a^pearan e m 1 : t a T'T "f "' ""' '"^"'^ '^ ''^ to mcrease its sv-eetness. ' '' " "' '""^'' "' ^■•"h fruit, an.l seems onC s^ "i! r::;;::^ ::::;rrrv^^ -"''' °^^ --■ - -'^^ <^ forty pounds. Fruits, .vhieh hav l^e , c .^t T"^ °' ""''^"'^^ ''■"^'' ""'^ long as desired, and their quality «' irel *"'"""■' '"' '^' '"'^^'-■"''^J "^ ■sugar, cans or jars, but the fruit caL;: r'T'""'' '''"'= '^ "° -^' ^- until wanted for use. ^ ^'"^ '" ''°''*^S' o-- P^per bags, and kept The introduction of this mett,o,i ^r business of fruit production ^ o„r,r'""°" 7'" ^'" ^ ^'^'-■^' '"'1^'- '" "- lf.rge business, representing severil mill; ' r",'!"; "°''' ''^"^'^^"i" now doing a the way is now open for f^^:^ L" ^ ;'''^^-' ^77' '" '^•'""^ ^'•""^- ^- produce. If there seems ,o be n„ o ™ ' ' "' f "" "" *"■■"" ^^■''''^'' "-/ "n stnte will not fi,„, , ready sal t e n ^ '7 '" "" '^^"' ^"'' ^"■" '" "^ -'"-1 -Hi thus put into a condition i;^';;^^;'"^^'"^'t.^"'' ^"^-P'r evaporated, "land prices which will be satisf.Jto y "'"'"' '" '""■'^^■'' ""'^ "•"' «=om- !'"ri:::;^-:^-:^-;-;^-e their enemie:! are su.ect they are in others, and son,e v i U "c,""" "'""' '° '"J"""^^ "^■^" s--tions. are tender and expose ,'," ""'' '"^'^"">' ''-">■ ^ -'-« There are plenty „r n-ni.s \.^:1 TZZ t ^ '^'" " ''' ''''"''''■ temperature, and where one variety 12 u '"''""' '^"■^'''' "^ made to thrive. But there should be o wh ' T^V "" ''^ ""'^"■""«'' '->-l efforts have been made .0 check the dise. ^ "'''"«" """' ^" '•^•'««°»'ihle a'ready in the field into a heai,,,; eoX °' "''"^ '^^ ''"^ '"^-^^' -'^ Set the trees Good cultivation, which tends to the trees, does very much to ward o^ZZ ' "'f T! ^"^"^ ""^ '^^velopment of attacks of insects, which otherwise mi ",;::' -^^'^'^e vita, forces to resist the ::- Checked by proper treatment, rJd Cl Z^r;- ^be^:: t-e with the former. The eflec of h „V '"'""' '"' ""^^^ "^^ ^^^ ^-true- on -some of the mo. rapidly;::^'' , X '' SolT' '""t '''''''' ''' '-- ent're tree, and all the lenv". fM- off in i!" ' ' ""' ■'''^'""^^ °^'" '''« affects not merely the leaves but ,'L I I ™"'^'"^'"'^'-- I" '"■''ny cases the evil I 782 FARMING FOR PROFIT. If left to itself, the whole tree is very soon destroyed. The remedy is simple, but must be applied quickly, and with an unsjiaring hand. Delay, even for a few days, endangers the life of the tree. All the affeeied branches should be cut off two or three feei below the point at which there is an external manifestation of the disease. These limbs should be immediately burned. If the branches are not cut quite a distance below the point which seems to be the limit of the disease, the poison will not fell be removed and the evil will not be eradicated. The disease may spread when prompt measures are taken for its suppression, but it can usually be checked. If, afttr the removal of diseased portions, other branches are affected, they must also be removed, and the pruning must be kept up until the disease is checked, or the whole tree is destroyed. If the attack is sudden and malignant, and appears to involve the whole tree, the axe had better be laid at the roots, and the whole committed to the flames. Delay, or half-way measures, will cause the rapid spread of the disease, and the loss of many, if not all, of the trees in the immediate vicinity. There is another disease, known as Leaf Blight, which attacks pear trees, and for which no certain remedy is known. The leaves turn black, and fall from the tree, and all growth is checked. It is more liable to attack small trees than large ones, though both the leaves and fruit of full-grown trees are sometimes affected. By keeping the soil rich, and giving good cultivation, the grower should endeavor to prevent the appearance of this disease. In its attacks upon the apple and quince, the blight does not prove as destructive as it does with the pear, but in some portions of the West, apple trees are often severely injured from this cause. The disease affects the growth of the season in which it appears, and causes the falling of the leaves and death of the diseased wood. The Black Knot is a disease which attacks plum and cherry trees, and occa- sionally the peach. An irregular swelling appears on the affected twig and limb. It commences early in the summer, and grows until the end of July. Year by year it becomes larger and more poisonous until the life of the tree is destroyed. The disease also spreads to surrounding trees. The remedy consists in promptly cutting away all diseased limbs a few inches below the point reached by the disease. If the excrescences appear on the trunk or large limbs, they should be cut out, and the wound washed with a solution of chloride of lime. Every particle of the diseased wood must be removed, or the labor will be in vain. The Yellows is a disease which attacks the peach and often proves very destruc- tive. It causes a premature ripening of the fruit, with discoloration of the flesh, and a yellow appearance of the leaves. The diseased trees seem to be filled with poison, and the knife used in pruning them will carry it to those which are healthy. The disease also spreads without actual contact, and sometimes destroys whole orchards. No cure is J^nown. The diseased frees should be cut and burned as soon as they appear to be affected. No trees should be set in the places recently occu- pied by the diseased ones, as the poison would ra] ully spread from the roots. Mildew is a disease which attacks both the grape and the gooseberry, and, to a limited extent, the peach. It attacks the foreign varieties of the grape when the vines are grown in the open air, and several of our native varieties are affected in unfavorable seasons. As soon as the disease a^ppears, the vines should be dusted with sulphur, and this treatment repeated every fortnight as long as it is needed. When hardy varieties are planted far enough apart, the branches properly thinned, and good culture is given, there will be little trouble from this source. DISEASES AND ENEMIES. is simple, but for a few days, cut off two or of the disease, not cut quite a the poison will ly spread when ; checked. If, :y must also be d, or the whole ;ars to involve ! committed to of the disease, ir trees, and for from the tree, nan large ones, ected. lould endeavor ! as destructive trees are often of the season 3f the diseased •ees, and occa- iwig and limb. Year by year jstroyed. The omptly cutting le disease. If ut cut, and the if the diseased ;s very destruc- n of the flesh, 3 be filled with ch are healthy, lestroys whole Ijurned as soon recently occu- le roots. )erry, an3, to a ;rape when the are affected in be dusted with eeded. When y thinned, and 783 This disease affects the goosebeny still more seriously than it does the grape I, IS due, .a a great measure, to climatic influences, but Ly be modified if • and good cuUivat.on. M.cHing heavily in .he spring witi sVt ha^^s 2 tr^:^ efficient remedy. ' ^" "^ ''" When peach trees are attacked by mildew, soap-suds should be thrown over them w.th a fountam-pump. The addition of lin.e-wa.er to the soap-suds and Z ' ,h quentdusfng of the trees with sulphur, is also highly recommended Cwei who have had considerable experience with the disease t^owers who There are other diseases which result from neglect, and some which are subject to cl.mafc changes. These, and the ones we have named can be murhT • prevented than cured. If no diseased tree is ,11 'u '^ '"''''y I HE CORCOLio ,s . small l,„t very desin.eilve i,„ec. which aLi„k. (h/ „1,„ apncot,chcrty,,pplo,a„^ with unvarying success, is to make a mound of ThTsTn^ ; r °' "'°'' '" ^''^^'' '^^"""'^ '^' '"'"l^^ l««e in the autumn p.. Close, enough, and'th^^ 1^^::^:^:^ ^Jr^n^ Z ' It makes its of an oysler- I is the dried from a dozen ^s hatch the appearing as rk, and suck I linseed oil very useful. ;iff lirush, in vc, and trees er frees. It s directions, )se scales of : ijaik when ral months. Their pres- wder which : insect may od, a sharp, he intruder :1s are often I the spring Presence of the tree to is to allow ing will Le rs the bark >d. It can ty which it ith a sharp Timer. If ik early in stance, the 5 orchards operation and caus- from tree Vhen trees often take trees, one nound of : autumn. e ground, vould not after the DISEASES AND ENEMIES. 787 wow is gone in the spring we spread the manure under the trees and ,h , • perform an additional service in i.romotinLr th.. r .i . I ' "*"' '"='''•-' " which it has protected during the Zter ' ""*" ^'""'"'"'=^ °' "'^' "««» Many farmers go amonc their trees aftpr ,>a^k .now as closely at possihfe aroLd e . I 7T:rt:T' ""^^ "^« ^w^the purpose very well. Ut it rehires Liij;:; ^ rVl^ ^^^ .r ;z^:zzr:L :::::^rr t r r- -^^ ^ - - to seriously injure a fine orchard before th rownc 'inH " T '"'"" ^'^'''"* mischief. But the greatest injury is caused by" eihic'L';" Ts '''' r' '" cated. A fruit-ciower in i <^r,iL ;, i ■ u , '^'^'"' ""' '^"n « «'ew .ny special va^i^irb/isr ^^i^^^t^ ::;:i;;^j:t: " '^"; °^ year or two old, or small branches of full-grown trees Z Te ' . , T "I"' " '^ * •tion. Nurserymen do this work when the't ee a^ "sma '^ T I ^ I ^ ''''■' ^ir^ZTi "V""; ""^^ 'HernTld'sLt; ::: ;^;;::;i:rt t s'^derrire; .: -zrir^t t " -^'^ ^°^ The method is described as foHows by Mr Jeli ,s' aTe,;:' "■^"■'"^•--' ^^'- Winona, Ohio, in his valuable work on ,re ..Art o Pro? , " ""f "y"'- "^ el«,at.a u,i,h .h- ^Hrt of th If T- ■■' °^ ""^ ''"'' '''^'"^ ^'^ PROPAGATION. 791 1. tie wedge of wood .s thus cut out with the bud and bark, the removal of which is advsed by some nurserymen, but as it does not seem to interfere at all with the unamg of the t^sues. and the removal is tedious and fraught with some danger to he eye of the bud, .t .s usually omitted. Into the cut previously n,adc in the stock the bud is now mserted and pressed downward under the bark then tied by passing strings of bass matting or cotton yarn around the stock, thus pressing the bark closely over the bud; care must be used not to allow the ligature to rest on the eye of the inserted bud " In ten days the ties should be cut at the back of the stock. If tbe bud IS not fully united to the stock, it must be tied as before and left until the union is complete. The next spring the stock should be cut off (if the tree is small; or the branch, if the tree is large) an inch or two above the point of insertion. All the sprouts which start upon t!.e stock must be rubbed off so that the growth may all be utilized by the bud. Figure I2I shows the method of cutting a bud. Figure 122 shows both the stock and bud after they are prepared. A little practice will enal,le any one of ordinary dexterity to perform the operation of budding rapidly and successfully. The be.rinner should remember that the incision in the bark of the stock is "to be formed nearly like the letter T, that only perfectly formed and fairly matured buds should be used, and that the buds must neither be wet with water, nor exposed to the drying wind or sunlight. As soon as they are cut from the tree all leaves should be removed from twi^s from which buds are to be taken. " Ring Budding consists in taking off a ring of bark, quarter of an inch wide, from the stock, and in the place which it occupied inserting a similar ring containing the bud which it is desired to have gro«r For ordiflary use it is not better than the method above described but IS said to be more successful in the budding of hard wood trees.'and of the grape vine. Grafting is a method of propagation largely used by nurserymen, and is applicable to trees of all sizes as well as to the roots of small trees. There are several different ways of per- forming the operation. The best ones for use on the farm are whip.grafting for small trees and cleft-grafting for those of larger growth. In the former method the stock and sfcion, which should be of the same size, are shaved to a like angle, fitted, as shown in Figure 123, so that they will lock together, and then bound or tied as directed for budding. Cleft- grafting is practised when the stock is much larger than the scion, and is used when trees of The stock should be cut off with a fine saw square across, split in the middle j and two scions, the lower ends of which have been shaved m the form of a wedge, are inserted in the crack. Figure ,24 shows the method of preparing the stock, and how to set the scions. Some operators set the scions nearly straight, while others slant them considerably. The former is the fig. 123 — WHIP- GRAFTING. FIG. 124.— CLEFT-GRAFTING considerable size are to be grafted ^^<^mmismmm» 792 FARMING FOR PROF/T. ury them half a foot or so ,„ depth. They do not come in contact with the earth years old. Each scion should have at least two buds. Nea he b e of L o ve^ menced and the top of the scon should be cut oflF a little above the upuer bud The work of grafting is to be performed in the spring after the circulation of he sap has become well established. circulation of the pjJN all lists of fruit for this country the apple is entitled to stand at the head ^IJ better than most sorts m adapting itself to its surroundings. There are vanet,es of apples which can be easily grown in Ma.xk and \u^Zot1 ^ and other sorts which succeed in Georo.a and the surrounding Stated or climate Id it"i "'h 7' '"'""•" ""' "'" '" ^''"^^ "^^ '"""--"^ '" -'• or cltmate, and tt s, .herefore, very important that the grower should strive to 1 he farther South an apple tree ,s taken the earlier it will ripen its fruit. Some of the finest winter sorts in New England become autumn apples when g own aUh Mr:;:;';^ '"^^^^'^^ '-■-' '- ^-"^ ^ecome^lostwor^Zr^tt for ilL"d North • 1 fT"' ''''^"'^"' '" '"^'''^ ^ '^P"''^"^ «f f-i' '-« Jo the cold North, and has done a great service to the people of th,t ^pct^on by gwng tncm some excellent varieties in place of the old-fashioned crabs which"hey had supposed were the only sorts suited to their locality. For summer, he recom' 1 THE LARGER FRUITS. 793 ormed. The he inner bark ■0 pieces may lay not meet ere the inner of the limb, rafting wax. e articles are inds when it )n they may i in autumn rom healthy advised for LD, may be i box. Fill m in place, ■ down, and 1 the earth, plump and ough some hat is two r the lower Id be corn- upper bud. tion of the the head. I succeeds There are :nnesota, States, ces in soil strive to oundings. Some of wn at the ess in the selected, ruit trees !ction by liich they e recom- mends the Tetofsky, a large, yellow, sub-acid apple which ripens in August; the Red Astrachan, a large, red, acid apple which ripens the last of August ; and the Summer Harvey, which resembles in color and flavor the Rhode Island Gri-fn- ING, and ripens the last of August. Each of these trees are hardy and productive the former being " perfectly iron-clad in hardiness." Among the autumn apples' the Duchess of Oldenhurgh, Pringle Sweet, and St. Lawrence are highly recommended. For winter use, the Fameuse, Ben Davis, Magog Red Streak and Scott's Winter, are hardy, productive, and of excellent quality. For thJ severest localities, the Siberian crabs. Transcendent, and Lady Elgin are excellent; and the Meader's Winter is a fruit of equal quality with the best varieties of large apples. Fc the localities between the extreme North and the Southern States a large number of kinds are well adapted. The Tetofsky, Early Harvest, Red As- trachan, Porter, Gravenstein, Hubbardston Nonesuch, King of Tompkins Co., Bell Flower, Canada Red, Rhode Island Greening, Westfield Seek- no-further, Tallman Sweet, Baldwin, Roxbury Russet, and Northern Spy, have all been thoroughly tested and prove excellent and productive. We con- sider the Porter, King of Tompkins Co., Esopus Spitzenburgh, Canada Red, Westfield Seek- no-further, Baldwin, and Roxbury Russet, extremely valu! able. The trees are reasonably hardy, and, with the exception of the Roxbury Russet (which is one of the best keeping apples known, and, consequently, entitled to a place in every orchard), very productive, while the fruit is of excellent quality. The Porter, Westfield Seek-no-furtiier, and Canada Red are splendid apples for eating, and the first and third are excellent for cooking purposes. For the South and Southwest, the following vafieties have been recommended by competent authorities: Early Harvf:st, Red Astrachan, Gravenstein, Fall Pippin, Bell Flower, Newtown Pippin, Smith's Cider, American Golden Russet, Shockley, Rawle's Janet, and Stevenson's Winter. In tlie above lists we have only mentioned a few of the very best kinds which are adapted to the localities named. As there are nearly three thousand named varieties of apples, it would be both useless and impossible to give a complete list in this work. While the farmer should have several varieties of apples, in order to furnish a succession in time of ripening, it is not wise for him to attempt to grow many kinds for the market. For family use the earliest and latest ripening varieties, with sev- eral sorts ripening at various times between the.e two extremes, should be chosen. But even here there should be a limit to the multiplication of varieties, and only the very best ones should be grown. The farmer who has fifty trees representing thirty different varieties of apples has made a great mistake in his selection. Of this fact he will be fully convinced when picking-time arrives, and he tries to keep each sort by itself. But, in growing apples for the market, it is much more important not to have too many varieties. For, if the farmer has a great many different kinds, he will have but a few barrels of any one sort, and the buyers will be likely to want only the ones which are the best known. If the apples were all of some standard variety the whole crop could be readily sold, but where there are many kinds, and but few of a kind, it is much more difficult to make sales. In point of quality, Pears are among our finest fruits I but there is avery -ren- eral, though unfounded, impression that the trees are tender, and that it is very diffi- cult to obtain a good quality of fruit. The tree is hardy, and is longer-lived than 794 I-AA\M/XG J- OR PROFIT. H 1 ■■11 \\ A HSaH " i- «Hn Iflii and care in storing .hem. pears can be hS ; \ ' " '"P"' "'"'""" °^ --ties. Pear trees need a rich and ecnsoH f . ^"«"' """' "^^ "<^^' «Fi"g- has been well drained. The ^ 7.h i'; ."T "■""' '^ '^'"'^■'- ""' ^^ wet'or else lii3i»' , 'l"^ I -^M^md^S& "0 t»usLiiip>.s, Y- ■ rmor who h.<'. a ^, lb.- fruit dop not ;,t aiwl ChIV Ml !v,,i ,, i't.w tie li IS b','en w sJy to softer • . " Will gii ■ - nfi'! ;i r. »1. V >« V,-' V . . •Ullks, ly. paa staiKlaf-i. ft i. ■■•.'f)tt;M ciK J--"'in.gade,i.rr •^i. l>y a (.roper selection of varic-i. ' "1 ^i'j-,1-; II'.,;; >■'•,, ,. , . .,_• >, ' ■spring: '•-;'•'>• tif^ietkwl, i,„d. tf sail ,.-,y ,. • •■•<-•► Many vBiietiesof'ihe • H-.- in this wrty that! M!>en };ro-.vr. s ..-hu;!. rfono; rbrsv r, .-T.^.,;., .„,] I' Olltrlilt h->< ,i,w ■•-' ■• ^^1«f.|> (i,e.r,^„ gr.>«.ing a.d p.-.n.".^!"""^'' ■4 MJ-! yjf-'SiiibU ■'■'"■'-!.'• V)! cK.Jn^- these ,: '•"^'■•l •■•- i--l>w ofstaiuiards. " ;--ho'iic! be haart of tl •i rlf-^ns ihctn ,■:•,, ■sorss f!i!( ,.;,„„^fj|i,^„.;,, ,, ., y^_,:^"j,"' ""'* • ■• n tyt likely V ■ , ' ..-.,, Ml I'd-- r.'',\K-r,.( ■ i ' 'i,\'. ••■i.r.MK, Fi.L V, -> grois' ,», ■ ■■est •^irts, The farmer who y. will have ssirne S adrf Urgciv Jo ttu projTKtrly ihiiv the f,uu, cvq.y proper selection of vaWeii-i ; 1,..,.;! .V, ■ ' '■-'>, •"•i.i, un tl)in <■"< ''CIS.!, ;.!td, if sail ,r.v ,. Many variefios of Ihe ■' '-'•■- '*''»y Uian w!ien fjwAn '> t»i(?;liti with li,,-,, t.*-,-,if pearlrccii, sothrtt the Jancfu/ii of the ■f thu soil,__jir,,t ,he earth i^ nton. ix •-, •v.ar, a,,.; the '^'»' 'rts (.riotigh ''l, style. A rable than be grower if a wood lit a pretty set strong ing line is to be stretched, the end posts may need bracing. I )n>w the wires light, an.l fasten them with staples to each post. The posts should be six feet in length above the ground. I'lace the lower wire eighteen inches Ir.m. the ground, one near the t>.p of the posts, and two more at equal distances between those already located. In pruning bearing vines cut away old wood and leave ihe new, for the fruit buds arc on the new growth. A few strong branches should be left every year to provide a succession of canes for the next scison. All the small stems of fruit should he picked off as soon as the fruit is well set. and some summer pruning may be given if the vine is too thick to admit the light freely. Care shoul.l be taken, however, not to remove leaves from bearing canes, or from canes which are to bear fruit tlij next year. To this rule the exceptions of pincliini,' off the bearing shoots "three leaves beyond the hast stem of grapes." and the shortening in of the future bearing canes when they are as long as it is desirable th.u they should grow, may be safely made. In order to obtain the best quality of fruit from the vine, the grapes must remain thereon until they are fully ripe. They are good some time before this period, and, on account of early frosts, or because they are wanted for immediate use. they are often gathered when well-colored, but still only partially ripened. If a vine is ir.jined to the south side of a building, and the fruit remains quite late, it will be much sweeter and better than specimens of the same variety grown in the ordinary manner, and picked at the usual time. If they are to be kept for fall or winter use Ihe grapes should not hang on the vines as long as ihey should if to be used at once. For keeping they should be gathered as soon as ripe, all imperfer-; berries cut off with scissors, and the bunches packed in fine, dry saw-dust. The boxes should be kept in a cool place where they will not be exposed to frost, and should not be opened until the fiuit is wanted for use. WiNTKR Protection should be given in the North. Where\erthe mercury falls in the coldest weather to ten degrees below zero, the vines should be taken from the trellis, before severe cohl comes on, laid upon the ground, fastened with wooden pegs, and covered with two or three inches of soil. Farther South, but not where the winters are mild, it is better to m. rely cover with straw (over which a very liiilo earth is thrown to keep out the micL-), as the ground is liable to be too wet. Merely laying the vines upon the ground is much better than to allow them to remain upon the trellis. Of Varieties 'here are already an immense number, and they are rapidly increasing. One of the very best of the older kinds is the Concord. The vino.is hardy and fruitful. It succeeds in almost all parts of the country, and is undoubt- edly "the most hardy and popular native grape that exists." It is said to be better West and South than it is in New Enoland. If this is correct every farmer should have a Concord grape vine. The Clinton succeeds best on a light soil. It is a hardy and productive vine, bearing quite acid but very long-keepbi- fruit. With reasonable care it can be kept through the winter. The Delaware is a small but exceedingly rich grape. The vine is not as productive as the Con- cord, and it does not prove as hardy at the North, but the excellence of the fruit entitles it to general cultivation. The Diana is a good keeper, and by mnnv is con- sidered a fine grape. We do not like its peculiar flavor. The vine is rather tender, and needs protection much more than the kinds prrvinusly named. The F.LsiNf;. BURG is a small but rich grape. Mr. Knox, a well-known nnrser>'man. used to recommend this .as the best table grape. The Hartford Prolific is a good and 800 I'Ah'MlXa FOR PROFIT. il T.ite car!)- ^rnpc. Vines n.e hnr.ly and qui.c ,,rn,nn,,n.„.m nnd VVn.M,N..n.N are a! „«ood ^ J where ihe l(.in|i(Tatiire is nut too low. *" t'^'^P'^* in cnnin'T" ;:',"'V""'''" ,"""■;' """^ "' " '"""""•''= "^ """^" -■'-■'' -^rc sood n cu .nn Iocah.es luu no, adapted to so wide a range of country. There arc also m y hy„r„l varK..,e. of grapes, produced hy crossing a native and a foreign sort! Hh.eh ,o well ,n some sections, but which are not so hardy as the native kinds Some of these are very valuable in sections where they succee.l. Mr. Rohfrs" No,. 4 (W„,,„:u), 9 (L,Nn,.,.:v), ,5 (A,=awam). .9 (Mkr,umac). and 53 (SAtrM)* have been thor.ni.hly tested and proved very ,lne. Vhe HRUn.TON, , new hi" originated by Jaco,. M.k.k,, Es,.. of liRtotfr,,.. Nkw York, is a vigorous'vi^e and produces a large quantity of excellent fruit which ripens early. Other growers have introduced new hybrid varieties which premise well. M ny seedling varieties which possess great merit have also been sent out by their originators. The Roci.i-Ti R. originated by Ellwanger and IJarry, has been tested twelve years and proved e.arly, hardy, and productive. Wor.,kn-s Sr.r.D...Nc. and Moork's Eariy both seedlings of the CnNc.R,,, the former ripening ten days and the latter two' weeks earlier than the parent fruit, are hardy and productive vines and the grapes are of fine qua „y. Of the see.lling class of new grapes. T. R .M.nkr. Eso., of Linden. Nfav Jersi-.v, who supplied about one hundred thousand families with th. Concord and other grape vines while publishing T„e Rural American, has senl out the following varieties: Belinda, a white gr.ape which ripens before the Com- simihr'.oM Ix' "'' '"f "f "• ''"' ""^ '"'" ^"^ '"•"•== Antoinette, white, simhartothe n-xiNDA wuh the exception of ripening a week or ten days later- an. the I .ndkv, a black grape rip.ning a week earlier than the Concord and of' belter quah-y. vine extremely productive and holding the fruit until frost comes. These were selected from flf.r, . hundred new var,eties originated by Mr. Miner from the seed of the Concokh, and we are confident that they will ^rove valuable tZrb"'T;. ' "' " '^ '""^ "'^" ''y''"'^' ^^^ -"• ''-•^''-. succeed throughout the country. . S a general rule we do not think the production of small fruits for market can he made profit.able by the average farmer. But we are confident that It will pay him to grow a supply for home use. These fruits are -not merely luxuries but are valuable preservers of health. Physicians assert that the free use of ripe fruits tends strongly to ward off various forms of disease, and is especially valuable in counteracting the influence of malaria upon the human system. Even dysentery, a disease which many people suppose IS brought on by the use of fruit, is much less prevalent among families who use ripe fruit in abundance than it is in those which are deprived of fruit. The fruit contains an acid which the system needs, and it is a great deal cheaper and better to obtain it in the form of fruit thnn it is to purchase it of doctors or druggists The requisite quantity of the small fruits for an ordinary family can be very easily f. The loNA in mnny I's well. The Maktha > ni) excellent grape for ^ (ieorj^ia, hut succeeds ION are alsofjood grapes f others which are good country. There are also live and a foreign sort, -dy as the native kinds, iucceed. Mr. Rogers, iMAc), and S3 (Salkm) RicilTON, a new hybrid ORK, is a vigorous vine s early. Other grower'! M iiy seedling varieties heir originators. The tested twelve years and , and MooRK's Early, ays and the latter two e vines and the grapes T. I!. .MiNKR, Esq., of isand families with the LI. Amf.rican, has sent ■ipens before the CoK- ; Antoinette, white, !ek or ten days later; I the CoNcoRi) and of riiit until frost comes, inated by Mr. Miner sy will prove valuable II, doubtless, succeed mall fruits for market we are confident that These fruits are -not h. Physicians assert I off various forms of ng the influence of which many people t among families who rived of fruit. The at deal cheaper and doctors or druggists, ly can be very easily ■m'U --ii'AR,y/\ ;■• ■ \ lUiif-carK'-::;,-c. ■ . ,,. hAidy and .,auc!ive. The Fona fa m^^ l..calil.i« provt&,.«rl-, : :■ , . , hxlufive, and ihe fruit keep* wdl. 'nii.r-'5i: nr, tlSp fiiiive' Wnds. • -rj- valur.^ ..■ 's c ilpfts wtu. -.(.hrS ■ !■ I'-.e tJiUiaiTOJX, a rit*- hjLrid '7 J,\t« ji. >;, i.KK, E»-», . :r= vo>:.-,,)ki>, th.: former ripe- ;he h.Ucr two week;; earlier Uia.i ih" p-rr^^t friii', :-ro h.ir.t'/ An-; > ,1 fi„. ,rv,T.,..- !• hieh do 11.' p. •'' line ip.plih foliawiu "!• ■: :i;>'.>,i. ',,;.■■ huiuhcd ti;ou:vu-...I f.iniiiies wkh iiii; v-ftie pul'-i ^;r.;. -r-.r.- f>, ;,u \:rit ^ • 'OH- ' ■ i-.it ..!■)■ ii.i , .■'..•. jiviT.ji, whitft. KK grapt! ripenitjf;; :!tidcnt ttirit li valuable ^M-tol* FBTTITS, use !'•■■• -rm Tji. - ■ ' -iifidi-pt that '' i;.i>uc 1! V. i licse fiiiii;, nrc-nct ■••;rv«s of fe^aJib. fhysidartislisfi)* • •:■» ifd!* tends strongly K, ward fiflf-various TomiS >■: i-rciitl* iiaittabk '■•.1 counUTaciing' the iiiflr.';;----' ystani. Pv;;n dyiseirt«ry, n dikMS^r which many ; , i* tnovig!ii ...n iinf a,c uh, i« mneh lo*s pteval«.>t among famihqi who ^ in (hose' wbkh "re deprived of frait. T)ie t in/nveds, and >: 1- ;• >jriT.t denl fV-iptr and than it h to r.urchi it^ ('re lorsn ot iriirt than it w to purchi ■ ■ti>e o< i!-' n^; fi riM!' 'or ->.!■ njiM's.ir i.irgi*(». easilv I Ti)c Martii,', ia, hyt >iKt. '....,,■ also f^fioA gi apt s whir!) .,ri. t;ooil '["htTf '..■•(• also a foreign^ ion. (e iMiive kinds. ■' • ••■»;»■ hyhriil ' jthtr glowers cina^ '. ■ i the lattL'i iwo iniiiies with liji; ... \ . i I i . .*;, wliitft, ■'"^'>'r- later'; MNER ■' e valuable 'or m.irkfi ''t^eot (Jiat ■ iaii.> nrc-not niat>y peopi>! J faniil»e« who in; \<-fv esisi'v SMALL FRUITS. 803 "^ot'onhfmTh' ?'• " T'T' " "^" " ^^°"" P^°P'«' ^>--t universally are fond of them, the farmer should consider it both a duly and a privilege to devote a small area of land to their production. ^ ^ ® Of the various kinds of the small fruit, which should find a place in the far- mers garden, the Strawbp.rrv is usually considered of the greaLt implr.ancr Tlus fruit IS eas y grown ,/ it is well cared for. If the plants are eglSd t"; fruit IS not easily secured. There are several different methods of 5 1 i atiln That which IS best adapted to the farm Is setting the plants in straight r ws t." feet and a half apart and twelve or fourteen inches apart in the rows' When t is desired to increase the number of plants of a particular variety they may be set \1 her apart in the rows. but. when fruit is wanted, it is better to'have'the pla ts « a short distance fron. each other. The land should be very thoroughly pr pared Id i" The'tr- ZtT\ ^^-^-^•— - - -cellent ZZ. L t. IxL 2 f k" . '^" P''"'' "■■" '° '''^ P'""'^ ^''°"'d b« '-^ge enough to mid nd 'XI r.K T'' °"' ''^'°" "'""^' '^« '°°'^ ^'^-•'^ be dipped in'soft mud. and ail but three leaves should be cut off. The time for setting may be either in "the spring or early autumn Some growers prefer the former season, and others the Lef. GoodVlan; se"t in t autumn and well cared for often produce part of a crop of fruit the next summer Those which are put out in the spring will not bear many berries, and ought not to be allowed to i thoy show an inclination to produce fruit, but will develop into strong mid vigorous plants which will be less likely to winter-kill than those set in the fall When there is no special haste about obtaining the fruit, we think the spring is the best time for setting plants. ^ The CULTIVATION which strawberry plants require consists in frequent hoeings. and in keeping the land free from weeds. By using a hand-cultivator between the rows the work can be made much easier than it otherwise would be. The runners, may be allowed to grow between the hills, but not between the rows. Some prefer to keep the plants in hills, and do not allow them to spread, while others let them run as they choose and cover the whole surface of th. bed. When the latter course IS pursued the bed is very likely to become overrun with weeds, and new plant,, must be put out every year or two. If kept in hills, most of the work of cultivation can be done with a cultivator or hoe, while if the runners are allowed to grow between the rows, there will be more hanH.weeding required. But there will also, be more plants and a larger quantity of fruit. At the South, strawberry plants soon decrease in fruitfulness. and some growere recommend the putting out of a new bed each year in order to have a lot of fresh- bearing plants every season. At the North it pays to start a new bed every three ""'v^l'.rT. f'"*' *''''^ "' ^'" •"='""^^'^' thoroughly cultivated, and from which the dead leaves and runners are removed after the fruit has been gathered will remain vigorous much longer than those which are neglected Winter Protection is useful in nearly all parts of the country. In the North- EKN States it is absolutely necessary if the full productiveness of the vines is to be secured. The embryo fruit buds are formed in the autumn, and severe winters, must injure them if they are unprotected. Where deep snows come early and stay several months there is less need of an artificial covering than there is farther South where the ground freezes and cold rains often fail during the winter. The plants should be covered, an inch or two deep, late in the fall with cut straw, hay. or some similar substance. This to prevent the alternate freezing and thawing of tho surface I 804 FARMING FOR PROFIT. of the ground and also to protect the plants from the light. As soon as'the weather s warm ,n spr.ng the material should be loosened from the ground and theTop of ndl r""rT ' '"; ' ""' "°' '^ ^^"*^^'^^' ^^ " -^ '-^ ^^ "^eep down weed and also keep the fruit clean. ^ "uwu weeas Of Varieties there is an immense number, and many new ones are cut unon .»,. market every year. There are many kinds wh.ch are excellent for the m rk'e and some of still better quality .hich can be gro.n for home use. but will nrwc' bear transportation. There are others which are good but not p;olificrw i e orh ,o, are productive but not very good. Some kinds which are excellent in some loca i do not prove valuable in other sections, while some kinds thrive in all sections and upon almost all kinds of soil. The Wil.os is a very hardy and produc ^e^l nt and IS probably more largely grown than any other variety. The fruit is very add and IS not of first-rate quali.y. The fact that it can be very easily grown makes it a general favorite. Jucum.a succeeds in rich heavy soils. Tlfeluit is of "od quality, ripens early, and holds out late. Charles Downing is an excellent and productive sort. Pres.oknt Wilder is of a first-rate quality where it succeeds Downer s Prolific succeeds well at the South. Monarch of the West is very popular Kentucky is a good variety, and produces fruit after most kinds .have finished bearing. Of the newer kinds the Great American. Crescent .Seedling, Sharpless Seedling, and Miner's Great Prolific, are destined to prove extremely popuhr. There are a multitude of other. varieties new and old, many of them valuable, which we have not room to name. In the farm-garden only a few sorts should be grown, and those should he both good and productive. RASPBERRY.-This fruit is much esteemed by the majority of people, and as the plants grow wild in nearly all parts of the world the inhabitants of all lands can be well supplied When cultivated the plants are very productive and the fruit is larger than that which grows wild. The red varieties are more tender than the black caps At the North they sometimes winter-kill. while at the South the T".71 T^ ^I ''"" '""'^" ^""- '^^^ ^^''^ ^-'«"« «-. «h-efore. better adapted than the red to general cultivation. They will grow in almost any kind of soil, but do the best m one which is light and dry. The red kinds thrive the best in a rich, deep, and quite moist soil. The plants should be put out in rows and hills. The red varieties may stand four feet ap..rt each way, but the black kinds should be six feet apart one way and four or five feet the other. The plan.s can be put out either in the spring or fall The canes should be cut off even with the ground after the setting is done, and the plants must not bear fruit until the next year. In order to prevent this, and to insure a vig. orous growth, severe pruning must be given. In July the canes should be cut off wuh.n a foot of the ground and the side shoots shortened in. The second year the top of the new growth is to be pinched off when it gets two feet high, and the side , shoots must not be allowed to grow more than two feet in length. This makes strong roots and stocky stems. Mr. Purdy. the well-known editor of the Fruit Recorder advises this vigorous cutting of the new growth, and says that it will usually make the stems strong enough to hold up large crops of fruit without being staked. Each year a sufficient number u( shoots should be allowed to grow to provide bearing canes for the next season and all others should he removed The stalk grows one year. be.,rs fruit .he next, and then dies. After the fruit has been iMcked. the canes which produced it should be cut off at the surface of the ground SMALL FRUITS. 806 During the whole season the ground shouU be kept free fiom weeds. The use of a horse-cultivator between the rows, and a hberal mulch of old hay close to the hills, will prove a great help in this respect, and also promote the gro-.vih and productiveness of the plants. If well cared for, the roots will last for many years. ' Winter Protection is needed by most of the best varieties. This is best given by a light covering of earth. The canes should be bent down upon the ground, a shovelful of eirth thrown upon the tops to keep them in place, and then a furrow plowed each side the row will furnish sufficient covering. In the spring the canes ■ can be loosened with a fork. Of Varieties the Clarke, Naomi, and Philadelphia are among the best of the fully established kinds of the red berries ; Brinkle's Orange is a fine yellow variety ; and the Mammoth Cluster, Doolittle, and Davison's Thornless, are among the standard black caps. Of the above the three former are propagated by suckers, and must have winter protection at the North. Brinkle's Orange is also tender, and is propagated in the same manner. Tiie three latter are hardy, and are increased ^from the tips of the new wood. Blackberry is a common fruit, growing wild in nearly all countries and also extensively grown for home use and for market. The plants are very strong growers and require more room than the raspberry. Otherwise the cultivation is nearly the same as already described for that fruit. The surface of the ground must be stirred often, but not too deeply. If the roots are broken, a large number of new plants will grow, and the whole bed will soon be filled with them. Mulching is very useful Severe pruning must also be given. If the canes are allowed to grow more than three feet high, with side branches two feet long, a stake must be set in each hill and the canes tied to it. But if severely pruned, staking will not be necessary. Three or four stalks are enough for a hill. The following varieties are among the best for farm purposes: Wilson's Early and Kittatin^ are reasonably ' .rdy, though needir>g winter protection in some localities, and produce large quantities of excellent fruit ; Missouri Mam- moth, and Sable Queen are newer sorts of great promii ;, and the Wachusett Thojinless, which is now being introduced, seems destin-d to be very popular. Currants are among the most common of the small fruits. They are easily grown and very productive. Although often neglected and allowed to stanc* in the sod, these bushes ought to be cultivated and hoed. If properly cared for they will produce much larger and finer fruit than can be obtained from neglected bushes. At the South, mulching is necessar,-, and, at 'he North, it is highly beneficial. Pruning should not be neglected. The old wood should be cut out each spring and the fastest growing branches should be pinched in during the summer. The fruit grows on wood whii;h in two, or more, years old, but very old stems are not as fruitful as newer ones. Only three or four stalks should grow from a single root, and new plants should be put out every few years. The plants should be four feet apart, and fertilizers should be freely applied to the soil. Keep off the currant- worm, as directed in a previous chapter, and plenty of fruit can be obtained at a very small cost. Of Varieties the Red Dutch, Cherry, and La Versailles are the standard red sorts. The White Grape is the best white, and the Black Naples the best black variety. Of the white and black currants, Mr. A. S. Fuller, in his valuable work on small fruit culture, says the former is less acid and is richer than the red. 306 FARMING FOR PROFIT. while the black is less acid than either but has a musky flavor. The black cur^.nt .s a stronger grower than the other sorts and produces considerable fruit on the n'w Th:tit':nSra2'' "r'^ --~«i l- pruning than thr^her^i Z Ihe ruu of the black variety is considered valuable for jellies. New plants of anv variety, can be obtained from cuttings or by layers ^ ' ^ Gooseberries are excellent for jellies, are used for making pies, and for various c re ThTv ° rr"- ^""^ l^'-'----»> likethecufrantLutrequremo year so as o have a constant supply of those which are young and vigorous For Cranberries are a very healthful and delicious kind of fruit They are extremely wht ;: trT f r^ ''''-'" ^'-'^ -- ^ ^^■-'^•^ -^^^^ of^diet s "e: ! Who are well. The plants are semi-aquatic. though there are varieties which do passably well on uplands. In order to secure the best returns from them, crln rie hould be grown where water can be freely used. The water is needed to promote the growth of the plants, to protect them from the severe cold of winter and the late sprmg frosts, and to destroy the worms which sometimes infest them. In mlny places cranberries grow wild. One of our friends has a large lot of plants in hil mowing, and, though he does nothing in the way of cultivation, he obtains several bushels of good fru.t every other year. In favorable locations the cranberry can be grown m this manner very easily. Small pieces of vi..es may be set in the turf or berr.es. or pieces of vines, may be sown upon the land. If the land is fitted 'for them, and good plants are set out. the result will be much better than can be secured from any such superficial methods, and. where the fruit is to be grown for the mar ket. this ought always to be done. The cranberry, like all other fruits, is improved by cultivation. But. if the farmer is to grow only a small nuantity for family use he cannot afford, and does not need, to incur much expense ii. :. cing the land If the plants are to be set on low land the surface-water should be got off by drains. Large plants should be secured from some productive bed (some vines being nearly barren) and set in rows two feet apart each way. If small Hants or pieces of vines, are used, they should be set nearer together. If the weeds and grass are kept down for two or three years the vines will occupy all the land This can be facilitated by spreading sand upon the surface, to Ihe depth of two inches before the plants are put out. ' Farmers who have no low land which is convenient, or is suitable for this pur pose, can put a few plants of the upland variety in their gardens with a reasonable certainty of obtaining fruit. If a liberal application of murk can be made to the soil It will be an advantage, and the plants should be tho.uughly mulched For this purpose the Mansfield Creeper is one of the best kinds. This is a new variety described by Mx. J. J. H. Gregory, the well-known MAssArHUSKTTP seedsman, as of different growth and habit from other kinds. The cuttings root freely, thrive on moderately dry soils, and are quite productive. For low land the THE FARM-GARDEN. black cun-ant t on the new other kinds. ilants, of any d for various require more A Southern ;r the leaves >ng the tops, this disease, )ushes while plants each )rous. For- !. Hough- proved are e extremely t for people s which do cranberries to promote ind the late In many lants in his lins several erry can be the turf, or 3 fitted for be secured )r the mar- > improved lily use, he 1 got off by ame vines plants, or ifeeds and nd. This vo inches, • this pur- easonable de to the led. For is a new "HUSETTS ings root ' land the 807 Tcirrv . S n ^ ' "''' ''"' ^°'"*' °' •*"= ^°"""°" " Bell " and Cherry kmds are st.U qu.te popular. Plants should be put out in the sprint though they wiil be likely to grow if set in early summer or in the fall ' ^' [N order to secure the best returns from the farm-garden, some changes from I he common form of management will be required. A larger area of land must be devoted to the garden, a larger variety of vegetables and cu"liva"r ^'°''"' ''"'^ ^^^ ^''°*'"^ "°P* *""'' ^ '"""^ thoroughly Cold FRAMES.-Several varieties of the plants which should be grown in the farm-garden are much more fruitlul when transplanted than they are if allowed to grow where the seed is sown. There are others which the grower in the Northern and Middle States desires to obtain earlier than he can get them by plantmg m the open land. For these reasons many farmers start their tomato- seeds, and several other kinds, in boxes or pans of dirt which they keep in the house. This method is quite inconvenient, and the results are not altogether satis- factory. It is much better to make what is known as a " cold frame," and in this start the plants which are wanted earlier in the season than they can be obtained by sowing seed ,n the open ground. This is a plank box covered with glass. A shel- tered location with a southern exposure should be selected. The land should be dry and level. Set four posts in the ground at the corners of the frame and fasten the planks to them. The back side of the frame should be about a foot high and the front about eight inches. For ordinary farm use. a frame seven feet long and three or four feet wide will be large enough. The end pieces should be made nar- row in front and wider at the back side in order that when the top is on there shall be no cracks through which the wind can enter or the warm air escape. The top should be principally made of glass. Old windows answer every purpose. The soil within the frame should be deeply spaded, finely pulverized, and a liberal quantity of stable-manure should be worked in. The surface soil must lie made very fine, and the front slightly raised. The soil should be worked just before the seeds are sown, as the natural moisture of the land will facilitate their germination. But if the seeds are to be put in during very cold weather, or while the ground is still quite cold and damp, the sashes should be kept on for a few days previous to the sowing in order that the soil may become partially warmed. The bed should be watered every morning. During warm days the sashes should be raised a little, by means of wedges or sticks placed under them. Late in the season it may be neces- sary lo cover every other pane of glass with whitewash, or else cover the whole with a blanket during the middle of the day, in addition to the raising of the sashe,. A little experience will enable any one to determine when the heat is too intense. If the plants grow very fast and " spindling," the bed is too warm, and more air should be admitted. As the days grow longer and the season becomes warmer, the sashes m.iy be taken half-way off during the day. When a " cold snap " comes, the isshes should be eovefed d:iring the night with an old blanket. In all cases the plants should be somewhat exposed lo the air, by opening the sashes a few hours each day, before they are removed to the open ground. -*»*«»Wii««ii^ 808 FARMING FOR PROFJT. Transplantinc. is an operation which often needs to be performed. While it is nuportant that th.s work should be done in the best possible manner, it is frequently rendered wholly useless, and the plants which are taken are spoiled, because those who put them out do not understand the be. nethods. or are careleL ... foUowinl! them. If properly performed, at a suitable time, but verv few plants will be lost Lven m an unfavorable time most of the plants can be made to grow if they are sk.lfully managed. But as far as possible a good time should be chosen The ground should be fitted only a short time before the transplanting is done and if a ra.ny day can be used, the plants will start sooner, and grow faster than they will if the sun shines bnghtly, and the ground is dry. Most plants should be set rather deeply down as far as the first leaves-and the earth should be packed firmly d en r,Lt "'l V ""T^ ^'-^ considerably la,ger than the root. bSt not much deeper than wall be needed, pu^ the root into the hole thus formed, and then make ''"o'her hole close to the root, and as deep as the one in which it was placed. This will pack the soil closely around the root throughout its entire length, and will do a great deal towards making the oper ation a success. Plants with many roots, like the strawberry and tomato, need difltrent management. A hole of suffi. cient size to allow the roots and fibres of the plant to be spread in their natural position .should be made, and the earth packed closely upon and around them. It is also well to dip the roots into thin mud before setting the plants. For use when the plants are to be reset near where they grew, the implement shown in Figure 127 will be very useful. Quite a quantity of earth can be taken, the roots will not be seriously injured,' and the growth of the plant will hardly be checked. For transplanting in dry weather, the Germantown Telegraph recommends the fo lowing plan : « Make a lot of holes with a dibble, deep down in heTaThwh r the plants are to grow, and fill these holes with water It will snnn Jl leaving the ground in a half-dry, half-wet condition. The pa o b" ouT''" taken from the seed-bed and put into a bucket or hasin of wat Th. i he oot^ are but the tops are kept out i„ .he dry. They are one by one Uken o t^^p nThe hok pressed firm, and the job is done. They need no more water than this do >ot w.lt „,uch, and grow right away much better than when treated to a si lerlth in the regular old-fashioned sort of way But siinnnco ti,» .,. '"""^^'^ "=>'" the plant so as to form a sort of basin about the stem ■ the wM^r • 1 ». «d ^ .hoi. s.rf.0. i. „ b.fo,.. This u a „„„.fo,..n i;t«:"ir ,*?h: FIG. 127. — TRANSPLANTER. )e performed. While it is le manner, it is frequently »re spoiled, because those are cartless in following V few plants will be lost, made to grow if they are should be chosen. The •anting is done, and if a iw faster than they will if ints should be set rather should be packed firmly 1 single straight root is to I the root, but not much s formed, and then make •se to the root, and as in which it was placed. le soil closely around the ts entire length, and will )wards making the oper Plants with many roots, trry and tomato, need ment. A hole of suffi- )w the roots and fibres spread in their natural e made, and the earth pon and around them, dip the roots into thin I the plants. be plants are to be reset grew, the implement • 27 will be very useful, of earth can be taken, : be seriously injured, f the plant will hardly JRAPH recommends the own in the earth where : will soon soak away, lants to be set out are ter. That is, the roots e taken out, put in the are water than this, do eated to a shower-bath weather continues dry, las found a better plan oe, just a little about iter is poured into the »y, the earth is drawn operation, and let the FIG. 129.— HOME ADORNMENT—SHRUBS, EVERGREENS, AND FLOWERS. THE FARM-GARDEN. 811 weather be ever so dry it is seldom that a plant requires more than one or two water doses of this character during the dry spell." Various Garden Crops.— Many crops are grown in both the garden and the fitld. To several of these we have already allucltd in treating of farm crops, and the diicctions there jjiven for cultivation c.in be very exsily moiified to suit the garden. Nearly all the gulden plants need a rich soil and thorouj;n culture. Sev- eral of the common plants are found in every garden, and their cultivation is already understood. Therefore we shall occupy but little space in treat. ,)g of them. Asparagus is not as generally found in farmgardcns as most other standard plants for garden cultivation. If the land is made rich and thorough culture is given there will be no trouble in obtaining a good crop. The land should be deeply plowed in the fall, a heavy application of well-rotted stable-manure should be made, and another plowing given. The soil should be finely pulverized, and furrows eight inches deep should be iilowed for the rows. These furrows should be five feet apart, and the roots placed in them, covering the crowns about an inch. When the stalks appear, hoe the dirt around them, thus gradually filling the furrow and levelling off the surface of the ground. In the l.ill spread on manure, and plow a shallow furrow toward each side of the rows. In the spring harrow the surface level, and keej) the ground loosened, and the weeds down during the whole season. The next fall plow a furrow each side away from the rows, throw in manure, and then plow the earth back over the rows. The next spring harrow the earth away. A few of the strongest shoots can be cut, but no gener.il cutting should be allowed until the next year. Cultivate thoroughly every year, and continue to give the same treatment in the spring and fall as has been recommended. After the third year coarse salt m.iy be freely applied. The stalks should be removed before the seeds are ripe. If land enough for this method cannot be spared, the rows can be placed two feet apart, but this will make it necessary to do the wuik of cultivation by hand. The soil must be kept loose \*ith a fork, and liberal quantities of manure must be worked in. The cutting for table use should be done before the heads burst, when the plants are about six inches above the surface, and they may be cut four inches below the ground. Beans. — Both the bush and the running beans should be grown in the garden. Planting must be deferred until liie weather and the ground are warm. They should be kept free from weeds, but it is not well to hoe them when wet with either dew or rain. The running beans should be provided with sticks upon which to climb. There are many varieties. The Lima is quite different from, and much superior to, the ordinary kinds. The seeds are very large and white, and the vine is a vigorous grower and prolific bearer. The seeds must be planted with the eyes downward, and long poles must be provided for the vines. Planting must not be done until the ground is warm. As the frost proves destructive this variety does not ripen at the extreme North. Beets are easily grown, and the early kinds are useful for the leaves as well as the roots. Sow in long rows, with a seed-sower, eighteen inches apart. Cover the seeds an inch deep. If sown by hand soak the seeds in warm water for a day or two. For early use sow as soon as the ground can be worked in spring ; for autumn sow in May, and for winter use in Jun^ Thin the plants to from six to ten inches apart. The leaves of the young plants are good for " greens." During the season weeds shoul^ be kept down, and the ground ought to be often stirred. The Cabbage needs a deep, rich soil and thorough culture. The seed should be 812 FARMING FOR PROFIT. i h.lls At the S.H,TH tho plants may be set in ,he fall, but at the Nor, M the seel should be sown m a coUi frame in March for the early varieties, and in open a. da S ; r.^^[ H^ ' n !""'*• J'' •^'""'^ "'"^' "°' ""-•' --^^ -•^" "' ""e -d «h„;H . H uT " '""" '"'' ""'^ "■'''''^ "P"" "'^•' *"y. ""'1 °'''y one plant should stand „. a h. 1 The ground should be hoed often, and when the plam re half.grow^' a should be worked deeply and hilled up around the stalk, C aTctedTith^'thi 'd"'"'""°';" °[ " '^'"'k'""'" "'-'' P'°^'^ •'"'"= •'«•-''-• ^Vhen affected with this d.sease. the plants " head under ground " instead of above it and are rendered worthless. To prevent it, plant cabbages on a different piece o 1 Stir"'" r"" "'"'•"'r' ^"^^'-"-"-. ''"-"•J-^ or guano, f'r f r^i Plant ng year after year on the same land, or the use of hog-manure, will be likely to .ne grown in ni.ry farm-garden in those sections where they succeed. Plant in rows and care for as THE JARM-GAKDEX. 815 already directed for field culture. These and the different kinds of vines should be grown upon one side of the garden so that they can be cultivated by horse power. Radish is highly esteemed by many people and i:. easily ^rown. Sow the seed in drills a foot apart and cover lightly. Thin to three inches apart in the rows. Sow in the spring for early use and in August for winter. The soil should be rich, but no fresh manure should be used if the best quality of roots is desired, Rhcharu can be grown from the seed or from pieces of the roots. The latter pro- cess saves two years' time. If seed is used, sow in the spring, in drills a foot apart, and thin the plants to three inches. Transplant the next spring, into rows three feet apart each way^ into a rich soil, and give ^ood cultivation. If roots are used, set them in hills, in rich land. Cut all the si ■ ,1 stalks as soon as they appear. If more plants are wanted, divide the roots in the spring. The Squash is easily grown in some sections, while in others its insect enemies make its production a matter of great difiiculty. The land should be very rich and the hills should be eight or ten feet apart. Manure and room are great essentials. Plant when the ground is warm, usin ' plenty of seed, and thin to two or three plants in a hill when the vines commence miming. Use plaster on the leaves as recom- mended for cucumbers. This will tend to keep away the bugs. Where the maggot proves destructive, the vines must be closely watched. The eggs from which these enemies are hatched are laid on the stem near the root and at the point of union of the leaf stalks and % ine. The maggot bores into the vine, and if seen soon enough may be de- stroyed with a sharp wire, but if given his liberty for a few days he will destroy a large vine. Tomato. — Sow the seeds in a cold frame, or in a box of earth in the house, if very early plants are desired. If not, sow in open land as soon as the ground is warm. Cover lightly. When the plants are three inches high they should be taken up and put in a sheltered place. Transplant again when they have become well rooted. This will give stronger plants than can be secured if they are set out only once. For early fruit set the plants in a dry and gravelly soil. If a large and rather late crop is wanted, set in a rich and moist soil. Hoe often, give plenty of room, and tie each plant to a stake, or set a frame around it like that shown in Figure 130. After the fruit sets pinch off the ends of the vines. Tomatoes are said to contain ■considerable oxalic acid and are considered very healthful. Turnips, in small quantities, may be grown in the garden. The cultivation both of flat turnips and ruta bagas will be much the same as directed for the field. To obtain a succession sow some of the early varieties as soon as the ground is warm, and the later sorts when the season is further advanced. For winter use the seed of flat turnips needs sowing about the first of August, and the ruta bagas about the middle of June. The former should be sown in drills and cultivated, the latter should be transplanted, and hoed quite often. The great essentials to success in farm gardening are heavy manuring, plenty of room, and thorough cultivation. These any and every farmer can give, and by giving them he can make his garden the most profitable part of his farm. On the following page we present illustrations of choice varieties of Garden Vegetables. I'or several of these cuts we are indebted to the well-known seeds- man, H. A. Dreer, of Philadelphia, Pa. FIG. 130. TOMATO FRAME. I "!(■.. 13^ ^ O I-i f^I"'*" "'•°°° TURNIP BHBT. (816) FUi. 142. Fl(.. 140.— OWAUP CRLBRY. FIO. 141.— MARTYNIA. FIG. I42.-DKHBRS SPLKCTRU TROPHY TOMATO, BUSINESS PRINCIPLES. (81T) ( BBRT. IIMBBR .HIASH. (INTENTS CIF FABT lY. BOOK-KEEPING. FALSE ECONOMY. A GOOD REFUTATION. INSURANCE. USEFUL TABLES. (818) BOOKKEEPING. 819 Book-keeping. HEN properly managed, farming is safer than almost any other kind of C^^imi business, and pays a larger percentage of profit in proportion to the time r ililJ spent in learning its requirements and the amount of money invested in cT'^/Ttj its prosecution. Although in many kinds of business an apprenticeship "^' of several years must he served, farmmg is open to the new beginner and he is perfectly free to i'ltroduce himself and go to work. The doctor and lawyer spend several years in study before they attempt to enter their chosen fields of labor, and the merchant and mechanic spend considerable time in learn ng the methods of managing the business which they design to follow. A few farmers take the same initiatory steps, but there are not many who incur any expense in order to master the details of the business before they start for themselves. Yet, in spite of this great disadvantage, there is a much larger proportion of farmers who succeed in business than there is of men engaged in other nccupaitions. This does not fol- low because study and training are of no benefit in preparing a man to farm success- fully, but because the business of farming is much safer and will bear more bad management than almost any other kind of work in which he can engage. But in order to secure the highest degree of success the farmer must manage his business by business principles. Although he may get a living for himself and his family if he allows things to take their course, he cannot make as large a profit as he could easily secure if he managed his business instead of allowing his business to manage him. One of the first things which the farmer needs to acquire in order to fit him for this department of his work is a knowledge of book-keeping. It is not necessary that he should master the whole science, but he ought to know the fundamental principles and he able to apply them. These principles are few and simple. It is strange that in our public schools this branch of education has been so sadly neg- lected. Many a young man has been to school many terms, and obtained a great deal of knowledge of various forms and information concerning a multitude of sub- jects, and yet been left profoundly ignorant of the methods of keeping books in business transactions. He has not been obliged to do business many years before he has found that a thorough knowledge of the leading principles of this science would have been worth a great deal more to him than the acquaintance with the dead languages which he studied so hard to obtain. Many a man would have been saved from financial ruin if he had been educated in book-keeping instead pf the Latin and Grkek languages. These languages are excellent subjects for study if a boy has time to mi-,ier them, but \. ;n he comes to the hard work of life he will find that the ability to read them will not -nable him to manage a farm successfully or aid him to any great extent in getting - ■ ng at any kind of manup' 'abor. In every public school which children fourteen years of age attend :! e i ementary principles of book-keeping should be taught. No young man is fitted ViX the busi- ness of life and no young woman is competent to manage the affairs of a household until some knowledge of this science has been secured. There rre various reasons why a farmer should keep a regular account of »iis business transactions. A "pood and sufficient" one may be found in the fact that it is the only way. in which he can have, at all times, an exact knowledge of the condition cf his business. If he keeps no accounts he cannot tell whether '"'^' • •>->-^%Hpi|fcfS 820 /-.lA'.J/AVG FOR PRO FIT. heJ^^Vin. or losing money, and will never b. abl. .o know how «.u:!, he _ Another ren.on why he should keep a careful recoil of hi« hu.in.' . is to ■ , ,o„nd jn the fact that .f he neglects to d. this h. will susl, ., ,„anv losses 21 H ^ h^ve prevented He will fo.get dates and prices. an,l for many things w,ct e Is he wdl >ec.vc no return, 1. every conanunity the.e are men who take advan! I .. e and often." a.,, who nev • , ....ign to pay for wha. they obtain. S-kI los.e m the aggregate nu.ke quite a dra.n upon the farmer', resources St.ll another reason for keeping account. ,s to be fb.„d in the habit, of prompt. ne.,s wh-.h such a cour.,- tends to form and :or,nr,n. It is not tb. m n wi,a kTep h. books carefully who is always behind t. :.e k: .very b.sfness .n.erpHs i^i ^ ely o utend to things promptly. The ..„ who Unnk. it of no'c^^^eq en t^. ;: "f :• ' 7""^ ^''''="^"' "'■ '"■^ "^"^'-^ - -^ - »l-ost sure to ..h -r,o other er.sy hab.ts which will strongly tend to his own disadvantage. fc l"nn"^.!!" ?'H"Jr';rr' '" ''^ '^"""^ '^'^'^^'' '^ "^^ f^'=' '»''>' ' ^^^^^s to n' '.th ; • ''^ ^""''" "''° "^^^^^^ "° ^"°""'^ - generally ready to VJ ..ght or ,cn per cent, mterest for money when he wants to boLw. but the one ose book. a,e properly kept knows that he can... afford to pay as m;ch and w ■ « urr' \ ""•''' ''^ -""'^ ""' " '"^^^ '^- • The m'an who keeps stTi b ter th.nr' I """^ '^ """' ''"'^ '^"^^ '^"-' '^''"'- '^ ''""- represents fa better than his neighbor who has no account books The on^ will K„ Th. |M,„ uen,, howevsr, shouM not he lef, „„,i| „„i„g if ,h™ „ „f „<,„ .u/' o^rJ™„ ,.p„„„„, h., she.,, h. „o,=d „ soon „ ,h.,el „ 4,o:,lZlcZ The books which will be needed are a Diary Dnv Rook nn^ T „ i .~, special bu,ine„ i. ,„„..c„d, ,h. f»c,. should b. u .1 ', "led S h halfinch- th two hundred and fifty pages ,/ , ,;;,"/, ''!l^'^^ T" T' ' page of the Ledger to which the Tcco.m t . ^ W rw,;"":^/;^ columns on the right fbr dollars and cents, wil' ..- . t^ j^t^^^Z^'] ^.es with the dates and prices, whether paid .or. . .^^t. TsS^t^^ <| BOOKKEEPIUG. 821 neighbor, or he with who. 'u del .1 , i r/"" "'"^ = •" ^'''^" ^^ '«' ^o- h.m. and you .use charge hL with it n hel f stlT'o/I" " ''""'' "«^'"^' ever you receive anything from him it is a !rtv 7 '""""'' ''"' ^^''*="- oa the credit side of theLount." ' 1 seTlT' ' M ""T'" ''"" """ '' he does not pay for when it is delivered h! ^ ^''^ '°' "* '°"'^ °^ '''''y ^^ich of the hay. If you buy a Iw with" It l T T" ^^ ^''^'""^> *■"•• '^e vah.e bor becomes your ^McreZrT rlr^^oT L ''^ "^'^"^°^' "^''' "^'«''- with crops, or fields, or animals in the s^ ~"'- ^^""""'^ "^^'^ ''^ ''-P' the land and expense of p"elin J it tt ,'"'''"";''k ^ ""^ '"' ^'■- '^ '''<= -« »' or sowing, to the 'expenses o7 uZton ha:: :•„: "^ "^' '^"^ '"'' '' P'^'^^ I'vering at the place agreed upon ^H r k ?' •"''P"''"^ for market, and de- What is sold, a„d^he vaL oVtr;orn td\l\7rr """"^ cost, interest on money invested and ,h. . , ^"^ " ^'- *° ''^ "rst of her calves and milk T e s ^e ' ! .'"" - '"P'"^' ='"'' ^^- "^^ '"^^ -'- The work can be doneTn l! «, "^ '. '1''"' '° ''" ''"^'"^^^ transaction., presslyfor farm bo^k e nj^ b^;:!' ^^ '^^^^^^^^^^^ ''''-'' - have strongly recommended L r r' aX to I ' " °' '''' °"'" ^'^''«'=» in order to aid them in th s\ o k ht 7 '"""" ''"^'""^ •''"°""'*. ^n".. adapted to the ^ants of Zr dS-le?'"'™;?"!^ f ^' ' ^^""■'^"^ ings for the various departments of th. f 7 °'''' ''"•'' P''"'^'^ ^e. J. chasing Accounts. SarS; t^ In ^d rrc;::^^ "'^" °^ "^^"^' ^- counts Sales, Laborers' Accounts C.TT ^"°""'*' Consignments and Ac last an average farmer (»,..== j • i ne uook is large enough to. lished at cfv/: To O H^TpHceTritm'l ""^ w'^^' ^'^ '''^ P^^^^' P"''- this book for the use „f fa™e'rs ^ "^ ^^' '"°'' '^°^'^'='"y •=°""n^"d. no:!!;^!::^;::^,::- ^^^ ^ '^^'^- ^'^-'^ ^'- ^ '^^p^- This is indispensable. Conel'i i l „7 ^^^ H "m ;""-^° ^'^" " " "^^ ^"^-' vouR OWN Lawyer '- s-.vs- X I " Spalding, in "How to be, whom we becole ndeb .• a aTcoTn i'"°" T 'r*"" ■"''^'''^'' '" -' ^ ''^ amount of such indebtednelleeZ;^^^^^^^^^^ ''-'^' ^"'^ '''^ <^-« -^ actions that we have with an individud mav h. ^ ''°^'^^^^. """""O"^ the trans- time, they are all broucht toZw i ^ •°'' '•°^^^" widely separated as to the LedgL, where tZlr^ I' X^sl^d ITel ""'" '^ r""' '" owes us, and how much, easily determined " ""' °"" '^""' °'^ '^'^ an" S:;s3"'Cf ;^r" '"^ "r^^"°"^ ^•^'^^ -» -^^ '- -^^ of his accoun all items f ; h h h. I ' '"°'!. ^ '"'^ '^""*^'"^ "P°" °"^ '^'^e g2^ ' FARMING FOR PROFIT. against us. The balance is in our favor when the Dr. side exceeds the Cr., that !s, when he owes us more than he trusts us ; and against us when the Cr. exceeds the Dr., that is, when he trusts us more than he owes us." The Ledger should be ruled so thnt the Dr. and Cr. accounts with an individual can be kept on a single page. The Dr. items should occupy the left-hand side, and the Cr. items should appear on the right. Once in six or twelve months all the accounts in the Ledger should be balanced. This is done by adding both the Dr. and the Cr. columns, subtracting the smaller from the greater, and using the remainder as the beginning of a new account. No scratching or erasing of any kind is allowable in tlic account-books. If a mistake is made a statement of the fact, with an explanation of the same, should be interlined. Blotting or scratching out an account, or a single entry in an account, will injure, and perhaps utterly destroy, the value of the books as evidence in court. If the entries in the Day-Book are made promptly and the Ledger is kept well up to date there will be little danger of making mistakes. Professional book-keeper*, and merchants doing a large business, keep more books than we have named. A Journal and Cash Book are usually kept, but we do not think them necessary for the farmer. It is important to have the whole system as simple as possible. If the farmer wishes a more minute description of his business he can add the desired departments in the books already mentioned. But these, if properly kept, will enable him to determine just what he sells, and the amount of money received from his farm each year, and show him just where the money which he has paid out has gone, and for what it has been given. Such knowledge must be of incalculable advantage. In order to obtain the full benefit of the course advised the farmer should take an inventory of his property once each year. This may be done at any time, hut the first of January or the first of April will be the best. On one side of this inventory account should be placed the Resources and on the other the Liabilities of the fqrmer. The former include all his property — land, buildings, live-stock, hay, grain, fools, all dues on unsettled accounts, cash on hand, and any and every style of property which he may own. These different kinds of goods should be specified, and their cash va.lue given. The Liabilities include all borrowed capital, such proportion of his interest, taxes, and insurance, as is due when the inventory is taken, all dues to others on accounts, and all debts of any and everji kind. If the Resources exceed the Liabilities the difference will be the sum which the farmer is worth. If the balance is on the other side of the account, the figures will show how much he is in debt in excess of his means of payment. A comparison of these papers year by year will show him whether he is making or losing money, and how fast. This inventory should never be neglected, as it is the only means by which the farmer can accurately tell whether he is making or losing money. lie may have a great deal more cash on hand one year than he had at the same period of another year, and yet be much poorer than he was then. At one time he has money, while at the other he had a greater value in hay, grain, and live-stock. The inventory alone can determine this very important point. Against one mistake which farmers are very likely to make we wish to caution ■our readers. If after paying their bills and balancing their accounts for the year they have nothing left, they say that they " have not made a cent." Evidently they have a very imperlect idea of what profit really is. They have placed on one side of the account all the receipts from the farm, and on the other all the expenses not FALSE ECONOMY. only of the farm but also of the familv T»,. r They should be compared with .he r^ ts Ind "™",.«P'^"«" "« legitimate, should be struck. But the expenses of t"' ;!", ^""^ "" '^""'P"''"" » '''^'-^nce farm than is the cost of the improveme. t wh ^ ,' 7 "° ""^ ''^ ''^ "^''-S^J t° 'he •n the mouth of the M.ss.ss pp, r,v r Thl ^ !:'"''''^^ '"^ '^'=- •"»''i"g have been paid. .«y ,he family su'L i r '''•'""'« "Penses of the farm profit, ne fa„,fy ,„, ,,,„ 4;^ mIT ^' '"^ '""'" '" P'"'^ ''""'^ » merchant who keeps even with the! Jtd^^^^^^^ ^hc money, but he would not think of sayZ ,L '"'" ' "' '''"^ '"''y "»' '''X "P not making money he could n u^Z'hLirr^f' "°'''"«- ^^ *«= -« The same principle fully applies to ' f. '": "'^ ^^"^-' '"creasing his debts. above the legitimate expenses or else the farm '''' '""" ^'^ " P'"°«' °^" »"<» We hope the day will soon nu. he th "",''""' ''^ ''''^• will be taught in the public scho": t:";:^ ^i ncip.es of book-keeping accounts with all individuals with wh„m h ^ ''™" '^■"' "^^ep careful his fields, and his stock, and an^ tlrt ,et 'u; ':^ ''"''"-^' -'"' '^^ "°P'. The amount of time and labor required i'm h "' ,"'\"'°"^y ''"'^i^^d and paid. - the ,an suppose, while the r^esu^^: b7nra::':;:rtX:ra::^^^^^^^ F^i^s scoNOKrr. ' CONOMY is a virtue which brings its own reward T^ • ■ °f;" Pe-anent success in thfvariou™ t dust.i ' ' 'T''"'' who depends upon his labor for his suoDort L r :" ""'*" ^^ family must practice it or fall far short fhi^si 'Z "^TT^- '" G^i .s one of the indispensable requisites to succeT U is ilia , f "^"! things, often counterfeited, and by reason ofThI' 1 ., ''"" ^"""^ .muations the genuine virtue has ofien fa.L .T diLred"";^;"^'''^ f *'''' avoid the spurious economy as carefullv n= I, i T, "^''"- ^he farmer should economy consists in using Zg oe be „':;':' 'T""' ,'^ ^^""'"^^ ^^^^ icind False economy tats unto itse^ X' r:?*^' 7^^::;': ' ""•^- "^^'^'^ will be briefly noticed. ^ "'^ 'he principal ones The farmer who "cannot afford" to bnv books ,„^ , i specially designed to help him in his wo^i '^^tiS^ ^ ^ ^T" "''^'nT captain who should start on an orp,n „„ ■ ^''^'^"'^'"2 " '« ^ ' womy. , The try to get along without a Iihr,rv l,» u , ^ ''''^y" ^^ho should to sparf wouid'nev r s CO d ^Th^Z t' "^!,"°"'^ "'""^^ ""' "'' '°' -"^ devoted to his profession woud rltT^ZllZl "° '°°''^ ""^ ^^^^ ^ P^P^« him. In all kinds of business knlllT r P'"""' *''*' ""«''' en'P'oy The farmer who has boTs and ^' T °"« °f 'he great essentials to success advantage over his^lei ^ ^ HZ^T^^^^-^ '^ ^ T^" «r% ■t mvmmi mm'i. r g24 FARMING FOR PROFIT. lhor.>ngl,.b.r(' ...i.na!», but that he should keep the ver>- be«t of h» calves and lambs, and try to steadily improve the quality of his stock. The man who sells h.s b« stock to the butcher and keeps the poorest lor breeding is on the direct r> to financial ruin. If all the depannents of his business were managed on the same principles he would soon be obliged to give up his farm. 1 eitinK things run at loose ends for want of tune n which to attend to them is another way in which m:-^v Tarnxr* uhely economize their time. They do not keep accounts with tbeu crops because it is ' ..o mu..h work." and for the same reason they often neglect to make a uole of their business transactions with their neighbors, m each cose they are losers by their effort to save time and labr.r They do not hoe their corn as early as they should, and the ground is filled with weeds. In the fall they are busy, and their wheat is not sown until late. When they find time to do the work the season is so far advanced that the .c.d ., hurried into land which is poorly prepared, and a noor crop for the next year n fully insured. These men are always busy, yet they do net truly economize their tune because they -.re always a little behind in th^^ir work. Pron,..tnes. is always necessary to the practice of economy, an.l to the attainment of success. Buying the necessaries of life in very small quantities is another manner ,n which many people try to be economical but are really extravagant. Things whi.h are m constant use in a fa.nily, a-,d which cannot be produced at home, can be bought much cheaper in large than they can in small quantities, i. tter pay a dollar and twenty cents for a dozen papers of starch at one lime than to keep running to the store every little while for a single paper, and paying twelve cents for it. Unle.s nnde at home, '.oap should be tought by the box. Buy ten gallons of o,l at a tlm^ «nd purchase thread by the dozen spools. Many such things can be bought much cheaper in this way than they can in the usual manner, and there will be a great savlt,- of time now spent in running to the stnrr. as well as tl,^ avoiding of a great deal of inconver^cnce caused by being out of things which are needed for imme- diate use. P.iving goods on credit another way in which many farmers lose in attempting tosu their h..iey. It ften a con- -nience to obtain a little time on jmrchases, but it should be sought only as an accommodation, and not made a c nmon practice. It is better for the farmer to borrow money to meet his runnini; expenses during those s • -in which he has but little income, than it is to run up a long bill at the store H« will have to pa> uUerest on the account if he gets trusted, and the rate per cent, will not be less than the money-lenders rbarge, ^'hile the price of the goods will be considerably hi;-'" '.han he would have to nny if he bought for cash. The purchase and . se of ^.oor tools because they are cheap, is one of the falsely economical method 'ch ar. often pursued. Better pay a hundred dollars for a good wagon than s. .fi iollars for an infe, rone. The g^ .1 one will last as long as two of the r on, .nd not involve half as much exp. r for repairs. A good cultivator, or h...now, or plow, which is well /nade and which will do thorough work, is worth more than three times as much as ,i inferior one which is p- orly built, and with wliich it is impossible to do good wo, The difference in the yield of a single crop on two or three acres of land would often more than pay the difference in price between a good and a poor pulverizer. The man who chops wUh a poor axe, digs with a poor shn> el. pitches hay with a poor fork, or uses poor t...ls for any other purpose, works at a great disadvantage, and i>> piacucir.g a thoroughly- false economy. FALSE ECONOMY. 82S Another mistiil;e in the same diiection is made by farmei's who grow bulky cropi for which there ,s no home ui.rket, uiiil upon which heav> tra^^iwtation charges must l)e paid. The farmer « ho .ends l,is hay a long distance to market could almost always do a great deal heiier to fee.l it to cattle and sheep, as h. rould sen4 the amnuil products to marLet in a niucli smaller space ihan the hay would occupy. The farmer should not be sati-.lied wah an tvonomy which merely allows no direct waste. He should look farther than this, and see that everything is used to the best possible advantaf^e. It should not be enough that cattle and hogs eat all of his hay and grain, but the hay .md graiu should be fed lo that class of animals wluch will yield the highest percentage of profit. It is not enough that he keeps all of his land under cultivation. This is well as far as it goes, but in addition to this lie should grow those crops which will pay him liie best lor his time and labor. The s.nme principle should govern in all departments of his business. Ihiying th ,, which might easily and profitably lie growr. at home is an expen- sive error into which many farmers are led by a false economy. This subject has already been treated, but it deserves mention in this connection. Many a farmer has thought th.!! he could not afford to grow corn at the prices then ruling in n, uket, and has grown something else and bought corn. Finding the crop which he selected was not paying him well he has ch.-inged to ai,,,ilicr. and has kept changing, with injury to his business every time, until he has lost f.iith in almost all special crops if not in the whole business of farming. The idea that the farmer must grow only two or three articles, sell hem, and with the money thus obtained buy everything which his family consumes, is a pernicious one, and many men have been financially ruined by putting it into practice. As the National Live-Stock Journal ha« well said : " The tendency of this lactice is , j make every farmer a trader, who sells everything he produces, and buys everything he consumes, by which he be- comes cependent upon the whims and fluctuations of the markets at both ends of his business." What he sells must go at wholesale rates, but for all that he buys he must pay retail price*. If he would produce all the articles possible instead of buyin-,' them, he could obtain them at cost, and thus make a great saving of expense. Doing without scales and measures and "guessing" at the weight of articles bought and sold, and of crops produced, is one of the ways in which a false economy is practiced. Every farmer ought to have nie - ^urate scales with which he can weigh his farm products and test the yielu of hisc-.'A: Many a man is deceived in regard to the value of his cows because he he? octis.r.j^ with which to weigh their milk and the butter which is made therefron.. I''>j weighing pigs, calves, and kmbs, determining the actual ami relative gain of different animals, aiceitaining the quantity of wool produced by each sheep, and many other purposes, scales are not only useful, but are almost invaluable to the farmer. A good set of measures is also required. These measures are not < ly convenient, bnt they are often abso- lutely necessary to anything like an accurate knowledge of the yield of crops and the relative production of difiivent fields. The last error of this class which we shall name is the habit of depending upon others for doing what could just as well be done at home. Many a job goes to the harness-m iker which the farmer could do if he would try. With a few tools, and at a merely nominal expense for materials, a farmer of common ingenuity can do rcizx-.y little jnh.s i:-. th.- way of r.-.p=-ring s-t-^Js -vhich are now ^ent a-ray to be per- formed, and which, in the aggregate, cost quite a sum of money. In this way there 826 FARMING FOR PROFIT. would be a direct Mving of expense «iul of much valuable time. It will pay well to keep lew tools and a small stock of suitable materials for repairs constantly on hand. The boys should be encouraged to try their '.kill at the work, and thus form % good habit and obtain experience which will be very useful to Ihem in after life. A GOOD RSP17TATION. N order to obtain the highest degree of success the farmer must obtain a good reputation. This should be built upon the solid basis of a thor- oughly good character, and should be sought because it is a duty to secure and retain such a character. The fmancial advantages which come with a good name are to be considered as incidentals. They are legitimate and valuable, and ought to be prized and used. The far-ner should do right because it is right, and not for the hope of reward ; but when he has done right he is fairly entitled to the benefits which such a course confers. Yet many farmers, through carelessness or neglect, make no effort to secure a good reputation. Some who deserve such an honor do not receive it because they do not value it and take no pains to secure its advantages. Many others strive to obtain the benefits without complying with the conditions. But in the long run all shams will fail. Trickery and deceit may not be discovered at once, but the lime will come when they will be exposed. The only right course, and the only one which will be per- manently successful, is to be strictly honest in all business transactions. Many illustrations of the value of a good re])utation might be given, but it is probable that every reader can find one, or more, in the circle of his own acquaint- ances. We will only allude to two cases, both of which are widely known. Mr. Waring, of Ogden Farm, has long been engaged in manufacturing Jersey butter and breeding Jersey cattle. The butter has bcAi of uniform quality and of the very highest grade. Customers who bought it were confident that it would be first- class. The fact that it came from Ogden Far.m was all the recommendation they required to induce them to pay a dollar a pound. The live-stock always proved as represented, and customers knew that they should be fairly dealt with. A large business has been established, and, at a recent valuation of the farm and other prop- erty, the "good-will " was estimated at ten thousand dollars. The other illustration is furnished by Mr. Robert L. Pell, the "prince of apple-growers." He has an orchard of over twenty thousand trees of the Newtown Pippin variety. This orchard has been managed with a great deal of skill and produces a splendid quality of fruit. The apples are carefully picked, passed through the sweating pro- cess, assorted, and the perfect specimens placed in boxes containing one hundred apples each. These are shipped to Liverpool and sold at auction. For forty years this plan has been pursued, and the fruit is so well known, and the reputation of Mr. Pell is so firmly established, that sales are readily effected at extremely high prices. Buyers know that Mr. Pell never sends an inferior apple. It is not expected that the average fa? ^er can achieve as great a degree of success as the above examples show, but it is n rtain that he can obtain a reput.ntion which will prove a great help in his business. Only two things are nscessary to secure this. These are strict and careful honesty, and the use of his name. The man who never mixes small potatoes with the large ones, who sends just as good apples in the f INSURANCE. 827 middle of the barrels as he does at each end, who never puts a stick of inferior wood into a load which he sells f.,r first-class, whose loads of good hay arc j-ood in the centre as well as at the to,, and botiom, whose measurements of j;rain and veKc.al.les are always accurate, and whose packages of butter are always full weight -in short, a man who ««//r deviates from the ,irict letier and spirit of Christian honesly-such a man can easily obtain a rcpuialion which will make .> dcnund for all the farm products which he can supply. His customers will he fully and always sat.st.ed, a.ul w.U be willing lo pay an extra price for his goods. If he puts his name upon every package of goods, custo.ne.-s will .t-ek him. and he will lose no time in mak.ng sales. Every man ou:^ht lo furnish such ^n„ds (or when selling the lower grades plainly mark them as inferior, and reduce the pricej becami it is right. Those who are not particular about the principle of the transaction will find it profitable to adopt this method. '■ Honesly is the test policy " for all men, though men ought to be honest from a higher motive than prudence. There are. in all. a great many farmers ,who do not mean to be actually dishonest, but who are careless and thoughtless, and whose producis are not always first-class. They would fi.id it greatly for their own interest, and their customers would be highly pleased with th.* new arrangement, to m.ike a radical change in their methods and grade their products with a greater degree of ca.e. The farmer should have a slencil-plate. and a butter-stamp, with which he can mark his name upon every package of goods which he sells. He should also have a plate and stamp with which the grade of the goods can be plainly indicateil. tvery barrel of his best apples should bear his name, and the words First-Grale should be printed in a conspicuous place. The barrels containing slightly inferior specimens should have his name and be marked Second-Grade. The balls, or tubs, of butler which he carries to market should also be plainly marked with his name and their appropriate quality. All other products which are sold in packages should bear his name and their proper grade. The cort of building up a good reputation is small. The advantages are great. The truly honest man who is guided by Christian principle will have no difficulty m complying with the conditions upon which success depends, and in securing the advantages which it insures, while the man who has been governed by no higher motive than policy can find in this principle an efficient aid in overcoming the obstacles with which he is obliged to contend. INSUBANCS. n\AT mp.n is a " creature of circumstances," and liable to many ills which he cAnnot foresee and from which he cannot escape, every one who has had experience in the things of this world will readily acknowledge. Revela- tion, reason, and common-sense, enforced by the experience of mankind in all the past ages, all unite to te.ich that trouble of various kinds will surely come to all the children of men. And the evil is much more for- midable than it would be if we knew the time and manner in which the ills would come. That they will come we may rest assured, but the time of their approach no one can determine. While there are many evils to which the race is of necessity subjected there are others which cause a great deal of suffering, but which are easily preventable. f '"f f f" 1 ?^ l^i-l fe.'|:tiC 828 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Ignorance and carelessness are the parents of a multitude of ills which afflict man- kind. In these instances the sulTering is me ely the penalty of a violated law. The fact that the law is not understood makes no difference with the results of trans- gression. The man who throws a heap of greasy woollen r^gs on his barn-floor may never have heard of spontaneous combustion, but his buildings will be just as likely to be burned as they would if he knew that he was practically setting them on fire. The man who thoughtlessly steps in front of a moving train of cars will be injured just as severely as he would if the deed had been premeditated. The smoker who throws a lighted match upon a barn-f.oor may not design to do the slightest harm, but if the barn is burned by his carelessness the loss of the owner is just as severe as it would have been if an incendiary had deliberately applied the torch. And in these ways of ignorance and carelessness a vast amount of property and many Valuable lives are annually lost. The remedies for this class of evils is plain. Education and thoughtful care would do them almost wholly away. There is another class of ills which come upon mankind without direct reference to the deeds of the sufferers. Certain kinds of accidents from which men suffer are wholly beyond their individual control. The passenger in a fated railroad train has no power to avert disaster., but he must suffer the natural consequences of the accident. Houses and barns may be burned without any fault of the owner. Death is sure to come to each and every one. When and how no one knows, but sooner or later he 'viH appear to each individual of the race and remove him from his earthly place and work. Although the individual cannot prevent the coming of death, or accident, or the destruction of property by fire, he does have, to some extent, the power of self-protection against many of the evil results of these events. Death will take him from his family, accidents which he cannot prevent may disable him, and his buildings maybe burned. When these things come upon him he must endure them, but if he has been wise in season he can avail himself of certain com- pensations which will make these troubles much easier to be borne. By using the proper means a partial remedy for these ills may be secured, and the severity of the trials of life may be greatly mitigated. Under certain forms Insurance h ;s existed, as a remedy for the ills we have mentioned, for a long period. During the past fifty years the system has been greatly improved and a large incre.ise in the amount of business has been effected. Numerous companies have been formed. A few of these have proved unworthy of confidence and involved their patrons in loss and disappointment. Uut this fact is not an argument against insurance. The good is always counlerfeited. Therefore, it is not strange that miserable insurance companies should have been formed. The stringent times which have prevailed for a few years have sifted out these weak and worthless claimants for popular favor, and the Legislatures of most of the States in which insurance companies are located have passed such stringent laws, and put the managers under such close and careful watch, that there is now but little chance for them to do any mischief if they desire, while most of the leading companies are managed by honest and honorable men, who have both reputation .-ind money at stake, and who are constantly seeking the best good of their policy-holders. These companies have gone steadily on, paying all losses promptly, and fulfilling all their contract!-. They are now on as firm a basis as any business or any institution in the woi'd. To i, : raaiority of men who have families depending upon them for support I.ifk INSURA-Jr-E A. safe and easy w.iy in which to provide for an eve . which will cer INSURANCE, which afflict man- riolated law. The e results of trans- his barn-floor may ill be just as likely tting them on fire, irs will be injured The smoker who .he slightest harm, :r is just as severe he torch. And in operty and many of evils iii plain, J. at direct reference which men suffer a fated railroad I consequences of ult of the owner. lO one knows, but nove him from his It the coming of iz, to some extent, se events. Death may disable him, )on him he must If of certain com- ne. By using the he severity of the the ills we have system has bee^i has been effected. )ved unworthy of But this fact is ;itec1. Therefore, !en formed. The It these weak and most of the States ent laws, and put f but little chance ng companies are on .nnd money at r-holders. These fulfilling all their any institution in I for support LiFK . which will cer 829 policy ho ders Sid h T"''" °' '' ^°"'-5^""y ''"" '^^^'^ =" f-' "^ ^^eir ho I 1. ? "'''' ^"'■' ''"' '^'y '^^ "°' •'""vv zo/ncA ones. Every policv ;:heterrw:ilt cXdtr not ^Tft T^t ^'' ''Z ''" ''' '' """-^ ..outmuchh.;ty.J n. ure If he hves they receive the premiums, if he dies they pay the policy If I sma 1 investment If he hves many years, and pays a great deal for his insurance ;^;3i:tr biS' -"• ^'- ^^ '--• ^^^ ^-^ -- «- ^^^ ^^ -^^^ meldTstronX". " '^-'^ ^^'^ -'---ly employed, and its principles com- fires bvwhir' T' """:" "' '"^ ''"'' "' P^°''"'^- ^^»>''^ " - "- "-t 'he fires by wh>ch a great many buildings are destroyed are caused by the neglect or carelessness of some one on the premises, it is also true that in'many o'f these n an... ,n wh.ch the owner was not to blame, the companies pay the poHcies in full. It .s expected that many buildings will be burned, and the rate of insurance .s fixed wuh this fact in view. Of course, the companies will not hold out an inducement for a man to be careless. They will not make good aU the damage caused by fire .f his buildings are consumed. But they will insure the buildings at from one-half to three- fourths of their value and pay all honest claims under such a contract. _ While the greatest care should be taken to prevent the burning of buildings, the nsk that they will be destroyed by fire, even under the most careful management is so great th.-it none except wealthy farmers should carry that risk themselves The sum required for keeping an ordinary set of farm buildings insured for one-half heir value is quite small and ought to be cheerfully paid. If a farmer is poor, and has to work hard to support his family, he ou^Ai to keep his buildings constantly insured. In his case insurance is a t/u/y. He is badly enough off now. Bui if he were to lose his buildings? without insurance he would be financially ruined. If a rich man prefers to run the risk of fire rather than pay for keeping his buildings insured he has a right to do so. If his buildings are burned he can erect new ones without distressing his family, his neighbors, or himself. But with a pior man the case is different. Only by the help of neighbors and friends will it be possible for him to rebuild, and he may even lose possession of his mortgaged farm. He will be dependent upon charity when he ought lo have a valid claim upon a good insur- ance company. In many cases neighbors have given money enough to build a new house, but ;his is a heavy tax upon nei;j:hhorly kindness. These neighbors have been paying out money year after year to keep their own buildings protected, and they think it hard to have to build- new ones for a man who refused to incur the slight expense which .vould have been involved in keeping his old ones insured. The poor man has no moral right to allow his buildings to remain without insur- ance and then call on His neighbors to make good his losses when they are burned. Every farmer is able, an,l he ought to be willing, lo keep his buildings insured. As farm buildings are frequently quite a distance from a village there is^little hope of saving them if a fire is started. There is no fire company near, but little water J***"-****!***,.., 8:0 FARMING FOR PROFIT. is at hand, and but few people to use it. Too often both the buildings and most of their contents are destroyed. Consequently, the greatest care should be used to prevent an outbreak, and an insurance policy should constantly be kept in force. Accident Insurance.— The principle upon which this business is conducted is similar to that of life insurance. Carefully selected statistics have proved that for each thousand men engaged in any particular calling a certain number of accidents, averaging a certain degree of severity, will occur. The expense of insurance is pro- portioned to the risk to which each class is exposed. It costs a farmer only ten dollars a year to obtain an accident policy which will secure to him a weekly indemnity of five dollars during the period of total disability from accident, if the time does not exceed six months, or to his family one thousand dollars in case of fatal injury. Such a policy covers the risk of injury from a multitude of causes to some of which the farmer is almost constantly exposed. The risk is so great, the cost of insurance so small, and the help which such a policy gives is so timely, that it seems to be wise for every farmer to keep insured, so that in case of accident the enforced idleness will not prove a total loss. We are well aware that to -keep up the various forms of insurance which have been named requires frequent payments and involves considerable expense. But we believe that the man who desires to secure a competence, and leave his family beyond the reach of want, will be unwise, perh.nps criminally so, if he neglects liy means of insurance to provide for contingencies which may occur at any time, and which, occurring in the early part of his married life without such a safeguard, will involve him in financial ruin or his family in life-long distress. Insurance is based upon the principle that about a certain rate of mortality, and a certain number of casualties will occur under certain given circumstances, and that the many belong- ing to the classes which are thus exposed should combine for self-protection. By a small payment on the part of e.ich of the insured, the few who are the losers may be indemnified, or their families may receive the help which they need. Insurance finds its strongest advocates among men of Christian principle, and is one of the most effectual means which GoD has given to intelligent men by which they can guard against disasters and provide for families which otherwise might be left with- out adequate means of support. Q^Se have carefully collected the following tables from various sources, includ- ''■'' ing Waring's Farmef- and Mechanics' Manual, Moore's Univer- sal Assistant, Haswei-l's Civil Engineers' Pocket Companion, and the leading papers. It is often very desirable to know the relative value of different kinds of food for animals, the quantity of seed required to stock a given area of land, the number of trees on an acre at given dis- tances apart, the capacity of boxes, the number of nails \n ,1 pound, the weights .)f different kinds of soils, the method of finding the weight of hay in a mow or stack, the number of bushels of grain m a bin, and many other things which are clearly shown in the following tables. The advantages of the information therein conveyi-d Will DC apprcc-.aicu uy ::!! nttxr —.^ .,,™,,.~n u.. ..i- — i .-_j— - . «' guessing," which is too often (he only guide in making the estimates required in the practical basiness of the farm. m, gs and most d be used to in force. is conducted oved that for of accidents, irance is pro- tner only ten im a weekly cident, if the irs in case of i of causes to su great, the timely, that accident the ; which have xpense. But ve his family le neglects liy any time, and afeguard, will ranee is based in number of many belong- eclion. By a lie losers may d. Insurance 1 is one of the hich they can it be left with- >urces, incliid- )re's Univer- iMi'ANioN, and ■ relative valiie :d required to ; at given dis- the weights of mow or stack, ich are clearly erein ronveyi'd results of the tcs required in USEFUL TABLES. 831 Quantity of Hay, or its Equivalent, Required Per Day by Each ioo Pounds of Live Weight of Various Animals. lbs. Working Horses 3,8 Working Oxen 2.41 Fattening Oxen 5. Milch Cows 2.25 to 2.40 Dry Cows 2.42 Young Cattle 3.8 lbs. Steers 2.84 " I'igs 3. " Sheep 3, " Relative Value of Foods for Cattle. s. of Good Hay is supposed to 100 !b be equal to 400 lbs Green Clover. 27s " Green Corn. 374 " Wheat Straw. 442 " Rye Straw. 19s " Oit Straw. 400 " Dry Corn Stalks. 276 lbs Carrots. 54 " Rye. 45 " Wheat. 54 " Barley. 57 " Oats. 59 " ....Corn. 69 " Linseed Cake. 105 " Wheat Bran. The age, health, and condition of animals, and the care which they receive, will greatly modify the effect of any kind of food. Cattle also need a variety of food, and cannot be profitably kept upon any one sort for a long period of time. Age for Reproduction, and Period of Gestation of Domestic Animals. Duration of Power. Mean Period ..12 to 15 years of Gestation. 347 days. Stallion Age 5 years. Mare Bull " Cow " Ram " Ewe " Boar " Sow " Dog " Bitch. " He-Cat " bhe-Cat " 4 3 3 2 2 I I 2 2 I I .10 , 8 .10 12 JO 14 ....7 .... 6 .... 6 .... 6 8 to 9 8" 9 9 " 10 5" 6 .283 ••54 .lis . 60 • SO Growth and Life of Animals. Man Grows for 20 years, and lives. Horse " Ox " Dog " Cat " Swine " Sheep " Wheat 1% Barley i^ Oats 2 Rye, I Buckwheat ^ Millet I Corn % Beans i H .? I Ti&x..... }i 5 4 2 iV, 2 2 A STIT Y OF to 2 bushels (1 2/i t( 4 (( 2 l( V/y a ^H II I If 2 tc -.H 41 ^H .70 to IOO .25 " 40 .15 " 20 .12 " 14 . 9 " 10 .20 .10 Rice 2 Broom Corn i Pot.itoes 5 Timothy 12 Mustard 8 Herds Grass 12 Flat Turnip 2 Red Clover 10 Blue Grass .,.....,. .10 Orchard Grass ,.zo to 2j^bu. r'A" 10 " 24 quarts 10 " 16 " 3 16 4 IS 30 Ills. 632 FARMING FOR PROFIT. : ! i ' Quantity of Seed Per Acre in Rows. Indian Com j^ ,o , bush. Ijioom Corn I lo i >i " i;^ to a " i>4 to 3 " Beans Peas ?n">ns 4toS lbs. ^''"■o's 2 to 2;^ " P'-ifs"'!* 4to5 « fi«=eu 4to6 « Wheat.. Rye. . . Corn . , . Standard Vv^eights of Grain Per Bushel. 60 lbs, I Oats 56 " I Barley ' 56 " I .32 lbs. .48 " Quantities of Garden Seeds Required to Plant a Given Space. Asparagus i „z. produces 1000 plants and requires a bed 12 feet square. " , ^''o*? • • • 'ooo plant a bed 4 feet wide and 22? fe long. Beans, large pole.. . i quart plants 100 hills. ' ^ " small "... I " plants 300 hills. ^*f^ I oz. plants 150 feet of row. Cabbage I oz. produces 2500 plants. Carrot i oz. plants 1 50 feet of row. Sl^'^O' I oz. produces 700 plants. Cucumber i oz. for 150 1 ills. Lettuce. . . . . i oz. produces 7000 plants. Melon, Musk i oz. for 120 hills. I oz. for 200 feet of row. I oz. for 250 feet of row. I quart fir i.-.o feet of row. I oz. for IOC/ feet of row. I oz. foi 75 hills. Onion. Parsnip. Peas Radish . Squash. J"^"^"?'" I oz. produces 2500 plants Til irnip I oz. for 2000 feet of row. Watermelon I oz. for 50 hifls. Legal Wei ght of Gra in, Seeds, and Vegetables in Different States. Wheat Rye Corn , . Oats Barley Buckwheat Clover Seed,. . , , Timothy Seed . Flax Seed Hemp Seed Blue Grass Seed. Dried Apples,. .. Dried Peaches... Potatoes Peas , , Beans Castor Beans Onions Corn Meal . . > 1. 60 6o'6o 60 6o'6o'6o u 60 565056505656,54156 5856:56 56 56 56 56|s6 3232132321323532 48 4814748^48 4S 44 48 . .148,5042 52 40 60 64 44I42 55,56 44'.. I4i . . 22] 25 32j33 6oi..! 60, . . I 62 56 46 57 60 60 46 57 to 6o'6o ■■145 ••56 ••44 ..14 28 1 24 60 6itead of wrjght. t of tarai prodnKts. • 32 lbs. .48 " 46 46 . . 1 «»34 m 4J m48 m 60 11148 m 56 •• • .60 , 60 ^ * wd eht. USEFUL TABLES. 833 Number of Seeds in a Bushfx, and Number Pf.r Square Foot if Used on AN Acre of Land. No. of Seeds. », « ^ t:™ it. o , No. Per Foot. T mothy. 41,823,360 . Clover... 1 6,400.060 ^r?- ,400,960. Rye 888,390. Wheat.. 376. 556,290 !'.;!;;;::::i2:8; Number of Loads of Manure Per Acre, and of Heaps Per Load, Required WITH THE Heaps at Given Distances Apart. Disunce Apart of Heaps— in Yards. 3 4 No. of Heaps Per Load. ! _.3 4 S 6_ 179 1 134 108 89K »oi myi 6o'A soyi l)istance Apart of Heaps— in Yards. s 6 No. of Heaps Per Load. 3 4 5 6 27 l22>^ In the above table the distances apart of the rows and the heaps in the rows are given in the left hand coh.mn. The number of heaps to be made of each load is placed at the top of the columns, and the number in the square where the two meet will give the number of loads per acre which will be required. Thus, if the hea ,s are placed four yard, apart, and five heaps are made of each load, it will take si,.y and a half loads for an acre. Number of Trees, Plants, or Hills on an Acre. Ft. Apart. 40x40 39x39 38x38 37x3? 36x36 35X-3S 34x34 33x33 32x32 31x31 30x30 29x29 ! No. of jriaiils, etc. Vt. Apart. No. of P'.ilits.etc. 55 27 28x28 28 27x27 59 30 26x26 64 3' 25x25 70 33 24x24 75 35 23x23 82 37 22:<22 90 40 21X21 99 42 20x20 109 45 59x19 121 48 iSxiS '35 51 17x17 151 Ft. Apart. Ibxi6 15x15 14x14 13x13 12X12 Il.MI 10X10 9x9 8x8 7x7 6x6 5x5 No. of Plants, etc 171 194 223 258 302 360 436 538 680 889 1210 1742 Ft. Apart. No, of Plants, el.|. 4x4 2722 3x3 4840 3X2^ 5808 3x2 7260 3xiK 9680 3x1 14530 2x2 10890 2X1^ 14496 2X1 21780 2XJ^ 43560 IXI 43560 ixy. 87120 Area of Land which a team, moving two miles per hour, will plow in a day ten hours in length. Wfdth of Furrow. Acres. Width of Furrow. Acres. 6... '.'.'.".v.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'''.'. 7 8 . I .1.2 .1.4 .i.b .1.8 Width of Furrow. 10 II 12 14 16 .2.2 .2.4 .2.8 •3-a Rule for Finding the Number of Tons of Hay in a Mow. Multiply the Ipncth in -^1<: U%* tVf jravds, and divide the product by fifteen. Th?; qi'otiera will be the number of tons. Keight ixi yards, sad that by the width in -i«m^-mmmu 834 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Rule for X-indinc. the Number of Bushels of Grain in A Bin, Multiply the length in inches by the breadth in inches, and that by the depth in inches, and divide the product by 2150 (the number of cubic inches in a bushel), and for heaped bushels by 2748, and the quotient will give the number of bushels. Rules for Measuring Corn in the Ear in Cribs. Multiply the length in inches by the breadth in inches, and that by the height in inches, and divide the product by 2748 (the number of cubic inches in a heaped bushel), and the quotient will be the number of heaped bushels of ears. Take two- thirds of the quotient for the number of bushels of shelled corn. Unless the corn is very good only one-half should be taken. Another Rule. ' Multiply length by height, and then by width, add two ciphers to the result, and divide by 124. This gives the number of Imshels of ears (level measure). Divide by two to find the number of bushels of shelled corn. Another Rule. Multiply the length, breadth, and height together in feet to obtain the cubic feet. Multiply this product by 4, and strike off the right hand figure, and the result will give very nearly the number of bushels of shelled corn. Capacity of Boxes. Length. 24 inches. 24 " , 16 " . 16 " . 8 " , 8 " . 7 " . 4 " . Width. Depth. Capacity. . 16 inches 28 inches 5 bushels. .16 " 14 " 2^ " .16 " 8.4" I " . 8.4 " 8 " , . „ yi " . 8.4 " 8 " % •• .8 " 4.2!" I gallon. . 4 " 48" Vz " .4 " 4.2 " I quart. To Reduce Cubic Feet to Bushels, struck measure, divide the number of cubic feet by 56 and multiply by 45. Miscellaneous Weights and Measures. 196 lbs . . I barrel of flour. " beef, pork, or fish. „ /salt at N. Y. \ salt works. I bushel of beans. ' " blue grass seed. ' " castor beans. ' " clover seed. ' " flax seed. 200 " . .1 280 " , . 1 60 " 14 " 46 " 60 " ,.I 56 " 44 lbs I barrel of hemp seed. 12 units or things i dozen. 12 do? en : "^ross. 20 thincis ( score. 56 pounds I I rkin of butter. 24 sheets of paper I quire, 20 quires of paper I ream. 4 feet wiile, 4 feet high,! . .1 cord of and 8 feet long, / wood. Commercial Weights. 16 drams i ounce, j 4 (|iiarters I hundred weight. X6 ounces I pound. 20 hundred weight I ton, 25 pounds I quarter. | A Convenient Land Measure. To aid farmers in arriving at accuracy in estimating the amount of land in diflTereiti fields under cultivation, the following table is given. USEFUL TABLES. 835 hemp seed. . I dozen. . . : f^ross. . ..i score. 1 of butter. . . I quire. . . . I ream. . I cord of wood. Five yards wide by 968 long contains one acre ; ten yards wide by 484 long con- tains one acre; twenty yards wide by 242 long contains one acre; forty yards wide by 121 long contains one acre; seventy yards wide by 69^^ long contains one acre; eighty yards wide by 6o>^ long contains one acre; sixty feet wide by 726 long contains one acre; one hundred and ten feet wide by 397 long contains one acre; one hundred and thirty feet wide by 363 long contains one acre; two hundred and twenty feet wide by 181 >^ long contains one acre; four hundred and forty feet wide by 99 long contains one acre. Land Measure. 144 square inches i square foot. 9 square feet. i square yard. 30X square yards i square rod. 40 square rodj. i square rood. 4 square roods i square acre. 640 square acres i square mile. Long Measure. 12 inches i foot. 3 feet I yard. SX yards, or 16;^ feet i rod. 320 rods, or 1,760 yards, > ., ors,28ofeet J--.....I mile. Liquid Measure. 4 gi'ls I pint 2 pint?. I quart, 4 quarts i gallon, 3 miles (measuring at sea). . I league. 6 feet (depth of water) i fathom. 4 inches (horse measure) i hand. 31;^ gallons I barrel. 63 gallons I hogshead. 3 penn' 4 " ' 5 " 6 " 8 " Length of Cut Nails and Number in a Pound. Length. Number. ■ ■ •'i% inches 420 ■ ^% ' 270 220 Length. Number. 3 inches 65 3X " 52 lYz" 28 ■«7S 30 " 4 " 24 .100 40 " 4/4^" 20 Nails from different factories vary a little in length and weight. .2 .2V2 10 12 20 30 40 Weight Per Cubic Foot of Different Kinds of Earth. make one ton. 23 cubic feet of s.ind, 18 " " " earth, 17 " " " clay, J 18 cubic feet of gravel or earth befcift *^igg>ng make 27 cubic feet when ctxiijj. Loose earth or sand 95 lbs. Common soil 124 " Strong soil 127 " Chalk 174 " Clay 135 " Clay and stones ;6o " The weight of an acre of ordinary so^ is estimated to be loo tons for every i»ch in depth. Weights of Different Kinps of Wood. Lbs- ^r Cord. Kind of Wood. Lbs IVr Cord. 1 Kind of Wood. Shellb;irk Hickory 4469 Redheart Hickory 3705 While O.ik 3821 Vinyinia I*ine 2689 Souther-'"- Pine 3'?75 H.nrd Miple 2878 New Jersey Pine 2137 x'_ii r>;I-_ . X cit'.-rr X h:c iy04 White Pine 186S White Beech 3236 .\pple Tre« 3'>5 Black Birch 3115 White Elm 3592 Spanivfc Oak 2449 Buttonwoo4 2391 The above figures indicate the weight of staamed wood. Wbet) green, from ''^i'**.%«;«,a 836 rARMING FOR PROFIT. thirty-five to fifiy per cent, must be added. A cord of green hickory weighs about six thousand pounds, and a cord of green oak contains more than fourteen hundred pounds of water. Table showing the Amount of one dollar for any number of years from five to twenty years at Compound Interest. Years. Rale, j Per Cent. Rate, 6 Per Cent. Years. Rate, 5 Per Cent. Rate, 6 Per Cent. 5 $1.27628 5l.33«22 6 1-34009 1.41851 7 1.40710........ 1.50363 8 i.4774S---^v-- '-59384 9 1.55132.....^... 1.68947 10 1.62889 1.79084 II 1-71033 1.89829 12 1-795^5 2.01219 13 51.88564 52.13292 14 1-97993 2.26090 IS 2.07892 2.39655 16 2.18287 2.5403s 17 2.29201 2.69277 18 2.40661 2.85433 19 2.5269s 302559 20 2.65329 3-20713 Amount of diiTerent sums of money at 7 per cent. Compound Interest. 2 cents per day in 10 years will amount to 5 100.85 " " " 252.14 " " " 1,260.71 " " " 2,521.42 " " " 5,042.84 " " 10,085.68 Time in which a sum of money will double at Interest. Rate Per Cent. Simple Interest. Compound Interest. 4 25 years. 17 years and 246 days. z s 2S cenii] (1 pel uay 10 yo.i II 50 II 1. 00 2.00 5. 6. 7- 8. 9- 10. .20 .16 ■ 14 ■I2>^ .11 .10 •15 7S 327 89 2 16 100 and 8 months 14 " " 104 days 10 " 9 " " 40 " . . . , 8 " 7 " The above table should be carefully studied by all who contemplate borrowing money. Many people think that the interest of money at six per cent, is just twice what it is at three per cent., hut figures show that the increase at 6 per cent, for one hun- dred years is about eighteen times as rapid as it is at three per cent. As the growth of National Wealth is only about y/^ per cent, per annum, the farmer positivdy cannot afford to pay very high rates of interest. GONTSNT8 OF PART IT. PLEASANT SURROUNDINGS. LABOR, RECREATION AND REST. HEALTH AND DISEASE. BOYS ON THE FARM. ITEMS FOR THE HOUSE AND FARM. RED LETTER DAYS. (838) PLEASANT SUK/iOUNDINGS. 839 Y, EST. D FARM. FIiI^ilSaNT SHRROUNDINGS. S far a» possible every man should make his surroundings pleasant. Thi« partly for his own happiness, and for that of his family, and partly because these surroundings will enable them to do better work tluin they could otherwise perform. Me, Ann lose sight of the fact that they ought to be happy as well as useiu, world. God has made the earth beauiif.il in order Hiat man may a.s brief stay upon it. And He has given man the power to still further beauiuy and adorn that portion of the world on which hf finds his home. It is true that nothing exUrnal can fully supply a lack of affec lion amoi • the members of a household, and that no degree of beauty in the land- scape can Jone make people happy. But if other things are right, ple.isant sur- roundings prove a never-failing source of joy, while in those cases in which the home life is unsatisfactory they are still more imperatively required. The condition of their surroundings will have a powerful influence upon the farmer and his family. This influence will he felt at various points. Character, reputation, and appearance will be modified thereby. Unless he h.as fallen into bad habits it is safe to say that a young man who is slouchy about his dress, and careless about his appearance and language, has grown up under unfavorable conditions, and among unpleasant surroundings. He hi-s not seen things kept neat and beautiful at home, and those who have had charge of his home-life are to be blamed for what- ever damage his reputation may sustain thereby. The extent of the injury thus inflicted is very great, and a parent has no moral right to send a child from his home with the stamp of such surroundings not only upon his apt-)carance but also upon his mental and moral nature. If he cares nothing for beautiful things himself, the farmer has no right to destroy the sense of beauty which his child possesses as a direct gift from his Maker. An elegant mansion and costly paintings are not needed, but neat yards, a house in good repair, a tasty garden, and plenty of trees and flowei-s are things, not merely of taste, but also of utility. They involve but little expense, but they have a powerful educating and refining effect. No one can do the best work of which he is capable in unpleasant surroundings, and the con- stant unhappiness which they involve make them destructive to both health and usefulness. It is therefore the duty of every man who has a home to make the surroundings of that home as pleasant as the means at his command will allow. In order to m.ake the surroundings pleasant, perfect neatness is one of the essen- tial requisites. A plain yard which is neatly kept looks much better than one which has been elaborately laid out and then neglected. There should be a gravel walk, or .a walk made of slats, from the road to each of the outside doors of the house. If there is a front fence it should be kept in repair, and often whitewashed or painted. Rose bushes and flowers should find a place in the yard, and be kept free from weeds. A few rustic ornaments will cost but little, and yet will add much to the appearance of the place. Three or four evergreen trees are also desirable in the yards. Climbing vines and flowering plan^ are cheap and pretty. Many other things, trifles in themselves but adu.ng greatly to the general effect, can be obtained. A nice yard costs but little, except the work of keeping it clean, but it does much to makj the home pleasant, and will add considerably to the cash value of the farm. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) / t/. e fA 1.0 I.I I4£|2£ 12.5 ■^ 1^ 12.2 2.0 ^ 114 ■it IL25 i 1.4 m 1.6 Photographic Sciences Corporation •SJ v ^ v> rv 23 WEST MAIN STMET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716)872-4S03 c> ,^ ^>*^ ^# 840 FARMING FOR PROFIT. The effort to make things pleasant should not be wholly spent out-of-doors. The interior of the house should also be neat and pleasant. Boys, and girls too, dislike to spend all their spare hours in a dingy kitchen, and the wife and mother must find such a living-room unpleasant. There is no necessity for any one to be shut up in such a room during all the working hours of life. Yet many farmers' wives not only have to work, but also rest, when they are fortunate enough to obtain an oppor- tunity to leave their work, in a kitchen which is colored with smoke, and furnished with only the plainest chairs. Every kitchen should be often whitewashed, and should contain an easy-chair in which the housewife can rest when she can spare a few moments from her work. In the afternoon and evening the sitting-room should be open and the children should be allowed to spend their time therein when not at work. Here plenty of books and papers, some expressly for the children, should be found, and musical instruments, if the tastes of the family lead in that direction, and their financial condition will warrant the expense. It is better to buy an Organ or Piano for the children, and thus give them a taste for quiet home pleasures than it is to lay up money for them in the bank, and allow them to run in the streets, or to the neighbors for pleasure which they cannot find at home. The idea which many people have that the best room should only be opened for the use of company, is one of the theories which have worked an immense amount of mischief. A father and mother ought to care as much for their children as they do for any one in the world, but parents often refuse their children the use of the best rooms, which are freely opened for company even though that company may be distant, and not very highly prized, relatives. This is a wrong to the children. They are entitled to the first place in the affections ami to the kindest treatment from their parents. Let no one shrink from ihe duty of making the surroundings of his children as pleasant as possible. The cost is not very great, an 1 not very much time will be required to keep the house and yards in order and "-.lake them present a neat and attractive appearance. Thus, the duty is made very l.ght, and, as part of his reward, the parent is allowed to share the pleasure which is secured by its performance. But it is a ckity which cannot be safely neglected. God has ordained that the home shall be the training-school of children, and that the children shall soon go out into the world as men and women bearing in unmistakable characters the impress of the home surroundings. They go into life on their own responsibility, and become accountable for their own actions, but there is a bias for good or evil which was given them at home, and which will go far toward determining their destiny. S a rule, to which there are comparatively few exceptions, farmers work too hard. They make too long days and take too few and too short vaca- tions. It is very true that many of them do not find their labor rewarded as well as they hoped it would be, and are inclined ti work still harder to secure the money for which they toil. Such a course is a great mistake. A higher degree of success is to be secured not by working more hours, but by a more skilful direction of the labor which is performed. More study is needed and better plans are required. A higher degree of skill is wanted. The horse-power and steam-power must be more freely used. The com field which pro- -doors. The s too, dislike her must find be shut up in 'ives not only .in an oppor- .nd furnished swashed, and e can spare a -room should 1 when not at en, should be lirection, and an Organ or leasures than the streets, or e idea which ; of company, ef. A father ly one in the ns, which are and not very ntitled to the nts. s children as time will be It a neat and )f his reward, performance, hat the home n go out into e impress of and become il which was :stiny. SbjL» lers work too 3 short vaca- 3or rewarded still harder reat mistake. more hours, lore study is ■anted. The d which pro- LABOR, RECREATION, AND REST o^* must be made to l^^^r^^^T '^"""'^""e ^ ''''^- ^rass and grain crops management, but n T by Z t n '''' ''T' ''""• ""''^ *=^" '''^ ^•°- ''>' ^''"f"» Th.. 1,1 J >■ ^ ' ^ 'nc.cas>ng the amount of labor perfornuHl r^i^:z:^::r" -;— r^-^-^ ^ b,essi„g l.,, ::.p„,,,. to grow .p i , iclTn ; ih. '7 ""'' "^'^ '^"^" ^"'^ ^""^^ ^^ children wisLs that ^e u Ti i: :;;:'^"",?r ^ r' ^^''"«' ^-'^ ••^^ ^""••' "■- be more destructive to hi, ,1 " '^'*^ ''="' "'^"^^ B™"'*'^ ^^^-h --"d wealth, but also th our e o T T'7 " ""^ ""'^ "^^ ''"""•''"" "^ «" The idle man is a uselrn emb '0';""-'" .'''" ""^ /^^^"^^ "^ '^"'"^ «"'' virtue, is exDosed fn m,! T '°''"='>'' " ""^appy, and often miserable He been filled with some JfA 1 ! "" ^'^"^^^ 'S""''""' '^ '^'^ "™« ''^d be for t e nTrrest of ,h r '"■■• '' '' ""= '"'>'' ^""^ '^ generally understood to he hL U ? """■ '" ''"'■'^ ^'^'^^'f ""^ •^•-'<^b his boys to work B„t e should never make a slave of himself or of any of his children. Thelork of ^ e H. hei^to p .r Sp.::r"rr^;:::Xu:^" rough he season there is a constant hurry and drive every man an,I boV owCed to h.s utmost, and, after all their exertions, the crops are not well cared fo t:^:^ '"""""'^^- ^^"" -'^'-'^ - -- °^ -- -» than to ::;: ovt The financial evils which result from an attempt to do too much are not the only ones wh.ch w. 1 come. The boys will become discontented and long for a ife in the c,ty „,g , ,^y,.^^^.^^ •^•^' "^^ P-^y- '-Seand the lork is light" The efTect upon the.r bodily health will also be pernicious. Many a boy neve grows .nto a strong and healthy man because he w..s overworked while young By spendmg too much t.me at work and performing labor beyond his strength toiafely endure, he becomes weakened for life and falls nn easy prey to disease The mid- dle-aged man sometimes so overworks as to weaken his vital powers and brintr on premature old age. When a man works so hard that he can take no comfort i« reading or social conversation, he is going beyond his strength and fast becoming a mere animal. There are men who have so staved themselves, and injured their bodies and n,inds by toil, that they fall asleep as soon as they attempt to read or to converse on any subject which does not pertain to the labor in which they are engaged. Their joints are grown out of shape and they suffer greatly in body while broken down in mind. What benefit such a man can receive from the money which his labor brings we do not know. Me may amass wealth, but he cannot enjoy it He may escape being a pauper, but by going to the other extreme he becomes a slave. Every man should work regnlarly but not excessively. While labor is a duty, overwork is a sin. Idleness destroys a man one way, but excessive overwork will just as surely ruin him in another. No man has a right to live upo« society while doing nothing for its welfare, and no one is justified in working so hard as to destroy his mental and physical powers. While the farmer shoul.I require his children to work, he should not makf this work the only education which they receive. On the contrary he should s-.nd them to the l.est schools which he can afford, and to college if possible. An education 842 FARMING FOR PROFIT. is a great possession, and is as valuable for a farmer's boy as it is for the merchant's son. The girls should also receive the besl education which their parents can supply. This should include a thorough acquaintance vwith all household duties. Not only should the farmer educate his children, but he should give them time for reading and study when out of school. The custom, once prevalent but now going, we hoije, out of date, of requiring boys to work morning and evening while attending school, is to be severely condemned. Under this method the scholar was unable to do justice to himself at school, and the double strain proved a severe and unjustifiable draft upon his strength. Many a boy has ruined his health by trying to perform the double duties thus imposed. The farmer should keep himself and his family supplied with reading of the best quality, and plenty of time in which to use it should be taken. Like the men in all other callings the farmer needs books and papers which are devoted to his special pursuit. The attempt to get along without them is ruinous. In these days of close competition the man who is to succeed must be well informed. Ignorance cannot successfully compete with knowledge. The boys, too, need these books and papers in order to give them an intelligent comprehension of the methods which should be pursued, and to lead them tq take an active interest in the farm work. But they should not be restricted to this class of reading. The best papers for the young should be furnished, and the newspapers should also be supplied so that they and their sisters may know what is going on in the world. The wife and mother should not be forgotten, but some good home magazine should be taken for her especial benefit. She needs something of this kind still more than the other members of the family. She is tied more closely to the home, her duties are very exacting, and her health is often poor. The monotonous drudgery of isolated farm life has a terribly u^itructive effect if it is not counteracted by the rest and recreation which is always needed but seldom taken. When the ceaseless round has been too long followed the health of body or mind, or both, will give way. The Asylums for the Insane contain a very large proportion of farmers' w -ought there by the combined effects of overwork and a monotonous life. T' jazine and newspaper lead the thoughts into new channels, occupy the mind wr.t. subjects outside of its ordinary routine, and thus refresh the body while preserving the health of the mind. The farmer and his family all need periods of rest and recreation. An occasional day spent in visiting friends will be positively beneficial to the health, and will give an increased efficiency to the labor which is performed as well as properly develop the social feelings. The Grange has proved an immense aid to farmers and their families in these as well as in other directions. There was a great need of something which should lead them out of themselves, and break up the isolation and routine in which their lives were involved. Lectures and occasional concerts should also be attended, but all low shows, and even the ordinary grade of the circus, should be carefully avoided. A good managerie is an excellent thing for children and grown people to see, but many of the shows which travel around the country are of little value, and in some respects are extremely harmful. It is o good plan to give the last half of each Saturday afternoon to the boys and girls for their own enjoy- ment. Instead of trying, as too many do, to crowd about a third more work into Saturday than they perform any other day of the week, the farmers should make its labor lighter, and finish it early. The evenings should never be devoted to work, but used for rest and mental enjoyment. We have known farmers who have done a large part of their husking he merchant's r parents can sehold duties, them time for lut now going, Jvening while le scholar was i a severe and h by trying to ng of the best ihe men in all to his special days of close srance cannot ks and papers ch should be k. But they or the young hat they and mother should r her especial ambers of the ling, and her has a terribly ich is always followed the the Insane he combined iper lead the its ordinary ind. ^n occasional md will give lerly develop rs and their sf something and routine should also reus, should hildren and unlry are of plan to give own enjoy- e work into iild make its and mental leir husking ffEALTH AND DISEASE. r'£e:i:^:::„st:!V'"^ ^t f -' -^^ ^-' •'"^- children at work fro.n the le hey ge ^Zl beTr'' ''^ "'" *"° ""''^ "'^ wrong, while the one who followsThis ll 1^ Ls t n ' "''°" "'^"* '^ ^'''' to bear the penalty of the vi„lat.o;^rth Taw^of LT Ih ""t^; " ''""h'^ "''''"'' tnous during the day, and who wnrU r i T °' ^""''- The man who is Indus- a year, rnd will pcZlIll Zn^^^^^^^ evenings should beVZ ii a 1 r T 1 '''°"" '^ "^"'^'^'^ "^ ^im. Thf children should be en oT g d to s avTh" . T!''''''" ^'"'"^•''^'"' ^^^ '»>« to saloons or stores If 3 I T '""""^ °^ ''""'"'"S "^« ''''^'>^' o^ going it .he nicest p ace „ . woTld anTwHl' h""' ""' ^'"''"'' "'°^' '"'^^ -" ''''"' than abroad Books pZ 'ml .^ ? ''''"' 'heir evenings in it rather together with kind t'ea.men'.rd Thee' M " " •"''"" <""' '"'^'"^'"S "^^O- ments for the average by o/e't's r'~^^ '' ''°""'"' •"'"'=^- associates. ^ ^ "' °^ ''*'* '^'""P""^' ""'^ ^^oid all low and evil for the perLmanc " rieri ^ w'' " u' "' '"' '^ ^""'^"^ '"«'''' - — have no sympathy wih the It n 1 r"'"' ''"^ *^ "° justification. We day of gJom! or wUh ,he ext 1 lil" n r''^ ''" "'° "'''^'' ""= S^l^bath a holiday •"' '■'^''■"'"y °^ 'he many who make this a weekly Vhe Sabbath should be a hannv d-iv h„t .»,« i different nature from that which iri'/bto Ir'dZ" W T Z'""" '^ °' * f-d mercy may be performed hnt nn i °" " , ,' , ''^'- ^"'•''* "^ strict necessity accrue or in order tr:I:eTome LT^^ t^t otl'"" '" "" ^'°'' ^'"'' ■""' lous books and papers should h/«a^ i . ! ^"^ '^'^^t relig- reading for the chSd en ouiht t ' P':"'J °^ '"'«'«""g ""gious and moral «.anne? which win S; -fl re re2mtt 'totet/'^ f "'' "^ ""''' '" * and soul. relreshment to the body and peace to the mind i ^t^JlH '' ""' °I '^' ^'■'''"' '""P"'"' '''^^^'"g^ ^''i^h «»«" receives. • It I --'do- P-ed unt 1 it is lost. and. consequently, but little effort pu forth for us preservation. The birthright is often sold for a mess o[ Z tage. But when it is lost the poor unfortunate finds that he h parked wuh a great possession. Good health is better than money. It is a L !e part of the capital of the laboring classes, and the source of murh n sr;;' mitt ^'^";'-'^'°^' 'he%oorc;nnot woT^rttrcin:: be happy. When It .s possessed it can usually be retained, even in spite of heredi tan. tamts but, when lost, its restoration is difficult and often impossible We shall not give a long list of prescriptions for the various diseases which afflict method' J T""''- ""'^"''^ '""" '"°'h" ^''-''l understand the best m thods of „ur.ng, In a multitude of cases of sickness more depends upon skilfu care than upon the use of drugs, though there are many diseases in' which medti„: 844 FARMING I- OR PROFIT. must be used promptly and efficiently or the patient will not recover. All cases of whic"hTh7 ^°°^r T- ^' "'^ ""'^"^' ^^^ '^^ "- °f '»>« common rem dr^iti wh.ch the housev..fe should be fam.liar. mild attacks may be cured. Viirent a«a!ks slLi?ul llrT. "' °' "^'"" "^"^ ""^ '=°"'''«'°- '^i— . -'1 for prom" and slulful medical treatment. Never let a patient go on day after day withoutT ment before consulting a doctor. The system may get L enfeebU duril T""' terval that it cannot rally when medical treatment is gi e„ Ira muhitud^'of '" ^r^^:rr-aiijt:sr2b^~ While, if he is not sent for until it has obtled I Jmtoll;:;t it^^^^^^^ run .ts course and a long and expensive sickness is inevitable' Da'^d:' rls and much of the "home doctoring." and use of patent medicines, is a L eq aUy hazardous A standard medical work will give many useful hints and a few She best remed.es for simple diseases should be kept constantly in the house but the farmer should not attempt to doctor himself or his family f„ any serious f,^ of Mckness. He would not think of t^ing to repair his wa'c^. He knows t^ h has not sufficent skill and knowledge to enable him to adjust such a Je anl elm pleated p.ece of mechanism. Much more should he hesilate to ig o^ ly faml ri o^ ^^t '"""" ""^''"^ '"'° "'"'='^ ^°^ '^'--'^ ^- •^--•^eTS We believe that a large part of the sickness which afflicts mankind might be easily prevented by attention to the laws of health. Therefore, instead of giving a de c ip- Uon o .nany « cure-alls." we shall simply call attention to a few of thefe law " 'd urge ohed.e„ce thereto. Con has made the human frame subject to these aws Obed.e„ce W.11 secure he.nlth and strength. Disease will be th penalty of tral-' ^«s.on. To some of the great necessities of the human system'we w'ill brfly Pure AiR.-This is one of the gieat essentials to health, and one which with a httle care, can be secured in abundance. It has been generally suppred th! Vh^ farmer and his family had plenty of air in almo.t absolL pur^ but . do f' The a. m the farm-house ought to be very pure, but there is such alack of ^nZ .0 vent.Iat.on. and so many decaying vegetables are allowed to rem "in h eT wh.le the dramage of the yards is so bad, and the stench from n gl ct ed CoseU and vaults .s so strong, that the whole atmosphere in the vicinity is poSuted a^d he unfit fir r°""'^'f""" ''""'' '"'^ ""' ^^""y '« »'-»'heair that '; "hoUy unfit for the purposes of respiration. The remedy is apparent. Remove all decav Good FooD.-Wuhout an abundance of good food „o man can be we' The food supphes the waste of muscular tissue and of the brain. There is a Isin! process of waste and repair going on in the body. If .he food ilfficiett ,n quanttty. or .mperfect in quality, the waste is not fully supplied, the a^Ln of t,^" organs .s enfeebled, disease sets in, and in time death ensues, farmer have food enough, but the quality is not always as good as it should be. To thTs L mud c^ the disease of fanners' wives and children may be traced NeVvnn ff . often caused directly in this manner. This Tpro^d by' he t Mb ^ 7 "! radical cure can often be effected by a changeVtl'^fp^^:!: ' St t HEALTH AND DISEASE. 845 hav been reated w.th a very high degree of success. The only remedy employed .s P^u. food, concentrated, and. for son.e diseases, subjected to a'process of artifiS The art of cooking U not as well understood by farmers' wives as it should be. change could be made wh.ch would insure the use of more beef and less pork a largely .ucreased consumption of vegetables and fruits, the substitution of simple dishes for some of those which require much time and labor in their preparation jnd w nch .ould give a much greater var.ety of food with less work L Zrgl :; the tal 1 . there would be a great gain to each and every member of the household. The best food cooked .n the best manner should fn.d its way to the farmer's table. The best ood can be obtained by the farmer as easily as by any one. The compli- cated and mysterious compounds which cause the tables, and also the stomachs, of the ch to groan do not come under this head. Good food is simple, nutritious, and imply prepared. It costs less than the dyspepsia-producing dishes which are ^ften furnished, and not half the work is required to prepare it. Wheat, milk. beef. eggs, vegetab es. and fruits, will gratify the taste, and furnish nutriment for the s stem Oatmeal is a valuable article of food, especially for children. Properly cooked it can be made palatable, and with the addition of milk and sugar it becomes a popular wht; ^ '^^'■!"" """»' «ff«^d the luxuries of the rich, but he can have food which will gratify the taste, and wl.ich will impart health and strenwh PtJRE WATER.-This is another of the great necessities of the System. A lar« proportion of the body is formed of water, and quite a quantity is required each dL to supply the waste. If the water taken into the system is pure it refreshes and invigorates, but if it U not pure, and a great deal of the water in use on the farm is not It becomes a source of danger, and soon brings on disease which often termi- nates fatally Probably the use of impure water has led to more cases of typhoid fever than all other causes combined. Multitudes of cases of <■ fever and a^ue '' are caused ,n this way, while many slow diseases which present a low type of fever which undermine the constitution, and for which no definite cause can he assigned by the patient, are brought on in the same manner. The true cause of many attacks of disease is not suspected by the patients, their friends, or. until too late, by the physician. We have already dwelt upon tliis subject at some length, and need only say here that the greatest care should be exercised to keep the water which is used tor cooking and drinking perfectly pure. Proper Clothing is required in order \o maintain perfect health. Unfortu- nately us value ,s not duly appreciated, and multitudes of people on the farms in this country are not suitably clad. The majority have a sufficient quantity of clothing but It either is not of the right kind, or else is not worn as it should be The climate ,s very changeable and quite tryiag. not only to invalids but also to well people. In winter the farm house is very imperfectly warmed, and the members of the household are subjected to considerable exposure in passing from the warm to Oie cold rooms, and in sleeping in cold, close, and poorly ventilated apartments farmers' wives are often exposed to severe cold in hanging out clothes after working over the hot water used in washing, and aK the members of the family frequentljf get the feet wet. and take cold as a natural consequence. Farmers are often severely exposed to attacks of disease by getting chilled after working hard aar\ h;": 846 FARMING FOR PROFIT. getting unduly heated. Rheumatism and neuralgia, both fearful diseases as we can cerl.fy from our own abundant experience, are often brought on in .1^ way The neglect to put on a coat when a hard day's work was done has cost In/a 1„ an immense amount of pain, ^ on'lxta' dothirfh": "I '°"" '" ' "°' ""^ "''•'" ""'^'y — -'''>-' putting on extra clothmg. but when to the heated condition of the system exhaustion I SI? 7'' '''■: "''r ;'"'• ^-'^ '^^ '^•^^-^ ''^ ^-^^ ^-- «» chin L Lti; n reased AW-., su m a draft of air to " cool off" after working, or at any other nishf^T t:\ "f , ''"' ^"^"^ •'"' °" '^ ^^-'^ - ^°°" - •^'^ --'' '" "-" o the field " 7"' '"'" '°'' "" ^-^^ """"'«• A <=°»' ^''-'J be carried wa tin, t' „";:"", r"'"' r' "°" '- '^^ •^""^^ ^•'^^ '"«--'' -^ •^-e. which resulted ,n serious sickness. Always wear woollen next to the skin. Thin wool en clothes in the summer, and thick ones in the winter should be wor;. Not only the grown people but the children should also be dressed in this manner The utoTltt "',:•"" •"/"'^^-"'^y-'l - EUKOPK have strongly ad vied^he use of woollen clothing at a)l seasons of the year exhtistrb?tl"^fr''' ;'r/'°'""^ '^ "^'^'^^'^ »' "'■«>''• ^'"^» '»"= "y*'- is exhausted by the labors of the day. than is required when at work. At all times sufficient clothing should be worn to keep the person comfortable, and in w meT houM be of the best quality (as far as warmth is concerned), in order haTrmal h^bedlr 7'""°"-":,-' •'-S burdensome. The same rule applied o the bed-clothes which are used. Newspapers folded between the quilts will sive much warmth with little weight. AW sleep cold, but use clothes e'nhC warm Keep the feet dry. if possible, during the day. and before retiring at nigh^ dry and warm them thoroughly. See that the children do not neglect thiT. At" ck LZT^: """ '""^ diseases, are often induced by going' to bed ^ith cold! possible, and rub the sk.n vigorously until it is all aglow. Keep the children in- andTt ma:? 11 ^"' "°: ^'''™^- ^^ ^''''^''' «-'-" -™« 'f their betg t anci It may lead to severe illness. CLEANt^NESs-Muchof the Work on a farm seems directly opposed to clean- „M ' ' TC\ I "" [•"'"^^'•""ty- — <-or the farmer, to obey this plain and impor- ant law of health. The two millions of little pores in the skin are the outlets by whTch an immense amount of waste matter is removed from the body. If these outlets become closed, by reason of a cold, or of an accumulation of dht upon the surfact th.3 matter is thrown upon the internal organs, thus greatly increasLg thei labor' and also poisoning the whole system. Frequent batting is absolutely necessary to secure cleanliness and. sooner or later, every one wil! find that Lanl ness s .nd.spensable to health. The feet need frequent washings. Manrpe pTe ae wa m t t V °t ""'" ""'^ "^^^P'^S '''^"» i" •' '«" -i""'-. adding more Tha thrpttil I '"l '.1' 'T -«>'-»of-n quiet a sever; heada'che^! u d by d' Pit the f ?■ ' r'"^""^' "-"-^«='l by pain, can sometimes be cured by dipping the feet m cold water and rubbing smartly with a coarse towel lust before going to bed. When there is a disagreeab^ odor, wash the feet Jh^w e in which permanganate of potash-ten grains to a pint of water-has been dhsoTved Or they may be occasionally washed with vinegar. I'ssolved. HEALTH AND DISEASE. iseases, as we lis way. The many a man ithoiit putting exhaustion is lill, is greatly at any other vork in hand Id be carried 'rk is done. ' take a cold skin. Thin worn. Not inner. The advised the e system is ^t all times in winter it that it may e applies to ts will give igh to keep ng at night s. Attacks with cold, as soon as hildren in- r being out to clean- ind impor- s by which ese outlets le surface, leir labor, icessary to nliness is eople are requently. ling more adache so etimes be towel just 'ith water lissolved. 847 Zf^^"> beat' ''''""'' ''"' "r"«"^' ""' ^^-^'^ ^^^ '»"= »'-' «->«' -»P- N^J^ use bears grease." or any other grease, and avoid all dyes for the hair and The teeth should be brushed after every meal, and particles of food lod^^ed wh te Th K n" ' ".'" ^""^' "^ ^°^P- ^ ""'^ ^^" -'" "'•^'<- "- t-'h very wlule. rh,s should not be used often, and the mouth should he thoroughly rinsej whwa^er after .t has been applied. ,f the stomach is disordered, th teet w U w th a ir" / '" "" r"""°"- '"' '■^^^•^"' "^'^' -- '•^^ --'»> a-e often Also take proper remed.es to correct the action of the stomach whenTh/'"' "=^'\:^='^'»'"^d °"'' '" '•"■" '"""'*'^ ^y ^ "^o-^P^'^"' dentist, and When there are .nd.cat.ons of decay have the cavities promptly filled. The lols of the teeth w.Il cause a great deal of pain, and he v.ry likely to lead to indigestion and sertous . Iness. Children should be taught to take care of their teethrand a denttst should be employed to fill any cavities which may appear. If attended to soon enough, a 1 the teeth can be preserved until old age. But the majority of young people do not commence the work of preservation early enough Thev watt until the teeth are too badly decayed to be filled and then have to lo^e them. It pays to have a dentist examine the teeth often. He can detect the beginnings of evil and save teeth which would be lost if the owner relied upon his own powers of observation. "^ We have elsewhere alluded to the great importance of keepinsj the cellars and all the surroundings clean., and need not dwell upon it hear. Dr. Uowditch has said and the experience of the past has proved him correct, that "all filth is absolute poison to the human system. Either in the air we breathe, the food we eat, the water we dnnk. or through the pores of the skin, this poison may enter the body and carry on its ruinous work. SUFHCIENT Sleep is one of the most important requisites to secure health and vigor of body and mind. During sleep the repa^ e of the waste of the body and the brain is going on and rest is secured. If the p .-i A allotted to sleep is too shon the work IS imperfectly performed, and weariness dur.ng the day is the result The candle of life is being burned at both ends. If the habit of taking too little sleep becomes fixed, sickness, perhaps insanity, will result. Many a man has died in youth or middle age who would have lived many years longer if he had taken more time for sleep, and many a farmer's wife has gone to the Insane Asylum, or an early grave, because the ceaseless round of duties which she tried to perform left too httle time for sleep. Multitudes of children are being injured in body and mind by a lack of sufficient sleep. Their parents teach them that it is a sign of laziness to lie long in bed. No greater delusion was ever accepted by mankind. Shorten the hours of sleep and you thereby sap the very fountains of vital power. Unless pre- ceded by early retiring, early rising is a slow, but sure, form of suicide. Better do without food than without sleep, if both cannot be secured. The greatest workers in the world are often great sleepers. We know of a brilliant clergyman, who per- forms an immense amount of labor, who sleeps twelve hours out of the twenty-four The most vigorous men take an abundance of sleep. Some people need more sleep than others. Probably the majority require eight hours. Manv need ten hours, and some even twelve hours, sleep out of each twenty-four. Each individual must be a law to himself. If he needs but eight hours sleep he should take only that amount. 848 FARMIJVG FOR PROFIT. but if he needs more let hin. take it. No matter if n.i„fcK u it. It is not their business But it IxC'T ""8,''''°" ''°"°'' «'-o"ble about enough. If a small supply of fl e "is takt r'""': , "^"^ """" "^ ««=' ^'^P day long, and not as mu h work a H^ tZ T " " ''""' '^'"^^ ^''""f^ «"! day if the hours devoted tJle r 7. e-ed "x ! ' "T !" '^ "'"^'^ ''-''' n.ore work in eight hours than on'e wh^^rpTl l' rd^i:"?''^ "^" "" '^'^ can do it with far greater ease Manv n.rv, i- " '""«" ""^e- ''"^ in« the hours of sletp. and 1. eW L.:: 1 tXf^r '-""f " °" '' ^''"^^"="- should see that their children have plenty of Lrr '". ''"' ""^'- ^''^^""' servants the privilege of securing .^'^17 "''' "^"^ ^"°""^ '"'"^^ '"-^ OnEDIENCE TO MoRAL LAVVS.-This is the la,f of 1^ tion of health to which we shall call at.e^.ti . ^Thl AuVhTk" f^h" ' .^ '''''T the Author of the laws of health " Up Lnn^ .. 7 "^ "''^'^ '«*« '« also been made with reference to o necess ties n.I "' ""''" ""' "'^ ''^"'^ ''''- We tends to promote the health of the ho y .Td .hl'Td"". ^ ''"" "'"' '"°"' the direct ruin of both. Indulgence of h ' ^ ^'''°"' '''"*= ^«="'J* '» vous system and lowers tv a power Mat I" ""' '"^'°" ''^""«" '"'^ ""' the body is so weakened by ind IgTce .hat t ^^1,'""^ "'""'' "^-^y- -^ -s which otherwise miglft haveTe: 1 i 'i I^ 7J7;°;;'f -^ ^'c^- mtox.cants, lets down the tone of the .system and oil. ?! °V '"""' *"" "^ and every l..d habit, whether it be ofT2sk I o a m ? "'" '"'"• ^"^ the health and break down the constiZron 1^ T """"' '"""^^ '« ''"P'*'' of conduct not only ma^s a „ alh. ' ^''"'""^'"^ ^""'^^'^-^ *=°"«e powerful influence fo ward off Te ''^^'Py- '^^P"'«^' »"d "^ef"!. but also has a power.. ^"^ "'^ '^'^'^^ ^"'^ ^"•^"g'hen the mental and physical BOYS ON THE ^&mm. m parents. The stampede of young men fro' he t'^^r''"''' '^ "'""^ r'cf'l la^e towns is not an evil which finlits Zi tn the 7 '° "'" ''"' whfch they leave, but is one which extend 1 u °'"''"' *='■■*='" depressing'influe;ce felt eve^whte Ho?/:? T^ '"'' """^^^ ''^ Honof greatim,.rtanceandiswen worytf^ofirrir^ '"^ ^^" '"''''-- In order to mduce the boys to stay on (he firm ii, i • . relation which exists between the cUy nd t ^o „ r"?. """^f l' ''•' ''""^ the expenses of living are so hiijh thaf thl .r TT^^ ^ *""'' ''^ '''°*" 'l*^' fa^ge slry, can hard^Tep ou' of deB^ And te Tr.^'V"'' '"^"^"^ °^ '''' tied to his business a great deal more cLi ^ l , ''"' ""^ '"'''" '" "^« "'^ '« be set before them SZ ^ tl I ^ ^^ ," '^' ^"""" '^ '° ^'^ ^^^ should »heywerea„owed-sorC:eraro^.r not wise n their choice of mt-thr^A. «r ^"*" '^''^rs were -ny boys who. u.S:ra„y;:t^^^^^^^^^^ '''^ Still, there will b« «.an.or.o„thefan„. It i^ best th^r hlrd l^ rBtXt'""^ ^ " mcl.nat.on to follow any honest calling will usually do bettef in th,^ . '" °"* febor than they can in any other. But this indinaLn V t ^'P^'"'"'^"' °f rom^ed. by wi. counsel .d suitable i^^r^:'^^^^::'^-:^ trouble about to get sleep vy feeling all much shorter I well can do Ijer time, and 1 by shorten- nie. Parents 1 allow their he preserva- laws is also IS laws have and moral life tends to ges the ner- hereby, and cks of sick- >acco, or of ;alth. Any Is to impair "IAN course also has a d physical £Oys ON THE FARM. 849 to choose it to many cities and tic circles makes its is a ques- r the true, town that Jse of his he city is k should ' because ers were ; will be ns rathec a. strong; ment of or even esires to Z^l^J:::::^''' '-''•''-- -' --- -' --^^ .rai„in,.u.ua„y Hoys sh,H,ia be taught that fuming is an Altera/,/, cuup„,ion. It i, very true that the call.ng does not n.akc .he „,an. and that a n.an si:,ul,l no, be rosX d C™e i'^T^""^ honest occupation ..despised because he folJvsan'o.l.er J-lu aucr is what a n.an ,., and cannot always be determined by reference to the kn.d of wo.k which he performs. The f.r.n.r n,ay be a gentleman o 1 "cj hi a w„ chotco n these respects. Merely being a farmer will make him neither a good n n nor a bad one. Still, farming is a business which does no, open to i Wo, w rs so many cvtl i„nuence,. and expose them to as many tompta ions, as some d ;o :':r''^' ,." '^ ''^ r'":' "' ''-^ ^^'"^'^ ^"" ^"'^'^"y --^^'» -' f- - mtn '","".''' ""-" "" '''' ^'^'"^^"'"" •^"'' •'•M^l'"'- "f --'kind niust. ,n n great n.ea.sure. depend. As far as occupaJion is concerned, the fnrn.er has no occas,.,, to " look up to " the merchant, manufacturer, or professional man Clergymen and teachers are doing a work the value of which is beyond all price a-Kl many boys w.U be called from the farm to f.ll the ranks of these professions' The ones whom Goo calls into these fields should not hesitate for a moment to obey But before a boy leaves the farm to become a merchant, or to go to a city as a Jal.orcr. or to engage in business of any kind, he should very carefully consicfer IK- .luestum whether there is any good prospect that he can do better than the thou- ands of th.se who have preceded him, and who have soon been led lo repent tha, ,hey ever left the f.irm. ' _ The boy.s who are designed by their parents for farmers should be led to take an .merest n, ,he,r work. The skilful teacher leads his scholars along both rapidly and Icasantlywhen he gets them fully interested in their .studies, but until he can do lh.s the.r progress will be very slow. The boy who " don't care " about farming may be led to take an interest in it and choose it for his life-work. If the fanner would explain to him t'te way in which plants grow, and tell him why certain opernfons are performed at the particular times which he observes, and also furnish Inm ;v.th books and papers treating of these and of kindred subjects, he would soon hnd that th. .nd.frerence had given way to earnest inquiry and deep interest. Life on Ki: farm must be made pleasant to the boys who are designed to follow the cal hng o their fathers. The young have a firm belief that life ought to yield a great deal of pleasure, and if things are unpleasant at home they will go elsewhere tn hope of be„ering their condition. This hope is often disappointed, yet the boys pres.s on as though it were sure to be realized. The parent ought to strive to make h.s chddren so happy at home that they will prefer it to all other places. We do not mean that the child should always have his own way. Far from it. Parental authority ought to be firmly maintained. But the rule should be very gentle and the natural waywardness of youth should not cause the father to lose all patience with his boys. The average boy who is well treated is not as exacting as many people seem to imagme. He can be made contented with reasonable care and attention. We have already alluded to the necessity of furnishing him books and papers, and a pleasant room in which to spend his evenings. He should also be well clothed and furnished with what spending money he really needs. Coar^se clothes can, and Ihould, be worn while at work, but every farmer's boy should h.ive good clothes in which he can go into company without being ridiculed or feeltng that he is unsuitably dressed. He should be taught to respect himself and his occupation .f^p— i 850 FARMING FOR PROFIT. He ought never to be obliged to overwork, and his home-life and surroundings should be nnade as pleasant as possible. The ^\t\^ muiil be taught to respect farming as an occupation, and be required to help their mothers in the work of the house and the dairy. When farmers educate their girls in a manner which will fit them to become farnters' wives, and teach them that farming is one of the most honorable of all occupations, and that tlie ^\x\ who marries a farmer does fully as well as one who marries a merchant or a lawyer, thoy will thereby do a great deal towards keeping their boys on the farm. The idea that because a young lady has married a farmer she has " thrown herself away " is one of the most preposterous ones which ever found expression in civilized society. The girl who will reject a man simply because he is a farmer shows that she has a very shallow or else a sadly uncultivated mind and a heart which is incapable of deep affection. And the farmer who will advise his daughters to reject honest and intelligent farmers in the hope of securing clerks, business or professional men, thereby shows his own lack of good judgment as well as proves that he has no genuine respect for the oalling by means of which he obtains his bread. The mother who advises her daughters to " look higher" than the young men who are farmers is thereby doing a great wrong. There may be reasons why certain farmers' boys are not suitable companions for certain farmers' girls, but the mere fact that the men are farmers should weigh in their favor rather than against them. We are well aware that many farmers' wives have been terribly overwo;ked, and we can sympathize with the mother who desires an easier lot for her child. But we know that this excessive labor is not an absolute necessity, and that with the aid of the labor-saving implements of the present day a farmer's wife can live as easily as the wives of men engaged in many other pursuits. There is a very general misconception upon this point, but those who seek the truth soon find that the wife of the farmer does not need to overwork, and that she can have many comforts which other men's wives must purchase at high prices or else do v ithout. The wife of the farmer ought to be willing to work in order to help him, and if the man is what he should be he will see to it that she does not go beyond her strength. And any and every girl may rest fully assured of the fact that a man who would make her his slave if he were a farmer would also require her to work extremely hard if he engaged in another occupation. One of the ways in which the boys can be strongly influenced to choose farming as an occupation is by giving them the use of a small piece of land each season. Let each boy who is old enough take a plot of land each spring, and plant it with such seeds as he chooses. Give him time to cultivate the croj), and allow him to use the team when he needs iN The money obtained from the sale of the products of this piece of ground should be his own to use as he desires. Such a course will prove beneficial in several ways. It will lead the boy to take a deep interest in thorough farming, and induce him to study the best methods of cultivation in order that he may obtain as large a sum of money as possible. It will show him the real worth of a dollar, and lead him to spend his money wisely. Many a'boy has soon " run out " a fine property left him by his father, because he had no clear comprehension of the difficulty of obtaining money. The father who gives his boy spending money does a great deal lietter than the one who never allows him to have any, but it is by far the best plan to have the boy earn the money which he spends. The boy who earns a dollar by growing fruit or grain, understands that the dollar represents a certain amount of labor. He appreciates surroundings be required to rmers educate ml teach them t tlie jjirl who 1 lawyer, they The idea that ay" is one of society. The she has a very pable of deep :t honest and essionat men, at he has no bread. The men who are irtaiii farmers' •e fact that the srwovked, and hild. But we the aid of the s easily as the misconception of the farmer h other men's ! farmer ought I should be he every girl may ive if he were ed in another hoose farming 1 each season. 1 plant it with I allow him to f the products 1 a course will eep interest in ation in order how him the er, because he he father who ie who never boy earn the fruit or grain, [e appreciates ITEMS FDR THE HOUSE AND FARAf. g^j the money, and knows its actual worth far \^u^r ,, .i. ^ his own money. It will len.i m n„L. h ''"""'""'"*". ""ake papers, wiih the means of great go , . . Z'^TT' """ '"*''^"' '"'" "'"^ '^ ■"-'« to the father. If .t fs not . v n 1 t al T''^' '''?" "" »'-' equal benefit bis boys the entire care o 27 ^" ""' "^ '""•'' '^' f«^"'" «"=>/ give consuLd.::;rorg et.:: ;:\^:z;:« r^ ': r 'v- '-' ^'^^' '^ •nd egg. . Or two or three sheep m 1 . ' 7, „? . ' "*= "'"^ °' '^'''=''"» cost of keeping, and having the Ln J IZZ LI 7 T "". '"' '"= ^"^'"^ "^" In some such way the boy Lv be in . "" "'"' ^°"' ^"^ '''^ °*"- ia^.^d .un^ion i^/a s:LeL;:z;ir^;r iJ^^^ '-• -' '"^""^ '- make your son like hirbusi"s,lc A ''''"'• '" "'^" ^"" ^ " '' y"" -»"' «<> him about the work he i „ 5 e hir, '" '"'Tf ''' "'""' ""'' """• -"-" the sole care or responsibi i.v nV / .v, P"' "^ ""^ "''"'*'"«• ^'^« '"'» ""^ly the stock, some o t H ''„; ^H; '"'^ °" ""^ ^-"- "^«= ^^.U, the pigs, some of everything jnst as youZld aiv IT r' '"' "' ''^"'''^°" '"■' '"^ "°' ''" he i7yet yoLg and halt 'to 12 er ' 7^' '^"""" ''^^•'""•" ^^" ''■'''' he gets into business for hin se f V "1 ?" .:m7'"^^^^^^ more interest in their work Zl L n^ ['''''"'« '^'^'^"^^ "' 'his w.ny they will take themselves." It wTuM *: l^rr^^Tf I'm """.' ^'^" •"^•^■^'-' ^- boys were consulted oftenernnd tru 1 * . . '" '"'^ "'"'' ''"'="''• '^ ">« some writer has said : " ThVTol " 1 b '" T "'T """"^ ""^ °" "'= ''''"'■ ^' for himself, and to ac for 1 'm f ^ '"' "",';\'"-''= '° --' - 1^!--^. to think develop within him." T Time .A: 7 " ', '"T °' '""^ ""''"'^"°'' '"=«'" '"^ sponsibili.y.and the girl should "h' " ' ""'' '^ ''"— '--"ess re- If the suggestion n de L It h """^'-^P'^'""-*' ''^ '^^ined i" like manner, will have no d ffic .UJ^ ^-^ "^ '"■' '"=''''''• ""' «''=''' '"='i"^''y °f ">e boys ITOMS FOa THE HOUSE AND FaaOT. ^"t! tti' ho''"\''""'' '"""'^'^ '"" "^"°"^ ''°""^' -"^y °f'- P-ve useful III to the housekeeper and the farmer. ?ovesl ; ^'Z '''"^''P''' '"" ''"^ ''"^' '° •^'="^k their cooking every mor^i I af^r TT T' ^'^''^ ' '""' "'^>^ ^'^^ ^"•''"^'^ -" -'"^ "^ — P^'P" sit nf ^' ''"'''' "■■" ^■'^'''''^' "^^y ^"' •<«? black a long time If a spo of grease or stam of some kind adhere, moisten the paoer a li,.,. fndTl ^ off Ncyspapcrs or wrapping paper will keep the outside of the tea and'c^offee "p^t'^and .11 tmutens.ls about thestove. brighter than theoldwayof washing tber^orplui^ 862 FARMING FOR PROFIT. Keep coffee by ii.elf i„ ,i„ eani.ien Vf ° ', T .^'^'' »" sizing, of common h the whitewash or pecially the top and shoe — vulcanized and cover to twice 3t petroleum naph- The rubber will together, and put apply as fast as it ssolves the rubber ■y of chloroform to ight — shake occa- . Directions for to both parts and until the cement ly for use in ten Y water, and will /TEAfS FOR THE HOUSE AND FARM. 853 Wet B00TS.-Fill wet boots with dry oats and let them stand overnight; the oats will absorb the moisture and leave the boots soft and dry To I'R.VKNT MKTALS >.R„M Rusr.NO.-Apply a thin coating o." a mixture made of hre parts of lard and one of rosin. This will prevent Russia-iron stoves.' grates brass, copper, and steel from rusting in summer, even in damp weather J" ?.'r '■"'=, "^^^'^ thoroughly, prevent cracking, an.l make them whit^ and soft, rub them well with soft-soap and sand, and then wash in warm water Oil may be removed from the hands '.y rubbing them well with dry mustard and then washing them with cold water. REMF.I.Y FOR F£LONS.-The London Lancet recommends the following as the bes remedy yet discovered: As soon as the disease is felt, put directly over the spot a fly.bhster about the size of your thumb nail, and let it remain for six hours at he expiration of which time, directly under the surface of the blister, may be seen the felon, which can instantly be taken out with the point of a needle or a lancet Remedies for BEE-SxiNGs.-Extract the sting, if possible, and press upon the spot with a hollow instrument (a watch-key will do), in order to remove the poison. Ihen wet the affected • ■ and cover with common baking soda. If this is not convemt..i, cover with mud. An onion cut open and one-half laid upon the spot is said to be a good remedy Whatever is used,/;w////«m is indispensable to its successful application Mustard PLASTER.-In making a mustard plaster, use no water whatever but mix the mustard with the white of an egg, an-' the result will be a plaster that' will draw perfectly, but will not produce a blister, even upon the skin of an infant, no matter how long it is allowed to remain on the part. Antidotes for Poisoning. Arsenic— \^ any one be poisoned with arsenic, administer mustard-water -ntil vomiting ,s produced. The mix.ure is made by stirring two tablespoonfuls of ground mustard in a quart of lukewarm water. After vomiting has taken place, give a teaspoonful of sulphur or a wine-glass of soap and water. If with sugar of lead or white lead, use the mustard-water made as above, to produce vomiting, and after, a teaspoonful of Epsom salts dissolved in water, every forty-five minutes. Corrosive S„blimaie.—G\ys to a person poisoned by corrosive sublimate white and, red precipitate or calomel, white of eggs, milk, or oil in as great quantities as the person can take, during ten minutes, then give mustard-water as stated above. Nitrate o/A7wr.— Give to a person poisoned by nitrate of silver or lunar caustic, table salt, two teaspoonfuls in a pint of w.iter, then castor oil. Strychnine.— Gxs'a to a person poisoned by either strj-chnine, nux vomica, opium,, laudanum, paregoric, morphine, belladonna, or croton oil, an emetic of mustard and warm water, followed by a drink made of vinegar and sweet oil. In all cases of poisoning send for a physician as soon as possible. A TAnLESPooNFUL of turpentine, boiled with white clothes, will greatly aid the whitening process. Beeswax and salt will make rusty flat-irons as clean and smooth as glass. Tie a lump of wax in a rag and keep it for that purpose. When the irons are hot, rub them first with the wax rag, then scour with a paper or cloth sprinkled with salt, A Transparent Mum.Ar.K of great tenacity may be made by mixing rice flour with cold water and letting it gently simmer over the fire. To Clean Kid Gloves.— Take benzine and dip the gloves into it, wring them 854 FARMING FOR PROFIT. out, one at a time, and spread upon a board which has been covered with flannel, rub every part gently with a clean piece of flannel till dry; smooth out and hang m the open air till the odor has vanished. ,. , , v To KEEP the hands from chapping, dry them thoroughly immediately after wash- ing them and before going into the cold. Cleaning the TEETH.-Before cleaning the teeth dip the brush in water, rub it over genuine white Castile soap, then dip it in prepared chalk. To KEEP ants away from food, set it on a table, and place each leg of the table m a dish containing water. _ To RID a house of insects: If two or three bottles of ammonia are left unstop- pered, in prominent places in a room, they will soon leave. No insects can tolerate it. Every pantry should be furnished with a good step-ladder, so that the house- keeper can easily get to the upper shelves. , , ., To REMOVE a glass stopper that has become firmly fastened in the neck of the bottle, put a drop or two of glycerine or sweet oil in the crevice about the stopper, and in an hour or two it will be loose. To CLEANSE a drain pipe, pour down a strong solution of copperas. The same material may be used for disinfecting cellars. To GET rid of mould in the cellar, put some roll-brimstone into a pan, and set lire to if close the doors, making the cellar as nearly air-tight as possible for two or three' hours, when the fungi will be destroyed, and the mould will be dned up. Repeat this simple and inexpensive operation every two or three months, and you will have your cellar free from all parasitical growth. , , , ,. Rats and Mice can be driven away by placing caustic potash or unslacked lime, powdered, in their holes or runways. ., r„, , WVRNINGS TO BE LEARNED BY HEART ABOUT KEROSENE.-AlwayS fill lamps by daylight, and never while lighted. If obliged to fill them at night, have the light a few feet distant. Lamps should be filled daily, and never lighted when partly empty. Select lamps which have the burner considerably elevated above the body of the lamp. Trim the wick square across to get the best light. A lamp with the wick turned far down is more likely to explode. If burning oil gets upon the floor, smother it with a rug or blanket. If your clothes take fire, do the same, and lie down. Never pour oil on a fire from a cr>.xx— never. The observance of these rules may save many a life. , , , e ENAMEL FOR Shirt RosoMS.-Melt together with a gentle heat, one ounce of white wax, and two ounces of spermaceti; prepare in the usual way a sufficient quantity of starch for a dozen b-soms, put into it a piece of this enamel the size of a hazel nut, and in proportion for a larger nSmber. This will give clothes a beau- tiful polish. , , A Strong Cement.— A colorless, tr.insparent cement, with which to mend glass, can easily be made by dissolving isinglass in spirits of wine; add a small quantity of water, and mix gently over a moderate fire. An Adhesive Paste.— The American Cultivator gives this recipe for such paste as is used on the backs of postage stamps: Dextrine, two ounces; acetic acid four drachms; water, two and a half ounces. Mix the dextrine, acetic acid, and water, stirring until thoroughly mixed; and add alcohol. For attaching labels to ilacked lime, RED-LETTER DAYS. trouble now expended in putting out and tak nT in the ! ^ "' "^ '""' ""'^ 'ines a,.e „u.ch cheaper in 'the end than the ; s/ n ^wT;; T\ '''' ''"' some strong posts and buy a suitable line. As the clothe Ti n7f f '"' dows with a sponge moistened with ammonia, they can be ma le to fh in! T'l zrtii ^77''^ ^"' ■''' ''' '''-' "' '^^ --poons;and a7:; n "iV : mop-pa,! w>ll do more m washing the kitchen-floor than a large amount o Urd labor performed in tfie ordinary manner. ^ ^ ese rules may f N the old calendars the saints' days were marked with red letters These kept as holidays by the people. Had they not been marred by an undue veneration o men the principle and practice would both have been worthy bettrbaT '""■ '^^" '"'"■" " """^^ °^ re-establishmentupon a In the bustle and haste of moderS life there are too few holidays, and these are tent on" to 7" '"^ T '' '"'"''''''''• '^ °"'" ^^"^-'-"'^ »>-' ^'^^ '°o " "ch obser ed h. '" "'"°""' ""' ""'"'^ '"■''*^"'«^'^ "^^ ^^'^^^ -''-■»' ^^ey have need more hohdays-not for popular observance, but for the family circle. We need hem to prevent the excessive wear of constant toil, and also to strengthen domestic be observed "'*' ''^ """ '^'''' ""'^ ' '"'^ °^ ''^^ P"*'"'= ^^'■"^^''' ^'"^"''1 Birthdays are entitled to a prominent place in the list of the red-letter days. ****-*««»«Av*rt. 856 FARMING FOR PROFIT. For the children these days should be made happy by gifts and by a pleasant party, or by a pleasure-ride to some place which they specially desire to visit. Older people should take these days for thought, rest, and recreation. It is fitting that these points of time should be observed, and that, as the years pais by, and age gradually but surely increases, the individual should recognize the fact that life is passing, and the time which he is to spend upon the earth is rapidly diminishing. They need not be sad days, but they should be remembered and suitably observed. Parents should teach their children to remember these days. The custom which some writers advocated long ago, of planting a tree to commemorate the birth of each child, is to be strongly commended. As soon after a child is born as the proper season for transplanting arrives let a fine tree, oak, elm, maple, evergreen, or one of similar nature, be planted in one of the yards near the house. This tree should be the special care of the child in whose honor it was put out, and as they grow in size and age the child will take a deep interest in the tree, and will soon come to regard it with feelings of affection. Marriage Anniversaries should also be observed by the married members of the family. They may well be Celebrated by social unions of the family circles to which the married pair originally belonged. When this is impracticable, a visit to some near relatives, a tea-party, or a pleasure-trip, will furnish the means for the appropriate observance of the day. The Religious and National Festivals which have received the sanction of the Church and State should also be observed. The patriot should teach his children the reasons why the Fourth of July is kept as a holiday by the citizens of the country, and should lead them to observe it aright. The use of powder is not the only way, and is very far from being the best way, in which to have a " celebration." The story of the Revolution should be familiar to every child, and a true patriotism should be made one of the prominent points of a good Thanksgiving Day should be observed by every family ^in the land. When possible the parents and children should all " go up to the house of the Lord to express in a public manner their recognition of the numberless blessmgs which they have received. The Giver of all good ought to be offered the tribute of grateful hearts. , . , ^., , u . Christmas should be kept as a religious and a joyful festival. Gifts should be presented to the children, and they should be told the wonderful story of the coming of CHRIST into the world. The fact should also be clearly presented that all our civilization and liberty come to us as the direct result of the life and work of Christ on earth, while all our hopes for the future must depend upon Him as th only Redeemer of the world. , . j u New Year's Day is fast becoming a festival, and if properly observed may be made instrumental of good. During the week preceding this day the poor should be remembered, and many kindly, but unobtrusive, acts of chanty performed There are other festivals, like Easter, which are worthy of general remembrance, and each family will have special days which should be kept by its members as anniversaries. Let these red-letter days not be overlooked or disregarded. Properly kept they will confer great blessings upon all who come under their influ- cncc and share their joys. asant party, isit. Older fitting that by, and age that life is liminishing. ' observed, istom which the birth of ,s the proper reen, or one , tree should hey grow in ion come to members of lily circles to )le, a visit to leans for the ! sanction of lid teach his y the citizens of powder is :h to have a ) every child, ts of a good land. When f the Lord " essings which he tribute of ifis should be of the coming :d that all our )rk of Christ ti as th only served may be le poor should brmed. rehiembrance, ts members as disregarded. der their influ- INDEX. A. Accident Insurance.. . o-„ Adhesive Paste.... ^ Agriculture and National Pro"sp;;i'ty It Alsike Clover x Ammonia /_\ ^9 Anim.-il Excrement Jl" Animals for Lab.ir. . .", ' qV J°t Animals for Food. . . ^ ^' ^^ Apples for the North ^^^ Apples for the South. . Z^: Apricot , Artichoke. . Ashes A5para<;us. . Atmosphere. 793 797 396 180 811 '53 B. Barley. liARN.... ••• 23s Cellar..:::;;:;;;." '°'~"° tening Cattle in .qo Barns for West and South " ,0? Beans ''/' o Bee-Stings. ^^7. 8u Beef....*:... ;-o- ^53 Bermuda Gras^.V." ^^ ' !i' c. Cabbage Capital :::;;; ' Unproductive. . i^ Care of Sick.... A^9 Carrot . °43 Castor Bean.'. ■.■.'.■.■.■.".■. '^°°' ^'^ Castration " "c'c't f.'r^'-,' V ' ^''' Catalpa 553.607,704. 743 Cattle..; ^93 Ayrshire.".".".'.".". "^1^^ Breeding... ■•,• ^5 Breeds of.;; ^97-603 Chokincr... r° Devon.':...;.". g° SSr.!';;::;:;''''"-''4^ Feeding |^' iiereford ; .gi Hoistein.... f^ ■ te7*^'"^"'°f- ••••■.■. ■■.■.397-60] nS::::: f^ Short-Horn....'. ^?f Water for. "' Bf™sr !•. ■ ■ • ■ 3«9 c*^' ■'••■■■.■.•.•.•.•.•.■.•.•.•.■.■.•.''''• »'« ^ii"^ •••':v/.:::::;:::Jo^S:S"c'Sg„:::;;; '"tl Ti,in»= T,„l/*j" ■■•'..■ ■;•:: '82 Chemistrv -^' Bones Bones Treated with Acid , b, Book-Keeping 810-821 Books and Papers.. . . " ' "g'zV 's.J o,i ijoysontheFLm..;;;;;;'f:.%5_g Bromus t'^ oji Broom-Corn ..;;;; ^ '^ Breeding from Grade's: ; ; ; V-l Buckwheat. •'■'? Budding ^^° BuiLDiNGS-Adkpta'tion 'of. .'..'. '. ;62-64 Color of _^ Cost of ; 74 For Farm... ;:: ^^T^^ H-g'nof '::::::.::-:v^ Location . Rel.itive Position „_„ Repairing of ////_ ^^ hize of C7_fi,, BuTTER.Making.... ;;.•;;;.• ;:;6s8:672 ^^'"'■."'"g 666 Packmff --,, s^King.. ::;::;;:::;:: S' Temperature of Cream : ::;::;: 660 Woi^king 67^ Changes ,„ Chemistry .•" Cheny... '^9 Chufa 797 Cisterns ; ; ; :;.'.■;;.■.■;. '^^ Cleanliness i'l Closets and Vaults.'.'.'. .f^ ,^j"'hing ;;;;;;;:; 1^6 Clover °4" Coffee '77.386 Cooking Food fo'r"s;ock'.'.'.'.';.'."6'4"3; 748 Cold frame "^ (iZZ Colorado Beetle ; ; °l Colts ;;;; 329 Age for working " rg, Training of. 54l.'s57-56o Compensations— Law of. 26 Complete .Manures '.*.'.'.".". 'I's'o: iqc ^°7°^''"g 172-175 Cool ey System f^'A ?o°rr"'°" '::::,2,24 Corn-Harvester "' i., ^°™- ■.■.'.■. v.".: :276-29. ^"'^ 279,29, (857) '•**6»^»,«t^.. 858 INDEX. Cows — Abortion in 619 Drying off 604 Interior 634 Feeding 640 Iniprovemen: of 639, 640 Large or Small 637 Sore Teats 647 Testing 636 Cranberries 806 Credit System 437. S24 Crops — Change of I40> 447 Cost of. 223 Experiments with 124 Rotation of. 225-232 Selection of 215,224, 234 Cucumbers *'3 Currants Cuttings 805 788 Cut- Worm 306, 358 Dairy — Cleanliness in I 661 Deodorizer " ^ Disinfectant Fluid 852 Diversified Farming 446 Draining 408-419 Driven VVell 43° Ducks 763 Education 841 Ensilage 679-682 Ergot . Evaporation Evenings.. . . 255 413 842 False Economy 823-826 Farm— Capacity of 121-127 Implements 50'-524 Farming — Profit of 823 Farms, Small or Large 38-42 Felons °53 Fences 4S4-4S9 Live 486 Wire 487 Fertilizers 15 1-202 Application of I95> 297 Formulas for 194 Special 188, 222, 259 Flax 238 Fire Insurance 829 Floors 87, 1 10 Forests and Climate 494 Forests and Health 495 FRUiT-Growing 77'-8o7 Assorting of. 779 Diseases 7"'-7°3 FRUIT-Gathering 77-8 Storing 779 Thinning 77^ G. Garden 807-816 (iarget 621, 718 Geese 7^4 Gooseberries 806 Grafting 79' Grain — Drilled or liroadcasl 260 Winter-Killing of 416 (jranary ''O Cirape-Growing 798-800 Grass 365-384 Fertilizers for 375 Top-Dressing 19^ Green Manuring '75 Guano ^^^ H. Hardin Method 663 Harrow • 50? Hay-Press I03 Hen-House "2 Hens 756 Hemp 241 Herbs 813 Hog-House "I Holidays 855 Home Production 43'-446 Honey-Bees 767 Hops 3'0 "Horn Ail" 625 Horse 53'-575 Breeding 54«-548 Diseases 569-574 Feeding 561-56$ Qualities for Farm 533-541 Shoeing 568 Teams 482 Thorough-bred 556 House 76-101 Cellar 99 Household Machines 522 Hoven 623 Hybridization 146, 467 Drying 78c Enemies of. 783-787 ICE-House. ^73 Obtaining 674 Impure Water 1 17. 420, 43' Inorganic Matter in Crops 158 Insect Enemies 139. 262, 284, 285 Insurance 827-830 Items for House and Farm 851-855 J. Jute. 243 Labor a Standard of Value 475 lA'DEX. 77-8 779 776 ... 791 . . . 260 .. . 416 no 798-Soo 365-384 ••• 375 ... 196 ... 175 ... 186 ... 663 ... 507 . .. 103 ,.. . 112 .... 756 .... 241 .... 813 . .. . Ill .... 855 .431-446 .... 767 .... 3'0 625 •531-575 .541-548 •569-574 .561-565 ■533-541 .... 568 .... 482 .... 556 . ..76-101 99 .... 522 623 .146, 467 673 674 , 420, 431 158 , 284. 285 ..827-830 ..851-855 243 475 Labor— Waste of .76 470 La.miis— Best should be Kept 607 <->■"'= ".'■ ■ 6yS Castration Disowned Docking Fctdiny R;iising by Hand Weaning Layers Le.id I'ipe, 704 701 703 705 702 70s 789 K", 6.7 l^ile Insurance gjS Lit,>iniiing-Ruas '.'." ...'. g. Lime ■ ■■■ ,^^ Location— Change of. . . . jg-'-l Lucerne ! ! ! ! . 390 Parsnip Peanut Culture .... I'ears Peas Pigs— Care of. .... Castration .... Fattening .... Thorough-bred Wt.'.ning . . , . , Plants— Dwarfing! Elements o' 859 .404, S14 ••j-ij .2^ Tji •249, 614 742 743 .... 745 .... 734 .... 745 . .. . 142 M. 399 Mangokl-Wurtzel iMANUJlE— Quantity of. !!'.".". ! f ^'^ ;'^''y'"g 106, 166; I6S", 169 «7i 69 172 165 350 Valu Waste Maple Sugar Markets— Demands of. 217 RLuking Farm Products ....'. 827 Mail '"' ,o„ Ti , , ISO Melons gj Milk— Cause of Decay .' ." '. '. .' ." ." \ ' ' 650 Cooling ■ 651 Deep Setting ggj In Closed Cans 553 Milk Fever '"'' 526 Milkintr " ' ' A^o Millet.' v.... ■;:;::: :::;:::3^f Mixed Paints •^;, Mole Plow .;, >, „ 4'2 .>! 01. ey Crops -,-.2_'.-^- Moral Laws ~^ g^g u:S'^' ::.v:;;.-: 853 ""^ 575-579 482 685 Nitrogen ,gy ' J* nemies ,7^; Flowers of. ' \ ' For Seed ."..'.'"" ]y°'^°}--^ '41,15',' "I'ssi 3CX3 146 462 '63 1 48 Plaster, Plow.. Plums. Poi Growth of Growth of Roots ...',.'.' 136 Increasing Size of . .'.'. 142 Modification of 142, 464J 468 Productiveness of. iaa Reproduction of i,^ j'^ ^^c 168,' l8l 501 797 Mule Teams Mutton loisoning, Anlidoles to 853 I'ORK — Curing of 71-2 Salting in Summer 7^1; Portable Creamery ' ] '_ (,64 Potato-Crowing 124-1 s.S Power on the Farm '.'.'.'.'.'. .496-500 Prickly Comfrey ^.n. Propagation of Trees and Plants.".".' 7SS Q. Quince-Growing ygg R. 8.5 413 Radish..., Rain-Fiill , i^'-^sp'^e'-'y ;.; 804 Recreation - Oats. Oni: Winter. nion-Growing ^i^i. Orchard Grass Overwork . . . . Ox Teams 244 247 ■323 368 841 481 P. Paintinw 7I-7'? Paris Green 2S5, 330 S42 Repair Shop , ,g Rhubarb '' g,^ Ribbon Cane ^^x Rice '.'.'.'.'.'.'..'. 2-1 Ridge Cultivation. 409 Roads on Farm 490-402 R°llf :.. S06 Roofing Material go Rooms— Arrang-ment of. . . .So.'s'i', 98 f';-'^''*"' 84, 840 Warm gj Root Pruning 1^5 ^""'^■■"P^ ••'■395-407 Root Cuttings yga Runners »qo R uta Baga .".*.".'.'.' i!.'.' 406 '^ye 2S2 Salt. .181,616, 715, 747 860 INDEX. StED-^Buying of 461 Changin(r 47, Covering 134 Fertilization of. 463 Germination of 133, 452 Good Quality Required., ..450 462 Influence of 45 1-460 Mixed 468 New and Old 136 Ripening I43 Selection of Plants for 462 Storing 473 Sheep 683-724 Breeding 694-607 Breeds 691-604 Cotswold 602 Diseases 716-722 l>ogs 722 Ewes for Breeding 695 Lambing 607 Leicester ,. , . 692 M rino '. . , 6gi Native 6q-i Old 696 On Prairies 723 Oxford Down 692 Poisoned 720 Profit from 684-691, 724 Ram, Care of. 694 Shearing 709 South Down 692 Summer Management 706 Washing 707 Winter Man.igement 712 Sleep 847 Small Farms 38 Sod as a Fertilizer 179 Soil — Analysis of 127-131 Covering 201 Deficiencies of. 221 Exhaustion by Crops 207 Formation of. 155 Loosening 134 Preparation 133 Testing 130 Soiling Cattle 676 Crops for 677 Sorgo 343 Specialty System 435 Springs 422 Squash 815 Stables 107, 566, 612 Steers, Training of. 608 Stone Drains 410 Stone Walls 486 Store- House 1 20 Storing Crops 320, 333, 349 Strawberry Culture. 803 Subsoil 1 60 Su^ar 338-352 Sugar Beet 346 Summer Fallow 200 Surroundings, Influence of 839 Sweet Potato 335 Swine 724-755 Age for Breeding 735^-740 Berkshire 734 Breeds 726-734 Chester White 729 Diseases of 749-752 Essex 733 Feeding 746 Magie 733 Sows for Breeding 737 Spaying Sows 744 Suftolk 729 Thorough breds 734, 738 Yorkshire 730 T. Tea Culture 3S2-3SS Ticks 711 Tile Drains 411 Tillage 159, 203-215, 227 Tobacco-Growing 35S-364 Tool-House iiS Tomato 815 Transplanting 772, 808 Treks, Cultivation of 774 Distance Apart 773 For Timber 492-494 Prunmg 775 Setting 773 Watering 855 Turkeys 762 Turnip-Growing 404-407, 815 u. Underdraining 409 Useful Tables 830-836 V. Ventilation 94-97 "W. Wngon-House 114 Water 154, 419-431, 845 Weeds 139, 140 Weights and Measures. . . .832, 834, 835 Wells 425 WHEAT-Growing 257-267 Cultivation 264 White Clover 388 Windows 83, 107, 113 Wire Worms 306 Wood-House 115 Wool 684 Y. Yam 364 V- , 200 839 335 ■•••724-755 ... 73^^740 734 ... 726-734 729 •••■749-752 733 746 733 737 744 729 •■•734, 738 730 ••••352-355 7'> 4" 33-215, 227 •••355-364 118 8'5 ...772, SoS 774 773 ...492-494 775 773 «55 762 )4-407, 815 409 ...830-836 94-97 "4 9-431, 84s ...139, 140 12, 834, 83s 425 ...257-267 264 388 3, 107. "3 306 "5 684 364 h