PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. Class PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE A BRIEF TREATISE ON AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, STOCK FEEDING, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, AND ROAD BUILDING BY JOHN W. WILKINSON, A.M. ASSISTANT STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION, OKLAHOMA FORMERLY PROFESSOR OF AGRICULTURE IN NORTHWESTERN NORMAL SCHOOL, ALVA, OKLAHOMA NEW YORK : CINCINNATI : CHICAGO AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY COPYRIGHT, 1909, BY JOHN W. WILKINSON. ENTERED AT STATIONERS' HALL, LONDON. PREFACE ALTHOUGH the advanced work in agricultural education has long been provided for in both Europe and America by Colleges and Chairs in some of the Universities, it is only of recent years that the public has awakened to the pressing need of practical agricul- tural instruction in our public schools. The demand for this work is growing stronger and stronger all the time, and wherever the subject of agriculture has been taught in the public schools the results have been highly satisfactory. President Koosevelt, through the National Commission on Country Life, aroused a great deal of interest in country life and country social conditions which is finding expression in many ways. Our whole nation is beginning to realize the need of better rural schools and more practical instruction. The Committee on Industrial Education for the Country Com- munities appointed by the National Educational Association in 1905 struck the keynote when it said: "The country schools, which train nearly one half of the school population of this country so far as school training goes, should definitely recognize the fact that the major portion of those being trained will continue to live upon the farm; and that there should be specific, definite technical train- ing fitting them for the activities of farm life. Such schools will not make farmers nor housekeepers, but they will interest the boys and girls in farming and housekeeping and the problems connected with these two important vocations." Likewise it is no less important that pupils in our city schools should receive some instruction in agriculture so that they may have a proper conception of the country and the opportunities they might enjoy there which would be denied them in the city. The tendency of our ambitious young people to collect in the cities and large centers of population is fraught with the gravest danger. In the country there are health, wealth, and happiness, 8 216048 4 PREFACE and our young people in the cities must be made to realize this fact. The solid and substantial wealth of our nation comes from the country and not from the city, but this hard-earned wealth pro- duced on the farms is being nearly all diverted to the improvement of cities and city institutions, instead of being used for the improve- ment of the country and its institutions. The time is now at hand when there must be an organized and determined effort to correct this condition, for we need strong and brainy people in the country, and they are entitled to the same comforts and conveniences as are enjoyed by those living in the city. Further, aside from its practical value, we should not lose sight of the fact that agriculture may be made an aid to other school work in many ways. Mathematics will be applied in the use of weights and measures, while the principles of percentage and pro- portion will enter into the solution of nearly every problem in soils. Composition will lose some of its bad flavor, and spelling will no longer be distasteful when applied to the description of experiments in which the pupils are interested. Manual training will find ex- pression in the making of boxes, labels, farm levels, and many other appliances used in various experiments. Some of the principles of botany, physics, chemistry, and zoology will be learned and applied in their study with soils, plants, and animals. When handled in this way, all of the work will leave a more lasting im- pression, because it is concrete, and at the same time it will be more interesting because it is connected with the life and occupation of the pupils. In the preparation of this work, the author has tried to keep con- stantly in mind the needs of the student as well as the facilities at the disposal of the teacher for making the instruction practical and available. No attempt has been made to exhaust the various topics treated, and in every instance abundant latitude is given the instructor to show his own individuality in developing and carrying out the ideas suggested by the text. JOHN W. WILKINSON, Assistant ^Superintendent. STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, GUTHRIE, OKLAHOMA. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. COUNTRY LIFE AND FARMING II. THE HISTORY or AGRICULTURE III. AIR AND SUNLIGHT ........ IV. WATER V. THE SOIL VI. SOIL INGREDIENTS ........ VII. TYPES OF SOIL VIII. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF THE SOIL .... IX. SOIL MOISTURE ......... X. DRAINAGE AND VENTILATION ...... XL TILLAGE XII. ORDINARY TOOLS AND IMPLEMENTS FOR SOIL PREPARATION XIII. THE PLANT XIV. CEREALS OR GRAINS . . . . . XV. WHEAT XVI. OATS AND OTHER CEREAL CROPS . .... XVII. FORAGE CROPS XVIII. ROOT CROPS AND THE TURNIP FAMILY .... XIX. TUBER CROPS XX. FIBER-PRODUCING PLANTS XXI. ANIMAL FIBERS XXII. ROTATION OF CROPS XXIII. FERTILIZERS ......... XXIV. ORGANS OF VEGETATION XXV. PROPAGATION OF PLANTS ....... XXVI. IMPROVEMENT OF PLANTS XXVII. FRIENDS AND ENEMIES OF PLANTS 1. PLANT FORMS . XXVIII. FRIENDS AND ENEMIES OF PLANTS 2. ANIMAL FORMS XXIX. HORTICULTURE XXX. SPECIAL HERB AND LEAF CROPS ..... 5 PAGE 7 10 13 20 24 30 33 39 43 50 56 59 63 68 77 85 93 104 108 111 120 124 128 139 148 158 167 179 192 202 6 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAOR XXXI. SMALL FRUIT CROPS . . . . 207 XXXII. . 214 XXXIII. ORCHARD CROPS . 218 XXXIV. NUT CROPS . 229 XXXV. FLOWER GARDENING .... . 235 XXXVI. Civic IMPROVEMENT .... . 242 XXXVII. . 251 XXXVIII. FORESTRY . 259 XXXIX. . 266 XL. . 277 XLI. FUEL AND LIGHT . 285 XLII. STOCK FEEDING . 291 XLIII. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY .... . 802 XLIV. DOMESTIC ANIMALS .... . 309 XLV. . 341 APPENDIX . . . 355 GLOSSARY . 875 , 379 PEACTICAL AGRICULTURE I. COUNTRY LIFE AND FARMING MANY young people dislike country life and think that they would be happier living in cities ; but if their desires were realized, they would often find themselves somewhat disappointed. In the country there is plenty of pure fresh air, abundance of sun- light, and plenty of room for exercise and development, while the reverse is often true of our large centers of population. On account of the height of the buildings in some portions of our large cities but little sunlight can find its way into the living rooms. In the tenement districts the homes are often overcrowded, and it is not unusual for one to find whole families living in a single room. In the country there is always plenty of room, and such cramped conditions of living are never necessary. In fact, there are many reasons why we should prefer country life to city life, and why we should look upon farming as a most desirable calling. Upon farming, other occupations very largely depend for food and sup- plies. Of course there is a vast difference between good farming and the growing of crops in a haphazard way. People seem to think that crops can care for themselves after the seed is planted, and that the farmer's business is to cultivate the soil, destroy the weeds, and grow food enough for his own use. Were this true, farming would be very simple, and any one without training or experience could be a successful farmer. Farming is something more than the mere production of raw food materials from the soil. It is concerned not only with the growing of the staple grain, forage, and fiber crops, and the raising of stock, but also with the general management of lands and farms. Each kind of crop grown removes certain elements from the soil necessary for plant growth, and if the crop is taken away from the farm, 7 8 COUNTRY LIFE AND FARMING the soil is depleted and becomes less and less productive each succeeding year. The crops gradually decrease until they be- come unprofitable, and finally the land is abandoned. That is generally the result with unscientific farming where the farmer looks upon the land as an inexhaustible mine or reservoir upon which he may draw without any thought of the future. The skillful farmer treats the land as a factory, and supplies the necessary crude elements as fast as they are transformed into In the country there is plenty of room. crops, thus keeping the land at the height of fertility. There is skill in farming as much as in any other occupation, and the more we reflect on the question, the more we are compelled to admit the necessity for studying the science of farming. In its broad sense this science includes Agriculture, Horticul- ture, Forestry, Animal Industry, and Road Building. Agriculture is the science which treats of the general manage- ment of lands and farms, and the production of useful plants and animals. Horticulture treats of the growing of fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants. It may be subdivided into Olericulture, Pomology, Floriculture, and Landscape Gardening. Olericulture is the science which treats of vegetable growing and truck farming. COUNTRY LIFE AND FARMING 9 Pomology is the science or art of fruit growing. Floriculture is the cultivation of plants for use as ornaments. Landscape Gardening is the growing and planting of ornamental plants for their uses in mass effects in making up a landscape view. Forestry is the growing of timber for lumber and wood, or for producing secondary effects upon any region by modifying the climate or by preserving the water supply for rivers and lakes. Animal Industry is the science which treats of the proper manage- ment and feeding of animals for direct use or for the products they furnish. Road Building. Good roads are necessary in order that the perishable farm products may be got to market with as little delay and with as little expense as possible. In view of this fact, every farmer should know something about road building and road repairing. QUESTIONS 1. Mention some of the benefits of country life. 2. What can you say of the advantages of city life? 3. What objections do you find to city life ? 4. Discuss the effects of overcrowding in cities. 5. Why do so many of our young people leave the country for the city ? 6. Why do some people look upon farming as a degraded calling? 7. How does the unskillful farmer regard his farm? 8. How is the land treated by the skillful farmer? 9. What does farm science include ? 10. Define agriculture in its restricted sense. 11. What is horticulture, and what does it include? 12. Define olericulture, pomology, floriculture, landscape gardening. 13. What is forestry ? 14. Define animal industry. 15. Why should every farmer know something of road building ? REFERENCES The School and Farm, Eggert. Cyclopedia of American Agriculture, Bailey. II. THE HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE IN early times there was much drudgery connected with farm life, and the lot of the farmer was hard, indeed. But few imple- ments were used, and these were of a very crude type. The only form of plow known was a rude crooked stick which was drawn along the top of the ground by men or oxen. All seed was sown broadcast by hand, and when the grain was ripe it was cut with a reaping hook or a scythe. Thrashers were unknown and all grain had to be thrashed out by hand. This was generally accomplished by spreading the grain out on the barn floor or the ground and beating it with a flail. Sometimes the thrashing was effected by the treading of animals. Muscle and brawn ruled in these early days, and people were not accustomed to do much thinking or plan- ning to better their conditions. Professor Davidson says: " The Roman farmer in the time of Columella spent four and six-tenth days in growing a bushel of wheat, while in 1830 the same amount of wheat could be grown under improved hand methods with three hours' work at a cost of 17.7 cents. At the present time under improved machine methods the same result may be secured with only nine minutes' work and at a cost of three and five-tenths cents." The change from the use of implements for hand produc- tion to those for machine production has relieved farm work of much of its drudgery and has at the same time greatly cheapened the cost of production of crops of every kind. The widespread introduction of highly specialized and complex farm machinery has made it necessary that the farmer shall be a mechanic, while the close competition that has arisen in every line of production has made it obvious that all farm operations must be conducted according to scientific methods. Acquaintance with some of these methods may be gained through costly experience, but a systematic study of agriculture in the public schools, farm- ers' institutes, and State Agricultural Colleges of our country offers a more direct way to learn the facts of scientific agriculture, 1Q THE HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE 11 Contrary to the popular belief, agriculture is not a new study by any means, although it is just beginning to receive attention in the public schools of this country. The Chinese nation made agricul- ture a part of its school course over four thousand years ago, but it must be admitted that its people have made slow progress in the subject, and that they are still following very crude methods of farming. The Romans gave much attention to farming, and many of their statesmen spent their leisure moments in the country. The poems of Vergil, Horace, and other Roman authors extol the virtues of country life and show the high esteem in which the farm was held. As long as agriculture held the place of honor with the Romans and they lived on their own lands they waxed strong and conquered all nations that opposed them. But when at a later date the farms were neglected and left to the care of slaves, and the freemen flocked to the cities, the Roman nation began to decay and soon sank into obscurity. Their conquerors were the sturdy Teutonic tribes of northern Europe who lived out of doors and were strangers to city life. The ancient Egyptians cultivated the rich valley of the Nile and made it the granary and the storehouse of the world. The early Israelites or Jews were largely farmers and shepherds, and the sturdy characteristics of their descendants to-day are in a measure due to this fact. In New Mexico and Arizona there are abundant evidences that the ancient Indians of those regions gave much attention to agriculture. They were good farmers and thoroughly understood the necessity and benefits of irrigation in an arid region. They made the Salt River Valley of Arizona the gar- den spot of the West, and one may find to-day in the country sur- rounding Phosnix many traces and evidences of the former irriga- tion ditches and trenches made by these Indians. They reached a high state of civilization and built many cities, the ruins of which stand to-day as monuments to their thrift and industry. In a general way we can say that nearly every strong and sturdy nation known in history has been a nation in which farming has been the chief occupation. England, Germany, France, the United States, and all the other strong nations of the world have established schools, experiment stations, and colleges for the instruction of their farmers in this great and useful science. 12 THE HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE Our national government has made provision for the support of an agricultural college and an experiment station in every State and Territory, and it has proved to be one of the best investments that the national government has ever made. Oklahoma, which is one of the last States to be admitted into the Union, is to be especially commended for having adopted a constitution which provides that agriculture and domestic science shall be taught in all the public schools of the State. In many of our States agricul- tural high schools have been established, which are doing a great and good work. Georgia and Alabama in the South and Wisconsin in the North have done more, perhaps, along this line than any of their sister States. The time is not far distant when agriculture will be taught in every school of our country. When this has been done, we may expect a new era in farming and far more prosperous times. QUESTIONS 1. Describe man's early struggle with the soil. 2. Mention some of the first farming implements that were used. 3. What has cheapened the cost of farm products of every kind ? 4. Why is a systematic study of agriculture necessary ? 5. Is agriculture a new study or subject ? 6. What oriental nation early gave attention to agriculture and made it a part of the course of study for schools ? 7. Discuss the position of agriculture among the early Romans. 8. What attention was given agriculture by the early Indians of North America ? What proof have we of this fact ? 9. Do our strong and vigorous men come from the country or the city? Why? 10. What steps have England, France, Germany, and the United States taken to promote agricultural education ? 11. What States have taken the lead in establishing agricultural high schools ? 12. For what is the constitution of Oklahoma especially to be com- mended ? REFERENCES Agriculture for the Common Schools, Hunnicutt. The School and Farm, Eggert. Twelfth Census (1900), Volumes V and VI. General History, Colby. III. AIR AND SUNLIGHT The Air. The earth is surrounded by a mixture of several gases which we usually call the air or atmosphere. These gases and their average amount by volume are as follows: Nitrogen ' 77.50 parts Oxygen 20.64 parts Argon 1.00 parts Carbon Dioxide 04 parts Water Vapor 82 parts Total .... 100.00 parts Besides these there are traces of other constituents, such as ammonia, nitric acid, dust, ozone, and a few other substances. About 5 per cent of the food of the plant is mineral matter from the soil and the other 95 per cent is made up of water (composed of hydrogen and oxygen), carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, all of which are contained in air. Carbon. Our most familiar example of carbon in a solid form is found in mineral coal and charcoal. If we partly burn a pine splinter and note carefully the black substance that is formed, we find that it is carbon. When wood or coal is burned, the carbon in these substances unites with the oxygen in the air and forms an invisible gas called carbon dioxide. All the carbon in the plant comes from the air, and while the amount of carbon dioxide present in the air seems relatively small, there is more than enough present to supply all the demands of vegetation. Professor Storer estimates that there is enough of this gas to approximate twenty-eight tons for every acre of the earth's surface. According to Professor Chevandier an acre of thrifty beech trees will assimilate about three tons of carbon dioxide in a year ; and if the whole earth were covered with a forest of such trees, it would require more than nine years to consume all this gas 13 14 AIR AND SUNLIGHT now present in the air. However, there is a never failing supply of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, coming from the processes of combustion, decay, and fermentation. Another source is found in the respiration of animals, since they breathe in oxygen and give off carbon dioxide. In some localities large quantities of carbon di- oxide are given off from mineral springs and volcanoes. This gas is also found in the pores of the soil, especially in regions where the soil is of limestone origin. The acids of the soils coming in contact with the limestone or calcium carbonate decompose this substance and liberate carbon dioxide. An illustration of this may be seen when a little hydrochloric acid is poured on some small pieces of marble. There is a brisk evolution of gas which on testing we find to be carbon dioxide. Its presence may be proved by passing the gas through clear limewater, which it soon clouds and makes a milky white. Its presence in the air we exhale may be detected in the same way. Carbon dioxide also has the property of ex- tinguishing flames by shutting off the supply of oxygen necessary for combustion. Since there are so many courses of carbon dioxide, there is no danger of the supply ever becoming exhausted. There is more than enough present to meet all demands of vegetation, and there would be no advantage gained by increasing the amount usually found in the atmosphere. On account of the principle' known as diffusion in gases and the stirring action. of winds the proportion of carbon dioxide in the air is kept remarkably constant. The ventilating power of the wind can scarcely be appreciated by any one who has not given any thought to the matter. Professor Storer of Harvard University says, " Air moving no faster than two miles an hour, which is almost imperceptible, if allowed to pass freely through an open shed, will change the air of the place 528 times in an hour. Hence, having regard to their respective requirements, carbon dioxide is, to all intents and purposes, supplied as freely to plants by the air as oxygen is supplied to animals." The carbon in the atmosphere can be assimilated by plants only in the presence of light and through the chlorophyll or green color- ing matter in their leaves. In the absence of light plants exhale carbon dioxide instead of oxygen. According to Professor Storer, plants exposed to the dull light of a cloudy day will sometimes AIR AND SUNLIGHT 15 exhale carbonic dioxide and at other times oxygen, according to the intensity of the light and the state of development of the plant. Oxygen is the life-giving principle in the air for man and animals. It is the most abundant substance of the earth, and comprises by volume about one fifth of our atmosphere. It is present in both plants and animals, both free and also in combination with other elements. Oxygen is just as essential for plants as for animals and it plays an important part in the chemical reactions that occur in the processes by which new cells are built up from the materials elaborated in the older cells. It has been found that seed will not germinate or sprout in the absence of oxygen. Young plants when deprived of it soon wither and perish. The young buds of trees on opening in the spring absorb oxygen from the air and experiments show that they wither and decay when confined in an atmosphere from which the oxygen has been removed. Oxygen is also taken up by flowers and ripening fruit. Mushrooms and lichens absorb oxygen very freely from the air and give off a corre- sponding quantity of carbon dioxide. The amount of oxygen contained in vegetable matters is really very large, in fact it is much larger than we might suspect on first thought. About seventy-five pounds of every hundred pounds of vegetable matter consists of water, and since oxygen comprises eight ninths of the weight of water, it is evident that the oxygen from this source alone would amount to 66| pounds or to 66f per cent. When we add to this the amount of oxygen found in combination with other elements in plants and animals we can appreciate the important role it plays in the development of all forms of life. Nitrogen is necessary for both plant and animal growth. Ani- mals obtain their supply of nitrogen from plants and from animal food. Nitrogen inhaled with the oxygen is exhaled practically unchanged with the carbon dioxide. Leguminous plants, such as clover, alfalfa, and cowpeas, obtain a part of their supply of nitro- gen from the air, but other families of plants secure nitrogen from certain nitrates in the soil, such as the nitrates of potash, lime, soda, and ammonia. Hydrogen does not exist in the atmosphere in a free state, but is found combined with other elements. It unites with oxygen to 16 AIR AND SUNLIGHT form water and with nitrogen to form ammonia gas. Both animal and plant life require water for growth and development. Depth and Pressure of the Air. We are living at the bottom of a vast ocean of air which has a depth estimated to be from three hundred to five hundred miles. This depth of air exerts an enor- mous pressure upon all objects at sea level. This pressure is nearly fifteen pounds on each square inch of surface or more than a ton to the square foot. On a square rod of land the pressure is two hundred and eighty-nine tons. As we go upward this pressure decreases rapidly. In fact, the change is so rapid that we leave about 96 per cent of the entire mass behind us in the first fifteen miles as we go upward. In climbing high mountains such as Pikes Peak we soon note this rareness or thinness of the air and we find that breathing be- comes correspondingly difficult. We note also that the air grows colder the higher we go. The soil temperature likewise decreases as the altitude on the mountain side increases, until even in tropical regions frozen ground and perpetual snowdrifts may be found from four to five miles above sea level. From this we learn that the atmosphere performs another important office in keeping the earth warm. The radiant energy of the sun is absorbed in large quanti- ties by the lower and denser layers of atmosphere at the earth's surface, while in the thin air but little if any is absorbed Hence, freezing temperatures are soon reached as we go upward in the atmosphere even in the summer time. Professor Langley states that his experiments at the base and summit of Mt. Whitney led him to believe that had our earth no atmosphere its surface tem- perature, even under the equator at noon, would be at least two hundred degrees below freezing point. However, the upper layers of thin air are not without their value to mankind, because they protect the earth from the vast number of meteors or shooting stars which are continually falling into it. These meteors, on account of their high rate of speed and the great amount of friction produced when they reach the air, soon gener- ate enough heat to entirely consume them. Fifty millions or more of them are destroyed in this way every month. The Sunlight. The warming as well as the lighting of the earth by the sun is a fact of great importance to us. The source of all AIR AND SUNLIGHT 17 our energy we owe either directly or indirectly to the sun. With- out it there could be no life on the earth, our oceans would become vast bodies of ice, and all our lands would be frost-bound the year round. The movement of the winds and waters, and changes of temperature all depend on the sun's action. This solar energy or sunshine is a sort of motion which comes to us at the rate of one hundred and eighty-six thousand miles in a second of time and it is this energy which does almost the entire work of the world. If we let bright sunshine pass through a lens and hold a piece of paper at the proper distance, the light rays come together at a point or focus, and the paper is quickly set on fire by the heating powers of the dark or invisible rays from the sun. We can easily prove that this is true by placing a solution of iodine in bisulphide of carbon between the sun and the lens. This shuts out the light rays but allows the dark rays to pass through. When this is done, we find that the same heating effect is produced as before. If a solution of alum water is substituted for the carbon bisulphide solution of iodine, the heat rays will be sifted out, and the light rays when focused on the paper produce no apparent heating effects. The fact that water absorbs these heat rays instead of transmit- ting them is of vast importance to us. Were it not for this fact, neither snow nor ice would melt rapidly in the spring. There would be but little evaporation, rains would be of rare occurrence, and lands would be much less productive. Besides these invisible heat rays that come from the sun there are other waves that pro- duce colors and still others that are capable of producing certain chemical changes of use to photographers. Summing up, we may say, then, there are three principal kinds of rays that reach us from the sun: 1. The invisible heat rays which furnish us warmth. 2. The light rays which produce our colors. 3. The actinic rays which produce chemical changes. As to how these rays from the sun reach us is a question of physics rather than of agriculture, but it is sufficient to say that the sun- light reaches us through a medium known as the ether. This medium, according to Mendelejeff, the great Russian chemist, is a gas one million times lighter than hydrogen, the lightest gas now known to most of us, and with a power of diffusion so great that a PRAC. AGRICUL. 2 18 AIR AND SUNLIGHT vessel of no material now known can confine it. In the limitless ocean of ether surrounding the sun innumerable waves are set up and transmitted in all directions. More than four hundred mil- lions of them arrive at the earth every second, having come across ninety-three millions of miles in about eight minutes. It is under such hurried strokes as these that many of the processes of plant growth are produced. To appreciate the true value of sunlight we have only to observe the sickly appearance of plants in the shade or in dark places. No doubt you have observed that the tops of many house plants incline towards the source of light. In New Mexico, near Ros- well, one may frequently see the same thing illustrated in the long rows of cottonwood trees lining the banks of irrigating ditches which border many of the roadways and drives. Florists some- times arrange window plants on a revolving platform in order to secure an equal distribution of the light and an even growth of the plant. From this it will be seen that plants must have plenty of sunlight in order to develop. EXERCISES 1. Place some marble or limestone in a glass or a bottle, and add a little hydrochloric acid. Test the gas that is formed and ascertain what it is. 2. Blow your breath through limewater by means of a straw or a glass tube. Note the results and explain. 3. Plant a few grains of wheat or corn in two tomato cans filled with good soil. Puncture the bottom of one of the cans and give the seed and soil in this can only a moderate quantity of water from time to time as needed. Keep the soil in the other can water-soaked so as to exclude the air as much as possible. Note the results and explain. 4. Place two cans or pots containing plants in the window where the light can shine on both. Label one of the cans A and the other one B. Adjust the position of the one marked A several times each day so that all parts of the plant will have an equal chance at the light. Do not change the position of B at all; and compare results in the development of fie two plants. Explain. 5. Grow plants both in the shade and the sun. Explain results. QUESTIONS 1. Discuss the composition of the air. 2. What part of plant food is derived from (a) the soil, (6) the air ? 3. In what forms does carbon appear? AIR AND SUNLIGHT 19 4. What is said of carbon dioxide? 5. What can you say of the relative amount of this substance ? 6. Mention the natural sources of carbon dioxide. 7. Explain how carbon dioxide may be prepared artificially and how its presence may be detected. 8. Through what means are the gases in the atmosphere kept evenly distributed? 9. Is the popular belief that plants inhale carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen always true ? Explain. 10. What effect has darkness and cloudy weather on the respiration of plants ? 11. In what forms is oxygen found in plants and animals? 12. What effect has oxygen on the germination of seeds ? 13. Discuss oxygen in its relations to young plants, young buds, flowers, ind fruit. 14. What plants inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide? 15. What can you say of the amount of oxygen present in vegetable matter ? 16. Discuss nitrogen and its relations to plants* 17. What is said of hydrogen? 18. Discuss air pressure. 19. How is the earth kept warm? 20. Discuss sunlight and its action on plants. 21. What is chlorophyll? 22. How is all plant food formed ? REFERENCES The Soil, King. Agriculture, Storer. Cyclopedia of A merican Agriculture, Bailev Chemistry, Wurtz. Physical Geography, Dryer. IV. WATER WATER is composed of two substances, hydrogen and oxygen, in the proportion of two volumes of the former to one of the latter. A fresh living plant consists largely of water. Young grass and fresh potatoes are about three fourths or 75 per cent water, which may be driven off by continuous heating to 212 F., the boiling point of water under normal conditions. Beets and carrots contain from 80 per cent to 90 per cent of water. They are constantly absorbing water through their roots and giving it off through their leaves. Carefully conducted experiments show that for every pound of dry matter in oats three hundred and seventy-six pounds of water are required, three hundred and thirty-eight pounds for wheat, and three hundred and ten for red clover. If we assume that about 80 per cent of clover is water, we can easily calculate how much water would be used up in growing ten acres of clover weighing about twelve thousand pounds. Trees as a rule contain less than one third their weight of water. This percentage in- creases during the spring and decreases slightly in the winter. The amount also varies for different trees. From monthly determi- nations it has been found that the average yearly amount of water in a pine tree is 61 per cent, in a poplar 53 per cent, in a birch 49 per cent, and in a maple 42 per cent. Water is one of the most abundant substances found on the earth. Curiously enough we find here, as in the case of plants, that about three fourths of the earth's surface is composed of water, while only one fourth is land. Water is also present in the air in the form of vapor. The amount, which we call humidity, varies greatly in different parts of the United States. In the States along the Gulf Coast and a narrow belt along the sea in Oregon and Washington, the humidity is great and the rainfall is from fifty to sixty inches. On the other hand there are districts in Nevada, Arizona, and Utah where the rainfall is less than five inches a year. The explanation is found in the fact that the moist air from the 20 WATER 21 ocean loses much of its moisture in passing the coastal mountains. The warmer the air becomes the more water vapor it can hold. The sun's heat falling on the moist earth and the water causes evaporation. On dry, hot days the air is like a great sponge and drinks up moisture from the earth, plants, and everything with which it comes in contact. When there is much moisture present in the air and the temperature is high, we say the weather is heavy and sultry. The warm, humid air can absorb but little moisture, and hence drops of perspiration col- lect on the body. In dry, arid regions there is little moisture present, and the rate at which evaporation goes on is rapid and so perspiration does not col- lect on the surface of our bodies. Whenever evaporation takes place there is always a lowering of temperature. In Arizona water is often placed in porous earthen vessels, which are hung up where the breeze or a draft of air can strike them, and the evaporation going on from the surface of these vessels is sufficient to cool the water until it is almost like ice water. Another point we should remember in considering the humid- ity of the air is that, when the sun's heat is removed, the air grows cool, and its ability to hold moisture decreases; and as the temperature continues to fall, a point is soon reached where the vapor will condense on the grass and the leaves of the plants and also on roofs and stones. This is called dew, and the tempera- ture at which it begins to form is called the dew-point. Do not jump at the conclusion that all the drops of water you see sparkling on the trees and grass have come from the air, for many of them have worked their way from the ground through the plant RAINFAJLX. Little or no rain Light rains Moderately heavy rains Hcavu rains 22 WATER and have been transpired; that is, breathed out, by the leaves. On cloudy nights dew is not likely to form because the clouds act like a great blanket and prevent rapid cooling of the ground, so that the temperature of the earth and the air in contact with it do not differ enough to favor the condensation of moisture. Again, when high winds prevail, moisture is evaporated as fast as it con- denses and hence no dew is formed. Frost may be regarded as frozen dew; that is, the surplus moisture in this case is frozen as it reaches the point of condensation. Clouds prevent frost by holding in the heat which has accu- mulated during the day, because any heat radiated into space is Snowflakes. caught by the surface of the clouds and is thrown back to the earth. We often effect the same result by placing coverings over plants on cold nights to protect them from frost. High winds cause rapid evaporation and so prevent frost. Again, the warm air, being lighter than the cold air, which drives it out of the valleys and low- lands, covers the hills and ridges and so often protects plants from the damage done by frost, while in the low places vegetation suffers severely from its effects. Dust and smoke also act like clouds in stopping radiation and preventing frost. If a few feet or a few hundred feet of the lower air cool to the dew- point, a fog is formed in place of dew. The particles of invisible vapor unite and become visible, but are so light that the air still supports them. Clouds do not differ very materially from fogs except that they are formed higher in the air. They are seen at heights that vary from a few hundred yards to distances ranging from five to ten miles above sea level. Finally, these fine particles WATER 23 of water unite and form drops of water which fall to the earth in the form of rain. If these drops are frozen, hail results. If the vapor condenses in a region where the temperature is below the freezing point, the moisture forms crystals of ice of various forms, and these fall as snow. Moisture in the air serves another purpose in helping to keep the earth warm. The lower and denser air is heated by the sun's rays passing through them, and the moisture acts as a blanket to prevent the loss of this heat by radiation. EXERCISES 1. Place a glass tumbler of ice water in a warm room and note the results. Repeat the experiment and direct a current of air against the glass by fanning or by some other means, and note whether the amount of moisture condensed on the surface of the glass is the same as before. 2. Take two thermometers and see that they read the same in the begin- ning. Now cover the bulb of one of the thermometers with a wet cloth and place it in the wind where evaporation will be favored, and note whether this thermometer reads the same as the one with the dry bulb. Account for the difference. 3. Weigh a potato, then heat it until all the water is driven off, and weigh again. Compare the relative weights, and estimate the percentage of solid mineral material and the percentage of water found in the potato. 4. Weigh a green plant, then hang it up in the air for several days. When it is thoroughly dry, weigh again. Note the difference and explain. QUESTIONS 1. What is the composition of water ? 2. What per cent of the plant is composed of water ? 3. Discuss the amount of water required by a plant in making its growth. 4. Do seasons affect this ? Explain. 5. Discuss the distribution of rainfall in the United States. 6. Discuss (a) evaporation, (6) dew, (c) fog, (d) frost. 7. How many pounds of water are required to grow fifty bushels of (a) oats, (6) wheat? 8. How do clouds prevent frost ? 9. What effect have winds on the formation of frost and dew ? 10. Explain why plants on high ground frequently escape injury when plants on low ground are frost-bitten and killed. REFERENCES Agriculture, Storer. Elements of Physics, Hoadley. Physical Geography, Dryer. The Soil, King. V. THE SOIL Soil Defined. Soil consists of finely divided rock fragments with which air, water, certain living organisms, and parts of decay- ing plants or animals are mixed. On it cultivated plants may be grown. Ordinarily, the term is applied to the first six to twelve inches of the earth's surface in which plants may be grown. The Subsoil. The harder and colder earth under the top soil or surface layer is called the subsoil. It differs from the top soil in that it contains less vegetable matter, is less finely divided, and is more compact. Sometimes there is a sharp line of demarca- tion in the color of the two portions; when the deeper soil is brought to the surface it is found to be unproductive in some cases. However, in arid regions these distinctions do not always appear. In Arizona and some of the other western States the soil from a depth of thirty feet or more is frequently found to be quite pro- ductive. The subsoil renews the minerals depleted in the top soil and also acts as a retaining medium for the roots of plants and trees and as a storehouse of moisture. It is estimated that the first eight inches of soil on each acre contain over three thousand pounds of nitrogen, nearly four thousand pounds of phos- phoric acid, and over seven- teen thousand pounds of potash. Still, the soil itself furnishes no more than 10 per cent of the weight of Relative positions of soil, subsoil, and underlying plants and often much leSS. rock strata: s, soil and subsoil; 55, sandstone; TT _ ,. sh, shale; LS, Limestone. Hard Pan. Sometimes the subsoil after becoming very closely packed and dry forms a kind of hard layer or stratum of earth which we call hard pan. Beneath this we find rich porous earth, but it is of no service to the plant unless in our cultivation we break through the hard pan. In some parts 24 THE SOIL 25 of Oklahoma, Arizona, and New Mexico, nurserymen frequently place a stick of dynamite in this hard pan layer and blast open- ings in it where young trees are to be planted. Unless this is done, the trees grow very slowly and frequently die. Origin of Soils. All soils have been derived directly or indi- rectly by the disintegration of rocks, generally through the pro- longed action of heat, cold, air, water, frost, and ice. In some cases, however, this was brought about by the action of low but The Mississippi flowing through an alluvial plain. tiny forms of vegetable and animal life. These rocks may be roughly put into two classes: (1) igneous rocks; (2) aqueous rocks. Igneous rocks are those which have been produced by the action of fire. Granite and trap are the two best examples. Aqueous Rocks. These are produced by the action of water. As examples of aqueous rocks, limestone and red sandstone may be mentioned. Other Classes of Soils. With reference to their origin, soils may be divided into : (1) sedentary soils; (2) transported soils, con- sisting of (a) alluvial soils, (b) drift soils, (c) wind blown soils. 26 THE SOIL Sedentary Soils. These are soils which rest upon the rock from which they were formed. Their composition is similar to that of the rock underneath, with vegetable matter added by the growth of plants upon them. Transported Soils are those that have been deposited from water and ice after being transported, perhaps, hundreds of miles from the parent rock. Alluvial Soils. Soils deposited from water are called alluvial. They form fertile loams and are usually rich in organic matter. Bowlders deposited by a glacier. These alluvial soils occur in valleys, river beds, and also in beds of former lakes now far inland. Drift Soils. Soils deposited from ice are called drift soils. They may be distinguished from others by the presence of round rocks or bowlders. They are formed by the action of glaciers which are vast bodies of ice moving like a river carrying vast quantities of earth and stone. The Glacial Age. Many hundreds of years ago there came a long cold winter which destroyed nearly all forms of plant and animal life. Snow and sleet fell day after day until an immense glacier or body of ice several hundreds of feet in thickness was formed. One of these glaciers, a thousand feet thick and a thou- THE SOIL 27 sand miles wide, extended from the Arctic region southward over a large part of the northern portion of the United States, grinding rocks, tearing down hills, and filling up valleys. Many of these rocks worked their way through the ice, and, moving with the ice, scoured the solid rock underneath until ground into powder. Finally, when the glacier melted, the fine powdered rock was de- posited and formed a pro- ductive soil made so by the assembling of a variety of mineral elements. It is thought that this great mantle of ice at one time reached to the fortieth par- allel of latitude in North America. Wind-blown Soils. In some countries we find that heavy winds stir up the soil and move it from one place to another. This is especially likely to happen in sandy regions. Fre- quently these small par- ticles of sand and dust will be blown with such violence that they will scour off and dislodge other particles of soil on high ridges and ledges in ex- posed places. The cutting and scouring force of sand when driven by high winds is much greater than one would ordinarily expect. On the Great Plains in the West telegraph poles are frequently worn away and cut almost through at the base where these drifting sands come in contact with them. Along the Coast Route of the Santa Fe Pacific in California the sand in some places drifts so upon the railroad tracks that high board fences have to be built to keep the tracks from being covered by the drifting sand. Similar conditions exist in various places along the Gulf coast, the Atlantic seaboard, and the shores of the Great Lakes in the northern and northeastern part of the 28 THE SOIL United States. Sometimes in Nebraska, western Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas there are dust storms of such violence and intensity that the heavens are darkened and obscured as if covered with a heavy cloud. About March 13, 1904, a dust storm swept over western Kansas and northwestern Oklahoma, which was so heavy and dense that day was turned into night of inky blackness. The next morning everything was covered with a heavy layer of dust. The damage from the storm was slight, while the enrichment of the soil by the addition of these accumulated dust particles was considerable. In many parts of the United States we find these wind-blown soils, and in many cases they are fertile and very productive. EXERCISES 1. With a soil augur ascertain the depth of soil and subsoil in your locality. 2. At what depth is rock found ? 3. Classify the soils found in your vicinity. 4. Secure samples of the various rocks in your county and classify them. 5. Make a mixture of rocks, pebbles, sand, and soil, and stir them up well with a stick or iron poker after adding enough water to make a thin paste of the soil. Allow the mixture to settle and note the results. Ex- plain. A fruit jar or a candy jar will be found useful for this experiment. If this cannot be had, use smaller pebbles and place the mixture in a glass tumblei . 6. Build up a soil bed of sand, gravel, and soil and cause a stream of water to pass through the bed ; note the shifting and arrangement of soil particles. Explain. QUESTIONS 1. Define soil. 2. Define subsoil. 3. What is hard pan ? 4. Discuss the origin of soil. 5. Discuss rocks. 6. Describe igneous rocks. 7. Describe aqueous rocks. 8. Discuss sedentary soils. 9. Give the classes of transported soils. 10. Discuss alluvial soils. 11. Discuss drift soils. THE SOIL 29 12. Give an account of the glacial age. 13. Discuss wind-blown soils. 14. Discuss the effect of dust storms on soil. REFERENCES The Soil, F. H. King. Agriculture, Welborn. Agriculture, Soule & Turpin. Soils, Burkett. Bulletin Extract No. 169, Soil Investigations, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. VI. SOIL INGREDIENTS THE most important ingredients of soil are sand, clay, lime, and organic matter. Sand. Quartz sand is composed chiefly of silica. It contains very little nutriment for the plant, but it makes soils porous and loose, so that air and moisture may reach the roots of the plant. It also raises the temperature of the soil, as it is rapidly heated by the sun's rays. Water works its way very easily through sand and dissolves no appreciable amount of it. Hence it holds but little moisture and soon dries out. This being the case, it is not sur- prising that very sandy soils are poorly adapted to plant growth. Cla^ consists of very fine particles of certain rocks. Ordinarily it contains a mixture of silica and alumina with certain impurities, especially potash. Although not a valuable plant food, clay has the important property of absorbing and retaining phosphoric acid, ammonia, lime, and other substances which are needed in plant nutrition. Pure clay has no grit in it, but feels smooth and velvety. When mixed with water it becomes sticky and forms a pasty mass like putty. Silt is like clay in composition but its particles are larger. Sand and Clay Compared. If we examine sand and clay closely, we find many points of difference. Moist clay sticks closely together and may be molded into almost any form, while sand readily falls apart. Water readily passes through sand, while clay retains it. The sun's rays are more readily absorbed by sand than by clay, and hence a soil containing sand is always warmer than one containing clay. If you have a thermometer, compare the temperature of a pint of sand with the temperature of a pint of pulverized clay. Then place each sample in a tomato can and after pouring a moderate quantity of water on each see which one dries out first. Loam. A soil containing a mixture of sand and clay is called a loam. If the clay predominates, it is known as a clay loam. If the sand is largely in excess, it is called a sandy loam. 30 SOIL INGREDIENTS 31 Lime is a valuable constituent of plants and is beneficial to the soil in many ways. It aids in the formation of nitrates in the soil and promotes the decomposition of vegetable matter. When pres- ent it overcomes the sticky tendency of the particles of clay and renders the passage of water through them very easy. The ab- sorptive and retentive power of sandy soils is improved by it. In many northern climates, like Alaska, lime is necessary to neutralize the acids in the soil, and when lime is not used culti- vated plants will grow scarcely at all in such soils. Humus. By humus we ordinarily mean the decaying organic matter in soils made up of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, etc. The fertility of virgin soils is largely due to the nitrogenous humus present, which is derived largely from the dead roots, branches, and leaves of a former vegetation. Humus absorbs a great deal of water by reason of its porosity, and this water tends to keep the soil cool. It also warms some soils by absorbing the sun's rays. It is valuable as a manure because of its power to supply nitrogen. It is also valuable because of its power to absorb and hold ammonia and ammonia salts. It promotes chemical action in the soil and supplies the carbon dioxide needed for the disintegration and solution of some of the mineral matters in the soil used as plant foods. Humus greatly improves the texture of certain soils. It binds sandy soils and lightens heavy clays, when applied in proper quantities. For soils naturally too dry for cultivation or likely to bake and crack open during a summer drought, additions of humus are very beneficial. Wet soils are not benefited by it, for it tends to hold the moisture. The greatest amount of humus is found in temperate climates, where the soil is too damp and cold to permit the rapid decay of organic matter during a considerable portion of the year. In tropical regions and arid regions the amount of humus found is relatively small compared with the amount in temperate climates. The importance of humus as a plant food is still questioned by some authorities. Professor King says: " It used to be held that any soil deficient in humus was, because of this shortage, neces- sarily poor or sterile; but it is now known that in arid regions, where humus in the soil is very scanty or even wanting, large crops 32 SOIL INGREDIENTS are produced when only an abundance of water is supplied. Ex- periments in water culture, too, have proved that when nitrogen is supplied to plants in the form of purely inorganic or mineral nitrates, plants will thrive in the complete absence of humus." EXERCISES 1. Secure samples of clay, sand, and loam. Expose them to the action of the sun for an hour and note the temperature. 2. If possible secure samples of humus and mix with each of the soils previously mentioned. After moistening them thoroughly repeat the pre- vious experiment and note temperatures as before. Explain the results. 3. Secure dry samples of clay, sand, and soil and weigh each sample. Add equal weights of water to each and after exposure to the action of the sun for a day record the weights again. Note results and explain. 4. Plant seed in each sample of soil and note the time required for germi- nation. Explain the results. QUESTIONS 1. Name some of the soil ingredients. 2. Discuss sand and its value as a soil maker. 3. Discuss clay and its properties. 4. Of what does clay consist ? 5. In what way is clay valuable to plant growth ? 6. Compare sand and clay. 7. Explain what is meant by loam. 8. Discuss lime and its action on soils. 9. Discuss humus and its' formation. 10. What effect has humus on sandy soils ? 11. Discuss the action of humus on clay soils. 12. Should humus be used on wet lands ? Why? 13. Where is the greatest amount of humus found ? Why ? 14. What does Professor King say about the importance of humus as a plant food ? REFERENCES The Soil, King. Soils, Burkett. The Soil of the Farm, Scott & Morton. Agriculture, Storer. VII. TYPES OF SOIL Light and Heavy Soils. We frequently hear farmers speak of light and of heavy soils, but we should remember that the terms light and heavy as applied to soils have usually no reference what- ever to weight, but refer solely to the amount of force which has to be exerted in tilling the land. In fact ; most so-called light soils really weigh more than the heavy soils. Peat-laden soils are usually light in both senses of the word. Schuebler in his experi- ments, after heating a cubic foot of various soils for half an hour at temperatures ranging from 100 to 122 F., found the following weights: Quartz Sand . . . . . 100-110 Ib. Clay 68-75 Ib. Garden Loam .... 76 Ib. Clayey Loam 88 Ib. Vegetable Mold .... 31 Ib. Peat 30-50 Ib. Warm and Cold Soils. Soils are called warm or cold according to their power of holding the sun's heat. The amount of heat taken up and retained varies greatly for different soils. Oemler in his experiments with air-dried soils obtained the following results: KIND OP SOIL PERCENTAGE OP ABSORPTION Moor Earth 100 Sandy Humus 95 Loam Rich in Humus . . . .90 Clay Rich in Humus .... 87 Light Gray Clay 81 Coarse Sand 84 Pure Chalk 87 Besides the nature of the soil constituents we find that the color of soils also has a marked influence on the temperature. A dark soil is always warmer than a light soil. In southern France it is found that chalk soils are always late because of their color. In some mountainous countries of Europe the inhabitants procure black earth, which they sprinkle over the snow in the spring in PRAC. AGRICUL. 3 33 34 TYPES OF SOIL order to hasten the melting of the snow. Thio is done because in such elevated situations the summers are of such short duration that it is of great importance to save time in getting the ground ready for the seed and having them sprout as soon as possible. Gasparin in his experiments found as much as twelve to fourteen degrees difference in temperature between two samples of soil similarly exposed to sunlight if one of the soils was made white by covering it with magnesia and the other made dark by covering it with lampblack. The amount of heat absorbed is also affected by the composition of soils and the fineness of the soil particles. Clay soils are gener- ally much colder than sandy soils, but coarse rocky soils often suffer from extremes of temperature. The matter of location or relative position is also an important factor. We know from observation that the southern sides of hills, walls, or other wind-breaks are generally the warmest. In the vicinity of Boston farmers usually choose the southern slopes of hills, even where the soil seems to be poor and gravelly, for growing early vegetables. But light loose soils in such positions frequently become overheated and so dry in midsummer that crops growing upon them soon wither away and perish. The direc- tion of the cultivation is also an important matter that should not be overlooked. Experiments show that crops cultivated in beds running from north to south will be more equally warmed than if the beds run east and west. In very many cases it is found that flat cultivation insures a more equable temperature than the oppo- site arrangement. Farm Soils. We find that soils vary greatly in the way they are made up. It is obvious that different kinds of rocks in their decay make different kinds of soil. The principal types of soil are as follows: 1. Sandy Soils Classes with reference to constituents 2. Clay Soils 3. Loamy Soils 4. Limestone 5. Buckshot Soils 6. Vegetable Soils 7. Alkali Soils TYPES OF SOIL 35 1. Arid Classes with reference to moisture likewise a good example. As a rule they produce flowers earlier than other plants. The snowdrops begin to bloom at the very beginning of spring and are closely followed by the hyacinth, the narcissus, and the tulip. 236 FLOWER GARDENING In warm climates bulbs may be set out any time between the last of September and the middle of November, and this will give them time to establish themselves well before the winter begins. In cold climates the bulbs should be dug up and stored where they will not freeze. In making beds for bulbs we must have good rich soil and good drainage. The ground should be well spaded and mixed thoroughly with loam, sand, and well-rotted manure. Some gar- deners dig out a deep pit and place at the bottom of this a loose layer of coarse gravel and then fill the pit with soil prepared as suggested above. This drains off the surplus water, which would hinder the growth of the bulbs. If the bulbs are left in the ground over winter, they should be covered in the fall with six to eight inches of straw litter or dry leaves in order to protect them from freezing. Bulbs can be used to good effect to dot the border of shrubs and rose bushes, and many prefer this arrangement to having them in beds. Corms resemble bulbs and are often called bulbs, but they are really very short and thick fleshy subterranean stems having buds called coimels which usually grow out from the base and become independent corms in a single season. Common ex- amples of corms are found in the Indian turnip or Jack-in-the-pulpit and the crocus. In general, corms may be handled in the same way as bulbs. They produce attrac- tive showy spring flowers and should be A gladiolus corm. J found in every garden. The crocus is one of our earliest spring flowers, which produces dense masses of richly tinted blossoms. Other attractive plants produced from corms are the cyclamen, the common gladiolus, the giant-flowered gladiolus, and the butterfly gladiolus. Tubers are short, thick rootstocks having eyes or buds along the sides of the underground stem. They grow best in rich, sandy, and well drained soil. In this list may be mentioned the different varieties of begonias and the tuberose. A rhizome is a creeping stem or branch growing beneath the FLOWER GARDENING 237 surface of the soil or partly covered by it. A good example is found in the common peppermint or in Solomon's seal. The sweet flag, which grows in wet grounds and sends up double-edged, sword- shaped leaves, has an aromatic rootstock and flowers early in the summer. The iris, or flower-de-luce, is another good example of a hardy rhizome. Some of the best-known varie- ties of the iris are the blue flag, the yellow iris, Japanese iris, dwarf gar- den iris, and Persian iris. They are often used for border effects along walks and around flower beds. Herbs are plants with stems that die down to the ground every year after blossoming and at the approach of cold weather. These are grouped by florists as annuals, biennials, and perennials, and each of these groups are subdivided in three subclasses as follows: Rhizome. GROUP I GROUP II GROUP III A. Annuals B. Biennials P. Perennials 1. T.A. Tender Annual. Temp. 60-80 Tender Biennial Temp. 60-80 Tender Perennial Temp. 60-80 2. H.H.A. Half Hardy Annual Temp. 50-60 Half Hardy Biennial Temp. 50-60 Half Hardy Perennial Temp. 50-60 3. H.A. Hardy Annual Temp. 40-45 Hardy Biennial Temp. 40-45 Hardy Perennial Temp. 40-45 Of the annuals there are several hundred varieties which may be grown with but little difficulty. The China asters, California poppies, candytuft, balsams, hibiscus, phlox, petunias, pinks, sweet peas, nasturtiums, verbenas, morning-glories, mignonette, sweet alyssum, chrysanthemums, datura, larkspurs, marigolds, and zinnias are annuals that may be grown easily. The list of bien- 238 FLOWER GARDENING nials is not so large, but the double white canterbury bell, the double blue canterbury bell, and the foxglove usually give very satisfactory results. The list of perennials is quite large and some of them should be found in every flower garden. Among those that may be grown easily are the carnations, bluebells, coleus, cyclamen, dahlia, forget-me-nots, geraniums, hollyhocks, oxalis, peony, perennial phlox, Japanese bellflower, petunias, pinks, smilax, snapdragon, sweet William, and verbena. Vines. A very graceful finish may be given to the porch or to the sides of the house by a judicious arrangement of vines or climb- ers. The morning-glory and the cypress vine are strong, rapid growers. The Japan hopvine and the flowering bean have also been found quite serviceable in some parts of our country. The latter has rich scarlet flowers which are very attractive. The Dutch- man's pipe, the bignonia with its rich, glossy, green leaves and orange-scarlet flowers, the various kinds of honeysuckle vines, the clematis, and the wistaria with its long purplish blue or white flowers, are all valuable climbing plants. They will be found ser- viceable as screens for fences, back yard walls, arches, arbors, and covered walks. Care of Flowering and Ornamental Plants. It is not enough to set out plants and then leave them to shift for themselves, but they must be given careful attention from time to time. All weeds must be removed as fast as they appear, and the soil must be kept loose on the top so that it will not form a dry, crusty layer. In loosening the soil care must be taken not to stir the ground too deep. The soil should be enriched each growing season with leaf manure or well-rotted barnyard manure to which a little sand and loam have been added. When the plant is dormant, no fertilizer is needed and none should be used. The dormant plant would be excited by it and would start an unnatural and premature growth. For pot plants or house plants occasional applications of liquid manure will be found beneficial. It may be prepared by pouring hot water over dry cow manure. When this has drained off, place the manure in a flour barrel with loose-fitting staves and pour cold water upon the contents until the liquid begins to run FLOWER GARDENING 239 out through the openings of the barrel. This is the liquid manure which should be applied to the soil. Before using, dilute the liquid until it is of a pale yellowish amber color. Applications should not as a rule be made oftener than every ten days or two weeks. A teaspoonful of bone meal or bone dust every month is sometimes found beneficial to ordinary pot plants. Should the plant become sickly on account of the presence of larvae or worms in the soil, it will be found advisable to thoroughly saturate the soil with clear limewater. This will drive out the worms and will not injure the plant. If no manure is used without being first thoroughly scalded with hot water, there will be no likelihood of trouble from worms, as the larvae will be killed by this treatment. If the leaves become diseased, dissolve some copperdine in water and spray the plants from time to time until the disease disappears. An occasional use of the spray is also advisable with healthy plants in order to ward off diseases of a bacterial or fungous nature. A soapsuds spray will be found effective as a simple home-made insecticide. For the mealy bug and scale, applications of lemon oil or of fir-tree oil will be found best. In watering plants great care must be taken. Many plants are killed by overwatering and overzealousness on the part of amateur florists. Always stir the soil first with your finger, and if it appears dry and dusty on top, the plant needs watering; if the soil appears damp, heavy, or sticky, the plant needs no watering. Plants should be looked after every day. Generally the best time for watering plants is late of an evening. During the warm season it should never be attempted during the middle of the day. Window Gardening. In the cities it frequently happens that room cannot be found for an outdoor flower garden, but in such cases the housekeeper may find a great deal of pleasure in having a small window garden. When a choice of windows' can be had, it will be best to take one facing the south in order that the plants may have all the sunshine possible. The window may be fitted up to receive the plants by attaching to the wall under the window a board shelf supported either on iron brackets or wooden supports. If the plants are to be placed outside, it is best to replace the shelf with a window box and set 240 FLOWER GARDENING the pots of plants in it. If small ornamental plants are to be placed on the sides of the window, it will be best to purchase regular pot brackets. The window garden may be further enlarged by the addition of a hanging basket suspended from the top of the window and a plant stand placed underneath the window on the floor. Keep the plants well watered, give them plenty of air on warm, sunny days, but avoid exposing them to cold drafts on cold days. If possible, avoid placing the plants in a room where natural gas is used, as the fumes from the gas and its oppressive dry heat will prove injurious. Among the plants that may be found attractive in window gardens may be mentioned the following: ageratum, amaryllis, azalea, abutilon, begonia, baby primrose, .chrysanthemum, carna- tion, calla, Chinese primrose, cyclamen, daphne, fuchsia, geranium, hydrangea, hibiscus, heliotrope, olea, petunia, stevia, salvia, and the valotta. As basket plants the following will be found useful: othonna, oxalis, saxifraga, moneywort, linaria, vinca, lobelia, and the trailing lantana. Among the trailing plants the following will be found quite satisfactory: English ivy, German ivy, passion flower, hoy a, jasmine, and thunbergia. Among the foliage plants are the palm, fern, aralia, begonia, dracsena, variegated gera- niums, and the pandanus. EXERCISES 1. Submit a plan for a flower garden. 2. Secure a catalogue from some good seed house and study the cost and adaptability of various kinds of flowers. ' 3. Make lists of spring, fall, and winter plants for the flower garden. 4. Determine the best assortments for (a) an outlay of five dollars, (6) an outlay of ten dollars. 5. Make a list of plants growing at your own home and estimate the amount of the investment. QUESTIONS 1. Discuss the importance of the flower garden. 2. Describe the general arrangement of a lawn. 3. Name the classes of flower garden plants. FLOWER GARDENING 24.1 4. Discuss the arrangement of shrubs. 5. Discuss bulbs and their uses. 6. Describe (a) corms, (6) tubers, (c) rhizomes. 7. Discuss the general classes of herbs. 8. Name and describe some ornamental vines. 9. Discuss the care of flowering and ornamental plants. 10. What can you say of window gardening ? REFERENCES Practical Floriculture, P. Henderson. Home Floriculture, Eben E. Rexford. The Horticulturists' Rule Book, L. H. Bailey. Flowers for the Parlor and Garden, E. S. Rand. How to plant a Place, E. A. Long. How to grow Cut Flowers, M. A. Hunt. Window Flower Garden, Julius J. Heinrich. Bulb Culture, Peter Henderson. Annual Flowering Plants, Farmers' Bulletin No. 195 PRAC. AGRICUL. 16 XXXVI. CIVIC IMPROVEMENT SCHOOL GARDENS THE United States Government maintains a large model school garden at Washington, D.C., that should be visited by every teacher who visits Washington. Other good school gardens may be seen at the State normal schools in Hyannis, Massachusetts; Kirksville, Missouri; Edmond, Weatherford, and Alva, Oklahoma; and San Jose, California. Among the most attractive and the School garden, Weatherford, Okla. best arranged gardens in the United States are those belonging to the boys of the National Cash Register Company at Dayton, Ohio. They are models of neatness, and no one can see them without be- ing greatly impressed with their value and importance. The idea has taken firm hold there, and nearly all of the children spend their spare time either in the school gardens or in their small private flower gardens at their own homes. Each garden is generally made ten feet wide and seventy feet long when sufficient ground is available. In some of the regular school gardens the plats are laid off ten feet wide and twenty-five feet long, with the rows running north and south in order that the sunlight may be evenly distributed. 242 CIVIC IMPROVEMENT 243 For the lower grades in the school it will be found best to have one general garden or bed for the whole grade, but in the higher grades of the public schools and in normal schools there should be individual gardens. It is best to have both vegetables and flowers in the gardens so that the aesthetic as well as the practical side will be impressed upon the pupil. Before beginning the work, draw a diagram on the blackboard, showing the size of the grounds, the size of each plat, and the location of the walks. Then explain about the kinds of seeds that are to be planted, how deep they should be covered, and what is needed to make them grow. After the ground has been plowed or spaded and put in thorough condition, have each individual garden measured off and staked out with a good strong stake at each corner. Finally number the gardens and assign them in order to the pupils. Next lay off each plat into convenient rows and widths according to the kinds of seed to be planted. PLAT No. 1 PLAT No. 2. String Beans Tomatoes Beans or Peas Radish Onions Radish Lettuce Tomatoes Stocks or Sweet Peas Asters Pinks Dwarf Nasturtiums Pansies, Violets Verbenas Corn Shell Beans String Beans Radish Onions Lettuce Tomatoes Radish Radish or Beans Beets Lettuce Asters Pinks Verbenas A PLAT FOB A GIRL'S GARDEN A PLAT FOR A BOY'S GAKDEN 244 CIVIC IMPROVEMENT s SCALE PLAN SCHOOL GARDEN SOUTHWESTERN STATE NORMAL "WkATHEBFORD, OxLA. OEP'T OF AGRICULTURE C.L.SCOTT EXPLANATION /-60 GARDENS OF /NDIWDUAL PUPILS 0= DEMONS TRA TtOMAL PLATS *'FRU/T TREES = MEW FOREST TREES (.ALL I/AR/ETIES) \ = FOREST TREES {ALREADY PLANTED) CIVIC IMPROVEMENT 245 Other vegetables may be substituted for those named above according to the tastes of the teacher and the pupils. Potatoes and onions of various kinds may be grown and comparative estimates made of the relative productivity of each kind. Strawberries will also be found interesting and instructive for school garden work. In normal schools the work in the gardens may be laid out on broader lines and may partake more of the experimental side. One student may make tests to determine the most suitable and most productive kinds of seed corn, another student may make experiments with different kinds of lawn grass, and so on. PLAT No. 3 Blue Bermuda Timothy White Red Common Swedish Grass Grass Grass Clover Clover Alfalfa Alsike A B C D E F G DEMONSTRATION GARDEN FOR LAWN GRASS Experiments with vegetables will also prove interesting and in- structive. Below is given a suggestive demonstration plat for onion gardening. PLAT No. 4 Southport Southport Mammoth American Giant Mammoth Potato or Red Yellow Yellow Silver- White Silver Multiplying Globe Globe Spanish skin Italian King Onion Tripoli DEMONSTRATION GARDEN FOR ONIONS THE SCHOOL GROUNDS In many places the schoolhouse and the school grounds are the most unsightly objects in the neighborhood, but this is a condition that is fast disappearing. The old log schoolhouse with its split log benches is a thing of the past. A great deal of attention is also now being given to the arrangement and orna- mentation of the school yard. When land is to be had at but little expense, there is no reason 246 CIVIC IMPROVEMENT why the school grounds should not contain from two to five acres of ground. This will afford reasonable space for separate school gardens and separate playgrounds for boys and girls. Teacher and pupils should bend every energy and effort to make the school grounds neat and attractive. Nurserymen will fre- quently donate trees and shrubs for this purpose. The native trees and shrubs of the vicinity may be utilized to good advantage, and should be used. Begin this work now, and each year arrange -TR.E: EIS E|Xt?E|Ri|M ENTAIL. |P|L_ATS SMALL BOYS' PLAYGROUNDS WALK SCHOOL GARDEN SMALL GIRLS PLAYGROUNDS SCHOOL BUILDING f ILARGE BOYS' Q PLAYGROUNDS & WALK ' LARGE GIRLS' ^PLAYGROUNDS^ Plan for school grounds. for suitable tree-planting exercises on Arbor Day and invite the whole neighborhood to join you in the work. Let the schoolhouse be shaded with trees and the lawn set out in Bermuda grass or some other hardy grass. Hide the unsightly outbuildings, walls, and fences with the Virginia creeper or morning-glory vines. Place a number of large trees in the back part of the yard for a background and dispose about them appro- priate groups of shrubs. Arrange the flowers in beds and borders CIVIC IMPROVEMENT 247 and where they will not encroach upon the children's playgrounds. Let the playgrounds be supplied when possible with swings, see- saws, horizontal bars, vaulting poles, ball grounds, and everything necessary for the comfort and enjoyment of the children. Study and criticise the design given here and then make a model plan of your own. When possible, it will be found a good plan to have the children visit neighboring schools and note the arrangement of the grounds. Encourage them to make suggestions for improving upon the arrangement, whatever it may be. Some attention should also be given to the schoolhouse and its general plan. Civic IMPROVEMENT CLUB It should be the business of this club to devise ways and means for the improvement of country schools, churches, roadsides, homes, and country life in general. It should be alive to every social and aesthetic interest of the community and must be active in useful ways if it is to be successful. The membership of the club need not be restricted to any particular class. Generally it will fall to the lot of the school-teacher to assume leadership in this matter, and to make the original call for the organization of the club. The first meeting may be held in the schoolhouse, and at this meeting let the club organize by electing a presi- dent, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. A constitution should be drawn up by a special committee appointed for that purpose and should be adopted either at the first meeting or at a special meeting called subsequently for that purpose. The Civic Improvement Club may be made a very potent factor for the teacher's success in every community where one is organized and properly managed. BOYS' AND GIRLS' CONTEST CLUBS In every district there should be a local boys' club organized to further agricultural knowledge, and contests calculated to stimulate interest in agricultural work should be arranged. In Nebraska, Oklahoma, Illinois, and several other States much interest has been aroused by the corn contests and the prizes 248 CIVIC IMPROVEMENT offered for the best home-grown seed corn. These prizes are usually awarded at the State and county fairs under the aus- pices of the State Superintendent of Public Schools and the State Board of Agriculture. In North Carolina a series of contests in woodwork has been arranged, which has been found profitable as well as interesting. In other States the attention of the boys has been given to live stock and poultry. The contests for girls, of course, have been along different lines. Sometimes prizes have been offered for work in plain or fancy sewing, for making bread, cakes, jellies, preserves, etc., or for growing fine varieties of flowers or vegetables. Both boys and girls can join in friendly home lawn improvement contests, and frequently a prominent merchant or business man can be prevailed upon to offer prizes for the neatest and best- kept lawn. Such a movement is always beneficial in any com- munity, and it is one in which every teacher should take a vital interest. The local boys' and girls' clubs may unite to form town- ship clubs, with monthly meetings; and the township clubs may unite to form county clubs, with annual meetings, under the direction and supervision of the County Superintendent and the State Superintendent. THE NATIONAL COMMISSION ON COUNTRY LIFE Realizing the need of a national movement for the betterment of country schools and country social life, President Roosevelt, in August, 1908, appointed a National Commission on Country Life, composed of L. H. Bailey of New York, Henry Wallace of Iowa, Kenyon L. Butterfield of Massachusetts, Gifford Pinchot of Washington, D.C., Walter H. Page of North Carolina, William A. Beard of California, and Charles S. Barrett of Georgia, men well fitted for the task before them. The Commission elected L. H. Bailey, Chairman. E. W. Allen, of Washington, D.C., was engaged as Executive Secretary. Norval D. Kemp, of Dayton, Ohio, was chosen Secretary to the Chairman. The Commission, at its meeting on October 1, declared that its function was to make as thorough a preliminary investiga- tion as possible, to ascertain the main deficiencies of country life, to CIVIC IMPROVEMENT 249 state what agencies now exist to correct these deficiencies, and to indicate what further activity is necessary to create a broad, satisfying, permanent rural life. The Commission began its work by sending out inquiries to the county superintendents, city superintendents, state superin- tendents, teachers, and prominent citizens, in reference to condi- tions of country social life. The more than 100,000 replies received were encouraging, and valuable suggestions were gathered. President Roosevelt then requested the Commission on Country Life to ask the farmers and other country people to meet in their schoolhouses, on Saturday, December 5, 1908, to discuss the questions on which the Commission desired information. This met with such a generous response that a second meeting was set in all the States, for March 4, 1909, to be known as Farmers' Day throughout the Union. The meetings were held in nearly all of the States designated, except in Oklahoma, where the date was set first for March 11, and finally for May 5 and 6. At the suggestion of the national commission the Oklahoma meeting as set for May was made a general meeting for all the States of the Southwest. Following up the suggestion, State Superintend- ent E. D. Cameron and Governor C. N. Haskell, of Oklahoma, issued a call for the meeting and organization of the Southwest Interstate Commission on Country Life, and invited Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, and Kansas to send delegates and take part in the work. The call met with a generous response, and an enthusiastic meeting was held. Preceding the convention, meet- ings were held in all of the States, at the schoolhouses, on April 30 ; and in Oklahoma, especially, strong resolutions were passed, looking to the improvement of country life. The Southwest Interstate Commission on Country Life, as organized at Guthrie, accomplished much good and awakened much enthusiasm, which is crystallizing in the National Association on Country Life now forming. Both organizations will prove powerful factors in the future for the upbuilding and strengthening of our nation. Su- perintendent Cameron is to be strongly commended for taking the lead in organizing the Southwest Interstate Commission on Country Life. 250 CIVIC IMPROVEMENT QUESTIONS 1. Discuss the growth of the school garden movement in the United States. 2. Discuss the plan of a garden for a grammar school. 3. Submit plans for (a) a girls' garden, (6) a boys' garden. 4. Discuss the advisability of having demonstration gardens. 5. Discuss the arrangement of the school grounds. 6. Make a drawing of the plan of your school grounds and suggest improvements. Bring a plan of your home grounds, with the names of the various trees, shrubs, and flowers. Ask how it can be improved. 7. Discuss the need of civic improvement clubs. 8. What do you think of boys' and girls' contest clubs ? 9. Give a brief account of President Roosevelt's Commission on Country Life. 10. Discuss briefly the Southwest Interstate Commission on Country Life organized in Oklahoma. 1 1 . What other States have been active in this movement ? 12. What are the leading problems facing the people in your community ? What agencies are helping to solve these problems ? In what ways can the school boys and girls be most helpful ? REFERENCES How to make School Gardens, Hemenway. The School Garden, Farmers' Bulletin No. 218. Tree Planting in Rural School Grounds, Farmers' Bulletin No. 134. Primer of Forestry, Farmers' Bulletin No. 173. What Forestry means to Representative Men, Circular No. 33. XXXVII. LANDSCAPE GARDENING THE growing of trees, shrubs, and flowers for their combined or mass effects in lawns and parks, etc., is termed landscape garden- ing. It is eminently a fine art and is worthy of serious study. It is true that we cannot all become professional landscape gardeners, but we can give some attention to the work in laying out our lawns and in planning our homes. We may not be able to afford the services of an experienced landscape gardener, but this does not justify us in leaving our yards perfectly bare and in making no effort to improve and beautify them by setting out a few trees and shrubs. When trees and shrubs can be had at such little expense, there is no good reason why we should not beautify our lawns. It is not enough to simply set out trees here and there, but there must be some order and system about the arrangement. The Design. We must have a plan or a design towards which we must work in grouping our trees and shrubs. One of the car- dinal qualities of artistic composition in landscape gardening is unity and another is coherence. By unity we mean that some one idea shall prevail throughout, although it may not be immediately apparent to every observer. All the details must be subordinate to this one idea, and every item of composition must be added with this thought constantly in mind. In addition to unity we must also have coherence. Thus a number of objects of the same sort placed together may secure unity and yet at the same time not satisfy the eye as to the arrangement. Another quality is neces- sary, and this is coherence. Our objects must be grouped so that they harmonize. Even many dissimilar objects may be frequently grouped together in self-satisfying unity if they have some obvious underlying connection by which they cohere. To secure thorough unity and coherence, the entire work in landscaping should be under the control of one person, who should have from the start a clear conception of his problem. The Plan. In every case it will be found best to have a definite 251 252 LANDSCAPE GARDENING plan in mind fully worked out before attempting to make any change in the grounds. This plan should be made on paper while the idea is yet fresh in the mind. The unrecorded ideal is likely to change in time, and since the work of landscaping may require several seasons or even years for its completion, the first part of the plan may be out of harmony with the latter part before the work is completed. Professor Waugh, in Landscape Gardening, says: " The plan should be drawn with good inks on the most durable Suggestions for a farmyard -(.Prof. Waugh). a, Sugar maples; 6, shrubbery; c, climbers on the porch; d, hawthorn; e, elms; /, basswood or horse-chestnut trees; g, sycamores. paper; and it should be supplemented by written specifications made equally durable. These plans and specification cannot descend too deeply into the minutiae of the composition; for an unsympathetic treatment of the smallest items may mar irrepara- bly the grandest conception." Plans and specifications are none too explicit if they locate and name every tree, shrub, bush, vine, and every flowering plant that is to be used on the lawn. In select- ing your plan adopt something that will be in harmony with the residence and the surroundings. LANDSCAPE GARDENING 253 Styles of Landscape Gardening. There are two great styles or types of landscape gardening; one is the natural, and the other is the geometrical or architectural. The natural style is sometimes called the English style from the fact that it received its first great development at the hands of the early English gardeners. It is the one generally favored for country homes and schools in England, America, Germany, and France. In brief this plan contemplates that the order of nature shall be fol- lowed as largely as possible. Let the lawns be as large and as uninterrupted as the surroundings will permit. The view from the front part should be open and unobstructed, and the trees and Plan of a boulevard in a Western city. shrubs should be placed along the sides of the lawn near the fence. The location of the buildings will be determined in part by the lay of the grounds and the taste of the individual. The walks and drives must be carefully planned, and in no case should they lead through the middle of the lawn or follow severe straight lines. Nature works on curves, and straight lines are decidedly unnatural. Usually a double curve is more pleasing than a single curve when the distance traversed will admit of such an arrangement. The trees should be placed in groups and never set in rows if we wish to produce a natural effect. The shrubs should be arranged in a natural way to hide the trunks of the trees ; and they also produce a pleasing effect if irregularly grouped along the walls or if they are massed in the retreating angles of the house. Climbers may 254 LANDSCAPE GARDENING be occasionally combined judiciously with shrubs to harmonize the general effect. In some parts of the United States it may be found necessary to substitute other trees for those given in the above design. Each student should make a pencil sketch of the plan of the grounds of his home, showing the location of residence, trees, shrubs, walks, and outbuildings, and then let him make suggestions for any improvements that may seem advisable. Students should also prepare original plans and designs for lawns and school grounds and submit them to the teacher and the class for criticism. Geometrical design. The geometrical style is also known as the architectural and the Italian style on account of its high development among the Italian artists. In this method the trees are set out in straight rows and the grounds are laid out in squares, circles, triangles, crescents, and other geometrical designs. The trees are set out in rows parallel to the road and at uniform distances apart. The trees should also be of a uniform shape and size. Clipped hedges will be found attractive as borders and fences. In parks, terraces., stairways, and balustrades may be introduced to good effect. Fountains and LANDSCAPE GARDENING 255 flower beds are very appropriate in this style of landscape gardening. In large parks lakes and lagoons always give a pleas- ing effect to the landscape. The rustic bridge, rustic garden seat, summerhouse, boathouse, and greenhouse all add to the beauty and attractiveness of any park and should not be overlooked. In all our large cities, like New York, Chicago, Cleveland, Rich- mond, Atlanta, New Orleans, San Antonio, San Francisco, Seattle, Omaha, St. Louis, and Washington the student will find many large and beautiful parks which should be visited and studied In a tropical city. closely. Some of the cemeteries in these cities will also prove interesting studies in landscape work. The grounds surrounding the hospitals, asylums, and public buildings in nearly all of the large cities are models of landscape art and are worthy of notice. In cities the streets should be wide enough to provide for a system of parking on both sides of the street. If rows of trees and a few ornamental shrubs and plants are set in the parking, the appear- ance of the streets will be much improved. The garden boulevard calling for an avenue of three or four hundred feet in width is always a very attractive feature in any city. Much of the great beauty of Paris, Edinburgh, and Washington is due to the wide 256 LANDSCAPE GARDENING avenues, splendid parks, and beautiful boulevards that are found in these cities. In the West the parks of St. Louis and Chicago are deserving of special mention. No visitor in Chicago should fail to visit Lincoln, Jackson, and Washington parks, and the beautiful grounds of the University of Chicago. The beautiful Midway Plaisance connecting Jackson Park and Washington Park in Chicago cannot fail to impress any one with its grandeur and beauty. In the South there are several cities in which splendid examples of the landscape gardener's art may be found. A very elaborate Palmetto grove. design will be found in the grounds of Belmont College at Nashville, Tennessee. Other fine examples are found in Florida, at St. Augustine, Palm Beach, Daytona, and Tampa. In many of the cities on the Pacific Coast will be found beautiful examples of fine landscape work. The parks of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Rosa, San Jose", Fresno, Portland, and Seattle are of unusual beauty and merit. In many of our smaller towns, where large expensive parks can- not be afforded, the citizens have shown commendable pride by providing a town square in which is frequently located the county LANDSCAPE GARDENING 257 courthouse, city hall, or some other public building. In some cases the public building is not present, and in its place will be found a pavilion or band stand. Such squares or plats can be made very attractive if properly arranged. The square and the octagon are the favorite geometrical plans for these small parks. When possible it will be found advisable Designs for town squares. to inclose the square with a fence to keep out dogs and rabbits, the worst enemies known to low flowers, shrubs, and evergreens. The plat should be placed under the care of some reliable person and should receive attention from day to day. EXERCISES 1. Let each pupil submit a drawing showing the plan and general arrange- ment of the grounds at his own home. 2. Let the pupil submit a second drawing suggesting improvements in the first plan submitted. 3. Let each pupil submit a plan or design for beautifying the school grounds. 4. Request the boys to organize a Boys' Contest Club and help them to plan the work for the same. 5. Request the girls to organize a Girls' Contest Club and assist them in starting the work. 6. Urge the ladies of the community to organize a Domestic Science Club and ask the men to organize a Civic Improvement Club. 7. Arrange for excursions to some educational center and let each pupil make a special report on a certain subject. A trip to your State A. & M. college, your State university, or to one of the State normal schools will certainly be interesting as well as beneficial. PRAC. AGRICUL. 17 258 LANDSCAPE GARDENING QUESTIONS 1. What is landscape gardening ? 2. Discuss its importance. 3. Discuss the need of unity and coherence in the landscape design 4. Name the styles of landscape gardening. 5. Discuss the natural style. 6. Discuss the geometrical style. 7. Name some cities where examples of each style may be found. 8. Discuss the town square and its usual designs. REFERENCES Landscape Gardening, F. A. Waugh. Beautifying Country Homes, 3. Weidemann. Landscape Gardening, E. A. Long. Practical Landscape Gardening, F. R. Elliott. Landscape Gardening, Samuel Parsons. XXXVIII. FORESTRY IN a general way every one has some idea of what is meant by forestry. It does not deal with individual trees, but with an assem- blage of trees; and for this reason Professor Coulter of the Univer- sity of Chicago suggests that forestry be defined as the manage- ment of woodland, not only for timber that will be afforded, but also because of its important relations to climate, water supply, soil preservation, and the beauty of our natural surroundings. In the settling of new sections of our country forests were looked upon as obstacles to farming, and the first care of the settler was to cut down the trees and clear the.farm. In this way much valuable timber was wasted. We may not appreciate the value of trees until we visit treeless countries as China, Korea, and parts of India and Egypt, where the people have but very little fuel for making fires and often suffer severely from cold weather. Tn these countries the laborer is fortunate if he secures a basket of the roots of shrubs for his evening fire. Even the refuse from the stable is collected, dried, and used as fuel. Unless proper measures are taken to protect the forests in the United States, we shall soon reach a point when the supply of tim- ber will be wholly inadequate to furnish the lumber needed for building our houses and for supplying our factories. The paper required for printing our daily and weekly newspapers is made from wood pulp, and thousands upon thousands of trees are required for this purpose every year. Because of the scarcity of wood pulp the price of paper has advanced, and many popular magazines have found it necessary to advance their prices. We are just beginning to look for substitutes for wood pulp. Large quanti- ties of trees are consumed in the manufacture of matches, railroad ties, piles, fence posts, furniture, and building materials. In many parts of the United States a great deal of timber is used as fuel. The demands made upon our forests from all these sources in a year is said to be three times as great as all the timber supplied by one 259 260 FORESTRY year's growth of all the trees in the United States. At this rate it is only a question of a short time when all the forests in our country will be destroyed, unless measures are taken to protect and increase our supply of trees and public forests. National Forests. Realizing the danger threatened to our country from destruction of forests, Congress, in 1891, authorized the President to establish forest reserves, or national forests, and President Harrison created the Yellowstone Forest Reserve that same year. We have about one hundred and fifty-four national Distribution of forests. forests, containing approximately one hundred and fifty million acres of land. Of this amount there are about one hundred and forty-five million acres in the United States proper and about five million acres more in Alaska and Porto Rico. At the start there was a great deal of opposition to the establishment of the national forests, because it was claimed that the establishment of a forest at once locked up all the resources of the region, checked industry, prohibited settlements, and made future growth im- possible; but precautions are being taken to avoid all of these ob- jections. All agricultural lands are excluded from the boundaries and are left open to settlement. Prospecting and mining are absolutely unchecked. A certain portion of the timber may be cut and sold each year under the direction of the local officers, the FORESTRY 261 supervisors and rangers. There is seldom any need to refer matters to the Forester or the Secretary of Agriculture at Washington, D.C. The supervisor has direct charge of the national forest and prac- tically all the business connected with it. Supervisors receive a salary varying from $1500 to $3000 per year and traveling expenses. The office of the supervisor is usually at some town or central point conven- ient to the users of the national forest. The rangers are the field men, and they live in the forests and often at places remote from all settlements. They are required to be familiar with lumbering and sawmill business, the handling of live stock, mining, and land laws. They receive from $900 to $1500 per year and the use of cabins built by the government. They are required to furnish feed United States. Rest of world. Lumbering of the world. Forest in New England. for their own horses and to meet their own traveling expenses. The duties of the guards are similar to those of the rangers, who have supervision over them. The guards are usually temporary men, who are kept on duty during the summer only, to assist in fire patrol and construction work. Their salaries range from $720 to $900 a year. The appointment to the position of ranger or supervisor is made only through the Civil Service examina- 262 FORESTRY tions, and is restricted to applicants between the ages of twenty- one and forty who live in the State where the forest is located. Forest Enemies. Aside from the business management of the forests it is the duty of the supervisors, rangers, and guards to protect the forests from various enemies. Many trees fall victims to fungus pests and prompt action is always necessary to eradicate them. Windstorms often destroy many large areas of forests, but the dam- age can be offset if new trees are set out im- mediately. Ants and borers work around the bases or trunks of the trees, and the larvae of sawflies and moths prey upon the foliage of the trees and fre- quently cause them to die. Sheep, goats, hogs, cattle, and burros often do a great deal of injury when the range is pastured too closely, and it is the duty of the rangers and super- visors to protect the Forest in the tropics. national forest against damage from this source. The supervisor allots the range among the various applicants, giving a preference to the small near-by owner and the men who have always used the range. Another great enemy of the forests is fire. Sometimes the fire may be started from a camp fire which was not thoroughly extin- guished, sometimes by a spark from the locomotive of a passing train, sometimes by a careless smoker who may throw a lighted cigar among the dry leaves, and sometimes by hunters and thought- less young persons, who start a fire and leave it burning without thinking of the consequences. All such offenders are subject to arrest, and severe penalties are inflicted. FORESTRY 263 Uses of Forests. National forests are first of all for the benefit of the home builder, and their resources are protected and used for his special welfare. They protect the trees and grow wood for use. Hundreds of millions of feet of timber are sold from the national forests every year, but the cuttings are made so carefully that the stand of trees is left in condition for successive crops. One good use of the national forests is to save every drop of water and make it available for use. They conserve the moisture result- ing from snow and rain and keep it from being wasted. On a barren, hard surface the water from many storms rushes down the Lumbering, Washington. slopes, washing away the soil, causing sudden floods and untold damage; while on a porous, spongy surface it runs down slowly and brings about an even flow of water throughout most of the year. In irrigation farming, it is very necessary to have an even flow of water throughout the year, especially during the growing season. The forest cover, with its network of roots, fallen leaves, and branches, prevents the soil being washed away by heavy rains. The foliage of the forest in a measure breaks the force of the rainfall in heavy downpours, and thus lightens the effects of erosion and allows the water to seep into the soil. Another benefit from the national forests is that they provide range for live stock 264 FORESTRY in many places. Forests are also of great value in any region, as they break the force of the prevailing winds. Aside from commercial uses, national forests are of great value as places of recreation, for campers, hunters, fishermen, and health or pleasure seekers. They are, in a certain sense, the great open-air playgrounds of the nation, where all may come in contact with nature and enjoy its beauties. National forests also serve as vast game preserves, in which many species of game are protected that in a short time would become extinct because of the slaughter inflicted upon them by hunters. The buffalo, or American bison, would long ago have become extinct but for the protection afforded him in some of our national parks. Reforestation and Tree Planting. In the open prairies and regions where the forests have disappeared steps should be taken to set out trees and to start forests. This has been done on a large scale in Europe, and there is no good. reason why the same thing cannot be done in this country. Palestine and Mesopo- tamia, once very fertile and productive countries, are now almost barren because of the destruction of the forests. Trees modify the climate to a certain extent, and their removal in the countries mentioned is in part responsible for the barren condition that now exists there. The same is true in other countries. Trees should be set out along the public highways, along the boundaries of farms, along small water courses, and wherever their presence does not prove detrimental in any way. Every pasture should contain at least a few trees to make shade for stock during the warm season of the year. It would also be well to set in trees all waste and broken areas of the farm that cannot be cultivated to advantage. Every farmer should grow enough trees to keep him supplied with fence posts, and other small timbers as they are needed. The kind of tree to be planted will depend on the locality and climate. Suggestions can always be had from the Director of the State Experiment Station in each State, or from the United States Department of Agriculture, at Washington, D.C. In some of the Western States the eucalyptus and the catalpa have been grown successfully and have been especially valuable for fence posts. FORESTRY 265 A great deal of interest is now being awakened in tree plant- ing through the observance of Arbor Day, which is recognized and observed in nearly every State. It was originated, in 1872, by Hon. J. Sterling Morton, who subsequently became Secretary of Agriculture. The mere planting of trees is not sufficient. They must receive constant care. The weeds must be kept down and the ground around them cultivated. The trees while young must be protected against animals that browse on their foliage or gnaw the bark on the trunks. Every farmer should be far-sighted enough to plant and cultivate a certain number of trees every year, and road overseers should be required to have trees set out along all the public highways. Railroads can also assist in this work by setting out trees along their right of way, QUESTIONS 1. Discuss the destruction of forests. 2. When was the first national forest established? 3. How are the forest reserves managed? 4. Discuss forest enemies. 5. What are the uses of national forests ? 6. What provisions have been made for game preserves ? 7. Discuss the necessity of reforestation where forests have been de- stroyed. 8. Should trees be planted along the highways ? 9. How many trees on the public highways near the school have been injured by animals ? How many trees are protected against such injury? 10. Visit the nearest wood lot and see whether there has been any damage by fire; what the danger is from fire; whether cattle have destroyed the undergrowth; where trees should be planted; whether the wood lot gets any intelligent care. Write an essay on your wood lot. REFERENCES Report of the Forester, United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. A Primer of Forestry, Farmers' Bulletin No. 173. Clearing New Land, Farmers' Bulletin.No. 150. Tree Planting in Rural School Grounds, Farmers' Bulletin No. 134. XXXIX. ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING IT has been said that the roads of a nation are an index to its civilization and progress. The early Romans gave a great deal of attention to road building, and much of their success must be attributed to this fact. Among their achievements along this line may be mentioned the Great Appian Way, leading from Rome to Capua. This was built of square stones, laid on a foundation of sand and mortar, and was one of the great military roads of that time. It was so well constructed that, although it was built 312 B.C., remains of it still may be seen. When the Romans invaded Britain they built roads from place to place as they advanced, and ruins of many of these early highways still remain. Good roads do much to relieve the monotony of country life, because they make it possible for the farmer to visit the churches, the schools, the post office, and his neighbors without difficulty. Bad roads increase the labor and expense of getting the crops to market. In fact, perishable products may go entirely to waste before they can be taken to market during wet seasons when the roads which have had no attention become muddy and impas- sable. In the winter time the mud in the roads freezes up and makes the roads so rough that traveling on them is dangerous and difficult. Good roads enable us to haul larger loads and with much less wear and tear on our horses and conveyances. In the construction and improvement of roads there are four factors to be considered: (1) location, (2) drainage, (3) foundation, (4) surface. Location. A most important question in road building is that of location, and yet in many cases it is given but little con- sideration, so far as the value of the road is concerned. The road is usually located where the least expenditure of money and labor will be required. This means that the road will follow the bound- aries of the farm, regardless of the hills and all other obstacles. Such a policy, in a rough and broken country, is far from being 266 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 267 satisfactory and is certainly discouraging to teamsters who have heavy loads to haul to market. As a rule on dirt roads the grade should not exceed 7 per cent, or a rise of seven feet in every hundred feet of the distance traversed. New Jersey and Con- necticut excel all other States in the matter of the improvement of their roads, and their extensive experience in this work is of inestimable value to States just beginning any public improvement of this kind. In New Jersey the grade ranges from 5 to 7 per cent, while in Connecticut the general standard grade, for State roads, is 5 per cent. It is estimated that an average horse can pull 1000 pounds on a level, or a zero grade, 900 pounds on a 1 per cent grade, 810 pounds on a 2 per cent grade, 540 pounds on a 4 per cent grade, and so forth. In level country, roads may be made to follow the bound- aries of the farm without inconvenience provided the farms are not too large. A good arrangement is where there is a road around every section and quarter section. By this arrangement no one would have to travel more than half a mile to reach the junction of the road he is traveling with the nearest cross road. Drainage. Good drainage in many places is of more impor- tance than location. A great deal of money is wasted every year in trying to construct roads without proper drainage. Any method of improving a road by placing upon its surface materials of different kinds, without providing for proper drainage, must of necessity fail. In providing for surface drainage, open ditches on both sides of the road should be made, but in many cases a single ditch, on the lower side of the road, will meet all requirements. Different soils and conditions call for different kinds of ditches, but in no case should they be of extreme depth and width. 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 *-J4h|lile- Diagram showing roads around each quarter section. 268 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING Furthermore, these deep ditches are frequently washed out to still greater depths by the rains, and become a source of great danger, especially when teams become frightened and draw wagons or vehicles too near the edge of the road. The best results will generally be secured by having a small ditch, and carrying the water at frequent intervals to the natural water courses on either side by cross drains. For the cross drains and culverts, vitrified tile, iron pipe, or concrete drains may be used. On common country roads, the roadbed is often heaped up high in the center with scrapers and then left to be beaten down by travel, but this is a serious mistake, which should be avoided whenever possible. The roadbed can be shaped much better with a road grader, which gives a very gradual slope from the center to either side. Generally a rise of eight to ten inches in the center will be sufficient to afford ample drainage. Road graders are costly, and in some cases the road once graded can be kept in excellent shape by using a plank or split-log drag. Usually a road district corresponds with the school district, and the road overseer has supervision over all the roads of the district. The building of costly bridges over large streams is left to the county commissioners, who draw on the county funds for this purpose. Foundation. In road building, or any other piece of construc- tion in the line of engineering, the first requisite is a proper founda- tion. In paved streets and roads, many people suppose that the load is borne by the surface of the paving, but such is not the case. The load is really supported by the foundation, on which the sur- face construction rests. The paving merely serves as a roof to keep the foundation dry and to protect it against indentation and wear when heavy wagons and vehicles of various kinds are driven over the road. If excavations are made for drainage pipes or sewers, the ground must be well firmed and packed before any paving is placed on the road or street. If this is not done, the soil will settle after heavy rains, and the paving, being left without any support, will cave in. In this work the use of a heavy steam roller is necessary to give proper firmness to the ground over which the roadbed passes. In the country the clay soil usually affords a proper foundation when properly graded and ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 269 packed ; but in cities, for street work, various materials are used in building up a foundation. Coal cinders and screenings from coke are usually very satis- factory for this purpose. Waste products from factories are available in many localities and may be used to good advantage. The waste material from fire-clay brick, sewer pipe, broken and unused pieces of shells from button factories are frequently used and are found very satisfactory for foundation work. In regions where there are large smelters slag is used for the same purpose. In cities, after the ground has been leveled and rolled, a foundation of gravel and concrete is often provided before the paving is put down, but on country roads this is too expensive. The surface should have sufficient slope to cause all rain water to drain off easily and quickly. The lateral slope from the center to either side should be about one in twelve. Some road builders have a continuous curve for the surface; others have a curve at the center, while the sides have an even slope. When we speak of the lateral slope as being one in twelve, we mean that there is a slope downward of one inch to the foot. On this scale a street twenty-four feet wide would be one foot higher at the center of the crown of the road than at either side. In many instances the center of the crown is only from five to eight inches higher than each side of the street. The width of the surface should be great enough to accom- modate all traffic, so that vehicles of all kinds may have suffi- cient room to pass each other without difficulty. Wherever pos- sible, bridges should be practically of the same width as tho road. In this country the universal custom is for each driver to turn to his right in passing any vehicle which he may meet in his road, but this custom varies in different countries. In many parts of Canada drivers of vehicles turn to the left instead of the right. Custom demands that heavily loaded wagons be given the right of way, and that empty wagons or light-going vehicles turn either to the right or left, as the situation may demand. Wherever deep fills are made in the roadbed, the surface should 270 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING be protected from washing, by flanking the sides with a wall of heavy stone and gravel. If this is not done, every heavy rain will wash away the soil and undermine the surface of the roadbed. When stone cannot be had, piles should be driven into the ground, along the sides of the embankment, and heavy planks two inches thick should then be placed between the piles and the embankment so that the soil cannot be washed away by the rains. Kinds of Roads. There are many kinds of roads in use in various parts of the country, but for general purposes they maybe classed as follows: (1) common dirt roads; (2) sand-clay roads; (3) shell-rock roads, (4) plank roads; (5) macadam roads; (6) telford roads; (7) brick-paved roads; (8) cobblestone roads; (9) block-paved roads; (10) asphalt roads; (11) oiled roads. Common Dirt Roads. In these roads the natural surface of the ground forms the roadbed. No special improvement is given Section of a dirt road. it except to provide proper drainage and grading. Whenever possible the roadbed should be worked with a road grader and firmed with a heavy roller. After each rain or thaw the roadbed should be carefully gone over with a split-log drag, which will draw the dirt towards the center of the road and will fill up all ruts and depressions. Sand-clay Roads. In many parts of Florida and the South the roadbeds are made bad on account of the deep sand beds. This is remedied by hauling clay and mixing it with the upper six or seven inches of sand. The clay and sand are mixed while wet and are thoroughly incorporated with each other by the use of harrows and diskers. Then the surface is carefully rounded and rolled, and the work is finished. Shell-rock Roads. In some parts of Florida, and especially in the vicinity of St. Augustine, there are large deposits of coquina, or shell rock, which when crushed can be used to good advantage for surfacing roadbeds. There is a very good shell-rock road extending from Jacksonville, Florida, to St. Augustine, Florida. ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 271 Plank Roads. Some years ago a number of plank roads were ouilt in Missouri and other States, but they were found objection- able, and their construction has been discontinued. It was found that the planks were slippery and dangerous during wet weather and in the winter time when there was snow or ice on the surface of the road. The cost of constructing such roads was so great that but few communities undertook the experiment. Macadam Roads. These roads are the outgrowth of the ideas of John L. Macadam, a Scotchman, who lived from 1756 to 1836 and gave considerable attention to the matter of road building. After the ground has been properly graded and prepared, there is placed, first a layer of small stone, two or three inches in diameter, EDIUM R.OCK Section of a macadam road. which is firmly packed or rolled; then another layer of stone, about half the size of the stones of the first layer, is added, rolled, and packed. This layer is then crowned with a layer of finely crushed rock and sand, and is likewise rolled and packed. A great many of these roads are found in Missouri, Tennessee, and Kentucky, and in some of the Eastern States. In Missouri they are frequently called gravel roads, while in Tennessee and Kentucky they are designated as pikes or turnpikes. Generally the county furnishes half of the funds needed to build the road, and the prop- erty owners along its route subscribe the remainder. In order to keep up the road, a toll of two or three cents a mile is generally charged, which is collected by the tollgate keeper at either end of the road. 272 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING Telford Roads. The telford road, like the macadam road, is a Scotch product. It differs from the macadam road in having its first layer of large flat stones laid in regular order. Section of a telford road. Brick-paved Roads. In some localities, where brick of good quality are manufactured under favorable conditions as to cost and accessibility, they may be used to good purpose in construct- ing roads and streets. The usual method is to grade and to pre- pare the surface in the same way as for a dirt road. The soil must be thoroughly compacted with the steam roller and leveler, so that there will be no settling of the roadbed afterwards. A little sand is scattered over the surface first, and then a course of brick is laid down flatwise, and this is followed with more sand and another course of brick laid down lengthwise. In some cases, sand is again used to fill the crevices among the brick, in the top layer; and in other cases, melted pitch is used. The latter material is the most satisfactory for fillings, as it is impervious to water and binds and holds the brick together. In cities the gutters or side ditches are built up of concrete; but in building country roads, cobblestones are sometimes used for this purpose. After the top course of brick is laid, the roadbed should be care- fully rolled with the steam roller, until the surface is even and free from inequalities. Cobblestone Roads. Heavy cobblestones of considerable size are often used for paving on streets and highways where there is much heavy hauling. In this arrangement the construction is similar to that for brick paving, except that square blocks of stone, about the size of three or four bricks, are used for the paving material. ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 273 Block-paved Roads. In block-paved roads the construction is similar to that for brick paving, except that square blocks of wood are used instead of brick. Bois d'Arc and walnut make the most durable material. Asphalt Roads. For boulevards and for residence streets asphalt paving is very popular. The surface is carefully graded, rolled, and compacted; and then a layer of concrete several inches A street in Paris. in thickness is placed on the roadbed; and when this has become thoroughly dry and hard, a heavy layer of pitch-covered pebbles is spread and then a smooth coating of asphalt mixed with fine sand is put on. On both sides of the roadbed the asphalt surface is flanked with gutters and curbstones built up of concrete. Oiled Roads. In Southern California roads are often improved by treating them with oil. After the roadbed has been graded, it is plowed up and harrowed. It is then sprinkled with black crude oil. The soil is thoroughly incorporated with the oil by harrowing and by disking. After the oil has soaked into the ground thoroughly, the roadbed is rolled and leveled, and is then PRAC. AGRICUL. 18 274 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING ready for use, The streets of Santa Barbara, California, which have been treated in this way with oil, have proved very satis- factory. A few of the railroad companies have used crude oil at times for sprinkling their roadbeds through dry, sandy sections of the deserts to lay the dust. In southern Oklahoma it is frequently used on race tracks for the same purpose. The Management and Construction of Country Roads. In recent years Georgia has made great strides in the management and construction of country roads. Some of their most notice- able features are their width, and the gutters and curbings which line them. In Fulton County every one of the county roads now being constructed is of macadam, and has its brick gutter and stone curbing, just as the city street pavement has. On one side of the road there is also a dirt sidewalk as-'one of the most important features of the road. They provide perfect drainage, sewers being placed at intervals to carry off the storm water to places where it will do no harm. The open ditch at the side of the road is eliminated, and the danger of the road's caving or being undermined at the sides is removed. Fulton County has not accomplished all these results in a day nor in a year, but the greater part of the permanent work has been done during the past ten years. One and One-half Million Dollars spent on Roads. The books of the county commissioners show that $1,507,000 has been spent by the county on the country roads in the last ten years alone, and several hundred thousands of dollars were spent in the pre- ceding decade. The county does not levy a special road tax for general purposes, and all money spent on the roads is appropriated by the com- missioners out of the general county fund. In 1899 the com- missioners appropriated $97,000 for road work. The following year $101,000 was set aside for that purpose, and the appropriation has been increased by from $10,000 to $20,000 every year with two or three exceptions. In 1907 the appropriation was $203,000, and in 1908 it was $201,000. The total county tax levy for all purposes is six mills, or sixty eents on every hundred dollars' worth of property. This brings ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 275 in an annual revenue of about one-half million dollars, and during the past two years almost half of the total revenue has been spent on the roads. There is a special road tax of $2.50, or five days' work upon the highways, which is levied upon every male citizen of voting age in the county. This money is spent in the districts where it is paid and is expended for repair work only on roads which have not yet been macadamized by the county. The money appropriated from the general fund is spent in any part of the county, at the discretion of the commissioners. The county has not issued any road bonds, paying the entire cost out of the regular annual taxes. The plan used in Fulton County, Georgia, is worthy of study and imitation in other localities, and we hope the day is not far distant when we may see a perfect system of road building inaugurated by every State in the Union. You can start the work in your locality by writing to your State Experiment Station and to the Superintendent of Public Documents at Washington, D.C., for bulletins on road building. Two bulletins you should have are Roadmaking, by George B. Ellis, of Columbia, Missouri, and Bulletin No. 2 of the Highway Department of the State of Ohio, entitled The Construction of County Roads, by Sam Huston. Read these and other bulletins and then call meetings at your schoolhouse and try to get your citizens interested in good roads. EXERCISES 1. Let the pupils examine the roads in the neighborhood and report on the following points : (a) drainage, (&) grade, (c) location. 2. Let each pupil suggest improvements in methods for grading and draining roads. 3. Examine culverts and bridges, and note all defects. Suggest reme- dies. 4. Study the road laws of different States and suggest improvements needed in your own State laws. QUESTIONS 1. Are roads an index to the civilization of a country? Why? 2. Discuss early Roman attempts at road building. 3. What four things must be considered in road building? 276 ROADS AND ROAD BUILDING 4. Discuss (a) location, (6) drainage. 5. Discuss (a) foundation, (6) surface. 6. Name the kinds of roads. 7. Discuss (a) common dirt roads, (6) sand-clay roads. 8. Describe (a) plank roads, (6) macadam roads. 9. Discuss (a) telford roads, (6) cobblestone roads, (c) block-paved streets. 10. Discuss (a) brick paving and (6) asphalt paving. 11. Describe oiled roads. 12. Describe the plan of road improvement followed (a) in your locality, (6) in Georgia. REFERENCES Macadam Roads, Farmers' Bulletin No. 338. Sand-clay and Burnt-clay Roads, Farmers' Bulletin No. 311. XL. FARM IMPROVEMENTS FRONT PORCH PARLOR. OR. SITTING- ROOM DINING- ROOM PANTRY PORCH HALL. STAIR- WAY UNDER the head of farm improvements may be included the country home or house, and its surroundings, the barn, fences, gates, and other things of this nature. The House. In building a house, our first concern is generally to secure a suitable location. If possible a piece of ground should be selected in which the surface slopes downward from the house in every di- rection, so that the drainage will be as nearly perfect as possible. The site should be reason- ably close to the road, and when possible it will be found best to have the house face south and east. The cellar should be well drained, should be well sup- plied with windows, and should be kept thoroughly aired and ventilated. BED ROOM KITCHEN PORCH p CISTERN First-floor plan of a two-story house. The cost of the house and the kind of materials used will vary with the taste of the individual and the amount of money that can be expended. A good arrangement is found in the two- 277 278 FARM IMPROVEMENTS BATH ROOM SEWIN& ROOM CLOSET story house having a kitchen, pantry, dining room, and parlor or reception room on the first floor. The sitting room, sleeping rooms, bath room, and closets are frequently placed on the second floor. Generally it will be found more convenient to have the sitting room on the first floor adjoining the dining room. The teacher should have the students study and criticise the plan given here, and then let them submit house plans of their own designing. It will also be an interesting exercise for each student to submit a plan of his own home with an estimate of the cost of construction. The House Surround- ings. Plenty of shade trees should be pro- vided, but they should be so grouped that they will not interfere with the view in front of the house, nor should they shut out the air and sunlight on either side of the house. A few HALL AND STAIEL\N4\Y BED ROOM BED ROOM Second floor plan of a two-story house. rose bushes and flowers may be judiciously placed here and there, but they should not be placed in front where they would obstruct or mar the view. Along the sides of the house chrysan- themums may be used to screen the foundation with good effect, while the crimson rambler or the Virginia creeper may be trained along the sides of the veranda to protect it from the hot sun in the summer time. The Farm Plan. The general plan or arrangement of the farm will vary with the tastes of the individual and the means at his disposal, but whatever the arrangement may be the barn and out- buildings should be in the rear and out of view as much as possible. In some cases the barn is the largest and most important building on the farm instead of being in keeping with the farm residence. Let there be nothing to suggest that the farmer thinks more of the welfare of his stock than of the welfare of his family. FARM IMPROVEMENTS 279 The general arrangement of the yard, lawn, barn lot, feed lot, poultry yard, orchard, varies greatly; but any arrangement in which the farm residence and lawn are not made prominent may be regarded as faulty. The students should study and criticise the plan given here and then submit plans of their own designing for a model farm of one hundred and sixty acres or more of land. WHEAT CORN OAT a FIELD FIELD FIELD cf. u J DO D a PASTUf SMALL ORCHARD GARDEN SPOT FEED LOT AND BARN }E FARM HOUSE CLOVER FIELD FRONT LAWN P UBL C ROAD Plan of a farm. The Barn. Nearly every farmer has his own ideas about how the barn shall be arranged, and any plan which will afford shed room for the stock, grain, hay, vehicles, and farm implements may be regarded as satisfactory. Everything should be made as convenient as possible, and the grain bins and cribs should be ar- ranged so that they will be near the stalls where the stock is to be fed. We submit here the plan of a barn owned by a prosper- ous Missouri farmer which seems fairly satisfactory. This barn is a two-story structure, having on the ground floor a row of stalls for horses at the left, then a large driveway and shed room for buggies and wagons. In the center there is a large crib at the rear and two rows of stalls in front. Adjoining these is a small hallwav, and to the right of it there are an implement shed and a 280 FARM IMPROVEMENTS cow shed. The upper part of the barn contains the grain bins and the hay loft. The barn should be provided with a suitable number of windows for light and ventilation, and the stalls for the horses should be separated from each other by double walls. Each stall should be provided with trough and hay rack convenient to the hall or B-B B-B D ! D DRIVE WAY WAGON SHED CORN CRIB p~ TOOL AND IMPLEMENT 5HED D D D t5Prt& "1 CROSS HALL J HALL ! COW SHED "fSTA-tbS- -S& bb^ ! B-B D D D D D - Doors B-B-Double Doors H -Hay Shute First floor plan of a barn. passageway, so that the feeding may be done without having to pass through the stalls. Each morning the stalls should be cleaned thoroughly. If possible, the outside of the barn and the roof should be painted in order to protect both from decay. The saving thus accom- plished will more than pay for the painting in every case. The size of the barn will depend upon the means of the farmer and the amount of stock and machinery to be sheltered. The farmer in every case should make provisions to place all of his machinery under cover. The practice some farmers have of leaving self binders, mowing machines, plows, corn planters, and other im- plements out in the weather during the whole year is a ruinous policy. The waste occasioned in this way in every case would more than pay for the building of a shed room for storing the ma- chinery. The same is true in regard to providing proper shelter FARM IMPROVEMENTS 281 for stock. The loss to farmers through disease and death of stock exposed to raw weather in severe climates is considerable and could be avoided by providing windbreaks and good shed rooms. Fences. The kind of fencing used by the farmer will depend largely on his natural surroundings. In wooded sections, where there is plenty of timber, rail fences and plank fences abound. In many cases the farmer may have a forest close at hand where he and his helpers may split and make all the rails needed at a small outlay. When this is the case, the outside fences and cross fences are frequently of rails, while the lawn will be inclosed with a OAT BIN OPEN SPACE OVER DRIVE WAY SHEAF OATS SHELLED CORN HAY-LOFT WHEAT BIN Second floor plan of a barn. plank fence. The front yard will often look more inviting with- out any fence. The poultry yard should be surrounded with a high paling fence or a regular poultry wire fence. When the fence rails dry out and get somewhat old, farmers frequently utilize them in building what is known as the Ferguson fence. In this arrangement posts are set in the ground and the fence rails are attached to the posts by means of fencing wire and staples. This is usually a very economical fence, not only from the stand- point of materials, but also on account of the saving of space in the fence row. The teacher will find it a very interesting and in- structive exercise to have the pupils calculate the amount of waste 282 FARM IMPROVEMENTS space in a forty-acre field inclosed with a common zigzag rail fence that can be saved by means of a Ferguson fence. Have them estimate also the value of this ground if planted in corn or the staple crop of the neighborhood. For posts, white oak, black locust, and catalpa trees are gener- ally used. Whenever possible, the bottom ends of the posts should be dipped in coal tar or pitch, as this protects them against decay. In prairie countries wire fences are the most economical and for that reason are in general use. For fencing up cattle the com- mon barbed wire is preferred, while for hogs or poultry various forms of woven wire fences are used. Where timber is hard to obtain, concrete or metal posts have been tried and found satis- factory. For lawns and yards, close-woven wire fences and iron pickets produce a good, effect, but are somewhat expensive. In mountainous sections stone fences are often built up from the loose stone gathered on the fields and prove very durable and satisfactory. Some years ago there was a great deal of enthusiasm over the so-called live fences or hedges. There are a number of plants that are serviceable for this purpose, but the Osage orange stands at the head of the list for many sections. When kept properly trimmed, it makes a very effective fence against marauding people as well as against stock. Other plants that are sometimes util- ized for hedges are the buckthorn, hawthorn, and the honey locust. The chief objection to live fences is that the plants are frequently allowed to grow too large, and the extensive network of roots on both sides of the fence saps the life and nourishment of the soil to such an extent that no kind of cultivated plant can .be grown within twenty or thirty feet of the fence. Besides, the high- grown hedge shuts out the free circulation of the air in the field and makes plowing oppressive to the team as well as to the work- man. Since 1885 the enthusiasm for live fences on farms has been on the wane, and they are now becoming very scarce, so far as their use for general farming purposes is concerned. Since 1870 many States have passed stock laws requiring every man to fence in his own stock instead of fencing out those belong- ing to his neighbors. The result has been a great saving to farm- FARM IMPROVEMENTS 283 ers in every case. The operation of the stock law saved the farmers $150,000,000 in New York, and $90,000,000 in Missouri. About the only use remaining for hedges is for windbreaks and for ornamental purposes on lawns and parks. Gates. No farm is complete that is not properly supplied with gates that lead from one field to another and that can be opened without dismounting when traveling on horseback. The front gate leading from the public road to the lawn should be so arranged that it can be opened by a mechanism of levers, ropes, and pulleys without the driver's getting out of his wagon or buggy. Such gates can be ordered from the factory through the local hardware dealer, but if the farmer has a mechanical turn, he can easily make such a gate himself. If the gate is to be made of wood, it will be found best to get some light material like white pine, so that the weight of the gate will not pull off the hinges or cause the gatepost to lean out of position. The gateposts should be of white oak or cedar and must be at least a foot square at the top and considerably larger at the bottom. The post to which the gate is attached by its hinges should be set three or four feet in the ground and firmly anchored. Farm mechanics treats of the making of the necessary farm conveniences; the building of walks, driveways, and small bridges; the construction of cisterns, water tanks, compression tanks, and water troughs; the digging of ponds and lakes; constructing silos, ice houses, and other outbuildings; the setting up, care, and man- agement of machinery; blacksmithing; the management of steam and gasoline engines; the management of stoves and furnaces; farm drainage; and other kindred subjects. Boys will find that their work in manual training will be of inestimable value to them in after life on the farm. Often a whole day's work is lost on the farm because some simple pieces of ironwork in the machinery used has been broken or lost. In many such cases the young man who has had a course of ironwork in his manual training exercises could repair the breakage in a few minutes and but little time would be lost. The same young man could easily construct an ice box, make a clothes rack, a self-adjusting clothes line for the laundress, and many other necessary conveniences. His knowledge of blacksmithing would enable him to sharpen the 284 FARM IMPROVEMENTS plowshares and the sections of the sickle blade for the mowing machine or the self binder, so that no time would be lost in the harvest field while such repairs were being made. The farmer who would be successful must be a farm mechanic. Those T\ ho cling to old ideas will soon be relegated to the rear. QUESTIONS 1. Discuss the location and construction of a farmhouse. 2. Make a drawing or plan of your own home. 3. Discuss the house surroundings. 4. Discuss the farm plan. 5. Submit a diagram showing location of fields, lawn, and barnyard on your father's farm. 6. Discuss the plans for a farm barn. 7. Should the barn have windows ? Why ? 8. Discuss fencing and fences. 9. Discuss gates and their arrangement. 10. Discuss farm mechanics in a general way. REFERENCES Barn Plans and Outbuildings, Orange Judd Co. Homes for Homebuilders, W. D. King. Modern House Plans for Everybody, S. B. Reed. The Healthful Farm House, Helen Dodd. Farm Conveniences, Orange Judd Co. Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Martin. XLI. FUEL AND LIGHT THE expense of fuel and light in many parts of our country constitutes a considerable item to the farmer, and some attention should be given it in our study of agriculture. Fuel. Any substa-D.ce used for making fire is known as fuel. It is generally a form of carbon or some compound of carbon. Fuels may be divided as follows : (1) vegetable fuels, wood, methyl and ethyl alcohol, charcoal, etc.; (2) mineral fuels, peat, lignite, cannel coal, bitummous coal, anthracite, etc. ; (3) mineral oils and gases, naphtha, gasoline, benzine, kerosene, and natural gas. Wood. In timbered countries the common fuel is wood, be- cause of its cheapness. In prairie countries, when it is a long way to the timber supply, the use of wood is expensive. If a quick hot fire is desired, some of the soft woods, like pine, spruce, fir, hemlock, cedar, or redwood, will be found serviceable. If a slow steady fire is preferred, some of the hard woods, like oak, hickory, ash, beech, maple, birch, and walnut, will be found desirable. Charcoal. Sometimes cord wood is piled up in heaps and after it has been covered with soil, a slow fire is started underneath the whole mass. This drives off the volatile gases, chars the wood, and produces charcoal. Charcoal is used to produce heat for warming irons and for broiling purposes. Peat is a substance of vegetable origin, partially decayed, form- ing a kind of turf or bog. It is found in lowlands or swamps, in cool, temperate climates. Large quantities of it are found in Ireland and in Alaska. When desired for use, the peat is cut into thin oblong blocks and dried in the sun. It makes a fairly good fuel. Lignite is of a brownish hue and is a formation between peat and true coal, in which the woody structure is retained. It is soft and crumbly. Lignite is mined in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Oklahoma, and the Dakotas. 285 286 FUEL AND LIGHT Bituminous coal is soft coal much of which burns freely, giving off volumes of pitchy smoke. It is found in the eastern and western parts of the United States, and also in Missouri, Arkansas, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, and Oklahoma. Cannel coal is a variety of bituminous coal. It is much harder than ordinary bituminous coal and burns with but little smoke. It is found in few localities and largely preferred for blacksmithing. Anthracite is the hardest and most compact coal known in this country. It is almost free from hydrocarbons or oils and burns with a slight blue flame and with strong heat. On account of its hardness it can be handled without smutting one's hands, and when placed in the stove it burns for a long time. If the stove is filled with anthracite in the morning, usually the supply will last all day without replenishing. Nearly all of the anthracite used in the United States is mined in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, and on account of its limited area of production it is generally some- what expensive. Coke is coal which has been heated in ovens or kilns from which the air has been partially excluded. The heating is continued until all the hydrocarbons have been burned or driven off and a light substance resembling charcoal remains. On account of its lightness and cleanliness it makes a very satisfactory fuel. Coal gas is a very important fuel in cities and is obtained by distilling coal. It is stored in a large tank and piped from this to the places where it is to be used. This gas is also used for lighting purposes. Water gas is prepared by passing water in the form of super- heated steam over glowing anthracite coal. The resulting gas contains equal volumes of carbon monoxide and free hydrogen. It is enriched by the addition of petroleum vapor and is used for both lighting and heating.' Natural gas is obtained by boring to a considerable depth into the earth and is found in various parts of the United States. Profitable gas wells have been sunk in California, in the Beau- mont district in Texas, in Oklahoma, Louisiana, western Pennsyl- vania, West Virginia, Central Ohio, and some parts of Indiana. This gas is used for heating, lighting, and cooking, and its use is very satisfactory. On account of its freedom from sulphur FUEL AND LIGHT 287 and other injurious impurities natural gas is a good fuel for the (Smelting of iron or steel. Natural gas is piped from the gas fields to considerable distances. The Oklahoma field supplies Kansas City, and the Indiana gas belt supplies Chicago. The price varies according to the distance the gas is piped and the quantity that is used. In Oklahoma it ranges from five to thirty cents per thousand feet. Acetylene gas as a fuel thus far has not been satisfactory, but it is used in many places as an illuminant. It may be prepared very cheaply by treating calcium carbide with water. When im- pure it has an offensive odor and is poisonous when breathed. Like other inflammable gases, it is explosive when mixed with air and must be handled with extreme care. The mixture to be explosive must contain from 3 per cent to 65 per cent of the gas. For safety the generator should be kept in the basement or in a small outbuilding. This will safeguard against accidents in families where there are small children or other careless persons around. Gasoline gas is generated from gasoline and is used for cooking and for lighting. It is also used to a great extent by plumbers and tinners for heating their soldering irons. In cooking ranges -two forms of generators are used. In the ordinary range a small portion of gasoline is allowed to run down into a little cup beneath each burner, and then the liquid is shut off by closing the valve and the portion in the cup is ignited. This heats the burner above until it is hot enough to convert the liquid gasoline into gas when the gasoline is turned on again. A lighted match is then applied to the burner, and the gas will burn with a steady blue flame. The gasoline tank on top of the stove should never be filled when the stove is lighted or when there are lighted lamps or fire stoves near. Gasoline vaporizes very easily, and the vapor ignites readily, hence great care must be exercised in its use in order to guard against explosions. Leaky tanks or leaky valves and joints must be repaired promptly or accidents are sure to result. In some of the higher-priced cooking ranges self-generators are used in which the gasoline vaporizes as it passes through a long tube. Gasoline makes a very cheap and efficient fuel for cooking pur- poses on the farm. Its use in the summer time is advisable be- cause of the small amount of heat given off into the room. 288 FUEL AND LIGHT Petroleum. The word petroleum means literally rock oil. This name was given it because the oil is obtained by boring into soft layers of oil-bearing rock. Its existence was known for some time, but it was not found in paying quantities until 1859, when Colonel E. L. Drake, of Titusville, Pennsylvania, bored a well in search of an oil which he expected to use as a remedy for rheu- matism. Colonel Drake struck oil at a depth of sixty feet, and his well produced him about two thousand gallons the first year. Soon other wells were sunk, and oil in such abundance was found that it became possible to use it for both light and fuel. Since then oil has been found in West Virginia, southern Ohio, Indiana, Colorado, California, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. Crude petroleum is of a dark brown or black color and has a very disagreeable odor. On being heated the following liquids separate and distill at the temperatures mentioned: Naphtha between 40- 70 F. Gasoline between 70- 90 F. Benzine between 90-150 F. Kerosene between 150-280 F. Lubricating oils between 280-400 F. The residue contains vaseline, paraffine, and coal tar. Good kerosene should not flash or take fire till warmed to 150 F. The flashing test varies in different States, and some require that the flashing point shall be as high as 200. Many of the lower grades of kerosene found on the market have a flashing point of only 135. A lower test is dangerous. A simple test may be made by taking a teacup one quarter full of cold water in which a thermometer has been placed and adding boiling water till the temperature reaches 110 F. Then add two teaspoon- fuls of the kerosene and try to ignite the oil by passing a lighted taper over it. If it ignites, it is not safe. Should it not ignite, other temperatures may be tested in the same way until the exact flashing point is determined. On account of its cheapness kerosene is the universal illuminant used in the country. The crude oil is used for fuel in locomotives on certain railway lines, on account of its cheapness and on account of its being more cleanly than coal. FUEL AND LIGHT 289 Alcohol. Alcohol is used as a fuel for spirit lamps by dentists and by students in laboratories where gas cannot be obtained. It is also used in heating chafing dishes. Recent experimenters claim that it can also be satisfactorily used for cooking purposes in countries where excessive internal revenue taxes are not levied upon it. There are two kinds of alcohol that can be used for this purpose, one known as methyl, or wood, alcohol, and a second one called ethyl, or grain, alcohol. Wood alcohol is obtained by the dry or destructive distillation of wood. It was discovered by Taylor in 1812, and he gave to it the name of wood spirit. Wood alcohol is poisonous and so no restric- tions are usually placed upon its sale for fuel. It burns with a pale blue flame and produces a fair amount of heat. Ethyl alcohol is obtained by distilling fermented liquors, such as wine, the fermented juice of sugar beets, malted corn, barley, rye, and other grain. In England and France ethyl alcohol employed for industrial purposes is exempted from taxation to a large extent when it has been treated with one tenth per cent of wood alcohol, resin, and certain mineral oils. In this state it is known as de- natured alcohol, and it cannot be used as a beverage. Provision has been made in the United States for the sale of denatured al- cohol at greatly reduced rates. It is believed that the production and use of denatured alcohol will give renewed impetus to the sugar beet industry and make it much more profitable. Candles. One of our earliest means of illumination was by means of ordinary candles. They give a weak flickering flame and afford a very poor light, but for a long time there was no available substitute and they were in general use. Candles are made of tallow, wax, or spermaceti. Electricity. In cities electricity is found to be a very satis- factory and economical means of illumination. The common incandescent lamp was devised by Thomas Edison in 1879 and is suitable for electric lighting indoors. It consists of an air-tight bulb in which is fitted a carbonized filament in the form of a loop. When a current of electricity is passed through this carbonized filament, it becomes hot and gives off a bright light. For street lighting what is known as the arc light is used. It PRAC. AGRICUL. 19 290 FUEL AND LIGHT consists of two carbons about the size of a lumberman's lead pencil. When the current of electricity is made to pass from one carbon to the other, a bright light is given off. Another form of electric light is the mercury vapor lamp, which consists of a long glass tube exhausted to a high vacuum. The electric cur- rent is carried by the mercury vapor from one terminal to the other and gives off a yellow-greenish light of dazzling brilliancy. Electricity is used for heating in the electric furnace, for cooking, and for heating laundry irons. It is serviceable in cities, but not economical in the country except near large electric power plants. EXERCISES 1. Visit the coal dealer and ascertain the price of coal per ton and com- pare this with the cost of wood in your locality. 2. Compare the cost and efficiency of soft coal and hard coal. 3. Compare the cost of soft coal and natural gas for fuel, when the gas can be had at the rate of twenty-five to thirty cents per thousand, for two stoves, and sixteen thousand feet of natural gas are used during the month. 4. Compare the cost of coal and gasoline for a cooking range. 5. Compare the cost of lighting four rooms for three hours per day for a month by kerosene, gas, and electricity when all three may be had. QUESTIONS 1. Define fuel. 2. Name the general classes of fuels. 3. Discuss (a) wood, (6) charcoal. 4. Describe (a) peat, (6) lignite. 5. Discuss (a) bituminous coal, (6) cannel coal, (c) anthracite, (d) coke. 6. Describe (a) water gas, (6) coal gas. 7. Discuss natural gas. 8. Discuss (a) acetylene, (6) gasoline. 9. Give the history of the discovery of petroleum. 10. Describe petroleum. 11. Name some of its distilled products. 12. Discuss alcohol as a fuel. 13. Discuss (a) candles, (6) electricity. REFERENCES Physics, Hoadley. Chemistry Chapter on Fuels, Wurtz. Domestic Science Chapter on Fuels, Lucy L. Wilson. Commercial Geography, Gannett, Garrison, and Houston. XLII. STOCK FEEDING Objects of Feeding. The objects of feeding are: (1) to repair the waste of the system and maintain life; (2) to supply heat; (3) to furnish force and energy; (4) to provide the materials needed to insure increase of flesh by growth or fattening; (5) to make special products, such as milk, eggs, feathers, wool, etc. Kinds of Food. We usually classify food for stock as forage or roughage and concentrates. Under the first we include cornstalks, hay, straw, silage, tubers, roots, and all other foods which contain a large amount of crude fiber or water in proportion to the nu- tritive elements; while the concentrates are generally the seeds of plants and their prod- ucts which contain a minimum amount of crude fiber and water. In a more specific way we may group the kinds of food for stock as follows: (1) albuminoids or proteids, (2) the fats, (3) the carbo- hydrates, (4) mineral matter. Albuminoid or Proteid Feeds. Food substances like the white of egg, the gluten of wheat, and the fibrin of meat, containing nitrogen, we call abuminoids or proteids. These foods containing nitrogen furnish the necessary elements for making muscle, bone, horn, hair, blood, and milk. Cotton seed, cotton-seed meal, pea- vine hay, cowpeas, soy beans, alfalfa, and all other leguminous plants are rich in proteid. Proteids contain about 16 per cent of nitrogen, so that if we know the amount of nitrogen we can calcu- late the amount of proteids very easily by multiplying the per- 291 On a stock farm. 292 STOCK FEEDING centage found of nitrogen by 6.25. The total amount of proteids thus calculated is called protein. The fats contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Fat exists in grains and in the seeds of certain plants like flax and cotton. The percentage of fat in fodder is variously estimated at from 3 to 8 per cent of the material in the dry state. The fats are espe- cially valuable as producers of energy and are capable of producing two and one fourth times as much energy as an equal amount of starch or sugar. The amount of fat content may be determined by dissolving it with ether or other solvents. The resultant quantity is known as crude fat, but after the ether has been evaporated and other impurities have been removed the substance remaining is known as pure fat. The carbohydrates consist of c irbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, but the last two are always found in the same proportion as they are found in water. The carbohydrates produce force and energy and help to keep the body warm. If there is more of this kind of food than is needed, the body stores it up in the form of 'fat, which may be drawn upon at any time when needed. When the carbo- hydrates are practically consumed, the body then draws upon the proteids for the food necessary to keep it warm and to furnish the energy required for work. The addition of these foods to those containing proteid always lessens the amount of proteid required. Some of the principal carbohydrates are cellulose, starch, sugars, and gums. Cellulose is the substance of which the cell walls or the woody part of the plant is mainly Composed. It is found in ripe straw, in seeds, and in the stems and husks of plants. Its most familiar form is the paper of commerce. The cellulose incloses the starch grains, and on account of its not being very soluble it protects the starch from being dissolved and washed away from plants by rains. Starch is the common form of plant food, and it consists of solid grains ranging in size from one three hundredth of an inch to one four thousandth of an inch. Starch enters largely into the composition of grains and of all root and tuber crops. It is readily converted into grape sugar and dextrine when treated with certain acids. STOCK FEEDING 293 Sugar is the soluble form of carbohydrates which circulates in plants and is immediately available as plant food. When the plant manufactures more food than is needed, the surplus is stored up in the form of starch. When this reserve stock of food is needed, some of it is changed back into sugar by the help of a ferment known as diastase. On account of their solubility the sugars are digested with ease. The principal kinds of sugar are cane sugar, derived from sugar cane, sorghum, and sugar beets, grape sugar from starch, fruit sugar from fruits and honey, malt sugar from malted grain, and milk sugar from cow milk. The amount of sugar in ordinary foodstuffs is small, but large amounts of it are formed from starch and other carbohydrates in the process of digestion. The gums are not important as food compounds, and only a small amount of them is found in plants used for stock feeding. Pentose. Besides the starch and cellulose there is another group of carbohydrates known as pectin bodies, which give to fruit their power of forming jellies when boiled, and they are con- verted into a special kind of sugar known as pentose when digested. Little is known of their exact chemical nature. Mineral Matter. In addition to the foods just mentioned there are certain mineral matters needed by animals, but practically all these are found in ordinary fodders in sufficient quantities for their immediate needs. Some of the common minerals found in combi- nations in the body are salt, lime, soda, and potash. Iron, phos- phorus, magnesia, and a few other minerals occur in small and varying proportions. Mineral salts enter into the composition of the brain cartilage, and bone, and thus play an important part in the structure of the body. The amount of ash or mineral matter in a plant is determined by carefully burning a known amount of the substance over a slow, steady fire long enough to drive off all the organic vegetable matter. The weight of the residue gives the amount of mineral matter pr crude ash. Value of Food. It is evident that only a part of the food eaten by animals is retained and assimilated by their bodies and the remainder passes off as manure. If an analysis of the food is made and also one of the manure to determine the amount of nutrients remaining, it becomes an easy and simple matter to calculate the 294 STOCK FEEDING nutritive value of the food used. If we subtract the amount of the nutrients found in the manure from the amount of the same nutri- ents in the food, the result will show the amount of digested mate- rial. According to some authorities a milk cow, a fattening steer, or a work horse will generally need each day about two pounds of digestible protein, twelve or thirteen pounds of digestible carbo- hydrates, and approximately a half pound of digestible fats. The season of the year, the condition of the animal, and many other things are to be taken into consideration, so that these estimates are only approximately correct. Nutritive Ratio. According to Professor Bailey the amount of energy yielded by fats is about two and one fourth times as much as that given by an equal weight of sugar or starch ; that is, the fats are considered two and one fourth times as valuable for food stuffs as carbohydrates. The nutritive ratio is the ratio of the digestible protein to the digestible carbohydrates plus two and one fourth times the digestible fat, and the operation may be expressed very conveniently in the following formula : Carbohydrates + (Fat X 2.25) Protein i For example, if the amount of digestible carbohydrates = 34 and the amount of digestible fat = 1.42, while the amount of digestible protein is about 6.00, we have: 34 + (1.42 X 2.25) 34 + 3.195 37.195 6.00 6 6 = 6.199 = 6.2 approximately. That means the nutritive ratio is 1 to 6.2 for this particular kind of feed. A ration is the amount of food given an animal during a day or any stated period. Rations are classified as balanced, narrow, medium, and wide, according to the proportion of carbohydrates and fats to the amount of protein. A balanced ration is one in which the proportion of carbohydrates and fats to the amount of protein has been so adjusted or balanced as to give the most satisfactory results with the least possible expenditure. The ordinary limit for a well-balanced ration is STOCK FEEDING 295 generally placed at 1 to 5.2. Many farmers would find it better to sell a part of their corn and purchase some food stuff, like linseed meal, rich in protein instead of feeding so much corn. The feeding of unbalanced rations is often not only disastrous to the farmer from a financial point of view, but it is also likely to prove detrimental to the proper growth and development of the stock. A Narrow Ration. When the amount of the carbohydrates and digestible fat is relatively small compared with the amount of proteid present, the ratio is narrow and the ration is designated as a narrow ration. Oil meal has a ratio of 1 to 1.7, and a feed made up of this alone would afford only a narrow ration. In fact, any ration less than one to five may be designated as a narrow ration. A Wide Ration. When the amount of carbohydrates and di- gestible fat is relatively large compared with the amount of protein on hand, the ratio is large and we have what is designated as a wide ration. For example, . the nutritive ratio of oat straw is 1 to 33.7, which would make it a feed having a wide ration. Any feed in which the ratio is much over 1 to 9 would be regarded as a feed of wide ration. A Medium Ration. When the nutritive ratio is not less than 1 to 6 nor more than 1 to 10, the ration is designated by some authorities as a medium one. Thus in common maize or Indian corn, which has a ratio of 1 to 9.8, we have an example of a medium ration. Feeding Standards. Many trials or feeding experiments have been made for the purpose of determining the proper ratio of the carbohydrates and fats to the amount of protein necessary, but the standards generally accepted are those prepared originally by Wolff and subsequently modified by Lehmann. (See Tables 1, 2, and 3, Appendix.) These standards must not be followed slav- ishly, but should be modified as circumstances may seem to demand. Such standards, however, are useful as a basis of com- parison and as guides in the selection of proper food stuffs in making up rations. Compounding Rations. It is evident that we must combine several kinds of foods in order to secure the proper proportion of 296 STOCK FEEDING the necessary nutrients. With roughage we must use a certain amount of concentrates in order to obtain a balanced ration. If we were to use a ration composed of Clover 10 Ib. Oats 10 Ib. Oat Straw . . . 5 Ib. and desired to know whether this would prove a suitable ration for a horse doing light work or heavy work, the only thing re- quired would be to find the nutritive ratio as follows : Amount of digestible carbohydrates: In 10 Ib. of clover hay - 10 X |^ = 3.58 100 In 10 Ib. of oats = 10 X 4.73 In 5 Ib. of oat straw = 5 X ^- 1.93 JLUU Total amount of carbohydrates = 10.24 Digestible fat or ether extract: In 10 Ib. of clover hay = 10 X = .17 Ib. In 10 Ib. of oats = 10 X = .42 Ib. In 5 Ib. of oat straw = 5 X = .04 Ib. Total amount = .63 Amount of digestible protein : In 10 Ib. of clover = 10 X = .68 100 In 10 Ib. of oats = 10 X .92 In 5 Ib. of oat straw = 5 X = .06 Total amount 1.G6 Hence, 10.24 + (2.25 Y .63) 10.24 + 1.418 66 66~ that is, the nutritive ratio is 1 : 7. = 7 STOCK FEEDING 297 By consulting Table 1, Appendix, it will be found that this is the nutritive ratio for a horse when only light work is required of it. Would the amount of the ration required be greater for a horse weighing fifteen hundred pounds ? Why ? General Suggestions on Feeding. The careful feeder will take pains to see that his stock are neither overfed nor underfed. In order to do this he must know the composition of the various feeding stuffs and their relative values. Stock should have all the feed that they can digest well, but this does not mean neces- sarily that they should have all that they will eat. Especially is this true of the feeding stuffs known as concentrates. Horses and cattle both are frequently foundered by eating too much corn when a very heavy feed is given them on this alone. Generally a balanced ration will give the best and most satisfactory results. Cattle and sheep should have a ration consisting of two thirds roughage and one third concentrates; for horses the amount should be one half roughage to one half concentrates; while for pigs, hogs, and poultry the proportion of concentrates should be much larger. During the winter months a large amount of dry feed is given stock, and in the spring, when green feed is to be given, the change must be made gradually ; and the same rule is to be observed in the fall when stock are changed from green feed to dry feed. Carelessness in this matter is sure to cause trouble. Experience has shown that a certain amount of variety in food is just as essential for animals as for people. There i-s some difference of opinion as to the number of feeds that should be given stock each day, but whatever is given should always be given at regular intervals. Work horses are generally fed three times per day, but cattle, hogs, and fattening stock are generally not fed oftener than twice a day. In feeding stock for fattening purposes a number of things must be considered in order to secure the best results. Bulletin No. 76, issued by the Missouri Experiment Station in December, 1907, gives a number of fruitful suggestions in reference to the fattening of cattle and hogs. In the matter of the most favorable season for fattening cattle a majority of the feeders showed a decided preference for summer or some other season rather than winter. A majority of the 298 STOCK FEEDING feeders also reported that cattle gained materially faster in sum- mer and at something like four fifths the cost of similar cattle fed in winter. Gains on grass alone were made very cheaply, but the cattle were low-priced because they were not in market- crass -fed cattle. able condition and had to be sold to feeders with sufficient margin to enable the buyer t<3 fit them for market. The average length of the full feeding period as given in this bulletin was one hundred and seventy-seven days, or practi- cally six months. The opinions as to the kind of steer giving the greatest profit were as follows: Missouri .... 1345 Ib. Iowa 1358 Ib. Illinois .... 1390 Ib. Nebraska . . . . 1400 Ib. From these reports it would appear that the best average weight for feeding cattle is thirteen hundred and sixty-seven pounds. Feeding cattle weighing from fifteen hundred to sixteen hundred pounds was generally found not very profitable. The average age for feeding cattle full feed was given at two years of age, but a large number of feeders reported in favor of beginning full feed at three years of age. All the feeders used roughage, but they seemed to think it made no material difference as to the kind or the amount used. The experiments made at the Missouri Station showed that the roughage affected strongly the rate and cost of gain and the STOCK FEEDING 200 finish of the cattle. It was shown that with cattle bringing five cents a pound, corn when combined with clover or cowpea hay was worth eight and one fourth cents more per bushel than when combined with timothy. The same experiments showed that a large consumption of roughage does not necessarily cause a diminished grain consumption. Another factor which must not be overlooked in feeding is the buying margin, because on this will depend the profit that may be made in feeding. The gains put on cattle during the fattening process will vary from six cents to ten cents per pound, while the On a cattle ranch. steer will bring on the market an average of four to seven cents per pound. This situation is met by lowering the price at which the steer in thin condition may be purchased, and places the burden of the expense of the fattening process upon the cattle raiser rather than on the feeder or the meat consumer. The average margin for a six months' feed in summer is estimated at $1.02 per hundred on two-year-old cattle, while for a similar feed in winter an approximate margin of $1.50 would be required. Stock fed under shelter and in well-ventilated barns do not gain so rapidly nor so economically as those fed in an open shed or those confined in an open lot, so that it seems the question of providing stables is not so important as one might think. It is always well, however, to provide shelter from storms and damp- ness, as most breeds of cattle are not prepared to weather snow and cold rains without discomfort and harm. 300 STOCK FEEDING Comparing the relative profits on cattle and hogs on the Chicago market for the past twenty-four years, it has been found that the hogs have brought a higher price per pound, and experiments show that less food is required to make a pound of gain on hogs than on cattle. From this it appears that hog feeding is more profitable than cattle feeding. The reports of the other market centers of the West, in Ft. -Worth, Kansas City, and St. Louis, seem to bear out this statement. The number of hogs required to utilize the waste per steer, according to the Reports of the Missouri Experiment Station, will vary greatly with the character of the feed, the way in which it is prepared, and with the size and age of the cattle. The range is given as from two to three hogs per steer on snapped-ear corn, one and one half on husked-ear corn, about one on shelled corn, and from one third to one half a hog per steer on crushed or ground corn. Another important feature in .stock feeding that should receive more attention than is usually given it is the matter of providing an abundant supply of pure water near the place of feeding. The use of water troughs for this purpose will generally be found advisable. The students should send to their State Experiment Station for any bulletins that may be published on feeding cattle, hogs, sheep, mules, or other stock. It will also be found interesting to secure the bulletins from other States and to make comparisons of the results and the various conclusions reached. EXERCISES 1. Ascertain the weight of each of the following: (a) a bushel of corn, (6) a bushel of oats, (c) a bushel of wheat, (d) a bushel of rye. 2. Refer to Table 2, Appendix, and calculate the amount of digestible protein in a bushel of corn as compared with a bushel of oats. 3. Compare the amount of digestible -carbohydrates in a bushel of oats with a bushel of cowpeas. 4. According to Table 1, Appendix, how much food is required for a ration for a horse of one thousand pounds doing light work ? What is the nutritive ratio? 5. What is the amount of food that would be required for three milch cows giving sixteen pounds of milk daily ? STOCK FEEDING 301 6. Determine the nutritive ratio in a feed of ten pounds of red clover hay and ten pounds of oats. 7. According to the table this would be a ration for a horse doing what kind of work ? 8. Determine a ration for a rnilch cow composed of red clover, oat straw, wheat bran, and green fodder corn with a ratio of 1 :7. 9. Calculate a suitable ration for fattening cattle in the first period consisting of corn and two kinds of roughage. 10. Calculate a suitable ration for fattening swine in the second period. 1 1. Calculate a ration for growing cattle of eight hundred and fifty pounds and aged eighteen to twenty-four months containing one concentrate and two kinds of roughage. 12. If it takes six tons of hay, one hundred bushels of oats, and twenty dollars' worth of pasture to keep twenty sheep a year, what is the cost per head when hay is worth six dollars per ton and oats are worth twenty-five cents per bushel ? 13. What feeds have a large percentage of protein? 14. When corn is worth thirty cents per bushel and oats twenty-five cents per bushel, what is the relative cost of the protein in each, and which is the cheaper feed at the prices mentioned ? 15. Determine the nutritive ratio of a ration composed of twelve pounds of clover hay, six pounds of oats, and four pounds of cotton-seed meal. Would you vary this proportion ? Why ? 16. How many head of hogs are required for fifty head of fattening cattle fed on snapped-ear corn ? On husked-ear corn ? On shelled corn ? 17. When corn is worth thirty cents a bushel and fat cattle are worth five cents per pound on the market, what can a farmer afford to pay for stock cattle ? 18. From the table calculate the relative amounts of fertilizing materials in a ton of corn. 19. Calculate the amount of fertilizer. in two tons of red clover hay and the same amount of cowpea hay. 20. Which contains the greatest amount of fertilizing elements, a ton of corn or a ton of oats ? Explain. QUESTIONS 1. Name the objects of feeding. 2. What is roughage ? What are concentrates ? 3. Name the classes of foods or feeds. 4. Discuss albuminoid feeds. 5. Describe the fats and the carbohydrates. 6. Discuss (a) cellulose, (&) starch, (c) sugars, (d) gums, (e) pentose. 7. What is said of mineral matter? 8. Discuss the value of food. 9. Explain what is means by nutritive ratio. 302 STOCK FEEDING 10. Discuss rations. 11. Discuss (a) balanced rations, (6) narrow rations, (c) wide rations, (d) medium rations. 12. What is said about feeding standards ? 13. Explain how rations are compounded. 14. Give some general suggestions on feeding. 15. What kind of ration generally gives the best result ? 16. What is the most favorable season for feeding ? Why ? 17. What is the average length of feeding period for cattle ? 18. What is said of the buying margin ? 19. Discuss the value of roughage. Discuss value of shelter. 20. How many hogs should there be to each steer in feeding cattle ? REFERENCES The Principles of Horse Feeding, Farmers' Bulletin No. 170. The Feeding of Farm Animals, Farmers' Bulletin No. 22. Sheep Feeding, Farmers' Bulletin No. 49. Hog Raising in the South, Farmers' Bulletin No. 100. Breeds of Dairy Cattle, Farmers' Bulletin No. 106. The Soy Bean as a Forage Crop, Farmers' Bulletin No. 58. Feeds and Feeding, Henry. Feeding of Animals, Jordan. Stock Feeding, Bulletin 67, South Carolina Station. XLIII. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY Farm Animals. Animal husbandry treats of the raising and the proper management of animals, whether for home or market use or for their products. It includes stock raising, dairy husbandry, poultry raising, fish culture, oyster farming, bee culture, and other subjects of a similar nature. A large part of the farm products are converted into animal products before they are available for the use of man. We have already learned that it is poor farm economy to sell all the farm crops from year to year, unless the prices are high enough to cover the cost of additional fertilizers, as this rapidly exhausts the soil and leaves it in an impoverished condition. It is generally better to feed the crops to animals that are kept on the farm so that a large portion of the fertilizing elements may be returned to the soil. By referring to Table 2, Appendix, it is an easy matter to calculate to what extent soil improvement will take place, in a field where cattle or other stock are fed. This will be better understood if we study the reasons for keeping domestic animals. These reasons are as follows: (1) to furnish directly or indirectly food, clothing, and other products of value to man; (2) to act as beasts of burden or all work; (3) to aid in maintaining the fertility of the land; (4) to provide a means of disposing of the crops; (5) to diversify agricultural occupations; (6) to afford employ- ment to the farmer during the winter and inclement weather when outdoor farm work would be impossible; (7) to assist in keeping the farm clear of weeds; (8) to serve as companions under certain conditions. Many animals will be found profitable in one part of our country and unprofitable in another place. A close and careful study should be made of the cost of keeping various animals and the returns that the farmer may reasonably expect. This involves to a certain extent a study of the functions or offices of domestic animals. 304 ANIMAL HUSBANDRY The Animal and the Soil. Attention has already been called to the importance of feeding crops on the farm to stock instead of selling them. In pasturing practically all the fertilizing ele- ments are returned to the soil in the form of manure. In stable feeding the manure can be collected and scattered later over the farm. The Animal and the Crops. Frequently the market is glutted with grain and other crops, and the gain or profit to the farmer which he has a right to expect can only be realized by feeding the crops to. stock. As a rule, the farmer who sells all his crops does not prosper ; while the farmer who handles stock in connec- tion with his farming and exercises good judgment in buying his stock is successful. The Animal as an Eradicator of Pests. In weedy pastures sheep and goats have been found very useful in cleaning up the weeds. Hogs also are very serviceable in eating up the larvae and grubs in the ground and in the fallen fruit in orchards. Chick- ens and turkeys are useful in catching and destroying grasshoppers and many other injurious insects. The Animal and Work. The ox, the horse, the mule, and the burro all play an important part in the work of man. It is true that steam and electricity and the gasoline engine may be made to do much of the work formerly required of animals, but these utilities will never entirely supplant the use of animals. There will always be a demand for animals in plowing, hauling, driving, and as the source of power for driving farm machinery, in spite of the great advances made in cheapening the use of steam and electricity. The Animal and its Products. A great deal of our food, such as pork, beef, mutton, poultry, fish, eggs, fresh milk, con- densed milk, butter, and cheese, we owe directly or indirectly to animals. Other valuable products furnished by animals are wool, leather, hair, horn, bone, feathers, glue, and certain waste products valuable as fertilizers. The Animal and Diversified Farming. Animals need a va- riety of foods, and this necessitates a variety of crops. This leads to rotation of crops and incidentally to diversified farm- ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 305 ing. The farmer soon learns that the one-crop plan is unprofitable. The Animal as a Source of Employment in the Winter. The handling of stock in the winter and inclement weather affords the farmer and his helpers employment at a season of the year when otherwise they would be idle. In the Northern States plowing and the ordinary outdoor occupations of the farmer cannot be carried on during the winter and inclement weather. Wool producers. Animals as Companions. Many animals are valued by man not so much from a commercial point of view as from a social point. Among the animals that might be mentioned in this list are the various kinds of dogs and cats, rabbits, hares, pet squir- rels, canary birds and other kinds of songsters, guinea pigs, and the like. The raising and selling of animals of this class forms an important industry in some parts of our country. Improvement of Livestock. In our stud/ of plants we learned that many of our common vegetables were developed by careful selection from wild plants and good cultivation. Careful selection and proper mating of animals through many generations have PBAG. AGHICUL. 20 306 ANIMAL HUSBANDRY rn given us improved animals. The predecessors of the modern plump and well-rounde/1 beef steer were not handsome or well- formed; the razor-back scrub hog stands as a mute witness of the wonderful difference existing between him and the well-developed specimens of the market hogs; while horses and other domestic animals show developments equally great. These changes have been brought about mainly by selection of the best individuals having certain marked characteristics, care- fully mating these individuals, and giving them favorable environ- ment. When a group of animals is secured of marked resemblances and the offspring inherit the same qualities and characteristics, the variety or group is designated as a breed. In improving farm ani- mals the stock raiser may have one of three objects in view: (1) to improve the herd or the home stock of the farm, (2) to im- prove the breed as a whole, (3) to originate new breeds. Improving Scrub or Mixed Stock. By grading up his herd or flock with animals of some distinct breed the owner may make it compare quite favorably with the recognized breed. Improving the Breed as a Whole. Many stock raisers work chiefly for the improvement of a recognized breed. Individual animals having the regular type characteristics most strongly developed are selected and mated from time to time until a good breed is developed. This method of breeding calls for con- siderable skill and intelligence and is somewhat expensive. Originating New Types. Some stock raisers, in place of trying to improve existing breeds, spend their time and energy in dis- covering and developing new types. Animals, like plants, fre- quently develop individuals showing marked variations from the parent type. By properly selecting a number of individuals showing the desired variation and properly mating their offspring, a breed may eventually be developed which will tend to come true to the type. The origination of Polled Durham cattle, Poland China, Duroc Jersey, and Chester White swine in our own country demonstrates what may be done in originating new breeds by improving or amalgamating older breeds. Scientific knowledge seems likely to facilitate this work in the future. Pure-bred Stock. Pure-bred animals are those whose parents belong to the same breed. ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 307 Scrub Stock. Animals whose ancestors belong to no distinct breed are designated as scrubs. Graded Stock. Grading is the mating of a common inferior animal or scrub parent with one that is highly improved. The mating may be made either way, but it is more practical and economical to have the male for the pure-bred parent. The form, size, color, and useful qualities of the grade offspring gen- erally approximate those of the pure-bred parent rather than those of the scrub parent. If the sire is a pure-bred animal and the female or dam is scrub stock, the individuals of the first generation are called half-bloods or half-breeds. The offspring resulting from the half-blood females and a pure-bred sire are called three-fourths-breeds. When a half-breed sire is mated with a scrub female, the resulting offspring is designated as a quarter breed. The process of improving inferior animals by breeding is designated as grading -up. When the process has been continued until the resulting offspring are seven eighths pure, they are designated as high grades. Crossing. When parents of two distinct breeds are mated, the resulting offspring is known as a cross. If animals of two species are mated, the offspring is a hybrid. Most hybrids are sterile, and in that case further development of the hybrid type is impos- sible. The mule is a common example of a sterile hybrid. It is one of our most useful beasts of burden. Line breeding is the restriction of selection and mating to the individuals of a single line of descent, Inbreeding is the breeding together of closely related individ- uals like a sire and offspring or like a dam and offspring, etc. It intensifies blood lines and makes the most of exceptional individuals. QUESTIONS 1. Discuss animal husbandry. 2. Name the reasons for keeping domestic animals. 3. Discuss animals in reference to (a) the soil, (6) the crops. 4. Discuss animals as (a) eradicators of certain pests, (6) the beast of all work. 5. Name some of our food supplies that we owe to animals. 6. Discuss animals and diversified farming. 308 ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 7. What is said of animals as a source of employment ? 8. Discuss animals as companions. 9. Discuss live stock improvement. 10. Name the three principles that should guide the farmer in animal breeding. 11. What is meant by pure-bred stock and graded stock? 12. Discuss crossing. 13. What is (a) line breeding, (6) inbreeding? REFERENCES Principles of Breeding, Davenport. The Study of Breeds, Thomas Shaw. Types and Breeds of Farm Animals, Charles S. Plumb. XLIV. DOMESTIC ANIMALS THE number and kinds of animals kept will depend on the loca- tion, on the kinds of crops raised, and to a certain extent on the individual tastes of the farmer himself. The importance of live stock in the economy of the farm is shown by the fact that accord- ing to the last Census they represented 15 per cent of the total value of all farm property. The domestic animals that may be -found on farms in this country are as follows : (1) horses, (2) cattle, (3) hogs, (4) sheep, (5) goats, (6) poultry, (7) bees, (8) animals valued as pets or companions. HORSES AND MULES Origin of Horses. The Indian ponies and the wild horses found in the West are all the offspring of horses originally brought from the Old World. Re- mains of a prehistoric horse have been found in the Northeastern and Middle States, in the Southern States, in California and Oregon, and also in the Bad Lands of Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota; but these had all disappeared long before the early dis- coverers and settlers came to America from the Old World. It is probable that horses were first utilized for war purposes only, and mention of their use by the Israelites and the Egyptians is made in the Bible. The Greeks and the Romans learned 309 Arabian horse. 310 DOMESTIC ANIMALS French draft horse. the value of horses at an early time, and the stories of their famous chariot races will always live in history. The curb bit we owe to the genius of the Romans and the snaffle bit to the Greeks. The various breeds of horses have been developed through the influence of different climates and different kinds of food and through the influence of careful and con- tinued selection from time to time of indi- viduals showing certain marked characteristics and desirable qualities. The improvement of a great many of our breeds is due in a large measure to the influence of the Arabian horses. As early as 1603, Arabian horses were brought to Eng- land and crossed with native stock. After 1700 many oriental horses were imported into England, and they exercised a strong in- fluence in improving the breeds. Since then many very im- portant breeds have been developed. They may be classed as follows : (1) draft horses, (2) carriage or coach horses, (3) speed horses, (4) ponies. Draft horses are those that are specially adapted for drawing English draft horse. DOMESTIC ^ANIMALS 311 Coach horse. heavy loads. They are usually of heavy build and have broad backs, upright shoulders, and short, muscular legs set wide apart. The lead- ing representatives are the Percheron, devel- oped in France; the Clydesdale, which origi- nated on the river Clyde in Scotland; the Shire, a native of Eng- land dating back to the Roman conquest; the Suffolk, which came from Suffolk County in the eastern part of England, dating back to 1700; the Belgian draft; and the Boulonnais, a French draft horse somewhat larger and coarser than the Percheron. All draft horses are large and weigh from fifteen hundred to twenty-five hundred pounds. Carriage or coach horses are those used for drawing coaches and vehicles of that class. They are styl- ish in appearance and lighter than draft horses. They should be about sixteen hands high and should weigh from one thousand to fifteen hundred pounds, according to the breed. Coach horses have a lean graceful head, Race horse. broad forehead, promi- 312 DOMESTIC ANIMALS nent eye, long arching neck, round full body, long level croup high carriage of tail, and they must have legs showing cleanness, good bone, and plenty of muscle. The leading breeds are the hackney, with an English ancestry dating back to 1303, or earlier; the French coach, known in France since prehistoric times; the German coach, with an ancestral line dating back five cen- turies in Germany ; and the Cleveland bay, whose native home was on the Cleveland hills of York County, England. Speed horses have long legs, sloping shoulders, and slender bodies. Some of the leading types are the thoroughbred, derived from the union of Arabian, Barb, and Turkish stock with the lighter English stock, from which was developed an animal of great speed, unusual endurance, and fine symmetry of form; the American trotting horse, including such noted families as the Hambletonians, the Mambrinos, the Morgans, and the Clays. The pacers also belong to the list of speed animals, but their ancestry does not differ essentially from that of the trotting horses. Some idea of the value of speed animals may be gleaned from the following prices which have been paid for some of them : Arion, $120,000 ; Dan Patch, the famous pacer, $60,000; Nancy Hanks, $45,000; Sunol, $41,000; and Maude S., $40,000. Ponies are horses of small build, some of which are modeled on the small draft type and others on the trotting- horse type. The chief breeds are the Indian ponies of the northern and western part of the United States, the mustang ponies of the South and Southwest, and the Shetland ponies brought to various parts of this country from Scotland and the Shetland Islands. The Shetland ponies are very gentle and serviceable for the use of small children. Their average height ranges from thirty-six to forty-four inches. p, Shetland pony. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 313 The Indian ponies and mustangs are the descendants of small horses brought to this country by the early settlers from Spain and France. They are animals of great endurance, but as a rule they are not very gentle or tractable. Mules. The mule is a hybrid resulting from crossing a jack on a mare, and is not a true breed. It has been known and valued as a beast of burden since the days of the early Romans and Greeks. Mule raising in the United States dates back to 1787, when George Washington was presented with a fine jack by the king of Spain. Mules are valued chiefly as draft animals, but in some parts of the United States they are used for saddle purposes. Missouri, Ken- tucky, Tennessee, and Texas furnish the most of the mules in use at the present time. For draft purposes they usually command higher prices than horses because of their greater endurance and strength, their resistance to disease, and their great longevity. Cases are on record where mules have lived to seventy years of age and were still able to do effective work at the ago of thirty years. CATTLE Most of the cattle in this country have been developed from English breeds. The use of cattle dates back to the earliest known times, and in some of the early nations cattle and cattle hides were used as money in the ab- sence of circulat- ing medium. In the central and western parts of the United States there were formerly great herds of bison, or American buffalo, as they are sometimes called and some of these have been crossed on some varieties of European cattle to good advantage. In the Philippine Islands a kind of buffalo is found that serves Ox cart, India. 314 DOMESTIC ANIMALS as beast of all work. In China, Borneo, Java, and India is found a species of cattle known as zebu cattle which differ in many respects from our own cattle. In these countries they are used to draw plows, carts, and all kinds of vehicles. In the United States oxen have always been used to a large extent in lumber camps, where their services have been useful in logging. One may see large numbers of them in Washington, Oregon, and some of the Southern States. Cattle are raised principally for beef and dairy purposes. Their hides are valuable for making leather, their hoofs for glue, their hair for plaster, their bones for buttons, ornaments, and ferti- lizers, and their horns are utilized for making powder flasks, dinner horns, knife handles, and other useful articles. Beef Breeds. The chief beef breeds are the Aberdeen-Angus, the Galloway, Devon, Red Polled Cattle, Shorthorns, Polled Dur- hams, Herefords, Sussex, West Highland, Simmenthal, and native or scrub cattle. Aberdeen-Angus Breed. These cattle originated in northeastern Scotland, in Aberdeen County and vicinity. They have compact bodies, polled or hornless head, smooth neck, and prominent shoulders; the back has great relative depth and tends to dip at the withers, and the legs are generally short and finely shaped. The usual color is black. Galloway cattle. The native home of the Galloway cattle is the ancient province of Galloway, in the southwestern part of Scotland. The early varieties were horned, but all those of the present time are polled or hornless. The color is generally black, but a brownish or reddish tint in the black is not regarded as objec- tionable. They are somewhat smaller and coarser in bone and hair than the Aberdeen-Angus, and they are so hardy that they readily withstand all extremes of temperature. The hides of Galloway cattle are especially valuable, when properly tanned, for making fur overcoats, lap robes, and floor rugs. The Devon cattle originated in the counties of Devon and Som- erset in southwestern England. The color of Devon cattle varies from light red to dark red. The hair about the muzzle is of a flesh color, while that about the eyes is a creamy tint. The body is of medium size and the legs are small. The North Devon cattle have DOMESTIC ANIMALS 315 fine flesh and are valued for beef production, while the South Devon cattle are larger, coarser, lighter colored, and are raised chiefly for dairy purposes. The red polled cattle are natives of Norfolk and Suffolk counties in England. They are useful for both beef and dairy purposes. The head is lean, the withers moderately broad, body well ribbed, hips not prominent, and weight medium. The color varies from light red to dark red. A great many of these cattle are found in Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, and Texas, but they do well anywhere in the Mississippi Valley. Shorthorns. The home of the shorthorn cattle is in the counties of York, Durham, and Northumberland in northeastern England. It is our heaviest type of beef cattle and it outnumbers any other breed. Shorthorns are also highly prized for dairy purposes and have good records. Shorthorns have small short horns generally curving forward, short neat neck, body with broad back and large girth, broad brisket, hip bone well covered, rump broad, long, and well filled over with flesh, and thighs and quarters rather long, thick, and deep from front to rear. The color may be solid red, white, red and white, or roan. Among many feeders the pure reds are preferred, but at the stockyards the roans are also highly es- teemed. The shorthorns are widely distributed through the Ohio Valley and the Mississippi Valley, but they are not so well adapted to the Western States, where cattle have to shift for themselves on the range. Some blooded shorthorns are quite valuable, and have commanded prices ranging from $5000 to $40,600, the latter being the price paid in 1873 for the Eighth Duchess of Geneva. Polled Durhams. This breed is derived from the shorthorn and originated in the United States. The characteristics of this breed are as follows: (1) true polled heads, (2) the true colors and recognized markings of the shorthorn, and (3) not less than approximately 96 per cent of shorthorn blood. The Herefords are natives of Hereford County, England, and are said to have been first introduced into this country by Henry Clay, in 1817, at Lexington, Kentucky. Herefords have broad foreheads, keen eyes, bright, tapering horns, small head with white face, deep chest, broad loin, wide level hips, broad ribs, clean tapering thigh, short legs, good body and good 316 DOMESTIC ANIMALS flesh. In a general way we may say that the upper and rear por- tion of the body is of a middle red color, while the face, sides of the head, belly, and the lower parts of a Hereford's legs are of a striking white. Herefords are widely distributed west of the Mississippi River, and they are especially well suited to the great ranges in the West, where cattle are frequently subjected to great extremes of tem- perature while on scant feed. They make good beef cattle, but are not always satisfactory for dairy purposes. In weight they run next to the shorthorns. Sussex Cattle. The home of the Sussex cattle is in Sussex County, England, and they were first introduced into this country in 1884 by Mr. Overton Lea of Nashville, Tennessee. They are of a solid red color, have a blocky body, long thick hair, and thick beefy thighs. They resemble Herefords, but differ from them in color. The West Highland Cattle are natives of the high uplands of Scot- land and are said to have been brought to the United States about 1880. They are small cattle, weighing from 900 to 1200 pounds and are very hardy. They produce beef of a very fine quality and flavor. Simmenthal or Swiss Cattle. There are two distinct races of cattle found in Switzerland that deserve a brief mention here. One of these is the brown Swiss, and the other the Simmenthal or spotted breed. It is thought that this breed of cattle is very old. Some of the brown cattle are highly prized for dairy purposes. They were first in- troduced into the United States, in 1869, by Mr. H. M. Clark, of Belmont, Massachusetts. The Simmenthals are used mostly for beef. Brown Swiss cow. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 317 Native Cattle. These are cattle made up of mixed breeds and scrub cattle. When these are crossed with pure-bred or high grade cattle, sometimes a fair grade of beef cattle is produced. Dairy Breeds. Dairy cattle differ notably from beef cattle. Dairy breeds are small but have large stomachs, and wide udders with many large branching milk veins. The head is usually small, the mouth large, the neck long and muscular; the brisket is not so wide as in beef cattle, the chest does not have great thickness, the ribs are long and arched, the hips are somewhat prominent, the thighs are somewhat muscular, and the legs set square with the toes pointing directly forward. The principal dairy breeds are the Jersey, Guernsey, Ayrshire, Holstein-Friesian, Dutch belted, French Canadian, Kerry, and brown Swiss. The Jersey Cattle. The Jersey is a native of the island of Jersey in the English Channel. Its introduction into this country dates back to 1850, at Hart- ford, Connecticut. The Jersey has a fawn-like color, some being of a lemon or orange fawn, and others being a squirrel-gray fawn. The horns are some- what short and amber- colored with blackish tips. The Jerse} 7 ^ cows are celebrated for their milk and butter, and it is not unusual for a Jersey to produce five thousand pounds of milk and from four to eight hundred pounds of butter in a year. The Guernsey cattle originated on the islands of Guernsey and Alderney in the English Channel. They were introduced into the United States, in 1824, by Reuben Haines of Germantown, Penn- sylvania. They are larger than Jerseys and also much coarser. Their hair is of a yellowish or reddish fawn color, while the skin is of a pronounced yellow color. The udder is also larger than Jersey cow. 318 DOMESTIC ANIMALS Guernsey cow. that of the Jersey and shows more development in front. Guernseys are highly prized for milk and butter. Ayrshire Cattle. The native home of the Ayrshire is in the county of Ayr in the southwestern part of Scotland. They .are a hardy and thrifty class of cattle and were introduced into this country, in 1822, by H. W. Hills, at Windsor, Connecticut. They are of medium size and vary in color from red or brown to white. They rank high in quantity of milk, but it is only of average quality. They are especially adapted to short grass ranges. The Holstein-Friesian Cattle. These cattle are natives of Hol- land and they have an ancestry dating back a thousand years or more. They were brought to America by the early Dutch settlers of New York. They are large in body and have long lean heads, well-sprung ribs, prominent hips, and large U-shaped udders. In color the American varieties are generally white with black patches or black with white patches, while in Holland many breeds are found in which red and white are the color combinations in place of black and white. Ayrshire cow. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 319 The Holstein-Friesians lead all other breeds in the production of milk. An average cow will produce from seven thousand to nine thousand pounds of milk a year if given the right kind of care, while exceptional cows will give much larger amounts. The milk of the Holstein-Friesian cows contains only from three to four per cent of butter f at, but the large quantity given offsets the low grade of its quality so that it may be profitably used for butter making. The Dutch Belted Cattle. Like the Holstein-Friesians, the Dutch belted cattle are natives of Holland, and they were brought to New York, in 1838, by D. H. Haight of Goshen, New York. They are usually of a black color with a large belt of white extending like a blanket around the body. They are found present in New York, New Hamp- shire, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Missis- sippi, California, and Ohio. In size the Dutch belted cattle are much smaller than the Holstein-Friesians. Their yield in milk usually ranges from eight thousand to nine thousand pounds per year. The French Canadian. These cattle are supposed to be the descendants of cattle brought originally from Normandy and Brittany in France to the province of Quebec in Canada. They are very hardy and resemble -the Jersey. Their color is a solid black or black with a yellowish fawn stripe along the back. Their horns are generally white with black tips. Their milk is of a good quality, but it is not equal to that of the Jersey or the Guernsey. The Kerry. These cattle originated in the Kerry Mountains in the western part of Ireland. They are quite small and range in weight from five hundred to eight hundred pounds. In height Dutch belted cow. 320 DOMESTIC ANIMALS they seldom exceed forty inches. As a milk producer the Kerry ranks very high not only in quality but also in quantity. On ac- count of its ability to subsist on poor and scanty feed the Kerry is sometimes called the poor man's cow. Dairying. Milk is a model food which furnishes every element necessary for the nourishment of the body, and it is cheaper and more economical than the equivalent amount of any other kind of food. The chief dairy products are milk, cream, butter, and cheese. Besides these there are several important by-products, such as skim milk, buttermilk, and whey, which add to the profits of dairying. Formerly our entire supply of butter and cheese was made on the farm, but now these articles are furnished us from the creameries and factories. Much of the value of these articles will depend on the quality of the milk from which they are made. This is determined by sampling the milk and ascertaining the amount of butter fat present by means of a Babcock milk tester. The old method of separating the cream from the milk depended on the action of gravity. The milk was placed in a vessel of any kind and was cooled rapidly to a temperature of 60 F. and was left undisturbed from twenty-four to thirty-six hours. The fat globules, being lighter than the other constituents of the milk, rise to the top and form a layer of cream which may be skimmed off without difficulty. When this process is carried on in shallow pans, we have what is known as the shallow setting of cream. When the milk is placed in cans fifteen to twenty inches deep and set in vessels of water kept at a temperature of 40 or less for twelve to twenty-four hours, we have what is known as the deep- setting system. By the shallow-setting system only about 75 per cent of the butter fat is saved, while by the deep-setting system from 80 to 90 per cent of the butter fat is saved in the cream. In the centrifugal separator the milk is passed into a revolving bowl, where the skim milk, being the heavier, is forced towards the outside of the vessel, and the cream, being the lighter liquid, flows towards the center of the vessel. As the skim milk reaches the outer edge of the vessel it passes into openings of small tubes which convey it to an outer vessel. The cream passes into DOMESTIC ANIMALS 321 the opening of a small tube in the center of the revolving vessel, and is carried off in a constant stream to an outside receptacle. The centrifugal separator ordinarily should be able to remove about 98 per cent of the butter fat in the form of cream. After the cream is separated it is allowed to ripen before being churned, because butter made from fresh cream seems insipid and lacking in flavor. Under a tem- perature of 60 tjiis ripening will take place within twenty-four hours or less time. This change is effected through certain bacteria, Besides these beneficial bacteria there are often present many harmful forms of bacteria in milk when it is not properly cared for. In order to check the growth of harmful bacteria, extreme cleanli- ness should be practiced, and the milk should be cooled as rapidly as possible to a temperature of 50 or less. Sometimes it is found best to pasteurize the milk. This consists in heating the milk to a temperature of 160 F. for fifteen minutes and then rapidly cooling it to a temperature of 50 F. This destroys many of the bacteria especially those that are harmful. After the proper ripening of the cream, it should be churned as soon as possible. The proper temperature of the cream for churning is 50 to 54 F. in the summer and from 54 to 58 F. in the winter. When the butter granules have reached the size of large grains of wheat, the churning should be stopped. Then the butter should be washed, salted, thoroughly worked, molded, and packed for market. In judging butter and estimating its excellence the student should consider the following points: flavor, texture, color, the salting, and lastly the molding and packing. If possible, send to PRAC. AGRICUL. 21 Centrifugal separator. 322 DOMESTIC ANIMALS the Director of the Experiment Station in your State and obtain from him the score card used for judging butter in the Dairy Department. Then secure samples of butter and grade them in accordance with the score card used in your State. HOGS Our common hogs are the descendants of the wild hogs of Europe, Asia, and Africa which have been improved under the influence of proper selection and careful handling. They bring in as a rule a better profit on feeding than any other class of farm animals, while the amount required to be invested is smaller than that for most animals. The principal breeds are as follows: 1. Small Breeds: 2. Medium Breeds. Berkshires Poland China Duroc Jersey Cheshire Victoria Suffolk Essex Small Yorkshire 3. Large Breeds: Chester White Improved Yorkshire Tamworth Small Breeds. The Victoria is the outgrowth of the combined blood of the Poland China, Berkshire, Chester White, and Suffolk under the influence of careful selection. The head is moder- ately broad, ear of medium size, body broad and deep, while the shoulders and hams carry a considerable thick- ness. The American Suffolk Hog is of white color and is probably a descendant of the small Yorkshire. It has a small head, dished face, small snout, fine jowl, short- thin ears, short thick neck, wide and deep chest, ribs .well arched, broad level back, and well-filled flanks. It is found mainly in the Mississippi Valley. Texas razor back hog. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 323 The Essex is a native of Essex County, England, and was brought to America about 1820. It is of a black color and has a short head, slightly dished face, broad forehead, small fine ears, broad jowl, short neck, broad back, thickly fleshed shoulders, heavy set hams, and short legs. The Essex is a good feeder and its meat is of a fine flavor. It is found in Texas, Nebraska, and the Missis- sippi Valley. The Small Yorkshire was developed in Yorkshire, England, and is known there as the small white, but its exact ancestry is not known. It was first brought to the United States about 1860. Some of its characteristic features are fineness of bone, quantity and quality of hair, shortness of snout, and aptitude for fattening. Another peculiarity is the occurrence occasionally of black spots on the skin. This breed is found in New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and the Middle West. They fatten readily on grass, but do not make large gains. Medium Breeds. The Berkshire is a native of England and is the outgrowth of crosses on the native stock with Chinese, Siamese, and Neapolitan stock. They mature early, and are easy to fatten. They have a gracefully dished face, thin erect ears, the jowl moderately full, shoulders of medium thickness, and hams some- what deep and thick. They are generally black with a white streak in the face, four white feet and more or less of white on the tail, making up the six white points re- quired for recogni- tion of the breed. Some of the pure- bred Berkshires command fancy prices ranging from $500 to $3000. The Poland China Hog originated in Butler and Warren counties in south- western Ohio. The head is of medium length and the face Poland China hog. 324 DOMESTIC ANIMALS is straight. The cheeks are round and the ears are fine and break over at the upper third and form a droop, the neck is short and thick, the shoulders stand up well, the back has a long gradual arch, while the hind quarters are characterized with a heavy growth of flesh. This breed is a decided black, but has white feet, white tail, and white face. These hogs are raised widely throughout the corn-growing States and com- mand high prices Duroc Jersey hog. Qn the market The Duroc Jersey. This breed of hogs is the result of the amalgamation of the Jersey red and the Duroc red and possibly of the old Sandy, all colored Berkshires. The Duroc Jerseys are of light or dark red color, and they have medium or small head, face either straight or slightly dished, drooping ears, great depth of body, short legs, and heavy thick shoulders and hams. They are good grazers and feeders, but seem to thrive the best in the corn-growing belt; they also give satisfactory results in the South. The Cheshire is a native of Jefferson County, New York, and its origin dates back to about 1855. It has a face only slightly dished, and small fine ears that point forward, a wide and slightly arched back, and thick shoulders and hams. The flesh is fine- Chester white hog. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 325 grained and is juicy and tender. In color both skin and hair are white. Experiments show that they gain more rapidly than other breeds of hogs, but they require much more food. Large Breeds. The Chester White Hogs take their name from Chester County, Pennsylvania, where they first became prominent. Their color is pure white, and the head is short and slightly dished. The Chester whites have large compact bodies, with thick, heavy, drooping ears. They often weigh one thousand pounds or more. They rank high as feeders and command good prices. Improved Yorkshire. The modernizing of the old large York- shire began about the middle of the nineteenth century. The improved Yorkshire has a medium long head with but little up- ward curve, heavy drooping ears, good-sized hams, white hair, and pink skin. They are generally very large and weights of twelve hundred are not uncommon. The Tamworths. -This breed came originally from the counties of Staf- ford , Warwick , Lei- cester, and North- Tamworth hog. ampton in England, and it dates back to the time of Sir Robert Peel in 1812. Their introduction into the United States dates from 1882, when they were imported by Mr. Thomas Bennett of Rossville, Illinois. They have golden red hair and are extremely long in head, legs, and body. Their ears are large and erect, their backs narrow and long, and their sides long and deep. They are fairly good feeders and rank high as grazing hogs or rustlers. They are highly esteemed for bacon. SHEEP Sheep were probably domesticated at a very early period in the history of man. They are found in practically every part of the world, and in many parts of the United States and Australia sheep 326 DOMESTIC ANIMALS raising is a very important industry. They are raised for their wool and mutton in this country, and also in Europe, Australia, and Asia. They are usually classified according to the fineness of their wool as follows: 1. Fine-wooled Breeds : American Merino Delaine Merino Rambouillets 2. Medium-wooled 3. Long-wooled Breeds : Breeds : Southdown Leicester Shropshire Lincoln Horned Dorset Cotswold Hampshire Down Oxford Down Cheviot Fine-wooled Breeds. The American Merino is a descendant of the Spanish merino. The first merinos are said to have been brought to the United States, in 1793, by William Foster of Boston, Massachusetts. It has large wrinkles on its neck and body and has a very fine wool of a lustrous white color. It is not valued highly as mutton. The Delaine is a development of the merinos. De- laines are some- what larger and their bodies are freer from wrin- kles, and they usu- ally have polled heads, but if horns are present they are small. The Rambouillets come from the northern part of France, not far from Paris, and they are sometimes called the French merinos. They are the descendants of Spanish merinos taken by M. Gilbert French merino. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 327 from Spain to France in 1786. The French merinos were brought to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1840. They have large bodies and the wool is very compact and very long, often being inches They Southdown. over three in length. mature early and are very hardy. The medium- wooled breeds are sometimes classed as mutton sheep, since their flesh is prized more highly than their wool. The Southdowns are natives of Sus- sex County, England. They are rather small, have short wool, and are hornless. v They are good feeders and mature early, and their flesh is of fine flavor. Their use in America datesback to colonial times. The Shropshires came originally from Staffordshire and Shropshire, England, and were first brought to the United States by Samuel Sutton of Maryland, in 1860. They are larger Shropshire. than the South- downs and they have faces, ears, and legs that are generally of a dark brown color. They rank well as wool producers and general-purpose sheep. 328 DOMESTIC ANIMALS The Horned Dorsets are natives of Somerset, Wilts, and Dor- set counties in England, but their introduction in this country dates back only to 1885. They are larger than the Southdowns, and both the males and females have curv- ing horns. Their faces, legs, and hoofs are white. Another one of their striking features is a short foretop of wool. The Hampshire Downs. The na- Hampshire Down. t i ve home of the Hampshire Downs is in Hampshire County, England, and they were brought to New York in 1855 by Thomas Messenger. They are larger and coarser than the Shropshires. The head is of a dark brown color, while the lips and nostrils are black, and the ears are of a dark mouse color. They also generally have a pronounced Ro- man nose. They mature early, fat- ten rapidly, and are good grazers. The Oxford Downs Oxford Down - are natives of Oxford County, England, and were first brought to Delaware, in 1846, by Clayton Reybold. They resemble the DOMESTIC ANIMALS 329 Shropshire, but are of a lighter brown and have less wool on the forehead. The Oxford Downs are large and heavy and are good wool producers. They are good feeders and are quite prolific. The Cheviot. The home of the Cheviots is in the hills in the border country between England and Scotland, and they were brought to the United States, in 1838, by Robert Youngs of Delhi, New York. They have polled heads covered with short, fine, white hair. The lips and nostrils are black, or nearly so, while the ears and legs are white and comparatively free from wool. The Cheviot compares favorably with the Shropshire in size, and it ranks high as a mutton producer. Its wool is used for making cheviot cloth. The Cheviot breed is very hardy and very prolific. Long-wooled Breeds. The Leicester sheep are natives of Leices- ter County, Eng- land, and their in- troduction into this country dates back as early as 1800. They are somewhat large, and have long wool of white color. The head is covered with soft, white hair, the face is of medium length, the neck is short, the legs are long, and the breast is quite prominent. The Leicesters produce an excellent grade of long wool, but they rank low as mutton producers. The Lincoln Breed. The home of the Lincoln breed is in Lincoln County, England, and the introduction of these sheep into the United States took place over a century ago. The Lincoln sheep are white, and they have large hornless heads, large broad ears, broad level back, and firm flesh. They have Lincoln. 330 DOMESTIC ANIMALS long and somewhat coarse wool, out as mutton producers they do not rank high. The Cotswolds are natives of the Cotswold Hills of Gloucester County, England, and they were brought to Albany, New York, in 1832. They generally have polled white heads with curls or locks extending almost to their nostrils. -Their fleece occurs in some- what large locks or curls. They rank high as wool producers, but are regarded as ordinary for mutton purposes. They are both good feeders and grazers. Other long-wooled breeds are the Kent, of Kent County and the Romney Marsh, in England, and the Black-faced Highland of Scotland. GOATS Large herds of goats are not often seen in the United States. They are distributed chiefly in the North Central States, and in Maryland,' Massachusetts, and New York. They may be divided into the following classes : 1. Fleece Breeds 2. Milk Breeds The Angora The Maltese The Cashmere The Toggenburg The Saanen The Appenzell The Schwarzthal The Langensalzer The Nubian The Fleece Breeds. The Angora is a native of Angora in Asia Minor, and they were first brought to the United States in 1849. From the fleece of the Angora goat is prepared the mohair cloth of commerce. The Cashmere goal is a native of Cashmere, Thibet, and the adjacent countries. The costly cashmere shawls and other genuine cashmere goods are made from the fleece of these goats. The Milk Breeds. Among some of the poorer classes of people of Europe and Asia, goats are valued highly for their milk. The Maltese goat is a native of the island of Malta, where there are DOMESTIC ANIMALS 331 no less than thirty thousand of them. The Toggenburg goat is of a medium brown color and is a native of the Toggenburg Valley in Switzerland. The white Saanen goat, the Appenzell goat, and the Schwarzthal goat are also natives of Switzerland. The Langensalzers are natives of Thuringia and central Germany, while the Nubian goats are found in Nubia, Abyssinia, Upper Egypt, and South Africa. POULTRY The ordinary farm fowls, chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese, are the descendants of wild fowls which have been domesticated and changed under the care of man. Chickens. The principal varieties of chicken breeds are as follows : I. Meat Breeds 1. Brahma Light Buff Dark n , . Black 2. Cochin { . , ., Partridge White 3. Langshan 4. Cornish Indian Game II. Egg Breeds 1. Leghorn 2. Minorca 3. Red Cap 4. Spanish III. General Purpose Breeds 1. Plymouth Rock 2. Orpington 3. Wyandotte 4. Java 5. Dominique 6. Rhode Island Red 7. Dorking 8. Indian Game IV. Fancy Breeds 1. Bantam 2. Game 3. Polish 4. Sultan Care of Chickens. Arrange the chicken yard so that the chick- ens may have plenty of sunshine. Give them a place where they can have plenty of dust to dust in and straw to scratch in whenever they feel so inclined. The chicken house should be warm, but prop- erly ventilated. The inside of the house should be whitewashed frequently, and an occasional sprinkling with coal oil will also be found advisable. In addition to whatever dry feed may be DOMESTIC ANIMALS given chickens, they should have some green food. Scraps of meat and other articles from the table will also be found valuable for chicken feed. Also see that your chick- ens have plenty of pure water. Turkeys. Our modern turkeys are the descendants of wild turkeys which have been domesticated. Many wild turkeys are still to be found in some parts of the United States. The chief varieties are the Mammoth Bronze, a large-bodied bird, with flesh of fine and superior flavor ; and the White Holland Turkeys, a hardy breed of German origin. Ducks are usually found profitable on the farm. The principal breeds are Barred Plymouth Rock pullet. the Pekm, valued for its meat and feathers; the Rouen, a duck of beautiful plumage, the Cayuga, with jet-black plumage ; and the White Aylesburg, of English origin. Pekin ducks. Silver-penciled Wyandotte. Red Cochin. White Leghorns. White Plymouth Rock. Buff Plymouth Rock. 334 DOMESTIC ANIMALS Geese. Goose raising is very profitable, as the geese need no grain or dry food in the summer when they can have plenty of grass to feed on. * The most popular varieties are the Toulouse and the Embdens. The Toulouse came originally from the City of Toulouse in southern France. They are of a uniform gray color and grow to a large size, many of them weighing as high as forty to fifty pounds. They require but little feeding and live to be thirty years of age. The Embden geese are about the same size as the Toulouse, but they are of a pure white color. Their feathers are of the best, and they will average at least half a pound of feathers at a picking. Both Toulouse and Embden geese will average about four pick- ings a season. Geese are sometimes eaten, but they are valued principally for their feathers. Guinea Fowls. Guinea fowls are of a somewhat wild dispo- sition and thrive best when allowed a great deal of range. They are usually of a beautiful blue-gray plumage and of medium size. They are very fond of bugs and worms and destroy a great many of them. Their flesh is of a fine flavor, and their eggs are always in demand for culinary purposes. Peafowls. These fowls are raised for ornamental purposes and are not valued for table purposes. Their long tail feathers are of striking colors and are beautifully marked. Sometimes these feathers are utilized for making fly brushes. The Ostrich. Ostriches are birds of large size and many of them are from six to eight feet high. Their wings are of small size and are incapable of being used for flight. Their legs are of great size and strength. Ostriches are valued chiefly for the fine plumes which they bear. These are used for making feather boas and for trimming ladies' hats, and for other millinery purposes. On account of their cost and the difficulty of caring for them, but few ostriches are raised in this country. They are raised principally in Arizona and California. A large ostrich farm is maintained at Phoenix, Arizona, and another large one at Pasadena, California. DOMESTIC ANIMALS 335 ANIMALS VALUED AS PETS Besides the animals just described there is another class valued principally as pets or companions. This list includes dogs, cats, squirrels, rabbits, guinea pigs, song birds, etc. Dogs. These animals have been the companions of man from the earliest times and have always been highly esteemed. The leading varieties are the shepherd dog, the bull dog, the mastiff, the St. Bernard, the Newfoundland, the pointer, the Scotch collie, the English setter, the Irish setter, the retriever, the Italian greyhound, the deerhound, English foxhound, the field spaniel, the terriers, the Chinese chow chow, the French poodle, and others. Cats. The domestication of the cat took place at a very early period, and mention of its first connection with man is found in the ancient monuments of Egypt, Babylon, and Nineveh. Among the Egyptians, cats were worshiped as sacred animals and they were inmates of certain temples. The principal long-haired cats include the Angora, Persian, Chi- nese, and Indian families of cats. Other prominent breeds are the Maltese, the royal cat of Siam, the Manx cat, and the common short-haired or western cat of various shades and colors. Squirrels. The common red squirrel and the gray squirrel if captured while young and reared by hand become quite tame and gentle. Rabbits. European rabbits, of which there are many breeds, and Belgian hares, are raised as pets for children. Guinea Pigs. These animals are small rodents or gnawing animals, and their native country is Brazil. They are of various colors and are about the size of a large rat, but their bodies are shorter and more blocky. BEES In many parts of our country bee keeping may be made a very profitable side line in farming. Especially is this true where there is an abundance of honey-yielding blossoms. White, clover, Alsike clover, sweet clover, alfalfa, Spanish needle, bass- wood, raspberry, sourwood, white sage, aster, blueberry, horse mint, wild pennyroyal, black mangrove, holly, poplar, chestnut, 336 DOMESTIC ANIMALS magnolia, buckwheat, vetch, catnip, and many other plants of like nature furnish flowers which are utilized by bees in making honey. Breeds. The principal breeds besides the common black and common brown bees are the Carniolans, Caucasians, Italians, Cyprians, and the Syrians. The black bees are spiteful and less able to protect themselves against enemies than other breeds. They are also less industri- ous and produce less honey. The Carniolans are hardy and very in- dustrious. They were brought to this coun- try in 1884 from Car- niola, Austria. They are quite prolific and breed well in the coldest of climates. They produce a great deal of honey and their honeycomb is snowy white. They are not spiteful and may be handled easily. The Caucasians were brought to the United States by the Department of Agriculture, and bid fair to become one of our most popular breeds. They are very gentle and kindly disposed, so that they may be handled with impunity. They work industriously and produce a large quan- tity of high grade honey. The Italian bees are good workers, but they are not so easily managed as the Caucasians and the Carniolans. Their introduction into Honeycomb. this country dates back to 1860, and since then they have gradually spread over a large part of the United States. The Cyprian bees are very hardy, vigorous fighters against enemies, and they produce a great deal of honey. They are DOMESTIC ANIMALS 337 somewhat spiteful when aroused and must be handled with care. The Syrians are very much like the Cyprians. They are hardy and vigorous and produce a great deal of honey. The Bee Colony. Bees live together in colonies and make their homes in hives prepared for them. These hives are usually made in two parts, the lower part being designated as the bee stand and the upper part as the cap. The stand has a small opening at the bottom sufficiently large to admit only a few bees at a time. At the top of the bee stand is another opening of moderate size for the admission of the bees to the cap. Both sections of the hive are fitted with comb racks for the support and attachment of the honeycomb. Each hive should be placed on a small platform and in a sheltered place where it will escape the violence of the wind and storms. Wild bees use hollow trees and crevices in rocks as places in which to make their homes. Their first energies are devoted to the making of comb, and later this is filled with honey. Sometimes bee keepers assist bees Drone. Worker. Queen. Honey bees. in this work by providing them with an artificial comb so that the bees may spend all their time in making honey. Natural honey- comb when not removed from time to time gradually grows dark or yellowish brown. In the early part of the year each hive will be found to contain three classes of individuals: (1) the workers; (2) the drones; and (3) the queen. Each colony will contain one full-grown queen, a few hundred drones, and from forty to fifty thousand workers. The Workers. The working bees are females and are the smallest in the hive. On them falls all the work incident to keeping up the hive. They make the comb, the honey, the beebread, and care for the young bees while in the form of larvae. The bee cells PRAC. AGRICUL. 22 338 DOMESTIC ANIMALS are of various sizes, and they are somewhat hexagonal in form. Some are made for holding the eggs which the queen lays, and some for holding honey. In the young bee cells there is also placed the beebread, which is a pasty mass made by the workers from the pollen gathered from flowers. The young bees hatch out and remain in the form of grubs or larvse for approximately three weeks, when they change their form and become perfect or adult bees. About two weeks later they take to their wings and go out to the field to begin their labors. On account of their strenuous habits the workers live only a few months, but other young bees come on and take their places. Each worker is armed with a sting which she does not hesitate to use when necessary. Since the workers are sterile they are sometimes erroneously called neuters. The Drones. The drones are the male bees of the hive and are somewhat larger than the workers. They gather no honey and have no sting. In the fall they are driven out of the hive by the workers, when they starve to death or fall a prey to insect-eating animals. If they attempt to return to the hive, the workers sting them to death. The Queen. The queen is mother of the colony, and there is only one to each hive. When the workers desire to produce a queen they usually form a vertical cell and place in it an ordinary worker egg and feed the larva or young bee on a special kind of food known as royal jelly. The queen may be distinguished from the other bees by her long, slender body. A queen bee is very prolific and often lays as many as four thousand eggs in a single day. Swarming. As soon as a new queen is produced, the old queen often leaves the hive and a considerable number of bees accompany her. They settle on a tree or some other object that may be convenient. The limb on which the swarm has gathered may be sawed off and the bees shaken down into a new hive. If other queens are produced, another swarm will follow the second queen from the hive as soon as the third queen is produced. Finally, when the hive has been sufficiently reduced in numbers, the workers after accepting a new queen destroy the remaining queen cells, and the ruling queen seeks out the young queens and destroys them by stinging them to death. The queen usually begins to lay her DOMESTIC ANIMALS 339 eggs in midwinter or very early in the spring, and in consequence many new bees come out of their cells every day, during the warm season, and thus the stock of the hive is kept replenished. The queen lays her eggs in three distinct classes of cells, the smallest cells producing the workers, and the next larger horizontal cells producing the drones, and the long vertical cells on the edge of the comb producing the queens. The kind of food fed to each cell also helps to determine the kind of individual that will be developed. Care of Bees. The enemies of bees are toads, lizards, and spiders, and the hives must be so constructed that the bees will be protected against their attacks as much as possible. The kingbird and swallow probably attack and eat only the drones. Other enemies that must be guarded against are moths and mice. Mice may be kept out by lining the entrance with tin. In taking honey from the hives care should be taken not to leave any honey lying about to attract robber bees or other enemies. QUESTIONS 1. Name the different classes of domestic animals. 2. Discuss the origin of the horse. 3. Name the four classes of horses. 4. Discuss the breeds suitable for draft purposes. 5. Describe the coach horses. 6. Discuss the speed horses. 7. What is said of pony breeds? 8. Discuss mules. 9. Give a brief history of the development of domestic cattle. 10. Name some of the uses of cattle. 11. Name and discuss the beef breeds. 12. (a) Name and discuss the dairy breeds. (6) Discuss dairving, (c) Describe the separator, (d) Discuss butter making, etc. 13. Name the principal classes of hogs. 14. Discuss the small breeds. 15. What is said of the medium breeds? 16. Discuss the large breeds. 17. Name and discuss the fine-wooled breeds of sheep. 18. Discuss the medium-wooled breeds. 19. What is said of the long-wooled breeds? 20. What is said of goats and their uses ? 21. Name (a) the meat breeds of chickens, (6) the egg breeds. 22. Name (a) the general purpose breeds, (6) the fancy breeds. 340 DOMESTIC ANIMALS 23. What is said of turkeys ? 24. Discuss ducks and geese. 25. Discuss (a) guinea fowls, (6) peafowls. 26. Give a brief discussion of the animals valued as pets. 27. What is said of beekeeping ? 28. Describe (a) the Carniolans, (6) the Caucasians. 29. Discuss (a) the Italian bees, (6) the Cyprians, (c) the Syrians. 30. Discuss the colony life of bees. 31. Describe (a) the workers, (6) the drones, (c) the queen. 32. Discuss swarming. 33. Discuss the care of bees. REFERENCES Domestic Animals, R. L. Allen. Types and Breeds of Farm Animals, Charles S. Plumb. The Horse, Isaac Phillips Roberts. American Cattle, Lewis F. Allen. The Wild Cattle of Great Britain, Rev. John Storer. The Shepherd's Manual, Henry Stewart. Information concerning the Milch Goat, G. F. Thompson. A Manual of Angora Goat Raising, G. F. Thompson. The Hog Industry, George M. Rommel. Standard Varieties of Chickens, Farmers' Bulletin No. 51. Ducks and Geese, Farmers' Bulletin No. 64. Turkeys, Farmers' Bulletin No. 200. XLV. COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES A GREAT deal of attention has been given to the study of country life and its problems. Much thought has been given to the ways and means of improving country life and making it more attractive ; and while much has been learned through the investigations and the report of the National Commission on Country Life appointed by President Roosevelt, only a beginning has been made, and the greater part of the work still lies before us. The absence of the necessary farm and home conveniences, the strenuous life continually demanded, the general lack of proper ideals, and the pioneer conditions existing in many communities are responsible in a measure for the general disposition of our young people to migrate from the farm to the towns and large centers of population, where there are greater opportunities for enjoyment and improvement. In attempting to overcome this evil and to better country life and its social conditions our energies should be directed to the establishment of: (1) better homes with modern conveniences; (2) consolidated rural schools; (3) community improvement clubs; (4) rural mail routes; (5) parcels post; (6) postal savings banks; (7) rural telephones; (8) interurban car lines; (9) United States Weather Service; (10) local and county institutes. Better Homes. The drudgery of housekeeping will be consider- ably lightened if the kitchen is supplied with a good cooking range and running water. The rinse water from the kitchen sink should be conducted through a long drainpipe so that it will be emptied at some distance from the house. Every precaution should be taken to prevent the water in the well or the cistern from being contaminated by drainage from surface water and other sources of impurities. All rain water before being used should be passed through a good charcoal filter. As an additional precaution it will be found advisable to have a porous brick partition or wall extending through the center of the cistern and arranged so that the water will filter through it before being used. 341 342 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES Consolidated Rural Schools. One of the greatest needs is for better schools. In many States the mistake has been made of creating too many small school districts so that only a short term* of school is possible. A remedy for such a condition lies in con- solidation of two or more of such districts, and maintaining a graded school at some convenient central point in the consolidated district, and providing transportation for the pupils at the ex- pense of the district. This plan relieves the children from the necessity of trudging through the snow and mud. Special wagons are now made for this purpose having curtains, lap robes, and A modern country schoolhouse- everything else necessary for the protection of the children in cold weather. In some States township graded schools are maintained and have been found very satisfactory. Occasionally small pri- mary schools are maintained in some parts of the consolidated district for the benefit of the very small children. Not only should the course of instruction given be carefully graded, but it should be especially arranged with reference to the needs of country life. According to Superintendent O. J. Kern of Winnebago County, Illinois, the consolidated country school offers the following advantages over the average country school: COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 343 " 1. There will result the inspiration and interest that always come from numbers. " 2. Stronger classes will be thus formed, giving the teacher more time for the recitation and for the necessary instruction. " 3. There will be better trained teachers for the country chil- dren, and these teachers will command and receive better salaries. " 4. There will result greater economy in school buildings and equipment. "5. The school year of the country child will be lengthened and high school privileges may be afforded him. " 6. Such a school will afford time and opportunity for system- atic instruction in the elementary principles of agriculture and domestic science throughout the grades. " 7. Consolidation will help to bring better roads." Class in agriculture, Weatherford, Okla. The first State to take a stand in favor of consolidated school districts was Massachusetts in 1869, and since then the following states have also made provisions for consolidation of country schools: Connecticut, California, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas/ Maine, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, 344 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wisconsin. Community Improvement Clubs. The progressive people of every community should organize a club to sustain the same business relationship to the community as exists between a city and its commercial club. The community improvement club should encourage the establishment of good schools and good school environments, and should also furnish for the community Class in agriculture, Weatherford, Okla., destroying infected branches. lectures, entertainments, and instructive amusements. The build- ing of good roads, the establishment of churches, libraries, reading rooms, and many other things of like nature that are necessary for the general welfare of the community, should receive the atten- tion of the club. Such an organization when properly managed can be made a power for good in any community. Rural Mail Routes. Formerly the farmer had to go to town or to some village in order to get his mail, and generally this necessitated a trip of several miles and meant a considerable loss of time. Under such conditions it was impossible to secure COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 345 daily newspapers, and but few letters were written. To remedy this situation the first step was taken by the establishment of the first rural free delivery route at Charleston, West Va., in 1896. This was undertaken as an experiment, but such a generous response was given it by the people that the postal authorities decided to make it a permanent feature of the postal service. In 1897 there were .83 carriers maintained at an approximate expense of $15,000, while in 1908 there were 39,339 carriers, necessitating an Class in corn judging, Weatherford, Okla. expense of about $35,573,000. Rural delivery is now established on about 1,000,000 miles of roads throughout the country and has a patronage of nearly 20,000,000 people. Rural mail service has done much to improve conditions in the country, and the possibilities of the good it may accomplish in the future are vast. When the people of any locality desire to have a rural route established, the heads of families living along the line of the pro- posed route sign a petition which is filed with the Fourth Assistant Postmaster-general. An inspector is then sent out to look over 346 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES the proposed route; and if the conditions are favorable, an order is finally issued for its establishment. The regulations of the Post- office Department require that the roads be in good condition and that there shall be a possible patronage of one hundred families for every twenty-four miles of the route. The postmaster at the distributing office is also required to certify that not less than three fourths of the possible patrons have provided the form of mail boxes approved by the Post-office Department. The Parcels Post. For some time the postal authorities have been urging the establishment of a limited parcels post to be con- fined entirely to rural delivery routes. To protect the small dealers it is proposed that no merchant or dealer not a bona fide resident of the town in which the distributing post office is located or on the rural route shall be permitted to have goods delivered at the proposed special rate, and packages shall not be accepted from any person acting as agent for a concern located outside of the delivery limits of the rural routes. Postmaster-general Meyer, in speaking of the proposed service, says: " The special local parcels service will enable the farmers to have small parcels delivered at their gates, to live better, and to obtain easily the necessaries of life. The increased consumption will in turn increase the business of the local merchant, and benefit the jobber by the additional orders transmitted through the commercial traveler." In all countries where a parcels post service has been in operation it has been found very satisfactory and popular, besides being a source of large revenue to the Post-office Department. Postal Savings Banks. In 1908 the United States Comptroller of the Currency reported that there were more than three and a half billion of dollars on deposit in the various private savings banks of the United States. For the same period it was estimated that there were fully half a billion of dollars not placed in any bank, due to a want of opportunity or lack of confidence. In all, then, we have about four billion of dollars that might be placed in postal savings banks if such institutions should be organized. One of the plans proposed is that the national banks are to pay not less than 2\ per cent for the deposits, the government in turn to pay the depositors 2 per cent, retaining one fourth of I per cent in order that the system may be self-sustaining. COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 347 In speaking of the desirability of postal savings banks Postmas- ter-general Meyer says: '" Postal savings banks would foster thrift and increase the habit of saving in many States and localities where opportunities for depositing savings do not now exist, and would in the end serve as feeders to the regular stock and mutual savings banks, where greater returns would be received. Thus they would be a real benefit not only to the people, but also to the existing financial institutions. Practically all the leading nations, with the exception of the United States, have postal savings banks in successful operation. No one can justly say they are not needed in the United States, with its vast sections unequipped with facilities for the deposit of savings." Rural Telephones. The greatest boon of recent years to the farmer and to the rural districts has been the rural telephone. No longer is it necessary for the farmer to spend several days and travel several miles to secure help that he may need when he is ready to harvest or thrash his grain, since all these matters now may be arranged in a few minutes by the use of the telephone. The doctor can be called without the necessity of a long trip, and in cases of serious accident many valuable lives may be saved that otherwise would not be possible. The long distance telephone enables the farmer to call up the supply house or factory and secure small supplies or "repairs without loss of time. When the self- binder or the thrasher breaks down, the -loss of a few days' time may mean the loss of much valuable grain, especially when the weather is unsettled. On many rural telephone lines the weather reports are sent out at noon and market reports are sent out at six o'clock to all those who care to receive them. Through the use of the rural lines farmers' wives no longer feel the effect of isolation when they live long distances apart, since they can now chat with each other over the telephone and learn the latest items of news. It also enables them to arrange for social gatherings. The Interurban Car. Thus far the steam railroads have offered no special advantages to the farmers because the trains are not frequent enough and generally they are too far away. But the interurban trolley car has been found a very satisfactory and 348 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES convenient mode of transportation for rural residents who wish to spend a few hours in the city and return the same day or night. It also affords a chance for the rapid delivery of express and light packages of freight. Likewise it can be used to good advantage for the rapid delivery of mail between the villages and towns along the route of the interurban trolley line. By means of the telephone the farmer can order repairs for broken machinery or other necessary articles and have them delivered frequently in the course of a few hours. If there is some lecture or entertainment in the city which he and his family wish to attend, it is a very easy matter to telephone for the tickets a day or two in advance without the necessity of having to make a trip for that purpose. Then through the services of the interurban trolley line it is possible for him and his family to visit the city in the after- noon, attend an entertainment in the evening, and return home the same night. Interurban car lines have generally been success- ful wherever tried, and farmers have always accorded them a liberal patronage from the very start. The United States Weather Service. Provision for daily weather reports was first made in 1870 in connection with the KEY TO COLORS ->[] WHITE gJBLUE (BLACK Weather service flags. signal service of the army; but about 1890 this feature was made a part of the work of the Department of Agriculture. The forecasts, which are prepared daily at the central office in Washington, D.C., and certain designated stations, are telegraphed to all stations of the Weather Bureau, railway officials, postmas- ters, and voluntary observers generally in time to be received between ten o'clock and noon of each day; These reports are sent out by means of rural telephones, by bulletins transmitted by rural mail service, by means of signal flags of certain designs and COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 349 colors, and by steam whistles, blown sufficiently strong to be heard some distance away. The flags used for this purpose are as follows : No. 1. White flag indicates clear and fair weather. No. 2. Blue flag signifies rain or snow. No. 3. White and blue flag indicate local rain or snow- No. 4. Black triangular flag is a temperature signal. No. 5. White with black square in the center indicates that a cold wave is expected. When No. 4 is placed above Nos. 1, 2, or 3, warmer weather is expected; when placed below these signals, colder weather is expected; and when not displayed, stationary temperature is anticipated. Whistle Signals. The whistle signals are as follows: Warning blast blown. from fifteen to twenty seconds to attract attention. One long blast for fair weather. Two long blasts for rain or snow. Three long blasts for local rain or snow. One short blast for lower temperature. Two short blasts for higher temperature. Three short blasts for a cold wave. The long blasts are blown from four to six seconds, while the short blasts are blown from one to three seconds. Wind and Storm Signals. A red flag with a black center fore- casts a storm of great force and violence. Two such flags displayed KEY TO COLORS BLACK Wind and storm signals. one above the other indicate a tropical hurricane or a very severe, dangerous storm. A red pennant signifies that easterly winds are expected, while a white pennant indicates westerly winds. When 350 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES either of these pennants is placed above other flags, it signifies that the wind will likely blow from the northern quadrants; but when placed below, the wind is expected to come from the south- ern quadrants. Local and County Institutes. Institute lectures for farmers were inaugurated by the New York Agricultural Society as early as 1842, and ten years later Massachusetts took the initial steps Class in home economics, Mills College. looking to the establishment of farmers' institutes. Since then the idea has been thoroughly worked out and the movement has extended to every State. According to Professor Bailey: "The function of the institute is to educate people on their own ground. It is a phase of extension work that carries education directly to the localities in which the people live. It deals less with individual men on their farms than with small communities or groups of men; it therefore has the opportunity to exert great influence in developing the social life of rural neighborhoods. Institute education should stimulate initia- tive and develop incentive in the locality and set forth the best community ideals." COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 351 The work of the institute may be accomplished (1) through pop- ular lectures delivered by instructors from the Agricultural and Mechanical College in each State or by special agricultural experts sent out by the national government; (2) by means of object teach- ing and practical demonstrations; (3) by stationing special expert teachers in certain localities; (4) by offering short courses of in- struction from two to four weeks in length at some central or con- venient point on agri- cultural topics; (5) by holding a general State meeting once a year at the capital of the State or at the seat of the State Agricultural and Mechanical College. The institute work is generally placed under the direction and control of the State Board of Agri- culture or the Agricul- tural and Mechanical College in each State. In some cases a special organizer or conductor of farmers' institutes i<3 pmnlnvprl Vv fVa Dinner table, set by class in household economics, New Mexico Agricultural and Mechanical College. State, whose duty it is to lecture to the farmers and organize district and county institutes. After the work is organized the cooperation of the county superintendent of schools and the practical farmers of the county should be secured. Whenever possible, arrangements should be made to have lectures given by the instructors of the Agricultural and Mechanical College. But the work should not ' stop with the farmers. The wives of the farmers may be reached and made to take an interest in the institute move- 352 COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES ment by the formation of cooking clubs and sewing clubs. The school children can be brought into line and interested in agri- culture through the organization of boys' and girls' experiment clubs. Mr. John Hamilton, Farmers' Institute Specialist of the United States Department of Agriculture, says: " I now think that the farmers' institute movement must take hold of the country boy and the country girl. We have been deal- ing with the fathers and mothers thus far, which was a necessity until the value of the institute was demonstrated; but we have come now, in my opinion, to a time in which it will be possible for us, in many States, to go a step farther and take hold of the young people who are living on the farm." There is no better way to reach the country boy and country girl than through the organization of experiment or contest clubs. The contests for the boys may include work in manual training, grain growing, gardening and stock raising; while tho work for the girls may include light gardening, raising of poultry, domestic science, and sewing. The interest in this part of the work can be greatly increased by offering suitable prizes at the State and county fairs for the best exhibits made by the members of the respective con- test clubs. Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, Illinois, Iowa, Wis- consin, and several other States have organized boys' and girls' experiment clubs and have demonstrated beyond question their popularity and general worth. The farmers' institute movement in some form has now extended to every State, and the general interest in the work is increasing. QUESTIONS 1. What seems to be responsible for the tendency of our young people to migrate from the farm to the city ? 2. Discuss the arrangement of the kitchen in a farm home. 3. Discuss the arrangement of the cistern and the water supply. 4. What means of illumination are at the farmers' disposal ? 5. What would you recommend in the way of furniture and home furnishings ? 6. Discuss the need of better schools in the country. 7. Discuss the formation of consolidated school districts and graded schools. 8. Enumerate the advantages consolidated schools have over the average school. COUNTRY LIFE CONVENIENCES 353 9. What States have taken the lead in forming consolidated school districts ? 10. Discuss community improvement clubs. 11. When and where was the first rural mail route established? 12. What can you say of the growth of this service ? 13. Discuss the effect of this service on farm life. 14. Explain the mode of procedure in preparing and filing a petition for this service. 15. Discuss the need of a parcels post. 16. What is said of postal savings banks ? 17. Discuss rural telephones. 18. What is said concerning the interurban car and its service ? 19. Discuss the United States Weather Service. 20. Give a brief history of the origin and development of the farmers' institute movement. REFERENCES Report of the Commission on Country Life. Cyclopedia of Agriculture, Vol. I, Farm and Community, Bailey. The World Almanac and Encyclopedia, Press Publishing Co., N. Y. Annual Report of the Postmaster General for 1908. PRAC. AGRICUL. 23 APPENDIX 1. FEEDING STANDARDS POUNDS PER DAY PER 1000 POUNDS LIVE WEIGHT ANIMAL DRY MATTER PROTEIN CARBO- HYDRATES ETHER EXTRACT- OR FAT NUTRITIVE RATIO 1 TO a; 1. Fattening Cattle lb. lb. lb. lb. lb. First Period 30 2.5 15.0 0.5 1 : 6.5 Second Period 30 3.0 14.5 0.7 1 :5.4 Third Period 26 2.7 15.0 0.7 1 :6.2 2. Growing Cattle Ago in Average live weight months lb. per head 2-3 150 22.0 4.0 13.8 2.0 1 : 4.7 3-6 300 23.4 3.2 13.5 1.0 1 :5.0 6-12 500 24.0 2.5 13.5 0.6 1 :6.0 12-18 700 24.0 2.0 13.0 0.4' 1 :7.0 18-24 850 24.0 1.6 12.0 0.3 1 : 8.0 3. Milch Cows Daily yield lb. of milk 11.0 25 1.6 10.0 0.3 1 6.7 16.6 27 2.0 11.0 0.4 1 6.0 27.5 32 3.3 13.0 0.8 1 4.5 4. Horses Light Work 20 1.5 9.5 0.4 1 7.0 Medium Work 24 2.0 11.0 0.6 1 6.2 Heavy Work 26 2.5 13.3 0.8 1 6.0 5. Sheep Wool Producing Coarse Wool 20 1.2 10.5 0.2 1 9.1 Fine Wool 23 1.5 12.0 0.3 1 8.5 6. Sheep Fattening First Period 30 3.0 15.0 0.5 1 5.4 Second Period 28 3.5 14.5 0.6 1 4.5 7. Swine Fattening First Period 36 4.5 25.0 0.7 1 5.9 Second Period 32 4.0 24.0 0.5 1 6.3 Third Period 25 2.7 18.0 0.4 1 7.0 355 356 APPENDIX 2. COMPOSITION OF FOOD STUFFS NAME OF FEED DRY MATTER PER 100 LB. DIGESTIBLE NUTRIENTS IN 1000 LB. FERTILIZING CONSTITU- ENTS IN 1000 LB. Protein Carbo- hydrates Ether Extracts Nitrogen Phos- phoric Acid Potash Concentrates Ib. Ib. Ib. Ib. Ib. Ib. Ib, Corn 89.1 7.9 66.7 4.3 18.2 7.0 4.0 Wheat 89.5 10.2 69.2 1.7 23.6 7.9 5.0 Wheat Bran 87.7 12.3 37.1 2.6 Wheat Shorts 88.2 12.2 50.0 3.8 28.2 13.5 5.9 Oats 89.0 9.2 47.3 4.2 20.6 8.2 6.2 Oat Shorts 92.3 12.0 46.9 2.8 17.2 9.1 5.3 Kaffir Corn 84.8 7.8 57.1 2.7 Cotton-seed Meal 91.8 37.2 16.9 12.2 67.9 28.8 8.7 Soy Beans 89.2 29.6 22.3 14.4 53.0 18.7 19.0 Cowpeas 85.2 18.3 54.2 1.1 33.3 Roughage Fodder Corn, Green 20.7 1.0 11.6 0.4 4.1 1.5 3.3 Fodder Corn, Field 57.8 2.5 34.6 1.2 17.6 5.4 8.9 Corn Stover, Field 59.5 1.7 32.4 0.7 10.4 2.9 14.0 Kentucky Blue Grass 34.9 3.0 19.8 0.8 .... Timothy 38.4 1.2 19.1 0.6 4.8 2.6 7.6 Hay Kentucky Blue Grass 78.8 4.8 37.3 2.0 11.9 4.0 15.7 Red Top 91.1 4.8 46.9 1.0 11.5 3.6 10.2 Soy Bean 88.7 10.8 38.7 1.5 23.2 6.7 10.8 Timothy 86.8 2.8 43.4 1.4 12.6 5.3 9.0 Fresh Legumes Alfalfa 28.2 3.9 12.7 0.5 7.2 1.3 5.6 Cowpeas 16.4 1.8 8.7 0.2 2.7 1.0 3.1 Crimson Clover 19.1 2.4 9.1 0.5 4.3 1.3 4.9 Red Clover 29.2 2.9 14.8 0.7 5.3 1.3 4.0 Soy Bean 24.9 3.2 11.0 0.5 2.9 1.5 5.3 Legume Hay and Straw Alfalfa 91.6 11.0 39.6 1.2 21.9 5.1 16.8 Cowpeas 89.3 10.8 38.6 1.1 19.5 5.2 14.7 Crimson Clover 90.4 10.5 34.9 1.2 20.5 4.0 13.1 Red Clover 84.7 6.8 35.8 1.7 20.7 3.8 22.0 White Clover 90.3 11.5 42.2 1.5 27.5 5.2 18.1 Soy Bean 89.9 2.3 40.0 1.0 17.5 4.0 13.2 Straw Oat 90.8 1.2 38.6 0.8 6.2 2.0 12.4 Wheat 90.4 0.4 36.3 0.4 5.9 1.2 5.1 APPENDIX 357 3. COMPOSITION OF FOOD STUFFS BOOTS AND TUBERS FEEDING STUFFS WATER CRUDE FAT CRUDE FIBER CRUDE PROTEIN CRUDE ASH CARBO- HYDRATES Carrots 88.6 0.4 1.3 .1 1.0 7.6 Mangels 90.9 0.2 0.9 .4 1-1 5.5 Potatoes, Irish 79.1 0.1 0.4 .1 0.9 17.4 Potatoes, Sweet 72.4 0.3 0.9 .1 1.3 24.0 Red Beets 88.5 0.1 0.9 .5 1.0 8.0 Sugar Beets 86.5 0.1 0.9 .8 0.9 9.8 Turnips 90.5 0.2 1.2 .1 0.8 6.2 Ruta-bagas 88.6 0.2 1.3 1.2 1.2 7.5 358 APPENDIX 4. DOMESTIC WEIGHTS AND MEASURES Apothecaries' Weight. 20 grains = 1 scruple; 3 scruples = 1 dram; 8 drams = 1 ounce; 12 ounces = 1 pound. Avoirdupois Weight (short ton). 2 7| grains = 1 dram; 16 drams = 1 ounce; 16 ounces = 1 pound; 25 pounds = 1 quarter; 4 quarters = 1 cwt. ; 20 cwt. = 1 ton. Avoirdupois Weight (long ton). 27| grains = 1 dram; 16 drams = 1 ounce; 16 ounces = 1 pound; 112 pounds = 1 cwt.; 20 cwt. = 1 ton. Troy Weight. 24 grains = 1 pennyweight; 20 pennyweights = 1 ounce; 12 ounces = 1 pound. Circular Measure. 60 seconds = 1 minute; 60 minutes = 1 degree; 30 degrees = 1 sign; 12 signs = 1 circle or circumference. Cubic Measure. 1728 cubic inches = 1 cubic foot; 27 cubic feet = 1 cubic yard. Dry Measure. 2 pints = 1 quart; 8 quarts = 1 peck; 4 pecks = 1 bushel. Liquid Measure. 4 gills = 1 pint; 2 pints = 1 quart; 4 quarts = 1 gall on; 31 gallons = 1 barrel; 2 barrels = 1 hogshead. Long Measure. 12 inches = 1 foot; 3 feet = 1 yard; 5 yards = 1 rod or pole; 40 rods = 1 furlong; 8 furlongs = 1 statute mile (1760 yards or 5280 feet); 3 miles = 1 league. Mariner's Measure. 6 feet = 1 fathom; 120 fathoms = 1 cable length; 1\ cable lengths = 1 mile; 5280 feet = 1 statute mile; 6085 feet = 1 nautical mile. Paper Measure. 24 sheets = 1 quire; 20 quires = 1 ream (480 sheets); 2 reams = 1 bundle; 5 bundles = 1 bale. Square Measure. 144 square inches = 1 square foot; 9 square feet = 1 square yard; 30 square yards = 1 square rod or perch; 40 square rods = 1 rood; 4 roods = 1 acre; 640 acres = 1 square mile; 36 square miles (60 miles square) = 1 township. Time Measure. 60 seconds = 1 minute; 60 minutes = 1 hour; 24 hours = 1 day; 7 days = 1 week; 365 days = 1 year; 366 days = 1 leap year. 5. MINIMUM WEIGHTS OF PRODUCE THE following are minimum weights of certain articles of produce accord- ing to the laws of the United States : PEB BUSHEL PER BUSHEL PER BUSHEL Wheat .... 60 lb. White Potatoes 60 lb. Hungarian Grass Corn, in the ear . 70 Ib. Sweet Potatoes 55 lb. Seed . . . 50 lb. Corn, shelled . . 56 lb. Onions . . . 57 lb. Timothy Seed . 45 lb. Rye .... 56 lb. Turnips . . . 55 lb. Blue Grass Seed 44 lb. Buckwheat . . 48 lb. Dried Peaches . 33 lb. Hemp Seed. . 44 lb. Barley .... 48 lb. Dried Apples . 26 lb. Corn Meal . . 48 lb. Oats .... 32 lb. Clover Seed 60 lb. Ground Peas . 24 lb. Peas .... 60 lb. Flax Seed . . 56 lb. Malt .... 34 lb. White Beans . . 60 lb. Millet Seed , , 50 lb. Bran , , , , 20 lb. Castor Beans . . 46 lb. APPENDIX 359 H al p H 5* s en W H 3 03 p i !! I w l K j S j WH . O 1C "3 O C Tt< O O d> r !-H ^ CO CO CO T-H i-l (N CO 03 05 gg "a i-i 10 " oocoi^cocooTto K 02 02 02 J3 3 2 M , w crtcdc 3333333333 02 03 C CO c c c c oo 41 o g o3 S 03 |1I S I ^-^ f>i (-1 ?>> t-- I I I I I I I O O 00 COCOr-KMt^rrOOOO (N rH l-l rH i-H i-l l-l i-l r-t * p p 3 ^1^^S5S 00