ORVA
SEMI-WEEKUY.
llla. I Consolidated Feb., 1899.
CORVALIilS, BENTON" COUNTY, OREGON, TUESDAY, JANUARY 29, 1901.
VOL. I. NO. 40.
0
A ABA 11 II VJ
LOVE'S CONFESSIONAL.
To you whose every word and deed and
thought
King true and honest as thrice-tested
gold.
The tule of my shortcomings I have
brought
Now you have given the pardon I be
sought, Forgive the little sins I have not told!
The foolish, petty faults I scarce can
name;
So mean and paltry are they that I
fear
You would not think them worth a word
of blame,
You would but pity and despise them,
dear,
And since I love you so in woman's wise,
Nor am from woman's curse of pride
exempt,
I would far rather read within your eyes
Hatred, my best-beloved, than con
tempt! Wherefore, to you, whose every deed and
thought
Are crystal clear you, whom I love too
well
The tale of my shortcomings I have
brought.
And you have given the pardon I be
sought, Forgive the little sins I cannot tell!
Smart Set.
OrjQ HERE had been a daring case of
burglary at a farmhouse in Cbes
hire. Three men had tied down
and gagged the farmer and his two
maid servants, and bad rifled the house
at their leisure.
There were two clews. In the strug
gle one of the men bad left a button
from bis coat behind, and be bad also
had his face so severely scratched by
one of the maids that the girl said "she
-was sure she had left ber mark upon
him."
Weeks passed without any arrest be
ing made, and people began to forget
the burglary, until one day a man was
arrested at Liverpool. He had with
him a bundle containing some of the
plunder of the farmhouse. His face
bore traces of scratching, and, to clinch
the matter, bis coat wanted a button,
and the buttons on It corresponded ex
actly with that picked up at the scene
of the burglary.
His defense was very flimsy. "He
knew nothing about the burglary, but
had bought the coat and things very
cheap off a man In the street." ; He ac
. counted ' for the scratches by saying
that he was a sailor, and had in tbat
capacity much rough work to do. :
There was no defense; the Jury found
a verdict of "guilty" without leaving
the box, and the prisoner was asked if
he had anything to say.
"Well, cap'n," he said, "it's hard to
be convicted for noth'n'. I know no
more of this burglary than a baby;
when it happened I was flghtin' the
slavers on the Gold Coast."
There was something in the man's
manner that impressed the judge, so be
said, hot unkindly:
"But surely, prisoner, if your story Is
true, you must have friends and com
rades with whom you could have com
municated? It is too late now."
"You's right, cap'n; it's too late. I
couldn't communicate with them any
how, for I don't know where they are.
They may be in America, or they may
be at the Cape."
"But," urged the Judge, the court
has no wish to convict a man who may
be Innocent. Is there no one who could
speak for you?"
The prisoner looked In a hopeless sort
of way round the court.
"No," he began; but just then his eye
lighted on a man in the court. "Yes,"
he added, pointing to him, "there is a
gentleman who might speak for me if
he would." The judge looked in the
direction of the individual pointed at.
"Do you know the prisoner?" he
asked.
"No, my lord," was the reply. "I
never saw him before In my life."
"Well, Captain Sharpe," said the
prisoner, "I know you well enough."
"Is your name Captain ' Sharpe?"
asked the judge1. "Yes, my lord," came
the' reply. -
"Well, the prisoner seems to recog
nize you, so I will ask you to step Into
the witness box and be sworn, that he
may ask you questions."
The captain went Into the box, and
the following dialogue ensued:
"Are you Captain Sharpe of the war
ship Vulture?" asked the prisoner.
"Yes."
"Were you In command of her on the
slave coast this spring?"
"I was."
"And wasn't I one of the crew?"
"Most certainly not."
"But, cap'n, don't you remember the
slave ship that you boarded?"
"Yes." '
"And you yourself led the boarders?"
"Oh, yes; but all that Is nothing you
may easily have heard of or read all
about that." -.
"Well, but cap'n, jonce more don't
you remember the big black slaver who
was almost cutting you down? Don't
you remember the one man who stood
between you and death, and what he
got for it? Don't you remember that?"
And, brushing back his hair, the pris
oner showed a great scar down one side
of his head.
The whole court looked on breath
less as the captain stared at the scar
and at the man till his eyes seemed
starting from his head. At length, as
if In a dream, he muttered to himself:
"Good heavens, is It possible?" -
Then slowly and deliberately be got
out of the witness box and clambered
liito the dock, where lie seized the pris-
SAVED BY A CONFEDERATE. ; ;
mwm
OW that the world has begun another century, every ayie is interested in
the calendar, some people wondering why 1900 was not a leap year, while
others are eager to pummel one aaother over the "beginning of the cen
tury" problem. Our calendar is a puzzling affair and has battled some very wise
men since days began to be reckoned by years and years by centuries. The
earth is really to blame. If it were only considerate enough to travel around
the sun in exactly 305 days we would have little trouble in adjusting our reckon
ing. The whirling globe takes no account of days, however, but runs around its
big elliptical track by a schedule of its own.
This schedule presents a problem in fractions that has given wise men no end
of trouble. Julius Caesar was first to make an attempt at solving it in 46 B. C,
and he blundered woefully. His calend ir called the Julian was made upon the
theory that the earth went around the sun in exactly 305 days and 6 hours. So
he made his years 305 days long, adding the odd hours and sticking them into a
leap year each fourth year. But the true solar year consists of 365 days 5 hours
48 minutes and 45 seconds. In the course of time Caesar's calendar ran ahead
of the earth, for it was gaining a whole day every 128 years. In 325 A. D. it had
gained four days, and the beginning of spring which astronomers call the vernal
equinox had receded to March 21, tho igh in Caesar's time it had arrived
March 25. This was a serious matter, and the wise men of that particular year
called a council to look into it the council of Nice. Since the globe would not
run according to their schedule they decided to humor it a little by altering the
latter, so the beginning of spring was changed to March 21.
It was a short-sighted makeshift and did not help things greatly, for as time
went on the remorseless earth got farther and farther away from their time
table. Council after council tinkered at the problem, but no solution was found
until Pope Gregory XIII! called the very wisest of his wise men to Rome in the
sixteenth century, and they sat down in council to find a remedy sat ten full
years discussing the puzzle. The slippery vernal equinox had receded to March
11 by this time, and it took a great deal of thinking to find a way of making it
keep its place.
Finally in 1582 a plan was agreed upon. The truant equinox must be brought
back to March 21, and In order to bring it to the date set by the council of
Nice ten days must be cut out of the calendar bodily. It was a startling remedy,
and some objected to it as a clumsy one, but as no better was forthcoming it
was adopted. The ten days were cut out of October of that year, and, to settle
the matter to the end of human reckoning, it was agreed that three days should
be cut out of every four centuries as well that each 400th year should be a
leap year instead of each 100th. By this plan the error in the present calendar
the Gregorian will amount to less than a day and a half in 5,000 years.
The new schedule was immediately adopted in all Catholic countries, but Great
Britain went on according to the Julian calendar until 1752. The ten days had
increased to eleven by this time, and as the gap was widening each year parlia
ment decided to adopt the new scheme. In September of that year the change was
made. - People went to bed the night of the second, and, though they slept no
longer than usual, they woke up on the morning of the 14th. Thus England's
equinox caught up with Pope Gregory's,
"Washington and Franklin werechanged in a way that has troubled many a
schoolboy since. Russia still clings to the Julian calendar, however, and as a
result our Jan. 1 is Dec. 20 in the Czar's domains.
oner's hand, and, turning to the judge,
said: "My lord, this was the best man
In my crew and he saved my life. Prov
idence has sent me here to save him.
He is so changed by illness that I could
not recognize him. But. there Is no
mistake now. If you Imprison the old
bo'sun of the Vulture you must take
the captain with him."
Amid cheers and sobs that no one
cared to suppress the judge briefly di
rected thejtwy to wcpffeidef 'Uielr ver
diet,, which they at dice did, finding a
unanimous "Not guilty."
As they left the town Captain Sharpe
might have been heard addressing his
companion somewhat as follows:
"Well, old man, Ve pulled through
that business pretty well, I think. It
was a near shave, though." -
"Captain Sharpe" was nothing less
than a confederate, and he had as
sumed the part of captain to save his
companion in crime. London Evening
News.
MISS ALTA ROCKEFELLER.
Her Hearing Restored, She Will Soon
.lie Married. 1
Miss Alta Rockefeller, daughter of
John D. Rockefeller, the multi-million-1
aire oil king, returned from Europe to
be married to E. Parmelee Prentice of
Chicago. The heiress and prospective
bride has been In Vienna for some time
and there has undergone a remarkable
surgical operation. Her hearing was
almost gone. To restore it Dr. Muller,
a Vienna surgeon, destroyed the old
ear drum and a new one was grown,
the "hammer and anvil" being separat
ed by the insertion of gold plates, thus
allowing the drum to grow. It was
a delicate operation and there was
grave danger of the brain becoming af
fected, but careful treatment remov
ed all possibility of any such trouble.
Now her hearing has been almost en
tirely restored, but she will go back to
Vienna after the marriage for further
treatment.
Vienna Losing Its Trade. '
A special committee of the Stock Ex
change of Vienna has just submitted
a remarkable report to the Austrian
Ministry of Finance, directing atten
tion to the steady and alarming de
crease in the volume of the bfsiness
done at" the exchange: This Is ascribed
in part to the domestic political situa
tion. The legislative deadlock has
caused stagnation in Industry and com
merce, whereas In other countries there
has been an unprecedented develop
ment of trade. The report complains
of the effect of anti-capitalist -tendencies,
which represent all gains and
profits to be ill gotten. The profession
of merchant has been denounced. It
MISS ALTA ROCKEFELLER.
mm
America's likewlfej aria he birthdays of '
says, by unprincipled demagogues as
disreputable. -
The authorities are reproached with
having encouraged these evils by un
due tolerance. In former times every
important commercial firm had its rep
resentative on the boerse. Now these
agents are. kept away by the vexatious
proceedings of the authorities, who
levy a special impost on them. The re
port also remonstrates against the un-
dn? pressure of direct taxation on joint
stock companies. .'-Direct taxation for
them amounts to no less than 12 to 25
per cent of their income, and in some
instances to even more. The report di
rects attention to the unsatisfactory
state of the existing laws with regard
to litigation resulting from boerse oper
ations. The market for railway stock,
at one time so flourishing, has been re
duced to Inconsiderable dimensions,
and for this state of affairs also the
report holds the government responsi
ble.' It remarks that almost every en
terprlse connected with public traffic
has a standing difference of some kind
with the administrative authorities.
New York Evening Post.
Odd. Sun Dial.
Among the Montagnais Indians a
crude form of sun dial Is used In hunt
ing to let the squaws, who follow their
lords and masters, know whether they
may "take It easy" or "hurry up," for
they might fare badly if they lagged
behind when their husbands were
ready for supper. And so the men when
hunting erect in the snow a stick at
some well-known place and draw the
exact line of the stick's shadow In the
snow before going on. When the wom
en arrive there with their pots and oth
er cooking utensils they note the new
line of the shadow, and by observing
the angle which it forms with the line
already drawn in the snow they can
tell how far ahead then: husbands are.
How Philpot Cnrran Got Even.
John Philpot Curran, one of the wit
tiest lawyers who ever faced a court,
was once arguing a case before Lord
Clare, the Irish lord chancellor. Clare
cherished a cordial dislike for Curran
and. In order to show his contempt for
that gentleman, affected to pay no at
tention to the argument and devoted
himself to fondling a mastiff which he
had brought with him to court Pres
ently he stooped down ostentatiously to
pat the dog. Instantly Curran stopped
speaking. The lord chancellor looked
up and said: "Go on, Mr. Cnrran." "1
beg your lordship's pardon," replied
Curran; "I thought you were engaged
in consultation."
.What Surprised the Chinamen.
What' strikes a Chinaman is not al
ways what strikes a European. A
shrewd and well-to-do merchant at
Amoy was told that a Maxim gun was
able to send out 600 shots a minute; he
nodded his head politely and kept fan
ning himself. That was evidently a tall
story. A moment later the fan col
lapsed; he saw the men off duty sitting
about looking at newspapers and ex
claimed: "Can all your soldiers read?"
A matter, from his point of view, truly
for astonishment.
Yield of a Bobber Tree.
A rubber tree four feet in diameter
yields twenty gallons of sap, making
forty pounds of dried rubber.
When a man does a good deed, the
women never say, "That's Just like a
man," and when a woman is wise no
man ever cries, "That's just like a
woman."
It Is a difficult task to fathom a shal
low mind.
TOUfJ
Folks
Furniture from Hatch Boxes.
By using ordinary small matchboxes
of cardboard of uniform "size, very neat
toy furniture may be made. For a
writing desk, first take out all the
drawers and then paste the boxes
together In the form of figure 1. On
the back side paste a piece of card
board having the shape of figure 2, be
ing careful that you do not get too
much mucilage Inside of the boxes. Now
cover it all with brown or black paper.
Next cover the front part of the draw
ers with the same kind of paper and
make the drawer handles of thread and
a pearl button. Figure 3. When both
the boxes and the drawers are entirely
dry, Insert the drawers.; Make the feet
from wood or glass beads.
A chest of drawers such as is shown
in figure 4 may be made in the same
way. ,
Make your dressing table the same
as the writing desk, but the back side
cut as in figure 5. A piece of tin foil
makes the mirror and the frame Is
made from, gilt paper.
To make ' a- sofa
fold a piece of stiff
paper once A B is ?
the fold and cut it J
according to the.-,
drawing: Spread It
out and bend it ac
cording to the dotted I'
lines. . t: - ;:-"'
To make parlor table fold a piece of
stiff paper twice see cut 1 and cut it
according to the drawing. Unfold It
cut 2 and bend the four legs down;
then you have a table.
Fold a piece of paper once and cut
according to A. Unfold and bend to a
chair, B.
Mrs. Grey's Good Fairies.
Colin was standing by the pile of
snowballs he had made, and rubbing
his hands to warm them. His sister
Madge came running out of the house.
"Look, Col, what I have," she cried
happily, holding up her basket. "There
are cakes in here, and butter and tea,
and all sorts, of nice things. We may
take it to Mrs. Grey's cottage, down by
the pond; so come along."
Colin ran indoors for his gloves, and
then the pair started across the snowy
park.
Madge walked along sedately.' with
ber hands tucked into her muff and her
basket on her arm, while Colin kept
running off to chase the birds or follow
the tracks made by rabbits in the snow.
"Col, I wish you'd come here a min
ute," said Madge presently. "I believe
Mrs. Grey is out; there isn't any smoke
coming from the chimney. Can we get
in?"
"Yes, she never locks the door," an
swered Colin. He lifted the latch and
they went in.
"Oh, how untidy it is!" cried Madge,
"Look what that naughty Kittle has
been doing the stocking pulled out.
and the buttons all over the floor."
"She's left the window open, too!"
said Colin, "and the fire's gone out."
"It's the leaves that have made such
a mess," he said. "I tell you what,
Madge; let's pretend we're fairies, and
get it all ready before Mrs. Grey comes
back."
"The very thing," said Madge, as she
put the workbox away. "I'll lay the
tea while you sweep up and light the
fire." '
Colin was ready, and soon the fire
was crackling merrily, and the kettle
Madge put on began to sing.
Just as they bad finished there were
footsteps outside. Madge sprang to her
feet. .
"Let's hide and see what she says!"
she cried.
They had only just time to scramble
Into the cupboard, when Mrs. Grey
came in, and oh! she was surp'rlsed!
"Why, deary me, whoever did this
she said. "Nobody's been here that 1
know of. It must be the two littie fair
ies from the big house!" v
"I'm so glad you're pleased," said
Colin. ' . .-
"But how did you know who It was?"
asked Madge.
Mrs. Grey pointed to the basket
which Madge had left behind, and they
ail laugnea. -
Then Mrs. Grey kissed them, and
said:
v "Now you must stay and have some
of the tea you have made ready so
kindly." Little Folks. " .
Mrs. Bed Fqnlrrel.
Mrs. Red Squirrel sat in the top of a
tree;
"I believe in. the habit of saving," said
sue; - '
"If it were not for that, in the cold wia
ter weather
n n
should starve, and my young ones, I
know, altoeether?
But I'm teaching my children to ran and
lay np
Every acorn as soon as it drops from
its cup,
And to get out the corn from the shocks
in the field
There's a nice hollow tree where I keep
it -concealed.
We have laid up some wheat and some
Daney and rye.
And some very nice pumpkin seeds, I
have Dut bv:
Best of all, we have gathered in all that
we could
Of beechnuts and biitternnta smwn in
the wood:
For cold days and hard times winter
surely will brins.
And a habit of saving's an excellent
imng.
"But my children (you know how young
squirrels like play).
'We have plenty, great plenty, already,'
tney 11 say,
'We are tired of bringing in food for our
store;
Let ns all have a frolic and gather no
more!
But I tell them it's pleasant when win
ter is rough.
If we feel both to use and to give we've
enough;
And they'll find ere the butternuts bloom
in the spring
That a habit of saving's an excellent
thing."
Young Folks.
Traveling: Habita of Wild Oats.
Get a head of wild oats and lay it on
the table over night, first moistening
the oats. Next morning you will dis
cover that the head of oats has crawled
off the table and likely enough has
made tracks for the outside door. This
peculiar gift of traveling lies in the
spikes that extend from the coverings
of the' grains. - As the moisture soaks
into the head of oats it swells and the
spikes change position in such a way
as to set the head to tumbling over and
over sldewise. The larger and coarser
varieties of wild oats have this power
of locomotion develcp.d lo a rem likable
"degree, an- even domestic oats will de
velop it if allowed by neglect "to de
generate. An Experiment in Parlor Masf'c.
Soak a piece of thread In strong salt
water, dry It, and repeat two or three
times. When thoroughly dry tie one
end to a chandelier, and on the other,
or lower, end tie a ring or some small
but not too heavy article.
It Is now ready for the experiment.
Set fire to the thread, and behold the
ring does not fall to the floor nor does
the thread break.
The explanation Is: The thread has
in reality been burned, but the salt with
which, the. .thread was saturated forms
a solid column, and that supports the
ring. Varied experiments can be made,
using several threads for one article,
and, in fact, many others which may
suggest themselves to the readers.
CEREAL CROPS OF RUSSIA.
Competition with America la Already
Attract ns Attention.
With the return of normal conditions
of traffic on the western section of the
Siberian railway and a sufficiency -of
rolling stock to meet the growing wants
of the trade, Russia threatens to be
come a formidable competitor of this
country In the British arid European
markets in regard to a great variety of
agricultural products.
Already Russian butter from beyond
the Ural mountains is finding its way
into the English market and, according
to a report from the British consul at
Riga, arrangements are being made for
the quick transportation of butter from
Western Siberia to connect with the
steamship service from Riga to London
and HulL From the port of Llbau on
the Baltic to the south of Riga there
were exported last year 71,855,640 eggs,
as against 59,377,696 in 1898, and the
export of butter from the same port
rose from 275 tons in 1898 to 700 tons
in 1899. As yet the export of meat
from Northern and Eastern Russia has
not begun, nor is It to be expected from
Western . Siberia until the population
has increased and the agricultural de
velopment of the country has become
more advanced. The imputation, how
ever, Is growing rapidly, the immi
grants from European Russia' having
exceeded 500,000 in the last two sea
sons, and great attention is now given
to cattle. raising. The passenger and
freight rates are kept by the govern
ment at the lowest possible point for
the purpose of stimulating traffic.
Hitherto the export trade In grain
and meat from Russia has been almost
entirely confined to the south, the grain
and cattle being shipped at Black Sea
ports and finding their way tty the
Mediterranean and Western Europe by
the Bospoms and Dardanelles. A cer
tain quantity also crosses the western
frontier Into Germany, but the tariff
restrictions imposed at the Instance of
the agrarian party in Germany inter
fere materially with the development
of the trade.
It. is to afford other outlets for the
produce of Northern Russia that the
Russian government has taken up the
question of opening a direct trade with
England and Western Europe by sea,
and has ordered the construction of
large steamers specially adapted to the
purpose. Unless, therefore, events
prove unpropltlous we shall soon see
Russia entering the lists as an active
competitor with the other countries ex
porting foodstuffs and farm produce
with an organized system for the hand
ling of the produce from the time it is
put Into the station on a railway line
until it is landed at the place of im
port. New York Sun.
Accident in Iron Mines.
During 1898 there were 220 accidents
in nineteen mines on the iron range in
Minnesota, resulting in deaths averag
ing one to every 193 employed. Dur
ing 1899 there were 421 accidents, with
the same average rate of fatalities.
j. .
Use of a Syphon.
A syphon may be used for raising
water over an elevation of twenty-four
or twenty-six feet, but no more. The
principle of the action of the syphon
is this: The atmospheric pressure on
any surface is equal to the weight of
a column of water thirty feet high. So
that, In a vacuum, when the air is ex
hausted, a column of water thirty feet
high will rise by the pressure of the
air on the source of supply to it Thus
a pump, made air-tight will draw
water out of a well thirty feet deep.
if there is no loss by friction or leaking
of air. But to allow for as much of
these as cannot be avoided in practice.
a fairly good pump will raise water
twenty-five feet Now, if we arrange
a bent pipe as in the diagram, and
draw the water over the hill to the
outlet by a pump attached to it and
then remove the pump, the water will
continue to flow in spite of obstacles
over a hill or elevation of twenty-five
feet This is because the longer col
umn of water in the outlet pipe draws
the water over the hill, for the reason
that as the water flows from the lower
end of course it makes a vacuum or
empty space on the other end of the
pipe in which there is no air, and the
pressure of the air on the water of the
spring instantly compels the water to
flow up the pipe and over the top and
down to the outlet So that if the well
Is not over twenty-five or twenty-six
feet deep, and the cutlet of the pipe
is more than this, the water will con
tinue to flow, once it is drawn over the
elevation. But as water always has
some air dissolved in it and this es
capes as the water flows up the pipe,
it collects at the top, and, in time,
makes a large bubble, which stops the
water, until the air is got out and a
new start is made. This is done by
tilling the pipe at the place marked at
the top, closing each end by taps pro
vided for this, and then starting the
flow again.
Grow More Corn.
The farmers who are feeding out
timothy hay, and seeing their neigh
bors selling load after load of it at a
good price, while their cattle are kept
in good condition and their cows are
giving more milk on corn fodder than
those do that are eating high-priced
hay, must feel like asking some one to
kick them now, and then come around
and kick them again next spring until
they promise either to plant corn or
sow corn in drills and save the fodder
for next winter's use. Yet this is but
one small part of their loss. Those who
had a plenty of corn fodder to use dur
ing the dry time last summer kept their
cows up to full milk production then,
and began the fall with them In much
better condition than were those that
had to depend upon the pasture alone,
and thus they will have more milk
every day and milk more days this win
ter than those who trusted to the.grass
crop alone. Yet not one-half the latter
will be much more ready to look ahead
next spring than they were last spring.
American Cultivator.
Poultry House.
The poultry-house plan here shown
has been found very satisfactory in
large flocks. Each apartment is in
tended for a separate flock, and will
accommodate twenty fowls, .which is
as many as may be safely kept to begin
with. After one has gained experience
fifty fowls may be kept in a house of
the right size. The house is twenty
feet long, eight feet high in the front
and five in the rear, and fifteen feet
wide, which gives room for twenty
fowls in each house. These houses
may be built in a row of as many as
may be desired, giving a wire fenced
yard for each flock, with an open shed
j which may be used in the summer for
the birds to roost in. If this house is
J made tight by a tar-paper lining, it will
be sufficiently warm for the winter,
i No floor is required; the earth, if it is
' dry, will be the best; but this should be
well covered with coarse sand or saw
dust . ,--. -
The Bacon Type,
The fact that few understand the type
of bog which the bacon market requires
has perhaps been the main reason why
it is generally accepted that It costs
more per pound to raise a hog of the
bacon type than one of the lard type.
. .
SYPHON IN USE. '
GOOD POULTRY HOUSE.
It is not commonly thought that the
hogs of the bacon type are improved
breeds. It is generally supposed that
they are hogs having all the character
istics of the razor-backed native hogs
that represent all that is undesirable
for feeding purposes. The first point
necessary to make clear is tbat a tbin
hog is not in any sense a bacon hog.
In the bacon hog it is desirable to have
about one and a half inches of fat with
an abundance of lean flesh In the car
cass. It is flesh, muscle or lean meat
that Is desirable and not in any sense a
thin carcass. An important point
among the desirable characteristics of
the bacon hog is that of form. The
side should be as long as possible, with
great depth, and Ievelness from shoul
der to hip should be the leading charac
teristic. The shoulder should not bulge
out and the hams should not be pendant
and plump as in the case of the lard
hog. If a straight edge is laid along
the side of the typical bacon hog it
should fduch every point from the start
of the shoulder to the end of the hind
quarter.
Horse Talk.
Horse-breeders have every reason to
feel joyous over the demand for good
horses, both at home and abroad.
The great complaint of the dealers is
that they find it difficult to keep up to
the demand.
Those who breed and handle good
horses will have a long period of pros
perity. Go out to the fairs and shows and
some good, large markets, and see
what is called for, and you will be
cured of breeding scrubs,- arid your
eyes will be jened.
One of the best devices I know of is
the safety strap attached to the ends
of the shafts.
Take a screw-eye and put it exactly
in the middle end of each shaft Sew
or rivet a half-inch strap in each eye
and join tbem in the middle with a
buckle. When your horse Is hitched
up, buckle this strap and you will find"
it impossible for him to catch the rein
under the shafts or to run the shafts
through the ring of the bit It is In
valuable in fly-time, or In breaking
colts. Once used you will have them
on every rig.
Wise horsemen employ less of corn
or ineal and more of oats in warm
weather.
Horse stalls should be either four or
six feet wide. If five feet the animal
is likely to get fast Four feet is too
narrow to get fast and six is wide
enough to freely roll in. Have the
stalls wide If possible, for your horses,
like yourself, will work better after a
comfortable rest
Thoroughbred Stallion.
The thorouhbred stallion Royai
Mask, the property of Mr. Edward
Mitchell, Derryvullen, Ennlskillen, Ire
land, is a 10-year-old chestnut bred
BOTA.L MASK.
by Mr. R. T. Beddington, got by Mask,
dam Princess Victoria by Prince Char
lie. - He won first prize and Croker
challenge cup at the Royal Dublin So
ciety's show last month. From his
shape as well as his bone and sub
stance he well fulfills the ' conditions
as a weight-carrying hunter sire.
Improve the Home.
If improved financial conditions on
the farm have cleared the owner of all
indebtedness and left a surplus, such
surplus by every right should be used
first to improve the conditions of the
farm home to secure some of the com
forts so long wanted. Give mother
$150 and tell her to put it where it will
do the most good, get a new surrey to
go to kirk in, and with it get a light
harness for the team, for Norman
horses, plow harness and surrey don't
match well. Take a trip off with your
wife and don't go in a suit of $8 ready
made either. Paint the bouse and put
on a new porch and fix the windmill so
that you can have a system of water
works in your home. Send those two
boys to a commercial school this win
ter and pay their bills, and put $15 or
$20 into good papers and magazines.
Entertain your friends and in a gen-:
eral way live so as to get the worth of
your money and enjoy life.
Fertilizers for Fmall Fruits.
A number of brands of fertilizers
have been prepared by the different
manufacturers, especially for the smalt
fruits, and 1,000 to 1,500 pounds, per
acre will give good results. For those
who desire to prepare their own mix
tures, however, the Michigan station
recommends 100 pounds of nitrate of
soda, 800 pounds of ground bone and
100 bushels of wood ashes or if these
cannot be obtained 400 pounds of pot
ash salts, either muriate or sulphate.