NEW WINTER LETTUCE.
A. Larce Type of Plant Able to Wlth
' " stand Disease.
The bureau of plant industry recent
ly reaped Its harvest of excellent let
tuce seed from a large plot which It
had under cultivation In close prox
imity to Its chiefs offices in the
grounds of the department of agricul
ture. The interest attached to this
part.cular yield is that it is seed of a
ty? of lettuce sturdy and strong and
able to withstand the diseases to which
forced lettuce is heir.
From $2,500,000 to $3,000,000 worth
of lettuce alone Is forced in the United
States each wiuter. Greenhouse gar
deners in an endeavor to get rich quick
THE KSW STURDY LETTUCE.
Six weeks old and three feet high.
have failed to note that this forcing
was weakening their stock until now
the weak lettuce often becomes so dis
eased in the hothouse that it is by no
means rare for a gardener to lose an
entire crop of greenhouse lettuce by a
disease to which these overstrained
plants are particularly liable.
Dr. B. T. Galloway, chief of the bu
reau of plant Industry, In order to cor
rect this evil has been working for two
seasons on this subject and has at last
succeeded in obtaining a crop of win
ter lettuce plants immune to the let
tuce disease. At the same time the
plants arc of large size and capable of
developing as early as the most spe
cialized winter lettuce.
From these extra large early and
fine heads another crop was raised
and the seed sown. The seed from
successive crops, carefully examined
and selected from time to time, was
planted during the past summer in the
departments's experimental plot and
the seed finally secured carefully
guarded and later distributed to green
house men and state experiment sta
tions. It is believed, concludes Amer
ican Cultivator, that through this work
will be saved from ruin the winter let
tuce Industry, which for the last three
years has-been threatened with ex
tinction. WHEN SLAUGHTERING.
An Arrangement For Raisins; and
Hanging- a Hoc
Here Is a butchering device that
may be of Interest. By Its use any
one can hang a bog or small beef or. In
fact, several of them at a time if you
make a long top stick and several
BCTCHXKING DEVICE.
clevis hooks to operate hook A Into.
Spread stick and wind up rope, then
lower spread stick into clevis hook and
slide out of the way. When not in use
remove the two lower bolts and fold
up like a jackknife. The gear wheel
and worm can be had at any machine
shop. Ohio Farmer.
Care of Frosen Trees. -
There is a saying among nurserymen
that "it is the thawing and not the
freezing of the roots of trees that in
jures them." If trees arrive in a frozen
condition the best thing to do with
them is to plant them at once or imi
tate the process as near as possible by
packing the roots in soil or sand with
out exposing them to thawing. Let
them -thaw out slowly the slower the
better. It is not a good plan to throw
the roots into water. If the roots are
allowed to thaw in a cellar without
cover or If exposed while frozen to
warm air they will be seriously in
jured. Country Gentleman.
Loxaries of the Farm.
The annual products of dairying, of
fruit and vegetable raising and of
poultry keeping aggregated nearly $2,
000,000,000 In farmers' hands in 1905,
or three-tenths of the gross value of
all farm products, and these particu
lar products belong to the class of
those for which there is a tendency of
demand to be greater than supply. In
the case of none of these products Is
there a desired quantity satisfactory
in quality obtainable by consumers at
moderate prices. The public is under
fed in the higher grades of these lr
rics of the farm.
PROFITABLE MANAGEMENT.
Psjs ly Hoartng
. Teats Hasting - Omt,
In the matter of profitable manage
ment the care of farm machinery Is of
Importance. Writing on this subject
In the Kansas Farmer, A. M. Ten Eyck
gives some sound advice as follows:
Although it is essential to have
enough good machinery to do the work
well at the right time, yet the purchase
of more machinery, than is actually
needed Is often an element of unneces
sary expense which may greatly re
duce the net profits of the farmers
who are Improvident In this way. Buy
the best standard machinery, even at
the higher prices. The best is usually
the cheapest. Make good use of the
machinery and take care of It, both In
the field and after the work is finished.
Keep the bearings clean and well
oiled, burs tight and the machinery In
good running condition when at work.
'When Not In Use.
Shed the machinery when not In
use. More machinery is rusted out
than Is worn out In the western United
States probably less than one-fourth of
the farms are provided with machinery
sheds. A farmer can make no better
investment in adding Improvements to
the farm than by building a good ma
chinery shed.
Cleaning and Repairing.
When machinery is brought from the
field and put In the shed it should be
overhauled and cleaned and notes
made as to what repairs are neces
sary. These repairs should be secured,
and on some rainy day the machine
should be put Into proper running con
dition for next season's work.
BLIGHT OF PEAS.
Tkt Gnm Varieties Are Most Strik
ingly Affected.
In 1904 the damage in Ohio from
this blight was apparently greater than
in previous years. It was first noticed
on French June field peas which had
been sown with oats as a forage crop
on the experiment station farm. A
close examination of the diseased
plants showed that the stems had been
attacked at many points, frequently as
high as one and one-half feet from the
ground, though most severely near the
ground, where the disease starts.
On the leaves were orbicular or oval
dead spots one-eighth to one-half inch
In diameter.
Perhaps the most important thing in
connection with the life history of the
BLIGHT FUNGUS ON LEAVES.
fungus is that the vegetative part, or
mycelium, infecting these spots of the
pods grows through the husk into the
seed. Frequently It grows entirely
through the pod, forming similar spots
on both sides. When the fungus grows
into the seed, brown spots may be
formed on the surface. In the worst
cases half the surface is frequently
discolored and the seed adheres to the
pod. These areas are much more strik
ing on green colored peas, such as the
Market Garden variety, than on the
yellowish varieties, such as the Ad
miral. Horse Talk.
Many colts are given ugly tempers
by cruel an" careless currying.
To scratch and hurt a colt or horse
will cause him to hate the operation
and the operator.
Many currycombs are knocked all
out of shape, and some of the teeth
cut like knives.
Look at your currycomb. It is often
an instrument of torture.
Teach the boys to use it gently and
keep it in order.
Be generous in the use of the
brushes, but sparing in the use of the
comb.
Good grooming should be done every
day to keep the pores open, the skin
healthy and the hair silky. Soft hair
Is very warm and Is a nonconductor of
heat.
Never leave a reeking mess of wet
straw and manure under the horses.
It ruins the health and eyes and is a
disgrace to any horse owner. Farm
Journal.
Failures In Sheep Breeding.
A large number of failures in sheep
husbandry are traceable to lack of
knowledge of how to handle domestic
animals. Some will give too much at
tention and others insufficient, One is
productive of as evil results as the
other. No animal loves natural condi
tions more than sheep, and the closer '
they can be maintained under such the
better. I knew of a man who went
into the sheep business by purchasing
a few very high priced sheep. He had
no knowledge of how to handle the
animals; consequently after they had
been in his possession a few months
he was disappointed because he was
unable to produce as good results as
the breeder from whom he had Bar
chased the' stock. Instances of this na
ture are very common. It to not the
fault of the sheep, but ef the me, la
the larger majority ef Issig sTs
tMTgUlARKS IB WEB,
The AstsiMit Devfoee Ueag.la the TlaM
of Cssrtsw and . Faust.
Watermarks hare proved them
selves invaluable for safeguarding
against the forgery of bank notes,
bills, stamps, eta, though the diffi
culty experienced by the Bank of
England in evolving a mark defying
imitation was very great and was ac
complished by the execution of for
geries innumerable.
Many a will has been set aside
owing to false dates in watermarks,
for, thanks to watermarks, we are
under no uncertainty respecting the
date of the existence of the paper.
Ireland's celebrated Shakespearean
forgeries were, however, perpetrat
ed with skillful recognition of the
watermark mmeulty.
Driven to the production of man
uscripts, he set to work to purchase
old volumes for their fly leaves, and,
hearing that the "jug" wa3 the
prevalent watermark of the reign
of Queen Elizabeth, he selected such
as had the "jug" on, being careful
to mingle with them a certain num
ber of blank leaves, in order that
the production on a sudden of so
many identical watermarks might
not arouse suspicion.
Two of the earliest watermarks
consist of a circle surmounted by a
cross, representing the pastoral ben
ediction of a priest. Post paper
takes its name from the post horn,
which mark appears on a shield, and
in the seventeenth century is sur
mounted by a ducal coronet, in
which form it h still met with, on
our ordinary note paper.
The ox's head was another an
cient watefmarkj on which Carton
and Faust printed some of their
books, but Carton used a water
mark in the form of the letter "P"
for the "Game and Plays of the
Chesse," first printed in 1474.
The first edition of Shakespeare,
printed by Isaac Jaggard and Ed
ward Blount in 1623, will, however,
be found to be mostly on paper
bearing a cap like a jockey's as a
watermark, and the general use of
the term "cap for various modern
papers is owing to marks of this
kind. London Globe.
Mirrors.
The earliest looking glasses, oi
mirrors, were of either metal, high
ly polished, or of black painted
mica. It is noted in Jewish history
that the laver was made of brass "of
the looking glasses of the women
assembling, which assembled at the
door of the tabernacle of the con
gregation," and some commentators
conjecture that these women gave
up their bronze or copper hand mir
rors to supply the material for the
laver. Egyptian women always car
ried their mirrors ' to the temples,
and the Hebrew women probably
did likewise, as do the Arabian and
Turkish women today. Glass mir
rors are of comparatively recent
date. Mirrors of silver and gold
were commonly used ia mediaeval
times. . In 1360 Venice became the
seat of the manufacture of glass
mirrors, which have sicce supersed
ed all other varieties, the improve
ments in the manufacture of plate
glass enabling mirrors to be made of
great size.
Origin of lea Cream.
Though the ancient Greeks and
Romans used ice for table purposes
to get through even hotter weather
than we have been having lately,
they knew nothing of the "ices."
These were introduced into Francs
from Italy about 1660 and known
at first as "fromages places" iced
cheeses although they were made
of strawberries, apiKcots, and so
f orth, and contained ;iot a drop of
cream. From 1762 the use of
"glaees" in the plural was sanction
ed by the academy, but not before
1S25 did "une glace force its way
into recognized acceptance. "Ices"
are referred to from time to time in
the eighteenth centary in English
people's letters from abroad. "Iced
creams," however, were known as
early as the year when William of
Orange came over, arjd by the mid
dle of the eighteenth century "ice
cream" fissured in cookery books.
London (jhrocicle.
An Anxious Boy.
"While Archbishop Trench was
dean of Westminster he delegated
Canon Cureton to preach at the ab
bey on a certain saint's day. On
such days the boys of Westminster
school attended service and after
ward had the rest of the d.-iT as a
holiday. While Mr. Cureton, on the
morning of the day he was to offici
ate, was looking ov.er his sermon at
the breakfast table his son asked, in
a tone vibrating with anxiety:
"Father, is yours a long sermon
"No, Jimmy, not very."
"But how long? Please tell me."
"Well, about twenty minutes, I
should say. But why are you so
anxious to know ?
"Because, father, the boys gay
they will thrash raa awfully if yon
ATA tnnra IKan Ka1 9 m-m Iam. T -n
ara more than half a komr.
don Telegraph.
THE EKEUY CEHO.
Hunts a Afria Was
, hy His Eyeglass,
In writing of his hunting adven
tures in Nubia in Harper's, Captain
T. C. S. Speedy tells how he was
Baved from the attack of a native
by the reflection in his glasses.
"After a slight refreshment I
spread my sheepskin rug a couple
f yards off and, turning my back
to the fire, kept a lookout in front
as owing to the precipitous stony
cliff that rose on three side3 of our
camping ground I found it was next
to impossible for any one to enter
except in that direction. Suddenly
a log which had been charred quite
through fell asunder, throwing out
a large shower of sparks, while a
bright flame shot upward. To my
surprise I beheld before me an ex
traordinary sight which held my at
tention fixed, though for a moment
I did not realize what I saw. Im
mediately before my eyes was the
diminutive figure of a native, evi
dently, from his mop of hair, one of
the Hadendoa tribe, but only about
two inches in height, spear in hand,
which he was quivering up and
down as if on the very verge of
striking a blow, a fiendish grin dis
torting his countenance. My as
tonishment lasted but an instant. I
quickly perceived that this was the
reflection in my spectacles of an
enemy behind me, who must have
slipped in while I was dozing, and
that I was the object of the aim
which in another second would have
proved fatal. There was not time
either to rise or turn, but, flinging
myself backward, I seized the sav
age by his foot and, pulling him
forward, happily upset him on his
back and closed with him.
"The excitement and breathless
ness of the struggle prevented me
from calling out, especially as I had
at first great difficulty in retaining
my hold of my foe, owing to the
slipperiness of his greasy skin, but
the sand which stuck to him as we
rolled over and over together soon
enabled me to obtain a better grip.
Luckily in our rough and tumble
contest we' knocked up against one
of my hunters, who, although sound
asleep till that instant, was on his
feet in a twinkling and quickly set
tled the matter by slipping a cord
around the elbows and logs of the
man, who was thus secured."
Shelley and Butter Cakes.
Shelley called on Southey one
afternoon and found the latter and
his wife at tea. Southey evinced
such an appetite for buttered cake3
that Shelley was shocked and at
last broke out with: "Southey, I'm
ashamed of you! It's horrible to
see a man like you greedily devour
ing this nasty stuff!" Mrs. Southey
came to her husband's defense with
a long tirade, during which Shelley,
abashed, put down his face and cu
riously scanned the cakes. He broke
off a bit and ventured to taste it.
Then he began to eat as greedily as
Southey himself. When he went
home his verdict on the cakes was
summed up in the report of Harriet
Westbrbok, to whom he was en
gaged: "We were to have hot tea
cakes every evening 'forever.' I was
to make them myself and Mrs.
Southey was to teach me."
The Grest Problem of Tomorrow.
A scientist tells of the energy the
earth receives from the sun : " When
the sun is nearly overhead he de
livers power at the surface of the
earth at the rate of more than two
horsepower for each square yard of
surface. Even after deducting the
loss occasioned by the absorption of
the earth's atmosphere, it is still
true that each square yard receives
when the sun is shining the equiva
lent of one horsepower working con
tinuously. This means there is de
livered on each square yard an en
ergy able to lift a weight of 33,000
pounds one foot in one minute, and
this power is continuous. On the
broad, sunlit plains of Arizona the
6un delivers an equivalent of me
chanical energy which, expressed in
horsepower, would seem almost in
finite. A small part of it would
suffice for the whole world's work.
Whv is it not set to doinT this work?
This is the problem of tomorrow.
A Kipling Correction.
Eudvard Kipling dined on one oc
casion with a party that included
several other well known writers a
fair proportion of men and women
who knew something about litera
ture and a large number who knew
little and made up for their lack of
knowledge with pretense. Several
of the last described kind started a
useless discussion concerning spell
ings, pronunciations, etc., and one,
firing his remark straight at Kip
ling, said, "I find that 'sugar' and
'sumac are the only words begin
ning with 'su' that are pronounced
as though beginning with sh.
Bored though he was, Kipling's
politeness did not desert him, and,
assuming a wprcasion of interest,
although bis eyes twinkled behind
his glasses, be asked, "Art yen
The practice of blanketing- cows has"
become somewhat popular in certain
parts of the country. It is found that
a cover of this kind in cold weather
helps hold bodily heat and prevents
cows from sudden shrinkage of milk
during cold spells, the cattle being able
COW BLANKET.
to devote their entire attention to the
production of milk. Those who have
noticed the subject carefully say that
the covers make the cows more quiet
and contented and that the nervous
ones are less troublesome. These rugs
are easily made out of old grain bags
or similar material. The method of
fastening these covers is shown in the
THE BLANKET IN PLACE.
illustrations from the American Culti
vator and is superior to the wide girths
or straps often used and which are apt
to be displaced.
Age Limit of Dairy Coin,
A bulletin from the Wisconsin sta
tion states that a cow is at her best
duriug her fifth aud sixth years, up
to which time the production of milk
and butter fat by cows in normal con
dition increases each year. The length
of time the cow will maintain her max
imum production depends upon her
constitution, strength and the eare
with which she is fed and managed.
A good daii-y cow should not show any
marked falling off until after ten years
of age. Many excellent records have
been made by cows older than this.
The quality of the milk produced by
heifers is somewhat better than that
of older cows, for a decrease has been
noted of one-tenth to two-tenths of 1
per cent in the average fat content for
each year until the cows have reached
the full age. This is caused by the in
crease in the weight of the cows with
advancing age. At any rate, there
seems to be a parallelism between the
two sets of figures for the same cows.
Young animals use a portion of their
food for the formation of body tissue,
and it is to be expected, therefore, that
heifers will require a larger portion of
nutrients for the production of milk or
butter fat than do other cows. After
a certain age has been reached, on the
average seven years of age, the food
required for the production of a unit
of milk or butter fat again Increases,
both as regards dry matter and the
digestible components of the food.
A good milk cow of exceptional
strength kept under favorable condi
tions, whose digestive system has not
been impaired by overfeeding or
crowding for high results, should con
tinue to be a profitable producer till
her twelfth year, although the econ
omy of her production is apt , to be
somewhat reduced before this age is
reached.
To Deliver Cream Sweet.
These are directions of Professor
Dean as presented in the Canadian
Dairyman:
Clean the pails, cans and separator
daily or twice daily.
Cool cream to 50 degrees by the use
of ice or cold water.
Have rich cream, testing not less
than 23 to 30 per cent fat.
Fresh cream should . not be added
to older cream until after it is coaled
to 50 degrees.
Proper weighing, measuring and sam
pling are essential for satisfaction
among the patrons.
Cream should be pasteurized and
cooled at the creamery, especially in
the fall and winter, to remove objec
tionable flavors and to add keeping
quality to the butter.
Co-operation on the part of the driv
ers, patrons and creamerymen is neces
sary in order to improve the quality of
the cream a ad butter.
Iiiee.1 Fastening For Cow.
Years ago the old fashioned stanchion
was considered the ideal fastening for
a cow. Then followed a number of
other devices, all calculated to hold the
cows securely, but none of them in
tended to give freedom of movement.
Beyond a doubt the ideal fastening for
a cow is the one which permits her to
move her head in any direction at will,
with a fastening sufficiently long so
that she may lie down or step around
a little. 0 course It will not do to
give her rope enough so that she will
get herself in trouble or get other cows
In trouble. Arrange the feed, both
the grain and the roughage, so that
she can reach it readily, yet not so she
can get at and trample it underfoot.
Any sort of arrangement which will
enable the cow to live in the manner
described ia Ida!, says Denver Field
and Farm, whether it to a box stall
f tfsflfc wdMt r a f mm stall with a
TW5 DAIRY BATS.
t its :
be O 0wi aM. 1
In the production of clean mfflc ao
one thing is of more importance than
keeping the cows out of the mod.
Many yards into which dairy cows are
turned each day for their drink and
exercise are knee deep with mud and
manure during the whiter and spring,
if not neatly the entire year. In sum
mer when the cows are on pasture
they would keep comparatively clean
were they not obliged to wade through
a filthy yard in going to the stable. -
In locating a dairy barn care should
be taken to have a gentle slope from
the barn in at least one direction, af
fording good natural drainage for both
barn and yard. If the barn is already
built and poorly located, drainage and
grading will do much to remedy the
evil. In most cases it would take but
a small amount of labor with plow
and scraper, when the ground Is In
suitable condition to handle, to give
the surface of the yard a slope from
the barn sufficient to carry off the sur
face water. Even if dirt has to be
hauled In from outside the yard to ac
complish this it will not be expensive.
Tile drainage alone under a yard is not
sufficient, as the tramping of the cattle
soon puddles the surface.
A Good Hard Yard.
After the grading Is done the yard
should be covered with gravel or cin
ders. By putting the coarser in the bot
tom and the finer on top a good hard
yard can be obtained and at a com
paratively small expense where mate
rial of this kind is available. If this
cannot all be done in one year it is of
the utmost importance that a begin
ning be made by grading and gravel
ing a portion of the yard next the barn,
so that the cows may have some place
on which to get out of the mud and
filth. By grading a part of the yard
each y-ar and applying a thick coat of
gravel or cinders to the graded part
the entire yard will in a few years be
In good condition. When gravel does
not contain enough clay to pack hard
a small amount of clay should be mix
ed with the top layer. It will then
form a firm surface.
A portion of the yard should be
bedded, thus affording the cows a place
to lie In the open air on pleasant days.
If straw is scarce, the cleanest of the
soiled bedding from the stable will an
swer for this purpose, j When the straw
and manure on this bedded portion of
the yard become too deep and soft they
should be hauled into the field and the
bedding commenced again oh the solid
yard.
It is advisable to haul the manure
directly to the field from the barn, but
if this is not feasible it should be re
moved at least 100 feet from the barn.
In no case, says Professor Fraser of
Illinois, should it be allowed to accu
mulate against or near the dairy barn,
and no swine pen should be nearer
than 200 feet on account of the odors
being readily absorbed by milk.
FEEDING FOR MILK
Corn and cob meal, a little ollmeal
and alfalfa hay produce a flow of milk
equal to any other ration we know,
says Farmers Advocate. Ground oats
added in small quantities increase the
palatability of the ration without add
ing greatly to Its cost Corn silage or
root crops make valuable additions to
any ration.
Mast Be Well. Fed.
Cows that are capable of producing
a large quantity of milk may be ruin
ed by improper feeding. Dairy cows
must- be well fed and must have the
right kind of food or they cannot pro
duce a large flow. Milk is a substance
rich in protein, and this cannot be man
ufactured by the cow from anything
that does not contain protein. In oth
er words, the cow cannot produce milk
from carbohydrates and fats and must
be fed a comparatively narrow ration.
Requisite For Calf Feeding.
Always keep the calf pens dry and
clean, using plenty of litter. A dirty
pen is conducive to scours. For sev
eral calves fed together fit up narrow
stalls at one side of the pen and fasten
each calf by a rope or stanchion to
feed each separately. This will pre
vent the stronger calves from getting
more than their share. Keep them
fastened or tied for half an hour after
eating to prevent their sucking each
other's ears. The pails used for feed
ing milk should be thoroughly cleansed
and scalded, with boiling water each
day.
Value of Dried Beet Pulp.
The dairy cow ration is always a live
subject, and we want to make a sug
gestion in that direction, says the New
England Homestead. We suggest that
every dairyman who isn't using dried
beat pulp in his ration would do well
to investigate this supplementary feed
to make sure that he isn't missing
something. While dried beet pulp Is
no new thing as a dairy feed by any
means, still it is only recently that Its
use has become general, and we think
it has now thoroughly established itself
in this country, the same as it has in
Germany, Denmark and other Euro
pean countries. To fully appreciate
why dried beet pulp 13 such a profita
ble feed one must realize that in ad
dition to its food value it 13 a great
aid to digestion and assimilation. Its
light, succulent "green" character re
lieves the compaction of the other heav
ier foods and to a great aid in the me
chanical operation oi tfs eomach. Its
cooling, soethins; effect ope, the entire
alimentary egg pwrsnts any fever
ish nfflttoa mrtttag. kaapg the bow
els sagatev a4 fkm aateat 1 pan oral
state 4f