.Businesslike Methods Not Used
In Highway Construction.
THE RIGHT SYSTEM LACKING.
narrow .tired
They had good roads away
Read Bosses Should Bs Removsd Front
Pol Hies snd Mads to Pass in Ex-
- animation 8howing Thsir Efficiency.
Change Needed In Road Laws.
A back number the bad country
road Is a back number. It Is as much
out of place and date -as the grain cra
dle or flail thrasher. They had bad
roads away back in grandfather's time
ever since people began to travel, to
haul stuff in modern
wagons.
back in Caesar's time in the old world.
What progress have we made in road
building? Very little. Over three
fourths of all the miles of country
roads in the midwest are still unim
proved, says the Agricultural South
west In most states 90 per cent would
be more nearly correct. Of course
every bit of road gets its annual tear
ing up by the road officials, who draw
a salary for calling it road "improve
ment" Why is It thus? There's a reason
why country roads are bad. Can't lay
It to the weather or the road material
uhpr As one farmer says, "I have
. THE BVLL.:
"As a rule." less attention is given to j
selecting a bull than a cow. xnere a,
a rery general desire to possess su-j
perior owi, but Judging, from the fear
some looking specimens one frequently
sees doing duty as bulls it, is quite
evident that there are plenty who do
not care what breed, form, size or
other points they own so long as they
can do their work. "
This Is an extremely unfortunate aV
Otudel and when put in practice, as it
far too often is, it is quite certain that
1
it
rait c&
'Flowers
JKBSKT BtJIdi OF DAIRY TYPE.
the stock produced will be of an in
ferior character. It is here that the
mistake becomes conspicuous, and. it
Is more noticeable later when the
progeny is marketed. Superior cows
are very desirable, but a first class
bull is more so, and it ought tq be the
BOSTON FERNS
They Should Bs Grown In I Bright
and Airy Mouse.
Preparations for the summer crop of
Boston ferns and me varum wmer
nephrolepises that are included among
the florists' stock are in order., inese
ferns' are readily multiplied by means
of their many runners. , Plant out the
stock plants on a bench, giving them
about four inches of good soil of very
similar character to that one would
rin rnsoa In. and in a few weeks
there are likely to be Some young
plants that may be taken off and pot
ted. When first planted the nephro
lepis bed will not require very frequent
waterings, but as the plants become
well rooted andgrow freely they will
take up a great deal of water, for they
should be grown in a bright and airy
house in order, to keep the young
plants short and stocky. A night tem
perature of GO to U5 degrees is .quite
warm enough, states Gardening.
These nephrolepises are sometimes
troubled with a rather flat brown
lte 4f Fyej -an 9mm4 Training Fee
. CHU4 In a Pony.
Every favorable day of the spring
has- brought evidence of the growing
liking for ponies. ' Boys and girls on
ponies or in carts are no longer the
somewhat rare sight of a number of
years ago. Many fortunate youngsters
spend most of their leisure time In
the saddle, the little girl wearing the
divided skirt and- riding boy fashion.
ISome people think a7 boy or. girl can
HOG CHOLERA.
ftsverntwent's Plan of Combating' the
.-Disease .by Irnmunisattoa.
seen in twenty-three years hundreds of ambltion ot aU to own such not only
thousands of dollars or taxpayers
money expended on the roads in town
and country; but after all, our roads
are still as bad as ever." As bad as
ever! What a comment to make upon
the appearance of country homes had
It been said that the farms had not
been improved in twenty-three years I
But, no; the farms have improved, the
towns have grown, and business places
are better than they were twenty
' three years ago, but the country roads
are "as bad as ever" after spending
fortunes upon them.
The reason Is this road building is
not done in the same businesslike
manner as other things are managed.
We have seen the creamery come into
existence. We have seen the skilled
buttermaker turning out carloads of
butter finer than that made by the
farmers before the creameries took
the job off their hands. Science and
business methods have made the
i-hnnm in buttermaking. But the
roads are "as bad as ever"- because it j
as a credit to oneself, but as a money
maker.
A cow may be as good as is possible,
but use an inferior bull and her calf
will be moderate, to say the least but
use a substantial bull and ninety-nine
chances to one the calf will .be better
either than the sire or dam, writes W.
K. Gilbert-in Field and Farm. At
tempts to breed from a poor class of
cows with a bull of a similar character
only results in the production of a lot
i of weeds, but if a really good bull is
' used for inferior cows the stock will
1 be Improved perceptibly, both In ap
pearance and value.
I A pure bred bull of any kind is an
acceptable animal, but crossbred ones
are doubtful. That some are good, I
'admit but the majority are rubbish.
It does not matter what the object of
breeding be milk production in the
4. Wf with trroflfr develOD-
CAUCU1C 1..-v- . " o
menu on the most valued parts a su
perior bull will always make its mark
Is a farmer's-job, to be done when it
suits his convenience. It is done by
men who have never studied the sci
ence of road building. It is done in a
bit and miss method devoid of business
principles. This is why hundreds of
thousands of the taxpayers' money have
failed to make the roads any better.
" And again we say it is not because of
bad weather or poor road building
material. The buttermaker takes bad
cream and makes pretty good butter
from it because he knows how. Of
course he could do better with good
.. . i I 1 1 1 1 ..nil
cream, unewise me bi
builder can make good roads out of
just plain country dirt because ho
knows how. Of course he could do
"better with crushed rock and all of
that It Is not a scarcity of money or
of material, but a lack of the right sys
tem, that is responsible for bad roads.
Dollar for dollar what we want to
ee is a dollar's worth of good roads
for a dollar spent in road tax. And
why not have it? Isn't it about time
to quit pouring money into a mud
hole? Most roads could have been
nicely paved with the dollars they
have cost since first laid out Where
has that money gone? Don't cry
"graft." Of course there has been too
much politics ah, politics; there's the
rub but there has been no political
graft to speak of in connection with
country roads. The trouble Is the sys-
tern Is and has been wrong. Road
building is fo- the public ood, just as
mail carrying is. The mall carriers
are under civil service, out of politics
entirely. They are paid for knowing
their business. They must give a dol
lar's worth of service for a dollar in
pay. Why not handle the road prob
lem that way? Remove the road boss
from politics and make him pass an
examination showing his efficiency.
Keep him Just as long as he does his
"work well. Then you will see good
dirt roads wherever there is nothing
better. Enough money will soon bo
saved In road tax to macadamize every
mile of the main traveled country
roads.
A farmer would be foolish to go
ahead with a large Job of tiUng with
out having tha whole thjng mapped
out and levels established by some one
capable of doing It. Then he would be
equally foolish Bhould he not study the
capacity of tile needed to drain the
Intended. It is good business
and have a big share in securing ail
NKPHBOIjEPIS STTPKKBISSnlA.
scale, but the young insects are white
and at first glance resemble tiny pieces
of white cotton on the underside of the
frond. '
This Insect Is very destructive, ana
Swine producing sections ; of ' North:
America are keenly Interested In re
sults of the ' hog cholera conference
held at Ames, la. It was called by..
Secretary Wilson. Dr. Melvin and Dr.
Dorset of the' United States depart
ment of agriculture and was attended
by the veterinarian officials of the bu
reau of animal industry of the central
western states. These men were called
together by Secretary Wilson to re
ceive instructions in the government's
new and successful treatment of hog
cholera. . "
The method , of combating the dis
ease Is simply immunization. For a
number of years the- department at:
temDted to produce a successful vac-
?arm and
(Garden
.DUTCH DRAGGING.
It Makes Convenient Corners and la
'Really. Simple. .
Dragging "Dutch fusliiou" Is nothing
new. 1 learned It more than twenty
years ago. Still, it may be new to
some and prove of value. Its advan
tages are that it drags neither length
wise nor square across the furrows and
makes easier corners than the ordinary
diagonal dragging. Plain Dutch fash-
temptea to prouuee uu' lon 8h0wn in diagram below. Com-
cine by artificial cultures, but on ac-1 ..mg our from A to B.
SHETLAND PONT HOWARD B.
IWlnner- of first prize tn stallion class at
World s I air, memoer oi iiis
Belle Meade farm, Massachusetts.
count of the ultra microscopic nature
of the organism causing he trouble
this was found to be not feasible.
Since then the workers, knowing that
hogs which have recovered from' the
disease are immune, have been im
munizing the animals by means of the
infected blood. f
It was soon found, however, that the
blood serum from these recovered
I swine did not contain the immunizing
fnn. nhvsical development
in oiiffiplont numbers to confer
uvuico " "
and ruddy health to the square Inch
out of a Shetland pony than in any
other way. In a large measure this is
true, for by horseback riding every mus
cle in thejwdy is brought Into, play,
making it vastly superior to tne me
chanical exercise obtained from a gym
nasium, and in riding and driving a
nonv the child readily acquires self re
liance and -courage, quickness or inui-
vidual acton ana a seuse ui juuuicu..
The accompanying cut from the
American Cultivator shows a notable
pony, with description as follows:
Standing forty inches nign, nowaru
B. is of remarkably good conforma
tion, having an unusually small head,
full chest, deep body, short back, ex
cellent hind quarters and very straight
legs, with good bone. Wonderful to
relate, he is as vigorous and in as
good condition today as wnen ne en
tered the show ring at the World's
fair and as a perfect specimen of the
Shetland Is difficult to be excelled
either for beauty or speed. His color
Is black and white.
A Contrast.
The largest horse so far as is known
was brought to Watertown, Minn., by
Sylvester Dory of this city, who traded
a herd of Shetland ponies for him,
savs the St Paul Pioneer Press. The
animal stand's, eighty-one ' Inches high
and weighs close to 3,000 pounds. He
was raised by H. R. Carroll, a farmer
living near Doland, in this state. "'
immunity to other animals when in
wti into their svstem. To render
these antitoxin bodies oi practical val
ue they can be increased by feeding
the heart, liver, lungs and intestines of
cholera victims ,to these immune ani
mals. These animals are made still
Turn to the right and go back on the
left side of. first track till yon -reacbf
B D
that is required, both for ornament and
utility.
. There are two principal influences to
account for the patronage given to in- j
ferior bulls. As in so many cases,
money Is at the bottom of one. Some
pride themselves on how cheap they
can buy a bull. What a delusion to
compliment oneself on!
Now for the other influence. It is
indifference. It is quite extraordinary
how keen. Intelligent men who know
quite well the great advantage of em
ploying a good bull will Introduce and
retain wasters. They may say they
do not rear calves -and it does not mat
ter what these are like; the cows
milk as well from an inferior as a su
nerlor bull, and so on. N But is this
studying one's own interest to the ut
most? L am sure it is not weitner is
It advancing superior stock breeding,
which we all profess to take an inter-
es- 1 - - t-ntr RAAsnn.
1 am often interested in finding now i rft,wi fl anocimens of
soon small farmers, who do not pro-1 of nepnroiepls by continued behind the shoulders.; Below they are
fess to know a great deal of how. to ; - thA sto,k DUt a few ln connected by a few Unks of chain, and
improve Dreeus, " honch solely for-the purpose ot in- the cnain irom me saw i
creasing the stock and leave the oth
ers alone. Instead of mutilating good
sized plants when enough small plants
to Increase the stock are not on nana
buy small plants of some one who has
them in abundance.
Staking a Hog on Pasture.
A plan for tying out male hogs, as
cows are tied out on pasture or range,
Is shown in the accompanying illus-
lts ravages soon show in the form q j tration, which is the idea of one or
light colored spots that appear on the ! our readers. A double girth of me
upper side of the leaf, proving that the j dium sized chain is made to fit the
insects have been satisfying their ap- j body of the hog before and directly
petites with the Juices of the leaf, A
dipping in tobacco-extract will help in
killing this pest but strong tobacco
solution Is also liable to injure the tips
of the fronds. The growing tips or tno
nepnroiepls fronds are quite tender,
and it Is better to throw away a plant
that is badly infested with this scale
than to risk further trouble with it.
Be very careful to plant out none but
clean plants for stock, else the trouble
will ttecome more marked the follow-
INOCTJLATINQ A PIO AGAINST HOG CHOliKBA.
further immune by injections of infect
ed blood. This hyper-immune "blood
from these animals is found- to be pro
tective against the disease. Dr. Mc
Neil at the Iowa experiment station
has demonstrated by a number of trials
the practicability of the treatment
After some experiments at tne juis-
souri experiment station J. W. Con-
naway, D. V. S., said: "Out or nrty
six "head that appeared healthy at the
tima of inoculation only three died.
All were probably as greatly exposed
as would ordinarily occur on the aver
age stock farm, and some of these in
oculated animals were very severely
exposed and still proved resistant
The results of these tests are so sat
isfactory as to leave in every mind
no doubt as to the great practical val
ue of this method of preventing hog
cholera."
PIiAIN DUTCH HARROWING.
edge of field near A. Drive across the
first track and back on the opposite
side to the other end. Cross over and
back on opposite side again.
Continue crossing over at each end
inside your last track and outside thfr
last track along the sides. When half
done the piece will look like first dia
gram, and the next trip would b from
C to D, to E, to F, to C. When done the
last trip would be from G to H, and
the piece will have been dragged twice
diagonally in opposite directions. This
works well on pieces that are nearly
square or not more than twice as long-
I as wide. Of late we have found that
It is economy in plowing, cultivating,
etc., to make our lauds as long as pos
sible. On these Dutch dragging did
not work as well, as it was too near
lengthwise the furrows, so we hit upon
what we call "crazy Dutch," shown in
second diagram. We "strike out" zig
zag across the piece two or three or
more times, according to its length
comDared to width. The picture shows-
three times viz: From A to B, to C, to
D. Turn to the right and go back on..
M B. F T g
nf A frootl bull,
They rarely keep a bull themselves,
but send their cows to those of larger
farmers in the district. They may
hardly be able to tell from observation
which is the best but once a calf or
two arrive, and they notice progress,
the fine contour or the lusty quarters
they soon realize where the superior
bull resides, and they patronize him
time after time, Irrespective of fee, if
that is anything within reason.
The cheapest way to secure a su
perior bull is to buy it as a calf and
HOG TIED OPT.
nected with the harness here, we
are informed that this is a very satis
factory, way of keeping hogs on range
where It is impossible to have a spe
cial lot for their use, remarks Iowa
Homestead. '
a von hoiistxtn.
r it The character of the sire nd
dam ought to be known. If possible,
or in anv case It should be a well set
up youngster. If a more matured ouu
Is wanted, he may be from a year to
r"rtohreacoTpet;;rs;. rSl "K
. Z.,- mnntha tie pan be used freely, it w
veyor or ditcher. Just one Hie put in
wrong will ruin the wnoie pian oi
drainage. But that same farmer will
pay money every year in road tax and
let men who know nothing about road
building squander the money. It is
time this foolishness was stopped.
It will be stopped when the farmers
who pay the money and who use the
roads get together and demand a
-fringe of system, demand that It be
eliminated from politics, demand that
the road laws be changed from anti
quated forms to suit the needs of a
progressive age of business sense.
Good Road Requisites.
D. Ward King, the original road
drag man, says there are three requl-
" sites for a good road it must be oval,
bard and smooth, because all three of
these conditions are necessary to se
car drainage. Without drainage the
bast .road aoon goes to pi res.
months be can be used freely.
always better to buy a smart young
bull than a partially wornout or aged
one. It is a bad plan, too, to be al
ways chobDing and changing bulls.
Get a good one to start with, take a
pride In him and stick to him as long
as be Is flt
.Transplanting Evergreens.
I have transplanted many hundreds
of .evergreens, and where I kept a
eood ball of earth about the roots and
quickly got the trees from -the old to
the bew location, so that there was no
drying -out of the roots, I have invari
ably had success, remarKs a wmer m
Country Gentleman. .
The native white spruce ana tns native-
white pine are beautiful trees, the
former being' found fully branched to
the. ground at a knownage of fifty
years." Many trees of this variety will
he found having a decidedly bluish col
or as blue as many of the sister vari
ety, the Colorado blue spruce. I have
seen quite extended areas on the coast
of Maine that were a perfect mass of
Mm. The sDFUce delights In a moist
soil, and" this should be kept In mind
when planting the trees. Sandy soil
and dry sections of country are com
monly associated with pine trees, and,
while this tree does have the ability
to grow under such conditions, it does
not follow that it will not do very
much better as regards growth If giv
n moister and richer soil.
, King Edward as Stockman.
The rich crop of prizes which the
klnsr's cattle and sheep won at the
Bingley Hall show, Birmingham, is the - f and auow the heifer to be
latest demonstration of his majesty's !. fflt when fresh, feed well, sta-
success as a farmer, of which ne is so- ble well and make the first milking
deservedly proud. When the king ne- i pod as iong as possible.
Cement Floors Under Cows.
Leaf Spot of the Violet.
Circular brown spots on leaves. This
and other violet diseases can best be
controlled by growing only the stron
eest and healthiest plants that can be
secured and keeping them under the
best condition throughout the year, re-
- ut9L Wl
Every few days we near or tne Daa hmnl, .n diseased Darts
effects upon cows of the cold cement gcting the houses and beds.
floor, says uoaro s uairymau. ov-mo p B sym0ns.
of the wise 'ones cover over the cement
with boards, but many do not The re
sult is garget and loss of quarters in
the udder. No 'other portion of the
cow's body takes as much blood as the
udder, except it be the heart and lungs.
The big reins, called milk reins, shov
that lying on the cold cement floor
causes congestion ln the udder and
garget ensues. Besides garget rben
nxatlsm is frequently caused in row cultivation.
: The Low Headed Tree.
The low headed tree Is much easier
pruned, sprayed, picked and the trunk
nrotected from aun scald. Cultivation
can usually be easier done with low
VARIATION ON DUTCH FABHION.
left to first track to C and drive across-
it Go on right side to B. tl.en up ieit
side to A. Cross over and back on left
side of B. Drive straight across tne
first two tracks, turn to th lert ami
go on right side to C, where you will
cross the two tracks again, and go on
left side to D. Always go straigui.
ahead till you get to the edge of the
field before you make a turn.
When half done it will look like tne
picture, and the next trip would be
from E to F, a, tt, i, j, .
When dmie the last trip will be from
M to N, O, P. This looks complicated,
but it isn't half as hard to do it as it
Is to tell about It. At least it seems
that way to me Just now. in striking
out we never measure a piece, but
raa at the angles. However, tne
muscle and bone making truer you get It struck out the better
It works out in nmsums, iuuuU
"Uncle Reuben" In writing the forego
ing to the Bural New Yorker.
THE DAIRYMAN.
-Dairy farmers should retain the
calves from the best milking cows. It
is almost impossible to buy dairy cows
as good as the calves from the best
cows will make if the former are prop
riv . roared and handled. Feed the
heifer calf on
feed to obtain a" large frame. Feed
plenty of roughage to develop a large
stomach capacity. Do not feed fatten-
irnn hreedins - nearly forty years ago
the Sandringham farm lanas were m
Oat Byproducts.
There is a class of byproducts from
the irefll mills of Iowa '.t meru
greater attention on tne pan ui out
tooriera. In this Class are me urn. ccur
flmirs middlings, shorts, and possibly
the hmn too. may be used. Anese-
day, according to Rider Haggard, jSr, and butter TtSSi
is a wonderful farm, for nowhere Is Rg an welgnt of corn appreciable Pentages or fat. w
so much high bred stock to be seen on
the same area." But probaDiy no-
Experiments With Rye Meal.
" The Pennsylvania experiment station
an almost hopeless condition barren fllscovere(i that meal a8 a part
and barely capaDie or cuiuvuuU t f nrol)erlv balanced ration for milk
production as an equal
meal. No injurious effect upon the
quality of the butter was noticed.
Treatment For Scours.
, Some time ago the South Carolina
: .4. wutAmrnorinMl thP
. .. -t 4- nrrfvn Ttfk KXUei UUClAL DWUWU iuvwu"vv-
gle exniomon ma uiaje , - ra.dehvde as a treatment
where will vou find such an array of
plates and cups won at, shows as that
rhfh Snnririnzuam Doasts. ai a mu-
rrer thnn fourteen first Drizes. . In
iflna he caDtured five first prizes ana
cups in addition to numerous seconds
and thirds. In 1904 nis prizes num
bered twenty. In 1905 he won a cnam-
pion plate, a challenge cup and eight
een other prizes, including four firsts,
while last year he took at tne &mitn
field show ten firsts, nine breed cups
and plates.- six other, prizes and several
"highly commendeds," and every prize
winner he has bred himself. Westmin
ster Gazette. .
More Horse Meat.
Tn 1906 50.000 horses were slaughtered
forfood in Paris, furnishing about 12,
000 tons of meat Formerly horse
meat was eaten by only -the poorest
classes, but now It Is no longer regard-
for scours ln young calves. It should
be fed as follows: Add one-half ounce
of commercial formalin to 15.5 ounces
render them particularly dtsirable as
hog feeds, and possibly their use may
with profit be extended to horses.
This is specially true or tne nour.
middlings and shorts. The oran, now
ever, has too high a content of crude
fiber to give It a very great vaiue
a flesh producer or to render it pal
atable to the feeding animal. These
are comparatively new feeds, and their
of distilled or rain water and give one Dractlcai WOrth has not been definitely
. . , . . . , -t f . 1. nnnli I ... . . j . 1 l.nl
teaspoonrui or mis buiuuuu mm ram established, but from meir tuemnai
pound or pint of skimmilk fed. Giving composltlon it seems evident that exr
this treatment twice, sjr uu m perimentation wltn practical
morning's and once in the evening's testa wlll fujiy demonstrate their rank-
mllk, wlll usually cure the scours. The m well wlth Sfmiiar wheat products,
Virginia experiment station has recent- u not outclassing them. Louis G.
ly tested this remedy quite thoroughly Mlcnaei.
and reports most satisfactory results.
'. Some Good Advice. Wood Ashes as Fertilizer.
W F -MfcSnarran of Pennsylvania In Wood ashes are obtainable wherever
in address before the Vermont dairy- wood is burned in large quantities.
lien uttered this very sensible advice The potash containea iu mou- "
on the matter of Improving the dairy
dualities of farm cows: A cow may be
better than she looks or worse than
... I innts Tlio stnlir xcav to tell one IS
oil no refuse meat ana its cousumyuuu -- --j .
ttall i. rnnidlv in-, to live with her. Get rid of the poor
creasing throughout Europe.-
a A Bone and Muscle Maker.
While alfalfa Is' too rich a food for
mnn horses unless used in combina-
hoaded trees than with high, headed ' tlo wih some other roughness, it is
ones, as they are usually grown. Or-Jt an excellent feed for young horses, aa
ones. They take the bread out of our
mouths, but the more promising ones
may surprise you with Judicious feed
ing. Put them to the test; shelter them
from storms; be kind Jto them; don't
trv to half starve them on a half dry
pasture, but give them the full round
soluble and easily leaches out. Wood
ashes are excellent as fertilizer, and
none should be allowed to go to waste.
Do not apply at base of plants, but
spread broadcast aboat bushes or trees.
Alfalfa Seeding.
Ohio authorities state that alfalfa
may be seeded at any time after spring:
frosts are over until the middle of Au
gust provided the seed bed ia In prop
er condition. It was found that up-
dlnarfly the trees are not kept pruned It seems to contain. Just tne eieme j h of LAm .nds have produced the heav-
.mi the limbs drooo ao-aa to binder rv to develop bone, n wcl. and ? the butcher .and-get th best bull or bottom glands have Pn
iai aj .1.. .- ' -:- '
ration. Send your scrub bull to land clay and sandy first and secona
consequent size.
: your breed that you can luy.
test maximum and average ylaM. -.
way. - " I
I