University of South Carolina Libraries
CODLING MOTH EGGS. Recently Observed Facts of Vital Impor? tance to Fruit Growers. It is a curious and striking fact tba: it is only -within the past few years that anything definite has been recorded about the egg itself, in which sq com? mon and important an insect pest as the codling moth begin* its life. Recent observations in this.connection have brought ont some facts which are of ?ital importance ^to-the fruit grower. "Fortunately the Cornell station has been E&GS OF THE CODLING MOTH. able to get some lifelike photographs of the eggs of the codlin% moth, concern? ing which Professor S linger land, in a bulletin giving the whole life story of this moth, makes the following state? ments: "The small whitish spots on the apples at A and B Din the figure represent the eggs, natural size, just as they were laid on the fruit by tho moth. At ? is shown ene of the eggs much magnified, and S E is a picture of the eggshell greatly en > larged. These pictures give a good idea of the shape, size and general appear? ance of the egg. They have been aptly characterized as resembling a minute drop of milk adhering, to the skin of the fruit "In the light of recent observations it i seems remarkable how the notion that the eggs of this insect, are laid on or in the so called calyx or blossom end of the fruit has clung to literature for nearly a century and a ha If. During the i past two years we have seen hundreds of the eggs on apples in New^York or? chard^ and have naver yet seen one on or down in between tb? calyx lobes on the so called blossom end. We have seen eggs near the calyx, in old curculio scars, near the stem, and have found I what appeared to be codling moth eggs even on the leaves of the tree. Most of the eggs we ( found were glued vto the skin, apparently without much choice aa to location on- the smooth surface of the fruit, as shown at A ?nd 81>\" From this and other evidence Profes? sor Slingerland reaches the conclusion that in the northern half of the United States at least mest of the eggs of the codling moth are not laid until a week or more after th? petals bf the blossoms have fallen from most varieties of ap? ples, or usually during; the latter part of May and the first half of June. CARE OF HIGHWAYS. Value of Hedges to Break the Wlad-Use? of Shade Trees. We have not had time to learn by actual experience as much about i )ad care as we have concerning the con? duction of highways, but this part of the work must not be considered of less importance, writes A. A. Pope in The Outlook. Drainage is essential both for surface and for understructure, and yet great care should be taken to so arrange the grades as to avoid deep washouts on the surface or the loosening of the foun? dation. Hedges of sufficient growth to protect the surface of the road from the vio? lence of the wind will do a good deal to retain the dust, which plays so impor? tant a part in holding together the lay? ers cf broken stone. Country byways, where the shoulders of a regularly con? structed macadam way of narrow width are allowed to grow over with a thick covering of turf, will more firmly hold th em eel Tas and tho roadbed in place by preventing the rutting of the surface at the turnout places for wagons and by retaining in the roots of the grass suffi? cient moisture to assist in cementing the whole'into a solid mass. .-A moderate number of shade trees along the highways assists in preserv? ing the Burface of the road by prevent? ing a compl?te evaporation of the wa? ter. Their chief danger is the possible disturbance of the foundation of the road by the spreading roots of the trees. ROAD FOUNDATIONS. Telford Necessary on; Some Soils-Some Experiments With Macadam. A telford foundation is not always necessary, as a ten ton roller will on some soils make as good a foundation for macadam as a telford foundation, and it is much cheaper. But on clay soils it, or a layer of fine sand, is neces? sary, and it is possible to waste con? siderable money in the first cost o? draining the roadbed, instead of main? taining the side ditches in good order. This is abundantly shown by the ex? perience of Mr. Pierce in Bridgeport, Conn. He has built somewhat over 70 miles of four inch macadam in and about that city, relying on clean side ditches for drainage. Less than one-half of 1 per cent of this roadway has broken through on account of the thinness of the road and that was repaired by the addition of three inches more stone. These roads are said to have lasted, even in toe business portions of the town, for seven years before it became neces? sary to resurface them. That is a little longer than a telford road would have lashed under the same traffic, as the tel? ford foundation acts as an anvil and the atones are crushed between it and tho wagon wheels. WOOL. Divisions of Merino Fleece-Dead Fiber, ; or Kemps-Climatic Influence. The classification of the fleece of Me? rino sheep differs in some respects from that of the common kinds. The annex? ed sketch is the usual sectioning of the Merino. A is recognized as the best part of the fleece, for its fibers are notable for their fineness, elasticity and brilliancy, and are adaptable for ase in the manu? facture of the ibest grades of worsted cloths. This division of the fleece is termed "the refina. " I D is that portion grown on the thighs of the sheep. It is also an exceedingly valuable wool, bat lacks some of the qualities of the former grade. This sec? tion is termed "the fina. " B, from the throat, the shoulders and the belly, is obtained "the ter ceira. ' ' This part is a fairly good cloth - ingwooL ^?C is "the inferior" quality of wool obtained from the head and the legs of the animal. On the nature of the food of the ani? mals, the climate and relating cir eura .J*; > .V .ai DIVISIONS OF MERINO FLEECE. stances largely depends the color of the wool. .Rich green grass lands will re? sult* in a good, clear, white wool, while sheep which have been fed on the low, marshy lands, where nothing but stunt? ed vegetation was procurable, will grow a wool defective in color. Wools that are simply discolored by contact with foreign matter may be whitened with the usual bleaches. I have secured good results on particularly yellow stained wool by using sulphuretted hydrogen gas in a chamber along with the regu? lar bleach. An easy and simple way to make a sul? phuretted hydrogen apparatus is to take a wide mouth bottle with an ordinary cork. Through the cork insert two glass tubes, one of which should be funnel shaped at the top and should reach within about one-half inch of the bot? tom of the bottle ; the other should only reach about one-half inch below the cork. This latter tube is connected to a glass tube by a piece of rubber tubing. The above completes a cheap and at the same time practical apparatus for mak? ing sulphuretted hydrogen. The natural animal grease with which the wool fiber is impreg? nated is com? pletely burned cut by the sun at times, leaving the exposed por? tion of the fiber harsh and dry. The. appearance of one of these scorched fibers is that of an off col? or. A fiber of this type is shown in the diagram. The result of tbe scorching is dem? onstrated by the darkened portion below the dotted line CA). The upper part being next to the skin, was pro? tected from the sun by the density of the fibers. The fiber is of course useless for cer? tain classes of goods, and the shepherd is ever on the alert to prevent by means of shade trees this scorching. The illustrations are given for the purpose of showing the principal dif? ferences in the appearance of a fiber of pure wool and a fiber from the same fleece known as "kemp." The latter is stiffer and coarser, lacks the delicate, scaly construction and is inferior for a clothing wool. Kemps are present iu the fleece of al? most all sheep, but most prominent in the fleece of the cross breeds. These kemps vary in length, coarseness and elasticity according to the species of the sheep and according to the circum? stances under which the animal is bred. They originate mostly from the results *f exposure to which the sheep is sub? jected while on some windy hillside. [ Kemps are not easily distinguishable : while on the back oe the animal, for j they are generally white and clear, and therefore more or less hidden by the pure wool. In the case of a black or gray sheep these kemps are correspond? ingly black or gray; hence they are de? tected only with difficulty. Three causes affect the natural length and quality of the fibers of a "heep's fleece-namely, the breed, the climate and the soil. The breeding, of course, infers that when a crossing is offecte? attention to proper selection of the sheep is essen tia!., and only those animals are chosen which belong tc" specie ncc:: for producing a good, long, firm fiber. In regard to the climate, nature having decided for herself what length and quality of wool the sheep must produce in each country, it is useless for the sheep raiser to attempt any efforts to the contrary, for experience has clearly shown that he can only permanently raise long stapled sheep where nature favors long wool and short stapled sheep where nature favors short wool. This is proved by the change accomplished in the growth of the fleece of the sheep by changing them from one climate to the other. The peculiarity is that their fleece immediately commences to adapt itself to the climate, and it will become long or short accordingly. The condi? tion of the soil affects the color a~hd quality of the wool, and may be classed as follows: (A) Sheep fed on rich grass lands pro? duce wool distinguished for its purity of color. (B) Sheep on sandy and red tinged soil produce wool characterized for its yellowness. This yellow tinge forms in reality a part of the. fiber and is nonremovable even by the ordinary washing process or by the application of powerful in? gredients.-F. A. Farnsworth in Na? tional Stockman. Clipping Fore tops. Don't cut your horse's foretop off if you ever expect to sell him to a dealer. A shaved foretop knocks from 10 to 15 per cent off the market value of a roadster, a coach horse, a cob or a sad? dle horse. The practice of clipping horses' foretops and generally from three to six inches of the mane with it has become a common one. It never improves a horse's looks and is rarely beneficial. Once in a great while a shorn foretop will persist in getting tangled up in an overcheck, annoying the horse to such a degree that it is but a humane act to cut it off,.but the aver? age foretop will never caus<3 any such trouble if the bridle is properly put on and adjusted. Mr. M. Tichenor, proba? bly the most extensive dealer in short tailed harness and saddle horses in America, tells me that the absence of a foretop has stopped him from buying a great many horses. "I cannot use a horse with his foretop and part of his mane clipped off, "said he, "unless I can buy him at a price that will enable me to keep him six months or until the foretop grows out again. Fashion de? mands that a coach horse, a cob, a back, a roadster or any sort of a saddle horse must wear a foretop, and it is a serious mistake to clip it off a marketable trotting bred horse." Mr. M. Newgas is one of Chicago's most extensive ex? porters of horses and ships many trot? ting bred coach, park and saddle horses to London and Liverpool each week. When questioned in regard to the prac? tice of clipping the foretops from trot? ting bred horses, he said: "It's per? nicious. I cannot buy a horse for export if his foretop has been cut off unless I can get him at half his real value, be? cause the foreign buyers always keep such a horse until the mane grows out again, and they must buy them very cheap to do that. You cannot say too much against that practice in yo ar pa? per, or caution breeders too often, as the number of trotting bred horses that come to this market minus their fore tops is astonishing. "-Horse Review. Hovr to Cook fresh Tc????;c*. Properly roasted or brais?e? ia stock, a fresh beef or calf's tongue is delicious meat. It is not remarkable for its nutri? tious qualities; but, like the tenderloin of beef, the meat is of good flavor if i: is carefully cooked and seasoned, and it is always of melting tenderness. Select a fresh beef tongue for roasting. Wash an? trim it thoroughly and season it with salt and pepper. Wrap a pasts around it mado> of a pint of flour and a cupful of water. Roll out this paste thin and wrap it around the tongue. Lay it on a meat rack in a dripping pan, with a pint of boiling water. Roast it for about two hours. Keep the surface of the paste from drying too hard or burning by basting it with the boiling water in the bottom of tho drip? ping pan. At tho end of this time re? move the paste. It is of no further value. Loosen the skin of the tongue and peel it off. It should come off i easily. Lay it back in the pan, rub it ! freely with butter, dredge it lightly ? with flour and pour a little rich brown I stock in the pan under it to baste it with. Roast it, basting it often, until it is well browned. Take it up. Add mushrooms to the brown gravy in the dripping pan, thicken it and serve it wii:h the tongue. The mushrooms, cf course, may bu omitted, but they add a great deal to the /laver of the tongue. How to Make Rice Croquettes. A cup of cold boiled rice, a teaspoon? ful of sugar and half as much salt, a teaspoonful melted butter, an egg beaten light, enough milk to make the rico into stiff paste, sweet lard for frying. Work rice, butter, egg, etc., into au ad? hesive paste. Flour your hands and make into oval balls. Dip each into beaten egg, then in cracker dust and fry in boiling lard a few at a time, turn? ing each with great care. When a fine brown, take out with a wire spoon and lay in a heated colander to drain off wapy drop of fat. , ?loqtifcuce ai Liny. It was a preacher wbo had that "fa? tal fluency" for whom an acquaintance j laid a trap. He had a way of promising ; to preach, and on beginning would say I something like "I have been too busy j to prepare a sermon, but if some one 1 will kindly give me a text I'll preach from it." One determined to cure him. i He therefore asked him to preach. The invitation was accepted. The time came, and the visitor began his usual intro? duction: "Brethren, I have been so pushed for time today as to have been quite unable to prepare a sermon. But if some of you will give me a text I'll preach from it. Perhaps my brother here," turning to the plotter near him, "will suggest a text." "Yes, brother," came the ready response, "your text is the last part of the ninth verse of the first chapter of Ezra, and its words are 'nine and twenty knives.' " There was a pause, an ominous pause, as the preacher found his text. He read it out, "Nine and twenty knives," and began at once. "Notice the number of these knives-just exactly nine and twenty; not thirty, not eight and twenty. There were no more and no less than nine and twenty knives. " A pause-a long paus?. Then, slowly and emphatically, "Nine and twenty knives." A longer pause. Then meditatively, "Nine and twenty knives." Again he rested. "Nine and twenty knives." A dead stop. "Nine and twenty knives-and if there were nine hundred and twenty knives I could not say another word. "-Harper's Mag? azine. _ -- i . The Canyon of the Yellowstone. The canyon is so tremendously wild and impressive that even the great falls cannot hold your attention, says John Muir in The Atlantic. It is about 20 miles long and 1,000 feet deep-a weird, unearthly looking gorge cf jagged, fan? tastic architecture and most brilliantly colored. It is not the depth or shape of the canyon, nor the waterfalls, nor the green and gray river chanting its brave song as it goes foaming ^n its way, that most impresses the observer, but the colors of the decomposed volcanic rocks. With few exceptions the traveler in strange lands finds that however much the scenery and vegetation in different countries may change Mother Earth is ever familiar and the same. But here the very ground is changed, as if be? longing to some other world. The walls of the canyon from top to bottom burn in a perfect glory of color, confounding and dazzling when the sun is shining white, yellow, green, blue, vermilion and various other shades of red indefi? nitely blending. All the earth here? abouts seems to be paint. Millions of tons of it lie in sight, exposed to wind and weather as if of no account, yet marvelously fresh and bright, fast col? ors not to be washed ont or bleached ont by either sunshine or storms. Expensive Mirth. "Cheery words cost nothing" "That's where you are way off. I said two cheery words yesterday, sad they cost me ?17." "How did that happen:" "Well, I slapped a big man on the back and said, 'Hello, Fatty!' " "That was all right." "No, it wasn't. He turned out to be a man I didn't know, so we knocked each other down and got into court." Boston Journal. Not Built That Way. The Publisher-We can publish your book of epigrams if you will guarantee us the cost of printing and binding. The Poet-It's no go. I never could enjoy witticisms at my own expensa - Cincinnati Encuirer. rcutilattns the Teeth. It is curious to what an extent the mutilation of teeth goes on among sav? age nations, and eveu among certain civilized people, such as the Japanese. With them a girl is never married with? out first staining her teeth black with a repulsive kind of varnish, and the cus? tom is especially adhered to among members of the richer classes. On the west coast of Africa a large proportion of the teeth are deliberately broken when children reach a certain age. Both in the new world and the old the custom exists of extracting the two front teeth of domestic servants. In Peru the custom has existed from time immemorial and used tu be a sign of slavery in the days of ino?-. This is al? so the custom on the Kongo and among the Hottentots. Teeth are stained in various colors among the Malays. A bright red and a bright blue are not uncommon, aud a bright green is produced with the aid of arsenic and lemon juice. Livingstone related that among the Kafiars a child with a prom? inent upper jaw was looked upon as a monster and immediately killed. On the upper Nile the negroes have all their best teeth extracted in order to de? stroy their value in the slave market and to make it not worth while for the slave traders to carry them off.-Pear? son's Weekly. Converted by a Handshake. Here is a geed story of the Hight Rev. Thomas Underwood Dudley. Tho bishop had gone to Beattyville, and the place was rough and desolate, A rough locking man cunio up to him. "They tell me you're from Virginia," said the man. "Yes." "They tell me you fought with the rebels." "Yes." "Give me your hand, pard. My name's Bill D?lau, an I'm a blacksmith down hero. " "Bill," said tho bishop, "Fm proud to meet you.'' That night Bill Dohm went to the service and heard tho bishop ptoach, and he went afterward too. Twelve years later the bishop went to Beattyville once more. It was san set. He was met by the town's clergy? man. "Bishop, Bill Dolan died yester? day, and before he died I baptized him," said tho minister. "In his last words he told me to tell the bishop that be loved him. " "That,"said the bishop, "was in? deed a compensation !"-Louisville Cou .'OYAL DRAFT HORSE. Big Shire Kred by Prince of Wales Shows Its Paces. Albert Edward, prince of Wales, has been successful iu two undertakings he is the leader of Great Britain's so? cial set and he is an up to date breeder of live stock. He is only second to bi3 lamented father in the interest he takes in the improvement of domestic animals within the kingdom. It is as a horse breeder and dealer, however, that he is most conspicuous. He has the Briton's liking for huge and heavy draft horses of the Shire breed, THE PRINCE'S HORSE. monsters of horseflesh, 17 hands high and weighing over a ton. The illustra? tion shows the curious spectacle of a great Shire trotting around the ring in his heavy and clumsy way, like a bear dancing. He is the property of the prince. It is said the only money the prince ever made has been in selling horses of his own breeding. Each spring he has at his Sandringham estate an auction sale of horses of his own raising. They bring great prices, chiefly from the fact that snobs buy them because they are from royalty's stables. Lamb Barn. The 610 lambs were all in one barn, being only out long enough each day to take their grain ration. A geared air rooter on the barn pumps the water, shells corn, saws wood, etc. The barn is an ideal one for ventilation. On the ncrth and south sides doors about four feet high hang to the outside post of each bent, which is 12 feet, and reach to the next post. Immediately above is a door of similar dimensions, but hung at the top and swinging out to form an awning, thus securing perfect ventila? tion and at the same time making am? ple protection from stormy weather. These doors, being directly opposite those en the other side, and the hay? racks all in line with the posts, the team can be driven through at each bent, thus making it easy to remove the manure-a point too often overlooked. The hay stored in this barn is all taken ; in from the end from the outside, using the sling to unload.-W. A. McDorman in Country Gentleman. For Lousy Steers. We find the following directions for ridding fattening steers and their quar? ters of a pest of lice without doing any harm to the cattle: Remove cattle from stable; then thoroughly cleanse the walls, posts, ceil? ing, feeding racks, etc. ; then shut up as close as possible and burn sulphur in large quantities. Next day give every? thing in the stable a thorough white? washing with freshly made hot lime wash, in which mix two ounces of crude carbolic acid to the gallon. The follow? ing emulsion is safe and effective : Ker? osene, two gallons; common or whale oil soap, one-quarter pound; water, one gallon. Heat the solution of soap and add it boiling hot to the kerosene. Churn the mixture fer ten minutes. Di? lute the emulsion with eight parts of water and apply it to the animal by a thorough rubbing. Fifty animals can be treated with ten gallons of liquid. Repeat in one week. Old Beck. On the plsntation of Mr. T. R. Ar mistedof Cabin Point, La., isan ancient mule, Old Beck. She is so old and so useful that she becomes a mule of his? toric interest. The fact that this crea? ture is 32 years old and still making a full mule hand every day shows the powers of the horse-donkey hybrid. We copy from the Tennessee Farmer and Southern Stock Farm a picture of this famous mule. In a letter concern? ing her Mr. Armisted writes: "Old Beck was raised in Kentucky and shipped to the New Orleans market OLD BECK. in 1SG9. She was then 3 years old. I bought her in February, 1869, for my cotton farm on Red river, and she was shipped cu the steamer Bartoble, Cap? tain William Harrison commanding She was put to work iu March. 18G9, and has never lost a day's work from sickness or auy other cause. Hhe has made mo 29 crops and iias never eaten any forage but that raised on Cabin Point plantation. " How many men and women are as faithful to duty as Old Beck has been? Not All Aimless. ''Society women du lead such aimles." fives." "Aimless? Do they? Well, I know a society woman who can throw a teacup or a rolling pin just as accurately as a n-uu. "-Cleveland Plain .Dealer Good Sewtog M?chine? from $10 CO up nt Randie's If vou waa' ? ecod, borest sewing machine trade, see Rtu die. WATERING STRAWBERRIES. The Rightly Used Cultivator Versus the Sprinkling Curt. Tho proper use of water represents an important item in strawberry culture, and concerning this the Ohio experi? ment station has reported the following conclusions: Irrigation cannot be regarded as in? dispensable to success in strawberry culture, as, by means cf heavy mulch? ing, sufficient water may be retained in the soil for the necessities of the crop in ordinary seasons, but an abundant supply of "water simply makes success more certain, and where intensive cul? ture is practiced an irrigation plant ought to be a part of the equipment. Strawberry plants require an abun? dance of moisture at all stages of growth, but this is most easily secured during the first season by attending to the proper details in preparation of the soil and in cultivation. Early and con? tinuous cultivation saves the moisture to a greater extent than is commonly supposed. It has been found that the loss of moisture from unplowed ground may be in excess of that from cultivated soil to an amount equal to an inch and three-fourths of rainfall in one week. A man with a team and sprinkling cart could not replace the water on an acre of land as fast as it escapes by evapora? tion from the soil when it goes off at that rate if he had to haul the water one-fourth of a mile. The importance of stirring the soil soon af 1er a shower is generally known, but in practice cultivation after slight showers is often neglected. This is be? cause no crust forms after slight show? ers ; hence the necessity of stirring the soil at once is not apparent. A slight wetting of a dry soil, however, in? creases the upward flow cf water, hence there is more water added to the surface soil at such times than comes in the form ol rain. The sun and wind soon dissipate the slight rainfall and along with it much of the water which came from the lower layers of the soil, leav? ing the soil drier than before. As tho two aro commonly used, a cul? tivator is a better machine for irrigating than a sprinkling cart. Pruning and Training the Tine? The diagram shows a trellis recom? mended in a bulletin from the Vermont station as the most convenient for grapes. It is usually made by three wires run horizontally at heights of about V.2, 38 and 52 inches from the ground. Concerning this and the meth? ods of pruning and training the vine the following is told : When the vine is of bearing age, one or two arms of 1-year old wood are carried in either direction from "the plant along the lower wire. From each healthy bud of 1-year-old wood a shoot will appear in the spring, and as a rule each of these shoots will bear near its base one to four branches of grapes. Ic is thus necessary to begin each spring with a fair number-20 to 40 - strong 1-year-old bud3 on each plant At pruning time each year the vine must be cut back to its former di HORIZONTAL ARM MKTHOD. mensions. As this process removes frons five-sixths to nine-tenths of all the wood of each vine it seems very harsh to the novice, until he is inclined to spare the pruning shears and let the vine run? away with him. .. There are many interesting systems of vine pruning. One of the best is illus? trated in the dixgram. If the vine is bodily cut away at the points 6hown hy the crosslines A A, the canes B B may? be brought down to the position now occupied by the arms C C, and the vine begins this year just where it began the last. The points in pruning to be em? phasized with an inexperienced grape grower are ( 1 ) to adopt a rational sys? tem of pruning and stick to it year after year, and (2) to prune enough. Spraying In Winter Horticulture. Spraying is very important in winter floriculture. If it is impossible to spray the plants in the window garden for fear of wetting carpet and drapery. Farm Journal advises you to take the plants to the kitchen or bathroom, a few at a time each day if it is too much work to give them all a bath the same day, and see that each plant has at least ? weekly bath with the syringe or sprayer until the upper and under sides of the leaves as well as every part of tho plant are free from dust and insects. This is one of the great secrets of suc? cess with winter bloomers. Road Brief*. I Along poor roads land sells slowly, j There is a demand for farming land and I rural homes along good highways. Under her present road law 23$ miles of good roads have been built in l\ew Jersey. Hird roads make access to the farms easy at all seasons; produce can be ship? ped in any weather if the highways are cassable. Hood's Restore full, rehilar action fBt^ BIS of tho bowels, do not irri- BLji lil tate or inflame, but leave BT" III S all the delicate digestive OJV T ? ? ? m?w ganism in perfect condition. Try them. 25 cents. Prepared only by c. I. Hood ?? Co., Lowell; Masa.