The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, February 08, 1878, Image 1

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r~ ~ * WB^MLr t . .? . i*T .1 ttf- v ? . i . . V ^.A -, VOL. IX.?New Series. UNION C. II., SOUTH CAROLINA, FEBRUARY S, 1S78. NUMBER 6 a model farm in south carolina. Mr. Editor.?As a short description of u visit to the model farm of our county will be interesting and profitable to many of our farmers, I have thought it not amiss to give it with a few thoughts it impresses upon my mind. We (myself and a friend) arrived there about suu down aud were heartily welcomed by the owucrs, Messrs. Satterthwaito, father aud son, or, we should rather have put it, sou aud father, for the son seems to have the mnuagemoat of the farm. Our curiosity was excited by a gliuipso we obtained of the arrangements that evening, but us it was too late to be shown arouud ? ?yy w TV'J UI??WJ?j whbiuitwj^ IOO III* tcutioa we received from both tho gcntlciiiod and their estimable ladies. After a good supper, a night's rest, aud good breakfast, wo were ready for inspection. The first thiug on tho docket, as the clerk would say, was tho dairy. cThis was furnished with all tho modern improvements and couveuicuccs. Attaining uniformity of heat, including ventilation, thermometer, patent churn, butX tor washer, &c. This department is presi' ded over by tho younger Mrs. Sutterthwaite, and most successfully docs she doit, turning out an article that briugs in the Aiken market 35 cents per pound while other country butter is only gelling for twenty-five. The next things to look at wcro fowls. Here is Mr. ?urte, if he has one. Turjf keys that wilPwyl^li frotn 15 to 30 pouuds, maguificeut. .' lJucks, Pekin and other varieties, very interesting. Toulouso geese, t Mr. Sattenhwaito vory aptly put it, would make a lot of ^darkey hash," weigh- i ing 40 pouuds. Our notice of the chickou ! department will be a little more extended, < as it is very iutcrestiug. First, the hatching house. In this is an incubator for hatchiug artificially, with a capacity of 240 i .eggs every three weeks. Imagine yourself with 240 chicks without a mother. What I would you do with them ? Mr. S. is ready i for their comfort. lie has a chick house i made with glass sides on the castaud south. < This ndmits the light and some warmth to 1 furnish all the time the requisite heat. lie i has iu tho house a large boiler stove which I is kept ruuuiug all the time. He feeds all < His stock as well as fowls on cook jd food.? The chicks will be kept in this house until i they can take care of themselves ou their < lot. His idea iy tq kcqp only such fowls as I the Plymoth llock," Brown Leghorn' aud in i whom the instinct of setting is nearly bred I out and to hatch with the incubator. The 1 house which he uses for scttiug his hens is 1 a model of ucutncss and convenience, as are i all his other fowl houses from which it is < entirely distinct. Our next visit was to the t lot. His barn arrangement for convenience I aud utility and for comfort of stock cannot ( bocxccllcd. It includes among other things ; a patent arrangement for stalling cows, by ; which a large number can be cucloscd in a small space without the danger of the weaker ones being imposed on. This consists of three bars so arranged that when a cow puts her head down in the trough to cat her neck touches a spring when two of the bars come together and, lo, she is haltered for the night. She can cat, stand up or lie dowu with comfort, but she cannot worry her neighbors with her sharp horns. His arrangement for the care of his other stock is par excellent. His cattle are Alderney, yielding from seven to thirteen quarts of good rich milk per day, uono of your ''Blue Johnnie," gentlemen. His hogs arc Berkshire j some line specimens; and his sheep Cotswold. These breeds he t considers the best suited to our wants and climate. We will now notice the farm proper. This farm was sold by the original owuer because he could not make a support on it. The fact is, it would not grow crops, and was considered, uutil the pffcsont owners came into possession, as tho poorest farm in all that country, but by high manuring, irnml nulf ii>*n uiul u * snfitiAM < J' these gentlemen are now making one bale of cotton, from twelve to thirty bushels of corn anil from twenty to twenty-live bushels of wheat per acre, anil other crops in pro- ( portiou. This is on land condemned for ; poverty. We will briefly sum up a part of | what we saw on the farm, and close. First, s Strawberry bed, about two acres, the condi- , tion of which plainly showed the attention ? which they received, besides raspberries, , blackberries. &c. Next, three or four young . orchards looking, very thrifty and healthy. ] Mr. S. does'nt propose to lose the benefit of ( his time and money by neglect, for lie had a ( hand very busily engaged exposing the col- ( lars of his trees to the Irost and removing , the borer with a knife. Next, was an as- ( parajrus bed, vliich knocked our prccon ccivcd notion of a little bed in the garden in the head. This contained aboutono acre, ] from which Mr. S. proposes to sell after ' next season, when it will bo ready to cut, ! \ from SI50 to 8200 worth per season. And 1 |P last, his cotton land sowed in rye at the 1 first picking. This rye is from three to six 1 inches high. Very dense and tender.? Quite naturally wo suggested that he would 1 pasture this down. (Hi, no, he replied, this ' I will turn under when I put in my crops. < Under the force of circumstances, Mr. editor, 1 reasoned thereby: Heap of vegetable matter ploughed under make a heap of crop. Heap of crop fed to heap of ( good cows make a heap of butter. Heap < fa of butter brings a heap of money, and > agaiu heap of stock highly fed furnish heap' of good manure. Heap of good tunnuro returned to tho soil again mako a heap of crop, and so rotation interminably. All this good rich food ploughed uudcr for tho improvement of the syil. Think of it ye farmers who haven't got anything for your poor cows to cat but cotton stalks. I have ouly given au unvarnished statement of whnt I saw. Au inspection of this, the model farm, is well worth tho time of auy farmer. In fact one progressive man enthusiastically remarked that a visit to such a farm would place a farmery gcucratiou ahead. We caunot exactly s&y that much, grfat bon> trto any mnti be ho eVer bo ptorr' tie woulu receive ideas that he could turn to account aud be useful to him as loug as he lives. The Messrs. Satterthwaite deserve great credit for the example they have set. These are the kind of emigrants we want; men who will discard politics aud go to work to build up our waste places.? .moke anon, in Aiken. Journal. The Mule?A correspondent of the t> in % % ivurai oun, iu au able letter coucerniug the ''breaking of mules," says : "We havo had quite a considerable experience iu breaking mules and our usual practice has been to gear biui and hitch hiui to the plow at once, by the side of a well-broken horse or mub The assistance of uu extra baud is sometimes required for 4b. hour or two. It used to be thought best to break his spirit and exhaust him physically, to bring him to a true sense of his condition, but better counsels now prevail, aud we endeavor to proservo both his strong th and spirit by not over-taxing his powers of endurance, and by kind treatment, to which lie is as amenable as a horse or an ox, soon becoming submissive and gentle, when properly handled "Mncli of tbo obloquy which attaches to bis character result* 4'rom the thoughtless and injudicious training he receives, and the cruel treatment uieted out to hiui, more on account of his character, however, than his conduct. We hail it as au indication of real human progress that his claims to n high consideration are now beiug more geu- , orally recognized. "The negro is, however, implacable nod unfeeling in bis treatment of the mule, unwilling to accord to him any of the sensibilities iaJtcir.. lie was his issociate in the 'L:\ng oyi 1 c,' which is fast becoming traditional, ai d the negro placc3 liiin in the same category with the ash-cake, which ho now ignores, because lie regards it as the emblem of his slavery. The nc^ro, the mule and the ash-cake! Even i..,o .1 r..? .i.-* ii riiuo ujav/uiiHi?u mi. j iui iu u 11 iu iiiiit rucmiis Lho peaceful, prosperous and happier days if our beloved Southerland ; rudely severed iml disjointed, they recall the humiliation ind poverty of our sojourn iu the laud of Yankee misrule and intolerance. Let us hank our stars for deliverance and the hope .re have of one day seeing the negto a rational and useful mcuibcr of our body politic, the mule a respected member of the H|uine family and the ash-cake restored to >ur fireside, for it is dear yet to our memoy" ^ Lkak M anuhk.?This manure possesses i excellent fertilizing properties, and greatly in proves the texture and character of the soil. Analysis proves that the foliage of rccs contains vastly inore uiinoral riches? >uch as phosphates, lime, potash and soda ?tlion the solid wood, and that the older he leaves, the greater the amouut of these ,hey contain. Now, that the fallen leaves itter the ground, the farmer whose farm jays well gathers them carefully to be ei- , her used 111 the compost heap with other de;omposible vegetable matters, or employed is litter for bis animals during witcr, or as coatings for his yard or other inclosures ivhcre animals are confined, and where the caves by absorbing the liquid voidiugs may jc readily converted into cxccllcut plantbod. Wasiiin? ok Land.?As this is one of die greatest of evils 011 a cotton farm, itteution* cannot be called too often :o modes of preventing it. On very steep hillsides nothing but well constructed litchcs can prevent it?but 011 moderate dopes, we suggest that liues of level be laid >11" at ordinary distances of bill-side ditches, lud strips live to ten feet wide along these lines bo sown in oats, rye, orchard grass and clover. No land will be lost, and these uncultivated strips will quite effectually stop lie washing, if carc be taken to lay off tho cotton rows 011 a level.? Southern Culttva'<>r. Corn Stalks ami Straw should hn nut nn ivith a fodder cutter if only to be thrown into the yard, or used for litter. Short stalks absorb more liquid than long ; the manure from them is easier handled, and t,hey rot more quickly. A fodder cutter run by a two-horse tread power, will cut lot) pounds of straw, or stalks, in five minutes, and the cost of the machine and often labor will be repaid in one season in the convenience of handling the short manure. A popular clergyman in Kngland recently gave a lecture on ''fools." The Tickets of admission were inscribed, "Lecture on Fools. Admit one." There was a large audience. BUBAL ECONOMY.. Editor Southern Cultivator.? There arc more ways for farmers to econo tnizc thau by eating corn bread nud wear ing homespun clothing. In this countr; labor is the dcares} factor iu farming.? Therefore, horse power should be used a; much as practicable. Land being cheap* in many localities than anything ctyc, tha system of farming should be followed tha utilizes tho most l$d, and least liux>r, iin plemcnts, &c., Fencing iu crops/is oftcr practiced, where fencing in stock /Would b< cheaper. Poor crops are very nearly as ex pensive to make m good ones. Therefore Stops"!!* dnritfage;'ifianu^e' mcnts, goodv work, stock, good seeds, an< thorough cultivation will produco. It docs not pay to let your soil detcrio rate and finally become exhausted. It re quires more labor to make a crop on a thit soil than on a rich one. The loss in pro duce while your sqil is becoming cxh tustcd is enough to buy three such farms, llcut crs aro no exceptions to tins rule, if thci rout for long enough periods. A great por tion is applicable to short periods ; all of i when the farm is in a high state of cultiva tion. It never pays to pasturo any cultiva ted crop. The objections arc, cost of cros: fences, waste of produce, loss or idleness o the soil, and damage to the soil by tramping of stock. Land can be too dear to ever have pastures of the grasses; practico soil ing instead, with other products. Pastun grasses that do not maturc^waateai^dccaj like cultivated drops Ttiat are not garncrei at tho proper time. Furffceruiora, the soi becomes compact and does not tramp bad ly. It pays well to protect stock from incle uient weather. The food saved in a few years would put up commodious buildings It also pays well to keep stock iu good flesh They pay for food by growth. The savin* of food by inferior aud scant feed is over balanced by loss of growth, stunted stock and increase of feed reouisito to restore flesl J or to fatten. m* As Josh Hillings says, "when u star down hill u find everything greased for tin occashuu." Hut going up hill, you have t< furnish the "ile" yourself. It pays well tc have good stock when you have food to cor respond. It takes less food for a given amount of growth. More flesh in propor turn tn tho valuable horns hones aut entrails. In the matter of food for mar and beast, there is much room for reform The cost of food for man comes in the fol lowing ratio : fruit, vegetables, bread ant meat, For stock, pasture, hay, oats, peas and corn. They should be used in proportion to re quircments of flesh, muscle, heat and fat For stock, they arc adapted in the ratio in dicated. Perhaps it is very near true ol human beings. Sell for cash. Huy tho same way. Hi not rush into market. Nor hold too long There is a medium between. He satisfied with fair sales. If you raise produce foi which there is a market at ho:uc?do not dribble it out. Hut sell in bulk to youi merchant, for cash. Do not bo too parsi monious when you get behind in cultivating or gathering your crop, to pay good pried for day labor. It pays well to get help thei ?? :i>?. J 1 j i ii. anj |inuc. jjut uu uuii uvcr-crop uiiu uu pond on day labor. 0. JONKS. Rural Brevities?Without agricul ture \vc should not have manufactures, and wo should not have commerce.?Washing ton. What nobler occupation engages the ac live power of man? And as all others ar( supported by it, why should it not rank (irst in dignity? Farming is a calling which should raise the thoughts and feelings, soothe the rug god pangs of life, and strew the vale of de dining years with many a thornlcss flower *111 the recollection of innocent enjoyments. God Almighty first planted a garden, and indeed it is the purest of all humau pleas ures. It is the greatest refreshment to tin. spirit of man, without which buildings and palaces are but gross handiworks, and a mar shall ever see that when ages grow to civil ity and elegance men come to build statclj sooner than to garden linely, as if garden ing were the greater perfection.?Lord 11a con. Clover and Grasses.?Maybe seeded down this month, just as soon as the lieavj freezes are over. If to be sown oil suial grain, run alight harrow over the land, am then sow seed ; if by themselves, break tin land thoroughly and pulverize it by repeat cd harrowings, and then smooch it with : "drag." Before harrowing annlv manure ?for clover, barn-yard manure is good.? Asdics also, ?>U bushels per acre. Acii phosphate, 200 to 5100 lbs. per aero, wil generally insure a stand. Sow 12 to 151bs seed per acre. For grass the snuic pre paration is required, but a nil rum-nous 111a ure is needed?barn-yard manure, cottoi seed meal, Peruvian guano cr nitrate soda ?Southern Cultivator. A near sighted hen that ate sawdust, sup posing it to he corn-meal, then went am laid a nest lull of bureau knobs set 01 them three weeks, and hatched out i set of parlor furniture, and was a pretty (hi hen. THICK PLANTING OF CORN BY R H. HARDAWAY. k Editor Southern Cultivator.?The jt _ January No. oi' the Cultivator for 1878, contains the following startling aunounce- tc _ utent: ^In tho September No., Mr. James g s II. Oliphaut expresses his opiuiou agaiust js r thiekSpantlng of corn and potatoes, aud sr ^ says, &c.} &c." VThcn he turns loose upon p, t me his whole park of artillery. James II. tj O. uevcr expressed the views attributed to j. j hiin. ?Ho?Itardaway?has got "the wrong ?, a P'6 by the cai*' lie lore ho quotes froui the Cultivator agaiu, I would advise hiui to C1 wipe his spectacles. I said just uothiug at 0I j "to err is human, to forgive divine." T( I havu't inked my uib this time for the g, purpose of writiug an essay, but as br> llardaway has called me out against my s. ( will, I will add a little more. w lie gives us in his article the following beautiful and plausible theory: "If you ' make land very rich, you concentrate iu the , earth uadue heat, and to plant coru at a ' great distance iu heated earth, will most t certainly create fire heat in the corn ; and te the only plan to counteract this heat is to ai multiply the stalks upon the land iu such ai j quantity that the engendered heat may be < carried off aud distributed through the sap r and foliage of the plants grown upou the ^ | land. The difficulty is, to regulate the quantity of each, manure and foliago, so as , to prevent 'the tiring process' cither of laud ' or plant." If 1 tmchrrntnnd him, the amount of fbli- al I age must correspond with the fertility of in the soil, or 'the firing proeeas' cannot be prevented. In opposition to this theory, I ei r may state, that in the richest dung-hills, river bottoms, aud where mauuro heaps 1,1 have been thrown in fields, tho stand of n' ^ corn is sometimes very imperfect, owinu to _ ' cut worms ami otlicr causes ; but so far as ? my obscrvatiou extends, coru under such j circumstances, having too much distance, is w less liable to Gro than when it is thicker.? SJ t Imperfect decomposition and application of P1 the manure, together with a wrong mode of cultivation, too late planting, aud a too par- ?c | tial incorporation of the fertilizer with the soil, aud perhaps other causes, have, I 1,1 think, much uioro to do with the 'Gr'mg ,n process,' than the quantity of manure or os i dcGeieucy in the amount of foliage. ( "T readily 'aVJIxiflTTial a largo -quantity of 111 crude manure, unwisely applied, may, during the process of fermentation or decoiu- 81 I position, generate and set free an amount ?( of heat in excess of what plants need for healthy growth and development j but Solo- 01 moil witli all his wisdom, and the queen of Sheba to assist him, couldn't tell iu a month of Sundays how much beat a certain 1 j. amount of crude material will generate in 111 the earth ; aud even if he could solve the , 4 I ( mighty problem, another still greater would be just behind that, to-wit: how much f'oli- w | age would be required to take up this heat 8C without violating the laws of the Goddess, t Hygcia. Neither can the problem be solved by expel imeut. The character aud condition of , crude manure, the temperature of the soil, ?! || the seasons, and other conditions, arc never ( alike two years in succession. So down . goes bro. Ilardaway's beautiful theory ! 1 will also remark that bro. llardaway? fcC like many other writers?iu advocating the l" _ thick planting of corn, based upon his cx| pericnce, has left out three or four very im- P' . portant items, to-wit: the best timo to plant, the proper mode of cultivation, the : . character of the soil, and the way that the . manure should be applied. These things " : have much to do with the thick planting of corn ; aud the omission of them renders "J , his article useless, if not liable to injure in. experienced farmers, lie has left out the . four legs upon which the thick planting of corn must necessarily stand, iu order to be successful. What is a thing worth without , [ legs r 1 will say in conclusion, that sofarasiny . observation extends, corn may bo planted [ to advantage on common pine land thicker . , than is usually done; provided it be planted !n . early, well manured and thoroughly eulti- {u r vated.?Jas. II. OliI'HANT, in Southern . Cultivator. a3 - ai Rich Manure can only be made from rich er food. Animals add nothing to thu manure, ai j II we feed straw, we get back as manure A something less than the straw we feed, and 01 j straw alone is very poor manure. If we at j feed o 1 cake meal, coin meal, bran, and sim- at , ilar rich food, to mature animals, tlicy consumo the starchy and fatty portions, while ^ much of the nitrogen and phosphates go 0j , into the manure heap along with the straw j.] ^ or hay'catou, which gives the needed bulk to aj i the manure. The more nitrogen the food jn i contains, the richer will be the manure.? ct It is thus that the statement made hy chcm- f,. ists, that the manure made by feeding a ton (j iir?iii i;n?n.wi v. i/auaif VI IlllCVbV) VI VVILVII OtUVI VII UilMT, ^ ( is for some soils worth more than the food itself, can be satisfactorily explained. Manure is wasted by exposure to wash- c( ing rains, or by being trampled by stock in k - wet yards. It may easily lose three-fourths tl 1 of its value in this way. tl u .?. In a Hrau and Middlings may be fed to all it r kinds of stoek. All, from horses to poultry, 'J' cat these eagerly, and thrive upon them. sj THE IRISH POTATO. Editor Southern Cultivator.?Uoiw nre two interesting items in regard to rish potatoes. There is no crop that bet>r deserves an iuorcased attentiou from outhcrn farmers thin the Irish potato. It easy enough to make two crops ou tho " une land, nud the November crop can l*noA??Ail no A?o!l? . . 4 4.* At 1 ivuvi ivu ?n caaujf us BITCUlr JIUMUOCS UirOUgll )0 winter. As soon as it becomes gcucraU r known that there is no neod for largo sets," but that tho sprouts and the very nallcst potatoes aro good seed under propr cultivation, thcro will be a,wonderful in case in the arca^ovoted faot^oropt Of 10 sire of small marblelj sa^ed etftiy itt Wo- -? umber and re planted in Jauuafy, make lod crops, and the only occasion we tried 10 sprouts or ''draws" was a success. Tho >routs had quite a number of roots. This inter we hopo to havo something further > say on tho subject. C. Milledgcvillc, Ga. TOTATO SPROUTS FOR SEED. "It is uow upwards of 40 years since I sted the uso of pototo sprouts for seed, id I continued to do so for somo years as l experiment; for at that time my potato rowing was confined to garden produce.? had the buds carefully picked iroui tho ibers after they had throwu out roots outdo tho parent tuber. At the same time I ad other tubers cut for seed iu the usual * ay. I planted 3 drills in the garden, sido y side?one of cut tubers, one of sprouts, ad ana of uuiall unout tubeis. When M -A' g I A ? o ?- :il_ n avuntjf x uaujr uug up o 111113 irOIll CaCll rill, couutcd auil weighed the produce of tch three, and fouud that of the sprouts )ual to any, both in weight and in uumjr. The 2d year 1 <!id the same, taking 5 pains to dibble the sprouts, but scattered icui in the open drill, and covered lightly, wout further, for having fouud a heap of ic sprouts on the road?thrown over tho all by sonic sagacious cultivator, who had it his seed potatoes carefully turned and eked, and had thrown away tho vigorous toots?I had a barrowful gathered up and attcrcd broadcast on a few ridges prepared x the purpose, and covered tlicui with old out of the furrows. The result was ost saisfactory. The sprouts soon appeared ;cr the grouud, and the crop came to marity much earlier tliau that from the pota- . >u* plumed tlie same Hay. "tfl It must be obvious to any one who conders the matter, that once the tuber has inerated the sprout, it is no lougcr of use, r on diggiug the crop, the tuber, whole or it, will frequently be found whole aud dcichcd from the roots of the stalk. Why, ten, pick of the first vigorous growth, and. I ant the tuber to produce a second and ore puny and sickly one? Sprouts can be planted much later than ic tubers, or if at the sanio season, they ill mature much earlier, because tlicy are ? much ahead of the tuber, which, after ?ing planted, has to throw out a sprout." -Cor. Toronto Globe. "For the past twenty years, my practice as been to plant the largest of the small ics, cutting two eyes on a piece, and putng 3 pieces in hill 4x4 feet. I believe le only advantage derived from planting rge potatoes, is the extra amount of starch :cretcd, and that, on the other hand, is ore than made up by the gain in seed, and ic slir/ht cost of the small ones. As an cxjrimcnt I once planted in my garden a potai the size of a pea. It produced a vine tree-fourth of an inch in diameter, and id a number of potatoes, one of which cighcd one pound.?A. W. IIUUDY, in 'ransactions of New Jfamjtshirc Board r -i'JWhat to Buy.?Just as little of everyting needed as you possibly can. Kconny should be our motto for years to coutc. fa arc too poor to buy much of anything, on, salt, a few implements, and perhaps dec, pretty well make up the list. Tea e can make at home?sugar, also, in a rge portion of the cotton States?syrup abundance everywhere, butter and cheese any quantity, cotton and woollen goods, trses and inulcswe can raise?plow stocks, kC handles, hoc helves, wagon hubs, spokes id felhcs, grain cradles, snaths, our lath- ' s uiado thcui all, aud we are no better, id need be no more helpless than they.? titho of a strictly surplus cotton crop ight to buy everything needed on a farm, id the remaining hine tenths pass to the .-count of accumulated profits. . - ? Watering Stock is a very important part f the care needed fbr them at this season, inpty and clear the troughs of ice every 'ternoon, so that when filled in the mornig there is no ico to chill the water. In >ld weather water should not be drawn om the well until it is needed for the stock, ovor.s should be provided for all outside atcr troughs to keep out snow. - ? The Manure Heap may bo made in a sn'.ral place in the yard, and the different iuds of manure should be wheeled out of ic stables and pens, and mixed together in ic heap. We find it pays to turn over tho cap once or twice during the winter, mix thoroughly, and break up all the lumps, his makes it fine, and fit for use early in wing. 9Tm