Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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CROW CLUTCHING. How Hoosier Farmers Trap Jhe Cunning Bird. ; Caught While Trying to Rescue a Captured Comrade. Indiana farmers in the back districts have a novel and effective way of trapping crows. To trap in this way the trapper most first catch a crow ^live, which is generally done by 'crippling one with fine shot. The live crow is the trap. lie is placed on his back in the field and fastened in that position by driving a forked stick deep in the ground over each wing, near the body. The crow's feet have free play, and there is no embargo put on his lungs. Any one who knows anything abont crows knows that the moment one is hurt or in trouble it makes the fact known by loud and peculiar cries. There may not have been anothef crow seen or heard in the locality for hours, but in less than half a minute after Jlfe injured crow gives its cry of distress crows will come scurrying in from all points of the compass, answering the signals of distress with emphatic and assuring caws. The moment the distressed crow is dis covered by the others they swoop down upon it, and, unless it is held in duress by some trap or contrivance of the enemy so it can’t be removed, bear it away to a place of safety, where it is nursed back to soundness and health. Crows are not often deluded into falling into ordinary traps, but once in a while one will get his foot unawares -into a steel trap set for«omething else. In answer to his cries his rescuing companions have been known to get enough of the flock’s beaks and claws to bear on the trap to carry it off with its prisoner. How they have succeed ed in releasing him from this trap af terward no one knows. The live crow fastened by his wings on his back on the ground be comes at once the only sure and never-failing crow trap ever tried. He sends forth the most distressing of cries, and along comes a flock of yell ing crows in response to them. They pounce down upon the postratc bird to rescue him. The bound crow’s claws and legs are free tp-'play-atT'lfttr bird’s will. In his^Jesperation ’lie clutches the first /^row that sweeps within his re^eh. He not only clutches, but h6 holds on like grim death. # y Some oncf is always in hiding near J>y,jmd : thg^ moment the dewy crow fastens on and makes a victim of the crow that wou’d befriend him the watcher hurries to the scene and cap tures the captive’s captive. This crow is in turn made a decoy in anotfier part of the field, and he isn’t long in fasten ing on to a victim* from among his wou^d-be rescuers. In ten minutes after the first crow is set a farmer has no difficulty in get ting half a dozen other traps in opera tion, all doing steady and infallible work on their excited and philan thropic brethren. The farmer may set as many crows as he likes, for after getting his first one the supply will last as long as there is a free crow in the neighborhood, but half a dozen of ’ these yelling and clu ching traps, well set, will depopulate any average crow settlement in the course of a day or so. Cunning as the crow is, he throws his cunning all to the winds at sight of a comrade in distress, and even so far loses his head under such circum stances as to fly to the rescue of a wing-bound crow in a field after hav ing been made a trap of himself, as a crow will sometimes manage to work his fastenings loose in the ground by ins struggles and escape. One farmer says he has, with only five of these traps, caught ninety-six crows in half a day. Some of the Hoosier sma’l boys of the rural districts acquire sucli dexter ity as crow clutchcrs that they are ^abjatoearn big wages in their efforts to make the big b ack bird extimt. Their method is to lie close along the side *f some old log at the edge of • wood, covering all but their eyes and one hard with leaves. Then, by a remarkably exact imitation of a wounded crow,they soon bring a score or more of the excited birds swooping t about the log. A smart boy can easily clutch a half dozen or more of the crows before they discover him, and they are worth ten cents apiece to 'him.— [New York Sun. 'A Pilnfer Without Arm? and Hands. In the lihenish provinces lives an artist without hands and arms—Adam Siepen—who has completed a beautiful (painting by means of his right foot. He has remarkable talent, and can write or paint with his foot as well as ^anyone urually does with the hand. Much walking, however, injures his delicacy of touch, and so he uses a specially cor structed vehicle. His last picture received a prize at the Dussel- dorf exhibition.—[Picayune. FOB FABX ASD GARDEN. A Short Trip. Sniggerly (dreadfully in love): /‘Alice, I really must go. I’ve stayed Uhree hours, you know.” ^ Alice (also likewise): “And won't you come again soon?” Sniggerly: “Yes; I’U be back jr cten minutes.ter. DOE CABBAGE FREQUENTLY. The cabbage crop not only requires rich land, but frequent cultivation. Even if there are no weeds visible, stirring the gronnd makes more plant food available. This is especially trne after the surface is ernsted by heavy rains. Even when the weather is dry it will promote rapid growth to hoe the cabbage plant early enough in the morning to brash the night’s dew into the newly stirred soil. Dew is always rich in ammonia.— [Boston Cultiva tor. GOOD SUPPORTS FOR PEA VINES. Light hurdle-frames filled with wire netting are a neat and hardy support for peas, which climb and'adhere to them admirably. But for the heavier tomato vines nothing seems to be so tidy, simpTe and safe as to set an eight- foot stake to each plant and tie the ad vancing stem to it, keeping it erect, j All side shoots should be pinched of! | as soon as they appear, leaving only the one terminal shoot, and choosing the one that bears a blossom. This improves the fruit, involves no labor or trouble, and is every way very grati fying in result. A child who learns thus to train a tomato plant will soon know how to train woody vines and plants.—[New York Observer. TO PREVENT FOWLS FROM CROWDING. To prevent fowls crowding on the perches when at roost, place all the perches on a level and two to four .feet from the floor in the hen house. Use a wide plank with cleats nailed across it, for a ladder to assist heavy birds to reach the perch without flying. It is quite natural for the fowls to seek the highest perch in the house—hence the crowding; but if all are on the same level this will be obviated. Round poles, from which the bark has been peeled in spring, make excellent perches, but they should be about three inches in diameter; then when the fowl sit? down her feet will be covered by the feathers on her breast and kept warm during cold nights in winter. Fowls that are forced to roost on perches not more than one or two inches in diameter are very likely to have distorted breast bones.— [New York Sun. THICK-WINDED HORSES. Thore-ifr Wr«fiy no cure for thick- windedness in horses. It is due to several causes, and most of which are of a permanent nature. The condi tion may, however, be ameliorated by attention to the horse’s diet. Such a one should not be fed on dry or bulky food. The, bcsLuplandor jvildprairie. nay, and such especially which contains plenty of the so-called rosin-weed, should be selected, ar.d it should be shaken and freed from dust, or slight ly sprinkled with salted wa'er before given to the horse. It should be fed 'only in small quantities, and it would be best to cut it, and give it mixed with ground feed, and wetted. Such a horse should not be used for any work faster than a walk, especially not im mediately after having be2n fed and watered.— [Prairie Farmer. RED DEPOSIT IN MILK. The red substance often found at the bottom of milk pans consists of the red disks of blood, or, as it is called, the red corpuscles, which have escaped in the secretion of the milk. Milk always contains some of these, and they give the yellow color to the cream. Red-is only an intensified yel low, for when the blood is examined under a microscops it appears yellow, because of the wider, separation of these so-called red bodies. Thus in newly-calved cows the first milk, known as colostrum, is intensely yellow, and has at times even a red dish tinge from the abundance of this coloring matter derived from blood. And when this is in excess in the milk, being heavier than the milk on the cream, it settles to the bottom of the pan. It does not injure the cream at all, and only the milk to the fancy of a person. It generally disappears in course of time. Otherwise, a cool ing laxative, by which the excitement of the cow’s system may be reduced, as au ounce of hyposulphite of so.la or eight ounces of epsom salts may be given. Some young cows have this habit in curably, rnd the whole milk is blood or very similar to it, so that the calves will not drink it. This has happened with Jersey heifers, a breed in which the coloring matter of the milk is in excess of that from other cows, giving a strong probability to the above hj - pothesis as to the cause.— [New York Times. POSSIBLE PROFIT FROM POULTRY. A carefully kept account, for one year, of 150 fowls showed a net profit above all expenses of $1.25 each. I used to get almost weary sometimes gathering five to seven dozen eggs a day, on the average. None of the birds were of fancy stock, but com mon “barnyard breed,” thoroughly mixed. The food was varied con siderably, but none of the advertised forcing material was used. Milk was relied on largely for ani mal food, but some scraps and bones were given; also constant supply of lime in the shape of clam or oyster shells, powdered. My quarters «ire only a large barn-cellar, always open to the south, and the range, as far as they please to go, which is not far if well fed, and the injury to crops al most nothing—only hungry fowls and animals are likely to be troublesome. I have no trouble with lice, while they have two barrels of coal ashes, to roll iu as often as they like the whole year round. A dark-colored fowl will leave the ash-barrel almost white, and when she shakes herself lice have a poor show of sticking to her. The farmer, his wife and children have the advantage of other people in poultry keeping, because of possibilities of wide range, cleaner quarters, better water, the farmyard, and green food in great variety. Yet it is not on the average farm, I think, that best success is seen with fowls. The business seems too small to demand due attention. Then, the birds, neglected and half fed, do dam age instead of proving profitable, whereas, a hen under suitable condi tions lays eggs as surely as the steam engine generates steam when heat and water are applied.—[New York Trib une. FARM AND GARDEN NOTES. Always be systematic and thorough. Arrange supports for climbing plants. Keeping the field clean is better than making it clean. Keep the fence corners clear of weeds this month. Never forget that pigs in clover en joy themselves and grow. Don t let the wheat stand too long— you kuow it shells badly. A wise farmer profits by Lis mis takes as well as his successes. Oil, and a wrench, are cheap pre servatives of mowers during haying. Don’t “lay by” the corn until obliged to get at the haying or harvest. As soon as a crop is off put in an other; plow up before weeds go to seed. Renrember the team enjoys the shade as well as you while resting these hot days. It is useless to expect a” large crop of plump oats on land lacking fer tility. An occasional scattering of wood ashes around the sweet pea vines will help them. The practical farmer, so far from disdaining book knowledge, will read all he can of the writings of profes sional agriculturists. Sow Hungarian or Millet or plant some early corn for fodder, if you have any vacancies of considerable sizer—If small spots,-sow turnips. ^ How Conkling’s Will Was Found. * A small box, with a combination lock, was found among the effects of the late Roscoe Conkling, and as no will appeared among his papers it was suggested that this box might cantain the desired document. The adminis trator did not care to break the box, and every possible word which Mr. Conkling might have used in setting the combination was used on the lock; but without success. At last his daughter said thad her father was especially fond of words which con. tained the letter O pronounced with its long sound. She said her father would frequently utter the word Rome, dwelling particularly on the vowel, and asserting that the word was one of the most fascinating in the language for him to hear. She suggested that he might have used that word in mak ing the combination. That word was tried; it proved to be the right one, for the combination yielded to it, the box was opened, and within was found the short and simple will which Mr. Conkling had written many years be- tore.—[Chicago Herald. Unexplored Lauds. Great tracks of Australia have never been trodden by the foot of a white man, and nearly all of South America, inside of the coastlines, is known only by hearsay and tradition. Coining up to our northern half of the continent we encounter more unknown lands. Central America and Mexico offer fertile fields for exploration, and Lower California has never been thor oughly explored. IiTthe far North is Greenland, Baf fin Land,the great Hudson Bay region, all of British America north # of lati tude sixty degrees, and our great ter ritory of Alaska. Here is a wonderful field for adventurous explorers, aud it is impossible to predict what is iu store for them. The natives of north ern Alaska also report that further north is another land, not down on th3 maps, an inhabited land with a com paratively mild climate. — [Boston Cultivator. Soldiers Trained to Swim. One of the features of military drill in the Russian army is the training of soldiers to swim in battalions, at the same time using their weapons. At the recent annual military manoeuvres in the presence of the Czar a fine exhi bition of proficiency was given in this direction. A large force of infantry swam across a wide lake in full march ing order, with the help of fascines made of reeds and rushes "or of inflated sheepskins. At the same time they kept up a lively fire on the boats of a supposed enemy, who were disputing tjieir passage.—[Picayune. ' QUAINT AND CUBIC The Baton used in com doctors is safiKtQhave been i into England by S] All the railroad bridge ted States together are long. There are 208,749 The record for swii water is 113 yards om held by J. Finley, an Enj It is said that the hori from North Africa, wa» service of man at Jeas ago. A Scotch physician that playing on the baj away the players front t years. Candia is the same as an island in the Meditej miles long, and has a 200,000. Heligoland consists of i the North Sea, 25 mil mouth of the E be. Area ters of a square mile; 2,000'-religion, Luthera A wild sweet orange baj covered growing^ia-thfi of Florida. The fruit hi tree all the year round, o] months after it is fully ri On an average there ai more boys than girls York city every week. C fifty more males than fe/* the - female population, gi rapidly than the male. Some relic hunter h.as carried away from the Un| building, in Schenectady, section of window sill in President Arthur cut his ago when a student there, The largest black diam< found has recently been this country from the mines Brazil. This diamoud is a| inches in length, weighs 367 and is valued at $5,000. There are drifts of snow tie Smoky Mountains of Ida: fifty feet deep. These dri nanls of the heavy snowfa! winter, and it is conjectun will take two more hot & melt them. The heart that lies in Bonaparte’s body under the Les luvalides, in Paris, is that of a young lamb, the heart having been eaten by the post-mortem examinatr remains made iu 1821. Lavender is a native of the of Europe bordering on the Me ranea^l It is cultivated quite ex sively in England fordflpUng the oil, but we do not know of any lavender farm in this country, although the plants are common iu gardens, A tramp whose intellectual^Cj was far above hiYgiVofessiofi was re- cently found at Bangor, Me. His only baggage was a small but choice collec tion of books, including “The Con fessions of Jean Jacques Rousseau,’* the works of Balzac, Dumas, a copy of Shakespeare, and Homer’s Iliad. The Hindoos never eat meat, and the sight of blood drives them crazy. All a Mohammedan has to do in order to start a war is to dip his hand in any kind of blood and tap it on one of the Hindoo temples. It is a voudoo charm that stirs Lp the effeminate nature of the Hindoo and gives them the courage of fanatics. Recent discoveries among ancient tombs in Etruria, Italy, unmistakably show that dentistry was practiced as fa? back as six centuries before the Christian era. Several of the skulls examined had false teeth, carved from those of some large animals; while many of the natural teeth had gold filling. Shamrock. In Ireland only one shamrock is known. It is an indigenous species of clover, which trails along the ground among the meadows. The trefoil leaves are not more than one-fourth the size of the smallest clover I have seen in America, and arc pure green in color without any of the brown shading of white and pink clovers. The creeping stem is hard and fibrous, and is difficult to dislodge from the earth. , On St. Patrick’s Day the true sham rock has to be searched out from among the grass, for, though compara tively plentiful at that season, it grows close to the grouud. Later it bears a tiny •‘whitey-brown” blossom. The information that shamrakh is the Arabic word for trefoil is new to me, aud may be of interest to those inter ested in the origin of the Irish race. The word could have been introduced by the Milesians, or it may furnish an argument in support of the contention that one of the lost ten tribes of Is rael settled in Ireland, which has been revived by the publication of a recent book.— [Notes aud Queries. Icelanders in Manitoba. Manitoba has a flourishing colony from Iceland. The emigrants have Men coming in groups for several years, and are still coming, a party of 200 arriving only the other day. The island is in thi^ way becoming slowly depopulated, and it is likely that jn the cour^ of a few years practically all of its people will'have gone, mf.it of iiiejp tp Manitoba. __.. t. brown rat acco veriau dynasty in i channel. jadf^^ire historical. Frogg^gre formerly very plentiful in land, but the rats ate them all up, so that now there arc none at all. In Paris a grand rat battue is made a tremendously festive celebration once a year below the streets and pave ments in the great sewers of the city, but it is not trne that the skins are ever used in making kid gioves, though such a statement has been so persist ently circulated. The bite of a rat is always dangerous, but that of a sewer rat particularly so because its teeth are apt to be poisoned wi:h decayed gar bage.— [Washington Star. ■tEf JOHN W.IWOBBI8, flENSlVrl Washington, p.C. | 3yrain last war, 15atljudlotluficlaima, atty sfaico Thousands entitlei under the New Act. Write Immediately for blanks for a?- PENSIONS plication. Employ the old reliable firm, V J. H. CltAl.LE & CO., Washington. P. C. A new and wonderful remedy for Liver, Kidney, Blood and Female Diseases. Trial package, 25c. by mall. LONE STAR MEDICINE CO.. Houston, Texas. The Great PFN^IflNSSKSS 1 ILIiOIIJliw is Passed. wido-.,H.tk. ■ — (n and Fat heni are ea titled to $18 a mo. Fee *10 when you get your money Blanks free. JOSEPH H. Urynult. Attr. Wsskluetea. D. f- iRizn,fS3 best in the WORLD « It !■ « vtri let the Cennlno. Sold Everywhere. MONEY IN CHICKENS. . For 25c. a lUO-page book, experlenea I of a practical poultry raiser during '2 years. It teaches how to detect and cure diseases; to feed for eggs ►audfor fattening; which fowls to tave for breeding, Ac., Ac. Address BOuK FUB. HOUSE, 134 Leonard St„ N. Y. City. HsI^lSriD YOXJ3F*. llMt Low-Priced CERJIAX IHCTIOXART published, a» tlie remarkably low price of only SI.OO, postpaid This Boo'c con tains 624 finely printei pages of clear type on excellent paper and Is hand somely yet serviceably pound in cloth. It gives English words with the German equivalents and pronunciation, an 1 German words with English definitions. It is invaluable to Germans who are not thoroughly familiar with English, or to Americans who wish to learn German A Moth and a Robin. The Cecropia moth appears clumsy, aud while it is a pretty plumaged crea ture, one would not suspect that there was any strategy about it, but there is. On a bright June day a large male Ce cropia moth escaped from his cage and rose into the air in great glee. When he was forty feet from the ground he was discovered by a robin redbreast that was watching for a morsel for itself or young, ou a neighboring tree-top, and the robin darted for the moth in mid-aid. There seemed to be no es cape for the moth, but the moment he saw the bird he closed his wings and dropped at least ten feet,, and the robin missed him. The robin flew back to a tall tree close by for another start, and the moth renewed his flight. Again the robin darted for the moth, and the same tac'ics were repeated to the dis gust of the bird, which flew back to its perch tired and disappointed while the moth escaped. The action of the moth showed that it not only under stood how to escape, but also knew something of the power of the bird, for could the robin have manceuvered at all on the wing the moth would Ikava fallen a victim to it Addreft*, with fl.00, - •mm BOOK PUB. HOl’J, ISA Leaaori St., .New York tit/. EVERY WATERPROOF CO BE UP TO THE MARK Warm Weather Causes That Tired Feeling. To be Strong, Take Hood’s Sarsaparilla N Y N C—33 1 prescribe acti fully en dorse Big O a» the only specific for the certain euro ol tbic dtceaae. G. H. INGRAHAM.M. D- .u&sterdam, N. Y. We bavo sold Btg G'0* many years, and it has .given tbc best of satla- f action. . . „ D. & DYCHE k OO.. I Chicago, lit, •1.00. bv Druggists, HEEDS NO LAUNDERING. CAN BE WIPED CLEAN IN A MOMENT THE ONLY LINEN-LINED WATERPROOj COLLAR IN THE j tieUne’erbcmo aue^No.d 111 ® =* - Don Krefuse urA&vi to yse ©AP© so lid c&Ke of scouring 4 used for cleaning purp' I asked a maid if she would wed, And in my home her brightness shedj She faintly smiled and murmured lo «If I can have SAPOLIO.”