Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1870-07-28

Large-Tailed Sheen.

"a dlnerent animal, being to the ordinar
sheep what the greyhound is to the rougl
4 terrier. 1t is much taller on its legs, larger
- boned, and long-posed. Only the ram
:, have horns, and they are not .wiste,
spirally, like those Of our own sheen. bu
come backward, and then curl round =,
- !. that the point comes under the ear. Th
% great popularity of this sheep is the tail
a which is simply prodigious in point OF size
S, = and Is an enormous mass of fat Indeed
. the long-legged and otherwise lean ANNA
~ seems to concentrate all its fat in the tail
!. which, as has been observed, appears tt
y abstract both flesh and fat from the rest O.
- the body. So great is this strange develop
70 ment, that the tail alone will sometimes
weigh one-fifth as much as the entire ami
7 NAL A similar breed of-sheep is found in
= Southern Africa and other parts of the
: world. In some places, the tail grows to
such an enormous size that, in order to keep
!, 30 valuable part of the animal from injury,
= it is fastened to small board, supported
!, by couple of wheels, so that the sheep
0 nteraiiy wheels Its own tail in cart. II
has been thought by some systematic nat.
!; uralists that this variety is a distinct spe-
. cies, and the brcad-tailed breeds of sheep
! have, in consequence, been distinguished
by several names. Yet they are in reality
one and the same variety of the domesti-
|, , Gated sheep, differing in some particulars,
according TO the conditions in which they
are placed, but having really no specific
distinction. II is, by the way, from the
wool of the unborn broad-tailed sheep that
the much priced Astrachan fur is made.
CULTIVATION OF ORoHARps.-The ground
among the young trees should be well
cultivated few years at least. We should
always remember that the orchard is to
yield US important crops, therefore the
land should not be taxed too heavily by
the pre- cduction of other farm products.
However, our soils are sufficiently fertile
TO bear this, and it becomes q question
what We shall grow among the trees.
Fallow crops, as hard crops are preferred,
such as occupy the land for few months
only, and especially those that require
cultivation, such rs corn and potatoes, but
grnn or white:straw crops should never be
permitted i'm the young orchard.
This cultivation of the land, with or with
out the crops among the trees, is very de-
mrable, and indeed necessary to promote
their growth. 1t should be continued four
or five years, and when fhe plow is used.
the furrows should be turned toward the |
trees so as to throw the surface into ridges. |
particularly if the land be fat AS this will |
effect surface drainage. Some good cultiva- |
tors prefer TO keep the orchard always un- |
der cultivation, but in hilly lands this can |
not be done. Most farmers prefer to Law |
down the field to grass among the trees af- |
ter few years of cultivation, in which case |
clover is preferred, both as an enricher of |
the soil and as suitable food also for the |
swine that are to be turned into the or.
chard. In some cases. however, the ex-
treme fertility of the land causes the
trees to grow toe vigorously for the pro-
duction OF fruit. when it has been found
desirable to check this excessive growth
by suspending the cultivation of the land,
and by seeding it down with the meadow
or pasture grasses, among which blue
grass is the favorite. In closely planted
orchard we cannot expect to make much
hay nor to have any room for the moving
machine, and it must be cut with the scythe i
or crorped by sheep and hogs. These are
the only animals to be permitted i'm the
orchard, and even these, particularly the
former, viii need watching lest they do us
more harm than good, as they will brouse
of every leaf within their reach, and some
times even strip the bark from the stems
also. In this case they must instantly be
removed, and brought back from time to
time. only long enough to gather up the
fallen fruit. For this purpose many farm
ers prefer them to swine.
WORKING THE SoiL.-It is the tillase of the
soil that makes agriculture; but We do not
generally consider it 80. We do not plow
enough, cultivate enough, harrow enough.
We lack, If possible, still more in subsoil-
ing and, ditchipg. The last lies at the
foundation of all; it adds all the rest, and
resists, measureably and constantly, the
drouth and the excess of rain; without il
rpnpb NJ o11r Iov1 EaI Ix,k ka~ II
ted. Manure has not the effect that /,
drier soil would give it. Working the soil
is often injurious in consequence, especial
ly in clay land; the evil is thus augmented,
the land becomes hard and wet, and in II
drouth Will crack; in winter il is charged i
with water; In spring and fall it is the {
same. IL
All this is remedied to create or less ex- {
tent by ditching, when thig ~ done the {
sub-soil may be stirred to adSantage--and
to any depth, otherwise subsoiling with Z
hard bottom below, would only increase ,
the evil, as the soil, loosened, would still |
be filed with water, and hold all the more
making in some cases bed of mud. This /
is not to be thought of. But drained, and .
there may be worked any depth, and in e
stead of being filled with water, will be !
charged with air containing fertility from
the atmosphere. which is left in the soil by
and thus the ground is improv- : |.
ed. The raw soil will now be acted upon,
and il properly managed fund of wealth u
may be obtained. This, of course in heavy = =
or clay soils. We thus get deep bed, to i.
be deepened still at pleasure.
Here manure has its full effect; all is re- :
tained, whether applied at the surface or
turned in; the clay will held it, or any good :
soil
The drouth may now be defied; the long
rains the same. There is conduit in the [
soil (porous) itself, to carry off the water,
but only so much as it does not want; the .
rest it retains, and 1t can be made to imbibe,
as in the case of drouth when there is :
hard drain upon it. This brings us back !.
to the starting point, working the soil. 1t ..
is this that gathers moisture, and it is this :
that enriches, giving chance for the .
moist, feytlized air to mix with il, moist and
most when the soil il worked in ,
summer. 1t then contains the gasses
(emanating from the hot soiD and the
(by expansion), and warmth also, y
. necessity, chemically and otherwise. l
Soil cannot be stirred too much. This is I
seldom entertained. Simply to mellow is Z
thought to Do sufficient, when it is only s
sufficient to prepare the ground to receive q
the seed. We think our labor is lost when Q
we work over and over our mellow soil, and 9
i seems like play-work; simply to stir when q
there are noweeds seems not to be the thing. 8
The dollars do not come up Frightening; q
but they are there, nevertheless. virtually, q
Just as much as they are in the corn or the q
soil that holds the substance that grows the q
corn. To lave the boy and horse constantly
1t work, refreshing himself is all the while
. gain, the soil (from below thrown up
fresh to the air, taking it in and absorbing p
its wealth. and that wealth is just what is b
wanted, the organic matter. Especially n
should we see this thing since the attrac- n
tive power of the soil has been made so n
clear aud striking recently. 1t Is not only
the great sideodofizer" or "disinfectant" Is
but the great attractor in our fields. Only b
give it chance with tho air. And you mel s.
low it a Welt and lsssen the weeds. These r
things cannot be too much repeated, too I
much urged. d.-Proiris Farmer. ly
THERE is girl by the name of Hattie 8
Brown in the County 1nArmary of Shelby :
county, o., il is said, who has . living rep :
tile In her, efomach which makaa itself uar-