The Placer herald., 1871-04-01
HOUSE AND FA R II.

hundrei and fourteen weeds, which have been
introduced into the United States from foreign
countries, and principally from England. As
proof of the rapidity with which useless
plants are accidentally brought over the seas,
it is said that in 1888 there were only one
hundred and thirty-seven foreign weeds
known in this country. AS far back as 1872,
curious little volume called "New England
Rarties, gave list of twenty-five plants,
which the author considered had sprung up
since the English had kept cattle in New
England The author mentions the plantain
which he says the Indians calls the English
mans foot, as though produced by the tread
of the white settlers. The common yellow
toad fax, it is stated, was originally intro
duced into the province of Pennsylvania, as
garden flower, by Mr.. Ranstead, Welsh
man, residing in Philadelphia, from whom it
has derived the name of "Ranstead's weed"
In 1858 this weed had oyerrun the pastures
in the inhabited part of Pennsylvania, and was
the cause of bitter complaints from the agri
cultursts of that day. Chicken-weed, it is
stated, was introduced into touth Carolina
as food for canary birds, and in ten wears
spread for upwards of fifty miles, and now
occupies the outposts of civilization. The
Scotch thistle is said to have been brought to
America by clergyman, who carried with
him a bed stuffed with thistle down, in which
some seed remained. Feathers. being cheap
in the new country, were substituted for the
down, which was soon emptied out, and the
seed springing up filled the country with this
ties. Another account says some enthusias-
tic Scot introduced the thistle as an emblem
of his country, which soon made itself at home
and became nuisance.
L1NsEEp TEA FOR SICK HORSES. .-Linseed
tea is not only a valuable restorative for sick
horses, but it is exceedingly useful in cases of
inflammation Of the membrane peculiar to the
organs of respiration and digestion; 1t shields
and lubricates the same; tranquilizes the If
ritable state of the parts, and tavors healthy
action. We have prescribed lnseed tea in
large quantities during the last month, for
horses laboring under the prevailing influenza;
they seem to deriv. much benefit from it,
and generally drank it with great rapiditv.
Aside from the benefit we derive from the
action of mucilage and oil, which the seed
contains, its nutritive elements are of some
account, especially when given to the animals
laborng under a soreness in the organs of
degluttion, which incapatitates from swallow
ing becoming Frustrated by inability to mas
ticate or swallow more food, linseed tea may
be resorted to, and in case of irritable cough
the addition of a little honey makes it still
more useful. In the latter form, it may be
given to animals laboring under acute or
chronic disease of the urinary apparatus,
more especially of the kidneys.
TO Prepare Ltnseed 1ea-Put a couple
of handfuls of the seed into bucket, and
pour gallon and half of water upon it.
Cover it up a short time, and then add
couple of quarts of cold water, when it will
be fit for use.
How TO FArrEN HoRsEs.-Many good
horses devour large quantities of grain and
hay, and still continue thin and poor-the
food eaten is not properly assimilated. If
the usual feed has been unground grain and
hay, nothing but a change will effect any de-
srable alteration in the appearance of the an
imal In case oil meal cannot be obtained
readily, mingle bushel of fax seed with
bushel of barley, one Of oats, and another of
indian corn, and let it be ground into fine
me. l. This will be a fair proportion for all
his feed Or meal of the barley, oats and
corn in equal quantities may first be procured
and one-fourth part of oil cake mingled
with it when the meal is sprinklel on cut
feed
Feed two or three quarts of the mixture
two or three times daily, mingled with
peck of cut hay or straw. If the horse will
eat that greedily, let the quantity be gradu
ally increased until he will eat four or six
quarts at every feeding. three times a day.
But avod the practice of allowing the horse
to stand at a rack well filled with hay. In
order to fatten horse that has run down in
flesh, the groom should be very particular to
feed the animal no more than he will eat up
clean, and then lick his manger for more.
RULES TO MAKEA FARMER PooR-1. Not
taking good agricultural paper.
2. Keeping no account of home operations.
2. Paying no attention to the maxim CA
stitch in time saves nine, in regard regard to
sowing of grain and planting seed at the prop
er season.
4. Leaving the reapers, plows, harrows,
cultivaiors, etc, uncovered from the rain and
heat of the sun. More money is lost in this
way than most people are willing to believe.
s. Permitting broken implements to be
scattered over the farm until they are ire
pirable One of the seven wise men of
Greece said only this to prove his sense
"The time to mend the plow is when the
plow breaks.
6. Attending auction sales and purchasing
all kinds of trumpetry, because in the words
of the vendor, the articles are every cheap,
Z. Allowing fences to remain unrepaired
until strange cattle are found grazing in your
fields and bruisng the fruit trees.
8. Planting fruit trees with the expecta-
ton of having fruit, without giving the trees
half the attention required to make them
produce.
HENs.-Some interesting experiments
have recently been made upon the compara-
fecundity of ducks and hens, so as to deter
mine from which of the two the larger num-