Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1873-01-31
FARGl AND FIRESIDE.

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idle winter days, the industrious, thought
full man, can find plenty to do to keep him
busy and work which can aud should be
done now will save valuable time when the
busy days Of April and May press bard and
fast upon the tller Of the soil.
It is not too soon to begin your stable
manure heap which is intended for the hot
bed, which is to force on rapidly and safely
your vegetable plants. Don't. throw the
manure from under shelter, where rains and
SHOWS will iDjure and ruin it for your pur-
pose, but pile it in some sheltered place,
and about the latter part of February make
your hot bed, and let it stand few days
before sowing the seed. After this. SOW
cabbage, tomato, egg plans celery, peppers,
&c., and put on your sash. On warm,
bright days. give air and little tepid wa
ter.
| Gather bean poles and pea brush now from
tie woods and thickets. Haul into the gar
den anv old halfrotted straw you can get,
which has no seed in it. This you can
throw over your Irish potatoes when you
plant them in March, and mulch your straw
berry and raspberry beds and orchards
Your vegetables and fruits will be larger
and better for it, and the yield greater
Go to the hollows and sinks in the forests
and haul up few loads of leaf mould and
dry muck to be used on your small kitchen
garden, &c. 1t will pay you 80 per cent.
| for your trouble.
Cut scions of fruit trees, currants, goose
berries, &C., and bury them until April,
then take them up and plant them in rows
two feet apart, and six inches apart in the
rows. Take only the wood of last years
growth.
Haul up fiat rock for walls to all the out
houses. Lay them about a foot apart, in
single row; and your wife and Others who
have much travelling to do about the premi-
SEES, will thank you for such comfort.
Do rot say that nothing can bo done in
winter. Life is too short for US. to spend an
hour in idleness We should be up and
doing. Not that we should never play any
'for all work and no play makes Jack a
dull boy" Certainly we should have days
of recreation, but make them the exception,
not our rule. Many other things will sug-
gest themselves to the thoughtful and indus
trious man, and We have only aimed to
throw out few seasonable hints, which,
taken and acted upon will result in good to
those who view them-as does your cores
pendent Country Gentlemen.
STICK TIC THE FARM.-Miss Mary A. e.
Wager Of "Mooro's Rural" says she is
quite sure that the more person knows of
life in great cities the greater emphasis will
he or she give to the advice contained in the
head line, and for these reasons: The ma
jority Of county boys are in no sense of the
word fitted or prepared for partcipations in
the rivalry and competition of business in
the city. They would find themselves as
much out of their sphere OR groove for usa-
fulness as q statesman would to be placed in
command of ship. Or to make the illus.
tration more pertinent, they would succeed
in the city in about equal measure with the
city men who 60 to the country to get rich
farming, and you know how that is. Hun
dreds of young men come from the country
to the city weekly in search of work [ see
them anxiously walking the streets, or
standing at the street corners in a brown
study. Often times they are robbed Of their
little store af money decoyed into bells
where in single hour they learn more of
the ways Of death than would have come to
them in an entire life time elsewhere All!
but you wouldn't be seduced from truth and
virtue Perhaps not; but granting you to
be firm as the everlasting hills in righteous
ness, what could you do to insure success
Can you set type? Can you keep books ?
Do you understand commercial business ?
Can you write book review worthy of the
book What do you know of art, or science
or of any one branch of either? Have you
we'll defined idea, Or half defined idea of
just what you wish to do ? If so. what quail
ifcation do you carry with it To leave
the farm for the city is as foolish and dan
gerous, in most cases, as to jump overheard
far from shore, when you are morally GER
tain you do not know how to swim.
SHEEP.-A farmer put into his yard 800
sheep that weighed an average of SO pounds
each he fed them 100 days, and they
gained in that time 100 pounds eacn-in all
$500 pounds for the flock. He fed them
for sixty days all the straw they would eat,
and one pound of corn each per day for
the next sixty days he fed them all the hay
they would eat and the pound of corn each.
This gives, in all, two bushels of corn 12O
pounds for each sheep, and probably two
pounds, or 2 J lbs Of hay for each sheep for
60 days-say 2 lbs. of hay each-in all
$50 pounds per day-or $50 pounds for
each sheep. Then we have corn at one
cent per pound and hay at SIS per ton, lust
eight cents per pound for the 90 pounds of
mutton and wool produced If the manure
made, paid for the trouble and straw con.
sumed. Then he had, in addition to his
gain OF twenty nine pounds, each sheep
(Which, as has been stated, was paid for in
hay and corn at eight cents pei. pound, } the
increased price per pound that the sheep
would bring on the first day of February,
when fat, over their price on the first dav
when they went into the yards-and eener.
ally this would be from so to 100 per cent
advance.
CAUSE OF PoTATo DIsEAsE.- have been
watching the potato disease with interest for
years. am satisfied that the potato rot in
this locality is caused by small white in
sect eating through the skin of the potato
during the growing season it is too small
to be seen by the naked eve. I have M.