The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1875-09-23
FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.

VALUE OF EvERGREENs AMONG FRUIT
TREEs.-A well-gyown evergreen tree
gives out continually an exodium of
warmth and moisture that reaches dis
lance of its area in height; and when
tree planters advocate shelter belts, sur
rounding trace of orchard fifty or more
acres, when the influence of such belt
can only trace distance of the height
of trees on said belt, they will do that
which will prove of little value. 10
ameliorate climate, to assist in prevention
of injury against extreme climatic cold
in winter and of the frosting of the germ
bud of fruit in the spring, all orchards
should have planted, in and among them
Unfortunately, evergreen trees at dis
tances each of not. more than $50 feet
apart. Such course pursued will give
health to the tree, and be productive of
more regular and uniform crops OF fruit.
At all events, it is worth the trial, and
we shall be glad If our readers can IN
form us of practical experiments ON the
subject.-Scientifc american.
CARE OF HoRsEs.-The London Horse
Book says: All horses must not be fed in
the same proportion, without regard to
their ages, their constitution, and their
work; because the improperly of such
practice is selfevident. Yet it is con.
stantly done, and is the basis of disease OF
every Kind.
Never use bad hay on account of the
cheapness, for there is no proper nourish-
ment in it.
Damaged corn is exceedingly injurious,
because it brings on Inflammation of the
bowels and skin diseases. Chat is better
for old horses than hay, because they can
chew and digest it better.
When horse is worked hard, its food
should be chiefly oats; if not worked
hard its food should chiefly be hay, be-
cause oats contains more nourishment and
fesh-making material than any other
food; hay not so much.
Rack feeding is wasteful. The better
plan is to feed with chopped hay, from a
manger, because the food is not then
thrown out, and is more easily chewed
and digested.
Sprinkle the hay with water that has
salt dissolved in it, because it is pleasant
to the animals taste, and more easily
digested. A teaspoonful of salt in a
bucket of water is sufficient.
MARYLAND BIsCUIT.-To two pounds
of -four and two ounces of lard, well
rubbed in, and a tablespoonful of salt, take
enough cold water to make dry dough
(about pint, being careful not to get
it too moist. Work the dough in shape,
lay it on solid place, like meat block,
and pound it with the back of an axe,
for half an hour or more, letting it cut
through the dough at every stroke. When
flattened by the blows, fold up and pound
again. but don't add any -four after it is
first mixed. When readyto mold do not
cut, but pull off pieces about the size of
an egg, mold with your hands, stick with
a fork, and bake in quick oven about
half an hour.
To FIND the contents of cylindrical
measure multiply the square of the d.
ameter by 1893, and then by the
depth. Example: Is 1-2X18 IL equal
1925; 342.25X.7S5 1893 equal 268, S03
26S, SO3XS equal 2,l5O 42-l0O.
A HAY DRYING MAcHINE.-It will
no doubt be interesting to our farmers,
during this peculiar season, when so
much hay has been lost by wet weather,
to learn that an Englishman has invented
machine Tor artificial heat that success.
fully replaces the summer sun. The
London Times says: We witnessed the
operation of hay drying by artificial
heat at Gillwell Park, near Chinford,
Essex, the residence of the inventor, Mr.
William Alfred Gibbs. After some years
of practical experimenting, Mr.. Gibbs
has brought his invention into the fol.
lowing shape: A portable stove, con.
structed of plate iron, is surmounted by
fan, which is driven by belt from q
three-horse power portable steam engine;
the fan draws all the heated air and
gases from the coke fire, together with a
volume of warmed air, which passes
through a chamber surrounding the in.
ner chamber of the stove, and blows the
hot current, at a temperature of 400 de-
grees Fahrenheit or more, into the dryer
This resembles in general shape straw
elevator, consisting of sheet-iron trough
six feet in breadth, twenty feet long il
mounted on wheels as portable carriage
or forty to fifty feet long if fixture
The trough is raised at one end at low
angle, so that hay fed in at the upper
travel to the lower end near the stove
) this being assisted by slow reciprocating
motion given to the bottom of the trough
A ridge of triangular section running
along the middle of the trough divides
it into two almost semi-circular channels
so that the hay passes down in two
streams; the hot air issues through two
slit appertures, one on each side the base
of the middle ridge, and for the entire
length of the machine; and the hay i,
kept continually stirred and lightened
up over the hot blast by number o.
small iron stirrers cleverly contrived &c
initiate the action of forks worked by
hand. We saw partly made but wet
hay pass through the machine and con
verted at once into a thoroughly dry con
dition for the sack we saw soiled and
5 musty hay dried into hay of fair appar
ent quality and pleasant fragrance; and
: we saw freshly cut grass, saturated
, with rain from a very heavy thunder
shwer which poured down at the time
! dried into hay of first-class color, and
, possessing the rich, malt odor peculiar
. to we'll made hay. With single twenty
,, foot machine the operation is too slow tC
employ fully one man feeding off a cart
] and another man removing the dried
, | prOducI, out Win TWO sucn machines
side by side, or with one fixed machine
of forty or fifty feet length, probably one
set of carriers and stackers could be kept
going. From experiments made under
our own supervision, it appears that
while fresh and wet grass leses seventy
to seventy-fve Ter cent. of its original
weight being made into hay, the guam
tity of moisture IN excess in partially
made hay, or hay cut by a heavy rain
may be from ten to twenty per cent
To expel this water from partially made
hay requires a consumption of coke in
the stove. and of coal for the engine moi
exceeding Is. Sd. per ton of hay dried
Preserving fresh-cut grass may cost in
fuel six or seven times more. With out
lay for labor and for wear and tear d
apparatus, the total expense, according
; to Mr.. Gibbs calculations, does not ex
! | coed Ia or "a per ton which ia indeed