The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1877-11-08
TOPICS FOR FARMERS.

TOPICS FOR FARMERS.
Homemade Rugs.-Last winter while
visiting friend, says a correspondent to
the Rural Near Yorker, l noticed her lit
tie fve-year-old daughter busily ravellng
out pieces of Brussels carpeting 10 my
question, "What are you doing that Tor,
Nellie @' She replied, Helping mamma
make mats" My friend explained that
she utilized all worthless pieces and lit
tie bits of Brussels carpet by ravellng
and sewing the crimped worsted on to
sacking for door mats or rugs.
The idea seemed not a bad one, and as
we always insisted upon our carpet dealer
giving us the pieces wasted in matching,
had accumulated quite large number
of odds and ends. Here was chance
of turning them to account, so, little by |
little, Flossy raveled them out, and fin
ished Yesterday my first attempt at a |
'shome-made rug" As to It's beauty, |
it is a success-as to its durability | |
know not.
The worsteds were cut SO that when |
doubled and not Strengthened, they were |
five inches long. These were tackled to |
a worn though perfectly clean carpet |
one yard long and not quite one-half
yard wide, with edges overcast that
it might not ralel. Sew on the worsted
at the doubled end, one inch from the
edge of the carpet, in thick length
wise row. The next row an inch and a
half from the first, thus overlapping 1t,
and so on until the carpet is covered.
The last row, if you please, may be
sewed with the ends the opposite way,
although when the rug lies upon the
floor the ends fall every which-way and
the edges are not seen.
With little taste in arranging the
colors, these rugs can be made very
bright and pretty, and from my own ex-
perience, l should say that the most of
the work could be done by little hands.
Our Cow.-Long years ago, forty at
| were keeping house in one of the quiet
New England villages that are nestled
down among the Green Mountains. At
ter much deliberation and planning of
ways and means, we decided to keep a
cow. 1t would add to our comfort, and
provide market for vegetables, corn
fodder and small potatoes. We had an
acre of land, and there was, of course,
a good deal of garden refuse that was
of no value.
After deciding to have COW, the next
step was to choose one to suit. Cows
were plentiful and cheap in those days.
It was before there was such a time
about high-bloods, records, pedigrees,
and all that sort of talk that makes so
MANY folks foolish and unreasonable.
Well, mother said she thought she could
pick out good COW, and it would cost
no more to Keep good one than poor
one; so after looking through several
yards and milking quite number and
testing the milk, she found one that
pleased her. 1t was a trim, cherry-red
cow, with dark face, short horns, and
rather small in size, five years old; and
mother paid twelve dollars for her.
In those days, village people turned
their cows into the road, or g long pas
ture," as they called it; so there was no
expense for summer keeping; but they
always kept them either in the stable or
yard over night. 1t was on the goth of
August that we drove our little COW
home. I saw some of the men wink
knowingly as we passed, and one of the
neighbors said he hoped we hadn't got
cheated; another said, 1t was just as
much as a woman knew about COWS" :"
We put her into box-stall, and mother
and I held council while we leaned
over the gate and contemplated our
property az will do the milking, fol
you cannot milk as fast as [ can, and a
COW needs to be MIXED as quick as posi-.
BILE; and you must take the rest of the
care of her." said mother who was ovel
, fifty-eight years of age, while Twas only
nineteen. So we settled it, and that
little COW became part of our domestic
arrangements, and her comfort was my
special care.
| She was one of the most gentle, docile
, loving animal that | ever saw; she JUS
acted as though she reasoned matters in
| her own wise head. She was q ratterr
t of regularity. She always announced
| her return home by low pleasant call
We petted, and fed her by no rule o.
| stint. She had her pail of slops regu
larly night and morning. We boug gh
: two tons of hay for her, and that, with
corn-fodder, potatoes and slops, with foul
! bushels of wheat middlings and bra1
, mixed, carried her through winter.
, Now, as it is fashionable to keep re
cords of profit and loss, am to con
form to the fashion, because 1 think
, can tell as big a story as any one, anc
{ moreover, | have no favorite breed t(
: advertise, or talk about. / think that
cow carefully and kindly treated anc
messed, will bring ample returns; bu
you do not want more than one COW tc
pet at time. We kept our Bossy' ,
! four years, and she never went dry day
, We fattened four calves, and here stands
| the account q "Hy mother kept it ovel
} forty years ago:
To one COW o.
Two tons of hay at 50 per ton.........-..... IS o.
Four bushels of wheat middlings ............. o.
.ss2 o.
By milk sold, $50 quarts, at cents. o.
Butter,lss lbs, shilling per % 81
One fat calf weighing 2oS lbs. p O.
, S65 s:
Less expenses 30 OF
Leaving as gain for one year..............S s;
Moreover, we had what milk, cream
and butter we wished for our own use
and kept a nice shoat besides. The last
, year we kept the cow, an ordinance was
passed that cows should not run at large
and so we concluded to give up our cow
and sold her for forty-fve dollars. She
: was just nine years old; a dairyman
bought her, and he called her very
poor cow. She was so home sick that
she ca-"Ae out perfect skeleton in the
spring, and although she was three miles
} from us, she would jump her fence and
! come believing home, two or three times
a week. She, of course had no extra
care of any kind-no petting or brushing
, and this was the result.
Now, when I read those wonderful ac-
!. counts of such profitable cows, it always
reminds me of our pet Bossy;" and I
think, if the whole story were told, that
, parhaps those splendid cosset Jerseys,
nebt proTe TepI Sna dent GasTf ngn anma 1ieeas
| Under different treatnent cow iS a