Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1878-09-18


some peculiar ways in farming, and with
such good land as he has the results average
well. His hay crop is mixture of herds
grass, red and Alsike clover. The clover
seed of the second crop and the ripened seed
in the manure continues to reseed the land
and make continuous crop. Alsike is
spreading about the farm freely, and is
highly valued for hay.
Mr.. Gage uses steel tools, and his pillow is
of that metal. He plows in, upon sod ground,
nearly all the manure applied. His furrow
is about nine inches wide and five deep
and he desires it to lap about three inches
upon the previous furrow. By every fourth
furrow he drops his corn, and then harrows
the piece thoroughly, but the first time length
wise of the burrows. After that he cultivates
the field and only uses the hoe to cut up
scattering weeds. This method causes the
corn to come up even and vigorous; the roots
Immediately feed upon the decaying grass.
or pierce through between the burrows to
the manure below. The second year the
land is plowed in the fall and seeded to grass
with winter wheat, winter rye. Seven
acres are now in winter rye. Mr.. Gage and
his brother recently bought piece of pas
ture land, and had forty-four acres of it
plowed last year. The crop was mostly oats,
and the half stored by him is estimated to
yield one thousand bushels when threshed.
They are being threshed by hand, and the
straw fed to cows.
The cattle are full blooded Shorthorns
of good size and excellent development, and
are good mixers. This stock has been kept
pure for twenty years. Occasionally neigh
boris scrub bull has trespassed into his pas
lures, and the breeders of common stock
can hardly estimate the annoyance felt by
the owners of blooded cattle when valua-
BILE COW has her blood tainted by breeding to
a scrub 1t is not this calf alone that is a
loss, but upon succeeding offspring there is
likely to appear in nose, horn, hide, or hair,
that which marks bad breeding.
In sheep Mr.. Gage is true to Addison
county fame and has registered Merinoes.
What is better still, he has some of the very
stock that Victor Wright owned at the time
of his death, upon which there is no dis
count. These ewes are from fifteen to
twenty years old, yet he has some lambs and
yearlings from them, and they will breed
this year. His whole flock numbers about
sixty. Four are yearling rams, valued al
one hundred dollars each, nine are ram
lambs, of which one or two are valued al
the same rate. This winter he sold az
uneven lot of twenty ewes at ten dollars
each. When sheep bring these prices, ant
also shear ten to twenty pounds of nice, fine
wool each, it pays very we'll yet his nearest
neighbor, Mr.. Clark, has sold half-interes
in six ewes for nine hundred dollars and {
half.interest in ram for twelve hundred
and fifty dollars / am told that this is tn
same ram | saw three years ago as a lamb il
the winter time, kept warm by fire in
little shop. | was then told it was probabl
the best lamb in the state, and one hundre,
dollars had been offered for it. The Merlin
sheep breeders are quite hopeful at present
Mr.. Gage keeps the Suffolk pigs, the onl
ones in this section. They are easily KEEP
upon grass in summer, ard four ears of cor
a day in winter His fowls are Partridg
Cochins, very fine. No stock suits him e1
cept blooded stock.
His barns are now being reconstructed
one thirty by fifty feet was built last yea
and another summer sheep sheds and a var
will be arranged.
Apparently with the good soil of Add
son county all good farming enterprise
succeed. zE.J.
The nhoye Interesting account of NJ