The Newtown bee., 1879-08-13
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD
Hands and Feet in Agriculture

tiOnS for over 8 quarter Ot g centu ry, It had only been lately that he fully real ized how indispensable is the use of the feet in sowing and planting. In the sow ing of seeds he thought millions were lost annually through neglect of 's firm ing" the ground around the seeds. Dur ing the past dry season, enormous osses were incurred by market gardeners and other cultivators of cabbages, cauli flow CTS, celery, etc., mainly because they persisted in sowing the seeds wi thoat taking the precaution to firm the 5 oil by rolling. His own practice is, after plow- ing, narrowing and leveling the land smoothly, to draw lines by the mark er," which makes furrow about two inches deep and a foot apart; after the man who sows the seed follows another who with the ball of the right foot press. es down his full weight on every inch of soil in the drill where the seed has been sown. The rows are then lightly l9yeled longitudinally with the rake, a light roller is then passed over them and the operation is done. By this method his cabbage and celery crops have never once failed, ana what IS I, true oI ,,rS. e,lfse seeds is equally true of all seeds requlr- ing to be sown during the late spring or summer months. On July, ?, 1874, as an experiment., he sowed twelve rows ot sweet corn and twelve rows of beets, treading in after sowing every alternate row of each. In both cases, those trod in came up in four days, while those un- firmed remained twelve days before starting and would not then have germ mated had rain not fallen, for the soil was as dry as dust when planted. The result was that the seeds that had been trodden in grew freely from the start, and matured their crops to marketable condition by fall, while the rows un- pressed did not mature, as they were not 1y ai iuht l1tn Jn 1 the plants were also to some extent en- feebled by being partially dried in the F loose dry soil.
 The same season in August he treated seeds of turnips and spinach in the same way. Those trod in germinated at once and made an excellent crop, while those impressed germinated feebly and were eventually nearly all burned out by continuance of dry hot air, penetrating through the loose soil to the tender root lets. A large proportion of the blame often laid at the doors of nurserymen on account of selling dead trees he- attri- butes to the neglect of growers to com pact the soil about the roots.
 Hog Cholera.
 A letter to the Elmira Club, published in the Has6andnaG'l, says: 't My pigs and large hogs are all sick (thirty-three in alb with what 1 call lung fever or ln- flammation of the lungs. l lost last year in July about the same number. l want to inquire if any Ot you are acquainted with this disease; ifso, is there any cure for itP The symptoms are blindness, very sore shouts, loss of appetite, roth at the mouth, the victims finger for two or three weeks, and die in convulsions. & Any cure or prevention will be thank fully received"
 The disease appears to be that which Dr. Law calls intestine fever, or hog cholera. In his Veterinary Adviser'' there are the following directions for treatment and prevention:
 Treatment ought not to be permissible unless in constantly disinfected atmos- phere. Feed, well boiled gruel of barley or rye, or in case these raise the fever, corn starch made with boiling water; give to drink fresh cool water, slightly acidulated with sulphuric acid. For the early constipation give mild laxative Castor oil, rhubaIb), and injection of warm water, following up with fever medicine (ntrate of potassa and bisul- phite of soda). If the patient survives the first few days and shows signs of alteration of the bowels (blood dung, tender belly), give oil of turpentine,. tif- teen to twenty drops night and morning. Follow up with tonics and careful soft feeding '
 Prcvention-Kill and bury the dis eased thoroughly disinfect all they have come in contact with; watch the sur vivors for the first sign of illness, take all suspicious subjects with thermome - ter in the rectum, and separate from the herd if it shows more than 103 deg. F., destroying as soon as distinct signs of the disease are shown. Feed vegetable or animal charcoal, ,bisulphite of soda, car boie acid or sulphate of iron to the healthy, and avoid all suspected food, places, or even water, which has run near a diseased herd. All newly-pur- chased pigs should be placed at safe distance in quarantine, with separate attendants, until their health has been The Wheat yyeeyil.
 After wheat has passe safely through all the perils of the har vest and escaped the ravages of insects that wage war on the growing plant danger is not un' 1 frequently in store for it when it has | been deposited in the bins.
 The danger makes itself apparent by 8 minute white dust spread over the grain and peculiar odor thatpermeates the bins. On passing a kernel between 4 the fingers it erushes readily exposing a 1 mere shell partially filled with dust in place of round, plump grain.
 The little black beetles that laid in wait during the winter months come out from their hiding places in myraids with the return of warm weather. The female makes a minute ineision in the grain and therein deposits an egg. As each female lays an innumerablc number of eggs and the insects do not hesitate tc penetrate the heap of grain in all direc- lions, but few kernels escape. The eggs deposited soon hatch out maggots whicl \ bore into and consume the starch of thu grain. By the time these pests are growr the grain is nearly or quite exhausted
 the worms go into a pupa state and in $ few weeks become weevils which force their way out of the grain and seek some hiding place for the winter.
 Farmers who anticipate trouble iron these weevis resort to a variety of ex pedients. Among these is fumigatine tho hin with h11rninr sulnhur Other