The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1881-07-20


During the eleven years included
above, our recorded sales Of short horns
have reached an aggregate Of rs, ljl
head, which have realized in the ring u
total sum of 81, 6S2, 430 being equal to
a general average for the entire period
of fraction short Of 1894 per head
SELECTING SEED. The prudent farmer
will select his seed in October and care
fully store it away whore it will not DO
exposed TO moisture, nor TO tGmpcra-
ture below zero. Even when seed corn
is not destroyed, it is frequently 50 in
jured that it sends up n feeble shoot that
require some weeks to recover its vitality.
But this is an accountable carclcssncss,
too common among farmers, in the Sc
lection Of all kinds Of seed. in the rails.
ing Of wheat, oats or other small grains,
it will pay to raise n small lot, to which
special cultivation and care is given, for
the express purpose Of producing per
feet grain for seed. The man who sOws
twenty acres Of wheat can well afford TO
raise one acre for seed, even ii it costs
him $40 extra labor and manure, and in
creases his general crop but one bushcl
per acre. But this process continued
from year to year planting the best
seed for seed, and giving it the highest
cultivation, the general crop, grown
from such seed will steadily improve.
In this manner all our better varieties Of
grain are more conservative than others
and retain their old character and habits
of growth with greater tcnaclty or
these, none are more fixed in their habits
than wheat, yet high cultivation for
several years will materially affect the
character Of even this grain and It's pro-
geny for several generations, though the
methods which improved it may he neg
lected. But maize is most easily affected
by selections Of seed and modes OF cuI-
ture Of any of our grains, but at thrsama
time, no grain dcgoncratcs under neg
lect so rapidly rs our Indian corn. -
Ldiana fnrmcr.
BENEFITS or IIOErNG. Too many per-
SONS who use the hoe suppose that the
chief benefit derived from it is tO kill the
weeds. That, certainly, is IN important
work, and one which il greatly neg
lected, Weeds nrc not only IN the way Of
cultivating crops which we plant, but
they rob them Of much Of the nutrlmont
which they need. IIocinR, then, ~ an
essential service in respect to destroying
the weeds,
There are other ADVANTAGES, however,
which are quito commonly overlooked.
Let us see:
|. The looscning Of the soil in the OPP
Grafton of hOclng is beneficial TO the
plants; rs much "a the destruction Of the
weeds, or more 80.
2. Moisture abounds in the almos
phcro during the hottest months, aud il
is absorbed aud retained most nbund
antly by n soil which is in the most fri
able state. Professor Schuyler iouuC
that 900 grains Of stiff clay absorbed IN
twenty-four hours only clghty-slX Gran'
of moisture from the mir: whlo garden
mold absorbed forty-iiyc Grnins, and fine
magnesia scycnty,BlX grains.
3. Then, again, pulycriaing the sol
enables it better to retain tho moatur,
absorbed.
T. Tho soil in order to he healthy
and active, must breathe. A light, porous
soil admits the air, and thus it is fed auc
greatly inviEoratcd by Che atmosphere
3. The suns rays heat u hard soil mucI
quicker than loose one, and the hotter
tho sun is 80 much greater will he iii,
evaporation from it, SO that the hare
soil is deprived of its moisture mucl
sooner than one Of loose texture.
6. Tho roots Of plants can find then
way through moist, loose soil in search
of food much better than they cal
through hard, dry soil.
7. A soil that is kept loose near Tho
surface by the action Of tho hoe vii
receive and hold the rain water that falls
while hard soil will allow most Of it tt
run Off into the valleys and streams ~ il
falls.
A Prov THAT WALKS. The steam pillow
invented by Mr.. i. $. Benson, IL we'll
known machnist of this city, has beer
put into practical operation. The yarl
Gus attempts heretofore made to pillow i.
steam have failed mainly on account o
the difficulty in adapting traction en-
gine to the varying conditions Of thu
ground over which it must move. Al
engine which will run very well over (
hard surface or firm sod will sink int,
loose loan or wet ground to n depth tina
stops all locomotion. Mr.. Benson ha
sought TO overcome these dilicultics 10y
constructing an engine which lays down
and takes mp II track, over which 1t pro
pels itself and draws II gang of plows nj
ter it, Tho portable track consists 81
four endless chains, constructed Of link
or sections about fifteen inches In length
Each section has sort OF foot. with
saucer-shaped base projecting from il
One-third Of these feet are constantly
resting upon the ground, each one being
taken up in turn by tho revolution of til,
chain, which is carried around triangu
lar frame on each side Of tho uprigh
boiler. The lower side Of the triangle i
. constantly shifting railroad track, q
rather double track, resting on feet
about ten inches long, which support II
like so many sections Of trcstlo-work. On
this tramway the truck which carries the
boiler and engine rests, aud when the
machinery is put IN motion the truck
wheels run along the track, which moves
forward with sort of walking motion MS
the wheels at the three corners of the
triangular frame take up and put down
The sections of the chain. A gang oi
nine plows is drawn by this track-laying
engine, and the nine burrows cover a
space Of ground about eleven feet IN
width as they move forward. The plow-
ing yesterday was done in field from
which q crop of corn was taken last
year, and the surface was deeply furrow-
ID and quito irregular. The engine was
worked under pressure of forty pounds
Of steam and the plows did their work