The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1881-04-06
Farm and Workshop Notes.

Eggs Tor hatchlng SnOulQ not De more
than two weeks old.
There is no way of discovering the sex of
an egg before Matching.
The seed of the amber sorgum cane is said
TO be valuable for hens.
The luster of morocco leather is restored
by vanishing with white of egg.
Ground bone, fish guano and wood ashes
are excellent fertilizers for strawberries.
Nearly nine-tenths of rice is starch; of
Indian corn and barley more than two
thirds.
All explosions of petroleum lamps are
caused by the yapOr or gas that collects above
the oil.
Early springs rarely bring bountiful har-
vests. IL is said that March grass makes
light haymows.
The refuse corn, after the gluclose has been
extracted, sells in the West at IS to 81 per
ton for food for stock.
Corn requires. fertility and cultivation.
without which, it matters not how good
your seed, you will never have good crop.
If you want good sized potatoes, use good
sized tubers for seed. Do not, is you can
avoid it, cut more than one eye in set
In France it is generally recognized as a
rule that the sugar beet should never be cul-
tivated upon a fresh manure or barnyard
manure.
Every acre of land that farmer owns that
pays him nothing and is not increasing in
value is running him behind, because the
taxes must be paid.
The imperfections of the diamond. and in
fact OF all gems, are made visible by putting
them into oil of caSsia, when the slightest
flaw will be seen.
The usual time allowed for lambs to suckle
is four months. When separated from their
mothers they should, if possible, be so far
removed as not to hear each others bleat
A good acid-proof cement is made by
mixing a concentrated solution of silicate
of soda with powdered glass; to form paste
This is useful for luting joints in vessels ex-
posed to acid fumes.
Farmers should now be getting their tools
ready, and they should be sure that their
ploughs are in good order, their harnesses
we'll oiled and examined for weak places,
which should be repaired.
In the matter of sugar-beet seed the Maine
farmers state the German or white variety
proved richer in sugar by per cent. than
the French or red variety, though the
French seed gave somewhat larger crops.
Alfred NJ. Trask, of Danvers, Mass, has
native dark red COW that calved May Is,
1879 and dropped her next calf May %,
$780, From May 10. and during the next
eleven months, she gave 5,36S quarts OF
milk. an average of IA 358-365 quarts day
for 800 days.
The present is a good time to destroy in
sects which harbor beneath the bark of
trees. Scrape off the bark and then wash
the trunk and lower limbs with strong soap
suds, or with a solution of potash, or even
with I've from wood ashes, but do not use
whitewash.
In testing eggs, the fresher the egg the
smaller the air chamber. This can be seen
at the broad end of the egg if it be held up
against strong light in dark room. Stale
eggs have a notified. greyish look about
them. A new-laid egg will always give a
telling of warmth il the tongue is pressed
to the large end.
1t is reported that the largest hog in the
country is a Poland-Chna. four years old
this spring, latelyon exhibition at Junction
City, Kan. His length seven feet girth
of neck, six and one-half feet; girth of
chest seven and One-half feet; girth of GEN.
ter eight feet; width across the hips,
thirty inches, and weight, 1882 pounds.
Cement for an aquarium that will not
crack peel from glass or galvanized iron:
Take BY measure ten parts of litharge, ten
parts OF plaster of Paris. ten parts of fine dry
white sand and one part finely powdered
resin, When wanted for use, mix into q
stiff putty with boiled linseed oil. Do not
use the tank for three or four days after
cemented.
Posey County, Indiana, claims to have
| raised the largest cow in the world. Her
name is Lady Posey; breed, mixed Durham
and Big English. Her measurements are:
Greatest height. five feet ten inches; girth,
eight feet nine inches; length, ten feet six
hos mr. oil f.af
Her form is good, and, though not fat, she
weighs 5000 pounds.
An English ship Captain states that he
can always get a bullock upon shipboard.
when other measures fail, by adopting the
| following simple method: Taking out the
stopper of q vinegar cruet, placing his finger
on the mouth of the cruet. turning it up and
then applying his wet finger TO the nose of
the beast The effect is instantaneous the
bullock, with o sneeze and shake of his
head, is on his legs at once.
Hens like 70 be secluded when they Law
and set; hence nests sheltered from the vul-
gar gaze will be preferred. The nest should
not be so formed that the hen must Jump
into it, since this sometims shakes the eggs
so violently as to break them. A box with
the bottom and one side out will form a
snug nest il put next a wall and kept we'll
supplied with fresh straw chopped in short
lengths. If rats abound raise the nests
from the floor. Wire basket nests
are excellent. II hung on the walls
of the house a board should be fixed
to the wall, near to the basket so that the
hen can get quietly into the nest without
jumping in. For nest making such ma
terial as is insect-proof is preferable. Dried
moss is good also oat or wheat straw. Bar
ley straw or hay are apt to produce vermin.
Change the material of which the nests are
made often. Hens appreciate cleanliness
Do not, however, change the position of the
nest, as il disturbs laying hens. and they
may retaliate by laying no eggs for day or
two.
Waste OF time: First member feeling a
twinge of Commonwealth say, Tom, what q
lot of time q man does waste during the