The National tribune., 1882-07-29


danger of the young trees being injured by
cold they can be protected temporarily
when they attain any considerable size they
will protect themselves.
FRACTIoUs HORSES. - Obstinate horses
may be quoted by removing their attention
from the object uppermost in their mind.
Horses which are disposed to bite and kick
| when attempts are made to shoe them, may,
it is stated, be rendered quiet and manage
able by dropping small portion of the
ethereal oil of parsley on a rag and holding
up to the nose of the animal.
GRINDING WHEAT.-The perfection of
milling will be reached when the entire
grain of wheat will be secured minus the
external covering of woody fiber, commonly
called bran. This covering possesses no
nutritious qualities, and when given as food
it acts as a laxative by irritation of the in
teStines. But it has not been found possible
to remove all the valuable nutritious matters
from the skin, so that much of it goes with
the bran, and thus making it of some value
been adopted in Switzerland of removing the
bran of wheat without losing any nutritive
matter. This consists in soaking the grain
before grinding it in solution of caustic
soda and water. This sWells and loOsens the
hull proper, so that it may be removed by
the body of the grain.
PEAR-TREE BLIGHT.-It is stated that
! Pennsylvania fruit-grower uses the following
as a remedy and preventive of pear blight:
"A pound of potash or concentrated I've is
dissolved in twenty-five gallons of water
and poured around the trees, pailful at a
time, two or three times during the growing
season. He claims it is thoroughly effective
not only as a preventive, but that it will
check and stop the blight after it begins to
show, the affected limbs of course being cut
away" 1t is safe to presume that this APP
plication will have no effect in preventing
OF stopping pear blight We have cut off
blighted limbs until the tree was reduced to
bare pole; the tree would then form a new
growth and live and bear fruit and not be
again attacked by blight for dozen years,
and for how many more we cannot say. We
have cut down blighted pear trees to within
few inches Of the stock upon which they
were grated, and new shoots have come mp
and formed as healthy, fruitful trees as those
which never had an attack from blight
Blight is known to be a fungus which
grows on the exterior of the bark, and sol
applications have no influence to prevent it
OF to cure it, and the only preventive is APP
plications such as lime wash on the branches
and trunk of the tree; but even this will
only be effective on the surfaces which are
covered; a portion of the tree SO covered
will not prevent blight ON other portions of
the tree which do not receive the application
WHAT POTATOES ARE USED FOR.-The
value and importance Of the potato in the
arts and manufactures may be partly seen
from the following, which we extract from
an unpublished work entitled Plants and
their Products y:
Besides their use as n table vegetable,
potatoes furnish large quantity of starch,
which is employed for various purposes in
the arts, and forms the basis of variety of
farinaceous foods, such as artificial tapioca,
sage, vermicelli, &c 1t is much used for
culinary purposes, and many famed gravies,
sauces and soups are largely indebted to it
for their excellence, as also are bread and
pastry. 1t is sometimes called potato flour,
but it is destitute ofgluten and will not make
douCrb In 1aTtain propnrtiono la :
the potato may be mixed with wheat flour,
so as to produce good bread 1t is stated
that if the proportion of potato starch ex-
ceeds One-ffth Of the weight of the flour
peculiar flavor is communicated to the |
bread, arising from small quantity of oily |
matter, which is supposed to be identical |
with fusel oil. This is sometimes called Oil Of |
potato spirit, and has been extracted as a
colOrless oily liquid, possessing very
powerful odor, at first rather agreeable, but |
afterwards exceedingly nauscous.
A substance called dextrine, or starch |
gum, is prepared either by terrifying potato |
starch, or by the action Of heat, aided by a !
small portion of nitric acid. Dextrine is |
produced in the forms of pearly powder, |
a sirupy solution, or as gum. Powdered |
dextrine is used as a substitute for gum in
calico printing, and by manufacturers to
give body to their woven fabrics which are |
made slim and with wide meshes, which are !
filled up with starch. 1t is also employed |
for adhesive labels and postage stamps, and
for many other similar purposes. Dextrine .
in the form of strip is employed in the .
preparation of various alimentary sub |
stances.
The gum is made by boiling the strip .
and then running it into Hat vessels. .
where it remains until it assumes a pasty .
consistence; it is then cut into snail pieces,
which are rolled out fat and then dried
This gum is easily dissolved, and makes a
clear solution; it is more easily packed than
powdered dextrine, and does not ferment
like liquid gum.
PoleDta IS prepared from potatoes, which
are first boiled or steamed, then bruised
dried, silted and separated into coarse