Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-02-03
FARM AND PRESIDE.

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WHAT BONE DUST HAS DONE FOR AN
OHIO CoUNTY.-Stephen Powers writes
tnus to the "Ohio Farmer:
Bone dust has created a new era in what
culture in this section; it has largely rev.
olutionlzed the system of farming. The
yeiiow nils of this.old county, Washing
Gon-the mother of the State of Ohio
mas been stripped and skinned. ploughed
SHALLOW, washed and quilted for SO MANY
years that things had got about to their
worst. Ten or twelve years ago there
| were many farmers in this county who
were IN despair; they could not, without
Inc utmost exertion and the utmost ripor-
Gus economy. save enough money to paw
their taxes. They could not even sell their
farms in order to go West; nobody would
ouy Them. The competition of the great
west was slowly but surely sapping the
foundations of the cattle trade, and ma
Jorlty OF them had not learned to keen
sheep (nor have they yet for that matterl.
Wheat was the one cash crop which they
had depended on to make the two ends
meet, to pay taxes and buy groceries; and
these white oak hills had grown SO poor
that they would not pay for the seed and
the labor.
1t was then that there came in the but
ter and egg period. For time it was SAID
by those well informed, that the egg trade
alone on the Muskinggum River was worth
much more than the wheat trade. It was
the last resort of region which had play,
ed fast and loose with the capital stored
up by Nature in the soil. and who were
ON their last legs.
There was settlement of thrifty Scotch
men IN the west end of the county, and
some ten years ago they began to buy bone
dust. They made hit. They raised good
crops of wheat where the discouraged
Americans said the land was too poor to
grow white beans. 1t was the beginning
OF new era. Their example was conta-
glous. The Industrious Germans were
coming in in large numbers; they bought
poor finger points which nobody would
look at. They and the Americans both
began to use bone dust freely; wheat as
serted its old supremacy. Five years ago
the Plttsburg steamer would clear from
the Muskingum Valley with three hum
dred or four hundred barrels of eggs and
not barrel of flour or sack of wheatI
NOW wheat is head again.
There are hundreds, yes thousands of
houses that have been built in this county
IN the last ten years over whose doors
might be inscribed the words, ''bone dust
did this" The old house, built perhaps
in the last century, probably of logs, had
asted to that day, though wretchedly in
need OF repairs; but the owner grew poor
er and poorer year by year, less able and
less inclined to build. If he did not sell to
the Germans he was encouraged by their
example to try bone dust, and in a few
years he was able to build a new house.
80 was the German who bought the neigh
boring farm. Some spectators hereabout
furnish seed wheat and bone dust for half
the crop; but the farmers are beginning to
find that this is one sioed business.
VIRGINIA MUFFINs.-One quart flour.
one teaspoonful salt, one tablespoonful SUI
gar, one tablespoonful butter and lard
mixed, one tablespoonful well mashed
Irish potato, three well beaten eggs, one
half teacup homemade yeast. Rub the
butter and lard into the flour, then the
mashed potato, salt and sugar should be
sltted with the flour. Pour into this the
eggs and yeast, and make into soft dough
with warm water in winter and cold in
summer, and knead thirty minutes by the
CLOCK. Ii wanted for an eight O'Clock
winter breakfast, make up at eight the
night before. At six O'Clock the next
morning make the dough into twelve round
balls without kneading and drop into well
creased tin baking cups. These cups should
be smaller at bottom than at top, and
must be three and one-half inches deep.
Grease the hands and pass them over the
top of each muffin; set them in a warm
place for full two hours and then bake.
The depth of the cup is important, because
If properly made, they rise to the top or
nearly So and would be heavy if baked in
the shallow cups commonly used.-A V5r-
ginia Woman.
SWEET POTATO PUDDINa.-One pound
of sweet potato boiled in q little wator.