The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1882-11-16
NOTES AND EXTRACTS.
4 Digest of Information Collected From Various
Sources.

A Digest OF information Collected rum
Sources.
WHY DO ANIMALS NEED SALT?
Professor James E. Johnston, of Scotland,
says: Upward of half the saline matter of
blood 81 per cent? consists of common salt,
and this is partly discharged every day through
the skin and kidneys. The necessity of con-
tinucd supplies of it to the healthy body be-
comes sufficiently obvious. The bile also con-
tains soda Zone Of the ingredients of salt as a
special and indispensable constituent, and so do
all the cartridges of the body. Stint the supply
of salt thereafter, and neither will the bile be
able properly to assist digestion nor the cartil-
age to be built up again as fast as they natu-
rally waste. 1t is better to place salt where
stock can have free access to it than to give it
occasionally in large quantities. They will
help themselves to what they need If allowed
to do so at pleasure; otherwise when they be-
come salt hungry they may take more than
is wholesome"
BE CAREFUL WITH FOOD.
A good deal of grain and rough food are
wasted every winter because feeders are care
less in selecting places for feeding. Where one
docs not wish to resort to the use of troughs
and racks, the selection of high or at least dry
ground is essential to anything like economy in
the use of food. No man should feed in the
mud. Besides the wastefulness of the practice,
it is not good for the stock. The weight of tes-
timony among feeders is decidedly in favor of
at least some degree of shelter for stock, and
one idea of shelter is to get clean place to
feed This is matter of much more import
ance than is generally conceded.
DUST FOR CHICKENS.
A distinguished should be in every poultry
yard. 1t may be few feet square, according
to the number of birds, with no sides, but
good waterproof roof. A heap of dry ashes
should be put under this, and it will soon be
seen how much the fowls appreciate it. No
fowl will thrive if covered with insects, and
the dust bath alone will keep them away. Dry
ashes should be used; wet material is no good.
KEEPING APPLES.
Apples need to be kept as cool as possible
without freezing; they will endure a little frost
much better than too warm a temperature; go
to $40 is best; when it rises above 400 they don't
keep well, and temperature over 500 will speed
lily spoil them. Hence, to keep russell apples
till late in May, they should be kept in tight
cellar and aired only at night when the tenn
perature is near or below the freezing point
BARB-wIRE FENCES
Many cattle and sheep in western States are
killed by lightning while lying close to barb
wire fences in storms. 1t is said that good
preventive can be had by twisting good sized
wire around the barb-wire at intervals not ex-
ceeding half a mile EACH and running the
lower end into the ground foot or more, so as
to reach the moist earth.
FEEDING PIGS.
In feeding sweet milk to pigs, trials made at
the Wisconsin experiment farm showed that on
an average four pounds of corn-meal were
equal to twenty pounds of sweet skim milk or
one pound of meal equal to five of milk, if fed
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