The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1883-04-05
NOTES AND EXTRACTS.
A Digest Of Information Collected From Various
Sources.
KEEP ANIMALs WARN

KEEP ANIMALS WARM.
The old-fashioned idea that exposing stock
TO the cold in winter hardened them, had at
least this basis of truth: 1t took off the soft
spots and left only the bones and skin. Be-
sides it destroyed the less hardy animals and
though often stunting the growth of those that
lived, they had generally capacity for endnr-
ing cold. The small shaggy Shetland ponies
are examples Of what this method viii do for
horses; but this is a direction in which few
horsemen will wish to breed.
All kinds of fowls are natives of warm or
semi-tropical climates. However long they
have been domesticated they retain their
liking for warm weather or at least warm quar-
ters in cold weather. In the winter sea-
son they viii do better in close houses, even
with little ventilation rather than exposed TO
seye-e weather. When young chick viii rest
under its mothers wings in summers night
at temperature of 100 or more, there is little
danger Of smothering an old fowl in winter in
a tight characterization CultiUatoI.
BAGGING GRAPES.
Oar readers who live at some distance from
villages and who desire TO test the value of
bagging their grapes next summer, might now,
during stormy days, engage in making the bags.
Any kind OF strong manila paper answers. 1t
is moi well to make them less than Sx6 inches
in size, and some should be larger. Make one
side of the bag two inches longer than the other
TO lap over the arm so that it can be secured by
pinning. Let us again assure our readers that
this bagging of grapes viii give them much
pleasure As rule, the Rural opposes all flSsy
operations that cost more than they ever amount
TO. But this method of preserving and per-
fecting grapes cannot be SO considered. Some
punches of our bagged grapes last year We're
more beautiful than any We have seen in hot
houses.-Rural NeE Yorker.
AMERICAN AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY
.J.R Dodge, Statistician of the Agricultural
Department, concludes that no country in the
world has such excellent agricultural ma
chinery as the United States; hence we import
no goods of that sort for those in use in Eng
Land, France, Germany, and other countries
would be cumbersome and worthless here,
owing to the antiquity of their style and mech
anism. The farm census in the report gives the
aggregate value of the live stock in the States
and Territories as $500, 336, 147. The average
value of horses is S7e.59; of mules, 1913; of
mich cows, S30.21 of other cattle, 81, so; of
sheep, 1888; of swine, 1915. These figures
show an increase of S12.07 on horses, $Sl4 on
mules, 4.32 on mich cows, and $1.20 on swine
during the year.
CATTLE FEEDING.
A noteworthy feature of cattle feeding in
these progressive days, along with the increas-
ing tendency 10 early maturity, is the gradual
substitution of moderate weights for the ex-
tremely heavy ones of few years ago Stock
tipping the beam at 1000 pounds to 1900
pounds is still produced, and no doubt will be-
but it is rarely found in large consignments
even from the best feeding districts of the
country. 1t has been demonstrated with about
as much cleaness as can be derived from fig
ures that the best profits in beef production
come from lighter weights. If the prime steer
of l,600 pounds will yield profit, his 1900
one and beside can be produced much more
quickly and with less Misunderstanding Stock
man.
A GOOD PASTURE
The value of a pasture consists, first, in
close, strong sward. To have this the soil
must be firm, fertile, and filled with moisture
By this we do not mean that it shall be wet :;
on the contrary, ii must be the reverse. The
moisture must be such as is held naturally (me-
chanicallyl; not the moisture of saturation,
but that of vaporiZation. Thus permanent
pasture should never be heavily cropped until
it is well set Hence, none of the tuberous
rooted grasses, like timothy, are suitable to
permanent pastures. They cannot stand close
cropping nor constant tramping. Pasture
grasses, therefore, must be the ibrous and
deep-rooted varieties Western Agr;culturiSt
COWS IN THE ISLAND OF JERSEY.
The Island of jersey, having a surface of
seven miles each way, keeps IL, 900 cows The
breeding of COWS has made the island very
fertile, and, as the animals are kept in stables
all the year round, every particle of the manure
is saved. Cows kept IN close yards, with little
exercise, are generally better mixers than
those allowed to run at large and it is this in
part which has developed the dairy value of
the jersey breed. In winter the cows are
largely fed on parsnips, which has probably
helped develop the butter superiority of this
breed of cattle.
TO CURE WARTS on ANIMALS
A correspondent of the Germantown TeleqrQph
says: Fresh, clean hogs lard, rubbed three or
four times on any kind of warts on horses OF
COWS viii remove them in three or four appli-
cations. / have removed the warts time after
time and have never been able TO find the wart
for the fourth application If / should send
the Latin name for lard, and tell men to pay
fifty cents to the druggist for about two cents
worth of good lard, this remedy would be
oftener used"
GOOD DIsINFECTANT.
bottle of carbolic acid should be kept in
every farm house, not merely as disinfectant.
but as a wash for wounds and sores. For any
purpose it should be diluted with water. Its
power to destroy fungus growths makes car
bolic acid invaluable in pruning orchards of
pear, plum, or peach where blight or other dis
ease is suspected. The pruning shears should