Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1885-06-03
JOttIngs by the Way.

Mr.. EDITOR With the refreshing rain
now falling (22d May) these notes by the
way-side will interest your readers. find
that besides the wind-mills to pump water.
Schoppert & Rife are doing much to in
crease the comfort and convenience of the
people. A gentleman, half mile below
Waynesboro, told us that from his house as
a center, in a mile and half, he could count
seven rams they had put in within a year
or more. At their factory found the Rev
Lafferty, Of your 5lk, was expecting to pat
ronize them. The last Secretary Of War,
before the late unpleasantness, sent US to
last Supt. of the Armory at Harper's Fer
ry, to have piece of work done. This man
Schoppert was the master workman and
finished the job. He played conspicuous
part in suppressing the John Brown raid.
He selected our county as his home after
the war, and it is the gamer in his remark
able skill In working iron.
'Tis of interest to note the improvements
made by energetic and progressive men,
Geo. W. Freed, below Waynesboro, has
just finished a new barn and house, both
covered with tin, and travelled So miles
northwest of Chicago, within few weeks,
and brought into the county $4,000 Per-
cheron stallion, costing 800 to get him home.
Mr.. Michael A. Coyner has built new
house, and is running saw-mill close by
and preparing lumber for a barn. He, with
his son, James, Mr.. Saml. Life, and Mr..
Elmore Kiser, had, before this rain, the
promise of the finest wheat, as we believe,
in the county. Mr.. Life has so acres he
thinks will make 80 bus per acre. He dis
covered years ago to use sawdust, spent
tan and apple pommace, hitherto deemed
nuisance Had We time and you space,
would have been glad to tell how to make
it a most valuable and lasting manure
Mr. VIM. A. Freed, on Meadows, has made
handsome new house, tin roof &C.. out
of an old one. Mr.. John Grove, on the op-
posite side of the road from the new Luth-
eran Church, on Barren Ridge, has erected
a nice home and barn on the Shields land.
His near neighbors, DIR. Hildebrand and fa-
ther, have wheat crop much above the
average. The DR.. showed us singular
coin, copper or gold On one side the crown
and coat of Arms, British, with the words
Geo. 8, et gratia, 176S." On the other,
Gin memory of the good old days" What
is its history A negro found it, from whom
he got it, but neglected to ask where he
found it, but will do so. dis father showed
us doed from VIM. Johnston (founder of
the Johnston family, of which Zacheus, the
old Burgess, who built the "Col. Franklin
McCue house" was the most distinguished
member) to Mathew Smith, in 1853, which
had this consideration we never before met
in a deed :" "by branch of growing white
oak, and handful of earth, and our friend
Mr.. Burnett (clerk) tells us he had never
met with it.
noon of the 21st of May in burning the
l.. -, IF 70 Ii
the Young grasshoppers, which, ON his and
Mr. Kern's, the Galbrath land, the writer saw
in numbers as thick as locusts Of Egypt, Col.
D. S. Bell said he had 'em too, and intended
to SOW several sacks of salt on 'em. Pity it
couldn't have been done before this rain.
He mentioned this interesting fact. Forty
years ago, perhaps, his neighbor, Geo. Coy
ner (Gent) with load of water, in barrels,
fired the leaves along a fence, putting out
the fire, as the rails kindled, with view of
confning the grasshoppers to one side of
his farm, where they were very plenty, and
to protect the land on which they had not
encroached. They nerer crossed the burned
strip. Col. B. was then on the Reuben
Holt land VIATOR.
PERcHERoNs AND PERCHERoN-NoR-
MANs.-There are Percherons, so-called,
WHICH ITo lOb GTCuoIUuS. NOTluduS dI0
not Percherons, any more than Pennsylva-
mans are Virginians; but they are both
French, as these are Americans. Perche
is an ancient province of France, and lies
south of Normandy, adjoining its south
western border. Perche has long been
known for its splendid breed of horses,
which have been reared with much care
and jealousy, and which date back in
breeding to Arabian blood. Normandy
has also its breed of horses, equally an
cient, but coarser and heavier; they were
used a thousand years ago in war, when an
enormous weight of steel armor was borne,
both by the rider and the horse. To bear
the burden, and to ride down an opponent
By mere force of shock, very heavy horses
were required, rather than more active
ones, and the Norman horses thus became,
as they are still, the heaviest race known.
The Percherons, on the other hand, were
used for carriages, and are now the STAGE
omnibus and diligence horses of the coun-
try, able to trot with ease ten miles in an
hour with heavy vehicle behind them.
These are consequently more finely built,
have harder and finer bone, and while quite
heavy, look lighter than they really are, be-
cause of their fine proportions, due to their
Arabian ancestry.-American AgUicuturist
for June.