The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1889-01-31
OUR RURAL TOPICS,
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers
BEST FEED FOR DAIRY COWS.

BEST FEED FOR DAIRY COWS.
Farmers have much greater sphere of int1u-
ence on the flavor of milk produced than many
suppose or they are willing to admit. The rea-
son why certain number of consumers in all
large cities are willing to pay what, to farmer
or an average consumer, may seem extraordi-
nary prices is because they get butter of high
favor which is always uniform. The makers
of these buffers nearly all use clover and
meadow hay and cornmeal in varying proper
tions, with other coarse fodder and meals. The
makers who produce the finest favors prefer
clover and meadow hay, cut on the green side
just before maturity, and carefully cured, fed
with cornmeal, ensilage and roots. Forage
plants harvested just before maturity contain
their maximum of nutritive matter, and there
fore their highest favors. When the coloring
matter of plants is allowed to bleach out, as in
hay or cornstalks, the flavor, or the best of it,
goes with it. This fact is one of the best rea-
sons for the practice of feeding ensilage, for
by no other method of treating fodder-corn can
the color be so well preserved. The Sweeds and
Danes use small quantities of rape cake COM
bined with their grains and folders to produce
the uniform havors which their buffers possess.
The Englishman uses wider range of mix
lures including fine clover and meadow hay,
small quantities of carrots, or mangels, mid
dlings, shorts, bran, pea and oatmeal corn and
cotton and linseed meals in various proportions.
In the United States the farmer has every
thing at his command for feed which he. can
desire, with corn enslage of the best quality.
Successful feeders compound their rations from
many sources rather than few, as much for the
| purpose of maintaining health and vigOr OF
digestion as for the food of varied favoTs. At
present prices there are no cheaper bases for
dairy rations than gluten and cotton-seed
meals, mixed with enough bran and shorts, or
whatever else is the cheapest on the market
With hay at present prices, and plenty of corn
stalks, most men will be able TO construct cheap
rations from the most abundant materials. Due
care must be exercised at all times to avoid ex-
| clusiveness in compromising Tations.
1t is assumed that every farmer who feeds fol-
| butter will use a cow having tendency In that
/ direction, and that he will apply the test OF
market quality as well as the daily aggregate
| of butter fat in ascertaining what animals in
| his herd come nearest to this description
| Quality and success do not depend on luck OF
chance. There is reason why" in all things
The reason is ineligible to all who desire to
learn.-EIchdRge.
SORGHUM BLIGHT
1t has been discovered that sorghum is af-
fected by blight, and some studies in that
direction have been made at the Kansas Agri-
cultural Station. The diseased plants inyari-
ably present blotches of red discoloration on
the leaves or leaf sheaths, which az more nu-
merOus and brighter upon the inne surface oil
| the sheaths, The blotches are regular in
| shape, growing darker, and finally almost black
When arriving at this point the vitality of the
affected parts is completely exhausted The
disease also develops and extends to the roots,
to such an extent that the plant can be easily
pulled cut of the soil. The disease seems to be
the same as that described by Prof BurreIl in
the Proceedings of the meeting OF the Society
for the Promotion of Agricultural Science" at
Its eighth annual session, when he attributed
the disease to micro organism, to which he
gave the name bacillus SOrgki 1t has been dem
| omstrated by experiment that the bacillus can
exist IN the soil and survive during the Winter,
and that il can be communicated to healthy
plants 1t may even be carried in the air. AS
! precaution all diseased plants should be
burned, aud rotation of crops practieed, so as
to avoid bringing the crop in contact with the
disease that may be contained in the SOIL
Geriaa1stOwa Telegraph
PUBLIC HIGHWAYS.
Commissioner Coleman declares in his annual
report for 1888 that the common roads of the
United States have been neglected and are in.
ferior TO those of any other civilized country in
| the world, which is attributed to ignorance oil
| the true principles of road making and espe.
| cially TO the varied and imperfect systems oil
road repairing in force in the several States
| 1t is well said that By the improvement of com
mon roads every branch Of our agricultural
| commercial. and manufacturing industries
| would be materially benefited. The price oil
| all products might be diminished. The amount
| of motive power represented in animals would
| be reduced; the wear and tear of wheels aud
animals would be diminished, and there would
! be a saving of millions of dollars throughout
| the country. The Commissioner recommends
to Congress the ACCESSIBILITY of providing for an
investigation of this important subject, the
| collection OF all Important statistics bearing
| upon it, by the use of which some feasible sys
/ tenn could be prepared under the present forms
and policies OF General and State Governments
| and taxation that would secure more uniform
and improved condition of public highways.
WHAT THE cow EATS.
The old adage says there is no more disputine
about tastes. This is more true of the brute
! creation than OF man, whose appetite has beer
| depraved by unwholesome viands and question
able modes of living. The instinct of a COW hal
| not been thus perverted, and il may reasonably
| be assumed that she knows what is best for her
We have heretofore commended the practice O.
| slightly warming both food and drink given Il
| cows IN cold weather but as some scientific
authorities question the propriety of this ad
vice, we are entirely willing to leave the de
cision to the cow herself Our experience ha
been that she will eat more heartily and greedil,
in cold weather of food slightly warmed. n
compared with that given at the cold tempera
of the outside atmosphere. Now the dues
tion is does not the COW presumably know
better what good for her than do the scientists
most of whom eat great deal of stuff that the,
would be far better without? Mans reason
can find full employmentin controlling his owl
actions, without stepping aside to regulate tin
undepraved instincts of animals subject to hi
care As regards these, his proper position i
as learner, studying instincts that are pre-
surnably betterfor their purpose than his reason
can Decentralization.
NOTES.
Among farmers in New York State Their
IS said to be at present great deal of complain
about potatoes rotting, and prices are reported
as being low, because buyers fear that losse
will occur in their cellars.
- If the fruit-trees are split by frost goot
plan is to heat grafting-wax. spread it over
piece of muslin, and place over the wound. ty
ing in place with strips of the same materia
wrapped around the trees. The strip coyere,
with the wax should be sufficiently large en-
tirely to cover the wound
1t is estimated, says the american Cultivate,
that the area of unrecaimed swamp and marsl
land in the United States that can be draine,
nVldh fsfrllf Afxyn4,