The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1893-12-14
OUR RURAL TOPICS
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers

The inhabitants Of the poultry yard often
suffer from lack of space in which to exercise
during severe weather. 1t is true they may
have the freedom Of the entire yard. but when
the wind is biting cold and the ground covered
with snow, they will not leave the house dur
ing the entire day. and sometimes not for weeks
VI the severe weather lasts so long. If driven
from the house into the snow they will not ex-
ercise, but will stand still until their feet and
legs are frozen. In northern localities where
the ground is covered with snow for several
months, the health Of fowls is often injured
through insetioB. This danger of loss can Do
obvisted by supplying the poultry with a shed.
Ii IS best to have it adjoining or near the
poultry house. Make il long and low with the
south side open. Close the other sides tight
enough to make it comfortable and good
wind-break and cover with boards or straw.
Build the shed early and thiekiy cover the
ground under it with dust from the road or il
too late to obtain this, use wood ashes instead.
This will furnish the chickens nice warm
place in which to bask and SallOw in the sun
when there is snow outside. Occasionally feed
them grain in this shed, which will Induce
scratching and searching for the food. The
exercise tins gained. and in the exertion necss-
sary to throwing the dust through their feathers.
qnickens the blood and improves the appetite.
Its benefits are quickly apparent in the glossy
plumage and the heightened color Of the combs
of the birds. 1t also prevents their falling into
the habit Of feather-pulling. SO common among
fowls when closely confined. By having the
shed closely connected with the roosting- house,
so that fowls can freely pass from one to the
other, the chickens can be given exercise sufi-
eient to keep them healthy with the addition
of little extra work or bother-Oranqs Judd
Farmer.
The buying Of livestock at the beginning Of
Winter and feeding it is legitimate part Of
the business of the stock farmer. It is possible
for good buyer-one who is good Judge of
an animal. and who knows how 10 balance
rations-to make Winter feeding nearly always
profitable, aside from the manure heap. which
too often is not considered as a factor. The
price of the stock which you buy is always
lower than the price of that which is in good
order for the butcher. This additional priee
you procure by feeding it up and this added
to the increased weight will give fair profs
for the grain and hay. Where sheep are fed in
this way the growth of the wool while they are
fattening is an important item, and it is far
better to make : home market thus for the
forage and coarse grain than to sell them
away from the farm, and so hasten the
depletion Of the land. Usually hay costs to
market it nearly or quite all that il will bring
above its manurial value, while fattening stock
will work it into valuable manure at home:
often hay cannot be sold at all. and can only
be used-without stock-to rot down into coarse
manure, which has very little fsrtilizing value.
III at five or six weeks old the young pigs are
eating and growing well, increase their feed,
giving them ali that they wall take, and de-
crease the feed Of the SOW gradually for nearly
two weeks At the end of this time two strong.
est youngsters of the litter are taken away.
Again, after two days, another pair, and so on
till all are weaned. This tends to even-up the
different pigs of the litter if there is any varia-
ton in size aud uniformity in lot, and adds
to their selling vaiue. By following this course
the sow is given the very best chance and any
danger of spelling her milking qualities is pre-
vented, which is very important If she is 70
continue to be brood SOW.
In order to decide whether wool lost in
weight when stored by different methods was
an experiment tried at the Iowa Station. I'M
recent bulletin the result is made known. All
the wool was exposed to free circulation of air,
but in some of the experiments it was sacked
or boxed to exclude dust. In the boxed wool,
Apri-sheared feeces weighing Al pounds at
shearing weighed 49 pounds on the 1st of Aug
ust, but at the eni of the year had fallen back
to its original weight. The heeces on the
shelf gained three-quarters of a pound in .
total of 484. or increased to 49 pounds. But
June-sheared fleece did not gain, but lost about
six per cent. of its original weight. It has been
common remark of farmers that wool was the
one article they grew which did not lose, but
generally gained in weight by keeping. Those
experiments show that there is something in
the farmers idea. The experimenter believes
that heavy, oily wool loses most.
Agricultural writers claim that not enough
attention is paid to currants and goosebsrries,
and that the markets are never fully supplied.
They claim that if the products were sold at
FIVE cents quart-box that there is plenty Of
money in raising them. The only drawback
is that it takes three years before the yield 10
pdylDS ROOuB Oub tuSy dISuo tuab II THESE Su18iA
fruits be set out that the ground between the
rows can be used for growing root crops.
An important point in storing apples or vege-
tables is to keep a uniform temperature.
Apples stored for exhibition at the Fair at Chi
cago kept well when placed in cold storage at
80 degrees while those stored where the tenn
perature fuctuated from 80 degrees to 40 de-
grees were in very bad condition when taken
out Each apple was wrapped in paper. The
first kept several weeks after unPacking, while
the latter decsyed in a few days.
Fruit trees aud grspevines may be pruned
any time after the leaves fall. When the Fall
weather is suitable it is best to prune rather
than postpone until Spring.
F. B. Mumfori, assistant in the Michigan
Station, says that after several
years experience in feeding siage literally to
all classes of sheep. he is fully con WINGED that
it is an economical and safe feed for these ami
mails.
The New Resistance Metal.
The new resistance metal in wire sheet or
casting is stated TO be very important contri-
hutton to this class of material, says the New
York SIM The wire reese miles ordinary CON