The San Francisco call., 1895-10-09
INTERESTING TO FARMERS
Good Roads an Important Sub
ject Before the State
Grange.
THE HIGHEST ASSAY OF BEETs
DR.. Galen Wilson Writes of the Ex-
haustion of Cultivated
Soils.

At last week S session Of the State Grange
the good roads question received some of
the consideration that it demands, and the
following commendable resolution was
adopted: "As by far the greatest trans
portation expense incurred by farmers is
that for hauling products over common
roads, we urge all oranges to constantly
watch over the public expenditure upon
country roads, with the determination to
get full value for the money spent, and we
declare it 20 be the policy of the grange to
favor liberal expenditure upon the roads
whenever the character and ability of the
officials in charge seem TO promise wise
and economical use of the funds at their
command"
The claim having been advanced that
probably the highest assay of sugar ever
obtained from average samples of beets
was that shown recently at Chino, when Il
sample from a load hauled by W. II.
Kirby was analyzed and gave 25.6 sugar
and SS.7 purity, brings the following dec
laration from the Watsonville Pajaronian:
I'VE do not desire to take from the repu-
tation of Chino, but the percentage quoted
will have to be excelied to beat the record
made by the Moro Colo ranch, near Cas-
troville, in 1885, One lot of beets from
that ranch, during the factory run, showed
26.2 per cent of saccharine, and this year
one field OF 14O acres in the Salinas Valley
is averaging q per cent"
DR.. Galen Wilson. writing on the SUBJ
Ject of the exhaustion of cultivated soils,
declares that there are farms in New Mex
leo that have been irrigated for $50 years,
and they are to-day as good as new. The
Pima Indians of Arizona have cultivated
land the same way for 500 years, and moth
ing has been applied but the irrigating
water, and crops are as good as ever.
There is no manure in water. Now, where
did the fertility come from if not from the
land itself and the atmosphere?
1t is estimated by an Eastern exchange
that the increase of population in New
Jersey directly attributable to the i'm
provement of the roads consisted of not
less than 10000 people during the past
year. These accessions bring the markets
home to the farmers, increase the value of
land and home products, as we'll as add to
the general prosperity Of the State.
The conversion of heavy mass of alfalfa
into choice quality of hay is an operation,
says b. F. Stuart in Arid America, calling
for no small degree of skill and experience
But the process is one to be learned by
intelligent observation and practice rather
than from written description. The first
and second crops of each season need to be
cured with especial care or they will GER
tainly mold in the stack. Beginners need
to beware of this point. The knack to be
acquired is that of curing the hay sufficient
to be assured of its keeping sweet in the
stack without becoming so dry as to shed
its leaves in the handling. This cannot
possibly be accomplished by curing fully
in the swath. A method much prac-
tieed is to rake the alfalfa while quite
green into winrows, where it is allowed
to stand until ready for the stack.
This process makes very nice hay,
but where a large acreage is to be
taken care of it is too slow and expensive
Alfalfa may be cured with entire success
in the winrow, but it is important, when
cured in this way, that there be ample
facilities for putting it into the stack very
rapidly when ready, otherwise it will be-
come too dry and much of it will be lost in
the handling, especially if it has to be car
ried from the fields on wagons. Alfalfa
should be cut on the first appearance of
bloom, as experiments have proved its
nutritive ratio to be considerably higher at
that age than later On.
The State Veterinary Department of
Iowa carried on an extensive series of ex-
periments to determine whether tuber-
culosis in cattle is hereditary. They con-
clude it is not. Calves from COWS affected
with tuberculosis when fed milk from
healthy cows become healthy, and calves
from healthy COWS fed on milk from dis
eased ones contract the disease. 1t is de-
termined that the disease is transmitted
only by the milk and that it can also be
transmitted to persons as we'll as cattle if
nd rNa,1 IL
ments have been made at the State agri-
cultural college and have extended over a
long time and been thorough.
On the Hardesty premises in this city
may be seen three lime trees which at a.
low estimate are bearing an aggregate bur-
den of 1000 lines, says the Modesto Herald
The trees are thirteen years old, and bore
fruit for the first time three years ago.
Last year the crop was disposed of to local
consumers at 20 cents Dozen and the
present crop will undoubtedly hrin. as
good price. The fruit is full size and in
every respect equal to the imported article.
We don't know whether lime trees com
mence bearing earlier than these have or
not, but we do know that there would be
big money in an orchard of lines, once the
trees are in bearing. A very small per-
centage indeed of the lines consumed in
the United states are raised in this coun-
try, and the same is true of lemons South
ern Californians who have lemon groves
are making small fortunes this year, it NAV
be remarked incidentally, netting 81 per
box. This is an unusually high price, but
nevertheless the growers make money
| right along.
1t is very natural that Great Britain, with
colonial interests to protect should pro-
test against the beet-sugar invasion, SAYS
the Philadelphia Sugar Beet. 1t continues
to be declared that it has not the sweeten-
ing power of cane-sugar, yet theory and
science are not sufficiently far advanced to
prove, if there is difference, in what it
consists. The refining process for the two
sugars is not the same but let British re-
finer submit refined (not raw beet-sugar
to his own method of refining and then
compare the two sugars, we do not hesi-
tate to assert that there is no living expert
who could distinguish them. Make test
with lemonade or any sour drink, submit
this to twenty persons and they can give
practical test as to the superior sweeten-
ing powers of two products, one from
the tropical cane and the other from the
northern beet.