The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1895-09-05
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers


| from any Otner one thing. IHeTe Is scarcely
time from May to November when the gar
| den does not need some form of irrigation.
There IS unquestionably nothing better for
| this purpose than some form Of liquid fertil-
| ger. House Stops is not an ideal fertilizer
| by any means, yet il is very much better
than water alone, and it has the advantage OF
costing nothing except the labor Of putting
| it on the garden. As a portion OF this labor
would have to be done anyway, no matter
how the Stops were disposed of, the cost ia
not worthy of consideration.
The average house drain and cesspool is
an abominatiOn which should not be toll
Grated IN civilized community, and yet it
Is surprising how common are sueh methods
OF disposI1g of house slOps. In many cases
these drains 20 direct from the kitchen into
covered cesspools without any trapping what
ever No wonder people who live in snbur-
ban towns are especially subject to malaria,
typhoid fever. and kindred diseases. The
old saying, Out. of sight out of mind, - is
altogether too true when applied to house
drainage. The damp air and musty, dis
agreeable smells about many homes are due
largely to the throwing of Stops about the
kitchen doors, or imperfectly reconstructed
drains and cessp0Ols. When riding through
the country on quiet, warm evening, a
person with delicate nose can readily pick
out the homes where doctors visits are likely
to be frequent.
The remedy is easy. It consists simply
in putting the house Stops on TO the surface
of your garden A well known writer tersely
stated it when he said: Throw no dish
water or Stops of any kind anywhere in the
dooryard. If you have drain tear it out
and fill it up. Then get a portable cask to-
stand by the kitchen door and receive the
waste, which can be wheeled away and
emptied, always in different place"
have found that the best way to do it is
to have pipe running directly from your
sink, at about the hight of a barrel, and keep
barrel under il at all times. Such barrel
can be purchased at almost any implement
or hardware store, and admirably answers
the purpose, the cart enabling person of
ordinary strength to wheel the barrel to any
part of the garden. When the water, or
more properly speaking liquid fertilizer is
not needed for growing plants it should be
put under trees or On grape vines small
fruit, and it is usually advisable not to dump
il twice in succession in the same place I'M
less the soil is, in the meantime broken up
with hoe or spade-American Gardener.
About the Dairy.
All churns and other vessels for milk or
cream must be kept scrupulously clean.
They should first be rinSed in cold or tepid
water, to which little washing soda or
borax has been added to improve the cleans
ing properties. They should then be
washed with warm water, thoroughly
steamed or scalded with water boiling hot,
after which they should be inverted and ex-
posed TO sun and air until next needed.
Soap should not be used about dairy utensils.
If trace Of it is left, the taste of the milk
would be Injured. A brush is much to be
preferred to a cloth in the eIeaniDsof dairy
utensils
Wooden dairy utensils are not to be
recommended, as they are very difficult to
keep sweet. Tin is the best material, be-
cause it Is so readily eleansed. Block tin
should be used az much as possible, so az to
avoid seams, which hold the dirt and parti-
cles of matter. All milk vessels should
have as few ereviees as possible, and should
be of such shape as to be readily cleansed in
every part. To this end the cans should De
wide-mouthed. Where milk is to stand q
long time glass or stoneware is to be pre-
ferred to tin. Any wooden utensils or yes
sells should be sealded, cooled and dipped
in cold water before using. Small wooden
utensils should be kept constantly in cold
water.
The same care which is bestowed on the
utensils is necessary in the dairy itself
The house must be kept serupulously clean,
inside and out, and the air perfectly pure.
Any milk spilled must be Immediately
wiped up and not allowed to sour and faint
the room. Where there are closed drains
flowing from the dairy they should be
flushed out daily with hot water and &C.
casionally with a strong solution of coneen-
trated lye Soap and whitewash will aid
greatly in maintaining the air perfectly
pure and st for the aeration OF milk.
Indiana Dairy Statistics.
Mr.. S. J. Thompson, Chief of the Indiana
Bureau of Statistics, under a law enacted by
the State Legislature land by actual figures
not estimates-the result of questions
asked every farmer in the State by sworn
officers of the State) puts out the following
information, which from the character of the
work must be as reliable as such things can
be made:
CATTLE, MILK, BUTTER, AND CHEESE IN
THE STATE.
Jerseys. $3.50
Hol5telnS-- 9,0Uo
ShorthorDs 5o,25o
All other breeds. s13, 495
Milk cows 46S,O43
Whole number died last year 27011
Gallons of milk taken past year 145. 500, 500
Pounds butter made past year. 35,200916
Pounds cheese made past year. 994,645
Hand-Pick and Sort.
No steps taken by the Oreharliist will help
more to sell his crop Of Winter apples than
careful hand picking and sorting, and then
as carefully packing and shipping. One
barrel Of this kind of fruit will sell two
more; whereas, one barrel of mixed fruit,
sorts, sizes and quality, will not only pre-
vent the buyer from purchasing again, but
both warrant and justify him in reporting
the same to his neighbors, and thus prevent
them from being "sold as he was.
An abundance this year will be q godscnd
to the commercial orchardists all over tho
country by making it cheap and popular,
and therefore easily obtained by every body,
thus not only creating a market, but an ap-
petite that will be met with many years
thereafter.
Only let the fruit be both select and choice,
and be sold on its real rather than its pre-
tended merits, and then save the inferior fruit
for stock feed or other purposes. Honess
picking and packing should be rs dear to
the farmer and orehardist az honest dealing
anywhere else, and will pay as well if not
better.
Feeding Pigs Regularly.