The record-union., 1897-03-19
HOP CIuTuRF

contend with the two greatest limits IN
price is hops. They go high sometimes
but when they fall they stay low, to the
destruction of growers. The price OF
hops is regulated now by the supply
and demand When they went to 81 a
pound few years ago, the brewers
called in the chemists to find a sub
stitute for them, and the consequence
is that much beer is drunk in the man
ufacture of which not a single hop is
used.
Two pieces of land may look alike,
but will grow entirely different hops,
one having more iron in it. Rich land
does not grow good hops, and men from
old hop growing countries had told him
that our hop lands are too new, and
that when they grew older they would
not grow SO large a crop, but would
grow better hops He thought the next
test between the grower and dealer
will be chemical analysis of the
hops.
The best and cleanest pickers are the
Indians; the next the Japs. The pest
and fastest pickers are the whites, ana
the fastest and poorest the Chinese.
The industry increased in this country
faster than the market, and instead OIL
buyers coming to the hop men, they
had to look for consignees. Shipping
hops to England on consignment has
been disastrous, and it is better to sell
at home, even below the market price,
and know what you are getting.
An interesting account Of the roots
and manner of growing was given. The
hop plant goes around with the sun, he
said, while other vines twist in the con-
trary direction. The roots are pistillate
and staminate, the office of the latter
being to fertilize the blossoms of the
other variety. If there are not enough
male vines in the yard the crop Will
not be heavy. They are much darker
than the female roots and can easily
be distinguished by an expert. While
hops can be grown to-day cheaper than
ever, they cannot be grown pro1tably
at a less price than y cents pound.
This is evident from the large number
of growers, formerly making money,
that have gone to the wall. When hops
are bringing good prices money IS
plenty and people are prosperous.
DAIRYING.
William Johnston had the subject of
"Dairying."
He said the products of the diaries
of the United States amount to more
dollars than any other branch of bust
ness. There are tons of what is called
butter sold that never come from milk,
and it is so with cream cheese" The
first thing in dairying is to get COW.
1t takes less labor to make good but
ter than poor butter from one COW. Let
the owner of a good COW take the
milk to the kitchen, take two pans,
one a little larger than the other, put
pane of glass and a little water in the
larger pan, set the pan of milk in it
and heat it to the scalding point, no
matter what the temperature Set it
away and in twelve hours you can
skim off a tough cream. Put it in
bowl and beat it UP with a spoon and
in few few minutes you will have
first-class article of butter. That is
all there is to it. The milk is just as
good afterwards for culinary purposes
as before, although some persons do
not like it as well as if not scalded.
The old style of skimming and putting
the cream in a pan for several days
will not make good butter
To make butter for profit you must
have good COWS. One good COW is
worth three poor ones. Have a COW
good by heredity and good by environ
ment and you can make money by
making butter still he would not ad
wise too many to put their money into
butter making.
It is of no use to think of sending
butter to the East, for the methods
there have changed and they have not
only winter dairies, but are looking for
foreign markets. They even send
their butter to California to interfere
with our prices in the fall. The new
Secretary of Agriculture well remarks
that if we want to find good foreign
markets we must go and find out what
kind of butter they want there and
make it accordingly, sailed or unsalt-
ed, much or little worked, as the for
eigners want it,
He weighed his butter and weighed
his salt, and everything was done by
rule with him Every dairyman who
puts up rolls that are less than weight
is a party to a swindle without get
ting any benefit of it, as he sells his
butter by weight and the grocer sells
it by the roll. He had always said he
| would never be party to a swindle,
and had no difficulty in selling his but
ter and it was never weighed. He
used Jersey stock, the best he could
get. 1t costs no more to keep a good
COW than a poor one,
SUGAR BETS
In the afternoon K. G. Raaf read an
interesting paper on Sugar Beets," j.
o. Coleman not being able to be pres
ent.
There were two questions to be con-
sidered, the first being what can be
done in this vicinity. GERMANY and
| France are the two great beet raising
! countries of Europe. The experiments
conducted by the United States Gov
eminent show that California can do
better than any other State and can
make herself as famous in beets as she
has in gold. grain and fruits The
progress made in this State in the su-
gar beet industry is due to capital,
which, while ordinarily timid, has not
hesitated to enter the field of expert
ment
The Sacramento Chamber of Com
merce has undertaken the preliminary
work of demonstrating that the sugar
beet can be successfully cultivated
here. The business can be made a great
success if the farmers will only take
hold of it.
Mr.. Raaf said he had gone through
the county and found the farmers in
different to their opportunity, and he
4 found many who had raised some
/ other kinds of beets and thought they
I knew all about raising sugar beets,
wnen they really knew nothing about