davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Returns Made By Leghorn Flock.

| thought perhaps my report tor the
year 1905 might be of interest to some.
January l, 1905, L had 73 hens, about
half pullets and half yearling hens. | lost
3 during the year. kept no account Of
the eggs set nor of the eggs used in the
family of five persons. Just those sold are
accounted for. | sold S70a dozen at an
average price of 16 cents per dozen. They
were disposed of at the grocery. The
amount received each month was as follows:
January, s2.75; February, So. SO; March,
s11.73; April, $3.50; May, 1889;
June, $3.50; July, s12.97; August,
s16.31; September, s16.o9; October
S15.14; November, 1922; December,
$3.50; total for the year, Sl39.2S.
My hens are brown Leghorns, both SIN
Gle comb and rose comb varieties being
represented in the flock. They were fed
chiefly on corn and oats, small amount OF
bran and middlings being fed at one time.
The breakfast was of whole corn, the
supper of whole oats, and during winter a
dinner of ground corn and oats, wet with
water or skim milk, was given. They had
free access to water and ground oyster
shells all of the time, and they had the
run of the farm. The henhouses are built
of logs and are not very warm. The roost-
ing room is about 10 feet square and
rooted with boards. The feeding room is
about 12x26 feet inside and rooted with
wild grass, straw and cornstalks.
cannot tell just what it cost to keep
the hens, as most of the feed was raised on
the farm and they were fed from the
same bins and cribs as the hogs and horses,
but think that what eggs were set and
used in the family, together with the
s39.2S, would pay for what the hens ate,
leaving clear profit Of 500 on the eggs
alone.
| prefer Leghorns to the larger breeds
because of the fact that the Leghorn does
not get too fat to lay, so there is less dan
ger of overfeeding. [ think that many
people fail to make money from their hens
on account of not feeding enough. They
feed lust maintenance ration, not an egg egg
producing ration. They do not seem to
realize that very few eggs will pay the
difference between the two rations. L
think, too, that it paysjust as we'll to keep
them supplied with oyster shells in summer
as in winter, for the more eggs they are
laying the more shells they consume.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Sang to Lion for Her Life.

Mrs. John Underwood, of New York,
recently passed safely through an expert
ence which is unique, to say the least.
She had been summering with MIR. I'm
derwood in the hill country near Harney
peak, South Dakota, and one evening just
before sundown started from camp to meet
her husband at one Of the Black Hills
mines, which he owns Not being famil-
lar with the country, she soon lost her
way, and darkness found her on the banks
of Iron creek, part of the region entirely
unfamiliar to her.
Just as she was about to retrace her
steps to strike some familiar landmark she
was confronted with full grown mountain
lion, which had come to the stream to
stalk antelope or other prey. Mrs. I'm
derwood, absolutely terror stricken, began
to run, but with one leap the animal over
took her, hurting her to the ground. Then,
holding her firmly pinned to the ground
with one paw on her breast, the beast be,
gan to roar iercely.
All the lung power that Mrs. Under
wood possessed she now used in one long
piercing shrek. As it happened there is
remarkable echo at the precise spot
where the encounter occurred, and as the
shrek uttered by the frenzied woman re-
verberated through the valley, ricocheting
from rock to rock, the lion cooked his head
to one side and listened intently. The
echo having died, he again directed his
attention to the woman held pinned under
him and, fixing his incandescent eyes upon
her, was about to dispatch her without
further formality when again the woman
screamed.
Once more the echo took up the cry and
sent it rolling up hill and down dale, to
the apparent wonder and confusion OF the
beast. Finding that she was safe while
the lion occupied himself with following
the sound of her voice into the distance
and back, the trembling woman proceeded
to alternately scream and sing, the lion
snorting angrily whenever she paused and
blinking his eyes and purring softly while
the song and echo lasted.
For six hours Mrs. Underwood lay on
the river bank, with the lion standing
watch, singing and hallooing and calling
for the help which seemed as if it would
never come Finally Mr.. Underwood,
who had been searching the hills all night
for his wife, heard her calling and running
in the direction from which her cries came,
beheld her lying under the lion paws and
heard her singing the "Old Oaken Buck
ct
Taking in the situation at glance, the
missing man poised his rifle barrel on a
convenient rock and, taking careful aim,
ended the leonine concert with we'll di-
rected bullet, which entered the eye of the
beast.
Mrs. Underwood promptly tainted at
the report Of the rifle, but, nothing the
worse for her experience, returned to camp
with her husband as soon as she had re-
yiyed.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
What Constitutes a, Good woodlot.

The important considerations are these {:
l. The woodlot should be we'll stocked.
This constitutes the capital, the increase
in growth is the rate of interest yielded on
the investment.
2. The trees should be of good quality
and good kinds. Diseased trees are simply
cumberers of the ground; only healthy,
vigorous ones of the valuable kinds such as
oaks, chestnuts, poplars, hickories, ETC.,
should be provided for.
3. The growing stock should be of all
ages and we'll distributed As trees reach
maturity and are removed others of sue
ceding ages down to the tiny seeding
should be coming on to renew the forest.
The larger trees should be so distributed
over the area as to shade the ground and at
the same time give each sufficient room in
which to develop in the best form.
T. The soil should be porous, full OF
organic matter, and covered with good
humus and leaf litter to act as kind of
mulch. Where the trees are well distrib-
uted and fires are not allowed to burn the
humus and litter, or cattle allowed to tramp
the ground, this desirable condition of soil
is a natural consequence.
5. The forest should be free of dead
trees and branches lying on the ground as
these harbor insects and encourage disease
as we'll as furnish fuel for forest fires.
While the ideal condition is seldom
realized, the farmer should constantly have
before him such standard in order to
mould the woodlot into the best form that
is possible
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Getting Eggs In Winter.

Not every man can coax his hens into
laying eggs at 40 cents dozen during De, e
cember, yet the right kind of feed will
frequently start the hens to work, and
once started to laying now they will likely
keep busy during the rest of the winter.
The thing to do is to study the habits Of
the hen and surround her with the condi-
tions of springtime, which is the most pro-
life egg-laying season. Notice the hens
on the farm during the first warm days OF
spring. They usually have the run OF the
yards and fields. They gather up all sorts
OF grain, green stuff and gravel. In fact,
it takes them only few days to stock up
on egg material if they are allowed to run
where they will. If you want winter
eggs, give the fowls plenty of fresh air
and exercise. Feed grain, grit, meat
scraps and green food. Grain does not
mean all corn; wheat is much better.
Some feed mixed ration Of corn, wheat,
barley and bran, with clover or other green
stuff. Try for some Of the 4O-cent eggs.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Winter Flowing.

As to whether it is best to do the plow-
ing during the winter or to leave it off un
til spring is question which is largely de-
pendent on circumstances and conditions.
IF there is to be sod turned for corn or
some other spring crop which is infested
with grubs and other worms that are in
furious to crops it is undoubtedly better to
plow in winter and let the freeze kill many
of them. Then the freezing and thawing
of the soil will help to pulverize the sod
and make it in better condition for growing
crop.
Another point in favor of winter plow-
ing is that more moisture will be saved for
the growing of the crop if the sod is broken
than will be done if the work is left off
until spring. On plowed land the water
from melting SHOWS and earl y spring rains
will sink down into the soil taking with it
some ammonia absorbed from the air and
will dissolve some mineral fertilizer from
the earth which will come hack by means
of capillary action to help feed the plants
through the summer drouth. If the sod
is not plowed much of this water will run
off from the surface and will be lost to the
CROP Then another point which is worthy
of consideration is that the land is plowed
at season when work is not so rushing
and the work is liable to be better done
than it would be in the spring when so
many things are claiming the farmers at
tention.
Teams can be at work every pleasant
day during the winter if there is job OF
plowing in progress. If the land to be
plowed is stubble or very porous soil
perhaps it is best to leave off the plowing
until spring, but it is good plan to have
a good lot of sod to turn every year on the
farm and also to have plenty of sod land
still left to grow hay and pasture. The
rotting of the sod furnishes vegetable hu-
mus and increases the water holding Ca
pacity of the soil. 1t also helps to make
the inert fertility of the soil available.
This may be done by adopting good ro-
tation suited to the farm and its environ
ments in which grass and clover will be
grown frequently on the land.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
The Value of Woodlands.

Occupying as it does, the rocky, sterile
soil, or the equally untillable swampy
lands, the woodlot is the most neglected
part of the farm. Were it not for the ex-
cellent natural conditions favoring forest
growth in Maryland, our woodlands would
long ago have refused to yield their valua-
BILE products in retaliation for our neglect
and wanton waste of their resources. But
new order of things is coming into being.
The farmer is awakening to the fact that
wood is just as much a crop as hay or corn,
that intelligent care will bring better
yield and will increase the value Of the
property. A good woodlot is like good
buildings, good fences-an Improvement
with market value when it becomes de-
sirable to sell.
The most important function of the
woodlot is to supply the farmer with the
required fuel and construction material
needed on the farm. There is constant
demand for fence posts, rails, stakes and
poles, as we'll as an occasional need OF saw
logs for making the necessary framing ma
terial and boards for farm buildings. In
addition to this the farmer often finds that
he can sell timber for cross ties, poles, pill
ing, etc., at good price.
The single item of fire wood is an i'm
portant one to the farmer. In one of the
counties of the State where the average
rural conditions exist it was found, by
careful estimate, that the average annual
consumption of frewood per family was
about IA cords. IF the farmer had to buy
this, or haul coal from distant railroad
station, it would be quite tax. He can
cut his wood at most convenient times
when other farm work is not pressing so
that the fuel he uses is practically that
much gained. The frewood taken from
the woods, if it is the dead material, as is
generally the case, is really an improve
ment to the woodlot and cannot be consid
cred as reducing the growing stock.
The woodlot serves other purposes which,
though not SO apparent as those that have
been given, are none the less OF import
ance. These are in the nature Of protec-
ton. A woodlot surrounding the home
and farm buildings, or located on the wind
ward side of them, affords protection to
both man and beast. This means not only
added comfort, but saving of food and
fuel.
Woodlands at the source of streams or
near springs tend to preserve in them an
even flow throughout the year. 1t is
we'll known fact that woodland springs live
through periods of drouth when those not
protected by trees dry up.
Windbreaks of trees also have very
beneficial influence in checking evaporation
of moisture over adjacent cultivated fields
during windy, dry weather.
The woodlot is just as essential to well
ordered farm as buildings or anything else
that contributes to the comfort, convent
ence and beauty of the surroundings.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
MARYLAND Affairs.

The ive-year- son of Perry Cessna,
of Mount Savage, was drowned Saturday
in jennings Run.
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad has
reduced its working force in the construc-
ton department over 500 men west OF
Cumberland.
John F. Sippel, cashier of the Third
National Bank, Baltimore, presented his
resignation to the board of directors at
special meeting Friday last.
When Charles William Smith, who is
employed as clerk in Frederick store,
went home late Saturday night he found
his wife dead, sitting in a chair.
Henry Reiman, for many years we'll
known resident of the Pen-Ma resort re-
gion, was found dead on the mountain not
far from Mount Quirauk on Friday night.
1t is claimed by farmers and other resi-
dents in the upper section of Cecil county
that they are almost free from horse thefts
because of the fact that they are organized
for each other protection.
The men employed in reopening the old
Pompey mine at Vale Summit, Allegany
county, cut through into an old opening
where they found the heat from the old
burning mine so intense that they were
compelled to close the hole.
Rumors are afoat that the old Norfolk
and Western Railway bridge across the
Potomac River at Shepherdstown will be
utilized by the Hagerstown Street Railway
Company in the extension of its system
from Maryland into West Virginia.
Helper engine No. 1929, on the II
mile grade of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail
road, main line was caught in heavy
landslide at Brown S cut, just east OF Ev-
erett tunnel last night and almost buried
under the mass of debris that came down
from the mountainside, loosened by the
recent heavy rains.
Clarence Muse, colored, aged q years,
2O24 Etting street, was committed for
court by Justice White, at the Northern
Police Station, Baltimore, last Friday
morning on the charge of assaulting and
shooting at with intent to kill Carroll
Tierney, 1923 North Mount street, con-
ductor on the Electric Park car line.
Three Poles literally broke into this
country Thursday night, when, by use of
cold chisel and hammer, they worked their
way, through Is inches of brick wall at
the Locust Point detention house of the
local Immigration Bureau and escaped.
The immigration officials found but ragged
hole in the wall and lot of terrified would
| be immigrants to remind them Of the three
Poles who had been held for examination.
Miss Agnes Draper, the 17-year-old
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Draper,
of Elkton, died last Friday after great sut-
fering. When quite young she suffered a
severe attack of diphtheria, which deranged
her mind somewhat, and for several years
past she had been at sanatarium in Bal
timore county. Yesterday morning while
out in the yard Of the institution
she passed by the janitor who was
carrying hot coal ashes from the furnace,
and in doing so her apron string caught
fire and in few seconds her clothing was
a mass of flames. Before they could be
extinguished she was horribly burned and
died.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Dehorning Calves.

There is perhaps no season of the year
in which there are SO many young calves
as in the fall, and to those who desire to
raise hornless cattle a word ON this subject
might be helpful.
1t is claimed by some who dehorn cattle
after they reach maturity that it does them
no particular harm, only causing them "A
few moments suffering, but the writer
knows of cases where cows nearly died
from loss of blood or by catching cold after
having been dehorned One neighbor who
had his cattle dehorned says his COWS were
never as good after having been dehorned
of they were before, the shock being more
than their nervous system could endure.
Then, again, there is generally an insight
ly stub left which mars the beauty Of an
otherwise fine cow. In dehorning calves
all of these objections are obviated.
All that is necessary in dehorning calves
is to securely tie them as operated on and
after moistening the horn slightly take a
stick of caustic potash, which can be Sc
cured at any drugstore for 8 cents, and
rub the horn until it becomes highly in
famed, but not long enough to start the
blood. If the work is properly done, one
application will be sufficient.
The best time to dehorn calves is when
they are about week old and before the
horn starts to grow much, though the writ
er has killed the horns on calves that were
month old by making couple of appll-
cations; yet it is much better that the
work be done when the calves are younger.
Care should be taken that the caustic does
not get on the skin around the horns, as it
causes unnecessary pain. 1t should be ap-
piled only to the tip Of the horn and it will
not cause the calf much discomfort.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Common Deficiencies of Woodlots.

In most woods the good trees have been
cut out leaving the crooked, scrubby,
worthless kinds as growing stock. Often
these are not only undersized but diseased.
Such trees are more of hindrance than
help. They would be better on the wood
pile than in the woods as the room they
occupy might be growing better trees. 1t
takes no more space or time to grow we'll
shaped chestnut or white oak than scrag-
gly pin oak or beech, and while one pro-
duces valuable material worth dollars, the
other only 6rewood worth as many dimes.
Where woodlot has been misused for
many generations it will require several
years Of patient, persevering effort to bring
it up to good standard of productiveness.
The inferior kinds of trees must be sup
planted by those Of the valuable kinds,
such as oaks, chestnut, poplar, etc. This
can often be done by encouraging these
species where they exist, both in the mat
ter of natural seeding and in thinning out
other kinds where they interfere with the
best development Of those to be favored.
Where open places occur, the planting OF
few nuts, requiring but few hours
time, will often accomplish great deal in
improving the composition of the woods.
One of the serious mistakes that the
farmer makes is to use the woodlot for cat
tie, hogs and sheep. A continuous use Of
it for such purposes is disastrous. The
hogs eat the nuts that are needed for re-
seeding the forest, the cattle and sheep eat
the young seedlings that happen to come
up thus preventing reproduction. The re-
suit is that the woodlot consists only of
older trees, and as these are cut out open
places are left in the forest. The sun and
wind get in to dry out the soil, the litter is
dried up and blown away leaving the
ground, which is tramped by the cattle, so
hard that seeding is impossible. In this
condition grass comes in and the appear
ance is more like park than woodlot.
The trees are imby and do not make the
best timber, and the woodlot without
young growth coming in is, like the family
without offspring, doomed to extinction.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Sweet Potato HOtbed.

The most convenient size for a sweet
potato hotbed is one that will hold three
barrels of potato seed Take for the back
a board 16 feet long and l foot wide and
for the front, a board the same length, 8
inches wide, the end board 26 inches long,
to come even with the front and back
boards. nailed to solid stake at each cor
ner, also stake in the middle of 16-foot
board Then take spade and dig the
dirt out so as to make the bed 20 inches
deep from top of frame boards; the same
all over the bed Then fill in with fresh
stable manure and tramp down to 10 inches
in thickness. The manure should have
considerable bedding in it and stay heaped up
at least "a hours before it is packed in the
pit, when it should be shaken well and
thoroughly mixed, as some Of the manure
will heat sooner than other parts and will
cause an uneven temperature and conse-
quent uneven sproutlng.
After the manure has been placed and
well tramped so that it slopes to the south,
put in four inches of loose earth evenly all
over the bed. Let this stay until the dirt
becomes warm, then place the potatoes on
so as not to touch each other and then
cover two inches deep with fine loose earth.
If you find in few days that your bed is
too hot make a sharp stick and run it to the
bottom of the bed and leave several holes
through the center and the heat will soon
escape, then fill the holes again. AS for
sprinkling or wetting them, it is not re-
quired, nor should they be rained on until
plants are we'll up; the steam from the ma :
nure furnishes all moisture that is needed.
The bed should be kept covered until the
sprouts are well up, but the top may be
removed to give the plants air and light
when the temperature is not so cold as to
injure the plants.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
Comparison Of Feed for Hogs.

Corn and buckwheat contain about the
same amount of digestible food per 100
pounds. They are both more or less fat
tening in nature. In other words, they
would not be classed as protein foods, and
hence are well adapted for fattening hogs
that have reached fair size. Corn and
buckwheat, however, would not be as sat
isfactory food to feed to young and rap
idly growing hogs as one showing little
more protein, but the defect may be over
come by feeding small amount of mid
dIngs or some blood meal, say table
spoonful of the latter hog day. For
very young animals teaspoonful will be
about the right amount to use. We would
suggest that instead of selling corn you buy
a small amount of blood meal or digester
tankage to feed as suggested for the fat
tening hogs. Corn, buckwheat and corn
fodder will provide only fair ration for
dairy COW. You will find bran whole
some and satisfactory addition to the ration.
You might feed three pounds of corn,
three pounds of ground buckwheat and
four pounds of bran to advantage to your
COW, with all the corn fodder she will eat.
You can make the fodder more palatable
by moistening with water and mixing the
grain over it. Probably you can buy cot
tonseed meal cheaper in proportion to the
nutrients it contains than bran, and in that
case it would be just as well to use two or
three pounds of cottonseed meal in lieu of
the wheat bran. For horses little bran
will also be desirable addition to the ra-
ten, as it helps to keep the coat in good
condition and has favorable effect on di-
gestion. Corn fodder should be moistened
when fed to horses, while the grain should
be fed whole. A pound of cottonseed
meal head day for horses, in addition
to the corn ration, will prove satisfactory.
Horses standing in the stable need only a
comparatively small amount of grain; at
hard work, from ] 0 to Is pounds is neces-
sary. This may consist of 8 to 10 pounds
Of corn, to 4 pounds of bran and l pound
Of cottonseed meal The nutritive ratio
for dairy COW giving 20 pounds of milk
is about ST.; for horses at hard work,
about 1:6; for fattening hogs, about II
and for brood sows, 1866.
The Democratic advocate., 1907-01-18
FRIDAY AFTERNOON, JANUARY 18, 1907
Get In Your Firewood.

"The single item of frewood is an i'm
portant one to the farmer. In one Of
the counties of the State, where
the average rural conditions exist, it was
found, by careful estimate, that the aver
age annual consumption Of frewood per
family was about IA cords. IF the farmer
had to buy this Or haul coal from distant
railroad station, it would be quite tax.
He can cut his wood at most convenient
times when other farm work is not pressing,
so that the fuel he uses is practically that
much gained. The frewood taken from
the woods, if it is the dead material, as is
generally the case, is really an improve
ment to the wood lot and cannot be con-
sidered as reducing the growing stock.