davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27

More calves see the light of day in the spring and draw their first breath when the air is filled with the fra any other season of the year. Whether these calves will become star boarders, producing little milk of no profit for their owners, or be desirable addi- tions to the dairy world, will depend not only upon the care that is given them but upon the feed and manage ment of their mothers Poorly nour ished cows, say dairy specialists of the United States department of agriculture, give birth to weak calves that are hard to raise. Cows which have an abundance of palatable succulent feed and are in good body flesh and healthy, thrifty condition at calving time, are more likely to produce well-developed, strong. thrifty calves which vol respond nor mally to proper feed and care. It is false economy for any dairy-cow owner to withhold feed from dry COW. as this is likely to affect unfavor- ably the future welfare of the calf, as we'll as later milk production by the cow
 Natures method is to have the calf stay with the COW until it support itself. In modern dairy farming, how were, because of the value of the butter fat and whole milk the dairy man separates the calf from the COW soon after birth. The milk produced by the COW for the first few days has properties which put the calfs diges- tive system in good working order. It is, therefore, necessary that the newly born calf have this milk. Most dairy men prefer to keep the calf with it's mother for about AS hours immediately after birth, but if the calf is weak t is best to allow it to remain longer.
 TEACHING THE CALF TO DRINK
 The longer the calf remains with the COW, however, the harder it is to teach it to drink, but it is usually a simple matter to teach a good, robust calf to drink, if taken when not mora than two days old. Before this is at- tempted a calf should be kept from the COW for about 12 hours; it wilt then be very hungry. About 2 quarts of it's mothers milk, fresh and warm, should be put into a, clean pail and held in front of the calf Sometimes it will put it's nose into the pail and drink without coaxing. Dairymen are not fortunate enough to have many calves that will do this, however, and in most cases it will be necessary to use little forcefuI persuasion in assisting the calf with it's first mea- away from it's mother. Let the calf suck the fingers, and by this means gradually draw it's nose into the milk, when the fingers should be removed carefully as soon as the calf gets taste of the milk. Patience is neces- sary, for this operation may have to be repeated two or three times before the calf will drink alone. If the calf is unusually stubborn and it is neces-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Advice Pays Farmer

To the total crop of the five years 1s1O-N. the geographic divisions con- tribute the following fractions: Tho North Atlantic states from Maine to Pennsylvania, Il per cent South At .antic, 15 per cent: North Central, east of the Mississippi river, IS per cent; west North Central, g per cent; total North Central Al per cent; South Central, g pe.' cent; and far western, 10 per cent; Total for the north, 52 per cent; for the south, 3s per cent; Atlantic coast, 26 per cent; Mississippi valley, GA per cent; mountain states and Pacific coast, 10 per cent. Measured by value alone the crop importance of the Atlantic coast is more than one-quarter of the total. of the Mis- sissippi valley nearly two-thirds, and of the far west one-tenth
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27

Did you ever watch Mrs. Cock Robin care for her young? She builds for them a downy, comfortable nest; she rustles plenty of choice worms to satisfy their hunger; in her every ac- tion she shows care and solicitude for the welfare of her brood Sirni- larly, the management and brooding of young chicks necessitate the maximum of conscientious attention in order that every possible comfort and facility pc provided for the rapid and economical development of the baby flock Or many poultry farms the breeding of chickens is one of the most critical op- erations. especially for the beginner. Many poultry keepers who are able to secure good egg yields and fair hatch es fail in breeding chickens, either by raising only small percentage of the chickens matched out or by failing to rear strong, vigorous birds which de Nelop into good breeding stock
 REARING CHICKENS WITH HEN
 Sitting hens should be confined to slightly darkened nests at matching time and not disturbed unless they step on or pich their chickens when matching, in which case the chickens should be removed as soon as dry to a basked lined with flannel or some oth CT warm material and kept near a lire until all the eggs are matched: CT the eggs may be removed and placed uhder a quieter hen whose eggs are matching at the same time. An incu- oator may also be used to keep the earliest matched chicks warm in case they are removed from the nest If the eggs hatch unevenly, those which are slow in matching may be placed under other hens, as hens often get restless after part of the chick ems are out. allowing the remaining eggs to become cooled as the very time when steady heat is necessary. Re move the egg shells and any eggs which have not matched as soon as the matching is over. Hens should be fel as soon as possible after the eggs are matched. as feeding tends to keep them quiet; otherwise many hens will leave the nest. In most cases it is best tha. the chickens for at least 24 hours after the matching is over.
 The hen should be powdered with o good insect powder before moving her and the chickens to the brood coop. She should be dusted every two weeks. or as often as necessary until the chickens are weaned. If lice become thick on the chickens. or if they are troubled with head hce,' very little grease, sucf as lard or vaseline, may be applied with the fingers on the head, neck, under the wings, and around the vent Great care should be taken, however
 not to get too much grease on the
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
LIVE STOCK PRICES

Higher prices of crops eaten by live stock should find their way into higher prices for live stock products. Eventu- ally they may, but there is what the bureau of crop estimates of the United States department of agriculture calls a lag Product prices do not fully respond at once to advance in feed prices Such was the situation with farmers with regard to the prices of dairy pro ducts and other animal products from 1915 to 1918, and the lag was heavily felt by farmers in 1917.
 From 1915 to 1916 crop prices increased 57 per ceIt, from 1915 to 1917 about lit per cent. hnd from 1915 to 1918 about l2o per cent. During the same time the total value of animal products on the farm did not correspondingly gain, although a tendency to overtake the lag appeared in 1918.
 In the meatime live stock has increased in number and price, and enormously in total value, although not enough to hold it's place in the procession, and it
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Points in Road Dragging

First the road drag is the simplest and least expensive contrivance yet devised for maintaining roads con structed of earth or earthly material.
 Second, the successful operation of a road drag depends to very great extend on the skill and intelligence of the operator. s
 Third. the time to use the drag is when the material composing the road surface is sufficiently moist to com pact readily under traffic after it has been moved by the drag and does not contain sufficient moisture for the traf- fife following the drag to produce mud
 Fourth. dragging cannot usually De so arranged as to keep teams em- ployed all the time. and it is there fore desirable to have it done py m terested persons who can find employ men for themselves and teams when they are not engaged in dragging.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
''DIP THAT TICK IN MARCH"

The cattle tick eradication forces of the United States department of agrl- culture and the cooperating state agencies are starting out this year to do a number of things, among which is driving the cattle parasite from a larger number of square miles than ever were cleaned out in any previous year. As one way of bringing that re- suit they have adopted and intend to follow the slogan, "Kill that seed tick in March,"
 There is only one effective way of killing the tick. That is told in a poster. soon to be placed in every tick infested region, and saying in letters that even a tick might read: Dip that tick in March!"
 The reason for killing the seed tick in March is amazingly simple. Two ticks in March, allowed to live and prosper, mean thousands, at least, in June. and millions soon afterward. Therefore, a tick killed in March means thousands less in June and millions less in late summer.
 Consequently, the dipping vats are
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Spraying Scale Insects

The spraying of trees during winter and spring. or when they are in a dor mant condition. is directed largely against scale insects, especially the San Jose scale. There are two principal ad- vantages of spraying at this time: The absence of foliage permits more thor ough applications, and the sprays may be used much stronger than during the growing season. Contact sprays, such as lime sulphur solution, fish oil, and other soap washes. kerosene and crude petrol. cum emulsions, are employed. The prime essential is thoroughness in making ap- plications. so as to cover every part of the tree. because in general only those killed
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Storage Is Essential

grows enough sweet potatoes for home use and usually surplus that either is fed to live stock or marketed To-
 cally. Unquestionably there is a great opportunity open to the farmers of the south to grow sweet potatoes for the northern markets. the main essential being the provision of storage facili- ties in order to properly cure and ware house the crop until prices justify the marketing of the product. The farm storage for sweet potatoes is of sim pie construction. Full information relative to the proper methods can be had in bulletin form. free of charge. by addressing the United States de- partment of agriculture or the exten- sion divisions at the state colleges.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
The Pure-Bred Sire

Wisconsin dairymen and farmers, de- sirous of increasing their profits and add, ing still greater honors to their already famous dairy state, have joined in statewide campaign to eliminate the scrub bull and use only pure bred sires. The record made last year in the Brown County Cow-Testing assoc ation typifies the merits of pure bred bulls and illus. trates why farmers and dairymen will not tolerate the scrub. In this associa- ton F cows qualified for the register of production. All of these cows were daugh- ters of pure bred sires, six of them being daughters of one sire. The five best herds in the association are headed by pure bred sires, while the five poorest herds are all headed by grade or scrub sires. The herds of those farmers who used pure bred sres averaged S5 pounds more fat a COW than those using grades or scrubs. Last year eight of the members purchased pure bred sres of known breeding to replace their scrubs.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Pure-Bred Dairy Cattle

Through the assistance of the county agent and local banks. the farm bureau Of Newcastle county, Delaware, sel cured five carloads of pure-bred Hois- tein cows during 1918. The average cost a head was $260, f. O. b. Delaware. Two farmers accompanied the county a.;ert to Michigan, where arranssrcnts hal been made with the nolstein- Iriesian association 70 secure the f,.t tneo tion stock. The bureau of ami nal industry provided |. Eian tn ;.d- rlinister the tuberculin. test. The cows purchased were of su :!l individuai.ty and breeding that their offspring could readily be disposed of q; good n.ices. Upon arrival the cows were exhibited fsr three days and the breeding Of each animal posted Nc inwhile the farmers who had givea thei, orr;ers made remittances at t..e bani- cu.er- iEg the actual cost of the COW re- celved and the transp,ttatioi cost. When desired the bank ris,.s tn. farm CTS liberal terms of settlements
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Big Year for Bee-Keepers

Bee-keepers may look forward con- fidently to a prosperous season during the coming summer and full. The de- partlnent at Washington reports that the increase in the cost of honey, owing to the big export demand ere ated by the war. makes it safe to predict that the coming year wiu sec the greatest effort ever made to fur ther bookkeeping. During the last halt of 1918, honey to the value of per haps $2,000000 was exported. This was about 10 times the valuation for any year before the beginning of the war, which indicates that honey has ceased to be luxury in the minds of the allied peoples. The home deman1 for honey has also increased.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Farmers City Market

A city market established last sum- mer in Trenton by the farm bureau of Mercer county, New Jersey. was so suc- cessful that the plan is to be carried out this year on a more extensive scale. The county agent estimates last years business of the market at $500, ,000 worth of farm products sold at whole sale and retail. Until last year Tren- ton had no market. and for 25 years farmers had backed their wagons up to the curb in the center of the busi- ness section of the city. Establishment of the markets resulted from cooper ation between county agent, the bureau of markets of the United States depart ment of agriculture. and the city off cials of Trenton.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27

is interesting to compare the total value of live stock products withthe total valus of the live stock itself year by year during the war. In each of the three years, l9l3-19l5, the aggregate value of live stock products was 65 per cent of the aggregate value of live stock. The ratio went up to 6S per cent in 1916, made a great advance to 7S per cent in 1917. and to s4 per cent in 911S. Live stock vaule, compounded of increasing num- Der and increasing price, Jagged behin. the advancing value Of live stock pro-
 duets.
 That there should have been a lag in the advanse of live stock value, compared with the advance in the value of live stock products. is in accordance with ex- perience, but these products themselves Jagged in price, behind the price of the crops eaten hl their production. Conse- quently some unprofitable- production ot animal products may have accompanied the lag of live stock value behind value of products.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Airplane in Agriculture

In connection with scouting and other survey work in Texas, the United States department of agriculture is putting the airplane to it's first prac- tical application in agriculture. A try out of this method of survey was made last year along the Trinity river and resulted in the discovery of several outlaw cotton fields in heavy timber, which had previously escaped detec- tion. This year the airplane is to be used more extensively. It has been found valuable aid in pink bollworm work, as it makes possible the easy mapping. by means of photographs, Of the quarantined territory, and faciii- tates the inspection work in forestci areas especially in such long stretches Of country as the valley of the iRo Grande and it's tr.outaries.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Pure Pork Sausage

To each 100 pounds of meat, preferably 60 to 65 per cent dean and 35 per cent fat finely ground. take one and one-half pounds of salt, ounces of black pepper. ? ounces of sage and ounce of nutmeg. Mix all together well. sprinkle over the meat and mix thoroughly.
 If the sausage is to be kept for several IT onths it should have 2 pounds of salt instead of one and one-half pounds. It should also be stuffed in castings, or packed in jars covered with lard. For convenience and to insure keeping, it can be made into cakes. fried, packed in con taners and covered with lard
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27

sary to use force, try not to frighten or unduly excite it.
 A calf weighing 50 pounds at birth should have about pounds of whole milk a day, while 100-pound calf should have about F pounds. The amount of milk should be gradually increased until at the end of the second wek the calf should receive from II to 16 pounds a day Its mothers milk should be given a. calf for the first four days, then any good whole milk can be used, but pref erably it should not contain more than pre- cent butter fat. Best results can be obtained by feeding young calves three times day, with the periods be- tween feeding nearly equal as possl- ble. When fed in this way the calf does not overload it's stomach and the diges- ton of the feed is more evenly distribu- ted throughout the "A hours. Regularity in feeding is important. When calves are fed but twice a day the feeding should be as no@rly as possible 12 hours apart
 CLEANLINESS ESSENTIAL
 Successful raising of calves requires absolute cleanliness. Calf pens should always be kept clean and be supplied with plenty of dry bedding. Discarded feed should be removed from the feed boxes, which should be thoroughly brushed and cleaned each day. All milk leQ SnOulu De ITeSHi ana Cltall, WllltH Is true also of other feeds. Milk pails should be scalded thoroughly with boiling water, or sterlized with steam if possible.
 At the. beginning of the third week either skim or separated milk may be substituted for whole milk at the rate of one pound a day. The daily ration may be increased from two to four pounds, depending upon the vigor of the calf. When the calf does not drink eager ifvyc ct G be cut down. The ration at the end of the third week usually should be ap- proimately one-half whole and one-half reparted milk. During the fourth week the change should be continued until by the end of the week only separated milk is fed, unless thA calf is very delicate. With especially vigorous calves the change to separated milk can be made about a week earlier. The quantity fed can be increased gradually to Is to 70 pounds Q day.
 AVERAGE AGE
 Six months is probably a good aver age age at which to wean calves from the milk. The age depends upon the cost of the milk in relation to the value of the salf, it's breed, size, vigor, etc. The season of the year and the other feeds available also must be considered. When the best of hay, silage, and good variety of grains are available, or when good. succulent pasturage can be pro- vided. the calf can be weaned earlier; also the stronger and more vigorous the calf the earlier it can be weaned. On the other hand, the more valuable the calft the more expense the owner is war ranted in developing it, and the later it will probably be weaned. If skim or separated milk is plentiful. calves may be fed it with profit until they are 8 or 10 months old
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Unusual Merit

The most enjoyable thing to a lov of tobacco is a good, rich, ripe, ms low chew or smoke. The Gaulden T bacco Co., of Dukedom, Tenn, will mi you absolutely free sample of Hone Homegrown, Homespun leaf tobac for you to test for yourself the de cious flavor and fragrant aroma this excellent tobacco. If you do n want to wait for sample, send $1 f a trial 2.lb. package, either chewi or smoking, strong or mild. This COT pany guarantees satisfaction and take no risk by orderinE.-Adv.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
Buckwheat Coming Back

Buckwheat is a minor crop that, in the census record, reached it's highest pro- duction.. l7,572, ,0o0 bushels. in 1850. There after the crop dwindled to about one-half that quantity, but by 1870 it had recov- cred to f1.S17.00O bushels, and this was approximately the census production to 1S99 By 1909 this crop had gained so as to reach a production of 14.S49 coo bush els, and the estimate of the bureau of crop estimates for 1918 is r71S2, 900 bushels. a restoration substantially of the pro- duction before the civil war. s-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27
chickens, as it will stop their growth and In some cases may prove fatal
 COMPLYING THE HEN

chickens, as it will stop their growth and in some cases may prove fatal.
 COMPLYING THE HEN
 The hen should be confined in the coop until the chicks are weaned while the chicqens are allowed free range after they are few days old. Where hens are allowed free range and have to forage for feed for themselves and the chicks, they often take them througl. wet grass, where the chicks may become chilled and die. Most of the feed the chicks secure in this manner goes to keep up the heat of the body, whereas feed eaten by those that are with hen thas is confined produces more rapid growth. as the chicks do not have too much ex ercise. Then, too, in most broods there are one or two chicks that are weaker than others, and if the hen is allowed free range the weaker ones often ge. behind and out of the hearing of the mothers cluck and call. In most cases this results in the loss and death of these chicks. If the hen is confined the weddings can always find shelter and heat under her, and after few days may develop into strong, healthy chicks.
 MILK WASHES GOOD FOR CHICKS
 The young chicks may be fed any time after they are 36 to 4S hours old, whether
  first feed may contain either hard boiled eggs johnny-cake, stale bread, pinheaG oatmeal, or rolled oats, which feeds or combinations may be used with good re- suits. Washes mixed with milk are of considerable value in giving the chickens a good start in life, but the mixture should be fed in a crumbly mass and not in a sloppy condition After the chickens are two months old they may be fed four times daily, and after three months old three times daily, with good results. Johnnycake composed of the following ingredients in the proportions named is very good feed for young chicks: One dozen infertle eggs or 1 pound of sifted beef scrap to 10 pounds of corn meal; add enough milk to make a paSty mash. tablespoonful of baking soda, and bake until done. Dry bread crumbs may be mixed with hard-boiled eggs, making about one-fourth of the mixture eggs, or rolled oats may be used in place of the bread crumbs, rolled oats. or john nycake mixtures five times daily for the first week, then gradually substitute for cracked grains of equal parts by weight of cracked wheat, finely cracked corn. and pinhead oatmeal or hulled oats, to which about per cent of cracked peas or broken rice and 2 per cent of charcoal millet or rape seed may be added. A commercial chick feed may be substitu- ted if desired The above ration can be fed until the chicks are two weeks old. when they should be placed on grain and a dry or wet mash mixture
The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-02-27

profitable business, is always a safe and sound line of farming, is least affected by sudden changes of weather and sea- sons, gives a ready cash income, builds up the soil. and provides employment for labor at all seasons