AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Press, Volume XLVIL, Issue 7732, 11 December 1890, Page 6

AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

C. V. writes to an Australian con* temporary: —" Among the various freaks of Nature brought before public notice I have never seen mention of twin chickens. However, my nest door neighbour has a pair of chicks, very small, and marked exactly alike, which were really hatched from one egg—quite an ordinary looking egg—which had done duty for a nest egg. The chicks are about a fortnight old and qaite healthy and lively." Mr J. B. Martin, of: Camders, New. Sooth Wales,tlately discovered an insect, which atacks pine trees, and is proving very destructive. ' These insects have denuded many limbs of the pine tree, and will Very likely in course of time destroy the tree. The pine trees mentioned stand in Mr Martin's garden, This gentleman has sent specimens of these insects to Sydney to the Department of Agriculture, and the entomologist reports that the insects are caterpillars of the family of psychide, which have been doing great mischief to the apples and peaches this season. The investigator has bred from them two most* interesting oymenopterous parasites, j

which help to keep them in check.: , ; MftM. now awaiting the development c* fcne moth of the caterpatariteelf. v>-—7 The New York StatejDairyCommlseloa' and the City Board of Health have began to take proceedings against milk dealers who use preservatives to prevent the soaring of milk. A great number of people, mostly infants, have been poisoned in America by the injudicious* use of these substances, which contain, as a role, borax and salicylic acid. The assistant Dairy Commissioner of New York describee their use as " the slow poisoning process,, and brings forward ample proof to jastifj the assertion. Now says the Leader, a great deal of this disreputable business is being done in Victoria just now, and before the matter is over somebody will get into serious trouble. A firm of Melbourne agents for these materials have been scattering broadcast a great deal of very dangerous literature on the subject. It is about time our Board of Health began to investigate this matter. The Government analyst, Mr Blacketfc, says that these milk preservatives are harmless and tasteless, while on the other hand, Mr A. N. Pearson, the agricultural chemist, contends that they are positively dangerous to health, and should not be used under any circumstances. We think Mr Pearson is right. Recently a number of cases of milk poisoning have been reported about Melbourne, notably at Footscray, where a great number of people were affected. Our own private opinion of that business ,was that the milk had been powdered with some preservative. The London correspondent of laeLeaaer writes on the wool sales under date October 3rd as follows: -The spirit shown in the sale room during this week has been very good, although some would have it that for the very faulty scoured pieces and locks hardly the full rates of the preceding week have been forthcoming in some cases. Owing to the abundant supply of this cIaRS. and the very miscellaneous character of some of the catalogues, this may well "have been the case here and there, but, on the other hand, good acoureds and all tcreasies are the shade dearer. The market thus remains practically the same.i with a decided tendency in favor of sellers. The continuence of labor troubles on your side of ! the globe baa not a little to do with this, as manufacturers feel even more nervous than before about the supply of wool for the next few months. It is the more satisfactory to have to report this feeling, as within a few weckthe early birds of the trade will be show ing their new patterns for 1891 winter j trade, and a firm wool market now and for the next two or three months will make it a deal easier for them, to revise quotations on the plea of " dear wool. Cloth houses will also be more willing to give out preliminary orders, so that the manufacturers, it is hoped, will be able to see a little further ahead than they have been in a position to do during the past year. It will not do, however, to lauore the fact that a strong " bear/ , element is in a state of suspended animation, owing to events having proved adverse so far. Concerning the prices paid in this market for leading brands or portions of clips, which in some cases have previously passed through the colonial auction rooms it may be remarked, in a general way, that the discrepancy between cost on your side and price realised at these sales does not show in all instances a loss to the operator, but when the heavy charges incurred through holding the wool over for such a long period are reckoned up, there will etill be a debit balance of a somewhat serious nature. We believe that the removal of the horns I from young calves should bea common practice, and that any oue with a little experience and courage can take them out , effectually, aud with very little pain to tfce i animals. The horn of a cow is an appendage, not of the skull, but of the skin. In the calf the horn is loose on the head, and may be removed with a. eectioa ol the skin. It is fed by the as is also the hair; and as the removal of the skin on any portion of the body leaves a scar on which hair will not grow again, so the removal of the skin with the rudimentary horn leaves a. scar that cannot produce a newhorn. It is claimed that there is ho better time to perform the Operation than when the calf is two weeks old. The horn at ( this age is merely a section of soft, hairless skin called the matrix, or jmocherof the future horn. In removing it* it,is only I necessary to make clean work of it, taking a rim off the sldjn an eighth of an inch wide surrounding the matrix." It can be 'done with one firm sweep of the knife, the calf being laid on its side, and the head held-firmly to the ground under the knee of the operator; n : . We (Quemlanier) learn from an English exchange that two very superior;. Shorthorn bulls, bought at very high figures by Mr Duckham, late of Bayshaui Court, were shipped to Australia by the Port Caroline One wae Napoleon, '59,523, from her* Majesty's herd, and the other Oxford Duke of Caithwaite 9fch, frbnvMr Harris's herd; Caithwaite Hall, Cumberland. Napoleon claims more than an ordinary share of attention for the reason that he is probably the first bull of the celebrated Sittyton blood that has been imported into Australia—that is, so far as we ac present know. His sire was the celebrated Slttfyton bull Field Marshall, 47,870. He is said to be one of the best ever reared in the royal herd. The other is one of the fashionable Bates bulls, a grandson of Grand Duchess of Oxford &srd, by Duke of Wefcherby. ..... ■•. :.■■■-.,. > ...,■,-. ... .:.■•.:■ The Marquis of Hertford, who has for some years given a bonus to the bailiffs of farms in hand which show's rumunerative returns, has announced with regard to these farms that, after paying a fair rent, and interest on capital, any surplus existing next year shall be divided among the labourers employed. The announcement,, needless to state, has been received, with great satisfaction. •> ; ..i , ; It is probably not ao widely known as it ought to be fchaCekim-milJc, after scalding, is richer than separated or any other raw skim-milk, because there is little cream left in it, and that it is the beat flesh and bone forming food that can be given to children. It is more healthy than raw milk, because the boiling destroys any disease germs there may be in it. After children have become accustomed to its use they prefer it to raw milk.

In so far as they relate to live stock, the Agricultural Returns for 1880 for Great Britain of which, an abstract was issued recently by the Board of Agriculture, are eminently satisfactory. Compared with 1889,, cattle have increased from 6,139,555 t06,508,632, again of 369,077; sheep from 25,632,020 to 27,272,459, an increase of 1,640,439; and p|g S f rom 2,510,803 to 2,773,609, a gain of 262,806. The steady increase in our flocks and herds thus , continues, remarks an English authority, chiefly because we have had freedom from foreign diseases. This movement we are satisfied will go on, but only so long as we can be protected from, the invasion of foreign pests. In these circumstances we consider that anyone who would tamper with doubtful sources of foreign cattle supply would be an enemy to his country. Some very important facts respecting rye grass seed, saya the North British Agriculturist, have lately been brought to light. As most farmers know, there are two varieties of rye grass, the one being known-as Lolium perenne and .the other as Lolium perenne tenue. The former is eometimes called annual rye f:ass, and the latter is called Pacey's vergreen or true perennial rye grass. The seed of the former is longer, and lighter, while that of the latter is snorter and heavier. The Lolium perenne tenue produces.seed in a very, scanty measure, and it may safely be doubted whether even a tithe of the large quantities of seed sold under this name has any right to be so styled. The Pacey's rye grass grows more to leaf, and does not exhaust its vitality by the lavish production of seed; hence its greater duration and feeding , value. On the other hand, the Lolium perenne runs .to seed, and thereby exhausts its vitality in a great degree, so that it is shorter lived and less valuable for feeding uses. These being the facts, it is not surprising to learn. that large quantities of Lolium perenne are every year sold as being Pacey's Evergreen or true perennial rye grass. It is, however, surprising to learn that actually at the present time machinery has been erected in Scotland to treat the Lolium perenne so as to make it pass for Pacey's rye grass. This is done by clipping off a piece of the husk at the end of the seed, so as not to interfere with the kernel, and in tnat way the seed is shortened so as to look like ■ Pacey's rye grass. We have the authority of a large Continental seed merchant for stating that, machinery of thin kind, and for this purpose, has been fitted up in one of the large centres of population in Scotland, unfortunately, however, for the success of this scheme, the Pacey variety of rye grass can be accurately distinguished from she ordinary variety, however much the husk may have been altered and defaced. The kernel of the ordinary variety is slender and oblong, while that of the Pacey variety is shorter, broader, and egg shaped, so that, when he Is armed with this knowledge, the buyer can easily protect himself against frada in the form of trimmed husks. If buyers be apon their guard, this form of sophistication will soon be detected, and the inevitable exposure will be in the interests of j truth and justice. . <