THE FARM.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 746, 18 June 1886, Page 15

THE FARM.

EDITOR MAIL. Sir*.— "Vill any of your numerous agrieu'tural readers be good enough fco inform me what value may be attached to phosphate of lime, carbonate of lime, and carbonate of magnesia, as a manure ; what crops it is most suitable for ; in what proportion should bo used, and if best adapted for light or heavy soil. —I am, &e., A Constant Subscriber. Wellington, Juno 12. AN AMERICAN VIRUS FARM. The following is an account of an American vaccine farm, which seems to be doing a thriving business : . .. « The ground floor was one big room, hign, airy, and finished in hard woods. In the middle was a table that strongly suggested the dissecting room. It was padded, and there were uprights at each corner. On the table was a calf, and one of its legs was icislied to each upright. The stomach of the animal was cleanly shaved, and over it leaned a young man in a white apron, who held a little knife in Ids band. When the party had gathered around the victim the young man bfgan scratching its akin with the knife? When tho blood began to ooze through the cuticle ho moved his knife 3t.0 a point two inches lower and repeated the operation. This was gone through with until about thirty blotches of blood appeared on the white surface of the skin, and then Dr Zuill, who superintended the process, placed little pointed piecss of ivory on each scar, and after allowing them to remain for a few moments, removed them, and the animal was released. In these brief moments it had been inoculated with cow pox. Another calf was brought in and placed on the table. Its stomach had also been scarified and shaved, but tho scars had healed and were covered with seal s. These were removed in succession by tho operator who held a bundle of ivory points in his hand. When a scab was removed a drop of matter welled up, and into this the operator inserted one of the points. The point was then encased in tinfoil, deposited in an airtight bottle, and taken to the refrigerating roon?. This illustrated the complete process of obtaining vaccine virus. The first calf was inoculated with bovine virus brought by Dr Sajous from Belgium. Bach ealf will yield sufficient virus to charge from 500 to 3000 vaccine points. HORSE AND MAN. The following quotation from ‘ Horse and Mian,’ says the Breeder and Sportsman, is so perspicuously stated, as to require little comment. The dullest of. comprehensions should be able to understand the arguments, and understanding assuredly lead to concurrence in the views expressed. For example, the Creator lias taken the Greatest care to make the whom hoof as light as possible. 1 Happy thought !’ fays man. 4 Let. us hang a pound or so on each hoof and mike the horse waste liis strong to in lifting it.’ He has made the wall exceedingly strong, 1 Happy thought ! Let us weaken it by cutting it away, by scooping grooves in it and driving nails into it so as fco tear the fibres asunder.’ He bos made this wall nearly as hard ag iron. ‘Happy thought! Let us soften it by ‘ stopping ’ and similar devices.’ The Creator has made the edge of the wall quite sharp, so as to enable it to hitch upon the slightest uneveness, and to aid it in ascending a bill. Another happy thought ! ‘ Let us cut away the sharp edge, . and substitute a flat, smooth service of iron, which can take no hold of slippery groundThere is now before me a shoe taken from the foot of a dray-horse. The flat iron surface is exactly two inches in width, so that if man had deliberately set himself to work to invent apian of making the horses footing as insecure as possible, he could Lot have been more successful.

Ho has furnished the hoof with an elastic pad called the ‘Frog,’ so as to prevent any jar when the horse steps. ‘Happy thought! Let us cut away the pad and make the horse’s weigh come upon a ring of iron.’ The happy thought has another effect. The Crea’or has constructed the hoof. so that the elaborate and delicate mechanism of its interior can only be kept in working order by the presure of the pad, or 1 frog. So by cutting away the frog in one of l.i happy thoughts, man has contrived to stop all his machinery (with the inevitable ttj.su!t to machinery which is not allowed to ''world and has also managed to cr-ati exact!v the jar which the frog woull have nrevented. _ A third object has been attained Dy cutting away the frog. As has already Been sliovYn, tho fro.' prevents tlio hoi’so from falling on smooth and slippery surfaces, and even enables it to gallop over ice. to, by removing tho fro the chances of a horse s falling ura greatly, ultipliedAgain, the sole of the hoof has oeen formed archwise, of successive layers of exceedingly hard horn, so as to perform a double office. la the first place it . bids dehance to hard and sharp-edged objects, such as rooks or broken flints ; and m the next place, it transmits the pressure from the frog to the wall, so as to produce the expansion at each step on which the health of the hoof depends. So the solo inspires man with another happy thought. ‘ Let us pare it so tain that it not only cannot resist the pressure of the horse’s weight upon a stone, but that it yields to the pressure of the human thumb. As for its duty of transmitting pressure from the frog to the wall, that is of no consequence, as the frog has already been cut away so that j there is no pressure to be transmitted,’ I

Our happy thoughts are not yet exhausted. Tho hoof has been made porous, so as to permit transpiration to take place. Happy thought ! Let us choke up ail the pores with oil to stop tho transpiration.’ It has been covered with a natural varnish so constructed that whi e it does not hinder transpiration, it defends the hoof from wet. ‘Happy thcu;ht ! Let U 3 rasp or scrape off the ‘varnish. It is natural, and therefore must be wrong.’ ~ Tho coronary ring, fr un which the fibres ot tho wall are secreted, is guarded by a penthouse of hair which causes wet to shoot off as it does from the eive3 of a bouse. < Happy thought ! Let us snip away the hair, and let (he water make its way into the coronary ring.’ Po, after working his sweet will upon the hoof? man wondered at its weakness, and lay down the stupid axiom that ‘one horse can wear out four sets of legs,’ which is equivalent to raying that the Creator did not know how to make a horse. GREEN ’MANURINGBy the ferm green manuring, is meant the practice of growing and plowing under ctops in the green state, to enrich the soil. A soil is said to be productive in proportion to the amount of humus it contains. Humus is formed by the decomposition of animal and vegetable matt- r. If a heavy growth of vegetation, "rain, clover or weeds is plowed under, a cert aba amount, of plant food ia returned to the soil. It would be very natural to suppose that the decayed sfcam of one plant would contain good acceptable food for another. if plowing under has been done on a yellow clay soil, six room ha afterward?, by digging down through the furrow, a dark stratum will be found where the weeds fell and rotted Repeated plowing under of green crops will fill the ground with humus, and restore the worst worn out land to fertility. One objection to this method of fertilizing is too length of time required, as several years must elapse before many crops could be added to the soil. It is very important then, to adopt the rotation that will admit of the greatest number of crops in the shortest lime. Some plants add more fertility to the soil than others, but these are not always the ones that are easiest grown, especially on poor ground, and it is very important to get a good growth to plow under- Rye will grow where no other grain will,. and yield a fair crop. Another advantage is its growth in winter, INFLUENZA IN SHEEP. In reply to a Michigan correspondent we (Western Rural) would say that inbuenza in sheep is not infections. It is often supposed to be because it depends upon conditions that are apt to exist over a wide range ot territory, and hence many sheep may be affected at the same time. It ia an inflammation of the membranes of the nose and bronchial passages. The eyes are red and waterv, more or less fever is present, there is a marked weakness and the syste n generally ia out of order. The animal has no appetite, the nose runs, there is cough, indigestion and impaction. After cold and dan i weather, it is observable frequently, and is always more severe on low, wet undrained land. When sheep are upon such land and are attacked, they should be removed to higher and dry land. When possible they should be given oatmeal. Again we desire to say that oilmeal is one of the be3t things in the world to feed sheep. It is nol only a good food but it is good medicine, as it acts a-3 a tonic and keeps the bowels and digestion in order. If oilmeal is fed feed it with oats or rye or buckwheat. If the disease assumes a severe character give the following purgative : Epsom salts half ounce, ginger one dram. Dive it in a little water, say quarter of a pint. If a flock is ! affected mix the medicine in bulk according to the above prescription and taking a horn, administer a quarter of a pint to each animal. If any are very seriously affected they will need something to ally the fevc-r quickly and to stimulate. In such cases administer the following : Tincture of aconite ten drops ; solution of acetate of ammonia ouo ounce* This ought to be given every five hour-', but the aconite should be decreased by one drop at every dose until not more than five drops are given. Sometimes the eyes are so much inflamed that they require treatment, and should be washed with a eolut on of one grain of sulphate of zinc and twenty drops of laudanum in an ounce of water. When the disease lias disappeared fend loosening and very nutritious foods, such as bran mashes, bail'd oats, and a little corn mush occasionally. The stimulants will need to be kept up in some shape, and in the food sprinkle a little powdered ginger or gentian, or administer in honey, if the medicine is not readily taken by the animal in its food. Keep well sheltered while treating the animal with this disease. GOLDEN MILLET. A writer in the American Agriculturist thus describes the golden millet I have raised millet as my principal liay crop for fifteen years. My stock being chiefly dairy cows. I have ne'er found any nay equal to it, and now my cows grumble exceedingly because clover hay very choice —is alternated with millet as a ration, refusing to touch the clover, so long as there is any millet in sight. I find my greatest success with it, a 3 a crop to follow corn, instead of oats, xf tfle corn was on sod, the millet crop that follows will grow at least five feet high, often parts or it will go even higher ; and five tons of cured hay per acre, is no fable.- It needs rich land, made very fine. Its roots are surface feeders, and v. ill not go down like corn roots; therefore t he land should be made mellow and compact before sowing tho seeds, and then not uss over forty-eight-pounds to the acre, sown broadcast, and cover very lightly. It leaves the lank in tho finest possible condition for a crop of wheat. Golden millet should not be sown until the first week ia June, and it will then bo ready to cut in seventy fire days. Gut as soon as the heads are all well shown and developed —i. e., the seeds just going into the milk. Then the crop does not exhaust the land, as it does when it is allowed to stand and mature the seed. -Che seeds when matured are very hard, and are not digestible ; co if allowed to form and develop, the grain —about forty bushels per a ore—-is lost as ftfeeding element, aud the value of the foliage j lessensd to a corresponding extent, a 3 it bs- [

comes ‘ woody,’ and not only looses a part, of its food value, but calls upon the digestive organs for extra exertion to assimilate if, while it renders, for this outlay, no adequate compensation. . Millet has no superior as a hay ration tor milch cows. Early cut millet his been fed to a greater or less extent to my team of horses without other than favorable results. TIIE USE OF BLINDS ON HORSES. The custom of putting blinds on horses indiscriminately, is a great error. Carriage horses look well in showy head-gear, aud handsome blinds, are a great improvement to the stylo and general appearance of real, well set-up carriage horses. But for buggy, car, cart, stage, waggou, truck, and general travel, they are wholly unnecessary, and as regards safety, they are a detriment rather than an advantage. What do surface car horses want with blinds ? Horses, like ourselves, want to s-e -.vliere they are going, and the horse that shies, proves tliafc he- wants, to keep out of danger, by the very faot of his shying. We must consider that a horse leading an artificial life, like ourselves, walking in tlie dark in a strange p'uce, doesn’t see what is around him if he has blinds on, and is therefore naturally timid and careful. If a horse is too cireful, and takes too wide a circuit in shying, it is with the best intention from his instincts. But because he doss.it a little too much, and more than his driver sees necessary, he should not be abused, hut spoken to softly and kindly, and thus encouraged, for he means no wrong. The stupid funk-head will go so close to a hole that one wheel will fall into it, while the horse of intelligence, will keep well away from it, but not having studio 1 geometry, he dO!3 not know the exact length of the axles, and the distance necessary to keep from the danger. Man himself doesn’t keen away from danger at all times, though lie has the advantage of sense and reason supplied him.

The lauk-liead is called. 1 a family horse,' that doesn’t care where he goes, and depends on his driver to look out for danger, or he expects to be pulled and hauled about snd guided by the reins, which supply him with all the" souse he wants. While the intelligent horse that wants to s=e for himself 18° called a ‘ shyer,’ that does not care, while he overdoes it, he as often gets cursed at and whipped. When horses s:op with some drivers, they are petted and coaxed until they s'art; then they are whipped, checked and beaten, as if (to them) for going on. If they are to be petted for doing what they should cot do, and whipped for what they should do, how are horses bo understand it ?■

A shying horse, and a sulky, balking horse are different. Shying is not a vice ; it is more a habit than a fault, knowing that he doesn’t mean it. There are times when a shying horse could save life, if he’d only shy at the right time and place. One course is to chastise or correct a horse if necessary for doing wrong, and encourage him for doing right? If he be whipped for stopping, the whipping should cease when he goes on, and not until thee.

To give a horse a fair chance to see around him, we would use a headstall without blinds. But we would make an exception of the carriage horse, for we want him for style, park show, and excusable vanity, aud to indulge this very harmless ambition, we will admit that the carriage and coupfi horse, for this reason, should have on blinds, and let the driver', instead of the horse,' look out for danger.—American Paper. MISCELLANEOUS. Lime. —Fortunately lime is one of the most generally found of the inorganic constituents of the soil, when we remember that in twenty-five bushels of oats there are nine pounds of lime ; in thirty-eight bushels of barley, fifteen pounds ; in two tons of clover hay, thirty-five pounds ;in twenty-five tons Of turnips, one hundred and forty pounds ; in two hundred and fifty bushels of potatoes, two hundred and seventy pounds. A Russian Silo. A land owner in Russia writ os to the London Times of ensi'ago made in the following way : A deep, oblong excavation was made in a solid clay ground seven feet to eight feet deep ; stems of maize, leaves and stems of cabbages, weeds, etc., were cut and put into it in rows of eight inches to ten inches thick. Between each row some salt was spread. When it was done, boards were put_ on the ensilage, and then all tho earth which was dug out was put on them. This was made in the beginning of October, and in the winter the cattle enjoyed a very good food. In 186 S, the writer made a silo in precisely this manner, at Chalsworch, 111., and filled it with beet tops and crowns. In February the ensilage came out green, only slightly acid, and sound except a crust next the earth, about six inches thick. This was undoubtedly the first silo ever attempted in America. Use the Best Seed. —An agricultural writer says that in relation to crops that require cultivating, a short series of years will convince any experimenters of the absolute necessity of using none but the best seed. Take t-:.e potatoes as an instance. The writer, years ago, increased tlie oarliness of the Mercer potato a weak by planting liberal pieces of the seed end, with only three eyes left, and got also smoothness by selecting as seed on'y smooth, medium shape! specimens. W-' ile Ihe average of the c ,. 0 p 5 . —and in scarce reasons small put does were planted for the. market crops, the prime specimens were always saved for planting for seed. The true way to causo a variety ,to become weak and in time unfit for cultivation is fco plant inferior seed. As being well attested the following experiment of Maj. Alvord, of Houghton farm, wilh serve as a he in point : ‘ With eighty-two varieties of po!aloes the average weight per hill from the whole tuber—medium sized—as seed was thirty-six ounces; that from the usual cutting about tlire > eyes —twenty-four and a half ounces ; that from one eye, twenty ounces !

Dry sand is recommended for keeeping apples and potatoes in sound condition. Into a barrel, filled with either of them, sand is poured until ail the interstices are filled w th it. Parties who have tried this method sav the contents of the barrels are preserved until spring in a better condition than by any other means they have ever tried. The last month or so of a pig’s life has a

wonderful influence upon the flavor of the pork. You can put on the frame all through tho year, but the taste is determined by this feeding at the end. Feed well. Ths°puleo of all large animals is taken by placing n finger on an artery at a point whore it is sufficiently superficial that it may be readily felt through the skin, and where at the same time it passes over a structure which offers some resistance to pressure, such as bone or tendon. In the smaller animals it is easily taken over the region of the heart, by olacing the hand firmly against the left side of the ""chest, as far as possible between the elbow and chest. In all four animals mentioned the pulsations should be regular and of medium volume—i.o., nit too full and bounding, nor small and weak. A horse’s pulse in health should number between 32 and 40 beats per minute, and is usually taken at the lower jaw, where an artery passes around the margin of the bone. It can also be readily taken at the temporal artery, near the temple and eye, or at the radial artery inside the forearm. A cow’s pulse should beat between 50 and 55 limes per minute, and tho best spot to t ike it is between and immediately above, her dew-claws on a forelimb, or at the jaw, at a similar spot, but more ou the side of the face, as in a horse. A- sheep’s pulse is taken at its heart or at the jaw, the beats per minute being between 60 and 70, but liable to considerable varieties, A pig’s pulse is but rarely taken, but when it. is done the heart’will bo found a convenient place, the number of beats per minute being" about the same as in a sheep. These are the number of pulsations of animals in a quiet on normal state, but certain conditions cause a very considerable variation in tho number of beats ; as, for instance, excitement from any cause will increase the boats to perhaps double the number during repose. Pregnancy again increases pulsation to a much ]o;s" although an appreciable extent. The temperature is ascertained by means of a clinical thermometer, an instrument made for this purpose, which in lower animals is thrust into the rectum or vulva, and allowed to remain there for two or three minutes; then removed, and the index noted. The normal temperature of a horse is from 99 deg to 101 deg ; an ox, 101 deg to 102 ; sheep, 102 deg to 104 dig ; pig, 102 deg to 104- deg. . The interna! temperature varies but very little durir," health ‘whatever degrees of heat and cold au animal may be exposed to.