Road & Farm Improvement.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3618, 6 February 1906, Page 4

Road & Farm Improvement.

A GOOD FLOOD GATS. Ou That Will Stay In Fine* <>•• V«w Aiobk! ami Turn Kock Iron* AdJolu.uK Field*. Those who have large ditches 01 weeks running through their farmi are desirous of getting a good, serviceable flood-gate, one that will may in place all times of year, end turr •took from adjoining fields. The oldfashioned flood-gate, hung by : be tof - to a foot log, was always bew.g ptisliec open by hogs and calves, staked ■" down, ana then the fir'd t;( avy ftes’hel was sure to hurst it from its fastenings and carry it (i-a-.vo. sir. :u. The gate shown iu -ctil ci.:i be >•• U' • farm, and w l -. '■ cVfr. .aS.e care of itself. Tf'"get near the outer banks of cm; e uml-

tel: an oak log ten to fourteen inches In diameter is fashioned like a windlias and attached to the posts, a* thews in illustration, with clamp Wnda made from heavy iron and fastened with lag screws to posts. Th* roller is then bored full of two-inch ftiur; 'imps, tho desired distance a*,. ceive the pickets, which •M ■ ~t from tough oak. A weight thow;- at A completes the job. Thii Weight is intended to iteep the gate always in an upright position, and should be placed upstream, i. e., above the flood-gate. When heavy freshete are in <”■' ’ •* , ep, the force of the water nuA-s ight and ahows easy passage of v\.'iter, driftwood, etc., and ai the water subsides me weight settles hack. ! ». ' : ug the gate in proper posh tl ::;, :;w :■ hogs cannot root it oui ‘ i mk trespass into adjoine weight must be made i! with height and weight w; -f. !f the weight be too heavy so that the force of current does not open it. saw a piece of? of weight. Only actual test will determine this. Din the illustration i« the surface Use o< the water. —George W. Brown, Ja Ohio farmer.

> . PHILIPPINE ROADS.

A nuilas Dollar# to Be IpMt 1* tte lay>tv«n*at of Roads at a*# Hear Maalla.

Th* Philippine commission hoe appropriated $1,000,000 for the improvwanat of the roads in the island of Lugos, If this sum be wisely and economically expended in constructing highways connecting important towns, m as to enable the inhabitants to have •asy communication with each other, wven during the rainy season, it will -have a beneficial effect upon the people of the territory through which the roads pass probably greater than could hav% been secured by any other expend* Iture.

The Spaniard* did not ae-em to regard • road as necessary or even desirable unless it would serve a military purpose. The railway from Manila to Dagupan gave them ample means of transporting troops, ammunition and store* between those places, and beyond Dag*upan they built a fine, broad macadianvixed boulevard as far asVigan. Thera la a similar highway across the island near its southern extremity. Generally speaking, however, Luzon has no roads, except these two, that can be twwled by a vehicle in the rainy sea•on, and few of them are navigable on horseback. Naturally the Filipinos do ®Bt"'artrity far from their home village#,

and nows as well as merchandise dbes Hot circulate freely. It is no uncommon thing to find a variety of dialect# tpoken by the natives in traversing 30 or 40 miles, and this diversity of language has been perpetuated by th* difflpulAb s in the way of travel. Already a start has been made by

Um United States officers in Manila, Where ih« streets have been greatly improved, and this feature of American progress has been one of the most papular of any Introduced by our people. There item* to be a noticeable connection between the means of communiMtton of a country and its progress to-

•raid Hvilization. Bodily motion appears lo stimulate movement mentally and spiritually. If, therefore, the sl,OOO.ri'O lust appropriated for good roadh la Luzon Is devoted to the making of satisfactory highways and is not partly tH verted into the pockets of shiftless •T dishonest contractors who give no equivalent therefor, it is probable that, whatever may be the ultimate fate of the Island, future generations of Filipinos will applaud the first legislative lot of the American commission as one Of the wisest steps it could have taken. "•Chicago Record.

| milPVtac Foreat Praatmi, v Upon the recommendation of the war flq»rtm«nt the agricultural departjgent le preparing- an order netting •part bb foreat reserves the island oi Rojnblon, which is north of the island of Panay; also the island of Pauitaal, which is one of the extreme group of tiie Jolo islands of the Philippine group. Officers of the army who hare been Investigating the islands have ■ found that these are the richest lands In the world for rubber trees, and it it the Intention of the Washington authorities to have the trees preserved

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C two Op .. - aa. . ~.e imet sugar industry is a. ;-■■■• - „ut i.no maple sugar indust; y i-c • a problem. It pays belter tk-e-fourths of our farm work. *■- .t eeuts a pound maple sugar fa.. „a- -:y market, while much of the betlek ;oJuct sells at ten and twelve cent... be sirup is sold by producer’s uiroct.j t o consumers at one dollar a gallon-v-'cy rarely at less than 80 cent:. Throughout Xew York, New Jersey, perm; - ’.vynia and other states this ci reel sale to- consumers cakes up u iar ; ; • part of the product, excepting only tv,.. or three counties of northern Xew York. But it is not just now as a market product that the subject should be mainly considered. Every family is r. sugar consumer and a sugar buye; Most farmers can make t-fc larger pa; of this sugar supply as easily as the can raise their own potatoes. A fain of six or seven will consume from o, to two barrels of r-ugn r in a year. Granulated so ■ v"l erst sticii a fa" - ' from ' 1 fr. trees b .0. pounds o r. 1. . the trees stand iu Ike open. T.'. • . uct is leas where the sugar s ; from trees in the forest. Th-d is cq alent to at least Jut If the fan 1 "« quirements for sugar. Cut 1 of sirup will make uu aggrcm e.-v per tree even higher. A greve c trees standing in the open wnl ocnot more than a quarter of ;-n Besides the sugar product, the gre Is advantageous for shade, also for v. enormous product of humus each fa and for windbreaks and shelter, and as an equalizer of temperature and moisture. Maple trees should grow in grove. They do not thrive well ; street trees, where they are subject G. much abuse of the saw and exposure o f the trunk to hot. sunshine. A gvo--' might well be given place on every fa---of 20 acres. Why shall there not 1-c • general planting of maple groves diming the spring of 1898? — N. Y. Tribune. HANDY FARM APPLIANCE. A Oevtow That Serve* Every Purpose of the Stone Boat. Several, years ago the writer felt the need of something lighter and sirrA than an ordinary stone bout for convey ing light artieles around the farm. Th: result of some study was the device shown in the illustration, which thr hired man says is “about the I-andie.- 1 thu g on the farm.” It is, * sort of cross between a stone

a bob sled. The length over all is iiv feet, the width 2i/, feet. The runnerare of hard maple, five feet long, ten Inches wide, and two inches thick, tm forward end rising 3% inches. The hardpiece is also of hard maple plank, SO inches long, two inches thick and one foot wide. An oval hole three inches from the front edge affords a

means of attaching' a chain for hauling. This piece is firmly fastened to the runners by six bolts —three at each etff —of which the heads are countersunk in the lower sides of the runners. The floor is made of white ash boards, inch thick and 30 inches long, nailed cross wise, flush with the outer edge of the runners. This is surmounted on either side by a hickory rail two inches thick and three inches wide, extending the entire length flush with the outside. These rails are secured in place by four inch lag screws. Made thus of selected materials, and firmly put together, it has been in use, .summer and winter, for five years, and is still nearly as good as new, save for the natural wear on the runners.

For conveying plows, cultivators, other implements, seeds, etc., hauling barrels of spraying mixture, removing bowlders, and other light short hauls around the farm, it has become almost indispensable. On a small farm it serves about every purpose of the oldfashioned stone boat, and la of much lighter draught.—George A. Martin, in N. Y, Tribune. How to Fight Black Rot. Black rot has been causing serious loss among the cabbage growers, and the department of agriculture has been investigating the disease, which, it is said, may be spread by the seed, manure and insects, especially slugs. Late-planted cabbage are less liable to ' damage than those planted early. The I germ develops best in very hot weather, while cool weather seems to check it. notation is advised as a means of prevention. The bulletin observes that the planting of other crops for a lons series of years seems to be the only satisfactory way of getting rid of the disease when it has once become serious. Fields that have shown even a little of the disease should not be planted to cabbages or other cruciferous plants for several years.—Agricultural Epitomist. Not a Good Thing to Do. ) We do not approve of tying trees to stakes, though this is often recommended and often done. The bark is apt to be rubbed and injured in spite of watchfulness. Much better is it to reduce the size of the head so the tree will stand without aid. Nor would we ’ll up around a tree to brace it, -ause often, when the ground is «v‘ in the winter, the swaying of the tv pens the earth about the stem, whu is filled with water, and this, late freezes and kills the bark and damage the tree.—Rural World.