NOTES AND GLEANIFGS.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 279, 7 July 1888, Page 6

NOTES AND GLEANIFGS.

To Dress Sheepskins jfok Market.— Seven pounds' arsenic, six pounds washing soda, ten gallons water; boiluntilthearsenic is thoroughly dissolved. ■ For use, one part of the mixture to sixteen of water ; apply with an old brush, and spread the skin squarely to dry, it possible, under cover. This plan has withstood the test of practice. No weevils will attack skins so dressed, even when they are packed and stored for months. Objection to £{ lnginu Pig^. Awi iter in , one <'f the English paper claims that, the practice of ringing swine ib one of the principal causes of the production of disproportionately fat pork, and that an indulgence of the animal in its natural desire for digging and rooting is "highly beneficial to the proper development of the sinews, which is very essentia 1 in the produce of lean or stteaky meat, now bo much desired." Butter Jars. — An improved butter jar, the invention of H. E. Hinman, Revenna, * Ohio, consists mainly of a strong glass cylinder and two wood end caps or coveis, which are 'itteel to the outside of the tube and are adapted to press on packing material placed at the finds of the tube to make air-tight joints A meta 1 clamp is provided which jritisp- both top and bottom caps, and can be screw od tight. V\ ithin the tube are one or two plungers, the inner faces of which next i i'C butter ate formed with any de-ired destp> 1.0 imprint the butter as it ib removed f:>i u-i . 'J he jar having smooth true sid> s, tin; bu tor can be pie&bed out from eithu end ;ni<l I lie projecting piece cut off. The tube-« being made of a given size, the butter car. b« measmed, .saving the trouble of weighing it. This plan of making butter in ceita n size rolls, and measuring it in-tead of weighing it, still survives in C ambiidge, England. Setting Gate Posts. — A writer tells the Farm Journal that in setting a gate po&t a good plan is to dig the hole tor the post three to three and a half feet in diameter, put the post in the centre of the hole and fill it up with concrete. This will keep the post in its proper position as long as it is a post. He had two heavy £ates> to hang a few months ago, and put in the hanging posts on this plan, and the result i& they have not sagged a quaitur of an inch. The gates are eighteen feet \\ ide, and are opened and shut at least twenty times a day. Fecundity ov a Sow. — A wonderful but well-authenticated story of fecundity on the part of a sow,sayh an e\change,comes fiom Attleborough. The .sow, which belongs to a farmer in the neighbourhood, is a crossbred animal, and was mated with a pure bred boar. She farrowed the enormous number of 24 live pigs, of which she actually brought up 17. If this animal does not beat the record, she comes very near it. Swims Manure. — As generally managed half the value of the manures from the pig pens is wasted and lost. This is because it is not appreciated. It is well known that nitrogen and phosphoric acid aiethe two most valuable elements of fertilisers. In most soils they are, indeed, the only elements we need, ordinarily, to supply at all. Harris, in hit? work on manuie-, compares the value of a load of fifty bushels of fresh maouve, ptessed and free troin straw, at follows : — Horse 12\57 Ib. nitrogen. Cow 12*05 „ „ Sheep 1045 „ Swine .. . .. 2250 „ „ Thus it will be seen that in nitrogen, the most costly element farmers must apply to their soiU, swine manure ranks much in advance ot ehe others named. The exnrement can be saved by providing -plenty of absorbeuts in the shape ot straw, litter from jhe horse stables, and dry earth, which, besides its value as an absorbent, is the best deodoriser in the world. Its ut>e in the pens will keep them free from smell and poisonous taint, and laTgely reduce the liabi lity to disease. Last faU 1 fattened twenty hogfc and supplied them with dry earth, the manure and litter from the horse stable and occasionally cut straw. The stable manure and litter was wheeled to the pig pens and dumped in every morning. By night it was well worked over and. thoioivjhly mixed. This was then sprinkled with riry earth and left for another day, receiving the stable contents in the morning. Twice a week the pens were cleaned out and the contents composed with the cleanings from the cow stab'es. I think this manure was worth double, load for load, that made in the ordinary way. — Ohio Farmer Improvements in R lapers and Binj>krs Speaking of Hornsby's reaper and binder Australasian Ironmonger &ays :—Notwithstanding the success of this machine in the field list year, numberless minor improvements have been made. A conveyer roller has been added, which enables the maclvne to be lower, and prevents any loose stuff touching the driving wheel. A third or auxiliary packer, driven at half .speed, ha& been added, co prevent any accumulation at the buttor. The canvas or driving rollers are made of increased diameter to get more friction, and are made longer, the frame being recessed to receive them, which is intended to prevent the possibility of clogging. All gearing has received extra protection ; the rail has been lengthened, and a fourth sheaf spring added ; the draughtpolehas been fixed in a new manner, namely, with cotter bolts instead of bolts and nuts, so that it can be unshipped without any labour ; and from the many minor details which have received attention, it is claimed that the machine is one horse lighter in draught than last year. Care of Working Horses. — A good bed of fresh straw is a great inducement for a tired horse to lie down. Clean grooming wirh an occasional washing, will also give restfulne?s and improve the appetite and general health. Over-feeding is 1 not the cure for loss of flesh by hard wnrk and lack of rest. Wash all galling parts of the harness, and keep them soft with castor oil. A little powdered aloes, rubbed in with the oil, will keep vermin from attacking the harness. The amount of work to be ob'ained from a team depends largely upon the driver. Some wiU "worry and sweat a team when drawing only an empty waggon, ' while others can drive the same team with a heavy load, and nob wet a bair. Kindness goes far towards making a load draw easily, while an inhuman jerking upon the bits, or an injudicious use of the whip/ may be the leading causes of poorness in flesh of horses. Farming in Japan.— Japan has an area of 150,000 square miles, or about 100,000,000 acres ; but of this area it has only 12,000,000 acres in cultivation by the spade, mattock, or plough. From this cultivated area all the food and textile plants are grown to feed and clothe 38,000,000 people. The land outside of this cultivation does not contribute by grazing to their support, as the Japanese wear no woollen clothing, and eat neither beef, pork, mutton 1 , milk, butter, nor cheese. The utilised area yields them only fuel. ' Their 12,000,000 acres do even more than clothe and .feed their 3 ,000,000 people. They yield 40,000,0001b of tea, 25,000,000 bales of silk, and large quantities ot rice, tobacco, and hemp for exportation.

Spayed Heifers for Bees\ — A correspondent of the New England Homestead says : " I will briefly state that spaying is a profitable operation for the farmer who desires to produce beef to advantage. It is the safest and best by far to spay in the spring or as soon as the grass has started. It can be safely done afc any age from four months to eight years old and upwarda, provided the animals are in good condition and not pregnant. As feeders they will bring first price in any country. The meat of spayed heifers is excellent in quality, far superior to that of ox or steer beef, and "when dressed is as fine as beef can be for the market, and should command a higher price. It is a fact that spayed calves and ' heifers fatten sooner than steers of the [ same ago with the same care and breeding, I and with this tendency to fatten, a spayed heifer is more profitable than the cow, and the loss by the operation is very little when a skilful operator is employed/ Perpetual Leaseholds. — Some time ago we expressed the opinion in The Farmer that before long the obvious practical advantages of the perpetual leasebold tenure would be generally recognised by intending settlers, and that those wanting land for cultivation would choose to occupy it under that tenure in preference to any other offered by the Government. As a sign that sensible members of the community are coming to look with increasing favour upon perpetual leases we may quote the following from the Normanbycorrespondent of a Taranaki paper :— " A peculiar instance of how one person may lead many, came under the writer's notice the other day. A man in course of conversation observed that he would like a deferred payment section, but the deposit required in advance prevented him from taking one. A listener suggested the perpetual lease system, and on making inquiries he found that this just suited him he selected a 100 acre section, and since no less than five of his relatives have taken up iano. near him, and are gcing to live on it." Exporting Crass Seed. -The exportation to Great Britain ot grass seed from the West Coast of this island has commenced, out of the plentitude of the past season's harvest. The supply was altogether in excess of demand, and hence a market had to be found further afield. Messrs Stevens and (Norton have been moving in the matter and are making ready an experimental shipment of fescue and cocksfoot. They are of opinion that a good line in grass «eeds might be done with the Old Country if the ) ate of freight were only a little easier. As it is, £6 per ton is felt to be somewhat obstructive to active business in certain direction!?. — JVe?t; Zealand Times,