NOTES zS?--
fltlllilHIIffflH'illll h g rC
4
FARM
Edward B. Clark
V
A purplish red comb indicates bad
health In a fowl.
Tho best egg producers aro not al
ways tho best markot fowls.
Ho that nbusoth his colts may ex
pect to bo kicked by his horses.
Loaves mixed with straw mako an
excellent cover for strawberries.
Tho silo has como to stay as a per
manent form of farm cquipmont.
Clover hay Is about-three times as
valuable n3 corn fodder or shredded
fodder.
Oats nnd timothy bay havo long
boon cousiflored standard feeds for
the horso.
It is still a'quostion whether or not
pasteurization of milk Is banallclal in
every respect.
Well drained- yards and pons will
help to keep tho hogs moro thrifty
and profitable.
Tho covered barnyard is rapidly
coming into favor ns a commodity to
tho farmer and dairyman.
Sweep up every partlclo of sllago
In tho chnto and alleyway and give It
to tho cows at every feeding.
Cold weather is not much of a de
triment to chickens, providing It Is
dry cold nnd tho atmosphoro puro.
When opening your silo bear In
mind that whenever you chango feed
tho chango should be made gradually.
A new poultry roost Is mado of per
forated iron tubing which has been
soaked in a solution deadly to Insect
life.
young geoso aro not to bo picked
tho first year, unless you sell them
dressed, a very difficult thing for tho
novico to do. "
Spraying has como to bo ono of tho
unescnpablo tasks of the agriculturist,
whatever his particular lino of pro
ductive enterprise.
A well-bred animal costs .very llttlo
more to purchase, and generally less
to feed, than a bad ono, whllo tho prog
eny Is always salable.
Scarcity of stock cattle of all kinds
and high prices asked and offered Is
n common local condition reported
from tho corn belt states.
Tho meadows look good for pasture
In tho fall and early spring but tho
man who keeps his cattle off of them
-always gets bettor crops of hay.
Tho dust collected from numerous
vacuum cleaners has proven to bo a
valuablo fertilizer, and Its salo has
becomo a regular business in Paris.
Tho novico when selecting a mm of
tho Downs or other hornless breeds of
Bhecp should bo very careful not to
select ono with Btubs miniature
horns.
It is not tho llttlo, fat, chubby fe
males which should bo retained as
breeding animals, for they almost al
ways provo disappointing at farrow
ing time.
Try finishing somo of your poultry
this fall beforo mnrkotlng. If it pays
to convert corn into Blx-cent pork, it
mny pay better to cpnvert 'somo of it
Into twelvo-cent poultry.
The fall, as soon as tho leaves are
cut by frost, is tho best timo to mako
now plantations of rhubarb and horse
radish. Tho ground for both of thoso
plants must be deop, mellow and rich,
Tho tcmperaturo of cream for
churning should bo 57 to GO degrees.
Wo also churn about one-half hour,
"When butter comes beforo half an
hour It Indicates too high tcmperaturo
of cream.
Fowls cured of roup must not bo
used as breeders, however well thoy
look. Thoy will do for markot, or for
markot eggs, but novor breed from
them as they will tranmult tho dlscaso
to tholr offspring.
In Btartlng n now hedgo begin It ns
soon nB tho ground Is workablo from
roccding frost. It pays to dig out tho
soil nnd enrich it as" for making a
garden bod or border. Tho digging
should bo to tho depth of two feet.
Fnll plowing Is to be preferred to
spring plowing. This applies also to
land for corn that is to be manured
during tho winter nnd spring, A rea
sonable dressing of coarso mnnuro
may bo dlskod in without difficulty,
and Is in better position to aid tho
crop than whon plowed under.
A liberal use of paint means a great
deal to tho farmer.
Tho young turkey, to do well, munt
have plenty of exercise.
Two-fifths of tho world's 100,000,000
swlno aro In tho United Statc3.
Tho poultry houso should bo among
tho first to rccelvo such attention.
Many largo stones, in tho way of
cultivation, mny bo lifted out by ifib
plow.
It Is well to nssumo whon chickens
aro dying that tho dlsoaso is conta
gious. When pigs nro given bad quarters
they can't bo expected to,rpturn good
dollars. .
Just now tho heavy stcor Is a much
sought nftcr article in tho live stock
markets.
All broodors nnd brood coops should
bp . thoroughly cleaned pud put away
for tho winter.
i
Tho prosporousjind most successful
fnrmor In comfortable only whon his
stock Is comfortable.
A rainy day is a good tlmo to repair
and oil up tho oxtra hnmesses usod
during the harvest season.
Obsorvo with care and noto no a
flrgt point that the cow should havo
a largo and amplo-slzcd body.
pood roads arc the reward of com
mon sonso applied to tho locnl man
agement of town or county nffalrs.
A sheep grower can scarcely make
a graver mistake than thnt of grow
ing sheep without regard to their
llcccos.
In dairying there Is no excuse for
the man who goes nt It blindly nnd
blames luck and tho weather for his
failure.
Only well bred stock that Js well
fed and well tnken enro of can mako
monoy on land worth $100 or more
an acre.
Farmers with heavy steady work
now generally try to secure drafty
horses oven when farm work is the
solo object. .
Tho strainer never was mado thai
would tako foul matter out of milk.
Nono ever will bo. You havo got to
keep It out.
If all tho chickens and full-grown
hens run together, tho stronger chick
ens will get most of the feed and keep
tho others poor.
It is self-robbery to tnko a dairy
cow through tho winter when sho
gives milk only flvo or six months out
of tho whole year.
If tho cow's pedlgrco tallies wltb
tho milk pall, then It is consistent,
and a good foundation, or a poor one
as tho enso may bo.
Fancy points may bo of no ndvan
tago to tho farmer, but puro-brcd
fowls will naturally possess Just as
great utility as tho scrub.
Deforo laying n cement stable flooi
caro should be taken to havo the
ground below properly drained and
tho foundation well constructed.
Selection is absolutely necessary in
order to breed nnd build up a good
dairy herd. Ono must cull closely here
as well aB in all other lines of work.
Many good, careful farmers find it
practical to hog off somo of their
corn It will pay you to look into
this qucstlbn, if you havo not already
dono so.
All tho diseases which afflict out
poultry are thoso of domestication
caused largely by ujinatural environ
ment and carelessness on tho part ol
tho owners.
Many of tho details in butter mak
ing can only bo looked after by ex
perience. Much of it must bo lenrned
by doing tho work. No ono can begin
where tho other fellow left off.
Do careful about feeding beet topi
to tho cattlo. Heavy feeding of this
material Is somowhnt dangerous ns it
tends to purge animals. Feed In lim
ited quantities and with other feeds
Bo sure to have your boar-pen fence
boar proof, for tho moro times he
breaks out tho more dlfllcult It will
bo to control him thorenfter. Heavy
woven wiro fencing will hold him se
curely. Never allow breeding cwlno to fol
low steers or dairy cattlo for this Is
a suro method of developing tubercul
osis in swine. This dlsonso seldom
orlglnntos with swlno, but is easily
contracted by them,
Tho calf born in fall does not havo
to wago tho ceaseless war against
flics that tho spring calf does, while
tho cooler tomporatures prevailing
causes tho milk to bo in bettor condi
tion. Scours ns a rarity In fall or win
tor. Tho fashion and Judgment of our
best breeders decree that our low
down blocky typo rnm, ho that weighs
"heavier ' than wo thouKht. "tho llttln
big sheep," Is tho ono which will bo
sought these days of prime Joints of
mutton.
In
HE greater battalion of tho army
of tho birds Is in tho southland for
the winter. Tho warblers wero tho
pioneers In tho march to oscapO tho
cold. Tho naturalists of tho world
would give much to know what It was
In tho torrid tlmo which told those
daintiest of tho fathered croatures
Hint they must be moving on.
Thoro Is n puzzlo for tha scientists oven moro com
plex thnn thnt offored by tho spectacle of migration.
It is to get tho solution or tho problom of why omo
birds with tho recurring autumns invariably seok
warmer climes while others nppnrontly much moro
poorly f!tfcJ by nature to withstand . cold weather
conditions, stay about tho familiar nesting scenes
whon tho snow Hob deep and tho cold Is llko thnt of
"SUAgnos Ere."
Tho titmouse, tho Concord chk-kadoo of Emerson,
s n llttlo feathered gem which looks iib though a
In oath of cold would set It all n-shlvor. Yet this
llttlo follow sticks by his Northern friends all
through tho wintor, when bigger, moro heavily feath
ered, and apparently moro hardy spoclofl havo Bought
out tho orange nnd tho magnolia grovos of tho gulf.
Thora aro coros of othor birds which romnln with
us to plpo n cheerful note over tho snow wastes
whllo their southorn-llylng friend nro nllont amid
tholr congoninl surroundings.
Ono of tho most Interesting bird stutlloa Is thnt
which leads to a porsonnl knowledge of how tho
feathered species caro for themsolves during a tlmo
when exposed mnn, even though hoavlly clothod, at
times (rco-As to dath. It is a question if many peo
ple know how tho despised English sparrow, whom
we alwayB hnvo with us, manages to pull through a
Northern winter without offering himself up as a
socrlflco to Jack Frost. It Is a matter of current but
mlstnken belief among thoso who havo noticed tho
great bulky nests which tho spnrrowa havo built In
almost every tree thnt thoso bunchos of straw, dried
grass, and feathers form tho abiding places of tho
(parrows during tho coldvvlnter nights. As a mat
ter of fact, n sparrow sel
dom goes nenr a tree nest
In wintor. If ho has found
n lodging for his summer
homo In a cornlco of a
building he may go thero
to sleep away tho long,
cold nights, but tho treo
nest Is deserted from tho
moment tho last brood is
hatched.
If ono wishes to know
whoro thousands of tho
sparrows sloop in winter
let him on somo cold night
tako a stout club and rap
with all his might upon an
electric light polo that Is
fitted with an ovorhnnglng
hood. Thero is a llttlo
plntform In somo of theso hoods directly over tho
glass globo. Upon this ns many sparrows as can
conveniently crowd together rost throughout tho
cold wenthor nights. A club rapping oxporimont
on an electric light polo at a Chicago avenuo cor
ner nenr tho North Ship water works lot during
a nownng ou,zara one wintor night resulted lit
tho dlslodgmont of twolvo frightened Bpnrrows.
They fluttered about in tho storm nnd hung llko
so many fasclnntod moths. Whon tho pounding
ceased thoy mado tholr way back to tholr resting
placo and doubtless remained undisturbed until
morning. Their flat was certainly modem in Its
nppolntments, for it was heated and lighted by
electricity.
Tako a trip through a thlstlo field In July nnd
thoro will bo seon scores of goldfinches feeding
on tho seeds of tho prickly plants. Theso llttlo
creatures havo tho appearanco of tho birds of tho
tropics. It would seem thnt barely a breath of
tho north wind would send them scurrying south
wnrd. In truth, howovor, theso hlrdo, frail though
thoy appear, stay with us all winter, yet not ono
person in fifty outsido of tho ranks of tho bird
students knows tho fact.
In lato AuguBt tho goldfinch drops his gold and
black livery nnd puts on a sobor spnrrowliko
garb. This is tho reason why peoplo think that
tho llttlo thlstlo seed lovor has left them and
that another bird has taken Its placo. In tho
Chlcngo Academy of Sciences thero Is pathetic
evidence of how tho goldfinch keeps warm during
tho wintor nights. Tho curator has thero an
orlolo's nest from tho outsido of which hangs tho
body of a goldfinch caught by tho nock and liter
nlly hanged by ono of tho cords with which tho
oriolo has fashioned its homo. Tho goldfinch
has sought refugo In tho nest from tho weather
and on lenvlng it in tho morning has thrust his
head through tho fatal nooso. Theso birds utilize
.tho deserted homos of all their brethren who
build deep nests. Tho goldfinches return night
after night to a nest which un oriolo hnd swung
from tho tips of an elm In Vestorn Springs, 111.
Tho chlckndeo of which somothlng has been
Bald, builds Its nespBomowlmt nftor tho manner
of tho woodpecker, but If obsorvaUon goes for
much, tho bird does not ueo this absolutely safo
and warm retreat for Its winter night lodging.
They have boon startled tlmo aftor tlmo Just after
Bunsot on cold nights from tho vucated nests of
many species of Mrds, tho chlckndeo simply bury
ing itselMu tho warm linings in which tho sum
mer beforo tho young of Its friends had been
cradled.
By mld-Soptcmbcr tho swnllows ono and all
hnd disappeared. It may bo that If tho appear
anco of ono Bwall&w docs not mnko a summer,
tho absonce of tho ontlro trlbo may not mako an
autumn, hut It Is cortnin that tho birds must feel
Bomothlng that bids them bogone, for thoy go in
n body nnd thoy go in tho twinkling of an oyo.
Tho swallows llvo upon InscctB, and thoro Is no
reason as far as food la concerned, why thoy
should not stay at least two weeks longer, for
tholr homes nro in sheltered nooks. Tho hum
ming birds, despite Its dollcncy, stnyB longer than
the swallow and complnins not.
If ono can catch sight of a saucy llttlo wood
pockor going Into a holo In n treo on his lawn at
this season of tho year ho may hopo to havo an
interesting neighbor during tho ontlro wintor. All
tho downy woodpeckers romnln In tho north tho
years through. Somo of tho red heads stay too,
but most of them go n fow Bcoro of miles to tho
south. All of theso birds that remain pass tholr
nights In holes in trees, and at tho time of tho
flrat fall month thoy nro busy locating proper
cold weather habitations. If enough interest in
tho woodpecker Is felt to
keop him as a companion
throughout tho wintor a
pleco of suet bound firmly
to tho limb of n treo and
occasionally ronowod will
insuro his prosonco ns a
guest nB long as tho snow
flies, and with him, tempt
ed by tho suot, will bo a
goodly company of Jays,
chickadees, and golden
crowned kinglets.
Tho klnglot, smallor than any of our birds, savo
tho ruby throated humming bird nlono, manages
to llvo through all tho cold Northern winter and
bo nil tho whllo aa cheerful as a robin In April.
Tho kinglet, as far as tho oxporlonco of ono per
son Is coneornod nt lenst, profera to get IiIb Bum
mcr food In tho thick bushes, nnd Boomlngly hna
a proferenco for thoso which nro nenr clamborlng
vines. Tho kinglets cast about for likely placos
in which to pass tho wintor. Ah far as can bo
ascertained thoy simply got into tho henrt of somo
thickly twigged bush through which run vino
branches and thoro nil night long thoy defy both
cold nnd snow.
Tho grent northern shrike, which 13 duo In tho
northern states from its summor homo in tho
British possessions about Octobor 1, spends his
nights closo to tho bolo of an evergreen treo.
There Is n llttlo clump of evergreen's well within
tho llmltB or tho city of Chicago whoro n half
dozen of thoso birds roost illghtly rrom Octobor
to March. Inasmuch as thoy llvo on a dlot of
English sparrows and spend all tho daylight hours
In tho laudnblo vocation of killing tho Imported
feathered post, tho exact location of tholr roosting
placo will not bo given for fenr somo chnmplon
or tho sparrow might disturb tho rost cf theso
foathored friends, whom many aro unkind enough
to call butcher birds.
As a matter of fact ono nccd foci llttlo anxloty
for tho wolfaro of tho birds that Btay with us in
wintor. Tho mlrsory ditty of "What will tho robin
do then, poor thing?" 1b tear-comnolling, but tho
robin, tho bluebird, tho Jay, nnd tho chlckndeo
will all caro for themselves nnd will feel no envy
of man in his stoam-heated flat.
During tho bitter weather of wintor whllo peo
ple with honrtB In tho right places aro scattering
crumbs and seeds nt their doorsteps for tho llttlo
feathered laud visitors, tho great city of Chicago
ns a wholo la doing Its best to feed tho storm
blown birds or Lako Michigan. Not all tho bow
ago or tho city, notwithstanding tho completion
of tho dralnago canal, is sent towards tho Missis
slppl. Somo llttlo of it Htlll llnds It way into tho
lakes with Its burden of gnrbngo, nnd thoro tho
gull Hcavongors, by eating much of tho output that
from tholr point of appetlto la edlblo, do tholr host
to aid In purifying tho wator Btipply.
In tho dead of winter wheu tho cold Ib bo In
tense that It socms that no exposed crenturo can
llvo, tho woBto of wator between Chicago and
St, Joo, Mich., Is peopled with strango feathored
visitors, who shun tho samo water stretches whon
tho wind bloWB soft out of tho south, A storm
which onco roso nnd preceded a "apoll" of zero
weather brought with It from tho north scores
of strango, boautlful arctlo visitors known as
long-tailed ducks. They may bo seen all through
tho wintor woll out into tho opon wator of Lako
Michigan. Thoy fairly rovol In cold weather
and in cold wntor. It is highly probable that
thoy would nover como to tho groat lakes at all
wero it not for tho fact that ovorything north
wnrd Is frozen solid. Tho male "long-tall" Is a
beauty, with his strongly contrasted black and
whito plumago nnd tho two groat ewooplng tall
fenthors that glvo him Ills nnmo. With his wlfo
ho docs not lack ether names, and lh.oy nro
known In various places as "old Injun," "old
wlfo," "old molly," "old grnnny," "old squaw,"
and "old south southerly." Bocauso of tho oily
naturo or tholr flesh theso ducks aro unfit for
food, and yet tho gunnora on tho Chicago break
waters nnd on tho government pier UBod to kill
dozons of them In tho puro wantonness or sport.
Whon tho Bloplng Btono abutmont Unit pro
tects tho outor Lincoln Park drlvnway, Chicago,
from tho wavcu Is piled high with ico durJns tho
wintor tho vonturcsomo person who will B.;aK
tho sldo of tho pllo may ceo In tho dark wator
only a fow yards boyond ono of U. nost ueuutl
ful ducks known to tho bird kInb'do-n. Tho
golden oyo. or whlstlo wing, froquontu the cold
waters or Lnko Michigan all through tho wintor,
and comes closo to tho shore. It la soldom that
moro than four or flvo aro soon togothor, and
oftonor n single pair will bo found. If tho pro
tection which tho ranlo nppnrontly tries to ox
tond to tho fomnlo during all times ot tho year
bo n basis for Judgment, these birds remain
mated Tor llfo.
Tho goldon oyo almost Invnrlably places him
Bolf botwocn his gcntlor' companion and dangor,
and whon thoy nro Bwlmmlng or Hying to now
foraging pluces ho Invariably leads tho way.
Tho movement of their wings Is so rapid that
It producoB a mimical whlslllng nudlblo at a
groat distance. Bocauso of tho rapidity of tholr
flight tho Indians call them spirit ducks, bollov
ing that somo Bupornatural nld Is given thorn to
add to tho Bwlftncss of their Journcylnga.
Tho best of tho bird scavengers acting as tho
allien of tho Chicago health department In win
tor nro tho herring, tho ring-billed gulls. Tho
herring gull Is a big grnylsh crenturo, almost
puro whito If ho Is thrco years old, with black
tips to his wings. Tho young of tho first yenr
aro mottlod gray, entirely different In npponranco
from tholr parents. Tho result ot this difference
Ih thnt peoplo looking at a wintor flock of tho
gulln think thnt It contains several species. Tho
lagoons In JnckBon and Lincoln Parks aro often
fairly covered with thoso birds, provided a heavy
Btorm Is coming In from tho eastward.
A dollcato-looklng bird Is tho klttowoko gull.
It dncn not Ionic ns If It could stand tho rigors
of lako winter Aveathor for a day, and yot nolthor
storm nor cold BiiccoedH In chilling Its optimism
or In nbntlng Kb Industry. Tho klttownkcs havo
boon In tho lako off Chicago In wintor, and here
thoy doubtlesB occasionally havo remained until
March.
A bird lovor consldors It nn ornithological
epoch when ho boob n groat black-backed gull.
Tho porBlstont and careful observer who cares
nothing for woathor conditions may find this raro
croaturo, perhaps tho largest or our gulls, If ho
will but keop n constant Watch along the lako
front. Tho bird 1ms been seen hero on several
occasions in winter. Its nnmo gives a good de
scription of It, It 1b somotimos "known grew
somojy ns tho "cofllu carrier.'