SOLDIERS' STOKIES.
ENTERTAINING REMINICENCCS
OF THE WAR.
Graphic Account of Stirring Scene
Witaeaard on the Battlefield and In
Camp-Veterans of the Rebellion He
CitaKxperiencea of Thrilling Nature.
A Pamona Woman of the War.
It would be Interesting to know, says
correspondent of tbe Chicago Times
Herald, how many women served as
aoloiers on both sides in the civil war.
There were many of them, enough for
several companies, without doubt, and
some of theiu distinguished themselves,
won promotions, though I believe only
one received a Governor's commission.
Let me tell about her.
An Iowa gentleman, F. W. Burring
ton, has sent me something about Ma
1or Belle Remold, of whom and her
service much as lioen written, that I
do not rememlier to have seen In print.
It Is that the gallant Major was a
school teacher, the very first one In
Cass County, Iowa. Her father, K. W.
Mnmmlior una in onrlv Battler in til at
county, going thfre In 1855. The fall
of that year the future woman soldier
of high rank taught In a house located
tv on ground upon and around which the
11 city of Atlanta has been built Her
it father had ancestors In the war of the
revolution, and her mother, who came
SIA.IOU HEI.I.E REYNOLDS.
from Connecticut, was a relative of the
lute ex-Governor, , ex-member ' of
Grant's cabinet and ex-Miiiister to Rus
sia, Marshall Jewell. The bright, hand
some independent young lady was a
great favorite in the new county and
her work as n teacher highly appre
ciated. One of her brothers, J. K.
Ma comber, Is a prominent lawyer of
Des Moines, who.se wife is a writer and
lecturer of note, and has taken a lead
ing part In advocating t he rights and
duties of women.
From lh." until 1S''0 pretty and viva-
clous Belle Macomber did not have to
hunt for schools; her fame was abroad
and school officials did the hunting,
fiie never had to take up with a cull
school, where the building was a barn
and the salary lit only to starve on; she
had her pick of the best, m-elved the
highest wages paid any teacher in the
county and was always one of the first
In the new section's 400. Among the
young men who regarded the popular
teacher with a jealous eye was William
8. Reynolds, and In ISM), the year In
which the old ship of state ran upon
rocks and might have gone down if a
modest Illinois man luuln't leen called,
to the captaincy, Belle Macomber be
came Mrs. Reynolds, and soon a f tor
ward they made Illinois their home,
where they were living when the war
came. Mr. Ueynolds did not wait long
after Lincoln's second call for soldiers,
a rail which quickly followed the first
one, before finding himself the choice
of a company of young stalwarts for
First Lieutenant.
When the new soldier Informed ills
young wife that lie had enlisted, ex
pect! ug to see her break down and then
brace up and declare that he should
iiot go, he was surprised to see her face
wreathed In smiles, Joy-prompted, glad
smiles.
"What do you think of It, Belle?"
asked Holdler Ueynolds.
"Think of it what do I think of your
grlng to the war? I nin delighted. It Is
wfcat you ought to do."
"Then you will not object to my go-
"Not I. It is of all things that which
m have most wanted you to do since
Mr. Lincoln's first call."
"Don't you think you will miss me
and wish I hadn't gone?"
"Not for one moment."
It was getting serious. The Lieuten
ant wanted to serve his" country, but
lie didn't quite like to see his bride so
confoundedly happy at the thought of
bis going to war for three years; going,
may be and quite likely, not to return.
He would have preferred a few tears
and an assortment of chidlngs for pro
posing to leave the woman he had re
cently married, to the gladness she
manifested. Seeing that her husband
was In deep water, was distressed over
the turn of affairs, she threw her arms
alsiut his neck and proceeded to give
him a new shock.
"I will tell yon why I Khali not miss
you and shall not want you to come
home. I am going to the war with you.
Now, don't protest."
"But think of it! Think of the long
marches, sleeping on Hie ground, of
dangers in Iwittle. It will not do,"
"Yes, It will do. I am In perfect
health, as strong1 as you and as pa
triotic." When tho Seventeenth Illinois went
South Mrs, Belle Ueynolds went with
If. taking the fare of a soldier. At the
battlu of KhlloU she was under fire un
til compelled to leave. While on her
way to the rear she saw a field hospital.
The white faces of the sufferers and
the groans of those not so badly In
jured Impelled her to stop. She re
mained all day and all night, helping
to care for and cheer the unfortunates
of battle. ,"Thnt angel of mercy," ns
the Midlers called Iter, spent much of
her time In hospitals, nnrslng the sick,
reading to them ami writing their let
ters. The work of this Iowa teacher of
a year lief ore came to the knuwtalge of
Governor Dick Yates Yates of blessed
war memory and he sent her a com
mission as Major. She was provided
with a horse. Her uniform was navy
blue and her shoulder straps the same
as any, Major's, gold leaves and alL
Officers and men had great respect for
her. Often as the Seventeenth passed
other commands the men threw their
hats in the air and gave cheers for Ma
jor Belle Ueynolds. Harper'" and
FraiikLcslie'scontalned pictures of her
riding at the head of the regiment Ev
erybsly In the army. Fast and West,
was talking aliout the woman Major.
Her war record was lu all respects
creditable.
Soon after peace came the Major
studied medicine, and for nearly thirty
years she has been a successful physi
cian and surgeon. She was for some
years a resident of Chicago, where she
had a large practice, often being called
Jn consultation to distant cities. Six
years ago she hx-ated in Milwaukee.
While there I had several conversa
tions with her on her war experience.
At a reception given by Dr. and Mrs.
O. W. Carlson, Major Belle Ueynolds
was the center of attraction with the
twenty or thirty veterans among the
guests. It was while at Milwaukee
that her health failed somewhat. She
went to California on that account, and
Is now practicing at Santa Barbara.
The Real Heroism of the War.
There Is abundant evidence that the
recurrence of the anniversary which
commemorates the events of the civil
war finds each year a truer and juster
appreciation of the men and events of
that geat crisis. The ideal history of
the war has not yet been written, it is
true, and the years may elapse before
It is completed. But the material for
It is being selected, arranged and me
thodically filed away for reference.
The work of getting this vast and com
plex mass of facts together and plac
ing the whole In Its true perspective lu
relation to the world's history has leen
slow but sure. Several years have
gone by since the great obstacle, of lat
ent sectional feeling was removed. A
greater obstacle was the natural senti
ment which has led people to view the
war in the light of prejudice and per
sonal feeling; to see its spectacular and
thrilling features Intend of Its realities;
to look upon the conflict as a whole and
from one point of view Instead of so
berly noting in detail the Innumerable
agencies which were engaged.
It is significant that whereas only a
few years ago almost all that was writ
ten about the war was in tho way of
the unrratiou of Us results and its pic
turesque circumstances, the later ob
servers are applying the method of
realism, bringing out clearly the detail
of the Influences at work and the ac
tual nature of meu and motives.- A
case in point Is to be found in the
most recent endeavors to disclose the
true character of Gen. Grunt. The
best of the recent biographies of the
commander are full of suggestion as
to the plans upon which he worked
and the philosophy of the campaign as
seen from his jiolnt of view. It Is from
biography of. this sort that the people
of succeeding generations will learn to
estimate bis character truly, to see
how practical and sane a man he was
and how little he regarded military
glory. This portrait of Grant, with his
air of practical purpose, his total lack
of showy brilliancy, his quiet industry,
Is worth n thousand times more, as a
picture of his real greatness, than the
eulogies which hav been showered
uion him since the war.
In no war of modern times did so
many meu sacrifice themselves for a
principle. In tin war of history was
there shown sterner devotion to the de
mands of duty. As public appreciation
of the events of the early 'fiO's in
creases the greater must become the
respect for the men and leaders who,
with little taste for empty glory, went
through the unromantlc sufferings of
starvation, filth, physical pain and
weariness with no other purjiose tlum
the grimly practical one of putting
down the rebellion as 8eodlly as pos
sible. The great generalship of the
war was practical rather than brill
iant. It is the spirit of plain devotion
to a cause which Is likely to live as the
heroic note In the contest. The farther
we get from the war the higher must
become the estimate of the grim sin
cerity of Its participants. Chicago
Keeord.
Grant's Anecdote of I'rnitit.
In the second volume of lils "Per
sonal Memoirs" Gen. Grant tells this
story about Gen. Bragg;
"1 have heard In the old army an an
ecdote very characteristic of Bragg.
On one occasion, when stationed at a
K)st of several eomjianles. commanded
by a field olllecr, he was himself com
manding one of tlie companies and at
the same time acting as st quarter
master and commissary. He was firwt
lieutenant at the time, but his captain
was detached on other duty.
"As commander of the company he
made a requisition uion the quartermaster-himself
for something he
wanted. As quartermaster he declined
to fill the requisition and Indorsed on
Ihe tack of it his rensons for so doing.
As company commander he respond
ed to this, urging that his requisition
called for nothing but what he was en
titled to.and that It was the duty of tin
quartermaster to fill It. As quarter
master he still persisted that ho was
right
"In this condition of affairs Rragat
referred the whole matter to the com
ma ndlng ofllcer of the post. The latter,
when he saw the nature of the matter
referred, exclaimed;
"My God, Mr. Bragg, you have
quarreled with every ollleer in the
army, and now you are quarreling with
yourself!"'
1
Inaect M altitudes.
In the report of the Museum Asso
ciation for Mr. F, A. Bather, of
the natural history branch of the Brit
ish Museum, quotes a leading English
entomologist as having informed him
that "new sieciea of insects are being
descrilted at the rate of about six thou
sand per annum." On thinking of the
thousands of specie already described,
and the multitudes of Individuals lie
longing to each species, one gets a live
ly sense of the immensity of the insect
population of the, earth.
Paper Made from Grama.
Among the materials which have
been sutatituted for rags In the making
of paper is esparto grass, which was
formerly obtained for this purpose
from Spain, but is now largely Import
ed by English manufacturers from the
north of 'Africa. It Is a very hardy
plant, flourishing in deserts where oth
er vegetable life Is unable to exist;
and the suggestion has recently been
made that, by cultivating esparto grass
In the Sahara, that great region of
deserts might be partially reclaimed
and turned into a source of profit for
mankind.
A Magnetic Island.
Everybody lias read stories of mys
terious islands exercising an irresisti
ble attraction ou ships passing near
tlicm. These, of course, are pure in
ventions; but there is an Island named
Boruholm in the Bail tic Sea near the
coast of Denmark 'whose rocks, accord
ing to a Vienna Journal, Der Stein der
Welsen. are so strongly magnetic that
they affect the compasses of passing
ships, even as far as nine miles away.
In this manner Boruholm may be paid
to turn vessels out of their course,
since an error of the comiiass-needle
may cause a corresponding error In the
steering of a ship.
To Make War on Locusts.
Locusts have recent ly become a de
structive plague in the Argentine Re-
public, and the tankers and business
I men of Buenos Ay res have determined
' to make war upon them, and have rals-
eil a large sum of money for that pur
' pose. Their first practical step was to
J send to the United States for an expert
' entomologist to look over the field and
plan the camiwiign. Professor Bniner,
of the University of. Nebraska, was
chosen to organize the army of science
.which is to carry on the war, and he
has Just sailed for Buenos Ayres pre
paratory to going to the front. This is
a. kind of war for which arbitration
will prolwbly never be suggested as a
substitute.
Hl.ctrlcity from tho Nile.
( The Egyptian government recently
employed Prof. George Forbes to ex
amine the celebrated cataracts of the
Nile during th-e iicriod of high water,
! with a view to the establishment of
electric power plants like that at Ni
agara Kails. Professor Forbes reports
that during high water the available
horse-power at the first cataract is no
' lts than WsMHJO, while it Is only 35,
000 whe-n the river is low. He thinks
the cost of utilizing this power to gen
erate electricity for transmission to a
'distance would not be so great as to
make the enterprise unprofitable. Per-
;hips within a few years the Nile will
bestow new benefits upon Egypt by
' furnishing the energy to drive irriga
tion pumps, as well as machines of
I various kinds.
Cnrioua Power of X-Kaya.
In a lecture at the Boyal Institution
In London., recently, Mr. C. T. Heycock
described an experiment In which the
X-rays were caused to reveal the struc
ture, otherwise Invisible,. of an alloy of
gold and sodium. Gold easily dissolves
in sodium, which is a silver-white, soft
metal, f uing at a temperature lietween
'200 ami 207 degrees Fahrenheit. When
allowed -to solidify slowly, and then
rut In sections, rtie alloy of gold and
sodium appears perfectly uniform to
the eye, but, when exposed to the X
rays, the artual structure Is shown,
because sodium Is transjiarent to the
rays, while gold Is opaque to them. In
this way It was discovered that the
sodium wns'dtstribijted In crystalline
plates, while the gold was concentrated
between 'these plates, which tra veined
the solid muss both vertically ami hori
zontally. How Wind Deflect. Found.
Ixrd Itayleigb gave, in a recent lec
ture, an Interesting explanation of the
actlou of the wind In preventing the
spread of, sound, toward the direction
from which the wind comes. It Is, he
said, not the wind, as such, that pre
vents sound from traveling against it,
but differences In the strength of the
wind. If, for instance, the wind is
stronger above than below, or .stronger
at one side, Its effect will be to tilt the
sound waves In one direction, or an
other. IUfferences of temperature in
the air also cause deflection of the
waves of sound. Other atmospheric
causes exist which deflect sound from
a straight course, and prevent It. from
going as far In certain directions as It
may have been expected to go. Some
of the sirens at Trinity House, Iord
Raylelgh said,' produce sounds which
ought, theoretically, to be audible at a
distance of 1.500 mile, hut In fact the
authorities would be satisfied If they
were heard only two inlles away. The
rettson for the dlKTeiincy between cal
culation and experiment was probably
atmospheric deflect Ion of the sound.
A Navafrn Marsupial.
The tuMtilled zebra wolf of Australia
is also culled the native tiger; but,
strange to say, it is not even a cousin
to zebra, wolf or tiger, belonging to the
same family as the kangaroo, the slow
and gentle wombat and the sly old
opossum all those animals that carry
their tables In their pockets.
Their eyes, which are large, are fur
nished with a membrane, like the eyes
of owls, and this Is called the nictitat
ing membrane. This Is almost contin
ually moving in the daytime, as the
eyes are exjiosed to more or less of
sunshine. Without this membrane the
amount of light admitted through the
large pupil would puzzle the zebra
wolf.
The general color of the somewhat
short, woolly fur is grayish brown, a
little inclined to yellowish. Across this
ground color the black bands show up
sharp and clear. These stripes are
usually fourteen In number, beginning
just back of the shoulders, where they
are narrowest, and growing broader
and longer back of the haunches. The
skins are In de-maud for lap robes and
rugs, which, gives an added reason for
hunting the wearers.
Two zebra wolves were taken to the
zoological gardens in London, where
they flourished and raised a family.
When tliey came, i was thought Great
Britain would be too cold for them,
but there seems to be no reason why
they should not thrive even In Canada,
as they have been known to live on
the mountains of Tasmania, three thou
sand Ave hundred feet above the sea
level, where the ground Is sometimes
covered with snow for many weeks
and frosta are severe.
Do you wonder that his name Is
slightly mixed? The marvel Is that he
is not named menagerie and done with
it, for with his dog-like face and short,
wolf ears, eyes like an owl, zebra
stripes and a pouch like a kangaroo,
his mixed pickle beastship could an
swer to almost any name you might
wish to call him. When he becomes
exUnct, we can truly say we shall
never see his like again.
Detection by Finger Prints.
By a combination of the Bertillon
method of measurement with the finger
print system any prisoner can be Iden
tified with almost absolute certainty
and in a very short space of time. It
has been calculated that the chance of
two finger prints being identical is less
than one In sixty-four billion, and when
we consider the relatively small num
bers of the criminal population, and
that other personal evidence would be
available in any doubtful case, mis
taken Identity ought now to be a thing
of the past. The method of obtaining
the prints is to press the thumb or An
ger upon a plate of copper which has
previously been coated with a very thin
film of printer's ink. The inked fingers
are then pressed or rolled upon the card
which Is kept as a record. Although
finger prints have been used as a sign
manual from the earliest times, yet it
Is only recently that they have been
studied from a scientific point of view,
and the evidence accumulated is as yet
insufficient to enable us to realize their
value to the anthropologist. Now that
a good system of classification has been
worked out, it Is to be hoped that ob
servers will multiply rapidly, and that
the bulk of the material at our disposal
will soon be considerable.
The Englishman's Wit.
There was an Englishman hailing
from Hull on thla side of the water re
cently looking at America and, of
course, he came to Washington. He
was a large man weighing not less than
250 pounds and rising to a height of at
least six feet three inches. He was for
an Englishman not yet Americanized
quite chatty and affable, after the ice
was broken, albeit Just a wee bit slow
of wit.
"I'm a Hull shipbuilder," he was say
ing to a Yankee newspaper man In a
small party of Journalists who were
blowing him off to a few rations wet
and dry at a foundry where such
things are manufactured.
"Of course you are," responded the
Yankee ns he measured his huge pro
portions and smiled; "you could scarce
ly make us lslieve yon were only part
of one, don't you know."
TlK.se In hearing laughed and the
Englishman looked at the Yankee with
a puzzled, yearning expression on his
broad and honest face.
""Really," he pleaded, "I beg your
pardon;" and then liefore international
complications could nrlse, somebody
called on the Englishman for a speech
or something and the Yankee Joker got
away.
Tbe Crudest Cut of All.
During the winter months the farm-
ers' boys and girls have lots of fun wlthi
their parties, taffy puils, and such en-l
Joymeuts, and considerable humor can
lie found lu their happy repartee. At)
one of these candy parties a guest no
altogether liked by some of the glrla
unfortunately sat In a saucer of maple'
sugar left on a chair to cool off, and
his itncermonioiis departure was the
wonder of the evening.
It was rather bard on the young man,
and It Is doubtful whether he found
anything to end his embarrassment In
the note he received the next day from
the daughter of his host, saying that if
the "Mr. D who ant In the saucer of
maple sugar last night will kindly re
turn the saucer, ho vlll save himself
further trouble."
Tho Men of France. .
France Is the only European country
which has to-day fewer able-bodied
men than It had thirty years ago.
Any wife can make her husband
tremble by saying aha "baa beard
something" about him.
TOPICS FOIt FARMERS
A DEPARTMENT PREPARED FOR
OUR RURAL FRIENDS.
Vegetables Should Be Worked Whea
the Leavea Are Dry Dlrectiona for
Vreaaing Boot Crops See that Your
Barns Are Insured.
Hintaforthe Garden.
Work the vegetables when the leaves
are dry. This Is especially necessary
for beans and peas. If worked when
the leaves are wet, It will produce rust
and Injure the crop at least one-third
Its yield.
Boot Crops. Beets, parsnips and car
rots should be dressed out with the
wheel or haiid hoe as soon as the plants
have made the fourth leaf. The ground
should not be dug up, but only scraped
up just enough to cut all the weeds
away from the plants. The hoes should
be ground sharp. With a good steel
hoe tbe young weeds can be cut close
up to the "plants very rapidly. This
work should be done before the weeds
have become deeply rooted.
Onions. When tbe onion bulbs com
mence to swell take a scythe and cut
the tops off about one-third. The cut
ting of the tops will throw the strength
Into the roots. After the tMrd work
ing, draw the earth away from the
bulbs, leaving the onions fully ex
posed. Bunch Beans and Late Peas. These
should be sown every two weeks. Plow
the ground deeply and harrow it finely;
run the rows out at least six Inches
deep and scatter about half an inch of
fine hotbed manure or barnyard scrap
ings In the bottom of the furrow. If
the ground should be dry, water the
furrow well; then sow the seed and
cover in at once.
Asparagus. The asparagus shoots
should be allowed to grow after the
month of May. If the bed Is cut over
too often it weakens the roots mate
rially, and if the season should be a
dry one these weakened roots will die
out.
tthubarb. The young rhubarb roots
require clean and frequent cultivation.
If the leaves turn yellow it Is a slgu
that the soil is poor. Spread around
each root a peck of fine manure, and
with the maddock dig it in.
Rhubarb Plants.
Abut almost, every farmhouse can
lie found an old, neglected row of rhu
barb plants from which a few cuttings
are made to spring for sauoe or pies.
The sourness and oftentimes rank fla
vor of these old rows of pieplant, as it
is otherwise called, make a liWle go a
good way in most households, for after
two or three cuttings tiie plants are
usually abandoned and allowed to go
to seed. This Is all wrong. A good
variety of rhuiiarb is worthy of liei-ng
eaten the year around. Instcswl of
keeping on with the poor kind, send
for a package of rhubarb seed of one
of the improved sorts, such as'Myatt's
Victoria, and sow It in a garden row.
The plants will come from seed as read
ily as carrots or beets and mostly true
to their kind, a.nd the second season
cuttings can be made freely. Cut off
seed stalks as they a.pier and keep
the ground free from weeds and well
cultivated. If the rhubarb is given a
garden row, this cultivation will come
In with the regular garden cultivation
and will give no trouble. Many farm
ers' families do not appear to realize
that rhubarb can be had in winter as
well as summer. Cooked, as for sauce,
either sweetened or unsweetened, and
sealed in glass jars, It will keep per
fectly, and will be greatly relished in
the middle of winter. Agriculturist.
I n k lire Your Barns.
Before the harvest is gathered, see
that you have placed a reasonable in
surance on the tarn, out-buildings con
nected with the barn and on the hay
barracks in the fields. Have the amount
of insurance specified and written out
In the policy ou each building insured;
then have the stock insured, the wag
ons, carriages and farm tools; and then
the hay, grain and provender. The
rate of insurance is 45 cents per $100
in a good slock company, and in a mu
tual company much lower. There
should be no delay in this matter, nor
should there be any mistake made in
placing the insurance upon the right
buildings. With the best of care the
barn may lie burnt .down by accident,
and without an insurance the lnbor of
years is lost in a few hojrs. A yearly
Insurance should lie had. The Ameri
can. DlrrctinR Hired Help.
Lnlxirers earn more when they are
kept at one kind of business through
out the day. If they are directed or
permitted to go from field to field, or
from one kind of business to another,
they will not always give a good ac
count of their day's work. It Is a good
practice to let our work by the Job
when It can be done. Then the man
feels that he Is at work for himself
and, of course, he will do more work
than lie would for another mini.
Ditching, wood cutting and other
business may be jobbed out. And this
when the employer Is not at home to
direct the work. But the business of
plowing harrowing and tilling among
the com and potatoes should be done
In the presence of the owner. When
Ihe ground lias been well prepared, and
no weeds Interfere, a good man, who Is
used to handling a hoe, will dress an
acre in a day.
It is fortunate that men of large cap
ital cannot Invest In farms, and realize
ns much.as in bank and railroad stocks.
If they could they would soon own
most of the farms In the country. And
fanners would become tenants, In
stead of owners, of the soil. Farm and
Home.
Potatoes for Rxport.
A correspondent write from Pari
that potato culture la liable to receive
a new linis-tus since the plan of sell In
them peeled, sliced and drh-d, like cer-i
tain frulils, seems to be tbe taste of tba
export market. The drying ' the po
tatoes can follow the iiertod of tba
desiccation of fruit. The method ob
viates decay and germination of the'
tuber, and, occupying a less volume,
transient will be cheaper and less diffi
cult. The potatoes are peeled by ma
chinery, next carefully washed, sliced
in rounds, and left for twenty minutes
in a strong solution of kitchen salt. The
brine produces firmness In the slices,
and prevents their changing color, thus
securing what sulphur does for fruits.
Later the cuttings are left to drain,
placed In the dryiuigapparatusonhurdle
shelves, and submitted to a tempera
ture varying from 194 degrees Fahren
heit. They must remain longer In this
hot bath than fruit. Before using, the
slices have to be steeped from twelve
to fifteen hours in water when they
will become as fresh and as flavory as
new potatoes. Exchange.
Letfhorna for Kgire.
For eggs nothing will equal a Leg
horn, so it would be best to select a
White Ieghom cockerel for the year
lings and a White Leghorn cock for the
pullets. When the chicks are two days
old, take a pair of scissors and snip off
their wing on one side at tbe flrst.Jolat,'
so as to remove all flight feathers, and
they will never bother you by flying
and can be kept within a two and a-half
foot fence. This must be done at night
by lamplight, so that the other chicks
will not pick at the single drop of blood
that forms. By morning these are, heal
ed and the olilcks as lively as crickets.
No bad effect is noticeable, and In the
future the Leghorns are no more trou
ble than any Brahmas. Leghorns cam
be put to pens of fifteen to twenty hens
to one cock, according to the vigor of
the cock. The best capons are made
from any of the heavy breeds. None
of the smaller breeds is worth bottler
lug with. Germantown Telegraph.
Sodkinc Parsnip Seerl.
It is very hard to get parsnip seed to
grow, probably because the dry, woody
covering over' the germ absorbs watei
very slowly. The seed needs so long a
time to germinate that weed seeds
which have been soaking in the ground!
all winter get the start ami make it a
difficult crop to care for.. We have ab
ways found it an advantage to soaK
the seed until it was beginning td
sprout. At first it should be put in
water as hot as the hand can bear, and
so kept fifteen minutes. This will be
enough to wet through the outside cov
ering. and will thus hasten germina
tion. When the seed is planted especial
care should be taken to compact th
soil closely around it Exchange.
Peedinar Clover in Knolls.
It Is often hard work to get a'elovei!
seeding on the dry, elevated knolls In
grain fields. Lack of moisture is usu
ally the cause. But the evil may bo
remedied by drawing a few yards of
stable manure and spreading over thd
knolls. The manure not only protects
the young clover plants, but it also
holds the moisture in the soil, by check
ing evaporation. This will soon make
them as rich as any part of the field.
It is usually the lack of clover seeding
on such places that keeps them poor.
Thin the Fruit Early.
Where thinning of fruit Is known to
be necessary, the earlier the work Isi
done the better. It is very important1
to have the sap all turned to the fruit'
that is intended to be left to make a
crop. Fruits that are likely to fall
early, and thus thin themselves, may
be left till this self thinning has been
partly accomplished. But when three!
and sometimes four buds for clusters!
of grapes are seen on a young shoot, iti
Is always safe to thin them to two. The1
fruit will be finer and better.
. Ashes for Pears.
If you have a pear tree that bears
cracked fruit, scatter wood ashes all
over the surface of the ground under
the tree out aliout two feet beyond the
outer limbs. Then, at fruit-tkne, note
the reisult. If the ashes sim be stirred
two or three Inches Into the soil, all the
better. American Gardening.
Dairy Dots.
Milk with dry hands.
Put the milk into cans as soon as pos-.
sible.
Remove the cream before the milk id
sour.
Always strain milk as soon as possi
ble after milking.
Harsh treatment of the cow lessens
the quantity of milk.
Keep no more cows than can be fed
and handled profitably.
Good blood lies at the bottom, for a
good loundation is not-all.
A cow In a poor condition is sure to1
give poor, thin, inferior milk.
The deeper the milk is set, the less
airing the cream gets while arising.
The market calls for a fresh-made;
sweet-flavored butter, and will have it.
When butter is gathered In the crenni
In granular form it is never overwork
ed. I A large udder does not always Indl-,
cnte the amount of milk a cow will!
give. ,
When the cows have been long tn'
milk, the churning becomes more diffi
cult. . Working out buttermilk and working
In salt is where the overworking Iw
done.
A really fat heifer Is apt to divert In
to flesh food intended for the produc-1
tlon of milk.
Tbe whole of the cream should bej
well atirred every time that fresh
cream Is added.
A temperature between 00 and 70 de
grees Is best In churning, and tba
cream should be skimmed off.