12 Tho Nebraska Independent JANUARY 3, 1907 oococ Agricultural A PSAM OF FARM LIFE Maud Miller on a summer day, Set a hen in a brand new way. (Maud, you see, was a city girl, Trying the rural life a whirl.) She covered a box with tinsel gay, Lined it snugly with new-mown hay. Filled it nicely with eggs, and then Started to look for a likely hen. Out of the flock she selected one, Then she thought her work was done. It should have been, but this stubborn hen Stood up and cacklod "Ka-doot" and then Maud Muller came, and in her surprise Looked coldly Into the creature's eyes, Then tied its legs to the box. "You bet I know how to make you set." But still it stood, and worse and worse Shrieked forth its wrongs to the uni verse. Kicked over the box with its tinsel Kay, And Ignorainiously flapped away. Then a bad boy over the barnyard fence Tee-heed: "Say, Maud, there's a dif ference 'Tween hens, you know and it is that One says 'Ka-doot' and one 'Ka-dat.' " v And ever since that historic day She blushes in an embarrassed way To think of the hobble she made once when She tried to set a gentleman hen. American Fancier. Improved Farming Great stretches of prairie, immense tracts of upturned sod, the dug-out and sod barn were the prominent features of the northwest a few years ago. Now the well-cultivated farms, the comfortable farmhouses, the big barns, the herds of cattle, the fine horses and the prosperous farmers, all give evidence of the returns to be had from good farming on fertile soil. In the south the methods of farming have been greatly "changed and improved. Northern farmers entered the south ern states, carrying with them im proved methods and energetic exam ples that have resulted in greatly im proved conditions. Live stock and forage crops have been more largely Introduced and cotton alone is no longer the sole dependence of that section. In the central west, where farming has reached its highest development, advancement in recent years is also strongly marked. Hotter buildings are to be seen, improved machinery is used, better method of cultivation are general, pure-bred live stock and good roads are receiving more attention, and the farmer himself la beaming with the prosperity that has developed and Is developing. In fact, nil sections of tho I'nltcd States have shown won Department derful advances with increased sue cess and prosperity in the farming communities. And on the farmer lives the world. His success means pros perity for all. Cabbage on Weedy Land I depend on weeds very largely to make my cabbage. Every year I se lect a weedy place, one-half an acre or so. Early in the spring haul out the fresh, coarse manure and spread on the plot. By June 10 I have a big growth of weeds. I turn them under deep, and draw a float over to smooth and level the ground. Do not the harrow. Then seed with Early Winnlngstadt cabbage. Worms never bother and I get, a good crop every year. Perrin Epperson, Montana. A few strokes on the right side of the cow with a rough gunny sack and a few wipes with a damp sponge will usually remove all the loose hairs and animal refuse and very few specks can be seen on the froth of the milk. Observations made by the United States bureau of forestry show that lightning more frequently strikes oak trees than any other kind. Beech trees are practically exempt from damage by thunderbolts. Bill Nye's Cow Bill Nye Is credited with having act ually advertised a cow with which he had had an unfortunate experience, as follows: "Owing to ill health, I will sell at my residence, in township 19, range 18, according to the government sur vey, one plush raspberry cow, eight years old. She is a good milker and not agraid of the cars, or anything else. She has undaunted courage and gives milk frequently. To a man who does not fear death in any form she would be a great boon. She is very much attached to her home, at pres ent by means of a log chain, but she will be sold to anyone who will use her right. She is one-fourth Short horn and three-fourths hyena. I will also throw in a double-barrel shot gun which goes with her. In May she generally goes away for a week or two and returns with a tall red calf with wobbly legs. Her . name is Rose." Dairy Wisdom Never put off churning when the cream is ripe. Gllt-edgo butter can not be made from overripe cream. The minute it is overrlpo all the delicate aroma is destroyed. No amount of fussing will reclaim butter that is off flavor poor quality. The churning is not all of the butter making. It Is made from the time tho milk is drawn from the cow. Everything should bo first rinsed in cold water in order to remove all mlllc before it has dried. Then wash thoroughly with warm water, In which put some sal soda. Never use a cloth. Steam Is best If you have the appli ances; if not, boiling water is effec tive. Then place the utensils where they will be thoroughly aired and dried. Never put the cover on the churn ex cept when you are churning. The export trade in American but ter is growing very rapidly. In 1904 and 1905 the amount exported was 10 million pounds each year. In the fiscal year, ending June 30, 1906, it had in creased to 27,360,537 pounds,, the value trebling in the two years. Poultry Notes Wholesome and nutritious food makes hens lay rich eggs. Hens should be provided with new nests after each laying season. Poultry diseases that you do not understand can best be cured with an axe. The hen's value as a winter egg producer lessens after the second year. A pound of sulphur burned in the poultry house will destroy lice and other vermin. If breeding birds are bought in the fall they will be in better condition for duty in the spring. If the poultry house floor is a dirt one, remove about five inches of it and replace with fresh earth from the garden. The hen that persists in spending half the day on the roost instead of doing her duty, will taste pretty good as a stew. The man who buys fruit trees to put into his orchard should inform himself of the nursery conditions un der which the trees were grown. The nature of the soil in which they were started and made their first few years' growth and should not be far different from the nature of the soil in which they are subsequently to grow. If the ;rees have been started in a very rich soil with an abundant supply of moist ure they will receive a check that will result! n a permanent stunting. Without doubt this is the hidden cause of the failure of many an orchard. It s more likely to be the case when trees are brought from very distant places, say a thousand miles or so away south or north. It has been thought that the failure of so many trees thus obtained was due to some hidden quality in the climate, but it appears to the writer to be more rea sonable to assume that the difference in soil conditions largely accounted for the failures. Vitality of Alfalfa Seed A remarkable test of the vitality of alfalfa seed is reported in Bulletin No. 110 of the Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station. It is generally considered that seed must be perfect- y new in order to come up freely. In iulletln No. 35 of thn Experiment Sta- Ion, some tests were given of seeds ranging from one to six years old. 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