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VOL. XXIII. INDIANAPOLIS, IND., SATURDAY, JAN. 28,1888 NO. 4 Written for tbe Indiana Farmer. Zero Jottlngrs. MY JOHN B. EVES. While the mercury is hovering about i zero the farmers' work usually consists of tending to the stock and the various other "chorea" Incident to the season. While thus engaged, it is not strange if lessons are learned which shall be of benefit to us when the season of greater activity comes. WINTER QUARTERS FOR STOCK. Among the questions that are likely to present themselves for our serious consideration is this one: Is the stock provided with good quarters and plenty of suitable food? Too many barns are built without regard to the entire exclusion of the cold winter wind. The farmer who has a good hank barn large enough to contain all of his horses and cattle, and feed-for them, not only has a convenient and comfortable place in which to do his feeding but a place where his stock may pass these frigid days and nights in comparative comfort—with profit to their owner. ARBITRATION. My attention has lately been called to this subject by a difficulty between landlord and tenant being adjusted by arbitra tion in this neighborhood. There are but fewright-mindedindividuals, who would not rather have a difference settled in their own, locality, by parties of their own selection, or approval, rather than to place the cause in court where, in a great measure, they resign control of it. In the settlement of a difficulty by arbitration it is common for each party in the case to select a person to act as arbitrator and these two individuals may, if desirable, select a third party to act in conjunction with them in the matter. It is optional with the parties to the case whether or not the arbitrators shall be sworn (or affirmed) to faithfully attend to the matter entrusted to them. After the arbitrators have been selected an agreement should be entered into by the parties submitting the case to the arbitrators, (naming them in the document) who, when they have reached a decision should make a written statement in detail, which should be ap pended to the agreement above referred to. I will not give forms of the agreement and report, as a slight variation from the usual form will make but little difference. Cases thus settled are much more likely to be satisfactory than if settled in court and are much cheaper. In these times of financial depression farmers have no sur plus funds for lawyers and officers. PLOTTING ORCHARDS. Many farmers do not seem to realize the importance of keeping a record or plt,t of their orchards. To many of such I have sold trees to replace those that had died or been destroyed. Having no record of what 'hey had planted they were "at sea" as to what varieties W6re to be replaced. The best and most simple way I know of for plotting an orchard is to take a large sheet °' Plain white paper and rule it in checks of, say an inch, more or less according to "'■-e °f paper and number of rows in your orchard. Mark the sides, north, south etc. and write the names of varieties on the '■ crosses representing their location. J Mooresville. ! i The Question of Interest. Editors Indiana Farmer: The account book came in roll and I laid »t under books to flatten it. To-day I took t out to see what I thought of it. There *s one point in which I condemn it. What business have farmers and other toilers to do with fostering the idea of interest. There is nothing more profoundly wise in all the Bible than the Mosaic law against interest. We encourage the idea »n.„,Dsl*restlsright'and t°-cUythe ton. era of the world pay the non-tollers inter- e«on many thousands of millions of dol- Your account book is compiled on the idea that the farmers' land must earn interest. Suppose the farm is worth ?4,000; at 4 per cent, tl^e interest would be $160; though tho rate is generally computed at 6 per cent, which would make the interest account f 240. Let us further suppose that the sales amount to $600 during the year and the expenses to $500; now add the interest to the expense account and it amounts to $740, or $140 more than the income. By your reckoning the farmer is running behind §140 a year. Take a community of one thousand farmers and they are get ting poorer at the rate of ?140,000 a year. According to this idea, it will only be a question of time when they will lose their farms. Now the truth of the matter is that the individual farmer is adding §100 a year to his net income, and the community is adding $100,000 annually to its income when you strike interest from the computation. i The Mohammedans conform more nearly to the principles of exact justice between man and man in forbidding interest than Christians do. I never realized so fully the meaning of the words of Christ, "By your traditions ye have made the law of none effect," as in this departure of the Jews from the law of Moses against interest. S. B. H. Crawfordsville, Jan. 8. —Leaving a blank space for interest ac count does not make it obligatory on you to keep such an account unless you choose to. We do not care to discuss the question of the right or wrong of taking interest, but taking things as they are it seems a very proper thing to charge the farm and stock with interest on the amount of money they would bring if sold. It is what is done in all other branches of business. The merchant and the manufacturer take into account the interest on the value of their buildings, fixtures, machinery, etc. If they are not making a profit in excess of this they are losing ground, and had better sell out aud try something else. So, in the example you give, it would be called unprofitable farming if the figures were such as you state. To show this, let us suppose that your farm is a rented one, and that you pay a cash rent of say S3 an acre on 80 acres, and that your sales from crops am* unt to $600, and your expenses, exclusive of rent, amount to $500. By this reckoning you would be running behind $140 a year, and must quit the business. Where is the difference, whether you charge yourself with interest or rent? To know just how you stand you must do one or the other.—Eds. Board of Agriculture, as very few men yield the offllce voluntarily after they get there. There was much talk at the late meeting of the Delegate Board about how to awake an interest in behalf of the agricultural institutes. How would it do to hold an institute in each district and let each district elect its own member to the State Board at this institute? That would give interest to the meeting and place the election where It belongs, In the hands of the people they represent, instead of the other districts dictating who shall be their member. And it would prevent all combinations in the election, for I have seen members elected to the Board over a majority of delegates from their own districts. Also let the law say that no person shall hold the office more than four years out of six. I believe It would give a new impulse to the agricultural interest of the State, and that tho State Board would lose none of its efficiency by this change, and the people would feel more like they were running tbe groat fair of the great State of Indiana. Farmer. Traders Point. A Change Demanded. Editors Indiana Farmer: I have attended the meetings of the Delegate State Board of Agriculture for a number of years and have been a member of three ot the industrial conventions, some of them from their organization, and have attended nearly all the State fairs that have been held since the organization of the State Board, and have not or would not say or do anything to lessen the efficiency of the Board in any way, but would ever help hold up their hands if they need any help. But there is a wide spread feeling through the State that we have outgrown the law that was enacted' between 30 and 40 years ago for the organization of the Board. One of the principles canonized in the hearts of the American people is for no one man to hold office too long (look at Gen. Grant), No man is so good or great but he has his equal, and would not the State Board come a little nlgher the people if we put a little more new blood in it, as Governor Porter said in his message to the Legislature a few years ago. There seems to be a charm attached to the office of the State Written for the Indiana Farmer. Decomposition of Manure. BY JOHN Jf. STAHL. I can remember when the farmer was given much advice about rotting the stable manure. Well rotted manure was highly esteemed." The latest teachings would show that it has been unduly esteemed. It now appears that it is not profitable to ripen manure unless the decomposition can be controlled; and usually this includes an expense greater than the gain. When the decomposition is rapid, there is_certain to be a loss—a rapid loss. Ammonia, or even free nitrogen is formed, and of course lost. On the other hand, slow decomposition usually forms nitrates, which are retained in the manure, unless leached out; and as nitrates are readily available to plants, the slow decomposition of manure makes it more immediately available to crops, hence more valuable In the case of crops required to be pushed as soon as tbe manure is applied to the land. Some manures decompose more rapidly than others. What are termed warm ani mal manuresdecompose the most rapidly, and therefore are most liable to waste when their decomposition is not controlled. In quickness of decomposition, the manures come in order as follows: horse, sheep, swine, and cattle. However, this cannot always be depended on; for the rapidity with which the manure will decompose depends somewhat on the quality and character of tbe food and the amount of it fed. Horse and sheep dung usually decompose more rapidly than swine and cattlo dung. By mixing the cold manure of cattle or swine with the warm manure of horses or sheep, the decomposition of the latter is retarded. Generally It Is a good practice to mix together the dung of all the farm animals. Cattle manure ferments slowly because it contains considerable water,packs solidly, and Is finely divided; or rather, it packs solidly because it is finely divided. Manures deconfpose slowly when kept moist and solidly packed. Horse manure loses very rapidly in value when allowed to remain in loose heaps. On accoutn of its coarseness and dryness, it is impossible to pack pure horse manure very solid ly; hence It can be kept well only when mixed with some finer, moister manure. All manure heaps should be kept tramped down solidly. This is most economically accomplished by feeding the hogs on the heaps, being careful not to allow the animals to lie there. The animals will fine and mix the manure as they compact it. The decomposition of animal manure is retarded by mixing with them straw,'or dry earth, or some such absorptive substance. Straw used for bedding animals not only keeps them clean and warm, but also absorbs and holds the liquid manure, and retards the decomposition of the mass. .Unless straw is unusually high priced, it is highly economical to use it liberally for bedding. And by sousing it, and carrying it, with the solid excrement, when it has become saturated with liquid manure, to the manure heap, we get It decomposed, and therefore in a condition making it of value as manure. Unless the straw is decomposed first, it will have little val ue spread on the, land, since nearly all of its valuable elements will be exhaled into the air or leached ,out of the soil 'while there are no plants , to use them, as they are set free by decomposition; not to speak of the interference the unrotted straw would be In cultivation. Straw saturated with urine is strongly inclined to decompose,slnce the nitrogenous elements of urine—urea, uric acid and hippuric acid —are the very ones that decompose most readily. Hence the liquid manure has a desirable effect upon the straw, while the straw has a desirable effect on the liquid and the solid manures, when they are brought into close relation. Once it was thought very wasteful to spread the manure on the fields in winter, but we now know that this may be a very good practice. It is certainly better than allowing the manure to ferment rapidly, as it will in loose or dry heaps; or to be leached by the rains in exposed heaps. As the manure is taken to the field It should not be put in small heaps, but be spread upon the land at once. In the small heaps it will decompose rapidly and waste; spread on the land it will decompose slowly, and the waste will be small, though once it was supposed that it was very great. As the great majority of us western farmers treat our manure heaps, it would be better to have no heaps at all, spreading the manure on the land as it is made; unless, indeed, an unusual amount of coarse, long straw has been used for bedding. Quincy, III. -. ♦ . Letter from Eastern Nebraska. Editors Indiana Farmer: Dodge county, Nebraska, lies north of the Platte river, and is the second county west from the Missouri river. We have a rich soil, a good climate and the best of water in wells and springs. The past season was very dry here, but crops did very well. Corn yielded from 40 to 75 bushels, oats from 20 to 40, and spring wheat from 15 to 30 bushels per, acre. Some 15,000 or 20,000 head of cattle are being fed for market in this county; and yet the. elevators at our nine or ten railroad towns are overcrowded with corn; it being hard to get cars enough to ship it as fast as received. We have one of the largest creameries in the west with cream routes running to all parts of thecountry. Dairying is practiced by many farmers. They are now getting 20 cts. for cream. Apples and grapes made large crops. Potatoes were damaged by the loDg drouth,but yielded enough for home use. Bees did well. Notwithstanding our many advantages land is comparatively low. Improved farms sell at from $25 to $30 per acre. Owing to our nearness to market and our grand facilities for all kind of farming, , stock growing, orcharding and dairying, land is bound to advance rapidly in value. Well-to do farmers in the east, who have families growing up, should come to Nebraska and get cheap land for the boys. Land here at §25 per acre is better than fre e land on the arid plains of Colorado and Wyoming. Old Settler. Glencoe, Dodge county, Nebraska. 1 s> . Samuel Irkit, 80 years old, was attacked and killed by hogs on his farm, near Wellsvllle, Ohio, last week.
Object Description
Title | Indiana farmer, 1888, v. 23, no. 04 (Jan. 28) |
Purdue Identification Number | INFA2304 |
Date of Original | 1888 |
Subjects (LCSH) |
Agriculture Farm management Horticulture Agricultural machinery |
Subjects (NALT) |
agriculture farm management horticulture agricultural machinery and equipment |
Genre | Periodical |
Call Number of Original | 630.5 In2 |
Location of Original | Hicks Repository |
Coverage | United States - Indiana |
Type | text |
Format | JP2 |
Language | eng |
Collection Title | Indiana Farmer |
Rights Statement | Content in the Indiana Farmer Collection is in the public domain (published before 1923) or lacks a known copyright holder. Digital images in the collection may be used for educational, non-commercial, or not-for-profit purposes. |
Repository | Purdue University Libraries |
Date Digitized | 2010-11-30 |
Digitization Information | Original scanned at 300 ppi on a Bookeye 3 scanner using internal software. Display images generated in CONTENTdm as JP2000s; file format for archival copy is uncompressed TIF format. |
Description
Title | Page 1 |
Subjects (LCSH) |
Agriculture Farm management Horticulture Agricultural machinery |
Subjects (NALT) |
agriculture farm management horticulture agricultural machinery and equipment |
Genre | Periodical |
Call Number of Original | 630.5 In2 |
Location of Original | Hicks Repository |
Coverage | Indiana |
Type | text |
Format | JP2 |
Language | eng |
Collection Title | Indiana Farmer |
Rights Statement | Content in the Indiana Farmer Collection is in the public domain (published before 1923) or lacks a known copyright holder. Digital images in the collection may be used for educational, non-commercial, or non-for-profit purposes. |
Repository | Purdue University Libraries |
Digitization Information | Orignal scanned at 300 ppi on a Bookeye 3 scanner using internal software. Display images generated in CONTENTdm as JP2000s; file format for archival copy is uncompressed TIF format. |
Transcript | VOL. XXIII. INDIANAPOLIS, IND., SATURDAY, JAN. 28,1888 NO. 4 Written for tbe Indiana Farmer. Zero Jottlngrs. MY JOHN B. EVES. While the mercury is hovering about i zero the farmers' work usually consists of tending to the stock and the various other "chorea" Incident to the season. While thus engaged, it is not strange if lessons are learned which shall be of benefit to us when the season of greater activity comes. WINTER QUARTERS FOR STOCK. Among the questions that are likely to present themselves for our serious consideration is this one: Is the stock provided with good quarters and plenty of suitable food? Too many barns are built without regard to the entire exclusion of the cold winter wind. The farmer who has a good hank barn large enough to contain all of his horses and cattle, and feed-for them, not only has a convenient and comfortable place in which to do his feeding but a place where his stock may pass these frigid days and nights in comparative comfort—with profit to their owner. ARBITRATION. My attention has lately been called to this subject by a difficulty between landlord and tenant being adjusted by arbitra tion in this neighborhood. There are but fewright-mindedindividuals, who would not rather have a difference settled in their own, locality, by parties of their own selection, or approval, rather than to place the cause in court where, in a great measure, they resign control of it. In the settlement of a difficulty by arbitration it is common for each party in the case to select a person to act as arbitrator and these two individuals may, if desirable, select a third party to act in conjunction with them in the matter. It is optional with the parties to the case whether or not the arbitrators shall be sworn (or affirmed) to faithfully attend to the matter entrusted to them. After the arbitrators have been selected an agreement should be entered into by the parties submitting the case to the arbitrators, (naming them in the document) who, when they have reached a decision should make a written statement in detail, which should be ap pended to the agreement above referred to. I will not give forms of the agreement and report, as a slight variation from the usual form will make but little difference. Cases thus settled are much more likely to be satisfactory than if settled in court and are much cheaper. In these times of financial depression farmers have no sur plus funds for lawyers and officers. PLOTTING ORCHARDS. Many farmers do not seem to realize the importance of keeping a record or plt,t of their orchards. To many of such I have sold trees to replace those that had died or been destroyed. Having no record of what 'hey had planted they were "at sea" as to what varieties W6re to be replaced. The best and most simple way I know of for plotting an orchard is to take a large sheet °' Plain white paper and rule it in checks of, say an inch, more or less according to "'■-e °f paper and number of rows in your orchard. Mark the sides, north, south etc. and write the names of varieties on the '■ crosses representing their location. J Mooresville. ! i The Question of Interest. Editors Indiana Farmer: The account book came in roll and I laid »t under books to flatten it. To-day I took t out to see what I thought of it. There *s one point in which I condemn it. What business have farmers and other toilers to do with fostering the idea of interest. There is nothing more profoundly wise in all the Bible than the Mosaic law against interest. We encourage the idea »n.„,Dsl*restlsright'and t°-cUythe ton. era of the world pay the non-tollers inter- e«on many thousands of millions of dol- Your account book is compiled on the idea that the farmers' land must earn interest. Suppose the farm is worth ?4,000; at 4 per cent, tl^e interest would be $160; though tho rate is generally computed at 6 per cent, which would make the interest account f 240. Let us further suppose that the sales amount to $600 during the year and the expenses to $500; now add the interest to the expense account and it amounts to $740, or $140 more than the income. By your reckoning the farmer is running behind §140 a year. Take a community of one thousand farmers and they are get ting poorer at the rate of ?140,000 a year. According to this idea, it will only be a question of time when they will lose their farms. Now the truth of the matter is that the individual farmer is adding §100 a year to his net income, and the community is adding $100,000 annually to its income when you strike interest from the computation. i The Mohammedans conform more nearly to the principles of exact justice between man and man in forbidding interest than Christians do. I never realized so fully the meaning of the words of Christ, "By your traditions ye have made the law of none effect," as in this departure of the Jews from the law of Moses against interest. S. B. H. Crawfordsville, Jan. 8. —Leaving a blank space for interest ac count does not make it obligatory on you to keep such an account unless you choose to. We do not care to discuss the question of the right or wrong of taking interest, but taking things as they are it seems a very proper thing to charge the farm and stock with interest on the amount of money they would bring if sold. It is what is done in all other branches of business. The merchant and the manufacturer take into account the interest on the value of their buildings, fixtures, machinery, etc. If they are not making a profit in excess of this they are losing ground, and had better sell out aud try something else. So, in the example you give, it would be called unprofitable farming if the figures were such as you state. To show this, let us suppose that your farm is a rented one, and that you pay a cash rent of say S3 an acre on 80 acres, and that your sales from crops am* unt to $600, and your expenses, exclusive of rent, amount to $500. By this reckoning you would be running behind $140 a year, and must quit the business. Where is the difference, whether you charge yourself with interest or rent? To know just how you stand you must do one or the other.—Eds. Board of Agriculture, as very few men yield the offllce voluntarily after they get there. There was much talk at the late meeting of the Delegate Board about how to awake an interest in behalf of the agricultural institutes. How would it do to hold an institute in each district and let each district elect its own member to the State Board at this institute? That would give interest to the meeting and place the election where It belongs, In the hands of the people they represent, instead of the other districts dictating who shall be their member. And it would prevent all combinations in the election, for I have seen members elected to the Board over a majority of delegates from their own districts. Also let the law say that no person shall hold the office more than four years out of six. I believe It would give a new impulse to the agricultural interest of the State, and that tho State Board would lose none of its efficiency by this change, and the people would feel more like they were running tbe groat fair of the great State of Indiana. Farmer. Traders Point. A Change Demanded. Editors Indiana Farmer: I have attended the meetings of the Delegate State Board of Agriculture for a number of years and have been a member of three ot the industrial conventions, some of them from their organization, and have attended nearly all the State fairs that have been held since the organization of the State Board, and have not or would not say or do anything to lessen the efficiency of the Board in any way, but would ever help hold up their hands if they need any help. But there is a wide spread feeling through the State that we have outgrown the law that was enacted' between 30 and 40 years ago for the organization of the Board. One of the principles canonized in the hearts of the American people is for no one man to hold office too long (look at Gen. Grant), No man is so good or great but he has his equal, and would not the State Board come a little nlgher the people if we put a little more new blood in it, as Governor Porter said in his message to the Legislature a few years ago. There seems to be a charm attached to the office of the State Written for the Indiana Farmer. Decomposition of Manure. BY JOHN Jf. STAHL. I can remember when the farmer was given much advice about rotting the stable manure. Well rotted manure was highly esteemed." The latest teachings would show that it has been unduly esteemed. It now appears that it is not profitable to ripen manure unless the decomposition can be controlled; and usually this includes an expense greater than the gain. When the decomposition is rapid, there is_certain to be a loss—a rapid loss. Ammonia, or even free nitrogen is formed, and of course lost. On the other hand, slow decomposition usually forms nitrates, which are retained in the manure, unless leached out; and as nitrates are readily available to plants, the slow decomposition of manure makes it more immediately available to crops, hence more valuable In the case of crops required to be pushed as soon as tbe manure is applied to the land. Some manures decompose more rapidly than others. What are termed warm ani mal manuresdecompose the most rapidly, and therefore are most liable to waste when their decomposition is not controlled. In quickness of decomposition, the manures come in order as follows: horse, sheep, swine, and cattle. However, this cannot always be depended on; for the rapidity with which the manure will decompose depends somewhat on the quality and character of tbe food and the amount of it fed. Horse and sheep dung usually decompose more rapidly than swine and cattlo dung. By mixing the cold manure of cattle or swine with the warm manure of horses or sheep, the decomposition of the latter is retarded. Generally It Is a good practice to mix together the dung of all the farm animals. Cattle manure ferments slowly because it contains considerable water,packs solidly, and Is finely divided; or rather, it packs solidly because it is finely divided. Manures deconfpose slowly when kept moist and solidly packed. Horse manure loses very rapidly in value when allowed to remain in loose heaps. On accoutn of its coarseness and dryness, it is impossible to pack pure horse manure very solid ly; hence It can be kept well only when mixed with some finer, moister manure. All manure heaps should be kept tramped down solidly. This is most economically accomplished by feeding the hogs on the heaps, being careful not to allow the animals to lie there. The animals will fine and mix the manure as they compact it. The decomposition of animal manure is retarded by mixing with them straw,'or dry earth, or some such absorptive substance. Straw used for bedding animals not only keeps them clean and warm, but also absorbs and holds the liquid manure, and retards the decomposition of the mass. .Unless straw is unusually high priced, it is highly economical to use it liberally for bedding. And by sousing it, and carrying it, with the solid excrement, when it has become saturated with liquid manure, to the manure heap, we get It decomposed, and therefore in a condition making it of value as manure. Unless the straw is decomposed first, it will have little val ue spread on the, land, since nearly all of its valuable elements will be exhaled into the air or leached ,out of the soil 'while there are no plants , to use them, as they are set free by decomposition; not to speak of the interference the unrotted straw would be In cultivation. Straw saturated with urine is strongly inclined to decompose,slnce the nitrogenous elements of urine—urea, uric acid and hippuric acid —are the very ones that decompose most readily. Hence the liquid manure has a desirable effect upon the straw, while the straw has a desirable effect on the liquid and the solid manures, when they are brought into close relation. Once it was thought very wasteful to spread the manure on the fields in winter, but we now know that this may be a very good practice. It is certainly better than allowing the manure to ferment rapidly, as it will in loose or dry heaps; or to be leached by the rains in exposed heaps. As the manure is taken to the field It should not be put in small heaps, but be spread upon the land at once. In the small heaps it will decompose rapidly and waste; spread on the land it will decompose slowly, and the waste will be small, though once it was supposed that it was very great. As the great majority of us western farmers treat our manure heaps, it would be better to have no heaps at all, spreading the manure on the land as it is made; unless, indeed, an unusual amount of coarse, long straw has been used for bedding. Quincy, III. -. ♦ . Letter from Eastern Nebraska. Editors Indiana Farmer: Dodge county, Nebraska, lies north of the Platte river, and is the second county west from the Missouri river. We have a rich soil, a good climate and the best of water in wells and springs. The past season was very dry here, but crops did very well. Corn yielded from 40 to 75 bushels, oats from 20 to 40, and spring wheat from 15 to 30 bushels per, acre. Some 15,000 or 20,000 head of cattle are being fed for market in this county; and yet the. elevators at our nine or ten railroad towns are overcrowded with corn; it being hard to get cars enough to ship it as fast as received. We have one of the largest creameries in the west with cream routes running to all parts of thecountry. Dairying is practiced by many farmers. They are now getting 20 cts. for cream. Apples and grapes made large crops. Potatoes were damaged by the loDg drouth,but yielded enough for home use. Bees did well. Notwithstanding our many advantages land is comparatively low. Improved farms sell at from $25 to $30 per acre. Owing to our nearness to market and our grand facilities for all kind of farming, , stock growing, orcharding and dairying, land is bound to advance rapidly in value. Well-to do farmers in the east, who have families growing up, should come to Nebraska and get cheap land for the boys. Land here at §25 per acre is better than fre e land on the arid plains of Colorado and Wyoming. Old Settler. Glencoe, Dodge county, Nebraska. 1 s> . Samuel Irkit, 80 years old, was attacked and killed by hogs on his farm, near Wellsvllle, Ohio, last week. |
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