VOL. LX.
INDIANAPOLIS, JULY 15, 1905.
NO. 28
UTTLE SHIPS OF THE AIR.
Naturv   Kt«»ry   S)n-
(l*..l.}ri|,-hte.i.     l-.io.'s,   by   Tli*
■Urate.)
"Wt*    wosil.l     lime    .-on   to      wit   that   on egis
l-ioili:!]   He   sit.
And ar* sjslkitl  t.n  a  pipit;  au.l  atv tmked  Id  a
IsH 11,
Itlrsls nn* tslslsr l.y far thau  jour ancestors ar*.
Au.l   masts*   love   ausl   iiiasl*   war,   er*   the   making «-/  111UI1."
— Aiulrew Lang.
Out on ino apple treo tin oriole* is putting <m his water-proof coat, the waterproof eoat wliich birds have worn,—I was
going to say since tho world liegan—but
lhat would be inaccurate. More correctly he is water-proofing his coat, for
birds know a trick by which even their
most travel-worn garments may Lc made
every bit as good as new iu respect to
either beauty or utility.
As far ns scientists may judge, birds
wore fur before they wore feathers, and,
perhaps, si ales before they even got as
far as fur. Itut, of course, at that
time they were not really birds,—they
were reptiles.
The earliest point in their history at
which om feels any safety in beginning
is the period at which that which
we now call bin], ' but which
was then a reptile, began to climb
trees. This     may     have     been      be
cause he had enemies he desired to avoid;
perhaps there were dainties upon wliich
lie regaled himself at the top of the tree;
or possibly the dim silent forests of the
voiceless world palled on him, and to
pass time, he and his brothers instituted
a game" of tree climbing. A perilous
amusement, especially if the wind blew!
And where was the good of eluding his
enemies if in the end he fell to the ground
and   was   killed. Or  what  advantage
in filling his stomach or excelling his
biothers if he were laid up so he could
not crawl for a week. Merely for warmth
these tree climbers had begun to indulge
in a scant covering of something resembling either fur or down. There must
have been dissatisfaction with this costume, and a general desire for improvement, because there came eventually a
new family of tree climbers upon the
scene. Tree climbers who displayed a
zest of recklessness never before characteristic of the family, and who if tbey
missed their footing, no longer fell with
a disagreeable flop, but floated down
through the resistant air softly as vagrant thistle-down and calmly as does the
man with the parachute. Simply because they had increased by tufts and
bunches tlieir original furry covering.
These parachutic descents were, it is
supposed, the first attempt to flight These
rr.travagant bunches of down were the
Isoginning of feathers. This periods the
parting of the ways at which they said
goodby to things lhat Creep and are typical of meanness and subtlety, and began
that long climb- which changed them to
things that soar, emblematic of innocence and aspiration.
Trobably the next change substituted
wings for fore legs. Some reaching out
toward a neighboring tree, some need of
comfort or safety, started  that transfor-
warm blood of bird-life. An extraordinary feature of (he respiratory system of
the larger birds is the connection between
their lungs and the hollow bones of their
legs. This is so complete that a bird
may breathe through a broken leg even
though its throat is compressed. In birds
of great flight a larger and more knife-
like kneel attaches to the. breastbone;
some have found it necessary to have four
collar bones. There are never less than
nine, and itr some cases twenty-three vertebrate in the neck. Wings bear a strange
resemblance to arms. There is an upper
and lower arm with the ellnow joint,
wrist bones and an attempt at a hand.
Upon the thumb grows a single feather
called the "winglet;" on the fingers "pri-
gxpzxizntz fSzpixxXmzxxX.
THE USE  OF  CEMENT ON  THE FARM.
Cement Has Many Uses.
1st Premium.- One of Ihe chief objections to farm life is thai il subjects men
anil women- to the mud. Walks about
the barn, milk house, chicken house and
pig slys may be made of cement. So
with IIiHirs in all these necessary buildings. There is no other floor one-half
so good. It is a little too hard for the
stalls in which heavy animals, as horses
and cattle, have lo stand; but the trough
immediately behind the cattle, and all
floors upon which water and oilier liquids
may be expected to fnll, are simply perfect
The fanner can make some of these
things himself; but, it is usually best to
employ   au   expert. W.   S.   8.
Oriole in tho Apple Tree.
Cheap in The Long Run.
".'■I Premium. Cement can lio used in
a great many ways on the farm. In
many sections cement buildings aro being constructed ou farms, aud that they
ine likely to be a decided improvement is
I tollable, especially when builders have a
little more experience in constructing
tin in.
There  ought   to  lie  more cement  floors
in farm buildings.        They may be quite
I expensive,  iu  the flrst cost,  but they  are
I the cheapest floors in the end,  il! proper-
| 1}   built. Tliere  need   lie  no  elaborate
selection of material; simply  the best ce-
j incut,     sharp   sand   (irot  sandy   soil)   and
small, sharp stones in the proper quanti-
! ty.        The   foundation  ground  should  be
hard and level.        Then make the mixture
of sand  and cement,  three parts of sand
to one    cement, stirring    the    mass thor-
| oughly  until  it  is  uniform  in  color.       It
j is important that the sand and cement be
I thoroughly   mixed. Their     supply   tho
1 st lines,    and mix all again, doing it thor-
! oughly. There   should   be   about   five
' times  the   bulk   of   the  cement  in   stones.
The   imiss   should   be   well   dampened,   so
1 that,   il   will   readily   slide   off   the  shovel
when   placed   in   position. Thou   fix  a
i tamper, having it full 10 inches wide each
j way—a board nailed in the end of a three-
; by-three strip  makes    a  good   tamp—and
j I" d  the  mass  until  the  water  appears
I evenly on Uie surface. Ue careful about
I g«iiiig over it the last time and get it
I as  level  tis  you  desire. Let  the  mass
] dry from three to five days and the job
j is done. A Header.
marics." Short, rounded concave primaries indicate laborious flight. Long, flat
and firm speak of swiftness. Large, con-
cavo and softly fringed belong to stealth
nnd silence.Next come the "secondaries"
inserted in wrist and ollxnv; from elbow
to shoulder are the "teriaries." Tail
feathers, acting as rudders are "rectriccs"
or directors. Those soft short feathers
which overlap as did the scales of bygone
times, affording warmth and protection,
are "coverts."
Master Oriole is ^till preening his
feathers. To let you into his secret: he
presses his beak or mandibles against the
oil glands in what is commonly called the
"pope's nose." Thus procuring tho requisite oil he draws his feathers through
his mandibles and restores their waterproof qualities and their gloss. Every
bird his own valet! His little neck twists
to reach every part ot his body. Looking from him to the pigeons on the roof
with their writhing iridescent necks positive heritage from ancestors that crept,
hitherto unthought of resemblances, emphasize the declaration "Birds are but
glorified reptiles."--Georgiina Frazer New-
hall.
when made of this article.
The chicken house and  pi
frequent scrubbings, and cement floors are j ture.
j     No. -ISO, July 22.—Tell how to get rid
sty require j of nox'°"s weeds in garden, field and pas-
the easiest of all to scrub. Likewise,
the buggy house, where vehicles must
often le washed, may be provided with
a floor, all parts of which decline to a
lew place in the center or at one corner,
where an orifice allows the dirty water
to escape,
toin   for a  cellar,  aud  walks  aud  terrace
No. 490, July 29.—Show the importance
of careful selection- and saving of seed
corn for next year's planting.
Premiums   of    $1,   75   cents  and     50
cents are given for the best,    second and
Com.mt makes the idea'l'boV-   ,hird best articles for tl,e Experience Dec-liar,  and  walks  and   ferrace i l|;,r''"<'nt  each  week.    Manuscript should
benches besides. I '"' stnt ('ir<'ct *° tIle Indiana Farmer Com-
t,l  course  the   cistern   is   walled   with \ |,any nn<1 8,"",I<1 rea'" us onc wcck "^tore
brick;   but   upon   the   brick   may   Ik;   laid j
! date of publication.
SOROUM HAY.
Waldo F. Brown, of Oxford, Ohio, says
mation which to-day makes of a 200-mile | that more than ten years' experience with
trip for food only an appetising exper- j sorgum leads him to state without fear
ience.
It is a question when birds acquired
beaks. Varied needs brought a variety of
form; there aro beaks wliich are strong,
sharp and curved; others which are long
and slender, and still others which are flat
spoonlike and sensitive.
Teeth were once as common to birds as
to animals. Flight by increasing the circulation changed    reptilian blood    to the
of contradiction that it is more valuable
and fully us nutritious as the best hay,
while it costs but a fraction per ton to
grow it, as compared with what it does
to grow hay.
Notwithstanding the lateness on which
the several experimental plats on the
State fair grounds were seeded and planted,    they are growing rapidly.
a   coat  of  plaster   made  of  cement,   and ]
thus  the  cistern  retains "all   that  is  put j
in   and   forbids   the  entrance  of  all   that
is   without. Cement   makes   a   perfect
vessel for filter material, such as charcoal
ami saml; ami the same is true of a Imix
below the surface, into which may be lowered the milk, butter and such otlier spoil-
able articles as are easily handled.
Cement ror walks is four-fifths sand or
gravel, laid on a bed of pure gravel. This
sulstratum may be ten inches thick or
thicker; and the first mixture of cement
may be seven pecks gravel to oik- of
cement. The top coat should be of sand
r.nd cement, four to oue; sand, not gravel,
in order that the surface may be worked
smooth. The sand must not contain clay
or black loam, ami the cement should
be tested beforehand to be sure that is
"alive" as they call it.
Cement makes u good gate post, fence
post or hitching post; and rings, chains,
hooks, etc., may bo fastened in while the
substance is in tho plastic condition. -
A. cement trough for the well, for the
milk house or the barn yard is imperishable, if made with care. Txt the sand
be used in proportion above cited for the
finishing coat.
OUR JUNE WEATHER.
The June report of Section Director,
W. T. Blytlie, this cily, shows that the
mean temperature of the month was 72
degrees which was the exact average for
the past 'so years; the highest was 91 degrees on 17th; lowest 51 degrees ou Sth;
the rainfall was ".('si inches; while the
average  for same period was 4..T.1 inches.
We have three reports from wheat
glowers in Bartholomew- count}-, Indiana
where large fields yielded thirty to
thirty-two bushels per acre, among these
were fields of Mr. Crump, and of Jlr.
Fred Damn.
A field of wheat belonging to Joseph
Flack, just west of Indianapolis, this year
yielded 25 bushels per acre. It was sold
here  last  week  at  90  cents-a  bushel..
Thirteen bushels of wheat from eleven
shocks of Kudy wheat is the report of
O'Neal Brothers,, in Rush county, this
State.
Scott County, this State, reports a
small field of wheat which this year yield-
esl  over .in bushels  per acre.