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HOW TO USE CEMENT.
Useful in Many Ways.
1st Premium.—Portland cement is being
used on- the farm more extensively every
vn:ir. Cement formerly was used in eis-
lerns and cellars only, aud then as a plaster. Now floors in poultry and hog
houses, etc., are made of cement. Ditches
in the cow stables, water troughs for the
, altle, basins in milk houses, walls in cellars and around lots, and walks also, are
cheaper and prettier made of cement than
of stone, especially where the nice lime
atonies are scarce or hard to get at.
To make floors in poultry and hog
houses, use 1 part cement to 2 parte
gravel. Dig into the earth to a depth of
six inches and fill in with gravel. This
prevents the cement from being affected
when the ground freezes in winter; also it
affords drainage. Cisterns may be plastered with cement, and need not be walled
with brick if the earth they are made to is
tough clay. But if brick is used as a
wall it should be plastered with cement,
using 1 part cement to 2 parts sand; mix
thoroughly, and add water to the consistency of plaster. Apply with plasterer's
trowel. Cement   the   bottom   last,   and
mix cement for bottom with coarse gravel
instead of sand. Concrete cellar and other
walls are made by making a frame of
boards or plank of the right hight, and
with open space between the two sides as
wide as the wall is wanted thick. Fill in
with beat up rock and gravel, and pour on
Portland cement. Leave the frame in
place til! the cement hardens, then remove,
and you have a wall if properly made that
looks as well as solid stone and is about
as serviceable.
Cement walks are made on the order of
doors. The gravel is tramped .firm, to
a depth oC 5 or 6 inches, then the mixture
of cement, made 4 parts sand and 1 part
cement, is spread on smoothly. Several
coats of cement may be put on, to make
a firm walk. One coat should be well
dried before another is put on. Plank
or boards should be staked firmly along
tne edges of the walk before the cement
aud gravel i!_ put in. This makes the
edges straight. They may be marked
in squares, or left as a solid mass, as
is preferred. The large posts used to hang
gates on will never lean if they are filled
around with concrete before the dirt is
tramped iu. Hitch posts and fence posts
are very serviceable and cheap when made
of cement or concrete.
Farmer.
Good Rule for Mixing.
2d Premium.—The materials for making
the best concrete are clean, sharp sand
and a good quality of gravel or crushed
stone free from dirt or sticks. We hear
much disputing as to the proportions of
cement to the other materials. Crushed
limestone requires less cement than sand
and gravel, as it takes more cement to
fill the vaoancies or air spaces, between
the particles of sand and gravel than it
does in crushed limestone. A good rule
is to fill two similar vessels, one with sand
and gravel, the other with water; pour
water from the latter until it just covers
the sand aud gravel, and then use as much
cement as you have used water, as all of
the spaces are filled. Concrete made in
'his ratio is much stronger than if twice
"lis quantity of cement  is  used.
In making walks, etc., only mix enough
for one block or what can be used at once.
believe walks and floors would be much
better if they were made in sections; also cellar walls, as the freezing weather
Of winter would not crush them as it
sometimes does. They could give somewhat, nnd would settle after thawing
weather. Also   the   sections   could   be
taken up and replaced, as sawed stone
walks are. I saw a cellar wall a few
weeks ago with a crack running from near
the top downwards and all the way across
the wall. Such would not have been if
it had been made in- sections. The most
important things to consider are, first, a
good quality ot sand and gravel; second,
of cement; third, mixing ouly the amount
to be used before it sets, as it is worthless as a concrete after thia takes place.
Cement posts for wire fences can be
manufactured at a Very reasonable cost.
The cold weather has uo effect oa them,
neither does the heat. There is no danger of burning the posts, if the fence row
burns  out. They   are  certainly   a  suc-
n ess as posts. M.  A.
Kosciusko Co.
Topics  for  future  numbers:
No. 535, June 9.—What do you believe
to be the best way to put up timothy
hay for greatest value?
No. 53(i, June 10.—Please give us some
tried and good recipes for putting up fruits
and jellies.
No. 537, June 23—What is the best
thing to do  with ragweed?      Is it alto-
Barn on Farm of __.   Sheets near Moran.
Keeping  this  in  mind,  anyone who  possesses a little ingenuity can make his own
walks, floors, cellar walls, steps, etc.
Martin  Co. E.  G.
Easy to  Keep Clean.
3d Premium.—In many sections of the
couutry concrete floors are coming in
favor. Especially do grout and cement
foundations aud floors for hog houses attract swine growers. Absolute cleanliness
can be secured on cement floors for such
houses. Cement floors are not very expensive, ond are the cheapest floors in
the end, if properly constructed. Simply
use the best cement, sharp sand and small,
sharp stones in the proper quantity. Have
the foundation ground hard ami level.
Then make the mixture of sand and cement, three parts of sand to one part of
cement, stirring the mass thoroughly until
it is uniform in color. It is very important that the sand and cement be thoroughly mixed, if you want to be successful with your floor. Then put in the
stonea and mix all together once more.
There should be about five times the bulk
of the cement in stones. The mass should
be well wet, so that it will easily slide
off the shovel. Then fix a tamper, having it about ten inches wide each way. A
board nailed in- the end of a three by three
strip will make a good tamp. Pound the
maaa until the water appears evenly on
tlie surface. Be careful in going over it
the last time and get it as level as possible. When you have it even and level,
let the mass dry for from three to five
days and your floor is done.
gether useless?
Premiums of $1, 75 cents and 50 cents
are given for the best, second and third
best articles for the Experience Department each week. Manuscript should be
sent direct to the Indiana Farmer Company, and should reach us one week before date of publication.
NEW RURAL ROUTE RULES.
New regulations governing the use of
signals in connection with free rural delivery service have been issued by the Post
Offlce Department to take effect on July
1. The new arrangement will prove a
matter of convenience and dispatch for
both carrier and patron.
According to the new regulations each
mail box must be supplied with a signal
which can be moved up and down. When
this signal is displayed the carrier will
know that mail has been placed in the
box for collection, but if it is not displayed he will be expected to stop and examine the box unless he has mail to deliver. The carrier also is required to display the signal when he has left mail iit
the box.
That system, it is said will facilitate
matters in many ways. Many times the
carrier is forced to open and examine
boxes in which he has none to deliver. If
a signal is not displayed he will not have
to waste time examining the box and can
hasten towards his destination. In the
same way the owner of the box will not
be required to make fruitless visits to the
box when no mail has been left for him.
The regulation will be rigidly enforced.
VzUvitmv® j@«patrtmjeut
Edited by L.  A.  Grlener,  M.  1*.   V.  S.,  14-16 S.
.Alabama St.,  Indianapolis.    Advice by mall $1.
I have a fine mare that was kicked on
hind part of joint on left hind leg; swelling
and fever all gone but a large puff remains.      Can it be removed? R.
Answer.—If the swelling is soft it may
contain puss or serum; if so it should be
lanced and the cavity washed with water
and carbolic acid twice a day. If however the swelling is hard I would advise
the application of a blister once a week for
three weeks. The horse should not be
worked during this time.
How can warts on a milking cow's
teats be removed?        Cow is giving milk.
Subscriber.
Answer.—By using Fowler's solution of
arsenic once a day (by means of a bru.*J_
and, using milking tubes for drawing the
milk  instead  of the  hands.
What ails my mares. They swell a little back of the fore legs aud just iu front
ofl teats and then works together. It
seeps yellow water aud produces an awful itching. They are iu good shape and
are kept in a good dry stable. (^. H.
Answer.—A dropsical coirditioii vc^y
likely due to your mares having had «
slight attack of pleurisy during the spring
months but unnoticed by you. Treatment
should consist in giving a mild dose of
oil say pint morning and night with a
tablespoonful of turpentine to each pint
of oil. Then follow up with the following powder: Sulphate of iron 2 ounces;
nitrate of potash 4 ounces; powdered gen-
tiana 2 ounces. Give one dessert spoonful night and morning in bran and oats.
Allow plenty of grass.
I have a mare that eats hearty for oue
or two feeds, then she won't eat more than
cne or two ears of corn the next time. She
lias been this way since February. She
has been in good fix, but is getting thin
now ou account of not eating better. She
always misses one feed every day when
she won't eat, although I am working
her. What is good for her? What is
good for horses with bots or colic, an-d
kidney trouble? G. K.
Answer.—I am of the opinion that there
is something wrong with your mares teeth.
I would advise you to consult your nearest
veterinarian.
I have a colt 2 years old; been feeding
equal parts corn- and oats all winter. It
knuckles in the left hind leg; the other leg
is  all  right. M.  E. J.
Answer.—Knuckling in hind ankles is
due to several causes. You do not say
whether or not your colt is lame; nor do
you give any history of the case. Knuckling may he due to hock lameness to an
injury «f the foot flexor tendon or sesse-
moids which one of these is it? My advice to you would be to call your local
veterinarian and locate the trouble.
Editor  Indiana   Farmer:
Please inform me through your valuable paper if rye sown and plowed in as
you plow your corn the last time, would
grow and make a winter and spring pasture and protect the ground from leaching
and  washing. A  Subscriber.
Greene County.
—It would be better to sow after plowing and cover with a light one horse harrow. If covered with the plow much of
the seed would fail to come up. Properly
sown the rye would make early spring
pasture and prevent washing.