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VoLX ITOIANAPOnS, MDIANA, JUNE 19th, 1875. Liyg Stock. Jessie Johnson, of Lawrence county Ind., writes us that he has this spring sheared from one old Cotswold buck fifteen pounds of wool, from one yearling fifteen and a half, and another yearling sixteen pounds of wool. These latter were twins. The three yielded 46* pounds. r . s» . Imported Heavy Draught Clydesdale Stallion. "Lord Clyde." purchased from Mr. James Drummond Blaoklaw, Dumferm- line, Fifeshire, Scotland, by Beattie and Miller, 'Whitevale, Ontario, Canada, afterwards sold to Dr. J. P. Forsyth, Franklin, Indiana, United States of America. "Lord Clyde" is a bay horse'rising six years old, sired by "Sir Colin," Sam Maggie by Glassgow Geordie.Grand Dam Fanny Ross by Old Times, &c, &c. Sir Colin, Glassgow Geordie and Old Times were all noted horses in Scotland and were all sires of many prize animals, both of the Highland Societie's show and other shows in Scotland. . ss* s The Merino. Editor Indiana Farmer: I have a . small flock of Merinoes which I think are good. If any one has better I would like to hear from them through the Indiana Farmer. From 30 head I clipped 312 lbs. of unwashed wool. My best fleeces ranging from 15 to 22 lbs. , Owing to the hard winter and scarcity of feed they were not in good condition. I am frequently asked why I raise snch sheep? My answer is, I think they are the most profitable sheep; clipping more wool, eating leas and are more hardy. I would like to hear from some of my brother sheep raisers. H. D. COIsLINQS. Park county, Ind. . _lr..Collings sends with the above some very beautiful samples of his merino wool. We have never seen finer samples than these, and if his flock is secure against the ravages of the dogs, he will doubtless make sheep husbandry both profitable and pleasant. THE LAW OF LIKENESS. In stock-breeding too little attention has thus far been paid to this important law, at least by the masses of breeders. Our present fine strains, have been brought up to what they are by careful breeding and careful management. Once in a while a fair animal may be produced by common ancestry, but experience is uniform in the testimony that this is the exception and not the rule. If the bull had defects back a little in the line of his ancestry, these will crop out as a rule in the product, and while one good animal may be produced by him, a score will be the reverse. The Progressive Farmer says upon this subject that beyond doubt therere are among animals of pure breeding, certain pedigrees which have a higher value than others. But to many minds, it is not quite clear on precisely what basis this superior value rests. Evidently there are those who hold that the worth of the best strains of blood, is independent of the excellence of the individual animals in whose veins it runs. Nothing could be more erroneous. Individual excellence is the one great purpose of improved breeding and. consequently, it is the only true test of value in pedigree^ In other words, that line of descent is best which produces uniformly, generation after generation, the greatest number of superior animals, and, we may add, no pedigree whatever will ensure the production of superior animals under irregular feeding and general neglect. An inferior animal, therefore, belonging to any pure breed, lacks not only a high value in itself but gives evidence against the value of its line of descent. The want of value in the individual is, to that extent, the. want of excellence in the pedigree. Who can assure us that a defective bull will beget perfect calves because hi3 ancestors were models °f beauty? He may, indeed, transmit the qualities of his ancestry, but the chances are that he will transmit his own qualities rather. The law of likeness operates more uniformly than that of reversion, and it is, consequently, unwise and unsafe to pay high prices for animals which have nothing to recommend them but fashionable pedigree. ■ s_ • — A visitor to a fine Kentucky stock 'arm saw three pure-bred Short-horn cows, worth on an average $2,000, work- ''pS in the yoke to prevent the accumulation of fat. WHITE HOLLAND TURKEYS. The out above represents the pair of White Holland Turkeys, White Giant and Lady Snowball, bred and owned by M. T. Kelly, Bloomingdale, Indiana. He writes as follows of the pair and breed: , "The pair were hatched the first dav of July, 1872, and on the first day of December, 1874, weighed 63 pounds to the pair, the gobbler weighing 41 pounds. In eolor and plumage the White Hollands are snowy white, with heads and beads a rich scarlet, and the long, jet-black Important Series of Short-horn Sales. The following sales in Kentucky take place in July. Mr. B. F. Vanmeter, on the 21st, an extended notice of which we gave some time ago. This is foiled by that of Messrs. Kin- naird & Cunningham, at the residence of Mr. J. G. Kinnaird, near Chilesburg, July22d.' " The first sale of the Clifton and Glen Echo Herds will follow that of Messrs. Kinnaird & Cunningham, on the 23d. On July 27th the herds of Messrs. Innes and Burgess will be sold at the residence of Mr. C. W. Innes, about nine miles from Lexington. On the 28th the sale of the Messrs. Offutt and Mr. L. P. Muir will take place. On July 29th Mr. James Sudduth, of Newtown, Ky., will sell about 40 head of carefully and fashionably bred Shorthorns. The Kentucky Live Stock Journal speaks in the highest praise of these herds. ■ - » FEEDING OATS TO COLTS. There has frequently, says the Live Slock Journal, been discussion upon tbe propriety of feeding colts grain. Many farmers seem to think that oats is dangerous food for the colt, but not for the mature horse. This is a mischievous opinion, and should be corrected as soon as possible. Colts are sometimes injured (but more for want of grain) by feeding too much grain without admixture of coarse food. Corn or corn meal, fed alone, is too concentrated to be properly digested by the colt or the horse. Oats is not so liable to do injury, even if fed alone, because each bushel contains twelve to fourteen pounds of husk. We agree with G. H. B. in the following extract from the Maine Farmer, except an inaccuracy in the amount of meal in a bushel of oats. Instead of being twelve er thirteen pounds of meal, that is about the amount of husk, and nineteen to twenty pounds is the amount of meal in a bushel of oats. This would make two and two-thirds pounds of oat-meal in four quarts of oats, and this would not hurt a good-sized colt the first winter, but we usually give about three quarts per day the first winter, in two feeds. I not e Mr. Cushman, of Sherman, Me., asks some very pertinent questions on feeding colts, in a late number of your paper, and says he is told that feeding oats to colts will "burn the life out of them and render them worthless." I give my colts the first winter after weaning four quarts per day, the second all of six, and when coming three a peck at least. Now let us see what amount of grain they are eating. A bushel of average oats in Maine will yield about twelve or thirteen pounds of meal, and colts after weaning would be getting in four quarts a day about a pound and a half of oatmeal. Is this too much feed for a good colt through the rigors of such a winter as we have just experienced? Colts well fed until they arrive at maturity, beards of the males help to make up the most beautiful contrast in color imaginable. The back part of the legs, and the feet, are a pale flesh color, with the front scales silvery white. The White Hollands are shorter in tbe neck, legs, and wings, than the Bronze variety, heavier in the body, and in dressing, waste less. "As table fowls, they are superior to any variety within my knowledge, their flesh being whiter, more tender and juicy, and the color of their plumage making them dress more easily and look nicer than those of a dark color. I have, by way of experiment, for two seasons procured a few Bronze eggs of a neigh bor, who breeds large turkeys of that vanety,_ set them together with white eggs, raised them with the same hen and the same care, and find the Whites to be equally hardy, less disposed to wander to a great distance, fatten more readily at an early age, and give greater weights at from fivo to seven months old, and at maturity are fully as large. The hens are great layers, one of mine laying, last year, fifty-two eggs before desiring to sit, and after raising her brood, in the fall again resumed laying, which she continued until after cold weather set in. They are good sitters, and as mothers, I think they are abstlutely unequalled." will have the "form and substance of a horse," but they will not have to be constantly fedwith grain after they have attained their growth, for they should then be fed according to their work. But you will have the size and development of your horse insured, and then he will pay for raising for business purposes, if he don't prove to be a trotter. > s» » • South-Down Sheep. This valuable sheep has been known and bred a long time in England, where it has always maintained _ the character of a hardy animal, yielding a medium quality of wool, and furnishing mutton of a superior flavor. Mr. John Elman, of England, according to tbe history, took them thoroughly in hand, and founded a flock which has been the source whence all the best blood has since been derived. A good Southdown is described as follows : The head small and hornless; the face speckled or gray, and neither too long nor too short; the lips thin, and the space between the nose and the eyes narrow; tbe under jaw, or chop, fine and thin; the ears tolerably wide, and well covered with wool, and the forehead also, and the whole space between the ears well protected by it, as a defense against the fly ; eyes full and bright; the legs neither too long nor too short. The Southdown, both for mutton and for fleece, is fully equal to _ any other breed. They do not shear quite as heavy a fleece, nor market so heavy a carcass as some of the long-wools, but both are worth more per pound in the market. The buck can be profitably introduced into any flock, which will result in improvement. The Southdown is a beautiful, quiet animal, and eo thoroughly domesticated as to follow readily after its owner, and it seems to be fond of the companionship of man.—/. V. M., in Ohio Farmer. At a sale of Short-horns, the property of Richard Martin, near Kyneton, Australia, the herd of thirty-six head sold for $81,790; for the fifteen bulls an average of $2,236 each, and twenty-one cows and heifers averaged $2,083. The thirty-six head averaged $2,272. The Earl of Geneva, bred by R. I _vin Davis, out of Kirkleavington Duchess Second, was sold for $9,700. The advantages^ of cross-breeding sheep are Ret forth in a statement in a recent issue of the Agricultural Gazette, in which it is said that Cotswold ewes crossed with pure Hampshire Down rams yield 115 lambs to the 100 ewes, while 90 per cent, is the extreme yield of lambs by the pure-bred Cotswolds or Hampshire Downs. The Berkshire Swine Record is under way, and Mr. A. M. Garland, Springfield, Illinois, Secretary of the Association of Breeders formed last winter, ad- ] vertises that he will supply blanks on application to those desiring to register pedigrees. A telegram from Vienna says that a contract for the purchase of 10,000 horses, to be delivered at the end of June, has been concluded on behalf of France at the horse fair of Netolilz, in Bohemia. Sheep in Colorado. The following is from a letter written bv one of the most prominent sheep men in Larimer county, Colorado. His former experience was in New York : Our sheep are wintering finely. We are wintering 750 Mexican ewes. Have fed thcm.bs. three or four times, a little, and no grain. Our Merino breeding ewes are fed one peck of corn to 160 breeding ewes, and no hay, and thsy gain all the whilo on the range. I never had my sheep do as well East, on the best of hay and one-half bushel of corn per hundred, as these do on this light ration. My ideas about sheep husbandry here are much improved. It is much better than I had anticipated or hoped for. I think sheep and horses do better than cattle. I want to keep here, when I get fixed right, 1,000 pure Merino ewes, and sell annually at publio sale, so as to keep my flock reduced to about that number. When I get this sale once established, I think it will work admirably. I shall, of course, sometimes sell low, but again at other times for enough to make the average of all sales very satisfactory. Then I will keen nothing but pure-bloods. I think we have now 50,000 sheep in Larimer county, and one year from now may safely calculate upon 150,000 sheep in this county alone. Colorado is to be a great sheep country, and many millions of sheep will be grazed here in a few years. It will be the leading industry here. Many capitalists from the East are already availing themselves of the great opportunity to increase their capital by investing in sheep to graze on these plains. Crops in Georgia.—We take the following crop notes from the monthly reports of the Georgia Department of Agriculture: Corn.—There are 7 per cent, more acres planted in corn this year than last, or 152,916 acres more than last year. There is also an increase of 6 per cent, in the amount of fertilizers used on corn: 68 percent, of these compost. In preparation and time of planting, there is a decrease of 3 per cent., Oats.—There is an increase of 12 per cent, in the number of acres sown in oats, or 55,215 acres more than last year. 49 per cent, of these, were sown in the fall, and 21 per cent, fertilized. The condition of the crop May 15th, throughout tbe State, was 1 per cent, above an average. Wheat.—The acreage in wheat is 14 per cent., or 50,239 acres more than last year; 5 per cent, moro fertilizers used on it, and the condition of the crop, May 15th, 1 per cent, above an average. The varieties principally recommended as successful are the " Tappahannock," "Early Red," or "Red May," in the middle and lower counties, and the "Tappahannock" and the spring varieties in the northern counties. Clover.—The acreage in clover is 7 per cent, greater than last year, while its condition May 15th was 1 per cent below an average. AMERICAN TIMBER. Editor Indiana Farmer: Fifty years ago, almost the entire State of Indiana was one vast woods, containing the choicest timbers for the building of houses, and the construction of machinery. Then the "fell destroyer" penetrated far into the rich recesses of her forests, and began the insatiable destruction, and as years have lengthened, the vast field of devastation widened until the world has been shaken to her commercial centers, and the "body politic" stands agast as the ques tion presents itself. From whence shall our timbers come to supply the second, ang third generations to come ? Shall it come from the East ? Behold yonder train of cars thundering out of your land, as if hurrying from condemnation for theft. See! it is laden, already, with choicest and most valuable productions of your forests. Shall it come from the West ? No ! as you roam the prairies of Kansas and Iowa, the timbers, nails, lime, glass and paint, with which their houses are built were drawn from the resources of Indiana and her sister States. Shall it come from the North? Already there comes the news from those pineries of onr frigid States that the work of depletion is almost complete. The South is without power to come to us with assistance. What then shall we do ? Shall it be grown upon our own soils ? This is our only hope in the great future before us; we have examined all quarters of the country, and none are there from whence our future supply must come. If the rate of destruction which has been kept up for the past half century, is kept up proportionate during the next, this vast country of wealth and prosperity must lecome a barren waste. It is everywhere evident that each State must grow their owp timber, not merely for the benefits which _ we derive from its use in the arts and in mechanical industry : for,its effects of a meteorological nature are of doubly vast importance. From research we find that the increase and decrease of rainfall is almost exactly proportionate with the amount of timDer a country affords. The effects upon the temperature of the atmost- phere is equally marked. Timber cannot be produced in a single season. Men plant and sow their cereals whith the expectation of reaping the direct benefits of their labor, but not so with him who plants trees. Coming generations must reap the result of his labors. The amount of rainfall in this State has been noticeably lessened since its first settlements; the rains are more violent; the winds more furious ; the drouths of summer are more frequent and distressing, and these evil effects are painfully increasing. They can be attributed to nothing other than the destruction of our forests. Rivers which were once the highways of commerce, are now forded by wagon and team with impunity. This evil can be checked in no other way than by planting and preserving our forest trees. The general good that will result from so doing is incalculable ; it will not only enhance the value of our lands but it will be the means through which this beautiful and prosperous^ country shall be preserved from becoming as fruitless as the arid deserts of Africa. ' On the other hand it cannot do other wise than increase the riches of the in dividual, who fosters the production of our ligneous wealth. With the facts, that the prosperity of of our nation depends, in a great measure, upon a_ liberal supply of timber, starejng us in the face, we at once see that it becomes, and is, the duty of every farmer; every owner of real estate; every man who has one drop of philan- thropical blood in his veins, to do their duty toward replacing the timber which is now being so rapidly consumed. Let the farmer destroy the grubs and valuless underbrush, and fill up the vacancy by planting oak, ash, walnut and Eoplar trees ; plant them along _ the ighways, in_ the uncultivated ravines, and on the hilltops, in fact, let them be planted everywhere that they do not encroach upon the growing cereals, and in a few years he can begin to realize how, some day, his children will be benefited thereby, while the world will look upon him as a philanthropist and a nations benefactor. L. E. _ 1 < s The Grasshoppers in Nebraska. Grasshoppers in immense numbers have appeared at Plattsmouth, Neb., and are destroying everything. They are moving northward. Immense clouds of them made their appearance flying northward over Omaha about 11 o'clock Friday. But few of them alighted in that immediate vicinity, but immense clouds cover the fields near Florence, eight miles above there. Great numbers of them have been examined, and every one has many of the red parasites on them, eating out their vitals. Indiana Farmer Family. Onr Postal Card Correspondence, GIBSON COUNTY-lune 17th. The prospect of wheat ls better than lt was a month ago. tye expect one-half a crop. Wheat is worth $1.10; corn 60 cents; potatoes tlJXr, meal 90 cents. ji ^ GRANT COUNTY. Wheat will be a good average ln this connty; Oats better prospect this far than common, and the corn crop also, promises very One. There Is more planted than ever before ln this county. No fruit of consequence this year. J. M. Ellis. SWITZERLAND COUNTY. We are having a good deal of rain. Corn did not come up very well. Wheat looks very bad, and grass light. Very few oats sown. Chinch and potato bugs are plenty. "Hard times on our crawfish lands," Mr. H. Stow says. FJUJt. PIKE COUNTT. A tremendous storm passed over this county on the Sth, and as a result the formers are busy rebuilding their fences, many of which were blown down. AU kinds of crops look well Ilogs are dying with cholera, some farmers having lost all they had. 8. a. ANOTHER "PIKT," Crops look very well. Hogs are dying with cholera. Weather very wet; and corn not yet all planted. Fruit will be scarce. Can't tell much about the Granges here, as I have been absent so long. I visited a Grange ln Texas, and fonnd all right, and found it all right, and moving forward ln the good work. ty. E. Chafpell. HAMILTON COUNTY-June 12th. Prospect for wbeat about an average; the rains have somewhat lDjured It. Cora ls ln a critical condition, badly injured by the heavy fall of rain, by washing out. Borne plowing going on but too wet to do good work. Some grounds would be altogether too wet for a week yet. But little fruit of any kind. Pastures doing flne, grass and clover doing well. J. D. HARRISON COUNTY. Wheat will not make one-fourth of a crop. Corn looks well; also oats and grasses. Fruit nearly all killed. Pastures are good Btock in good condition. Hogs are scarce, none selling. The grangers are running their co-operative wagons to New Albany and Louisville, taking off marketing In good order and selling at good prices, and buying their goods and groceries at wholesale prices. We nave forty or fifty per cent. J. 8. Burgess. KOSCIUSKO COUNTY. Wheat ls looking up a little—think there will be about two-thirds of a crop. Frnit about all killed. There will be a few cherries. Farmers who read the Fabmk^ are now busy cultivating their corn. Some others are not through planting. Wheat S1.05 per bushel. Corn 60 cents. Stock hogs are scarce and selling at 6 and 6% cents. Granges are growing allttle cold. B. F. H. IAY COUNTY. Wheat in this section will be abont half a crop. Oats exceedingly good. Clover nearly all frozen out; timothy good where it stood the winter. Flax just moderate—not much sown. Corn not all planted yet. We have had a little too much rain of late. The heavyralnswashed out much of the corn and caused much to rot. There is being a large bredth of corn planted. Fruits are generally killed except currants and goosberrles. David Atkinson. MONROE COUNTY. Wheat looks promising for the season—will yield half a crop, perhaps. Oats short, but coming out considerable. More corn planted than common, and lt looks well—the late planting promises the best crop—much of the early having been re-planted. We have had too much rain, hindering the cultivation of the ground, so that the w'.eds and grass got a good start. Clover ls good. Potatoes look well, though we have plenty of bugs. No peaches or early apples, but plenty of late apples and garden berries. A. T. Allmam. KOSCIUSKO COUNTY. Cool nights and a little forst on 15th instant. Wheat uneven, some In blossom, some not ln head;|ln the same Held some farmers have got their corn worked, some Just done planting. Oats look well. Clover very scarce. Timothy thin on the ground. Sheep and hogs scarce. Grangers on the increase. The Farmer Is highly appreciated as well as my Essex pigs. J. Brady. SHELBY COUNTY—Jane Sth. Wheat looks bad, not half a crop. Corn looks well. Potatoes ln flne condition. Barley winter killed, not half a crop can be expected. Fruit most all killed. Corn worth 68 cents per bushel, wheat 11.15. Hogs scarce and high. Some cholera among what few there Is. The recent rain fall and flood done much damage ln this county. The I»diaha Fabmbk Is liked by- all classes. •!• C VIGO COUNTY—June 14th. Corn crop very backward. Wheat looks good generally. Oatslook well, but little sown. The farmers are talking something about raising sheep by killing off all the dogs, regardless of any penalty imposed by law in favor of dogs. We will not make any difference between children's pets or family favorites, whatever. We have made a close calculation in this vicinity of how the enterprise will terminate. We And that we can clip enough wool at present firices to pay all fines, and have the mutton eft, which is better than too have too much dog meat. Ed. R. Wythe. KNOX COUNTY. We are now having fine growing weather. Farmers very busy working out their corn, the prospect for a good corn crop here ls very good, although white river extended beyond her banks and rulnd some corn ln low lands, but will be replanted. Wheat crop promises to be about an average crop here nnless lt should thresh out one-third cheat, which chance is fair ln some flelds. Potatoes looking flne, with some chinch bugs and the Colorado Dugs making their appearance. Fruit, none of any note. Oats what few were sown look flne. Corn selling at 50 cents; about all sold and consumed. Wheat J1.10 to $1.25 per bushel. Pastures flne. Good stock hogs scarce and selling at K gross- Fat hogs few and very dull at 16 to 6-0 gross. Cattle plenty and of poor quality, none selling. Btock sheep $1.50 to 82.25 per hesd. Grangers generally wide awake and ln hopes we will' not be visited with the grasshoppers, i A.H.HA_3___>. ^___- Sa
Object Description
Title | Indiana farmer, 1875, v. 10, no. 24 (June 19) |
Purdue Identification Number | INFA1024 |
Date of Original | 1875 |
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 | 2010-11-01 |
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 | VoLX ITOIANAPOnS, MDIANA, JUNE 19th, 1875. Liyg Stock. Jessie Johnson, of Lawrence county Ind., writes us that he has this spring sheared from one old Cotswold buck fifteen pounds of wool, from one yearling fifteen and a half, and another yearling sixteen pounds of wool. These latter were twins. The three yielded 46* pounds. r . s» . Imported Heavy Draught Clydesdale Stallion. "Lord Clyde." purchased from Mr. James Drummond Blaoklaw, Dumferm- line, Fifeshire, Scotland, by Beattie and Miller, 'Whitevale, Ontario, Canada, afterwards sold to Dr. J. P. Forsyth, Franklin, Indiana, United States of America. "Lord Clyde" is a bay horse'rising six years old, sired by "Sir Colin," Sam Maggie by Glassgow Geordie.Grand Dam Fanny Ross by Old Times, &c, &c. Sir Colin, Glassgow Geordie and Old Times were all noted horses in Scotland and were all sires of many prize animals, both of the Highland Societie's show and other shows in Scotland. . ss* s The Merino. Editor Indiana Farmer: I have a . small flock of Merinoes which I think are good. If any one has better I would like to hear from them through the Indiana Farmer. From 30 head I clipped 312 lbs. of unwashed wool. My best fleeces ranging from 15 to 22 lbs. , Owing to the hard winter and scarcity of feed they were not in good condition. I am frequently asked why I raise snch sheep? My answer is, I think they are the most profitable sheep; clipping more wool, eating leas and are more hardy. I would like to hear from some of my brother sheep raisers. H. D. COIsLINQS. Park county, Ind. . _lr..Collings sends with the above some very beautiful samples of his merino wool. We have never seen finer samples than these, and if his flock is secure against the ravages of the dogs, he will doubtless make sheep husbandry both profitable and pleasant. THE LAW OF LIKENESS. In stock-breeding too little attention has thus far been paid to this important law, at least by the masses of breeders. Our present fine strains, have been brought up to what they are by careful breeding and careful management. Once in a while a fair animal may be produced by common ancestry, but experience is uniform in the testimony that this is the exception and not the rule. If the bull had defects back a little in the line of his ancestry, these will crop out as a rule in the product, and while one good animal may be produced by him, a score will be the reverse. The Progressive Farmer says upon this subject that beyond doubt therere are among animals of pure breeding, certain pedigrees which have a higher value than others. But to many minds, it is not quite clear on precisely what basis this superior value rests. Evidently there are those who hold that the worth of the best strains of blood, is independent of the excellence of the individual animals in whose veins it runs. Nothing could be more erroneous. Individual excellence is the one great purpose of improved breeding and. consequently, it is the only true test of value in pedigree^ In other words, that line of descent is best which produces uniformly, generation after generation, the greatest number of superior animals, and, we may add, no pedigree whatever will ensure the production of superior animals under irregular feeding and general neglect. An inferior animal, therefore, belonging to any pure breed, lacks not only a high value in itself but gives evidence against the value of its line of descent. The want of value in the individual is, to that extent, the. want of excellence in the pedigree. Who can assure us that a defective bull will beget perfect calves because hi3 ancestors were models °f beauty? He may, indeed, transmit the qualities of his ancestry, but the chances are that he will transmit his own qualities rather. The law of likeness operates more uniformly than that of reversion, and it is, consequently, unwise and unsafe to pay high prices for animals which have nothing to recommend them but fashionable pedigree. ■ s_ • — A visitor to a fine Kentucky stock 'arm saw three pure-bred Short-horn cows, worth on an average $2,000, work- ''pS in the yoke to prevent the accumulation of fat. WHITE HOLLAND TURKEYS. The out above represents the pair of White Holland Turkeys, White Giant and Lady Snowball, bred and owned by M. T. Kelly, Bloomingdale, Indiana. He writes as follows of the pair and breed: , "The pair were hatched the first dav of July, 1872, and on the first day of December, 1874, weighed 63 pounds to the pair, the gobbler weighing 41 pounds. In eolor and plumage the White Hollands are snowy white, with heads and beads a rich scarlet, and the long, jet-black Important Series of Short-horn Sales. The following sales in Kentucky take place in July. Mr. B. F. Vanmeter, on the 21st, an extended notice of which we gave some time ago. This is foiled by that of Messrs. Kin- naird & Cunningham, at the residence of Mr. J. G. Kinnaird, near Chilesburg, July22d.' " The first sale of the Clifton and Glen Echo Herds will follow that of Messrs. Kinnaird & Cunningham, on the 23d. On July 27th the herds of Messrs. Innes and Burgess will be sold at the residence of Mr. C. W. Innes, about nine miles from Lexington. On the 28th the sale of the Messrs. Offutt and Mr. L. P. Muir will take place. On July 29th Mr. James Sudduth, of Newtown, Ky., will sell about 40 head of carefully and fashionably bred Shorthorns. The Kentucky Live Stock Journal speaks in the highest praise of these herds. ■ - » FEEDING OATS TO COLTS. There has frequently, says the Live Slock Journal, been discussion upon tbe propriety of feeding colts grain. Many farmers seem to think that oats is dangerous food for the colt, but not for the mature horse. This is a mischievous opinion, and should be corrected as soon as possible. Colts are sometimes injured (but more for want of grain) by feeding too much grain without admixture of coarse food. Corn or corn meal, fed alone, is too concentrated to be properly digested by the colt or the horse. Oats is not so liable to do injury, even if fed alone, because each bushel contains twelve to fourteen pounds of husk. We agree with G. H. B. in the following extract from the Maine Farmer, except an inaccuracy in the amount of meal in a bushel of oats. Instead of being twelve er thirteen pounds of meal, that is about the amount of husk, and nineteen to twenty pounds is the amount of meal in a bushel of oats. This would make two and two-thirds pounds of oat-meal in four quarts of oats, and this would not hurt a good-sized colt the first winter, but we usually give about three quarts per day the first winter, in two feeds. I not e Mr. Cushman, of Sherman, Me., asks some very pertinent questions on feeding colts, in a late number of your paper, and says he is told that feeding oats to colts will "burn the life out of them and render them worthless." I give my colts the first winter after weaning four quarts per day, the second all of six, and when coming three a peck at least. Now let us see what amount of grain they are eating. A bushel of average oats in Maine will yield about twelve or thirteen pounds of meal, and colts after weaning would be getting in four quarts a day about a pound and a half of oatmeal. Is this too much feed for a good colt through the rigors of such a winter as we have just experienced? Colts well fed until they arrive at maturity, beards of the males help to make up the most beautiful contrast in color imaginable. The back part of the legs, and the feet, are a pale flesh color, with the front scales silvery white. The White Hollands are shorter in tbe neck, legs, and wings, than the Bronze variety, heavier in the body, and in dressing, waste less. "As table fowls, they are superior to any variety within my knowledge, their flesh being whiter, more tender and juicy, and the color of their plumage making them dress more easily and look nicer than those of a dark color. I have, by way of experiment, for two seasons procured a few Bronze eggs of a neigh bor, who breeds large turkeys of that vanety,_ set them together with white eggs, raised them with the same hen and the same care, and find the Whites to be equally hardy, less disposed to wander to a great distance, fatten more readily at an early age, and give greater weights at from fivo to seven months old, and at maturity are fully as large. The hens are great layers, one of mine laying, last year, fifty-two eggs before desiring to sit, and after raising her brood, in the fall again resumed laying, which she continued until after cold weather set in. They are good sitters, and as mothers, I think they are abstlutely unequalled." will have the "form and substance of a horse," but they will not have to be constantly fedwith grain after they have attained their growth, for they should then be fed according to their work. But you will have the size and development of your horse insured, and then he will pay for raising for business purposes, if he don't prove to be a trotter. > s» » • South-Down Sheep. This valuable sheep has been known and bred a long time in England, where it has always maintained _ the character of a hardy animal, yielding a medium quality of wool, and furnishing mutton of a superior flavor. Mr. John Elman, of England, according to tbe history, took them thoroughly in hand, and founded a flock which has been the source whence all the best blood has since been derived. A good Southdown is described as follows : The head small and hornless; the face speckled or gray, and neither too long nor too short; the lips thin, and the space between the nose and the eyes narrow; tbe under jaw, or chop, fine and thin; the ears tolerably wide, and well covered with wool, and the forehead also, and the whole space between the ears well protected by it, as a defense against the fly ; eyes full and bright; the legs neither too long nor too short. The Southdown, both for mutton and for fleece, is fully equal to _ any other breed. They do not shear quite as heavy a fleece, nor market so heavy a carcass as some of the long-wools, but both are worth more per pound in the market. The buck can be profitably introduced into any flock, which will result in improvement. The Southdown is a beautiful, quiet animal, and eo thoroughly domesticated as to follow readily after its owner, and it seems to be fond of the companionship of man.—/. V. M., in Ohio Farmer. At a sale of Short-horns, the property of Richard Martin, near Kyneton, Australia, the herd of thirty-six head sold for $81,790; for the fifteen bulls an average of $2,236 each, and twenty-one cows and heifers averaged $2,083. The thirty-six head averaged $2,272. The Earl of Geneva, bred by R. I _vin Davis, out of Kirkleavington Duchess Second, was sold for $9,700. The advantages^ of cross-breeding sheep are Ret forth in a statement in a recent issue of the Agricultural Gazette, in which it is said that Cotswold ewes crossed with pure Hampshire Down rams yield 115 lambs to the 100 ewes, while 90 per cent, is the extreme yield of lambs by the pure-bred Cotswolds or Hampshire Downs. The Berkshire Swine Record is under way, and Mr. A. M. Garland, Springfield, Illinois, Secretary of the Association of Breeders formed last winter, ad- ] vertises that he will supply blanks on application to those desiring to register pedigrees. A telegram from Vienna says that a contract for the purchase of 10,000 horses, to be delivered at the end of June, has been concluded on behalf of France at the horse fair of Netolilz, in Bohemia. Sheep in Colorado. The following is from a letter written bv one of the most prominent sheep men in Larimer county, Colorado. His former experience was in New York : Our sheep are wintering finely. We are wintering 750 Mexican ewes. Have fed thcm.bs. three or four times, a little, and no grain. Our Merino breeding ewes are fed one peck of corn to 160 breeding ewes, and no hay, and thsy gain all the whilo on the range. I never had my sheep do as well East, on the best of hay and one-half bushel of corn per hundred, as these do on this light ration. My ideas about sheep husbandry here are much improved. It is much better than I had anticipated or hoped for. I think sheep and horses do better than cattle. I want to keep here, when I get fixed right, 1,000 pure Merino ewes, and sell annually at publio sale, so as to keep my flock reduced to about that number. When I get this sale once established, I think it will work admirably. I shall, of course, sometimes sell low, but again at other times for enough to make the average of all sales very satisfactory. Then I will keen nothing but pure-bloods. I think we have now 50,000 sheep in Larimer county, and one year from now may safely calculate upon 150,000 sheep in this county alone. Colorado is to be a great sheep country, and many millions of sheep will be grazed here in a few years. It will be the leading industry here. Many capitalists from the East are already availing themselves of the great opportunity to increase their capital by investing in sheep to graze on these plains. Crops in Georgia.—We take the following crop notes from the monthly reports of the Georgia Department of Agriculture: Corn.—There are 7 per cent, more acres planted in corn this year than last, or 152,916 acres more than last year. There is also an increase of 6 per cent, in the amount of fertilizers used on corn: 68 percent, of these compost. In preparation and time of planting, there is a decrease of 3 per cent., Oats.—There is an increase of 12 per cent, in the number of acres sown in oats, or 55,215 acres more than last year. 49 per cent, of these, were sown in the fall, and 21 per cent, fertilized. The condition of the crop May 15th, throughout tbe State, was 1 per cent, above an average. Wheat.—The acreage in wheat is 14 per cent., or 50,239 acres more than last year; 5 per cent, moro fertilizers used on it, and the condition of the crop, May 15th, 1 per cent, above an average. The varieties principally recommended as successful are the " Tappahannock," "Early Red," or "Red May," in the middle and lower counties, and the "Tappahannock" and the spring varieties in the northern counties. Clover.—The acreage in clover is 7 per cent, greater than last year, while its condition May 15th was 1 per cent below an average. AMERICAN TIMBER. Editor Indiana Farmer: Fifty years ago, almost the entire State of Indiana was one vast woods, containing the choicest timbers for the building of houses, and the construction of machinery. Then the "fell destroyer" penetrated far into the rich recesses of her forests, and began the insatiable destruction, and as years have lengthened, the vast field of devastation widened until the world has been shaken to her commercial centers, and the "body politic" stands agast as the ques tion presents itself. From whence shall our timbers come to supply the second, ang third generations to come ? Shall it come from the East ? Behold yonder train of cars thundering out of your land, as if hurrying from condemnation for theft. See! it is laden, already, with choicest and most valuable productions of your forests. Shall it come from the West ? No ! as you roam the prairies of Kansas and Iowa, the timbers, nails, lime, glass and paint, with which their houses are built were drawn from the resources of Indiana and her sister States. Shall it come from the North? Already there comes the news from those pineries of onr frigid States that the work of depletion is almost complete. The South is without power to come to us with assistance. What then shall we do ? Shall it be grown upon our own soils ? This is our only hope in the great future before us; we have examined all quarters of the country, and none are there from whence our future supply must come. If the rate of destruction which has been kept up for the past half century, is kept up proportionate during the next, this vast country of wealth and prosperity must lecome a barren waste. It is everywhere evident that each State must grow their owp timber, not merely for the benefits which _ we derive from its use in the arts and in mechanical industry : for,its effects of a meteorological nature are of doubly vast importance. From research we find that the increase and decrease of rainfall is almost exactly proportionate with the amount of timDer a country affords. The effects upon the temperature of the atmost- phere is equally marked. Timber cannot be produced in a single season. Men plant and sow their cereals whith the expectation of reaping the direct benefits of their labor, but not so with him who plants trees. Coming generations must reap the result of his labors. The amount of rainfall in this State has been noticeably lessened since its first settlements; the rains are more violent; the winds more furious ; the drouths of summer are more frequent and distressing, and these evil effects are painfully increasing. They can be attributed to nothing other than the destruction of our forests. Rivers which were once the highways of commerce, are now forded by wagon and team with impunity. This evil can be checked in no other way than by planting and preserving our forest trees. The general good that will result from so doing is incalculable ; it will not only enhance the value of our lands but it will be the means through which this beautiful and prosperous^ country shall be preserved from becoming as fruitless as the arid deserts of Africa. ' On the other hand it cannot do other wise than increase the riches of the in dividual, who fosters the production of our ligneous wealth. With the facts, that the prosperity of of our nation depends, in a great measure, upon a_ liberal supply of timber, starejng us in the face, we at once see that it becomes, and is, the duty of every farmer; every owner of real estate; every man who has one drop of philan- thropical blood in his veins, to do their duty toward replacing the timber which is now being so rapidly consumed. Let the farmer destroy the grubs and valuless underbrush, and fill up the vacancy by planting oak, ash, walnut and Eoplar trees ; plant them along _ the ighways, in_ the uncultivated ravines, and on the hilltops, in fact, let them be planted everywhere that they do not encroach upon the growing cereals, and in a few years he can begin to realize how, some day, his children will be benefited thereby, while the world will look upon him as a philanthropist and a nations benefactor. L. E. _ 1 < s The Grasshoppers in Nebraska. Grasshoppers in immense numbers have appeared at Plattsmouth, Neb., and are destroying everything. They are moving northward. Immense clouds of them made their appearance flying northward over Omaha about 11 o'clock Friday. But few of them alighted in that immediate vicinity, but immense clouds cover the fields near Florence, eight miles above there. Great numbers of them have been examined, and every one has many of the red parasites on them, eating out their vitals. Indiana Farmer Family. Onr Postal Card Correspondence, GIBSON COUNTY-lune 17th. The prospect of wheat ls better than lt was a month ago. tye expect one-half a crop. Wheat is worth $1.10; corn 60 cents; potatoes tlJXr, meal 90 cents. ji ^ GRANT COUNTY. Wheat will be a good average ln this connty; Oats better prospect this far than common, and the corn crop also, promises very One. There Is more planted than ever before ln this county. No fruit of consequence this year. J. M. Ellis. SWITZERLAND COUNTY. We are having a good deal of rain. Corn did not come up very well. Wheat looks very bad, and grass light. Very few oats sown. Chinch and potato bugs are plenty. "Hard times on our crawfish lands," Mr. H. Stow says. FJUJt. PIKE COUNTT. A tremendous storm passed over this county on the Sth, and as a result the formers are busy rebuilding their fences, many of which were blown down. AU kinds of crops look well Ilogs are dying with cholera, some farmers having lost all they had. 8. a. ANOTHER "PIKT," Crops look very well. Hogs are dying with cholera. Weather very wet; and corn not yet all planted. Fruit will be scarce. Can't tell much about the Granges here, as I have been absent so long. I visited a Grange ln Texas, and fonnd all right, and found it all right, and moving forward ln the good work. ty. E. Chafpell. HAMILTON COUNTY-June 12th. Prospect for wbeat about an average; the rains have somewhat lDjured It. Cora ls ln a critical condition, badly injured by the heavy fall of rain, by washing out. Borne plowing going on but too wet to do good work. Some grounds would be altogether too wet for a week yet. But little fruit of any kind. Pastures doing flne, grass and clover doing well. J. D. HARRISON COUNTY. Wheat will not make one-fourth of a crop. Corn looks well; also oats and grasses. Fruit nearly all killed. Pastures are good Btock in good condition. Hogs are scarce, none selling. The grangers are running their co-operative wagons to New Albany and Louisville, taking off marketing In good order and selling at good prices, and buying their goods and groceries at wholesale prices. We nave forty or fifty per cent. J. 8. Burgess. KOSCIUSKO COUNTY. Wheat ls looking up a little—think there will be about two-thirds of a crop. Frnit about all killed. There will be a few cherries. Farmers who read the Fabmk^ are now busy cultivating their corn. Some others are not through planting. Wheat S1.05 per bushel. Corn 60 cents. Stock hogs are scarce and selling at 6 and 6% cents. Granges are growing allttle cold. B. F. H. IAY COUNTY. Wheat in this section will be abont half a crop. Oats exceedingly good. Clover nearly all frozen out; timothy good where it stood the winter. Flax just moderate—not much sown. Corn not all planted yet. We have had a little too much rain of late. The heavyralnswashed out much of the corn and caused much to rot. There is being a large bredth of corn planted. Fruits are generally killed except currants and goosberrles. David Atkinson. MONROE COUNTY. Wheat looks promising for the season—will yield half a crop, perhaps. Oats short, but coming out considerable. More corn planted than common, and lt looks well—the late planting promises the best crop—much of the early having been re-planted. We have had too much rain, hindering the cultivation of the ground, so that the w'.eds and grass got a good start. Clover ls good. Potatoes look well, though we have plenty of bugs. No peaches or early apples, but plenty of late apples and garden berries. A. T. Allmam. KOSCIUSKO COUNTY. Cool nights and a little forst on 15th instant. Wheat uneven, some In blossom, some not ln head;|ln the same Held some farmers have got their corn worked, some Just done planting. Oats look well. Clover very scarce. Timothy thin on the ground. Sheep and hogs scarce. Grangers on the increase. The Farmer Is highly appreciated as well as my Essex pigs. J. Brady. SHELBY COUNTY—Jane Sth. Wheat looks bad, not half a crop. Corn looks well. Potatoes ln flne condition. Barley winter killed, not half a crop can be expected. Fruit most all killed. Corn worth 68 cents per bushel, wheat 11.15. Hogs scarce and high. Some cholera among what few there Is. The recent rain fall and flood done much damage ln this county. The I»diaha Fabmbk Is liked by- all classes. •!• C VIGO COUNTY—June 14th. Corn crop very backward. Wheat looks good generally. Oatslook well, but little sown. The farmers are talking something about raising sheep by killing off all the dogs, regardless of any penalty imposed by law in favor of dogs. We will not make any difference between children's pets or family favorites, whatever. We have made a close calculation in this vicinity of how the enterprise will terminate. We And that we can clip enough wool at present firices to pay all fines, and have the mutton eft, which is better than too have too much dog meat. Ed. R. Wythe. KNOX COUNTY. We are now having fine growing weather. Farmers very busy working out their corn, the prospect for a good corn crop here ls very good, although white river extended beyond her banks and rulnd some corn ln low lands, but will be replanted. Wheat crop promises to be about an average crop here nnless lt should thresh out one-third cheat, which chance is fair ln some flelds. Potatoes looking flne, with some chinch bugs and the Colorado Dugs making their appearance. Fruit, none of any note. Oats what few were sown look flne. Corn selling at 50 cents; about all sold and consumed. Wheat J1.10 to $1.25 per bushel. Pastures flne. Good stock hogs scarce and selling at K gross- Fat hogs few and very dull at 16 to 6-0 gross. Cattle plenty and of poor quality, none selling. Btock sheep $1.50 to 82.25 per hesd. Grangers generally wide awake and ln hopes we will' not be visited with the grasshoppers, i A.H.HA_3___>. ^___- Sa |
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