VOL. XXVII.
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iB92
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INDIANAPOLIS, IND., JUNE 11,1892.
NO. 24
Hay Making.
BY A. O. LOCKRIDQB.
,1'art of the excellent paper on Growing and Making
jfay read before the Marion County Farmers'Institute.]
In hay making, in addition to the ordinary appliances for harvesting, there are
rwo aptitudes absolutely indispensable to
success, and these are watchfulness and
patience. Watchfulness to know just
when to start the mower, or to stop it, as
the case may be; to nse the tedder or the
rake; to begin loading for the rick or barn;
in short, to know just when to strike winning blows. Patience to coolly study all
these important points and then quietly
wait for the decisive moment.
As forewarned is to be forearmed ample
time should be allowed 'before harvest for
overhauling the mower, the rake and all
otber appliances for hay making, to the
end that there be no vexatious delays
when the work is actually upon us.
The best time to commence mowing
clover or timothy depends largely upon
the size of the crop and the appliances for
storage.   Those having a large crop to
handle and perhaps only ordinary means
for storing away should commence earlier
in the season,  even  thongh  the plant be
not matured, in order to finish before it is
too rip_   On those farms where there are
facilities for rapid work the mowers should
be started when the clover blossoms show
ffi6~i_g__-*_rr"turning  brown.    A little
sooner even than this will result in no
harm.  Timothy should be cut fast after
tbe bloom  has faded,   and  under no circumstances should the plants stand until
they have become so ripe that the heads
will shatter oflf if roughly jarred.
EARLY CUTTING
make*! clean,   succulent  hay which stock
will eat with avidity.   It is scarcely neces
sary to say  the  meadow  should be free
from dew or the dampness of light showers before starting the mower.
No more grass should be cut than can be
stored the second day aftermowing, as the
succulent properties of the plants are
liable to be burned out by the hot rays of
the sun. In the exercise of your judgment as to the quantity you will cut down
it is well to remember that hay will cure
after sunset, though in a slower degree,
owing to the heat that continues to arise,
in a constantly decreasing force as the
coal airs of midnight approach. As the
whole are* of a meadow is not equal in
point of richness and fertility, and the
plants on the richer parts mature earlier,
it behooves the farmer to mow those portions first. A little painstaking care in
this particular will insure your whole hay
crop of possessing the same qualities of
wight, succulent forage.
-   START THE TEDDER IN TIME
to turn the hay so that it will be equally
cured on both sides. This is a very important point and should be carefully
watched, for it is easy to have the grass
burned npon one side and only half cured
upon the other. Iiay, whether clover or
timothy, is sufficiently cured when it feels
Pliant or ropy in the hands, which you
pan easily ascertain by twisting and doubling a lock of it. This, together with the
^vasT* dr,ed appearance ol the hay,
wwch the eye learns best to detect by experience, will inform you of the propl-
K>U8 moment to commence garnering,
wneahay feels brittle and leaves shatter
"nithas passed from the first to the second quality of forage.
With the excellent facilities now In use
crop of hay can be garnered inanincred-
or. -T°_.  Space of Ume-   With » Deere,
r» Rock Island hay loader and_a Koches-
anu™ .-*rrler' or otnera of similar mech-
-wv-        W°rk of harvesting, which a
hard.-!." _8° was  considered one of the
nc-wl-L     most --aborious of farm duties,
w becomes only;* pleasant feature of
the year. If yoa are stacking in the
meadow -
A CHEAP AND HANDY APPARATUS,
though primitive perhaps, for hauling hay
to the rick is the hay boat. With it just
that much time and labor is gained over
shocking, which latter process should be
resorted to only in case of threatening
weather. The construction of a hay boat
is simple enough. AU that is needed are two
2x4 scantlings ten feet long, across which
are nailed plank of the same length, the
dimensions of the boat when finished
being ten feet square. One horse hitched
to this simple contrivance will haul as
much as would be put in t*vo large hay
cocks, and the hay can be easily and
quickly loaded from the wlnrow. Three
or four such boats will be found of priceless value in haying time. Still another
good contrivance is a rake 20 feet long,
made of a 4x6 beam and having long,
wooden teeth, the whole being somewhat
after the pattern of our old-fashioned revolving rake. A horse is hitched at each
end, and with it quite a quantity of hay
can be gathered up and quickly dragged
to the rick yard.
RAKE THE MEADOW CLEAN,
even to the fences: have the hay carefully
gathered up,every;straw of It-it is j udicious
economy—and if you are storing in a barn
let it be a firmly established rale that each
wagon must be loaded to Its fullest capacity. In this way the work will be done
rapidly and profitably.
Do not stack clover hay in the meadow
if it is possible to find other means of
storing for it is nearly lf not quite impos-
possible to provide a rick roof that will
effectually tarn water. There was the
usual Celtic way of putting things in the
advice of the Irishman, who, when questioned upon the subject, replied: "The
besht way to stack hay in the meddy is to
store it in the barn, sure." But he told
the truth. A plank roof Bhould be the
last resort of the farmer as it is certain to
leak with all your efl.rts. To alter an old
piece of poetry to suit the occasion:
You may plank, you may brace, you may nail lt all
over;
All the same, the water will leak in on your clover.
If the clover hay must be stacked in the
meadow the best roof for it is one composed of timothy hay. It should be a
thick roof, too, and the stacker should begin putting it- on very soon after the
"drawing in" of the rick commences.
And so, when all these important duties
have been fulfilled and the haying outfit
has been returned to the tool room, the
farmer can watch without the least trepidation the heavy clouds, betokening rain,
roll up from the horizon, like hurriedly
forming legions, and can listen with heart
unappalled to the ominous rumble of
thunder, for he knows that "the hay is
up;"or he can sit in the deepening twilight and as the swelling outlines of the
old meadow over whose crest floats the
vesper song of the mocking bird fades into
the dusky shadows of night, or become
silvered in the rays of the harvest moon,
he can restfully feel that one more duty of
his life has been well done; that he has
offered one more testimonial of his obedience to the Master's mandate: "Earn
thy bread in the sweat of thy faoe."
Qreencastle.
Owen County Notes—The Road Question.
Editors ludiana Parmer:
The frequent rains in April and almost
continuous fall during May, has waterlogged Owen county as to farming. A
good deal of corn is planted; lots of ground
to break yet; horses and men having an
enforced rest.
Oats, pastures, meadows and wheat
"stand dressed in living green." Some
pieces of the latter are entirely too rank
and will probably lodge badly before harvest.
Stock of all kinds seem plenty |and
healthy. Traders are enquiring for spring
lambs and offering fair prices. Wool not
on the market to any extent yet. The in-
oessant ralns^have kept^our roads muddy
all spring, while the time-honored farce of
road working, or rather road loafing. Instead of road building, is at hand, after
which, if carried on in the usual senseless
manner and the rains continue, we can
promise ourselves a mud blockade all
summer. The crying need of Indiana today ls a first class permanent road running through or near every neighborhood.
Unless our legislators look this question
fairly in the face and contrive to bring
about some additional aid to the farmers
we will never have good roads universally.
The farmer is not able to build and maintain a gravel or Macadam road. There
needs to be a terrible shaking up of the
valley of dry bones and antiquated idoas
on this question of road making. Instead
of making the farmer's acres bear all the
tax of a road to get him to town to buy
goods of the merchant, or borrow money
at the bank, let the merchant and banker
help foot the bill in order that their customers may come. To tax the land bearing on a line of road for the entire amount
and then make the road free to everybody,
increase the trade of the town, aid the livery keeper as he sends out his rigs, assist
the smart drummer representing some
wealthy firm whioh Is shrewd enough to
look after the conntry stores—all this is a
specimen-of class legislation, discriminating against the farmer from beginning to
end. The State needs a law by which
road funds can be collected from persons
other than farmers, and taxes levied upon
property other than real. Could this be
brought about—could the Government
build a few main lines of road and keep
them In repair, all of which lies within
the United States Constitution; could
county commissioners be induced to buy
stone crushers, which could crush stone by
means of power furnished by steam
the.hor engines during winter months;
could road supervisors be labored with
until sufficient reason penetrated their
brains to convince them that all grading
must be done in the spring, then put the
fall work on hauling gravel and stone,
placing in position, opening slde^gutters,
in short, could the granger get some outside help and some inside help, learning
how to make his work permanent, we
would then be lifted out of the miry clay;
our feet would be set upon. a rock, our
goings would be established, and a new
song would be placed in our mouth and
the entire land would hear the refrain.
Gosport, May 31. A. B. Milligan.
in two quarts of boiling water, add 2
quarts of kerosene and mix thoroughly.
This should be churned to form a thick,
cream like mass. Before using,lt should be
diluted to eight gallons, with water,for most
plants. For plants with tender foliage,
like the squash, this will prove too
strong, and in such cases, various
strengths should be tried, until one is
found that will not Id jure the plant.
Jstatc Urns.
Plant Lice on Currant Bushes.
Editors Indiana Farmer.
My currant leaves cup from below and
then turn red. The cups are filled with
small green colored ins.cts that mature
with wings. Is the cause from the insects
oris there something lacking in the soil?
What can be done to destroy the insects,
as the leaves cup down so badly that
spraying does not reach them. Last season I kept the leaves picked off and
burned, bat as soon as new leaves came
out, the same trouble; came up, and I
stripped my bushes of leaves at least half
a dozen times during the season, and now
fully two-thirds of the leaves are curled
down; full of insects and blood red.
Xenla. O. H. T.
—It is the plant lice. Spray the bushes
with kerosene emulsion. Although it
may not reach the insects It will make
their quarters so disagreeable to them that
they will getaway. Renew the application if the lice appear again.
KEROSENE EMULSION.
The formula recommended by Prof.
Cook, of Michigan Agricultural College
has proven very satisfactory, and is as
follows;   Dissolve 1 pound of hard soap
Counterfeit gold dollars of the issue of
1857 are circulating at South Bend.
Petersburg is overrun with Gypsies,
tramp showmen, scissors grinders, hand
organ men and peddlers*
The residences of John Campbell, Jacob
Kenisley and John Fussell, at Pendleton,
were struck by lightning last week.
James Hadley, of Dublin, is dead of the
debilities of old age. He was born in 1803,
and since the war resided in Wayne county.
Mrs. John Mast, of I__fayette, was given
a dose of iodine instead of the regular prescription, and she narrowly escaped death.
Henry S. Peelle and wife, of Wayne
county, have celebrated their golden wedding. Among the guests were three who
attended the original wedding.
A peculiar bug has appeared at New
Ross, which an entomologist -classifies as
"sout igeraforceps." It lives on flies and
cockroaches, and is welcome despite its
horrid name.
John Hiatt, living near Richmond, is 88
years of age, he and his wife having lived
together sixty-eight years. They have had
one hundred children, grand-children and
great-grand-children.
John Ellis, of Amerlcus, attempted to
clem his shot-gun, and while doing so one
barrel was aocidently discharged. The
load took effect in his wife's arm and side,
and her injuries are fatal.
The flood in White river caused a shutdown of the Irondale rolling mill at Anderson. It also broke one of the large gas
mains crossing the river, causing a closing-
down of other industries for want of fuel.
<__etxeral _\&sos. -
Colorado reports a fall of four Inches of
snow:
Scarlet fever has broken out at Appleton,
Wis., and threatens to be epidemic.
Twenty of the largest wall-paper makers
of the country have formed a trust.
One thousand families in the flooded
district near Mnrphysboro, Tenn., need
assistance.
Daring a tornado in Texas a negro was
lifted from a buggy and set on top of a
barbed-wire fence.
Within the limits of the United States
413 speccies of trees have been found, of
which 108 grow in Indiana. -
An effort is being made by the Whisky
Trust officials to have the anti-trust law
declared unconstitutional.
German sugar manufacturers threaten
to combine and to establish a sugar refinery in San Francisco for the purpose of
fighting the trust.
Abner Gray's house at L.uderdale,
Tenn., was burned Tuesday night. Four
children slept upstairs. ' Two were rescued
and two were burned to death.
The Women's Christian Temperance
Union wants to put up a building, 70x100
feet, in the Exposition grounds, in which
to exhibit the entire system of Its work
and to conduct a cafe for tb? (sale of temperance drinks.