THE BASKET WORM. The obnoxious basket worms, which destroy evergreen hedges, must be picked off by hand anda consigned to the flames. The work must not be delayed until spring, but should be done now, and the hedges examined again in a week or two, so as not to everlook any of the pests. In April spray the hedges once or twice with Paris green and water. A DESIRABLE SHADE TREE. The maple is one of the most desir able of shade trees, and of the varie ties it is difficult to select, as some thrive in certain climates better than others. The rock maple (or sugar maple) is one of the handsomest, hav: ing deep foliage, and will bear consid erable ill-usage, thriving where some trees fail. As a shade tree it has no superior, and where a residence is sur rounded by them the value of the farm is largely increased. IMPORTANCE OF THOROUGH MILKING The richest portion of the mig 18 that drawn from the udder last. the matter it was found that the dif ference was so great that with some entirely of butter fat. It is ant, therefore, that milking the cows be done in a thorough manner, leav ing nothing in the udder. done the cow will not be so liable to become dry as soon as when the milk is rot entirely removed at each milk ing. The practice of carefully strip ping also serves as a check upon care less milkers, as the farmer can, and should, examine each cow after she is milked in order to observe if the milk ing has been done thoroughly. Where there is no supervision the milking is sometimes performed and at a loss to the farmer. carelessly WATCH THE HOGS CAREFULLY. A hog that does not care for its corn is an object of suspicion It should at once be separated from the herd. Both the sick pig and the herd. which are as yet apparently well thoroughly disinfected mselves and their yards, nests and feeding troughs—and put on a laxative, cool ing diet. On a failure the off.its. feed pig to recover at once, or the ap pearance of further dis in the herd, resort immediately stringent should be 5% Lil of rders to chances are that your herd has this fatal disease, whether the disease is known to be in the neighborhood or not, or whether or not you know that they have been subject to direct in fection. vided with a dipping tank for swine lice and skin diseases by an sional dipping, and especially to disin fect the hogs in case of a threatened outbreak of cholera. The dipping tank is a comparatively cheap appli- anc:.-—Nebraska Farmer. CULTIVATING AN ORCHARD. Sod is a detriment to an orchard. Trees require a cool, inoist, rich soil Cut through bluegrass sod, even after a heavy rain, and you will find the ground hard and dry. An artificial fertilizer would find little chance to reach the roots of the trees. There are several kinds of orchard grasses that are widely advertised, but clover. The roots keep the surface mulching. into the soil. fertilizers. But while clover probably possesses the most good points of all grasses, or root crop between the rows of trees is doubtless the best care an orchard can have. It keeps down the weeds, benefit the crop and also the trees. A friend who had an unfruitful orch- ard stumbled upon this knowledge. His potato fleld bordered the orchard, and as he lacked room he ordered the first three rows of trees plowed up. The next season he was surprised to find a fine crop of appies on the trees that had been plowed around. The reat of the orchard was as barren as usual, He extended his experiment and soon had the entire orchard under cultivation, and one of the finest apple orchards in the country. Of course it is troublesome to raise potatoes In an orchard, but it certainly pays to do 80. The farmer who is a success utilizes every foot of ground, and stud: les how to get the greatest return for the soil and labor.~J. L. Irwin in The Epitomist. RAPID GROWTH OF FOREST TREES. If it was not generally known how quickly timber could be grown on land that had been cleared of primeval for est, there would be many waste places planted with trees. Most people, when measuring the diameter of a tree and counting the growths of each year to ascertain its age, get the impression that is the average growth for all trees of the same kind. This is a mistaken idea, as trees will grow to the size of one foot in dlameter on land that has been cleared and laid to the sun for a few years in one-third the time they will among the large trees of an original forest. Thirty years ago, when pulling up stumps on the homestead, an oak tree was torn out by the roots that show. ed thirteen years’ growth and meas ured thirteeg ches in diameter close to the ground. When visiting In Susquehanna County, Pa., I happened where a carpenter was finishing a house with pine lumber, some of it twelve inches wide. He informed me the last crop on the land was potatoes and the rows could be plainly seen when the timber was cut. During one of my rambles through the forest many years ago, in search of wild bees, a line led me on strange ground. While searching the tree I came across an old board fence that was supported in position by small trees. There was nothing to show the land had ever been cleared, and 1 concluded the fence had inclosed for- est for pasture when the pioneer had only a little cleared. On making inquiries I found several persons, not old enough to be in their prime of life, who had seen a fine crop of wheat | growing on the land.~—J. H. Andre in | New York Tribune. RAW MATERIAL ON FARMS, Crops are grown for use on the farm as well as for market, hence the value of a crop does not depend solely upon what it will bring wheg sold, but also | upon the uses to which it may be ap- In fact, a crop may be worth more in the barn than | in the market, as it is 80 much raw ma terial ready for to converted into beter products, while if marketed in the condition the transporta tion charges and commissions for sell ing reduce its value. Even when a such as corn, Is converted into meat, milk, butter or other products, its value cannot be estimated, as there is always a portion remaining over in the manure heap which may be equal in value to that sold. The value of the products of all ani mals on farms depends so largely ups | use be raw animals as to render it gible to farm manure through the animals the will differ from that by the others, as the consumed, the digestive each used the Casey tested almost impos- wealth the Vhen food has passed of the from each produced a # wey oe 3 . estimate the of bodies mantre proportions of capacity kinds of foods con in one of animals much as 62 nitrogen, 80 per acid and the potash in the in the and the are factors to be stimate, that two cent. of of all 6 per cent animal idered but experiments in with a lot weonks all the the show for as per phosphoric of all foods consumed remained over less than one-third of the food is converted into marketable products, and that much the larger proportion goes into the manure heap, because of being only partially digested It is, how aver, much raw material awaiting 80 The profit on the raw materials will be but little if the materials not of the best quality, and the gain will be large if the raw materials are of themselves valuable. For instance where such concentrated foods as lin seed meal and cotton meal are purchased and the farm the value of the be great when it was produced from hence if the prices ob tained by the farmer for his milk, beef and butter are no greater than the outlay for the concentrated purchased the manure alone will give a large profit, as the larger pro portion of the foods will find their way to the refuse heap, but, having passed eed on manure will brought foods, 1a foods through the bodies of the animals, will in proper condition serve as avallable plant foods material value of a sometimes greater than its feeding value, and if the man ure should be sold to a customer who fully understood its real value it would be as much a marketable pro duct of the farm as meat or milk, but it is more economical to retain it than to sell it, as its removal adds to its Many foods are even cheaper be to ‘he is food vantage, but a large profit will be se. cured by feeding the foods to animale the farm into crops, the crops into produces, and a profit secured because the more con centrateed the product the lower the expense of marketing. There are many sources of profit on farms that are overlooked, but the farmers who give carefu! attention to the manure heap are those whose farms become more valuable every year.--Philadel phia Record. Whom Kipling Called the Greatest. In his capital blography of Cecil Kipling was interview in 1898 as to his opinion of Cecil Rhodes, he de scribed the Prime Minister as “the greatest of living men.” While every one may not agree with this enthusias- tic statement, it yet remains that thease who know Mr. Rhodes best are those who estimate him most highly, though they admit not being able entirely to understand him. Despite his vast wealth and powerful influence, he is the most democratic of men, brusque, unconventional, his clothes designed f for comfort rather than smartness. He is an omnivorous reader, devouring history, blography, and fiction with gusto, his favorite novel being “Vanity Falr.,” His mansion at Groot Schuur is filled with antique furniture and rare china and paintings. In London there are, according to the latest directory 1,500 families by the name of Smith, 960 by the name of Jones, 700 Browy families and 350 Robinson families. CARDS A QUEEN'S FAD. The principal hobby of the Queen Regent of Spain is the collecting of playing cards. She possesses a large number of curious packs, many of which have no little historical interest. One set, made of ivory, is belleved to have belonged to Prince Eugene, who fought with the great Duke of Marl borough, and to have accompanied him In all his campaigns. Queen Christina also owns some exceedingly rare cards of Egyptian, Arabian French and Spanish manufacture. FOR WOMEN ERS. One of the latest occupations which women have taken up is that of em- balming. A training school for wom en embalmers hase been established by a French woman, who has taken at several European institu- tions and has had had an extensive ex perience as a trained nurse The {dea advanced by her is that the bodies of women and children should be cared for after death by women, and she is supported in it by many doctors and other persons of standing in the community. SCHOOL EMBALM prominent A PATCH OF VIOLETS A new place to ra patch is directly beneath the These dainty single violets in purple and white are thickly sprinkled on a background of shaded lilac penne vel vet, Violet panne is not cheap and 80 very small portions of it are used it appears to be precious because the fragmentary tabs are all displaved as if quite rare. Two violet patches ap violet chin. look fi not art do but of lace iting costume The patches quite meet beneath the chin, separated by a small tab Two small silver buttons are the opposite edge i get on ef tabs of the vely BECOMINGNESS OF APPAREL A strong for be feminine apparel was made Durand, of the Paris paper, La Fronde, in an addres woman's rights movement n at a recent conference in Berlin hearers mainly leaders plea editor Woman's 48 on the France Her were Germany, and movement in monition never to lose ceseity of dres men was to with : The German women who at the head of the “emancipation” effort may it is said, be told a mile off. as seem to think that dress is a sign of earnestness Durand wore an elegant white and a picture hat decorated with flowers. ight of the ne ising well to please listened surprise. are they in Mme, gown red carelessness NEW HEAD DRESSES A word of approval can be given t the new head Without ex cuse for being they have come pretty prominence, and are the attention bestowed 1 Take the Hollan®' windmi its ends pointing four set just the back, and as mee a great dis play bow ‘rom the middle there may come a jetted wing which stands out well Then there are loops and the loops way. Right in the middle there is poised a jet butterfly upon a arranged to flit ag the wearer moves These devices, if in large are worn as theatre head dresses of white lace are used are in place of the thea tre toque. Little head dresses of white lace are used well as those of black lace. They must be arranged with much chic, so dresses ith Vays over forehead, a #0 io the velvet bows, all pointing every spiral > size them of all semblance to the caps worn by old people, or to the lace pieces of the nursery. Elderly persons are wearing these lace bits. One of stiff wired lace, with six pointed wings, attached to a center smartly, and very pretty it looked. Colored lace is also used for head if HOW THE TIRED WOMAN RESTS, There is a woman up town who be gins to dust the pictures when she is tired. That is her way of finding re pose, Her family always know when she is on the verge of giving out from weariness. It to notice how the pictures are dusted is worn out. Then she arises and begins to wipe frames and wires and wash glasses. She de clares it rests her. Another woman comes home weary after a day's shopping and straight. way puts herself into a chair that will tip back and allow her to get her feet on the mantelpiece, There she site until she feels like herself again. This seems more rational than the pleture dusting performance. It is more normal. Bo is the course of an: other woman, who always, when she is tired, gets out of a tight-fitting gown and a corset, sits back in an easy chair and eats an apple. If she is very tired she takes two and in peri ods of great distress she has been known to consume three. Then she arises, a giantess refreshed, assumes conventional costume once more and returns to work. All these are comparatively harm less ways of resting, and even the methods of another woman who when nervously weary displays it by chang Ing the position of the furniture in her room are not of necessity painful to others. One woman, however, con- fesses with shame and confusion of countenance that when she is tired, she always scolds the children. “Nothing else seems to rest me,” she laments. “1 know it is dreadful but when I come home after a day's shopping, tired out, I always scold the infants. Luckily, they have come tc the point when they don't mind it especially.” Fortunately for children at large most mothers do not find rest in that way. Even at the risk of sceming shockingly convenional, one must ows to preferring the plan of another moth er, whose modes of seeking repose verge upon sentimentality. “When 1 am weary,” says she, “l | always go into my own room, close the blinds and take a copy of Tennyson { that I have bad for a long time, and { put it under my pillow and then lie { down and think of green fields. In ia little while I find myself refreshed {as though I had had a country walk. { The idea of the book helps me as much the closed blinds and the peaceful thoughts.’ —New York News as MANDATES OF THE MODE. While the coat tall cannot be sald t« be new, it is to play a conspicuous part in spring attire. In renovating a costume, therefore, these appendages may left with perfect safety if they are becoming If not there are plenty of nothing of them be on nodels showing sort. A is the the pet rity about costumes, Long plaited ones often figure the most statly dinner dress. Shorter plaited ones are almost tpevitable on the after noon of volle, grenadine and open Canvas. When we come to the chic tailor-made we find them still con either in the shape to any one class of on dresses spicuous, of in case these are plated they are taut by strapping or stitching Strapping. too, is here who nlain at! i strapping plain stitched strapping; ly the On lighter however, as in the tall in ated in lyreldike figures an m 11 : "3 Those like it may heavi and BOOG On the well as r class the half d branching uylendid embroi« ng is a feature ter of show moire straps of taffeta is to show cloth Another scheme but a cord of sy vyeivetl or DF in this case there TOWS of n strapping y th strap Die th rilgd * 1 he plain pearl Though long since made its ADDEATANCY vet a pearl Luckle, lke which is a ity. It ia milky expanse of beauty of small Such a $ in wise ton, nove but is creamy buckle an allblack or a The buttons also down a millinereal plain rather composed pearls at intervals is fascinating on white hat holding dress figure for gtrap Box piaits and all triple box very attractive half-ta%) effect plaits five in down num single in great but the prevail are noted varieties, bers and One plaits castor