J.IVE STOCK J* AGRICULTURE ' * •' •>. -V. :>■> > ' V . v • . . ■„' A FINE PERCHERON STALLION. THE NEW ORCHARD Advantages to Fruit Growers of Fall Setting. KEEP WATER FROM ROOTS. Greatest Danger From Winter Storms Is Settling of Water Around Bases of Trunks—Now Is the Time to Attend to Odd Jobs About the Place. . It is only -within a few years that fruit growers have begun to realize the advantages of setting out orchards in the late fall instead of in spring, es pecially in the more central latitudes, where the ground seldom freezes to a depth of more titan :i few inches. *-In the first place, the ground is in far better condition and more work able than it usually is early in spring. Then the planter has more leisure for the selection and careful examination from root to lip of his young trees, which is desirable even when purchas ed under a guarantee from the most reliable nurseries, since insect enemies and disease germs are as varied and numerous and since the packers are often so crowded by orders that there is no time for close inspection of each individual tree, says a writer in Knrm I'rogress. The trees, also, just entering on the state of winter dormancy, fresh from the soil in which they grew, have a greater vitality than those that have passed the winter in great bundles merely "heeled In"to be ready for the spring trade. Unless the land for die projected or chard is so naturally sloping, prefer ably eastward or northward, that there is perfect natural drainage ditching or the draining is indispensable. The greatest danger to fall set treoa is that water from winter storms will stand about the roots, a case in which few would survive, especially the stone fruits. To prevent this, even where the general situation is all that could be desired, particular pains should be tak en to press each layer of earth as it is tilled in closely and firmly among and! over the roots, always, however, with care not to scrape or bruise the latter, and to slightly mound it up around the trunk in the finish. Unless each tree is firmly anchored to a stout stake, which is not practi cable in large orchards, it is apt to wabble back and forth in high winds and form a cavity into which air and moisture will enter that would prove very detrimental to the roots. .Mulch ing with anything except ashes, and this should not be put against the very tender bark of young trees, is a ques tionable practice, since field mice and other vermin are liable to burrow un der it and gnaw the trees. The only alternative, then, is for the orehardist to visit his young trees fre quently in winter and when the ground is open press the soil up close around them, which he can do with die toe or side of his boot. It is seldom recommended to plant berry fruits in the fall, but some of the most successful growers claim to have had for many successive years far better results from fall set plants than with 'hose put out in spring, and as they start so much earlier much time is gained. Losses Through Exposure. The Cornell agricultural station un earthed die following facts by a series of experiments conducted to determine the exact losses fo stable manure when exposed to leaching and weathering A pile of manure that' contained ele ments worth STi.4S after being exposed for five mouths was worth only jP'J.tKI. heaving manure in piles- in the field is an antiquated method that should nev er be practised for the reason that It results in fertilizing the spots where the heaps lit* too heavily, giving them fully three times as much of the fer tilizing elements as they need, while three times as \ tnli ground receives less than it needs or not enough to make a showing. I i TIME TO DD FALL JOBS. *!" i ± Have you looked over the farm X buildings to ascertain the repairs Ij. 1 T needed'/ V iy This is a question that every A X farmer should ask himself at £ •{• this season of the year. There X X are boards loose on the build- £ 1 *{• ings. there are walks and bridges jto repair, doors that are sagging J T and window panes that are rat- -J --.j. tling, and should these go over X X until next season unfixed it will -j* »j. require twice as much material, .j. V twice as much work, and you V •{« will he out fhe benefit of hav £ lug your buildings In shape. X y There is a somber sound in the •{• I pounding of loose clapboards X j £ and the rattle of insecure win- v -j- dow par.es. A loose clapboard X X may lie detected by drawing a V •!• hammer down the side of your X X building and a different sound X •[• will betray which one needs to -j. Xbe fastened down securely. J* •J* When anything is to be done •!- •j. such as replacing boards or mill- X I*£ ing them more securely, do it at v •j. once: acquire this habit, and It X X will eliminate those expenditures -j* •{• of time and effort which eat up X X profits.—National Stockman and "J" •{• Farmer. Ijl Beet Top Poisoning. A word of caution is advisable on feeding beet tops, livery fall the tops are used for feed, and this is usually done by turning the t uliuals into the fields after the beets have been hauled out; also every fall reports eoint in of stock dying from eating the tops. Death cones from two general . causes. First and probably most com ' mon is the oxalic acid poisoning. Beet tops contain a considerable amount of this acid, and when an extensive quantity of tops is consumed it is very likely to produce oxalic acid poi soning and death. The other cause is mold, which grows on the beet tops and is more prevalent in damp weath er. Anything moldy is dangerous as a food, but moldy tops ;. nd moldy beets are especially so. The tops that are dry, or nearly so. while they may not ; be so palatable, are really safer. Storing Vegetables. Onions.—Store in a loft rather than in the cellar. In the latter they will sprout to their injury. A few parsnips for winter jse may be lifted and stored i:i sand in the cellar, but as freezing sweetens them it is best to leave many of them outdoors for later use. Po tatoes.—Store in bins one foot or eighteen Inches deep, raised somewhat from the floor. l>o not bruise or they will be likely to rot. Hoots in the nature of salsify and horseradish freezing does not hurt, so the main j lot may stay out where grown, but J some should be dug and putin earth in the cellar for winter use. Hotbeds and Early Vegetables. By using a hotbed to start young ! plants any one can have cabbages, to- I matoes. lettuce, cauliflower and other , | appetizing vegetables from two weeks to a month earlier than his neighbors who wait for the sun to sprout their garden seeds. The entire cost, of a substantial hotbed need not be over sl2 to sl.l. and the materials can be j used year after year. Plan Next Year's Chickens Now. liemove undesirably old roosters and I hens. Next cull out all the crow beaked, scrawny young stock. Con tinue culling until only die most ro bust, most attractive fowls, young and old. are left. These will form the foundation for improved chickens next I year, when the process should be re- Ipeated. A Timely Hint Regarding Bees. The beekeeper who |Kistpoiies all 1 preparations for winter until it is close jat hand is unwise. A good queen, an abundance of bees and a quantity of wholesome stores are Important ac | quisltions. it is better to think about j these things as early as possible rath er than in November or December. THE ORIGIN OF SUGAR. It Was First Made by the Chinese at Least 3,000 Years Ago. The Chinese, who invented nlrnost everything before anybody else lieurd of it, claim to be the original discover ers of the process of sugar making, and it is said that su&ir was used la China as long ago as a,<MjO years. This is misty, but the fact is well establish- \ ed that it was manufactured In China | under the Tsin dynasty 2UO years at least before the Christian era began. India has put forward a claim for priority of invention, but the probabil ity Is that the Hindus learned the art of sugar making from the Chinese and that through them the knowledge dual ly spread to the western nations. Ne archuß when sent by Alexander on an exploring voyage on the Indus brought back reports of "honey" which was made by the Asiatics from cane with out the help of bees. At this time neither the Greeks nor the Jews nor the Babylonians had any knowledge of sugar, but later the art] of making the artificial "honey" be-1 came known and practiced, though Its! progress and development were ex-j ceedingly slow. It was prescribed as I a medicine by Galen In A. I). ir>(), and j up to the seventeenth century it had become nothing more than a costly luxury, to be used only on special occa sions. Even as late as the beginning i of the eighteenth century the annual consumption of sugar in Croat Britain had reached only 20.000.<M)0 pounds.] whereas it is now more than 2.C00.000,- (H)it pounds. Refined sugar was not made in Kng-j land till 1051). The art of refining was learned by a Venetian merchant from the Saracens, who sold the secret to him for 100,(KM) crowns. ~N Tho Headache Tree. A curious member of the vegetable kingdom li-.s been discovered In the far east. it is a species of acacia which grovs to a height of about eight feet and when full grown closes its leaves together In curls each day at sunset and curls its twigs in tho form of a pitfall. After the tree lias settled itself in this way for a night's 1 sleep, like most sleepers. It objects to . being disturbed. If touched It will flutter as if agitated and impatient at: the Interruption of Its slumbers. The oftener the foliage is molested the! more violent becomes the shaking of; the branches, and at length the tree emits a nauseating odor, which if in-! haled for a few moments will cause a violent headache. A Damper on Thrift. A tourist in the mountains of Ten-1 nessee once had dinner with a queru lous old mountaineer who yarned about, hard times for fifteen minutes at a ! stretch. "Why. man." said the tourist.] "you ought to lie able to make lots of money shipping green corn to the north-' em market." "Yes. I orter." was the sullen reply. "You have the land. I suppose, and can get the seed." "Yes, I guess so." "Then why don't you go into the speculation?" "No use. stranger." sadly replied the] cocker: "the old woman is too lazy i j to do the plowin" and plantln'."—Kan- i | sas City Star. Color. | Our hero beat his young wife until | she was black and blue, j "The feminine characters in a so ! ciety novel are so apt to be colorless." j said he in explanation of tlie seeming J gauclierle.—Detroit Free Press. | JUST A FEW MINUTES OF FUN | Merely a Yarn. I "You iire crewel," sighed the swnin. "Is that sew?" giggled the damsel. "Darn It!" he cried, his temper ris ing. "Are .vou never going to stop breaking the thread of my discourse?" "Knit!" she retorted. lienlizing that he was worsted, he | stifled the impulse to say something iknotty and wound himself up.—Judge. | Taking Him at His Word. I Kmployer -\\ hat do yon mean Ity I taking a day off? I only gave you a ; half holiday. ] Clerk—Vou told me yourself never to, 1 !do anything by halves.—New York | Mall. A Fatal Suggestion. He (rather dltlldenti—Er—now that we are engaged 1 suppose you—er— won't object to my kissing you. She (much less moi— Certainly not. Help yourself. And when mamma comes in I want you to kiss her also. I He— S-say, let's b-break the eugage -1 meut!—Chicago News. ILL FATED BEAUTY History Links Misfortune With! Loveliness In Womankind. THE FATE OF CLEOPATRA.' Julia Donna, the Poor Girl Who Be camo Empress of Rome, but Whose Charms Accomplished Her Undoing.; Luckless Helen of Troy. Why envy beauty when history; lends emphasis to the conclusion that | usually beauty is a misfortune to its possessor? it was loveliness of face and form that wrecked Cleopatra, who in turn wrecked Mark Antonv, broke the heart of Octavia and brought the horrors of civilized war upon im perial Koine. The great Julius fell a j victim to her charms at a single inter-' | view. 1 Cleopatra was a beautiful and mag ! I niftcent creature and never failed to I captivate those who passed before her. ' She was as Intelligent as she was 1 beautiful. No woman has surpassed her In cunning. Mow she died is a mystery. The • j story of the asp biting her to death is ■ a myth, but authorities agree that she met a violent death by her own hand. There is the story of Julia Donna, who. in her maiden days a poor, huiu- I hie girl, was on account of her per- ; sonal magnetism raised from a com mon sphere to the highest that im perlal Home could offer. She became the wife of Severus and thus empress of Home, ller beauty was her evil ! fate, as she permitted ail to approach her with their sentiments. Finally, : despairing of ever becoming again the power she once was in Home, deserted by those who brought her to her nils-' cry. forsaken by her friends, she end- 1 ed her days in starvation. There was yet another beautiful Ho man Julia, who. through her extreme! beauty, was Introduced to and became ' the wife of a famous senator when she was only sixteen. Between that age] i and twenty-four she lived up to the i traditions of the times, succumbed to j the conceit of her own channs. be came the prey of flatterers, conspired! 1 against her husband and was put to a ] violent death. Helen of Troy was tied io a tree and strangled, a condign punishment for the errors she fell into solely on account of her beauty. She was re ; sponsible for the many years' siege of : Troy, her husband, Menelaus. being de i termined to revenge himself on Paris. Josephine, wife of Napoleon 1., was said by her husband to he "most truly ! , a lovely woman, refined. afFablo, ! charming, a goddess of the toilet, kind j j and humane," yet because no son was 1 | born to them Napoleon divorced her. and she died an absolutely crushed 1 woman. They Wouldn't Lay. | A bashful young woman from a i backwoods county in Virginia went into a local store carrying three chick ens. She inquired the price of chickens j and at the same time put them on the ! counter. "Will they lay there?" asked fhe | clerk, who did not know that the chick- I ens' legs were tied. She hit her hankerchief in embar rassment a moment and said: j "No. sir; they are roosters."—-Lippin ] cott's. That Crooked Arm. If there is anything Archibald was ] fond of It was girls. Fair, dark, tall, short, sweet, sour, plain, pretty, he ; adored them all, and never went out to a theater or a cifhcert without a 1 bevy of at least half a dozen. C'onse- . quently when he fell downstairs one day and broke his arm the chief regret that crossed his mind was that he j ; would be unable to take Elizabeth and Milly and Catherine and the rest j I of them to see the 'day that night. ' "I'm afraid It's a bad job." pro- 1 noil need the surgeon, who had come i to set the arm. "Even when It has I . jaled the arm will remain crooked." "Never mind the crook*" replied ] i Archibald. "Set It for hugging and go ahead!"— Tit-lilts. Would Like Revenge. Yeast—Do you ever catch your wife talking to herself? Crltnsonbeak—No; I wish to gracious | I could.—Yonkers Statesman. Everything In Stock. "I want some lawn." "Yes'm. Dress or front yard?'' h ARE YOU LEFT HANDED? j Come Observations of Interest Con- ' earning This Peculiarity. I There was a fad some twenty years j ago among certain classes to make the ' children use both hands equally, with ; a view to developing ambidexterity. ] There were very few successful results. On the contrary, the children that used ! only oue hand seemed to get along bet- 1 ter in every way. especially in Intel- • lectual development. The explanation I ; for this is found in the fact that the : ! control of the hand is Intimately con-1 nected with the development of lan-j i guage, but the brain centers flint have i to do with language are situated on the left side—that Is. i:i connection ] with the centers that control the right ] arm and hand. An examination of thousands of hu- . man skeletons showed that In every I case in which the right arm had a greater development than the left-arm there was a corresponding develop- ] ment on the left side of the skull, j : Left handed persons would according i !y be expected to have less language I ability, on the whole, than right hand ed persons, and children that used both 1 hands indifferently under compulsion would hinder still more the develop ment of their ability In the use of lan guage. In tho Cierman army Pr. Bnrdleben found 3.8S per cent of left handedness. This figure is to be considered as rath er lower than the true ratio, as many left handed men deny or fail to report the fact. In northeastern parts of Oer many left handedness Is less frequent than in the central parts. It is c-url i>us that among the monkeys the orang j ontang and the hylobates are right handed, while the gorilla and the chim panzee are left handed. Harper's Weekly. A Church Without Services. There is in London, within a few | yards of the beautiful marble arch In Hyde park, a church in which no serv ices are ever held. This Church of the Ascension, as it is culled, was built by Mrs. Itussell Oumey as a memorial to i her husband, and she expressly stnted that the edifice was to be used for prayer, rest and meditation solely. A handsome building it is. with its tessel lated floors and its numerous line i paintings. Over the door is posted this ! notice, explaining the true object of : the church: "Passengers through the busy streets of London, enter this sanc tuary for rest and silence and prayer. Let the pictured walls within speak of the past yet ever continuing ways of j Cod with man." COME HOME TO THANKSGIVING Come, rest a bit. clear wife, for all Is now in neat array \ And waiting- trim, and all the bairns Are 'coining homo today. j There's goodly store of cakes and pies And jell in quivering: molds. I And piles on piles of fruit and nuts The spacious granary holds. There's savory smell of roasting: fowls, And all is of tho best. So let the girls keep watch, dear wife. And sit you down and rest. The train will soon be com. •« T in With John and James ana h, , Each with a little family, A goodly sight in truth. It's just n year apro today , Slneo xi 11 have gathered here, AIM! there's a grandchild coming, too, We didn't have last year. So rest awhile, dear wife, and let i l"s count our blessings o'er And thankful be? that all the bairns Are coming homo once more. —Selected. Eureka! ] I'itzfoozle (a beginuer who is "teach ing" a lady on the men's links and ! loses a clubi— l'ardon me, sir. Have you seen a lady's club anywhere? Admiral I'eppercorn (very Irate at be ing delayed, wishes ladies would play on their own course)—No, sir. but there's a goose dub at the Pig and ; Whistle, I believe. Try that!— Punch. An Obedient Son. : " "Clarence, did you peel that apple before eating it, as 1 told you?" "Yes, mother." "What did you do with the peel?" "I ate It, mother."—New York Mall. Characteristic. Nell—She has an automobile tongue. ltelie—What do you mean? Nell—Oh, she's always running other people down.—Philadelphia llecord. Not Wholly Selfish. "I hear that he's left the bank." j "Yes, and from what 1 hear that was I all he did leave." AN ODD PROPOSAL By MARY MANTELLI. There was a ring at the bell that called mo to iny chief. 1 took up my pencil and book and went to his office. He didn't notice me, busying lilmself I with some papers before him. 1 took my usual seat, sharpened a pencil and j waited. 1 glanced at Ills face, and It occurred to me that he had something ;on his mind. Presently he threw | down the papers and said abruptly: "Are you ready?" I told him that I was, and he dic | tated two or three letters, then said: j "If you give these letters to the girls j to type please read ovef their copies ■ before they are sent out. Too are the i only oue I can trust." "Certainly: is that all?" lie fidgeted, taking up first a pen, ; then a book and dropping both. Then, i turning squarely to me, he Bald: j "No; there's a lot more to come. It I isn't business, but I've been a business man so long that I can't do unytlilng except in a business way. So I shall make a muddle of it." j "Can't Ido it for you?" "No—yes." I "How?" "The way you often help me with i my letters when you infuse policy Into them, only in this case sentiment is to go In instead." "Very well. Proceed." liu going abroad. I want a stenog rapher with ine. I've dictated so long that I can write nothing but my name. ' 1 want you. You can't go without be ing married. Will you marry ine?" "Excuse me, Mr. Burlon. I'm not i : capable of infusing any sentiment Into that bald statement." "Then why not dispense with the sentiment?" "The statement is yours, not mine. ] If you prefer to dispense with the sen - timent I am agreeable." J "Well, what is your answer?" "No." >1 "Your reason?" i"I decline to give a reason." 1 "H'm! I like that. How do you sup- Pose I am to reduce you to my will - without knowing what I have to over -9 come?" 4 "\ou seeai to lie able to get your ' way wltfi people in business." "I*ut I told you in the beginning thin ' is not a matter of business." ■ "What kind of a matter do you call • it—something like an auxiliary yacht that is moved part by steam and part by wind?" "Yes: the steam is the only force by j which it can lie sure to get anywhere. This disposition to take a wife and to get her is the all important factor in my case. The rest is wind." "That makes it very easy. Almost any of the girls in the office would jump at your proposal." "You ilatter me. I'll not give any of tliem the opportunity to .lump." "If I marry it will be for love." "What is love but a sentimental con dition." "If that is true, why do you marry? There are plenty of men stenogra- I pliers Take a man abroad with you." "H'm! That, no doubt, would be the most sensible way out of it. The trou ble is that I've got used to dictating to | you. You take all the roughness out of Imy letters, replacing it with policy, I and when they goto their destination they produce the best possible effect. In other words, you have become a j part of me." ; "Only an intellectual part." - ! " v 'i keep me from doing many fool ..gS." If I succeed in keeping you from marrying simply to take a stenogra pher abroad with you I will certainly prevent your doing a foolish thing." lie drummed with his lingers on his desk for uwhile. My last argument had told. Presently he said: ! "As to the folly of the proceeding, 1 am the best judge. I didn't mean by saying 'you keep me from doing fool ish things' that you can run me better than I can run myself. I referred ' more especially to my communications I with others." I"The woman you propose to take with you, for instance." He smiled a faint, sickly smile. "If j she were some one else you could do i the Job beautifully," he said shame ; facedly. j "There you are wrong. No one can . do such a Job for another, or, if so. It j will still be only a job." ■ lie sat for some moments in silence, ■ evidently rolling the matter over and over in his mind. Tresently I arose I and was about to withdraw. "Sit down." I resumed my seat. "You have beaten me at every point," he added presently. "You have a lot of common sense in that head of yours, and that's the reason 1 want yon, though I presume there are other rea sons to which my practical nature blinds me. But I can't 'talk soft,' and if there's no way but that to get you I fear I must let you go." Somehow this statement seemed to : take the wind out of my sails. It was : my turn to feel that he had the advan tage of me. j "I—l—don't know," I said haltingly, j "that it is necessary to talk exactly j soft." "Isn't the usual method in such cases j talking soft? At any rate, it is a bit | old fashioned. It has been going on ! ever since Adam was spoons on Eve." I "It isn't necessary to talk at all." He looked aside at me quickly and ; threw his arms about me. That which : lie was endeavoring or pretending to i endeavor to conceal poured forth with the rush of mighty waters. For half an hour he gave me what he had told me he considered maudlin seaUmeut> V I went abroad with blm.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers