Subjects of Interest to the Farmer
ANGORA IS USEFUL
Valuable as Clearer of Ground
and Grower of Hair.
GOAT BUSINESS THRIVING.
Average Animal Produce* Three
Pounds of Hair Yearly, Worth Some
times as High as sls a Pound—Woven
Wire Fences Recajmmended.
A
The Angora goat business seems to
be thriving pretty well all over the
country, for Angorft-goats are becom
ing recognized as great scavengers In
places where brush and weeds give a
good deal of trouble.
Besides the good Jthey do in browsing,
goats are also worth having around
the ranch, on account of their hair.
The average X'hs&tyfc-T£ill grow a fleece
weighing at feast tj&r£e pounds every
year. be d"fteared easily and
sold at from 30' cents a pound.
The price varies with the length and
fineness of the fleece aud the amount
of kemp, an undesirable coarse fiber
which is present in the fleece of many
goats. Kemp will not take mohair
dyes.
The Missouri Huralist declares that
long fleeces of twelve inches or more
pay higher prices, sometimes as high
as $2 to sls a pound. These are diffi
cult ito obtain .except from well bred
goats. The fleece from young kids also
pays a higher price than the average
on account of its fineness.
The picture shows a scene on a goat
punch. A good way to keep the goats
HERD OF ANGORA GOATS.
1* In fields inclosed with woven wire
fence having stays twelve inches
apart. If the stays are nearer togeth
er the coats are likely to catch their
heads in the fence.—Denver Field and
Farm.
Dry Poultry House*.
Commercial poultrymeu who believe
thoroughly in the roosting closet of
ten use a double wall around that part
of the house where the roosts are lo
cated. If the rest of the house is built
with matched boards and covered ou
walls and roof with a good rooting pa
per it will be satisfactory. Some peo
ple have tried putting the building pa
lter on the inside, so that the outside
walls could be painted, but the plan is
not a good one, as the interior of the
bouse should he as light as possible.
Besides, it often is very desirable to
apply a coat of whitewash. Of course
there is no reason why the building
should not be clapboarded or shingled
If the matter of appearance'is an im
portant consideration.—Country Gen
tleman.
LUDICROUS ANSWERS.
tome That Were Giverr In a Chicago
Civil Service Examination.
Applicants for police service con
vulsed the civil service commission in
Chicago by their answers to simple
questions. One answer was, "Larceny
is speeding of an automobile or other
rig of wheels."
Another answered, "Larceny is where
a man and a woman, related, get mar
ried."
A third sidestepped rather graceful
ly this: "Larceny is a very serious of
fense. A policeman should look out
for it."
"What are the duties of a police
man?" To this one applicant answer
ed, "To take care of tire and murder
ing and—the I'nlted States."
To the question "What is the punish
ment for misdemeanors?" one man an
svvered. "Should lie taken to court and
sued by the gang."
"Kobbery, that is an act of murder,
and that tv t'>» time to hit or shoot."
"What would you do in case you
found the body of a dead person?"
"Report to the commanding officer."
"What are the three successive pen
alties for keeping a gambling house?"
"Playing cards, pool tables and gam
bling for money. You can't deal any
of these games."
Getting the Gait.
"Has that lawyer taken any steps in
the patent business*?"
"Yes: he has bought n pair of patent
l«gtber shoes."—Baltimore American.
! T WHAT SANDY SOILS NEED. <
X . <
% The addition of vegetable mat- <
x ter to sandy sella la very lm- J
<'/ portant since It Is needed to In- <
X crease their water holding capa- J
i> city us well as to add fertility. <
Water Is often the limiting fac- %
$ tor In the production of sandy
% soils, due to their coarse texture %
<•> and lack of vegetable matter. To
prevent winds blowing saud the
<t> lund may be laid out In long, J>
% narrow fields with alternate <§'
<V grass aud cultivated crops. Pro- 4
4 tection windbreaks of pines or
<§> other trees are effective for short 4
% distances. &
% The fertility needs of sandy 4
soils are nitrogen, phosphorus <?>
f' mid potash. l'hosphorus and %
*> potassium must be supplied el- &
T ther directly In commercial fer- $
<•■ tillzer or Indirectly through the
buying of feed which la fed to $
<>•> animals. <|
Legumes are beneficial to sandy £
r soils because they supply the <?•
much needed nitrogen as well as <£>
humus. Peat can be used to ad- $
<£ vantage as a nitrogen fertilizer |>
where a supply Is readily avail- J?
<;> able. The use of lime on sandy <§>
soils, which are very commonly
% acid, will aid in securing a stand
4 of alfalfa and clovers. —Wiscon- xj
'i» sin Experiment Station. <§>
Hazelnut* For Profit.
The culture of our native hazelnuts
has been almost entirely overlooked,
says the Kural New Yorker. The Eu
ropean hazels, or filberts, as they are
commonly called, are affected with a
fungous disease in the wood that pre
vents them from being profitably
grown over the greater part of North
America except on the Pacific coast.
There they do remarkably well, es
pecially in Oregon, Washington and
British Columbia. But the two native
species of the hazel that are found here
and there from the north Atlantic
states to the Dakotas and Kansas are
entirely free from any such affection
and ought to be grown for profit and
pleasure in many sections.
Grading of Wheat.
The grade given to wheat depends
today almost wholly upon its appear
ance, condition and test weight. When
the natural color or bloom of the,ker
nel has been destroyed by rain and sun
while staudiug in the shock and the in
crease in a moisture content has
caused corresponding decrease in the
test weight the grade given is lower
than it would be if this same wheat
were marketed in good condition with
out deterioration resulting from ex
posure to weather.—Field and Farm.
COURTSHIP OF THE FUTURE.
Women Will Take the Initiative, Say*
Thi* Lecturer,
George Willis Cooke, lecturer, be
lieves that in the very near future wo
men, not men, will do the proposing.
He was not referring to leap year.
"With the coming of suffrage they will
act for themselves not only politically,
but socially," he declared In Boston re
cently.
"The present shyness
of girls In lovemaking are subterfuges,
a part of the present social teachings."
he added. "They go back to the head
ship of the man. Among the Zuni In
dians these qualities are exactly chang
ed. It is the boy who is called mod
est, ditlident and shy, for there he
leaves Ills own home when married,
just as the girl does here.
"Another reason why women should
do the proposing is that they are get
ting better educated than the men and
therefore will select more Intelligent
ly. In time it will be the women who
will do the courting."
Cheer Up.
Why so pen Hive? Why so sad?
Why the look of anguish o'er you?
Is your business to the bad?
Do the bill collectors bore you?
Pn you fret at price of meat.
Fret because of a tomorrow?
Are you fearful of defeat.
Short of cash and cannot borrow?
There's a morgue Just down the pike.
When you're passing pray step In It.
Any corpse that's there would like
To be in your place a minute.
—New York Times.
URGING OF A NEW IDEA.
Monty In Ralafng Flah» Ftrmirt Art
Told—Btat* Land* Halp.
When Professor L. L. Dyche of the
Kansas State university vu made
fish and game warden be was told that
his chief Job was to make the fish In
dustry worth while In the state.
The state has let the contract for
eighty-three new ponds, covering eighty
acres of ground as an addition to Its
flsh hatchery at Pratt, and will have
the largest fish hatchery In the coun
try. One million minnows a year Is
the capacity of the new hatchery, and
all of these will be furnished free of
charge for breeding purposes to the
Kansas farmers and sportsmen.
"If every farmer In Kansas will grow
one mess of fish a week for his own
family it will mean $1,250,000 added
to the revenues of Kansas each year,"
said Professor Dyche. "If they are
careful and sell a few fish each year
the revenues of the state will be in
creased from $3,000,000 to $5,000,000 a
year. Fish are the easiest grown and
most productive crop that can be raised
on a farm. A half acre pond will re
turn more to the farmer each year than
any five acres he owns and with the
least work."
The state refunds one-half the taxes
on all farm property made- Into ponds
of certain size and certain materials.
The ponds are tilled either by pumping
or by storing the winter rains and
snow.
Every farmer who builds a pond is
supplied with fish and taught how to
take care of them. Correspondence
courses in building ponds and caring
for fish have been installed at the Kan
sas State university and the State
Agricultural college.
DIRTY EGGS ON THE FARM.
Cause of Large Loss to Producer Be
cause They Sell as "Seconds."
Wliil* there ure u few egg producers
who take the best of enre of their prod
uct, the average farmer considers the
eggs produced on the farm a byprod
uct and makes very little provision for
their care, aside from gathering them.
A large loss in caused by dirty eggs,
the number being enormous, and, ac
cording to the estimate of Secretary
Wilson of the department of agricul
ture, this money loss to the farmers in
the United States amounts to about
s[>.ooo,ooo annually.
An insufficient number of nests Is of
ten the cause of many of the dirty
eggs. Eggs are laid on the ground and
around the hay and straw stacks and.
becoming stained, are classed as "dirt
ies." Again, when too many eggs are
allowed to remain in a nest some are
broken and many of the others become
smeared with broken yolks. This is
brought about by allowing the broody
hens to use the same nests with the
layers.
After gathering the eggs care should
be taken not to put them where they
will become heated or near oil, onions
or other vegetables, as they readily ab
sorb odors.
ij J£ Grist From the Jokesmiths' Mills
' 1
The Thankful Heroine.
"Thank heaven!" cried the poor girl
who was earning a precarious liveli
hood as heroine of a popular novel.
And yet she had apparently little to
he thankful for as she crawled into
her pallet of straw In the corner of the
dingy room. She was very, very poor,
and yet she was thankful.
"The advantages of a bed on the
floor," she murmured as she lapsed into
sweet slumber, "lie in the feeling of
security it brings. When a girl lies in
such a lowly bed as this she knows
that a man cannot possibly get under
it." —Cleveland Plain Dealer.
A Stickler For Peace.
"George," she asked, "if we were
both young and single again would you
want me to be your wife?"
"Now, my dear," he absentmindedly
replied, "what's the use trying to start
a quarrel Just as we have settled down
to enjoy a quiet evening?"— Chicago
Record-Herald.
Fickle.
Marlon—Did you say Harold doesn't
know his own mind?
Marion's Papa —He doesn't unless
some one introduced him to it lately.—
Chicago News.
Aviation'* Luoky Sid*.
"Did that aviator friend of yours,
have a successful season?" '
"Very. He more than made enough
to pay all his hospital expenses."—De
troit Free Pre**.
The Portrait That Was
Too Good a Likeness
By EMMA ANDERSON-HODGSON
Vhen Mr. Barnlckel got rich the |
flot thing he wanted was a crest, ;
w.lch he found, though his title to It 1
ws rather thin, and the next was his
pctrait to hang in his drawing room
aid to hand down to his descendants
as the lineaments of the relnstltutor of
tb family. Arnold Elliott was at that \ <
tine the principal portrait painter in
tb city where Mr. Barnlckel lived, i
nid to him Mr. Barnlckel gave the or
dir, agreeing to pay for the portrait
SSX>.
Sow, although Mr. Barnlckel had
dmltlu hides, an article not calculated
to stimulate the imaginative faculty,
his imagination was strong. The mo
ment he set himself up as a relnstitu- 1
to - of his family he saw himself a tine
locking, dignified gentleman of arlsto
critlc mien and benevolent counte
nmce. In truth, he was a crafty look
liU man with a money making nose.
II; saw the picture of himself grow-
In.; up in the hands of the artist as he
wis and not as he thought himself.
Hi made several protests, but when
he attempted to point out tl»e errors
he signally failed. lie could not give
tie artist ills conception of himself,
and the artist had no choice but to
paint him as Mr. Barnlckel. When the
portrait was finished there sat the
merchant looking for all the world as
if lie were buying a cargo of hides.
When Mr. Barnlckel saw the portrait
he refused to accept it on the ground j
that ills best friend wouldn't take it
for hint.
As soon as Mr. Elliott got a little' 1
spare time lie hooked Mr. Barnickel's j
portrait up against the wall of his
studio, covered it with a slteet of ■
drawing paper and on the paper
sketched prison bars. This done, he
cut out the paper between the bars,
leaving Mr. Barnlckel in limbo. Un
derneath he placed the title of the pic
ture. "A Prisoner For Debt."
It was not long before one who knew
Mr. Barnlckel well saw him behind
bars. Ilad he loved Mr. Barnlckel he
would have gone to him nt once with
the information. But he didn't love
Mr. Barnlckel—few people did—so he
went about telling those who knew the
hide dealer of the rare sight to be
seen, and Mr. Elliott's studio at once
became very popular. Indeed, from
among those who visited it to see "A
Prisoner For Debt" he secured a num
ber of orders.
The episode nt last reached a mem
ber of the Barnlckel family, and the
family head was informed. The same
morning he drove up to Mr. Elliott's
studio, nlightcd in a hurry, climbed the
stairs in anger and burst into the stu
dio in a passion. There hung the pic
ture, and there sat the artist quiescent
at his easel.
"What do you mean by perpetrating
that outrage?" shouted Mr. Barnlckel,
pointing to the picture."
And Som* Voice* Ar* Not!
Nexdore—Your wife used to sing and
play a great deal. 1 haven't heard her
lately.
Naybor—Since the children came she
has had no time.
Nexdore—Ah, children are such a
blessing!— Boston Transcript.
A Professional Secret.
Magistrate—How did you manage to
extract the man's - watch from his
pocket when it was provided with a
safety catch?
Prisoner—Excuse me, sir; that is a
professional secret, i I am willing to
teach you. however, for $lO. New
York Evening Mail. ■*. ,
Stealing the Climate.
"Fine climate you have fiere—so
bracing," remarked the casual visitor.
"Yes, pretty good." allowed the vil
lage pessimist, "but them confounded
automobilists come along ~nd pump
the air Into their pneumatic tires."—
Lippincott's.
* '
Fare For the Fair.
"What's the meaning of this elabo
rate collection of charlotte russe,
fudge and sweet pickles?"
"Oh, I am advertising a business
woman's lunch."—Kansas City Jour
nal.
"What outrage?" asked the artist
without discontinuing his work.
"Putting my portrait behind bars."
"Your portrait? That isn't your por
trait. You said yourself that no one
would recognize it."
The merchant saw that he could not
demand the removal of the objection
able features without eating bis words.
He went out, slamming the door be
hind him. He had been triumphant in
too many deals to be beaten by a pic
ture maker; be would tind a way to
get round the "imposition."
But before he found this way he
heard that a uew feature had been at
tached to tiie portrait. The artist had
removed the bars and the title, replac
ing the lutter with the words "You
Want Too Much."
The title fitted the expression on the
face so well, and Mr. Barnickel's idio
syncrasies were so keenly appreciated
that a new lot of people came pouring
into the studio to see Old Scrooge, us
they called him, buying hides, though
some declared that he was disputing
the price of his portrait. Mr. Bar
nickel was made aware of the change
by receiving an anonymous letter in
quiring which of these two Interpreta
tions of the title was correct.
By this time the merchant had con
sulted his lawyer, who advised him
that the most satisfactory way out of
the difficulty was to pay for the pic
ture and take it away. Therefore on
i receipt of the nnonymous note he drew
I his check for SSOO, jumped into his car
! riage and drove to Mr. Elliott's studio.
On entering his eyes naturally sought
the picture. The expression had been
] changed. Instead of Mr. Barnickel
beating down a seller, it was Mr. Bar
nickel just having bought at his own
price. There was no title attached to
the picture. Instead a bit of cardboard
rested upon it on which in big letters
was inscribed "Sold."
Mr. Barnickel saw the word and was
seized with a new anxiety. He, and
only he, could not see Its double mean
ing. ,
"There's your check. Send that datft)
home," he said.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Barnickel. Don't you
see the card on the picture?"
"That's bosh. No one would want
my"— He stopped. He was about to
yield to his beating down propensities
and add "ugly mug," but remembered
himself.
"I don't think the purchaser cares
much for It," said Mr. Elliott coolly.
"You might get it at an advance on
the original price."
"How much is the"— Mr. Barnickel
was about to say swindle, but feared
to make matters worse.
Mr. Elliott arose, went to the picture
and cut it in ribbons.
"The episode is ended, Mr. Barnlckel.
I have to thank you for many orders
secured through your portrait"
An Alibi.
The story Is told by a traveling man
of a pretty young lady who stepped
into a music store in Springfield, Mo., j
the other day. She tripped up to the
counter where a new clerk was assort- j
ing music and in the sweetest tones
asked, "Have .you 'Kissed Me In the
Moonlight?'" The clerk turned half
way 'around and answered, "it must
have been the man at the other count
er; I've been here only a week."—Buf
falo Commercial.
A Farsighted Economist.
Husband—Y'ou're not a bit econom
ical.
Wife—Well, if you don't call a wom
an economical who saves her wedding
dress for a possible second marriage
I'd like to know what you think econ
omy is! —Satire.
Not Bur*.
lier nusband Do you remember
what I said when 1 proposed?
His Wife—Why, you were so fright
ened you just chattered unintelligibly.
Her Husband—What! Then maybe
I didn't propose at all.
A Jolt For
"I have the fnP' .noves moun
tains," lie declp
"1 wish," lils'y .-oinplained, "you
had tlie v faith' tho- would move ttie
ashes out of the cellar."—Chicago Kee
ord-ilerald.
Th* Rule of Thr*e.
r.iv<e with y«»ur wife, your mother
and your mother-la-law.-- Lippincott's.
ROPII\|Q WILD HORSES.
Difficulty Exp*rl*no*d In Clearing AH«
sons Forest Rang*.
An attempt to clear the ranges of
the Prescott national forest of wild
horses Is being made by the stockmen
of Williamson and Skull valleys, says
the Arizona Republican, and tlje first
rodeo resulted lu the capture of about
thirty animals on the Tonto divide.
Forest Hanger Mercer had a confer
ence with George A. Carter, Clarence
Stewart, J. V. Dickson, J. M. Cook,
11. N. Cook ail<l E. Contrerusi. repre
sentatives of the Burnt ranch compa
ny-,' and others, and a rodeo was* ar
ranged, with J. V. Dickson as cap
tain. During that week u stoetuda
corral was built at r»-e old chimney In
Toohey canyon, and wire fences were
strung along the canyon to inclose the
water holes, leaving a narrow entrance
at the south end.
"Mormon wings" of cheesecloth were
stretched upon the brush for more
than a mile from the entrance of the
fenced lot along the hillsides to the
open country at Tonto divide. A rodeo
camp was established at Carter's cor
ral, on the old Toohey place, and at
the beginning of the following week
a dozen men began the work of gath
ering broomtails and outlaws.
Lookouts were posted upon high
points near the south end of the can
yon, while the larger number of riders
went in search of wild horses in the
open country west of Granite moun
tain. When a band was found the
riders gave chase and tried to drive
the horses into the canyon. Some
times they got a band headed toward
the canyon, and sometimes the'mus
tangs had notions of their own and
went elsewhere.
When the broomtails took to the
hills there was wild riding through
scrub oak and over rock strewn slopes
and ridges, aud the lookouts plunged
down from their stations and tried to
head off the bands or picked out sin- '
gle horses and roped them among the
rocks. Before the "Mormon wings" '
were stretched it was difficult to keep
a band going down the canyon. The
wild horses seemed to suspect a trap
and broke for the hills regardless of
the riders who tried to turn them.
The cheesecloth, however, proved an
! effective barrier in most Instances, al
though one small band went through
it when alarmed by the presence of
men near the corral. A band of thir
teen mares and colts was kept in the
straight and narrow way by the
streaks of white rag fluttering in the
brush and ran directly Into the corral.
SAFE FLYING ALTITUDE.
An Argument That Aviator* Should
Soar Reasonably High.
There Is a distinct advantage In fly
ing at a reasonably high elevation,
says the Engineering Magazine. In
case of accidental stoppage of the mo
tor or other incldont necessitating de
scent without power the production of .
sustaining force ceases. The Inertia
of the machine, notwithstanding this,
keeps up Its velocity for a time, so
that descent will begin gradually. It
may even be checked or altogether off
! set for a time by increasing the ln
: clination of the planes, but this Intro
duces a supernormal direct resistance
and accelerates the exhaustion of that
j very inertia of velocity which la nec
• essary to suspension. Vet by purpose-
J ly manipulating the planes It 1s quite
{ possible to retain a margin of relocl
ty which shall be available at the last
Instant to decrease the rate of down
ward movement suddenly, while at the
same time bringing the machine as a
I whole to rest within a very short dis
tance of the point where It strikes the
| ground. The whole manipulation
which produces this result Is merely
; that of adjusting the inclination of
the planes so that they make a very
; slight angle only with the trajectory
! until the latter has brought the ma
! chine close to the ground and then
abruptly Increasing the Inclination un
til descent Is entirely checked.
Many accidents have occurred dur
ing descent, and the character of the
ground on which landing Is to be ef
fected Is a matter of moment. The
higher the altitude of flight the more
choice Is there as to the point of land
ing, and the more control (If the alti
tude be not too great) will the opera
tor possess over his machine with re
gard to such landing position. The
safest altitude, should the motor fail.
Is not necessarily, therefore, a low
altitude. A fall of thirty feet Is Just
about as serious as one of a thousand
feet
"Papa" Cam* From France.
The use of "papa" In this country il
lustrates the flow and ebb of fashion
In words, as In costume, pretty clearly.
All authorities agree that "papa" aud
"mamma" arrived here from France in
the seventeenth century. At first they
were courtly expressions and were
used by "persons of fashion," adults as
well as children, In the eighteenth cen
tury. But with the nineteenth centu
ry the middle class took them up, orig
inally regarding them as gep*«el. In
our own time one of the fauta of the
hero of "'E dunno w'ere 'e ara"" aft
er coming Into "a little bit o' aplGsh,"
was that he " 'ad the cheek and lnvu
deuoe to call 'ls iKother 'ma.' *■ file
usual result followed. Everybody's
words, adopted as genteel, bec*a»# vul
gar, and now "papa" and "anirama' 1
are dying out even among children.—
Loudon Chronicle.
Improving.
"Bllggins likes to heur himself talk."
"is that.all you have against him?",
"Could anything be worse?"
"Certainly. Bllggins used to like to
hear himself aing. "—Washington Star.