) DESTROYING GOPHERS.
Methods Recommended by the Department of Agriculture.
GUY ELLIOTT MITCHELL.
Pocket gophers would be most for
Ldable animals were they enlarged
the size of the prehistoric dinosaur,
leir teeth are huge in proportion to
eir heads and their bifurcated front
iws are strong, sharp as eagle talons
id extraordinarily long. The gopher
iwever is a little animal; yet because
his abundance and exceeding in
lstry, he becomes more than a nuis
ice—a menace in fact—to many farm
g communities.
Pocket gophers infest all the States
id Territories west of the Mississippi,
id parts of Illinois, Wisconsin, Flor
a, Georgia, and the greater part of
exico. All the species live under
•ound in ramifying tunnels, and all
•ing to the surface quantities of earth,
hich is heaped up in the shape of
:ounds. The habits of these animals
*e everywhere much the same.
Throughout their range pocket goph
•s are very destructive to crops, much
iore so than moles. They eat the roots
t fruit trees and in this way some
meg ruin whole orchards. They eat
oth root and tops of clover, alfalfa,
rasses, grains, and vegetables, and are
specially harmful to potatoes and
ther tuberous crops. In addition to
11 this, they throw up innumerable
rounds of earth in meadows, pastures,
nd grain fields, which cover and de
troy far more of the crop than is
ither eaten by the animals or killed
! are active, all the animals should be
destroyed by the first application of
the poison.
Trapping Pocket Gophers.
Trapping is a successful method
when followed intelligently and persist
ently. It is especially adapted to small
fields, orchards, and gardens, where
only a few of the animals are 'present;
but in the case of large areas that are
badly infested, the method involves
too much labor.
For trapping, an ordinary No. O steel
trap may be employed but there are a
number of special gopher traps on the
market that are better adapted for
general use.
In using the ordinary steel trap, the
first step is to make an opening into
the main tunnel. The trap should then
be sunken so that the jaws are level
with the bottom of the runway and
lightly covered with green clover or
alfalfa or grass, or even loose soil, care
being taken that these do not clog
under the pan, or trigger. No bait is
required. The holes should be just
large enough to receive the trap and
should be covered so as almost to ex
clude the light.
Carbon Blsulphid.
Carbon bisulphid has been employed
for killing pocket gophers, and under
favorable conditions its use is recom
mended. If the burrows are extensive
THE POCKET GOPHER.
by having the roots cut off. These
mounds also prevent close moving, so
that much of the hay crop is lost,
While the pebbles they contain often
break or injure farga machinery. The
loss due to gopher mounds in the clover
hnd alfalfa fields in some of the West
ern states has been conservatively esti
mated at one-tenth of the entire crop,
in many of the fertile valleys where
t ophers abound they are by far the
most formidable of the farmer’s anim
f.l enemies.
Pocket gophers may be destroyed by
boison, by traps, and by the use of car
bon bisulphid.
Poisoning Pocket Gophers.
Poisoning with strychnine is the
faost effective means known for killing
these little animals, and, as it involves
The least expenditure of money and
labor, the Biological Survey recom
mends It for general use. As a rodent
(wison to be used by farmers, strych
* dine has several advantages. Its act
ion is sure, its deadly character is
known to most persons, and its bitter
taste is an additional safeguard against
mistaking it for a harmless drug.
Strychnia sulphate is the most conven
ient form of the poison, since it is
treely soluble In hot water and in the
hatural juice of vegetables used as bait,
to disguise its bitterness so that ro
dents may not be deterred from eating
the baits, sugar is often employed, or
the strychnine may be mixed with its
own bulk of commercial saccharine.
k sugar syrup poisoned with strych
txine may be used with excellent re
sults. It is prepared as follows:
Dissolve an ounce of strychnia sul
phate in a pint of boiling water. Add
a pint of thick sugar syrup, and stir
thoroughly. The syrup is usually
seated by adding a few drops of oil
of anise, but this is not essential. If
preserved in a closed vessel, the syrup
Will keep indefinitely.
The above quantity is sufficient to
poison a half bushel of shelled corn or
utuui giaiu \wiu i cv-uuiuiouutu; t iuu
cereal being steeped in hot water and
allowed to soak over night. It is then
drained and soaked for several hours
in the poisoned syrup. Before using,
corn meal may be added to take up the
excess of moisture. .
Dry crystals of strychnine also may
be used. They are introduced by
means of a knife, into small pieces of
potato, carrot, or sweet potato, or into
entire raisins or dried prunes. A sin
gle large crystal (or several small
ones) is enough for each bait. Raisins
are especially recommended because
they are easily handled and contain
enough sugar to disgulBe the bitter
ness of the poison.
The prepared baits are placed in the
underground runways of the gophers
and are conveniently handled with a
spoon. A stout dibble is used to make
holes into the runways. Having lo
cated the runways by use of the dibble,
It is moved from side to side to make
the soil .firm about the hole, and then
withdrawn. A piece of the poisoned
potato or raisin or a teaspoonful of
the poisoned corn is dropped into the
hole which is left open. Some farmers
prefer to cover the holes, but the exper
ience of the Agriculture Department
is against such practice.
By this method little labor is neces
sary, and the operator soon acquires
skill in finding the runways. The bait
should be placed in the main runways
and not in the short laterals near the
mounds. If placed in the laterals, the
animals are likely to cover it with
soil or throw it out without lading
it A skillful operator can go over 20
to 40 acres of badly Infested land in
a day, and, if the work is carefully
done at a time when the pocket gophfifg
or the soil dry, the gases are dissipated
so rapidly that a large quantity of the
liquid is required to kill the animals
and the method becomes too expensive.
If, however, the burrows are simple and
and the soil moist, bisulphid may b6
used successfully. For pocket gophers
an ounce of the liquid for each burrow
is sufficient. The carbon bisulphid is
poured over a bunch of cotton, rags, or
other waste material and this quickly
pushed into the burrow, which should
be closed at once.
Co-Operation Necessary.
Any farmer may readily rid his prem
ises of gophers by the use of poison or
traps. Unless, however, the entire
community unites in active and intelli
gent co-operation on the destruction of
the animals, the cleared area will be
sooner or later Invaded from neighbor
ing premises, and the work of destruc
tion must be repeated. Co-operation
only will affect a radical cure. When
TYPHOID FEVER ON THE FARM.
C. J. Blanchard* U. S. Geological
SArvey.
“More than 40 per cent of the farm
wells bo far examined in this State
have been found to be polluted.” This
is a significant statement made by the
director of a State Board of Health
laboratory, In which several thousand
well waters have been examined. It
helps to explain why the death rate
from typhoid fever is greater in the
country than in the city.
It is a popular notion of city folk
that a vacation in the country is a
safeguard against all the diseases to
which the flesh is heir; physicians
recognize this when they send their
patients away from the city. The
country life is unquestionably the ideal
one; the popular cry “back to nature”
has a large measure of justification,
yet there are thousands of people who
return from such -an outing consumed
with typhoid fever. Why should this
be true?
! Typhoid an Index to Water Purity.
A century of experience has shown
that the typhoid rate in any place is
a good index of the purity of the water
supply at that place. Therefore, when
we find that the typhoid rate in the
country is higher in the aggregate than
in the city, it -can be fairly assumed
that country water supplies are not as.
safe as city -supplies, and this in spite
of the fact that many of our cityi
waters are notoriously bad. The state
from which the above mentioned testi
mony comes is a typical one so far as
its proportion of rural pollution is con
cernea and that there is no reason to
believe that if the matter were investi
gated in other states, the conditions
of farm wells would be in any degree
superior.
In connection with its investigations
of the character of water supplies, the
United States Geological Survey has
noted repeatedly that typhoid fever is
continuously prevalent in many rural
sections. In some cases this condition
has been maintained for so many years
that it is accepted by the communities
as one of the ordinary incidents of life
and becomes a matter of general com
ment only during periods of especial
virulence. The facts are, that there
are comparatively few farm wells lo
cated at points not subject to local
contamination.
Farmer's Swear by Their Wells.
It is commonly observed that nearly
every farmer believes in the purity
ol his well water, especially if the
well has been in use for generations..
The fact that his grandfather believed'
the water to be pure is sufficient evi
dence for him to defend the well, even
though his -family be ^devastated by
typhoid fever. It is sometimes the
cass that a well is used even after its
taste and odor ought to be sufficient to
demonstrate that it is polluted. A
notable Instance occurred not long
since, in which a certain farmer could
not use the water from his well if it
were drawn up by a pump, but If a
' Unsafe
Location t
For Farm A
Well.
Farm Well
Located on
High
Ground and
Free From
Contamina
tion
•
co-operative efforts for the extermina
tion of gophers over a considerable area
are attempted, careful attention must
be given to waste lands along fences,
streams, public highways, and rail
roads. Such places are favorite haunts
of the animals, because in them are
found loose, sandy soil, moisture, and
succulent roots for food. It is from
such resorts that adjoining farms are
often restocked with pocket gophers.
There are 21,000 colored school
teachers in the United States—7,700
men and 13,300 women.
Blind horses never err in choosing
their diet when grazing. Their sense
of smell guides them infallibly in the
selection of food.
The caaba, or sacred stone of Mecca,
is re-cevered every year with damask
sent by the Sultan or Khedive. A
Jingle covering has, on occasion, cost
I7MW.
e .. v'r •
♦ m
well sweep were used and the water
taken from the surface, no disagree
able features were noted. It was found
upon examination that the sink drain
which had been in use for generations
passed close to the well and a large
part of the drainage emptied into it.
This organic matter settled to the bot
tom of the well and became putrid.
Whenever the pump was used the
vater containing this foul matter was
drawn from the lower part of the well,
while that obtained from the top by
means of the well sweep was above the
contamination and did not give evi
dence of disagreeable odor or taste,
although it contained in solution a
large amount of filthy matter. The de
plorable feature of this situation is
that it requires in the majority of
cases only the exercise of common
sense in the selection of a point at
which a safe well may be sunk.
The accompanying illustrations
show safe and unsafe well locations.
That showing the improper location is
thoroughly typical of conditions which
may be found repeatedly in rural dis
tricts. It is probable that typhoid
fever will prevail in the country as
long as the habit is common of sinking
a well in a convenient, rather than in
a safe place.
Caring Persimmons.
Prom a report recently prepared by
David O. Fairchild, an explorer of tne
Department of Agriculture, it appears
that persimmons as they are eaten
In Japan are as firm in texture as a
Northern Spy apple, free from as
tringency, and of a delicious flavor.
They are not allowed to ripen to the
squashy consistency of the fruit as it
is eaten in America. Investigations
as to Japanese methods of curing per
simmons show that the Japanese put
tile persimmons in sake (Japanese
jbeer) casks as soon as the casks are
emptied. The heads of these casks
are immediately replaced and the pack
age made air-tight. In from 5 to 15
days, according to weather conditions,
the persimmons are cured and can be
removed and marketed, keeping in a
firm, edible condition for a long period.
Forcing Rhubarb.
Experiments have shown that the
most satisfactory result? in cultivating
rhubarb, £tre attained by growing the
roots from seed and forcing when the
plants are one year old. Drying the
roots has been found to have the same
effect as freezing. Either drying or
freezing serves the same purpose as a
long rest, which is otherwise required,
and the product is more vigorous.
.... II ■ 1.111 ' 1' I " .■
FORCED AND UNFORCED RHUBARB
When thus grown in darkness the
leaf blade is greatly reduced, the
green color is wholly absent, the tex
ture is more crisp and delicate, due
to a lessened development of woody
fiber, the skin is much thinner than
when grown in light, the water con
tent is increased 6 to 10 per cent.,
and the flavor is generally improved.
Rhubarb thus grown commands a
fancy price.
_______
Strong Light Injurious to Plants.
Strong light has been found in some
instances to hinder the growth of pol
len tubes of plants. This is thought
to be the reason why tomatoes and
cucumbers do not bear fruit in mid
summer in Arizona Strong direct sun-,
light in summer also prevents the
plant leaves from assuming the usual
green color. Thus, strawberry plants
in Arizona are yellow for about three
months in summer even when grown
under shade of cheese cleth. When
grown on the north side of a dense
shade of sorghum or cotton the plants
remain green and dense all summer
and are probably the most vigorous
in the garden.
———..
Telephones in the Forests.
The usefulness of the telephone be
oomes more and more apparent as its
territory of operation is extended into
remote corners of the globe. Nowadays,
the traveler in the heavily wooded sec
tions of the north country is amazed
when he sees how the march of pro
gress has extended in the shape of
telephones in the forest
Ufieful as the telephone is in the city,
where the«steps it saves could some
times be compensated for by the use
of the automobile, the electric car, or
the fast express, it is far more useful
in the forest, where are none of these
conveniences, and where the canoe or
bateau is the common vehicle of travel.
In logging operations the telephone
now plays a most important part. The
dams along the river are built not only
to hold water against a time of drought
but also to control the flood, so that
the river flow may be properly regu
lated. To this end a considerable crew
of men is kept at the dams all the time,
to open or close the gates on short
notice. Before the telephones came
into use, Instructions to the dam crew
were conveyed up or down the river by
relays of men, stationed at frequent in
tervals along the banks, and the mes
sage was shouted from one to another.
The telephone lines are being ex
tended every year, and it will not be
long before telephones are almost as
common in the woods as they are in
the city. Recently the telephone has
been called into use to aid the wood
wardens in fire fighting in the northern
and western forests.
Fooled by Cleveland”e Doable.
A large man with an impassive face
and bearing a striking resemblance to
an ex-president of tbe United States
walked into the Great Northern Hotfel,
Chicago, Tuesday evening and regie
tered as follows on the hotel book:
"Grover Cleveland, Princeton, N. J."
Two or three bell boys fejl over
one another in an endeavor to pick up
the guest’s baggage and the clerk
smiled hospitably and searched for his
best room. This was a luxurious apart
ment with a double bath. The guest
accepted it, took his key, and then,
turning to the register scratched oft
his signature and wrote:
“F. L. MacElroy, Lafayette, Ind.” ,
"Just a bet,” he explained to the
astonished clerk. "I manage to double
my salary this way. I have tried it
successfully on every hotel from New
York to San Francisco. I’m a travel
ling man."
Mr. MacElroy secured a more modest
apartment, after which be went out to
collect his bet.
James Lick, founder of the great
Lick Observatory on Mount Hamilton,
not far from San Jose, California, was
in early life a poor Pennsylvania Hutch
piano-maker.
Because of the growing scarcity wf
good match timber, matches- are being
made in vast numbers of paper rolled
spirally aM dipped in wax dr stearins
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Making rag dolls is an industry in
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Great herds of elephants r$nge th
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tusks in existence. '
none to build?
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