RURAL RETREAT TIMES
PUBLISHED WEEKLY.
Rural Retreat, : : : Virginia
gi' ”' —— . - i i i —i - I.
l» seems to be tbe open season for
the' grizzly bear.
Wearing mustard poultices Is a
poor way to keep warm
There has been a noticeable slump
la the demand for sleeping porches.
When all is said and done, why
should hnybody want to go to RussiaT
Missouri Is as proud of her zinc and !
lead mines as she is of her corn fields, j
When the weather starts out to
break records It makes a nuisance of
Itself.
Those who refuse to Join the good
roads movement Intend no doubt to
buy airships.
Let us pause to be thankful that
the world’s supply of coal has not
yet been exhausted.
New Yorker cut off his nose while
pbaving, but it is not likely that he
did It to spite bis face.
Tbe drop in eggs is not sufficiently
precipitate to knock the bottom out
of cold storage corners.
After mince pie has been standard
ized hash should be, and then the mil
lenlum will be close at hand.
Aviators tell us that they are losing
Interest in the flying game, but eggs
•how no signs of coming down.
According to Edison's Joyful news
tor newlyweds, concrete furniture Is
no longer an abstract proposition.
An effort is being made to establish
• new alphabet. Even at that, it’s as
good a way to kill time as playing
•olltaire.
Some one has enriched the con
science fund of the Philadelphia treas
ury by 19 cents. Here’s somebody
evidently who is bound to have peace
•t any price
Modern college football is too tame,
according to some critics. If the col
leges want something lively why not
adopt the practice of holding peace
conferences?
The restaurant oyster pearl fisher
les are working on schedule time. A
man in a New Jersey town found
three pearls, valued at $100 apiece, In
his plate of oysters.
The greatest panic the country ever
knew would follow If women refused
to buy new clothes for six months,
says a dressmaker In convention. For
penic substitute Jubilee
Connecticut couple announce that
they were wedded during the Civil
War and have kept the secret lifty
years. And yet some people tell us
that a woman cannot keep a secret
A Kansas man who was Intoxicated
while serving as a Juror was fined $2
and barred from Jury service forever.
Now' and then we think a sober and
Industrious man gets the worst of it.
One hundred high school girls in
New York studying domestic science
have adopted a real baby for demon
stration purposes. That baby will be
lucky if it survives its part in the field
of science.
"Now somebody should submit a
list of the world’s greatest hens,
since we are going in for the honor
lng of philanthropists.” Don’t believe
twenty can be found that have laid
pn egg In a month.
"Boston is lacking in religion," says
Dr. Abbot, but why should the Boston
ese care as long as they have plenty of
tieans and codfish?
Germany's 17 dirigible war balloons
are simply 17 gasbags sadly out of
date. No other country is a bit
alarmed by them.
The census man informs us that
there are 16,502 jackasses in American
cities. Evidently the census man has
overlooked a few.
Crocodile tears are what the coai
man would shed to express his grief
because people are so extravagant In
sunning their furnaces.
New Yorker strayed in the pathway
of a bullet, but a diary which he had
» his pocket stopped the bullet and
<aved his life. Another victory for
literature.
A New York grass widow declares
that she can’t possibly provide for her
five-year-old son on $5,000 a year,
which no doubt explains why she’s a
grass widow.
The Guekwar of Baroda, recently j
prominent, makes way for the Kukuk
tu of Urga, Russia’s choice for the
“outer” Mongolian monarchy.
Old age, according to a scientist, is
a germ. The scientist may be right,
but we have reason to believe that it
Is one of the unswattable kind.
A Philadelphia (bachelor, wealthy,
killed himself because he was so lone
ly. Here was a case of misery not
loving company well enough to marry
It
FACTS IN BEE CULTURE
Many People Discouraged on Ac
count of Swarming Habit.
This Tendency May Be Curtailed to
Great Extent by Using Hive of
Double Capacity, or One on
Top of Other—Begin
Slowly.
(By MRS. A. JOSEPH, California.)
A great many people would be glad
to keep a few colonies of bees If they
did not everlastingly swarm. This
difficulty may be overcome to some
extent. Bees swarm because of lack
of room. If Instead of using a single
hive you use one of double capacity,
or one on top of the .other, the swarm
ing tendency will be very much cur
turn'
Simple Bee Hive.
tailed; so the best way is to use hives
of large size, or those of ordinary size
one piled on top of the other; the bees
and queens should be given p'lenty of
room.
At the beginning of the season, one
story of a hive will be enough. Just
before fruit-blooms open up, another
story should be added, containing
empty cones or frames of comb foun
dation, and as the season advances,
more stories added as required
A large entrance should be provided
at the bottom of each story so as to
keep the bees inside the hive, for if the
bees cluster out in front they will be
sure to swarm; so there should be.
enough room to keep the bees Inside
the hive and at work.
Colonies worked this way may store
from 50 to 200 pounds of fine honey.
Some colonies handled in this way
may swarm, but they will not be very
many. In such cases put over the en
trance an alley trap. This will allow
the worker bees to pass in and out.
but when the queen comes Out with a
swarm she is trapped because she can
not go through the same slot the
workers go through.
While the swarm is in the air the
trap containing the queen is taken off,
the old hive is removed and a new
one containing frames or combs put
in its place. The trap is then placed
in front of the new hive, now on the
old stand and in 20 minutes or one
half hour the swarm In the air will
return and go into the new hive. The
queen is then released from the trap
when she will go into the swarm.
The bees will then start house
keeping anew.
In this way you avoid climbing
trees, or cutting their limbs off or
making that horrid noise of pounding,
the pans.
In this manner the attention the
bees require could be given by the
farmer's wife or the son or daughter
and if he will let them have the money
made from the bees, they will get so
interested in them that they will learn
to handle a large number of bees in
a short time and will be able to lay
aside a little ready money.
Of course there is an occasional sea
son when bees will hardly make their
own living. Then they should be fed
to keep them from starving, but there
may be only one poor season in four
or five. In the good seasons they will
more than pay for their keep.
A good but simple hive may be con
structed easily. There should be two
rows of hoies, one six inches above
the other, so that when shelter is not
provided, and It snows, the lower
holes are usually covered with snow
or ice, the upper ones remaining open
to admit fresh air, which is very Im
portant. Then after a long Journey,
bees alighting at the upper holes have
a shorter distance to travel to reach
their store of sweets.
The hive is 12x12x15 inches inside
measurement and when filled with
honey will hold sufficient to keep a
large colony of bees during any sea
son not fruitful of flowers.
For holding the comb, small round
sticks are used, the same as in the
old hive, the cover is removable and
the edges beveled to hold in position
a small upper hive or upper stories to
be added as needed.
Beginners should not purchase large'
colonies of bees. Begin moderately
and go slow.
Colonies placed in an open situa
tion and somewhat shaded by trees or
vines will be much more conveniently
handled than when placed in an ordi
nary shed or out-of-door bee-houses.
The swarming bag is one of the best
things in bee, culture. It is about six
feet in length and one foot in diam
eter and formed of alternate lengths
of calico and mosquito-netting. Each
length of about one foot has a ring of
wire or hoop to hold the bag distend
ed.
When the bees are about to swarm
and are inclined to come outside the
hive, the bag is fastened onto the
front of the hive and the other end
Swarming-Bag in Position.
fastened to a stake. When the queen
enters the bag she bounds to the up
per end and is quickly surrounded by
her followers and the swarm is then
captured with ease.
Beginners are very often Impatient
for increase. If you increase your
bees too rapidly you will get less
honey unless you have a first-class
strain of bees. Even then if the sea
son is a poor one or the locality in
which you live is overstocked, the
amount of honey may not be as large
as you would expect.
A Profitable Pecos Valley (Texas) Apiary.
BIG MONEY IN BY-PRODUCTS
Dairy Incidentals Worth as Much as
Butter and Cream—Experiments
at Kansas Station.
How many dairymen know that
their supposedly unimportant products
around the dairy are worth as much
as their butter and cream if properly
used? The value of side lines on a
dairy farm, such as skimmed milk,
calves, and the manure, are equal to
the value of the butter or cream sold.
This profit, of course, is obtained in
directly by using the skimmed milk
for feed and the manure as a fertiliz
er. More work is added and conse
quently more time is needed, but it
is as profitably spent as the time spent
in producing the main dairy products.
George S. Hine, of the extension
department at the Kansas Agricultural
college, gathered data from an ex
periment carried on several years
ago concerning the value of skimmed
milk in feeding hogs and calves.
Skimmed milk on the market sells at
about 15 cents for 100 pounds. The
experiment showed that where a ra
tion of one to three pounds of milk to
one pound of grain (corn meal in this
case) was fed, the milk was found to
be worth from 24 cents to 46 cents a
hundred, the value varying according
to the price of grain. 3y this method
the price of skimmed milk is more
than doubled. In the experiment with
calves the milk was found to be worth
from 19 cents to 43 cents a hundred,
depending on the selling price of
calves.
Then there’s the profit from calves.
Veal calves are most profitable when
fed skimmed milk with corn as a sub
stitute for the butter fat in the cream
and shipped to the market rough
trussed. Tb*re also is a large de
mand for pure bred and high-grade
heifers all over the country. These
calves bring fancy prices at all times.
The heifers may be used at home.
Pure-bred male calves may be sold
for from three to ten times as much
as veal calves.
MAKING GOOD PASTURES NOW
Step Will Prevent Loss of Money on
Poor Acres and Lay Foundation
for Live Stock.
Let us make good pastures at once.
This step will prevent the losing of
money on the poorest acres. It will
lay the foundation for the raising in
future years of large numbers of live
stock. Let us make a beginning with
improved live stock now. Recollect
that the growing of improved stock
will be a matter of absolute necessity
in a few years. Remember that one
can best go into live stock gradually,
and that experience gained this year
and time gained, and even a few
breeding animals collected, will make
future success with live stock much
more certain than if the beginning is
postponed for another year.
An Old-Fashioned Rabbit Trap.
Make a box with a sliding door to
work up and down easily. Run a
stringer over the center peg and
fasten the trigger, which has a little
notch in it, to hook behind the top
board and to hold up the trap-door.
When the rabbit gnaws at the bait
he pushes the trigger back, which
slides through the hole and lets the
slide-door fall. This can be made out
of any strong box by a boy who is
handy with tools in half an hour, and
it never falls to wo-h.
KENTUCKY RAISES MANY FINE HORSES
■-■3
—
The Illustration represents full brothers—five and six years old. The
pair Is owned by Mr. John Maylor, of Kentucky.
This Is a breed which the farmers of Kentucky breed with more profit
than any other, as it will adapt itself to pulling the plow on the farm,
the loaded wagon or may be driven to the carriage at a three-minute gait
with perfect ease to themselves and the driver.
Horses like these are generally from the old Morgan breed.
CRAWFISH IS SERIOUS MENACE
Problem in South Assuming Such
Economic Importance That Govern
ment Has Been Appealed To.
The crawfish problem in the south
is assuming such economic impor
tance that the federal government has
taken hold of it in earnest.
Those enterprising crustaceans are
devouring the crops, and many ap
Nest and Work of Crawfish.
peals on the subject have been for
warded to Washington from the sec
tions most afflicted.
In Mississippi and Alabama there is
a single tract of more than 1,000
square miles where the raising of
cotton and corn is rendered difficult
or even unprofitable by crawfish,
which devour the young and tender
plants. Some notion of their num
bers may be gained from the official
statement that in badly infested
areas there are from 10,000 to 12,000
holes to the acre—each hole being
made and occupied by one crawfish.
When the matter was first referred
to the department of agriculture ad
vice was solicited from the fisheries
bureau, which suggested that much
might be accomplished toward the
destruction of the enemy if it wrere
realized that crawfish are exceedingly
good to eat. Once recognized as a
first-class table delicacy, the crusta
ceans, which look much like lobsters
in miniature and are even more pala
table, might be utilized as a food
product on such a scale as to wipe
them out to a grea,t extent.
This idea, however, does not seem
to have proved acceptable. It may
be that the people of the afflicted sec
tions are prejudiced against crawfish
as an article of diet, or, possibly, they
are too lazy to catch them. At all
events, the solution of the problem
finally adopted, and which appears to
be satisfactory, is systematic poison
ing with bisulphide of carbon, two or
three drops of which are poured into
each crawfish hole. The fumes of the
chemical, being heavier than air, de
scend into the borrow, and the result,
is the prompt and peaceful demise of
the occupant.
The process described is supple
mented by employing men to kill the
crawfish when they come out to feed
on rainy mornings or evenings. Some
means ought to be found for sending
them to market, inasmuch as there is
a considerable demand for them in
those cities of the United States
which possess large populations of
foreign birth—especially New Or
leans and New York.
(mAllARM
Use a scrub sire and your herd will
soon run all to nose and bristles.
At the time of shipment the fleeces
of sheep or lambs should be dry.
Look to your insurance and see that
your policy covers all your property.
Sheep do not drink much water, but
what little they drink must be cle&a.
Encourage exercise by placing feed
some distance from the sheds on fine
days.
In order to avoid the usual spring
rush it will pay to get in nursery or
ders now.
The chickens will furnish a living
for you if you will furnish a decent
living for them.
Winter is the season of rest for the
farmer but it is not necessarily a sea
son for loafing.
Be sure that the sheep barn has a
tight roof, a dry floor, good ventila
tion and no drafts.
An occasional culling of the apples
and vegetables in the cellar will les
sen the loss from rot.
Covering the winter onions with
coarse manure will make them start
earlier in the spring.
Sheep are a persistent agency of
improvement to the soil of the farms
in which they are kept. j
CROP OF COTTON IN GEORGIA
Ninety-three Days From Planting to
Picking Is Remarkable Record
Made by Dr. Worsham.
Ninety-three days from the day of
planting to picking cotton is the re
markable record which has been
achieved upon the experiment farm in
Stewart county, operated under the
direction of Dr. E. L. Worsham, state
entomologist of Georgia. Dr. Wors
ham states that in addition to having
this cotton mature in this record
breaking time, it is also a resistant
to the ravages of the black root dis
ease, so common and so costly
throughout Georgia.
He states this record was made aft
er three years of experimenting, and
he now feels confident that the de
partment has secured a cotton seed
which will mature in this short space
of time and which will be resistant
also
Between 400 and 500 pounds of
commercial fertilizer to the acre were
used in producing this splendid re
sult. Dr. Worsham states that
through the use of large quantities
of commercial fertilizer and attentive
cultivation, similar results can be se
cured throughout Georgia. In this
way both the boll weevil and the
black root would be avoided. It has
been found that it is the late varie
ties of cotton that suffer greatest
from the boll weevil.
Georgia during the past season in
creased the use of commercial fer
tilizer over 17 per cent, above any
previous year and the indications are
that more commercial fertilizer will
be used in this state during 1912 than
in its history. .The record-breaking
crops of cotton, corn, grain and vege
tables produced in Georgia in 1911
bear splendid evidence of the fact that
fertilizer means more than anything
else toward securing successful crops.
FOR BUTCHERING MANY HOGS
Combination Derrick and Rack Con
structed to Facilitate Matters—
Saves Much Time.
We often butcher several hogs at
once on our farm. Some of the neigh
bors go in with us and we save con
siderable time by doing the work
in one day, says a writer In the Farm
and Home. We have constructed a
combination derrick and rack for the
For Handling Many Hogs.
carcasses. It is shown in the accom
panying illustration.
The frame is made heavy enough
to hold considerable weight and the
derrick is Bimply a round pole, six
inches in diameter. To one end of
this an old buggy wheel is attached
and makes a good handle for operat
ing. The carcass is lifted from the
ground by the rope shown and the
gambrels are slipped over the cross
pieces. The carcass can be easily
slid from one end to the other if the
timbers are greased. The lifting
rope is near the center and thus we
can have several carcasses on each
end of the hanger.
FERTILE SOIL IS FOUNDATION
Easy to Conduct Successful Farm on
Rich Land—Diversify and Ro
tate All the Crops.
A fertile soil is the foundation ol
successful farming. It is easy to make
money farming rich land. It is im
possible to make money farming very
poor land. We can have rich land if
we will farm as we ought to farm.
I.et us reduce the washing of our
land to a minimum, let us diversify
and rotate our crops, let us plant cow
peas and other leguminous crops, let
us break our land a little deeper ev
ery time it is broken, let us turn un
der all the vegetable matter that there
is on the land, let us feed good stock
on pea vine hay, cotton seed meal and
save the manure and put it on the
soil.
)HKN
CABINET
NOW the true value ot time;
.■LflL. snatch, seize and enjoy every
moment ot It. No laziness, no procrasti
nation; never put oft till tomorrow what
you can do today.
—Earl of Chesterfield.
KITCHEN COMFORTS.
The kitchen Is often the last room
In the house to plan for or equip*
when It should be the first considera*
tlon, for It is here that the large ma
jority of women spend the greatest
part of their time.
When it is possible to have the
things we want, if our tastes are sim
ple, a painted wall is good, for it can
be cleaned and kept sanitary.
A small-sized kitchen is the model
these days. We have graduated from
the idea of the ancient kitchen, where
one walked a day’s journey getting the
three meals a day.
A kitchen cabinet holding all the
necessary cooking materials; a zinc
covered table, a good, well-placed sink
high enough to wash dishes in without
stooping (one may have words with
the plumber before you get it high
enough if you are an average woman
in height, for they seem to have a
djiep-seated desire to place all sinks
the same height, regardless of the
woman who has it to use), and a sink
draining board at the end, are all ne
cessities.
One interesting housewife has a pic
ture hung in her kitchen wall that is
an inspiration to her. When washing
dishes she can enjoy its beauties and
its presence is a constant uplift.
We have passed the day of back
breaking iron kettles and the kitchen
utensils may be as artistic in coloring
as one’s taste desires.
A small rocking chair is a great ad
dition to the kitchen comforts, for one
may often drop into it for a moment
when waiting for a cake to be baked,
or while preparing fruit or vegeta
bles.
Linoleum on a soft wood floor is the
easiest on the feet for a floor, and
it is so easily kept clean. The floor
should harmonize with the wall color,
but be darker.
When we spend a little more time
in planning and furnishing our kitcb*
ens and the maid’s bedroom, we will
perhaps hive reduced the servant
problem a little towards its lowest
terms.
utterly void of use; or if sterling;, may
require good management to make it serve
the purposes of sense and happiness.
—Shenstone.
PAPER BAGS IDEAl. FOR INVALID
COOKERY.
In Invalid cookery the eye must be
appealed to, as a dish that is attrac
tive in appearance will be more apt
to be tasted; and. tasted, it is up to
the cook to make it so savory that
not a crumb is left.
When preparing food for the inva
lid, mote pains can be taken, as one
dish may be more quickly prepared
than one for a family.
Minced Chicken With Toast.—Finly
mince the breast of a chicken, add a
tablespoonfui of cream, the yolk of
an egg and a little salt. Lay in a
greased paper bag . with a small piece
of toast. Seal and cook six minutes
in a hot oven. Serve in the bag
Chicken Tea.—Cup up a fowl, treak
the bones and add two tablespoonfuls
of water, seal and place the bag on
the rack in the oven. Allow forty five
minutes in a slow oven Strait., and
serve.
In pa-crei^bag cookery not only is
the nffia?i^rflavor of every article
of foodljjtes^rved. but ail undesirable
flavors jS&Tlfept out.
For k|yayd cookery this 1? a grant
point in its favor, as the delicate
aroma and flavdr of the white meat*
and those suitable for diet In conva
lescence are so easl’-y dissipated by
cooking.
It was one of our ancient wise men
who said “that which pleases the pal
ate nourishes." It is most important
that the invalid eat that food which
Is best for building up and repairing
waste.
Filleted Poultry.—Slice a carrot,
turnip and an onion; add a little bam,
a pinch of sugar and salt, and place
in the bottom of a well-buttered bag.
Slice the breast of a fowl, lav the
slices on the prepared vegetables,
sprinkle with melted butter, seal and
cook six minutes in a slow oven.
Dish the fillets, put the vegetables
Into a sieve or fruit press, press light
ly Rnd pour the gravy over the fil
lets.
7Uau
Alcohol Not Stimulating.
“Over twenty years’ medical work
among seafaring men, largely in the
Arctic waters, has absolutely con
vinced me that alcohol is not essential
as a stimulant or food. It Is far and
away the most serious danger the
seaman of this day has to contend
with."—Dr. Wilfred T. Grenfell.
Edison an Abstainer.
"1 am a total abstainer from alco
holic liquors. I always felt that 1
had a better use for my head.’’—Thom
as ' ■