HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Advocate, 1924-9-25, Page 6Address communications to Agronornmbt, id Adelaide St. West, Toronto
PICKING APPLES TS AN ART,
Picking apples is a fine art. To
begin with, one must get them off
without injuring the tree at all, and
that requires no little skill. And then
the fruit itself must not be bruise
or damaged in the least, and that
requires still more slctll.
For the protection of the tree, care
and good ladders are all that are re
quired, but they are enough. If one
has the three-legged stepladders, some
of them fairly long, a good share of
the fruit may be picked without th
ladders touching the trees to any ex-
tent. That also does away with the
knocking off of apples, which is sure
to happen more or less when the long
orchard ladders are leaned up against
a tree laden>with fruit.
The fruit in the top of the tree
must, of course, be picked from a long
orchard ladder, provided the trees are
full sized, but if one has the type of
ladder with the side pieces coming
together in a point at the top, and if
care is used in placing them against
the trees, little damage will result.
The picking of the last few scatter-
ing apples in the high and outlying
branches is always a problem.
If one will equip his force with one
or two of the so-called apple pickers
the work may be done quickly and
efficiently. These pickers are of var-
ious types, but in general are some
sort of wire basket with wire fingers
to slip around the apple and pull it
off.
The last factor in this problem of
getting the crop off without injuring
the tree is to see that the fruit spurs
are left.
In preventing damage to the apples
themselves a few simple rules are all
one need observe.
Don't pull the stem out of the apple.
Don't toss the apple into the basket.
Don't pour the apples from the bas-
ket into the storage box or barrel, or
if' you do pour them let it be done
very carefully.
To insure leaving the spur on the
tree, but picking the stem with the
apple, simply place your finger or
thumb alongside the stem, gime a
quick side twist to the fruit, and the
,stern will separate at the joint be-
tween it and the spur.
a number of years and then be used
' again in the original herd is one
method that could be resorted to on
the part of the first owner of a tried
and proven sire. Another method that -
should prove workable is for two par-'
bruises
ties conveniently situated who have
valuable tried sires :to exchange ser-!
vices for such of their own animals'.
as are closely related to their own
", sires. Following out these sugges-1
tions would extend the usefulness of `
•
a bull, for instance, from the usual
three or four years to seven or eight
years.
j' The greatest possibilities, however,
in extending the period of usefulness
of proven sires are in getting the new
breeder to appreeiate the value of
these proven sires and to buy them
whenever possible in preference to the
untried young sine. Instances with-
' out number could be quoted where
money has been lost and years of
breeding have been wasted, so far as
improvement of herds and flocks was
concerned, through the use of untried
sires that have proven misfits.
On the other hand, many good,
proven sires that have been offered
for sale have gone to the slaughter
house for want of a buyer. In the
interests of the breed and the ad-
vancement of breeding generally,
every owner of a tried and proven
. sire should, when he is through with
him, endeavor to put him in the hands
of someone who can make further use
of him. Likewise, anyone looking for
a new sire should see that the supply
of tried and proven sires is exhausted
before purchasing a young unproven
one.
Thi's system is followed as between
the Central and Branch Experimental
Farms, and has given excellent re-
sults.
LENGTHENING THE PERIOD OF
USEFULNESS OF SIRES.
It is a Iamentable fact that many
sires that have later proven to be
vlauable breeders have had a limited
period of usefulness to their breed
due to the fact that they were dis-
posed of before their breeding ability
became known. Early disposal is
sometimes due to a disinclination to
risk the insecurity to life and limb
entailed in keeping aged breeding
animals around, but more often is
due to the gradual impotency, inadvis-
ability of inbreeding and the lack of
facilities for keeping two herd sires.
Be the causes what they may, the fact
remains that, in many cases, better
use could be made of many of the out-
standing sires in the country that
meet with slaughter while still in
prune breeding condition.
With most classes of stock, proper
care, comfortable quarters, plenty of
exercise, and due cautions on the part
of the attendant reduces impotency in
the animal and the risk of attendants
being injured by aged sires to a mini-
mum. Alio in most classes of stock,
the get of the sire mature sufficiently
early to enable a fair estimate to be
made, through the get, of the breed-
ing ability of the sire before the lat-'
ter has to be disposed of to avoid in-
breeding. Such being the case, it
would seem advisable for the breeder'
to study his breeding results closely
and retain as long as he possibly can
those sires that show outstanding
merit.
Co-operation with neighbors or
other breeders (where accredited
herd regulations will "allow in such a
way that sires may exchanged for
•
ROBBING AND HOW TO PRE
VENT IT.
Bees, like some people, if given the
opportunity, will steal from one an-
other rather than work. This, how-
ever, happens usually only in times
of scarcity.
A robber bee is characterized by its
nervous actions. It will fly cautiously
up to the entrance of a hive, and
when it sees a bee comink towards it,
it will quickly dodge back; or it will
search the walls of a hive in the hope
of finding some unguarded crack
through which it can crawl. An old
offender has a shiny appearance; the
result of crawling through' cracks or
being roughly handled by the guards.
On leaving the robbed hive, it has a
plump look and unlike the inmates
which come out leisurely, it is in a
hurry and takes wing with difficulty
owing to its load.
It is the beekeeper's duty, there-
fore, to prevent his bees acquiring
such dishonest habits by seeing that
I no sweets are left exposed at any
time; that all cracks and openings in
Ithe walls of the hive are closed with
, mud or clay; that when hives are
' opened the ork be done speedily;
Athat feeding, any, be done in the
evening; and that entrances be con-
sistent in size with the strength of
the colony. Should disease be present,
these measures are doubly necessary
to prevent not only robbing and its
disastrous results, but also what is
infinitely worse, the spreading of the
disease.
! Should robbing start, prompt ac-
tion is necessary. Contract the en -
'trance so that but two or three bees
can enter abreast; then strew a hand-
ful of coarse grass over it and
sprinkle with a dipperful of water.
This puts the robbers at a- disadvan-
tage, as the bees of the colony will
attack them as they crawl through
the wet grass.
Should the robbed colony, however,
stand in danger of being overcome,
carry it down into the cellar and
leave it there until the uproar sub-
sides. Coal oil wiped over all junc-
tions of the hives acts as an excellent
repellant.—A. H. W. Birch, Apiarist.
Your Baby's Habits
Mother is the Moulder of the Hunaan "Clay"
BY DELLA T. LUTES.
There is a little pottery in aur town I
where some ambitious and imagin- `
ative girls turn out lovely things. II
went down there recently to see them.
work. I watched the big lump of dull
looking clay placed an the wheel—a
stupid thing it seemed, lopping this
way and that and having to he held
firmly in place by the hand of the
potter. Then the wheel began to turn
and the clay to take shape. It was
a vase the girl was modelling and at.
first it was rather a bulgy affair with
humps on its surface here and there
and not giving much promise of its.
later loveliness.
Round and round went the wheel.
Firmly and deftly the fingers of the
potter molded and pressed and shaped.
Never for a moment did her eye leave
the work she was doing. Finally
grace an,4 lightness took the place of
ugly, lumpy form, Symmetrical and
lovaiy, the creation was finally placed
before tee Later in the week I saw
the vase again, a thing now of exqui-
site coloring and glaze. The hand of
the potter had shaped the- clay to
grace and beauty and applied the
finish, thecoating: of color and smooth
shininess that covered all its gross
beginning.
• The likening of the molding of hu-
man character to the potter's wheel
is an old simile but I do not know a
better one. The infant is but .a bit
of clay, lumpy,, loppy, ready, to be
made into anything at all. Thehand
of the potter is all powerful with this
human clay as with the bit of earth.
'FORMING CHARACTER.
Character is formed` through habit.
Habit of ` thought, of act, of deed.
And habits are formed in infancy,
childhood and youth. This is the
molding period. Then the clay is wet,
pliable. If the potter lets his clay
harden it must be wet up again and
the molding begun over. With the
human "clay" it is not so easy to be-
gin over. The clay hardens as we go.
Habits are neoessary but they must
be good habits If we had not the
habit of cleanliness we should have
to think about cleanliness and to use
will power and energy forcing Our-
selves to cleanliness. With a habit of
cleanliness we wash ourselves and
clean our teeth without exerting con-
scious energy to make ourselves do
it: With the habit of good table
manners we behave ourselves with
becoming propriety and do not ,have
to make an effort to do so.
Very little children do not reason.
Their reasoning powers are not 'devel-
oped. They do as they are told or do
not do asthey are told according to
what they find out about the discipline
of their elders. A child of two years
will learn obedience if he is trained
into a habit of obedience but he will
be disobedient if he learns that the
government over him is lax. He has
an excello
run away the day before yesterday
when he had been told not to and
managed 'to do it th{•o or three times,
he will keep on trying and will pay
no attention to a command. If he finds
that the day before yesterday and
yesterday and every otiller day when
he ran away that he was brought
back and 'spoken to unpleasantly of
punished, he will soon get into a habit
of obedience about running away.
But that does not mean that he will
have the habit of obedience about
other things, He does not reason that
far. He has to be brought into a
habit of obedience with every single
thing he does, until' the habit of obey-
ing a command is a fixed one.
Physical habits have to be incul-
cated before mental habits, because
in infancy the child is purely physi-
cal. Mental development comes later
and with it must come the establish-
ing of mental habits. The infant must;
be taught the habit of sleep at regu-I
lar hours. This can not be done by
putting him to bed one day at five
o'clock and another at seven.
Fear is a habit—of mind. Sulki-
ness, obstinacy, selfishness, inatten-
tion, are all mind habits. Constant,
example is the best antidote for such
habits. The child who lives in a home
where cheerfulness is the keynote no
matter what the difficulties,' is more
or less bound to be cheerful. Sullen-
ness is pretty sure to fade away under
the influence of a happy smile and
pleasant words. Ridicule does harm
instead of good, since it engenders a
habit of self consciousness and re-
sentment. Scolding is worse. Nothing
but steady, happy molding will do the
work.
Thumb sucking is one of the most
easily acquired of baby habits. It is
a bad habit. It misshapes the mouth,
pulls the gums out of shape, encour-
ages adenoids. To break it, the child
must form another habit with his
hand the habit of keeping it away
from his mouth. The only way to do
this is not to allow his hand to reach
the mouth until he has forgotten the
habit.
TRAINING SHOULD BE POSITIVE.
vice to one's family and to one's
neighbors is a habit that later will
develop into service for one's commun-
ity and to humanity at large. Gener-
osity isa habit, . So is selfishness. If
the child is encouraged to be genes Wet B1AIEiiets— y Ethel G. Peterson
ous with plaxythiugs, the man will be
with his house, his automobile, his
money and his self.
Those who are molding the clay
should not be chary of praise. Espe-
cially in overcoming a bad habit. The
child who habitually uses good man-
ners will not expect praise for doing
what is all he knows how to do.
HomyEducation-
.
'The Child's 'keit 8ahool !:s the Family"---FrodbN;'
Sunshine for Chicken Roosts.
Most chicken roosts are forever
hidden from the sun and cleaning is
a doubtful process, but one poultry-
man has devised a plan ,by which he
sterilizes the roosts in the sun and
air after spraying. This is adapt-
able to small houses only.
He nailed a cleat below one end of
the roosts, clinching them together.
Then the other ends were allowed to
project through the side of the house
so they just came flush with the out-
side. A stop board cleated them to-
gether at that end and also closed up
the holes in the building and kept out
the weather. The inside cleat rested
upon one below it to support the
roosts at the desired height.
! When cleaning time came the own-
er just pulled out the roosts their fu11
length, supporting them by a stake
underneath, and proceeded with the
cleaning outdoors. When finished and
aired, the roosts were simply pushed
back into the building onto their in -
1 side supporting cleat.
Artificial Light in Summer.
Although the use of artificial light
Iin the control of egg production is
largely confined to the late fall and
winter months, it has been found that
it is worth while to use some artificial
light as early as the first of August.
Observation of the way hens lay
leads to the conclusion that although
marked changes in temperature tend
to bring about corresponding changes
in egg yield, there is quite a tendency
for egg production to anticipate some-
what the seasonal changes in length
of day.
Spring egg production reaches its
peak considerably in advance of the
longest day of the year and the low-
est point of production comes some
weeks before the shortest day of the
year. I
Reasoning from this basis one may
explain, at least in part, the favor-
able results in egg laying which fol-
low the use of some artificial light as
early as August, while the natural
daylight still exceeds twelve hours. I
Try a Short Chein.
An eight -foot log chain has been
part of my farming outfit for six
years. I had a grab hook and a round
hook welded on the ends.
I use this chain four times where
I use the twenty -foot ones once. It's
easy to carry, quick to hitch on any
tool and will stand any pull.
When I take a few sacks of fertil-
izer to the field and want it moved up
to where I work, the short chain
quickly connects to the drill and the
wagon moves where I want it without
unhitching. This chain will get a load
of poles or a log where I want it
easier than a long one.
Maybe you've broken a chain which
can be fixed up into a short one.
You'll never regret it.—E. R.
Child training should.be positive in-
stead of negative as far as possible.
Of course if a child contracts a bad
habit that habit must be broken. Or,
in other words, he must be given a
good habit to take the place of the
bad one.
Reading is a habit formed in child-
hood or never. Church -going is a
habit that must be begun early and
kept to steadily through youth. Ser
Agnes rushed excitedly into the
room, intent on telling the family
about the tennis match, She had not
I finished two sentences when Jack, who.
had reached the fastidious stage in'
his existence, interrupted.
"Gee, you're a sight! Mother, can't
you make her fix her hair better? It's'
forever tumbling down; other chaps' i
sisters don't look the way she does.' I
Mrs. Norris said gently, "jack, let
Agnes tell her story."
Agnes made a grimace at Jack, but
went on with her tale, an account of
the game she had won against odds.
She was making a very good narra-
tive of it, but now it was Big Sister
who said, "Don't talk so fast. No-
body can understand a word you say."
Agnes ignored this too, but when a
minute later her father remarked
mildly, "Daughter, bully is not a nice
word for a young lady to use," the
child, already overwrought with the
strain of the game, burst into tears,
and left the room, sobbing out, "When
I tell you folks anything again, you'll
know it."
The family commented in resigned
tones on Agnes' dreadful temper, but
my sympathies were all with the girl,
for I remembered my own childhood.
.I was the intense, emotional type, my
mother calm, reserved, and a purist
in the use of English.
I would rush in all eagerness .to
share my news with Mother. Probe
ably her first comment' would beg}'
"Alice, your . voice is several octaves.
too high. Get it down,
A little subdued, I would recom-
mence, only to hear, "That word is
accented on the first syllable, not on
the second."
When I had been stopped several
times in that fashion, my enthusiasm
had evaporated. Mother, noticing
this, would laughingly say,' ow go
on and tell me about it. I elimply
wanted to call your attention to that
word before I forgot."
And many times I too flounced out
of the room 'with the silent resolve
never to tell Mother anything again.
Now, I know that it was Mother's
love for me, her deep desire that 1;'
should excel, that made her critical,
but to this day I have a fear of her
criticism of any talk I may give, or.
any article I may write—the childish
impression is still too strong. And
as a consequence, Mother has been
hurt many times at my reserve over
my personal affairs.
So I have firmly resolved that both
for my sake and theirs, T will not
"wet blanket" my children's first en-
thusiasms. If criticism must come,
let it be later, after the first excite-
went has worn off.
THE CHILDREN'S
HOUR
___2
ARE YOU POLITE AND COUR-
TEOUS')
Are you courteous, day by day, and
do you make a constant effort to be
so? Even common courtesy and po-
liteness are not found as often as they
should- be. And yet anyone who is
continuously courteous is making him-
self, thereby, very popt'ar with every-
one he meets. For courtesy and po-
liteness are great assets that often
have a real, monetary value. It pays
to be polite. A business concern,
where politeness and courtesy are
practiced, is one to which customers
are naturally drawn. And, more than
that, it makes for acquaintance, and,
later, possibly, friendship. Also your
exercise of politeness and courtesy at
all times will make you a lady, or a
gentleman,in the fullest sense of the
words, in the eyes of others. "If we
want to be workers, who leave behind
a mark of progress and betterment,
we should be polite and courteous at
all times to everyone. It takes brains
to be clever, but it takes character to'
be a real lady or gentleman.
ON THE WRONG ROAD.
At the crossroads the sign post was
down, and Jackie Rabbit, Johnnie
Muskrat and Willie Woodchuck all
wanted to take a different road home.
But when Johnnie Muskrat drew the
longest in the "cuts" they started off
down the road he thought was the
one that would take them back to
Woodland. These three little Wood-
land boys didn't like it one bit to be
lost, and hurried along so they could
get home before dark.
CONQUERORS 'OF ROBSON'S LOFTY PEAK
Members of the first parties of Al Lower group, right to left: Back row, reach the peak of Robson; A. H. Mac-
. P IS
All the way, Jackie Rabbit wee 'very
much in doubt about their being on
the right road. Several times he
scratched his head and wondered.
Everything looked strange to him,
even the big trees looked different.
Willie Woodchuck didn't have muc
to say about it, but he, too, was rath-
er doubtful and all the time his fat
little legs were getting more tired.
It wasn't long before they came to
where the woods were thinner and a
little way farther on there was only
here and there a tree. Finally they
came to the open fields where there
were no trees at all.
"I don't think this is the way home,"
said Willie Woodchuck, "mother al-
ways taught me to beware of the open
fields. She said a man with a gun
could easily see you there."
"Don't be a coward, Willie," said
Johnnie, "Let's go on a little farther."
Soon they came to a village, but it
didn't look at all like their own little
village in Woodland.
"This isn't Woodland," said Jackie
Rabbit. "We must be a long,G
way from home."
"Yes,but where, where?" lamented
Willie Woodchuck. "I'n getting awful-
ly tired. These houses are so big,
twice as big as ours, and they are all
built on stones. I never saw stone
houses before. On the sign it said
Stoneyville, and this must be the
place. We must have come the wrong
way."
"ho lives in Stoneyville?" asked
Jackie Rabbit.
"I don't know, said Johnnie Musk-
rat, "but I'll knock at this door and
see if they can tell us the way to
Woodland."
It took a lot of courage for Johnnie
to go up to the door, but he.knew he
should for it was his mistake. As he '
went up the path, he was saying to
himself, "I won't be a coward." But •a,
all the time his knees , trembled and
he wished more than he had ever
wished in his life.,that he was home.
At the end of the path Jackie and
Willie waited for him..
"Rap tap tap!"
In a minute, but it seemed like sev-
eral
eweral: minutes to Johnnie Muskrat, the
door opened and there stood a man
whom his mother had always taught
him to fear. Of course Jackie and
Willie saw him too.
It is hard to say who was more
surprised, the man to see these three
little Woodland boys in his front yard,
or the boys to learn that a man lived
in that big stone house. Added to the
Woodland boys' surprise, they were
terribly frightened. To think that one
of them had dared to knock right on
a man's dear!
But they didn't stop one minute to
consider it or to ask questions. They
took to their heels as fast as they
could go, dodging behind bushesand.
bunches of grass until they had left
Stoneyville far behind.
Feed the Pullets Liberally.
It is easy to make the mistake of
not feeding pullets on range all that
they ought to have at this season.
the first place they are, or should.
be, growing rapidly. This inczuis that
their requirements for mainten'ance
are. increasing steadily. Furthermore,
he :natural;'feeds' that have been
-available to them are ro longer'' so
plentiful.
It is probably. true that 'thousands
of pullets will failto give maximurn
egg production this fall 5ecause' of
too little feed during the last of the
growing season."'Non• evi11 be
jured by overfee'dieg.
Especially should liberal grain
feeding be practiced in order to keep
the pullets in good flesh and to pre-
pare them for winter egg production.
----,;b
7 --
In loolsing,for a place to sell fruit,
a microscu".A is •a good instrument to
use, stated one successful farmer. It
may be there are people close by who
would be willing to pay a good price
for fruit if they knew abcut it.
Russia in Europe and Asia has s
I
It
pine Club members to climb Mount M. C. Geddes, Calgary, who also took
Robson, 13,068 feet high and Monarch l part. In first ascent of Mt. Geikie, in
of the Canadian Rockies.. Upper photo- ` Jasper+ National Park; T. B. Moffat,
graph shows first party on snow ridge l Calgary H. P Lambart, Ottawa; A.
at the summit of Mount Robson,: with • Drinnan, Calgary, and T. B. Porter,
Conrad Kain, noted Canadian guide, lxi • Saskatoon.
the lead.' Uppe r right, Miss M. H. Front row: J. Saladana, guide and
Gold, of ,Edmonton, a member of the acker•• W. A. D. Munday, y, Vancouver;
third party to reach Robson's s i A D
Carthy, of Windermere, B:C., who is
credited with taking part In first act-
ual official ascent; Miss Annette E.
Buck, Brooklyn, N.Y., and rI•arry Pol
Iard, Calgary. photographer, ,who pack-
ed a' camera to R,obson's peak to se-
cure the first pictures of a, climbing
party at the summit.—C.N.R. photos.
population of about la ,,v00,1)00. i