HOW TO BED
SWEET POTATOES
With New Soil and Tubers Free
From Disease All Trouble Can
Be Avoided.
By W. H. Wicks,
Horticulturist University of Arkansas.
The common method of propagating
the sweet potato is by means of
••sprouts” or “slips," which are ob
tained by placing the seed potato un
der the proper growing conditions of
heat and moisture. It is essential that
all tubers used for propagating ma
terial come from clean fields. Diseases
are readily transferred by using
spibuts or tubers from old beds whlcn
are diseased. Ily using new soil in
the propagating beds and tubers free
from disease, most of the trouble from
serious plant diseases may be avoided.
Keep Propagating Beds Free From
Infection.
The sprouts soon start from the tu
bers, but are quite sensitive to cold
and if plants are wanted early in the
spring, some form of artificial heat is
necessary. The most common meth
od of producing artificial heat is by
means of stable manure. Never use
stable manure or soil from feeding
lots where diseased vines or tubers
have been fed. This is one of the
most common ways of bringing infec
tion into the propagating beds when
stable manure is used for furnishing
artificial heat. Fresh horse manure
containing approximately- one-third
litter should be obtained from livery
barns where only clean hay is used
and the manure can he secured In
large quantities. A fire hot-bed may be
used in case manure cannot be se
cured, but this type of hot-bed requires
closer attention and it is much more
difficult to bring out a good crop or
sprouts.
Location and Construction of Prop
agationvBeds Important.
When maklhg a propogation' pit or
liot-bed, select a well drained place,
having a south slope and protected on
the nortli side by a fence, trees or
buildings. Build a plank frame four
feed wide and as long as desirable to
get. the required amount of space,
making the north side a few incites
higher than the south side. Place suf
ficient earth against the outside walls
to provide drainage to keep the water
from collecting near the frame. Inside
the frame excavate to a depth of about
eight or 10 inches. Place first a thin
layer of light material, such as straw,
leaves or pine needles. On this place
a layer of sfx to 10 inches of fresh
horse manure, the amount depending
upon the ctimatp, season, and amount
of forring desired. Moisten thorough
ly, level and pack firmly. Then place
a layer of sand or light soil from three
to four Inches deep. The temperature
may run rather high for a few days.
The roots may be planted immediately
if so desired.
Use Care in Bedding.
In bedding place them so that they
do not touch each other so that the
tops of the potatoes are from two to
three inches under the surface. Have
the top of the bed come above the
level of the soil on the outside of the
frame. The bed should be kept moist
but not wet. The temperature may be
allowed to run up to eighty-five or
ninety degrees F. for a few days, but
it should be kept at eighty to eighty
five degrees F. as near as possible.
By planting time, which should be
from five to six weeks after bedding,
the temperature should stand at about
sixty degrees F. In the warmer parts
of the state it may not be necessary
to provide any covering on the frames,
but where a greater degree of forcing
is required some cover, such as glass,
boards, muslin, leaves or straw, will be
desirable. If the climate is mild, a
cloth frame is very cheap and satisfac
tory. It is easy to handle in ventilat
ing and for “hardening off” the plants
just before placing in the field.
Vine Cutting For Late Potatoes.
Propagation by vine cutting may be
practiced when a late crop of pota- j
toes is wanted. The vine cutting is
a piece about eight to 10 inches long
from the end of the potato vine. The
leaves, except at the tip, are stripped
off and all hut the growing end cov
ered with soil. Some of the growers
prefer to plant a portion of their crop
by means of slips and then secure
plants for the rest, of their acreage by ,
means of vine cuttings. The vine cut- \
tings have the advantage of being
free from disease and are cheaper j
than slips. Some claim that the vine
cuttings give the highest yield.
Number of Slips From Bushel of
Seed Variable. <
The number of sweet potato slips i
or “draws” to be obtained from a
bushel of seed depends upon the size
of the roots, the variety used and the
number of “drawings.” A small pota
to will make as many slips as a large
one and requires less room in the bed.
A bushel of small potatoes will bea
from fifteen to twenty square feet. It
will require from three to six bushels
per acre according to the variety when
all slips are set and beds are properly
managed after each drawing. Accord
ing to variety, one bushel of seed will
produce two thousand to five thousand
slips. If the beds are made from
April 10th to April 20th, slips will be
ready as soon as it will be safe to
plant them.
The duck averages ten dozen eggs
In about seven months laying.
REFUSED TO BE CONFINED
Honeysuckle Escaped From Formal
Gardens and Parks to Bestow
Its Fragrance on All.
Years ago Japan sent to this coun
try a vigorous green vine which won
favor through its lavish display of
fragrant white flowers in late spring.
For a time the vine and flowers were
kept wlthip the bounds of gardens,
lawns and parks. Then it ran away.
Today you’ll find it roaming along the
roadside, climbing stumps and hedges.
It needs no gardener, the Philadel
phia North American says, for it can
take care of itself. It Is the honey
suckle.
The Japanese variety which ran
away joined some of its American
cousins, who are just as pretty and as
fragrant. There’s the coral honey
suckle, for example—a famous porch
climber In the Southern states, with
trumpet-shaped flowers, red outside
and scarlet within. In England they
have the woodbine—a cream-colored,
fragrant relative of the honeysuckle.
Recently there came a new variety
from China, where it was found on the
tops of mountains 6,000 feet above
the sea. Its foliage is almost ever
green, and the flowers are a reddish
bronze. Another variety has red
flowers, with yellow and buff mark
ings.
There’s no need to hunt for the
honeysuckle. Its fragrance will an
nounce it before you’re near enough
to see it.
HOW PEN MAY HELP FORGER
Habitually Used, It Is Said to Become
Imbued With the Spirit of a
Signature.
“Did It ever occur to you,” said a
treasury official, “that a former has
half his work done when he can set
hold of the identical pen with which
the owner of the signature habitually
writes? A great many pien, company
directors and the like, use the same
pen for their names only, for a year or
two without change.
‘‘A pen that has been used by a
man in writing his name hundreds of
times, and never used for anything
else, will almost write the name of
itself. It gets imbued with the spirit
of the signature. In the hands of a
fairly good forger it will preserve the
characteristics of the original. The
reason for this is that the pelnt of the
pen has been ground down in a pe
culiar way, from being used always by
the same hand and for the same combi
nation of letters. It would splutter
if held at a wrong angle or forced on
lines against its will. It almost guides
the sensitive hand of the forger when
he attempts to write the name.”
Cutting Bullet Out of the Heart.
Dr. Maurice . Beaussenat. who had
already extracted a piece of grenade
from the right ventricle of a man's
heart, told the French Acadeinie des
Sciences of a second similar operation
performed with success.
A corporal wounded at Eparges had
been fronted for peritonitis and then
had been operated on for appendicitis.
He continued to suffer in various
ways for more than a year, when a
radioscope revealed the pressure of a
shrapnel hall, moving in time to the.
beatings of his heart. Supposing this
to bo In the pericardium or sac about
(lie heart. Doetor Iteaussennt “went
in,” as the surgeons say, and saw that
the ball was actually in the right ven
tricle, near the lower end.
Tlie heart was drawn out; its wall
was cut open between two loops of
wire; the ball was removed and the
heart was sewn tip again. Six months
Inter the heart had healed so perfectly
I hat there was not a sign of irregu
larity about its pulsations.
Old, but New to Someone.
A farmer of Madison once went to
town to buy a horse and on meeting
a ranchman said: “Do you know where
I can buy a good boss?”
“I have a horse I’ll sell for $38.56
cash, sir,” replied the ranchman.
“Will she plow corn?” Inquired the
farmer.
“You’d he surprised to see that
horse plow corn,” the man answered.
The farmer thought this a great bar
gain and bought it.
The next morning he took the “hoss”
out and hitched her to the plow. She
wouldn’t budge, willingly nor by
force, so, after trying f .>r fully five
hours in the sun, he took her buck to
the ranchman.
“I thought you said this hoss would
plow corn,” growled the farmer.
“No. I didn’t,” returned ihe rancher.
“I said you would be surprised to see
her plow, and I bet you would, too."—
1 Indianapolis News.
—
Exterminate the Rat.
Safety from ir.any diseases lies in
the exclusion of relents, not only from
habitations of man, but also from the
ports and cities of the world. Those
j who dwell in rat-proof surroundings
take no plague. The day is past when
the rodent served a useful purpose as
the unpaid city scavenger. Rats will
: not come where there is no food for
them. Municipal cleanliness may be
regarded as a partial insurance
against plague. The prayer that no
plague feme nigh cur dwelling is best
answered by rnt-piv oflng the habita
tions of man. Modern sanitary science
has evolve! a simple and efficient
, weapon against the pestilence which
walketh in darkness and striketh at
| noonday, and the United States public
I health service has put this knowledge
: Into practical operation and thus
speedily eradicated plague wherever
Is has appeared in the United States.
*
SAFE, EUT NOT COMFORTABLE
Rabbit Must Have Passed Some Un
easy Moments in Its Peculiar
Place of Refuge.
Two hunters were In the woods one
day with their rabbit dog, named
j ‘'Skip.” They were tramping along
; when “Skip” suddenly caught sight of
a rabbit and gave chase. He ran the
victim on to posted land near a farm- !
house. The owner of the dog, hear- '
ing him make unusual noises, deter- i
mined to see what was the matter.
Leaving his gun with his companion, '
he climbed over the fence and looked
fi r “Skill.” He beheld what he thought
was a dug suddenly gone mad. “Skip"
was whining, yelping, growling and bit
ing at a large niilkcau. Dog and can
rolled over and over, "Skip” in appar
ent frehzy, biting and scratching it
with ids paws. Then he would en
deavor to hurl himself inside without
regard for humped or bruised legs.
Upon making an investigation, the
hunter found that the unfortunate cot
tontail, in seeking shelter, had rushed
into the miikcan, where, although the
dog eould not get at him, he must cer
tainly have had alarming doubts con
cerning his safety.—Youth’s Compan
ion.
Afraid of Their Own Reflection.
An interesting bit of animal psy
chology is revealed in a story that
comes from Elkins, \V. Va., of how a
baby’s life was saved by the fear of
wild hogs for their own likeness re
flected from a mirror.
Wild hogs that exist in the moun
tains of Randolph county catne down
into the foothills and charged into the
home of Sanford Phillips, upsetting
furniture and attacking Phillips’ two- i
year-old son.
The animals had torn nearly all the
clothing from the child when he ran
Into a corner where a big mirror hung.
The hogs followed, but soon stopped
when they beheld their likenesses in
the big glass. Only a second did they
hesitate, however, then turned, plung
ing from the house hack up the moun
tain side. The child was only slightly
injured.—Youth’s (’ompanion.
Could Not Be Disturbed.
Although Jed Hoover was the laziest
man in town, he always had strength
to hold : book or a magazine in his
hand. It was only in emergencies that
the neighbors called upon him for help.
One hot day in July, when the clouds
threatened rain, a farmer hurried to
his shack and asked him to “rake
after” the last load of hay.
Jed hesitated a minute, and then his
eye fell upon a pile of old magazines
that were stacked in a corner of the
sagging piazza.
| “Well, now, I'd like to help out,” was
tl»e reply, “but I’ll have to refuse ye
I this time. I’m a little behind with my
reading.”—Youth's Companion.
RAILROAD TIMt TABLt
St. Louis. Iron Mountain &l Southern
L1TTI-E ROCK 4 MONROE RY.
South North
7:45 a.m . .. Huttig 3:69 p. m
9:50 a. in Monroe 2:07 p. m
LOCAL. *
Leaves Arrives
11:25 a. m. Huttig . .. 12:30 p.m.
St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern
FARME8VILLE 4 SOUTHERN RY.
North
5:22 a. m.
7:21 a. rn.
10:10a.m.
Huttig
Farmerville
local, t
Huttig
South
.2:32 p. m
5:45 p. m
2:22 p. m.
tArrives Monday, Wednesday, and Fri
day from Monroe and goes to Farmer
ville.
"■Arrives Tuesday, Thursday and Satur
day from Farmerville and goes to Mon
roe.
LODGE DIRECTORY
ROWLAND LODGE No. 594 F. & A.
M.meets every second and fourth Satur
day evenings at 7:20 o'clock. Visiting
Masons always welcome.
T. B. Weaver, W. M.
W. P. Reasons, Sec'y.
HOWARD CHAPTER, No. 122, R. A.
M. meets every first and third Thurs
day evening at Masonic hall. Visiting
companions welcome.
J. M. Gibson, H. P.
C. A. Berry, Secy.
ZEDEIGAH, COUNCIL. U. D.. R. &
S. M. Meets every fourth Wednesday
night of each month. Visiting compan
ions welcome. T. B. Wi aver, T. 1. M.
R. N. Benson. Recorder.
HUTTIG CHAPTER No. 320, Order of
the Eastern Star, meets every first and
third Friday evening at 7:30 o'clock.
Visiting brothers and sisters welcome.
Mrs. J. A. Brignac, W. M.
Mrs. L. G. Gibson, Sec'y.
HUTTIG LODGE No. 348 I. O. O. F.
meets every first and third Tuesday eve
ning. All brethern cordially invited
H. C. Bedford, N. G.
H&rlan Sehon, Secy.
HUTTIG REBEKAH LODGE No. 66,
meets every Monday night at 7:30 o’clock
Visitors are invited.
Mrs. Wilkie Frost, N. G.
Mrs. Murray Maroney, Secy.
SWEET BAY CAMP No. 41 1 W.O. W.
meets every first and third Saturday eve
nings. Visitors made welcome.
Lester Malone. C. C.
J. C. Bridges. Clerk.
Sweet Bay Circle No. 145, W. C..
meets every second and fourth Thursday
night at 7:30 o'clock. Visitors are cor
dially invited.
Mrs. E. S. Etheridge. Guardain.
Mrs. J. C. Bridges. Clerk.
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