‘i NEWSY

NOTES -

I! AGBKOOLA

A Resourceful Alolorisl.

f 1 daresay. dear reader, you have “u, pic-duos or the weird contrap- qons that th Brltzsh have attach- ‘ - s and trltcks tn make %,_,,,~1,,,, ~ ducer gas", instead of 53.01pm or "petrol" us they term it.

flJPy are no. ins". reourccful down

under, as a letter from n. remote my“ in Western Australia,

onz-z — &h“Pl"CfiUCi3l' gas is being used here. and malty and weird are the con- tainers used to tnanuincture it. One tanner, driving a Morris Ccnvicy. mane a producer out of two cream ,.,._;;~_ three Mintic tins and various pieces of drain pipe, The success of this outfit W35 proved by his trip m Perth, 170 rfes away, on awo bags oi charcoal, costing the effor: cf (oliecting it. from burnt logs. 0n ,,.,,;,§n; out of gas about 10 mites from home. he stuffed his old coat and part of n blanket into the pro- llucer and finished the trip on

...--

P E. Is‘and farmers are as good nt tislisitzg cxpedients as any of do": Emuiz-e brethren, I have 0i:- u; nltd I hope that one oi them tackle the "gas producer" ap- s and give the cars a. fresh

Berries, red and yellow

The r-cd tint in berries has two functions; it a sign that the. heme; have reached matgrity and m in condition to i‘: eaten. if not by humans. by birds. The "Imrds and Ladies“ Arum of Britain for in- 5mm"? produces n pretty scarlet- tliiiPll cluster oi nrrid berries. which the tilrtishcs and b‘uckblrds are very ford cf; but which would cause intolerable pain to the tongue and throat of the person incuutious gmuzh to eat them.

The second useful property of lire till ‘s that it is easily discern- ul M 't the setting oi greenery;

m. , tcr how swift the flight; of the bird, the red berry; cal‘s in ef- fect "here is food!" And the bird in return carries the enclosed seed tn other places and ensures the tlsccrsal of the species.

S ' oi plants, trees. or shrubs,

Wlliill typically bear red berries,

have forms or strains with yellow

berries. Thus. there is a variety of

English Holly with yellow berries,

which however is neither as com-

1000,1101‘ as popular as the red-

iceuied kind. Some nf the Thorns

tCraueg-usi of this continent have ycllow-irulted varieties.

Tne only yellow-trotted species that! can recall as native to the

Island is the Cloudberry (or "Bake-

apnlt." as it is c2111! on the Lab-

rador ccasti. This is the Rubus

Llmmnemorus. found on the north time or Prince County. Incidentally inlay mention that as a schoolboy fort itollday) I have gathered this iruzt from the sides of Cross Fbll, a fairly high mountain in Cumber- iliid. (2,892 feet). The Cloudberry mnlzes excellent pies!

When it comes to red, scar‘et or crimson berries. we have a greater choice. Personally I have examined twenty-five kinds and there may be some I am not yet acquainted with. One must make a commencement somewhere, and our list may as well start new. If rcatiers find any red berries not listed. I shall be giBfi to have a record of them.

The Red Baneberrv (Aetaea rubra) is lzct unlike the White Baneberry u. alba) already mentioned in a,

for cr list, and it, is just as poison- ous, though the berry has o. differ- ent hue.

The Bunchberry (Cllrnus canad- rnsis) is in bloom just now; a. low plant with (apparently) a white four-tietalied fiower, This will be succeeded later by a close cluster ti rrnrlet berries, with litt-le “flcslf an! no particular‘ flavor. Long ago inns told Lhis W55 the "Pigeon- vflirv‘: perhaps the name goes back to the old days when the Passeng- fi Pigeon was plentiful in the land.

Then there are the two thorns (one native and one European) nxrch provide food for the migrat- ‘obins and other birds. The lhzlieh Hawthorn or "May" (Crat- fvnus Oxyncanthn) has also a ye]- znv-herrled variety. never seen here; I: berry ls commonly a deep red, ill tlve thorn is a less desirable ilnnt sine-c it spreads roots and soon covers large ' H uroul d. It hits. long thorns ird lurker. (ark scarlet berries. The older ‘ists bell this thorn (‘rat- iflzrs con-Inca. but. I have never lCll certain that they were right!

SEVCYIII times, at. long intervals, imhnve‘ received samples of the t ~“i‘¢1‘1't‘y. or ns some ccl‘l it, the

»§?§.-~t--t-+~t--.t--t.-++++

STILL M0

send their hogs to us. We that this has resulted to need still more hogs to e utilize the plant and e

Bring or Send lls

A further word; the

>+e¢++¢¢¢++wA#+¢¢++++++

ducts for the next three months ls going to be short. We would, therefore, recommend to all farmers to feed freely a ‘v BOSSIME during July, August and September. l: resent prices are good and will hold until Oct- §»WnmnmL ‘l? DAVIS é? é. . lit-z:

WANTED

We appreciate the co-operation of the in- creased number of farmers, who either bring or

regular customers with P. E. I. Pork Products.

Prove the Advantage for Yourself

B13931 Alder (llex veructtnlm, for 1131111118. The name Alder must have been given it from its refer» ence for swampy ground, for g doe; not rescmb e the Alder at all. When the leave: drop off in the fall, the shrub 1S seen to be profusely cover- cd \\‘.i'.l red or scarlet oval berries. This is a deciduous, unarmed re a- tive oi the English Holly, and so is our Mountain Holly (Nemopan- than mucronata) which is found in damp r001 pieces. I found it growing near Mermaid lake, some years Pi-lo. The light. red bet-rte: are few- er than these of the Winterberry, and each hangs solitary on u long slender stalk. In fact its botanical name means "thread-stalk flower." I shall conclude this instalment with a brief notice of our Rowan trees whose red berries supply food to roblns. eedar-waxwings and some other birds, In the older lists only the American Mountain Ash I Rowan-tree (Pyrus americana) was Elven: it is known by its lanceolate leaves tapering to a point. The fruit is scarlet; it is also small, from 4 to 6 mm. in diameter. The present writer put on record a sec- ond species, the Large-fruited Mountain Ash (P. sltchensls) which is fairly common on the Island. £rhe leaves are rounded at the tips, pot taper-pointed; excl the berry ls about. 1m. In diameter. How- ever I think the two species hybrid- 1 freely, as I have found what I ake to be intermediate forms.

More About Tea. I

This week it is hard to get away from plant life it seems; tr. I think readers will forgive me when they read this note, I cannot see how we can escape rationing tea. and when rationing does come it will not easily be got rid of. The question what did people drink when tea ran short in form- er times? and in the old "Encyclop- nedla of Cookery" was the answer found. I quote: "For herb tea the following proportions are reecm- mended. -Agrlmony, balm, tor- menttl, wild marloram of each one ounce; red noses. cowslip flowers, black-current. leaves. of each a quarter of an ounce. Cut small and mix. A heaped tablespoon is enough for two persons, made as China tea, with sugar and cream. or milk if a proved. The following sub- stltu e for tea is also recommended; Hawthorn leaves dried, ten parts, sage and balm, one part. Mix well together. and use as above."

Agrimony ls quite common tri many parts of the Island. lifting its long narrow spikes of yellow

flowers from dry ditches. I have an English lemon-scented species, Agrlmonla odorata, growing in the garden. and usually save some of its seed for gifts to friends. Balm (Mellss) is a plant for the herb garden and is in most seed lists. "Tormentll" is an English species of Potentllla not found here. Wild Marlorum grows profuse‘y by the roodsides near Rusticoville, but on questioning residents of the district, they knew nothing about it. Petals of any kind of roses would substit- ute for "red roses". Cowsiips will grow here under garden conditions: I had plenty of con-slip (Prlmula) blooms this spring but didn't know their use as tea. Substitutes are seldom-perhaps never- as 200d ‘as the real thing, but under the cir- cumstances we may yet be driven to fortify our ten ration with some of the above ingredients. Why not try them out now?

A Prosperous Rural Economy

lirflss Enid Charles, in the May issue of the Canadian Journal of Economic and Political science. tells of "The Trend of Fertility in Prince Edward Island "and mentions that; '17 percent of our population is rum‘. while Canada ns a whole has a rural population of only 47 per- cent. Her conclusion is that the laclors producing our hi h per- centaze. are “a seli-suffic ent and prosperous rural economy, an ab- sence oi 500181 inequaiities. and pyeholcglcal isolation from oat- tcrns of "celal behavior prevailing elsewhere." We; will!“

I hesitate to comment on the last statements as it is rather subtle and might be interpreted wrongly, One_can scnz'cclv' subscribe to the cplnlop that farming has been un- rler a condition of "a self-sufficient and prosperous economy" for the last 2t) years at least, Only at long intervtfs has the Island farmer been able to sell his produce above the cost of production; most of the

time "never has so little been earn- -

ed by so many!" No matter what (1_l:Ql1__0_l‘le_f(_>i_lt)_\_\'8_d_llp,_£h6_8l;0l‘y_was

ttttttttttet.

RE H065

trust, ln fact feel sure your advantage. We mploy our help here, quipment and supply

Your llogs and

supply of Pork Pro-

nd market every hog

FRASER

é++++++++++&*&*+¢&&*%&+&#&ii

.+o++¢o+e+e++++++++++++.

I CONSERVATION »

I WEEKLY COLUMN OI PRACTICAL OPINIONS OI T!!! VITAL ISSUES AFFECTING THE USES AND ABUSIS OF NATURAL RESOURCES BI

IIFIILD

MB. LUDLOW JENKINS

THE SENTRY 0F THE SHALLOWS By Ben llur Lampman

The patience cf Job ls fixrd in proverb, y-et even he was not re- quired to stand in (hill watrr for Q long hour waiting his dnper. Gray and moticn ess. sharply carved against tug sreen of the

and. as silent as its own snadow. t ls so that the great b.ue heron walls. He is patience epitrmized, as he is the very spirit of the shallows

Let him take his station where the saffron sand apt thrusts into the Columbia, gve to the spzerous river that, sliglfgtly fretted surface Mitch is so l e the beauty of I damascened blade order that the sunset shall fire e clouds above the dlmness tmt is Lady Island. and the blue heron becomes ‘the central figure of a Japanese print. Yet I th'nk I like him b=st in his setting of eottonwocés, at morning when the patches of meadow are brght wih dew. and his pond breathes a faint yatpcr to the re- turning day. The lean old pagan, rigid beyond the rushes—why, Pan himself could ask no mere of such a icture.

ti; shattered. F'1ash’ngly the slim head strikes. and the sharp beak has found fts target - the golden carp that swam too near the margin, the fingerlinfl hm that saw no more tfftan a drab snag rising from the lake, or the mottled frog that lifted his solemn visage in that perilous water. 'I‘h's l5 the toll the heron takes, And he drifts out of the setting, at as grayly as the mis silently, The cottonwoods are Wei-v- ing to the river whd. T"e mists are gone, Arid here in the sedi- ment ls pressed the spocr cf the heron, the sentry of ttre shallows.

The yellow eyes of the heron. that have spied out so many fishes in their tin-re, are not. as the eyes of other birds; they are set some- vthat beneath. on the slcpirg sides of the head, so that wl hout mus- cular effort. the fkherman sares at his feet, as fixedly as a. bash- ful boy in ccmpany. No least move- ment ls needed to focus the herons eyes upon ‘that mace of water which, socn or late. must afford lrm his target and _v.’e!d him his dinner. Such is the efficiency of Nature, yet I cannot but believe that many a heron, in the days when the nobies went hawking. must have wished-as h‘s docm was upon l ‘ i0 "h i _ the same. I recdlect a case where a farmer took a basket of ripe tomatoes to town and could get only 2 cents a pound for them. He sold them and left the basket. On calling for 1t later. he saw his tomatoes in the window marked 8 cents, Potatoes at 6 cents a bush- el, and pork at 4 cents. spoil the picture of a prosperous rural econ- omy. Just now, lt is true, farmers are making more money in one year than formerly they did in three, but let us not forget that the relief is only temporary; the caries

that depresed agriculture befoc the War have not. been removed. The situation en's for "'" study,

and now ls the time to do 1t. Turning to the figures in Miss Charles's paper, the statement that P. E. Island has a. population of 93,913, must be a slip; the official figures are 93,919. There appears to be a slow but ontlnous drift to the urban districts. In 1871 92 percent of the popuation were on the farms in 1926 this had fallen to 78,5 per- cent; and five years later to '71 per- cent. I have not got. the total per- centage for the 194-1 Census but the figures for Prince County show a further increase in the urban cen- tres. Since the prosperity of the

Island is bound up with its sole industry, Agriculture. any further urbanization threatens to become

"a burden too grievous to be borne."

eight of your t , as

wculd scan tLe sizy.

O! -old he was nu honorzbe bird this (rerun of ouzs. and when eon- trad-ict-ory man would confer honor upon any wild creature he dozs so bl! making it, his quarry, and by pursuing it. until its body is his trophy. The heron was the proud- est game any falccn m-‘gut bring dcwn; he was the quarry of royalty. What a brill-mt company they were, thcss lords and ladies, riding out to the fields which marked the pasage of the herons from their wood to the river. Little bells of silver on the brldles of the palfreys, scarlet doublet, riding habit cd’ forest green. the bcfgfitness of a scab-bard, laughter and badinage - with the country folk dcffing caps to them. Hood-

peregrlnes pct-chad on their wrists, mocdy birds, wnitin with eagerness the tcss that shcu send them circling upward. Upwrrd and upward, m perfect spirals, until death hovered above the laboring heron, and rushrd downward to the kill. Kublai Khan, so trey say -or it may have been another — hawked at deer with eagles. At least his servants carried flesh back to the palace kwchens. These nobles cf Europe calhed the heron “geme" but they left h‘m for car- rlon Let us trust that the proud, cruel pastlme of falcorlry never will be revived.

Perhaps you are going to say, as you read, this watcher of the sltallows takes many p, f’s‘1 that, suffered to live, m-itzht in titre be taken by us. Granted, allhcueh the log‘c is somewhat queer, somewhat self-centered. somewhat hercnes- que. Yet s0 nicely adjusted are the balances of Nature that the heron may have mcr- to do wi‘h our comfort that we drezm of. and in most unsuspected ways. Flor there is no lack cf evlfence. of mo=t re- grettable evidence, that to dsturb Nature's system of checks and bal- ances is t; invite sure penalties. As to what the great blue heron may be valued for, aside fr:m his esthetic worth as an etcfifng. a. print, a picture framed beside still waters, one does not attempt to say, And yet-

‘Ihey dike the rivers of the smith with great levees, to restrain the seasonal floods, that vast tracts of rich bottom laud may be plowed and sown azzd h:rve=tcd It nrght. have seemed to fanciful folk, seeing the heron lmnfld 8851115?- tncse levers, so erect and vigilant, that the big blue bir-cs were sen- tries stationed to guard against attack by waier. But fzw are fanci- ful and fancies are ‘he stuff of dreams _while n rising cron must create an itching n the tagger finger. I/avbormg upward on un- dulant wings, with one hoarse cry of alarm, what o, target it is. Notwi Crumple him! Well, in czrtain dis- tricts. the rivercnen, the duck hunt- ers. the small boys with their muzzle-leaders, killed many herons in this planner, for it was great sport. A heron wss Just a "crane," anyhow’, and fit for nathln save wasted that. In {me the tal blue senttlneis of the levees grew scarce, and scarcer, yet. a"d wlten they were but few the l-‘vers pressed against the diks with pondercus insistence, the packed earth crumbled, and spite cf sand bags and valor the yellow water roared house-high across the countryside,

The nut-Ives, the lteron kliers, confessed that, it. (ta-d them "bent": they d‘dn't undcrstard why the levees broke before a lesser stage of the river than many they could remember. It seamed a. curious fneak of malice for any trusted levee so to betray them. And they chewed murh tsbecc) 1;, that memorable clicrsskan, without once chancing upon the t"ut;.i. And the truth was, as certain oulcrtiers discovered, that when the herons were scarce the crawflth multi pl’ed. and when the crawfish had mulfiplied strlffdent-‘y tber cem- b" d turnelhgs cf th: lcv:cs so

“THE __‘(‘.l lARl.(i'l"l'l~I'l‘(.' WN ,__(§lif\i?f|7l_;\_.\_l __

weakened those strong barriers mat the river had its way with the land. And the herons were scntrles,

mistake to crumple them up - a. great, mistake because it proved tn be a. costly one. Scmetlmrs the poet, mak ng phrases. hits upon the truth more cceely than the pedant.

Otften among the cottonwood: along the river I startle the great blue herons from their pzrches, on the tolimost branches, where they command a view of all the country round about. Why lhcy should so distpcse themselves I eannct say, unless they are as fond of that panorama 01 blue r.ver and emer- ald wood as other fishermen. ‘lhe hercnries, of course. where the tall, plumcd herons gather for the nesting, are high among their chosen trees-but the cottcnvivccds hold nl heaped masses of gray sticks One can but conclude that it pleases them to spend a quiet quarter hour up there in the wind and sun, like a. midshlpmen drows- lng at the ‘Masthead.

When the June freshet, taking toll of a thousand af-fluents, floods the meadows of the river bottom. the fish come in to spawn -cal1co bass and era ie, big-mouth bass and carp, sue r and chub. The vast, warm lake along the river is their chosen nursery, But as swift- ly as it rises, so the Ilccd falls, leaving milllcns cf infant fish trap- ped in shallow ponds, that dw ndle to the sun. And many creatures fish for them along tire margin, or wade the shallow pools - for the misfortune cf the infants is the c rtunlty cf furred and feathered fl: iermen. It is the se-ason of plenty for the great blue heron, who has no need to stalk a dinner, or to stand in wait, And, if you choose so to regard it, ifs mis- sion is an urgent one. He is death in merciful guise, gleaning that which otherwise must, die linger- lngly. In August the lost p ol only a dcmpnsss in the clay, tracked with the Sf)‘; feet cf herons.

‘I112 wariness cf the great blue heron was learned in a. cruel school. 1"! ever they wrre curious to know more of us, lcng since we taught. them prudence, as we have taught. prudence to so mtny birds and beasts, Yet; once. as I felted a woodland lake beside the river, four herons came waging low over a. lane of meadow and out across the water, It is probabfe these were young birds, wl f1 their lesson yet to learn, fcr the fact is that. on seeing tire fst-lerman they did not sheer away. but curved their course toward me and passed within cast- ing distance-staring with evident curiosity, and I wou d swear it, ac- tually slackening their flight to ob- serve tire biped on tE-e bank. Oi a thousand herons I have seen, nflcn in that favorite country of ztieirs, these alone seemed free from the ccmmcn fear.

And here is an odd story of the great blue tlercn, that ctftcn I have puzzled ever, wltiicut dis ' i an answcr. It. was in n r. North Dakota that thc incident occurred, and there were few cf the birds to be found in that partic- ular region-and these only 1n pas- s-age, Nilgtit herons were plentiful. and might be fiushetl frcm sicugfi, but the pier e:l prif, ~ family clozbticss h.d hi; until he canto to wzodlrrtd r‘ and better flihJlg ..n niwli. This one I found in the red plush parlor c-f a Bohzmlazl f.‘.X'In€l"S heme, tarryirlg there lentil moth and time sbculcl eo;rt'pt We prr- fact bcauty ci 11's br'd;i plnnage It was mv first gwcgt. blue heron, and I paid him tidnte

And as We surfed cn meat and cabbage. and diced dzugll, fried until it bounced. and a tlrck gravy

blackened with currrnts and tea that. must have tcorel the hcnvy crockery cups. my 112st begged

hcavcn to deal scvn-rly rut-h a cer- tain hired man For, said lie, it must be evident to any save a num- skull that such a bird was not meant for death brirre its time: and, moreover, he fclt. he might; have tamcd it, My heart wmt cut to lrm, and I iurred to lcck "train at the heron. glearnn" 5i ilfv in the red plush parlor, still dignified in taxidermist pcstvrlrg,

He said that he had gone to town. his wife With him. qu‘le con- fident that. the hired ma“ could not lliillll tf1= qttartrr 50,“FCI1 of

GAY’S PLANTS

This year we have planned to dis- continue sending Plants by mail. but. have decided to this exteuL-that we will not accept tango order [or mulling for less than $1. . S0 Dlfllli observe this rule.

The following Annual Bedding Flower Plants It 20o dozen. Aster, Stocks, Pctunlas, Snapdra on, Ver- bena. Salvia, Annual rkspur. Dwarf Lobclia, Trailing Lobella, Argcratum, Zinnia. Lupus, Marl- gold, Salpi lossis, Alyssum, Carpet. of Snow. A yssum. Violet Queen, etc. Seedling Panslca 40c dozen Koch 30c dozen. Seedling Delphlnlum and Foxglove 60c dozen. All Double Pet.- unin. 50c dozen. 5c each. The above mulled postage prepaid.

Extra early Cabba e and Cauli- flower 20o dozen. 10 $1.40, bv mm! $1.50. Extra. Early Tomato 40o dozen. Late 80o dozen. lino Clbbnl for Fall and Winter use 80o per 100. by mall 40c.

Pansy and Daisy in bloom, Can- terbury Bell, Sweet William, 10o each, by mall 15c.

Carter s. Company. Seedsmen have our plants for sale and we de- liver plants to them daily. All order: by mail or express mus be accom- panied by cash or money order. Please write very plainly with full address,

J. J. GAY & SON

Box 187 Charlottetown, P. E. l.

“heat land. and, indeed, even hr/peful that when he returned tie might find the charm done.

Vain optimism. scarcely had he driven from sight when this strange bird, this fellow in the parlor, had come wandering in frcm the scuth, flyuzlg low over the young wheat.

And then, mister, what do you suppcse? I give you manyaguess, You cannotrAilina splendor of! plumes and stiff dignity the great blue heron dropped into his very barnyard, among the geese and cfxckens, and stalked idly about as though it suited 115m well. But that rtumskull, that certain hired man ~ch, heaven would see to him! — had gaiped but a moment at the miracle before he ran for the shotgun, whlth stocd in the kitchen corner, loaded for duck. N0. the ticron had not sezmsd afraid ’It hlld watched the hired man as he lumbercd pciward it. The brd had not za-ken flight. And when the black owder smoke drifted aside, there it was, quite dead among the geese and chlckers, and they scattering with justified alarm. Quite dead, Ncw such a thing as this, as any save a numskull would know, could not possibly happen again in n, man's lifetime. He rose and walked into the parlor, to run a calloused hand over crest and back, where the plumes lay lcng and soft and silklm. Not again in n. man's lifetime.

What of this heron that was not afraid? I am sure I cannot tell you. The answer is hidden. In- dividualism is as marked among birds as among men. if our dull ayes could see the evdence. And 111w and then 53m? wld creature dccs not ccntirm to the inherent fcars or prejudices of inks kind, but stands our. frcm the flcck or the pack or the herd. individual, dif- ferent. strangely personalized. Per- haps this hrrcn wn= such n one. But. 1 lure likrd to think. at tfmes,

tlwt scrirwltere he had icund f1 ..r‘~ atndrg us, vvizo taught him frirndstiip. And I have put the

thought aside, for to enterttfnlt is tdspceulate upon anothcrbetrayal. For" ls not life like this with man yet far to 12o befirg he really knows (us true friends?

OTTAWA. June l8-(C~'P)——Pilot Officer J. W. Paul Barll of Ottawa is missing following the. recent naval aerial battle in the Mediter- ranean, his parents, Mr, and Mrs Wilfrid Bcrii. hnve been advised officially. PO. Barll, a. member of The Royal Canadian Air Force who was stationed at Malta, was last seen parachutlng into the sea, There were a number of ships in the Arcn, He received his wings at Summe side, P. E. I.

é

MORE PROFIT FROM EVERY ARIMAI. 0R ‘HIE FARM

Q Sugared Schnmacher Feed is a great utility feed. It serves all types of stock at all times of the year. Sugared Sehumnchcr is better than corn, better than oats, better than barley, better than wheat feeds, because it is a blend of all four of them-plus minerals, molasses and iodine.

9

Quaker Sugar-ed Schumacher Feed has been a standard feed for many years-one with which other feeds are compared. It develops a quality of hone, akin and miracle that make better looking animals-helps keep them in vigor, health and condition.

For growing young stock, rebuilding dry stock, devel- oping fine beef, raising ton litters, keeping the work horses and bull in splendid condition-yea, even for the milking herd, Sugar-ed Schumacher Feed is the choice of experienced, successful farmers for I dependable all round satisfactory feed.

ovnnzn suennrn Stillilidlltillilt nan

FOR SAL! AND RECOMMENDED BY

CENTRAL CREAMEKIES LTD.

CHARLOTTETOWN.

Branches =1 PERFECTION DAIRY, Summerside, AUTHORIZED QUAKER FEED DEALERS

l

soums CREAMERY, Souris, -=~"'"vv

PAGE NINE " ___.__..';7

TIMELY NOTES ON TOPICS CONNECTED WITH

Silver Fox Farming '

Last week witnessed unusual heat conditions for the month of June. the temperature rising to 90 on Friday and it was even reported up to 94 in some sections. This caused some trouble in ranches located in the open, particularly those on high elevations and quite a number of fox deaths from heat prostration were noted throughout the Prov- ince. In nearly all cases it was the pups which succumbed. This week the swing is to a colder tempera- ture, the nights being really chilly with more or less equitable tempera- turo during the day. We have not heard of any unto/ward happenings this week.

Another trouble that has visited quite a number of ranches is a sort of paralysis of the hind parts -— draigging of the hind legs, as 1t were. In the U. S. this would be called Chastek Paralysis, and _ls ascribed to a deficiency of vitamin B. 1 It was noticed particularly in ranches where they fed fresh fish from inland waters. The trouble here cannot be from that source but in the writer's opinion is probably due to cutting out the cod liver oil. and a lack of minerals. In our ranch where ‘we had a few cases of it. We moved the pups from a dark, damp shed they were in to one having more sunshint and increased the quantity of cod liver oil. feeding a- bout 1-4 teaspoonful per pup added more brewers yeast flzuzcs giving up to about 1-4 of a tcnslWm-ml nei- pup and minerals. The mineral we used was miracle pig mineral. and the amount was four pounds for 1,- 630 foxes, equal to about a pound for 400 foxes. This seemed to cor- rect our troubles. We intend con- tinuing the cod liver oil until July and the mineral and brewers yeast flakes throughout the summer and

all.

Fur Markets— The fur markets are in a. state of chaos due to the price ceiling imptsed by the United States government with prices as in March, 1942. Auctions are being suspended all over the country, the latest to be postponed being the Winnipeg Fur Auction for General furs. the date of which is now set at June 29th. They did hold a. sale of muskrnts and it was verysatis- factory, with as good. if not better, prices than preceding sales, The humble muskrat is going strong and the Manitoba government will make quite a harvest out of it because there are large areas where hund- reds of thousands of muskrats are being ranched at practically no ex- pense to the government. which col- lects a revenue from them.

The Montreal auction failed to take fright and commenced last Tuesday and will continue until to- night. Prices on the whole have been a bit easier. but there has been I10 Dflmeky feeling and the general impression ls that as soon as the Americans have got down to brass tacks and decided what is what. things will pursue an even, steady course of prices. The sale of silver fort commenced yesterday with an offering of 17,500 skills, The collec- tion contained a. lot of rather indif- ferent pelts. It will continue until late this afternoon.

One of the interesting featurgg of the Silver Fox Breeders‘ and Ex- hibitors‘ Association meeting held last Tuesday afternoon was the ad- dress of the Hon. W. H. Dennis, Minister of Agriculture, in which he Spoke of the efforts oi his govern- ment some time ago to bring feeds to the rancher, Particularly meats at as low a cost as possible. He; showed ho‘. hard it is to please evefylme and that. notwlthsttndlng you used your best efforts and work- ed your heanvcfr. ml do mu to meet tilelexaetrng demands of ccr_ tain parties.

He then went on to tell about a reed eXperiment that came under his own observation. It was many years ago, back in 1916, Fran}; Metherall of West Cape, owned a, large and particularly fine heavy horse which unfortunately stepped into a hole and broke its leg near the shoulder. Nothing could be done to help the injured member so he was killed. and then the problem was how to preserve such a large Carcass of meat for the foxes, 1t, W35 501V“! by Mrs. Methcrall cann- inB it in first class fashion.

The Mather-ails had t a. beautiful large fox dnmtfiiytfif tended to pelt. It was a. black n»: with a. long. mngy body. Tlzey m, cided f0 £00K! tilt‘ IOX, Wlli l was in a shady B" the canned horse meat. and all that summer and fall riEht up to pelting time this form- ed its only diet. The fox just loved it-never missed a meal. evidencing by his eager appetite his flD)7l‘l"(‘i;i_ of Mrs. Methednllls culinary

Early in December, it being n. par- ticularly cool fall, Mr, Metherall pelted Reynard. He made a good job of it, streghing him carefully and finally cleanin" him with pard- wood sawdust and clean snow, One look at the pelt was enough to con- vince him that he had something very much out of the ordinary. In fact though a foxman and familiar

with good foxes, of which i111 were a large zlumber 1n the neigh- borhood, that being the pioneer section where the Daltons. Oultfmp, Tuplins and others were in

glory, he never remembered. leeind anythin8 like it.

He decided to market M tin-W the Fur Sales Board and brought and another pelt in to W. Chester S. MeLure. who was the M&IlBfl€T.' Mr. McLure was quick to recogniu that. he was dealing with n. spook- men pelt. "As I recall it." laid Ml. McLuro yesterday, “it was l may large pelt with very long guard m particularly over the neck and shoulders. The color was blue black and there wasn't the faintest; suspicion of brownish tinge in anyl part of it. The underfur was slate blue and the only silver on it was l. few very bright hairs on each side of the rump. The brush was large, clear, blue Iaiack and a beautiful white tip finished off what was without doubt the finest blue black pelt I have ever seen, and probab- ly one of the ‘worlds best. I sold it in New York and Mr. Metherali, I remember correctly, received a. cheque for $1,100.00."

Fox farmers once in s. while d0 show appreciation of the efforts of others to help along the industry. At the meeting of the Silver Fox Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Associa- tion votes of ltmnks were unani- mously tendered to Lowell W, Han- cock, President for the post two or three years, und Walter R. shaw. Secretary since the inception of the Associatoin. Both deserved awry word of praise that was given mom, They have been faithful and untir- ing in looking after the interests of the members,

Incidentally, the writer would 11in to impress on all that the maintain.- ance of this association is very no. cessary to the u-ell-being of our lndustljv here. It. is truly our mouth- piece to the powe s that. be and itn fostering of exhibitions, live and, pelt, has done mcmparable good 1n advertising our province and our foxes throughout America, To 5g. cure the best benefits of the As- sociation one should be a breeder of registered foxes, and I would like to point out to those who are produc- ing good foxes and are not regispergd that there is still time-and m1; l; the time-to come back again mm the fold. Just write Secretary Tom Carruthers, Canadian National sli- ver Pox Breeders’ Association, sum. merslde- and Hive him an outline of it‘? .§°*::'.r"2 I w" s": n"

e c -o crate vi the fullest. p m you w

In President Inwell Hancock‘; "- port_he stressed the necessity otf KEPDIHE clear-colored full silvws a; these form the meal ticket of most fox farmers. The writer pointed out; to him that we should also on. dwvm‘ W keep a. few of our ve finest half and three-quarter btlvor males, those having very clear-col. oied black-blue black if possible —and bright. silver, with good cm. formation. brush and tip, When flflg War 1s over there will be a big die- mand for fox furs from Paris and London, and the buyers there prefer in the aggregate, the black ne¢l<5__ many have been going so far as to prefer the medium silvers. By keep- ing a few polygamous males we will be in a position to get back to the darker color phases if we see the trend of the market operating in that direction.