The Brecon County Times Neath Gazette and General Advertiser for the Counties of Brecon Carmarthen Radnor Monmouth Glamorgan Cardigan Montgomery Hereford

RELATIVE POSTAL CHARGES. The British Post Office has always been behind the times. Even before our abolition of penny postage several countries had a far lower scale of postage rates than the United Kingdom. The lowest scale of all obtains in Japan, wheie a letter may be sent from one end of ths Empire 'to another for two sen, or about one-fourth of a farthing. The Chinese Post Office (originally started by Silo Robert Hart—a student and, graduate of Belfast Uni- versity-as the Customs Postal Service, but now a. separate organisation) will carry a letter to any part of China for about fd., whether it is sent by rail or horse or foot 4 courier. From some figures published in pre- war days by the J ollrnal des Economistes it appears that the Danish postal charges were then the lightest in Europe, being only seven centimes for a. letter weighing 250 grammes. The Swiss postal charges were also consider- ably cheaper thhn ours, being at the rate of ten centimes for a letter weighing nearly nine ounces. The. Russian Post Office was the most extortionate in its charges, the minimum in- land rate being a fraction over eighteen cen- times for thirteen grammes.

.0. SEVEN WEEKS WITHOUT LIGHT. Imagine what the inhabitants of Vardo, on the shore of the Arctic Ocean, near the North Cape in Norway, suffered during the winter of 1917. The sun sets there at the end of November and does not rise again until the middle of January, and the Arctic night lasts for seven weeks. At midday in fine weather one can just see to read for about an hour. All the rest of the time artificial light is necessary. There was such a shortage of coal at Vardo that the electric light works were able to furnish only half the normal supply. Therefore, all parties and entertainments were forbidden, the schools were closed, and everyone had to live, if not in absolute dark- ness, at least in deep shadow.

THE COW-TREE. A remarkable tree of South Africa is that called the cow-tree. It receives that name because, at certain seasons, it yields an abun- dant supply of milk. It grows in hilly dis- tricts, usually where very little moisture is to be had for several months of the year. This makes it more singular that a plentiful now of' milky fluid will come from the trunk, on boring into it deeply, though the branches look dried. If the milk is put aside for a time a thick cake forms upon it, under which is a clear liquid. Some of it kept in a bottle well corked up was once preserved for several months. The cork, on being extracted, came out with a loud report, followed by a bluish smoke the milk was a little acid, but not dis- agreeable to taste. The tree bears fruits of moderate size, each containing one or two nuts, which are said to have the flavour of strawberries and cream. From the bark of the tree, soaked in water, a bread has been made, which proved nearly as nourishing as wheaten bread.

PITT'S LAST WORDS. Reviewing an edition of Lord Rosebery's monograph on Pitt, the Saturday Revieio said: "We should like to believe the story I about Pitt's last words O, my country how I leave my country'; but on the evidence, and from a general knowledge of deathbeds, we are inclined to accept the old waiter's story,- told by Lord Beaconsfield, that Pitt's last words were I think I could now eat one of Bellamy's pork pies.' SPUR-MONEY. Among the expenses of the Privy purse dur- ing the reign of Henry VII. appears the entry: "To the children, for the King's spurs. 4s." This probably refers to the pay- ment of spur-money" to the choristers for the redemption of the Royal spurs, which the ehoir-bovs claimed as their perquisite at the annual feast in honour of St. George. It was the custom to impose a small tax on all those who entered St. Paul's, or any other cathe- dral, we win 7 their spurs, as this caused such a jingling and disturbance that if often drowned the voice of the priest. The collec- i tion of this money was left to the choir-boys I and to the beadles, and an old writer declares I that it resulted in the youths ne^lectino; their duty in order to collect their dues. Not so I very many years ago a visitor to Hereford Cathedral, who refused to pay what the choir- boys demanded of him for appearing in the I sacred edifice with spurs on, had his hat taken from him, and failed to regain possession of I it. Much incensed, he laid a complaint before I the bench of magistrates, but they dismissed i the case on the grounds that the choir-boys were perfectly justified in keeping the hat as a lien for the payment of the fine

FORTY-TWO STOREYS HIGH. The highest building west of the Mississippi, says Popular Mechanic*, is in Seattle, Wash- ington. The tower rises 450ft. above street level, and is so conspicuous that it is used as a beacon by mariners in making their way on I Puget Sound. The building covers a plot that is 108ft. by 120ft. The main structure I is twenty-one storeys high. and to this the tower adds twelve stoi>cys. In addition to Jhis there are two storeys below street level. The height to the lantern at the top of the tower i's equivalent to forty-two storevs. The founda- tion rests on 1,276 concrete piles driven to a deptil of 50ft. below the surface. In building the foundation 4,000 barrels of cement and more than 1,000 tons of steel were used. On the foundation piles a total weight of 76.560 gross tons is carried, the steel for the super- structure alone weighing 4,732 gross tons.

MARRIAGEABLE AGES. So-called marriageable ages vary very widely in different- countries. In Austria a "man" and "woman" are supposed to be capable of marrying and conducting a home of their own from the age of fourteen. In I Germany the age must be at least eighteen yeiws. In France the man must be eighteen f and the woman fourteen, and in Belgium the same. In Spain the husband must have passed his fourteenth year, and the woman her twelfth. In Hungary, for Ron ran Catho- lics, the man must be fourteen years and the woman twelve; for Protestants the man must be eighteen and the woman fifteen. a In Greece the man must be at least fourteen summers and a woman twelve. In Portugal a boy of fourteen is considered marriageable and a woman of twelve. In Russia and Saxony a youth must refrain from matrimony fill he is eighteen years and the wonjan until she is sixteen. I I +

POULTRY KEEPING- A PROFITABLE HOBBY, I BY 44 UTILITY." DUCK LAYING CONTEST. A duck laying contest is something new, and most poultry-keepers will be'glad to know that the Harper Adams College have arranged to hold one, beginning,, in September, 1918. The trial is to run for a year, and each pen is to consist of six pure-bred birds, hatched not ear!ier than January, 1918. Awards will be made on the number of eggs laid. Birds are to be sent to the College, Newport, Salop, not later than September 17th. Gold, silver, and bronze- medals are to be given as prizes, with first and second class certificates. One of the rules of these trials is that the owner of any pen which does not, lay during the trial SO pc'r cent, of the average number of eggs laid by the first two pens shall have to pay 1 towards expenses, and the owner of any' pen which does not lay 35 per cent, must pay 10s. towards expenses. CLEAN FOOD. l' When some day we get to the root of all the disease that affects man and his domesticated animals we shall find that cleanliness or the lack of it is the foundation from which most irregularities spring. At pic-sent, too often, vague statements are made to account for ill- ness, !iU you may be sure that each disease has its cause, and it should be possible to find it and to avoid the disease. Much disease is due u> food; improper or unsuitable food; impure or adulterated or tainted, or it may even be too much or too little food. All these faults can be remedied, and certainly there is no reason why in even the smallest place un- clean food should be given to fowls. So many people imagine; because a hen will eat grain or any other food from the foulest ground, that this is a natural way of feeding, ]1(i that it does not matter if the food is soiled. These people think—if they think about it it.all!-tliat the hen is a kind of filter which can sort out all the impurities and use only the good food. The hen certainly makes a valiant effort to do all ..that is ex- pected of it. but the amount "of poultry illness and the number of poultry failures are the surest proof that the hen, like everything else, has its limitations. Not only is it bad for the hen 1o eat grain or other food thrown on the ground, but it is verv wasteful, and in these days we cannot afford to be wasteful even of the crumbs. Every poultry-keeper should now make up his mind to take the utmost pains to make sure that every particle of food reaches the hen's crop in the purest possible condition. In the old days of plenty there might be some excuse A FOOD TROUGH. ) for throwing grain on the ground in dry weather, but in wet or muddy weather it is a verv unreasonable thing to do. The grain should either be fed from a trough or hopper or buried in thick but clean litter in the seri4eliing shed. If soft food is thrown on the ground a large part. of it is rendered quite unfit for eating. And a food trough costs next to nothing, Tor it is the easiest contrivance to make at home. All that is required are two pieces of wood, about 4in. wide and. say, 18in. long, nailed to- gether at right angles with two triangular end pieces to enable it to stand upright. Another piece can be added for the handle. More elaborate troughs can be made or bought, but this simple form answers its purpose admirably. When'soft food is fed from a trough it will surprise those who have never tried this plan to see what a great saving may be effected by i t.. It is easv to collect any that remains after the birds have had their meal. Had it been thrown on the ground it would have been im- possible to collect it, and it would have been absolutely wasted, and if the birds did pick it up it would introduce highly poisonous matter into their systems. DRY FOOD MIXTURES. I There are' now in the market so many ex- cellent dry mixtures for chickens that there is no necessity for giving directions for the mix- i*?i:r of foods of this kind, but as some mixtures are far superior to others due care must be tiiken in selecting one which is worth the price. There should be as a foundation a large proportion of finely-cut. well-dried, grains, such as maize, barley, and rye, and with these a variety of small seeds. The latter may include hemp, linseed, canary, millet, and similar seeds, and a small proportion of peas and buckwheat broken small is also bene- ficial. It is a disadvantage to have broken rice in the mixture, because raw rice is most indigestible Purchasers should insist on get- ting a food that is free from dust and musti- ness. It should smell sweet, feel dry, and look brisiit and clear. Chicks will greedily eat a food of this kind. and there will be no waste unless too much of it. is thrown to them at a time. It will be found that they will eat evervthing in the mixture, although they may manifest a preference for one of more of the im-redients. The food should not contain grit, as this can' be added as required or fed separately. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. S. R."—CASTOR BEAN MEAL.—I have never used this meal myself, but I have heard very discouraging reports about it from many sources; and I heard recently that it has a harmful effect on live stock as well as poultry, in some cases. For my own part, I should not care to use it; and as there are still so many other meals handy, I should suggest (as yolÍ -have to buv) that you buy some of them which have been thoroughly tested and proved aJely effective in egg-production. « g. J."—DUCKS DYING.—There seems to have been a higher mortality among ducklings this year, for everyone seems to have the same tale, of few ducks living out of good hatches. Apart from the ducklings' many enemies— cranfp, cold, and heat are the three things most. likelv to kill off the ducks. They should not be allowed out too early in the morning or too late at night, for if they get chilled they stagger, turn over on their backs, and cannot right themselves again. If they are with a hen, do not allow her too large a run, or she mav take them away, and a storm may kill them all off During very hot weather, too, ducklings die off very quickly. Much the best et plan is to pen the ducklings in, with a good steady hen to mother them. Feed them well, and give plenty of drinking water, but do not allow them to run about all over the place. "T. L."—SHOULD HENS STAY BROODY?— Opinions differ on this Doint. but most autho-

t —=—— ï 1 I I ———— '■ II I I i' When you buy a Ford car you haven't spent money-you have merely invested it. You get your money back with compound interest through what you gain in utility, pleasure and good health. In figuring the profits the Ford will bring, don't forget the health it will bring to your family and the Doctor's bills it Eliminates. > I' All Prices at Works, Manchester. Full particulars from- t NOTT'S GARAGE, Ship Street, Brecon. Telegrams Nott's Garage, Brecon. Telephone no, in, 112 (Private Branch Exchange) Telegrams Nott's Garage, Brecon. ) Telephone no, in, 112 (Private Branch Exchange) T Harold Elston Co are now in a position to book orders for immediate delivery of a limited supply of FORDSON TRACTORS FROM STOCK. A FORDSON TRACTOR displaces three or four Horses on the Farmland enormously extends the possibility of agricultural production. It is one indispensable factor in efficient and economical power farming. Power eqaul to ploughing up to an acre on three horse land, The simplest Tractor to work and maintain. The handiest and most satisfactory of all agricultural power machines. Price £ 250 Plus Delivery Charges from British Factory. h BARGOED" GOAL. -to THE MOST LASTING COAL IS WELSH." THE BEST WELSH C'AL IS BARGOEP." The only place obtainable in Brecon is at THE Breconshire Coal & Lime CO. It iSj-sold at all the Company's Retail Depots. Trnofe Loads (4 to 10 tons) may be had at any Station in Wales at Faelorelpriec-it,

All correspondence affecting this column should be addressed to Utility," care of the Editor. Request* for special information must be accompanied by a •t*mp«d addressed envelop*. GWILLIM'S MAGGOT LOTION. FOR MAGGOTS IN SHEEP. Kills instantly. Does not injure the wool and the Fly will not attack after its use. In handy tins, l/9, 3/ 4/G, 7/6. ONLY OF Walter Gwtlim, M.P.S., Agricultural Chemist, BRECON. < =- ,=-, .t. o ,I. y OS'"}, f"jjL HrARGHERAC??'! 1 GOLDEKRETDRKS 1 REGISTERED facsimile oj One-Ounce Pacfiet. j Archer's Golden Returns The Perfection at PtpeTODacço CDOI., S'wnT Axi;

rIfles now oeiieve that it is a mistake to allow hens at this time of the year to sit on china eggs in order to give them a "rest." They n', will only lose condition through being kept in, and through not being fed at the regular times. Later on, when they moult, their egg- laying organs will get all the pest they need. Stop broodinese in the early stages, and get the birds laying again. Older hens, though, should be sold as table birds, for they will fetch good prices.