244 



THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



Western had taken much more after his dam Vaudine, 

 who has since, we hear, improved upon him with her 

 Van Tromp. The herd is now very full of Frederick 

 heifers, including Beesv^ax from Beeswing, Cornucopia 

 from Bountiful, Ruby from Prize, and Catherine Hayes 

 and Songstress (both Oaks-winning names) from Clara 

 Novello ; but we only saw C. H., which was a trifle defi- 

 cient in length, and Lady Devon by Napoleon from Lady, 

 very fine in the bone, and most ladylike throughout. As 



an appropriate closing scene, we peeped at old Lady, or 

 rather the wreck of her, after her return from a Corn- 

 wall visit to a Quartly-bred bull, but she has not proved 

 in calf. Palmerston (477), the sire of Vaudine, claims 

 her for his dam, and so does Prince Frederick; and it just 

 seems doubtful whether she will live to see the change of 

 the herd next September from Barton to Great Bowly, 

 where Mr. Turner's own farm lies, (M (LI SD 



ROVAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY OF ENGLAND 



At a V/eekly Council on the 27th Feb., Mr. Thomas 

 Raymond Barker, V.P., in the chair, the names of 

 candidates for election were read. Attention was called 

 by a member to the following extract from the Chester 

 Courant of Feb. 27, 1861 : 



^' A Remedy for the Potato Disease. — The following htter 

 to the editor of a Bristol paper is worthy of notice : I beg to 

 draw the attention of the public to one of the m>3t effectual 

 remedies for preservation of the potato from the annual 

 visitation of the disease. In all affected potato3s, even before 

 the disease is visible to the naked eye, there i3 to be found a 

 degree of moisture very far in excess of that to be met with ia 

 soiiad potatoes ; and this watery principle gradually increases 

 uutil the disease itself makes its appearance, when the 

 character of the potato is changed, an i the transition from 

 comparative sounduess to complete rottenness is sometimes 

 the work of a day, bat oftener the doings of an hour. Culti- 

 vators are iadebted to Professor Bollman, of St. Petersburgh, 

 for the accidental discovery of a remedy, which has been found 

 to answer so well ia Russia, that on many estates drying 

 houses have been built for the purpose of carrying out the 

 experiment ; and as it has been ia operation in that country 

 since 18.53, it has consequently undergone seven years' trial, 

 lu the autumn of 1855(1852?) Professor Bollman received 

 from a frieai — a colonel in the Russian army stationed in Si- 

 beria — i sample of a new Potato, with which he received two 

 recommendations, nimely, good ia qiuiity, and a perfect 

 hundred-fold in produc*. Tiiese potatoes were acsidentally 

 placed on the back of a stove used for heating the Professor's 

 study, where, by some mischance, they were forgotten till the 

 planting season arrived. When discovered they were shrivelled 

 80 much that fears were entertained they would not grow at all. 

 However, the potatoes were planteJ, and flourished to such a 

 degree thit the two recommaadations before mentioned were 

 pronounced to be verified ; and what was more remarkable 

 still, although all the potatoes in the neighbourhood, and 

 throughout the country, were more or less affected by disease, 

 every potato of the new kind was entirely free from the 

 disorder. This induced the Professor to adopt the expedient 

 of drying ; and, in consequence, the entire produce was sub- 

 mitted (after being dug) to a hi;^h temperature, which had the 

 effect of charting some of the potatoes, and shrivelling the 

 rest. It was surmised, at the time, that some of the charred 

 potatoes were killed. They were, nevertheless, planted at the 

 projjer season ; and the charred potatoes grew, and did quite 

 as well as those potatoes which were merely shrivelled. The 

 year 1855 also proved that, although the disease was generally 

 distributed throughout the country, not one of the Professor's 

 new potatoes was affected by it iu the least. The experiment 

 was again repeated iu 1856 ; and the Cfop exhibited the same 

 freedom from disease. Tl;e kinds mostly in cultivation were 

 then operated on — sorts which were yearly more or less 

 affected by the disease — still with the same result. The dig- 

 ging time of 1857 produced a splendid crop of potatoes. Up- 

 wards of three acres were planted with kilndried potatoes ; 

 and, although the produce exceeded 1,600 bushels, not a dis- 

 eased potato was discovered. In 1838 Professor Bollman 

 erected a drying-house, with heated floors, on his estate ; and 

 within the past two years similar erections have taken place on 

 the different estates of the principal landed proprietors. It is 

 gratifymg to find that the action of the shrivelling process on 

 potatoes already diseased arrests the progress of infection and 



kills the disease, thus leaving a portion of the potatoes sound 

 enough to he eligible for spring planting. It has been stated 

 that by the constant raising of new varieties from seed, for 

 planting, the disease may be considerablj' diminished ; and 

 this proved to he the case with the Fluke Kidney ; for the 

 first two years after it was introduced, and even after its cul- 

 tivation had become pretty general, this famous Kidney had 

 not beea attacked by disease; but last year the Fluke had 

 been iu some instaLces as badly diseased as the Fortyfold, 

 Regents, &c. ; so that the process of kiln-drying promises far 

 greater advantages and more certain results than all the ex- 

 pedients put together which have from time to time offered 

 for the consideration of the public. — I am, sir, your obedient 

 servant, " R. Miles." 



The Council then adjourned to its Monthly Meeting 

 on the Gth March. 



Monthly Council, Wednesday, March 6th. Pre- 

 sent — The Earl of Powis, President, in the Chair ; Lord 

 Earners, Lord Feversham, Lord Tredegar, Lord Wal- 

 singham. The Hon. Col. Hood, Sir E. C. Kerrison, 

 Bart., Mr. Amos, Mr. Raymond Barker, Mr. Barnett, 

 Mr. Bramston, M.P., Mr. Caldwell, Colonel Challoner, 

 Mr. Druce, Mr. Frere, Mr. Brandreth Gibbs, Mr. 

 Fisher Hobbs, Mr. Wren Hoskyns, Mr. Howard, Mr. 

 Hutton, Mr. Jonas, Mr. Shuttleworth, Professor 

 Simonds, Mr. Slaney, M.P., Mr. Banks Stanhope, 

 M.P., Mr. Thompson, M. P., Dr. Voelcker, and Mr. 

 Ofven Wallis. 



The followiag now Members were elected : — 



Atkins, Alfred, Farnham, Slough, Bucks. 



Badcock, Philip, 18, London-street, Cambridge-terrace, W. 



Blake, Wm. Bridge, South Petherton, Somerset. 



Broughton, John, Almington Hall, Market Drayton, 



Brown, Thos., Marham, Norfolk. 



Burtt, J. B., Kettering. 



Crompton, George, Chesterfield. 



Crump, G. William, WooUas Hill, Eckinton, Pershore. 



Denson, Samuel, Picton Hall, Chester. 



Greenwood, J., M.P., Swarcliffe Hall, Ripley. 



Haig, James R , Highfield Park, Withyham, Sussex, 



Harewood, Earl of, Harevvood House, Leeds. 



Hornyold, J. B., Blakemore Park, Uptou-ou-Severu. 



K itson, James, Leeds. 



Linaker, Peter, Norton Hill, Preston Brook, Cheshire. 



Mayer, Smith, Newcastle, Staffordshire. 



Musgrave, Rev. Vernon, Mattersey, Bawtry. 



Nevill, Viscount, Hope Hall, Tadcaster. 



New, Richard, Hartpury, Gloucester. 



Rider, Joseph, Leeds. 



Stead, Titus Bennett, Leeds. 



Varnell, G. W., R. V. College, Camden Town, N.W. 



Welch, Henry T., Leek Hall, Kirkby Lonsdale. 



On the proposal of Mr. Fisher Hobbs, seconded by 

 Lord Feversham, Mr. William Sanday, of Holme- 

 Pierrepont, Notts, was unanimously elected a Member 

 of Council in the room of Mr. Kinder deceased. 



Finances.— The Hon. Col. Hood presented the re- 

 port, from which it appeared that the Secretary's re- 

 ceipts during the past month had b'een examined by 



