96 



occurrence unparalleled since the settlement of tliat part of Utah, fif- 

 teen years ago. 



Thanet bahley in Wisconsin. — Jolin A. Rice, M. D;, of Merton, 

 Waukesha County, AVisconsin, writes, tliat having received from the 

 Department two pounds of Thanet barley, he sowed it Ajiril 21, on six 

 square rods of light, clayey loam, not in the best condition of jorepara- 

 tiou. The barley grew remarkably fine and even, was harvested about 

 the first of August, and on being thrashed turned out 113J pounds of 

 the finest grain ever grown in that region. He believes this variety to 

 be a valuable acquisition to his locality, which is peculiarly adapted to 

 bai^ley. He devotes himself, however, more especially to growing corn, 

 wheat, roots, and clover, feeding out almost all his crops to sheep, hogs, 

 and cattle. Under this system his farm has increased most remarkably 

 in fertility, so that where he cut 12 or 15 tons of hay at the time of tak- 

 ing i)ossession of the property, he now cuts tenfold that amount, and 

 the yield per acre of other crops has increased in nearly that propor- 

 tion. 



Charges of transportation. — Mr. E. Emerys Jones, of Eandolph 

 Station, Dodge County, W^isconsin, writes that in that region the ex- 

 penses of marketing absorb more than half the value of the farmer's 

 products, and that the agricultural interest is suffering deplorably* from 

 this cause. He adds that the first cost of raising grain is about $7 per 

 acre. 



Corn and "wheat on twenty acres. — Dr. George D. Pearcy, of 

 Knightstown, Indiana, reports that in 1870, on twenty acres of dark, 

 alluvial soil, thoroughly drained and deeply tilled, but unmanured, he 

 obtained 1,200 bushels of corn, worth 50 cents per bushel. Value of 

 pasturage after removal of the corn, $20 ; expenses of making the crop, 

 including $120 interest on land, $246 75; profit, $373 25. He then 

 sowed wheat on the same land, from which he obtained 400 bushels, 

 July 5 and G, 1872, worth $1 50 per bushel, and netting a profit of $300. 

 Total profit on corn and wheat in fourteen months, $073 25, or $33 GG 

 per acre. 



Dr. Pearcy adds that, in preparing his seed-corn, he soaked it over 

 night in blood-warm water, and in the morning poured off the water, and 

 put one gill of kerosene to every bushel of the corn, stirring it in. He 

 declares this method a sure preventive against loss of seed by birds ; he 

 also believes that it hastens germination and prevents ravages by cut- 

 worms. 



'Tobacco in Henderson County, Kentucky. — In a recent com- 

 munication to the Department, Mr. Alexander H. Major, of Henderson 

 County, Kentucky, furnishes some information as to current practice in 

 marketing tobacco in that county, which, as he claims, jiroduces a 

 larger quantity of the staple than any other in the State. The article 

 there grown is a heavy, coarse, leafy variety, and the yield i^er acre, on 

 strong land, frequently reaches 1,800 or 2,000 pounds. The tobacco is 

 not packed by the farmer, but is put up by him in bundles, or " hands," 

 classified as " good," "lugs," and " trash." The middle and larger top- 

 leaves, when uninjured, constitute the good; similar leaves, slightly 

 worm-eaten and defective, together with the extreme top leaves, consti- 

 tute the lugs ; the leaves near the ground, and others, which are ragged 

 and torn, are designated trash. In a good crop, properly managed, the 

 trash will be not far from IG per cent., but no farm product shows the 

 difference between the careful and the negligent grower as quickly as this 



