AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 101 



two months making fence, at $12, $24 ; board, $10, $34 00 



120 bushels seed wheat at $8 (present value of such wheat 



for St. Louis market),, , 96 00 



harrowing and sowing 80 acres, at $6, (large estimate,) . . 48 00 



harvesting and shocking 40 acres at $1, $40 00 



harvesting and shocking 40 acres at $1.50, 60 00 



stacking 80 acres at 40 cents, 32 00 



board of harvest hands, 20 00 



152 00 



threshing-shed and farming mill, 50 00 



four months' threshing at $12 ; board $2, 68 00 



(Use of team, Ac, largely paid for by straw thrown daily 



to stock.) 

 one month man marketing, $12 ; board, $5 ; team, 



$40 $57 00 



57 00 



miscellaneous and personal services, 100 00 



Total , $1,362 00 



Vontra, Cr. 



By 120 acres Improved farm at $10, $1,200 00 



To farming mills, &c., on hand, 50 00 



$1,250 00 



To 2,000 bush, wheat, Dr., (52 cents per bush.,). . $1,120 00 



The wheat used and parceled out would much more than meet the item 

 for personal services, &c. Again, raw land in the neighborhood will not 

 readily sell at $5, while improved would rfeadily bring over $10. My 

 object has been to figure so as to make the wheat cost something. The 

 real profits of the operation were fully $1,600. 



THE POTATO DISEASE. 



A letter from T. Sheldon, of Gouverneur, N. Y., read by Solon Robin- 

 son, states the opinion of the writer to be that the potato rot is caused 

 by the puncture of an insect to deposit its eggs — in fair weather in the 

 vines, and in foul weather in the tubers ; and that it is the virus injected 

 that produces decay. He thinks an application of some bug-dispelling 

 substance might keep them oif, and suggests whale-oil soap. 



Mr. R. thought sulphur a better application, and that it could be had 

 in the cheapest form in sulphate of lime — ground plaster. 



Another letter, from A. Turner, Port Washington, (without any State,) 

 expresses the same opinion of the bug theory of the disease. He says : 



" A little black bug, not much larger than the head of a pin, leaves an 

 almost undiscoverable substance on the potato leaves, which turns black 

 and kills the vines, and the rot of tubers follows. He thinks some bug 



