158 



THE FARMER'S MUN THLY V ISITOR- 



for tlie winter. Connected with tliese meetings a 

 retrul:.r system of experiments lias been institnted, 

 by wliich each can liave the benefit of the cxperi- 

 n.onts of the whole, and of experiments careluUy 

 tried under the direction of science. 



Tliese social meetiiiffs, and the regnbr scries of 

 experimenls, instituted by farmers, hirnish some ot 

 the most valuable materials for 'farmers journ- 

 Ai « ' and the strongest inducements, as well as 

 Diean.s for sustainini; them, both by materials and 

 money. A farmer could hardly take and peruse a 

 'MON-THi.v farmer' or any periodical conducted by, 

 and for farmers, witlinut being more than remun- 

 erated for his expense, in a single fact or hint, 

 which he might find in the work. The least possi- 

 ble reading which any farmer ought to reduce him- 

 self to, is consulting his bible daily, and his 'Month- 

 ly Farmer,' 'Cultivator,' 'Visitor' or some other pe- 

 riodicals, as often as once a week. 



Both interest and duty would lead every farmer 

 to pursue a much more general course of reading. 

 ■Works on Natural Science, Political Economy, 

 History, Biography and other works, to aid him in 

 understanding ami sustaining his riglits and duties 

 OS a republican and christian, may be read and 

 studied by every farmer whowishesto realize their 



benefits. , , , ,, . 



More favorable oiiportunities could hardly be 

 provided for improvement by reading and social in- 

 tercourse than are furnished in fanntrs' tcinter et- 

 e7iiiiTS. By reading, examining specimens, per- 

 foriiMng experimenls, and by meeting for improv- 

 inn- each other, every farmer, besides becoming 

 hi'hly inteir.n-ent ami successful in his own busi- 

 nc°sM may be suificiinlly enlightened in the rela- 

 tions he sustains in society, and in the relations ex- 

 istin'T between the various classes and departments 

 of society, to enable him to fulfil, not only the du- 

 ties of a private cif.sen, but of such public othces, 

 as his fellow citizens may call him to perform. 



Readinr, social intercourse, cabinets of nature, 

 clieinical and philosophical experimenls, scientific 

 exchanges, and especially common schools, must 

 he greatly aided bv well qualified lecturers on the 

 different subjects of school education, physical sci-^ 

 enccs, political economy and numerous objects ol 

 useful knowledge ;— move however to aid the vari- 

 ous classes of the co;nmunity to instruct themselves, 

 than to communicate instructions to them. A semi- 

 monthly or even monthly meeting, of two or three 

 hours, to be attended by a skilful, and an experi- 

 mental teacher, who should visit some dozen or 

 twenty places in succession, might do much to ai- 

 rect and aid the reading, conversation and experi- 

 ments, and to give system and energy to the efforts 

 of all who might enjoy his instructions ; especially 

 the yoiino-er porlionsof the community. Circuit 

 Schools of the kind proposed, if assisted by two 

 lecturers, and teaeliers in connection, rather altern- 

 ately, would probably be still more beneficial, with- 

 out any additional expense. 



On .a subject so vast, indeed, so entirely inex- 

 haustible, as that now under view, a few newspa- 

 per essays, arc barely suflicient, to admit of a few 

 hints touching It. joSIAH HOLBROOK. 



cept on Martin Meadow hillsapdotherland; equal- 



^ "We had rain on eight differfnt days in May, on 

 sixteen days in June, on twentj-two-days in July, 

 on seten in August, and on ek^ven in September : 

 unprecedented in our annals. Grass and hay are 

 very abundant. The price of btef at the top notch. 

 Farmers doing better in a pecujiiary point of view 

 than ever before. No pressure; no post notes re- 

 ceived for our produce." \ 



ITr-So favorable is the report from the extreme 

 norti, county of New Hampshire. No portion of 

 the country can present any thing more encourag- 

 incr. The rust there has partially injured the crops 

 asit has almost every where else ; hut this has not 

 affected in the least the great staple, beef, which 

 is both abundant and excellent in that county-nor 

 will it lessen the quantity of butter and cheese 

 which the farmers of Coos send to raarkrt on the 

 seaboard. Herds grass and clover seed are produ- 

 ced in abundance in Coos: it is a cheap article of 

 transput, bearing a high price m proportion to its 

 weight. We hope a large supply will be sent us 

 from that direction the present season. 



Fur llic I'ariTin's .MiMilllly Visitor. 



To a Cricket. 



Thou bane of sleep, avauiil ! Why dost thou come. 



Thus all night long, with thy sad minstrelsy. 

 To chase th'enchantress from my wakeful room . 



Dost thou not fi'el t!ie sweet necessity 

 Of night's somniferous reign ? Yet, though thou rt 

 free 

 From the soft thraldom of that sinicn chain. 

 Wherewith sleep fettereth men, Oh! pity me, 



Who long upon my restless couch, in vain 

 Have wooed oblivion to these weary eyes. 

 1 listen to thy sad, unvaried note. 

 Till forms unearthly in thp moon-light float. 

 On wizard wing, and strano-est melodies 



from the riiilail. Farmers' Cabinet. 

 Top Dressing of Grass Lands. 



Although as a general rule, manure applied as a 

 top dressincr is in some measure wasted by sun and 

 air, and giv?n to the winds and waters, still m many 

 case.-! it will be expedient to apply it to the top ot tue 

 soil istead of plouching it under. Sometimes it is 

 inconvenient to plough grass land which may need 

 manure. The soil may be wet and rocky, or oth- 

 erwise unfit for the plough. In such cases mow- 

 iniT land should, once in two or three years, have 

 a top dressing of some manure suitable to the soil. 

 Plaster of pans is a good top dressing on some 

 arounds and for some plants; and m some cases it 

 has no perceptible effect. Mr. Candolle, a French 

 writer, observes that plaster acting or operating 

 chiefly on the absorbent syftem ot plants, its ef- 

 fects are not like those of manure buried in the 

 soil, which set principally on the roots, liie lat- 

 ter, according to their yw)(((«'nr7W/»rf, divide sof- 

 ten, enrich, warm or stiffen the soils with which 

 they are mixed. The quantity of plaster spread on 

 lands is so trifling that it can have little effect on 

 the soil. I speak from experience. "Plaster buri- 

 ed in the earth where sainfoin has been sown, has 

 produced no visible alteration; whilst the same 

 quantity of plaster spread over the samesurface of 

 sainfoin, has produced the most beautiful vegeta- 

 tion." The same writer agrees with other agricul- 

 turists in opinion that plaster operates on plants in 

 a direct ratio to the size and number ot tlleir 

 leaves. . , 



There is a difference of opinion among agricul- 

 turists with regard to the season at which nuuuire 

 should be applied to mowing ground. Lovdoii 

 says, "In the county of Middlesex, where almost 

 I all the f'rass lands are preserved for hay, the ma- 

 nure is invariably laid on in October ; while the 

 land is sufliciently drf to bear driving ol loaded 

 carts, and when the heat of the day is so moderated 

 as not to exhale the volatile parts of the mass. 

 Others pref-r applying it immediately alter haying 

 time, from about the'^middle of July to the end o 

 Aun-ust, which is said to be the good old time, and 

 if that season be inconvenient, at any time from 

 the beginning of February to the end o. April. 



Lorinn says, "If dung he used for top dressing, 

 it should be'applied soon after the first crop of grjiss 

 has been mown; and before the manure has suffer- 

 ed any material loss by fermentation. Tne grasses 

 should be suffered to grow till tliey form a close 

 shade. After this they may be past ured ; Py^vided 

 a o-ood covering for them be preserved, i his wil 

 prevent much exhalation ; it will also keep tne soil 

 much more open to receive the juices of the ma- 

 nure. As water does not pass off so freely tnrough 

 a close pile of grass, much of the coarser particles 



Fine Wool. 



The fact that Messrs. SiBJ.r.Y and BARSAiin of 

 Hopkinton, N. II. one year ago obtained the prize 

 for the best wool produced in the United btates at 

 the annual exhibition of the American Institute ot 

 New York, has been noticed in a former number 

 of the Monthly Visitor. By the prices current of 

 the present summer at the wool marts, the highest 

 price has been set down at si.\ty cents a pound. 

 Mr. Barnard has kindly consented that we sliould 

 make u.-*e of the follo-ving letter to show the prices 

 voluntarily offered by a great manufacturer at Low- 

 ell for his'clip of the present year : this letter wi I 

 indicate that .Mr. Barnard, who has procured wea th 

 and competency from the raising of sheep, may stiU 

 probably carry ofl" the palm for wool of the very 

 bestquallty. 



^ Loicdl, July 19(A, 1830. 



Joseph Barnard, Esq.— X>faT Sir : — 



It affords me peculiar gratification to state to you 

 that your wool has gone through the severe ordeal", 

 the "Stapling Board," and comes out head and 

 shoulders above anv thing we have ever before 

 seen : it is really superb and reflects the highest 

 honor on you and your State. In this Republic the 

 most honorable man is he who arrives at tne high- 

 est point in the art he professes ; and this is as it 

 should be. I hand you below a memorandum ot 

 the sorting with the figures. It shows a balance 

 due you of 1*4 45, which I will send to you by first 

 opportunity; Where is Mr. Sibley? I shall require 

 his wool to <ro with yours for some cloth for your 

 next Oct. show ; please say so to him. Do not care 

 for Devon cattle when you have the best slieep ni 

 the country with plenty of land for a flock of Oi\J!> 

 THOUSAND. 



Your friend truly, 



SAMUEL LAV/RENCE. 



s. Sa §100 $32 00 



124 90 11160 



154 80 12o 20 



103 70 72 10 



51 -2 60 3 30 



1-2 50 25 



3 1-2 



Super extra 



Extra 



Prime 



l?t 



Sd 



3d 



Dirt 



lbs. 422 1-2 



$342 45 



C ineinnati is the pork shop of the Union : and in 

 the autumnal and early winter months, the way 

 they kill pigs here is, to use a Yankee phrase, i7«(f 

 a caution." Almost all the hogs fed in the oak for- 

 ests of Ohio, Kentucky and Western \ irginia, are 

 driven into this city, and some cstablisnments kill 

 as many as fifteen hundred a day ; at least so I am 

 told They are despatched in a way quite surpris- 

 ing; and a pig is killed upon the same principle 

 that a pin is made— by division, or, more properly 

 speaking, by combination of labor. The hogs con- 

 fined in°a large pen are driven into a smaller one ; 

 one man knocks them in the head with a sledge 

 hammer, and then cuis tlieir throats ; two more 

 pull away the carcases, when it is raised by two 

 others, who tumble it into a tub of scalding water. 

 His bristles are removed in about a minute and a 

 half by another party ; when the next duty is to fix 

 a stretcher between his legs. It is then hoisted lip 

 by two other people, cut open and disembowelled; 

 and in three minutes and a half from the time that 

 the hog was grunting in his obesity, h« has only to 

 get cofd before he is again picked up, and reunited 

 m a barrel to travel all over the world. By the 

 bye, we laugh at the notion of pork and molasses. 

 In the first place, the American pork is far sup'-ri- 

 or to any that we ever have salted down ; and, in 

 the next, it eats uncommonly well with molasses, 

 I have tasted it, and ''it is a fuel." After all, why 

 would we eat currant jelly with venison, and not 

 allow the Americans the humble imita,tion of pork 

 and molasses r'—Marrij(itt's Dcirij. 



't^:s^^S£i^^ip^-^'^^^,s}E!¥=::S±:ft 



J. H. C. 



*.Nol a Yankfp phrase. 



Agricultural Report from Coos. 



Hon. John W. Weeks, underdate of Lancaster, 

 N. H. Oct. 1, writes us — 



"Our corn, after all our fears, is ripe and good, 

 though of small growth. My wheat, which on the 

 28th of August promised thirty-four bushels to the 

 acre will not much exceed twenty, owing to the 

 black rust, which has also lessened our potatoe 

 crop, beans, and onions nearly one third. But Iii- 

 dian'corn— a very important plant after all— will 

 irive us enough, and to spare to those wKo consider 

 ft below their dignity " to dress and to keep" the 

 irarden of Eden. , . , ■ 



" "The rust has been general m this section, cx- 



oi me \va.^iiiiigo iiwiii mv .... ■---- 



in their prooress through it, and much more of t le 

 fluids fromlhe dung will sink into the soil. The 

 close covering- also greatly favors the decomposi- 

 tion of the litter, and by keeping it inflexible caus- 

 es if to sink farther into the soil and lie much clos- 

 er to it. Therefore but little if any of it will be 

 found in the way of mowing the ensuing crop of 

 o-rass, or of making it into hay ; provided the ma- 

 nure be evenly spread over the ground. But as 

 the want of a" second crop of hay, and other cir- 

 cumstances, may prevent the cultivator from haul- 

 inc the duntr at tlie proper time, he may haul and 

 spread it at Iny time before the frost sets in ; but 

 not with the same advantage. Still if care be tak- 

 en in raking up the hay of the ensuing crop, but 

 little of the litter will appear among it." 



Influence of Climate iipon Seeil. 



We received, last spring, twelve cars of Dutton 

 corn from Mr. Osborn, of Oswego county, his res- 

 idence differing from ours, in latitude and altitude, 

 about two degrees. We jilanted with this seed 

 eight rows across our field, the residue being plan- 

 ted with seed of our own raising. The Oswego 

 corn tasselled two weeks earlier than that from 

 seed raised in Albany, thus showing si.x or seven 

 days diflerence for a computed degree of latitude, 

 in the earliness of the crop— the northern seed 

 o-ivinir the earliest crop in a ratio inverse to the lor- 

 wardness of the spring. This will serve as a hint 

 to farmers in districts where corn is liable to be cut 

 off by early autumnal frosts, to obtain their seed_ 

 from a more northern latitude, or from a district ol 

 j higher altitude.— /i'i««!/ Cultivator. 



