424 



FARMERS' REGISTER— POTATOES ON WET LAND. 



of the west is secondary, and is more permanent 

 in its natural tertility. To assume again our com- 

 parison, while nature had supplied one with hay 

 cocks merely, she has bountilUIiy furnished the 

 other with hay stacks; and the result, we think, 

 will be, that though the latter will hold out longer, 

 they are neveilheless, imperceptibly diminishing, 

 and must ultimately be exhausted, a*" the former 

 have been, by injudicious cropping. Sterility is 

 the worst disease that can afflict alarmer; and the 

 adage teaches, that "an ounce of prevention is 

 worth a pound of cure." It is far better to keep 

 lands in good heart, by a judicious alternation of 

 crops, than to restore them to fertility when they 

 have become exhausted. Upon this view of the 

 subject, our advice to the western iarmers would 

 be, that as soon as his circumstances are comfort- 

 able, he should cease to sow wheat u]7on the 

 same grounds every other year, lest he should kill 

 the goose that lays his golden eggs. 



From the New Yoik American. 

 THE WILD HORSE OF THE PRAIRIES. 



In the meantime, those of the Indians who 

 had promised horses in the first day of our meeting 

 now brought them up. A young Indian first came 

 forward, and led up a bright, jet black mare — alter 

 him followed another, holduig in his hand a long 

 buffalo tug, or halter, which restrained the wild mo- 

 tions of a two year okl colt; his color was a snowy 

 white, here and there broken with spots of brown. 

 He had been wild in the prairies but a lew weeks be- 

 tbre. He was a slave, but had never been mounted; 

 his back had never bent to a burden; they led him 

 up in his own native wildness — his tail stood out — his 

 ears were pricked up — his eyes starting — his nos- 

 trils expanded — and ever)^ hair of his long mar.e 

 seemed almost erect with an undefinable terror. 

 At one moment he dashed swiftly around at the 

 full stretch of the long tug which secured him — 

 then pausing and shaking liis long mane over his 

 head, he fixed the gaze of his almost bursting 

 eyes upon his captor. Then raising his head, and 

 casting a long, lingering, and almost despairing 

 gaze upon the hills of the ])rairie, which till then 

 had been his home, he made a desperate leap ibr- 

 ward, dragging to the ground the Indian who held 

 the end of his halter; but others rushed to his as- 

 sistance and held him in. The crowd then at- 

 tempted to close around him, but he reared upon 

 his hind legs and kept them at bay with the rapid 

 and poweriul blows of his fore feel. 



At length a young Indian, Avho was standing 

 near, threw off his robe: he crept cautiouslj^ to- 

 wards the animal Irom behind, and then with a 

 sudden leap he bounded upon his back, and seized 

 the tug which was secured in his mouth. Belbre 

 this, the eflbrts of the animal had been violent; 

 but when he felt the burden upon his back, v»hen 

 he felt /he curbing hand of his rider, he sent up 

 a shrill and almost irantic scream; his form bound- 

 ed in the air like that of the active Avild cat; he 

 reared, he plunged, but in vau:i — his rider was a 

 master hand, and he retained his seat as unmoved 

 as if he had constituted part of the animal itself; 

 he curbed him in, he lashed him with his heavy 

 whip until he crouched like a dog upon the prai- 

 ries; his spirit was crushed; and the last spark of 

 J'reedom was extinfruished. Shortly aller, one of 



the hunters came up and tied a pack upon his back; 

 he made no resistance; and they led him ofi' with 

 the rest to finish his daj s in drudgery and toil. 



From Silliiiiaa's Journal. 

 POTATOES ON WET LAND. 



"In 1796, being in a part of France where pota- 

 toes were but little known, and less used, as tbod 

 for man; and having obtained some Irish seed, I 

 gave them to a country gentleman, at whose cas- 

 tle I Avas then residing, to plant. He asked me 

 what soil was the most, suitable. I informed him 

 that on that subject there were various opinions; 

 but that I had known very good crops, and of 

 good quality, raised on moist ground. He told me 

 that he had one place that was moist enough, be- 

 ing nothing but bog and water; and another dry 

 enough, being nothing but sand or gravel; — and 

 that he was willing to make the sacrifice of these 

 two places for the experiment, since the seed cost 

 him nothing; at the same time saying that he was 

 not partial to Englishmen or potatoes. 



"By the side of the morass there was a gravel 

 hill without a sign of vegetable earth in it. The 

 morass was then frozen so as to bear our weight. 

 I proposed to him (or he to me) to use the dry 

 gravel as a mere receptible to hold the potatoes for 

 vegetation. The plan was adopted; many 

 wheelbarrow loads of gravel were placed at pro- 

 per distances on the bog, and the potatoes planted 

 therein, under my direction. The result was a 

 very early crop of excellent potatoes, farinacious 

 and large; and the same process was continued lor 

 years atler, occasionally adding a little gravel, 

 when a part of the first deposite had sunk into the 

 morass. The potatoes planted on the dry gravel 

 produced a lew plants and bulbs of a very bad 

 quality. Their producing any thing must have 

 been owing to the dampness of the climate, and 

 the copious dews that proceeded from the vicinity 

 of tlie morass. 



"Is it not probable, sir, that in New England 

 where good arable land is not in sufficient quiinti- 

 ties for our wants, there are many such morasses, 

 nov7 of no value, which might be made to ])roduce 

 potatoes, and perhaps other useful vegetable food? 

 The experiment seems to be worth trying. 



"I will further remark that this aquatic potato 

 patch had no hoeing or other labor bestowed on it, 

 —a matter of" some importance where labor is so 

 dear. Again the labor of transporting the heaps 

 of gravel may or must be done in the winter, 

 when the time of the ftirmer is less valuable." 



WILLIAM FOSTER. 



From Sillimau's Journal. 

 METHOD OF DESTROYING WORMS AND INSECTS 

 WITH SPIRITS OF TURPENTINE. 



By M. D. Thosse. 



1 was led to try it by observing that certain 



plants which have naturally a strong odor, are not 

 infested with insects. 



Wishing some years ago to raise four 3-oung 

 puppies, I ])erceived thein when a {ew days old 

 to be very languishing, and discovered that they 

 were full of insects or lice, which w^ere preying 

 upon them. It was in vain that they were comb- 



