16 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



LITERARY AND PERSONAL. 



Habper's Periodicals : The three moBt popular and in- 

 structive serial publications issued by any one house in this 

 country, are undoubtedly those of the great publishing house 

 of Harj^er & Brothers. Their "new Monthly Magazine'' 

 abounds with able and useful, as well as entertaining papers. 

 The February number contains the fourth of a series of 

 papers on "The First Century of the Republic," in which 

 the progress of invention is traced, and the more remarka- 

 ble inventions beautifully illustrated with a style of wood 

 engravings for which the Harpers are not surpassed. The 

 leading arcicle is on " New Washington," in which the ex- 

 traordinary transformation which our National Capital has 

 Undergone within the last five years, is graphically sketched 

 and elaborately illustrated. This magazine has a monthly 

 circulation of 130,000 copies, and the publishers expend on it 

 for Hterary and artistic features alone about $70,000 a year, 

 while the yearly subscription is only $4. . . . Harper's 

 Weekly, the best illustrated weekly uewspapei; in the world, 

 has a popularity unrivaled by any similar publication, its 

 circulation being equal to the magazine. It is stricly honest 

 and thoroughly independent, while that prince of caricatur- 

 ist, Tom Nast, constitutes one of its most attractive features, 

 even to those who get the hardest cuts from his ever-ready 

 pencil. . . . Their other periodical. Harper's Bazar, is 

 a journal for the home— being especially devoted to all sub- 

 jects pertaining to domestic and social life. While it fur- 

 nishes the latest fashions in dress, it does not neglect any 

 of the weightier matters pertaining to the care of the house- 

 hold, or the cultivation of a higher life in mind and morals. 

 It, too, has been a wonderful success, its weekly circulation 

 now reaching 90,000 copies. , . . Either of these three 

 publications are furnished at $4 a year, any two of them for 

 $7, or the three for $10 in one remittance. 



The Library of Congress grows steadily and rapidly. 

 There has been during the past year an addition of 15,405 

 volumes and 6,272 pamphlets. The principal source of 

 increase is in the requirement of the copyright law, making 

 it obligatory to deposit two copies of each i»ublication in the 

 library. Under this provision there were received during 

 the year 6,840 books, 6,436 periodicals, 7,722 musical compo- 

 sitions, 5.598 prints, 1,358 photographs, 922 engravings and 

 chromos, 658 maps, charts, and drawings, and 140 dramatic 

 compositions — a total of 29,674. Mr. Spofford, the Librarian, 

 in his annual rejwrt, speaks earnestly concerning the impos- 

 sibility of so enlarging the Capitol as long to afford quarters 

 for the vast and multifarious collection which is so rapidly 

 inereasing. He remarks; " In no country in Europe of the 

 first rank is it attempted to keep the libraay of the govern- 

 ment under the same roof with the halls of legislation. In 

 London, in Paris, iu Berlin, in Vienna, in Munich, in St. 

 Petersburg, there exists a national librai-y having its own 

 separate buildin^, while the library of the legislative body, 

 sufiBciently copious and ample for its wants, is provided for 

 within the parliamentory walls." 



The Sacbamento Weekly Union is literally an "im- 

 mense" newspaper, containing sixteen pages (18 by 24 iu 

 size) of closely printed matter, in minion type, and seven 

 columns to the page. There are no blank spaces, no em- 

 bellished letters, but all is solid reading matter, and on a 

 multitude of subjects, almost •' boxing the (Uterarj-) com- 

 pass." We know not how this will comjiare with the leading 

 weeklies on this side of the Rocky mountains, nor yet 

 whether the weekly issues of the Unio7i are alwaytf of this 

 size, but we think they are. We only make this note to 

 illustrate the wonderful strides the " Golden State '" has made 

 in journalism, as in everything else, during the last twenty- 

 five years. Where a paper o ' this kind is profitably patron- 

 ized, there must necessarily be not only a "lively time," 

 but also a readituj community. That, in our opinion, is the 

 key that unlocks the whole subject. The people are a pro- 

 gressive and a reading people, and therefore need large 

 newspaper facilities. 



Hand Book of the ''Kansas State Agricultural College," 

 Manhattan, Kansas, an octavo of 124 pages, in covers, 1875, 

 giving the Board of Regents, faculty, exi)lanatory notes, man- 

 agement, policy, course of study, curriculum for six years, 

 which is the length of the course, each year divided into two 

 terms. The departments include Practical Agriculture, 

 practical horticulture, botany, including entomology and 

 geology, chemisti7 and physics, English language and his- 

 tory, mathematics, legal, nientalKind moral science, studies 

 special to woman, languages. The industrial departments 

 are the Farm, horticultural grounds, carpenter, wagon, 

 blacksmith, paint, turning, sawing, carving and engraving 

 Bhops, and many other practical and useful occupations of 

 which we will speak again. 



'* The Cheehie Maker and Cheese Factory, For such as 

 seek information pertaining thereto," by Wm. Ralph, Utica, N. 

 Y. This is a finely illustrated 12 mo. pamphlet, of 55 pages 

 and an index, giving finely executed engravings of all the 

 utensils and implements necessary in the manufacture of 

 this popular industrial product. It also gives all the neces- 

 sary instructions in the art of cheese making, and specific 

 tables of the number and size of the various articles em- 

 ployed, together with their aggregate costs, for a dairy of 20 

 cows, and from that number up to 400. 



Peter Henderson's Catalogues of vegetables, flowering 

 and other plants, seeds, grasses, &c., for 1875, will favorably 

 compare with any iu the country. Those in need of any- 

 thing in this line, or who desire to be instructed in their 

 culture and floral ormamentation, would do well to consult 

 their catalogues, and then send on their orders to the pro- 

 prietor, at No. 35 Cortlaudt street, N. T. They number 

 about 180 pages, are finely illustrated, and in addition con- 

 tain five beautiful colored plates of the following : A group 

 of Roses, a group of Verbenas, a group of Pinks, a grouji of 

 Lobelias and a New Vegetable, These catalogues, with all 

 the plates, are mailed to all applicants, by Peter Henderson 

 & Co., on receipt of 50 cents. A catalogue without tlie platen 

 will, however, be sent to any address without charge. 



Among the scientific serials deserving of favorable notice, 

 is the Cincinnati Qttarterly Journal of Science, edited and 

 published by Mr. S. A. Miller. Mr. Miller is a well-known 

 paleontologist of Cincinnati, and very much interested in 

 the identification of the fossils of Ohio and the ueighl)oring 

 States, and in this work he notices a large number of new 

 species of various orders. There are also papers by other 

 American naturalists, especially Messrs. Calkins, James, 

 Newberry, Andrews, and others. Mr. Miller is deserving of 

 great credit for his enterprise iu initiating this serial, which 

 supplies a want not filled by any of its American cotem- 

 poraries. 



Specimen pages of Appleton's "New American Cyclopedia, 

 revised edition. This work, when finished, will be the cy- 

 clopedia of the period, and ought to be in the possession of 

 a great many people who will never be able to own a copy. 

 The cheapest style of binding will be $5 a volume, and it will 

 be completed in 16 large octavo volumes of 800 pages each ; 

 the aggregate would be $80. Now, considering the matter, 

 the fine illustrations, and the great bulk of the work, this is 

 absolutely cheap — "dirt cheap" — and yet there are many 

 people who fritter twice that amount away, during its pas- 

 sage through the press, who will never subscribe for the 

 Cyclopedia. 



The "Gardeners Monthlt" and the **Practical Farmer^' 

 for January, 1875, and also the " Germantoion Telegraph " — 

 all occupying different spheres in the agricultural, horticul- 

 tural, floricultural and arboricultural, past and present his- 

 tory of the country — have duly come to hand richly laden 

 with their usual treasures. These may be regarded as the 

 true representatives of the aforenamed interests in Pennsyl- 

 vania,and while we would not discharge or displace others of 

 equal merit from elsewhere, we think that no " Keystone " 

 farmer should ignore the claims of these old and long tried 

 friends of the agricultural community. 



" Address of the Representatives of the Religious Society 

 of the Friends in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delawaie" 

 on Theatrical Amusements and Horse Racing, issued in 1874. 

 If the whole argument were " confirmations stroug as 

 proofs of holy writ" — and we have no doubt it is — coupling 

 two such subjects together, strengthens neither and weakens 

 both. 



'•Report of the '^Pennsylvania Fridt Growers^ Society,^ for 

 1873-4, prepared by its officers," 140 pages octavo, with a list 

 of the otficers and members, and several double-page illus- 

 trations of fruit, &c. Full of interesting essays, addresses, 

 reports and discussions upon the subjects of fruits and 

 flowers and other matters relating thereto. Published by the 

 State, which no doubt accounts for its late appearance. 



The National, Live Stock Journal for January, 1875. 

 maintains its reputation as the best publication of the kind 

 on the American continent. Any stock-raiser who values 

 pedigree and blood, may find in the pages of this journal all 

 that is worth knowing. It is now so permanently estab- 

 lished, that those who desire it have only to seud on $2.00, 

 and 15 cents postage, to secure a copy for a year — Chicago, 

 111. 



The Ledger Almanac for 1875 is on our table, and like 

 its predecessors, is a most capital and useful comj'ilatiou, 

 containing more reference matter condensed in the small 

 space, than any work of the kind that has come under our 

 observation the present season. 



Landreth's Til/ ra/ Register and vl ^7»u«irtc for 1875— dis- 

 tributed gratuitously — is comparatively an unpretending 

 little 12 mo., freighted, however, with a large amount of in- 

 teresting and useful information to those engaged in rural 

 occupations. 



Peterson's Lady's Magazine for February, 1875, has 

 been received, and is a splendid number. It contains 

 between its covers, all iu the realms of fashion, sentiment, 

 and the domestic fireside that any woman could desire. 



ViCK's Floral Guide for 1875 is so beautifully Dlustrated 

 and gotten ny, and moreover is so popularly kuovrn, that it 

 needs no further illxuitratimi from us. Published quarterly 

 by James Vick, Rochester, N. Y. Price 25 cents a year. 



Dry Readimo : A grandson of Noah Webster firesented 

 to his Majesty, King Kalakaua, of Sandwich Islands, when in 

 Boston, an elegant copy of Webster's Diciionary, The same 

 evening he commenced its perusal, at A. 



Wood's (illustrated) //oimefiold Magazine is certainly the best 

 $1,00 magazine in the Union, and every subsequent number 

 seems better than the last. No. 41 Park Row, N. Y. 



Peter Mahan, Sen,, and hia wife, Mary Mahan, of 

 Stampers Creek, Indiana, are undoubtedly the oldest couple 

 in that State. He was born June 15, 1782, in Virginia, and is 

 now, therefore, in his 93d year. Mrs, Mahan was born in 

 Pennsylvania in 1788, eighty-six years ago. They were mar- 

 ried June 6, 1806, in Shelby county, Kentucky, removed to 

 Indiana iu 1807, and settled on Lost River in what is now 

 Orleans townslip, where they remained until 1812, when they 

 removed to Stampers Creek township, where they have ever 

 since resided. They have had twelve children, eight 

 of whom are living, the youngest, Peter Mahan, being 

 forty-four years of ago. Notwith4tauding their extreme 

 old age they are still active, and read the finest print with- 

 out the aid of glasses. They have been married more than 

 sixty eight years, and have lived on the same farm since 

 1812. Mr. Mahan's first first vote for President was cast 

 for Thomas Jefferson, and he has voted at every election 

 since. 



Joe. W. Fawkes, formerly of Bart, Lancaster county, and 

 well known as one of the early inventors and experimenters 

 with the steam plow, which was exhibited on the old Fair 

 grounds near this city in 1859, and subsequently at the 

 United States Fair at Chicago, writes an interesting letter to 

 TheExpre.sSfVfith the editor of which he constructed miniature 

 water wheels and tilt-hammers in their boyhood, forty years 

 ago. Mr, F, some years ago settled down at farming at 

 Maroa, Macon county, 111., where he seems to be prospering, 

 as he writes enthusiastically of the success of Illinois farm- 

 ing, and gives some interesting statistics in illustration. Our 

 old friend is a thorough mechanic, as well as a farmer, and 

 deserves the reward of success. 



Mrs. Watson, wife of Prof. Watson, of Michigan Univer- 

 sity, is the only woman who enjoyed the privilege of going 

 on the Transit of Venus expedition from the United States. 

 First was the overland journey to San Francisco, then a voy- 

 age lasting twenty-six days to Yokohama, a four days' sail 

 to Nagasaki, and another of six days to Tieu-tsin. Then fol- 

 lowed a voyage up the river on small house-boats to Tung- 

 Chang, and finally a donkey ride of sixteen miles to the im- 

 perial city of Pekin. Prof. Watson, while at Pekin awaiting 

 the transit, discovered a new asteroid. He did-not name it after 

 his wife, but after a Chinese goddess (Ne-Wha) who once re- 

 paired the sky when it was in a dilapidated condition, and 

 has thereby earned the respect of astronomers. 



The Widows of fifty-four generals draw pensions from 

 the United States government. It is stated that when the 

 pension paid to the widows of brigadier-generals, $50 a 

 month, was ofiered to the nidow of General Meade, she 

 emphatically declined to receive it because it was less than 

 that paid Mrs. President Lincoln. Of all the women who 

 served in the war in various capacities only one was pen- 

 sioned for physical disabilities, and that was Mrs. Isabella 

 Fogg, of Maine, who wag seriously injured by a fall, in 

 Louisville, while engaged in hospital work. She died last 

 summer. 



An accident recently occurred in a coal pit in the north 

 of England from a curious mistake. A collier went to his 

 work, taking with him two bottles, almost similar in form, 

 one of which. contained tea and the other blasting pow^der. 

 After working for a short time, feeling inclined for a droi* of 

 his tea, he took from his jacket pocket by mistake the bottle 

 of powder, and held it over the flame of his lamp some time, 

 when it exploded, and burned him severely. More serious 

 results than this have often followed from mistaking a bottle. 



Well Done, Girls ! Sir Andrew Fairbairn, chairman of 

 the Leeds School Board, speaking at a distribution ot prizes 

 recently, referred to the circumstance that, with one excep- 

 tion, the whole of the prizes were borne off by girls. And 

 Miss Alice Vickery, the first and only registered lady phar- 

 maceutist in England, has just passed honombly, iu company 

 with Miss Algernon Kingsford, the lirst year's examination 

 of the School of Medicine of the University of Paris. 



Major John M, CowEll, Conveyancer and Real Estate 

 agent, whose card appears iu this issue of The Farmer, is 

 a valuable acfiuisition to our local citizenship. He is not 

 only thoroughly master of his profession but possesses the 

 advautage of a large experience also as civil engineer, as well 

 as in conveyancing and real estate business generally. 



The New Hotel — The Stevens House — supplies a want 

 long felt in Lancaster. Our friends in the couuty as well 

 as those from abroad will there find all the appointments of 

 a first-class hotel at reasonable charges, and the Messrs, 

 Wilson attentive and obliging to their guests. 



Mr. Corcoran, the Washington banker and philanthro- 

 pist, has again yielded to his conmieuduble force of habit. 

 After his princely benefaction of $250,000 to the Columbian 

 University, he has just given $77,000 toward the building of 

 the new Episcopal Ascension church in Washington. 



Samuel Small Stevens, recently deceased in Baltimore, 

 bequeathed $40,000 to the theological department of the 

 Uuiversity of Boston, and $10,000 to benevolent institutions 

 in Baltimore. 



Heinrich Brockhads, whose death is just announced, 

 was head of the great publishing firm at Leipsic, Germany, 

 He was a man of culture and ability, as well as a succeBBful 

 publisher. 



I 



