THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



17 



" They are a hirire boned, coarse ho<r, and not a 

 Cood elitipe, and as lo iheir being sustained on 

 less food ihan any oiher breed ol' hosis is out ol 

 thequesiion, his experimenls to the contiary not- 

 withstanding'. To say liiai a large boned, coarse 

 haired hoir, 'hat will no! mniure thorl of 3 years, 

 and weiL'liif.g bom 8 to 1200 pounds:, can be sus- 

 tained on the same amount of food that a noai 

 boned, niuscuinr, compaci hoc 'hat will maiure 

 in (roni 12 io20 months, is contrary to nature and 

 philosophy, and any individual instance to the 

 contrary only proves an exception lo a'pr'^nend 

 rule." He /urther remarks, ''that the Doctor 

 states in a letter to a I'riend of mine, that lie Iius 

 notasceriained alwhat agehis Woburns would ma- 

 ture, as he l)as never fed any long enough, thoii<rh 

 he has lalted some over there years old ! ! " 



Those papers that have copied Dr. Martin's 

 trial ol the Woburns and the Berkshires will, as 

 an act of justice, please do the same with the 

 above. Most respectfully, 



John Mahakd, Jr. 



[We have given place to the foregoing article, 

 not because we approve its manner, or take sides 

 with the wiitcr, but because we had published the 

 previous article commented on. It is unibriunately 

 the fact that there is a great deal of humbug in 

 every branch of stock-breeding and selling, by 

 which the salesman can derive large profi's from 

 exaggeration and deception. Without meaning 

 to detract from the real merits of either llie Wo- 

 burn hogs, of which we know nothing practically, 

 or ol'the Berkshire hog,-=, of which wj know some- 

 thing, and think favorably, we are well satisfied 

 that there is much more of humbug than of truth 

 in the high-colored recommendations of both, and 

 especially of the latter, because best known to us; 

 and that of liie numerous communications publish- 

 ed in commendation, much the greater tiumbor 

 are merely elaborately constructed and carefully 

 disguised breeders' and salesmen's advertisements 

 and puffs. Of course, this and every one of many 

 Buch expressions of our opinion, is calculated to 

 injure our interests with the most active and influ- 

 ential writers for and supponers of agricultural pe- 

 riodicals, who are (unibriunately) the producers 

 and sellers of humbugs, in some one or other de- 

 partment of agriculture. And not only do we 

 thus lose the favor and incur the hostility of the 

 whole humbugging class, but fail thereby in 

 pleasing their victims, or agricultural readers in 

 general, who are much better satisfied (at the 

 time) when cheated, than to be warned of and 

 guarded against deception. Even when deriving 

 no direct gain or reward from aiding the system, 

 it is greatly to the pecuniary interest of an agricul- 

 tural editor to act as if guided by the moilo, 

 •'Humbug for ever !" and to lend his publication 

 entirely to such service, so far as demanded.— 

 Ed. F. R.] 



Vol. X.— 3 



From the (Nashville) Agriculluript. 

 POTATOES, GAPKS IN CHICKliNS, TETTKR, 



niosQUiroEs. 



Tu Dr. J. Sh':lhy— dear sir— As\c.c!i\)'y lo your 

 reqnrsi, 1 send >ou the root part of a curii sialk, 

 raised in the lollowing way. I dug a trench aliout 

 20 inches de^o. One uhji-ct was to try an cxpcii- 

 tnent with poialofs, to see if they won'il thrive 

 vveli at a considerabe distance beneath iheeiir- 

 facc. I jtlanted my potiitoes wi:li a lew grains of 

 corn at the boltom, tovefeil w'lh cljip manure, 

 mixed with the soil, and alter they came up, ( 

 filled the trench as last as I could wiiliout emotlier- 

 irjg them. I at the same time planted two giai.-'a 

 of corii on the surface near l>y, one of which 1 

 cultivated by hoeing about it and making a hill, 

 and to the other 1 made no hill, nor loosened the 

 soil near it. The season was a very dry one, with 

 but little wind when the corn was in blossom. 

 When it was ripe, I found a good well set ear on 

 the stalk, I did not cultivate, further than to 

 scrape away the weeds and grass. None of the 

 others produced as well, which I supposed might 

 be accidental. I hilled up the trench so as to 

 make it about two feet Irom the bottom. The 

 next spring 1 dug my potatoes and Ibund a very 

 poor yield, though I lound potatoes ai all depths. 

 I have since tried the same experiment in potatoes 

 in a good season, and with nearly ilie sail e suc- 

 cess. 1 was induced to irythc expcmnent li-um 

 one 1 !iad tried helbre. 1 took sprouts Irom pota- 

 toes and plan cd them in hills in my garden, and 

 culiivated them as usual. In the lall I dug li.eni, 

 and their J ield was moderate. J Ovn|jok<d one 

 hill which came up the next spring, and v.s they 

 were of the late l<ind, I knew they wnild produce 

 hui litile under the common mode ol cultivation, 

 and continued to hill them up to within about six 

 inches of their lop until iiil). When I dug them 

 up I Ibund about a dozen very lartre gcoJ pota- 

 toes, and but one too small lor conKing. I sufipose 

 it is known that the late kind of Irish potatoes, if 

 planted ea'ly in this climate, hardly yield the 

 amount planted. The best time to plant is from 

 25ili of June to lot August. I suppose ii is like- 

 wise known that the growth of poiatoes can be 

 protracted l>y hilling them up. Hill up potatoes 

 that are in blossom, and ihe blossonis will lall off. 

 A new growih commences, and in time iliev vvill 

 bloesou) anew. In iliis way one can put olf the 

 ripening ot' early planted poiaiors till lall. 



There is in this climate a d fKculty in keopinj; 

 potatoes from deteriorating in quality. They will 

 keep in some t)arts cl France by burying ihem 

 3^ leet beneath the surface. I iiave tried Ihem 

 here 5 feei, and still they were within atmcspheric 

 influence. I once Ibund a small pipce ol sweet 

 potato, perlectly sound, four leei beneath the sur- 

 iace, in what had been a potaio cellar beneath my 

 kitchen, which to my certain l<nowledso must 

 have been there ten yeais, and 1 believe twenty. 

 From thirty years' experience in this county I am 

 convinced that the surest way lo raise the largest 

 and best Irish potatoes with ihe least trouble is to 

 have them so near the surlace thai the ground wdl 

 crack as they expand. I am not ceriain i;ut the 

 same may be true in sweet potatoes. * * 



I have seen in the Farnieis' Register, as taken 

 from the Cultivator, two communications upon 

 gapes in chickens, Their authors appear not to 



