70 



THK FARMEUS' REGISTER. 



ashea. Nor have the ashes of rotten and decay- 

 ed wood any o( ihis substance in ihem, while 

 that which has been soai<ed in sea water has a 

 portion of salt among its ashes. 



One word by the way ol" a recipe or process 

 in conformity with these lacts. 



In preparing the ashes for leacliing about one 

 ppck of unslaked lime, alter being slaked and 

 completely pulverized, should be mingled and 

 equally mixed with three bushels of good ashes, 

 damped enough to prevent dust from rising. In 

 this way, as you will perceive, the lime and pot- 

 ash come into close contact with each other, as 

 soon as the latter is drawn from the ashes by the 

 water which is applied for leaching them, and 

 therefore the acid has the best possible opportuni- 

 ty for coming in contact and uniiing with it. 

 Lime placed at the bottom of the leach, by iiself 

 alone and unmixed wiih the ashes, will do the 

 lie a great deal of good by attrafting much of its 

 acid, as it passes through, though much less than 

 when mingled with the ashes throughout equally. 

 Placing it upon the top of the leach is almost 

 useless. Water can dissolve only about 1.500 

 part of its weight of lime ; and only that lime 

 which is dissolved while the leaching water is 

 passing through it comes at all into contact with 

 the potash. To put lime into the soap is much 

 worse than useless. 



Nor am I quite satisfied with your leach tub. 

 It should be perfectly tight, wiih but one hole in 

 the bottom for drawing off the lie and that as 

 carefully stopped as your cider barrel until your 

 lie is fit to draw off. A board with a dozen inch 

 holes bored through it, resting upon bricks edge- 

 wise and covered half an inch thick with shavings 

 makes a good bottom for a leach tub. 



The ashes when put in should be crowded and 

 trodden completely together, leaving about three 

 inches of space at the top of the tub for receiving 

 the water. 



After filling in water until the ashes will take 

 no more, it should be permitted to stand 4 or 5 

 hours to allow the lime an opportunity for com- 

 bining with the carbonic acid. The lie is then to 

 be drawn off, and so much of it as is under the 

 false bottom, or between that and the ashes, 

 should be again put upon the top of the leach, 

 that by a second passage through the leach it 

 may be made perfectly caustic. 



Your mode of testing the strength of the lie is 

 as good as any, unless an instrument called an 

 alkalimeter is at hand. Lie thus made, if not too 

 strong or too weak, will be certain to combine with 

 the grease as soon as the mixture is warm enough 

 to melt the grease, provided it is moderately stir- 

 red, and provided the grease is pure. This may 

 be made certain by boiling it a lew minutes with 

 half its weight of water, and afterwards letting it 

 Btand long enough for the water to subside. With 

 25 pounds of such grease you may be sure of an 

 excellent barrel of soap. Soap Boilkr. 



Newton, Ftb. 2, 1842. 



a sick friend, 1 was shown an article entirely new 

 to me, which is said to be remarkably nutritious 

 and palatable for debilitated and sick persons. 

 It was flour, prepared by the Shakers from slip- 

 pery elm, and used the same as arrow-root. One 

 table-spoonful of this flour, boiled in a pint of new 

 milk, is excellent to feed infants weaned from the 

 breast. They will not only fatten upon it, but it will 

 prevent bowel complaints. It makes an easy and 

 nutritions diet for consumptive and dyspeptic per- jI 

 sons. From the character I received of it, I pre- ▼ 



sume that it only need be known to become of ge- 

 neral use. 



DRIVING CATTLE. 



I have often witnessed the infliction of cruelties 

 on dumb beasts accused of sullenness, by persons 

 attempting to lead or drive an animal alone. This 

 subject was brought to mind so forcibly a (ew 

 days since, by a neighbor sending a boy to lead a 

 a heifer a distance of several miles, by a rope at- 

 tached to her horns and nose, that I determined to 

 write a line upon it. The restiveness of cattle, in 

 such cases, is caused by skittishness. The reme- 

 dy is simple and efficient. Fasten a board before 

 the face, in the usual manner of blinding breachy* 

 cattle, and the wildest cow or heifer may be led 

 or driven with perfect ease. — 31aine Cultivator. 



POWDER OF SLIPPERY ELM. 



From itie United States Gazette. 



We live but to learn and obtain knowledge. 

 Being in the country a few days since, on a visit to 



AN ESSAY ON THE SYSTEM OF AGRICULTURE 

 BEST ADAPTED TO KENTUCKY. 



By ^dam Beatty, of Mason county, Ky. 



[To this essay was awarded the premium of- 

 fered by the Agricultural Society of Kentucky.] 



In adopting a system of agriculture best suited 

 to the circumstances of our state, regard must be 

 had to its variety of soil and climate. The climate 

 of Kentucky extends from thirty-six and a half to 

 thirty-nine degrees of north latitude. So far as 

 regards climate, every part of the state is well 

 adapted to the culture of Indian corn ; but wheat 

 can be grown to advantage only in the more 

 northern parts. Indeed, even in those parts best 

 adapted to wheat, this useful grain, except for our 

 own immediate supply, is not found to be a very 

 profitable crop. The new states to the north and 

 west, in the cheapness of their lands and better 

 adaptation to wheat from climate and soil, will al- 

 ways have great advantages over our state in 

 supplying the New Orleans market. The culture 

 of that article lo any considerable extent, in Ken- 

 tucky, will, in the general, bs found not to be use- 

 tiil or advantageous, and ought, except to the ex- 

 tent of supplying our own wants, to be left to 

 such of our farmers as occupy a soil not adapted 

 to hemp and tobacco. Besides the uncertainty of 

 the wheat crop in the rich vegetable soils of Ken- 

 tucky,! it is very exhausting, and requires much 



* In New Englatid cattle are called " breachy" 

 which break through fences. 



t Liebig says, that soils particularly rich in humus 

 are not favorable to the growth of wheat. — Organic 

 Chemistry, p. 197-8, 



