1826.] 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



27; 



ufes in a syrup marfe of three parts by measure, 

 of water, nod one by weigrht of loaf sugar; let 

 them remain in the»yri]p till the nest day ; then 

 pour off the sj rup from the pears, simmer them 

 agdin for about ten minutes, and repeat the 

 simmering in (he syrup three or four times suc- 

 cessively. They are usually coloured red by 

 powdered cochineal, a small portion of winch is 

 added during the boiling process. Some per- 

 sons add cinnamon, and other spices, and a por- 

 tion of port uine. If the pears be not intended 

 to keep, they may be simmered till done in a 

 svrup, composed of one pound of sugar and three 

 pints and a half of water. 



Lord Hardwicke, at his tirst setting out in life 

 was articled to an attorney, xvhose name is not 

 mentioned. It happened one day that his mis- 

 tress (to use the expression) in want of another 

 servant, sent for him from his office, and desir- 

 ed him to go to (he next marl<e( and buy her 

 some cabbage. " Madam," said Mr H., " 1 nev- 

 er bought a cabbage in my life, 1 shall certain- 

 ly misspend your money." " No matter,'' re- 

 plied the Lady, " it is time you should hegm ; 

 and I desire you to go, as (here is nobody else 

 in the way." Mr H. knew his mistress's tem- 

 per too well to refuse any longer, but at the 

 same time, not willing to be tioubled on any 

 like occasion, he hit upon an expedient which 

 effectually a i.-wered the purpose. Accordmg- 

 ly, he received the money from his mistress, 

 went ou(, and in abou( half an hour redirneil 

 with his purchase. The next day he was to 

 settle some accounts of disbursements with his 

 master, and, among o(her usual articles, the fol- 

 lowing ilcm appeared;- "/.Vm, for buying a 

 cabbage^ one shilling and sixpence." Such an 

 extraordinary charge necessarily induced an in- 

 quiry on the master's side, but he wan pr<fstnit- 

 Iv satisfied, on being informed that, on suci) a 

 day, his mistress called him from the office, and 

 ordered him to buy her a cabbage ; but as he 

 was willing to do his best, and had heard that 

 the best cabbages were sold in such a market 

 (meaning a market to which (he coach fare iVom 

 bis master's house amounted to (he same charge,) 

 he called a coach, and driving (hiltier, made a 

 most excellent purchase. The master smiled : 

 "And from that day to this (his Lordship would 

 frequently add) I never bought another cabbage." 



A French Journal quotes letters from the Isle 

 of France, stating that in the southern hemis- 

 phere there has been discovered amongst the 

 constellations of the South Pole, one of [he 

 greatest comets which has been seen for a long 

 time, and surpassing by far that of 1811. When 

 it was first seen, which was about the latter 

 end of September,it was nearly as bright as the 

 Pleiades, elevated from 16 to 10 degrees, and 

 with very short tail, lis brilliancy soon increas- 

 ed, however, and its tail becoming longer,lliesE 

 circumstances, (i!ge(her with its retrograde 

 movement amongst the stars, give it the appear- 

 ance of a near approach to the earth. Aboil 

 the middle of October, at night fall, and duiicg 

 the absence of (he moon, it was the most bril- 

 liant object in the horizon. An astronomer a:- 

 tach^d to the English ship Espiegle, has ma^e 

 ob-^ervations on this comet, which he has con- 

 municated to the Astronomer Royal at the Cafe 

 of Good Hope, who will shortly publish the re- 

 sults. 



Posts. — The conveyance of letters by post, 

 was inventei! by the English parliament of \G 13. 

 Post masters existed earlier than that period, 

 but their business was probably confined to fur- 

 nish horses and expresses on urgent occasions. 

 The outline of (he present plan seems to have 

 been originally conceived by Edmund I'rideaus, 

 who was appointed deputy Attorney General lo 

 the Commonweallb, alter the murder of King 

 Charles. 



He was chairman of a committee in 1642, to 

 fix the rates on inland letters, and afterwards 

 appointed Post master by an ordinance of both 

 houses, in which office he first established a 

 weekly conveyance of letters into all parts of 

 the kingdom. His emoluments being consider- 

 able, the Common Council of London endeavor- 

 ed to erect an office in opposition to his, bu( 

 were checked by a re=o!u(ion of (he Commons, 

 declaring that the office of Post master was in 

 the sole disposal of Parliament. In 1657, a reg- 

 ular Post Office »vas er(*c(ed by Cromwell and 

 his Parliament upon nearly.the same model as 

 (he present system, with the Siime rates of post- 

 age, and was continued till the reign of Anne. 

 After the restoration, (in 16G0) a similar office 

 was established I'y s'alule. 



CURE FOR CANCERS. 

 Charles City Court House, Fa, March 11.. 1220. 



In nnswer \c "• Inquiry made in your paper in 

 relation to the use of the narrow leaf dock in 

 Ihe cure of Cnncers ; 1 take pleasure in slating 

 that a radical cure was effected by its applica- 

 tion (o a supposed cancer, with which VVm A 

 Harrison, lale o( Mavrox, and Ihe son of Carter 

 B. Harrison, was aifli.- ted. The root of the 

 dock, (as well as I recoiled) was boiled until if 

 became quite soft, and was then used by way of 

 poultice ; a fresh application w as made proba 

 bly, three or four times during the dny. This 

 simple remedy (iroduced an entire cure. I sin- 

 cerely hope this infbrmalion may be useful to 

 the gentleman, to whose inquiry it is intended 

 as an answer. Very respectfiillv, vours, 



BENJAMIN H.^RRISON. 



P. S. I will make further inquiries on this 

 subject, and if any additional information is pro- 

 cured, it shall be communicated through your 

 paper. — Amer. Far. 



Anecdote of the Plough in Ireland. — The obsti- 

 nacy of prej'idice among farmers, and the blind 

 infatuation witli which Ihe ignoranl adhere to 

 old customs, is strongly illustrated in the follow- 

 ing anecdote, related in Weld's Tour to Kit 

 laraey, in Ireland. Some of ourfarmeis have 

 prejudices as inconsistent as those of Run, though 

 few of them are sensi'cle of the fact. 



'■At a place called Run, (says the tourist.) 

 within Bantry Bay, the plough was absolutely 

 unknown till the present clergyman inlioduced 

 it, immense crowds immediately Hocked dx)wn 

 from the neighbouring mountains (o see (he 

 novel instrument, and its operations were be- 

 held with uoiider. To those of his parishion- 

 ers who were inclined to employ it in the cuUi- 

 ! vation of their ground', ihe proprietor offered 

 I to lend it; and numerous applications were in 

 consequence made. Shortly, however, the 

 'plough ceased to be in request; even Uu^ sight 

 j of it appeared (o be cautiously shunned. That 

 I an instrument, productive of such an obvious 

 land immediate saving of labour, should be thus 

 ! discarded, seemed somewhat exlraonlinary ; but 

 ! to unravel the mystiry was not difficult. The 

 people bad been reminded that their Ibretath- 

 ers had dug ihe ground; that the plough WM 

 an iiinuvalion. An unanimous rescli2'..GP. Sas 

 instiintlv iBv^'S t'J trM!,.vr ine ?teps of their an- 

 cestors; every argument lo the contrary prov- 

 ed ioefterloai ; »nii when we visiled Run, the 

 ground still continued to be cultivated with the 

 spade !" 



Yesterdaj', we are informed by some of our 

 'old residents,' was the anniversary of the great- 

 est storm ever known in Philadelphia, and to- 

 day and to-morrow may be added to it, for it 

 lasted for three days, commencing on the 17lh 

 March, nOG, and conlinuing to the 19th. The 

 wind blew so powerfully, that there was litde 

 or no tide in Ihe Delavvare — the vessels in the 

 docks were left high and dry — the underpinning 

 of Ihe wharves was laid bare — and persons walk- 

 ed from the Jersey shore to Windmill Island. 

 The storm exteoded across Ihe Atlantic Ocean, 

 and tow vessels exposed to its fury escaped with- 

 out damage. — Philad. Gaz: 



Crouflrcesional iJiorrctifnss- 



M.'iRCH 10, — A Committee wa.i appointed by the 

 j HOl:S.lito takfc into consideration (lie subject of tlic 

 I termination of the session, and an earli'^r meeting of 

 1 tlie next eessioii. — ^The Committee of Cummerce, was 

 iiilrusted t(i taVo iut^- o<M.old<.intion the expediency of 

 pvovidiM^ by law, that alt vessels navig^ating ilie w.-.^ 

 ers of the United ."^tates shnll cany lights on their 

 masts or other conspicuous places, where they may lie 

 seen \n the night. — The bill for the relief of the Deaf 

 and Dumb Asylum, iu Kentucky was amended and or- 

 dered lo be engrossed. — A Committee was (hen ap- 

 pointed to consider the memorials from ?»ew York and 

 Pennsylvania, respecting the Asylums in those States. 

 MARCH 13, — Mr Dwighl of Mass. gave notice that 

 on Iriday h^ should ask the House to go into Commit- 

 tee on Ihe subject of the Massachusetts Claim. — The 

 President was requested to furnish a statement of all 

 the expenditures for laying out, repairing, and making 

 Canals, Roads, Surveys, Maps, kc. relatiie to internal 

 improvements for the year 1824, 1825. — The bill to 

 authorize the purchase of stock iu the Dismal Swamp 

 Canal was read a third time and passed. Yeas 102 

 Nays 72. 



M.\KCH 14, — After long discussion it was decided 

 by the SENATE, to send Representatives to the Con- 

 gress at Panama, and Me-srs Richard C. Andeison,and 

 John Sargeant were appointed. 



Law Presumption. — Baldus, a very eminent 

 lawyer of the 14ih century, and i^Ienochius, 

 who wrote on legal presumptions in the 16th 

 century, both lay it down as clear law, that, "it 

 it be proved that a certain man's head has been 

 cut off, a violent presumption will follow from 

 thence, that that man is dead .'" 



Intelligence has been received from France of the 

 death of Col. Somerville. Charges des Affaires of the 

 United States to Sweden, and of his burial at the resi- 

 dence of Gen. La Fayette, on the 19th of January. 



Russia is said to have assumed a pacific aspect under 

 the reign of the new Emperor iSicholas. 



It is mentioned in the Montpelier (Vt.) Watchman, 

 as an evidence of the increasing prosperity of that flour- 

 ishing village, that a piece of land, in the central part 

 of the place, measuring 30 by 25 feet, was sold for one 

 thousand dollars. 



Ad expedition of 3500 troops left Valparaiso the 25th 

 November to attack the Spanish establishmtnt on the 

 island of Chiloe, 



