630 



FARMERS' RJi: G I S T E R 



[No. 



hall" of the whole number ; (or many are lulled (or 

 trespassing on our crops — starvation during tlnce- 

 fourths of the year, having taught them to be 

 thieves ; whilst a still greater number are stolen 

 in the (iill, alter they get a little llesh on their 

 bones, for a reason which I once heard alledged 

 by an old negro in extenuation cl" the practice of 

 stealing them, that "hog meat was so miserable 

 sweet his (ellow sarvants could not help stealing it." 

 Hoping that you will deem this new process lor 

 fattening hogs worth publishing, I remain, dear 

 sir, Yours very sincerely, 



JaiMes M. Gaukett. 



MEMORANPA. 



To lliu Etljlor of the Faimeis' Register. 



Neto Kent, August 10th, 1839. 



As you desire that communications of an agri- 

 cultural nature should be made to you, and com- 

 plain of the lack o( them, I, a poor illiterate, unpre- 

 tending humble clod-hopper, venture to offer my 

 mite or mites for a place in your columns, hoping 

 above all things tliai they may elicit a spirit of in- 

 quiry ; arouse the latent and dormant energies, 

 and awake the industry of the poor farmers of 

 eastern Virginia. My remarks will be of a de- 

 sultory nature, and made regardless of the rules 

 lor writing. 



Chinchbugs. — Whilst some would (ain know 

 from whence ihey came, when, and whither ihey 

 will go, let us prepare, in the most reasonable and 

 prudent way, to counteract their ravages. That 

 ihey have done much damage in the county o( 

 New Kent, is notorious, but that wc may expect 

 they will do infinitely more the ensuing year, is 

 more than probable. During the months of June 

 and July they copulate, and surely nothing ever 

 seen on earth before is to equal the number of nup- 

 tials in so short a time ; and from the different 

 eizes of their progeny I would infer that ihey teem 

 but a week. Now, in my opinion, it is not the 

 scalding with water, tarring, or ditching, that will 

 arrest their progress, but the sowing of clover next 

 spring on all the wheat and oats. I made a crop 

 of good wheat this year, when some of my neigh- 

 bors was not worth culling. Mine had been 

 seeded down in clover this spring, my neighbors 

 was not. 



Marl and lime. — My crop of corn is as good as 

 I ever saw. The land is of a medium nature, 

 neither very slid nor very lighl ; has been worked 

 (no doubt) long before the settlement was made 

 at James Town, and never improved 'till I com- 

 menced with it a fiiw years past. Of course it 

 had become almost sieril. I threw on it some 

 lime and some marl, and the alteration is like ma- 

 gic. I give the prelerencc to the marl, mine being 

 of the small-shell kind. I marled some land the 

 past winter, that, heretofore, would not produce 

 ears of corn longer than a man's thumb; now, the 

 corn is excellent ; I shall probably gather from it 

 above three barrels per acre. 1 have been often 

 asked this question, "would you cart marl Irom 

 Mr. R's. 7" JMy reply has mvariably been, "yes, 

 yes ; instead of doubting of the propriety of cart- 

 ing marl four miles, 1 tell you 1 would haul it (i-om 

 Richmond, a distance of 40 miles, if I had none." 

 I can demonstrate the propriety of my rej)ly. 



Again, ninely-nine hundredths offariDers marl im- 

 pro|)erly. They |)ut on luo much, which is a very 

 great error. Regardless of the nature of the soil, 

 whether weak or dead, they put on a like quantity; 

 the consequence is, loss of time, loss of labor, and 

 death to the land. A quantity sufficient to coun- 

 teract the deleterious effects of the acid in the 

 land alone is needed — in general, 100 bushels per 

 acre. On new lands or lands just cleared, five or 

 six hundred bushels might not be too much. In 

 short, marl is destined to be the great regulator of 

 the prices of meats and bread-stufl's in lower Vir- 

 ginia. It is with us the true philosopher's stone, 

 and literally will do for us all the philosophers ever 

 promised, except that of perpetuating life; and 

 even this it will in part do, for, in applying marl 

 we have to labor, which is the soul of health and 

 long life. I see no necessity now of running off 

 to the west or south-west. All who have land 

 and can marl, can make a superabundance here, 

 and although they make in the south-west 10, 15, 

 30, 40 and 50 thousand dollars annually, every 

 tinker of them returns here every fall, and alter 

 getting through with his bragging tables — he takes 

 a man of marl by the hand, and says, "Old (ellowS 

 or old friend ! walk aside v/ith me. I have thirty 

 thousand dollars v.'orlh of cotton ; half 1 have sent 

 on to Mobile, ilic other half I ordered should be 

 sent on as suon as ginned, and, can you let me 

 have ^;2000 ? 1 'vill give you any security. I have 

 an immediate want, &c. Can you let me have 

 Jt?1000or igioOO ?■' This has not a good look. Now 

 every good is iuixcd with evil. We never shall 

 have a dense jinjjulalion. We never will have 

 one large town. If Richmond had additional wa- 

 ter power ecjual to all at Lowel and Pittsburg, it 

 can and will never be large. It is not necessary 

 to give reasons. The evil that I allude to is this, 

 that if marling and improving become general, we 

 shall never sell our corn or wheat. It will be the 

 least profitable pursuit that can be followed. Who 

 will buy ? it cannot be consumed among us, for 

 the population is too sparse. 



Clover. — Clover is an invaluable plant, and a co- 

 adjutor of marl in the important work of impro- 

 ving. With marl it is destined to make our lands 

 produce excellent wheat, oats, rye, &c. It mel- 

 lows and deepens the soil, makes the earth friable, 

 porous, &c. ; and I pronounce it that no man with- 

 out it can raise a sulFiciency of pork. If he does, 

 he pays a shilling per lb. Hogs will grow and 

 thrive on clover from the 1st of May till October, 

 without any thing else but salt. This they sfiould 

 have twice per week. Every fiirmer who can 

 clover, can raise an abundance of meat. 



Hogs. — Hogs should have houses during the 

 winter at least. Wc have no better, nor indeed 

 any other food lor them but corn. Of this grain 

 they are very fond, and it requires a deal of it to 

 keep them through winter. One thing I know 

 from experience, and that is, all pigs should be 

 either killed or given away if they are littered at 

 any other season of the year except the three 

 spring months; reasons are obvious. Those who 

 now keep five sows should keep ten, and permit 

 each sow to carry only lour or five pigs at most. 

 When fattening, wc should frequently give salt 

 to the hogs. 



DIanure. — Every farmer may, with ease, raise 

 as much and even more manure at a very mode- 

 rate price, than it costs him to feed his horses. 



