694 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



No, 11 



he. picked of the best, from any crop, ol" any kinJ. 

 The ears on the stalks, (three on each,) are very 

 inferior. These do n;ro\v on the ends of long 

 stems— (though such we know is not tiie general 

 character of the growth—) and so much the worse 

 for it; as every farmer would prefer that his ears 

 of corn should grow on short stems, firmly attached 

 to the stalk, rather than on long ones like these. 

 A similar mode of growth (on long stems) may 

 be often seen on particular stalks of other kinds 

 than this; but the peculiarity would be one to 

 avoid in the selection of seed, rather than to be 

 sought for or prized as an advantage. 



It is amusing to observe how cunningly the 

 writer has made his reply to our strictures to serve 

 as an actual though disguised advertisement for 

 the sale of his corn, accompanied Ity recommen- 

 dary puffs, like quack medicines, in the most ap- 

 proved form— and at the same time letting the 

 public know that the sale is to be continued for 

 another year, at the reduced price of 12|- cents the 

 ear. No doubt to effect this object, and at so cheap 

 a rate, was the main purpose of the above reply. 

 Rut even if every particular a! tempted to be 

 made out in the above letter, were fully admitted — 

 and supposing (what we have no right or wish to 

 deny,) that each of the certifyers wrote in perfect 

 good faith — what would it all amount to"? No 

 more than this— that out of the thousands of per- 

 sons who bought the seed, and planted and culti- 

 vated it on the richest ground, and with the great- 

 est possible care, that these kw persons (and pos- 

 sibly hundreds of others also) made a very large 

 increase from the seed and lor the space planted. 

 Could it have been otherwise, under like circum- 

 stances among several thousands of such plant- 

 ings, with any other kind of corn, whether a good 

 or a bad kind in general? Ali the numerous va- 

 rieties of Indian corn (other than by cross-fecun- 

 dation,) have been produced by the eflort of na- 

 ture to accommodate the growth to the difi'erent 

 circumstances of soil, climate, &c., and therefore 

 it is probable that there is no one variety, how- 

 ever unproductive in general, that may not be the 

 most productive in some pecufiar circumstances. 

 Therefore, if out of several thousand persons who 

 have in the most careful manner cultivated JVIr. 

 Thorburn's high-priced seed no more than a do- 

 zen or two have found it a superior product (or 

 have guessed so, without any accurate experiment 

 of comparative product of another kind,) it is ra- 

 ther to be wondered at that such results (or sup- 

 posed results) have been so few, than so many as 

 are presented. 



But, if in ftct it were fully proved, instead of the 

 proof being altogetlier deficient, that this corn is a 

 more productive and valuable kind than the kinds 

 long known and usually planted, its recommenda- 



tion and sale would be not the less subject to the 

 charge of designed deception, and an imposition 

 executed on the buyers and the public. The true 

 issue is not whether this corn is a good kind, or not, 

 but 1st. whether Mr. Thorburn, when he first re- 

 commended and offered it for sale, kmw it to be 

 such — and 2nd, whether its sale was not urged by 

 false pretences. In our first denunciation of this 

 humbug, (page 490, vol. vi.) when republishing 

 Thorburn's original advertisement and statement, 

 we took the same ground which we slill maintain. 

 When exposing all the other pretences there made, 

 we expressly declined saying any thing against 

 the productive value of the corn. Our words then 

 were these : " Of the corn itself, it may or may not 

 be a good kind. It would be as presumptuous in 

 us, upon this [Thorburn's] statement, to pro- 

 nounce it of no greater value than the ordinary 

 kinds, as it is in Mr. Thorburn to assume so much 

 value for it, upon his few fads, and very slight 

 experience of Us growth. We merely believe that 

 it is of no superior value to other kinds, (except 

 like spring wheat, as a humbug,) but do not pre- 

 tend to know it." If then, by possibility, this 

 should prove to be, (what not the least proof has 

 been presented now, and much less a year tigo,) 

 a truly valuable and productive kind, it would be 

 an accidental result, which Thorburn had no 

 ground to anticipate last year, nor to promise — 

 and which his now two years experience would 

 still be insufficient to establish, even if his own 

 declarations are to be taken as proper evidence of 

 the facts. We therefore will not permit Mr. Thor- 

 burn to make up a new issue, upon which to try 

 his claim to truth and integrity. The question is 

 not, and never has been, whether a particular par- 

 cel (or different parcels) or variety of corn was a 

 good kind to cultivate ; but the following several 

 other points were the matters in question, viz : 



1. Whether the foreign origin of the corn was 

 truly stated? 



2. Supposing the oritrin to be truly stated, whe- 

 ther G. Thorburn knew, or had any sufHcient 

 ground for belief^ (hat the corn he so highly re- 

 commended, and sold so high, deserved his com- 

 mendation, or indeed vvas worth any preference? 



3. Whether the giving the whole net proceeiis 

 of the sales in charity has not been even more of 

 a deception than we anticipated and stated at first. 



Now in his reply, Mr. T. merely again offers his 

 own assertion, and the favorable opinion of a Itjw 

 individuals as to the matter not at issue, and not 

 disputed (though certainly not believed) by us, 

 and says not a word as to the matters which were 

 really in dispute— but which iiis silence will now 

 leave no longer questionable. He has not ad- 

 duced the testimony of the merchant in New York 

 who, as he elated, found the original seeds in a 



