^{)c jTavmci's iHoutI)lij llirittor. 



127 



Farming in Belgium. 



From l!ic Journal of ttie Uigliland Ag. i^uciefy of t^colland. 

 'I'he lirst oliject ami {.neiit iii/ii ol'ii FIciiiisli liiiin- 

 ev is lo iiiiike or f;cl iii:iiui](; ; ;iinl lo r:iny lliis iji- 

 to t'tlei't, nolliiiig lliat c;mi coiiliihiiti! in Uio If.-i.st 

 111 iiicieiisilig a tliiiiyliill is llirou [) (lUiiy. IIl- 

 I'lillivulL'S (ciuil tor ciillle, tliui lies tijcdi ii|> till tlic 

 junr roiinil, tliiit lie iiuiy not lose any of llie iiin- 

 riiiru. lit; .vows ru(iu anil allous i[ to lilossoin 

 iiiiiJ i'i|>(:ti, tliat lie may olilaiii llie ceeil for ina- 

 iiiiri.'. His iislies-carl and tiiine-liancls liaviMse 

 every slieet in a town, eveiy liy-way in llie coun- 

 try, to collect tliis ini|ioiiant necessary liir liis 

 (linn. It is in tlieir fnanaj;i'inent here that tlie 

 f'ainiers ot' BL'lj;inni e.v<-el lliosc of every otiiei 

 conntry, unil are tlins enabled to extract more 

 f'roiii tlie land than any other body ol' liirniors. 

 They act up, in short, to the true old adage that 

 " iMiicU is the milher o' the meal kist." The |irin- 

 cipal manures nsed are larm-yard diMii;, mine 

 or liquid manure, rape-cake, and ashes. Mine- 

 rals are seldom used, and hones are almost un- 

 known. I (ilhided Indole to the eomjiaratively 

 {;real numher of .■miinals kept liy ihe Flemisli 

 iin mers on their lew acre.". 'Jhis tliey do princi- 

 pally (iir making m.innre, toenahle them to cany 

 on their .system of rarniing. On a liirm ol' C.'i a- 

 ore.«, 3 horses and 15 milch cows, and .several 

 heifers for snppl_\ ini; the slock were kept throni;h 

 the year, besides (i cows and a few calves that 

 were fullened yearly. In anotherof 77 acres ex- 

 tent, 4 horses and 20 cows, wiili a requisite num- 

 ber of heifers, were kept, besides lioni 20 to 30 

 calves beiufi tiitteiied otl" yearly ; and a thiiil, of 

 88 acres, 5 horses and 20cous, besides heilers 

 and calves, were kept. These farms were all 

 arable, and were siinated in one of the finest dis- 

 tricts in Heigimn. i\losl every crop receives 

 some of this farmyard duiij.', which is always well 

 rotted before being applied. One of the pecu- 

 liarities of the Flemish system is the extensive 

 and various uses they make of the mine from 

 the animals kept on their farms. Every one has 

 heard of the urine tanks of Flanders, which are 

 to be lirnmd allover the conntry, at home, and in 

 the field.--. They are built in a most suhstaulial 

 manner, and so far undi r ground that when they 

 are covered in, the fanner is enabled to cultivate 

 the soil over them. Coniracts are generally en- 

 tered into between the farmers and those in 

 towns who have uiiicli of this at command, such 

 as biewer.s, distillers, &,c., who (iiiten animals 

 li'om the refuse of their works. £"2 [810] is coin- 

 moiih/ given for the urine of one aninuilfur a yenr. 

 'J'he larmers, at stated periods, convey, liy means 

 of barrel-carls, what is collected in towns to his 

 siihterraiieous receptacles at the comers of his 

 fields, to be ready for the seed time. The crop 

 to which ills principally applied is flax; and 

 then they dissolve it iii rape cake, which renders 

 it a mo^t powerful manure. Alter the flaxseed 

 has been sown and covered in and rolled, so that 

 the surllice is made ipiile smoolli, they proceed 

 to apply this mixlure. Jt is applied in the lollo\v- 

 iug manner: — Five men are emidoyed allogelh- 

 er, two to pump, two to scatter it, and one to 

 (hive it. A rectangular piei'e of ground, thiriy 

 yards in bivadih is measured ofl'across the ridge ; 

 this is sub-divided into six porlions of five yards 

 each. The liehl was laid off in ridges of ten 

 yards. Six wooden vessels are filled, and placed 

 in the middle of a ridge, at a distance of five 

 yards from one another ; so that the contents of 

 ea(di vessel which is about the size of a potato 

 firlet, is the allowanci- for every fifiy square yards. 

 There is nothing in which ibey manilest" such 

 economy as in saving of this m.-uerial which they 

 prize as a most valuable assistant to their labors. 

 Kape-cake, besides being applied, a.s mentioned 

 above, with the liquid manure, is also used in a 

 dry state. The rape is cultivated principally as 

 manure, and is nsed extensively where the crop- 

 ping is very severe. Ashes are never nseil but 

 as a lop dressing to clover ; but the tratBc uhich 

 is carried on in them hrtvvceii Holliind and Bel- 

 gium is sufficient to (orin a disiinct trade with 

 a certain class of merchants iii Bi-lgiuiii. 'I'lie 

 fanners in Belgium set a high value on them, 

 and place so much dependence on llieiu for the 

 success of iheir clover crop, ihat (I understand 

 from what I have read) there is a cuiieiit sanug 

 among them, '• He who buys ashes liir his crovel- 

 cro|i pays nothing; but lie that does it not pays 

 double." 



An Elephant's Doings. — We learn by a gen- 

 tleman of this city, who was at Lockporl nn Saturday, 

 that at noon of that day an elcpli.'int heloiiging to a 

 menagerie exiiihiting there, walked out of his tent to- 

 ward a spall of horrft'S nltaclied to a wagon some Iwt'ii- 

 ly rods oil'. The liorsis took fright as the huge lieast 

 approached them, broke loose and run u few rods to 

 the angle of a fence; the elephant followed, capsized 

 the wagon and threw the horses .some two rods over 

 the fence. One of the horses rose with several hro- 

 ken rilis, and nianaginl to (escape his assailant, which 

 fell upon the olher wiili its tusks, lore out his entrails, 

 and coiiliaiied to loss liiiii along the fence some ten 

 rods or more. ,'\t this lime the keeper, who was at 

 dinner when the elephant escaped from the tent, came 



up and called the eli-phant hy n e. 'I'lie elephant 



iimiiediately obeyed the word, and followed the keep- 

 er to an orchard about a hundred rods oil', where he 

 was senircd hy strong chains made fast to the trunk of 

 a full grown tree. Just as our informant left in thoaf- 

 lernoon, he heard that the elephant had uprooted the 

 tree to which he was faslened, and had injured a man; 

 hut learned no particulars. 'Ihe rnge of ihe elephant, 

 it is said, was caused hy some tobacco concealed in 

 the food that some of the bystanders offered him. Peo- 

 I»Ii; cannot he too cautious how they triHein such a way 

 with an elephant. — Bujj'ulo Com. 



I.ooK OUT FOR HER ! — .^n old and respectable 

 citizen of Troy was shamefully imposed upon the oth- 

 er day hy a female swindler. The lady, who is about 

 50 years of age, and of most respeclahle appearance, 

 met him in the street and asked lo he directed to the 

 residence of one of our clergymen. '1 he old gentle- 

 man showed her the house, hut the minister was from 

 home, and ihe old lady, being " much fatigued in con- 

 sequence of having travelled all night hy canal," rc- 

 (|uested to he conducted to some place where she could 

 rest for a few minutes. Her guide kindly took her to 

 his own dwelling. Here she told a most palhelic sto- 

 ry. She had unfortunately exchanged trunks with an- 

 other lady on lier way from the North. Her own 

 trunk had money, clothing, &c. in it, while the one 

 she had received in exchange contained nothing of val- 

 ue; and " 60 cents was all she had in the world." 



Her tale excited compassion, and a lady, the wife 

 of one of our merchants, residing in the same house, 

 made up a purse among her friends for the poor wan- 

 derer, who received the same and went on her way 

 rejoicing. After her departure, the old gentlemen, in 

 whose parlor she had been sutl'ered to make herself 

 at home, discovered that she had stolen some of the 

 most valuable articles of his wife's wardrobe, &c. — 

 She had induced him to go into River .street to learn 

 the address of a nephew, who she professed to believe 

 resided in this city, and during his absence had robbed 

 iheroom. She has probably gone to New York. Look 

 out for her. — Troy Whig. 



The E.\rthquake.' — In Portsmoiiih, the sound 

 was like a heavy wagon passing over frozen ground. 

 We have made particular enquiiies respecting the ef- 

 fect felt at Deertield, where the strange " noises " are 

 so frequently heard. We learn that this shock was 

 felt the same there as elsewhere — wholly unlike the 

 sounds they so often hear, which resemble the explo- 

 sion at the hlastiug of a rock, without rumbling. 



.fudge Butler, of Deerfield, informs us that at his 

 residence this shock was much lighler than some of 

 their local earthquakes or explosions. It is not far 

 from his neighborhood that these sounds appear lo 

 originate, as they have rarely been heard for a distance 

 over live miles from this centre. Rods of stone wall 

 have been thrown down near him, and his house been 

 so shaken as to rattle all the doors, open one of them, 

 and occasion the clock to strike. Up to the first of Ju- 

 ly no sound had been heard for about a month — then 

 some violent shocks were felt, and since that limo 

 scarcely a week has elapsed without them. At the 

 lime last year when the stone walls were thrown dow n, 

 and a cellar w.dl thrown in, Judge B. informs us that 

 he was in a field, where he felt such a tremulousness 

 of the ground, and apparently an ujjjieaving, that he 

 came uear falling. — Forts. Journul. * 



Low Fare. — In July, 1845, 18,110 persons passed 

 between New York and Boston, by way of Providence 

 and .Norwirh. 'I'lie receipts were it35,!)63. Duriii" 

 Ihe month of July, 1846, 12,209 passengers : receipts 

 i:45,208 — owing to an increase of^ the rales of fare. — 

 This seems to prove that excessive low rates are not 

 adv.intageous to the interests of railroad companies. 



R.MLWAY Amusements. — The youngsters who 

 haunt about the railway crossings in ami near Canter- 

 bury amuse themselves, when the policeman's hack is 

 turned, with laying small articles on the iron lo be 

 crushed hy the train passing over. Pins placed length- 

 ways are thus curiously flatlened to an extreme degree 

 of thinness, and hear a premium in the charity school 

 exchange far above the original value. A juvenile 

 specniator having submitted a fourpenny piece to the 



process, found that ho could pass it for a sixpence; ela- 

 ted with the discovery, he placed another, which ho 

 had received in change for the first, on the newly dis- 

 covered mint, but lo his astonishment the wheels of 

 the carriage carried it entirely away, and he thus re- 

 mained minus twopence hy Ibis luckless exercise of 

 his ingenuity.— iloK/- Eiig. Tclcgruph. 



The Nightmare on a Steamboat. — A ter- 

 rible consternation was created on board the Hendrick 

 Hudson, on Friday night, as she was ploughing her 

 way from .Mbaiiy to New ^'ork. .Ml the passengers 

 were soundly asleep, and nothing could he beard but 

 the movements of the engine, v\ hen a fellow lumped 



from his berth, and, at the lop of his voice, cried 



" Fire, fire, fire — we are all gone — all lost!" Instant- 

 ly, every soul was aroused, and on deck — terror and 

 confusion ensued, and a scene followed which appalled 

 the stoutest heart — when, fortunately, it was discoier- 

 ed that the alarm proceeded from a passenger who was 

 troubled with the nightmare! 



Steam on the MEBRiM.icK. — The experiment 

 of navigating the Merrimack river between Newburv- 

 port and H.iverhill seems to be very successful. 'I he 

 Newbuiyport Herald of Saturday morning says: " tha 

 harbor and river were enveloped in a thick fog, yester- 

 day. The La^^■rence v\ent through her regular trips, 

 except the evening trip down, when she slopped at 

 .^mesbury Kerry, and sent her passengers, about 40 in 

 number, down by land. She took up yesterday noon, 

 a p.irty of about 100 which had encamped on Plum 

 Island, two nights, and landed hist evening about 600 

 in Ameshury." 



For the I-'armer's Monllily Visitor. 



Henniker, JV. H., Aug. 31, 1846. 



Hon. 1. Hill: — Some two or three weeks since 

 1 noiiced an article copied by yon from the 

 ••Philadelphia Fanner's Cahinei,""(I think it wtis) 

 originally communicated by J. S. Grisconi of 

 Moorestown, N. J., entitled, '• Prospecis llir emi- 

 gration in Fastcrn Virginia," in which the author 

 offers to give fiirllier iuliirmation on personal ap- 

 plicalion or by letter post paid, &c. At the re- 

 (pii'st of a friend I addressed a letter to him, ami 

 received, a few days since, an answer, of which 

 the following is a literal copy. 



Presuming, from the iiilerest you take in the 

 agricultural iiilerejts of our country, that its pe- 

 rusal wonhl nut he vviihout interest to yourself, 

 and that you would bo more likely to make such 

 a notice of it, as is sngyeslcd uear the close, than 

 any of the other eilimrs, I have concluded to take 

 the liberty to send you a copy of it, and you will 

 make such use of it (if any) as yon please, which 

 in J/ouc opinion will be consistent with the feel- 

 ings and wishes of the author. I do not wish, 

 however, to have my own name or this note lo 

 be made public. 



lam, sir, with much respect. 



Your Oli't Serv't, 



^^ Moorestown, Burlinaioti Co., JV. J. t 

 8 mo. 'J I, 184G. 

 "Respecti;d Frie.nd: — Thine of lltli iiist. 

 came to baud last evening. It gives lue sin- 

 cere pleasure to answer thy inquiries. I have 

 engaged in this concern solely because I be- 

 lieve that ill opening a new field for emigrants 

 from the Norili, I shall be (loin:; my fellow men 

 service. J own no land in Virginia, and have no 

 pecuniary interest in view. I give my views fiee- 

 ly, and so far as 1 am .ahle, vviihont gloss. From 

 my own knowledge I believe Eastern Va. one of 

 the most fivored spots upon the liice of the earth, 

 ill its natural endowinents — the soil, climate, 

 ahundaiice of means to restore and sustain the 

 fertility of the soil, its unsurpassed navigable riv- 

 ers, stored with a profiision of fish, oysters and 

 fowl, and aflbrdingthe easiest and cheapest trans- 

 portation to any part of our coiiutry, or any other 

 country. Railroads, too, are exleuding wherever 

 lliere is bii>iiiess for them. We go now from 

 Phil.-idelphia to the extreme south part of the 

 State in about 20 hour.--, ami the cost is about $8 

 or $\0. The whole of the country from the me- 

 ridian of Wa.-hingtou to ihe Chesapeake is open 

 to the imlusirious people of the North at prices 

 varying from SI to ^30 per acre; at the latter 

 price the liMildings are fine and costly, often eiii- 

 bracing very valuable mills, &.c. As a general 

 rule, iiood land wiih tolerable buildings and fa- 

 cililies fiir mu imlusirious man to make a livinif 

 at once, may be had from $'5 to $'8 per acre. 

 There are nniiuuibered beautiful situations on 

 the Potomac, Kappahaunock, York, James and 



