1835.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



231 



say, that he delivers his opinions — however im- 

 portant the subject, rather too abruptly. For in- 

 stance, he asserts — without the slightest, doubt or 

 qualification, that as to plants, "the earths afford 

 no real nourishment themselves, but act entirely 

 as exciting agents." Now, do not all agricultu- 

 rists admit that there is such a thing as the food of 

 plants, and that it is supplied either by the earths, or 

 bij water, or by both? Will they not also admit, 

 that "exciting agents 1 ' cannot, with any propriety, 

 be called suppliers of food'? Where then is 

 Galen's authority for assuming that as a fact uni- 

 versally admitted, in support of which, he oflers 

 nothing, but his ipse dixit? His concluding; sen- 

 tence furnishes another instance of a highly im- 

 portant assertion, entirely without qualification, or 

 illustrative argument to sustain it. I subjoin his 

 own words: "There is a wonderful similarity be- 

 tween the vegetable and animal world; they are 

 both governed by the same laivs — the various 

 agents that act upon them arc similar," (to both 

 these assertions there are numerous and stri- 

 king exceptions,) — "their organization in many 

 respects the same, and they both possess motion, 

 sensation, and life." This last assertion also, is 

 much too broad; for, not to cavil at the term, "pos- 

 sess motion," instead of the power of motion, the 

 motion and sensation ascribed to vegetables are as 

 really unlike the motion and sensation of animals, 

 as any two things can possibly be, between which 

 any sort of resemblance has been supposed to 

 exist. Such fanciful analogies may do very well 

 as ornaments of style, but not for scientific agri- 

 culture." 



"Commentntor" thinks I have delivered my 

 opinions "rather too abruptly" — be it so. [ wish, 

 however, to be particularly understood, and if 

 "Commentator" has read my communicalion in 

 the February No. of the Farmers' Register with 

 attention, he wili do me the justice to say, that I 

 confined my remarks to the simple or primilive 

 earths, viz: silex, lime, magnesia, alumine, and 

 barytes, and not to compound earlhs containing 

 foreign or extraneous matters. With all due res- 

 pect to the opinions of "Commentator," I must 

 be permitted to remark, that I have been educated 

 1o believe, and do now believe, primitive earths 

 afford no real nourishment to plants, but act on 

 vegetable and animal matters, hastening their 

 decomposition: and the principles arising from the 

 decomposition of water, ahv vegetable and animal 

 matters, feed and nourish plants. If the. food of 

 plants is supplied from primitive earth, why the 

 necessity of adding manure? Seed, deposited in 

 silex, lime, magnesia, alumine, or barytes, may 

 possibly germinate, and live until the germ has 

 devoured its farinaceous matter, but they cannot 

 possibly mature with all the atmospheric air and 

 water that can be given. This I suspect "Com- 

 mentator" will admit, and if admitted, would it 

 not be fair, at least, to infer that they do not con- 

 tain in themselves any nourishment, but act on 

 foreign agents as stimulants or excitants? "Com- 

 mentator" asks this plain question, "now, do not 

 all agriculturists admit that there is such a thing 

 as the food af plants, and that it is supplied either 

 by the earths, or by water, or by both? Will 

 they not also admit, that 'exciting agents' cannot, 

 with any propriety, be called suppliers of food?" 

 Yes, all agriculturists must admit that there is 

 fc'uch a thing as the lood of plants, but I am 



strongly inclined to think, all will not admit that 

 it is supplied by the primitive earths. Again, I 

 take leave very respectfully to remark, that "Com- 

 mcnlator" is mistaken if he is under the impres- 

 sion that I have stated exciting agents are sup- 

 pliers of food — I have not, nor did I intend to 

 convey such an idea; I merely stated, that earths 

 were exciting agents — lime, for instance, acts upon 

 straw, or some extraneous matters, and becomes 

 the exciting agent in their decomposition. 



With regard to my concluding sentence, which 

 seems to "Commentator" so very objectionable, I 

 believe philosophers of every age have thought 

 with me, or perhaps I have thought with them, that 

 "there is a wonderful similarity between the vege- 

 table and animal world, &c." Yes, the variouslaws 

 and agents, I think, are similar, for they are both 

 acted upon by similar causes, viz: light, heat, air, 

 water, food, etc.; and I might add, that both king- 

 doms are surrounded by ten thousand irritants, 

 that act upon, and effect them in a similar way. 



I believe vegetables not only have the power of 

 motion, but possess motion in some degree, and 1 

 am not alone in this belief. Many plants are said 

 to recede from the approach of the finger, and we 

 have all seen the tall sun-flower turn to the great 

 luminary, face to face, and follow him throughout 

 the day. With respect to vegetable motion and 

 sensation, I do admit it to be very unlike the mo- 

 tion and sensation of animals. As it regards "fan- 

 ciful analogies," they are common, quite common: 

 perhaps they are to be found in some of the "Re- 

 marks on the papers contained in Nos. 9, 10, 11, 

 of the Farmers' Register," my "ipse dixit" to the 

 contrary notwithstanding. I nm much pleased 

 with "Commentator's remarks," and regret that 

 he did not commence with the first Yol. of the 

 Farmers' Register. 



GALEN. 



The following letter was evidently written as soon 

 as the article referred to had been read, and before 

 noticing that the earlier piece of "Viator" had been 

 discovered and republished in a later sheet of the same 

 No. But though the first purpose of our correspon- 

 dent has been anticipated, his after observations are 

 not the less interesting and deserving of notice. 



ON MILKING COWS. 



To the Editor of the Fanners' Register. 



Baltimore, July 3, 1S35. 



I was much pleased this morning with the ar- 

 ticle in your July No. on the spaying of cows, 

 and write this note merely for the purpose of put- 

 ting you in possession of the information necessary 

 to complete the historical part of the discovery. 

 In Vol. XIII, page 53 of the American Farmer, 

 (April 29, 1831,) you will find an article copied 

 from the New England Farmer, signed "Viator," 

 which contains the first and only record of Mr. 

 Winn's experiments. It is undoubtedly the arti- 

 cle from which the French obtained the sugges- 

 tion; and this will not appear strange when it is 

 recollected, that the American Farmer was regu- 

 larly received by one or more of the agricultural 

 societies of France, by Lafayette, and several 

 others. I have full confidence in the success of 

 the experiment, if fairly and properly tried; but 



