1835.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



245 



more hands (I do not. know thai the physical force 

 is greater,) and fewer horses than at Curie' . and 

 great use is made of thai valuable animal the ox. 



Mr. S. says that from $1000 to $3000 worth of 

 corn has been regularly sold from Curie's each 

 year. Nov.- when we consider the extent, and fer- 

 tility of that fine estate, and that all the pork used 

 upon it is purchased, this is astoi little to 



lie derived from that crop. 



In conclusion 1 must say that, although on the 

 very best hinds, and with the very best manage- 

 ment, i lie new system may answer very well, and 

 I cannot doubt that it will; yet on ordinary land, 

 with ordinary management, ! am very far from 

 thinking that it will ever be found to succeed. If 

 I have not been misinformed, I believe that you, 

 sir, have tried this system, and I am sure that 

 many of your subscribers, myself among the 

 number, will be, both edified and gratified, it' you 

 will afford us the light, which you arc so well 

 qualified, by experience and otherwise, to throw 

 upon the subject.* 



I will now remark, that it has been my object 

 to discuss this subject fairly and freely, but with- 

 out saying a single word otherwise than respectful 

 and kind; and [ hope that my friend Mr. S. will 

 receive what I have written in the same spirit of 

 perfect kindness and good will, in which it ema- 

 nates from me. 



W1U. B. HARRISON. 



From the New York Fanner. 

 HOPS. 



The opinions of intelligent and practical men, 

 or rather the results of their own actual experi- 

 ments, are of great value. This applies particu- 

 larly to small farmers, whose operations, being on 

 a limited scale, receive their immediate personal 

 attention. In looking at such results, however; 

 those who farm on a large scale are liable to be 

 led into error in expecting that the same will fol- 

 low an extended cultivation, forgetting that the 

 success is in many cases mainly to be ascribed to 

 this minute personal attention, stimulated and 

 strengthened by self-interest. In extended con- 

 cerns, that attention cannot always be given; and 

 as much hired labor is employed, the powerful 

 motives of interest do not operate. The large 

 and enterprising farmer, therefore, must take tins 

 into consideration; as his concerns extend them- 



*Our personal experience of the new four-shift sys- 

 tem is so limited, and the all important part of it, the 

 fallow process, has been so imperfectly executed, that 

 our practice would be worse than worthless, as afford- 

 ing an example for imitation. But they who have 

 committed the greatest errors may be at least trusted 

 to point them out for the avoidance of others — and in 

 that manner only can the results of our experience be 

 of any value. But as imperfect as may be our views 

 on this interesting subject, as they have been called 

 for, they shall be presented at some early time — upon 

 the ground that we hold every reader of, and contri- 

 butor to this journal to be hound to answer, so far as 

 may be in his power, such inquiries as may be address- 

 ed to him by any other reader and contributor. — Ed. 

 Farm Reg. 



selves. are multiplied; and il the results 



of his cultivation are not proportionately corres- 

 pondent to those of the small larmer, he must of- 

 ten place it to the account, of circumstances abso- 

 lutely beyond his control. Nothing valuable in 

 this world is accomplished without perseven 

 labor, fidelity, and attention. This is one of the 

 wise provisions in the constitution of things; one 

 of the benificent laws of a righteous Provid 

 On the other hand, labor, perseverance, fidelity, 

 raid attention, seldom fail, in ordinary circum- 

 stances, of reasonable success. The business of 

 the farmer particularly demands his attention, and 

 his ill fortune may be but too often traced to ne- 

 glect, to this want of personal attention, to the di- 

 vision of his care among other pursuits, or to a 

 miscalculation in extending his operations beyond 

 his power of immediate and careful superinten- 

 dence. These remarks often occur to me in my 

 visits among our small farmers, with whom I have 

 been much in ihe habit of familiar, agreeable, and 

 instructive intercourse; whose affairs are managed 

 under their own immediate and constant personal 

 attention, and among whom 1 often meet, with 

 the highest pleasure, with examples in a small 

 way of eminent success. I have been long ac- 

 customed to note, the observations of such men, 

 and to gather and record any facts which they 

 have been kind enough to communicate, where I 

 knew I could rely upon the correctness of their 

 statements. I now send you some information, ob- 

 tained in this way, in relation to the cultivation of* 

 hops by two farmers, who cultivate a small farm in 

 partnership, in a town in Vermont, on the Connec- 

 ticut river. 



Messrs. D. & II., in 1833, from four acres obtain- 

 ed 3000 pounds, which sold for 20 cents per pound. 

 In 1834, from five and one-halt' acres they obtain- 

 ed 4000 pounds, which sold for 15 cents per pound. 

 In 1833 they judged that their land, alter deduct- 

 ing all expenses, yielded an income of $100 per 

 acre. 



Hops are planted eight feet apart in hills. The 

 cuttings are planted, and Indian corn is cultivated 

 among them the first year, about half as thick as 

 when planted by itself. The corn and hops are 

 hoed at the same time. The second year the 

 hops are polled and a crop gathered. 



Green barn manure is thought to be injurious 

 to the vines. Fall manure, or compost, is deemed 

 best. The hills are opened in the spring; the 

 vines are then trimmed, the ground loosened, and 

 the manure applied to the hill. The field must be 

 kept clean of weeds. The hops are gathered by 

 hand. Women are employed in the picking at 20 

 cents per day. They require to be kiln-dried im- 

 mediately, as they are very liable to be injured by 

 heating in the heap. From 45 to 75 lbs. are kiln- 

 dried at a time, and the process of drying occupies 

 about 12 hours. After drying they are put into a 

 heap and suffered to sweat a little, and then con- 

 veyed to be packed and bagged, which is done by 

 a screw press. They are packed and screwed for 

 about $5 per ton, and are then sent to market 

 without delay. The manner and condition in 

 which they are put up is of the greatest, impor- 

 tance, for if the inspector discovers, on trying the 

 bag, the whole bag is condemned. Spruce poles 

 for hops, about 15 feet high, cost here one cent 

 apiece. Messrs. !). & II. gave 2-5 cents per one 



