42 



^l)c immer's iUontljb bisitor. 



cnmliiiintion with tlips>e tissiie:=, or in cijrtain se-. 

 cretions and excrotiniia. As tlii^ pigments of the 

 nniinal lissiics ;iri' ideiitiral in coiMiiosilion with 

 certain parts of vi>j;clal)les, which alone form 

 them, we may infer, thai in the animal and veiie 

 table systems, the -salts perform similar part;". 

 Rigid analysis wonid prohahly sIkhv that the salts 

 are .nlways pro|iortional to the tiesh-formiiij; prin- 

 ciples. As in the animal lioily. the salts form imi 

 fat, so in the voiretalile, they form not a part of 

 starch, fliim, sn;.'ar, wood. Essential they are to 

 tlie formation of the filant, liy whieh the tiit-forni- 

 inir principles are prodnceil, and e(pially essen- 

 tial to the jjrowth of the animal body. How ihey 

 net, is unknown. It is determined by chemistry, 

 that the salts form certain definite proportions of 

 certain parts of the body. We may infer then, 

 that their action is, to fnrin only the snbstances 

 of which they are essential elements. If suppli- 

 ed in quantity frreater than the body reqifn'es to 

 form these elemeins, they would |>roliably be e.\- 

 creted as n.seless I'ldess then, you have son)e 

 evidence that salts act on animaU, as in some 

 cases on plants, to increase bulk and develope- 

 ment, the position that salts e.xert "a greater ac- 

 tion, in proportion to their quantity, upon the 

 animal system, than the orfranized matters," re- 

 qifn-es farther proof Now this proof, chemistry 

 expects from practice<l cattle-feeders and stock- 

 raisers. The analyses above, comjiared with your 

 experience, may throw some lisht upon the sub- 

 ject. 



With regard, Jam your ob't serv't. 



SAM'L. L. DANA. 

 Lowell, Feb. 28, 1843. 



AORICDLTURE A SlTBJF.CT FOR StUUT. — "If 

 there was ever a subject iiresenting I'ood for 

 intellectual inquiry, that subject is agriculture, 

 invtdvini.', as it <lo>s, the most subtle operations, 

 and the deepest myst"ries of nature. It is the mind 

 which constitutes the tri.e diirnily of our nature. 

 Without it, man would be a mere machine ; with 

 it, lie becomes a divinity. It is for the farmers to 

 come to a knowlerlge of the true character of 

 their great calling, and place it where it belongs, 

 among the liberal professions, iind among the 

 most exalted of sciences. Formerly, whenever 

 there was a lame or delormed child in the fanfdy, 

 it Wiis thought lie would do lor a tailor or a min- 

 ister ; and if he was a dunce or a bloukheail, he 

 would answer for a liirmer. These prcpidices 

 are gone, and that stock is nearly worked out. 

 Agricidture is assuming its proper place among 

 the pursuits of itieii; and, yielding to none mider 

 heaven, in nsefidness, in honesty, and intrinsic 

 respectability, let us seek to prove, that while it 

 presents objects to call out and interest, it is 

 every way wortiiy of the application of the 

 Jiighest talents which ever fell to the lot of man. 



"I have already said that the glory of man is 

 bis ir.ind. If his animal nature is curious, and 

 wonderl'nl, his iniellectual nature is transcendent 

 and divine. This places him at the head of the 

 animal creation. In his miuil .are the secret 

 sources of that energetic amhorily, which sub- 

 jects the most powerliil elements of the physical 

 world to his sceptre, and makes him the 'mon- 

 arch of all lie snrvevs.' We see every where, 

 what an influence .and standinij the high cnltiva- 

 lion of the mind cives to every man u ho li.is it 

 in conmumity. No official sl.itiou; jio m:iss of 

 wealth so elevates a man; ami even if \\e were 

 cursed with tlie tiristocratii^ distinciions which 

 prevail in otiier (oimtries, such is the spreading 

 influence of intelligence, that the cidiivaiion of 

 the mind would eu.ilile the man lo triniiiph over 

 them all. To attain excellence in any art, the 

 princi|iU'S of that .art require to In' made the ob- 

 jects of specific iiupfiry and study. 



"In order to a successful practice, the tu't must 

 be learnt as well as the science — the execution 

 as well as the theory. The best prospect of 

 success is when they are uni;ed ; when si-icnce 

 directs the application of , art, and ail in its turn 

 riemonstrates the lesson of scieii'-e. 



"None of the labors of the farm, excepting 

 wbere tliey are excessive, require any intensity 

 of application nr any abstraction of mind, which 

 would interfere with the most active exercise of 

 t!ie intellectual powers on subjects quite foreign 

 fiom tlie farmer's immediate occiqialion. He 

 may comnnine intimately with nature even when 

 bending over his hoe; lie may talk reverentially 

 with God about hie wotider-workiiig providence, 



from between the handles of his plow : and lie 

 may olten in his fields hear the deep voice of a 

 divine pliiloso|ihy speaking lo his soul, as the 

 shepherds heard a message from heaven, while 

 lliey were counting the stars and watching their 

 sleeping flocks upon the plains of JJabylon. — 

 Colman's Ainicuttund Address at Rochester. 



From the (Cleveland Daily Herald. 



The Dairy.— -Treatment of Cows.— Butter 

 Making. 



Change of Pastures. — To insure the production 

 of the largest quantity of butter, a frequent 

 change of pasture is required. A farm should 

 be so fenced that the cows can be changed into 

 a different lot every four ur five days. 



Hatting. — A constant and full supply of salt 

 should lie before our cows in some secure place. 

 They will eat moderately what they require. If 

 only occasionally furnished, they often take it in 

 quantities so large, as to act medicinally to their 

 injury. 



it corrects almost any bad quality of the milk, 

 arising from the eating of aromatic, or bitter 

 herbs, and also much of the natural animal 

 odor, that frequently impairs the sweetness of 

 butter. 



Driving — kind treatment. — Many a faithful cow 

 lias been seriously injured by a careless boy 

 driving her furiously to and from the pasture. 

 All harsh treatment of any kind, as scolding, 

 striking, kiiiking, &.c. is also detrimental. I have 

 known mtiny cows rendered worthless from 

 these causes. The utmost kindness and gentle- 

 ness of manner must be shown on the part of 

 those who manage our slock. 



Milking. — This process should be done syste- 

 matically, at regular periods of the day. Sun- 

 rise and sunset are perhaps the best periods; for 

 immediately after the one, and before the other, 

 cows in hot weather feed to the best advantaire. 

 They are so much creatures of habit, that the 

 milker shoiilil be changeil as rarely as possible. 

 A stranger is always regarded as an unwelcome 

 visiter, by a milch cow. 



Cleantinc.is ivilh the idoisils. — The pans, pails, 

 strainers, bowls, churn, and every implement 

 employed in butter making, must not only he 

 well washed, luit they must be thoroughly scald- 

 ed with boiling hot water, and be perfectly dried 

 afterwards, either in the sun or before a fire. 

 This must he repeated every lime they are used. 

 Merely pouring l)oiling water upon them when 

 loaded with sour milk or cream, will only serve 

 to scald in the liad flavor, if i may use the ex- 

 pression. Wash them at first, and then scald 

 them thoroughly, if you would have sweet but- 

 ter. 



There are certain filthy practices which slat- 

 terns liill into, that should be corrected — such 

 as wetting the cow's teals with milk, and jier- 

 milling it lo drop into the pail — milking in the 

 morning without washing the hands, &c. 



.Milk-house and Inillery. — In hot weather a good 

 spiiiig-house is necessary for the making of l)ut- 

 ter. It must he constructeil of either brick or 

 stone, and in no instance of wood, as that article 

 never fails, in such a sirualion, to become moul- 

 dy, and impair the flavor of butter. It must be 

 built so that it can be thoroughly ventilated. A 

 window should be placed on the north, east, and 

 west sides, which must be liirnished on the out- 

 side with wire gauze screens, and on the inside 

 with tight shutters. During the day, the shutters 

 must be dosed, and at night must he raised. 



A spring may be dispensed with — and it is 

 even problematical «hellier it does not, upon 

 the whole, do as much injury by imparling 

 dampness, as it does good by lowering the tem- 

 perature. A well constructed house without the 

 spring, will answer the purpose. It should be 

 shaded with trees, or arbors of grape-vines. .•\ll 

 mouldy and decaying wood-work, boards, boxes, 

 barrels. &c. niiist he kept out of it — iilso all for- 

 eign substances, as meats, fish and vegetables. 

 The air of my spring-house was rnineii fi>r a 

 week or more, merely by [dacing in it a few 

 mackerel. 



f^kimmiiig the milk. — In hot weather the milk 

 may he allowed to curdle before this 0[ieratiun 

 is performi d, but if it be delayed any longer, a 

 thin, watery finid \\ill form iietween the milk 

 and the cre.im, after which the good qualities 

 are inevitably destroyed. It is necessary, in mid- 

 Igummer, to skim the milk every morning and 



night. This point must receive the strictest at- 

 tention. Negle(!t of it often gives a streaked or 

 innitled appearance to butter, as well as impairs 

 its flavor. 



Cream. — As soon as it is collected it should he 

 placed in a stone crock, which should he either 

 hung into a well, or set up to the brim in the 

 spring within the milk-house. 



Churning. — This operation must be resorted 

 to as soon as a supply of cream is obtained, and 

 in hot weather cannot safely be delayed beyond 

 the third day. 



A variety of patent churns have been palmed 

 upon the public, none of which, we believe, is 

 to be preferred to the old fashioned ui)right dash- 

 er, or I he barrel. 



Working of butter. — This must be repeated un- 

 til every drop of the buttermilk is expelled; 

 twice or three times will be necessary, nor must 

 it he delayed too long, till a change begins to 

 take place in the remaining buttermilk, as that 

 will impair the flavor of the butter, which no 

 subsequent treatment can restore. 



Salting. — The salt slimild he added at the 

 commencement of the first working. Much of 

 our western butter is injured by the employment 

 of the common New York salt. The finest 

 ground article should be used. It can now he 

 obtained in sacks, of oitr tnerchants, at a reason- 

 able price. 



Good old WiLLi.vM West, the celebrated and 

 successful farmer of Delaware county, always 

 bad a large bed of compost, duly and properly 

 prepared in the field he intended to plant with 

 coin, wherewith lo dress it. He raised fine 

 crops and improved his farm, and left a good 

 example for others to follow. It was a maxim 

 with him " to be kind to the soil," and he leaped 

 his reward. 



Query, was there ever a fanner who annually 

 prepared and applied a good bed of compost to 

 his corn, who did not thrive and prosper in his 

 callinc? 



Winter in Russia. 



Under the head of" Winter in St. Petersbm-s," 

 we find the following in the Constitutionel : — says 

 the Ledger: 



" Winter is more variable at St. Petersburg 

 than at iMoscow ; that i.s, the cold does not reign 

 there with such continued severity. Thus, fur 

 instance, it is said not to be a rare circumstance 

 at Moscow, to find a tiuii peeling, or any other 

 nialter thrown by chance tiom a window, catch 

 on the balcony, and becoming immediately fro- 

 zen, remain there suspended for the most of the 

 winter. Such a case could not occur at St. Pe- 

 tersburg, where, although the tliermometer often 

 descends to 30 degrees of Remaur below zero, 

 (35i below zero ot Fahrenheit) the neighborhood 

 of the sea combats the icy winds of Siberia, and 

 unexpectedly brings on the most strange changes 

 in the temperature. It has never rained in tlie 

 memory of man at Mos-ow, during the months 

 of December and .lanuary. At St. Petersburg, 

 on the contrary, rain frequently falls dining these 

 two months, and at that period it has been con- 

 stantly the custom to replace carriages by sledg- 

 es. This latter kind of vehicle, which no person 

 gives lip, becomes the tnost convenient in the 

 world, i'eiiig driven in the midst of snow and 

 mud. The winter at St. Petersburg, on account 

 of the.sc sudden transitions, so nnexpecied and 

 so rapid, is far more formidable thiin at Moscow, 

 and to sirangers, who have not experienced its 

 efli'cis, is particularly serious. To defend one's 

 self fi-om the weather, the most constant and 

 miniitc precautions are required. 



" In October, the Russians, and all who have 

 been long in the country, assume fur clothes, and 

 keep them in continual wear until the month of 

 April, after tlu! ice has broken u]) on the Neva. 

 Smves are lit every where, and each family lays 

 in a stock of birch wood, the blaze of which is 

 more abundant than of any other woud. There 

 is a servant es|)ecially employed to attend to the 

 stoves, and his duty is to kee|) up as much as 

 possible, an etpial heat throughout the house. 

 The best stove-keepers, whose fame procures 

 them a high salary, are generally from Moscow. 

 Twenty degrees of cold do not appear astonish- 

 ing to an inhaliitant of St. Petersburg, though he 

 then casts a curious look at the thermometer. 

 At U3 or 2-1 degrees, constant rounds arc made 



