166 



The aged motlier rei'ovHied so far as to go ami 

 nurse liersick Ijoj— atiii in ilje iiieumiiiie llie el- 

 der brother, the last of the fiiiiiily, was also seiz- 

 ed with the lever. The mother "wutclied, with a 

 mother's solicitude, the fast-obliing- life of her 

 youngest boy, who was sinking into death's em- 

 brace. Ere long he too .lied— and in a few mo- 

 ments, when his bereaved parent saw lier loss, 

 she observed in a certain tone which too j)lainly 

 told of despair, 'Now that he is deail, I will go 

 home anrl mirse my last child ; and when he is 

 deai\, I too will liii/ mc down middle!' Oh, who 

 can picture the agony of that bereaved and heart- 

 broken woman! Words cannot ^o it, and none 

 Imta parent can feel that mother's misery. What 

 an awful chasu) has been made in her bosom, 

 tiever, never in this world to be lilled '.''—Mercan- 

 tile Journal. 



^\)t banner's illoutljli) Ibisitor. 



From the Albany Cultivator. 

 Boinmer's Majiure Method put in practice. 



Messrs. Gaylord i,- Tucker .-—Being a subscri- 

 ber and constant reader of your valuable a'M'i- 

 cidtural publication, 1 frequently find there, alni- 

 cles on "Bommer's Method of making Mamn-e." 

 As these articles are chiefly from the pens of 

 agriculturists who have followed this method 

 with entire success, it affords me unfeigned plea- 

 sure to be able, on my own behalf, afso to bear 

 testimony to the value of this method, and 

 through the medium of your paper, to make the 

 results of my experiments and operations known 

 to my fellow citizens. This I do both for the 

 sake of bringing before the public the great ad- 

 vantages derived fiom using the method spoken 

 of, and the benefits insured me by its application 

 and at the same time in order to render a deser- 

 ved tribute to the truth. 



On purchasing Bommer's method last spriii"- 

 I immediately pre|)ared a heap in the presence 

 of a few neighbors. 1 followed strictly the di- 

 rections laid down in Bonuner's book. "After the 

 lapse of a fortnight, the heap was opened in the 

 presence of a number of Ihrmers, ami our aston- 

 ishment cannot be conceived on seeing the met- 

 umori)liosis which had taken place, as ue found 

 all those weedy and stramineous materials of 

 which the heap had been constructed, reduced to 

 rich black manure, having an ammoniac smell, 

 much more pungent than the best stable manure. 

 Beholding so surprising a result, the farmers 

 present formed themselves into a public meeting 

 and in that capacity nominated a commiitee from 

 their midst, who were charged with the |)re|>ara- 

 tion of a report of what we had seen, to he sent 

 to the agricultural press. 



I ploughed in this manure into one-half of a 

 field intended for potatoes, and in order to insti- 

 tute a comparison of effects, I put the same 

 quaniity ot my best stable manure into the other 

 half of the field. The effect on the soil was very 

 nearly the same with both these kinds of manure; 

 but the vegetation on that part of the field which 

 had been furnished with Bommer's manure, was 

 more lu.xunous and the foliage of a deeper ver- 

 dure, which I attribute to the richness of the sa- 

 line matter which it contains, and which alone 

 preserved the humidily of the soil duriu" the 

 severe drouth of this last season. It is proper to 

 remark also, that in the composition of the '-Bom- 

 mer manure," I employed simply such doses of 

 the mgredieuts as were absolutely necessary to 

 insure success in the operation of making it, and 

 If I had increased these quantities, there is not 

 the least doubt that the result of the Bommer 

 iminure would have been very fin superior lo 

 tliat o( any horse manure. 



Perfectly satisfied with my experiment anil its 

 resu ts, J have put up fixtures near my barnyard 

 tor the purpose of preparing large qiianiitie's of 

 this manure; and within the last two months 1 

 have made three heaps, which have yielded me 

 between 200 and 300 loads of excellent manure. 

 The last heap was composed entirely of 100 loads 

 of sedge grass, nearly dry, with which I inter- 

 mixed 40 loads of swampy matter, such as exists 

 on my farm. All my outlay in purchasing in"re- 

 dients to form the lye for this last heap, amounted 

 to between $20 and .$30, and in disbursing this 

 trifiing sum, I have made a heap of manure, 

 which I would not dispose of for S250. 



I shall prepare other heaps of manure before 

 the Winter sets in, and those who may be desi- 

 rous te see me at wojk and to assure themselves 



of the truth of what I have said, need only call 

 at my farm, and judge for themselves. 



The benefits which I derive from usins this 

 method are not inconsiderable. Before becoming 

 acquainted with it, I purchased every year from 

 three to five hundred dollars worth of manure, 

 which I needed over and above that of my own 

 farm yard, for the 200 acres wliich 1 have. Now 

 I do not purchase one penny's worth, and I can 

 make double the quantity if i choose. I have the 

 advantage of producing my manure in the sow- 

 ing and planting season, "l can make it more or 

 less strong, more or less fermented, so as to suit 

 the soil and the kind of crop for which I want it; 

 I spread and plough it in while it is |)erfectly 

 fresh, and consequently in all its strength. These 

 are some of the results experienced by ino in 

 using Boinmer's method of manuring land. 



GERRIT KOUWENHOVEN. 



Flatlands, L. L Sept. 15, 1843. 



Krom Hill's N. H. Patriot. 

 The Song of the Vennouters.*— 1T79. 



Ho— all to the borders ! Vermonters, come down. 

 With your breeches ot" deer-skin, and jackets of brown; 

 With your red woolen caps, and your moccasins, come 

 To the gathering summons of trumpet and drum. 



Come down with your rifles !— let gray wolf and fox 

 Howl on in the shade of their primitive rocks; 

 Let the hear feed securely from pig-pen and stall; 

 Here's a two-legged game for your powder and ball. 



On our South come the Dutchmen, enveloped in grease ; 

 And, arming for battle, while cantimr of peace ; 

 On our East, crafty Meshechf has ga'^thered his band. 

 To hang up our leaders, and eat out our land. 



Ho— all to the rescue ! For Satan shall work 

 No gain for his legions of Hampshire and York I 

 They claim our possessions,— the pitiful knaves.— 

 The tribute we pay, shall be prisons and graves ! 



Let Clinton and Ten Broek,{ with bribes in their hands, 

 Still seek to divide us, and parcel our lands ;^- 

 We've coats for our traitors, whoever they are ; 

 The warp is of /faWiers— the filling of tar !\ 



Does the " old bay State" threaten ? Does Con-ress 

 complain ? '^ 



Swarms Hainpshiic in arms un our borders a"ain ? 



Bark the war-dogs of Britain aloud on the lake ? 



Let 'em come ; — what they can, they are welcome to 

 tike. 



What seek they among us ? The pride of our wealth 

 Is comfort, contentment, and labor and health, 

 And lands which, as Freemen, we only have trod, 

 Independent of all, save the mercies of God. 



Yet we owe no allegiance ; we bow to no throne • 

 Our ruler is law, and the law is our own ; 

 Our leaders themselves are our own fellow-men, 

 Who can handle the sword, or the scythe, or the pen. 

 Our wives are all true, and our daughters are fair, 

 With their blue eyes, of smiles, and their light' (Jowinc 

 hair; * 



All brisk at their wheels till the dark even-fall. 

 Then blithe at the sleigh-ride, the husking, and ball I 



We've sheep on the hill sides ; we've cows on the plain ■ 

 And g.ay-tasseled corn-fields, and rank-growing grain ; ' 

 There are deer on the mountains; and wood-pigeons fly 

 From the crack of our rnuskels, like clouds on "the sky. 

 .\nd there 's fish in our streamlets •■iiid rivers, which take 

 Their course from the hills to our broad-bosomed lake ; 

 Through rock-arched WJnooski the salmon leaps free 

 And the portly shad follows all fresh from tlie sea. 



I^ike a sun-beam the pickerel glides through his pool ; 

 And the spotted trout sleeps where the water is cool. 

 Or darts from his shelter of rock and of root 

 .\t the beaver's quick plunge, or the angler's pursuit. 



And ours are the mountains, which awfully rise 

 Till they rest their green heads on the blue of the skies • 

 And ours are the forests unwasted, unshorn. ' 



Save where Che wild path of tJie tempest is torn. 



And though savagr; and wild he this climate of ours. 

 And brief be our season of fruits and of flowers. 

 Far dearer the blast round our mountains which javes. 

 Than the sweet summer zephvr, which breathes over 

 slaves. 



Hurra for \'ekbiont '. for the laml which we till 

 Must have sons to defend her from vulloy and hill ; } 



Leave the harvest to rot on the field where it grows, 

 .\nd the reaping of wheat for the reaping of foes. 



From far Michiscoui's wild valley, to where 

 Poosoomsuck steals down from his wond-circled lair, 



From Shocticook river to Lutterlock town, 



Ho— all to the rescue ! Vermonters, come down ! 



tion over about sixty townships of which grants had been 

 given by the Governor of New Hampsliire. declaring 

 those grants illegal. An attempt was made to dispossess 

 the settlers, but it was promptly resisted. In 1771. New 

 York passed a most despotic law against the resisting 

 Vermonters, and the Governor ofl"ered a brge reward for 

 the apprehension of the celebrated Ethak ALLt.f, and 

 seven of his associates. The proscribed persons in turn 

 threatened to "A-jH and destroy any person or persona 

 whomsoever thatshould be accessary, aiding or assisting 

 in taking any of them." See Allen's I indication, p. •i.'i 

 Blood was shed at Westminister CoLrt House, in 1775. 

 Mde R. Jones' Narrative. In 1777, \'ermont declared 

 its independence. New York still urged her claims and 

 attempted to enforce them with her militia. In 1779 

 New Hampshire also laid claim to the whole Slate of 

 Vermont. M.issachusetts speedily followed by putting in 

 her claim to about two thirds of it. Congress, powerless 

 under the old Confederation, endeavored to keep on good 

 terms with all the parties, but ardently favored New York. 

 Vermont remonstrated warmly. Congress threatened. 

 Vermont published "an appeal to the candid and impar- 

 tial world'' — denounced Congress, and asserted its own 

 absolute independence. Notwithstanding the threats of- 

 fered on all sides, the contest terminated without much 

 bU>odshed. and Vermont was admitted into the Union in 

 17yi, alter existing as an independent sovereignty for 

 nearly fifteen years. Williams' History of Vermont, 6fC. 



tHon. Meshech Weare, Governor of New Hampshire. 



}Gov. Clinton of New York, and Hon. A. Ten Broek 

 President of the New York Convention. ' 



^The New York sherilTs and those who submitted to 

 the authority of New York were often roughly handled 

 by the Green Mountain boys. The following is from the 

 journal of the proceedings of the Vermont Council of 



public safety .—CoiincH'of Safety, 3d Sept. 1777. ■' 



is permitted to return home, and remain on his 



, . -, — remain ^ 



father's farm (and if found off to expect thirty-nine lashes 

 of the beach seal) until further orders from this Council,' 

 The instrument of punishment was termed the " beach 

 .^eal," in allusion to the great seal of New Hampshire af. 

 fixed to the grants, of which the beech wd well laid upon 

 the naked backs of the •' Yorkers" and their adherents 

 was considered a confirmation. 



II" Rather than fail, 1 will retire with my hardy Green 

 Mountain boys to the desolate caverns of the mountains, 

 and wage loar with human nature at large." — Ethar, 

 Allen's Letter to Congress, March 0, 1781. 



Come York or come Hampshire,— come traitors 



knaves ; 

 If ye rule o'er our land, ye shall rule o'er our graces ; 

 Our vow is recorded — our banner unfurled ; 

 In the name of Vermont we defy all the world !\\ 



and 



*Tho political history of Vermont is full of interest. 



In 1762, New York, by reason of an extraordinary grant 

 of Charles II. to the Duke of York, claimed a jurisdic- 



Gypsum or Plaster. 



Gypsum is the third principal salt of lime 

 which exerts a powerful influence on plants, an<l 

 is one of the most valuable of all our mineral 

 fertilizers. Jlucb variety of opinion has been 

 entertained respecting the manner in which it 

 exerts its influence or produces its effects on 

 plants; and these opinions can scarcely he said 

 to be harmonized, even at the present time. Da- 

 vy was inclined to consider it a direct food for 

 the plant, as it is found, to some extent, in those 

 plants on which it exerts the most power. 

 Chaptal referred its power to its stimulating 

 agency on plants, produced by its action when 

 dissolved in water. Liebig ascribes its value to 

 its giving a fi.xed condition to the nitrogen or 

 ammonia which is brought into the .soil, imd 

 which is indispensable for the nutrition of plants. 

 Dana, to the action of lime and acid of which the 

 gypsum is composed on the organic tnatter and 

 silicates of the soil. He says — "It seems almost 

 incredible that so minute a portion of a mineral 

 can act nt all ; yet how beautifully is the result 

 explained by the principle that plants decompose 

 first this salt ; the lime, for plaster is a sulphate 

 of lime, then acts on geine, which is thus ren- 

 dered .soluble; while the acid, the oil of vitriol 

 or sulphuric acid, immediately acts on silicates." 

 It seems very probable that no single one of 

 these suppositions will be found able to account 

 in full for the action of plaster. That of Dr. 

 Dana appears to approach as nearly to a solution 

 as any of them, if we sxteiid his term silicates 

 so as to embrace those combinations formed by 

 the union of the acid of the gypsum with aminn- 

 Ilia, after its separation fro1n the lime. If the 

 action of plaster was due to its fixing ammonia 

 alone, then it ought to be equally efiicient at all 

 times and places, which it certainly is not; or if 

 it acted directly as nutriment, then its action 

 would be as constant as that of rotted manure or 

 compost, which farmers well know is not the 

 case. Plaster does not act as usefully in the vi- 

 cinity of the sea, as in the interior: and on heavy 

 wet soil.s, is scarcely felt at all. Light sandy soils, 

 or loamy ones, are tho.se on which jdnster acts 

 the most sensibly ; and clover, lucerne, potatoes, 

 cabbages, and the leguminous plants, such as 

 peas, vetches, &c., are the vegetables on which 

 it exerts the most powerful influence. It is much 

 valued as a dressing for wheat, not so much, per- 

 haps, for its direct action on that plant, although 

 that is not trifling, as for its effect in securing 

 and proiDotinjr the growth of the clover and oih- 



