1847.] Acknowledgments. 47 



Ihemselves with a fair reiinuneration for ibeir labor; that they should 

 never be able through the press, to present i'alse statements of the 

 prospects of our grain crops; that they should never be able to win- 

 ter-kill and blight all the prospects of farmers throughout the 

 land, and diminish the crop at least one half through the instru- 

 mentality of the press, and by hired letter-writers from different 

 quarters raise their prices. Since the I'all of bread-stuffs in Eu- 

 rope, it is discovered that there is an abundant harvest in this coun- 

 try; but up to the time when it was possible to sustain speculation, 

 the prospects of the grain crop were represented as likely to be a 

 failure over all of our w^estern states; but as soon as it is ascer- 

 tained that there is a plenty abroad, then comes out the truth 

 that there is also a plentiful harvest in prospect in this country. 



Now we have already observed that because a crop may be 

 diminished, or even destroyed in one part of the country, there is 

 no probability that it will fail in others. Neither the rust, the 

 fly, nor the winter-kill is ever a general calamity — hence there is 

 always a rational ground of expectation that there will be a suf- 

 ficiency of bread-stuffs. Another evil which a correct view of 

 the subject \\\\\ bring about is, to lead the producer to sell his 

 grain when he has a fair opportunity, and not wait for the price 

 to double its accustomed standard. With farmers, this is an evil 

 — many have, and undoubtedly will, sustain losses by holding on 

 to their grain. The true policy is to sell when the price is re- 

 munerating. In the long run this is the best policy, and will re- 

 sult in the greatest gain. 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. 



Received, the Proceedings of the Agricultural and Mechanics' 

 Association of Louisiana, held January, 1847, with an oration by 

 J. D. B. De Bow, Esq., and an essay by B. M. Norman, together 

 with the reports of committees, &c. The document is highly 

 interesting, and we are much obliged to Mr. Norman for it. We 

 should be pleased had we space to make extracts from the ora- 

 tion and essay. We must at this time be content with the fol- 

 lowing curious extract from Mr. N's essay: 



" During the year 1784, only sixty years since, and therefore 

 within the memory of many now living, an American vessel hav- 

 ing eight hales of cotton on board, was seized at Liverpool, on 

 the plea that so large an amount of cotton could not have been 

 produced in the United States. The shipment in 1785 amounted 

 to 14 bales, in 1786 to 6, in 1787 to 109, 1788 to 389, in 1789 



