J 72 



NEW ENGLAND FARIMEK, 



Dec. 19, 18.i2«. 



THE LATE JUDGE PETERS. | gratitude from one of the most intelligpiit persons 



We have been favoured by the author with n j of Lancaster ; wtio unhesitatingly ascribes to Mr. 

 oopy of an Aiidress ilclivercd before tlie 15!ocklpy j Peters' liool< on phiisler, and his other agricultural 

 .•ind Merion A^'ricultural Society, on the death of j essays, the merit of linving j)roduce(l a good part 

 fheir late President, the Hon. Puchard Pkters.) of the rich cultivation, for which that county is 

 J5y Sahiuel }?r,ECK, Vice President of the Society. I so celebrate<l. But his rural labors were not con- 

 We have seldom, if ever, seen an Obituary Dis- 1 lined to the tilth of the ground ; to the mere va- 

 coui-se of more interest. It contains nothing ilorid, ;, riety of grasses, or alimental improvement of the 

 tninid or exaggerated, but gives a sketch of the soil which produced them ; fur we find him zeal- 

 principal e\ents whirl) occurred in the life of a j ously employed, in mending by crosses, the breed 

 man, who in every sjihere of action to which his | of sheep and other aninnnls. To him was confid- 

 versalile talents introduced him, v/as highly and ! ed the care of the broad-tail Barbary rams, pro- 

 justly distinguished. The times which '= tried cured at Tunis, by General Eaton. The Judge 



men's souls," tested his worth ; and his labors to 

 systematize and enlighten American Husbandry 

 will be remembered with gratitude as long as sub- 

 sistence is derived from tillage, or the light of 

 science shall illumine the path of the practical 

 cultivator. 



good President ; may we not remember that our 

 early zeal, though short-lived, was salutary 1 Can 

 we not revive it ? Let us try, if it be only to show 

 our love for the man who first inspired it. Oiu- 

 opinions on rural matter.-. ; our knowledge of agri- 

 cultural facts, then so freely communicated, stand 

 on record ; we then possessed the attributes, as 

 well as the name, of an Agricultural Society. — 

 Those conununicalions, evinced by their variety, 

 their practical meaning, their good sense, and aol 

 imfrequently, their novelty ; the rich fund of in- 

 formation among us in the concerns of hnsband- 

 rv, and show how profitably it may be again em- 

 ployed. We have but to will it, in order to res- 



placed them advantngeously, and pressed on the 



farmers, by repeated written exhortations, the I tore it to its former usefulness." 



propriety of using them. 



In order to appreciate properly the industry of 

 this gentleman, in treating on husbandry and mat- 

 ters auxiliary to it, wo must consult his volumin 



(I'rum ihe New York Farmer and Honicullural Repnsllory 



The following extract gives a concise view of] ous communications, [)uhlished in the Memoirs of 



the benefits, which American agriculture has re- 

 ceived from the e.xertions of the worthy character 

 whose merits the Address was designed to coni- 

 ineniorate. — Editor N. E. Farmer. 



"We now approach, gentlemen, a period in the 

 life of our departed President, which brought us 

 into close intimacy with hini. It was a long pe- 

 riod of wide-s])read usefulness, in which he mov- 

 ed almost without a rival. As a practical fanner, 

 Mr. Peters had from time to time coinmunicated 

 the results of the experiments made at P.olmont, to 

 such of his neighbors as chose to profit by them ; 

 but he had not written nmcli, if any thing, ui)nn 

 agriculture, before the year 1737. His first pub- 

 lication was then made, and contained a state- 

 ment of facts and opinions in relation to the use 

 of Gyiisuni. This pamphlet circulated widely, 

 and produced such a change in husbandry, liy in- 

 troducing the cidture of clover, and other artificial 

 grasses, as gave, we all know, a magical increase 

 to the value of farms. Estates which imtil then 

 were unable to maintain stock, for want of winter 

 fodder, and summer pasture, were suddenly 

 brought into culture, and made productive. For- 

 merly, on a farm destitute of natural meadows, no 

 stock could be supported ; and even where na!n 



the Philadelphia Agricultural Society. Take, for 

 instance, the first volume. There, we find him 

 discussing with his accustomed animation, and 

 clear and elegant style, the following topics — 



On hovcn cattle. 



On peach trees. 



On yeliow water in horses. 



On gyjisum. 



On the thickness, cement and materials of walls. 



On orchards. 



On coarse flour. 



On brown bread. 



On the force of habit, as it relates to esctdents. 



On new herbs and shrubs appearing after firing ready p 

 woods. 



On trench ploughing. I 



On hendock for live fences. 



Remarks on, and plan of, a stercorary. 



On changes of tiuiber and plants. 



On races of animals extinct. 



These numerous articles, so various in their 

 character, arc, as I have said, contained in the 

 first volume, and are all copiously and ably treat- 

 ed by him. Tlie succeeding volumes arc no less 

 rich in original essays on the scienca and art of 

 agriculture, from the same prolific pen. Perhaps 



ral meadow existed, the barn van! was exhausted J it is not estimating the quantitij of his labour too 

 to keep up sufticient fertiliiy,'(in the absence of high, if we place it at one fourth of each volume; 

 irrigation,) to feed a verv few horses and black J the r/KCt/i.'i/ of these productions, must be valued 

 can\g^ ' [according to their wide circulation, and great pop- 



Such was the situation of our husbandrv, for , idarity. 

 some years after the revolution. It is proper to This distinguished citizen, always vigilant in 

 .-idven to it, that we may understand the full ex- promoting objects of public utdity, founded oi r 

 lent of our obligation to the .hidge. In the year 



1770, he was shown the cftects of gypsum on 

 clover, in a city lot, occupied by Mr. Jacob Barge, 

 on the commons td" Philadelphia. 



The secret of its powerful agency, came from 

 Germany, where it was accidentally discovered. 

 Mr. Peters obtained a small quantity, which he 

 used successfiilly, and gradally promoted its con- 

 sumption, until by his example^ and his ))ublica- 

 tipns, the importation from Nova Scotia alone, iu 



Society, and presided over it from the d 

 creation until his ileath. Yon, gentlemen, will 

 one and all, 1 confidently assert most readily and 

 most gratefully bear witness to his constant soli(- 

 itude for the advancement of the objects of oir 

 association. How often has he pressed us to at- 

 tend to them ! His superior sagacity could discov- 

 er a usefulness in labours, which we had not be- 

 fore thought important. When, at length, we 

 yielded to 

 to the sin.'le oort of Philadelphia, increased to the ! the occurrences on our farms, how much inform- 

 eno.-mous'aniount of fourteen thousand tons annu- 1 ation was elicited! The improvement derived 

 ally. This was before the discovery of that fossil ; from this mutual examination, was acknowledged 

 in tlie Ifnitcd States. | b.V "s a"- It "S much to be regretted, that these 



Inquire in the counties of Chester, Lancaster, I business-like meetings have been few and far be- 

 and others arouml us, where clover is so benefi- i tween. But such as they were, and transient as 

 cially cultivated, how much is due to that excel- 1 they now are, I dare refer to the records for proof 

 lent man, for the great [lains he took to extend j of their solid worth. What, though they have been 

 the use of gypsum ? On this subject, I very re- followed by occasional listlessness, indifference, or 

 cently transiiiitted to the Judge, a testimonial of non-attendance, that baflled the later efforts of our 



ON THE CULTURE OF THE NATIVE 



j GRAPE. BY PROF. GIMBUEDE. 



1 It is said that every man owes something to 

 I the community in which he lives. As I admit the 

 I truth of this obligation, it gives me pleasure to ad- 

 ! dress you on the subject of .4merjcan grapes and 

 vineyards. 



The agricultural and moral interest of the coun- 

 try seema to call for such information, and if I 

 may be permitted to offer an opinion, the results 

 of my own experience : ud observations in France, 

 and in this my adopted country, after a residence 

 of twenty-six years, I shall deem myself liappy if 

 I can give a useful example to follow. 



1 well know the many respectable opinions al- 

 . ublished on the subject, and therefore wish 

 to support by facts only, the feasibility of improv- 

 ing your native grapes, and to help to counteract 

 the most injurious of all prejudices, namely, that 

 you must plant your vineyards in America, mith the 

 'rints of the continent of Europe! and thereby tram-^ 

 Iile under foot, and sweep off from the surface of 

 this highly favored land, with a culpable indiffer- 

 ence, some of the most valuable varieties, many 

 of them quite unique, with which the great God of 

 Nature kindly provided these United States. 



Allow me "to say, that such facts as these are 

 altogether unreasonable,— and I therefore expect 

 much from your patriotic and scientific Associa- 

 tion, in protecting and diffusing a true knowledge 

 of your internal agricnliural resources. I cannot 

 pass unnoticed, the prevailing idea thai, the lands 

 of vineyards are the southern and western States. 

 I hope 1 shall be jiermitted to add, come and see 

 a flourishing one on the banks of the humtifd 

 ,f iis I Hudson. Moreover, many who have attempted 

 to plant their vineyards in that section of our 

 country, have abandoned it. 



I shall point out at some other time, the causes 

 of their failure in this country. Every farmer 

 wishing to cultivate vineyards, ought to know this 

 tact, that in Europe there are not tw^o counties,. 

 sometimes not even two fields, that will ever pro- 



duce tiie same reputable wine, planted with the 

 his wishes, and consented toresister' same stock; and if planted here, you certainly could 



lot expect to be more successful ; and it made 

 jere with the vines of Europe, you could not call 

 t a real American wine ; therefore, what I should 

 ^ay would constitute a real American wine, would 

 have a distinct character in the taste and flavor-- 

 i pleasing variety for the table— a non-such, made 

 with the best varieties of the fox-grapes, improved 

 jy culture. Such wine would soon find its way 

 to Europe, and command a high price. 



On a subject like this, so important, and on 



