VOL. XIV. NO. 1. 



AND H O R T I C U L T IJ K A L R E G 1 S,T E R 



cheap and men perform the labors of horses and 

 oxen. From tlie natural temperature of our own 

 climate, from tliH energy and efficiency of onr pen. 

 pic, from the fertility iif our soil, and the abundance 

 and clu'apness of our l.nids and pasture, art^ we 

 enabled chra[)ly to maintain the vast animal power 

 whicli we eiii[)loy in all onr atrricultural operations. 

 We have, in fact, little or nothing;; to fear from the 

 ppople of any of those countries as rivals, even in 

 silk or in any other aijricullural production which 

 we can in our own climate raise as well as they, 

 by the superior energies of our people, by the cheap- 

 ness and fertility of our lauds, and the very great 

 proportion of animal labor which we employ. 



[Here follows the article from the National In- 

 telligencer, alluded to in the foregoing, the great 

 length of whi<-h compels us to defer its insertion 

 until ne.xt week.] 



WANDERINGS IN THE W EST IN I8IJ9. 

 No. VII. 



(Conliniitd J'rum vol. 18, pugt 43fi.) 



The southern half of Wisconsin is quite similar 

 to Illinois, but the face of the country is more roll- 

 ing and there is a larger proportion of timber. There 

 is a fine district of country in the vicinity of Rock 

 river, about 20 to 40 mile.-* north of Illinois line, and 

 another betwren the Sugar river and the Fekatoni- 

 ca : the latter is the best farming district that I 

 have seen west of Ohio: it is well watered by the 

 finest springs: there is an abundance of timber and 

 stone enough for all useful purposes may be obtain- 

 ed by digging a few feet below the surface in most 

 of the hills. The northern portion of Wisconsin 

 is a forest country, producing the different varieties 

 of pine as well as hard wood. The northern part 

 of Michigan is a forest country also. 



The climate of the country west of the Allegha- 

 ny mountains is undoubtedly milder than in the 

 same parallels east of the mountains. Some wri- 

 ters have undertaken to show that there are more 

 fair days there than at the east : how that may be 

 I know nol ; but the principal advantage of the cli- 

 mate I apprehend is, that the spring is more favora- 

 ble : when winter breaks up it does not " linger in 

 the lap oi' spring" so long as in tin: east, but warm 

 weather advances more regularly and vegetation is 

 not so freiiuonlly checked by cold easterly storms. 



In the prairie country where the rays of the sun 

 are not obstructed, the evaporation is very great 

 and rapid in the summer and the dews are very 

 heavy, so that one can scarcely go out in the morn- 

 ing without beii'.g wet to the knees as thoroughly 

 as though he had waded in the creek. 



As soon as the sun is down the air becomes damp 

 and chilly, and it is not prudent to go out in the 

 evening without warm clothing even in midsummer. 

 It is probable that the t'ever and ague is brought on 

 by exposure to the night air, as often as from any 

 other cause. 



The quality of the water is an evil in the west 

 em country, though this is denied by some. Mr 

 .lones in his book " Illinois ami the West," says 

 that he never drank a drop of unpleasant water in 

 Illinois, and compares it to the pure sparkling wa- 

 ter of the Green mountain springs ; but if Air Jones 

 could detect no difference, his taste must be nmch 

 less delicate than mine ; but I presume he drank 

 none but river water until he came to Tremont, be- 

 cause no other is used on board the steamboats. 

 and his travels by land, according to his own ac- 

 count, were limited to a ride from Tremont to Rock 



river and back, and from Peru to Chicago, so that 

 he found no water of very bad quality ; but the 

 water about Tremont and Peoria is certainly not 

 good, except compa'atively. The truth is, that ah 

 the wafer in the western country is strongly im- 

 pre;.riuited with lime, and where clay abounds the 

 water contains various salts and earthy substances 

 which render it disagreeable and unhealthy, and in 

 many places it is nauseous. Where gravel takes 

 the place of clay the water contains very little of 

 any oftheso substances exce[)t lime, and it is clear 

 and sparkling and not very unpleasant lo the tuste, 

 and 1 presume is not iinheallliy. though it acts me- 

 dicinally upon strangers: such is the water in Wis- 

 consin ami the northern part of Illinois : the great- 

 est inconvenience arises in the use of it for wash- 

 ing; the lime makes the water hard. 



Many opinions are expressed with regard to the 

 healthiness of the western Slates : some insist that 

 the whole couiitiy is unhealthy; others assert that 

 it is as healthy as the eastern States. That every 

 part of the country has been at times unhealthy, 

 will not be denied ; and this has been the case in 

 all countries when first settled, except those in 

 higli latitudes, and it may be attributed in a great 

 measure to the greater exposure of the settlers, th» 

 change of climate, of diet, ignorance of the char- 

 acter of the prevalent diseases, the want of proper 

 remedies and medical advice. But without doubt 

 there are many places which are decidedly un- 

 healthy from pen.ianenl local cau.ses. The low- 

 level districts in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and 

 loway, and the vicinity of large rivers, generally 

 have a sickly season as regularly as summer and 

 winter. The common diseases are of a bilious 

 character and are said to yield readily to medicine 

 in mo=t cases, if attended to seasonably. Pulmon- 

 ary diseases are not common. The high rolling 

 districts I believe to be as healthy after the first 

 summer's residence, as any districts in the east in 

 the same parallels. 



Agriculture is not pursued with economy or 

 neatness in the west. Farmers give their atten- 

 tion chiefly to the cultivation of grain. Corn is 

 the greatest product. They raise besides corn, a 

 large amount of oats and wheat: rye and barley 

 are seldom raised. In the forest country they clear 

 their land by deadening the trees, which they do 

 by girdling, which method they prefer to cutting, 

 because they sooner get rid of the stumps; the 

 dead trees in a few years fall down and jiull out a 

 part o( the roots : they then burn them on the 

 ground. As soon as the clearing will permit, they 

 put in corn or wheat, and the same field is culti- 

 vated f r one kind of grain m my years in succes- 

 sion. 



On the prairies they usually plough in June or 

 July, and lot the sward lie until the next spring, — 

 though it is often ploughed in May and planted to 

 corn by cutting holes with an axe in every third or 

 fourth furrow : this is called sod corn, and it re- 

 ceives no further attention after planting. Sod 

 corn often yields nofhing but fodder, but usually it 

 yields from ten to fifteen bushels to the acre. I 

 have seen it stated that sod corn yields ordinarily 

 ;5.") or 40 bushels, but I venture to say that such a 

 crop was never known upon prairie sod; I never 

 heard any experienced man rate it higher than l."). 

 .■M'terthe first season the land is ligiit and friable, 

 and a single horse answers very well to |dough it, 

 though two horsfs are generally used. The coni- 

 nion practice is to plant corn in hills, and when it 

 is three or four inches high they begin to plough 



it and continue the operation until the corn begins 

 to set for ears ; it is then " laid by": very few hoa 

 their corn at all: sometimes after the last plough- 

 ing the larger weeds are chopped down, and cora 

 thus tended in the southern counties yields on a« 

 average 50 bushels to an acre : in the northerm 

 Counties ;j5 to 40 bushels. The kind raised in the 

 south is the flat corn; there are several varieties; 

 that which is esteemed the best is the yellow dent. 

 In the north the hard flint corn is raided, the south- 

 ern corn being liable to be cut oft' by frost. With 

 the use of manure and careful cultivation the crop 

 may be very much incre sed, and more than a hun- 

 dred bushels have been raised upon an acre ; but 

 the average, without manure, is not higher thai 

 above stated. 



An average crop of winter "heat is about 25 

 bushels and spring wheat about 18. Oats average 

 from 40 to 50 bushels. I have seen 40 bushels of 

 wheat to the acre and from 70 to 80 of oats; but 

 these were extra crops. 



Roots are very little cultivated. A few potatoes, 

 beets, English turnips and onions are raised, but 

 no largo crops of either. Many farmers who raise 

 500 bushels of corn will have not more than 20 

 bushels of potatoes. In the far west no one tliinki 

 of raising roots for cattle, so far as I am acquaint- 

 ed. The soil appears to be admirably adapted t» 

 roots. On Fox river the cultivation of beets for 

 the manufacture of sugar is beginning to exci'c at- 

 tention, and some experiments have been made, 

 with what success I did not learn. Beet sugar may 

 become a great staple in the west. 



Gardening is very little attended to. Most far- 

 mers raise a few vegetables, but a regular garden 

 is hardly to be foiind in the west 



Fruit trees flourish remarkably well throughout 

 the whole western country, and in ihe older settle- 

 ments there are line orchards of apple and peach 

 trees. The only fruits which are indigenous in the 

 west are crab apples, wild plums, pawpaw, raspber- 

 ries and strawberries. The pawpaw is not found 

 in the north. Plums are very plentiful in almost 

 every grove. 



The horse is a favorite animal in all the western 

 states, and the fanners generally take pains to' rear 

 horses of good blood. The horses generally ar* 

 lighter than in Pennsylvania, but more active. 



Very little attention is paid to the breed of cattle. 

 Milk and butter are of little value and cheese is 

 hardly known; iienci: the quality of cows is a mat- 

 ter of very little concern. I have seen, however, 

 some of the finest catt'e in Illinois that I ever sa» 

 in my life, but in g'-neral a more ill-looking, black^^ 

 ring-streaked and speckled race of cattle have nev- 

 er been known since the days of the patriarch Jacob. 

 Hogs are very plenty, and the farmers in Ohio, 

 Indiana and Illinois rely upon them principally aa 

 the means of obtaining money. They are gener- 

 ally of a miserable breed, long-nosed, long-legge4 

 animals, apparently better fitted for running tha« 

 for any other purpose. They go at large upon the 

 commons and in the woods, living upon grass, mast, 

 &.C. till autumn, when they are fed a little while 

 with corn, and when ready for market the average 

 weight does not exceed 1.50 lbs. The farmers sel- 

 dom slaughter their hogs but sell them to be drive« 

 to Cincinnati, Alton, Chicago and other marketi^ 

 where the slaughtering and packing of pork is made 

 a very extensive business. The usual price that 

 is obtained is from three to four dollars a hundred 

 weight. 



(Concluded in oiir next.) 



