58 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



eaten with moderation during any hour of the 

 day, and without getting tired of them, or ceas- 

 ing to be benefited by them during the whole 

 season. It is a great wast of lusciousness that 

 fruits and berries, in their natural state, are not 

 made the sole dessert of our meals, for three- 

 fourths of the year; human enjoyment, and 

 health, and even life, would be promoted by it. — 

 HalVs Journal of Ilealtli. 



AGRICUIiTTJBE AND HOKTICULTUKE. 



THE TRUE FRIENDS. 



BY I!ES. LTDIA H. SIGOCRNET. 



"They leave no sting in the heart of memory, — no stain on 

 the wing of time." — Hon. Marshall P. JVilder. 



Brown Ceres, one day with Pomona was meeting 



'Neath Autumn's Spiriting smile, 

 So giving each other a sisterly greeting 



Tliey sate down to gossip awliile. 



'T hope you're r. .ite well, dear, tliis elegant weather," 



"How charming tlie country," they said, 

 "And how do jou prosper," botli speaking together,— 



"With rejard to your business and trade?" 



"Look, whsi-e tte rude thorn bush and bramble were jprin-ing 



With fruitage the apple tree bends, 

 The scyihe of the mower at sunrise is swinging, 



And the song of the reaper ascends." 



"Let us walk hand in hand, for no obstacle caring 



Till vines o'er the mountains shall grow ; 

 Its suit of green velvet, the brown heath be wearing 



And deserts with p'.enty o'erdow." 



"The gold in its mine, with excitement and wonder 



May summon an emigrant band, 

 And the chariot of Mars, trample on in its ttumier 



But we're the true strength of the land." 



"For us, no lorn wife in her cottage is grieving. 



Earth welcomes us both in her prime. 

 No sting in the bosom of memory we're leaving, 



No stain on the pinion of time." 



HOW TO IMPKOVE CIDEK. 



The following letter upon preserving cider in a 

 •nild form, is from Professor Horsford, of Cam- 

 bridge, to the President of the Massachusetts 

 Horticultural Society, and may be valuable to 

 some of our readers. 



We add also, another simple recipe for im- 

 proving cider, but probably much like the Pro- 

 fessor's method. 



Cambridge, Oct. 2o, 18.58. 



Dear Sir : — I beg to inclose a recipe for im- 

 proving cider. The object to which my efforts 

 have been directed, was to provide a cheap, easi- 

 ly-managed, and perfectly safe ngent for arrest- 

 ing fermentation at any desired stage of its prog- 

 ress. The fermentation of the sugar of the cider, 

 it is well known, is due to the fermentation of an 

 albuminous substance which the cider holds in 

 suspension or solution. By fermentation, the 

 sugar is first converted into alcohol and carbonic 

 acid. Ifthe albuminous matter be ingrent excess, 

 as it uniformly is, its fermentation goes forward 

 to convert the alcohol into acetic acid, and the 

 cider becomes sour. 



minous matter consumed to produce alcohol and 

 carbonic acid, and of course less will remain to 

 convert the alcohol into vinegar. 



But if, when the fermentation has been car- 

 ried forward just far enough to impart to the 

 cider the taste which is most preferred, — when it 

 is sparkling, still sweet, but slightly acid, — if at 

 this stage the albuminous matter be withdrawn, 

 the cider will permanently retain its acceptable 

 flavor. 



To accomplish this withdrawal I employ Sul- 

 phite of Lime — a salt made soluble only by acid, 

 and, of course, quite inert until acid presents it- 

 self to the cider. As soon as fermentation pro- 

 duces acetic acid, this salt yields sulphurous acid, 

 which destroys the ferment. This is essentially 

 the agent employed to prevent fermentation in 

 the wine production of France. 



The substance I employ settles out at the bot- 

 tom with the lees, and maybe entirely separated 

 from the cider. 



The testimony of quite a number of friends 

 who have for the last three years followed the 

 recipe, as well as the experiments I have myself 

 directed, are so emphatic as to the excellence of 

 the result, that I feel justified in submitting to 

 the attention of the Horticultural Society this 

 method of improving cider. 



E. N. Horsford, 



Prof, of Chem. to the Mass. Hor. Society. 



RECIPE FOR IMPROVING CIDER. 



Let the new cider from sour apples (sound and 

 ; selected fruit is to be preferred,) ferment from 

 I one week to three weeks, as the weather is warm 

 or cool. When it has attained to lively fermen- 

 tation, add to each gallon, according to its acidi- 

 ty, from half a pound to two ])ounds of white 

 crushed sugar, and let the whole ferment until it 

 possesses precisely the taste which it is desired 

 should be permanent. 



In this condition pour out a quart of the cider, 

 and add for each gallon, one quarter of an ounce 

 of sulphitejof lime, known as an article of manufac- 

 ture under the name of anti-clorida of lime. Stir 

 the powder and cider until intimately mixed, and 

 return the emulsion to the fermenting liquid. 

 Agitate briskly and thoroughly for a few mo- 

 ments, and then let the citler settle. The fer- 

 mentation will cease at once. 



When, after a few days, the cider has become 

 clear, draw off and bottle carefully, or remove the 

 sediment and return to the original vessel. If 

 loosely corked, or kept in a barrel on draft, it 

 will retain its taste as a still cider. If preserved 

 in bottle "i carefully corked, which is better, it 

 will become a sparkling cider, and may be kept 

 indefinitely long. 



A Dove Story. — A gentleman of this city 

 who has a dove cot at his residence at the West 

 End, relates the following incident as having oc- 

 curred last week. In the cot were a male and 

 female dove and two squabs. The male squab 

 having died, the elderly dove drove from his 

 nest his female mate, and promoted to his bed 

 If the quantity of sugar be I and board the young female squab, pecking at 

 large, a corresponding quantity of alcohol is pro- 1 and driving from his cot the female dove. Final- 

 duced. When it is not in sufficient quantity it ly, upon one occasion*, when the female appeared 

 may be added tothe ci I'.T, and :noreof the aJbu-'at the door of the cot., the male sallied out. 



