1859. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



185 



it, by the side of a large kettle full of water, 

 ■which was boiling very fast. I then rolled up 

 my sleeve above the elbow, and thrust it into the 

 kettle of boiling water up to the elbow, then im- 

 mediately back into the tub of ice water, letting 

 it remain a few seconds, then into boiling water 

 again, repeating this process ten times a minute, 

 without injury or inconvenience, not even making 

 my arm look red. From this experiment I sug- 

 gested the propriety of using cold water baths 

 instantly after being scalded. I have practiced 

 the above remedy with entire success during the 

 last ten years. Cold water is always handy where 

 there is hot water. The sooner cold v/ater is ap- 

 plied after scalding, the surer will be the cure. — 

 Ohio Cultivator. 



SEVENTH LEGISLATIVE AGRICULTU- 

 KAL MEETING. 



[Keportkd by John C. Moore, fob the N. E. Fakmek. ] 



The subject for consideration' was "Agricultu- 

 ral Markets and Fairs." 



Ex-Governor George S. Boutwell occupied 

 the chair; and stated in substance, that he had 

 accepted the invitation of the committee to pre- 

 side, with the view of assisting, rather than lead- 

 ing, the discussion. He would leave the last 

 part of the subject to other gentlemen present. 

 He had been acquainted with agricultural fairs, 

 and would commend their adoption by the far- 

 mers of every agricultural town, as great benefit 

 would result from them. They would furnish 

 facilities for observation and comparison, which, 

 from the nature of their occupation, they could 

 not otherwise enjoy, and give them the same 

 chances that manufacturers and others more ful- 

 ly enjoyed, and which were held by them to be 

 so requisite and valuable. Such clubs would not 

 conflict with the interests of county societies; 

 on the contrary, they would assist them. They 

 would operate in their effects like the meetings 

 of which this was one. Education would have to 

 be carried to the farmers, as they could not 

 come to it with convenience to themselves, only 

 as it was familiarly brought to the door, as it 

 were, of their own experience. The State might 

 do well to give some aid to the establishment of 

 such clubs, as they would enable towns to com- 

 pare their products, and prepare them to com- 

 pete, by comparison, with other towns at county 

 exhibitions, which too seldom showed what every 

 portion of a county or district could produce, as 

 they could be made to do. 



Mr. Richard S. Fay, of Lynn, being called 

 on to speak, gave his opinion concerning Market 

 Fairs, which he held to be above fairs in impor- 

 tance, as they were, in reality, the true test of 

 agricultural superiority. It surprised him that an 

 English farmer could pay from $10 to !?20 rent an 

 acre, and yet live so differently from our most 

 prosperous farmers. Li the course of two years' 



residence in England, he had paid attention to 

 the matter ; and compared with the state of 

 things here among our farmers who paid noth- 

 ing per acre for their lands, it appeared a myste- 

 ry. He had experimented somewhat during his 

 residence in England, and found that prices of 

 living were just about the same as here — so 

 there could be no advantage to the English far- 

 mer on that score. He did not labor as the far- 

 mers do here ; so the benefit from his farm could 

 not proceed from his individual dexterity. The 

 price of labor was, he found, about [the same in 

 England as here ; so there would be no advan- 

 tage to the Englishman in that respect. The ex- 

 pense of keeping cattle in winter was no more 

 there than here ; so nothing prejudicial to us 

 could arise from that item. Every farming dis- 

 trict had a weekly market once a week, where a 

 ready sale was always had for his stock and pro- 

 duce, at almost the London market prices and 

 everything done in a few hours that the necessi- 

 ties of the farm demanded. There was the com- 

 bination of the farmer and the merchant which 

 gave the producer two profits, which we had not 

 the advantage of. Besides, the English farmer, 

 when he put his plow into the ground, always had 

 something like a certainty (such was the fine con- 

 diion of his soil,) that he would have a particular 

 amount of produce. If Massachusetts were divid- 

 ed into districts — (and these announced in the 

 Farmer's Almanac,) and market fairs established 

 In each, it would be no longer necessary that every 

 farmer should waste his time in cattle jobbing, 

 or his means in hunting up cattle, to be obliged 

 to make a questionable choice, after all his la- 

 bor — groat good would result. According to the 

 nature of the productions of a locality, farmers 

 and others could go and buy and sell with an as- 

 surance of a market, or the best the market 

 could afford, and in this respect he would derive 

 material benefit. Dairy cattle, horses, oxen, 

 sheep, whatever was the prevailing produce, 

 could be found in all the perfection in which the 

 district could produce it ; and^ moreover, accord- 

 ing to the quality would be the price and the 

 benefit. Mr. Fay described one of the celebrated 

 Falkirk Tryots in Scotland— where flocks num- 

 Ifcring many thousands were brought together 

 from all parts of the country, and, in the aggre- 

 gate, numbered hundreds of thousands, which 

 were sold to be driven to other parts of the king- 

 dom, and as much as $500,000 left in payment 

 thereof. Everything was done without higgling 

 or trouble — with less effort than many farmers 

 would have over the sale of a pair of oxen. la 

 September and October, at the same place, 

 60,000 head of cattle were sold at each of the 

 fair days, with as much quietness and dispatch. 

 It was not to be supposed that this could be ira- 



