431 



NEW ENGLANr3 FARMER. 



Sept. 



manure, he having the good sense to know that 

 the earth would produce nothing unless kept 

 alive. Of course, the first year was rather tough 

 scratching, but in the second, by manuring large 

 and planting small, he succeeded in raising com- 

 paratively remunerating crops. 



The manufactories of the town in which he has 

 settled otiered a light and profitable employ- 

 ment to the females and children that compose 

 his family, sufficient to furnish the dry goods and 

 groceries needed. 



In the meantime his stock had increased, and, 

 best of all, he had entirely recovered his 

 health and youthful vigor, and was to all intents 

 and purposes younger by twenty years than when 

 enjoying the cool and shady workroom of a city 

 mechanic. I have just returned from a visit to 

 his New England home, and 1 wish to describe i 

 the condition in which I found him after four 

 years" exp';rience in the life of a farmer. In j 

 the first place, his family, eight of them, are in' 

 the possession of perfect health, and as happy 

 and contented as any persons lever saw. He 

 has made many improvements in the build- 

 ings, such as painting, shingling, i!\:c., and has; 

 added by purchase twenty acres of excellent 

 mowing land, on which he owes but ninety dol- 

 lars. His stock consists of seven as fine cows as, 

 the town affords, (so the assessors say,) four year-' 

 lings, horse and colt, two likely looking pigs and 

 four hundred and sixty hens, the eggs of which 

 find a ready market among the boarding-houses, 

 store and tavern three miles distant. He put 

 sixteen tons of hay into the barn, the past fort-! 

 night. He is so "wedded to a country life" that 

 he informed me that five thousand dollars would 

 be no temptation for him to return to Boston 

 and give up the real freedom and independence 

 that he now enjoys. He finds ample time to read 

 the .v. E. Farmer, and other agricultural works, 

 obtainable at the library in the village. He be- 

 lieves in book-farming, and is assured that in his 

 case he should never have succeeded without 

 reading the ideas and experience of others. 



"Bricks and Mortar." 



Boston, August, 1859. 



Remarks. — Your friend is a good fellow — a 

 trump. Long may he live to enjoy his happy 

 home and the fruit of his skilful labor. We 

 hope his excellent example will be widely conta- 

 gious. 



TBANSACTIOTSrS OP NORTH MIDDLESEX 

 AGRICULTURAL. SOCIETY. 



This report commences with an address by 

 Rev. F. Hinckley, of Lowell, and a good be- 

 ginning it IS. The address is written in a beau- 

 tiful style, and is full of sparkling thoughts and 

 human sympathy. The report is got up in a 

 brief, business-like manner. The ainount of pre- 

 miums awarded was $765,15. The reports of 

 committees and competitors are very short, and 

 do not convey as much information, or contain 

 as many practical suggestions, as they might. 

 Upon such subjects we need line upon line and 

 precept upon precept. Committees should not 



hesitate to express their thoughts and make such 

 remarks as occur to them, because they have 

 been expressed by some other persons, upon some 

 other occasion. They may reach some minds 

 that have not seen them, and prove like good 

 seed upon good ground. We say to all agricul- 

 tural committees, scatter your thoughts broad- 

 cast. They will bear good fruit. 



For the Netr England FarineT. 

 BUTTER-MAKINQ. 



Much has been written of late in various agri- 

 cultural journals concerning "white specks in 

 butter," and hardly two writers can be found that 

 wholly agree : some assigning the cause to the 

 process of churning, and others to various other 

 causes — a few giving the true theory. 



Under ordinary circumstance there is no need 

 of having "white streaks" oc* "specks" in butter. 

 The streaks are generally the result of the insuf- 

 ficient working of the butter, the salt not being 

 evenly diffused. The white specks, as several 

 writers in the Farmer have already stated, ar?; 

 curds of sour milk, the result of skimming in too 

 much milk and letting the cream stand too long 

 before churning, or by getting milk with the 

 cream that is already sour. No harm whatever 

 results from scraping down the cream into the 

 churn as the butter begins to come ; the cream 

 thus scraped down, if not converted into butter, 

 remaining in the buttermilk. 



To prevent white specks in butter, let the milk 

 always be skimmed before it sours, if possil:)le ; 

 if not, after the milk has coagulated and the curd 

 become solid, removing the cream carefully ; 

 churn the cream as often as every other day, 

 through the hot season, and in extreme heat, 

 every day, if the quantity be sufficient, and if 

 properly worked and salted, I will warrant sweet, 

 pure butter with no white specks. Such, at least, 

 is the experience of an old and exi)erience(l liut- 

 ter-maker, whose butter has the credit of being 

 the "very best in the market." The process truly 

 is a simple one, and it only requires attention to 

 always ensure good butter. Stirring the cream 

 at every time of skimming, to mix it, should be 

 avoided. 



The old practice of washing butter I am in- 

 clined to consider not only useless but pertain- 

 ing to the barbarous, and worthy of being dis- 

 carded in every well conducted dairy. The prime 

 object of the washing seems to be the complete 

 removal of the butter-milk, but a certain change 

 in the butter seems to be wrought at the same 

 time, for it is true that butter thoroughly washed 

 will often keep in good order but a short time, 

 however sweet when first washed. The better 

 way to remove the butter-milk is by working with 

 a wooden paddle, previously well moistened in 

 water to jjrevent the butter from sticking. 



Springfield, August, 1859. j. A. A. 



^° Tliree times as much corn, per acre, as aiiy 

 body the can raise." If Mr. S. D. Baker, of 

 Mansfield, Mass., will inform us, in the first 

 place, how he will accomplish the result stated 

 above, we can then decide whether it will be best 

 to publish his challenge, or NOT. 



