178 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



DEC. 13, 18'ir. 



short time cause its death. It may fairly be usk- 

 eil, how is it that beasts eating the same grass are 

 not affected by it? The reason pi(.ljal)ly is, that 

 the digestion of an ox or cow is so much strong- 

 er, that the larviB are destroyed, and earned away 

 with the food. 



An eminent surgeon h.is informed me that there 

 is no communication with the stomach and the 

 liver, but as he cannot in any way account for the 

 flukes getting into tlie liver, 1 do not give up my 

 opinion. I am strengthcnrd, too, in my belief, 

 from its being well known, that after a frost of 

 fortyeight hours, or less, sheep may safely he kept 

 in a pasture, which, had they been put in before 

 the frost (even for one day,) would certaiidy m 

 the course of two or three weeks, be found to 

 have flukes in their liver, but which is pi evented 

 by the frost destroying the larvx on the grass. 1 

 am quite aware that many other scieiuitic objec- 

 tions may fairly bo made against my idea ; such 

 as that the worm or grub, a cold-blooded creature, 

 intended to live in common atmospheric air, could 

 not exist in the inside of any animal. Bots, so 

 common in horses laying out at grass, it is well 

 known, are produced from the horses biting each 

 other, in kind fellowship, about their manes, where 

 iome sort of fly or moth had deposited their eggs 

 or nits, which the horses thus get into their mouths 

 and stomachs, where they become hots, and make 

 their appearance in the horses' fundaments. It 

 ■cannot be supposed that instinct points to the 

 moth or fly to leave its eggs there for the purpose 

 •of its getting into the horse's stomach ; it appears 

 to me that it probably only leaves it on that part 

 •from ftniling a saliva there from the playful biting 

 of another horse. Hearing a farmer complain, 

 in the year 1814 of the great loss he had sustain- 

 ed by thi; rot in his sheep, I recommended him to 

 try Armitage's remedy ; he ha<l no faith in any of 

 the nostrums, it was, liovvever, agreed between us, 

 that. OR I was going t<3 London the next day, 1 

 ehoiild 'bring a snfticient quantity for a score of 

 sheep, which he was to take on my return, or sell 

 Line a score of hrs sheep for ten pounds. He sent 

 me the sheep. 0»T farms were divided only by 

 a small brook, but the sheep having to walk a mile 

 -to get to my farm, two of them died m that mile. 

 1 (Josed the eighteen acctrrdrag to directions. Six- 

 teen soon seemed more lively foe U'; to the two 

 that did m.t, I gave the medi<:ine 1 had to spare. 

 Which proved to be over-ri.-.smg them, and conse- 

 quently killed them. Thirteen of the others I 

 ma<le fat in the summer, sent them to London, 

 and made about fortyseven shillings a head. One 

 proved what is here called a rubber, which no 

 feeding will make fat; one was drowned. 



Te see what sort of mutton the best was, I had 

 one Itilied and consumed (all but one leg which 1 

 sent to the farmer,) in my own family, who knew 

 nothing of the circumstance attending it, and 

 therefore found no fault with the n.eat ; but some 

 one I recollect, commended some joint as being 

 very tender. The farmer could scarcely believe 

 that the leg of mutton I sent him could have come 

 off one of the poor miserable animals that he sold 

 me For my own part, I confess I could not rel- 

 ish' the mutton, although 1 felt sure there could 

 be nothing unwholesome in it. The difference 

 between tliat and the other mutton is, the lean is 

 more tender and less aavore<l ; the fat is whiter, 

 and the gravy lighter colored. The farmer in- 

 formed me afterwards of one circumstance which 

 was important. He said he understood I was to 



lave flirty of his sheep, and therefore he drew 



'oi-ty of the worst of his flock, and marked them 

 for me; ttirt the next day, not liking to part vvith 

 so many at so poor a price, he turned back into 

 his flock twenty of the best of them with the mark 

 on, and every one of those twenty died. A few 

 years ago, 1 made several inquiries after the me- 

 dicine, and could hear nothing of it, but found 

 that Armirage was dead. No medicine can make 

 sound a liver that is in part rotten ; but it can so 

 stop the progress of this disease by killing the 

 flukes, as to allow the sheep, with a summer's 

 feeding, to get remarkably fat. The chief ingre- 

 dient in all the medicines must be oil of turpen- 

 tine. — Hillytird's Piadical Fanning [an English 

 work.) 



THE PRICES OF BREAD STUFFS AND 

 THE BOUNTY ON WHEAT. 



We fear from the accounts that have reached 

 US, there is once more a prospect of a high price 

 for bread stuft's. It has been generally supposed 

 that the wheat crop in the southern and western 

 Slates this season was unusually abundant, but 

 this is now denied, particularly in Viiginia, Ma- 

 ryland and Pennsylvania. And even if the crop 

 was heavy, a short or plentiful harvest is not the 

 only existing cause that aftects the flour market. 

 The immense immigration to our country for the 

 last two years, increases the demand for bread 

 stuft's, as it is generally a year or two befoie the 

 emigrants who design to follow farming, get set- 

 tled and are able to raise snflicient for their own 

 coiisumptioii. It must be recollected too, in 

 forming an estimate of the probable future prices 

 of bread stuffs, that large quantities of flour are 

 exported to the West Indies and South American 

 tnarkets. Fortunately for our own State, the 

 quantity of wheat raised in it this year, has been 

 much larger than usual. Many people in the in- 

 terior have raised enough to supply their own 

 wants, and will not be obliged to depend upon 

 the importations from abroad. Some of the coun- 

 ties have raised tnore than enough for their own 

 consumption, while others fall short. It may be 

 relied on as a safe estimate that the annual im- 

 portation of flour into Portland is between forty 

 and sixty thousand barrels. Portland supplies the 

 county of Cumberland, and very littleflour brought 

 into the city, is sent to any other counties. Reck- 

 oning live bushels of flour to the barrel, there will 

 be 250,000 bushels required for Cumberland 

 county alone. We have never heard any one as- 

 sert that the wheat crop would produce any thing 

 jiear that amount. The result of the estimate for 

 this county may be applieil to several others. — 

 From informatioa gathered from various quarters, 

 we are inclined to believe that our Slate has lais- 

 ed from one half to two thirds the iiuantily of 

 wheat she consumes. We are glad to learn that 

 more land has been ploughed up for sowing next 

 season, than in any year previous. We are well 

 satisfied that Maine can raise her own bread stuft's, 

 though it cannot be done in one or two years ; 

 we have heard of some fanners who have raised 

 forty bushels of wheat to the acre — this is cer- 

 tainly more profitable than any other crop. 



'j'iie presmt bounty on wheat, we think, ought 

 not to lie confined to twenty bushels as it now is, 

 but allowed for every ten bushels and upwards. 

 The effect would bo salutary, and a s merchants 

 and manufacturers have had their share of legis- 



lati\e benefits, it is but reasonable that the farm- 

 ers likewise should have theirs. 



While discussing this subject, we must express 

 our opinion that too many farmers in this State 

 waste their time and labor in attempting to raise 

 Indian corn. It is at best but an uncertain crop, 

 and liable to be nipped by early frosts. If the at- 

 tention of the farmers were directed more to the 

 raising of wheat, they would find it for their ad- 

 vaiita^'e. The high prices of bread stufls show 

 that the consumption of our country has overta- 

 ken the growth, and that prices will range high 

 until more laud is brought into cultivation. 



'I'he whole production of the United States hasi 

 been estimated at about 80,000,(00 bushels oil 

 Wheat, 110,000,000 bushels of Corn, and 60,000,- 

 000 of Rye. The annual consumption of wheal 

 alone, has been rated at five bushels for each in- 

 dividual. Assuming 16,000,000 as the population, 

 80,000,000 of bushels would be the amount necc8-< 

 sary to supply the United States. The ratio od 

 rive busbils is a moderate one, and below that al- 

 lowed in our navy ; if that were adopted as th« 

 rule, over 100,000,001 must be taken as the annua 

 consumption. According to the estimate of (iv( 

 bushels per head, reckoning the population o 

 Maine to be 5,000,000, the quantity of wheat lie 

 cessary to supply her consumption must be 2,500, 

 000 bushels. Our farmers may therefore have n( 

 fears of their glutting the market. We hope tha. 

 they will continue and increase their efforts unti 

 Maine shall raise her own bread stuft's. 



The extracts below will be interesting, as com 



ing from a source entitled to credit, and givin: 



probably correct means of judging of the presen 



and future state of the Flour .Market.— Por/inarf .4c 



We have taken repeated occasions during th 



past season to declare the positive shortness of th 



late Wheat crop in the grain growing States c 



the Atlantic, and especially throughout the exter 



sive region that looks to Baltimore for a marke 



So frequently, however, had the reports of ahun 



dant crops been repeated throughout the coimtrj 



and so generally had they gained credence, that 



was not unti! very lately that the high prices pri 



valent in tlie bread stuffs market began to ope 



llie eyes of consumers, and gradually to convinc 



there that these reports were grossly exaggeratec 



It is greatly to be regretted that the crop has bee 



thus overrated, inasmuch as the consumer is no' 



paving, and will have to pay higher prices fc 



bread stuft's than if the true state of the crop ha 



been reported. Last year, when the failure wi 



general, orders were sent to Europe for wheats 



early in the season, that the imports began to a 



rive in the month of September, and during til 



fall and winter the bulk of the foreign suppliil 



reached the United Slates. The same operatio 



would have been going on at the present lime, hi' 



for the exaggerations alluded to, and iirices won 



have been lower than they now are. As it i 



however, it must be some period hence befoil 



supplies of wheat from Europe can reSch us, 



any quantity to affect the market, and in the mef 



time the prevailing high rates must continue. W 



have been led to these remarks by seeing in tl 



New York Journal of Commerce of Monday lat 



the following paragraph, the ediiorsof which llB 



been all along strong believers in the accounts 



the abundant crops. — Ball. Aintricau. 



BiiEAD Stuffs. — It has become a matter 

 great importance that the next European pacll 

 should carry out btrong assurances respecting t 



