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196 



NEV ENGLAND FARMER. 



DEC. ar, i«rjr. 



ft'or the New England Farmer.) 

 I suppose, Mr Editor, you can recommend a 

 remedy for every evil :iUi-n<laiu on farming, antl 

 I should lilve some of your ndvice in a most |>er- 

 plexiug case. I liave heard of the plague of a 

 smok/ liouse, and of a scolding wife ; Imt, thaidsa 

 to good luck, I know nothing of them from ex- 

 perience. I hardly think, houci'er, that tliey aie 

 not much worse, than what I have to contend 

 will). My farm, which is situated ahout 40 miles 

 froM) Boston, is by nature, one of the best in town, 

 and I endeavor to husbunil it as well as 1 can, in 

 my way. 1 have been honorfd with premiums 

 for what was called extraordinary crops; for but- 

 ter, for clieese, and for cattle. In f\ict, I and my 

 boys are much engaged in our vocation on the 

 farm ; so also are wife and daughters iu their 

 branch of the business within doors, unfasliiona- 

 ble as it is. In short, Sir, we live very peaceably 

 and happily, and have very little trouble, save one 

 thing, an 1 this I will now comnimiicate for your 

 consideration and advice. 



My farm is enclosed East, West, and Ni^rth, 

 with a good stone wall, without gap or breach. — 

 But I have the vexation to be lounded on the 

 South, by one Ichnhod Slack. Now, all the fence 

 that Ichabod has on his whole farm, containing 

 about 200 acres, would not make a cow's nest ; — 

 ;.»;d here comes my difiiculty. Well do 1 remem- 

 ber, when I was but a lad, how this (arm of Jcli- 

 nbod's did then shine, under the management and 

 cultivation of his grandfather, by his mother's 

 sid(!, old Capt Tnishj. But, alas! now that Ich- 

 abod has it, the glory has all departed,' and it pre- 

 sents but the shabby appearance of a swamp or a 

 brush pasture. You, no doubt, foresee my diffi- 

 culty, which is, that Ichabod totally neglects bis 

 half of the division fence. Me is, to lie sure. Slack 

 in every tiling ; but what affects mo es]iecially, is 

 this [lariicular thing. "The question is, how shall 

 I manage with Ichabod ? 1 have tailed upon him, 

 again and again, to see to it, but in vain ; and his 

 scurvy cattle are continually tiespassing upon me, 

 by reason of this\<>ant of a good fence on his jiart. 

 1 am out of all patience, and what shall I do? 



Perhaps in this case, so trying to a farmer, you 

 would say, " go buihl the fence yourself, and make 

 him pay for it, as the law directs." This, Su', 1 

 should have done long ago, were it not for the 

 consequences, that might ensue. Ichabod has 

 one of the best of wives, a clever daughter, and 

 two smart sons; one 16, the other IS years old. 

 These cliildren have not a drop of Slack blood in 

 them ; but altogether Tnistij. Our families have 

 always lived in perfect harmony, and if I should 

 drag Ichabod into the law, >vc shonhl all be by 

 thS ears! This 1 would avoid, if possible. Now 

 what can be done with Icbabod, 1 am at a loss to 

 know. « Burn him," says one ; " hang him," says 

 another; and "b'aslhim," cries a third. I de- 

 cline taking either of these courses ; but yet,what 

 shall I do with Ichabod ? Yours, ' 



Caleb Quert. 

 Pepcmher, }837- 



Br THE Editob.— We wish it were in our pow. 

 er t9 recommend efi'oclual remedies for all the ills 

 that a farttier is heir to, but it is beyond the reach 

 of our ability. Nevertbless, as brother farmers, 

 we sympathize with ourfrieud Query in this most 

 serious and trying case, and will cheerfully afford 

 him all the aid and advice we can. We think, 

 however, that ho is not without remedy ; and, 



further, that good may come out of evil. There 

 may be worse cases "ihaik his ; for he is not the 

 only farmer who is troubled with such a vexa- 

 tious neighbor, as Ichabod Slack. \N'heresoever 

 we journey around the country, the evidence will 

 now anil then, come up before us, that slack far- 

 mers are in more places than one ; and were we 

 able to rouse them from their stupor, and stimu- 

 late them into activity, energy, and a sense of du- 

 ty to themselves, to their posterity, and to their 

 country, most readily would we undertake the 

 accomplishment ; but we fear the "glory" is not 

 ours. Ichabods there will be, ;is well as tliistles 

 and thorns, while the world stands, and we must 

 endeavor to manage them in the liest way and 

 manner we can. 



An agricultural friend of ours once said, that 

 lie never got into a difficulty, so but that he was 

 able to extricate himself in sotne way or other, 

 either by going ahead, backing out, halving to, or 

 geeing off ; and we verily believe that one of these 

 ways will subserve the purpose of Query. If he 

 is nuwilling either to g-o «/ffirf, and build the fence 

 himself, and then make Ichabod " pay the malt- 

 ing ;" or cease his comiilaiiiing, back out, and sub- 

 mit to the inconvenience without more ado : then 

 we recommend another course, which, perhaps, 

 he will choose to call geeing off. It is this : we 

 advise him to " plough with the heifer ;" that is, 

 to go to the wife, ivho, we conclude, is, like ma- 

 ny we could name, n woman of life and s|)irit. — 

 Induce her to move in the business, and to set her 

 smart boys at work. Instill into the boys' minds, 

 a sense of the importance of the case, and 'show 

 what a chance there is for them to reclaim and 

 restore the old farm, and to form for themselves a 

 name aod a char.ncter, as young men of smartness, 

 business and energy, that the estate may shine 

 again, as in the days of their respected and es- 

 teemed great-grandfather. They are not too young, 

 but will be able to accomplish the desired pur- 

 pose, under the direction and sustaining energies 

 of llieir mother. Icliabod will, no doubt, be wil- 

 ling to stand aside, and give way to the boys, and 

 if they should have the perusal of the JV. E. Far- 

 mer, we have the vanity to think it would assist 

 in furthering the desired object. Petticoat gov- 

 ernment is, certainly, in some instances, the best ; 

 and we do not hesitate to say, that it is as neces- 

 sary that Ichabod Slack's wife should reign and 

 rule over Ichabod StacVs dominions, as it is, that 

 the fair Victoria sliouhl wield the sceptre over the 

 united kingdoms that acknowledge her sway. 



O^Thc communications from Mr Calvin Wing 

 and A. B., we were happy td receive ; but in the 

 multiplicity of our business, felt incompetent to 

 give them such an answer as their importance re- 

 quire, and therefore passed tliem to our friend 

 Mr Colman, wliose ability is acknowledged by all, 

 to make the rejily, and we liope and believe it will 

 lie satisfactory. 



Miv Lebanon, Dec. 12, 1837. 

 .T. K. Newkli,, Esq., — Dear Sir : Presuming 

 on your well known ilesire lo difiuse useful knowl- 

 edge anuuigthe whole community, anil more i>ar- 

 tii'ulariy to .Agriculturists, — I take the liberty of 

 trouhliug you in behalf of a gentleman of my ac- 

 (piaintance iu this place. Understanding a few 

 months since, that the hogs in this vicinity were 



subject to a disease of the liver, which prevente 

 their fattening, and which frequently caused the 

 death, I ventured to recommend the use of ant 

 mony, in consequence of recollecting that it w; 

 in giuieral use at the North, when I was anion 

 the farmers, and also seeing it recommended fn 

 quently in the N. E. Farmer's Almanac. Tli 

 genlleman was induced to make an experimen 

 which has resulted in disapiiointment, probab! 

 for want of particular information on the subjec 

 If you will have the goodness to write nie on tl 

 receipt of this, stating the proper manner and tin 

 of giving it ; hI*o the quantity and mode of pr 

 paratlon, anil any other information respectir 

 pork making, which yon may think useful, ar 

 not generally known, you will confer a favor c 

 an cslimable citizen of this place, and also on 

 Yiuir obed't servant, 



CALVIN WING. 



We aresomevvliat at a loss, what reply to mal 

 to Mr Wing. We hftve bren at times largely e 

 ■raged in the raising and fattening of swine; b 

 we are unacquainted with the particular disord 

 to vvliich he alludes. The symptoms of diseas 

 the modes of its operation, the circumstances 

 which it originates, are none of them given ; tl 

 appearance of the liver after death, is not state 

 ami we are utterly at a loss to prescribe, if en 

 under other circumstances, we might have be' 

 tempted to do it. 



Diseases of animals are generally local, ooc 

 sional, or individual; or general and epidemic.. 

 In the latter case, they are attnospheric or coul 

 gious, and the remedy is not easy ; in the fortn 

 case, they may be found to spring from caiisi 

 within our reach, and these causes may be i 

 moved or obviated, remembering always that pi 

 ventive is far better than cure. The diseases 

 swine have been little attended to ; and, as far 

 our own experience has gone, the doctoring 

 them has not been accompanied with any gr« 

 advantage. Many of their diseases arise undoul 

 edly from itnproper managcn.ent — often from t 

 much wet in their styes ; but especially from l)i 

 management in regard to their food ; at tiin 

 keeping them for a long while on very short coi 

 mens, and then feeding them excessively and su 

 denly filling them to repletion. To have a stoi 

 ach like a hog, is a proverbial expression, me« 

 ing that a man may eat anything, because 1 

 stomach is like the stones of a grist-mill, and W 

 be sure to reduce and dissolve any thing that Itt 

 be put into it ; hut there are limits to the powe 

 even of a hog's stomach; and there can be I 

 doubt that swine often suffer from injudicio 

 feeding; and especially from sudden transitio 

 from low to very high feed, and in such ca« 

 have as severe turns of the fashionable disoril 

 called dyspejisy, as any of our bonvivatits. 



We are not familiar with the use of antiuioi 

 for swine. In case of cosliveness, and as an. I 

 ternative, we have given freely of sulphur, tlio4 

 fects of which iu quickening their appetiie li« 

 been quite observable. From the greediness wj 

 which they seize upon charcoal, we have been" 

 customed to give them freely of that, mi<let 

 srtong inclination in such cases, always to takel' 

 slinctfbr a guide ; and satisfied that to a degn 

 it must operate as a purifier of the blood. 



We subjoin from the Farmer's Assistant SOD 

 general account of the diseases to which sivii 

 are subject, and the remedies that are custoniEri 



