1858. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



(7 



and so far as appearances are concerned, full 

 crops appear mucli better than scanty ones. 



But we have diverged from our starting point, 

 the 2^ciper, to the soil itself. We rejoice in the 

 name Neio England, and in the prosperity of 

 whatever is connected therewith. We admire 

 New England products — New England manners, 

 and New England energy. Some of the most 

 vigorous plants of the West were transplanted 

 there, from the hardy shores and hills of New 

 England. Whoever is so ungrateful as not to 

 rejoice in his own native element, is unworthy of 

 position anywhere. 



True, our soil is hard, and our climate at times 

 forbidding, but where do you find a better class 

 of men, than on the genuine farms of New Eng- 

 land? I, therefore, rejoice in the opportunity to 

 speak well of the Neio England Farmer, in what- 

 ever position found, whether on the sands of the 

 Cape, on the granite hills of New Hampshire, or 

 the more fertile meads of the Connecticut. *^* 



December 21, 1857. 



EXTRACTS AND REPLIES. 

 CRANBERRY MEADOWS — POULTRY. 



I have a meadow of about two acres, oval in 

 shape. The soil is a black muck, ten or twelve 

 feet deep in the middle ; it has been mowed every 

 year, and flowed every winter. I have been trying 

 to get it into a cranberry meadow^ for some years 

 past, by flowing. There are several beds of vines 

 now scattered over it, but only one of these beds 

 has ever borne any, and that is the one nearest 

 the edge. 



In the centre of the meadow water stands six 

 or eight inches deep during the summer. I can- 

 not see as floAving has done any good towards 

 spreading the vines. T had concluded to gravel 

 it over this winter, as I thought it was too wet ; 

 but some advise me to keep it flowed a year or 

 two and then drain it. It can easily be drained, 

 as gravel is close by. What shall I do to get it 

 into a cranberry meadow ? 



Is it a good plan to keep dough or grain before 

 hens all the time, or is it best to feed them regu- 

 larly ? H. A. C. 



Uxbridge, 1857. 



Remarks. — The question about the meadow 

 we will leave to those having more experience 

 than we have had on that subject. 



We think it best to feed poultry once a day, 

 giving them in the morning about as much as 

 they will eat before night. 



leather chips. 

 How can leather chips be manufactured into 

 manure ? Thos. O. Jackson. 



Plymouth, 1857. 



' Remarks. — Leather contains valuable fertiliz- 

 ing qualities, such as gelatine, albumen, and 

 from tlie fatty matter in it, ammonia. Brown's 

 "American Muck Book" states that the most 

 economical mode of using leather shavings is to 

 "chop them up into small pieces, and scatter 

 them uniformly over the surface of the ground, at 

 the rate of twenty to thirty bushels to an acre. 



and plow them in. If kept constantly covered 

 with moist earth, they will impart their fertiliz- 

 ing influence to most of our cultivated crops for 

 six or seven years. If desirable to expend, they 

 may be dissolved in strong solutions of potash or 

 sulphuric acid, and administered in the form of a 

 liquid manure. They are applicable to nearly 

 every variety of soil, but appear to be best adapt- 

 ed to those that are sandy, gravelly or light." 



an expression, and an invitation. 



More than five years have elapsed, since I sub- 

 scribed for the weekly Farmer, though at the 

 lime I thought I would take it only for six 

 months. But I have not seen the moment since 

 when I thought I could spare it. The column 

 you devote to "Extracts and Replies" is very in- 

 teresting and profitable to me. We, as small 

 farmers, among the green hills of Vermont, may 

 learn much from each other. Freeman. 



Northjield, Vf., 1857. 



Remarks. — We are obliged to "Freeman" for 

 his good opinion, and especially for an invitation 

 contained in another portion of his letter to "vis- 

 t him and become acquainted with his family." 

 This is precisely what we enjoy, and what we 

 profit by largely, and whenever we are in that 

 neighborhood, shall avail ourselves of the oppor- 

 tunity to look at the "farm he has cleared, and 

 taste of the products he has raised with his own 

 hands." 



DRAINS AND SEWING MACHINES. 



I wish to inquire if there is any better way of 

 digging drains than by the use of spade and 

 pick? I understand that Pratt's Ditch Digger 

 has been successfully used in New York, and not 

 long since I read of a gentleman who uses it to 

 dig a trench to set his fence posts in, as he thinks 

 it is an easier Avay than to dig holes for them. 

 Has it ever been tried here in New England, and 

 if so, with what success ? 



What is the comparative value and cost of 

 stone and tile drains? Will not Mr. French 

 please to enlighten the readers of the Farmer a 

 little upon these points, as we suppose that he 

 knows everything about draining. 



I also wish to make a few inquiries about the 

 cheap sewing machines. There has been quite 

 a number of kinds advertised, varying in price 

 from $10 to $45 ; are any of them really good 

 and valuable machines, and if so, which is the 

 best ? It seems to me that if a good sewing ma- 

 chine could be obtained at a moderate price, it 

 would soon pay for itself in almost any family. 



Lancaster, Dec. 22, 1857. E. G. 



Remarks, — We think Mr. French will cheer- 

 fully reply to "E. G." 



A large egg. 



Mrs. J. ?.L Hix, of Manchester, Vt., has a me- 

 dium sized hen that lays very large eggs, and all 

 double yolk, but one in particular that 1 saw and 

 measured reached the size of seven inches in 

 circumference, the smallest way, and nine the 



