176 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



A?RIL 



"Although there have been added in this Com- 

 monwealth to the lands under improvement since 

 1840, 300,000 acres, and although the upland and 

 other mowing lands have been increased more 

 than 90,000 acres, or nearly 15 per cent., and the 

 tillage lands increased more than 40,000 acres in 

 the same period, yet there has been no increase 

 in grain crops, but an absolute depreciation of 

 600,000 bushels. * * » This plain- 

 ly shows the condition of agriculture in Massa- 

 chusetts as a whole, and with an increasing pop- 

 ulation, with good markets, and every facility for 

 improving and restoring our lands, it is truly an 

 alarming state of things." 



Can this be so ? We wish Mr. Tower would 

 show us how the fact is obtained. 



The reports by Charles H. Merriam, on 

 Steers, by Solon Carter, on Oxen, by John M. 

 Harris, on Sheep, by J. S. Brown, on Vegeta- 

 bles, by Ezra Kendall, on Farms, by Jonas A. 

 Marshall, on Gardens, by E. F. Bailey, on 

 Orchards, and by W. G. Wyman, on Grain, are 

 all valuable papers, each containing either state- 

 ments or suggestions that must be valuable to 

 their brother farmers. The statement of Jabez 

 Fisher, upon the Culture of Pears is an elabo- 

 rate and well-drawn paper, containing much in- 

 formation of value to those who wish to engage 

 in the cultivation of that delicious fruit. 



We shall be glad to receive a copy of the tran- 

 sactions of each county society in this or any 

 other State. 



STRYCHNINE. 



This poison Avhich has of late become so noto- 

 rious in its abuse, (we cannot say use,) is the 

 most uncertain in its action on the human frame ; 

 in some producing instant death ; the same dose 

 in others only bringing on tetanic convulsions, 

 and in a lucky few no effect at all ; and this does 

 not appear to have any relation to the physical 

 strength of the patient. It is a whitish, crystal- 

 line substance, and is extracted from the nut of 

 a tree called strychnos nux vomica. This tree 

 grows in Ceylon, is of moderate size, and has 

 thick, shining leaves, with a short, crooked stem. 

 In the fruit season, it is readily recognized by its 

 rich, orange-colored berries, about as large as 

 golden pippins. The rind is smooth and hard, 

 and contains a white pulp, of which many varie- 

 ties of birds are very fond ; within this are flat, 

 round seeds, not an inch in diameter, covered 

 ■with very beautiful silky hairs, and of an ash 

 grey color. The nut is the deadly poison which 

 was well known, and its medicinal properties well 

 understood by Oriental doctors, long before 

 Europe or America had heard its name. "Dog- 

 killer" and "fish-scale" are translations of two of 

 its Arabic names. The natives of Hindostan of- 

 ten eat it for months, and it becomes a habit, 

 like opium-eating, with the same disastrous re- 

 sults. They commence with taking the eighth of 

 a nut a day, and gradually increase their allow- 

 ance to an entire nut, which would be about twen- 

 ty grains. If they eat directly before or after 

 food, no unpleasant effects are produced, but if 



they neglect this precaution, spasms result. The 

 chemical tests for it are numerous, but only one 

 or two can be relied upon as thoroughly ace 

 rate. — Scientific American. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 CHOPS ON" PEAT MEADOWS. 



Mr. Editor : — I have a peat meadow, three 

 acres of which I broke up in the fall of 1855 ; the 

 following spring I planted the same with pota- 

 toes ; they grew finely, but were all destroyed by 

 the great rains in that year ; in the fall I levelled 

 the ridges and [forked over the whole, and plant- 

 ed potatoes again in the spring of 1857, which 

 produced a little over 200 bushels. I have now 

 drained it more thoroughly, so that the surface, 

 to the depth of six or eight inches, is well pul- 

 verized ; below this the peat is from two to twen- 

 ty feet deep ; have sounded sixteen feet without 

 finding bottom. 



Now what I would like to know is, what crops 

 will it grow beside potatoes and grass, and must 

 it be gravelled to produce the latter? If you, or 

 some of your correspondents, will j,ive me your 

 experience or advice you will confer a favor on 



Jan. 26, 1858. Essex County. 



Remarks. — We have seen corn, oats, cabbages, 

 beets, carrots, onions, &c. &c., growing on such 

 land as you describe, without its being gravelled, 

 — but that operation would undoubtedly secure 

 better grass. With six or eight inches of the 

 surface well pulverized, and with sufficient drain- 

 age, such land will produce most crops common 

 to our farms, with the exception of barley. Buck- 

 wheat we have seen growing on them with great 

 luxuriance. Many of our readers have had much 

 experience with such lands, and perhaps, may give 

 some detailed account of the operations on them. 



The Latest Invention. — A mill has been 

 started in Haverhill for the preparation of "gran- 

 ular fuel." The "masheen" will cut into four 

 inch length all sorts of brush, such as huckle- 

 berry bushes and similar shrubs vip to large alder 

 branches. The fuel will light without shavings, 

 and will burn longer than charcoal, and answer 

 the same purpose, and it is considerably cheaper 

 The Banner thinks it a good thing, and says it 

 will give the farmers in that ylclnity a chance to 

 rid themselves of huckleberry pastures, which 

 are to many a constant source of complaint and 

 annoyance. 



Preserve the Papers. — Forney's Press has 

 a very readable article on English and American 

 newspapers, from which we learn that "three 

 copies of each newspaper," signed by the pub- 

 lisher, must be regularly transmitted to the Stamp 

 Office, which pays full price for them. After the 

 expiration of a year, one complete file of each 

 journal is transferred to the British Museum, 

 where they are bound in volumes, and preserved 

 for reference. A most excellent plan it is, and 

 Macaulay has repeatedly acknowledged his in- 

 debtedness, as a historian, to these valuable 

 sources of contemporary information. 



