218 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



May 



while the more volatile portions escaped into the 

 air. He wanted a "bottom to his farm" — some- 

 thing that would hold the manure — the vegeta- 

 ble matter — and the soil, too, from the constant 

 leaching to wbich it was already subject. Would 

 thorough draining meet his case? 



An observing townsman, who has spent some 

 time in California, informs me that the river bot- 

 toms only, so far as he saw, were cultivated in 

 that State. On these bottoms, he says, the soil 

 is constantly moist almost to its very surface. 

 Hero grow the monster vegetables of which we 

 have so often read. Tlie soil there which is not 

 thus kept filled with moisture, bakes and cracks 

 in the dry season, and cannot be cultivated at all, 

 until by some means the land shall be irrigated. 

 When I closed my first article, and when I wrote 

 the heading of this, I thought I should have am- 

 ple space for some remarks upon irrigation, after 

 giving my reasons for believing that, in this coun- 

 try, draining Avill long be confined to svv-ampsand 

 ^ow lands, which constitute a very small propor- 

 tion of the soil either of New England or of 

 these United States. But I have filled my sheet, 

 and may as well stop where I am. AVishing, 

 however, to make my bow in good company, I 

 will append the following statement from the 

 writings of Prof. Nash : 



"I have often described our most common 

 qualities of New England soil to English farm- 

 ers, and asked what would be the eff'ect of drain- 

 ing such lands ; and I have received for reply, 

 that it would but lose to the owner all the money 

 expended in the operation." s. F. 



Winchester, Feb., 1858. 



For the New Enr;Iand Farmer. 

 MERCY TOWARDS ANIMALS IS 

 ECONOMY. 



The teamster, who loads his dray or wagon 

 so heavily that the horse or team attached to it 

 cannot draw it but a short distance, without be- 

 ing so exhausted of strength as to be unable to 

 proceed, without stopping to rest, or breathe 

 awhile, is an unmerciful and an unwise man. 



Vriiocver practices such a mode of loading his 

 team is ignorant of true economy, and is wanting 

 in merciful feelings — is inhuman. It is ever in- 

 jurious to the beast of burden or draft to over- 

 load hun ; such loads as require the exercise of 

 the full, or nearly the whole strength of the ani- 

 mals to move them forward, strain their nerves 

 and sinews and stifle them. The over-driven or 

 over-worked horse is injured in his strength and 

 speed. It is uneconomical to manage and use a 

 horse in such a manner as to impair his useful- 

 ness and value. It i-s most unwise to lessen by 

 our usage, more than necessary, the market val- 

 ue of our working animals, to shorten their lives 

 or their periods of scrviceableness. It is great 

 folly to so use a horse, that would, with kind 

 and wise management, be serviceable for ten 

 years, as to curtail that term of usefulness to six 

 years. 



The motto, that "time is money," is true in- 

 deed. By over-driving or over-loading, we im- 

 pair the speed of the carriage and dray horse. 

 We lose time in their lessened speed and activi- 

 ty afterwards. We occasionally see drays, sleds, 

 and wagons, so heavily loaded for the horses or 



teams attached, that they cannot be moved but a 

 few yards or rods, without so fatiguing the ani- 

 mal as to require rest, and may be, with difficul- 

 ty the load is started after such pauses or stop- 

 pings. The horses are much injured by strain- 

 ing, to haul such loads, and much time is lost by 

 such mode of dragage. It would be more expe- 

 ditious and economical to go oftener with light- 

 er loads. It is better to go twice, in transport- 

 ing flour, than put on one barrel too many for 

 a load. It is an injury to the harnesses and car- 

 riages, when the load is too heavy for the team. 

 A sled is much racked by the swinging to and 

 off' of the team in endeavoring to start. Heavy 

 loads rack and strain the carriage ever. It is 

 ungentlemanly to so load a team that its move- 

 ments pain and shock the sensibilities of street 

 passengers. The act of overloading is accursed. 



p. 



For the New England Farmer. 

 GUANO. 



Mr. Editor : — I am a common man, cultivat- 

 ing my own acres to acquire a comfortable sup- 

 port for my family and myself; and have no time 

 to institute accurate comparative experiments. 

 I have endeavored to learn whether it was worth 

 while for mo to buy guano, at a cost of three 

 or four dollars per hundred pounds. The first 

 thing I learn about it is that it expends its 

 strength the first season ; the second is, if the 

 article is of good quality it needs to be mixed 

 with some diluting substances. The third is, the 

 quantity you obtain for your money, as compared 

 with good manure, is so small that I am satisfied 

 it is better to make compost at home, or purchase 

 good manure from the stable, and to leave the 

 bags of guano to those who deal in fancy articles. 

 I have applied guano, with good success to grass 

 land, just before a rain, doubling the crop as 

 compared with like grounds next adjoining; but 

 I have never seen very beneficial results, when 

 applied to hoed crops. If it be true, as I believe 

 it is, that its virtue will be expended the first 

 year, I doubt whether it will be found worth pur- 

 chasing. I have heard it said that the most care- 

 ful analysis will not distinguish the difference in 

 soils, where oOO pounds of guano has been ap- 

 plied to the acre, and where none has been ap- 

 plied. This being so, it shows that there is lit- 

 tle reliance to lie placed in analysis, or that there 

 is little virtue in guano. Arator. 



March 20, 1858. 



Value of Clover Hay. — H. Capron, of Illi- 

 nois, who has been largely concerned in the dai- 

 ry business, (having sold $6000 worth of milk in 

 a single year.) informs the Country Gentleman 

 that he made accurate experiments to test the 

 comparative value of timothy and clover hay. 

 These experiments extended through a period of 

 two years, were accompanied with accurate 

 weighing and measuring, and the food was 

 changed from timothy to clover and vice versa, 

 once a month, and results were that the clover 

 hay yielded ten per cent, more milk than the tim- 

 othy. It will be observed that this Avas not a 

 single experiment, but a series of experiments 

 extending for a long period. It is proper to state 

 that the clover was well cured. 



