NEW ENGI.AND FARMER. 



149 



was fixed under (he bpam, nboiit lialf way be- 

 tween Ibc (ore end of the beam and the coul- 

 ter, cullinff the sward lo such a depth that, 

 followed by (lie coulter, the edgo of the fur- 

 row-slicp was so smooth, that when turned, the 

 grass was coni[>lctciv covered. The time oc- 

 cupied in ;iliiu^hin2: a quarter of an acre was 

 fitty-one minutes, without !iny l'ati!»ije to the 

 catlli' or ploughman ; allhouo;h the stepping- of 

 the cattle was much quicker than is observable 

 in plough-teams generally. The ground 

 ploughed was free from stones or graveh 



The Committee regret that the competitors 

 were oidv three in number : they would have 

 been gratified to have seen objects for all the (our 

 premiums authorized to be given. They a- 

 ward one of them — the smallest, being 6 dol- 

 lars — to S.\MLF.L ScRiBNKR, of Bytield — in New- 

 bury. His plough was well formed ; but his 

 oxen were deficient in their movements tor 

 want of better training. 



The Committee were mr.ch influenced in 

 awardir? the latter premium, in the hope that : 

 it may tend to encourage farmers to come for- 

 ward in considerable nurebers, at the next 

 ploughing match with improved ploughs and 

 well trained oxeti. Bi/ the Committee, 



T. PICKERING, Chairman. 



Topsfittd, October 26, 1821. 



FACTS AND OBSKRV AXIOMS 



IN 



fl0rttttltuvr ants Bomrsttc 5SronomB. 



MANUEL WURTZtL. 



It is slated by a late writer in the Farmer's 

 Journal, an agricultural paper, printed in Lon- 

 don, that Mangel Wurlzel roots should not 

 be fed out lo cattle (ill about February. " Mr 

 Coke grew them some years ago, and liis ser- 

 vants not knoiving their qualities, fed the slock 

 with them in autumn with all they could eat ; 

 the consequence «vas that they were seized 

 ivith a paialytical disorder, but the greater 

 part, if not all, recovered by changing their 

 I'ood." The tops, however, produce no' bad ef- 

 fect, and are an excellent food for cattle in au- 

 tumn. 



The same writer observes, in substance, that 

 the cultivation of this valuable root is increas- 

 ing in Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, North- 

 amptonshire, ud other places in England, and it 

 is in a fair way to supersede the lurnip hus- 

 bandry. — 



PRIDE AND PREJIDICE. 



A correspond -•nt of the Fanner's Journal, in 

 an article dated Surrey, England, 1824, says, 

 "some attempts have been made to introduce 

 • he common swing plough, drawn by two hor- 

 ses, but the native ploughmen are so obstinate 

 that they will not be taught the use of it; and, 

 strange as it may appear in such uncouth be- 

 ings, their objections arc founded in pride. — 

 " Why is it, my good fellow," said I to one of 

 them the other day, " Ih.at you like the old 

 plough so much better than the new ? The 

 new plough, you see, stirs the ground full as 

 deep, and does its work as well as the other, 

 in every r<"spect." His answer was, — '• Why, 

 you see, Sir, I likes lo have four horses before 

 me, they looks so grand." The masters, I am 

 .•!orry lo say, are, in this respect, mucli like 

 their men. It is difficult to prevail upon them 

 *vea lo try the experiment, although they Lave 



in (he neighbourhood, daily opportunities of 

 seeing good efl'ects from (he use of ploughs, 

 drawn by two horses only. 



" Were these ploughs substituted, in part for 

 the old ploughs, the saving to the former would 

 be considerable. Where he now keeps four 

 horses, one man, and one boy, two horses and 

 one man would do. Upon each plough kept, 

 the saving could be little short of j£70 a 

 year, a sum equal to the rent of a small farm." 



BROWSE. 



CatUe will readily eat young sprouts, twigs 

 of trees, and bushes at all times of the year, un- 

 less when the snow is so deep that they cannot 

 wander in pursuit of it. Late in the autumn 

 and earl}' in the spring, mnch hay may be saved 

 by turning out cattle to browse, in lands where 

 there are few or no fruit trees. In the former 

 part of summer, when the young shoots are in 

 the most tender state, some cattle will even 

 grow fat upon browse. Salt hay is found to give 

 cattle an extraordinary appetite for this kind of 

 food. — 



MEASLES IN SWINE. 



Swine, when affected with this disease, have 

 their eyes red and inflamed ; the skin rises in 

 pimples, and runs into scabs. To cure them of 

 this disease, — take half a spoonful of spirit of 

 hartshorn, and two ounces of bole armoniac, mix 

 it with meal and wafer, and give it to them in 

 the morning, when they are very hungry. Re- 

 peat the dose every day, till they are cured, 

 which will be in four or five days. 



MOLES. 



The late Hon. Jacob Rush, of Philadelphia, 

 was of opioion, from some experiments, that 

 dried cod-fish, cut into small pieces, and put 

 into the earth, will drive away moles from gar- 

 dens. Take a sWall round stick of about one 

 inch in diameter, sharpened at the point, and 

 perforate the ground in the roads of the moles ; 

 drop in a small piece of fish, and cover the hole 

 with a lump of dirt, and your gardens will soon 

 be rid of these mischievous animals. 



CONVULSIONS. 



When convulsions occur in children, they are 

 best relieved by a warm bath, about 92 or 94° 

 Fahrenheit, which operates by its anti-spasmo- 

 dic power, and by determining (he blood to 

 (he surface. Should this fail, blood should be 

 abstracted either by leeches, cupping, or by 

 opening the jugular vein, blisters should be 

 applied to the extremities, and an ice-cap to 

 the head. There is nothing more powerful, 

 however, in shortening paroxysms, than cold 

 alFusion of the face and head. 



The purple colour of the face, in cases of 

 convulsion, is occasioned by spasm of the mus- 

 cles of respiration, which retards the passage 

 of the blood through the lungs; this symptom 

 may bs removed !.y inhalation of ammoniacal 

 gas. — Medical Intelbgcncer. 



A French wnter recommends the use of po- 

 tatoes three-fourths boiled, as a substitute for 

 .">ap. We can assure our readers, from long 

 personal experience, that boiled potatoes 

 cleanse the hands as thoroughly and easily as 

 comnion soap ; they (irevent the chops in the 

 winter season, and keep the skin soft and 

 healthy, — iiid.. 



NEW CANAL. 

 A correspondent of (he Worcester Yeoman 



points out the following as a practicable route 

 for the Canal from Boston to Albany. 



" The whole line of this canal would be from 

 Boston by the Middlesex Canal to Concord riv- 

 er, then up the Nashua branch through Lan- 

 caster, to the ponds at its source, which afe 

 near the large ponds at (he source of Miller's 

 river lo the Connecticut, and then by Deer- 

 field river and the Hoosack (o (he Hudson. 



" I hope it is possible (o lead a canal thro' 

 the western part of Massacbusettts over the 

 Green Mountains ; but whether that be possi- 

 ble or not, 1 am quite sure one may be led 

 from (he Cpnneclicut river to the Middlesex 

 canal. 1 submit to my fellow citizens whether 

 the matter is not of sufficient importance to 

 engage the public attention, and to demand an 

 investigation at the public expense. The 

 western part of Massachusetts and the " river 

 towns," have a great interest in this work, if 

 it be practicable. I hope their representatives 

 will call for an examination. It will cost less 

 than the salary of a single judge for one yearj 

 and though the object should be relinquished 

 on examination, still much information will be 

 obtained, valuable to the public. And if the 

 work be pronounced practicable, Massachuselts, 

 prosperous as she is, will vastly increase her 

 wealth, population and resources." 



SCIENTIFIC ITEMS. 



^ German Exjilanaiion of the Deluge. — M.Chabrier,, 

 a corresponding; member of the society of the Friend* 

 of Nature at Fraukfort, has published a memoir to 

 prove that the deluge was occasioned by the fall of 

 the seas of another planet upon ours ; and that the 

 terrestrial matter of that broken up world falliog on 

 our globe foroied our mountains, &c. In answer ta 

 the objection that Moses has not alluded to this ex- 

 planation of the formation of our mountains, he sup-. 

 poses " the patriarch Kin» shut up in the ark witU 

 his family, where, as may be well imagined, he had 

 work enough on his hands and was so fully employed, 

 that he had no time to observe this important event, 

 and the weather was so terrible, that he could not 

 learn what was passing out of doors." 1 



The prospectus circulated relative to Freycinet'g 

 Voyage rouud the World, states that the Atlas of 

 Zoology will contain prints of 254 animals or pieces 

 of anatomy, among; which, 3:23 are new species, com- 

 prehending 15 new genuses ; and the remainder be- 

 long to species little known, or not yet engraved. 

 The text will, besides, contain descriptions of 80 nevf 

 species of which there are no drawings, so that the 

 whole number of new animals brought into notice by 

 this voyage, amounts to three hundred and seven 1 

 The Molusca and Polypus are also represented as 

 forming a very valuable collection ; and much praise 

 is given to the Botanical department. 



The Kingston, (Jam.) Barbadian says, " the cele* 

 bratecl pedestrian traveller, Captain J. D. Cochrane, 

 R. If. arrived in the Packet (the Frolic.) This en- 

 terprizing gentleman, wliose thirst 'for useful knowl- 

 edge is insatiable, has travelled on foot through a 

 great part of Asiatic Russia — a route, we understand, 

 of more than 3000 miles. Bent upon further discove- 

 ries, this indefatigable pedestrian is now on his way 

 to South America, inteniling to explore the yet un- 

 travelled part of that wonderful country, and to as- 

 cend those prodigious mountains, the Andes. Many 

 of our friends recollect this gentleman, when very 

 young, a midshipman, when his uncle, Admiral Coch- 

 rane, commanded the naval force on this gtaticn. J^2 

 'will, we ari sure, desire him succe«<." 



