158 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



FRIDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1821. 



The Agricultural Reader. 

 A small book has been recently publishefl hy 

 Richardson &. Lord, u'ilh the following title : — 

 " The Agricultural Reader, printed for the 

 benefit of schools. By Daniel Adams, M. D." — 

 To this book are prefixed the following recom- 

 mendations from gentlemen who are eminent as 

 scientific and practical agriculturists. 



" I have taken a cursory vieiv of the Agricul- 

 tural Reader, by Mr Daniel Adams. Ilssubjects 

 are, in my opinion, judiciously selected, and 

 treated in a manner which gives much useful 

 information to the farmer. The book is design- 

 ed for the use of schools, and it appears to be 

 well calculated for their benefit. The various, 

 iuleresting, and entertaining matter, which it 

 contains, cannot fail to command Ihe attention of 

 pupils, who have been accustomed to the labors 

 of a farm, or expect to obtain a livelihood by 

 the occupation of husbandry. 



" The most important knowledge is that which 

 is practical ; and that is not the least important, 

 which qualifies one to obtain from the soil not 

 only the necessaries but the comforts of life. — 

 As the principal part of the rising generation in 

 all the inland towns of this country will prose 

 cute the business of husbandry, it is necessary 

 that they should be early acquainted with the 

 principles of the art. This will give (hem a 

 relish for a farmer's life, and inspire them with 

 ambition to excel in their occupation. The A"- 

 ticultural Reader is well adapted to profluce 

 this effect ; and 1 heartily recommend it for the 

 use of schools. Humphrey Moore. 



Milford, Oct. 23, KU. 



"Mr Adams — I have examined, with as much 

 attention as the shorine.ss of the lime and the 

 avocations of I)usiness would permit, the first 

 236 pages of your .-Igricullural Reader. Judging 

 from the part thus examined, I have no hesita- 

 tion in saying, that I think Ihe work is calculat- 

 ed to be eminently usefid to the agiicultural, 

 and consequently to every other clas-! of the 

 community ; that it should be read and under- 

 stood by every farmer; and that no scholar, or 

 young man who intends to devote bis time or 

 , attention to agriculture, should consider his ed- 

 tication complete without a thorough knowledge 

 of its contents. Yours, &,c. T. BROWN." 



Francisloun, A'ov. 1, 1824. 



The following extract from the preface will 

 develop the plan of the work, and render its 

 utility obvious : 



" 'Tis education forms the cnmmon mind, 

 Just as the twij is bent, the tree 's inclined. 

 " The abiive couplet has been frequently quot- 

 ed, and if the sentiment it inculcates lie admitted 

 as true, we need never expect the agricultural 

 to become a reading community, particularly as 

 it respects subjects rcbiting to their occiipat'ion, 

 until the study nf agricuhiirc, in some shape or 

 form, shall be introduced into our cunimon 

 schools, and the minds of youlh shall (here first 

 be '■'■ iacb'icd'' to agricultural inquiries and pur- 

 suits. And, indeed, why should not this be done ? 

 There is lime enough for it :n cvorv scIiomI ■_' 



lor as youth must be allowed time and provided 

 with books for learning to read., by making these 

 inquiries the subjects of their reading les.ions, the 

 two operations of learning, to read, and learning 

 to think, on these subjects, may be prosecuted 

 and going on together, without additional ex- 

 pense, either of time or money.*' 



The plan of the author, in developing Ihe all 

 important, but too much neglected science of 

 husbandr}', embraces '• the definition of words" 

 and the "interrogative system of teaching." — 

 He commences with '.he " explanation ol terms," 

 such as " Broad-Cast Husbandry, Drill Husband- 

 ry, Convertible Husbandry, Trench Ploughing, 

 Florizontal Ploughing, Indigenous Plants, Exotic 

 Plants," S:c. and includes such chemical terms 

 as are made use of in modern books on agricul 

 ture, and which it is necessary to understand, in 

 order to comprehend the meaning of the auth- 

 or. Then follotv lessons, under the titles, — 



cutting away from each to receive them, where 

 they are secured by small iron bolts with nuts 

 and screws, — and the door is done, with less la- 

 bour than that of making common doors; while 

 the mould turned out of wood to cast by, the 

 caslinirs themselves and drilling the holes thro' 

 the centre (which is better than lo cast them 

 with Ibe holes) together, cost me but seventy-six 

 cents, whereas the smiths would charge mo three 

 dollars for good sufficient hinges for hanging 

 two doors. 



A race-way is next to be made in wliich the 

 door may run, which must be iii,«/;?c of the posts, 

 those beinar outwardly when exposed to the 

 weather. If a girth for the support of scaf- 

 folding be screwed into the post on that side to 

 which the door is to be moved, an inner post 

 will be necessary to remove the girth, the door 

 runnin? between the two posts, in a groove cut in 

 the floor about three fourths of an inch deep, 

 and wide enough to secure the bottom of the 

 door without pinching. If an old iron hoop be 

 nailed down in the bottom of this groove, it 



"Agriculture, — Systematic Agriculture, — Soil, j will facilitate Ihe running of the door. 



Purposes of Ihe Soil in the growth of Plants, — 

 On loosening and pulverising the soil, — the food 

 of plants, — manure — gypsum — rotation nf crops 

 — On the culture of Maize or Indian Corn," &.c. 



At the close of the work is given a " gloss- 

 ary," consisting of words, which it is supposed 

 that young readers will not comprehend Ihe 

 meaning of without explanation. Many of the 

 words, however, are in common use, are to be 

 (ound in common dictionaries, and are almost 

 as common, and as comnnonly understood as a;r, 

 in Ihe English language. Rut if Ihe author has 

 erred, in this particular, his error has been on 

 the safe side. Perspicuity is the soul of a work 

 intended for the use of Ihe rising generation ; 

 and it is belter to introduce superfluous defini- 

 tions, than to use words which convey no defi- 

 nite meaning to the young slndent. 



On Ihe whole, we heartily, and cheerfully re- 

 commend this work. It will be of use not only 

 lo school boys, but to adults, who are said by 

 the poet to be "children of a larger growth." 

 It will have a decided tendency to give that bi- 

 as lo the mind of the rising generation, which 

 will ensure the greatest good to the greatest 

 number, and place the pillars of national great- 

 ness on the firm basis of individual prosperity. 



The advantages of a door constructed in this 

 way, properly made, and having entire freedom 

 of motion, are, 1st — a saving of time in open- 

 in;j and shutting. — while a man can walk across 

 Ibe barn floor being sufficient for either purpose ; 

 2dly — the ease with which Ibis is done, a child 

 of ten years old being sufficient for the opera- 

 tion : 3dly — and especially, its perfect security 

 from high winds by which it is never moved, 

 nor obstructed by motion when moved by hand. 

 Add to all these, it is not subject lo those disor- 

 ders common lo other doors, such as wagging, 

 and starting off the hinges. The entrance into 

 the barn floor, in this case, may be a moderate- 

 ly inclined plane, without any sudden rise or 

 jog. as in other cases, so that a load may be 

 backed in with a good yoke of oxen, well train- 

 ed, about as readily n^drawn in, which is some- 

 times matter of no small accommodation. 



Slioulil these considerations, in your ojiinion, 

 entitle Ibis lo a place in your useful paper, you 

 are at liberty lo insert it ; otherwise you will 

 give it leave to lie under Ihi; table. 



DANIEL ADAMS. 



AInnt Vernon, (.V. //.) 1824. 



FARMER 



SUMMARY OF NEWS. 



TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW E.\(IAHD FARMER. 



NEW CONSTRUCTION OF E.1RN DOORS. 

 Dear Sin — lu repairing my barn lately, which 

 is in a very bleak situation, instead of two doors 

 swinging on hinges and secured by a cross-bar. 

 in the usual form, I close Ihe entrance into m\ 

 barn floor by one entire door, moved on cast iron 

 lniiid!('s.\ro form the door, the boards are 

 halved ancNfoined together by four wooden 

 cleats or bo.uds. one flush wilh'ilie top, anoth- 

 er Ibi-h with the bottom, and the other two 



in tlie inteniieiiiale space at equal distances. 



Two cast iron trundles, six inches in tliameter, 

 and three fourths of an inch in thickness are let 

 in ,it bollo;ii, belneen the door and the cleat. 



Inltrnnt Inijiruve.mKnls. — I he Canarlisns are niakin°- 

 f:reat exertions to prevent the trade ofthe l^ppi r Prov- 

 ince from being- drawn to New York, by the laie canal. 

 They are about to make a canal fjom lake l>ietolake 

 Ontario— and lo rentier the St Lawrence navigable, so 

 that a boat can s^o from MonLt-eal to Kingston in a 

 week. — The New Yorkers, however, are not idle, but 

 have projected a canal from the St Lawrence to Lake 

 Champlain. 



The survej' has been made for a canal across from 

 Lake Champlain to the St l>awrence, and it has been 

 found practicable. Distance 113 miles. This would 

 be a further inducement for a Rail Way from Eurlin^ton 

 to Boston — or a straight Turnpike. 



Fatal ^icadcnl. As two young mtn were atlempling 

 to cruss the Niagara river, from Canada, w ith a load of 

 tiler and apples, they were swept by the current over 

 the fallsj 



The Creek Tndians, hi-ing informed that the Vnited 

 Statrs Commissioners were to vifit lh( ni, to oltain a 

 lurlher cession of land, have resolved not to part with 

 any more. They say their population has increased, 

 that Manufactur' 5 and Asricnllnse are flourishing 

 among them, and that thtir limits have become narrow. 



