108 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



March 



COEII AED COB MEAL. 



The grinding of corn and cobs together, which 

 wo have hoard ridiculed very much by some, for- 

 merly, has now become an every day occurrence, 

 fanners l)eing convinced that the cob contains too 

 much nutriment to be thrown away. 



Our experience heretofore in regard to its use 

 is this : for those animals that chew the cud it is 

 a most excellent provender, Init for those that do 

 not it is not so valuable. Thus, for oxen, cows 

 and sheep, it is a capital feed. These animals, 

 after what they swallow in the loarm vat, called 

 the first stomach or paunch, have the faculty of 

 throwing it up again in small portions called cud, 

 and chewing it over in a leisurely manner until it 

 is ground very fine, and then after being thus 

 thoroughly mingled with the saliva, swallowing 

 it again into another stomach, where all its nutri- 

 tive nuitter is extracted by the proper organs cre- 

 ated for that purpose. 



The horse and the hog having no such organs 

 to re-chew, do not derive so much Ijenefit from the 

 ground cob, as the animals above named. 



Hens derive more benefit from corn and cob 



quiring a fortune, before he begins to enjoy him- 

 s.'lf, but enjoj-s the good of his labor as he goes 

 along. Let us hear what Sir Humphrey Davy.j 

 the great chemist of London, saj's of fiirmiug and 

 the farmer : — j 



" Agriculture, to which we owe our means of; 

 subsistence, is an art intimately connected with j 

 chemical science ; for although the common soil 

 of the earth will produce vegetable food, yet it 

 can only be made to produce it in the greatest 1 

 quantity, and of the best quality, by methods of 

 cultivation dependent on scientific principles. 



" The knowledge of the comixjsition of soils, 

 of the food of vegetables, of the mode in which 

 their products must l)e treated, so as to become 

 fit for the nourishment of animals, is essential to 

 the cultivati(m of land ; and his exertions are 

 profitable and useful to society, in proportion as 

 he is more of a chemical professor. Since, in-, 

 deed, this truth has been understood, and since 

 the importance of agriculture has ))een generall}' 

 felt, the character of the agriculturist has become 

 more dignified, and more refined ; no longer a 

 mere machine of labor, he has learned to think 

 and to reason. lie is aware of his usefulness to 

 his fellow-man, and he has become at once the 

 friend of Nature and the friend of society." 



There is — and it is a good omen for the future 

 prosperity of our country — an increasing interest 

 throughout our land, in the science of agricul 

 ture. Wonderful improvements have been made 

 upon almost evcr^'- farming implement, and some 

 entirely new ones invented ; so that the manual 

 part of the labor upon the farm is much easier 

 than formerly. And what is of more importance, 

 kindred sciences are lending invaluable aid to the 

 farmer. 



All true lovers of their country cannot but 

 hope that this interest, of which T have spoken, 

 will continue to increase until the farmer shall 

 stand as high in the estimation of all, — old and 

 young — as the merchant, physician, lawyer, or 

 any of the learned professions. 



Yours truly, S. L. White. 



Groion, Jan. 4, 1855. 



meal, tlian they do from corn meal alone. In 

 fowls of tin's class there is an apparatus analogous 

 to animals that chcAV the cud. 



First they take dry food into their crops, here 

 it becomes soaked as if it were in a warm vat, 

 from this it passes into the gizzard, which, fur- 

 nished with gravel stones, acts the part of grind- 

 ing fine, by aid of the strong muscles of that or- 

 gan, whatever passes into it. Here, the particles 

 of the cob meal, thoroughly pulverized and min- 

 gled with the gastric juices, become dissolved, and 

 form nutrition for the l)ody. 



We do not mean to say tliat corn and cob meal 

 is not good provender for horses and hogs, but 

 that they do not derive so much benefit from 

 pound for jwund, or bushel for bushel, as oxen, 

 cows, &c., do. — Maine Farmer. 



A SHORT LECTURE ON EXTRAVA- 

 GANCE. 



We spoke (in a former article) of the extrav- 

 agftnce of farmers, as well as others of the pros- 

 perous classes, in the structure and furniture of 

 their houses. We know of no class in the com- 

 munity, who better deserve all the real comforts 

 of life, than those who fairly win their support 

 from the soil, and we should be glad to see them 

 surrounded, not only with the necessaries, but 

 many of the luxuries of life. But every man's 

 purse has a bottom to it, and the great problem 

 is, how to expend what we can devote to our own 

 comfort, and that of our families, so as to get the 

 best r( turn for our money. Many a man can ad- 

 vise his neighbor how to live, who cannot see his 

 own way clear, or if he does see it, cannot follow 

 it. We have advised, and our advice is especial- 

 ly adapted to young men, to live in a small house 

 plainly furnished, because the small house costs 

 less than a large one, and requires less furniture, 

 and less labor to keep it in order, and because it 

 is truly respectable, as well as comfortable, to live 

 within your means. We might have added an- 

 other consideration — that aside from the labor of 

 keeping the house itself in order, the household 

 work, generally, is much more easily done in a 

 small, than a large house. 



A lady now residing in a city, in a large house 

 with three servants, recently remarked, when 

 speaking on this subject, that when she lived in 

 New Hampshire, in a one-story cottage, with but 

 two rooms and an attic, and did all her own work, 

 including the cooking for her family, and ate in 

 the kitchen, her task Avas less wearisome than 

 that of merely directing her present establish- 

 ment. No doubt this is literally true, and no 

 doubt there are many fiimilies in every village in 

 Massachusetts and New Hampshiee, whose in- 

 door labor is increased nearly two-fold, by endeav- 

 oring to keep up a style beyond their means. 



But while Ave would discourage this foolish 

 sacrifice to public opinion or fashion, Ave would 

 urge upon our friends the importance of increas- 



