1868. 



NEW ENGLAND FAKJklER. 



525 



ingly precarious. We believe that our corres- 

 pondent has suggested one of the causes of 

 this unfavorable change — the neglect of out- 

 door exercise and muscular exertion. A veg- 

 etable and fruit garden, if not a farm, was a 

 necessary part of a New England parsonage 

 of the past generation, as they still are and 

 always have been of the religious establit.h- 

 ments of the Catholic church. For the bodily 

 exercise necessary to health, the English clergy 

 have sometimes resorted to field sports and 

 recreations which would hardly be tolerated in 

 New England. But for all these things our 

 clergy have no taste ; and we doubt whether 

 history aflbrds an example of such entire ne- 

 glect of open air exercise by any class of men 

 as that furnished by the clergy of New Eng- 

 land during the past fifty years. The result 

 is not only that their "bodily presence is weak 

 and their speech contemptible," but many 

 of the more far-seeing among them are lament- 

 ing their loss of influence with the masses, 

 and the growing estrangement between pastor 

 and people. As "with the people, so with the 

 priest," the laws of our being cannot be vio- 

 lated with impunity. And among thes'e laws, 

 must be included the old enactment, that "by 

 the sweat of thy face," — not mind or intellect, 

 — "shalt thou eat bread." This edict may be 

 evaded, but not its penalty. 



H"E"W PUBLICATIONS. 



How Crops Grow. A Treatise on the Chemical Com- 



positior, Srru ture, aQd|L fe of the Plvnt. for >i\\ a u- 

 detiH of Attriculture. Wih numerous lilustr tions 

 and TaDle-- of Analysis. By 8. W. Joh son, M A , 

 Proft'ssor of Analytical and Agiiculturul ch-niistiy 

 in the Shtfli id Boifntitic S-iiool of Yale College; 

 Chemist to the Connec'i ut 8l<ite Agricultural f-o.;i 

 ety; Mi mber of the Nati nal Acad'-my of Suiem e". 

 New York: O. Judd& Co. 1868. 294 pages. Price 

 $1.50. 



Our first impressions of the value of this vol- 

 ume are so decidedly favorable, that we care not 

 to wait for a more thorough examination before 

 commending it to the notice of our readers. The 

 work is divided into three parts. The first divi- 

 sion treats of "the chemical composition of the 

 plant;" the second is devoted to "the structure of 

 the plant and the offices of its organs;" while "the 

 life of the plant" is the subject of the third divi- 

 sion. Numerous tables of analysis are also given 

 in the appendix. The author has endeavored in 

 this volume to lay out a groundwrrk of facts suffi- 

 ciently complete to serve the .student of agricul 

 ture for thoroughly preparing himself to compre- 

 hend the whole subject of vegetable nutrition, and 

 to estimate accurately how and to what extent 

 the crop depends upon the atmosphere on the one 



hand, and the soil on the other, for the elements 

 of its growth. For those who have not enjoyed 

 the advantages of the schools, the author has 

 sought to unfold his subjects by such regular and 

 simple steps that any one may easily master them. 

 It is also adapted to the wants of the class room. 



Though complete in itself, this volume, which 

 is designed to explain "How Crops Grow," is to be 

 followed by one to tell us "How Crops Feed." 

 Two others, — one on the Improvement of tlie Soil 

 and the Crop by Tillage and Manures, and the 

 other on Stock Feeding and Dairy Pioducts,— are 

 contemplated. 



For the last twelve years Mr. Johnson has de- 

 livered lectures annually upon agricultural chem- 

 istry and physiology, at the Scientilic School of 

 Yale College, and he informs us that this volume 

 is a result of studies undertaken in preparing these 

 lectures. Mr. Johnson, however, is better known 

 to the farming community by his many valuable 

 contributions to the agricultural press, in which 

 he has shown rare ability to instruct and interest 

 the general reader. 



The systematic arrangement of topics, and the 

 careful division of the matter into convenient par- 

 agraphs, adopted by the author are distinctly 

 marked by the printer. The numerous illustrative 

 cuts, tables and indexes are very neat and satis- 

 factory. The price, too, at which the volume of 

 nearly 300 pages is offered, places it within the 

 reach of every one who can afford to buy books at 

 all. We commend this volume to the notice of all 

 who wish to know "how plants grow." 



MR. COCHRANE'S STOCK. 

 Our attentive correspondent, Hiram French, 

 Esq., of Eaton, Compton Co., Canada East, 

 gave the readers of the Faemer last year a 

 description of the stock imported and bred by 

 his neighbor, H. Cochrane. Esq., of Compton 

 Centre, including cattle, horses, sheep, and 

 swine. We find in the Country Gentleman 

 an . account, by Sanford Howard, Esq , of a 

 late importation, which was selected with 

 much care by Mr. Cochrane himself and by 

 Mr. Simon Beatte, both oi' whom personally 

 examined the most celebrated herds of Eng- 

 gland. Mr. Howard says : — 



"The newly imported animals reached their des- 

 tination safely August 31. The cattle pun based 

 in England are ten Shoit-horns, nine cows and 

 heifers and a bull calf and two Jersey cows. Two 

 f*liort-horn calves were dropped on the rass^age. 

 The sheep compri'^e forty yearling Cotswold ewes 

 and five rams from the flucks of Messrs. King 

 Tombs, Game and Lane. Among the eWes are 

 those which took the first and second prizes at the 

 late York>^hire show. A very handsome young 

 Suffolk mare, and a yearling Suffolk colt (entire,) 

 of extraordinary size and excellent points, with a 

 beautiful Welsh pony made up the lot. The cost 

 in England was equal to $15,000 in gold. 



