1857. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



501 



EXTRACTS AND REPLIES. 



HORN AIL. 



Mr. Editor : — I have noticed oMate that there 

 is quite a stir amongst the "Doctors" about the 

 Horn Ail. Although I am not a doctor, I wish to 

 record my experience with the rest. 



Three years ago this fall, we had a cow afflicted 

 with the horn ail, at least so the doctors all said. 

 They being all agreed, of course there was no 

 appeal ; and they all of one accord cried out, cut 

 her horns off, bore into her horns, squirt spirits of 

 turpentine into them, put turpentine on the top of 

 her head ; and, worst of all, spit "tobacco juice" into 

 her eyes, ygh ! Poor cow ! But Friday came, 

 and with it the JV*. E. Farmer. I went to the 

 office, got my paper, and the first thing I read was 

 "Cure for the Horn Ail." After some sensible re- 

 marks as to the nature of the disease, the writer 

 gave the following advice, as near as I can recol- 

 lect: 



Take one peck of hen-manure, put it in an iron 

 kettle, add one pail of water and boil it down to 

 about two quarts, give one quart to a dose, once in 

 twelve hours. I followed the directions, and the 

 result was, the cow gave as much milk as she ever 

 did, in less than three days. B. S. H. 



JSTorth Thetford, Ft, 1857. 



A FINE CROP OF RYE — CROPS IN VERMONT. 



Ormand W. Fletcher, of Springfield, sowed last 

 fall, in the month of September, a piece of rye 

 about one and a half acres, which, when harvested, 

 ■was the most promising ever raised in this vicinity. 

 It was, on an average, seven feet high, of very large 

 and long heads, and full and clear berry. From 

 one kernel there sprang forty-two stalks and two 

 thousand and eight kernels, full and fair. Some of 

 our farmers have a small lot of Chinese sugar cane 

 growing for experiment. As it appears now, it 

 will generally fall short of getting ripe seed ; all 

 corn is late and our usually early frosts will deprive 

 most of us of sound corn. The hay crop is fine, so 

 with sown crops ; potatoes now are very good and 

 growing. Apples will be more than an average 

 crop in this part of Windsor County. Pasturage 

 was never better than it is now, owing to the unu- 

 sually abundant fall of rain at this season of the 

 year. Our apple trees are infested with a species 

 of caterpillar worm, differing somewhat in color and 

 habits from the early ones. They keep in as com- 

 pact a manner as possible, so that it is little trou- 

 ble to d'estroy them. F. 



Chester, Ft., August 24, 1857. 



Remarks. — The worm to which you refer on the 

 apple tree is undoubtedly the army worm. They 

 march in solid platoons, and eat clean as they go. 



DINNERS AT FAIRS. 



Mr. Editor : — I am pleased to see that our 

 friends in Essex County have countermanded their 

 order to do away with a dinner at their show. — 

 They found this no-go, with the farmers. They 

 said, "If we have but one Farmers' Holiday in a 

 year, let us have a good time — and a good dinner, 

 also. To be sure we don't want to pay in extrav- 

 gant price, nor have costly wines or fnr issees of 

 any kind, but we want good roast beef and pud- 

 dings, and potatoes, too, if they don't all rot — and 

 if they should, let their place be supplied with tur- 



nips, cabbage, &c., for of these there will be an 

 abundance." 



A proposition was made to have the Agricultural 

 Address at the dinner-table, but certain conserva- 

 tive gentlemen of the olden time thought this could 

 not be. I see no reason why it could not ; I think 

 it the i)roper place to have it, and see no necessity 

 for going into the church to have spiritual songs 

 and prayers — let these be poured out on the Sab- 

 bath, and let the farmers come together at the fes- 

 tal table, and talk about their own business and 

 nothing else. For my part I think a good deal of 

 the mental exercises over the Platter. 



September 4, 1857. 



SUMMER OF 1857. 



The past summer will long be remembered for 

 its striking peculiarities. Never have we known 

 such a continued abundance of moisture, of rain 

 and of tempest. At no period has there been an 

 approach to drought for a single day. Never have 

 vegetable products progressed with more rapidity. 

 But the amount of well-matured products will not 

 probably exceed the average of other years. In- 

 stances : grass for hay, though extremely abun- 

 dant, there has scarcely been three days together 

 when it could be in the fields without being marred 

 or soiled. Indian corn, the next most reliable of 

 our crops ; it started ahead late and has grown with 

 vigor, but there is no good assurance of hope that 

 it will arrive at complete maturity. Potatoes, grown 

 most luxuriantly, are now blighting as fast as they 

 grew. Onions, where not interrupted by insects or 

 smut, have attained a good size, are now in need 

 of drying weather to gixe them a sound maturity. 

 Fruits, such as apples, peaches, pears, &c., are few 

 and far between. Grains, such as wheat, rye, &c., 

 though they started and grew luxuriantly, their 

 harvested products will not begin to correspond 

 with their early promise. Cabbages, carrots, tur- 

 nips and beets, appear as well as could be wished. 

 I know of an acre of cabbages where the heads will 

 weigh from twenty to fifty pounds each ; I have 

 never seen a more luxuriant growth on any land. 

 Material from the ocean essentially aids this growth. 

 Such are our hastily-sketched reminiscences of the 

 present condition of the crops. 



Aug. 31, 1857. Essex County. 



EGGS of the SILK WORM. 



I have been very desirous, during the last year 

 to procure some of the eggs of the silk worm, but 

 as yet have been unsuccessful. I wish to engage, 

 to some extent, in the manufacture of silk, the 

 coming year. Where can I get the eggs ? 



Limington, Me., 1857. K. M. A. 



HOW TO MAKE PICKLES. 



Will any of the readers of the Farmer have the 

 kindness to inform me of the best way to preserve 

 or pickle tomatoes for future use? And also, for 

 pickling cabbage, beets, onions, &c., and how the 

 pickle is prepared, and from what ? 



Yankee Inquisitor. 



a fine crop of oats. 

 John B. Farnham, Esq., of this town, raised, last 

 year, from a scant two-acre lot, 140 bushels of oats. 

 Clinton, Ct., 1857. John F. Kilton. 



