274 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



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"mASTEE FORDHAM," the property of MESSRS. MOWE & HAINES, OF SACRAMENTO, CAL. 



SOUTH DOWNS FOE CALIFORNIA. 



In the January nmnber of the Farmer we gave 

 some account of the " Webb's American Flock" of 

 South Down sheep belonging to Mr. J. C. Taylor, 

 of Holmdel, N. J. Mr. Taylor writes us that he 

 has recently sold eight rams and two ewes to 

 Messrs. J. "W. Mowe & J. W. Haines, of Sacra- 

 mento, California, at "a larger average price than 

 any sale of South Downs ever made in this coun- 

 try." The purchasers have some thousands of 

 sheep of the Mexican and American breed, and 

 propose to cross them with the South Down for 

 the purpose of improving their mutton. 



We annex a cut of one of these rams — "Master 

 Fordham." lie was sold for $300 — a sum which 

 is said to be $100 higher than was ever before ob- 

 tained for a South Down ram bred in this country. 



Mr. Taylok breeds nothing but Jonas Webb's 

 South Downs. Mr. Webb has recently shipped 

 him one of his very best rams — one for which he 

 was offered over $1000 for the use of, last season. 



There can be no doubt that the South Down 

 mutton is the finest in the world. It commands a 

 higher price than any other in the London market, 

 and will do so in this country when better known. 



Yield of Sugar fr^'m Maple Trees. — IToNESTrs 

 Stearns, of Felchville, Vt., writes us that Abial 

 Kipp, Esq., of West Windsor, Vt., made 380 lbs. of 

 Sugar from 24 trees, in the spring of 1857. Olney 

 Bates, of Springfield, Vt., made 70 lbs. from one 

 tree. The usual yield of this tree was 40 lbs, Mr. 

 Stearns urges everyone to plant the Maple, as well 

 for its usefulness as for its great beauty. 



NOTES FOE THE MONTH. -BY S. W. 



Milwaukee and the West. — I arrived here the 

 last of July, after a very pleasant and truly refresh- 

 ing passage in the fast propeUor Mendota^ with her 

 powerful occilating engine. Although we run from 

 Buffalo to Cleveland in less than sixteen hours, 

 under steam alone, the stoppage there to land and 

 receive freight, then at Detroit, Mackinac, Manitou, 

 Manitowoc and Sheboygan, prolonged the passage 

 to four days ; but it was a pleasant prolongation to 

 those who loved cool dog days, and who had eyes 

 to see; and methought there were fewer among 

 our host of passengers who wanted to annihilate 

 time and distance, than I had sometimes seen in a 

 single railroad car. The passage down to Buffalo 

 is made a day and a half quicker, as the strong 

 current in St. Clair and Detroit rivers is then 

 with you, and you only stop twice on the way, 

 except at Detroit, for wood; making the short 

 cut by the Canada shore through Lake Erie to 

 Buffalo. 



As we were at Mackinac at night, I saw no ara- 

 ted soil until we held up to wood at South Manitou. 

 This is a fine, high, well wooded island, the soil 

 very coarse yellow sand and pebbles, but neverthe- 

 less .so rich in the mineral elements of plants, that 

 the high lands are covered with large deciduous 

 trees, beech, maple, etc., while the lower grounds 

 display a variety, including the evergreen spruce, 

 balsam, etc. The corn was in full tassel, but of a 

 very small variety. Potatoes, though not very for- 

 ward, looked well ; no rot has ever visited this re- 

 gion, and it is said tliat the potatoes here are very 

 superior in qualit}- and flavor. But the soil of all 

 this region lacks alumina; both on the high Michi- 

 gan shore, and at the Mackinac, Fox, Beaver and 

 Manitou Islands, the quartzore principle is so pre- 

 dominant that all the Lake water in this region ac- 

 quires a transparency nowhere to be found further 

 south ; at the Manitous the white, pebbly bottom 

 may be seen as through a pane of glass at a depth 



