NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



37 



e_v not only encourane llie sfrovvth, but ai-e a 

 ■olection asftiinst worms, which sometimps nt- 

 ck the yoiiiisj- plants, and may be considered 

 e only enemy they have, cxcepi weeds. 

 Salt has been mentioned by the late Dr. V'.l- 

 ot, of Connecticut, as an excellent manure to 

 ou;::h in with flax at the rate of live bushels 

 the acre ;* probablv more would be better, 

 ister is now much used in T')(ichrss county, 

 I best cultivated district in New York, as a 

 anure for flax, on which its good cflects are 

 parent as on corn. 



The late chancellor Livingston viewed a 



ece of flax on the 20th of May, 1791, belony;- 



to a poor tenant, very injudiciously sown 



a dry sandy declivity, it looked so extreme- 



^!ckly that the tenant thou^-ht of ploughing 



up; the chancellor gave h m three bushels 



Plaster, which was sown the next mormng 



ire the dew was otT, and had the satisfaciion 



seeing his tenant gather nmre flax from his 



If acre in an uncommon dry se;ison, than was 



oduced from any acre in the nc.ghborhood.T 



PRErARATION OF THE LAVD. 



It is not unfrequent in Ireland to obtain crops 

 flax from green sward, on which they put 

 e, shells, limestone, gravel, &c. and break 

 in the tail, cross ploughing and harrowing 

 ; in the sjiring; but it most commonly suc- 

 eds a crop of potatoes which receive the in.i- 

 In Flanders, Hemp was formerly more 

 ed as a preparation for flax than since the in- 

 )duclion of potatoes. In Italy it commonly 

 ecedes llax, and althougli the land gets no til- 

 e, as the hemp is well manured it grows 

 jng, and is then a powerful destrayer of 

 eds. In England, on some ol'the fen soils ol 

 QColnshire, the usual course is hcinp 2 or 3 

 ars in succession, well manured, then ilax 

 thout manure ; a crop of turiii[>s is often ta- 

 n the same season after the flax, and hemp 

 xeedi again. In Russia it is said that exten- 

 e crops uf flax are drawn from m-w cleared 

 ids after burning them over, an ' li.irrowing 

 the seed with ashes. The Ik-; preparatory 

 )ps in this country, at present, appear to be 

 tatoes, corn and roots ; they will most gen- 

 illy repay the extra ma'iure, and if well man- 

 ad check the production of weeds. 

 The following rotations may serve as an ont- 

 «, subject to be varied, and hemp or other 

 tps introduced as circumstances require, viz: 



Ao. I. Low, cold or'rcctaimcd Soils. 

 1st year Potatoes. 

 2d do. Flax with seed. 



}d do. Herds grass and red top or tall meado'e 

 grass, to continue three years or more, and 

 : course repeated. 



•Vo. //. Strong Uplands. 

 1st year Potatoes or Corn. 

 2d do. Corn or Roots. 

 id do. Flax with seed. ' 



tth do. Clover. 



ith do. Orchard grass or Herds grass, to con- 

 ue three years or more. 



JVfi. ///. Light Lands. 

 1st year Potatoes or Corn. 

 2d do. Corn or Roots. 

 Jd do. Flax with seed. 

 Ith do. Clover, to be mowD once, the after 



See Eliot's Essays on Field Husbandry. 

 Transactions of Agricultural Socisty, New York. 



;rowth to be turned in and Rye sown, thick on 

 the furrow, which may be soiled or fed in the 

 spring by sheep or milch cows, and ploughed 

 in ; for 



6lh year Coni. 



t3th do. Spring Jl'hcat or Barlcif. 



7th do. Clover, and the course to be pursued 

 as before, when flax will occupy the land every 

 seventh year. In all cases, except when liomp 

 is substituted, the tillage crops should receive 

 the dung. 



If the land is ploughed into licds, or convex 

 ridges like turnpike roads about a rod wide, es- 

 pecially if low and level, the crop will be much 

 more secure from injury by heavy rains, and 

 the grass crops will be better if it remains in 

 that form. On any soils, fall ploughing in nar- 

 row ridges will (arilitate its early working in 

 spring, and should not be dispensed with. 



CHOICE OF SEEP. 



That of the last year's growth should be ob- 

 tained if possible. The usual marks of good 

 seed are, that it be plump, oily and heavy, of 

 a bright brown colour, sinking readily in wa- 

 ter, and when thrown into the fire to crackle 

 and blaze quick. A very simple method of tri- 

 al is to sprinkle it thin between two pieces of 

 wet paper, which plunge in a hot bed or dung- 

 hill, and in less than twentj'-four hours the pro- 

 portion that will vegetate can be discerned, 

 which should be ascertained in order to regu. 



late the QUANTITY TO BE sow.\. 



On this head no particular directions can be 

 given, as it depends on the various qualities ol 

 soil, goodness of seed, &c. The rule for seed- 

 ing small grains is reversed; flax requiring to 

 be sown thickest on rich soil, as not more than 

 one stock is wanted from a plant. In England 

 and Scotland, never less than two, or more than 

 three bushels to the acre are sown. Two and 

 a half is the most usual portion. In Flanders 

 and Ireland seldom le.«s than three bushels are 

 sown, except when seed is an object. Thick 

 sowing is to obtain tine flax. In this country it 

 will be important, at present, to sow at such a 

 rate as will insure good crops of each ; and ex- 

 perience only can determine the exact point. 



If sown very thin, too many lateral branches 

 will be thrown out, each producing a boll or 

 pod affording more seed, but shorter and infe- 

 rior flax. If sown too thick, the plants will 

 draw up weiik, with a single boll on a plant, 

 and, subject as our climate is to heavy showers 

 and thunder gusts, very liable to lodge — one of 

 the greatest dangers a flax crop has to encoun- 

 ter. The commissions for promoting flax cul- 

 ture in Scotland, considered it as practicable, 

 and strongly recommended that the system 

 should be so conducted, as to obtain good flax 

 and good seed at the same time. It is so viewed 

 ir. Ireland, among the more extensive cultiva- 

 tors, except when wanted for tine linen, cam- 

 bric, lawn, &c. Dr. Deane, in the " New-Eng- 

 land Farmer," a work of great merit, published 

 *iime thirty years since, when flax culture was 

 more attended to than at present, recommends 

 from six to seven pecks. It is probable that six 

 pecks is the least, and two bushels the extent 

 that should be sown to obtain the most profitable 

 results, till the demand for seed is considerably 

 lessened.* 



* The demand for Linseed Oil must increase with 

 the population for soms time to come, as there appear 



Mahogany. — The difliculty of procuring ma- 

 hogany, and other costly woods, and the cnnse- 

 qiient exorbitant prices demanded for the ordi- 

 nary articles of family convenience, has ocasion- 

 ed the art of the chemist lo be applied to a sul - 

 joct peculiarly calculated lo promote domestic 

 embellishment at a t.nfling expense. It has been 

 contrived to render any species of wood of a 

 close grain so nearly to resemble mahogany in 

 the texture, density, and polish, that the most 

 accurate judges are incapable of distinguishing 

 between this happy imitation and the native 

 produce. The lirst operation, as now practised 

 in France, is to plane the surface, so as to ren- 

 der it perfectly smooth ; the wood is then to be 

 rubbed with a solution of nitrous acid, which 

 prepares it for the materials subsequently to be 

 applied. Afterwards, one ounce and an halfot 

 dragon's blood, dissolved in a pint of spiriis of 

 wine, and one third of that quantity of carbonate 

 of soda, are to be mixed together and filtered, 

 and the liquid in this thin slate is to be rubbed, 

 or rather laid on the wood with a soft brush. — 

 This process is repeated with very little altera- 

 tion, and, in a short interval afterwards, the 

 wood possesses the external appearance we have 

 descrilied. When this application has been 

 properly made, the surface will resemble an 

 artilicial mirror ; but if the polish becomes less 

 brilliant, by the use of a little cold-drawn lin- 

 seed oil, the wood will be restored to its former 

 brilliancy. .x,.v 



It is not known, perhaps, so generally as it 

 ought to be, that apples make an exellent jelly. 

 The process is as follows : — They are to be 

 pared, quartered, the core completely removed, 

 and [Hit into a pot without water, closely cov- 

 ered, and placed in an oven over a tire. When 

 pretty well stewed, the juice is to be squeezed 

 out through a cloth, to which a little white of 

 egg is added, and then the sugar. Skim it pre- 

 vious to boiling, then reduce it to a proper con- 

 sistence, and an excellent jelly will be the pro- 

 duct. — U. S. Gazette. 



riR. GREEX'S CURE FOR DRUNKENNESS. 



Whenever you feel an inclination to drink 

 spiritous liquor, (Grog) drink cool — fresh water. 

 This is an efiectual cure : and, in a very short 

 time, you will make a sober man — out of the 

 greatest drunkard. 



Drunkenness (the Doctor says,) is a disease 

 of the stomach, and cool water is the remedy. 

 For the goodness of Providence has placed by 

 the side of every disease, it? appropriate rem- 

 edy ; and by the side of every evil, its appro- 

 priate good. Let us be thankful. 



In an answer o( the Doctor to a letter I sent 

 him, relative to ray sickness, and drinking spir- 

 itous liqour, it contained in substance, what I 

 now write ; and thank Providence, it has per- 

 fectly cured me of that dreadful disease, called 

 drunkenness. 



1 can now attend to my business, and can say, 

 that a sober life is a good life — a saving of ma- 

 ny things — 'tis a saving of cash — 'tis a saving 

 of the constitution — 'tis a saving of a man's 

 credit. — Massachusetts Spy. 



no indications thai the people will forsake their house- 

 hold dcilies, Clapboards and rami, 'till the soil i« 

 much more denuded of its timber ; even in those dis- 

 tricts where the roads and fields are iucumhtred with 

 suitable materials for permanent, cktaptr, and moie 

 elegant buildings. 



