154 



NEW EiNGLAND FARMER. 



was all packefl in the barrel, it was poured on 

 boiling hot. This prevented and destroyed all 

 flyblows. In a week the pieces were taken 

 out, dried and wiped; the pickle was boiled 

 over again, scummed, and again poured boiling 

 hot on the meat when repacked. The process 

 answered the purpose perfectly."* 



In Banister's Synopsis of Husbandry we find 

 the following directions for preserving pork, 

 which we believe nearly accords with the prac- 

 tice of the best Economists in this country. 



" The fat or prime pork is to be cut into 

 pieces of a size proportioned to the circumle- 

 MHce of the powdering tub [or barrel inwlxh 

 the pork is salted] and every piece is to be rub- 

 bed on each side, and on every part with com- 

 mon salt having on hand some powdered salt 

 petre to sprinkle on each. Let the bottom of 

 the tub be covered with salt, and when the pork 

 is sufficiently powdered the pieces are to be 

 laid m, with the rind upwards, and every piece 

 to be pressed downwards with all the strength 

 that can be used, and wedged in so very close 

 as to leave no apparent chasms. Over this lay- 

 er is to be spread a covering of salt w^ilh a 

 sprinklmg of salt petre. To a hog of twelve 

 score will be required nearly a bushel ot salt, 

 and two pounds of salt petre, and so in prooor- 

 tionfor those of larger dimensions. In about a 

 month or live weeks the brine will begin to rse, 

 and in a short time afterwards will cover he 

 whole surface of the tub : but if from dcfec in 

 the salt, it should fail to produce the brine in 

 that period it will be necessary to make a qnan- 

 tity of brine and pour over the pork ; for unless 

 the whole be covered with brine the pork uill 

 undoubtedly be rusty. But there is this incon- 

 venience attending the latter method, namely, 

 that it i= npi to looocn tVic porU, and cause it to' 

 swim, a circumstance which would likewise oc- 

 casion rust. If, therefore, it should be necessa- 

 ry to pursue this mode of making brine, let a 

 large clean stone be laid on the top of the pork, 

 in order to press it down and prevent it from 

 swimming." 



There is no danger of using too much salt in 

 preserving fat pork. The meal will absorb no 

 more than will prove useful, and the remainder 

 will answer for saltiug a fresh parcel on any 

 future occasion. 



* Although Mr. Cooper's observations on this subject 

 were published in the first voUune of the New England 

 Farmer, page 37, we thought it best to republish it 

 here to render this article more complete, and accom- 

 modate those of our readers who may not be in pos- 

 session of the first volume. 



figure, and the substance of this description is 

 copied from a work, printed in Edinburgh, in 

 1823, entitled '■'■ Journcft of a Horticultural Tour, 

 through some parts of Flanders. Holland, and the 

 A'orth of France. By a Deputation of the Cale- 

 donian Horticultural Society.'''' 



THE WHEEL HOE. 

 The following is a representation of an imple- 

 ment which is used in the neighborhood of Pa- 

 ris, Brussels, and some other parts' of continent- 

 al Europe. Its principal use is to clean gravel 

 walks in gardens, but it may be applied to 

 scraping the surface, and cutting up and eradi- 

 cating weeds, &c. from any other smooth soil, 

 where the weeds are not large and strongly 

 rooted, it is worked by two men. One man 

 pnlls forward, while the other regulates the hoe, 

 according to the nature and abundance of the 

 weeds to be extirpated. The dispatch thus af- 

 forded is great, two men being able to do as 

 tnuch work with this machine as six men could 

 perform in the same time with hand hoes. The 



FOR THE NEW F.NC.I.AND FARMER. 



Mr. Editor — Permit me through the medium 

 of your paper, to otfer to the public a few ob- 

 servations on the Piscidia or Dog Wood. This 

 tree so well known to almost every farmer, is a 

 genus of the Decandria order, belonging to the 

 diadelphia class of plants. There are several 

 species, — but that we shall notice is the 

 Erythrina, or common Dog Wood. This grows 

 spontaneously in our woods, whore it rises to 

 the height of 25 feet or more. The body is 

 covered with a light colored smooth bark, and 

 it sends out several small branches at the top in 

 an irregular manner, with long oval leaves. — 

 This tree emits a peculiar and very di'^agreea- 

 ble smell, of an active and poisonous nature. — 

 It is this quality which we shall more minutely 

 describe, since it is so pestiferous to most of the 

 humavi family, by corroding or poisoning the 

 skin. This effluvia readily turns paper stained 

 with syrup or violets, green, a sure indication 

 of its alkaline nature. The expressed juice ot 

 the bark is strongly astringent, precipitating 

 iron from its solution of a black color; but as 

 this astringent property is not pernicious to the 

 animal system, we must conclude the poisonous 

 quality of this tree is in a great measure owing 

 to the alkali which is so very subtile as to in- 

 sinuate itself into the pores of the skin, and 

 act upon the organized fibre, decomposing the 

 parts atTected,and causing innumerable small ves- 

 sicles to appear, accompanied with insupportable 

 itching. Having described the tree and its ef- 

 fects as a poison, I shall now prescribe an anti- 

 dote which from my own experience I know to 

 be invaluable ; and which also holds good in 

 theory. Acids should be used to counteract the 

 effects of alkalies. Let the person afflicted 

 wash the alTected parts in a solution of *sul- 

 phate of iron in water, one ounce of the former 

 to one gill of the latter, as often as 12 or IG 

 times in the course of a day and a cure will be 

 effected in two days. I would caution the pub- 

 lic against using an alkali as a remedy, — for I 

 have seen pearl ash administered more than sev- 

 en years since, and its application was attended 

 with disagreeable consequences. 



1 am, Sir, the public's friend and servant, 

 Lynn, Dec. 8, 1823. JOSEPH DIXON. 

 * Cefperas, 



Reports of the several Committees of the Worcest 

 Agricultural Society. 



REPORT No. T. 



Committee on Ntat Stock other than Working 0.rei 



Rejoice Newton, of Worcester, Chairman ; Joseph ) 

 tabrook, of Royalslon ; Levi Bartlelt, of Rutlan 

 Daniel Tenny, of Sutton ; Joshua W. Leland, 

 Grafton. 



The Committee on JVeat Stock other tS 

 Working Oxen, congratulate the Society ai 

 the County, an<l indeed the country generaljj 

 upon the unusual exhibition of Stock which h 

 this day come under their inspection. Thi 

 can safely say that the Show has never bei 

 equalled in this County, either in number ' 

 quality. It proves, in the most unqueslionab 

 manner, the influence of Agricultural Societi 

 upon the best interests of the community ; ai 

 defeats the predictions of many, that the spii 

 of enterprize, that was manifested at the ear 

 exhibitions of this Society, could not be kepti 

 without great individual exertions and sacrilicf 

 Your Committee are now fully persuaded, tli 

 the good sense of the yeomanry of this Coun 

 will never suffer an institution to lag or lab( 

 which is so directly calculated to promote tin 

 individual ha[)pioess as well as the prosper! 

 of our common country. 



All who have witnessed the exhibition oft! 

 day, must be sensible of the labors and diliici 

 ties which the Committee have been obliged 

 encounter. The examination of 171 aiiiini 

 h.is fallen within the prescribed limits 

 their duties — most of them entered for pren 

 ums. Among so many, where a number of M 

 eral of the different classes were nearly balffl 

 ed in their claims for premiums, and onlj 

 shade of diflerence, it was, in some cases di 

 cult for the Committee to give a preference; 

 and were another Committee to make the sal 

 examination, they might, probably, in a fevr 

 stances, vary in their decisions. But til 

 have acted independently, as was their duty,a 

 have awarded according to the best opink 

 they could form in the short time allotted the 

 They found no difficulty in determining 

 the first premium for Fat Oxen — that of J 

 Asa Pond, of Pelersham, weighing 2,604 lbs. 

 decidedly the best, and they have awarded 

 him the premium of gl5— his size, make a 

 flesh, all entitle him to it. To Col. Seth W 

 man, of Shrewsbury, they award the second pi 

 mium of glO, for his red ox, weighing 2,3 

 lbs. Mr. ArtcmasDike, of Sutton, exhibited 

 fine pair, one of which would have receivec 

 premium on almost any other occasion, becau 

 there has hardly been any exhibition ofthisS 

 ciety where he would have met such powerl 

 competitors. 



They award for the best Bull a premiuB 

 gl5, to Mr. Samuel Keyes, of Charlton : beii 

 most beautiful animal from the Holderness bii 

 owned by Gorham Parsons, Esq. and the Cei 

 mitlee had no hesitation in giving him a d«! 

 ed preference : he is eighteen months old, » 

 weighs 1,390 lbs. The second premium of ^1 

 was for some time suspended between the bi 

 of Col. Jacob W. AVatson, of Princeton, * 

 that of John W. Hubbard, Esq. of Worce«le 

 both of the Durham short horns, andjj 

 fine animals. In consequence of the <Wr 

 which the Committee had, they have conclW 

 to divide the premium between them. The 



