NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



373 



orreficd earth will make the land on which it 

 S applied more capable of absorbing moisture 

 rem the atmosphere, and by minutely ('ividing- 

 he soil, the roots of plants can searcli more 

 "reely tor nourishment. I have often ob-ervod, 

 hat farm yard dung, unless very well prepared. 

 oes not, ill excessive hot seasons, supply snfii- 

 ient moisture to the roots of plants ; and thai 

 lacing such seasons, crops sown on ashes, or 

 lurned earth, have uniformly thriven. wli:li' 

 hose in dunged land have gradually declinnl. 

 State this to shew more clearly the wonderful 

 iroperty of all burned and torre6ed substances 

 n absorbing the food of plants from the atmos- 

 )here, and afterwards preserving these for tiie 

 lenetit of vegetation. 



Jt is a common practice among farmers, both 

 n England and Ireland, to dig headlands, old 

 itches and other waste places, and to collect 

 hem for manure, by adding some dung or 

 ime to them. This is attended witb heavy I 

 xpense. 1st. From the quantity of dung or I 

 ime necessary to make the heap prolilable : — j 

 nd, 'idly, From the double carting which takes i 

 lace on which it is to be applied. Now, after j 

 U this expense, the manure obtained is of a ' 

 cry inferior quality to what could be obtained | 

 y putting the earth through the simple pro- 

 ess which 1 have already described ; and one 

 ijad of it would be more valuable than double 

 lie quantity would be in its raw slate. Thus a 

 nving of one half the cost in carting alone, 



ould be effected, one load of burned clay be- 

 »g equal to two loads of compost, besides hav- 

 the dung or lime to appropriate to other 

 mrposes. 



it may sometimes happen, that the place oiV 

 »hich sods can be obtained is so much deliiched, 

 Bat it would be attended with loo much ex- 

 »nse, and perhaps, great inconvenience, col- 



cting them for a large kiln ; in this case, heaps 

 If the sods may be made and torrefied in the 

 lanner following, viz. 



Let your flues be cut on the surface of the 



nd, convenient to where the greater part of 

 •e soils can be collected, about eight inches 



lep, and six wide, and covered, as before di- 

 Ected, »vith strong sods. The firing is then 

 be placed in the centre, where the four 

 lues meet, which must be stronger in propor- 

 lOD than what would be necessary for a close 



Kin, as the burning of the sods in this manner 

 ill entirely depend on the strength of the 

 re, and the judicious manner in which the 

 ids are placed on the heaps. The kindling 

 lould be perfectly covered with the sods be- 

 ire it is lighted, and then piled heavily, as soon 

 i it i.s well kindled, but observing to cover 

 lose places first from which the smoke issues 

 le strongest. Two of the flues should be 



opped as before directed; — and when the 

 eap ceases burning which is generally the case 

 1 four or five days, it should be covered well 

 ith the surrounding soil, and so for some weeks 

 efore it is broken down or turned. 



Sods burned in this manner do not produce 

 I uch good manure as in a regular kiln ; neither 

 I oes a certain quantity of firing prove so pro- 

 active in those round heaps, as it does in kilns ; 



is, therefore only necessity that should cause 

 lis mode instead of the regular kiln. By this 



will appear, that by the erection of the walls, 

 le heat is retained effectually, and will often 



mtinue for sis or eight weeks after they have 



done burning ; wheroas in round heaps the air 

 having the full power on the surface, the in- 

 ternal boat is soon checked ; besides, the wall? 

 ultimately become manure, and the expense of 

 erecting them is but tritling. 



Burned earth is an excellent manure for 

 garilin seeds. e=i)ecially when applied on rich 

 soils which h ive been often dungeil, or inclined 

 to weeds; it doe? not engender slugs or worms, 

 and therefore, wpII calculated for such as are 

 liable to be cut If ny those insects. 



On the whole, r. n.'st he considered as a most 

 valuable addition to Uie farmer's means of cul- 

 tivation and inu'rovemcnl ; and I am satisfied 

 that it only requir'^s to bt known in this char- 

 acter. 



.Yorjsich, Con. Ahiy 2G. 

 Curioiis Fact. — A. Mr. David Evans, of Ply- 

 mouth, about eight miles from this village, sonic 

 time last week, whilst chopping in the woods, 

 felled a hollow tree which contained from four 

 to eight thousand Swallo-m's .' They were of the 

 kind generally denominated the Wood Swallow. 

 The breast is white — tail forked, and tail feath- 

 ers sharp pointed. When discovered they were 

 principally in a torpid state. 



Assistance to persons in danger of droii-'ning. — 

 This desirable object may be attained by the 

 following very simple means ! a man's hat and 

 pocket handkerchief being all the apparatus ne- 

 cessary. S[)read the handkerchief on the ground 

 and place a hat with the brim upwards in the 

 middle of the handkerchief — then tie the hand- 

 kerchief over the hat as you would do a bundle, 

 keeping the knots as nearly as possible in the 

 centre of the opening. Now, seizing the knots 

 with one hand, and keeping the crown of the 

 hat upwards, any person, though unable to swim, 

 may fearlessly plunge into the water with a 

 rope, or any other thing that may be necessary 

 to save the life of a fellow creature. 



Important to Nurses. — It should be generally 

 known that Laudanum, by long standing depo- 

 sites a sediment which renders it dangerous. — 

 Many valuable lives have been lost from igno- 

 rance of this fact. On the 12th inst. Dr. Cox, 

 of Black Horse, was called to an infant 4 months 

 old, to whom four drops of Laudanum had been 

 given, three or four hours before. On exam- 

 ination, the phial was found to contain a torpid 

 fluid, no doubt many times stronger than clear 

 Laudanum. The child was in the agonies of 

 death — oppressed with irresistible sleep — emet- 

 ics would not operate ; but by the prompt in- 

 troduction of an elasiic tube into the stomach, 

 and the use of a syringe and warm water, its con- 

 tents were completely washed out. In a short 

 time the child was much relieved ; and in the 

 course of a few hours quite restored. 



Interesting Information. — With much pleasure 

 we have been informed that the Trustees of 

 the Humane Society of Massachusetts, have 

 awarded ten dollars to Mr. Robert Porter, of 

 Pittston, for saving the life of Miss Ryland, 

 Thursday, June 13, 1822. 



This young lady, who is nearly related to 

 Dr. Holland, of Augusta, was accidentally knock- 

 ed overboard by the boom, in Kennebec river, 

 a fev/ miles below Gardiner, when on board of 

 the sloop Messenger, Capt. Colburn, sailing with 



a fair wind about four miles an hour. Mr. Por- 

 ter jumped f'riim the stern of the vessel, which 

 was about fifteen feel'above the water, into the 

 borit, perhaps twelve feet distant, at the immi- 

 nent risk of his own life ; and after the young 

 lady had sunk, and entirely disa[i[)eared, suc- 

 ceeded in raising her, and bringing her in safe- 

 ty on board, to the great surprise and joy of 

 many spectators, who had beheld, with the 

 deepest concern, and breathless anxiety, her 

 extreme danger, \vithout loing aide to afford 

 any relief. Ha!hyj:cll Advocate. ' 



NEVV"^ENGI..ANI>" fTr^Ter! 



.eATURlMV, JUNE 19, liivM. 



FARMERS S CJILEJ^-DER. 



SUMMER .MANURE. Th-2 main, spring of agri- 

 culture is manure; and by due attenlion witb a 

 liltle labor a great deal may be obtained in the 

 course of the summer. You should mix your 

 summer made dung, as far as practicable \vith- 

 out devoting too much lime to this object, with 

 at least an equal quantity of earth. In this 

 way the gasses or volatile parts of the manure 

 will be absorbed, and the whole will be less li- 

 able to be washed away by rain, or drycd up 

 by the sun. The recrements of vegetables, the 

 dropping of animals — every thing capable of 

 undergoing the putrefactive process should be 

 covered with earth, and if there is a roof over 

 it into the bargain so much the better. Do 

 not permit, if you can conveniently avoid it, a 

 cat, a rat or so much as a mouse to rot on your 

 premises without covering the carcase with ;t 

 shovel fnll or two of mould, or earth of some 

 sort. Plough up your head lands, and cart the 

 earth to the yard in which you keep your cows 

 or other cattle, and c\eTy morning before 

 breakfast, and (when you do not happen to be 

 very sleepy) before sun rise, cover whatsoever 

 oflendeth the olfactory nerves, or in other 

 words does not smell quite so sweet as a rose, 

 with a proper coating of the earth aforesaid. — 

 You may increase this agregate with the clean- 

 ings, sweepings, &c. of your cellars, old brine 

 in which meat has been preserved, decayed and 

 decaying vegetables, &c. &c. If you suffer any 

 thing to remain in your cellar or any other part 

 of your tenement, which emits a bad smell, you 

 may calculate on fever in the fall ; and if you 

 are gifted with any thing like second sight, as 

 they call it in Scotland, or have a presentiment 

 of what you are coming to, you will dream (jf 

 funerals in the family, and doctor's bills almost 

 as long as bills in chancery. 



Dont let your daughters nor your female 

 help throw any of their slops, including dish- 

 washings, kc. either into the front yard or back 

 yard, to manufacture gnats, musquetoes, and ty- 

 phus fever, but see that all such matters are put 

 into a sink, and that the sink has a proper spout 

 and trough to conduct that sort of liquid manure 

 to a proper receptacle, where it can be mixed 

 with earth, and form a rich compost. Every 

 day or two (or better every day) you will mis 

 the manure of your back house with goodloara, 

 and we will, therefore, and thereupon, set you 

 down for a neat cultivator, and prophesy that 

 you will one day be rich — unless your wife and 

 daughters are very extravagant, spin street 

 yarn, see too much company, and wear their 

 go-to-meeting clothes every day. 



If you live in the vicinity of a wood-lot yotj 



