1854. 



NE^V ENGLAND FAHMER. 



507 



or over bad conductors ; therefore, I tliink any 

 person capable of understanding tlie foregoing 

 theory, will readily sec the reasonableness of 

 having rods extend to all parts of the house, or 

 building of any kind. The idea that the rod 

 must run up high in order to attract the light- 

 ning, is one of the humbugs. It does no such 

 thing ; all that is necessary is to place the rods 

 round on the building, to conduct the lightning 

 off when it comes. No one supposes that an iron 

 house would ever be injured by the most powerful 

 discharge of electricity. Why, then, not allow 

 the possibility of arranging iron rods on the out- 

 side.of wood, brick, or stone buildings, so as effec- 

 tually to secure them against all damage by 

 lightning ? 



I will give as good a general description of the 

 manner rods should be put up as time and space 

 will permit, and then, if individuals wishing to 

 erect them, who have not perfect confidence in 

 their own understanding, will show me the form 

 and situation of their buildings, I shall be very 

 happy, at any time, to give them all the informa- 

 tion in my power. The common nail rod, | of 

 an inch square, is the most convenient and best 

 iron that can be used for the purpose. Let these 

 rods be placed along the ridgepole, down to the 

 eaves at each corner, on all the chimneys and 

 prominent parts of the roof, (such as Lutheran 

 windows,) with a sharp point on each projection, 

 from one to four feet high, as you like best ; and 

 if the building is large, let the rod extend to the 

 ground at each corner ; let one terminus be in the 

 sink drain, another in the well, and have the 

 others drove deep enough to reach moist earth. 

 Be sure and have all parts of the rod connected 

 permanently, and have sharp points project at 

 intervals of four or six feet the whole length of 

 the rod ; the points may be gold, silver, copper or 

 iron, a sharp iron point being perfectly safe under 

 all circumstances. The rod may be secured in 

 its place with an iron staple or screw, of sufficient 

 length to hold it firmly, without any fear of con- 

 ducting the fluid into the building, as many 

 suppose it would. 



I have erected many of this description of rod 

 in various parts of the country — in Oharlcstown, 

 Medford, Bi-ighton, Cambridge, Brookline, Dor- 

 chester, Uxbridge, Westboro', Mendon, Slaters- 

 ville. Providence, R. L, Albany, New York City, 

 Brooklyn, N. Y., Newark, N. J., Hartford, Ct., 

 and many other places, and have never yet heard 

 of the first instance wherein they have Axiled to 

 afford the desired protection. 



S. D. QuiMUY. 



Winchester, Sept., 1854. 



For the New England Farmer. 



TEWKSBURY AND STATE ALMS- 

 HOUSE. 



Messrs. EoiToits : — In reply to my anonymous 

 critic, in Farmer of lOth, lean state on reliable 

 authority that the land in tlio western part of 

 Tewksbury, and in some other locations of the 

 town, will compare witli the good, if not the best 

 land in the County of Middlesex, and that there 

 are a good proportion of tliriving and compara- 

 tively rich farmers thei'e, notwithstanding "bar- 

 ren in the extreme ;" and that the water in one 

 of the Almshouse wells has not been less than IS 



feet deep at any period of the drought, and that 

 I can state positively, that I intimated not a word 

 about "wells to be dug" but simply remarked 

 that the superintendent informed me -'that they 

 had a good supply of water at present, but were 

 improving the wells, to have it more plentiful, and 

 of better quality". Now, Mr. Editor, I like to see 

 gentlemen make fair statements, and not put too 

 much confidence in hearsay stories, and have cour- 

 age enough to put their names to pieces of doubt- 

 ful veracity, and also advise Mr. Anonymous to 

 go to Tewksbury and look out for himself. 

 Wilmington, Sept. 22, 1854. S. Brown. 



• For tin yew England Farmer. 



MONTHLY FARMER FOR SEPTEMBER. 



As I seldom see any other monthly agricultural 

 publication than the Farmer, 1 thought while in 

 the city recently, and pat^sing the office of one of 

 the other Boston montldies, that I would pur- 

 chase a copy and see if the " new brooms " sweep 

 cleaner than the old ones. All subscribers to the 

 monthly Farmer have the right, 1 suppose, of 

 comparing it with any otlier similar paper t!iat 

 may be started, not only to see what others are 

 about, but also for tlie purpose of determining 

 whether they can better get their money's worth 

 by taking some other publieation in its stead. 



The number which 1 tluis procured is edited with 

 spirit and ability, has a clear print and illustra- 

 tive cuts, and is sold at the same price that we p|^ 

 for the Farmer. By a somewhat careful compar- 

 ison of the two publications, I find that i\ui Farmer 

 furnishes nearly twice as much reading matter as 

 the other ; that the Table of Contents in the 

 Farmer gives the headings of seventy-six articles, 

 and that of the other paper, twenty-five ; and that 

 while the Farmer has tiiirty distinct " communi- 

 cations," furnished 1)y writers in five different 

 States, the other has perhaps ten — so little dis- 

 tinction being made between editorials, communi- 

 cations, and selections, that it is difficult to deter- 

 mine to which department some articles belong — 

 and for ought that appears to the contrary, all 

 but two of them may have been written in the city 

 of Boston. 



The Mo.N'TULY Farmer, tli^refore, has the advan- 

 tage, decidedly, in the amount and variety of its 

 contents. Whether it is ahead of all other agri- 

 cultural monthlies in this respect, I am unable to 

 say, as I have seen specimens of but few of them ; 

 but it certainly is of all that I have seen. The 

 great "freedom of speech" which is not only toler- 

 ated, but encouraged by the editor, induces"many 

 men of many minds" to cast in tlieir mites of ex- 

 perience ar.d.thought, witii tho assurance of a cor- 

 dial welcome, whether tliey happen to agree or 

 disagree with the practice of anybody else, or 

 with the theories of professors and amateurs. In- 

 deed, even the boys have found a spokesman in 

 the number before us. "A Yo<ing Farmer" 

 speaks in behalf of his class, on "Training youth 

 to a wrong Occupation." He complains that t!ic 

 tastes and inclinations of children in resp'ct to a 

 choice of employment are not more generally con- 

 sulted, and seriously charges parents witli regard- 

 ing " their own present interest," rather tlian 

 " their children's futuro wdfare ! " Similar char- 

 ges against parents are so common in the " litera- 

 ture" whicli is provided for our children, that 



