No. 6. Keeji your best Stock. — American Provisions in England. 



Ill 



sleeps before the fire in the evening-, and 

 has nothing to disturb his tranquil repose, 

 but the caresses of his friends — at night 

 he guards the premises — not a thing moves 

 without his knowledge — and a ^'■thiff must 

 take care of his '■'• breeches''' — the midnight 

 solitude finds the old dog watcliing. He is 

 a dog of all work, a general favourite, and 

 never flinches from his duty, but manifests 

 eagerness to do it. If the old dog could 

 speak, he could tell a good tale on sheep. 

 If he could flourish a pen with his paw, he 

 could distinguish the different breeds of 

 cattle, equally well with many writers who 

 profess to know ; therefore I sliall bestow the 

 praise and commendation, and to say the 

 least, he is a great dog. I have been oflered 

 one hundred dollars for him, but my "last 

 shilling'''' must go before we part; there is 

 a tie between him and me, that even the 

 power of money cannot sever. 



Wm. II. SOTHAM. 



Hereford Hall, Nov. lOtli, 1844. 



Keep your best Stock. 



Man\ farmers are in the habit of gelling 

 their best animals, as they will bring the 

 highest price. A greater mistake cannot be 

 made. A difrerence of ten or even twenty 

 per cent, in the price of a single animal, is 

 a small affair compared with this difference 

 in a whole herd. By keeping the very best 

 to propagate from, the whole may be made 

 of equal excellence, and in the course of a 

 few years, numerous animals might be pro 

 duced having the e.xcellent properties that 

 now distinguish some kw of the best. 



What should we say of a flirmer who has 

 several highly valuable varieties of potatoes, 

 and other kinds that are inferior, and for the 

 sake of ten cents extra a bushel, he sells for 

 consumption all his best varieties, and plants 

 those that are inferior, when in consequence 

 of this imprudent measure, his next crop 

 will fall short twenty-five per cent. Every 

 one will condemn tliis course, and few, if 

 any, are so wanting in discretion as to pur- 

 sue it; yet many take a similar course in 

 selling their best animals and propagating 

 from the jxior. 



For the purjxjse of work, beef, and the 

 dairy, there are probably no cattle superior 

 to our native breed, where attention has 

 been given to improve them, though some 

 improvement for certain purix)ses may be 

 made by a cross with foreign breeds, that 

 excel in the qualities desired. There is a 

 vast difference in our cattle in sections where 

 mueli attention has been given to improve 

 ments by selecting the best, when contrasted 

 with those where little or no attention has 



been paid to the subject, and as a matter of 

 course, the best have been sold, or eaten up, 

 because they were the fattest. Every man 

 that raises stock has it in his power to make 

 improvements, and ho should avail himself 

 of all the advantages around him to turn 

 this power to the benefit of himself and 

 posterity. — Boston Cultivator. 



American Provisions in England. 



The following condensed from a letter published in 

 the Mark Lane Express, from J. & C. Kirkpatrick, of 

 Liverpool, appears in a late number of the Cultiva- 

 tor.— Ed. 



The strong prejudice which at first e,v- 

 isted against American provisions, and for 

 which there was good reason, in the infe- 

 rior quality of the earliest arrivals, has been 

 gradually removed, as shippers have learned 

 to conform their brands to the wants of the 

 English market. 



Beef. — Great difficulty has been experi- 

 enced in securing a footing in the British 

 markets for this article, owing to the preju- 

 dice which the inferior character of the first 

 shipments nati] rally produced ; but the -im- 

 ports have been latterly of better quality. 

 The Americans may have the exclusive 

 supply of this article, if they will avoid the 

 faults in cutting and packing which have 

 formerly attached even to their best brands. 

 Complaint is made that some of the late par- 

 cels were very dark in colour, supposed to 

 have been caused by a bad quality of salt, 

 or badly seasoned casks. The casks have 

 generally been made too large, allowing the 

 meat to roll about; they should be made of 

 such size as to admit the required quantity 

 with tight packing, leaving room tor a good 

 heaving of salt. The meat too has often 

 been most irregularly messed, the pieces 

 being of very unequal sizes, whereas they 

 should be cut as nearly as possible eight lbs., 

 and should be cut square and compact. 



Pork has had less difficulty in finding its 

 way into the English market, and less care 

 has" consequently been taken by curers in 

 properly packing it. The position of the 

 trade is" therefore about the same that it has 

 been for two years past; but it is capable of 

 great extension if due care is only taken to 

 suit the market. Prime mess pork should 

 consist of 50 pieces of four lbs. each, from 

 hogs weighing 160 to 200 lbs., every part 

 being packed except the head and legs. It 

 is important that the meat be firm and well 

 fed, and free from the oily character which 

 American pork generally possesses. It 

 should remain SGhours after being killed, 

 in order that it may become quite cold and 

 firm, before it is packed. 



