No. 3. 



The New York State Agricultural Show. 



101 



rhe New York State Agricultural Show. 



Messrs. Editors, — I accompanied several 

 of my neighbours to the late N. Y. State Ag- 

 ricultural exhibition at Albany, and a sketch 

 of our observations and impressions will, I 

 hope, afford some interest to your readers. 



I shall not attempt a full or particular ac- 

 count of their proceedings ; this may be ob- 

 tained from official statements — and besides, 

 the time spent amongst them was too brief 

 to embrace all the interesting events of the 

 occasion. Our chief purpose in visiting Al- 

 bany, was to see the live stock of this, the 

 oldest and most advanced agricultural sec- 

 tion of the " Empire State," and at the same 

 time to learn a little of their mode of man- 

 aging such displays of "our country's glory." 

 Of horses, they had a meagre collection for 

 a State that abounds in the best of this no- 

 blest race of animals. They were about 

 aqual in number and quality to those exhib- 

 ited at our county shows, which you know 

 are nothing to boast of. 



The horned cattle were numerous, espe- 

 cially the beautiful Durhams, several of 

 which were very fine specimens of this ex- 

 cellent breed, and went far to sustain their 

 high character; but in the aggregate, they 

 did not come up to our anticipations, and it 

 was evident that care enough has not been 

 taken to select the best and most perfect of 

 the race for breeders, but that they have ad- 

 hered too tenaciously to the old unimproved 

 stock, which gives most of them a harshness 

 of skin at once perceptible to the touch — in 

 a word, many of their short horns are bad 

 handlers, and we would advise the enter- 

 prising farmers of New York, to bestow 

 particular attention to this most essential 

 point — where it is wanting, prime beef can- 

 not be produced. The Durhams of Eastern 

 Pennsylvania, are not perhaps quite so nu- 

 merous, but in quality and high breeding, 

 they are, we think, in advance of those ex- 

 hibited at Albany. 



We observed several Hereford cows which 

 were in good condition, but we did not par 

 ticularly admire their form and make, either 

 as feeders or milkers ; their chief value is 

 doubtless in the males of their progeny, 

 which furnish steers of high reputation for 

 the shambles. 



To our utter surprise and disappointment, 

 tew oxen, and almost no native red cows, or 

 'American Devons," were on the ground, 

 ilthough we had supposed they abounded in 

 i district contiguous to New England, — the 

 land that sends forth so many noble oxen and 

 Ine steers; which, as workers, are unrivalled, 

 md as feeders, only excelled by the improved 

 short horns. There were, it is true, several 



show steers of great size and fatness, and 

 some good yokes of oxen, but the tout en- 

 semble was not equal to the annual display 

 of this class, by our Chester county friends. 



Of Merino, Saxony, Cotswold, Leicester, 

 and Southdown sheep, there was a very fair 

 and creditable display; the former three de- 

 scriptions were more numerous and better 

 than we have seen elsewhere ; but the Lei- 

 cester and Southdowns, are, in our judgment, 

 exceeded in numbers and quality, by the West- 

 chester shows, which is in fact a hard district 

 to beat in these classes of sheep. 



The hogs did not number so largely as 

 this region of Berkshires ought to have done, 

 and we suspect these black beauties are not 

 in as high favour as formerly. — Seriously, we 

 do not value them highly as a distinct race, 

 but for the purpose of crossing with native 

 breeds of too much coarseness, they are use- 

 ful, and should be sustained. Several Der- 

 byshire, and other English white hogs ex- 

 hibited, were very handsome porkers. 



Of agricultural implements, a large and 

 various assortment was shown, which, for 

 workmanship and ingenuity, commanded 

 much admiration. 



The interest, variety, and extent of the 

 exhibition, were greatly increased by the 

 display of field and garden vegetables, flow- 

 ers, silk, &c. ; and by the productions of the 

 artizan, such as stoves, furnaces, planes, 

 leather, harness, carriages, sleighs, &c. The 

 ground occupied, was part of a race course 

 remarkably well adapted to the purpose, and 

 being fenced in, enabled them to charge 12| 

 cents each for admission, which must have 

 contributed largely towards defraying their 

 expenses, and is worthy of consideration by 

 the Philadelphia Agricultural Society. 



Their show, so far as it came under our 

 notice, was conducted in an orderly and re- 

 putable manner. The concourse of people 

 who visited the exhibition was immense, and 

 evinced in the liveliest manner, the all-ab- 

 sorbing interest of agricultural pursuits. The 

 true spirit is amongst the farmers of this 

 great State, and good fruits must result from 

 their enterprise and ambition. 



Although older and better farmers, we of 

 Pennsylvania, are behind our brothers of New 

 York, in the cultivation of the mind. We 

 want that enthusiasm, enterprising spirit and 

 social intercourse, which are actively at work 

 to their exaltation and improvement. 



On the evening of the day we spent 

 amongst them, a public discussion was held 

 in the State house on the subject of educa- 

 tion. The meeting was ably addressed by 

 gentlemen from various parts of the Union, 

 and resolutions adopted, recommending more 

 attention to agricultural education and the 



