lOU 



i>li.W ENGLAND FARMER. 



[rBEPARED FOR THE NEW ENGLAND FAaMER.] 

 THE KULBEhRY IN HINDDSTAN 



Is cultivated in a different manner from what it is 

 in Europe. It is raised froin cuttings, eight or ten 

 of which are planted together in one pit, smd the 

 pits are distributed over the field at tJie distance 

 of two or three feet every way. These cuttings 

 being well firmed jrt the lower eftls, soon form 

 stools about the heiglit of a raspberry bash, and 

 from these the leaves are gathered. The stools 

 are cut over once a year to encourage the produc- 

 tion of vigorous shoots from the roots. 



NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL FETE OK THE CHI.N'ESE. 



This deserves to be noticed. Every year on the 

 fifteenth of tlie first moon, which generally cor- 

 responds to some day in tlie beginning of our 

 Marcli, the Emperor in person goes through the 

 ceremony of opening tlie ground ; he repairs in 

 great state to the field appointed for this ceremony. 

 The princes of the imperial family, the presidents 

 of the five great tribunals, and an immense num- 

 bes of mandarins atten^ him. Two sides of the 

 field are lined with the officers of tlie emperor's 

 house,th9 third is occupied by different mandarins; 

 the fourth is reserved for all the laborers of the 

 province, who repair thither to see their art hon- 

 ored, and practiced by the head of the empire. — 

 The emperor enters the field alone,prostrates him- 

 self, and touches the ground nine times with his 

 head in adoration of Tien, the God of heaven. lie 

 pronounces with a loud voice a prayer prepared by 

 the court of ceremonies, in which he invokes the 

 blessing of the Great Being on his labor, and on 

 that of his whole people. Then, in the capacity 

 of chief priest of the empire, he sacrifices an ox, 

 in homage to heaven as the fountain of all good. 

 While the victim is off'ered on the altar, a plough 

 is brought to the emperor, to which is yoked a 

 pair of oxen, ornamented in a most magnificent 

 style. The prince lays aside his imperial robei, 

 lays hold of the handle of the plough with his riglit 

 hand, and opens several furrows in the direction 

 of north and south; then gives the plough into 

 tlie hands of the chief mandarins, who. laboring in ' 

 succession, display their comparative dexterity. — 

 The ceremony concludes with a distribution of 

 money, and pieces of cloth as presents, among the 

 laborers ; the ablest of whom e.xecute the rest of 

 the work in the presence of the emperor. After 

 the field has received all the necessary work and 

 manure, the emperor returns to commence the 

 sowing with similar ceremony, aad in presence of 

 the laborers. These ceremonies are performed 

 on the same day by the viceroys of all the provin- 

 ces. 



LARGEST TREE. 



The boabab (Adansonia digilata,) is a native of 

 Congo, in Africa. This tree, discovered by the 

 celebrated French botanist, Adanson, is considered 

 the largest in the world ; several measured by this 

 gentlemen were from G5 to 78 feet in circumfer- 

 ence, but not extraordinarily high. The trunks 

 were from 12 to 15 feet high, before they divided 

 into many horizontal branches, which touched the 

 ground at their extremities ; these were from 45 

 to 55 feet long, and were so large that each branch 

 was equal to a monstrous tree ; and where tlie 

 water of a neighbouring river had washed away 

 the earth so ae to leave the roots of one of these 

 trees bare and open to the sight, they measured 

 110 feet long, without including those parts of the 



roots which remained covered. It yields a fruit 

 which resembles a gourd, and which serves for 

 vessels of various uses ; the bark of which furnish- ! 

 es them with a coarse thread, which they form in- 

 to ropes and into cloth, with which the natives 

 cover their middle from the girdle to the knees ; j 

 and the small leaves of which supply them with | 

 food in a time of scarcity, while the large ones are j 

 used for covering their houses, or by burning for j 

 the manufactory of good soap. — Loudon. \ 



ENGLISH NOTICES OF AMERICAN AGRICULTURE. ; 



Agricultural operations in the United States are 

 skilfully performed by the farmers of capital, who 

 have all the best implements of Europe. By the 

 poorest settlers this is not the case, for want of 

 stock ; and by the native American farmers, from 

 indolence, which, according to all accounts, is 

 their general defects An American laborer is 

 most expert at the use of the axe and the scythe ; 

 the spade he handles in a very awkward manner, 

 and has no idea of banking, hedging, clipping, or 

 cutting hedges, and many other operations known 

 to every laborer in a highly cultivated and enclosed 

 country like Britain. But tlie versatility of talent 

 of nn American laborer amply compensates for his 

 inexperience in these operations, and is more use- 

 ful in his circumstances. In handling the saw, the 

 hammer, and even the trou-el, the British laborer 

 has no chance with him. Most of them can build 

 a house, mend a plough or wagon, and even the 

 harness, and kill and dress sheep and pigs. 



Field labors in .\merica require to be performed 

 with much greater expedition than in England. — 

 The winter is long and severe, and the transition 

 to sp'ing is sudden ; this season in many provinces 

 only lasts a few weeks, when summer commences, 

 and the ground becomes too hard and dry for the 

 operation of tillage. Tlie operations of seed-time 

 must therel'ore be performed with the greatest ra- 

 pidity. 



As a country for a British farmer to emigrate to. 

 we consider the United States as superior to every 

 other, in two res|iects. First on account of its 

 form of government : by which property is secure, 

 personal liberty greater than any where else, con- 

 sistently with public safety ; and both maintained 

 at less expence than under any government in the 

 world. Secondly, on account of the stock of peo- 

 ple being generally British, and speaking the same 

 language. The only objection we have to .'Vraerica 

 is the climate, the long and severe winter, and the 

 rapid and hot spring and summer. Equally good 

 land, and nearly as cheap, may be had in the south 

 of Russia and in Poland, as in .\merica ; but who 

 that knovNs any thing of the governments of those 

 countries, or even of Germany and France, would 

 voluntarily put themselves in their power while the 

 United States are accessible ? Who would live in 

 a cduntry of tyrannic nobles, often very deficient 

 of moral principle ; and of a peasantry little better 

 than hogs, and not so well fed and lodged as that 

 animal is in England ? Who would live in a 

 country of passports, of spies, and swarming with 

 beggnrly gentry, wohlaeborne, hochwohlgeborne. 

 ediljieborne, hochedelgeborne, &c. ; and where 

 exists that precious article hochjagt ; being a des- 

 cription of game which no man may pursue under 

 I the rank of prince ? Who would emigrate to Han- 

 over if he could settle in France ; and who would 

 'go there if he could accomplish the voyage to the 

 1 United States ? — Loudon. 



Dec. 29. IH^*;. 

 From the ■ Middlebury Standard. 



FARMERS, SAVE YOUR STRAW. 



On the first settlement of a new country 

 farmers at once enter upon a system of m;ina£-i 

 their farms, which will produce the most from 

 same labour, and m.ake no calculations for prod 

 ing the most from the same land. 



This so far is correct, as labour is high and la! 

 low ; but the great error lies in this,that they pu 

 sue this system with a vie,v to their present crJ 

 only, and of course exhaust the soil and renderl 

 so unproductive, that wiihin a fe* years they o] 

 tain much less from tlie same labour than Ihi 

 would do, were they to expend more kbour in ii 

 nuring snd tilling th.'ir ground. This has be. 

 witnessed by every obse-ving man from the fi 

 settlement of this State down lo the present ti 

 In nil parts- of t!ie St.te an ; ttention to manuri 

 and tilling their ground had become habitual bi 

 fore necessity compelled them to alter their cour: 

 Other habits also were acquired during the earl 

 settlement of the country equally injurious to thi 

 fariuiag interest, many of which to a great degree 

 are continued. Hay soon becoming plenty and 

 cheap ina new settlement, straw of every kirn! has 

 been considered of no value, and has been tlirowa 

 into heaps or thrown about the yard without any. 

 view of making use of it for stock of any kind. It 

 is but a few years since tiiat pea straw was never 

 saved or made use of for fodder : the farmers of 

 course usually let their peas remain in the -tiavc 

 until it turned black and become of no use for fod- 

 der, by means of wbicli the crop of peas was great- 

 ly injured. In England the peas are harvested 

 while the tops are green, and two tons of pea 

 straw bring the price of one ton of hay, and tliose 

 farmers in this State who have pursued the same 

 course, are satisfied that this estimate is neaid? 

 correct and the practice of preserving pea stravv 

 has become very general to the grent benefit of 

 the agricultural interest. But the farmers seem 

 to be more averse to the making that use of wheat 

 and rye straw for fodder, which is made in all 

 other countries which have made any considerable 

 advances in the science of Agriculture. 



In F.ngland, wheat and rye straw are as care- 

 fully preserved and as economically expended for 

 fodder as hay — Every farmer has what he calls 

 his straw-yard, where his young stock is kept 

 wholly on straw, and this notwithstanding the dis- 

 advantages of the climate. In England" they al- 

 ways have what we call a very open winter, the 

 weather changeable, and- the ground bare the 

 greatur part of the time. Every one has observed 

 the greater difficulty in keeping a stock upon straw 

 in such a winter. They also feed their straw to 

 horses, cows and oxen, and they would as soon 

 waste their hay as their straw ; and I cannot per- 

 ceive why it is not as useful for a Vermont farmer 

 to make use of his straw for fodder as for the Eng- 

 lish farmer. I heard a very intelligent and suc- 

 cessful farmer of this county remark some years 

 since, that he could not afford to keep a stock of 

 cattle without raising grain so that he could feed 

 them principally with straw, nor could he afford 

 I to raise grain unless he kept a stock of cattle to 

 j feed upon his straw. But to make the best use of 

 [ straw for the feed either of cattle or horses, it has 

 j long since been found that it is necessary to cut it 

 ^ in some kind of machine. The Dutch from their 

 I first settlement in the State of New York, kept 

 their horses on cut straw and meal, making use of 



