30 



&l)c Jfarmer's JUcmtljto lltrittor. 



A New Agricultural Society in old Hillsboio'. 



The following communication, intended for 

 the Visitor for January, came too late for inser- 

 tion in that number. We give place to it now, 

 cheerfully seconding the views of the writer re- 

 garding the objects of the proposed Association, 

 and hoping that the committee which has been 

 raised for the purpose of drafting the constitu- 

 tion and general regulations of the Society, may 

 have already anticipated the wishes of our cor- 

 respondent : 



Mr. Editor: — Agreeably to a notice in the 

 last Visitor, [he fanners of old Hillsboro' county 

 met at E. Hardy's in Amherst, on Tuesday the 

 18th inst., to take into consideration the expedi- 

 ency of forming a new Agricultural Society in 

 the county; and although there were hut few 

 present, yet there was much good feeling on the 

 subject, and after several remarks from some of 

 the good fanners of Bedford, and others, they 

 came to the conclusion that it was expedient to 

 form such a Society, anil chose a committee to 

 draft a constitution and by-laws for said Society, 

 and then adjourned to meet at the same place in 

 three weeks from that day. 



Now that such a Society is needed, no one 

 will deny; but sir, that this Society he formed 

 on the hest plan, appears to me to he of the 

 greatest importance, 1 have thought that the old 

 society was not of this description, hut was 

 based on the mere surface of the soil, therefore 

 did not take root deep enough, ami that the 

 farmers did not dig deep enough into their soil 

 to know what it contains. Now sir, it appears 

 to me that it should not be the object of this so- 

 ciety to see who can raise the largest call' or 

 the largest pair of oxen, hut to ascertain who 

 best understands the nature and the qualities of 

 the soil which he cultivates, that he may be able 

 to apply the hest manures, and that crop to which 

 the soil is peculiarly adapted to produce. Now 

 this is the kind of emulation we want to send 

 among our fanners. 



Having been a reader of the Visitor for some 

 years, it would be very pleasing to me to have 

 your views on the subject in the Visitor. 



Yours trill v, J. II. 



Ahiherst, Jan'y 25, 1848. 



Best Varieties of Apples for Export. 



The Newlown Pippin has long stood at the 

 bead of the list — the fruit being of good size, 

 fine flavor, and keeps till spring, retaining its 

 fine flavor, it has, however, two drawbacks — 

 the tree is a poor grower ami shy bearer. 



The Lady Jlpph is a great favorite in England 

 — the fruit beautiful — the flavor :in<; — it keeps 

 well and the tree is an enormous bearer. 



The Baldwin Iris long been the pride of the 

 Boston market, and although not so solid an ap- 

 ple as the Pippin, yet it keeps •.veil — it is a rich 

 juicy crisp fruit — bears slopping well, — ami the 

 tree is an abundant bearer; 



The Tcwksbvry Winter Bhtsh is the longest 

 keeping apple in this country. Willi a little ex- 

 tra trouble they can be kept sound till August. 

 The fruit is small, but little larger than the Lady 

 Apple; the flavor fine, and tin.' tree a prodigious 

 bearer. — A*. 1". Mechanic 



Salting Horses. — A curious feet is mentioned 

 in Parker's Treatise on Salt: "A person, who 

 kept sixteen farming horses, made the following 

 experiment with seven of them which had been 

 accustomed to take salt with their food. Lumps 

 of rock salt were laid in the mangers ami these 

 lumps previously weighed, were examined week- 

 ly to ascertain what quantity had been consum- 

 ed, and it was repeatedly found that whenever 

 these horses were fed on old hay ami corn, they 

 consumed only from 24 to 3 oz. per day, hoi 

 when they were fed with lie v\ hay, they took ti 

 oz. per day. This should convince us of the 

 expediency of permitting our cattle the (he use 

 of sdt at ail times, and it cannot he given in so 

 convenient a form as rock sail, it being much 

 more palatable than the article in a refined slate, 

 and by tar cheaper. A good lump should al- 

 ways be kept in a box by the side of every ani- 

 mal, without fear that it will be taken in excess. 

 — Fanner's Cabinet. 



From the Prairie tanner. 

 How much Porl; will a bushel of Corn make 1 



BY Ii. S1IAW. 



Messrs. Editors : At page 854 of the Prairie Far- 

 mer, you will see that Air. Pettis makes rather light 

 work of what he calls my " suppositious experi- 

 mcnts,"which were made for the purpose of ascer- 

 taining how much pork a bushel of corn will make 

 in the common manner of feeding. The expe- 

 riment to which 1 referred more particularly at 

 that time, was this — Twelve hogs were weighed 

 and pot into a pen, part of which was covered, 

 for their shelter in stormy weather; another part 

 had a plank floor for them to eat upon ; they 

 svere waiered daily, and fed with three bushels 

 of corn each day. Each hog gained on an aver- 

 age one pound per day. That is one of the ex- 

 periments which he wishes to consign to oblivion 

 in such a summary manner. I admit, that all 

 circumstances being favorable, ten or even 

 twelve pounds of pork may be made from a 

 bushel; but things will not be favorable while 

 labor is as dear as it is at present. My article 

 was intended to publish the tact that in the com- 

 mon way of doing things, a bushel of corn will 

 not make more than live pounds of pork. Let 

 the gentleman try it ; let him record facts, and 

 not oppose truths with jokes ; " a joke is no ar- 

 gument." Mr. P. discourses very pathetically 

 about the pleasure of being elevated on a Vir- 

 ginia fence and surveying the interesting pro- 

 spect of a parcel of hogs devouring the corn. 1 

 can't exactly appreciate such an exalted enjoy- 

 ment, but suppose that " tastes differ." I would 

 much rather see the grain neatly sacked op and 

 ta route for the " Wild Irish." This question — 

 (how much pork a bushel of corn will make) — is 

 worthy of being decided by actual experiment ; 

 and something of this sort I hope to hear from 

 Mr. Pettis. 1 do believe that some hogs eat sixty 

 bushels of corn, however astounded the assertion 

 may appear to Mr. P. at first sight, and that actu- 

 al experiment is the best argument in this case. 

 ''Facts are stubborn things." 

 Trcnont. III. Dec. 1847. 



Rules for milking. — A writer in the Maine 

 Farmer gives the following rules for milking 

 cows : Having milked more or less every season 

 since I was a boy, and having seen it done so 

 poorly as to injure the cow, I purpose to give a 

 few rules for it which I have learned from my 

 own and other's experience. They are as follows: 



1. Have a good stool to sit on. 



2. Have all your finger nails pared short and 

 smooth. 



3. Sit down and clean the hag, and wet the 

 teal-- with the first stream of milk. 



4. Then set your pail under, and milk as last 

 as you can conveniently, the faster the better. A 

 cow will give more milk when milked fast than 

 when milked slow. 



."•. Milk as though the teats were full to the 

 last, otherwise it makes them long to "strip in a 

 little while." 



G. Never scold or strike a cow lor running 

 about the yard or kicking. It generally does 

 more harm than good. 



7. If she runs about, have patience, talk kind- 

 ly to her, and tie her up as a last resort till she is 

 not afraid. 



8. If she kicks, sit forward far enough lor 

 your knee to come forward of her leg, and she 

 cannot easily hurt you or spill the milk. 



'■<. If she switches you with her tail, in "fly 

 time," lasien it by parting her hair and tying ii 

 round her leg. Use a string il the hair is not 

 long enough. 



10. If she holds up her milk, butt with your 

 hands. What else does a calf butt for, but to 

 make the mother give milk down ? 



Fraai the New Genesee Farmer. 

 Curing liacon. 



In order to have good bacon, the hair should 

 be burnt offj'ffbt sea Ided; the flesh Will he more 

 solid and firm, and it will keep better. 



A bacon trough, or tray, should have a deep 

 indenture round its edges, to drain off the brine 

 which would otherwise soak in, and spoil the 

 meal. The inside (or flesh side) of each flitch, 

 must be well rubbed with salt, and placed above 

 each other in the tray; once in four or five days 



the salt should be changed. It should he suffer- 

 ed to mcii and sink, but not to lie too long ; and 

 the flitches removed, the lower flitch brought to 

 the top, at least once a week. One-quarter of a 

 pound of hay salt, and half a pound of saltpetre, 

 with one pound of very coarse sugar, should bo 

 rubbed into every two flitches the first week. 



As for the time of curing the hog, it depends 

 upon the state of the weather, size of the ani- 

 mal, &c. One month in moderate weather, will 

 he sufficient for a hog of twelve score. The 

 place lor salting should be cool and very airy; 

 if in the midst of winter, it should be in the cel- 

 lar, to be kept secure from frost. Smoking ba- 

 con is much better than merely drying it. In 

 order to do this completely, after draining the 

 brine from the trough in which the. flitches are 

 placed, they are, at ihe end of a week, to be rub- 

 bed well on the flesh side with bran or saw dust, 

 mixed with a little unslaked lime; then hang 

 them in a smoke-house, out of the way of rain, 

 and not near enough to the fire to melt or burn. A 

 month's smoking will do. The flitches should 

 hang until quite dry, but not long enough to he 

 hard. To preserve them from hoppers, place 

 some clean dry ashes at the bottom of a chest, 

 or box, long enough to hold the flitches; lay in 

 one flitch, cover with six or eight inches of the 

 ashes, then another in the same way, until the 

 box is nearly filled. A little straw at the top 

 will complete the process, and the bacon thus 

 run d and secured, will keep fresh and sweet for 

 two years. 



AN ENGLISH FARMER'S WIFE. 



Ogden, A'. Y.,M>v. 1847. 



Plain Diet. — Children should be early habit 

 ualed to plain diet. Sweetmeats and highly 

 seasoned dishes are especially to be avoided, as 

 they tend not only to engender a morbid appe- 

 tite, hut to lay the foundation of many diseases 

 by which life will he embittered or cut short. 

 We have recently been much edified by the pe- 

 rusal of some remarks by Dr. Humphrey upon 

 the subject. " If you make it a point," observes 

 Dr. II. " to give children the best of everything; 

 to pamper them with rich cakes, sweetmeats and 

 sugar plums, — if you allow them to say with a 

 scowl, ' I don't want this,' or 'I can't eat that,' 

 and then go away and make them a little toast, 

 or kill a chicken for their dainty palates, depend 

 upon it you are doing them a great injury, not 

 only on the score of denying them a full muscle 

 and rosy cheek, but of forming one of he most 

 inconvenient habits that they can carry along 

 with them into after life. 



" When they come to leave you, they will not 

 half the time, find anything they can eat ; and 

 thus you will prepare them to go chafing and 

 grumbling along ibis life, the veriest slaves al- 

 most in the w oriel." 



It has been frequently remarked that while the 

 children of our wealthy citizens are pale and 

 cadaverous, those of our backwoods men and 

 farmers are generally robust and healthy. Plenty 

 of exercise, pure air, and a plain diet, tend to 

 render the constitution hardy and vigorous, and 

 to beget n cheerfulness of disposition which the 

 pampered children of wealth are rarely found to 

 possess. 



Antidote to Poisons. — Animal charcoal 

 (freshly prepared ivory black) is an antidote to 

 poisons, especially those belonging to the vege- 

 table kingdom. Thus strychnia and mix vomica 

 and other poisons of this class, when taken mix- 

 ed with charcoal are perfectly harmless provided 

 the charcoal is administered ill doses proportion- 

 ed to the quantity of poison. Three or four 

 grains of strychnia are neutralized by ].i to 2 oz. 

 of charcoal. Even the effects of arsenic are 

 greatly diminished by a speedy administration of 

 charcoal. Corrosive sublimate is more surely 

 rendered inert by the white of eggs. Dogs that 

 have been poisoned by mix vomica, may possibly 

 be cured by charcoal, though it is quite impor- 

 tant ihat il should be administered early and in 

 large doses, not less than 1£. or 2 oz. In the ah- 

 seuce of animal charcoal administer freely line 

 fresh charcoal from the fire-place. 



Mexico. — It is said that when the road to the 

 city of Mexico is opened, upwards of twenty 

 millions of dollars worth of merchandise will bo 

 thrown into the interior of Mexico. 



