162 



©l)c .farmer's illcmtl)lu llisitor. 



give out their perfume, tlien only, or at night-fall, 

 ftlui)}' of the jessamines are most fragrant during 

 the twilight; the olea fragrans, the daphne ado- 

 rata, and the uigbt-stock, reserve their sweetness 

 for the midnight hour, and the night flowering 

 sirius turns night into day. It begins to expand 

 its magnificent sweet-scented blossom in the 

 twilight, it is full blown at midnight, and closes, 

 never to open again, with the dawn of day: 

 these are " the bats and owls of the vegetable 

 kingdom." — Mrs. Somerrille. 



" The Yellow Leaf." 



From the Knickerbocker for November. 

 A friend, almost writhing at the time with pain 

 of body, threw off the other evening this imagi- 

 native and spirited tribute to " The Yellow Leaf." 

 "The air of the autumn is about us. A yellow 

 leaf, fringed with glowing red, struck us on the 

 check, as we wandered forth from our home this 

 morning. The leaf trembled from the tree, as if 

 it feared to fall upon the earth. It is so with us 

 — we shudder to fall upon the bosom of our mo- 

 ther, this good red clay on which we walk. 

 Who harms the yellow leaf, fringed with red, 

 when it drops upon the grassy sod ? It rests for 

 a while, until the winds come sighing by, and 

 with a whole angel-armful of others, it is spirited 

 away to places we know not of. Perhaps the 

 breeze bears it to the side of a lake, and the kiss- 

 ing silvery wave floats it gently on its bosom into 

 the great ocean — nature's eternity. It is so with 

 ns. Fear not to fall ! Like the leaf of yellow, 

 fringed with red, we shall be borne away to the 

 lapsing tides of streams which shall bear us on- 

 ward to eternity. No harm will happen to us, 

 but upon some golden sanded shore we shall be 

 wafted, and the exotic will again revive, and be 

 a something that we know not of." 



Report on Poultry. 



S. L. Hinckley, Esq. — Dear Sir: Yours of 

 September 18th was duly received, and I am 

 happy to submit to you a detailed account of my 

 experience in the management of poultry. 



The average number of hens kept by me the 

 last year, I estimate at one hundred and forty — 

 mostly a cross between the famous Dorking and 

 the common hen. The oft repeated and puzzling 

 inquiry, as to whether fowls may be profitably 

 kept upon a farm, is satisfactorily settled in my 

 mind ; and, for your satisfaction, as well as of 

 those associated with yon, I submit the actual 

 cost of keeping them, with a fair estimate of the 

 value of the stock on hand at the commence- 

 ment and close of the season, together with the 

 quantity of eggs produced, &c. 



Value of stock, Nov. 1, 1847, $40 35 



Expense of feed, 116 45 



$156 80 



Value of slock, Oct. 1848, $65 30 



Value of poultry sold, 30 68 



Value of manure, 63 bushels, 15 cts., 9 45 



Value of eggs, 1256 doz., 13d cts., 169 56 



$264 99 



This leaves to the credit of the hens the pretty 

 little sum of one hundred and eight dollars and 

 nineteen cents; and this result I arrive at by act- 

 ual and careful experiment, without guessing or 

 conjecture. It is one, too, attainable by any pru- 

 dent person, who will bestow an equal amount 

 of care, proportioned to their value, as is, or 

 ought to be, bestowed upon any kind of stock in 

 order to have them do well. And I would in- 

 quire, in what other way, upon so small an in- 

 vestment, can so fair a profit be produced upon 

 a farm ? 



Id regard to the treatment of them, I give 

 them a warm house, with a comfortable yard or 

 range, and one hundred and fifty hens should 

 have from one-half to three-quarters of. an acre. 

 My house is so arranged as to keep them when 

 I choose, in separate apartments and constantly 

 supplied with food, old plastering, lime, gravel, 

 water, &C — with some secret nests, as well as 

 open boxes, for them to lay in. The house 

 should be kept well white-washed and as clean 

 as possible. The kind of food I use is varied 

 occasionally — corn, boiled potatoes, burnt barley, 

 oats and wheat screenings ; the latter especially 



I find very valuable. The quality of the food, 

 however, does not, in my opinion, influence the 

 laying so much as is imagined. They must have 

 enough to eat, and be made comfortable in other 

 respects. With my management they lay the 

 year round. 



In regard to the bind of breed, I am entirely 

 of opinion that the cross between the Dorking 

 and common hen is a very valuable kind. This 

 year as you will perceive, 1 have had 1256 dozen 

 eggs, while last year 1 had only J50 dozen, anil I 

 attribute the gain to the improvement in the 

 stock in that way. My stock is very healthy, 

 seldom losing any by disease. 



My own opinion is that too little attention is 

 paid to the species of domestic animals, and that 

 for the proper attention, while every one keeps 

 poultry, very few reap all the advantages they 

 might,' and I shall be happy if my experience 

 serves to stimulate any one to improve them- 

 selves in this respect. 



LYMAN CHURCH. 



Middlelield, Oct. 5, 1848. 



A premium of ten dollars was awarded to Mr. 

 Church. — Hampshire Gazette. 



The Philosophy of Endurance. 



BY CHARLES MACKAY. 



Were the lonely acorn never bound 



In the rude cold grasp of the rotting ground ; 



Did the rigid frost never harden up 



The mould above its bursting cup; 



Were it never soak'd in the rain and hail, 



Or chill'd by the breath of the wintry gale, 



It would not sprout in the sunshine free, 



Or give the promise of a tree; 



It would not spread to the summer air 



Its lengthening houghs and branches fair, 



To form a bower where, in starry nights, 



Young Love might dream unknown delights; 



Or stand in the woods among its peers, 



Fed by the dews of a thousand years. 



Were never the dull unseemly ore 



Dragg'd from the depths where it slept of yore ; 



Were it never cast into searching flame, 



To be purged of impurity and sbame ; 



Were it never molten 'mid burning brands, 



Or bruis'd and beaten by stalwart hands, 



It would never be known as a thing of worth ; 



It would never emerge to a nobler birth ; 



It would never be form'd into mystic rings, 



To feller Love's erratic wings; 



It would never shine amid priceless gems, 



On the girth or imperial diadems ; 



Nor become to the world a power and a pride, 



Cherish'd, adorn 'd and deified. 



So, thou, O man of a noble soul, 



Starting in view of a glorious goal, 



Wert Ihou never exposed to the blasts, forlorn — 



The storms of sorrow — the sleels of scorn; 



Wert thou never refined in pitiless fire, 



From the dross of thy slolh and mean desire; 



Wert thou never taught to feel and know 



That the truest love has its roots in woe, 



Thou wouldst never unriddle the complex plan, 



Or reach half way to the perfect man ; 



Thou wouldst never attain the tranquil height 



Where wisdom purifies the sight, 



And God unfolds to the humblest gaze 



The bliss and beauty of bis ways. 



The "Metallic Paints" from Ohio. 



It may be recollected by the reader that some 

 months since, under the head of " Scientific 

 Items," we gave a brief account of a new and 

 singular substance found imbedded in a rocky 

 stratum near Akron, Ohio. This was no other 

 than the Patent Fire ami Weather Proof Paint 

 and Artificial Slate now on exhibition at the Fair. 



When first taken from the mine, this substance 

 presents the appearance of finest indigo, with 

 only the hardness of cold tallow — readily cut, 

 shaped or mixed with other substances. On ex- 

 posure to the atmosphere, however, for a few 

 days, it becomes hard and impermeable either to 

 fire or atmospheric changes. Thus it is exceed- 

 ingly well adapted to render dwellings and other 

 buildings perfectly fire-proof: It is "applied by 

 forming it into " paint," while in a soft or pow- 

 dered state, by admixture with ordinary linseed 

 oil, so as to be readily useable by means of a 

 brush. 



Excellent slates of all sizes and descriptions 

 are manufactured, by merely coating a thin hoard 

 or thick paper on either side with the paint thus 

 formed, and allowing a proper time for harden- 

 ing in the sun. When completed they cannot 

 be distinguished from the real slate, except, per- 



haps, by weight and solidity. A very material 

 advantage, however, is gained by this mode of 

 manufacture — you may kick them any where 

 without danger of breaking, and there is, too, an 

 entire absence of that greasiness which is so 

 often a serious nuisance in the olaVfashioned ar- 

 ticles in common use. 



A slale roof is given to a house simply by 

 painting the shingles with this extraordinary mix- 

 ture. In a few days a perfect stone without a 

 flaw may be formed on the roof, which hence 

 becomes entirely fire-proof and as safe as the 

 notes and bills placed in charge of one of the 

 famous " Salamanders." 



Dr. Chilton of this city having analyzed this — 

 what shall we call it, paint, mineral, clay, or a 

 nondescript? — has found its ingredients to he as 

 follows: that it consists of large proportions of 

 silica, alumina, black oxide of iron, and magne- 

 sia, with lesser of lime and carbon. The transi- 

 tion, therefore, from the liquid paint to the hard 

 slate is accounted for according to Nature's own 

 laws — as the oil absorbs and evaporates by the 

 action of the atmosphere, the powerful adhesive 

 attraction incident to the black oxide of iron 

 binds and attracts not only the particles, but the 

 substance covered — causing wood covered by it 

 to char before the coating will give way. 



Altogether, this artificial slate is a great curi- 

 osity, and deservedly attracts much attention. 

 The discoverer, Mr. Blake, is in constant attend- 

 ance to explain its nature and its uses, with nu- 

 merous samples of articles put under its protec- 

 tion. He will show you specimens of artificial 

 black marble, made from it — showing that the 

 slate is susceptible of a high degree of polish, 

 and might readily and cheaply subserve many 

 important ends in our household economy. For 

 covering iron, also ; to prevent rust or other 

 damage, for carriage work, fire-fronts, and cen- 

 tre and pier tables, &c, it can be very usefully 

 applied. It is well worthy an attentive examina- 

 tion. — New York Tribune. 



Transplanting Trees. 



Many persons prefer the spring season for 

 transplanting fruit trees, but in many soils the 

 ground is not so dry and friable as it should be 

 for the most successful planting as early as is 

 generally wished. This may be very much 

 guarded against by digging the holes for the 

 trees in autumn. The top soil should be piled 

 in a conical form upon one side, and the subsoil 

 upon the other. In this way the frost acts upon 

 the excavated earth, and finally pulverizes and 

 prepares it for early transplanting and filling in 

 about the roots; the top soil only should be used 

 for this purpose. 



The size of the holes should be in proportion 

 to the size of the tree and length of the root. 

 Perhaps, not less than three feet in diameter, and 

 from twelve to twenty inches in depth, for apple 

 trees of the size they are usually transplanted — 

 but if the holes were larger, it would be all the 

 better. This is a comparatively leisure season 

 of the year, and if the boles are prepared this 

 autumn, the expense of setting out trees next 

 spring would be somewhat lessened and the 

 business much expedited. 



Many persons plant a free as they would a post ! 

 The novice in planting must consider that a tree 

 is a living, nicely organized production, as cer- 

 tainly affected by good treatment as an animal. 

 Many an orchard of trees rudely thrust into the 

 ground, struggles half a dozen years against the 

 adverse condition before it recovers. 



Some years ago, we transplanted about fifty 

 apple trees in the spring; one-half of them 

 were set in holes dug the previous autumn, the 

 balance in newly dug ones. The first named 

 ones done decidedly the best. 



For further and more minute directions for 

 transplanting fruit trees, we recommend to our 

 readers A. J. Downing's work on Fruits, &c. — 

 Boston Cultivator. 



Woolen Rags for Manure. — The waste of 

 woolen factories, and woolen rags, make a valu- 

 able manure. They may be made up into com- 

 post and remain till lotted, or may be used by 

 themselves. A correspondent of the Ag. Gazette 

 gives his mode of using the rags, lie runs them 

 through a straw-cutter, and then spreads them 

 on grass laud. 



