1848. 



GENESEE FARMER. 



195 



nothing hut hefips of insects, which the hreath of the wrath 

 •of God has evidently driven nearer and still nearer to warn 

 His people of the misfortune which awaits them." 



In Canada West I found in general a better 

 ■state of things. There are very many most ex- 

 cellent farmers, and they carry on their opera- 

 tions with great care — and the crops upon the 

 ground bear evidence of most thorough culti- 

 Tation. The crops generally appear well, and 

 the farmers will have no occasion to complain of 

 the coming harvest- 

 In Niagara and Erie counties, N. Y., the 

 crops appeared good upon the whole ; the grass, 

 however, will be a light yield, and the wheat 

 crop about an average one. Many fields look 

 ■exceedingly well, while others bear evidence of 

 the effects of the winter. I did not learn that the 

 fly was doing much damage in these counties. 



I visited the Ebenezer Settlement of Germans, 

 about 7 miles from Buffalo. Their crops looked 

 remarkably well. The wheat generally very 

 fine — oats, barley, corn and potatoes, excellent. 

 They were in the midst of their haying, and 

 their crop was a good one — better than the ave- 

 rage of the country around. 



This settlement is somewhat upon the com- 

 munity plan. They have about 12,000 acres 

 of land — have three settlements — have factories 

 and other works — and manufacture not only for 

 their own use but for market. They take their 

 meals in common — houses for that purpose being 

 prepared which accommodate ten or a dozen 

 families. The families have their lodging houses 

 separate. Every thing seems to progress with j 

 great regularity, and all about them appears to' 

 be particularly neat, aad every thing is well 

 done. They raise a large quantity of vegetables, 

 and contribute largely to the supply of the 

 Buffalo market. Great care is observed in the 

 preservation of manure. They use poudrette 

 in raising their vegetables, and the great and 

 rapid growth shows the great value of night soil, 

 which, in most parts of our country, is entirely 

 lost. 



Here I found a painter of Fruits, engaged in 

 painting and engraving specimens for the Massa- 

 chusetts Horticultural Society. His work is 

 done to the life, and it seemed to me the State 

 Agricultural Society would truly subserve the 

 interest of the great cause they have ia charge, 

 by procuring paintings of the fruits of the State, 

 to be deposited in their rooms for examination. 

 Since my return I have seen some of the speci- 

 mens prepared for Professor EmiMOns' work 

 on Natural History, for the State, and they are. 

 I think, in every respect equal to those painted 

 at the Ebenezer. 



From Buffalo to Rochester the crops appear 

 tolerably well. I visited the farm of Judge 

 BuEL, President of the Monroe County Agricul- 

 tural Society, near Rochester. Here I found 

 65 acres of corn, and much larger than any I 



had yet seen, and should the season be an ordi- 

 nary one, I presume the yield will exceed 5,000 

 bushels. The fields were entirely freed from 

 weeds, and every thing had been done to give 

 the corn a fair chance, and it was evidently 

 making the best use of the opportunity afforded 

 it. Judge B.'s wheat looked well, and was fast 

 ripening for the harvest. I observed here grow- 

 ing, some wheat, the samples of which had been 

 furnished by the State Society. It would greatly 

 subserve the agricultural interest if more far- 

 mers could be enlisted to test the seeds which 

 are annually distributed from the Agricultural 

 Rooms, and report the result to the Society. 

 The Judge's farm is in fine order; his buildings 

 are extensive, and every thing has a place, and 

 is in its place ; and one would suppose from look- 

 ing over his fine fields, and witnessing his splen- 

 did crops, that here contentment might be found, 

 (as I doubt not it is,) in the home of the enter- 

 prising, systematic and successful American 

 Farmer. 



I observed here, as I had in other parts of 

 the country the potato crop. It is generally 

 very promising, and as yet there are no indica- 

 tions of disease. Early planting I found resorted 

 to in every section through which I passed, the 

 testimony every where being, that the early va- 

 rieties have almost entirely escaped, even where 

 the disease was most prevalent. 



On board of one of the packets during my 

 tour, a very interesting discussion arose as to 

 the best time for cutting Timothy. A New 

 York and a Vermont farmer took opposite sides 

 of the question, and discussed it with much zeal. 

 The New York farmer insisted, that the best 

 time to cut, was while the grass was in the blow, 

 and before the seed ripened, and that the hay 

 would be better and the land much less ex- 

 hausted, and that this was the only method by 

 which a second crop could be secured. The 

 Vermont farmer insisted that it was necessary 

 for the seed to ripen fully before the grass would 

 be prepared to make the most perfect hay, and 

 that this was the only method to prevent the 

 necessity of plowing up frequently the meadows. 

 Various incidental arguments were advanced. 

 The conclusion arrived at by the auditors was, 

 that upon the whole, the early cutting was, as a 

 general rule, the best — and such I found on in- 

 quiry, to be the opinion of the farmers in most 

 cases throughout my entire tour. 



From the cursory view taken in my tour, I 

 think the prospects for a good crop of the various 

 grains cultivated is favorable ; and the farmers 

 of New York may reasonably expect that a large 

 surplus will be on hand for sale and export. I 

 might allude to many cases of improved and im- 

 proving husbandry which passed under my view, 

 but have already occupied more space than I 

 intended in your columns. 



A Traveler. 



