1853. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



377 



The mischievous bugs have annoyed farmers 

 very much. They have left hardly a hope of 

 pumpkins "for Thanksgiving." They have eaten 

 the cucumbers before they could be picked. They 

 have not even waited fur a preparation of salt and 

 vinegar. Squashes, summer and winter kinds, 

 have been most mercilessly treated by the army 

 of bugs. But somebody will raise some of all 

 these things "for seed," undoubtedly. 



The prospect is that there will not be much 

 crowing about fruit, next fall. Tliere are two 

 reasons. One is, there are not so many of those 

 wonderful roosters kept now, as were once. Crow 

 ing is therefore becoming a little unpopular, since 

 the big Shanghai rooster burst his windpipe in an 

 attempt to give a speciuien of Chinese music. 

 The other reason is, the fruit is, evidently, the 

 most of it, destined to be "food for worms," like 

 all fruit eaters. Apple trees in many places look 

 as though some sudden stop had been put to the 

 course of nature. I suppose, however, that it is 

 all very natural for worms to eat, and for trees to 

 look very bare when their leaves are gone, or very 

 uninterestingly when the leaves appear to be dry 

 on the tree. If good winter fruit does not com- 

 mand a price, next fall, it will be a little strange. 

 There is hope, yet, for a good lot of peaclies. 

 The little mischievous chap that bites the plums 

 and tlie apples does not seem to be so fond of 

 peaches. That is really encouraging. It is al- 

 ways a lucky idea to those who do not raise any, 

 but have some cousins who do, to remember the 

 relationship just at the best time to "go and see 

 the folks and get some peaches." Well, who 

 wouldn't? 



We, here in New Hampshire, have our particu- 

 lar prospects. Our Agricultural Societies are 

 wide awake, to make the year tell. Our legisla- 

 ture has had "the ague" over the part of Gov- 

 ernor JMartin's Message concerning an agricultu- 

 ral Commission. They have finally put a wet 

 blanket upon the whole subject and sent it to bed. 

 Whether it will be found to sleep a whole year re- 

 mains for time and tide to tell and establish. At 

 any rate, the wisdom of this legislature has taken 

 its shape. On this subject the mass of the peo- 

 pte have no definite idea, and it is therefore, to 

 them, a matter of indifference whether it goes 

 this way or that. 



The hay-season is now upon us. The ground 

 is becoming very dry. The old idea of making 

 hay while the sun shines will not be forgotten. But 

 if hay is scorched excessively under a burning sun 

 it will lose very much of its value, by the crum- 

 bling of the leaves and heads. 



We are all looking forward for better success in 

 all our efforts, in the future. Of what has been, 

 and of what now is, we have some knowledge. 

 But ctmcerning the future all is conjecture. Yet 

 we humbly hope, and every mind struggles in the 

 world of mind to accomplish some desired and de- 

 sirable service. The agricultural student wrestles 

 violently with the difficulties which oppose his 

 progress ; and the plowman studies deep philoso- 

 phy while he treads the newly opened furrow, and 

 pushes his conquest at the point of the plow. 



An interest for the honor of agriculture is fast 

 ripening to maturity. Things as of old are pass- 

 ing away. Scholars will be plow-boys, and phi- 

 losophers will be farmers. The spirit of this 

 change is touching the springs of motion, and 



what is to be very soon will be. Ignorance must 

 learn to be ashamed, and the rage of dandyism, in 

 its thousand forms, must give place to that prac- 

 tical comuum sense upon which the weal of the 

 world depends. a. g c. 



Mason, N. H. 



The figure above represents a pair of Sliding 

 Pruning Shears. They have a movable centre for 

 the motion of one of the blades, by which means, 

 instead of a crushing cut, they make a draw cut, 

 leaving the section of the part attached to the 

 tree or shrub smooth, as if cut off with a knife. 



These shears are especially convenient and com- 

 fortable in trimming raspberry, blackberry, goose- 

 berry and other bushes that have thorns, or for 

 heading in peach or plum trees. 



GARDEN OR HEDGE SHEARS. 



These are admirably adapted for shearing hedg- 

 es, borders of walks, or, if set with a keen edge, 

 for heading in small trees. 



GRASS EDGING OR BORDER SHEARS. 



These are used for trimming the sides of box and 

 grass edgings, and are constructed with a roller so 

 that the operator may stand upright whilst using 

 them ; the one figured here has a wheel attached, 

 which is generally considered an advantage. 



Errors in Growing Beans. — Lima bean vines 

 are usually suffered to wind themselves tiDund a 

 pole twelve or fifteen feet high, and before the 

 vine reaches the top of the pole, some beans are 

 already of a size to be pulled, near its bottom. 

 Lima beans should be pinched off when five and a 

 half feet high, and they will readily throw out 

 side shoots well filled with pods, which will ripen 



,:*. 



