1853. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



387 



PROSPECTS OF THE SEASON. 



The drouglit in all this region continues severe. 

 The hay crop op old grounds will be very light ; 

 on rather low and moist lands better than last 

 year. Although the present crop is more abund- 

 ant than last years, there will not probably be 

 more hay in the barn in September, as the high 

 prices since that time have drawn it all out. There 

 is, however, much less stock than there was last 

 year at this time, so that upon the whole, hay will 

 not command a higher price than it brought last 

 year. 



Corn has had a fine color from its first appear- 

 ance and now looks well, and unless on quite 

 dry lands has not yet suffered much. 



The rye crop is good ; oals light and barky good. 



Some fields of the Hue stem wheat, which we 

 have recently seen are very fine. 



Potatoes are suffering ; no rains having pene- 

 trated to the roots since they were planted. 



The root crops, unless those sowed quite early, 

 are not promising. 



The cabbage crop has been extensively injured by 

 the cut worm, in addition to the little imp that 

 usually makes a home in the root^ 



Vines, such as the various squashes, melons and 

 cucumbers are not looking fresh and vigorous. — 

 They have had to contend with armies of insects 

 as well as drought. 



The apple crop must be unusually light. One 

 gentleman who usually puts up a hundred barrels 

 has sold his whole crop, whatever it may be, for 

 ten dollars. 



On the whole, there is no good cause for de- 

 spondency. Earnest hearts and hands and econ- 

 omical habits will bring all out right. The Giver 

 of sunshine and rain deals gently and kindly with 

 us in this garden of the world, and home of the 

 oppressed. We shall have enough and to spare. 



following spring they had gone the way of beef, 

 and their place was filled by a new generation al- 

 together. So soon, therefore, as the Ilaff was 

 clear of ice, and the steamers again began to ply 

 daily upon the route between Elbing and Konigs- 

 berg, the sailors were on the alert again to witness 

 the old scene of uproar by the water side. But 

 they were disappointed. Though there was the 

 pasture grounds well stocked with new recruits 

 for the market, who had come from distant island 

 farms or out of stalls within the town, though 

 scarcely one of them — if anyone — had ever seen 

 the apparition of a steamboat, not a cow flinched. 

 The members of the whole herd went on grazing 

 or stared imperturbably at the phenomenon. It 

 was a new thing no doubt for them to see — but 

 they had already been told of it. Every spring 

 the first passing of the steamer is in this way re- 

 garded by a fresh generation on the common with 

 complete indifference. The experience acquired 

 by its forefathers ten or twelve years ago seems to 

 be now added to the knowledge of every calf, born 

 in any corner of our province. And yet, in what 

 way have these calves been educated ' or, if this 

 fact has been taught to them at all, what else 

 may they not know? — Dickens' Household Words. 



COMMUNICATION OF IDEAS AMONG 

 . CATTLE. 



There is a large shallow inlet on the Prussian 

 shore known as the Frische Ilaff, crossed for the 

 first time by steamers ten or twelve years ago. 

 Upon their way the vessels paddle by a common 

 near the Elbing river, upon which the towns-peo- 

 ple turn cattle out to graze. AYhen the first steam- 

 ers passed this common they caused every flank 

 of beef to quake ; such fiends in dragon shape had 

 never appeared before to try the nerves of any 

 cow, or to excite wrath in the bully busom of the 

 experienced among the warriors of the herd. With 

 tails erect, tlierefore, and heads bent down, the 

 whole colony upon the common charged over 

 dykes and ditches inland, roaring horribly. Every 

 appearance of the steamer, to the great joy of the 

 crew, caused a panic and a scattering of oxen , un- 

 til after a few days, the animals had become hard- 

 ened to the sight, and took it as a thing of course, 

 and meant no harm to them. Now, all the horned 

 beasts on the common during that first year were 

 in the usual way placed there to be ilitted. In the 



For the New England Farmer. 

 MANURE FOR LAYING DOWN GRASS 

 LANDS. 



Dkar Sir : — I have several acres of land which 

 I wish to bring into grass for anotler year, by 

 turning over, top-dressing and seeding the pres- 

 ent season. The soil is a sandy loam, not poor at 

 all, but in common parlance good, though consid- 

 erably run out. 



What article will be the most profitable for me 

 to use, considering expense, time, labor and 

 amount of crop ? Please answer, (a.) 



I have seen oyster shell lime advertised as an ar- 

 ticle desirable to use for such purposes. Please 

 inform me how much should be used to the acre ? 

 and what kind of soil it best suits? {b.) 



Muriate of lime, I also notice. What is the 

 expense per hundred lbs? and how much per acre ? 

 (c.) 



How is guano for similar purposes . What quan- 

 tity and expense to the acre ? 



Any information on these subjects will be thank- 

 fully received by your friend and subscriber. 



L. W. Daggett. 



Attleboro' Falls, July 4, 1853. 



Remarks. — (a.) If near your barn, good compost- 

 ed barn cellar manure. 



Ifnot near the barn, Peruvian guano, 300 pounds 

 to the acre, worked in two or three inches with 

 the cultivator after plowing and before sowing 

 the seed. 



{h.) The oyster shell lime would scarcely be mis- 

 applied on any of our lands that have been frequent- 

 ly cropt. The quantity of pure lime contained in 

 the crops produced upon one acre, according to 

 Prof. Johnston, during a four years' rotation, 

 amounts, on an average, to 242 pounds, which are 

 equal to about 430 pounds of carbonate of lime, 

 in the state of marl, shell, sand or limestone gray- 



