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160 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



July 



I 



often full of matter and living things, and who shall 

 say that growing wheat can not absorb through its 

 poros, or vessels, matter so minute that the unaided 

 liurnan eye can not detect it. Here, then, we have 

 various ways to account for the rapid and extensive 

 spread of smut as a fungun ; and as one more illus- 

 tration of its minute character, and power of finding 

 its way into invisible pores or channels, the following 

 fact is given : — Wasps have often been seen in warm 

 climates, flying about with plants projecting from 

 souie part of the surface of their bodies. Upon ex- 

 amination, these plants are fungi, which, <\hieh 

 while floating in the air, have come in contact with 

 the wasps, have entered the pores at tlieir sides, and 

 feeding on their moisture, develop a luxuriant vege- 

 tation. In time, this fungous growth spreads through 

 the body, and destroys the life of the insect. Other 

 and more curious instances might be presented : but 

 if my brother farmers feel any interest in searching 

 out the causes of mischief which assail them, and as 

 among the number, smut, let me recommend the 

 perusal of Carpenter's Physiology of Vegetables, and 

 also Rogct's Animal and Vegetable Physiology. 

 Old Fakmer. — Seneca County. 



Messrs. Editors : — I am aware that the press, if not 

 the public, have become tired of the chess contro- 

 versy ; still, i feel as if, under existing circumstances, 

 I had a claim for this once to be heard. Nine years 

 since, when the subject gf the transmutation of wheat 

 to chess was under discussion in the Genesee Farmer, 

 Mr. C, then editor, (now deceased,) called for facts 

 — "Give us facts," he said; "wo want facts." I 

 tlion prepared the following statement, and handed it 

 to him ; but the facts were not such as suited his 

 theory, and they were not permitted to bo published. 

 However t<rue the theory may be, that "lilce produces 

 like," — and 1 assent to it fully — still, to the common 

 mind, one fact is worth a thousand theories. 



On a farm formerly belonging to the writer of this 

 article, a wood lot of several acres was hastily cleared 

 up by contract. It was heavily timbered, having 

 many hemlocks of prodigious size. It was rolling 

 land, with knolls and hollows ; and where trees had 

 been overturned by tlie wind, there were basins, in 

 wliich the water stood much of the time, except in 

 ttie dry portion of the year. A neighbor obtained 

 permission to sow one acre in the corner of the field, 

 in order to raise a particular kind of seed wheat. 

 The seed sown was obtained on an adjoining farm, 

 by a daughter, who picked up single heads and rubbed 

 them out by hand in tlie evening, until she had 

 obtained a bushel. Of course it was absolutely pure 

 and clean. At harvest time, the wheat on the high 

 and dry portions of the ground was pure and excel- 

 lent. In the hollows and basins, where the water 

 accumulated and stood much of the year, little or no 

 wheat appeared, but pure and abundant chess. Now, 

 it is useless to say that chess was sown: for not a 

 kernel was sown; — or that chess had lain dormant 

 in the ground for years ; for it had never before 

 been tilled since the world was made ; — or that birds 

 of the air had dro]>ped the seed ; for if so, why did 

 they deposit it in the w-et places, and not on the dry 

 ground ? The inference is irresistable, that chess is 

 deteriorated wheat — that it can produce its like, but 

 can not regain the character from which it has fallen. 

 It has not. lost its vitality, or power of re-production ; 



but it has lost some distinctive characteristic of the 

 pure wheat, some portion of the vital principle that 

 is necessary to re-produce the perfect grain. 



But I have another fact. My men, in passing 

 through a barley stubble with the plow a few times, 

 carelessly turned a few furrows in spots, for a short 

 distance. Presently some rank and luxurious tufts 

 or bunches of barley sprung up. On examination, I 

 found that clusters of barley heads had been collected 

 together under the furrow, probably by the mice or 

 small squirrel. The seed had vegetated, tlie small 

 roots were abundant, the i]arley heads were perfect, 

 and the green tufts sprung up from the heads. They 

 were protected and watched by me, solely with the 

 view of ascertaining whether barley sown in the fall 

 would live through the winter, and tlius become a 

 winter grain. It did live, and flourished equal to 

 wheat ; but at harvest time it was all chess ! 



These are facts, which I submit to the advocate of 

 first principles and fundamental laws, to be reconciled 

 as best they may be. To the practical farmer they 

 are satisfactory proof that wheat can degenerate into 

 chess. The influence of this opinion, in its practical 

 results, will be to induce farmers to sow pure wheat 

 on dry and good ground, in the expectation of pure 

 wheat in return, if the season and soil are favorable ; 

 and to avoid sowing chess, in the certainty, if they 

 do sow it, of receiving chess in return, be the soil or 

 the season what they may. Yours, &.C., E. 



Our readers need not fear that we are about to 

 give them a new edition of the Chess question. The 

 above article was written by an old Onondaga county 

 farmer, now too far advanced in years to hold the 

 plow, but who feels a lively interest in all tliat per- 

 tains to the improvement of the agriculture of the 

 country. Its publication will gn'atify our aged friend, 

 and we doubt not. interest our readers. — Eds. 



ELDER. — GAPES. 



Eds. Faumek : — I would respectfully rPi|iie.-.-t cither of 

 you, or some of your rorrcsponilents, lo advise me o/ the 

 most speedy and elTeclual way lo extirpate l)ie common 

 dwarf older. I have tried frequent cutlinp :ind cruhbing, 

 (though perhaps not frequent enough.) with onfy partial 

 suoeesa. I would also be very glad and thankful lo receive, 

 through the medium of the Farmer, infornintion how to pre- 

 vent the ^a;!M in chickens, with which ahove one-half of 

 mine die. — Isaac Child. — Iiidiwi Spring, Pa., Jiiue, 1850. 



The destruction of elder we prefer, for the present 

 at least, to leave with our correspondents ; and we 

 hope some of them will give us the benefit of their 

 experience in season for our next issue. 



In searching for a preventive of any disease, the 

 first and most important point is, to ascertain the 

 cause. This accomplished, the preventive naturally- 

 and easily follows. The gapes in eliickens is caused 

 by a want of attention to cleanliiies.'i and comfort 

 — wot or ill-ventilated fowl-housrs, ill feeding, bad 

 water, or confinement to a small sj'ot of ground 

 without access to gravel and fresh earth. Tlie pre- 

 ventive would be, of course, the reverse of this 

 treatment. It should be remembered that this dis- 

 ea.so is epidemic, and as soon as one is afli'Cted, it 

 should be separated from the flock. In its first stages 

 it may bo cured by a little fresh butte}* and Cayenne 

 pepper, which the subject should be compelled to swal- 

 low. If the disease is far advanced, a good plan is to 

 force a feather saturated with turpentine, down its 

 throat, turning it round while there. This repeated 

 once or twice, if necessary, will generally ellect a cure. 





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