38 



THE GENESEE FARMER 



In tlie extract from page :?31, you say that "after the Society is 

 fomicTl, it, fho Society, will dctt-nnine what chall be done, aiiri 

 sUall lecfivo an account of tli« same, for their own personal bcne- 

 Pt." 1 would like to a-sk, throiiirli what minner shall the Society 

 determine wh:d is to be done r the members thereof being in any 

 filaoe lM>t tosetiiev. And again, in what way shall th«y receive the 

 account of what has been done ? The above is all I have to a.-slc 

 of that kind. 



I would also like to know, if any one would t;ike ti;ue and go 

 throujrh his neighhorhood to solicit members to the Society, and 

 forwaixi their names with the amount, you would allow a per cent- 

 age, and how much ,' I am willing to pend my name (and I wish 

 you to consider me one), and do «-liat I can at home for the good 

 of the CA'i«c ; h'xt there are many who would be of the numlier if 

 thev were called upon pei'sonally, who otherwise would not — who 

 would not know that there was a Society of the kind forming. 



I had written a letter for you, some days before your No\eu\ber 

 Fanner wa.s published, upon the wants of the farmer, but had not 

 niAtled it; and when I read your call, it seemed as if you were 

 *'jout to accomplish these wants in another way. If you wish it. 

 [ will send you the letter. G. R. Njiin.N'GBR. — i^ifwJcry, Yvrk 

 C«tintg, Pa, 



We owe our correspondent an apology for not answering 

 by a private letter, as requested ; but we liave so many let- 

 ters to write, beside writing for the press, that some of our 

 esteemed friends are occasionally neglected. Many are fa- 

 vorably disposed toward a Society for the Promotion of 

 Agricultural Science, and naturally desire more information 

 OQ the subject. To aU such we beg to say, that the county 

 in which the Fanner is published conta'ns nearly ninety 

 thousand inhabitants, and within two hours ride by railway 

 from Rochester there are five hundred thousand people. 

 It was mainly to the intelligent citizens of Western New 

 York that our remarks were directed to organize a Society. 

 Once organized, persons in all the States might become 

 members, and receive copies of the Transactions or Jour- 

 nal, containing an account of its scientific researches and 

 practical experiments on the farm. To such a Society 

 many gentlemen of fortune would make liberal donations. 

 Mr. Appleton, of Boston, gave a thousand dollars to the 

 United States Agricultural Society ; but not a dollar of the 

 money has gone for experimental purposes of any kind. 

 Some how, all American Agricultural Societies seem re- 

 Eolved that we shall be forever dependent on Europe for 

 the little agricultural science that we may possess. We 

 have not one experimental farm in our thirty-one States to 

 develop new truths in any branch of husbandry, or any de- 

 partment of agriculture. Indeed, new truths are no where 

 in this country sought after, and, of course, they are no 

 where found. Hence the necessity of at least one Society 

 in this nation of farmers whose object is not to show bulls, 

 rams and boars, but to increase our present knowledge of 

 the true principles of our noble profession. The great de- 

 fect in the Constitution of the National Society is the charge 

 of $2 a year for membership. This we opposed, but was 

 over-ruled by men who had had much less experience in 

 raising funds from the masses for the promotion of agricul- 

 ture than we have had. At a dollar a year, and giving 

 every member the full worth of Iiis money, as we do in the 

 Genesee Farmer (using donations for trying experiments in 

 the laboratory, field, and the feeding of stock), no great dif- 

 ficulty would be experienced in raising all needful funds. 

 A Society formed of men of known high character, so far 

 at least as its officers are concerned, is needed as a starting 

 point. Then, as our correspondent suggests, a fair commis- 

 sion for getting subscribers or members, as in selling any 

 book or periodical, could be allowed agents. A dollar's 

 worth of new facts in rural affairs would be a great rarity 



in this country. The writer, who devotes his wliole life to 

 the study of every fact developed by the rural literature 

 and science of the civilized world, may be permitted to ox- 

 press an opinion on the yearly contributions of the United 

 States of facts not before known. Quacks manufacture 

 any quantity of what purport to be new truths, from year 

 to year, but none of them stand the test of long experience, 

 because they are either guesses or falsehoods. 



I SHori.n feel much obliged for a little information respecting 

 feed mills for grinding corn, barky, oats, &c., for .stock, to be worked 

 by horse-power. Can you recommend one that would do the work 

 well, be durable, and come at such a price that sm:iJl farmers could 

 allord to liave it who feed fiom one to two hundred bushels of 

 grain per year ? I think if fai-mers generally would turn their at- 

 tention more to the feeding of stock and grinding the feed, it w ould 

 be much to their advantage, by increiusing the value and quantity 

 of manure made, and consequently the yield of their crops. A 

 SuuscKuiEK. — Venice, Cayuga County, N. Y. 



The best mill known in this region, or at the Patent Of- 

 fice, for grinding stock feed, is " Ross' Patent Conical Mill,'* 

 made of bm-r stones, and manufactured in this city (Roches- 

 ter). It is sold by J. Rapalje & Co. for $100. This mill 

 grinds rapidly, and makes good flour, as well as corn meal. 

 One will answer for a small neighborhood ; and two or 

 more farmers might advantageously unite in the purchase 

 of one and a good horse-power to drive it. We saw it ope- 

 rate most satisfactorily at the Metropolitan Mechanics' In- 

 stitute, at Washington, where it took, we believe, the liighest 

 premium. There is in use a cast-iron mill, sold by Rapalje 

 & Co. and others at $30, which will grind some tiiree or 

 four bushels an hour, if driven by horse-power. 



WirEAT Drills. — PIea.se insert in the Farmer the price of yoiu- 

 best wheat drills, and where for .sale. lIooDY Chase. — Williains- 

 Jield, Aslilabala Cuunly, Ohio. 



We have hundreds of inqniries like the above, which we 

 do our best to ans ver s.'itisfactorily ; but the manufacturers 

 ought to advertise their wares in the Fanner. Rapalje Si 

 Co. sell " Ripton's Grain Drill " at from $60 to $80. This 

 ia a good machine, and plants from seven to nine rows of 

 wheat as it passes ever the ground. 



HORTICULTURAL. 

 (J. K., of Cavan, C. W.) The Sage grape is offered for 

 sale by Philemon Stewart, New Lebanon, Shaker village, 

 New York, at $1 to $2 per plant. Do not know that it 

 proves as described in J. F. Allen's Treatise on the Grape. 

 ShurtleJJ"'s Seedling grape is not known here. 



NE\V BOOKS AND VAL.ENTINES BY BIAIIi. 



D. M. DF.WEY, Bookseller, Rochester, N. Y., 



WIT^L forward by mail to any p.art of the United States, any 

 New Books that m.ay be seen advertised for sale anywhere. 

 The new postage law allows Books to be sent at 1 cent per ounce; 

 Pamphlets, 1 cent per ounce. The postage on Books is from 10 to 

 25 cents ; on Pamphlets, 3 to 10 cents. Upon the receipt of the 

 price of the Book, and 12 cents postage, I will mail the work in 

 strong wrapper, so as to go safely. I keep all the new Agricultural 

 ^Yorks, Travels, Histories. Novels, &c. &c. 



Catalogues of Books will be sent to School Trustees and others 

 gratis. 



TWENTY AGENTS WANTED TO SELL BOOKS. 



to whom a large commission will be allowed. Particulars given bj 

 mail. 



THE VALENTINE CASKET FOR 1854, 



containing 12 Valentines, with Envelopes, and Valentime Writer, 

 that would cost at retaU $2, will be sent, postage paid, on the re- 

 ceipt of SI, to any address. They are packed in strong paper cases, 

 and may be ordered any time previous to St. Valentines Day, 14th 

 of Februarv. Address I>- M. DEWEY, 



January 1, 1854.— It Arcade Hall, Rochester. 



