180 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[ December, 



the hill as the large will with four feet. In 

 either case two good stalks to the hill will ou 

 an average, make a larger yield than more, 

 although in rich soil and a verj' favorable 

 season, three stalks may sometimes yield more 

 than two ; but in a dry one the yield will be 

 less. With the best of seed three grains 

 should alwftys be planted, as a very large pro- 

 portion of the hills will have one or more 

 inferior stalks, or partial failures ; by this 

 method the set will be regular and uniform. 

 With all plants or trees, where strong and 

 weak plants grow together, the former will 

 gain continually on the latter, which prevents 

 a uniform cro})^ and without uniform growth 

 it is impossible to obtain the largest yield. 

 Cultivation should be commenced as soon as 

 the corn is all up nicely and be continued fre- 

 quently until it is in tassel ; at first deep and 

 thorough, but shallow toward the close. 

 Level culture is best, for checkered at least. 

 In drill culture there need not be quite the 

 same number of square feet to the stalk, as 

 each plant stands isolated, while in the hill 

 they will be somewhat crowded as they attain 

 size, but this can be remedied to some extent 

 by dropping the seeds not too close together. 

 By whatsoever system corn is grown it should 

 be kept strictly clear of weeds. The custom 

 of planting purajikins or sowing turnips among 

 corn must necessarily reduce the latter to 

 some extent. The suckers should, under all 

 circumstances, be taken off before they appro- 

 priate too much substance which the main 

 stalk should receive, but under no circum- 

 stances allow suckers to tassel, for, whatever 

 pains may be taken to bring or keep tlie corn 

 at its greatest perfection by selection of seed, 

 the pollen from tlie sucker may undo what has 

 been gained by years of careful selection. 



I would as soon think of breeding from a 

 scrub male to a thoroughbred animal, as to 

 have pollen from suckers cast upon an excel- 

 lent variety of corn. It is also well known 

 that the pollen from a neighboring field is 

 ofttimes carried to an almost incredible dis- 

 tance, and consequently may cause mcire mix- 

 ture than is desirable. 



States, and has been grown in South Carolina 

 for many years. But your correspondent's 

 article, of "Random Thoughts," might lead 

 some people to infer or suppose this plant can 

 be cultivated anywhere, and anj' one who will 

 test it, will surely have " his labor for his 

 pains" — in Lancaster county, or Pennsylva- 

 nia.— J. B. G. 



LETTER FROM NORTH CAROLINA. 



Salisbury, N. C, Nov. 25, 1878. 

 Editor Lancaster Fanner: Cotton is coming 

 into this market freely and selling for about 

 8i cents per pound by the bale. The lint is 

 better than I liave ever seen it grown in this 

 and adjoining cminties since here, over thirty 

 years. The crop is a good one, both in quality 

 and quantity. Tobacco in this and surround- 

 ing counties is good in quality but rather sliort 

 in quantity. Never knew Irisli and sweet 

 potatoes more plentiful, both good in quality ; 

 have bartered for both kinds at 2.'> cents per 

 bushel, each large size and good flavor. The 

 apple and peach crop has been short in this 

 section and over this State, so far as I can 

 learn. Upon the whole, pretty fair crops of 

 all kinds of grain, vegetables, fruit, cotton 

 and tobacco, and other crops grown in this 

 section of the country. Success to The 

 Farmer and all connected with it. Hope to 

 live and write you again in 1879, and long 

 years thereafter, if you wish it. Let us hear 

 froni you ; always ]ileased to hear from yoii 

 and your great county and its people. — Yoxirs 

 truly, M. B. 



^ 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 

 RANDOM THOUGHTS. 

 Mr. Editor: — Your correspondent in Octo- 

 ber number of The Farmer, page 152, recom- 

 mends tea growing as among the products that 

 could probably be raised with jirolit in the 

 United States, .but on account of wages being 

 so much higher, a re.sort to improved machin- 

 ery would be necessary to prepare it. He "has 

 no doubt the plants could be raised as cheaply 

 as is done by hand in China." His remarks 

 would appear to recommend the growing of 

 tea anywhere in the United States. Does he 

 not know that the Chinese tea plant, Thea 

 riridis, is a tender plant, and cannot live in 

 the open ground during our cold winters. It 

 may be grown in some parts of the Southern 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 

 VIRGINIA SNAKEROOT. 

 The small, fibrous-rooted Snakeroot is well 

 known for its pleasant aromatic and tonic 

 properties which it imparts to old rye, and in 

 early days was famous as a stimulant and 

 grateful tonic bitters. The botanical or 

 scientific name of this plant is Aristolochia 

 serpentatia. Names are or ought to be signifi- 

 cant. Let us inquire why it is called snake- 

 root : Cornutus, at tlie end of bis book on the 

 plants of Canada, published at Paris in 1G35, 

 tells us, "that a root had been sent him from 

 '■ Notha Anf/lia,'' which was called Serpentaria, 

 and in the vernacular tongue Snagroel. This 

 root was a very sure safeguard against the 

 bite of a huge serpent in that country, which 

 proved inevitably fatal within twelve hours, 

 unless a good portion of the antidote was 

 swallowed in season, which being done, no 

 one was ever known to be in danger of his 

 life from this cause." 



These snake stories and snakeroots are 

 numerous ; except a few venomous species the 

 majority of snakes are harmless in their bite, 

 and all the fuss to cure such bites arises from 

 ignorance. But why is this genus of plants 

 called Aristolochia f The Greek, aristos, 

 means "feesf," and locheia, "parturition;" 

 but the generic name may more sjiecially re- 

 late to some other species. This plant has a 

 singular fiower near the ground and usually 

 covered among the dead leaves. They have a 

 stiff leathery texture of one piece (monopeta- 

 lous tubular corolla), a contorted tube bent in 

 the form of a letter S, swelling at its two ex- 

 tremities, the throat surrounded by an eleva- 

 ted edge or brim, and its border expanded 

 into a" broad, irregular margin, forming an 

 upper and under lip, which are closed in a 

 triangular manner in the bud ; this odd flower 

 is of a dull, brownish purple color, not >much 

 for beauty. The plant is of humble growth, 

 not over a foot high, simple, slightly branched, 

 jointed, flexuous, and often of a reddish tinge. 

 The leaves are alternate, on short petioles, 

 oblong, entire, acuminate, heart-shaped at 

 base, and three-nerved. The root is extremely 



fibrous, and sends up a number of stems ; the 

 root has a penetrating rather agreeable, resin- 

 ous smell, and a pungent, bitter taste, some- 

 what approaching that of hemlock spruce 

 [Pinus canadensis.) A so-called "Indian 

 herb doctor " told me to notice the direction 

 the terminal leaf pointed of the one I was 

 taking up, as I would find the next plant to 

 which it pointed. When plants were few and 

 far between, I found the advice of no avail. 

 True, a day's journey in that direction might 

 reveal another i)lant, while you miss one three 

 yards oft' in another direction. Such was my 

 experience — not favorable on that "pbiut. " I 

 believe in some very queer things in nature 

 that I cannot understand, because our know- 

 ledge is limited as to hidden caus'iS that 

 underlie tlie physical appearance of things. 

 We need not, however, ^'■belie" ourselves in 

 that which affords no kind of evidence. 

 Medicinally considered, Serpentaria is atonic, 

 diaphoretic, and in certain cases an anti- 

 spasmodic and anodyne. It has been exten- 

 sively u.sed, and received the highest com- 

 mendations of a host of medical writers when 

 judiciously employed. While in the early 

 stages of fever, or when attended with an 

 active pulse and inflammatory diathesis, it is 

 contra indicated. Yet in advanced stages of 

 fever and those attended with typlioidal symp- 

 toms, this medicine is resorted to with great 

 advantage both alone and in combination 

 with other tonics and stimulants. It is pecu- 

 liarly useful in supporting the strength, and 

 in allaying the irregular actions which attend 

 great febrile debility, such as are known to 

 the faculty as subsultus tendinum., delirium, 

 watchfulness, &c. Its bitter ingredients, and 

 the camphor which it contains, no doubt con- 

 tribute to these effects. It is very advan- 

 tageously given in combination with bark, or 

 with wine and opium. 



Dr. Chapman, in his Therapeutics, con- 

 siders the serpentaria as partaking the mixed 

 qualities of a stimulant and tonic, and acting 

 also as a diaphoretic and diuretic. I cannot 

 follow Sydenham, Dr. Lewis and other old 

 school physicians and country practitioners of 

 the regulars. I will only add Dr. Chapman's 

 concluding remarks on this article ; he says, 

 "that it is admirably suited to check vomit- 

 ings, and to tranquillize the stomach, more 

 particularly in bilious cases. It is given for 

 this puriiose in decoction, in the small dose of 

 half an ounce or less at a time, and frequently 

 repeated." 



Infusion is a common form by steeping half 

 an ounce in a pint of boiling water for two 

 hours in a covered vessel. An ounce taken 

 every three or four hours ; the powder, dose 

 10 to 30 grains. A tincture of the root is 

 made by digesting an ounce of the root in a 

 pint of jiroof spirits. It is also one of the 

 ingredients in the compound tincture of bark, 

 commonly called Huxhani's. The German 

 name is Schlangcn osterluzey. The French 

 name comes near the English, Serpentaire de 

 Virginie. Dr. Gray gives but one species. A 

 narrow-leaved variety is A. sogittata, of our 

 Lancaster botanist, "Rev. Mr. Muhlenberg, 

 and the A. hirsuta, of Nuttall. Either Dr. 

 Gray reverses the names or Dr. Griffith, who 

 gives five species, viz : 2. A. hirsuta, Muhlen- 

 berg ; 3. A. hastata, Nuttall ; adding tliis is 

 the 4. A. sagittata of Muhlenberg; A. reti- 

 culata, Nuttall ; 5. A. tomentosa, Sims. Al- 

 thonsih modifications do exist, we can con- 

 sider A. .seriientariaNo. 1. It is found widely 

 dispersed, growing in sliady woods, especially 

 on hillsides. It is less common in alluvial and 

 calcareous soils. It flowers in May and June. 

 Raflnesque, that singular genius and natural- j 

 ist, says it flowers but once, or seldom. It I 

 does flower regularly every year when fully I 

 matured ; thisWtain age is set down at three! 

 years. I have frequently found it with the] 

 flower, and a large, bulky cluster of fibers; 

 again, without flower, and the plant not so j 

 vigorous ; the roots less, it may possibly notj 

 get flowers till its third year. | 



Formerly this root was diligently sought! 

 after and shipped oft" in quantity to meet thej 

 demand. It has become rather scarce in alii 



