1884. J 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



37 



have one-year-old seed. Radisli and lettuce 

 seed is reckoned to be good for three years, 

 tomato for seven years, turnip for four years, 

 cabbage the same, and beet seven years. 

 Don't throw away good seed. 



CONTRIBUTIONS. 



For thk Lancasthr Karmek. 



Dear Sir : Is there not some way of re- 

 lieving us of the many pests of new or strange 

 insects, which last season destroyed all the 

 leaves on our currant bushes, grapevines, and 

 cut off the ears of wheat. The currant 

 worms came in countless numbers, and ap- 

 parently full grown, and at once commenced 

 eating the leaves, and did not depart until 

 not a single leaf was left on currant or 

 gooseberry bushes. The worms on the grape 

 leaves, I had frequently seen on a few leaves, 

 which I generally put under foot. These 

 worms, bred from eggs laid on the underside 

 of leaves, and kept on breeding all the time 

 till frost ended their work. They were so 

 numerous as to eat oil' all the leaves on some 

 large vines, while on other vines most of the 

 leaves were eaten, and had not the frost put 

 an end to them, would have taken every leaf, 

 as there were still plenty of young ones, and 

 even eggs to batch. 



The worms that cut off the ears of wheat, I 

 believe were also never known before last 

 summer. A person who watched their oper- 

 ations, said they crawled up one stem, bit 

 off the ear, then crawled down and up an- 

 other stem, and operated in that way, ap- 

 parently not eating anything, but appeared to 

 be solely bent on mischief. Those working 

 in the harvest fields said the ground was 

 lying full of cut-off heads of wheat. 



We have it recorded in holy writ — that 

 Noah, after taking his sons and sons' wives 

 into the Ark, that he then took of the beasts 

 of the forests, and the birds of the air, into 

 the Ark in pairs to replenish the earth after 

 the waters subsided, where the lion and the 

 lamb laid down in peace and harmony ; did 

 he also take these insects into the ArkV And 

 if so, where did they hibernate these thou- 

 sands of years, to come on us all at once. Or, 

 are they an evolution of some still more in- 

 ferior insects, as C. Darwin, and Hie evolu- 

 tionists of England says: Man is a descendant 

 of the monkey. Were monkeys on earth 

 prior to Adam V Our animals are all, we 

 might say of a higher or improved order to 

 what they were in their original state. Our 

 luscious apples of many varieties all origi- 

 nated, it is said, from the wild and austere 

 crab. Our luscious pears from the Noah 

 pear, etc.; and what an immense variety of 

 beautiful double flowers, which in tlieir 

 natural or wild state were all single. Thus 

 it appears as if there was a gradual evolution 

 to a higher type, both of animals and vegeta- 

 bles, giving some colors to the idea of evolu- 

 tion. 



Then again we might ask, are these insects 

 anew and recent creation ? And again, where 

 did they come from ; did they fall from the 

 clouds like little toads after a thunder showerV 

 Curculios last season found no plums, but 

 these insects are not choicy. If there are any 

 black knots on plum trees it will suit them 



s well as the fruit ; indeed, I believe they 



would deposit their eggs in rotten wood with 

 a fair prospect of the brood coming to maturi- 

 ty. Of course we know these questions cim 

 not be answered, but they may create thought, 

 and thought is likely to lead to investigation ; 

 and when we think about matters and things 

 we are very likely to receive and retain new 

 idca.s, and thus making discoveries become 

 wiser if not better men. 



A writer, I believe in the Rural New 

 Yorker, states that he last year used a prepa- 

 ration of asafoetida and sulphur in water, 

 with which he sprayed or syringed some of 

 his plum trees; the result was that those trees 

 bore heavy crops of |)lums, while those trees 

 not so sprinkled bore no fruit,' but he does 

 not give the amount of the articles, so we 

 will have to try it in different proportions, to 

 apply it after a rain, &c. 



Another writer .says : To drive away the 

 currant worms take a gill of kerosene and a 

 gill of sour milk, churn it with an egg-beater 

 into a homogenous mass ; then a spoonfull to 

 a pail of water, sprinkled over or syringed on 

 the currant bushes, will either kill or drive 

 away the currant worms. If so it will no 

 doubt also disturb the grape worms, so we 

 must be " wide awake " if we want any cur- 

 rants, gooseberries and grapes. 



Should these pests continue, and even in- 

 crease, they will certainly kill off our currant 

 bushes and grapevines. It is said the leaves 

 of plants are its lungs, so if the lungs are de- 

 stroyed the plants cannot breathe, and conse- 

 quently must die. We should regret the loss 

 of currants and grapes, as we are still fond of 

 currant pies and a little wine occasionally for 

 good health. But should the wheat insect in- 

 crease and continue its depredations in our 

 wheat fields that would be even the worst of 

 all. I suppose we could manage to exist with- 

 out currants and grapes, but without bread it 

 would not be very pleasant to sit down to the 

 table. May these fears or croakings be only 

 imaginary is the hope of your correspondent. 

 J. B. G. 



For The Lancaster Farmer. 



Brookville, O., March 10, 1S84. 



Editor Lancaster Farmer,— StV : The 

 most noteworthy circumstances in the direc- 

 tion iif scientific education of the farmers, of 

 this State, is the organization of Farmers In- 

 stitutes, in each county in the state, by the 

 State Board of Agriculture. Some of the 

 most scientific agriculturists of the state 

 lectured at these institutes. At Dayton, the 

 secretary of the board lectured on the civiliz- 

 ing effect of occujiations — he contended that, 

 militants and butchers, were much less hu- 

 manized than agricultuiists and horticultur- 

 alists, of course there is a good deal in that. 



The greatest interest was manifested in the 

 lectures on entomology, especially that which 

 related to noxious insects. These lectures 

 were delivered in such a way, that every one 

 who heard them, was interested in them; the 

 illustrations were highly magnified. The 

 evolutions from the \a.vyfa to the perfect in- 

 sect, were ilfcely illustrated. Farmers are 

 beginning to understand, that to be success- 

 ful in destroying insects, they must first learn 

 the natural history of them. They have finer 

 opportunities to study this science, than any- 

 one else, to them it ought to be a pleasure as 



well as it is a profit. As the study of the 

 natural history of insects requires a great 

 deal of patience and perseverance, this will 

 habituate them to apply themselves persist- 

 ently to the study of other philosophical 

 phenomena. 



At these institutes, lectures are delivered 

 on other subjefits, that pertains to the matter 

 in hand. 



February was unusually blizzardy ; on two 

 different days during this month the mercury 

 was down to zero ; it was a good thing for 

 farmers that the ground was covered with 

 snow during that time. We had another 

 splendid display of the "red light." The 

 hydrographical condition of the atmosphere 

 is now and has been almost to the point of 

 saturation during the existence of these 

 lights. If we understood the correlations and 

 conservations of forces we would understand 

 this and many other natural phenomena much 

 better than we do. Farmers have always 

 been much interested in the phenomena of the 

 heavens. The "signs" of the moon used to 

 be a great thing among farmers.— C. Gish. 



ESSAYS. 



THE CULTURE, IVTANUFACTURE, 



TRADE AND COIWSUMPTION 



OF TOBACCO.* 



Tobacco first became known in Europe 

 by its discovery in America, and it is at 

 present grown in every part of the world, 

 except in the frigid regions, and consumed by 

 every civilized and barbarous nation on the 

 globe. It is the popular plant of the world. 



Humboldt in his personal narrative states 

 that the natives on the Orinoco have culti- 

 vated it from time immemorial ; and the Hin- 

 doos, Persians and Chinese have used tobacco 

 from an era so remote as to have no fixed 

 date. It is certain, however, that it was not 

 introduced into Europe until the latter part 

 of the fifteenth century, and that smoking 

 was not general until after the discovery of 

 America. 



The virtues ascribed to it at that time were 

 most ridiculous. It was by some considered 

 a panacea for all ills. 



" Sleep it procures, our anxious sorrows lays, 

 And witli new flesh the nulled bone arrays, 

 No herb hatli greater power to rectify, 

 All the disorders in the heart that lie, 

 Or in the lungs, herb of immortal fame !" 



But, on the other hand, its introduction 

 was violently denounced from the throne, the 

 pulpit and the rostrum as a hellish, devilish 

 and damned stuff, ruinous to body and soul. 

 But these fulminations against it availed 

 nothing, as the people were fascinated with 

 it, and would smoke, chew and snuff it. At 

 last the governments of the world in their 

 wisdom abandoned persecution and adopted 

 systems of revenue, and now derive more 

 substantial aid in their treasuries than from 

 any other source, with perhaps a few ex- 

 ceptions. 



The cultivation of tobacco is an important 

 branch of agricultural industry in the United 

 States, the West India Island.s, Europe, and 

 in many other parts of the globe. The num- 

 ber of persons engaged in the preparation and 



•Read before the Lancaster County Agricultural and 

 Horticultural Society, February 3, 1884, by C. L. Hud- 

 secker, Esq. 



