brook ivintling its waj llirough a sandy desert ? You will per-- 

 haps answer, the malediction of the Most High rests upon it. 

 True, but the Almighty effects his purposes through the agency 

 of natural causes. It was overrun by victorious armies, and 

 Yegetation was destro}'ed ; exposed to the direct rays of the sun, 

 the soi'. itself disappeared, the springs were dried up, and fer- 

 tilizing showers became less and less frequent. The same pro» 

 cess is now going on in our naked pastures ; many of which, 

 that a ^ew years since were well clothed with grass, now pro- 

 duce little or nothing but moss. 



Improving the breeds and condition of Live Stock must also 

 increase the profits of Agriculture. One good cow full fed is 

 worth more for the dairy than four ordinary half-starved ones.* 

 Would it not therefore be for the interest of every farmer to 

 keep no more neat cattle than can be well pastured or soiled in the 

 summer, and fed on English hay, corn todder, potatoes, turnips, 

 carrots, beets, Sic. in the winter, throwing the coarser kinds of 

 hay and straw under them to furnish a warm bed, and to be con- 

 verted into manure at the same time? By so doing, and by cross- 

 ing inferior breeds, and raising the best calves, it is in the power 

 of almost every farnier in the course of a few years, without 

 involving himself in debt, greatly to improve his stock, and in- 

 crease the income of his dairy. I know that this high feeding 

 of milch cows is not generally believed to be profitable, notwith- 

 standing Mr. Oakes and others have proved so satisfactorily that 

 one bushel of Indian corn per week will cause a good cow to 

 yield from seven to ten additional pounds of butter. Allowing 

 the corn to be worth 62J- cents, the extra butter, at 12^ cents 

 per pound, would pay all the additional labour, and afford a good 

 profit (on the corn) besides. But this is not all : the cow would 

 give milk nearly the whole year, be made good beef at the same 

 time, and her calves would be much more valuable. Indian 

 corn, however, is probably not the cheapest article to feed cattle 



* If cows aro ever fillowerl to fall very low during the winter, in vnin 

 shall you liope to obtain an ahundcint su|)ply of niilk by bringitis; them intoi 

 hii^h condition in the summer ; for if a cow be lean hi the time of calving, 

 no mun i<;e:ne.it afterivuriis will ever bring her to yield for that season any- 

 thing like the quantily of milk that she would have done, had she been all 

 the winter in a hi^ ccritUtion* ^^ndtrsqn. 



