364 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



June 6, 1826'. 



MERRIMACK AGRICULTDRAL SOCIETY. 



At a meeting of the Boaril of Directors of the 

 Merrimack Aijricultiirul Society, holden iit the 

 Phenix Hotel iu Concord, on Thursday, the '28th 

 of February. It^^i^, the following gentlemen were 

 appointed a Vie a in ^j- Committee on farms, namely: 

 U. H. Ayer, of llooksett, Chairman — S, A. Kim- 

 ball, of Concord — Wm. Little, of Hopkmton — A. 

 Burbank, of Boscawen — P. Eaten, of Henniker — 

 B. Pettpnj.rill, rid, of Salisbury, and T. D. Merril, 

 of Epsom. 



Voted, Th<it tlie nesl annual meeting; he iiokien at Loudon 

 Village, on Wednesday and Thursday, ihe LWi and 16lh days 

 of October next, al 10 .i'cl<u-k, A. M. 



Voted, Thai uo quantity of land iess than twenty live acres, 

 receive a premium as a farm. 



Volt:d. Thai the following premiums be offered to be award 

 Cd at the ue.xl annual meeting, viz ; 



O.V FARMS A.M) GARDEKS. 



On the best Farm $12 — next best, 10 — nest 

 best, 8 — ne.xt best, 6 — next best, 4. 



On the best Kitchen Garden, $6 — next best, 4. 



Voted, To appropriate the sum o{^t5 to be awarded on crops 

 and improvements in the .irt of husbandry, including reclaimed 

 meadows and the cullivaiion cf the mulberry Iree, which sum is 

 to be al the disposal of Ihe Viewing Commillce. 



Voted, Thai there be a ploughing match, and ibal a premium 

 of 54 be awarded on the yoke of caille that will plough 1-Sth of 

 an acre in the best manner — and a premium of ,^2 will be a- 

 uarded on the yoke of cattle that will plough one eighth of an 

 acre in the ne,xl best manner. 



ON STOCK. 



For the best pair of working Oxen, $4 — next 

 best, 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best pair three year old Steers, accus- 

 tomed to the yoke, $3 — the ne.xt best, 1 vol. N. E. 

 Farmer. 



For the best pair two year eld Steers, $2. 



For the four best Yearlings, 1 vol. N. E. Farm. 



For the best Bull, over one year old, owned and 

 kept within the county, $4 — next best, 3 — next 

 best, 3 — next best. 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best Bull Calf, 1 vol. N. E- Parmer — 

 next best, $1. 



For the best jVIilch Cow, $4 — next best, 3 — next 

 best, I vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best three years old Heifer, $3 — next 

 best, I vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best two years old Heifer, S2 — the next 

 best, 1. 



For the best Stud Horse, owned and kept with 

 in the county, $^ — next best, 3. 



For the best Mare and Colt, $4 — next best, 1 

 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best Saxon or Merino Buck, $4 — next 

 bet, 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the live best Saxon or Merino Ewes, J3 — 

 five next best, 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



For the best Boar, $3— the best Sow, 1 vol. N. 

 E. Farmer — the two best spring Pigs, $2 — next 

 best, 1. 



ON DOMESTIC AND HOUSEHOLD MANUFACTURES. 



On the best piece of Fulled Cloth, not loss than 

 10 yds. .$3 — next best, 1 vol. N. E. Farmer — next 

 best, 1. 



On the best piece of Cassimere net less than 10 

 yds. S3 — next best, 1 vol. N. E. Faniier. 



On the best piece of Carpet, not less th;tn 25 

 yds. and ^ wide, t-'.i — next best, 2. 



On Ihc be.st piece of Flannel, not less than 10 

 yds. 83 — next best, 2. 



On the best pair of Blankets, .$9 — next best, 1. 



On the host piei e of Linen Cloth, not less than 

 10 yds. .$2— next best, 1. 



On the best piece of Table Linen, not less than 

 10 yds. S3 — ne.xt best, 1. 



On the best Woollen Hose, (2 pair,] $1 — next 

 best, .50 cts. 



On the best Woollen Corerlet, $1 — next best, 

 50 cts. 



On the best Cotton and Woollen Coverlet, -SI — 

 next best, 50 cts. 



On the best Counterpane, $1 — next best, 50 cts. 



On the best grass or straw Bonnet, $2 — next 

 best, 1. 



On the best manufactured Boots and Shoes, (2 

 pairs each) 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



On the best maniifictured Leather, 3 sides each, 

 1 vol. N. E. Farmer— the best Calfskins SI. 



On the best specimen of dressing Fulled Cloth, 

 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



On the best Break-up plough, 1 vol. N. E. Far- 

 mer — the best Seeu-plough, $1 — on the best Ox- 

 yoke, bows and iron^;, 1 — on the best Ploughman, 

 1 — on the best Teamster, 1. 



On the best specimen of Blacksmith work, 1 vol. 

 N E. Farmer. 



On the best specimen of Cheese, not less than 

 46 Ihs. 1 vol N. E. Farmer — next best, $1. 



On the best specimen of Butter, not less than 

 20 lbs. I vol. N. E. Farmer— next best, $1. 



On the best Dissertation on making Compost 

 Manure, 1 vol. N. E. Farmer. 



Voted, Thai in all cases it is to be understood, that premiums 

 will not be awarded when the articles are not deemed worthy 

 of them. 



Voted. That all persons who enter their farms for premiums 

 juust make application to the chairman of the riewiug commit- 

 tee, or lo the Secretary, prior to the twentieth of June next. 



Vofed, 'i'hat the viewing committee on farms in making their 

 awards, will take into view the quantity and quality of mowing, 

 arable, orcharding, pasture and wood-land, compared wtfh the 

 size of the farm — the condition of buildings and fences — the a- 

 moiuit of stock kept, the mode adopted in making and increas- 

 ing the quantity of manure — the quantity and quality of crops 

 compared with the labor bestowed, and the general neatness and 

 economy attending the management of the farm. 



Vuleti, That all the above named animals must be owned 

 within the County of Merrimack, and by members of the Soci- 

 ety at the time of exhibiting, and must not have received a pre- 

 mium elsewhere during the same year. 



Voted, That all articles of domestic and household manufac- 

 tures must have been made within the County, and within one 

 vear previous to the exhibition, and by or for the person offer- 

 ing the same. 



Vot£d, That ihis meeting; stand adjourned to the third day of 

 September next, at y o'clock. A. M. at the Phoenix Hotel in- 

 Concord. Attest, J^O. WHIPPLE, Secr'y. 



From the Hampshire Gazette. ! 



SILK. ! 



We have received from Mr. Bates, a letter from 

 the Secretary of the Treasury, in relation to the ; 

 growth and manufacture of silk. It is a Manual j 

 containing the best practical information that could 

 be collected from various countries respecting the 

 cultivation of the mulberry tree, the breeding of 

 silk worm-:, and the manufacture and dying of 

 silk. This manual, of 220 pagt^s, was prepared in ; 

 obedience to a resolution of the House of Repre- ' 

 sentalives, and is adapted to the diB'erent parts oft 

 the Union. I 



The .>;ilk worm is a native of China. The Seres, j 

 who inhabited the northern part of that country, { 

 cultivated the precious article. Having been ex- 

 ptdled by the Hun.':, A. O. 93, they settled in Lit- ' 

 tie Biicharia. Silks were first brought from China , 

 to Syria and Egypt by traders, who, in caravans, 

 perforciic'd journeys of 243 days through the de- ' 

 serts of .\sia. The price was far beyond the reach ■ 

 of any but the rich, and for a long time Ihc use! 

 of silk among the Romans was loufined to women I 

 of fortune. The Emperor Aurelian refused his j 

 queen a garment of silk, by reason of the high 

 price it bore — its weight in gold. In the sixth | 



century, two monks, who had been employed as 

 missionaries in the east, penetrated luto the coun- 

 try of the Serss, and observed the labors of the 

 Bilk worms, and the manner of working their pro- 

 duction into elegant fabrics. They imparted the 

 secret to the emperor Justinian at <"onstantinople. 

 who induced them by a groat reward, to return 

 and bring away a quantity of the .silk worm's e^gs. 

 They put the eggs into the hollow of u cane,\nd 

 brought them safely to Constantinople about the 

 jyear 555. The eggs were hatched, and the worms 

 ■vvere fed with mulbeiry leaves; and the insects 

 j produced from this caneful of eggs were the pro- 

 i geuitors of all the silk worm.s of Europe and the 

 western parts of Asia. The people of the Morea, 

 [and of the cities of Athens and Thebes enjoyed 

 ;the profit of the culture and manufacture of silk 

 j upwards of 400 years; but in 114ti the king of 

 I Sicily made war upon Greece, and carried off a 

 (great number of silk weavers, who taught the Si- 

 |cilians to raise silk worms and to weave silk stuffs. 

 The Saracens introduced the silk manufacture in- 

 to Spain and Portugal, and subsequently the Ital 

 ian States, France, and England engaged in it. 



In the United States, the culture of silk first 

 commenced in Virginia. As early as 1666, the 

 rearing of silk worms was a part of the regular 

 business of many of the farmers. One man had 

 70,000 mulberry trees growing in 10(14. Georgin 

 sent eight pounds of raw silk to England in 1735, 

 and 10,000 pounds in 1759. Some attention was 

 paiil to the culture of silk in South Carolina, and 

 in 17.55 Mrs Pinckney raised and spun silk enough 

 for three complete dresses. In Pennsylvania and 

 New Jersey the culture of silk began in 1771, but 

 was suspended by the war of the rovolution. 



Mulberry trees and silk worms were introduced 

 into Mansfield, in the county of Windham, Conn, 

 about the year 1760, and in 1789 two hundred 

 pounds of raw silk were made in that town. At 

 present, three fourths of the families in Mansfield 

 are engaged in raising silk, and make annually 

 from five to ten, twenty, and fifty pounds in a fam- 

 ily ; and one or two have made, each, one hundred 

 pounds in a season. It is believed that there are 

 annually made in that town and the vicinity, from 

 three to four tons of silk. 



The cultivation of silk has commenced in Mas- 

 sachusetts, New York, Kentucky, Ohio, and sev- 

 eral other States. 



BOOK FARMING. 



It is a prejudice, irreconcible with the genera! 

 intelligence, which characterizes our countrymen, 

 that agriculture can be availingly promoted by 

 those only tvhose talk is of oxen, atid tcho are cm- 

 ployed in their labors. The attention of Europe 

 was awakened towards this essential department 

 of human industry, by an English judge, who not 

 only prescribed modes for bettering the condition 

 of the land, but contrived implements of husband- 

 ry, inquired into the causes, and recommended a 

 judicious treatment, of the diseases of domestic 

 animals, lie al^o gave plans for t! e improvement 

 of farin buildings, and the embellishment of the 

 long neglected estates of the kingdom Sir An- 

 thony Fitzh«rbert, to whom England owes so much 

 for the revival of agriculturt" and rural taste, pub- 

 lished two works On country affairs, about the year 

 15;J4. These volumes serve, ninonL' other testimo- 

 ny, to prove, that what might then have been re- 

 garded as idle theory, obnoxious to the ridicule of 

 the in-norant, has since been universally adopted 



