TOI,. XVIII, NO. 31 



MUTUAL IMPROVEMENT— CLUBS. 

 What, we would ask, is there to forbid farmers' 

 poirees, or conversaziones ? or, if such words would 

 )e considered too much in the fashionable or board- 

 ng school style for the farmer, let the word club 

 <e substituted, and then we shall have farmers' 

 Jubs,— meetings we think both desirable and prac- 

 icable. Intercourse with each other is what the 

 ultivators of the soil need, to enlarge their views, 

 ittuse information, promote inquirv, and create a 

 !ehug of unity of interest and concert of action, so 

 ecessary in all communities. It is the contact of 

 und with mind that brightens the faculties, and 

 icits light, as the collision of the flint and steel 

 reduces the spark and the flame. Horticultural 

 eetings of any kind have a tendency to these 

 Jod efi-ects; institutes, societies, clu-bs, all co-ope- 

 te to the same end, and with different degrees of 

 tectiveness, contribute to the same result. 



In England, where the science of agriculture 

 id the means of improving it, are as well under- 

 )od, to say the least, as in any part of the world 

 Jbs, or neighborhood meetings of farmers for the 1 

 icussion of agricultural topics, have been found 

 long the most effectual aids the cause of the far- I 

 !r could receive. That such would be the case 

 this country, we see little room to doubt; in fact 

 influence ofour county and town societies, fur- 

 hes the most conclusive evidence on this point 

 iiay indeed be said that the gre-ater diff-usion of 

 •icultural periodicals in this country, renders such 

 etmgs less necessary than in the old country 

 ere such papers or books are rare. This may 

 oart be true, but could not these two means of 

 )rovement be brought to act together, and thus 

 Tt an influence more favorable and more power- 



than both acting singly and detached from each 

 !r? 



["he difficulty in originating and sustaininor such 

 )s, has been found to arise from the want of cod- 

 led interest in the discussions and the paucity 

 jpics introduced. To do away those objections 

 propose the following method. Let the mem- 

 i of these neighborhood clubs provide themselves 

 1 a number of the best agricultural publications 

 le country, each one, if he chooses makincr his 



selection ; let these publications be a contmon 

 k for the benefit of the members; let meetings 

 leld once a month, at which these publications 

 I be returned, exchanges made, the various 

 ers found in them discussed, and the practical 

 Tience of the members, for or against the sev- 

 opimons advanced, be made known. We can 

 ly imagine that in such c>ise the meetincrs 

 d be uninteresting or uninstructive. At the 

 ; of the year, the numbers of each volume could 

 iillected and bound, and ere long an arrricultu- 

 ibrary for the use of the club would be estab- ' 

 d of the most valuable kind. Few individuals 

 ound who are able to procure all the journals 

 IS class they would like to read, nor can any 

 ournal embody all the valuable papers and 



that are turnished for the information of the 

 c. In this way an individual can command 

 eadmg, and avail himself of the iuformation 

 1 in the best farming periodicals of this coun- 

 r the world, without any extra trouble or ex- 



ould any neighborhood of cultivators be dis- 

 I to adopt our suggestion, we may be permit. 

 > recommend, after our own Cultivator, the 

 £■ ^""ler, the Farmer's Monthly Viai- 

 le Maine Farmer, the Farmer's Cabinet, the 



Ai\D HORTICULTURAL REGISTER 



I Franklin Farmer, the Yankee Farmer, American 

 j tanner, and particularly Ruffin's Farmer's Re^-is 

 I ter, one of the best publications in this or any oth- 

 er country. Of European work.s, the London Far 

 iner s Magazine is the best— Mbamj Cultivator. 



263 



with the above named William Ingell, and believe 

 him to be a person of truth and veracity, and that 

 his s'atements may be depended on. 



R. D. HUBBARD, 



^Its/ice of the Peace. 



From iIk 



Alli.Tiiy Cuhivator. 



CULTURE OF INDIAN CORN. 

 Mr Jesse Buel-As I have been a constant 

 readeroftheCultivator, I often find the inquiry 

 from your different correspondents, respectino- the 

 best method of raising a crop of corn. T therefore 

 send you a statement of the soil, management and 

 proht of one acre, planted by me with corn the 

 present season. 



The soil, two -thirds cf it, was a warm gravel • 

 the other third wa* low, wet, and covered w^l,' 

 rushes and wild grass, with a very tough sod ; but 

 1 1 was careful to put two good underdrains throu-^h 

 I it which left it a rich black mould. About the fst 

 jofxMayl drew twentytwo loads of unfermented 

 manure, each load containing thirtvfive bushels 

 and spread It evenly over the acre. 'l then plough- 

 ed before the manure had time to dry ; then dragged 

 lengthways of the furrows; planted the 9th of May 

 with Dutton corn, the hills three feet apart each 

 way, making 4640 hills with six kernels in a hill 

 It was attacked by the grub as soon as it made its 

 appearance above ground, at which time I spread 

 twelve bushels of unleached ashes upon it, which 

 checked them a little, but they succeeded in de- 

 stroying 70 hills, leaving only 4770. These were 

 hoed and thinned to four stalks in each hill, June 

 eith; then I sowed two bushels of plaster upon the 

 hills, and hoed again July 2nd ; put no more earth 

 to the hills than was taken away ; went through 

 with the cultivator both ways, four times— June 1st 

 and eth, July 1st and 12th. On the 14th of Sep 

 tember I cut up and shocked the corn, and on the 

 28th finished husking and housing it. 



Upon one square rod, of twenty hills and one 

 fouith of a hill, of the best of the low ground, grew 

 seventy pounds of ears, equal to one hundred and 

 fortyeight bushels per acre. The whole product 

 was one hundred and twenty bushels. 



Cost of Cultivation. 

 One day ploughing, j.^ qq 



Harrowing half a day, T r.r. 



22 loads of manure, 1 1 nr. 



Planting, 2 d;lys, M:„ 



Seed corn, 



Hoe and cultivatof, 2 days, 

 Hoeing, 4 days, 



12 bushels ashes. and 2 bushels plaster, 

 Spreading ashes and plaster, 

 Cutting and shocking, 

 Husking and housing, 7 days, 

 Carting stalks. 

 Threshing, 3 days, 

 Interest on land. 



WOOL. 



Few are aware of the importance of this article 

 as an item ofour productims, or the amount which 

 It already reaches in the sum total of value Two 



{on™^' "'° """''"' "^""^^^P ^^^= estimated at 



I l^,UUU,OUO ; It IS now not less than 15,000,000 



Allowing the estimate of three pounds per head 

 the clip of 1839 would be fortyfive million pounds 

 of wool. We have been careful obscjrvers of the 

 price of wool, and find it has ranged from 40 to 60 

 cents per pound, some kw lots going above as 

 some have fallen below the prices named. To be 

 sure of being within the amount, we will take the 

 average at 45 cents, and at that rate, the last clip 

 of wool would be worth more than twenty millions 

 of dollars. Yet this is but one item in the pro- 

 ductive industry of the north. 



At the present prices of sheep and wool, the 

 businessofgrowing them is a profitable one and 

 may we think with safety be calculated upon as a 

 good one for time to come. Wool of good quality 

 could hardly fail to pay as an article of export to 

 England or France, should present prices abroad 

 , be maintained, and the supply for home consump- 

 tion in this country be exceeded. 



'Jo prove that growing wool is a good invest- 

 [ ment of money, we have only to look at the cost 

 expenses and returns of a flock A flock of good 

 ewes, with proper management, will hardly fail of 

 doubling their numbers within the year, a'nd if to 

 the sale of tiie wool the value of the lambs be ad- 

 ded, It will be seen after deducting the expenses 

 ot keeping, that a handsome profit remains. But 

 to have good sheep, or good wool, more attention 

 must be paid than is usually given. Sheep that 

 pt their living by hook or by crook ; that are al- 

 lowed to gather in their fleeces all the burdock 

 and other burweeds that line too many of our roads 

 and fences, and fill our woodlands; that are expos- 

 ed to all the vicissitudes of our severe and variable 

 climate without shelter, or barely makin- a livino- 

 through the winter, cannot be expected'' to raise 

 many lambs or produce good wool. Wool and silk 

 are to be the great sources ofour supply of cloth- 

 mg hereafter, and their importance to the country 

 will be proportioned to their general use. 



Total cost, 

 Product. 



$37 00 



Ambition — Do not aspire to things that are be- 

 yond your reach, but be satisfied with the present 

 good which you enjoy. If you are actuated by a 

 laudable ambition, let it be to e.xcel in the profes- 

 sion you have chosen, instead of sinking below in 

 some other. It is a common error of mankind, that 

 they will not be persuaded that every callino- or 

 business, has its mixture of good and evil They 

 see the gilding of the object to which they aspire, ' 

 but not the canker within. 



115 bushels of first rate corn. 

 Five bushels of second rate. 

 Stalks, four loads. 



VVILLIAM LVGELL. 

 , Oswego CO., JV. Y., Dec. 9, 1839. 



HOPE.—Whata miserable wretch is he who 

 must survive his hopes! Nothing remains when 

 that day comes, but to sit down and weep like Al- 

 exander, when he wanted other worlds to conquer 



Congreve. 



I hereby certify, that I am personally acquainted 



I Potatoes were selling at Baltimore a short time 

 since at $1 per bushel, and scarce at that. 



