522 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Nov. 



jects of interest, and seemed to covet the knowl- 

 edge denied to them by their organization. Would 

 it not be as well for a boy to study the wood that 

 is consumed in the school-house stove as to learn 

 unpronounceable names of foreign countries? If 

 men would have their sons settle near the family 

 hearth, let them make the farm attractive. Adorn 

 your dwelling with flowers, and encourage your 

 children to cultivate them. Do not laugh at the 

 boyish or girlish love of a flower in a cracked tea- 

 pot. Labor was relieved of half its toil when 

 smiled upon by the elegancies of life ; and the 

 kindest hearts were those of people who cultivat- 

 ed the tulip, where more practical persons would 

 have had a potato patch." 



The officers elected for the ensuing year, were, 

 President — Allen W. Dodge. Trustees — Horace 

 Ware, Marblehead ; E. S. Williams, Newbury- 

 port ; P. 0. Hatch, Hamilton ; G. B. Loring, Sa- 

 lem ; Richmond Dole, Georgetown ; John B. Jen- 

 kins, Andover ; Robert Brookhouse, Jr., Salem ; 

 J. Newhall, Lynnfield ; J. M. Ives, Salem ; Paul 

 Titcomb, Newbury. 



The Society voted to instruct the Trustees to 

 take into consideration the expediency of holding 

 their exhibition in future at the Society's farm in 

 Topsfield. The Society numbers about 1000 mem- 

 bers, has funds amounting to $10,000, a farm in 

 Topsfield— the gift of the late Dr. J. G. Tread- 

 well, valued at $6000 — and a library valued at 

 about $1500. 



The Waltham Agricultural Library Association 

 held their third exhibition Sept. 26th, continued 

 three days, showing considerable progress in the 

 products of the earth, and that the citizens of that 

 beautiful town are energetic and intelligent. 



The Merrimack County, N. H., Agricultural 

 Fair was holden Sept. 27th, at Concord. The ex- 

 hibition was a fine one. Address by Eli Thayer, 

 of Worcester. 



The Franklin County Fair, at Greenfield, went 

 without its usual second day, its cattle, its ad- 

 dress, its dinner, its speeches, and yet was very 

 successful, interesting and profitable. There was 

 a fine display of sheep, especially. 



The Housatonic Cattle Show and Fair was 

 holden at Great Barrington. One novel feature 

 of the Show was the exhibition of a new patent 

 telegraph instrument, working inside the hall. 

 The address was by Stephen E. Burrall, of New 

 York. 



The Carroll County Agricultural Fair took 

 place at Sandwich, N. H., and is reported to have 

 been a good and successful show. 



The Annual Exhibition of the Maine State Ag- 

 ricultural Society was holden at Portland. This 

 was their sixth exhibition, and has been a suc- 

 cessful one. Every department of the farm, we 

 leai'n, was well represented. 



The working cattle, from their various breeds, 

 made a fine display, and showed to advantage the 

 various excellencies they possess. To mark the 

 improvement which a few years have brought 

 about in the size of cattle, one has but to look at 

 the beef creatures now, and call to mind what they 

 were before cattle shows prevailed. Time was, 

 and that not so very long ago, when, if a butch- 

 er slaughtered a creature which, when dressed, 

 weighed a thousand pounds, he made a great ado 

 about it, and told all his neighbors. Now the 

 butcher looks for 1500 or 1600 pounds to the crea- 

 ture, and generally gets it. This fact speaks de- 

 cisively concerning the improvement that has been 

 made in meat culture. It is a practical fact which 

 all can understand. Agricultural exhibitions have 

 created this fact. 



The Eighth Exhibition of the Worcester North 

 Society was holden in Fitchburg, Sept. 25th. No 

 premiums were offered for neat stock. The ad- 

 dress was by Dr. George B. Loring, of Salem. 

 Subject — "The Social and Civil Condition of 

 Farmers." The Society and others dined at the 

 Fitchburg Hotel. 



AMEKICAI3" GUANO. 



Extracts of letters and reports of Baron Von 

 Liebig, President of the Ptoyal Academy of Sci- 

 ences, and Professor of Chemistry at Munich, up- 

 on the American guano from Baker's and Jarvis 

 Islands, forwarded to John B. Sardy, as agent for 

 Wm. H. Webb, In- James R. Mac Donald, Esq., 

 United States Consul at Hamburg. Under date 

 of Aug. nth, 1860, Mr. Mac Donald writes: 



"Enclosed I send you a letter of much impor- 

 tance, containing a report from Baron Von Lie- 

 big, Avhich leaves nothing to be desired. Prof. 

 Liebig, after reporting the analysis of the Guano in 

 the most scientific manner, (and by various tests,) 

 states 'that there are no analyses made on order 

 in the chemical laboratory of the Royal Academy, 

 and that I take charge of this examination by ex- 

 ception, not to gain something by it, but as I felt 

 a great interest in the matter, * * * and I have 

 spent two months' labor in the matter. * * * 

 The Baker's Island guano contains more phos- 

 ])horic acid than any other known fertilizer ; and 

 it is similar in its ingredients to natural phospho- 

 rite, differing from it, however, in the following 

 remarkable particulars : Phosj^horite is in a crys- 

 talized state, and is completely insoluble in wa- 

 ter. The Baker's Island guano, on the contrary, 

 is amorphous, is soluble to a considerable extent 

 in pure water, and when moistened, colors litmus 

 paper red. The Jarvis Island guano has also an 

 acid reaction, and is partly soluble in water. It 

 is worthy of remark, that the Jarvis guano, al- 

 though only half as rich in earthy phosphates as 

 the Baker's, gives to water a greater quantity of 

 soluble phosphoric acid. I regard the discovery 

 of these guano deposits as a most fortunate event 

 for agriculture. At the present time the prices 

 of fertilizers like bones are now continually on 

 the increase, and soon tlie agriculturist will not 

 be able to procure, at paying rates, an amount 



