1861. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



165 



Report on Insects, in consequence of sickness, 

 was not in readiness for this volume. Two of his 

 addresses are, however, published — one "On our 

 most Pernicious Insects," and the other "On the 

 Curculio and Black Knot on Plum Trees." The 

 latter we believe is altogether the most correct 

 description of that insect yet published. 



In all parts of the volume we notice complaints 

 of bad weather and short cro{>s. The Secretary 

 says : The ravages of frost have been very ex- 

 tensive, and the destruction of the grass crop, in 

 many portions of the State, has very materially 

 diminished the dairy products in quantity, and 

 has very considerably affected the quality of the 

 butter, in some portions of the season. The <!orn 

 and buckwheat crops have also been seriously ef- 

 fected, as well as the spring crops generally, in 

 many sections of the State ; and, in many instan- 

 ces, these crops did not recover so as to give the 

 usual return. But it is a fact of no little interest, 

 that, so far as returns have been received, it is 

 most evident that where attention has been given 

 to drainage, thorough cultivation and manuring, 

 the crops have suffered much less than in those 

 cases where these precautions have been neg- 

 lected. 



From the statistics of crops, we copy the foK 



lowing, omitting fractions of bushels : 



Average Average 



Returns received from 1859. lSrj8. 



Winter wheat.... 20 counties. 19 13 



Spring wheat 18 " 16 13 



Corn 17 '= 25 40 



Rye 15 " U 16 



Barley 16 " 25 20 



Hay, per acre, lbs 2000 3000 



SURVEY OF ONONDAGA. 



A minute history of one of the richest agricul- 

 tural counties in the State, with suggestions as 

 to the best means of managing its various soils, 

 fills 134 pages of the volume, accompanied by a 

 large Geological and Topographical Map, and va- 

 rious cuts illustrating the modes of making salt, 

 and of raising "the abominable weed." 



COUNTY AND TOWN ASSOCIATIONS. 



Proud as the State Society may well be of its 

 own labors, some one hundred and fifty of the 

 pages of this volume of its Transactions are de 

 voted to reports of perhaps half that number of 

 county and town Societies. Such abstracts are 

 given of the reports of these societies as the Sec- 

 retary supposed would furnish evidence of the 

 present state of agriculture in their respective lo- 

 calities, but nearly all awards of premiums are 

 omitted. Thus room is found for quite a number 

 of the addresses which were delivered before these 

 associations. We have barely glanced over these 

 abstracts, seeing enough, however, to convince 

 us that they are the "very cream of the matter." 

 The report from the town society of HarLland 



Niagara county, thus alludes to an experiment in 

 drainage. 



"North of this ridge, [the famous ridge-road 

 of that section, at this point, some six miles from 

 Lake Ontario,] the land is low with extensive 

 swamps, and wet land of about 5000 acres, which 

 is now being reclaimed by cutting a ditch six 

 miles long through the town, at a cost of $14,000, 

 the expense of which is paid by a tax on the land 

 it benefits. The ditch is nearly completed. Al- 

 ready has the work of clearing the swamps com- 

 menced, and we shall soon have hundreds of acres 

 of fine muck meadows where now the alder and 

 wild rose, with their associates in such localities 

 grow in profusion." 



MUSEUM AND LIBRARY. 



A Catalogue of Implements, Machines, &c., in 

 the Agricultural Museum, and a list of Additions 

 to the Library, are given, and the volume is 

 closed with papers on the "Cattle Disease of Mas- 

 sachusetts." 



For the New England Farmer. 

 THB AIR PRESSUKE CHURN. 



Friend Brown : — A few suggestions present 

 themselves to me, in looking over the scale of 

 prices of the Neio England Air-Fressure Churn 

 Co., the first of which is in reference to the high 

 price asked for it. It would strike most any one 

 at first glance as being very much more than 

 men of moderate means would think they could 

 afi"ord to pay, notwithstanding the alleged supe- 

 riority of the article. This class of men are the 

 greatest patrons of such articles, and it should be 

 the aim of those who wish, successfully, to in- 

 troduce an improvement, to have an eye to the 

 means of those for whose use it is intended, as 

 well as to their own profit, which, in the long 

 run, will be found in carrying out the motto of 

 quick sales and small profits. I have no doubt 

 but I might readily find several purchasers for 

 the churn, providing it could be brought within the 

 limits of a moderate remuneration to the manu- 

 facturers. None can very well doubt the superi- 

 or value of the churn over most, if not all that 

 have preceded it, and its ultimate success. 

 Still, would not that success be very much 

 hastened, and the proprietor's interests be pro- 

 moted by heeding the foregoing suggestions ? 



Another thought occurs, in reference to the 

 difference in the cost of iron and brass hoops. 

 Had I ordered a churn finished off" nicely with 

 brass hoops, I should never have dreamed that it 

 would cost me from two to four dollars more (ac- 

 cording to size) than a plain iron bound one, 

 had not that fact appeared in the advertisement. 

 It may be that I am in error here ; if not, I think 

 it unwise to exact an extra profit for finishing up 

 the article in a neat and tasty manner. Allow 

 me, also, to suggest an improvement, as I con- 

 ceive, in the construction, or rather the manner 

 of putting in the head or bottom of the churn. 

 As now built, it is after the usual mode of mak- 

 ing casks, leaving a channel or crease all round 

 the edges of the head, which is not so readily 

 cleaned as if the bottom was put in in the man- 

 ner of shaker pails, &c. 



I have used, for a number of years past, 



