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NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



July 



a condition of the art as they can there. Mr. 

 Irvine, a member of the British Legation at 

 Washington, in conformity with instructions from 

 his government, has made a report to the author- 

 ities at home, on the state of agriculture in this 

 country, and among many other things which 

 evince the clearness of his judgment, he remarks: 



"The immense extent of territory, and the 

 comparative scantiness of the population, have 

 induced a good deal of carelessness in the culti- 

 vation of the soil. The price of land being low, 

 the proprietors have found it more convenient to 

 work out their land, than to expend their capital 

 in manures, and other means of improving its 

 productive qualities ; and when the soil has be- 

 come exhausted, the owners have left it for some 

 new settlement. The consequence of this has 

 been that, instead of full and abundant crops, in 

 many parts of the older settled portions of the 

 country, the fields do not yield, at present, near- 

 ly as much as formerly, and in many localities, 

 not a quarter as much ; and that notwithstanding 

 the natural advantages of climate, the facility of 

 transport to available markets, and the lightly 

 taxed condition of the farmers and planters, the 

 ratio of increase in agricultural products of the 

 United States is not in proportion to the increase 

 of population." 



We quote the above to show the conclusions to 

 which an intelligent observer arrives, when look- 

 ing into the condition of agricultural matters in 

 this country. That his statements are true of 

 some parts of the country, we cannot doubt, — 

 but the statistics of agricultural industry in our 

 State, and we believe in New England, would, 

 we think, show a different state of things. In 

 Massachusetts, as a whole, there certainly has 

 been a noticeable advance in the art within twen- 

 ty years, so that now a point has been attained 

 at which improvement is to receive a new and 

 vigorous impulse. The motor which is to be 

 brought to bear upon its mechanism, will be found 

 to exist in the elements of our educational and 

 social system. Already has the popular mind be- 

 gun to respond to its emendating influences, and 

 to shake off the old prejudices which have so long 

 burdened and oppressed it. The Newspaper is 

 doing its work — silently but surely — in the hap- 

 py homes of our husbandmen — scattering wisdom 

 like pearls, and opening up new pathways to hap- 

 piness and prosperity. In every circle of social 

 life — in every department of rural employment, 

 its influences are felt for good. It comes like an 

 angel of mercy, noiselessly, and as noiselessly ac- 

 complishes its merciful work. Its design is to 

 afford to the laborer a more extended field of 

 knowledge, and consequently to widen his sphere 

 of action ; to bring him to an appreciation of the 

 immense capabilities of agriculture, when prop- 



erly understood and practiced, and make him fa- 

 miliar with the great and substantial basis of the 

 industry of nations. In working out this design, 

 it has, thus far, been eminently successful. 



For the New England Farmer. 



NOTES ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS. 



now TO CURE SCEATCIIES — HOW TO SHOE A 

 VICIOUS HORSE. 



Having a horse badly affected with scratches, 

 last summer, my farm assistant cured it by apply- 

 ing a mixture of lard, sulphur and a little "red 

 precipitate." This he assured me had proved sue- t 

 cessful where other remedies had failed. The 

 proportion of each ingredient was not definite, 

 but very little precipitate will suffice. 



A neighbor who owns a horse that is bad to 

 shoe, savs if such a horse is blindfolded and run 

 around in a circle until he becomes dizzy, his feet 

 can then be handled without difficulty. In very 

 bad cases it is sometimes necessary to run him 

 around until he falls down. 



WHAT APPLES SHALL WE PLANT ? 



I must "take exception to some of the varieties, 

 recommended in the weekly Farmer of April 20. 

 Maiden's Blush, although a good grower, produc- 

 tive and one of the fairest and most showy apples 

 in cultivation, is, to my taste, very deficient in 

 flavor — so much so that I have cut it off and 

 grafted with other varieties. Danvers Winter 

 Sweet I consider far inferior to Seaver Sweet and 

 Ladies' Sweeting, and the latter will keep two 

 months longer. 



Russet Sioeet. — If this comes up to my idea of 

 a good baking apple I would like to obtain it. To 

 come up to my standard of a first-rate baking ap- 

 ple it must be very sweet, bake tender, and have 

 a thin skin, and if, with all these, it retains its 

 form after baking, I should like it so much the 

 better. I have not yet found a better baking ap- 

 ple than the Holden Sweet, an apple somewhat 

 resembling the Golden Sweet in size and color, 

 but about two months later, and much sweeter. 

 But what is most wanted now, is an apple that 

 will bake as well in the winter and spring months 

 as our best varieties do in October. I am now 

 using a native variety which, although it has some 

 faults, is better than Seaver, Ladies' or Dan- 

 vers Sweet, for this purpose. I have but just ob- 

 tained the Talman Sweet, and have not compared 

 it with that. 



Earhi Harvest. — This, although a first-rate 

 fruit, I find rather difficult to raise; it does not 

 produce very abundantly and the rose-bugs some- 

 times destroy more than half of them. 



Fameuse. — The only fault with this is a ten- 

 dency to grow knarly. It is thin-skinned, fine 

 grained, of a very pleasant, delicate flavor ; it is 

 in eating a long time, and although not large, 

 good specimens arc not excelled in beauty. 



Gravenstcin. — This is the best dessert apple I 

 have ever seen, but I think "D. W. L." is mis- 

 taken when he gives it credit for bearing early. 



DOGS AND POVERTY. 



One of your correspondents thinks dogs and 

 poverty are not associated in Massachusetts. 

 They certainly have been so in this part of the 



