1863. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



277 



ing a more palatable bread. Spelt has the advan- 

 tage that it may be raised on light and poor soils. 



I will suppose that on our good soils thirty bush- 

 els of rye may be raised. The weight of this crop 

 ■will 1)6 fifteen hundred pounds, and its value about 

 twenty-one or twenty-two dollars. An equal 

 quantity of barley may be raised, worth thirty dol- 

 lars, or spelt about an equal quantity with rye, 

 and of at least equal value, or about three to five 

 dollars more on the thirty bushels. Perhaps its 

 value would equal that of barley. I don't know, 

 therefore, that there is any more profit in raising 

 rye than in raising barley or spelt, and as an arti- 

 cle of food, probably rye is the least nutritious and 

 least i)ulatable of the three. Though rye is pojiu- 

 lar among us for some cause, I cannot but think 

 that if barley meal or spelt flour, or oatmeal, or 

 some other succedaneum were once introduced 

 among us that rye would give way, and we should 

 dispense with its use. Corn bread, as it is called, 

 made in the Pennsylvania and western method, is 

 a true luxury, which we do not enjoy here, only 

 because, I think, it is not known. The corn used 

 is the soft kind, and the meal is ground very fine 

 and mixed with milk and egg ; — making the most 

 nutritious, and to my taste the most palatable ^of 

 all kinds of bread. It is very different from the 

 cakes made of that meal in our State. We have 

 not learned here the true value of corn meal for 

 breadstuff. The middlings of wheat flour makes 

 a very good coarse bread. 



There is an account of spelt in the Report on 

 the Agriculture of Germany, contained in the 

 Patent Oflice Report for 1847, I think, and also 

 in Mr. Colman's work on European .\gricullure. 

 It is cultivated in France and Germany, but no- 

 where in this country, so far as I am informed. 

 Perhaps some is raised in Pennsylvania, 



Good Bread. 



Far tlie Neir England Farmer. 

 KETROSPECTIVE NOTES. 



"TinNGs TO BE Learned." — Fuavds on 

 Farmers. — Under the former of the above head- 

 ings we have, in the weekly issue of this journal 

 of May 23d, and in the July number of the month- 

 ly ediilon, a very sensible article intended to cau- 

 tion farmers against being imposed upon by any 

 of the tricks and frauds which a numerous class 

 of harpies and vampires, thieves and robbers, are 

 ever ready to practice upon the honest and unsus- 



fiecting farmer. The writer has portrayed "to the 

 ife" some of the tricks played by jockeys, dealers 

 in cattle and other stock, and buyers of farm pro- 

 duce, and has given, in four very shrewd and ju- 

 dicious directions, instructions how to avoid being 

 cauglit in any of the snares and traps which this 

 class of scoundrels and purse-suckers are evtr and 

 anon setting for the unwary, with all that "cun- 

 ning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive." 

 '1 lie article now under notice is entitled to es- 

 pecial attention for several reasons, two of which 

 may be briefly named. First, then, it is excellent 

 and praisc'vorlhy in virtue of the aim, purpose or 

 intention, which very obviously actuated the writ- 

 er, and which all readers, save the most heedless, 

 or dull-brained, must perceive to be this — to warn 

 farmers of a cla^s of dangers wliich they must en- 

 counter now and then, or to point out some of the 

 frauds IikcIv to be nracti^'ed upon then, and, at 

 the <anie <inif. «o su<rs:esl some of tlie things 



which may be done whereby this danger may be 

 greatly lessened, or avoided altogether. This is 

 certainly a noble purpose, and tlie man who em- 

 ploys two or three hours of l\is time in writing out 

 the words of warning which seem to be needed, 

 ought to have some evidence that he is duly ap- 

 preciated, so fiir, at least, as the aim or purpose 

 of his writing is concerned. 



Another reason for thinking this article worthy 

 of more than ordinary attention is tins — there is 

 ! more than ordinary ability manifested in the con- 

 I struction or composition of it. As we liave already 

 j said, the portraitures of the rogues and robbers, 

 I who go about seeking whom they may devour, are 

 I drawn very graphically, and "to the life," and the 

 directions given for detecting them, and avoiding 

 ; being caught in their traps, are proofs of superior 

 I good sense and soundness of judgment. There 

 , is, in a word, a noteworthy, intellectual and iiter- 

 ' ary ability in the article, which it is pleasant to be 

 1 brought into contact with, and which gives force to 

 I the words employed to secure the object aimed at. 

 ] The fine moral tone also of the article under no- 

 ! tice can scarcely have escaped the observation of 

 t readers of ordinary discrimination, and might be 

 I named as another of the reasons which entitle it 

 I to special regard. But time is precious, and space 

 \ has limits, and therefore we leave the article to 

 make its own impression, and to do its intended 

 ; work. Those who re-read it carefully, will, we 

 ] doubt not, see it to be possessed of the merits, in 

 ' purpose and in execution, which we have claimed 

 for it. It must be pronounced an excellent arti- 

 cle, and its great purpose a most praiseworthy one. 

 i The farmers, above all men, are liable to be im- 

 ! posed upon, and every efl'ort to protect them from 

 the harpies and vampires who are ever seeking 

 whom they may devour, should be gratefully ac- 

 knowledged and duly appreciated. And not this 

 only, but every such efl'ort should be imitated, 

 seconded or helped on in some way, as we hope 

 the present one w ill be. We should all feel lai'ler 

 obligation to do something to abate the evil com- 

 plained of. 



There is room or opportunity for more efi'orts of 

 the same kind as that which has been under our 

 notice, for other frauds are practiced upon the 

 farmer, and other rogues contrive to get hold of 

 some of his hard-earred dollais. There are, for 

 example, speculators in wool, advertisers of nov- 

 elties and humbugs in seeds, &c, and, (bad as any 

 other set of the rogues who prey on farmers, or 

 perhaps worse,) the manufacturers and venders 

 I of spurious superphosphates and other commercial 

 manures. 



I Now that a Bofjiirs' GaUcn/ for the benefit of 

 i farmers has been so successfidly commenced in the 

 columns of this journal, it is earnestly ho])ed that 

 j similar portraits of those other orders of liiis com- 

 [ prchensive class of thievish animals may be con- 

 j tinned until the gallery may be considered cora- 

 I ])icte. Whoever, actuated by public spirit, and 

 ' benevolent feelin<;s, shall make farther contribu- 

 tions to this gallery, and whoever, especially, shall 

 I portray in hideous cohirs the swindling nrantifac- 

 I turer of worthless trash which is sold to farmers 

 ' under the name of superphosphate, will confer a 

 i fiivor on his brethren, by enabling them to delect 

 ' and escape the snares set to entrap and rob tiu-m, 

 ' and will, also, earn for himself, a right or title to 

 j his own respect and the respect of all who love 



