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NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Jan. 



CONTENTS OF THIS NUMBER. 



Thoughts Suggested by January Page 1 



Formosan Tortoises •2 



Hint About Draining— The War and Agriculture 3 



Meteorological Record, October, 1863— Wintering Bees 3 



Seeding Land to Grass 4, 12 



What will become of Agricultural Societies ? , 4 



Little Things— Hints for the Fall 5 



Agricultural Colleges 6 



Cider Apples 7 



West's Improved Pump 8 



Covering Raspberries and Blackberries— Strawberry Insect. . .9 



Thanksgiving 10 



Administering Chloroform to a Horse — Glanders.... 11 



Animals for Stall Feeding 13 



Catechism of Agricultural Chemistry and Geology 14 



Experiments wilh Potatoes — Cure for Holdfapt 15 



A New Tree Protector— Wheat Aphis— Warren 16 



Among the Green Mountains — Keeping Cabbages 17 



Crops in Vermont — Apple Crops and Orchards 18 



Extracts and Replies — Cheap Field Fence 19 



Horticulture in the City — Toads in Market 19 



Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture..;.....^ 20 



Sorghum at the West — Sinking Rocks 20 



The Boy on the Farm 21 



My Journal for the Season of 1863 22 



Agricultural Societies 23 



Corn Ci-'bs— Shall we Raise Tobacco ? — Western Vineyards.. 24 



Indian Corn — Fisk's Patent Lamp Heating Apparatus 25 



Relating to Manures 26 



The Highway Sides — Foot Rot in Sheep 27 



Salt as a Manure. 27 



What may Boys at School Best Read ? 28 



The "Pop Corn'' Crop 29 



Apples Every Year — Winter Care of Stock 30 



Fixing up— Destructive Dog Raid 30 



Ladies' Department 31 



Review of the Cattle Market 32 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Initial I^etter J 1 



West's Improved Pump 8 



New Tree Protector 16 



CATTLE MARKETS FOR DECEMBER. 



The fallowing is a summary of tlic rei)ortri for the five weeks 

 ending December 16, 1863: 



NUMBER AT MARKET. ^ 



Cattle. Sheep. Shutes. Fat Hogs. 



Nov. 18 3449 6900 175 2000 



" 25 1706 . 3326 80 1800 



Dec. 2 '2357 4715 75 3500 



" 9 3350 6436 ■ 260 2500 



" 16 3019 60 Jl 62 1062 



Total 13,881 27.423 652 9,862 



Thefollowing table exhibits the number of cattle and sheep 

 from each State for the last five weeks, and for the correspond- 

 ing five weeks last year ; also the total number since the first of 

 .lanuary, of each year: 



THIS TEAR. LAST TEAR. 



Catt'c. Sheep. Cattle. Sheep. 



Maine 2733 4932 2678 5446 



New Hampshire 1827 3797 1950 1763 



Vermont 4387 10,052 6018 7989 



Massachusetts 275 601 S53 444 



Northern New York 559 1852 657 1746 



Western States 3176 1287 1409 438 



Canada 924 4847 548 5540 



Total, last five weeks 13,881 27,428 13,620 23,366 



Total, since Jan. 1,(51 w'ks.M08.030 242.184 97,549 229,230 



PRICES. 

 Nov. 18. Nov. 25. Dec, 2. Dec. 9. Dee, 16. 

 Beef,lst,2d, 3dqual...5 (g8 5 igSJ S^gSJ SJigS^ 5|@8i 



" ex. and premium. 8ig9 S^gSJ 8g®9 8J^9J 8g@9 

 Sheep & lambs, each.. $3^'g5 $3^@5i $3J@5g SJge $3g@6 



" (old) ^f lb 6|S6 5|@6J 5^a6|5i!36i 5^56^ 



Swine,store3, w'sale — 5 @7 7 ©7^ —@ — 5J®6 @7 

 " " retail.... 5|@8 7 ©8^ 6 i@8 6 (37^ Ih'&^h. 



Livefathogs 6 @6^ 6 (g6| 65@7 ^(ii^ 6J§7 



Beef hides, ^ ft 8^g9 8^(g9 8J(S9 S^SS SJfiO 



Pelts, sheep & lambs. $2 'S2J $2 ig2\ $2 ig2^ 2 (@2J $2 (g2i 



Tallow, #■ lb 8 (§8^ 8 §8^ 8 <g8J 8 igSJ 8 ®8J 



Remarks. — Although there were more cattle than could be sold 

 at two or three of the foregoing makets, prices have been pretty 

 well sustained, except for ordinary or premmm beef; but they 

 have not advanced, as many predicted they would do after the 

 store cattle season was over. It will be noticed that the num- 

 ber from the West is more than twice as large during the past 

 five weeks as it was for the same time one year ago. The qual- 

 ity of the stock is also as much poorer as it is more numerous. 

 The 926 at market Dec. 16th were uncommonly slim. Indeed, 

 the straight, fat Western steers of two years ago, are not to be seen 

 at all at Brighton this year, notwithstanding the high prices that 

 are paid for extra beef, and indeed for all kinds of meats. The 

 following are the prices for extra beef, mutton and pork on 

 Thanksgiving week (f the past three years: 



1863. 1863, 1861. 



Beef extra 8Jfi9 6|g7 6| 



Sheep, live weight 5Jg6| 4J@5J 4|S5| 



Pork, " '• 6Jg7 5 4 (@4| 



The last market was overstocked with both cattle and sheep. 

 Some 700 liead of cattle were ' probably unsold Wednesday 

 night, and many sheep were left in the hands of the hands of the 

 butchers to be disposed of on the best terms possible. 



Sprung Knees in the Horse. — The trouble 

 does not always result from an injury of the leg, 

 or strain of the tendons ; it is more often found 

 in horses that have bad corns in the feet, or trou- 

 bled with navicular disease, than in any other. 

 The animal raising his heels to prevent pre3sure 

 upon the tender parts, bends the knee, which 

 bending becomes finally, from the altered posi- 

 tion of the limb, a permanent deformity. Horses 

 with sprung knees are unsafe for saddle purposes, 

 owing to their consequent liability to stumble. 



Respecting the treatment, it may be said that 

 six out of every ten sprung-kneed horses will be 

 found to have corns. If these be of recent growth, 

 there is a fair prospect of straightening the limbs 

 by removing the corns as directed under the head 

 of that disease ; by the removal of these the heels 

 are brought to the ground, and the limb becomes 

 straight. Under any other circumstances all treat- 

 ment proves useless. — Jennings on ilie Horse. 



Among the novelties: of the age is a seedless 

 apple. A tree has been found in Dutchess county 

 bearing this fruit. There are no blossoms ; the 

 bud forms and without any show of petals, the 

 fruit sets and grows entirely destitute of seeds. 

 In outward appearance the apples resemble Rhode 

 Island Greenings. 



