rer 



128 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



April 



CONTENTS OF THIS NUMBER. 



Thoughts Snapested by April Page 97 



Horse Tr:iinine ^'^ 



Asiatic Kowls— Foot Rot in ''heep— Value of Manure fl9 



White Crooknt'ck Squa?!!— Asvaragrus R J<is 100 



Product of a Dairy— Kxperimfnt< with Manures 100 



Diseas'' in Apt>te<i— Theory and Experiment 101 



HiRh prices of Wool 103 



Extracts and Ileplies 103, 111, 122 



Early Turnip'! 104 



Ciilturo of Onions 105 



Roastid I.fimb and Green Peas 1('6 



Sha'l we Pvodnce our own Sweetening? lOfi 



Pis-ase-- of Farm Stock • 107 



Butter-Makini not a Mystery 1C9 



More Ac'ursUe F;umini; Needed '10 



Sprins Knees in the Horse I'l 



Our Houses and Grounds about them 112 



Soil for Flower* — Pneumonia US 



Ketrospective Notes 114: 



Choppinsr Feed for TTor^es— Wr.sh fir Fruit Trees 115 



Grub in the Head of Sheep— The Muskrat 116 



Bark Louse Para-ite— Oepth of Coal Beds 117 



Singular -\ceid''nt to florse — To Cure Sheep of Jumping. .. .IIS 



Action of Roots of Plants — Hon- to jret cood CeUry 119 



Fl<>wers for Parlor and Garden — Culture of Lettuce 110 



Grasses • • • • • • .120 



Seedinc Land to Gra=s. 122 



What else should be Taught in Schools? 123 



Law and Manners of the Knad — Merino and other Sheep 124 



MeteoroloL'ical Record for January — Grefn Cheese 125 



New Remtdv for Borer — To Grow Peaches every Year ViS 



Culture of Rpriui! Wheat 1 26 



l,adies' Department 127 



Keview of Cattle Markets 128 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Initial Letter"?" 97 



Winter Crooekneck Squash •• .100 



Onions 10 > 



V-iUa.:ie Flomestead, Unimproved 112 



Village Homestead, Improved 113 



CATTLE MARKETS FOR MARCH. 

 The following is a summary of the reports for the five weeks 

 ending March 16, 1864: 



NUMBER AT MARKET. 

 CaWe. Sheep. Slates. Fat Hogs. Veals. 



Feb. 17 1002 4722 2) — ' — 



" 24 1399 3209 25 — 50 



Mar. 2 1902 4703 12 — SO 



9... 

 16... 



.1047 

 .1785 



5ltS4 

 5987 



Total 7,133 24.605 



102 



50 



50 



75 

 100 



275 



The following table exhibits the number ol cattle and sheep 

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

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

 January, of each year: 



THIS 



CatVe. 



Maine 608 



New Hampshire. 703 



Vermont 1703 



Massachusetts 896 



Rhode Island 14 



Northern New York 171 



Western States 2978 



Canada 62 



Total, last five weeks 7,135 



Total,sinceJ.an. 1,(11 weeks, )16,510 



PRICES. 



Fab. 17. Feb. 24. 



Beef,l,2, 3qual...74310 8 QIO^ 



" ex. and prem.lO aiO| 10.^311 



Sheep i lambs,-^ Ib.ej.gS ejgS 



«' " •xtra.8Ja9J 8 iggj 



Shotes, retail 7 (§9 7 ig9 



Beef hides, "T lb ...94 alO 9^*10 

 PeU8,she€p&lamb8.$3i54 $3.^24 



Remarks. — One of the most noticeable characteristics of the 

 market during the past five weeks is the prices which beef cattle 

 have commanded. T le prediction uttered by some of the dro- 

 vers last Fall, that before the Spring opened the Bricrhtnn butch- 

 ers would pay 12c ^ lb for beef cattle, has been fully verified. 

 Not only single pairs but small choice lots hive b.>en sold at 

 those Azures ; and the quotations of the retail market are 8 @28 

 cents #■ tt>. And yet at these prices all the cattle that are offered 

 for sale find a ready market For the correspondins five weeks 

 last year, our quotations were from b\ to S^e, and for the year 

 before from .'i J g 7c ; and yet the amount of beef consumed !■ 

 abont'the same as last year. 



The prices for sheep have declined slowly during this period, 

 and are now but little if any higher than one year ago. It will 

 be noticed that there were only about three-fifihs as many in 

 number at market last year as this year, thus far. In conse- 

 quence of grain being so dear, sheep as well as cattle are sent 

 to market in poor condition. 



Working oxen are from $100 to $200 #■ pair, and farmers are 

 afraid to buy. 



Sales of Cattle and Sheep. 



The following is from our report of sales, March 16: 



Lemuel Stearns marketed one cow this week, fatted by J. M . 

 Smith, of Sunderland, Mass., of Durham blood, which was as 

 large and fat as a premium ox. The rootsof the tail, instead 

 of forming a ridge, lay in a depression, so tliickly was the flesh 

 laid ' n each side of the back bone. The proof of the pudding 

 is said to be in the eating, and the proof of eatlie, after all your 

 pufEng, is in the selling. By this test Mr. Smith's cow returns 

 her compliments to l:er feedpr in the form of fifieen ten dollar 

 bills. If one hundred and fifty dollars don't prove her a good 

 cow, then no dictionary words of ours can do it. Mr. Stearns 

 said she would dress over 1200 lbs. 



W. I. Sabine sold one pair of o.xen to J. Dana, laid at 2300 fts., J 

 for $250 ; and another pair for $150 ; 4 other oxen, at 9>^c ^ 

 lb., 34 per cent. sk. 



E. Robbins sold 4 large oxen to S S. Learnard. One pair in , 

 particular, fed by B. W. Gleason, of Rockbottom, weighed at 

 home, about three weeks since, 5400 lbs. the largest one weigh- 

 ing 2900 fts. They were not at all overfatted, but in a good 

 healthy state, and were in every respect a noble pair of bul- 

 locks. The othf-r jiair weighing 4480 ttjs. at home, we under- 

 stood were also fed Ity Sir. Gleason, were grand good oxen. 



C. *V. Bailey sold one of those pairs of oxen which bring the 

 big prices which we report, and, the drovers s-ay, lead farmers 

 to think their oxen, of much inferii r quality ought to bring the 

 same high fisiures. i hese oxen were fatted by Henry Nutt, of 

 Ea'^t Montpelier, were laid to dress 2500 lbs., and brought $300. 

 .\raong a lot of 14 good oxen, sold at 10 'Jc, >s sk, Mr. Bailey 

 pointed out a pair, the best of the lot, laid to drtss 2100 lbs., 

 which were fd by Mr. Alger, of Stowe. Vt., and which, if sold 

 alone, we thought were good enough for a little mere money. 

 Mr. Bailey also sold at Briuhton this afternoon one pair of oxen 

 to H. ZoUer, laid at LiOO fts., for $136 ; and was dwelling on 

 five or six young cattle, the last of his ri2, at 9c, 3S sk. 



The best'River cattle at Brighton, and Mr. Smith and Mr.Day 

 had some rich ones, 11 'ic. 



Geo. W. Morrison sold 4 o.xen, laid at 3600 lbs., for ••^350, one 

 pair, laid at 1^50 fts., for $187 ; ore pair lail at 1^00 lbs., tor 

 $188 : one pair, 1700 lbs., for $170 ; 2 steers, 900 lbs., for $72; 

 and one cow for 10c to kill and weigh. 



A. .V. Monroe sold 29 Western cattle, 1350 fts., each, live 

 weitlit, at lO'^c, 34 sk ; 29 others 1440 lbs., each, at lie, 30 sk ; 

 59, average live weight 1123 tbs., at lOkc, 31) sk ; f.l averaging 

 1200 tbs. at 9'jC, )a sk ; 14 weighing 1448 lbs., each, at lie, 30 

 sk ; 5 of 1050 tbs., each, at 9c, 3"> sk ; 6 average live weight 

 1300 lbs., at lOlj'c, 30 sk ; and 2 weighing 1170 lbs. at lO.^c, 

 3.') shrink. 



J. E. Wight sold a good bunch of 75 sheep, 100 lbs. each, at 

 8",c ; E. Wiggin sold 59 sVeep, weighing 39S0 fcs. together, at 

 73^c 4^ tb ; yf\ H. Bardwell sold 90 light sheep, at6?^c, 23 se- 

 lected cossets — the picit of an extra lot — averaging 150 lbs, at 

 9i<c ^ ft), and 48 weighing 5600 lbs, almost 117 ib^. each, for 

 8Ji^c ^ lb,- exi>eeted 9c, sure ; D. R. Wait fold a fim k of 95 well 

 fLd sheep, 105 ttis. each, at S'ic, and 35 at 7 "Xc : J. Lyman sold 

 100 at 7c "(i' lb ; F. Bartlttt sold 94 sheep, 6490 lbs. at 6'„c ^ lb ; 

 G. W. Barker sold 58 sheep at 8c ; Fargo, Lord & Co., s dd 360 

 Michigan line wooled sheep to Bates, Hollis & Gibs, weighing 

 113 tbs. at home, about 93 lbs. from the cars at Cambridge, for 

 .^,%W lb. 



STORE CATTLE.— We cannot perceive any great change in 

 the sale of working oxen and milch cows, — which are the only 

 kinds of cattle at market now a-days which are regarded as 

 stores. We noticed yesterday a few slim looking cows (rom Al- 

 bany, but did not learn where they went to. Most of the Maine 

 cattle are sold as beef— some among the premiums. Of which 

 Henry Day sold somt 3 or 4 pairs of 12cwt. bullocks, at 11 %c <^ 

 lb, and one pair of workers, 6 ft., 3 year-olds, nice and trim, for 

 $132. 



D. G. Stevens one large, rough looking yoke, 6 ft. 7 or 8 in., 

 for $150, and a pair of 3 year-olds, 6_ft. 2 iu., for $125. 



