256 



NEW ENGLAND FAEMER. 



Aug. 



CONTENTS OF THIS NUMBER. 



AuRURt * Page 225 



System and Economy in Families — Simple Yeast 226 



Eradication of Bushes and Shrubs.... 227 



Harvesting Turnips 227 



Top<lressinR Grass Lands... 228 



Sheep Husbandry 228, 243, 252 



Making Butter 230, 231 



Patent Step Ladder — Few Words to Farmers 231 



Meteorological Record for May — Cabbage Fleas 232 



Making Bread— Preventive of Bots.. 232 



Retrospective Notes— Price of Wool in 1864 233 



Pruning Fruit Trees— Currant Worm 234 



Have Patience with the Boys 235 



PJxIracts and Replies 236, 251 



Facts Bearing on Caltle Breeding 236 



Return of the Birds— Summer Drink 237 



Horse Hoe — Corn- -Potatoes — Apple Tree Aphis 238 



Breeds and Management of Stock 230 



Death of Distinguisheil Agriculturists — Tenant Farming 240 



Time to Cut Wheat— Fine- Wooled Sheep in Illinois 240 



Multiplicity of Plants— Milk, Butter and Cheese 241 



Farming the Country's Main Stay--F,conomy Everything.... 245 



Season and Crops in Vermont — Leading Animals 246 



Planting Cabbages- Western Grain Crops 246 



Why Bees Work in the Dark 247 



Old Fashioned Comforts- The Portulacas 247 



Pure Water for Stock— Indian Corn 248 



Fire Flies— About Milking and Talking 248 



Wheat--Good Seed— Comsiock's Rotary Spader 249 



The Season— Crops— Drought 250 



Cleaning Government Beans 2S0 



Chickory ami Coffee— Butter Making •. 251 



Birds— Cherries--Insects 252 



New England Agricultural Society 253 



Curious Features of War 254 



Don't Stint the Colts 255 



Ladies' Department 255 



Review of the Markets 356 



CATTLE MARKETS FOR JULY. 



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

 ending July 20, 1864: 



NUMBER AT MARKET. 

 Shotes 

 600 



Cattle. 



June 29 1.503 



July 6 883 



" 13 1343 



" 2C 1913 



Sheep. 

 4134 

 4293 

 2995 

 5070 



230 

 400 



Fat Hogs, 



900 



600 



1600 



850 



Veals. 

 800 

 600 

 700 

 500 



Total 5642 16,492 



1230 



3950 



2600 



The following table exhibits the number oi cattle and sheep 

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

 ing four weeks last year ; also the total number since the firstof 

 January, of each year: 



THIS TEAR. LAST YEAR. 



Cattle. Sheep. Cattle. Sheep. 



Maine 10 



New Hampshire 362 



Vermont 1465 



Massachusetts 220 



Northern New York 210 



Western States 3357 



Canada 18 



Total for the four weeks 5,642 16,492 5,419 11,840 



Total, since Jan. 1,(29 >Tt;eks,)39,268 102,251 39,211 78,269 



PRICES. 



June 2^3. Jul 1/6- July IZ. July 20. 



Beef,l, 2, 3qnal 9 glS 9 ,al3 9 glS 9 igl3 



" ex.andprem 13J513^ 13^il3i 14 ©15 13igl4 



Sheep ^ flj 5 @ 6g 5 @ 6J 6@7 6J@ 8 



Lambs, each $4 @ 6h 4 (g6^ 4 @ 6J 4 iS6| 



Shotes, wholesale;.,.. .....g.lSlOJ — (g— 9Jgl0i — @10 



retail »....10 ©12 — @— 10 (312 11 @12 



I Fat hogs, live weight lljsll^ 11 &U — SHJ — (all 



I Beef hides, lOifflli ; tallow 10gl2 ; calfskins 25a28c ^ tb. 



1 Remarks. — Although the prices of beef have fluctuated some- 



i what during the past month, they have not reached a higher 



; point than that attained last month, and last market closed con- 



i siderably easier than the one immediately preceding. 



j Sheep gradually advanced in price until tlie last market, when 



I they took a large jump upwards — from $6.37 to $8 tf" 100 lbs., 



i on those bought in Albany. 



1 Milch cows very dull ; in consequence, in part no doubt, of 

 the drought which has parclKd up the feed in all this section. 



1 Nobody talks about working oxen as everything goes for beef. 

 Calves have been high— from $9 to $14 #" head. 



i Hides, pelts and tallow all seem to be going up with "every 



I thing else." 



I The following from our report of the market July 20, will show 

 the state of the market at that date: 



' G. W. Barker sold one pair of steers to S. F. Woodbridge at 

 lie #■ lb ; 5 to Mr. Winter at 10>^ ; 7 to Mr. Gage at lOc, 35 sk ; 

 and 5 of his lightest at 9c ■T ft. 



Geo. W. Morrison sold one pair of oxen laid at 2000 fts, for 

 $240 ; one pair, 1600 fts, for $195 ; one pair, 1500 fts, for 

 $182 ; 4 three-year-old steers, 2100 lbs. for $210 ; one cow, 600 

 fts, for $60 ; and 2 heiftrs, 6.50 fts, for $65. 



I. A. Blake sold 6 oxen to Henry Zoller, for $690, or from 11 

 to 12c #" ft ; one pair to Mr. Wenthworth for $165, or llj-^c W 

 ft ; 8 cows for $4.52, or lie, 5 two year-olds for $1.35, or 9c ^ 

 ft ; 4 heifers for $118, or 9>^c #■ ft ; and a steer and a cow for 

 $87, or 9c. 



Stephen Mann sold 6 oxen and 1 cow to S. S. Learnard to kill 

 and weigh, at 12'2C ; 8 small cattle to W. E. Gowing at 9^^c ; 

 and other stock, at from 9^'^c to lie ■^ ft, on his estimate of 

 their dressed weight. 



O. E. Taylor sold the four best oxen that we saw at Cam- 

 bridge, and rich ones they were for this season, for $575, or 

 ISijC #■ ft ; one pair for $215, or lie ; another for $2.30 or 12c ; 

 9 two-year-olds and one cow, to dress over 400 fts, for $40 each ; 

 2 heifers 550 fts, for $60, 8 other light cattle at 9c or jess {^ ft. 



Lambert Hastings sold 6 very nice 3 and 4-year-old steers, 

 laid to dress 900 fts. for nearly 13c 4f* lb. on his estimate of 

 their dead weight, although buyer hoped they would not cost 

 over PiijC ; his other fair cattle were sold from 12c to 10c ^ ft, 

 and some of the lightest at OJ^ ig 10c. 



A. N. Monroe sold 50 Western steers, live weight 1261 fcs, 

 each, at IS^^c, 32 sk, as his highest, and 24 light steers, 781 fts. 

 each, at 9c #■ lb, 42 sk, as his lowest sales ; 31 at lie, y^ sk ; 7 

 at 12'|c, >^ sk ; 6 at 12c, 35 sk ; 8 at lie, 35 sk ; 29 at lie, ^ 

 shrink. 



John Sawyer & Co. sold 35 steers at 12, | «k ; 25 at 13c, 34 

 sk ; and 7 at loyc, 37 sk. 



Mr. French sold what he considered a fine lot of New Hamp- 

 shire Iambs, for $5.25 •(?' head ; Luce & Tyler sold sheep and 

 Iambs at $5.40 ^ head, without weighing ; j. P. Fowler sold 265 

 sheep and lambs at $5.25 ■^ head ; JohnLarmon sold his lambs 

 at $5 ^ head and his sheep at 7»2« *' ^ ; one lot of Canada 

 Iambs brought $6.00. N. E. Rice sold lambs at $5 and sheep 

 at $6.60 ijf head ; Berry Long sold 192 sheep, 80 fts. each, at 

 7J^c r ft ; M. T. Shackett sold 150 sheep, 90 fts. each, to J. W. 

 Hollis, and 155 of 89 fts, to Jerry Pratt, at 7c ^ ft, and 62 

 lambs, at $5.25 ^ head ; one carload of Albany lambs we un- 

 derstand would cost a fraction over $6. One lot cf old sheep 

 were sold at Cambridge for 6^jC ; Lambert Hastings ~sold 400 

 lambs with a very few sheep at $5 to $6 #" head. 



