222 



NEW ENGLAND FARIVIER. 



May 



ajTulate tlie albumen between the muscular fibres 

 of the meat, which therefore runs into the 

 water, and rises to the surface as a scum. 



"The best way to boil meat to make it ten- 

 der is this : — Put your joint in very brisk boil- 

 in<i^ water; after a few minutes, add a little 

 cold water. The boiling water will fix the al- 

 bumen, which will prevent the water from soak- 

 ing into the meat. Keep all the juices in, and 

 prevent all the muscular fibre from contracting. 

 The addition of cold Avater will secure the 

 cooking of the inside of the joint, as well as of 

 the surface. 



"ir//?/ is MEAT TOUGH that has been boiled 

 too long ? 



"Because the albumen becomes hard, like the 

 white of a hard-boiled egg." 



From Chamber's Journal. 

 OUR LANE. 



WTiere the grass springs and soft winds blow, 

 And hawthorns wear the only snow; 

 • When lads and Lasses stop once more 

 To play about the school-house door; 

 And lambs are white upon the leas, 

 And stars on the horse-chestnut trees, 

 And birds begin to build again — 

 'Tis sweet to watch them iu Our Lane. 



Wlion swallows have their summer made; 



And lazy sheep move with the Shade; 



And the dew loiters on the grass, 



Where sweet-breaihed cows graze as yoa pass : 



When greedy trout leap by the mill; 



And youth goes gaily down the hill — 



Wlio would not be a lad again, 



To meet his lassie in Our Lane ? 



When gossamer floats everywhere; 

 And golden apples scent the air; 

 And rou:id about their ancient roots. 

 Vast pear trees shower their tiny fruits; 

 And red plums binsb 'midst yellow leaves; 

 And summer friends have left our eaves ; 

 When 0!iks their leaves no longer hold, 

 And cliostnut trees chanare green for gold; 

 And wheat is stacked and sown .again — 

 Then wondrous tints light up Our Lajic. 



When cheeks look brighter 'gainst the snow; 

 And crimson holly berries glow, 

 And ivy reigns, and yew trees sneer 

 At oak and elm, now sad and drear. 

 When apples all are pressed or stored; 

 And ants sit proudly by their hoard ; 

 AVIien pleasant piths look dull and gray, 

 And old men rest upon their way; 

 And blackliirds know not where to feast. 

 And all their pleasant songs have ceased— 

 Let tliem \h\ tb:i!ikfnl in Our Lane, 

 If hips and haws ra.ay yet remain. 



Hearken to what wise black birds say; 

 "Our spring savv many a merry day; 

 In summer there were strawberries; 

 In autumn, we'd the tilbert trees; 

 We tasted all the year could bring, 

 To mellow autumn from briglit spring. 

 If nuts and cherries all are gone. 

 There's something lo look back upon; 

 We deem not life unjust because 

 It comes at last to hips and haws." 



—For six years Mr. R. W. Bucl, of Fr.ariklin, 

 N. Y., A^as succcs.sful in raising onions with no 

 other manure tliun Icachctl ashes, of wliich he has 

 applied about a l)iislicl to the square rod. Last 

 year liis crop failed, as he was troubled by the 

 maggot. 



ON FERMENTING MANURES. 



NE of the important, and 

 yet unsettled questions in 

 farming, is as to the best 

 condition in lohich to use 

 manure ; that is, whether 

 ^-F" in its fresh, crude state ; 

 in a state of partial fer- 

 _ mentation : or when the 

 ;ft\ process is carried so far 

 as to reduce the manure 

 to a fine and soft mass. 

 This question is some- 

 times a vexatious one, 

 and is likely to remain so 

 till an extensive series of 

 judicious experiments shall have been made on 

 the subject by competent persons, equally 

 qualified by theoretical and practical knowl- 

 edge to arrive at precise results, and to be 

 able to communicate them. 



Good farmers vary considerably in their 

 practice ; some apjily manure fresh from the 

 cellar or heaps under the bam windows ; some 

 haul it to the field, deposit in large heaps, 

 comport with peat or other crude materials, 

 and allow a sliglit degree of fermentation to 

 take place before applpng it to the soil, while 

 others throw every thing together and let na- 

 ture take her own course with it, — and nature, 

 in such cases provides a pretty swift process of 

 decay. 



AYe have experimented sufficiently in this 

 matter to bring clear convictions, that the best 

 mode is to apply manure to the land in an en- 

 tirely crude, unferraented condition, in the au- 

 tumn, and plow it under the surface to the 

 depth of three inches. But this course can 

 only be pursued with the summer manure. 



If fields intended for hoed crops are plowed 

 in the fall, they may receive green manure in 

 the spring, just as soon as the soil is sufficiently 

 pliable to fall to pieces when stirred, and then 

 if the manure is immediately plowed under, 

 decomposition will take place sufficiently fast 

 to furnish the growing crop with the aliment it 

 needs. 



In this way there is no loss of manure. Not 

 only are all its valuable qualities saved, but 

 they are fed out, as it were, at such times and 

 in such quantities as best suit the plants that 

 require them — much as Ave feed our i.'omestic 

 animals at such times and Avith such portions 

 as arc best suited for them. 



