AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 567 



IBuHetin Mensuel De La Societe Imperiale Zoologique D'AccIamatation, Pari.?, 1858.] 



NEW SILK WORMS. 

 Medals awarded in Prussia, for the castor oil silk. 

 A medal given to M. Albiu Gros, for silk stuff made from the 

 oak silk worm. 



[London Farmers' Magazine, Maroh, 1858.] 



PLOWING BY STEAM— THE LATEST PATENT.^. 



The latest is by Richard Coleman, May 28, I855j a series of 

 plows iu one machine. 



Hand labor with the fork. — Mr. Mechi thought that steam 

 cultivation u'ould soon become the custom of the country ; that 

 two years ago he had found, that after all, depth of cultivation, 

 after good draiiiiug, was the true manure. Let the subsoil be 

 brought into contact with the air and they would find a treasure 

 whicli had never before been developed. He had every year 

 increased the depth of the cultivation on his land, and had 

 always been rewarded for it. Tliat recently he had a field all 

 dug over with the steel digging fork, and had found it more 

 economical, in its results, than plowing with horses. There were 

 five horses plowing in one field, and in another field four men 

 fork digging; and he found the latter cheaper at £2 per acre, 

 ($10,) the men earning 2s. 6d. per day (60 cents), than the five 

 horses and two men, in ordinary plowing. The more he saw of 

 horse plowing the more he was convinced that it was the worst 

 and most costly power that could be employed; but at present 

 is unavoidable. 



Mr. Fowler, the inventor of a steam plow, said he ventured to 

 say that with his steam plow, he thought he was in the right 

 direction, but admitted the superiority of hand spade cultivation, 

 over even steam plowing. But it was too expensive. That on 

 heavy clay land, steam cultivation equal to spade labor, could be 

 done for twelve shillings, (^3,) per acre. The Royal Agricultu- 

 ral Society had given no help. 



Mr. Pell — Lime is the oxide of calcium, a well known metal, 

 and is obtained by exposing shells, chalk, or lime-stone, to red heat, 

 which expells the carbonic acid gas and water; and lime, more 

 or less pure, results — is called quick lime, and is used on land 



