364 



THE ILLINOIS FA-HMER. 



something, but every man has not the op- 

 portunity to read. It is conversation tliat 

 improves. Ifany of us, learned or unlearn- 

 ed, deduct what he has learned by conversa- 

 tion from what he knows, he would find but 



very little left, and that little not of the most 



valuable kind. It is conversation; it is the 

 meeting of men, face to face, and talking 

 over what they have common in interestj it 

 is this intercourse that makes men sharp, in- 

 telligent, ready to communicate to others, 

 and ready to receive intimations from them, 

 and ready to act upon those only which they 

 receive by this communication. 



Therefore, if there were not a thing ex- 

 hibited — if there were noi a good pair of 

 steeds, nor a fine horse, nor a likely cow in 

 the whole county — if there be no society, if 

 there be ladies, wives and daughters, if there 

 be those connected with the tillage of the 

 land, I say that these annual meetings are 

 highly important to progress in the art to 

 which they refer. I came here as a poor 

 farmer, to meet with other better farmers, 

 ready to receive from them any intimation 

 their experience may have taught, and de- 

 sirous only of suggestingsomethingfor their 

 reflection which, now or hereafter, may draw 

 their attention, and draw it usefully to some 

 thing in the agricultural art. — Ilun. Daniel 



Webster. 



„0, 



How TiiEY Predict the Weather at 

 THE Smithsonian Institute. — Prof. 

 Henry, at the Scientific Association, gave an 

 account of the method pursued each day at 

 the Smithsonian Institute to record and pre- 

 dict the weather. They have a map of the 

 United States hung upon a board, with pins 

 stuck through it at the points where the ob- 

 servers are stationed. The institute has 

 daily reports by telegraph from many of 

 these points. Each morning an assistant 

 hangs a cord on the pins to indicate the state 

 of the weather — black if raining, green if 

 snowing, brown if cloudy, white if fair. All 

 storms travel east, and thus they are enabled 

 to predict with great certainty the condition 

 of the weather twelve hours in advance. 



Cost of Raising Wheat. — At a town- 

 ship meeting held in Logan township, Peoria 

 county, recently, the (juestion of the profit 

 of raising wheat was discussed, and the fol- 

 lowing estimate on twenty-five acres was 

 made and agreed upon as fair : 



Keut.at $o6i) „ $S" 5u 



Plow iug 2b 00 



howiijg 2 00 



Harrowing > 12 00 



Si-nd, 37 )/^ buiihelHHt25ceHtti „ W8 75 



HarvtBtiug aud putting iu sbucliH U7 50 



$192 75 



Cost of threshing and getting to market, 

 18 cents per bushel. With wheat selling 

 at 75 cents per bushel, it would require 13^ 

 bushels to the acre to pay expenses. 



Dressing for Roast Fowls. — Spread 

 pieces of stale but tender wheaten bread 

 liberally with butter, and season rather 

 high with salt and pepper, working them 

 into the butter; then dip the bread in 

 wine, and use it in as large pieces as is 

 convenient to stuff the bird. The delici- 

 ous flavor which the wine gives is very 

 penetrating, and it gives the fowl a ricli 

 gamey character, which is very pleasant. 



The Illinois Farmer. 



We shall soon enter upon the 5th volume 

 of the Illinois Farmer. We are anxious to 

 greatly extend the subscription of this paper. 

 This can be done by a small effort on the 

 part of those who are now subscribers. We 

 ask them to make this effort. We believe 

 that in doing this they will subserve the in- 

 terest of our great agricultural community as 

 well as our own. No farmer ought to be 

 without an agricultural periodical. The 

 price of ours is so low, that every farmer can 

 have it. Will farmers, to save the sum of 

 75 cents, deprive their families of an agri- 

 cultural periodical ? The produce of a sin- 

 gle fowl, will pay for it. 



We give below a prospectus issued two 

 months since. We ask our readers to ex- 

 amine it, and to do what they can to receive 

 subscriptions. They will lay us under obli- 

 gations in doing so. The main object the 

 editor of this paper has in bestowing his 

 labor upon it, is to advance the interests of 

 the profession with the success of which he 

 is identified. 



TUB ILLINOIS FARMER 



On the first of January, 1860, The 

 Illinois Farmer will have been published 

 four years. In presenting the pros- 

 pectus for the fifth volume, we will say- 

 that it will be continued in its present 

 form, be published on the first of each 

 month, and will, as formerly, be devoted 

 to the interests of the farmers of Illi- 

 nois, aiming to treat all matters which 

 come under its notice in a plan and com- 

 prehensive manner, so as to be entirely 

 understood by all its readers. The ex- 

 perience of the past will enable us to 

 improve The Farmer ', and we trust will 

 also render it worthy of the continued 

 patronage of the farmers of our State. 



The Farmer, being published butonce 

 a month, does not come into competition | 

 with other Agricultural publications of ■ 

 Illinois ; and the same facts requires 

 that it be exclusively occupied with I 

 matters pertaining to Agriculture and 

 Domestic Ec>jnom3\ 



The small price of the publication will 

 enable every farmer to procure it, and 

 no farmer, at this day, can afford to 

 carry on liis business without one or 

 more of the Agricultural Papers. 



In clubs or packages it is sent to sub- 

 scribers at a very low price, and but 

 little above its cost. With a very little 

 effort our friends can get up large pack- 

 ages in most neighborhoods and can in 

 this manner be essential service to them 

 and to us. 



Latterly, the Illinois Farmer has 

 been extensively awarded as premiums 

 AT COUNTY FAIRS. We suggcst to officcrs 

 of Agricultural Societies the more ex- 

 tensive use of Agricultural Papers for 

 this purpose. It is obvious that this 



disposition of them (scattering them, 

 perhaps, where they will not otherwise 

 go,) will be of more real service to the 

 pe*^ pie as premiums, than any other 

 which may be awarded them. The sub- 

 ject is worthy of the serious considera- 

 tion of those gentlemen who do the labor 

 of the County Agricultural Societies. — 

 The price of the Illinois Farmer, in 

 large numbers, is so low as to make this 

 suggestion of importance to Agricultural 

 Societies, also, as a pecuniary measure. 



We invite our agricultural friends 

 throughout the State to interest them- 

 selves for us in behalf of our next vol- 

 ume ; and we promise on our part to do 

 our best to promote an interest to which 

 our life is devoted. 



As heretofore The Farmer will be un- 

 der the editorial control of S. Francis, 



Esq., Corresponding Secretary of the 

 State Agricultural Society, and being 

 published at Springfield, the center of 

 the State, is well adapted for general 

 circulation and usefulness. 



Each number contains forty- eight 

 columns of reading matter, including the 

 market reports, etc. It is printed with 

 clear type on fine white paper, and will 

 make a neat volume for binding. 



TERMS: 



0u«i copy one year in alvauce $1 00 



Five cupiee " •• 3 75 



Ten '• " " 7 50 



[And one to the person K^ttiu^ up the < lub.j 

 Fiftf>-n copii'S and over, i'i]/^ cts. each, and uuti to tlie 

 perBou gc-tti k up the club. 



Cc uuiy Agricultural iucietiea supplied at 62)^ ctg. per 

 copy. 



Specimen copies furnished on appli- 

 cation. 



Address : The Illinois Farmer, 



Spring^eld Illinois. 

 ' — — — 



Boiling Potatoes. — The Irish method 



of boiling potatoes, for obvious reasons, 



ought to be as good as any. Here is 



the practice adopted by many of that 

 ilk, and not a few besides: Clean wash 

 the potatoes and leave the skin on; 

 then bring the water to a boil and throw 

 them in. As soon as boiled soft enough 

 for a fork to be easily through them, 

 dash some cold water into the pot, let 

 the potatoes remain two minutes, and 

 then pour off the water. This done, 

 half remove the pot lid, and let the pota- 

 toes remain over a slow fire till the 

 steam is evaporated; then peel and set 

 them on the table in an open dish. Po- 

 tatoes of a good kind thus cooked, will 

 always be sweet, dry and mealy. A 

 covered dish is bad for potatoes, as it 

 keeps the steam in, and makes them soft 



and watery. 



«•• 



To Remove Freckles. — The best prep- 

 aration to remove freckles, which are so 

 common at this season, is a teaspoonful of 

 cold, sour milk, and a small quantity of scra- 

 ped horse ra^lish. Let it stand from nine 

 to twelve hours, then use it to wash the 

 parts affected two or three times a day. An- 

 other mixture of a h.ilfa drachm of ammonia, 

 two drachms of lavender water, and half a 





