THE ILLINOIS F^RIMER. 



125 



•will soon be up and doing, and we doubt 

 not that thej can settle the question of 

 a Horticultural Fair in the aflGirmative. — 



Ed. -r 



. .» - — 



The Bishop Hill Colony— Farming on a Grand 

 Seale. , 



We were very agreeably surprised, on 

 our recent visit to Bishop Hill, at the 

 signs of thrift and prosperity visible on 

 every hand. First, it is a beautiful place 

 handsomely elevated, and adorned with 

 a grove on the northwest. The build- 

 ings are substantial and comfortable, 

 and one, originally designed for a hotel, 

 is a fine specimen of architecture. A 

 large clock occupies the cupolo, and from 

 that point a fine view of the surrounding 

 country can be obtained, including a 

 eight of Altona and Cambridge. The 

 utmost neatness is observable in and 

 around the dwellings of the people. It 

 is hardly necessary to add that the peo- 

 ple themselves are models of neatness 

 and thrift. -' 



The Colony, we learned, now numbers 

 about seven thousand persons. Some 

 months ago it was divided, the seceding 

 portion taking the name of the "Bishop 

 Hill Company," and receiving their 

 share of the property, though all live 

 upon the domain as before. We were 

 told that a general division of the prop- 

 erty is in contemplation, to take effect 

 next fall or winter, so as to give every 

 man and woman his or her share, and 

 thus do away with the community fea- 

 ture of the Colony. 



The domain o£ the Colony embraces 

 12,000 acres, about 9,000 of which are 

 under cultivation. To one accustomed 

 to farming on a small scale, their oper- 

 ations seem to be immense, as in fact 

 they are. Broomcorn is a speciality with 

 them, and they have now about 3,000 

 acres under cultivation. The crop ave- 

 rages about a ton to four acres, and the 

 price about ^100 per ton ; upon which 

 estimate this year's crop will be worth 

 $75,000. The colonists usually manu- 

 facture about 5,000 dozen brooms annu- 

 ally, and the ballance of the crop is sold 

 at the East. Of other crops, they have 

 now on the ground about 2,000 acres of 

 wheat ,•• 2,000 of corn ; say 2,000 of va- 

 rious other crops, such as sugar cane, 

 potatoes, etc., and 1,000 acres of grass, 

 Hungarian and timothy. The whole 

 estate is admirable condition, showing 

 unwearied care and excellent judgment 

 on the part of the managers. The stock 

 of tho domain is large, and the barns 

 and sheds for cattle and broom-corn are 

 of mammoth proportions. -, 



"Want of time and space compels us 

 ta omit many interesting particulars. — 

 Bishop Hill Colony is worth going a 

 hundred miles to see, and we hope to 

 make it another visit at no distant day. 



Remarks. — We are indebted to the 



Henry county Dial for the above. The 

 editor visited the Colony on the 4th inst, 

 in company^with some 5,000 from Kewa- 

 nee, Gralva, Cambridge, Altona. Gales- 

 burg, Quincy, , Toulon, Lafayette, and 

 other towns, who had been invited by 

 their Swedish friends to assis in the due 

 celebration of our national birth day. — 

 If these foreigners, without a proper 

 knowledge of our soil, climate and modes 

 of culture, can so well succeed, surely 

 those to the manor born ought to show 

 better results than they often do. But 

 we suspect that they purchased few use- 

 less implements, and that they have no 

 interest account to pay to merchants for 

 expensive dry goods. When they divide 

 up this vast domain into a hundred farms 

 we shall expect to see the same thrift 

 continued. — Ed. 



fieport of Viseonsln Frnit Growers Associa- 

 sion. 



Through the kind attention of the 

 Secretary, A. G. Handford, Esq., we 

 are in receipt of this valuable document, 

 containing ninety-five pages. 



Considerable difference of opinion 

 prevailed as to the value of protection, 

 and no definate conclusion arrived at. 

 So long as planters confound clearing in 

 timber land with timber belts through 

 which the wind will sift, we shall see this 

 difference of opinion ceiatiflue. Small 

 trees preferred for planting. Most 

 speakers recommended mulching, so did 

 we formerly, but further experience 

 has suggested that frequent stirring the 

 surfaee around newly set trees, with the 

 hoe or steel rake is much better, when 

 this cannot be done, mulching will an- 

 swer. ■■ ':.:■■■. "- -■■'- ■;■•■-■'"; -^ 



: PLANTING OF EVBRGEENS, ;, 



The Secretary recommended early 

 planting and stirring the surfacejafter. 

 The President, Mr. Brayton, would 

 plant in July and mulch ; that may all 

 do for Wisconsin, but we have found the 

 Secretary right, so far as our climate is 

 concerned. 



The bark louse came in for a share 

 of talk, good culture, thorough drain- 

 age washes of lye, sal soda and tobacco 

 juice recommended; also in early Spring 

 before buds start, of tar and oil, equal 

 parts; linseed oil and common tar[mixed 

 by stirring while heating; when cool, ap- 

 ply with a paint brush a thin coat to all 

 parts of the tree, except the growth 



made after June, on which there will bo 

 no lice. 



The green aphis is destroyed by dip- 

 ping the infected twiggs in quassia 

 water, made of one pound quassia chips, 

 and eight gallons of water, boil an 

 hour. . ■-■'<■'■■■ ?''[:/, '■_'. 



.! •'■■'. -■ < -.;• •'k;.:^ ■■■ FRUITS. ;• .::;■;; •■; .: 



Early Harvest, Red June, Red As- 

 trachan, and Sops of Wine, recom- 

 mended for Summer; Dutchess of Olden- 

 burgh, Maiden's Blush, Fall Orange, 

 for Autumn; Dumelow's Seedling, Little 

 Romanite, and others were more or less 

 approved for Winter. The report con- 

 tains a large amount of pomological in- 

 formation. With all the draw backs 

 to fruit culture, that our Wisconsin 

 friends have meet with, they show a 

 noble perseverance in the cause and are 

 deserving of success. In the way of a 

 report, they are a long way ahead of our 

 own State Society, but at our next meet- 

 ing we hope they will not keep so far be- 

 hind their more enthusiastic, though less 

 fortunate neighbors. 



Illinois Natural History Society. 



This Society met in Phenlx Hall 27th June &t 9 a. u. Prof. 

 Turner the President in the chair. The first biudness In order, 

 was amending the Constitution. The office of General Su- 

 perdant was abolished, and the duties hereafter is to devoWe 

 on the Secretary, to which is added the office of liibrarian. 

 The aasessmeat was changed from two to one dollar. 



ADDRESS OF MB. WALSH. .■-■....; 



It has never been our good fortune to listen to a more 

 earnest and jpfted speaker, en the subject of insects 

 nor one better versed in the mysteries of their wonderful 

 transformation and power of procreation, than Mr. W., of 

 Kock Island. Knowing that we had little space to devote to 

 the subject we took but few notes, and shall not attempt a 

 synopsis of his very able and interesting remarks. He com- 

 menced by saying that were a foreign army of men to In- 

 Tade our shores, our law givesr would vie with each other In 

 large expenditure and preparations to oppose the invaders. 

 No one would object, nor think of showing the white feather, 

 but when an army of insects that has the power to lay waste 

 our fields, and to despoil the forest of its foilage, have in- 

 vaded our shores, no tocsin is sounded, no preparations are 

 made to meet and destroy them, though devastation mark 

 their way, more fearful than the invader armed with imple- 

 ments of war. At this time the wheat crop amounts to one 

 hundred and twenty millions of bushels. Now the insect 

 enemies of the wheat plant, the Hessian Fly, the Midge, the 

 Chintz Bug, etc., annually destroy at least one fourth of the 

 entire crop, or one-flfth of wheat we should harvest, or of the 

 value of twenty-two millions of dollars, at the same time all 

 other crops are damaged in about the same ratio, and we would 

 be safe in estimating the entire damage at one hundred million 

 of dollars, a sum greater than the annual expenses of our gov- 

 ernment, and yet in the United States, this little army almost 

 unseen, is annually on the increase. Twenty years since the 

 apple tree bark louse was almost unknown at the west, five 

 years ago they were a novelty in Michigan, but now they had 

 reached the Mississippi, as predicted some years since by Dr. 

 Harris ; they were still speading west and south, they haid 

 nearly destroyed the orchards of Wisconsin and Northern 

 Uiinois, and their march was still In triomph. He would ask 

 where is the army, and the officers to defend us against the 

 ravages of these contemptable in size, but not in number of 

 Insect enemies that are devastating our fields, our orchards, 

 and our gardens. Congress does little, our State^Legislature 

 have done little; while the great army of insects are pressing 



on; and now an array of ^rasshopers are marching down 

 from the north-west. They have overrun Minnesota, and 

 have reached the north-western part of Illinois, while our 

 law givers are discussing obstractions. Some years ago Con- 

 gress sent a Mr. Glover, at that time an eminent entomolgist 

 to examine and report on the inseets injurious to the great 

 staples of the South, what lie was paid is l>eyond my know- 

 ledge, but this Is all that Congress has done of any value 

 from the revolution down to the present time. The State of 

 Massachusetts made a beggarly appropriation to Dr. Harris, 

 but his work is now out of print. New Jersey employed Dr, 

 Jack, and so did the State of Michigan at a subsequent date. 

 New York has for some years employed Dr. Fitch at a salary 

 of a thousand dollars, about suflicient to pay his booksellers 

 bill. Now taking all these sums by the General and State 

 Governments together since the revolution, they would not 

 all exceed |20,000, or an average of $250 per annum. (We 

 think this an tinder estimate, taking the expense of printing 



