"•p^X^ • "^ ff "'^^ 



1861. 



THE ILLmOIS FAEMEE. 



237 



the members of the committee give their time, 

 and if nothing but the laudations of this or that 

 man is the object, both money and time will be 

 thrown away ; but we do not apprehend that the 

 committee will have any such lax views, but will 

 without any besitation throw out from competi- 

 tion any unworthy subject. In this trip, which 

 •will embrace a large portion of the State, we ex- 

 pect to meet many of our readers and to glean a 

 large amount of practical information. It is not 

 probable that a full report will be ready for this 

 number, and we shall continue the subjectin our 

 next. Should we tread on any tender toes or 

 commit any error, our pages will be open for cor- 

 rection. We shall carry the mantle of charity 

 with us, for being a farmer and nurseryman cur- 

 self, we know the drawbacks which attend the 

 calling. 



Leaving home on the 22d July, in passing 

 south we find the small grain nearly all harvest- 

 ed, now and then a stray patch of late oats slill 

 remains. Quite too large an amount of wheat is 

 yet in the shock, suffering daily loss from the 

 exposure to sun and dews. The corn crop looks 

 very fine, though later than usual until we re ch 

 the basin of Upper Egypt at Neogo, thence S'^uth 

 to Tamaroa, the crop is both late, small and a 

 poor stand. We met Mr. Hull, another member 

 ot the Farm Committee, at Centralia, Mr. Chase, 

 of Chicago, not arriving. Tuesday morning, the 

 23d, Mr. Yates found us at the hotel at Tamaroa 

 and drove us to his place, which is about two 

 miles distant to the southwest of the village. The 

 general character of the prairie hereabouts is al- 

 most level, and the soil a light, chalky one, easi- 

 ly dissolved in water, and in the wet season 

 forming a perfect mortar bed, almost impassable 

 for teams. The site of Mr. Yates' farm rises 

 from this level prairie in an oval form, sloping to 

 all points, and is some twenty feet in the center 

 above the surrounding level. In the general up- 

 heaval (his point was undoubtedly thrown thus 

 above the plain, for the sandstone, or silicious eon- 

 glomerate underlying the upper coal strata, is 

 within twelve feet of the surface at the apex of 

 the mound where the house is located, and the 

 well is sunk into this sandstone some forty-five 

 feet, where an abundant supply of water is found, 

 from which the lime is tolerably well filtered by 

 the sandstone. The farm contains two hundred 

 and twenty acres, all prairie, and distant from 

 the timber about two miles to the north and west. 

 The site is a delightful one, from which you over- 

 look the prairie on all sides. The prairie is but 

 a few milts in extent, but contaWis several simi- 



lar elevations, all of which are vastly better 

 adapted to fruits than the flat prairie, for from 

 these miniature table lands the cold air can roll 

 down to the lower level and thus produce frost, 

 while on these the fruit would m>' asurably escape. 

 The apple and most of the peach orchard occu- 

 pies the north and northeast side of the slope, 

 while the dwarf pears that to the northwest. So 

 regular is this slope that the surface witer can 

 be led either to the north or the west, at the plea- 

 sure of the cultivator. 



In entering the pear orchard from the east we 

 first came to one hundred White Doyennes, fine 

 thrifty trees, with a moderate crop of fruit, some 

 trees quite well loaded and others with none, or 

 but a few specimens. The next rows contain 

 two hundred Bartletts, containing a good fair 

 crop, many trees bending with the weight of 

 fruit, and all making a good show. On many of 

 the trees in the orchard we observed strips of 

 tin, which Mr. Y. informed us was for the pur- 

 pose of keeping oflf the crows that otherwise 

 would destroy the fruit as fast as it ripened, but 

 these tin strips kept them at a respectful distance, 

 and the crop was thus saved. Twentyfive tree* 

 of the English Jargonelle were not doing well, 

 and gave us an unfavorable impression of their 

 value. The next in order was one hundred and 

 sixty-five Stevens' Genessee ; trees fine, but no 

 fru t ; last year they hsd grown a bountiful crop. 

 The above trees had been set in the spring of 

 1857, of two year old trees, while the remainder 

 of the orchard was set at the same time, of three 

 year old trees. These latter were much tte larg- 

 est, apparently more than a year's difference, and 

 we can only account for it that they were origi- 

 nally much better trees when taken from the nur- 

 sery. The difference between first and second 

 class dwarf pear trees is a wide one, and one 

 that tree planters should be careful to regarl. — 

 A hundred Buffum's loam up likeLombardy pop- 

 lars, healthy, vigorous trees, with a few speci- 

 mens of fruit. This variety is not a young 

 bearer, but will probably give a better account of 

 itself some half a dozen years hence. 



Twenty-five Seekels are thrifty and contain 

 fine specimens, though not abundant ; among 

 them we fonnnd a single specimen badly crack- 

 ed, the only one that we saw in the orchard ; the 

 tree was thrifty and contained about a dozen other 

 specimens, all fine. Twenty-five Summer Virga- 

 lieu trees, not thrifty, yet presenting quite a show 

 of (^indifferent fruit. Twenty-five of B. d'Arem- 

 berg, very thrifty, with a few specimens of 

 fruit. One hundred and twelve trees of the fa- 



