THE SOUTHERN" PLANTER. 403 



or bed with one or two horse plough, (as 

 necessity required,) when my plants were 

 ready for planting, laying ofT hills by a 

 regular step on the beds, and chopping 

 and patting with the hoe between the foot- 

 prints on which to plant. But if I were 

 now engaged in such work, I would tie a 

 piece of board, about the size of a hoe, to 

 the sole of my foot, and thus go ahead 

 with a long cane, requiring no hoe about it. 



For hill side, old land, I would plough 

 and harrow as above, and when my plants 

 called me, I would lay off rows horizon- 

 tally with a side hill or shovel plough, 

 turning the earth down, on which I would 

 go ahead with staff and foot-board, as 

 above recommended. 



No land which requires high bedding or 

 hilling to keep tobacco from drowning, 

 should be planted in tobacco, for it is a 

 critical experiment ; better put such in 

 grass to feed the poor cows. 



Do not understand from any remark 

 above made, that I object to deep plough- 

 ing of old clay lands for any crop ; for 

 where ploughing is necessary, that is 

 breaking fallow, I say plough deep. But 

 let it be remembered that where the soil is 

 deeply buried, some stimulant is necessa- 

 ry to give an impetus to the plant, particu- 

 larly tobacco, otherwise the young plant 

 will suffer for nourishment before the 

 roots do penetrate to the mould, thus be- 

 come dwarfish and never recover. A 

 mixture of guano and plaster in equal 

 quantities, append one tea spoonful to 

 each plant s few days after planting, is 

 perhaps the best stimulant for tobacco 

 which is to be had. 



Now friend, I would ask, what do you 

 dig up a hill for any crop for ? Permit me 

 to answer for you; just to have the fun of 

 digging it down again ; and thus killing 

 time twice over. It is useless in the gene- 

 ral to say any thing to old folks, for they 

 have fixed principles ; but I being an old 

 man, feel it a duty to give this command- 

 ment to the young. My sons I forbid your 

 ever digging up a hill in which to plant 

 any thing. The author of nature never 

 intended the roots of any plant to be above 

 ground, but in the ground ; therefore I 

 say make a hole for planting rather than a 

 hill. Do you make a hill for planting an 

 apple or other scion ? Pshaw ! a'way with 

 the hills ; it does seem to me that no 

 man in his proper senses will, in this en- 



lightened day, make a hill in which to 

 plant any thing, not even gowber pea. 



In closing I would just remark that 

 many persons recommend manuring to- 

 bacco ground with strong manure, and 

 that broadcast. Such manuring produces 

 strong coarse tobacco, equally offensive to 

 both nose and mouth, and hardly palata- 

 ble to a horn worm. And worse than 

 this, as such tobacco now commands but a 

 comparatively low price, it is not palata- 

 ble to the market. Better apply the ma- 

 nure to some other crop ; or if you will 

 have it for tobacco, then for this purpose 

 have two lots, and let the manure and a 

 crop of oats precede the tobacco. Sow the 

 oats at least two bushels to the acre, and 

 turn them under for manure when begin- 

 ning to ripen ; and the next year you Will 

 have large and fine tobacco, worth at least 

 double of the coarse stinking stuff grown 

 on dung. Don't be stingy with your seed, 

 nor tempted to cut the oats. Act wisely, 

 and you and your lands will all grow rich. 



If I had not read agricultural books, I 

 would yet be an agricultural fool. Read 

 Essays on agriculture my sons, and be 

 wise in discriminating between right and 

 wrong. Believing that no act or work of 

 man is perfect, I have ever tried to find 

 out a more perfect mode of business. He 

 who finds out the better mode of doing 

 any work, has the advantage start of others, 

 and he who does not promulgate his 

 knowledge for the benefit of others, is 

 selfish, unfit for society, and is a rebel and 

 foe to his country. 



LA DRUMMOND. 



June 1, 1857. 



Mapes', Hildreth's and Rhodes' Super- 

 phosphates. 



Mr. Editor — Since forwarding you my 

 article on the Superphosphates, I have re- 

 ceived and examined several others, the 

 result of which examination it may not be 

 amiss to communicate to your readers, 

 particularly as some of these manures are 

 now advertised in the Planter. 



" Mapes' JYiirogenized Superphosphate of 

 Lime" professes to be composed of equal 

 amounts of his "improved superphos- 

 phates" and dried blood, when in fact there 

 is no dried blood in it. This can be seen 

 by a mere casual inspection of the manure ; 

 if there was blood in it, it would, when 



