162 



THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



and cheapness in the construction of rods, else 

 we cannot hope for their being generally used. 

 Hence, any appendage that is not decidedly ad- 

 vantageous, ought to be avoided. 



5. "Are not vanes, balls and ornaments, which 

 are often placed on rods, obstructions to the fluid?" 



I think these appendages do not generally 

 effect the efficacy of a rod. 



6. "Should not lightning rods have a clean, 

 smooth surface ; and would not a coating of tin 

 be beneficial ?" 



I do not suppose it to be important that the 

 surface should be smooth ; but it ought to be free 

 from rust, — which greatly impairs the conduct- 

 ing power of iron. A coating of black paint — 

 the basis of which is charcoal, (a good con- 

 ductor,) or, better, a galvanized surface — which 

 is not liable to oxidize, is essential to the perma- 

 nent efficacy of a rod. 



The most essential points in the construction 

 of a rod, appear to me to be these : that the rods 

 should project sufficiently high above surround- 

 ing objects, and terminate in a bright metallic 

 spinale, — that its parts should have as perfect 

 continuity as possible, and that it should descend 

 to the depth of permanent moisture. 



Denison Olmsted. 



Yale College, Sept. 3, 1844. 



HONING RAZORS. 



We notice that soap and water has been highly 

 recommended, in the place of oil, to be used upon 

 hones in setting razors and other steel instru- 

 ments. It is some years back that the trials of 

 it were first made in England, but, from the cer- 

 tificates given of its superior cleanliness and effi- 

 cacy, it would seem desirable that it should be 

 generally adopted. — Selected. 



FOOD FOR COWS. 



We would commend the following article to 

 the careful perusal of our readers, as it embraces 

 a topic of great practical importance. With 

 those familiar with the writings of M. Chabert, 

 and his exalted character as a scholar, any com- 

 mendation on our part, would of course appear 

 superfluous : 



M. Chabert, the director of the veterinary 

 school of Alford, England, had a number of 

 cows which yielded twelve gallons of milk every 

 day. In his publication on the subject, he ob- 

 serves that cows fed in the winter on dry sub- 

 stances give less milk than those which are 

 kept on a green diet, and also that their milk 

 loses much of its quality. He published the 

 following recipe, by the use of which his cows 

 afforded him an equal quantity and quality of 

 milk during the winter as during the summer: 

 Take a bushel of potatoes, break them whilst 



raw, place them in a barrel standing up, putting 

 in successively a layer of bran, and a small 

 quantity of yeast in the middle of the mass, 

 which is to be left thus to ferment during a 

 whole week, and when the vinous taste has 

 pervaded the whole mixture, it is then given to 

 the cows, who eat it greedily. — J\le. Cultivator. 



AGRICULTURAL PAPERS. 



A very general prejudice exists against that 

 class of farmers that seek improvement in their 

 profession from books. This is a singular phe- 

 nomenon, and instead of the scorn with which 

 it is generally treated, is, in our opinion, worthy 

 the deliberate investigation of the philosopher. 

 The arts and sciences are admittedly more in- 

 debted to printing for their elevation and expan- 

 sion, than to all other causes combined. Is agri- 

 culture a single exception to the general rule, or 

 is the popular prejudice upon this subject alto- 

 gether without foundation? We would willingly 

 believe the latter, and yet in our investigations 

 we have found the opinion of the uselessness of 

 agricultural books strongest amongst some of 

 the most practical and successful farmers in Vir- 

 ginia. Indeed, we are compelled to admit, that, 

 as a general rule, those who have read least, 

 have thriven best. This staitling fact, this ano- 

 maly, has occasioned us no little uneasiness, but 

 after much tribulation we think that, by a closer 

 examination, we have been enabled to solve the 

 difficulty without any disparagement to the 

 claims of literature. 



The pursuit of agriculture unquestionably in- 

 volves within its circle a greater number of the 

 sciences than any other occupation. Botany, 

 geology, mineralogy, and chemistry are inti- 

 mately connected with it ; but besides that se- 

 veral of these sciences are still in their infancy, 

 their application to agriculture for practical pur- 

 poses, is as yet by no means well ascertained or 

 defined. There is no telling what the labors of 

 a Liebrg and a Johnston may effect, but in the 

 very nature of things agriculture must ever be 

 the least exact of the sciences. We will not 

 undertake to say what may be, but up to this 

 time, in our opinion, such is the intricacy of the 

 labyrinth which our agricultural philosophers are 

 engaged in exploring, that the practical farmer 

 is rather confounded than enlightened in its 

 mazes. With all our respect for the venerated 

 names of Chaptal and Davy, we are constrained 

 to admit, that the really practical, valuable matter 

 contained in the works of our agricultural writers, 



