40 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[February, 
No Time to Run in Debt. 
An Ohio Reader asks : " Would you consider 
it prudent for a farmer having a hundred acres 
paid for and well stocked, and out of debt 
otherwise, but not having a comfortable domi- 
cile, to incur a debt of five or six hundred dol- 
lars in building a dwelling house i" — We think 
not. In the November American Agriculturist, 
we referred to the effect of the increased relative 
value between gold and currency, and showed 
why farmers should seize upon this time to get 
out of debt and keep out. The recent further 
advance in gold gives additional force to the 
reasons then set forth. Currency that will pay 
debts is now very abundant and will probably 
be more so for a time. The moment the war 
closes, or bids fair to close, the country will be- 
gin to turn to a specie currency; and then look 
out for breakers. What now is called $150 
will begin to recede toward $100. A debt of 
$100 contracted now, when wheat is at $1$ per 
bushel in this city, will probably have to be 
paid, when wheat will be worth only $1. 
This will not probably take place at once, for 
there will be a large amount of " legal tender" 
currency to be retired from circulation before 
specie will be the legal standard, but the change 
must sooner or later take place. If the old 
house is at all tenantable, or can be made so 
with a little outlay, better put any surplus funds 
aside, where it will be absolutely safe and can 
be called in dollar for dollar. Then when prices 
of labor, of timber, and of other materials fall, 
the money and its interest can be used to far 
greater advantage. If there be a mortgage 
upon the farm or house, poor crops and low 
prices may perhaps not enable you to meet it. 
This flush period is just the time to get out of 
debt, keep out, and lay by as much as possible. 
Mutton Trade of New- York. 
145 MILES OP SHEEP. 
Few persons are aware of the extent to which 
sheep are sold in this city. Including those re- 
ceived at the four public market places, and 
those sent directly to butchers, an average of 
over 10,000 live sheep per week were slaughter- 
ed in this city during the past year. Besides 
these, there are at least 1,000 dressed carcasses 
received weekly. If the whole number were 
driven in at one time, three abreast, allowing 
four feet of space for each sheep, the line would 
extend from New- York to Albany, a distance of 
over one hundred and forty-five miles. 
Since the commencement of the war, the de- 
mand for wool has so greatly increased that 
farmers are adding largely to their flocks. They 
find that, with the high prices of wool and the 
good demand for lamb and mutton, sheep-rais- 
ing is one of the most profitable branches of 
farming, and they are now holding back their 
stock. Prices vary somewhat with the supply, 
but well fed sheep, which will weigh 100 lbs., 
alive, have been selling at $54 a $6 per head for 
a month past ; they are now (Jan. 15th) worth 
$6J. The rise in wool has added largely to the 
value of pelts, mixed lots of these selling at 
$2i each, and selected pelts at $2i each. 
In former years the thin ewes have been 
bought up by farmers for store sheep, at $24 a 
$3 per head. Oflate this class has been mostly 
kept in the country. Those sent to market have 
been bought up by butchers at $34 a $4 each. 
Contrasting with this class are a limited number 
of extra large fat sheep, usually sent in about 
the holidays and sold at high prices. A few 
have brought as high as $15 a $20 each. Three 
full blooded Leicester sheep, from Canada, were 
recently sold to a butcher of this city for $70. 
They dressed 471 lbs. The pelts would bring 
$2.j each, which would leave the cost of the 
mutton a little over 12 cents per pound. In 
view of these figures it is safe to advise the rais- 
ing of more sheep and fewer dogs. 
m I im J — » m 
Breadstuff's, Meat, etc., for 1862. 
All classes of readers will be interested in the 
two statistical articles given on pages 58 and 
59. The tables have been specialty prepared for 
the American Agriculturist, with great care and 
no little labor, and they are arranged to show 
at a glance the amount of transactions in some 
of the leading articles of farm produce in the 
great central market of the country for the 
year 1862. A comparison with the previous 
three years is also given, together with tables 
showing some of the transactions in breadstuffs 
at Boston, Philadelphia and Chicago. The fol- 
lowing table shows the receipts at New-York of 
the leading articles of Grain, with the prices 
and total sums paid for them. This table in- 
cludes only the amounts received through regu- 
lar channels and recorded at the Corn Exchange 
or Custom House. Large amounts, not here in- 
cluded, having been sold " to arrive," have 
gone directly to receivers without being re- 
corded, while other amounts have come in by 
irregular routes. The prices in this estimate are 
the average of the average prices on the 20th 
of each month, as given iu the second table : 
RECEIPTS AT NEW-YORK FOR 1SG2. 
Average 
Kind. Amount. Price. Value. 
Wheat Flour 5.757,608 bhls. at $5.71 $32,875,941 
Wheat 27,079,259 bushels at 1,37 37.09S.584 
Corn 17,290,234 bushels at 64 11.065,748 
Rve 932.084 bushels at 63 773,629 
Barley 1,151,818 bushels at 1,05 1,209,408 
Oats 5,051,874 bushels at 50 2,525,937 
Total for Flour, Wheal and other grains $83,549,247 
Tolal amount for same articles in 1S64 $81,216,587 
Prices in 1862. — The following table gives 
the New-York prices of leading articles on the 
20th of each month, the date of making up our 
monthly reports. A careful estimate indicates 
that for the average of all sales of the different 
grades, we may take : for Wheat Flour the highest 
quotations for "Extra State;" for Wheat the 
highest quotation for " All Kinds of Red ;" for 
Corn the highest quotation for "Mixed;" and 
for Oats the highest quotation for " Western." 
NEW-YORK PRICES ON" THE 20TH OP EACH MONTH IN 1862. 
Rye Corn 
1862. Flour. Wheat. Flour. Meal. Corn. Oats. Eye. Barley. 
t c. $ c. $ c. $ c. c. c. c. $ c. 
Jan.... 5,90 1,45 4,30 8,80 66 42 84 80 
Pet).... 6,10 1,50 4,25 3,30 05 41 85 90 
March. 5.70 1,45 4.25 3,25 CO S9 83 1,00 
April.. 5,10 1,35 4,25 3,15 59X 89 82 1,00 
May..., 4,85 1,15 4.25 8,20 61X 41 76 85 
June... 4,75 1,20 4.00 3,20 54 44 75 75 
July . 5,25 1,28 4,10 3,25 70 47 78 
August 5,40 1,40 4,30 3,75 62 51 S3 
Sept.... 5,70 1,31 4,40 3.75 60 58 83 
Oct ... . 7.90 1,46 4,75 4.00 68 59 84 1,25 
Nov.... 6,40 1,45 5,75 4,25 71 69 90 1,60 
Dec... 6,40 1,47 5,65 4,50 77 70 97 1,45 
Av'ge.. 5,71 1,37 4,54 8,57 64 50 83 1,05 
In 1S81. 5.30 1,37 3,46 3,05 60 86 70 68 
It will be seen by the tables and remarks on 
page 59, that the receipts of wheat and flour, 
taken together, were lower in 1S62 than in 1861, 
but the higher prices the past year raised the to- 
tal product of sales here, to a greater sum. 
The Live Stock Table, as exhibited on page 58, 
is also interesting. The total number of live 
animals destined for slaughter received at the 
regular yards, reached 1,845,605, or nearly 
two million luad ! Of these more than one- 
half (1,098,712) were live hogs, or about twice 
as many as were ever brought to this market in 
a single year before. But the items are so fully 
set forth in the article on page 58 that no further 
explanations are needed here. 
The Department of Agriculture. 
The doings of the Agricultural attachment of 
the Patent Office, were so severely criticised by 
this and the other agricultural papers of the 
country, that a new Department was created to 
manage the agricultural operations of the gov- 
ernment. With the change we looked for a new 
policy, one which should be of actual benefit to 
the agricultural country, and which should not 
interfere with the legitimate business of seeds- 
men, nurserymen, and others. Thus far, there 
does not seem to be strong reason to hope for a 
change for the better. Two small pamphlets 
e m a na t ing from this Department are before us. 
One of these is mainly devoted to informing the 
world what a great country this is, and the oth- 
er is a catalogue of the Plants, Bulbs, Tubers, 
etc., which are ready to be sent out from the 
" propagating garden," of this country noted 
for its immense resources. 
Upon looking over the limited list we find 
it to be composed, with but very few exceptions, 
of plants which can be obtained at any nur- 
serj'. It is gratifying to know that there are 
ready, 80 varieties of gladiolus— why we have 
not hyacinths and tulips, and the rest of the 
bulbs is not mentioned. Then there are 100 spe- 
cimens of the Mist-bush or Smoke tree {Khus 
Cutinus), which was introduced into England 
in 1856, and is to be found in almost every old 
garden in the country. " A rare old plant is 
the ivy green," but the U. S. has managed to 
propagate 600 plants. That novelty, the Chinese 
Yam, can be found at Washington, and the 
common Prickly Pear is to be had in small 
quantities. For the credit of the country, we 
call upon the authorities to burn up or quietly 
dispose of their old rubbish, and to stop dis- 
tributing plants or seeds until they have some- 
thing which comes within the letter and spirit 
of the law, and are able to " distribute among 
the people, new and valuable seeds and plants." 
—• — n »a _ 
Brine Poisonous— A Caution. 
During past years we have published in the 
Agriculturist occasional reports of bad effects 
from feeding to animals salt from meat barrels. 
In a recent number of theHonesdale (Pa.) Her- 
ald, we find an account of the sudden death of 
several valuable imported hogs after eating 
food mixed with brine from a beef barrel. In 
this case the evil effects are attributed to salt- 
peter (nitrate of potash) used in curing the beef 
Whether it was the nitre, or the salt, there have 
been a sufficient number of instances reported, 
to render it hazardous to allow any animal to 
consume either the salt or brine, from any kind 
of meat. Salt food of any kind is destructive to 
fowls, and care should be taken to keep them 
from house slops containing salt. But refuse 
brine and salt are excellent on the asparagus 
bed, applied in Autumn or Winter, or at any 
time except in the cutting season. It even pays 
to put on a good layer of new salt. Refuse brine 
or salt is also good on most soils, and on most 
field or garden crops, and should not be wasted. 
Kindness is a language, which not only the 
dumb can speak, but the deaf can understand. 
