166 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[May, 
Onion Sets. — " A Friend." Light, fiue, aud 
not very rich, soil is required. The seed is sown thickly 
in rows 9 inches apart. To facilitate working, every 
eighth row is omitted in planting, so as to leave a walk. 
The plants are kept free from weeds during the season. 
The sowing is done in April, and the sets are ripe In 
August. It is estimated that about 40 lbs. of seed are re- 
quired for an acre, aud that a pound of seed will, under fa- 
vorable circumstances, give three or four bushels of sets. 
Many Questions. — A letter containing 
from ten to twenty questions on widely differing sub- 
jects is very likely not to be noticed, as lony as there are 
letters with only one or two queries awaiting a reply. 
Peas.-"E. W. J." asks how to tell when 
peas are large enough to pick " without pinching them," 
— One familiar with peas can tell by the looks of a pod 
whether it is "filled" or not. 
Excellrctt Schools tor Younjj 
Ladies. — The opening of a portion of the N. Y. aud 
Midland R. R. has brought into direct connection with 
N. Y. City and the rest of the country, the beautiful and 
healthful village of EllenviKe, Ulster County, N. Y., where 
is located the Ulster Female Seminary, under the care of 
S. A. L. Post, A. M., Principal, with an excellent corps 
of teachers. Mr. Post, a graduate of Yale, in 1853, has 
had long experience as principal and teacher, and this, 
with the choice character of the School, the desirable loca- 
tion, the family and parental care given to the pupils, and 
the low rates for board aud tuition, renders the Ulster 
Seminary a desirable institution to parents having daugh- 
ters to be educated. For particulars, address the Prin- 
cipal as above Miss M. Macgregor haa for several 
years past maintained a most excellent Boarding and 
Day School for girls and young ladies, at Flushing, Long 
Island, and has given great satisfaction to parents de- 
siring their daughters to secure a thorough education 
under a conscientious, faithful, and competent teacher. 
At the desire of many of her patrons, she has pur- 
chased the commodious residence and beautiful grounds 
of Orange Judd, Esq., to which she will remove May 1st, 
and be prepared to receive, under her direct family care, 
a limited number of young ladies. From our personal 
knowledge of her competence, we unhesitatingly com- 
mend Miss Macgregor's school to the attention of those 
who are fortunate enough to secure a vacancy for their 
daughters in her family. Flushing has long possessed one 
of the best boys' schools in the country, the "FairchHd 
Institute," and the opening now of Miss Macgregor's 
School in the new location, will enable parents to place 
their children of both sexes in institutions located in the 
came town. Flushing is a most beautiful place, seven 
miles east of N. Y. City, and connected with it by rail- 
roads furnishing communications at all hours of the day. 
Hoo;»-poles. — i4 E. II." wants information 
about preparing and selling hoop-poles. Will some of 
our readers furnish it ? 
SI3fI>RT MIIMIWOS.— Wc note with 
pleasure that the X. Y. Tribune, Sun, and a few other 
journals, have recently been ssing the cudgel upon some 
of the swindlers. Now, let these journals exclude all 
humbugs from their advertising columns, and then con- 
stantly keep up a fire upon the swindling establish- 
ments, and they may help save to the people a vast 
amount of money. Right glad would we be to enjoy a 
rest and let our cotemporaries take the field. 
An Oii'o correspondent asks us to ventilate the case of 
a man hailing from Cleveland, who is traveling as agent 
for certain >. Y. papers, but apparently pockets the 
money. The particulars and proofs given are too indefi- 
nite for us to make out positive charges in this case ; but 
we may say in general that care and discrimination 
should be used in paying over money to agents far from 
home, without positive evidence of their reliability. 
A Providence, R. I., chap, is writing letters to 
distant people, pretending that some aged relative of 
theirs has recently died, aud that he, as attorney, has 
documeuls for securing them $800 each as heirs ; and 
here comes in the milk of that cocoa-nut— he wants 
$20.50 cash, for preliminary expenses. This is an old 
dodge, often revived, with variations Advertise- 
ments for a proposed new journal on gardening, to be is- 
sued in this city, are being solicited, and we are asked 
about it. We suspect it to be a covert scheme, especially 
as no location is given, except a P. O. Box number 
41 B. Fox & Co.,' a suspicious name, ought to have a 
local habitation and number, to keep all the immense 
assortment of things he advertises by printed circular 
to supply; but he is only to be reached by mail at 
" Station A." Any man who will offer to youth, as he 
has done, or to olu people either, such villainous things 
as are found in his catalogue and description, would not 
be a very safe person to send money to, even for the 
good things he offers. 
Cheap Sewing Machines have often been referred to, 
and we will here only add : First : Buy no machine to be 
turned by hand — that is, no one without table and foot- 
pedal. Second: Send no money for any new, cheap ma- 
chines, until you have seen one of them well tested and 
approved. Third: Accept no "agency" from anyone 
asking a portion of the money in advance with the bal- 
ance C.O.D. Fourth: Accept no agency for sewing or 
knitting machines from parties resident in large cities 
who omit to tell you on what street and at what number 
they may be found. Fifth: As a rule, the $5, $10, aud 
$15 machines are not worth a sixpence, except as old 
metal, no ?n<itter how strongly commended by certificates 
on paper. These certificates are readily manufactured 
by the thousand. The pretended signers are seldom to 
be found when you go to their reported residences 
"Family Rights " to make Baking Powders, Soaps, etc., 
etc., are extensively offered to "agents" at a tremen- 
dous discount. We are safe in asserting, from no little 
investigation, that most, if not all these are humbugs. 
A lot of printed recipes, costing less than a halfpenny 
each, and of no value, are sold at $15 to $50 per 100 
to agents who are advised to sell them at $1 or more 
apiece ; sometimes nothing is returned for money for- 
warded. 
Among the new names of those pretending to sup- 
ply counterfeit money, we have : J. B. Page & Bro., 
200 Broadway, who have the impudence to promise 
"fair dealing," etc.; Day & Wallace, 143 Fulton-st, 
N. Y., who advise you to "invest with them all the 
money you can spare ;" Daniel H. Kappock, 35 Liberty- 
st, or No. 11 Ann-st., Room 8. who pretends to have got 
your name from a neighbor of yours: Albert H. Smith, 
22 Ann-st.. Room 6; Wm. Wade & Co., 59 Cedar-st. ; 
Albert J. Hackett, 85 William-st., who sends out genuine 
$1 and $2 bills to promising customers, as samples of his 
immense stock, expecting these will bait on his victims 
to large investments in sawdust boxes ; Samuel Davis & 
Co., 34 Liberty-st., who can't get any thing through the 
Amer. Merchants'' Union Express; El D. Milton, alias 
Thos. Morgan, 599 Broadway. Several of these offer 
tobacco stamps, and nearly all urge you to call at their 
dens, of course to get robbed of all you carry with you, 
as we have previously explained. That these parties 
find enough other would-be swindlers green enough to 
bite at the bait, is evident. We have hundreds of their 
circulars coming in from all directions, and especially 
from the South and West "Spanish Policy" is a 
humbug. Neither Ed. A. Blanchard & Company, nor 
Oliver Elmore & Co., 102 Nassau-st., nor any other so- 
called agents, will keep any promise to send a $200 
watch on receipt of §10.50 We make no exceptions, 
in warning our readers against all gift enterprises, 
whether ostensibly gotten up for foreign sufferers, or 
profeSied good home objects. Even when genuine, if 
there be such, a large percentage of the money goes into 
their pockets, and a very small one reaches the objects of 
sympathy. On the average, $1 sent as a direct contribu- 
tion to responsible parties, is of far more value to the 
sufferers than $10 sent through any gift enterprise. It is 
not worth while to lose the other $9 for the very remote 
chance of yourself getting some enormously over-valued 
"prize." This is a plain, common-sense view of all 
these benevolent gift enterprises Circulars of Wood, 
Mt, Vernon. N. J., continue to come. He has been too 
frequently exposed to need further caution to our readers. 
If there were no fools, or very ignorant people left, 
such operators as " Dr. F. E. Andrews, of Albany," 
(aud 404 East 58th-street, New York,) would shut 
up shop and seek a respectable employment 
A Detroit, Mich., man, offers $76,995 in Premiums, 
including a $42,000 Steamboat, a $9,000 House, and 
$25,000 in Cash, as premiums for 40.000 Subscribers, at 
$5.00 each. Whew ! Will any body get any prize if only 
39,999 subscribers can be secured? As only 1,393 sub- 
scribers get prizes, how about the other 38.607 subscrib- 
ers who pay $5.00 apiece ! Suppose a back-woodsman 
should draw the steamboat, what would he do with it? 
Will the publishers take it off his bauds? and, if so,' 
how much will they pay for it in available cash ? Ditto 
of the " House aud lot." Remember that all offers 
of gratuitous cures for consumption, private diseases, 
etc., etc., whether by Rev. Wilson, Inman, Reeves, or a 
hundred others, contain a very large "cat in a meal- 
tub," and that the free offers will amount to nothing 
until they get some money out of their victims, and not 
any thing then either. 
Young men aud others should know that every single 
one of the Doctors. Howard Associations, Medical Uni- 
versities, etc., that advertise to cure or remedy ' private 
diseases," "errors of youth," and preventive powders, 
pills, etc., is a dowuright humbug. We know there are 
no exceptions to this sweeping statement. We have re- 
ceived accounts of multitudes of cases where these oper- 
ators have squeezed the last dollar out of their victims, 
and without any benefit in return. The details are not 
proper for publication. Albany, N. Y., has several of 
these swindling, self-styled Doctors. Philadelphia is 
also a sort of headquarters, aud N. Y., Boston, Cincin- 
nati, Chicago, etc., are not without a few of them 
Every advertising "Indian Doctor," and "Cancer Doc- 
tor," is a humbug. We know there are no exceptions. 
Thornless Honey Locust. — " L. P.," 
Alsbach, Mo. This is no novelty. It was figured and 
described 75 years ago. The variety has been for a long 
time in cultivation, as there is a tree of it in England 
over 00 feet high. As an ornamental tree, it is prefer- 
able to the ordinary form, which is often annoying by 
dropping its thorns. 
Itedg^c under Trees.-" W. B. E.," Ply- 
month, 111., has maple-trees 20 feet apart, and wishes to 
make a hedge between them. The roots of the maples 
completely occupy the ground, and it will be very diffi- 
cult for a hedge-plant to live close to the trees. 
Steam-engines ibr Farm Use. — 
Messrs. Wood, Taber & Morse, Eaton, N. Y., send us 
an exceedingly neat pamphlet, which, though particu- 
larly intended to describe their own engines, contains 
items of interest to all who contemplate using steam as 
a motive power, or for cooking food. The engines made 
by W., T. & M. have a good reputation. 
Barn Weevil.— G. W. Allwright, Isabella 
Co., Mich., writes that powdered lime, sprinkled over 
the grain and on the barn floor, will cause the weevils 
to " emigrate to a more congenial climate." 
Rones for Hens.— l 'F. M. T.," Buffalo, 
N. Y., finds great benefit from feeding unbnrnt bones to 
hens. He breaks them up in au iron mortar with a cover 
to it. 
Raising Turkeys.- "B.," Vt. As a 
rule, we think it best to confine the hen in a coop until 
the young turkeys are a month old ; although in a very 
dry season we have sometimes had better success by let- 
ting them run at large. As to who has choice poultry to 
sell, we must refer you to the advertising columns of the 
Agriculturist. We hear a good many complaints of the 
firm you allude to, and do not allow them to use our ad- 
vertising columns. 
How to Introduce Agricultural 
Implements. — A subscriber of the Agriculturist in 
Ohio writes that he has a neighbor who has " invented a 
hay-fork that has taken The premium over all other forks 
at the County Fair, and wherever exhibited, and it is 
thought by those who have tested it to be the best that 
has ever been invented. I would be pleased to know the 
best method of introducing it to the public favor." The 
best, and cheapest, and speediest method of introducing 
all good things is to advertise them in the Agricultuiid. 
Farmer or Carpenter* — "E. L. E." is 
the only son of a Tennessee farmer of 160 acres, and writes 
us that he is ''ingenious and apt, and has some notions 
of learning the carpenter's trade. Would you advise me 
to do so, or stay on the farm? " If your father wishes 
you to stay on the farm, do so ; you will find abundant 
exercise for all your ingenuity ; but if your father thinks 
you had better be a carpenter, follow his advice, and 
make up your mind to be a good one. 
Peruvian Guano or Poudrette. — 
Mr. Edmnnd Lee, of Florida, asks what he had better 
buy, poudrette or Peruvian guano— freight from New 
York being $3 per bbl. We should prefer the guano. 
Cnrry-comos and JJruslies. — "G. 
P.," Eureka, Mo., writes: "Please tell us something 
about curry-combs and brushes. I cannot do without 
them; and still, after trying about half-a-dozen kinds, 
have not found anything to suit me." As a rule, the 
curry-comb is used too much, and the brush too little. 
When a horse is brought into the stable, covered with 
sweat and mud, he should be rubbed dry with straw. 
Then, the next morning, with a curry-comb in one hand 
and a good brush in the other, he can be thoroughly 
cleaned — the curry-comb only bein_' used to straighten 
the hair ahead of the brush. The difficulty about getting 
a good curry-comb arises from the neglect to nib the 
horse clean with straw before leaving him for the night. 
Much care should be used in cleaning a horse's legs with 
a curry-comb, so as not to injure the joints. 
Charcoal for Enrth - closets. — 
Inquirer.— We cannot state the value of charcoal as a 
