1870.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
365 
matter, and a premium club can easily be gathered. In- 
deed, at most places there is ruom fur from one to half a 
dozen or more Premium Clubs. Few Post-offices have 
around them less than 25 families, and most have hundreds 
of families which ought to take this paper. We have 100 
to 50J subscribers at many Post-offices, and still 1,000 to 
1,300 at some others. Any one who will take hold with a 
will, determined to succeed, will succeed. The paper is 
very cheap— is worth more than it costs to every family — 
and it only needs some one to explain this, in order to 
get a large club of subscribers. You, Reader, may as 
well secure a premium, as any one else. As every new 
Subscriber (even in Premium Clubs sent by others) gets 
ihe extra copies free, it helps those who are making up 
premium lists this month, and Now is Just t2ie 
Time to Begin. 
containing a great variety of Items, including many 
good Hints and Suggestions tvhich we throw into smaller 
type and condensed fonn, foi* want of space elseivliere. 
Postage 12 Cents a Year in Ad- 
vance. —The postage on the American Agriculturist 
anywhere in the United States and Territories, paid in 
advance, is 3 cents a quarter, 12 cents a year. If not paid 
in advance, twice these rates may be charged. 
Mow to Kennit :— Clieelts on ^'civ- 
York Banks or Bankers are best for large sums; 
made payable to the order of Orange Judd & Co. 
Post-Onlcc Monoy Orders may be obtain- 
ed at nearly every county-seat, in all the cities, and in 
many of the large towns. "We consider them perfectly 
safe, and the best means of remitting fifty dollars or less, 
as thousands have been sent to us witltout any loss. 
E2ei£istere«l Abetter?*, untlea'the zaew 
systein, which went into effect Oct. 1, 1S03, arc a very 
safe means of sending small sums of money where P. 0. 
Money Orders cannot be easily obtained. Obsei've, the 
Registry fee, as well as postage, must be paid in stamps at 
the office where the letter is mailed, or it will be liable 
to be scut to the Dead-Letter nice. Buy and affix the 
stamps both for postage and registry, put in the money, and 
seal t/ie letter in the presence of the postmaster, and take his 
for it. Letters thus sent to us are at our risk. 
Valuable laaformation lor Every- 
body, not found in Our Reading Columns. 
— Our Readers who usually skip over business notices, 
advertisements, and the like, will do well to read through 
what is printed on pages 302-305, among the adver- 
tisements. The descriptions of the merits of a hun- 
dred articles will convey a good deal of useful infor- 
mation to every one. Much care has been taken in the 
selection of these items, to be sure that no unworthy 
thing should find a place, and that all that is said should 
be truthful— just as the publishers would talk to their 
most valued friends.— Page 392 explains the object of in- 
troducing tho descriptions. The articles are placed be- 
fore our readers on such terms, that almost any person, 
(Man or Woman, Boy or Girl.) can secure one or more of 
the articles free of charge. Let all our readers for once 
carefully read through the four pages referred to, (892-895). 
TIic E B iil>Hsli«>rs Astir— Oaeap a*a- 
pers.— The publishers of various newspapers are out 
with their offers of free copies for tho rest of this year, 
and now is a good time to begin. As for Premiums, even 
the lteligious and Political papew are giving them to 
those who e:\nvass, instead of following the old custom, 
of begging people to " work for the good of the cause." — 
Our Publishers are behind in none of these matters— Mn 
which they took the lead years itgo) — as will be seen on 
pages 392, 393. 391 and 393. 
Our AniaiaiaDs will appear as usual towards 
the close of the year, and should be in possession of all 
who desire a compact resume of Agricultural and Horti- 
cultural progress. To show how widely they are dis- 
tributed, we may mention that in one of them a new gar- 
den appliance was described. A few days ago the invent- 
or called on us, and informed us that the notico had 
called out inquiries from every State in the Union, and 
that he was forced to go into the manufacture of an ar- 
ticle that he had only had made for trial. In each of the 
Annuals is a list of dealers in Agricultural and Horticult- 
ural Stock of all kinds. These lists we wish to make as 
complete and as reliable as possible. No charge is made 
for the insertion of names. Those whose names were in 
last year's issues, and have made business changes, will 
please inform us ; and new applicants for insertion should 
send their circulars or business cards at once. 
Fairs in October and November. 
—A Yery full and carefully revised list of the fairs to be 
held the present and the coming month, will be found 
upon page 390. 
Beautifying- Cosustry Homes. — A 
Hand-book of Landscape Gardening. Illustrated by 
plans of places already Improved. By J. Wcidenmann, 
Superintendent of City Park, Hartford, Ct. New York: 
Orange Judd and Company. — "We have numerous works 
on Landscape Gardening in which the principles of the 
art arc ably treated, but we have none which would serve 
as a working guide to a person of intelligence, who wished 
to beautify his home by tasteful surroundings. We would 
not overlook the importance of works devoted to the cul- 
tivation of taste in rural matters ; they have in a measure 
prepared the way for the present one. "Beautifying Coun- 
try Homes" is a work which embodies the results of a 
long practice in landscape architecture and rural adorn- 
ment, and while its teachings are in accordance with the 
received rules of art, they arc thoroughly practical in 
their character. "When one makes a new home he wishes 
that the grounds about it shall be laid out to the best ad- 
vantage, not only for convenience, but to show all the 
beauties of which they are capable ; and in purchasing a 
place planned by another, one is seldom satisfied with the 
arrangement of the grounds, but wishes them improved 
and modernized. The present work is intended to meet 
the wants of a large proportion of both these classes, 
who, if they knew how to go to work, would often take 
pleasure in making the improvements themselves. It 
gives plain directions for the preliminary work of road- 
making, draining, grading, and the like, selections of 
trees and shrubs for planting, suggestions for the intro- 
duction of ornamental water, rock-work, and the like, 
besides giving approximate calculations of the cost of 
the various operation::-. This portion of the work is 
copiously illustrated. The second part of the book is 
occupied with plans of places actually laid out from de- 
signs by such well-known artists as Olmstead & Yaux, 
Baumann, Butler, Camp, Perry, Fischer, Pilat, Schwac- 
gerl, and several by the author. In these plans, which 
are beautifully colored in the best style of chromo- 
lithograph}', the planting is represented in perspective, 
in a manner that gives not only the position but 
the effect of the different single specimens and groups 
of the trees and shrubs, and the names of these are given 
in a descriptive key to each plan. These designs com- 
prise places of various sizes, from the city and village 
lot, to the most extensive grounds : and they also give 
excellent examples for laying out public parks and cem- 
eteries. We shall have occasion to refer to this work 
again, as it is one of the most elegant, as it is likely to 
prove one of the most useful, works ever issued in the 
country. It is printed on paper made especially for the 
purpose, is beautifully printed, and substantially and ele- 
gantly bound in beveled boards. Price, prepaid, $15.00. 
Cranberries upon Upland. —Last 
month we stilted that wo had seen no instance of tho 
profitable culture of the Cranberry upon dry soil, and that 
wo would go a long distance to see a plot in successful 
bearing. Tills brought out an invitation from a gentle- 
man living near Islip, L. I., and we visited the neighbor- 
hood, and saw enough to convince us that, contrary to 
our former impressions, the Cranberry can, under certain 
conditions, be made to grow and yield fine crops of ex- 
cellent fruit Upon soil as dry as any soil can bo. A de- 
tailcd account of the culture and the conditions necessary 
to success must be deferred until another month. 
'I'lir IF:Bir of the Aiiieriram Biistidute 
opened as usual with a vast show of confusion. The 
managers were not ready with their steam power and oth- 
er arrangements ; the exhibitors were not on hand, and 
of course everybody knew that for the first fortnight, the 
affair would hardly get underway, so visitors were uol 
quite OS plenty OS workmen. Experience seems to teach 
the managers little— for every year it is about the same. 
A good rule was made last winter, that; no signs larger 
than 10X34 inches would be allowed ; but why is it not 
enforced upon all alike? Licbig said once, that tho de- 
gree of civilization of any people could bo measured by 
its consumption of soap. The display of this article in- 
dicates cither a most enlightened civilization, or that tho 
floor manager is a soap-maker. By the time tho Agri- 
culturist is issued, we have no doubt the show will be 
a very fine one. October is the pleasantest month of all 
the year for strangers to visit New York, and the Fair 
will, no doubt, attract many from abroad who are in- 
terested in the varions brauchesof productive industry. 
It continues until November 2d. 
The S>eath of John <*oiiicl Veitek. 
—"Within a year we recorded the death of James Veitch, 
and now we have to notice that of his son, John Gould 
Veitch, of Chelsea, Eng. Mr. V. was widely known as 
an explorer, as well as florist, and a large number of the 
Japanese, Chinese, and Australian plants now in cultiva- 
tion are the results of his discoveries. "With reference 
to father and son, the Gardeners' 1 Chronicle truly says: 
" So long as British horticulture lasts, so long -will the 
names of these earnest laborers iu its cause call up feel- 
ings of regret and respect." 
Mason's fruit Jars, with Porcelaiu- 
lined Cap, we have found by experience to be excellent, 
and very convenient. Of over 50 jars used last year for va- 
rious fruits, not one failed to keep the fruit well. 
Simrtry BHiiiuImi^s.— The long; list of 
swindlers published by us lastmonth, has stirred up many 
of our readers, and several others, to forward to us the con- 
tributions of the thieving gentry, and so we have letters 
and circulars enough to furnish a good-sized detective's 
office, or to open a curiosity shop.— There is a grim satis- 
faction in investigating the schemes that now occupy the 
attention of a very large proportion of the swindling fra- 
ternity. Formerly they were constantly coming out with 
some new operation calculated to deceive honest people, 
and it was necessary for us to be on the constant look out 
for new features. But latterly they have found the pre- 
tended counterfeit money dodge so profitable, and so safe, 
that the rascals are working this golden vein to the neg- 
lect of others. We pity their dupes, but can hardly com- 
miserate them. No man really honest at heart will re- 
spond to the invitation to buy counterfeit money, even 
though he believes it " so well executed as to defy detec- 
tion by the most expert bankers.'" If he send for it, it 
is with the expectation of passing it off upon others, to 
his own profit. Can such a one deserve much sympa- 
thy if he himself gets cleaned out in the operation? — as 
he always does. The wily swindlers often use the fol- 
lowing argument to influence those who arc not depraved, 
but have very easy or clastic consciences. They enclose 
in their letters slips so printed as to appear to be cut from 
leading newspapers, going to show that the country is 
flooded with bogus money — that "one-half,'" or " two- 
thirds, " or "nine-tenths' 1 of all money in circulation is 
actually bogus, yet it passes just as well, and answers every 
purpose of good money ; and then they argue, "this be- 
ing the case, you may just as well take a hand in and en- 
joy some of the benefits; you will do ns great harm ; 
those who take it of you will pass it along to others, and 
they t« others, and so nobody will be harmed ; it is really 
just as good as the genuine money.' 1 This is the gist of 
the arguments ingeniously put forth ; and we arc sorry to 
know, many men, usually esteemed honest, fair men 
among their neighbors, and esteeming the:::so!ves so, are 
drawn into the meshes cf the scoundrels wiio . 
upon the spoils of knavery. To warn such victims we try 
to expose these swindling operations. 'Were it only the 
wholly depraved— those lost to shame and past hope of 
redemption to honest life, who were deceived — we should 
be induced to say let " rogue cheating rogue " go on until 
the smart ones clean out the weaker minded ones, and 
the former take themselves to an early grave by dissipa- 
tion and rioting upon their ill-gotten spoils— as they usu- 
ally d». Here is the modus operandi: First let us say, 
that in various ways, the name and P. O. address of near- 
ly every man and boy in the whole country have been col- 
lected. These arc copied out in lists ; as a list of farmers, 
or merchants, etc., and sold to anyone wanting them 
at so much per 1,000 or 10,000 names. The swindler 
starts by buying up 60,000 or 100,000 or 1.000,000 of these 
names, according to his capital, or the intended extent of 
his operations. Xext, he assumes some fair sounding 
name, locating himself iu a sixth story or other secluded 
room. lie then writes out an,! multiplies by lithography 
or otherwise, a very plausible, ingenious letter, and em- 
ploys n lot of clerks, usually ladles and boys, to enclose 
and address these circulars to the names on his purchased 
list. A multitude of the people addressed will ol' course 
pay no attention to them ; but as the circulars, postage, 
etc.. cost only about A cents each, if he can get a response 
and a few dollars from only half a dozen in a thousand, 
he makes a round profit. Tie writes in a way to make his 
dupes believe he has some perfect counterfeit money, 
— "fae similics 1 " of the t*. s. currency— offers $100 or 
$l,00i> or more for $10 to $S0. more or less, and usually 
offers to seid it C. 0. D. if half or a fourth be furnished 
as a guarantee of good faith, and an assurance that tho 
recipient will not "go back on him." And multitudes 
