174= 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[May, 
Large Root Crops. 
We notice in Hie Report of the Massachusetts 
Horticultural Society, that the farm connected 
with the Deer Island House of Industry raised 
extraordinary root crops. An acre in mangolds 
produced 73 tons of roots, carefully weighed, 
and 5 tons in tops, by estimate. This acre was 
planted with potatoes in 1803, carrots in 1864, 
onions in 1865, and with mangolds in 1866. 
The manure, each previous year, had been 20 
cords of compost of sea kelp and stable manure. 
In the fall of 1865 it was heavily coated with 
sea-weed (Laminaria), and the weed plowed 
in and re-plowed in the spring of 1866. 
The seed was sown in drills 30 inches apart. 
Mr. Payson, the manager of the farm, estimates 
the value of mangolds as equal to sugar beets, 
and the yield as one-third greater. The rota- 
tion and the adaptation of marine manures to 
mangolds, are noticeable points in this state- 
ment. On the same farm and with similar treat- 
ment, 29 tous of carrots were grown to the acre. 
Our shore farmers who neglect sea-weed and 
root crops are not living up'to their privileges. 
Tim Bunker on Jim Crow. 
Mr. Editor : — It may seem an ungracious 
task to say a word agin this gentleman, when 
everybody is writing up people of color in gin- 
eral. Folks who, a year ago, could not express 
their disgust of the negro, in language strong 
enough, are now bawling for universal suffrage. 
Such sudden conversions I never saw in camp 
meeting. But I have been in favor of then- 
voting this twenty years; so I've no prejudice 
agin color to influence my opinion on the crow 
question. You said you wanted all the Hooker- 
town news, especially if it had an}' bearing on 
farming. Now you see, we have had a big fer- 
ment in the Farmer's Club up here on this ques- 
tion, which is certainly as old as I am, and I 
guess as old as the country. I thought it had 
been settled several times, but it is one of them 
questions that don't stay settled. I expect it is 
because we haven't got upon the right founda- 
tion yet. I have always noticed that any un- 
sound opinion kept working in the public mind 
like bad food in the stomach. It won't stay 
down. Hookertown has spoke and I rather 
think Jim Crow is settled forever. 
You see, these creatures had been uncommon 
plenty last season, and we had all suffered more 
or less from their depredations in planting time, 
and this had been put down as one of the things 
that was to be discussed and settled in the Club 
this winter. " Jim Crow, shall he j ump or no ?" 
In old times in Connecticut they said no, and 
offered a premium on crows, and the boys used 
to hunt them, and bring the young ones by the 
basketfull to get their pocket money. Then 
the men, who were science on birds, thought 
the crows killed a good many grubs, and paid 
their way and said we must not kill them. 
Deacon Smith was chairman for the evening 
and stated the question. He said " it was ad- 
mitted that the crow did some good and a great 
deal of mischief. The point was to find out 
whether he did more good or hurt." 
Jotham Sparrowgrass said " he did not think 
there was any question at all about it. He knew 
what he was about when he went to the Legis- 
lature in Hartford, well nigh fifty years ago, and 
got Ihb law passed to give a bounty on foxes 
and crows. He said both of 'em were the farm- 
er's enemies, and he didn't know which was 
the worst. He said our fathers understood their 
cases, and killed them off as fast as they could 
lay hands on them. Talk about crows destroy- 
ing bugs ! He has shot 'em many a time, and he 
always found more corn and carrion in their 
crops than anything else." 
Cicero Smith said " he was astonished to hear 
such sentiments from his venerable friend. He 
thought the crow had not been made in vain. If it 
had not been for some good end he would never 
have been brought into existence, and been made 
so hardy and so prolific. He was a very long- 
lived and very shy bird, so that with all the 
warfare which men had made upon them they 
were as numerous as ever. They were the 
farmers' friends, picking up a multitude of grubs 
and worms that preyed upon his crops, and 
acting the part of a scavenger in removing dead 
animals, that would otherwise pollute the at- 
mosphere; they pulled up some corn, to be sure, 
but every laborer was worthy of his hire." 
Mr. Spooner, our minister, said "he found 
some difficulty with Mr. Smith's argument. A 
good many creatures had been made for a differ- 
ent state of the world than existed at present, 
and if we admitted that they were originally 
useful, it would not follow Uiat they could not 
very well be spared now. Tae said they had 
found over in Sliadtown, and, in many other 
places, the remains of extinct birds, beasts and 
fishes. These fossils had had their day, and 
died out, or been killed off, because they had 
become nuisances. He was inclined to think 
that it was about time for man, who was lord of 
nature, to dispense with the services of the 
crow; he could join the great company of 
fossils without disturbing the balance of nature. 
He admitted he had been useful in the earlier 
ages, when animal life was more abundant, and 
the air was likely to be tainted with the effluvia 
of dead animals. But the farmer did not need 
such a scavenger now. Dead animals were ex- 
ceedingly valuable for the compost heap, and 
he must be a very foolish cultivator who would 
allow them to waste unburied. Wolves and 
bears, and other wild animals had disappeared 
from the State, without any suspicion that the 
Almighty had made a mistake in their creation. 
He thought that the crows could all be killed 
off without interfering with the divine purposes, 
according to which man has the responsibility 
of subduing nature, and ruling over it." 
Jake Friuk said " he was agin crows, and had 
been from the start. He never had been on 
more than one side of this question. They 
pulled up his corn whether it was tar'd or not, 
and strings and scare crows had n't any more 
influence on 'em than on the wind. He had 
seen 'em light right on a stuffed man. He 
never'd found but oue thing to fix 'em, and that 
was corn soaked in New England rum. That 
made the critters so drunk you could knock 'em 
over as easy as lame geese." 
Seth Twiggs thought "that was the best use 
neighbor Friuk could put his rum to. If he 
kept it, he was mighty afraid that somebody 
besides the crows would become extinct. His 
opinion was that 'carrion crow' expressed the 
character of the bird as well as his habits. He 
not only pulled up his corn, and bothered him 
to death with planting over, but he destroyed 
the eggs aud young birds in his orchard. He 
was a thievish, blood thirsty fellow, ready to 
kill any thing, that has not strength enough to 
defend itself against his attacks. He knew a 
good many of the small birds lived mostly on 
insects, for he had watched them when feeding 
their young. He thought the crow destroyed 
the grub killers, instead of the grubs, and he 
was glad to see folks getting waked up to his 
true character. He should go strong for smok- 
ing him out." 
You see which way the current is setting up 
here. Every crow thinks his own young the 
whitest, they say; and I am perhaps a little 
prejudiced in favor of Hookertown, but it strikes 
me that there is about as much good common 
sense in our Club as there is iu any scientific so- 
ciety. I have to admit that I hare been on both 
sides of this question, but have found hard bot- 
tom at last. Our fathers were right in killing 
crows. The birds belong to the fossil age. 
There is no music in his caw. He prefers a dead 
carcass to a living one, and will devour a half 
pound of putrid flesh a day. We can make a 
better use of the flesh than to bestow it on this 
sneaking thief. He destroys our song birds and 
worm eaters iu the nest. He is the pest of our 
corn fields and the scourge "of our orchards, 
where the farmer's true friends build their nests. 
A strong petition is going up to the Legislature 
from Hookertown this spring for a big bounty 
on crows. 
Hookertown, Conn., 
March 1st. 
I Yours to command, 
f Timothy Buhkee, Esq. 
The Pennsylvania Agricultural College. 
m 
[We have of late refrained from any allusion 
to the Agricultural College of Pennsylvania, for 
the reason that reports came to us, from various 
sources, of its utter inefficiency aud demoraliza- 
tion. The trustees have made a new start, and 
their appointments, as far as we are informed, 
are highly commendable. The following ac- 
count of its condition and prospects is by a 
scientific friend, who is in no way connected 
with the College, and we give it without adopt- 
ing his views in some particulars. — Eds.] 
Some time since accident led us into the 
neighborhood of the Agricultural College, and 
we availed ourselves of an opportunity offered 
for going through the building, and being made 
familiar with its workings. 
We start out with the statement that it this 
session begins its course under new and more 
promising auspices. First in the list of reforms, 
we find the abolition of compulsory labor. In 
theory, I am aware, wiseacres will tell us the 
move was a bad one, and likely to frustrate en- 
tirely the original design. But we do not so see 
it. Boys are boys, (no doubt all will admit,) 
whether found in the streets of their native 
towns, or under the protecting aegis of a literary 
institution, and to convince a hundred or more 
of them that there existed a necessity of doing 
well the work assigned them, would, we ima- 
gine, be a task likely to baffle the most practical 
men. We contend that loose habits of working 
will be more likely engendered than correct 
ones. The best evidence of the truthfulness of 
this statement may be taken from the opinions of 
those ia the vicinity of such institutions. While 
labor is no longer compulsoiy, the students may, 
on demand, have portions of ground assigned 
them, and, in the care of such, their agricultural 
propensities ma}' be thoroughly ventilated. As 
a ready and accomplished guide over these 
operations, the Professor of Agriculture may 
exercise his authority. Here at once is instituted 
a generous rivalry, instead of the slip-shod habits 
induced by making all men, men of all work, 
and then lumping the result. The time allotted 
for completing the course of study is too short 
to allow of from three to four hours outside 
labor per day. 
A glance at the curriculum shows a new fea- 
ture, Wl"Ie the literary course is quite equal 
