1SGT.] 
AMERICAN AGRIC L'LTUEIST. 
357 
Editorial Jottings in Europe. 
Since his absence in Europe, Mr. Judd has written 
frequently, with permission to publish such portions of 
his letters as we chose. Several of his notes of travel 
have been crowded out by other matter, and we briefly 
say tbat, after visiting Great Britain, France, and Hol- 
land, he is now in Russia, and will go byway of Germany 
and Switzerland to Southern Europe. We give some of 
his notes on the northern countries: 
" Stockholm. Sweden, August 10th.... We have had 
on interesting journey of 450 miles up through Sweden, 
from Malnio, which lies opposite Copenhagen. Around 
Malniu is quite a fertile section, and we saw some good 
farms between lakes Wenner and Wetter, and at other 
points, but the country is generally either wet or 
rocky. Tet there is a neatness and American look about 
the farm-houses and the villages that is very pleasing— 
indeed, rather surprising. In this city (Stockholm,) and 
■is surroundings, we are very agreeably disappointed. 
The finish and style of the buildings, and the form, phys- 
iognomy, and dress, of the people, are more like those of 
n first class American city of 33,000 inhabitants than we 
have found anywhere else in our journey through France, 
Belgium, Holland, Germany, Prussia, aud Denmark, and 
we will not except even Great Britain. In politeness and 
general good manners the citizens of Stockholm appar- 
ently excel ns. The city is most beautifully located on a 
number of islands, divided by small lakes and narrow, 
swift running streams. The ground of each island rises 
high above tho water, in the center especially, so that the 
city, as a whole, has a diversified appearance, the houses 
rising rapidly, one above the other, from the water's 
edge to the middle. At a little distance, the dividing wa- 
ters are not seen, and the city appears as a compact mass 
of buildings. Outside of the city are seen some beauti- 
ful fields with growing crops, though the surface is much 
broken with rocky hills or immense granite boulders, 
with lakes or lakelets every mile or two. What surprises 
me most, is a field of tobacco jnst north of the city, 
which exhibits as vigorons a growth of leaf and stem 
as I have ever seen even in the most favored regions. 
Every hill is perfect, the leaves of immense size, and not 
s plant is under four feet in bight to the curve of the top 
leaves. This, remember, is nearly up to latitude 60°, or 
about the same as the southern part of Greenland, the 
northern end of Labrador, and the middle of Hudson"s 
Bay...." 
•' HELsrxGfORS. Finland, August loth.... The passage 
hither from Stockholm is the most charming one in my 
experience. I have traveled hundreds of miles to see the 
•• Thousand Islands" of the St. Lawrence, but they sink 
into insignificance in comparison with what we have 
seen during the past two days. With the exception of a 
narrow space of open sea between the Swedish outer coast 
and Aland, and again between that island and the outer 
Finnish coast, there is one continued succession of little 
islands, between which the steamer threads her way for 
over two hundred miles in coming from Stockholm to this 
place. Some of these islands are mere rounded granite 
rocks of an acre or two, more or less ; many of them have 
evergreen and other shrubs or trees, with grass plots. 
Some of them have dwellings and cultivated fields. Often 
there are fifty to one hundred of these beautiful islands in 
sight at a time. The water channels between them vary 
from three or four rods to a mile or more in width. Tho 
passages are so narrow and tortuous, and the under-watcr 
islands are so numerous, that no steamer or sailing vessel 
moves at night. Our steamer left Stockholm at daylight, 
(two o'clock A. M. here, now !) and made Abo, (pro- 
nounced Obo,) in Finland, by G F. M., and stopped until 
4 A. M, givingus several hours of daylight to tramp around 
the town, ami climb the old Lutheran church tower, to 
gain a view of a dozen miles in every direction. In the 
vaults beneath the church, we examined bodies deposited 
hundreds of years ago, yet still preserving their forms 
and features. In this high, dry latitude, they literally dried 
up, or changed to enduring matter without decay. Abo, 
like Stockholm, much resembles an American town in its 
buildings, and tho dress and physiognomy of the people. 
But hero, at nclsingfors, the capital or Finland, our sur- 
prise has reached its climax. The neat, well-built city is 
as lovely an one, at this season, as I ever saw. We find 
green parks, broad, clean, well-paved, beautiful streets, 
thriving business stores and shops, magnificcntchurches, 
a flourishing University, with its library of 200,000 vol- 
umes, etc.. etc The people are vigorous and intelligent, 
nnd equal in physique onr best class of native Amer- 
icans. The "guide books" say little of this region; 
travelers come hero but seldom, and so we hear little of 
Finland, and think of it only as a cold, bleak region, In- 
habited by a semi-savage race. It is far, very far, otaer- 
wise.and I would advise every American traveling abroad, 
to visit Holland, Denmark, Sweden, nnd Finlaud. A 
single voyage through the " Ten Thousand Islands " will 
repay a voyage from New York to Stockholm, nnd a visit 
lo Finland will exceed In Interest that usually made to 
Middle and Southern Europe. A trip up by rail-road, 
lake, and canal, into middle Finland, is easily accom- 
plished in July or August, and from all I can learn here, 
is one of perfect safety and of great interest. I only re- 
gret that our large company, including small children, 
and engagements abroad, will prevent my going further 
north now. We came from Stockholm in the fine 
Bteamship Aura, whose captain, Mr. Lars Krogics. of 
Helsingfors, Finland, is a model Christian gentleman. 
He has been in America, speaks our language well, and 
he has done everything possible to make us comfortable, 
and aided us gTeatly in seeing and understanding the 
various points of interest on the route — " 
"Wteokg, Finland, August 16th Leaving Helsing- 
fors at 6 A. M., we passed, at the mouth of its spacious 
harbor, the powerful fortifications at Sweaborg, which 
are of historic interest, and are well styled the ' Gibraltar 
of the North.' To-day's sail has been mainly among a 
succession of beautiful islands, like those met with all the 
way from Stockholm. At 4 P. II., we passed the Russian 
war fleet at anchor, and counted among the ships at least 
nine large turreted ' Monitors,' similar to our own. We 
then entered through a narrow channel, guarded by ex- 
tensive batteries, into the eight mile harbor, at the bead 
of which stands Wyborg, a city of 7,060 inhabitants. This, 
too, is, in many respects, a beautiful town. About 1% 
miles north-east of the fortified city is located ' Mon Re- 
pos,' (My Repose. ) the former residence of Baron Kicolai. 
This delightful retreat is on the shore of a large lake, and 
nearly shut in by hills ; the grounds are interspersed with 
little lakes and streams, valleys, and hillocks, which are 
mainly of immense granite boulders or ridges, covered 
with patches of trees and green verdure. Bridges, sum- 
mer-houses, green-houses, graperies, arbors, walks, arch- 
ed by living trees, extensive flower plots, all in beautiful 
bloom, etc., abound. Taken altogether, the combination 
of natural and artificial scenery at Mon Repos excels any- 
thing of the kind that we have ever seen elsewhere. It 
is doubly interesting from the fact that we find it above 
latitude 00°, away up in Finland. The pen of a Downing, 
aided by an artist's pencil, is needed to justly describe 
this exquisite retreat " 
"St. Petersburg, Russia, August 20th After leav- 
ing Wyborg, on Friday, we had a slightly rough passage, 
caused by a stiff western breeze over the Gulf of Finland, 
which sent sundry passengers to their berths. At i P. 
M., we neared the renowned fortifications and ship-yards 
at Cronstadt, eighteen miles west of St. Petersburg, and 
onr hearts were gladdened, and our eyes fairly glistened 
with tears of joy, as we saw flying from beautiful ships 
the 'Star-spangled Banner,' and Admiral Farragufs 
square, five-starred, blue Pennant, at the main-mast 
head of one of them. After so long journeying— always, 
thus far, in foreign ships— the sight of our own flag gaily 
floating in the breeze, awakened such emotions as nouo 
but those who have experienced them can appreciate. 
We wonder not at the devotion of the seaman to the flag 
of his country Further on, we passed some Russian 
ships, and then the fleet of Sweden, (the native land of 
Ericsson,! and here, too, were ten or a dpzen monitors — 
the smoke from a salvo of artillery of all the vessels and 
fortifications just then fired in honor of a visit from the 
Russian Grand Duke to our fleet prevented onr counting 
the ships accurately Eighteen miles more, and we 
come to anchor in the Neva, in the midst of the Great 
City of the North, and, in many respects, the City of tho 
World. The bug-bear of rough, searching Russian custom 
house and other officials, so graphically written down in 
tho English guide books, was not found. The fact that 
we wero American travelers, with onr necessary baggage, 
secured us a polite reception, aud an unscarched and un- 
molested passage to our hotel. At the ' Grand Hotel,' wo 
found as spacious, clean, and well furnished rooms, as 
good, well prepared food, as careful, prompt, and polite 
attendance, and at quite as reasonable rates, as we have 
secured anywhere else since crossing tho Atlantic. No 
' Russian bears ' walk the streets, in official or other garb, 
but every class, official, mercantile, shop-keepers, market 
men— indeed all classes, down even to the cab-men, 
If not including them also, are as polite and well-bred 
as we have anywhere found, not excepting Paris itself. 
I wish to note here, that everywhere on the continent wo 
have seen among all classes a degree of politeness— a 
touch of the hat, a ' thank you' for the slightest favors, 
that might well be copied by us Americans far more gen- 
erally than It Is During fereo days past, we have rodo 
20 miles through some of the broad, beautiful streets, and 
in one of the parks; have taken a full survey of the whole 
city, from the top of Isaac's Cathedral, havo visited tho 
' Hermitage,' with its infinite treasures of art, modem 
and ancient— and from what we have seen and know is to 
bo seen, we arc almost ready to write down St. PetOrB- 
burg ns a city more interesting, more instructive, nnd 
more pleasing than any wo havo seen after traversing, 
mow, or previously,! OVOTJ country of Europe, north of 
Spain and Italy. We Americans have seen and known 
northern and north-eastern Europe too much through 
English and French eyes. For myself, though I came 
hither with much desire, and with many expectations, I 
confess that what I have already seen, far surpasses my 
very highest conception. Even an enthusiastic French 
gentleman, a fellow traveler hither, who has all the way 
been loud in his praises of Paris, to-day, voluntarily, re- 
marked to ns, ' St. Petersburg is a second Paris.' Per- 
haps after three days more, he may say, ' Paris is almost 
a second St. Petersburg.' " 
•-. — «»— - — —m 
Walks and Talks onUhe Farm— No. 46. 
TYe have had one of the most severe drouths 
I have ever known. I have always been partial 
to a dry, hot summer — it gives such a splendid 
chance to kill weeds— but this is rather too 
good. At the East, I understand, they have 
had a very-wet summer, and the papers com- 
plain that the potatoes are rotting in conse- 
quence. Here we shall have few or none to rot. 
Corn will not be half a crop. I did not sow 
any corn for fodder, but we have been obliged 
for some time to cut up corn for the cows. As 
it was drilled in, and was a little too thick, I do not 
begrudge it the cows as much as if it was planted 
in hills. There is a heavy growth of stalks, 
and I am astonished to see how little ground 
we have to go over for a day's supply. Another 
season I will not be without a piece of corn 
fodder, on rich land, near the barn-yard, to be 
cut up in August for milch cows. Some of my 
neighbors had a piece this year, but it was sown 
broadcast, and the dry weather parched it up. 
In moist seasons, corn sown broadcast some- 
times does well, but, as a general rule, it should 
be sown thickly in drills, and thoroughly culti- 
vated, and the more highly it can be manured, 
the better. Rich land, thick seeding in drills, 
say three bushels per acre, and thorough culti- 
vation, are the essentials iu raising corn fodder. 
And in such circumstances it is astonishiug how 
much feed can be obtained from an acre. 
How much land does an old-fashioned fence 
occupy? I have always thought it took up a 
good deal of land, but never had the curiosity 
to measure. But this summer we have been 
building a stone wall along the whole west side 
of the farm, aud after it was completed, and the 
old fence removed, I was surprised at the quan- 
tity of laud wc had gained. The ground, of 
course, might have been plowed closer to the 
fence, but Taking the case as it actually was, the 
old rail fence, with stones, weeds, rubbish, etc., 
occupied a strip of land one rod wide. A field, 
31 rods long aud 31 rods wide, contains about 
six acres. If surrounded by such a fence, it 
would occupv a little over three quarters of an 
acre of land! A farm of 1G0 acres so fenced 
would have twenty acres of laud taken up m 
this worse than useless manner. Not only is the 
use of the land lost, but it is, in the majority of 
cases, a nursery of weeds, and, in plowing, much 
time is lost in turning, and the headlands and 
corners are seldom properly cultivated. 
But will it pav to use more capital in farm- 
in-? If we could calculate on getting present 
prices, there can be no doubt that it would pay 
well. And, at all events, you cannot have good 
farming without the use of a large working 
capital', or of liberal credit, and it is quite cer- 
tain that, if good farming will not pay, poor 
farming will not. And as agriculture is the 
main business of the nation, farming will pay in 
the long run, if anything pays. 
This question, so often asked, and so seldom 
answered, "Does farming pay?" is a very ab- 
surd one. Of course forming pays. Farmers 
,lo got a living, and it is rare tbat one of them 
