SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR 
111 
frosts and snows. In California as in the Southei'n States, 
it doubtless might be planted at almost any season and 
vegetate successfully.” 
‘•The taste of the Chufa is hardly inferior to the best 
chestnut, which it much resembles. Poultry are quite as 
fond of it as hogs, but cannot do their own harvesting; 
but turn the hogs upon the Chufa patch and a most re- 
markable attachment of the hen to the hog's nose is im- 
mediately observable, and being quick of foot, and keen 
in their perception of the delicious, soon retire with their 
crops filled almost to a surfeit. As a cheap and nutriti- 
ous food for sw'ine and poultry, the Chufa has not its 
equal.” — California Cnllurist. 
HABITUAI. COSTIVENESS=-ITS CAUSES, 
Couseqacnces and Cure, 
Editors Southern Cultsvator — Were it possi^de to 
notice a national sin without a passing shudder at its 
national punishment, we might eliminate from our essay 
all the co-nsequences of habifual cosiiveness. 
Shall 1 refer the reader to the advertisements of the pill- 
makers, who have only Paled to mention one of the very 
worst and most nation,!, to wit : fill lol{ing 7 
Or to Ins own record of sympt6rn ? 1 
Or to the avr-.r-age sanitary rt-nori of his neighborhood, 
— “Pooily, thank God !” 
From each and ail of these he may gather a Pandora’s 
list, ranging foma bad breath to a premature interment, 
inclusive; which will leave us more time to state the 
cause of this “defect,” and ics naasral and “ever}'- man his 
own physic,” cure. 
Habitual costiveness, then, has its rise in an early and 
habitual neglect of the monitions of nature. She hath 
kindly left us a margin in the matter of “time — when” — 
and we have abused her kindness beyond all reason. 
Neglect in infancy, neglect in childhood, neglect in 
youth, neglect at maturity, neglect (not in old age, but) 
in decline ! 
Yet, in all these stages the evil is curable, and curable 
in one way alone. 
An earnest, persistent, daily efiort, though often defeat- 
ed, will at length, never fail to propitiate her w'hom we 
have offended, and to restore the bowels to their natural 
sensibility, the ground work of their healthy action. 
This is all. 
But there is a great deal In the way ! 
Laziness, business, wmnt of proper acco'mmodation, 
and gross ignorance and neglect on the part of those who 
have the care of youth. 
■ The Romans had their Temples to Cloacina. Owrs 
might be dedicated to all the infernal gods at once ! There 
is a point at which human repugnance becomes invincible, 
and that point, ray dear sir, lies within a few rods of 
your thousand dollar carriage-house! Nature must back 
her orders with the point of a bayonet before any man 
who has an alimentary canal will trust it in that inhospit- 
able region ! No wonder that many prefer to become 
peripatetic stercoraries themselves ! This is a national 
nuisance ; intolerable and not to be endured. The savage 
is better off. 
I designed a gentle hint to Boarding Schools before 
concluding, but not having the club of Hercules, and no- 
thing gentler that will do, suggesting itself, I will refrain. 
I will ask, however, whether any reward of merit is con- 
ferred on those who most assidnously cultivate their gifts 
of continence in this particular 1 for many of their 
with whom my profession has brought me into contact, 
have made a merit of it ! and it has seemed to me that it 
was solely because they had never been taught any better; 
for they gladly adopted the advice (no physic) given them 
and got well directly 1 
I Ivvo r.o'.v to m^l’c n small apology to some of your 
readers, whom I will address generically as Miss Nancy, 
We have the concurrent testimony of two sublime 
Pliilosophers, one of either sex ; Dr. Johnson and Mrs. 
Partington ; that “the indelicacy of a thing lies a good deal 
in the way you look at it;” and I W'ill add, for Miss 
Nancy’s benefit, that the affected delicacy with which she 
looks at things, is to a sensible man a sign of prurient 
imagination; w'hich to a physician is a symptom of the 
disorder which I have treated of Therefore, and also for 
her benefit, I have spoken in plain words, and only put in 
a few long ones by way of emphasis. 0. 
February, 1859. 
MEASURING CORN IN BULK. 
Editors Southern Cultivator — In answer to the cor- 
respondent, “W. C, K,”in relation to the rule for calcu- 
lating the quantity of corn in bulk, I may say that, upon a 
careful consideration, I ©annot see any incorrectness in 
the rule that would materially effect the result. It is a 
thing that cannot be treated in a perfectly scientific man- 
ner; but rules sufficiently exact for practical purposes, 
can be constructed. 
For Shucked Corn — It is proved by experiment that 
corn shells out half its bulk in the ear, (or never less.) 
Then fin ling the cubic feet in a crib, by mulfiplying the 3 
dimensions together ; a cubic foot is 8-10 of a bushel, 
(4 4-10 inches over, which is too small to effect a practi- 
cal result,) and multiplying the cubic feet by 810 wc 
have the bushels in shelled corn, then taking half for corn 
in the ear, we have what the corn would shell out net. 
Dividing by 5 will reduce the bushels to barrelsT Then 
8-10, 1-2 and 1-5 multiplied, give 8100 of a barrel for 1 
cubic foot; multipling-tlie cubic feet by 8-100, i. e., by 8 
and cutting off two figures, will give the barrels as nearly 
correct as can be cstimausd in such things. 
The example of “W. C. K.,” 20.15 9 feet multiplied 
give 2700 cubic feet in the crib; muittipiying 8, and cut- 
ting off two figures v.mhave 216 barrels. 
Taking 2700 (which applies any v/here) and multiply- 
ing 8-10 we have the bushels, taking half we have the 
shelled corn, dividing by '5 we have 216 barrels, as before, 
showing that the rule is founded on the same principle. 
The rule seems to apply to the example of “W. C. K as 
accurately as any other rule could. 
I think the rule for unshucked corn is liable to too many 
errors to be considered as reliable. 
Yours, most respectfully, 
William P, Bradford. 
Danburg, Feb., 1859. 
Constant Impovement — Every farmer siiould be 
constantly “fixing up” his barns, stables, and yard fences 
—constantly adding to the comfort and conveniences of 
his domestic animals and their attendants — constantly im- 
proving in neatness, cleanliness, efficient shelter. Racks 
for fodder, and troughs for meal,? are easily made at this 
time of the year, and frequently save their cost several 
times over, by keeping hay from rnud and meal from waste. 
Every field should have a good gate to enter it, and these 
gates may be constructed in winter by every ingenious 
farmer wno has a v/orkshop and a few simple tools. 
“Night Soil.”— Mr, Liebig, the chemist, writes: “1 
am firmly of opinion that if England wishes to remain an 
agricultural country, she must use as manure the night 
soil, and similar residues produced in large cities. This 
necessity would be increased in the event of a war with 
America, when the supplies of guano would cease. The 
price of corn [“corn,” in England, means wheat, oats, 
&c.] depends upon that of guano, and it is most unnatural 
that, in a country like Engl md, the production of corn 
and meat .should be so dependant on the supplies of foreign 
manure. 
