84 
THE SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
Otherwise be lost. The ash of cotton seed 
contains considerably more of this acid than 
bones do, and hence the immense value ol this 
seed as a manure. But its effects are proverb- 
ially transient. With lime in the soil sufficient- 
ly abundant to fix the phosphoric acid, cotton 
■eed would be a manure almost as permanent 
as bones. {Concluded in our next.] 
From the Southern Planter. 
GUllVEA GRASS,— CORN, &c. 
Mr. Editor: — For the roots ot Guinea grass 
obtainedfrom the lamented Garnett, and by your 
kindness sent me to Hillsborough two years ago, 
accept now my cordial thanks. From the result 
ot an experiment, made under very unfavorable 
circumstances, I am convinced that the Guinea 
grass will supply the important desideratum for 
which I was so anxious to procure it. I find the 
product very great. On rich upland, even in so 
unpropitious a season as the past summer, it 
will bear cutting three times, at from tour to five 
feet high ; and though coarse, it is very palata- 
ble both to cows and horses when cut or wilted, 
and makes no despicable hay. The grand desi- 
deratum was, something to supply the only de- 
lect of Lucerne for soil-feeding, viz., its failure 
in hot and dry July and August. 
Farming is altogether a subordinate business 
with me. Myself and assistant devote ourselves 
to the “delightful task” of rearing the tender 
thought, and “ teaching the young idea how to 
shoot,” a task in which I find great pleasure and 
profit. Still having been trained as well to ag- 
ricultural as scholastic labor, I leel much inter- 
est in the farmer’s pursuits, and am ambitious 
of making my own bread and meat. Farming 
is certainly a profitable business as subsidiary 
to professional pursuits, when rationally condu:- 
isa on a. suitable scale. An active, industrious, 
and honest, sensible young man, son ot one of 
my neighbors, leads, does not drive, but leads 
tour or five negro men, tor^lSO per annum. I 
project and he executes. I am more the school 
master and less the farmer in the country than I 
was in town. Then having only eleven acres 
to operate on, and these immediately under my 
own eye, I needed no steward, but directed, and 
in good degree superintended every operation 
myselt. Here a weekly stroll over the fields on 
Saturdays, enables me to chalk out the next 
week’s labor for ray steward. 
Bye-the-bye, I gathered in 1843, from two 
measured acres, sixty barrels in the ear, or thir- 
ty when shelled, of good sound bread corn, alter 
no considerable abstractions made by feathered 
and unfeathered bipeds. With favorable sea- 
sons I am convinced the product would have 
been a third larger. I am satisfied that the soil 
and climate of Orange county, in the good old 
North Slate, are capable of yielding one hundred 
bushels of Indian corn per acre. 1 planted four 
feet by two, in drills opened by a heavy two 
horse plow, followed by a subsoil plow, and 
manured in the drill from the stable and cow 
yard; one half one stalk; the other two stalks 
in the hill. Product about equal, but the one 
stalk halt the best corn. The two stalk half, 
but for a drought at a critical juncture of silk- 
ing would have out-yielded the other considera- 
bly. Used first the Teague bull tongue and hoe 
when the corn was three inches high, afterwards 
the cultivator was run, leaving the ground lev- 
el, and pulling out the weeds in the row by 
hand. The same two acres yielded the next 
year nearly sixty bushels of Cape wheat, weigh- 
ing 64 pounds to the bushel, which was cut not 
green, but ripe, in the month of May. The 
seed was obtained from Hon. E. Pettigrew, of 
Tyrrell county, one of the most enterprising, 
successful and useful citizen farmers. After 
taking off the wheat I planted corn for my hogs 
in the fall. The stand was very bad; and see- 
ing it would mature I suffered it to do so, and 
gathered fifty bushels of shelled corn from the 
two acres— species known by the name of 
Collin’s corn, and much valued in the eastern 
part of this State. W. J. Bingham. 
Big Oal's, Orange CO,. N. C., Nov. 15, lF4n. 
Agricultural Jltcetinga. 
PKOCEEBINGS OF THE S. C. STATE 
AGRICUETURAE SOCIETY. 
Columbia, Monday, Nov. 24, 1845, 
The State Agricultural Society held its pre- 
liminary meeting this evening, at 7 o’clock. 
The President called the meeting to order. 
The members and delegates having enrolled 
themselves, the Society then proceeded to regu- 
lar business, 
Hon. John B. O’Neall offered the following 
resolution: 
Resolved, That a committee of five, of whom 
the President shall be Chairman, be raised, for 
the purpose of ascertaining the quantity of corn 
necessary to supply the wants of the people of" 
the State, the minimum prices at which it can 
be obtained in Charleston, Hamburg, Colum- 
bia and Camden, and the time when it can be 
most conveniently obtained. 
Agreed to, and the following were the com- 
mittee appointed : F. B. Higgins, Newberry ; 
James A, Black, York; Wm. J. Allslon, Fair- 
field; B, F. Perry, Greenville, 
It was then moved that an appropriation be 
asked from the Legislature, for the publication 
of the proceedings of this Society, the address- 
es, reports and essays which the Society may 
select for publication, and also, for such prizes 
as may be annually awarded. 
Agreed to, and the following appointed as 
the committee to petition: Hon. J. B. O’Neall, 
Dr. Thomas Legare, J. H, Means, Jas. Rlietl, 
J. C. Chesnin. 
The Secretary then stated, that it was proper 
to remark, as one of the executive committee, 
that the committees could make no awards for 
anything but stock — the means of the Society 
not being sufficient. 
The following are the committees appointed 
by the President : 
On Domestic Fabrics. — Dr. R. W. Gibbes, 
Richland; J. C. Chesnut, Kershaw; John Riv- 
ers, St. Andrews; J. Y. Mills, Chester; P. E. 
Ware, Greenville. 
On Corn. — Edward G. Palmer, Fajrfield; J. 
M, Felder, Orangeburgh; P. S. Brooks, Edge- 
field; Wra. Summer, Newberry; Jas. Gregg, 
Richland. 
On Rice. — R. F. W. Allston, Prince George; 
B. F. Dunkin,All Saints; Jas. S. Rhett, Christ 
Church. 
On Short, Staph Colton. — Wm. J. Allston, 
Fairfield; J. P. Neel, Newberry; L. A. Beck- 
ham, Chester, 
On Long Staple Collon. — W. M. Murray, St. 
Johns; John Rivers, St. Andrews; J. Fickling, 
St. Lukes. 
On Small Grain. — J. B. O’Neall, Newberry, 
P. E. Dunkin, Greenville; Joel Smith, Abbe- 
ville. 
On Marl.— Z. H. Hammond, Barn well ; W. 
T. Ellerbe, Pedee; Dr. P, Palmer, St. John's, 
Berkley. 
On Potatoes.— ?L. G. Summer, Richland; Dr. 
Fickling, St. Lukes; J. H. Means, Fairfield. 
The follow’ing communications were read by 
the President: 
Greenville C. H., Nov. 17, 1845. 
To the Hon. W. B. Seahrook, President oj the Ag. So. 
of the State of S G : 
Inasmuch as the undersigned has, by unfor- 
seen contingencies, been denied the pleasure of 
attending the meeting of the Society, he begs 
most respectfully to offer through you the fol- 
lowing resolutions for the consideration of the 
Society. 
1. Resolved, That, hereafter, all competitors 
for the premiums offered by this Society fur 
live stock, shall, in addition to the age and ped- 
igree of the animal so offered, report the gene- 
ral management of the animal, manner ol feed- 
ing, articles used, &c. &c., with such other re- 
marks pertaining to that kind of stock as the 
applicant may see fit to offer, and the premium 
shall be aw'arded to the competitor who shall 
offer the animal and report, which, taken toge- 
ther, are best calculated to promote the objects 
of this Society. 
2. Resolved, That hereafter, all competitors 
for the premiums offered by this Society, for 
the best crops, shall, in addition to the amount 
of the crop for that year, report as near as he 
can, the crop of the previous year, the condition 
of the land, manner of improving, preparing 
land for planting, cultivation of the crop offered 
for competition, and such other remarks per- 
taining to the improvement of land and the cul- 
ture of that particular crop, as he may think 
fit; and the premiums shall be awarded to the 
competitor, whose crop and report, taken toge- 
ther, are best calculated to promote the objects 
of this Society. 
The importance of adopting the above reso- 
lution, is, to H e undersigned, obvious ; but as 
others may not think so, on first presentation, a 
few words of explanation will be offered. 
The economy of raising fine animals, and 
impro\ ing land, are matters as interesting to 
this Society as any others. One class or varie- 
ty of domestic animals may suit the particular 
circumstances of one individual or one neigh- 
borhood, better than any other. Different soils 
and localities require different means lor their 
increase of fertility. The adoption of the re- 
solution offered would, no doubt, biing out a 
large number of facts, well calculated to eluci- 
date both these classes of subjects, and specu- 
lations that would lead to further uselul investi- 
gations and experiments. Gompetitors would 
take more notice ol what they did, and keep, 
more accounts, so that the expense and profit of 
each agricultural operation would be better 
known. This is something much needed. In 
this way, a large amount of desirable infor- 
mation could be collected by the Society, 
and diffused among the farmers of the Stale. 
Premiums could not then be awarded to any 
one, who by accident, had a large crop, cr a 
fine animal, but be bestowed, as they ought 
to be, on those persons who had, by their in- 
dustry, talent and capital, dtrae most to promote 
the great and gojd cause. The contest for pre- 
miums wouKi not be merely who should have 
the fattest animal, or the largest crop, but turn 
on the important principle ol who could accom' 
plish most at least expense. 
A spirited competition, conducted on these 
principles, would, in the estimation of the un- 
dersigned, increase vastly the benefits the farm- 
ing community have received from the plan 
heretofore adopted. 
With a feeling of deep interest in the welfare 
and success of the Society, 
I am, most respecHully, A. B. Crook. 
To the St o.te Agricultural Society of So. Ca., 
in the United States of America : — The Prussian 
Imperial Economical Society, established in St. 
Petersburg, in the year 1765, having for its ob- 
ject the improvement of different branches of 
Rural Economy and National Industry, desire 
to enter into correspondence with your hono- 
rable Society, for mutual e.xchange ol different 
experiments, observations and discoveries, in 
order to promote the National welfare ol both 
countries. The Almighty having blessed the 
United States and Rus-sia with immense tracts 
of fertile lands, has pointed out to us that the 
principal occupations of both countries should 
consist in rural pursuits. Therefore, we feel 
real sympathy towards your great nation — and 
the more so, because our Society has the honor 
of counting am jngst Us active and useful mem- 
bers, one of your distinguished citizens, the 
Hon. Mr. Todd, the representative of your 
country in Russia. 
The Russian Economical Society has, for a 
long time, expressed the wish of communicat- 
ing with the Agricultural Societies in other 
countries; but as the transactions ot our Socie- 
ty are published in the Russian language, 
which is very little known abroad, the Society 
commenced publishing extracts of the annual 
reports and of the transactions in the German 
language, which is generally understood in ci- 
