THE SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
69 
love of home; and again, when 1 have passed a 
cottage surrounded by trees, shrubs, vines and 
flowers, 1 have thought there is the abode of a 
■woman of delicacy and taste. It is really cheer- 
ing to the eye of the weary traveller to meet 
with these things, and he would rather stop to 
re.-t, where pains had been taken to tend them, 
than where it was desolate and bare. 
I speak of these things, because it is peculiar- 
ly the province of woman to study whatever 
makes life agreeable and divests it of what is 
unpleasant. The more sources a woman has 
of enjoyment, the better it is for her. It is her 
lot, if she is domestic and discharges her duties 
as she ought, to stay at home; it is her lot to be 
often alone, and also to participate largely in 
the cares and anxieties ot life. Active exertion 
is often a relict to many of these, and in no part 
of her establishment can she make it with so 
much pleasure, as in her garden. Girls should 
learn more of these things, so that when .settleil, 
they may seek for enjoyment at home, by ner- 
forming their dutie.9, and not make it their chief 
enjoyment to visit and pass about from place to 
place. 1 would say again to you, to go to work, 
’ cultivate the useful and beautiful, and you will 
not regret the time you have thus spent. You 
will not look back and sa} , it was unprofitably 
employed. Lucy. 
Tennessee Agriculturist. 
TREATMENT OF COWS— BUTTER MAKING. 
Change of Pastures . — To insure the produc- 
tion ol tne largest quantity of butter, a Irequcnt 
change of pasture is required. A farm should 
be so fenced that ike cows can be changed into 
a very diflereni lot every four or five days. 
Sauing . — A constant and full supply ol salt 
should lie before our cows in some secure place. 
They will eat moderately what they require. — 
If only occasionally furnished, they often lake 
it in quantities so large, as to act medicinally 
to their injury. It corrects almost any bad 
quality of the milk, arising from the eating of 
aromatic or bitter herbs, and also much of the 
natural animal odor, that Irequently impairs the 
sweetness of butter. 
Driving — kind Ireatment . — Many a faithful 
cow has been seriously injured by a careless 
boy driving her furiously to and from the pas- 
ture. All harsh treatment of any kind, as scold- 
ing, striking, kicking, &c. is all detrimental. I 
have known many cows rendered worthless 
from the.se causes. The utmost kindness and 
gentleness of manner must be shown on the part 
of those who manage our stuck. 
Milking . — This process should be done syste- 
matically, at regular periods of the day. Sun- 
ri.se and sunset are perhaps the best periods; for 
immediately after the one, and before the other, 
cows in hot weather Iced to the best advantage. 
They are so much creatures ol habit that the 
milker should be changed as rarely as possible. 
A stranger is always regarded as an unwelcome 
visiter, by a milch cow. 
Cleanliness with the uUnsils . — The pans, pails, 
strainers, bowls, churn, and every implement 
employed in butter making. mu.st not only be 
well washed, but they must be thoroughly scald- 
ed with boiling hot water, and be perftcily dried 
afterwards, either in the sun or before the fire. 
This must be repeated every time they are us- 
ed. Merely pouring boiling water upon them 
•when loaded with sour milk or cream, will only 
serve to .scald in the bad flavor, if I may u.se the 
expression. Wash them at first, and then scald 
them thoroughly, if you would have sweet 
butter. 
There are certain filthy practices which .slat- 
terns fall into, that should be corrected; .such as 
wetting the cow’s teals with milk, and permit- 
ting it to drop into the pail; milking in the mor- 
ning without wa.'ihing their hand.s, 4e. 
Milk-house and Buttery . — In hot weather a 
good spring-house is necessary for the making 
of butter. It must be constructed of either brick 
or stone, and in no instance of wood, as that ar- 
ticle never fails. In such a situation, to become 
mouldy, and impair the flavor of butter. It 
must be built .so that it can be thoroughly venii- ; 
lated. A window should be jilaced on the north, j 
east and west sides, which must Ik* lurnished on | 
the outside with wire gauze screens, and on the j 
insiue with light .shutters. During the day, the 
shutters must be closed, and at night must be 
raised. 
A spring may be dispensed with — and it is 
even problematical whether it does not, upon the 
whole, do as much injury by imparling damp- 
ness, as it does gootl by lowering the tempera- 
ture. A well constructed house without the 
spring, will answer the purpose. It should be 
shaded with trees or arbors of grape vines. All 
mouldy and decaying wood- work, boards, boxe.s, 
&c. must be kept out of it; also all foreign sub- 
stances, as meats, fish and vegetables. The air 
of my spring-hou.s* was ruined for a week or 
more, merely by plaeing in it a few mackerel. 
Skimming the Milk . — In hot weather the milk 
may be allowed to curdle belbre this operation 
is performed, but if it be delayed any longer, a 
thin, watery fluid will form between the milk 
and the cream, after which the good qualities 
are inevitably destroyed. It is necessary, in 
midsummer, to skim the milk every moiiiing 
and night. '1 his point must receive the strict- 
est attention. Neglect of it often gives a streak- 
ed or mottled appearance to butler, as well as 
impairs its flavor. 
Cream . — As soon as it is collected, it should 
be placed in a stone crock, -which should either 
be hung into a well, or set up to the brim in the 
spring within the milk-house. 
Churning . — This operation must be resorted 
to as soon as a supply of cream is obtained, and 
in hot weather cannot salely be delayed beyond 
the third day. 
A variety of patent chums have been palmed 
upon the public, none of which, we believe, is 
to be preferred to the old fashioned upright dash- 
er, or the barrel. 
Working of Butler . — This must be repeated 
until every drop of the buttermilk is expelled; 
twice or three times will be necessary, nor must 
it be delayed too long, till a change begins to 
take place in the remaining buttermilk, as that 
will impair the flavor of the butter, which no 
subsequent treatment can restore. 
Sailing . — The salt should be added at the 
commencement of the first working. Much of 
our western butter is injured by the employment 
of the common New York salt. Tne finest 
grounti articles should be used. It can now be 
obtained in sacks, of our merchants, at rea.son- 
able price. — Cl'ovetand Herald. 
MILKING. 
Cows that are milked quick and stripped clean 
will give more milk than if they are managed 
by moderate milkers. The reason is, that what- 
ever milk is left in the udder diies up, and a 
cow will shrink in her milk permanently in 
proportion to the quantity that is allowed to dry 
up. If half dries up, she will soim be reduced 
to half her.natiiral flow of milk; jiust as she will 
dry totally up if her milking is totally neglected. 
When a milker approaches the cow, the ani- 
mal is said to "give down” her milk. From that 
moment it should be withdrawn as rapidly as 
possible; the longer it or any of it remains in 
the udder, the more of it begin.s to dry up, even 
during the operation of the milker. Verj' much 
depends upon rapidity and fidelity in the milk- 
er, in order to boast truly of having an excellent 
cow for milk. We have known cows that in 
certain hands gave enormou.s quantities of 
milk, and as soon a.s they were sold to a villager, 
who trusted to his hired girls to do the milking, 
they begun to shrink, and soon the cows lost 
their reputation, and the men of whom they pur- 
cha.sed were denounced as liars, cheats and ev- 
ery thing else that is bad. The .secret of this 
faultfinding might be traced to the girl, who 
either was verj’ slow in milking, or who had 
not patience enough to .strip the cow verj- clean. 
If a cow was not managed aright when she 
had her first calf, it will be almost impossible 
to make her great for milk as long as she lives. 
The first experiment with her i.s a final habit. — 
No heifer, alter calving, should l>e ti ii.sted to in- 
cxperitncetl, unkind or unfaithiiil hands, ^;he 
should be treated gently, fed well, and milked 
regularly — at just such hours — and milked 
quickly and as long as half a dozen drops can 
be forced from the udder. She should, loo, be 
milked as nearly as jiossible up to the lime of 
her having the next calf By such attention, 
she will be likely to prove a valuable animal; 
one that will give much milk, hold out long, 
and be manageable every way by heratlendants. 
Learners should be taught the art of milking 
on cows that arc being dried off. And one of 
their first les.sons should be to clasp the leal very 
near its extremity. 'I’his will hurt the cow least, 
and be worked easiest to the milker. They 
should also bear the left arm moderately against 
the leg of the cow. bhe cannot then kick, or if 
she attempts it, by raising her foot, the milker 
will be ready to ward off and protect herself and 
pail from any sad con.seqiiences. Thus guard- 
ed, let them make as brisk work of milking as 
possible — treating the cow grnily, and with- 
drawing all the milk laiihfully, and there will 
be a chance for the .security of two gootl things 
— a good milker anvla good cow. — Cos. Banner. 
NIGHT SOIL. 
To the editors of Tennessee Stole Agriculturist: 
There is much said in your and other agri- 
cultural journals, about the advantages of night 
soils, as a manure. One of your sub.scril>ers 
in this part ol the country, w ishes to be inform- 
ed about the matter as follows: 
1. What is it mixed with, and in what pro- 
portion to destroy all disagreeable odor? 
2. What is it mixed with, and in what pro- 
portion, to prepare it lor the soil? 
3. How is it u.'>ed as a manure, for top-dre.s»- 
ing, sowed broadca.st, or put in the ground and 
covered. Please give the whole modus oj'eran- 
di, and all else that you may deem necessarv' on 
the subject. Give the desired information thro’ 
your paper. Very respectfully. 
K. Houston. 
REPLY. 
The above enquiries we consider of vast im- 
portance to all who till the earth far a support. 
Agricultural chemists and the most intelligent 
farmers and gardners, agree in comnienuing 
night soil, or human excrements, above all ma- 
nures. Its superiority arises from the fact that 
it contains a greater quantity of ammonia than 
other manures. The preparation is a simple 
F )roces.s, and attended with veiy little expense or 
abor. Mr. Woo Ifin, in the Southern Planter, 
gives his mode of making and applying Pou- 
drette, which not only accords in the main with 
other writers, but the process is presented in 
such a manner it cannot be misunderstood. — 
He says: 
“I collect the .stercoraceous matters separate- 
ly in large vessels or hog.sheads, after the urine 
has become putrid, which will require but two 
or three days in warm, and ten or fifteen in cold 
weather. 1 then add sulphuric acid to the urine 
slowly; if the urine is putrid, a powerful effer- 
vescence will immediately lake place; the acid 
mu.st be added until effervescence ceases. By 
this process, the carbonic acid in combination 
with the ammonia, is di.sengaged and driven off, 
and sulphate of ammonia i.s formed, which has 
no volatility, except at a veiy high temperature. 
Thus you .secure the ammonia formed by putre- 
faction, which otherwise would escape. I then 
add the liquid to the solid excrements, incorpo- 
rating them well together, until a veiy- thin bat- 
ter is formed; into this mass I .stir in finely pul- 
verized charcoal, according to my judgment, 
without regard to any precise quantity; this 
done, I spread the massufion boards made tight, 
in the open air — .stir frequently until the whole 
is dry, then pulverize with a spade and barrel it 
up for the use of crops. 
My drj'ing boards are protected from the 
weather by a shed open to the south, .so aa to 
receive the benefit of the sun. Manure made 
in this way 1 call Poudrette, and of its value T 
