114 
THE SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
wash of tlie buildings, nicely sheltered by that 
bunch of shrubbery. Then see them everlast- 
ing big barns — and by gosh, there goes fourteen 
dairy cows — as sleekjas moles. Them flower^, 
honeysuckles and rose bushes, shows what sort 
of a family lives there, just as plain as straws 
show which way the wind blows. 
Them galls an’t ’tarnally racing round to 
quiltin and husking frolics, their feet exposed 
in thin slips to the mud, and their honor to a 
thinner protection. No, no, take my word lor 
it, when you see galls busy about such things to 
home, they are what our old minister used to 
call “right minded.” Such things keep them 
busy, and when folks are busy about their own 
business, they’ve no time to get into mischief — 
It keeps them healthy, too, and as cheerful as 
larks. I’ve a mind we’ll ’light here, and view 
this citizen’s improvements, and we shall be 
welcomed to a neat substantial breakfast, that 
would be worthy to be taken as a pattern by any 
iarmer’s wife in America. 
We were met at the door by Mr. Horton who 
greeted my friend Slick with the waim saluta- 
tion of an old acquaintance, and expressed the 
satisfaction of one habitually hospitable, for the 
honor ot my visit. He was a plain, healthy, 
intelligent looking man, about fitly, dressed as a 
farmer should be, with the stamp of “Home- 
spun” legible upon every garment, not forget- 
ting a very handsome silk handkerchief, the 
work throughout of his oldest daughter. The 
room into which we were ushered, bore the 
same stamp of neatness and comfort that the 
outside appearance indicated. A substantial 
homemade carpet covered the floor, and a well 
filled book-case and writing desk, were in the 
right place, among the contents of which I ob- 
served several agricultural periodicals. I was 
particularly struck with the scrupulously neat 
and appropriate attire of the wife and two in- 
telligent, interesting daughters, that were busily 
engaged in the morning operations of the dairy. 
After partaking of an excellent substantial 
breakfast, Mr. Horton invited us to walk over 
his farm, which, though small, was every part 
in such a fine state of cultivation, that he did 
not even express a fear of “starving, unless the 
legislature did something to keep the land from 
running out.” 
We bade adieu to this happy family, and 
proceeded on our journey fully impressed uuth 
the contrast between a good and bad farmer, and 
for my own part, perfectly satisfied with the 
manner that Mr. Slick had taken to impress it 
indelibly upon my own mind. 
Mr. Slick seemed wrapped in contemplation 
of the scenes of the morning for a long time. 
At length he broke forth in one of his happy 
strains. “The bane of this country, ’Squire, 
and indeed of all America, is having too much 
LAND — they run over more ground than they cul- 
tivate and crop the land year after year, with- 
out manure, till it is no wonder that “il’s run 
out." A very large portion of land in America 
has been “run out,” by repeated grain crops and 
bad husbandry, until a great portion of this 
great country is in a fair way to be ruined. — 
The two Carolinas and Virginny are covered 
with places that are “run out,” and are given up 
as ruined, and there are a plagey site too many 
such places all over New England, and a great 
many other States. We havn’t the surplus of 
wheat that we used to have in the United States, 
and it’ll never be so plenty while there are so 
many Nick Bradshaw%in the country. 
The fact is, ’Squire, edecation is ducedly ne- 
glected. True, we have a site of schools and 
colleges, but they an’t the right kind. That 
same Nick Bradshaw has been clean through 
one on ’em, and ’twas there that he lamt that in- 
farnal lazy habit of drinking and smoking, that 
has been the ruin of him ever since. I wouldn’t 
give an old fashioned swing tail clock to have 
my son go to college where he couldn’t work 
enough to arn his own living, and larn how to 
work it right tu. 
It actilly frightens me when I think how the 
land is worked and skinned, till they take the 
gizard out on’t, when it might be gi'owing better 
every day. Thousands of acres every year are 
turned into barrens, while an everlasting stream 
of our folks are streaking it oft “to the new 
country,” where about half on ’em after wading 
about among the tadpoles, to catch cat fish 
enough to live on a year or two, actually shake 
themselves to death with that everlasting cuss 
of all new countrys, the fever and agur. It’s a 
melancholy fact, ’Squire, tho’ our people don’t 
seem to be sensible of it, and you nor I may not 
live to see it, but if this awful robbin’ of poster- 
ity goes on for another hundred years, as it has 
for the last, among the farmers, we’ll be a nation 
ot paupers. Talk about the legislature doing 
something. I’ll tell you what I’d have them do. 
Paint a great parcel of guide boards, and nail 
’em up over every legislature, church and school 
house door in America, with these wmrds on ’em 
in great letters — The best land in America, by 
constant cropping, tvithout manure, will run out." 
And I’d have ’em, also, provide means to lam 
every child how to read it, cause it’s no use to 
try to larn the old ones — they’re tu sot in their 
ways. They are on the constant stretch with 
the land they have, and all the time trying to git 
more, without improving any on’t. Yes, yes, 
yes, too much land is the ruin of us all. 
Although you will find a thousand more good 
things among the writings of “The Clockma- 
ker,” I hope you will not look for a literal copy 
of the foregoing. And if ever this meets the 
eye of the writer of the “Saying and Doings of 
Samuel Slick,” I beg him to excuse me for the 
liberty I have taken with his own language. 
I remain your Agricultural friend, 
Solon Robinson. 
CHEAP SUGAR BOILER. 
Take two pieces of plank six feet long, six- 
teen or eighteen inches wide, two inches thick, 
dress them neatly, especially on the side inten- 
ded for the inner part; take two other pieces, 
two feet long, dress in same way, cut in one 
inch two inches from the end of your side pie- 
ces, then put it together with I2d nails, forming 
a box two by six feet. This will form a box 
without lid or bottom. Now get you a piece of 
sheet iron, just three-fourths of an inch larger 
every way than your box; fasten the sheet iron 
on with 4d nails, at the distance of eight or ten 
inches, on the open side of the box, forming a 
bottom. Then turn down the f inch all round, 
closing it fast at the surface with a hammer, and 
with a small punch insert holes of a size to re- 
ceive a No. 12 tack, at the distance of J inch 
apart, which will effectually secure the sheet 
iron to the wood, and which will complete the 
boiler. Now for putting it up for use. Take 
brick and form an arch six inches smaller than 
the bottom of the boiler, which will give three 
inches bearing on each side; at each end the 
bearing should be 4 to 6 inches, and the front 
end of the arch should be built up to the top of 
the boiler, to prevent the fire from burning the 
wood, and at the end where the chimney is to 
be, the brick should also be built up between the 
boiler and the flue of the chimney. Thus you 
will see that the wood part of your boiler is en- 
tirely out of the reach of fire and will have no 
effect upon it. 
If copper is thought to be preferaole lor boil- 
ing sugar, it can be put on in the same way. — 
You need have no fears that such a boiler will 
not answ’er the purpose. I have one that I 
boiled a large crop of turneps in last fall, which 
never failed in the least. 
I make this communication for the benefit of 
those who have patches of corn planted for the 
purpose of making sugar this fall. The cost is 
but trifling and is in the reach of ever}'^ farmer. 
It is good for many uses — on wash and scour- 
ing days you v ill find it quite the thing, and is 
excellent for boiling cow and hog food, &c. 
A. Greene. 
P. S. The better plan is to get your sheet 
iron or copper first, then fonn your box 4 inch 
smaller, sides and ends. 
Green Co., June 29, 1843. 
Stanpordsville, Putnam Co., ) 
July 8, 1843. $ 
Dear Sirs — I propbspijn.this communication 
to give yp'i^f Raders my mode of planting and 
cultivating corn; but before I do so, I beg leave 
to re'tum you my acknowledgements, and beg 
that you will excuse me for asking of you what 
you had previously promised. In a day or two 
after sending my first communication, I was 
looking over the fifth number of your paper and 
found that you had promised enough to encour- 
age any planter that felt inclined to write for 
your paper, to do so mithout the least embar- 
assm-^nt, and in your thirteenth number, you 
have renewed that promise without reserve, 
which induces me to try my hand again, and if 
my poor efforts should prove of any advantage 
to your papei, or any one of your readers, then 
I shall have done what I desire. 
I will now return to my subject and, in the 
first place, say that my land is very broken, and 
for the purpose of preventing the hill side from 
washing off, I have got them nearly all ditched, 
consequently have to plant the most of my com 
in drills, and always plant the land in corn that 
was in cotton the year before. I have the rows 
laid OS' seven feet apart, parallel with the ditch- 
es; make a bed with five scooter furrows, (deep- 
ly ploughed,) the bed is then split in the middle 
with a scooter plough, the com is then dropt 
two feet apart, one to three grains in a place, 
and carefully covered with a hoe, (I never had 
a field of corn covered with the plough.) So 
soon as I get one field planted, the middle of the 
rows is broken up deep with scooter ploughs 
before we move to another field. By the time 
we have gotten through planting corn in this 
way, our attention is turned to that of preparing 
cotton land. By the time that is done and the 
cotton all planted, the com, in good seasons, is 
all up and from 3 to 6 inches high. The ploughs 
are then put in the corn. I have colters put in 
good order to side the corn, run deep and close. 
The row is then ploughed deep with scooter 
hoes. The land should be properly and deeply 
broke by this plowing. I have my hoe hands 
to follow this plowing, thinning the com out to 
one stalk in a place, and chopping out all the 
grass that may be in the drill, at the same time 
throwing some dirt around the corn. From fif- 
teen to 20 days after this is done, the com is 
from half leg to knee high. The shovel plows 
are then put in. A careful plower, with a good 
shovel plow, will run his furrows so as to make 
the dirt lap on the drill, which is about equal to 
a hoeing. This is the time for planting peas 
I have the rows plowed out, being careful to 
have the last furrow well thrown ©ut; a hand 
