Til 10 SOUTH lOfiX CUUTlVyV/rOH. 
195 
ion; M i, therefore, I will add hut a few rcinark.s 
to tl. issertioti of the general proposition. 
In , )iir own neighborhood, gcnellemen, I 
have . 11 1 pre.sented to me a new evidence •f the 
trui. • f iny views in this respect. In observing 
the t. )vel process of making sugar from corti- 
stalk.i, as conducted on a small scale by Major 
Gcfi,-’.- Seaborn, I noticed the obviously mucli 
larg r quantity of saccharine juice, and its 
great, r concentration, or degree of sweetness, 
in lb ■ .alks from which the ears hadbeen taken 
offals lon as they had shot out, compared to 
those . hich had been permitted to form grain. 
Thi.i difference, it is manifest, is owing to the 
grean r part of the sugar, in the latter cause, and 
as i!-uire designs always, having passed into 
the gram, and where it is converted to .staicli. — 
An t is alone would show that the saccliarinc 
juice ■if the stalk is needed to form and perfi-ct 
ifie grain. But where the ears have remained 
to grow, and at the latest time of growtli of ihc 
corn forgathering fodder, (the leaves .still being 
mosily green, j and the grain firm and almo.'q 
hard, there will be yet remaining in the pith of 
the stalk a large quantity of saccharine juice. 
Every particle of the juice is destined to the bet- 
ter fiilingof the grain, and will be so u.scd if the 
life of he plant is not cut short. But, when in 
this state, (nay, often much eailicr than at this 
period of growth,) the leaves are stript, and the 
top cut, the plant immediately dic.s, and all sub- 
•sequent conversion of the sugar then in the 
stalk to grain is effectually prevented. 'I'he 
grain of such corn is more or Ic.ss stirivelled, 
andLghter by several pounds in the bushel than 
tlie grain from which the lod er has not been 
removed. As long as a blade is green, it is act- 
ing to sustain the life of the plant and to help 
to increase the bulk and weight of the grain. 
But, putting aside this great and all impor- 
tant objection to the usual mole of saving fod- 
der, mere are other conditions which alone 
ought to .serve to induce the substitution of hay, 
whenever it is practicable. Perhaps not one of 
you, gentlemen, has ever taken account of all 
the labor and coot of securing a crop of corn 
fodder, and comparing it with the value of the 
crop so .secured. JNeitherhave I. But if such 
e-stiinates were made accurately, and in suffi- 
cient number to present a fair average of crops 
and of sea-sons, I think it v/ould be found that 
the general cost would not fall much short of 
the product, and perhaps might exceed the 
whole returns. Besides the necessary labor in 
good com and in good weather, which far ex- 
ceeds that of hay-making, there is great risk of 
a spell of rainy weather occurring during the 
6>ca.son (mostly in September) for this harve.si; 
and every rain causes much trouble, and much 
rain produces great and inevitable loss of the 
partially cured fodder. Again— this is precise- 
ly the .season most dangerous to health wherev- 
er malaria is at all to Be leared, and no kind of 
plantation labor is so likely to affect health in- 
juriously, as the gathering andsecaring of fod- 
der. Even in fine, clear weather, the high and 
rank grass (or peas) among the com, and the 
com blades, are wet with dew, early in the day, 
and again before night, and the laborers are 
thus necessarily made wet. And the crispness 
of the cured (and sun-burnt) fodder, often for- 
bids its being handled in the day time, and re- 
quire.s the night air to prevent great loss in the 
moving and stacking. This makes much of 
the work nece.ssary to be performed at night, 
and which is an injurious or hazardous expo- 
sure of the laborers, both because of the night 
air, and the dew deposited on the high gra.ss. — 
If any one acemstomed to and contented with 
this slow and tedious and altogether unintere.st- 
ing portion of plantation labor, could but once 
compare it experimentally with the rapid, safe, 
enlivening and delightful operations of hay 
making, his sensations would as strongly urge 
the substitution of the former by the latter, as 
ought to be done by sound calculation of profit 
and loss Edmund Ruffin. 
PendleUm^ fiepteraberfiB, 1843. 
TIIO.MA.S Al'M.KCK’rt I'KOl'O.smON. 
fi'or « preniium of J'la'.c to heovuirded to thn Plan- 
ter viho raises the most Cot Lon on a given piece oj 
hind. 
'I'o the Kditors of the Concordia InleUigenr.er ; 
Gkni'i.kmrn — 1 make this pru[)o.siii(m with 
inucli difli'lciice, being but a young planter — 
bill, I can safely say, one anxious to irnpiove and. 
Learn. 1 have .sought every means of acquiring 
information, and particularly, by con ver.sation 
with cxpei iencerl [/lariters. 1 have vi .iied matiy 
[dantaiions noted for being \^ell managed; anrl 
the conclusion 1 have Come to, is, that there are 
lew, very few, planters, vt ho>e sy.stem and prac- 
tice could not be very materially improved 
U{)rjn. 
'I’o convince all of thi.s, let those who think 
ihcirsystem already perfect, and that th< ir rnan- 
iigcmerit of the cotton crop is the be.st iind mo.st 
prrjfitablc, and who have corifidenre in its re- 
Mjlts, join me in w hat I have to [uopo.se. 
Many, I pre.sume, of tho.se jnesent, have cith- 
er S’/eii or h -ard id the communication made to 
the Albany “Cultivator,” in December last, by 
Dr. Cl ) lid, (d Alabama. Dr. Cloud state.^, that 
by pursuing a |jroj;er system of rotations of 
cro|jS, by a careful .selection of his seed, by ma- 
nuring high, an] by giving additional distance 
to the fdani, he was enabled to gather 5,9.dy lbs. 
per acre, of seed cotton, 'i’his, all will say, is 
an cnormoii ; yield — and mo.st a.ssurcdly it is so. 
Yet I, for one, have little doubt but it can be 
reachcil here — not, howe er, without making 
the attempt. Although 1 fear that l .-hall never 
be able to reach so high a maik, 1 will never 
re.st s.ati-(te'l until 1 have come a.snearltas 1 
can. 
If we could, upon our hill lands, produce 
even y,0()y lbs per acie, by adopting a reasona- 
bly imjuoVing .system, and by alrnostany extent 
of manuring, would we not be immensely bene- 
fitted? How many planters, cultivating hill 
lands, gather over 700 lbs per acre? Not many. 
And yet, to do even this, requi.es incc.s.sant hard 
work from New' Year’s-day until Christnia.s. — 
'I'hc difference between plowing, planting, 
tending and picking over, say 3iKJ acres, and 100 
is very great, and would allow of much labor 
being bestowed in making and applying manure, 
and in extra-deep plowing. Nor need 1 de- 
■scant upon the comfort, and advantage to the 
planter, of being able to jilant and tend as much 
ground with one half of his hands, as the wtiole 
of them can pick clean by Christmas — leaving 
him the other half of his force lor the rest of the 
work nece.ssary on a farm — including, ofeourse, 
under such a system, manure-making. 
How it would astonish the farmersi in my na- 
tive country, lo lie told, that at this late day of 
agricultural improvement, their brethren in ev- 
ery part of America, and particularly amongst 
the travelled and enlightened Southern planters, 
it required a lengthy argument to prove to them 
the value of deep plowing and a mndant ma- 
nuring! 
Soon after reading J3r. Cloud’s communica- 
tion, last Spring, I had a piece of tolerably good 
hill land, containing three acres, three rods and 
thirty-five pole.s, cleared of the previous year’s 
trash — some yoo bushels of manure per acre 
added, consisting of the scrapings of the cow- 
pen, partly decayed cotton seed and so on. This 
I scattered broad-ca-st, then threw up ridges, 
which average from centre to centre 5 feet four 
inches, were then harrowed down by running a 
heavy harrow lengthwise of the ridge. Here I 
planted some very superior Gulf-hill seed, pre- 
sented to me by Mr, Compton, Sen., near Rod- 
ney, The seed I first dampenerl pretty well 
with brine, and then rolled in dry' ashes — drop- 
ping some ten or fifteen .seeds at about every 
inches, which were afterwards thinned out to a 
single plant. 
1 am not certain of the amount of labor bc- 
.stowed upon this piece of ground— the tending 
the same a.s that given to the rest of the crop; 
further than that my overseer, Mr. Ventris.s, has 
repeatedly said to me, that he had not one half 
the trouble with the grass on that piece, that he 
had witli any oilier part of the [danlation— “that 
the grass did not trouble him there.” I rather 
ihirik that it did trouble some of us this year ! 
'i’his was, of course, to be ascribed to the deeji 
ploughing. 
Now, gentlemen, from the (scant) four acres 
of groniifl, Mr. Ventri.ss a.ssures me, that he has 
alr- ady picked 7, 3^.5 lbs of superior .sec.l cotton 
— and that there is yet cotti n enough ipcn, and 
to open, to yield over 2,000 lbs more. I know 
that he ha.s been very jiarticular both in picking 
and weighing, and have every reason to believe 
his report to be correct. 
Now' here we have, tm a first hurried experi- 
ment, 'I,.'52.7 lbs of .seed cotton from (scant) four 
a' res of ground— or, allowing 1,3:50 lbs to make 
a bale, (and as it is a very fine article, I think it 
afair allowance,) we have seven bales of gin- 
ned cotton ! 
I leave it to yourselves lo draw your ow n con- 
clusions, a.s to the amount of time, labor and 
manure that one hand could very easily aflbrd 
to be ‘do w ujion .such a small tract oflaiul, to 
produce such arc.siilt! It icquired at h ast 12 
acres of the same land immediately adjoining, 
treated, planted and tended in the usual way, to 
yield as much cotton— and the staple is, to my 
eye not neatly a.s good. 
What I have to propose, gentlemen, is thi.s; 
Let all who arc willing to jiut to the test of ex- 
periment, a rotation of crops, deep plowitig, a 
sufTiciencyof manure, choice .seed, and addition- 
al dislance to the plant, give in their riame.s, and 
pay over five dollars to the Treasurer of this Ho- 
ciety, (Adams Co. Agricultural friocicty,) the 
whole sum thus paid, to be, by him, and the 
Pre.sident, laid out in the purchase of a pieceof 
silver plate, which they shallaward to the plan- 
ter, .so subscribing, who shall during the next 
.season, give the rieee.ssary pioof that he ha.s 
picked and ginned thcgreate.st quaiitiiy of good 
clean cotton, from five acres ofland, planted and 
tended in such manner a.s he may liavc seen fit 
— tendering along with such proof, a clear 
statement of the entire process in writing, w'hich 
each competitor binds him.self to do when he en- 
leis for the sweepstake.s. I'he jmoof requisite 
may be determined upon by a majority of those 
agreeing to compete. Tho.se wishing to be- 
come competitors may cither addrc.ss W. J. Mi- 
nor, Esq., Pre.sident of the Adams Co. Agricul- 
tural Society; Wm. J. f'crgu.son. Esq., Treasu- 
rer, or mvseli; either through the columns of the 
South Western Earnocr, at Raymond, or by mail 
post-paid. I have already fair assurance that 
thepur.se will amount lo between fifty and a 
hundred dollars, and can see no reason why w'e 
may not have fifty entries, 
November 18, 1813, 
IiKCKiP'r FOR CuiiiNo Ham.s. — Wc have been 
handed the following receipt fbr curing hams 
by one of the most eminent practitioners in this 
city; thesaleratus is at lca.stnewto us, and we 
therefore publish it, although it may not be a 
new ingredient in the receipt to others. In Cin- 
cinnati, where large quantities of hams are an- 
nually cured, pepper, allspice, do vc.s, nutmeg, 
cinnamon, and other little ingredients arc usu- 
ally added; but to the receipt. 
Cover the bottom of the cask with coarse 
salt, lay on the hams with the smooth or skin 
side down, sprinkle over fine .salt, then another 
layer of ham.s, and so continue until the cask is 
full. This ought to be of the larger kind. A 
cask holding fid gallons is small enough, and it 
would be belter if it held 120 gallon.s. Make a 
brine in the following proporlioii.s; fi gallons 
water, 0 Ib.s. salt, d lbs. brown sugar, 3 ux. salt- 
petre, 1 oz. salcratus. Scald and scum, and 
when cold pour the brine into the cask until the 
hams are completely covered. 'I’he hams 
should remain m this pickle at least three 
months, and a little longer time would do them 
no harm . — American Fanner. 
Rf.CIPE for MAKING CiSTKRN CkMEN'C. 
Ashes two parts, three parts clay, one part sand, 
mixed with oil, will make a cement as hard as 
marble, and impenetrable by water forever. 
