168 
AMERICAN AGRICUI/L'URIST, 
[May, 
when he only thought he was signing an agreement or an 
order. Farmers should look out for those who are in¬ 
troducing new fanning mills, and propose to take the old 
one at a high price. The farmer signs an order for the 
new mill, and the agent gives a note for the price of the 
old one, “payable on delivery.” The “ order” turns out 
to be a Note which the giver can not avoid paying; it is 
needless to add that there is never any “ delivery ” of the 
old mill, as it is not called for_A set of chaps are of¬ 
fering in New England, clothing which they mysterious¬ 
ly hint is smuggled from Canada ; it is offered very low. 
They are in no immediate want of the money, but will 
take the farmer’s note ; this, and the wonderfully low 
price of the clothing, often prove too tempting. The 
clothing turns out to be the poorest shoddy, but the note 
is a very good one, and must be paid. 
“FARMERS, BE CAREFUL WHIT YOU SIGN,” 
though often repeated, is an injunction still needed, to 
which may be added—never buy that which you do not 
need, no matter what the price may be....There is one 
man—his name it is Eldridge—who 
WANTS TO FIND HIS UNCLE. 
Said E. was in the Jewelry business, and failed; he 
found that his creditors would take everything, so to bo 
ahead of them, he took Watches and Jewelry to the value 
of $3,000, and put them away in the vault of some “ Safe 
Deposit Co.” He wants to find his uncle, so that he, the 
uncle, can sell the stuff on shares, because, as E. says, 
“ It would not do for me to attempt to sell them, as it 
might get mo into trouble.”—We should say that it 
would. The funny part of the matter is that Eldridge 
should have had so many uncles “who left Boston in the 
Sixth Massachusetts Regiment in the early part of the 
late war.” There was his uncle Gray, his uncle Rusby, 
his uncle Claypole, his uncle Wilson, and he don’t know 
how many more, who all went off in the Regiment, and 
never came back, and now their dutiful nephew is writ¬ 
ing to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Ohio, and all 
around, to find an uncle to help sell that Jewelry, etc. It 
is the most remarkable case of disappearance of uncles 
on record....Inquiries come from various parts about 
“the winter grape,” 
though they are sometimes offered as the “ Seedless,” 
and again as the “ Croton.” The peddlers carry with 
them samples of the fruit, which, from the description 
sent us, is no doubt that of the imported Malaga grape, 
that is abundant in the markets ill late winter and 
early spring. Of course, the vines sold will not bear 
such fruit, or anything like it. 
“ MEDICAL MATTERS” 
present but little of novelty, indeed but one quite new 
has turned up in a long while, and that being a “Life 
Syrup,” as a matter of course is good for everything— 
not an unusual claim for quack medicines. The chief 
interest attending this is the remarkable way in which it 
was discovered. It seems to bo necessary that all these 
medicines should have a wonderful origin, and whenever 
the history of nostrums come to be written, it will be 
found that a vast amount of ingenuity lias been displayed 
in inventing romantic stories as to their discovery. The 
favorite idea used to be trace their origin to some mis¬ 
erable, ignorant, and dirty savage, but this seems to have 
culminated with Eddie Eastman, who exhausted the 
subject; then the secret came from some old crone 
like Mother Noble, or some one picked up a bottle 
by the sea-shore, which contained the recipe, or the 
secret was revealed in a dream—in one way or an¬ 
other mqpt of these medicines are provided with a history 
which shows them to be something beyond the common 
sorts of doctor’s stuff. If this “ Life Syrup ” has no other 
merit, it was discovered in quite a novel manner, and for 
once we do not have the old Indian and other chaps over 
again. There was a “ Doctor ” and he belonged to tha 
army (no regiment in particular); in 1884 he was ordered 
to join a detachment sent to Florida ; there were 4,500 
men (stationed nowhere in particular), but the climate 
was very hard on the men, as he says : “ My patients 
were dying rapidly, and I was almost in despair.” But 
one day he saw in the hospital (at the place aforesaid— 
Florida, you know), a form—yes, a “female form,” in fact, 
a “ small female form,” who was going about from bed 
to bed, and giving each occupant a small amount 
“OF A DARK LOOKING FLUID.” 
Instead of at once finding out what his patients had 
been dosed with, he was immediately ready to leave the 
poor fellows, and, upon the announcement that she was 
“ Sister Mary,” tramped off four miles through the woods 
to a log house, where a sisterhood of eight lived. (This 
was in Florida, but not in any place in particular). In 
short, they were the remnants of a once powerful religious 
order in France; driven by persecution, they came to the 
New World, where they could “die in peace and 
security.” Hearing from some hunters of the “ seclusion 
and quiet of this spot, determined to make it our future 
home.” (That spot is in Florida). The medicine was 
“Life Syrup,” the secret of which had been in their 
order “ for hundreds of years”—of course “it is com¬ 
posed of various roots and herbs”—such stuff' always is. 
But these good “ sisters ” did not want the secret to die 
with them — so the Doctor was taken to the garden and 
shown the “ roots and ’arbs.” Such stories all end in 
the same way. He is the only one who has the secret, 
and he continues to make the Life Syrup just as Sister 
Mary did. If you don’t believe it you can inquire at that 
remnant of a great religious house that may be found— 
somewhere in Florida. 
'Wlnea.t in Belaware ssn«l Mary- 
land.—One who, for the first time, travels through the 
charming farming districts of Delaware and Maryland, 
will be surprised at the number and extent of the wheat 
fields. Randolph Peters, Esq., of Wilmington, Del., 
whose report on the peach crop is given elsewhere, adds 
a note, saying; “The wheat crop never at this season 
promised better than now, though it is not yet out of 
danger ®f damage by frosts.” 
ML'lic of Willard C. Flagg.— 
The pleasure derived from a visit made us, a short time 
ago, by Dr. E. Lewis Sturtevant, the accomplished editor 
of the “Scientific Farmer,” was greatly marred by the 
fact that he brought us the intelligence of the death of 
Mr. Flagg, which iiad just reached him by telegraph. As 
we announced some months ago his most dangerous ill¬ 
ness, and before the paper was mailed, we had a letter 
from Mr. F. in bis usual genial tone, with no reference to 
sickness, wo iioped that this sad news might prove an 
error also. But later intelligence states that he died at 
Moro, Madison Co., Ill., on the farm where lie was born 
and has since lived. Mr. Flagg graduated with honor 
from Yale in 1850. and ever since has been, whether in 
writing, in working, or in legislating, contributing in a 
wonderfully varied manner to the promotion of agricul¬ 
ture and horticulture, pursuits to which his life was de¬ 
voted—a life which was a constant refutation of the care¬ 
less assertion that “a farmer lias no need of education.” 
Mr. Flagg’s parents were from Vermont, which may 
account for his remarkable combination of Yankee quiet 
industry, with Western enterprise; he accomplished a 
wonderful amount of work, but was never in a hurry. 
Ho was active in the Legislature of his State in promot¬ 
ing schemes favorable to, and in opposing those adverse 
to, the interests of the farmer. But we can not enumerate 
the many positions in which lie devoted himself to the 
service of his fellows ; they wore by no means confined 
to his own State, and in liis case it may be said, with 
truth, that the loss is a national one. Mr. Flagg was 
ardently devoted to fruit culture, and was long the editor 
of that department in the “ Prairie Farmer,” and was the 
Western correspondent on rural matters for “ Hearth and 
Home.” When it became necessary to elect a Secretary 
for the Am. Pomological Society several years ago, Mr. 
Flagg was chosen, and he held that position until his 
death, which leaves a vacancy difficult to fill. Mr. Flagg 
was barely 49 years of age at the time of his decease. 
Marl.— We were about to write that 
we had three boxes without a clue to their source, hut 
accuracy requires that we should say that we have the 
remains of three boxes 
which apparently started 
ou their journey by mail, 
containing, to all appear- 
an#es, shell marl. The 
only box to which we have 
any clue, is quite empty, 
save a little adhering dust. 
The other two are badly 
broken, but contain a few 
of the larger pieces, the 
rest having thoroughly 
dusted the contents of 
some mail bags. A few 
folds of stout “ hardware 
paper” would be vastly 
safer than the poor fragile 
match and other boxes so 
often sent. We suppose 
they were forwaded to get 
our opinion as to their 
value; if, as in some cases, 
there are shells more or 
less whole, and the re¬ 
mainder mostly distinct 
fragments of shells, it is 
probable that it would pay 
to burn it. If the whole, 
when moist, is like clay, 
with no considerable proportion of shell visible even with 
a magnifier, though found under a muck bed, it may not be 
shell marl at all, and requires an analysis. When an 
analysis is expected, the expense should be provided for, 
as we know of no chemist who works for the fun of it; 
and we'long ago packed away our laboratory apparatus* 
having no time to give to such examinations. 
The KcsitlcMce advertised on page 195 is a 
most desirable one in every respect, and it can be had on 
very low terms if applied for soon. 
“ ISigh Fimniiig Without Ma¬ 
nure ” is the very attractive title given to a course of 
“Six Lectures on Agriculture, delivered at the Experi¬ 
mental Farm at Vincennes (France), by Mr. George 
Ville.” The writings of Ville have been subjected to 
much criticism, but that they possess much of value is 
admitted by those who do not accept all his views. In 
all such oases it is better to read what one says, rather 
than what another says that he says, which this transla¬ 
tion of this course of his lectures allows to be done. 
They are published in a neat pamphlet of over 100 pages, 
by A. Williams & Co., the well known book house of 
Boston. That these lectures contain much of value Is 
shown by the fact that they are “ Published under the 
Direction of the Mass. Society for the Promotion of 
Agriculture,” than which there could be no better en¬ 
dorsement. It can be had of the Orange Judd Company 
at the publishers price, 25c., sent by mail, post-paid. 
TTBie S'rospects.—Every year, in 
the month of March, or later, the peach buds get regu¬ 
larly killed (in the newspapers), but as this Spring they 
seemed to be killed a little deader than usual, we have 
endeavored to find out the facts of the case so far as the 
Fig. 1.— DETAILS OF CHAMPION MOWER.— (See 1st p.} 
great peach region of Delaware, Maryland, and neigh¬ 
boring parts of Virginia is concerned. With this view we 
applied to Randolph Peters, Esq., of Wilmington, Del., 
who, from his position as the leading nurseryman of that 
vicinity, has a wide acquaintance with peach growers, 
and knows “by heart” almost every orchard in the 
country thereabouts. Mr. P., to whom we are indebted 
for similar information in former years, has taken a great 
deal of pains (for which our thanks), in getting the views 
of the leading orchardists. He sends us a sample of some 
of the letters he received in reply. Among the writers 
of these are: Col. Edward Wilkins, of Riverside, Kent 
Co., Md., who, if not the largest peach grower in the 
Fig. 2. —HEAPING ATTACHMENT TO CHAMPION MOWER.— (See lsf page.) 
