374 
STUDI OF NATURE —‘A VISIT TO A YANKEE PLOW FACTORY. 
made directly in front, three to lour feet apart, which, 
though faintly made, will be visible while fresh, say 
for a day or two, and will enable those who open to 
dig the holes rapidly. Moving sideways along the 
marked lines, they will space the hills with great 
accuracy, and it will aid them considerably, and the 
work be better done, were the overseer to keep his 
measure in his hand, and rule them up to extreme 
exactness. Of cotton, 15 to 20 seed to the hill will 
be sufficient, which, when large enough, should be 
thinned after rains by hand instead of hoe, that the 
stalk left standing may certainly be uninjured. Plant¬ 
ers differ with respect to the distance at which cotton 
should be planted in the hill and row. On alluvial, 
•i feet for the row, and 24 to 30 inches for the drill, 
are perhaps average and good distances. Right cul¬ 
tivation is a material matter. The drill and 12 to 18 
inches on each side should be cultivated as well as 
possible the first and second workings. The centre 
between the rows will admit of some neglect if the 
crop be heavy; but this must be worked as the ex¬ 
panding cotton requires. Very little dirt should be 
thrown around the cotton at any time, and no hill 
made to it, lest the growth be made too luxuriant. 
As observed in my notes, I expect with confidence at 
least 1,000 lbs. of cotton to the acre the first year, and 
I may add, that not less than 40 to 50 bushels of 
corn to the acre should be made. Although but lit¬ 
tle cane will spring up the second year, the labor of 
cultivation will be somewhat greater than in the first, 
as the poke weeds, &c , will be much more abundant. 
The third year the plow would be required (some 
use it the second), when the work will be light and 
the production great, which each succeeding, for 
many years, will become greater. 
It may not be amiss to observe, that the men while 
engaged in marking the guide lines should strike 
without taking their eyes off the stakes, and that one 
of the many advantages, and a great one, that attends 
regular spacing of the hills is, that a well trained and 
judicious scraper of cotton soon ascertains the most 
convenient, rapid, and best method or rule of work¬ 
ing such, the loss of which advantage he sensibly 
feels when the work is not properly prepared for 
him. 
These notes explain and make those on cane-cut¬ 
ting more valuable, and of course should uniformly 
accompany them. S. S. W. Vick. 
Vicksburg , Miss., 1845. 
STUDY OF NATURE. 
The study of nature can never be sufficiently 
attended to; every part of it demands our most seri¬ 
ous attention, and every part of it repays us for the 
labor we bestow. Wherever we turn our eyes, a 
field of contemplation opens to our view. The ani¬ 
mal, vegetable, and mineral worlds teem with matter 
for the exercise of our minds. Nor can agriculture 
be ever brought to perfection, till a just theory be 
drawn out from the walks of Nature herself. She is 
so bountiful to us that her treasure is never exhaust¬ 
ed ; and the more discoveries we make, the more we 
find entirely unknown to us. Nature developes in 
the spontaneous growth of vegetation, important 
facts, which, if attended to carefully, will be found 
highly instructive. 
The pursuit of natural history furnishes an inno¬ 
cent and amusing exercise to the faculties of the 
human mind. With mere amusement we are not to 
rest satisfied ; the claims of society forbid it; oui 
exertions should be active and benevolent; and the 
philosopher in his study should remember that he is 
still a citizen of the world. 
If we look into the annals of history we may 
remark, that many nations have observed certain 
periods for sowing, planting, and reaping, confirmed 
by the appearance of leaves on particular trees, or the 
migrations of birds, which almost invariably corres¬ 
ponds with the leafing of these trees. The Indian 
rule is never to plant coin until the apple trees are in 
bloom. 
By taking nature as our guide, the farmer may 
adjust his times of sowing, planting, and reaping 
with more certainty. He may frequently insure a 
good crop, by keeping his seed in the granary till 
nature has pointed out a proper time for sowing it. 
Would it not be well to revive that old and useful 
custom of observing the times of budding, leafing, 
and flowering of plants and trees, because these ap¬ 
pearances seem to have been designed by Providence 
as our surest guides in conducting rural matters. They 
ascertain the exact times of sowing, planting, and 
reaping. They are the best thermometers (if I may 
be allowed the expression) which we can use, after 
they have been regulated and confirmed by experi¬ 
ence. 
The regular return of seasons, and the invariable 
order that vegetables observe in budding, leafing, and 
flowering, bespeak Almighty wisdom and Almighty 
power. A mind harmonized to such Divine contem¬ 
plations, sees at all times, and feels with warmth, 
the goodness of the Creator to the created. He con¬ 
siders the work of nature as the silent but expressive 
language of the Deity; and while he sees only to 
admire, is wrapt in gratitude and devotion. 
Albany , Nov., 1845. C. N. Bement. 
A VISIT TO A. YANKEE PLOW FACTORY. 
While in Boston, the other day, I called in to 
take a look at the extensive sales-rooms of Messrs 
Ruggles, Nourse, and Mason, which are kept in the 
great hall of the Boston Market House, where I found 
the greatest assortment I ever saw of plows, har¬ 
rows, hoes, shovels, spades, forks, churns, cheese- 
presses, straw-cutters, and an immense variety of agri¬ 
cultural implements and seeds, of a quality worthy 
of all commendation. Not being personally ac 
quainted with either of the partners of this concern, 
and feeling at a loss to know where tp look over 
such a host of farming tools as I had nper before 
seen together, I inquired for one of the proprietors, 
when a man in his shirt-sleeves, hard at work, was 
pointed out to me as Mr. Nourse. Not having the 
fear of meeting a man above his business, 1 ap¬ 
proached and made known my name to him, and in¬ 
stantly received the welcome of an old acquaintance, 
though known before only on paper. 
After spending the day examining this museum of 
specimens of what mechanical skill has accomplished 
for the benefit ol' farmers, I accepted an invitation 
from Mr. Nourse to go out next day to Worcester, 
44 miles by railroad, to see where and how plows 
are made by machinery. At Worcester I found the 
other two partners personally superintending their 
extensive establishment. They are all practical 
mechanics, as well as farmers, and Messrs. Ruggies 
