126 
The Cotton Louse—Butter Making—New Clover. 
cotton is advanced beyond danger, or the louse 
has disappeared. 
His theory on the subject is this : The louse 
will prey upon any thing juicy and green as 
well as upon cotton—and by leaving plenty of 
weeds, &c, between the rows to amuse the hun¬ 
gry insect, his attention will be divided and the 
cotton be less molested. If on the other hand 
the field is broke up, and every green thing re¬ 
moved except the few stalks of cotton left to 
make the stand, (as is the common practice) 
those stalks being all that is left for their food 
the whole army of depredators will at once 
attack. 
Mr. Garrett also recommends that the cotton 
should not be too closely thinned , as by leaving 
more stalks for the louse to prey on, the few 
you want for the stand will have a better chance 
to escape. 
The notions of Mr G. seems very reasonable 
and correct, and experiments on his advice are 
certainly worth trial. We can add our own 
recollections on the subject, which favor the 
same views. Some years ago it was the com¬ 
mon practice in planting cotton, to throw up a 
ridge of four furrows, leaving balks of grass 
and weeds, as Mr. G. advises, to be ploughed 
out after the cotton was scraped; and at that 
period, suffering from the louse was not heard 
of among our planters. This system has now 
however been thrown aside as slovenly, and we 
now every year, have more or less complaints 
of ice. 
Valuable hints on Butter Making and Pack¬ 
ing. —“ Solidity and firmness, I think, is of more con¬ 
sequence than is generally allowed; the nearer butter 
can be made of the consistency of wax, the longer it 
will keep its flavour ; and as it is not so easily acted 
upon by the atmospheric air, it will retain less salt or 
brine, being divested more effectually of the butter¬ 
milk, consequently will be less disposed to acidity. 
“ To accomplish this object I recommend salting 
the cream by putting rather more fine table salt to it 
than is used when applied after churning, because a 
part will be left with the buttermilk ; or, use strong 
clean brine, the produce of the salt generally used, 
and mix with the cream or butter, the hand to be used 
in the making as little as possible, (the earlier the but¬ 
ter is made, and the cooler the dairy the better—the 
latter should be washed out with salt and water the 
first and last thing every day.) The hand relaxes the 
texture of the butter ; it might by a little practice be 
avoided altogether by using wooden pats (the same 
as used by the London cheesemongers) for putting 
into casks, or making into shape for sale, which will 
press out the whey effectually by beating. These pats 
must be always, (except when in the hand for use) 
kept in a tub of fresh cold water, which will prevent 
the adhering of the butter and keep them cool. 
“ The quantity of salt or brine required, will in 
some degree depend on the season of the year, the 
distance to be sent, and time to be kept. Brine is 
preferable to salt, as the butter is smoother and better 
flavored. If salt be used, it may be in the proportion 
of half an ounce of dry table salt mixed with two 
drachms of fine saltpetre, and two drachms of fine 
yellow dry Jamaica sugar, to every pound of buttei. 
If the butter be made up in lumps lor the market, I 
would recommend that every lump be wrapped round 
with a piece of calico soaked in brine made from fine 
dry salt, that will carry an egg; if the brine be weak 
and watery it may be injurious. If the butter be put 
into a firkin or half-firkin, the cask should be made 
of white oak, ash, or sycamore, or beech (the whiter 
the wood and hoops the better it pleases the eye,) well 
seasoned by scalding out # several times with hot brine 
made from pure and clean salt. It should be well 
bound and made water tight, with head and bottom 
groved; three pounds should be allowed for soakage. 
“ If very choice butter, I would recommend a salt 
cloth around the butter, also on the top and at the 
bottom; the cloth can be kept in its place by a hoop, 
which can be removed as the cask fills ; in either case 
the cloths can be returned or sold to the buyer, as 
many of the cheesemongers use cloth instead of pa¬ 
per in sending out the butter to the consumer. 
“ Much observation, attention, and arrangement is 
required to see and judge as to what improvement can 
be effected in the make of butter; comparative state¬ 
ments from different dairies at different times—the 
temperament of the milk and cream in the different 
stages—the situation and state of the dairy—the 
quantity and quality of cream the milk will yield in 
different localities, under different management—the 
effects of the use of various sorts of salt, brine, sugar, 
honey, or saltpetre, mixed with the milk, the cream, 
or the butter—the effect of mixing different milks to¬ 
gether—the effect of heat and acid applied in churn¬ 
ing ; the best sort of colouring, if any and what des¬ 
cription of food has such effect, the effect of dry, wet 
or shady pasture, also of regular exercise lor the 
cows, if any, and what effect as the production of 
cream in proportion to the milk given by the cows, if 
feeding on corn or grain, or by adding meal in the 
water for drink.” William Were. 
Mr. Burke also stated that in many parts of Hol¬ 
land the brine was added, not to the butter itself, but 
to the cream from which it was to be obtained ; and 
that he believed honey to be preferable to sugar as an 
addition for improving its quality. Roy. Ag. Soc. 7Vs. 
New Clover. —Two new clovers have been at¬ 
tracting attention in France. One is the Hybrid, 
and the other the Elegant. Elegant clover was for 
some time considered identical with one called T. 
hybridum, cultivated in Sweden ; when, however, 
growing together, the differences are striking ; the 
latter is larger in all parts than the former, and the 
colour of its flowers is a brighter rose, shaded with 
white in the centre, while the Elegant trefoil has rath¬ 
er dull reddish rose blossoms, coloured alike in every 
part of the flower-head. The appearance of the her¬ 
bage is different; the Hybrid clover has bright and 
dark foliage, and that of the Elegant is pale and un¬ 
equal ; the leaflets of the latter are also marked with 
a brown band like common clover, which is not the 
case with the hybrid. Another character of the 
Hybrid is, that in summer, when it begins to shed its 
blossom, and during the autumn, the root throws out 
fresh foliage, arranged like a rosette ; but in the Ele¬ 
gant trefoil this does not occur ; it is the lateral 
branches which rest on the ground that supply the 
verdure. The Elegant trefoil is found in abundance 
on poor clayey strong soils, where it grows thick and 
vigorous ; it is wild in France in many places, not 
unfrequently in ferruginous sand. It is more than 
probable that both the species will one day form val¬ 
uable additions to our forage plants, as they appear 
as though they would succeed on land unsuitable for 
clover, lucem, and sainfoin. Bon Jardinier. 
