366 
COMPOSITION OF SALERATUS.—SUBSOIL PLOWING. 
50; and potatoes 150, are considered very good 
crops, upon a soil, which, with anything like ju¬ 
dicious management, is, expense of cultivation 
considered, capable of being made the most profit¬ 
able in creation. The principle of producing 
something with the least possible expense and 
trouble, may be seen illustrated hereabouts with all 
its beautiful consequences. Tumble-down fences, 
old cultivated fields, still capable of rendering a 
good return of non-extracted stumps, together with 
such a vigorous appearance among the weeds, 
as bids fair, at no distant day, to establish their 
complete supremacy in the vegetable kingdom. 
The size of the farms varies from 50 to 150 
acres each. The occupiers, or “ abusers,” being 
generally men from whom you would expect bet¬ 
ter things, for the most part, intelligent, well-in¬ 
formed men, who know better, but will not prac¬ 
tise it; and all possessing that trait of character 
pervading so generally the agricultural community 
—hospitality. To the truth of this I am an ex¬ 
cellent witness, inasmuch as in my botanical wan¬ 
derings, I have frequently had occasion to prove its 
existence and its depth. Much allowance, however, 
must be made for this want of energy and enterprise 
among the sons of the soil in these parts. They 
have no good remunerating prices to repay them 
for their labor, and emulate them to improvement; 
for say what you will about a man’s duty to im¬ 
prove, if dollars and cents are not the consequence, 
his patriotism may starve him; and practically 
speaking, this is a consummation which for per¬ 
sonal reasons, will be rather avoided than desired. 
In the season’s zenith the farmer can get but 
12^ cents per lb. for his butter, and about a cent 
each for his eggs, and 12^ cents for a chicken; 
and these, you know, are not prices to induce 
draining anything but the pockets, or subsoiling 
anything but one’s patience. Then, if he is very 
lucky, he will gel 50 cents per bushel for his corn, 
$1 for his wheat, and 25 cents for his oats. His 
potatoes he wants mostly for his stock during the 
winter, what he sells he gets 25 cents a bushel 
for. Now as far as the consumer is concerned, 
these prices are everything that could be wished, 
especially as regards the large hotel-keepers, who, 
charging $10 to $12 per week to the accounts of 
their boarders, can console themselves with the 
thought that the poor farmer’s account will not 
interfere much with their immense profits. 
But all is not so bad as my brief remarks would 
induce you to suppose. No; doubtless in looking 
over the contributions of your numberless corres¬ 
pondents, you find much that is too poor for your 
columns, (may the gods send me favor,) but now 
and then something that suits exactly. So with 
my “ farming eye,” I have seen much to dis¬ 
gust me, but one or two farms that suit me ex¬ 
actly. Among others I will name two; one 
about a mile east from the village, of about 130 
acres, farmed in a masterly manner, by one James 
Stewart, a Scotchman; the other belonging to Mr. 
Root, 100 acres, situate in Galway, about 15 miles 
west; a gentleman keenly alive to the importance 
and profits of judicious improvement. The general 
neatness of everything about these two farms 
strikes the eye of every one at all observing, as 
he rides along the roads that border them. Mr. 
Root has squared his fields off with beautiful pre¬ 
cision, subdrained where necessary, and broken 
up, by deep plowing, the hard pan which sys¬ 
tematic idleness had formed beneath the surface 
soil. Everything about him bears the aspect of 
comfort and cheerfulness; the very grunt of the 
sleek porker grows musical as he smiles on his 
wholesome food. I am happy to say Mr. Root’s 
good example is being followed in the neighbor¬ 
hood ; and so with friend Stewart, 70 years of age, 
and still as willing to try useful improvement 
as when at the age of 50, he plowed the furrow 
among his native hills in Scotland. His farm is a 
perfect garden, it is so clean; his corn bettei 
planted than any of his neighbors; his land in 
good heart, and yielding him excellent ruta baga 
and beet root. And if he wants physic, a beauti¬ 
ful mineral spring in his low lot furnishes him 
with it, direct from Nature’s store. 
I could dwell with pleasure upon the minutiae 
of the management of these two pattern farms, 
but dare not trespass on your columns for fear of 
being marked “ not accepted.” I must, however, 
allude to one other pleasing sign lately shown in 
the neighborhood, I mean the erection of a lime¬ 
kiln by Mr. Hoyt, and the result of a first burning 
just completed of 600 bushels of very superior 
lime. According to the analysis made by our 
friend, Dr. Gardner, the stone, from which the 
article is made, gives a return of 52 per cent, of 
pure lime. Two hundred bushels were disposed 
of in one week. This is no doubt an earnest of 
better things. You will doubtless join with me 
in wishing success to all such attempts at im¬ 
provement. Dendy Sharwood. 
COMPOSITION OF SALERATUS. 
In the article in the November No. p. 345, of 
the Albany Cultivator, C. D. asserts that saleralus 
is composed of sulphate of potash and pearlash. 
I am surprised at the writer falling into this error, 
for I presume every dealer in the article must 
know that saleratus is a supercarbonate of potash. 
Should it contain any sulphate it is an impurity. 
If sulphate of potash will answer as well as sal¬ 
eratus, it can be bought at nearly half the price. 
I should notice another error on page 342; but 
as it originates with Liebig, whose opinions are at 
present by too many considered infallible, I shall 
refrain from any comment. 
Wm. Partridge. 
SUBSOIL PLOWING. 
I made an attempt to considerable extent last 
year to trench my land, by running one plow 
after another, in the hollow of the previous year’s 
ridges; and although I did not reach above ten to 
eleven inches at last, I thought in this very dry 
season, there was some marked improvement in 
retaining the fruit. My object in subsoiling it, is 
to penetrate eighteen inches, and to bring up a 
ferruginous sand and soil of a dark snuff color, 
which generally underlays the surface soil, of a 
white and coarser texture; I believe this under 
