AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Jpmpeir to imjroiro if n farmer, i\t flattler, aitir 11 jt (Sarktter* 
AGRICULTURE IS THE HOST HEALTHY , THE HOST USEFUL , AND THE HOST NOBLE EHPLOYHENT OF HAN. - Washington. 
-- 
PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY ALLEH & C0„ 189 WATER ST. 
VOL. XII.—NO. 8.] NEW-YORK, WEDNESDAY, MAY 3, 1354. [NEW SERIES.—NO. 34. 
m-FOR PROSPECTUS, TERMS, fyc., 
SEE LAST PAGE. 
_ FLAX AND ITS SEED-A NEW VARIETY. 
It is a subject of regret that the manufacture 
of flax makes such slow progress in the United 
States. In the Western States—Ohio, Indiana, 
and Illinois, particularly, thousands of tons of 
the lint on the stalks are annually thrown away, 
and lie rotting in heaps in the fields, for the 
want—as the people who raise it tell us—of a 
proper machine for dressing it. At our State 
Cattle Show at Rochester, in 1851, we think, a 
machine was exhibited by a gentleman from 
some part of New-England, the principles of 
which were approved by those who examined it 
and its mode of operation. Since then we 
have neither seen nor heard of it. If it really 
be the thing required, its owner could make it 
an object to go into the flax-dressing business 
in Indiana and Illinois. Flax is there raised for 
the seed only, in making oil, and for exporta¬ 
tion. 
On passing a store in Dayton, Ohio, a short 
time since, our attention was arrested at seeing 
a pail of yellow flax seed sitting in the door, 
with a placard, and the words “ for loaning,” 
written upon it. Stepping in, we inquired of 
the proprietor what that meant ? He answered 
that it was a new kind of seed, recently discov¬ 
ered, and that those who had obtained it, were 
desirous of its further cultivation, and by this 
method of disposing of it, many farmers took 
small quantities, sowed it carefully, and re¬ 
turned a share of the crop. On examination, 
the seed was plump, fair, of usual size, and ex¬ 
actly the color of Canary seed, or straw-colored- 
drab. It was found, as we learned, near Ur- 
bana, Ohio, a few years since, by the owner of 
a field of flax—a single stalk, bearing a white 
flower, in the midst of the other flax. He 
marked this stalk, and when ripe, picked it, 
and sowed the seeds the next year. It has mul- 
plied, until now there are many bushels of it— 
not for sale, but “ loaning,” as at Dayton. We 
again heard of it in that neighborhood. What 
this new flax is to prove, whether any thing 
more than a variety, and that simply in the 
With the lint devoted to its proper use by 
the aid of a competent machine for dressing it, 
few crops grown at the West can be more re¬ 
munerating than flax. It can, in proper alter¬ 
nations with other crops, be grown to an enor¬ 
mous extent in the fertile lands of the West. 
It is not there considered an exhausting crop; 
it cleans the land of weeds. After the crushed 
seed is exhausted of its oil, the cake is worth 
an equal weight of Indian corn meal for feeding 
cattle; thus yieiding two distinct and valuable 
products to the arts, and serving the producer 
the wherewithal to feed his stock, and a return, 
if need be, of much of the proper aliment to the 
soil for its reproduction. 
THE TERRIER DOG. 
In regard to dogs in general, we believe there 
are ten kept in the United States where one is 
needful; and as we pass through the country, 
and see the common race of villainous curs that 
haunt nearly every farm-house, and run yelping 
out from every dirty tenement in the villages, 
we almost wish that the whole race were ex¬ 
tinct. As usually kept throughout our farming 
districts, dogs are an unmitigated nuisance. 
They are, among their own race, what alligator 
hogs and the common sheep are among farm 
stock—worse than nothing. But as we suppose 
that every man owning a farm or occupying 
one, will keep his dog, if not several, we feel dis¬ 
posed to instruct him, if he will listen to in¬ 
struction, as to what sort of dog will do him 
some service. 
A well-bred rat-terrier is a valuable creature 
on a farm. There are several varieties, the Isle 
of Skye terrier, with soft, long silky hair ; the 
Scotch, with rough, long, wiry hair of almost 
every shade of color; the London terrier, usu- 
ally black-and-tan in color, others white, some¬ 
times spotted, tan-and-white; and the bull ter¬ 
rier. This last we have seen of all colors and 
sizes, above twenty pounds weight; but as 
they are a cross, more or less, with the bull¬ 
dog, there is little truth or reliability in their 
breeding; and are not desirable for the purposes 
usually required of the others. The truly use¬ 
ful work of the terrier is that of destroying the 
vermin on the farm, and guarding the premises 
from intrusion at night. For these purposes, 
either the Scotch or London terrier is better 
than any other dog we have known. Always 
wakeful and vigilant, unappeasable at the voice, 
or the step of a stranger at night, they give 
warning of his approach, and will only cease 
their attacks at the command of some of the 
household. To be complete as a farm-dog, a 
terrier should be thorough-bred, of either the 
rough or smooth variety, and weigh from 20 to 
30 pounds. Twenty pounds is the lightest, and 
thirty the heaviest weight that should be se¬ 
lected. Dogs lighter than twenty are not heavy 
enough to encounter large rats, minks, or wea¬ 
sels with sufficient dexterity, while those of 25 
to 30 pounds are generally more active in their 
work, and do it up more effectually. We once 
had an 18 pound dog—a capital ratter he was, 
too. We also had one of 28 pounds, and they 
always worked together on the farm. In hunt¬ 
ing their game, the small one would frequently 
get bitten by a large rat, mink, or weasel, and 
-ometimes so severely as to lose his hold, when 
he would be cautious, and sometimes hesitate 
about attacking a second time. But no such 
difficulty occurred with the other. A single 
grip of the jaws, and the work was done, scarcely 
ever losing his hold, or making a false move. 
One would hardly suppose that so diminutive a 
creature as a weasel, rat, or mink, would hold 
combat with a dog; but we have seen a twelve 
pound dog worsted by them—they bite so sharp. 
So, if one is to have a dog at all, better have an 
efficient one. 
There were several high bred terriers, both 
Scotch and London, shown at the late poultry 
exhibitions at Albany and New-York. But 
they were nearly all too small, weighing twelve 
to eighteen pounds, and delicate at that. Such 
dogs are too light-limbed for strength ; and al¬ 
though active, and good enough for field mice, 
a stout old rat, mink, or weasel is sometimes too 
much for them, particularly if they fasten their 
teeth into the dog, which they always do about 
the faces or lips. We have known the dog thus 
bit to cry out, let go his hold, and back out 
altogether, rather than renew the attack. We 
know that some of these diminutive dogs are 
sometimes backed for killing rats on a wager. 
But this is when the rats are caught and thrown 
into a pit already prepared, where they are al¬ 
ready subdued by fear, and will not resist, try¬ 
ing only to get away—a very different thing 
from taking them in their own haunts, where 
they frequently return the fight with great dex¬ 
terity. In the latter event, a strong, active, and 
courageous dog is the only thing to be depended 
on; and we would advise those breeding terriers 
not to make their standard of size less than 
twenty pounds in weight; and twenty-five to 
thirty is still better. These larger terriers, also, 
are good coon hunters. We have one of 28 
pounds weight that will attack and kill the 
largest coon in the woods; while the smaller 
dogs will soon get the tvorst of it in a close fight. 
Terrier breeders will do well to look closely to 
the selection of the sires they use, and see that 
they are perfectly sound and in good health. 
As in all other kinds of animals, it is important 
to keep up the constitution and stamina of their 
stock; and dogs, from their violent exercise, 
and the frequent accidents -which occur to them, 
are more apt to be defective getters than any 
other creatures we keep. 
Great French Cattle Snow.—This came 
off a few weeks since at Poissy, about twenty 
miles from Paris. The stock exhibited is said 
to have been more numerous than last year, and 
