Ui 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
^nlritait ^Ainrlturist 
New-York, Wednesday, August 9, 1854, 
Our XIII. Volume commences after/owr num¬ 
bers more, and we have bright prospects of a 
large addition to our present number of readers. 
We also have confidence to believe that all our 
present readers are so well satisfied and pleased 
with our paper, that they will each make some 
effort to extend its circulation among then- 
neighbors. We wish also to form a previous 
acquaintance with others who will assist in 
spreading a knowledge of the paper, and we 
therefore make the following 
PROPOSITION: 
During the next two weeks, every person send¬ 
ing in a subscription to beg in with the next vol¬ 
ume, shall receive the remaining numbers of this 
volume free —to be directed either to themselves, 
or to any friend whose address they may give. 
For terms, see last page, and notice that in 
a year there are two complete volumes, each 
having 416 large pages with a full index. 
Among our editorial articles to-day, our read¬ 
ers will find a description of the beautiful resi¬ 
dence of Morris Ketchum, some important hints 
in reference to Care of Horses, Discouraging 
Children, &c. An article on the third page de¬ 
tails some interesting experiments upon Poison¬ 
ous Serpents. English Farming will well pay 
for reading. The article on Pigeons describes a 
very curious and interesting variety, not much 
known in this country. Those interested in 
sheep will not fail to read the report of the Ba- 
braham “lettings.” Our list of Patent Claims 
is unusually long and more than makes up for 
any deficiency during the last two weeks. The 
“Scrap-Book” has several short articles to 
amuse a weary hour. 
A Canada letter inquiring where fows may be 
procured, &c., came in too late for this week, 
and will appear in the next. We have also an 
important article in store, on cotton seed cake 
for cattle food. 
-- 
A Word about Markets. —Our Cattle and 
Produce markets we think always worthy of a 
perusal, and we trust no one will overlook them 
because they are set in smaller type to save 
room. These Market Reports are the most ex¬ 
pensive and laborious articles in the paper. The 
Cattle Market is brought up to within an hour 
of going to press, Monday evening. 
Speaking of Cattle Markets, we would remind 
our readers that they can find nothing more in¬ 
teresting in this city, than a visit to the Cattle 
Markets on 44ih street, just north-east of the 
Crystal Palace. The best time, and almost the 
only time when much is doing, is on Mondays 
from 7 A. M. to 2 or 3 P. M. It is not uncom¬ 
mon to see together three to four thousand cat¬ 
tle, which have been collected from all over the 
western country. There is a smaller market on 
Thursdays, though not at all equal to that of 
Monday. On this day the yards present a very 
lively appearance. There are then together 
Owners, Drovers, Brokers, Reporters, Visitors, 
and the large number of Butchers, who supply 
meat for more than a million mouths in New- 
York and the adjoining cities and towns. 
LOOK INTO THE STABLES. 
It is really sickening to go into the various 
horse stables in this city. Our readers may 
not be aware that a large number of the horses 
used in this city are kept in under-ground 
rooms. We have been into several of these 
where are crowded together from a dozen to a 
hundred or more horses, in low, narrow stalls, 
and where the arrangements for ventilation are 
so deficient or so badly contrived, that the air 
is loaded with noxious fumes, which, in this 
warm weather are so powerful as to immediately 
drive forth into the open air, any one who has 
not been so long accustomed to the stench as to 
have it become a sort of second nature for him 
to breath ammonia and the other gases arising, 
from speedily decaying horse manure and urine. 
To tarry half an hour in one of these stables is 
enough to give one a realizing sense of the 
horrors of the Black Hole of Calcutta. The 
only shadow of an excuse for such treatment 
of the noble horse is, that ground rents are so 
high that it is necessary to put it to as profitable 
a use as possible. There are scores of these 
stables over which are well-built dwellings, oc¬ 
cupied by many families of even the bettei 
class of citizens. We have often felt that among 
the benevolent societies organized to look after 
the condition of the dwellings of human beings, 
there ought to be at least one association for 
the amelioration of the condition of domestic 
animals. 
But without dwelling upon the condition of 
stables in the city, we have a word to say to our 
readers in the country on the same subject. 
This is especially needed at this season of the 
year. We speak from observation when we 
say, that not half of the farm stables are kept 
in a tit condition to be occupied by horses, even 
while put in an hour for the noon feeding. 
The droppings of horses are among the most 
quickly fermenting, easily decomposed manures. 
In warm weather the work of decay commences 
immediately, and in a very few days one-half or 
more of the weight goes off in a gaseous form. 
This keeps the air constantly loaded with un¬ 
healthy matters which are just as deleterious to 
the health and vigor of horses as to that of man. 
When, as is usually the case during summer, 
the horses are only put into the stable for morn¬ 
ing and noon feeding, the droppings accumulate 
slowly—and they are not usually cleaned out 
oftener than once in several days—we have 
frequently seen them lying for a month, because 
the other busy labors of this season draw off 
attention from this necessary work. The horse 
is put in for an hour’s feeding and rest, but in¬ 
stead of standing in a cool, sweet, well-ventilated 
Stall, ten chances to one, he stands sweating 
and panting with scarce a breath of air which 
is not loaded with the fumes of his own excre¬ 
ments. To treat a horse thus, is much like send¬ 
ing a laborer into the privy to partake of his 
dinner and to enjoy his hour of rest. 
The remedy for this is very simple. If the 
stalls do not have a free circulation of air, it is 
better to remove two or three boards in front of, 
or on the sides, at the head of the stalls. Let 
some such plan be adopted, and by all means 
let the stalls be as cool and airy as possible. 
Let all droppings, however small the quantity, 
be removed at least once a day, and by all 
means keep the floor well sprinkled with some 
deodorizing material. Plaster, (sulphate of lime,) 
ora weak solution of oilof vitriol, (sulphuric acid,) 
are much the best materials for this purpose. 
Muriatic acid (Hydrochloric acid) is very good, 
but more expensive. If these are not at hand, 
then substitute an abundance of dry straw or 
muck, to be thrown out before fermentation com¬ 
mences. 
We have known lime and ashes recommended, 
but these rapidly diminish the value of the ma¬ 
nure, and should never be used with horse 
droppings, unless they are required for immedi¬ 
ate use, and then the manure heap should be 
well covered with plaster or sprinkled with a 
weak solution of some acid. 
•-•- 
DISCOURAGING CHILDREN. 
It is somewhere related, that a poor soldier 
having had his skull fractured, was told by the 
doctor that his brains were visible. “ Do write 
to father,” he replied, “and tell him of it, for he 
always said I had no brains.” How many 
fathers and mothers tell their children such 
things, and how often does such a remark con¬ 
tribute not a little to prevent any development 
of brain. A grown-up person tells a child he 
is brainless, or foolish, or a blockhead, or that 
he is deficient in some mental or moral faculty, 
and in nine cases out of ten the statement is 
believed; or if not fully believed the thought 
that it may be partially so, acts like an incubus 
to repress the confidence and energies of that 
child. Let any person look back to childhood’s 
days, and he can doubtless recall many words 
and expressions which exerted such a discour¬ 
aging or encouraging influence over him, as to 
tell upon his whole future course of life. 
We knew an ambitious boy who, at ten years, 
had become so depressed with fault-finding and re¬ 
proof, not duly mingled with encouraging words, 
that even at that early age he earnestly longed 
for death to take him out of the world, in which 
he conceived he had no abilities to rise. But 
while all thus appeared so dark around him, 
and he had so often been told of faults and de¬ 
ficiencies that he seemed to himself the dullest 
and worst of boys; and while none of his good 
qualities or capabilities had been mentioned, and 
he believed he had none, a single word of praise 
and appreciation carelessly dropped in his hear¬ 
ing, changed his whole course of thought. We 
have often heard him say that, “ that word 
saved him. The moment he thought he could 
do well, he resolved that he would ”—and he has 
done well. Parents, these are important con¬ 
siderations. Sometimes encourage your children 
without an if. Do not always tell them they 
can be good, or can do well, if they will do thus 
or so. Sometimes tell them they can and they 
will do well, and that there is nothing to hinder 
them. 
“SUN-SHADES” FOR HORSES. 
We frequently sec among the carman of this 
city a convenient contrivance for protecting a 
horse from the sun. It is made of coarse cotton 
cloth, five or six feet long and two or three wide. 
At each end is fastened a spreading stick, some¬ 
thing like those on the ends of a common win¬ 
dow curtain. One of these sticks is tied to two 
stakes or rungs in the fore end of the cart, so as 
to support the shade about a foot above the 
horse. The othor is tied to the hames. Such 
