333 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[November, 
The accompanying engraving is an exact 
sketch of one of a cluster of millet heads now 
on exhibition at the office of the American Agri¬ 
culturist. There are larger heads, but this one is 
the largest we could get into our columns. The 
straw, including head, is 6 to 6£ feet high, strong 
and full of leaves, which supply a good'deal of 
forage. Tiie artist has not attempted to exhib¬ 
it the multitude of seeds which crowd each oth¬ 
er upon the closely clustering panicles. By 
counting the geeds on some of these, and esti¬ 
mating for the rest, we find the average number 
on a single head about 25,000! These samples 
were presented by Wm. Fullerton, Esq., i of this 
city, who has it growing in considerable quanti¬ 
ty at his farm near Newburgh, N. Y. He uses 
both the ground seed and the straw for cattle 
feed; both are relished, and produce good re¬ 
sults. It thrives most luxuriantly on a bog 
meadow thoroughly drained. It grows slowly, 
and should be sowed on freshly harrowed land 
in good condition, so that the seeds may start 
at once and get ahead of the weeds. Mr. F. < 
teems it as one of the most profitable crops. We 
are happy to state that Mr. Fullerton has prom¬ 
ised us all the seed he can spare, to be distrib¬ 
uted among our subscribers the coming Winter. 
Experience with Hungarian Millet. 
J. H. Wright, of Cook Co., Ill., writes to the 
American Agriculturist: In June 1861,1 harrowed 
18 acres of prairie sod, until it was perfectly mel¬ 
low, and sowed £ bushel of seed per acre; then 
harrowed again and rolled, which I consider a 
very important item. I also sowed 8 acres of 
old land, finishing July 5th. The millet was 
ready for the machine September 1st, but owing 
to wet weather, was delayed for about three 
weeks, when the seed was ripe. I stacked one 
hundred and ten loads, estimated at eighty tuns. 
After having fed one third of it, I thrashed the 
remainder, which yielded me four hundred and 
fifty bushels of seed, weighing fifty six lbs. per 
bushel. My stock do well on the thrashed straw. 
The seed, being small and hard, is very difficult 
of digestion, and I think must injure cattle or 
horses if fed exclusively on it for any length of 
time. I should, if possible, cut it while green, 
when I consider it superior to any forage crop I 
ever raised. It will thrive on any good soil, and 
suffers but little from drouth. If well put in, it 
is a very sure crop. I should sow another 
year as soon as June 15th. I think it would be 
excellent for feeding green to cows in Summer. 
Sorghum Culture and Manufacture. 
F. A. Denny writes to the American Agricultwr 
ist: My mode of planting sorghum is, to prepare 
and cultivate the ground the same as for corn. 
High hazel ground is the best here, although it 
will grow on almost any good corn land. Black 
prairie soil does not make as good syrup as oth¬ 
er soil. Plant as early as the ground is sufficient¬ 
ly warm, and thin to five or six stalks to the 
hill, keeping free from grass and weeds, until 
large enough to plow. About the middle of 
September a majority of the seeds will have 
turned black, and the lower part of the blades 
will become yellow, when it will do to com¬ 
mence • grinding. Most people strip the cane 
while standing, and cut the tops down to second 
joint. I pressed some without stripping, which 
turned out as well, and saved expense. For 
pressing I used a common two-horse three roller 
upright mill, rollers ten inches in diameter, twelve 
inches high. I also used one of Cook’s Evapo¬ 
rators No. 2, placed on brick work, which does 
much better than the rocker, as it gives more 
heating surface. I placed a barrel under the mill 
to receive the juice, and at the lower end on the 
outside I put in a common wooden faucet, 
which conveyed the juice into a spout or tube, 
made by plowing out about an inch square 
groove in. a piece of 1J inch pine, 2i inches 
wide, with a strip of weatherboard nailed on top 
to keep out dirt. The spout conveys the juice 
into a barrel set in the ground close to the evap¬ 
orator. The tube was protected by a bridge 
laid down over where the horses crossed it. 
I placed extra hopper-shaped sides to my evap¬ 
orator, to prevent the syrup from boiling over. 
I use a very hot fire, and boil as fast as possible, 
which throws up the scum better (and makes 
better syrup) until it is nearly done, when I let 
the fire cool down a little until it is run off. A 
little experience will soon teach when it is done. 
Cook’s evaporator regulates the flow of syrup 
so that I can run off just as much as is cooked 
enough. I let iu the juice next the chimney, 
and let out the syrup at the front end over the 
fire, which I think is best, as I can control the 
fire to prevent burning the syrup when it is too 
hot I used a small portion of lime as a neutral¬ 
izer while the cane was green, but it makes th® 
syrup dark. After the cane was ripe, rapid boil¬ 
ing and skimming alone made very superior,, 
light colored syrup which kept well, and retailed 
at the mill at 50 cts. per gallon. Others here 
have made syrup by a different process and with 
kettles, but it has not kept well. Last Fall, with a 
man and boy, I made about 1,400 gallons. The 
cane did not yield near as well as previously.' 
Sugar from Com Stalks. 
H. A. Sheldon of Addison Co., Vt., writes to 
the American Agriculturist: I took two stalks of. 
Stowell’s Evergreen sweet corn, of average^ 
size, after the com had been taken off, pressed 
them (to one joint above the top ear) between 
rollers half an inch apart, and obtaining five 
fluid ounces juice of specific gravity 1.066. 
Two grains quick lime were added, and the juice 
was boiled, strained, and evaporated to a trifle 
over half a fluid ounce of rich, transparent syr¬ 
up. In a former experiment not weighed, it crys¬ 
tallized into good sugar. As I did not proba¬ 
bly obtain more than half the juice; and allow¬ 
ing two square feet of land for each stalk, the 
result would be 66 gallons syrup, or 300 lbs. sugar 
to the acre. The flavor of both sugar and molas.- 
ses is much pleasanter than that from sorghum. 
