AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
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AGRICULTURE IS THE MOST HEALTHY , THE MOST USEFUL, AND THE MOST NOBLE EMPLOYMENT OE MAN. -WA3Binoto». 
PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY ALLEN & CO., 189 WATER ST. 
VOL. XIII.—NO. 3.] NEW-YORK, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1854. [NEW SERIES.—NO. 55. 
m-FOR PROSPECTUS, TERMS, fa., 
SEE LAST PAGE. 
WINTER APPLES FOR SHIPPING. 
We wish to obtain one hundred barrels of 
the best kinds of winter apples to send to 
Europe. The best keeper, and the only sort 
which we know to improve by a voyage across" 
the Atlantic, is the Newtown Pippin. Some 
other sorts will keep pretty well, but we know 
of none whose flavor is improved by the voy¬ 
age. 
We shall be obliged by any information on 
this subject, more especially from those who 
have shipped the Baldwin apple, Northern Spy, 
Russet, Lady apple, &c. 
Great care should be taken in picking, pack¬ 
ing, and transporting apples which are to cross 
the Atlantic. The least bruise is prejudicial to 
their keeping. They should be hand picked 
from the trees, and placed in tiers, with the 
stems up, in dry barrels, then tight headed and 
transported on sleds or spring carts to the 
point of shipment. Every apple should be of 
good size and as perfect as possible. 
Some practise sweating the apples for a few 
days in heaps on a covered floor. Then wipe 
them dry and pack. Others say that the sweat¬ 
ing is of no benefit to them, and that they will 
sweat over again in the barrels quite as much 
as if packed in the barrels as fast as picked from 
the tree. Having no personal experience in the 
sweating of apples previous to packing, we shall 
be obliged to any one having experimented 
both ways, who will inform us of the result of 
these experiments. 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
We will answer J., of Salem county, in full, 
privately, if he will send us his address. 
Sub-soil Plow, Mowing Machine, Lime, 
&c.—M. S., of Coverdale, is informed that the 
price of Sub-soil Plows, is from $5 50 to $12. 
That costing $8 50, would probably answer, 
though the one costing $12, is the best for hard, 
stony ground. It would require two to four 
stout horses to draw one, dependent upon its 
size, the nature of the soil, and how deep it 
went into it. The largest size, costing $12, will 
stand as long as the best of other kinds of 
plows. It would be decidedly beneficial to sub¬ 
soil your land, especially in the fall of the sea¬ 
son. If the meadows are quite wet, they should 
be first drained. The Mower and Reaper re¬ 
quire smooth ground, though if rolling, it is 
no objection. We will give you the names of 
the b , and prices, next May, if you will put 
us in mind of it. Great improvements will be 
made in them the coming winter. We should 
think lime at a shilling a bushel would pay at 
the rate of 20 bushels or so per acre, applied 
every two or three years, till three applications 
are made. 
Machine for making Draining Tiles, &c.— 
E. R. J., of Acadia. The price is $250. We 
could not tell, until we saw your soil, how far 
the drains should be apart. They might re¬ 
quire to be two rods, if very tenacious; if not, 
from three to six rods apart. Suppose you 
experiment on an acre or so at different distan¬ 
ces, and give us the result ? We cannot send 
covers of the Agriculturist by mail. 
Currants, Swine, &c. —A. H. M., Lancaster 
City. The best kind for you is to take females 
of the great Chester county white breed, of 
your own State, and cross them with a Suffolk 
boar. The price of them is $25 to $50 per 
pair, according to quality, &c. Currant stalks 
will grow from the seed, though it is better to 
set out roots or slips in the fall or early spring. 
MONMOUTH (N. J.) COUNTY SHOW. 
The first Show of this Society was held at 
Freehold, on the 21st inst. We spent a couple 
of hours there very pleasantly, and are very 
free to say that under all the circumstances 
of inexperience, &c., the Exhibition was very 
creditable to the officers of the Society, and all 
others who had any hand in getting it up. 
There was a very general turn out from various 
parts of the county. The display of stock, 
farm products, specimens of mechanical indus¬ 
try, &c., were very good. We have only room 
to speak of one thing which especially pleased us, 
and which is worthy of imitation elsewhere. We 
refer to the exhibition of a printing press by 
Mr. Morford, of the N. J. Standard, which was 
kept in active operation, throwing off for free dis¬ 
tribution, a large sheet containing a business di¬ 
rectory of Keyport. We should be glad to speak 
of the exhibitions of fine sets of harness, excel¬ 
lent drawings, including those of agricultural 
implements, by pupils of the Freehold Institute, 
&c., &c. 
-•««- 
WESTCHESTER COUTNY SHOW 
Came off at White Plains, on the 21st and 
22d insts. The Society labored under difficul¬ 
ties this year, the chief of which was, that the 
New-York State Show, to be held so soon after, 
kept many back from the local exhibition. The 
display, however, was very creditable, and the 
exercises quite interesting. One of the best 
features was the introduction of several speeches 
on practical subjects, during both days of the 
show. 
Friday afternoon Dr. A. J. Prime, of White 
Plains, gave the regular annual address. He 
was followed by Hon. A. B. Conger, of Rock¬ 
land county,—a practical farmer by the way 
—and Mr. Orange Judd, of the American Ag¬ 
riculturist, who were called out by special re ¬ 
quest of the Society. They occupied an hour 
and a half in discussing deep plowing, the po¬ 
tato crop, benefits of fall plowing for spring 
crops, &c. The remarks were listened to with 
considerable interest, and the speakers received 
a vote of thanks, and were elected Honorary 
Members of the County Association. 
This Society is fortunate in having a very 
efficient and active set of officers to direct its 
affairs. 
Hartford (Ct.) County Cattle Show and 
Fair.— The annual Exhibition of the Hartford 
County Agricultural Society, will take place on 
the first week in October, commencing on the 
3d, and continuing on Wednesday, Thursday, 
and Friday. 
The exhibition of stock will take place at the 
South Park, in Hartford, on Thursday, the 5th of 
October; of Horses and Colts at the same place 
on Friday the 6th. The trial of plows will take 
place on Wednesday, the 4-th, at 10 A. M., and 
the plowing match will take place on the after¬ 
noon of the same day. 
--»•«- 
AGRICULTURAL CAPITAL. 
The American farmer, who has won his way 
to a condition of comfort and reasonable inde¬ 
pendence, from a beginning of comparative pov¬ 
erty, and struggled on to his present estate amid 
the privations incident to daily toil, may be 
somewhat startled at the subject of our present 
writing, and ask, what beyond his farm, and the 
stock upon it—and that not involved in debt— 
is its meaning ? The trader in commodities, the 
financier, the banker, and the political econo¬ 
mist, understand the term capital to signify 
money, or that representation of value which 
will best aid him in prosecuting his business to 
its most productive result. 
Some farmers practically understand the im¬ 
portance of capital as employed in their imme¬ 
diate business; but from our own observation 
we lament to say, that the mass, so far as its 
best application is concerned, do not. Versa¬ 
tility of employment is the grand fault of the 
American people— a proneness to dive into 
every occupation in which one sees his neighbor 
successful, even to leaving his own vocation, by 
which he has made sure, though moderate 
gains, and if steadily persevered in, would, in 
time, make him rich. This is a national char¬ 
acteristic, induced by the numerous enterprises 
