388 AME&IUAN AGKICULTUEIBT. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
THE CHANGE OF THE SEASON. 
FLOWERS, ORNAMENTAL AND FRUIT TREES. 
generally preferred to carrots. Water, I find, 
may be given to rabbits when six months 
old without any ill effects, though so posi¬ 
tively interdicted by all the “ fancy.” 1 have 
not heretofore sufficiently enforced the im¬ 
portance of a liberal supply of hay which, in 
winter, affords to the rabbit that amount of 
bulk necessary to the healthy feeding of all 
animals, and which oats alone would not 
give. It matters not how coarse the hay, 
nor how full of trash and weeds, it will be 
eagerly sought, and sometimes preferred to 
any grain, especially if uhe rabbit is a little 
off its feed. 
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. 
I will now conclude with one or two words 
of advice to a purchaser, if he be a novice. 
Rabbits are weaned at eight and ten weeks 
old; and, though offered at small prices, do 
not be persuaded to take them. The most 
critical period in their management is from 
that time till they are four months old; after 
that nothing is required but regular feeding 
and cleanliness, with plenty of fresh air. 
Better a wood-house than a stable. See 
that either the male or female be a “ self," 
(of some one uniform color,) and the other 
be broken in color. If both be “ seifs,” the 
progeny will mostly be the same. If both 
be broken in color, the young ones will be 
apt to break color too generally over the 
whole body, and not possess that richness 
in color which large, heavy masses give. 
Nevertheless, from poor colored does, if 
properly bred, very well marked rabbits may 
be obtained. Neither Avould I reject a good 
rabbit because both ears lopped to one side, 
as that carriage of the ears is merely habit, 
and might have been corrected by the own¬ 
er ; indeed it is the most frequent carriage, 
if not attended to by the breeder. A doe is 
ready for breeding at six months old. R. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
LETER FROM THE WEST. 
This letter was received some time since 
from a friend, who removed from New-Jer- 
sey to Wisconsin last spring, and located 
himself at (Green Bay. His object was to 
engage in the lumber business—hence much 
of this letter is devoted to that subject. His 
first impressions and short observation and 
experience are so vividly drawn, that for the 
general information it contains I have con¬ 
cluded to transcribe it for the readers of the 
American Agriculturist, hoping they will feel 
as interested in its perusal as many have 
about here. W. D. 
After alluding to a few days’ sickness, he 
says: 
As soon as I was able I come down to 
Green Bay, and accepted the invitation of a 
friend to a trip in his own boat—a small 
steamer—and view the lumber establish¬ 
ments along the Bay. Some of them are the 
largest in the State. One is now in the 
course of building which will cost from $75,- 
000 to $100,000. The lumbermen are mak¬ 
ing money at a very rapid rate. If the pres¬ 
ent prices continue for two or three years 
they will get to be well off—at least all who 
are prudent managers. We went down to 
the Menomie river, which is the line between 
this State and Michigan. 
The country is worth but little except for 
its lumber—though the pine lands are at 
present the most valuable of any of the un¬ 
improved lands in the State. Within two 
or three years nearly all the pine lands in 
the State that are accessible, have been 
taken up. Railroads will bring much that is 
now out of reach where it will be valuable. 
Shortly after my return up the Bay I re¬ 
ceived a line from a gentleman of St. Pauls, 
Minesota, and I concluded to go out there, 
and try and get a good view of this State on 
my route. My friend was going to Madison, 
in his own conveyance—so I went with him. 
We were four days going. Of course we 
took a roundabout way, to see the country. 
We went north from Fon-au-lac, about 25 
miles, and thence struck off in a southwest¬ 
ern direction. The Counties of Dodge, Mar¬ 
quette, and the northern part of Fon-du-lac, 
are the most gloriously beautiful of any sec¬ 
tions of our country that I have ever had the 
pleasure of seeing. 
The prairies are not level—neither are 
they hilly—but are rolling and beautiful be¬ 
yond description. We would occasionally 
get upon a rise where we could see—I dare 
not tell how much !—but not less than 100,- 
000 acres of land in a single view ! There 
is no language at my command that will de¬ 
scribe such a sight; it must be seen to be 
appreciated. I have seen the great wonder 
of the New World—Niagara—in all its pow¬ 
er and glory ; and I think that is all its* wri¬ 
ters claim for it in grandeur and sublimity; 
but I can find views that suit me better. 
The vastness, the richness, and the gorgeous 
magnificence of such a country, so royally 
carpeted in its golden dress of summer, is 
such that you can only stand still and gaze 
and wonder in mute astonishment. 
This section of the State has groves of 
timber interspersed with it, and is better wa¬ 
tered than some other parts through which 
we passed. On the edge of one of the prai¬ 
ries, adjoining the openings, is the finest 
spring I ever beheld. It boils up out of the 
ground in a stream nearly a foot in diame¬ 
ter, very cold, and apparently as pure as 
water can be. All this part of the State, 
and in fact, I thinS, at least one-half of the 
State, rests upon a solid mass of limestone. 
The most of it appears to be of a good qual¬ 
ity. There is no difficulty in getting build¬ 
ing stone, since the limestone shows itself 
on almost all the knolls of the prairies. As 
we get nearer Madison, (the capital of the 
State,) the prairies are more extensive, with 
less timber and water. 
I traveled about half a day on the Empire 
and Sun prairies, though they are in reality 
but one. They are from ten to fifteen miles 
in width and probably 200 miles in length, 
presenting a very inviting field to the agri¬ 
culturists of the New World. While cross¬ 
ing I passed a number of farms, where dif¬ 
ferent kinds of grain and garden vegetables 
were growing in the most beautiful and lux¬ 
uriant profusion; but with the exception of 
a small yard, to shut up cattle, there was 
not a rod of fence of any kind on the farms, 
not even around the house and garden. I 
asked a boy how they kept their crops from 
being destroyed, and he answered that they 
“ watch the cattle in day-time, and shut 
them up at night.” 
I thought it very lonesome farming, how¬ 
ever, for there was not a tree nor a bush 
large enough to make one rail, for miles in 
any direction, nor a drop of water, except in 
their wells. I suppose you will think there 
could not be much beauty then. I can not 
say that I admired the country there so 
much, though it is beautiful to look over an 
almost unlimited extent of country and see 
it covered with a carpet of' green, and think 
there is not an acre of it that is not superior 
to most of the gardens of the east. 
(To be Continued.) 
The Culpepper Observer says : “Wanted, 
at this office, an editor who can please 
everybody. Also a foreman who can so 
arrange the paper as to have every man’s 
advertisement to head the column.” 
The garden at this season ceases to be 
very attractive, stripped as it is of the showy 
plants and flowers which are sensitive to the 
slightest degree of frost, and only calculated 
to bear exposure while the temperature out 
doors approximates to that of their native 
country. The choicest of these have been 
removed where they will be protected dur¬ 
ing the winter and the flower garden begins 
to assume its winter aspect. Some of the 
beds have been appropriated to bulbous roots ; 
early in the spring these will look gay with 
varieties of the crocus, snowdrop, hyacinth, 
tulip and other choice flowering bulbs. At 
present the display of flowers is very mea¬ 
ger, confined to a few of the more hardy 
chrysanthemums, with such perennial her¬ 
baceous plants as resist the autumn winds. 
Sweet alyssum in sheltered places, and dah¬ 
lias awaiting the first approach of frost to 
divest them of what little beauty they possess 
at this late period. A few rosebuds may 
still be collected, but they are no longer the 
full, double flowers that we have been accus¬ 
tomed to, and only admired in the absence of 
perfect specimens. The greenhouse is en¬ 
livened by choice varieties of daisy, and 
other chrysanthemums, which have so in¬ 
creased in number during the last few years, 
that they afford in themselves sufficiently 
distinct colors and character to make a dis¬ 
play in a house, devoted exclusively to them, 
Interspersed with a few choice plants to af¬ 
ford a contrast, the owner of twenty varieties, 
which is but a middling collection, can make 
a fair display at this season, in his green¬ 
house. Several species of salvia or sage, are 
useful winter plants for the greenhouse ; a 
fine purple variety called lambinonii is now 
in flower. The familiar leucantha, is also 
desirable during the winter when more 
choice flowers are scarce. Salvia splendens 
is too well known to require recommenda¬ 
tion, adapted for the flower bed during the 
summer, and with proper treatment equally 
valuable in the warm greenhouse in winter ; 
it is a very popular plant. Several species 
of the oxalis are now in flower, others will 
succeed them through the winter, and spring 
will bring a still greater variety of this ex¬ 
tensive family. The most popular sorts are 
versicolor, a beautiful striped one, white and 
red with delicate divided leaves; the fan 
leaved, is also a very choice species, with 
light yellow flowers, and is now in bloom. 
We do not intend to enumerate all the 
desirable plants calculated to add to the stock 
of winter flowers,but merely to call attention 
to a few which appear to us attractive. The 
pleasure ground at this season, and during the 
remainder of the winter, owes much of its 
beauty to the selection of the evergreens 
with which it is ornamented. There is now 
no want of variety in this department; all 
that is required is taste and liberality in the se¬ 
lection. Many fine shrubs have been im¬ 
ported which are suited to our climate ; such 
as several species of arbor vitae, cypress, and 
juniper; we are warned against the use of 
“ long Latin names ” or we would enumerate 
several species. The Deodar cedar is in¬ 
creasing in popularity, and at this time of the 
year has a beautiful fresh look, while the 
trees and shrubs around are either destitute 
of foliage or have assumed a brown hue, the 
effects of cold autumn winds. The Japan 
cryptomeria in this respect loses the charac¬ 
ter for beauty so uniformly claimed for it in its 
own and more temperate climates, and can 
not compare with the more hardy Deodar, 
which to its other recommendations adds 
that of being of rapid growth. The Norway 
spruce may be said to be the most popular 
of our coniferous trees for general purposes 
