216 
AMEKICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Prizes. — We call attention to the prizes 
offered by the publishers on the last page. Al¬ 
most any person, by a little extra effort, can 
secure one of these prizes. Our circulation is 
extended into every part of the Union, and is 
pretty equally distributed, and is consequently 
not large in any one locality. On this account 
it will be easy to make up large clubs at almost 
any post-office. 
We also call attention to the arrangements 
made to send copies of some of the more valua¬ 
ble magazines and weeklies in connection with 
our own paper. 
-»-•-«- 
THE PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE IGNORES 
ACRICULTURE. 
Perhaps some of our readers may look to 
our columns for this long and purely political 
document, but they will not find it here; wc 
have left it where it legitimately belongs—to the 
political papers. When the President of this 
great nation in his annual message—which pro¬ 
fesses to be a summing up and review of all the 
great interests of the country—takes no notice 
of the largest and most important of all the in¬ 
terests of the country, namely, that of Agricul¬ 
ture, we think the document entirely unworthy 
of a place in a paper having as high aims as our 
own. 
This message recommends the expending 
million after million for the promotion of the 
various minor interests of the country; yet 
passes over, completely ignores, even the ex¬ 
istence of those of agriculture, interests greater 
and more important than all the others com¬ 
bined. 
A Washington, the first and greatest of our 
Presidents, could regard this interest in all 
its magnitude, and in his messages recom¬ 
mend its promotion as the Grst and greatest 
aim of American statesmen. Not so with a 
Pierce, our latest President. For our present 
chief magistrate as a man, both morally and 
intellectually, we have a high respect; and we 
regret that he is not endowed with that capa¬ 
cious reach of thought which would have led 
him to look beyond the bounds of mere political 
routine, and to say and do something worthy of 
himself and the country he represents, in fos¬ 
tering that interest which is the most import¬ 
ant and most worthy of all. 
But the great agricultural class are them¬ 
selves most to blame for the disregard and 
contempt in which they are held. They per¬ 
mit themselves to be led like their own silly 
heep, and are brought up to the polls to vote 
or mere politicians, who, having secured their 
own ends, repay those to whom they owe their 
elevation, by slight and contempt; and while 
wearing the honors and pocketing the profits of 
their position, in return laugh at the simplicity, 
and mock at the ignorance of their blinded 
tools. 
We long for, and look forward with hope to 
that day, when farmers shall so well understand 
what is due to themselves and to their noble 
calling, that they will elect their rulers or rather 
servants, from their own class; men sufficiently 
enlightened, to advocate and carry out those 
measures, which are best calculated to advance 
them to their true position—a position which is 
their due, and which would be taken by them 
now, if they properly regarded themselves and 
their profession. 
COPYING WITHOUT CREDIT. 
We have recently cut from our exchanges a 
large number of articles which originated in 
this paper and have been copied elsewhere 
without credit. Several of these have been 
taken at second-hand from the journals first ap¬ 
propriating them, and in this case there is less 
cause of blame, and doubtless in most instances 
the “ amende honorable” will be made where 
notice of the mistake is given. Some journals, 
however, unscrupulously use our articles as their 
own, even setting them up leaded as editorials , 
and the repetition of this indicates that it is not 
the result of mistalee. We design, from time to 
time, to expose these cases. We begin to-day 
with the Jefferson Farmer. This paper has re¬ 
cently published two long articles written ex¬ 
pressly for this paper by one of the editors. 
One of these is entitled, “ How shall we Advance 
the Interests of Agriculture,” set up in leaded 
type on the inside of that paper; the other is 
headed, “ How to make Home-made Super¬ 
phosphate of Lime.” 
Putnam’s Magazine for December.— We 
have spent a few pleasant and profitable hours 
in the perusal of the well-filled and ample pages 
of this excellent magazine, and find them re¬ 
plete with interesting and instructive reading 
matter, which wc shall go through with at our 
leisure. Wc have from the first, regarded with 
a lively satisfaction this effort to foster native 
talent; and we congratulate the publishers, that 
at the close of their first year, they can an¬ 
nounce “the successful establishment of ‘Put¬ 
nam’s Monthly’ as a fixed factand that they 
enter upon the new year with “ new and varied 
attractions for all classes of its wide circle of 
readers.” Published by G. P. Putnam & Co., 
10 Park Place; $3 a year, or 25 cents per 
monthly number. 
Discontinuance of the Farm and Garden.— 
Speaking of the reason for the discontinuance 
of the Farm and Garden in number 12 of this 
journal, page 184, we said it “was stopped be¬ 
fore the issue of the tenth number, owing to the 
improper conduct of a person employed in trans¬ 
acting- the business department of the paper.” 
To this we desire now to add, that Mr. Solon 
Robinson was not the person alluded to above, 
he never having any thing to do with the busi¬ 
ness part of the paper; and had dissolved all 
connection with the Agricultor and Farm and 
Garden, more than two months previously to 
their stoppage, we parting with mutual consent 
and good will. Publishers. 
-« « O - 
To Correspondents. —We have a number of 
communications on hand which we will attend 
to soon. Where questions are asked which do 
not require an immediate answer, wc sometimes 
reserve them till we have an expected article on 
the subject inquired about. 
Probable Loss of the Potato and Onion Crop in 
Bermuda. 
By advices from this island to the 3d inst., we 
learn that a terrible gale had prevailed there dur¬ 
ing the previous week. The Bermudian says: 
Upon the land, the destructive effects of the 
storm are but too visible. The young crop of 
onions, now in its most tender state, has, in 
many places, been ruinously blighted; and the 
advanced crop of potatoes, both sweet and Irish, 
are completely blackened, and their further 
growth entirely checked. The fruit crop has 
come in for a share of the havoc; bushels of 
oranges, shaddocks, and grape-fruit, wanting 
only a few more weeks to bring them to perfec¬ 
tion, are lying on the ground; and a number of 
banana trees, and other delicate occupants of 
the orchard, are either uprooted or rudely 
wrung off from their stems. 
New-York, and other cities of the American 
seaboard, are dependant upon Bermuda for 
their earliest potatoes and some other vegeta¬ 
bles, which begin to arrive here towards the last 
of April. They are very fine, and highly prized 
among us. We shall next spring sensibly feel 
the loss of this crop at Bermuda; but we trust 
the loss may not be so great as now anticipated. 
-—• o •- 
NEW-YORK ^HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The regular monthly meeting of this Society 
was held at the rooms, No. 600 Broadway, on 
Monday evening, Dec. 5th, Wilson G. Hunt, 
one of the Vice Presidents, in the chair. 
After the minutes of the last meeting had 
been read and approved of, the election of offi¬ 
cers was proceeded with, and the following per¬ 
sons were chosen for the coming year: 
President —Shepherd Knapp. 
Vice Presidents —Wilson G. Hunt, Wm. W. 
Livermore, John Groshon, Robert L. Pell, Abm. 
A. Leggett. 
Treasurer — Jacob C. Parsons. 
Recording Secretary —Peter B. Mead. 
Corresponding Secretary —George Wm. Cur¬ 
tis. 
Librarian — James Cheetham. 
Finance Committee —John Groshon, H. M. 
Schieffelin, Wm. W. Livermore. 
Library Committee —Andrew Reed, Peter B. 
Mead. 
Premium Committee —Peter B. Mead, Alex¬ 
ander Gordon. 
Committee on Fruits —Charles More, Thomas 
Hogg, Jr., Wm. S. Carpenter. 
Committee on Plants and Flowers —J. E. 
Rauch, J. B. Lenoir, Robert Reed. 
Committee on Vegetables — Alfred Bridgeman, 
John Suttle, Charles Knight. 
Committee on Seeds —Isaac Buchanan, Chas. 
Place, Jacob C. Parsons. 
Mr. A. Bridgeman offered a resolution to the 
effect that the premiums due by the Society, 
should be paid during the month of January 
next. His reasons for presenting this resolution 
were that he felt it was injurious to the Society 
to allow these just debts to remain over any 
longer; by so doing they would lose their best 
members and exhibitors. He recommended 
that some step should be taken to raise funds. 
The Treasurer explained that it was impossi¬ 
ble to name a time in which the premiums could 
be paid. He was careful to liquidate debts as 
fast as funds came into his hands. 
Mr. Bridgeman’s resolution having been sec¬ 
onded, the question was put and lost. 
A resolution was passed requiring the Execu¬ 
tive Committee to report at the next regular 
meeting the entire indebtedness of the Society, 
and the best means of raising funds to meet it. 
A member inquired, if those who did not 
claim their premiums within three months, as 
required by one of the by-laws, would be enti¬ 
tled to them at any time the Society was 
prepared to pay them, as many did not feel dis- 
