1807.] 
357 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIS 
Editorial Jottings in Europe. 
Since his absence In Enrope, Mr. Judd hae written 
ftequentljr, with permlasion to publish such portions of 
his letters as we chose. Several of his notes of travel 
have been crowded out by other matter, and we briefly 
say that, after vlsitlnff Great Britain, France, and Hol¬ 
land, he is now in Russia, and wili go by way of Germany 
and Switzerland to Southern Europe. We give some of 
his notes on the northern countries: 
“STOCKnoLjf, Sweden, Augnst 10th...."Vre h.ave had 
an interesting jonmey of 450 miles up through Sweden, 
from Malmu, which lies opposite Copenhagen. Around 
Alalmu is quite a fertile section, and we saw some good 
farms between lakes Wenner and Wetter, and at other 
points, but the country is generally either wet or 
rocky. Yet there is a neatness and .American look about 
the fann-honses and the villages that is very pleasing— 
indeed, rather surprising. In this city (Stockholm,) and 
its surroundings, we are very agreeably disappointed. 
The finish and style of the buildings, and the form, phys¬ 
iognomy, and dress, of the people, arc more like those of 
a first class American city of 33,000 inhabitants than we 
liave found anywhere else in our journey through France, 
Belgium, Holland, Germany, Prussia, and Denmark, and 
we will not except even Great Britain. In politeness and 
general good manners the citizens of Stockholm appar¬ 
ently excel ns. The city is most beautifully located on a 
number of islands, divided by small lakes and narrow, 
swift running streams. The ground of each island rises 
high above the water, in the center especially, so that the 
city, as a whole, has a diversified appearance, the houses 
rising rapidly, one above the other, from the water’s 
edge to the middle. At a little distance, the dividing wa¬ 
ters are not seen, and the city appears as a compact mass 
of buildings. Outside of the city arc seen some beauti¬ 
ful fields with growing crops, though the surface is much 
broken with rocky hills or immense granite boulders, 
with takes or lakelets every mile or two. What surprises 
me most, is a field of tobacco just north of the city, 
which exhibits as vigorous a growth of leaf and stem 
as I have ever seen even in the most favored regions. 
Every hill is perfect, the leaves of immense size, and not 
a plant is under four feet in hight to the curve of the top 
leaves. This, remember, is nearly up to latitude CO®, or 
about the same as the southern part of Greenland, the 
northern end of Labrador, and the middle of Hudson's 
Bay... 
“ Helsisofobs, Finland, August 15th—The passage 
hither from Stockholm is the most channing one in my 
experience. I have traveled hundreds of miles to see the 
*• Thousand Islands” of the St. Lawrence, but they sink 
into insignificance in comparison with what we have 
seen during the post two days. With the exception of a 
narrow space of open sea between the Swedish outer coast 
and Aland, and again between that island and the outer 
Finnish coast, there is one continued succession of little 
islands, between which the steamer threads her way for 
over two hundred miles in coming from Stot^holm to this 
place. Some of these islands are mere rounded granite 
rocks of an acre or two, more or less; many of them have 
evergreen and other shrubs or trees, with grass plots. 
Some of them have dwellings and cultivated Helds. Often 
there are fifty to one hundred of these beautiful islands in 
sight at a time. The water channels between them vary 
from three or four rods to a mile or more in width. The 
passages are so narrow and tortnous, and the undcr-watcr 
islands are so numerous, that no steamer or sailing vessel 
moves at night. Our steamer left Stockholm at daylight, 
(two o’clock A. M. here, now!) and made Abo, (pro¬ 
nounced Obo,) in Finland, by 6 P. M., and stopped until 
4 A. M, glvlnguf several hours of daylight to tramp around 
the town, and climb the old Lutheran church tower, to 
gain a view of a dozen miles in every direction. In the 
vaults beneath the church, we examined bodies deposited 
hundreds of years ago, yet still preserving their forms 
and features. In this high, dry laUtude, they literally dried 
up, or clrangcd to enduring matter without decay. Abo, 
like Stockholm, much resembles an American town in its 
buildings, and the dress and physiognomy of the people. 
But here, at Helsingfors, the capital of Finland, our sur¬ 
prise has reached its climax. The neat, well-built city is 
as lovely an one, at this season, as I ever saw. We find 
green parks, broatl, clean, well-paved, beautiful streets, 
thriving business stores and shops, magnificent churches, 
a flourishing University, with its library of 300,000 vol- 
tuncs, etc., etc. The people arc vigorous and intelligent, 
and equal in physique our best class of native Amer¬ 
icans. The “guide books” say little of this region; 
travelers oomc here but seldom, and so we hear little of 
Finland, and think of it only as a cold, bleak region, in¬ 
habited by a semi-savage race. It is far, very far, othcr- 
wisc.and I would advise every American traveling abroad, 
to visit Holland, D(mmark, Sweden, and Finland. A 
single voyage throngh the “Ten Thousand Islands” will 
repay a voyage from New York to Stockholm, and a visit 
to Finland will exceed in interest that usually made to 
Middle and Southern Europe. A trip up by rail-road, 
lake, and canal, into middle Finland, is easily accom¬ 
plished in July or .\ugnst, and from all I can learn here, 
is one of perfect safety and of fp^at interest. I only re¬ 
gret that our large company, including small children, 
and engagements abroad, will prevent my going further 
north now. Wo came from Stockholm in the fine 
steamship Aura, whose captain, Mr. Laiis Kkogius, of 
Ilclsingfors, Finland, is a model Christian gentleman. 
He has been in America, speaks our language well, and 
he has done cveiythiug possible to make us comfortable, 
and aided us greatly in seeing and understanding the 
various points of interest on the route....” 
“WvBORG, Finland, August ICth_Leaving Helsing¬ 
fors at 6 A. M., we passed, at the mouth of its spacious 
harbor, the powerful fortifications at Sweaborg, which 
are of historic interest, and are well styled the ‘ Gibraltar 
of the Xorth.’ To-day’s sail has been mainly among a 
succession of beautiful islands, like those met with all the 
way from Stockholm, At 4 P. M., we passed the Russian 
war fleet at anchor, and counted among the ships at least 
nifie large tnrreted ‘ Monitors,’ similar to our own. We 
then entered through a narrow channel, guarded by ex¬ 
tensive batteries, into the eight mile harbor, at the head 
of which stands Wyborg, a city of 7,000 inhabitants. This, 
too, is, in many respects, a beautiful town. About 1*4 
miles north-east of the fortified city is located ‘ Mon Re¬ 
pos,’ (My Repose.) the former residence of Baron Kicolai. 
This delightful retreat is on the shore of a large lake, and 
nearly shut in hy hills; the grounds are interspersed with 
little lakes and streams, valleys, and hillocks, which arc 
mainiy of immense granite boulders or ridges, covered 
with patches of trees and green verdure. Bridges, sum¬ 
mer-houses, green-houses, graperies, arbors, walks, arch¬ 
ed hy living trees, extensive flower plots, all in beautiful 
bloom, etc., abound. Taken altogether, the combination 
of natural and artificial scenery at Mon Repos excels any¬ 
thing of the kind that we have ever seen elsewhere. It 
is doubly interesting from the fact that we find it above 
latitude 60°, away up in Finland. The pen of a Downing, 
aided by an artist’s pencil, is needed to justly describe 
this exquisite retreat....” 
“St. Petersbcro, Russia, August 20ih_After leav¬ 
ing Wyborg, on Friday, we had a slightly rough passage, 
caused by a stifl’ western breeze over the Gulf of Finland, 
wliich sent sundry passengers to their berths. At 2 P. 
M., we neared the renowmed fortifications and ship-jTirds 
nt Cronstadt, eighteen miles west of St. Petersburg, and 
our hearts were gladdened, and our eyes fairly glistened 
with tears of joy, as we saw flying from beautiful ships 
the ‘Star-spangled Banner,’ and Admiral Farragut’s 
square, five-starred, blue Pennant, at the main-mast 
head of one of them. After so long journeying—always, 
thus far, in foreign ships—the eight of our o\vn flag gaily 
floating in the breeze, awakened such emotions as none 
but those who have experienced them can appreciate. 
We wonder not at the devotion of the seaman to the flag 
of his country....Further on, we passed some Russian 
ships, and then the fleet of Sweden, (the native land of 
Ericsson,) and here, too, were ten or a dozen monitors— 
the smoke from a salvo of artillery of all the vessels and 
fortifications just then fired in honor of a visit from the 
Russian Grand Duke to our fleet prevented onr counting 
the ships accurately....Eighteen miles more, and w'o 
come to anchor in the Neva, in the midst of the Great 
City of the North, and, in many respects, the City of the 
World. The bug-bear of rough, searching Russian custom 
house and other officials, so graphically written down in 
the English guide books, was not found. The fact that 
we were American travelers, with our necessary baggage, 
secured us a polite reception, and an unsearched and un¬ 
molested passage to onr hotel. At the ‘ Grand Hotel, wo 
found as spacious, clean, and well furnished rooms, as 
good, well prepared food, as careful, prompt, and polite 
attendance, and at quite as reasonable rates, as we have 
secured anywhere else since crossing the Atlantic. No 
‘ Russian bears ’ walk the streets, in official or other garb, 
but every class, official, mercantile, shop-keepers, market 
men-indeed all classes, down even to the caVmen, 
if not including them also, are as polite and well-bred 
as we have anywhere found, not excepting Paris itself. 
I wish to note liere, that everywhere on the continent we 
have seen among all classes a degree of politeness a 
touch of the hat, a ‘thank you’ for the slightest favors, 
that might well be copied by ns Americans far more gen¬ 
erally than it is....During three days past, we have rode 
20 miles through some of the broad, beautiful streets, and 
In one of the parks; have taken a full surv'cy of the whole 
city, from the top of Isaac’s Cathedral, have visited the 
‘ Hermitage,’with its infinite treasures of art, modem 
and ancient—and from what wo have seen and know is to 
be seen, wo are almost ready to write down St. Peters¬ 
burg as a city more interesting, more instructive, and 
more pleasing than any we have seen after traversing, 
(now, or previously,) every country of Europe, north of 
Spain and Italy. We Americans have seen and known 
northern and north-eastern Enrope too much through 
T. 
English and French eyes. For myself, though I came 
hither with much desire, and with many expectations, I 
confess that what I have already seen, far surpasses my 
very highest conception. Even an enthusiastic French 
gentleman, a fellow traveler hither, who has all the way 
been loud in his praises of Paris, to-day, voluntarily, re¬ 
marked to us, ‘ St. Petersburg is a second Paris.’ Per¬ 
haps after three days more, he may say, ‘ Paris is almost 
a second St. Petersburg.’_” 
Walks and Talks on^wthe Farm. —No. 46. 
We have had one of the most severe drouths 
I have ever known. I have alwaj'S been partial 
to a diy, hot summer—it gives such a splendid 
chance to kill weeds—but this is rather too 
good. At the East, I understand, they have 
had a very wet summer, and the papers com¬ 
plain that the potatoes are rotting in conse¬ 
quence. Here we shall have few or none to rot. 
Corn will not be half a crop. I did not sow 
any corn for fodder, but we have been obliged 
for some time to cut up corn for the cows. As 
it was drilled in,and was a little too thick, I do not 
begrudge it the cows as much as if it was planted 
in hills. There is a heavy growtii of stalks, 
and I am astonished to see how little ground 
we have to go over for a day’s supply, .pother 
season I will not be without a piece of corn 
fodder, on rich land, near the barn-yard, to be 
cut up in August for milch cows. Some of my 
neighbors had a piece this year, but it w'as sown 
broadcast, and the dry weather parched it up. 
In moist seasons, corn sown broadcast some¬ 
times does well, but, as a general rule, it should 
be sown thickly in drills, and •thoroughly culti¬ 
vated, and the more highly it can be manured, 
the better. Rich land, thick seeding in drills, 
say three bushels per acre, and thorough culti¬ 
vation, are the essentials in raising corn fodder. 
And in such circumstances it is astonishing how 
much feed can be obtained from an acre. 
How much laud does an old-fashioned fence 
occupy ? I have alwaj's thought it took up a 
good deal of land, but never had the curiosity 
to measure. But this summer we have been 
building a stone wall along the whole west side 
of the farm, and after it was completed, and the 
old fence removed, I w’as surprised at the quan¬ 
tity of land we had gained. The ground, of 
course, might have been plowed closer to the 
fence, but taking the case as it actually was, the 
old rail fence, with stones, weeds, rubbish, etc., 
occupied a strip of land one rod wide. A field, 
31 rods long and 31 rods wide, contains about 
six acres. If surrounded by such a fence, it 
W'ould occupy a little over three quaiteis of an 
acre of land. A farm of 160 acres so fenced 
would have twenty acres of laud taken up in 
this worse than useless manner. Not only is the 
use of the land lost, but it is, in the niajority of 
cases, a nursery of weeds, and, in plowing, much 
time is lost in turning, and the headlands and 
corners are seldom properly cultivated. 
But will it pay to use more capital in farin- 
in**-’ If we could calculate on getting present 
prices, there can be no doubt that it would pay 
well. And, at all events, you cannot have good 
farming without the use of a large working 
capital; or of liberal credit, and it is quite cer¬ 
tain that, if good farming will not pay, poor 
farming will not. And as agriculture is the 
main business of the nation, farming will pay m 
e long run, if anything pays. 
This question, so often asked, and so seldom 
iswered, “Does farming pay?” is a very ab- 
,rd one. Of course farming pays. Farmers 
> get a living, and it is rare that one of them 
