250 
A SPECIMEN OF AGRICULTURAL KNOWLEDGE, ETC. 
cheeks, as well as of the musky odor of the 
gland on the rump. 
The eggs are scarcely distinguishable from 
those of the common duck, and are well flavored. 
The time of incubation is five weeks; but in all 
birds that I have observed, the duration of that 
period varies so much according to circumstan¬ 
ces, that a mean of many observations must be 
taken to arrive at a correct standard. The time 
required by the hybrid egg, between this and 
the common duck, is intermediate between the 
respective periods. 
The newly-hatched young, also, resemble 
those of the common tame duck; they are cov¬ 
ered with down, the shades of which indicate 
the color of the future feathers; and they do 
not for some time, show any appearance of 
the tuberculated face. They are delicate, and 
require some care while young, but are quite 
hardy when full grown. Their food should be 
anything that is nutritious, both plenty and a 
variety of it. 
The musk duck is excellent eating, if killed 
just before it is fully fledged; but it is longer in 
becoming fit for the table, than the common 
duck. The flesh is at first high-flavored and 
tender, but an old bird would be rank, and the 
toughest of tough meats. It is strange that a 
dish should now be so much out of fashion as 
scarcely ever to be seen or tasted, which, under 
the name of Guinea duck, graced every feast 
in England, a hundred and fifty years ago, and 
added dignity to every table at which it was 
produced .—Brownes American Poultry Yard. 
A SPECIMEN OF AGRICULTURAL KNOWLEDGE- 
ARE CORN COBS GOOD MANURE? 
This question was lately put to me by a gen¬ 
tleman at Jackson, North Carolina. I answered 
yes, of course; that I considered them highly 
valuable, &c. To this, another man put in an 
objection. He cautioned the first person not to 
use them too freely. If he did, he would not 
make any corn; “ because,” said he, “ I tried 
them last season, and where I put them on 
thickest, I lost all my corn.” 
“Ah! how do you account for that?” said I. 
“ Oh! easy enough. There is so much lime in 
cobs, it burnt up the land so that the growing corn 
all died.” 
“ So much lime in cobs!” I exclaimed; “ Well, 
that is new to me. Are you sure that was the 
cause ? ” 
“ Oh, yes; certainly. What else could it be ? 
I don’t believe much in lime, no how.” 
“ Perhaps you did not plow your cobs in deep 
enough. What kind of land was it ?” 
“ Well, it was good strong clay land, and they 
were plowed as deep as we ever plow in this 
country. How deep would you have plowed?” 
“ Ten or twelve inches ?” 
“ Ten or twelve inches! Well, I don’t want 
you to plow my land. You’d turn the soil all 
under so deep it never would do any good again.” 
My dear Sir, I would not only plow that deep, 
but I would use the subsoil plow, also, and then 
I don’t think that the lime in corn cobs would 
hurt your land.” 
“ You may talk as much as you like, but I 
know it was the lime in the cobs that killed my 
corn ; and lime will kill any land in this climate; 
and as for a subsoil plow, I wouldn’t let you 
bring one on my farm; and I don’t believe they 
were ever of any benefit to land in the world.” 
“ What sort of plows do you use, my friend, 
and how much team to a plow ? ” 
“ Why, the common sort of plows in this 
country; and I never want any plows on my 
land that one horse can’t pull. I’ve seen 
enough of your new-fangled Yankee plows—I 
b’leive they’re just poison to the land, I do; and 
as for plaster and guano, that you talk so much 
about, I’ve tried both and they a’n’t worth a 
cent; no, nor lime either.” 
Now, I pray you to take notice that this wise 
man is not only a farmer, but he is an overseer 
—one who hires for high wages—lets himself 
and his knowledge and skill to another; sets 
himself up as a competent teacher of the right 
mode of farming, manuring, and managing land; 
and, as you see, understands “ agricultural 
chemistry, 1 ” about upon a par with nine tenths 
of his class; and yet this man has charge of an 
estate that is probably worth seventy or eighty 
thousand dollars. How can a country improve 
when nearly all the agricultural operations are 
conducted by just such bigoted ignoramuses as 
this man—men that ridicule the idea of learn¬ 
ing about farming in a book. And not only 
that, but when such men as the Messrs. 
Burgwyn’s are conducting their enlightened 
operations right before their eyes, and, by means 
of lime, turning old broom-sedge fields into the 
most luxuriant clover pastures, they not only 
ridicule them because the first “ crops don’t pay 
cost,” but contend that lime and deep plowing 
will ruin any land. How can you teach a man 
agricultural science, that contends that “ lime in 
corn cobs” killed his corn, and who never reads 
an agricultural book or paper? S. R. 
REMEDY FOR DISEASED SWINE. 
A few years since, I had a sow with a litter 
of pigs, one or two days old, taken suddenly sick. 
When first discovered, she was lying on her 
side, and would neither eat nor take any notice 
of her pigs, even when disturbed. I had no ex¬ 
pectation of her living one hour, and being no 
doctor, knew not what to do for her; but having 
a little croton oil in the house, (the quantity I 
do not know precisely, as it was nearly all used, 
except what adhered to the vial, perhaps three 
or four drops or more,) I mixed it with milk, 
rolled her on her back, and poured it into her 
mouth. In two hours, she was on her feet, and 
in three days, apparently as well as ever. I 
have given the same kind of oil to hogs that 
were sick since that time, and believe they have, 
in all cases, recovered, but in no case with so 
marked effect, as in the above. 
Shelden Esborn. 
Harwinton, Ct., June, 1850. 
Cotton Batting, spread very thin over the 
young plants will shield them from depreda¬ 
tions. 
