*150 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Agricultural Societies. 
A new agricultural society has been recently form¬ 
ed in the north part of Otsego, which held its first ex¬ 
hibition at Cherry Valley, on the 17th inst. An ad¬ 
dress was delivered on the occasion by Mr. Senator 
Beardsley. The exhibition of farm stock, we under¬ 
stand, was uncommonly fine, and embraced choice 
animals of the improved breeds of neat cattle, sheep 
and swine, which occupied seventy pens, besides ma¬ 
ny bulls, and other animals that were tied to posts, 
&c. Otsego is destined to be one of our best districts 
for cattle and sheep husbandry; and perhaps no coun¬ 
ty can even now boast of more fine animals, than 
have been imported, collected and raised by her en¬ 
terprising breeders. A society already existed at 
Butternuts and its vicintity. 
The Fulton County Agricultural Society was orga¬ 
nized, at Johnstown, on the 18th October. This 
county is also well adapted to cattle and sheep hus¬ 
bandry, and some fine animals have been already in¬ 
troduced there. The dairy business is particularly 
engaging the attention of the western towns. Great 
quantities of butter and cheese are annually produced ; 
the business is extending, and makes liberal returns 
to those engaged in it. The southern border of this 
county, particularly the district about Johnstown, has 
long been celebrated for its fertility. It is well cal¬ 
culated for alternate and mixed husbandry. The new 
society, if conducted upon liberal and wise principles, 
with a view to enlighten, stimulate and benefit all, 
will not fail to produce highly beneficial effects.— 
The products, in the glove and mitten business, are 
stated to amount in value to a quarter million dollars 
annually, in that county. 
The English Agricultural Society —a national in¬ 
stitution—was organized in London in June, under 
Earl Spencer as president, twelve trustees and eleven 
vice-presidents, all belonging to the nobility or to par¬ 
liament. We mention this latter circumstance merely 
to show, that the first men in the British empire are the 
ardent active advocates of agricultural improvement; 
and are devoting their time and means to its advance¬ 
ment ;—and in the hope, too, that their example may 
have a benign influence upon the great men of our 
country, in inducing them to become active and libe¬ 
ral promoters of improvement in this great branch of 
national industry, and primary source of national 
wealth. They may be assured that they can hardly 
render, in any other way, a more enduring service to 
their country, or to its civil institutions. 
Among the avowed objects of this society, are the 
following, which we copy for the particular informa¬ 
tion of our statesmen, and for the benefit of our read¬ 
ers generally, as indicating some of the prominent 
means of improvement. These objects are, 
“ 1. To embody such information contained in agricultu¬ 
ral publications, and in other scientific works, as has been 
proved by practical experience to be useful to the cultivators 
of the soil. 
“ 2 . To correspond with agricultural, horticultural, and 
other scientific societies, at home and abroad, and to select 
from such correspondence, all information which, according 
to the opinion of the society, is likely to lead to practical be¬ 
nefit in the cultivation of the soil. 
“3. To repay any occupier of land, or other person who 
shall undertake, at the request of the society, to iry any ex¬ 
periment how far such information leads to useful results in 
practice, any loss that he may incur by so doing. 
“ 4. To encourage men of science in the improvement of 
agricultural implements, the construction of farm buildings 
and cottages, the application of chemistry to the general pur¬ 
poses of agriculture, the destruction of insects injurious to 
vegetable life, and the eradication of weeds. 
“ 5. To promote the discovery of new varieties of grain, 
and other vegetables useful to man, or for the food of domes¬ 
tic animals. 
“ 6 . To collect information with regard to the management 
of woods, plantations and fences, and on every other subject 
connected with rural improvement. 
“7. To take measures to improve the education of those who 
depend upon the cultivation of the soil for their support. * * 
“ 8. To take measures for improving the veterinary art, as 
applied to cattle, sheep and pigs. 
“9. By the distribution of prizes, and by other means, to 
encourage the best mode of farm cultivation, and the breeds 
of live stock.” . . 
Among the rules of the society, it is declared to be 
a fundamental one, that no questions of a political 
tendency shall be discussed at its meetings. 
Among the prizes for essays, is one of 50 sove¬ 
reigns—to $220 “for the best account of the improve¬ 
ments which have taken place in the agriculture of 
Scotland since the formation of the Highland Socie¬ 
ty.” 
Premiums of ten and twenty sovereigns are also of¬ 
fered for the best essays, verified by practice, upon 
the following subjects: 
“1. Best mode of keeping roots; 
2. Subsoil or trench ploughing; 
3. Transposition and admixture of soils; 
4. Insects prejudicial to plants ; 
5. The black caterpillar which destroys turnips; 
6. Application of mechanical power; 
7. Two horse ploughs ; ____ 
* We would add, as applicable to our own condition— 
< ‘ and upon whom the state must ever depend for the perpetuity of 
Us civil and religious freedom .” 
8. Spring food—corn—grasses—vetches ; 
9. Rotation of crops ; 
10. Best mode of analyzing soils ; 
11. Irrigation; 
12. Plantations ; 
13. Underwood ; 
14. Varieties of grain! 
15 Economical Keep of farm horses; 
16. Improved rural economy abroad ; 
17. Stall feeding on the continent; 
18. On the diseases of plants.” 
This society embraces 186 governors, that is, sub¬ 
scribers who pay £5, equal to $22.20, annually. 
All of these matters, it will be readily seen, have 
a strong bearing upon improvement in agriculture, 
—they aim at substantial and permanent improve¬ 
ment—and will afford useful suggestions, to our 
agricultural societies, in the bestowment of their 
awards. 
Agricultural Chemistry. 
The importance of this science to profitable farm¬ 
ing, becomes particularly apparent, where mineral, 
bone and other manures are employed. At the orga¬ 
nization of the English Agricultural Society, in June, 
this matter was particularly alluded to by J. Bennet, 
Esq. M. P. “ It was well known,” he said, “ that on 
some lands lime was useful, whilst on others it was 
detrimental; bones were advantageously employed 
on one class of lands, and were hurtful on others ; and 
other chemical manures which were applied on some 
soils were injurious to others. The adaptation of 
manures to soils [and to crops] was very important, 
and could not be better illustrated than by the plan 
proposed [indicating, by different colours, upon geolo¬ 
gical maps, the different compositions of soil.] He 
hoped the society would be in possession of a chemi¬ 
cal apparatus, with an able chemist that might be 
able to analyze the soils which might be sent them, 
and point out these adaptations. Artificial manures 
were becoming of more importance, and he doubted 
not they would continue more to flourish and be adopt¬ 
ed. There was a necessity that every science con¬ 
nected with agriculture should be more fully develop¬ 
ed, and this development would be effectually accom¬ 
plished through the medium of the society.” 
We have vast resources of fertility in our lime, 
gypsum, ashes, peat earth, poudrette, bones, salt, &c. 
but. the great difficulty is, we do not know where to 
apply them, from not possessing a chemical know¬ 
ledge of our soils; and the frequent failures which 
happen from misapplication, prevent their being ap¬ 
plied in a thousand cases where they would produce 
the best effects. What wonders have been wrought, 
in the woollen and cotton business, in a few years, by 
the aids of chemical science! And is there not a 
strong probability that as great benefits may yet result 
to agriculture from this wonder-working science 1 
Let us not be misapprehended: we mean chemistry 
in the field —not in the closet —practically tested and 
illustrated on the farm, by its teachers—and not alone 
in the laboratory. The one is mere theory—the oth¬ 
er theory confirmed and rendered certain by practice. 
In the manufacturing arts, it is the chemist himself 
who applies the science to the art—who teaches the 
application, as well as the principles of science—the 
hands as well as the head of the pupil. And it must 
be so, we apprehend, in agriculture, before we can 
expect to derive great benefits from its aid. It is to 
schools which combine the science and practice, 
where the principles can be demonstrated and taught 
in the field, and by men specially devoted to the im¬ 
provement of our husbandry, that we must look for 
the important aids which chemistry is capable, and 
we believe destined, to give to the parent art. 
The philosopher may build up theories, and esta¬ 
blish principles, which he may deem beneficial to hus¬ 
bandry,—and others may implicitly adopt his opinions 
—and neither of them may ever test them upon the 
broad theatre where they are intended to operate— 
and yet, on trial they may prove illusory and unsound. 
The theory of Tennant, that magnesian lime is pre¬ 
judicial in agriculture, is a notable instance of error 
being thus perpetuated. His opinion has been im¬ 
plicitly adopted by most of the subsequent writers up¬ 
on this subject; and, if it has not done much mischief, 
it has certainly prevented much good. The lime¬ 
stones of Pennslyvania abound in magnesia, and yet 
they have been found highly beneficial to her agricul¬ 
ture. And we have before us, in the Farmers’ Ma¬ 
gazine, a palpable disproof of the correctness of Ten¬ 
nant’s hypothesis. The writer of the article alluded- 
ed to has been in the constant use of the very mag¬ 
nesian lime, in Leicestershire, which Tennant had 
pronounced hurtful to agriculture, and has applied it, 
in some cases, to the extent of 400 bushels to the 
acre, and with encouraging success. The prejudice 
excited against this lime by the chemist, had pre¬ 
vented the farmers, at whose doors it lay, from using 
it; and they had been in the habit of obtaining their 
lime from a distance at considerable expense, till 
Tennant’s theory became exploded by the demonstra¬ 
tive practice of the writer. We repeat, that we fear 
agriculture will not profit, as it may and ought'to do, 
from chemical science, until it is coupled, in schools 
of instruction, with the practical application of its 
principles to the soil. 
Agricultural Improvement. 
The best way to show what can be done, is to show 
what has been done—and the strongest incentives to 
improvement are the comforts and enjoyments which 
they confer. Individual illustrations, both of improve¬ 
ments in husbandry, and of the blessings they bring 
m their train, are to be found in almost every district, 
but the lesson becomes more useful and impressive 
when we can extend it to a district of country. A 
case of this kind is recorded m the Farmers’ Maga¬ 
zine for August. It is a contrast of the rural condi¬ 
tion of Ayrshire, a district of Scotland, in 1793 and 
in 1838. At the former period, its husbandry was in 
the most wretched state, as bad as our worst managed 
districts—now it is one of the best managed and most 
productive in Great Britain. All this change has 
been effected in less than fifty years. We copy it 
in the hope that its perusal will do good, by stimulat¬ 
ing our readers in the work of improvement. 
“ Col. Fullarton drew, in 1793, a most deplorable picture ol 
the wretchedness, ignorance and apathy in which the farmers 
were sunk, up to the middle of the last century. The land was 
neither cleaned nor drained. Four horses were now and then 
yoked to the clumsy old fashioned plough, and frequently 
three horses with drivers. When the plough was drawn with 
a pair of horses, it always required two men to manage it— 
one man to hold the plough, the other to drive the horses. 
But what a contrast does the present state of this country af¬ 
ford to the miserable condition of farming in Ayreshire, during 
the last century? Fields, in many places, completely tile drain¬ 
ed, and subsoil ploughed,—in others, similar improvements go¬ 
ing forward—large tile-kilns erected upon nearly every estate, 
to promote drainage and productiveness of agriculture—good 
fences, chiefly of quick-set thorns—ploughs of the best con¬ 
struction', drawn by active, well bred, and fed horses, and 
guided by skilful ploughmen—agricultural societies to collect 
together those engageefin farming pursuits—to reward merit— 
to diffuse useful knowledge, on all matters connected with 
rural economy: and, above all, an intelligent local press, to 
glean from all quarters, for circulation, what is worthy the at¬ 
tention of the farmer to know, how to improve the manage¬ 
ment of his farm—comfortable neat farm buildings, and other 
conveniences—the finest breed of dairy cows in their island. 
These particulars—these important alterations and improve¬ 
ment,—mark out Ayrshire in 1838, as mightily advanced in 
the high scale of agriculture, since Col. Fullarton described it 
in 1793 .” _ 
The Robinson Fund. 
The Editor of the Franklin Farmer, B. Stevens, 
offers one hundred dollars,—and the publisher of the 
same paper, Feed. Pettit, one hundred dollars, to 
the Robinson Fund, to be awarded as premiums to 
the writers of the best agricultural school books. 
See Mr. Robinson’s propositions in our October num¬ 
ber. So the fund now consists of eight lots of land, 
whose assessed value is $440—and $320 from the 
establishments of the Franklin Farmer and Cultivator 
—Total, $760. Who will direct us to add his name 
to the list of contributors, and for what amount 1 
Governmental Patronage to Agriculture. 
The (London) Farmers’ Magazine, for August, 
gives, as its leading article, and with commendatory 
remarks, the outlines of the bill reported by our friend 
Allen, in our last House of Assembly, “ to encourage 
agriculture.” There is only one mistake about the 
matter. That journal states that the bill had become 
a lain —when the fact is, it not only did not become a 
law—hut its provisions were not even discussed—ex¬ 
cept by one house, an hour or two, in evening ses¬ 
sions. We hope the next legislature will amend the 
record, and endorse passed upon what the London 
editor considers already so. 
The Turnip Fly, 
Has been uncommonly destructive this year to the 
ruta baga crop. It seems now to be confidently af¬ 
firmed, in some of the European agricultural journals, 
that sulphur, or brimestone, may be effectually em¬ 
ployed as a preventive. One mode of using it is, 
slightly to moisten the seed and roll it in sulphur, pre¬ 
vious to sowing. The other, to keep the seed for 
some time in sulphur, and to sow the sulphur with the 
seed. It is affirmed, that the young plants in this 
way become so strongly impregnated with the sul¬ 
phur, that the fly will not touch them. Sulphur is so 
extremely subtile, that it is known to diffuse itself, in 
a very short time, through the vegetable, as well as 
the animal system; and it is known to be obnoxious 
or destructive to the whole race of insects. The tur¬ 
nip seed imbibes it, and imparts it, with the sap, to the 
young plumule, or stem. Although the prescription 
is now out of season, it should be laid by for trial at 
the sowing season. 
A Great Sale of Imported Durham Short Horns, 
Is advertised to take place at Powelton, near Phila¬ 
delphia, on the 5th Nov. The cattle are of the stock 
of Mr. Whitaker, one of the most eninent breeders in 
Britain. 
