MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL AND EAMILY JOURNAL. 
For the Rural New-Yorker 
THE SOIL AND ITS ORIGINAL PRODUCTION. 
It seems to be admitted, by all who have j ” 
looked closely into, and studied the subject j ® 
of the composition of the soil covering the 
globe, that it is of secondaiy, and not of ® 
original construction—that it is the result ^ 
of the destruction of all the kinds of rocks ^ 
known as constituting the great bulk of the ^ 
earth’s mass. It is estimated that, if all the 
soil, or diluvium of the globe, Avas evenly ^ 
distributed over the surface, including sea ^ 
and land, its depth would not exceed three ^ 
feet; and this is probably an approximation ^ 
to the truth—all the rest is solid rock, ex¬ 
cept the melted liquid materials, of the great ^ 
central mass. How it was thus pulveiized, ^ 
and reduced to its present state of fineness, 
and comminution—and how it was distrib- ® 
uted, so distant from the place of its original ^ 
materials, over the globe—has exercised 
the minds of the most acute, learned and ^ 
observing men of all ages. ^ 
That it was derived from the materials of 
the known rocks is quite evident; as they ^ 
can all be separated by a few manipulations 
and tests, and referred to^their several orig¬ 
inal places and progenitors. The soil con- f 
.teins nothing but Avhat is found in those 
. . . r 
rocks—no adventitious or stranger particle. 
It is partly constituted of the abraded and 
crushed materials of the primitive, and part¬ 
ly of the secondary or sedimentary rocks.— ^ 
From the marks, scratches, and polishing of 
the fii-st rocks below the soil, in all countries, ^ 
it is evident that the whole surface Avas once 
covered with water, Avhen the earth Avas , 
“Avithout form and voidand that a great, 
irresistable poAver “ moved upon the face of 
the waters” for a very long period to have j 
produced the appearances and results visible \ 
now. All the great reasonei-s of modern < 
times, have attributed the effects to some j 
natural cause —some agent, the result of the < 
final settlement of the original chaos — the ( 
incipient adjustmeijt of the nucleus of the , 
globe. I 
There are many evidences that the poles, ] 
or axis of the earth, have not alwa^'s been i 
stationaiy; and consequently the equator ; 
and ti'opical regions occupied different po¬ 
sitions from Avhat they do noAA-^, and by the , 
sudden changes of the centre of motion, and ; 
the direction of movement, all fluids — all 
loose and unattached matter, Avould Iea»e 
ite pc'iion, and rush rapidly ia the direction 
of its previous motion, and before Ioo.sing its 
momentum—grinding and pul\’erizing all 
the materials carried along by this great 
flood—polishing the surface rocks, and dis¬ 
tributing the soil, and the loose erratic rocks, 
and boulders, far from their original loca¬ 
tion, as is noAv found over the Avhole globe; 
and this catastrophe may have occurred 
many times, till all matter, both central and 
superficial, had found its equilibrium of po¬ 
sition. 
Another theory—and it is the prevailing 
one, but one that Avill not bear examination 
as Avcll, in the present state of our knowl¬ 
edge— is, that at a period when Avater cov¬ 
ered the whole surface, or all but perhaps 
the highest original or Plutonic mountains, 
the action of the internal lieated gases and 
vapons, distending and upheaving the con¬ 
solidated crust of the globe, elevated im¬ 
mense tracts of land into islands and con¬ 
tinents— sinking other portions into large 
basins, the beds of future lakes and seas,— 
and that the consequent rushing of the Ava- 
ters to their beds, carr^’ing Avith them all loose 
matter, Avas an agent, equal to the produc¬ 
tion of all the effects and appearances now 
everyAvhere visible; and that these causes 
were in action for an indefinite period of 
time, causing the ices of the polar regions, 
in great masses and mountains, in which 
were imbedded the rocks of that primitive 
location, to rush over the surface, grinding, 
pulverizing and polishing the rocks as now 
found, and as they melted or were destroy¬ 
ed, left those primitive boulders scattered and 
deposited in belts and clusters over the 
whole globe. Another class of reasoners, 
claim the action of the Noachic deluge, as 
competent to account for all these appear¬ 
ances, and the distribution of the soil— the 
diluvium of the present surface. 
> The period of the continuance of the 
' scriptural deluge was not long enough, nor 
» Avas its production or subsidence paroxismal, 
but quiet and continuous. It is averred 
tliere is water sufficient to produce the del¬ 
uge, always suspended in the atmosphere, 
and that the subsidence of the waters of 
that great catastrophe, was owing to its ab- 
sorbence and solution by the air. But as 
the earth had been inhabited for a great 
many hundred years, previous to its being 
oA’ei’Avhelmed, it is justifiable to suppose 
that its condition was not materially differ¬ 
ent after the flood, from Avhat it Avtis before, 
as the grass and trees immediately came 
forth and flourished — producing the green 
olive branch—therefore there could not 
have been a great and geneial disturbance 
of the earth’s surface. 
It is also quite evident that, previous to 
the occupation of the earth by man or beast, 
the surface Avas covered Avith vegetation.— 
The forest, fruit and shade tree^the gnxss 
and grain, and herb— each “yielding seed 
after its oavu kind,” and it AA'ould be unphi- 
losopliical to suppose that the deluge Avas 
either the cause of soil, or its distribution. 
It cannot be controverted, that the soil, 
drift ground, or diluvium, is the pulverulent 
result of the destruction of an earlier cre¬ 
ation ; and whether that power Avas the ac¬ 
tion of the eternal, unchangeable laAvs that 
govern motion and matter, or the indepen¬ 
dent exertion of the Supreme will, does not 
affect the proposition, that the soil is the con¬ 
sequence of the attrition, abrusion, and grind¬ 
ing of rocks together, and against the solid 
rocky strata of the earth—and of their de¬ 
composition by exposure to the vicissitudes 
of the seasons and the action of the ele¬ 
ments, and that they were distributed by 
. the agency of Avater, in currents of immense 
power and velocity. R. t. 
SPUTTENG FIRE WOOD. 
— . . F 
The proper time for cutting Timber — Sap and its j 
circulation — How to settle the Question, 
Many persons are not aAvare of the im- ^ 
portance of properly splitting green AA-ood, ^ 
that is sawed up for stove use during the 
summer and autumn. Eveiy round stick, ^ 
particularly of beech Avood, liOAV'cv'er small, 
should be split once, that it may dry and 
evaporate its juices before the Avarm weath- ^ 
er causes fermentation, and the sap rot to ^ 
commence. The bark, if unbroken, so tight- ^ 
ly encloses the Avood that the vapor con- 
tained in it cannot pass ofti and the Avood 
is deteriorated full fifty per -cent. 
It is a much mooted point, what period 
of the year is the best to cut timber, to in¬ 
sure its durabilty; but so far as respects the | 
season’s AA^ood of farmers, it is of no conse- , 
quence, as the Aviuter is the only time when i 
other aA’ocations Avill permit the labor to be j 
performed. Most persons say February, ' 
when the cold has driven the sap doAvn to * 
the roots; but that position will not bear ox- . 
amination, for, on warm days and a proper . 
atmosphere, in either January, February or 
March, sap Avill run, and large quantities of 
sugar from the sugar maple have been made 
in those months. 
Another point seems not to be Avell set¬ 
tled, Avhether the sap, or the bulk of it, 
comes from the roots or body of the tree. 
Popular opinion says the root. On both of 
these points Ave are at issue Avith general 
opinion, as great a General as he is. We 
think the period of the least sap, and the 
absence of all saccharine, muciiageous and 
fermenting matter is in May, when the leaf 
is at its full size, and the entire nutriment 
of the system has been elaborated to form 
the leaves, and parenchyma for future AV'ood; 
and that much the greatest amount of sap 
is derived from the body of the tree, rather 
than from the roots—Avhich is a point so 
easily settled by boring one hole exactly 
over another and measuring the proceeds, 
that it is not Avorth multiplying arguments 
upon the subject, and if sap runs this spring 
it shall be tried. 
How TO Measure an Acre. —Land: 30 
1-4 square yards make a square rod; 40 
square rods make one square rood; 4 square 
roods make 1 acre; 650 acres make 1 square 
mile; 4,840 square yards or 100 rods make 
1 acre. 
In measuring an acre by yards, the usual 
practice is, to trace off 70 yards in length 
and *70 yards in width; this, in a rough 
way, may be considered near enough tor 
practical purposes, but as 70 yards either 
way make 4,900 square yards, it exceeds 
one acre by 60 square 3 mrds. To determine 
an accurate acre, it should be measured 70 
yards in length, by 69 1-7 yards in breadth. 
The same result may be arrived at by meas- 
! uring 220 feet in length and 198 feet in 
• width, or by measuring 73 1-3 yards in 
length by 66 yards in breadth.— Am. Far. 
Character. —As they who, for every 
slight infirmity, take physic to repair their 
health, do rather impair it; so they Avho, for 
every trifle, are eager to vindicate their 
character, do rather weaken it. 
PROFITS OF POULTRY. 
Editor Rural New'-Yorker: — SeA’eral 
yeai-s since, my attention Avas called to the 
profits of keeping poultry, as a branch of 
productive industry. No one Avithin the 
circle of my acquaintance had a practical 
knowledge of the business, and having no 
reliable book authority, I Avas obliged to 
adopt the slow but sure method of learning 
by experience. And, although I have not, 
like the Vermont correspondent of the Gen¬ 
esee Farmer, made a fortune from three 
pullets,— nor been able to raise or fatten 
poultry on “ coal or brick dust”— yet, at 
the end of each year, biddy has managed 
to brini; me in debt to her for “ labor and 
services rendered.” The folloAving is my ac¬ 
count current for the past year: — 
Poultry Yard Dr. 
To 276 hens.$45 12 
34 ducks.-. 6 80 
14 bushels mill feed. 2 46 
13 do oats. 4 00 
10 do screenings... 2 25 
23 do buckwheat. 8 26 
135 do corn.-. 68 83 
475 pounds of tallow scraps. 4 75 
$142 47 
Poultry Yard Cr. 
By 14,182 hens eggs.$127 27 I 
1,269 ducks eggs. 12 44 
10 pounds ducks feathers. .5 00 
24 do hens do . 150 
164 hens sold.. 30 52 
6 chickens, do. -. 64 
33 ducks, do. 5 62 
140 hens kept over. 20 28 
$203 27 
Balance in favor of poultry yard,.$60 80 
For fear of making this article too lengthy, 
I omit further details than to say, that the 
food was all bought and charged a prices 
paid. The products Avere mostly sold in 
Rochester, at market prices, and credit giv¬ 
en accordingly. The manure Avill be a fair 
set off for the use of the land and fixtures. 
The care and attention Avas mainly perform¬ 
ed by a boy 13 j^'eai's of age, and did not 
occupy him more than two hours each da.y. 
I have iiOAV over four hundred fowls on hand 
for next season’s business, and am in hopes 
of being able to furnish the good people of 
Rochester Avith “a nice parcel” of eggs and 
chickens. Yours, Ciias. P. Smith. 
Ontario, N. Y,, February, 1850. 
PAULAR MERINO SHEEP. 
Mr. Editor :—I send you an account of 
the AV eight of the fleeces of my Paular stock i 
of sheep. I have just commenced, there¬ 
fore my flock is but small. After being 
thoroughly Avashed, and a reasonable time 
alloAved for drying, the sheep AA'^ere shorn. 
Six eAves, full-blood, yielded 5^- lbs. a head 
—each rearing a lamb. My buck, being 
the remainder of a large flock Avhen pur¬ 
chased, Avas nothing more than a common 
average, but yielded a fleece of 8 lbs. 1 
sold the Avool for forty cents per pouni^.— 
One of my Paular CAves, after rearing tAvo 
lambs in one year, (not being tAvins,) yield¬ 
ed lbs. of Avool. The increase of such a 
sheep, at a low estimate, is Avorth 6l7,20. 
My Saxony sheep, including ewes and 
Avethei’s, yielded 2-^- lbs. per head, Avith the 
same care. 
The Paular variety is alloAved to be the 
largest, best formed, and heaviest shcarei-s 
of any Merinos. They are a very hardy 
animal, and ahvays look full and plump, if 
they can get any thing to eat— and are able 
to subsist on very scanty keeping. They 
are quite tame and docile; a fence three feet 
high is sufficient to keep them. They are 
also very prolific, fond of their young, and 
good milkers. Their lambs are sti'ong and 
easily raised. 
Permit me to say to avooI growers Avho 
Avish to obtain good and pure bred bucks 
and CAve lambs, that I shall be happy to ac¬ 
commodate them. I have been very careful 
to obtain not only the sinion pure, but of the 
best quality. With respect, 
I. M. Tibbets. 
Sheldrake, Febmary, 1850. 
Remarks.— This Avay of advertising is 
rather pulling the avooI over our eyes, and 
pockets too. But, in consideration of our 
indebtednes to old Seneca, and its generous 
inhabitants, (for furnishing a larger number 
of names on our subscription books than any 
[• other county, except Monroe,) Ave stand up 
^ to the rack like a regular Merino—-for once. 
ESTIMATED VALUE OF URINE AS A MANURE. 
PROFITS OF FOWLS. 
Mr. Edavin Hoavard, of Easton, Mass., 
gives an account of the profits of his foAvls 
from the first of December, 1848, to the 
same period of I^49. He began Avith nine- 
hp.nR jtnd » - 
added one more hen. The Avhole stock Avas 
valued at tAventy dollars. The number of 
egg-s produced in the year, Avas 1,851; the 
number of cliickens raised by him Avas 82. 
The eggs sold, brought $27,97, and the 
fowls sold, $40,48. Thirty-tAVO fowls on 
hand, are reckoned Avorth $30. His fowls 
are mostly of the variety called Cochin Chi¬ 
na, imported by Mr. Baylies, of Taunton, 
Mass. The eggs that were sold Avere reck¬ 
oned at fifty cents per dozen, though one 
dollar Avas the price charged; but fifty cents 
per dozen was deducted for the trouble of 
packing and sending off. The account stands 
thus; 
Eggs sold—1300,.-...$27 97 
Eircs not sold —581, at 15 cents per dozen, 7 27 
Fowls sold,. 46 48 
Value of fowls on hand over last year at this 
time,.'. 
$91 72 
324 bushels of corn and meal, at 75 cents, 24 37 
Balance in favor of fowls,..$67 35 
— CuUimtor. 
VEGETABLE CUTTER. 
As this is the season for cutting roots, we 
present our agricultural readers with a fig¬ 
ure and description of a machine for the 
purpose— Rugoles, Nourse, & Mason’s 
Vegetable Cutter. “The cutting Avheel is 
made of cast iron, faced on one side, through 
Avhich are inserted three knives like plane- 
irons. These cut the vegetables into thin 
slices with great rapidity, and then by cross- 
knives they are cut into slips of convenient 
form and size for cattle or sheep to eat, Avith¬ 
out danger of choking. The pieces after 
cutting lie loosely and anglingly together, 
and can be easily taken up by the animal. 
This machine will cut 60 bushels per hour.” 
For sale by Rapalje & Briggs of this 
city, and at the principal Agricultural Ware¬ 
houses throughout the country. 
Dr. Rodgers, in his e.xcellent Avork on 
“ Scientific Agriculture,” has the' following 
estimate of the value of urine as a manure, 
Avhich Ave believe to be a very near approx¬ 
imation to the truth: 
“ If Ave allow the quantity of iirine void¬ 
ed by each individual to be 600 pounds 
20,000 inhabitants, Avould furnish yearly 
about 240 tons. This estimate at the price 
of guano would be AVorth $21,600. Noav if 
Ave estimate the number of horses andcoAvs 
of the city to 500 each, and that each ani¬ 
mal Avoids as much urine as two persons, the 
amount Avould be 80,000 pounds, or 40 tons, 
Avhich would be Avorth $1,600. Here there 
is a loss, if Ave reckon guano at $40 per ton 
of $23,200, or of manure enough to produce, 
in addition to the ordinary crop, over 16,- 
000 bushels of wheat in a single year.” 
Economic management of urine. —“De¬ 
composition is attended Avith a diminution 
of urea, and an increase of ammoniii. It is 
important that the urine collected should be 
fermented in tightly covered cisterns to pre¬ 
vent the escape of volatile matters; it has 
been proposed to add gypsum, sulphate of 
iron, or * sulphuric acid, to the fermenting 
urine, in order to fix the ammonia; the mix¬ 
ture of vegetable mould Avith it has been 
also recommended as equally effective and 
more economical.” 
Marsh mud, and charcoal, or peat, Avould 
be equally serviceable as a fixer of the vol¬ 
atile gases of the urine. If the estimate ol 
Prof. Rodgers be correct, then, as Baltimore 
has a population of 150,000, and it is to be 
prasumed that the number of her cows and 
horses are correspondingly as large as are 
those of Rochester, there is enough of the 
above liquid voided Avithin her limits to pro¬ 
duce 120,000 bushels of Avheat; and carry¬ 
ing this calculation still farther—extending 
it to the population of the United States, say 
20,000,000, if Ave assume the number of 
coAvs and horses as relatively great, then Ave 
have, in this article, the elements of the 
manure necessary to produce 16,000,000 of 
bushels of wheat. And yet scarcely any of 
it is appropriated to such production, though 
Providence, in his Avise dispensation, doubt¬ 
less intended that nothing should be lost that 
could be converted into the uses of man.— 
American Farmer. 
AGRICULTURAL COLLEGES. ( 
The present efforts of many citizens of < 
our enlightened State, for the purpose of ^ 
advancing and establishing upon a firm ba- \ 
sis, the science of agriculture, is Avorthy of j 
all praise. That an institution for the pro- ^ 
motion of agricultural knoAvledge luis long ^ 
been needed no one, I think, will deny— < 
and true it is, that every year this Avant is \ 
more fully developed. ^ 
Lamentable as the fact may appear, it is ^ 
nevertheless true, that the majority of our < 
farming community are uneducated, and j 
Avithout a reasopable share of intelligence, j 
There are some, and perhaps many, local J 
exceptions to this statement. But, setting J 
general intelligence entirely aside, hoAv large | 
is the class that, by want of practical inform- | 
ation, are incompetent to fulfil the duties ! 
assio-ned them, and Avhose knoAvledge of 
their profession is too limited to enable them 
to turn to a good and profitable account the 
resources Avithin their reach. 
The farmer is styled Lord of the Soil, and 
certainly the appellation pertains to him, if 
he has the ability to appreciate the high 
station; but if not, he is not entitled to that 
distinction. I look upon an intelligent far¬ 
mer as standing first in the order of profes¬ 
sions, but as yet the number is e.xceedingly 
small. Of what immense value are the im¬ 
provements in the productions of the soil! 
— and should not every effort and encour¬ 
agement be given to advance these improA'e- 
ments ? Scatter the seeds of practical ed¬ 
ucation and science among our farmers, and 
hoAv happy Avill be the results. Let them be 
educated for their calling, as are members of 
other professions. The physician, the law¬ 
yer, and the divine, cannot enter upon their 
fields of labor, until they are qualified for 
their stations,—the mechanic must serve his 
time as apprentice—the merchant must 
become familiar with the principles of his 
business— and Avhy should not the farmer be 
qualified before entering upon the duties of 
his profession ? 
Lot agricultural institutions be established, 
and let the young farmer enter therein, and 
receive the requistie instructions for his call¬ 
ing. Let him graduate, Avhen fully fitted 
for his duties, as the case is in the higher 
order of our literary institutions. Let his 
. title of Lord of the Soil, be conferred upon 
i him by the authority of that institution, and 
no rnnsider it valid. 
But the great benefits to be deriA-'ed from 
[• this system of education, are now almost 
. fully before the people. Our State Legis- 
■ lature has, and will continue to respond cor- 
s dially to this great requirement, and the 
> time is not far distant Avhen we sluill Avitness 
' the plejiaing fruits thereof. 
‘ Horace Cary. 
’ Cooperstovm, N. Y., February, 185(). 
Value of Bone dust.— In speaking of 
the value of bone dust as a manure. Prof 
Gray says, that “ one bushel to a load of 
yard manure increases its value, as deter-, 
mined by experiment, one-half” Ho esti¬ 
mates that it is “ 8 or 10 times as valuable 
as cow dung, and the quantity of salts is 66 
times that contained in an equal quantity of 
that substance.” 
The true secret of converting the baser 
metals into gold, is through the use of the 
PlOAV. 
BOOT AS A MANURE. 
In reply to a question, Ave answer, that 
we do consider soot an efficient manure, and 
that Ave believe that tAventy bushels of soot, 
if treated to, and mixed Avith, a bushel of 
plaster, Avould be sufficient to manure and 
fertilize an acre of ground, so that it Avould 
produce a good crop ot almost any of the 
cultivable plants. Unfortunately, however, 
the sources of supply are so limited, except 
in large cities, and there it is so seldom sav¬ 
ed, that but little if any reliance is to be 
placed upon it as an available resource of 
fertilization. 
Analysis shoAvs that one hundred parts of 
soot contain, of 
Vegetable matter. 30.70 
Extractive matter and nitrogen.20.00 
Carbon of lime and traces of inagnosia... 14.63 
Acetate of lime.5.63 
Sulphate of lime. 5.03 
Phosphate of lime and iron. 1.50 
Acetate of potash. 4.10 
Muriate of potash..36 
Acetate of ammonia.20 
Acetate of magnesia.53 
Silex. 
Water.-.12.00 
99.50 ^ 
By the above it will be seen, that soot is 
richer, very far richer tlum coav dung — in 
salts as 20 to 1, and in ilie elements con¬ 
vertible into ammonia, as 40 to 1, and, there¬ 
fore, does it exceed that manure in its vir¬ 
tues in that ratia The best method of 
using it, in our opinion, would be to sow it 
broadcast and plow it in. Thus managed, 
we have no doubt it Avould be a valuable 
fertilizer, and that its permanency would be 
increased by being ploAved in. But as Ave 
have before premised, it is not to be had in 
sufficient quantites, oAving to the fact of its 
being thrown away as gathered in the large 
cities, to render it an object of importance. 
To shoAv its power and efficiency, avc aviU 
state, that 3 gMlonsof soot mixed with 100 
gallons of Avater, Avould make a decoction 
sufficiently strong to produce a very evident 
effect upon any plants that might be Avater- 
ed with it— American Farmer. 
