MOOltE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL AND FAMILY JOURNAL. 
the extravagance of their customers,) al¬ 
though we could ill afford it,—but it must 
be done, for we were getting rich. A fine 
barn must be built for the carriage horses, 
but the plowers had to do with the old one, 
and often without oats, for the dandies must 
be well fed, and thus we exhibited the dis¬ 
play of wealth, for the farmers were get¬ 
ting rich. 
But, friend Moore, I tell thee honestly, 
it was the reverse of riches, or true happi¬ 
ness ; for we had no more spare cash, or 
leisure, than when we raised corn and po¬ 
tatoes among the stumps; nor were we so 
happy as when we lived in the log house. 
Jo and I had to toil late and early to keep 
along, and mother was a perfect slave in 
the kitchen, for the girls must go to school, 
dress fine, and attend parties to keep up 
with the improvements of the times. And 
when the boys came home at vacation, with 
their fine coats and gloves on, they strutted 
around, puffing their cigars, and appeared 
to look on us farm laborers as inferior beings. 
But to the improvements. Seeing it 
stated in the Genesee Farmer, that it was 
more profitable to stable cattle in winter, 
make manure, feed and cultivate well, than 
it was to run over large possessions, half 
tilled, I resolved to try it In the autumn 
of ’45,1 built stables and housed all my 
cattle, and made much more manure—put 
plaster on it at sundry times during the 
winter, and in the spring piled it up in the 
yard and gave it another covering of plas¬ 
ter, amounting in all to five tons. In the 
fall of ’46, the whole of the manure, amount¬ 
ing to three hundred loads with the five 
ions of plaster amongst it, was put on to 
ten acres, spread evenly over the surface 
and plowed well. 
Next spring it was harrowed and culti¬ 
vated until it was as fine as a garden, and 
planted with corn, which yielded 75 bush¬ 
els per acre. In autumn it was again well 
plowed, and in the spring of ’48, harrowed 
as before, and sowed with barley, which 
produced 50 bushels per acre. After the 
barley it was twice plowed and sown with 
wheat, which gave 30 bushels per acre. It 
was sown with clover in the spring on the 
wheat, and this season it was pastured until 
the 15th of June, and the last of August 
I cut a good crop of clover seed from 
it, and it has since furnished much good 
pasturage. 
Now, sir, do you not think that we have 
been much better paid for our labor on that 
ten acres, than on the old plan of wheat 
cropping at fifty acres per year ? But that 
is but a small part of the improvement that 
I think we have made. By the above ex¬ 
periment I ascertained that much labor 
could be profitably expended—that there 
was full employment on the farm for the 
three boys, and gave up the idea of having 
them lawyers or doctors. I brought them 
from school last spring, and put them to 
work, and it was pretty tough for them— 
their hands were soft, and they were weak, 
and could not stand heat nor fatigue, would 
not get up in time in the morning, and must 
be up late nights, (they soon found that Jo 
and I was worth a dozen of them,) and it 
was hard to make them believe that they 
were not sick. But I stuck them to it, and 
the inconvenience was overcome; they now 
can labor with ease, and are satisfied that 
we have land sufficient to employ us all to 
advantage. 
Mother did not get along with the girls 
quite so easily. They were able and wil¬ 
ling to work, even in the kitchen, but they 
could not brook the idea of being seen in 
their working garb, by their comrades when 
they called. But she persevered, and has 
undone the errors of her early training, by 
convincing them that there is no disgrace 
in being usefully employed, and wearing 
the apparel suitable to their work. 
Now every thing around us has changed 
its appearance and wears a new aspect.— 
The fences are repaired, and out-buildings 
put in order, the plow horses get a share of 
the oats, and those for the carriage do a 
part of the labor. And, the love of utility 
has driven away the desire for show, and 
we have time and means for useful im¬ 
provements. We are out of debt—what we 
have is our own, and we never again intend 
to owe a dollar. We look back on our past 
extravagance and folly with regret, but sin¬ 
cerely rejoice at the present domestic fe¬ 
licity, and the rational happiness which we 
now enjoy and would not exchange for all 
the pomp and show which wealth can bestow. 
December, 1850. Old Farmer. 
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ORNAMENTAL BEE-HOUSE, AND EQUILATERAL HIVE. 
The American Bee-Keeper’s Manual—A Prac¬ 
tical Treatise on the Management of the Honey 
Bee. By T. B. Miner. Second Edition. New 
York. C. M. Saxton. 1850. 
Though it is not exactly the season for 
making honey, it is a fitting time to prepare 
the hives and gather information on this 
pleasant and generally profitable employ¬ 
ment. The book above named is conceded 
to be among the best yet published—giv¬ 
ing the most reliable and ample information 
on all matters of interest to the apiarian.— 
The author introduces his description of 
the bee-house above represented, (those 
who wish to build such an one, are refer¬ 
red to the book itself,) by the following 
remarks: 
The above engraving represents an orna¬ 
mental bee-house, from an original design, 
executed expressly for this work. It is not 
intended for general use, but as an orna¬ 
ment to lawns or flower gardens. This is 
the first design of this nature that has been 
laid before the public to the best of my 
knowledge. In all the various works on the 
honey bee, published in the old world, I 
find nothing but the ordinary bee stands of 
ages past; or simple sheds of no more beau¬ 
ty than a pig sty or hen roost. That such 
a structure would truly be an ornament to 
the flower garden, every one will admit.— 
Why, then, should such bee-houses not be 
erected? The cost will not be much.— 
Thirty dollars will suffice to cover it. 
We also give an engraving of his orna¬ 
mental “ Equilateral Bee-hive,” with his re¬ 
marks thereon: 
The great value of this hive lies in its in¬ 
ternal arrangement. The nine communica¬ 
tions from the lower to the upper section, 
are opened and closed at pleasure, in an 
EQUALIZING TAXATION. 
As the question which has for some time 
agitated the public mind, has now been dis¬ 
posed of by the vote of the State, it may 
be a suitable season for opening the way 
for the discussion in the columns of the 
“ Rural,” should it meet the approval of 
the Editor, of a subject in which the rural 
population are much interested, and one 
which equally concerns those of other pro¬ 
fessions :—Our system of Taxation for the 
support of Government. 
It is deemed just that individuals pay the 
expenses of the Government in proportion 
to their ability. The truth of this position 
I admit. Their ability is now ascertained 
by the amount of property in their posses¬ 
sion. This I denounce as unjust and op¬ 
pressive. The ability of individuals is as¬ 
certained by their income : hence they 
should pay for the support of Government 
in proportion to their income. l. s. s. 
Macedon, January 1851. 
Remark. —To show that this subject is 
awakening general attention we copy the 
following call, from the “ Reformer,” pub¬ 
lished in Jefferson Co., N. Y. 
Farmers’ Meeting.— The farmers, hold¬ 
ers and owners of real estate in the county 
of Jefferson, who believe men should pay 
taxes in proportion to what they own, with¬ 
out distinction as to whether it is real or 
personal estate; who believe that the law 
should make no discrimination in imposing 
its burthens upon community by wholly or 
partially relieving incorporations from taxa¬ 
tion, because their capital does not yield 
over five or any other per cent; who be¬ 
lieve that men ought not to pay taxes on 
what they owe, and who believe that our as¬ 
sessment laws need a thorough revision, to 
make them just and equitable in their ope¬ 
rations, are requested to meet at the Court 
House in the village of Watertown, on the 
31st day of December, 1850, at 10 o’clock 
A. M., for the purpose of an interchange of 
views, and to adopt some measures for fur¬ 
thering such a reform. Nov. 20, 1850. 
instant, by one of the most simple and val¬ 
uable inventions imaginable. By the use 
of this, in connection with other features 
pertaining to no other hive, the manage¬ 
ment of bees is divested of every difficul¬ 
ty. Bees in this hive may be fed, in case 
of need with as much ease as a flock of 
poultry. They must be fed sometimes, 
when the season has proved unpropitious, 
but the expense is not as many shillings as 
they will bring in dollars, the first good 
season that occurs. 
Minkr’s Patent Equilateral Bee-Hzvk. 
This hive is intended to occupy any situ¬ 
ation that other hives do; either on a shelf 
or stool. 14 lias a beveled bottom-board, 
thus doing away with the necessity of sus¬ 
pension. Besides the advantages before 
stated, is that of resting the hive on pinions 
during summer, and when cold weather ar¬ 
rives, by moving it a quarter of inch, the 
whole opening is instantly closed, except a 
space of two inches in front, and the same in 
the rear, both of which have perforated slides 
so that the bees may be enclosed at pleasure, 
with a gentle current of air under them. 
This style of bee-hive should be painted 
white, as that color has much the best ap¬ 
pearance on ornamental objects. The choc¬ 
olate color recommended for other hives, 
relates to cases where they are merely 
painted as a protection against the weather. 
* ROAD BREAKING. 
The unusual amount of snow makes con¬ 
siderable attention to road-breaking neces¬ 
sary, so we will give some of the plans con¬ 
sidered the best for that purpose. 
Shoveling them out would answer the 
best, perhaps, did not the frequent winds 
fill up the track so often and so completely. 
Breaking them over the drifts leaves the 
path so narrow that to turn out is to turn 
over —and so uneven and full of pitch-holes, 
that there is neither ease nor comfort in 
sleigh-riding. The road needs widening 
and leveling, and this is best accomplished 
by the use of an implement, made by fast¬ 
ening two heavy logs together in the form 
of a Y, to be drawn over and through the 
snow with oxen. 
The way for the oxen should be prepared 
by treading and shoveling if necessary, and 
the lightest cattle placed first, as they are 
best able to make their way through the 
snow. Passing once or twice in this way, 
will press down the snow of a width suffi¬ 
cient for turning out, and fill up and smooth 
down the little valleys and mountains of the 
snow drifts. 
Western Pennsylvania. —An intelli¬ 
gent friend thus writes us concerning mat¬ 
ters interesting to farmers, under date of 
Erie, Pa, Dec. 26:—“We have about two 
feet of snow. I fear it will smother the 
wheat where there is a large growth.— 
Wheat looked poor here in the fall. The 
dry weather prevented it from growing, and 
at the same time the wire-worm was more 
numerous than I ever knew it before.— 
They have destroyed full one half of one 
field for me. This wheat was sown after 
barley—the barley sown on clover sod, 
plowed but once, and that in the fall. I 
have seen it stated, that to sow buckwheat 
would drive the wire-worm from the soil. I 
think I will have to turn buckwheat farmer.” 
MANURING AND COMPOSTING. 
Farmers are generally aware that the 
provision of an abundance, and a well cho¬ 
sen variety of food is indispensable to the 
health and thrift of their domestic animals. 
If they know that similar provision is equal¬ 
ly important to the health and growth of 
those plants which nourish animals, they do 
not exercise the same provident care in the 
case. What unassisted soils produce, in 
very numerous instances, is gleaned off from 
year to year, till the fields are left in a bar¬ 
ren waste. In an economical and moral 
point of view, this is little less faulty than 
would be the confinement of a bullock on 
a small area of land insufficient for sup¬ 
port, and the abandonment of him to starve 
when the herbage was consumed. The 
earth is, indeed, rich in resources for the 
supply of innumerable creatures; left in 
its natural state it will never deteriorate; but 
when managed by men, when they choose 
to nurture only certain classes of animals, 
and cultivate only certain plants for their 
support, then the law of compensation must 
be respected. 
In every region of early settled country, 
and on almost every farm, a treasure of rich 
deposite can be found sometimes on the 
headlands made by careless cultivators, and 
always in swamps, where'the operations in 
nature have been conveying earthy and 
vegetable substances ever since the crea¬ 
tion. To these sources farmers should 
look chiefly for the supply of food for their 
plants. With diligence in the necessary 
labor, we believe enough will be found for 
a succession of generations, and none need 
send to Africa for guano, except fanciful 
farmers. 
The business of composting manure, one 
of the most important in which farmers en¬ 
gage, is reducible to no set of general and 
invariable rules, but must be governed in 
view of the materials employed, the texture 
of the soil where it is applied, and the kind 
of plants which we. wish to cultivate.— 
There is, however, one rule which we think 
ought to be invariably observed. The prin¬ 
cipal ingredient in the compost heap should 
form a contrast to the quality of the soil on 
which it is to be spread. The observance of 
this rule will produce a gradual mixture of 
soils, which often proves highly beneficial 
without the addition of manure. 
There is in this country very general 
neglect of one highly useful article in the 
compost heap—green vegetable matter.— 
An abundance of it is every year decaying 
on the borders of the fields, and in swamps; 
but we do not recollect that in any state¬ 
ment, mention has been made cf the con¬ 
version of a large quantity of it into ma¬ 
nure, before the present year.— Boston 
Cultivator. 
A GREAT ROOT GROWER. 
The December number of the American 
Agriculturist, gives a short account of some 
of the operations of Charles B. Calvert, 
Esq., of Maryland, on his farm called Riv- 
ersdale, about seven miles from Washington, 
D. C. It would seem by these statements 
that Mr. Calvert is king of the root grow¬ 
ers in the United States. The Agricultu¬ 
rist says that his farm is a sandy loam, and 
has been very severely cropped and greatly 
reduced in fertility, until he undertook the 
renovation system. His turnip crop last 
year was 25,000 bushels upon thirty acres. 
That amounts to 833^ bushels to the acre. 
Our own farmers could raise turnips as 
largely to the acre as this crop, but too 
many of them have imbibed the idea that 
they are of very little value when raised, 
and so they neglect the culture. We have 
often urged their culture, and have com¬ 
pared them to grass, and have always con¬ 
sidered them as solidified grass, or grass 
made into a solid state on purpose for green 
food for stock during our long winters.— 
From other statements in this same journal, 
we see that Mr. Calvert is making our name 
a true one by the mode in which he feeds 
out his turnips, using them entirely as grass, 
and giving his cattle no hay at all, while 
feeding them out In this way, he uses up 
this enormous crop. 
He keeps eighty cows, says the Agricul¬ 
turist, “mostly Durhams, besides other 
stock. The turnips are cut up with a root 
cutter, some twelve hours before feeding 
time, and sprinkled with salt and bran.— 
The salt entirely prevents any unpleasant 
taste in the milk. At the same time a 
quantity of cornstalks are cut or rather 
ground fine, and these are fed to the cows, 
mixed with the turnips, at the rate of two j 
bushels of stalks to one of turnips, a day. 
Upon this food without any hay, the cows 
are kept all winter, and give milk all the 
time.” 
He is thus enabled to sell large quanti¬ 
ties of hay, which by hauling it into Wash¬ 
ington, seven miles, brings him from $15 to 
$20 per ton. 
We believe the greatest root grower in 
Maine is Capt. Bryant, of Dexter. We 
have not heard what the amount of his crop 
is this year. He raises the ruta baga prin¬ 
cipally, and feeds them out mostly to sheep. 
—Maine Farmer. 
The earth is always frozen to the idle 
husbandman. 
N. Y. STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The Annual Meeting of this Society will 
be held at the Capitol, in Albany, on the 3d 
Wednesday, 15th of January. Premiums 
will be awarded on Farms, Essays, Dairies, 
Butter,Cheese, and farm products generally; 
and an Exhibition of Fruits will be held at 
the Society’s Rooms. 
It is desired that there should be an ex¬ 
tensive competition for the premiums offer¬ 
ed by the Society; and a full representation 
of farmers from every county in the State". 
THE PLOW WITHOUT A HOLDER. 
Mr. Editor: —Your Saccarappa Corres¬ 
pondent, who designates himself “ An In¬ 
terested Reader,” is desirous of knowing 
more in reference to the match of the plows 
without a holder, which came off at North¬ 
ampton, on the 9th of October last. I 
would just say, the quantity of land plowed 
without a holder, was the eighth of an acre, 
the same in dimension as those lots which 
were turned in the ordinary way; the fur¬ 
row, seven inches deep and a foot wide, the 
same also; the teams, the same that had 
been used in the regular match, with the 
plowmen attending, the same. The plows 
of three sizes, were not large, and were 
those that had swept the board at North¬ 
ampton the year before, as well as won the 
premiums at the present meeting, and all of 
Prouty & Mears’ make. In this demonstra¬ 
tion, no extra preparation had been made, 
nothing extra being done to secure a greater 
steadiness of draught, but all was open and 
above board, for as the plows were construct¬ 
ed to go alone on principle, there was no 
management practised or found necessary. 
The pace the teams kept up was so quick 
that one of the Committee requested that 
they might be put at the usual gait, to show 
that whether slow or quick, the work was 
as well and effectually performed, in the 
articles of cutting and turning, as it could be 
done by the most expert plowman. The 
two last furrows of the lands were left un¬ 
turned, as the plowmen had not been 
accustomed to change the clevis from left 
to right, and vice versa, else, they also 
might have been finished as easily as any 
others had been. But this feat had long 
ago been done by the same plows when 
properly set, by persons understanding their 
business. A farmer in New Jersey pur¬ 
chased a 5^-, but his plowman came to him 
and complained he could not make the 
plow go, any how he could fix it; and 
while he was showing the way she would 
fail o turn the furrow, the team started, 
when the owner desired the man not to 
touch the plow, which proceeded across the 
field, a very large one, and turned the most 
perfect furrow imaginable! after which, 
nothing pleased the plowman so much as to 
exhibit this peculiarity to every passer-by, 
by leaving the handles and pretending to 
pick up sticks, or stones, or weeds. 
Now, it may be asked, “ Of what use is 
it for a plow to go alone, seeing that a per¬ 
son must attend to turn it out and in at the 
ends of the land ?” to which I reply, much; 
I now send a lad of fourteen to plow, and 
put the plowman to labor where his strength 
is required, besides which, it affords proof 
positive that the plow is scientifically con¬ 
structed, and must, therefore, follow the 
horses the more easily—two items which 
will be properly appreciated by every prac¬ 
tical man in the country, I guess. If “An 
Interested Reader” will procure one of these 
plows, he will find that it will add about 25 
per cent, interest to his profits at the end of 
the year.— Cor. Boston Cultivator. 
Transporting Seeds. — The Chinese 
method of packing seeds for distant trans¬ 
portation, is to put ,them in small bottles, 
with the ashes of rice chaff. They allege 
that if this be omitted, small maggots are 
hatched during the voyage which destroy 
the seed. This ash or any other, if not 
too strong, we presume acts in two ways; 
1st, as an absorber for any moisture which 
may be present, and 2nd, as an alkali to 
destroy the latent eggs or larvae of any in¬ 
sects. _ _ _ 
Calf Louse. —It is not a little singular 
in a physiological point of view, that there 
should be a peculiar pedicular parasite ap¬ 
propriated to the calf; yet such appears to 
be the case, although the creature is by no 
means common. It is very like the ox- 
louse, Ilcematopinus curgsternus, but com¬ 
paratively narrower, and having two rows 
of dusky spots on the abdomen. It is 
termed Ilcematopinus vitali, or louse of the 
calf. _ _ 
Preserving Lard. —Take lard in the 
leaf, excluding all bloody or lean pieces, 
then salt it down as you would pork; using 
about as much salt as for pork. When 
wanted for use, try out enough lard to last 
a few weeks. This mode is communicated 
by a gentleman who has had much experi¬ 
ence in this business, and he prefers this 
mode as the lard keeps perfectly sweet 
through the year.— N. E. Farmer. 
The Hen-coopers down east buy ready 
made “Straw Hen’s Nests,” for their Shang- 
hae and China chickens. A bird what 
cannot make her own nest cannot do much 
toward filling one, we opine. 
