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MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
AX ORIGINAL WEEKLY 
AGRICULTURAL, LITERARY AND FAMILY JOURNAL 
to the influence of the sun. It should remain 
in the swath until the external moisture has 
evaporated, and the grass become wilted, then 
raked into winrows, or made up into cocks.— 
This ought to be done previous to the falling of 
dew—never should the cut hay be permitted to 
lie spread over the ground through the night. 
The time necessary for it to remain in the field 
will be controlled by the weather, and every 
farmer must judge for himself when it has ar¬ 
rived at such stage that “ mowing away” will be 
safe. 
After an expenditure of time, labor and 
money for the purpose of procuring a good crop 
of grass for winter fodder or for market, it will 
be found a poor policy, that, trusting to the ele¬ 
ments, forbids a small outlay to insure perfect 
success, yet there are numbers of farmers who 
are not possessed of any means by which to 
protect their hay from rain during the haying 
season. The experience of the past summer 
should not only teach a lesson not easily eradi¬ 
cated from memory, hut act as an incentive to 
guard against a recurrence of the evil. 
Hay caps, where tested, have fully warranted 
their construction for the purposes designed, 
and in one year, should the weather be unpro- 
pitious, will remunerate for the expense attach¬ 
ed to their procurement. A dozen will cover 
and protect a ton of hay, and if proper care be 
taken of them will last a number of years. The 
following method of preparing them we re¬ 
publish from last volume of the New-Yorker : 
Take the widest brown cotton you can find, 
and cut it into squares. Spread it upon any 
substance and coat it with a composition of 
linseed oil and turpentine, in the proportion of 
one quart of the latter to one gallon of the 
former. When dry they are ready for use. It 
will prove beneficial to hem or bind the rough 
edges. Make an eyelet hole in each corner for 
the purpose of fastening them, when used, by 
means of stakes. Some prefer merely the cot¬ 
ton, and contend that while it sheds falling 
water, it more readilj permits evaporation of 
moisture than those prepared in the manner 
given. Be this as it may, they will be found 
not only economical, but indispensable to the 
complete operations of the farm. 
In catching weather, or if a heavy dew is 
suspected, gather the cut grass into cocks, 
spread the cap thereon, and fasten carefully.— 
Large ones, to cover a wagon load might be 
manufactured, and could doubtless be made to 
pay. 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOOEE, 
WITH AN ABLE CORPS OP ASSISTANT EDITORS 
SPECIAL CONTIUBCTOHS« 
H. T. BROOKS, Prof. C. DEWEY, 
T. C. PETERS, L. B. LANGWORTHY, 
H. C. WHITE, T. E. WETMORE. 
Thb Rural New-Yorker Is designed to be nniqne and 
boautiful in appearance, and nnsnrpassed in Value, Purity and 
Variety of Contents. Its conductors earnestly labor to make it 
a Reliable Guide on tbo important Practical Subjects connected 
with tho business of those whose interests it advocates. It 
embraces more Agricultural, Horticultural, Scientific, Mechan¬ 
ical, Literary and News Matter, interspersed with many appro¬ 
priate and beautiful Engravings, than any other paper published 
in this Country,—rendering it a complete Agricultural, Lit¬ 
erary and Family Newspaper. 
1^* All communications, and business letters, should be ad¬ 
dressed to D. D. T. MOORE, Rochester, N. Y. 
For Terms, and other particulars, see last page. 
“Where you see a tall corn-house you may 
look out for a good deal of hoeing," is an axiom 
with hired men and boys of unimpeachable ve¬ 
racity. A “tall corn-house” signifies a large 
corn-field, and corn grows by hoeing and not 
without. No farmer whose hoes gets rusty from 
“planting time” until the “tassel” shoots, has 
much need of a tall corn-house —any sort of a 
“ corn-crib” will do for his crop. Clean culture 
and frequent stirring of the soil in the early 
stages of its growth, are indispensable requisites 
to large crops of Indian corn. Of other requi¬ 
sites,—thorough preparation and manuring, as 
well as seasonable planting—we have already 
spoken. The hoe —hand and horse—must do 
what remains to be done for the present year, 
though it is not too late for top-dressing with 
ashes, plaster, etc., and this should by no means 
be neglected. 
Probably the Indians knew something of the 
culture of Indian corn. They used hoes, and 
practiced clean and frequent culture. Hoes 
made of the shoulder blade of a Moose or Deer, 
or of a large clam shell, fastened to a stick were 
rather rude implements, but in the bands of the 
women farmers of that day they accomplished 
the work faithfully and well. Our women, 
thank Heaven, have “ laid down the shovel and 
the hoe ,” but it is not a week since some of our 
German neighbors who was at work for us, 
brought along wife, mother, and baby, to assist 
in planting potatoes. Probably the same force 
will be employed to finish their culture, and 
assist in their consumption. But we were only 
intending to speak of what hoes had been, and 
what they should be. Within our recollection 
they have been rude, heavy implements, which 
it were a day’s work to carry, to say nothing of 
wielding. Now we have little to complain of on 
that score. Give us a light hoe, set right on a 
long, smooth, springy handle ; the edge sharp, 
too hard to baiter and too soft to break, anti a lit¬ 
tle more “ back-bone,” as they say in politics, 
and we will take care of “our row” for “a few 
bouts” at any rate. 
Horse-hoes, cultivators, and the like, are a 
great labor-saving invention. With straight 
rows and a mellow soil, the hand hoe is almost, 
(but not quite) superseded, and may be handed 
over to “the boys” who follow and “regulate” 
the rows after the passage of one of t[ie first 
named implements. With a steady and know¬ 
ing horse, who will “ haw” or “ gee” at the 
word and who can see corn hills for himself, one 
can stir the whole surface between the rows, by 
passing back and forth each way, with proper 
care. A good horse-lioe will be so arranged as 
to turn the soil from the hills when the corn 
first comes up so as not to cover them, and to 
turn it towards them when it gets larger, so as 
to cover up any small weeds which may appear, 
and to form a slight hill around the plants. We 
are not in favor of any amount of hilling, even 
though it teas the practice of the Indians to pile 
them two feet high, as well as to manure in the 
hill with fish, and to use the stalks for bean poles. 
There is “a philosophy of hoeing” as well as 
of plowing or using the harvested crop. “ Why 
do we hoe ?” is a pertinent question, to which 
the answer will be, to mclloio the soil and kill the 
weeds. Half of us, when we “take up the hoe” 
don’t have any definite idea of what we would 
be at. We scrape away a little of the surface 
soil around the stalks, and haul up a little mel¬ 
low dirt to cover the weeds, not to kill them, as 
we should do. Let us strike the hoe well in, 
each side of the hill, and draw it towards us, so 
as to stir the soil two inches deep. Do this two 
or three times each side the hill, and then 
smooth it off to suit the fancy, and our hoeing 
will have accomplished both these objects. The 
horse-boe ought to have done the rest. But 
don’t let anything drive us from the field, or 
keep us from it more than one week at a time 
until the corn and potatoes are large enough to 
shade the ground and keep the soil mellow and 
clean for themselves. 
IMPROVED WIRE FENCE. 
The above cut represents a style of Woven 
Wire Fence, manufactured by machinery, and 
known as “The Lowell Wire Fence.” It was 
first introduced some years ago, and Las been 
highly recommended by many farmers and 
others who have had opportunity to judge of its 
merits. As the subject of Fences is of para¬ 
mount importance to the great majority of our 
readers, and as the construction and cost of va¬ 
rious kinds have recently been discussed in the 
Rural, perhaps we cannot do better than give 
a brief description of this improvement, with 
the arguments which are presented in its favor. 
This we will proceed to do by quoting from a 
pamphlet recently issued by the manufacturers 
as follows: 
“This fence consists of a substantial and 
beautiful netting or web-work, not unlike a 
fisherman's seine, but coarser. Different kinds 
of it, adapted to different uses, are woven of 
various widths, from a few inches to four feet. 
The wire itself, which is annealed, varies in size 
and number,— some kinds containing wire 
about one-third, and some only about one-six¬ 
teenth of an inch in diameter,—the number of 
the wire in the several kinds ranging from No. 
8 to No. 15,—according to the character of the 
fence desired, and the use for which it is de¬ 
signed. The meshes or open squares are also 
graduated in the several kinds, from 1 to 6 inches. 
“ The fence is varnished with asphaltum 
blacking, which protects it from oxidizing or 
rusting, and imparts to it a brilliant black color; 
but the same purposes may be served by coat¬ 
ing it with gas tar, japanning, paint, or by gal¬ 
vanizing. Being too strong for an ox, and too 
close for a ben, it forms an impassable barrier to 
all farm stock. Board fences are apt to be 
blown down by gales; this fence does not catch 
the wind at all; and, being of iron, it cannot 
be injured by fire, by which wood fences are so 
often destroyed. Unlike walls and hedges, it 
does not confine the beat, being open in its 
meshes, and admitting freely the genial rays of 
the sun, so conducive to vegetation. Neither 
does this fence occupy the soil, engender weeds, 
nor harbor vermin, as is the case with wallsand 
hedges. Neither does it interrupt the view o 
the land, nor require repair from year to year ; 
a re-coating of varnish once in four or five years 
being the only soirree of expense with it, after 
it has once been well set up. Few fences, of 
the ordinary kinds, last more than twenty 
years; but this is calculated to last a centruyor 
more. One of the leading agricultural period¬ 
icals of the day says of it: —‘While other iron 
fences are seriously injured by the alternate 
expansion and contraction, occasioned by the 
changes incident to the temperature of the at¬ 
mosphere, this, by the novel and ingenious 
manner in which its wires are knit or woven 
together, is enabled to undergo these changes of 
temperature, and the expansion and contraction 
occasioned thereby, without the slightest de¬ 
terioration or injury.’ 
“ The posts to which the fence Is secured are 
of wood ; but they may be of iron or stone, or 
trees may be used in lieu of posts, where con¬ 
venient. The fence is raised from four to twelve 
inches from the level of the ground, and is 
drawn straight and moderately tight, and kept 
upon an exact level (or regular inclination) from 
one end to another. The posts are set, say ten 
feet apart, and to these the netting is secured 
by staples, (or by screws with hook-heads,) one 
staple being used to each lateral wire at each 
post; and no rails whatever are needed.” 
It may be proper to add that the prices of the 
several kinds vary, according to the height and 
weight of the fence, the size of the mesh, the 
number and dimensions of the wire, &c. The 
pattern represented above is 3% feet high, with 
meshes (or open spaces) 3 inches square ; four 
lateral wires run through the body of the fence, 
which is of No. 14 (or No. 15) wire. The 
weight is ten lbs., and the price $2 per lineal 
rod (16jA feet.) Other patterns are much 
cheaper—from 75 cts. to $1,50 per rod, accord¬ 
ing to height, weight, <&c. The Fence strikes 
us as a desirable one for many purposes, and we 
intend to give it a trial. Those of our readers 
interested are referred to the announcement of 
the manufacturers, (Messrs. J. E. Butts, Jr., & 
Co., of Boston,) in our advertising department. 
HAY AND HAY-MAKING. 
As the season is "rapidly approaching when 
farmers will find active employment amid the 
labors of baying, a few words relative thereto 
will, if nothing new be presented, at least have 
the feature of appropriateness. 
In the culture and growth of every farm pro¬ 
duct, it is a matter of importance that the 
various operations connected therewith should 
be performed at just the right period, so that 
the results of labor expended may be as remu¬ 
nerative as possible, and that each crop, from 
seed-time to harvest, shall progress and mature 
to a complete and full development. This is a 
necessity, in order that the intents and purposes 
for which it is raised may be adequately met. 
The first great requirement of the hay field 
is good tools. Cutting grass with a dull scythe 
is hard work, not alone for he who swings it, 
but also for the producer. Skill and ability to 
perform will never make amends for poor im¬ 
plements. 
The second requisite, and not the least im¬ 
portant, is to have plenty of help, and that of 
the right kind. Agriculturists are all aware of 
the close quarters into which they have at times 
been pressed, and the exorbitant demands to 
which they have been compelled to submit.— 
This has not of necessity become a part of the 
system of American farming. Each farmer, by 
a careful survey of his fields, can calculate with 
sufficient accuracy the time when his hay or 
grain will he in readiness for cutting, the 
amount of time necessary to complete this labor, 
and, if extra help is needed, provide for it be¬ 
forehand. 
There is another feature, which should not 
only be a characteristic of the hay field, but of 
all the operations of the farm. Have a system. 
Business, of whatever nature, conducted hap¬ 
hazard, will fall to the ground, and the sooner 
its obituary is written the better. “Order is 
Heaven’s first law”—the authority is good— 
none can demand a “ higher”—and we hope the 
principle will be exemplified by the readers of 
the Rural. 
The time to cut hay is a question upon which 
farmers differ. Many contend, and with some 
show of reason, that grass should be cut just at 
the time of entering into blossom. There will 
not at this period be as heavy a yield of bay 
per acre, but much more nutrition, and a less 
amount will go farther in keeping stock, than if 
the seed be allowed to ripen. One point of 
their argument — that plants, in arriving at 
maturity, have a large quantity of the starch, 
sugar and gum, their most nutritive elements, 
changed into woody fibre—is incontestibly true. 
Another class occupy j ust the opposite ground, 
and state that the head should be well filled 
before cutting. As arguments to sustain this 
position, it is claimed that stock will relish the 
food better, the grass is more readily cured and 
not so likely to become heated as when cut ear¬ 
lier. The mean between these two has its ad¬ 
vocates. Just in the milky stage of the seed is 
their doctrine, and it is followed most strenu¬ 
ously. Does the true mode in this, as in most 
other disputations, lie between the two ex¬ 
tremes ? Let each of our readers consult his 
own experience and answer. 
The process of curing, where practicable, 
should be done in the cock. Grass thus retains 
its color and its juices, is sweeter and more fra¬ 
grant than when scattered thinly and exposed 
SALT, PLASTER AS"D ASHES ON CORN. 
In the Rural ot J une 7th, there is a very sav¬ 
age article, which is claimed by the author, Mr. 
Wm. D. Cook, to be a reply to a communication 
of mine upon the subject of the above fertil¬ 
izers, published in the Rural of the 17th ult.— 
Before noticing the points made by the author 
of this last communication, allow me to express 
the opinion that discussions, in order to be in¬ 
structive and profitable, should illustrate some 
principle in agricultural science, or embrace the 
results of practical experiment; and to be en¬ 
tertaining or amusing, they should be conducted 
in a spirit of kindness and good humor. 
In my former communication on this subject, 
my only purpose was to caution farmers against 
the use and application of such ingredients as 
fertilizers as had been loosely or incautiously 
recommended in the Rural, and which had 
proven injurious and well nigh destructive to a 
valuable crop on my farm last year. Thinking 
that possibly there might be other readers of 
the Rural verdant enough to follow recommen¬ 
dations which promised large results, in oppo¬ 
sition to their better judgments, I concluded 
with the permission of the Rural, to give others 
the result of one experiment, made in conformi¬ 
ty with the recommendation of a correspondent 
in your excellent journal, based as was claimed 
upon successful experiment. In simply nar¬ 
rating my experience with salt as a fertilizer 
for corn, I had no intention of dictating to any 
person, except J. G. S., the course to be pursued 
upon this subject,—I then stated that salt had 
been highly recommended without qualification 
as a fertilizer for corn, in the Rural, and that 
my experience taught me that it was very much 
of a humbug. Perhaps in justice to the Editor 
I should have stated that a correspondent bad so 
recommended, as the editor cannot rightfully 
be held responsible for the style or matter of 
every scribbler who wishes to make himself 
conspicuous by having his name published in 
full in the Rural. 
The disclaimer of the editor which accompa¬ 
nied my former communication, relieved him 
from the responsibility of having unqualifiedly 
recommended salt for corn, and there the matter 
rested till the voracious Mr. Wm. D. Cook as¬ 
sumed the championship of the salt theory, and 
alleged that I had not followed the directions 
per bushel,) where at one time I did not expect one-sixth 
of that amount. I have since tried all combinations of 
ashes and plaster without salt, hut never with such mark¬ 
ed results.” 
If this does not completely and entirely sus¬ 
tain the charge which I made, that salt was un¬ 
qualifiedly recommended in the Rural as a fer¬ 
tilizer for corn, I do not know what constitutes 
such recommendation. True, it was by a cor¬ 
respondent and not by the editor, but that does 
not render the recommendation any the less 
pernicious, and having suffered myself by 
adopting it, I felt it to be my duty to warn others 
of the consequences. It will be seen that the 
application of the compost, as stated above, was 
made in precisely the same manner as I made 
it last year ; and now I ask upon what authori¬ 
ty does Wm. D. Cook undertake to say that my 
failure resulted from a disregard of the direc¬ 
tions in the application of salt to corn ? I trust, 
Mr. Editor, that before Wm. D. Cook “ comes 
back” through the Rural he will endeavor to 
improve his manners, and study to be less dog¬ 
matical and more accurate in his propositions. 
The philosophy suggested by above recommen¬ 
dation, was, that the chemical action of the 
compost would so far neutralize the caustic na¬ 
ture of the small proportion of salt as to render 
it harmless, while the gases, generated, would 
promote the rapid growth of the plant. The 
result did not, with me, support the theory. 
Before dismissing this subject, I wish to call 
attention to the theory advanced, and the results 
obtained, by my friend Wm. D. Cook. He says, 
that “ for ten years, more or less, he has planted 
of the recommendation in regard to the time 
and manner of its application,—hence my fail¬ 
ure. To relieve Mr. Cook of all responsibility 
in the matter, and all anxiety in the premises, 
and to show him that the self-defence, which he 
has volunteered, is entirely gratuitous and un¬ 
necessary, I assure him, upon the honor of a 
gentleman, that until his communication of the 
7th inst., I was entirely ignorant of the exist¬ 
ence of such a person as Wm. D. Cook, and of 
course could not have been aware that he had 
occupied so large a space in the agricultural and 
literary field, as to have contributed an article 
over bis own signature to the Rural New- 
Yorker, recommending salt as a fertilizer for 
corn. Upon the bint of your correspondent I 
have examined the file of the Rural for last 
year, or such numbers as I have at band, and 
although I cannot find Wm. D. Cook’s name in 
any of them, I do find in the one dated April 
14, 1855, a communication over the signature of 
J. B. S., containing the following statement: 
“ About four years ago I planted with small eight-rowed 
yellow' corn, near the middle of May, a field of five acres, 
which had lain in pasture for a dozen years or more, and 
was turned under just before planting. The com came up 
looking yellow and stunted, and grew very slowly. When 
I had completed the first hoeing, I considered the prospect 
of a crop desperate indeed. I had a couple of barrels of 
salt unfit for any domestic purpose. I made a compost by 
mixiDg four bushels of ashes with one of plaster and one 
half-bushel of salt, and applied a small handful to each 
hill about the roots of the corn. The effect was truly sur¬ 
prising. Within a very few days the color changed to a 
luxuriant green, and my workmen asserted “they could 
fairly see it grow.” The result was, I harvested 60 bushels 
