RU RAL. LIFE 
^aCRICU; TURt 
side, but make it smooth by filling the joints and 
imperfections with mortar, and rubbing the entire 
wall down with brick. This makes.a good surface 
for painting, and leaves nothing to flake off. All 
window sills and projecting caps should be con¬ 
structed with a drip, so that the dust and dirt that 
lodges on them, as it washes off will fall away 
from the building, and not streak down the sides. 
If your walls are to be of stone, lay a course of 
slate or flagging stone just below the water table, 
the entire width of the wa’h. and with the edges 
closely fitted together. If the stone are from the 
quarry, have them laid in their natural bed, and 
not stood up edgewise, to give them the appear¬ 
ance of larger blocks. If the stone is of such a 
kind, and the building of such a character, as to 
admit of or require a hammer dressed surface, do 
not fancy that they need to be all of the same size 
and shape, so as to look like an elongated chess¬ 
board when put up. Mixed work is better. There 
of flour, or to cat in flavor equal to a well-ripened 
variety. 
The Fluke, planted on poor soil, new broken 
land, or sandy, does well, brings perfect tubers 
of moderate size; the haulm, being of moderate 
strength, dies down in sufficient time to ripen the 
tubers as they should be, while the quality is of 
the first class. The fault thus lies not in the 
Potato, but in the soil, or the method of cultiva¬ 
tion.” 
We have eaten the Fluke, when it was fine, and 
we would have pronounced it next to the Mexican 
for baking, and again when we thought it worth¬ 
less. It is of good flavor, as a general rule, though 
not as dry when boiled as we like, particularly the 
large, and perhaps overgrown specimens, and the 
stem end is apt to be quite wet. It ripens late, 
and in rich, moist ground, seldom matures. The 
skin is thin, and white, and when dug before fully 
ripe bruises easity and turns black. When well 
ripened, carefully handled, and kept from exposure 
to the air, there are few handsomer potatoes; and 
when well ripened in a rather poor, sandy soil, it 
is a very good table potato. 
The Fluke Potato was raised from seed in 1842, 
by a weaver named John Turner, in Lancashire, 
England. He raised a number of seedlings, but 
this being the only one he thought promised well, 
the others were thrown away. He made presents 
of the tubers to his neighbors, particularly the 
farmers around, but never made a penny of them 
in the way of trade. About 1850 they began to 
attract pretty general attention, and a number of 
gentlemen, in 1852, raised a subscription of about 
$500 as a reward to Mr. Turner for raising this 
potato, and its gratuitous distribution. We can¬ 
not say when it was first brought to this country. 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
AN ORIGINAL WEEKLY 
RURAL, LITERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
With an Able Corps of Assistants and Contributors. 
Ths Rural New-Yorker is designed to be unsurpassed 
in Value, Purity, Usefulness and Variety of Contents, and 
unique and beautiful in Appearance. Its Conductor de¬ 
votes his personal attention to the supervision of its various 
departments, and earnestly labors to render the Rural an 
eminently Reliable Guide on all the important Practical, 
Scientific and other Subjects intimately connected with the 
business of those whose interests it zealously advocates. It 
embraces more Agricultural, Horticultural, Scientific, Edu¬ 
cational, Literary and News Matter, interspersed with 
appropriate and beautiful Engravings, than any other jour¬ 
nal,—rendering it the most complete Agricultural, Lit¬ 
erary and Family Newspaper in America. 
Ef7"AU communications, and business letters, should be 
addressed to 0. D. T. MOORE, Rochester, N. Y. 
For Terms and other particulars, see last page. 
protected with a wide projecting cornice, will be 
dry, even if the plastering is put on the stone 
itself. 
It is pretty generally conceded that the American 
people do their work in rather an unsubstan¬ 
tial manne?—and a simple glance at the crooked 
buildings, cracked walls, broken lintels, ragged 
arches, hollow-backed roofs, lop-sided cornices, 
rattling windows, dragging doors and squeaking 
floors, to be met with everywhere will satisfy the 
most incredulous that builders, at least, should 
not find fault with thisjgW universal judgement. 
Not that the builc?e??f®Ku's ^together to blame, 
for if the work is by tu,. yffi, and let to the lowest 
bidder, he must drive it through to save himself; 
or, if by the day, the more he does (if not so well) 
the better it suits the man who pays—not perhaps 
because the latter wishes to get more than the 
worth of his money, but because he has planned 
his house to cover so much ground—that if well 
built his money would not cover the expense. 
Pompey, Owen Co., N. Y., 1S59. J. E. S. 
THE FLUKE, OR PRINCE ALBERT POTATO. 
LITTLE BUFFALO HARVESTER, — AS A MOWER. 
“Having thus given the reader full illustrations 
and descriptions of the celebrated Kirby’s Har¬ 
vesters, we will now briefly enumerate some of the 
reasons why we believe them to be the best ma- 
'onv.t®u market; e."d, i" doing <*o, .will simply 
classify the different machines before the public, 
as they embody similar principles, and point out the 
difference between them and the Kirby Machines. 
“1. Independent-Action Machines. —These ma¬ 
chines have been introduced within three or four 
years. Their distinctive feature is ilieir ability to 
work on rough ground, and this is accomplished by 
the independent action of the finger bar, which freely 
rises and falls in following the inequalities of the 
ground independently of the driving wheel. This 
independent action gives the machine so many 
advantages on smooth as well as rough ground, 
that the older machines, not possessing this feature, 
are fast going into disuse. Wherever the inde¬ 
pendent action machines have been used, they are 
the general favorites. There are two ways of at¬ 
taining this independent action. 1st v By a peculiar 
mode of attaching the driving wheel to the main 
frame, thus establishing the independent action 
between the wheel and frame, as in the Kirby 
Machine. 2d. By a joint or spring in the finger- 
bar, near its connection with the frame, establish¬ 
ing the independent action between the bar and 
the frame. 
“ With the last mode it is necessary to use two 
wheels to carry the frame, or the machine would 
tip over, and these two wheels track so wide that 
in reaping it is impossible to deliver the grain at 
the side out of the way of the next track, and this, 
together with the difficulty of sustaining the jointed 
bar off the ground, has prevented them from being 
successful as reapers. But as mowers they have 
attained a high reputation, and are undoubtedly 
i far superior to the old-fashioned, rigid-bar ma- 
i chines. Still we think that Mr. Kirby’s method of 
> attaining the independent action is decidedly the 
■ best, for, while it permits him to make a perfect 
> reaper of his machine, it gives him many advanta¬ 
ges over the two-wheeled, jointed-bar machine 
; in mowing. For instance, the Kirby machine, 
>' having but one wheel, can run in a ditch while the 
3 bar runs on the bank and cuts. No two-wheel 
i machine can do this, nor can it run wherever the 
i form of the land has a tendency to bring the machine 
'. into a similar position. Hence the Kirby machine 
e can he used on much rougher land than the two- 
g wheel machines, 
an angle of forty-five degrees, as shown by fig. 1. 
I presume that you will be able to perform it tol¬ 
erably well, because the force of gravity, combined 
with the action of the mold(board, will assist you. 
But I have another field I wish to put you in, t^such 
as I am planting this season,) approaching as near¬ 
ly to a level as indicated by fig. 2. It is stony and 
the sward tough, and I want you to plow it with a 
side-hill plow as before. I do not wish the fur¬ 
rows to stand up edgewise, but to be rolled over 
neatly and evenly, and laid snugly together. I 
want you to do it, too, without breaking any of 
your ribs. In a stony country, it is considered 
quite a feat to plow any length of time without 
being injured in the breast. I have known several 
to be seriously injured, ribs broken, &c., by the 
plow handles. You must, then, if you would be 
safe and plow well in hard and stony soil, walk on 
each side of the furrow, instead of in it, as is the 
custom. You must not take hold of the tips of 
the handles, but grasp firmly the middle. Your 
right or left foot, as the case may be, should fol¬ 
low closely the action of the mold board, accom¬ 
panied with a slight swaying of the plow in the 
same direction. By this method the vital organs 
are above danger, and the blows are taken by the 
hips and thighs. Besides, the blows are modified 
by our being so much closer to the plow. We 
lean, too, upon the handles, as upon canes, and 
Of the various materials that have been used in 
constructing human habitations, let us take into 
special consideration only those most commonly 
brought into requisition, viz: wood, brick and 
stone, and see if some better way may not be de¬ 
vised in putting them together than is ordinarily 
tried. In case our efforts are successful, you may 
possibly be induced to build in a more substantial 
than did your ancestor, who reared the 
Accordingly, we sent for seed, and on opening the 
package, were not a little surprised to find that 
the English Fluke had beeu sent us. From the 
description we had a little suspicion that they were 
one and the same, and this seemed to be confirmed. 
To arrive at a certainty on this point, however, we 
obtained specimens of Prince Alberts from two 
other sources, and received English Flukes every 
time. We know of persons who have paid $1 and 
$1,50 per bushel for Prince Alberts, while the same 
were selling in this market under the name of 
Flukes, for about GO cents. Now, we have a great 
curiosity to know who gave the Fluke Potato its 
new name, and the motive for so doing. Had the 
Flukes become so common that fancy prices could 
no longer be obtained, and it was necessary to find 
a new and taking name? So far as we can learn, 
it was never known by that name in England, and 
it is undoubtedly a dodge of some Y r aukee specu¬ 
lator. Any of our readers who cau furnish infor¬ 
mation on this point will please do so. 
Of the quality of this potato there is a variety 
of opinions, some considering it the best potato 
grown, while others think it almost worthless.— 
The same difference of opinion we see exists in 
England. We copy the following remarks by a 
writes in the English Cottage Gardener, which may 
throw some light on the cause of these antagonis¬ 
tic opinions: 
“ Many speak of the Fluke Potato in such high 
terms as to pronounce it unequalled; whilst others 
condemn it as decidedly the worst Potato they ever 
grew. I will offer a few remarks respecting this 
Potato, in consequence of the divided opinion that 
still exists respecting its merits. I have, on sev¬ 
eral occasions, heard people exclaim, ‘ Somebody 
must tell lies; for one party recommends it, while 
another condemns it.’ On several occasions, also, 
I have witnessed different growers digging up 
their crops of Flukes, and have frequently asked 
them their opinion; which may be summed up as 
follows:—‘Well, master,’ I would say, jokingly, 
‘ are they good ?’ The reply would be, ‘ Ah, good 
for the pigs. I will never plant another Fluke as 
manner 
pioneer tabernacle which you now inhabit, but 
which is so fast going to decay over your head. 
Much has been said in favor and also against the 
use of each of the above mentioned materials; 
therefore, it is, perhaps, fair to conclude that a 
good house may be built of either, and that the 
best you can do will be to use that which you have 
at hand, or that which can be most easily obtain¬ 
ed, rather than incur the extra expense of procur¬ 
ing a foriegn material, in hopes of out-doing your 
neighbors, or because Mr. Such-an-one has done 
so before you. 
If you have the timber, you will find it best to 
build of wood, and use for a side covering clap¬ 
boards or vertical ceiling; if the former, the studs 
should not be more than sixteen inches apart from 
centre to centre, nor should the siding be more 
Should you desire to make 
TO PLOW BOYS. 
upon plowing. It is possible you have not learned 
to plow, but have been presumed by your parents 
and employers to know how without teaching, as 
if farming was not a science. Come with me, 
then, to the field. 
In the first place, to plow green sward well you 
must have a steady, well-trained team, that can be 
guided rather by the voice than the rein, for the 
attention of the operator must mainly be upon his 
plowing. The lines should pass around the neck; 
the ends may be of clotli to prevent friction. Next, 
your plow should be bright and smooth, and the 
point likewise. You should feel the point to cut 
rather than tear the sward. Strike the first furrow 
as nearly straight as possible. If not cut perfectly 
clean and completely turned, return again in the 
same, for much depends on the starting point. If 
the plow is thrown out by a stone, back up and 
start again. By all means do not let your go-a- 
headativeness make a balk, fori want you to make 
the field look as if penciled by a De Moivre. If 
using a side-hill plow, drive straight out; do not 
let the furrow bend up or down. It would be well 
to cut a guide furrow upon each head land at the 
outset. As to depth, much depends on your skill 
in regulating the draft. The point to be attained 
is that which turns the sward the best. This point 
than six inches wide, 
your house warmer than this, you can do so by 
covering it with inch sheathing before it is clap- 
boarded, by filling in between the studs with brick, 
or by using an extra partition of lath aud plaster¬ 
ing, put on cleats nailed to each side of the studs, 
about two or three inches back of the inner edge. 
If you choose to use vertical ceiling, the cheapest 
and best way is to stud the same as for siding, ex- 
ceprset tEe outside face of the studs two inches 
within the face of sills aud plates. Ouiside of 
these spike 2 by 4 girts as ribs, horizontally, and 
about two feet apart, to receive the ceiling. Lath 
to the studs on the outside, between the girts, be¬ 
fore the ceiling is put up, aud put on a coat of 
coarse mortar between the studs on the inside be¬ 
fore finishing. A good up-ground cellar may be 
made in this way, by adding studding on the 
inside, and another coat of mortar, making, in all, 
three separate partitions of plastering, besides an 
outside ceiling. 
In case you build of brick, have a hollow wall 
by all means. If your mason is careful in laying 
it up, a two inch space is sufficient. The plaster¬ 
ing will be much more durable on the brick 
than it will be on furring, and your building will 
be dry if you attend to two things. First, To pre¬ 
vent the moisture from rising from the foundation 
THE LITTLE BUFFALO HARVESTER 
AS A MOWER. 
Again, in the jointed-bar ma¬ 
chines, the joint comes in the very place in the bar 
where there is the most strain, and the joint must 
necessarily bear this strain and wear rapidly. It 
also comes near or at the point of connection be¬ 
tween the connecting rod or pitman and cutters, 
and the connecting rod is never in line with the 
cutters except when the machine is working on a 
dead level. Whenever the finger-bar is out of 
level the connecting rod works at an angle, bind¬ 
ing the cutters, and sometimes so much they can¬ 
not work at all. None of these objections hold 
against the Kirby Machine. The finger-bar is 
stiff and firm, and yet perfectly free in its play up 
and down. Either end of the whole bar will rise 
and fall without any cramping to the machine, or 
connecting rod, or cutters. Whatever may be the 
angle of the bar the connecting rod is always in the 
Fio. 1. Fig. 2. 
Having said this much upon the particular art 
of plowing, I want you to plow a field inclined at 
