VOLUME III. NO. 14. > 
ROCHESTER, N. Y. -THURSDAY, APRIL 1, 1851 
I WHOLE NO. 118. 
Igririiltuml Jepartmctrf. 
PJtOKKESS AND IUIP8iOVET?IS3NT. 
THE ENGLISH RACE HORSE, 
Mr. Moore: —As the subject of fine horses 
seems now rather in the ascendant, please 
copy the following, if you think it will in¬ 
terest any portion of your readers. By 
great attention to breeding, and great skill 
injudiciously blending different breeds, the 
English race horse has become superior to 
those of the rest of Europe, if not of tho 
whole world. For supporting a continuance 
of violent action, (in the language of the 
. turf, called. “ bottom,”) thoy are equal to the 
Arabian, tho Barb, or the Persian—and for 
lleetness thoy yield tho palm to none. 
Tho following account of tho prizes won 
by somo of tho noted English race horses, 
will show tho importance of tho breed in 
England, where such large sums frequently 
depend on tho issuo of their contests: 
“ Bay Multon, by Sarupsou, owned by the Mar¬ 
quis of Rockingham, in seven prizes won the 
amazing sum of £5,900—(over ,$26,000.) 
“ Flying Childers, owned by the Duke of Dev¬ 
onshire, was the fleetest horse ever bred in the 
world. It is stated of him, that he has been known 
to move at the rate of 82 feet in a second. He 
has been round the New Market course in 6 min¬ 
utes 40 seconds—about one minute less time than 
four miles has ever been run by any other horse. 
(In the great race of Eclipse and Sir Henry in 
1823, four miles were run in 7 minutes 37 seconds, 
and excepting Childers, probably the swiftest nice 
on record.) “ Childers won £2,000, ($8,880.) and 
finding no competitors was reserved as a stallion. 
“ Dorimaui, a rarnous Horse belonging to Lord 
O.sSory, won prizes to the great amount of £13,- 
363, ($59,331.) 
“ Eclipse was allowed to be the fleetest horse 
that ever ran in England, since the time of Chit 
ders. 
“ Highflyer was considered the best horse of his 
time in England. The sums ho won amounted to 
£9,000, (about $40,000,) thougli he never started 
after 5 years old. He was never beaten, and nev 
er paid a forfeit. 
“ Shark won, besides a cup valued at 100 guin¬ 
eas, the astonishing sum of 15,507 guineas, (,$72, 
884,) in plates, matches, and forfeits. 
“ On the 25th of March, 1799, a match for 3,000 
guineas was run at New Market, by Sir Henry 
Vane Tempest’s horse Hambletonian, and Mr. 
Cookson’s Diamond, and won by the former. It 
was supposed that bets to the amount of £200,000, 
($888,000,) were made on the event of this severe 
race.” 
Now it must not be inferred from the pre¬ 
coding, that my design is to eulogize the 
race course. No such thing. The course is 
tolerated only as a tost of power and speed 
—an opportunity to exhibit and decide tho 
power and ability of tho horse. If any oth¬ 
er test less objectionable could be devised, 
it would doubtless bo adopted. The race 
courso could decide these points without 
necessarily involving all tho disturbing in¬ 
fluences that now attend it. But it is not 
probablo, that any great improvement in its 
moral aspects, will ever bo realized. 
My present design is, to recommend to 
our farmers more attention to the subject 
of breeding valuable horses, instead of those 
of inferior character. And by valuablo 
horses I mean, particularly, horses of high 
market value, on account of beauty of form, 
and of power, spirit and action for tho sad- 
dlo, and for tho road. To improvo our 
breed of horses for these purposes, will re¬ 
quire a resort to tho raco horse, or to high 
bred horses, his descendants. 
In England, the draft horso and tho trav¬ 
eler are altogether distinct and different. 
For the plow and tho lumber wagon, a 
heavy horso is noedod, with stout limbs, 
deep heavy quarters, strong loin, and with 
a shoulder-blade perpendicular in its posi¬ 
tion, so that tho hamos shall not rise up as 
ho moves tho foro leg. Ho must bo able to 
throw his wholo weight into tho collar, and 
not move its position. Such a horso cannot 
be a traveler. But the fleot horse, tho road¬ 
ster, should have a slanting shoulder so that 
the hamos, overy time ho throws out his 
fore foot in any extra effort, should incline 
to rise, as if it would choke him undor tho 
nock. With such a form lie can throw for¬ 
ward tho fore foot in trotting, from ono to 
three inches further every step, than ho 
could with a perpendicular shoulder. And 
this will make a great difference, as well in 
the drive of an hour, as in the journey of a 
day. 
It is comparatively easy to obtain the draft 
horso, tho horso for farm work. But to rear 
with success the pleasure horse, ono that 
combines beauty of form, with spirit, speed 
and bottom for the road, is a matter of more 
difficult attainment. But it is both practi¬ 
cable and easy with the right materials. To 
accomplish this object, therefore, I insist, un¬ 
alterably, upc+i the necessity of resorting to 
tho blood horse—the high-bred horse—tho 
descendant of the race horse who has earn¬ 
ed a celebrity for speed and power. The 
reasoning and tho practice of the common 
farmer, on this subject, are all wrong. If 
ho has a clever horse colt from the blood 
horso, instead of rearing him as a £G0 geld¬ 
ing, ho preserves him as a stud, to rear $60 
colts. Thus our country is filled to a sur¬ 
feit with pretty good young stallions, that 
produce from common mares, a stock just 
about half as good as thomselves. Were all 
such half-blood young horses reared and 
matched as geldings, they would make spans 
that would reach the mark of $250 to $400, 
at a suitable age, and in the sea board mar¬ 
kets. And fillies of this blood from good 
dams, would be $100 mares, to produce from 
the blood horse again, a stock of still higher 
blood and greater value. 
The farmer should esteom a Alley from a 
blood horso, as of more intrinsic worth to 
him than tho horse colt.; ana not, rest until 
he has reared mares designed for his own 
keeping, as near the standard of full bred 
as practicable. It would be better policy to 
pay $20 for a colt from “ Consternation,” 
and the full blood “ Morgan” horso, than 20 
shillings to a half blood horse of their got, 
out of a common mare, however promising 
ho might bo. Tho farmer who would per¬ 
fect his stock, should invariably resort to 
the full blood horse. 
Although tho two groat objects in breed¬ 
ing (ono for the plow, and the other for mar¬ 
ket,) can be in a measure combined, still it 
is altogether wise, to keep them distinct and 
separate. Tho farmer can have his road ■ 
sters, and his plow horses too; and he 
should have them—but his roadsters should 
bo his beautiful high bred mares; (andthey 
can do all his ordinary work easily and safe¬ 
ly ;) and his market horses should bo their 
fine horso colts. The man of money and of 
leisure wants only tho fancy horso, and the 
roadster; and for those he is always ready 
and willing to pay a high price. The aim 
of tho farmer therefore, should be, to raise 
such horses for market. And to accomplish 
this, he must improve tho character of his 
brood mares, by resorting to the best sires. 
This object attained, ho should continue to 
resort to horses of the highest character 
and perfection. In this course, he will in¬ 
variably raise stock of great value, that will 
always command a ready salo, and a high 
price. 
Tflio public journals have just chronicled 
a‘decent sale, in .idfferson county of 150 
valuable horses, to purchasers for tho east¬ 
ern market.” No price being stated, it is 
reasonable to infer a range from £40 to £60; 
say an average of £50. A very comforta- 
blo lining, this $18,750, to the “port monies” 
of one hundred of the farmers of that coun¬ 
ty, at this season. Jefferson county has 
roarod fine horses for market over sinco the 
Messrs. Ogdens, of New York, sent their 
splondid horso “Mossonger” on to their es¬ 
tates in that county. In all good nature, and 
in all sincerity, I ask the farmers of our own 
flno county of Monroe, what have wo in tho 
shapo of fine horses, at this time, with which 
to purchase $20,000 of Boston gold ? If 
tho inventory of our shop, in this particular, 
was now to bo called for, I greatly fear it 
would reveal but a “ beggarly account of 
ompty boxes.” I do not ask our farmors to 
raiso moro colts—I only ask them to con¬ 
sult their interest by rearing those of high- 
or blood and groater value. 
Farmer D. 
ONE HORSE FARM TILT CART. 
Horse Carts are very little used in this 
country, though in England and Scotland, 
they are preferred by many farmers to wag¬ 
ons, for general agricultural purposes. Mr. 
Hannam, in the Journal of the Royal Agri¬ 
cultural Society, gives a statement of his ex¬ 
perience upon a large farm for ten years, 
which has convinced him, “that tho one- 
horse cart for farm purposes is tho best ve¬ 
hicle which can bq employed.” Many vari¬ 
eties of carts are usod in England ; and Mr. 
Barry, (writing to the Genosee Farmer.) 
remarks, that at their Agricultural Shows, 
and at tho World’s Fair, “each exhibitor 
LARGE AND SMALL POTATOES FOR SEED. 
Eds. Rural New-Yorker :—Several arti¬ 
cles have rocently appeared in your paper 
under this head, and perhaps both your- 
solvos and readers think enough has been 
written upon tho subject. It seems to me 
that none have quito hit the mark, so I will 
add tho results of my experience. I am 
fifty-six years old, and was bred a farmer in 
a good potato-growing region in Vormont. 
From 1814, for throe or four years, we had 
poor seasons for this crop, consequently 
seod became scarco. Ono year my father 
planted a field with small potatoes, except 
six or eight rows which were planted with 
tho seed ends of large ones saved for table 
use. At hoeing time, those planted with 
seed ends looked much tho best, the vines 
woro largo and thrifty. When ripe, we 
found the potatoes grown from small 
seed, “small potatoes and few in a hill,”— 
those from tho seed ends woro good size 
and a fair yield; full twice that of the other. 
Many experiments since have convinced 
me, that largo potatoes are to . bo preferred 
for sood, as they produce moro healthy and 
vigorous plants, and, with me, have yielded 
tho largest crops, with but few small pota¬ 
toes, compared with the yiold where only 
small potatoes woro planted. In good sea¬ 
sons and on good soil, I have raised fair 
crops from small potatoes, but thoy have 
not succeeded well as a general thing. Too 
much soed may be usod ; ono middling sized 
potato or pieces sufficient to produce five or 
six vinos is enough—more is a damage. 
I have resided thirty years in Oswogo Co., 
and havo raised from one to six hundred 
bushols of potatoes per year. Before tho 
rot commenced its ravages, I used to get tho 
best crops when I plautod early in Juno; 
tho reason for this was that they kopt green 
and in good growing condition until tho 
drouth of summer was over, and tho woath- 
er becamo moro favorable for their growth. 
Much deponds, I think, in suiting tho varie¬ 
ty to tho soil; pink-eyes do but poorly on 
sandy soil, whilo the red potatoes do toler¬ 
ably well. You can grow good crops of 
pink-eyes on clay or rich muck if their rot 
ting can bo prevented. 
Largo potatoes with tho seod ond cut 
oft, will keep fit for tho table for six or eight 
weoks about as well as whole ones, and thus 
you may use them for eating, instoad of 
manuring tho land with them, as some com¬ 
plain,—and you need use no moro seed to 
tho acre than of small ones. C. Martin. 
Cleveland, N. Y., March, 1832. 
brought along his cart as certainly as his 
plow.” 
Tho abovo engraving represents a good 
model, of simple and convenient construc¬ 
tion. The body sits flat on tho axle, and not 
on bolsters as they are frequently construct¬ 
ed in order to bring thorn to a lovol whon 
at work. Tho shafts are attached to tho 
bottom of tho body by bont iron platos, near 
the axle, and it tips on tho bolts, which con¬ 
nect tho shaft and body there. Tho bend 
in tho plates brings the front end to a prop¬ 
er lovol, obviating the necessity of bolsters 
or bent shafts. Tho tipping apparatus is so 
AMERICAN vs. ENGLISH PLOWS. 
Messrs. Editors :—Tho palpablo differ¬ 
ence between American and English Plows 
is astonishing, when wo once consider that the 
former is light, ingeniously constructed, eas¬ 
ily managed, handsome, and can be purchas¬ 
ed at a comparative low price ; while tho lat¬ 
ter is bungling, liomoly, heavy, expensive, re¬ 
quires much muscular strength to handle it, 
and with tho rest does not do tho work up, 
according to report, as well as tho premium 
| plows which are manufactured in America. 
I spent somo time this morning at tho State 
Agricultural Rooms, in examining both the 
American and English plows, and was not a 
little surprised to seo what a contrast exists 
in the construction of tho two instruments. 
England boasts of her magnificent edifices, 
her works of art, her ingenious inventors, 
and her advanced state, as respects the arts 
and scionces; but notwithstanding all this, 
sho must succumb when wo place ono of 
Prouty & Mears’, or Starbuck’s Patent 
American Plows besido hers, and con¬ 
trast tho striking difference between tho 
two. Even if a person never saw either 
of them work, he would at once pronounce 
tho American plow the best instrument, and 
doubtless for those reasons : 1st. It is light, 
compactly built, requires only one person 
to manage it; and second it runs easier, as 
is vouched for by tho best judges, and third 
took a prizo medal at tho fair of all nations ! 
The English plow which I examined will 
weigh, from appearance, three hundred lbs.; 
is long, awkward and made principally of 
wrought iron, except tho points of the share 
and coulter, which of courso, are steel, and 
tho extreme onds of the handles, which are 
wood, fitted into appropriate sockets. I 
cannot see any beauty about a plow of Eng¬ 
lish manufacture; on the contrary tho ap- 
pearaneo, construction, and weight of Eu¬ 
ropean plows, show at once, that no Ameri¬ 
can can fall in love with them, or would 
think of introducing them into this country 
for turning over, and pulverizing the soil. 
Albany, N. Y., March, 1832. W. TAPPEN. 
Plowing Wet Lands. —It will not answer 
to plow any othor than sandy and gravelly 
Soils when thoy aro wet. If clays and heavy 
loams aro plowed whon in this state, they 
aro liable to bake hard and remain in lumps 
through tho summer in spite of all the 
harrowing you can givo them. It is better 
therefore not to begin to plow until the 
earth will crumble as it is turnod over.— 
For spring crops, heavy soils should bo plow¬ 
ed in the fall. j. g. o. 
arranged that the body can be kept at any 
desired angle whon unloading—very con¬ 
venient in distributing manure or compost 
in small heaps. This is effected by the uso 
of an iron bar about two feet long, attachod 
to the front of the body, piercod with holes 
two or throe inches apart, through which an 
iron rod passes, connecting the body and 
shafts. Tho wheels are about four and a 
half feet high, and the tires four inches wide. 
The sholving or ladders shown in tho cut, 
are intended for use whon carrying hay, &c., 
and can bo removed at pleasure. Tho cost 
of this cart in England is about $50. 
INSTRUCTIONS FOR METEOROLOGICAL 
OBSERVERS. 
A SET of meteorological instruments con. 
sists of a Thermometer, Barometer, Pluvi- 
amotor or rain-gauge, Psychrometer—for 
measuring tho tension of the aqneous vapor 
in tho atmosphere—and Anemometer or 
wind-vane. Thoso instruments over our 
country should agree with the Smithsonian 
standard. 
Tho Thermometer must be placed in tho 
open air, not in a narrow court surrounded 
by buildings—nor where it will bo influ¬ 
enced either by the direct or reflected rays 
of tho sun, or by artificial hoat—it must 
face the North, and always be in tho shado. 
It should not, wo think, bo moro than six 
feet from the surface of tho earth, though 
at the Meteorological Stations in Prussia, 
the observers are instructed to placo it 
twelve or fifteen feet from the ground. It 
should also bo protected from wind, storm 
and hoar-frost, or rather tho latter should 
be removed, if seen, before the observation 
is made. 
Tho Barometer should be hung in an ex¬ 
actly vertical position, in a well lighted 
room of a uniform temperature—neither 
exposed to the sun nor heated by the fire. 
Groat care should be exercised in taking 
the observations from this instrument—else 
they aro of little value. 
The Rain-Gauge must be located near 
tho surface of the ground, in an open spaco, 
so that trees, buildings and fences shall 
have no influence on tho quantity of rain 
falling thorein. Snow and hail are to be 
melted and tho water measured. This in¬ 
strument should not bo exposed to any 
hands but thoso of the observer. 
Tho Psychrometer should bo put up ex¬ 
actly as tho Thermometer. 
Tho Vane must have a prominont situa¬ 
tion, and turn oasily upon its axis. If you 
havo no dial within tho house,, connected 
with tho vane, it should bo painted whito in 
ordor to facilitate evening observations.— 
Tho smoko of tho chimney from olovatod 
buildings, or wotting tho finger in warm 
Wetter or in tho mouth, and thon pointing 
up will enable ono to doeido the direction 
in which tho lowor current of tho air is 
moving. 
Tho clouds ofton move in different direc¬ 
tions from tho wind below. A careful ob¬ 
server sometimes notes throe or four differ¬ 
ent atmospheric currents; e. g.: the wind 
bolow may be blowing from the north-west, 
tho first stratum of clouds moving from tho 
