TWO DOLLARS A YEAR.] 
PROGRESS AN'l > IMPROVEMENT. 
fSINGLE NO. FIVE CENTS 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
ciety, $10,000 subscribed by the citizens of Centre 
knowledge can be oPr 'ued with the greatest facil 
County, $5,000, a bequest of Elliott Cresson, and 
$25,000 appropriated by the State. The further sum 
of $25,000 has been appropriated by the State on 
condition that an equal sum be subscribed by citi¬ 
zens. Its whole meane, therefore, if the subscrip¬ 
tion is completed, of which no doubt remains, are 
$100,000, and the farm donated by Gen. Irvin, 
at $12,000. One wing of the main College build¬ 
ing is nearly erected, and the present design of 
the Trustees is to open the Institution on the 15th 
of February next, with 100 students, to be in¬ 
creased to 400. 
The Maryland .Agricultural College was 
incorporated by the State in 1850, and $6,600 per 
annum appropriated towards its support provided 
subscriptions to the amount of $60,000 were first 
secured. That object having been effected during 
the last winter, the Institution was organized uud 
the College located on a Iractof 428 acres of nd, 
purchased at Biadensburg, near Washington, from 
the estate of Hon. C. B. Calvert, the largest 
Stockholder and President of the Board of Tins 
tees. The corner stone of an extensive edifice 
was laid on the 24th of August last, and the de.iign 
is to push the work to rapid conclusion. 
The State Agricultural College op Iowa 
was incorporated in March last. The preliminary 
appropriations are $10 000, and five sections of 
lands heretofore granted by Congress for erection 
of Capitol buildings. Localities vie with each 
other in offers of money or land to secure its lo a- 
’ d, varying in value from $10,000 to $25,000 It, 
is to be fully organized and located in Jam ary j 
ity; study the best English boobs, such as Boms- 
singau/fs Rural Ecmwniy, Johnston's Agricultural 
Chemistry , Cyclopedia of- Agriculture, &o., &e,, read 
the American Agricultural Journals, for the ex¬ 
perience of the best Aimers; and in this way 
you will gain a vast amount of just the knowledge 
you will need. Test evn*y theory, as far as possi¬ 
ble, by practice, and in Sk : s way not only will their 
truth or falsity be made manifesr, but the facts 
will be indelibly imprea -. d upon the mind. Watch 
closely the practice of good cultivators, and you 
will see much to imitate and some things to avoid. 
Do this, and you will mi 1 : good practical farmers, 
with as good a claim to .e scientific as those who 
boast their science, though you may never enter 
in Agricultural College. 
AN ORIGINAL WEEKLY 
Agricultural, Literary and Family Newspaper. 
The Rural New-Yorker Is designed to be unsurpassed in 
Value, Parity, Usefulness and Variety of Contents, and unique and 
beautiful in Appearance. Its Conductor devotes his personal atten¬ 
tion to the supervision of its various departments, and eamcsUy labors 
to render the Rural an eminently Reliable Guide on 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, Educational, Literary and 
News Matter, interspersed with appropriate and beautiful Engravings, 
than any other journal,—rendering it the most complete Agricultu¬ 
ral, Literary and Family Journal in America. 
£3"All communications, and business letters, should bo addressed 
to D. D. T. MOORE, Rochester, N. Y. 
For Terms and other particulars, see last page. 
PRACTICAL NOTES. 
Waste Manures. 
An agriculturist once wrote, 
men have ex¬ 
plored the caves of India, the battle fields of 
Europe, and the coasts of Africa, for the elements 
of fertility; yet upon our own farms, in adjoining 
workshops, or in neighboring towns, are to be 
found notone, but manyeourcea from which ferti¬ 
lizers may he obtained. Bow many corners in his 
! own farm afford the farmer the vegetable and 
mineral constituents of useful composts_how 
many clay and marl beds, that would remedy the 
physical imperfections of the sandy surface, are 
j permitted to remain in shapeless and useless idle- 
1 nesB—bow many masses of materials that have 
served the purposes of trade or manufacture, re¬ 
main in the nooks and corners of towns, idle for 
all the purposes of the farmer, by whom they are 
capable of being made, in many instances, valuable 
agents of fertility.” This is true, and a glance at 
Borne of these sources of fertility lying or running 
waste, may not be unprofitable. The drainage 
from the stables is oi 4i»e first importance, and an 
earnest effort should be made for its iivu- <i, 
Perhaps next in importance to this is the drainage 
from manure heaps, as this waste is composed not 
only of the urine, but a solution of the richest part 
of the dung. The drainage from the house can very 
easily be preserved, by a proper arrangement, and 
if not convenient to use in a liquid form, may be 
thrown over the compost heap, and it would be 
well were it formed principally of turf or dry 
muck. Such a compost would be an excellent 
place to throw all blood and animal matter, at 
killing time, while weeds and vegetable refuse 
would decay quicker if composted with stable 
manure. A compost of rotten turf saturated with 
soap-suds and other slops and refuse from the 
house, is a regular guano heap. A farmer who 
saw a neighbor cutting a drain from bis yard, to 
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION. 
One of the most favorable signs of the times is 
the desire so apparent among young men to gain 
a good agricultural education. We have a hest of 
letters inquiring where a knowledge of agricul¬ 
ture can be best obtained, and we see similar in¬ 
quiries in most of the agricultural papers. We 
purpose to give ail the information we have in 
regard to the agricultural schools of this country, 
and for the principal facts we are indebted to 
Hon. Joseph R. Williams, President of the Miebi- 
in State Agricultural College. 
Tint A griculturat. College of the 8tate ot 
Michigan has been in actual operation since May 
13tb, 1857. Its Faculty consists of a President 
and four Professors, and it has accommodations 
tit present for 100 students Its design is to unite 
■ bysieal with mental culture, to afford the student 
a chance to earn in part his own education, and a 
chance to apply himself, free of tnitioD, to those 
sciences and practical arts, that may render him a 
scientific farmer and an enlightened citizen. The 
farm consists of G76 acres, mostly wild land, we 
believe, and therefore much of the time and labor 
of the students is devoted to chopping and clear¬ 
ing up. The institution, we understand is full 
How much the students learn of practical or sci¬ 
entific agriculture, we cannot say. About a year 
since we heard of some difficulty between the stu¬ 
dents and officers in regard to provisions provided 
for their consumption. 
The New York State Agricultural College 
was incorporated in 1853. Its creation wa3 princi¬ 
pally due to the energy of the late lamented John 
Delafield, who was chosen its first President 
After his death, the work was suspended. It was 
revived in 1856. The farm, embracing G8G acres, 
was then purchased at a cost of $45,000, princi¬ 
pally by subscriptions of the farmers of Seneca 
County. It is situated on an eligible and com¬ 
manding position, stretching from the village of 
Ovid to Seneca Lake. A loan by the State of 
Wli/I.MiD’S IMPROVED 'VEGETABLE CUTTER 
This machine has been in use two or three years, 
and is commended by those who have used it, as 
admirably adapted for cutting np turnips, beets, 
carrots, potatoes, and ether roots, pumpkins, &c. 
for stock. We have not seen it in operation, but 
are assured that it is simple, that a man can cut 
two bushels of roots per minute, and that it cuts 
sufficiently fine for young lambs and calves—not 
slicing the roots, but leaving them in small broken 
pieces, ao as to prevent choking. It also leaver 
them in the best condition for mixing with meal, 
bran, or cat hay and straw We are inclined to 
believe it is a veiy valuable machine for stock 
raisers, and presume the manufacturer, if as 
shrewd as most Vermonters, will ere long announce 
the price, (which wo think is only $10,) and where 
it may be obtained. It should be on sale at the 
Ag. Warehouses throughout the country. 
me agricultural colleges of Michigan, Iowa 
and Minnesota, arc State Institutions. These of 
New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland, are the 
joint works of public spirited individuals and the 
respective States. 
In anticipation of all these efforts, the Farmers’ 
College near Cincinnati, Ohio, under the auspices 
of F. G. Cary, Esq., and other public spirited gen¬ 
tlemen, has for several years promoted the cultiva¬ 
tion of the earth in conjunction with literary and 
scientific pursuits. It is, however, a Classical In¬ 
stitution, embracing other objects, and prescribed 
labor in the culture of the soil, is not a compulsory 
feature of its plan. 
A bill establishing an Agricultural College is 
now pending before the Legislature of Ohio, and 
will probably be reached at its adjourned session, 
the approaching winter. Its friends are not san¬ 
guine of its success. 
The Legislature of Massachusetts, in 185G, incor¬ 
porated a School of Agriculture, which must be 
dependent entirely on subscriptions for its future 
establishment In 1850, Massachusetts, in advance 
of other States, appointed Commissioners to inves¬ 
tigate the subject and Prof. Hitchcock made an 
elaborate Report relative to Agricultural Colleges 
iu Europe. A plan was recommended for Agricul¬ 
tural Education, but no effective action was taken 
on the subject Two citizens of Massachusetts 
Benjamin Bussey, of Roxbury, and Oliver Smith! 
of Hatfield, have made princely bequests to be used 
in some remote future contingencies for founding 
Agricultural Colleges, but available for no imme- 
time, and four or five quarts pnt into a barrel of 
rain water makes a most superb liquid manure 
for any beds of young plants that need stimula¬ 
ting. In this form we use it for onr melons and 
cucumbers, as soon as they appear above ground, 
to put them out of the way of the “bugs,” aDd 
on beds of cabbage, cauliflower plants, &e., for the 
same purpose. Celery plants after being set out 
in the trenches may be hurried up amazingly by 
being watered two or rhree times a week with this 
liquid food. If magnificent sweet corn is wanted, 
half a pint of the dry hen dung, finely scattered 
in each hill, will give it, and no mistake. If you 
have been able to grow cn>y hard, hot, wormy 
radishes, next spring sow the seed in very shallow 
drills, (not too early) in a warm, sheltersd place, 
then cover the bed with a thin dressing of coal 
ashes, and wa’er with the liquid hen manure each 
alternate night, and if the season is as favorable 
as ordinary, you will have no cause to repent the 
trial. A little charcoal dast is better than coal 
ashes. 
observed how much more some people accomplish 
than others of equal powers and attainments. It 
is with men as with horses and oxen,—the amount 
of work done depends on the gait, and that depends 
on habit and education. One of the best ox team¬ 
sters I ever knew, Edenezkr Warren, would not 
drive steers in the same team with dull, lazy oxeD, 
which somebody else had spoiled— his oxen never 
were slow, for he made them “walk up,” on the start, 
and all through. 
Of coarse, neither men nor oxen can go fast for 
a great length of time—then rest when it is neces¬ 
sary. Fatigue may frequently be avoided by vary¬ 
ing one’s work, doing something else for a while, 
and this without detriment to one’s business. If 
the apple trees are to be trimmed, and the carrots 
to be wed, let that mix in with heavy work. In¬ 
stead of splitting rails all of one day, and plowing 
all of the next, it might be better for man and team 
tosplithalfa day, and then plow half a day. These 
remarks are aimed, however, at moping and drawl¬ 
ing without reason and without necessity. 
Secondly. Much depends upon knoioing how. In 
other branches of business, men and boys are not 
expected to understand a thing before they learn it; 
but in farming, if your father is a farmer, so called, 
and you are born on a farm and live there, there is 
nothing to be said about it- 
EDUCATION OF THE HANDS. 
blacksmith’s shop. At one time we observed 
workmen pulling down an old livery stable, to put 
up stores in its place. The soil beneath the floor 
had been saturated with liquid manure for more 
than a score of years. We found the person who 
had the contract for digging- the cellar, and en 
gaged the surface soil eighteen inches deep, at 
twenty-five cents a load, and would like to get a 
similar chance at one dollar. About the best field 
of wheat we ever saw, belonged to a comb maker, 
who had used the horn-shavings for manure. One 
of the most effective manures we ever used, was 
the refuse from a woolen factory. Many of these 
and others which we have not mentioned, the 
farmer who is constantly on the look out for ferti¬ 
lizing materials, can obtain at a very cheay rate. 
Bedding to Save Liquid Manure, 
Perhaps the best bedding for this purpose is 
dried muck from swamps. Saw-dust is good, tho’ 
-you are a farmer by 
“ divine right,” qualified for anything and every¬ 
thing in your line of bus’ness! Seriously and 
soberly, our boys go to work, and work on 
without systematic and competent instruction in 
any branch of business, — they chop, and mow, 
and plow, without being choppers, mowers, or 
plowmen — they neither work well, nor expedi¬ 
tiously 1 . You need not make up faces at me—I tell 
you plainly yon ain’t the first rational idea about 
what an educated hand (palm and fingers) can do.— 
You have heard about “ sleight of hand,” and you 
think it means spirit rapping, or mesmerism, or 
some other mystery,—it is simply knowledge, dex¬ 
terity and agility, which should characterize every 
move we make and every act we perform. 
Peeking round once iu the city of New York to 
see what I could see, I strayed into the Post-Office, 
and there saw a man assorting letters,—he had a 
large number of small boxes before him, the most 
distunt of which were several feet from him. He 
took up what he could with one hand, then with 
the other took a single letter, glanced at it, and, 
quick as thought, pitched it, quoit fashion, into the 
right box, (T suppose,)—he did not seem to follow 
the letter with bis eye to see that it went right, but 
instantly let another go in the same way. Had I 
attempted to do that thing half as fast, I’ll be bound 
that somebody wouid’nt have got letters by “ return 
mail.” 
The point and moral of all this is, that we should 
devote more time and more care to acquire skill 
and expertness in the several departments of farm 
labor. I have seen a man mow a swath hand¬ 
somely with less than half the expenditure of 
strength which the next man used who didn’t cut 
half as smooth. I have seen a man expend more 
in binding one acre of grain than another would 
in binding two. I have seen A take more time, and 
Institution we have great hopes of its success. 
The Farmers’ High School of Pennsylvania 
wa3 incorporated in 1855. It is located nine miles 
south-weB* of Bellefonte, in Centre County, on 200 
acres of land, the munificent gift of Gen. James 
Irvin. The farm, to which 200 acres have been 
added by purchase, is being brought rapidly into 
a high state of cultivation. Its resources consist 
of $10,000 donated by the State Agricultural So- 
