MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL, LITERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER, 
CUTTING WHEAT BEFORE IT IS KITE. 
IN THREE NUMBERS — NO. III. 
I have heretofore mentioned that it might 
be more profitable for the farmer if he cut his 
wheat before it was ripe, provided he threshed 
it with a machine, and immediately sold it.— 
But is it morally right ?—Is it honest to do 
so, when it is palpably injurious to the con¬ 
sumers of it ? Whatever others may think, 
it certainly appears to me that it is not. If 
the farmer keeps his grain until it is well dried, 
I think from ten to twenty per cent, deduction 
should be made for loss of weight in drying. 
If the farmer gets it off his hands into those of 
the merchant or miller, he avoids the loss to 
himself, but the purchaser must be the loser ; 
and however the loss may be cunningly shift¬ 
ed from the one to the other, the morality (or 
rather the immorality) of the transaction is 
the same. Besides, the farmer’s family, (as 
well as others,) is in the daily habit of using 
this unwholesome diet; and if his conscience 
does not check him in regard to the effects of 
it upon others, surely it will cause him to 
shrink from the daily administration of it to 
his wife and children ! 1 presume I need not 
enlarge upon this part of the subject,— for if 
a man is so void of conscientious feeling as 
not to care for the safety and welfare of even 
his own household, he is, in my opinion, 
“ worse than an infidel,” and arguments are 
but lost upon him. 
A few words as to the •pecuniary profits 
which farmers derive from cutting their wheat 
before it is ripe, and I have done. Practical 
and experienced farmers are well aware that 
when wheat is cut ten or twelve days before 
it would be ripe, it is much more liable to be¬ 
come injured by growing in the shoclc, than if 
left standing, unnit, until ripened ; at least, 
so that the grains will break, when chewed. 
If warm weather occurs soon after it is cut, 
the grains grow immediately — the moisture 
of the unripe grain being sufficient to cause it 
to germinate and grow. I have known fre¬ 
quent instances of it. And if wet, or even 
damp and foggy weather occurs, it is almost 
certain to grow. “ Unripe grain must be left 
in shock in the field, a week or ten days before 
it is housed,” it is said, and correctly said, too. 
If housed, or stacked soon after being cut, it 
will become “ musty,” and spoiled, in the 
mow. If left in the field a week, or ten days, 
it is in gTeat danger of growing, and thus be¬ 
ing spoiled. Now, why not let it stand, un¬ 
cut, until sufficiently ripened to avoid the 
evils n.nd differs which I have mentioned V 
It is very seldom indeed, if ever, that it is in¬ 
jured by standing in the field, uncut, until it 
is ripe, let the weather be what it will. But 
it is said that “ if fully ripened it shells badly, 
and there is great loss in harvesting.” That 
there is some loss, I am aware ; but probably 
not half, nor even a quarter, of what is gen¬ 
erally supposed. An unobservant and inex¬ 
perienced person, is ready to exclaim that there 
is “ a great loss, because the wheat is too 
ripe,” &c., — not observing that nineteen- 
twentieths of the ground has very little grain 
scattered over it, but looking at the spots 
where the sheaves have been bound, where 
that which was in the band is somewhat 
thickly strewn. I jet us suppose that a tenth 
part of the field is strewn with “ shelled ” 
wheat, sufficiently thick to answer for seed, 
the quantity would be but some 9 or 10 lbs. 
to the acre; and this out of a crop of, proba¬ 
bly, an average of 20 bushels. Would not the 
wheat, (20 bushels,) if cut ten days too soon 
to be well ripened, in drying lose more than 
three times that quantity ? I think it would. 
If this calculation is correct, (and from my 
experience I think it is,) there is certainly no 
loss, but a considerable gain, in letting wheat 
stand in the field, uncut, until it is, at least, 
pretty well ripened, so as to be fit for seed, as 
well as food. Another advantage of having 
wheat well ripened, if there is smut in it, is 
that the smut does not stick fast to it, and 
blacken the grains, as it does if the wheat is 
cut before it is fully ripe. 
Upon the whole I must come to the conclu¬ 
sion that unripe wheat will not make better 
four than that which is ripe, because the flour 
made of it is not wholesome food :—That it 
will not make more four, because it has not 
received the full amount of farinaceous matter 
elaborated and prepared by the plant'That 
it is not as good for seed as that which is 
fully ripe : — That it is not as profitable, in 
the end, to the farmer, (unless he can sell it 
immediately after it is cut,) because it loses 
more in drying, (in the shock, or elsewhere,) 
than is lost by letting it stand until well ri¬ 
pened :—That there is much more danger of 
its growing by long exposure to the weather, 
after being cut:—That it is greatly damaged, 
if smutty, because the smut dust will blacken 
it so that it is about impossible to make first 
rate flour from it:—And finally that it is not 
honest to sell such wheat, or the flour made of 
it, because it is deleterious to the health of 
the consumers of it. ’IIiel. 
July, 1855. 
Eds. Rural A few practical remarks on 
this subject may not be out’of place; the topic 
is, at least, seasonable. 
Wheat, should always be cured, or seasoned 
and dry before threshing. Many farmers pur¬ 
sue a plan like the following. The wheat Ls 
cut, shocked, and drawn to the barn in what 
is called tolerable good order. It may have 
had rain upon it, or it may have been par¬ 
tially green, and perhaps some grass was bound 
in the sheaves—either of which cases will have 
a tendency, when the whole is placed in a mow 
together, to dampen what would have remain¬ 
ed dry. Suppose that either, or all of these 
circumstances, are applicable in one case ; and 
that the farmer feels desirous of getting it 
threshed at the earliest opportunity possible. 
Following his wishes up to execution, he has 
it threshed in one, two, or three weeks after it 
has been in the barn, and just then it is in 
the height of what is called sweating. Now 
comes the trouble. He scold3 the threshers 
for not doiDg what cannot be done properly 
under the circumstances—that is, the wheat 
cannot lie threshed thoroughly, because it is 
not seasoned. 
Well, the “bay” is emptied and all run 
through the “machine,” rakings and all; the 
wheat is put in the granary, and it is suppos¬ 
ed to be all right, although he thought the 
yield too little for the straw. But wait; iu the 
course of six or eight weeks, he takes a load 
of this wheat to market, and for the first time 
“ in all this work ” finds that his wheat is 
damp and musty to the tune of three, six or 
nine cents per bushel discount from the full 
market price. And when told of the fact, he 
“can’t see why it is so, for it was dry when 
it was put in the bins, six weeks since.”— 
Well, my good friend, (if the coat fits you,) 
the reason is plain. You did not have your 
wheat properly cured previous to drawing, 
and then you would not give it time to go 
through the slow process of seasoning in the 
mow. I have seen wheat quite wet with rain, 
placed in a mow, and by giving it time and 
plenty of air, it became seasoned and threshed 
well. (It is a poor plan to house wheat, or 
any grain when wet.) But if the bars should 
by chance be left down and the pigs get into 
the corn, don’t, for your own sake, call the 
dog and thus drive them, pell mell, through a 
ten acre lot of corn, tramping and wasting a 
great deal than is necessary. Just so if your 
wheat gets wet in the shock; “set it out, ’ 
expose it to the air and sun, get it seasoned 
before drawing, if possible ; and if you must 
thresh your wheat early, do so before it has 
time to sweat in the mow. Drawing and 
thresh in £ at the same time is preferable if 
you have men and teams. But at aDy rate 
get your wheat seasoned before threshing. It 
will be for your interest in more ways than one. 
Batavia, N. Y., July, 1855. S. B. P. 
and the only method by which it can be ex¬ 
terminated, is that of weeding, or plowing 
continually, so as to prevent it from seeding. 
It is an insidious enemy, and 'comes in a 
lamb’s disguise, and probably the fact that it 
is often mistaken for May w'eed, is one great 
reason for its spreading so rapidly. Many a 
farmer who sees the white blossoms waving 
and dancing among his grain, thinks no more 
of it until he beholds it invading, with alarm¬ 
ing swiftness, his meadows and pastures. But 
it is easily recognized when we observe it 
closely. It grows taller and stronger than 
May weed, has a larger flower, and is marked 
by an entire absence of that peculiar odor 
which the medicinal herb possesses.— G. T. 
W., Perinton, N. Y. 
THE WEATHER AND ITS EFFECTS. 
RURAL NOTES AND QUERIES. 
About Going West, &c. —In reply to 
inquries of “ E. C.,” in the Rural of 21st July, 
I am prepared to say the opportunities for 
renting farms as he proposes are easily found, 
although the most common manner is for the 
renter to furnish a team and one half the seed, 
and thereby entitle himself to one half the 
crop — while, furnishing nothing but his 
labor, he is entitled to only one-third. With 
regard to inducements, I think no person well 
informed upon the subject will dispute that 
the West offers greater to a young man of 
limited means than other portion of our coun¬ 
try. As to time of the year to move, that, 
iu my opinion, depends somewhat upon the 
locality chosen by the individual. Should he 
select the southern part of Illinois, where win¬ 
ter wheat is sown altogether, early in the fall 
would seem to be the proper time, as he would 
be able to get in a crop of wheat to turn off 
the first year. If he would go where spring 
wheat only is raised it would be as well per¬ 
haps to go in the winter—either fall or winter 
being favorable to escape fever and ague.— 
There is no regular line of first class steamboats 
between Buffalo and Chicago, but there are 
“ propellers ” running between those places, 
upon which a person can go in from five to 
almost any number of days, the expense being 
some six or seven dollars. I would advise 
your correspondent to be sure and take along 
a “ right smart ” woman to make his corn 
bread, drop corn for him in planting time* (if 
she wishes to,)—and who will make herself 
generally useful, both indoors and out.—n. f. c. 
a patent corn-planter would be an im- 
TIME TO READ-SENSIBLE HUNTS. 
“Do you take the Rural?” said I to a 
hard-working “Sou of the Soil,” not long 
since. “ No ; I would be glad to, but 1 have 
so much work to do I cannot possibly find 
time to read, it.” And a thousand others 
make the same excuse. 
People say I perform as much manual labor 
as any person in town, and yet I “ find time 
to read three weeklies and two monthlies, at- 
tend to correspondence, and during the winter 
season read much miscellaneous matter; all 
done not because I am “ smarter” than other 
folks, but by “ euconomizing time.” Place a 
paper or book in some handy spot, and if you 
have to wait a few minutes for your meals, 
read a paragraph. When you go to mill, or 
the shop, slip a paper into your pocket, and 
instead of lounging about, read the doings of 
this great Babel world. A half an hour or 
an hour may be profitably employed every 
evening in reading, as sleep is much more re 
freshing after the body is partially rested than 
to drop immediately into heavy, stupid slum 
ber. 
Brother Farmers, how long shall we hear it 
tauntingly said, “ He is only a farmer ?” How 
long shall we be the mere tools of shrewd, wire 
pulling politicians? Till, by self-culture, we 
learn to do our own thinking. The mind must 
have proper nutriment and exercise as well as 
the body, or else it will become dwarfed and 
diseased. D - 
Oakfleld, July, 1855. 
NOXIOUS WEEDS. 
Mr. Editor :—I noticed that in an article 
entitled “ noxious weeds,” a correspondent of 
yours enumerates May weed as one of the 
most deleterious to farmers. I think he is 
mistaken, and that his error arises from con¬ 
founding another weed sometimes called Eck 
ler’s Clover, Bull’s-eye, White Daisy, &c., 
with the comparatively harmless herb which 
grows around our doors, and along the way- 
side. 
Eckler’s Clover, or whatever it may be 
called, is indeed a very destructive weed, and 
farmers cannot be too vigilant in guarding 
against its encroachments. It infests all 
kinds of land, and injures all sorts of crops/ 
*We “ reckon ” 
provement.—Ens 
Tile Drain. — Lawton Blackberry. — 
Will you inform me where I can obtain tile 
for drains, cost per 100, &c., and as much in¬ 
formation about putting down tile as you 
jilease? Where can 1 obtain plants of the 
Lawton Blackberry, of which you have given 
a description in the Rural?—H. C. .Bingham, 
Brantford, C. W. 
Remarks. —Drain tile can be obtained in all 
our principal towns. H. C. NVhite, of the 
Buffalo Ag. Warehouse, is perhaps the nearest 
dealer on this side of the line. The price 
varies, according to size. Mr. A. Kaiines, of 
this city, is opening an extensive Brick and 
Tile Factory at Charlotte (mouth of the Gen¬ 
esee Itivcr on Lake Ontario,) and will ere long 
be enabled to supply the Canadian market at 
reasonable prices. He has not yet commenc¬ 
ed making tile, but we presume would do so 
at once, on receipt of an order of sufficient 
amount to make it an object. Have hitherto 
given directions for putting down tile, and 
will say more on the subject in a future No. 
The Lawton Blackberry can be obtained of 
Gf.o. Seymour & Co., South Norwalk, Conn. 
Irrigation — Drouth Theory. —S. L. F., of 
Starkey, inquires for the proper time to irri¬ 
gate meadow land, & c. Will answer negative¬ 
ly— Not till it stops raining. We have had 
constant wet a whole week, so that wheat is 
growing in the head, and hay that was cut is 
pretty nearly spoiled. By the by, what be¬ 
comes of the theory so strongly advocated last 
season, that drouths are the result of denuding 
the country of forests ? The area of wild land 
must have increased immensely, or the doc¬ 
trine is of doubtful soundness. Guess there is 
a deeper philosophy or a Higher reason for 
the extremes of dry and wet that the last and 
present season exhibit—W. B. P., Pratts- 
burgh, N. Y., July 2G. 
Use Ice-Water :—Six years ago I was in 
duced to take ice-water into the field, as a 
drink during the warm season. I have con 
tinued to do so ever since, to my own satis¬ 
faction and to that of every person in my em¬ 
ploy. I take the drink to the field in the 
morning. One seldom drinks over a half 
pint at a time, and it “ goes to the spot.” If 
my brother farmers will try the ice-water, 
they will find it not only better, but cheaper 
than any other drink.— Sam’l L. Fuller, 
Oakland’s Farm, near Geneva, N. Y. 
Tuesday, P. M., July 31. 
Never have the farmers of Western New 
York experienced a more gloomy harvest sea¬ 
son thau the present. For nearly two weeks 
the country has been deluged with rain. It 
has rained more or less, in this and other re¬ 
gions, every day (except Sunday last,) since 
the 19 th,—and much of the time the rain has 
been copious and continuous. The damage to 
the wheat and hay is of course very great, 
near and distant—for the storm extended to 
Ohio, Michigan, &c. It is impossible, at 
present, to estimate the amount of loss with 
any degree of accuracy. Thousands of tons of 
hay have been entirely destroyed in this re¬ 
gion and the same is probably true of other 
sections. We know of several farmers in this 
vicinity who will lose from five to twenty 
tons each. 
The wheat crop has been greatly deprecia¬ 
ted in both quantity and quality, throughout 
AVestern New York, and elsewhere. Every 
day for a week past, we have received most 
sad and gloomy accounts from all directions 
hereabouts. The wheat that was cut before 
the rain commenced is of course most injured, 
but much of the standing grain has been grow¬ 
ing, more or less, for a week ; we saw samples 
on Wednesday last which had grown, while 
standing, nearly an inch, and the wet weather 
since has of course been most disastrous.— 
Much excitement has naturally prevailed, and 
the facts no doubt been exaggerated, but the 
truth will prove bad enough. The probable 
loss is variously estimated—it will be great 
iu any event, even if the weather is favorable 
hereafter—but still we think it has been over¬ 
estimated. The Soule variety is the most af¬ 
fected, and the Blue Stem and Flint the least. 
We have conversed with many intelligent 
wheat growers, and all agree that the loss 
is great, though their estimates vary widely, 1 
as probably does the extent of the damage in 
different localities. Gen. Harmon, of Wheat- 
land, (with whom we have just been convers¬ 
ing on the subject,) estimates the damage to 
the crop of Western New York at full one- 
fourth in quantity, and ten per cent, in qual¬ 
ity. This is less than other estimates, yet we 
are inclined to believe it within bounds. It 
is, however, too early to estimate the damage 
with any great degree of accuracy. The 
weather is fine to-day, with favorable indica¬ 
tions for the future. See article in News 
Department. 
Monroe Co. Horses for France. —Of late 
we bavo learned that a French gentleman was 
purchasing carriage and saddle horses, in dif¬ 
ferent parts of this State, for the Paris mar¬ 
ket. And it now appears that the French, 
man has been in this vicinity on the same bu¬ 
siness. The Albany Knickerbocker of Satur¬ 
day last, says:—“At Winne’s Exchange 
Stable in Church street we saw, yesterday, 
one of the finest pair of horses that ever came 
to Albany. They were seventeen hands high 
and as symmetrical as the Greek Slave. They 
were raised in Monroe county, a few miles 
from Rochester. They belong to a French 
gentleman, who has purchased them for the 
purpose of taking them to Paris. They will 
leave for Europe next week, and when they 
arrive among the frog-eaters, will create an 
excitement that will be rather gratifying to 
the horse breeders of old Monroe.” 
Cabbages for Cows. —The editor of th e 
Agricultural Gazette, (Eng.) estimates one 
acre of cabbages to be worth three acres of 
turnips for cows. He recommends sowing 
seeds in beds, either in autumn or spring, and 
transplanting toward the end of May, at the 
the rate of 8,000 plants to the acre. One 
pound of seed will produce about 2,400 plants. 
Under date of Paris, July 5th, Mr. Greely 
thus writes to the Tribune relative to crops 
and harvest in those parts of Europe which he 
has recently visited: 
“ As I hear vague reports of indifferent har¬ 
vest prospects in this or that quarter, let me 
say that, having traveled pretty extensively 
of late, I feel satisfied that the wheat crops of 
Europe for 1855 will be a full average, while 
that of hay (already for the most part se¬ 
cured) will exceed the usual yield. I think I 
never saw potatoes more thrifty and vigorous 
than those of France and Switzerland now 
appear wherever they are not stifled by the 
insane practice of close planting, which is too 
common. Nearly every variety of vegetables 
is also looking well. The weather is variable, 
but generally dry and cool—and I know not 
what could be better for the maturing grain. 
Rye (now nearly ripe) looks well in Switzer¬ 
land, but not so well in France; oats are late 
but generally of a good color ; Indian corn is 
often yellow and slender; but neither this nor 
rye is extensively grown in the sections I have 
traversed. The great staples are grass, 
wheat and potatoes, and all these in the main 
promise well. I am assured that the prospect 
is equally good throughout Germany.” 
Whitewash for Outhouses and Fences. 
—Take a clean barrel that will hold water. 
Put into it half a bushel of quicklime, and 
slack it by pouring over it boiling water suffi¬ 
cient to cover it four or five inches deep, and 
stirring it until slaked. When quite slaked, 
dissolve it in water, and add two pounds of 
sulphate of zinc, which may be had at any 
of the druggists, and one of common salt, 
and which in a few days will cause the white¬ 
wash to harden on the wood-work. Add 
sufficient water to bring it to the consistency 
of thick whitewash. 
To make the above wash of a pleasant 
cream color, add 3 lbs. yellow ochre. 
For fawn color, add 4 lbs. umber, 1 lb. In¬ 
dian red, and 1 lb. lampblack. 
For grey or stone color, add 4 lbs. raw um¬ 
ber, and 2 lbs. lampblack. 
The color may be put on with a common 
whitewash brush, and will be found much 
more durable than common whitewash.— Sci¬ 
entific American. 
How to move a Sullen Ox.—“ Did you 
never observe,” said a plain man, a friend of 
ours, a few days since, as we we were driving 
a dog out of the cow-pen, to prevent his taking 
refuge behind us—as the cows took it by 
turns to chase him over the lot—“ did you 
never observe that a cow never will make 
friends with a dog?” “ Often.” “ Well, the 
best way you ever tried to make steers rise 
when they get sullen, and lie down, is just to 
bring a dog and drop him down on them. It 
will make them jump up when nothing else in 
the world will.” We seized the hint at once 
for the benefit of our friends who own such 
pests as obstinate oxen, and give it to them 
now. We believe there is no antipathy so 
universal and inveterate as that of cattle 
against dogs, and it strikes us that when all 
other means fail, that will answer.— South¬ 
ern Planter. 
Precocious Biddies. —One of the editors of 
the Southern Cultivator —brother Redmond, 
we suppose—says he has a Brahma pullet, 
scarcely five months old, that has laid a brood 
of eggs (some 25 or 30) and gone to setting. 
A black Shanghai pullet, of the same age, has 
also commenced laying. Neither, he adds, are 
more than half grown ; but they have had ex¬ 
tra care and attention, and wheat has entered 
largely into their food. They also had the 
advantage of a wide range in the fields, Sec. 
Ohio and Conn. State Fairs. —We are in 
receipt of pamphlets embracing Premium 
Lists, Regulations, Sic., of the approaching 
Agricultural Exhibitions of these States.— 
As before announced the Ohio Fair is to be 
held at Columbus, Sept. 18 to 21—and the 
Conncticut at Hartford, Oct. 9 to 12. The 
premiums offered are vory liberal, and the ar¬ 
rangements—particularly for the Ohio Show 
—are extensive and complete. 
Cotswold Wool. —We are indebted to 
Wm. Warfield, Esq., of Lexington, Ky., for 
a very superior sample of wool taken from a 
two year old Cotswold buck. It is a most 
beautiful specimen—fine, long and silk-like, 
and somewhat resembling the Cashmere wool 
received from Mr. Peters, of Georgia, some 
months since. 
Setting Hens. —In setting hens, thirteen 
eggs are enough to give them ; a large hen 
might cover more, but a few stronger, well 
hatched chicks are better than a large brood 
of weaklings that have been delayed in the 
shell perhaps twelve hours over the time from 
insufficient warmth. At the end of the week, 
it is usual, with setting turkeys, to add two or. 
three fowl’s eggs, “ to teach the young turkeys 
to pick.” The plan is not a bad one; the ac¬ 
tivity of the chickens stirs up some emulation 
injheir larger brethren. The eggs take up 
but little room in the nest, and will produce 
two or three very fine fowls.— Albany Cult. 
Cashmere Goats.— A letter from Dr. Da¬ 
vis, of Columbia, S. C., to the Greensboro' 
Beacon, states that “ the fourth cross of the 
Cashmere upon our native goat is fully equal 
to the pure Cashmere.” This animal, the 
Doctor says, is destined to make a great rev¬ 
olution in the agriculture of the whole South. 
Beautiful cloth is now made by negro weav¬ 
ers, with ordinary plantation looms, from the 
second cross. All the native goats iu South 
Carolina, he states, are now appropriated to 
crossing with the Cashmere breeds, and Geor¬ 
gia and Virginia are also breeding these ani¬ 
mals extensively. 
Roots of Trees in Pife Drains. —Where 
drains have to be laid near the roots of trees, 
it is important that they should be well bed¬ 
ded in cement, at those places, and every 
small opening effectually closed. Wherever 
the water can get in the roots will also find 
their way, aud eventually cause much trouble 
in the stoppage of the drain. 
The Premium List for the Pennsylvania 
State Fair, to be held at Harrisburg, Sept. 
25 to 27, embraces cash prizes, amounting to 
$5,059, ranging from $100 down to $1.— 
There are also embraced in the list, thirty-one 
silver cups and goblets, eighty-three silver 
medals, and a number of bronze medals. 
The Executive Committee of the Virginia 
State Agricultural Society, have determined 
this year to place the entire management and 
arrangement of the departments of “ House¬ 
hold and Domestic Manufactures,” “Flowers,” 
and “ Ijadies Ornamental Fancy Work,” in 
the hands of the ladies. 
Agriculture in France. —A letter writer 
says : “ A trip of six huudred and fifty miles, 
from the northern to the southern extremity 
of France, justifis me in the expression of my 
opinion that the sun does not shed its rays on 
so fair a land, or one so thoroughly cultivated. 
The whole country is literally a garden.” 
The Onion Maggot. —The New England 
Farmer says tobacco steeped in water and 
poured along the rows, directly upon the 
plant, will effectually prevent the ravages of 
the onion maggot. 
The Ixjw is Co. Ag. Society is tn hold its 
next fair at Turin, Sept. 25th and 27th. 
1 
