46 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
Communications. 
FEEDING CATTLE IN WINTER. 
Mr. Moore :—An inquiry is raised in tlic 
Rural of the 28th ult., in relation to feeding 1 
cattle but “twice a day” in winter, instead of 
three times, as is practised by our best stock 
growers. I would respectfully state, that the 
former has been my practice in winter feeding 
from thirty-five- to forty cows, for the past 15 
years. My good luck in this course of feeding 
—having in one instance winter-fed forty cows, 
all of which came into the dairy without ac¬ 
cident—has confirmed me in the opinion, that 
mine is the best way. 
Much care and regularity should be given to 
the business of winter feeding cattle. They 
should be separated, the stronger from the 
weaker, and not more than twenty head should 
go to one place for their food or drink. A 
larger number increases their liability to acci¬ 
dents. I have been accostumed to give my 
cows all they will eat, at night in the stables, 
and the same quantity of hay at the stacks in 
the morning—in the middle of the day they 
get nothing. Feeding cattle once a day at the 
stacks, does much to improve the meadows; at 
the same time the air and exercise obtained in 
going to their feeding places, keep the animals 
in a healthy condition. To the question, 
“ Why is it better to omit the noon feeding ?” 
I answer, the same quantity of hay at twice 
feeding gives a larger portion to the weaker 
animals, and keeps a nearer equality of flesh in 
the herd. 
The above remarks apply only to winter 
feeding, as after the departure of the snow it 
would not be proper to throw out a full feed¬ 
ing of hay on the muddy ground. At that 
season all kinds of stock will do much better 
to be fed only in the stables, or in racks suit¬ 
ably arranged in the yard. The injury done 
to the meadows by the tramping of cattle to 
the stack at morning and noon, feeding in the 
spring, is avoided by feeding in stables. A 
great saving of hay at the time when it is the 
most valuable in market is also effected, which 
wall more than re-pay the labor of removing 
the hay to the barn. 
It is hoped that the attention of stock grow¬ 
ers and dairymen may be drawn to this sub¬ 
ject, as a full and fair discussion of all matters 
that pertain to the business of the farm, cannot 
fail to elicit truths derived from practical ex¬ 
periments, which are the sure and most certain 
means of attaining successful and profitable 
husbandry. Geo. B. Clarke. 
Leonardsville, N. Y., 1854. 
“WILL UNDERDRAWING PAY?” 
Ens. Rural :—In the October number of 
the Rural, I reported a product of 546 bush¬ 
els of wheat from a field of 13 \ acres, in which 
had been put 398 rods of drains. The pro¬ 
ducts of the field hitherto had been daisies, 
strawberry vines, moss, wild grass, June grass, 
and flags, with a sprinkling in some parts of 
white and June clover, and a little herds grass. 
Swales and springs, and flag swamps, were the 
striking characteristics of the field. The prin¬ 
cipal flag swamp did not get sufficiently settled 
to plow, and the flags were moived and burned, 
and the wheat harrowed in. The roots, of 
course, were not disturbed much, and conse¬ 
quently, wheat and flags grew up together, pre¬ 
senting an anomalous appearance. At harvest, 
a number of stooks were green with them, and 
the straw stack discloses them now to the eye 
of the passer-by. Well, this aggregate pro¬ 
duct, you will observe, is something over an 
average of 40 bushels to the acre, which I 
have just marketed at $2 per bushel. Esti¬ 
mating straw at $3 per acre, which it would 
bring out here in the country, we have a total 
of $83 per acre, in a single crop. This, bear 
in mind, is away out among the hills of Steu¬ 
ben—a county of which some of your northern 
farmers have a despicable opinion, but can they 
beat it ? What say you, proud old Ontario, 
Seneca, and Livingston, and boasting, swag¬ 
gering Genesee? Enter the lists with Steuben, 
if you dare! W. B. Pratt. 
Prattsburgli, N. Y., Jan. 27, 1854. 
STUMP MACHINE, 
Carrot Crop. — I noticed in the Rural of 
ran. 7th, an account of a carrot crop, from B. 
Yorks, which I think I can excel. I raised, 
in a village lot containing one-fifth of an acre, 
iOO bushels of most excellent carrots. The 
oil, sandy loam. The account of the crop is 
is follows: 
Dr. 
ro four loads of manure, at 25c per load,.$1,00 
Drawing manure and plowing twice,.2,00 
flaking ground, seed, sowing by Land.... 1,06 
Weeding and hoeing 6 days,. 4,50 
Harvesting 4 days w'ith team,. 4,00 
Interest on land,.8,00 
Total,.$20,56 
Cr. 
By 200 bushels carrots at 25cts. 39 bush..$50,00 
J 20,56 
Having noticed an inquiry in a recent num¬ 
ber of the Rural, respecting a stump machine, 
I will endeavor to give an illustration of one I 
have used, which is constructed on a very sim¬ 
ple plan. A very powerful machine can be 
built after this model, for fifty dollars. The 
stumps which I had to pull, were very large, 
and I went to no great expense to get one up. 
It consists of a wooden lever represented by L, 
22 feet long, with three iron bolts I h inches by 
§, put through the large end of the lever, at 
the distance of 2 feet apart. Two of these 
bolts n c, go through the lever from one side, 
with a short chain attached to each, about 4 
feet long, with hooks on the ends. The other 
one, a, goes through from the opposite side, 
with one long link attached to it. Extend a 
chain from bolt a, to the bottom of a solid 
stump for an anchor. Then extend a chain 
from bolt c, to the top of the stump to be 
pulled, so as to gain more purchase. Then swing 
round with the team hitched to n, toward the 
anchor stump, and the large end of the lever 
will move towards the stump to be pulled; then 
hitch up with the short chain attached to bolt 
b, as short as possible, and turn the team back 
towards the stump you are pulling, as far as 
they can go, and then take up with chain 
o, and turn again, and three or four turns will 
pull most any stump. The chains that go 
round the stumps should be made with short 
links, and a ring on one end, and a hook on the 
other. One chain more only is necessary, to 
hook into next to the lever, which should be 
about 8 feet long, with long links, in order to 
hook handier. Besides these three chains, 1 
use square bam, b, of different lengths, with an 
eye on one end, and a link and hook on the 
other, which are much handier and quicker 
made than chains. With my chains, which 
will stretch about six rods, I can pull several 
stumps with one anchor. My chains are made 
of five-eighths round rod, and the bars three- 
fourths of an inch square. I get the power of 
about twelve yoke of cattle from'one yoke.— 
Cost of my machine about $25. n. b. g. 
ANSWERS TO SEVERAL QUESTIONS. 
Eds. Rural: —In the Rural for Feb. 4tli, 
Mr. 11. Groffer asks, “ How many solid feet 
of hay in the mow will make a ton?” I an¬ 
swer, 500 cubic feet Having had some expe¬ 
rience in buying as well as selling hay, I am 
satisfied that the answer here given is suffi¬ 
ciently correct for practical purposes. It is 
true that much depends on the quality of the 
hay, and the manner in which it is put in the 
mow. Coarse hay, in a dry condition, would 
require a few more feet than if it was fine hay, 
put in in a greener state. 
2. “ How many pounds of hay does a cow re¬ 
quire per day to keep her in good condition 
through the winter?” A very intelligent phy¬ 
sician informed me, a few years since, that he 
could not winter a cow short of ihree tons of 
hay. He resided in a village in the east part 
of this State, and used to put his cow up the 
first of November, and did not turn her out 
until the first of June, making a period of two 
hundred and twelve days, which would be a 
fraction short of 200 lbs. per week, or 28 lbs. 
per day. From my own observation, 1 am 
convinced that any large sized cow will con 
sume that quantity without waste. 
3. He may keep eggs, perfectly, by putting 
them in gypsum, and setting the vessel in a 
cool, dry place. 
4. As I cannot answer this question sat¬ 
isfactorily to myself, I will detail my experience 
in wintering cows on potatoes and straw, 
had' two cowls —a half-breed Durham, and a 
half-breed Holderness, and fed them one-half 
bushel of potatoes each, daily, from the last of 
November till May, and what oat straw, and 
gleanings from the manure heap of the horses 
they could obtain, which, as I was short of hay, 
was but little. 
The oat straw was not considered of much 
value; the main object being to convert it into 
manure. The potatoes were what are called the 
merinoes, and did not cost me, to raise them, 
7 cents a bushel. I thought then, and still 
think, I wintered those cows cheaper than I 
could have done in any other way.—A. G. 
Percey, JYewark, JY. Y., Feb. 4, 1854. 
AGRICULTURE IN IOWA. 
Eds. Rural: —The first No. of the Rural 
for ’54 is at hand. It certainly fulfils the indi¬ 
cations of “Progress and Improvement.”— 
Your Model Western New York Barn makes 
us wish there were not a few of the “same 
sort’ in Iowa. Rail pens are our granaries to 
begin with on a prairie farm. Log pens for 
stables, for horses. Cows, oxen, young stock, 
&c., are generally left to shirk for themselves. 
Rather abusive treatment for winter, yet they 
invariably look fat and sleek in summer. Our 
Prairie show's visible and striking marks of pro¬ 
gress and improvement. 
But a few' years since, Uncle Sam owned all 
the land; now r there arc a few farms that $15 
an acre w'ould not purchase. The threshing 
season is about over, for this year. One ma¬ 
chine (eight horse power) has already threshed 
25,000 bushels of grain, tw r o thirds wheat. Crops 
of all kinds have been abundant. Farmers 
have met with a considerable loss in the oat crop, 
in consequence of their growing so large as to 
fall down, which makes the harvesting of them 
cost all they arc worth. 
We could afford to pay a premium, if the 
Rural or any other source would instruct us 
how to manage our fertile prairie soils in rais¬ 
ing oats, to make them stand up till ready for 
harvest. I have never seen any land manured 
for a crop in this country. Asa C. Bowen. 
Bowen’s Prairie, Jan. IS, 1854.- 
^grintltaral Iflisullaiiji. 
Clear profits,.$29,44 
Elmanson Chesebro. 
Phoenix, Oswego Co., N. Y., Jan. 1854. 
Lutiier Butterfield furnishes the Country 
Gentleman with some experiments with su¬ 
perphosphate of lime. He used it on wheat, 
oats, corn and potatoes, and watched anxious¬ 
ly for the result, “and behold! what? Noth¬ 
ing, nothing, all moonshine.” He used it on 
beets, carrots and peas, with a slight benefit 
during their early growth. 
ANOTHER CARROT CROP. 
Eds. Rural: —Observing in a late number 
of the Rural an account of a Carrot crop, 
w’itli which my own crop the past season would 
compare rather favorably, I thought an ac¬ 
count of it might be acceptable to your read¬ 
ers. Anticipating only an ordinary crop, and 
having no thought of publishing the result, I 
kept no account of the cost of cultivation; but 
should judge that it w’ould not differ material¬ 
ly from the account given by Mr. Works.— 
Soil—a light sandy loam, in carrots the pre¬ 
ceding year. The manure applied was princi¬ 
pally from the hog-pen;—quantity of ground, 
24 rods,—yield, 170 bushels. Planted in drills 
18 inches apart. 
About three fifths of the ground was sown 
with the long orange, and the remainder with 
the while. The plants of the former did not 
stand close enough in the drills to produce a 
full crop, (the seed not being good,) neither did 
they grow as large as the white, which yielded 
at the rate of 1,400 bushels per acre. The 
ground w T as plowed some time before planting 
—not so deep as it should bo, and in the 
meantime was rendered hard by heavy rains.— 
My opinion is, that considerably larger crops 
can be produced here under favorable circum¬ 
stances. A. Kniffen. 
Union, Monroe Co., Jan. 23, 1854. 
A Cheap Fence. — I wish to lay before the 
readers of the Rural, a plan for building a 
good substantial fence, for the Western States, 
where timber is scarce. In the first place, cut 
a ditch 18 or 20 inches wide and lay the sods 
close to the edge of the ditch, and fill in behind 
with loose dirt Dig the ditch the length that 
you want the fence, then leave a space 2 feet 
wide for the foundation, and cut another ditch 
like the first one. Throw the dirt up 3 feet 
high, and run it up slanting ; then put in posts 
16 feet apart. If wire is used, put in two, one 
foot apart, and you will have a fence that will 
last a life-time. Sow on some grass seed to 
make a sod. This fence will cost about 31 cts. 
a rod. Clean out the ditches well, and you 
have a chance to drain the water off the land. 
—E. Ivens, Port Ontario, JY. Y. 
Depth of Roots. —Having occasion some 
years since, to remove some dirt from the bot¬ 
tom of my cellar, I found that the roots from 
a locust tree, standing about 12 feet from the 
house, had penetrated under the wall, and ex¬ 
tended near the surface nearly across the cellar, 
working their way down through a clay soil at 
least live feet 
In the neighborhood is a well 50 feet deep, 
walled up with brick except 3 feet at the bot¬ 
tom, which is stoned. The roots from a poplar 
tree, standing near the mouth of the well, ex¬ 
tended down below the brick, then through the 
stone wall, and so clogged the well that it be¬ 
came necessary to remove them, in order to 
get the water, which never rises above the 
stone.—A. Cone, East Bloomfield, JY. Y. 
PROFITABLE COWS. 
TRICE OF WHEAT. 
The Mark-Lane Express, the best English 
authority on this subject, says: 
If we compare present quotations (in the 
price of wheat,) with those current in May, the 
rise will be found to amount to 35s. to 40s. 
per qr. ($1,5 to $1,20). That this could not 
have occurred with free trade, if the deficiency 
in the last crop had not been very serious in 
several of the principal continental wheat¬ 
growing countries, as well as in Great Britain, 
is certain; and this being admitted, it is not 
easy to fix a limit to the rise. That great ef¬ 
forts will be made to collect wheat in the inte¬ 
rior of America, and that we shall obtain all 
that the continent of Europe can spare, there 
can be no doubt; but looking at the case with 
which all that has hitherto reached us has been 
absorbed, it must be admitted that a possibili¬ 
ty, if not a probabilty, exists of supplies falling 
short of demand, more especially during the 
next two or three months, there being little 
prospect of the northern ports being freed 
from ice, in time to allow supplies to reach us 
from thence, before April or May. 
Journal of the U. S. Ag. Society. —We 
are indebted to W. S. King for Nos. 3 and 4 
of the Journal of the Unitqd States Agricultural 
Society. They are bound together, and, with 
the two preceding numbers, complete the first 
volume. They are most decidedly an improve¬ 
ment on the first number, which was filled 
principally with long and not very judicious 
extracts from the British Agricultural jour¬ 
nals and papers, and bore obvious marks of 
hasty preparation. The second number w r as 
much better, containing more original matter 
and articles adapted to the wants of the 
American Farmer; and w r e arc happy to say 
that the last numbers arc still better in these 
respects, and approximate, to some extent, 
to what the United States Agricultural So¬ 
ciety’s Journal should be. We have not now 
space to notice the various articles, but shall 
allude to some of them in future numbers. 
Mr. Moore: — I have two cows from which 
was made from May 1st to Jan. 1st, 600 lbs. 
butter,—from May 21st to June 21st, one 
month, 146 lbs.—and from May 27th to June 
4th, one week, 37 lbs. These are the only 
cows I kept, and besides the butter, supplied 
the new milk and cream required in a family of 
four persons. 
So far as I have noticed, this is ahead of 
anything you have yet published in regard to 
good cows. I consider one of the cows better 
than the other. I am still making butter. 
Yours, &c., y. h. 
Ohio Enterprise. — A correspondent in 
Licking county, Ohio, writes us that “ this 
county is one of five, which produces more 
wheat than the whole of the west of the State. 
It has 160,000 sheep, or more by 40,000 than 
any other in the State. At the last annual 
Fair, the ground was found too small to accom¬ 
modate the assembled multitude, and the offi¬ 
cers of the Ag. Society have purchased the 
“Old Circular Fort,” situated about a mile from 
Newark, and containing upwards of forty acres. 
The cost of the land and necessary fixings will 
be about $8,000. The farmers are now raising 
this sum, and contribute with great liberality 
and promptitude.” 
nines intit ^.itshurs. 
Price of Flour. —The JYew York Tribune, 
after mentioning the fact that there are now 
in this city (Rochester,) 23 flour-mills with 
111 run of stone, and that each run of stone 
can turn out about 60 barrels of flour per day, 
says:—“ Let us take courage. We shall not 
starve yet Wait till the canal opens, and it 
will take more yeast than- the flour speculators 
can raise to keep flour effervescing as it has 
lately.” 
Pennsylvania State Ag. Society. —At the 
annual meeting of this Society, the following 
officers were elected for the ensuing year: 
President — Frederick Watts. Corres¬ 
ponding Secretary—A. L. Ei/win. Chemist 
and Geologist—S. S. Halderman. Librarian 
—David Mumma, Jr. Treasurer— George H. 
Beecher. 
Shrunk Wheat as Seed. — 1 have some spring 
wheat that is badly shrunk. Perhaps you, or 
some of your numerous correspondents, can tell 
me whether it will answer for seed or not. If 
so, you will much oblige me.—A. S. W., Pulaski, 
Oswego Co., N. Y., Feb., 1854. 
Connecticut State Ag. Society. —The fol¬ 
lowing officers are elected for the ensuing year: 
President— Sam’l T. Huntington, Hartford. 
Recording Secretary and Treasurer — Prof. 
John A. Porter, New Haven. 
The Presidents of the County Societies are 
ex-officio Yice Presidents of the State Society. 
The Next Ohio State Fair. —The State 
Board of Agriculture lately held a meeting in 
Columbus, and resolved to hold the next State 
Fair at Newark, Licking Co., on the 17th, 18th, 
19th and 20th of September, 1854. They de¬ 
cided that the premium list on cattle should 
remain as it was last year. A premium of 
$25 was offered for the best hedge of 50 rods. 
Can you tell me where the book, entitled “A 
Home for All, or the Gravel Wall and Octagon 
Mode of Building,” can be had, and what is the 
price ?—C. H. G., Waukesha, Wis. 
It is published by Fowlers & Wells, New 
York, and for sale by most city booksellers. 
Price, 75 cents. 
Sweet Potatoes — Again. —I have read with 
much pleasure, the communication from S. T. 
W., of Chatham, Columbia Co., N. Y T ., giving di¬ 
rections for raising Sweet Potatoes. I should 
like to know how the hot-bed is to be prepared, 
if glass is to he used over the surface ; and also, 
why it is necessary to break off the sprouts from 
the potatoes, at transplanting ? Why will not 
the Sweet Potato nourish and support the plant 
as well as other potatoes ? Where can seed be 
obtained ?—I.W., Wyoming, N. Y., Feb., 1854. 
Draining Tile. —Can you tell me what is the 
durability of tile for ditches ? and whether they 
will last longer than the common way of ston¬ 
ing. —C. Nicholson, Bcnncilsburgh, N. Y. 
It is difficult to give a very definite answer 
to this question. We have seen stone drains 
which have been laid 90 jrears; they were dis¬ 
charging a large quantity of water, and were 
undoubtedly just as good as when laid. We 
do not sec why they would not last for ever.— 
We have seen tiles that had been buried up¬ 
wards of 50 years, which exhibited no signs of 
crumbling or decay. We^lo not see why they 
should not last as long as bricks, and that is so 
long that we need not trouble ourselves about it. 
PREMIUM CROPS. 
At the last annual meeting of the Pennsyl¬ 
vania State Agricultural Society, the following 
premiums were awarded: 
Lewis Co. Agricultural Society. —At a 
recent meeting of the Lewis County Agricul¬ 
tural Society, the following officers were duly 
elected for the ensuing year:—Chaunccy Fos¬ 
ter, President; Sonford Coe, Yice President; 
Charles Kent, Recording Secretary; M. M. 
Smith, Treasurer, and Harrison Barnes, Cor¬ 
responding Secretary. Executive Committee— 
William Phelps,Norman Gowdy, Albert Pos¬ 
ter, Ellis A. Cook, Joseph A. Willard. 
To Benjamin Covert, of Fayette county, the 
first premium of $10 for the best crop of corn, 
lie claims to have produced 158 bushels and 7 
quarts of shelled corn, pure yellow-red cob 
gourd, upon one acre of land—of which proof 
was furnished by actual measurement. 
To John M’Cord, of Bradford co„ the premium 
of $20, for having produced an average of 51,14 
bushels of white blue stem wheat per acre, upon 
a field containing seven acres, fifty-two perches. 
To Amos Stone, of Erie co„ the premium of 
$10, for having produced 140 bushels of white 
wheat by weight, on '&)/, acres—being an ave¬ 
rage of 40 bushels per acre. 
To Janies Sampson, of Erie co„ the premium 
of $10, for having produced 334_}4 bushels of 
barley, weighing 48 lbs. per bushel, upon a field 
containing seven acres and ninety-six perches ; 
being a yield of 43J^ bushels per acre. 
To John Ruthrautf, of Franklin co., the pre¬ 
mium of $20, lor having produced 322 bushels of 
barley weighing 48 lbs, upon 6 acres 112 perches. 
The committee recommend, among other 
things, that the amount of these premiums be 
hereafter greatly increased, so as to secure a 
larger number of claimants. There were four 
competitors tor the premium for corn, two for 
wheat, and two for barley. 
CORN AND WHEAT IN OHIO. 
So that, somewhere in the world, we feed two 
millions of other people. One million of these 
people, fed by Ohio, are in Nevv-Eugland, to 
which we sell a million of barrels of flour, with 
pork and lard to match. We can feed a mill¬ 
ion more, and those will be in Europe chiefly. 
Without at all infringing on a proper propor¬ 
tion of woods, meadows, pastures and fallow, 
Ohio might cultivate twelve millions of acres 
in arable ground. At our present averages, 
this would give us eighty millions of bushels 
of wheat, and one hundred and sixty millions 
of corn—full enough for the support of twelve 
millions of people!” 
TO BRING THE DROWNED TO LIFE. 
At the late Birmingham Poultry Show, the 
receipts, exclusive of subscriptions, amounted 
to $11,000, the number of visitors being 37,- 
000, and $10,000 worth of poultry was sold. 
The Boston Cultivator mentions a lot of 
Cotswold wethers, which weigh, without head, 
feet, or other offal, from 130 lbs. to 185 lbs. 
each. 
Tiie Cincinnati Railroad Journal, in the 
course of a carefully prepared article on the \ 
agricultural products of Ohio, says :—“ Averag- < 
ing all seasons and all lands, Ohio produces, < 
uniformly, 16 bushels of wheat, and 35 bushels l ( 
of corn per acre. In a good season, on the two < 
millions of acres in wheat, we shall have over < 
thirty millions of bushels; and on the corn j 
lands, seventy millions. We have raised more < 
than that in wheat. At the rate of the last < 
three years, we have raised wheat enough (at 1 
the European allowance) for four millions of { 
people, which is double the population of the < 
State. Our corn and cattle are in proportion. 
Intended to be put in every Man’s hat.— 
Immediately as the body is removed from the 
water, press the chest suddenly and forcibly 
downward and backward, and instantly discon¬ 
tinue the pressure. Repeat this violent inter¬ 
ruption until a pair of common bellows can be 
procured. When obtained, introduce the muz¬ 
zle well upon the base of the tongue. Sur¬ 
round the mouth with a towel or handkerchief, 
and close it. Direct a bystander to press firm¬ 
ly upon the projecting part of the neck, (called 
Adam’s apple,) and use the bellows actively.— 
Then press upon the chest to expel the air 
from the lungs, to imitate natural breathing.— 
Continue this at least an hour, unless signs of 
natural breathing come on. 
Wrap the body in blankets, place it near a 
fire, and everything to preserve the natural 
warmth as well as to impart an artificial heat 
if possible. Everything, however, is secon¬ 
dary to inflating the lungs. Send for a medi¬ 
cal man immediately. 
Avoid all frictions until respiration shall be 
in some degree restored.— Valentine Mott. 
