VOLUME V. NO. 23.} 
ROCHESTER, N. Y.- SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 1851 
{WHOLE NO. 231 
BUSES AS A IAMKE. 
BOY-FARIEBS.—CAPITAL SUGGESTIONS. 
ROAD-MAKING. 
A QUARTO WEEKLY 
Agricultural, Literary, and Family Newspaper, 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
ASSISTED liY 
JOSEPH KARRIS, in the Practical Departments: 
EDWARD WEBSTER, in the Literary and News Dep’ts. 
Corresponding Editors: 
J. H. Bikby,—H. C. White,— T. E. Wetmore. 
Levi Bartlett, of the Practical Farmer, 
gives his experience in regard to the prepara¬ 
tion of bones as a manure. Some twelve years 
ago he spread a cart load or two of horn-piths 
on a grass swarth, and plowed them under with 
a coat of coarse manure. The next spring the 
plow turned up these piths, which were found 
to be “ as sound as a roach.” The field was 
laid down to grass, and when plowed up, eight 
years afterwards, “ the small piths had con¬ 
siderably decomposed, but those from oxen 
and old cows were nearly as sound as ever.” 
His next experiment was by breaking up 
the bones with hand hammers, “a slow and 
discouraging process,” and then mixing them 
with moist ashes, allowing them to lie in a 
heap for two weeks. An application of this 
compound “ exhibited most favorable results.” 
Another experiment was with bones and 
horn-piths, boiled in a concentrated solution of 
sulphate of potash. “An hour’s boiling would 
reduce piths to a pulp, and two or three hours 
would dissolve the leg and other hard bones 
of cattle and horses.” Mr. B. thinks the sul¬ 
phuric acid fixed the ammonia, while the pot¬ 
ash converted the oil, <fcc., into a soap. The 
bone was as fine and white as flour. The 
whole was mixed with muck and made a capi¬ 
tal compost. We should be personally oblig¬ 
ed to Mr. Bartlett if he would give us a lit¬ 
tle more information in regard to this process. 
We have tried many processes of reducing un- 
ground bones without much success, but this 
is new to us, and under certain circumstances, 
we think it might prove economical and effect¬ 
ual. Would not sulphate of soda be nearly as 
good, and come much cheaper? Or, would not 
the bisulphate, containing a double quantity 
of sulphuric acid, be still better? 
He next tried boiling in a caustic ley. This 
set free the ammonia “ which penetrated every 
part of the house.” Besides, it took twice or 
three times as long to reduce the bones, as 
when the sulphate was used. Nevertheless 
“it made a good compost.” If the ammonia 
was all drawn off, we do not see why it sho’d be 
much better than if the bones had been burnt. 
In July last, he filled a barrel with alternate 
layers of bones, piths, and unleached ashes, and 
then poured on three buckets of putrid urine. 
In a few weeks the smaller bones, and the 
spongy portions of the others, were so soft as 
to be cut readily with a knife. 
Mr. Bartlett thinks that for the generality 
of farmers, the most economical process of re¬ 
ducing bones, is to first boil or steam them, and 
while hot to mix them with unleached ashes, 
covering the heap with loam or muck, to re¬ 
tain the ammonia. “A few months’ time 
would be sufficient to decompose them, and 
during the process a large amount of nitrate of 
potash would be formed, and probably phos¬ 
phate of potash, a more soluble phosphate 
than that of lime.” 
If this is the case—if nitrate of potash and 
soluble phosphate of potash are formed—the 
method is of great practical value. We must 
say, however, unless Mr. Bartlett speaks from 
actual experiment, we should be inclined to 
question whether a large proportion of the 
ammonia would be converted into nitrate of 
potash, and still more whether phosphate of 
potash would be formed. Loam and muck 
have the power of absorbing ammonia, but 
not to a very great extent, and the heap of 
bones and ashes would require to be surround¬ 
ed with such a large quantity that, from exclu¬ 
sion of air, decomposition would proceed very 
slowly. The method, however, is well worth 
a careful trial. 
We fear there is no process by which bones 
can be employed as manure, equal to the old 
fashioned method of grinding. We think our 
County Agricultural Societies might do much 
to promote agricultural improvement, by erect¬ 
ing bone mills in their respective counties.— 
Each farmer could gather up all the old bones 
he could find and take them to the mill, just 
as he now docs his wheat and corn, paying toll 
or so much a bushel for the grinding. It might 
not pay the Society at first, but it would ulti¬ 
mately prove, a good investment, while the ag¬ 
riculture of the country would be greatly bene¬ 
fited. 
We have recently received, through the 
kindness of Col. 0. H. Kelly, Corresponding 
Secretary, a pamphlet containing the proceed¬ 
ings of the Agricultural Society of Benton 
Co., Minnesota, held at Sauk Rapids, Dec. 
12th and 13th, 1853. The proceedings con¬ 
tain the address of Gov. Gormon, delivered on 
the occasion, and as the Gov. gives some facts 
concerning this growing member of our confed¬ 
eracy, and the state of its agriculture, we pre¬ 
sume many of our readers may be interested 
to hear of her prosperity and prospects. 
It is hardly five years since the first furrow 
was turned by the husbandman within her bor¬ 
ders. The last United States census returns 
give the number of acres of land in farms at 
28,881, of which some 5,000 were improved,— 
the whole valued at $161,948. How many 
acres their farms now include we cannot say. 
That there has been a large increase there is 
no doubt. Returns from the Land office show 
that during 1853, up to the 1st Dec., there 
were bought, located by warrants and pre¬ 
empted, over 160,000 acres. 
The soil of the open prairie is of a sandy na¬ 
ture; on the bottoms, and where oaks and ha¬ 
zel abound, it is dark and rich with less 
sand. In parts clay abounds, with ledges of 
stone or rock. The timber comprises the va¬ 
rious kinds of oak, with bass, elms, ashes, ma¬ 
ples, beeches, &e., with abundance of shrub¬ 
bery, wild plums, &c. The marshes and low¬ 
lands furnish wild hay that serves a good pur¬ 
pose to the new settler. A species of rushes 
abound in some parts that is very highly rel¬ 
ished by stock, and from the rapidity that cat¬ 
tle take on flesh, when living on it, it must 
possess highly nutritious properties. 
Cranberries are produced in abundance, 
large and very fine, and are a source of con¬ 
siderable profit. Wild rice abounds around 
the lakes; when gathered and properly pre¬ 
pared it makes an excellent substitute for rice. 
Indeed, by some it is preferred. It is also rel¬ 
ished by stock, and can readily be made, it is 
thought, a source of profit 
The weather in the winter months is cold— 
the thermometer not unfrequently getting down 
among the thirties. But whenever this hap¬ 
pens, it is remarked, the air is very calm and 
braeini 
The road-making season is here, so we are 
reminded to give a few hints on the subject.— 
It is one of importance to all, as much to the 
dweller in the city as in the country—to the 
supplied as to the supplier. The farmer wishes 
good roads to go to market, and the towns¬ 
man wishes good roads that the market may 
be freely and constantly supplied. 
In road-making one great requisite is the 
ready and total removal of all water. There 
can not be a good road where water stands by 
the side of, or in it. If the ditches have no 
ready outlet, the road-bed will soak up the 
moisture more or less, by capillary attraction, 
and thus remain rutted and muddy. It is vain 
to think of having a good road on a subsoil, 
filled with stagnant water. Even on side-hills, 
if water remains on the upper side, it will in¬ 
jure the road by passing under. Provide 
then, if possible, for the thorough drainage of 
your roads—either by surface or covered 
ditches. 
See, then, that the road-bed is evenly and 
slightly rounded, so that the water can readily 
find its way to the drains. If the soil -is 
clayey or loamy, give it a few inches of gravel, 
or even coarse sand, and you will have a fine 
and pleasant passage way. If the soil is sandy, 
it needs an addition of clay to correct it, 
and thi3 will correct it, so that good roads may 
be had over the lightest sandy soils. Further 
hints might be given, but to those who cau re¬ 
fer to the former volumes of the Rural, they 
are unnecessary, and to our new readers, these 
are the most important on the subject.— b. 
Many hints and suggestions of interest and 
value will be found in the subject thus opened 
up, by N. P. Willis, in his “ Out-Doors at 
Idlevvild” correspondence of the Home Jour¬ 
nal. He has given the matter considerable 
attention, and finds in his neighborhood that 
“ farmers are generally willing to admit, that a 
boy’s work for four hours a day would fairly 
pay for his board. I find, too,” he says, “ in 
pushing inquiry as to the different kinds of 
farm-work, that there is but a small portion of 
it beyond the strength of a well-grown lad 
of fifteen. For ditch-digging, hay-pitching, 
cradling of grain, wall-laying and heavy plow¬ 
ing, they would depend, of course, on the main 
strength of a regular * baud;’ but for sowing, 
light-plowing, hoeing, weeding, carting and 
scattering manure, reaping, thrashing, and all 
the lesser industries of stock-tending and barn- 
work, a smart boy is often as capable as a 
man. This applies to grain farms, or to those 
mainly devoted to hay and stock. Where the 
produce is only fruit or vegetables for the city 
market, the work is easier, and perhaps the 
whole of it could be done by boys; * * * 
better done by them indeed, for it is mainly an 
exercise of intelligent attention, for which the 
Irish laborer is vexatiously incompetent 
“ But boy-labor, to be reliable for the mas¬ 
ter, most not be boy-slavery. It must be en¬ 
livened and steadied by an understood footing 
of reciprocities between boy and master—both 
having an interest in its being faithfully done. 
And this is a state of things which could not 
be entered upon to-morrow—with the present 
general idea of how boys may be used. In¬ 
formation is sadly "wanted on this subject. The 
most valuable addition whi- h. Viuld be made, 
just now, to ‘literature for the people,’ would 
be a manual of boy-employment and treatment 
—defining his rights like those of a hired man, 
giving the terms of an agreement for his labor, 
specifying his privileges of spare time and ag¬ 
ricultural instruction, describing the care of 
him by the mother of the family, and plainly 
stating the ways to make him think for him¬ 
self and respect himself and so be thought of 
and respected by those around him. With 
this kind of understanding, every intelligent 
farmer could profitably take half a dozen boys 
to work with his one or two hired men, and 
teach them fanning while allowing them to 
play enough and read enough, as well as earn 
enough—a Utopian idea for the present, per¬ 
haps.” 
With an additional hint, we will conclude 
our extracts for the present, but shall proba¬ 
bly give more in futufe. Those now given 
concern parents who are farmers, and who de¬ 
sire to retain their boys on the farm, as well as 
those of other professions who would have 
their boys become true “Country Gentlemen.” 
Mr. Willis says, en parenthesis: —“ The 
clothes, by the way, are the sore spot in boy- 
icrongs in the country, and the extinguisher to 
that boy-pride without which his character be¬ 
comes the fruitful soil for rustic meannesses.— 
Among the old farmer’s ‘dodges,’ the excuse 
for all his over-workings of the boy is * the 
money it costs to clothe and school him’— 
while the poor lad’s habiliments are the re¬ 
mainders of the old man’s worn-out coats and 
trowsers, fitted aud patched with such skill and 
taste as Heaven may have vouchsafed to the 
old wumau's needle.”— b. 
Tub Rural New-Yorker is designed to be unique and 
beautiful in appearance, and unsurpassed in Value, Purity 
and Variety of Contents. Its conductors earnestly labor 
to make it a Reliable Guide on the important Practical 
Subjects connected with the business of those whose in¬ 
terests it advocates. It embraces more Agricultural, Horti¬ 
cultural, Scientific, Mechanical, Literary and News Matter, 
interspersed with many appropriate and handsome engrav¬ 
ings, than any other paper published in this Country,— 
rendering it a complete Agricultural, Literary and 
Family Newspaper. 
fjg?” For Terms, &c., see last page. J£% 
Progress and Improvement. 
A FEW WORDS ON BUTTER- AIA KING, 
The production of Butter involves so many 
intricate questions of organic chemistry—so 
many nice physiological considerations—is in¬ 
fluenced so much by climate, by soil, by food 
and the breed, age and condition of the cows 
that an essay might easily be written on the 
subject, while it is exceedingly difficult to say 
anything interesting in a single short article. 
Milk contains curd, sugar of milk, and but¬ 
ter. The latter exists in the form of small 
oily globules, encased by films of curd. These 
globules are specifically lighter than water, so 
that when the milk is allowed to stand, they 
gradually rise to the surface, and constitute 
cream. When the cream is kept at a moderate 
temperature, the sugar, under the influence of 
the curd and air, is transformed into lactic acid, 
according to well-known chemical principles. 
The object of churning is to separate the 
butter from the curd by which it is surrounded. 
This is accomplished simply by agitating the 
cream and breaking the films of curd, setting 
the oil free, which runs together and forms 
lumps of butter. Cream from the formation 
of lactic acid, is generally sour before churn¬ 
ing, and if not, always becomes so during the 
operation. The lactic acid acts on the films of 
curd, and renders them more easily broken.— 
During the process, the cream increases in tem¬ 
perature from 5° to 10°. The best tempera¬ 
ture at which to chum the cream is a disputed 
point. It appeai-s, however, to be well estab¬ 
lished by numerous experiments, that 55° when 
the cream is put in the churn, and about 65° 
when the butter comes, affords the best result. 
If higher than this, the butter is white and soft; 
if lower, the whole of the butter is not sepa¬ 
rated, aud the labor of churning is much in¬ 
creased. The butter should come in from 20 
to 40 miuutcs. If obtained quicker, it is gen¬ 
erally at the expense of color, flavor and hard¬ 
ness. After the cream is “ broke,” it should be 
churned slowly till the butter is gathered. 
Some good butter-makers do not wash the 
butter at all, merely working out the butter¬ 
milk by pressure. Where good, cool, spring- 
water can be obtained, we should always, pre¬ 
fer to thoroughly wash the butter, taking great 
pains to remove all the buttermilk. Butter 
generally contains about 15 per ceut„ of water 
curd, Arc. It is important for the preservation 
of butter, that as much of this as possible 
should be removed. The quantity of salt re¬ 
quired, depends upon the quantity of water in 
the butter. The water should be saturated 
with salt: hence, the less water the butter con¬ 
tains, the less salt will be required for its per¬ 
fect preservation. When butter is sold fresh 
15 or 20 per cent of water is not a material 
objection; but when we poor city folks have 
to buy so much water at 15 or 25 cents per lb., 
do let us have it clean and fresh! Give us water, 
and keep the buttermilk for the hogs at home! 
We need hardly say that the most scrupulous 
cleanliness is required in all the operations of 
butter-making. Cream is more easily tainted 
by noxious gases than almost any other sub¬ 
stance. Hence, not only must the dairy or 
cellar be itself clean, but all fumes from the 
barn-yard, or out-buildings, carefully excluded. 
CULTIVATION OF PUMPKINS, 
Eds. IJural: —The cultivation of pumpkins 
is regarded by many farmers as a secondary 
affair, but I regard it as a very important one, 
for pumpkins may with justice be classed 
among the best articles farmers raise. For 
producing rich milk, they are one of the very 
best things that can be fed to cows; they are 
useful in fatting swine, by increasing their ap¬ 
petite; they will give fatting oxen or other 
cattle, a better start in the fall than turnips or 
potatoes. The pumpkin will grow and gene¬ 
rally succeed well on any ground that will pro¬ 
duce good corn. They are usually raised with 
corn. Care should be taken not to plant them 
too thick, as the vines extend over considera¬ 
ble ground; if planted with corn, every alter¬ 
nate hill in every third row is thick enough.— 
Rich stable manure should be applied freely. 
The first of June or the last of May, is early 
enough in our latitude, I think, to plant pump¬ 
kin seeds, on account of the early frosts. Af¬ 
ter the plants are up and the danger from 
frosts is past, then comes the “ tug of war ” 
with the little striped yellow bugs; they come in 
swarms, and will in a short time, if left to them¬ 
selves, destroy the whole crop. The most ef¬ 
fectual way to keep them off, I think, is to 
sprinkle the plants as soon as up, with plaster; 
put on enough to make them look white. If 
it is washed off by rains, sprinkle again, and 
continue to do so till they are out of the way 
of the “varmint.” After the vines begin to 
run, care should be taken not to obstruct 
them. p. h. 
There is this advantage, too, less 
changes occur, from one extreme to the other. 
The spring comes forward in good season, so 
that in May the farmers are busy sowing and 
planting. Frosts are apt to linger, but-not 
enough to prevent the raising of good crops of 
corn. The summer is hot, but made comfort¬ 
able by fine breezes. Toward the latter part 
of August cool nights begin, followed with 
frost about the 25th or 28th of September. 
Regarding crops, favorable accounts are 
given. Corn, of which some have entertained 
the opinion that it could not be raised, comes 
to maturity, and yields 40 and 50 bushels to 
the acre, and indeed upward. Of wheat, the 
winter varieties have been but little tested, but 
with flattering results, except when they have 
an open winter, which we suppose is not usual. 
Mr. Russel, of Sauk Rapids, harvested, the 
past year, 120 bushels from three acres. Spring 
wheat gives a fair yield of 18 to 30 bushels, 
and even upward. Oats are a fair crop, yield¬ 
ing often 50 and 60 bushels to the acre. Rye 
has not been enough tested to speak of.— 
Buckwheat gives a good yield. The potato 
appears to be at home on Minnesota soil, and 
gives a yield of 200 to 400 bushels to the acre 
of the best quality. Onions, turnips and all 
the vegetables of the garden, grow luxuriant¬ 
ly, and give abundant yields. 
The Minnesota Farmer has a ready market 
at his door, and at high prices for all his 
produce, and will continue to have for many 
years, to supply the influx of immigration, and 
the wants of Government, which supplies the 
Indians of that region with many thousand 
dollars’ worth of provisions annually. Far¬ 
mers moving thither are recommended to 
bring along their tools, cattle, sheep, &c. 
T. E. W. 
“Is Barley Good for Ewes?” — 13 the in¬ 
quiry of “ A Subscriber,” in a late number of 
the Rural. The only experience the writer 
has had, was last winter, when he fed sixty- 
eight Leicester sheep three pecks of barley per 
day, and what wheat straw they wanted, giv¬ 
ing them no hay or other food, until the 21st 
of March. Forty of the number were ewes, 
which commenced dropping their lambs the 
last days of March, and a sorry time for the 
little fellows it was. The ewes were then fed 
with barley, buckwheat, potatoes and hav.— 
The total yield was fifty-two, of which forty- 
five were saved. Only seven died, and there 
was good cause for the loss of a part of them, 
aside from the weather and feed. The lambs 
were generally strong, and are doing well.— 
Nevertheless, I did not like the grain, for du¬ 
ring the winter the sheep were much troubled 
with stretches, which 1 was disposed to ascribe 
in part to the barley. I much prefer oats or 
buckwheat—W. B. P., Prattsburgh, JY. Y. 
Goon Hens. —Mr. I). C. Hobart, of this 
place, has four pullets that have laid twenty- 
six dozen of eggs, from the 17th of January 
last, up to this date. The breed is Pheasants 
crossed with Creoles; their feed oats and corn, 
all they would eat. No extra place for roost¬ 
ing. They show no inclination to set, the on¬ 
ly fault found with them. I. N. Ferry. 
Horner, N. Y., Slay 23,1854. 
Plaster on Potatoes. —A correspondent 
of the Country Gentleman, plastered one-half 
of a field of potatoes at the first hoeing, leav¬ 
ing the other half unplastered. At the second 
hoeing, there was a great difference in favor of 
the plaster, and at harvest the plastered yield¬ 
ed double the quantity of the other, aud of a 
much largersize. 
The Mark Lane Express says, all manures 
covered by the soil have a natural tendency 
downwards. 
\A 
