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Y0L. VIII. NO. 36.i 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
JIM ORIGINAL WEEKLY 
Agricultural, Literary and Family Newspaper, 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
WITH AN ABLE CORPS OF ASSISTANT EDITORS. 
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS i 
Fnor 0. DEWEY, T. C. PETERS, 
Lt M. ?. MAURY, H. T. BROOKS, 
Dr. ASA FITCH, EWD. WEBSTER, 
T. H. ARTHUR, M«s. M. J. HOLMER 
LYMAN B LANGWORTHY. 
4 
Tn* Rural New- Yorker Is desiirncd to bo unsurpassed in 
Valtie, Pnrlty, Usofnlnes* and YftHuty of Conleuis, and unique 
and bountiful In Appearance. Iu Conductor Unvote* hi* per¬ 
sonal •Uonllon to the supervision of tti various departments, 
and earnratly labor* to rondvr the Rubai an eminently Reliable 
Gnlde or thn important Practical, Scientific and other Subjects 
Intimately conaeotod with the business of tho*e whose Interests 
It senlously advocate* II embraces more Agricultural, Horti¬ 
cultural, Rcicntlflo, Mccnnulcal, Lltorary and NewB Matter, 
Interspersed with appropriate and beautiful Engravings, than 
any other Journal,—rendering It the most complete Agricultu¬ 
ral, IjTERAur Atm Family Journal In America. 
Itp-All commnnlcations, and business letters, should bo 
addressed to H. D. T. MOORE. Rochester, N. Y. 
Fob Telus, and other particulars, see last page. 
llurat Seii-Jfljfeft* 
STATISTICS OF CROPS.-NO. II. 
EY LIEUT. M. F. MAURY. 
The Rural of 11th July contained a proposi¬ 
tion, with a plan for enabling the farmers to inform 
themselves pretty accurately from time to time as 
to the amount of the crops growing and on hand. 
The free trado of the States has embraced < anada 
also, and it is as desirable for the New York farm¬ 
er to have information as to the c.audition of the 
crops, or the stock on hand in Canada as it Is for 
him to know the like things concerning the crops 
of his own or any other State. It is to be hoped 
therefore that the Agricultural Societies both of 
Canada West and Canada East, with those of the 
other British Provinces, will take the matter up 
and unite with ours in the collection of facts and 
figures concerning their staples. 
The plan to be successful, should be simple. No 
Committeeman should be called on to reportwhat 
he either does not understand or cannot readily 
perceive the value of, and appreciate the impor¬ 
tance of. The details therefore should, especially 
at the first going off, be few and simple: and as the 
plan goes on developing itself, demonstrating its 
advantages and gaining favor, it should be en¬ 
larged so as to include a variety of details with 
which no practical man would now think of bur- 
thening it, for fear of failure. 
Mr. Now land, of the Agricultural Society of 
Virginia, has made a proposition to that Society 
which might with great advantage be engrafted 
upon the plan now under consideration. That 
proposition is, that the Commissioners of the 
Revenue for the State, in their annual rounds be 
required to tuke an account so as to report, not 
only the amount of the last crops actually on hand 
but the total amount produced last year. This in 
formation embodied with the statistics of the 
Committee as to the growing crops, would at once 
furnish data of the highest value and importance 
for the information not only of the farmer and the 
Btajcsman, but for the merchant and the political 
economist also. 
At no former age has the science of Agriculture 
been in such a nourishing condition as it now is 
among the States of Christendom. What are the 
influences that have in oar own day imparted so 
much life, and vigor, and energy to this noble and 
ennobling industry? Is it steam, or is it gold that 
has given the husbandman the means of calling 
to his aid those appliances of art and science 
which have enabled him to grow and reap two 
ears of corn where his father could gather no 
more than one? 
The gold of California and Australia has im¬ 
parted new energies to the mental and musonlar 
powers of man; it has stimulated genius to dis¬ 
coveries and inventions; and it has encouraged 
labor in every department ol human industry. On 
the other hand the steamer and the rail car_have 
made narrow the waste places of the earth; they 
have brought distant nations close together—they 
have lifted up the market, places that were far 
away beyond the reach of many a farmer; and 
they have brought them near and act them down 
before his very doors. Thus many a husbandman 
who formerly had no market place for his stuff, 
has now before him the markets of the world.— 
These improvements have enabled him to sell, and 
given him the ability to buy; and so they have in¬ 
creased his wants, converted many of his luxuries 
into necessaries, and greatly multiplied his desires. 
The farmers of the country, borne along aud 
stimulated by the influences of these agencies, aro 
now blessed with a degree of material comfort and 
prosperity which they never enjoyed before. Yield¬ 
ing to such Influences they have caught the spirit 
PROGRESS AND IMPROVEMENT.” 
ROCHESTER, N. Y. -SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1857. 
of the age, and are, in their calling, folly up to the 
“ body of the times.” 
That Agriculture is prosperous—that the spirit 
of improvement is abroad among the farmers, we 
need no train of reason or argument to show.— 
The little hills, the valleys and the pasture^ as 
they mutely sing and shout for joy, tell it to the 
breeze, and it ia echoed in the hum of onr busy 
marts. The fact that the Agricultural Societies of 
the country conduct their business with the zeal 
and energy they do, is proof sufficient, if proof 
were wanting. 
But how far have the farmers of this generation 
got ahead of the tanners of the last? That’s the 
question. These Committee?, though not raised 
for the sole purpose of answering this question, 
yet they surely by their labors, will fix points 
which hereafter will serve as land-marks by which 
the farmer will be able to mark the improvements 
in his calling, and to note the progress it is 
making. 
The lines which divide the animal from the 
vegetable kingdom are often, to the untrained eye, 
so blended or faintly drawn, that one finds it diffi¬ 
cult to say where the vegetable ends and the ani¬ 
mal begins; and at such times he almost con¬ 
cludes that the two kingdoms are inseparable.— 
But when he looka around and compares a man 
with a tree, he has no difficulty in recognizing the 
distance as well »s ttie difference between the two 
kingdoms—but still be cannot count the steps and 
gradations from tho ono to the otner. And so it 
is with Agriculture. The steps by which it has 
been brought, to its present state of high develop¬ 
ment have been taken almost unconsciously by 
the husbandman: many that are not yet enfeebled 
by age can recollect bow, that in their youlh a 
stout man might have borne upon his shoulder 
without difficulty every Agricultural implement of 
the best appointed farm, except the cart and 
the wheat tan—and uow when ne looss about biul 
and sees the implements and machinery that im¬ 
provement has brohght forth for bis use and expe 
rienco has approved, and when he compares the 
fruits of one man's labor on the farm now, with 
the fruits of one man’s labor on the farm when he 
was young, he perceives that the distance between 
the husbandman of to-duyand the husbandman of 
his youth, is like the distance between the man 
and the oak. Many gradations—many steps there 
must have been in this long and triumphant march 
of improvement, bnt there is no record, tally or 
sign-board to mark the progress or to denote the 
steps upward and onward as they were successively 
taken. All we know is—that steps, nay, gigantic 
strides, must have been taken, for progress has 
been made. 
But with all the improvements in the modes of 
culture, with all the assistance of labor-saving ma 
chinery that the farmer in his calling may now 
boast of, bow many more mouths have they ena¬ 
bled him to fill by the sweat of his own brow? 
Now the answer to this question is one of great 
importance. It would enable the legislator to vote 
with better judgment; it would help the political 
economist to draw his conclusions wisely: and, 
like all information touching the ind ustriiiI pursuits 
of the people, it would be useful and profitable 
knowledge to all. I would not have the Statistical 
Committees to go into this question at once.— 
Wait a little. Commence with a few well-deter¬ 
mined and definite objects of inquiry—such as ail 
can understand, appreciate and will agree as to 
the importance of—and go on by degrees. As the 
labors of the Committees are felt to be useful, so 
will tbeir hands be strengthened tor good, and so 
may they enlarge their field of opera dons, increase 
iheir usefulness, and win the help of willing, 
hearty co-operators, uud so have the cheering cries 
of “well done” from good and wise men to encour¬ 
age them. 
Let us therefore begin with the Committees on 
Crops and Statistics by simply requiring them to 
report as to the state, condition and prosperiiy of 
the crops from time to titno; bnt let us not forget 
to ask onr legislators for a law, « /« Rowland* of 
\ irginiu, commanding the Commissioners of the 
Revenue, in every btate, to take an account of the 
last year’s crops on hand, as well as the quantity 
of each staple produced on every plantation, with 
the size thereof, and the force employed to culti¬ 
vate it, Ac. 
Any one who attempts to study the progress of 
Agriculture will be able at once to appreciate the 
Importance and value of such statistics—for all 
who attempt this study find themselves, while yet 
on the threshold, at a loss for just such land-marks. 
How many persons, with the necessary stock, 
could the labor of one husbandman support 20, 
50, 100 years ago?—and how many can the labor 
of one man support now? In some climates and 
soils the laborer cannot, nor ever could, support 
himself—while in others, more mild and kind, the 
fruits of ono man’s tillage weru always sufficient 
lor tho support of several persona Our remaiks 
are not addresed to exceptional or individual ca¬ 
ses, but to tho average of a large community, as 
that of a State—as New* York or Virginia, for 
instance. Using corn as a common m asure, what 
was the average number of bushels that the hand | 
was considered capable of producing in New 
York 100years ago?—what in Virginia?—and what 
now? If wc knew tho answers to these questions 
we should then be able ta decide positively as to 
the value of the benefits conferred upon Agricul¬ 
ture by invention and discovery—by fertilizers 
and their application,—by improvements in the 
modes and methods of tillage,—by laoor-saving 
machinery, et id omne. Aud then to form proper 
estimations as to the marketable quantity of aDy 
staple for the year current, wc most know not only 
the amount of production for the year current, 
but also the amount remaining over from the crops 
of the year previous. 
Let the Agricultural Societies take this subject 
up for consideration. 
-♦—*--- 
DBAINING. 
In the last issue of the Rural, we adverted 
briefly to tbe utility of Draining and its Mechani¬ 
cal action upon the soil, and now turn to the 
second portion of our subject —the Chemical ad¬ 
vantages to be derived from an outlay for this 
purpose. 
Dndrained lands, or those retentive of moisture, 
are, to use a common expression, “always cola.' 1 '' 
The heat of the sun. when falling upon a wet soil, 
instead of penetrating the earth and imparting 
thereto a portion of its vivifying influences, is ex¬ 
pended in the process of evaporation—heat is thus 
rendered latenr, its warming properties are de¬ 
stroyed, and plants detive no benefit therefrom.— 
Very few have any adequate idea of the amount of 
heat thus lost. Philosophy demonstrates the 
amount absorbed by water when converted into 
steam, and on these premises a calculation suffi¬ 
ciently accurate for our purpose is obtainable. 
Several experiments, ha76 been made, and, in the 
Cyclop earn of Agridfihare, wc tiBd the following 
special case:—“ It is found that porous chalk soils 
evaporate only one-half the fall of rain, the rest 
infiltrating and running off as springs and streams, 
or being afterwards found as wells. This, there¬ 
fore, is a case very favorable to a wet soil, which 
would in reality allow a very much smaller quan¬ 
tity of rain to pass it; nevertheless, the porous 
land would require an expenditure of nearly me 
thousand forty-four pounds of coal per day to 
evaporate, artificially, one half of the ram which fills 
on an. acre during the year. ,) For the term of a 
year, two hundred and nineteen tuns of coal would 
be required for every acre of undrained land, in 
order to Bupply the heat furnished by the rays of 
tho sun that is lost where the surplus moisture is 
removed only by evaporation. 
There are other elements, in addition to evapo¬ 
ration, that combine to reduce the temperature ot 
undrained soils. Tbe conducting properties of 
water are very minute. When the sun’s rays are 
brought to bemuipon a damp soil, the temperature 
of the water it contains is raised; this heated water 
rises to the surface — being lighter than the cold 
water nuderneath—and thus prevents the penetra¬ 
tion of the heat that would otherwise enter tbe 
soli. When night cornea this surface water cods 
and sinks, and uniting with the moisture below 
reduces its temperature, and the entire earth thus 
partakes of the coolness of tbe night air, which, 
coming in contact with the roots of growing vege¬ 
tation, cannot be otherwise than detrimental to 
the plants. An article, puldisbed in the Journal 
of the Royal Ag, Society , states that water radi¬ 
ates its own heat lreely into space, and hence a 
watery soil is quickly cooled in a cold night by 
the heat which the water distributes into the at 
mosphere. All these evils tend to reduce the tem¬ 
perature of uudrained soils, and to render them 
less fitted for the growth of cultivated crop.*, 
which, in general, requre a genial warmth. 
Take uow the antipodes of a soil retentive of 
moisture—a farm well drained — and let us con¬ 
sider what is its peculiar condition and adaptation 
to the development of vegetable life. Its tempera¬ 
ture, instead of being reduced, ia quickeued by fal¬ 
ling water. Atmospheric vapor when condensed 
into rain-drops is ol higher temperature than the* 
air itself. 1 he beat which it had absorbed to keep 
it, iu a gaseous slate is rendered sensible, and in 
its passage through tbe soil it imparts that heat 
to what is already contained in the earth’s surface 
The action of dew is preclxdy similar. Tbe soil, 
aud the plants growing thereon, radiate heat into 
the surrounding air, and the dew,—as soon as the 
temperature of the aoil is less than that possessed 
by the atmosphere,—is deposited, which possesses 
this latent heat, and thus prevents the chilling 
effects observable upon a soil whieli contains a 
surplus of water. 
There are other obvious improvements in tbe 
condition of soils that are well drained. By the 
opportunity thus presented for the Iree access of 
rain and air, such stores of fertility ns would be 
locked up from the growing plants on account of 
their insolubility, become disintegrated, uad the 
nutriment required by tbe plant for its sustenance 
and final development ia fully supplied. The 
soil being broken up into fine particles, its powers 
of absorption are greater, and such elements of 
food as may he found in the atmosphere—gaseous 
in form—are taken up and appLh d to the purposes 
for which they aie designed. Again, in a warn 
soil the roots put forth in a wider range, seeking 
for nutriment, which in its opposite they were to¬ 
tally unable to do, or would refnas because tbe 
constituents thereof were not adapted to a healthy 
growth. At a meeting of Agriculturists in France 
recently, the President of the Society, while speak¬ 
ing upon the utility of drainage in this respect, 
made the following forcible remark: — “Take this 
flower-pot,* 1 said be; “what is the meaning of this 
small hole at the bottom? to renew the water. 
And why to renew the water? because it gives life 
or it gives death; life when it ia made to pass 
through the bed of earth, for it leaves with the soil 
[ SINGLE NO. FIVE CENTS. 
S WHOLE NO. TOO. 
its productive principles, and renders soluble the 
nutritive properties destined to nourish the plant; 
death on the other band, when it remains in the 
pot, for it Boon becomes putrid and rots the roots, 
and also prevents new water from penetrating.” 
In view of the foregoing facts, how can the ad¬ 
vantages of a thorough pystem of draining he 
otherwise than apparent to all? The temperature 
of I he soil is heightened, thus obviating in a great 
degree tbe disastrous effectB of cold seasons,—its 
porosity is increased, and, as a consequence the 
damage resulting from drouth is counteracted— 
comminution of the soil is effected, and nutritive 
soluble matter is liberated as food for plants, and 
by this means is the land enriched. Truly, drain¬ 
ing is an exceedingly efficient agent in Progressive 
Agriculture. 
ICE- HOUSE. - ELEVATION. 
It would be useless at this time to talk of ice as 
a luxury, for of late years it has become almost a 
necessity. One pound of good hard butter is 
worth more, when placed on the table, than two 
pounds of warm, oily stuff such as those have to 
content themselves with who cannot procure ice-. 
Then there is nothing more refreshing of a warm 
day than a glass of ice water. It also enables us 
to preserve meats, Ac,, from becoming injured in 
the warmest weather, giving usinthe ice-hcme the 
temperature of the frozen regions, while without 
we are enduring an almost tropical heat This 
catching and imprisoning Jack Frost, and com¬ 
pelling him to do us good service ia hot weather, 
is a grand idea. If left in freedom ne would, leave 
us at the time his services were needed, and the 
only time when his company is particularly agree¬ 
able. Indeed, he is constantly making an effort to 
escape, and many who attempt to confine him find 
during the hottest weather that he has managed 
to leave in search of a more congenial climate. 
To answer some inquiries as to the surest and 
cheapest method of keeping him with us all the 
summer, is our present ol jeot. Those who live in 
cities or large villages can generally procure ice 1 
from the dealers who save it in large quantities, 
in supply every day sufficient for iamily use at 
from $3 to $10 the season, according to the quan¬ 
tity used. This is of course the cheapest way of 
obtaining ice, but farmers are compelled to save 
their own or do without it. As a srore-ronm for 
meat and other perishable provisions, the ice-house 
is of gregtt value to tbe farmer. - 
Building a house for preserving ice is a very 
simple work, and yet there ure a few important 
facts that all should learn before commencing, or 
tbeir labor may be in vain. We shall endeavor 
briefly and plainly to point oat the most Important 
of these. T) amp and heat are the two great agents 
of thawing, and the first endeavor most be to 
counteract these by every means in onr power.— I 
For tbe first ventilation- is necessary, and for the 
latter tbe most non-conducting material available 
must be used for tbe house. The old plan of 
building ice-houses under ground was bad, as it 
was almost impossible to secure good drainage 
and sufficient ventilation to arrest the dampn a-* 
which is sure to exist in all underground rooms or 
houses. Then the ground is too good a conductor 
of heat, and communicates its heat very readily to 
Other bodies, much more so than even the air. 
The brst place for an ice-house is above ground, 
on a gravelly subsoil, where good natural drainage 
can be had, so that, the water that iorms as the ice 
melts will pass off freely. The best material is 
wood, though brick is good enough where it can 
be obtained more readily than wood. The walls 
should be made double, by boarding both on the . 
outside and inside of the frame timbers. The 
space between tbe inside and outside boards should 
be filled with tome non-conducting material.— 
Charcoal dust is an excellent nou-conductor; dry 
tan-bark, or saw-dust, will do very well, and if I 
neither of these can be proc ired, straw will an¬ 
swer a very good purpose. Where the natural 
drainage is not first-rate, drains must be dug 
and filled up with stones. If left open the cold air 
will pass throngh them very freely, and its place 
ce supplied by warm air from above. Ice keeps 
best ia large masses, and for several reasons. In 
a large body there is much less surface exposed in 
proportion to the whole. Melting ice absorbs and 
renders latent a large amount of heat, 30 that the 
thawing of a part helps preserve that which re¬ 
mains. These who have built ice-houses that fail¬ 
ed to furnish a supply all the summer, will find 
that by simply enlarging the house say one-third, 
the additional quantity of ice will be preserved, 
unless there ia some radical defect in its construc¬ 
tion, of which they can judge on reading the prin¬ 
ciples we have presented. A boose twelve feet each 
way on the ground, and e:ght or ten feet high, is 
large enough for any family, and even for - wo or 
three families, and yet it is as small as we would 
recommend any one to build, as the cost and 
trouble is but little more than for a house just 
large cuougb, and the supply is certain. 
GROUND PLAN. 
Where the drainage is good a board floor is not 
necessary, and we think they are not used in any 
of onr large ice-hduses, though in most cases it 
would be best to lay down a loose floor a few inches 
from the surface of ihe ground. If a quantity of 
brush was first laid down aud covered with straw, 
and the floor pat o.-er ibis, it would make tbe 
work complete. If a board door is not used there 
should be at least a foot or eighteen inches of 
straw, but a few inches on the boards will be suffi¬ 
cient. The ice made in tbe early part of the win¬ 
ter, and that which has been subjected to D0 
change from freezing to thawing, is the best. It 
should be sawed out in square cakes as anifonu in 
size and thickness as possible. All snow, and ice 
formed from half-melted snow, should be rejected, 
as it will not keep. After one 1 iycr is put down, 
the crevices should be filled with pounded ice aud 
this should bo continued until the bouse is filled, 
when the whole will freeze into a solid mass, A 
few inches of straw should be placed between the 
walls of the house and the ice, and this should be 
done while (he house is being filled. Theu cover 
