■tetr 
& G r'c ul t u r g 
PROG-RKSS AND IMPKOV KMRNl 
[ TWO DOLLARS A. YKAR 
!WHOLE NO. m 
ROCHESTER, N. Y —FOR THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, JANUARY 2,1864 
but the expense should 
of course cost somethin, 
not he enhanced by expending?Urge sums where I 
there is not a reasonable prospect of profitable 
returns. Very doubtful cxpermunls should oI>c<ia/s 
be tried wi a very mall scale, or not al all. 
AVe are now so accustomed to spend money, 
that wo may not be greatly horrified at expend¬ 
ing a few hundred dollars annually, to settle 
doubtful points in our domestic economy. Shrewd 
men know that Die country is losing millions 
every year because those points are not settled, 
—at least not settled in :ui authoritative and con¬ 
vincing manner. Carefully conducted experi¬ 
ments are now the great want of our Agricul¬ 
ture, and private enterprise does not seem to un¬ 
dertake them. England has her MEGHi and 
her I. vwks, hut America wonders and waits. 
W hatever we do to raise agriculture to the 
dignity of a “learned profession,” whatever we 
do to increase Die intellectual forces working in 
it, contributes to elucidate its principles and 
determine its methods. Whether wo get little 
or much from the Government, let us strive to 
increase daily in knowledge and good works. 
It is due to the (Ymumssioner of Agriculture, 
and the Department with which he Ls connected, 
to acknowledge specially the effort made the 
past year to determine the Condition of the crops 
! in the loyal States, and report upon them. By 
an extensive correspondence, the Commissioner 
has endeavored to ascertain the yield at si quality 
of the loading agricultural products, and through 
monthly bulletin* disseminate such information 
for the mutual bcpetit of dealers, producers and 
consumer*. I’WU' inuitsi u>do better my-elf, 1 
will ventureLo e/gm: j(.l 11 who may receive Die 
circular inquiries Of tie Department to spare no 
AGRICULTURE AND THE GOVERNMENT. 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
AS OIUU1SAX WKlUU.Y 
RURAL, 1JTERARY AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER. 
It is known to most of our readers that there 
is established at Washington, a “ Department of 
Agriculture, the general designs and duties of 
which shall be to acquire and diffuse among the 
people of the United States, Useful Information 
on subjects connected with Agriculture, in the 
most general and comprehensive sense of that. 
word, and to procure, propagate, and distribute 
among the people, new and valuable Seeds and 
Plants.” (I quote from the act establishing the I 
Department-) Some of Dio labors of this. Do- j 
partment are before me in the shape of a “ Re¬ 
port” for 1SG2, in which are embodied disserta¬ 
tions upon the w heat plant, cotton, flax, sorghum, 
apples and pears, physiology of breeding, sheep 
husbandry, horses, farm implements and ma¬ 
chinery, entomology, health of farmers’ families, 
Agricultural Statistics, Ac., Ac. Among the 
writers I recognize several w hose contributions 
to Agricultural Literature have honorably dis¬ 
tinguished them, tuid I should think the volume 
quite equal to any of its predecessors of the 
“ patent Office,” or any of the " Transactions ” 
of our Agricultural Societies. 1 observe, how¬ 
ever, that Die (\ntntry Gentleman an able Ag¬ 
ricultural Journal, thinks the documents not 
quite up to " the occasion.” It admits they are 
CONDUCTED BY D. D. T. MOORE, 
With a Corps of Able Assistant* and Contributor*. 
HEEP HUSBANDRY 
OHAS. D. BRAGDON, Western Correspondinu Editor. 
HENRY S. RANDALL, LL. D.. 
Editor Department of Sheep Husbandry. 
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOBS: 
i\ barry", c. dkwey, ll. i>., 
II. T. BROOKS, L. B. LANG WORTHY 
INTRODUCTORY 
Assistant Office Editor. 
Tm: Rural Nkw-Yokiter is designed to be unsur¬ 
passed In Value, Purity, and Variety of Contents, and 
unique and beautiful In Appearance, tts ftondurtor 
devotes fits personal at leu lion to tile supervision of Its 
various departments, and earnestly labors lo render 
Uic Rural an eminently Kollaldc Guide on all tlm 
Important Practical, Scientific and other Subjects Inti¬ 
mately connected wlUi the business of those whose 
interests It aoalou sly advocates. Ass Famii.v .Rrtknal 
it is eminently Instructive and KutcrtaJhlnf? being so 
conducted that it ran be safely taken to the Homes of 
lieoplo of intelligence, taste and discrimination, it 
embraces more Agricultural, llortieultural. Scientific, 
Educational, Lib-rare and News Matter, luu-r-p, r-ed 
with appropriate Ehgravtngs, tluan any otiter Journal, 
rendering it the most complete AOBIcrtlTOR I.itk- 
rary and Family nuwsi-avk.r in America. 
CJ/- For Terms laid other particulars, ms- last page, 
VOLUME XV. PRELIMINARY 
In presenting the first number of our Fiftcenth 
Volume but few preliminary remarks are con¬ 
sidered necessary. Indeed, were it not that we 
now address several thousand readers for the 
first time — at least as subscribers —an introduc¬ 
tory article would be omitted, our usual Custom 
to the contrary notwithstanding. 
To former members of the Rural Brigade, 
and those also who have recently enlisted therein, 
we extend Dus congratulations of the Holiday 
seawou, cordially wishing all such health and 
wisdom as shall inure, to happiness aud pros¬ 
perity. Our aim during the year will be to aid 
each and every reader of this journal to make 
progress in the right direction. While we shall 
earnestly and oonstanDy endeavor to render the 
Practical Departments useful and instructive to 
the Farmer, the stork Breeder and Wool Grower, 
the Horticulturist and Florist, the Artisan and 
Die Housewife, we shall In no wise neglect those 
portions of the Rural dedicated to the intel¬ 
lectual and moral improvement of its readers of 
various ages and clauses. To accomplish this we 
shall rely upon experience and industry, and Die 
co-operation of the able corps of associates and 
contributors whose names arc given at Die head 
of this column. As we never entered upon a 
volume under more favorable auspices - either 
in regard to Editors and Contributors, or En¬ 
couragement from the Rural Public we are 
re-olved to achieve more during this than any 
preceding year for Du* entertainment, iustrtu'- 
Dou and consequent benefit of our readers. 
For Die information of new subscribers wo 
nuty be permitted to again state that "Our 
object from the commencement of the Rural 
Nkw-Yokkkk has not been to furnish either an 
Agricultural, Horticultural, Scientific, Mechani¬ 
cal, Educational, Literary, or News Journal,— 
but rather to combine all these, and thus present 
a paper unequaled in Value, Variety and Use¬ 
fulness of Contents. Our earnest desire has 
ever been to make it an honest, independent, 
reliable and eminently useful Rural. Liter- 
ary and Family Nk wsr a pick — correct in its 
teachings on Practical Subject*!, Instructive and 
entertaining to members of Die Family Circle, 
of high moral toue, and entirely free from 
deception and quackery, even in it- advertising 
department.” Such was, is, and will continue 
to bo, our "platform” brief, explicit and com¬ 
prehensive. if it please our readers as well in 
the future os in the past, we shall be content — 
for no journal has hitherto been more ardently 
appreciated tuid supported than Die Rural. 
Wishing well to all our contemporaries and 
cheerfully conceding that each Agricultural 
Journal should bo supported by Die people of its 
locality or State, in preference to any other — 
wo shall in the future, us in the juist, houesDy 
and laudably strive to excel our friends in efforts 
to furnish the boat combined Rural and Fam¬ 
ily Newspaper in America. 
ANOTHER THING TO LOOK AFTER 
Reader, you are interested in Die manner in 
which Die land scrip donated by Congress to 
your State, for the purpose of endowing Agri¬ 
cultural and Mechanical Schools, is disposed of. 
Do you know what project* are on foot for its 
disposal ? Have you inquired ? Aik 1, if you have, 
have you digested these project*? Let me tell 
you a thing or tw o. Old Copy institutions, lite- 
rarv and scetarian, old school and new school, 
are midy, in «ninu States, to swallow the whole 
concern. Institutions Diat havo no more con¬ 
ception of the wants of Agivulturisto than they 
have of the system of education peculiar to Ju¬ 
piter, are standing witii wide-open mouths to 
receive the dainty endowment which this nice 
little fund would be to them. Institutions that 
have done nothing to supply the want which 
ha* so long existed for Agricultural Schools, are 
now suddenly attacked with eoiic pain at the 
want they have so suddenly discovered. Oh 
how they sympathize! How marvelously soon 
they have mastered the great question of how 
to furnish this specific education in all its details. 
They arc veterans in Agricultural science! They 
are quite willing to undertake to impart it 1 And 
they would make your College, or school, sec¬ 
ondary to Dieir* an attachment thereto. 
Another class needs to be watched. Your 
politician, who has w heedled you out of an office 
of responsibility and trust, whereby ho may legis¬ 
late money into his pocket and out of yours, 
belongs to lids class. He is ready to sell to tlm 
highest bidder. You had better watch his legis¬ 
lative down-sittings and up-risiugs. He has 
his price and wilt sell out to some one. And ho 
will seU his constituents with liimsHf. The Ag¬ 
ricultural College endowment will go too, unless 
you watch him. 
What are you going tp do 
SHEEP WORK IN JANUARY, 
Wb -hall aim, at the beginning of each 
month, to point out the Sheep W r ork appropri¬ 
ate to that month,—and we now begin with 
January. 
Sheep should, at this season, be in their winter 
quarters in all the Northern - ate- properly 
drafted, and divided according to condition 
and strength with their barn-, -beds, racks, 
yards, watering places, etc., in perfect order. If 
any of these things have been neglected, let them 
be attended to at once- for the health and thrift 
of -hoop depend upou them; and it Ls vastly 
easier to prevent damage to the condition of 
sheep than it is to repair it—and vastly easier 
to repair it now, than it will be .me or two 
months later. 
Let Die -beep farmer at once -k himself, are 
there any lambs, or old, feeble -beep, or sheep 
In low condition, left among flocks of strong, 
fleshy ones — to be crowded away from tin* rack 
AnoDiev thing, 
with Diis grant ? W hat do you want done with 
it? Have you planned for Dio organization of 
the school ? Have you studied how the errors of 
the past may bo avoided, and how the money to 
be derived from the sale of this land scrip may 
be made to benefit your children oral children's 
children? This is properly the work of the 
New Year. This question will soon be disposed 
of in some of the State* which the Rural visits. 
Let this set you to thinking, examining, and 
devising plans, whereby success may follow 
this effort to supply the educational wauts of 
Run AX. [STS. 
