T 
JU 
we suffer, not from an excess of cold in winter, 
but from a deficiency of warmth in summer. 
Grapes and maize, to which our sombre skies 
deny maturity, come to full perfection in many 
regions whose winters arc longer and more 
severe than ours. However, we state the tacts, 
without asking to put a large amount therefrom 
to the credit of our drainage. A friend of ours, 
who lived on the north side of a hill in a sub-Al¬ 
pine district, did not see the sun for three months 
in the year, lie maintained that this was an ad¬ 
vantage: that during those three months the sun 
was worth nothing to any one; whereas in sum¬ 
mer he enjoyed the early beams of that luminary 
for some hours before he appeared to his neigh¬ 
bors on (lie south side of the hill, as well as bis 
declining rays after they had lost him. Perhaps 
our readers may think that what we and our 
friend take by our respective notions is much on 
a par. To a beautiful provision of nature, by 
which during seasons of excessive heat, summer 
rains are made subservient to the double purpose 
of cooling the arid surface and conveying warmth 
to the deeper recesses of the soil, we can advert 
only cursorily on account, of insufficient data. 
We have no satisfactory British experiments with 
reference to the surface beat of the earth. Pro¬ 
fessor Lksi.ik's only commence at one foot below 
the surface. Soiiudi.RH’s experiments, made 
near Geneva, in the year 17%. are strictly super 
(icial. Ilia thermometers were sunk in the soil 
only to the depth ol 1-12 ol an Inch. In that 
sunny dime he found the mean heat of soii, 
at that depth, to be at noon, for six succes¬ 
sive months, 131 degrees. If that were his mean 
heat for six months, we cannot doubt that 
it is frequently obtained as an extreme heat in 
the hottest portion of our year in England. Mr. 
Parkks gives temperatures on a Lancashire Hat 
moss, but they only commence at seven inches 
below the surface, and do not extend to midsum¬ 
mer. At that period of the year the temperature 
at seven inches never exceeded G6 degrees, and 
was generally from 10 to lf> degrees below the 
temperature of ail* in the shade, at, four feet 
above the earth. At the depth of thirteen inches 
the soil was generally from 5 to s degrees cooler 
than at seven inches. Mr. Darken’ experiments 
were made simultaneously on a drained and on 
an undrained portion of the moss, and the result 
was, that on a mean of thirty-five observations, 
tho drained soil at seven inches in depth was 10 
degrees warmer than the undrained at the same 
depth. The undrained soil never exceeded 47 
degrees, whereas after a thunder-storm the drain¬ 
ed reaches 66 degrees at. seven inches, and 48 de¬ 
grees at thirty-one inches. Such were the effects 
at an early period of the year on a black bog. 
They suggest some idea of what they are. when, 
in July or August, thunder-rain at 5'J or 70 de¬ 
grees falls on a surface heated to 130 degrees, and 
carries down with it into the greedy fissures of the 
earth its augmented temperature. These advan¬ 
tages porous soils possess by nature, and reten¬ 
tive soils only acquire them by drainage. 
Third. In all soils the existence of the water- 
table nearer than four feet from the surface of 
the land is prejudicial to vegetation. Here open 
upon us the yelpings of the whole shallow' pack. 
Four feet! The same depth for all soils! Here’s 
quackery! We think Mr. Pahkks must have 
stood in very Unnecessary awe of this pack, when 
he penned the following half apologetic sentence, 
which is quite at variance w ith the wise decision 
with which in other passages of ins works he in¬ 
sists on depths of four feet and upward in all 
soils:—“In respect, to the depth at which drains 
may, with certainty of action, be placed in a soil, 
I pretend to assign no rule: for there cannot, in 
my opinion, be a more crude or mistaken idea 
than that one rule of depth is applicable with 
equal efficiency to soils of all kinds.” Those 
words- equal efficiency — are a sort of saving 
clause; for we do hot believe that when Mr. 
Parkks wrote them, he entertained “the crude 
or mistaken idea" of ever putting in an agricul¬ 
tural drain less than four feet deep, if he could 
help il. \\ r c will supply the deficiency in Mr. 
Paiikks* explanation, and will show that the 
idea of a minimum depth of four feet is neither 
crude or mistaken. And as to “quackery”—which 
occurs passim in the writings and speeches of the 
shallow drainers—there is no quackery in assign¬ 
ing a minimum. Every drainer does it, and must 
do it. The shallowest man must put his drains 
out of the way of the plow and of tho feet of 
cattle. That is his minimum. The man who 
means t<> subsoil must be out of the way of liis 
agricultural implement. These two minima are 
fixed on mechanical grounds. We will fix a 
minimum founded on ascertained facts and the 
principles of vegetation. We believe we shall 
convince every reader who is worth convincing. 
Eveiy gentleman who. at his matutinal or ante¬ 
prandial toilet, will take his well-dried sponge, 
and dip the Lop of it into water, will find the 
sponge will become wet above the point of con¬ 
tact between tho sponge and Uie water, and this 
wetness will ascend up the sponge, in a diminish¬ 
ing ratio, to the point where the forces of attrac¬ 
tion and of gravity are equal. This illustration 
is for gentlemen of the Clubs, of London draw¬ 
ing-rooms, of the Inns of Court, and for others of 
similar habits. For gentlemen who are floricul¬ 
turists we have an illustration much more appo¬ 
site to the point which we are discussing. Take 
a flower-pot a foot deep, filled with dry soil. 
Place it in a saucer containing three inches of 
water. The first effect will be that the water will 
rise through the hole in the bottom of the pot till 
the water which fills the interstices between the 
soil is cm a level with the water in the saucer. 
This effect is by gravity. The upper surface of 
this water is our water-table. From it water will 
ascend by attraction through the whole body of 
soil till moisture is apparent at the surface. 
Put in your soil at 60 degrees, a reasonable sum¬ 
mer heat for nine inches in depth, your water at 
47 degrees, the seven inches temperature of Mr. 
Pahkks* tmdrained bog; the attracted water will 
ascend at 47 degrees, and will diligently occupy 
itself in attempting to reduce the 60 degrees soil 
to its own temperature. Moreover, no Booner will 
the soil hold water of attraction, than evaporation 
will begin to carry it off, and will produce the 
cold consequent thereon. This evaporated water 
will be replaced by water of attraction at 47 de¬ 
grees, and this double cooling process will go on 
till all the water in the water-table is exhausted. 
Supply water to the saucer as fast as it disap¬ 
pears. and then the process will be perpetual. 
WORN OUT LANDS OF NEW JERSEY. 
A very interesting and practical article hav¬ 
ing the above heading, written by Charles 
Stokes, of Stokingham, Burlington County, 
New Jersey, appeara in the Patent Office Report 
for 1861. its facta—the results of his ow n obser¬ 
vation and practice—are so valuable, that I pro¬ 
pose sketching a compendium of the article for 
the Kurai.. 
Light, and even, in many cases, drifting sand, 
largely composes the soil of the State of New 
Jersey, especially south of the Delaware Falls at 
Trenton. This soil, which appears to have borne 
the character of having been originally fertile, 
was, very generally, unskillfully cultivated for 
upwards of a century. The usual rotation of 
crops was first, Indian corn, then among the corn 
rye or wheat was sown, then followed a rest in 
natural 'grass. What stock-yard manure accu¬ 
mulated was applied to fields near the barn, the 
rest was left to nature. Ah a natural result the 
land became impoverished; “worn out” farms 
were common; and “garlic poverty grass, briars, 
and burr grass becamo tho covering of many 
fields.” Farming became comparatively a poor 
business. A change for the better, or ruin, were 
unavoidable alternatives, and about the com¬ 
mencement of the present century the high price 
of farm produce stimulated the New Jersey 
farmers to turn over a new leaf. An improved 
rotation was adopted ; clover, that great fertil¬ 
izer, was introduced; and leached ashes, at the 
rate of about one hundred and sixty bushels per 
acre were applied. The author states that one 
such application of ashes raised the product 
from “hardly five” bushels of corn per acre to 
fifty! “The effect upon rye was equally bene¬ 
ficial, but not so much upon wheat.” When the 
demand for ashes so raised the price as to make 
their application too dear, marl, muck, lime, 
gypsum and clover, in addition to barn-yard 
manure, completed the renovation of New Jer¬ 
sey’s worn out lands. In the language of the 
article, “nearly the whole agricultural popula¬ 
tion have become stimulated, so that a poor worn 
Out field or farm is now but very rarely soon,” 
Further, the author states that two tuns of hay 
arc. in a favorable season, gathered from an acre 
of land, where previously there bad been noth¬ 
ing but sand bars. 
1 will conclude this brief compendium of a 
very interesting essay by stating an example in 
arithmetic :—An acre of ground yields “hardly 
live ” bushels ol' corn ; 160 bushels of leached 
ashes applied raises the* product to 60 bushels 
per acre; an increase of 46 bushels; that is, 34 
bushels (nearly) of leached ashes produces one 
bushel of corn. Qi/crc Isb—Was this land really 
W'orn out? Quere 2d—May not tho owners of 
worn out sandy land everywhere take courage ? 
Quere 3d—Do farmers do well to sell their un¬ 
leached ashes for lid. per bushel ? 
Milan, Eric Co., Ohio, 1863. Petek Hathaway. 
--»■• + 
SENSIBLE FARMERS. 
Dkar Rural :—Permit me to say a few words 
about sensible farmers, or why it is that, while 
looking around us, we see such a vast difference 
among farmers. One is wealthy and prosper¬ 
ous, while his neighbor seems to make little or 
no advancement. We must attribute this to 
something. It can not be the soil that makes 
the difference ; neither is it always industry, 
although without industry the fanner would be 
nothing: but it is good sound thinking. Thus we 
hear people speak of a farmer as understanding 
Ill’s business and seeming to know how to do 
everything connected with agriculture. 
For instance, Farmer A. seems to glide along 
with nothing lo trouble him. His improved 
flocks are well taken care of, and his fields of 
grain are excelled by none, lie has substantial 
buildings always well filled with the best the 
land yields. He never has more land than he 
can cultivate to advantage, but always takes 
good care of what he has. He believes in un¬ 
derdraining. building fences and manuring, all 
of which he has ample time to do. In short, he 
is a man thul makes it a rule to have the best ol' 
everything, to take the best kind of care, and to 
do everything in the best manner. 
On the contrary, if we call on Farmer B. we 
will find him in a hurry to get rich, and pur¬ 
chases a large farm, and gets in debt. He stocks 
his farm w ith inferior breeds. They look bad for 
the want of better care, but thinks it don't pay 
to spend too much time, yet would like to put in 
a few more acres of corn, when ho has more 
than he can take care of. Having two teams, he 
purchases an extra plow to plow for wheat, in¬ 
stead of putting both teams on one plow. His 
land grows poor for want of manuring. He 
never finds time to underdrain, and if necessity 
urges him to build fences, he is sure not to have 
time lo do it well. He don’t bolieve in book¬ 
farming, and never takes an agricultural paper 
or joins the Farmers' Club. But for all he seems 
industrious, yet he is a poor selfish farmer, who 
knows little of his business. 
And so with many. They think that if they 
have good muscles, that that is all tliut is required 
for farming, and thus they enter upon their busi¬ 
ness. But, to cultivate, a fanner requires much 
thought and study, and ought therefore to receive 
it. It is true that it does not require much 
thought to swing a scythe or use an axe, but it 
requires thought to kuow always when and 
where they should be used, and this the farmer 
is to study and know. J. R. 
Troy, Bradford Co., Pa., 1863. 
HOW CAN WE IMPROVE OUR HORSES? 
Eds. Rural New-Yorker: —In my first 
attempt to write for the public, 1 do not expect 
“immense applause,” but hope to express my 
views without offending. 1 have read and exper¬ 
imented some, and think my views may be use¬ 
ful if I explain them so as to be. dearly under¬ 
stood. 
Our farmer's who raise horses, (with few 
exceptions,) appear to exercise but little discre¬ 
tion or .judgment in their selection of stock from 
which to breed. Many use any mares they may 
have unfit for other purposes, and a stallion 
nearest their farm, without question, except 
price of service—not considering, or thinking, 
that the only difference in the cost of a horse at a 
suitable age to sell is in the cost, of service. It is 
not probable that from such sources our breed 
can improve, but on the contrary must deterio¬ 
rate. Very few breeders are able to give any 
information of the pedigree of their stock. It 
cannot be expected that farmers, breeders, will 
exchange their mares, to breed from, and the 
question of most importance, therefore, is:—What 
kind ofhorse, in use to all our mares, will produce 
the largest number of valuable, useful horses, 
for saddle, carriage or draft, and also at the same 
time improve the quality of our mares to con¬ 
tinue breeding with success? 
For several years past the Morgan has been 
tho fashionable horse, but producing stock too 
small for general use, the public are taking the 
opposite extreme of large and heavy horses— 
which will produce too many leggy, weedy ani¬ 
mals, worse than the Morgan. Both will, no 
doubt, produce some good ones, but far too many 
poor ones. In order to secure an improved class 
of mares, and to produce valuable, stylish, fast 
and useful horses from a majority of the stock of 
mares now owned by farmers, 1 consider it will 
be a necessity to use a stallion of pure blood. 
From the thorough-bred running horse, crossed 
with common mares, all our trotting stock are 
descendants. The cross will Ikj a decided im¬ 
provement. The form and locomotive powers 
are improved, the bones more dense and stronger 
for their size, and the muscles and tendons also 
stronger in the same proportion. Crichton. 
Rural Spirit of tljc jpress. 
Cotton Growing in Utah. 
The Mormons are turning their attention to 
to the cultivation of cotton. The Deseret News 
says:—“Several gentlemen who have recently 
arrived from Washington county, report that the 
cotton crop, when they toll, was far more promis¬ 
ing than expected the fore part of tho season. 
Much of it having been planted late, fears were 
entertained that it would not fully mature before 
it would be nipped by frost, but the late warm 
weather has been very favorable to the cotton 
growers, and a good yield will be realized w hero 
it has been properly cultivated. All with whom 
we have conversed on the subject are sanguine 
that the growing of cotton in that part of the State 
will be a success, and that next season a very 
material increase in the amount produced will be 
realized." 
Foot Disease in Cattle. 
At the dinner given in connection with the 
annual inspection of Lady Emily Foley’s Stoke- 
Editli estates. (England.) says Bell's Messenger, 
Mr. McCann called attention to tho disease 
among cattle in the neighborhood, and described 
the means of euro which he Tiad successfully 
adopted, lie said, as soon as the disease made 
its appearance, il should be dealt with, so that it 
might not get into the feet of the animal. He 
himself had lmd fifty head of cattle down at one 
time, but now they were reduced to two or three. 
The feet should be well cleaned, and then bathed 
with a lotion composed of equal quantities of 
water and vinegar, with a small quantity of salt, 
put on with a piece of rag or sponge. The dis¬ 
ease will succumb to this treatment in the course 
of four or five days. In the case of pigs, Mr. 
McCann says be got three pieces of board, of 
which he made a trough, into which he put the 
same proportions of vinegar and water, and 
then, placing the trough against a wall, he put a 
hurdle on one side, and made the animals wade 
through it, A cure was effected in three days. 
Treatment of Galled Back 
The celebrated veterinary surgeon, George 
H. Dadd, gives, in the Prairie Farmer . the fol¬ 
lowing: 
So soon as an abrasion to discovered on the 
back of a horse, the animal should be excused 
from duty for a fuw days; the abraded parts 
should be dressed twice daily with a potion of 
tincture of aloes and myrrh. This simple treat¬ 
ment will soon heal the parts. Should there be 
no abrasion, but simple swelling, attended with, 
heat, pain and tenderness, the parts should be 
frequently sponged with cold water. Occasion¬ 
ally the skin undergoes tho process of harden¬ 
ing, (induration.) This is a condition of tho 
parts, known to the farriers of old as “sitfast," 
and the treatment is as follows:—Procure one 
ounce of iodine, and smear the indurated spot 
with a portion of the same, twice daily. 
Some cases of galled back and shoulders are 
due to negligence and abuse, yet many animals, 
owing to a peculiarity of constitution, will 
“ chute," as the saying to, in those parts which 
come in contact with the collar and saddle, and 
neither human foresight nor mechanical means 
can prevent the same. 
Experiments in Top-Dressing. 
Mr.. S. Rogers, of South Danvers. Massachu¬ 
setts, contributes to the Neic England Farmer a 
very interesting account of five experiments in 
top-dressing a meadow' the past season, which 
we oopv and condense below. He selected in 
April last a field of uniform sward, free from 
shade and other objections—and staked out five 
several lots, each measuring two hundred and 
fifty feet long by forty-five feet wide, and top¬ 
dressing them with the various fertilizers, as fol¬ 
lows : 
No. 1.—2 cords of manure well rotted and mixed with I V, 
horse carts of soil. 
No. 2.—120 bushel* leached wood ashes. 
No. 3.—2 cords green cow manure, the droppings of only 
a few 1 lays before. 
No. 4.—SO bushels unleaehed or dry wood ashes. 
No. 5.—265 pounds Peruvian Guano, mixed with 1 )£ 
horsc-carta of brook mud. 
The coat or value of the top-dressing for each 
lot was as near ten dollars as possible. The 
grass was very carefully cut and made, the first 
crop in July, the second in September, and accu¬ 
rately weighed, yielding as follows: 
1st Crop. 2nd Crop. 
No. 1. 790 tbs. .160 lbs 
No. 2, 6.60“ 440 “ 
No. 3, 060 “ 040 “ 
No. 4, 900 * “ 650 “ 
No. 5,1,300 “ 370 “ 
Aggregate. 
I,17<> lbs.. Compost 
1,120 “ Leached ashes. 
1,600 “ Gr. cowman’e. 
1,450 “ Dry ashes. 
1,670 “ .. Peruvian guan. 
4,630 2,380 7,010 
Upon these results, and in explanation, Mr. 
Rogers remarks:—“The early spring was very 
dry, and quite a drouth prevailed during the 
months of April and May. This no doubt re¬ 
tarded vegetation, and checked, particularly, the 
fertilizing qualities of the ashes, as they lay in 
the sward for a length of time as dry as when 
first spread. The copious rains afterwards pro¬ 
duced a wonderful change iu thickening up the 
grass. The guano dressing produced much the 
largest quantity on the first crop, although very 
little more than the green cow manure with the 
aggregate of both crops." 
rfjmniims ana 
Foot Rot in Sheep. —This disease has broken out in 
my Hodk, and I apply to you for a speedy and effectual 
remedy If you can give such you will not Only help me 
out of trouble, tmt no doubt benefit many other iiock- 
maaters.—J A B., Genesee Cci., 2V. I". 
We have published many so-called “sure cures” for 
foot rot, but that given In the Rural of Feb. 23, 1801, by 
Roii’t Douglas, of Truxton, is probably as reliable and 
speedy as nny. Some of our subscribers who have tried 
it say the remedy is what Mr I), calls it, infallible We 
quote it substantially as publi shed in our is-ue of the date 
above named:—“ I will give, an infallible remedy for Foot- 
rot I have tested it my self, and never had to use it more 
than once, one application being sufficient cither for the 
Fouls in horned cattle or Foot rot iu sheep. Take one 
and a half gills of vinegar; 2 at. verdigris; 1 oz. of white 
arsenic, 2 oz, Of bole armoniac; 3 oz. of honey; 2 Oz. of 
saltpeter; )4 oz. blue vitriol The blue vitriol and salt¬ 
peter to be dissolved, and the whole to be mixed together 
and applied with a feather to the hoofs after they have 
been well cleaned from mud. if the first application 
has not the desired effect, I will warrant the second.” 
Lice on Colts.— Can you, or some of the readers of 
the Mi kA i., inform me what will kill lice on colts? We 
have, nine, and they are all lousy, with small bunches in 
the hair When combed out. the hair comes with it and 
leave* a bare spot which scabs over, They also have a 
soi-e, scabby spot behind, about one foot below tbc- roots 
of the tail. They are as large ns cattle lice, or any lice I 
every saw, and have their breeding place below the car in 
the crease behind the jaw. An answer as soon a* eon 
vonient wiU oblige—C. K O, Cayuga Co., A. K, 1SS3. 
A strong solution of tobacco jirtco, well applied to the 
parts affected, w 1 th a cloth or sponge, will do the business. 
For tho nine colts yon will want at least 8 pound* of 
tobacco. Boil in water (say a pailful to each pound,) for 
half an hour, or until the full strength is obtained. Apply 
when cold. The application should be made in n warm 
day, else the nolle may take cold ltub the juice in 
(under the hair) on the parts or spots most affected. A 
thorough application will prove effectual. 
N. Y, Agricultural Com kok — Can the Rural tell 
whether the State Agricultural College, at Ovid, is now in 
session, or open for the reception of students ?—and if so, 
ha* it a course of winter lectures which young fanners 
can attend for a month or two ? Ts the I'eoplc's College 
open, with an Agricultural department or lectures 1 Please 
answer, and oblige at least one— Farmer's Son, Water 
town, A F 
The Agricultural College i* not in Operation, and of 
course has no lectures W e have heard noUiing iu regard 
to the institution of late, and fear it will not soon be 
again opened. Are not advised whether the People’s Col¬ 
lege is prepared to receive pupils. The plan includes an 
Agricultural department, but we think the College has 
not been opened for the reception of students. 
Best Breed op COvvA von the Dairy.—W ill yon, or 
some dairyman who can, please state through the pages of 
the Rural, which is the best breed of cow s for dairy pur 
poses, especially for butter making ? — J D. Brown, Che¬ 
mung Co., A y. 
There it is, again I—poor u’e (or some dairyman who 
can) culled upon to decide a question as difficult as auolli 
er often asked, viz : which Is the best reaper and mower ? 
We will leave the matter to the dairymen, who wilt no 
doubt agree to—disagree. Let us here reiterate the opin¬ 
ion, however, that good cows for dairy purposes are 00 . a 
sionally found among all breeds—except the iron-tailed 
or pump handle breed. 
Hungarian Grass for Sheep.—A s F. L. S. wishes in¬ 
formation about the value of Hungarian Grass for sheep, 
I would say to him that we have fed it more or less for 
three winters past to from 150 to 300 sheep, and they 
seemed to do as well on it as when fed with the best tim¬ 
othy and clover liay, the prophesy of some to the contrary 
notwithstanding If it is not too coarse, arid is well cured, 
1 think it equal lo the best hay for sheep or cattle, but it 
doer not seem to agree, with horses. J M. C., Badger 
Stale. _ 
Hohsk Tuv!mno.—“S ubscriber,” iu Rural, Jan. 3rd, 
wishes to know how to teach his horse to back. 4 Vd 
should hitch him up to a cart or wagon that stood on an 
elevation, with a gradual slope one way, so that the cart or 
wagon would run back itself, and try to back him until 
successful; then try on level ground; and then a small load. 
Thus hv degrees you can succeed in teaching him to back 
nearly a* much ns tie could draw.— Observation, Avar 
Brewer ton, A. 1'., 1863. 
Wou\ Out Lands —Will Pm i:r Hathaway, who gave 
in Rural of 17th met . • ■ uootl article on worn out or ex¬ 
hausted land, tel ns .Vo» the large tract of poor land a 
few miles fron hii residence was so greatly enriched'r 
Was it by manuring or rotation, or both' He lells 
us how the Virginia, plantation of 5u0 acres was re¬ 
claimed (by plaster and clover, 1 hut docs not nanw the 
remedy in the other case—liuwLAsn, Cagey a Co ., la Jto , 
21 st, 1868 _ 
Watbr for Stall-Fed Cattle.— I am stall feeding 
cattle this winter,—stabling and carry ing wnter into them, 
and they w ill dnnk ahout three pails l ull a day. An old 
farmer tells me they will fat better to give them but one 
pail full, but 1 dare not try the experiment without more 
testimony, winch ) have teamed 10 look for in the Rural, 
having been a constant reader for more than ten years.— 
Young Faljikk, Elgin, IU. 
Gravel Uousrr.—W ill you, or some of the readers of 
the Rural, give, me some information about Gravel 
Houses f — the proportions of lime and gravel, expenses, 
Scc.l —and oblige—A Reader, Sirncoe, C. IF- 
Rural Notes anil Meins. 
Weather of the last half of Jan., 1863, and Re¬ 
sults of Month.— The temperature of the first half was 
uncommonly high, and that of last half five dcgTces less, 
or was 28.3*. The coldest war i* on tho 17th, and the 
highest w-as 46" on the 21th; so that the cold was not to 
zero iu the month. The cold of 17th and Ifith was not 
extreme, and with good ice, skating was fine. 7 'hc mean 
heat of the month 30.7", while the mean for 26 years was 
25.4". The mean for January, 1SG2, was 24.7% for 1861 
was 23.5% for 1S60 was 27.8% for 1859 was 28 3% for 1858 
waaSl.S", for 1867 was 1-1.9”, and for 1856 was 16.5. The 
last two are the coidest Januaries here observed in the last 
27 first, in Until* of the year. The warmest January in fo 
many years was 31.8“ in 1858, while in 1857 the mean of 
January was only 1-1.9"; what a difference ; Oneshuddere 
at tin- thought of bo cold a month. The average of this 
Jan 30.7", only one degree less than the highest moan for 
this month ou record. A few days of sleighing followed 
the cold and snow of the 16th and 18th. and then the mod¬ 
erate weather and mud continued to the end Of the month. 
Water fallen in the. month is only 2.23 inches. On 29tli a 
snow storm, which made sleighing from Palmyra east¬ 
ward to Utica; hut only clouds covered us through the 
flay. On the Potomac, rain storm on the 27tli, and N. E. 
snow storm on the 28th The Cherry Bird 3 havo contin¬ 
ued here, seeming to least on the fruit of the Mountain 
Ash — C. D., Rochester, Feb, 2d, 1863. 
Mr. Peters’ Herd of Short-horns. —We learn that 
Hon. T. C. Pktkkk, of Darien, N. Y., has recently made 
a fine addition to hi* herd of Short horns by the purchase 
of ten cows, two yearling heifers, two heifer calves, and 
one hull—the “ Duke of Surrey” (3890.) The females are 
mostly of the PrihCO** tribe, viz., Princess 7th, 13th, 
14th, 20th, 23d, 24th. 25111, 28th and 28th, nil in calf, and 
30th, a yearling, with 31st and 32d calve*—the former of 
which (31st) was awarded the 1st prize in her class at the 
Rochester State Pair. The purchase also includes the cow 
Netberby 10th, and the heifer Ncthcrby 12th. These ad¬ 
ditions give Mr. Pet Eli* a grand start, for a superior herd, 
and we congratulate him upon an acquisition which must 
ere long enable a Western New York breeder to compete 
successfully with the owners of the best herds in other 
sections. Mr. P. offers several animals for sale, as will be 
seen by reference to advertisement in this paper. 
Pork Packing in the Wkst - 
Currrnt has a tabular statement of 
for the present season, up to the 
following is a recapitulation: 
-The Cincinnati Price 
the Western pork trade 
10 th ult-, of which the 
TotAl 
Slaut'd 
Estim’d 
in 
to date 
Total 
1861-2 
1862-3 
1862-3 
Indiana. . 
... 307,674 
369,375 
387,778 
Illinois ... 
. 711,264 
744,200 
1,053,809 
Ohio. 
... 523,173 
630,871 
644,155 
Iowa . .. 
... 98,925 
184,800 
233,500 
Kentucky.. 
... 141,44-5 
126,920 
127,920 
Missouri... 
... 110,637 
175,000 
198,000 
Totals. 
.. 1,892,219 
2,231,166 
2,645,143 
The number slaughtered at the date referred to was 
338,947 greater than the total number last season, and the 
whole number slaughtered and to be slaughtered, 752,924 
greater than the total number slaughtered at the places 
specified last season. 
—-* • - ■ ■ 
Weighty l’tos.—Mr, Hiram Mali., of Norwich, N. Y., 
writes :—“ I send you the weight of throe pigs, said to be 
9 mouths old, which wo hero call good ones. One, owned 
by Whitman Wilcox, weighs 400 lbs.; one by William 
But i d, 380 lbs . one by Alk:c. Foster, 377 lbs.” If the 
breed, kind of feed and time of fattening had been added, 
the item would prove more valuable to readers. 
goimi.s of ^Vgviruttural j&omtkiS, 
— 
The N. Y. State Ag. Society’s next Annual Meeting 
is to be held in Albany, on Wednesday next, Feb. 11 
Penns ylvania St ate Ag. Society.—T he annual meet¬ 
ing of tills Society was held at Harrisburg, Jan. 20th, 
TIiomas P Knox of Norristown, occupied tho Chair. The 
following Executive Committee and other officers were 
elected for the ensuing year: President —Tuos. P. K.vox, 
of Norristown Vice Presidents —Is Dist, Dr. James A 
M’Crca; 2d, Frederick A Shower; 3d, Charles R. Engle; 
4th, Robert M. Carlisle; 6 th, Adrian Cornell; 6 th, Win. 
H. Holstein; 7th, Isaac W Van Leer; 8 th, Tobias Barto; 
9th, Jacob B Garber; 10th, John H. Cowdon; 11th, John 
B. BeekJ 12th, Daniel H. Driesback, Kith, Geo. D. Jack 
ami; 14th, Amos K. Kapp; 10th, Christian F.berty; 16th, 
Daniel O Gehr; 17th, Thaddeus Banks; 18th, Morris El¬ 
lis, 19th, James Miles; 20th, Michael Trout; 21st, John 
S Goc; 22d, John Munlock, Jr.; 23d, Moses Chess; 24th, 
Joshua Wright Additional members of the Executive 
Committee—William Colan, J. R. Eby, B. G Peters, Jas. 
Young, John H. Zigler Corresponding Secretary — A. 
Boyd Hamilton. Chemist and Geologist —Samuel S. lial 
deman Librarian—John Curwon, M. I). 
Wavnk Co. Ag. Society.— Annual meeting at Lyons, 
Jan. 24. The Treasurer's report having been read and 
adopted, the Society proceeded to ballot for President On 
the first ballot S B Ga vitt received alt the votes cant, but 
declined a re election Subsequent balloting* resulted in 
the election of the following officer.-: President —James 
Rogers. Vice President - H. J. Leach. Treasurer —W 
D. Perrine. Secretary—Jas. S. McCall. Two Directors, 
whose terms expired January 1st, 1863, Henry Graham 
and Eron N. Thomas. Director in place of F. T. Palmer, 
(resigned,) Jas. F. Wisuer. Director to fill unexpirod 
term of II J Leach, Daniel Jcnuisou. The Society ap¬ 
pointed Messrs Collins and McCall to represent the county 
at the annual meeting of the State Ag. Sciety, to he held 
at Albany on the 11th inst 
Hillsdale Co. (Mien.) Ag. Society.—A t the annual 
meeting of this Society, the following officers were elected 
for 1863: I'rttxdrnl— Daniel I,. Pratt, of Hillsdale. 
Vice Pres'ts—V. M. Holloway. Fayette ; William Cutler, 
Adams; E. T. Chester, Camden. Treasurer —Lewis Em¬ 
ory. Hillsdale. Secretary—A, Collins, Jonesville. Some 
very fine specimens of Sorghum Sirup were exhibited at 
the meeting. All present resolved themselves into ft 
‘•Tasting Committee,” and after some discussion, the 
Premium was awarded to A. M. Rising, of Reading 
Thf, Bucks Co. (Pa.) Ag. Society and Mechanics 
Institute held its annual meeting at Newtown, Jan. 15, 
li. C. Ivans, the President of the Society, la the chair 
The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: 
President — Hector C Ivans. Vice-President —John 
Bloc fan. Recording Secy —John S. Brown. Correspond 
ing Secretary —Pierson Mitchell ifVeamer-Silos Carey. 
Fifteen managers were also chosen to constitute a Board 
for the ensuing year. Till* is one of the oldest County 
Societies in the State of Pennsylvania, and numbers over 
eight hundred members.— a. c. 
The Union Ag Society of Ridgeway and Shelby 
(Orleans Co.,) held iu annual meeting at Medina, on the 
14tb ult After the reading and acceptance of the reports 
of the Secretory and Treasurer, the following board of of- j 
fieers was elected: President —D. B Anzll. Ficx Pres¬ 
ident—A. B. Edmonds. Corresponding Sec'y — Wilson 
Hoag. Rec. Sec'y — 8 . C. Bowen. Treasurer - B. M. An¬ 
thony. Idrtdort—J. C Davis, R. Becker, E. B- Simond*. 
