OOEE’S EWEAL JJEW-YORKEE 
passed away there is danger of going to the 
other extreme. These large fowls accomplished 
a great deal of good for the poultry of the 
country. We had bred our stock in-and-in until 
it had become degenerated most sadly, and the 
ordinary fowls of our barnyards and for sale in 
our markets were not much larger than pigeons. 
By the infusion of the blood of this new race oar 
fowls have become doubled in size, and whatever 
may be said of the Shanghai or Cochin Chinas 
as a pure breed, we think there can be no doubt 
as to the advantages of the cross, evidences or 
which we see in every flock. Kggs, il packed 
carefully in bran or something of the kind, may 
be kept for several weeks without injury, and 
carried any reasonable distance. Some years 
since, during the existence of the hen lever, we 
purchased in the upper part of New York city, 
somewhere near Harlem, two dozen eggs, packed 
them in ft large segar box in bran, took them 
down town, forgot them on our return, and had 
them sent to Rochester by express, causing a 
delay of nearly two weeks, and hatched fourteen 
of the twenty-four eggs. We cannot say where 
eggs or fowls can be obtaiued. Those who have 
them for sale should let the fact bo known in 
some way. On preceding page we give an en¬ 
graving showing the form and style of the Black 
Spanish Fowls. They are excellent layers. 
Cake or Poultry.— Since the business is being taken 
out of tbe band* of children, and not only men, but 
men of science and intelligence, are giviug tbe subject 
their attcution, I bare concluded, I falling in with that 
spirit of progress your paper lias contributed no much to 
arouse,) to give vuj chickens some better place to stay of 
nights aud stormy days, than on the fences and trees. 
There is here an old “cave,” (a substitute for a cellar,) 
with heavy stone walls, six feet high, and 22 by 17 feet; It 
has been covered with slabs and sods; these are about 
ready to fall in, and 1 Intend to pul a frame story on It, 
and make It snow proof for a pnltry bouse; and as the 
simple enclosure is the extent of my plan, as yet, I would 
be obliged to you, or any member of your numerous fam¬ 
ily, for any suggestions respecting the internal (or exter 
nal) arrangement*, tiny thing easeutlal to n perfect home 
for poultry.—P., Nev) Florence, Pa. 
We have among our reader? many who have 
given the care of Poultry considerable attention, 
and can no doubt give the needed information. 
We will at present make only a few suggestions. 
Poultry houses must lie so arranged that while 
fhey secure warmth they can be well ventilated. 
Fowls will do better in an old shed without doors 
or windows and half tilled with snow every 
storm, than in a warm, dirty. Ill-ventilated house. 
Fowls, however, cannot be made profltablein the 
winter season without warm quarters, and it 
should be the object to produce as many eggs 
as possible at this season, when the price is 
high. Poultry houses should always bejbuilt 
convenient for cleaning, the roosts being', sepa¬ 
rate from the feeding and laying apartments.- 
The nests should be retired, screened as far as 
possible from the other portions of the house. 
This suit* the instinct ot the hen, and if so ac¬ 
commodated she will not steal away to deposit 
her eggs. The nest* should be so constructed 
that the straw or other material used can be 
changed frequent ly, and a coat of whitewash ap¬ 
plied occtisioutuHpL 
What aii,8 the Fowls ?— Can you or any of your cor- 
respondent* tell me what, ails my fowls ? I have had two 
or three of both sexes die with an unknown disease to 
me. They are taken with dullness and stupidity, and 
after a few days they cannot support their weight natural 
ly and walk erect like a person. Have a good appetite all 
the while, but move afdtind with some difficulty, and 
therefore do not stir aronnd a great deal They live in 
that situation for four or five weeks and^finaUy die.— O. 
B,, Fond du Lae, Hit- 
We hud fowls affected in this way a few years' 
since, but were unable to ascertain the cause or 
the remedy. With us it was confined to the large 
breeds. 11 passed away after one season, and we 
have observed nothing of the kind since. 
Ena. Rural:—I want to find out the best system of 
raising hens and chickens, and how to get the lice off, 
aud as much more information as you can give without 
too much trouble.— Subscriber, Gates, 1863. 
Keep the house well ventilated and scrupu¬ 
lously clean. Change the nests often, whitewash 
three or four times in the year, and give the 
fowls plenty of ashes and sand Lo work in. 
Grease the heads of fowls aud the body under 
the wingfl occasionally and they will not be 
troubled with lice. 
A HORSE MAYa HAVEiTHE TOOTHACHE. 
A proof of the assertion is as follows I own 
mare, which is a saddle beast for my little girl. 
Deeming that a hunch on her lower jaw, which 
continually discharged, needed an examination, 
I cast her; and in company with an experienced 
surgeon, used a knife, a saw, and chisel, until we 
found the cause of the disease. It proved to be 
an ulcerated tooth. Cutting the roots of tbe tooth 
away until we could get to sound bone, we drove 
the tooth into the mouth, aud removed it. Clean¬ 
ing away all evidence of disease, we sewed up 
the wound, aud the mare is now doing well. I 
use nothing as yet but cold water, applied through 
a garden hydropult, several times a day. She 
likes that operation. 
If a similar case can be found upon record, I 
will be glad to be told who operated upon the 
animal. I can give a more detailed account of 
the whole affair, but fear 1 have already used too 
much space. D. R. Barker. 
Versailles, N. Y., July, 1863. 
ECONOMY IN SAVING HAY. 
Mr. Moore: —During these “war times,” while 
laborers are scarce, and agriculturists'are aiming 
to put all their tillable land to profitable culture, 
it behooves farmers to economise in every par¬ 
ticular. The plan of one of my neighbors in saving 
hay may be be new to many of your readers, and 
afford a valuable hint towards economy in that 
line. Not having meadow enough to mow, he 
thrashes his wheat as soon as practicable, and as 
he cuts his grass he hauls it in, mowing it away 
fresh and green, in alternate loads and alternate 
layers with straw, salting it as he puts it away.— 
The grass being fresh and green and the straw 
dry. the latter drains tbe dampness and flavor 
from the former ; they both undergo a sweat to¬ 
gether. aud being salted cure well, and make as 
good, if not better, hay than all timothy cured 
and put away in the usual manner. Horses and 
cattle will feed on it freer and thrive better. 
I have thrown out the above suggestion as a 
hint;towards agricultural economy, and hope that 
other farmers, older and more experienced than 
myself, will do the same for the benefit of all who 
read the Rural. l. a. r. 
Lafayette, Ind., July, 1863. 
HOW WE RAISE POTATOES. 
Though too late to practice this season, still 
many who have fresh in their memory the back- 
aching, shoulder-straining labor they have just, 
endured in dealing their potatoe patches of 
weed*, will treasure this up in their memory al¬ 
so, and by putting it in practice next season save 
themselves much pain and sweat, and have a 
Cleaner patch of potatoes by the method, than 
they ever before have raised. 
We prefer corn stubble for potatoes. Plow it 
well, and drag it thoroughly. Mark it once in 
three feet with a Bhovel plow. This will leave 
the ridges even size. Cover thoroughly. The 
weeds will be up before the potatoes Keep close 
watch and just as the potatoes prick through the 
ground, take a good stout horse and a shovel 
plow and split the ridges. 1 learn it deep and cover 
the coming potatoes up thoroughly. Put a good 
lot of brush under the drag, so that the teeth will 
not move the toils and brush the ridges down, 
going lengthwise. The weeds are dead ; tbe 
lumps between the rows and tbe potatoes will be 
up in a few days, as clean and nice as you please. 
Now work among them as much as you like 
with a cultivator, and finish by going through 
each way with a shovel plow. Let a man 
shoulder his hoe and follow, falling a dock here 
aud cutting a thistle there, fixing up the end hills 
and you are done. 
Let those who like to see a clean patch of po¬ 
tatoes, but don't like to beam a hoe, try it, and 
my word, they will let the horse hoe their pota¬ 
toes till they forget how hard it was to hoe. This 
method has been practiced for some years in this 
vicinity, and is growing In favor. 
Mention Center, July 13th. Franklin Ewkr 
♦e ♦ - — 
On the Color of Italian Queen Bees. 
Eds. Rural New-Yorker: — It is a fact 
well known to breeders of Italian Bees, that the 
color of the queens raised from a pure mother is 
far more variable than that of the workers. 
Some of the queen progeny of females brought 
from the districts in Italy where none but the 
pure race are found, have abflomensofa brilliant 
yellow, the tip alone being of a black or brown¬ 
ish color; others have only one or two yellow 
rings, while others again are even darker than 
common queens. 
Various theories have been advanced to 
account for these facts. Dzikhzon and other 
Germans aro of the opinion that none of the 
Italian bees are absolutely pure, but that all have 
a taint or dash of black blood, which can only be 
got rid of by a long course of careful breeding. 
After ten years of assiduous labor, ho does not 
claim to have entirely overcome this taint, but 
thinks he has purer bees than can be found in 
Italy, aud that in ten years more he will be able 
to breed out all traces of the black blood. 
Some attribute the tendency to sport in color 
to a mysterious influence exerted upon the queen 
larva by the hybrid or black nurses by which 
they are often reared. Mr. Kirbt believes that 
tbeir larva are fed with the semen of black or 
hybrid drones, and in this way obtaiu a taint of 
the black blood 1 —a theory which must be re¬ 
jected, not merely because it appears contrary to 
all analogy, but because it is directly contrary to 
fads. The same tendency to sport lias been 
noticed In districts where no common boes are 
found; and the queen-larva of black bees when 
entrusted lo Italian workers, are not found to 
Jiave any traces of the Italian blood. Moreover, 
those 1 breeders who persist in rearing their 
queens in colonies of black or hybrid bees, are 
now, after an experience of four seasons, able to 
secure as large a proportion of beautiful queens, 
as when they first began the practice —a result 
which could not be obtained, if, according to Mr. 
Kikiiy's theory, they had been getting further 
and further from the pure blood. 
I shall communicate to your readers some facts 
which seem to me to throw considerable light 
upon this perplexing subject, if they do not fully 
account for all its difficulties. 
In May, 1862,1 reared a number of very beau¬ 
tiful queens from a brilliantly colored Italian 
mother, and lor some time all her progeny were 
of this type. After a while some of her queens 
were small ami poorly colored. I now began to 
suspect that the condition of the colonies in which 
the cfuecns are reared might have a decided effect 
upon their color, as well as their size, and was the 
more confirmed in this view when I subse¬ 
quently obtained from the larva of the same 
mother, reared in the same colonies, few but 
handsome queens. The first lot were raised 
when the nuclei, or small colonies to which the 
Italian brood was given, were vigorously getting 
both honey and pollen; the inferior ones were 
reared when forage was so scarce that the nuclei 
had to be fed. Later in the season when forage 
was abundant, the young queens were nearly all 
of the beautiful type; while later still, when the 
colonies had to be fed again, the color and often 
the size of the queens again became indifferent. 
A year ago last spring I suggested to Prof. 
J. P. Kirtland, of Cleveland, that I believed 
the color of Italian queens depended very much 
on the condition of the colonies in which they 
were reared; and that small and discouraged 
nuclei, out of heart, produced a largely dispro¬ 
portionate number of poor queens. The year 
before he bred his queens in very email nuclei, 
and was perplexed to find so many of them of an 
inferior quality. Using, by my advice, a box 
holding nearly three times as many combs and 
bees as the one he had been using previously, 
and breeding his queens when forage was abun¬ 
dant, he obtained last summer the most gratify¬ 
ing results. In a letter addressed to me, be says 
that nearly all the queens he raised were of a 
good color, while two other persons, who reared 
queens in small nuclei, from the same mother, 
had many poorly colored queens. 
My experience this aeanoe, is thuB far the same 
with that of last year—leading me to believe that 
I have discovered an important law upon this 
subject, and that queens require, for their perfect 
development in size and color, to be fed with all 
the royal jelly they can possibly consume. In 
queen cells, reared In large colonies during the 
swarming season, a large accumulation of the 
jelly is often found after the queen is hatched; 
while in those reared in small or discouraged 
colonies, there is seldom found any excess of it. 
This season I have examined, in swarming colo¬ 
nies, a number of uncommonly large queen cells, 
and in some of them have found nearly bulf an 
inch of jelly at the base of the cell. Soon after 
the queens creep out from such cells this jelly 
may often 1>e found of the color aud consistence 
of a rich quince jelly. It is very seldom that any 
jelly is found in the cells of queens reared in 
small colonies, alter these queens have emerged. 
As small colonies frequently attempt to real' a 
number of queens entirely disproportioual to the 
number reared in large colonies, it must often 
happen that some of those queens are BCantily 
fed, and therefore imperfectly developed. I have 
not. however, been able to discover that queens 
of extra size and beauty are more prolific, or that 
they produce a handsomer progeny, than smaller 
and darker ones bred from tbe same mother. 
L. L. Langstroth. 
Oxford, Rutter Co., Ohio, July 4, 1863. 
gutal Spirit of t\\t 
Importance of our Sheep Husbandry. 
Thk United Stales Economist contains au 
elaborate article on the importance of sheep 
husbandry to the loyal States, from which we 
condense some interesting ideas, which are wor¬ 
thy of the attention of all our farmers: 
“For years past, the quantity of wool manu¬ 
factured in the United States has averaged full 
125 millions of pounds. Of this quantity not 
more than one-half has been grown here. While 
we have been exporting grain and provisions to 
an immense amount, we have imported wool 
from Australia, tbe Cape of Good Hope, South 
America, China, Russia, India, and in short 
from every other quarter of the globe, and are 
so doing to-day, though it is an indisputable fact 
that no country on earth is better adapted to 
sheep husbandry than toe North-West. Should 
the agriculturist neglect to grow a sufficient 
quantity of wheat and corn to supply our home 
demand, it would be regarded as a most surpris¬ 
ing evidence of a lack of enterprise, aud yet 
facilities of soil aud climate are no better for 
producing corn and wheat than they are for 
the growing of sheep. In Australia and the 
Cape of Good Hope, where sheep husbandry is 
carried on extensively aud at a largo profit, the 
climate is not bo favorable, the soil is barren, and 
there is no market for mutton: while in tbe West 
the soil is rich, the climate dry aud cool, ami our 
large cities furnish a ready market for mutton, at 
higher prices than in London ami l’aris. For 
years past the people of the West have seen the 
wool-buyer running through the country, eager 
lo contract for wool 1 on the sheep’s back.' How 
much more will they he in the future, when the 
consumption of wool has increased fifty per 
cent., as it is likely to bel Although the clip of 
wool will be larger this year than upon any for¬ 
mer occasion, still our Western farmers do not 
realize the immense increase of the demand 
which will be created for this great staple by the 
cuttlDg-short of the cotton supply. We have at 
present in the loyal States twenty-five millions 
of sheep, and we believe that this number could 
be doubled without producing a sufficient quan¬ 
tity of wool or mutton to supply the demand for 
the next five years. There is no mystery about 
sheep husbandry. All that is required to con¬ 
duct the business successfully is the exercise of 
plain common sen^e, which dictates that all 
domestic animals (aud sheep in particular,) to 
thrive well, require to be well fed, to have plenty 
of room, and to be protected from storms. The 
soil and climate of the N orth-Western States are 
admirably adapted to sheep husbandry, and the 
farmers of that section could not possibly turn 
their attention to a more profitable branch of 
agriculture. The sheep best adapted to the pro¬ 
duction of worsted are the Leicester and Cots- 
wold breeds, and can be obtained in Canada to 
any extent ami at reasonable prices. The car¬ 
casses are large aud the fleeces of long staple, 
w'hieh makes these breeds more valuable both 
for the clip and mutton.” 
Roadster Horses in Ohio. 
Col. Harris, of tlje Ohio Farmer , who has 
lately examined the heffse stock of Wm. H. and 
James D. Ladd, of Richmond, Ohio, gives the 
following history of it: 
“The father of the brothers Ladd emigrated to 
Ohio from near Richmond, Va., among the first 
settlers of this region, and at various times 
brought out some of the most famous blood horses 
of those days, by which the horse stock of Eastern 
Ohio and Western Virginia was largely infused 
by the best blood of the east; thus it will be seen 
that the family come honestly by their present 
tastes in the production of good horses. Finding 
the blood horses of th>i country lacking in the 
more desirable qualities of power and substance, 
as teams for the road in this land of heavy grades, 
they cast about for something which should inept 
tbe demand. With a class of mares weli up in 
the blood of the turf stock of Virginia, they had 
a tolerable foundation on which to engraft scions 
of freshness and vigor, which promised the de¬ 
sired result About the year 1*60, according to 
my recollection, they brought out from Vermont 
the horse Morgan Tiger, a vigorous little stallion 
of the Sherman family, which after a brief season 
met with a fatal accident, leaving however full 
proof of the successful application of the princi¬ 
ples of breeding for which he hod been selected. 
When this was manifest to the observation of 
Messrs. Ladd, they selected with great care an¬ 
other horse in Vermont, known as Champion, of 
the Black-Hawk family, from which they bred 
until they had secured a large number of horses 
and mares oft.be second generation, when Cham¬ 
pion was sold and finally taken to Missouri, 
where, for aught we know, he remains at this time, 
though it may be tbe fortunes of war have taken 
him off. There is a large infusion of the blood 
of Champion Black-Hawk, throughout, the stock 
of both Wm. II. and Jas. D. Ladd, as also in the 
stock of this whole region of country, many of 
which I have seen, and can testify that for iden¬ 
tity. symmetry of form, strength of bone, muscular 
vigor, fine coat, power and endurance, they may 
well contest the palm with the famous [Black- 
Hawk who Is the father of the race. There Is a 
remarkable fact, in this strain of breeding as pur¬ 
sued by Messrs. Ladd, a fact which should be far 
more widely known, and which deserves to be 
more prominently brought before the public by 
the State Board, in their annual exhibitions, to 
wit: that while laying no claim to the distinction 
of thorough-bred, the application of well-ascer¬ 
tained principles of adaptation, will secure desira¬ 
ble results with far more certainty than has been 
attained in any thorough-bred practice in the Civ¬ 
ilized world. Unhorsemanlike as it may seem 
to say so, I feel perfectly assured of this fact” 
Grind the Tools, 
Keep the tools sharp or they will not cut A 
dull tool wastes time, and he who permits it to 
work when in that condition, is a dull fellow. 
Tbe best turners are those who have the sharpest, 
tools; the most successful surgeons use the 
keenest knives, and tbe most enterprising and 
energetic men in civil life are those whose wits 
have been early ground sharp, and whose percep¬ 
tive faculties have been whetted by sore experi¬ 
ence in early life. A dull tool is a useless imple¬ 
ment and a thick headed, unobservant person is 
the only one who should be found wielding it 
The obtuse edge neither cleaves nor separates, 
but bruises and works off by attrition particles of 
the substance on which it operates. Grind up 
the tools and sharpen the wit as well; if one is 
keen, the other will in all probability be In a 
similar state, from the force of sympathy alone. 
Let ub have all the tools in good condition, sharp, 
trenchant, and always ready for service ; then, 
and then only will the result produced be equal 
to the time and labor expended.— Sc. American. 
Cows in Honduras. 
A lady correspondent of the Working 
Farmer, who had been nursing fan invalid hus¬ 
band iu Honduras, gives the following descrip¬ 
tion of the management of cows iu that part of 
the world:—“We were much disappointed in 
the quantity of milk given by our cow, but the 
quality was most excellent. The cows are man¬ 
aged here in a most miserable way, and never 
domesticated. The calf i» tied near the house, 
and the cow allowed to wander at wfll. aud often 
it is her will to go quite a from home. 
When she returns to her calf, it is untied and 
allowed to commence sucking; then it is pulled 
away, tied to the cow’s leg, and the milking 
begins. Sometimes a pint, often less, but seldom 
more, is obtained: and they never milk tbe cows 
in Honduras but once a day. Often the cow 
would take a very unmotherly turn, and leave 
her calf from one day until the next. Our feel¬ 
ings on such occasions cannot be appreciated, 
except by those who have drank their tea and 
coffee for months without this luxury, and who 
have seen those dear to them unable to obtain 
what, at the North, is almost as abundant as 
water." _ 
Grain Aphis at the West. 
The last number of the Prairie Farmer says: 
“This insect that caused so great destruction to the 
wheat and oat crop ofNew England, N. York and 
Itennsylvania, in 1861, and to some extent made 
its appearance last year there, and in this State 
and Wisconsin, has appeared the present season 
to a much greater extent in the same sections in 
tbe West. We have specimens sent us from sev¬ 
eral sources. Dr. Geo. Vasey, of McHenry county, 
brought in to-day several heads of wheat nearly 
covered with them. Robert Douglas, of Wauke¬ 
gan, says they are so thick on his wheat a* to give 
it the appearance of being very rusty. We notice 
also that the Madison and Milwaukee papers 
speak of the ravages of an insect in their vicini¬ 
ties, and report it widely spread in Wisconsin.— 
From their remarks we conclude it the same in¬ 
sect We hear nothing of it at the East this year." 
gnpirifs ami gtewrs. 
Rate for Hunting Bees.—W ill you or some of jour 
Lee keeping subscribers inform me through your col¬ 
umns the best article for bee bate for Inin tint- bees in the 
woods and the manner of using it?— A New SUBSCRIBER, 
Vermillion Co ., 111 , 1863. 
Inquiries about Tobacco Culture.—I have under¬ 
taken this year to grow a lot of tobaceo. Most of the 
plants were out about tb«) middle of .1 line, and an far have 
done remarkably well and are growing very rapidly But, 
being a novice in tbe business, 1 must coufess ignorance 
as to tbe after-culture and cure of the “ weed. ” I remem¬ 
ber, when a boy, of hearing tobacco growers talk of 
“priming.' ”wickering” and “tapping,” ‘ cutting,’’ 
“ curing.” “firing," iSe , do ; but of tin; modus optrandi 
I know nothing. Will Mr. Goodalll, or some other 
gentleman conversant with the subject, please enlighten 
me, and probably many more of your readers in darkness 
on this branch?—L ouis A. Reese, Lafayette, Ind. 
Uural Notes arti> Jtems. 
Explanatory.—I t is more than probable that critical 
readers may discover some deficiencies in our present is¬ 
sue-including perhaps an occasional typographical error. 
If not we shall be very fortunate—for truth to tell most of 
our “beads of departments," (sncli as assistant editor 
foreman, proof-reader, and chief mailing clerk,) lastweek 
departed to aid in quieting tbe disturbance in the w icked 
little village ofNew York. Three of them (Messrs. Kf.n 
nkdy, Lewis, and EiciiOkx, i went as Captains in the 54th 
Regiment, and it is hoped they will achieve sufficient 
glory to make some amends for the loss occasioned by any 
deficiencies in tbe nutter, manner Or mailing of this and 
early future numbers of Ibe Rural. Meantime, as we 
cannot readily supply the places of such important cog* in 
our office machinery, the writer hereof is hat log a pleas¬ 
ant time generally, though sailing the craft thus short of 
officers and crew, is not personally agreeable or eonstitu 
tional. It's pleasant to reflect, however, that a “Rural” 
journal sends more men to the rescue of the great city, 
than all the other publication offices (including those of 
three dailies) in Rochester—and the fact may be credita¬ 
ble to both the pluck and the patriotism of this institution. 
Be that as it may, we trust the readers hereof will see 
the necessity of maintaining “law aud order,” and be 
lenient in this direction accordingly. Of course it is fool¬ 
ish for so many hundred thousand people to congregate 
in New York, exposed to mob violence, contagious dis¬ 
eases (which attack and often destroy mind, body and es¬ 
tate,) and various other great evils—especially whiletbey 
migthlive far better, in all respects, iu the “rural districts” 
—but let us forgive their lack of wisdom, aud aid them in 
their nttlirtion. 
—Daring the pressure upon us, it is hardly considered a 
“sin of omission” to deter what we cannot attend to proper¬ 
ly ; indeed we are constrained to reverse the wise rule 
about not putting off until to-morrow, etc. Correspond¬ 
ents, newspaporial and private, will please note. 
The Season a.vd the Crops. —Reports of the condition 
of trie crops throughout Western New York are generally 
favorable. The cool weather of the past few days has 
retarded the ripening of the w heat crop, aud caused some 
injury from the midge, about which we hear more com¬ 
plaint than usual of late years, though no serious damage 
is anticipated in this section. An intelligent farmer of 
Franklin Co., (Mr. John Kichkt, of Malone,) who has 
recently visited several counties north-west of Toronto, 
says the midge is proving quite injurious to the winter 
wheat in a large section of Canada West. With this 
exception the crops of that region are very good, promis¬ 
ing a full average yield. 
Considerable wheat has been harvested in this region 
during the past week, the weather being favorable for cut¬ 
ting and securing — clear and cool. The yield is generally 
good. Much of the liaj crop ha* been secured in good 
order, hut the yield, though fair, i- not au average. Most 
other crops promise well, though corn is backward, and 
the recent cool weather lias prevented the rapid growth 
anticipated at this season. 
»■ - — m ♦ w - — 
Good Increase of Sheep.—I n a recent note to the 
Rtkal, Mr. I,. Shattcck, of Cherry Creek, Chautauqua 
County, N. Y., writes;— “I think I have sonic ‘ beats’ 
for Mr. A. C. Powell, ofllliriols — such a* ho calls fir in 
the Rural of June 13th, A neighbor of mine, Mr. 
Aaron Sheffield, wintered fifteen ewe* of the coarser 
breed, and has got now twenty-two nice ewe lambs, be¬ 
sides several ram*, wlilch he l* raising by a cross from a 
Spanish ram. I have myself seven sheep only - four old 
ewes, two last year’s lambs, and a ram. The last year's 
lambs were not allowed to raise lambs, one lamb died, and 
yet my flock has doubled with seven lambs that I would 
like to see heat. Except one, my sheep were well washed, 
aud sheared, June 11th, 47 10-16 pounds of wool.” 
That Heavy Fleece oe Wool.— Correction.— Mr. J. 8 
Goodrich, of Lima, N. Y., writes — “Iu the Rural of 
July 4th you published the weight of a fleece of wool 
sheared from a lamb owned by Mr Edward Herman, of 
Livonia. As you have it It reads 12 lbs, 2 ox. instead of 
twenty-one lbs. 2 ox,, ns It should The fleece la subject to 
weight by any one who may doubt the above, and also tLe 
lamb, hi* weight being 108 lbs. after hi* fleece was off.” 
— We read the figures (21 lbs ,) aright when adding 
the remark about what the fleece would weigh after being 
cleansed—hut the printer transipoaed tho figures 2 and 1 
to 1 aud 2, and the proof reader did not discover the error. 
Those who have sent u» accounts of fleece* which excel 
the 12 lb. one, will of course have to try again. 
■ •»« 
South-Downs at ITih.io Salk. — It will ho seen, by 
reference to an advertisement in this paper, that Samcm. 
Tisur.nk, Esq., a celebrated Importer and breeder of ini 
proved stock, proposes to oll'cr one hundred of his choice 
Were South-Downs at public sate, without reserve, on 
the 2il of September ensuing. The catalogue of sale 
includes about eighty ewes aud twenty rams. Several of 
the animal* were imported by Mr. T.; among them the 
famous ram “Archbishop.” Those wishing to procure 
superior specimens of the Webb stock will find this a 
favorable opportunity. 
From Wisconsin.—W riting us from Dodge Co , Wi*., 
July 13, Mr. J. C. Bralnerd says:—“The prospects of 
the husbandman are quite promising here at present, 
though the weather has been somewhat unfavorable for 
wheat, of late, it having been very hot and sultry, with 
heavy dews and fog, which hardly disappeared during the 
day. Still, wheat will be a fair crop iu this locality, if 
uothing befall it from this out. Other crops look well, 
corn especially so. In some parts of this State wops have 
suffered exceedingly from drouth.” 
Clark s Sorgo Journal. — This is the title of an 
octavo journal 116 pages, monthly,) recently established 
at Cincinnati, (I, by Wm. H. Clark, at $1 per annum. 
It is mainly devoted to Sorghum Culture, or the “ North¬ 
ern Cane Enterprise,” and the number before us (for 
July) contains much interesting matter on the subject 
At a time when so much attention is being given to tie 
“ sweet reed ” throughout the West, such a journal must 
prove valuable, especially to those particularly engaged w 
the growth or manufacture of Sorghum 
- - 11 — 
North-Western Ohio. —Under date of Toledo, July 
14, Mr. E. P. Cheevkr wntos us:—“ Weather dry, smoky, 
very little rain since May. Crops suffer for rain. Wheat 
rusted by heavy dews last week. Corn, potatoes, beans 
and tobacco look well. Grass light. Green hay H 5 P er 
tun in Toledo." 
Northern Pa. — A letter dated Ransom, Luzerne Co., 
Pa., July 18, says : — “ It is very wet here at present, and 
has been for some time. There has been no good hay 
weather since clover has been fit to cut. Apples are quite 
knotty and not very plenty.” 
Genesee C<j. Pair.— The Annual Fair of the Genesee 
County Agricultural Society will bo held on the Society 3 
grounds, Batavia, on Wednesday and Thursday, the JOtl 
day of September and the 1st day of October next, 1663. 
Use or Muck.— Will not H. T. B , and other men of 
practical experience, give us a few chapters on the use o! 
muck through the Rural?—Alonzo Borden, Livingston 
Co., Mich., 1863. 
