20 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
preference. Its cost is from two to three dollars, ac¬ 
cording to size. 
The large establishment of Messrs. Prouly & Co., we 
had not time to visit. 
At Worcester we visited the implement manufactory 
of Messrs R., N. & M. Any farmer or mechanic who 
may have the opportunity, would find an hour or two 
spent here much to his advantage. The wood-work of 
their plows is all got out and fitted for the plow by ma¬ 
chinery, even to the making of every mortice and tenon, 
and boring every hole. Being thus made, all the plows 
of the same pattern run exactly alike, and if any part of 
the plow should break, any person can put in a new cor¬ 
responding piece, (by keeping the part on hand,) with 
the greatest precision. The machine which so admira¬ 
bly performs the work of preparing the wood part of the 
plows, was invented by Mr. Matthews, a very ingenious 
rmechanic in the employ of Messvs. R., N. & M. 
The metal which Messrs. R., N. & M. use for making 
iheir plowshares, is old rail-road wheels, which they 
think is the very best material for this purpose. They 
chill the edge of the share, so that it becomes harder than 
case-hardened steel, and will wear to a sharp edge. 
They have shares of different width and shape for their 
plows, to fit the different soils, and for plowing bog 
meadows they use a share to which a strip of steel is 
nicely fitted, that forms the edge, and may be ground 
sharp. This would make their plow exactly the thing 
wanted for plowing the prairies of the west. 
In passing through the manufacturing districts of Mas¬ 
sachusetts, one cannot fail to be struck with the indica¬ 
tions of comfort and happiness which the mechanics and 
operatives exhibit. Their dwellings are neat, tasteful, 
and convenient; and their yards are ornamented with 
evergreens, shrubs, and flowers, which are always to¬ 
kens of a cultivated mind. 
In fact, the mechanics of Massachusetts occupy a very 
prominent position for respectability and influence—a 
position to which their character and intelligence evi¬ 
dently entitles them; and it is gratifying to see this class 
of citizens filling, with so much honor to themselves, 
their proper station in society. 
DISEASE IN POTATOES. 
Dr. G. B. Smith, a name of weight in the agricultu¬ 
ral world, in a letter to an editor in Baltimore, suggests 
in relation to the present extensive rot in the potato, 
(which he says has destroyed large quantities of Mercers 
and Pink-eyes this season, in that section of country,) 
that it is caused by “ hot damp weather, as the potato is 
approaching maturity,” and that the disease is a “fungus 
belonging to the same class of vegetable growth as rust 
and smut in wheat, smut in corn, mould and mildew.” 
He says, “ I would recommend that all diseased potatoes 
be carefully taken out and thrown away, that lime, either 
quick or air slaked, be sprinkled among the healthy po¬ 
tatoes, just enough to whiten their surface slightly. * * * 
The appearance of the disease clearly indicates its cha¬ 
racter, and the remedy seems almost as clearly a mat¬ 
ter of course.” 
We think these suggestions are important, and hope 
they will be acted upon at once, where such a remedy is 
required. That it was owing to unusually hot and moist 
weather succeeding that which had been remarkably dry 
as well as warm, seems probable; and we hope the sub¬ 
ject will not be lost sight of, untli the true character of 
this formidable disease is established, and, if possible, 
some check to its spreading discovered. 
THINGS OF IMPORTANCE. 
To have your cellar v/ell secured against frost; your 
windows and doors in good repair; your woodhouse 
with at least a year’s stock of fuel cut and piled in it; 
your yards warm and comfortable; your stables clean 
and well ventilated; your farm implements carefully 
cleaned, repaired, and housed; your district school at¬ 
tended to, and every thing provided to facilitate educa¬ 
tion; useful and instructive reading for long winter eve¬ 
nings; a kind and benevolent heart to the poor; plenty 
of food for your animals; the receipt of an agricultural 
journal; and though last, not least, exemption from debt, 
and a conscience at peace with God and man. 
HINTS TO YOUNG MEN. 
“Who aims at excellence will be above mediocrity; who 
aims at mediocrity will fall short of it.”— [Anon. >, 
Be industrious. We do not mean here the industry of 
the hands alone; but that perseverance in whatever we 
undertake, that is the sure precursor of ultimate success. 
Never allow the mind or the body to stagnate; activity 
is necessary to the health of both. Always have some 
worthy end in view, in whatever you undertake; re¬ 
membering that to fail with good intentions, is more 
honorable than success in an evil cause. 
Cultivate your mind. It is of more importance to the 
young, that their reading should be select, rather than 
extensive. One volume well understood, on any impor¬ 
tant topic, is better than half a dozen merely skimmed. 
There are many subjects of general utility, with which 
every man should have a partial knowledge at least; but 
it is one of the great faults of modern education to spend 
too much time on studies that rather burden and clog the 
mind, than strengthen and inform it for life’s practical 
duties. Reading, or studying without some definite aim, 
is likely to lead to few useful results. How many men 
there are who have spent a large part of their lives over 
books, of whom it may be said, “they remember a mass 
of things, but nothing distinctly.” It is possible to cram 
the mind with masses of indigestible materials, destruc¬ 
tive alike to a healthy and a vigorous action of the intel¬ 
lectual powers. Such is not the cultivation of the mind 
required by a young American farmer. 
Be economical. No matter if your parents are worth 
millions, it is not the less proper that you should under¬ 
stand the value of money, and the honest, honorable 
means of acquiring it. What multitudes of young- men, 
particularly in our cities, make fatal shipwreck of repu¬ 
tation, health, and eventually of property, by a neglect 
of this simple maxim. They are aware that their fa¬ 
thers obtained their wealth by habits of industry, but 
they are ashamed of the very name. They forget that 
wealth in this country passes rapidly from one to another, 
and that he who is rich to-day may be poor to-morrow; 
or that he who relies on w r ealth amassed by his father, 
may end his days in a poor-house. It is for the young 
here to say whether by industry and economy he will 
secure competence and respectability, or by extrava¬ 
gance and idleness become a worthless beggar and 
sponging outcast. 
Be just. In the course of life a man frequently finds 
his interests or his opinions crossed and thwarted by 
those from whom he had a right to expect better things, 
and the young are apt to feel such matters very sensibly. 
But be not rash in your condemnation. Look at their 
conduct carefully, and be just to the motives that prompt 
it. You may find, that were you placed in their posi¬ 
tion, the course you now condemn would be the one 
proper for you, and the one you would be under obliga¬ 
tion to pursue. A little cool consideration would avoid 
much censoriousness. 
Shun avarice. One of the most disagreeable characters 
on earth, is that of the grasping, avaricious, penurious 
man. Generosity is perfectly compatible with economy; 
and the means which enable some of our most noble 
hearted, generous men, to do so much to benefit and bless 
mankind, are obtained, not by closefisted penuriousness, 
but by economy. The distance is not greater between 
the zenith and the nadir, than between the covetous and 
the economical man: the first banishes every just and 
honorable feeling from the heart, the other fosters and 
ministers to them all. 
Determine to he useful. No matter what may be your 
condition in life, you have an influence, and that influ¬ 
ence should always be exerted in a proper way. The 
young have no right to fold up their arms, bury their ta¬ 
lent, and become the drones of the social hive. Aim 
high, but with prudence; act w'ith determination and 
perseverance; let no obstacle drive you fx-om the path of 
honor and duty, and you may be sui-e of eventual success. 
Riches are not wfithin the reach of all: competence is; 
and the latter condition is preferable in every respect to 
the first. Remember the Deity helps those who help 
themselves, and that utility is the great end of human 
exertion. 
