THE CULTIVATOR. 
145 
weight of 10 to 20 per cent, on being carried there from 
Ohio and Indiana, Any person wishing to engage in this 
business, may learn particulars by addressing (post paid,) 
the editors of the Cultivator. 
The communications of Dr. Prime and Mr. Ca- 
mak will appear in our next. 
Charcoal.— In reply to “A Subscriber” from Dutch¬ 
ess county, we would say, we consider the remarks about 
charcoal, to which he refers, mainly as suggestions , and 
think the quantity per acre and the value to the crop, is 
to be decided by experiment. 
Farming in New Brunswick.— Our correspondent 
at St. Johns, New Brunswick, informs us thatthere is an 
increasing interest in the subject of agricultural improve¬ 
ment manifested by the farmers in that Province. Sev¬ 
eral Ag. Societies have been formed, and a spirit of in¬ 
quiry awakened, from which much good is anticipated. 
Of this desire for improvement we have an evidence in 
the thirty subscribers forwarded us by our friend, for 
which he will please accept our thanks. 
The State Fair.— Persons who intend to compete 
for any of the premiums at the Stale Agricultural Fair, 
to be held in Poughkeepsie in September, should im¬ 
prove all their time between this and that. The Pre¬ 
mium List may be found in the February number of the 
Cultivator, and in the other agricultural publications. 
See to this matter in time. The extra attention you pay 
to your crops, and other products of your farms, will 
produce you pleasant excitement and profitable returns, 
even if you don’t get a premium. There is nothing lost 
in agriculture, any more than in morals, by aiming at a 
high standard of perfection. 
The chicken-hatching machine is now in success¬ 
ful operation in New-York. About 50 chickens are 
brought forth daily, or 20,000 per annum. A remarka¬ 
ble fact is stated in regard to weight of chickens when 
they first come from the egg; the chicken being several 
ounces heavier than the egg was at first. 
Use of grapes.— Dr. Underhill strongly advises the 
culture of grapes, both on account of the profit to be de¬ 
rived from the sale of them, and from their value as food 
to sick and convalescent persons. At a late meeting of 
the New-York Farmer’s Club, Dr. U. made some highly 
valuable observations on this subject. After 15 years’ 
trial with various kinds of grapes, he prefers some of our 
natives, and recommends the Catawba and Isabella. He 
has three acres of the former, and seventeen of the lat¬ 
ter. He says our people eat too much animal food, 
which renders their blood too thick, and causes diseases 
of the heart, liver and lungs. He thinks it would be in¬ 
finitely better to substitute grapes and other fruit, with a 
little pure wine, for a portion of animal food. 
ANALYSIS OF SOILS FROM ALABAMA. 
To the Editors of the Cultivator —I claim the privilege 
of an agriculturist and a subscriber to your valuable jour¬ 
nal, of sending you the accompanying package, and re¬ 
questing, if it be practicable, you will examine the con¬ 
tents, state the result, and answer the following queries, 
which are premised by this statement. 
No. 1 is a fair specimen of “ sandy soil,” planted in 
cotton, and producing good crops. 
No. 2 is a deposite from the overflow of a prairie 
creek. 
No. 3 is (e bald prairie.” 
No. 4 is a marl forming the sides and bottom of said 
prairie creek. 
In many instances the problem will soon have to be 
solved, whether it be best and cheapest to manure old 
land or buy new. Soil, artificially made rich, will pro¬ 
duce more cotton than the best natural soil. To manure 
as extensively as advised by Dr. Cloud, is impracticable, 
unless manure can be produced otherwise than by stable- 
litter and stock-pens. The cotton plant and its staple, 
when burned, consist almost entirely of carbon. What 
effect upon cotton would Nos. 2, 3 and 4 (separately) pro¬ 
duce, if mingled with No. 1 ? Which would be the rich¬ 
est and most durable in its effects,, and what quantity re¬ 
quired per acre to make its results valuable ? Would 
burning add to the strength of Nos. 3 and 4 ? 
There is within reach of almost every one here, quan¬ 
tities of dry oak and pine leaves and quick lime, which 
are to he obtained for the trouble only of heaping, carting 
and burning; and also inexhaustible stores of Nos. 3 and 
4. This being the case, would Sommer’s method an¬ 
swer a valuable end ? will it produce from dry trash a 
manure as rich as stable-litter ? and are the ingredients 
costly, other than quick lime, which is supposed to be 
required, and which here costs nothing in money ? An 
answer in detail, with such additions as your knowledge 
and experience will suggest, would be gladly received 
by me, and would benefit ultimately many in this region. 
Churchill, Lowndes county, Alabama. F. 
We handed the above communication, together with 
the package of soils, to Prof. Emmons, of this city, who 
has made a thorough analysis of the soils, and favored us 
with the following practical results. It is proper to re¬ 
mark here, to prevent further applications for the analy¬ 
sis of soils, that the analysis of the above specimens oc¬ 
cupied nearly a week’s time, and that we shall not feel 
at liberty again to ask the performance of a similar favoi 
at the hands of Prof. Emmons. Should any of our friends, 
however, wish specimens of their soils analysed, they 
can have it done for a reasonable compensation—say $16 
for two or three specimens. 
Geological Room, April 23, 1844. 
To the Editors of the Cultivator —I have completed th* 
analysis of the four specimens of soil from your corres 
pondent in Alabama. 
As the details of the analysis would probably be unin 
teresting, I will merely state the results: 
No. 1 —Light brown sandy loam , 
consists in 100 grains of 
Hygrometric water, 
3.37 
Vegetable matter. 
4.00 
Silex, 
89.00 
Alumine and iron, 
3.12 
Carbonate of lime, 
0.50 
99.99 
No. 2 —River Alluvion. 
Hygrometric water, 
5.00 
Vegetable matter. 
11.50 
Silex, 
72.00 
Alumine and iron. 
10.0® 
Carbonate of lime, 
1.50 
100.00 
No. 3—Shell Marl. 
Hygrometric water. 
2.50 
Vegetable matter, 
3.00 
Silex, 
32.50 
Carbonate of lime. 
49.00 
Per-oxide of iron, 
2.25 
Alumine, 
1.25 
Garb, magnesia, 
9.00 
99.50 
No. 4 —Green Sand or Marl. 
Water, and volatile matter, 
15.00 
Silex, 
41.25 
Alumine and iron, 
17.00 
Carb. Lime, 
20.25 
Garb, magnesia. 
0.80 
Potash, 
5.00 
Phosphate of lime and 
Peroxide of iron. 
0.37 
99.57 
No. 1 is a light sandy soil, which after 
a few years 
cultivation will require constant manuring. 
. This, Iun- 
derstand, is the cotton land, which produces well when 
new. It contains, as will be seen from the analysis, but 
a small amount of those elements which are essential to 
a fertile and productive soil. Now the inquiry is, what 
