128 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
April, 
the various grades at one place ; thereby enabling the 
manufacturer to purchase the grades adapted to the 
style of goods he makes 5 inducing many to visit the 
depot for that purpose, and creating competition ad¬ 
vantageous to the seller. But a greater advantage 
arises from the fact that the agent understands, and 
can judge of the value of the article with as much cer¬ 
tainty as the farmer can judge of the value of a bushel 
of w T heat 3 or a pound of pork; for with those articles, 
the farmer has a basis on which to found his estimate 
of their value,—the prices of flour and pork per barrel 
being a reliable standard; so with beef and all kinds of 
grain; the difference in the quality of these articles be¬ 
ing so small, and the standards of weight and measure 
so well understood, that he can arrive at their value 
with great certainty. 
Not so with the article of wool; that has many dif¬ 
ferent grades, each bearing a different price, varying 
from twenty to sixty cents or more per pound, and any 
of the well selected flocks have qualities differing in 
value from twenty to twenty-five cents per pound. 
These different qualities cannot be known with any 
degree of certainty to the grower, because it requires 
much practice in handling and assorting for the manu¬ 
facturer, to make a man a competent judge of the dif¬ 
ferent sorts contained in any flock; hence, from the 
nature of the farmer’s pursuit, the impossibility of his 
knowing the difference; hence also the importance of a 
depot for wool, where it may be assorted by skilful 
hands, making the value of each sort available to the 
grower. 
To fix a price for wool, there must be a reliable ba¬ 
sis on which to found that price; with that also, the 
grower is as much in the dark as in determining the 
different qualities of his wool; but with this the agent 
is as familiar as with the different grades he handles, 
basing that knowledge on the prices of cloths in mar¬ 
ket, and knowing the grades of wool of which the va¬ 
rious qualities are made, and the price of manufactur¬ 
ing each quality, he has no more difficulty in determin¬ 
ing the value of the different sorts than the farmer has 
in determining the price of a bushel of wheat, by the 
value of a barrel of flour; and from the knowledge he 
has of the cloth and wool markets, and the quantities 
of each in the different markets in the country, he is 
better able to judge of the fluctuations of trade, and 
to calculate with more certainty the probable rise or 
fall in the market. 
Assorting wool, and selling to the manufacturer, at 
the different prices he is willing to pay for those sorts, 
is what the speculator, as a general rule, relies upon 
for his profits,—paying the grower, as he usually does, 
for well bred flocks, about what the low grades are 
worth. 
It is well understood by persons conversant with such 
matters, that the manufacturer is willing to pay more 
according to its value, for the grades he works, than 
lie will for promiscuous lots of different grades, and that 
the manufacturer of fine wool, places a higher value on 
such wool, than the manufacturer of coarse wool; so 
also with the manufacturer of coarse wool, he places a 
higher value on the kind he vrorks, than the manufac¬ 
turer of fine wools. 
Having wool assorted by competent judges, enables 
each man to determine whether his flock is above or be¬ 
low the standard of his neighbor, and whether he is 
pursuing the most judicious course in point of economy 
in keeping the kind of sheep he does. 
The depot system gives an opportunity for interchange 
of views among wool growers, meeting at the depot, 
and communicating such information as they may have 
derived from experience; and enables them to form cor¬ 
rect opinions of the different breeds of sheep, and what 
improvements are made in breeding; as the character 
of each flock is ascertained from the books of the depot 
agent in such a way as to put at rest all dispute. 
The number of fleeces are there registered, the dif¬ 
ferent qualities ascertained, the Weight of each, and the 
dollars and cents they produce; securing to the grower 
much valuable information and many facilities for the 
successful prosecution of his business;—enabling him to 
form correct views, draw correct inferences, and make 
them available to his interest, and gratifying to his de¬ 
sire for improvement. Daniel S. Curtis. Canaan 
Centre, N. Y., March 10, 1849. 
The Spring Season. 
Bds. Cultivator —The spring is a most important 
season to the farmer. In all cold climates, where the 
warm and growing season is short, much depends 
upon getting our summer crops in,, in good sea¬ 
son, and in good order. The land should be well tilled, 
and the surface well pulverised, so as to give the roots 
of the young plants a healthful and vigorous growth in 
the early part of the season. This enables them to 
stand either too much wet, or too much dry weather, 
and the attacks of worms much better than if got in 
late in the season, or in bad order. The straw of grain 
sown early, is not as subject to rust or lodge, as that 
sown late; and grain which is forward, and ripens 
early, is usually much better and heavier than that 
which is late. The farmer who gets his crops in well 
and in good season, is most sure of a good yield; be¬ 
sides, if he gets his spring’s work done early, he will 
be most likely to do the whole work of the season in 
good time, and will have time to do it w T ell; while, if 
he gets behind time in the spring, he will be most like¬ 
ly to get behind time through the whole season; and 
being drove with his work, will not be likely to do it 
well; and if he keeps an account of outgoes and in¬ 
comes, will be most likely to find his profits much less 
than they would have been, had his spring’s work been 
done in season. . 
The spring is also important in another point of view. 
Almost all of our domestic animals drop their young at 
this season; and the same rule that applies to the ve¬ 
getable, applies with equal force to the animal king¬ 
dom, viz: that we pay particular attention to them 
while young, so as to give them a healthful and vigor¬ 
ous growth in the start. All experience has shown 
that if we would rear good stock, we must give them 
good keeping while young. In cold climates, all ani¬ 
mals intended to be reared, should be dropped as early 
as the climate and season will admit. This enables 
them, with good keeping, to become so large and har¬ 
dy, as to stand the first winter well; while if dropped 
late in the season, and poorly attended to, their small 
size,—slender and feeble constitution, illy fits them to 
stand our severe winters. The first of March is the 
best time for calves. This enables them to make good 
use of the early grasses as soon as they start, and gives 
them the benefit of the whole season of pasturage. 
And further, the dams of all young animals, require 
particular attention and good keeping at this season, or 
they will run down and become poor. Dairy cows es¬ 
pecially, should have the best of care, if we expect a 
good yield from them during the season. The milk 
drawn from the cow is a monstrous draft, and if she is 
suffered to get poor in the spring, she will remain so 
during the season, and the yield of milk will be small, 
particularly during the latter part of the season. 
There are many other important matters to be looked 
to during the spring. Do your old meadows need har¬ 
rowing and manuring, and additional grass seed . Ii 
so, now is the time to attend to it. 
Have you a sufficient number of fruit trees, and ot 
t^e different kinds best suited to your soil and climate? 
L not, this is the time to plant them. 
