1849. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
235 
of his oows. They stand on each side of the floor-way, 
which runs lengthwise of the barn, and are fed directly 
from the floor, without mangers,—a plank eight or ten 
inches high preventing the fodder from getting under 
foot. There is a cellar under the barn for storing ve¬ 
getables, for winter feeding. Mr. S. prefers the carrot 
to any other root, and raises from an acre to two acres 
annually. They are fed in quantities of a peck to half 
a bushel to a cow through the winter,—the larger 
quantity being given from the time the cows calve till 
they go to pasture. Both Mr. Smith and Mr. Thomas 
have formerly kept sheep. They concur in stating that 
cows are most profitable on their farms. The whey in 
both dairies is fed to swine ; and we did not understand 
that any credit was made, for it, in the estimate of re¬ 
turns for the cows. 
On the farm, of the late John Thomas, sixty cows 
are kept,—twenty at the homestead, and forty under 
the care of a tenant. The home dairy (we did not see 
the other,) is conducted with great neatness, and the 
cheese has a high reputation for excellence,—com¬ 
manding seven cents per pound. We obtained no sta¬ 
tistics as to the quantity produced. 
D. C. Rust has thirty cows, and his fixtures for 
making cheese are well arranged. His absence from 
home prevented our obtaining particulars in regard to 
the dairy. 
Improvement in Cattle. —Considerable interest is 
awakened in several neighborhoods, in regard to the 
improvement of cattle. A. Chapman, of Middle.bury, 
kept for several years a first rate Ayrshire bull, from 
the herd of Mr. Cushing, of Watertown, Mass. We 
have before spoken of this stock ,• but it has since been 
more fully proved for the dairy. Mr. C. has several 
half blood, and some three-quarter blood Ayrshire 
oows. Some of them are, in points, about all that 
could be looked for in a dairy-cow; and we have reason 
to believe that their “ looks do not belie them.” Mr. 
C. informs us, that in fourteen days of June, 1848, four 
of these cows made 80f pounds of butter, besides sup¬ 
plying a family of fourteen persons with milk and 
■cream. One of the four made Ilf pounds of butter in 
seven days. The last of September, 1848, three of the 
above four cows made 30 pounds of butter in seven 
days,—or ten pounds per week each. They are a 
small-boned, thrifty stock. Mr. C. states that he 
killed a pair of half blood steers, three years and six 
months old, fed for two months mostly on sugar beets,— 
no meal or grain of any kind,—and they weighed a 
trifle over a thousand pounds each. 
Messrs. Bingham, of Cornwall, have introduced the 
full blood Herefords, from the late herd of Corning & 
Sotham, of this city. They look, generally, remarka¬ 
bly well, and prove to be a very valuable stock for 
this section. Their hardiness adapts them to the cli¬ 
mate; they are easily kept, and thrive rapidly on hay 
or grass. The general characteristics of the Herefords 
have been stated in our columns. A. L. Bingham has 
several Durham heifers, purchased of Mr. Rotch, of 
Otsego county, N. Y., which he is crossing with Here¬ 
ford bulls. 
Paris Fletcher, of Bridport, has several full blood 
Durham cows, and several good half bloods. Two of 
the full bloods have lately been sold to Mr. Henshaw, 
of Boston. Mr. Chipman, of Shoreham, has some fine 
cows, crosses of the Durham breed. A four-year-old 
cow of his gave, as was stated, 24 quarts of milk per 
day in June. 
Mr. Sanford, of Orwell, has some full blood De¬ 
vons, and some highly crossed with the Devon. He 
has a beautiful young bull, purchased of Mr. Atwood, 
of Connecticut. He was by Mr. Hurbut’s bull, Bloom¬ 
field; his dam from the herd of Mr. Washbon, of Otsego 
county, N. Y. The Devons have thus far done well In 
Mr. S.’s hands, and he is determined to increase them. 
We see nothing to hinder their being a useful and pro¬ 
fitable stock here. 
Mr. Vanderlip, keeper of the hotel at Manchester, 
has some Durham cows, from the herd formerly owned 
by Hon. L. C. Ball, of Hoosick, N. Y.; two of which 
are great milkers. He has also some handsome cows 
and heifers from Connecticut, showing much Devon 
blood, which appear well as dairy cows. There are 
several bulls and considerable young stock in the 
neighborhood, mixed more or less with the Ayrshire 
and Devon blood; and the farmers generally consider- 
an infusion of the blood of these breeds an improvement. 
Horses. —The introduction of “ Black Hawk,” has 
made an unquestionable and important improvement in 
the horse-stock of this section. The oldest of his pro¬ 
geny here are four years old, and have been more or 
less proved. They have generally size enough, and 
a large proportion of them are superior in form, 
style, and action! The maximum of their speed 
has not, of course, been ascertained at this green 
age; but that they will not be'wanting in this respect, 
might be shown by examples “ too numerous to men¬ 
tion” here. As a specimen, we will refer to the per¬ 
formance of a mare, four years old, owned by J. W. 
Holcomb, of Ticonderoga, which, as we were credibly 
informed, trotted in a sleigh, last winter, twenty-six 
miles in two hours and ten minutes . Those who wish 
farther particulars in. regard to the stock, will obtain 
them by making inquiries in the proper quarter. 
Mr. J. Hill, of Sunderland, has introduced a horse 
which is a cross of the English draft-horse. We had 
not an opportunity of seeing him; but he was described 
to us as being six years old,—seventeen hands high,— 
weight 1380 pounds. He is said to be well made, and 
a good traveller. It is thought he will be useful in 
improving the stock of the neighborhood. 
Appearance of Crops.— We found that portion of 
Vermont lying between the Green Mountains and Lake 
Champlain, suffering for want of rain. Grass , so im¬ 
portant to this section, must be light, particularly on 
old grounds. In other sections through which we 
passed, the crop looked well. Wheat is not very ex¬ 
tensively cultivated. It generally does well,—nearly 
as well as it ever did here, except when attacked by 
the midge,—commonly called the “weevil.” The means 
of escaping this insert, are to have the grain either 
very early or very late. Early winter wheat may be¬ 
come too far matured to be much injured by the insect, 
by the time it appears; and the sowing of spring 
wheat is deferred till the last of May, so that it will 
come into bloom after the insect has passed. We saw 
in Shoreham, several fields of very promising winter 
wheat, and were informed that this kind generally 
gives good yields. The late sowing of spring wheat, 
to which the farmers are obliged to resort, renders it 
liable to rust; but if it escapes this, it yields from 
twenty to thirty bushels, and sometimes over forty 
bushels per acre. Oats are extensively cultivated, and 
yield well. They may be said to be the only grain of 
which a general surplus is produced. Indian corn is 
raised in sufficient quantity for home consumption. The 
warm valleys of the Otter-Creek and Batten-Kill pro¬ 
duce good crops,—some farmers raising from 500 to a 
thousand bushels each. Peas are a valuable crop on 
many farms. Mr. Sanford, of Orwell, who cultivates 
them quite extensively, puts them on sward-ground, 
plowed either in autumn or spring, sows three bushels 
of seed to the acre, and obtains from twenty-five to 
thirty bushels per acre. The crop is cultivated with 
but little expense; it leaves the ground light and 
clean, and it comes in early for fattening hogs in the 
fall, for which purpose, in connexion with the waste of 
the dairy, it is much used. Peas are considered worth 
