380 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
etfc of Middlebury, Vt.—all of which purchase amount¬ 
ed to about $9,000. The enterprising farmers and 
stock breeders of Vermont are making a harvest, while 
Wisconsin will be none the poorer.” 
Stock for South America. —Mr. Jacob E. Spring 
of Buenos Ayres, recently bought of Soloman W. 
Jewett of Middlebury, Vermont, some Hereford, 
Durham and Devon Cattle, and French Merino Sheep, 
which were shipped by the way of Messrs. Larkin & 
Stackpole of Boston. Mr. Spring has 25,000 Sheep, 
many of them high grade Merinos. It costs about 6 
cents per lb. to raise wool in Buenos Ayres. 
Wind Power. —We think our correspondent “A. 
C.” will find Halliday’s Wind-mill to answer his purpose 
exactly. It is we believe, warranted “ to adjust itself 
to every breeze;” and from what we saw of it at the 
State Fair, we are inclined to believe that it cannot 
fail to prove of great value in raising water. 
Dec. 
know whether the pretensions of one who sets himself 
up as their instructor, are well founded or not. If, as 
he asserts, he has really “ made analyses of the soils of 
more than 100 farms, ana advised modes of culture 
founded on such analyses, and in no instance without 
increasing the profits of the farmer more than one- 
third ,” he has done what no other chemist ever pre¬ 
tended to have accomplished, and the laurels now rest¬ 
ing upon the brows of Liebig, Johnston, Norton and 
others, should be awarded to him. Will somebody en¬ 
lighten us on the subject 7 
Seedling Potatoes. —Mr. Benj. Chase of Bemus 
Heights, Saratoga Co. has presented us seme potatoes 
which he says were raised from the seed of the West¬ 
ern Red, by Jas. Shepherd of Saratoga. They are 
large, white with red eyes, white-fleshed, of good quali¬ 
ty, and as hardy and more productive, according to Mr. 
Chase, than the Western Red. 
Light Wanted. —Mr. Wight, editor of the Prai¬ 
rie Farmer , in his notes of a recent tour to the east, 
in the November no. of that paper, thus alludes, in 
speaking of his visit to the editorial fraternity at 
Rochester, to Prof. Mapes : 
I did see Mr. Harris, the practical and scientific 
editor of the Rural ; and he seemed none the worse 
for his encounter with the man of Phosphates--editor 
Mapes. I learned by the by—not here, but in several 
other places—quite a number of things of this same 
Prof. Mapes, as he is called ; the chief of which is 
that he is no more of a chemist than the next man ; 
that is, that he is no otherwise such than one can be¬ 
come by reading. Now no one can be a chemist by 
reading, any more than one can be a shoemaker by 
reading how to make shoes. I had supposed that as 
he professed to prescribe for poor soils, he was an ana¬ 
lyzer of soils; but I was assured that he had never 
made an analysis of a soil in his life ; and is no more 
capable of doing so than a gimlet is of making an au¬ 
ger hole. I heard more good stories too of the large 
crops which he has had the credit of raising, during 
the last few years, which if true would put his success 
as a farmer on a par with his claims to be thought a 
chemist. In fact, it is a fact, that there are many 
people “ down East,” who think that Professor Mapes 
and Professor Comstock would do well to form a co¬ 
partnership and go into business together. From what 
I can learn, as soon as the new doctrine of congeniali¬ 
ties is fairly established by “ the spirits” now having 
it in charge, this is likely to come to pass. If it does, 
we have much to hope from it, without doubt. 
Will somebody enlighten us on this subject 7 We 
recently asked a gentleman who advertises himself 
“ as a pupil of Prof. Mapes,” and a “consulting agri¬ 
cultural chemist,” if he had studied analytical che¬ 
mistry in Prof. Mapes’ laboratory, and were not sur¬ 
prised when he informed us that he knew nothing prac¬ 
tically about analyzing soils and that Prof.Mapes had no 
laboratory; and yet Prof. M. professes to have made ana¬ 
lyses of soils by the hundred, and claims the title of 
“ Professor” and “ L. L. D.” We may add, as a far¬ 
ther reason why some light should be thrown upon this 
subject, that we have never met with a scientific man 
who placed any more confidence in Prof. Mapes’ sci¬ 
ence than we do in his general statements. It is a 
matter of much practical Importance to our farmers to 
New-York and Ohio Durhams. —Mr. Bateham, 
editor of the Ohio Cultivator, whom we had the plea¬ 
sure of meeting at our State Fair, in speaking of the 
cattle on exhibition says—“ In comparing the most ap¬ 
proved Durham cattle at New-York with those at the 
Ohio show, we notice that the former are generally of 
a finer make, and smaller in bone and size than the 
latter; which is no doubt owing to the difference in 
taste and circumstances of the stock breeders and 
farmers of the two States. We have nowhere beheld 
more finished specimens of Short Horns than are some 
of the recent importations of New-York; but we think 
that those of Ohio and Kentucky will generally excel 
them in size and earliness of maturity, which are the 
best requisites for western feeders and drovers.” Mr 
B. speaks of the general arrangements and managemen 
of the exhibition at New-York, as the best he has ever 
seen in this country. - 
Conn. Valley Farmer. —This very valuable 
monthly, heretofore published at Springfield, and edited 
by Prof. Nash, has been transferred by its proprietors 
to Prof. N. who will hereafter edit and publish it at 
Amherst. The late proprietors say that they have 
published it at a very considerable pecuniary loss. 
We trust, however, that its present editor and proprie¬ 
tor will meet with a better reward, for the Valley 
Farmer richly merits a liberal patronage. 
$3,500 for a Bull. —The bull “ Syrius,” which 
received the premium at the recent Bourbon County 
Ky., Agricultural Fair, has been bought by Mr. R. A 
Alexander, of Woodford in that state at $3,500. 
A Word about Fences.— One of the most crying 
evils existing among farmers, at least in some sections 
of the country, is poor fences, and especially partition 
fences, which are a fruitful source of hard feeling and 
contention between neighbors. It is quite a task for a 
portion of our farmers to support their fences, where 
fencing timber is scarce, and with small means. But 
there is often a lack of a fixed principle and a full de- 
termination of the parties, in coming up to their duty. M 
