THE CULTIVATOR. 
the above horse. This arrangement, with other efforts 
which are being made, will ensure the perpetuation of 
this valuable stock, which would otherwise have been 
lost beyond recovery in the course of a few years. The 
old horse, though coming two-and-twenty, is still vigo¬ 
rous, and capable, with good usage, of much service. 
The “ Phoenix Stock” of Cattle .“—In our notes 
on Massachusetts farming, we had occasion to mention 
some cattle called the “ Phoenix Stock” We saw some 
of this stock on the farms of B. B. Belcher, Spring- 
field, Pliny Chapin, and Chester W. Chapin, of 
Chickopee, and in other places. The resemblance 
among them is very striking—not only the half-bloods, 
but those of a quarter-blood, and even less, exhibit¬ 
ing the family traits so plainly that it was easy to dis¬ 
tinguish them from other animals in the herds. Their 
leading points are a lean head, with horns of medium 
length; prominent eye* long neck, rather small at the 
junction of the head • a straight back; moderately 
round body; deep hind quarters; clean, flat legs; color 
generally yellowish dun, with brindled streaks. Nearly 
all of them are good handlers, and they are generally 
excellent for the dairy. 
On inquiring the origin of this stock, we were told 
that it was derived from a bull introduced by the Rev. 
Mr. Phienix, late of Chickopee, (now of, New Haven,) 
in 1835 or ’36. Mr. Lathrop, of South Hadley, in¬ 
formed us that he had taken some pains to ascertain 
his blood. Mr. L. found that he came from a cow 
owned by Judge Ingraham, of New'-York. She was 
imported, and was called a “ Durham cow.” The bull 
•was dropped on the passage from England, or soon af¬ 
ter the cow arrived in this country. This was all 
which could be told of the bull’s pedigree. He was 
spotted, white, with large patches of brindled-yellow. 
He was small and poor when brought to Massachusetts, 
but after a year or two grew well, and became a medi- 
umed-sized animal. It has been conjectured , from the 
color and quality of the stock, that he was a mixture 
of Short Horn and Alderney blood. 
At the Hartford show we saw a superior cow, be¬ 
longing to Mr. Jas. H. Charlton, of East Windsor, 
which we were told was of this stock. Mr. C. stated 
that 28 lbs., 1 oz. of butter were produced from her 
milk in two weeks, in June, 1847, and that from the 
12th to the 22d of June, the weight of her milk ave¬ 
raged 57 lbs. per day-—her keeping grass only. 
We suggest that efforts be made to preserve this 
stock. Let the best of the cow's be put to bulls which 
will be likely to preserve in their progeny the valuable 
qualities for which the family is distinguished. 
Adulterated Wines.—A correspondent in Dutch¬ 
ess county says :— C( The article on wines in the Decem¬ 
ber number of the Cultivator, reminds me of a fact that 
came to my knowledge in Paris. A physician attend¬ 
ing lectures in Paris, told me that he analysed a bottle 
of the lowest priced wine there, (Paris)—the Vin Or- 
dinarie of laborers, #c., and found that it contained a 
quantity of the Sugar of Lead.” 
Sales of Stock.- —We noticed last month some fine 
cattle and sheep from Lewis F. Allen, Esq., of Buf¬ 
falo, destined for E. K. Brown, Esq., of Mississippi. 
There was a yearling Durham bull, and two Devon 
heifers-—the latter two years old. The sheep were a 
pair each of Cotswolds and South Downs. Having 
been several days on their journey under unfavorable 
circumstances, they did not, of course, appear to that 
advantage they would have done in their own stables or 
yards; but should they succeed in reaching their desti¬ 
nation without material injury, we presume, from their 
good points, they will prove creditable to their breeder, 
and to the breeds to which they belong. 
C. N. Bement, Esq., of this city, has lately disposed 
of some stock to Dr. J. N. Langdon, of Kennebunk, 
Port, Maine. The stock consisted of a bull calf and a 
yearling heifer, a cross of the Ayrshire and Durham. 
They were very pretty animals, and we presume will 
make good dairy stock. 
Cultivation of Onions.— Mr. H.W. S. Cleveland, 
of Burlington, N. J., requests that some of our East¬ 
ern correspondents would give, through the Cultivator, 
an account of their mode of raising onions as a field 
crop. He wishes to know “ what kind of soil is best, 
how it is prepared, what is the after-culture, and the 
best time and mode of harvesting and preparing for 
market, and what is considered a fair yield per acre?” 
He asks, ajso, whether a natural growth of wild garlic 
is any evidence that the soil is fitted for onions? We 
presume many of our subscribers could reply to these 
queries, and'we should be glad to hear from them. 
Exhibition of the Provincial Agricultural As¬ 
sociation of Upper Canada.— This Society held a 
splendid exhibition at Hamilton, on the 7th of October 
last. The weather was very unfavorable, but there 
was notwithstanding a vast crowd of people in attend¬ 
ance, and the display of stock, implements, fruits, 8tc., 
appears to have been very extensive. We rejoice at 
the improvement which is evidently going on in the. ag¬ 
riculture of the Canadas. The government and lead¬ 
ing individuals seem to be warmly engaged in the cause. 
We are informed that there are already in Western or 
Upper Canada, upwards of one_ hundred agricultural 
societies, and with these means, and the fertile soil and 
ready markets which the farmers of that section possess, 
we cannot doubt that they will shortly become emi¬ 
nently prosperous. 
Preventing the Potato Rot.- —An intelligent far¬ 
mer on a small scale, has tried a remedy for several 
years, which, though not new, has been attended with 
such uniform success, as to deserve mentioning. He 
cultivates the Mercer, a variety well known to be unu¬ 
sually liable to the rot. The crop is planted very early , 
almost as soon as the snow disappears in spring, so that 
the potatoes are fully matured by the end of summer. 
In the latter part of the eighth month (Aug.) the po¬ 
tatoes are dug,, and immediately housed in as dry and 
cool a place as possible. By this means he has never 
lost a bushel, although his neighbors, who live close at 
hand on either side, and who plant and harvest their 
crops later, have suffered abundantly. 
The Apple Crop. —The inequality of the apple crop 
in different regions the past season, is remarkable. In 
central Ohio, in the valley of the Hudson, and on the 
seaboard, this fruit has been more or less cut off; 
while in a large part of western New-York, it has not 
been so great for several years. A correspondent on 
Long Island states that in an orchard of twelve acres;, 
he did not obtain half a bushel. Another correspond¬ 
ent in East Greenwich, gives the following account of 
the singular circumstances attending its destruction in 
that part of Rhode Island :— 11 We had the most mea¬ 
gre" prospect of apples I have known for years, and the 
Rose bugs in myriads attacked the scattering fruits 
while not larger than a nut, and from ten to twenty 
might be seen upon a single fruit. Nothing equal to 
it was ever seen in this region; the destruction is long 
on the seaboard ; and fortunately a west wind blew 
them into the sea in such quantities, that they literally 
formed a winrow on shore for miles, and a wagon load 
might have been collected in a short time on some 
parts, as I have been informed repeatedly.” 
Science and Practice in Farming. —B. P. John¬ 
son, Esq., in his address before the Greene County 
Agricultural Society, makps the following just obser¬ 
vations in regard to combining science and practice in 
agriculture:—“ The man who in his study theorizes 
