1848. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
97 
MONTHLY IOTICES-T© 
Postage of <{ The Cultivator.” —We learn with 
surprise that several postmasters in different sections of 
the country, insist on charging u The Cultivator” with 
pamphlet postage. No one who will read the post 
office law, can doubt for a moment that the Cultivator 
is clearly a newspaper in the meaning of that law. Be¬ 
side this, every Postmaster General, since the establish¬ 
ment of the paper, has decided that it was subject to 
nevjspaper postage only. We republish the decision 
of the present head of the Post-Office Department up¬ 
on the subject: 
Appointment Office, P. O. Dept, Feb. 14, 1S46. 
Sir —In reply to your letter of the 10th inst., I have 
to say that “ The Cultivator,” published at Albany, N. 
Y., in the form it which it is transmitted for the decis¬ 
ion of the Department, is regarded as being subject to 
newspaper postage only. I am, sir, respectfully yours, 
W. J. BROWN, 
Luther Tucker, Esq. 2d Ass’t. P. M. General. 
Communications have been received the past month 
from R. H., S. A. Law, S. W. Jewett, Oneida, Bucks 
Co. Farmer, F. J. Scott, A Subscriber, R. K. Tuttle, 
F. Holbrook, A., Samuel Wilbur, J. B. Burnett, An 
Old Milker, J. Ten Broeck, W., C. E. G., F. J. Scott, 
H. R. Congdon, P. D. S., J. D., Andrew Bush. 
Books, Pamhlets, &c. have been received during 
the past month, as follow's:— Transactions of the Mass. 
Hort. Society, No. I., from the President M. P. Wilder 
Esq.— Transactions of the Worcester Co. (Mass.) 
Ag. Society for 1847, from Col. J. W. Lincoln.—— 
Proceedings of Greene Co., (N. Y.) Ag. Society, from 
H.G. Day, Esq.——Rev. Dr. Allen’s Historical Dis¬ 
course, on the 40th anniversary of the gathering of the 
2d church, Dorchester, from M. P. Wilder, Esq. - 
Ewbank’s Hydraulics and Mechanics, Parts II and III, 
from the publishers, Greeley & McElrath, New- 
York.—- Transactions of the Ohio Fruit Grower’s 
Convention, held at Columbus in September last, from 
M. B. Bateham, Ed. Ohio Cultivator.— -Lectures 
on Ag. Chemistry, before the Senior class of the Uni¬ 
versity of Georgia, by Prof. J. Le Conte, M. D.-- 
Report of the Buffalo Hort. Society for 1847.- -An¬ 
nual Report of the Mass. Insane Asylum, Worcester, 
for 1847, from Dr. Geo. Chandler, principal of the 
institution.-- Transactions of Trumbull Co. (0.) 
Ag. Society, for 1847, from F. E. Stowe, Esq. 
Elkanah Watson. —We have great pleasure in be¬ 
ing able to present our readers this month, with a brief, 
but very interesting memoir of Elkanah Watson, 
Esq., the founder of the Berkshire Ag. Society, and by 
whose efforts the first Cattle-Show was held in this 
country. For a large portion of the facts embraced 
in this memoir, we are indebted to W. C. Watson,^ 
Esq., of Port Kent, who we are pleased to learn, is 
preparing for the press a memoir of his father, to em¬ 
brace extracts from his Diary and Correspondence, a 
work which, from Mr. W.’s association and correspon¬ 
dence with the most prominent men of his age. both at 
home and abroad , cannot fail of being read with great 
interest. The Portrait, which accompanies the me¬ 
moir, is engraved from one given in Mr. Watson’s 
“ History of Ag. Societies,” published in 1820. 
Wood’s Patent Cast-Iron Plow. —A bill has pas¬ 
sed the Senate of the United States, to renew the pa¬ 
tent of Jethro Wood, for his improvements in the cast- 
iron plow, for the term of seven years. This patent 
CORIUSSPONDENTS, &c. 
was originally taken out in 1819, and has been once 
renewed, extending to a period of twenty-eight years. 
Without meddling with the question of the merits of 
Mr. Wood’s claim to the improvements which were pa¬ 
tented to him, we cannot but think that the patent 
should now be permitted to expire. Jethro Wood’s 
plow was, it is well known, far inferior to the best 
plows of the present day. But it is claimed that few 
or none of these plows can be made without an infringe¬ 
ment of Wood’s patent. If this be the case, it would 
seem an act of great injustice to the farmer, to compel 
him to use a plow of the old patent of 1819, or to pay 
a tax of 50 cents for the use of aplow which later in¬ 
ventors have brought to a much higher state of perfec¬ 
tion. Few can doubt but that Mr. Wood, or others 
for him, received in the twenty-eight years which his 
patent has already covered, an equivalent from the pub¬ 
lic equal to the benefit conferred. Had Mr. Wood fol¬ 
lowed up his improvement, and made a plow equal to 
the best now in use, there would have been more justice 
in the claim for the renewal: but as he left this work 
to be performed by others, it appears to us that neither 
his heirs nor those to whom he assigned large portions 
of his patent, have rightly any further claim upon the 
public for protection; especially as this protection can¬ 
not be given without positive injustice both to the far¬ 
mer and to later improvers of the plow. 
Horticultural Exhibition. —The meeting for the 
exhibition of winter fruits of the Albany and Rensse¬ 
laer Horticultural Society, was held at the Agricultu¬ 
ral Rooms, Albany, on the 11th of February. There 
was a handsome exhibition of apples and a,few pears. 
Among the apples were the Swaar, Vandervere, Spit- 
zenburgh, Seek-no-fatrther, Blue Pearmain, Roxbury 
Russet, Rhode Island Greening, Newtown Pippin, Nor¬ 
thern Spy,Winter King, Scolloped or German Gilli-flow- 
er, Bristol apple—the two latter excellent apples not 
common here. The pears were a seedling from Hen¬ 
ry Snider, of Kinderhook; andlnconnue of Van Mons, 
Easter Beurre, Prince’s St. Germain from Dr. Her¬ 
man Wendell, of Albany. Dr. Wendell received 
the first premium on pears, and W. Newcomb, of Pitts- 
town, Rensselaer county, the first premium on apples. 
Dr. Beekman, H. Snyder, T. M. Burt, Peter King- 
man, of Kinderhook, sent fine samples of apples, as did 
also Mr. Briggs, of Schaghticoke, Mr. Rhodes, of 
Albany, and Mr. Frost of Chemung county. Mr. 
Wilson, of Albany, made a beautiful display of ca- 
melias and other flowers appropriate to the season. 
Col, Rathbone, the President of the society, present¬ 
ed (through his gardner) some fine bunches of aspara¬ 
gus. We did not learn the particular mode in which 
it was produced. 
Death of Henry Watson, Esq. —We learn with 
much regret that this gentleman died suddenly, at his 
residence in East Windsor, Ct.. on the 27th January 
last. He was widely known as an active and enter¬ 
prising agriculturist and stock-breeder, having been ex¬ 
tensively engaged in rural pursuits for a period of forty 
years. 
Rock Salt. —We invite attention to an advertise¬ 
ment of this article in the present number. It is the 
English rock salt in its crude state. It is in lumps, of 
the size of a man’s fist to the size Of a man’s head. It 
is very hard, and will not readily dissolve ; hence it is 
the very best kind of salt for feeding stock—as it may 
be placed on stones, or in troughs, in the pastures, and 
