186 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
June 
other corn common to this latitude, thirty eight degrees 
forty minutes. Harrowed and hoed as above. Average 
crop, 133 l-3d bushels per acre. The manured part 
supposed to be one-sixth best. Thurston Wood. 
Madison, Jefferson Co., Ia., March 10, 1848. 
Wheat and Chess, 
Our readers are a- 
ware that a difference 
of opinion exists on 
the subject of the sup¬ 
posed change of wheat 
to chess. The prac¬ 
tice of many farmers 
is in a great degree 
guided by their opin¬ 
ions; and it is impor¬ 
tant to know whether 
he who diligently and 
perseveringly endeav¬ 
ors to eradicate every 
plant of chess from his 
fields, may reasonably 
hope for ultimate suc¬ 
cess ; or whether care¬ 
ful or careless practice 
is to be alike rewarded 
with success or failure. 
Without intending 
to offer any thing of a 
controversial charac¬ 
ter, we wish to call 
the attention of farm- 
ersto some points in the 
character and habits 
of the chess plant, 
which we believe will 
explain some results 
otherwise apparently 
unaccountable; and assist in reaching the truth much bet¬ 
ter than the statement of many superficial observations, 
of what may appear at first striking cases of transmu¬ 
tation. 
One of the most interesting and important points of 
character in the chess plant, is the difference in size 
and luxuriance under different circumstances. Under 
the thick shade of vegetable growth, plants have been 
observed scarcely two inches high, perfecting their seed, 
and impregnating with the seed, wholly unnoticed, the 
land on which they grew. This has been noticed in mea¬ 
dows even two or three years after seeding down with 
grass. But when this obstruction to its growth is re¬ 
moved, the young roots will send up several shoots, to 
three or four feet in height, and in some cases yield 
an increase of two or three thousand fold. The ac¬ 
companying figure represents plants of chess, growing 
from seed precisely alike, but under favorable and ad¬ 
verse circumstances afterwards, a is a plant growing 
in good soil, without interference or obstruction; b, a 
plant partially shaded; c, a plant of the smallest size, 
under a very dense growth of wheat, or in a meadow. 
These figures are drawn from actual observation, and 
the relative sizes are correctly given. 
Another character is, the small size and hardiness of 
the seeds of chess. Being much smaller than wheat, 
they often escape notice, and are sown and unconsci¬ 
ously spread; or escaping the teeth of cattle are dis¬ 
tributed with their manure; or may be even spread by 
birds. The time they will remain in the ground, with¬ 
out vegetating, is unknown. But as pig-weed, fox-tail 
and other weeds, have been noticed to spring up in 
dense growth, on plowing meadows and pastures, which 
for a long series of years were thickly matted with 
turf; it is reasonable to suppose that the seeds of chess 
also may remain many years in the soil, ready to spring 
up and grow, when “ clean seed” is sown on new or 
supposed clean ground. 
Hence it follows, in consequence of the preceding 
facts, that when wheat is good, and has a fine 
thick growth, the plants of chess are small and entirely 
escape notice; the scythe does not perhaps touch them, 
although they ripen and spread their seed. But when 
the wheat is thinned or destroyed by winter; or when 
cattle get in and eat off the crop, or when it is des¬ 
troyed by any other means, the obstruction to the growth 
of the chess is removed, and young plants, instead of 
remaining as shown by c in the figure, of diminutive 
size, it shoots up and spreads its heads far and wide, 
and produces a conspicuous and abundant crop. The 
wheat has disappeared, and chess has taken its place; 
hence the conclusion is very natural that the former has 
changed to the latter. 
But as every good farmer is carefnl to destroy pig¬ 
weed and fox-tail, and avoid spreading the seeds, the 
same care should be extended to the exclusion of chess. 
Instances are by no means wanting where such care, 
persevered in, has entirely eradicated the plant; and 
when wheat on such farms has been destroyed by win¬ 
ter, no chess has taken its place. 
Agricultural products of the U. States and France. 
A writer in the English Agricultural Gazette makes 
an interesting comparison of the products of the Uni¬ 
ted States compared with those of France. The popu¬ 
lation of the United States is set down at 20,000,000 
and that of France at 35,000,000. The proportion of 
the agricultural population in America is given as 80. 
4 per cent.; commercial, 2. 5; and manufacturing 17. 
1. The writer observes that the agricultural produc¬ 
tion of the United States, compared with its inhabitants, 
is enormous, viz:— 
Horned cattle. 
United States, 14,971,533 
France, 9,936,538 
Sheep. I 
19,311,374 
32,151,430 I 
Horses & Mules I "Pigs. 
4,335,669 26,301,293 
3,192,337 | 4,940,721 
He contrasts the grain crops of the two countries, 
showing the comparative amounts produced of each 
kind, in hectolitres, as follows: 
Wheat. Barley. Rye. Oats. In. Corn B’ckwheat 
United States, 30 millions. 1£ ml’s 6 ml’s. 44 ml’s. 135 mis. 2£ ml’s. 
France, 69 “ 16 27 48 7 8 
“ The United States,” (says the writer,) “ produce 
annually 70,000 tons of wool, 600 tons of hops, 300 
tons of beeswax, 10,000,000 tons of hay, 95,000 tons 
of hemp and flax, 100,000 tons of tobacco, 40,000 tons 
of rice, 395,000 tons of cotton, 60,000 lbs. of cocoons 
of silkworms, 77,000 tons of sugar, and 5,000 hecto¬ 
litres of wine. The produce of the farm-yard, or cow¬ 
house, is estimated at 7,000,000Z. sterling—($35,000,- 
000); that of the orchards, 1,560,000/.; forests, 2,- 
720,000/. The total amount of agricultural produce, 
amounts yearly to the enormous sum of 138,730,160/. 
sterling—($693,650,800.) The manufactures of the 
United States, though yet in their infancy, are rapidly 
increasing, and the writer puts down the amount of ca¬ 
pital embarked in manufactories of various kinds, at 
56,757,912/. sterling-. Considered in all respects, 
therefore, he concludes —“ America may be classed 
next to Great Britain, as the second agricultural and 
commercial country in the world.” 
.Long and Short Eggs. 
u D.”, a correspondent of the English Agricultural 
Gazette shows that the old notion of “ long eggs pro¬ 
ducing cocks,” is unfounded. His first argument is, 
that “to every hen belongs an individual peculiarity in 
the size, form and color of the egg she lays, which ne¬ 
ver changes during her whole life-time, so long as she 
remains in health, and which is, as well known to thos® 
