1852 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
299 
fruits, as plums, gooseberries, and also upon grapes. The 
potato, in such weather, seemed to suffer from too great 
an accumulation of juices, while the absence of dry air 
and moderate wind, induced a tender state of the cuticle 
of the plant. These were just the circumstances for the 
production of mildew, and the consequent depravation 
of the elaborations and depositions of the plant, and the 
consequent disease of the tubers. 
3. Nor have we suffered this year, from the severe 
changes incident to all these years, previously to 1850, 
which exhibited a disease of the potato. Our rains this 
year, even when following hot and dry weather, have not 
been succeeded by long continued cold and windy de¬ 
pressions of temperature,—a state of weather tending 
to paralyse the circulation of the plant, and deprave the 
elaborations and depositions, just as in the preceding case, 
and thus to disease the tuber. 
The recent heavy rains have, it is true, been fol¬ 
lowed by cold windy days, and cold nights, the mercury 
falling, in some cases, as low as 44 Q , but the temperature 
had not been high and impulsive for some time before the 
rainthe herbage of the potato is now about three weeks 
older, (and proportionately stronger,) than it has usually 
been when the weather that impelled the potato disease 
has occurred. 
Thus I entertain strong hope that in all cases of wise 
culture, the use of the strongest varieties of the old sorts 
even for seed, we shall have no potato disease, and per¬ 
haps in no case whatever. 
There is one indication of th*» unusual health of the 
potato, which is very strong. I refer to the promise ofa 
considerable crop of potato balls. The old round reds, 
which have not born since 1848, will bear plentifully this 
year. So also will some varieties of early Junes, which 
rarely ever bear. My home seedling varieties of 1849, 
and my South American sorts, both original and seedling, 
will all bear. But what is most striking, in the line of 
facts and argument, is the fact that my seedlings of the 
present year, i.e. those raised from the seed ball sown 
the last spring, are now setting seed balls. Of eleven 
families of such seedlings, eight are thus setting balls. In 
former years I have rarely gathered a ball earlier than 
the third year. It is true that I credit this unusual re¬ 
sult in part to extra cultivation, but it is in part only. 
Much of it should be credited to the favorable character 
of the season. 
So far as my reading extends, we are greatly lacking 
in recorded facts and physiological deductions in regard 
to the culture of tropical plants, especially the potato. 
By a comparison of facts, I think it highly probable that 
very few potato balls have usually been produced , (at 
least during the ten years period of the prevalence of 
the potato disease ,) without the occurrence of a consid¬ 
erable period of moist, but especially cool weather in the 
months of July and August. If such weather has oc¬ 
curred in the early part of this interval, balls have set 
and matured. If it has occurred in the latter part of it, 
they have set, but have not matured. I could easily il¬ 
lustrate this position by facts, but the illustration would 
be too long for this paper. I do not now take this posi¬ 
tion confidently, but suggest it as highly probable, and 
with a view to enlist extended observation. 
Should these supposed facts prove true, they will but 
add another proof to the position, (which I have else¬ 
where assumed,) that the climate of much of the United 
States, is too hot, bright , and dry , and the seasons too 
short fur the highest health of the potato. C. E. G. 
Utica , Aug. 4, 1852. 
Profits of Farming. 
Eds. Cultivator —A great deal has been said and 
written of late years, as to the profit or loss of farming. 
On one side it is contended that a handsome profit can be 
realised; on the other, that nothing but a bare living can 
be made. Now both may be right in a certain sense, and 
both wrong. The difference seems to lie in the fact that 
each person looks through a separate medium and draws 
his conclusions accordingly. It is natural to make in¬ 
ferences from one’s own management, and for this reason 
we see such a variety of opinions in the agricultural dis¬ 
cussions of the day. To my own mind it is clear as the 
noon-day sun, that no business is more profitable in the 
long run, than farming. I well remember, twenty-five 
years ago, of hearing farmers say that the most they 
could do was to support a family, pay the taxes, and 
come out about even at the end of the year. With very 
few exceptions, these farmers have continued to preach 
these doctrines and practice them to the present time. 
They claim that when produce is high, the cost of pro¬ 
duction is proportionately increased, and when it is low 
that it will not pay to raise it 
It is often said that farmers are not as industrious now 
as they were forty or fifty years ago. We are not willing 
to assent to this assertion. There were many farmers at 
that time, who cultivated large farms and made money, 
but in nine cases out of ten it was done at the expense 
and exhaustion of the soil. Now this same class of farm- 
ers say that there is no profit in farming in old Connecti¬ 
cut, but that the prairies afford the only locality for pro¬ 
fitable farming. 
Now all this may look very well on paper, but we are 
confident in saying that at no time within the last fifty 
years, has the farming interest been so lucrative in any 
of the New England states as at present. The good 
prices which all kinds of produce bring in market, is 
proof of this.. 
But good management and system are necessary to 
success. The old skinning and exhausting process may 
do on the prairies, but it has run the gauntlet here long 
ago. If farmers intend to “make money” they must 
keep up with the times, study their business and adopt 
new implements and labor-saving machines. Old sayings, 
old maxims and old tools, are poor capital, and I am 
satisfied that we should make double the money if wc 
used greater liberality in our management. We try to 
live by starving our business, and in turn get starved by 
It—a result which no reasonable man can find fault with. 
So long as the great majority of onr farmers carry on 
their business for profit, a more prudent and far-seeing 
course must be pursued. 
We were very much pleased with the description of 
Mr. More’s farm, (Dec. Cult., 1851,) which took a pre¬ 
mium at the State Ag. Society, and wish the article 
could be read by every farmer in the state. Had we 
