1852 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
369 
improved the land, so that it is now in a good state of 
cultivation. Hadley, OcL 20, 1851. 
David Rice’s Statement.-I present the following state¬ 
ment in regard to a compost manure that I have used 
and tested for several years. It recommends itself by 
several considerations. I state in the outset, that the 
two great objects to be looked after in making manures, 
are cheapness and strength. A strong fertilizing manure 
that costs but little , is what farmers most desire. The 
experiments that I have made, have not been on a large 
scale, but large enough for the deduction of facts, which 
I wish to state to the committee. 
Immediately after planting in the spring, and after I 
have used what manure I want, I commence my com¬ 
post heap for the next season. Into a convenient place, 
which with me is a hollow in the angle of a bank wall, 
on the south end of my buildings, I deposit first a load 
of horse manure. Over this I usually spread the scrap¬ 
ings of my wood yard and cellar, especially in May, and 
all other refuse substances that will make manure, that 
I find about my buildings, such as the rakings of the 
yard, and old leaves, &c., making in all another small load. 
Over this I add a load of loam, then over the whole I 
spread about a bushel of ashes. For the next three or 
four weeks this heap receives from the washroom, all 
the soap suds and washing water, and from the house 
all the useless slops and washings of the kitchen, sweep¬ 
ings, See., being kept continually moist. In about four 
weeks after the first deposit, I add another load of horse 
manure, more loam and sand from the washings of road 
drains spread over the horse manure, and over all, a 
layer of wood ashes, occasionally adding more during 
the next four weeks. This heap for the succeeding four 
weeks, receives as before, all the fertilizing substances 
that accumulate in the wash-room and kitchen. This 
process is continued during the summer and fall until 
snow covers the ground, and then I call my heap finish¬ 
ed, only as it continues to receive during the winter, 
washings, slops, &c. 
This manure I have usually applied to corn land, but 
never expecting to make any written statement as to its 
fertilizing qualities, I have not tested it as methodically 
as I otherwise should have done. I have tried it by the 
side of good barn manure, and by the side of good hog 
yard manure, and it produces a heavier growth of corn 
than either. I noticed, particularly this season, that 
where I manured corn in the hill with my compost and 
hog-yard manures, a load of each being deposited side 
by side, on equally good land, that corn grown over the 
compost manure was the most vigorous, darker colored, 
and produced quite as large a crop in harvest time, as 
that grown over the hog yard manure. 
I have tried it also in the hill for potatoes, and find it 
fully equal to the best hog-yard manure. I claim for 
this manure the following advantages: 
First it is cheap. Horse manure alone is a miserable 
fertilizer, and this, excepting the wood ashes, is the only 
substance of any value, that enters into the composition. 
Combined in the way stated, it helps to form a valuable 
manure. Loam and washings from the road side, cost 
nothing but the labor of getting them. All the refuse 
substances around the house, cellar and yard, are got rid 
of as nuisances, and converted to a valuable purpose. 
The wood ashes lose nothing of their value combined in 
this way, but rather are rendered more useful by impart¬ 
ing their virtues to other substances, making a compost 
more fertilizing than ashes could be alone. 
Again, as a matter of cleanness and convenience, this 
compost heap is of great advantage. How often do we 
see around farm houses and farm yards, accumulations' 
of substances rendering the premises filthy and unsight¬ 
ly. The compost heap receives all these otherwise use¬ 
less accumulations, and greedily drinks in all the slops 
and washings that otherwise would be forming dirty and 
offensive drains about the premises; but in this way, 
they are fitly and economically disposed of. Leverdt, 
Oct., 1851. 
Never run in debt unless you see a way to get out. 
Improvement of our Common Sheep. 
In the improvement of sheep, as well as of all other 
animals, the male is considered of more importance than 
the female, and more care is therefore necessary in se¬ 
lecting one; yet, for the- production of perfect animals, 
it is absolutely essential that both male and female be 
well bred: and if not individually perfect in every point, 
the conformation of the two should be such as when 
combined would form a perfect creature. So that, in 
endeavoring to improve our common flocks of sheep, we 
should not only get good, first rate bucks, but should 
select out from the flock the ewes of the best age and 
make, to put with him; and in choosing them, should 
have an eye to those particular points we wish to have 
well developed in the lambs. In this way much may be 
done to improve our ordinary breeds of sheep, without 
much outlay in purchasing improved stock. A know¬ 
ledge of the principles of breeding, and care in the se¬ 
lection and management of the ewes from which we in¬ 
tend to breed, and the choice of a buck adapted to coun¬ 
teract any deficiencies in the ewes, will, if judiciously 
persevered in for a few years, greatly improve any flock 
of sheep. 
Farmers often procure a buck which, however useful 
he might be for other flocks, is altogether unsuitable for 
the flock he is intended to serve. Again, in a large 
flock of ordinary sheep, there are often two or more 
kinds of ewes, with characteristics entirely different 
from each other: hence a buck that might be first 
rate for the one, and calculated to improve the breed, 
would be altogether ill adapted for the other, and would 
propagate imperfections rather than neutralize them; 
yet how common is it to let the whole flock run togeth¬ 
er, and have the indiscriminate use of the same bucks. 
Instead of this careless, heedless, and profitless way of 
breeding, the flock should at this time be judiciously as¬ 
sorted into lots of forty or fifty, having a buck with each 
lot possessing strongly the particular points in which the 
ewes are somewhat deficient, and in accordance with the 
object for which the lambs are raised. Where a small 
flock is kept, and only one buck is needed, a farmer can 
often select out some ewes of a particular conformation, 
that would be better served by a neighbor’s buck than 
his own. The neighbor, too, may be in the same cir¬ 
cumstances; and thus a change of ewes to be served by 
each other’s buck, would be mutually advantageous to 
the owners, and beneficial to the flock. 
The best time at which to place the bucks with the 
flock, depends a great deal on the breed of sheep, and 
the object of the breeder. If his flock is rather coarse 
wooled, and he wishes early lambs for the butcher, the 
middle of September is perhaps not too soon. This, as 
ewes go twenty-two to twenty-three weeks, would bring 
the lambs about the first of March, which, in the vicini¬ 
ty of large cities, where early lamb commands a good 
price, is the best time—yielding most profit although a 
little extra care and feed are necessary. The buck, in 
this case, should be a Leicester or South Down, as their 
cross with common sheep gives her a larger lamb, with 
increased tendency to fatten, and early maturity. Such 
a cross with our common half-blood Merino flocks, pro¬ 
duces good mutton sheep, and it is often profitable to 
adopt it for that purpose; but it would be folly to at¬ 
tempt to breed from such a mongrel race. If the object 
of the flock-master be merely the production of 
wool of fine quality, he should procure Spanish or 
French Merino bucks, selecting from his flock the best 
ewes of from three to eight years old, to place with 
them. It is not desirable to have the lambs come till 
there is a prospect of grass for the mother; so the bucks 
should be kept from the flock till the latter part of Oc¬ 
tober. And as grass is often scarce and innutritions 
then, it will be advisable to give a little clover hay, or 
perhaps oats or peas, to stimulate the ewes at that time. 
The buck, too, should be grained or have a little oilcake 
at night, separately from the ewes. Nothing pays better 
than careful attention to the flock during winter; and 
towards spring the qualitj* of their food should be in¬ 
creased, and a few ruta baga or mangel wurzel may be 
