1853 . 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
241 
ment corresponded with the calculation tc >.ne utmost 
nicety. Inventors usually make an imperfect model, 
and afterwards alter and add indefinitely; but this ap¬ 
pears to have been completely matured before any por¬ 
tion of it was constructed, and what is extraordinary, 
the full sized machine is scarcely a variation from the. 
original model. Atkins knew nothing practically of 
grain-cutting, having from a boy closely devoted him¬ 
self to his trade until he became a cripple, and he had 
never seen a reaper but onee, and then not at work; yet 
so correct were his arrangements, that in every case 
where mechanics deviated from his plans, failure was 
the result, and his wishes had to be followed in every 
particular. 
Such ingenuity as this should not be permitted to 
slumber; and although its possessor may be confined to 
an obscure loom by bodily disease, the thoughts of his 
mind may yet control thousands of strong-limbed and 
able-bodied men. [See advertisement of Atkins’ Self- 
Raking Reaper in this paper.] 
Cross-Production of New Varieties of Wheat. 
This is a subject which as yet has scarcely obtained 
a'moment’s attention from even our most enterprising 
and scientific farmers, and we deem it, therefore, parti¬ 
cularly worthy of a few remarks. As the same general 
principles which govern theimprovement of varieties of 
domestic animals, are applicable in the production of new 
varieties of plants, and the breeding of animals is so 
much better understood, we shall, as occasion requires, 
refer -freely to the latter. 
There are two leading principles on which the im¬ 
provement of animals depends, viz, that “ like produces 
likeand, at the same time, that the progeny varies 
more or less from the character of the parent. The first 
principle enables the breeder to preserve in the off¬ 
spring, at least in a great degree, the good qualities he 
has once obtained; and the latter, while it admits of 
some departure, gives an opportunity for improvement 
occasionally, although the product may more generally 
fall below the original. Were the first an inflexible 
rule, the progeny would always be an exact copy of the 
parent, and no change could ever be effected. 
On a similar principle, much improvement has al¬ 
ready been made in the varieties of farm and garden 
plants. An intelligent New-Jersey farmer, many years 
since, increased materially the productiveness of his 
corn, by a long continued practice of selecting the finest 
ears, and from the most prolific stalks. A skilful gar¬ 
dener, by a few years attention in choosing those only 
the soonest ripe, rendered his Washington peas at least 
one week earlier than his neighbors! And if every 
gardener should always select some remarkably fine 
specimens of turnep, or cabbage, or raddish, for the pro¬ 
duction of his seed, he might not only maintain but in¬ 
crease the excellence of his crops. On the other hand, 
as our best sorts of grains and vegetables have already 
been brought up to a high degree of perfection above 
their original type, they tend continually to fall below 
this height, when reproduced from seed, and hence no 
cultivator can expect to maintain their character if he 
does not select continually the best, or else procure 
successively his seed under the name of new and im¬ 
proved sorts, raised by other's who have adopted the 
system of selection. 
The best breeders of domestic animals find, however, 
that a simple and continued propagation from selected 
specimens is quite insufficient for their purpose, and 
hence they are compelled to resort to the bolder pro¬ 
cess of crossing, by employing two unlike animals, so 
that among a numerous progeny, some may be found 
that shall combine the best qualities of both. This was, 
in part, the origin of those superb breeds, the improved 
Short-hom cattle, and of the Anglo-Merino sheep. The 
same principle in propagation has been applied in the 
production of new fruits; for while Van Mons obtained 
some excellent new pears through great and extensive 
labor, by successively planting the seed of the same in¬ 
dividuals ; Knight obtained, in a more easy and shorter 
mode, namely, that of crossing, those celebrated sorts, 
the Coe’s Golden Drop plum, and the Elton and Early 
Black cherries. 
But while so much has been accomplished by cross¬ 
breeding in animals, and the subject of cross-production 
of fruits is by no means neglected, it is certainly a mat¬ 
ter of surprise that the application of this process to our 
farm grains, and more especially to wheat, should never 
have claimed more attention. Some of our best sorts of 
wheat appear to have originated merely by the acci¬ 
dental discovery of single stalks growing in the field, 
and exhibiting a superior appearance to the rest of the 
crop—owing partly, perhaps, to an accidental variation 
from the seed sown, or possibly through the influence of 
the pollen of other sorts. 
In order to comprehend something of the importance 
of improving wheat by crossing, we have only to look 
at the value of the whole wheat crop of the country. It 
has been estimated that the aggregate increase in va¬ 
lue, in Western New-York alone, consequent upon the 
introduction and general use of Soule’s improved variety, 
amounts to no less than thirty thousand dollars yearly; 
and if the whole wheat crop of the United States 
amounts annually to one hundred millions, the general 
introduction of a superior variety that would yield but 
one-hundredth more than the present sorts, or a few 
quarts more per acre, would be worth a million dollars 
per year. Now, what state agricultural society is wil¬ 
ling to offer five hundred dollars as a prospective pre¬ 
mium for the best variety of wheat obtained by cross¬ 
impregnation, provided it shall prove worthy of the pre¬ 
mium? How could our national government expend 
more wisely or economically ten thousand dollars, than 
in premiums for new grains that would be worth a mil¬ 
lion dollars yearly? 
The only attempt we have ever met with on record, 
at crossing the varieties of wheat, is that of Hugh i 
Raynbird of Hampshire, England, reported in a late J 
British periodical. He selected two distinct varieties— 
one a coarse red variety, with a short, thick-set ear, 
and with a short and stiff straw, known by the name of 
Piper’s Thickset, and the other the Hope town wheat, a 
white-headed sort, with a long ear and a long straw, 
and containing more than an average numoer of grains 
of a fine quality. The process of impregnation was as 
follows: As soon as Piper’s wheat came into ear, the 
glumes were opened, and the three anthers removed from 
each with the point of a needle, when the whole was again 
very carefully closed. The operation required much 
time and patience. A few days afterwards, when the 
pollen of the Hopetown was in a fit condition, the glumes 
were again opened and the stigmas dusted. But the 
manipulations of art never equal those of nature; and 
as a consequence, only a few thin kernels were obtained 
from each ear. These were, however, planted, and the 
roots afterwards divided to increase the product. At 
harvest, all the ears had the red chaff and grain of 
Piper’s Thickset, and many were not changed at all; 
in some, only the upper part of the ear resembled Pi¬ 
per’s, while others resembled the Hopetown in the shape 
of the ear and the length of the straw. The next year 
all the seed was destroyed by a fire, except a few ears 
that had been forwarded to another part of the country 
—these served to retain the sorts. The results are stated 
to be so far satisfactory, although several* years must 
elapse before the value of the sorts can be fully ascer¬ 
tained. The following plan is adopted to ascertain, the 
exact product per acre, on a small scale: Two boards, 
each 6£ inches wide, are perforated with holes to admit 
a dibble five inches apart, so that each plant occupies a 
space of half a link, or the 100,000th part of an acre ; 
or by omitting every alternate hole, the space may be 
increased to two links. When one row is planted, the 
board is moved forward; in this manner the most mi¬ 
nute exactness is secured. » -j 
In judging of the value of new varieties of any vege- v* 
table production, the mode of intended propagation will tfc 
have an important bearing. Where, for example, they ({ft 
