244 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
July, 
collection and arrangement. He has a fine breed of 
cattle, and choice sheep, grazing on his pastures on the 
banks of the Thames. His stock mostly Short-horns, 
interspersed with Alderney or Jersey cows for milk. 
The sheep are South Downs and Leicesters. 
Kew, a royal residence, is also thrown open to the 
public so far as the grounds and mansion are concerned. 
The Palm-house here is of glass, somewhat in the style 
of the Crystal Palace. Here almost every variety of these 
trees are to be found. The bread tree bearing its fruit 
—the India-rubber tree, &c.,are here to be seen. This 
house is warmed, I understand, by twelve furnaces, and 
the tall chimney which conducts the smoke away, stands, 
I should think, from 40 to 60 rods distant. These 
grounds are handsomely laid out, and the green-houses 
are well filled. The “ Victoria Regia ” is not as large 
as at Sion House, but still outvies all our ideas of the 
Water lilies. Beds' of Rhododendrons are scattered 
through the Kew grounds, which, when in bloom, must 
produce a splendid effect. The museum of curiosities 
here, established by Sir W. J. Hooker, who was present 
when we visited it, is a very interesting collection. We 
went to Richmond Hill, and I saw from the coffee-room 
of the Star and Garter, the splendid view which so 
captivates the English, and I doubt not everybody else 
who sees it. The day was fine, and the country seldom 
seen to better advantage than when we were there. 
Pulling out Stumps. 
Eds. Cultivator —You know many men when they 
do any thing which they think is important, like to let 
it be known ; therefore I will tell you of a large stump 
operation I have lately gone through with. I hired Mr. 
James Haire, from Yates, county with his stump ma¬ 
chine, three hands and one yoke of oxen, at six dollars 
and eighty-eight cents per day, and have had about 800 
oak and black walnut stumps pulled. They were most¬ 
ly very large—some of them brought up the earth from 
15 to 17 feet square, on the surface, and from five to six 
feet deep in the center, and three to four feet deep at 
the outsides. They were drawn by a screw. The screw 
went up through a frame, and the nut on the top was in 
a horizontal wheel of wood, which was turned by horses 
or oxen, drawing up a slack rope of three hundred feet; 
thus raising the screw, which was attached to the stump 
by a large chain and clevis to the screw, and that raised 
all we tried but two. It certainly has the greatest power 
of anything I ever saw; if the chain is strong enough, 
two yoke of oxen, or two pair of strong and true horses. 
I think will raise any stump. My stumps had been cut 
from 10 to 14 years, yet some of them came very hard 
and brought an immense quantity of earth. Where the 
small roots were decayed, even if the tap root drew up 
five to six feet and over, from beloiv the surface, they 
brought up little earth, and the work was done in a 
short time, but those which brought much earth, took 
a great deal of labor to get the clay cleared off them, 
while the stump was suspended, to get the earth back 
into the hole. Besides, no number of teams could have 
turned them over, if let down with such a mass of earth. 
After they were cleaned I find it takes six strong horses 
to draw some of the largest on a stone-boat. Now for 
the cost, as many of your readers may want to know. I 
paid Mr. Haire $114.50; my own team and one man, 
were worth about $25—making $139.50, besides board 
and keep of Mr. Haire’s team. But the cost would have 
been much more, had we not got out some 200 or more 
by the oxen and horses without the aid of the machine. 
If any farmer wishes to undertake such a job, I can 
safely recommend Mr. Haire as a sober, industrious go-a¬ 
head man, and one who, I believe, understands the busi¬ 
ness thoroughly. John Johnston. Near Geneva , May 
23,1851. 
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Farm Fences. 
Eds,. Cultivator. —Thu subject of farm fences is one 
which every farmer should be interested in. Every far¬ 
mer knows well that a good fence is what he likes to see 
around liis fields, and those of his neighbors. There are 
but few of us that have not suffered in years past by poor 
fences and breachy cattle —of course. As to the kind 
of fence to bejbuit, all depends upon circumstances and 
location. Any kind of fence looks well, when well built 
and in good repair. Probably the most substantial and 
lasting of all farm fences, are built of stone. On most 
farms in New-England, more or less stone fence can be 
made. 
But the manner in which these fences are often built, 
is another consideration. We often see single walls laid 
up with only one tier of stone, and where they have been 
built for years they often have a zigzag or worm fence 
appearance, and how they stand at all, is a question. 
Often, where such fences are made, not one half of the 
stone are taken from the field, which is bad economy, to 
say nothing of the fence. Farmers should remember 
that when a field is cleared thoroughly of surplus stones, 
and the stones laid up into good substantial walls, they 
have gained two important points. First, they have 
cleared the land for good cultivation, and second, they 
have a good fence, which, if well laid up, will last a life¬ 
time. Walls four and five feet wide at the bottom, and 
as many feet high, with cap stones on top, projecting 
over three or four inches on each side, will turn sheep 
pretty effectually. 
In many parts of Connecticut, old rail fences may be 
seen three or four feet high, while the stones are so thick 
that you may travel on them from one field to another. 
I consider it the most miserable and shiftless economy in 
the way of fences and cultivation that the Connecticut 
farmer has yet accomplished. The most durable rail- 
fence, to my mind, is the old u Virginia worm fence.” 
When this fence is -well laid up, six or seven rails high, 
with long poles or riders staked on top, hardly any wind 
will level it to the ground. You cannot work up to this 
fence quite so close, as to a straight fence. But for pas¬ 
turing or mowing, it takes up but little or no more 
ground than the post fence. The posts of the straight 
fence which I built ten and eleven years ago, are now 
rotting off, and the fence is falling down. Some farmers 
say that fence posts will last double the time by setting 
the posts top-end down, but having never tried it, or 
never seen it tried, I cannot say as to the fact. 
Post and board fence is built by many farmers, and it 
makes a much neater fence than rails, and is often quite 
as cheap, and much lighter in construction. Wire fence 
