THE CULTIVATOR. 
141 
Mr. Vail’s Short Horn Heifer Dutchess — [Fig. 79. 
IMPORTATION OF SHORT HORNS. 
We had the pleasure a few days since, of making a visit 
to the farm of George Vail, Esq., near Troy. Mr. Vail has 
within a few weeks, imported from England, and has now 
on his farm, a bull and a heifer from the celebrated stock 
of Mr. T. Bates, of Kirkleavington, Yorkshire, England. 
One of the animals importedby Mr. Vail, is a white heifer, 
2 years old, got by the celebrated bull Duke of Northumber¬ 
land, dam Nonesuch 2d; the other is a roan bull calf, 9 
months old, got by Short-tail, dam Oxford, the cow which 
obtained the first prize for the best Short Horned cow, at 
the meeting of the English Agricultural Society, at Oxford, 
in July, 1839, competition open to all England. 
A beautiful engraving of the bul' Duke of Northumber¬ 
land, is in the Sept. No. of the London Farmers’Magazine ; 
and from the notice accompanying which, we gather the fol¬ 
lowing facts, as showing the high character of the stock 
imported by Mr. Vail. This bull is now four years old, 
and gained the first prize of .£39 at the Oxford meeting, as 
the best Short Horn bull, beating, among other celebrated 
animals, the famous bull “ Roderick Random,” never befori 
oeaten. Mr. Bates’ herd of Short Horns, originated from 
a purchase made of Mr. Charles Colling, and the whole of 
this family of Short Horns are alone in his possession, and 
have been so for 35 years. No better proof of the great 
excellence of Mr. Bates’ stock could be adduced, than the 
fact of his having obtained prizes at the great Show at Ox¬ 
ford, for each of the four animals he exhibited. Mr. Bates 
states that this tribe or family of Short Horns have always 
been distinguished not only as quick grazers, with the 
finest quality of beef, but as giving a great quantity of very 
rich milk. A cow Mr. Bates bought of Mr. Colling, kept 
on grass only in a pasture with nineteen other cows, made 
in butter and milk for some months, above two guineas per 
week. We further extract from the Magazine, one fact, 
as showing how much animals lose in traveling: 
“The live weight of ‘ Northumberland,’ July 1st, (two days 
before starting for the Oxford meeting,) was 180 stones; (14 
lbs. to the stone,) [2,520 lbs.,] on arriving home from Oxford, 
July 29th, his live weight was 152 stones, (14 lbs. to the stone) 
[2,123 lbs.,] so that he lost 28 stones—-nearly one-sixth of his 
weight, in traveling 20 days.” 
A large colored print of the “ Duke of Northumberland,” 
lithographed by J. W. Giles, London, may be seen at the 
office of the Cultivator. Of the fine qualities of Mr. Vail’s 
importation, the reader may form an opinion from the pre¬ 
ceding remarks, and the engraving of the heifer “ Dutch¬ 
ess,” at the head of this article; an engraving of the bull 
“ Duke of Wellington,” may appear hereafter. 
On Mr. Vail’s farm we saw several other Short Horn 
cows, fine animals; one of which the owner remarked, 
was milked three times a day, and gave, before the grass 
was dried up, a pailful at each milking. He has a quan¬ 
tity of fine young stock from these cows, yearlings and 
calves ; also Berkshires and other improved animals. The 
cost of “ Dutchess,” and “ Duke of Wellington,” including 
purchase money, commission, and expenses to New-York, 
was about $1,400. Mr. Vail is a merchant of Troy, yet 
finds time to devote to the improvement of his farm, and de¬ 
serves much credit for his efforts in introducing superior 
animals. — 
Pedigrees. 
A roan bull, [Duke of Wellington] bred by Mr. Bates, 
Kirkleavington, near Yarm, Yorkshire, calved Oct. 24th’ 
1839, got by Short Tail (2623,) dam Oxford (having ob¬ 
tained the first prize for the best Short Horned cow 
open to all England, in July, 1839, given by the Royal 
English Agricultural Society,) by Duke of Cleveland 
(1937 ;) grand dam Matchem, cow by Matchem (2281;) 
great grand dam by young Wynyard (2859,) sometimes 
called Young Wellington, (page 494 Coate’s Herd 
Book.) 
A. white heifer [Dutchess,] bred by Mr. Bates of 
Kirkleavington, calved May 13, 1838, by Duke of North¬ 
umberland (1940 ;) dam Nonesuch the 2d, by Belvidere 
(1706;) grand dam Nonesuch, page 546, by Magnet 
(2240;) g. grand dam by Major, (a son of Minor) (441;) 
g. g. grand dam old Sally, by a grandson of Favorite, 
(252;) g. g. g. grand dam by Punch, (531;) g. g. g. g. 
grand dam by Hubback, (319.) 
The above are true Pedigrees, and may be found in 
Coate’s Herd Book; see the first, second and third vo¬ 
lumes; for the merits of Duke of Northumberland, see 
the print. He has proved himself, and no doubt is the 
best bull in England of the pure short horned breed. I 
have in my possession, 19 months old, (Locomotive,) 
from the cow Oxford, by Duke of Northumberland ; he 
is a very fine animal, in all respects equal to his sire at 
the same age, now 12 cwt. 3 qrs. live weight—his pro¬ 
pensities to fatten cannot be excelled. 
(Signed) 
J. C. ETCHES. 
December 24fA, 1839. 
WHEAT AND A ROTATION OF CROPS. 
We copy the following extract of a letter, from J. 
Alexander, Esq. from the Lexington, Va. Gazette, a 
journal that most laudably devotes apart of its columns 
to the dissemination of agricultural intelligence, in which 
it might, we think, be very profitably followed by a large 
portion of the political journals of the country. Mr. 
Alexander’s course of cropping would appear to be a 
very good one ; and we have no doubt, a farm so culti¬ 
vated would rapidly improve. Here at the north, a 
more mixed husbandry would in general be deemed ad¬ 
visable, and the keeping of cattle combined with the 
growing of grain. To do this to advantage, the culture 
of roots is nearly indispensable, and by making the 
course one of five years, instead of four, these might be 
properly included in the rotation. Although Mr. A. 
does not state the fact, we presume his manure is now 
applied to the corn; if roots were to be included in the 
course, a portion would be required by them, but the 
cattle and sheep they would feed, would furnish the ade¬ 
quate supply. Mr. Alexander received the premium 
for the best ten acres of wheat, awarded by the Rock¬ 
bridge County Agricultural Society, and offers to under¬ 
take with either of his shifts to raise more corn and 
wheat, taking the two crops together, than can be made 
on the same quantity of land by any other person in the 
county. 
“I have for a number of years pursued what is called the 
four shift, or four field system. I divide my arable lands into 
four equal parts; in field No. 1,1 commence with corn, fal¬ 
low it up deep early in the winter, harrow it well in the spring, 
lay it off in horizontal ridges, throwing three furrows together, 
at four feet and a half apart. On the 15th of April, I com¬ 
mence planting, splitting the ridges with a small shovel plow, 
planting the hills at two feet and a half apart, leaving two 
stalks in a hill, commence working the corn as soon as it is 
up, and continue it early and late until harvest, and I have 
done. On the 1st day of October, or as soon as it can be 
done safely, I commence cutting up the corn, haul it off to an 
adjoining field, stacking it up into small stooks, fallow up the 
ground with a large plow, sow the wheat at the rate of a 
bushel and a half per acre, give it two good harrowings, and 
sow clover seed in the following March, at the rate of a gal¬ 
lon of seed per acre. I pursue the same course with fields 
No. 2, 3 and 4, as I come up with them. The operation of the 
system will be readily observed. The same crop is cultiva¬ 
ted on toe same land only once in four years, except the elo- 
VCT ’ , w ,i- cl r continues two years. It will also be remarked that 
one half of the land is always in clover, one fourth in wheat, the 
remainder in corn and oats. Under this system with the applica- 
tion of what manure I can make, together with the moderate use 
of plaster on corn and clover, my land has improved at the rate of 
one hundred per cent every ten years. In the application of 
manure, my object is to bring my land as near to an equality 
as practicable. 
(Communications. 
Bachelder’s Patent Planting Machine. —[Fig. 80.] 
This machine, recently invented by L. & S. H. Bachel- 
der, of Hampstead, N. H. is one of the most convenient 
and labor-saving implements ever introduced to the no¬ 
tice of the farmer. It is simple in its construction, cer¬ 
tain and regular in its operation. It is calculated to 
plant all kinds of seed usualy planted in hills or drills. 
This machine is constructed on principles altogether 
different from all others for similar purposes. It per¬ 
forms the operation of planting without opening a fur¬ 
row, thereby dispensing with coverers, that are con¬ 
tinually liable to clog, and get out of order. It simply 
raises the soil a little, and at the same time drops the 
seed at any distance desired, when the soil falls back to 
its original place, and is immediately followed by a 
moveable guage, that leaves the soil to any depth over 
the seed that the operator chooses ; it also removes all 
small stones and sods from the place where the seed is 
deposited. 
This machine has been in operation, the past sea¬ 
son, and thoroughly tested by practical farmers and me¬ 
chanics in Massachusetts and New-Hampshire, and is 
pronounced by them a complete and useful machine, 
and it is allowed by all who have seen it, to be superior 
to every other implement of the kind now in use in the 
United States. It operates equaly well on wet or dry 
ground, and is warranted to work well on any ground 
that can be furrowed with the common plow. 
03“ Orders will be received by L. & S. H. Bachelder, 
Hampstead, N. H. or the subscriber, at Haverhill, Ms. 
for the planter, or a right to manufacture and dispose 
of them. Any co nmunication addressed to either will 
receive attention. 
T. J. GOODRICH. 
Haverhill, August, 1840. 
CASS’ REVOLVING HARROW _[Fig. 81.] 
Messrs. Gaylord & 
Tucker —1 send you an 
engraving of a “Revolv¬ 
ing Diagonal Harrow,” 
invented and patented by 
Moses G. Cass of Utica, 
N. Y. together with the 
report of the committee 
of Arts and Sciences of 
the Mechanics’ Institute 
of Philadelphia, on the 
subject. The report was 
made to the Institute, 
Feb. 18, 1840, and is as 
follows: 
“ C, C, C, C, are re¬ 
volving cylinders work¬ 
ing in the frame D, by- 
means of gudgeons pla¬ 
ced in the ends. Each 
cylinder is charged with 
teeth placed perpendicu¬ 
lar to the axis, as seen in 
the drawing. G, is a 
toothed wheel intended 
to break up the ground 
that would otherwise be 
passed over untouched; 
being under the lengthwise rail of the harrow. B, E, 
F, a moveable frame supporting the rollers A, A, which 
may be attached to or disconnected from the harrow at 
pleasure. 
“ An examination of this machine, and a little reflec¬ 
tion, will serve to show its superiority to the ordinary 
harrow. In its passage over the ground, the teeth enter 
the earth in all directions, breaking, removing, or tear¬ 
ing up all slight obstructions; while if it meet with a 
large stone or any obstacle that would throw the com¬ 
mon harrow out, the cylinder, which in this machine 
encounters the obstruction, is enabled by a whole or 
partial revolution to pass over it. 
“An experienced farmer, who has for some time had 
one of Mr. Cass’s harrows in use, remarks that ‘by at¬ 
taching the seed sower and rollers a most perfect finish¬ 
ing operation will be performed, and at a saving of one 
half if not three fourths of the labor commonly required 
to do the same work.’ ” 
It is also worthy of remark, that as this harrow never 
clogs with sticks, stones or sods, or such other obstruc¬ 
tions as usualy interrupt other harrows, so as to occa¬ 
sion it to be lifted from the ground to clear it, the roller 
can be used in connection in almost every case; and in 
fact it is useful in overcoming the sudden lateral mo- 
