THE CULTIVATOR. 
LETTERS FROM THE WEST—No. 1. 
I think a Bufialonian may well be proud of what is 
certainly destined to be the great city of the Lakes, as 
he rounds the beautiful light-house at the end of the 
long stone pier, and finds himself fairly launched on the 
blue waters of Erie, on board of any one of the magni¬ 
ficent steamboats that daily leave the harbor. How the 
long ranges of buildings loom in the distance, rising 
somewhat amphilheatrically to the eye, as the noble 
boat swiftly plows her watery furrow from the land! 
How picturesquely group the spires and minarets of the 
churches, ana how resplendant are the tinned domes of 
the hotels and public buildings in the bright sun and 
there loftily waves the star spangled banner, over the 
extensive barracks of the highly disciplined regiment of 
U. S. Artillery, containing in its officers, brave hearts 
and accomplished men,—palace-like houses in the midst 
of forest trees and garden shrubbery intervene, and all 
aione on the quarry heights, stands the beautiful gothic 
villa of Col. McK., with its turreted walls and donjon 
keep, giving it the air of a tiny castle erected to guard 
our line from Canadian invasion. Now the river opens, 
and Black Rock with its numerous mills and wheat 
warehouses lately erected, begin to show an earnest 
of what can be done in the way of manufacturing the 
great staple of the west; while opposite, stretches the 
Canada shore, with its tall forests, the village of Water¬ 
loo, and the frowning ruins of old Fort Erie, where some 
years ago many a gallant fellow bit the dust in the des¬ 
perate assault and bloody sortie. 
A lake steamboat contains about as pretty an assort¬ 
ment of freight as heart might desire to see. Pigs and 
poultry, dogs and cats, horses and asses, cattle and sheep, 
with now and then a sprinkling of monkies, bearded 
goats and caged singing birds. Men, women and chil¬ 
dren from all quarters of the globe, jabbering as many 
different languages as nations they represent, and with 
complexions varying in all the gradations of color, from 
the sooty African up through the bronzed Indian to the 
rose and lilly of the fair beings of some northern clime. 
There is such a lumbering up too of the hold, the be¬ 
tween and the upper decks, boxes, bales, barrels, hogs¬ 
heads, crates, wagons, carts, and curious farming and 
other implements, spinning wheels and baby’s cradles, 
as if the interesting little innocents would not get rocked 
enough, in case of a gale of wind on the voyage, and so 
on, and so forth, that a body had better be cautious how 
he takes his tramps fore and aft, especially after the go¬ 
ing down of the sun and before the rising again of the 
same, or he will meet adventures by no means agreeable 
to him, perhaps. “ Oh, I’ve broke my leg and barked my 
shins all black and blue,” sings out one at the top of his 
voice, from somewhere in the lower regions, a gawky 
bumpkin, who looking up in his walk instead of down, 
has suddenly stepped through the wood hatchway, some 
dozen feet below into the fire pit; and “murther Judy, 
ar’nt I killed ?” roars a son of Erin’s green isle, as his 
head has come thoughtlessly in contact with some part 
of the machinery of the engine ; “ and if here b’aint a 
baby, what’s rolled down de kitchen stairway into my 
pot of soup, and broke it’s head; as mebbe I had’nt fresh 
meat enough derectly,” bawls the greasy cook, under an 
agony of perspiration; but puff, puff, keeps the steam- 
pipe, and swash, swash, roll the paddle wheels, and ev¬ 
ery thing is soon made well again; and it is a thousand 
Wonders that one hundred accidents don’t take place 
where there is one, on board a fast moving and crowded 
boat. 
Cleveland is certainly a handsome place, even in com¬ 
parison with the beautiful towns of Western New-York; 
and that is saying much for it. It stands on an almost 
perpendicular sandy bluff, about 90 feet high from the 
level of the lake, and presents with its twin sister, Ohio 
City, on the opposite side of the Cuyahoga, rather an 
imposing appearance, as you enter the harbor. All the 
world knows that the Erie and Ohio canal ends here, 
connecting the waters of the lake with that noble river, 
and of course making Cleveland a place of considerable 
annual transhipments, and of an extensive lake and in¬ 
land commerce. Saving the rich bottoms of the Cuya¬ 
hoga, the country for some two or three miles round, is 
of a character of the bluff, on which the town is built; 
the soil then gradually changes, and soon becomes a rich 
gravelly or sandy loam, not unfrequently resting on a 
clayey bottom, forming excellent grass and root, and 
even corn lands. 
The country about being somewhat new, very little at¬ 
tention was paid to the improvement of stock and an 
enlightened cultivation of the soil, till a few individuals 
took up the business some three or four years since, 
with the same liberality and enlightened views that had 
characterized their former pursuits in life. Among the 
foremost of these with whom I have the pleasure of a 
personal acquaintance, is C. M. Gidings, Esq., President 
of the Cuyahoga Agriculturafigociety ; and I assure you 
1 had not been long in town, before his splendid match 
of bay trotting fillies were hitched on to a light comfort¬ 
able buggy, and away we were tramping on a farming 
excursion. 
If there is any being above all others that I most ad¬ 
mire in the animal creation, it is a spirited, well bred 
and well educated horse. I never break or drive one, 
that it fails to almost instantly infuse its own fire and 
vivacity into my veins ; my blood mounts with its rapid 
career, a general happiness and gaiety fill my mind, and 
my spirits keep pace with the speed of the noble ani¬ 
mal. Like the Arab in the desert, I could lie down with 
it in my tent at night; and, as the Emperor of Rome, 
share with it the honors of a consulate. 
It would not be easy to show a more beautiful and 
perfect filly than the nigh one of Mr. G.’s match; and 
her strength and speed, and endurance, are quite up to 
her perfection of form. She is, most any time, equal to 
a single mile within 3 minutes; and 14 to 16 miles in 
an hour. She has but one fault for general purposes ; 
and that is, being nearly, if not quite thorough-bred, 
there is rather too much fire in her disposition to make 
her safe in general hands. However, if Mr. G. should 
lake the odd notion into his head, of pricing me a pair 
of Bellfounder colts out of her one of these days, the 
fault I speak of, being something akin to that of the 
horse in consanguinity with my own taste, would not 
amount to a very serious objection on my part. 
We were not long in arriving at the pretty cottage 
farmery, where from the ornamental yards in front, to 
the garden, the barns, the stables and sheds, and fields 
beyond, every thing was neatly and conveniently plan¬ 
ned. The first thing that we took a look at, was the fil¬ 
lies, of which there is a pretty good stud, more or less 
deep in the blood, but chosen with such forms as are 
best calculated to breed horses of utility. All these had 
graced the harem of Bellfounder, who made his season 
this year at Cleveland; and I shall be greatly mistaken 
if the produce does not grow up a valuable race of ani¬ 
mals. A racing mare of Mr. G.’s had been sent in the 
season of ’38, to Bellfounder, at Buflalo; and I was 
shown a yearling horse colt as the produce, that is con¬ 
sidered by good judges as equal to any thing in the 
state of his age. He is very clean in the limbs, with 
great size and substance; and though but just halter 
broken, shows a fast walk, and square, rapid, easy trot. 
The Durhams came next in order, and Mr. G. seems 
to be rather fortunate in the way of bulls, as he has 
Collingham, lately imported ; and said to be of Lord 
Althorp’s stock. His characteristics, especially in the 
short upturned horn, are much like the heifer that we 
see figured in the work on British cattle, and belonging 
to this celebrated Nobleman. But the loin of Colling- 
ham appears in proportion superior to the heifers ; and 
he is much better let down in the twist; indeed it was 
quite enough to make one’s mouth water, to think of the 
savory steaks and jerking beef that could be cut from 
his haunches. He handles well, and is oi large size. 
Mr. G. informed me, that he expected another imported 
bull this fall, from the late Rev. Mr. Berry’s stock; and 
has in addition a capital son of Comet-Hally, that was 
sold into Kentucky for $2,500, also a yearling; and a 
good one got by my brother’s Favorite. 
As Mr. G. purchased most of his cows out of my fa¬ 
ther’s herd, perhaps it would become me to speak the 
more modestly of them ; but this I can say, without the 
fear of flattery, and I leave gentlemen to judge tor 
themselves by an inspection of the animals in question, 
that a cow of more commanding presence than Dew 
Drop, rarely ever walked. When visited in pasture, she 
rises up like a roused deer, with head erect, and grace¬ 
ful animated posture ; and notwithstanding her great 
bulk, when she pleases, can show a foot as light as the 
airy courser on the plain. Talk of Durhams not being 
able to endure work ; I should like to see a yoke of 
oxen bred from her, that would not walk oil with any 
thing reasonable that could be hitched to them; and 1 
suspect at a pace that it would bother an active driver 
to keep up to them. Cinderilia is also an animal of 
great beauty, with the finest limbs, the best spread h ips, 
and thickest loins for her size within my recollection. 
There were many other good animals, but my time was 
too limited to examine them with that accuracy that I 
would have wished. 
I found quite a herd of Berkshires here, though most¬ 
ly young yet; they therefore do not make that show in 
size that they will another year, but since Black War¬ 
rior has taken up his abode in Mr. G.’s piggery, with 
Maid-of-the-Mill, and Shaker Girl, the farming commu¬ 
nity in this neighborhood will see that Berkshires can 
carry size to their heart’s content, when desired. I 
look upon Black Warrior as one of the best boars, take 
him all in all, that I ever saw, and money would have 
been no inducement for me to have parted with him, 
had it not become necessary to give my friends fresh 
crosses another year by a new importation. The sows 
also are capital ones, and approved good breeders. 
I found the crops here good, especially of roots and 
corn; the ruta baga was large and thick, it being just 
the soil that it most delights in; and I much like Mr. 
G.’s system of feeding, which consists mostly even to 
horses of green crops. This gives juiciness and bulk to 
the animal, and is far preferable in my opinion, to so 
much corn as is usually fed farther south, but I mean on 
this head, to give w r hen more at leisure, a small experi¬ 
ment I made at home in September, in feeding a lot of 
breeding sows. Mr. G.’s location I think a very happy 
one for a stock farm, as there is plenty of dry, sandy and 
gravelly soil for the yards and buildings ; and late fall, 
and early spring pastures, where any thing like mud or 
wetness is unknown ; so that in this respect, the ani¬ 
mals are made perfectly comfortable at all seasons of 
the year. Beyond these, the soil is of a heavier and 
stronger cast, and very enduring for grass, and abound¬ 
ing in springs through the dry months of Auuust and 
September. In fine, Mr. G. has taken hold of farming 
with the same spirit and energy that characterized his 
commercial pursuits, and a few years of perseverance 
as he has begun, will carry him forward to an enviable 
rank in that noblest of all occupations, the agricultural. 
In returning to town, we made a call upon Mr. Wm. 
T. Bebee, who among other things, showed me a 3arge 
fine Short Horn bull, bred by Mr. Renick, of the Sciota 
179 
Valley. Close along side of the stable, was a heavy 
growing crop of ruta baga, that I think it will require 
some help for him to eat up during the ensuing xvinter. 
I was so much pressed for time, that I did not see Mr. 
Baldwin's stock, but this was of the less consequence, 
as I was already pretty familiar with it. He has a beau¬ 
tiful cow among others, worth mentioning, from the herd 
of Mr. Sullivant of Columbus; and a treasure in Miss 
Lawrence, imported by my father, and one of England’s 
best milkers; she is also of great size, and fine noble 
form. Her bull calf, Wisconsin, takes greatly with the 
public ; and I am sure we shall hear of his doings here¬ 
after. 
There is considerable other good stock in the vicinity 
of Cleveland, that I regretted that I could not at this 
time look over ; but I hope to be able to return to the 
Fair that is to be held the 21st and 22d Oct., for a more 
leisurely inspection. The whole lake belt of Ohio, is 
admirably 7 situated for the growing of stock. Its great 
facilities of water communication, opens to it an exten¬ 
sive eastern and western market in the States, and north 
in the Canadian dominions; and I shall be truly rejoi¬ 
ced to see this favored region awake to its true inte¬ 
rests, and marching forward in such improvements as 
cannot but greatly redound to the wealth and happiness 
of its agricultural, and indeed all other branches of the 
community. 
I must say, that I left Cleveland with regret. It pos¬ 
sesses in the American one of the pleasantest and best 
regulated hotels that I know of in the west. The roads 
about the town from the dryness of the soil, are always 
good ; the weather was delightful, and joined to a consi¬ 
derable rural beauty in the country around, is a sea-like 
view all along the banks of the lake, that renders it al¬ 
most impossible for one bred on the Atlantic shore, to 
realize that he is looking out upon any thing less than 
an ocean. I shall not soon forget a glorious sun-set here 
on the lake ; it carried me back to those days that my 
heart often yearns to witness again ; when every clear 
evening I used to race up the shrouds of our ship in the 
wide sea, to catch the last rays of the sun sinking be¬ 
neath a boiling mass of clear golden waters. The 
banks of the lake have quite a sublime aspect, as you 
gaze on them from above ; for during the great rise of 
waters throughout our inland seas lor the last few years, 
they became undermined by the force of the waves, have 
broken off in long, deep, wide masses, and tumbled into 
a wild confusion below, that presented a sight to me no 
less new than interesting. 
I found this a capital fruit country 7 ; and after having 
been so long starved out in peaches at Buflalo, I abso¬ 
lutely 7 reveled at Cleveland, in great juicy Clingstones, 
as large as my 7 fist, and that is by no means a very small 
measure. But I find my communication has already 
reached a greater length, than you or your readers will 
have patience for, and as the mail is about to close, I 
will just do the same. A. B. A. 
FAIR AT ROCHESTER. 
Editors of ths Cultivator —The Genesee Agri¬ 
cultural Society held their first Fair on the 7th and 
8th of this month, at Rochester. It was a credit to the 
farmers of western New-York. The exhibition of fine 
horses, was large ; several imported ones of the best 
blood. There was the heavy draught horse, the car¬ 
riage horse, with several others of choice blood ; and a 
number of native stock ; showing a decided improve¬ 
ment in fine horses. We were happily disappointed in 
the show of fine cattle. The exhibition of imported cat¬ 
tle was large. It was thought by good judges to have 
been out of the best exhibitions of Short Horn Durhams 
that has been held in this State; there were many of the 
very best that could be found in England; the native 
cattle exhibited were creditable to the graziers of the 
Genesee Y a Hey. Several friends of the cause of agri¬ 
culture from Canada, were present with several very 
superior Short Horns. The exhibit of sheep was good ; 
the Cotswolds, Leicesters, and South Downs, were most 
numerous; with some very fine Saxony and Merino 
bucks. The swine were numerous ; and in viewing the 
many well filled pens oi' pigs from four weeks to four 
years old, one would be compelled to say that the friends 
of fine pork resided in western New-York. The Berk¬ 
shires and Leicestershires bore off the prizes. Some of 
the native stock was very fine. At 1 o’clock, P. M. 
ploughmen to the number of fourteen, entered for the 
prizes ; (three plows were offered as premiums,) and 
the way they turned over the turf was not slow ; show¬ 
ing that we have plowmen that understand turning up 
the soil to find the golden treasures. Alter the plowing 
was Over, they repaired to the Court House, which was 
filled with the hardy tillers of the soil, to listen to an ad¬ 
dress delivered by L. F. Allen, Esq. of Buflalo. In the 
evening there was a rush to the market to attend the 
Mechanic’s Fair. The crowd was so large, it was dif¬ 
ficult to view the many fine specimens deposited there 
by the ladies and mechanics of western New-York. On 
the 2d day, the yards and pens were well filled with, 
horses, cattle, sheep, and swine, for sale and exchange. 
The sales were somewhat limited for the want of the 
ready. There were no premiums offered on wheat, it 
being after wheat harvest, when the premiums were 
made out; several samples of extra qualities were exhi¬ 
bited. One competitor for corn, raised 114 bushels per 
acre, which was the highest, it being of the large yellow 
twelve rowed. Several lots of potatoes, susrar beets, 
mangel wurtzel, carrots, and mtv baga, the samples of 
which were large and fine. Mr. Pitts was present with 
his grain thresher and cleaner; and lie deserves the 
