THE CULTIVATOR 
189 
the intelligent committee of awards in this case, that it 
is very desirable in such matters, to have as little left to 
estimate as possible. The milk should have been mea¬ 
sured and the butter weighed, to insure perfect accuracy 
in all such cases, as this affords the only sure ground of 
useful results. The specimens of vegetables, fruits, &c. 
were numerous and excellent. Wayne county is well 
adapted, from the nature of its soil and the ameliorating 
influence of Lake Ontario, to the production of fine fruit; 
and there are few sections of the country that can exceed 
it in this respect. The show of agricultural implements, 
and of domestic manufactures was good, and the speci¬ 
mens creditable to the skill and industry of the citizens 
of the county. A notice of the Premium Crops will be 
given in our next. 
At the annual meeting of Wayne Co. Ag. Society, held 
at Palmyra, 11th mo. (Nov.) 15, 1842, the following of¬ 
ficers were elected for the coming year, viz: Sam’l E. 
Hudson, president; Stephen Hyde, William R. Smith, 
Joel Hall, J. A. Miller, R. H. Foster, Wm. Walmsley, 
John Borrodaile, vice-presidents; C. S. Button, T. Hem- 
mingway, John Baker, P. G. Price, Abm. Fairchild, 
executive committee; Daniel Kenyon, treasurer; Geo. 
W. Cuyler, recording secretary; John J. Thomas, cor¬ 
responding secretary. 
The following resolution was adopted, viz: 
Resolved, That the executive committee, for the pur¬ 
pose of improving the character and skill of our plow¬ 
men, be directed to offer one class of premiums on the 
plowing match, to such persons only as are under twenty 
years of age. - 
Union Ag. Society, Grenada, Miss.—The first an¬ 
nual meeting of this society, which we cannot doubt is 
destined to work important benefits for this section of 
the U. States, was held at Grenada on the 10th of Oct., 
and was well attended by planters, and others interested 
in improving the agriculture of the southwest. Resolu¬ 
tions were adopted to hold a fair in September next, and 
a committee appointed to raise the funds for premiums, 
and make the necessary arrangements. Some spirited 
resolutions were introduced on the subject of making an 
effort in that state to provide the bagging and rope re¬ 
quired for packing cotton, and making the shipment 
direct from the ports of that state, rather than through 
the New-Orleans houses. The address was delivered by 
Jno, T. Leigh, Esq., president of the society, and was 
an able and instructive effort. There is so much truth in 
the following remarks, and they relate to a subject so 
often overlooked on such occasions, that we cannot resist 
copying them: 
“And while upon this subject [economy] let me say a few 
words about the ladies. They have it in their power, by pru¬ 
dent, orderly and economical management of their household 
affairs, to add much to the prosperity of their husbands. ’Tis 
in vain for the husband to strive, unless the wife supports and 
aids him by performing well her duty in doors. Let a due re¬ 
gard to her husband’s situation govern her wants and desires ; 
not to be governed by what other ladies have or do, who may be 
placed in a better situation in life, or who possibly may, by 
their extravagance, be reducing their husbands and families to 
difficulties, and ultimately to ruin—though justice to the ladies 
compels me to say, they generally in their departments perform 
their duties better than men. They possess more industry, 
prudence and economy ; and have a more lively sense of duty 
to the interest of the family. To whom ought the husband to 
go, in matters of importance, for consultation and advice ; pure 
disinterested advice? To the wife of his bosom. No matter 
how important the subject; my life upon it, nine times out of 
ten, he will find her advice the very best he can obtain. She 
feels she is deeply interested in everything relative to her hus¬ 
band and his affairs ; and she advises under the highest respon¬ 
sibility—that of interest and love. 
“ Hut, says the bachelor, what shall I do. who have no wife ? 
“Are you a planter— get one. If you cannot get married, 
quit—quit farming; for no man can succeed well upon a farm 
without the aid, assistance, advice and comfort of a wife. But 
mark— let your wife be a dutiful daughter of a prudent mother 
Copies of the Cultivator, and some other agricultural 
papers, were directed to be ordered for the use of the 
society. - 
Lake Co., Ohio, Agricultural Society.— The Se¬ 
cond Fair of this Society, was held at Painesville, on the 
6th of October. The day was unusually fine, and the 
collection of farmers, and others interested in the culti¬ 
vation of the soil unexpectedly great. The ox teams 
from the towns of Madison, Le Roy, Perry, Concord, 
Mentor, &c. of from 40 to 75 pairs each, were attached 
to wagons loaded with every variety of agricultural pro¬ 
duction, and were objects of much interest to the farmer. 
The display of domestic manufactures was splendid, con¬ 
sisting of articles of silk, carpeting, bed spreads, shawls, 
and various kinds of net and fancy work. Lake Co. is 
famous for its fruit, and pears weighing 3 lbs. were 
shown by Mr. Webster of Mentor. The display of ap¬ 
ples, peaches, &e. was truly beautiful. In the Report on 
crops, the committee state that they had examined no 
less than 12 pieces of corn, estimated by them to yield 
from 100 to 120 bushels to the acre, shelled at the time 
of gathering. The premium on sugar beets was given 
to a crop of 1,600 bushels to the acre, (60 lbs. to the 
bushel.) In short, the Fair was decidedly better than 
the preceding ones, and shows that the right spirit is 
abroad among the Lake County Farmers. 
The New Genesee Farmer _We find by the last 
No. of the New Genesee Farmer, that Mr. Colman has 
become the sole proprietor and editor of that journal, and 
that the price is hereafter to be one dollar a year, instead 
of fifty cents, as heretofore. This is right. The labor¬ 
er is worthy of his hire. We know something about this 
publishing papers at fifty cents, and have long been 
aware, that standing alone, they cannot be sustained. If 
not permitted to get rich, the Agricultural editor should 
at least be allowed to live, and nothing short of a dollar 
for such papers as the Cultivator or Fanner, will do this. 
A FEW QUERIES. 
In the course of the present volume, we have in the 
best manner we were able, responded to many inquiries 
proposed by correspondents, and we are always happy to 
oblige our friends in that way; now we wish the privi¬ 
lege in our turn, to make a few, which each of our read¬ 
ers can answer for themselves. 
Have you all things in readiness for winter, for with 
us at the north, we have several long months of that sea¬ 
son before us? 
Have you your barns, racks, yards, stables, feeding 
troughs, &c. in order, that your domestic animals may be 
well fed and sheltered? An animal kept warm and com¬ 
fortable requires much less food to keep him in equal 
condition, than when exposed to the winds, rains, and 
snows, of a northern winter. If you study economy 
then, you will see that all is right in these respects. 
If your potatoes, turneps, or other roots are pitted or 
buried, have you examined them to see that they are se¬ 
cure against frost? The best farmers do not cover their 
roots too deep at first, as they are apt to heat; conse¬ 
quently, they need looking to as the weather grows cold¬ 
er, and if necessary more earth should be thrown upon 
them. Frozen roots for cooking, or feeding animals, are 
not the thing. 
Is every loose board on your barns and sheds secured? 
Have you no broken panes in your windows? Look 
about and see. If you have any of the first, take your 
hammer and nails, and make all sure at once. If the lat¬ 
ter, use some glass and putty forthwith. A broken pane 
of glass will cost you half a cord of wood at least, during 
the winter, and give you as many colds as you can desire. 
Have you secured your cellar against frost? There is 
many a man—we will not say farmer, for such are un¬ 
worthy of the name—who will labor hard through the 
fall, to get his roots and vegetables into the cellar, and 
then lose them all by negligence in banking his house, 
or excluding frost from the cellar. This is miserable 
policy, and your wife will tell you so, if you will ask 
her opinion. 
Are all your farm implements taken care of, and se¬ 
cured against the weather for further use? Do you think 
it looks well to see your plow left in the furrow; your 
cart and wagon in the street; your harrow where it was 
last used; your hay rack thrown upon the ground with 
your hay rake, and your chains, axes, and other imple¬ 
ments, where it would take a week to hunt them up? 
Every tool, when you have done with it, should be placed 
where you can lay your hand upon it at any time, and 
every implement, where it will be secure from weather. 
Most farmers suffer much loss annually from neglecting 
these precautions. 
Have you examined all your water furrows and drains, 
to see that all are clear, and the water flowing where it 
should? A choked drain or an obstructed water course 
may do much mischief if let alone during the winter. 
Surface water is ruinous to many crops, and injurious to 
all, when long continued. Leave then nothing to 
chance in these respects. 
What preparations have you made for adding to your 
stock of manures? In your manures is your gold mine, 
more valuable than any of the Carolina ones; and you 
should be anxious to increase them accordingly. When 
you cleaned your yard in the fall, did you cover the 
whole with muck, or peat, or even loam, to absorb the 
liquid parts of the manure that so frequently run wholly 
to waste? Don’t be afraid of laying out labor in this 
way; it is money at compound interest. 
Are your children at school? and what have you done 
to provide for them, and for yourself, the means of ac¬ 
quiring that knowledge so essential to success in life? 
On this point negligence is a crime; parsimony is ruin. 
If you are able to do nothing else for your children, you 
are at least able to secure them a competent education. 
The state guarantees the means of this; it is for you only 
to use them. Destitute of education, wanting ordinary 
intelligence, the man enters upon life with all the chan¬ 
ces against him. He may succeed; but the odds are 
fearful. Let it be impressed on the mind that in this 
free country intelligence is better than wealth. 
What have you done to advance the interests of agri¬ 
culture in the town or county where you reside? 
What to aid the funds of the county or state society? 
What to disseminate agricultural information? There 
are few men so positively mean as a farmer destitute of 
public spirit. The means of the intelligent farmer may 
be limited; but his disposition will be good, and that 
will produce its proper results in action. He will do 
what he can; and no more can be asked. His influence 
will always be on the right side; he will be no drone. 
What experiments have you made the past year in 
farm husbandry? and what has been the result? If fa¬ 
vorable, you should let it be known that others may 
practice the same methods; if unfavorable, that others 
may escape the error, or be saved useless expenditure. 
Every farmer may do much in the way of experiment, 
to advance the cause of agriculture, if they are well and 
carefully conducted, and the results given to the public. 
Do you receive, and read, an agricultural journal? If 
not, go at once and subscribe for some good one, and 
pay in advance. The merchant, the manufacturer, the 
doctor, the lawyer, and the divine, all have their jour¬ 
nals, and if they understand their true interests, read 
them too. And so must the farmer do, if he would not 
he behind the age, or ignorant of his profession. 
There is a somewhat prevalent idea that the farmer 
has nothing to do in winter. This is a great mistake. 
If he has improved his time well; if he has everything 
right' he will have his time during the winter more at 
command than otherwise; but he will have no moments 
for idleness. The improvement of the body and the 
mind will furnish ample occupation; and the attention 
bestowed will not lose its reward. 
EXTRACTS OF LETTERS, &c. 
Value of the Cultivator.—A subscriber in Bea¬ 
ver co. Pa., says:—“I planted corn after the directions 
found in your paper, and the consequence is, I have 
doubled my crop. Farming is done in a different style 
from what it was before farmers commenced reading. 
I frequently hear farmers say they would not take a dol¬ 
lar for the valuable information in a single number of 
the Cultivator.” 
Inquiry.—A reader wishes Mr. Cook to give the size 
of the water wheel for his water power churn, how many 
buckets or paddles it should have; and to state whether 
a rise or fall in the wire will hinder its operation, pro¬ 
viding pulleys or rollers are used for it to run upon; and 
also whether it will work at a distance of 160 yards 
from the house. 
Snap Dragon.—M r. A. R. McCord of La Grange, 
Dutchess county, informs us that this “abominable weed” 
may be eradicated by covering it with a coat of straw, 
thick enough to smother vegetation. Some years since, 
I saw two patches of it covered in this manner when the 
field was in grass; the straw was suffered to remain two 
years, after which it was scattered and the ground broke 
up. The extirpation was complete.” 
Large Radish.—J. C. Cunningham, Esq., P. M. at 
Fairfield, la., informs us that Mr. Win. More of that 
place the 16th Sept, had a radish growing which mea¬ 
sured 38 inches in circumference. “ The Iloosiers will 
crow over this till you down easters can beat it.” 
Wintering Bees.—F rom a letter from Mr. M. Quin¬ 
sy of Coxsaekie :—“ Last fall I followed Mr. Week’s di¬ 
rection, wintering two swarms of bees in one hive. I 
put the bees of twenty hives in ten; some of the swarms 
very large. Weighed them the 1st Oct; again 1st of 
April. Greatest loss in that time 25 lbs.; least 21 lbs. 
Weighed also several single swarms at the same time. 
Greatest loss 21 lbs.; least 14 lbs. They were in the 
house during the coldest weather. When they first be¬ 
gan work in the spring, the double swarms promised 
most; but single ones gained so rapidly, the first of June 
found them in a better condition both as it respects num¬ 
bers and honey. The result through the summer was 
decidedly in favor of the single swarms. It may be an 
advantage to put together two very small ones, but my 
experiment is against making good swarms better by 
such means.” Mr. Q.’s remarks on swarming bees, &c. 
will be given hereafter. 
Salt for the Cut Worm _A letter from “G. E. 
H.,” Brownville, Pa., says—“I tried the same experi¬ 
ment as my neighbor D. Miller did, (see Cult., vol. 9, 
p. 118,) viz: applying salt to corn to kill the cut worm, 
on 30 acres of land, but with no encouiaging success, as 
it did not kill or keep them off, though it doubtless pro¬ 
moted the growth of corn.” 
Large Pumpkins, &c.—F rom a letter from Mr. D. A. 
Buckley, Manchester, Ill.:—“To show you the rich¬ 
ness of our land, I will state that Mr. R. Swallow raised 
from one pumpkin seed 559 lbs. pumpkins, and 965 lbs. 
of vines. Another farmer, from one seed, raised 780 
lbs—one pumpkin weighing 164 lbs.; and Mr. G. C. 
Wood raised a radish in his garden that weighed 17 lbs.” 
The writer adds:—“I wish you would draw the atten¬ 
tion of plow makers to the necessity there is for one that 
will scour in our soils, as such a one is very much 
wanted.” 
Mississippi.—E xtract of a letter from a subscriber near 
Vicksburg, dated Oct. 19:—“ The crops of corn are very 
abundant in this quarter. Cotton, if the present fine 
weather continues, will be about an average crop on 
the uplands; but on the alluvial bottoms of the Missis¬ 
sippi it will be very abundant, and generally of a good 
quality. The Cultivator is doing much good in this 
country. Most planters raise nearly or quite enough 
meal to last the year round, and sweet potatoes in abun¬ 
dance.” 
Progress of the Silk Culture.—W e think the 
quantity of cocoons made in the United States the past 
season, could the whole be ascertained, would surprise 
the warmest advocates of that culture. The following 
list of the pounds of cocoons produced in a single neigh¬ 
borhood, near Warwick, Penn., which we fake from a 
letter to Mr. Colman, will show what a few individuals 
who are in earnest can do:—John McSummy and D. 
Eberly raised of cocoons 856 lbs.—John Metzler, 423 lbs. 
—R. and H. Carson, 600 lbs.—A. H. Carr, 400 lbs_ 
Michael Glein, 300 lbs—M. Warfell, 300 lbs.—D. Mel- 
linger, 200 lbs—M. Bushong, 172 lbs. 
Bees.—“T he best place to put bees in is a dry, cold, 
and dark, room or outhouse, if it can be obtained. The 
colder the winter the better, if the air is dry. Damp cold 
gives bees the rot. Put your bees there the last week in 
November, and let them sleep quietly till the flowers be¬ 
gin to come out in the spring. In Switzerland a whole 
village clubs together, and hires a cold dry room which 
they darken and put all their bees in.” 
We find the above in an exchange paper, and think the 
system recommended at least plausible. So long as bees 
remain torpid they do not eat; and to keep them in this 
state, the temperature of the place where they are kept 
must be low; it must also be dry, or the mass of bees and 
comb will become mouldy. Bees die in multitudes by 
being enticed out of their hives in sunny days, before 
they are able to obtain food, or get back to their hives. 
