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sketch of our practice here, in an address which I have been invited to make to the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture, on the 17th of October. It will, of course, be substantially the same as what I have now furnished ; but, if the address shall be published, I will do myself the pleasure to send you a copy.

With the highest respect, I am,

Dear sir, your most obedient,

Wm. Darlington. John S. Skinner, Esq. \

Washington City, j

In selecting our paper as the organ for communicating to the public this valuable essay, Mr. Skinner has done us a favor, for which we thank him in the name of our readers.

Mr. S. ought by this time to have learned that when he promises an article to an agricultural paper he excites expectations amongst its readers, which can only be satisfied by its appearance. A little while ago he hinted at an intended communication upon the varieties of wheat exhibited by Gen. Harmon at the New York show ; b} r sending it to us shortly, Mr. S. will save us the trouble of answering many inquiries for it, at the same time that he will gratify a large poriion of our readers who are deeply interested in the subject.

P. S.—Since communicating the paper from Dr. Darlington, I have ascertained, by conversation with respectable farmers of Montgomery county, in this State, that there they consider liming so important, and economical, that they deem the capital they can command, well employed in applying lime, at the rate of one hundred bushels to the acre! —and, what is more, they send eighteen miles for it, and pay twelve and a half cents a bushel. Making a fair charge for the expense of hauling and spreading, and they estimate the lime when thus applied, in ihe neighborhood to which I refer, at 25 cents a bushel, or $25 to the acre! They can show that the increase of the crops in the first round, or rotation, gives them back their ouilay, which is making near twenty per cent, per annum, after allowing or deducting six per cent, for interest, supposing the capital to be borrowed, and leaves their land at least, one hundred per cent, better than in its original state. What business will pay a better interest? But alas! where can he borrow the capital to buy his lime? and what is the guarantee that when he does borrow, he will so invest, and apply it skilfully 1 The best guarantee, and let young farmers remember it well, is their own character for industry, economy, intelligence and punctuality. •

Your "business note," I think they call it—

one that is to be taken up at " sixty days after date," is worse to him than nothing. If given at corn planting time, it "comes round" before the corn is " in silk," he gets a little stereotype notice, J. S. S., $117 —— cenis, due 29-1 June, 1824, BANK OF VIRGINIA. Such accommodation is no better than a broken reed, and the " moneyed man" finds a thousand ways . to "turn over his capital" better than lending it on long time, at six per cent. How then are our worn-out lands to be improved 1 That is a question worthy of anxious consideration, and so is another— Can grain be made, profitably, with slave labor? J. S. S.

PREMATURE APPLES.

Every apple that falls from the tree before the crop is ripe, should be gathered up and given to the hogs. Almost every such apple will be found on examination, to contain a small worm or maggot, which is said to be the curcidio in its pupa state. This worm will leave the apple soon after it falls, and enter the earth, whence it returns in the spring, in another form to recommence its depredations upon your fruit.

Farmers' 1 Gazette.

SHOES.

The Journal de Paris, says that an operative in the Rue des Vielles Andridttes, has invented a machine to make shoes, by means of which anj' person possessing sufficient slrengih to turn a wheel, can in 'the course of a day finish fifty pair of excellent shoes of every size.

WOOL. With some very interesting specimens of beautiful wool, which we preserve for the inspection of our friends, we received the following :

Charles T. Botts, Esq.

Dear Sir, —I send you some samples of singularly fine and beautiful wool, taken from two flocks of the pure Electoral Saxon sheep, ihe property of the late Henry D. Grove, of New York. They were sent to me by Dr. Cook, one of the executors. The sheep were to be publicly sold, in Ohio and New York, in the course of the present autumn. The reputation of the Saxony sheep is doubtless well known to you and many of the readers of your valuable journal. They are probably unequalled in ihe United Slates. Mr. Grove being a nal ive of Saxony, and brought up as a practical shepherd, succeeded by his skill, in acclimating this, perhaps less hardy, variely of sheep, so as to make them as easily kept in this country as in their native land.— The samples I understand were put up just after being laashed, and consequently do not show to

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as much advantage as they would have done in a few days more. As it is from the wool of the Saxon sheep that the finest cloths are manufactured, it may gratify the curiosity of such of your readers as are in the habit of calling on you, to examine these specimens of extraordinary wool. I send them, therefore, for that purpose, with a sample of wool from the fine Southdown ram, which I imported in 1841, from England. The weight of a fine Saxon fleece would be, I presume, not more than three or four pounds,

that of a good sized Southdown, eight or ten. I was present at a sheep shearing at Allhorp, (Lord Spencer's,) in the spring of 1838, and I think he had several Shear Hogs whose fleeces were more than twelve pounds each in weight. They were of the improved Leicester stock, I think, and not very large. Very truly, dear sir,

Your friend,

A. Stevenson. October 22, 1844.

ORNAMENTAL C O U NTRY HOUSE

We extract from the Cultivator another cut of an ornamental country house. We wish we could inspire a general laste for the beauties of architectural design. A man.may ride from morning till night through the most refined and wealthy portion of Virginia without seeing as tasty a dwelling as the one represented in our engraving, cheap and simple as it is. Yet nothing adds more to the beauty of a country than an ornamented homestead; it isn't only that the eye is pleased, the heart is gratified by this evidence of our devotion to the shrine of our social affections. Patriotism too, that love of country which by association inspires the warmest feeling for all those who enjoy the delights of that country in common with us, is intimately connected with the beauty of the

landscape. Why does the Swiss sigh for his barren hills, but that he remembers with delight the beautiful prospect of mountain and of lake that constituted the scene of his youthful joys 1 The poor son of Erin never forgets the verdant fields of his native isle, and his heart warms instinctively to all who have suffered and enjoyed in common with him its oppressions and its beauties. The Highlander reverts incontinently to his lochs and his hills, and the exiled Englishman longs for the villas and gardens of the lowlands. The American alone looks back upon gloomy forests, disfigured rather than ornamented with rude and shapeless dwellings. Except in some few instances, where nature has placed him amongst, the loftiest and noblest of her works, during the course of a long life he has

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probably never seen a single object calculated to gratify the mind of a cultivated being: and who can tell how much of the goodness and kindness of our natures is attributable to the beauty of the objects with which we are surrounded'? The sunny skies of Italy generate a softness and gentleness that are proverbial, whilst the clouded and smoky atmosphere of London, is said to produce a rooroseness that is the prolific source of innumerable crimes, and not unfrequently ends in self-destruction.

Motives then of private policy and of public good instigate us to add to the blessings of the noblest political institutions that the world ever saw, the additional enjoyment of a cultivated and pleasing landscape.

Are we to fight this battle alone? Is there no true hearted son of the Old Dominion, who will gird on his armor and help us to war against this sordid love of pelf, or want of taste, which prevents our homes from indicating to the passing traveller, the intelligence, the kindness, and the refinement which we know frequently render a shabby, old, unpainted domicil, where pillow cases are substituted for window panes, the sanctuary of the best affections of the human heart.

There is one gentleman who has promised to come to our aid, and who has intimated that he would furnish us with a plan of dwelling better adapted to our "peculiar institutions" than any we have yet given to the public. We know his ability, and long for his communication.

For the Southern Planter.

FRUIT TREES.

Mr. Editor, —The time for planting out fruit trees has now arrived, and no farmer who has not yet furnished himself with an orchard should neglect the present season. He owes it to himself, to his family, and to society to do so. What is there which contributes more to comfort, enjoyment, and health, than a good orchard ?—■ There are few to be found who can say that they are not fond of good fruit, and if that should be true, surely no farmer would be willing to deny to others such an enjoyment. But perhaps some may say that they cannot afford the expense. There are certainly but few who deserve the name of farmer, that cannot plant out a moderate sized orchard, say fifty or one hundred trees, which will cost him from fifteen to twenty dollars per hundred, and so in proportion. And if he can't plant out the whole number desired, this fall and winter, let him make a beginning, and add every year till he has an or-

chard of the requisite size. Let it not be said by any one, (as I have heard,) that I shall not live to enjoy it. There is a selfishness in the sentiment, of which we should be ashamed.— We should live for others as well as for ourselves, which is one of the dictates of Christianit}' as well as of patriotism. Such is not the course of our Northern friends, and see the result. Instead of supplying ourselves with fruit, we are, to our reproach, furnished from the INorth with those varieties which can be transported. Let every farmer feel a pride, arid so far consult his own interest as to set about a change in this matter. True economy requires it—comfort, health, and every other consideration require it.

To those who are inclined to enter upon the enterprise, I would make a few remarks. Do not from a false economy encumber your land with worthless seedling trees. The expense of good fruit trees, is comparatively trifling, and will cost you no more to cultivate and rear them, than the most indifferent scrubby seedlings.— The difference in the value of the fruit of one season, will more than make amends for the difference in expense.

And while 1 am on this subject let me recommend our own native Virginia nurseries. Why should we go to the North for every thing? — Our nurseries contain all the valuable fruits which are to be found in the nurseries to the North. These men live amongst us, why not patronise them? They are reliable men, who would not deceive you—men in whom you might confide to send such trees as you order. It is rather calculated to move the indignation of even a smooth tempered farmer, to find that years after he has incurred the expense and trouble, his trees prove worthless, which has sometimes been my misfortune.

The writer, from a knowledge of the gentlemen, can recommend Joseph Simon, near Richmond, for his genera] and choice collection of fruits—Thomas S. Pleasants, near Petersburg, may also be relied upon to furnish peaches of rare and choice varieties. There may also be others who deserve confidence.

The writer of this has no interest whatever in any nursery. He has himself been at the expense of hundreds of dollars to Northern nurseries for his own use, and often been disappointed in the varieties ordered, or the manner in which they have been forwarded, by which they failed to grow. Our own nurseries can now furnish them more conveniently,— more promptly,—more to be relied on, and with more safety.

Yours, respectfully, W. J. D.

Petersburg, Oct. 23, 1844.

Every gate-post on the farm should have an auger hole bored in it, to be filled with grease

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raid plugged up, lo grease the latches and hinges. Want of grease, if often observed, but from not having it at hand, it is generally never applied.

Selected.

REAPING MACHINES. We have received a long communication from Mr. McCormick, who has just returned from the north-west in answer to Mr. Hussey's article published in the October number of the Planter. Our limits compel us to razee this communication, and we sincerely hope that in doing so we may omit nothing that Mr. McCormick would deem very pertinent to the merits of his machine. The original paper will be retained for the inspection of those who desire to inform themselves more particularly of the merits of this controversy. We make the following extract :

I, like Mr. Hussey at one time, have been disposed to let my Reaper manifest its superiority by its operations, and—Mr. Hussey's opinion to the contrary notwithstanding—think there is the strongest proof of its having done so. I had supposed the world grown wise enough to know that the only certain test of the value of all such agricultural implements as those offered to the public by Mr. Hussey and myself, is experience. Hence they very wisely and properly require, before they stamp with their approbation any thing of the sort, a series of experiments, confirming beyond doubt their practical utility and efficiency. And this is the touchstone by which I wish my machine tested. And I cannot think that any thing calculated to entertain or enlighten your readers—that any useful result will grow out of a controversy of this sort— a warfare of words between my adversary and myself. And feeling no apprehension from Mr. Hussey's competition, I have no time to spare from making machines to meet the public demand for the next harvest—to be wasted in this idle tournament. But as he has again attempted to show that injustice has been done hirn; that he has been cheated out of the favorable standing which rny machine occupies before the public ; and has informed the public of the failure of one of thern, it may be thought, necessary very briefly to advert to some of the facts in the case.

As Mr. Sampson's was one of the first machine.-; that I sold—sold on his application before I was prepared to guarantee its performance—and the only one that has failed, I will commence by saying for Mr. Hussey's comfort that Mr. John R. Sampson (who purchased ihe first) stated to me al the close of the last harvest that he expected to want one and his bro-

ther-in-law (Dr. Wood) another, for the next harvest. It is probable that after the failure of one, (I had proposed correcting a defect in it, which was, however, not done,) he would take care to be well advised before purchasing another. Can Hussey say this of all or any of the machines built by him and disused in Virginia, Maryland, and elsewhere 1

As to the several trials that took place between the two machines during the harvest of 18-13, it would be a useless repetition and waste of time, to go into a particular examination of them. Hussey's views of them, in his " Self-Defence," No. 2, were given to the public through the columns of the Richmond Enquirer of Sth July, 1843, and in other papers, together with Mr. Watkins' opinion of his machine. Mr. Roane's preference and purchase, after signing the report at Hutchison's, &c, were also published before in the Planter, which I was disposed to let go for what they were worth. He staled that he thought Hussey's the strongest and probably best machine for heavy wheat; and I think it probable that his sympathies may have been a little excited. In the Enquirer of July 14th, (1843)—which paper, like yours, was kindly thrown open for the discussion—at a time too when it was probably not without some interest. I replied to Mr. Hussey at some length, showing his discourteous challenge, my published acceptance of it—and appointment several days previously at Mr. Hutchison's, by the arrangements of Rev. J. H. Turner and others— with my proposition that it should be made a full test of speed by the day, &c.—that he did not appear on the ground until ten or eleven o'clock, and cut but an acre or two, (while I cut seventeen acres in less than a day,) and only asked allowance to be made by the committee in making their report for the small size of his machine—that some of the committee remarked after making their report, that ihey considered it sufficient to give the preference to my machine, while they were of opinion that it had several important advantages over his, viz: cutting damp wheat; depositing it at the side, so that it is not necessary to bind it when cut; (often it does not suit to do so;) saving it cleaner, having canvass behind lo prevent it from dropping off the platform into the stubble; two, instead of four horse (or mule) power, and about two-thirds the price, &c.—that two or three days previous to this trial, and without my knowledge, Hussey had given notice in the neighborhood of Mr. E. L. Wight, of " Tuckahoe," that one of my machines would be put in operation there, and that his would also; that a considerable number of gentlemen attended, (Messrs. Sampson of the number,) and that, in consequence of a little shower of rain Hussey was compelled to admit that his machine did not suit well to cut damp wheat, having at last to

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turn his four mule team around twice in a space of twenty paces, and then drive at a trot to get through, while mine was not impeded by the dampness—(Mr. Wight said he would not have his machine—yet has Mr. H. "had the satisfaction to think his machine was preferred." I would not deprive him of this satisfaction, so long as I have the satisfaction to receive their orders for the machines)—that after this he went higher up the river (James) to Mr. Carter's, to cut tangled wheat, and from his own account (to a gentleman in the neighborhood) failed, complaining that even Mr. C. did not go to see his machine operate—that he had his two machines together at Mr. Wight's, when he knew of the regular trial to take place at Mr. Hutchison's, and yet why not be able to get one as well as the other to make battle in so important a contest?—that after the cutting at Hutchison's, he again challenged me to a trial at Mr. Roane's in cutting tangled wheat, and in the attempt to cut some such there, he broke the blade of his machine, and rake, and failed—(I made no attempt to cut it, as it was too much down to be cut with any machine but a simple scythe or hook, but did cut other tangled wheat in the field)—that my machine did cut several acres more wheat in the day than his, &c.

Is more evidence required as to the real impression which has been made upon the public mind by the two machines, Mr. Editor? Yes. The inquiry will at once arise, are we yet to look to the operations of these machines upon paper, as set before us too by interested parties,! or has that unerring test of experience not al-! ready spoken in this matter? If so, what does it say ? Well, in addition to Mr. Roane and Mr. Watkins, Mr. Hussey has succeeded in getting statements from one or two persons in Jefferson county, under what circumstances of comparison I know not, or whether they saw my machine operate—that it is considered of no account ! If this statement proves any thing, it only proves, I suppose, what I had learned in a letter I received from James Madison Hite, Esq. of Clarke county, who purchased the right to Jefferson and seven other counties, viz: that he had built and sold fourteen or fifteen machines, a few of which did not do well in consequence of defects in workmanship, &c, but generally they had given great satisfaction, and he calculated on building a considerable number for the next harvest, and has ordered of me one hundred blades. Although Mr. Hussey, as has been stated, had two machines at Richmond in 1843, and had another there last harvest, I have not heard of the sale of either of them; and yet it might be inferred from his statement that he had been selling many machines, and "neglecting his interest by not publishing the certificates."

Since the harvest of 1843 (and including that harvest), when I had the trials with Mr. Hus-

sey, my reaper, as he has observed, has been widely diffused throughout the wheat growing parts of this State. Near half the county rights have been sold to persons who had either used the machine or resided near to where it had been used the previous harvest. It has also been diffused during the last harvest and since, by sales and contracts, through Maryland, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New York.— The manufacture of two hundred and fifty machines at one place, (Cincinnati) for the next harvest, has been contracted for, besides many other important contracts in other parts of this vast region. The permanent popularity of my reaper has already been so far established, I trust, as to place it out of danger of passing into oblivion after a short-lived reputation, as I think has been the fate of Mr. Hussey's cutter.

As this has already been extended, Mr. Editor, much longer than I intended when I commenced, I suppose you will not find room to append certificates to it, I should be glad to furnish you with a few if you can give them a place in your next.

Very respectfully,

Your obedient servant,

C. H. M'Cormick.

November 8, 1844.

P. S.—Having already received many orders for the next harvest, and as this demand promises to be considerable, it is desirable and may be necessary that persons wanting my reaper should order soon. I could have sold several more last harvest if I had had them in market; but my object is to meet the demand, and when wanted orders should not be deferred. With my thanks for the liberal patronage heretofore received, I have only to add that my terms will be the same as heretofore, viz: $100 at the factory, or $105 at Richmond, at four months from harvest, warranted to perform in the best manner, as usual.

More full accounts may be seen shortly in the Whig and Enquirer.

C. H. M'C.

VALUABLE RECIPE.

To clean mahogany and marble furniture no soap should ever be used for them—they should be washed in fair water, and rubbed with a clean soft cloth till dry. A little sweet oil, rubbed on occasionally, gives them a fine polish. The furniture should be rubbed over with a cloth dipped in oil, then rubbed over with a clean cloth till it appears dry and polished. White spots on varnished furniture may be removed by rubbing them with a warm flannel, dipped in spirits of turpentine. Ink spots may be removed by rubbing them with a woollen cloth, dipped in oil of vitriol and water mixed, being careful not to

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touch any part of the furniture that is not spotted. As soon as the ink is extracted, rinse the spot with pearlash water, and then with fair water. It is said that blotting paper alone will extract the ink, if rolled up tight and rubbed hard on the spots. If it answers the purpose, it is altogether best to use it, as there is always danger attending the use o'f oil of vitriol, it being so powerful as to corrode whatever it may get dropped on, without its effects are destroyed by the use of an alkali.— American Housewife.

GUANO; This subject is continually pressed upon our notice by the certificates of its efficacy with which the country is flooded. We know how cautious our friends are and ought to be of the glowing accounts that are from time to time put forth of the magical value of different articles which live a day, are forgotten, and yield in turn to their successors. The number of these impositions and the greediness with which, in despite of experience, they are clutched at by the farming community prove the need and value of a concentrated fertilizer.

The expense of making and hauling out farm yard manure is felt to be a heavy drawback upon the profits of the farm, and yet it is universally admitted to be an indispensable requisite to good farming. We will not consent to institute a comparison between guano and stable or farm yard manure, when the one has to be purchased and the other is made at home, for we will consent to do nothing which may have a tendency to relax a farmer's exertions in what we believe to be the most important department of his business, the collection and preservation of the domestic sources of fertility.— But with all our exertions the home product will go just so far and no farther; there is always a portion of the crop that it will not cover.— Then after the domestic resource has been exhausted we are willing to consider whether the farmer can make money by buying guano at three cents a pound (its present price in the Richmond market,) and applying it to land that would otherwise go unmanured. Every calculation of this sort must rest on its own bottom, for the cost of the guano will vary with the different locations to which it may be transported. All that we can do, therefore, is to lay before our readers the statements o'f its effects when applied to different crops.

From hundreds of such statements we have You. IV.-35

selected the following furnished us by Mr. Peti-colas, of Petersburg, because it is very exact, very satisfactory, and because we and our readers, generally, know the source from which it comes to be perfectly reliable:

Charles T. Botts, Esq..

Dear Sir, —In compliance with your request, I will simply state, that from the numerous testimonials of the surprising efficacy of this manure in France, England and the United States, t was induced to try it on white turnips, sowed 28th August, in drills, leaving one row unma-nured, against a bed of equal size heavily manured, sowed 27th August. 1 applied the guano in eight days after they were up, (by making a small drill with a light hoe on both sides,) at the rate of 1 lb. to twenty yards. In ten days after its application, the tops without one drop of rain, were double the size of the manured bed, and of a richer green color. At this time the turnips average fifteen inches in circumference, whilst those in the manured bed are not more than one-half the size, and the unmanured row will not make, judging from present appearances. Accidentally some long scarlet radishes were mixed in the turnips, which grew to an enormous size, averaging more than one foot in length, and very tender; we ate them about the 10th October. In another small bed to which I applied the guano, there were some old beets reserved for seed and a few carrots, both of which grew rapidly, and the carrots are now by far the largest I have ever had. I then applied it to two-thirds of the cabbages on a sandy hill, (which is so poor that the remaining cabbages are not over six or seven inches high and will certainly never head,) the others, with three or four exceptions, are fine hard heads; those which have not headed are very large. I have since tried it on two-thirds of an acre in turnips, sown from 28th September to 2d October. To the first drills in this bed, I applied the guano at the bottom of the drill, interposing about an inch of soil, and then sowed. These did not come up, and I suppose were killed in germinating. I have since re-sowed, and do not despair of making turnips from those sowed 28th September, as they are growing rapidly.

It has been applied in this town with complete success to peach trees, at the rate of a table-spoonful to each tree, producing an abundant crop without a worm, and larger than usual.— Also to a few stalks of Indian corn, a tea-spoonful to each stalk. If it produces in like proportion in fields, we should soon have the poor lands about Petersburg producing like James river low grounds.

I have also tried it on a variety of shrubbery and late flowers with surprising results. The monthly roses to which it was applied are now

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in full bloom, and the chrysanthynums are larger than usual. Several gentlemen in the vicinity have tried it this fall on wheat, which looks finely.

Upon the whole, I consider it at three cents per pound, (the price it sells for in Petersburg,) as, beyond all question, the cheapest manure we have. It recommends itself by the strongest considerations to the agriculturist and horticulturist ; first, from its incredible fertilizing power; secondly, in the facility of its application; and thirdly, in its durability when amalgamated with the soil. An acre of ground may be heavily manured in a few hours by a single hand. Probably the best method of applying it to small grain crops, is to mix it with about four times its bulk of gypsum, woods earth, ashes, or pulverized charcoal, and sow it at the rate of 300 lbs. per acre, with the last harrowing. To tobacco or Indian corn one tea-spoonful, pure, or mixed as above, around each stalk or plant.— For plant patches, it must be first rale, as it keeps off insects and gives great energy in a very short time.

Your friend, A. Peticolas.

Petersburg, Nov. 1, 1844.

P. S.—I omitted to mention that I cut down two crops of weeds in my manured bed of turnips, and pulled up in a few minutes the large weeds in the guano bed, there being no small ones introduced with the guano. A. P.

POUDRETTE. Some time since we stated that Mr. Minor, of New York, had promised to furnish us with directions that would enable every farmer to convert the night soil of his farm into poudrette.— This promise excited a good deal of interest, and we have had frequent inquiries for the directions ; we have not heard from Mr. Minor, but substitute the following excellent article, taken from the Cultivator, for his communication:

DISINFECTION OF FECAL MATTER—ITS CHEAP AND IMMEDIATE CONVERSION INTO MANURE.

Agriculturists are acquainted with the powerful properties of poudrette manure. The expense of its preparation and transport has hitherto limited its use to gardens and farms in the neighborhood of its manufactory. From the facts contained in the following letter, laid by M. Dumas before the French Institute in July, and which we commend to the serious attention of our readers, we learn that this potent auxiliary of production may be made quickly and at a trifling cost on every farm. The disinfecting agent used, is the sulphate of iron, or the copperas of the shops, which can be purchased at

$1 37^ the hundred pounds. Should the practice of using it for this purpose become general, it is evident a great addition will be made lo the resources of agriculture, particularly in the neighborhood of towns and villages. There is one application of the solution of copperas, not alluded to in the letter, which we would suggest to those who shall make a trial of it; we mean ils application to the ordinary dung-hill. If each new layer added to a manure heap were sprinkled with copperas water, much, if not all of that most valuable element, the ammonia, which is now lost by its volatility, would be converted into a fixed salt, and thus saved. We suppose, of course, that the double decomposition which ensues on the addition of sulphate of iron to human excrement, would take place equally in the farm yard, a fact easily determined by experiment. T.

Translated from the Moniteur Industriel of July 13, for the Cultivator.

Sir, —In experimenting upon the simplest and most economical practical means of saturating the carbonate of ammonia of fecal substances, I have ascertained that sulphate of iron is to be preferred. This salt in small crystals and of the commonest quality, may be had for eight or ten francs the quintal melrique, (220-| lbs. avoirdupois—in Albany, copperas is sold at from $1 37^ to $1 75 per 100 lbs.) and is more easily transported and managed than acids, which may occasion accidents in unpracticed hands. But sulphate of iron offers another remarkable advantage which must secure for it a preference.

The noxious and disagreeable effluvia exhaled by fecal substances, proceeds chiefly from the volatilization of carbonate of ammonia and sulphuretted hydrogen gas, which has been often fatal to scavengers. If we pour a solution of sulphate of iron into fecal matters, a double decomposition immediately takes place; the sul-phmic acid of the sulphate combines with the ammonia, converting it into a fixed salt, and the iron forms with the sulphur, sulphuret of iron. The exhalations of ammoniacal vapor and sulphuretted hydrogen immediately disappear, and the fecal substances lose all but a slight smell peculiar to them, combined with the odor of the little vegetable matter they contain, and are not at all offensive.

When these substances are sufficiently liquid, -the solid excrements are dissolved (in great part); what remains, precipitating as a blackish slime.

I obtained this result by treating in the above manner, the contents of my house privy. The liquid I used at two degrees of strength for watering my garden, and the blackish deposit of trifling volume which had subsided, was spread upon the beds without occasioning the least inconvenience.

Fecal matters saturated with a solution of

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sulphate of iron may be transported by day as easily as common manure, without incommoding any body. As they form a very rich manure, they can be carried to greater distances than ordinary dung, and be readily diluted to two degrees to be used in the liquid form. (By two degrees, are meant two degrees of Beaume's hydrometer, which is graduated to 72 degrees generally—the first degree corresponding with water taken as unity—the last representing a liquid of twice the density of water, so that 2 degrees indicates a liquid of a density 1 1-72 greater than water.)

Fecal substances without previous saturation lose their carbonate of ammonia, which volatilizes, and are thus deprived of their most energetic fertilizing element.

The greater part of human excrements are lost at the present day, because they are not collected with care nor properly treated, on account of the repugnance they inspire. Yet they are of immense importance to agriculture. The solid and liquid excrements of a man may be estimated at 1.65 pounds per day, or 618 pounds per annum, containing 3 per cent, of nitrogen, or 18 pounds, a sufficient quantity, according to Boussingault, to produce 880 pounds of wheat, rye or oats.

Some portions of a meadow which I watered last year with a solution of ammoniacal salts at one degree, of two quarts to the square yard, still continue to exhibit superior vigor of vegetation, and will yield double the quantity of hay that the unwatered part will give. The result exceeds my expectations, for I did not think that the action of a small quantity of ammonia would continue for several years. I no longer doubt that it will be felt for three years at least. Ammoniacal salts may thus be easily made to supply the wants of soils where dung enough is not produced—for if we admit that S80 lbs. of these salts at 5 cents and 3 mills, or about $47, are required to manure two and a half acres for three years, the annual expense would hardly be $16, (about $6 40 per acre,) which would be more than compensated by the increased production.

I am, &C ScHATTENMANN,

Director of the Mines of Bouxwillier.

THE CORRESPONDENTS OP THE PLANTER. We take the liberty of making the following extract from a private letter, because we esteem it a tribute justly due the distinguished individual to whom it refers:

I congratulate you, sir, on the last number of the Planter. Mr. Venable's communication on the rnean3 of preventing the destruction of tobacco plants by the fly, is worth all the money

I ever paid you. Mr. Venable is one of my countymen, and I am proud of such a citizen. He is truly an agriculturist, practically as well as theoretically : a communication from his pen is always plain, instructive, and interesting. October 19, 1844.

INSTANTANEOUS BEER.

Put to a pint and a half of water four tea-spoonfuls of ginger, a table-spoonful of lemon juice —sweeten it to the taste with syrup or white sugar, and turn it into a junk bottle.— Have ready a cork to fit the bottle, a string or wire to tie it down, and a mallet to drive in the cork. Then put into the bottle a heaping tea-spoonful of the super carbonate of soda, cork it immediately, tie it down, then shake the whole up well, cut the string, and the cork will fly out. Turn it out, and drink immediately.— American Housewife.

C. N. BEMENT, ESQ.. We are obliged to Mr. Bement for a copy of his address delivered before the Housatonic Agricultural Society. It is replete with the sound practical sense for which the author is distinguished. We make the following extract as illustrative of the benefit to be derived from

MIXING SOILS.

" Some nine or ten years ago in the early part of my farming, I had occasion to deepen a well, about six or eight feet. The earth thrown out was a tenacious blue clay, just damp enough to cut into lumps, and adhesive enough to retrain so. After finishing the well, the man who had charge of the farm was at a loss to know where to deposit it. Having a bare sandy knoll in one of the fields, which was not inaptly termed 'personal property' from its being wafted about by every breeze, here to da)', and there to-morrow, it occurred to me that the clay would hold the sand and form a soil. I accordingly ordered it deposited there in heaps, the same as if manure. This was in the summer. In the fall the lumps were scattered over the surface and left to the action of the rain and frost. In the spring it was found to have broken down, crumbled and slaked like lime. These heaps were reduced and the clay evenly spread over the surface. The field received a coat of manure, was ploughed, and sown with oats and peas. That where the clay was applied, produced the largest and most vigorous growth, of any other part of the field. In the fall it was sown with rye and seeded down with timothy and clover. The rye as well as the clover was much more vigorous and heavier, on that than any other part of the field. In fact, the person who occupied the farm after

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I left it, informed me that he lost his crop of grass on that part in consequence of its lodging. Thus the personal was made real or fast property, and remains so to the present day.

" Having experienced such beneficial effects from mixing clay with sand I was afterwards induced to try what effect sand would have on a rather retentive soil. The garden at Three Hills Farm, is a stiff clay loam resting on a strong tenacious clay subsoil, rather inclining to moisture. The second year after I purchased and took possession of it, I caused a coat of sand, from six to eight inches in depth, to be put on one of the squares, which was spaded in with the manure, and I had the satisfaction to witness the most gratifying and happy results— the crop on that square was far superior to any other in the garden. Since then I have caused over five hundred one-horse cart loads of sand to be put in the garden, and the effect is still visible although the sand has disappeared."

Also the following upon the use of

SALT FISH AS MANURE.

" Four years since I applied six barrels of spoiled salt fish to a strip of potatoes in a field of four acres, in comparison with } r ard manure. To every hill I put half a herring or mackerel at. the time of planting, covering it with the potato. The season proved a dry one, and while the vines in the other part of the field suffered greatly from the drought, those where the salt fish were used maintained a dark, vigorous and healthy color, vines very large, long, and continuing green some time after the others were shriveled, dried, and dead. On digging them in the fall, I found them much larger in size and nearly double in quantity to those where yard manure was applied.

"At the time I attributed the great yield, over the others, to the animal substance, as nothing but the bones of the fish were found in the fall, but on further reflection and observation, I am inclined to think that the salt was the most powerful agent after all, as will appear from the crops taken off the three following years.

" The next crop I took from the field was rutabagas, and that part where the salt fish was used showed a much more vigorous growth of plants, maintained the same dark, healthy appearance, and could be distinguished from the rest at a great distance ; but on lifting them in the fall I found that the great growth of top was at the expense of the bottom, the bnlbs were smaller than those in the other parts of the field ; thus for rutabagas it proved rather injurious.

" Last year the field was sown with oats, and produced a very heavy crop. The strip where the salt fish were used, was visible to the eye at a great distance from the field, and the straw

much larger and longer, but just as the heads were filling out a severe storm of wind and rails prostrated it; before which it presented the most vigorous growth of oats I ever beheld.

"After the oats were taken off, I had it ploughed deep, and the stubble well turned under, harrowed and rolled until well pulverized, and then sown with wheat, and stocked down . with clover and timothy. The plants soon made their appearance, and grew off vigorously in the. fall, but owing to the small quantity of snow, and the severity of the frost in the winter, much of the grain was killed. During the summer the same vigorous growth, dark color, straw much taller, heads longer and better filled on that part of the field where the fish had been applied, were noticed by all who passed, and the lines where the fish were used could be traced by the eye at a great distance.

" The question now presents itself, which is is that has been such a lasting and powerful agent in producing such extraordinary fertility 1 Is it the flesh, the bones or the salt, or all combined? The animal matter disappeared the first season, and nothing but the bones were to be seen, and the quantity of salt was so small, that it would seem hardly possible that it would have such an effect. Salt, as a manure for grass lands, has been used in England with varying success. It is said to sweeten the herbage, and when sprinkled about and over a portion of pasture, cattle, sheep and horses will constantly repair to this salted portion, in preference to any other part of the field. It evidently, therefore, renders grass more palatable to live stock, and upon consulting the old agricultural writers it was found that notices of salt as a manure, were many and important, and that it had been used in various agricultural operations from a very early period."

CLEANING SILK.

The following directions for cleaning silks are by one of the first Parisian dyers: Half a pound of soft soap, a tea-spoonful of brandy, and a pint of gin; mix all well together; with a sponge or flannel, spread the mixture on each side of the silk without, greasing it j wash it in? two or three waters, and iron it on the wrong side ; it will then look as good as new.

TO CLEANSE FEATHER BEDS AND MATTRESSES.

When feather beds become soiled or heavy,, they may be made clean and light by being treated in the following manner: Rub them over with a stiff brush, clipped in hot soapsuds — When clean, lay them on a shed, or any other clean place, where the rain will fall on them. When thoroughly soaked, let them dry in a hot

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277

sun for six or seven successive days, shaking them up well, and turning them over each day. They should be covered over with a thick cloth during- the night; if exposed to the night air, they will become damp, and mildew. This way of washing the bed ticking and feathers, makes them fresh and light, and is much easier than the old fashioned way of emptying the beds and washing the feathers separately, while

it answers quite as well. Care must be laken to dry the bed perfectly before sleeping on it.— Hair mattresses that have become hard and dirty, can be made nearly as good as new by ripping them, washing the ticking, and picking the hair free from bunches, and keeping it in a dry airy place several days. Whenever the ticking gets dry, fill it lightly with hair, and tack it together.— American Housewife.

For the Southern Planter. APPARATUS FOR MEASURING HEIGHTS.

•Mr. Editor ,—As a ready mode of obtaining i *.he height of objects, seems to be attracting the J attention of some of your readers, I send you a representation of an apparatus, which I think is better adapted to effect that object than any I that has yet appeared in the Planter.

Suppose the tree in the engraving to be the; object whose height is required. Construct a right angled triangle, a, b, c; of which the side a, b, shall be equal to the side b, c. This triangle may be formed either by fastening together three strips, three or four inches wide, or by sawing a square piece of plank diagonally

across. Attach this triangle to a staff, the length of which shall be equal to the height of the eye, and plant it at such a distance from the tree as will bring the side a, c, in a line with the top of the tree—then extend the line a, c, until it meets the ground at 3. If particular accuracy be required, the plumb line may be used to obtain the exact perpendicular of the staff.

Now, as from a to b is the same distance as from b to c, hence from 1, the top of the tree, to b, the foot, will be the same as from 2 to 3. Yours, very respectfully,

E. D.

THE SOUTHERN PLANTER.

For the Southern Planter. HOLLOW HORN.

JMr. Editor, —I recollect having seen it recommended in one of the late numbers of the Planter, to saw off the horns of cattle, as a remedy for the disease known as " hollow horn," and I have no doubt it might be attended with benefit in many cases. I have been a close observer of this disease for many years, and will give you my opinion of it. I will first say something of the cause and character of the disease, and then inform you of a long tried and most successful remedy. I have often heard it said, by way of ridiculing the disease, that a hollow belly produces the hollow horn. On the contrary, I esteem it a most formidable and fatal disease, existing frequently where it is little suspected ; it extends beyond the horns and pervades the whole system : hence cows without horns may have, not the hollow horn, but the same disease. In the last forty years I have examined and cured many cases, and I have universally found what is called the "rot in the tail" connected with the disease of the horn.— They begin to decline and continue to do so, in spite of the best attention you can pa}' them. Upon feeling the horns, you will find them cold, and on raising the tail, it will be seen to bend short about three or four inches from the end, where it is entirely soft. Now, although it may be true that a hollow belly sometimes produces the hollow horn, yet I have known it come on very suddenly, and it frequently attacks fat cattle ; it generally makes its appearance in the spring. It is my impression that it is caused by exposure to cold, the effect of which is exhibited in the horns and tail. Poor cattle suffer more from cold than those in. better condition, and in this way it may be that they are more liable to the hollow horn. It is possible that through the spine the horns and the tail may be more intimately connected than would at first appear. It is also my impression that cattle in good condition, resist the disease better and finally overcome it, without its having exhibited itself in its external form ; but if after lurking in the system it finally comes to light in the horns and tail, the attack has the appearance of being a sudden one, and is considered more severe than usual.

Now for the remedy. I have admitted that sawing off the horns may in some cases be effectual, but I have known some cows to have it repeatedly, when this cure could not be so readily applied. My plan is to bore a hole with a gimlet in each horn, three or four inches from the head, on the under side, to prevent rain or snow from getting into it. You will find the horn hollow, though a little blood may appear: at the same time, part the hair about three inches from the end of the tail (on the under side is most convenient,) and split the tail from that

point upwards, about three inches: let the incision reach quite to the centre, for you will not find a particle of bone. Open the cut, and fill it with salt; close it up, and wrap a rag several times around it, which should be fastened with a string not tied too tight; leave the holes in the horns without putting any thing in them.

I have never known this remedy to fail, and I have often seen it, administered when they were down, enable them to rise in six hours.— But when the cattle were very fat and discharged a foul viscid matter from the nose, I have sometimes been unable to relieve them.

I have little doubt that nine-tenths of the cattle in Virginia die of this disease, and frequently when it is unsuspected. I know that many will be incredulous about the efficacy of this remedy, but all I ask is, give it a fair trial; at any rate, I am not afraid to show my approval of Mr. Venable's ideas concerning anonymous writers, by subscribing myself,

Yours, respectfully,

W. TlMBERLAKE.

Belle Jib; Oct. 28, 1844.

P. S.—Whilst I have my pen in hand, I will make a suggestion upon another very important subject. I think we can never succeed in improving our cattle, sheep, and hogs, whilst the males are permitted to run at large, by which we are not only disappointed in obtaining the cross we wish, but our calves, lambs, and pigs come at a season which renders them almost worthless to the owner. I therefore suggest, with due deference, that your subscribers use their influence to obtain the passage of a law, which shall prevent such animals, especially bulls and boars, from running at large. I am sure, for many reasons, that it is the interest of the whole community, and that it ought to be done. W. T.

We think the suggestion of Mr. Timberlake a feasible and most excellent one; certain it is, that it is useless for us to be talking about the advantages of improved stock, and the principles of judicious breeding, as long as we are liable to have our sows invaded by every runt of a boar that may chance to roam the woods. A general law for restraining stock has been advocated by many, and might be possibly productive of more good than evil; but the sense of the community is against it, and there are many poor people whom it would deprive of the only food they have for their cattle. As to this proposition of Mr. Timberlake's, for the restraint of males, whilst it would be invaluable to the judicious breeder, we see little or no inconvenience that it would cause to any.

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279

FERMENTED AND UNFERMENTED MANURES.

Mr. F. Mortimer Butler, an ingenious correspondent of the New York Farmer, contends, that animal and vegetable matter should never be permitted to undergo fermentation, but that it should be reduced to the state of insoluble mould by use of an alkali, before it is applied to plants. It is true, he says that their food will not, under such circumstances, be brought to the rootlets or mouths of plants in a soluble form, but that this mould, by the slow decay which a proper tillage induces, will evolve gases that will furnish a much greater and more economical supply. Hence he concludes, that manures fermented and unfermented. long and short, are equally to be avoided, and that all ought to be united with an alkali to bring them to a state of mould or dry rot; when they will neither be washed away by rain nor quickly evaporated by the atmosphere. He, therefore, recommends the use of lime and compost beds. We copy the following:

From the Farmer and Mechanic.

LIME AND BARN YARD MANURE IN RAISING WHEAT.

" We saw recently a parcel of very superior red wheat, weighing 64 lbs. per bushel. The wheat in question was the product of a field which a short time since was part of a waste common that had been uncultivated for many years, and was deemed to be too poor and worn out to yield any thing. After enclosing it, the present owner put lime upon it in the proportion of one hundred bushels to the acre, and subsequently followed the lime with a liberal application of stable manure. Last fall the field thus prepared was sowed in wheat, and has just returned a crop of the very best quality, averaging thirtj' bushels to the acre."

Mr. Fleet, —Permit me to direct your attention to the above paragraph, taken from the Baltimore American. It shows the benefit to be derived from lime and barn yard manure when the two are used together. The fact is the more valuable since the crop is wheat. Since insoluble matters cannot be taken up by the roots of i plants, our farmers have been led to argue, that any substance tending to render manures insoluble must be injurious to them. And since lime renders the soluble portions of stable manures insoluble, they have condemned its use in conjunction with such manure. This decision, however, does not rest on practice, but upon hypothesis, and consequently is liable to be reversed.

Permit rne to suggest the necessity of draw-

ing a distinction between the state in which manures exist in the earth, and the state in which they are taken up by plants, especially if we wish to arrive at just conclusions respecting their action.

"It is known that the earth is the common stomach of plants, and as such, receives their crude food ; which crude food we term manure. For plants there is also a common power of digestion, the decomposing influence of the atmosphere. Under this influence manures assume a fluid or gaseous form, and become the digested food of plants. We might then, with propriety, make this distinction. The crude material to be recognized as manure, which when digested by the atmosphere should be considered as having become the food of plants. And thus we would be led to say that manures may be either of a soluble or insoluble nature, but the food of plants becomes either a fluid or gaseous body.

By such distinction we can read the nature of the fact which I have called your attention to that lime had rendered the soluble portions of the stable manure insoluble. In such a state they could not have been taken up by the wheat plants. But lime induces in this manure the action of slow combustion, through which it is converted into gaseous and fluid bodies, and thus becomes the food of the plants.

The points to be derived from this experiment are, that the plants were mostly fed upon gases and water, and produced much grain. Had stable manure been used alone, the crop would have yielded much straw and but little grain.— Some three summers back I was engaged in Ulster county, dry rotting barn yard manure by composting it with lime and earth. My neighbors objected to the course, stating that the manure would be rendered insoluble. Upon being informed that that was one end that I wished to produce, they raised another objection, that the manure would be "fire-fanged."

Upon being assured that such action was impossible, since the earth, being intimately blended with the manure, would prevent it, they then resolved to leave me as one bent upon the pursuit of his own folly. After the dry rot of the manure had been effected they were surprised on beholding a fine yellowish brown friable mass, possessing the mechanical properties of mould, in place of the products of fire-fanging.

The good effects of this manure upon crops gave equal surprise. One of my neighbors took the matter into consideration, and afterward stated to me the following fact: He had some years previous bought a tract of worn out land, for nine dollars the acre, and put upon it all the barn yard manure that he had to spare. But as that quantity was less than his judgment dictated as being required by the land, and since lime was then considered as a manure, he made up the deficiency in lime. The manure was

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first spread and then the lime: thus the two came together. He remarked that the land yielded a heavier crop of wheat than he had ever obtained before or after that time. He had attributed the crop to the lime. Had tried lime upon other lands but could not obtain a like result. He had not since then used lime in conjunction with barn yard manure. Respectfully,

F. Mortimer Butler,

TO CLEAN WOOLLEN AND SILK SHAWLS.

Pare and grate raw mealy potatoes, and put tc-each pint of the potato pulp two quarts of cold water. Let it stand five hours, then strain the water through a sieve, and rub as much of the potato pulp through as possible—let the strained water stand to settle again—when very clear, turn the water off from the dregs carefully. Put a clean white cotton sheet on a perfectly clean table—lay on the shawl which you wish to clean, and pin it down tight. Dip a sponge, that has never been used, into the potato water, and rub the shawl with it till clean; then rinse the shawl in clear water, with a tea cup full of salt to a pail full of the water. Spread it on a clean level place, where it will dry quick; if hung up to dry, the colors are apt to run, and make the shawl streaked. Fold it up while damp, and let it remain half an hour, then put it in a mangier—if you have not one, wrap it in a clean white cloth, put it under a weight, and let it remain till dry. If there are any grease spots on the shawl, they should be extracted before the shawl is washed.— Am. Housewife.

TRANSACTIONS OF THE NEW YORK AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.

We are much indebted to Mr. O'Reilly, the Corresponding Secretary, for two sets of the "Transactions," lately received; one of these we have delivered, as requested, to the President of the Henrico Agricultural Society, and the other we have deposited on the shelf which is appropriated to our most valued works. We do not know whether these books are to be found in our bookstores, but we do know that the farmer could afford to obtain them at almost any price. They are replete with the most valuable and practical agricultural essays we have ever seen.

NEW METHOD OF FILLING ICE HOUSES.

Messrs. Gay lord <§• Tucker, —Croton water and pure ice is all the go in the city of New York, these temperance times, which induces me to recommend an easy and cheap method of manu-

facturing and filling a house with ice in a pure and solid state, in the best possible manner for preservation.

This house or celler designed for ice, must stand near a conductor of water; and the top of the bouse should be so constructed that it may be moved at pleasure, that the inner part may be as much as possible exposed to the weather. Insert a pipe stem into the conductor, that the water may spin through it at an elevation of seventy-five or eighty degrees into the air, in a direction so that in its fall it may enter the space where it is to remain during the season. This water being cooled by rising in the air, the force of the steam is broken in its fall, and if the weather be sufficiently cold, it will immediately congeal into one solid mass of ice quite pure,, and in the best possible position for preservation.

S. W. Jewett.

Weybridge, Vt., Sept. 29,1843.

A dinner was to be given by the Glasgow people to the great chemist Liebig, on the lltr* November, the Earl of Eglington to pieside.

TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS. This number brings us to the termination of our fourth year's labor. At the close of the last year, we were persuaded, against our better judgment, to stop the paper until we were paid again in advance. To our cost we discovered the folly of such a course. We lost fifteen hundred good subscribers, who, either from, pique, delay, or indifference, failed to renew their subscriptions. Much to our astonishment, and greatly to our regret, we found that many of our best friends were offended at our having stopped-their papers, and thus we not only lost subscribers, but created enemies where we felt every desire to please and accommodate. In this way, our list has been greatly weakened, and we are compelled to beg the assistance of our friends in retrieving the effects of our error. Taught by experience, we have adopted the opposite course; and shall hereafter continue to send the paper to all those %oho do not order it to be stopped. Any gentleman, therefore, who does not think he gets his dollar's worth for his money, will please notify us immediately of his desire to have his paper discontinued; those, or* the contrary, who appreciate our humble endeavors in the cause of agriculture, and who are willing to lend a helping hand to bestow on us a living reward for our labors, will oblige us by filling and transmitting to us the subscription list, with which this number is accompanied.

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