Produced by Alan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) THE AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. [Illustration] Agriculture is the most healthful, the most useful, and the most noble employment of Man.--_Washington._ VOL. II. NEW YORK, DECEMBER, 1843. NO. XI. A. B. ALLEN, Editor. SAXTON & MILES, Publishers, 205 Broadway. FATTENING POULTRY. As Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years, are fast approaching, when the demand for poultry is at its greatest height, and the quality of it is more curiously considered than at other seasons of the year, in order to obtain something choice for the festive days, we have thought a few words upon the fattening and preparation of it for market might now very appropriately be given, and perhaps interest our readers more than at another time. The fowls being in good condition a fortnight to one month previous to the time they are wanted for killing, shut them up in a roomy, dry, well-ventilated, and warm building, with either a ground, stone, or plank floor, as is most convenient. This should be cleaned every day, and straw several inches thick spread over a part of it, especially where geese and ducks are shut up, for the purpose of giving them good beds to sit in. As often as the litter gets soiled, remove it, and put clean straw in its place. A constant supply of food and water should now be kept before them, allowing the fowls to eat and drink as often and as much as they please. Gravel is indispensable for their health, and charcoal, together with a little lime or ground bones, is beneficial. Fowls fat better when they can get at their food as often as they please, and are not so apt to gorge themselves and become surfeited. For feed we prefer corn mostly; a little wheat, rye, or barley, is also very well as a change; oats have rather too much husk about them. In addition to these, boiled potatoes, sweet apples, pumpkins, and sugar beet, are excellent food, especially when mixed with a due proportion of mush or hasty pudding. Where sweet potatoes abound, they are an excellent substitute for the last. To the above, add daily a little lean meat, that which is cooked is preferred; and the last week of their fattening, for a finishing process, rice boiled in milk and sweetened with molasses, is very excellent. This may be called an expensive method; but our readers may be assured that the fowls will be enough better to pay for it. Meat derives much of its taste from the kind and quality of food that the animals consume; hence gross, fatty substances, fish, or anything that is disagreeable to the taste should be avoided in the food given to fowls during the fattening process, as these invariably impart more or less of their disagreeable flavor to the flesh of the poultry fed upon them. It is well known that the celebrated canvass-back duck derives its delicacy of taste from feeding on the bulbous roots of a peculiar grass growing in the Chesapeake bay, and that other kinds of ducks are scarcely eatable, in consequence of their living almost entirely upon fish. These remarks will hold good to most kinds of birds, both of the water and land, and, indeed, of all animals; accordingly as their food is good or bad, so will be the quality of the milk, meat, or eggs. We recollect when a boy, of having occasionally seen geese and ducks nailed through the webs of their feet to planks and floors, and hens and turkeys tied up and so closely confined to stakes, that they could not exercise. This was done so that they might fat the faster! How shockingly barbarous, and any one guilty of such a practice in these days, ought to be indicted, and severely punished for their cruelty and cupidity. We are totally opposed to the close confinement of beast or bird. Without exercise, the system can not be in a healthy state; and the meat of close confined animals is never as good, to say the least of it, as when they have plenty of fresh air, and are allowed to move moderately about. The best method of killing fowls, is to cut their heads off at a single blow with a sharp axe, and then hang them up and allow them to bleed freely. By this process they never know what hurts them, or endure pain for a second. Wringing the necks of poultry is almost as shocking as nailing their feet to planks for the purpose of fattening them, and follows in the same barbarous category. Scalding the fowl previous to picking, injures the feathers, and makes it troublesome to dry them, and we think the quality of flesh is somewhat injured by this process, especially if the weather be not pretty cold at the time. They should be picked as soon as possible after being killed, and their offal taken from them; be clean rinsed then in cold water, and hung up to dry, and kept as separate as possible till sold; packing them together in heaps injures the flesh. To be hung up and frozen for a few days, or even weeks before eating, makes the flesh more tender. To keep them the same length of time after roasting, especially if well stuffed, also adds to their delicacy of taste and tenderness. When the bird is brought on to the table, it is perfectly shocking to see its head, legs, and feet, left upon it, though we know in many places this is fashionable, and considered highly genteel; but for our own part we detest such offal, and the sight of them frequently destroys our appetite for the time being. The process of carving also at the table is a dead bore. We like the French fashion of cutting up the bird in the kitchen or at a side table, and having it passed round on the dish, every one then helping himself to such pieces as he likes best. FERTILITY OF SEA-MUD. SEA-MUD varies greatly in its composition, dependant something upon the soil of the neighboring uplands. It is considered a valuable manure in Europe, and is sought for with avidity, and transported not unfrequently considerable distances into the interior. We have seen it used with good effect in the United States, from Massachusetts to Pennsylvania; and are told that in Delaware and Maryland, and even farther south, it is highly prized by those who have tried it. On Long Island, the past summer, we were occasionally shown the fertilising results, not only of sea-mud, but of the marsh soil also, applied to the uplands a little removed from the borders of the marshes and the seashore. Our intelligent correspondent, Mr. Partridge, informs us he has used beach-mud in various ways with good effect; and that the past summer, two gentlemen whose country seats border his mill, were allowed to make use of the sediment from the tide mill-pond, and they found it added greatly to the productiveness of their gardens. Sea-mud may be applied in different ways, according to its constituents. If it abounds with clay, it should be taken in the fall of the year, and spread broad-cast upon the land, and thus lie exposed to the action of the frost all winter. This pulverises it well, and in the spring of the year the roller should be passed over it in dry weather, followed by the harrow, and if any lumps remain after this operation, let them be beaten fine with the dung-beater. This is considered one of the best top dressings for grass land which can be given; it also answers well to be plowed in for either grain or root crops. Where the mud abounds more with sand, it is an excellent thing to put into barn yards and pig-styes, to be incorporated with the litter and manure; it may likewise be thrown into a heap until it becomes completely pulverised, and then spread upon the land. As air-slacked lime or small broken lime can be obtained in this city for about half the price of quick lime, Mr. Partridge suggests that it would be an excellent ingredient to mix with the sea-mud, for the purpose of forming a compost. A bushel or two of the lime, to a cart-load of the mud, he thinks a good mixture. When it abounds with considerable vegetable matter, we would recommend a greater proportion of lime, say from one to ten or twenty parts. Ashes and charcoal dust are excellent ingredients to mix with sea-mud, and when either of these or lime is used to form a compost, they make it much more lasting. It is less labor to transport the sea-mud directly to the place where it is to be used, and spread it broad-cast at once upon the land; and as the saving of labor is quite an object in our country, we have found that this method of applying it is the most generally practised. With the exception of a few of our more intelligent farmers, sea-mud and marsh-mud as fertilizers, are not valued as highly as they ought to be in the United States. They exist in immense quantities all along our seaboard, and may be had in an unlimited extent for the mere labor of transportation. We hope that some experiments may hereafter be made with them by some of our readers on the different kinds of crops, and that they will give us the results. The time, we think, is approaching, when sea-mud and marsh-soil will be as highly prized here as they now are in Europe. SKETCHES OF THE WEST.--NO. II. PLANTATION OF MR. GREY.--One of the best plantations, especially for its farm-buildings, which we visited in Kentucky, was that of Mr. Benjamin Grey of Versailles. The house, as is usual in the more southern states, stands near the centre of the domain on rising ground, and commands a fine view of the country around. It is in cottage style, large and roomy, and flanked by thick, strong chimneys, built up outside of the gable ends. A pretty yard of smooth green-sward, decked with shrubbery and evergreens, is enclosed around with pointed white palings, and adjoining this is a noble park, formed by merely underbrushing and thinning out a few of the trees of the original forest. These are usually termed wood-land pastures in Kentucky; yet in most instances, they better deserve the name of park, than many of those on noblemen's estates in Europe. CROPS.--Mr. Grey's farm being principally devoted to stock, and what is rather unusual here, dairy products, the crops are but a secondary consideration. Hemp is the main one to which he gives his attention; and in addition to this, he raises a sufficiency of corn and the smaller grains for his own consumption. The rotation is much like that described in our first volume, under head of Tours in Kentucky. STOCK.--This is very fine indeed, Mr. Grey having been highly spirited in this matter. His Short-Horns are choice, and quite numerous. We particularly admired the cow Mary Ann, with the calf at her foot. She has a fashionable and airy form; an up-head, and deer-like action; handles well, and in addition to all these, we were informed that she is an excellent milker. Three heifers of her produce we also admired; the two youngest were strikingly like their dam. After the Short-Horns, we were shown a few good Cotswold, and South-Down sheep, imported direct from England by Messrs. Bagg & Wait of Orange Co., in this state. The stock-hogs are a cross of the Berkshire upon the Thin-Rinds, (a grade Chinese), and they make excellent porkers. FARM BUILDINGS.--These are among the most complete we have seen in any place, and we speak of them with the more pleasure, because they are blameably deficient in farm buildings throughout the whole southwest. The climate here, it is true, is warmer and much more open than at the north; but it is in this _very openness_, that consists the principal suffering of the stock. The ground during this time is muddy, cold, and damp; and worse, consequently, for animals to repose upon, than when frozen dry, or covered with snow. Sudden changes are continually taking place. Mild weather prevails for a few days, relaxing the system; this is then followed not unfrequently by intense cold; the thermometer sinking in 48 hours from 55° or 60° above, to zero, and sometimes 8° to 10° below it. These sudden changes are very injurious to man and beast, and far more to be dreaded than the steady cold of northern latitudes; and for this reason, more attention should be paid to the warmth of their dress on the part of the people here, and to the housing of stock, than is generally done. It would lessen disease, add to their longevity, and give a handsomer, fuller, and more healthful physical appearance. But to return more immediately to our subject. With the exception of the usually reserved gangway on the barn-floor, the lower story is devoted to stables. These are planked, and each animal is accommodated with a separate stall. Behind them is a shallow gutter, running the whole length of the stable, which conducts the liquid falling from the animals into a cess-pool in the yard, and is there absorbed by muck. The solid manure is also equally carefully saved and applied to the land, and notwithstanding the proverbial fertility of the soil of Kentucky, Mr. Grey assured us that he considered himself well paid in the increase of his crops, for the labor employed in thus saving and applying his manure. Over-head in the barn are lofts for hay and straw; a straw-cutter to prepare them for feeding; cribs and bins for grain; and a large square box with heavy wooden pounders, for the hands to pound up corn and cob into meal on rainy days, when they can do nothing else. This cob-meal is usually mixed up with water, and allowed to stand till it ferments, and is then fed to the stock. THE DAIRY.--This is a sufficiently roomy building, of one story, situated in a little dell a short distance from the mansion. One of the gable ends abuts against a nearly perpendicular cliff, out of which bursts a clear gurgling spring, that takes its course through the centre of the rocky floor of the dairy, and then finds its way into the valley below. Here is every convenience for making butter and cheese, in which Mr. Grey excels. We have dwelt thus minutely on the plantation, stock, and buildings of Mr. Grey, because we consider them an excellent example to follow in Kentucky; and also for the purpose of giving our northern readers a general idea of the husbandry at the west, of which the great majority entertain the most indefinite notions imaginable. MR. HART'S PLANTATION.--After taking an early dinner, Mr. Grey ordered up his buggy, and we started for Mr. Nathaniel Hart's. This was some few miles off, yet in order to get there we paid no attention to the public roads, but took our way over gentle hill and dale, through woodland-pastures, and among fields containing a hundred acres or more in each, under a single fence. For the purpose of opening and shutting the field-gates as we passed, we were accompanied by an ebony urchin, as out-rider, mounted on the bare back of a high-spirited gray nag, which he rode with no little address. This seemed quite a gala business for him; and bare-headed, with his thick woolly locks fluttering in the wind, and his shirt-collar wide open, he went grinning along, now advancing at a hard gallop, and anon closing up at a fast trot, swinging open and shutting to the gates, shaking his pate, and hallooing to every animal that he thought did not move with sufficient alacrity from our destined path. "Yo! ho! So you no move, Misser Cow--then Pompey make you," and at her he charged, brandishing a long stick, like a Cossack of the Don with his spear, the gray nag at the same time laying back his ears, and opening his mouth, and showing his teeth, as if grinning in fiery sympathy with his redoubtable rider, and ready to devour the animal that so sluggishly obstructed the path. But one look from the cow, or whatever beast it might be, at the horse and boy, seemed quite enough; and without waiting further hints, they would shake their tails, then give them a slight curl, and set off at a round scamper, the triumphant Pompey following up their career a short distance, singing with high satisfaction:-- I tell you so, now Misser Cow; Yo, ho, you go, bow wow, bow wow. Mr. Hart's plantation is a very fine one, and he is one of the largest hemp-growers in Kentucky. He has done much to introduce a system of water-rotting hemp in ponds, which we think is the best and most simple of the kind yet tried. He has promised us a description of this, with his late improvements, and we trust that we shall be favored with it soon, for the benefit of those desirous of preparing their hemp for market by the pond-water-rotting process. There is so much in common with Kentucky plantations, that it is unnecessary to dwell further upon particulars. Mr. Hart's stock of cattle is principally derived from the first importation of the Short-Horns into Kentucky, in 1817. He keeps a flock of about 800 Merino sheep, which, low as wool is, he thinks make him as good, if not a better return, than anything else which his plantation produces. Sheep-husbandry is attracting much attention at present in Kentucky. It is a very superior region indeed, for sheep, and if the planters would go judiciously into the fine-woolled breeds, wool would soon become an article of large export with them, and a source of considerable profit. Let it be remembered, that the cheaper and better wool can be produced, the more there will be consumed of it; and the cheaper and better, woollen cloths will be furnished in return. We need not fear overstocking the country in our generation. Mr. Hart keeps quite a herd of deer in his park, and several head of elk. These last, with their large branching horns, and lofty, erect heads, have a noble appearance. He formerly had a few buffaloes, but they became so troublesome in breaking down fences, and sallying out whenever they pleased, to the great terror of the country round, that he was at last obliged to kill them. Buffalo bulls get somewhat ferocious as they grow old, and are rather dangerous animals on the plantation. While in Kentucky, we picked up some comic anecdotes of their doings as they turned out; but a feather's weight in the other scale might have made them equally tragical; and upon the whole, unless enclosed within a fence that they could not break down, we should advise our friends to eschew keeping buffaloes. BREEDS OF FOWLS. IN perusing the American Poultry Book, which we noticed in our October No., we find the following recommendation for selecting a stock for the poultry-yard:-- The better practice would seem to be, in order to make the poultry-yard most profitable, to select _no particular breed_. Commence with pullets and cocks of the first year, of all the breeds mentioned above, except bantams, and without any regard to color excepting those of a pure white. It would be well, if possible, to select the cocks from the same yard. Every year exchange a nest-full of eggs with your neighbors, or such as have good fowls. By pursuing steadily this practice of exchanging eggs, you will yearly infuse new blood into your stock, and avoid the inconvenience of breeding in and in. Without being aware of this fact, many farmers find their stock _running out_, &c. Now the above plan for forming a stock for the poultry-yard we hold to be perfectly absurd, and one might with just the same propriety, advise mingling all the different breeds of horses or cattle together, for the purpose of forming a good stock, as the different varieties of fowls; and we need only consider for one moment, the incongruity of the materials which form them, to be convinced of this. There is the pugnacious Gamecock; the pheasant-shaped Top-knot; the coarse Malay; the thick-skinned Negro-fowl; the tender Chinese or Merino; the tailless Rumpless; the Friesland, with reversed feathers; the short-legged Creeper; the five-toed Dorking; &c., &c.; all thrown into one helter-skelter mass, the progeny of which would prove as contemptible a race of mongrels as ever graced a dung-hill, and beyond the precincts of a dung-hill they would scarcely be worth removing. Those who have most eminently succeeded in breeding fowls, have adopted the same course in doing so, which is followed by judicious breeders of animals; and that is, by sticking to the breed, when it is a good one, in its utmost purity; choosing the best of the flock from which to propagate, and thus continuing. In-and-in breeding, to a certain extent, when pursued by those who thoroughly understand their business, has been productive of the best results. The finest, the largest, and the most _indomitable_ game-cocks have thus been bred; and if we possessed a good breed of poultry of any kind, we should be very careful how we exchanged eggs with our neighbors for the purpose of improving them. If they had a superior stock to our own, of the same breed, we would select from among them grown birds only; we should then know what we got, and be able to make improvements upon those we already possessed. It is by mingling all sorts of breeds together, without any definite notion as to the results, that "many farmers find their stock _running out_"; and if every one were to follow this course, we should soon be without a single good fowl in our poultry-yards. We really regret to see a book like this on American Poultry, which in the main is a good little work, recommend such a course of breeding; for in our humble judgment it is the very worst which could be pursued. We can not say that we much like the author's advice either, as to the choice of a cock. Why he should be "restless, not very large, with a thick and stout bill, long spurs," &c., we can not divine. The best cocks we ever kept, and those of the most indomitable courage, when fighting was necessary, were the most quiet, attentive, and polite in their seraglio: they were also of rather large size for their breed; with fine heads, bills, feet, and legs. NEW YORK FARMERS' CLUB. THE FARMERS' Club resumed their meetings, on Tuesday, Nov. 13th, at the Repository of the American Institute. The meeting commenced by reading a communication from the President of the Manhattan Gas Light Company, David C. Colden, Esq., inviting the attention of farmers, and all interested in agriculture, to the value of the refuse of gas-works as manure. Extracts from the works of Liebig, and Johnston were then read, setting forth the powerful fertilizing properties of ammoniacal liquor, with which the refuse of gas-works is found to be strongly impregnated. After some conversation on the subject, in which Mr. Stevens, Commodore De Kay, Mr. Meigs, and Mr. Wakeman, took part, as to the best method of disposing of this communication, it was resolved that it be referred to a committee consisting of Gen. Tallmadge, Mr. Prince, Gen. Johnson, Col. Clarke, and Mr. Townsend, to report at the next meeting of the club. Mr. William R. Prince, of Flushing, presented to the meeting, specimens of nineteen different varieties of apples, among which were several of very large size and superior quality. Mr. Meigs presented seeds of a new variety of squash, the _Cucurbitur bicolor_. Mr. Ward, cuttings from a vine which produced ripe Isabella grapes on the 5th September. A desultory conversation then ensued as to the future proceedings of the club. Much diversity of opinion appeared to exist as to the propriety of holding the meetings weekly, fortnightly, or monthly, when a committee was appointed to report upon the subject. Dr. Field next called the attention of the club to a subject which he considered deserving their serious attention, viz: the present condition of the children now in the alms-house on Long Island. He thought they might be employed advantageously to themselves and the public, either in the cultivation of the mulberry, and general management of silk, or in horticultural occupations. He then proceeded to describe with feeling eloquence, their present deplorable condition, both morally and physically, arising from the system of idleness they are now allowed to pursue. He was followed by Mr. Stevens, and Mr. Carter, who both agreed that it was high time some steps should be taken to ameliorate the condition of the poor children, and it was finally resolved: That a committee consisting of Dr. Field, Mr. Stevens, and Mr. Carter, be appointed to investigate the subject, and petition the corporation that the pauper children of this city, now on the Long Island farm, be employed in horticultural pursuits generally, and also in the raising and manufacture of silk. Mr. Stevens then made some remarks on the subject of wax-flowers and fruits, a specimen of which was exhibited by Mr. Lane. Mr. Stevens thought that a model of every new variety of fruit ought to be taken in wax, and preserved at the Repository of the Institute. A motion was made and carried that the executive committee be instructed to consider the subject. Gen. Tallmadge suggested that a list of donors of fruits, &c., be kept by the secretary, and placed on the records of the club at every meeting, which was unanimously agreed to. The meeting then adjourned to Tuesday, the 28th November. The following are the extracts on refuse gas, sent to the club by the President of the Manhattan Gas-Light Company:-- "If the properties of manure, and its agency upon the growth of the vegetable world, can be explained by chemistry, we shall find the ammoniacal liquor produced in gas-works, to be a valuable substitute for those manures, by the application of which it is intended to supply the soil with nitrogen. "One of the most valuable manures is urine, and its excellence depends almost entirely upon the ammoniacal salts which it holds in solution. The relative value of urine as manure, depends upon the quantity of nitrogen the different kinds yield. Thus human urine is the most esteemed, and that of horned animals the least."--_Clegg's Treatise on Gas-Making._ According to Liebig, 547 pounds of human excrement contain 16.41 pounds of nitrogen; a quantity sufficient to yield the nitrogen of 800 pounds of wheat, rye, oats, or of 900 pounds of barley. How much more, then, will be supplied from an equal weight of ammoniacal liquor! Mr. J. Watson, the manager of the gas-works at Kirriemuir, has favored me with the following facts:-- "The ammoniacal liquor on the surface of the tar-well has been found a very great improvement as a manure for raising crops of grass in this quarter, by being sprinkled on the field in the same way as water is put on public streets in large towns, to keep down dust in dry weather. I have myself seen an experiment of this tried, and can say that part of a field of grass sprinkled in this way, after the first cutting, was far superior to any other part of the field receiving manure of any other kind, and that the part so sprinkled, or showered over, was ready to be cut down a second time in the course of between fourteen days and three weeks; whereas, the other part of the field cut at the same time, was only beginning to spring or rise from the roots in that time. It must be mixed up before use with four parts of common water. In particular, the said experiment of the gas-water has been used by David Nairn, Esq., Doumkilba, near Meigle, in this neighborhood, with success; and I am informed that he has purchased and taken a lease of the ammoniacal liquor from different gas-companies in this country. "I am convinced much good might be derived from different qualities of the refuse products of gas-works as manure. An inquiry into this subject would remunerate the engineer or agriculturist to the full, and would besides confer a considerable benefit upon his fellows, and give that practical proof of the correctness of a theory so welcome to the man of science." "The fertilizing power of gypsum has been explained by its supposed action on the ammonia which is presumed to exist in the atmosphere. If this be the true explanation, a substance containing ammonia should act _at least_ as energetically. At all events, the action of foldyard manure and of putrid urine, is supposed to depend chiefly on the ammonia they contain or give off. "Now among the substances containing ammonia in large quantity, the ammoniacal liquor of the gas-works is one which can easily be obtained, and can be applied in a liquid state at very little cost. It must be previously diluted with water till its taste and smell become scarcely perceptible. "I would propose therefore, as a further experiment, that along with one or more of the substances above mentioned, the ammoniacal liquor of the gas-works should be tried, on a measured portion of ground, and, if possible, in the same field. "Soot as a manure is supposed to act partly, if not chiefly in consequence of the ammonia it contains. In Gloucestershire, it is applied to potatoes and to wheat, chiefly to the latter, and with great success. In the wolds of Yorkshire it is also applied largely to the wheat-crop. In this country it is frequently used on grass land. I am not aware that it is extensively used on clover. I am inclined to anticipate that the sulphur it contains, in addition to ammonia, would render it useful to this plant. At all events comparative experiments in the same field with the gypsum and the ammoniacal liquor, are likely to lead to interesting results. * * * "Of ammoniacal liquor 100 or 200 gallons per acre, according to its strength, for this is constantly varying. It must also be diluted with so large a quantity of water as will render it perfectly tasteless, and is likely to prove most beneficial if laid on at several successive periods."--_Johnston's Agricultural Chemistry_, part 1. "Sal ammoniac is probably too expensive an article to be employed; but sulphate of ammonia may be had of the wholesale chemist at a price considerably more reasonable, and the ammoniacal liquor of the gas-manufactories, through the distillation of coal, is a still cheaper commodity."--_Liebig's Agricultural Chemistry._ "Its efficacy as a manure is vouched for by many who have made trial of it upon their land. See a communication by Mr. Paynter on gas-water as a manure."--_Journal Royal Ag. Soc._, No. 1. THE NEXT ANNUAL SHOW OF THE STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. As the annual show of the New York State Agricultural Society is now sure to bring fifteen to twenty thousand strangers into the place where it may be held, to pass three or four days there, and spend their money pretty freely, it has become quite an object with the different towns situated on the great thoroughfares, to have the exhibitions within their boundaries as often as possible. Strong movements will be made for these hereafter; but we trust that the Society will weigh well the different claims preferred for its favor, and that no other consideration than the public good, and the spread of its influence, will have weight in its decisions. Albany, Syracuse, and Rochester, each having had the advantage of one of these meetings, other towns now are soliciting the like favor; and among those which are preferring their claims for the show of 1844, we understand that Buffalo, Utica, and Poughkeepsie, are the most prominent. Perhaps as the northern and western parts of the State have now had the benefit of three of the exhibitions of the Society, it is no more than fair that some attention be paid to the southern and eastern portions. We have heard this city named as a very suitable place for the show of next year, and the only objection we can anticipate to it is, that it is an extreme end of the State. Granted; and is not Buffalo the same? Yet, notwithstanding this, we contend that New York or Buffalo is just as fairly entitled in their turn to one of the exhibitions of the Society, as Albany, Syracuse, or Rochester. However, as our own interests might be somewhat served by a meeting of the State Society in this city, we shall waive advocating its claims to one for the present, and content ourselves with stating those of Poughkeepsie. 1. This town is 210 miles by the usual travelled route, northwest from Montauk Point, the southeast end of the State. This is as great a distance as from Poughkeepsie to Syracuse, and 41 miles further than the railroad route, though a circuitous one, from Syracuse to Buffalo; so that it may fairly be said to be the hither-end of a third-part of the limits of the State. 2. The population, from Dutchess county, south and east, includes about one fourth of that of the whole State. 3. Poughkeepsie is easy of access by land or water, and being situated on the Hudson, hundreds of strangers from the neighboring States, especially the southern ones, would visit a show here, when they could hardly be induced to go farther north or west, and as these visiters are always purchasers to a greater or less extent, it is quite an object to get them to attend. 4. This town is the capital of one of the oldest, wealthiest, and most populous counties of the State, and the one whose general system of agriculture is probably more highly advanced than any other. Dutchess, and the neighboring counties, have also considerable improved stock--much more than we had any idea of till our recent excursions in these parts. Durham, Devon, and Ayrshire cattle abound; superior road and blood horses; Cotswold, Leicester, South Down, and numerous flocks of Merino sheep; the products of the dairy; agricultural implements, and roots, seeds, fruits, flowers, and domestic fabrics. 5. Poughkeepsie is ready at her own expense, to build pens for the stock, and furnish all other needful accommodation for the Society, which will be a saving of expense to it of at least $1,000. Lastly, there is more accumulated wealth in the southern, than other parts of the State, and the Society, by holding a fair proportion of its shows in this quarter, will make itself many staunch friends, and be introduced to thousands, who would otherwise be ignorant of its great public merits. The Agricultural Society of the State of New York is looked up to as an example throughout the country, and it should be careful to avoid even the appearance of being partial or local in its proceedings. The national societies of Great Britain and Ireland, adopt the course of holding their shows in, not only the central, but the extreme parts of the kingdom; and this is one great reason of their popularity among all classes. Tour in England. No. 15. THINKING that our readers had become somewhat satiated with so much upon foreign matters as have hitherto found place in this journal, we had desisted for several months past, giving sketches of the agriculture of England; but having recently received so many solicitations to continue them, we again take up the subject, and shall pursue it pretty regularly through the whole of our third volume, if such seems to be the pleasure of a majority of our subscribers. Perhaps, to these, we may also add sketches of some things we saw in Russia, the recollections of which are very pleasant, at least to us, yet whether we shall make them equally so in relating them to others, remains to be seen. CHATSWORTH, SEAT OF THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE.--In returning from Yorkshire to London on the North Midland railroad, we stopped at the Chesterfield station, for the purpose of making an excursion to Chatsworth, to view the celebrated gardens and immense conservatory of this superb place. It was a raw morning in August, and as we jumped from a confined seat in the rail-coach, we were glad to be on our feet once more, and have an opportunity of rousing our blood by a smart walk from the station into the town. We stopped at the Angel inn, took a hearty breakfast, and while waiting a gig being made ready to convey us to Chatsworth, stepped out for a stroll over the place. Chesterfield is a dingy old town, of about 6,000 inhabitants, and has little to recommend it to the notice of strangers, save the spire of All Saints' Church. This rises to the height of 230 feet, is curiously channeled, and covered with lead, and is so much out of perpendicular, as to attract marked attention in passing it, even when at a considerable distance. It being market-day, the town was thronged with farmers from the country, exposing stock and agricultural products in the square for sale. There was little in these, however, deserving particular attention, and after giving them a hasty look, we returned to the inn. As we came up, a dapper waiter announced the "oss and gig as _h_all ready;" when in we jumped, and set out for Chatsworth at a round pace, distant, if we recollect right, about 8 miles. Derbyshire possesses the wildest and most broken scenery of any county in England, and after passing over the flat surface of Yorkshire, it was quite a relief to find ourselves trotting up and down along a road winding picturesquely around high hills, and over deep narrow dales. An hour's drive or so, brought us to the pretty little village of Edensor, close by the inn of which, is the entrance to Chatsworth. The village is situated within the park, and is the property of the Duke, and certainly it is the most charming one we ever saw. Every cottage is of stone, and no two alike in their architecture. One is a mimic Gothic castle; another a cottage ornèe; a third in the Elizabethan, a fourth in the Swiss, and perhaps a fifth in the Tudor style. Everything then was so complete about them--the pretty gardens full of flowers--the hedges so neatly trimmed--the yards, laid down with the greenest and softest of turf, and the shrubbery so tastefully planted! These were the residences of the laborers on the estate, the possession of which any one might envy them, and desire to be able to call his home. Attached to the village is a fine old church, and around it an ample yard, handsomely walled in with strong mason-work. Altogether, this village is quite a gem in its way, and we were going to add, an epitome of its owner's heart; for on all his estates, whether in England or Ireland, the Duke of Devonshire has made it a point to protect and bountifully provide for his people. There is no want, or suffering, or seeking the poor-house, by the tenantry, allowed by this kind-hearted, benevolent man. Turning from Edensor, and ascending a mound-like hill to the left of the carriage-road, the palace and the grounds of Chatsworth appear to the greatest advantage. Immediately below is the river Derwent, tracing its sparkling course through a rich vale, where were perhaps 1,500 deer browsing or taking their gambols. A handsome stone bridge spans the river, and just beyond, the ground rises in terraces to a narrow plain, where stand the noble palace, with its out-buildings, and the immense conservatory, in magnificent grandeur. Back of these rises a lofty hill, the steep sides of which are thickly planted with forest-trees, and the summit is crowned with a high tower of octagonal shape, built of stone. We were received at the palace-gate by a servant in handsome livery, and passing into the gallery of the court, a fine hearty girl made her appearance to conduct us over the building. The front of the palace is 350 feet, and one of the side wings about 400 feet long, and this whole area contains a series of apartments called the drawing-room suite. An entire number of this paper would hardly suffice to give the reader a complete description of these magnificent rooms, and the treasures of art they contain, we therefore pass them over in silence. From these we strolled into the orangery, which is about 30 feet wide, and 200 feet long. It is full of beautiful exotics, and among them were several specimens of the Rhododendron Arboreum, which bore, the preceding summer, over 2,000 flowers. We now walked out to the lawn in front of the palace, where one of the under-gardeners appeared to conduct us over the grounds. These are extremely beautiful, with walled terraces in the Italian style, and fountains. One jet d'eau throws up a column 90 feet high. But the great show here in the way of water-works, is the cascade. It is entirely artificial, and must have been made at a great expense. The water rushes out from a series of lakes on top of the hill, and comes pouring down its side, taking a leap of about 80 feet from one of the arches, and then falls for a length of 300 yards over a series of 24 ledges, and disappears amidst masses of rock, on the edge of the lawn. Here it finds a subterranean passage to the river Derwent. These water-works are looked upon by some critics with affected contempt; not so with us, however, we greatly admired them in their way; and yet we have seen Niagara a thousand times, and had a peep at most of the other water-falls worth looking at in the United States. We have no sympathy with such hypercritics as profess a distaste to the cascade at Chatsworth: as a work of art, it is a magnificent thing, and to our eye, in keeping with the palace and grounds; and we viewed it with interest. A bronze tree a little farther on, excited still greater curiosity with us than the cascade, for it was made to act the part of a fountain, by throwing water from a thousand sprigs and leaves all around in a shower of spray. But leaving this and the exquisite scenery of the lawn, we passed on by a winding carriage-road to a short distance to the conservatory. This was 350 feet long, 150 feet wide, and nearly 70 feet high; and when fully completed, is to have an additional length of 150 feet. The roof is an arch, and is covered with plate glass of the best kind, and so thick as to resist the heaviest hail. It is heated by iron tubes of hot water, and to these are added others for cold water, and the whole, if stretched out to a single length, we were informed would extend nearly six miles. The plants and trees here are distributed in open borders, each class being placed in the soil most proper for it, and the temperature so regulated as to suit their natural state as nearly as possible. Not far from the centre is an immense rockery rising about 50 feet high, and from the fissures of the thick slabs of stone that compose it, the cactus and other plants grow out as in their natural state. Half way up this huge precipice is a little lake with islets, and in this, water-lilies and other aquatic plants of the rarest and most beautiful kinds. A wild goat path leads to the top of the rockery, and beneath it is a wide, deep cave. The variety of shrubs and plants in this immense conservatory is very great; some of the trees already reach nearly to the top of the roof, and others presented dimensions gigantic in the extreme for those within a green-house. There are wide folding-doors at each end of the conservatory, and any time he pleases, the Duke can have a drive with his coach and four horses through it. Taking it altogether, it is by far the most magnificent thing of the kind we have ever seen. The whole cost of it is not less than half a million of dollars, which is but a little over the present annual income of its wealthy possessor. After leaving the conservatory, we took a zig-zag road, and ascended through the forest to the crown of the hill by the octagonal tower. A peasant family was residing here, who permitted us to ascend it to the top. The view from this is no less extensive than beautiful, of Chatsworth and the wild broken country around. Descending from this high perch we had quite a chat with the peasant's wife. She informed us that the tower was built by a predecessor of the present Duke, for the purpose of giving the ladies at the palace an opportunity of seeing the fox-hunting which formerly took place at Chatsworth. Upon taking leave, the good woman directed a little rosy-faced daughter to show us the lakes on the hill, the sources of the cascade and fountains below. After something of a stroll through the woods, we found two large expanses of water belted in by thick rows of the larch and fir, and apparently as isolated as if in a wild forest of our own country. The white swan and the black are kept here, and most other kinds of curious water-fowl. Our pretty guide answered all our inquiries with intelligence, and at parting we gave her a small guerdon, for which she returned a grateful "thank'e zur" and a low courtesy, and then, with the lightness of a young fawn, skipped into the woods, and immediately disappeared. Descending the hill toward the palace we came to the stables. These are very extensive, of quadrangular shape, and large courtyards within. At a distance, with their imposing architecture, they might almost pass for the palace itself. We now bent our steps to the house of the celebrated Mr. Paxton, the head gardener of the Duke of Devonshire, editor of the Magazine of Botany which bears his name, and one of the first botanists of England. His residence is within the park, about a quarter of a mile from the palace, and is a roomy, beautiful cottage, completely enveloped in flowers and flowering shrubbery, with a handsome little conservatory at the end. Much to our regret, he was not at home; but a sub-gardener, quite an intelligent man, volunteered to show us the gardens. They occupy 12 acres, and are enclosed by a thick, brick wall, about twelve feet high. Here are the experimental and kitchen gardens, and hundreds of fruit-bearing espaliers, trained up the walls. In addition to these there are forcing pits in abundance, and upward of 20 hot-houses, about 300 feet long each, devoted to different purposes, one of the most extensive of which is the growing of pine apples. All these things may be considered very extravagant, but in supporting them, the Duke of Devonshire has done much for the cause of science, and has conferred a lasting benefit on his country. We left Chatsworth with regret; the day we spent there we would have gladly prolonged to a week, and then we should have gained but an imperfect knowledge of the treasures of nature and art which are stored up here for the admiration of thousands of visiters. Mary Queen of Scots was some time a prisoner here; so also was Marshal Tallard, who was captured at the battle of Blenheim. What were the thoughts of the beautiful Queen upon taking leave of it, history does not record; but the Marshal, no less gracefully than happily, said: "When I return to France and reckon up the days of my captivity in England, I shall leave out all those I have spent at Chatsworth." And so thought we, pausing on the mound-like hill again, as we retraced our steps to Edensor, and cast a last lingering look upon the park, and palace, and forest hills in the background, lit up by the clear, glorious sun just sinking beneath the horizon. AGRICULTURAL SHOWS. THE PHILADELPHIA SOCIETY held its annual show at the Lamb tavern, October 4, 5, and 6. The Germantown Telegraph states, in the _Report of the Committee of Arrangements_, that the display of horses was unusually attractive,
{'title': 'The American Agriculturist. Vol. II. No. XI, December 1843 by Various', 'source': 'Project Gutenberg', 'lang': 'en'}