F
VOLUME V.
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Will
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the American Farmer.
LIVE STOCK BREEDING IN KENTUCKY.
J. SL Skinnrr, Esq.
Dear Sir t have delayer! answering
the enquiries embraced in your letter fron
Lexington, in consequence of absence anc
a wish to be better advised upon two or three
of your questions.
The object of your letter being a wish V
obtain such informat on as I may be able tc
give upon the Agricul'ure and Breeding o!
Stock in this section of the State, parttcul.
arly upon Rye, our Blue Grass Pastures
Mules, Sneep, fl-jgs, H-mp, Corn and Cat.
tie, I shall endeavor to do so from the b?'s
information I have, and which could be ob
tamed fro n otners.
Rye is extensively raised. We sow tl??
latter part of August and first o("September
one to one and a half bushel per acre, ir
our corn fields: plough it in with ihe shov.
el-plough or cultivator. If the season be
favorable, the greater part of the fall will
produce good grazing for calves and young
colts, and at tinvs sustaining them througf
the win:er with the aid of a small quantiy
of fodder or oats. It is not, however, until
the month of March and April, that we re.
oaivo the greatest ad van* a ?*e from it. At
th s season stock is generally in great want
ofgroen food, and they are frequency sustaiiied
fro* the lO.h Mar h to the 20:h
April, wi'.hout detriment to the succeeding
crop of rye. S ock of uny description
which may have access to a good r) e field
in the spring, will generally improve rapidly
in their condition, and pluc< s them in fine
health to go upon our blue grass pastures.
is ripe or nearly so large,
PPffoT our rye fit 1 Js are fed down by
our hogs. Oecasiondly Cattle, Hors< s
and Mules are turned in with the hogs. Ir
is not consi fered a productive trop from 12
to 15 bushels per acre being n fair average
crop upon lands producing forty bushels of
corn per acre. No manure or top dressing
is ever used.
The grazing in the fall and spring we
consider pays well for the se<d and sowing.
Some of our best farmers sow it, instead
* * : U
ol clover, lor the purpose 01 renewing men
exhausted lands ; when fed off by hogs, the
immense quantity of straw and manure lefi
on the ground, leaves it in fine condition for
the succeeding crop.
Blue grass Pastures?They are not of
spontaneousgrowth?No regular system is
considered necessary in making them. Iii
our open fields, the usual practice is to sow
timothy, clover and blue grass seeds mixed.
Two or three good cr ps of hay may be
taken before the blue grass ge's well set. In
our wood lands the seed is scattered promiscuously
with n portion of timothy and clover
seed. It is equally ns advantBg^us and frequently
practised to feed our hay upon the
open grounds in the winter and spring, when
we want to make grass. The stock will
then trend in thes'-ed. and wo most always
succeed in having rt will set. After it is
well set, it can never be exhausted hy grazing.
Briars will destroy it when neglected,
by excluding it from the sun and air. Ii
requires from two to three acres to fa fen a
bullock, and if good, w;ll keep him 8 or 9
months in the year.
Mules arc raised by our farmers from
their work mnres. Few mares are k<pt ex.
clusively for the breeding of mules, in the
fall when tho colts are ready to wean, they
arc generally sold by those who breed them,
to those who feed them, until the fall after
they are two yvars old, when they are then
considered ready for market, and either
drove on account of he feeder, or they pas<
into the hands of others who derive to the
Southern markets. South Carolina, Georgia,
Alabama and Mississippi, constitute our
principal markets.
Not many have been r-tained amongsi
our furmers for agricultural purposes. They
commanding a more ready and higher price,
our farmers prefer selling them and retain
their horses.
"Very great objections have been made
to tho breeding of Mules from the uncer ain^
ty of getting rolls. Three out of ftve woulc
be considered a full proportion?possibl)
much of the difficulty arises from mures no
being regularly sent, being work mures, far
mers may not be so particular in sending
them at the proper time. Our stock o
mules have greatly improved in a few years
frequently having them 15 to 10 hands high
this improvement has been accompiishec
by better keeping, more care in the selectior
of tho mares, and still more by a proper se
lection of the Jacks. When sold in the fal
after two years old, the fair price might b<
considered from 55 to $70?when threi
years old they frequently command fron
ARM
AND C.
cm
80 to 8100 ; not many, howerer, are retai
ned until they are thr^e.
Sheep receive but little attention from on
farmers?a cross upon the common shee
with the merino prevails in Kentucky,
know of no full blool South-down?wi
may however, have a few. The large N??v
Leicester sheep have been introduced her
within the lus: seven years; their gratsia
and aptitude to fatten, have caused them t<
a be highly prized by those who have them.
3 No country can be better adapted fo
8 Sl eep than this ; with care they aresubj? c
, to but few dis 'asps. VVe want nothing b -t
I ter for them, summer and winter, than ou
_ I ui ???.>?" moi raj In u.'i>l /?ntd ivp.'ilHp
? uiuc ^riiai piaivii<^.->, in .? % wo
7 the weaker animals do better with opei
sleds, and fed nithoa'sor clover bay. On
, rye fi. J.ls jn the spring for ewes and lamb
1 are invaluable. Farmers have occasional}
fed them through the winter for the Louis,
viile, Cincinnati and New-Orleans markets
( they gen-'rally pay well in the spring?D ?g .?
are our greatest enemy in ra sing shei p
Until we can have some laws or regulation!
upon the subject, little can be done safely.
Hogs are more gen rally and extensively
raised for market han any other stock; i
[ is one suited to the capacity and bushes?
of most all farmers. Connected with tlif
' feeding of cattle they are indispensable : i
is through them that much of the profit is
1 derived. The corn that passes through twe
j.' large bullocks will fatten three bogs withou
any other food during the winter.
We have mul iplied our breeds of hog<
' rapidly within a few years. The B< rk
shire, B-dford and Irish hogs are the threi
1 favorites ; each have their advocates. They
all fatten kindly and come to early ma'uriiv
A p?ir has been introduced from New.
York culled the Lei- e-t T>hirc, importec
' into that S ate a few \ ears siuce. They ap
' pear to he similar to the Irish hog and thos<
imported by our R. D. Shepherd of Balti.
J morei We also have a few called the Rhi
noceros ; they resemble the Berkshire ir
color but not in form ; they are great favo1
ri es with those who have them. Withcarr
and judgment in breeding, our present stocli
answer ail the purposes requisite for earl)
maturity, ap itude to filtcn, und capacity U
travel to in ?rket.
Hemp is an important article with us an<l
is sowed the last of April nnd first of June,
reouir< s the bes' ground, and that to be wtli
prepared before sowing. Our blue gruss
pastures or old meadows broke up in the
fall, well ploughed and harrowed in the
spring, have been considered our best
groun J for hemp. The average qumtity
of sued used in sowing is 1 1-4 to 1J bush,
els per ucre. The ordinary quanti y raised
per acre is about 600 lbs., iho' 900 and
1000 lbs. have at turns been produced,
which usually s lis at five and six dollars
per hundred. Nothing requires more rare
n the preparation ofth?* ground b'Tore sow.
<ng. I 8 subsequent management of pull
ing and breaking requires very heavy labor;
none but our strong able n' gro men car
handle it to advantage. Very little is e*
ported being mo*.tly manufactured in the
State into bale rope and bugging. It is noi
considered an exhausting crop ; from t> n tc
fifteen crops in succession have been taker
off the same ground without any material
variation in its production. It is of rapid
growth, and soon protects the ground Iron
the influence of the sun, that connected
with the superior order in which the ground
is prepared for sowing, and tne care taker
in preventiug all stock for tramp'ng in winter
would keep our best lands in good condition
for hemp fifteen years without the aid
of manure. Its culture and manufacture
map be cons dered disagreeable bu not un
healthy, unless from the quantiy of dust a.
nsing from it, persons inclined to consump
1 tion may be more exposed, than when en1
gaged at other occupations.
' Corn is our great staple, upon it we do
1 pcnd to fatten our horses, mules, cattle nnr
1 hogs, as well as for bread in our families. Ir
our best lands, a good hand will tend 3t
' acres a<ier the ground is prepared in the
spring, and the corn planted. E ght to ter
barrels may be considered the overage
' crop, and 1 50 to $2 per barrel the aver
age price. The quantity sold, however
years but a small proportion to that con
sumed by the farmer in the f< eding of stock
1 Upon ad large stock farms the corn n
out np in the fall, stacked in shocks of If
hills square, and fed out to stock in the win
ter and spring in lots provided for the pur
pose, or upon our blue grass pastures.
Our system offeeding an A grazing Cat 1<
1 and Hogs requires less labor to the quantity
' of ground occupied than any other mode n
which we can use labour. Some of < u
large farms containing 1000 to 1500 a
ere*, all in grass and cultivation, and feed
f ing 200 o 300 head of cat lie, and as mm;
hogs, requiring only about ten good hand:
i to do ail the work.
i Catlle in all our rich counties form ai
important item in our svs em of husbandry
? ?the number fed for the butcher annually
being very great ; probably in no one iter
I nas greater improvements been made thw
r in our cuttle. In their neatness of apuear
1 ance, ap itude to faiten at an early age, nni
greater weight of carcass, they have bt*
' greatly improved.
f Tno breeding and feeding Catile are sim
? ilar to that of mule9. Calves are ra se
t untd two and three years old by the sma
I farmers, when they are sold to the gruziei
i who wmtei them the first year on foddei
- and the ntxl winter and spring they are fe
I for the butcher.
i Our stock now consists principally of th
i full blood Durham shortshorn9, with all th
i intermediate grades, crossed upon our conr
? * *
'' ? A 2
J O F'.E ? J
JA, FRIDAY, JANUARY 31,
gmMBEOBBBOHBnBnBMHBHBBHHI
ng-\ carbonate of soda to a pint of milk from a t!
b^r city fcd cow, and succeded in rendering it b
ERS
he r a rr
CRAW. Sofol-CAROLtt
i- moncat'le, with a fewTderefords and Lo
horns. 1 can form no idea ofthenum
r of improved Durhams of pure blood. '1
p number is now great and increasing rapic
1 Very few Ies9 than 100 hav been brou
e in'o the state the present year, mos ly i
v parted. The prices given in the last 4
e 5 years have caused a rnp d demand
e th?in. Our own state is not yet fully s
0 plied, and the new States must rely upoE
for their supply whenever they aitf prep
r ed with grass 'o breed them,
t The pedigrees of our imported cattle r
their descendants are preserved and publi
r ed with great rare ; with but few exceptio
r the Franklin Fa rarer contains the p? digr
1 of our hest sock. We are ais? prepar
r to publish a Herd Book, similar to that
* Kn^land, in which grea; carehasbHeiit.il
? -to give correct and f lithful ped'gree*.
Our principal markets or b-'t | Cuttle j
; Louisville, Cincinnati. N w Orleans, B ?
t more and South Curobn u
H. Blanton.
5 '
From the New York Journal of Coramerci
MILK.
t I have rerentlv in?'i with a report f
4 dressed to the Me 'ical Society in Paris.
, the subject of milk, winch shows the impi
t tance of procuring this food of the ci
4 dron from the purest source, in a new |ig
) and proves that 44 d snllcry slops" are t
? the only tiling injurious to its quality.
Messrs. P' tn and DWreet, disttngusli
4 chemis s in Paris, were led to examine i
nutelv the quality of ditT rent specimens
^ milk, from observing tlvir very diff ren
f fects upon ch.ldren. S ?m which tlcy <
, am iied, unci wiiich they found to be sp<
# dily thrown up by the children in congu
J ted musses, w is proved by chemical te
. to haven predi.mnance of acidi y, thou
; it was not perceptible to ;he tas'e. On
. portions w icli were well digested, w<
. proved to have a predominance of alk
( which is ro.?id red the naturd condition
. milk. O i inquiry it was found that I
? cows from which the fi st milk was obta
- ed, were fed in the stable, with* remnant*
r veg- tabl s us well us h y, and almost wi
, out movement?that the alkaline and ho
thy milk wa> f oai cows allowed to ran
I and feed m the meadows.
Ttt' se o se v i ions led them to exomi
| i lie varying qualities of m Ik on a more*
i ensive scale, t > the simple fact of the pi
i uommance of acid or alkali, and for tl
purpose they availed themselves of a ti
which m >y be pro ured without diffieu
fram a chew *1. It is piper dipped in
8.?h.t on of L'timus. It it be of good qti
ity, the blue color w II b changed to r
by a fluid which is acid. A tincture of t
blue cabbage will de'ect acidhv also, if it
sufficiently fresh, in the same way.
During a voyage through Flanders, i
D'Arc- r, in company w h the celebrnt
chemist G ?y L'tssac visited soin" ol t
bos' dairies, in w ich the rows are fe 1 up
i the meadow*, and found the milk tr/7A<
exception, o contain a predominance of
? kali. The examined the milk of cows t
t in the s ail on turnips, th-' leaves of vegei
i tables, dec., which wer* only allowed
i pisstwo hours >1 div in the meadows, a
| found it uniformly acid.
I Toe same experiment was repeated
, the grazing regio s in th** north of Fram
I and uniformly with tin* same results.
| It would seem then to be fully ascertai
i ed that pure and perfect m Ik can only
. given by cows t .a' pass the greater part
. th- d y in the meadows d rmg the m
I s< ason, and hit it ctnnot be furnished
cows thai are fe l up ?n the parings and tr
of vegetables of other f. ?ol than the grass
and are priv-d of ex*,rcise?to say i
thing of trie pernicious eflce g of dis ill*
. -lops or the snur and putrid remnants of i
kich'-n. And jet this m lk must he l
. start of life, of cliildtiood?the st >flF of wh
I its hones a id sinews are formed; and
i quality will do much in determini g die f
) hleni ss or rigor of the next generation
i your city. I; is too true mar ih? nnpi
i and often infected air, and the I'mited ex
? cise of children in a city?added to the
cessant and intenseexcitement of its mo
, ment and hustle?while they oft n r- ni
childhood prt rocious, and youth premaft
. lead to decay equally premature in a ge
? ration taken ioge;her. But surely thin
I an additional reison for seeking the pur
L * niuiinoltm<uit in f\rAt* f
Will Uftl puwildl UIX-'I
counteract these inevitable causes of <
cliue.
i I am sure that many a mother will ths
I me for adding that these chemists, on <
? serving variations equally great in the
r g?'8lion of children led Uy d ff*rent nurs
. found the same difference in the quality
th< ir milk?and that which was thrown
y frequently coa.ulaed, was uniformly s
s when it was received?not to the taste
ways?bu as tested by litirnu s pap?-r Tt
a observe that the child is not onl) depri
y in this m inner of suitable foo l, but ht
y obliged to call for it 40 or 50 times a d
a in place of 4 or 5 times, and thus fa'ig
n and injures her own stomach, without be
? nourished, and wearies and exhausts
J nurse so as to render the quali y of the n
n still worse. Such a state of things, t!
say, ought immediately to be remedi
- and that it can often be done by giving
d mother or nurse a mor?* sim le diet, or
II means.of medicine, which a judicious p
r, sician can prescribe, among which t
r, consider minute doses of super-carbonai
d soda the best.
But can nothing be done to palliate
e evil until we can procure pure m.lk ?
e D'Arcet made the experiment in his <
i- family of adding one half a grain of suj
L'lie nannies* at least, and so tar more nu ri- w
ily. tinus. One of his children so feeble that n
ght he despaired of b<?insr able to save him. was v
imV thus suitably nourished, and grew op :o vi- n
t or porous health, by observing daily the quali- n
for ty of tha mo:her's and finally of the cow's ki
up* milk, and taking the proper measures to di
i us correct its delects. Now it will be inoominr
parably -:e ter to procure the puro mile of ^
the grass fed cows on the banks of the flud js
ind son and on t e hills of Connecticut, than aj
sh- thus to feed the poor children wi.h a drug- v,
ins, g*d mixture; but it will be at leas) a tornees
porarV palliative until the northern rail road ;l;
iog can completed, and pure milk can he ob
of 't*ini*f ns enjify as the puro water of tlm Tti
t n Croton river. In
Housekeepers will be glad to know that fr
ire by adding the same proportion (one half a n<
III itrain only to a pint of milk.) good milk }v
may be kept 24 or 30 hours, without danger ^
of souring, even tn warm weather. But U)
let ihein b- ware of conver ing food into a;
e. medicine hy increasing t ie quantity, for I c,
h re known this "simple, harmless thing," h,
?d as it is called, evn in the shape of excessive ,.(
draf s of so a waier, produce sores in the rT1
r,r- uioutli and lips, which indicates correspond"I
mg a ?res in t somach, and .his was Col- t;<
ht; lowed by the miseries of dyspepsia and de- N|
1(>: dine. An able physician assures m -that m
? he could ascribe the death of a patient, id
l4? 1 from a similar sta e of mouth and stomach it,
n<- o no hmg but the fam d morning cor lioI pr
,('l o! Connect cut lay physic ans "pearlctsh hi
t-'f- ani cider" It is time fh" world had learn- j'u
sx- ed i a medicine cannot saf !y b-* used as 0j
ihii!y food or drink w t iout l?*uding lo di- |?
'* s ase. Your>, &c. S. J
sis - |t.
?(, Although the following article may by some .
^.r be considered long for a weekly piper, '*
a|V and contains some things not adapted to w
u|j thi-> section of country.it still ontains so
|0|- much usejul information of a kind needed
by a /urge proportion of our readers 11
ln. that we give it a place.
,.f From V!il!mgtops Civil Engineering.
III. o.n br cks and brick making.
_ _ y i
?i. Nexi in ord?-r to natural stone comes J
y |)|
,ge brick, wnich is tin ir tibial or manufactured
kind of stone, inosi exten-iv-ly used in
ne vjsi building operations. The brick offers
sonn* advantage over sto ie, arising rniefl)
... from tlie expdbon and ease with which
fjja the work tiny be conducted. No stone
PSt can be obtained from :he quarry of a shape ^
llv fit for us*- in clos jointed work, without die
a tedious pro-ess of sawing or cu dug t to a
u|? fair lath*; and as stones ire large and heavy, P
V(j iheir is great loss of time in transporting c
|M, t em, and . "isingthem to their poshons i" c'
is t ?e w ill. S ot! c.imiot always he procured. c
owing to local circumstances, tail there are
yj few posi'ions in which brick-earth canno .
ed be obtiin d within a lew miles; and brieks rl
he ure very portable, ore square and ready
on formed, and if good, and used wnh good j,3
lut mor ?r, will produ 'e a better and mori? du- '
a|. ruble wall than could be produced by small
ed blocks of hard stone. The stability of a 0
in. stone wad, with straight joints, d-peuds J1
to more on die w? igut an I magnitude of the
nd s ones than on the adhesion of the in rtar. s'
For as the bar ter stones are not absorben , *
in the mortar will not adhere to their s.ir'aces A
a.id produce union ; while, from bra-ks be. *
mg of an opposite character, the brick and 1S
jn_ mor?ar, aft* ra short time, become on -, and ,r
be thejr a'l'ies o i is so s rung tin: u is difficult >r
of to separate ihem. I1
dd Bricks have, accordingly, been us d by all 11
by nations trorn: he earliest mhquitv. Tnebricks '*
ips ot B. by Ion, many of which bear tnserip- 3
os. lions, iir-' known at the present day, and w
,o- many ot the ndinirea rearsoi t.'ie nucleus,
jrv still ex ant m ruins, exhibit the perflation o n
wvhicti 'lie art ol brirk^m ikmg had arrived '"a
t||,. in tlieseearU d ivh. Some oft ne structures l*
ioh ol Eiyptand Persia, the walls ol Athens, *
i s Pantheon and Temple of Peace at Home. ?
w. an I many otli-r buildings, are consiruefed a
in of brick. W <ai is surp ising, is that rn my '<
Jr,. ol iiiese bricks, which ave stood the test of s
(>r about 2UU0 yars do not appear to have
m- been burnt or submitted to be acton of '
ve fire, to produce tneir hardness and durabili- ^
ier ty, w deli can alone bo a tribuu d to the ex* '*
ire, treine dryness and bent of the clima e in ;l
ue. which rliey were exposed ; for these bricks, t
, iS on being soaked m water, crumble to pieces, ^
es and disclose straws, reeds, and other vcge- 0
to table matter from the exis ence of which it e
is inferred they have n? ver been submitted
to anv greater bent than that of the sun. ti
* - - i i _ii -i. _ L_. i- . _r ?i...
ink ai a iu f*r penou an hih uricus m ui>: ouuiw i
nli. euts w?re burnt, and it is these tiiut chiefly I
di- remain at the present day. I
ies, A brick is nothing more than a mass of
r oi argill menus earth or clay, prop rly temper
up red with water and softened, ko that it can
nur be pressed m o a mould to give it form ; <
nl. when it is dried in the sun, and nfterwarda
jey submitted to such a heat as shall hake or
ired burn it into a hard subs nnce. This meth
is od of forming bricks puts a limr to their maglay,
nitude , for, as 'lie material of the brick is a
ues bad conductor of heat, so, if they were
iing made very large, the leat applied externally
his would never reach the inside so as to bake
lilk it properh, without virtifying and destroying
liey the outside ; hence bricks must be confinied,
ed to such magnitudes as will admit of tneir
ihe being well and equably burnt throughout,
by In England, the si' of bricks is determined
hv. by law, end no man can make bricks larger
hey or smaller t an the prescribed dimensions,
uof Tnis law is, by many, considered a hardship
; but it was established for a twofold
ihe purpose, first, becaus''all bricks made there
M* are subjected to an excise, duty or tax of(
>wn about a dollar a thousand, which tax could
per- not be equalize^ unless a size was fixed for i
*
SET!
' / Z E R.
1840.
nBBKBHBaannMnBBBaii
>e brick , and secondly, it enables a person
uilding, to know the exact quantity ol
'ork ne can erect for a certain sunt of mo.
ey, and prevents brick makers tak'ng adant
>ge, by sending oui small bricks or
nking them so large that their insides
lay not be bard mid well burnt, a circumtance
that would produce unsound work,
cficicnt in durability.
Ti?i* law, as far as regards is the deter,
linnti'on of the size of the brick, the writer
i now convinced is good. No regulation
ppears to exist in the United States, beond
the custom of the place ar.d the caprice
f the maker. One man in ikes a large
nd full brick, and gets n good price for it,
cause fewer bricks will do a given quan(JT
"of work. Another sells cheaper, but
e manufacturers a smaller article ; and it
equently happens that when a builder can.t?
_i? r |.,.?
ill gel [lis WllOUi SUflJJijr IIUUI Ul.c uiunci,
i 18 romp 'lb'd o go to another, when proihly
Ins s ze will not work in with tho first,
iless a previous bargain has been made
? to dimensions. The writer having ocisionto
us?- n large quant ty of bricks, and
iviug consumed the first duuntity deliverI,
had occasion to order many thousands
ore from a Strang'r, for which a written
)ntric: was made, and on their delivery
i found each new brick an inch and a half
lort-T than those previously used. On re.
onsra ing, > e was told that no dmensions
?'! been specified in 'he contract ; that
ose delivered were of ihe usuals'ze. in that
irt of the country, and no redress could
had ; notwibs landing ii took nearly oneurth
more bricks to do the same quanTy
: work, as would have been necessary
id they been of the proper, or usual stan
?rd size, whieh.in London, is eight and
iree-quarur inches long f>ur and ihr o~
ghths wide,and three-quarter inches thick;
leimeii ion of ihese dimensions bring that
ich brick, laid end to end, or every wo
ricks side to side, with die necessary quanty
of mortar between them, shall make ex tly
nine incites of work ; or that four
ricks laid one on another, will make a foot
Bipen Itrular, or twelve courses to the
urd. In Philadelphia, the general run of
ru-ks is eight and a haif inches long, and
iurteen courses with mortar to the yard
u pen 'iruhir, thus consuming more bricks
lid uiornr than the English image. for the
me yiantry of work. The young engi'
?r must, therefore, not only attend to the
uali y, but to the size of bri< ks. whenever
e makes contracts for their pu'pose.
Altlmugh cl ty fas been named as th<
roper matcri d for making bricks, vet every
lay wi | not answer equally well. Pure
lay is quite white, and in burning does not
nnge its c- lor, hs may be noticed in to?
acco pifVs, which are made from it. Tbr
rown color of common c|ay is usually dov#d
from oxide of iron, and this causes
i brick to assume a r< d color when burn!;
ut as r d bri< ks are no' approved or u-ed
ir outside work in Loudon, where more
rick* ar- made and consumed than in any
(her part of the world, the brick.makers
..i-o />/>riti-iuoil mu-in-- oT/>!i!iii(Tino their CO
vumiifwM luyiiu **
ir in burning fo a pal*-* buff*, verv much res'inhling
lie color of B i;h-stone, and w hich
ivcs buddings a much handsomer appearrice.
and closer resemblance to stone, tl,an
rouM be expected. Tlie mode of coloring
t kept as secret as possible, among tbf
lanufaniurers ; but if is partly produced bv
i xing powdered ch lk with the clay, and
i, probably greatly depended Upon ihe fir*
ig of the kdn and t ie fuel, since manj
ricks 'hat exhibit a beau iful and p- rfcei
tiff* hue on their outsidcs, ure red and dark
'ii'nn, if brok- n.
A stiff, tenacious, plastic clav, is unfit foi
inking bricks, as they generally split and
ill to pieces in burning. Brckmaker>
all such clay strong earth ; and th?y prcfet
rliar they ?enn a mild earth ; tha- is, onf
fhss t? n icity, and having morn the char
cter ot loam. When the loamy is no
?un I u rurally, it is lunitated by adding
and in considerable quantity to earth tha
i too strong. The London hrickm tkers
i addition o s and, considerable quantity o
reexe to their clav. and they assert hat i
i this material that gives lite peculiarciiar
eter of color, hardne s, and durabilry, t(
jOtidou hi irks. This is somewhat eorro
1..J k.. iliu nfiimtrir l.-t.-Lro mtuf.t ivifll
ur ii? ?i uy inn vwuin j urn f\-*| )muv>< .. ...
ui breez*, being rod and of u very differ
nt character.
To explain tho ferm breeze, whieh seem
[> perforin *o important a pari, it become
iecegsary to *ny fbaf throughout the im
rionse rmtropolis London, no fuel is use<
n any of he houses bu bituminous or blaz
nji coal, V'*ry smid ir, to 'hat known in thi
ouuiry ns the coal from Riclimond in Vir
[inia. Every house has *hat is called ;
lust-hole, m some extern d part of the pre
nises. into which the ashes and refuse c
hose fir s are put, and the same pi ice i
iIso a depository for anv 01 her offal of tli
muse, which must not be thrown in ? o
itreets. The parish authorities contrac
vith persons having horses and carts t
dear thes * ?'us holes about once a week c
iftener, without any expense or trouble t
he housekeeper, and the stuff collected i
ill carried to certain fixed depositories o
tie outskirts of the town. Here hundred
>1 men. women, and children, are daily err
>loyed in assuring end looking over th
Tiouniai.is of discarded treasure tht
wrought in. and now become the property <
he contractor; apparently worthless in tn
*yes of the public, but not so in fact, fr
most of the men who have undertaken th
business, in conjunction vyith that of scat
;nger or street-clearer, have, in almost ever
instance, amased immense fortunes. Tl;
* ^
PE
t ' ?
^
* i 1,1
NUMBER? 12.
M Jg?a??MMnaM^?i??iS
, heaps of soil are carefully raked aver, ant
F every aton of ihem passed through several
gradations of sifting, with sieves of various
fineness. Rags, old iron, metal, bones, and
such things as are usually thrown away,
i mixed with the refuse fuel, form the aggregate
of the mass, and all these things are
separated and placed in separate heaps.
Here the paper-maker gets supplied with
much common rag for packing-paper. The
, old iron is returned to the forge to be man*'*
ufaetured into scrap iron. The hartshofn
and ivory-black manufacturer gets supplied
with bone; much new and unconsumcd
coal aud cinders are obtained, jmd this Pur*
nish** the only fuel with which uH the bricks
of London urn burnt, while the small and.
ulmost incombustible matter, consisting
very small cinders, and new coal, fire dust,
decayed animal matter, and whatever else
may be mixed in the mass is breeze. This
breeze is mixed with theclny, is u, a great
measure combustible wuen exposed Id the
high heat required to burn bricks, and i1 is
sa.d to assist the brick in getting red hot
throughout its substance, and otherwise to
improve it very rnui? rially.
A great deal of care and trouble is necessary
in preparing tho earth for makinggoed
bricks, in order to reduce it to one uniform
texture, and to deprive it as much as possible
of nil stones that might destroy the form
of the brick, by breaking in the fire, or be
coming virtifiod. The bricks of PhiladeL
phia arc in general so good, that we will de.
scribe the process used there for making
tlit-in, and point out where it diflers from
that pursued near London. The clay in
both places is invariably dug in the uutumu,
and during the winter before frost sets in.
The ground is divided cut into square allotments
called spits, four fed wide and six*
teen feet along, which surface, when dog a
foot deep furnishes the right quantity of
earth foroae thousand bricks, and of course
each foot in depth is equivalent to the same
quantity. This earth is shifted by barrows,
to an adjoining piece of ground previously
levelled to receive it, and sunk a little under . ^
the general sur.'uco to prevent water running
off- On this it is worked, if in u fit statu to
(nuke bricks, if not, sand is added in sufficient
quantity, according to the judgment
of tho workman, to muko it sufficiently
abort or mild, und ut this period rhe London
brick maker adds his breeze, which, answer*
ing the purpose of sand, it is added in less
iquantiiy. it is then cut, slashed, and worked
wi.h the spade, adding water to it so often
it ; and the quantity oftwosprts"beingad^
ded together in one heap, sufficient earth 10
make two thousand bricks is exposed to
! ihc frosi in each heap, and the more severe
ihe frost is, the butter incorporation wift take
' p ace. Nothing more can bo done with it
unt-1 spring, when the warm weather
tnuws tiie neaps, and if the frosting haw boon
1 effectual no lumps will remain, but ft#
w.iole will be convened into a uniformly
&o;t and yielding mass. If two wet, the
heaps are ojioned und spread to dry, or^9
too dry, more water, is added, befo re thrtast
: Aork'iig null I Ik: too!, called tempering in "
tirth-p In i*?ruh?r thn u;hn!n muua iinifnrnitv *
" . w ? IIIU IW
smooth ; it is then pressed and patted down,
and coveted with boards, cloths, or bushes,
to prevent the injurious effects of the sun nnd
1 a r, and is now ready for the moulder. The
> moulder works at a table or bench in tlie
open air, covered by u shed roof only, to
protect him from sun and rain, and the clay
' is brought to him in u barrow from the tem1
p*T6J heap, and is placed by the boy who
brings i: on the left hand end of his tuble;
' another boy supplies him with dry silicious
sand previously dug or provided, and placed
on tiio right end of the table, aud a third
' hey stands in front to remove tho bricks as
I fust as they are formed. The mould is for.
? med of mahogany or e'.her hard wood, bound
' wi h iron for strength and cased with iron
- plate on its top and bottom, or is sometinv s
lined with thin iron throughout ^ moulds
1 have been formed wholly of iron, but they
1 arc too heavy for expeditious work, and too
' cold to handle in early spring. The mould
is four sides of a box without either top or
f bo:tom, as the moulding table forms the bot.
t torn, and must be very smooth, on which
account, ?nd to prevent wear, it may be co>
vered with slieet iron. The moulder first
covers his table thinly with sand, and cut
ting off a sufficient quantity of the prepared
clay with his two hands, finger-end to fingerend,
to form about a brick and a quarter, ho
s kneads it on the table, by pressing on it
s with the palms of the hands, first drawing it
- towards him and then pushing it from, him,
j and patting the ends to bring to it to a form
. similar to the mould into which it is to bo
s introduced, (the mould having been previ.
. ously handed,) and presses it down with
a force,so as to fill up all the corners. The
- superfluous earth is now cut off by running
if a steel tool like a large thick kntfe, called a
s piano, along the top of the mould, when the
e top of the brick is sanded, and a thin board,
e culled a turning board, as wide as the mould,
:t and three inches longer than it is, is laid ov^
o it, and the whole being inverted, the rp^jj
ir may bo raised carefully by the two
o and the soft brick will be left on tk<jturniog
is board, in which state it is tr.*cn awav.
n Should any clay remain about the mould,"it
Is is now cleuned out and sanded, to prepare
i- it for the next brick. It should here be
ie observed, that the mould must be full half
is an inch or more longer* end a quarter inch
jf wider and higher, than the brick nMendetl
ie io be produced, as all clay will shrink
>r much in drying, and sometimes more*
is In order to receive the bricks when mouf.
j. ded, a high and open piece of grouad ? proy
vidcd called the floor, and this is formed
10 into what are called hackr The hack? art*
t