* ~
& .m- T ? - & **
* jptor
"volume vi
, - By M. MAC LEAX.
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From the Boston Cultivator.
A New mode of making Cloth.
A Correspondent of the Post writes
from London that an American by the 1
jp. name of Weils has invented a new mode ( f
manufactuiing wollen cloth which will reduce
the expense not less than three
fourths. It is made without spindle and
without loom and is fully equal to any
spun or woven broadcloth. Our readers
well know that hats have long been made
of wo<?l without a single thread, and that
the body of the manufactured article is
more tirin and durable than any woven
cloth.
If it be a fact that three fourths of the
labor may be saved by comj resting the !
wool instead of spilling it and weaving it, ,
theadvantage to tbiscountry will be greatcr
than to any other in proportion as labor
is higher here than elsewhere. The writer
of the letter says:?
About six months ago, I was introduced
to an American who visited this country
for the purpose of securing a valuable
patent for a new method of inanufactring
woollen cloth, all of which appears very
well and possessed inijxirtnnt improvements
over theEng!ish broadcloth,andcas- <
simere: but as I know little about the article,
I did not make any mention of it I,
at that lime, for however sanguine an in- i,
venter ofany new instrument may be, or |
how ever convinced the discoverer of any ,
new the >ry or system may be, that it is ]
superor lo all oth *rs. the public do not al- ,
ways find it to prove s ch. As tliis woollen .
clotn is now ( Ifi red for sal* and as sever.
al of the larjc London houses have pur. ,
chased hundreds of pieces for the purpr se ,
of introducing ir, 1 am justified in calling (
attention to it.? roe L ol >mai unznrc j,
thus noticed the patent several months |
since. "Mr. Wells has invented a machine
and lias discovered a process by which |
woollen clo!h of every sort is produced at
less than a fourth of the cost hitherto usu^
a I. The material is not woven but comjtrcssed.
Two urchins with the machine. ;
can turn out one hundred yards of the
broadcloth in twelve hours; and where
twenty-four shillings were demanded per
yard, six shillings afford the new manufacturers
abundant remuneration. We have |
inspected and handled, as roughly as wc ,
liked, specimens of every variety, from j
the finest scarlet cloth for officers' uni- |
forms, down to blankets and carpets, and ,
we certainly could not, cither by sight or
touch distinguish them from correspond- <
ing pieces made in the old fashion."
The new cloth is likely to create a ' |
great revolution among the manufactn- ?
rers, for already they discover that it is !,
something more than a mere bubble of an j (
hour. The Austrian government has
purchased the right to manufacture in |
Austria, and several other rights to manufacture
it in England and France have
also been purchased. There arc four or |
five large mills now in constant operation |
in this country, which turn out daily sev- '
1 eral hundred pieces of the cloth of various :
r qualities. Soon the markets here will ij
lie filled with it, and no doubt a large
quantity will be sold in the United States j |
as Mr. Wells, who is a New Yorker, in- j
formed me that so soon as he bad com- j
pleted all his arrangements for supplying I j
the European markets, he should establish j,
several large factories in America. Mr. j i
Wells has worn a frock coat made of his
new cloth, almost every day during the .
last six months, and it is an elegant garment
even now?the material being 1;
compressed, there is no thread in it, and
the nap has the same smooth, glossy a p. 1
pcarance as when I first looked at it.? j
The cheapness, durability, and beautiful |
appearance of this cloth must give it a de- 1
cided advantage over ail other kinds. So !,
far it has met with great favor from the!
most extensive dealers in cloths in London.
From the Kentucky Farmer.
IMPROVED BREEDS OF HOGS.
There has been much controversy in
Kentucky in reference to the relative
merits of the various breeds of improved
hogs; and the subject has indeed engendered
some of the spirit of partizansliip.
It is not our purpose to tak$ a side in the
controversy; being determined to deal ;
with the utmost impartiality towards the I
the advocates of each of the various |
breeds. Our object shall he, in conduct-'
ing this paper, to take such a course as
will serve to bring out the facts referring
to the merits of till subjects in which the
I \V . 1
li
4
C"H?
farmer is interested. While we deem an
honest collision of sentiment favorable to
the investigation of truth; we deprecate
that partizan spirit which has an exceedingly
keen vision in looking at one side
of a subject and is utterly blind in viewing
the other. Long ago, and repeatedly
since, we proposed a test by which the relative
merits of the various breeds of hogs
could be satisfactorily ascertained; and
that was, to rear a large number of each
breed, under the usual mode of treatment
which the country is> compelled to adopt,
noting carefully all the facts involved in
the experiment. When this proposition
was first made, it was ohjected, that the
demand for blooded pigs, for breeders, was
too great to allow a sufficient number of
them to be devoted to the experiment.?
The "pig business" is indeed too profitable
to be abandoned for the sake of making
experiments and we have strong doubts
whether any of the prominent breeders
of the various vaunted breeds can ever be
induced to go into such an experiment as
is proposed. But the object can be effected
in spite of them and without their
co-operation. Many farmers have purchased
blooded pigs, not for the purpose
of going into the "pig busines," but of
improv ing their stock; and they will rear
their progeny, not under the stuffing and
gorging system, but in the usual way,
and the results of such treatment will indicate
the best breeds. It cannot be long
till we shall have reports of practical experiments,
showing the entire treatment,
the ages, the amount of food consumed,
the weights attained, travelling qualities,
&c. &c. This is the kind of information
we have sought to elicit, because we believe
it to be the only satisfactory kind.
We have some facts, relating to various
breeds, which we take the liberty of gleaning
from our private correspondence, believing
that the writers can have no objection
to their publication. The facts
are interesting in themselves and may i
lead to the development of others more exit
nml tlofVi r- f r>r **
We begin with the statement of an ex- [
periment hv 4/r. H. P. (i ray of Woodford, ,
made in the usual practice of rearing hogs. !
It will be recollected that we published '
an experiment (Vol. 3, p. 142.) of this I
gentleman upon half blood Thin rinds, |
highly favorable to that breed. The pres. i
eut experiment relates to some pigs by an j
Irish boar out of half blood Thin rind
hows and a comparison between them
nul some pigs of scrub breed. The result
will astound two classes of men.?those
who deny the great superiority of blood
and those who affect to ridicule the Irish
iind Thin rind hogs, for neither of them
ire now considered tlie, "fashionable"
breed. We hove the notes before us furnished
by Mr. Gray and no one who knows
him will doubt the correctness of his statemen's.
And it is proper to say that he is
not a "pig dealer;" his hogs were reared
and killed for the use of his own family; J
and no one must regard this notice either !
as a "putf or an advertisement in disguise."
He killed 4G hogs last fall. Of these,
J2 were scrubs, pigged in October 1^39;
the residue were out of half blood Thin
rind sows by an Irish hoar, 22 of them j
pigged in January 1840, and the other \
two pigged in October 1839 about the I
lime of the scrubs. The scrub pigs were j
well wintered in the usual way; and as ,
?oon as the blooded pigs were weaned, the j
whole 40 were turned together and well
treated. The clover was good but the rye |
was very indifferent [nobody grew good
rye last summer.] The whole were put
jp together in a pen on the 15th of Sept.
1840, to b * fattened on corn. Now mark
the result.
The 22 blooded pigs, pigged in January
1840, slaughtered November 19, ten
months old, weighed neat, 5120 pounds,
being an average of 232 pounds each, j
neat.
The 22scrubs, pigged in October 1839,
slaughtered December 17, near a month
later, when fourteen months old, weighed
neat, 3930 pounds, being an average of
178 pounds each, neat.
So the scrubs, four months older, and
fed on corn near a month longer, averaged
each, 54 pounds less than the average of
the blooded pigs.
The two blooded pigs, pigged about the
same time of the scrubs, and killed a
month sooner, weighed respectively, 300
and 298 pounds, neat.
The heaviest blooded pig weighed, neat,
290 pounds, the lightest, 192; the heaviest
scrub, 206, lightest, 104.
These facts need no comment; they
speak for themselves and every farmer
can make his own calculations as to the
relative value of blooded and common
pig??. Tlie scrub pigs were considered of
good stock; and we presume the weights
they attained will prove them equal to the
average of common hogs.
Mr. Joseph lteed, of Montgomery county,
had G pigs, pigged about the first of
April, by Dr. Combs' Berkshire boar, out
of a common sow, which averaged 175
lbs. neat, killed about the middle of November,
when seven and a half months
old?ordinary treatment.
We will now quote from a letter by Dr.
Martin, dated Dec. 7, 1840. He is a
distinguished breeder of cattle and various
O t
breeds of hogs, but is understood to be an
advocate of the Woburnhogs:
"Now for avoirdupois. I sold to Henry
Savory, five hogs of Woburn blood,
. i ? ??MM
itt r vs>'
MfM
RAW, SOUTH-CAROLINA
that were two and three years old?the
three year olds had been used as boars.?
No. 1, weighed 640 lbs; No. 2, 630; No.
3, 660; No. 4,748; No. 5, 824. 7 1-2 off
each for weight of breeching?I have sent
I r
this to the Kentucky Farmer.
I had some pigs, pigged 23rd of last
December; they were kept with their
mother, after some cattle, until April,
when they were turned on grass, and 1st
Jnly upon rye that was less than two bushI
els to the acre, (what was cut and I cut ^
i Jhe best of it,) after which about a hun- ,!
dred were turned upon a stubblefield and
they had access to an apple orchard of
one hundred trees, winter fruit, very
little down until a storm 3rd of October.
They stayed here until put up to fatten
j and were killed 17th November and
I weighed neat meat 261. These were the
| refuse of the Woburns?I dont know |
| what the best wonld have done. I killed j
i a pig, a little older than Gov. Wickliffe's |
boar which was pigged 14th February,!
with same kind of treatment as the last,
that weighed 250 lbs. neat. I killed a refuse
pig, much the least in the litter,
pigged 14th 3/ay, half white Berkshire
and half Woburn?killed Nov. 17, that
j weighed 110 neat meat. The best of this
| litter. I think, (a mere matter of opinion,)
' would have weighed 200 lbs. each."
The statement in reference to the big
hogs, so far as relates to the expense of
their keep, the quantity of food consumed,
and the length of time they were fully
fed, is about as definite and satisfactory
as the phrase?"big as apiece of chalk."
And the Doctor had been more satisfactory,
in reference to the pigs, had he staled
the length of time they were corn fed.
Our next quotation is from a letter by
j A. B. Allen, Esq. of Buffalo, New York,
l a distinguished breeder and advocate of.
i Berkshire hogs, under dale, Columbus, O.
| December 9, 1840; and we are glad to
1 find one so eminent, concurring in our.
1 I
views as the proper mode of ascertaining j
the real merits of the various breeds.
"But to return to Berksliires. I know
that the Woburns can boat the present
Berkshire's* in weight at the same ago. J
but that is nothing. The only fair and j
< I
proper test would ue sucn as you propose,
50 or 100 head of each grown up and fatted
in the common farming way of the conntry,
an accurate account kept of their food
and then see which has given the most
and best pork for it;*nothing less than
this would be satisfactory. But can Dr.
Martin sh< w a gain of upwards of three
months, of three pounds per day, as the
Brentnalls m.ade a Berkshire harrow do
last winter? Vide their statement in
March or April number of the Cultivator.
[ have just made a most superb importn.
tion from England and have every satisfactory
evidence from the persons who
, bred them, that the families from which
; they are derived will gain 1 3-4 to 2 lb.
pr. day, made harrows and shoved in their
feed, for the first year of their lives. A
pair of pigs, sent with one of the sows, has
gained since littered in April 1 3-4 lbs. per
day each up to the present time, and one
of the hoars actually weighed on the
scales, on arrival, 520 lbs. at 18 months
old, though thin in flesh. My brother will
make a statement of them either in his
own or my name, for December or January
No. of the Cultivator. They had not
arrived when I left but he says they show
great vigor and constitution; and, notwith*
..4.. /? tU.v.f a(?*A AI>A nnnn I in fl nOnOWQ
SMatlllll Ug lllUil 316^1 UIV .
of point to my very best Shaker and other I
stock. The oldest boar, he adds, is superior
to any thing he ever saw, not excepting
the last sent out by Hawes to Lossing
and the Brentnalls?their color and characteristics
same as Hawes' importations.
The stock of my Prince Regent, imported
last fall, has proved very tine and has
taken premiums wherever exhibited, but
it is hardly large enough to suit Kentucky.
In this valley, [the Scioto] and in New
I York, 'tis much admired. Breeders here
j tell me they dont want a bigger hog than
\ J300 lbs. at 18 months; and a few large
i Berkshires I brought down wont sell at all
among them, while the medium size go
| rapidly. As to their driving, I. know the
longest legged ones cant be beaten in mad
1 or any where else. I give you an extract
i of a letter just received from John Mahard
(jr. of Cincinnati, one of the largest pork
i packers there. He wrote me unsolicited
; in the way of business:
We have just got through cutting and
| packing 1280 hogs, for J. B. Kenney,
Esq. and others, who drove them from
near Georgetown, Ky., a distance of about
80 to 100 miles and in the drove they had
five or six half blood Berkshires and they
stated that they stood the journey better
than any other hogs in the drove; and al|
though several of the common hogs gave
i out and had to he left behind, every one
of the half Herkshircs came safe through
to market.'
To be sure this is but a small and partial
experiment, but it goes to prove my
assertions regarding their driving qualities;
and as .Mr. Kenny is one of your
neighbors, I suggest your obtaining the
statement from him and publishing it."
We shall conclude now, by an extract
from a letter written by a gentleman of
Madison (that great hog raising county)
to a correspondent in Clarke, who transcribed
it in a private letter under date
December 23, but with no view of its
I publication. As to the conclusions of
! the writer, favorable to one breed and unJ
favorable to others, they would carry
i^??1
1 CUf
W SBWMJBWR
i, WEDNESDAY, MJK<
more weight, had he stated the facts and
grounds on which they are based. But
the writer appears to have exerted and active
spirit of investigation and he, too,
coincides with us, that the gorging system
does not furnish the true test. We would
thank him for his facts.
"i>/r. and myself endeavored at the
Winchester fair to determine which,
among the several rival breeds of hogs, is
the best. We carefully examined the
specimens of each that were exhibited
dhere, and concluded that the veFy-besl
of each, reared in the best manner, is nol
a fair test of their relative value or of theii
merits; because we sometimes see individual
animals possessing that conformation
which experience has proved constitutes
them the most valuable of their species,
which has been the result of aecidenl
aided by extraordinary care and ju Jgmcnl
in rearing, and is not a characteristic ol
their race. It is son otimes the case too
that this form is imparted by a single cros;
and never appears in their progeny. Ii
is a fact also, that one particular breed o
line animals, crossed upon an inferioi
race, will make a great improvement. Wt
therefore determined that the best mod(
of settling this matter would be to examine
those different breeds in general and no
in particular individuals; to see them un
der indifferent as well as good treatment
and inspect the cross of each upon ou
common stock kept as slock hogs genera!
ly are. This course of examination W(
commenced at your house. We hav<
since looked at other herds. We hav<
seen the cross of the Wohurn, the Berk
shire and the (hazier, upon the varioui
breeds of scrub hogs, and after a tcdiou:
and rigid investigation of the claims of al
of them, through their crosses and it
themselves, lor all the purposes for whicl
they are designed, we unhesitatingly pro
noiincc the Woburn the best hog. W<
have seen them crossed in every way am
the result has been invariably, an obviou
and decided improvement. I could giv<
you some facts in relation to othor favorit
breeds, crossed upon the scrubs, of whicl
perhaps you are not apprised, that detrac
much from their merit and high standin;
in mv esteem; hut as you arc the owac
of all those different breeds, I will sa;
nothing here npon that subject."
This is strong language ami we repea
that the wiiter should substantiate hi
opinions by the facts.
We hive now had the various breed
long enough to judge of them by their rea
merits; and we repeat our call for facts
ascertained in practice. VVe mean h
show fair play and do full justice to all
and if the facts regarding the merits am
relative value of each of the vaunte<
breeds, be not made known, it shall be th<
fault of the breeders themselves. Givi
us, then, facts, proving the superiority o
your va.ious breeds. Slate your treat
ment fully*and fairly and then give u
vmir nrrriiments in avoirdunois. No hum
bugging pufis will be admitted; we h;iv<
had, in all conscience, too much of then
already. Intelligible, practical facts an
now due; let's have them.
From the Farmer's Register.
Inquiries and Remarks on Salt, as .
Manure, and especially for Cotton.
' llavc you seen a late English work
'Johnson on Fertilizers,' it which he dis
cusses some recent experiments in tha
country on salt as n manure? particular
ly in combination with compost, Ihrm-yan
manure or lime. They arc so importnn
that I am anxious to see them transcribe)
into your useful periodical. He is spokei
of in the 'Library of Useful Knowledge,
ns high authority, and if lie is to be cred
itcd, suit would be cheap manure at twi
dollars a bushel. Besides, he recommend
it so highly for destroying weeds, if pu
on a season in advance of the crop, am
for destroying worms and other insect
infesting a crop, that I am desirous to se
it in print, that experiments may bcgii
extensively thro' this country. I shouli
not he surprised, from his trials, that a top
dressing of a bushel an acre, sown ove
cotton in Juno, should destroy the worn
which has so dreadfully consumed on
crops in the South. At that season of th
crop, the worm is burrowed about six o
seven inches deep in holes made in tin
ground; and he informs us that worms ii
that situation arc certainly destroyed b
salt in small quantities thrown over th
earth."
The foregoing extract is from the lcttc
of a distinguished Southern planter, whosi
name we are always please I to prcsen
with*his communications, whenever no
forbidden by his order, as in tiie presen
case.
The essay of Johnson, on salt as a ma
nure, would have been published lon<
ago, but from our want of confidence ii
his opinions. Upon the desire express?
above, we shall take an early opportunity
to publish cither Johnson's own article, o
his and others opinions on that subject, a
given in the 'Farmers' Scries' of the Li
brary of Useful Knowledge.' The use c
salt as a manure has been frequently
urged, upon the ground of great benefit
produced by it in parlieu'ar cases. I
has often excited the hopes and enlistei
the active zeal of some theoretical writers
and again fallen into negl :ct, because o
failures iu practice. As a general prac
ticc, salting land for its fertilization, a
any rate of quantity, has not been foum
advantageous or profitable. But even i
not a general fertilizer of soil at ail, stil
aaa.
311 31, 1841,
I it may be highiy beneficial as a destroyer
: of predatory insects, (if taking care not
to give so strong a dose as to injure the
crop on the land,) and still more probably
i as a specific manure, or food essential for
1 certaiu crops. This last opinion we have
long entertained, and have before expressi
ed it in this journal, as well as we have
, published every known fact on this very
t important point. Many plants cannot
grow except on a salt soil. There is no
I doubt that salt is a specific manure for
asparagus, and there is a good reason to
t believe that it is also a specific manure
for the very important crop, cotton, On
. the latter head, see articles at page 677,
vol. iv., and pages 45 and 46, vol. v.?
j The two first we copied from the'Southern
Agriculturist.' The last, our (editorial
t I remarks ) being short, will here be copt
i ied:
f "It seems to us that salt must act as a
, specific manure for cotton, and is esseni
tial to produce the fineness of fibre that
t constitutes the value of the sea island cotf
? J!?r A. __ I? .i._ i:,..
i i ion. /\s uiu:;reiu us urc inu ijuumjr aim
r appearance of this cotton from the green
i seed, or short staple upland cotton, they
) are but varieties of the same kind, the
: most of which, rapidly runs into the other,
t by a mere change of soil. The one kind
- is raised, in perfection, only on the low
. sandy islands on the sea const of Georgia
r and South Carolina, and the adjacent
- shores of the main land. If the seeds
J (which are naked and black,)are planted
> in the interior, though but little remote
- from the sea, the product is what is called
- the "Jong staple Santee," a green seed
s cotton, but of longer fibre than the ordinus
ry upland cotton, into which, however.
I continued planting from the same, fiually
i brings the crop.
i "It has been supposed that the very san
dy nature of the soil of the sea islands was
ii the cause of the peculiar value of the cot.
J Ion which they bear. Hut if so, some
s spots, at least, might be found equally san.
u dy in the interior of the country, and the
i' same kind of cotton be there produced
i successfully. But the accounts wc have
t in the foregoing and other articles of the
* peculiar value of salt mud and salt grass
r as manure for cotton, indicate plainly that
v. salt itself is necessary for the perfection ol
cotton, and that it is owing to the salt al
t ready in the soil of the sea islands, and th<
s adjacent low coast, that to such narrow
limits the production of that valuable vari
s etv of cotton has heretofore been con
I fined."
1, In what manner specific manures acl
-y upon the plants for which they are eithei
; very important or essential, has not been
j saiicfactorily explained in any case. The
1 'acts, however, are not the less certain, in
2 the ascertained cases; and there may lie
5 many otheras important cases, which have
f not yet been observed. Thus carbonate
- of lime, or some equally serviceable form
s of combination of liine, and in considcra.
' hie quantity in the soil, is essential
a; to the growth of clover. Gypsum
i ' (sulphate of liino) is another important
e ! specific manure for clover, but not as
; indispensable to its existence as othci
| forms of lime. The acid of earth, which
is a poison to valuable crops, is indis'
pensable food, or a specific manure, foi
j sorrel, poverty grass, and some kind ol
pine trees?none of which can live aftci
t j this acid has been effectually neutralized
_ | by manuring with lime* If then, though
(| in a less essential degree, salt is a speci.
t fic manu c for cotton, it may well b<
cj that a very sinallqnantity may produce im
i portant improvements to the growth
?; though no other culiivated crop might re
_ ceive any perceptible benefit from a lik<
; application.
^ I From the Jour, of the Am. Silk Society,
I i E oioon's Addutss to Silk Cu lour its
' ?We enter upon tlie publication of th<
e Silk Journal another year, with no litth
n i anxiety and trepidation. We hav<
j ! not one-fourth the number of subscriber.'
necessary to pay the expenses of the pub
r lication ; but what we lack in number o
? subscribers, is made up in hope?hope
r | that the good cause in which we are en
e g?'igcd will yet be sufficiently prosperous t<
r afford us the means of publishing th<
3 1 Journnl; hoj?e, that the people of the Uni
n [ ted Slates will not neglect so great and s<
v good an opportunity of benefitting them
u ' selves and their country, as the culture o
; silk affords; and that in turning their at
r ; tention to it, the Journal will be consider
e ! ed by thein, one of the mast im porta n
t i aids to the attainment of the great object
I [ Wc therefore, once more launch our litth
t bark for another voyuge and trust to th<
good sense of the people, who are to b<
exclusively benefitted, for a sufficient sup
7 ply of small starts to support us to the cm
n of it.
^ Silk will yet become one of the tbro<
v great staples of the country ; nothing cat
r prevent this. Enough has already beer
s j done to ensure that result. But whethei
. I it shall become so sooner or laJer% dependi
upon the exertions now made and makini
y to accomplish it. If the people will lake
s hold of it with spirit, it can be nude tc
t lake this place in four or five years; if ii
^ must be permitted to work its own wav
, into favour, by the force merely of tfic
f persevering example of q fc\v pptfdlofs, il
. will require a much longer time,
t We have hcretoifore discussed the obj
jection made to the culture of silk, on the
f score of the comparative high price of la.
|j bour hero. The objectors sa^', * labour if
- - > a
NUMBER 20.
too high in this country for us to u=eit in
making silk.' Is not the labour applied i"
making every thing else, as high as that
of making silk ? How can we make oot,
ton goods, or woollen goods; how can we
inake6rtc&, (formerly imported, as well as
silk, (if the price of our labour is too
high ? This argument is fallacious. It
is not the price of labour that precludes
the production of any article, but the scarcity
of enterprize, and ingenuity, of a
want of a proper direction of them. A
new country will likely to enter
upon the production of articles of luxury,
the whole attention of their enterprizing
and ingenious men being occupied in producing
necessaries ; but as soon as a supply
of these is secured, or the number of
such men is increased, then the production
of luxuries will commence, in spite of the
price of labour, and the opposition of apt}-,
thetic croakers.
That silk will be a profitable pursuit
we have not now, and never had, a single
doubt. But like all other pursuits, it
must be fdlowed by business men in a
* ? ? nr?_ I
Diisiness.iiKC manner. 10 iuuko uiuucjr
from the culture of silk, requires a due degrce
of enterprize, perseverance, skill, and
economy?nothing more. And in what
other pursuit can money be made without
nil these ? Wc are told, that the failures
Inst season were so numerous that, at b->st,
the business will he a precarious one. We
> do not draw the same conclu.- on from the
same premises. On the contrary, wo
consider the failures of last season the
natural result of natural causes, which can
be and of course will be avoided. Ifgencral
success had attended all the experiments
last year, it would have been a
phenomenon worthy of beiog called the
eighth wonder. We are only astonished*
that we ever could have expected any
i thing better than what happened. Let us
look at the subject for a moment. Those
! who attempted the making of silk, with
- very few exceptions, went into it blindfold
i as it were, without experience, with very
I little knowledge, and with the worst pos!
sihlc and conceivable means. They were
in the fitful delirium consequent upon the
, excitement of the tree mania; they were
t misled by interested advisers as to the skill
f required in raising and managing worms,
and as to the profit to be made; and added
j to all this, they were unfortunately sup,
r plied with bad eggs, and still more unfor.
tunatcly, badly advised as to their man
agement. And wc may add another to
the list of causes ; nearly the whole supply
? of leaves was derived from young imma
lure trees, which, of itself, would have
i been considered in any other country a
i sufficient cause for all the misfortunes,
i that happened. Nearly all these causes of
! failure may be avoided another season ; all
indeed, except the supply of eggs, and
the proper mode of keeping them, for sue,.
i cessive cropn. There are few good eggs
. in tin? country, and still fewer adapted to
... . J 9 ?
the production of successive crops; but
i there are enough to enable this year to efc,
: tablish the silk culture upon a firm basis,
; It will he our business, and our pleasure,
' during the present season, to collect and
i distribute all the information on the sub.
> ject that shall come within our reach.
We shall continue to receive from Franco,
f early information of all improvements iq,
' machinery and in practice; and we shall
I leave no source of i.forn.a ion unappealed
i to for the same purpose.
Once more, therefore, we appeal to the.
} friends of the good cause to aid us. Tq
. every one of thein we appeal lo get all the
, sub. cribers they can for the Journal. As
we are not begging for our own benefit,
3 but for the ben* fit of those who give, we
are n< t ashamed to say, that we will re.
ccive contributions to aid in the public^?
tionof the Journal. And here we must
. acknowledge the liberality of several gen3
tlemcn, who have contributed considera
; bly more than their individual subscrip*
i tions. VVe arc precluded from mention*
i ing their names by their own request,
. which wc regret, as it might act as a sti*
f rnu I us to others to do likewise. G. B. S.
' EXISTENCE OF AMMONIA IN TH^ AT3I0S)
PIIKRE AN1) IN BAIN W^TEB.
In a notice of Liebig's Urg^qjc Chem*
istry applied to Agriculture aqd Physiol'*
5 ?gy? in Siltimans Journal of science for'
Jfthqarv, \ye(^nd jt slqted tljqt ammonia
f had been discovered in the atmosphere,'
and in rain water and snow.
^ pound of rajn water was found to
t contain one quarter of a grain, and that
this was absorbed from 20,890 cubic feet
(U
ivrilijpoiinnAiiPfinr C:ll.
J I VI (III* tlVIIUV IUW fVlllVI OU|YWvW VI v...
\ culate^ that a field of 26,917 square feet
\ would receive in a year upwards of 80 of
lbs.ammonia. The writcrjobserves lhat the
j presence ofaminouia in rain water may
be shown by adding a little sulphuric or
? muriatic acid to rain water and evaporu.
x ting it io a clean porcelain vessel nearly
( to dryness, when the ammonia may lie
r detic.ed by allowing a little powdered
i lime which will liberate the ammonia.
r This produced it has an offensive animal
j odor.
, Ammonia is found more or less in all
t animal manures, when they are do 'ouipor
sed.
The writer above alluded to thinks
J th.:t in the discovery of ammonia in the
air, a cluc is obtained to the true cause of
the forti!i dug properties of plaster of Paris.
, He observes that the sulphate of limo
(gypsum) fixes iu the soil the ammonia
, which is dissolved iu the atmosphere
i