Farmers' gazette, and Cheraw advertiser. (Cheraw, S.C.) 1839-1843, November 29, 1842, Page 10, Image 2
From the Siuthern Planter.
DRAINING AND MANURING.
Mr. E litor,?It may !?o safely affirmed
that (lie (wo mast prominent remedies for
the improvement of land consist in draining
and manuring. To have a good understanding
of these, will go fur to the
?pcedv restoration of our worn out lands.
* I
J know a piece of land on which a friend
of mine has put hundreds of loads of ma-1
nure, and yet the land looks very poor, 1
arising from the too great abundance ol j
water retained in the soil. As I often sec !
in your useful paper, communications on
both these subjects differing somewhat j
from my own views, I beg leuvc through
the Planter to state a few things in reference
to both.
1st. As it regards draining. There
? ?
afe many, who, although convinced that
rotninod in the soil neutralizes the
fertilizing qualities of it, yet, are deterred
from drain in" on account of the labor and
O
expense, especially if wood is scarce with
them. Now, the j)lati I pursue is certainly
the cheapest of any I have yet seen
recommended. It is as follows: I dig
my drain, if possible, three feet deep, but
so narrow at the bottom as just to let two
pine poles lie side bv side. Within four
inches of the bottom, I lay pieces of pine
of the same size with the poles across the
drain, about four feet apart, on which the
pine poles are to rest. These cross pieces
are to keep the long poles from falling
down on the bottom of the drain, and being
four inches from it, give abundance
of vent to the water. When I put down
the long poles, it is necessary to reverse
them, laying the thick end of one with
the small end of the other; then, on the
top of Ihc poles put tjio pine brush thick
enough to prevent the loose dirt from falling
uuder the poles. I know some have
been in the practice of laying down three
poles in the bottom, but it docs not answer
a good purpose long, and in a short
time, it is seen that the labor and poles
arc thrown away; hut as long as poles
will last under ground, you have a
good drain ; one that will last longer than
a box drain of plunk. Moreover, in
many places, the ground, through which
\o'i cut a ditch, is so soft that no box
drain will he of any service, on account
of its sinking; this you will sec is remedied
by the cross pieces, which can be
made to strctcli far enough across on both
sides of the drain, as to resist tiie pressure ;
or if you choose, drive a stop down on
each side of the drain lor the cross piece
to rest upon, as I have done many times.
If I were near a saw mill, and had plenty
of outside plank ofl'ercd to me for nothing,
i would make use of them to lay on the
cross pieces ; but as every body has pine
poles, it is poorly worth while to ho hauling
slab plank from a distance. I have
only to add, that 1 have made drains of
stone, of plank, and of poles, and prefer
the latter for expedition and cheapness.
I could say much on the importance of
draining land, hut as I fear I would he
troublesome to you, I shall proceed to
the next article.
2d. On the most judicious method of
usine manure. I take it for granted that
a majority of farmers admit that manure
0'i^lit not to he deeply covered, but kept
near the surface of the earth, and shall
not, therefore, give the why or wherefore,
only olwerving, that it is one thing to put
manure near the surface, and another to
put it on the top, and leave it exposed to
I lie wasting influence of exhalation. If,
for example, it be hauled out and spread
on the crop of wheat in the spring, or laid
on the top of corn, so much of it is wasted
by the influence of the sun and wind.
Now, I am not saying that no good will
be done to the wheat and corn by the
hbovc plan of surface dressing; what we
are in pursuit of, is the most judicious
method of using manure. Lot a piece
of land bo taken which has been in corn
the previous year, plough it up well?
haul out all the manure that can be
spared?let it he scattered on this land, i
and, after oats has been sown, harrow it
over with a large harrow, then sow clover;
o
: ?.wi
and run a ncavy rum-r ??vci i>, unu .?m ..
I he clover andoals aro a hove the ground,
sow a bushel of plaster to the acre, and
you have, in niv judgment, the host way I
manure can be used, both as it regards)
saving it from waste and improving land. ;
The harrow incorporates it with the earth
sufficiently to prevent the ammonia from
escaping, while every clod is pulverized
hy the roller, and manure and earth to.
gethcr brought directly in contact with
tiie seed sown.
J. F.
FRICTION PASTE lOK WHEELS.
The best composition that can he pre-)
pared, to relieve carriage wheels, and ma1
" ? ? r fi-rtivmnwd of
(jnincry inim intinNi, ?.^ { . _ (
hogs' lard, wheat-flower, and black load I
(plumbago.) The lard is to ho melted I
over a gentle fire, and the other ingredi- :
ents?eqo?l in weight?may ho added, i
till the composition is brought to the con- !
sistcncv of common paste, without raising
the h?'al near the hoeing point. One trial
of ttii? paste, will satisfy any one, of
its superior utility.? Am. Mcch.
If the hlack load is considered too oxpensive
for common wagon use, great
economy will Ik; found in making a paste
of common grease hy the ad mixture of
flutir, which prevents its melting and runinng
away as soon as applied.?Sou.
planter,
CO UN OIL.
Yf? observe, bv a western paper, tljut a number
; it you oniy Keep uie weeus uuwu. .-m-.
! your Committee have serious doubts wheI
thcr our ancestors did not understand the
I subject as well as we do. There is no
j secret about it; for we all agree upon the
! main points. First, that the ground
I should be i t good heart; secondly, that it
should be well broken up and pulverized ;
| thirdly, that the thickness of the planting
| should be in proportion to the strength of
the land; and fourthly, that the soil
should be freely stirred and the growth of
weeds kept down. If we follow these
rules we shall not Tail in a good crop once
in twenty years.
But how arc those requirements to be
j fulti||ed ? We will answer to the best of
j our ability.
?' ?i . . i t i
l?t. The land should he in goou neuri.
That is, it should be well drained of all
superfluous moisture and then well manured
; to manure wet land is to throw
away both labor and manure. Putrescent
manures of all kinds are applicable to the
corn crop. Corn has been called a coarse
feeder, hence undecomposcd animal and
vegetable matter, which might prove injurious
to more delicate plants, is found
highly advantageous when applied to this
Tlie sea ore, which drifts so abundantly
to our shores at certain seasons of the year,
is a most valuable manure. Ono of your
Committee in an experiment made last
year, proved bv actual measurement of the
corn that the product from an acre manured
from this substance, was fully equal
to that from the same quality ofland manured
at the same rate, from tiic stable,
farm yard and pig pen. It was spread
broa Icost from the bench and ploughed in
when the land was broke up.
Manuring in the hill is practised very
generally in some of the northern States.
It certainly enables the farmer, who has
but a limited amount of manure to go
over a larger surface, but wo doubt very
much, whether, taking into calculation
the benefit that would accrue to the succeeding
crop of small grain, it would not
be better to distribute it broadcast over a
smaller area.
It may be that the northern summers
being very short, the corn requires to he
pushed rapidly forward ; it has but a limited
time to grow in, and may require the i
full benefit of the manure, applied directly I
to its roots, to urge it to maturity, before j
I the frost overtakes it; but this argument |
; however applicable to the north, is inap. j
Lplicable to us, as our corn growing season !
extends over seven months of the year. I
We are, tlicrcfoic, of opinion, that as n
general rule, manures should be applied j
broadcast. When used in the hill they j
should be applied above and not below the !
corn, units' decomposed ; for the tender
roots, shooting down into a bod of hot I
fermenting manure, perish before they
can lap the earth below, and the plant ne- j
cessarily dies. I
2d. The ground should be well broken
up and pulverized. The proper time, j
undoubtedly, to break tip the land, cspe- i
ciallv if it be a still"or clay soil, is in the
fall; fur the action of tiie winter frosts i
upon it, breaks it down and renders it friable
and mellow. When the depth of soil
willallow the; deeper you plough the belter, j
for you theieby torn up a new and virgin ['
surface, [and render t.'ie soil permeable '
to the roots of the plant, which in that
case tend downwards, instead of running
horizontally near the surface. When the
soil is not deep, it is a good rule to cut
every year, a little deeper than the soil,
into the da v or subsoil; the depth of your
- ' . L . r i
(>!o:if?l?in^ this year, will be lue uepin 01 j
vour so:l I he ne.Vt and in four years you j
deepen il four inches.
The ground having been well broken
up in the fall* should be reploughcd and
harrowed in the s>pring, as lute as possible; j
the advantage of this is twofold ; first, it ,
pulverizes the soil, and secondly, kills the i
voung grass which begins to show itself'
at the first opening of spring, and thus en. j
ables the young corn to get a fair start, 1
before it can spring again. Corn land
scorns to require a certain number of j
plougbings. and the more you plough !>"-,
fore tho corn is planted, the kss you liavo j
to plough afterwards.
If, however, from scarcity of bands or
of barrels of corn oil have b. cn sent on from Ohio
to New York. It is said to be an excellent commodity?burning
as brilliautly as the purest sjtenn,
without emitting any of the offensive odor of ordinary
oil. If this new discovery should prove sue- :
cessful; as those best acquainted with it contend
that it will; the vast Surpluesagc of corn which is 1
now raised in.this country, and so much of which j
is made into alcoholic poison, may be converted '
into a printable and beneficial use.
Rochester Democrat.
From the Southern Flantcr.
Extract from tub proceedings or
tub agricultural society' of rlixmirth
City' County*.
" Resolved, That the Committee on the
Best .Mode of Cultivating Corn, consist of
Dr. R. Archer, Thomas Lowry, and WilI
* Ci ..!*!. *>
1 ua:n oumn.
TIic Committee, to whom was referred
; the subject of 4> the Best Mode of Cultiva.
| ting Corn," beg leave to report:
Corn being one of the principal and
I most important staples of our country, is
! it not surprising that so great a diversity
of opinion should exist, as to the besi
i mode of cultivating it ? Kvery periodical
j you open, enlightens you with some newdiscovery,
and the details of some enormous
crop, and you congratulate yourself,
that the best way is at last discovered :
| the next number you receive, throws you
all aback again ; you don't know what to
believe; and at last settle do-.vn to the
comfortable conclusion, that amongst such
a multitude of conflicting opinions your
own is as good as nnv, and vour system ot
C - * *
cultivation as likely to be the best as any
! other. One thing is certain, we have
j been raising corn under overy sort of
j management for two hundred years?and
when the land was good we could make
good crops : it will grow in spite of you.
1 1 ' i-^i "A ..a
other cause, the farmer can plough his
land hut once before he plants, instead of
ploughing in the fall or winter, lie should
defer it to the list moment, and his plantej-s
should follow, almost in the wake of
his plough ; otherwise he will have a green
field before his corn is up.
3d. The thickness of the planting
should he in proportion to the strength of
the land.
No proposition is more self-evident than
! this ; for it would be just as reasonable to
! keep two horses on the food required by
one, as to expect two stalks of corn to
| grow in a lull which could suppot hut
f one. There appears to be a strong mania
prevailing at this time for thick planting;
: it is a yery commendable qqe, bqt it
1 otinnLI tiav.. licen nrt?coded hv another
j , v .........
1 still more important, viz : a mania for improving
our lands by ditching and manure.
Oncofyour Committee has raised
upwards of ninety measured bushels of
corn to the acre ; it was planted in drills
! four and half feet wide, and as thick in
| the step as it could conveniently stand;
hut no man in his senses, would plant in
i this way, on any other than the jichcst
land. We more frequently err in planting
too thick than too thin : hut there is
1 .
j one fact which should he remembered by
J every farmer; it is that a crop of corn
; well worked can be planted much thicker
j on a piece of land of given quality, than
one slovenly cultivated.
4th. 'J'iie soil should he frequently stir
red and the weeds kept down.
The philosophy of vege;ation is, that
plants require heat, air, moisture, and tint
| capability of extending their roots in
: search of nourishment. These requisites
j are all atfor.icd, by frequent loosening of
the soil, which besides, is next to irrigation
| the best remedy against drought, and the
firing consequent upon too thick planting.
| ft is a great mistake to suppose that work
inj5 corn during a drought is injurious to
the plant.
j Various implements have been designed
! for this purpose ; the plough, the coulter,
! the harrow, and tile cultivator are those in
j most general use. Recently a new irn'
piemen', the subsoil plough, has been adj
ded to the others ; and numerous experimonts
in Kngland as well as in this
country, go to oontirrn the high ocomiums
which were bestowed upon it at its intro)
duction.
\ Having laid down the general princip'cs,
involved in the cultivation of the
corn crop, your Committee now proceed
to "ive their views somewhat iu detail on
?
tho subject.
No crop pays better for the labor be.
stowed in manuring and working, than
the corn crop. If the land will not produce
twenty bushels to the acre, it will
not pay the expense of cultivation, at least
in this county. It would be folly, thereI
fore, to plant it. Rut as the farmer must
1 have corn, and as many of our fields will
i not go beyond that average, it follows I tint
[ in self-defence he must improve his lands,
I or ruin himself by their cultivation.
Different opinions prevail as to the re
| lative advantage of planting corn in drills
| and squares. We think the opinions of
i the most judicious farmers, as well here as
1 at the north, incline to the square or
1 ' ?' 'I.- I 1 n rwl
cheek system, wucn me muu '"^u ?nm
j dry ; on low wet lands the drill system is
1 hest as it enables the \va:cr to run oft*more
j freely. But the chief advantage of the
| square system is, that it enables you to
wj.k both ways and you may then dis!
petisc, in a great degree, with the hoe.
Besides, it lays the land more level and
I belter suited to the succeeding crop ot
small grain. It is an error to suppose that
; corn requires to be bedded tip to prevent
1 its being blown down. However high yon
} may throw the heds, you will always find
' that beautiful system of bracing roots,
I shooting out from the first joint and tapJ
ping the earth to support the stalk. There
I is ordinarily hut one set of these roots,
and whether the corn stand upon a level
! surface or on a ridge, the number of roots
and braces is the same.
1 In working corn, the theory confirmed
by extensive practice is, to plough deep in
the early cultivation, whilst the roots arc
small and shadow, as they begin to extend
themselves. The deep ploughing enables
roots to tap downwards, into the cool open
soil, thereby avoiding the evil consequences
of drought, and prevents their being
- * _i.?i
cut and mutilated uy tnesuuscqueni?huilow
cultivation. However strong the
authority against us, we never can hehove
that the corn is benefitted by cutting
anil tearing the roots, which inevitably
takes place if the deep ploughing be
continued through liie whole cultivation
of the crop. The most reasonable system,
then, appears to be, to commence,
when the corn is just peeping out of the
ground, with the harrow and run it thoroughly
over every i.:?h of the field : this
operation pulverizes tho land and arresis
the young growth of grass, nor dons it in
the least disturb injuriously the young
corn.
Having gone over the field, set your
cultivators to work and continue them
until the corn tslargectiougb to thin out and
replant ; the earlier tins operation is commenced
in reason, tho better, for it pre- j
vents the first planted from getting too
far nhend of I ho rcnlanted corn. Re.
planting is- preferable to netting ; it is more J
certain, moro expeditious, and if the seed J
be soaked, it will soon overtake the first i
planting. If the hoo is to be used, (and i
wo think it should never be entirely dis- j
ponsed with, although we have seen good
crops made without it,) now is the time :
to use it with most advantage. It greatly
facilitates the operation of thinning,!
loosens the dirt close to the corn, and cna-,
hies you to draw it neatly about it, which 1
at this stage of its growth is all important; j
for, from the weight of tlie stalk and weak- i
ness of its roots, much will be found to
have fal e i down.
11 a v i f g got over the thinning Tind hoc- j
ir?g, start your cultivates again, and run !
?(hem until the corn is high enough to lake i
J dirt from the plough.
Some of the moat judicious farriers of
! our State, at this stage of the cultivation,
: use the single cornier with great Ativan. J
! tagc, run close to the corn ; it loosens the I
ground nine or ten inches deep, and gives
j free access to the roots, moisture and air. j
On stiff lands we are inclined to think the
coulter should never ho dispensed with.
The corn should now have one good
i deep ploughing, the dirt thrown to it, and !
! the middles thoroughly broke up. This is
the only ploughing which seems absolute- !
| ly necessary ; tho after culture can he ef- i
! looted with tho cultivator, which in expo- |
I rienced hands is fully competent to keep
| the earth loose and clean.
\Vc havo said nothing of the shovel
i plough, because we think the work can be
| equally well done, without as with it, and
tho multiplication of implements only
tends to increase the expenses of the farmer.
Generally speaking thecorn crop suffers
! more from neglect in harvest,? >n at any
'other time. It is the busy season of the
: year, and every hand on tho farm, young
and aid, is summoned to tho wheat-field.
If
Wo to the farmer whose corn-field is grassy
when harvest begins: if ho leave the
field now, he can never get the upper hand
of the grass afterwards. His interest,
then is, to keep hiscultivators running and
j lure labor for his harvest, even at double
i price. When the corn begins to silk and
i tassel lay it by, even if it should he overrun
with grass ; or at most, send in your
hoes to chop down the tall weeds; for the
| injury done to the roots, by any farther
cultivation, coulil nol ue repaid iiy I tic cicstrue'ion
of the grass: it is at this time
that the strongest draft is made upon the
fertility of the soil, to develop the shoot
j and push the car to maturity, and any
injury done to the spongiulos, the sole al>!
sorbents of the food from the soil, would
| materially interfere with that important
process.
The corn having been laid hy, the field,
! for the first time, since the planting,
I enjoys a season of rest, and the holidny
! continues until the time to gather fodder
i arrives.
> Much diversity of opinion exists on this
point. Some contend that the fodder
' should not be gathered at ail, as the injury
! sustained by the corn is more than cquiv'
alent to the value of tho fodder. Ilowev.
| cr plausible this argument may be in grass
countries, where fodder is of a secondary
consideration, it has no application to us,
! even if it were true. Fodder is as indispensable
to us as corn, and tho farmer
' who would buy his fodder in preference to
stripping his stalks would be justly considered
as a fit subject for the lunatic asy.
luin. But the fact is, as one of your Com;
mittee showed by an experiment last year,
and which was reported to the Society in
detail, that if the blades bo stripped after
, I he shuck has turned yellow, no perceptible
injury is sustained by the corn. Corn
thus stripped, was compared with corn in
the same held, which had been neither
i topped nor stripped, and there was no difference
either in weight or measure. The
conclusion, therefore, is, that it is a matj
ler of perfect indifference, so far as tiie
yield of corn is concerned, whether the
i! stalk is first stripped or first topped,
whether it be topped and stripped at the
samo time, or whether the tops and blades
be left to dry upon the stalk,
j An equal diversity of opinion exists, as
I to the best mode of gathering the corn
crop; hut it is generally acknowledged,
' that when it can be done, that is. when
the field is not to be sown in wheat, the
: best plan is to shuck it in t le fi IJ, directly
from the stalk, especially in neighborhoods
where your corn is liable to be pil!
laced. With the assistance of t ?e corn
i .
; peg the operation is equally as rapid, as
! pulling the shuck from the stalk, and at |
night you have the satisfaction to know
that your corn is safe under lock and key
in your crib. After your corn is gathered
I you may cut down and stack your stalks
j and shucks, to be fed out in the winter.
But when the field is to be sown in
wheat, this mode is scarcely practicable,
as it would delay the seeding too long, it
then becomes necessary to cut down the
; corn, and either cart it off, which is the
| best plan, or shock it in the field.
All of which is respectfully submitted.
~ FOREIO.
I Arrival of the Acadia.
Thirteen days later from England.
The steamer Acadia, Capt. Ryrie, arrived at
Boston at half-past two o'clock yesterday morn1
in", having made her passage to Halifax in ten
days and a half, and to Boston in twelve dayn
I and a half. A most extraordinary passage, pur. |
ticularly at this season of the year. She had 52 j
! passengers to Halifax, and 16 to Boston.
Parliament was again prorogued, pro forma,
i until the 13th of December; There was a rumor
that it would meet for despatch of business in Jan. !
uary, but there seemed to be no foundation for .
it
The disputed claims of British merchants on j
j the French Government, growing out of the Fortcndic
affair, have been referred by mutual consent j
I to the arbitration of the King of Prussia.
| The Queen has bestowed a pension of 390 pounds
a year upon William Wordsworth the poet. It is
given as a retiring allowance, he resigning his of|
ficc as distributor of stamps.
A new work by Box (Dickens) is announced to j
| commence in January next, and to l>e continued j
in monthly parts, at one shilling each.
Mr. O'Connell lias given up the office and dig- j
nitics of Lord Mayor of Dublin, and Alderman 1
Geoorge Bay has been elected his successor, tt;c [
term of the former having expired.
Grace Darling expired at Baniburgh on the
29th of October, in her twenty-sixth year. Her
complaint was pulmonary consumption.
The London papers announce the death of j
Rabbi Hcrchell, chief Rabbi of the Jews in Eng.
land, at the advanced age of 81.
The London Herald renews the rumor of King
IiOuis Fhillippc's meditated purpose to abdicate iti
favor of the Duke dc Nemours?as Regent of
course.
Allan Cunningham, the well-known writer and
assistant of Sir Francis Chautrcy, died suddenly
at his residence in I<onJon, on t!ic 2'Jth of Oetotobcr,
at the age of 56. He had just completed,
it is said, a life of Sir Franciu.
The Durham Chronicle states that a collier,
named Thomas Robson, has jq>t had property
worth X'TOUU left him l?y Ceorgc Wilson, a former
neighbor, to whom, when about to emigrate to
America, in 1CS11, he lent the sum of twenty shillings.
Several of the P.iris papers renew their aocusa,
lions against the illegal acts of the British cruisers
engaged in the suppression of the slave trade.
Livkrtooi., Nov. 3d, ldf3.
Livkrpool Cotton Markkt.?Since the last
| steamer sailed we have had some increase of dc1
inand for Cotton, with some speculative purchases,
I during which the middling qualities advanced Jd
I .. . ... ? L
Presiding in the Wert, I/ord of Abydos, that he
would {jive offerings for the sake of the deceased.
The lecturer began at the feet of the corpse to untie
the linen bandages which enveloped it. These '
consisted of several hundred pieces, of the hue of
wash-leather, but of capitally woven cloth, and in
some parts not much discolored, and pretty strong.
On one of the nieces was an inscription stating the
age of the muinmy to bo twenty-one years. On
unlapping the bandages round the neck, tnc head
fell off, and was found quite perfect, several of the
teeth in front being still fixed in their sockets, one
of them only being loose. The cartilages of the
cars were perfect, the dried flesh having the seinblance
of dark gingerbread. The body was disclosed
with a vast deal more difficulty than the
head, the cmbolmers having dipped it into the hot
hitumcn so long and so frequently as to destroy
the flesh, and render the skin and its envelope one
mass, (Gradually, however, the toes appeared,
all perfect except the nails, the feet being small
and very attenuated. The muscles and /kin of j
the legs, and the cap of the knee, next became j
visible, and the hands, eroded on the jbduuicn,
! per id., Dtu lucre wasnoi niucn uunitauuu oi rqam
i in the market at any time, and in the last few
days the sjioculative buying having craned the
' improvement is lost, or nearly so, and the market
j has again relapsed into a languid, heavy st ite,
with prices about the Rime as on the lSih and 21st
ult., and the fair and good qualities quite as di;li.
cult to realize. The business for the weekending
28tli ult. amounted to 27,8t>i.) bales, of which 1.710
were Upland, at 3| a f?J, with 10 at G^ a G? ;
9170 Orleans at I a 7, with a fancy lot of 20
. baits of the new crop at 8d ; 1890 Mobile and
i Alabama at I a G$, and 180 Sea Island at 8$ a
j 8-1 per lb. About 10,00'J bales were taken on
S|>eci|!:ition during the week. The business since,
| say for live days, ended this evening, is estimated
I at 18,000 bales, of which about 3000 were taken
,1
i on speculation, cluetl/ the two first days. We
! arc not aware of any good grounds for the spcculation
which do not still exist; it has been said
that the low prices tempted speculators to operate
i for the chance of benefit in the event of the
| American crop being curtailed by early an J severe
j frosts?and as the last steamer brought no such
| accounts it has checked the operations.?Corr. N.
t Y. C>ur, (j- Enq.
The state of the corn market was the principal
! topic of conversation, in the mercantile and moj
ncycd circles. The most extensive purcashcs of
[ foreign grain were made at every accessible quarter
! ol Europe, at the end of last year and the early
part of the present one. These were superinduced
exclusively by the opinion entertained, that the
wheats in the ground had received such injury by
| the unparalleled witness of the season, and the
j large proportion that could not be sown at all until
the spring months, that it was hcIJ next to an
impossibility that the crop could come near to an
average. Under that o.derof feeling the purchases
were made, in the perfect confidence of such a
high range of prices as would render wheat a profitable
speculation.
Not only, however, have the crops of th: Unij
ted Kingdom far exceeded the expectation formed
j in the early months of the year, but the same pro.
I pitious weather produced a similar change in the
I prospects of other important corn-growing district?
of the world, where the crops were deemed to be in
the same state of jeopardy.
The loss of fortune, and the destruction of the
hopes of persons who had risked their all, and more
than all, in a commodity of such extensive use as
J wheat, is the necessary consequence of the abun.
dance, and its vicissitude of value.
Failures of tbe most extensive corn and wheat
houses have already oceurcd. One of the principal
ones that of Hunter & Coventry, in London.
Their liabilities arc stated at upwards of A"100,'
0U0. Several other prominent houses had also
| failed.
According to the accounts from Manchester,
the prices of every description of manufactured
, goods are as low, and, in the case of some particui
lar fabrics, even lower than at any former period
j in the history of the manufacturer.
We are sorry to say that the feeling of despond.
, ency amongst the commercial classes rather inj
creases than diminishes.
Shipping continues very dull, and in one extreme
j case, a British American vessel has been sold in
Liverpool, for the almost incredibly low price of
two pounds sixteen shillings a ton. Such a thing
! was never heard of befo c.
, Tub Elephant and tiik Turnpike Gate.?
| yesterday se'ennight, as .Mr. Van Amburgh's
: elephant was going to Wellington, ready for the
: next day's performance, on coining to the turnpike
i gate, which was shut, the gate man refused to
j open the gate unless the conductor paid extra toil,
| which he refusing to do, went through the side
i wicket, saying to the elephant, 44 Jack, I must go
! without you." But it was not to be so; for Jack
would be as good as his master; so, without any
j ceremony, Jack applied iiis prolnjscis to the gate
| and just eased himself of the hindrance by prostra|
ting the gate in the road, to the no small amaze,
ment of the gate keeper. We understand there
was some injury done to the gate, the expense of
which the keeper cheerfully paid.?Salopian Journnl.
unp.oli.ing ok an egyptian mummy.
On Thursday a female mummy, presented to
the Natural History Soc'cfy of Shn.wsbi.ry by
the late Dr. Duller, was unrolled in the presence
of about two hundred highly respectable spectators,
a great part of whom were ladies, it having bet n stated
that there would be nothing whatever indelicate
in the operation. Mr. Birch, from the British
.Museum, suwrintended the unrolling, previous to
which ho described the process of embalming
among the Egyptians. The outer coffin in which
the present remains were deposited announced
that it contained the !>ody of Tcnnor en Rhons,
Prt/>ci,.c? nf Amon. vvlio was dedicated to Osiris.
e &.
were traced afh r jjreat laW. The hip bones, th shoulder,
and the ri!?s, were exposed, one aft?r
anotllcr, till ut last the fully developed frame of a
Itum-iii being, 3.UUU years old, lay exposed to the
g<tzc of the company. Upwards of tlirec lioms
w. rc occupied in the process.?London Standard.
?
*11 si' ifI, M.\ EOIS.
AFFUIIANTSTAN.
e believe that Afghanistan Ikim been but partially
known to the English themselves, till within
the last eight or ten years. Though the scat of
many great events in ancient periods of lustory,
it is now uaid to be inhabited by a wild and uneiv.
j ili/.ed race. The mountain passe* are filled witlv
r.il>Jv-rs mid tl?i> m:??? nf #! ?? rwr.r,..l~?* ?
.??? j ? " n?v ^Yui<uHj?i arc fierce
; and treacherous. The country that bears the general
name of AflghanL-tan is quite extensive, occupying
the greater part of the space between
Hindustan and Persia ; l>eiug about eight or nine
. hundred miles in lenghth cast and west, and five
or six hundred in breadth north and south. It is
watered by the Indus and its hranches. The
northern portion is mountainous, and exhibits the
variety of climate within a small compass which
si peculiar to mountain regions. Caubul, or Cahoot,
or Cabul, as it is differently spelled, and Jcllalabad,
1 or Jutalubad, between which the destruction of
the Dritislj army was effected, arc near the northcm
boundary. They are about ninety mile*apart*
almost in a line cast and west upoo Cabul river;
Cabul being farthest west and most elevated. Cctween
the two and about twenty-five miles west
of JolUlabad is the boundary between the hot and
cold regions; the country thence becomes rough
and hazardous along the mountain passes, from
frost and snow during half the yoar, and from the
lawless and ferocious character of the population
at all times.
Cabul is a noisy and hustling city, situated at an
elevation of 601)1) feet, or 11,01)0 as another au'
t ority lias it, above the level of the sea. It is*
place of great trade, and contains 60,000 inhabit,
ants. The natives say it is 6 MM) years old, and
t ho popular belief is tiiul when Satan was cast out
of Heaven he fell in Cabul. The snow Is?t* for
five months of the year, but the r muiudcr of the
reason is delightful, and the frui s and flowers are
abundant. The pusses between this city and J>4.
hi ibad arc occupied by predatory bands of moun.
. tainecrs.
I
| Jcllalabad is a dirty town, with a regular popula.
lion o"about 2000 resident*; but in tlte cold acason
the people flock to it from the surrounding vif- . ?
lages. Between that town and Cabul it the
mount of Noorgill, or Kooncr, covered with per..
pctu.l snow,on which the AfTghans believe tnc
ark of Noah to have rested after the deluge. Not
many miles distant the natives point out tlie tomb
of L uncch, the father of Noah.
The A Afghan s onll themselves " Beni Israel,'*
children of Israel, yet consi 'er ths term Jew, to bo
. one of reproach. Tucy say they were transplanted by
: Nebuchadnezzar, after the overthrow of the tcnu
; pic, to the neighborhood of Bcmccan,a town west
i of Cabul, and lived as Jews till they were converted
to Mohammedanism. They have all the appear,
ancisof Jews, and retain the Hebrew custom of
the younger brother marrying the widow of tho
i elder. The question of their descent is, however,
considered a doubtful one.
Shah Sliooja, whose name is conspicuously men.
tioncd in the newspaper accounts of the massacrr,
is the uncle of Shah Kamruun, an Affghan mo.
narch, having his capital at Herat, nearer tlio
borders of Khorassan. This Kamraun, some years
since, put to death his Vizier, Futtch Khan, in a
fit of jealousy. Upon this the brothers of the Vi.
zicr rebelled, and succeeded in gaining possession
of a great part of the Affghan empire. British
troops were now introduced into the country.?
Their alliance was courted by Shah Kamraun,
a prince as weak as cruel, or by his uncle ShaJi
Sliooja, and the proposed object has been to resist
the just indignation of the brothers of the Vizier
iikI r\ smnol-ihi lli/t o lit I tr /if f lio o nniont in/%
oarch. Candahar, a city with about 60,000 inhabitants,
situated southeast from ILwutand southwest
from Cabul, and about equally distant from
each city, is one of tiic principal places jioss, sscd
by the brothers, Cabul was another of their
cities.
In 1838 this country was penetrated by a British
gentleman named Stirling, who gave it as his
opinion, that an Euroi>ean arm) would meet with
insuperable difficulties in attempting to invade the
AfFghan territories. Our facts arc chiefly gained
from the notes of Lieutenant Bumcs, who made ft
similar journey two or three years afterward.?iVatioual
AUgis.
IMPRISONED AUTHORS*
The following striking instances may be Cited
as affording proof that imprisonment has not had
the effect of disturbing the man of letters in the
progress of his studies, but on the contrary, often
greatly promoted them. It was in prison that
Bocthius composed his work, the Consolations of
Philosophy, and Grotius wrote his Commentary
on St. Matthew; Buchanan, also, in the dungeon
of a monastery in Portugal, comjwscd his
excellent Paraphrase on the. Psalmi of David;
and Bunyan wrote his world-renowned Pilgrim's
Progress in the common jail of Bedford. It was
during captivity in Barbary, that Cervantes pro1
duccd his master-piece of Spanish literature.?
" Flcta Minor," or the laws of art and ,:aturc in
knowing the bodies of metals, by Sir John Pcttus,
in 1683, derived its existence as well as its
name from the circumstance of his having translated
it from the German during his confinement
in the Fleet prison; the M Familiar Letters" of
Howell date from the same place. Lewis tho
Twelfth, when Duke of Orleans, was long imprisoned
in the Tower of Bo urges, where, applying
himself to his studies, he laid the foundation of his
future eminence; Charles the Find, during In*
cruel confinement at Hoi.r.sby, wrote lite 44 Ktkon
BasilikcQueen Elizabeth, also, when confined
by her sister Mary, wrote several poem*, wliich
arc superior to any thing wlic afterward produced;
and the unfortunate Mary, Queen of Scot*, did
no less. Sir Walter Raleigh's unfinished ///sfory
of the World was the fruit of eleven years imprisonment?a
work evincing the most extensive genius,
and an acquaintance with the literature of
the times unsurpassed even by the most recluse
devotees of his day. 'IIjc plan of the " Htnrimde *
was sketched, and the greater part composed by
Voltaire, during his imprisonment m the Ra stile :
the French sceptic b ren t also became the c-wbrya
author while immured in the dreary cells of the
same horrible place: and Lydiat wrote his
notations on the I'erider Chronicle" wink incar.
ccrated for d?bt in the bench. It t?is in
C.irisluoohe Castle that Sir William Davenport
compliUd Ufa poyui of " (Jjudibcrt/ ' Dc F'J0?