The south raised 33,780 pounds, valued at $5,067. The west raised 194,961 pounds, valued at $29,244. time, also, difficulties not unfrequently arose The geographical distribution of this crop, between merchants, from the fact that old as returned by the last census, was as foland refuse hops were found mixed in with lows:the good ones, while no proper distinction was made between the different grades or qualities. Vexatious lawsuits sometimes resulted from these circumstances, and the price of good hops was naturally lower than it otherwise would have been. The legisla ture of Massachusetts, to remedy these evils so far as they existed in that section of the country, created the office of inspectorgeneral of hops in the year 1806. It was the first movement of the kind in the country, and, so far as I am informed, the first of the kind in the world. The north raised 3,268,215 pounds, valued at $490,232. New England raised 707,743 pounds, and New York 2,536,299. Balance raised in other states, 252,987 pounds. The crop of 1855 was estimated by the secretary of the treasury as nearly five millions of pounds. CULTURE OF FLAX AND HEMP. ernor and company of the Massachusetts Bay, in New England, also ordered both flax and hemp seed in 1628, if not, indeed, as was probably the case, at an earlier date. Hemp was very soon abandoned, as the land was not found strong enough for it. But there were no precedents for classify- Like most of the crops already mentioned, ing hops, and some system was to be adopt- both flax and hemp were introduced into the ed. Some hop dealers and many hop grow-colonies very soon after the settlement of the ers were opposed to a high standard of in- country. Flax was taken to Holland from spection. Many difficulties of a personal the Dutch settlement of Manhattan Island, nature had to be encountered; but, owing to or New York, as early as 1626. The gov the conscientious use of the "first-sort" brand, the hops raised in that part of the country soon became noted as the best by far in the United States. By adopting a high standard of inspection, the growers were soon brought to improve their hops, in order to bring them up to the "first sort," and the facts and character of such an official inspection becoming immediately known in Europe, those who sent orders from there required hops of Massachusetts inspection, and they in consequence commanded a cent or two on a pound more than those of any other state. It is for the interest both of the grower and the dealer that the truth should be stamped on every bale. The profit of raising hops must, of course, depend largely upon the foreign demand, and as that is extremely fluctuating, the price of this crop is fluctuating and uncertain. The consequence has been a decline in the cultivation, in some sections of the country, while in others it has largely increased. As an instance of the fluctuation of prices and the foreign demand, it may be stated that the exportation in 1849-50 amounted to 1,275,455 pounds, valued at $142,692; while the very next year, 1850-51, it fell off to 110,360 pounds, valued at $11,636, only. It may be stated, however, that notwithstanding the great fluctuations, the crop increased from 1,238,502 pounds in 1840, to 3,497,029 pounds in 1850; showing a gain of 2,258,527 pounds. Hemp and flax were raised in Virginia prior to the year 1648, as we read of their being woven and spun there; and bounties were offered for the culture of hemp in 1651, and of flax in 1657; but the culture fell off as soon as the bounties were discontinued. But flax was pretty generally cultivated in small quantities for home consumption, in most parts of the country. It was not only raised, but manufactured at home, and formed a most important article in the domestic economy of the days of homespun. In 1745, some Irish emigrants arrived in Massachusetts, and established an improved mode of manufacturing linen and other "spinningwork," and they met with some success. Manufactories were established in Salem, Mass., for making sail-cloth, as early as 1790. In 1751 no less than 14,000 pounds of hemp were exported from New Jersey, and the next year, 1752, the amount of flaxseed exported from Philadelphia was 70,000 bushels. This amount rose, in 1767, to 84,658 bushels; and in 1771 to 110,412 bushels. New York exported 12,528 hogsheads of this seed in the year 1755. The total amount exported from the American colonies in 1770 was 312,612 bushels. In 1791 the United States exported 292,460 bushels of flax-seed; in 1800 the export was 289,684 bushels, and 240,579 bushels in 1810. The culture of these crops grew up more rapidly at the west, and extensive factories were established for the manufacture of cordage, bagging, etc., in Louisville, Lexington, Frankfort, and other places in Kentucky, as early as 1810. Hemp, in fact, has become a staple crop in the west. According to the census of 1840, about 97,251 tons of flax and hemp were raised. In 1850 the two products were returned separately as 34,871 tons of hemp, 7,709,676 pounds of flax, and 562,312 bushels of flax-seed. The decrease in the aggregate growth of fibre was thus shown to be about 56,000 tons. The total value of both crops does not vary much from five millions of dollars. Of the crop returned in 1850, the distribution was as follows: The south raised 34,673 tons of hemp, worth about $3,833,376; and 4,768,198 pounds of flax, worth $476,619. The west raised 150 tons of hemp, and 1,330,859 pounds of flax; worth $133,085. The north raised 443,370 tons of hemp, worth $22,178; and 1,717,419 pounds of flax, worth $171,742. THE CULTURE OF SILK. The cultivation and manufacture of silk has never been extensively carried on in this country, though introduced at a very early date-as early, in fact, as the first settlement of Virginia. James I. showed a desire to favor this branch of industry, equalled only by his antipathy to the growth of tobacco. It did not succeed at first, however, and in 1651 another spasmodic effort was made to revive it, but it was to little effect, and it never prospered there. Silk culture was commenced in Louisiana by the Company of the West, in 1718. It was introduced into Georgia in 1732. A special act of Parliament was required to keep up the interest in it, in 1749, exempting the producer from paying duties, etc. Connecticut began the raising of silk in 1760, and in 1783 the legislature of that sta e passed an act, granting a bounty on mulberry trees and the production of silk. About the year 1830 an excitement was got up by interested speculators, which was so adroitly managed that it became general over the country, till it died under the name of the "Morus Multicaulis" fever, in 1845. Even under the encouragement of the government, all the raw silk Georgia could export in 1750 was 118 pounds; in 1765 it was only 138 pounds; in 1770, 290 pounds. The census of 1840 returned the amount of silk cocoons at 61,552 pounds; and this quantity had fallen off in 1850 to 10,843 pounds; being a decrease of 46,789 pounds in ten years. BEE CULTURE. The production of honey and the management of bees receives comparatively little attention in this country. So little, indeed, as hardly to be worthy of mention among the products of our national agriculture; and yet they form an important item in the domestic economy of many a household, and ought to receive all the attention they deserve. The amount of beeswax and honey returned by the census of 1850 was 14,853,790 pounds. It is hoped that greater results will appear from this delightful occupation than it is possible at the present time to record. The distribution of the production of honey and wax, as returned by the last census, was as follows: The southern states, including also Kentucky and Missouri, produced 7,964,760 pounds, which were valued at $1,194,714. The western states produced 3,401,078 pounds, valued at $510,140. The northern states produced 3,487,290 pounds, valued at $523,093. POULTRY AND EGGS. The value of the poultry kept in the United States, and the production of eggs, constitutes a much larger item of our agricultural economy than is generally supposed. The value of poultry, according to the census of 1840, was no less than $12,176,170. This sum, great as it appears, has been increased to some twenty-five millions of dollars. The city of New York alone pays about two millions of dollars. a year for eggs. And so the other large cities require a supply in proportion. The keeping of poultry, therefore, is by no means an insignificant item in the products of our agriculture, though for some reason or other the last census failed to take cognizance of it. It may be doubted whether the introduc tion of foreign varieties of fowls effected an improvement in the common stock of the country. The excitement produced by designing men may have had the effect to increase the interest and knowledge in this branch of husbandry, which, so far, may be set down as a positive benefit to the country, but further than that, it is difficult to say what benefit resulted from it. For a time, indeed, the number of fowls was very largely increased, but the product of eggs did not increase in proportion. The keeping of poultry, like that of bees, may be set down as among the means of making the farm attractive, in addition to the actual profit which may be derived from keeping a limited number of choice fowls, and the production of eggs for family use. THE LUMBER BUSINESS. The growth and preparation of lumber does not, perhaps, come strictly within the range of what is understood by agricultural products. But the primary operations involved are to a large extent undertaken by farmers, as a part of winter's work, and lumber forms no unimportant item in the clearing up and the preparation of land for tillage. It is, therefore, proper enough to allude to it in connection with the progress of our agriculture. Volney represented the surface of this country as one vast forest, diversified, occasionally, by cultivated intervals. Since his time the woodman's axe, guided by a ruthless hand, has reversed the picture to some extent, but still the number and variety of our forest trees abundantly testify the bounty of nature. Originally, indeed, an almost unbroken forest covered a large proportion, not only of this country, but of the whole continent. The Indian tribes were far less populous than is generally supposed; and if we except the prairie lands of the valley of the Mississippi, but a small portion of the surface of our present territory was destitute of timber trees. "Then all this youthful paradise around, And all the broad and boundless mainland, lay Cooled by the interminable wood, that frowned O'er mount and vale, where never summer ray Glanced till the strong tornado broke its way Through the gray giants of the sylvan wild; Yet many a sheltered glade, with blossoms gay, Beneath the showering sky and sunshine mild, Within the shaggy arms of that dark forest smiled." It was stated by Michaux that there were in the United States one hundred and forty species of forest trees which attain a greater height than thirty feet, while in France there were only eighteen of the same description. An English traveller, writing of this country, says: "I was never tired of the forest scenery of America, although I passed through it from day to day. The endless diversity of foliage always prevents it from being monotonous." But the surpassing beauty which the forests add to our natural scenery is not to be compared with the solid advantages which are derived from the immense variety, as well as the quantity of their timber. The forest scenery of this country beyond the Alleghany mountains, and from them to the Mississippi river, has been invaded to a less extent than in the older settled portions, and there are still vast tracts remaining uncleared. Trees of gigantic height and dimensions, standing in the richest mould, which has been accumulating for ages, and surrounded with a luxuriance of vegetation very rarely seen in the eastern states, carry the mind back to a period long anterior to the discovery of the country, and fill the beholder with awe by their grandeur. To these forests, as they once stood, over a large portion of the country, we have been indebted for much of our growth and prosperity as a nation! How much do we not owe to one species of these majestic treesthe white pine? Michaux observed that throughout the northern states, except in the large capitals, seven-tenths of the houses are of wood, of which seven-tenths, threequarters are of white pine. He might have said nine-tenths were built of wood, and come within the truth, though at the time he visited this country, fifty years ago, many houses had been constructed, to a great extent, of hard wood. The new settlers had to enter and fell the forests, and burn and clear their lands as a preliminary preparation, and thousands of acres were thus brought under culture, the timber being of too little value to pay for saving. It was in vain that statutes were passed a hundred years ago and more, to prevent the cutting of trees suitable for ship timber. Private rights could not be invaded in the colonies, and down the forests came. The value of the forests for timber during the time of limited and scattered population was but little, and it could not be transported to great distances. The lumber business, therefore, did not grow up to any great magnitude and importance till a comparatively recent period in any part of the country. Not, in fact, till the great centres of population began to feel new life from our growing commerce, creating a more extensive demand for building purposes, and for ship-building. When this period arrived, after the war of 1812 and the conclusion of peace, the lumber business began to extend itself into Maine and other regions then comparatively unsettled, especially in the vicinity of large streams giving easy access to the sea-board or to lake navigation. The mode of proceeding will be more clearly understood from the following description of the details of operations, prepared by a gentleman residing in the lumber regions of Maine. The logging camp is very much the same in all the more northern sections of the United States, from the timber regions of the St. Johns to the pineries of Wisconsin, and a detail of the winter operations of one will apply, with slight modification, to them all. I may remark, in passing, that I have my self lived some winters in the immediate vicinity of extensive logging operations in Maine, and, in fact, been engaged in them to some extent, and am familiar with them. When a lumberer has concluded to log on a particular tract, the first step is to go with a part of his hands and select suitable situations for building his camps. In making this selection, his object is to be near as possible to the best clumps of timber he intends to haul, and to the streams into which he intends to haul it. He then proceeds to build his camps and to cut out and clear out his principal roads The camps are built of logs, being a kind of log-houses. They are made about three feet high on one side, and eight or nine on the other, with a roof slanting one way. The roof is made of shingles split out of green wood and laid upon rafters. The door is made of such boards as can be manufactured out of a log with an axe. Against the tallest side of the camp is built the chimney-the back being formed by the wall of the camp, and the sides made of green logs, piled up for jams, about eight feet apart. The chimney seldom rises above the roof of the camp; though some who are nice in their architectural notions sometimes carry it up two or three feet higher. It is obvious from the construction that nothing but the greenness of the timber prevents the camp from being burned up immediately; yet the great fires that are kept up make but little impression in the course of the winter upon the back or sides of the chimney. A case, however, happened within a year or two, where a camp took fire in the night and was consumed, and the lumberers in it burned to death. Probably the shingle roof had become dry, in which case a spark would kindle it, and the flames would spread over it in a moment. Parallel to the lower side of the building, and about six feet from it, a stick of timber runs on the ground across the camp. The space between this and the lower wall is appropriated to the bedding, the stick of timber serving to confine it in its place. The bedding consists of a layer of hemlock boughs spread upon the ground, and covered with such old quilts and blankets as the tenants can bring away from their homes. The men camp down together, with their heads to the wall and their feet toward the fire. Before going to bed they replenish their fire-some two or more of them being employed in putting on such logs as with their handspikes they can manage to pile into the chimney. As the walls of the building are not very tight, the cool air plays freely around the head of the sleeper, making a difference of temperature between the head and the feet not altogether agreeable to one unused to sleep in camps. A rough bench and table complete the furniture of the establishment. A camp very similar, though not so large in dimensions, is built near for the oxen; on the top of this the hay is piled up, giving warmth while it is convenient for feeding. A large logging concern will require a number of camps, which will be distributed over the tracts, so as best to accommodate the timber. One camp serves generally for one or two teams. A team, in ordinary logging parlance, expresses, not only the set of four or six oxen that draw the logs, but likewise a gang of men employed to tend them. It takes from three or four to seven or eight men to keep one team employedone man being employed in driving the cattle, and the others in cutting down the trees, shaping them into logs, barking them, and cutting and clearing the way to each tree. The number of hands required is inversely to the distance the logs are to be hauled; pointed to the office of cook. Salt pork and that is, most hands are required when the flour bread constitute the regular routine of distance is shortest, because the oxen, re- the meals, varied sometimes with salt fish turning more frequently, require their loads or salt beef. Potatoes are used when they to be prepared more expeditiously. Having can be obtained. Now and then, perhaps, built their camps, or while building them, when the snow is deep, they catch a deer, the main roads are to be cut out. These run and live on venison. The men are employed from the camps to the landing places, or through the day in cutting the timber and some stream of sufficient size to float down driving the teams. In the evening some the logs on the spring freshet. Other roads take care of the oxen; some cut wood for are cut to other clumps of timber. They are the fire; then they amuse themselves with made by cutting and clearing away the un- stories and singing, or in other ways, until derbrush, and such trees and old logs as may they feel inclined to turn in upon the unibe in the way, to a sufficient width for the versal bed. On Sundays the employer claims team of oxen, with the bob-sled and timber no control over their time, beyond the takon it, to pass conveniently. The bob-sled is ing care of the cattle, the fire, and the cookmade to carry one end of the timber only, the ing. On this day they do their washing and other drags upon the ground, and the bark mending; some employ themselves, besides, is chipped off, that the log may slip along in seeking timber, and some in hunting more easily. The teams proceed to the partridges, while some remain in the camp woods, when the first snows come, with the and read the Bible. They remain in the hands who are not already there, and the woods from the commencement of sledding, supplies. The supplies consist principally some time in December, until some time in of pork and flour for the men, and Indian March, in the course of which month their meal for the oxen; some beans, tea, and labors are usually brought to a close by the molasses are added. Formerly hogsheads snow, it becoming too shallow or too deep. of rum were considered indispensable, and I If there are heavy thaws the snow runs off, have before me a bill of supplies for a log- not leaving enough to make good hauling. ging concern of three teams in 1827-28, in If, on the other hand, it gets to be four which I find one hundred and eighty gallons or five feet deep, the oxen cannot break of rum charged; but of late very few re- through it to make the path which it is necspectable lumberers take any spirits with essary to form in order to get at each inthem, and the logging business is conse- dividual tree. The men and teams then quently carried on with much more method, leave the woods. Sometimes one or two economy, and profit. The pork and flour remain to be at hand when the streams open. inust be of the first quality. Lumberers are I know one who last winter staid by himself seldom content to take any of an inferior in the woods, fifteen or twenty miles from the sort; and even now, when flour is twelve nearest habitation, for the space of twentydollars a barrel, they are not to be satisfied eight days, during which time he earned $203 with the coarser breadstuffs. Hay is pro- by getting in timber with his axe alone, becured as near to the camps as possible; but ing allowed for it at the same rate per thouas most of the timber lands are remote from sand that the lumberers were in getting it in settlements, it is generally necessary to haul with their teams. He found some berths in it a considerable distance; and as it must the banks of the stream, where all that was be purchased of the nearest settlers, they necessary was to fell the tree so that it should are enabled to obtain very high prices. fall directly upon the water, and there cut it From twelve to twenty dollars per ton is into logs to be ready for running. When the usually paid. When the expense of haul- streams are opened, and there is sufficient ing it to the camp is added, the whole cost freshet to float the timber, another gang, is frequently as high as thirty dollars a ton, called "river drivers," takes charge of it. and sometimes much higher. Owners of It is their business to start it from the banks, timber lands at a distance from settlements and follow it down the river, clearing off may make a great saving by clearing up a what lodges against rocks, pursuing and piece of their land, and raising their own bringing back the sticks that run wild among hay. Some one of the hands, who has not the bushes and trees that cover the low so much efficiency in getting timber as skill lands adjoining the river, and breaking up in kneading bread and frying pork, is ap-jams that form in narrow or shallow places. |