acter. Uniformity was wanting; the animals pos-known, by which to make a comparison. There sessed every grade of excellence and defect; some have been but two uniform herds (I do not mean matchless; some worthless. So bred, the herds of families) of Short-Horns yet ever possessed together, those gentlemen, when sold and dispersed, failed to viz. Mr. Bates' and Sir H. V. Tempest's. From the realize any good in the hands of others save in one herds of the two Collings, the vast mass of Shortinstance. The best herd in England at the time of Horns have been derived. These herds had all the sale of Charles Colling, in 1810, and for many kinds of cattle in point of excellence, good and bad. years before, was that of Sir Henry Vane Tempest. The different herds scattered all over England and But unfortunately, by his death in 1813, his herd America derived from the Collings indiscriminately, was dispersed and lost; and Robert Colling's fol- have now all the varying character which their lowed in 1818. In 1810 Mr. Bates bought, at C. originals had. I have never seen anywhere in our Colling's sale, Duchess I.; and prior to this he had country an uniform herd of Short-Horns. Among bought Duchess by Daisy Bull (186), which cow them, and in the same herd, I have seen the best and he had bred to Favorite (252), and in 1810 possess-worst cattle I have ever seen. This might be obed Ketton I. Duchess I. was bred to Ketton I., II. viated if it were not for the back breeding; for then and III., all bulls of the same strain. Mr. Bates the good might be selected and the bad killed. It was determined to have uniformity in everything, is the ones, good as individuals, with a bad tencolor, excellence, and constitution. For twenty dency in the strain back, which breed the bad ones. years, except once, he did not go out of the Duchess Some very fine cows, when put to the best bulls, tribe for a bull, always using bulls got by a bull out will never breed any but the poorest of bulls, which, of a cow of that tribe, except in the instance of when grown up, will be coarse and worthless. Marske (a bull of the Princess tribe), and Second Men, on account of the blood of a particular family, Hubback, a bull got by a bull of the Duchess tribe, will adhere to a bad animal, or a good one that out of a cow of Mr. R. Colling's very fine Red Rose breeds badly, and thus engraft on still deeper plant family. He only went once entirely from that the tendency to badness. I know a small herd in family and then into one equally good, the Princess which there are very superior cows and some worthfamily, in the case of Marske. In twenty years, he less ones. Of them I have two in my mind. They bred but one roan animal in his Duchess tribe, and will represent the whole herd. The one is compact, he (Duke II.) was got by a roan bull, Duke. Dur-fine, light in the offal, ripe in the prime points, with ing all this period Mr. Bates' stock possessed the good style and constitution. The other is big (in greatest uniformity. It was his point to have, and one way), with large head, Roman nose, ewe neck, he had (and still has, though his color is now red and white and roan, the latter coming from his cross with Belvedere, a Princess tribe bull), uniformity in everything, color and excellence. Up to the introduction of Belvedere to his herd, he had adhered to his Duchess blood entirely (except in the case of two or three cows put to Marske), and had produced a disposition to sterility. But for this he would not have used a bull of another family. It is true that he might have, without this as a cause, resorted to Belvedere with advantage, for he was in everything, family and individual excellence, equal to the Duchess tribe. When Belvedere was brought into the herd, the only change he made in a marked manner to the eye, was that some of his get were roan. In essentials the herd remained the same. There was only to be seen that improvement which arises from renovation. It may be, and I incline to the opinion, that this renovation by change was II. Cattle, as individuals, should possess certain necessary, and did really give increased style. conformations to make them excellent. It is easy Since 1831, Mr. Bates has used that blood, a union to say that cattle should have full briskets, round of the Duchess and Princess tribes, mainly, and has chines, full crops, broad backs and loins, long, level only resorted to any other in one instance, viz. and full rumps, round ribs well back, deep flanks, Cleveland Lad. He was got by Short-Tail (by Bel- and fine thighs. Every breeder who fancies (and vedere, dam, a Duchess cow), out of the celebrated the most are mere fanciers and not possessors of Matchem cow, the dam of Mr. Bates' Premium Ox-knowledge) that he knows everything relative to ford cow. I do not speak more of Sir Henry Vane Tempest's stock, as it is little known in this country. thin back, large bone, open ribs, staring coat, hard skin, and harder flesh. These two cows are bred in blood essentially alike. They are owned by a critical judge, but he loses his keenness when his own breeding is at stake. He would reject the bad cow in an instant if she were not his. But the same blood produced both, and he hopes that the blood will overtop the individual defect. But she was got by a good animal. It is her blood that has produced the defect, and she will transmit it increased in power. I have thus dwelt very fully on the principle of uniformity, for the reason that there is no certainty in breeding without it. In doing so I have resorted to the best known herds to illustrate. If a herd of cattle can be found perfectly uniform in its excellences (whatever they may be), it must be superior, in that regard, to any one defective in this point. cattle, will prate in this way. It has become the fashion, and each takes his role as the parrot does her oft repeated chatter. Yet ask one of them I have given these particulars in the history of where the prime meat lies in a carcass, and he canthe herds of the two Collings and Mr. Bates, for not tell you; send him to the market, and he will the reason that, both in England and America, they in his ignorance suffer his butcher to sell him any are well known and deservedly celebrated. These piece at pleasure as prime meat. Go to his yard, particulars will be new to most of the breeders of and he will point you to his cattle, that are bad in cattle. I have selected the Short-Horns as the great brisket, chine, crop, back, loin, rump, rib, flank, and deservedly leading race of cattle, superior where thigh, and claim your admiration. If he has a they are good, to all others, as a standard well bull to show, he will exhibit him as a jockey does a stallion, parading him on rising ground, thrusting | a thin brisket is all bone and worthless; a full one his head up and of course sinking his back till it is is covered with flesh and is valuable. hollow, and his haunch sticks out like a starved 2d. The chine should be broad, full, and level, calf's, stuffed for show with bog hay. This may be and why? If it be sharp and thin it projects. called stallionizing. When he takes you to his There is more bone in a thin chine than in a table, and his cook has served the piece of beef that broad one; it is higher. The space upon which his butcher sold him (and if bad cheated him in it), he muscle attaches itself is so much larger, that more does not know how to cut it; he carves so that, if is devoted to that purpose. Now the more of a good, it is made poor, and if poor, worthless. Yet given quantity of flesh that is used to attach the this same man, if one criticises his cattle, will con- whole mass to its appropriate bones, the greater the demn the judgment. He assumes to be a judge, and tension, and from the tension the tougher the beef. goes to cattle-shows and acts as such. His judgments When the chine is broad and round, the bones are will go by his fancies, and by the interest he has in lower and smaller, the space for attachment is particular strains of blood; and these will follow smaller, and if the flesh be only the same in amount the pedigree of the animals or their breeders' reputa- as in a high chine it will have less tension and be tion. If he be interested in the stock of one of two more tender. But a high chine is always connected rival breeders, he will condemn that of the other. with a flat rib; a broad chine with a round rib A He will perhaps fancy one point and have a proper flat rib attaches to the spine in an oblique direction, notion of it, and will on that one point praise or making an obtuse angle; a round rib attaches in a condemn an animal, and on it make awards, and in perpendicular direction, making a right angle. But most cases wrongly. Into the herd of this judge a the right angle will contain the most flesh. There purchaser who really knows, shall go and choose is more flesh from the capacity of the enclosing his best animals, and the judge will laugh in his space with the same cones, and it is tenderer, besleeve at the ignorance of the buyer. The pur-cause less is used for attachment. Hence broad · chases made by drovers and butchers (who know chines are excellence. and keep their knowledge to themselves) out of 3d. Crops; these are bad for the want of flesh, farmers' herds daily illustrate this. If he has and good from its presence. Hence full crops, bewealth and is a breeder, with a large herd having ing good ones, are excellence. The chines and fashionable pedigrees, he will scatter worthless crops are at the points where the primest beef lies. cattle far and wide, bought by ignorance as profound The animal, to be good, must have them good. as his own. He, and all like him, are the dupes of English cattle jobbers, who foist upon them, miserable brutes, with high sounding pedigrees, at enormous prices. And like this one breeder and judge are the whole race. They know nothing that they do not plagiarize; and when knowledge is given to them, they learn its words and retail them without their spirit. 4th. The back and loins must be broad, and for the same reason that the crop must be broad, to have a round rib and space for flesh and small attaching surface for the muscles. 5th. The rib must be round; and for the reason that it gives breadth of chine and back, and makes a right angle at its junction with the spine, giving room for flesh and less attaching surface. It must be round also, to give more room to the viscera of the chest and belly, and these must be large, to give capacity to furnish the proper amount of nutriment to make a large amount of flesh. Round ribs are excellence. I draw this picture for the reason that by such judges different families and herds (among them the Herefords) have been decried and depressed, and by such I shall be judged and condemned. For my opinion of Mr. Sotham's cattle I have not received one word of approval save from one real judge (a | 6th. The rumps must be long, broad and level. Short-Horn man exclusively, too), but from many, The longer they are the more space for meat; they those of censure. But in the mean time while the must be broad and level, for the reason that the Herefords have been decried by breeders of other chine and back should be. The rump makes some races, by opposing interests and prepossessions in of the best steaks in the carcass; those next the favor of other kinds, on the one hand, keen-sighted hips are the very best in the carcass; the tail end judgment begins to see and purchase on the other. of the rump makes the very best corning piece in Now what are the excellences of cattle? I pro- the animal, and quite as good a steak as the meat pose directing my remarks only to the consumable of the upper part of the loin. The shorter the rump excellences. Head, neck, legs, tail, I shall not the narrower it is, and the less steaks and corning here notice. They are mere offal, and are not eaten. meat. When it is narrow the tail is high, the skin They are good or bad in themselves only as they and muscles are rigid, and the flesh is not only small connect themselves with consumable excellence, in quantity but poor. When it is broad and level, &c.; in themselves from their nature only indicat- the meat is more in quantity and better in quality. ing goodness or badness, and of no consequence 7th. The hip bones should be broad; this because otherwise. Were I to discuss them here, it would of the formation which makes broad backs and occupy more space than proper at present. rumps. The same bony formation which makes Passing them, I will take up first the brisket. back and rump broad, makes hips broad; hence Here lies, in a proper beast, some of the finest they should be broad. They are offal, but are sucorning pieces in the whole carcass. If the brisket rounded by meat; and therefore are important as an be full in front and broad between the legs, there indication, direct, not collateral, as in the case of will be a large layer of fine flesh on it. There proper heads and legs. The wider the hip bones is the same amount of bone in a bad brisket as the more space to hold meat, and the wide ones do in a good one. The expansion into prominence hold the meat which the narrow ones cannot. is nearly, and in breadth wholly, from flesh. Hence] 8. The thigh should be small, thin, light and fine POTATOES VERSUS WHEAT.-A LARGE EAR OF CORN. POTATOES VERSUS WHEAT. 53 A notice worthy the consideration of farmers.-On page 46 of Ellsworth's last report from the Patent Office, in speaking of potatoes, he says (quoting from Jacob's Corn Law Tracts), that an acre of land with the same labor and manure will yield 300 bushels of potatoes or 24 bushels of wheat; and adds, that 7 lbs. of potatoes will give as much nutriment as 2 lbs. of wheat. Let us see the result. The nutriment of 300 bushels of potatoes at 60 lbs. bushels of wheat at 64 lbs. per bushel, is 1,536 lbs., divided by 2 is 768. It follows of course, that it would take 3 acres of wheat to yield as much food as one acre of potatoes. Let us examine the value at market: of 300 bushels of potatoes, at 37 cts., is..$112.50 66 wheat, at $1, is... 24.00 24 Again, at page 78, he gives the comparative value Here I am in opposition to the fashion which most Short-Horn men follow and approve. They follow and approve because it is the fashion, and for no other reason. I have not the space here to assign the entire reasons for my position. If any one is disposed to combat my opinion, I shall be glad to sustain with full reasons my view, and may, perhaps, do so hereafter without having them questioned. I will merely state that the larger the thigh the shorter the rump, and the narrower the hip bones. The pumpkin thighs have always accompa-per bushel, is 18,000 lbs., divided by 7 is 2,571; 24 nying them short rumps and narrow hip bones. The meat of the thigh at the lower end is always coarse. It will not make corned beef, and is only fit to be dried after corning. The larger it is, the coarser and poorer it is, being very dark and stringy. The larger it is at the lower part, the smaller it is at the point where it joins the rump. Now the best part of the meat at the thigh is the upper part next the rump. But when the thigh is very large it is at the expense of the rump and the upper part of the thigh. The rump is prime meat, and the upper part of the thigh is good meat, while the lower thigh is inferior. If the thigh be large, there will be less superior and more inferior meat. I ask that any one who doubts this position, shall view cattle in this respect and measure them alive, and view them dead, and Can one raise 34,200 lbs. of carrots, or 54,000 eat them cooked. I never saw and never heard of lbs. of turnips, or 72,000 cabbage to the acre? If a large thighed cow that was a good milker; or a 34,200 lbs. of carrots can be raised to the acre, large thighed ox that was a good worker. The then the farmer should turn his attention to this larger the thigh the straighter the leg in the root. 300 bushels of potatoes sold in New York dicular, and a straight leg never went with a good at 37 cents per bushel, would buy in Indian bag, nor with working power. A straight leg is a corn at 83 cents, 135 bushels of Indian corn; this bad lever, and the muscles of the thigh below are not would be the cheapest food he could give his cattle. the muscles of draught, but are a weight to prevent Von Thaer, in his Principles of Agriculture, draught; the muscles of draught are along the back, makes 100 lbs. of good hay loin, and upper part of the thigh. Thus big thighs Equal to. make increase of bad beef and decrease of good; diminish the power of working, ruin the milking quality, and never are connected with fineness, but always with coarseness. perpen แ 28 66 Beans. One acre of good grass land will give 3 tons of hay, say, 6,000 lbs. Do. do. 18,000 bushels of potatoes, equal to 9,000 lbs. of hay. Such are the more prominent excellent qualities which cattle as individuals should possess, and which should mark, on the average, a herd. What single herd of large numbers can be pointed to, which embraces in every member an average of all these qualities? At least no Short-Horn herd of any numbers, which has been bred and not collected, and even if collected, if numerous, can be. If it can be I should be glad to know it, and would go a 22 long way to see it. To all these requisitions the Herefords of Messrs. Corning and Sotham answer fully. In head, horns, necks, tails, legs and paunches, they are fine; their offal indicates the high order of the consumable excellence of their carcasses. In their briskets, chines, crops, backs, ribs, hips, rumps and thighs, they are superior and uniform. In their milking qualities they are excellent in quantity and quality. Are they not then valuable? They are indeed, and should be widely disseminated. In my next I shall consider them in detail. If I do not show that as individuals they all are equal on the average to the standard I myself have made by which to measure them, then shall I fail to sustain my position and my judgment. Of that I have no fear. I am confident that my position is well taken and will be sustained. A. S. If this be true, let us see what a clever farmer, near a market, ought to do. Suppose he has 200 bushels potatoes to the acre, at 37 pr.bu...$75 00 2 tons of hay, $15 60 bushels of shelled corn, "621 pr. bu. wheat, "1.00 rye, oats, 18 30 แ 66 75 "40 30.00 37 50 18.00 16 50 12.00 noon. CULTURE OF INDIGO. cut, that the cutting begins and ends in the afterI NOTICED Some letters in your last volume upon As it is cut by the common sickle or reapthe culture of indigo; and as it is one of the subjects hook, it is carried either to a shed, or conveyed and upon which you originally invited my attention, I placed immediately in the steeper, where it is carewill proceed to state as shortly as may be, what I fully spread. When the indigo is placed in the learned in my youth upon this matter. My father steeper from 2 to 2 1-2 feet deep, pieces of scantgrew indigo, as a crop, until I was sixteen years of ling are placed across the indigo weed to keep it age, and was considered to have made a good article. down and from rising as the water is pumped upon The laborers are divided into gangs of ten, and it out of the reservoir. This operation should be are expected to cultivate 30 acres to the gang. The accomplished about sunset; and a steeper of this size soil should be moist whether loam or clay, well usually takes about an acre of ordinary indigo weed drained, and divided by small trenches 24 feet apart. to fill it. The time of steeping is usually from 9 The indigo is drilled 14 inches between the drills. to 10 hours, depending upon the temperature of the The seed is very small, and should be soaked for a water; the warmer it is, the sooner the process is night, then mixed in dry ashes or sand, and sown over. But when the water assumes a light olive along the drill carefully and regularly. Four quarts color, it is time to draw the water into the beater, and of seed carefully sown and well mixed in ashes is the process of beating commences, which is contienough for an acre. In this climate the seed should nued until the fluid becomes lighter in its genebe sown in the first week of April. When it first ral shade, and blue fecula begins to show in the comes up, it resembles white clover or lucerne, water; which the sooner begins from small quantiand should have the grass carefully picked by hand from the drill. When it is an inch or two high, it must be weeded between the rows, and the soil loosened about the roots. Three weedings are enough before the first cutting, which should commence about the first week of July, or as soon as the indigo begins to throw out its bloom. INDIGO VATS.-FIG. 10. ties of line water having been let run by a spigot from the lime water cask, from time to time during the process. After the fecula shows itself distinctly in the water, the vat is left to repose for four hours, when the water is slowly drawn off by holes at different heights so as to allow the indigo to subside to the bottom; as soon as it has done so, it is carefully collected into bags which are hung up to drain. When sufficiently drained, it is placed in boxes 2 feet by one foot to dry under gentle pressure. When sufficiently firm, it is divided into squares, by rule and some sharp instrument, and placed under the shade to dry-commonly, in the upper story of a house. The varieties of indigo were produced, by the time in steeping, in beating, in liming. The shorter steeping and less beating produced the flotent or light blue indigo. But in looking back upon this process, I am astonished at remembering the indifferent and often turbid water that was used in steeping the indigo; which must have injured its quality. For every set of ten hands, there should be what In the dying houses of England, a filtering appaare called a set of works. These formerly cost ratus is made by four boards nailed together, 20 about $100 or more, and were a vat or tank, made of feet long, and a foot square, which is filled with plank two inches thick, well joined. This vat coarse sand or fine gravel, with the ends stopped by (a) is 20 feet square, stands upon posts 4 feet two other boards, with very small holes in them, from the ground, and is kept tight by wedges, driv-and the water used, is drawn through this wooden en into the sleepers upon which the plank rests. filter, from the reservoir, out of doors, to the vat The vat is 3 feet deep, and is called the steeper. within the house, which purifies the water-this Along side of it is another vat (b), 20 feet by 10, could be easily done here. Again, the frequent Occupying the space between the bottom of the rain showers that occur in our common summers steeper, and the ground, into which the water is must have often disturbed both the process of steepdrawn, in which the indigo is steeped, when ready ing and beating, and thus injured the indigo. From to be beat, or churned as we may say. At the end all these causes, the warm process first introduced of this last vat, a small tank or cask (e) must be by Dr. Anderson of Madras, and described by him placed, to furnish lime water in the process of beat-in the Annual Register of Calcutta, and given in a ing. The liquor is drawn from the steeper (a) by note appended to Bryan Edward's history of the a spigot at the bottom of the vat, along the beater (b). West Indies, must be altogether preferable. This Lengthwise of this, is stretched a beam (c), rest-process is under cover, and it is only steeped two ing on its upper ends, and revolving on journalls, hours, the water being heated to 160 degrees. A and furnished with cross arms, to the ends of which house 30 by 20 feet would contain two steepers, 10 are fixed open buckets without bottoms, containing feet square, and two beaters 5 feet by 10, the heatabout two gallons each. Two men, standing on ing apparatus being placed between them; and this beam with a handspike fixed to the long beam, would as I think take off twice the quantity of inalternately plunge the open buckets right and left, digo in a day, besides continuing the process after, thus churning the liquid until it begins to show a by the usual one, when the nights had become too blue fecula, which is produced by small quantities cold. drawn from the lime cask (e). In Georgia the indigo gave two cuttings; and Indigo is so easily injured by the sun after being usually 60 lbs. of indigo, in the two to the acre VALUE OF ANTHRACITE COAL ASHES.-STALL FEEDING AND SOILING. which for three acres is 180 lbs. to the hand. With the warm water process, I see no reason to doubt we would have three cuttings, a better quality of indigo, and probably more of it; and this Dr. Anderson stated is the case. My indigo-house has been built now two years, and I have only been prevented by the untoward seasons of the two years past from carrying out his plan. 55 1845, the same piece of ground was planted with corn (as the grass seed did not take well in consequence of the dry season of '43), and coal ashes were again tried on another part of the piece and applied as before, and with the same results; the corn being much larger where they were applied, than where none was used-indeed it was much larger than where the barnyard manure was used. It will be recollected that the summer of '45 was a very dry one, and such seasons are not commonly considered as favorable for ashes of any kind; but for aught that I could see, the drought affected that part where the ashes were the least of any. I am now trying an experiment which I think the most barren spot that I could find (and which in the spring I intend to plant with corn) of about four rods square, and sowed it very plentifully with coal ashes. If under ordinary circumstances, it yields a fair crop, I shall attribute it to the fertilizing properties of the coal ashes; and the result I will make known to you in due season. The following is addressed to yourself and Mr. Partridge, whose communications upon this and other subjects, I greatly value. Why not throw steam into your steeper, for 10 or 15 minutes, and then pump the water from your tank? What is a little curious, steam allowed to pass off at the boil-will test the matter thoroughly. Last fall I selected ing point just heats to 160 degrees, the very point which Dr. Anderson found the proper temperature for extracting, or as I would say, taking off the coloring matter from the weed. Again we find, in all applications of steam, it acts more promptly and more perfectly than water-as witness the Turkish bath. By this process much labor would be saved in heating the water; we would have also an exact measure of heat; and experience would soon give the due measure of time. Nothing but my age and infirmities, combined with two bad seasons, have prevented my carrying out the experiment, but I would be gratified at having Mr. Partridge's opinion upon the subject. THOMAS SPALDING. Sapelo Island, Georgia. VALUE OF ANTHRACITE COAL ASHES. Milton, Ct., Jan. 12, 1846. GEO. H. RANDLE. (a) Our correspondent will find this subject treated at considerable length in Vol. 1, of the Agriculturist, pp. 236 and 324. Also a short notice of their value, Vol. 2, p. 11. We are not the less pleased, however, to be favored with this communication, and trust the writer will forward us an account of the experiments he contemplates making the coming season. tural Association of this city the present month; and We intend to bring this subject before the Agriculget an analysis of anthracite coal ashes by some of other kinds of ashes, and learn their exact value good chemist. We can then compare it with those to the farmer. STALL FEEDING AND SOILING. I HAVE been a subscriber to the Agriculturist for the year past, and among the variety of subjects of which it treats, but more especially under the head of manures, I have looked in vain for an article upon the properties of ashes from anthracite coal, as an article of manure. (a). There is a vast amount of ashes annually made from anthracite coal in this vicinity, and throughout the country, and it becomes an important matter of inquiry No person can carry out the system of stall feedwhether they possess those fertilizing properties ing and soiling cattle, with a view of increasing the common to wood ashes, or whether they possess quantity and quality of manure, unless he has good any value at all. Among us there is a variety of premises for that purpose. Good barns and stalls, opinions upon the subject, some maintaining that and good sized yards, are necessary for the profitathey are not only of no value, but a positive injury ble wintering of stock. Too few, I regret to find, to most soils, while others maintain that they are are provided with these advantages. Let any one nearly or quite as good as wood ashes. I incline drive through the country and see with what small to the latter opinion. I would not say that they and scanty barns, sheds, and yards, the farmers are are as valuable; but that they are of sufficient provided to make the most of their cattle through value to make it an object for those who burn coal the winter. Many a man is cultivating from 200 to save all the ashes for the purposes of manure. to 300 acres of good land, when he has not buildI have tried them sufficiently to satisfy my own ings for more than half the quantity he works. I mind; and if a simple statement of facts as brought believe it is admitted by every one who has cultiout by my own experience will induce others to try vated strong, wet, clay land, that before any imthe experiment, or will be the means of bringing up the subject for discussion in your paper, I am sure I shall feel gratified, and the community at large will be benefited. provement can take place, it must be well drained. This is not an expensive process. If the farmer will only take a good agricultural paper, in which he will see the best modes that have been tried by In the summer of 1842, I put upon a piece of others, he may easily accomplish it with a little ground which I planted with corn, on the most energy and perseverance on his part. He may be barren parts of it, some two or three cart loads of assured that the money and labor will be returned coal ashes, spread broadcast, and very thick. The to him ten fold. I believe if the farmers of this result was, that there was a very perceptible differ-present day will drain their lands where it is wantence in favor of that part which was covered with ed, get a good new improved sub-soil plow, and the ashes, although it was on decidedly the poorest not be afraid to plow deep, they may accomplish soil; and this difference was perceptible the year more than they are aware of. Dutchess Co., N. Y. J. D. WILLIAMSON. following in the crop of oats. In the summer of |