The Columbian informer, or, Cheshire journal — Keene, N.H., 1795-04-14 00:00:00, page 2

M. Russell,
I HAVE observed with great pleafare,
that you occasionally devote a part of the
Ceatinel to Agricultural fubjaSs. You
may rely on it, that it gives great fatis
faftioa to your country customers. As I
expe& you will continue thus in well doing,
let me request you to infer, the following,
and therein oblige, among many others,
yours, THE FARMER'S FRIEND.
to be clearly decided by the experiments.,
When the flecks appear above ground,
keep earthing them up at least eighteen
inches high, leaving always about two or
three inches above ground, for, fays
the author, " the higher you earth them
up, the greater will be their produce ; for
tte potatoes from the (hoots if properly
attended to, wi4 not spread in the ground,
\ butafcer.d to the furface as you may fee
them when dug cut growing to the flock
as Onions tied to a trace."
The superior advantage of railing Pota
toes from the (hoots instead of the Pota
toes themfeves, are the following^
ift—The feed Potatoes, which in Ire
land are reckoned to be one sixth of the
whole crop, are a clear saving.
2 d—The fame fpacvcf ground will
produce twice or three times the quanti
ty.
3 d. —The growth is more vigorous,—
The produce earlier and of a better qua
lity.
4 th.~ The labor of cutting the feed
Potatoes into what are called feta or fcul
lains is also saved.
„h.— It is probable they will not be so
apt to degenerate as in the old way of rai
ling them.
In proofof thole advantages, and in or
IN compliance with the order of the
Society, I have made an extract from the
Pamphlet entitled 66 Letter# to the Right
Honorable Dublin Society, on the culture
of Potatoes from the shoots, by the Rev.
William Maunfell, L. L D." Printed in
Dublin, 1794.
In this P m,hlet the most eligible process
in cultivating Potatoes from their shoots,
is not particularly pointed out, but we
are left to judge from the great variety of
experiments which are minutely described
ia it, none of which leemed to have fail
ed of faceefs,and in some every (hoot plan
ted has been productive.
By the shoots are meant those fibres or
branches which immediately grow from the
eyes or toe Potatoes after they have begun
to vegetate without being put into the
earth.
— ?4X folfd&Ag are .'.'" "':ss r '"rh
have been generally used in planting them.
Ift. —Drills of about fax ~..n<s deep
and two feet apart from each other, arr
made in ground previoufl, prepared in
the usual way. Potatoe shoots are then
cut into lengths of about five or fix inches
each and planted in the drills, fix inches a
(under, with their thickest ends or those
which have been next to the Potatoe dowt
wards. They are then covered with earth
about one inch under.
firt He concluded by faring, he was
happy to fee the accession of many gentle
men to hit opinion, and doubted not but
many others would follow.
Extras from the proceedings of the Nezv-1 ork
Agricultural Society.
THE President of the United States
having forwarded to the President
of the Society, a Treatise lately publilhed
in Leland on an improved method of raif.
iag Potatoes, and req jetted chat after pe
ruial, it might be returned to him again ;
Simeon de Witt, Esq. war directed to pre
pare an abftrad of the fame,and make re
port thereof to the Society ; which ab
firzß and report is as follows, viz.
Mr. Brandling said a few worf, on
which the Houle divided on the amend
ment.
For the amendment, 70.
Against it, 245.
Majority, 173.
s^^^ ^^^^^^
FROM the COLUMBIAN CEN TINEL.
Or zd.— A farrow is made with a plough,
so , °-»g f,read in it.— the furrow is
efofed back with the plough,and the shoots
planted in it as you would do cabbages
with setting flicks.
Or 3d.— The shoots are laid down in
any diredion in the furrow at proper dis
tances from each other and covered with
the plough.
Which of those methods of planting,
is the best of the whole, does not teem
AGRICULTURAL MISCELLANY.
der to throw more light upon tVs fubjea,
I thail now make tome miscellaneous quo
tations from the pamphlet, feleded out
of a great number of arguments, certi
ficates, letters and affidavits, tending to
the fame purpose, to cite ail which would
carry us into the perplexity intended to be
avoided.
" At a meeting of the Common Coun
cil, of the city of Limerick, held the
10. h day of Feb. 1794, in the Common
Council Chamber of laid city.
“ Richard Harte, Esq. having (hewn
to the Mayor and Common Council, the
produce of one tingle potatoe ihoot, agree
able to the Rev. Dr Maunfeh's. new dis
covered mode of culture, containing six
ty eight potatoes, with the fleck from said
floor, (even feet in length ; B n. Frende,
Eq. late Mayor, with seven ocher gen
remeu, having fan the farprifing pro.
duce from the shoots in Dec. 1792, is 'hr
Rev. Dr. M'uafell's potatoe garden ~
Hcury D. Elbrre, Esq. car prefentL .y.
nr, r.vtng bcea witatfs to tbejmflE^m
hr f#C!rd 1 Dec. lad, uicr.:
in Dr. MaeufeH's garden."
" Refolved,that the thanks of the Com
mon Council be given to the Rsv. Dr.
Maunfell for his very ingetius and ufefol
difeovery, for his indefatigable pains in
reducing the culture from the shoots to a
perfea 6 stem, 2nd for his liberal com
munication of the fame to the public.
64 R fol red, that Dr. Maunfell deserves
every compliment the public can pay him.
" Rcfolved that a copy of these refalu
tious be sealed with the City Seal, and
that our town Clerk, do wait on Dr.
Maunfell, with ths fame."".
Signed by Order.
EDWARD PARKER,Town Clerk.
" To convey the savings of this mode
of culture in still plainer terms, without
going into fra&ions, or too complicated
a calculation, and ffiew the savings on an
acre,fuppohng the culture from the fhects,
properly attended to. In the firft in
dance, the tiller will save half the rent
of the acre, (an half acre under fltoots pro
ducing, equal to an entire acre from Scul
lains) which at 61. the acre is a saving of
fl. zdly, he will save half the quantity
of manure, which I suppose worth zl.—
Thirdly, he will save the entity feed, 5
barrels, 48 ftoaes each, at 2j-d. medium
price per done, zl. tos. And fourthly,
half the labour of cultivating the acre,
which I shall suppose il. tot. So that by
substituting the fheots instead of the fcul
lians, there will be a saving to the tiller
of about 9!. on an acre. This is but a
moderate calculation, when compared with
the produce mentioned in some of the let
ters received from a gentleman, who tri
ed the experiment last season.
“ The usual mode of preparing pota
toes for fowife is by cutting the potatoes
into as many pieces as it has eyes ; these
when cut are called sets, in faith, fcullains,
and are let to lie for several days, until
a kind of cruft appears on the part that is
cut; for the tiller imagines that if the
sets or fcullaias were set down, as soon as
cut, the snails and worms would soon in
jure them, and the crop would be greatly
leflfened; but the failure, in my opinion.
LIMERICK, &C.
“ The Rrv. Dr. Maunfell, having
made an experiment on the culture of Po
tatoes, from the Shoots, requeued our at
tendance to fee the proof of his experi
ments. We accordingly went, on Dec.
27 h, to his garden, to fee them dug.—
Toour very great surprise on digging two
drills, of 28 feet each, we found them
the largest and finefl we ever saw, and of
different kinds; we made the laborer
dig the fame length of a bed of potatoes,
sown in the usual manner, and we weigh
ed the produce of each, and found Dr.
Maunfell's mode of culture from the (hoots
to weigh twice as much as those contain
ed in the bed, though three drills are sap.
posed to contain the ground in a bed ;
and we do verily believe, that Dr. Maun
fell's culture of potatoes, is the greased
difeovery that has been in Agriculture,
this century past, and that he has reduced
the culture from the (hoots to a perfect
and certain f,ltem, and that it will (from
what appeared to uQ be a saving to the
nation, of £.750,0)0 and 250,000 acre 4
annually."
CERTIFICATE OF THE MAYOR OF
OBSERVATIONS OF THE AUTHOR.
" BEN. FRENDE, Mavor,
« JOHN fUTHEL,
“ RICHARD HARTE,
VPHIL. RUSSELL."
- " Few potatoes preserve their original
ity, because they exhaust thcmftlves be
fore they are sown ; to preserve them in
their best state, they should be sown as soon
as they Begin to vegetate: If this be not
attended to,the potatoe tillage will dwindle,
& instead of large potatoes & a good crop,
which the countryman flatters himfelf that
rich manure and good tillage must pro
duce, he will find his potatoes small, and
oftentimes scarce worth digging."
" The (hoots in spring, when carefully
taken off and laid in small heaps covered
lightly with earth, like Asparagus plants,
are in a state of vegetation, until you can
with convenience plant them; butit is bell
to plant them immediately after they are
separated from the potatoe."
" Every kind of potatoe should be
sown separately, if they be not, but sown
with differ© t kinds.'hey,from conraft,par
ticipue 4 the quality 0+ each other, anc
I,l^^ o but a iponoui kind of potatoe."
;" Good covering, is tie very life of
potatoe tillageahis is an observation rau&
.led on experience, though little attended
to, and the reason way potawe tillage N
generally lb peer, G oxaufe -lie) think a.
light covering of an inch er two fufficient,
without ever considering that the potatoes
afeend to the furface, and the more cov*r
ing,the greater produces This I have ex
perienced in those shoots planted in drills,
for the potatoes have afeended on the
flock, each covering, producing an addi
tional layer, and the whole drill appear
ing as one continued heap of potatoes."
The foregoing extract, contains the
substance of what I deemed the most ma
terial parts of the pamphlet, brought with
in as small a compass as i could, with
out doing too much injustice to the sub ea.
I hope I have accomplished the intention
of the order of the society ; and flatter my
'elf that it will at least occasion experi
ments to be made in our American foil C
order to afeertain whether the very hiph
expectations, entertained in Ireland, with
refpea to the utility of this difeevery,
can be realized on this fide of the Atlan
tic.
Utrecht and Amsterdam are in the
hands of the enemy, and they are expeded
here to morrow. Our whole Court, with
Lord St Helens, your Ambassador, left
us last Sunday for Sheveling, a circum
stance that has not little turned the minds
of many against the Stadtholder's family ;
so that we have every reason to believe a
rupture will soon take place between this'
country and England. We expea that all/
does not proceed from its being newly
sown ;'for it is obvious to every perfen
conversant in the sowing of potatoes, that
the fetor fcullain long before it is cut
from the potatoe, and even the potatce it
felf, appears hagged and fhrivelled up,
owing to the different shoots proceeding
from it; and even these when sown, do
not grow ; one third at lead perilhes, be
cause the Itrength has been taken from
them by the different shoots proceeding
from it ; and if there be any small remains
of life in the fcullain, it perishes on the
very threshold of vegetation ; because when
come to its birth it has not strength to
bring forth.
" It is well known to such perfoas as
have paid any attention to the culture of
potatoes in the common mode of tilling,
that they are apt to degenerate. This i
have experienced in some potatoes of a
superior quality sent me as a present. 1
paid every attention to lowing, but when
they were fit to dig, I found them vastly
inferior to those I had eat with the gen
tleman who furnifhed me with the feed.
" This degeneration (if I may use the
expression,) did not proceed from a differ
ence in foil or tillage, both being equally
good, and equally attended to, but from
the weakness of the potatoes,their strength
having been exhausted by fucceflive shoots
before I had received them.
Miscellaneous Articles—
FOREIGN.
Whereupon it was resolved, That the
said abftraft be published for the informa
tion of our fellow-citizens, and that it be
recommended to them to make experi
ments on the culture of potatoes, accord
ing to this new mode, and forward the re
sults therof, to this foeiety.
B, order, SAM. L. MITCHELL, See ry.
Senate Chamber, March 9, 1795°
HAGUE, JAN. 20.
S. DE WITT.
C. France will cede the Austrian low
countries._io a Prb eof the Empire.
lllidl be r& rio >fymA|^^^
111. The caviea f ior of the Rl^re ^nrGtyl
the Scheldt, shall be laid open.
IV. The reßoration of the French Weft.
India iflands,{hall be guaranteed to France.
V. Holland to become a free Repub
lic, and independent of th# Stadtholder.
.January 23.
The Burgomasters of Amsterdam have
assured General Pichegru that the Dutch
navy shall be preferred for the service of
France. Tire French on their part, pro
miTe that private property shall be held sa
cred.
The fpecie,family platejewels and prin- < "W|
cipal archives, of the House of Orange,
are fafely arrived in England.
The British army is to pursue its route
to Embden with all speed, and there to em
bark for England.
FEBRUARY 3.
A frefh order has been sent from the .I#
Admiralty office to all the dockyards, to
exclude all strangers of every defcnption.
The fame is to be observed in pnvatef
yards, where Government control are
"ft U i's"ffid that the c^^ffaS
our army were obliged to be left * ° "
et. The bofpital Qat n ,f,^h^d t
and feme others, which confided in tyW
communication will foen be flopped be
tween the two countries, this is probably
the last Mail that will be sent off by the
present rout.
Hopes were still entertained, that a part
of the Dutch fleet would be brought o£
as a number of the officers and fearaen,
were attached to the house of Orange,and
it seems the passage was still open, or at
least that they might be deflroyed. A
gainst this probability, however, there
was the certainty of a strong and most vig
ilant opposition among the Burghers, who
had formed themselves into a committee
of observation, and had pledged them
selves to preserve for France, the navy,
arsenals and public property of all kinds,
entire, upon condition that private prop
erty should be held fared ; that the
Republic should be made independent;
and that the Magistrates should be
freely chosen by the People. These
were the only terms they demanded
from the French; and upon these they
proposed to enter into an alliance, and to
agree that their navy should co-operate
with the fleet of France against the En
glish, whom they call the common enemy.
Admiral Kingfbergen remained in the
Texel with the Dutch Fleet in Commis
sion. It is supposed that, he will declare
in favor of the majority of his country
men.
Weare happy in being able to confirm
the statement we gave yesterday, of his se
rene Highness, the Stadtholder having
reached this country, his son, the Heredi
tary Prince, is also arrived.
When they arrived at Harwich, on
Tucfday afternoon, it was with difficulty
they could get to land, owing to the quan
tity of ice. Numbers of Dutch seamen
were on the beach, but did not shew the
least anxiety to assist the boats: The
English boatmen leaped into the sea, and
brought the Princes to shore on their
ffioulders. They were received with eve
ry mark of attention by the people: The
milr' r 'were drawn out ; ty were salut
ed with a difeharge of guns ; and the pop
abre, having taken the horses from the
carriage provided for them, drew them
to their lodgings.
Just as the Princes were embarking for
Zee was entirely frozen over, and <\nfe
quently that the flips of war in the bor
of Amflerdam must fall into the hands of
the enemy, who were then within a league
of that city, the principal inhabitants of
which were gone out to greet the arrival
of General Fichegru. The freezing over
cf the Zuyder Zee, an event which has
not happened for more than 100 years,will
enable the French to march immediately
frora Amsterdam into every other province,
with great facility.
A paper at Vienna, contains the follow
ing as terms upon which Frapcr,has agreed
a pear- with the Emperor, may be con
cluded : .
THE DUTCH NAVY.
JANUARY 22.
LONDON JAN. 20.