New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1854-06-07
KING.BIRDS IND FARMERS' CLUBa

To he Editor Of The " TTibsEe
SIR: In your Weekly OF May 20 published abstract
OF paper read before the Farmers CuJ under the
heading OF The Birds and the Farmers" Speaking o.
the K,ng-Bird, the author Of that paper says:
AS to his eating honeybee, is preposcrous i,s
sting is Nature efficient guard against such enemies. II
any doubt this fact let them produce oae honey-bee from
the stomach Of hingBrd and thu statement VIII be de-
'aied Mr. John G; Bell the best eAder' . N ne
found honeybee in the stomach OF single one Ihs IS
sufficient evidence for me.
Now, this may be sufficient erleeHce FOR eng cR'
farmer but to farmer II is no more man
the simple fact that Mr. Rel found honeybo in
the stomach Of Kngbird. Every farmer who knows
Knc-brd from a nichhawk who has half m eye, and is
in The habit of going about with open, knows that King
birds do cat bees. have opened the stomach OF King
bird ard have the veriable honey-bee therein
friend OF shot King bird and released from us crop q
live hone, oee which, after exposure Tor hoii ne ne"
away. This fact is sufficient for me whether before INC
Farmers Club ii would preponderaie over tle "eiYhy
fact that distinguished naturalist failed 10
in the somachs of King birds. know not Perhaps, IN
the estimation of a club of JooS,sh farmers the positive
experience Of practical farmer is not 10 be receYea
contradiction of the negative experience o distinguished
naturalist. -,
Seriously, protest against this Joos''h Jar@'ag We
country farmers do not believe that the man WHO studies
agriculture lie sits at his paror window ana surveys Ms
farm bounded on side by city avenue ana on me
other BY his neghboTs garden wall and reports hs expe-
rence through the Farmers Club Is safe counselor we
S"N'
club of farmers, as lew for Us.
We take pride in farming and we have ciuD. Ou
clu5 the store or blacksmith snop II always
adourns de- and never flags except IN iaf weather
Most the members either take some agricultural paper
or-as seems generally preferred-somo newspaPer with
well-conduced agricultural column but so eininentiy
practical are they that they cannot help sas-tnS when
they read iha Kngbrs do not eat bees or that cows shed
.her horns once fl wear. Your, Ac.. J. p.
FroaSiia De- Co. y. Y. May a 1854
Remarks.
3D. T." volunteers as critic and of course challenges
criticism lie speaks his mind with entire freedom which
ye like and shall initiate. II he should happen 20 fee,
somewhat smaller at the end of this discussion than he did
al the beginning he will know whom 10 blame for the cir
oImsianoe.
l. An eminent naturalist who has devoted DIS life 10
watching the habits and dongs Of birds testes that he
never saw King bird honeybee, and has e'lscera-
ted many King birds without. finding any honeybee within
them This is certainly as direct and :ogen testimony as
can be adduced on dat side of the question But j. T.
saws lie has found in the stomach OF Kng-brds
and that friend shot Kngbrd and released from is
crop lre honey-bee. Now ii j. 2. will Just give hs
public his name with that of has friend aforesaid his test,
mopv will overbear that OF Messrs Bel and Hooper on the
other side-.hat 10 say the that two hare found
bees in King birds crops Will oyerbea- the iac. that ether
men have opened many King-brts Efaou tndn- any.
Yet even then consider safe TO infer from The TACT
that nauralis, like Mr. Bell mas watched Kog-birds
many wears and never seen one eat bee and opened
many KiDg.brds without finding bee ha, hingorts are
not IaJual destroyers OF bees Is :; not 80
Suppose two astronomers in the planet jupiter armed
with telescopes which enabled them 10 discern and wacn
the denzeus of Earth, 10 rpor-one that he hGd
seen one man killing another the second that he had
watched men through several years and witnessed
homcidc-would it not be the legitimate conclusion Of the
Jupi,erians that though d.d sometimes Kill each
other vet murder was nevertheless Iot hab;ua and or
binary occurrence
.. ~. P protests against this 5ookish farming by
men who study agriculture from Their paro. wndoWs'
and whose farm consists of city LOT or two ms beng
avowedly aimed at the Farmers Club Of this City We
proceed 20 ventae j. F. ignorance without regard 10
his inperneIee.
OF the thirty forty gentlemen whom We have me- al
the Farmers Club, we do not know one who Is noi
prsctca farmer Prof Mapes, though but few years
farmer is very successful and produces more from
ffv acres than many a; boosfarmng 90 from
thousand. Messrs Pell, LAYTON, Waring, Livingston
Are all practical and many of them extensive farmers
Scion Robinson the only attendant Of the Club whom we
bsnnen now TO recoect no, a; this time engaged N
farming and he followed the pillow for livelihood through
least forty of the best years OF his life He began IN
New-Engand and has had experience OF al hns oil rice
Labor farming up 10 that OF squaier N CABIN on
western prairie since which he has travelled and observer
through all the southern States. making himself familiar
with Cotton Corn and Cane culture by slave labor Per
hans j. p" thinks man disqualified for speaking on
Agriculture unless he has stuck fast to one piece o. sVu'
all his DAYS. Ifhe does, Others do not
I'm, Iet u NEE, this sheer at BOosisk farming d.
-ccv Rocks on Agriculture compounded Of records
e,perenoe Of practical farmers and Of developments
r,,,urai s,ys through science. youas farmer neiaeF
60 ignorant 40 70 suppose be already knows eTeyh's'
.,..,i oil. ~ irna..nc nobody can tee b lin any