Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1858-08-07
A DAY AT TIE Aston HOUSE FARM.

nm his farm for the exclusive use of the Astor Huse
conducted by his father in Law, convinced that il
would pay him well; and the result has more than
realized his expectations. The rideto It over the /
Hoboken ferry u one of the finest in ell this region.
The scenery is exquiste-hes road IL in elegant or.
der. New Jersey of the best farming States
in the Union, and the evidence Of thrift and high
culture meets one on oil sides. Near the landing at
Hoboken is the harbor Of the New York Sailing
Cub About twenty vessels Of the fieet lay here at
anchor. So many elegant sailing craft cannot be
seen together ON the continent elsewhere. The
Wande,er, recently under the seizure Ut the U. s.
officers the charge of being fitted up for the slave
trade, attracts great attention. Se Is IN an elegant
VESSEL the fastest saer in our waters, can acroIlu.
date nearly two hundred slaves, and the public sus.
pcion Is by no means allayed in regard to accomo-
cations and her destination, though she has been re-
leased by the U. S. Marshal.
In passing on to the farm we Iaversed the mar.
shes, containing thirty thousand acres Of land, now
y mere swamp. patch here and there under cul.
t,vation indicates what this waste would BECOME un
der the hand Of tiliage This vast tract could he
now purchased at about $50 per acre. The farmer
soon would redeem it from waste. 1t could be made
like garden; and as it is not four mies from the
city, it would afford supply Of all the vegetables
for New York. A part Vi 1t has beef, made MUIR
sery by Mr.. Justin. the planter Of the Central Park.
and his trees flourish like The "gree, bay tree of
the olden time No "buttom' on the Mississippi
can equal this in richness-nor will it long remain
q waste
Gree on the farm the cattle attract attention Of
the visitor. The stable is on q novel plan and in
geniuusly fitted for the purposes of its erection.
Fifty COWS stand before you all in row, and the
puted taste Of the host of the A>Or is lessened
by the appearance Of the cattle. The stables are
sweet and clean as dairy. These fed
the sweetest hay and the best Of meal and are
grooined daily horse would be, and roam i'm clio.
fields all the summer. They are fed cotton
meal BY the invention of gentleman whose name
do iecollect, the fuse has been taken from The
cotton se.d and the meal makes the best food for
cows, better than llnseed, corn meal or any other.
The cotton meal goes to milk first then to meat, and
lastly to fat. From these four hundred Quarts
of miik per day carried into the Aston for the
OF the guests. The cows are MIXED q, q.
clock each morning. and the milk reaches the Astor
in the cool Of the day, and from the milk taken at
night, twenty. quarts Of pure c,eam are sent in
also for the daily use Of the hnse. An ice h,,,se If
a novel arrangement, with v, ntlators and cooling
chamber receives the meat and vegetables Milk
can Le kept sweet a week and fruit for long time
In these days "i swirl milk and terror, such dairy
meets the eye here is welcome sight.
Next We cometo the pigg-ry. An immense build
ing. cruc'form IN shape, with cupola, like acad
envy, indicates where the pork nf the Asor House
is raised. Here six hundred hogs are annually rails
ed for the slaughter. Each hing has his parlor his
yard and sleeping apartment to himself, while heing
fed and read, for the ma, ket Attached to the
house are seven acres Of land, dotted with small
houses, into VIII Oh the pigs may run and he safe.
and here the brorls luxurate hill and dale, in heat
and shade. railroad car runs from the house
~here the food is cooked to the pens and the food
is trundIed in the track, and bv a simple contri
vance, all the hogs compelled to wait till The
food is served before they help themselves. The
Swill from the Aston House is taken away befnre
daylight each dav. so that is annoyed. A
cart perfectly tight stands in the yard of the Aston
House all day and ,eceves all that is placed in it,
ihar tS Cp 0yr Vnp1afo &c ArSro in enItv
morn, all sweet ana clean, and the full one s taken
out and the empty one left in its place. This swiil
is taken to the farm and in an immense vat is cook
ed for the swine. In the process all the fat and
grease that rises is taken off Gen Steson has kept
the Astnr twenty one years next July. the swill
from the house has been sold and removed for the
sum Of $500 per year The farm has made this dis.
coverv, that the grease that rises from the Co king
of the food Of the hog independent Of the food, is
worth annually and brings the snug little sun in
cash Of $4,000. Pigs noble and plrbeian are here
pigs English, pigs Chinese, pigs Siamese. A smoke
house completes the l'nrkery Of he farm. A man
is employed to take care Of this department he
does nothing else-and a house and grounds
given to him.
Next We advance to the poultry honse-prohably
the most perfect in the land. The building is $40
feet long and is If stories The " r"o>t' is di.
vided into four apartments; the roo>t frames are
sassaras to keep out vermin apartments fur laying
setting, &C. in gr at perfection. perfect svs-
nest ceansed each day. and at regular intervals
she is compelled to take airing. Ab""t 1000 eggs
per dav ready for the house. and with the system
of warming the building. the hens lay in the dead
of inter, and frt sh.lad eggs can be had at one
son of the year we'll another. Attached TO the
hen house are seven of land carefully inclosed
where the chickens and their associates have the
liberty Of the v 3D." Each hen with brood has
house in the field exclusively her own. and each
day the house is moved, that removal makes the
~ IT, ~
keep out of it, Here 3O,t 90 poultry raised a
year. The chicken department is under the charge
Of gentleman, trained in England under Lord
Northup, and the fifteen years. experience in the old
country is we'll used here. The lofty hall over the
roost is devoted the final feeding Of capons for
the table Each Of the 1000 fat capons that to
he honorcd with revolution the spit Of the Aston
House Kitchen have here their final preparation on
the "corn Of the land" Here also is to he placed
an incubator, Of the newest model, where by the
means of hot water. chi"kens cheated into life !;
and after they come out. they clapped into
other machine called the mother" where. for the
second time. they awfnlly deceived with the idea
| that they under the mohery of an old hen.
| Six hundred eggs can be Matched At time and
the total of chickens that will probably see life
under this novel method, is not far from IL 600 a
year.
| The turkey yard comes next, from which 300 tur-
keys per year come forth. And then an immense
tract-five acres-watered by running brook EN-
inenty suggestive of trout, is called "Duckville'
IN which the ducks and geese, in countless numbers
fatt ned for the tabe.-Besdes. there are acres
Of Strawberries. which picked the rate Of one
cent per basket; and a g"od picker can realize one
dollar per day. All the Injuries Of the ho,beds all
| the flowers fine herbs CELERY grapes pears and an.
Piles that may be needed for the table-with acres
Of potatoes corn. beets and all the roots used for
food, grow on the farm. Hay in vast quantities, and
beet. fattening in the stalls meet the eve
At the head Of this model farm stands Major For
h~ Is-c
condition Of the farm Indicates that he is az able in
the plowed as in the "tented field" Sixteen men,