Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1858-02-06
WARQg TY.
From tho Carolina Spartan.

FROM lIc NaTollhb spartan.
Drainage.
As the hills lose their soil, the low lands,
in every country, increase in Importance,
and in process of time become the farmers
chief dependence 1t must be obvious,
then, that few subjects, in relation to our
agricultural system, demand more the at
tention and skill of the cutivator than
''drainage." There is an underground eli
mate and an atmospheric climate above the
surface. Both must unite--thc one upon
the root, the other upon the stem and the
leaves, or no healthy fruit or prolific crop
can be produced. "Water-logged" lands
at once continue cold, and exclude tirU ar
from the rootS-Avlrivh Is rulnous to vcgcta-
tio...- The sovereign remedy, in all such
cases, is thorough drainage. Itis known
that in the earl ly spring the earth is cold
too cold for vegetable growth. But it is a
well known fact that water, though heated
on the surface, will not communicate It's
heat downwards 1t is obvious then-no
matter how genial the atmosphere may be
the instcrticcs being all filed with cold
water, and the air thus excluded, the root,
in ''watcr-logged' lands must not only CON
tinuc cold, but the air being excluded, it is
deprived of one of its chief resources of nu-
trin,ent. But when, by deep drainage, the
water is removed, the air takes it place.
But this is not all. The warm air thus
fcrmenting the soil carries down what gar
dencrs call "bottom heat" with it, again:
The cold stagnant water being drained off,
the warm rains of the surface also descend
Hence, well drained lauds will be found
from ten to twenty degrees warmer than
"watcr-logged" lands. In this latter kind
of ground the warm rain increases in tenn
pcrature by falling on a warmer surface
is prevented from descending, because it
being lighter cannot displace the colder
and heavier water beneath Indeed, hot
water might be raincd for month upon
"watcrlogged" land and yeti temperature
would not probably be affected an inch be-
low the surface of the stagnant water with
which it is filed. On the contrary, if the
soil be open and not "water-logged," the
warm rain desccnds through the crcyices
of the earth, carrying with it the high tenn
pcraturc ii has gained at the surface, and
imparts it to the root as it passes downward,
and thus produces that "bottom heat" 80
essential to vegetation Thus by deep
draining and deep trencAing, magical eff
feet may be produced. Thus, too, the val
uc Of lands may be increased often from ten
to hundred fold AGRICOLA.
TIE GLUCosE OF THE SORGHUM CHANG
ING TO CANE SUGAR.-Dr. Augustus A.
Hayes, Of Boston, assayer to the State of
Massachusetts, who has made occasional
contributions to our columns, has come
prominently before the public during the
present year, because of his opinion that
the sugar of the Chinese cane would, in no
case, granulate and yield pure cane sugar
An abstract of his paper, read before the
Scientific Convention at Montreal, was pub
hshed in No. 50, of Vol. XII, of the
Scientific american. His Investigations,
in conjunction with Dr. Bacon, of the same
city, were compiled and published in an
article which he furnished for Mr.. Olcotts
"Sorgho and Imphec." Subsequently,
however, he has made further examination
of his samples of syrups, and, to his great
surprise, found that large masses of actual
cane sugar crystals had formed in them-
The samples of glucose w oh DR. Hayes
had in his possession, turned into crystal
line sugar, by simply standing certain
length of time Efforts have been hereto.
fore made by chemists, but without sncccss,
to obtain crystal sugar from glucose; hence,
itwas concluded, that such conversion of
it was impossible. The chemical change
referred to, DR. Hayes announces to be
something entirely new, and that it will
largely enhance the value of the Sorgho.
---s. -s--------
"THIs is George the Fourth, said an
exhibitor of ygax-Uork rnintincS fo q dim
figure. ~ thought he was very stout
man" "Vcry likely, but if you'd been
here without victuals half so long as he has,
you'd been twice as thin"
JONES has discovered the respective ma
lures of distinction and difference. lie
says that "little Difference" frequently
makes many enemies, while Ga little Dis
tinctioh" attracts hosts of friends to the
enc on whom it is conferred.