New-York daily tribune., 1859-01-13

fofett making fences, &c, &C, Win VIC hecessiy
of working for others ID procure those nece.sares
Of Life that the n,rrow patch of stumpy cleaning
refuses to supply, consume at least fve-s1ths OF
the time; 90 that the Por man who from the mrs,
adds FIVE acres per snnum 70 the area Of arabic
soil which surrounds his cabin. does very well
But when fifteen or twenty acres thus cleared
begin to furnish adequate bread for his family and
grass for bis cattle the case rs braTely altered.
Mills are by this time nearer and more easily
reached; rosds are better, and require lees labor
at bis hands; each addition 10 bis clearing requires
fencing on but two sides instead of three or fo1r
a. at first; the older stumps begin to yield TO the
pow; wild animals and birds are less destructive
Of his growing crops than when the clearing was
but hands breadth; so that two or three days
per week may now be gi7en 10 clearing initead oi
one. After forty acres have been cleared, the TIM
Der ceases to be an obstacle; the neighbOrlDg saw
mill or embryo village viii take some Of It at a
price that viii 81 least pay 'or cutting ard drawing;
the black a.h swamp supple. in abundance the best
Of Iail-timber; barn this year, corn-crib De1t,
and wagon shed The year after, absorb good
many trees; the household fires hex up the resi-
due: 30 that acres are insensibly swept of without
an effort; the remaining woods break the force OF
the sharp winds, and furnish nuts and other food
for swine: and when the eightieth acre has been
cleared, the quarter. section is worth more than
it we're all treeess, and clearing for elearinss sake
may be suspended. Local or personal circun'
stances must necessarily modify this picture, but
its essential sDd general truth will, think, he con-
ceded And thus State or section, BIKE single
farm, when denuded Of portion Of its timber, is
far more inviting to the settler than if it had no
timber at all.
-Westefn Michigan is well timbered. The
kalamazoo Grand River, Muskegan, &c, are
broadly belted with Pine, mainly Of good quality;
their tributaries afford excellent mill power for
saving il, while vessels ascend these streams sl-
most or quite to the vicinity Of the lower mills and
load with lumber for Chicago Milwaukee, DC.
LAUNDERING has been a lucrative business; but the
panic of 1857 prostrated it, and think a ma
jority Of the sales made during the last fifteen
months have been made at a loss. Good boards
have sold at Chicago throughOu. the last year d, 81
TO $40 per thousand, at which price two-tbirds OF
the makers are not merely squanoerng their choice
timber but actually losing money in It's production.
They ought not to cut another tree for ayesr hence
so as 10 work off the old stock and raise the price
TO a DO mt that will enable them to live; but some
will 90 ON because they cannot stop; others be-
cause they hope for better times; and the result
will probably be low prices for lumber through sew
ersl succeeding years. Meantime, this, like other
branches of manufacture, is good for the farmer,
whether profitable to those engaged in it or NOT.
GI ain of all kinds, with most other articles Of food
usually commands better prices throughout the ium-
bering region Of Michigan than at Chicago or De-
trOit.
Allegan, at the head Of navigation on the Kali-
mszoo, is young and thrifty numbering village OF
over 9, 600 inhabitants. Grand Rapids, occupying
similar position on Grand River, is an energetic
aud beautiful young city Of at least II 900 people.
1his city has bat recently been rendered accessible
from the East by the completion of the Detroit and
Milwaukee Railroad, whose western terminus is
Grand Haven, at the mouth of Grand River, twenty
miles below, on Lake Michigan, whence strong and
swift boats are expected to take passengers to NH
vaukee in seven hours, making the whole time to
| Milwaukee from Detroit about twelve, aud from
| New.York (yia Niagara Falls and Canada) some
thirty.si1 hours. As yet, however, the steamhost
portion Of the route is not provided for, but there
is slower train run each way between Grand
! Haven and Detroit daily. In due time, Grand
Rapids will have ceased TO derive importance and
wealth from the lumber trade Of Western Michi-
gan, whereof she is now the emporium; but her
position as the second city of the State will not
! thereby be shaken. She has inexhaVstible quar-
mes of the finest Gypsum ofwhich 90, coo tuns per
annum are already used in agriculture b. the farm
! ers Of Michigan, which amount will be doubled, and
soon trebled, on the construction Of the north and
south lsnd-grant road from Indiana through Kals-
mazoo aud Grand Rapids to some peint near Mack
ipac, of which road part has already been graded.
And there is no reason why Wisconsin and Illinois,
through Milwaukee ard Chicago, should not re-
quire at least as much Of this fertilizer as Michi
gan, aked sn enterprising farmer at Sycamore,
H. why be did not use Plaster, aud he answered
that il was not to be had in Ch csgO. Thinking be
must be mistaken, took up The Prairie Farcer
and searched it in vain no Plaster for farmers
use WAS advertised therein. This viii Of course be
Temedied forthwith, and Plaster become as sbuEd-
ant in Chicago as in Boston or New-York. Bat,
beside this Grand Rapids hiss Salt Springs, said to
be of excellent qusty and strength, and is alresdy
the seat of an extensive trade. shall be dissp-
pointed if shr has less taan $4,000 inhabitants BY
the census of 1870.
All the considerable towns an the Central Road
are quietly and steadily growing-Kalamszoo,
think, the fastest That is very pleasant city Of