The constitutional union., 1860-12-07
AGRICULTURAL.

USE AND ABUSE or IlIPLEMENTs.-W we to assert that American farmers, as a gene raj thing. are wasteful ill many particulars we should be taken to task on all sidcs-lor where should we find a amore prudent and cco- non}icaI class of men than they? We'll We are ready to admit their economical d;sposi- ton; but this is by no means a contradiction of what we have asserted in the previous sen tences. There is such thing as false ec0n0- my-"penny wise and pound foolish economy -, saving at the buno-hole and wasting at the spiIe economy and under this category we class the policy which so almost universally prevails in regard to the use and abuse of agricultural implements.
 One of the heaviest taxes to which the far mer is subjected, is the purchase and prepar- ing of agricultural implements; and that this tax is in many cases double and treble what 1t should be is very evident. How can it be otherwise? Were implements to be had for the asking, some farmers could not manifest more indifference in regard to their use. and their care of them when not in use. Inyery many cases, when a field is plowed, narrowed and rolled, the blow, the harrow, and the rol- Ter, find a resting place in the first convenient fence-corner, there to remain until next want ed, whether 1t be the next day or the next year. The damaging effects of sun. wind and rain, are never once thought of The fact that such exposure iniurcs both wood and iron work, does not alter the case Some farmers bring their implements from the field it is true, but only to subject them to the same outdoor exposure in the vicinity of the barn. It is not very surprising that such miserable management makes heavy demands upon the pocket, or that the bill for implements in such cases is double what it should be-
 There are a few simple rules in regard 10 the care of implements, which in most cases can be readily and always properly observed. Eirst-Eyery farm should be provided with tool or implement house of sufficient dimen- sions to accommodate every tool or implement on the premises. Second-it should bo q fixed and unalterable requirement. that when ever q tool Is done with 1t should be put in its appropriate place in the tooI-h0usc Third-BeioTc put away, 1t should be care fully examined, to sec whether any parts are broken or damaeed and if 50, the very first leisure moment should be appropriated to re- pairing 1t. Eourth-No tool should be put into the house i'll a dirty condition. \ very few minutes will be required to clean off the dirt, which will prevent the ru.ting of the iron, as well as damage to the wood Fifth All the polished parts of an implement as the share, moud-boaTd, and coulter of the plow and the blade, of axes, mattocks, and mow- ing machines. etc. should be oiled to prevent rusting. They will then be ready for use at any moment. SiXth--Iyery wooden part of an implement should be painted at least once year, and such as are required for outdoor use, as blows, harrows, etc. twice. Rainy days can be appropriated to this purpose One dollars worth of brushes and paint, properly applied, will save twenty dollars worth of damage. Mineral paint, such as Hunters Iron Paint, answers admirably, because 1t has more body than white CT red lead. and is far cheaper and more durable. It not only pre- vents the wood from decay, but from crack ing, and consequent easy breakage. And then how much better Well-painted. clear looking wagons, moving machines, blows, hamows, etc, improve the appearance Of a farm; how much more care even a careless laborer will take of handsomely painted than dirty rusty-looking tool, and with how much more satisfaction everybody will work With such to0lS Economy, appearance and comfort, all demand more care than is usually bestowed upon our farm implements
 Farmer and Gardener.
 TIMOTHY NEADoWs-Timothy grass is chiefly valuable for hay; and the meadows should never be pasturcd while kept for mow- ing. In the south and west, timothy mead ows are liable to great injury after the crop has been cut, by exposure to the burning rays of the sun in dry weather, and the inju- " is much increased by allowing the after math to be cropped by cattle and horses and the injury is greater in the climate alluded to than 1t is in the cooler and more wet regions of the country where other grasses are more or less mixed with the timothy as natural pro- ducts. The roots of timothy differ from any of the common grasses that constitute our pas lures. At the base of each stool there are numerous little bulbs whie,l lie near the sur face of the ground, which, when pastured by stock, are liable to be crushed by the animals feet and when the aftermath is eaten off the roots are exposed to the sun in the summer and fall, and to the frosts of winter, when in