The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-06-12
evening State Soarnal.
MONDAY EVENING, JUNE II, 1871.
Cream of the Farm Journals.

Ii was not often That Inc Olant vi Oau-
CANON could swing his mind away from
the court calendar and the impending con-
flict to speak of corn and wheat and plow-
ing, But when he did, his talk was preg-
nant with that saving common sense which
the events of the last years OF his life made
of vital Importance to the country. Wit
ness the following paragraph from cat
tle-show speech made at Milwaukee in
1859;
For the last four years do not believe
the ground planted with corn in Illinois,
has produced an average of 20 bushels to
the acre. 1t is true, that heretofore we
have had better crops, with no better cul-
tivation but believe it is also true that
the soil has never been pushed to one-half
of its capacity.
: What would be the effect upon the farm
ing interest, to push the soil up to some-
thing near its full capacity Unquestion-
ably 1t will take more labor to produce so
bushels from an acre, than it will to pro-
duce 10 bushels from the same acre. But
will it take more labor to produce so
bushels from one acre, than from five
Unquestionably, thorough cultivation will
TcQulIC ulOi0 laOOt W thO dOiC Out Will ~
require more labor to the bushel If it
should require just as much to the bushel,
there are some probable, and several GER
tain advantages in favor of the thorough
practice. 1t is probable it would develop
those unknown causes, which of late have
cut down our crops below their former
average. 1t is almost certain, think.
that in the deeper blowing, analysis of the
soils, experiments with manure, and vari-
cites of seed, observance of the seasons,
and the like, these causes would be found.
1t is certain that thorough cultivation
would spare half or more than half the
cost of the land, simply because the same
product would be got from half or from
less than half the quantity of land This
proposition is self-evident, and can be
made no palmer by reptitons or ilustra-
tions. The cost of land is a great item,
even in new countries and constantly
grows greater and greater, in comparison
with other items, as the country grows
older.
It would also spare the making and
maintaining of inclosures-the same,
whether these Enclosures should be hedg es,
bitches or fences. This, again, is heavy
item--heavy at first, and heavy in its con-
tinual demand for repairs. remember
once being greatly astonished by an APP
parently authentic exhibition of the pro-
portion the cost of an Enclosure bears to
all the other expenses of the farmer,
though | cannot remember exactly what
that proportion was. Any farmer, if he
will, can ascertain it in his own case, for
himself.
Again, great amount of "locomotion"
is spared by thorough cultivation. Take
fifty bushels of wheat, ready for the har-
vest, standing upon "a single acre, and it
can be harvested in any of the known
ways, with less than half the labor which
would be required if it were spread over
five acres. This would be true, if cut by
the old hand sickle; true, to greater ex-
tent, if by the scythe and cradle; and toa
still greater extent, if by the machines
now in use. These machines are chiefly
valuable as means of substituting ami
NAL power for the power of men in this
branch of farm work.
In the highest degree of perfection yet
reached in applying the horse power to
harvesting, fully nine-tenths of the power
is expended by the animal in carrying
himself and dragging the machine over
the field, leaving certainly not more than
one-tenth to be applied directly to the only
end Of the whole operation-the gathering
in of the grain and clipping of the straw.
When grain is very thin on the ground il
is always more or less intermingled with
weeds, chess, and the like, and large
part of the power is expended in cutting
these. 1t is plain that, when the crop is
very thick upon the ground, large pro.
portion of the power is directly applied tc
gathering in and cutting it, and the smaller
to that which is totally useless as an end
And what have said of harvesting is true
in a greater or less degree of moving
blowing, gathering in of crops generally
and, indeed, of almost all framework.
DIR. TRIMBLE ALL WRONG.
The story of the wonderful corn crop o
John Worth, ITO bushels to the acre
with four-inch blowing, draws much notice
from the press. No comments are more
pertinent than those of Paschall Morris
editor Of the Practical Farmer, who for
long time lived next neighbor to tn
Worths. He shows that instead Of being
an argument for shallow blowing the fact
are directly the other way.
1t would seem improper, writes Mr.
Morris, to let the report read at the Farm
ers' club in New York pass without com
ment, having ourselves lived adjoining tn
Worth farm for many years, having de
rived our early agricultural lessons favor
able to deep blowing from it, and haviD
actually followed the pillow there for man,
a day, and watched it turning up the sol
about foot down.
The original homestead farm of 32
acres, where the father and grandfather {
the present young Worths lived, was unde
the management of their uncle, Pascha
Worth, within our knowledge for the las
25 years. he always broke up the groun
for corn himself, with large pillow and fou
heavy horses, to the depth of about on
foot, as one Of the young Worths now in
forms us, was his practice, and as we ofte
observed him doing. The soil to th'
depth was rich and black and it is a goo
illustration of the benefit of deep plowinl
that is 10 bushels of sEelled corn to ii
acre, spoken of in the paper read to tt
club, was raised on that portion of tt
Worth farm where the blowing had been
foot deep, and not on that since added !
purchase or among the stones The;