TERMS 82 00 PER AXXU3I.

VOLUME VII.0NTENT8 THIS WEEK August 14th, 1S73.C

The tar in.Whoat Culture 237

About Clover The Uses of Plaster on Clover andOther Plants 257

Potatoes Old and New Kinds 257Patrons of Husbandry The Granges 257

Scientific.Extracts from Lectures ou Sir. Darwin's Philoso-

phy of Language 253

The Apiary.Sunshine in the Apiary 258Agassiz on Honey Bees 233

miscellaneous.Worth of a Wag 259The Secret of Yankee Prosperity 259Intelligence of Hogs 239Dress Plainly on Sunday 259Chicken Cholera 259

Editorial anil Local.The Cattle Supply 00The Stock Interet of Central Kentucky 260The Crops Around Lexington 260"iiyseii." 200Potato Bugs 200Central University 200The American Turfman 2:10Col. Delph's Report , 20'JProgressive The City Council 2iJCorrespondence ; 260A Social Picnic... 200

Short-Hor- n and Horse DepartmentJ. T. 4 S. B. Realman's Sales 2S1Short-Hor- n Sales 261Jmaes E. Sudduth's Short-Hor- n Sales 261Joint Sales of Short-Hor- Wednesday, August

6th 201ATrotting Meeiiug to be Held Next Fall 201Trotting at Eminence 161Fine Horses 261Young Trotters from St. Louis .' 261Mule Race at Eminence Fair 261Saratoga Races. 261Death of the Trotting Stallion, Sentinel 261

The Garden.Window Flowers and Their wants 202Summer Propagation 262A Great Flower Garden 262

Household.To Cook Cauliflowers 26-Corn Fritters .. 262Preserved Orange Peel 262Blackberry Flummery .". 262Fried Tomatoes 262Stewed Tomatoes 262Cherry Bread 262Small Boer 262Sugar Ueer 262Beer, No. 2 262i:nflll Bppr ioohll.. '),:

Family Circle.Poetry Down in the Meadow 203Kate Arnold's Beggar 263An Eccentric Genius Some Anecdotes of a Singu

lar Gentleman Trading a Horse lor Socks TheMost Remarkable Courtship and Marriage onKecord 263

The Art of Quarrelling 263

To the Young Men 263

Children's Corner.Poetry The Fisherman's Daughter 203A Journey to California 263

The Lady-Bir- d 263

Prairie Dogs - 263

State News 201

Markets ' 261What the Credit System Costa the 2 54

St. Lonis 61

From the Ohio Farmer

Wheat Cnltare.The preparation of the soil underlies all

success in wheat culture. We may bow thebeet of seed at the most favorable time, applyall the fertilizers within our reach, and givethe growing crop our most careful attention,yet if this first important part of the work isimproperly done, partial or total failure willbe the result at the following harvest. Thefirst point connected with this branch of thesubject is, keep all plant food on or as near tothe surface as possible. No matter whetherit be stubble manure, plaster, superphos-phates, or a fertilizer of any other kind, itmust be upon or near the top of the ground.The object in thus distributing the plant food,which is to make the growing crop, is, thatil the manure being upon the roots of thegrain will spread out horizontally and nearthe surface while if plowed under the rootswill run down to the nourishment therefurnished and for reasons clearly evident, thecrop is more likely to winter kill.

The pioneer farmers of Ohio met with uni-form success with the cultivation of winterwheat. The condition of the land compelledthem to leave all fertilizing matter on or nearthe surface. The forest trees were choppeddown and either hauled away or burned, but thegiccu luuia icmaiucu, auu ail mat CUU1U UK

done was to scatter the grain and scratcharound among the stumps with a harrowThe roots ot the growing grain ppread outnear the surface, and the expansion and con-traction of the earth's surface caused byfreezing and thawing raised the whole plantwithout injuring the roots. If the fertilizerinstead of being applied to the sunace isturned under, the roots must reach down andwill be broken by freezing. Many ofthe aged wheat growers of the country nowthink it strange that they cannot raise as goodcrops as they were accustomed to gatherthirty or forty years ago; they now turn overthe sod to the depth of eight or ten inches,and think they ought to receive a betteryield than where they did little or no plow-ing. They do not seem to recognize the factthat the mode of cultivation which the rootsand stumps compelled them to pursue, whenthe country wari new, was more compatiblewith tin- - l ibit ol'the wheat plant than theirpresent manner putting in the crop. Wedo not to !" understooted to say that theground . .uuU! r ,t ba stirred to a greaterdepth tl'au tl,r-..- r four inches.

We i no; Bhallow plowing for'ci-- f i raw? ' .u tha Northern States. The

,;,jnu .utenkJ for wheat should be turned

LEXINGTON, KY., THURSDAY, AUGUSTover about eight inches in May, and the sub-soil plow run six or eight inches deeper.Then let it lie with an occasional narrowingto keep the weeds down until just before thetime of sowing the seed. By this time theturf turned under will have become decom-posed to receive the seed. Then plow againturning the same depth ai before, and sub-soili-

from fifteen to twenty inches. Bythis practice all of the plant food is retainedupon the surface, and the hard subsoil be-

neath is sufficiently loose to permit thewater to settle away from the roots of thegrowing plants.

As to the manner of putting in the seed, weare most decidedly in f .vor of using the drill.The advantages (such as a saving of seed,even distribution, etc.,) have been bo repeat-edly detailed to the re: lers of farm journals,that we will not dwell upon this subject.Procure the U6e of a drill if you have none ofyour own, and if this cannot be done, harrowthe ground (after having applied the tpdressing) distribute the seed as evenly as pos-sible and go over the ground with a cultiva-tor.

Wheat growers differ greatly in opinion inregard to the depth that the seed should becovered. Without repeating the differentreasons given by the various authors in sup-port of their positions, we will say that if theground be prepared according to the sugges-tions above set forth, it is evident thafHheseed should not be deposited below the stra-tu- m

containing fertilizing elements, neitherwould we leave it so near the surface as tobecome dry and withered by a few days ofsunshine. On any Foil (except it be sandy)we should set the drill to run about two inch-es deep. If the ground be very light the seedniighUUe covered an inch deeper. Scarcelytwo men occupying adjoining farms sow theBame amount of seed per acre, and we shallnot attempt to lay down a definite rule to theOhio Farmer. It would be useless for me todo so. I might, as others have done, statewhat amount of a certain variety to use uponmy own farm, but that would be no guide toothers. If the kernels are small, or if theground 13 very fertile; warm, mellow and freefrom weeds, much less seed is required thanif the kernels are large or the ground in anunproductive condition. It is worse thanuseless to put in the amount of seed sown bysome farmers, while, iron the other land weerr in using too little, but we ae inclined tobelieve that there is less danger of failing inthe latter than the former practice. Exampies are on record of fifty-eig- ht bushels ofgrain and tnty-hv- e hundred pounds of strawfrom an acre where only one peck of seed wassown, but it would not be safe to Bay thatevery piece of land would produce such acrop from so small an amount of seed. Thinseeding has its advantages, but if the groundis not in a very good conidtion, thin sowingwill not produce as much grain and straw peracre as can be obtained by using more seed.

Upon our own ground we would drill inone bushel per acre, which we consider equalto nearly one and one-ha- lf bushels if sownbroadcast. But this i3 no rule for others togo by. Experiment alone will enable eachfarmer to determine what quantity is bestupon his own land.

As to the arguments usually brought for-

ward relating to early or late sowing, we havenot the space in a single article to refer tothem. We have experimented a little, andcarefully observed the crops raised by neigh-boring farmers who have put in their seed atdifferent times, and we are compelled to be-

lieve that wherever the Hessian fly (or anyother insects which attack the growing crop)does not injure the crop, the time of puttingin the seed should not be delayed past themiddle of September.

In selecting a piece of ground for wheat weshould avoid heavy, sticky clay as well sandy,for where either predominates, the best cropscannot be raised. A mixture of loam andclay thoroughly drained is as good as weneed ask for, it is clean and plump. As tothe different varieties we cannot say which isthe best. We have experimeated with butfive or Bix varieties, and of these we find that,known in this locality, as the White Irishsuperior to any other of which we have anyknowledge, the kernels are large and plump, ityields well and is not apt to lodge. We havecrowded about all into this letter that wecan, there are, however, some other mattersthat we may touch upon at some future time.

From the Ducthess Farmer.

About Clover The Vhoh of PlasterClover and Other Plants.

BY NORMAN SPURR.

Having strongly recommended an extensive use of plaster, perhaps it is proper to tellwhy I do so. I am not a Greek or Latinscholar, and cannot give high sounding literary names to the component parts of plaster;neither am I a chemist, competent to describeits elements, or which of them has the fertilizing properties contained in that mo3t valuable and necessary article to secure the luxuriant growth of clover, under the most un-favorable circumstances. But let me tell inlanguage that every person can understand,how plaster promotes the growth of cloverand other plants.

When a lot of calves have been confined ina small space in a barn a short time, with butlittle bedding, the filth is very disagreeableto the smell. Any such place about barns iseasily made wholesome by scattering a fewhandfulls of plaster on the manure of thoseplaces. The plaster will retain all the con

Agriculture Is the most Healthful, most Useful,

stantly escaping strength of the fermentingmanure, and draw from the air what has notgot too far away. It has the power to retainmoisture for the plant it benefit?, or, in otherwords any plants that are benefited by plasterdo not Buffer in a drouth, like those which arenot thus . While it assists thegrowth of plaun within a proper distance, itat the same time decidedly hinders thegrowth of the s.me kind of plant3 a short dis-

tance from it. I cannot tell how it hindersthe growing of : !ioe too far away, only as itrobs them of tl fertilizing ingredients con-

tained in the air (just as it purifies the air ofa filthy Btable) .ind the moisture of whichwould fall equaUy on similar plants only forthe plaster.

Forty years a 10 1 knew of a dead horse be-

ing left near a fence between farms. The nextfield, containing twelve acres, was pasturedwith sheep. The North wind had a fairsweep from the decaying horse across thesheep pasture, and made the grass so offen-

sive to the sheep that they left an acre (reach-ing across the fiield widening in shape as thedistance increased from the horse) whichthey did not eat, showing that a portion ofthat ho.se was constantly floating away inthe air. How much plaster it would liavetaken, with a little straw, or other vegetablematter, to have prevented that state of things,I do not undertake to tell, but I have nodoubt that a very large portion might havebeen retained by the liberal use of plaster. Itis in this way that plaster is so beneficial tovegetation generally, and that kind of vege-

tation which draws the most nourishmentfrom the air is the most benefited by plaster.

On these principles, every decaying sub-

stance is losing its fertilizing qualities by theconstant changing of the air. The plasterextracts those fertilizing qualities from theair, and bring3 them to the assistance of theyoung tender, feeble plants. Thus you see itis for you that old ocean heave3 up fertilizingweeds. For you every decaying leaf, blade ofgrass, or vegetable of any description is con-

tributing its, full share. For you everythingin the animal kingdom, from the smallestmouse to the largest mastodon, is contributingits support. For you everything in the feath-ered and finny worlds, from the smallest in-

sect to the largest whale that plow3 themighty deep, contributes its full share. Foryou every particle of air, from the gentlebreeze to the wildest tempeit, is laden withrich treasures to increase the quantity andquality of all your growing crops. For youProvidence has provided large quantities ofplaster within your reach, that you may reapthe advantages of these God given bounties.Will you do it?

Believing that some of you are going to try toreap those advantages, you naturally ask whattime of year to use plaster to the best advant-age. I must say that my theory on this onepoint has been formed by reasoning instead oftrials. 1 nave tor a long time believed thatone bushel of corn fed to a calf six to twelvemonths old helps it more than three bushelsafter it is six years old. I believe all domestic animals need their best attention, care, andnourishing when they are young. I think itis just so with clover. When the seed has sofar sprouted that it cannot dry up, and thenwhen rains come, it must be in its most feeblestate. It is at this critical state that it iskilled the easiest. It is at this period that itneeds help the most, if it is dry weather.Anything that will keep it alive, and makethe root penetrate the ground, so as to havedamp earth to sustain it, is all that is re-

quired, and like on ox after it has got wellestablished, there is no ordinary calamitythat will kill it. iarmers formerly neversowed plaster on their rye, wheat, or oats,andleft the young clover to live or die, as luck(they call it) might determine, and if theclover lived, sowed the plaster the next year.That kind of treatment to my mind is aboutas consistent as it would be to plaster yourcorn after you have cut the stalks.

The average seasons of plaster is worth $ot)

per ton, judiciously put on to young clover.It was worth more than $50 either of the lasttwo seasons. It would have made just thedifference there is between a crop of cloverand a crop of sorrel, and then twenty loads ofmanure to the acre besides, at the time thefield is plowed for the next crop. But Ihave heard of good farmers, who were strongadvocates of using plaster, who say sow it anytime of the year; only sow it. I do not rec-

ommend that course, but say, sow it as soonas the crop begins to grow, you use it to ben-

efit. In all I have written about clover, Ihave not given an opinion as to the time tosow the seed on wheat or rye. On one verylong field for its width, of ten acres, I triedthat point thoroughly. Having some cloverchaff in the way, I sowed about an acre thefirst of December. By cleaning clover Beed

during the winter, we had chaff' to sow everyfew days, till the middle of March, when thefield was all sowed, except about two acres,which I left till latish, in order to make theexperiment more complete. Two vain youngladies inquired of an Irishman which ofthem was the handsomest, "Be jabers," saidhe, "each of you looks handsomer than theother." So far as the time of sowing was con-cerned, it was just so with that clover lot.But, understand, all my experience has beenwith that large kind of clover, and while Ihave had partial tailuresin other crops, fromvarious causes, I never had even a partiallailure in clover raising after I got the tradelearned, and am bold to assert that it is themost sure crop so raised in this section that Ihave ever saw raised. It is very easy to see(if my theory is correct) that it is dangerous

ana most Noble Employment of Han."

for c.ne farmer to hold out against usingplaster while all his neighbors are constantlysowing it, for they will soon divide his farmamong them in proportion to the length oftheir respective dividing lines, leaving himjust strength of soil enough to raise sorrel anddaisies a tew years only.

Another point which farmers talk aboutwith many fears for the safety of their clover,is the danger of it being killed by the severityof the winter. Let me say that you will neverhave ahy large clover winter killed unlessyou abuse it by deviating from my rules. Thefrosts will pull up the posts of a board fencein a wet piece of land, and it will soon be fiaton the ground. Any little tree which hap-pens to grow by the side of that fence is nevermolested by the frost, but keeps right ongrowing till old age or something else kills it.In a few years after it is dead, the frost willpull that stump out of the ground, even whenthe roots are several inches in diameter, andrun in several directions, as it would seem totake fifty times the power that it would havetaken when the tree was two or three inchesin diameter. The healthy little fibrous rootsheld that little tree firm in its position. Butsoon after the tree dies, those fibrous roots rotoff, and all the smaller roots follow when theroots of that old stump come out about as fastas the fence post died. It is just so withclover. Keep the plant vigorous and healthy,with a good growth the first summer, and notpasture it of, and I never saw a winter thatwould kill it till after you get one crop, evenin a swamp. If it is on common land, youcm keep it alive as long as you can ask tohave it live, by sowing with plaster everyyear, and not pasturing late in the fall. Butright here is where the clover is generallykilled. When one half of the feed in the pas-ture is something besides clover, your stock,like the clover best, eat it down so close thatit kills it in the process, where it might havelived for many years with proper care.

Another very bad practice in the manage-ment of farms, i3 plowing one field for manyyears in succession, while five times a3 manyacres are left without plowing, till it coststwice as much to raise a crop on either fieldR3 it would if each could have been seeded atthe light time, left just long enough in grass,and tuen plowed again at the right time, ihetr method is to 3eed every field as soon asit is in good condition to grow clover, and ploweve-- " field as soon as it fails to produce alar je crop of grass without sorrel, daisie3, orothi-- weeds. y adopting these rules youwill be destitute of deserts in Dutchess coun-ty. When I reflect how much you have doneto get your fences in your present condition,and the present great progress you have madein underdraining, an item hardly knowntwenty years ago, I am ready to admit thatyou do not lack enterprise.

Potatoes Old and Sew Kinds.As nothing grown on our lands can supply

the want of our common potato as an articleof food, the following brief notice of our oldand new kind3 of potatoes, and their com-parative merits may prove useful to yourreaders:

"White Mercer: " This potato originatedfrom seed balls planted in Mercer county,Pa., in 1812, sixty yeara ago, by a Mr. Wilky,and it soon afterwards became, and for manyyears remained, and it still is, the standard ofpotato excellence, not only in Pensylvania,but in almost, if not all, of our States whereit has been tried. But it has, for a goodmaay years pa3t, been so much inclined tothe potato rot, and yielded so poorly to theacre that we have been compelled to discardour old favorite and try some of the variousnew varieties of potatoes, to wit, the "EarlyGoodrich," "Harrison," "Garnet Chili,""Glea3on," &c, that originated with the Kev.Chauncery E. Goodiich, of Utici, State ofNew ork; the "Peachblow," that originatedin New Jersey; the "Buckeye," of Ohio; the"Michigan White Sprout," of Michigan; the"Prince Albert," obtained from England, andthe "Early Rose," "Bresee's Prolific," Kingoi the names, and reeriess, , that or-iginated with Alfred Bresee, of the State ofVermont, and also various other new kinds,whose names I need not specify.

And the result of our potato expe-rience with these new sorts Beemsto ba as fol-

lows:The Early Goodrich ripen3 quite early, and

yields largely, but it is so variable in quality,being sometimes dry and mealy, and at othertimes again so watery and tough, that but fewpeople in our parts now raise it. The Harri-son is even more watery and tough so that theEarly Goodrich, and the Gleason are for thesame reason but little better than the Har-rison, while the Garnet Chili, aand white fleshed potato, yields well, and hasa solid and good deal drier flesh than theEarly Goodrich, Harrison or Gleason, but isafter all only a third rate or at best only asecond rate potato in point of quality. Then,any uoodrich, Harrison and Uleason arewhite or whitish skinned and yellowish whitefleshed potatoes.

The Buckeve of Ohio, is a round white- -skinned and white-flesh- potato, of a bettequality than the Garnet Chili, but a pooryielder, and like the Garnet, often so worm--eaten and disfigured in it9 skin and fleshwhen dug up in the fall aa to greatly injuremarketing.The Peachblow u a dry and nice mealy pota-to,th- at

is nearly equal in quality to our famousold Mercer. In fact it has taken its place,and now, as for years past, commands the veryhighest price in our city market. But thePeachblow must be planted very early to en- -

Washington

14, 1 QTQ

sure a crop, and then ripens so late in theseason, and has such deep-sunke- n eye3 thatmany persons have declined growing it. IhePrince Albert has a tendency to becomewatery at one end of its tubers, on some soils,but is, when grown on favorable ground, notonly a great yielder, but a large, smooth,beautiful, shallow-eye- d potato, that cooksvery dry and mealy, and nearly, if not fully,equal in quality to the White Mercer. TheMichigan hite sprout is a pretty fair pota-to in point of form, quality and productive-ness, but is at times subject to be badlyworm-eate-

The Early Kose, that a few years ago madesuch a great stir all over our land, makes ahne and very early ripening potato, but becomes, from some cause or other, too watery,lough and heavy afterwards to make a goodtall and winter potato, and whether Bresee s

Prolific, King of the Earlies and Peerless,will prove any better, are questions yet to bedecided. And the same remark applies tothose still newer kinds, the Extra Early Ver-mont, Excelsior and Compton's Surprise po-tatoes that are now attracting attention amongpotato growers.

Among our oil varietie3 of the potato, theWhite Mercer has very generally been al-

lowed to stand at the head of the list. Butwe had some other old sorts that were in theopinion of many people fully equal to theMercer in point of quality, and better as re-

gards productivenes3. Thus, for example,the old "White Pinkeye," bo called from itspink colored eyes and white skin, was a first-cla- ss

potato in every way,and has no superioryet among all our greatly cracked up newvarieties. So the old "Blue Kidney," a long,smooth, flat, kidney-shape- light bluish-ikiune- d,

and light yellowish fleshed potatowas nearly, if not quite, as good as the Pink-eye. So the old "Black potato,"from the blackish color of its thick, roughskin, was quite a round potato, as round asa boy's ball, that yielded finely and boiled upvery dry and mealy, and had a darkish whiteflesh of excellent flavor. So the old "LongJohn," was a long, very smooth and bright

potato, that covered a flesh ofareater whiteness than any other potato I haveever seen. It was a poor potato for fall ue,but improved so much in its texture id aftermonths, that it formed a very superior potatofor late winter and spring use, and what madeit still the more desirable was the fact that itwas a sure grower, and yielded very largecrops of very solid, long-keepi- tubers. Andwe had some other old varieties of potato thatwere nearly, if not quite, a good as thesejust named, and I would be glad if some oneof your reader3 would send you a sketch ofthem.

Among the many new varieties of the pota-to that have become more or less popular oflate years, are those named the Climax, EarlyMohawk, Early Six Weeks, Monitor, Orono,Shaker's Fancy and Shaker's Russet. And Iwish some person, who is familiar with them,would send you descriptions of them, statingthe color of their skin and flesh, shape, size,time of ripening shallowness and deepness oftheir eyes, their quality and flavor, sc, forthe general benefit of your readers. rJurnaof the Farm.

"From American. Agriculturist.

Patrons or Husbandry The Granges.Several have written to ask if we should

advise them to join the Patrons of Husban-dry, and others to ask what we think of theorganization. There are certain things uponwhich we do not care to give advice. If weare asked by a correspondent if he should joina particular church, if it is best for him tobelong to this or that political party, or if hehad better unite himself with the Masons or

s, we reply that these are mattersin which each one should judge for himself.So, in regard to the Patrons of Husbandry,we have not felt it within our province to ad-

vise persons to join or withhold themselvesfrom the association. Much depends uponthe character of such an organization at anygiven point, and many other thing3 whichthose at a distance can not judge. In apretty wide experience, we have in one placeknown a certain very popular and generallyworthy organization to include all the mean-est men in the town, and in another place thetame body had all the best men among itsmembers. So it may be with the Patrons ofHusbandry in certain localities; and we ad-

vise each one to judge for himself. As towhat we think of the Patrons of Husbandry,that is another question. When it was start-ed, several years ago, the chief claim that itsadvocates presented was that it was a

society, and it would enable its mem-bers to procure farm implements and supplies from first hands without paying profitsto deilera. Being unable to see how such anorder could change the ordinary course oftrade we had little to say about it. Recent-ly, howeuer, the whole matter has taken on anew aspect. The farmers in several of theWestern States, on account of high freights,have been suffering from low prices for theirproducts, and a general desire for someunity of action with reference to railroads

'developed itself. Here was the Patrons ofHusbundry at hand, with its machinery inworking order, and capable of indefinite ex-tension. The necessity for some kind of or-

ganization through which the farmers couldmake themselves felt led to a wonderful in-

crease of the order, and granges multipliedwith astonishing rapidity. At the last published account there were, on June 25th, according to the Prairie Farmer, which claims

SINGLE NO. TEN CENTS

NUMBER 38,

to have its information from official sources,4,227 granges in the United States, distribu-ted as follows:Iowa 1671

Illinois - 517Missouri 3j7Minnesota - 274

Nebraska 244

Kansas 243

Indiana ' 201

Wisconsin 19Mississippi 14

South CarolinaOhio - 64

Tennessee - 37

Michigan - 34

Georgia 23

Vermont 23

Arkansas 2tCalifornia 23

Alabama., 12

North Carolina HOregon 7

Dakota 7

Louisiana 6

New York 5

Virginia 3

New Jersey -Pennsylvania 2

Kentucky jMassachusettsTexas........Colorado 1

Canada 8

Total 4.227

Now here is an organization of immenseextent and great power for good nor evil. Itis not to be ignored, or is it to be put downby any amount of ridicule or denunciation.Whatever we may think of the machinery ofthe order, and however we may feel thatfarmers, of all people have no need of secrecyin any of their proceedings, here is an im-

mense organization that must be accepted as

one of the facts of time. That such a bodyunder wise leaders and cautious consels caneffect much good, there is little doubt. Butwill they have these? This is one of theproblems of the day. It the organization in

made use of by designing politicians to servetheir own selfish ends, better that it never ex-

isted. If, howeuer, it should prove as we

hope it will, the means of awakening farmersto the fact that they have a voice in publicaffaire; if it shall influence to send to theState and National legislatures only honestand incorruptible men; if it shall cause farm-

ers to inquire into the qualifications of themen thev vote for, it wiJJproye .indeeablessing. As to the present conflict betweenthe granges and the railroads about whichwe hear so much, we have not space to dis-

cuss it. We believe the interests of the farm-ers and the railroads to be identical, as neith-er can succeed without the other; and haveno doubt that when the present excitementhas passed away, a mutual concession andrespect of the rights of each other will leadto a fair adjustment of the points in dispute.A great wrong, assuming that there be onein this case, never can exist long in thiscountry. The people are right at heart, andwhen they speak all "monopoly" and "op-pression" must cease. There was never amore hopeless case than that of the propertyholders and rs ot the city of NewYork two years ago. When the people wereconvinced of the necessity of doing it. theyforgot all else and swept aside "Rings" andall plundering combinations. If the farmersof the Western States are wrongly treatedthey have the power in their own hands toright themselves. They have need, however,to beware of hasty and legisla-tion, for the case is one that needs statesman-ship rather than oratory. Those who talkthe loudest are rarely the wisest leaders.

Other letters come to us asking why we donot become an organ of the Patrons of Hus-bandry, and promising much if we will doso. We are the "organ" of only one thing,and that is "American Agriculture." What-ever is to the benefit of this has our heartyapproval. If the organization of granges willtend to the benefit of the farmer we say go onand organize, and so far as seems proper forus we shall support your progress. Just herewe wish to say a word to those in granges andthose who contemplate joining them. Mem-bership of any organizotion does not alter hu-

man nature. There will be men who willuse this membership to advance their ownselfish ends. We know some men who areactive in the order whom we would not trustwith a dollar, and we know others whom weare sure gold could not buy. The future ofthe granges depends upo'n which of theseclasses of men are made prominent. So faras the granges will bring farmers to know oneanother better; so far they make farmers feelthat they must take a part in "politics;" bo

far as they help to give them fair returns fortheir crops; so far as they tend to make far-

mers everywhere better American citizens,we Bay, God speed.

On Friday night, about 9i o'clock, it wasdiscovered that the handsome drug store ofT. S. Barkley & Son, on Main street, was onfire on the inside. The sounding of thealarm speedily brought out a crowd, the firstcomers forcing open the front door, hen tne"bucket brigade" (which always does goodwork on such occasions) after considerableeffort succeeded in extinguishing the flames,which were rapidly making their way throughthe first floor, and up to the roof. It is be-

lieved by many that the fire originated fromthe combustion of phosphorus. The loss willnot exceed $2,000, which is fully covered byinsurance. Georgetown Times.

A difficulty occurred in Kirksville, Lincolncounty, on Monday, between Mr. Rhodesand James Grimes, which resulted in the lat-ter being shot and instantly killed by theformer. An old grudge had previously existed between the parties.