AGRICULTURAL.

Production of Butter.

At the late meeting of the Highland Agricultural Society of Scotland, a paper, entitled "Experiments and Observations on the Production of Butter," by Professor Traill, was read by the author. These experiments were made in connection with the late Dr. Gerard, of Liverpool, who had paid much attention to the subject, and assistance was occasionally given by Dr. Bostwick now in London. The experimenters had a dairy of four, sometimes five cows at their disposal; but after numerous preliminary trials, they found that the numerical results, on the quantity of butter obtained, were most uniform and satisfactory, when each experiment was made on a few pints only. The process could thus be carried on in glass vessels, which enabled them to observe the progress of the operation, to collect the produce more carefully, and use a more delicate balance to ascertain the weight of the butter obtained

This likewise enabled them to make the comparative experiments on the same milk, on the same day, a point regarded as of essential importance, as the richness, even of the same cow's milk, is liable to vary considerably from day to day, according to the nature of her food, health, and possibly too, according to the state of the weather. The time which had elapsed since the last calving was also found to have much influence on the quantity of butter. The quantity of butter was smallest, and the proportion of cheesy matter greatest just after calving; and generally speaking, the milk of those cows which yielded the least quantity was richest.

One of the principal objects in view was to ascertain the comparative advantages of churning:

1. Sweet cream alone.

2. Sweet milk and cream together. 3. Sour cream or that slightly acid. 4. Sour milk and cream together. 5. Scalded cream, or what is called clotted cream, as practiced in Devonshire.

The principal results of the experiments, are the following:

1. That the addition of some cold water during churning, facilitates the process, or the separation of the butter; es

pecially when the cream is thick and the weather hot.

2. The cream alone is more easy churned than a mixture of cream and milk.

3. The butter produced from sweet cream has the finest flavour, when fresh, and appears to keep longest without be coming rancid; but then the buttermilk so obtained is poor and small in quantity.

4. That scalding the cream according to the Devonshire method, yields the lar gest quantity of butter, which, if intended for immediate use, is agreeable to the pa. late, and readily saleable; but if intended to be salted, is more liable to acquire, by keeping, a rancid flavor.

The process of scalding is troublesome, and the milk after the removal of the cream is poor, and often would be unsaleable from the taste it had acquired from the heating.

5. That churning the milk and cream together, after they have become slightly acid seems to be the most economical process on the whole; because it yields a large quantity of excellent butter, and the buttermilk is of good quality, a point of some importance where buttermilk is largely used as an article of diet, as it is in Lancashire.

6. That the keeping of butter in a sound state appears to depend on its being made as free from uncombined albumen, or casine and water, as it can be, by means of washing and working when taken from the churn.

The author mentioned the interesting fact that, in the course of his experiment, he found when sweet milk and cream were churned together, and though cold water was added, after an hour and a half, and then after three hours' churning, not a particle of butter was obtained. [Selected.

TO DRIVE BUGS FROM VINES.-Mr. Jos. Frost, of Elliot, Me., says that he has tried the following mode, and succeeded well in driving bugs from squash and cucumber vines. Equal parts of sulphur and soot applied above and below the leaves in the morning while the plants are wet.-SEL.

THATCH, on the roofs of houses, may be rendered incombustible by a common flame, by coating it over with a mixture of white wash and alum. 1 lb. of alum will suffice 5 gals. of white wash.-AGRI.

JUVENILE DEPARTMENT.

A Fragment for Youth.

TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN.

Are there any among you, my young friends, who desire to preserve health and cheerfulness through life, and at length to reach a good old age? If so listen to what I am about to tell you.

Some time since, I read in one of the newspapers of the day, that a man died near London, at the advanced age of one hundred and ten years; that he had never been ill, and that he had maintained through life a cheerful, happy temperament. I wrote immediately to London, begging to know if, in the old man's treatment of himself, there had been any peculiarity which had rendered his life so lengthened and so happy, and the answer I received was as follows:

"He was uuiformly kind and obliging to everybody; he quarrelled with no one; he ate and drank merely that he might not suffer from hunger or thirst, and never beyond what necessity required. From his earliest youth he never allowed himself to be unemployed. These were the only means he used."

I took a note of this in a little book where I generally write all I am anxious to remember. Very soon afterwards, I observed in another paper, that a wo man died in Stockholm, at one hundred and fifteen years of age; and that she never was ill, and was always of a contented, happy disposition. I immediately wrote to Stockholm, to learn what means this old woman had used for preserving her health, and now read the an

swer:

"She was always a great lover of cleanliness, and in the daily habit of washing her face, feet, and hands, in cold water, and as often as opportunity offered, she bathed in the same; she never ate or drank any delicacies or sweetmeats; seldom coffee or tea, and never wine."

Of this likewise, I took note in my little book.

Some time after this, again I read, that near St. Petersburg a man died who had enjoyed good health till he was one hundred and twenty years old. I took my pen and wrote to St. Petersburg, and here is the answer:

"He was an early riser, and never slept beyond seven hours at a time; he

never was idle; he worked and employ. ed himself chiefly in the open air, and particularly in his garden. Whether he walked or sat in his chair, he never permitted himself to sit awry, or in a bent posture, but was always perfectly straight. The luxurious and effeminate habits of citizens he held in great contempt."

After having read all this in my little book I said to myself, "You will be a foolish man indeed not to profit by the example and experience of these old people."

I then wrote out all I had been able to discover about these happy old people upon a large card, which I suspended over my writing-desk so that I might have it always before my eyes, to remind me what I ought to do, and from what I should refrain. Every morning and evening I read over the contents of my card, and obliged myself to conform to its

rules.

And now my young readers, I can assure you, on the word of an honest man, that I am much happier and in better health than I used to be. Formerly, I had the headache nearly every day, and now I suffer scarcely once in three or four months. Before I began these rules, I hardly dared venture out in rain, or snow, without catching cold. In former times, a walk of half an hour's length fatigued and exhausted me; now I walk miles without weariness.

Imagine, then, the happiness, I experi ence; for there are few feelings so cheering to the spirit as those of constant good health and vigor. But, alas! there is something in which I cannot imitate these happy old people-and that is, that I have not been accustomed to all this from my youth.

Oh that I were young again, that I might imitate them in all things; that I might be happy and long-lived as they were !

My young friends, who read this, you are the fortunate ones who are able to adopt in perfection this kind of life! What, then prevents you living henceforward as healthily and happily as the old woman of Stockholm, or as long and as usefully as the old men of London and St Petersburg? [Selected.

It is a good sign to see the color of health in a man's face.

Written on a leaf of a Bible on Presenting.

I bring a gem to offer thee,

It is a gem of rarest worth, Richer than any of the sea,

Or those that deck our lovely earth. 'Twill point thee to that world above,

Where sweetest praises never cease, And tell thee of its boundless love

Its ceaseless joy-its holy peace.

"Twill guide thee through death's dark abyss, When ev'ry tie of earth is riven, And lead thee to a place of bliss

The port of peace- the Christian's Heav'n.

Then take it, dearest friend, from me,

As Friendship's gift-its holy token; "Twill better teach the truths to thee,

That I would speak than can be spoken. WARSAW, Ky., 1847. [Prot. Unionist.

ENIGMA.-No. 42.

I am a word of six letters and am properly an appendage of royalty, though sometimes I am used by those of inferior rank.

Transpose my first five, and I am frequently pointed out by the weather-cock.

Take my 1, 4, 5, and I am a heavy weight. Take my 2, and three last, and I am brought in contact with the razor.

Transpose my 3, 4, 5, and I am a conjunc

tion.

Transpose my 1, 5, 6, and I belong to fish

ermen.

Take my 1, and three last, and I express the pitch of voice.

Take my two first and last, and I am an article.

Transpose my 1, and four last, and I am used as a term in Music.

Transpose my 1, 3, and 4, and I am what all bodies do after death.

Transpose my 3, 4, and I am a conjunction. Take my three last, and I am conspicuous in the numerical table:

Transpose my 2, 3, and last, and I belong to the female sex.

Transpose my 4, 5, and I am an enemy to the affirmative.

Transpose my 2, and two last, and I am a useful animal on plantations.

Take my 2, 4, and last, and I am an instrument used in Agriculture.

Transpose my 3, 4, 6, and I am a kind of metal.

Transpose my 1, 5, 6, and I am a number of the numerical table. M. F. TUTUiler.

THE AMERICAN MAGAZINE. AND FAMILY NEWSPAPER With numerous Engravings. Edited by Theodore Dwight.

Is published weekly, at the office of the New York Express, No. 112 Broadway, at 4 cents a number, or, to subscribers paying in advance, $2 a year. 7 sets for $10. Monthly, in covered pamphlets, at same price. Rare seeds sent to Subscribers.

Postmasters are authorized to remit money, and are requested to act as agents.

Enclose a Two Dollar Bill, without payment of postage, and the work will be sent for the year.

This scene of crowds, noise and business, now the centre of all the cattletrade in the metropolis of England, gained a melancholy notoriety in the days of the Reformation, as the chief place of martyrdon The Book of Martyrology, a sad lessson for mankind, written in bloo, has been consigned to us, and to future generations. by past time, an! its study has been rendered necessary, so that it cannot be dispensed with, but must imperatively be used in every family, that its solemn warnings may be faithfully transmitted from father to son.

If it were our object at the present time, to sketch the history of Smithfield market as it was, we should allude,

among other things, to two leading Spanish Inquisitors who made this spot the theatre of their inhuman arts, having been imported, expressly for that purpose by the Bloody Mary, during the short but shocking restoration of the reign of Rome in her day. It is a fact, placed beyond all doubt by Llorente, that, as soon as the power was once again recovered by the Romish bishops, orders were dispatched to Madrid, for the aid of the most accomplished directors of Spanish spies and autos-de-fé, to introduce the great and noble art at once into England, in its most refined and perfect state. The call was answered, and with alacrity, and with what success the reader of history need

not be told. The discovery of bible readers, by various treacherous means had long been systematically practised, and was easily applied.

But Smithfield has been long devoted to very different purposes. Immense numbers of animals are now driven to it for sale, and there disposed of, chiefly to the speculators and butchers, for the daily supply of the meat-markets of the metropolis. Thousands and millions of oxen, sheep, &c., which are annually seen feeding on the pastures of different counties, have no other destiny, from their earliest days, than to be here exchanged for money; and, to a reflecting mind, there is certainly something painful in the reflection, that the harmless and useful beasts, which, season after season, give animation to the rural scenery, and please the observer, as they graze the herbage, or gambol among the flowers or repose in the shade, are soon to fall bleeding before the relentless and insatiable hunger of man.

The cattle trade is extensive, and so lucrative when successfully carried on, that some of the men engaged in it acquire, by long attention and experience an astonishing degree of knowledge and skill. At a late meeting of the Agricul tural Society in this city, we were astonished at the information communicated by one of our intelligent practical farmers, who was called upon, in the course of a discussion, which arose on the management of cattle. He was familiar with the practices and opinions of English cattle-raisers and dealers, as well as with those in our own country; and it was easy to perceive, that many scientific men had come to their aid with great ef fect. The nature of domestic animals has been investigated, scientifically as well as practically; and great light has been thrown on the subject by the study of comparative anatomy, and the application of the laws of physiology.

Nothing is more common, than to find some particular method of treating catthe highly recommended, or some sort of food spoken of as sufficient, of itself, to produce wonderful effects. Sometimes a new theory is started, which appears plausible, and is described as having led, in experiments, to most satisfactory results. But many of the writers on such subjects have been unexperienced or not well acquainted with the sciences

which might have conducted them aright.

We give the following from the New England Farmer on 'fattening cattle.'

"In stall feeding, cattle should not be exposed to alternations of hunger and surfeit. Like human beings, they are fond of variety, and capricious in their appetites. Two pounds of oil-cake, five pounds of barley meal, and five pounds of hay chaff, with a plentiful allowance of Swedish turnips, has been recommended as a daily allowance. The use of linseed oil in feeding, has been attended with much success. "The oil is sprinkled on good oat straw, layer after layer, at the rate of a gallon of oil to a week's allowance of straw. The straw to be frequently turned over, and kept two days before used; by which time the oil will be absorbed, and there will be a slight fermentation in the food." Following is the mode of making Warne's Compound, highly esteemed for fattening cattle. Put 166 lbs. water into a boiling cauldron, and when boiling, stir into it for five minvtes, 21 lbs. linseed meal. Then 63 lbs. of crushed barley is sprinkled upon the boiling mucilage, by one person, while another rapidly stirs the mixture. occupies another five minuts."

This

It is then left to cool; if there is much fire it should be put out. It should be used the next day, or by being excluded from the air may be kept longer. The quantity given to each bullock per day is eight pounds, with hay or straw in addition."

NIGHTLY SHELTER FOR THE HOUSELESS. -The Committee of the above association made a report of the number of individuals who have since the opening, the 14th of December last, availed themselves of its advantages, as shelter from the inclemency of the weather. In the central asylum, situate in Playhouse yard, St. Luke's, 4,716 men, women, and children have been admitted. In the eastern asylum, in Glasshouse street, East Smithfield, 3,511; and in the western, Upper Ogle street, Marylebone, 3,967; making a total of 12,194. The number of rations distributed during the same period amounted to 131,138. The number admitted nightly, on the average, is 1,200, and during the most inclement weather hundreds cannot be admitted.--London paper.