Butler County, Ohio - The whole text, 1882 (part 8 of 39)

The lands known as 'bottom lands" on the Miami River are generally composed of a sandy alluvial deposit. The predominant timber upon these lands is hackberry, buckeye, box-alder, sycamore, honey-locust, walnut, and sometimes sugar-tree and hickory. Nearly all the lands in this county of this quality have been cleared for more than fifty years, and have since been cultivated almost continuously. Portions of these lands have been occa- ~ sionally subject to inundation from backwater, and have thereby become greatly enriched, while other portions have been injured by the displacement of the soil or the covering of the same with gravel.

The same quality of rich alluvial lands is to be found along the larger creeks, and is liable to like overflows and subject to like casualties. Such lands do not constitute either the most valuable or the most desirable farms. They subject their owners sometimes to great inconvenience and loss, and are not so suitable for the pro-

The "uplands" are very variable in quality. In one portion of the county, where the hills are unusually high for this part of Ohio, the land is of exceeding richness. The soil is adapted to the production of every variety of grain grown in the county. It is based upon a clay subsoil, and was originally covered with a rich, dark-colored vegetable mold. These hills, which have an altitude above the Miami River of about three hundred feet, duction of the various grains, grasses, and other crops raised as are lands of essentially different quality. Nevertheless, these ''bottom lands" are highly prized by many, and greatly preferred by a few of our farmers.

in quality. Such lands usually abound in about the following varieties of timber: Hackberry, cherry, walnut, buckeye, blue | ash, gray ash, pin-oak, white oak, burr-oak, and sugartree. Sometimes sycamores grow on such soils, in connection with elms and the several varieties of haw-trees. It is not intended to say that all these several varieties of trees are found in the same locality ; sometimes particular varieties prevail in one neighborhood, while other varieties predominate in another.

The surface of such soils not only furnishes exceedingly eligible sites for the location of farm buildings, but it is very favorable for farming operations. The soil is composed of a dark sandy loam, which originally abounded in vegetable mold. The land is, therefore, almost uniformly friable and easy of cultivation; sometimes it is based upon a gravelly subsoil, and at other times upon a clay substratum. This quality of soil is not confined to the immediate vicinity of either the Miami River or the largest creeks, but is to be found in great extent throughout many parts of the county. Farms consisting of lands of this quality have maintained their fertility surprisingly, even under improvident cultivation. They are were originally covered with a very thick growth of timber, indicating the very best quality of soil, entirely dissimilar from that which usually grows upon our uplands. On the very highest points on these hills, sycamore, black walnut, white walnut, black locust (trees between two and three feet in diameter), box-alder, gray ash, blue ash, pawpaw, ete., grew to an unusual size. And, notwithstanding the irregularities in the surface of this region, and the rich and friable character of the soil, yet there is no excessive gullying or washing away of the surface of the fields. The rich and favorable character of these lands, and their high elevation, make them especially valuable for the cultivation of fruit of every variety. : :

The other uplands, although somewhat different, are nevertheless similar in quality to most of the uplands in the Miami Valley. In some places they have incorporated with the surface soil a good proportion of vegetable material, while in other localities the soil is purely argillaceous. The farms on these uplands, usually denomi- nated ''clay farms," have for the last thirty-five years continuously grown upon public favor. By judicious culture they have regularly improved in productiveness. Clover usually takes readily, and all the labor and means applied in renovating these soils have been successful in producing good and enduring effects. Farms located upon these uplands are generally favorable for fruitgrowing, for the production of small grain and grasses, and for general farming purposes. Indeed, farmers occupying such lands are already competing in large crops of corn with those who reside upon purely bottom lands. The prevailing timber is white oak, pigeon-oak, hickory, ash, red-bud, dogwood, and elm. Intermixed with these we generally find more or less of walnut and sugar-tree.

The climatology and meteorology of Butler County vary immaterially from that which prevails in southwestern Ohio. The most important characteristic of the climate is its uniformity. By this we do not mean to say that we are exempt from the usual changes and fluctuations of temperature, of wind and of rain, which are found to exist in other localities. What is claimed is great uniformity, for a series of years, of mean temperature, of mean precipitation 'of rain, and of mean force and frequency of winds. Consequently, although, in common with others, the county has occasionally suffered from the effects of droughts, from an excess of rain, and slightly from severe winds, yet its farmers have not encountered such privations and sustained such losses from the above causes as are common in other localities in the country. Our mean temperature for many years has been about fifty-three degrees; and the mean fall of water varies but little from forty-eight inches.

Although the surface of Butler County, sixty years. ago, was thickly covered with a heavy and vigorous growth of timber, eight-tenths of which has been removed, yet there are now no perceptible changes in either the mean temperature, the mean quantity of rain precipitated, the frequency or duration of showers, or in the character or direction of the prevailing winds. Neither is it believed that our atmosphere is less humid than it was fifty years ago. Some slight modifications of our climate may have taken place. They are, however, not so marked as to be appreciable, even by those who have been careful observers of the weather and its influence upon the vegetation of the county.

The thorough clearing up of farms, however, has produced very decided effects upon our streams. They "now rise more rapidly, attain to a great height, and subside, consequently, in much less time than heretofore. Obstructions have been removed from low lands, from runs and streamlets, and from creeks; and water now flows speedily off, instead of remaining spread over large tracts of land, to the great detriment and loss of our farmers.

In view, therefore, of the foregoing, we believe that it will not be unsafe to say that if a favorable geographical and commercial position - a climate singularly fayorable for the production of the great agricultural staples and ter, yet highly rich in all essential elements - are necessary to constitute a good farming region, then the farmers of Butler County are in the possession of that rich boon. In fertility of soil, in her temperate climate, in her favorable geographical position, her numerous streams of water, her timber, her exhaustless quarries of blue limestone, and her abundance of water power, Butler County may be equaled - she can not be excelled.

The cultivation of the lands of this county is by no means what it ought to be. The farmers are not sufficiently alive to the importance of a very complete knowledge of the general principles of such branches of learning as relate to agriculture. They hesitate, in many cases, to adopt; and in other cases they reject, not only the teachings of science, but refuse to profit by the practical demonstrations of our more intelligent and experienced cultivators. Notwith8tanding the existence of this state of feeling among some of our farmers, we have the gratification of being able to say with truth that the husbandry of the county has, in many important regards, attained a commendable thoroughness, and is now rapidly improving. Farmers are becoming less and less unwilling to learn from others, and are more ambitious to investigate and consider the reasons assigned for the various systems or modes of culture. In due season, we do not question but what an improved state of husbandry will generally prevail, and that the annual product of this county will be quadrupled. ,

The productiveness of the lands of the county will best be understood by a full statement of the annual amounts of grains produced and the number of domestic animals owned in the county since the year 1850. And, first, of the grain produced.

Under this general head it is proposed to give a brief account of the mode of culture, with the results of wheat, barley, corn, rye, oats, and buckwheat, and to present such other facts and statements in reference to the same as may be deemed of general interest.

Wurat. - This is one of the staple and most profitable crops raised in Butler County. The mode of culture generally adopted gives conclusive indications that the farmers have given great attention to the production of this favorite crop; and the results prove that they have generally met with fair success.

Wheat: ground is generally prepared with more than ordinary care. Every thing necessary to be done for the proper preparation of the ground is more faithfully attended to than in preparing the lands for any other crop. The grain is generally put in with a drill. There are some, however, who-adhere to the old way of sowing broadcast. Barn-yard manure on hand at the time of

Agriculture

The old mode of plowing up 'bare fallows" during the Summer, and then replowing the same before sowing in wheat, has fallen into almost general disuse. If there are any fallow grounds, they are what are termed in England " green fallows." Clover-fields are esteemed the best

-for the production of a good crop of wheat. There are many who have great faith in the productive capacity of a good timothy meadow field, or timothy and clover field under pasturage for a good crop of wheat. Wheat stubple, barley stubble, and oats stubble grounds continue to be used by many for growing wheat. The practice of sowing wheat upon the same ground for many successive years is not so common as heretofore, although very frequently followed.

The breadth of land sown in wheat in this county is by no means uniform. It is as variable as the product per acre is uncertain. The crop harvested in 1862 was nearly forty-five per cent greater in breadth of land than the crop harvested in 1865; and the aggregate product of wheat in the county in 1862 more than doubled that harvested in 1865. The yield per acre of the crop of 1862 was fifteen and a half bushels, while the yield of 1865 was less than eleven bushels per acre.

To show the capacity of Butler County as a wheatproducing county, we herewith present a statement showing the number of acres sown and the number of bushels harvested per annum. Our statement refers to the years in which the crops were produced.

Barvey has been extensively cultivated in this county for many years. It has in many instances been one of the most remunerative crops grown, particularly when sown upon land specially adapted to its production. At times when barley commanded a high price, some of the farmers have produced such crops as would enable them to realize from fifty-five to seventy dollars per acre for a single crop. 2 warm, loamy soil, in good tilth and condition. On poor soils it is an unreliable and poorly paying crop. Fall barley is more generally raised than Spring. The first is more certain as a crop, and is more desired by brewers. Neither are regarded as being as exhaustive of the soil as wheat ; and the stubble of barley is generally regarded as favorable for sowing wheat upon. The straw of barley is much used for feeding cattle, and as a substitute for hay for horses that are not performing very severe service. In the table that will be hereafter given it will be seen that the number of acres sown in barley varies frem six to sixteen thousand acres per annum, and that we produce from 165,000 to 340,000 bushels per annum.

Barley being a crop quite extensively grown and relied upon by many farmers of this county, they will be interested in knowing the number of acres annually sown and the product thereof. The following will give the desired information :

Rye receives but little attention from the farmers of this county. Some sow it to provide early green feed for their milch cows, while others raise very small quantities for the grain and choice straw.

Oats are more extensively cultivated, although our farmers have been greatly discouraged in their production by the injuries which have for many years been done that crop by rust.

BuckwHeEat is raised to a very limited extent indeed. Why it is so much neglected it is hard to determine. The quantity produced does not equal the demand for home consumption. ;

The corn-crop of this county is the crop, of all others, upon which farmers most rely. It is the basis of our agricultural prosperity. It is indispensable to the diversified system of husbandry which farmers have so long practiced with such pre-eminent success.

In this chapter it is deemed unnecessary to go into any special examination of the several modes or systems of culture which have been practiced in raising this crop. The qualities of land best adapted to the production of this important staple have already been given, when

One very marked as well as important change in the culture of the corn-crop has taken place within the past ten or fifteen years. Farmers no longer restrict themselves, as formerly, to any specific number of what were styled '' plowings" before ''laying by" their corn-crop. It now receives much more attention than formerly, and many more " workings." The mellowness of the ground and its freedom from weeds have much to do in determining when it will be either safe or prudent to cease further cultivation of the land. A fixed number of times of 'going through" no longer determines or regulates the operations of the intelligent cultivator of corn.

The following statement will exhibit the number of acres of corn planted in the years stated, and the number of bushels produced in each year:

With this exposition of the grain-producing capabilities of this county, we pass to the consideration of other questions connected with our agriculture.

In the further presentation of such facts and considerations as are pertinent to an exposition of the state of agriculture in this county, we shall give, briefly, some account of the ecuitivation of other articles which are included in agricultural products. ,

Among these may appropriately be mentioned the growing of potatoes, of flax, of sorghum, and of tobacco. The quality of our soil is well adapted to the raising of potatoes. Farmers who have given their attention at the right time and in the right way to the proper cultivation of this highly prized and indispensable esculent have always been well rewarded for their labor and painstaking. And yet potatoes are not so generally cultivated as they should be. We do not produce more: potatoes than we consume. We should produce largely for exportation. It is a staple vegetable, universally used, and always commanding a fair price, and its production should, therefore, be greatly augmented.

cultivated for the seed, which has become an important article of commerce, and is industriously sought for at high prices. The fiber is now only incidentally valuable. It is not relied upon to any great extent as a source of income, because of the unsalable condition in which the same has to be sold. If a cheap and speedy way can be discovered by which the fiber can be so manipulated as to make it an available and desirable stock for the manufacture of a good quality of paper, then the business of growing flax would rapidly increase, and soon become a prominent and profitable crop in this county.

Sorghum cane is cultivated with us, and manufactured into syrup, to a moderate extent. It has proved a very valuable substitute for other molasses, and has been used extensively by those'who felt themselves unable or unwilling to purchase sugar or other molasses at the exorbitant prices demanded. If science, and the practical skill of those who are now investigating the subject and making experiments, shall successfully ascertain some real, certain, and not extravagantly expensive process, by which farmers and others can manufacture a fair country. As yet no satisfactory testimony of such success has been given. That sugar has been produced from ° sorghum is unquestioned. That the process of its production is easily to be understood and practiced, so that

Tobacco is the last of the four articles named in the preceding list. How great a curse it has been to the soil unwisely prostituted to its cultivation we have no time to consider at length. It is enough for the intelligent and conscientious husbandman to know that every district of country devoted to the raising of tobacco for a series of years has been almost irreparably injured in its productive capacity. Small and particular localities which have been cultivated in tobacco may have had their fertility maintained for a while by robbing other portions of the farm of their due proportion of manure; yet, sooner or later, the exhaustive process will ultimately work the deterioration of any neighborhood or farming district where tobacco-raising is a prominent part of the farming operations.

As ,the very choicest land of a farm has to be used for growing tobacco - as it is an exacting crop (not only upon the land, but upon those who work it, and who worm the plants) - as the product has to be housed and handled, stemmed, and prepared for market in a most careful manner, by those who have practical experience in its management - as the crop is precarious and uncers tain, and the price which it commands 'is exceedingly fluctuating - we are happy to know that many of the farmers of this county, who were beguiled by its tempting but false promise of gain, have entirely abandoned its cultivation. The losses which some of our farmers have sustained by reason of their devotion to the weed have sadly modified their admiration of its money-producing qualities. We have no commiseration for those who have sustained losses. On the contrary, we rather rejoice that something has occurred to induce them to withdraw from the pursuit of a business which at no time and in no manner has promoted the happiness or well-being of a single consumer, but which, on the contrary, has strongly tended to injure, mentally and physically, all who permitted themselves to be brought within its baneful and destructive influence.

In addition to the foregoing statements relating to the past and present condition of many important branches connected with the agriculture of Butler County, it will not be inappropriate briefly to make reference to other products which deserve attention, and which constitute a part of our productive wealth.

health - and as a luxury which all classes may enjoy with a zest and a relish unknown to the non-producer, good fruit, upon the farm or in the garden, may be justly regarded as the best indication that the agriculturist or horticulturist has been mindful of his duty to his family and himself, while he has been considerate in looking to the sure and liberal pecuniary reward which will follow the labors of the careful, industrious, and intelligent cultivator. The growing of fruits is not only an attractive pursuit in which men become intensely enthusiastic, but it is profitable employment. Hence, under favorable circumstances, every desirable point for raising fruit should be speedily and thoroughly improved.

The orchard culture of apples is improving regularly; while the orchard culture of peaches and pears is making rapid progress. Some exceedingly eligible localities in various parts of the county have already been well improved by the establishment of large peach orchards. One of these localities, on the west side of the Miami River, near Middletown, has attained a creditable notoriety as a valuable fruit producing point, from which extensive crops of peaches have been profitably shipped. Its location is exceedingly favorable as a shipping point. Fruit designed for the North may be taken in the morning from the trees, and properly boxed and delivered at. the depot in time for the morning express train from Cincinnati. Thus fresh fruit may be landed in Toledo, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, or Buffalo, and intermediate points within from six to twelve hours of the time the fruit was taken from the tree.

fruits is receiving increased attention. Blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, currants, and gooseberries are being disseminated more thoroughly throughout the county. Amateurs, gardeners, and farmers are vying with each other for prominence in their cultivation.

Grapes are receiving increased attention. All the more modern and all the esteemed varieties are receiving proper culture in the vineyard as well as in the 'garden of the amateur.

Vegetable gardening for the supply of the markets has increased with unusual rapidity. The same is true of the country. Farmers everywhere are giving more time and labor to the cultivation of their own fruit and vegetable gardens. They are manifesting a becoming and an increasing regard for the comforts of their family, by supplying them with the fruits and garden products that constitute to so great an extent the substantials and luxuries of life.

Superadded to these productions, our farmers are giving more and more attention to the cultivation of sweet potatoes, and the field culture of pumpkins, turnips, beans, etc. All these things, concerning which we have no statistics, constitute in the aggregate a valuable item in making up a full statement of the entire agricultural products of this county.

The domestic animals of the county now claim special attention, that their qualities, their numbers, their value, and the state of improvement which they have undergone or are now undergoing, may be fully given and understood. And first of the horses. For their general good qualities they are not surpassed by those of any other county in the State. In size, symmetry, fine style, etc. ; in adaptation to the wants and tastes of our people, who take a pride in having fine horses - they are deserving of high commendation. Good judgment and _ fine taste have secured to us our present stock of horses, which is the regult of judicious and long-continued crossings with the best thoroughbred horses to be found among us. Horses, either thoroughbred or of esteemed high blood, have been so long used for improvement as to justify one of the most experienced and best informed breeders of Ohio in saying that '' there is a large infusion of thoroughbred blood in our stock of horses." The history of our improvements in horses will verify the truth of his statement.

As early as about 1816, a very superior horse, called '"'Shakespeare," was-brought into the county, from New Jersey. He was a horse of fine size and appearance, and proved to be a horse of high quality as a breeder. He was extensively used as a breeding horse, and the improvement in the size and substantial character of his descendants was very marked. No higher commendation for a horse, thirty years ago, could be given, than to say he was a ''Shakespeare."

About the same time, a horse which acquired a great notoriety in the county, called '' Badger," was introduced to the attention of our farmers. This horse was also a colt of ' Valerius," and consequently a half-brother of ''Shakespeare." Both had more than one-half thoroughbred blood in their veins, and both were extensively used as breeders, and the result was a marked and decided improvement in the size and general good qualities of our stock of horses. . The '' Badger" stock stood preeminent, as spirited, active, and fleet travelers, with surprising powers of endurance. The writer recollects most marvelous stories which were told fifty years ago of the facility with which this strain of horses could carry men eight and ten miles per hour, under the saddle, without exhibiting signs of distress. These horses, and the numerous '' Young Shakespeares" and '' Young Badgers," which did not discredit their illustrious sires, prepared the way for further improvements, which were - made through the introduction of other horses of good quality and high blood. Among these we are enabled to name '' Kirkland" and '' Miami Chief," both thoroughbred horses, '' Flag of Truce," '' Defiance," and other horses of other like good qualities.

About 1831, a fresh impetus was given to the improvement of our horse stock by the introduction into our county of the fine horse ''Cadmus." He was a colt of "' American Eclipse," out of 'Di Vernon," by Ball's '« Florizel," and consequently a horse of unsurpassed breeding qualities. He became the sire of a large number of popular stallions, and of many fine breeding mares. Among the number of his colts was a stallion called ''Sheppard's Cadmus," the sire of the unequaled ' Pocahontas," who was described by Frank Forester as '" one ' of the most superb, most sumptuous of animals, as well as the fastest of the day."

Subsequently, a horse called 'American Boy" was brought from Monmouth County, New Jersey. He had a large infusion of good blood in his veins, from such noted Horses as '' Seagull," "Imported Expedition," and "Imported Royalist." This horse produced much valuable stock, among which may be mentioned " Belmont," '' American Boy, Jr.," and these in turn had their descendants, also much esteemed.

The original stock of our improved horses, which were at an early day brought into this part of the State, came from New Jersey, Long Island, Virginia, and Maryland. Their get constituted the base upon which subsequent improvements have been made. And in addition to the strains of horses, and particular horses above given, it is proper to state that many other horses of good qualities have been used by our breeders. Among these we can give the names of '" Orphan Boy," "Comet," "Miami Chief," '"' Friendly Tiger," 'Top Gallant," "Young Cadmus" (by "Cadmus," and dam by "Sumpter 5. eel}

We have not relied alone upon our own stock. That which has been introduced into neighboring counties has been used, and its improving influence is manifest. One thing we have carefully avoided: We have not deteriorated our stock by using what Dr. Clemens styles the 'Morgans of to-day," and what he describes as stock '"'not suited for any thing, badly gotten up, and bogus." .

Statement Of The Number And Value Of Horses For The

It will be seen, by reference to the foregoing table, that the number of horses in this county for the last thirty-five years has undergone but a very slight change. Their average price, however, has undergone very decided fluctuations. The average value of horses, as returned for taxation in 1847 was $38.04. The average value in 1866 was $83.59, an increase of about 109 per cent, a decided change in twenty years. The decrease in the value of horses as returned in 1862 was. violent and excessive, resulting from the apprehensions of all classes that the effects of the rebellion would be to destroy the were soon made apparent, and the result is that in 1866 the value of horses per head had increased in four years from $51.04 to $83.39, being an increase of 63 per cent.

The average value for 1865 and 1866 of the horses of Butler County was $83.50 per head. That is a higher average than was attained in those years by any county in the State, save the county of "Hamilton. Notwithstanding the many fine single horses, and fancy matched horses of great value, owned in the cities of Dayton, Columbus, Toledo, and Cleveland, the averages in their respective counties did not equal the average value of the horses in this county. This fact conclusively sustains the assertion that we very confidently made, that in the blood, size, fine style, symmetry of form, and enduring qualities of the horses of this county, we are not excelled. With this confident expression of our opinion we conclude what we have deemed it proper to say upon this division of our report.

Mules, by consanguinity, and the uses to which they are applied, rather than by numbers or value, next claim our attention. 'They have never been received with favor by our farmers. Their appearance was not prepossessing, and a strong repugnance to permit any uncomely mongrel to supersede the noble horse has seriously interfered with their introduction into this county. They were, therefore, slow in gaining a foothold among us. Now they have some fast friends who regard them as indispensable helpmates in the work of the farm - as reliable and enduring slaves, and as profitable stock to raise and feed for market. The slow progress of their introduction, and their numbers and value, will be seen by the following table :

CattLe. - The quality of the cattle of this county does not compare favorably with the quality of the horses, "the sheep, or the hogs. The infusion of improved blood, by crosses of our common cattle with other breeds, has not made much progress. More attention to this important branch of good farming has been given within the last ten years than during the twenty preceding years. Although men can be impressed with the fact that the value of our stock would be enhanced in four years fifty per cent by judicious crossing with the finer breeds of cattle, yet there seems to exist an inveterate repugnance on the part of some who are abundantly able to expend money for the accomplishment of so great an improvement. There are some who appreciate good stock, and who feel the importance of setting a good example before those who, from obstinate prejudices and selfish but shortsighted views, are unwilling even to promote their own interests. Progress has been made in the right direction, and sooner or later we shall have good cattle in abun- dance. The breeds which have received attention from our farmers are Shorthorn Durhams, Devons, and Ayrshires. The former breed has been more extensively used for crossing than both the others. Devons have been - purchased by some under the singular delusion that they stand pre-eminent as a breed of cattle for milk. Those who so highly commend the Devon for their milking properties would most likely disparage the Ayrshire cow as a good milker. Crosses, however, with Devons, even if made under mistaken views, will accomplish good results, and may induce our farmers to consider the propriety of making further experiments in crossing and improving their stock, even at the cost of a few dollars, well invested.

As it will be seen, by examination of a table hereafter given, our stock of cattle has-been fearfully reduced in numbers within the last score of years. In 1855 we had 20,914 head of cattle, while now our numbers have been very improvidently reduced to 16,519. This is an actual reduction of twenty per cent in twenty-six years. This ereat falling off has very unwisely been permitted to take - place, notwithstanding the increase of our own immediate population and the exceedingly rapid increase of Cincinnati and of all the principal cities in the country, which are constantly making greater demands upon farmers for beef. The numbers of our cattle should at least grow with the increase of our population. But it has not been so with us.

The above reduction is not only injudicious and improvident, but, if correspondingly continued, will tend to the serious impoverishment of our soil, and must reduce our position from a first-class producing county to one of the second class. The high prices which meats of every kind have commanded has unwittingly induced our farmers to sell not only their aged cattle, but their calves. They have not only parted with the golden egg, but they have foolishly sold the hen that laid it. The places of the aged cattle made into beef have not been filled by younger stock raised upon the farm. On the contrary, a shortsighted and avaricious policy has induced many to destroy their capital by selling off all their calves for veal, instead of bestowing upon them extra care to make them more than fill the places of those previously and properly sold.

As a general rule, every good system of mixed husbandry, in order to be profitable and promotive of the permanent productiveness of the soil, should be based upon the amount of manures that may be relied upon from the domestic animals maintained upon the farm. No arbitrary rule as to the number to be kept can be definitely fixed. All such rules would be liable to frequent modifications, depending upon the character of the soil, the climate, the grains grown, the grasses produced, and numerous other important considerations. Besides, temporary circumstances might, for a brief season, justify a departure from any well-considered rule which may have proved to be generally correct.

In this climate, with our highly productive soil, alike suitable for grains and grasses, it can not be unsafe to prescribe, as a general rule, that the number of our domestic animals should bear that proportion to our population which is found to be wise and appropriate in foreign countries less productive than ours, which proportion to population may be modified by the extent of area upon which such populations, respectively, may be found to exist.

Let us see, therefore, what proportion the cattle of other countries bear to their population, and what proportion they bear to the aggregate number of acres in such countries, so far as we can find the necessary data for giving the proportion.

As our population is much less dense in Ohio than in the above-named foreign countries, and our ability to feed stock is far superior to their ability, it is apparent that our cattle in Ohio are not so numerous as they should be. The proportion of cattle to population in Butler County, as it existed in 1855, was no better, all things being considered, than that above given for Ohio. The present exhibit, therefore, for Butler County, is reprehensibly low. Our number of cattle ought to be speedily increased, for our credit as well as our profit.

If we rightly estimate our productive ability to sustain a large amount of stock, the great and increasing demand at remunerative prices for cattle in every condition, and their value in providing the most reliable means for maintaining the fertility of our soil, we can not hesitate to come to the conclusion that Ohio, as well' as Butler County, has been pursuing an unwise policy in not maintaining and increasing her stock, not only in number but in quality. The population of Butler County was, in 1855, 33,301, and is now 42,580; and yet while this increase of population of 9,289 has taken place, our cattle have decreased from 20,914 to 16,519. We should resolve speedily to regain our former position, and then put forth new energies to make our county one of the best counties in the West for the production of beef and milk.

No carefully conducted experiments have been made to determine the most economical mode of raising and fattening stock. The general custom of bestowing as little attention upon the stock of the farm as possible often prevails. We have, however, many exceptions, where intelligent and well-directed efforts are giyen to

The number of marauding cattle found upon the pub- © lic roads has sensibly decreased. 'The law upon that subject has had a salutary effect, not only in restraining the wayward footsteps of 'famished cattle, but in educating their owners to a higher sense of their obligations to their neighbors. Yet there are sore-heads who have not yet become reconciled to the necessity of caring for the prop-

The breeding and fattening' of hogs is an important branch of the business of farming as conducted in this county. No county in the United States of equal area has produced so many hogs of a superior quality as the county of Butler. The breed which is here so highly esteemed is the result of careful and judicious selection,

The precise history of the method adopted to produce this popular breed of hogs can not be given as fully and as reliably as its present value and importance demand. The best information of a reliable character which can be obtained gives us to understand that as early as about 1820 some hogs of an improved breed were obtained and crossed upon the then prevailing stock of the county. Among the supposed improved breeds of hogs there were the Poland and Byefield. They are represented as being exceedingly large hogs, of great length, coarse bone, and deficient in fattening properties. Subsequently more desirable qualities were sought for, and the stock produced by the crosses with Poland, Byefield,-and other breeds underwent very valuable modifications by being bred with an esteemed breed of hogs then becoming known, and which were called the Big China. They possessed important qualities in which the other breeds were sadly deficient. At a later period Mr. William Neff, of Cincin-

England. Among them were some Irish Graziers. They were white in color, of fair size, fine in the bone, and possessing admirable fattening properties. Berkshires, about the same time, were attracting much attention, and both breeds were freely crossed with the then existing stock of the county. The result of these crosses was highly advantageous in the formation of a hog of the most desirable qualities. The Berkshires had obtained, with many breeders, great, favor, while others objected to them because they thought them too short and too thick in the shoulder. Nevertheless the Berkshire blood was liberally infused into this stock of hogs, but in such a judicious manner as to obviate the objections urged against them, and to secure their conceded good qualities.

Since the formation period of this breed of hogs, as above stated, there have been no material or decided innoyvations upon the breed thus obtained. Breeders have carefully selected and judiciously bred from the best ani- 'mals thus produced among us. Wherever defective points were apparent, they have been changed by careful breed- -ing. There has been for many years no admixture of any other breed of hogs. This breed is now, and has for nearly fifty years been the stock predominant in this county. Breeders believe that they have a well-established breed of hogs, which is unsurpassed in the most desirable qualities of a good hog. This breed of hogs, although of comparatively recent origin, may be regarded as thoroughly and permanently established. They have been bred so long, and with such judgment and uniform success, that they may be confidently relied on as possessing such an identity and fixity of character as a distinct breed as to give assurance that they will certainly and unmistakably propagate and extend their good qualities.

_ For many years there was some diversity of opinion as to the proper name to be given to the popular and prevailing breed of swine. The subject was thoroughly discussed, and the name definitively and authoritatively determined by the action of the National Swine-breeders' Convention, held at Indianapolis in November, 1872. That convention settled on the name Poland-China. action of the convention has been almost universally adopted by breeders throughout the country.

While we claim that Butler County has more good hogs than any county in the State, yet we do not desire to do our neighbors any injustice by appropriating all the credit for this breed of hogs to ourselves.

Warren County assisted in the formation and establishment of this breed of hogs. They continue to raise them in their purity and perfection, and take into the market as fine lots of hogs as have ever been raised and sold.

Tn verification of what we claim we propose to show the averages of hogs sold and delivered to packers - not isolated cases, nor single specimen hogs, but the lots of hogs raised by our farmers and sold in the market.

These hogs are usually kept over one Winter, and are sold at ages ranging from eighteen to twenty-one months. Mr. David M. Magie has made the following sales:

These are individual lots, among many which have been noticed as remarkable for their high average. A1- though they have never been equaled, so far as the public know, yet some may regard another kind of evidence as more conclusive. To such we submit the following facts, kindly furnished by Mr. Chenoweth, who, for many years, weighed the hogs packed by Jones & Co., at' Middletown, in this county. The hogs there packed are mainly furnished by citizens of this county and Warren County. The following table will explain itself:

These figures, which are obtained from unquestionable sources, must decide the superiority of our breed of hogs over all others. To produce such averages, the stock must be of the best quality, and then care and judgment in breeding must be practiced, and good attention given in raising and fattening.

The course adopted in breeding, rearing, and fattening ourshogs, as practiced by our successful breeders, is very uniform indeed. Young sows are usually preferred for breeders. They and the boar are carefully selected, so as to perpetuate good points and to avoid any that may be deemed either defective or unsatisfactory in their appearance. Breeders aim to have their pigs come between the 1st of March and the 15th of April. The sows, with their pigs, are carefully attended until weaning time, when they are duly separated, and the pigs are then abundantly supplied with slop and other feed, so as to prevent them from losing growth or flesh in consequence of their weaning. Whenever they attain sufficient age they are turned into clover, where they remain during the continuance of grass. During the ensuing winter, they are kept in a thrifty growing condition. In May of the second year, they are turned into clover pasturage, where they remain until August or September. This Summer pasturing upon clover is deemed essential to the proper development and growth of the hog. They increase rapidly in size, and become in the best possible condition for receiving fat-producing food, which is given to them with care and regularity until they are ready for market.

Some feeders deem it advisable to give the stock they propose to fatten a slop of meal or shorts during a part of August and September. Others rely upon nothing but corn, fed to them in the ear, or by '' turning in" upon standing corn. 'This latter mode would seem to be a very slovenly and improvident manner of feeding hogs. It is, however, not always so. When the weather is favorable there is economy of labor and no waste of grain in thus fattening hogs. If turned in early they consume a large portion of the stalks and all the corn. There is another reason in favor of feeding off corn by turning hogs early in the season upon the corn: The hogs take off but little from the land, and it is, therefore, less exhausting to the soil than feeding the grain produced in any other way. To feed hogs thus in a wet season is very objectionable, Grain is lost, hogs do not thrive so well, and the land is very liable to become injured by compacting and baking.

As yet, no carefully conducted experiments have been made in this county to test the advantages of cooking food for fattening hogs. Farmers estimate that it requires from eighteen to twenty-five bushels of dry corn to fatten each head of a fair lot of hogs. In two instances the experiment of fattening hogs with corn boiled on the ear has been tried. One gentleman, some years ago, fattened some twenty-five head on boiled corn, and stated that he had done so by using about seven or eight bushels per head. Another gentleman claimed to have produced the same results by using half the usual quantity of corn. There is but little question but what an immense saving would be effected by cooking all our corn used for fattening purposes.

The prevalence of that fearful, and usually fatal disease, the hog cholera, has done its work with us as with others. It does not prevail as extensively now as heretofore, nor is the disease as virulent. Farmers now watch the condition of their.stock with more care than heretotofore. While there is no reliable remedy known for curing the disease, yet careful attention to the health and growth of stock, and the use of some supposed preventives may be efficacious in staying the ravages of the disease, and saving us from great losses.

For the purpose of showing the capacity of Butler County for raising hogs, and making pork for the market, the following statement is submitted, showing the number and value of hogs assessed for taxation purposes :

This table shows the increase and decrease of numbers, as well as their aggregate values, for the last thirty-six years. It will be seen that the number of hogs reported has undergone decided changes. The largest number was 66,695 in the year 1854, and the lowest number 'was 27,886 in 1865. While our population was increasing at nearly the rate of 550 per annum, amounting in 11 years to about 6,000, the number of hogs decreased in the same time about 55 per cent. The variableness in price has keen remarkable. They were worth, in 1848, $1.52 per head ; in 1855, $2.23; in 1863, $3; and in 1866, $8.

and possibly one or two others, strongly imbibed the mania, which prevailed at that time, for raising Merino sheep. This variety of sheep was not generally introduced among our farmers, owing to the high prices they then commanded. They therefore constituted a very small portion of the few sheep then in the county. ''Common sheep," as they were called, were the predominant breed. They possessed no very desirable quality, save that of a high capacity to endure excessive bad treatment. Their wool was coarse and hairy, and only suitable for the manufacture of such goods as were denominated ' home-spun."

From the introduction of the Merinos, a few years previous to 1820, some change in some localities was affected in the quality of the wool. A very few appreciated the value of having a better grade of wool than that furnished by the common sheep, and hence the introduction of the Merino blood was very limited indeed.

Subsequently new breeds of sheep were sparingly introduced, and were received with greater favor. Some Southdowns were introduced as early as 1850, and subsequently Leicesters, Cotswolds, and their crosses were ocasionally seen. At this time we have creditable flocks of 'improved Spanish Merinos," of Southdowns, of Leicesters, and Cotswolds. Considering the little interest which had existed for many years in sheep husbandry, the present prospect for increased attention to that interesting and profitable branch of the farmer's business is very encouraging indeed. Our contiguity to the Cincinnati market, and the rapidly increasing consumption of choice mutton, which exceeds the increase of population, has induced many farmers to give more attention to raising sheep which are esteemed to be best for mutton, quality and quantity considered. Here, as elsewhere, great difference of opinion exists as to the best breed of sheep for making mutton. Some prefer the Southdowns, while others pre fer the larger breeds.

Those who prefer the Merino rely upon the superior quality and quantity of wool, claiming that for a given quantity of food they realize more money on their small sheep than can be made with the larger breeds. It is probably best that this diversity of opinion should prevail as to the relative value of the several breeds of sheep. It excites more interest, and a rivalry that is neither unpleasant nor unprofitable, and thereby our manufacturers are furnished with a better variety of wool, and our markets are more abundantly supplied with mutton of an improved quality.

Recently a new breed of sheep has been introduced, which attains a mammoth size, and which promises to be a great addition to the stock of this county. It is known as the Oxfordshire Downs.

The condition of sheep husbandry in this county can be seen by an examination of the following table, giving their number and value in the years named :

1861, and that their average values have fluctuated between 55 cents and $4.74 per head. These extreme fluctuations, in numbers and in price, are not credible by those who have not bestowed immediate attention upon such questions. Precisely why such remarkable fluctuations have taken place, it would be difficult to determine to the satisfaction of many. Causes have existed which legitimately would tend to affect not only the number but the price of sheep. Yet no adequate reason can be assigned for such extreme changes in numbers or price. The figures show that men have been influenced in their movements as sheep are - the one follows the bell-wether, while the other regulates his business by the movements of his neighbors. There has been nothing which should have produced these violent changes. Sheep husbandry, for the last fifteen years, has, upon an average, been as profitable as the ordinary business of the farm for the same period.

Present pecuniary profits should not be regarded as the only motive which should influence the operations of the careful and considerate farmer. The cleanliness of his farm, the preservation, if not the increased productive capacity, of his soil should not be lost sight of in deciding in what manner he should conduct his farming business. If experienced English farmers are content to fatten sheep for the butcher, only asking the manure made as their clear profit, then surely our farmers ought to consider whether they will not be able to enrich their farms to so great an extent by feeding sheep that they will be content with a small profit for the grain and labor expended.

These comparisons show that we in Butler County are greatly behind in the number of sheep. Our population, our acreage, and our ability to raise and keep sheep, all suggest that we should give more attention to sheep husbandry, and should speedily increase our flocks. If other countries, or other parts of our own State, less favorably situated, find:it profitable to keep so large a number of sheep, surely this county, in such proximity to Cincinnati, where good mutton always finds ready sale at a fair price, can find abundant warrant. for increasing their flocks of sheep, and for improving their quality. .

Thus far no serious disease has prevailed among our sheep. They have been exempt from ailments of almost every kind. Their only enemy has been found in the four thousand ravenous dogs which infest the county, and which not only annoy and disturb the quietude of whole communities, but which do, annually, injuries exceeding in value all the dogs of the county one hundred fold.

Butter and cheese must not be passed unnoticed. As to the latter article, neither the quantity made nor its quality give it any special claims upon our attention. We do not aim to make enough cheese for domestic use. The amount manufactured is consequently very inconsiderable,

Butter making, however, has grown to be an important business. In no branch have we made greater im- . provements than in this domestic department. Formerly good butter was a rare commodity in our markets. Now they are pretty well supplied with a fair quality, in many cases a superior quality, of butter. Our housewives, in this department, as in most others over which they have special supervision, have made most commendable progress in improving the value of their products.

There are other topics connected with the agricultural interests of this county which most probably should have received attention. In considering the multitude of the more important questions, they have been overlooked.

In conclusion, it affords us great pleasure in being able to bear favorable testimony to the general progress which has been made in the intellectual, moral, and social culture of our agricultural population. This improvement has been more general and more marked among females than among males. In substantial educational attainments, in moral culture, and in social accomplishments, our young women of the county are far in advance of our young men. Even in the same families, the daughters have more refinement and more propriety of deportment than the sons. It is greatly to be desired that there will be no abatement of effort on the part of our young women to attain a high position, and that, by increased manly exertions, our young men may make more rapid progress, so that they may soon occupy a like honorable position in the good opinion of worthy men and women everywhere.

The Miami Canal

Tue navigation of the Miami River did not please our forefathers. up, except with so mitch difficulty that it was practically never tried. Enlarging and digging out its bed was discussed for many years, as is related in a preceding chapter; but nothing ever came of the project. No canal of great size had been made in this country when the idea was first entertained of uniting Lake Erie and the Ohio River by digging a navigable channel from the one to the other. But it was not long after the second war with Great Britain that New York began its surveys from the Hudson River, along the channel of the Mohawk, to the eastern extremity of Lake Erie, under the leadership of DeWitt Clinton. The result of the labors of the surveyors of this route was before the people of the world when, on the 14th of December, 1819, Goyernor Ethan Allen Brown, the chief magistrate of the State, incited by the example set him by a long list of

His words did not fall on unwilling ears. They were repeated year by year, and inquiries were made of those who had gained experience by the construction of these water-ways in New York, as well as of capitalists and money-lenders in the great commercial centers of the East. It was necessary not only to find out that canals were practicable, but that they would pay; and not only this, but that money enough could be borrowed by the State in its corporate capacity to arrange for their construction. All these questions were in the end answered satisfactorily.

Before making any recommendation on the subject, Mr. Brown had had an extended correspondence on the subject with DeWitt Clinton, then the head of the Board of Canal Commissioners of New York State. This was in 1816. In February, 1820, an act was passed by the Ohio Legislature appointing three commissioners to locate a route for a navigable canal between Lake Erie and the Ohio River, and providing for its location through the Congress lands, then lately purchased of the Indians. This act also proposed to ask of Congress a grant of one or two millions of acres of land. The enactment was not thoroughly carried into effeet by reason of some failure to appoint commissioners or to have a suitable survey made,

In a communication sent by Governor Brown to the House of Representatives in the preceding month he treated at some length the idea of a canal through the two Miami valleys. In the valley of the Mad River little more than excavation and a few locks would be required. Following down the route of the Great Miami no obstacle would be met with until the hills at Franklin were reached. Near Hamilton there was the choice of two routes - one by the valley of the Great Miami down the stream, or the other following the line of Mill-creek, the valleys of both coming together in 'airfield Township.

On the 3d of January, 1822, Micajah T. Williams, of Cincinnati, a representative from Hamilton County, and chairman of a committee to whom the report had been referred, made an elaborate report, discussing the question at length. He said:

"Tt is a well-established fact that man has not yet devised a mode of conveyance so safe, easy, and cheap as canal navigation ; and although the advantage of cheap and expeditious transportation is not likely to be perceived when prices are high and trade most profitable, yet the truth is familiar to every person of observation that the enormous expense of land carriage has frequently consumed nearly, and sometimes quite, the whole price of provisions at the place of embarkation for a distant market. This is essentially the case in relation to all commodities of a cheap and bulky nature, most of which will not bear a land transportation many miles, and consequently are rendered of no value to the farmer, and are suffered to waste on his hands. The merchant who engages in the exportation of the produce of the country, finding it a losing commerce, abandons it, or is ruined; and crops in the finest and most productive parts of the State are left to waste on the fields that produce them, or be distilled, to poison and brutalize society."

The valuable report of Mr. Williams concluded with the introduction of a bill authorizing an examination into the practicability of connecting Lake Erie with the Ohio River by a canal, which was read the first time, and finally passed January 31, 1822. The second section appointed Benjamin Tappan, Alfred Kelley, Thomas Worthington, Ethan Allen Brown, Jeremiah Morrow, Isaac Miner, and Ebenezer Buckingham, Jr., commismissioners, '' whose duty it shall be to cause such examinations, surveys, and estimates to be made by the engineer as aforesaid as may be necessary to ascertain the practicability of connecting Lake Erie with the Ohio River, by a canal through the following routes, viz. : from Sandusky Bay to the Ohio River; from the Ohio River to the Maumee River; from the lake to the river aforesaid by the sources of the Cuyahoga and Black Rivers and the Muskingum River; and from the lake by the sources of the Grand and Mahoning Rivers to the Ohio River."

In a letter addressed to Micajah T. Williams, one of the Ohio canal commissioners, by DeWitt Clinton, governor.of New York, on the 8th of November, 1823, in response to inquiries from Mr. Williams, Governor Clinton thus refers to the project of constructing a canal from the lake to the Ohio River: .

"The State of Ohio, from the fertility of its soil, the benignity of its climate, and its geographical position, must always contain a dense population, and the products and consumptions of its inhabitants must forever form a lucrative and extensive inland trade, exciting the powers of productive industry, and communicating aliment and energy to external commerce. But when we consider that this canal will open a way to the great rivers that fall into the Mississippi; that it will be felt, not only in the immense valley of that river, but as far west as the Rocky Mountains and the borders of Mexico; and that it will communicate with our great inland seas and their tributary rivers, with the ocean in various routes, and with the most productive regions of America, - there can be no question respecting the blessings that it will produce, the riches it will ¢reate, and the energies it will call into activity."

James Geddes, one of the most honored names in the State of New York, was employed as engineer, on the recommendation of the governor and canal commis- sioners of that State. He retired within the year, and was succeeded in September, 1824, by Mr. David S. Bates, also of New York, who remained here as principal engineer until March, 1829. The engineer in charge of the preliminary work upon the Miami Canal from the first, Samuel Forrer, was superintending engineer of the line from Cincinnati to Dayton. Mr. Forrer is still alive, as are also three of the other engineers, Jesse L. Williams, Francis Cleveland, and Richard Howe.

'""The unhealthiness of the season, and other causes which have 'operated to retard the prosecution of the surveys and examinations, have prevented the location of a line of canal on the Western or Miami route.

'The canal line south from the summit would probably cross Mad River near its mouth, thence pursuing the valley of the-Great Miami to a point where it may be thrown into the valley of Mill Creek; thence along that valley to Cincinnati. The waters of Mad River may be thrown into this line near Dayton, and those of the Great Miami below, and, being conducted in sufficient quantities to the termination of the canal at Cincinnati, would afford power for extensive and valuable hydraulic works, which are there much needed.

'This line of canal would pass through a section of. country inferior to none in America in the fertility of its soil or the quantity of surplus productions it is capable of sending to market. That part of the canal between Dayton and Cincinnati may be with great ease supplied with water, could probably be constructed for a moderate expense, and would become a source of immediate and extensive profit."

''From Dayton to Cincinnati this line, sixty-six miles seventy-one chains in length, assumes generally a very favorable aspeet. To Middletown, a distance of about twenty-three miles, it is of the most favorable character, with the exception of two points. The first is situated about three miles below Dayton; the second at and immediately below the mouth of Clear Creek, below Franklin. The first of these difficulties is occasioned by the contact of the river (the Miami) and the highlands for the distance of forty-eight chains. To pass this will require a wall of stone-work at low-water line, or an embankment of earth and loose fragments of stone, protected from the outside from abrasion by- the floods, by loose stones. This wall or embankment must be raised of sufficient height to protect the canal from the floods of the river, which rises from twelve to fifteen feet. It is believed,that such a work can be built and sustained without difficulty. The bottom of the river is composed of detached masses of rock, and at this point the river is very shoal. The adjoining hills and bank are composed of loose masses of stones, gravel, and other materials necessary for the construction of the embankment or wall.

The second of these difficulties is of a character very similar to that of the first, though of an aspect somewhat less formidable. The river does not bear so hard upon the hill as at the first point. A wall or embankment will be required to pass this difficulty very similar to that above described. This line, as far as Middletown, can be supplied with water without any cost on account of feeders. The crossing of Mad River above Dayton with the line of canal by means of a dam will afford any supply of water from that stream which may be required for the purposes of navigation, and an additional quantity may be drawn from it for the supply of hydraulic works along the line below, without injury to the valuable works already in operation at Dayton.

''From Middletown to the Ohio River at Cincinnati, a distance of about forty-four miles by the line of location, there are few serious obstructions. With the exception of half a mile of side-hill near Irwin's mill on Mill Creek, which has a tendency to slip, and three or four miles in the same vicinity of side-lying ground, and a few points of inconsiderable difficulty on the Miami between Middletown and Hamilton, this line is of the most favorable character. It presents nothing but proper cutting of the easiest character. The line follows the immediate valley of the Miami River to Hamilton, and then bears off from

_ the river on a level plain, with proper cutting, and passes into the valley of Mill Creek along the margin of some ponds and swamps, which in flood-time flow into -that stream. The excavation to get into the valley of Mill Creek from that of the Miami does not exceed five feet depth at any point. There is not in the whole a half mile of the line which amounts to that depth. Down the valley of Mill Creek there are no obstructions until the line reaches the side-lying grounds near the Ohio. These, though presenting difficulties, are not of the most serious character. e

"From a point on Mill Creek near White's mill, about nine miles from the Ohio, two lines were run, - one on the principle of keeping up the level so as to command the upper plain on which Cincinnati stands, entering the Ohio at the mouth of Deer Creek, above the town; the other by locking down the valley of Mill Creek as it descends, and passing on the west of that plain to the lower plain of the town. The first of these lines, in consequence of keeping so high a level, will cost something more than the second or lower level. The difference, however, will not be great, as the lockage, which on the lower line is distributed along the valley of Mill Creek for a distance of seven miles, is on the plan of the upper line thrown into the valley of Deer Creek near the river, where suitable, stone for their construction can be had from the bed of the Ohio, without the cost of hauling them from six to seven miles. But should the difference in the cost of these two lines be considerable, the superior value for hydraulic purposes, which the surplus water which might be thrown to that point would have on the upper plain over its value on the lower plain, will probably more than compensate for the difference in the cost of the two lines. The upper plain is elevated one hundred and eight feet above high water in the Ohio. The surplus water that might be conveyed into a basin on the upper plain, with so great a power for its use, might be made a very considerable source of revenue to the canal without interfering with its usefulness for navigation, the primary object of its construction. This section, from Middletown to Cincinnati, may be supplied with water from the Miami with but very little expense. By a cut of twenty-four chains the mill-race of Abner Enoch, near Middletown, may be turned into the canal. Building a dam, and enlarging this race, will be all that is necessary to command from the river any quantity of water which may be required for the supply of the canal to the Ohio. As much water may be introduced at this point as can be thrown forward through the canal without injury to the navigation, without sensibly affecting the mills on the river below. This surplus water may be very profitably used at several points in the valley of Mill Creek, by throwing it at the heads of locks, on to wheels, and taking it again into the canal on lower levels, losing nothing except the extra evaporation and absorption occasioned thereby. The surplus water which may be passed through the canal and used for hydraulic purposes, both in the valley of Mill Creek and at Cincinnati, would unquestionably be a source of considerable revenue to the canal and of general benefit to the surrounding country. It may be remarked, also, that at no points within the State would this hydraulic power be of so great a source 'of revenue as at these. The surrounding country sustains a dense population, and is almost entirely destitute of water-power. The same remarks will apply, in some degree, to the line from Dayton to Middletown. Suitable stone for the construction of locks may be obtained near Dayton and in the bed of the Ohio River near Cincinnati. Through the intermediate parts of this line stone of the proper quality for that use has not been discovered convenient to the line. Stone of a good quality may, however, be transported from Dayton and points above that by water, and deposited near the sites of the locks between Dayton and Hamilton."

In their next report the commissioners enter into a calculation of the revenue to be obtained from the lower section of the Miami Canal. They say:

'*''The following statement will exhibit the probable revenue which may be derived from the proposed canals during the progress of the work and after their completion. So soon as that'part of the line extending from the Miami above Middletown to the Ohio shall have been completed, which will be in three years from the commencement of the work, an extensive and valuable water-power at the southern termination of the canal in Cincinnati, where that power is much needed, and as valuable as at any other place, will be at the disposal of the State.

This power may be estimated as follows: Any quantity of water which can be permitted to pass in the canal without injury to its banks or to its navigation may be taken into the canal at Middletown. From a close calculation, it is thought safe to introduce 8,000 cubic feet per minute. Admitting 4,400 cubic feet per minute of this quantity to be expended on the forty-four miles of canal between Middletown and Cincinnati, equal to 100 cubic feet per minute for each mile, and 600 cubic feet per minute to be used in locking boats from the Ohio River into the canal and from the canal into the river, which will be sufficient to pass eighty boats per day, there will remain a surplus of 3,000 cubic feet per minute applicable to hydraulic purposes at Cincinnati. The descent from the proposed basin, on the upper plain at Cincinnati, to high-water mark in the Ohio, is fifty feet, and to low-water mark one hundred and eight feet. This water may, therefore, be applied on three overshot water-wheels of fifteen feet diameter each, in succession, before it reaches the level of high-water mark. It has been ascertained by. actual experiment that 300 cubic feet of water per minute, if applied to the best advantage on an overshot wheel of fifteen feet, will give power sufficient to keep in operation two pairs of four and a half feet mill-stones. Calculating from this datum, twenty pairs of mill-stones could be driven on the first descent of sixteen and a half feet of the surplus water from the basin, the same number on the second descent, and the like number on the third descent of sixteen and a half feet, in all power sufficient to keep in operation sixty pairs of mill-stones in the descent of the surplus water from the basin to the level of high-water mark. Two hundred and fifty dollars would certainly be a moderate rent for water-power sufficient to drive a pair of mill-stones, or the same power applicable to any other machinery, in such a place as Cincinnati, especially when it is considered that the power would be constant, not subject to interruption from high or low water. At this rate the water-power from the basin to high-water mark in the Ohio would rent for fiftéen thousand dollars per annum. And this rate is much lower than that for which power is rented in other places. The power obtained by descent from high-water to low-water mark would not be as valuable as that above estimated, as it would be subject to occasional interruptions from high water. These interruptions on the upper half of the descent from extreme high-water mark would seldom occur; and it will be safe to estimate the rent of water-power from high to low-water mark at five thousand dollars per annum; making the total amount of water-rents twenty thousand dollars per annum. Much water-power may also be obtained in the descent between Middletown and Cincinnati, which is one hundred and seven feet. The amount of tolls arising from transportation on the canal extending from Dayton to Cincinnati It 1s not so easy to estimate. The following, however, is the most correct view we are able to give of the subject.

It is ascertained, from information on which the utmost reliance can be placed, that thirty thousand barrels of flour have been exported from the county of Montgomery alone in one year. It will undoubtedly be safe to estimate that the same quantity will be exported when additional facilities are offered by the canal for exportation ; and that at least an equal quantity will be exported from the counties of Clarke, Champaign, Miami, Darke, and other adjoining counties. The lowest price for which flour can now be transported from Dayton to Cincinnati is fifty cents per barrel. A toll of twelve and a half cents per barrel from Dayton to Cincinnati will not be unreasonable, and this on sixty thousand barrels will give a revenue of $7,500. On all other articles exported from Dayton to Cincinnati on the canal it will be undoubtedly safe to calculate on receiving a toll of $2,500 per annum, making on the descending navigation from Dayton an aggregate of $10,000. From the business which will naturally fall into the canal from the intermediate counties of Warren, Butler, and those adjoining them, together with the whole ascending navigation, it will be safe to calculate on receiving an equal amount of toll, making a total product from tolls of $20,000 per annum, which, added to the estimated rents for water-power, will produce the annual sum of $40,000."

"Proposals in writing will be received by the undersigned at Hamilton, on the 15th of July next, for the construction of about fifteen miles of the Miami Canal, extending from a point on the Great Miami River two miles above Middletown, to a point near Hamilton.

"Persons who are disposed to contract for the construction of any part of this work are invited to examine the ground before the day of sale. Any information as to the character of the line, manner of constructing the work, or terms of contracting, may be had on application to Samuel Forrer, Esq., engineer on the line. :

'""A profile of the line, with the estimates of the value of the work, will be exhibited on the day of letting, for the information of all who may be disposed to take contracts.

In that year (1825) his excellency DeWitt Clinton, governor of the State of New York, visited Ohio, on the invitation of the citizens of this State, in order to be present at the commencement of the internal improvements of the State by our canals. As soon as it was known that he would be present on that date, an invitation was extended to the most prominent gentlemen of the vicinity to meet him, on the 11th of July, in Hamilton. The invitation read as follows:

'"'Str, - You are respectfully invited to attend, at Hamilton, on Tuesday, the 12th July instant, at an early hour, for the purpose of partaking of a dinner to be prepared for their excellencies DeEWrrr CrLInTon and

JEREMIAH Morrow, governors of the States of New York and Ohio. Inyite any of your friends who can make it convenient to attend with you. '« By order of the committee of arrangement. '' Lewis P. Sayre, Chairman. "'Haminton, July 11, 1825."

The dinner which was provided on the occasion, of which one hundred and fifty persons partook, was elegant and abundant. It was prepared by T. Blair, and served up under the shade of the locust-trees in the court-house yard. The day was fine, and the pleasure which was universally felt at welcoming the 'father of internal improvement" was heightened by the presence of Jeremiah Morrow, governor of the State of Ohio; Ex-Governor Ethan Allen Brown, the Honorable Benjamin Tappan, and Micajah T. Williams, Esq., canal commissioners; Judge David S. Bates; the chief engineer, Samuel Forrer, Esq., and a number of other 'distinguished citizens and strangers, who honored the occasion by their presence. John Reily presided at the table, assisted by John Woods, as vice-president. Governor Clinton was met at Middletown on the previous day by a deputation from Hamilton, with Captain Dunn at the head of his fine company of cavalry, together with a large concourse of citizens, who escorted him to Hamilton, where rooms had been prepared for his reception.

The enthusiasm which was excited by the presence of Governor Clinton was, if possible, heightened by the toasts and sentiments which followed the removal of the cloth. Thirteen regular toasts had been prepared, as follows :

1. "' The President of the United States and heads of departments. - If talents, virtue, experience, and patriotism at the helm will afford security, the ship of state is in no danger of foundering."

3. " Internal Improvements. - Whether their accomplishment legitimately belong to the States or the nation, a prophetic spirit may look forward to the period when, in times of trouble and difficulty, the works of the present age may become the safeguard of our national independence and the bond of national union."

4. '"' The State of New York. - She has given a noble specimen of what the genius and enterprise of one man may accomplish. Let Ohio profit by the example."

Dd. " The States of Ohio and New York. - Connected by mutual interests, and not less united in policy than in their admiration of the illustrious father of internal improvement."

11. " The Friends of the Manumission and Colonization of the Blacks. - They are the friends of man, and their exertions will promote the best interests of their country."

13. "The Literary Institutions of Ohio. - May they continue to be encouraged by an enlightened and liberal policy until the Western wilderness shall become an academic shade !"

'JT rise, gentlemen, to propose a toast in obedience to the instructions of the committee of arrangements; and, in thus becoming the organ of my fellow-citizens, I have the satisfaction of performing a duty highly gratifying to myself. ;

'Tt is only an act of justice to testify respect to men of distinguished worth and talents, whose lives have been devoted to the service of their country. But this is an ~ occasion of more than common interest. Our State has just commenced a stupendous work of internal improvement similar to that which New York has nearly completed, under the auspices of our distinguished guest - a work which is destined to elevate her to a proud rank among the States of the Union. Under such cireumstances it is natural for her to look to New York for her model, and to DeWitt Clinton as her presiding spirit. I shall, therefore, meet the cordial response of this assembly when I propose -

'« Fellow-citizens, - I receive with grateful sensibility this expression of approbation, and I fully appreciate its importance. Its communication through so respectable an organ in behalf of this respectable company renders it peculiarly interesting, and I offer to you my sincere thanks for your kindness to me on this occasion, and during my visit to this place.

'' For fifteen years I have devoted myself to the great cause of internal improvement, and it has been my good fortune, during my administration, to witness the commencement of the canals of New York, and in a very short time I hope to witness their completion. To the 'moral power and intelligence of the people we must ascribe the success of these stupendous undertakings. Ohio in her infant state, with inferior revenues and a less numerous population, has followed the example set by her elder sister, and has undertaken 'an enterprise without a parallel in the history of mankind, considering all the circumstances under which it has been commenced ; and the whole exhibits wisdom, patriotism, and magnanimity that would reflect honor on any age or country. 'The success is as certain as the resulting advantages, unless some destroying spirit should be let loose among you and darken the brightest days that ever opened upon the West. I beg leave to present as a toast: |

"« The public-spirited State of Ohio and her excellent chief magistrates who have pointed out her way to greatness and glory, and supported her in her illustrious career."

'"Under his administration the State of Ohio has 'commenced the great work of forming by internal improvement the bonds of union between all the members of our government, and by whose wisdom and prudence were pointed out the only means by which we shall be enabled to march with firmness to the accomplishment of the magnilicent work."

""Gentlemen, it would manifest insensibility on my part were I not to acknowledge the gratitude I feel for your kind expression of regard. That I have performed public services in which important interests were rendered, early in the settlement of our country, is certain. But it-is equally true that these, which are overrated, have been more than compensated by the repeated expressions of your confidence.

'"'Permit me, then, to say that I express the feelings of my heart when I assure you that I entertain a sincere respect for the people of this town and its vicinity, and tender my best wishes for their welfare. I propose -

Arrangements having been made at Cincinnati to entertain the distinguished gentlemen as guests in that city on the day succeeding, the company retired at an early hour, and Governor Clinton, accompanied by the gentlemen who had attended him hither, together with an escort of military and citizens, proceeded, that evening, to Martin's tavern, where he was met by a military escort from Cincinnati.

After Governor Clinton had been entertained at Cincinnati, he visited the falls of the Ohio; then returning to Hamilton, which he reached on the 18th of July. The next day he proceeded to Middletown. One of the local papers thus speaks of the day : that ever was, or perhaps ever will be, witnessed by them. It was the ceremony of commencing that great work of internal navigation which is destined to raise their character as an enterprising people, promote their happiness, both in a political and moral point of view, and increase saw the first sod raised by the great father and patron of internal improvement; and, notwithstanding it will be a matter of much exultation to see the completion of the work, yet it will not detract from, or even equal, the excitement produced by viewing the first breaking of the ground - the first step to the daring and stupendous undertaking.

'* Although notice had been given but three' days previous, thousands of freemen, drawn by the interest and novelty of the scene from different parts of the country, were on the ground; and never, perhaps, was observed a greater degree of harmony in a like assemblage than what prevailed on this occasion. Unanimity in the object for which they had assembled to view the commencement seemed to be the prevailing sentiment, and was strikingly expressed in almost every countenance ; and all appeared to be animated by the importance of the matter, and to take a deep interest in the ceremonies of the day.

added greatly to the occasion. A fine troop of cavalry, commanded by Captain Morsell, escorted Governor Clinton from Cincinnati; the other companies, three in number, were the Cincinnati Guards, commanded by Captain Emerson, Captain Avery's company of light infantry, and the Lafayette Greys, commanded by Lieutenant Burley. They deserve the unbounded thanks of our citizens, and are most certainly entitled to the highest commendation for the patriotism displayed in marching so great a distance, and for the good discipline and soldier-like conduct evinced during their stay in this place and in Middletown; and we sincerely hope that their reception and

'"'Among the distinguished guests, in addition to Governor Clinton and Governor Morrow (the latter of whom arrived about 11 o'clock, A. M.), we observed our late governor, EX. A. Brown, General Harrison, General Beasly, Judge Bates; Dr. Drake, of Lexington, Ky. ; Mr. M. T. Williams, acting commissioner, and Mr. Forrer, principal engineer, together with many others, whom our memory does not sufficiently serve us to particularize at this time.

'The ceremony was commenced by an appropriate and impressive prayer to the Throne of Grace by the Rey. Mr. Vickars, chaplain of the day ; after which Judge Crane, of

Dayton, rose, and, in a commanding strain of eloquence, delivered an excellent address. Nothing we could say by way of commendation would add to its excellence ; for it amply speaks its own superior merit, and attaches great credit to its intelligent and classical author. It is sufficient to say that it was received by the audience with loud and repeated acclamations.

'Governor Clinton and Governor Morrow then descended from the rostrum, which had been prepared for the occasion, followed by the commissioners, contractors, and other persons of distinction who felt an interest or were to assist in the enterprise. The governors each raised a sod, as the commencement of the work ; after which the other gentlemen assisted. The latter part of the ceremony was greatly enlivened by the continued volleys of musketry and by the many appropriate airs performed by the band of music. >

'After partaking of an excellent dinner, prepared by Mr. J. P. Reynolds, a number of toasts were drunk. The one given by Mr. Clinton was received with loud cheers. He responded with the following toast :

"<* The Miami Canal, like the Nile, will enrich and agerandize the region of its transit - not by fertilizing a soil exuberantly rich, but by opening lucrative markets for its production.'

"'The company separated at an early hour. Governors Clinton and Morrow, with their respective suits, departed the same evening for Lebanon."

The place at which these ceremonies took place was in a field about a mile south of town, at the place where the first lock is now constructed. The land was then owned by Daniel Doty, and is in section 28.

As we have elsewhere said, the northern portion of the route, that part going from Dayton to Lake Erie, had been partly located in 1824, and the next year it was regularly surveyed. This section of the work was not done till some time after the other, and, indeed, was for a period in danger of not being done at all. But the general government, in response to a petition from some of the best men in Ohio, made a grant of land equal to one-half of five sections in width on each side of the proposed route, between Dayton and the Maumee, so far as the same should be located through the government lands. In return it was simply provided that all persons or property of the United States should forever pass through or over the canals free of tolls. The amount of this grant, as afterwards ascertained, was three hundred and eighty-four thousand acres. Its market value could not have been very far from a million of dollars. The same act granted the State half a million dollars more, in aid of its canals. This grant was conditioned upon the completion within five years of the canals already begun at the time of the passage of the act, and the grant for the Miami extension upon the commencement of the work within five and its completion within twenty years, on penalty of payment by the State to the federal government of the value of the lands. The Legislature accepted the former, but declined the latter grant, as it was feared that it might be impossible to fulfill the conditions. These were the initial grants by the general government in aid of internal improvements, and were the forerunner of those to the Illinois Central, Northern Pacific, and Union Pacific railroads, as well as to a hundred others of less length. When Judge Jacob Burnet, of Ohio, was sent to the United States Senate in 1830, he succeeded in getting a bill through which repealed the forfeiture clauses and made the grant equivalent to five sections for every mile of canal located on land previously sold, as well as that unsold, by the general goyernment. The land so given was located by the governor, and by it, undoubtedly, the extension was effected.

Work was speedily begun above Middletown, taking the water from Enoch's dam, and running to the head of Mill Creek, a distance of twenty miles. The Advertiser of August 23d says:

'"'Tt will be remembered that twenty miles of the Miami Canal was put under contract on the 20th of July last. It was divided into forty-three sections. On the 28th of July the sod was first broken on section No. 8, a part of a contract taken by Seymore Scovel, Esq., of the State of New York. On the 23d the whole of this section was taken by a sub-contractor, who commenced active operations on it on the 24th, and has now, August 23d, completed thirty rods ready for inspection. No less than thirty-nine parties, or near five hundred workmen, under original and sub-contractors, are now engaged on twenty-seven sections. Many of these sections are in a rapid state of forwardness, and present a scene more like the effect of magic than reality, and can only be accounted for by the number of workmen so suddenly thrown upon them, and the determined perseverance of the undertakers. A little more time will be necessary for farmers to remove their corn from the ground occupied by a part of the canal line, when all the sections will speedily be commenced; and, from the number of persons continually flocking in for employment, and the character of the contractors, there can be no doubt that the whole twenty miles will be completed within the stipulated time. We understand that the resident engineer will set out in a few days to prepare the south end of the line for contract, which has been delayed in consequence of the great press of business occasioned by the immediate commencement of labor by so many of the contractors on the part of the line already let, and that the acting commissioner intends to dispose of fifteen miles more on or about the 15th of September next." , the Miami Canal for contract ; and on the 20th of July, in pursuance of public notice previously given, contracts were made for the construction of twenty miles of that canal, including six locks, extending from a point of the Miami River near Middletown to the head of Mill Creek. These contracts were, as in the former cases, effected at prices in all cases as low, and in most lower, than the original estimates. On the day following, the work was commenced on this canal in the presence of the distinguished chief magistrates of Ohio and New York and an immense concourse of deeply interested citizens; since - which it has progressed with spirit and effect, and is now in a flattering state of progression.

« As early as the 27th of September twenty-two miles in addition, including six locks, extending to a point near Cincinnati, were prepared and placed under contract upon, terms still more favorable to the State ; making, in all, forty-two miles of this canal now under contract. Upon the whole of this line, with only two exceptions, the contractors have already commenced the work on their jobs, and are prosecuting it in a manner highly satisfactory. Thirty miles or more are now grubbed and cleared ; the excavation already performed exceeds two hundred thousand cubic yards; three large culverts-are built, and the other items of the work have progressed in the same proportion. The most serious difficulty which has been experienced or is anticipated in the prosecution of the work on this line arises from the scarcity of stone of a suitable character for the construction of the locks, and from the difficulty of procuring water-lime. It was, in the first instance, thought most advisable to construct the locks of timber, and contracts for the first eight locks were made accordingly. It was, however, soon ascertained that to obtain timber in sufficient quantities would be attended with difficulties, be more costly than was anticipated, and, in most cases, would inflict a serious and measurably irretrievable injury upon the adjacent country. It was determined, therefore, to suspend the construction with tim- - ber of most of the locks, and to make further efforts for the discovery of stone, which have so far been successful as to induce a belief that stone will be obtained within a reasonable distance for their construction. The cost of obtaining the stone will, however, be such as to forbid the hope of constructing the locks for a sum below the original estimates of their cost. If the saving in the cost of the locks could have been in the same proportion with that on the other items of the work under contract, this line would be constructed for a sum very considerably less than that at which it was estimated. From the best estimate which can be made from the other items of the work at contract prices, making a liberal allowance for all contingencies which will probably occur, and placing the cost of the locks at $4 per perch, the line under contract will be constructed for the sum of $358,984.14. This is less than the sum at which it was estimated in the last report of the board by $25,000, and makes an

'¢ Abstract marked F will show the name of each contractor, the extent of contract, the contract price of each item of work, the average price of each kind of work, the total estimated amount of each contract, and of the whole line under contract at contract prices. The value of work performed on this line up to the 21st November is estimated at $31,994. The number of laborers engaged upon this line in the month of November amounted to nearly nine hundred. The contracts for the first thirty miles of this line require its completion by the first day of October next, and for the last ten miles by the 5th of May, 1827.