ページの画像
PDF
ePub

Oh, no! it is not corn; not puddings and bread and bacon that they want the working people to have: "nice 'taties" are their favourites; so that they may have the meat and bread for themselves, and for those who uphold and wait on them! The Irish-diet (for English labourers) is their favourite; but the English labourers will not, thank God, live on it; and I hope that the Irish will not do it much longer. The sword-bearing police do not, I warrant them, live on "nice mealy 'taties."

INSTRUCTIONS TO LABOURERS FOR

RAISING COBBETT'S CORN.

You will see

this corn is given from me.
that it is in the shape of the cone of a
spruce fir; you will see that the grains
are fixed round a stalk which is called
the cob. These stalks or ears come out
of the side of the plant which has leaves
like a flag, which plant grows to about
three feet high, and has two or three,
and sometimes more, of these ears or
bunches of grain. Out of the top of the
plant comes the tassel, which resembles
the plumes of feathers upon a hearse;
and this is the flower of the plant.

[ocr errors]

The grain is, as you will see, about the size of a large pea, and there are from two to three hundred of these grains I will first describe this corn to you. upon the ear, or cob. In my treatise I It is that which is sometimes called Indian have shown that, in America, all the hogs corn; and sometimes people call it Indian and pigs, all the poultry of every sort, the wheat. It is that sort of corn which the greater part of the oxen, and a considerdisciples ate as they were going up to able part of the sheep, are fatted upon Jerusalem on the Sabbath-day. They this corn; that it is the best food for gathered it in the fields as they went horses; and that, when ground and along and ate it green, they being "an dressed in various ways, it is used in hungered," for which, you know, they bread, in puddings, in several other ways were reproved by the pharisees. I have in families, and that, in short, it is the written a treatise on this corn, in a book, real staff of life, in all the countries where which I sell for two and six-pence, giving it is in common culture, and where the a minute account of the qualities, the culture, the harvesting, and the various uses of this corn; but I shall here confine myself to what is necessary for a labourer to know about it, so that he may be induced to raise, and may be enabled to raise enough of it in his garden to fat a pig of ten score.

There are a great many sorts of this corn. They all come from countries which are hotter than England. This sort, which my eldest son brought into England, is a dwarf kind, and is the only kind that I have known to ripen in this country and I know that it will ripen in this country in any summer; for I had a large field of it in 1828 and 1829; and last year (my lease at my farm being out at Michaelmas, and this corn not ripening till late in October) I had about two acres in my garden at Kensington. With in the memory of man there have not been three summers so cold as the last, one after another; and no one so cold as the last. Yet my corn ripened perfectly well, and this you will be satisfied of if you be amongst the men to whom

climate is hot. When used for poultry, the grain is rubbed off the cob. Horses, sheep, and pigs, bite the grain off, and leave the cob; but horned cattle eat cob and all.

I am to speak of it to you, however, only as a thing to make you some bacon, for which use it surpasses all other grain whatsoever. When the grain is in the whole ear, it is called corn in the ear; when it is rubbed off the cob, it is called shelled corn. Now, observe, ten bushels of shelled corn are equal, in the fatting of a pig, to fifteen bushels of barley; and fifteen bushels of barley, if properly ground and managed, will make a pig of ten score, if he be not too poor when you begin to fat him. body who has been in America knows, that the finest hogs in the world are fatted in that country; and no man ever saw a hog fatted in that country in any other way than tossing the ears of corn over to him in the sty, leaving him to bite it off the ear, and deal with it according to his pleasure. The finest and solidest bacon in the world is produced in this way.

Observe that every

3

Now, then, I know, that a bushel of shelled corn may be grown upon one single rood of ground, sixteen feet and a half each way. I have grown more than that this last summer; and any of you may do the same if you will strictly follow the instructions which I am now about to give you.

1. Late in March (I am doing it now), or in the first fortnight of April, dig your ground up very deep, and let it lie rough till between the seventh and fifteenth of May.

2. Then (in dry weather if possible) dig up the ground again, and make it smooth at top. Draw drills with a line two feet apart, just as you do drills for peas; rub the grains off the cob; put a little very rotten and fine manure along the bottom of the drill; lay the grains along upon that six inches apart; cover the grain over with fine earth, so that there be about an inch and a half on the top of the grain; pat the earth down a little with the back of a hoe to make it lie solid on the grain.

3. If there be any danger of slugs, you must kill them before the corn comes up if possible; and the best way to do this is to put a little hot lime in a bag, and go very early in the morning, and shake the bag all round the edges of the ground and over the ground. Doing this three or four times very early in a dewy morning or just after a shower, will destroy all the slugs: and this ought to be done for all other crops as well as for that of corn.

4. When the corn comes up, you must take care to keep all birds off till it is two or three inches high; for the spear is so sweet, that the birds of all sorts are very apt to peck it off, particularly the doves and the larks and pigeons. As soon as it is fairly above ground, give the whole of the ground (in dry weather) a flat hoeing, and be sure to move all the ground close round the plants. When the weeds begin appear again, give the ground another hoeing, but always in dry weather. When the plants get to be about a foot high or a little more, dig the ground between the rows, and work the earth up a little against the stems of the plants.

to

1

5. About the middle of August you will see the tassel springing up out of the

middle of the plant, and the ears coming out of the sides. If weeds appear in the ground hoe it again to kill the weeds, so that the ground may be always kept clean. About the middle of September you will find the grains of the ears to be full of milk, just in the state that the ears were at Jerusalem when the disciples cropped them to eat. From this milky state they, like the grains of wheat, grow hard; and as soon as the grains begin to be hard, you should cut off the tops of the corn and the long flaggy leaves, and leave the ears to ripen upon the stalk or stem. If it be a warm summer, they will be fit to harvest by the last of October; but it does not signify if they remain out until the middle of November or even later. The longer they stay out the harder the grain will be.

&

6. Each ear is covered in a very curious manner with a husk. The best way for you will be when you gather in your crop to strip off the husks, to tie the ears in bunches of six or eight or ten, and to hang them up to nails in the walls, or against the beams of your house; for there is so much moisture in the cob that the ears are apt to heat if put together in great parcels. The room in which I write in London is now hung all round with bunches of this corn. The bunches may be hung up in a shed or stable for a while, and, when perfectly dry, they may be put into bags.

7. Now, as to the mode of using the corn: if for poultry, you must rub the grains off the cob; but if for pigs, give them the whole ears. You will find some of the ears in which the grain is still soft. Give these to your pig first; and keep the hardest to the last. You will soon see how much the pig will require in a day, because pigs, more decent than many rich men, never eat any more than is necessary to them. You will thus have a pig; you will have two flitches of bacon, two pig's cheeks, one set of souse, two griskins, two spare-ribs.

It is quite sufficient, that the corn will fat hogs better than any other thing will fat them: it need do nothing else, considering the amount of the crop, to make it more valuable than any other crop. But, as food for man, it is more valuable

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

ven than wheat; because it can be Mr. Sapsford; and I 'recollect also that conveniently used in so many ways. We this is the way in which the Americans. use the corn-flour, in my family, FIRST, make their bread. The bread in Long as bread, two-thirds wheaten and one-Island is made nearly always with rye third corn-flour; SECOND, in batter and corn-flour, that being a beautiful puddings baked, a pound of flour, a country for rye, and not so very good for quart of water, two eggs, though these wheat. I should add here, that there is last are not necessary; THIRD, in plum- some little precaution necessary with repuddings, a pound of flour, a pint of gard to the grinding of the corn. The water, half a pound of suet, the plums, explanation given to me is this: that to and no eggs; FOURTH, in plain suet-do it well, it ought to be ground twice, and puddings, and the same way, omitting between stones such are used in the the plums; FIFTH, in little round dump-grinding of cone-wheat, which is a bearded lings, with suet or without, and though wheat, which some people call rivets. they are apt to break, they are very good This, however, is a difficulty which will in this way; in broth, to thicken it, for be got over at once as soon as there shall which use it is beyond all measure better be only ten small fields of this corn in a than wheaten-flour. county. Now, to make BREAD, the following Now, my friends, observe, that, do are the instructions which I have received what you will, you cannot get more than from Mr. SAPSFORD, baker, No. 20, the about two gallons of wheat on a rod of corner of Queen-Anne-street, Wimpole-ground (164 feet square), when you can street, Marybonne. As I have frequently always, with proper care, get eight galcobserved, the corn-flour is not so adhesive, lons of corn; that half a single ear of that is to say, clammy as the wheat and corn will plant the rod; that a rod of rye flour are. It is, therefore, necessary; wheat requires for seed a tenth-part of or, at least, it is best to use it, one-third the crop; that there must be a floor to corn-flour and two-thirds wheat or rye thrash and winnow the wheat, and that four. The rye and the corn do not make the corn may be shelled by the fire-side. bread so bright as the wheat and the If a poor man have a little bit of wheat, corn, nor quite so light; but it is as good he finds it very difficult to do anything bread as I ever wish to eat, and I would with it; but a bit of corn he can manage always have it if I could. Now, for the as well as a great farmer can manage his instructions to make bread with wheat fields. If he have a garden of only ten flour and corn-flour. Suppose you are rods, only think of the value of ten times going to bake a batch, consisting of thirty 215 pounds of flour; 2,150 pounds, or pounds of flour; you will have, of course, within a trifle of six pounds of flour a twenty pounds of wheat-flour and ten day for the whole year, besides 210 pounds of corn-flour. Set your sponge pounds of offal, enough to fat, with some with the wheat-flour only. As soon as properly-cooked potatoes, a good hog! you have done that, put ten pints of But while the instances of this crop of a water (warm in cold weather, and cold bushel to the statute rod are innumerable, in hot weather) to the corn-flour; and let us suppose the average crop to be one mix the flour up with the water; and half of this. Then there is nearly three there let it be for the present. When the pounds of flour a day all the year wheat sponge has risen, and has fallen round, and half enough offal to fata hog; again, take the wetted-up corn-flour, and and, observe, I do not here include the work it in with the wheat sponge, and value of the fodder, which is very great; with the dry wheat-flour that has been and, mind, the corn is only five months round the sponge. Let the whole remain on the ground. fermenting together for about half an hour; and then make up the loaves and put them into the oven. The remainder of the process every one knows. These instructions I have, as I said before, from

[ocr errors]

But, in short, I need write no more on this subject: the fine corn that I have received from all parts of the country convinces me, that I have done this great thing for my country, and especially for

66

the Labouring People, to reduce whom were hardly out of his mouth, beform to live upon potatoes was the damned the oxen came round the end of the acheme, which the sensible and resolute barn! "Why," said I," that fellow Labourers have defeated. "WE WILL cannot reason any more than a beast NOT LIVE UPON POTATOES.” "for, otherwise, he must have known that When the men of Kent raised that motto, 66 you would detect the lie in a minute? the fate of the tithes and the funds was 66 Oh!" said he, a minute is a long sealed. If Englishmen could have been" while: he would swear that he was not reduced to live upon potatoes; if they" eating peaches, if you were to tax him could have been brought down to the "with it, with peaches in his hands and Irish scale, the basest of slavery would" with his mouth crammed with ther have been the lot of us all! The whole" pulp." Your FOOL-LIAR seems to people owe their deliverance to the men be, in this respect, upon a perfect equalof Kent. Ay, ay! The Whigs may ity with the Negroes. He has all their go on with their arming and with their animal cunning; and all their disregard other works; but all will be of no avail, of truth; or, rather, their want of capa since they cannot make the millions of city to distinguish between truth and labourers live upon potatoes. I read, in falsehood. These two qualities would the proceedings of the new Mechanics' carry him very far, were it not for the Institute, at Manchester, a speech, in counteracting power of his all-predomi which it is remarked, and with apparent nant malignity. The lying of the Ne pride, that the members of Mechanics' groes is of little avail to them, because. Institutes NEVER RIOT! No, "in nobody believes them; because it is the tellectual" souls: not they ! They fashion of the community never ta commit na violences!" Nice 'taties, believe a word that they say. But, it is and sea-weed and nettles, and shell-fish difficult to bring ourselves to look upon a that have died a natural death; these white man in this light. Yet, as you keep their "intellect" unclouded by the will presently be convinced (if you be not load on the stomach. I am for loading already), as far at least as relates to this the stomach with bacon and bread: the corn-affair, your FOOL-LIAR must bes load may, indeed, be rather less "celes- looked upon in precisely this light; and tial," less abstracted from earthly matter; it is truly curious that, at the last Somerhut, the body is all the better for the setshire election, they should have held loading; and, one would think, that me up a Negro to call him “brother chanics stood in need of bodies too. Blackey-man!"

[ocr errors]

But, now for the FOOL-LIAR, in connexion, in the first place, with this corn. The fellow has as much low cunning as any animal that ever existed, and his disregard of truth, is equal to that of a Negro. Those who have had to do with Negroes, know how difficult it is to make them perceive the difference between falsehood and truth. Not one in a thousand of them can be made to see any reason why they should not say that which it suits them to say at the moment. The master of a black fellow, in Long Island, who had been sent to fetch up a cow out of the pasture, said, when the fellow came with the cow, "Did you put up the bars to keep the axen in ?" "O yes, Massa!" There was a barn, round the end of which he had come with the cow, and the words

Last year, at this time, I published the names and addresses of the gentlemen, in each county, to whom I was about to send corn, free of all cost, even carriage free, for them to distribute gratis, in their several neighbourhoods, especially amongst the labourers. It seemed im possible for the devil himself to find a bad motive in this; yet the FOOL-LIAR, seeing in this list the names and addresses of a number of persons, who, he naturally supposed, had a respect for me, availed himself of the power that YOU HAD GIVEN HIM TO FRANK LETTERS, to send to each of these persons a printed paper,, most infamously slandering me signed with his name; and, to this ins famous publication he added, in manu» script, that the corn was " A FRAUD." and he begged the persons to whom be

addressed the letters, not, by any means, You may remember that, in the Trash to give it to the poor people to plant! for December last, and in the Register As I said before, as to truth and of the third of that month, I published falsehood, he is on a level with the letter from Mr. ENOS DIDDAMS of Sutblacks; but, having low cunning also ton Scotney, near Winchester, giving me equal to theirs, one wonders how he could an account of the fine crops of corn, have thus made sure of his detection as growed by the labourers and others, in LIAR, by so many documents under his that and the adjoining parishes, composing own hand; and at this every one must those which I have called "THE LITTLE wonder, until they reflect on the power of HARD PARISHES." Mr. DIDDAMS is a the fellow's malignity, which is so great village shoemaker, a man very much rethat it overpowers all his Negro-like cun- spected, and he recommended himself to ning. I remember Farmer BRAZIER of my notice by his zealous endeavours to Worth, in Sussex, where THE LIAR save several of the men who were translived for a while, saying, that at times, ported by the SPECIAL COMMISSION in his very look was so malignant, that if a Hampshire. I went, in the fall of 1830, drop were to fall from his eyes, it would to find out the WIDOW MASON, and I burn cloth, or any other substance, like was directed to this Mr. DIDDAMS, as a aqua fortis! This was a strong figure, person likely to give me information. I to be sure; but really if we look at the have known him ever since, and from all fellow's conduct about this corn, we can- that I have seen and heard of him, I not help believing that the farmer was believe him to be a worthy man. Now, right. The fellow is monstrously ignorant, observe, on the 4th of December last, I to be sure: I remember him telling his heard that THE LIAR had been received audience, "I have lautely bin in Nor-into, and entertained in, the house of a many, Genmun; a great forren country man in Hampshire, who had been, and in Vrance, Genmun." But brutally ig-was, in the habit of corresponding and norant as he is, he knew that his lies otherwise communicating with me ; upon this subject must be detected at the whereupon I at once told the latter that end of about six months. Yet so great was his malignity, so deadly was his hatred of me, that he put forth this lie with as much alacrity as if the saving of his own carcase from a beating (upon which point he is very tender!) had depended upon the success of the lie.

The six months ended; the lie was exposed; two thousand and forty-three persons, more than half of them farmlabourers, have (by themselves or neighbours) sent me samples of their crops; all sending expressions of gratitude; all delighted with their future prospects; many of them execrating the slanderous liar; and more of them expressing their contempt of so beastly a fool, who has thus sent documents all over the country, signed by himself, to be at all times produced, if necessary, to prove him fool and liar, without an equal in the world, amongst either blacks or whites. But now let me exhibit to you in detail some of the works of this malignant liar; and then, I think, you will agree with Farmer BRAZIER in the aqua-fortis opinion.

[ocr errors]

the communication between him and me must cease. Upon this he observed to me, that THE LIAR had been received also by Mr. Diddams, and that Mraca Diddams would, he was sure, hold correspondence with THE LIAR. I believed neither of these: I did not believe that Mr. DIDDAMS would let the fellow into his house, if he knew who he was; › and, as to corresponding with him, I was sure that Mr. DIDDAMS would have his hand chopped off rather than do it.

However, I wrote to Mr. DIDDAMS to tell me what THE LIAR said to him, and how he received him. In answer I received two letters from Mr.. DIDDAMS, which I shall insert here, without the smallest alteration, either in spelling, pointing, or any-thing else. It is the plain statement of a plain and sensible man, and a man of honesty and sincerity. When at Manchester, I wrote to Mr. DIDDAMS, asking his leave to publish the letters: he gave me leave, as you will see in an extract from a third letter. After this I showed the letters in

« 前へ次へ »