THE BEGINNINGS OF AGRICULTURE, 683 



table physiology, the qualities of different soils, the influence of 

 exposure and climate, the course of the seasons, and the accidents 

 of meteorology ; to sow and to harvest at the most favorable mo- 

 ment, and then to store the products in such a way as to prolong 

 the enjoyment of them. The establishment of agricultural in- 

 dustry thus exacted much more investigation, observation, and 

 knowledge than that of pastoral industry ; and further, instead of 

 being limited, as in the domestication of animals, to a small num- 

 ber of selected species, agriculture had to extend its empire over 

 thousands. This sort of life demanded, besides, more foresight, 

 for it was necessary to work for results the profit of which was 

 not gathered till after a long waiting. Finally, the profession of 

 agriculture was much more toilsome than that of herdsman, and 

 man, averse to hard work, recoiled long before the fatigue of so 

 rude a task. He could not undertake it resolutely except during 

 a phase of progress in which he had become more capable of rea- 

 soning, persistence, and effort. Agricultural civilization is there- 

 fore superior in every aspect to pastoral civilization by the ex- 

 tent of knowledge and foresight it implies, by the amount of 

 labor it imposes, and by the quantity of wealth it creates. And 

 when the two functions are in exercise at the same time, while 

 the care of the herds is left to the most ignorant and weakest of 

 the population children, women, and old men the agriculturists 

 compose the most active, the most intelligent, and the most ex- 

 perienced part. 



A progressive era of agricultural operations did not arrive till 

 after both the hunting and the pastoral phases. On the one side, 

 in fact, the destruction of wild animals must be sufficiently ad- 

 vanced to permit the cultivator to enjoy the reward of his labors, 

 which too many spoilers would render of no avail. Agriculture 

 would be hard to establish in a country where a pillaging and 

 devastating fauna flourishes. In South Africa, for example, the 

 plantations, exposed to the ravages of deer, birds, and insects, give 

 little return. On the other hand, the co-operation of domestic 

 animals was necessary, in order to plow large surfaces expedi- 

 tiously as well as to fertilize by their manure the ground which 

 repeated croppings would exhaust. This is the reason why, while 

 we find among many peoples just issued from the savage state 

 and destitute of cattle Polynesians, Mexicans, Peruvians, etc. - 

 interesting attempts at agriculture, they have not been able, in 

 the absence of that resource, to arise themselves above a limited 

 scale of gardening. The real agricultural system comes after the 



pastoral system. 



But, this given, the other should arise from it in time, when 

 the multiplication of herds in the natural pastures has reached a 

 limit which can not be well exceeded. The least accident tending 



