181 



wagons, over the natural roads of the country, was so heavy 

 a tax, as to almost amount to a prohibition of their produc- 

 tion, beyond the necessity for home consumption. The ex- 

 isting railroad to Madison, and the JefFersonville and Columbus 

 road, which will be finished during the present year, and the 

 Lawrenceburg road, which will probably be completed in 

 season for the crop of 1853, afford ready and cheap access to 

 either the northern or southern market for our productions, 

 and thereby remove one of the principal hindrances to the 

 development of the agricultural capacity of the county. 

 The greatest remaining hindrance to the attainment of this 

 desirable object, is the want of intelligence and system in the 

 conduct of farming operations, and this is mainly the result 

 of a degraded view of their occupation by the farmers gen- 

 erally. This impediment, it is to be hoped, the agricultural 

 society, aided by the State Board of Agriculture, will speedily 

 remove, and then, and we trust at no distant day, Shelby 

 county will take her stand by the side of any agricultural 

 county of equal size in the State. 



In the absence of accurate statistics, and without sufficient 

 time to collect them, we dare not now attempt more specific 

 answers to the questions contained in the circular of the 

 State Board; but hope to be able to meet them fairly by 

 another season. We would suggest to the State Board, 

 whether the assessors of the several counties might not, by 

 suitable amendments to the present laws, annually collect 

 agricultural and manufacturing statistics of great value to 

 the whole State. Or, if the time of assessing is not suitable, 

 might not a set of county or township officers be created by 

 law, for the express purpose of collecting such statistics at 

 the proper season, say in September or October of each year. 

 The advantage which would accrue from this course, would 

 be so great in pointing out at an early day after the growing 

 crops are perfected, positively and accurately, the sections of 

 the State in which any article or class of production is ex- 

 cessive or deficient, thereby indicating the points of demand 



