667 



either the farmer or any other class, of what they receive from other 

 men. 



But aoriculture is useful, because it ties the foundation of the greater 

 part of the productive labor of the world. Nearly all of the raw ma- 

 terial upon which the energies and skill of men are expended, is the 

 product of the soil. Agriculture employs the mechanic, moves the 

 myriad wheels of the factory, and propels the laden vessel across the 

 wide seas. For the sustenance and comfort and luxuries of man the 

 waters yield their fish and minerals; the earth without tillage, its metals 

 and rocks, and coal, and its forests a few vegetables of spontaneous 

 growth ; but cultivation supplies tke great mass of material, and theie-, 

 fore acrriculture must forever be an indispensable employment. 



But I pronounce agriculture a particularly noble and manly occupa- 

 tion, because it conduces more than any other occupation possibsy can, 

 to a full and hai-monious development of manhood, physical, mental' 

 and moral. This is my profound conviction, and if it be true, what a 

 striking exhibition is it of the goodness of God, since this must neces- 

 sarily ever be the employment of a majority of men. 



There are many occupations to which a highly artificial society has 

 given birth, that cannot be practiced without injury to health, and an 

 actual sacrifice of life. 



Criminals, doomed to die, are in one country compelled to collect 

 quick-silver from the mines, sure as the hangman's rope, soon to des- 

 troy them ; and carefully gathered statistics prove that many depart- 

 ments of industry, considered useful and necessary, hasten death. A 

 large proportion of sailors perish by shipwreck, and it is at the expense 

 of the blood of our fellow-men, that we enjoy many of the luxuries of 

 life. 



But the farmers life is a life of health. He may indeed injure 

 himself by undue exposure and excessive toil, but there is nothing in 

 the occupation necessarily antagonistic to bodily development and 

 strength. It was a fable of the ancient Greeks, that the giants recover- 

 ed their strength as often as they fell to the ground, which was only a 

 poetical way of stating the fact, that the soil infuses life, not only into 

 the plant, but also into bimthat tills it. On an average, a rural popu- 

 lation is the healthiest and physically the strongest. This, statistics clear- 

 ly show. 



