124 LINCOLN SOCIETY. 



bour cotton, saddler's silk and steel lieads for ornamental 

 needle work. A colt, yoke of oxen, or a cow or two must be 

 sold for the purchase of a four wheeled carriage, which is again 

 to be exchanged for a two wheeled chaise before it is half worn, 

 as it has become unfashionable; a few tons of hay must be dis- 

 posed of in order to procure a melodcon, harpsichord, or piano, 

 as they are all the go; a hog must be killed and exchanged for 

 a side saddle and riding dress, as horse back riding is consid- 

 Ci'cd a healthy exercise and a very desirable substitute for the 

 work about a farm house, such as spinning, weaving, dish-wash- 

 ing and butter making. These things arc all well enough, in 

 their way, and perhaps ought not to be discountenanced, but 

 certainly should be taken into consideration in making up the 

 profit and loss account Avith the farm. 



While the trader carefully estimates the profit and loss on 

 every article in which he is engaged, while the ship-owner keeps 

 a correct account with his ship, charging it with insurance, inter- 

 est and deteiioration, while the manufacturer notes the v/ear of 

 his machinery, and counts upon the smallest refuse of materials 

 that can possibly add to his profits, while the corn merchant 

 calculates even to the wear of his bags in transporting corn 

 from the vessel to his store, the farmer is too often unable to 

 tell the number of acres cultivated, the amount and value of 

 manure applied, the quantity of seed used, the number of days 

 or value of labor expended, or the amount and value of thcr 

 produce. 



Ask the farmers, as I have frequently done during the past 

 season, in relation to some farming operation, as corn raising, 

 and see how often you will get such answers as I have obtained. 

 They will tell you they planted about so much seed, on about 

 suclr a quantity of land, worked about so many days with a 

 team, worked about so many days planting, hoeing, weeding, 

 and harvesting, and had about so many baskets of corn, includ- 

 ing the soft or pig corn ; and here often ends the whole account. 

 From such a result they come to the conclusion that it is better 

 to burn lime, make lime casks, burn bricks, or work in the ship 

 yard and buy flour. They often entirely omit to tell whether 

 part of the work in preparing the ground for the crop consisted 

 in grubbing bushes, removing stones and otherwise improving 



