42 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



NEW-ENGLAND FARMING. 

 WORCESTER SOUTH. 



[From an Essay.] 



BY N. S. HUBBAKD. 



The saying is so often repeated, that " New-England farm- 

 ing does not pay," that it becomes a question of serious 

 consideration whether the farm should be abandoned, made 

 secondary to other industries, or receive our more careful 

 attention. It is a settled question that farming is the foun- 

 dation on which all other industries are built. I shall assume 

 — and not only assume, but lay it down as a fixed thing — 

 that farming does pay ; but whether it receives its due reward 

 in comparison with other industries for the labor and care 

 bestowed is not so fully settled. One tiling is sure, it is the 

 oldest emplojTuent of man : through all time it has received 

 its due share of attention. Massachusetts has a large popu- 

 lation to be fed from the products of the soil; and, if the 

 needed supplies cannot be produced here, we naturally turn 

 to the Great West. Can we afford to neglect the cultivation 

 of our own soil, and rely upon the productions of other 

 sections to supply a demand that exists in the cities and 

 villages dotted all over our own State ? What does the West 

 produce ? Chiefly wheat and corn, beef, pork, and wool. If 

 New England cannot compete successfully with these pro- 

 ductions, she can do very much in that direction, and at the 

 same time turn her attention to the production of other 

 things that find a quick and ready market. 



There are many things that must be produced within a 

 reasonable distance of market. Milk cannot be safely put 

 into our Eastern market, to any great extent, from beyond 

 the borders of our own State ; so that much attention is 



