216 BOAED OF AGRICULTUEE. [Jan., 



THE INTEMPERATE FARMER, 



he who spends his substance for intoxicating drinks need not be 

 more than mentioned in this connection, for he can never succeed, 

 whatever vocation he may choose. 



BOOK-FARMERS. 



Some years ago much was said and written about a class of soil- 

 tillers styled ''book-farmers," the term being frequently used in a 

 spirit of derision. The book-farmer came into existence at that 

 period in New England's history, when the natural fertility of the 

 soil began to show indications of exhaustion. Previous to that 

 time the art of farming had consisted in scratching the surface just 

 enough to enable the seed to germinate and to keep weeds from 

 smothering the crop. The demand for agricultural products was 

 confined chiefly to the farmer's own wants, and there was little in- 

 ducement on the part of the farmers to raise agriculture to a very 

 high level as a business. But when the soil began to show signs 

 of failure, a few of the better educated men of the country, par- 

 ticularly those whose business or reading had given them some ■ 

 knowledge of what was being done in other parts of the world, 

 began to look into agriculture from the stand -point of the educated 

 men who had lived before them. So books treating upon farm 

 matters were purchased and read, and some of the readers, though 

 without much practical experience in the routine of farm tillage, 

 attempted either by speech or example to teach a better way of 

 conducting farm operations. At that time books treating upon 

 agriculture were chiefly written in the old country, and some of the 

 rules laid down as guides to the farmer were but poorly adapted , 

 to our soil and climate, and so reading men without any practical 

 farm experience to fall back upon in forming judgment were not 

 unlikely to be led astray, and also to mislead those who might be 

 induced to follow their advice. So " book-farming " came into 

 disgrace for a time, but only for a very limited time. The con- 

 stantly diminishing fertility of the soil made a most imperative 

 demand for a better knowledge of the laws of plant and animal 

 growth than the routine farmer of those days was able to com- 

 mand. 



" Book-farming," as the term was formerly used, is one that the 

 present generation of farm boys rarely hear. And there was another 



