Vermont State Horticulturai. Society 41 



Roberts were the first authorities in the country on such subjects 

 — and I was young then — I said to him, "Tell me what you think 

 of what I have said to-night." He replied, "I believe, as a farmer, 

 you are right, but as a scientific man I dare not say so in public." 



These things have all proven out beyond question, but not 

 until we have proved them by our own work, and there are 

 hundreds and thousands of farmers all over this land that I 

 could take you to who have worked out these methods, some of 

 them even better han I have done. You can't do it all in one 

 year, or five ; it is a plan and a system which you must commence 

 and stick to, and each year you will notice the increase. You must 

 not sell off your products, you must save all the manure ; drain 

 land that needs it ; follow out the plan of growing clover once in 

 about four years ; then follow out the line of tillage I have told 

 you of and there is no trouble at all in eight or ten years of 

 doubling the fertility of any land that was originally good. 



Of course there are many things that have helped us that I 

 haven't the time to speak of in connection with this subject. I 

 have simply brought out the two greatest things to my mind — 

 the clover growing and the tillage. We save every particle of 

 manure, too. With the knowledge I have now, I could take 

 land such as we bought and in six years bring it up to the state 

 of cultivation it did reach in twelve. I say these things because 

 I want you to know there can be no question about it. 



Our State Board of Agriculture, after examining into the 

 matter, gave us the first prize of $50 for the best and most per- 

 fectly managed little farm in Ohio, — and only thirteen years 

 from the time we started on land that was almost worthless. Do 

 you wonder then that I am willing to leave my home where we 

 have everything the heart can wish for, and go around and tell 

 others how to do just the same things? I like to talk to the 

 young men ; I would go almost anywhere to talk to a few hun- 

 dred young men about it. There is no other more honorable, 

 legitimate, healthful employment than advanced agriculture ; no 

 work in which there is the sarrie amount of money received from 

 the investment. You can't put $5000 into any other business, 

 and receive the same profits as you can in agriculture, if you 

 work along the lines I have told you, whether gardening, raising 

 fruit, or otherwise. There is more money in a small way in 

 raising fruits and vegetables of fine quality than there is in 

 farming; we made our money largely on potatoes. 



I hope what I have said to-night will determine you to start 

 out along these lines and determine to carry them out until you 

 increase the fertility of your land, no matter what line you may 

 be following, so that it will produce larger and larger crops and 

 you will be able to make more and more money. 



