TilE I'AUiMEti'S MAGAZINE. 



455 



SCIENCE AND THE FARMER. 



The fanner should understand geology. He 

 should know the composition and structure of the 

 rocks which constitute so large a part of the soil 

 which he cultivates. He should know the nature 

 of the rocks in all the region around him, and what 

 kind of soil they will produce, when worn down by 

 the action of the sun and rain and frost. If the 

 mountains and hills that look down upon his farm 

 contain marble or granite or slate or iron, he 

 should know that these minerals, which have been 

 upheaved from the bowels of the earth, are being 

 annually spread over the valleys and plains that lie 

 at their feet, by the drenching rains and melting 

 snows which wash their declivities. He should know 

 how to select those soils whose mineral composi- 

 tion is best suited to particular crops, and to deter- 

 mine when they contain mineral elements that un- 

 fit them for his purpose. 



He should know what is a sandy loam, and what 

 a clayey loam, and of what eacli consists. He 

 should know what is'an alluvial soil, and what min- 

 eral elements it contains in any given locality. 

 The farmer should understand the leading princi- 

 ples of chemistry in general, and all about those 

 particular principles that are applicable to agricul- 

 ture. The earth is not a mere dead mass of mat- 

 ter. It is a vast chemical laboratory, filled with va- 

 rious and strange materials, full of activity and mo- 

 tion, in which composition and decomposition and 

 new combinations are constantly going on. To- 

 day it receives accessions and influences from the 

 heavens: to-morrow it throws off" newly-formed ele- 

 ments, that are carried into the ocean, and de- 

 positeil upon distant shores. The earth is almost a 

 living creature, and when quickened by atmospheric 

 influences, she brings forth innumerable living 

 things, infinitely diversified in form, in hue, and 

 fragrance, and each derives from her bosom the 

 nutriment that is suited to its character and wants ; 

 truly is she called the mother of all living things. 

 The cultivator of the earth should surely know 

 something of its nature, its elements, its aflinities, 

 and its diseases. 



The farmer should be a botanist. This is the 

 natural science of the agriculturist. Can he be 

 content to spend his life in ignorance of the names 

 and properties and distinguishing characteristics of 

 the trees and shrubs and flowers that are so lavishly 

 spread around him, painting his fields and woods 

 with their thousand hues, and rendering this out- 

 ward world a scene of beauty ? And how does the 

 seed germinate, and the tender leaf unfold itself? 



and in what order are the several parts of the flower 

 developed ? How is the blossom impregnated 

 and the fruit formed ? What will injure and what 

 improve each plant ? How may plants be improved 

 by engrafting, by inoculation, by crossing ? How 

 may new varieties be obtained, and old ones be 

 made better? Can the farmer be content to leave 

 questions such as these unanswered ? 



But vegetable physiology alone should not satisfy 

 him. He has in his charge, and appropriated to 

 his use, some of the noblest animals upon the earth. 

 They are his companions through life, and by their 

 labour, or the products of their bodies, contribute 

 largely to his happiness and comfort. He should 

 make himself acquainted with the structure and 

 uses of their various organs. He should know how 

 often their hearts beat, and how often they breathe 

 in a state of health, that he may judge how far, at 

 any time, they deviate from the healthy standard. 

 He should know the absolute and relative position 

 of all the organs, that he may the better determine 

 the seat of disease, and with more certainty apply 

 his remedies. He should know how the fat is de- 

 posited ; how the bones are formed, and how the 

 muscles ; and what food or treatment will contri- 

 bute to the most rapid growth of each. And then the 

 knowledge of diflferent races, and their curious his- 

 tories, and their several peculiarities, are all highly 

 important to the breeder of stock. The farmer 

 should have a knowledge of the diseases of his ani- 

 mals, and of the proper remedies, and should be 

 ableto perform all the more common surgical opera- 

 tions. Many a fine animal has been slaughtered, 

 because its owner could not set a bone, or bandage 

 a wound. 



The farmer should carefully observe the habits 

 of animals, birds, and insects. Who else has so 

 good an opportunity as lie to do th's ? He should 

 especially study the habits and nature of the insects 

 that are injurious to vegetation, that he may be the 

 better able to defend his crojjs from their ravages. 

 He can scarcely be expected to be familiar with the 

 whole subject of entomology ; but he should care- 

 fully study those insects that are found in his own 

 neighbourhood, and uponhis own premises, and note 

 with accuracy the result of his observations, for the 

 benefit of himself and his neighbours. 



The farmer should understand the general princi- 

 ples of mechanics, and particularly those that relate 

 to the structure and use of agricultural implements. 

 In ancient times, no man was considered anaccom- 

 pUshed ploughman, until he could construct his own 



1 I 



