TEACH AS TO FARMING. 13 



to our purpose. We desire not to spend our time and means in 

 filling a soil on which Wheat is never to be grown with costly 

 elements which Wheat alone will require or take up, but to invest 

 each dollar and day, so far as we may, in enriching that soil with 

 the elements wherein it is now deficient, but which our next crop 

 will nevertheless require. In other words, since it is not our 

 practice to plow, plant and cultivate our entire farms forests, 

 ravines and all because we purpose to harvest Indian Corn ami 

 Wheat from a small part of them, so we desire to exercise a like 

 discrimination and practice a like economy in the production or 

 purchase and application of manures. And to do this, we appeal 

 to Science for an analysis of the diil'-rent soils of our various 

 fields, to determine wherein each i- .1. -ticicnt, each relatively re- 

 dundant, that we may apply various tertili/ers accordingly. And 

 this is the basis, and all the basis, of Scientific Farming. 



Let me linger still on this topic of Book-farming, and pile il- 

 lustration on illustration of its true character and manifold advan- 

 Yoii may tell me that this U needless, Imt I know better ; 

 since 1 know there arc tens >f thousands of termers in every 

 quarter nay, right here in Indiana some of them. I doubt not, 

 now before me who take no agricultural paper nay, no paper 

 at all ! because they think they raw'/ afford it! that it has no 

 other than a speculative or fancy value for their use that they 

 would be the poorer for taking it ! Now I maintain that no farmer 

 or artisan that can read can really afford to do without at least 

 three weekly newspapers ; one to bring him the general news, 

 politics and social movements of his time ; aunt her to teach him 

 whatever of discovery, invention or improvement may from time 

 to time be made in his own pursuit or calling ; and the third to 

 keep him advised of whatever of interest may transpire in his 

 own locality or county. He may be so very poor and inefficient 

 that he is justified in obtaining two of these by exchanges with 

 his equally luckless neighbors ; but these three he should at least 

 read every week, because ho cannot afford to be without the in- 

 telligence they bring him. And, while there are thousands who 

 are bringing up sons for farmers and daughters for housewives 

 without taking a periodical or even owning a book that treats of 



