84 



F A R iM E R S ' REGISTER. 



[No. 1. 



is in many situations, an excellent mode ; but, in 

 as many more situations, particuhirly on roiliiiy: 

 lands, is also liiifhiy injurious. I'his mode has 

 not only loiifT since dawned in many purls of Vir- 

 ginia, but in miiny places h;is actually setj not 

 fiovvevi r, until many Ihrmers who were con- 

 fidenil}' relyinj; on tiie beneli's of i's noonday 

 S|)lendor, uuexpeciedly found tlvir land not only 

 de[;rived ol' much of it's "cream," hut also in some 

 instances of not ulitlle of its skimmed nfilk ; conse- 

 quently, numerous fi'ullies were made, and years 

 were ai^ain necessary to brinij it hack to its lormer 

 state. "Dilference of situation, and diliijrcnce of 

 soils, under judicious larmin^. reqifae also a cor- 

 responding- dilference in the mode of manage- 

 ment; hence, the error of many agricultural wri- 

 ters in advocating and disseminatmii: a particular 

 system, (by a particular system of agriculture, I 

 do not mean to be understood as implying that 

 there are, or can possibly be many systems of ag- 

 riculture; for, like every other science, there can 

 be but one true, legitimate and fundamental sys- 

 tem of agriculture, branching oti' into numerous 

 ramifications, or ihe system so modifying itself as 

 to suit every soil, climate, &c.; and it is the duty of 

 the scientific and practical agriculturist, to deduce 

 from the general system, tiiat particular modhca- 

 tion best adopted to his particular circumstances,) 

 which they indiscriminately reconunei'd as suita- 

 ble tor the adoption of every firmer, without re- 

 gard to diversify ofsoils and situations ; and not- 

 withstanding the plausibility of such theories, 

 many farmers' corn attest to many of their ruinous 

 efTects in practice. Every thing is irood in its sea- 

 son, and every thing is right when in iis proper 

 place, and applied to its pro|)er use; so with every 

 modification of the system of agriculture, good in 

 their proper place — ruinous out of it. 



N. L. 



VAtUAELE INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURAL 

 JOURNALS. AGRICULTURE OF CAMPBELL 

 COUNTY. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



I observe (hat you frequently complain of the 

 Bcanty support which your valuable journal re- 

 ceives from the farmers of Virginia, in the way of 

 original contributions. This backwardness on the 

 part of our distinguished agriculturists to present 

 the results of their experience to the public is 

 much to be regretted ; for the experiments in til- 

 lage and in the management of stock, which have 

 proved successful in our soil and climate, are evi- 

 dently more deserving of the imitation of young 

 farmers, than those that have been tried in other 

 countries, differing, probably, in these respects 

 f-om Virginia. Titere are, dispersed through our 

 state, many distiniiaished for the advances they 

 have made in all the difi'erent branches of agri- 

 cultural improvement, and, could they be prevail- 

 ed on to coninninicate the methods which have 

 conduced to their success, those, who are still blind 

 to the advantages of an improved system, might lie 

 awakened to a sense of its importance, and those 

 who, impressed with its necessity, are still blun- 

 dering on the threshold of agricultural know- 

 ledge, might be conducted, by the lights thus fur- 

 nished, to more economical and profitable plans ol 

 cultivation and management. In my judgment, 

 the Farmers' Register has contributed more to pro- 



duce a spirit of agricultural improvement among 

 us, and to direct that spirit into useful channels, 

 than any thing which has been said, or done, or 

 written, since the first sei dement of our state. 

 The exami;le of jmlicious liirmers operates wiihin 

 a narrow com[;ass. Treatises on agricul ure, how- 

 ever practical, have but a tem; orary influence, and 

 soon sink into oblivion. Witness Taylor's AnUor, 

 a work recommended not more by its i;it:iasic 

 merits, than by the successful practice of its au- 

 thor. But your journal has already made a deep 

 impression on the |)uhlic mmd, and, heinL' sustain- 

 ed by ihe communications oi" practical tiirmers, is 

 calculated to keep that impression fresh and un- 

 impaired. I have seen it remarked, that the pros- 

 |)erity of a country may be measured by the num- 

 ber and circulation of its agricultural pulilications. 

 If this be true, it must be on the principle, that the 

 encouragement of such publications argues a de- 

 sire of knowledge and a zeal for improvement in 

 the cultivators of (he soil, which must give an im- 

 pulse to the prosperity ol' agriculture, and (hereby 

 inflise a spirit of enterprise into every department 

 of national industry. For I am satisfied, (hat 

 where agriculture languishes, commerce and the 

 arts can never liourish. The application of science 

 to that interesting and important branch of industry 

 has, in other countries to which nature has been 

 less bountiful than to ours, imparted fertility to the 

 most uufiromising soils, and diHused plenty and 

 gladness over regions which had been surrender- 

 ed for ages to (he dominion of penury and want. 

 Ignorance and prejudice, and an obstinate adher- 

 ence (o old practices, the distinguishing character- 

 istics of farmers, have been subdued by the diffu- 

 sion of information, and (he evidence of successful 

 experiments. Why may we not hope lor the .same 

 resulis in this state, tor which nature has done so 

 much, and man so little. Nothing seems to me 

 better calculated (o produce (his efi'ect, than the 

 continued circulafion of your journal. The peru- 

 sal of it has unilbrmly affonled me both pleasure 

 and profit; and, in one respect, it has peculiar re- 

 commendations. Disgusted with the bitter per- 

 sonalities, (he total want of candor, to give it the 

 mildest name, (I should call it lying were it not 

 unlawful "to mention hell to ears polite") and (he 

 infuriate spirit of party, which disgrace our public 

 journals, I turn with pleasure to pages devoted to 

 a subject interesting to us all, in the illustration of 

 which the honest and patriolic of all parties may 

 cordially unite, and where the rancorous passions 

 of men, envy, malice, and all uncharitableness, 

 can have no place. On one or two occasions, I 

 have remarked, with disgust, an effort in some of 

 the ephemeral party writers, who infest the press 

 with their lucubrations, to connect you with one 

 of our political parties, and to charge you with 

 giving j'our journal a political character. That 

 the charge is utterly unfounded, is evident by the 

 \[ic.[, that I have been unable, afier a constant pe- 

 rusal of the Register, to ascertain to what politi- 

 cal party, as a private citizen, you have attached 

 yourself". 



In the practice of agriculture, I am, as yet, a 

 tyro, and have not the presumption to suppose, 

 that I can contribute any new or usefiil informa- 

 tion ; but, I presume, i( will be interesting (o your 

 readers to learn the progress of improvement in 

 the different districts of the state, the dispositions 

 which exert, and the efforts which are making to 



