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There is a rather irregular and unorganized, but on the 

 whole progressive, hody of information^ which is called, by 

 courtesy, the Science of Agriculture. It is gradually 

 taking the shape and proportions, under your intelligent 

 authors and periodicals, of other and exacter sciences. If 

 we seize this body of knowledge precisely in its present 

 position, and speak to its present exigency, we shall find, 

 I suspect, that it has passed through its first stage, viz., 

 its era of general discovery, and is now waiting for the 

 patient hand of detailed experiment, and the organizing 

 effects of a comprehensive induction. 



I said it has passed through its first stage, or era of 

 general discovery. The fact is, it passed through that 

 stage so long ago, and stood still so long after, that it 

 might reasonably have been doubted whether it ever meant 

 to go on. If there is anything amazing in human history, 

 I suppose it is the stationary attitude assumed by this 

 radical employment of man, from the period of its origin 

 in Syria, which must have been somewhere near Adam's 

 time, down to about the present century. Consider that 

 the race of proper ploughs — the only ploughs we should 

 recognize as worthy the name — the basis implement of 

 the whole business — is only about eighty years old. 

 One apology off'ered for this protracted state of catalepsy, 

 is an alleged double misfortune agriculture has had to 

 sufi"er from climate — both extremes entering into a con- 

 spiracy to put it back ; since the tropics ripened everything 

 for it without the trouble of cultivation, while the frozen 

 regions made it so much trouble to cultivate that it would 

 not try. This explanation would answer pretty well, if 

 nature had not happened to spread out a belt of territory 

 round the globe, which is neither arctic nor torrid, but 

 temperate, of very respectable dimensions, and admirably 

 fitted for any progressive demonstrations, had our enter- 

 prising forefathers been so inclined. The simple truth 



