MONTHLY JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE. 



He wakes no more !— for the sleep of death 



Ench-cles the earthly frame ; 

 But the mind— so strong while it dwelt on earth- 

 Secured a living fame. 

 Chatsworth. 



His pen is still ! — and his spirit fled 

 To brighten a world on high : 



The cold, col# earth is his lowly bed ; 

 But his name shall never die ! 



J R.' 



THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION ; 



THE INTERESTS AND RIGHTS OF AGRICULTURE NEGLECTED— AS USUAL. 



Utica, N. Y. May 11, 1846. 

 Dear Sir: In the March* number of the 

 Farmers' Library you made a few remarks 

 upon the propo.sed " Smithsonian Institution,'' 

 which I heartily approve of. Having taken a 

 deep interest in this matter, I addressed to Hon. 

 aoBERT Dale Owen, the Chairman of the Se- 

 lect Committee of the House of Representa- 

 tives, a letter, of which the accompanying is a 

 copy. It proposes a plan somewhat different 

 from any that I am aware of. I send it to you 

 merely for your perusal, and not for publication, 

 unless you deem it worthy, which I do not. For 

 one, I have almost despaired of ever seeing our 

 Government— which is said to be ba.sed upon 

 the intelligence of the people— do any thing of 

 moment for promoting in an efficient way a 

 knowledge of those pursuits which tend to vir- 

 tue and peace. Army and Navy— Texas and 

 Oregon — cannon and muskets — shooting desert- 

 ers, &c. &c.— God have mercy upon us ! 



I must confess my disappointment with the 

 action of the House of Representatives upon 

 this subject. How a great Librai-y will tend to 

 promote aiid difFu-se knowledge among men to 

 any great extent, I cannot perceive. To the 

 dwellers in the Capital it may be useful, but to 

 the country at large entirely valueles.«. 



I should like to have your opinion of the pro- 

 posed plan for a ■' Farm School," and whether 

 there are any hopes left of ever having one 

 Very truly, your ob't serv't, 

 ^ ^ JAMES REES. 



J. S. Skinnkb, Esq. 



Utica, N. V., April 11, 1846. 



Dear Sir: I have to acknowledge the re- 

 ceipt from you of a copy of the Report of the 

 Select Committee on the " Smithsonian Institu- 

 tion." More pressing duties have prevented an 

 earlier communication, according to my promise. 

 I trust, however, that it is not too late now. 



It was my intention to offer to the Committee 

 a few considerations on the claims of Agricul- 

 ture in connection with the application ol the 

 Smithson Fund ; but I find this done so much 

 better than I could do it— by .T. ^V. Hardy, of 

 Virginia, in the March number of Skinner s 

 "Farmers' Library a.vd Monthly Journal 

 OF Agriculture " — that I will forbear. I beg 

 leave to refer you to that publication. 



Upon the details of an extended system " for 



_ .'l'J30) 



the increase and diffusion of knowledge among 

 men," I desire to offer a few thoughts. 



With the main features of the reported bill, 

 that is, the Institution to be created, I am well 

 pleased — considering them to be more in ac- 

 cordance with the designs of the donor than 

 any others previously proposed. I must, how- 

 ever, frankly confess my disappointment with 

 the meagenicss of that portion relating to Ag- 

 ricnU.ure. It is, 1 apprehend, far shoit of what 

 the interests and well-being of our country de- 

 mand. 



The bill provides for the appropriation of a 

 lot of ground in the City of Washington " for 

 Horticultural and Agricultural purposes and ex- 

 periments." I do not kno^v how large this lot 

 may be ; but I suppo.se it contains no more than 

 50 or 60 acres. This would be, I fear, much too 

 small for the purpo.scs designed and the suc- 

 cessful conducting of the Institution. With the 

 constant and increasing additions of rare plants, 

 &c. which may reasonably be expected, the 

 whole would .soon be entirely occupied, leaving 

 no room for active operations. It would thus 

 become a mere garden, offering at best but few 

 facilities for the acquisition of practical know- 

 ledge in the sciences named in the bill. Take, 

 for instance, that branch of farm-science re- 

 lating to manm-cs. This is a subject of ac- 

 knowledged importance. It requires a great 

 amount of practical knowledge to know, of a 

 certainty, the kind, amount. &c. to bo success- 

 fully applied to different kinds of soils. The 

 knowledge of Chemistry required is very dif- 

 ferent from ^hat is to be obtained in the class 

 and laboratory. The open field muat be studied. 

 For this purpose there must be room enough. 

 A fanii of sixty acres would be much too small 

 for extended and .satisfactory experiments in all 

 kinds of farm and garden produce. 



The Institution should be preeminently agri- 

 cnlttiraJ — in the most extensive and general use 

 of that word. It should include the whole busi- 

 ness of the farmer — which comprehends the cul- 

 tivation of the soil, and the management of live 

 stock. It ought also to include every descrip- 

 tion of territorial improvement, such as drain- 

 ing, embanking, road-making, planting, &c., all 

 which are parts of the .science of the soil. Any 

 thing short of this would be unsatisfactory. 



Again: Ample provision should be made by 

 law for the reception of students in such a man- 

 ner that the whole countrj- may enjoy equally 

 its benefits, and in such a way that the poor 

 young men of the land may not be debarred 

 from its privileges. As a body, the farmers of 

 this country are not moneyed men. Money 

 comes to them only by the most severe and con- 

 stant labor, and then but slowly. They can but 

 poorly afford to pay much for learning. It is 



