THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



65 



ches apart in the drills, Willi proper atlemion 

 they will attain a good size ; and when gathering, 

 can be sorted and named according to lancy. as 

 there will be a numerous variety. The earliest 

 kinds, will be first withered, the later ones gene- 

 rally attain a larger size. W. C. 



RBMARKS ON THE AGRICUI-TURAI. SOCIETY 

 OF THE UKITED STATES. 



To the Editor of the Karniers' Register. 



February 9lh, 1842. 

 In publishing the conslitution of the " Agricul- 

 tural Society of the United States" and a list of 

 its officers, I perceive that,. although you say 

 " you shall heartily rejoice'''' if " your anticipations 

 and fears'" of its failure " should prove to be un- 

 founded,^'' you have added an argument against 

 the plan, which, .notwithstanding its brevity, will 

 as certainly prevent such hearty rejoicing from 

 ever taking place, as if you most anxiously de- 

 sired to defeat (he project altogether; that is, 

 should this argument have the same effect on the 

 minds of others which it has produced on your 

 own. Indeed, I cannot even imagine any more 

 effectual vvay (airly to kill any scheme wliich de- 

 pends upon public opinion, than publicly to use 

 ihe strongest reasons we can think of against it. 

 Your argument, concise as it is, not only gives 

 the substance of all the most plausible objections 

 which have been urged against this society, but 

 you have much increased its force by pronouncing 

 the plan to be ^^ ambitious.'''' Now if this be true 

 of the plan, it must be equally so of its authors ; 

 and must utterly condemn both in Ihe minds of 

 all who affix the same meaning to the term " am- 

 bitious'' that I do. 



It is at all times a matter of eo much regret 

 with me, where I find we differ in regard to any 

 ol the means )br promoting the great cause to 

 which we have both devoted ourselves, that I 

 would never express such difference, un'ess urged 

 to it by some motive much stronger than ordinary. 

 True ills, that we have very generally concurred 

 in our opinions relative to those means ; and there- 

 fore it increases my present regret to perceive how 

 widely we diflier respecting the " Agricultural So- 

 ciety of the United State's." But, connected as 

 i am with that association, I feel it to be rny duty 

 to endeavor to refute the arguments which you 

 have urged to prove that " it can not possibly 

 work right.'" Your first objection is in the follow- 

 ing words : " It cannot be expecled'^hat any con- 

 siderable number of individuals, or enoush to 

 maintain even the semblance of a United Slates 

 Agricultural Society, can be induced to travel to 

 VVashington, from all the states of the union." 

 This objection would have some force, if any such 

 expectation had been expressed, and its realiza- 

 tion relied upon as essential to the maintenance o( 

 such society. But not having heard of any thing 

 like it, I cannot believe it ever entered into 

 the heads of any of the contrivers of this " am- 

 bitious plan," (it you will have it so,) that some 

 me.Tibers ''jTrom all the states of ihe union''^ must 

 always attend, " to maintain even the semblance of 

 a United States ^Agricultural Society.'" Such at- 

 tendance you call " incredible sacrifices ;" but ad- 

 mitting the bare possibility of their being made, 

 you ask, " vvh'it foukl be expected from iheir 

 Vol. X.— 9 



meeting, more than the usual and almost useless 

 procedure of agricultural societies in general?" 

 I will readily answer, not much more truly, if 

 "agricultural societies in generaV (of which we 

 now have some hundreds, I believe,) were indeed 

 the " almost useless" things which you here af- 

 firm that they are. But we have sanguine hopes 

 that more, much more may and loill be done ; for 

 we cannot discern the same difliculties that you 

 see, in the way of its accomplishment. None of 

 us deem it necessary to success that "members 

 from all the states of the union" should attend, 

 since we know that there are at least two large 

 societies embracing ail the states of our confede- 

 racy, which have been flourishing for many years, 

 without any such general attendance. I mean the 

 American Bible and iVlissionary Societies; not 

 that I would compare these noble associations 

 with ours in point of utility — far from it ; but I 

 mention them solely to prove that large societies, 

 even more comprehensive than ours, may and do 

 succeed to a very great degree, although but par- 

 tially attended by their members. AH that is ne- 

 cessary is, that there should be sufficient intelli- 

 gence, zeal, and activity in a few to devise and 

 direct their operations; and that funds enough 

 should be contributed lo accomplish such of their 

 purposes as require money to achieve them. Such 

 funds have always been collected by the societies 

 referred to, without the personal attendance of 

 more than a few, comparatively speaking, of their 

 contributors, and they have also been applied in 

 a way, not only to do gieat good, but to be ap- 

 proved by the absent as well as the attendant 

 members. There cannot, therefore, be any rea- 

 sonable doubt, but that our society might flourish 

 in the same manner, and by similar means, even 

 although its meetings were attended only by a 

 small portion of its members compared with the 

 whole number. 



There is, however, a moral certainty that these 

 meetings never will be small, if held, as we design 

 to hold them, during the sessions of congrees ; lor 

 many of the members of that body are also mem- 

 bers of the Agricultural Society of the United 

 States; and it can hardly be doubted that num- 

 bers of persons from the adjoining slates will also 

 attend, more than enough altogether to carry on 

 the business of the society quite aa efficiently as 

 any institutions of the kind in our country have 

 carried on theirs. But time alone can prove whose 

 anticipations are correct, yours or mine. 



That such an agricultural society, as you ima- 

 gine could possibly be formed in the District of 

 Columbia, might be there established, I presume 

 no one can doubt who has any knowledge of its 

 citizens. But if these associations have eo wo- 

 fully lailed, as you say they have, almost every 

 where else in the United States, there surely is 

 but little probability that one would do any better 

 in or about the city of Washington. Admit, how- 

 ever, that it would, and that it succeeded far be- 

 yond any which has ever yet been established 

 among us ; there are certain things all-important 

 to the general improvement of American husban- 

 dry, that no local society whatever could possibly 

 achieve. These are, first, to form a body of hus- 

 bandry for the whole union, by collecting and 

 publishing all that is at present known and most 

 approved throughout Ihe different stales, in every 

 branch of rural afTains. This important duty will 



