28 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



ADDRESS 



Delivered before the HUldorough .^gricdtural So- 

 cnty, at their Mnval Meeting, Sept. 23, 1824. 



BY DR. MATTHIAS SPALDING. 



1 have i-een roqiiPMed by the Expculive Com- 

 Diittee 01 this Society to «<l,lress you on the sub- 

 ject of Agriculture, a sul.jecl of much imnorlance 

 to Ihisnn,) to almost every other country, a suh- 

 ject on .vhich m.iny hundred volumes have been 

 wnllen and published in Europe ; and many 

 more ,n this Country, than Farmers ,n general 

 hnd lime or inclination to read. I comply with 

 this request, therefore, not with a view of ad- 

 vancing new principles, or new theories; but 

 «Uh a H-ish to encourage and to stimulate to 

 the practice ot old ones ; nor so much with the I 



x^l? "l .?• '"»&'=^''"? "«'V ideas ; but I com- ' 

 Vy with this request to show my willingness to 

 bear a nnrimn ^i <»,... . ,-..•' . . o"*-'^ '" 



strata; but principally from the silicious, (he 

 aluminous, the calcareous and the magnesian • 

 and that Irom a mixture of these, together with 

 vegetable and animal mailer, the difterent soils 

 tyere also (ormed. These are called the sandy 

 the clayey, (he calcareous and the magnesian 

 just in proportion as the primitive ingredients 

 oMhe one or the other prevailed. Hence the 

 diBerent names of soils. 



[Aug'TSl If), 



orlh thorns and briars. And as daily observa- 

 lion shows, it continues to br,ng them forth in 

 plenteous profusion to the idle and slothful • but 



Th ;^ .'f'",: ";' ^""""'' ""^ "^hest reward 

 Though the husbandman be doomed to struggle 

 hard wah many cares and difficulties; though 

 he be obliged to rise early, to sit up ate and 

 eat the bread of carefulness; and 'though he 

 be exposed to the vicissitudes of the seasons,,^ 

 heal and cold, to wet and dry; yet " H,. ,.Y» 



The earths and soils then should be so exact- neat in 

 y proportioned and so intimately mixed as to iPm, ^r. .i j . ,.--'•.'-' "f,«no 



lorma proper cohesion or -enacity toix and viU „ "icf caT n'.^';''"" 'amb," tempers 

 'support the plant; and be capable of receiving ble.nLairr ,f '^""'"^^ ,''■"' "ilh nLy 

 and retaining that due qualit; of moisture, and ! ,vh ' bVv ^ ' T ""'' '^''"•""*- '^'he^e. 



other ingredients best suited to its nourish^en Icor^ore 0^'.' ""'""'" ""d strength to our 

 and growth. But here some difference of opi- meTtTnlwer ^^'''i ". ""f '"^'^-'^'e our 

 nion exists as .0 what is the true nourishment ^001!^!!.' ''"'^, "*'^-'' of a curse ultimate- 



J - ". ^ ...>... ..,y wii.in-ness to I °'^ P'^"'* S"nie have supposed that a ti, tly ^ TT r blessings. 



«nnl7''['"': °'' "'"' P"' "^'"^ labour w^ch P"'---<J f « of the soilfvas all tl.: w^ "^ ' met'' s' h;';!,, r,",h"'rr,*'^ ^'^•"•^"> -"- 

 annually devolves on some one of its members, h'''"'^.'" "'"^ '"'''^'"■^ ='"> '"™1"''- -' ^rnps in! iTfe o'^l to ri ."?''' "' ' ^"'""•- '"°'- 



'^''«^^^'"" <r"'n the same field. Others h,ve e n^^ '" ,'",^'^*'.,'^^'^e'-.' 'nvest,ga,io„ „, , 



r ,i ■' -- .-o- '-'"<: uie louriii 01 July it 

 ort 1 meetings, orations and addresses from all 

 parts of our country. Like that it unilesand 

 strengthens our social feelings. Like t h , i t 



But not hke that has i, yet become old and 



The field ofagricuKure is still new in N. En"-. 



and, and especially in N. Hampshire. It is broad, 



iM?^"''*!' ''.•^'"•"«• ^^^ I'ereand there 



lablished according -o Sir liumpl.rv Da;v,one 

 0/ the most celebrated ..grir.,llnrat"Chen;iMs m 

 Europe, that no one mal.nal. simply ..ons:der. 

 ed, alTords all the loo.l of plants. Yet IIhm -,11 

 operate in the process of vegetaiion. Thai the 

 soil is the laboratory in which llip A.^d i, pre- 

 pared. That no manure can be taken up by 

 he roots oi plan-s. unless water be present, and 



a snni I, ~.\'\ " , "■ """ '"^""e "n<i '"ere ' "/'*''! ""1'^'' '•"■ '" ''bmpnts, exists in all the pro 



a spot has yet fell the hand of culture. It pro- ' '^"".^ °' ''e^^-'^'lion. Not only water air md 



do bier; "' ,."';'' '' ""'"'^ --a^ei'u, . f-'^ = b"> ''Pb' and l.ea, are -I essonti'a t"^^', h ' 

 tiouDlerily nay a its nrf.mic»» d... ;° ' ■ existence o nhinu -jc • 



doubtedly pay all ils promises. But in order 

 r.gh ly ,0 manage this field, we must un ers an 

 its principle^ ,ts elementary or constituent 

 parts; (he different earthy m'a.ters, which are 

 the true basis of Its soils. These ar'e said to be 



tVj Z " """'''^'•- O"'^ '""^ '="">P"'e the 

 whole list as n regards the business olfarmint 

 1 he aluminous, the sihcious, the calcareous 

 and the Wagnesian. Of these four different 

 a^^'^r^''^-:'^^— ^-"-'sconsi"; 



-.,■., ... ,..-, ;-igi|,, IS not 



iM?- I IS rough and uneven. ), .^ i.,„.rs,„.rs. 

 ed with mounla.ns, hills and vallies; with rocks 

 nvers and iivulels. Its .oods and \imber- tj 

 variant; and ,1s soils no less so. But on the 

 banks some o. the larger rive,., and n:a,y of 

 the smaller ones, the soils have a ferllMy and 

 pro.l,ict,veness rarely to be met with,"^ and 

 -a-cely to be surpa.ssed in any sister county 

 Tb.se soils are mostly alluvial. Th-re is also 

 among our more rough, rugged, and rocky lands 

 ?reat,e,,il,,y ,n^„re„„„ofsoil;anda i 

 ..hing producl,ven.s,._so much so, that the 

 Chairman of ^a late viewing Comm.ltee face! 



observers ofna,u;e;p;;;,-urm:;uy;::^-:--e''l^P^ 



wherein pl.ms are somewhat anafogou^ o n .' "f V on t '" ^^'f ''''-"".••'"-' of the hills 

 andmanimate; wJ:g:-'^:;\:I;";S:-5 „,^<;X;^-^^^ 



::.!'::^:.--'^: ;-'"" •-r'^eau,. ^.e ^^.^^^Ti^uX "luT i::}!' !:,::::::: ^ 



Male, that we considerably exceed ihm' n 

 point 0/ privileges. ,ac,or,es;b.:'::::^i'^,;^ 

 al employed.-Witness the establi.ht^ent; a 

 Millord,\\,l,on.M„.on,Newlp.wich,?etebo 



existence ol plants as they are to that of ,„j. 

 mats. And they bear some resemblance to 

 each other. 



The celebrated LJnnsus, and many other acute 



pacity. n only requires fl„p/ifu 

 Uon, industry, and careful oh.ervatln. We must 



as o (orm n soil, „here this is not already fur 

 ni.hed,oouH.ands;and wemus.aL^^^^^^^ 

 s and he various crops best suited to the soils 



four fidT' ';'k°'''" '" '"" ^'^"'" --^emen 

 01 our field; otherwise we may labour in vain 



and spend our strength (or naught, lor the p c' 

 fee which would be excellenlin the one case 

 might be destructive in the other 



It may not be improper here, perhaps to in 

 ;i".re how these different eartli and^oil' .^J 

 ormed. Geologis.s tell us that the dfferenti 

 earths are (ormed from the decompos i,m " 

 nouldoring away of various kinds oro "an. 



wcillhuio r' ' ' 'niJcn honor and 



-re, and appear as the m;;;;rw:;k';:("n::n;::, ^f'^^^'lE^^k^^r^^^^^ 

 n the vegetable k.ngdom.-The elegance ot' much o £ ' 7 "■""'' " '^'"'-*' '"■"^^> '«r 

 'heirtinis the variety of their forms, i^he dell SithslV"''''''' '"'"^'"^" "' '^"' •"^'™'-T- 

 cacy o( theirorgjinization, and the adaptation of mf'"-^ T '""P^V"'''''"^^'"''"' '" "'« 

 'heir parts are all calculated to awaken our cu I Tnd our f.nrl '? ""'"'"'^"'■"'in? onr (arm, 



nosdy, a„, „ excite our admiration" of th^i;! ^::;,:[i,^hris':::; ^^ ^ ■:;^.,-:;j„r.'- 



-Author. 



But to return (o the business of the field- 

 he tilling o( the earth.-Here is ample rol' 



n ^'.!r"' ':r *=:"'^^ •■ ="><< he was doomed 



oilit r""',"' "■* "'' ^'"'"^ '"='"■"1 'hose of 

 S , ^"""^/'e^^-parlicnlarly England and 

 SCO land, let it has been satisfaconly showa 

 by ^ome judicious wrile,s,t that we "have in 

 ri-tT'T'fV'/''''^'''-' -'-"'age over ule,;:: 



.;..et his bread by .he ..;e:;o/;,;'t:r"::^:o;;;:^J;I^^i ",'!-'"'■" ----ge ow; ,;-: 

 !!^!!L^!iji!i^est ivuiis, it was now to hrh^ to b;:^;: Zii^r^t^z"-::!,,::::^, •;:;;;- 



* Mimosa Sensativa. 



t Chancellor Livingslon and others. 



