473 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



more to be condemned than open piracy upon 

 one's columns ; and that is of extracting para- 

 graphs here and there throughout a column and 

 mixing them up with crude and ill-digested opin- 

 ions, and palming ofF the whole as original. If 

 you have little inclination for the business, and 

 less experience, go to some other employment, 

 and not disgrace yourselves and the calling by 

 leading others into false practices and opinions. 



For the New England Farmer. 



THE TOWN OF WILMINGTON— LOCAL 

 ADVANTAGES FOR BUSINESS. 



Messrs. Editors : — Since the turnpike road from 

 Concord, N. H., to Boston, was constructed, and 

 .other alterations made in the thoroughfares to 

 lessen the travel through Wilmington, very little 

 business has been carried on here besides farming, 

 shoe manufacturing, and the business at the bak- 

 ing establishments of the Messrs. Bonds. It has 

 been a prevalent idea abroad, that the land was 

 poorer here than in many of the adjacent towns. 

 I admit the soil is stronger, and much harder 

 to operate upon, than here, in many of the regions 

 round about. We are not so subject to contusions 

 and goadings of plow handles here as I have ex 

 periencedon strong soil in guiding that instrument 

 which turns the surface of the earth "upside 

 down." When the advantages which facilitate 

 the farming operations on our level land, free of 

 stones, with a warm pliable soil, not retentive of 

 of water, nor inclined to bake, which bears drought 

 much better than land with a large proportion of 

 clay, are taken into consideration, the strong, 

 stony, hilly, retentive, and of course cold land, 

 that will require all the muscular powers and firm- 

 ness of bones in possession of the farmer to be ex- 

 pended in his farming operations, with all the ma- 

 nure he can make or conveniently purchase, the 

 warm, free, level soil, on trial, will be found to have 

 been underrated through prejudice or ignorance of 

 its nature and quality. I believe it is a fact, that the 

 warm soils, throughout the country, which are 

 most cultivated, which have produced without ma- 

 nure, have lost their character by their too readily 

 yielding crops to the cupidity of the avaricious oc- 

 cupant, who is not satisfied with fleecing merely, 

 but further gratifies his covetous desires by skin- 

 ning also. There is as much wisdom and good 

 calculation displayed in such farming as there was 

 in the fabulous story of the man who dissected the 

 fowl that laid the golden eggs in his eagerness to 

 get rich. This kind of warm "free soil" will well 

 compare with the free horse which is driven to 

 death because he is free. Only treat this kind of 

 land as we are necessitated to treat the compact, 

 strong cold land, with the same quantity of ma- 

 nure and half the labor, and I believe the farmer 

 would realize as profitable returns as he would 

 from his strong stony soils. 



Our lands here, judiciously cultivated, would 

 produce a great variety of market vegetables. 

 Asparagus, and every variety of the vine and 

 root crops, adapted to the climate, may be raised 

 here to perfection ; as far as my experience has 

 gone, I have seen no better land for onions. 

 Cranberries might be raised to great advantage 

 on an improved plan of cultivation ; here is much 



soil well adapted to their growth. I know of no 

 better land to produce wood, nor no better market 

 for the sale of it, than in Wilmington ; our poorest 

 lands seem to delight in displaying their wonderful 

 propensities in producing a speedy crop of it for 

 the use of families or locomotives, and I think it a 

 crop attended with the least expense in raising, 

 and will afford the largest profit to the farmer of 

 any individual article produced on a large farm. 

 Another consideration in favor of easy, pliable soil, 

 is the comparative ease of performing the labor. 

 I have observed, and heard others make the re- 

 mark, that those who worked on light land free of 

 stones, retained their sprightliness and activity 

 longer than those who worked on hard, heavy, 

 strong land. 



Another important ad vantage to business men, 

 is that of railroads. We have three distinct rail- 

 roads passing through the town, and four well 

 located depots. One railroad from Lowell to Bos- 

 ton, one from Maine to Boston, and one from 

 Lowell to Salem, affording advantages and facili- 

 ties for business and travelling, possessed by few 

 other towns. A considerable number of residents 

 here have season tickets, and daily do business in 

 the cities. The land is selling at high prices be- 

 low us on the Maine railroad, which would be a 

 pecuniary inducement to those who wish to pur- 

 chase land cheap to look a little further up. 



Wilmington is 15 miles from Boston and about 

 the same from Salem, nine miles from Lowell and 

 about the same from Lawrence, surrounded with 

 cities and villages^ and a very healthy town well 

 supplied with soft water. Mechanical business of all 

 kinds might be carried on here by steam or water 

 power ; the convenience of conveying all kinds of 

 produce and manufactured articles to and from the 

 cities and the country is very great. Favorable 

 locations for tanneries nigh the railroad depots, 

 might be purchased at reasonable prices, and 

 pleasant locations for dwelling-houses and me- 

 chanics' buildings may be bought as low as in any 

 other town in the vicinity. 



The larger number of young men here, think 

 they can do better at manufacturing than farm- 

 ing. The want of capital is a serious obstacle, in 

 the way of most young men, which induces them 

 to go into other business in preference to farming. 

 The farmer is under the necessity, about here, of 

 possessing a few thousands of capital to be able to 

 work the farm to advantage. After all, the farm- 

 er's life and occupation is most condusive to a 

 peaceful mind and a conscience void of offence; he 

 has the least reason to be discontented, and the 

 greatest reason for gratitude of any man living; 

 he can live with less hours of daily toil than the 

 mechanic, he is not harrassed with vexations of 

 fault-finding customers to make him unhappy, but 

 he places his dependence upon an all-wise Provi- 

 dence, who judges righteously and rewards every 

 man according to the deeds done in the body, as I 

 hold firmly. With much respect, 



Wilmington, July, 1852. Silas Browx. 



Agricultural Fair. — The Addison County Ag- 

 ricultural Fair will be holden at Middlebury, Yt. , 

 on Wednesday, Oct. 6th, 1852. The officers are, 

 Harvey Munsill, President ; Joseph II. Bartoll, 

 Secretary ; Harry Goodrich, Treasurer. 



