is lessened, and the time devoted to a consideration of 

 the ordinary details of our business. 



One of the chief hinderances to agricultural progress 

 is the reluctance firmers feel towards giving the public 

 the benefit of their experience, either by writing or by 

 speech. There are men before me to-day, whose locks 

 have whitened in the sun and wind and toil of the 

 farm, — men shrewd, observing and practical, who have 

 wrung from the soil all they possess of worldly wealth, — 

 men competent to teach many of those who attempt to 

 instruct us, but who are only unwilling to make the at- 

 tempt. Could we obtain a record of the experience and 

 practice of these men the result would be invaluable. 



Although tilling the soil has been one of the chief oc- 

 cupations of the race ever since our first parents were 

 driven from the garden, yet almost the whole field of 

 practical agriculture is debatable ground. There is 

 comparatively little absolutely Icnown of the mysterious 

 processes of growth daily going on before our eyes, and 

 men of equal judgment and experience differ widely in 

 their theories. 



The census returns show that the relative number of 

 firmers is diminishing, especially in the New England 

 States, and that the tendency of population is to gather 

 into cities. Whether this apparent decline in agricul- 

 ture is because the culture of land pays less return, or 

 because improved implements have taken the place of 

 manual labor, or whether the decline is only apparent, is a 

 problem difficult of solution. It is certain that the de- 

 mand for all the varied products of the soil is greater 

 than ever, and consumers are slow to believe that the 

 prices they pay are not sufficientl}^ high. At the same 

 time some of us fail to see the substantial tangible evi- 



