Vol 6. 



GENESEE FARMER, 



119 



ambition of political office or distinction, or a fever- 

 ish thirst for notoriety and excitement: but in a 

 (juiet, yet not stagnant repose, they reflect every- 

 where 'the tokens of that divine goodness, which 

 seems in such examples to have poured out its rich- 

 est earthly treasures. N^^w, I am anxious that ag- 

 riculture should occupy that place among the liberal 

 professions to which it can be raised, and to which, 

 from its importance, it is entitled. But this can on- 

 ly be done by improving the education of farmers as 

 a class — by multiplying, through the means of a 

 most liberal and extended education, the charms of 

 the country, and the subjects of interest which would 

 be constantly more and more developed to a cultiva- 

 ted and inquisitive mind ; and by showing that its 

 successful pursuit, either as a matter of business or 

 recreation, where a moderate fortune is possessed, 

 or a moderate professional income is secured, is not 

 incompatible with the highest improvement of taste, 

 and even a vigorous and successful pursuit of learn- 

 ing; and that, where so pursued, under favorable 

 circumstances, it affords as fair a chance of rational 

 enjoyment and quiet usefulness, as any situation 

 which the most lucrative trade, or the most success- 

 ful political ambition, or even the highest profess- 

 ional eminence, can command. 



But I fear, how much soever I may satisfy the 

 sober and reflecting minds on this point, my opin- 

 ions and persuasions will scarcely be heard, and far 

 less heeded, in that rush for wealth, for office, and 

 for notoriety, which, like a torrent sweeping over 

 the country, carries every moveable object in its 

 course. It seems, however, not less my duty to 

 record my strong convictions, which the experience 

 of a life not short has served only to confirm. I 

 see in my own country every where proffered to an 

 honest industry, a wise frugality, and a wholesome 

 self-government, the most ample rewards : I see a 

 wide extent of rich and beautiful temtory, waiting 

 the improving hand of .skill and labor, to be had in 

 many cases almost for asking, with every man to 

 choose where he will pitch his tent, not only with- 

 out injury, but to the advantage of his neighbor: — 

 I see the means of education, of competence, and 

 of substantial independence, held out to all who will 

 avail themselves of them. In the midst of all this, 

 I see thousands and thousands of young men, blest 

 with education and fortunes adequate to supply all 

 reasonable wants in the country, rushing into cities, 

 exhausting their small means in the extravagances 

 and dissipations of fashionable life; crowding ail the 

 professions to repletion; pressing on, with vexation 

 and disappointment heaped upon vexation and disap- 

 pointment, into all the avenues of political office 

 and distinction, and into all the bitter strifes of po- 

 litical controversy; forcing their way into the pur- 

 suits of trade without talents for their prosecution, 

 and almost sure to involve themselves in bankruptcy 

 and ruin; and, in one form and another, dragging 

 on through life without satisfaction to themselves 

 and without usefulness to others, and too often a ru- 

 inous burden upon those whom it is now their turn 

 to succor and relieve. I cannot, therefore, help 

 wishing that the pursuits of agriculture might be 

 made attractive to such persons; and that, with ed- 

 ucation, and that moderate fortune which would 

 give them the command of the best advantages of 

 rural life, they might find in it, as far as rational 

 happiness and humble usefulness are concerned, that 

 philosopher's stone, which in other places they are 

 almost sure to ecarch for in vain. — Cohnaa's Tour. 



DOES THE MOON INFLUENCE THE 

 WEATHER. 



From the fourth number of Dr. Lardner's Pop- 

 ular lectures on science, which has just been pub- 

 lished, we make the following extract. The in- 

 fluence which the changes of the moon are gene- 

 rally supposed to exert upon the weather, seem 

 very clearly shown by the Doctor to be fallacious: 



" Among the many influences which the moon 

 is supposed, by the world in general, to exercise 

 upon our globe, one of those which have been most 

 universally believed, in all ages and in all coun- 

 tries, is that which it is presumed to exert upon 

 the changes of the weather. Although the parti- 

 cular details of this influence are sometimes pre- 

 tended to be described, the only general principle 

 or rule which prevails with the world in general 

 is, that a change of weather may be looked for at 

 the epochs of the new and full moon — that is to 

 say, if the weather be previously fair, it will be- 

 come foul ; if foul, will become fair. Similar chan- 

 ges are also sometimes, though not so confidently, 

 looked for at the epochs of the quarters. 



A question of this kind may be regarded either 

 as a question of science or a question of fact. 



If it be regarded as a question of science, we 

 are called upon to explain how and by what pro- 

 perty of matter, or what law of nature or attrac- 

 tion, the moon at a distance of a quarter of a mil- 

 lion of miles, combining its effects with the sun, 

 at four hundred times that distance, can produce 

 those alleged changes ? To this it may be readily 

 answered, that no known law or principle has hith- 

 erto explained any such phenomena. The moon 

 and sun must doubtless affect the ocean of air which 

 surrounds the globe, as they affect the ocean of 

 water, producing effects analogous to tides ; but 

 when the quantity of such an effect is estimated, 

 it is proved to be utterly inappreciable, and such 

 as could by no means account for the meteorologi- 

 cal changes here adverted to. 



But in conducting investigations of this kind we 

 proceed altogether to the wrong direction, and begin 

 at the wrong end when we commence with the in- 

 vestigation of the physical cause of the supposed 

 phenomena. That method of conducting physical 

 inquiries, which was bequeathed to us by the illus- 

 trious Bacon, and which has led to such an immense 

 extension of our knowledge of the universe, imperi- 

 ously requires, that before we begin to seek for the 

 causes of any phenomena we must prove, beyond 

 the possibility of doubt, the reality of the phenome- 

 na, and ascertain, with the utmost precision, all the 

 circumstances attending them. In other words, we 

 are required to consider all inquiries of the kind now 

 adverted to as mere questions of fact, before we take 

 them as questions of science. 



What, then, let us see, is the present question 1 

 It is asserted, that the-moon produces such an inflU'- 

 ence on the weather as to cause it to change at the 

 new and full moon, and at the quarters. But in this 

 mode of stating the proposition, there are implicitly 

 included two very distinct points, one of which is a 

 simple matter of fact, and the other a point of phy- 

 sical science. 



First, It is asserted, that at the epochs of a newr 

 and full moon, and at the quarters, there is generally 

 a change of tke weather. This is a mere statement 

 of alleged fact. 



Second, It is asserted, that the places of the 

 moon, or in other words the relative position of th« 



