1868. 



NEW ENGLAND FAEIMER. 



407 



machinery and infants creep before they walk. 

 The Atlantic telegraph is now in daily use, and 

 the people of Boston have the news from 

 London as soon as those who read th,e Daily 

 Times. But how long is it since the Atlantic 

 cable was a magnificent failure ? 



Prof. Liebig's mineral theory, so satisfac- 

 tory in the crucible of the chemist, failed ut- 

 terly when tested by the English farmer. But 

 what of it ? Does the failure of his 'compound 

 prove the worthlessness of lime, potash, magne- 

 sia, ashes, phosphates, and the other ingredients 

 of his "complete manure?" Certainly not. 

 It simply shows he left a screw loose some- 

 where, which he or somebody else may tighten 

 up. Failures should stimulate, not discourage. 

 The good Book says that "it is better to go to 

 the house of mourning than to the house of 

 feasting." And how often do failures prove 

 blessings, and successes turn out to be curses. 

 We have fallen into this train of thought 

 with a copy of the second edition of the Ad- 

 dress delivered before the Bedford, N. H., 

 Farmers' Club, last winter, by John A. Riddle, 

 Esq., of Manchester, which we have just 

 closed, lying before us. In this address Mr. 

 Riddle furnishes an account of a series of ex- 

 periments made in France by Prof. Vilie, a 

 learned Frenchman, and of the composition of 

 a manure based upon the results of these ex- 

 periments. The professor claims that he ar- 

 rived at his conclusions or facts by using the 

 plant itself as the agent by which he analyzed 

 the soil and the manures which were applied 

 to it. But those who wish for further knowl- 

 edge of a system by which an English writer 

 claims that "the phantom of sterility is laid," 

 will read this little pamphlet, which, in addition 

 to the matter in the first edition, contains the 

 views of Levi Bartlett, Esq., of Warner, N. H., 

 on the subject, and also a statement by G. W. 

 Wilson, of Providence, R. I., in relation to 

 the improvement of light sandy soils. 



Without expressing any opinion as to the 

 value of Prof. Ville's "Complete Manure," we 

 may say that we think every farmer will find 

 Mr. Riddle's pamphlet both instructive and 



suggestive. 



—Mr. Lewis, of Schuyler, N. Y., stated at a 

 meeting of the Little Falls Farmers' Club that he 

 had a meadow which by top dressing, produced 

 twenty different kinds of grasses, and he would 

 not have it ploughed for $100 per acre. 



For the New England Farmer, 

 RUKAL AKCHITECTUKB. 



BY A. B. B. 



Much has been written on the subject of Ru- 

 ral Architure, and much more needs to be, to 

 inspire a love for rural embellishment and a 

 true taste for the beautiful. The ability to 

 see and appreciate the objects of beauty which 

 every where abound in the country, is a source 

 of constant and pure enjoyment. The ele- 

 ments of beauty are cheap and abundant, while 

 those of fashion and custom or art are expen- 

 sive and often offensive. 



The people of New England are more at 

 fault on the subject of Rural Architecture than 

 almost any other, and yet it is one which 

 nearly affects our daily life, and in great 

 measure, our characters and habits. Some 

 may say they "don't care what they live in, if 

 it is only comfortable and convenient." Com- 

 fort and convenience are indeed important, 

 but this life does not consist, even mainly, in 

 the abundance of material comforts and con- 

 veniences. The spirit that "don't care for 

 looks" is a degrading and debasing one every 

 where. From this comes the coarse vulgarity 

 which degrades the country. A wholesome 

 pride with intelligence and an ability to appre- 

 ciate the beautiful around us, will place the 

 country in advance of the city, in "all that 

 exalts and embellishes civilized life." 



In ninety-nine cases out of every hundred, 

 the homes in the country are devoid of taste 

 and attractiveness, not from lack of money 

 expended, but from erroneous ideas of what 

 Is fit and proper. Every one of any preten- 

 sions to intelligence, knows that beauty, in 

 dress, depends more upon harmony in colors 

 and complexion, than the richness of the ma- 

 terial or even the fashion. There is a beauty 

 for the city, and a beauty for the country ; 

 what is fit and proper for the former, may be. 

 out of place in the latter. Many a man who 

 builds a bouse in the country, takes his model 

 from the city or village, which is as much out 

 of place as the garments of a city gentleman 

 would be on a farmer at work in the field, or 

 a rich cashmere shawl over the square shoul- 

 ders and tawdry dress of "foreign help," or 

 the dress of a city belle on the faultless form 

 of the country beauty, whose unadorned at- 

 tractions surpass the power of art. 



Let us draw two pictures, — one of the most 

 prevalent style of farm houses as they are, and 

 one such as they might be, and see which is 

 the most attractive. The first is a "square- 

 as-a-brick," upright, story-and-a-half or two 

 story end-to-the-road building, clapboarded 

 and painted a dazzling white, possibly with 

 green blinds, and, if extra-st)lish, with a pi- 

 azza in front. From this, or, if this be want- 

 ing, from the front corners of the house, a 

 picket fence, tall and white, extends to the 

 road, the distance of a few yards, and along 

 in front of the house, constituting the front 



