Vo. 2. 



Whi/ the East cannot coinpete with the West. 



63 



irence I submit to intelligent farmers, whe- 

 her there is not as much difference in the 

 nodes and rules of breeding stock and fat- 

 ing it, as in that of raising grain and bul- 

 )Ous roots "? 



It seems almost incredible to an American, 

 hat in many parts of Great Britain and 

 ?'rance, the farmers pay $20 per acre rent 

 )er annum, by tlie hundred acres, and yet 

 hey drive a thriving business, by adapting 

 heir products to their location, and yet it 

 ieldom happens that similar articles are 

 ligher there than in the New York markets. 

 I am inclined to think there is a mistaken 

 )pinion very general among our farmers, 

 jiat they should produce at least as much of 

 jertain crops as they consume; as well may 

 I t be held, that every farmer should doctor 

 I lis family, or plead his law, — when he can 

 jurchase cheaper than produce, or realize a 

 greater income by selling one thing and 

 juying another, why not do so. 



Men are the sport of circumstances, when 

 Circumstances are the sport of men. 



That farmer must play a loosing game, 

 who will not adapt his business to circum- 

 stances and location. 



In connection with this subject we should 

 not lose sight of the different breeds of stock. 

 One is best adapted to the dairy and another 

 to the shambles, but neither possesses both 

 properties in the highest degree. And while 

 it is admitted that the Leicester, Southdown 

 and Cheviot sheep are the best mutton breeds, 

 yet I see our farmers trying to compete with 

 the West in raising Merinos for wool. The 

 Durham it is demonstrated is the best breed 

 for beef, on account of its size and early ma- 

 turity, and we are fatting and breeding dairy 

 cattle, though we see the great West flood- 

 ing the country with butter, cheese and fine 

 wool. 



But in choosing breeds of stock in this 

 country, I find great care must be taken ; 

 we have as inuch quackery in this line as 

 in medicine. And this is one reason, I im- 

 agine, why the best arc not more esteemed 

 by our firmers; tlie truth is, they are seldom 

 met with in our quarter, though so many 

 profess to have them, we are often led astray 

 by the name, without having informed our- 

 selves as to the true form or figure of these 

 animals. 



I find we labour under another difficulty 

 of quite a serious nature. The United 

 States has a great variety of climate, vary- 

 ing in many respects from that of Great 

 Britain, in its products, the habits of the 

 people, and modes of agriculture. These 

 facts should be carefully considered by the 

 American farmer; while I would give Eu- 



rope all the credit for her fine breeds of 

 stock, I must insist that, aside from fatting 

 and breeding, very little of her system of 

 farming is adapted to this country. And yet 

 most of our works on agriculture are either 

 reprints or compilations of British publica- 

 tions. I grant it is true in the main, " that 

 the modes and rules of culture which are 

 successful in one place will be so in others, 

 provided we adapt them to the varying con- 

 ditions of climate and situation,'" but this 

 adaptation seems to be the trouble or diffi- 

 culty we have to encounter, and hence the 

 necessity of a system of our own. 



But while our farmers are in the habit of 

 reading the penny news, instead of our ag- 

 ricultural papers and quarterly reviews, 

 which may cost them from one to three 

 dollars per annum, and are loosing as many 

 hundreds by bad management, there is but 

 little hope for improvement. 



Even England never woke up to this sub- 

 ject, until George the III. turned farmer, 

 and thereby made it fashionable in that 

 country — *' necessity is the mother of in- 

 vention," and the time is not far distant 

 when our farmers will realize the applica- 

 tion. What gave Bakewell his local im- 

 mortality and wealth, but his genius in pro- 

 ducing an improved breed of mritton sheep. 

 Have our farmers less skill in this artf 



Let farmers consider that book-making in 

 the present age, both here and abroad, has 

 become a trade of the printer. That au- 

 thors think much less than they write, and 

 practice less than either. Therefore it is 

 that their works are of so little value to ihe 

 practical man. 



I find on experiment, that the pumpkin is 

 even a better feed for sheep than the turnip, 

 when run through the cutting machine, and 

 every American farmer knows its utility in 

 fatting cattle, and that it may be grown 

 abundantly in a field of corn without injury 

 to the crop. 



I hope soon, however, to see the day when 

 our practical farmers in different sections of 

 the country will perceive the importance of 

 thinking and writing more on their prac- 

 tice, with a view of seeking information 

 and imparting knowledge to each other; by 

 this means, and this only, we may soon es- 

 tablish an American system, however varied 

 may be the climate, soil, or location. — Ame^ 

 rican Quarterly Journal of Science. 



Dec. 19th, 1845. 



Hilly pastures with running waters, are 

 better than meadows for the dairy: and cows 

 should be driven gently from the pasture, not 

 worried by dogs or unruly boys. 



