204 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



and farmers' sons of any other nation— but in per- 

 sonal appearance, No! When the late Rev. Rob- 

 ert Newton, the eloquent English Methodist 

 preacher, himself a farmer's son, returned home 

 from, a visit to this country, in a conversation with 

 a friend of the writer, he spoke highly of the in- 

 telligence of American farmers, of their ingenuity 

 of their sialwart frames and strong arms with 

 which they had cleared the forest and made it 

 hlossom.as a rose; "but," he added, "they are 

 rather a rough looking set of men." 



This was twenty years ago. Since then the con- 

 dition of American farmers has materially changed 

 for the better. The heavy work of clearing the 

 land has been accomplished. The rude log-cabin 

 has given place to the neat frame house, and taste, 

 refinement, and the comforts of high civilization 

 characterize the majority of the homes of our rural 

 residents. Still, we can not but think that our 

 farmers son's neglect their personal appearance too 

 much. .We detest a fop. We have no admiration 

 for a dandy. We have little respect for the young 

 man Who boasts more of his fast horses than of 

 his skill in turning a straight furrow. We do not 

 want farmer's son's to be gentlemanly (?) loafers; 

 but we 'do want to see them pay more attention to 

 their style of dress, to their habits, manners and 

 general appearance. 



Why need a farmer's boots be innocent of black- 

 in<r? Why need he wear a slouched hat, and 

 always have his pants stuck in his boots and his 

 hands in his trowsers pockets? 



When Jenny Lind first landed at New York, 

 and saw everyone dressed in fine broadcloth, she 

 exclaimed, "What a country for tailors!" The 

 extravagance 1 of Americans in dress is proverbial. 

 Even our farmers upend more for clothes than those 

 of almost any other country, and yet they are 

 poorly dressed ! Their clothes are not appropriate 

 to their occupation. What looks worse than black 

 pants and dirty, unpolished boots? The Canadian 

 farmer, in his grey homespun, is far more suitably 

 clothed, and looks and feels better and more com- 

 fortable. 



Perhaps we should apologise to the readers of 

 the Genesee Farmer for writing on a subject not 

 strictly agricultural!. But we feel a deep interest in 

 the social well-being of the young farmers, of 

 America. To us, their prospects are brighter than 

 those, of any other class or nation. They are des- 

 tined to be the controlling power of the Republic. 

 Cultivating their own land, independent if not 

 wealthy, removed from the fierce excitements and 

 temptations of mercantile life, it is to them we 



look to give stability to the councils of the nation. 

 How important, then, is it that the young farmers 

 of America should neglect no opportunity to cul- 

 tivate their minds and store them with useful 

 knowledge! 



Slovenly habits of dress are not favorable to 

 mental improvement. The young man who, after 

 he had cleaned his boots and brushed his clothes T 

 "looked like a gentleman," sat down to a book 

 with pleasure and profit. It was only an hour till 

 bed-time. But what of that? An hour a day 

 spent in earnest study will enable any young man 

 of ordinary intelligence to lay up a large stock of 

 valuable information. Had this young man not 

 "spruced up," he would have been tempted to 

 "take a smoke," and stupefy his mind with the 

 fumes of tobacco, instead of stimulating it with 

 the pleasant excitement always attending the ac- 

 quisition of useful knowledge. 



Every farmer should keep a record of his labors, 

 receipts, expenditures, etc. This duty should be 

 assigned to the farmer's son. Let the father talk 

 over the matter with him, and let the son make 

 the entries. The duty will soon become a delight, 

 and the father will communicate his experience on 

 the subjects coming under their notice. The son 

 will feel a growing attachment to the pursuits of 

 agriculture, and will almost certainly become { 

 successful and intelligent farmer. But who can sii 

 down to this work covered with the dust and dir 

 of the day's labor? Man is a bundle ot habits 

 and let the habit bo once formed of paying a littl< 

 attention to personal appearance and comfort, am 

 it will soon become a pleasure, and occupy but 

 few minutes time. 



MOWING MACHINES ON SMALL FARMS. 



In one of the Legislative Agricultural Meeting 

 which took place at the Massachusetts State lions 

 in March last, when the topic under discussion wa 

 that of "Farm Implements," one or more of th 

 speakers stated that they thought mowing machine 

 were profitable on large farms, but on small on< 

 would hardly pay. 



The New England Farmer thinks this an er« 

 neons view of the matter. The farmer who has 

 large farm, is presumed to have capital correspom 

 ing with his acres, and to devote his whole time i 

 the management of his estate. He is never singl 

 handed and alone . If sick, or disabled in any wl 

 he has strong backs and stout arms to depend uj 

 on, in his hired men, still to carry on the cultivi 

 tion of the crops, or to secure the harvests. B 

 can even visit the seashore or the mountains, an 



