90 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Feb. 



8 ults can be obtained in this noble Art, by a com- 

 bination of system, energy and skill, sustained and 

 encouraged by ample means, where some of the 

 best minds, both among males and females, may 

 be thoi'ouglily educated for every branch of hus- 

 bandry, and be made acquainted with the books 

 and lives of the distinguished leaders in rural in- 

 dustry. 



There ia no place among us now where this can 

 be doue. The county societies are limited in means, 

 and can only encourage the common operations of 

 the farm. Few, or no, long-continued experi- 

 ments are made in the breeding of stock, in the 

 various crops of grains, fruits and roots, or in the 

 analysis, draining, and general management of 

 soils. In their action, the farmer sees no associa- 

 ted effort upon single points where ample means 

 command the largest experience, the most patient 

 investigation and the ripest learning to unravel 

 their mysteries. 



Here, then, is what we need. Who among our 

 opulent men, men of enlarged views, whose hearts 

 swell with the desire to be useful to those who 

 shall come after them, will lay the foundation of 

 an institution from whence shall flow perpetual 

 blessings to the sons of toiH Whose memory shall 

 be cherisod in the hearts of our children, and in 

 those of their posterity, as the benefactor of the 

 masses, and who opened unto them the gates of 

 knowledge 1 



We are confident that the good old Common- 

 wealth has many gentlemen who would gladly aid 

 this good cause if some definite plans were laid be- 

 fore them, and they could see that their bounty 

 would really aid the efforts of the farmer in ob- 

 taining a better knowledge of his occupation. Sim- 

 ilar thoughts are uttered in another column of 

 this paper by one of the most intelligent cultiva- 

 tors in Essex county. Who will second these sug- 

 gestions ? 



Franklin County Society. — The annual meet- 

 ing of the Franklin County Agricultural Society 

 was held on Saturday, January 7, and the fol- 

 lowing persons elected its officers for 1854 : — 



Henry AV. Cushman, President. 



JosiAH Fogg, } ^r ' n j i 

 T M / ^^'ce f residents. 



Lucius Nims, f 



H. G. Parker, Secretary. 



W. T. Davis, Treasurer. 



holden on the 11th instant. They purpose to have 

 model farms, and the constitution requires the 

 holding an Annual Cattle Show and Fair. Press 

 the matter vigorously, fi'iends. 



Connecticut State Agricultural Society. — 

 We believe the good people of this State are still 

 without any State organization to encourage the 

 pursuit of agriculture. In the last numl)er of 

 The Examiner, published at Norwich, in which 

 the agricultural portion is ably conducted by our 

 occiisional correspondent, ]\Ir. Clift, the subject 

 of a State Society is strongly urged, and a Consti- 

 tution sot forth . An annual meeting was to be 



For the New England Farmer. 



THINGS AWAY UP IE VERMONT. 



LAMOILLE COUNTY. 



Mr. Editor : — The time was when almost all 

 from Varmount, who happened to get strayed 

 away down as far as your city, were called " rather 

 green ;^^ and many the jokes that were played on 

 them; but sometimes they got an ^^ appropriate^' 

 reply. Well, they could not naturally be otherwise 

 than " green," as they " grew up" in the green 

 valleys, with the "green mountains" and hills 

 all around them. "But things are not now as 

 they used to be ;" for time has -wrought a change 

 in the " face of the land," and also in the heads 

 of the people. It is now Jmoicn, as can be seen by 

 your reports of stock, produce, &c., compared with 

 that from other States, that there is something 

 valuable in Vt. Lamoille county, though it does 

 not contain so many " broad acres," as" some other 

 counties in the State, and though it is intersected 

 by two of the loftiest ranges of the green moun- 

 tains, contains as good land for farming as there 

 is in the State ; and in it lies one of the most 

 beautiful and lovely valleys in New England. This 

 valley lies between the two ranges of mountains 

 that intersect the county, north and south ; is 8 or 

 10 miles wide, generally level, the soil excellent, easi- 

 ly to be worked^and free from stone, — unlike some 

 partsof New England. Stowe, the most southern 

 town in this valley, that lies in this county, is one 

 of the handsomest and best in the State. Morris- 

 town, north of it, extends to the valley of the 

 Lamoille River, and is aljout equal to Stowe in 

 beauty and excellencies as a farming town. The 

 Lamoille River passes west through the centre of 

 the county, and has some very good falls for pro- 

 pelling machinery. The falls and cascades at 

 Morristown are exceedingly beautiful and roman- 

 tic ; and there is a chance for extensive manufac- 

 turing establishments. A little of your Boston 

 capital and energy would make the waters that 

 pass here tell something beside their babljlings ; 

 though there are now some improvements. Hyde- 

 park, the shire town, (25 miles north of Montpe- 

 lier,) lies north of Morristown and the Lamoille, 

 and is a good farming town. This town is cele- 

 brated for " growing" hops. They " calculate" 

 that the expenses of cultivating and harvesting an 

 acre, after the first year, are about the same as an 

 acre of corn. They plant about 1000 hills to the 

 acre and get 2 lbs. to the hill, in a good season, 

 which would be 2000 lbs. to the acre, and at the pre- 

 sent pHces, 40 cts. per lb., would amount to §800. 

 Pretty good pay for cultivating an acre of land. 



The valley of the Lamoille contains some excel- 

 lent farming towns. Johnson and Cambridge, 

 down the river, are very good. There are other 

 towns in the county excellent for stock, dairy, &c. 

 Some of the "back places," and the sides of the 

 mountains, are covered with beautiful forests, 

 which will be more valuable at some future time 

 than at present ; tliough wood and lumber have 

 advanced in price within a few years. The far- 

 mers, in tliis vicinity, now have something to en- 



