194 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



DEC. ai, 184- 



EXTRACTS FROM AN ADDRESS 

 Delivered before the Peoria (Illinois) Agriculhiral 



Socicly, hj ils President, T. N. Welles. 

 Knowledge a requisite far the F(irnier''s prosperity. 

 " '!'o produce llie greatest ultimate result in aj;- 

 riculture, requires not only the skill and industry 

 of the common laborer, but there must be added to 

 it the knowledge of the natural philosopher. The 

 geoloorist must give u.^ the general structure of the 

 surface of our country ; the chemist must give us 

 a more particular analysis of its soil, and establish 

 the theory of vegetable nutrition ; he must also 

 discover the food necessary to the growth of the 

 •kifferent species of plants. All of these inquiries 

 are worthy of the greatest minds of any age. The 

 artisan and mechanic [nust al.so lend their aid, in 

 the fabrication of the implements of husbandry, 

 adapted to the various offices of the farm. The 

 successful farmer, is not then tlie mere plodding 

 plowman, laboring with his hands, iiut his active 

 mind brings to his assistance the discoveries of 

 science and the inventions of the arts. The more 

 extensive his knowledge of the vegetable and ani- 

 mal kingdoms, and the greater his tact in applying 

 that knowledge to the details of his husbandry, the 

 more profitable will be the results of his labor and 

 the more elevated the character of his vocation." 



Jlgricidtural Societies. 

 ''Time will not permit me to specify all the val- 

 uable results to be attained through the medium of 

 agricultural societies, or to mention all the subjects 

 that shouUi engage their attention. Suffice it to 

 say that such societies operate within their legiti- 

 mate sphere, when they advance, through all the 

 means within their reach, the pecuniary interest of 

 the farmer, and at the .same time improve and ele- 

 vate his condition as a man. They should bring 

 from the four quarters of the globe, every species 

 of information that can have a favorable bearing 

 upon his pursuit ; they should press into his ser- 

 vice, science and the arts; thoy should promote the 

 sentiment, that as farmers we are one great broth- 

 erhood ; wo should in a great degree assimilate 

 our characters ; they should make us sensible of 

 the influence, which as a body we can e.xert and 

 direct that influence in the prosecution of our best 

 interests. 



"The professional man, the mechanic, the manu- 

 facturer, the merchant and the tradesman have their 

 associations, their boards of trade, their trades- 

 unions, their periodicals, their libraries, their lyce- 

 ums, their museums and their anniversaries, each 

 and all directed to the promotion of their peculiar 

 interests. And why should not the farmer have 

 his society, his anniversary, and his paper, each 

 contributing to the ultimate benefit of his occupa- 

 tion ? 



"The farmer's wife and daughters may also par- 

 ticipate in these anniversaries. Here they may ex- 

 hibit the fabrics of the loojn and needle, and inspire 

 each other with the love of that old fashioned in- 

 dustry, that once employed the diligent hands of 

 their grandmothers — clad in the silk and linen 

 wrought by their own hands, they might add anoth- 

 er bright lint to the halo, with which, perhaps, na- 

 ture has already encircled their face and figure. 

 What saith an old writer, whose productions per- 

 haps some of you have seen ? 'The price of a vir- 

 tuous woman is far above rubies. She seekelh 

 wool and fla-x, and worketh willingly with lier 

 hands; she girdeth her loins with strength, and 



strengthens her arms ; she layeth her hands to the 

 spindle and her hands holdeth the distaflf; she is 

 not afraid of the snow for her hnusehould, for all 

 iier household are clothed with scarlet; .she maketh 

 herself coverings of tapestry ; her clothing is silk 

 and purple ; her husband is known in the gates, 

 when he sittelh among the elders of the land; she 

 maketh fine linen and selleth it, and delivereth 

 girdles unto the merchant; she openeth her mouth 

 with wisdom, and in her tongue is the law of kind- 

 ness ; her children arise up and call her blessed; 

 her husband also, and he praiseth her.' 



'' The piano-forte and guitar discourse sweet 

 music when swept by fairy fingers, but in times 

 like the present, the hum of the spinning wheel 

 and the racket of the shuttle, sound far sweeter to 

 tlie car of the thrifty farmer; and to the taste of a 

 hungry husband, the guitar is a fool to the gridiron." 



Respectubilili) of the F(irmer''s Profession. 

 "Agriculture is tlie principal source of the 

 wealth and happiness of nations. It is the basis 

 of manufactpres and commerce, and of every valu- 

 able interest of civilized life. It is the most pri- 

 mitive occupation of the human family, and should 

 be one of the most honorable among men. 



" It is too true, however, my brother farmers, 

 that our occupation is looked upon by many as de- 

 grading in its character, and as one of the lowest 

 in the scale ofhuman pursuits. Many suppose the 

 farmer to be a mere hewor of wood and drawer of 

 water for the rest of society, possessed of little or 

 no intellectual cultivation or moral elevation of 

 character. Too many suppose that the professions 

 arc much more respectable in their character, or 

 that the wealthy merchant belongs to a higher 

 grade in the scale of society. These ideas float in 

 the brain of the farmer himself at times, and ac- 

 count for the efforts he frequently makes to free 

 himself or his posterity from the fancied odium of 

 his calling, by placing his son behind the counter, 

 or educating him for some of the learned profes- 

 sions. 



" But, my friends, what is there in our occupa- 

 tion that is degrading? Is it a menial service to 

 raise pork ? Then so must it be so for the mer- 

 chant to pack it for market. Is it degrading to 

 turn over tlie fresh furrrow by dawn or at midday, 

 with a fine team and a vigorous hand to guide them ? 

 If 60, what must be the character of the lawyer, 

 who for money, hires himself as the agent of the 

 worst ofhuman passions .' Or what name shall we 

 give to the routine of the physician, who day and 

 night attends upon disease in its loathsome forms, 

 or hammers in a mortar the nauseous drugs of the 

 materia medica ? 



" No ! my friends. It is not the calling which 

 makes the man : it is the man who gives character 

 to the calling ; and the reason why the professional 

 man stands higher in the social scale is, that by the 

 fortunate circumstances of his life, his opportuni- 

 ties for knowledge have been greater and his un- 

 derstanding is more improved. It is an eternal 

 and immutable law of our nature, that superiority 

 should claim our deference. Superior intelligence 

 commands our respect. The boy pays homage to 

 the man — the ignorant to the educated, and the 

 weak to the strong minded. Knowledge always 

 has been, is now, and always will be, power ; and 

 the only way in which wo can place ourselves on 

 an equality in the social scale with the highest 

 grades in society is, by elevating, as a class, our 

 intellectual and moral condition. 



Common Schools — Educate your Children. 



" As the chiefest means of effecting this, let i 

 point out that school house which stands embowt 

 ed in some pleasant thicket in your neighborho' 

 The common school, accessible to all classes, t. 

 poor as well as the rich, has done more to impr( 

 and elevate the condition of mankind, than all oil; 

 human inventions. It may be too late in life t 

 many of us to avail ourselves of its advantages, h 

 we may prevent the rising generation fiom r 

 proaching ns with the neglect of the trust conti' 

 to our care — the education of their minds and . 

 elevation of their character. 



" Let us then, brother farmers, educate our chil 

 dren, and educate them thoroughly. For this pu 

 pose let us spare no rational expense ; let us Ui 

 the resources of our State, added to our priva 

 means, in building comfortable school houses — 

 providing useful books and scientific apparatus- 

 in clustering about the youthful mind virtuous ai 

 pleasant associations — in garnishing the path i 

 knowledge with flowers instead of thorns, and 

 seducing the young aspirant from all that can co 

 rupt and debase, and leading him through pleasai 

 walks to the heights of knowledge and usefulnos 



"Neither must we grudge the wages of tli 

 faithful and competent teacher. We should m 

 expect to get our children taught as cheaply as w 

 get our acres plowed and harvest cut. No man 

 so badly recompensed as the faithful schoolmaste 

 The talents and acquirements that fit him for th 

 station, would ensure him fourfold compensation i 

 any other calling. If we want good teachers w 

 must pay them liberally, bountifully — but the ir 

 competent pedagogue let us turn away as w 

 would the careless shepherd. jClieap education i 

 the dearest of all the wares of life. We pay lit 

 orally the faithful man to whom we can entrust th 

 valuable animals upon our farms; then why shoul 

 we grudge the hard earned pence of one to whoi 

 we can entrust the future character and welfare ( 

 our children. It is money well expended." 

 Responsibilities oj Farmers. 



" Constituting as we do, a large majority in th 

 community, upon us rests the responsibility of cree 

 ting and fostering a healthy public sentiment, npo 

 all the subjects connected with the general wci 

 fare. Upon us depends tho character of our law 

 for good or evil, for upon the vote of the farmer 

 hangs the destiny of the country. In peace th 

 farmer pays the tax of State; in war, he is relie 

 upon to defend the country. Our position, ther 

 my brother farmers, is no mean one in the bod; 

 politic. Upon our shoulders must be erected th 

 superstructure of a good or bad government. Le 

 us realize how immense the power that is entrust 

 ed to our hands, and let us learn so to exercise it 

 that it shall secure the happiness of ourselves am 

 of those about us. Then shall we be justly enti^ 

 tied to the appellation of the conservators of sociC' 

 ty. Lot us brighten the eyes of our children with 

 the fire of an intelligent and cultivated soul, and 

 let us instill into their bosoms such sentiments as 

 shall guide them safely through the thoroughfares 

 of this life and ensure them a happy immortality. 

 Then shall we reap the harvest of joy, and when 

 the shades of life's evening shall gather thickly 

 around us, we shall contemplate with a proud sat- 

 isfaction the rich heritage that we leave to poste- 

 rity." 



When articles rise, tile consumer is the first that 

 suffers, and when they fall he is the last that gains. 



