60 



SILK MANUAL, AND 



und an agricultural journal of established celebri- 

 ty. There was an assortment of books, not large, 

 but well selected, consisting of voyages, travels, 

 history, and a number of theological volumes, 

 with one of the popular commentators on the Bi- 

 ble. The family were soon grouped around, and 

 all, even to little Mary, were busy, the boys with 

 their books, the girls with their sewing. 



" You will excuse us," said Mr B, to me, ''but 

 we have in our family long since adopted a prac- 

 tice which we do not like to relinquish : for one 

 hour in the (evening, after the usual labors of the 

 day are closed, some one of us, and we intend to 

 do it in rotation,^ reads aloud for the benefit of the 

 others, and as we have just received a work more 

 than usually interesting, my children would feel 

 deprived of a privilege were this custom omitted 

 this evening." 1 of course begged I might not be 

 a hindrance to their happiness, and young Mellen, 

 the second son, a lad of sixteen, was called upr.n 

 to read. John Neal, I remember, says that he 

 knew of but three good readers in the United 

 States, and spite of his modesty, 1 presume he would 

 include nimself in that number; certain it is, the 

 number is but few who enter into the spirit of an 

 author, and understand giving his words and sen- 

 timents their proper value and effect. Mellen 

 however, far exceeded my expect tions, and when 

 he named Lamartiiie's Pilgrimage to the Holy 

 Land, as the work they were reading, I was not 

 surprised they were anxious for its continuation ; 

 and when the hour had expired, so deeply inter- 

 ested had we all become in the narration of the 

 eloquent Frenchman, that by an unanimous vote, 

 the hook was handed to the eldest daughter, and 

 another hour glided quickly away in listening to 

 her sweec toned voice, and the glovvi!ig thoughts 

 of the poetic writer. After what I had seen and 

 heard, I was not surprised to find Mr B. a man of 

 deep religious feeling, or disposed to wonder at 

 the profound feeling of humility and thankfulness 

 with which he closed the evening by commending 

 us all to the care of a beneficent Creator. 



After the children bad retired, 1 could not help 

 congratulating Mr B. on the excellent course he 

 had adopted in the family of accumulating knowl- 

 edge, and the beautiful etTect its influence already 

 exercised. It is said, he remarked in reply, that 

 farmers, or their children, do not have as much 

 time to read as the chTdren of professional men or 

 mechanics, and it may be partly true, yet I am con- 

 vinced the plea which farmers so often urge as an 

 excuse for their ignorance, that they have no time 

 to read, arises more frequently from disinclination 

 to read, than from any other cause. Few men 

 are sensible how many valuable books are gone 

 through in a year by the reading of an hour a day ; 

 and by having them read aloud in the family, all 

 arc interested, and all are instructed. As I have 



accustomed my children to ask questions on what 

 is read, and to the correcting of errors in the read- 

 ing, the attention even of the youngest rarely flags 

 during the hour. 



I went to bed reflecting on the contrast between 

 farmers A. and B. and the different probable re- 

 sults their influence and that of their families would 

 have on their own happiness, and that of the soci- 

 ety around them. With farmer A. everything 

 was at sevens and sixes; nothing in doors or out, 

 in the house or on the farm, as it should be, or as 

 it ought to have been ; and this state of things ev- 

 idently had its effects on the minds of the family, 

 rendering them morose, ill-temi)ered, I may almost 

 fiay, immoral ; as well as continually restless and 

 dissatisfied with everything around them, without 

 inducing the necessary steps to cure the evils of 

 which they were so ready to complain. On the 

 contrary, at farmer B.'s every thing moved like 

 clock-work, and it was evident the success as a 

 farmer arose from havmg his work done in sea- 

 son, and from " having a place for everything and 

 everything in its place." Its effects on the fami- 

 ly we have seen, and one thing is certain — Mr B. 

 will not go to the west in search of competence or 

 happiness. — Gen. Far. 



Crops in Indiana. — We are glad fo learn from 

 the Madison (Indiana) Banner, of the 27th ult. that 

 the favorable accounts heretofore had of that region 

 are fully confirmed. The Banner states upon the 

 strength of late information from all parts of that 

 State, that the prospect for the crops was highly 

 favorable, and the promise certain of an abundant 

 reward for the toil and labor of the farmer. The 

 Richmond (Indiana,) Palladiu(n of the 16th ult. 

 thus confirms what is said by the Banner: — "We 

 are now in the midst of harvest, and seldom has 

 nature yielded a more bounteous return for the 

 labor of the husbandman in this country." — Lan- 

 caster Herald. 



Hay. — T!ie ci op of hay comes in quite abun- 

 dant this year. On account of the weather the 

 farmers have not been able to get their hay as 

 early as usual, and much of it has remained until 

 it is considerably dead ; consequently the crop of 

 rowen will not be so large. It is estimated, by a 

 shrewd farmer, that the price Of good hay here 



will range, this yea- from ten to fifteen dollars 



Hampshire Gazette. 



Great Corn Caop. — Mr Calvin Wells of 

 Whately, uccidenfly [)lanted one kernel of Indian 

 Corn among his broom sc^cd, this year, and reader, 

 how many ears do you think are now to be 

 counted en this solitary corn stalk. Why, thirteen 

 exactly, yes, thirteen ears of Corn from one seed, 

 reader. Now, what yankee, either here or in the 

 " far west " can beat that. — JVorthampton Cow, 



