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MONTHLY JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE. 



clear that if we had in all the old Slates consumers alongside of the producers 

 in proportion to their extent and resources, as they have in Massachusetts and, 

 Rhode Island, would not all their exhausted land be resuscitated, and their rich 

 lands be ditched and drained and improved, and all their lands rise in value ? 

 Let the farmer, then, instead of being forever content to be made the hack- 

 horse of office-hunting politicians, inquire why is it that this cannot be so ? Let 

 him first buy and read Carey's book, " The Past, the Present, and the Future." 

 One word more : suppose a few thousand dollars to be offered by the Government, 

 every year, as premiums to the first importers of labor-saving machinery in all 

 our industrial employments — the originality and value of it to be judged, and the 

 premiums to be awarded by such men as Professors Renwick and Jackson, and 

 Col. Gadsden, Gen. McNeill, James S. Wadsworth, Edward Stevens, and 

 others eminent for attainments and experience in the various departments of Inr 

 dustry, both in science and in practice— would not thousands thus held out, re- 

 sult, when applied, in greater benefit to the substantial interests of the country 

 than the millions that are now expended in life salaries to supernumerary offi- 

 cers — in soldiers, garrisons, guns, powder, &c. &:c. ? — But enough, for the pres- 

 ent. As long as you. Farmers, dare not speak for yourselves, or support even 

 one paper that does, how can you expect mere politicians, looking for the spoils, 

 to speak or to act for you ? 



It is to be remembered that Sir Richard 

 Aikwright took his first patent for an entirely 

 new method of spinning cotton yarn for 

 warps in 17G9, at which period his first 

 mill was put in operation at Nottingham, in 

 England, and his second mill, which was 

 much larger, was erected at Cromford, Der- 

 byshire, in 1771. Alter which, his mode of 

 spinning by water-frames extended rapidly 

 all over the kingdom; so that during the 

 period when the most perseven'ng exer- 

 tions were being made by various enter- 

 prising hidividuals, in difierent parts of the 

 United States, to improve and perfect this 

 most important manufacture, England was 

 enjoying all the benefit of Arkvvright's pat- 

 ents, by means of which cotton yarn was 

 produced at much less expense and of a su- 

 perior quality to any that bad ever been 

 made by machinery before that period ; and. 

 at the same time, the Brilisli Government 

 were using every means in their power to 

 prevent models or drawings of these ma- 

 chines from being carried out of the country. 

 Everv effort to erect or import this machine- 

 ry into the United States had hitherto proved 

 abortive. Much interest had been excited 

 in Philadelphia, New-York, Rliode Island, 

 and Massachusetts, but they found it impos- 

 sible to compete with the superior machinery 

 of England. 



Such w-as the state of the cotton manufac- 

 ture in the United States in 1790; every en- 

 deavor to introduce a proper systejn of spin- 

 ning had been fruilless ; and nothing but the 

 introduction of the water-frame spinning, 

 which had superseded the jennies in England, 

 could have laid a foundation for the succes.s- 

 ful prosecution of the business in America, 

 aud that was happily accomplished by one 



who was personally and practically acquaial>- 

 ed with the business in all its details. The 

 individual here referred to was Mr. Samuel 

 Slater, who has justly been called the Father 

 of the Cotton Manvfacture of America. 



Mr. Slater was born in the town of Belper, 

 Derbyshire, England, on tiie 9th of June, 

 1768 ; and when aljout fourteen years of age, 

 he was bound apprentice, at Milford, near 

 Belper, to .Tedediah Strutt, Esq., (the in- 

 ventor of the Derby ribbed stocking-frame, 

 and for several years a partner with Sir Rich- 

 ard Arkwright, in the cotton-spinning busi- 

 ness.) At that time Mr. Strutt was erecting 

 a large factory at Milford, where Slater con- 

 tinued to serve him for some time in the ca- 

 pacity of clerk ; but, during the last four or 

 five years of his apprenticeship, his time was 

 solely devoted to the factory as general over- 

 seer, both as respected the making of the 

 machinery, and in the manufacturing depart- 

 ment. After having completed the full term 

 of his engagement, viz., six and a half years, 

 he continued iltr some time longer with Mr. 

 Stuart, for the purpose of superintending some 

 new works that were then erecting. His de- 

 sign in doing so was to perfect liis knowledge 

 of the business in every department, as pre- 

 vious to this time bis thoughts had been di- 

 rected to America by various rumors which 

 had reached Derbyshire, of the anxiety of the 

 Governments of the different States in that 

 country to introduce and encourage manu- 

 factures. A newspaper account of a liberal 

 bounty of £100 having been granted to a 

 person who succeeded in constructing a very 

 imperfect carding-machine for making rolLj 

 for jennies, and the knowledge that a So- 

 ciety to Promote Manufactures had been au- 

 thorized by the same Legislature, finally de- 



