86 



GExNESEE FARMER. 



April. 



Clearing Land. 



Is my remarks on "Forests," (given in tlie 

 preceding volume of the Farmer,) 1 have shown 

 what I believe to be some of the legitimate ef- 

 fects of clearing a country of its natural cover- 

 ing, its forests. These effects I consider to be 

 Ihe following : to wit, 



A change of climate and its consequences. — 

 These consequences are seen, 



1st. In the severe and parching drouths that 

 have of late visited our own country as well as 

 others, some of the effects of which are, the fail- 

 Ture of crops, the drying up of streams, springs, 

 wells, &c. 2d. In the uncertainty of raising 

 grain, fruit, &c. 3d. In the multiplication of 

 iroublesome insects, &c. 



These evils are by no means appreciated. — 

 Many never think of them ; many do not be- 

 lieve, or think of, the cause of them ; and many 

 do not care for them, provided they can only 

 make a few dollars. But the more I think on 

 the subject, the more 1 am convinced of its truth 

 and importance. I would, therefore, that the 

 subject were known and understood through the 

 length and breadth of the land. Let travelers 

 and Geographers give attention to it, and collect 

 and spread before the public the results of their 

 observations, so that the present generotion may 

 protit by the errors of the past. 



I will now endeavor to point out a few other 

 evils resulting from the same cause, the destruc- 

 tion of our forests. And 1st. All, or nearly all, 

 our cleared land has been so long under tillage, 

 and much of it injudicious tillage, as to require 

 much care, labor, and expense, to secure a good 

 crop ; and there being little more land to be 

 cleared, the evil is likely to increase rather than 

 diminish. 



A second evil is, that many farmers are now 

 under the necessity of buying fuel. It is true, 

 perhaps, that by clearing their lands they may 

 have realized more immediate profit, than if they 

 had left them in their wild state ; yet now, when 

 fuel bears a high price, and the raising of grain 

 has become more difficult and expensive, they 

 are obliged to take of their former gains, or their 

 present hard earnings, to purchase fuel, and to 

 renovate an exhausted soil. What then have 

 ihey gained ? Very little, perhaps nothing ; 

 especially when we take into the account the in- 

 jury done in many cases, to their own children. 

 This evil, like the former, will increase with time. 



A third and still greater evil is, the injury we 

 thus inflict upon posterity. The present gene- 

 ration may not sufier for the want of fuel ; but 

 unless means sliall be adopted to revive the growth 

 of timber, or to preserve what we know have, 

 posterity must suffer the consequences of our 

 folly and extravagance. 



1 am, aware that the reliance is upon coal ; 

 but to this there are several objections. 1st. It 



j is rendering us dependent on others for that which 

 every farmer ought to have of his own. 2d. It 

 is reasonable to suppose that the price of coal 

 will increase with the demand. 3d. To those 

 who live at a distance from the coal region, or 

 from any canal or rail road, it will be found a 

 very expensive kind of fuel. 4th. The supply 

 of coal may eventually fail ; for, although con- 

 sidered by some inexhaustible, yet when we 

 remember that only about two-thirds of the abso- 

 lute quantity can be rendered available, and that 

 this country has yet to sustain a dense popula- 

 tion to the end of time, it cannot be wholly un- 

 reasonable to think of the future. Hence, 1 may 

 add, that the discovery of coal may yet, with all 

 the advantages that result from it, prove an injury 

 to some portions of the country. For, relying 

 on coal, many will be less economical of wood, 

 and thus waste what they have, because there 

 may be a substitute within their reach. This 

 will both increase the evils mentioned above and, 

 by increasing the consumption of coal, sooner 

 bring about its final failure. 



But allowing that the supply of coal is truly 

 inexhaustible, I would still be unwilling, for rea- 

 sons given above as well as for others that might 

 be given, to see our country divested of its for- 

 ests. I can hardly imagine a more uninviting 

 prospect, than would be presented by such a 

 scene. A sultry summer's sun pouring its scorch- 

 ing rays upon a naked and thirsty earth, with 

 nothing to mitigate its fervor ; and the chilling 

 blasts of winter, sweeping in mad and unrestrain- 

 ed violence over its naked bosom — alas! deliver' 

 me from a sight like this ! Let any one look 

 across a succession of naked fields on a scorch- 

 ing summer's, or bleak winter's day, with noth- 

 ing to break the monotony of the scene, and it 

 appears to me the sight would be sufficient to 

 cure him of his love of desolation. 



I know that some will consider me unneces-'. 

 sarily anxious about posterity, but I hold it to be 

 highly selrish to live for ourselves alone. No one 

 can enjoy beyond acertain amount, however great 

 his possessions. How selfish, then, for him to 

 accumulate beyond the power of enjoyment, at 

 tlie expense of posterity ! Even his own chil- 

 dren will begin to feel the evils of his avarice ; 

 and each succeeding generation will feel it more 

 severely than the preceding. 



Again, it may be said that Providence will al- 

 ways supply the wants of his creatures. To this 

 it may be replied, — 1st. He has made provision, 

 which, if judiciously used, will prove abundant ; 

 and if the supply should ever fail, it will be the 

 result of man's imprudence. 2d. He has not 

 promised any thing without, and more especially 

 in opposition to, our own exertions. He will 

 only reward our diligence. He will not provide 

 by a miracle. If he has promised results he has 

 connected the promise with certain conditions 

 upon which the fulfillment. of his promise de- 



