236 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



May 



hope farmers will not accept any theory, -without 

 practical proof. If, by experiments carefully made, 

 it is found that sheds, hoard fences, or corn-slalks, 

 are a sure preventive, then, if the originator of the 

 theory can be found, let him receive the reward. 

 Patent medicines are apt to yield a good profit to 

 the inventor, but I do not believe any one yet pro- 

 posed for the cure of "this vegetable cholera" will 

 greatly replenish the pockets of him who offers it 

 in market. 



Prof Hoyt, in his able essay upon the "Potato 

 Rot," recommends mowing the tops close to the 

 ground. In 1848 I had a small piece of potatoes 

 in which the blight began to appear. I took a 

 scythe and mowed the tops on a part of the piece, 

 having heard that that would arrest the disease. 

 The result was, that every potato, I think, in the 

 hills from which the tops were cut, was entirely 

 rotten, while on the remainder of the lot a consid- 

 erable portion were sound. Hence it appears that 

 similar experiments produce different results in 

 diflferent locations, — positive evidence that the 

 true remedy is not yet fCund. 



Levi Varney. 



Sandwich, N. H. 



LEaiSLATIVB AGRICULTURAL MEET- 

 INGS. 



Twelfth Meeting— Tuesday Evening, April 12, 1853. 

 The twelfth and concluding meeting for this 

 year was held at the State House on Tuesday eve- 

 ning, His Excellency Governor Clifford presiding. 

 Mr. Proctor, of Danvers, previous to the open- 

 ing of the discussion for the evening, submitted a 

 motion to the effect, that the Secretary of the 

 Board of Agriculture be requested to call a meet- 

 ing of the friends of agriculture, at the commence- 

 ment of the next Legislative session, for the pur- 

 pose of organizing such a series of meetings as will 

 be best calculated to advance the cause of agricul 

 ture. The motion was unanimously adopted. 



The subject for the evening'sdiscussion was then 

 taken up, viz : "The obligation of the State to af 

 ford additional encouragement to the farming in- 

 terest, and the best means of doing this." 



Governor Clifford, in opening the discussion, 

 remarked that he could not, with any consistency, 

 or with any deference to his own interest in the 

 subject of agriculture, have failed to respond to the 

 invitation extended to him to preside at this meet- 

 ing. He felt, however, that his position was that 

 of a listener and a learner, rather than a teacher. 

 Yet no one could doubt that the subject would al- 

 most spontaneously give rise to some of the best 

 thoughts in the minds of those who are interested 

 in the prosperity of the people of this common- 

 wealth. 



The Legislature, within the last year or two, 

 have manifested, what the people too have begun 

 to feel, a new interest in the subject of agriculture, 

 and the establishment of the Board of Agriculture 

 is an indication that that interest has begun to 

 put on the form of active, intelligent and efficient 

 eflfort for the promotion of that great cause. That 



it shall be intelligent, is, after all, the great object 

 to be gained. There can be no indisposition in 

 those who meet here in discharge of public duties, 

 to do everything in their power to promote the 

 cause of agriculture ; the point is, that they shall 

 have a clear understanding of what may conduce 

 to that end. With an intelligent Board of Agri- 

 culture, there will be brought before the Legisla- 

 ture and the people of the commonwealth, such in- 

 formation as will leave no hesitation on the part of 

 the Legislature in carrying proper measures into ef- 

 fect. The speaker thought the selection of a Sec- 

 retary to the Board had been fortunate, and spoke 

 very highly of that gentleman's qualifications for 

 the office. 



How far it was practical for the government to 

 give direct aid to agriculture, or to any other de- 

 partment of industry, was a question of such a 

 broad nature, involving so many considerations 

 that are not perceptible to a cursory examination, 

 that he would not enter upon a discussion of it. 

 But there is no doubt that whatever government 

 can do to foster and stimulate the education of the 

 farmer, is within the legitimate scope of her duty. 

 There seems to have been among men an idea 

 that there were two classes of minds in the world 

 who draw all their powers of usefulness directly 

 from nature — these were the farmers and the 

 statesmen, two classes of persons whose ultimate 

 objects are, or should be, the same, to scatter plen- 

 ty over the smiling land. To accomplish this, 

 there seems to have been an idea tliat every man 

 has been born into the world full-armed, — that he 

 does not require special education to be a farmer 

 or a statesman. Almost every one of us feels com- 

 petent to solve the most knotty questions of public 

 policy, and in our popular assemblies, measures 

 which reach in their results far into the future and 

 puzzle our wisest statesmen, are discussed and de- 

 cided in the most flippant manner. 



So with farming. What other occupation to 

 which the energies of man are devoted, is deemed 

 to be sufficiently answered in its preparation by 

 the education which has heretofore been given to 

 our farmers'? If a man were intending to make 

 a lawyer of his son, he would put him through a 

 regular course of study. But what is there anal- 

 agous to this, in the education of our agricultu- 

 ral population? Is there anything like a system- 

 atic education for the farmer? Does not the pos- 

 session of unusual intelligence and enterprise lead 

 a young man to leave his father's farm, as being 

 better fitted for some other profession? Gov. 

 Clifford thought he could see in the future a 

 state of things where the education of a farmer's 

 boy to a farmer's pursuit may be made so attrac- 

 tive to him as that he shall have no temptation to 

 leave that noblest of all occupations which the 

 Almighty has given to his creatures. His intel- 

 lectual nature will be satisfied in the studies 



