258 



WEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



JlTNK 



the cold air, therefore, when admitted, clings, as 

 a matter of natural philosophy, around the hot 

 stove, until it is warmed, and then is drawn over 

 the children towards the ventilator at the other 

 end of the room. 



S, Sinks in the entries, provided with pails, 

 dippers, wash-bowls, towels and a lookino^-glass 

 for the girls. 



As an item of special interest to small districts 

 in country towns, it may be added, that the whole 

 expense was just S 1208, 73. This includes not on 

 ly the house itself, but also the grading of the 

 grounds, the planting of several hundred trees, 

 the construction of tasteful fences and necessary 

 out-buildings, together with $300 paid for the lot. 



For the New England Farmer 



PATRONS— PATRONAGE, &,0. 



Mr. Editor : — In the- last Farmer ih%i& ia an 

 article on "Inquiries and Censures,'" by John Wil- 

 cox, and some editorial remarks attached. Mr. 

 Wilcox says "farmers ought to know the truth, as 

 far aa possible. If deceived by those to whom 

 they look for correct information, they are under 

 strong temptations to withdraw their patronage, 

 &c. To this you add in substance, "Then the 

 word patronage, as used in this sentence, is not 

 known to us. We have no patrons. When the 

 reader of the Farmer thinks he does not get an 

 equivalent for his money, we advise him to seek 

 some other source of benefit. So long as we have 

 hands and feet, and a modicum of sense to guide 

 them, we shall have no patrons. The farmer has 

 his customers for his wheat, corn and cattle, and 

 the printer his for the articles he has to spare, 

 but they are neither of them patrons." 



We have often heard "editors" revert to their 

 subscribers in this same way before ; yet we never 

 cqyld see the force of the argument, nor can we 

 see it yet in that light. As we see the subject, 

 every subscriber to a paper is a "patron" to all 

 intents and purposes, whether he gets the full 

 amount of his money, or more or less, as the case 

 may be. But if we understand the editor, what 

 he means by a patron, is one who does a piece ofl 

 work, or favor for another, without any stipulated 

 sum to be paid. Or one who does a piece of 

 work gratuitously for another or makes a donation 

 for a certain object. But I presume we can- 

 not have better authority on this point, than Dr. 

 Webster himself. He says that a "Patron is 

 one who countenances, supports and protects, 

 either a person or a work," &c. And of "Patron- 

 age," he says, "Special countenance, or support, 

 lend or aid afforded to second the views^f a per- 

 son to promote a design," &c. Now if any sub- 

 scriber to a paper or book does not countenance, 

 support and aid the works they pay for, then what 

 do they do? It must be plain as noon-day, that 

 every subscriber to a paper is a real patron in the 

 right sense. So is every customer of the farmer 

 for his produce, a real pati'on. Of course evei-y 

 subscriber to a good paper, will get his pay, and 

 he may get it in a single number. But this fact, 

 to our mind, does not make him any the less a 

 real patron, by no means. But suppose the pa- 

 per should fall below par or "mediocral," and 



yet the subscriber would continue to take and pay 

 for the paper, as long as published, whether it was 

 worth half price or not, what then? Would he, 

 then, and then only, be considered a patron, or 

 would he not be as much a real patron when the 

 paper was in its palmy days. 



The plain truth is, we as men are so selfish, th&t 

 we are not lyilling to give half as much credit 

 to our fellow-men as we should do. For in- 

 stance, we have been trying for the last twelve 

 years in our plain way to stimulate the farmers to 

 greater effort and exertions to improve themselves 

 and the soil. This we have tried to do in various 

 and several agricultural journals in the States. — 

 And so far as asking any pay in dollars and cents, 

 we have oftentimes found it hard to get a hearing 

 at all, though all done gratuitously on our part. — 

 This we call real patronage for the press, and edit- 

 ors and publishers may call it what they please. 

 And yet it is not bound up in so close quarters as 

 this even. For It is more on the liberal scale of 

 getting good, doing good, and communicating to 

 others. Every gratuitous correspondent to an ag- 

 ricultural journal can testify to the same thing. 

 What would an agricultural journal be in this 

 age were it not for the help of its numerous cor- 

 respondents ?- More than nine-tenths of all these 

 must come from gratuitous writers. Yet, in ordi- 

 nary journals, it 13 only a few such as "sub or as- 

 sociate editors" that can be paid for their time. 

 We will just say for Mr. Wilcox that the "Pre- 

 pared super-phosphate of Lime" is not manufac- 

 tured at New Haven, Ct. But it is kept for sale- 

 there, by Munson & Johnson, of the agricultural 

 store, 49 State Street. Yours, &c., 



L. DURANU. 



Derby, Ct., May 5,1853. 



Remarks. — It affords us pleasure to know that 

 our readers are so watchful of what is said in the 

 columns of the Farmer ; that Argus-eyed corres- 

 pondents watch its expressions and weigh its sen- 

 timents. A kind correction of our errors can do- 

 us no harm, and may be of considerable public- 

 benefit. We had rather supposed that the com- 

 mon acceptation of the meaning of the word was 

 that i\\Qpatron had the gift, or disposition of some 

 special benefit, some special countenance or sup- 

 port. The word is never applied, we thinly to 

 the butcher, the baker, mechanic or tradesmfffl, in 

 the sense in which friend Durand uses it. But if its 

 meaning is generally accepted, according to his 

 explanation, we have no objection to it as used in 

 Mr. Wilcox's article. 



Sullivan Co. Agricultural Societv. — At the 

 Annual Meeting, holden March 10, 1853, of the 

 Sullivan Uo. (N. II.) Agricultural Society, the fol- 

 lowing gentlemen were elected its officers for the 

 ensuing year : — 



John S. Walker, Claremont, President. 



Charlks E. Wheeler, Newport, Secretary. 



John H. Higbee, Newport, Treasurer. 



The Birds. — Attention is called to another of 

 the delightful articles of Mr. Fowler, upon the 

 Birds of New England. 



