THE FARMER'S HOME. 3 



endangering the lives of children and cattle, bringing his 

 hired men to an idle stand still, till out of sight, and giving 

 but small or no returns for the money invested, he ends his 

 days with imprecations on this and all other new enterprises. 



Another may have been induced to cultivate his soil deeper 

 — to use the Michigan and subsoil ploughs, and to drain some 

 of his land ; but of the meaning of such words as mulching 

 and irrigation he has very indefinite ideas, nor does he care to 

 know more. But alas, for our unfortunate word, eml^ellish- 

 ment. This he has not even read of in the books ; it is some- 

 thing more intolerable than book-farming ; he can only think of 

 the last decoration in his daughter's bonnet, it must be some 

 species of finery — farm embellishment ! why, no man in his 

 senses would recommend such a thing ! 



Now we undertake to say, that many such farmers arc indulg- 

 ing unwittingly, or slothfully, it may be, in certain kinds of 

 embellishments more extravagant and expensive than any we 

 shall advise. It is not uncommon to see one or both sides of 

 his fences lined with what may be called variegated hedges. 

 Yet no man in all England, that land of hedges, ever presumed, 

 with all his wealth, taste and extravagance, to support two 

 hedges and a fence between them. He is satisfied with one 

 hedge, or a fence simply, or at most with a cheap fence, for a 

 few years, till the young hedge is grown. It was doubtless 

 these luxuriant, picturesque, variety hedges of our farmer, 

 that his favorite poet saw, when he exclaimed : — 



" I passed by his home, I saw the wild bi-ier, 

 The thorn and thistle grew bi'oader and higher." 



It is well known that the land thus wasted by the side of these 

 fences is his very best, where leaves, &c., accumulate, and the 

 place of all others for a thrifty, secluded row of regular trees — 

 either fruit or ornamental, as he may fancy — the chief object of 

 which should be to protect his crops from bleak winds and 

 destructive storms ; for be assured we have no decoration to 

 recommend that has not utility connected with it. 



Again, this class of farmers are utterly opposed to the culti- 

 vation of flowers, as of no profit — corn and potatoes only would 

 they have. If the wife or daughter raises a few beautiful, harm- 

 less flowers in the front yard, the gruff man seldom passes them 



