34 i\iR. proctor's address. 



Curiosity led me a ^ew weeks since to inquire for the 

 plantation in Hamilton, for which the Slate bounty of 

 one hundred dollars was awarded about forty-five years 

 since. By the aid of a friend I found the place, but the 

 trees were few and far between. 



Were our Legislators entirely in the wrong in sup- 

 posing the cultivation of such trees to be a desirable ob- 

 ject r Or does the mistake lie with the proprietor cf 

 the soil ? That timber trees are indispensably neces- 

 sary for the convenience, prosperity and safety of the 

 nation, will be admitted by all. That they can be suc- 

 cessfully cultivated, with proper attention applied, is 

 equally clear. Why then is it not done? Why has it 

 happened that all the attempts have proved abortive? 

 In what manner could Essex farmers better consult the 

 permanent interests of their children, than by planting 

 trees? Grounds so rough and rocky as to be unfit for 

 tillage, and we have many acres such, can in no way be 

 so profitably improved. In Kngland and Scotland are 

 hundreds of acres of forests now growing, in most thrifty 

 condition, that were planted by the hand of man. Shall 

 not the independent veomanry of New England, the 

 tenants of their own soil, have equal confidence in the 

 stability of their institutions, and the propriety of provid- 

 ing for the benefit of those who may come after them, 

 as do those who toil to plant where they never can 

 own? Perhaps the uncertainty of the tenure of our es- 

 tates, and the still greater uncertainty of the disposition 

 of the rising generation to be willing to follow the hum- 

 ble but honorable occupation of their fathers, has deter- 

 red many from venturing upon experiments, the benefits 

 of which could not be realized while they lived. Such 

 a policy is short sighted, and unworthy enlightened 

 citizens. What consequence is it whether our acres 

 are inherited by our sons or others, if they are but 

 rightly used? Does not this jealousy of feeling operate 

 in a manner to alienate the affections from the paternal 

 estate? Are not the ever changing movements of the age 

 unfavorable to permanent valuable improvements? 



The cultivation of trees generally, whether for orna- 



