

THE EFFECT OF THOROUGH CULTIVATION UPON THE FARMER'S 

 OWN MIND, AND IN REACTION THROUGH HIS MIND BACK UPON HIS BUSI- 

 NESS, IS PERHAPS QUITE EQUAL TO ANY OTHER OF ITS EFFECTS. EVERY 

 MAN IS PROUD OF WHAT HE DOES WELL, AND NO MAN IS PROUD OF THAT 

 HE DOES NOT WELL. WITH THE FORMER HIS HEART IS IN HIS WORK, 

 AND HEWILL DO TWICE AS MUCH OFIT WITH LESS FATIGUE; THE LAT- 

 TER HE PERFORMS A LITTLE IMPERFECTLY. LOOKS AT IT IN DISGUST, 

 TURNS FROM IT, AND IMAGINES HIMSELF EXCEEDINGLY TIRED - THE 

 LITTLE HE HAS DONE COMES TO NOTHING FOR WANT OF FINISHING. 



I HAVE SO FAR STATED THE OPPOSITE THEORIES OF "MUD- 

 SILL" AND "FREE LABOR," WITHOUT DECLARING ANY PREFER- 

 ENCE OF MY OWN BETWEEN THEM. ON AN OCCASION LIKE THIS, I 

 OUGHT NOT TO DECLARE ANY. I SUPPOSE, HOWEVER, I SHALL 

 NOT BE MISTAKEN IN ASSUMING AS A FACT THAT THE PEOPLE 

 OF WISCONSIN PREFER FREE LABOR, WITH ITS NATURAL COMPANION, EDUCATION. 



THIS LEADS TO THE FURTHER REFLECTION THAT NO OTHER HUMAN OCCUPATION OPENS SO WIDE 

 A FIELD FOR THE PROFITABLE AND AGREEABLE COMBINATION OF LABOR WITH CULTIVATED THOUGHT, 

 AS AGRICULTURE. I KNOW NOTHING SO PLEASANT TO THE MIND AS THE DISCOVERY OF ANYTHING 

 THAT IS AT ONCE NEW AND VALUABLE - NOTHING THAT SO LIGHTENS AND SWEETENS TOIL AS THE 

 HOPEFUL PURSUIT OF SUCH DISCOVERY. AND HOW VAST AND HOW VARIED A FIELD IS AGRICULTURE 

 FOR SUCH DISCOVERY! THE MIND, ALREADY TRAINED TO THOUGHT IN THE COUNTRY SCHOOL, OR 

 HIGHER SCHOOL, CANNOT FAIL TO FIND THERE AN EXHAUSTLESS SOURCE OF ENJOYMENT. EVERY 

 BLADE OF GRASS IS A STUDY ; AND TO PRODUCE TWO WHERE THERE WAS BUT ONE IS BOTH A PROFIT 

 AND A PLEASURE. AND NOT GRASS ALONE, BUT SOILS, SEEDS, AND SEASONS - HEDGES, DITCHES, 

 AND FENCES- DRAINING, DROUGHTS, AND IRRIGATION - PLOWING, HOEING, AND HARROWING - 

 REAPING, MOWING AND THRESHING - SAVING CROPS, PESTS OF CROPS, DISEASES OF CROPS, AND 

 WHAT WILL PREVENT OR CURE THEM - IMPLEMENTS, UTENSILS, AND MACHINES, THEIR RELATIVE 

 MERITS, AND HOWTO IMPROVETHEM - HOGS, HORSES, AND CATTLE - SHEEP, GOATS, AND POULTRY 

 - TREES, SHRUBS, FRUITS, PLANTS, AND FLOWERS - THE THOUSAND THINGS OF WHICH THESE ARE 

 SPECIMENS - EACH A WORLD OF STUDY IN ITSELF. 



IN ALL THIS, BOOK LEARNING IS AVAILABLE. A CAPACITY AND TASTE FOR READING GIVES ACCESS 

 TO WHATEVER HAS ALREADY BEEN DISCOVERED BY OTHERS. IT IS THE KEY, OR ONE OF THE KEYS, TO 

 THE ALREADY SOLVED PROBLEMS. AND NOT ONLY SO : IT GIVES A RELISH AND FACILITY FOR SUC- 

 CESSFULLY PURSUING THE UNSOLVED ONES. THE RUDIMENTS OF SCIENCE ARE AVAILABLE, AND 

 HIGHLY AVAILABLE. SOME KNOWLEDGE OF BOTANY ASSISTS IN DEALING WITH THE VEGETABLE WORLD 

 -WITH ALL GROWING CROPS. CHEMISTRY ASSISTS IN THE ANALYSIS OF SOILS, SELECTION AND 

 APPLICATION OF MANURES, AND IN NUMEROUS OTHER WAYS. THE MECHANICAL BRANCHES OF NATU- 

 RAL PHILOSOPHY ARE READY TO HELP IN ALMOST EVERYTHING, BUT ESPECIALLY IN REFERENCE TO 

 IMPLEMENTS AND MACHINERY. 



THETHOUGHT RECURS THAT EDUCATION -CULTIVATED THOUGHT- CAN BEST BE COMBINED WITH 

 AGRICULTURAL LABOR, OR ANY LABOR, ON THE PRINCIPLE OF THOROUGH WORK ; THAT CARELESS, 

 HALF PERFORMED, SLOVENLY WORK MAKES NO PLACE FOR SUCH COMBINATION; AND THOROUGH 

 WORK, AGAIN, RENDERS SUFFICIENT THE SMALLEST QUANTITY OF GROUND TO EACH MAN; AND 

 THIS, AGAIN, CONFORMS TO WHAT MUST OCCUR IN A WORLD LESS INCLINED TO WARS AND MORE 

 DEVOTED TO THE ARTS OF PEACE THAN HERETOFORE. POPULATION MUST INCREASE RAPIDLY. MORE 

 RAPIDLY TH'.N IN FORMER TIMES, AND ERE LONG THE MOST VALUABLE OF ALL ARTS WILL BE THE 

 ART OF DERIVING A COMFORTABLE SUBSISTENCE FROM THE SMALLEST AREA OF SOIL. NO COM- 

 MUNITY WHOSE EVERY MEMBER POSSESSES THIS ART, CAN EVER BE THE VICTIM OF OPPRESSION IN 

 ANY OF ITS FORMS. SUCH A COMMUNITY WILL BE ALIKE INDEPENDENT OF CROWNED KINGS, MONEY 

 KINGS, AND LAND KINGS. 



IT IS SAID AN EASTERN MONARCH ONCE CHARGED HIS WISE MEN TO INVENT HIM A SENTENCE TO EE 

 EVER IN VIEW, AND WHICH SHOULD BE TRUE AND APPROPRIATE IN ALL TIMES AND SITUATIONS. 

 THEY PRESENTED HIM THE WORDS, "AND THIS, TOO, SHALL PASS AWAY." HOW MUCH IT EX- 

 PRESSES! HOW CHASTENING IN THE HOUR OF PRIDE! HOW CONSOLING IN THE DEPTHS OF AFFLIC- 

 TION! "AND THIS, TOO, SHALL PASS AWAY." AND YET, LET US HOPE, IT IS NOT QUITE TRUE. LET 

 US HOPE, RATHER, THAT BY THE BEST CULTIVATION OF THE PHYSICAL WORLD BENEATH AND AROUND 

 US, AND THE INTELLECTUAL AND MORAL WORLD WITHIN US, WE SHALL SECURE AN INDIVIDUAL, SO- 

 CIAL, AND POLITICAL PROSPERITY AND HAPPINESS, WHOSE COURSE SHALL BE ONWARD AND UPWARD. 

 AND WHICH, WHILE THE EARTH ENDURES, SHALL NOT PASS AWAY. -ANNUAL ADDRESS BEFORE THE 

 WISCONSIN STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY, AT MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN. SEPTEMBER 30, 1859. 

 ABRAHAM LINCOLN, "COMPLETE WORKS," VOL.1, P. 579 FF. 



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