194 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



der to prevent a return. For several days af- 

 ter, they sho'jid be fed rather sparingly, or not 

 be allowed to eat much at one time ; and every | 

 inorning and f;\rn'mg, for three or four days, ! 

 may taUe one of the above drenches. j 



Sheep are liable to a similar disease, and may ! 

 be relioved by the same remedies. The instru- 

 ment, however, employed for sheep, need not 

 be more than three feet in lenjfth ; it should al- 

 no be ?raaller and more flexible. It has been 

 said that a common carl whi]), may, on emer- 

 gencies, be made to answer the purpose, if used 

 with dexterity. 



Any one, unaccu'^foiiied to handle cattle, would 

 llnd some difficulty in using; Mr. Eager's instru- 

 ment ; but if the horn be held firmly with the 

 left baud, and the part which divides the nos- 

 trils be grasped fi:mly with the right hand, the 

 animal will generally submit quietly to the ope- 

 rator. 



(to DF. COSTI.VCID.) 



Although we do not fully concur with the 

 author of the following Address in alt the opin- 

 ions it contains, we fully appreciate its gen- 

 eral merit?, and are therefore pleaso<l with an 

 opportunity of giving it a place in our paper. 

 We have taken the liberty to attach a few notes 

 to such pa;3agas as do not fully coincide with 

 our own ideas. We would not, hovcver, be 

 tenacious of our sentiments, unless imnded on 

 truth, and will readily retract them if shewn to 

 be erroneous. — 



."iDDRESS, ddivertd before the On-orco, {X. Y.) 

 Agriciil'.ural Snckty, at its fourth Aninal .Meet- 

 ing, October 2-2, 1822. By Thomas D. Bvr- 

 r_\LL, Esq. 



OcDtlemcn of the Agricultural Society, 



In addressing the present assembly, almost I 

 every mi-mber of which is probab'y as well j 

 acquainted with the details of ngnculture as] 

 myself, lean hardly hope to offer much matter | 

 that will prove interesting from its importance, 

 or pleasing from its novelty. 



We live in an age in ivhich every field of 

 u.scfjl knowledge is eagerly and successfully 

 explored; and in a country, throughout whicli 

 the means of correct information arc as free 

 and extensive as the air we breathe. 



A spirit of inquirij has gone aliroad, through 

 every department of science ; an;!, what may 

 perhaps be justly claimed as distinguishing and 

 elevating the p.'escnt age above former times, 

 is the fact, that the lights of science, and the 

 laborious investigations of learning, have been 

 called to the aid of useUil arts, and no longer 

 waste their strength in toiling through meta- 

 physical disquisitions without end, or the dis- 

 covery of truths that can have no practical use. 



Learning is no more subject to monopoly, but 

 is actively engaged in the service of the arts; 

 and what has heretofore been claimed as the 

 privilege of sects at schools, is now the prop- 

 erty of the community, for the benefit of all. 



Agriculture, whicli had long been degraded 

 from its just place in the scale of human occu- 

 pations, has assumed its proper rank in public 

 estimation, and the name of '• Farmer"' has 

 ceased to convey to the mind any idea of boor- 

 ish inferioi'ity or servile dependence. 



Agriculture is no longer a plodding art, in 

 which we blindly persevere in inveterate hab- 



its, for no better reason than that our fathers 

 have pursued them bel'ore us; but has become 

 an interesting science, in which all the powers 

 of the human mind have been called into action, 

 and all the various resources of mechanical 

 power have been put in requisition to aid its 

 progress. 



The advance of knowledge has been bold, 

 rapid, decisive. Improvements have been in- 

 troduced, that leave us to wonder how so many 

 centuries should have rolled away without their 

 discovery and practical application. 



All this has been effected, not by chance or 

 accident, but the mighty force of the human 

 mind, steadily directed in pursuit of truth, guided 

 and governed by reason and observation. 



Chemistry, botany, mineralogy, and the prin- 

 ciples of mechanical power are no longer the 

 sources of useless experiment to the philosopher 

 and scholar, but are pressed into the active 

 service of Agriculture and Manufactures — and 

 in short, every branch of science is rendered 

 subservient to the supply of our wants, and the 

 gratitication of a reliued taste. j 



One cause of this rapid increase of useful 

 knowledge, has been the practice universally 

 adopted, of following boldly the evidence of ex- 

 periment, wherever it may lead, rejecting 

 theory on mere authority, and especially of 

 reasoning from facts to general principles. 



The want of this habit of correct investiga- 

 tion, and of arranging and systematizing our 

 ideas, oi'ten perverts and defeats our best en- 

 deavors in the pursuit of knowledge ; and it is 

 to this point that I wish, at present, to direct 

 your attention; and though I should tail to pre- 

 sent any new facts to your observation, yet 

 should I convince you of the utility of estaldish- 

 iiig general principles, and of applying them to 

 every thing connected with your pursuits and 

 occupations, I shall not deem my labor altogeth-l 

 er vain. 



In glancing our eyes over the mass of matter 

 .'drcady accumulated for the improvement of 

 Agriculture, we feel, not so much the want of 

 materials, as of skill to select and apply them 

 to advantage. 



Facts and experiments Iiave been so abun- 

 dantly multiplied upon us, that the ticld of ag- 

 riculture is completely overrun by them, and 

 the plain practical farmer, although abundantly 

 supplied with the means of improvement, is 

 still at a loss how to use them to advantage. 

 Within the last few 3ear3 particularly, since 

 agriculture may be said to have become fash- 

 ionable, new experiments are so eagerly pur- 

 sued, that it may be well to pause a moment, 

 and while delighted with the novelties of the 

 da}', to profit by the idea before suggested, of 

 ■icarching lor evidence, and rejecting authority. 

 In doing this, we shall liiid much to approve 

 and adopt, and very much to discard, as errone- 

 ous or useless. And here I would be under- 

 stood not as answering or disapproving the 

 eflorts that are making to advance the agri- 

 cultural interest. In every art, a great propor- 

 tion of experiments must necessarily prove un- 

 successful ; but it is the part of wisdom still to 

 prolit by them, for even an unsuccessful exper- 

 iment may at least furnish the basis of improve- 

 ment in more skilful hands, and thus often lead 

 to some unexpected and satisfactory result. But 

 I would suggest to those whom I have the 

 honor to address, while engaging iu new 



'ifr 



schemes of improvement, the importance 

 establishing in our minds some fixed principl 

 of testing such facts and experiments as ajp 

 presented to our observation. .Vnd here it m 

 be weil to remark, that agricultural experimei 

 arc subject to many variations and errors, whi< '.' 

 must not he overlooked in forming an opinio 



111 the first place, much depends on the cai 

 and accuracy of the experimenter, in every so 

 ence. But in addition to this, experiments i 

 vegetable economy are subject to all the a- 

 cidental changes and variations of the seasons- 

 untimely droughts, excessive rains, &,c. besid« 

 such mistakes as occur from the difficulty 

 distinguishing the ditference of soils. Sec. ; b^'' 

 what demands peculiar care in receiving forei^ 

 experiments, is that we are exceedingly liabl 

 to errors arising from the dilTerent charactc 

 of soil and climate, which may essentially var 

 the result of a particular experiment in mode 

 of husbandry. Hence arises the necessity tha - 

 ihc practical farmer should scrutinize fad 

 closely, reason clearly, and reject authorit 

 boldly, unless supported by repeated and satis 

 factory experiment. These principles, con" 

 bined with patient industry in their practica 

 application to our farms, contain the element 

 of that promethean tire, which can warm am 

 quicken the cold and inanimate earth into lif 

 and action. In the character of the Americai 

 farmer, accurate observation, and close iudus 

 trious discrimination in experiment, are mor 

 wanting, at present, than ingenuity in inven 

 tin^:, or boldness in adopting theories. 



In the paths of science as of life, the careles 

 traveller may range delighted through the uni 

 verse ; and still return as ignorant as he went 

 but to him who observes attentively, and digest 

 and arranges his observations closely and meth 

 odically, every step adds new interest to hi 

 inq'iiries, and furnishes fresh food for his mind 

 With a keen and observant eye he examine 

 each object, profits by the skill of others, ant 

 improves each discovery to some useful pur 

 pose. But in roving abroad for new sources o 

 profit, we shoulii never overlook or neglec 

 those already in possession. 



The flow of knowledge has been so rapid 

 that we seem at times, in our eagerness for ini 

 provement, to have almost lost sight of many o 

 those landmarks that arc necessary to our secu 

 rity. I would not in the least check a spirit o 

 inquiry in my countrymen, but would only refei 

 to the proper means to render that spirit cffi 

 cient and prolitable. To this tind, I would re- 

 commend the practice of often examining out 

 own grounds, lor the purpose of ascertaining 

 their soils, situations and capabilities of im- 

 provement; to search lor causes of failure oi 

 success in our various experiments, and above 

 all, to form a general plan of operations, whict 

 may never be lost sight of in the eager pur-' 

 suit of novelties. * 



In doing this, it is useless to confine ourselves 

 with speculative disquisitions, or retined theo- 

 ries on the processes of vegetation — to inquire, 

 for instance, how plants grow, whether they 

 are nourished by the earth, the atmosphere, or 

 both — It is sufficient for our purpose that they 

 do grow, and their health may be promoted by 

 our care, or destroyed by our neglect — Whether 

 smut in wheat springs from disease or insect, or 

 a parasitic plant — Whether plaster acts by be- 

 ing calcined and then imbibed as nourishment, 



