218 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



JANUART 16. t«!0. 



of action on all pointa. Hence the absence of 

 those minute spccitications of precept relative to 

 the conduct of mankind. A mighty gain accrued 

 to man in this exchange. lie was like the ancient 

 mariner, wlio, becornqj possessed of the magnetic 

 influence, no longer needs his promontories, liis 

 capes, his various land-marks, to guide him over 

 the sea. Yet not less clearly than the Old Testa- 

 ment do we find it in the Nen-, that man's essential 

 equality with his fellow man is tlie desire of the 

 Creator, To this it may be added, tliat all correct 

 Views of parental impartiality offer their corrobora- 

 tion. And if history tells us, with unequivocal 

 language, that in the mtrttiplication of the luimher 

 of independent freeholders lies an element of this 

 equality, we may conclude that it is the Divine 

 wish that they be increased. Di.stant, far distant, 

 be the day, when the welfare of our beloved coun- 

 try shall be confided to a few who shall own the 

 soil, wliile those who till it should ho but tenants. 

 And when I sec the agriculturist of moderate means 

 coming forward, and entering into fee-simple pos- 

 session of the acres he cultivates, I rejoice in hope 

 for the perpetuity of Free Institutions. 



In ilie (levdopment trhich this occupation gives 

 to the bodily powers, may be found no unimportant 

 element of its dignity. 



The continuous use of the various agricultural 

 implements, and tlie necessary exposure to the 

 weather, give energy and pliancy to the muscular 

 system, far more effectually than did the ancient 

 Gymnasia to the Athenian youth. It is a noble 

 object to raise up a nation of manly men, capable 

 not only of subduing the wilderness, but of de- 

 fending our firesides and homes. It is no small 

 consideration in the comparative merits of a given 

 pursuit, to know its general effects on the bodily 

 powers. Perhaps the greatest evil that grows out 

 of the Factory system of Great Britain is its obvi- 

 ous and acknowledged tendency to 'toteriorate the 

 operatives engaged in it, corporeal 'wrconsidered. 

 Sooner or later this truth will flash aat upon the 

 public mind there, witli intense interest. It is be- 

 lieved that tiie amount of disease in that nation at 

 this day, bears a greater proportion to the popula- 

 tion than it has at any former period of her history; 

 while at the saine time the science of living and 

 the medical art, have been on the advance. This 

 is, beyond question true, of those diseases which 

 follow in the train of in-door pursuits and seden- 

 tary life. 



This point is worthy of further notice, unimpor- 

 tant as it may seem. For who does not know of 

 the wonderful intimacy that exists between the 

 mind and the body. Let the latter be healthy and 

 well developed, and, generally speaking, the judg 

 ment of the individual is good ; his reason clear; 

 his temper calm; his courage firm. In time of 

 alarm, of war, of sudden extremity, they are the 

 men most to be depended upon. Look iu upon the 

 family circle of such a person. The ruddy hue of 

 health — a color more beautiful than art can supply 

 — mantles the cheek of his children. Ilis offspring 

 are inheritors of a vigorous constitution, a legacy 

 more to be desired than rubies, and which no wealth 

 can buy. On the other hand, let the body be puny, 

 of soft and yielding muscle, incapable of energetic 

 movement, and how intimately does the mind sym- 

 pathise ! It lacks decision, forecast, patient endu- 

 rance, and calmness in moments of alarm. The 

 passions are easily excited, and the poor man suffers 

 worse than a thousand deaths. I am aware that 

 there are exceptions to this general remark. Now 



and then an individual is to be seen, whose frail 

 tabernacle seems just crumbling into a thousand 

 fragments, while his mental energies are vigorous, 

 and his passions calm and subdued. 15ut these are 

 triumphs over nature ; the subjection of the animal 

 to the spiritual man. Thus reasoning, I affirm that 

 the topic under notice is not among the minor bene- 

 fits that are the result of the agricultural occupa- 

 tion. To my mind, it is a strange infatuation that 

 leads us to seek the improvement of the various 

 orders of the lower animals, while we honor not 

 that department of'life which tends to the corporeal 

 improvement of man. In the strong-armed yeo- 

 manry of our nation, and in their capacity for bod- 

 ily endurance, we have a pledge of safety and de- 

 fence. 



The Moral and Intellectual tendency of (his Pur- 

 suit stamps it with dignity. 



From the light of reason and Revelation we may 

 unequivocally decide that the tcn][iorary sojourn of 

 man upon earth is simply as preparatory to other 

 states of being. We also perceive that our stay 

 here is limited to a few years. Today we mingle 

 v.ith the busy multitude : tomorrow the places tliat 

 now know us, know no more. But the most inter- 

 esting consideration is, thjit our characters are re- 

 ceiving the elements of their future existence, be 

 these good or bad. 'Although death will bring a 

 change upon our corporeal organization, we have 

 no reason to suppose it will u|)on our moral and 

 spiritual. By this I do not wish to refer to any 

 controverted theological point, but simply to note a 

 fact which seems in accordance with sound philo- 

 sophy. Indeed, we often $nd an honest monitor 

 within, that whispers to us that we are all, — the 

 oldest and the youngest — in the very childhood of 

 our being. And when in the process of time we 

 shall pass away from this lower world to the next, 

 in the series of progressive development, we shall 

 find that we in truth "knew but in part." We 

 shall wonder at our exceeding ignorance while we 

 were here. Happy for us, if 7ioiv we lay this to 

 heart ; and irrespective of creeds or sects, examine 

 the moral relations we bear to our Creator, and to 

 our fellow men. Remember that I am advocating 

 no particular system of religious belief. This is 

 not an occasion for such a course. 1 am only de- 

 sirous that we now take a general view of our 

 relations to a Higher being. To my mind, the 

 noblest form of man is l^t in which the individual 

 fulfils every relation of Bfe with calm and humble 

 propriety,and at the same time intelligently examines 

 his liigher hopes, and performs his more exalted 

 duties. 



And herein may be perceived an element of the 

 Dignity of the Agricultural Occupation. In this 

 school, as I conceive, man may learn the noblest of 

 moral lessons, and may hold peculiarly near con- 

 verse with his Maker. Every day is teaching him 

 faith — that King of virtues. When he casts abroad 

 the seed and buries it beneath the ground, and sees 

 it die there, what is it but faith and confidence in 

 the Great Unseen that bids him wait in hope that 

 there shall come up thence the tender blade, the 

 ear, the full grain in the ear? Whatbut faith and 

 confidence can whisper encouragement to him 

 when, as now the cold blasts of Autumn sweep 

 o'er the earth, and strip the trees of their beauti- 

 ful robes of green, and seals up the ground, the 

 brook, the river ? Ah, he knows that the time for 

 the singing of birds shall come ; that seed-time 

 shall not fail. And tliough winter may long linger 

 in the lap of Spring, and it aeem that summer would 



never come, the promise is relied on, and the -Agri- 

 culturist waits, not in hope, but in certainty. Yes, 

 my friends, all among this listening group who 

 shall live through the few months before us, will 

 SCO the sun return again to make us glad by his 

 warmth and splendor. Yonder forest shall again 

 put on its green vestments ; yonder fields shall 

 wave with grain ; the children shall ramble in your 

 woods and pick the wild flower and the berry. Oh 

 yes, lie that holds the planets in their course hatli 

 promised, and it shall stand fast 1 Indeed, all the 

 operations of husbandry tend to teach the farmer 

 faith and confidence in the Divine Being. 



It is the school of Patience too. This trait is a 

 cardinal element of a well adjusted character : and 

 that pursuit which shall the best develope it, has a 

 marked feature of excellence. The tendency of 

 this age, indeed, of all ages, is to try to precipitate 

 results. By this I mean that man is in a hurry to 

 accomplish his ends. This leads to feverish am- 

 bition ; to greedy speculation ; to hazardous exper- 

 iments ; to restlessness and anxiety ; all unfriendly 

 to the higher virtues. That patience is a noble 

 element of the moral constitution, scarcely need 

 be asserted. We instinctively honor the man who 

 lays down his plan of action and patiently pursues 

 it to the end. It is to be admired in the highest 

 and the lowest; in the man who sits at the helm of 

 State, pursuing amid obloquy and reproach, the 

 plan he deems for his country's good, and in the 

 |ialieiit mother who sits day by day, and night by 

 night, watching the dying child. To my view, this 

 topic deserves more than a cursory glance. To 

 educate man to be patient, seems to be a loading 

 design of the Creator. Hence it is that no desi- 

 rable results appear to be extemporaneous. The 

 man must first be a child, and pass through a long 

 course of corporeal and mental development. — 

 The rich harvest-field, waving with golden grain, 

 must undergo a long and laborious ciilUire. It 

 must be cleared, sown, reaped, — the rain, the sun, 

 and the fertilizing dew must by turns pass upon it 

 before the desired result can come, and the hus- 

 bandman can bear it to his garner, shouting " har- 

 vest home." That tree laden with fruit has been 

 many, many, years in reaching the period in which 

 it gives its juicy reward to the hand that placed 

 the tiny seed within the ground. The raft of lim- 

 ber which floats down yonder river, to be made into 

 ships and houses, is the product of a centtiry's 

 growth. Indeed, all things are the result of slow 

 progression. It is a law, divinely established, and 

 immutable. And that occupation whose tendency 

 is to bring the mind into harmony and beat with 

 this great principle, is pre-eminently desirable. 

 That this is necessarily the case in your pursuits is 

 evident. I know not a single desirable end attain- 

 able in it, but there must first be a comparatively i 

 long preparation. All that you eat, or wear, or 

 sell, or possess, is the product of this law. In all 

 your work this trait is constantly finding develop- 

 ment. Let our country and our times be the scene 

 and era of great trials, straits and difficulties, and 

 in the patient endurance of men thus trained, we 

 find a pledge tlmt all which foresight and perse- 

 verance can accomplish will be done. Our national 

 character is impulsive and ardent. It is this which 

 leads to over-speculation, and periodical commer- 

 cial embarrassment; and it is a pleasing reflection 

 that in the class of men I now address, a bulwark > 

 of patience is thrown up to restrain its turbulence. 

 By these remarks, I find no fault with our national ■ 

 ardor. No. It is tlie patient enterprise girding ■ 



