382 



NEW ENGLAND FAR M E R , 



JUNE 5, 1839. ' 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



Boston, Wednegday, June 5, 1839. 



IMPROVEMENT. 



In our last paper wesaid eomPthing ofimprovenient— 

 agricultural improvement. We design to add a few re- 

 marks. The subject should be kept constantly before 

 the mind. No farmer ought to be satisfied with merely 

 " geltini; along." There is another cant phrase, which 

 we adopt in this case, which will expiei-'S a second rule 

 and a principal rule of duty ; that is, lie should " go a- 

 head." It is not enough for him to gel from his place a 

 mere subsistence ; but he should make that place con- 

 tinually belter. He should be continually seeking to 

 rendei his farm more productive, more convenient, 

 more easy to be cultivated, and in every respect more 

 valuable. We wouM have him pay some attention to 

 nppearances. Almost every one thinks it necessary to 

 take great pains to please tlie taste. Why should not 

 as much pains be taken to please the eye ? We are of 

 opinion that the pleasures of the eye are of a much high- 

 er class than those of the ta';le. The pleasures of the 

 taste cannot be cultivated greatly without danger to the 

 morals. They are in their nature enchisiveiy selfish ; 

 and cre.ilo a ^iispositinn faslidious and con.stanlly grow- 

 ing more diffiiult to be pleased. It is not so with the 

 pleasures of the eye. These are open to all. Here 

 there is no monopoly ; and much of our enjoyment ari- 

 ses from the fact that these pleasures though in our pos- 

 session, are enjoyed equally by others without detract- 

 ing from any of their advantagus to ourselves. 



An aitenlion to appnaiances, neat arrangements, the 

 removal Irom our premises of everything that is offen- 

 sive, the addition oi; various ornaments and embiHish- 

 inents, all tends to atiengthen our attnchments lo home, 

 our domestic affeciitms, and to increase our self respect 

 and in this way directly contrihules to refinement vf 

 manners and to good morals. 



Let improvements then go on. In the first place ren- 

 der your farm as productive as you can. Secondly, renr 

 der it as convenient as you can. Thiidly, render it as 

 neat and beautiful as you can. 



It would seem altogether probable that interest would 

 induce every fanner to render his farm as productive as 

 possible. Yet this is very far friun being the rase. Of 

 course we should not advise a farmer to cultivate that 

 which will never compensate him for his labor and ex- 

 penditures. But where the production would afford an 

 ample equivalent, we regret to be compelled to e.vpress 

 our conviction that not one farm in two hundred is ren- 

 dered as productive as it might be, and fully pay for the 

 labor and expense, which it would require to make it 

 so. How many farms in the State, consisting of one 

 hundred acres have twentyfive under cultiv:ilioH. Most 

 of ihcm have not half that amount. How many farmers 

 in the Slate produce annually n thousand bushels of 

 corn ? .'\s far as our observation goes, we do not believe 

 there is one in Kssex, Middlesex, Worcester, or any ol 

 the south-wealern couniies. Po..^sibly there may be two 

 or three in the county of Berkshire. In Franklin coun- 

 ty, in Hampshire and Hampden there may be halfadoz- 

 eii nil included. But there are in the State liundreds 

 and hundreds of (arms on which this might be done lo 

 the "reatest ndvaiilag.'. In the wheat bill uf the last 

 year, a iiremium of one hundred dollars was offered lo 

 every farmer who should produce four hundred bushels 

 of wheat. The premium was not claimed. The season 

 it is true, was unfavorable ; but had it been ever so fa- 



vorable, we have heard of only two farmers in the stale, 

 who by any possibility could have obtained it ; whe had 

 sowed anything like the quantity of land that would 

 have produced this amount, had the yield been even at 

 sixty bushels per acie. 



How many farmers in the .State produce annually two 

 thousand bushels of potatoes .' We do not believe there 

 are twenty. In this matter we may be in error, yel we 

 came to this ccmclusinn from no limited observation — 

 Certainly there are very few farmers possessed of one 

 hundred or even fidy acres of land who might not culti- 

 vate to advantage their six or eight acres of potatoes. 

 Few crops at three hundred bushels to an acre, pay bet- 

 ter than they do. The cultivation of them, however, is 

 in many parts of the country very poor ; and the aver- 

 age yield perhaps does not exceed one hundred and fifty 

 bushels. 



How many fainiers in the State with the:r hundred 

 acres produce two or three hundred bushels of other 

 vegetables fir their slock ; of carrols, of ruta baga, of 

 beets, of parsnips .> They must be very few. Hero 

 and there may be one, wlio provokes the ridicule of his 

 neighbors by his singularity, or alarms them by his en- 

 terprise. 



If the farmers will look ne.^jt at the condition of their 

 farms, and reioark how many acres lie absolutely waste, 

 and how many not half improved ; how many saturated 

 and spoiled hy water which might be drained ; how 

 many in pasture, which might be hrouglit under cultiva- 

 tion ; how many in wood which might be cleared ; how 

 many laying open, which might be enclosed ; it is not 

 difficult lo sec how far short of what it might be, pro- 

 duction falls. 



Here the agricultural Improvement should begin— in 

 constant, intelligent, skilful, persevering attempts to 

 render the soil more productive; to get more out of the 

 earth ; to press her to her utmost capacity. We have 

 no! even approached that point. We are very far in 

 iherearofii. As we increase her products, the more 

 ample our means are rendered of farther increase. Un- 

 der iudicious husbandry, production increases the power 

 of production. The more we get the more we can get, 

 and the more means we have of keeping up and increas- 

 ing the fertility of the soil. How honestly such wealth 

 is gained, everv one must feel. The saying of the 

 shrewd Swift is often quoted; that" the man who cau- 

 ses two blades of grass to grow where but one grew be- 

 fore, is to be esteemed a public benefactor." This is a 

 small increase ; and we hope no farmer whom we ad- 

 dress will ever be satisfied without making the increase 

 at least ten fold. 



We have much more to say on this subject, but at 

 present we forbear. H. C 



THE PROSPECTS OF THE SEASON. 



The weather the last few days has been rather cold, 

 but without any frost. We have had frequent lains, 

 which liavo come in gentle succession, with occasional 

 Vleams of sunshine ; but the temperature for the time 

 of year has been lower than it was in April. 



There is a fine promise of fruit of every description, 

 thonoh much has fallen off, owing as we suppose to the 

 cold weather. Corn is every where coming up well. 

 Winier and spring grain look uncommonly well. Grass 

 is every where well set and very forward. The mar- 

 kets are very high and so are likely to conlinue. Cank- 

 er worms have not as yet showed themselves in any 

 great numbers; and of caterpillars there are hardly 

 enough for the birds. Nothing at present is scarce but 

 the complaints of the farmers. But they never fail ; 



and we shall have an abundant crop of them without' 

 doubt before the summer ends. Look out for them, as 

 ihe almanac maker says of a storm, running the direc- 

 tion from the top to the bottom of the page, " about 

 these days." 



H. C ' 



ELECTION WEEK. 



The capital has been thronged the past week with' 

 visiters from the country, attending the anniveisaries o'j 

 many religious and benevolent associations. They arel 

 fully attended by clergymen and women, with a prettj 

 liberal sprinkling of the laity. We have literally becomi. 

 a nation of orators, and speaking in public has got to bit 

 so common a gift, that it is rather difficult to find a man! 

 who does not in this way try to set the world to tights' 

 The women too, have taken to speaking in public, anci 

 show off in grand style— at this, some portion of th( 

 men take fire. These poor souls think it enough to bi 

 favored with their private admonitions, without aeon 

 tinuance of the same edifying strains in public. W< 

 say let tiiose both men and women speak, who hav 

 any thing to say. We wish we could silence some, whi 

 have nothing to say ; yet insist upon speaking t 

 whole time. As to the women, we hardly know wh 

 is to be done with them. In England the ladies of tl 

 Queen's bed chamber, the maids of honor, have actu^' 

 prevented the accession of the Tory ministry and ben 

 the Hero of Waterloo. We are getting into a had W' 

 and what is to be done with these women we do 

 see. We wonder what they were made for. T 

 Iwve produced a vast deal of trouble in the <° 

 ever since our great great grandmother took such? 

 bad counsel in the garden of Eden. 



H 



NOTE. 



The.Editor of the Couiier gives it as his opir^"*' 

 the high prices of provisions are in part owi' •''« 

 appropriation of large tracts of land and a grea""""' 

 of labor to the cultivation of the Moms M""''^- 

 This cause certainly comes under the head o^""'-'' 

 tion ; and undoubtedly has had its influeni""' '' 

 has as yet scarcely begun to be felt. The pf'ces 

 and the inordinate speculations in MulticauliS"" '^"^ 

 year. Befijre that, the cultivation was coratively 

 lirniled, us the phmls were a drug in the m'- ^ "' 

 extraordinary prices since obtained lioweve"' '^" *" 

 the devotion of a great extent of land to il'tivation, 

 and very large investments of capital. ' ^'" ""■ 

 doubtedly interfere with the production!'''''" ^"<i 

 meat. It would seem impossible, howe'" '"^ "'^' 

 tore of things, that the cxlravagance orO'icism on 

 this subject should continue longer th"^ present 

 season. The market will be overstock purchaser.i 

 will not continue to pay such prices "" article, 

 which may be propagated as easily as ("' hushes. 



Our belief in the success of the cultivation 

 amounis lo a strong confidence. Yet a'H 't is '"»"«''■ 

 of experiment, which lime only can eS*''- 1 ''" gf**' 

 difficulty will be found not in the pr'''''''jor, but in 

 the ab.solute impossibility of procur' "' "")' pnce. 

 There are not hnnds enough. Otlnip'^ynents oc- 

 cupy vast numbers, who cannot e; transfer them- 

 selves from one employment lo ano) •'""' there are 

 multiludes, poor enough indeed, "'ho will not 

 work— and who would faint with'°f a' 'he sight a 

 silk worm, though they have n.h difficulties in 

 wearing the products of his labor. 



H. C. 



