-vo^.icv-"r. j!o. i. AND HORTICULTURAL RE G I S T E R . 



9 



Lc'ters oil E tuviti'otl (>fFm-mers. — We havo just 

 received th« Cleveiaii,'] Herald containing; six es- 

 says of Mr Holfcrook, referred to in tlic Fanner re- 

 cently, CHI tlie subject of'tiie education of farmers. 

 He is desirous thall'iey should be published in the 

 N. K. Farmer, and wt are happy in Uie opportunity. 

 In the views generally, ^e entirely concur. the 

 essays are fuH of sr.lmd, practicMl, good sense ; and 

 show llie farmers the immense good which is with- 

 in their reach. They cons'.st of six essays which 

 wie shall give in successive papers, and shall be ex- 

 ti^emcly happy to hear again and often from Mr 

 Holbrook, and to second in any way according to 

 the measure of our humble aliility, his public-spir- 

 ited plans for popular education. II. C. 



EDUC.\TIO-M OF FARMERS— No. 1. 



Mr Harris — I have concluded to avail myself 

 of your politeness, for presenting to the public a 

 few practical hints on the education of farmers. — 

 The fact that more than three-fourths of the com- 

 munity belong to this class, identifies with their 

 character and influence, the happiness and the lib- 

 erties of our country. It is evident that our repub- 

 lic must be, both in its character and destiny, what 

 they make it, and what they say it shall be. I pro- 

 pose, in several short essays, to invite the attention 

 of your readers, and especially those directly con- 

 cerned in the case, to the physical, intellectual 

 and moral power of farmers, and to give a few 

 hints on The kind of education necessary to in- 

 crease and direct that power, for the highest pros- 

 p.rity and for the liberties, not only of themselves, 

 but of every other class of .'Vmerican citizens. | 



In the few remarks I have to make on the sub- 

 ject, I. shall attempt to sustain the following -propo- i 

 sitiuns. First, that a greater amount of really use- | 

 ful knowledge is, at present, in the possession ofj 

 fanners, tlian cif any other class of the' community. 

 Second, that neither merchants, nor lawyers, nor 

 physicians, nor clergyujen, nor professors of colleges, | 



convictijns will be produced by the same force up- 

 on other minds, if the subject should be carefully 

 and candidly e.xamined by them. 



It is too evident that the operations of our re- 

 public, political, civil and religious, are subject to 

 great irregularities, and cvep violence, and of course 

 that some better balance wheel or regulator, than 

 we now have, is necessary to equalize if not to con- 

 tinue their motions. Education has been sought, 

 and professedly applied, for the purpose of regulat- 

 ing and continuing these motions ; but in that there 

 is evidently so far, some defect — probably two de- 

 fects of a radical character, viz : education is not 

 general enough, and it is not good enough. It 

 does not reach every plain farmer's son and every 

 poor mechanic's daughter ; it also wants a soul, or 

 moral principle, as the foundation stone, or the cen- 

 tral and main wheel of motion, of all motions, 

 whether applied to state, church, or common busi- 

 ness. 



And it may fairly be questioned, whetiier some of 

 the measures to remove these defects, have not in- 

 creased them. It is e.xceedingly doubtful whether 

 our numerous colleges and high schools, establish- 

 ed at great expense, and to some extent at least 

 by the people's money, and still incurring an ex- 

 pense too great for the people generally to partici- 

 pate in their instructions, have not produced an ar- 

 istocracy of learning, (I do not mean useful knowl- 

 edge,) which has unfitted young men for the indus- 

 trious and productive pursuits of life, and thus lead 

 them into professions or pursuits calculated to in- 

 crease rather than relieve the burthens of society. 

 V\ hatever else many of our literary institutions may 

 be cilled, they cannot be called schools of indus- 

 try, morals, health, or a knowledge of business ; for 

 with many young men, not to say young women, 

 who resort to these institutions, all these valuable 

 qualities are laid prostrate. 



Is there any remedy for these evils? or must 

 all be given up for lost .' If it can be shown that 

 farmers — eveni farmer — nnn with ar-^mo],, r^^;.,™ 



useful knowledge, which is probably much oflener 

 repeated than understood. It may be seriously 

 questioned, whether, with many, the attention de- 

 voted, and the value attached to subjects of learn- 

 ing, are not nearly in proportion to their nseless- 

 ness. In a college course, for example, embracing 

 the preparatory studies, and occupying in the 

 whole, from six to eight or ten years, rtuch the 

 greatest portion of the time is devoted to the dead 

 languages and the abstractions of mathematics, and 

 furnishing to many of their pupils a very meagre 

 smattering of many even of these. How far a 

 knowledge of the Latin and Greek languages, or of 

 the terms used by the Greeks and Romans to ex- 

 press their ideas about their heathen gods, wars, 

 bacchanalian feasts, and many other subjects as 

 little connected with the pursuits or duties of Amer- 

 ican citizens, may properly be considered useful 

 knowledge, is the quesiion ; and whether the three 

 or five years devoted to these languages in a col- 

 lege course, might not produce a greater amount of 

 knowledge, more really useful, if employed upon 

 some other subjects. The rights and duties of re- 

 publican citizens, secured and implied by onr con- 

 stitution and laws, the reciprocal interests, and the 

 relations existing between different classes of citi- 

 zens, between the employer and employed, master 

 and apprentice, farmer, mechanic and merchant, 

 men and women, husband and wife, parent and 

 child ; also between the different members, or states 

 of our republic, embracing all the fundamental 

 principles of political economy ; the physical sci- 

 ences, embracing the fundamental laws of chemical, 

 and other branches of natural philosophy, animal 

 and vegetable physiology, especially of the human 

 system, also geology, mineralogy and botany, witli 

 a particular application of the whole to agriculture 

 and the mechanic arts ; and above all, the relations 

 subsisting between the creature atid his Creator, 

 and the duties arising from these relations, so clear- 

 ly, fully, and beautifully developed in the volume 

 of inspiration and from natural religion ; a familiar, 



