•Ot,. XVIII. NO. 33. 



AND HORTICULTQRAL REGISTER. 



I you, Mr Editor, or some other one, tell us 

 can, the cause of tliis change? 



A FARMER, 

 m. 27, 1840. 



ESTING CAPITAL IN AGRICULTURE. 



t tlie present time when there is much deratlge- 



in commercial concerns;, and wiien the world 

 s tilled to a surfeit, with all kinds of stocks, 

 iy not be improper to pause a moment, look 

 id us and see what sort of investments have 



the tests which the various circumstances of 

 itical and commercial nature have brought to 

 upon them. Is that portion of capital which 

 ested in the thousand and one speculations of 

 lay, as safe and as productive as the liolders 

 ; ? Do the banks exhibit in their returns, 

 an enormous dividend that makes their stock 

 ry lucrative that it is an object to invest in 



largely? We think not. If we take the 

 •■ amount of bank dividends in this state and 

 ge them upon the amount of capital stock, 

 Till hardly amount to four per cent. Look at 

 irious oiher kinds of fancy or other stock, 



have swallowed up so much of the capital 

 r own citizens— very few of them yield six 

 int. Again, look at the active commercial 

 f the community. Group them all together 

 mi up the profits and the losses, and average 

 imong the individuals, and will their profits 

 great and so splendid that it would be cause 

 vying the proprietors ? So unsettled has 

 lusiness, and so full of uncertainty and fluc- 



I, that hundreds and thousands, who have 

 d the field of commercial enterprise with 

 ittle capital — the fruits of their own or their 

 s industry — are now in fact deeply insolvent, 

 I truth pennylcss, however well they jjay 

 e in concealing it by the use of other pea. 

 roperty. 



II, how is it with capital invested in agricul- 

 How is it with funds invested in the soil 



le improvements of a well managed farm ? 

 ej-'Tiny more productive, or are they, in fact 

 in the back ground as the votary of com- 

 1 speculation would fain make the world be- 

 We believe that if we take the amount of 

 invested in any well conducted farm, and 

 ly calculate the net proceeds, it will be 

 hat it is more productive than most of the 

 lents of the present day. Let us take for 

 e, any particular crop. The oat crop is as 

 ine as any to calculate upon, 

 us first estimate the amount of capital to 

 ; a crop from an acre ; and first we will give 

 1 this state may be considered a large price, 

 lly if we were to purchase a whole farm at 



279 



cents per bushel, which will amount to §11 35. 

 Now eleven dollars and twenty-five cents is the in- 

 terest of $187 .50, at G per cent, or in other words, 

 IS more than nineteen per cent upon the interest of 

 capital invested, including purchase money and all. 

 But as you have the acre still on hand, deduct if 

 you please, the $50 which you gave, and the ex- 

 penses will then amount to .97 25. 



This then is the actual floating or circulating 

 capital required to produce your acre of oats, in°- 

 cluding rent or interest of purchase money, and 

 the nett income, $11 2,5, is about 155 per cent. 



Pidillestick, exclaims neighbor Scrubard now 



this is all humbug — real book farming. Any body 

 can get rich on a piece of paper. If money can 

 he made so easy by farming, why ain't I and every 

 one who have been farming all our days as rich as 

 mud ? / do nH believe nothing on H. 



Well neighbor, put down your ^oadstick and let 



What then ? it is what will purchase cash — it is 

 property, it is substantial wealth. If you were 

 under the necessity of buying this amount of pro- 

 duce in the markets, you would find tliat it was 

 worth something. Scrubard looked somewhat puz- 

 zled. 



us inquire into it. How large a farm have you ? 

 One hundred acres. 

 What did you give for it ? 



§2000, that is $20 per acre. The interest of 

 this is §120. Well then I have to pay about .$30 

 in taxes, that makes $140, then I have to hire help, 

 two men six months in a year, and work hard my- 

 self the year round. 



Well we will give you all twelve dollars per 

 month, that will be $144 for yourself, and $144 for 

 your men ; equal to $288, which added to the in- 

 terest and taxes, $140, makes $428 outsets or cir- 

 culating capital. Then there is the interest on the 

 cost and wear and tear of tools, you have reckoned. 

 Well we will give you $72 to pay for that, which 

 is the interest of more than a thousand dollars 

 for your tools and implements, but we will give 

 you that sum, which added to the $428 will swell 

 it up to $500. Now how in the world do you pay 

 this $500 but off of your farm ? — mind you, this 

 $500 is what you invest, year after year-^it is the 

 interest of your first investment of $2000 for your 

 farm, payment to yourself and men for labor, &c. 

 &c. Now how much land do you cultivate and 

 how much hay do you cut ? 



I cultivate twenty-five acres, and mow twenty- 

 five — I have twenty-five in pasture and twenty-five 

 ia woodland. 



Prodiiee. 

 2 acres of Indian corn. 



we will 

 ghing, 



rive $50 for the acre. 



owing in, 



est of cost of acre for one year 



$50 00 



2 00 

 1 25 

 I 00 



3 00 



.$57 25 

 1 give the straw for harvesting and thresh- 

 1 we have now invested fifty-seven dollars 

 :nty-five cents. 



.vill suppose that you get thirty bushels of 

 id that is a crop hardly worth bragging 

 Our friend Ford, of Gray, gets GG biTsliels 

 I, but we will take tliirty bushels, only thirty, 

 1 sell tliem for less than we gave in the 

 for seed. We will sell them for 37 1-2 



50 bush, worth $50 00 



4 " potatoes (light crop) 1000 " " 200 00 



5 " oats 150 « « 56 25 



6 " barley 120 " » 80 40 

 5 « wheat (light crop) 50 « " 50 00 

 3 " rye GO " " 60 Ou 

 40 tons of hay worth $G per ton 240.00 



Total $736 65 



Thus the whole amount of your crops are worth 

 $736 G5, making due allowance for rust in your po- 

 tatoes, and weevil in your wheat, and not ratin'^ 

 the otiier very high, either in amount per acre or 

 high valuation in the market. We have ' 



It is true, said he, it vvould cost a good deal to 

 buy what even a poor farmer may raise ; but after 

 all, whore is one that does as well as you have fig- 

 ured out, there are ten who run astern and finally 

 come out of the little eend of the horn. 



Grant you that, neighbor, and what is the reason 

 of it ? They do not invest capital enough in their 

 business, either because they have not got it, or be- 

 cause they are too penurious. They may culti- 

 vate a few acres well, which yields them a good 

 profit, while they suffer nine tenths of the rest of 

 their farms to lie idle, and the interest on the cost 

 of these acres oats up tlie profit of the few that 

 they do cultivate. We have said nothing of the 

 income from your pasture or your woodland. 



If the position here taken be true, and we chal- 

 lenge scrutiny, and beg to be put right if we are 

 wrong ; how much better would it be if those who 

 are now farmers by profession would, if able, de- 

 vote more capital to their business instead of di- 

 verting it as many do into other channels and en- 

 gaging too largely in other business. 



Any one who rides through the state cannot but 

 notice the thousands of unimproved acres on either 

 hand. How much better would it be if more of 

 our young men would take hold of the business of 

 farming, instead of aspiring to a life of apparent 

 ease in commercial pursuits. It is true that the 

 farmers crops are sometimes cut off; but not of ten- 

 or than are the hopes of the merchant. Mildew 

 and hail and rain, and hurricanes sometimes destroy 

 the fruits of the earth ; but not oftener than do the 

 elements work destruction upon the ships of the 

 importer. 



Life is full of vicissitudes, and risks and changes 

 in whatever place or pursuit you can engage, but, 

 taking every view we -can of the whole, we are 

 convinced that capital invested in agriculture is 

 most safe and profitable. — Maine Farmer. 



Mnseacliiigetts Horticultural SocioCy. 



UIHIBITIOII or FRUITS. 



Saturday, Feb. 8, IS40. 

 E. W. Bull, Esq., of Hartford, Ct., exhibited spe- 

 cimens of a largo, handsome, red sweet apple. Mr 

 Bull states that they were the produce of a natural 

 tree, which the past season yielded 30 bushels of 

 apples. — We should judge from its size, beauty and 

 tender and sweet flesh, and its abundant produce, to 

 be one of the most valuable winter fruits. Mr B. 

 has kindly offered to send some cuttings from the 

 tree in the spring, which will be distributed to the 

 members of the society. 



Mr Oliver exhibited beautiful specimens' of the 

 Echasserie Pear, (London Hort. Soc. Cat. No. 269.) 

 This fruit although of small size, is very hio-h fJa- 



charged you nothing for seed, and altlioueh we , ■■ . , , ,■ , 



have allowed you full wages while sowing, cultiva- i '" ' ""V.-"^ "u ' "' " ',' '", ^^'""^^"^ 



ting and harvesting, we have said nothing in regard \ ^"T^ rZV°.l '^-^'°"^'^'^'y/»'f f'°.d- 

 to the value of the straw, husks, &,c. You have! ^r French exhibited three sorts of Red Winter 

 thus realized $-.3(; 65 more than a return of your ! ^PP'f ""^'"'^^ ^' origm unknown. 



■' ■ Mr Ulanning exhibited specimens of the Easter 



Beurre Pear. 



For the Committee, 



ROBERT MANNING. 



circulating capital, which is more than 47 per cent. 

 Ah, well — this looks mighty well on paper, 

 but it is n't cash. Tlie merchant and the broker 

 have the clean cash, while we poor farmers have to ' The mechanic who is ashamed of his apron or 

 go without the rhino, if our barns and cellars are ' the farmer who is ashamed of his frock, is himself a 

 ever so full. shame to his profession. 



