S74 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



MAY 33,1S'I4. 



AM) HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



Edited by Joseph BreoU* 



Boston, Wednesday, Ma» 22, 1844. 



COI>MAN'S EUROPEAN AGRICULTURE. 



We linve read wilh doep interesi, Cnlman's first re- 

 port ol European agriculture, and think it will meet the 

 high expectations ol" ihe |)iihlic. His account o( the ag- 

 ricultural laborers in England and Scotland, is enough 

 to ranke all in our land, who read it, however poor, fetl 

 salisfii'd with their condition, and thank God that their 

 lot was cast in a country where there is some chance of 

 risinc Irom tlieir low estate, or at least where an indus- 

 trious diy laborer may procure the necessaries, the com- 

 forts, and even many of the luxuries of life for himself 

 and laniilv, and save a liule f«r the time of need. We 

 make a few extracts : 



A Scotch Collage. 



" In the neighborhood of Haddington, in Cast Lolhi- 

 an, I visited a laborer's cottage, being one in a range of 

 SIX colta;es, in a district of country beautifully cultiva- 

 ted and highly improved. The wife, a very tidy and 

 ci»il woman, about forty years of age, was at liome ; 

 her husband and daughter laboring in iha field. This 

 was a very good specimen of a neat cottage, and ils in- 

 mates had passed the greater part of their lives in it. 

 It had no other floor but the hard ground ; and two beds 

 were fixer! in the wall, like sailors' berths on board ship 

 A cake made of pea-flour and barley-flour was baking 

 over the fire, of which I was asked to eal, but the taste 

 of which did very lillle towards quickening my appe- 

 tite There was, bnsides the one in which I was, a 

 small room for coal and lumber, where, in case of great 

 emergency, a lodging might be made up. One of her 

 neighbors in the same block, with no larger accommoda- 

 tions, had ei^hl children to provide for. The husband 

 of the woman in whose cottage I was, was a plowman, 

 and likewise a bondager — a species of service or con- 

 tract which requires him 10 furnish a fi^male laborer, at 

 tenpence a day in ordinary work, and one shilling per 

 day in harvest, whenever her services are n quired. If 

 he has not a wife or daughter who will answer the pur- 

 pose, he must keep a woman in his house to be always 

 in readiness whenever hi-r services are required. His 



wages were — 



18 bolls of oats, at 4 bushels per boll, 72 bush. 

 2 bolls of peas, " " 8 " 



4i bolls of barley, " " 18 " 



and £1 for " lint"— or shirts. 

 The employer likewise keeps a cow fiir the laborer ; or 

 if he has no cow, an allowance is made to him of five or 

 six pounds in money. He is likewise allowed 1000 sq. 

 yards of ground for potatoes, which the farmer plows 

 and manures for him, but which he cultivates in extra 

 huuis. For Ihe woman's work he receives a fixed 

 amount per day, wlieiiever she is employed ; and (or 

 SIX months' service in the year, he pays her three pounds. 

 For the other six niunlhs he pays her nothing more 

 than her board and some clothes. " 



Frugality in Humble Life. 

 " Of the extraordinary frugality wilh which some per- 

 sons in humble life live, even where prices are high, I 

 may as well in this place us anywhere, give an example 

 which came under my observation. in Arbroath, near 

 the niagnificeht ruins of the abbey of Arbroath, 1 heard 

 the movements of a hand-loom, and I took the liberty, 

 with due ceremony, of going in. A iniddle-ajcd Scotch 

 woman, of pleasing a|ipearnnce, and neatly dressed, was 

 weaving. 1 asked her huw much she was able to earn 



She replied, that if she rose early, at five o'clock, and 

 woiked all day through the week, after paying for the 

 use of the loom and tlie cost of winding her spools, her 

 week's work would amount to four shillings. She re- 

 ceived no parish assistance. She paid three pounds six- 

 teen shilling.^ for the rent of her house. Her fuel cost 

 her ninepente per week ; and out of the remainder — 

 lf!S8 than two shillings — she had to support and clothe 

 herself and an aged mother, who was very infirm and 

 incapable of helping herself. What the support that 

 either of the pour creatures could have under such cir- 

 cumstances, must be left to conjecture. The woman 

 spoke of her circumstances being difficult, but she made 

 no complaint ; and presented an example of (rue chris- 

 trian philosophy, which would have done honor to a su- 

 perior education and the highest condition in life." 

 IVomen iMioring in the Field. 



" In all parts of the country, women are more or less 

 employed on the farms, and in some parts in large num- 

 bers ; I have frequently counted thirty, fif'y, and many 

 more in a field at a time, both in hoeing turnips and in 

 harvesting. I have found them, likewise, engaged in 

 various other services : in polling weeds, in picking 

 stones, in unloading and treading grain, in lending 

 threshing machines, in digging potatoes and pulling and 

 topping turnips, in tending cattle, in lending out dung, 

 and in carrying lime-stone and coals. Indeed there is 

 hardly any menial service to which they are not accus- 

 tomed ; and all notions of iheir sex seem out of the ques- 

 tion whenever their labor is wanted or can be applied. 

 The wages of women are commonly sixpence and eight- 

 pence, and seldom exceed ten-pence a day, excepting in 

 harvest, when they are as Iiigh as a shilling. Their 

 meals are taken in the fields. The dinner is often nothing 

 more than bread. I am not disposed to object to the em- 

 ployment of women in some kinds of agricultural labor. 

 The employment of then) in indistTiminate labor is lia- 

 ble to tlie most serious objections. In terlding,and mak- 

 ing hay, and in various other agricultural labors, they 

 carry their end of the yoke even ; but in loading and 

 leading out dcn;r, in i;arrying broken Iime-stone in bask- 

 ets on their heads, to be put into the kilns, and in bear- 

 ing heavy loads of coal from the pits, 1 have felt that 

 their strength was unnaturally taxed, and that, at least 

 in these cases, they were quite out of ' woman's sphere.' 

 I confess, likewise, that my gallantry has often been se- 

 verely tried when I have seen them at the inns acting 

 as ostlers, bringing out the horses and assisting in 

 changing the coach team, while the coachman went into 

 the inn to try the strength of tlie ale." 

 Impruvemenl in the Condition of the Laboring Classes. 



" To my mind, it is obvious that no great improve- 

 inent can take place in the character and condition of 

 the laboring population while they remain a distinct and 

 servile class, without any power of rising above their 

 condition. The low rate of their wages absolutely for- 

 bids the accumulation of any properly. They cannot 

 own any nf the soil which they cultivate. The houses 

 which they ociupy belong not to themselves, and they 

 may at any time be turned out of them. They must 

 ask leave to live, and they must take it by plunder or 

 violence if denied. Their only home is the grave, and 

 even their repnse here is nrt always secure. 



I recfllect, in passmg tlirough a part of Derbyshire, 

 the coachman, by whose side I was seated, said to nie 

 tliat this was the Duke of Devonshire's village, and this 

 the Duke of Rutland's, and this the Duke of Norfolk's, 

 and so on ; and I could not help asking mysell, with 

 some sinking of heart, where lithe people's own village ? 



I believe it is impossible for a man who lives in a 

 state of entire dependence upon others, to have tho 

 spirit of a man ; and who, in looking out upon the beau- 



tiful and productive earth, where God has placed him, 

 is compelled to feel that there is not a fool of soil which, 

 under any circumstances, he can claim (or himself; that 

 there is n<rt a tree nor a shelving rock by the roadside, 

 where he can shelter himself and gather under his wing- 

 the little ones whom God may have cast upon his care, 

 but he is liable to be driven away at the wil! of another- 

 — at the caprice of avarice, selfishness, pride, or unbri- - 

 died power; that the use of bis own haiidj and limbs 

 are not his own; that he cannot, but at 'he will of 

 another, find a spot of ground where he * an apply them . ' 

 and that even the gushings from the rttck in the wilder-* 

 ness and the manna which descends from henenara 

 intercepted in their progress to him, and doled out, too 

 often, in reluctant and scanty measure." 



To Remove Grease Spots — We copied into the Far- 

 mer a shorl lime since, fiom one of our exi-hangc papers, 

 a recipe for removing grease spois fioin cloth, by apply- 

 ing the yolk of an egg, and washing aflerwatds with 

 warm water. This has since been tested in our own 

 family, and found completely successful. " Keep it be- 

 fore the people." Few are so fortunate in keeping 

 themselves " unspotted from the world," as not to soil 

 their garments with grease. 



MASS. HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



EXHIBITION or FRUITS. 



Sattirduij, Mjy IS, 1844. 

 J F. Allen, of Salem, exhibiteil splendid spTimens 

 of Royal Gnorge Clingstone Peaches, so no weighing 9 

 ounce.* each ; fine specimens of Hovey a Seedling and 

 Early Virginia Strawberries; also, line Chasselas and 

 Barsuraube Grapes. 



From tlie garden of Mrs. Howard, Brookline; fine 

 lildck Hamburg and Burgundy Grapes 



For the Committee, JOSIAIi LOVETT, 2d. 



EXHIBITION OF FLOWERS. 



From Samuel Walker, Tulips, and a variety of cut 

 flowers. 



From S. R Johnson, a fine display of Tulips. 



From Joseph Hreck & Co.; Tulip"— also, Tree Pseo- 

 nies. Wisteria sinensis, I'ansies, and "tlipr cut flowers. 



From John A. Kenrick, a fine display ot Hawthorns, 

 Azaleas, Shrubby and other Peonies, Magnolias, Wis- 

 teria, &c. 



Frrnn Wm. Kcnrickj 6 Bouquets, Hawthorns, and oth- 

 er (lowerini; shrubs. 



From Wm. E. Carter, Bouquets, Tree Pa^onies of va- 

 rious sorts. Magnolias, and a great variety of beautiful 

 flowers, among which was a plant of Lychnes fulgens, 

 in bloom. 



From Wm. Metier, Pansies, Geraniums, and bouquets. 



Frnm J. L. L F. Warren, fine Pansns. 



From David Mack, Northampton, numerous species 

 of inrligeiroiis flowers. 



Premium Tulips and Pansies. — Thn-e stands of splen- 

 did Tnlrps were presented for the Society's premiums, 

 viz : liy Samuel Walker, 8. R Johnson, and Joseph 

 Breck & Co. Wm. E.Carter, Parker Barnes and CM. 

 Hovey were appointed judges, and made the lollowing 

 report : 



" The committee appointed to examine the Tulips ex- 

 hibited for premium, award the first premium of $4, to 

 S.riiiuel Walker, for the best .JO blooms. To Joseph 

 Breck & Co. the second premium o( $2, tor the second 

 best 30 blironrs. To William Meller they award a pre- 

 mium of $2 for the best Pansies. 



W. E. Carter, Chm'n." 



The motnini; was a very stormy one, wlrir-h was pre- 

 judicial to the Tulips, as they did not open well. The 

 flowers were rirostly of the first order. Mr Walker has 

 added to his large collection some choice gems, which 

 graced his stand- For the Committee. 



J. BRECK, Chm'n. 



(EFNotice. — Exhibition of Pceonies, .Azaleas, fye. — 

 In consequr nee irf the unusual Ibrwjril sr asou, liie time 

 of exhibiiiirg for premium Hardy A7.<ilea», Shrubby 

 Peeonies, Hawthorns and Magnolias, is altered from 

 June I8lh to Saturday, May 25th. 



For the Committee, J. BRECK, Ch'mn. 



