188 



NEW ENGLAND FARIMER. 



April 



should earn his bread by the sweat of his brow, 

 designed to protect him "from the dangers of ex- 

 cessive wealth, from that cfTeminancy and deterio- 

 ration consequent upon self-indulgence and sloth 

 and from that debasing slavery to avarice which 

 grows with the power and facility of accumula- 

 tion. 



I admit that a man can live by farming, but 

 how does ho live ? how does he dress ? what are 

 his pleasures ? when has he leisure ? at what age 

 can ho retire from business, and live at ease with 

 dignity upon the fruits of his labor ? How often 

 can he go to the White Hills, to Saratoga ? when 

 can he visit the battle-fields of his fathers, or the 

 monuments of their fame, with his family, and 

 have his business support it ? Trips to Europe, 

 or even to the national capitol — can he make 

 them ? 



Yes, a man can live in Massachusetts by farm- 

 ing, but only by economy and self-denial, un- 

 known and unpracticed in other pursuits. Take 

 a survey of any common country toAvn ; who are 

 the rich ? Men that live, and not stay on the 

 earth. They are men who have done something 

 collateral to farming, traded, shaved notes, lum- 

 bered, &c. True, there is now and then a man 

 with the strength and constitution of a giant, with 

 a Yankee wife to match him, with mind enough to 

 have been a Webster, with a will like Napoleon's, 

 who by working sixteen hours a day in cultiva- 

 ting the earth, and selling its products, has 

 made a few thousand dollars, but this man is an 

 exception. In commerce, he would have been an 

 Astor or Girard ; in manufactures, an Abbot Law- 

 rence ; in science, a Morse, Humboldt, or a Ste- 

 phenson ; in law, a Mason or a Dexter ; in the 

 pulpit, a Channing ; in letters, a Prescott or a 

 Macauley, but he is obliged to be unknown to 

 fame, and as untravelled as a Japanese. 



Now, I know a very skilful farmer, who boast- 

 ed that he made $1000 in 1S50. One of his neigh- 

 bors said that "he could prove that he lost $400." 



On being informed of it, he replied that "Mr. 



kiows nothing." "I don't know about that," re- 

 ]-lied his friend. "Well, what was your invest- 

 ment ?" "$10,000." "Well, the interest on that is 

 8600. AVhat was your wear and tear, which you 

 have not calculated ?" "About $350." "What was 

 your own labor worth ? The man who took your 

 place on the market wagon has $500 a year ; you 

 have earned as much. Set this down at $500. 

 Well, your wife has worked hard, kept no girl, 

 and has done all the work in your great family of 

 hired men ; had she worked as hard for others, 

 two or three dollars a week would be considered 

 little enough. Set her work down at $150. Noav, 

 how does your account stand ? 



Interest on investment $600,00 



Your labor 500,00 



Wear and tear 350,00 



Wife's work 150.00 



cent, on their investments, and all their labor is 

 lost. AYcll, they have reared families. What of 

 that ? All the members of their families have done 

 Avork enough to have commanded in other pursuits 

 much more than a living. 



Again, compare men of like ability and habits 

 engaged in farming and the sister arts, and what 

 is the result ? I know two brothers of equal ed- 

 ucation, (not an uncommon case ;) the superior of 

 the two inherited the homestead, the other went 

 into trade in Boston and inherited nothing. They 

 are both well off. The farmer is worth $25,000, 

 and the other $150,000, and has not done a quar- 

 ter part as much hard work. Just such Avas the 

 case with their father and uncle. Now the farmer, 

 by his mere skill and labor in other pm-suits, 

 might have been worth $30,000, for his equals in 

 the vicinity have done it in the sister ai-ts, — ma- 

 sons, carpenters, overseers and traders. I com- 

 pare equals in habits and integrity. 



These facts and results are confirmed by gener- 

 al observation, and are too true to be overlooked, 

 and naturally lead to the inquiry, why is not far- 

 ming in this State as profitable as the sister arts, 

 and what can be done to make agriculture (the 

 nursing mother of all true gi-eatness, and the most 

 noble, elevating and pleasant of all human pur- 

 suits,) as profitable as other business ? 



H. C. Mekrlvm. 



Offset improvements. 



$1600,00 

 ....250,00 



$1350,00 



"Had you not gone on to the fann, you might 

 have had $1,350. Instead of which, you have 

 but $1000, and a net loss of $350." 



Take a survey of farmers generally in this State. 

 Have they doubled their property in twenty years ? 

 Certainly not. Then they have not made six per 



LUMBERMEN'S CAMPS. 

 The editor of the Ellsworth Awerican, having 

 recently visited the Maine lumbermen in their 

 backwoods camps, gives the following description 

 of their winter habitations : 



"The camps of these hardy and laborious men 

 are made of logs, and covered with "splits," which 

 are long shingles, made of cedar, and rived and 

 shaved. These are again covered with boughs. In 

 the centre of the camp is the fire, extending half 

 its length, Avith an open space just as large in the 

 roof, for the escape of the smoke. A modern im- 

 provement has been introduced — the fire dogs, or 

 andirons. These are made from three to four feet 

 long, Avith a foot in the centre, and large enough 

 to hold a large quantity of Avood. They are really 

 a pair of these indispensable .articles Avelded to- 

 gether, Avith one foot in the centre to strengthen 

 the double-headed 'fire-dog.' One of the luxuries 

 of camp life is to sit on the 'deacon seat' and 

 watch the flames as they issue forth from the hard 

 Avood fire, the product of numberless long and 

 large sticks of Avood, big enough for an old-fash- 

 ioned 'back log.' The 'deacon seats' are sticks of 

 ^mber, hcAvn and squared, and placed parallel 

 with the fire, and on each side df it, for seats. 

 Back of these seats, are the dormitory apartments. 

 A good foundation is made Avith cedar or spruce 

 boughs, on AA-hich are spread, as covering, a num- 

 ber of 'comforters' made thick and warm Avith cot- 

 ton batting. 



One of the curiosities of thece habitations, is 

 the 'bean oven.' This is a hole excavated at one 

 end of the fire, and near the fire-dog, in Avhich, af- ' 

 ter being sufficiently Avell heated Avith coals, is 

 placed a large iron pot filled Avith beans, having 

 a sheet iron covering jutting ever the outer rim, ; 

 and doAvn its sides, to keep the ashes out. This is I 



