1867. 



NEW ENGLAND FAEMER. 



487 



the countn- of a portion of its rightftil re- 

 sources. The owner will neither till the soil 

 himself nor part with a portion to one who 

 will. 



1 have been told that a certain man used 

 to be obliged to go twice to Boston to 

 ma'-ket, with his pork, dire, every year: 

 but that now one horse could draw all that the 

 entire district, where he lived, has to spare. 

 Such a state of thinofs tends directly to indi- 

 vidual and national impoverishment. I do not 

 like to think that the art of the agriculturist is 

 behind others in this age. I do not believe it 

 is. But there are some things that need re- 

 form. You will hear it said that no farmer 

 can make money who hires his work done, or 

 who has a farm so large as to need much hired 

 help. Perhaps he cannot, but he ought to, 

 just as much as in any other department of 

 business. True one who invests a thousand 

 dollars in a farm, and hires all his work done 

 ought not to make more money than men do 

 in other business managed in the same way ; 

 yet to say that hired labor is necessarily un- 

 profitable is, or ought to be, incorrect. 



It seems to me that our farmers should not 

 be content with half a crop of any sort, when 

 the full one is attainable. If more or better 

 maehiner)' is needed, let it be had, and as 

 cheap as possible, but by all means let our 

 farms be better tilled. a. 



New HampsTcire, 1867. 



For the Xeir England Farmer. 

 HEDGES FOB KATLHOAD FENCES. 



In an interesting letter from India, the wri- 

 ter says, that, in many localities, the railroads 

 are fenced with hedges of the Cactus and 

 Prickly Pear. They form an effective barrier 

 against cattle, and are grown so thickly that a 

 bird can scarcely fly through them : and when 

 in bloom their rich and gay colors greatly en- 

 hance the beauty of the scener}-. As we see 

 these plants tenderly cultivated in green houses 

 or in conservatories, we hardly realize the pro- 

 fusion and luxuriance in which they grow in 

 their native soil, or that they can be made so 

 useful. As the subject of fences is becoming 

 a matter of grave importance in the older 

 States and in the Western upon the open 

 prairies and woodless plains, cannot our rail- 

 road companies take a hint from this custom, 

 and seek among the gifts of nature material 

 for live fences, that shall be durable and at 

 the same time ornamental ? I wonder why 

 well e?tablished companies do so little towards 

 improving the appearance of their roads, 

 when they are so lavish in fitting up pas- 

 senger cars and in ornamenting locomotives ; 

 whv the rough banks are not smoothed down, 

 the unsightly places cleared up and some kind 

 of vegetation encouraged to grow to cover the 

 fre^h gravel and sand, and keep down the 

 dust. It could not be said such work was 

 done solely for the pleasure and comfort of 



the travelling public, for it would materially 

 benefit the railroafl companies. A thick mat 

 of grass would effectually prevent the washing 

 and gxdlying of steep banks which continually 

 occur in their unprotected state. The land 

 along the track could not be turned to a better 

 purpose than to producing live fences. There 

 is ample room for double, triple and quadru- 

 ple rows and even belts of trees. I do not 

 know as this climate will afford such showy 

 and formidable barriers as the tropics. In the 

 South and Southwest, the Cherokee Rose would 

 make a cheap and effec-tive fence. In the 

 Northern States selection can be made from 

 hardier plants, as the Buckthorn, the ever- 

 greens, — Hemlock, Spruce, Arbor Vit^e, and 

 White Pine, in double and triple rows, and 

 well trimmed when young, would be pleasing 

 additions to the landscape. Their bright and 

 cheerful green, all the year, would compare 

 favorably with the brilliant Cactus of the tro- 

 pics. 1 have seen high and tight board fences 

 erected along the banks of deep cuts to pre- 

 vent snow from drifting in, — a belt of ever- 



' greens would be as effective. The great di- 

 versity of soil through which some roads pass, 

 gives an opportunity for a variety of hedges, 

 and avoids the monotony of a single kind. 

 The undulating surfaces, curves and straight 

 lines afford still further opportunities for grace- 

 ful and pleasing arrangements of varieties, 



j sizes and groups. 



I I am aware that live fences have fallen some- 

 1 what into disfavor. This arises partly fi-om a 

 bad selection of plants, inexperience in their 

 management, and in growing them in gardens 

 that are too small for them to look well or even 

 thrive well without encroaching upon other 

 things more valuable. But these objections 

 would be of no weight with railroad companies, 

 because their land is of no profit, and their hedg- 

 es would be on a scale to warrant skilful and com- 

 petent care. AH companies are anxious to induce 

 travellers to patronize their particular routes, 

 I and can they not offer the additional attraction 

 of having everything about their roads present 

 '■ a neat and finished appearance ? Certainly the 

 ' well-to-do companies can afford something for 

 : gratifving the eye. but when an improvement 

 ' claims both utility and beauty there is a two- 

 j fold reason for its consideration and adoption. 



! Lawrence, Mass., Aug. 20, 1867. 



. Remakks. — By mentioning "curves" and 

 "undulating surfaces," our correspondent pos- 

 siblv su<T<Tests one objection that will be urged 

 against thick side hedges — the obstruction to 

 the view of the track which they would inter- 

 pose to the engineer. On some lines, consid- 

 erable labor is annually expended for the re- 

 moval of bushes, &c., which intercept such 

 view, and serve as hiding places for stray ani- 



