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82 



THE ILLINOIS FAEMEE. 



Mae. 



and all others who wish to make progress in the 

 culture of the soil, our platform is broad and 

 deep and room enough for all. We invite you to 

 send in your subscription to the Farmee, to 

 send us short, condensed memoranda of your 

 experiance, and if you find that our views are 

 wrong, just pitch in. 



Dear Farmbr : — I hear some complaints that 

 the agricultural journals are intended only for the 

 rich and large farmers, and entirely overlook any 

 thing that the poor man or farmer of forty acres 

 should be taught, and I concur in this opinion, in 

 regard to some of them, but I am glad I can say 

 the Illinois Fareek is an exception. My farm is 

 only forty acres, and the Farmer tells me nearly 

 all ihat I should know, and if anything is omitted, 

 I ask the questions and soon have the desirea an- 

 swers. I wish to call the attention of your corres- 

 pondents to this subject, so that in their articles 

 they may not overlook the interests and abilities of 

 the poor man, for it is the poor man and small 

 farmer who needs help. I hope the ■laker^ of 

 agricultural implements will also consider that 

 these men have a claim on them, and that they 

 should try to make their machinery, so as to 

 come within their reach. 



Yours truly, 



Wm. L. Prose. 



Tuscola, Feb. 20th, 1861. 



The price of agricu'tural implements is, as a 

 general thing, too high ; but the fault is more 

 with the credit system than anything else. When 

 manufacturers sell for cash, they can sell much 

 cheaper, and if the farmer only buys as he can 

 pay, he will make a large saving. The email 

 farmer cannot aflFord to get into debt, better do 

 with les<! than to load himself down with inter- 

 est. 



The large farmers have lost largely in a too 

 liberal purchase of labor saving machinery, 

 without housing and protecting it from the 

 weather. The same principle that will apply to 

 the small farm will also apply to the large farm, 

 but too often the large farmer depends more on 

 the quantity than the quality. Capital against 

 skill and industry. 



Editor Farmer — Dear Sir: I take so many 

 papers that I thought I would not renew my sub- 

 scription, but I find that I cannot do without it, 

 and the boys will not, so yon will please have it 

 continued, and oblige L. W. P. 



Wo have mailed your subsaription to the pub- 

 lishers, and it will be continued accordingly. 

 That is just what we have been aiming at, to 

 make the Farmer a necessity, so that no farmer 

 can affora*to do without it. Here is another let- 

 ter from a subscriber : 



Editor Farmer — Sir : I seed one of your pa- 

 pers at the post Orfice tother day, and i seed a 

 right smart of big things about farming in it. 

 Now, you fellers up north think you can rite 

 cute, i warnt you to send me your paper so i 

 can see what orful stories you can tel. I send 

 you 4 bits. John Ott. 



N a, Feb. 16, 1861. 



We hope John will be pleased with the paper, 

 and at the end of six months send the publishers 

 four bits more, or get up a club of twenty, when 

 your change will do for the year. If you will 

 read the Farmer, John, you will not be sending 

 north after potatoes, and other such luxuries, 

 but grow them yourself. 



St. Clair Nurseries. — We are in receipt of 

 the catalogue of these nurseries, Messrs. Bab- 

 cock & Bro., proprietors. They have a fine 

 stock now ready for their customers. Their se- 

 lection of apples for the south part of the State 

 is good, and if the farmers of that section will 

 but consult their own interest, they will plant 

 largely from this establishment, nor will they 

 send east for trees unsuited to the soil and cli- 

 mate of that fine fruit region. The Red Astra- 

 chan, Benoni, and Early Harvest, for summer; 

 Maiden's Blush, Famous and Rambo for fall, 

 and White Bellflower, Green Bellflower, Golden 

 Russet, Yellow Bellflower, Jonathan, Little Ro- 

 manite, Newtown Pippin, Winesap, will make 

 out the list, but if this ia not satisfactory, they 

 have a hundred or more sorts to select from. 

 This catalogue embraces a large list containing 

 thirty-two pages. Besides, the list of fruits, it 

 contains a large number of valuable suggestions 

 to the planters. These nurseries rank scarcely 

 second to any in the State, and to Egypt is es- 

 pecially valuable. See their advertisement in 

 another part of the paper. 



The House and Garden. — This is a new work 

 published by Thos. Brown, of the Ohio Farmer, 

 but we have not had the pleasure of seeing it. 

 Can you send us a copy, friend Brown ? 



