38 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
preserve cleanliness in and about them—to give them 
healthy locations, remote from marsh air, with ample 
play grounds and shade trees, to repel or mitigate the 
heats of summer and the cold of winter. 
2. To build our dwellings on dry healthy locations 
—not to obstruct a free circulation of air about them 
by high fences or out buildings, or let any species of 
dead animal matters accumulate about them to poi¬ 
son the atmosphere. 
3. To ventilate well our sleeping rooms, which 
should not have stoves, except to expel dampness, 
nor should the doors be closed at night in private 
dwellings, of apartments where there are several in¬ 
mates. 
4. To take special care to permit no vegetable pu¬ 
trefaction to take place in the cellars under our dwell¬ 
ings—to nave these so that a current of fresh air may 
be made to pass through them whenever the tempe¬ 
rature of the atmosphere will permit—to have them 
dry, and cleaned and whitewashed as early in the 
spring as the season and circumstances will permit. 
5. To have our cattle-yards, stables and pig-sties 
so far from our dwellings, as that we shall not be oblig¬ 
ed to breathe the poisonous exhalations arising from 
them; and carefully to remove from these in the 
spring, and as often at other times as good health and 
good husbandry require, all the dung and putrefying 
matters of which they may become recipients. 
6. As domestic animals are affected equally with 
ourselves, the same care, as to cleanliness and venti¬ 
lation, should be extended to them—clean ventilated 
stables, dry sheds to protect from the weather, and 
well littered yards—and the dung should not be per¬ 
mitted to ferment in the yard faster than it can be re¬ 
moved and covered in the soil, for the hoed crops of 
the season. The exhalations from summer yarded 
dung, especially where the cattle-yard or hog pen is 
contiguous to the house, circumstances which ought 
never to occur, have a most deleterious influence up¬ 
on health. 
7. A regard to health, as well as a desire to increase 
the productiveness, and to improve the beauty, of our 
grounds, should induce us to clear up and drain marsh¬ 
es, swamps, and all lands which abound in stagnant 
waters, the certain source of deadly malaria. The 
large tract of country lying in the neighborhood of 
Rome, termed the Campania, was, in the times of Ro¬ 
man greatness, well drained, and was healthy and ex¬ 
tremely populous. In modern times the draining has 
been neglected, the population have virtually disap¬ 
peared, and the deadly malaria, generated by its 
marshes, is annually the terror and the destroyer of 
man and beast. 
8. And lastly, we should avoid many of the evils of 
vitiated air, by a particular attention to personal 
cleanliness. A large portion of the food which we 
daily consume is thrown to the surface by insensible 
perspiration, where, unless aided in its escape by ex¬ 
ercise in the open air, change of clothing, or frequent 
ablutions, it accumulates, obstructs the healthful offi¬ 
ces of the skin, vitiates the air which we breathe, and 
induces disease. The odor given off by diseased per¬ 
sons, or those of dirty habits, and particularly by 
blacks, indicates the presence of those poisonous mat¬ 
ters, which are ever obnoxious to health. Grown 
persons, according to Lavoissier, throw off an average 
of five pounds per day, of impure matter, through the 
skin, highly charged with poisonous properties; and 
if not habitually removed by habits of cleanliness, they 
must taint and poison the air we breathe. ..*■ 
The Mind and the Soil. 
In cultivating the soil, we have our seed-time and 
our harvest-time ; and we all very well know, that if 
the good seed is not deposited in good time, the har¬ 
vest will be scanty, or will fail. We can reap only 
what we sow, unless it be the weeds*and noxious 
plants which spring up spontaneously from our ne¬ 
glect. So it is with the mind. It has its seed-time 
and its harvest-time—its vernal season of youth, and 
its summer season of manhood. And the good seed 
we sow in the young mind, will as assuredly grow, 
and give its increase, as that which we deposite in the 
soil. Our crops tend to increase our wealth, and add 
to our animal enjoyments. The improvement of the 
mind not only tends to these desirable ends, by aid¬ 
ing the labor of the hands, but it tends to knowledge, 
to virtue, to happiness. 
Do we estimate these things rightly, and give to 
each its relative value! Do we not graduate the 
wages of the laborer, who cultivates our soil, by the 
measure of good he can render us ! And do we not 
graduate the wages of the teacher, who cultivates 
the minds of our children by a very different principle 
—by the small amount which his wmntsorhis limited 
capacity compels him to take 1 Are we not apt to 
make merit the criterion of our choice in the culti¬ 
vator of the soil, and the want of it the criterion of 
bur choice in the cultivator of the mind ! And yet, 
all must acknowledge, that qualification and excel¬ 
lence are as much more indispensable in the latter, than 
it is in the former, as mind is superior to matter-—as 
a good man is superior to a good crop. Who would 
not feel a higher pride in rearng a family of intelligent, 
virtuous and useful children, than in rearing a fine 
beast, or in raising a great crop of corn! Let us try 
to mend in this matter—to get good laborers in the 
mental and moral, as well as in the vegetable field 
of culture. Then shall our children “rise up and 
bless us.” 
Agricultural Books for Common School Libraries. 
Mr. Beebe, of Lima, inquires of us, what agricultu¬ 
ral books are suitable for a common school library! 
We are glad the question has been asked us, but re¬ 
gret that we cannot answer it more satisfactorily to 
ourselves and to our correspondent. The demand 
for books upon agriculture has been so limited, that 
there has been but little inducement to write or pub¬ 
lish them. The dependence of those who have wish¬ 
ed to improve their practice in husbandry, has been 
principally upon British publications, not well adapt¬ 
ed to our practice, however correct in the principles 
upon which good practice must be based—and upon 
the agricultural periodicals of our country. Yet, there 
are some valuable books upon agriculture, both Ame¬ 
rican and foreign, which we can recommend ; among 
which we will name Davy’s Agricultural Chemistry, 
Chaptal’s Chemistry applied to Agriculture, Sir John 
Sinclair’s Code of Agriculture, Armstrong’s Treatise 
on Agriculture, Ruffin on Calcareous Manures, Lor- 
rain’s Husbandry—and, if we may be excused for 
what to some may seem egotism, we would particu¬ 
larly recommend, as agricultural works for every 
common school library, the Cultivator and Genesee 
Farmer, of our own state, and some of the agricultu¬ 
ral periodicals of other states, in a suitable bound 
form. We do not hesitate to say, that these periodi¬ 
cals furnish more useful matter for improvement in 
agriculture, and in rural and household economy, than 
almost any books that can be procured in the Ameri¬ 
can market; with this further advantage, that they 
do not cost so much, by one-half or two-thirds, as the 
matter they contain would cost in any other form. 
They are records of the improvements of the day in 
every branch of husbandry, and of rural economy, 
adapted to the every day wants of an agricultural po¬ 
pulation. To speak of the Cultivator alone—in the 
last twelve months, it has received and published the 
communications, mostly upon practical husbandry, and 
by practical men, of more than two hundred corres¬ 
pondents. Every farmer will acquire some useful 
hints, and improve his practice, from i he better exam¬ 
ple of a neighbor. This example adds to his stock of 
useful knowledge. How greatly does it add to these 
advantages, when, instead of the improvements of 
one, he can profit from the improvements of two hun¬ 
dred good farmers. 
There are several minor works upon agriculture, as 
Fessenden’s Practical Farmer, Budd’s complete 
Practical Farmer, Taylor’s Farmers’ School-book, 
&c., which are principally made up of extracts from 
agricultural books and periodicals. But most of the 
books we have named are scarce in market. The 
editions were limited, in consequence of the little de¬ 
mand for works of this kind. The agricultural books 
adapted to an American Common School Library, 
are yet to be written. 
A common school library should contain something 
upon gardening—a branch of rural economy, that has 
hitherto received far less attention than its importance 
demands. Good gardens, among a rural population, 
are the highest marks of social refinement. They 
exert a benign influence upon our rougher passions, 
and the grosser appetites, and enhance the charms 
and enjoyments of home. We may name Bridgman’s, 
Fessenden’s and Wilson’s. 
We want in these libraries, also, plain treatises up¬ 
on silk culture, a business of unquestionable profit, as 
a household employment—and a proficiency in which 
may be attained by a little practice, with the aid of 
printed directions. We name Whitmarsh, Com¬ 
stock, and Roberts. The principles of mechanics are 
all important to a rural population. To apprehend 
them, and their mutual relations, says Babbage, is 
within the power of almost every person possessing a 
tolerable education. A knowledge of these princi¬ 
ples is valuable to the farmer, and mechanic, and ma¬ 
nufacturer, in the construction and management of 
the implements and machines which add to human 
power, and economize time. Of works of this kind, 
we understand two are preparing by competent gen¬ 
tlemen of this state, and will be published the current 
year. 
We should also have in these libraries, some works 
calculated to make our sons early acquainted with 
the constitution and laws of the land-—with their 
duties as citizens and freemen—and to make our 
daughters good housewives, and good economists. 
“ The Citizen’s Manual,” by Judge Concklin, is an 
invaluable work for the first of these purposes. Nei¬ 
ther young nor old can peruse it without benefit— 
without feeling a new interest in the preservation of 
social order, and new obligations to qualify themselves 
for the high political and social duties of freeman. 
Upon household and domestic duties and accomplish-^ 
ments, we have several valuable works, from Ameri¬ 
can ladies, among whom are Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Sigour¬ 
ney, &c. 
Utile dulci —“the useful, with that which is agree¬ 
able,” has long been a favorite quotation, and the sen¬ 
timent is one which we respect. The useful should 
have precedence of the agreeable. We should teach 
our youth how to earn wealth, before we instruct 
them in the fashion of spending it—we should build 
the house, before we expend our means for its furni¬ 
ture and embellishments. Nine-tenths of those, who 
are to get benefit from common school libraries, are 
destined to obtain a livelihood by manual labor,—and 
our first object should be io render their labors invit¬ 
ing and respectable, by affording them the opportuni¬ 
ty of rendering them intelligent and profitable. We 
speak with confidence, when we say, that agricultu¬ 
ral labor would be rendered far more profitable, at 
least one-third, in the coming, if not in the present ge¬ 
neration, by the facilities to improvement which 
might be afforded through common school libraries ; 
and we have no doubt, that other branches of produc¬ 
tive labor might be equally benefitted. We estimate 
the value of our present agricultural products at nine¬ 
ty millions of dollars per annum. On our assump¬ 
tion, endorsed by our chief magistrate, that the value 
of this product might be increased one-third, or thirty 
millions of dollars, by proper instruction and encou¬ 
ragement—how paltry in comparison, is the small 
sum asked for from the legislature, to furnish this en¬ 
couragement and instruction! It is better to give 
our sons a useful education, without fortune, than to 
give them fortune without a useful education. Men 
wed habits, before they wed wives, and generally 
cling to them longer in life. 
We spread our nets too broad. 
The great misfortune in our country is, that when 
a good thing is started, there are too many who want 
to share in its honors and its profits ; and hence what 
would be very useful and profitable to a limited extent, 
is, by being divided, and subdivided, as respects the 
patronage of the public, rendered useless to the pro¬ 
jector, and of very little benefit to the public. 
We will apply our remark, first, to our colleges, our 
highest schools of learning. A certain number of 
these, by concentrating the public patronage, and the 
bounty of government,would be able to confer the high¬ 
est qualifications for usefulness, and the highest honors, 
upon the pupils under their charge. But when we 
divide among two or three, or a half a dozen, the pub¬ 
lic bounty and the patronage which is necessary to 
render one useful, we overdo the business, and in a 
measure thwart our object of high intellectual im¬ 
provement. We adopt the foolish policy of the far¬ 
mer, who expends his labor upon three hundred acres, 
when by jucicious management, he might get the 
same produce from one hundred acres, and save the 
expense of two-thirds of the land and two-thirds of his 
labor. 
Next, our academies. Every cluster of houses 
that is denominated a village is ambitious of having 
an academy, forgetting that it requires an outlay of 
some thousand dollars in the outset, to start one re¬ 
spectably, and an income, annually, in tuition fees, 
or from other sources, of two thousand dollars more, 
to maintain it usefully. The consequence is, that ve¬ 
ry few offer, for any length of time, so good advanta- 
tages as a private school. Were two-thirds discon¬ 
tinued, or converted into industrial schools, to teach 
hand-work as well as head-work, the remaining third 
would be far better sustained, and be far more useful. 
The worst place to educate a boy, so far as depends 
on the advantages of the school, is his native village, 
where he is wont to lean on parental support and to 
remain a mere succor. Send him among strangers, 
and he will learn to go alone, and to depend, for know¬ 
ledge and character, upon his personal application 
and good conduct. Under shelter of the parent tree, 
the succor will always be a succor—soft, porous and 
dependent; but early removed, it strikes its roots vi¬ 
gorously into the soil, towers aloft, and soon ranks 
with its parent, in hardiness, beauty and usefulness. 
Then our canals, rail-roads, and turnpikes, come 
in for a like competition for public favor, and involve 
a like useless expenditure. By their unreasonable 
multiplication, individuals, and districts, may be gra¬ 
tified, but the public are seldom benefitted to the ex¬ 
tent of the outlay ; but this matters little to the pro¬ 
jectors, provided the state can be induced to lend its 
credit for their completion, and ultimately to assume 
their ownership. 
We are not sure that our agricultural periodicals, 
useful as they are to the community, are not multi¬ 
plying too fast, both for the benefit of their conductors 
and of the public at large. It is not their number, 
but their quality, that confers value ; and their price 
