BY CiEO. W. BOWifLl\.
NEW SERIES.
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ADDBESS !
Delivered before the Agricultural Society of
Somerset Count i/, '•'/ its Jlnnim! Exhibi
lion, OCTOBER d, IS'IH, by
IICK. JEHEMUII S. BLUK,
Chief Justice cf FenuEyiYauia. ,
—~
Gentlemen of the. cultural Society :
01 course i am not to give you
anv instructions in the eMails ol piactuai agri
culture. 111 were competent to such a task, j ,
this is not the occasion to execute it. An essay !
on the breeds of cattle, oi the genealogy ol hor- j
fit . s —on the process ol making butter, ti.e com- . ,
jiositton of manures, or tiie cultivatiouof partic- i ,
ular crops —would, at present, he out ot place ,
and out ol time. Aly purpose is broader, it not
better,and mare gem-rat il md. more uselul. Ihe
(iutv assigned to me will be done it 1 lay before ,
you a feu- of the facts and reasons which tend ,
to establish one most important truth, namely:
that the art that you profess is in a condition
which needs, and will moat amply repay, a vig- |.
orous effort to improve it.
When those who belong to a particular pro
f-.vsi'Mi hear themselves addressed by one whose >
life lias heen devoted to a different pursuit, they !
take his ad vice reluctantly, or not at ail. They
believe as lar as tin v pfoa'se. It is so much j
easier to talk than to do, that an outsider can
never speak as one ha\ nig authority. Hut Jdo
not know whv vou should not take a sugges- i .
tion, or listen to a remonstrance, let it come
from whom it may. There is noiingat all sus
picious in the fact, that a merchant or mechan- :
ir. a [hvsician, minister, law yer or judge, takes ;
a deep interest in vor business. It is their
misfortune, that tin vdor< t follow it: lor most ,
of tll< in Would if they could. Tile taste (or ag- 1
riculturai employments and rural scenery is al- ;
must universal. The cultivation of the earth is
the only trade v. inch Cod ever commanded any
man to exercise; and it seems to have been a ;
part of the divine econornv to surround it with } (
attractions. Cur natural organization is fitted
for the country, and not for the town. The ho- ,
man eve is so formed, that it rests with pleasure ,
on green and blue, and cannot indeed, endure
anv other color for a long time without injury.
Our sense of sight is never s<> much delighted,
because never employed in a manner so congen
ial to the nature obits organ, as w hen we look ;
upward into the clear hlneoi the heavens, or a- ,
load up n the gperi earth. Wle-n man was en- i
iirelv blessed he was placed in a garden not j ,
rm-r-Iy a patch for cabbage and [mtatoes, three
parches square and closed in by a paling fence--
—but comprehending grounds of vast extent
and boundless magnificence, adorned with flow
ers and enriched with fruits. Hill and dale,
forest and fountain, shady walks ami sunny
slopes, ricli fields and verdant meadows, with
four gr-at rivers rolling through them, made a fa
landscape, such as no eve has ever seen since j
the fall. It was here, that h- uv- n arid ail hap
py constellations shed tfoir seh ctest influence j ,
on lb.- marriage of our first parents. Imagina
tion I ns never painted a scene of perfect happi
n<--- without similar surroundings. Scenes offa
iJyllian beauty form the principal feature in j ,
th-heaven of every religion, whether true or i
l ike. The Elysiati Fields of Gre**k mythology, |
and the Paradise of Mahomet, are ready exam- ,
pfos. The land which flowed with milk and
honey was, to the Jew, a tvpe of tiiat better
country, to which he should go after hi> journey
through the wilderness of life was closed. And !
many a Christian, when his soul recoiled from
the dark stream of death, has felt his courage re
vived by theassuiance, that
"Sweet field* (ipyon-t the swelling flood
Stand ilress'd //•>/ s green ."
Other occupations are follower! for the wealth j
and fame they produce, but agriculture is crowd
ed with amateurs, who pursue it for its own j
sake- and thousands feel the same desire, whose
Barrow means forbid them to indulge their!
wishes. When Gincinna'tus abandoned the j
tea forship of the mightiest empire in the world,
to hurry home and finish his ploughing before it ,
g >t too late in the season, and when Washington
retired from the Presidency, to cultivate his
farm, they both yielded to an inclination as
common as it was natural. The praise they
have received for it, is a thousand times greater j
than they deserved. The passion for fame, for!
wealth, or for power, does undoubtedly predom- ;
inate in some pesons: but love for llie simple 1
ph-asures of a country life is seldom extinguish- '
ed in any sane man's mind.
I hese natural tastes, how ever,do not account
lor all the solitude, which is felt for tl;p prosper- j
itv of agriculture. Our interest in it is marvel- j
ously quickened by the fact that our bread de- :
fiends on it. Jt is the art pres-er vative of all arts, j
Its success lies at the foundation of the general j
welfare. The fruits of the farmer's labor sup
ports the industry of all other classes. The j
Ultimate reward for every species of toil must I
come directly or indirectly from the earth, that 1
common mother,
''whose womb immeasurable, and infinite bieast, j
Items and feeds all."
hut though it be true that agriculture is the
irio>t useful, as well as the most attractive, of all '
pursuits, it is equally undeniable, that it has ad- !
vanred more slowly than anv other towards the 1
perfection of which it is believed to be capable.
s |eaking comparatively, it can scare Iv be said
'"have advanced at all. In every thing that,
a-ua commerce and manufactures, improvements
JIP mtiit ♦
are made, which have changed the whole face of
human society. Those interests are projected
forward into the future, with a force which
overleaps centuries, while agriculture creeps on
with the slow pace of the hours. In other de
partments ingenuity and skill have supplied the
place of labor, but the hard toil of the husband
man fins not been perceptibly lessened, nor bis
profits in any striking manner increased. Even
the useful improvements that have been inven
ted are slowly and suspiciously accepted. No
< iass of people in llie world, except lawyers, are
more reluctant, than farmers, to change an old
mode of proc< dure for a better one.
This has been seen and felt, as a great mi-for
tune, by those who are determined to mend it
il they can. They do not believe, that there is
any inherent.difficulty in the nature of the sub
ject, which should make the progress of agricul
ture less, than that of'other branches ol industry.
Scier tific men and practical men—ne-n who
think, and men who work—are every where
giving their attention to this, as the greatest of
human concerns. Jf the effort he successful,
tho-e who aid in it will earn a title to public
gratitude, such as no conqueror ever won with
ins su ord.
(j tie of the forms which this movement has
taken is that of Industrial Exhibitions. ihe
gn c:t shows at the Crystal Palaces of New York
and London mnv have done ,-ome -good, ft is
Certain t hat the State Fairs have been exceeding
ly beneficial. But County Exhibitions when
they become general will be fairly worth all
others put together; because their effort and
influence come directly home to the business
and liosoms of the very persons, by whom alone
the cause must be carried through. It is on the
local societies, that the chief reliance is placed.
I tii-i-t, that the day win-nan AgricultureS <n
ty was firmed in-rc, will be an era, on which
your memories, arid those of your children, will
love to linger.
To make the society useful, it is necessary that
we should be as marly unanimous as possible.
We must disarm hostility wherever w- find if,
and rouse the indifferent to active exertion.—
We may r-asotiab! v hope, that what we see
and hear on this occasion will contribute some
thing t > that end.
I do not see how any man can withold his as
sistance from vou—much less how any one car;
oppose vou—unless lie fo-Ir-r gs to one or either
of the four cla.-sess, which I am about 1 > enum
erate. J. There are men who think that Ag
riculture is wholly inrapahle of any improve
ment whatsoever. Withflmm farming is farm
ing, and nothing more: know ledge cannot
do it better, nor ignorance worse; the -busi
ness is now, 3ii I was when Adam left the gar
den of Eden, in as perfect a condilfoir, a it ever
can be. Others folieve, that though much
more might be know n, it is not best that tin y
should know too much, especially T out then
own business. In th--ir opinion fhe tree of
knowledge continues !o bear a forbidden fruit,
arid no man can make himself a perfect fool ex
cept in one wav, and that is fining wis-r than
his father. 3. Those who belong to the tl ird
class ass"rt, that agricultural societies are m t
tit and proper means of spreading among the
people the knowledge which they admit might,
and ought to be, communicated iri some wav.
j-. The fourth set are almost too contemptible to
he mentioned. Tfu vb-ar to tlm country tin
relation that hardened sinners do the church.—
They don't care. \>u rnav convince them, that
this cause is n good one, and still its success
would give them pleasure, its failure no pain.—
Such people never legard anything beyond tin ir
o n most immediate and most selfish interests.
it would he an insult to this assembly to sup
pose that il contains a single person of the de
scription last mentioned. Ido not believe it
does. It will be sufHcit nt, therefore, for all
pres. rit purposes to show, tint trait and ray
desirable im^rovmeo!s rnny be. made in agri
culture by Mains oj • ifric/liurd Societies.
Improvement—what do we mean bv that
word An ait is improved simpiv bv th • u-e
of more sci nee in the p: art ice of it. I know
very well that the mention of scientific fann
ing suggests to many minds the idea of a model
Farm , conducted on fanciful principles, ! v suine
soft-handed gentlemen, with plenty of money
and not much common sense—a place pleasant
enough to look upon, but very expensive—al -
sorliing annually from other sources -if the
owner's income, three or four times as much as
it produces. But this is nr t what I mean. The
improvements I speak of, are llios- which will
lighten labor and swell the profits; irtq rove
merits which can be measured by the increased
value of your land, and the additional number
of dollars in your purse at the end of each year.
The earth is a machine, with certain powers,
which ate iri constant motion, during the sum
mer season, carrying on the profess of vegeta
tion. Like other machines, it i- liable to get cut
oforder. It also resembles other machines iti
the fact, that the value of its products depend
ntainlv on the skill and care of those who at
tend it. Bad.lv managed, it turns out bad work,
in small quantities, and its powers are speedily
exhausted. With more skill, it w ill yield lar
g r and better products, with hss la! or and ex
pense, while its capabilities will become greater
bv use. The knowledge, necessary to keep this
grain and fruit-making machine running to the
best advantage, is agricultural science.
If you relied for a living on a water mill or a
steam engine, vou would not be content, wit fl
out knowing as much a!tout its structure, and
the laws of its motion, as would enable you to
get the most out of it with the least wear and
tear. This would be mechanical science.
Science is the handmaid of art. The latter
cannot exist, even in a rude state, without the
former. 1 do not say, that every artisan is
bound to comprehend the whole theory oi his
tiade. But he should know—or, at least, he
should not refuse to know—the practical results
of other peoples' experience, as well as his own.
Yerv little is done in tins world bv mere force.
Blind labor swells its muscles, and strains its
m rv-s, to no purpose. The miner digs in vain,
BEDFORD, PA. FRID.
until geologv tell- him the posit ion of the trea
sure he seeks. The dyer cannot make his col
ors adhere, unless chemistry furnishes him a
mordant. Optics must teach the painter the
law- of perspective, before his picture w ill stand !
out on the canvass. The vessel of the mariner!
w iil float at random, until he learns from riatur- j
ai philosophy, that the magnetic needle points :
to the pole.
If is thus that Science aids us in the common- j
est business of life, and scarcely claims the work \
as her own. Star-eyed and glorious as she is,!
she disdains not the humblest employments.— !
She comes to vou, with benevolence and truth ,
beaming from her face, and offers her service,!
not only to decorate vour houses and train the
flowers in vour garden plots, but to fashion your
implements, to compound vour manures, to sow '
ami gather your croj <—to relieve vou, in short,
from aw orld of drudgery, and to scatter plenty i
al! over the smiling land. She will put time
ami space under y-uir command, ar.d pour out ;
uncounted leaps of treasure at vour feet. It:
was of her that Solomon spok-, w hen he said :;
'•fler merchandise is richer '.ban the merchan
dise of sili.-r, and the gain thereof greater than ;
fine gold. She is more precious than rubies, and :
all thou c.iiis't desire is not to he compared tin- ,
toher. Length of days is in tier right hand,
and in her left hand riches and honor."
IV ithout Science, man the ruler of this world,'
would be the nipst helpless of all animated be- j
ings. His Creator made him the monarch of,
the earth, and gave him dominion over it, to j
govern and control it -. to lew unlimited con-!
rribiili us upon it, and convert evei \ tiling in it
to Ills own use. But he found himself at the '
head of a revolted empire. All It is physical ;
forces were in a state of insurrection against ins!
lawful authority. The inferior animals were j
his enemies. The sforms poured their fury on '
his unsheltered head. J1 •- was terrified by the i
mar of the thunder, and the lightning seared j
his eye halls. He was parched under the hot
stun of summer, and in winter he was pierced j
by the c >ld. Tiie s >if. cursed for Ids sake, pro- ;
due ed thorns and thistles. The food that might j
sustain his life grew beside the poison thai!
would destroy it, arid he knewnot how to dis
tinguish th>-me fr. :n the either. The earth hid
her minerals deep in her I-s->nj, and guarded
them with a rampart of thick ribbed rocks. Toe
rivers obstructed his passage; the mountains j
frowned th- ir defiance upon him: and the for
est spr- ad its gloom aiound him, breathing a
brow imr horror upon the dangers that beset his
w av. if he left the dry land and trusted In: -
s-'if to the ocean, the waves yaw ned toengulfih
him, and the temp .1 cam-- howling on Iris -
track. He seemed an ex;fo and a:, outcast in
the w orf.l of which 'lie was made to be the sov
ereign. But Sci ::ce C ,'Ties to rescue the p \v-:
erl'-ss king from Ins mi- i v and degradation.— i
Gradually he learns from h-r the laws of his
em | ire, and the means i v which his rebel suli- t
j'-cts may be conquered. From age t.i age he)
accumulates tlt'* knowledge, that clothes him !
with power, and fills Ids coinage. Step alt -r j
step he mounts upward to the throne wifii I-
God commissioned him to fill. He holds a bar
ren sceptre in his hand no longer. Creation 1
bends to do him homage. Tile subjugated e!-- I
ments own him tor their lord, vield him t-heir
feallv, and become th-- .servants ot his will.—
The mine surrenders its treasures : tl-e w ; ifor
ness blooms around rum like an- w Iv.b-r ; the !
rivers ami the sea bear his wealth upon thei: o
soin : tin* winds waft bis nav :- s round the g! : >
steam, the joint product of tire and water, li--
c-inies his obedient and [.-• wvrfu! slave : the sun
beams arc trained to do his- painting: the light
ning h-aps away to carry his message--, and th
earth works with ceaseless activity to bring
forth whatever can minister to his grntif.rntiou.
Bur the whole of fits empire has not vet be, n j
entirely .subdued. The rich'st portion of it—,
tlm agricultural region has been much neglec- i
ted; and ther-he has won but a partial supre.ma- :
oy. Sci- -ce is organizing an 'army ofoccupa- j
tru.' t-) march into it—to take complete p->---- !
si-n—to tame the rebellion of Nature—and to
bring al! In r i-owers under tiie absolute sway j
'if man, then imperial master. You will vol-I
nnteerfor tin* war, when vou think how much
lias heen etiecled in other depart merits iiy simi-;
lar expeditions. The fight is ni tto be danger
ous mr the result d mbtlul. At the \v<-rst, vou j
will only be annoyed for a while by Ignorance
and Error, those savage, but nt v, rv formida- I
hie l.iish-figtiters, who will hang upon vour j
flank arid r> ir. The victor, which n nst come, |
will crown v-u with laurels, bloodless, i.ut green t
with an net lasting veniue, and load you with j
cf toils to I'nrich vou and vour children in all
commg generations.
Every one knows this is an age ot progress.
No one is so ignorant as to know, that in mod
ern time, tiie law s of nature have been revealed
with a fulness, and defined with a precision,
unparalleled at any form-u period. It is equal
ly well known, that these discoveries have been
used, with prodigious effect, in all the arts, ex
cept agriculture, to which they are applicable.
The facts and figures, which mark some of the
capital points of this progress, w ill not he inap
propriate; for 1 repeat, that science stands rea
dy to dolor you ali that she has done and is do- I
ing for others.
A single >team engine now carries at the rate j
of five hundred miles a day, the same quantity
of goods which, forty years ago, it requred se
ven hundred and fitly horses to haul at the late
of fifteen miles a day.
In the busine-s of weaving, one man now does
with ease, what it taxed the hard labor oftwelve i
hundred to perform beloie the invention of the ,
power loom.
All sorts of manufactures are carried on in!
ways so much superior to those which were j
used, even" one generation ago, that goods ot eve- -
ry description are furnished to the consumer
very much cheaper, and many ot them at less
than one tenth of their former price : arid this,
although the demand has been enormously in
creased, and the profits of the manufacture are j
much greater than ever.
Freedom of Thought and Gpinion.
AY MORNING, DEC. S, 1854.
Macaulay says that in the reign ofC. ll—not '
farther back than twice the length of an old
man's life—a letter sent by mail from London
,to one i i the midland counties of England,
| where it would go now, in four or five hours,
! was as long in reaching its destination as it
! would he at this day in going from London tu
the interior of Kentucky.
A man may start from here, cross the Atlan
tic, visit every capital city in Europe, and re
j turn home again, in less time than used to be
; required for a trip to St. Louis.
J The means by which those vvTio "go down to
the great sea in ships," have biought their ait
: to its present state, is an illustration, as sinking
j us any that could be given, of th-* practical use
which lias l een made of scientific discoveries.
It is an old tradition, that the first idea of nav- ,
igation was suggested to the mind of an ingeni
ous savage, by seeing a hollow reed, which had
been split longitudinally, floating on tiie water.
He took the hint and made himself what, in
western phrase, would he called a "dug out."
In process of time oars vwre added. Then came
a more complicated vessel, w itli sails to move,
and a rudder to guide Iter. In this, ab !d nav
igator would ventute from Imadlatul to liead
'••nd, keeping one tye carefully on the shore
and tiie other on the clouds. At length thev
foamed, from the old ( haldean shepherds, how
to steer by the stars. With this little* knowl
edge of astronomy they went far away from
land, though it became w holly useless just at
the time it was most needed—when the skies
w ere over-cfoutfod and the tempest came out on >
tbe il- p. Navigation stood still at that jxiint
for thousands of wars, because it was believed
I (assume farmers now believe of their art,) that
it was already too perfect to be improved. But
-••e what modern discoveries have brought it to.
The mariner now leaves the port of bis depar
ture, with a serene and steady confidence in
hi; resources. Astronomy, natural philos r>hv,
optics, magnetism—the whofo- circle of the
physical sciences—ami numerous instruments,
•••-ntrived with the most exquisite mechanical
-kill, am all at bis command, lie ran measure
l.is rati- of sailing exact!v. and knows tin* course
l-.e is on with a! --ilute certainty. When he is
a t!u i.-and miles out, if he doubts the accuracy
ot bis reckoning, lie is a! fo to correct it. He
lifts to his \ e a tube, bifid with glasses,
through which he can see far cut into illimita
ble space—many millions e>f miles beyond 'he •
reach of his unassisted vision, lie ascertains
the relative position of some awfui'y distant
weild ; and th- nr.-, with ti I -dp ol bis cro
nomefi-r and his nautical almanac, he calculates
1 his longitude. Another observation with -a ti'.f
'*:ont instrument upon another celestial body
gives him tl"' nu ins of finding bis distal i-•
from the equator. Combining tiv s- two results,
h" puts bis finger upon a -pot in the chart, ami
-a\s-, with imdoub!ing confidence. "] arn pre
'iv iv 1 here." Geography tells him where to
I is vessel for the port of her destination,
r.d how t > avoid all dangers that lie between.
!•■ hold* her head to the true course, ar.d b-ar
j-s'y stret(lie ■ away over the dark blue wafers,
; and they fear him onward like the horse that
knoweth his tid-'i. When to this is added the
p wer of steam p> propel him, it may wvll be
■aid that lias conquered both wind and wave.
Fire mav consume bis v s-el, or an icetacg
! it av shatter i ; but the ordinary perils of the
! sta are reduced aim st to nothing.
Cur all-wise Creator has ejidow-ed us with no
ficuitv in vain. {{■• permits i.s to discov. rno
ii;efo'-s truth. Some, which appeared the most
unpromising and I arren. have l.orne fhe richest
Inlit. A nameless philosopher, somewhat more .
tH,m three thousand years ago, was handling a
p'-'ce of amhi r. called in Ins language electron.
Ifo saw, that when it wasbri.-k!v rubbed, it had
I'he power of attracting and holding to it cor
am light substances. He tin tight it was en
hied with some kind of animal life. ibis sat-
I -fo I him, and no better explanation of the
nr.rv-I was given tor several centuries. Yet
' here was :! eg. rm of that .science, rait-d which
j uo.-> tiie Votaic pile, and the Galvanic battery,
! * hose powerlul icterrogat i'U'.s of nature have
tompelh I her !■> vi Id up to tiie most important
screts ot chemistry. -Still no one dreamed of
: tie identity of lightning and electricity : and
lYanklin's letter, suggesting it, w as rt ad in the
. f-ival Society at London an.id rears ol laugh
! fir. N't ither philosophers nor unl-arned men
i O'dd believe that tiie crackling noise, prodnc
; el I v- rubbing a cat's hack, was caused by the
; s-ir.e agent which "splits the utiw edgeahle and
! giarforl < ak." But Fianklin quietly drew it
: frm the cloud iflong the string < t his kite, and ,
h< knew that his .name was linked lor ever w itli ,
tie gratide.-t discovery of the age. it was iin—
uediat 'iv turned f<> practical account. In ev
etv part of the civilized world iron rods arose
atr>ve tlm houses, and pointed towards the hrti-
Ytiis. to catch the lightning and Fad it away. ,
Furiklin had accomplished for all timid people,
wat Macln-th desired for himself, when he
wshed, that he might
—!f*ll pale hearted fear it lies,
And si ftp in spite of th tinder.
Bit the end was not yet. The great triumph
otthe amber science was still to be achieved.—
| Y ii see it now in the vn-t system of electric
i M res distributed all through tiie country, along ;
: wlich the "sulphurous an-l /a(-executing (
fir-s," go flashing with intelligence, wherever ,
th'V are sent hy the w iil that controls them—
foil ing the news of life and death over moun
-lati, and lake, river, and valley charing
tliKands of miles at a single bound. By means
I cl'this amazing instrument, the eloquence ol
. th? statesman thrills ill the nervesof the people
i at each extremity of the nation, almost as soon
I asit is uttered at the rapitui : the friend at one
; sin l of the continent takes counsel with his
' trend at the other, as if they stood face to face;
aid the greeting of the far-off husbands leaps in
ai instant to the heart of his wife, and makes
lie fireside of his distant home glad with tiie
k row ledge of his safety.
Science has extended her dominion even over
j which scented to be entirely ruled by
'the fickfo sceptre of Chance. Life is proverbial- I
Iv uncertain ; yet nothing can be truer than
the iite tables of an Insurance Company, when
ils officers desire to make them so. The desti
ny of each human individual is hid in deep ob
suritv—shadows, clouds, and darkness rest up- j
on it, and conceal it from every eye except the
all-seeing One. But disease and mortality do :
iheir work on large communities by general j
laws. The average duration cf life, and the j
average amount of sickness, in a nation, can be
counted before hand with perfect accuracy.—
Thus, while the individual nan is a mystery to j
tie solved by Omniscience alone, man in 11st* j
aggregate is reduced Dy his brotuer man to a I
mathematical problem.
We dare not boast of much improvement in '
Jaw or politics. Indeed, they seem to be grow - 1
ing woi.-e. While other things are rising, they j
have a fatal proclivity for the downward track, j
Thev darken with error in the luil blaze oi sur- j
rounding truth. But medicine has advanc- d
with magnificent sirubs. Life is much longer,
and health far better, than it used to be. When
the cholera came to London in a firm so frightful
that everv ow was appalled by the report of its j
ravages, the mortality* was not greater than if j
bad been at the healthiest times u hundred and
liftv years earlier. Truly did Solomon say,
that wisdom has length of days in her right
hand.
What the trade of the Mississippi and the Hud
son w as la lore the sfi an,h< ats—what the man- '
ufacture of cotton before the days of Arkw right !
or Whitney what ocean navigation was be- ;
fore the invention of the compass—what land I
travelling was !>efore railroads—w hat medicine
was when a patient was .-teamed for the smail
IJOX —such is agriculture in the PRESENT stage oi !
its progress, it will not have it- due until it is
up, at leas', to their present condition. Then-!
i.- :i certain ; i: runt ( I skill and sen nee applied, !
every ! a \, to the working of tins machine, I
which we call the earth. Il would be as wise I
to forget all that, as to learn no more. He, '
who has a tar.- to run, is not surer of losing '
ti.e prize, when he turns up-, n ids t;:;< ks, than
when be stan is still in the midst of ins career.
To I ok back, over the ground a reudv tracers- :
ed, w iii.be an incentive into the work, which !
i.- yet to !-■* a' c mpiished. If something has
been dene in the dark time, that is long since
passed, what rnav we tu>t hope for with the
sun-light of modern civilization beaming on our
path ? It nay startle some ol you, at.d sound
in \onr eat- like a siatuler,to tell you, that you
are ail scientific farmers. It is true, nevertheless.
That knowledge, whether it be much or little,
which crimes fn-rn experience, remembered and
arranged so as {> be o a'tv lor use when want
ed. is science. There was a time when it did :
not exist at all, in anv degree. Y\ hen we re
flect how high we are placed by the littie we ;
have, above those who had none, and what a
struggle it n.u-l have cost somebody, to intro
duce it ai tin* beginning, we -ball appreciate its '
value, and perhaps, snake an effort to get more. |
j ,et vour imaginations carry vou hack to the 1
time when agriculture was in its infancy—be
fore the earliest dawn of Greek civilization.—
In those days no n depended principally upon
the chase for a living. Thev ate the flesh, and j
el-.ffo d th' rrs'-lv. - u ith the skins, of wild beasts.
Finds and other v< gs table.* ol spontaneous .
growth added to their luxuries, in summer.—
Tb. v were nut long in discovering one fiinda
n'•t'litai law in nature. narne!\ : that seres de
i • -itedi in the ground w< 11 fo I grow-, and pr> 'luce
similar seeds in larger quantities. But thev knew
nothing of the difference between one soil and !
another. Thev preferred tiie poorest, because it
was easiest chared, and lying higher up on the i
ridge-., dreed' '! no draining. Here they made
holes m the ground with sticks, arid riropi ed
the seeds a few inches below the surface. The ■
rest was left to nature. If such cultivation
gav tie-ma two or three fold crop, they were j
luck v. It happened much ottener that its
growth was choked with weeds, or that it met
with some otlwr e\ i! chance, bv which
••'rite green corn perished e're his yonlh attained a
be an!."
The planting and gathering were left fo women 1
and ehild.ten ; the men despised such work, as
! *ifg inconsistent with their honor and dignity*
Hunting and fighting were the employments, in
which tln-v found pleasure and glory, as well as
food and clotl;ing. But there was one man
among them more thoughtful and observant
than all the rest. He had watched the unfold
ing vegetation, from the sprouting nt tile seed
to the maturity of the fruit, with a keen percep
tion of the whole marvelous and beautiful pro
cess , and he devoted his attention to the rear
ing-of useful grains, with a pleasure, which lie
bad never felt in the excitement of the chase.
He discovered the proper season for planting ;
he noticed that weeds were unfriendly to the
growth of his crops : he found that mixing cer
tain substances, such as ashes and decomposed
leaves, with the soil, would increase its produc
tiveness; he foamed that stirring the ground
about the roots of a plant would make it thrive
more rapidly : tie even got himself a kind of ;
hoe made, by some cunning worker in iron.— i
Here was a philosopher, whose intellectual sta- j
ttire rose high above that of his fellows. Being
a patriot also, and willing to do good for his 1
count!vnien, he conceived the thought ot per
suading them to quit hunting and win a surer ,
iiving from the earth. At his request, they as
sembled under the spreading oaks, to hear his i
plans: and this was the tiist agricultural meet
ing— I will not say, the first on record, for Ido
not know that it is recorded—but certainly the
earliest you ever heard of. The sage unfolded j
his new science to them, proving it, as he went I
along, by the facts of his own experience. The :
chase, he said, was a precarious business at best, I
while agriculture would be a sure and steadfast •
reliance. lie told them, that himself, with the
moderate labor of his own hands, I ad gained in !
a single season, what would sustain life longer!
and better, than all the spoils taken, during the
sametime, by the best ten of their hunters.—
This, he asserted, was true of an ordinary sea-
TIIRHS, S3 PI;R ye\R.
VOL XXIII, NO. 17.
j son, hut sometimes the game disappeared pntire
j !v. He; voice grew deeper, and its tones had a
melancholy impressiveness, ts I'- 1 * described the
sufferings endured !>v them all, when they, the
strong sons of the wilderness, u ith their wives
and children, became the prey ofeaunt famine
; and wide wasting pestilence. He concluded
I by promising, tbat long lives of wealth and con
jtentment should repav tin m for a general dev i
i votion of their labor to the cultivation o! the
i earth.
No cheers follpwed the speech, - hut on the
5 contrary, hoarse murmurs of disapprobation
came up from the multitude, swelling by de
grees into loud opposition, The new meastu<■
was attacked bv ail those shallow sophistries
j those miserable fallacies so hollow and truthless
with which conservatism arms her ignorant
j votaries. That solitary defender of truth wis
I overwhelmed fcv the sort of arguments which
! are.sofnefiir.es reproduced in modern political
meetings and legislative todies, heme accused
i hi:n of a deep design upon their liberties.
Some declared that lie had opposed the nation
in its In t quarrel, and w as, in fact, 110 better
than a traitor. One set knew him to be un
sound in his religious faith, and brought ail the
prejudices of superstition into the fierd against
him. Others charged down upon him with ;
whole arn-v of "illustrious ancestors," u hoso
opinion:, they said, were not like his. Others
I still there were, who could see no objection to
j the nan or the measure, but this was not the
proper occasi n—the time was out of joint.
A portion of the crowd saw, in their much w is
r'om, that to quit hunting would enervate their
frames. arnCuake them a race ol cowards.
Most all, and most profoundly wise
patty who dt-
never con->nt to the enor
of property required by >uch an
ithraflHr. They had invested a large capital
arrows, ami .-pears, and tiaps, ami,
' ni'.e ; and those would ail he useless it their
j future occupation was tor nsist in tilling the
;gn und. There was one mighty man there: a
biae; -o.it!:. who bad gained g: at consequence,
i and earned ir-m meiable skins, by making the
weapons wliiili were used in kdling the beasts
;of the fire l(e thought his craft was •11
danger, and he objected to Agiiculture, for the
■ame roa-on that Demetrius, the siiverstriith, af
terwards opjicseri Christianity, lie put an end
to all discussion, hv uttering a catchword, with
; just enough of no meaning in it to make his
friends unanimous. He lifted op hss big voice,
and crn i "tit, "(ireat is Diana the (loddess ol
the bow. aid the Patroness ol hunters." The
whole assemifly in full chorus echoed the cry—
and there was a great uproar. They would
; have stoned their prophet : I r the sight of his
meek countenance and the recollection of his
blameless life exasperated their wrath : but no
one prop,)-' (! it, and he was sobered to escape.
' This primitive ap' fie n| agricultural science
I was defeated. He died in the melancholy be
lief, that his people vver- d-dined to remain
' forever in barbarism. But not so. A truth
i had been spoken : and truth can never die. It
hail gone down in the shock of the first encoun
ter with, falsehood, but it was not crushed. A
-1 gricultur" fmrid an efficient champion where
such a thing could least have been expected.
At the great meeting under the trees, there was
a little girl, whose parents bad both died of
starvation, and her two brothers had perished
' in thejfjfctileuce, which followed the famine.
ilungifpMid its concomitants had carried away
: every rem!ie she ever l.atl. She was gifted
: v nature with a quick intellect and a kind
heart : and her lonelv condition lad made her
thoughtful and wise above her years. She lis
tened to the words of the sage with beaming
eye, and flushed cheek, and lips parted in
hr-nthbss inten.-t. When she heard a propo
sal to furnish bread in abundant! —bread at ail
times—bread that would a!ways stay the ravages
j of famine, w lather game was plenty or scare
—it roused evi-rv faculty of her mind. She
knew the whole subject by hi ait, as soon as she
i heard it explained. Henceforth she bad nei
ther eye nor ear tor anything else. She gave
herself up entirely to the one great task ot
spreading agricultural scier.ee. Every day al
--<h dto lor own knowledge, and to the irresisti
ble power with which, she impressed it on o'her
minds. She grew up with a lustrous beauty,
which seemed more than mortal. Her ei ru
; tion, though gentle and persuasive, had all I he
vigor which springs from enthusiasm. She*
swayed those rude men with an influence they
had never felt before. One after the other, her
countrymen threw away their bows and spears,
and, with lines in their hands, came and placed
themselves under iier tutelage. What she was
; unable to teach, th j v learned from their own
xperienres mutually communicated. Soon all
the bill sides were covered with rich crops of
waving grain, and the heavy timber began to
disappear from the bottom lands. Stately hou
s-s took tb- place of the mean hovels, which
tiie hunt -rs bad occupied. All the beasts of
the forest, which 00111-1 be made useful to man,
were domesticated. The wild hoar was cap
tured and tan.ed for the sake ol his flesh ; the
sheep submitted to the shearer: the ox bowed
i his shoulder to the volte : and the mouth of the
i horse became acquainted with the bridle bit.
t he wild fruits were transplanted into gardens
| and orchards, and were totally changed under
j the influence of a careful culture. The sour
grape became a great luxury ; the useless crab
: grew t:i be an apple ; the sine expanded into a
delicious plum; and a nameless fiuit, resembling
the bitter almond, swelled out into a peach,
j with surpassing richness of flavor. New im
; plements ot husbandry were successively in
vented. The plough, the ham vv, tile sickle
1 and the scythe, tacit had its share in making
the general prosperity greater.
Agriculture once established, became the pa
i rent of other ait-:. Navigation, commerce and
manufactures added to their wealth. Cities rose
up, filled with a refined population. The na
tion grew strong and powerful, and spread its