Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1844-02-17
ADDRESS OF THE HON. r. II. Nc.
CALEB.
Concluded

4
q II 10 agriculture, pursued upon these prin,
/ eelPies, mat imparts TO rural life those penu.
me allurements which have rendered il il al
ages' ana - all cIiines the theme of pleasing
contemplation, for the great aud the road
II is such rural life, with In conActonspsss ~
independence, sweetened and softened by
those refined and rational amusementa ,bst
can alone be found and adequately enioved in
a retreat from the cares Of the world n
which lew minds are so insensibie aa mi IN
toyei the enjoyment. 1t has ever been The
fruitful, soul inspiring theme Of The poet. the
cherished repose Of the philosopher delyinr
into the arcana Of nature, or scanning The
glorles OF The visible creation-of the weary
statesman, flying from public cares and seek.
ing AMID sylvan bowers and smiling pardens
a soiace Tor public ingratitude. Il waa the
theme on which the venerable Hesiod. AZ tho
Prlebt OF The MUSES. on Mount IIelicon, loved
most 10 dwell; and Il was for him, aIrnos,
three thousand years ago, 10 i~nculcate precepts
on the %suhlecto Of agriculture which may be
READ with instructive interest by the farmer
Of The present day. 1t was the theme that
cailed loFth the sweetest strains from one If
The sweetest of the Latin Bards, who, frnm
the giided halls aud sumptuous banquets Of
an lndulgeut and mhniicent prince, woplo
fly TO the scenes Of early association and
BBf R9Fl ifaEl5 b l ttee 1kEih and e. I'D 'Is
the hills and valleys Of his cherished NaptesH.
sha even the farmer OF the present day may
draw nnerrlng maxims for his guide from the
poem which he composed in obedience r. The
request OF his patron, Mecenas, for the Dur.
pose OF turning the attention Of his country |
men TO the pursuits of agriculture-a poem
which will be read with interest and pleas-
nre IN all countries and in all tongues, by all
who are capable Of approaching the charms
o. true poetry, from the solemn professor
within the walls of a university, to the hum.
plest Ihyrus who tunes his rustic reed under
the beechcn shade. 1t was this rural lie
these agricultural pursuits which drew from
me gttaed mlseFies ola throne, the Emperor
D!ocletian' who, in his imperial palace of
Nlcomedia, could lay aside the purple and
the crown, retire TO the~solitudes of his ma
i've Dalnatla and pass the residue Of hs
planting aadgardening."
Tie was solicited, says the, eloquent histo-
ran, ''by The restless Maximian. TO re.as
The reins Of government and the i'm ,
perlal purple. He rejected the temptation :
with a smile Of pity. calmly observing that 4,
Ifhe could show Maximian the cabbares ,
which he had planted with his own hands at :
SaloHa, ne should no longer be urged to reIin. :
lulsli the enjoyment of happiness for the "
pursuits of power" We roam in magma.
ion through the smiling p~arterres of Wotton.
which after a lapse Of almost two hundred d
ears bears testimony still to the elepant p
asie OF the accomplished Evelyn:-we listen II
With rapture to The Tyre of Shenstone and C.
.ream of The shady walks and shining cas-. y
AIDES OF his charming Leesowes-we hear tt
ne eVer-varylng, ever-inspiring of the little st
lngllsh nightingale from his bowers of
Wiekenhaln, and we turn and sigh for the
nipple, captivating f~elicities of rural life.
We contemplate with admiration the skill
energy of Sir William Temple in estab-
shlng the peace of Europe by the treaty of
lmeguen; but it is in his horticultural pur-
Its IN the retirement of his favorile Sheen,
lat our admiration Of the diplomat;st is lost
generation for the philosopher, who, sick.
led and Disguised with the frivolities of q
'rrupt and venal court, could devote the
sldue Of his days to trailing his vines, pru.
ng his trees and to the construction of his ro
Dissertation on Gardening" We IS
ad with enthusiasm of the splendid abilities loo
BolIngbroke as an orator and statesman ~
y y 10 IN install from power, in his philoso- I'M
zeal secIusion at Darnley, in a residence ~,
- HNihS "CiC paljLGu WITH IUlIEdIiOQg OF HoI
implements, that we love to lis. r..
! to those moral and political btecepts No,
llch flowed utaneously from the mex -.
ustible fountain Of his mind. There, az r.,
e Of the great literary triumviraie of his ~
II ne conld superintend the operations of ani
plough, and pour forth those splendid ~
Xims, which remain as ~salutarv rules to all -
ure statesmen. We come down to the ,;as
tory of our own cnuntrv-to hin, ~La.s ~
lie deeds and sublime virtues, amonr those -,
all men in all nations, still stand pre-enin- din.
ly forth, the purest and most eleyatIng A.
me. fof moral meditation. We cannot I
m beneath the shades of Mount Vernon ,J
bout becoming wiser and better from the nh;
temptation, not oRly Of the exalted char saf.
OF Ifs former possession, but the remains tha'
hat taste, skill and industry, which are n;v.
Ty where sIgnalIy displayed. If we turn / al
he venerable Hero whose military glory snr
o intimately associated with that ~f4osnen. 81
is event which has given Immortality to the The
on which we have assembled, we shall me,
old IN him a worthy example of the M
erican farmer, and a happy exampIifcation ofn,
he1qnletnde and repose which are ever /, :.
Eyed by the care-worn veteran, in rural 1a.
fusion. Or if we behold the great beacon IS :,
american statesman in his beautiful re- I'D
lnent at AshIandt we shall find that in all ,,bS
qualities requisite 10 render him an accom- Gov
he'd ana successful agriculturist and far oan
, ne SHINES as conspicuous as in tie DOS tka
non oil those dazzling attributes of The hnto
or and statesman, whicR have rendered an !,
an OBJECT OF admiration to his own aga'
to p~osterity through all time. ~
invoke these brilliant examples, fellow I.J;.