Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1845-11-06

ISIS 2nxlously seek secure investments
yielding per cent. Manufacturing 10.
sestments including some risk, ana the
personal attention and labour of he pro
.EprietoF will not average more than 10 per
cent, aud mercantile investments wili
/. close attention, personal lahonr, aud much
4 risk probably do not exceed ihatsun.- -
Now suppose a merchant with CAPITA
Of 10000 has an ANIMAL profit OF $1,000.
What economy and exac,ness would il
require t. ray bis house rent AMI taxes,
fufnsh mel and servants. provide .ar his
able and other necesSaries for the supper,
Of his family and education Of his chli-
drtni Yel most of you enjoy in supe-
ri degree those comforts which ii requires
SO large a portion OF his psohls to procure
and OF the end II the y az nave rhaps
soae S Of 5000 over, which is 10 fact an
.iof Which vau give your farms credit. -
You complAin Of the profits Of farming
because the merchant seems to handle
more money han yourselves, without re-.
tmembAring that II IS bis capital. large
portion Of which he IS compelled every
wear u have N cash, TO renew his stock,
Bat which he can no nose use for other
pup ses, than ihe Farmer could sell eight
or TIA acres Of his land annually without
Iutmste rum. He is oblige too contnu-
ally 20 have money or IFS equvslenl, to
pay for those things which the farmer IS
I causianlly selling him, all Of which gives
/ hun the apparenl command OF money far
b yond his actual profits. Subsistence
400 tben comforts, are the obpcls Tor
which men labor, and il We enjoy these
teu our farms, We should at least estimate
them, al what they W 4uld cost Others in
leash. Our failure ta do this. is one rca.
son Why 50 many Of Us decry the gains
OF our own calling and discourage others
from makiog investments in il. But
more serious EVIL, is, that believing the re
suits pi agricultural investments unproi.-
able, our iafmtts become unwilling 60 ex-
pend upon their farms, the capital abso-
Iimely necessary to improve them, and
thus continually lessen tier own profits,
and duninisA the value Of their LANDS.
! In this view Of the sucjeet have taken
10 notice Of The risks of the merchant, but
have his successful career with that Of
the farmer. | was very much struck
With statement in Massachusetts by Mir.
/ Dearborn oil Boston WHICH ! lamant not
Being able now 0 recover. From long &C.
lquaiulance with that thriving city, aud an
accurate knowledge Of those VINO had
been engaged IN merchandise there, he
stated as the result Of his observation
thai number which cannot exactly re-
member, bat exceeding ninety out oil eve
lry hundred had failed. THIS astounding
statement excited my curiosity, TO know
whether tins fatality amongst merchants
was peculiar 10 that city. | have looked
back for forty years upon the county o!
4 Berkeley and called in the knowledge OF
tho oldest ellizens to AID my own. Here,
where one would suppose business as sale
as IN any part IF the word, | find the
4 following results Ofsixty seven firms
/ who nave rttted from business, three
lhave died with independent fortunes, three
or four mole with very moderate means,
with the circumstances OF nne, ! am ON
acquainted, and al least fifty have utterly
failed. ! have heard farmers say tbst
| ihey wished 10 put their sons into mer-
chandise, as an easier way Of getting q
living than by farming. These authen.
Tic statistics may teach them a lesson Of
wisdom, and make them prize more high
Ily The security If not The profits of their
vocation.
Another great Encouragement to our
agriculture, is the longing eye WHICH ma.
nv OF our Farmers are continually casting
towards tue unexhauSted virgin soil OF tie
west. Not considering themselves per
m4nen!ly fixed here, they are unwilling to
incur III labor and expense OF improving
their lands to the extent of lis capacity,
or even Of sustaining them IN Their pre-
sant condition. THIS has paroIizing el
feet not only on themselves but on their
neighbors, and thus injuriously aiiecs the
agricultural prosperity of our community.
/ The travel OF our people is almost excIu-
sively 10 the west, or to the country be
tween US and our several markets, which
IS greatly inferior TO our own IN fertility
and Improvement. Could they see more
of the improved parts of Pennsylvania,
New York, and Connecticut, or know more
If wat has ben effected in certain parts
of our own State by marllng, they woulc
be better able TO Judge what might be done
on lbeir own lands: then if they rightly
estimated the advantages Of our easy and
cheap access to the hes. markets Of our
country, they would perhaps cease TO look
with anxlous eye to those new countries,
/ the advantages Of which think are great.
| IL over. estimated, and the disadvantages,
neatly overlooked. AS consider this an
impor.ant question TO our grcul,ural in
leres,s, shall be excused for considering
It at some length Lest may hereafter
forget il however, will first relate for
Your encouragement The success of my
I ir,end Mr. Edmund Ruffiu. well known
throughout Virginia for the beneti; h. has
CONFERRED on agriculture. About thirty
years since he came into the possession Of
IAN exhausted James river estate, much
the lager part Of which too was natural
! IN poor and unproduct We. He too had
tstrung desire 10 sell out aud remove TO
Flresfer soil but fortunately Tor himself