The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1848-05-13
Farming, &c.
Wo cd Land 8 /.

Agricultural Fair, deserves the serious con-
federation Of he farmers Of this State. There
are few things in which such want Of fore
thought is exhibited 10y farmers us in the treat
ment of their woodlands. The effect of !his
is already Get,not only by farmers themselves,
hut by the rapidly increasing villages of the
State.
There nre certain other Improvements CON
necicd with agriculture, to which desire ia
draw your special attention. One Of these
is the Introduction Off better economy in the
management of our forest lands The in
creasing value Of timber and fuel ought TO
teach us, that trees are no longer whit they
were in our fathers lime, an incumbrance.
We have undoubtedly already larger pro-
glorl0n of cleared land in Vermont Than
would be required, with proper culture, for
the support of 4 much greater population
than we now possess, and every additional
mere both lessons our means for thorough
husbGndry, 10y disproporiiOnaiely extending
its area, though comparatively worthless 10
ts, would ,be of great value TO them Tie
functions Of the forest besides supplying tim
Der aud fuel ARE very various. The conduct
ing powers oftrees render them highly use
fi in restoring The disturbed equilibrium of
ihc electric fluid; they are Of great value in
Slelterjug aud protecting more tender vege-
tables against the destructive effects Of bleak
and parcling winds, and annual deposit of
Rhe foliage of dccduous trees, and the
decomposition ofthcir decaying tulnks, form
an accumulation Of vegetable mould, which
gives the greatest fertility To the often origi-
HdlIy barren soils on which they grow, and
enriches lower grounds 10y the wash from
rams and the melting SHOWS.
The Inconvenience resulting from want
ntloresight IN the economy oflhe forest. are
already severely felt in many parts ofNew
England, and even in some oi'the older towns
III Vermont. Steep side hills aud rocky ledg-
Is are well suited 10 the permanent growth Of
wood, hut when in the rage for Improvement
they arc inprovideniy stripped ofIhs proiec
1on the uciion ofsun and wind and rain soon
dpprives them Of their thin coming of vege-
table mould, and this, when exhausted can
not he restored 10y ordinary husbandry. They
rcnlain, therefore. barren uusighily blots, pro-
ducmg neither grain nor grass, and yielding
$40 crop hut harvest of noxious weeds, 10
infest with their scattered seeds the richer IL
rable grounds below. But this is by no
means the only evil resulting from the injn-
dicious destruction Of the woods. Forests
serve ms reservoirs and equa2ers of humid
iiy. In wet seasons, The decnyed leaves and
spongy soil of woodlands retain large pro-
portion of the falling rains, and give back the
tnOsture in time Of drought, by evaporation or
through The medium oisprings. They thus
both check tie Sudden flow ofwater from
the surface into The streams and low grounds.
and prevent the droughis Of summer from
parrhing our pastures and drying up the
riYuleis which water them. On tho other
haud, where too large proportion oflhc sur
face is barred Of wood, the action of the sum-
tner sun md wind scorches the bills which
ore no longer shaded or sheltered by trees.
abe springs aud rivulets that found their sup
ply ia the bibulous soil of the forest disap-
S,ear, and the farmer is obliged to surrender
his meadows TO his cattle, which can no Ion
yer fird food in his pastures, and sometimes
even 10 drive them miles for water. again
she Vernal and autumnal rains. and the mel
ting SHOWS Of winter, no longer intercepted
and absorbed Ivy the leaves or the open soil
ofihc woods, but falling everywhere upon Il
comparatively hard and even SUFFICE, flow
swiftly over the smooth ground, washing a.
way the vegetable mould they seek their
4iaturaI outlets, fill every ravine with a torrent
Md convert every river into an ocean. The
suddenness and violence of our treshets in
crenses in proportion as the soil is cleared;
Bridges are washed away, meadows swept
of their crops and fences, aud covered with
barren sand, or themselves Ghruded by the
fury the current, and there is reason to
fear that The valleys of many Of our streams
will soon be converted from smiling mead
oyvs into broad wastes ofslingle &, gravel and
pebbles, deserts in summer, ard seas in au-
tu,nn and spring. The changes which these
causes have wrought in the physical geogra-
,;hy of Vermont, within a single generation,
are too striking 20 have escaped the attention
OF any observing person. and every middle
aged man, who revisits his birth place after
u few years absence, looks upon another land
ecape than that which formed the theatre of
his youthful tolls and pleasures. The signs
-ofarliicial Improvement are mingled with
the tokens of improyident waste, and the
Giaia and barren hills, the dry beds of the
sInaer streams, the rcvines inrrowed out by
xhe torrents of spring, and the diminished
ahread of interval that skirts the widened
channel of the rivers, seem sad substitutes
for fhe liieasant groves ard brooks and broad
tneadows Of his ancient parental domain. If
the present value of timber aud land will not
Justify the artificial re-plantiDg of grounds in
i5udiciously cleared, at least nature ought 10
d,e allowed to rc-clothe them with spontan-
eous growth OF wood, and in our future hus- |
slandry a more careful selection should be
made ofland for permanent improvements
1t has long been practice in many parts of
Europe, as we'll as in our older settlements,
to cut the forests reserved for timber and flu |
eel, at stated intervals. 1t is quite time that
this practice should be introduced among us. |
After the first telling ofthe original forest il !
is indeed a long time before IFS place is sup
piled, because the roots of old and full grown |
trees seldom throw up shoots, but when the