The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-12-06
asrirul
Bureau OF Agriculture.
VERMONT LEGISLATURE

Report Of The Joint Committee raised 10 ,nqaire INTO
he erpediency of recommending the establishment Of
a "BuREAu OF AGRIcuLTURE" in the Depart
nert of the Interior at Washington.
TO the Senate and House Of Representatives.:
The joint committee appointed to inquire into the
expediency OF Legislative recommendation on the
part of this State Of the establishment in the Ma
tional Department of the Interior of Bureau OF
Agriculture for the promotion Of the great interest
of agricultural improvement in this Unon' respect
fully report:
The founders of our Government were DESTROYS
for the organization of HOME Department devoted
TO the fostering and encouragement OF agriculture
and other industrial arts but il seems tha Tor want
of proper persons to organize and manage such
department, il was laid aside.
AT later period Washington recommended an
organization entitled "A Home Department Of AZ
riculturep His conceptions upon this subject, like
every thing else emanatlng from ms pracucal lar
seeing mind, are exactly TO the purpose, compre-
hending more or less directly, about all that need
be said in its favor. They are as follows:
s.It will not be doubted that with reference either
10 individual national welfare, agriculture is OF
primary importance. In proportion as nations
advance in population and other circumstances OF
maturity, this truth becomes more apparent, and
renders the cultivation of the soil more and more
an object Of public patronage institutions for pro-
noting it grow up, supported by the public purse,
and TO trhdt object can IL be dedicated toiM greater
{ propriety? Among the means which have been
: employed to this end, none have been attended
.
: Boards, composed OF proper characters, charged
: with collecting and dittusing information, ana
enabled, by premiums and small pecuniary and,
to encourage and assist spirit OF discovery and
improvement, by stimulating 10 enterprise and
experiment, and by drawing 10 u common centre
the results every where of individual skill and OBJ
scrvation and by spreading them thence oDer the
iohole nation. Experience has accordingly shown
that they are very cheap instruments OF immense
national benefits"
The methods of agriculture pursued by our fathers
in new country, with virgin soil and sparse
population, were, perhaps, necessarily rude and
improvident; but with rapid and unprecedented
increase of population, Improvements IN tlllage
have not advanced with corresponding steps, or,
generally speaking, been of long standing. BY no
more than half century of bad cultivation the soil
of the older States has become either entirely run
down greatly impoverished of fertility; and In
sects blights, noxous weeds, &c, the usual attend
ants of imperfect ullage, have increased and be-
come accumulated to an alarming extent
But the evil does not stop here. Too many OF
our intelligent, enterprising young men-observing
the sad condition of the SOIL and trained 10 false inn
pressionssuppose that the agricultural profession,
instead of being open field Tor the efforts OF SCI
to improve, is but arena fit only to be occu
pied by the iiterate and unenterprsing, under the
guidance of blind tradition. They accordingly
press in masses into other callings filling them 10
overlooking and leaving the g. Art of Arts" TO its
fate.
The same process of deterioration which has been
SO nearly completed in the Atlantic States is now
going on at the West Although nature, by long
and most liberal process, has endowed the lands
of that section with fertility elsewhere unknown,
still they be Impoverished by the hand OF man.
The graduation 10 the same climax which has OBJ
tanned in the older States may be slower, yet, in the
nature of things, ii must be sure. Many of the oc-
cupants of those generous soils, under the same
mistaken impression that they inexhaustbe,
which possessed the first settlers of the more fertile
tracts of the States, will probably live long
enough to find that, under constantly depicting
and careless husbandry, what has been done can
be done again. These remarks of course sub
ject to exceptions, but they still quite too gen
orally true.
With this rapid destruction of fertility has been
going among us several Of the States of Europe
have been as rapidly advancing in productiveness.
There agriculture is fostered and protected by gov
eminent. Men of the first attachments and in the
highest walks of life devote their time and talents
10 its improvement; the lights of several sciences
have been shed upon it lands, under the cultiva-
ton of ages previous, have been changed within
sixty seventy years past, by judcious rotation
of crops and system Of manuring adapted 10 the
soil and the crop, as 70 increase threefod in pro-
ductveness thousands of acres of wet lands, here
toore of little value, have been drained, and
are now under profitable cultivation; agricultural
schools and colleges have been established and the
breeding of agricultural animals has been carried
to high perfection in England and Scotland, that
any other breeds in the known world may be inn
proved by a cross with them.
II may be said that such high cultivation cannot
be profitable here. Neither can we afford 10 pur-
sue our exhausting system Of cultivation much fur
ther: for the decreased and decreasing crops will
not Fcmunerate labor II the state Of things in
our country will not warrant high farming, 90 the
extent 10 which IL il now carried in the countries
spoken Of certainly warranted in the en-
ployment of far enlightened and correct prin-
ciples of tillage than are now common.
IL has been well said, that ga prosperous agricul-
tura district Is not without patriots 10 defend it,
and il j. undoubtedly true that high state of in.
talii nd arle hr edo ouf
farmers would cOnduce more than any thing else
10 the stability and perpeuty Of our Republic, and
10 the rapid and full development Of its vast agri
cultural capabilities We may truly say, in thu
conncxion .ahat every accession which man gaini
u his knowledge IL also an accession 20 his power
and extends the limits Of hs empire over the work
which he inhabits"
About three iourths Of the population Of ou
country are engaged in filling the soil. Legisla
tion 20 promote the prosperity Of this interest di
rcctly benefits the greater portion Of the. people
and Indirectly, but not less surely, the remainder
also. Now, our Legislators aud others have no
been wanting heretofore in culogy upon the anti
guilty, dignity, importance and pleasures Of agr
culture; but where has been that fostering car,
which would seek 10 encourage and promote il
Where have the farmers been, who would demand
for the cultivation Of the sill that onspicuOus plac,
20 which il j. ~ justly entitled,
But We are happy % observe that improved
sentiment is becoming prevalent. that "agricul
turc Is primary Importance that our nation ha
stances Of maturity % that position which "ren
dcrs the cultivation Of the soil object Of publ,
patronage" that there il no "Object 20 which j
can be- dedicated with greater prOpricty." Thes'
truths gradually making their way into th'
minds ofiutclligcnt, thinking men.
We have, at length, Home Department; an,
the question presents itself "Can il and will il d
any thing for agriculture IL can, and trus
that IL will The politicians nay seek ~ make
an instrument for the flrtherancc of party; and
with the bugboar Of constitutional objections,
they may tell ne tbat nothing be done for agri
culture under this Department. But let the farm
ere, moving in a mass, call loudly for Bureau o
Agriculture, with proper aud suitable patronage
from the Government LIT it be mans gcd b
"proper chamctcrs," sclectsd with reference 4
their fitness for, and devotion 10, the promotion
agriculture. They should be men above politca
contamination, and having love for science for il
own sake, and keeping constantly in view the on
great object which they were placed there 20 pro
mote, they would not be induced TO "give up &
party what was meant for mankind"
Board Of Agriculture, thus composed Of pro
per characters, charged with collecting and diliu
ing information, and enabled, by premiums an,
small pecuniary aid o. encourage and assist
spirit Of discovery and improvement, by stirnuat
ing ~ enterprise and experiment, and BY drawing
tDa common centre the results everywhere Of indi.