Weekly hawk-eye and telegraph. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1855-1857, 1855-11-28

..s- BURIINGoN IOWA, WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER N 1855

cpe the resources Of the country i,y wholcson
aud saiutary laws, and by all the means in i
4 power pronaete those great interests which Al
the basis OF our common prosperity. Our 60
| ernment snstains q navy at an expense of mi
lions OF dollars every year. 1t keeps up a
army at an expense of more than sl0,o0o,0 on
4 each year With the farmer it protects ourcor,
merce upon every SEA, and would not detrat
/ in the slightest from the honor IL has conferre
| upon our country, wherever the starry banner
our land has been unfurled; and BY the latter
| although at the sacrifice of thousands of live
and the expense Of great treasure, our arms hav
extended our territory and political power. Blu
look at the vast appropriations made by Congress
each year to sustain these two departments Q
the Government, amounting to an annual sun
Of not less than $50, ,o00,0 Then inanir
what that same government has done to advanc
or promote that more important interest--agri
culture? Your inquiries will be in vain, for tn
response will be nothing; absolutely nothing!-
Light houses can be built upon the eastern se,
board--thousands of dollars can be expcnde,
annually to beautify the grounds around the cap
Ifoi--expeditions can be fitted out to explore tn
Dead Sea, and the reports of the officers maxim,
such explorations can be published in expensive
and costly form, to be distributed to the favor
ties of those in power. Millions can be appre
priated to sustain school at West Point to ed
ucate our sons in the arts of war--vessels can bt
built and maintained at great expense to quail
ify our sons for the naval service But whenev
er the proposition to foster and advance the
great agricultural interests of the country i.
made in Congress, it is lost sight of in the dis
cussion of far less important subjects In shor
our government has utterly, shamefulIy neglect
ed its duty in regard to this great question o.
agriculture, while it has in too many instances
patronizcd with a lavish and even a rockies.
hand, other and less important subjects
Notwithstanding the fact, that Gen. Washington
in his first annual address to the first Congress
and every successive President from that day to
this, has called the attention of Congress to it
and urged the necessity of devising some mean.
to promote this interest, yet every attempt has
been useless and unavailing. 5tsE 90
= Above all other governments in the world, ours
should foster and encourage agriculture. Look
for one moment to Europe. In the Kingdom OF
Prussia. there are five agricultural colleges, in
which are taught by theory and practice, the
higest branches of Science, together with culture
and improvement Of the soil-of agricultural
schools of a more elementary character there
are ten-there are also seven schools devoted to
instruction in the cultivation of Hax-two spe.
cially devoted to instruction in the mana cement
OF meadow handsome for instruction in the
management of sheep, and there are 45 model
farms, intended to serve for introducing better
modes of agriculture. In all II public establish.
ments Tor agricultural education and all these
institutions receive aid directly from the govern
ment, and most OF them are under the superin-
tendence OF officers appointed by the govern
ment. Prussia is monarchy with 8, ,OOO, 900 of
people. The United States Republic with
5000, 600 of people. The former has II agri-
cultural schools-the latter not one.
Belgium, since 1920, has made large appropri-
atoms for the encouragement of agriculture.
France, under several administrations has
been liberal in the support of this great interest,
and particularly in the rearing and improving of
sheep and cultivation of the sugar beet. "She
has seventy-fve agricultural schools under gov
ernment patronage To one of these she made
an appropriation in ls4s, of nearly half mil
lion of dollars. Another has already graduated
six hundred well educated agriculturists who
Immediately found honorable and lucrative stu
ations at the head of their professions" aaa'
Dcspotic Russia, has 6s of these schools,
some of which are Of high order +.,.r
Spain, too for many years, has had aocks of
sheep, paying the greatest attention to their I'M
provement, and sending them gratuitously to the
farmers of the country. = zh- F5s Ur I..sf'
Great Britain has to some extent given aid to
her many agricultural associations, and in Eng.
land more especially, has the patronage of the
government been most salutary upon her r,,.
raj prosperity In Ireland, that "bright isle OF
the ocean" the benefits of those schools have
been marked There, by the rotation of crops,
and improvements founded upon scientific prin.
ciples, much of the land which was considered
worn out by bad tillage has been redeemed,
and no'r bears most prolific crops. The sbogs o!
Ireland SO long reproach and by-word TO that
nation have by system Of undertaking been
made ti!lable, and in one instance, seven hun.
dred bushels of potatoes are said to have
been grown upon one acre Of redeemed bog
land. +' 80
r. You may inquire why it is, that whilst the gov.
ernments of Europe.h have been thus liberal in the
promotion of our favorite interest, that our gov,
ernment, which should be the model of all 9th.
crs in this respect, has been so regardless of its
duty? In reply permit me to say, that in Er-
rope, those who make the laws and mark out the
policy of the government are the landholders-
those most interested in the promotion Of this
cause In this country such is not the fact. The
President and the members of his cabinet are
lawyers and not farmers. Who are your mem
bers of Congress? Are they farmers or nechan-
les, or are they lawyers? Who exert the con-
trolling influence in your State legislatures Is
it the farmers or mechanics? think not, saw
this in no disrespect to the members of the le-
gal profession. As people we owe much to the
members of the legal profession. In our glo-
rious struggle for independence, they were fore
most in asserting and defending the rights Of the
colonies, and in the organization of our govern
ment they assisted in laying the foundation stones
and have contributed much to the glorious SUI
perstrncture which has since been erected there
on. have no disposition to draw distinctions
between our citizens; but it must be admitted by
ALL that the men who make the laws and control
the government act upon those measures with
which they are most conversant and feel the
most interest. If large number of the men,
bers of Congress had been gricultursts-identi.
fed with the cultivation of the sol-ther pri-
vate means invested in lands, and expecting their
children to continue in the same connection, our
government would long since have established an
agricultural Department with an importance
equal to that of the Department Of War, or of
the Navy. The people would have had the ad-
vantages Of extensive importations of the most
improved breeds of cattle and horses, and other
domestic animals, and the importations of the
endless varieties of grain, that are cultivated in
other portions of the world We would have
had model Farms, and agricultural schools, as
>AA "S 'i'tAhs eAiN III SSHOuis, anu eEeFNtllUg
that could promote the prosperity of the coun.
try would have the place of those measures
which now operate SO disastrously TO our aeri.
cultural interests. 5sT
In what may say in this connection, dis.
claim all political motives, or being influenced by
partizan prejudice. 1t matters not now, wheth.
er am the friend or opponent of the principle
of Protection to American industry, for i Law
down the broad principle, that if protection is
right for one interest it is for another. In other
words, if it is right to protect the manufacturer
it is right to protect the agricuIturist. Will not
this proposition be assented to by every, one
present! think it win. Conceding that this
question of adjusting the tariff of duties upon all
articles imported into this country, from foreign
ports is dfticult-yet upon, general principles
there can be no difference of opinion as to the
justncss of equal protection or freedom to
all interests. II this be. true, why was the
celebrated Reciprocity Treaty Of the late Con
gress adopted:o BY that treaty, all the agricul
tural products of Canada are admitted to ou,
ports free Of duty, coming in direct competition
with the farmers of all the north western States
When the farmer from Iowa sends his wheat 10
the eastern market, he win find the agent OF the
Canada farmer there ready to compete with him
The manufacturer of New England holds on to
his protection, and yet goes into Canada nlarke,
to buy the produce which sustains his laborers
f,.,.. ISL =