Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1858-05-29
For Ike journal.



A1ranfGges sohich may Be derived from ito
location In our County.
First. Building-A Farmers College for
the State OF Iowa, built by the State, for the
higher and more thorough and scientific
education of those in the occupation of
farming, the chief business of the State. tho
great mass Of the people Of the present gem
Grafton, and the immense Numbers to people
this rich land in future during the time Of
the existence of one permanent building. IL
lis trne our legislature have granted Us bur
$1,000 and live sections Of wild land to do
all this with. II this is not sufficient, We
will look to their wisdom Tor more. pre-
sumo the Trustees will not expend this first.
appropriation in laying foundation for an.
immense building, but will put up ono end
Of a wing, SO as not to bury the zone TALENT"
but put it to use.
This building ought to be commenced with
design of one of the best buildings in the
State. Therefore, its mechanical structure
will be worth something to the county where
it is located--piles of stone and brick and
lumber, and great mechanical labor. Our
Legislature, last winter, spent some time in
passing a resolution asking Congress to locate
Marine Hospital at Muscatine, the favored
place for the benefit of all this resolutions
dim shadow OF a prospect of building to
contain few sick paticntsl Here is high
estimate put upon mere building, which in
that case was like Your digging in your
cornfield for lump of gold, which, if found.
would be valuable. But the Farmers COL
lege is sure thing already in sight. y
The reason OF my urging the people Of this
county to bid for the location of this Farm
and College in this county is based upon the
provisions of the 10th section of said act:
"Said board shall receive proposals for the
sale of lanes for the use Of said College before
purchasing the same, and in the purchase,
the price, location, quality and variety of
soil, advantages OF water, timber, stone, ct
cetera, (which Webster says is Latin word
meaning Others of the kind,'] shall be
considered"
| Second. The farm is to contain not loss
than GAO acres-not q hard run, careless
farmers patch of weeds and broken fences,
undrained sloughs and pond holes, but .
substantially improved farm, with good
+, fences, and barns, and grainaries, and yards,
and Lighthouses; the best mode of cu)tiva-
| ton in the fields, with crops to correspond
with gardens, and orchards, and groves, and
pastures, and stock of animals of all kinds
an ornament and credit to this great Agri-
cultural State +; model farm for farmers to
profit by.
Third. Its greatest benefit is not IS
model farm, but as an experimental farm.
Here is our great want. Who amongst ~
knows the difference in the different breeds
of h rse. or cattle2 One will say he can
tell the difference between Morgan ahd
Kentucky horse as far rs he can see them.
Yes, but what would he tie difference In
dollars and cents in raising ten colts of one
breed or ten OF the other? Cannot each
farmer breed such animals az he chooses!
Let them learn for themselves which Is the
BEST My friends, we cannot determine
which pair of horses will draw the heaviest
load by looking at them. We would prefer
to see them tried--not by A. drawing home
1000 feet of boards, and B. drawing 1200l
that is no proof. But to see them hitched
to the same load. We want to know which
breed of cattle will make the most and best
beef at the same cost-the cows that will not
only give the most milk, but the most cream,
with the same keeping: Who among US
know these things? We might as well guess
at the speed of two horses, and put down
cur money on it +; somebody will be likely to
win. But the trial is the proof. We are
stocking our farms from wear to year, invest
ing from 800 up to $1,000 and more, and we
would like to have the proof which are the
best animals for it is certain that some
have better animals than others.
The same remarks may be applied to every
variety of crops. When such new crops are
introduced as Sugar Cane, or Hungarian
Grass, this College Farm is the proper place
to try it, and the machinery for making mo-
lasses and sngar--to try 1T at its first intro.
duction into the country, and not wait until
thousand farmers have experimental with
it, and $50 have failed OF success : then the
same thing tried over the next year, and thea
the thing is not proved satisfactorily. So
with farm implements. Which is the best
reaper and mower?. and what is the differ
ence in them? Is it profitable to buy q
Grain Drill? and with it to SOW wheat in
fall or spring? What variety of wheat is
best9 Will wheat turn t., chess? How long
would it take State Farm to prove this last
question, and settle the fact as conclusive a.
the fact that james Buchanan was elected
President?
We would like to have these experiments
in our own county, that we may see and the
better realize what is going on.
Fourth. Education. 1t is now conceded
by all that farmers have not given that at
tention to a higher class Of education
that they ought, Hence the spontaneous
movement to establish scientific and practical
farmers schools. If we are behind the ago
in a correct practical and scientific knowledge
of our calling, it is our own fault. In polit-
ical strength we have quietly been kept in
the background, while we had the numbers
and power at any time to come up square
with the lawyers, and doctors, and mer-
chants and editors, and fill the political offices
and rule the nation. But some will say that We
do not want political office! We hope that the
day is not far distant when the Legislature of
Iowa will not deem it the wisest act in the
world to appropriate $3.50 900 for the cree.
ton of an Insane Asylum, and $40, 600 for
an Agricultural College. Our national gov
eminent is ten-fold more biased and partial
to everything besides Agriculture. 1t may
be said that appropriations to commerce and
also benefit agriculture. Sup
pose we reverse the thing, and make appye-
priations for the benefit of agriculture, and
then show to commerce and improvements,
with sSknock down argument" that what
ever benefits the farmer-the verv saayse
from tchenee they derire their eeapuesss End
their trdssportt tom is for their benefit.
Our United States Senate had q eConmittee
ON Agriculture" but they cannot see any
interest there worth attending to, although
the Committee on Territories is yet kept upe
said we have the numbers and the power,
but hesitate about the power. knowledge
is power, and somewhat doubt if We have
the power to keep up a standing committee
in the p. s. Senate en- Agriculture.
wish could more fully impress pp0n
the farmers the quie., sleepy condition in
which they permit their great interest 10
rest, and the general disposition of the world
to let them rest. If railroad is completed
a few miles, or steam engine has q peouliaf
turn Of the crank--a little ahead of its pre-.
decessor-or a telegraph is erected, al the
world join in grand hurrah But when
the Michigan double. pillow appears Jneana
by which l 100000 more bushels Of coTA
can be raised when the sugar cane i intro,