The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1859-11-23
AsBlalto On. fatmer.
address 8

.sr.ee "A u u X Il 3 >
| off, H. Kzippart, Esq, Secretary of the Ohio
State Board of Ayrlculture, before the Ash
land county A9rtcuhurrl Society, Oct. Il,
1859. i4a# ,ys.s hTz r't
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN No pursuit can
long remain honorable which ignores educa-
ton and intelligence. 1t is true that all useful
labor is honorable but in these days of railroads
and telegraphs, useful labor must be directed
by an Intelligent and educated brain, other
wise it cannot compete with any prospect of
obtaining the rival prizesuc-cess.
Farming is by the unanimous consent of
mankind considered an honorable occupations
but it is honorable only in the degree in which
it is successful. Success in any enterprise or
undertaking is obtained only by intelligence,
or by the consummation of well digested plan.
In order therefore to obtain good plan, or
system of operations, thought is necessary and
in order to think correctly and Systematically,
education and observation are Indispensable
Nowhere and in 40 avocation in life is we'll
regulated system of operations more necessary
than in agriculture.
The agriculturist to be successful must ac-
quaint himself thoroughly with the elements
by which he is surrounded. The agriculturists
of Ohio, as general thing have obtained par
tial knowledge OF these elements by observa-
tion-their knowledge therefore is empirical
only, but not thorough. They know the results,
but not the causes. They know that different
soils require different modes of culture, but do
not know lcLy these different systems of cul-
ture are necessary; hence they make such lit
tie progress of themselves, and most if not all
the improvements in agriculture conse-
quently attributable to science, which has
suIned the duty of indicating in unmistak-
able manner the line of conduct to be pursued
l am we'll aware that farmers, as a general
thing, have no relish for what is familiary term
ed book farming. But before this system is
condemned let us see for a moment in what
book farming consists. Mr.. A. is the happy
possessor OF good farm, but is not content
with the system pursued by his father, grand
father and great grandfather, and concludes
that in many respects their plews were suscep-
tible of improvement and therefore adopts a
course differing in some respect from theirs
For instance, he piows ten inches deep instead
of four; he manures the land well instead of
permitting the manure to accumulate for years
in the barn yard-he finds his reward in lux
uriant crops and clean and neat barn yard
He stables his cattle and feeds them regularly
instead of letting them course over the snow
covered fields and shiver in the winters wet
and cold in the barn yard. In a word he has
a place for everything and everything in its
place-his heart and soul are absorbed in his
occupation and he consequently is successful.
He outstrips all his neighbors in the growth of
field crops,-has better and fatter cattle than
his neighbors,-he can command the highest
market price for every thing he has for sale.
He is convinced that if his neighbors bestowed
the same care and attention on their stock and
managed their field crops just as he does his,
that they would be equally successful. These
philanthropic considerations induce him to
publish in detail for his neighbors benefit and
e vbo1a nf
agement and operations. Mr.. B. purchases a
copy of this publication, and adopts every sug-
gestion it contains, and would cheerfuly put
them in practice on his farm, but his neis hbor c.
cries out that Mr.. B. wishes to abandon the
time honored system of farming, and is about to
adopt new-fangled system of book farming!
Mr.. d. says that he has been a farmer these forty
years. and surely ought to know something about
farming, and concludes his advice that man
who can find time to write books cannot cer-
tainly know anything about farming. Mr.. A.
however goes on quietly with his successful
system, whilst B. G. & ID. who "are doaon" on
Book farming go on plodding in the old routine.
Now is not Mr.. AS experience just as good
as Mr.. DIS? Perhaps if Messrs. B. G. and d.
were neighbors to Mr. "A. and were eyewitness
es of his operations and successes they in course
of time would adopt all of his system, but be-
cause they have not witnessed it they will not
adopt it, and are at all events opposed to book
farming general principles.
But Mr.. As publication falls into the hands
of the man of science, and he reasons just as
Franklin did; "always taking out of the meal
bag, and never putting in, soon comes to the
bottom" The man OF science says all this ma
mare lying around in a heap in Mr.. DIS. farm
yard, came from the soil in the shape of grass,
hay, straw, grain and roots, consequently the
soil is poorer the whole amount of the crop ta-
ken from it. If we restore this manure to the
soil, the loss will be only what has been con-
yerted into hesf; and bone; therefore if we ma
nure, the soil must retain its fertility longer
than if the manure is withheld. Mr.. B. be.
ieves this doctrine, MIR. G. says it looks rea-
senable, but Mr.. D. shuts off all argument by
saying that it is book farming, and that the
man who wrote the book certainly lived in
town and had large pile Of manure that he
wrote book to sell the manure at high price
10 farmers. ,-.t
You may think that am drawing largely on
the imagination for this statement; but can
assure you that know Mr.. D. personally, and
am simply reciting the same answer he gave
me, when told him of the value of manures, |
and l can further assure you that Mr.. d. has
a manure heap which has been accommodating
since 1910, to my positive knowledge. He
complains bitterly of his short and annually
crops. He will not fell any trees
in the wane of the moon, because he believes
that they will sooner decay; he slarghters nei-
ther cattle nor hogs at the same period, because
he is certain that the flesh will shrink in the
pot; bis wife will not plant cucumber seeds
when the "sign" is in the virgin, because, she
says that they will produce profuson of bios
SONS, but no fruit; she therefore waits until
the "sign" is in the twins, regardless of the
weather or condition of the soil.
The man OF science investigates the philoso-
ply of deep plowing, as advocated in the pub
lieation of Mr.. A. He experiments in order
TO verify the statements he has read, and finds
that doep blowing is fully equivalent to good
He even goes SO far as to loosen /
ap the the subsoil, SO that the entire seed bed
% the depth of l6 or Is inches has been dis