Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1859-12-15

W. country. But We must recoilect that if "
w their trials and hardships. the fawness of th
of blessings that caused this who!c-hearted ID
IS among Them When we are disposed to G
4 " our fathers their happiness, disposed
y say that they could Obtain property fast
L. than we now can, we should ask ourselves
& we are willing to dispense with our conyep
!, ences OF life and purchase their enioymep
Q at the cost of enduring their hardships.
I 1t is our abundance that causes US to be
unmindful of our blessings. How beautif
and dearly-prized is that little bouquet of vic
let's the schoolgirl has gathered by search
ing the woods through, on the first day c
May !! In fortnigh more the pathway
Ill lined with these modestly-booming flowers
Then the same schoolgirl passes and heed
them not The conveniences and luxuries n
ne which we possess were unknown to gu
fathers. The blessings of our common school
al, ana higher Institutions of learning; our tow
library; our churches, and our meetings
blessings that have come down to US tbrongt
the trials of our fathers, arc common THING,
common things all They are the viole &
along the pathway of our lives Often too
often, We pass, and heed them not!
Who among the young mothers would ex.
change the nice apparel that their children
no" wear, for the very plain clothing their
/, and mothers once woge2 Who among
them would be willing to exchange their r.
neatly-palnted cradles for the " hoIlow-lo y
In which our grandmothers rocked our faith.
e ers ana mothers. Those old grandmothers |!
There arc noble and holy thoug hts ever cIus-
tering around their names Where are thew
now :! That knot of old fathers, who used to
gather at all our raisings, and on all our pub
TIC Gays; to whom we listened with delipht.
as they told the incidents and trials Of t5e;r
youth-Where are they nov? One by one
they are departing. A few only are left with
us; lett to guard and guide us for little
while longer! '''
This was a famous tabled land to tho
ola Connecticut people, prior to their coming
mere. The soil was reputed to be fertile, be.
yond the power of exhaustion. And iud gine
from the course pursued by them, and those
VINO succeeded them, it would almost seem
that this fable had been considered an actu,l
verify. Soon after the settlement of this
town there was demand for wheat at Trov
~. T. and Vermont furnished very large
amount each year to supply this market
About the year 1912, heavy drain was
made upon the fertility of our soil by raising
cloVer-seed. Afterwards starch factories
were built, and every piece of land that would
pear potatoes was ploaed and planted, and
the potatoes made into starch Then the
railroad opened new market for grain. and
carload after carload has been carried (, ON
us, to be fed out elsewhere.
The raising of grain has as rule, been
tne mann endeavor of the farmer. We can
all recollect the time when farmers success
was measured by the number of bushels of
grain ne sold. Rearing stock. as a source Of
income, received but little attention for Iona
time, and the making or even saoiug. of fer,
tlllzers has not as yet, been very seriously I
considered by us.
What now is the condition of the land we
till? Our fathers found it rich in all the al. c
ements necessary for CROP bearing. The land
once cleared of the forest, and sowed or c
painted In the sprlng-time, was sure, if the c
season was propitious, to produce bountiful a
harvest. The fields they laid down to grasses a
tor moving lands yielded large crops Of bav :!
and their pastures an abundant supply of rich t.
sweet feed. Wheat was then grown as al h
ordinary crop; and the diligence Of those tt
taWart Old men, whose tombstones We find IL
q the grave-yards on either hill, was gener- II
'lly rewarded by good crops of this to them tt
'ery necessary grain. The same was true Of p
vi other crops raised. Those crops that we y
AN now only grow by first skilliulIy fertiliz. A
ng the land, were then grown without, and
With less care than now; for Nature had ii
repaired the soil, and she is much better m
grcuturlst than We have yet learned how b.
be. While it is true that the products nor oil
ere OF most of the old countries have largely pc
lcreasod during the past century, ours in orr m
lrgest cultivated districts have actually fallen ed
Il. We have, it is true, made rand nro. 81,
FeSs IN many things but the enrichipg of oc
'r SOIL the rendering more fertile our fields. of
not among them. On much of our land sic
neat cannot be grown at all !; and on that on tn
men II can' the average yield is much less mi
ian 1t formerly was hardly think the av. tn
age crop of hay in this town, for five YEA Err
'st' has been over one ton per acre. II was SUI
ICE much more than this, on the same land ar,
ne NUMBER OF acres upon which our cattle a
0u' ourihg the summer, would once have pei
stured many more. w ha.
by SLOW yet sure processes, the soil has ito
en- partially or wholly exhausted of those ga,
gradients that enter into the composition of mo
products we wish to raise. In fact our
lllty to grow grain has been steadily de. me
easing Who of us have not said, as we VIII
We passed over our fields and seen some If at
an IN an unfruitfu and unfertile condition the
At this field ought to be plowed and tertil- plo
I'd ana there is another that needs the VIII
ne treatment. But if plow these fields. or
mail not be able to enrich them, and shall hca
obliged to seed them down without, and swi
next state of this land would be worse wa,
IN 1t nov is? Who among us, as we have mis
thered our hay into our barns and found sea-
1t we had not obtained over one ton per lun
e. have not felt that it was a small cron. and
that nearly as much again should be gath. raj
ID upon the same land? And when we tril
We reflected upon these things, we have all old
leu ourselves the question, What can we of
TO change this state of affairs stu
AND 1t IS BY changing this condition of thr,
ngs 'hat We Shall be enabled to make our tlor
ms more valuable. We cannot now as by
the first settlers, increase the value Of our our
ms nj. py clearing away the forest, or build witt
highways Neither can we long increase the
wealth by raising aud selling grain; for tax
we crop our fields once more without re. the
n their fertility will be nearly, and in MANY to
es entirely, gone. , feet