Nebraska advertiser. [volume] (Brownville, Nemaha County, N.T. [Neb.]) 1856-1882, 1862-09-27

tue purpose OF TeVlVlnB Tue d8FlcuIIu"
raj interests of the country, and avert
ing thereby the impending evils
Seven years were spent in the work,
and when the 'Georgics' appeared, it
was almost everywhere we'll received,
and italy soon assumed dourishing
appearance. By this poem, the most
perfect and finished in the Latin Ian
guage, Virgil conferred a greater
blessing upon his country, than if in
the field he had obtained splendid vic
tories. Peace has her triumphs as
well as war The rules for the inn
provement of husbandry, and the ad-
vice given to the farmer upon the
many subjects connected with it,
were not only suited to the climate of
Italy, but in measure to all places
where agriculture is held in due esti-
nation.
In closing an account of the writer's
of antiquity who shed light upon the
pursuits of the farmer, we should not
omit Cicero, who in his treatise on old
age, 6iscourses so charmingly upon
the pleasures of husbandmen, which
are not checked by any old age, and
appear to make the nearest approach
to the life Of a wise man. Nothing
can be more profitable, nothing more
beautiful, than well cultivated farm.
"He also says that he wrote a book
respecting rural affairs, in which he
treated Of the advantages of manuring,
concerning which the learned Hesiod
had not said single word"
To return to the practice of hus
bandry by ancient nations, upon which
great light has been recently thrown
by paintings and inscriptions upon
the ancient tombs, particularly those
of the Egyptians, many of which, after
the lapse of two or three thousand
years, retain the distinctness of out
line and brilliancy of color of recent
productions, we discern that many
things supposed of modern invention,
were known to the earliest peoples
Egypt was the granary of the world,
in addition to supplying her own i'm
mense population; and MANIFOLD were
the contrivances of harvesting, as we'll
as preserving her immense yield of
corn and other cereals. The Holy
Annals tell US of the immense quanti-
ty produced during the seven plente-
Gus years in Joseph's time, affording a
suficiency of corn to supply the whole
population during seven years of
dearth, as well as all countries which
sent to Egypt to buy it.
Their granaries appear to have been
under ground, and travellers in that
country in recent times tell us of very
large open dry wells found in dry
places on the sides of a sloping hill.
Thompson's Land and the Book, ="
vol. 2, p. 264. In climates free from
rain these were probably the most
convenient receptacles, particularly
when, as in the case of besieged pla~
ces, provisions had to be preserved for
many years. Askalon was besieged
20 years. Wilkinson's Egypt instructs
us that there were smaller granaries
f adjoining the house, and that in fact
an Egyptian villa comprised all the
conveniences Of the present day, gar
E dens, orchards, fish pond and game
e preservers. And Diodorus says,
: Being from their infancy brought up
e to agricultural pursuits, they far ex-
S celled the husbandmen Of other coun
) tries, and had become acquainted Will
! the capabilities of the land, the mode
e of irrigation, the exact season for
e sowing and reaping, as we'll as all the
G most useful secrets connected with. the
= harvest, which they had derived frou
r their ancestors, and had improved by
n their own experience" They, the
. other eastern nations, took good care
# of their cattle-Numbers 81; 49,
Hab. 8; II. 2Chron. 50; %. The.
= appeared to have cut their provendel
IS Judges 10; q. 1 Kings 4; 28.-
o They we're acquainted with the arts 0
It the dairy-Prov. 30; 81. The pain
Y tings on the tonbs show the plOwin!
% by oxen abreast, (see also Deut. %
.e 10) the same scattering the seed from
N a basket, a horse breaking up tn
!, clods, aud roller drawn by horse!
y abreast. (See l. Samuel 13; 20, a
to the pIowshare and coulter) Mod
st ern scholars seem to agree that har
at rowing was unknown to them, thoug
i. the word is mentioned in our transla
m ton Job SO; 10;) and modern trav
- ellers in the east say no harrow
is used, but the ground is plowed sec
IN ond time after it is sown to cover tn
id grain. MIR. Thompson, in his fecen
= volumes, (1and and the Book, vol.
re D. 2O,) speaks of seeing the native
mr. blowing in Lebanon IN the winter
is when the ground was soft and satu
ed rated with wet. Their little plow
r. made no proper furrow, but merel
or root MP and threw the soil on eithe
he side. several followed each other O
us the same furrow. Seven plows wer
ch thus at work at one time. See also
g. Kings 19: 9. Diodorus says, The