New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1865-01-14


Charles Scnbner.
IN the silent lapse of Spring and Summer, seed
dime and harvest, few events aye more welcome 10
The amateur farmer than the occurrence of the rainy
DAYS which suspend the routine Of agricultural
lsSors when it is too wet TO drive the team aheld,
or fight the lusty growth of weeds, or swing the
ecythe over the luxurant expanse Of fragrant clover
or stately herds-grass. He may then withdraw his
thoughts from the progress Of his corn and potato
crop, leave his tired cattle to regale themselves at
their own sweet will in fresh pastures, and pungeinto
the depths Of his library without the consciousness
ofneglecting the importunate duties OF ms vocation
for the soft alurements Of literature Mr.. TX MafVel
seems to be Of this way Of thinking, although ne
disdains the title Of gentleman farmer, or DOCK
farmer and prefers to show solid balance OF dollars
and cents on the right side of lis agricultural &C.
counts than to enjoy the reputation of scholar
who merely turns away for moment from ms
fsvorite pursuits TO daily with the plow, or glo-
riously guide the moving machine in its pain OF
flowers. Ono sloOye of his dainty library is en-
riched with motley collection OF farm-oooAs'
11ore are fat ones in yellow veIium. lhere are
pondeIous folios with stately dedications TO some
sroat man we never heard of. Thereare thin trac-
tates blowing their shrin penny whistesi in defiance
of all received methods of farming. Mr.. Marvel con-
fesses that he takes huge delight in an occasional
vet-dav talk with these old worthless. They were
none of them chemists; notone Of them could have
made an analysis of soil viii better than those Of
many Of our agricultural professors, oven If he had
Invented snnsthcsia and the solar system; but
they had sturdy budget Of oommon-sense notions;
and often suggested niles and methods which are OF
quite as much value the farmer any Of the nice
appliances of modern collegiate agriculture. "IhelT
precepts' says the judieious TX, =" have become
traditional, and yet delight in finding black-lettcr
evidence of the age of traditions and Of the purity
with which they have been kept An important
member of the County Society pays me a morning
visit, and in the course Of a feld-stron lays down
suthoritatvely the opinion that there's no KIND
O. use in blowing for turnips in the Spring, unless
you keep the weeds down all through the season.
yield implicit and modest assent; and on the next
vet day find Ischomachus remarking to Socrates,
This also, think it must DC easy for you 10
understand that if ground is to lie falow to good
purpose IT ought to be free from weeds andwarmed
q much as possible by the SUM- And yet my dis
Nnguished friend Of the County Society is not q
student of Xenophon. If read out of the big book
the same observation to my foreman who is more
piquant than garrulous), he S. Aenophon, eh
well, wel-theTe'S sense in it,"
Among the standard ancient authors who some
times dabbled little in agriculture was General
xenophon most graceful writer, capital hunts
man, an atle strategist, an experienced farmer, and
we may believe Laertius handsome beyond ex-
preston. "When this valiant man wrote his rural
treatses he was living in the delightful region
westward of the mountains Of Arcadia, looking
toward the Ionian Sea. Here, too, he wrote the
nory Of his retreat and his wahderngs among the
mountains of Armenia; here he talked with his
Friends, and made other such symposia as he has
aivcn US taste Of at the house of Calas the
Athenisn; here he ranged over the whole country
side with his horses and dogs: stalwart and 1.-THE
Did gentleman, without doubt; able TO mount
horse or TO manage one, with the Simplest OF the
yrooms; and with keen eye, as his book shows,
Dor the good points in horse-hesh. A man might
make a worse mistake than TO buy horse after
yenophon's instructions to-day. SPAWN or
sind-gaI did not escape the old gentleman's eye,
\ snd he never bought nag without proving bis
J sind, and handling him well about the mouth and
bars"
In his history our friend TX finds an illustration
Of the fact that human nature is pretty much the
pane in all ages. quitting aside his horsenanship,
In which he must have been nearly perfect, there
vas very much that grand about the old Greek
very much that makes strangely love the man,
who. when his soldiers lay benumbcd under the
Knows on the nights of Armenia, threw off his gen
srals coat, or blanket, or what not and set himself
resolutely 10 wood-chopping and TO cheering them
The farmer knew how. Such men win battles. He
has his Joke, too, with Cheirisophus, the Laced@-
nonan, about the thieving propensity Of his towns
people and invites him, in virtue Of 1t, TO steal
difficult march upon the enemy. And Cheireophus
grimly rctorts upon Xenophon, that Athenians are
said TO be great experts in stealing the public
money, especially tho high officers. This sounds
home-like! When | come upon such things,-by
Jupiter Il forget the parasangs and the Taochians
and the dead Cyrus, and seem 10 be reading out Of
American newspapers"
We cannot follow our discursive author through
his pleasant percgrinations among the farm writers
of antiquity and the middle ages, from whom lac
gathers many rich sayory morscl Of practical wis
dom, but will invite our readers 10 listen to the
musical voice which occasionally sings quiet tune
% the melody OF Reyeries of Bachelor" The
old age Of farmers presents a congenial theme, on
which he discourses in cheerful vein of reflection.
"In the course of one Of my earlier Wet Days
took occasion TO aude to the brave old age that was
reached by the classic veterans, -Xenophon, Cato,
and Varro; and now find among the most eminent
British sgriculursts and gardeners of the close Of