Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1866-12-20
AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE.

Is lie there are dad.
AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE
The ss,,ieac: q, A5t.clitlf,, tie Oldest
/ AMI most h,nnraoie Of all pursuits enlbia-
ccs ali the products of tiic .coftl necessary
! for the silstehaliue OF iii;.n.
! Wherever mali has existed iii the social!
state, it has necessarily been the ritn
fountain of wealth. ana PROSPERITY I'm
couragcd 10y sp scial laws am'as tle Esyp-
tians, dclhed by the Greeks, ii has thio'
out all tin.e occupied the energies and IN
telligencc of cur race. Ii has ttlied for
ests, drained marshes, reclaimed laiiu tronI
the ocean, changed the aspect Of nature
made the solitary place to rejoice aud the
wilderness TO blossom. as the rose. Our
continent, which d little over three centu-
RIGS ago, was pathless forest, the home of
the savage, has, 10y the energy Of lis yot;-
ries, been niatie to TEEN with the proiutts
of the earth, which from d thousand rllbu
tures are carried to different liiai'ts, making
our rivers ana railroads the channels OF All
enuiess streaIh. Agriculture Is the source
OF all real wealth, prosperity and power
/ Without ii, no people can ever rise to real
wealth and influence. Spain marks her
decline f.oli he ll1ie Tie goid ana silver
OF her South American possessions divert
cd the attention OF her people FROM y gri-
culture 10 tn" pursuit of wealth III mines
anu caves And 20 il Wiil t, er be, + L /;
is only from our mother eaftii that We c;,ii
derive our support Virginia has ever
been an Agrle uI:ulal State, ana is pccu-
Harry and euinently adapted 10 that pur-
suit, botii on account OF It's varied soil ald
its genial climate, and yet her resources,
which are Immense. have never nten deye
Hoped to one-tentIl of their capabilities
\ negligent system OF cui'gatIono OF large
tracts OF land, has been detrimental to her
Dest interests, anu hot until the whole Sys-
ten is changed need we look Tor any IN
pruvencnt Sniai farms, deep pioughns.
uraliing, trchciiiig, the liberal use OF Ter
jlizers, viii i.orc lnan quadruplc her pro-
ducts. Farming liust Ue liiauU the Dusi-
hess and not tic. al.tiseneiit OF life. Thrift,
lndusify, and til closest at ntiun 10 The
interests ana wants OF The farm economy
IN labor alIu sIUcK, The ceiltiv atom of those
crops which Will give tlc greatest ylcIi
from the least outlay, are necessary to-,
a,lu will inevitably renter farming prof
| table and certain source Ut revenue. " e
constantly hear OF the failure OF crops ana
the dtstruc:iveness vi insects, anu these
are urged against the pFofitable,less Of ag-
ricuItural pursuits, bat let it be remember
ed that these are the effects OF oyerworkcd :,
impoverished s,ald exhausted lands, and OF
negligent. imperfect cultivation, and as
such cannot nii!tate against the argument
i'll favor Of Agriculture.
Why have Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois
AND other great agricultural States So tar
surpassed us i'll farm products! Simply
because their system uf cultivation diners
from ours. Their people farm a hundred
acres EACH ana GO it wei; we attempt to
tariii five hundred or Il Thousand acres,
ana 40 it badly. Certainly no State IN the
Union has more natural advantages than
Virginia. She might become the garden
of all the States aud III the course Ut time
resume her proud position as the ''OId
invite to industry ana enterprise, ana her
SONS are not deficient III energy and tortl-
tnue.
10 illustrate the power of u rational sys-
tenn of Agriculture. can cite as an exailI-
pie, two Scots who settled near a town IN
Virginia, OH Il few acres of land, the oilo
on a rocky HILL the other OH marsh. La
a lew years, besides supporting their FAM
lies, they accumulated property. Whilst
their neignbors were dreaming This diff
ference was due not to any superior intel
hgelce, hut TO their training; they had
seen aud studied the Gest ana most appro-
we'd mode OF farming iii England ana scot
land, and applied this information to the
soil Of Virginia with the happiest results
1t is time for our people to awake to theli
true interests, ana apply all their energies
OF body and mIni to tue Developments OF
the incxhaustible resources of the State,
or they will, like the poor Indian, be COM
PEELED to yield the ground to others Of
more energy and intelligence, abandon tht
graves of their fathers, and move towards
the setting sun. In. this age of what Ii
called progress, the strong man thrusts
aside the weak. The great wave of euer.
gy and intelligence will find its level
The past Of Virginia is history the future
must open with another volume, which II
time, ii the people are true to themselves
will record glorious one. }. K. e.
1.-THE Farmer.