The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1868-02-21
A9rirnltnral ano prattitaI.
Written for the Journal.
AGRICULTURE.

AGRICULTURE.
"The term agriculture comes from two
Latin words, ager,a field, and cult.ls, cultiva-
tion, and means, etymologically, fieldcul-
ture.''
am not going to prove that the pursuit
of farming is dignifed or respectable call
ing. So long as every individual finds it
necessary to eat more or less it will not
SAVIOR of consistency to say imuch against
farming as calling, or in other words it is
little sputty for the pot to call the kettle
black. And on the other hand to say it is a
business beneath the attention of the wise
and learned would be to reflect upon the
wisdom of that Being by whose permit the
grass grows and the sun shines, for, to our
representative head, this calling was as
signed. Those who think farming poetry
aud pastime may as well dismiss the notion.
The sterni injunction that 'In the sweat of
thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return
unto the ground" has not become obsolete.
The man that puts his hand to the plow
needs neither gymnasium or TO belong to
base ball club. To him they may be
luxuries but not necessities. Farming in
its true sense means work, energy, persever-
ance, care, toll, drugery, disappointment,
short crops, hard times, briers, thistles, dock,
pig-weeds, s,chapped hands and SUM- burnt face
on the one hand; and on the other, as good
living as he can make, and as clear con.
science ss he can enjoy under the circum-
stance.
l am not going TO try to show how much
better farm looks with hap-hazard and
broken down fences with the corners filed
with elder bushes, and all manner ofrubbish
nor the good taste displayed when cleaning
up field along the roadside to pitch the
brush, old logs, chunks and filth into the
street instead of burning it up. Nor would
question the enlightened views and culti-
waited taste in fencing up and narrowing
down our highways. l would not reflect
upon the liberal and public spirit of that
man who will let briers and bushes grow al,
one-third to one-half the grass and pinch
half or whole acre out of the highway.
Some think the only beauty of highway is
its narrowness; and that the act of passing
team or turning around can all be done at
four corners and crossroads. Even the
Maumee and Western Reserve Turnpike
does not escape this enlightened taste. But
as often as the fences along it want renewing
they are invariably set into the road and
they somehow want renewing very often.
1t would be more excusable had the land
owners along the road deed up to its GEN.
tire instead of its outside boundary. This
road has become part of the history of our
country and could its most essential feature.
its width of I2O feet be preserved and this
grand and spacious breadth tastefully orna-
mented with shade trees and shrubbery, by
the proprietors along its borders, it would
continne to be highway of the best order
and monument of beauty which the State
and country might we'll be proud of. l am
not going TO try to show that there is ccono-
my in housing tools; for where man or boy
uses his ak, hoe, beetle and wedge, curry
comb or chain there he should let it drop.
The place for the moving machine and horse
rake is in the corner Of the field where they
are last used; but your .scyt the should always
be hung up:-(in the apple tree.) If the
wind can loosen any boards on the barns or
sheds there ought to be few wrenc ched off
BY hand for looks sake. And for the same
reason Part or all Of the doors should be off
their hinges; and the manure piled
foot or so above the sills to prevent their
rotting. a time honored way 10 get into a
field is to open the fence, but should there
be bars, one or more ought generally to be
left down; and in case of gate it should be
hung so it could sag or settle down, and for
this purpose the last one patented will be
found invariably the best. A gate that swings
free on all its hinges is apt to blow open and
the hogs might chance to get into the corn.
A Plow should always be left standing in the
furrow; for there it is right where you will
doubtless want to hitch on to it next. To
select good breed Of hogs there is but one
point essential to be observed, that is The
snout. An old man below Milan said he
had an old sow that could take potatoe out
of the bottom of the canal without shutting
her eyes. That is the kind to go for In
selecting horses for fast walkers look for a.
many points that are common between tie
horse and Weston as you can. But what is
more important than all other questions
with the farmer is to get as much off from
his land as possible and return as little back
to the land. Glover seed should seldom OF
never be sown, and in case clover grows Of
itself it never should be plowed in especial
ly when in full bloom for it then contains SO
much more inter at that stage than at any
other. Glover seed often costs shilling a
pound and len pounds sown on one acre
would be 81 % cash out and as much more
for gypsum would make 50 80. Now to
plow in a crop Of clover and get 90 bushels
of wheat from an acre where you could gel
but ten bushels without it, would bring
about state of things that few men would
have grace enough in their hearts to stand.
They might complain of hard treatment as
the man who was charged with stealing hogs
heads, who one day met his accuser in a
crowd and says to him, How is this Mr.
jenkins, understand you have been charg-
ing me with stealing your Logs heads. Now
tell you won't stand it. To be charged
with stealing | don't object to, but to be
charged with being such consumate fool as
to steal hogs-heads when there was ham and
side pork laying OF the same board and left
untouched, l tell you l won't stand it, and
you may take it back or | will wade into
YOU jenkins took it all back, WI. @.
The PAPER AGE.-This is certainly
the age of paper. There are "green-
backs" stamps" paper shirt-bosoms,
collars and cuffs; paper slippers and
, bats; paper water-pipes, well-walls,
| chin hin ,oana1s and eyen the sides