Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1868-11-20
AGRICULTURAL.
~ Practical Farmer.

Generally speaking, this means >
working farmer--oae who can take
hold OF any tool or implement used
In agriculture, and go ahead with il
through the day and through tie Job
--ohe who cah carry on the eperu-
tons on farm with the raw hands
vt command, and III nptafui, con,luct
the whole with hevy of greenhorns,
There Is SO much stress lai,. an this,
and on the danger of any MT intl-
mate with the details of agriculture
entering upon IL, that many are ,lr-
TERED from enlbarkiny IN any farm
ing Undertaking, when perhaps the
party thus discouraged Is really very
much better adapted for a iirst clasa
agriculturist than ninety. min, out of
hundred 0f these wha have been
bred to IL, for those raised on farm
are sometimes so blinded 10y the pre-
Judices and antisuated customs hand
eel down from one generation 10 an.
other. that they ,lo not have tho rood
sense To see through inherited aud
inbred folly; aud some lack courage
To Reform, for In any attempt TO abol-
ish old customs aud Introduce new
ones, there is about IA much opposi-
ton as there always is by the old
tories of England against every USE
ful and enlightened alteration of the
laws.
There Is no class of men SO slow 10
advance us the regular home. bred
farmer. Ii was always so; for II Il
brighter son than usual Is In the fam
lily, he becomes disgustcd with the
toiiing, druJgiug hablts of tile farm
aud takes 10 something else. III IL
llkeiy to he 50 In the future, till fnrm-
era brains can save their muaclss
some, for why should the practical
farmer and all labors under him be
called upon to work more hours than
any other class of men In the world ?
Why cannot the minds OF ngricultur.
lists devise ways and means to do all
that n man ought To do In twelve
hours, or even in ten, executing IN
harvest? Tradesmen, whose labor In
or lighter kind, do not continno on
ut work so many hours. The horses
aud oxen could do all they do now I'm
less time and be better for it, but then
the custom lias been aud IL now to be
about all these hours, and, though
common sense and every mans own
feelings tell him that men aud cattle
could do all they do or ever can do I'm
ten hours steadfast, straightforward
labor, yet longer days, aud half tho
time idling, Is preferred.
There is not the least doubt of there
being hundreds of men who know
nothing about agriculture, and have
never had any opportunities of farm
ing or any correct idea OF farming.
who would yet make excellent men
oil business rs agriculturists, would
eventually become better managers
than the practical farmer w no derives
his origin from tho land, and rise fnr
superior to any OF the regular, COM
mon. practical farmers, for when
once they master the common routine
OF operations. and have knowledge
OF the mode OF proceeding through a
Whole season, they are more open to
conviction on any point where Inn
proved systems are introduced, ana
are free from the educational preiur
dice OF the home bred farmete
"A thorough man OF business, whose
early associations had uat warped his
Judgment, OH hearing that his neigh
uor's stock was looking much better
tlian his, would not rest till he knew
the reason and, on fading that all
Kinds OF animals were turning nut
ihucii o%tler tllan ordinary in a local.
ity some hundreds OF miles distant,
would visit that part of the country
ana ascertain how the farmers niati-
aged There, aud, III he found they had
caused this improvements by obtain
ihg good males from reliable souross
anu 10y generously treating the Off
spring with uniform, succulent,
health producing food, comfortable
shelter from heat, cold aitl storms, he
would Immediately adopt tho same
means, aud probably, by having seen
the details OF management on several
places, noted the different degrees of
excellence Ina the animals on different
farms, and found out the cause and
effect, his adoption of the best OF
THESE procedures would enable him
TO go on at once In more rapid adj
vancement than any one of these
men had done. Country GentleBlun.