The Portland daily press., 1868-04-11
How TO increase .be vaIne ed Farms,

mo" 10 Anercase tne NaiHe CT Farms.
Every owner OF farm can have no serious
OBJECTIONS TO any means which may increase
the price OF it, if he wishes to sell, or enhance
its value If he intends to live upon it. To
urge the Importance OF increasing the pecun-
iary value OF farms is an appeal to the pocket
nerve which always vibrates and trembles at
the slightest touch. And yet farmers do not
act as If they cared much about it anyhow;
at any rate, they delve along from year to
year, hoping, it may be, they viii find pur-
chasers, and feeling more anxions to sell as
their farms find lower level. II they are
told that they can add a few dollars to the
value of each acre, they will open their ears,
part their lips and listen with much interest,
but do nothing towards making the suggested
Improvements. Now there are many ways of
increasing the money price Ct their acres
which are entirely neglected irom year to
year. Setting out shade and ornamental
trees is one way and not an expensive one,
but it is much neglected and by some never
thought Of If these very farmers were
about to purchase iaIms they would at once
he pleased with handsome maple or elm trees
growing about the door yard or by the road
side. Such trees would furnish an additional
inducement to purchasers, and they would
be willing to give few more dollars per acre
tor farms thus Ornamented. But they do not
thus add to the beauty of their own estates
although they may wish to dispose OF them
and seek some other locality.
Again-the planting and cultivating of fruit
trees and securing good supply of the best
fruit will do much towards adding to the
real as well as the market value of farms
A good orchard is worth much more than il.
costs and would be a strong inducemeRt 10
any MAJ to purchase who wants farm. A
good garden handsomely fenced and filled
with currant and gooseberry bushes with
plumtrees and asparagus bed, IaSpberries
and some flowers would add to the money
value OF the farm. A purchaser would high
ly prize these things and pay for them more
than they cost the owner; and yet how sadly
such matters are neglected fTcm year to
year! A maple orchard too is fine addi-
ton to farm; but few have taken the pains
to save one from the original forest or to set
when the forests of Maine were converted
into farms to save maple groves, and the
succeeding owners and occupants had PRE-
served and not have cut them down forfire-
wood, what an amount of sugar and syIup
might be made every year! Such product
would be a great income TO the State, and
save paying tribute to other States and other
countries for sugar and molasses, articles that
have become indispensable in every house
hold.
The Country Gentleman has some excel
lent remarks upon these matters. 1t says:
when purchaser visits certain neighbor-
hood to select farm, one of his first inquiries
is, is it planted with fruit trees? II an afirma-
tive answer can be given, he may be induced
to pay several dollars more per acre amount-
ing to five hundred or a thousand dollars for
the whole farm, while the trees and planting
have not cost 1.-THE of that sum-" There is
another consideration of higher character
| which is the influence of home attraction to
the owners chidren-an attraction which
may prove the turning-point between lite
of usefulness, industry and domestic enjoy
ment on the one hand, and of a rowing, rest
less, and perhaps immoral character on the
other. But our object is not to preach SER
mon on morality, but TO point to the real pc
cuniary value OF such Improvements as we
have alluded to above. The truth is, ouI
farmers will find such improvements worth a
good deal more than they cost whether they
| intend to live on their farms or to sell them
and remove to other places.
Now is the time to begin such enterprise
and improvement. Don't postpone it to an
other year-"to a more convenient season.
for that season never comes to him who ac
quires this habit of putting off matters which
ought to be done to-day. Remember what
name Holy Writ gives to these procrastina
tors who become the thieves of time aud for
ever lose what they thus steal.