Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1868-04-04
SDeciaIties In Farming.

Specialties In Farming. s
sa Under this head the Massachusetts,
plouehman has long article, in which it sets
forth the advantage to farmers In studying
what particular branch their farms are best
adapted to- and urges them to give their atten-
tion to some special culture, and not have too
many irons in the fire. The concluding por-
tion reads as follows: a#"
u "Iet US take one or two Illustrations. A
friend in Fitchburg has two or three acres of
Concord grapes. He raises poultry, too, and
he had 1900 eggs from an average of twenty
ak hens from the first of January of last year
to. the last Of December; but grapes and small
fruits are his. special hobby. Y ear before last,
from less than an acre, then in bearing, which
hetended himself, he sold very nearly eighteen
hundred dollars worth of grapes But if he
& had frittered away his time on forty different
crops, and now and then ran to town with
dozen of eggs, or peck of turnips, or a bushel
of peas, or few ears of green corn, or string
of onions, or a box of butter, OF a few other
lots of garden truck, is it to be supposed that
he would, have realized seventeen or eighteen
hundred dollars from less than an acre OF vine
yard? rs a4sJ.s
1t is only few months since we visited that
vineyard in company with two or three gentle
men, and on leaving, one of them remarked,
'There, I d rather own that two acres OF vino
ward, than the best farm in Worcester coun-
ty."' And he was right. Why? Because with
less cost of machinery and management, less
wear and tear, it would pay far larger per-
. centage OF income than the best farm in Wor-
cester county, and hence, as an investment, as
matter OF dollars and cents, it was more de-
sirable.
Again, we know a man in the Connecticut
Valley, who bought his place, built large to-
bacco shed and made some other improvements,
and paid for the whole by the single crop of to.
.bacco the first year. But he gave his mind
and attention to it, and didn't try to cultivate
much corn or many potatoes
W. And again: We know man In Duxbury,
who began to reclaim one of the hardest look
ing bush swamps that We ever saw, and set out
cranberries, now four or five years ago. Tho
cost per acre of cutting the bushes and the
brakes, grubbing up the hassocks, and tangled
roots of trees and high blueberry bushes, par
ing and levelling the surface, carting on sand
and setting out tho vines, exceeded four hum
dred dollars. Last year was the third OF the
experiment. and the first crop of any extent,
on about an acre then in bearing; the crop
yielded between seven and eight hundred dol
lars net income. u ~
I'VE have another friend who owns large
cranberry yard in the town of Franklin. 1t has
cost him, on an average, more than five hun
dred dollars acre, some OF it nearly thou
sand dollars an acre to set, because he had
everything to contend with 1t was an old
now has about twenty acres in full bearing, and
nh 10
pointed to one meadow Of about twelve acres
andsaid, "Tbere, [ am offered twenty thou.
sand dollars for that meadow not over four
teen acres the outside" .sr
don't you take it p re.s. a". |.
5.a Take it | why, it pays me the interest on
over fifty thousand dollars; and has done for
several years. can't afford to sell it for twen-
ty thousand!" rE
And at the time of our visit, instead of wish
ing to sell any part Of his extensive plantation,
he had three or four workmen In the mud and
water half up to their knees, extending the area
Of his vines, at an enormous cost per acre.
We mention these instances not to recon-.
mend every farmer to 60 aud do likewise; that
Is to run into grapes or cranberries or tobacco,
but simply to show the importance of studying
and taking advantage Of the natural capacities
Of the farm.
"a PLEA FOR MEAN MEN" "A correspon-
dent inone of our exchanges, undertakes the de-
fence OF ''mean men, - as close calculators are
sometimes called, as follows il . "
no makes the better husband? At the
risk Of bringing down torrent of maledictions
on my unprotected head, [ shall still adhere to
the man who is supposed to have no heart OF
genuine human sentiment. The good fellow
tor lover; the mean man for a husband. The
latter will rob all creation to supply his house
hold-the former will rob his family to supply
bis friends. Form all the married women in a
solid column up and down Second street, and
IIdon't gel ninety-nine votes out OF one hun
ored In favor or my proposition, l will treat to
1rst election of female President. Good fel-
lakes his wife to the opera in four horse car
flsge-the other rides triumphantly in street
omnibus. The good fellow never can be cross
70 anybody but his wife, tor fear of making
himself unpopular-the mean man is so sour
With the rest of the world that he has not one
particle OF i'll temper to spare at home.
Love rules the court the camp, the grove,
For love is Heaven, and Heaven is love-"
. out it won't buy beet The mean man seldom
gets 'sa lubrious, he is too mean. His wife is
never jealous. She knows all women hate
alm, because he is mean, and she rather likes
IT. She laughs and grows fat. Good fellow
ISrinks-too kind hearted to retuse-and he
loVes everybody. Good fellows wife pale and
e9aelated, and full of sorrow. Mean cuss'
we hale and hearty-fat red-faced-and
Weighs ton. Am Iright?"
BUILDERS HARDWARE, SHOVELS,
TSpades. Forks, Scoups, Trace Chains,
,a .ssks, Sleeves, &c.-Our stock of Goods is large