The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-02-04
HINTS ON AGRICULTURE.
Large and Small Farms.

HINTS ON AGRICULTURE.
Laree and Small Farms.
Tt is O. common practice of agricultural writ
| ers and speakers to declaim against and to de-
precate the cultivation OF large estates. Amer
| ican farmers are characterized as having
| to farm, Of running over their lands with q
wastefui, careless cultivation, which yields
scanty crops at large comparative expense.
They are accused Of 'hankering for the owner
shin OF land" which, once possessed, ls either
ruined or left in idlenoss. On the other hand,
| they speak in glowing terms OF the 'small farm,
| we'll tilled," descant upon it's large crops
per acre, aud the quiet, comfort, happiness,
and prosperity OF the owner. The large farm
er is assured that If he will ''sell half his
| land, the crops OF the remainder will I'LL as
large barns as what he now gets from the
| WHOLE" Their manner OF stating the case is
such as to convey the idea that the land Is the
cause OF the mischief deprecated, or tnat
| large number OF acres predlsposes TO snlltiess
management, and injudcious or imperfect
cultivation. There are many reasons why
| dissent from this idea. The principal one is,
because find, BY somewhat extended obser-
yation, in different parts OF the country, away
| from the influences and special advantages OF
nearness to town and city markets, that there
whole number, TINT present evidences OF neg
lcct and bad cultivation than there are large
ones: more proofs OF want OF enterprise
and interest in the farm, and OF desire to IND
other means of employment among small
farmers than largo. AS general rule, small
farmers complain that they do. and can do but
little, because they have little to do with.
They cannot rear stock for want of suitable
pasturaee. They cannot cultivate their farms
as they should for want of proper teams. They
cannot support good fences, from the want OF
timber to build with. The reasons given by
this class OF farmers, in extehuation OF their
shiftlcss ways, are without number, but they
all eud in about this: Nothing can be done,
for there is nothing to do with" 1t must be
admitted that too many OF our large farms
give indications of o want of thorough proper
cultivation, and thai there is an apparent tea
| dency to neglect advantages at hand 10 I'M
provo them, to increase their crops, and bet,
ter the condition Of the ownor. AS o general
thing, however, their appearance indicates
more OF thrift and proper cultivation than
The trouble, in all this imperfect farming, is
not the quantity of land but is one which lies
deeper and more inaccessible than the subsoll
of the farms. In must cases. If these large
| landowners we're transferred TO small farms,
| thor method Of operation would not be i'm
proved, but, on the. other hand, would grow
| worse. for one OF tho|treat stimuants to enter
prlse aud improvement would be taken away.
! The fact is, farming, like commerce, manufac.
| turing or mechanics, is business pursuit, and
should be conducted on the same general busi-
ness principles. II those principles are con-
stantly and thoroughly adhered to, IN all trans
actions large OF small, success IS sure to follow.
| To persistently depart from them, even II the
scale Of business is small will result in failure
Still, men can be found in great numbers, IN
nearly every pursuit, who seem to act on the
principle that the amount OF business done IS
| the criterion Of success to themselves, anu Id
| the opinion Of the community, aud not the
manner of doing it. Merchants, manufactur-
| ers. and farmers alike, fall into this error.
| With the former, financial ruin is The result;
with the latter, poor crops, impoverished helds,
and general deterioration. The natura! capa,
| city and trained Intelligence OF the individual
| arc the standard of the amount OF business he
! can perform we'll and probably. The men
| are not very numerous VINO have tho talent to
| organize aud systematiZe extended business
| operations 70 select, with sure DISCRIMINATION,
! their needed special agents, anu to direct and
control all tho minute details in attention to
which lie tho o!emcnts or success. Ihere are
Stewarts in commerce, and Strawns IN agrlcul-
lure. but every man cannot be either tho one
or the other; and most who attempt it, or even
stcp beyupd the limits of their natural or ac-
oured business capacity, will be very likely to
Neglect the essential principles OF success, and
fall at the same time. effort in less extend
ed field Of operations would De rewarded Win
satisfactory results.
This is the cause why some do not succeed
we'll who attempt to cultivate largo tract OF
land. But other things being equal, up to tho
measure Of the capacity Of the individual, tina
more l.nd the farmer cultivates the greater
will be his prosperity and comfort, and ms per
cent. ofprCGto on the capital invested. inese
principles apply to the Individual, bpt there
are cogept reasons of o general nature winch
incline me to favor large farms, and to consider
them q natural American characteristic. Inc
sp,rit and genius OF our institutions anu peo-
ple incline to stimulate them to grand ana ex,
tended operations. AS compared Win tno Ol9
World, everything here is on large scale anu
lul SCOPE is found for the development OF tho
most untiring energy and most active and ex-
teus,yc enterprise. Our people take lnsplra-
ton from their surroundings, and tho con,
scous as ssurance that no arbitrary power VIII
wrest from them tho results OF tier laDof.
No one dreams for IL momcnt of cuftal!inG OF
checking these business as2rations III otner
pursuits, aud shall agriculture, the most I'M
purlant OF oil, be dwarfed and connneu toa
narrow sphere
Wa have an unlimited extent of land, q
large portion of it OF lenark Dle fertility, anu,
coin pared With it, q sparse population. AE;ell-
CAL gcnlus has developed and maoc ready 10
our hand every SORT OF agricultural macnlnery
whereby our power 10 cultivate our acres anu
harvest their products is increased many told;
The whole of cur vast territory Is threaded and
HI criuced with RI lroal and wafer commune
cnliou 50 that the products Of our most remote
and secluded SECTIONS have quick, cheap, and
easy COMMUNICATION 10 the CITY and seaboard
mars OF trade lor " profitable market. Is
tLero anything in The nature or clrcam-
stances of this pursuit which prevents IL from
aya"s itself Of tlssS natural raj and artificial III aa
tc:dcd and prof able other pursuits! 1t
cannot pe; and to enable us to see 1t more
clearly III this light let us examine some OF
the disadvantages and drawbacks OF farming
iu small way. In the eastern and older
portions of the country, and i'll different local,
ities IN that section, the farms that are called
small usually contain from twenty-five to
dfty acres, and largo farms from fifty to two
hundred TLis cla :slticatlon excludes those
plots of land near the cit es. that are used ex-
ciusivcly for gardening purposes. On these
small farms the system OF cultivation and the
crops grown aro simllur, il not identical, with
tho system and crops oil tho large farms, only
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