New-York tribune., 1870-09-24
XXXV.
ACCOUNTS IN FARMING.

| fail
pacity most in diligence; but not few in method
or system Quite q number fail because they under
take too much at the outset that is they run into
debt for more land than they have capital to stock
or means to erilize and forced into bankruptcy
by the interest ever-accuing upon land which they
are unable 10 cultivate. If they should get ahead
| little by active exertion throughout the day. the
interest would overtake and pass them during the
ensuing night
| Few of the unsuccessful realize the extent to
which their lfortune is fairly attributable to their
| own waste of time. Men not naturally lazy squanher
hours weekly in the village at the railroad station,
| without a suspicion that they thus destroying
their chances of success in life. To-day is gwen up
| to monkey show; half of tomorrow is lost IN at
tendance on an aucton part of next day is spent at
jury trial; and 40 on untl one thlid Oh
| the year is virtually wasted.
Now the men who have achieved eminent success,
within my observation, have all been rigid econo-
mists of time. They managed to transact their busi
ness at the oounty-sea while serving there grand
| or petit jurors or detained under subpoena wit
nesses they never attended auction unless they
really needed something which there to be sold
and then they began their days work earlier and
ended it later in order to redeem the time which they
borrowed for the sale. / do not believe that any
| American farmer who could count up three hundred
full days work in every year between his twenty
first and his thirtieth ever yet failed, except as
result of speculation or endorsing, or inordinate
| running into debt.
| would, therefore, urge every farmer to keep
rigid account current of the disposal of his tme so
as to be able to see at the years end exactly how
many days thereof he had given to productive labor
how many to such abiding improvements as fencing
and draining; and how many to objects which
| hicf /
am sure many would be amazed at the extent of this
| last category.
| If every youth who expects to live by farming
would buy cheap pocketbook wallet which
| contains diary wherein page is allotted to each
day Of the year and would at the close of that day,
OF at least while its incidents still fresh in his
mind set down under its proper head whatever incl
dents were most nOtewOrthy-as, for instance, a
| soaking rain; light heavy shower; slight or
| killing frost; fall of snow; q hurricane; hail
storm; gale; decidedly hot OF notably cold tenn
peTature; the turning out of cattle to pasture or
sheltering them against the severity of Winter also
| the planting or sowing of each crop or field, and
whether harm was done to it by frost in its infancy
or when it approached maturity-he would thus
provide himself with annual volumes of fact which
would prove instructive and valuable throughout
| his maturer years.
The good farmer will of course keep accounts with
such of his neighbOrs as he fit to deal with and
he ought TO charge a lent credit borrowed plow,
harrow reaper. lOg-chan, or other implement pre-
| csely as though it were meal or meat of an equal
I value. Judge that borrowed implements, if regu-
| larly charged at cost aud credited at their actual
value when returned, would generally como home
| sooner and in better condition.
But the farmer like every else, should be most
careful to keep debt and credit with himself and
for lnlla ia LIANT ia liza
should show it, and let items and sum total
stare him in the face when he strikes balance at
the close of the year. If there has been no leakage
either of dimes OF of hours he will seldom be poorer
on the 31st of December than he was on the LIST of
the preceding January.
Most farmers fail to keep accounts with their
several fields and crops yet what could be more in
structve than these Here are ten acres of Corn,
with yield of 20 to 40 bushels per acre-a like area
and like yield of Oats, a smaller OF larger of Rye
Buckwheat and Beans as the case may be. If the
, produceis sold, most farmers know how much it
) brings; but how many know how much it cost
Say the Corn brings as cents per bushel. and the
Oats so cents: either both produced at profit
, | If So at what profit Here is a farmer who has
grown from 100 TO 800 bushels of per annum for
the last 20 years. ought he not to know by this time
what Corn costs him in the average and whether ii
could or could not with profit give place to some
thing elsef Most farmers grow crops at a
9 profit others at loss ought they not to know,
after an experience of five to ten years what crops
have put money into their pockets, and what have
made them poorer for the growngi
OF course there ia complication and some degree Of
uncertainty in all such accountkeeping; for every
one is aware that some crops take noIe from the
soil than Others and leave it in a condition
, for those that to follow, and that sOIns eIsct
large reGnfOrcemeDts Of fertilizers, whereof part
only is fairly chargeabe to the first ensuing pro
duct, while large share inures TO the subsequent
harvests Each must judge for himself how much
is to be credited for such improvement, and how
much charged against other crops for deterioration.
| He for example, whose meadows will cut from two
to three tuns per of good English Hay may gen
orally sell that Hay for twice if not thrice the i'm
mediate cost of its production, and to be
realizing large profit; but, if he gives nothing 20
the soil in return for the heavy draft thus made
upon it, his crop will dwndle year by year. until it
will hardly pay for cutting and the diminution in
value Of bis meadows will nearly OF quite balance
the seeming profit accruing from his Hay. But ac-
count-keeping in every business involves essentially
identical calculations, and the merchant who this
year makes no net profit his goods but doubles
the number of his customers and the extent Of his
trade has thrven precisely has the farmer whose
profit on his crops has all been invested in drains
permeating his bogs and in Lime Plaster and other
fertilizers. applied TO and permanently enrching his
dryer fields.
"TO make each day critic on the lastn was the
aspiration of wise man, If not great poet 80 the
farmer who will keep careful and candid accounts
with himself annually correcting his estimates by
the light Of experience, viii learn what crops
he may reasonably expect to grow at profit, and 10
reject such likely TO involve him in loss and
he who having done this shall blend common sense
with industry. will have TO complain there
after that there is no profit in farming