The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-12-01

. olonai StThIet-I iaclnS tne crop
Calculation of the Whole World
on a Scientific Basis,
An International System of Crop Re.
ports Putting the Farmers on
Level with the Factor-Ad-
dress by Commodore
Many.
From an elaborate paper prepared
by the illustrious COMMODORE MAT
THEW +. MAURY of the Virginia
Military Academy, and read before
the Rockbridge Agricultural Society,
at recent meeting, we extract the
following resolutions and sufficient of
COMMODORE MAURY's able and COM
prehensive address to explain his
plan for an international system of
Meteorological Reports and Agricul-
tural Statistics:
RESOLUTIONS.
ReSOl ed, That the president of
of this Society be and is hereby in
structed to petition in behalf of the
farmers of Virginia, the United States
government through the State De-
partment and the Executive in favor
of the establishment by international
cooperation ofa general and system
| attic plan of meteorological observa-
| tons and crop reports; and to request
the government, in furtherance of
| this object, to invite the other ma
tiOns to meet in the persons Of their
leading meteorolOgists at an early
day in conference similar to that of
Brussels in 1858: First, for the pur-
pose of connecting with the plan now
proposed the system that was then
devised for the sea: second, for the
purpose of arranging details; and.
third, for the purpose also Of provid-
ing for a general system of telegraph
ic meteorology and crop reports to
the end that our knowledge of the
laws which control the functions of
The atmosphere LAY be increased, |
and that accurate and useful forecasts |
may be made at frequent intervals as
10 weather and crops in all countries. |
And the president of this society is !
desired also To request that the United |
states government will co operate in |
this system of research by causing |
the plan that may be agreed upon in |
conference 10 be carried out in this |
country, and to be adopted on board |
Of the national cruisers.
Resolved, That the president of this |
society transmit a copy of these resO |
utiOns to the State Governor and to |
each of the agricultural societies and |
..lrN1l Ia "a tho Sfgrn fFnN-irTnf- ThAf 4 /
cooperation and requesting them To |
support this measure with their in |
huence and with similar petitions.
COMMODORE MAURY's REMARKS.
The farmer sows in faith: but |
whether he shall reap in plenty or |
CLEAN in famine depends chiefly up |
on the season. l am not fond enough |
10 suppose, nor do | mean 10 convey |
10 you the idea, that the conference |
u which these resolutions point is to
devise any system physical research |
which will enable meteorOlOgists TO
regulate the seasons. But ! do mean
To convey the impression To your
mind-because the conviction is
strong upon my Own-;hat if the oh
ject of these resolutions be carried
out, the result viii be far more bene-
fetal TO you than any which could |
possibly flow from human power over
the seasons. Let us illustrate this,
SO that we may make it plain as we
go. SOME fdrnvTs grow wheat Let
us take such an one for illustration,
and follow him from seed time to
harvest. He has worked hard. His
grain is harvested and housed; it is
all ready for sale; he wants a little
money, and goes TO town To inquire |
the price of wheat OF the men who
want to buy. Now in doing this he
is reversing the general order of bu
siness at once. Usually the buyer
asks the seller the price of his wares.
But with regard to all the chief agri-
cultural staples, the producer knows
so little about the yield in compet-
ing states and countries, that he is
compelled 10 SO aud ask the buyers
about il, and request them to fix the
price. What would you think if
your neighbOr, who, wishing to sell
horse, should 20 TO the man who
wants to buy and ask him to fix the !
value and set the price? Yet this Is
exactly what you DO with your cotton
and grain, rice. sugar, and tobacco,
and all your staple production. To
relieve you from this, and To put you |
on footing with the factor in knowl-
edge as to the yield of the crop every
where is exactly what these resolu-
tons aim 10 do. Prices are regulated
NOT BY THE YIELD IL TENNESSEE.
or Mimi asota, but by the y,eiG in all
narts of the word, both at home and
abroad, whence wheat is sent for
ward from here. Now, | cannot
keep it too prominently before you
that the object of these resolutions 10
TO give youas well as the merchant
As ACCURATE AND FAMILIAR INFoR-
NATION
as to the WELD Of the crop in every
part ofthe United States, in England,
the basin of the Black Sea, Egypt,
and the Danube, as you have in your
own e;ghborhOod. Like mistakes
az to yield happen with tobacco, SUI
gar. rice, hemp, and all the agricul-
tural staples Of commerce. How
should it be otherwise, seeing the in
formation il so one sided? 1t is coli
lected by the buyer, Of course, In his
own interest, for by it he sets prices.
This information ought to be collect
ed by the government and be in the
interests of truth and science, and
therefore impartial. The relations
between buyer and seller are antagOy
nistic, in so far as one wants 10 buy
low and the other TO sell high. For
the lack Ofjust such system of co
operation and research as | propose,
it continually happens that the pro-
ducer. who knows nothing as TO the
Commercial! wants Of the world for
his staple, has TO sell aG prices that
are based upon estimates which deal
ers not producers, fOTIn as to the cN-
tent of the crop, not in our land but
in all lands from which commerce
draws her supplies. Surely, consid-
ering the progress that has been made
and is now making in physical re-
search and scientific discovery,
IT is NOT MUCH oUF or THE WAY
to ask the government so to direct
these discoveries and researches, so
encourage them that you too, in your
husbandry, may nave the benefit Of
them. The cost will be tTining, the
machinery for carrying out this plan
is already provided in most of the
States of Christendom, and it only
reau res to be geared together and put
into operation. The wires of the
telegraph lead all over the world.
their total length at present is nearly
a million of miles, and 1t is increas-