Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1872-11-22
BOARD OF AGRICULTURE, &C.

BOARD OF AGRICULTURE, &C.
The Montpelier Argus is remarkable, not
for the fairness Of its editorial articles, by
any means, but for the fairness with which |
they often represent the prejudices of a con-
siderable number of ill.informed people. 1t is
a meter, and worth consulting as such, of a
large though uninstructed public sentiment,
which must be taken into consideration in
estimating the difficulties which oppose the
establishment of some things most important
and beneficial to the people of Vermont. In
Justice we must also allow as an offset, its
usefulness in puncturing with sharp and
vigorous pen the bgotry and intolerance of
an educated and influential portion Of the
dominant political party in the state
Its recent articles upon the Boards oil Ag-
riculture and of Education illustrate both of
these characteristics. They handle the SUBJ
iect in a practical way, and make some good
points in regard to both, but are anything
but judicial and in some respects are very
unfair We suppose the editor does not care
two cents about the uufairness, so long as he
hits what he considers, in the words of Dr.
Holmes, the average common sense of the
people"
We leave to others-the able editor of the
Newport Express, who is a member thereof,
among them,-the rectifcation of whatever
is wrong in the Argns'S charge upon the
Board of Education, and take up his remarks
upon the other Board, that of +" Agriculture,
Manufactures, and Mining"
Referring to the claim made by Secretary
Collier in his recent address at Montpelier,
(which we shall soon print in the FARMER,)
that the saving to the farmers of the state
consequent upon the exposure by the Board
of the frauds in fertilizers, was alone proba-
bly, equal to the entire yearly expense Of the
Board, the Argus says:
The Board has certainly achieved u great
success in showing mp the humbuggery of fer
tilizers. but we question whether in allowing
its official certificate to advertise the sale of
one of these humbugging articles it has not
become party to us big a piece of humbug
us ever existed. After exposing the decep-
ton and showing up the cheat, would it not
have been better to let ali fertilizers stand on
their own legs?
The Argus admits the benefit Of the Sec
retarys published analyses, but appears to
assume that there is not and cannot be such
a thing as good commercial fertilizer. In
this the whole intelligent world of agricul-
ture, European and American, is against
him. And the farmers OF Vermont, so far
as their interest and attention has been awak-
ened to the matter, are also against him.
The use of commercial manures is already
immense, and the demand for them is rapidly
increasing, in Vermont well as elsewhere
The favorite tobacco of Mr.. Atkins could not
be grown at any reasonable cost, or with any
satisfactory success, without them, and the
Piles Of corn, cotton and hay, to say nothing
of vineyard and garden products While
Professor Collier has been exposing to thu
community the inferority or wOrthlessness o
some so-called fertilizers, the first demand o.
his auditors has been, cannot we have 4
first-class and perfectly reliable fertilizer
made ?" =" Certainly" the Professor replied
"Nothing is easier, provided an honest mar
can be found to make it, and purchaser
found who are willing to pay what it il
worth" Then followed the request (thes,
arc actual facts, within our own knowledge,
that he would undertake to perfect process
by which such a product should be brough
into the market lie did so. and Mr.. Beck
with, of Burlington, assumed the risk Of tn,
attempt to introduce such fertilizer to tn,
public, every package to be subject to tn
inspection, and not sold without the guaran
tee, of the Professor himself This fertiliz
or is the one that the Argus attempts t,
stigmatize as " as big piece Of humbug a
ever existed" We suspect some persona
grief is at the bottom of the charge, bu
whether so or not, it il utterly false, Their
not as good-a fertilizer as that to whic
Professor Collier gives his Endorsement Thi
can be established scientifically by the evi
dence of any or all competent chemists, an
is known experimentally by numerous praC
teal men, the writer of this article anon
them In getting up such fertilizer tn
Professor has but complied with the urger
request of Vermont farmers, at very greG
and entirely unremunerated cost of time an
trouble to himself being DESTROYS to do a
the good possible in his position as Seoretar
of a new organization which was by man
looked upon as of doubtful utility to ii
farmers Of the state.
The Argus goes on, after a few cove
sneers in advance at the forthcoming Repo
of the Secretary, to say;
The Board have held "meetings in nil
counties and, IL might have added, hay
utterly failed to interest the farmers of III
state sufficiently to secure their general II
tendance upon them The meetings hay
been interesting, no doubt, and profitable
those who have attended, Good speaker
and readers were present Excellent pape