Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-09-23

light of their lives in the pursuits of
agriculture And why shouldn't they?
There is no higher or deeper study than to
know nature. The structure and growth
of plants may command the steady atten
ton of the profoundest thinkers for a life
time: even generations of them cannot
exhaust the subject. Why shouldn't
farmers know the secrets of the various
yrowths infinite in variety, that are found
on every acre OF their land? And suppose
their social life should take some phase
like this is there not in such Il life food
enough for the intellect and work enough
for it, to brin" out all its possibilities?
And it is not the dull brain, the block
head. that makes 4 good farmer. Scientific
farming is sometimes ridiculcd, but genu-
inelv scientific farming is never failure.
Indeed. that any other farming is not
always Il failure is owing to the happy
circumstance that nature works by the most
scientific methods in spite of our want of
science and our stupid attempts to defeat
her purposes, and gives us Il better harvest
ALWAYS than we deserve. But the highest
success in any business comes only through
L thorough understanding of it. The
mechanic must know something of the
strength of his timber and the quality of
his tools. and whether he learns this by
practice or by study, when he has the
knowledge he has most important cle-
mont in his trade; and it is only 4 question
of more or les, of This knowledge whether
one Shall be equal only to building the
simplest kind of shed. or can span the
Mississippi ut st Louis with an iron bridge
ul.on whose strong arches the products of
hllfa continent can pass without breaking
bulk And farming is more of 4 science
than mechanics or engineering. There Is
no revelation of chemistry that may not
be u>eful to it. The qualities of air and
LIGHT are elements of the highest concern
to its success. The properties of soils are
essential factors in any product barren
field may he made productive by processes
that shall release and set in motion the
forces hidden beneath It's unpromlslng
,urfacr The desert shall blossom rs the
rose. and the solitary places shall rejoice
in fruitful harvrstS. when knowledge un-
locks the secret of their treasure houses.
and moisture and air and sunshine and
chemical atiinitir> have turned into luscious
fruits or golden Grain OF nutritious heritage
the bitterness that produced only ashes or
>4rt brush And if the Grange shall. 10y
its meetings and discussions, keep the
brain of agriculture up To its highest
activity. shall observe and experiment and
record and compare the results of Ob>crv;l-
ton and experiment. shall make an agrl-
cultural college of the farmers OF every
ncrhborhood. and every farm 4 field for
the cmplovmcnt of the best thought the
most advanced knowledge in the science
of agriculture. shall drop the idea that Il
liberal education i only necessary ~ ~
Introduction to the learned proft>>ion>->c
called and - only educate the hoy, who
have. no taste for farminr.-shall make the
brain. 1h,. intelligence. the base of opera
tiun~. ami recognize the fact that farming
j to BE-, done in the head aS we'll ~ i'll tn,
iicld-it may hccome Il social ami cduca
tional force working infinite good TO the
!. farmer both IL an intelligent being and Il
:, producer of wealth.
: | have. seen in some accounts of the or
, ef3niIation Of the Grange. that it rccog
niI,~ woman a, 4 human being. cndoWo'
Il with intelligence and capacity for improtc
in-nt asa mrnhrr of the community. an,
n an element not only of industrial bat q
| intellectual life Here | can find >uhicc
for an entire address, but pause only t
| saw that whatever makes woman more
l nearly m1n'~ equal. nor" lit - be tn
,ulnlaniuu of his highest intellectual ac
tiyiiv and lis Euhe>t aspirations. make
her better makes him better, makes tn
world better. The Kitchen may happen t
h, the sphere. of woman physical activity
: but it, boundaries should no more hr he
mental horizon than the r:l den or IN
II orchard should limit the thought of tn
TURNER'S brain. The more She i taken in
to partnership in all the activities of lif
th,. better for Us all and an organiZatio
) that shall aid in bringing in 80 desirable
reform will find in that :.l"nc.-it it bad II
:. othrr-cNcll~r enough for lis beginning.
i have DELAYED too Inng already in givin
i these mere. hints at some of the advantage
y of farmers organizations IL social an
II educational forces: and | trust You wi
/" ,Ncl;~r tht haste and imprrfcction Of IN
III brief discussion of them, y more rlahorat
;" treatment of the subject thus far woul
il have taken too much of Your time and lie
, vuu with quite too little patience. t
ne ihouriittully attend to some things which
- much Il, sire to ~Iv ~ to the political pla,
u of farmers organizations. Here, aruin
III shall speak rather of what vou may do, th.
NJ IF what vou are doing. rctting the Grang
organization and the discussions to Whit
it hI- given rise only from my Uut>i,
y, view. and speaking rather of the farmcl
'N duty IL Il citizen than rs 4 gran@cr.- as
90 portion of the commonwealth, rather tn;
~ II Il portion of any organization. whcth
ne rrpuhlican. democratic. or agIicultur:
~ hardly expect You will all agree to all
!" may say. bltt bc>peak Your candid n
IN patient examination of the merit ,f wi.
may ut first blu~h seem unlike the CONNIE
o'i ana popular views of much which nC
4" pl~>c, for political wisdom.
i'll Gen ,,arii,i & say jf i, Tant -.ocl, hyG
~ jtliti,s ~ haze chtrr.i i!Ioil. Ir@i where .r
all a n & w % n tTn"s M ay 'fr t 'rtnE arr l.s ls 'Fl
mt ays ] ,a @ III" W. n v lent teh h n T tr" arT "f4l Wit
5c tssjS ir nt"re
en- r It, a+Sf % ss4inE s re H as ptrid naS whn
tt Of tins 60 lntrH ar calmly and ,aretnly study
4 ar. te questions Of trade and transIor
III TN. and internal growth
i'm Then the General, in his eloquent W;
lhc proceeded to culo%ize the republican pal
o~t for the great work it had done for t
in b;.~inc-, of the country. the vast amour
ual of money ii had spent upon railways Il
i'd canal, and rivers and harbor>, glvi
greater facilities to commerce. and stin
nf latin,r the industries of the country to
in wonderful growth.
.ioI "Thc business career of politics. wi
avs does that mean? | think | know, Il
TOO Gen. Garfield is right when he says
less hare entered upon it. The tendency,
Law drift. in that direction has been decid
he for many years, - for the last two We;
ter it has been almost like the cure
ble above Niagara. 1t is not q party mo
, TO ment Democrats recognize 1t and ha
,ors been swept away by it as well as repul
ate cans: and if the party in power has be
BON more ready than the party out of pow
Il it to fall in with it. it is only because
it pressure upon it has been greater, sil
on, men who use politics and government n
, of chinerv in aid of business always pre-
aen to use the party that at the time has &C
ore troll of the treasury and the taxing pow
life Gen. Garfield means by his characterl
out ton of this political era, evidently to pra
in it. to welcome its advent. and to pred
with benefit to the republic from its comlr
- D.. L. foro 1..n Ike ha ste to re iOicn at