Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1874-08-19
Agricultural.
Farmers Sons.


We often hear the lamcntalion expressed
that it is impossible to keep farmers sons
at home that as soon as they begin to
think and act for themselves, they quit the
old homestead aud the pursuit OF their
fathers, aud choose some more gontec and
lucrative calling 1t must be confessed
there is some truth in this allegation In
New England, especially, where the land
requires much labor to make it yield abund-
antly, and where manufactures and trade
are the leading industries, we sec this ten.
dency to desert the farm especially mani.
fest. We are sorry TO see the old home.
stead deserted by those to the manor born,
aud while we do not believe that every one
born on farm was born to be farmer,
we desire to make few suggestions to
farmers, which may aid them IN retaining
their sons at home, aud educating them to
follow the pursuit Of their fathers.
In the lr,t place, the boys should not be
oyerworked Youth is full of life and &C.
tiyity, ready for all kinds Of enterprise, and
many parents forget that the muscles Of
boys are undeveloped and cannot endure
the strain which is imposed upon them.
The boys know nothing Of the laws Of
Psychology, and cheerfully undertake the
imposed task They will pitch of a load
Of hay and stow it away without thought
of the task being beyond their strength
Under the stimulus Of the volatile oil
which the hay dtluses, the pitching may
even seem to them to be play. Boys may
also follow the plow all day without com.
plant ambitious to do a big aud good Job,
or they may hoe corn and keep up with
hired men whose muscles have become
brawny by years but there is penalty
attached to such violations Of natures
laws. The boys are dwarfod in their
growth by this excess Of hard labor, or,
worse still, their muscles aud nerves be-
come diseased No wonder that the farm.
er's life seems to them drudgery, and that
they desire to earn a living without SO much
sweat Of the brow.
Parents do not intend to push their boys
beyond their strength They rejoice In
seeing them so smart, aud boast sometimes
Of feats performed, which, if they would
stop to think, they would know ought not to
be performed by youngsters. They do not
push their young steers aud colts in this
manner They know full well that 10 order
to keep a horse in working order till he is
twenty years old he must not be put to hard
work until his muscles and sinews are well
developed Are not boys to be treated as
carefully as oolts2
\ III furmpra ur fhuf
some skill and some patience to train a colt
to work, and this not because the colt is
lazy. He will frisk around the fields, and
kick up his heels 10 very love of motion,
but if he is hitchcd to heavy load in the
first attempt to make him draw, he will be
very likely to be staky, and it he is thus
iujudiciously managed day after day, the
habit OF stakiness will become fixed, and he
will not draw even a slight load Would
that farmers exercised as much skill and
patience in training their boys to labor as
in training their colts.
One Of the best modes to get our sons
initiated in Framework is to let them have
some land of their own, or to give them a
small share in the crops which they assist
in cultivating If colt or pair Of steers
is given to boy to train up as his own, it
will interest him in stock-raising more than
a whole herd Of cattle or drove Of horses
which the father owns ana never consuts
the b y about the management Of We
have an instance in our eye now of boy
who is all farmer from his head to his foot,
loves horses, is good Judge of stock Of all
sorts, follows farming with gusto, which
Of anything is the absorbing passion with
him, and Why Because from his early
boyhood he has had pair Of steers Of his
own aud has been consulted by his father
in all the farming operations as though he
was joint stock proprietor. -Neic York
Times.