The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-03-05
PATRONS OF HusBANDRY.
\ PURLEC MEETING AT THE EX
CHANGE HOTEL LAST NIGHT.
INTERESTING ADDRESS OF HON. MIR.
AIKEN. OF SOUTH CAROLINA.

| tee of the Patrons Of Uusbandry, would de.
liver a public address last night in the old
! diuing.room of the Exchange Hotel eXplana.
tory Of the objects Of the Patrons of Hus-
bandrv. and consequently by s O'Clock, the
appointed hour for the meeting, q large num-
| Der of prominent farmers Of Virginia were
present. besides several wel.known citi.
zcns-ex-Govcrnor Walker, many members
of the General Assembly, and others.
| CALLED TO ORDER.
Shortly after 8 o'clock the meeting was
| called to order by Richard V. Gaines, Esq,
| of Charlotte county,, a member Of the EXecu'
| tive Committee of the State Grange, who
| INTRODUCED MR.. AIKEN,
and remarked that he bad been Invited to
address public meeting here upon the sub
ject of the new Order OF Patrons of Hus.
bandry.
Mr.. Aiken said in the outset that it was
not expected of him to deliver an elaborate
address on the subject OF agriculture or the
| Patrons of HuSbandry, nor was it his inten-
ton 50 to do, but would deliver practical
address settling forth the objects of the or.
canizstion. He hoped that the remarks
| which he would make would be rs appli.
cable to Virginia as they would be to his
| State.
THE WANT WHICH THE PATRONS OF HUSBANDRY
| SUPPLY
| is enlightenment-cduca He regretted
that he was not thoroughly posted as to the
farming interest in Virginia that he might
speak intelligently on this subject, but he
| thought that Virginia had not advanced any
| more than any other State in this respect
| since the war. Indeed, said he, agriculture
has not advanced on this continent at all
during the past century. The farmers never
study nor read anything. Many of them,
| he regretted to say, rarely read the Bible. Ii
| YOU see a farmer reading, why it is at once
said that he will certainly fail because he is
q reading farmer. The science OF agricul-
ture ought TO be studied and read. 1t farm
er goes to reading books on the subject OF
agriculture he is called fool. In order to
succeed in agriculture you must read and
study as other men read and study and sue
ceed.
Why is it that the farmer has not ad'
yauced and the science of agriculture been
forwarded One reason is because the farm.
ers have been divided. and they have be-
come the most selfish people on earth. The
selfish life which the farmer has been
obliged to lead has prevented him from de
veloping those ideas of agriculture which he
|
vented by the lack of association With hi
neighbors; but he thanked God that thu
time has come when this will cease.
A0RICrLTURB AS SCIENCE.
i Agriculture is to be taught him as
!, science. He can then grasp this science a.
men of other professions do. This Order o
!, the Patrons of Husbandry associates anC
brings the farmers together. You have mint
against mind as the flint clashes against flint
and thus you have brain against brain, anc
as their intelligence is brought against eact
other, something for their benefit Will bt
developed.
i You have never seen farmer anywhere
sci price upon what he produces and otter;
to sell. He never says if you will pay me sc
much you shall have il if not, you shan't
WHY, the farmer will take sample of wheat
and 20 all over this town and ask, How much
will YOU give me for it! 1t is not so witt
the merchant or the seller of commodities
They never seem to appreciate the fact thai
farming is science, and science means
knowledge, and that means power! The
Patrons OF Husbandry propose to produce
these ends. They are short-lived, having
only been in existence about seven years
Some have predicted that the Order will be
short-lived, but it is not so.
The Order also proposes
i ToUNlTE TIE TWO SEXES
in such way that good will result to both il
many ways. The idea of the Patrons OF Hus
bandry was originated in Washington among
a few persons, who met night after night, an(
finally u series Of ritualstc letters were pre-
pared and the Order Instituted by Mr.. kel
lev in Washington, where the first grapgs
was organized.
The speaker, briefly noticing the origin O
the Order, remarked that he had received s
letter from Kelley on the subject, but at hrs
he thought it grand humbug. After think
ing over it, however, he concluded thai
there must be some good in ii, and accord
ingly he visited Washington, and there spent
two or three days, and returned home thor
oughly satisfied with the belief that the Or
der of the Patrons Of Husbandry was de-
signed to be
THE SALVATION OF THE FARMERS.
He did not start out to labor for the Order
) in the vicinity of his own home, but wen
abroad. At this time the Order was started
in Mississippi, and now, although it has beer
only three years ago, the Order is spreading
everywhere.
CHARITABLE oRnER.
The Order, too, is to be charitable one
TO illustrate this idea, Mr.. Aiken mentioned
AZ: incident which occurred in the South. Ht
said that in G thickly.settled neighborhood
on Sunday, farmer, who was just leaving
his church, was met by messenger, who IN
!, formed him that his house was burning
He reached the place to find bis house anG
all that it contained, besides an adjoining
, building, containing many bales of cotton
totally destroyed. There were then three
oranges in the neighborhood, and on the day
following there was meeting OF these
oranges, and they went down to this farmer:
, and set him up again. This alone, he de
clared, was sufficient to commend the Order
even if it never did any more good.
Mr.. Aiken next proceeded to speak par
ticulany of the organization Of the oranges
their officers, etc, and to assure his audience
that the Order is
| NOT POLITICAL.
He mentioned several facts and gave mum
her of incidents to tablish this assertion.
SECRET ORDER.
The secrecy Of the Order was next dis
cussed at some length, which he said was one
of the most attractive features in 1t to him,
although this feature is greatly condemned
| by many Of Its opponents.
WOMEN IN THE ORDER.
Mr.. Aiken next said that many persons
objected to the oranges because there are
women in them. He had been asked why
are the women In the oranges. He would