Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1875-06-30
" Scrub Farming

cisms. though perhaps useful ~ relieving
the minds of their writer's. A man capabl,
of making wcighty, or even readable com
ments Of this character, is generally oour
ageous enough to sign his name to what he
writes. But this is not saying that even he
may not be as subject to error as the editor
he criticiscs. We note usually. in such com
munications, disposition to ago of half
cooked" the result Of hasty or prejudiced
reading: and we cannot exempt from this
defect the following note from reader,
who, nevertheless, entities himself to atten-
ton 10y sending us his real name and address.
Mr. Eiior'-In your paper Tor June %, you
give some extracts and make some comments
thereon an intended TO show tho superiority Of
European farming over American farming aud
suggesting a way by which farming in this coun-
try can be brought up to a level with that Of the
old country. Your grand panacoa is for the edu-
Gated and wealthy farmers to freeze or starve ont
the ignorant scrubs, who are not willing to havo
an education forced upon them and TO do this by
surrounding and undertaking them, until they
cannot make a cent They will thus be compelled
to labor on the farms Of the more intelligent, at
such wages as they arc pleased to give them.
Now Mr.. Editor this is capital. We are glad
you have had the courage to speak out ON this
subject We think many persons have had the
same idea Of the matter bat thought it not best to
say So But now that you have spoken out, we
go for IT, TO be sure, not many Of us are very
wealthy at the present time, but when VIC have
succeeded in reducing all the ignorant scrubs 10 the
condition Of farm laborcrs, and compelled them to
work for us at twenty or thirty cents n day and
board themselves, rs the same class do In Holland
or England then we shall be able to send our sons
to Universities, buy pianos for our daughters, and
furnish our tables with silver plate Yes, Mr.
Editor let all intelligent farmer. work together
to hasten the happy day when we can live like
princes We shall go to Congress be elected
70 the highest offices and we shall make such
changes in our government as shall forever keep
our servants under our thumbs, where they will
learn something, just as they do in Europe. That
great and wise man. Henry Ward neecher, in a
speech at the fair ground in st. Johnsbury last
fall, recommended a little judicous murder as
good way to get rid Of the useless class in society
We thinl, your plan is far better
But must not enlarge. Ny remarks are in
tended for wise men only, and to such word is
sufficient To those who are not bright, as you
say, it is no use talking" "Though thou bray
fool ina mortar with peste, yet his ioolishness
will not depart from him" VS.
Cabot, June TO-
Now our friend "W. s." very greatly, aud
we think inexcusably, misrepresents the tone
and tendency Of the remarks which he refers
TO in this sarkastickal way We are as
far as he or any man can be, from desiring
to see the price of farm labor in this country
reduced to the European standard, and
equally far from counselling any change in
our social or political system, looking tow
ards the establishment of an agricultural
aristocracy, with permanently subordinate
laboring class beneath them. We are not
DESTROYS of seeing even an organized effort
OF the good farmers 1--WE did not say wealthy
farmers, as "W. s." misquotes, with the ap-
parent design of exciting preiudice) to
freeze out " the poor ones. We did say
that our only hope in this respect came from
the fact that good farming tends to make
poor farming Improbable, and that what is
Improbable viii freeze out" This is true
of every other business as well as farming,
and it is right that it should be so. The
more Improbable work there is done in a
nation, the poorer that nation will be.
Now does "W, s." want to keep Vermont
forever poor, that the scrub farmers may
continue to enjoy the inestimable privilege
Of abusing the blessings of the Almighty,
bestowed upon us in fertile soil aud favor
able location for the profitable application Of
improved agriculture Shall we consider
him as the champion of the two-tub, twenty.
cent class of dairymen, who do so. much to
keep our state poor, and ruin the capabili
ties of our naturally bountiiul soil /?
As for MS, nothing would suit us better
than to see these men improve themselves
improve their farms and stock, and educate
their children. But if they stupidity aud
stubbornly refuse to improve, we cannot
feel as though we should shed many tears
if, in the order of Providence, the mtroduc
ton Of better husbandry should freez,
them out" That is the way in which gooc
farming has worked in the old world we dc
not see how it can fail to do so here. AnC
if it should prove to be the viii of God, We
hope "W. S +" will try to submit to it, as
cheerfully as the circumstances win admit
lie is remarkably intelligent for champion
of scrub farming, but we fear he advocates
losing cause.
As to college education for our sons and
pianos for our daughters, we don't know who
are better entitled to enjoy these advantage,
than those who produce the wealth of the
country. One of the champions of railroad
monopoly recently announced that the trou
BILE with the farmers is, not that they ar,
distressed by spectators and monopolists
but that, in some way, silk-dresses and broad
cloth have crept into the farm house. Iii,
remedy is to get the silk-dress out of the
farm house, and reduce us all to homespun
In fact, he wants to bring Us all TO the sub
ordinate condition which w. s." imaginei
we want the scrub-farmer brought TO. IL,
thinks, as doubtless w. S." thinks, that il
is presumption in farmer 10 wear broad
cloth, or in farmers wife, to wear silk
dress. Scrub farming is certainly doing
its best TO "keep the silk dress out Of the
farm house." and is so far entitled 10 the
plaudits, not only of "W. s." but of every
Spectator and politician, who, like him
sneers at the idea of farmers going TO Con
gress and being elected TO the highest Offices
If "W. s." is farmer, he fought to BE-
ashamed Of himself thus TO belitte his owl
calling. Can it be wondered at, with such
ideas in the farm house, that our bright boy,
and girls want to desert the farm II
farmers boys and girls are not entitled to
as good an education, as good clothes and
as good chance TO fill honorable and inhu.
entail stations in life as others, then, we say,
they do right to leave the farms in the hands
OF those who are willing and contented to be
serubfarmers, or the champions Of scrub
farming. As for us, we desire to keep the
silk dress and all its concomitants of comfort
and culture upon our farms. And that this
may be so, we seek the extinction Of scrub
farming"
SULPHUR FOR VERMfN--Su when
taken internally bv men Or animate Il mar