The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-06-10
From, the Rural Carclirian for Janc.
Rural AdOrnment as Conducive to Agricultu-
raj Prosperity.

Rural Ad0rnment as Conducive TO Agrlcultu
raj Prosperity.
One of the chief obstacles in the way of per
manent and progressive agricultural improve
ment in the South, is to be found in the gene
raj lack of all those comforts and utilities
which 90 to make home more attractive; not
the useful only, but also the adornings and
surroundings, which give pleasure and salts.
faction, and tend to attach US to the place and
give an air of permanence to the homestead
In the intense pursuit of profit and gain, this
may seem an uniinportant matter, but there is
no doubt of it. AS long as there is an unset
tied feeling-an Indifference to the place we
call our home, there will be a tendency to get
the most out of the land by annual crops,
without any fixed plan of permanent improve
ment. Rotation of crops, high manuring, set.
ting in grass or clover, raising of stock, all
these things which require time to accomplish,
will, more or less, be overlooked. 1t is the old
fable over again. The goose is forced 20 lay
the golden egg, and die. The land is scourged
to its utmost limits, with annual decreasing
profits, until perhaps both land and owner are
bankrupt together. Fortunate is such a farm
er if he can get rid of his property at any sac
ri6ce, and move away to fresher lands.
1t has been said that the prosperity of any
rural population may be estimated by the COM
forts and embellishments around the home
stead-the useful and the ornamental the two
principal wants Of our complex nature. This
of course must be taken with some qualltica-
tion in regard to country where land is as
cheap as it is here-where there is such con-
slant temptation to force the most profit from
it in the shortest time, and move away to
fresher lands to repeat the process. But under
such q state of things, it lis almost impossible
to have the best results Of good farming.
There is the want Of fxedncss of purpose and
defniteness of aim which are essential to sue
cess. The judicious farmer must lay his plans
for the future. Like wise general, he must
inspect the forces at his command, and Judge
what they are capable of accomplishing. He
must understand the obstacles in his ways and
how they may best be overcome. He must
soils-their adaptability to his purpose-the
prospect of prices and profits in the future.
He must submit to- and even expect some loss
at first whilst his operations are in course of
preparation. But this is just the case with
has any prospect of SUCCESS. The professional
man must 90 through his course Of study and
training for many years before he can look for
profits. The merchant begins as clerk, or at
least with heavy outlay of capital, with ex-
pectations of fortune only after many years
of labor. A system Of high manuring, look
ing towards the permanent and constantly i'm
proving condition of his land-the sowing of
grasses and the raising of stock, all require
time before they can yield the best results
The plan must be laid out, and kept in view,
and everything must be made to work towards
the desired end.
Now, unless there is prospect of perma-
nent ownership, a feeling that it is to be our
home and that of our children, there will be
but little inducement to devote the full meas
ure of our energies to its improvement But
let us once realize that the place we occupy is
so much capital to be increased, and home
where we are to spend the remainder of our
lives, new motive power is at once added to
our exertions We naturally set q greater
value on those Improvements we have made
ourselves than those which are made for us,
lust as the maker of fortune is more careful
of it than he who inherits it.
If by slow and toilsome process-toilsome,
and yet continually carrying with it its own
reward and qualification, we surround ourselves
with all the comforts and luxuries which
should attend q rural life-the orchard and
vineyard for our supply If wholesome and
luscious fruit-the garden furnishing its varied
stock of vegetables through the year-the
dairy, with its daily supply of milk and but
ter-the stock of cattle, hogs, sheep and poul-
try for our table, we have secured rich source
of conten.ment and satisfaction, whilst at the
same time these very enjoyments will stimu-
late us the more to give permanent and in
creasing value to the surrounding fields from
which we are to derive our main subsistence.
It is to this view of the question that [ would
earnestly call the attention Of our Southern
farmers. Under the old system Of large plan
tations and single staple crop, there was but
little inducement, and less time to think of
these things. Cotton was the one absorbing
thought and the planting, cultivation, and
preparation of the crop for market occupied
most of the year. Now this is all changed.
Smaller farms and more concentrated system
are actual necessities. If we are ever to be-
come thriving agricultural community, we
must adopt this Intensive system" more or
less. With it should 60 hand in hand the i'm
proving of the homestead. The two motives
act and react upon each other. If the ties
that bind us to the home are stronger, they
urge us the more to improve the arabic lands.
If these are increasing in value, they encour-
age US to add the comforts and conveniences
Wnlcn SnOuiu UelouS w d PoiM@uouC holuo'
When there is a feeling Of settlement for life,
there will come fxedness of purpose and
constancy of effort to make permanent i'm
provements not only for ourselves, but for those
who are to come after US.
But whilst we provide for the usefal, we need
not neglect the Ornamental Whilst we must
give to the necessities of life the first conside-
ration, we know that there are other wants
which have their origin in the higher sphere
of our being. We have composite nature;
and the spiritual needs no less than the animal,
its own means of qualification. There are 9TH
er and higher wants than those of mere "crea-
ture comforts" AS soon as man emerges from
a savage state, he begins to fee! the cravings
sires. His sense of the beautiful in nature
begins to develop itself, and finds qualification
in the wonderful works around him. As he
rises in the scale of civilized life, these era
wings increase, and their development becomes
necessity. They find vent in the fine arts
in music, painting, statuary; or in the study