The Grange advance. [volume] (Red Wing, Minn.) 1873-1877, 1877-02-28
House, Farm and Garden.
Profits Of Farming in England.

House, Farm and Garden.
Profits Of Farming in England.
Our farmers are complaining Of the
appropriateness of farming, and while
the same causes may not re at work
here as in England, still the following
sketch from the Agricultural Gazette
may throw some light upon the sub.
ject, as it is a very truthful picture,
drawn by an artist who seems to know
whereof he speaks:
Having studied farming from boy
of Is years, up to the present time, Il
am not thirty yeti, l am rather sur.
prised to see it so often put down as a
very poor paying game. am willing
to admit that farmers, as a rule do not
make so much profits as they did some
years ago, and what is the reason!
Well, there are good many things to
cause this falling off in the profits one
thing is, rents have risen considerably,
another, labor has risen. But the
wages 1 consider a mere nothing;
the only thing that I find fault with
is, laborers are not so obliging as for
merly.
Now am coming to the third reason,
and think the most important one
where are the farmers and their wives
half of their time! There is not the
least doubt l am asking question
which can soon be answered. The
farmer is most likely gone to see how
the men are getting on, for an hour or
so. "But STOP" says the farmer, ssthe
hounds meet at half-past 10; must go
and have spin with them to-day"
OF course they say it don't cost much
to keep one horse but with keeping
the horse, a man to look after it is
needed-and then, what are the men
doing while our hunting farmer is away
after the houndsy Why, curled up
under some hedge having their din
ners, of course. How long they stay
there it is impossible to say and then,
of course, he must go to market one
day week, at least, and as soon as his
time arrives to depart, off go the men
and have another fire. Some, when
reading these remarks, may ask, how
do you know this? My answer is, l
worked for q gentleman in Oxford
shire who farmed nearly 1000 acres of
good land, and had many opportunities
of seeing how they managed it. I
don't say have not done the same my.
self of course, when the others went
I was compelled to go, otherwise I
would have been disliked by all the
men, and probably soon should have
been compelled to leave. Now, the
hunting horse was the cause of all this.
SO there would be a large bill for him
to pay.
The farmers wives, years ago, used
to make cheese, and at the same time
superintend the rearing OF the calves /;
but, O, dear me where is there a
farmers wife that makes cheese now!
Why, of course they must have dairy
maid-yes, and pay from ESQ to f40
year for trustworthy person to come
and do what they ought to do them
selves and then there are the board
ing and lodging, and, perhaps, after
all, make bad lot of cheese. Now,
these last two things are the principal
causes of the farmer downfall. There
is too much expense incurred. I do
not mean to say that there is too much
labor employed; mean to say there is
not enough work done for the money,
and that if the farmer will stick to his
business and look round his men, he
will have enough done; and then,
again, if the good housewife will make
the cheese herself, and be up in the
morning and see that the calves are
seen after properly, her husband won't
be going to liquidation.
Some may ask, why not the master
see after the calves ! Well, I consider
he has sufficient to do to look after the
WAGNER and shepherd, and setting his
men off to work, and seeing that they
get at it quickly, for sometimes they
won't be off as soon as they ought, pre-
tending that they can't find the tool
they want. Now, Mr.. editor, I have
only a few words to say more, and they
are simply these. Even with wet
seasons, bad seasons, etc., if a man
cannot make a percentage on moder-