The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-09-05

| melt and comfort, and Instruction.
! whose fathers and sons are not hard an
| vulgar, and whose wives and daughters are nc
homely and disconnected and oareworn. Th
objections made to New England farm life d
| not apply to New England. They may apply
elsewhere, but not here The badly -organizet
homes are the exception and not the rule il
this section of the country, and anyone VIII
Will take pains to examine the farmhouses Q
every locality here devoted to active agrlcul
ture, will find good order, domestic prosperity
lnteliigence, hospitality, and comfort, a.
together by more active occupation, and pre-
sentec as an example for the farmer to follow
ana without instituting any inVldlous com
parlson, am confident that in the domestic
organization known as farmers home, as
now established in the rural district of New
England, there may be found as many OF thu
elements which go TO make happy and IN
telligent household as in any spot on earth
AT any rate these homes are part OF oul
social and civil experiment,-to-daya as they
were in the days of the fathers The lndepen
dent land holder must still find conspicuou:
place there. Those qualities which are
strengthened by the patriarchal position OF the
master of a household surrounded Dy his acre!
and surveying his focks and herds, must entel
largely into his makeup, who would be a
representative American citizen. he may be
over-prudent, reticent, slow to speak, calcula'
ting, from the necessities of his occupation
but he is strong in his convictions, devoted Il
his duty, guided by the best instincts, hard tx
mislead, proper as the head. ofia family, hon.
est and reliable in any public service assigned
him, no time-server, no sycophant, TO disturb
or OF the peace. From him come the substan-
tial and fundamental elements of the more
active spheres of life. AS the great landhold-
ers OF England preserve against all adverse In
fiuences the national characteristics which no
heated and exctable communities can destroy,
SO the small American landholders nourish and
cherish and transmit those Interchangeable
points of our national character, which rise
conspicuous in every crisis, and maintain oul
peculiar position among the nations OF the
earth. Thus far l have found no disposition to
abandon this system of independent isolated,
relief. The spirit which peoped our frontiers
still remains. The desire to occupy and reclaim
the land is as great as ever. The love of the
old farm house has not yet cied out, and the
American farmer of to-day, true to the spirit
OF his ancestors, accepts and enjoys his sltua'
ton as ardently as do they who, born under
another and as think inferior form OF state
and society, congregate in crowded villages by
night, and go forth to their unaleviated toll by
day.
And now "a word with regard ito the proposed
remedy for the supposed evils. Upon the
beauty of American villages it is unneces-
sary for me to enlarge. Made up as they
often are of tasteful dwellings, sufficiently
separated to allow of ample grounds and
gardens, and to preserve conspicuously the
architectural effect, and adorned as they often
eIe with trees and shrubs, they really deserve
the name Of "rurap' villages; and are Often
times as delightful as any clusters of residences
to be found on earth. Combining, as they do.
the busy air of a town, often subdued and quiet,
it is true, with the aspect of the country, they
possess a capacity for beauty rarely seen,-a
beauty SO great that the church, the village
green, the modest public buildings the dwell
ings of the villagers, the shaded hig hways, all
recall to those who have ever been familiar
with them a scene OF rural loneliness rarely
surpassed. And they stand in as great con-
trast with the villages of continental Europe
as the parks of London do to the dingy and
gloomy purlieus of the Strand. And yet of the
temptations and tendencies of these attractions
and beautiful spots do not care to speak. The
lstless side of country village is often asihard
to resist as the gittering and dangerous side of
a great city. And 1 am not sure that 1t would
be well to subject the young men of our farms
to the constant influence of those who gather
in the resorts of village idleness Nor am I
sure that the lyecum, and the library, and the
church and the schoolhouse, are powerful
enough to counteract these influences, more es-
pecially if they are in the hands of those who
toll on their outlying farms, and have returned
to their village homes for nights rest
On the inconvenience of this mode of life
which makes .the village a place of rest, and
the far off farm the scene of toll and business
it is unnecessary to enlarge. The twise.and ju-
dicious farmer knows that his most profitable
husbandry is carried on upon the lands which
lie directly around his farm buildings. The
transportation of the articles of farm is ex-
pensive enough at any rate, and should be re-
duced to the lowest possible point. The time
and labor spent in transporting manure a long
distance may destroy its value entirely and
every experienced man knows that field ada
cent to the farmyard is much more valuable for
all farming purposes than one which lies
mile away 1t is difficult for me to conceive how
the business of farm can be proftabiy con-
Quoted, with the buildings in one locality, and
the cultivated fields in another far removed.
The buildings on ia farm should be the heart
of that farm, as near the center as possible
and giving and receiving all the vital force
which is to make lit desirable as a home and a
place of business. There can be no economy
in this country in system of agriculture which
separates the farmer from his acres. Nor can
there be any social and civil advantage in CALL
ing on the landbolders of America to abandon
their scattered homesteads and take refuge in
populoue streets of rural villages The exam
pie set in this direction by the small landhold-
ers OF Continental Europe is not worthy of i'm
o
has reduced agriculture to the point of the Sc
varest drudgery for both men and women, and
has cooled the individual energy and brought
the necessities and wants of the people down
to the lowest point of mere animal existence.
let the American still hold on to. his farm and
believe still in his farm life His system may
be improved perhaps, but it cannot be profta-
bly, or benefcialy destroyed or changed. If the
charges made against the farmers homes are
true, let the reform begin in the homes them
selves; indeed, let the improvement already
begun be continued, for you who are familiar
with these homes know that long ago the taste
full duties of life began to center in and dwell
there" and that flowers and books and music
everywhere tadorn the prosperous and indus
trious farmers household. While, therefore,
l would in every way make the farm life of
tegeH as peope dssr as an shous Se and
render it at once gratifying to the tastes and
responsive to the thrift of busy and cultlvat-
ed yeomanrY, would still adhere to the system
of isolated farms the abodes of well-0rganized
families, the nurseries of the best social and
civil virtues: That the rural village has its
part to perform in system like this every
American knows. That spot where the more
artificial service of life is performed, where of
necessity the business of the mechanic is con-
Quoted. and the municipal work is to be carried
on, and the guidesl of education and religion
enter especially on their labors, will always
form most important part of the civil organi-
cation Of our land, and will furnish all the OPP
portunity for improvement and establishment
that the most enthusiastic can desire. 1t is
the mixed life of the town and the country
which most thoroughly BELTS the soil of Amer
lea, and is found to-day in greatperfection
throughout New England, New York. and the
best. agricultural regions of the middle and
western states. Adorn, then, and beautify the
villages; but cherish the farms and point the
way to their further advancement in the best
the best form of rural life.
1 congratulate you, gentlemen, on the con-
tinued prosperity of your society. Its influence
has long been favorably felt throughout New
England. Its history extends over period Of
varied fortune in all the industries of this
land, but its experience tells story of agricul-
tural growth and prosperity which no disturb
ance has paralyzed or even checked The far
mer OF New England has now, as be has had
for years, satisfactory share of good fortune.
The local markets furnish him a fair reward
for the staple products of his labor-those pro-
ducts which lie beyond the reach of specula-
tive fluctuations. Farm labor is still the best
paid labor In the land, and we may assure our
selves that among the chances and changes of
other advocations, we have done good work
10 supporting and improving the fundamental
industry of mankind.
The address was received with warm and
frequent applause from the audience, and at
its close B. f. Hamilton of Biddeford moved
that all of the speeches be printed for public
distribution. The motion was seconded by a
hundred voices