The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1877-09-20
Farmers in Villages.

Not long ago writer urged, with con-
siderable force, in one of our magazines,
that farmers should live in villages, so as
to secure the advantages of society and
culture, and for the further purpose of
making the pursuit of farming so attract
i've that the boys would love it, and live
by it. That life on many farms is unat-
tractive and even repulsive is certainly
true, and ne worst feature is that the
children tot often grow up in ignorance
and become boorish. Often schools and
meetings are distant, the society of other
families may be rather damage than
benefit, and If the mother has education
and refinement, she continually mourns
that her children's prospects are dark. 1t
is thought that life in village, whence
the farm can be reached in an hours
drive, will prove great blessing, and, &C.
cordingly, diagram or map OF a rural re-
gion, with a village centrally located, is
given as a model for reconstructing the
industrial and home relations of the
farmer. That the plan is practical is said
TO be proved by the fact that in France
and other European countries the farmers
all live in villages; but it is apparently
forgotten that their farms are small, often
less than five acres each, so that if they
even lived on their farms the village feat
ure would be presented.
Probably the most pleasant rural life ex-
listed in England about 200 years ago,
when the yeomanry possessed small hold
ings, ranging from five to eight, ten and
fifteen acres, either in fee, or on long
lease almost equivalent thereto; and vast
extent of country must have been seen
fI.o rood n xxs11
fruit trees and grain fields and grass plots
and gardens everywhere appearing. The
amount of honey then produced was some
thing enormous, and eggs and poultry
were far more plentiful than at present.
Goldsmith's /" Deserted Village" describes
the scene after these small holdings had
been broken up, not through any distress
of the people, but for the reason that they
sold their possessions to rich men, and
moved to America, largely to New En-
gland, where, with somewhat larger farms,
the old life went on for more than hun
bred years.
Whether large or small farms are most
desirable is question upon which some
light is thrown by the statement that, as a
result of long trial, and as showing
natural outgr0wth, the average area of
English farms is q tride less than 100
acres. Of course the large estates and
the small allotments are not included;
and it is probably true that in PennsyE
vania, New York, Ohio and Michigan,
the size Of farms is about the same as in
ENGLAND. That is to say, where men en-
gage in farming as decided business by
which they mean to live, they find that
they cannot well get along with less than
100 acres. and that they cannot profitably
manage more. Now, if we propose q
village residence for the farmc:, not less
than four miles square should be laid out,
making about 1850 acres, and the aver
age distance from the center would be not
far from q mile and half. With this
statement Of distances before him the
farmer at once decides that he would not
like to travel SO much. and the absolute
necessity Of following the pillow or the
harrow hundreds, nay, thousands OF times
in single season, will be likely to make
him reject the idea Of adding to his daily
journey to and from the farm.
In settling on Western lands the attempt
has been several times made to combine
village with farm life; but it has been IN
satisfactory except where man could
have his 100 acres, or quarter section, i'm
mcdiately adjoining the village. and in
this caso the chief object was 10 sell Town
lots; or in ordinary cases where the fam
iiy lived on lot, and their fad was
faisedspn the farm, great difficulties i'm
mediately srcse, sucll .as the necessity for
watching crops and the caring for animals
while in their contracted space. poultry
could not be kept without treSp6 6ses DR.