The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-05-02

Il
life, 1t is said that Of one thousand mer-
chants who had kept accounts at one of
the Boston banks, only elk died rich.
On the other hand, the farmer, IL not
absolutely rich, Is at lesst independent.
He haa homo which his labor and taste
haye adorned; no he's broad acres, not
alwaya held by lease as in many coun-
tries, but 'as freehold--if not at the
beginning, this Is generally the final re-
suit. in England and Scotland Iaud in
the general 10 In the hands of few, and
remains In that condition, Not 80 in our
country. No law Of entail or primogen-
iture fosters the accumulation of over
grown estates. It is one OF the blessings
Of the American farmer that he owns In
fee.simple the land which he cultivat:s 3
II he does not, by industry and economy
he hopes soon TO do so.
Labor, for fair remuneration, whether
OF the brain or hand, should be the glory
Of America; besides, there Is true dignity
in labor, especially In cultivating the soil.
The object which the farmer has in view
is TO su5due the earth, to eradicate its
briars and thorns end to plant in their
ptead what 10 useful and beautiful 10
man. It 10 TO fulfill the original appoint
ment OF the Creator that man l"shalI eat
cread in the sweat of his faco.p >" Labor,
saye p noble worker, .has been made by,
Providence the law of man's condition:
it Is the price at which whatever is valu.
able ia iifo InIistt 90 earnc6.'; Whatever,
therefore, degrades labor as the business
of life, or renders it distesteful or dishon.
orable, does violence to our eocial lava
no less than to wise economy. ali ira.t
provemene, all progr.ss of tno sece of
man IN civilization, has been the resnJ.
of intelligent labor. Il has built our
cities, dug our canals, constructed our
railways, developed ohr mines, built our
steamers and ships, given life and energy
to the industrial arts, and, above all, 10
feeding and clothipg our people and pro-
| viding for their happiness. '"The ma
tion," saye Doctor Samuel johnson, "that
can furnish food andaraiment chose uni
veesal commodities) may have her chips
| Welcomed at Q thousand ports, or sit at
home end receive the tribute of foreign
countries, enjoy their arts or treasure up
their gold" Let labor, therefore, be
crowned with honor-that labor eppecial-
Iy which contributes 80 much to the well
fare OF man, and allows him to approach
nearest, through Nature, to Natures
God. 'Sad 'tlG.Nf.ii g9T,.a e gI"' :.
The fourth condition on which depends
our agricultural progress, is @ more thor
! ough knowledge and practice of agricul.
ture as science and as an art. And by
i this &c meant knowledge Of the princi-
pies, the why's aud Wherefores, which lie
| st the foundation Of successful farming,
and Of tho practical application of those
principles, combining skill, economy and
ah the appliances OF art, The great
difficulty with the American farmer haa
been, and still is, that he has been nur-
tured and educated in the habit of culti-
waiting . primitive SOIL The labor and
expense attending the accumulation and
application of manure. with the aecessity
Of unlearningf old habits and theories,
have made him tempt Nature to the
verge OF exhaustion and degrade noble
precision &c one 9g mere =e;:tiae. Willis
| our people are ever disposed to boast of
their inventive skill and teachable iiBpo.
| sition, the ol.l,f nations which ne affect
to despise offer us some valuable lessons
in agriculture The Chinese. for exam-
pie, by minute end careful culture, by
possible kind of manure. have raeIe theft
lands yield .undiminished products for
thousands of years. The northern prov
iness Of China produce two annual orops.
{Aidi It is 6aid that towards the south
i've are usually obtained every two years.)
This prodigious yield has continued for
ages, and yet the soil Is ritf and produc-
tive, teeming with nearly four hundred
millions Of human beings. The spade is
extensively used, every inch OF ground ID
thoroughly titled, che hille ara terraced
and the soil irrigated wherever possible.
Agriculture Is everywhere iionored and
encouraged; the Emperor himself goes
annually to the field AVID GuYns tho first
verhal fnrrow. If China or Japan were
to follow oar methods Of farming, famine
and death would soon sweep millions into
thei. graveg.' There is still in our coun-
try (strange to say)sa large amount of
what may be styled routine farming
that Is to Say, f1sc;;.ag as 1nr fathers and
grandf fathers rsed- to do In some cases.
whefe tho soil I'd inexhaustible, this
method may be the best method of farm-
ing for the preseut oWners; besides, the
example of father to son 10 invaluable,
provided that example be good. Practi-
cal knowledge is certainly superior TO
| mere theory; but TO persist ia the same
succession of cropi, in seplanting the
same and oftenIthe poorest iced, In pur-
suing the safne methods of culture, in
searing the same common stock, In using
the same poor implements OF ha5tbauiiTy,
Is to deny the value of the aggregate ex-
perieace 0f Hien of of similar pursuits, and j
to- ignore the progress Of the age in
science and the useful arts. Itahonld be
the aim of every young farmer to do not
only as we'll as his father, but to do his
best ito make two blades Of grass grow
where one grew before" We are ell, i
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