The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1880-01-09
FENCES ON FARMS.
\ MATTER or IMPORTANCE FOR YOUNG
AND OLD FARMERS 10 CONSIDER.

One of the greatest questions the far
mer Of the future win be called on TO
meet is the matter OF fences on their
farms. As timber grows scarcer the al
ready great cost OF enclosing his fields
Will fall still more heavily on the agri-
cultuust The amount Of money al
ready put into this uhproductive invest
ment is no small part OF the cost OF the
farm. That we viii have to resort to
the mo fence" system pTacticed in con
tiuCntal Europe, says tie Lancaster NeT
Er0 editprially, seems Inevitable. The
time is uCa-in- us rapidly when cIrcGIn-
stances viii prevent farmers tromlEdul-
eiug IN this useless outlay OF money.
Experience has demonstrated even in
this country that the ''nu fence system
is as feasible AID as profitable rs il is
in the Oid World. Maine has adopted
this course by legal enactment. and it is
SAID the people are very well pleased
with the workings Of the law. In the
state of North Carolina It is left OPTION
al with the several counties 70 adopt or
reject the system. Some have done The
one and some The other. and III every in
stance where it has been adopted it has
met with approval. The wonte is that
il has not sooner come into favor. This
that il was begun when the country was
covered with timber and was iu fact q
necessity from various then existing
causes. Bat these have long since pass
ed away, while only the legacy remains
behind. Neither the cost not the uecgs-
I sity are what they once were. The for
+ mer has become ucayy tax on the farm.
while 40 YCstigc of the latter remains
unless in exceptional cases. There is
not q particle Of doubt but that the
abolition Of fences on The farm in all
but a few instances would result bcniG-
cially 10 the farmer. The space taken
/ up by fences and stone walls on large
farms runs to acres. ali uf which are so
/ much waste land, and which under the
I same treatment given the other portions
/ OF the farm would add very materially
to the farmers bank account An
equal sum or more would he saved in ex-
I peuses. Few farmers have n correct
idea OF what il cost 20 keep up the feuc-
I ing system. Repairs must be made Just
/ as regularly as the seasons come aronnd.
The ordinary amount nf work IS not a
little, and when severe storms come
q along. as they generally do several times
. year. there are extra costs that some
times make heavy inTOads on the hard
working farmers profits. In addition
TO ali this, it has been demonstrated q
thousand times over that where the
stock on a farm has been soiled. there IS
not only a large increase in the manure
. so essential 20 keeping the farm no to
lis highest productive capacity. but that
there is an immense saving in the mat
ter Of food. The testimony on these
points is universal and overwhelming.
and when taken in connection with the
rrsfv q 5#.r.
que 50 strongly against keeping up the
. expensive system of fences i'm vorue. as
u he simply indisputable. A score or
more years from now the Young farmers
Of the present day viii look back with
surprise that their fathers. and even
themselves, 50 long clung to the absurd
expensive and complicated system of
fencing, at present nearly everywhere
. prevalent.