Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1881-04-13


OF Agriculture is In good working order, and In
prosperous condition, without Indebtedness, and
offering well rounded education In the sciences,
at a cost for thirty-eight weeks In three terms,
and for three years, OF about $3.50.
THE FARM
consists of about three hundred and sixty acres
seventy-five acres are enclosed for field the soil
alluvial clay much Of 1t still needing underdrain
age; seventy acres OF pasturage, and the balance
wood land.
FARM POLICY.
Starting September 1, 1876, or four year ago
last September, without one dollar In the treas
ury, and with the understanding that no aid was
TO be given, because OF no resources; haf Stock
OF grade cattle; no sheep, nor dairy tools, and
substantially no tillage tools except mower, rake
and carts, and a college farm to rum one thing
became absolutely necessary, namely, that the
farm should pay expenses, and two things we're
very important: First, being college farm, that
1t should be run as an experimental station both
for the benefit of the school and our struggling
agriculture; and, second, that in addition u the
regular work, 1t should accumulate, each year,
net revenue for the purpose OF pure bred stock,
including sheep, also tools for the dairy and the
farm, for the repair OF fences and for numerous
permanent farm improvements. These designs
precluded the thought OF gt-edged farming. To
accomplish these main designs, the opposite policy
has been carried too far in the forced economy OF
labor and materials In field operations. While 1t
would please the few to see nice, Improbable
farm methods and products that alone can visit a
college farm, yet the many can be reached only
through investigation of the hard problems that
meet them in everyday farming. In forced
choice between farm for public show or public
utility for the greatest number, the latter alone
seemed the only true way.
AS AN EXPERIMENT STATION
For four years that class OF farm experiments
have been carried on that would require In an
imal and plant growth and nutrition the most OF
labor and the least OF money. In aid thereof
Professor Collier Of the department Of agriculture
at Washington Il now have eight sets of steers
under scientific and practical feeding experiments,
whose food Professor Collier has carefully an
alyzed) Professor Johnson of the Connecticut
pertinent station, and the secretary of our Board
of Agriculture have gratuitously added chemical
analyses; three winters work have shown bran
to be, as butter food far inferior TO corn meal,
both for quantity and quality, and no better milk
producer, while sustaining the animal existence
less fully. For the same period quite disappoint-
ing results have been received from Swedes and
mangolds, and even potatoes and oats have given
good quantity OF milk and apparently poor but
ter. A very high butter-producng capacity was
found for palm nut meal. The milk flow OF our
cows has been found to rise and fall regularly
with the temperature, and in amount, measured
by the duration OF the time OF change. A ceed
stall In winter paid, on basis of prolonged ex-
pertinent, covering two to three months, in milk
and food, or giving one hundred per cent on the
money investment So far, for milk or butter,
early cut against late cut hay has proved disap
pointing. Cotton seed meal has produced good
results Fodder corn in autumn has proved no
more economical than either hay or corn meal in
three fall experiments. These and other expert
ments In dairy feeding have involved thousands
OF weighings and much care and time. In the
dairy room many experiments In milk setting
have been tried. also in handling cream. The uni
form result has been that as much butter has been
obtained by deep settings as by shallow, provided
the right temperature was maintained for either,
or forty-five degrees under for deep settings.
In feeding for other than dairy purposes, in case
OF Merino sheep against Cotswolds | found that
the former ate more in proportion to their weight
than the latter. In numerous trials 1t has been
most emphatcally shown that with increased age
and weight 1t requires more food to make pound
| OF growth From trials OF some considerable ex-
tent am prepared to affirm that, as ordinarily
carded in our ordinary barns, a steer will not
rrahahip do % @aii 40 an nnoariad one apd will
certainly eat more hay. Also for growth, hay
cut out of bloom is, so far, found better than In
bloom, and will yield from thirty to forty per cent
more OF cured hay. Five winters work will soon
| be completed in experiments In food combina-
tions for growing steers, the results of which it is
such an % arse ba Fl no ne%sen % s Of results
| can be given, farther than that there is beyond
| question much economy in using proper food COM
binations. In field experiments in plant growth
and nutrition both here and in sets sent out among
our farmers, have come to place great reliance
on chemicals, II bought and used with knowl-
| edge of what ones soil or plants demand may
be allowed to add that everything has been car
ried on by scale and chain without prejudice, and
am convinced that most of the results reported
| will be verified in general practice, and by other
expermenters. Perhaps at some future time |
may refer to additional matter in this department.
SYSTEM OF FARMING.
In an experimental way, an entire change in
| our system Of farming was naugurated two
years ago, and is now in its third year of prose-
cution, looking to broad and intensive tillage
| based upon purchased foods, rich in the elements
of plant food, fed to early maturing stock, upon
| the heavy use OF chemicals, and machinery in the
place Of muscle. The first year Of the change the
area was doubled, nearly, over the old amount
TILED; and last year, forty-ive of the sixty acres
of plough land were titled, and about fifty-five to
sixty acres is contemplated for the coming season.
| The reasoning was that small areas well titled
means small gross revenue, or narrow busi-
ness, narrow profit that our type of farming is
| low one, requiring much Of muscle and little of
capital or brains; that ton Of hay per acre, the
New England average, is not consistent with any
profit; that the net receipts of cultivated crops
would equal our present gross revenue from grass
| So far the gross revenue of the farm has doubled
and the net revenue increased, systematic ro-
taton Of crops so far as the soil will admit Is con-
templated.
| DOES IT PAY?
Certainly, so far as this farm is concerned. 1t
has not had as yet a fair opportunity to answer
the general question. The farm is situated vir-
| tuay in the village, and pays twenty-five per
| cent more for its labor than Is paid on outlying
farms, and is but little benefited by its location.
| Again, students are employed at twelve and one
half cents per hour at odd hours, often dozen
| for an hour at a time and while can cheerfully
say that they, for the most part, work faithfully,
yet every farmer knows that work cannot be thus
done at an advantage. With these statements |
am prepared to state that two Of our successful
farmers invoiced the personal property April 1st
On the same basis of values as those used In 1879
and allowing for wear of tools, they priced the
property April l. 1880, at over $3.50 more than in
1879. One hundred and thirty dollars was added
to permanent improvements, new things done, not
old things repaired, such as ceiling up stalls etc
paid 500 to trustees for use OF farm house,
paid over 5000 for purchased manure, including
S175 for ashes; and considerable food bill, and
have titled ground that had not been used for a
generation. OF course credit for purchased ma
nures left over must fairly be given; this would
carry the sum up to 81 900 more, and leave the
time Of the superintendent to offset experimental
work. Or, for the three years (the fourth ends
April first, 1881, decreased rate of valuation
OF stock, the appraisers find about SO, 800 more
value of stock, tools and crops than at the begin
ming, aside from experiment work, $500 for house
rent and permanent improvement, which includes
several hundred dollars outlay on barn buildings
from farm revenue, and also other work done
| much new fence, one hundred cords additional
manure, etc, etc, while the capacity OF the farm
has greatly increased, shown by the fact that
in 1877 hfty-two acres gave seyenty-two and one
half ton loads OF hay; In 1878, forty-four acres
gave seventy-two loads; and last year thirty five
acres gave seventy loads. This IL not owing 10
the favorable season last year, but to increased
fertility and late cutting; these amounts are for
first cutting.
A LITTLE learning is dangerous thing