Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1881-08-10
Large aud Small Farming.

Mr.. Sanborn of the New Hampshire Agri-
cultural College in reply to our recent criti-
cism of his address on Extensive Farming |
for Profit" As we supposed, Mr.. Sanborn
had no real intention of attacking +" small
farms well titled" He says, / have not
re-read my article subject to your friendly
criticism, but know that my intent was and
is to object to small operations, not so much |
to small farms. A small farm may carry |
big business by way Of costly products.
had in mind small farms with staple crops"
The fact is, Mr.. Sanborn means to urge the
running of farm, large or small, for all
it is worth" Poor meadows, small tillage
crops, both in yield and area, and poor pas
Sanborn desires to show that large areas
may be titled with improved implements and
by the use of commercial fertilizers so as to
make New England farming business-like
and increasingly profitable. In this our
readers know that we are heartily with him.
Nor does he disagree with us in regard to
the necessity of our farmers proportioning
these efforts to their capital in money and
knowledge. But he believes that with the
same capital, united to more courage and
energy, vastly greater results can be achieved.
He says, :" believe in large efforts; tits the
drift of the day. see you say Speaking
of the decline in New England farming)
Mr.. Sanborn attributes it entirely to small
farms BY no means, but rather to small
workings of those farms. You make the
point that the capital is not always at hand,
yet this fact does not touch the question of
the need. 1t strikes me that the more you
think of it the more you will conclude that
while small farms may have given certain
strength and wealth to France as whole,
yet to the individual French farmers it has
been contracting in various other unhappy
ways"
This is all so, yet we still think it is bet
ter, as rule, for every farmer to "cut his
coat according to his CLOTH" Yet he ought
not to make coat so small that he cannot
wear it. Mr.. Sanborn and we perfectly
agree, then, that, let the farm be one of few
or many acres, those acres should all be
made to yield full and profitable return.
Mr.. Sanborn goes in for far more tillage,
made both possible and profitable by the
use of improved implements and purchased
fertilizers. Instead of two acres of corn,
five acres of potatoes and few acres of
small grain, he would have the average New
England farmer growing from ten to twenty
acres of corn, with proportional other titled
crops. He would carry full stock of ami.
mails Of good and profitable breeds, and feed
them well enough to educe all the profit
there is in them, using feeds that will not
only supply the animal wants, but will also
give rich manure. This manure he would
use in way to get all the profit there is in
it, and so on. He knows that this kind of
farming takes capital, but he also declares
that good deal of energy and study will
make small capital adequate to much
larger results that have heretofore been
thought possible. In all this he is heartily
in accord with us, and we with him. The
great amount of space we have given in the
past two years to the question Of cheaper
fertilizers bears directly upon this point.
Extensive farming" upon purchased fer
tilizers can only be made to pay by knowing
all about these fertilizers, what they are
made of, how they are made, what the raw
material, the manufacture, and the freight
ought to cost, and, beyond all that, how these
fertilizers can be fed out to the crops with
the best profit and a continually improving
farm. Every farmer should work to inform
himself fully here, and also in regard to
new implements and methods taking the
place of the old main strength and awk
wardness," and enabling one man with a
team to do ten mems work. Here is the
great chance for improvement, and Mr.. San
born is an apostle of these things. Nor does
he merely stand pointing the way. He
marches in the van of this very progress
which he breaches. The farm of the New
Hampshire college, under his management
is no show farm. Having been criticised
on that point, he defends himself and state
his position in vigorous letter to the Bos
ton Journal, from which we make the fol
lowing extracts;
The farm policy, its experiment work, crop
aud result, the al-important factors are ignored
and the standard Of the beautiful or orderl
, raised, by which to measure the utility OF tn
farm. object. show farm, thing In gilt, /
"A pet ideal Of the model state farm by the public
70 fall below this ideal Is to look common, eve
mean. This farm Is desgnedly run on the com
mercal basis. The show farm teaches nothing
i. 1t may inspire the few who see It, An exper
/ ment farm in its ordinary groupings, using tn
cs h s"f" dss sn5A nd5As e III afSn% fhs HANS ns
Il One critic observes that Of farm barns ar
!, more tidy. ! know OF scores whose building
u cost more than those OF the college farm and til
fine large farm connected, and whose labor bi
for the beautiful In farming alone exceeds ou
yearly gross labor bill. As every one has his Ow
standard OF what Is tidy, orderly or beautiful,
is necessary to know that OF the critic In order I
know whether things here are what Ia implied
really slovenly, That | cannot know. Thus
can do no better than 10 state the facts as the
4. existed. The barn windows we're clean, sta
clear OF spiders webs common tO stables, fee
boxes clean, stables swept and Uttered with plai
ter for odors, barn floor clean, doors up, fenc
boards nailed, no sticks, stones or other material
lying around loose anywhere about the building
or farm, tools all In place, with the dirt simpl
, brooned OIL, but no securing. Negatiy
virtues are alone sufficient to condemn q collep
farm, and thus we are placed under the unplea
ant necessity OF giving resume, very briefly,
the situation at the beginning OF the preseI
= nearly five years management, It's policy and n
suits. 1t found twenty five grade and native catt
T and one pure-bred bull calf; excepting carts, sui
stantally no tools; twelve acres Of ground und,
tillage OF Its seventy-fve arabic; thirty acres
the remainder cutting from fifteen TO eightee
tons OF hay; fences and minor matters needn
immediate outlay, from which no revenue coul
be expected Not dollar was ON hand or TO
devoted to the farm, except It's net revenue aft,
paying its own bills. 1t was In good position
he attempt u show 10 struggling husbandry thu
the factors OF success are at the command OF ii
!, New England farmer. It's energies and resourc,
~ have been devoted To this purpose, and the moi
!. important one of searching Tor principles thi
underie farm operations as Il has been mad
m an experiment station. Without funds, tn
IN double work has absorbed funds and efforts, an
the more immediate credit OF the superficial 81
In farming was ignored the accessories being
y common dress As an experiment station 1t hs
published nearly fifty papers Of its five years col
IN tinuous experiment work. most OF which have n
ceiyed general quotation In this country an
& somewhat abroad One instance will ilustra
the Importance OF some Of them. The hay ere
p OF the country Is estimated for 1877 at S27i 93i
$50. Men Of science and practice agree that ha