The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1884-07-11
The Egis and Intelligencer.
Bel Air, Md, July IL, 1884.
DEER CREEK FARMERS CLUB.
A New Way of Planting Corn-Ruts.

Moores was called to the chair. Messrs Webster,
Archer and James Lee were appointed to report
upon the condition OF tho farm and buildings
They complimented Judge Walters upon the APP
pearancc of his farm and stock. An experiment
IN complaining was examined win interest,"
Judge Walters has his corn planted in double
rows Is inches apart, with 5% feet spaces between
the double rows. The ground thus contains the
same number of rows us in the usual method OF
making the rows H feet apart. The advantage
claimed is that the wide spaces allow free circu-
lation of air among the corn, which is believed
to he of great advantage The corn is worked
with peculiarly shaped cultiNator OF Judge
Walters own invention. He tried the expert
ment last year. with such good results ms TO
iniuce him to put in his entire crop by the
new. method this year Immediately after
cutting his clover Judge Waters hauled ont
all the manure from his barn yard, spreading
it evenly over the field. Now the second crop
Of clover has almost hidden the manure. The
committee thought the plan good one. Judge
Walters has some fine short horn cattle. All of
his stock, indeed, look we'll He also has good
truck patch, matter too often neglected by
farmers. Since the club met there before Judge
Walters has made an addition To his farm, greatly
improving it.
The topic for discussion was "Ruts." Judge
Walters said that the subject was suggestive. and
while not so well suited for general discussion
was a good one to think about. lie had prepared
what he had to say in the form of II short essay,
which he read, and from which we take the Eel
lowing extracts:
1T is said that an ostrich hat chcs its egg by
standing of and looking at it, Whether this be
fact fable, it illustrates the idea which was III
my mind when ! suggested this subject for our
talk this evening II is protttable for us AT times
To stand of and look at our work. The work OF
intelligent beings should show the true measure
of their intelligence. Our methods should be
adapted to the attainment of desired results and
we should constantly bear in mind that the laws
of nature are harmonious, and that every fact,
no matter how insignificant II may seem in itself,
must HAY its true relations To those laws, ana If
properly understood may serve AS key In our
hands We have to do with problems containing
many unknown quantities., and we cannot hope
to eliminate them ALL or any considerable number.
The field is infinite and we can never hope TO
reach IA point at which the horizon Will not seem
as far in advance of us as Il was at the start but
this is reason why we should stand still or fol-
low bindly in the rlIts which Others have made.
Ideas do not come into this world full-iledged any
more Than young ostrches Germs OF thought
require incubation ms well AS the embryo i'm the
q z, and the growth and developement OF the one
is fully as wonderful rs the other If examples
are needed can scarcely go amss for them
Take the steam engine, the most wonderful
mechanical outgrowth of modern times, and we
need not go far back to find the germ of il in
tea kettle, with boy standing OIL looking at il.
IL is James Watt incubating an idea. We can
hardly realize that the patient, obedlent giant
which does our bidding SO faithfully had such a
''The disposition to get into ruis is not by any
means peculiar TO farmers, AS we find it in all
callings and professions, but certainly there is
nothing more inmical to advancement When
we come to Il community where the more ignor-
ant are content to follow blindIy and minimizing
ly in the ways of the fathers and grandfathers,
and where those who are educated delight in
quoting VirgiIs Georges as an agricultural au-
thorty, we may be sure we have found good
place to move away from. 1t is a very common
far West that II they would use the same energy
and submit to the same privatlons at home, they
would meet the same success here that they do
comes. In community where everything
moves in ruts it is no easy thing for an Individual
To get out of them or 10 keep out. No doubt one
of the great attractions in the West, and probably
one of the causes It's rapid advancement, lies in
the fact that each individual in breaking up his
old home and leaving his old associates gets out
of his old ruts, and III en- meeting with those who
have come togethe from every quarter of the
hob phu ton ho.,ly
better to run the risk of being buried by an earth
quake or swept away IN a cyclone than TO have
ones energies exhausted and his manhood smoth-
cred out of him in II labyrinth of old ruts that end
no where and lead no whittier.
ut cannot be denied that the present century
has witnessed the iilling up of many an old-ime
rut The discovery of steam-power and of the
electric telegraph have given the world stirring
up from which even farmers have not escaped
The introduction of improved machinery 10 do
farm work has revoutionized many of our meth
DDS The advantages of II more general education
and great improvement i'll the quality well
as in the quantity of farming literature have as
sisted greatly in the work, and it is not nnreason-
able 10 hope that the period in which we are liv-
ing will mark an epoch in the history of agricul-
tural advancement.
The four quarters of the earth have been
brought very close together in these latter days
and competition has been proportonalely quick
ened. 1t behooves us To keep our wits about ms
and see to it that we are not left out in the cold
before we know it. We should be able to say 10
our young men, stay with us and we will
help 10 obliterate the old ruts which impede your
progress and ours" We should be able to assure
those who are looking toward us from distance
that if they will come and cast their lot with us
we will not be hndcrerS but co-aborerS with
them in common effort to advance n common
interest
in the way of farmers should say, without hest
tation, "Ruts" If We're asked To give the best
reason for the existence of Farmers Clubs !
should say "to fight against rnts."
h. Harris Archer thought ii was sometimes
dangerous to get ont of the well-known beaten
paths along which others had gone successfully.
UA9w
make experiments.
Johns ii Janney thought farmers should not
keep i'm the same old ruts their fathers travelled
in. Agriculture is an undiscovered science and
it is the duty of every farmer to make expert
ments for the benefit OF his brother farmers. One
old rut that farmers should get out of is that the
dull boys should be kept on the farm and the
smart ones he sent 10 the cities.
Benjmin Silver, Jr., said this is an age OF pro
gress and farmers are getting out Of old rus per
haps fast enough. lie could see the greatest i'm
provement in the last ten or fifteen years. Work
is better done and you sec cleaner corn fields
He did not believe in doing or not doing thing
because our fathers did or did not do it, but If a
man can make more money by staying in a rut
let him stay there.
VIM. Munnikhuysen said farmers should keep
their eyes open and get out of rutS whenever they
could see that it was to their advantage.
VIM. Webster said that Walker, Worcester and
the other Webster defined "A rut to be we'll
beaten track He did not see why should
leave all beaten tracks if we found them success
full If he had doubts abont the rnu he would
try new one, on small scale. The trouble is
that farmers iheoriZe more than they practice
1t requires as much brains as muscle to farm
successfully. The farmer who has both succeeds
best. There are two ruts is which farmers of the
present day have gotten. We are extravagant in
the expenditure of money and the improved
machinery has made farmers careless about
many things. Our fathers did not go in these
ruts.
Geo. f. Silver thought some ruts could be fol-
lowed probably while others should be avoided.
There are some general fixed principles which
are as essenlialto farming to-day as they We're
years ago. These may be called rus, and it is not
safe TO leave them. We seem to be folio wing an
old rut by having everything hauled To distant
railroad through this country would move us out
E. NJ Alien said that if our fathers had pursued
ruts when they found advantageous he would
stick to them.
James Ii. Ball said he would like to hear some
ruts specified which ought to be followed or
avoided For instance, Judge Waters had spread
manure ON his newly-cut clover-ield. Our
fathers would have Thought il wasted. That is
one rut we should get out Of Corn is cultivated
so per cent. better and cheaper, too, than it was
40 years ago.
Thos A. Hays said many old rnts should be
abandoned and few continued in. Among the
former was the practice of making roads up the
hills and along line fences, and the use of old
fashioned machinery. You are in an old rut
when You undertake to cut Wor 40 acres of wheat
with cradles instead of Il binder or work 10 or 40
acres of corn with hoes instead of suky cultiva-
tors. There is comfort in working with improv-
ed machinery. 1t saves labor and sweat, and the
ruts may be smOothed over by using it.
s. b. Silver said il was trait of human nature
to be impressed by the example of others and to
follow in the procession without taking advan-
tage of the results of our own observation and eX
pericnce.
james Lee believed in getting out of ruts. Nine
times out of ten we will succeed better by
Change. Ifasystem were successful he would not
call IL nut.
Judge Watters-Using cradle would be rnt
If man had at his command other and better
means for cutting wheat. Ii he continued to use
dhe cradle merely because his father used IL he
would be in q rut. If we go on raising certain
crops ana getting in debt because our fathers
raised them, that is getting in u rut
Rev. c. u. wilson said that for farmers as well as
dor othcrsthere are extremes of conservatism as
well as of radicalsm, but there must be progress.
We have right to use the wisdom of others behind
as as well rs our own wisdom and experience. One