The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1888-09-21

sparseness of population. Chesapeake
City is the western terminus of the
Chesapeake and Delaware canal, and is
a thriving business place. The third
district comes in between the southern
and northern section Of the county,
with Elkton for its chief town. Here
we are at the head OF tidewater. and
Immediately north of us the hill country
begins. Here also the soil changes,
and with it both the processes of agri-
culture and the variety of crops. The
farms are smaller, the culture more
careful and thorough and the popula-
tion more dense, The soil varies from
rich loam to barren clay. The
proportion, however, of barren land is
small and is generally left in wood.
The iron mills at North East and Prin.
cipion own large portion of the Cecil
barrens in this and the fifth district,
and use the wood for coal. In the i'm.
mediate vicinity of Elkton trucking is
extensively carried on, and proftably.
From here to the Pennsylvania line the
two Elks, the two North Easts, the
Principle and the Octoraro furnish
fine water power for -four mills, paper
mills, cotton mills and iron mills, all
wards of the nation except the -four
mills.
THE HAY FIELDS OF CECIL.
We are now on the borders of the
celebrated hay fields of Cecil, but we
do not see them in perfection until we
reach the fourth district, and then from
the Delaware line to the noble Sus-
quehanna. Timothy is the staple crop
Of Cecil, and the pride of her farmers.
Why her hay ranks higher than any
other in the Baltimore market is a
question often asked. I can remember
when the lands on which most of it is
grown were poor and Improbable.
What has brought them up to their
present value? The division of large
farms into small, careful cultivation by
the owner Of the homestead, the liberal
use of lime, bone dust and first class
super prosphates. Cecil farmers, as a
rule, know what they buy, and they do
not throw away their money on cheap
goods. They have, for instance, three
large fertilizer mills in the county,
open to the eye of the farmer and con-
Quoted by our own citizens. Cecil
farmers are not only readers, but they
are close observers. Their expert
ments are carefully made, so that the
value of manure is ascertained, the
cost of a crop, and the profit or loss of
years work. Our farms are better
at the close of each season than they
were at the beginning. There may be
but little money in the pocket and no
bank account, but there is just little
capital laid up in the land and build.
ings. 1t is continual feast to the eye
to travel over the fourth, ninth, seventh,
sixth and eighth districts of Cecil in
the month of June. 1 have travelled
North, South and West, and have
never seen anything comparable to
these sections of Cecil.
NEEDS OF THE CECIL FARMER.
The need of the Cecil farmer is re-
lief from taxation, county and national.
Take the hands of these two robbers out
of our pockets and we will ask no
tavors. We have every advantage God
and nature give to man, but the hand
of our fellow-man is continual ly in our
pockets. Our county demands one per
cent on our taxable basis, and our gov.
ernment at Washington, in its paternal
care, taxes US from above the crown Of
our heads to the soles of our feet for the
benefit Of our neighbors, the manufac.
turers. The credulous, who believe in
the home.market theory by which the
farmer is to recoup his indirect taxes,
are even to be found in Cecil, but al.
though an old man, I hope to see the
day when they will know better. The
taxes Cecil farmers pay on the goods
they purchase and consume, if left in
their pockets, would give them neat
percentage of profit each year.
As to our prospects, they are that the
people, growing more intelligent each
vaor mill nroeantlx, undarskond that