The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1891-03-21
nown with useless Fences.

The Salisbury AdCertiser heartily lavors
the no fence policy for Wicomico county.
Many Carroll county farmers have been
advocating it for years and some Roadway
has been made The AdUcrtiser says: If
YOU will take the trouble to ride through
some of the stock-law districts of the
county, you will see at glance the differ
ence between "fence' and ''no fence. A
few years ago our farmers at this season of
the year, were busily engaged splitting
rails and making fences, spending thou
sands of dollars in labor and material use
lessly, to keep out the public. Now where
these fences stood, in many places, are
large compost heaps, made of stable manure
and fence row mould. This looks as much
like business as anything we have seen.
The tide completely reversed; instead of an
outlay there is a positive income. The
quality of timber used for rails is such as
would bring two dollars and fifty cents per
cord if cut into wood and delivered to this
place. Every dollars worth therefore put
into rails is that much sunk. 1t costs no
more labor to put it in wood than it does
into rails. Why then should we waste it
on fences? The fact is We need no fences,
either to keep other peoples stock out or
our own in Time is well spent in cutting
grass to feed to stock in the pound. Your
clover or crab grass crop is worth twice as
much cut and fed as if it is grazed. We
are happy to say that nearly every district
in the county now has what is termed a
stock law The two remaining will no
doubt soon see the virtue of it.
The Farm and FTesicle has the follow
ing article under the caption down with
Useless Fences" Nailed to the topmast
of the Rural Nc,c Yorker is a flag bearing
the motto, Down with Useless Fences y
That is a very sensible motto, and one that
every sensible farmer will adopt.
Let him take the time some winter even,
ing and figure the amount of money in.
vested in the fencing on his farm and what
it costs annually to keep it in repair. He
will probably be surprised. Then let him
spend a number of evenings in planning /;
better system of husbandry that will reduce
necessary fences to the minimum. Hav.
ing formed definite plans, he can gradually
rearrange his farm fences so that in tho
course OF two or three years his fields viii
all be of better shape and larger size.
\ little calculation will show how the
number of rods of fencing depends on the
size and shape of the field. 1t is less for
square field than for an oblong one of tho
same size. 1t is less in proportion to thu
number of acres contained for large thai
for small field. To illustrate: An obons
ten-acre field 20 rods wide and 80 rod,
long has 200 rods of fencing, 20 rods pei
acre. \ square ten-aere field is 40 rod.
each way, and has 100 rods of fencing, II
rods per acre. An oblong forty-acre fielc
40 rods wide and leo rods long has 100
rods of fencing around it, 10 rods pei
acre \ square forty-acre field is 80 rod,
each way, and has 800 rods of fencing,
rods per acre.
A little further calculation will illustrate
the difference in cost. Assume that the
average cost Of good fencing is one dollal
per rod. Then the cost of fencing 100
acre farm divided into obiong teR-dcre fields
of the dimensions given above would be
$4,000. Divided into square .torty-dcrt
fields the cost would be $3.50. The
extremes, of course, illustrate most forcibly
the difference in cost of fencing
As there is,a strong natural antipathy tc
taxation, the way to make anything odious
and to bring about change or reform is tc
show it up as tax. Well, that is what
every rod of useless fence is, needless
burdensome tax. Assuming the average
price of good farming land to be $50 per
acre, the cost of fencing it, using the same
figures above, is tax of from IS to so
per acre, l6 to 40 per cent, payable every
ten, twelve, or fifteen years, the lifetime OF
an ordinary fence, leaving the yearly re-
pairs out of consideration. Every single
rod of useless fence, even on the most
economical system of fencing, is tax of
per cent. or over on each acre. To get rid
of this oppressive tax, "down with the use
less fences r Farm fencing should be
reduced to the actual necessities of agricult-
urc economically administered.
The village fence is even worse than
farm fences, comparing cost and benefits
In communities that possess the highest
type of civilization, front-yard fences are
being 'downed' to stay. And liz some
places, both village and farm fences have
been almost entirely abolished.
The principle on which most stock laws
are made, that every man should be re
quired to fence in his own stock instead OF
fencing out his neighbor's, is sound one