Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1893-04-11
1hs sAsI VS.. IHE WEST.

DR.. r. n. Hoskins thus writes, In the
Vermont wstchmsn, Of the productive
capacity OF the soil In the West ss COM
pared with the East. Young men who
entertain the idea that New England IA
only good enough to run away from, will
do well To ponder the article:
at Il nothing unexpected, by men
knowing both sides Of the subject. that
Western farmers should be having rather
hard times. Nor Il Il surprising that
they should have such crude Ideas as
many Of them are possessed with, as
to how the evils that surround them
should be put aside. We have lived In
the West long enough, and farmed there
sufficiently To know that the agricultur-
al conditions of the two sections are not
one-half 40 different as they have been
represented, and are supposed to be.
There IL very large amount OF as good
land In the East AS there IL In the West.
Prairie land has as many drawbacks rs
much Of our hilly woodlands. Western
lands run out, and become unproductiye
under reckless. uninielligent handling.
lust "a surely as Eastern farms.
Some who have not Travelled VIII us
pute what We say about the comparative
goodness Of Eastern farm lands. But
the past aud present are full OF evidence
of the productive value of the soils OF
even our oldest states OF the Atlantic
slope There are no better soils any
where In the West than the rich valleys
Of Virginia and Pennsylvania. The same
i true of New York. As TO the South,
there Ia no better land, naturally, than
the valley and upland farms OF the to-
bacco and cotton states. And In New
England, though the immediate seacoast
l. rather barren, even there good farms
are to be found; and the sea supplies not
only much food to the Inhabitants, but
much cheap manure.
But when we 90 back from the sea,
and especially when we get away IRON
the denuded areas where the iceberg.
of the Ice sge scraped the fine soil Into
the sea, aud covered the surface with
their stony drift, we lind land which,
though much Of 1t Il rocky and uneven,
Il unsurpassed In strength and adapta-
ton to both pasturage and tillage. IL Is
true, even here, that bad farming has
much reduced the condition OF the farm
lands hut skill easily restores them-so
easily that land apparently quite worn
out has been restored In few years, by
simple methods, TO full productiyeness.
The fact Il, that even the most unintelll-
gent aud wasteful farming cannot per-
manently impair the quality OF hnd that
l. naturally good. Such land IL full OF
plant food. IL l. indeed made of plant
food, though IL requires some knowledge
and skill to make that food accessible 10
the crops we desire to grow upon IL.
There are men living who remember
the delight with which the early settlers
Of northwestern Vermont compared the
forest growth and native fertility of that
part of the state with the hrin' ot their
native Connecticut. let to-day they are
growing better crops In Connecticut Than
are grown, as ruiz, In the ~ OF the
Green Mountains; and this mainly under
the schooling of Connecticut's agricuI-
tural chemists, whose instructions, where
well followed, are found To pat new
f,ce apon the farming of the Nutmeg
Stste." Tobacco farming. fruit farming
onion farming, anl other kinds of hlgh
farming, are getting new life Into the OLD
.oil-not only In the Connecticut valley.
hut all over southern New Engl ,nd.
But let us tell YOU, de,r reader, that
th. very beat portions Of New England
n. not vet under the pillow. All I"
noTth-rn ant northe ,stsrn Msine-twier
q. l,ry. ~ all Vermont, AMI all rhh,
level, valley lsnd-has not Vet IA man'
,,.opl. I'm Il ~ one Vermont county
rh.rr I. onlv one mountain In Ill thd
,eyion, ani no valleys deep enough Z"
rut that mount iin out of sight. North
rrn Min. Il ~ cool rming l,nd ~ th'
III mpItin ar Connecticut valley; or ti"
,.,st,rn townships of Canada, and the
Y LEY of Like M-mphrrm 'eog. ihr''
au,riers of New Englni u to-day as
'alulhlr aud prolu tive firm l,nl ~ the
,yrr,ye of the .Gr'u West" Bnt
need. know le,lg. To farm IL tn the Oe.'
proilr. NJ good till gr hnd u ever reai-
ia run out. Gr,-ce his been under cul-
yaiion for thousands of years and h-i
farming l. ss poor ~ ours; hut g"o
IRONS are vet grown. aud farming J.
.tili profitable la Greece. The same u
true as To all of Europe. III the power,
of that Christiin continent ~ould disbanh
their armies and put their soliiers I"
productive labor, they would all be as
veil or ss-well, "a our grumbling farm
ers, East aud West.