Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1901-11-29

met has added secretaryship OF agri-
culture. Societies are constantly being
established for the education Of the
plow. Journals devoted 10 this depart
ment are circulated through all the
country Farmers through such cub
ture have learned the attributes of
soils and found out that almost every
field has its peculiar preferences.
Lands have their choice as to which
product they will bear. Marshy low
lands touched by the pillow rise and
wiring out their wet locks In the trench
es. Islands boru down on the coast or
Peru and Bolivia are transported to
our fields aud make our vegetation
leap. Highways by this pillow are
changed from DOGGY sloughs into roads
like the Roman AppiSn way. Fields
go through bloodless revolutions until
there the farmhouse stands. In sum-
mer honeysuckles Chamber over the
trellises. On one side there stands
garden, which is only farm condens-
ed On the other side there is stretch
Of meadow laud with thick grass, and
as the wind breathes over IL It looks
like the deep green ocean waves. There
goes d brook. tarrying long In Its wind
ings, as If loath TO leave the spot where
the reeds sing. and the cattle stand at
MONDAY under the shadow OF the
weeping willows. In winter the sled
comes through the craclSling snew with
huge logs from the woods, and the
barn floor quakes under the thumpings
of the fail or the deafening buzz OF
the thrashing machine. Horses stand
beneath NOV poles bending under loads
OF hay and whinny to the well filed
oat bins. Comfort laughs at the wind
rafting the sashes and clicking the
icicles from the caves.
Parts OF our country. under industri-
Gus tillage. have become an Eden Of
fruitfulness, i'm which religion stands
as the tree OF life and educational adj
vantages as the tree OF knowledge OF
good and evil, not one OF them forbid
den. We are ourselves surrounded by
web cultured farms. They were work
cd by your fathers. and perhaps your
mothers helped spread the hay In the
field On their headstones are the
names you bear. AS, when you were
boys. In the sultry noon you sought for
the harvest field with refreshments for
your fathers and found them taking
their noon spell sound asleep under
the trees. so peacefully now they sleep
in some country churchyard. No more
fatigued. Death has plowed for them
the deep furrow OF a grave.
Agricultural Prosperity.
Although most OF us have nothing d.
rectly to do with the tillage OF the soil,
yet in all our occupations we feel the
effect of successful or blighted indus
try. We must, in all our occupations,
rejoice over the victories of the plow
today. The earth was once cursed for
mans sake, and occasionally the soil
revenges itself on Us by refusing q
bountiful harvest. ] suppose that but
for sin the earth would be producing
wheat and corn and sweet fruits as
naturally rs now IL produces mullen
stalks and Canada thistles. There Is
hardly hillock between the forests of
Maine and the lagoons of Florida. be-
tween the peach orchards OF New Jer-
sey and the pines OF Oregon. that has
not sometimes shown its natural and
total depravity.
Praise God for the great harvests
that have been reaped this last year
Some of them injured by drought or
insects or freshets were not as bounti-
ful as usual, others far in excess or
what have ever before been gathered.
while higher prices will help make up
for any decreased supply. Sure sign OF
agricultural prosperity we have In the
fact that cattle and horses and sheep
and swine and all farm animals have
during the last two years increased In
value. Twenty million swine slaugh-
tered this last year. and yet SO many
hogs cleft. Enormous paying OF OF
farm mortgages has spoiled the old
speeches OF the calamity howlers. II
the ancients In their festivals present.
cd their rejolcings before Ceres. the
goddess OF corn and tillage. shall we
neglect TO rejoice In the presence OF the
great God now? From Atlantic 20 Pa
cific let the American nation celebrate
the victories OF the plow.
come next to speak OF the conQuests
81 the American hammer Its iron arm
nas fought Its way down from the be-
ginning TO the present Under Its
swing the city OF Enoch rose. and the
foundry OF Tubal Cain resounded. and
the ark floated on the deluge. At It's
clang ancient temples spread their
magnihcence and charlots rushed out
fit for the battle Its iron fist smote
the marble OF Paros, and IL rose In
sculptured Minervas and struck the
Pentslican mines until from them a
Farthenon was reared whittier than n
palace OF ice and pure as an angels
dream. Damascus and Jerusalem and
Rome and Venice and Paris and Lon
don and Philadelphia and New York
ana Washington are but the long pro-
tracted echoes OF the hammer. Under
the hammer everywhere dwellings
have gone up, ornate and luxurious.
Schoolhouses, lyceums. hospitals and
asyiums have added additional glory
TO the enterprise rs well as the benefi-
cence OF the American people. Vast
public works have been constructed,
bridges have been built over rivers and
tunnels dug under mountains and
churches OF matchless beauty have
gone UP for him who had not where to
lay his head, and the old theory is ex-
ploded that because Christ was born in
a Manager we must always worship
him in barn.
Goodness of God.
Railroads OF fabulous length have
been completed. over which western
trains rush past the swift footed deer,
making the frightened birds to dart
into the heavens at the cough of the
smoke pipes and the savage yell of the
steam whistle. In hot haste our ma
uonal Industry advances. her breath
the air of 10000 furnaces. her song the
voice or amounted factories, her foot
step the flash OF wheel buckets and the
tread OF the shaft and the stamp OF
foundries. Talk about antediluvIan
longevity. ] think the average of hu-
man life is more now than 1t ever was.
Through mechanical facilities men
work so much faster and accomplish
so much more In lifetime that man
can afford to die now at forty years as
we'll as one of old at 900. I think the