The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1904-07-07
.fGRICUL TURE.



oeofgt W. TAT. uaaeiiiil cenut, VI,
In Tisups Farmer ~iito, upou the ~ iee',
WHAT Farmers Ned Mat. ~ tsllos,
Wisdom 10 go,a ,hing Ter tho farmer,
and 10 hes hAfdy thug for the mess
81 falks 10 have ~ the hcgn, bat, ialirg
aslas. your subject o. query, What 60 far.
mcrs n-a mos r, wc1ld seem 10 iuIlF OF
sesgtss lhs, there ID tome orr pnlui which
u improved rrsn, would htieg sboul good
to the greatest usmssr q farmes', witch
10 the tfus essence q all advancement N
this world Take man Who decides TO 10
farm'r, enc Who 10 goifg 10 depend en-
the lard Tor hls llslag, give him the jade.
mtns Of the beat breeder 10 the selection Of
the stock he wishes TO tcer; give him the
ladgmenssf the keen Spectator Of the
marketing and sale OF his produce; allow
him he bess varieties Of seeds for bis lard
and the best ~ tools for the working thes-
OF granted that he has all these, wist do
they pre- him II he has no Knowledge Of
the preparation ottl, soil or the cultivation
OF bis cropsf
Nov, don't know that can explain tho
hos and wherefore Of the point ~ well A.
those who have more literary ability, but
10 business lite Of about thirty Year,, .
student, mschinist, truck gardener, public
ciiicer and general farmer, and 10 the Limit
ed area a a part Of old Vernon. .long the
Champlain valley ard up under the brow Of
Manifold, my observation and experience
,mong farmers lead me to think that the
Knowledge Of the thorough ,ilage OF the
soil, from the time the plough first enters
the ground until the crop IL msturd, or .
so large that cultivation must cease, and
the advantages to be gsiatd by tits what
"the most OF farmers need most"
To lllu,traie: | have known farmers to
re, out the plough with hurry ard rush
In the spring half plough piece Of ground,
half harrow II, half plant 1t and cultivate
once, or perhsps not At all. The season
may have been little wet or little dry,
ard they would console themselves while
sitting by the kitchen stove the next win
ter by saying; l did not expect much
from that piece, anyway sort Of case
where they seem to expect nothing and
most always get Il, when, IL they had spent
little more time to plough, to plant and
cultivate, they could turn failure into sue
cess. One strange thing about this point
Is that these farmers do not know they lack
this knowledge. "Why," they say, ~
guess know how to plant corr, beans, po-
tatoes or rye. Twas born on farm, and
have been farmer all my liie.n
Ny own experience leads me to know
that II plough piece Of ground well,
plant and cultivate It well and thoroughly,
keep the crop clean and free from weeds,
keep right at 1t all the time, the land being
fair and God willing | will get pre- fable
crop.
Farmers should be educated AZ to the
benefits Of thorough cultivation; educated
to take more care Of their crops; not to see
how little care can be given and have the
crop live, but how much can be given At a
profit; for In these days Of sharp competi-
lion the extra day Of care Of crop may
be the difference between failure and sue.
cess.
We sometimes read In the papers what
wonderful results some one has obtained
with some special crop; the average farmer
will scratch his head over II, think about II
awhile, and say other, ~ don't b lieve IT,
or "He happened to strike It ja.t right"
IL does not occur to him that 4 large part
OF the success Was due to thorough pre-
paralIon and thorough cultivation Of the
soil while the crop was gro wing.
II the farmers Of the c untry could be
brought to understand this subject In ls
full sense, and knew the benefits thereof,
they might grow largely increased. crops,
have more to do with, and accomplish that
which now ae,ms to them impossible. The
question 10 your sui jact does not seem to
tquire that enc should explain how 10
bring about the desired ,ndit,op, and do
not know a. could tell you, but 1t seems
proper for the stations - take up thl, ma
ter, make experiments, ard have the re-
suits published through the medium Ct
agricultural papers In such form as would
enable the farmers to figure the value Of
thorough tillage Of the soil and would
teach them to know the advantage to be
gained from II. A crisis In governmental
STAIRS was the occasion for one Of our
American statesmen /, declare that "Eier-
raj vigilance IL tho price OF liberty" Well, |
garden SASS" and general farm produce
cost just the same--with few days work |
with the cultivator or wheel hoe ito boot"
And In my eslnation the greatest good
to the greatest number Of the farmers Of
the country would be better knowledge
Of the tillsge OF the soil and the ad
vantage to be derived by themselves there
from.