Year: 1861

has to pay, and in the 1.-THE charge upon all
he raises and which he usually commutes
for money payment. Even SO far as the
cost of labor is concerned. we apprehend
that the difference is less between the two
countries than is generally supposed Slave
labor with us, if intelligently directed. is
certainly less costly than white labor in
England; yet the smallest products here
are from those lands on which slaves are
employed. Again, the wages of an Eng
lish farm hand may be set down at from
seven to nine dollars month. Not unfre-
quently he has besides, a cottage at nomi-
nal rent with a garden attached. from which


he obtains suficiency of vegetables to meet


the wants of his family Assuming that he


has to purchase all his food and clothing
from this pittance, and from such other small
sums which are earned by his children if
he has any, this fact will not account for the
increased crops grown upon the farm. on
which he is employed. Nor will the differ
ence between his seven or nine dollars
month, from which he finds himself, and
the ten dollars month and found, which
constitute the wages Of an American farm
hand, affect, to any great extent the difles-
ence in profit between the farmers of the
two countries respectively. Every body
knows that more industrioua race Of men
than the American farmers are. does not
exist anywhere. The owner of the land
works as encrgetically in the field as the
most active and willing. of his hired men
yet his crops will not compare with those Of
the English farmer, who does not labor at
all, but merely superintends the labors Of
others. His success arises. as We have said,
from the skillful application Of means to an
end. He knows his business, and pushes
it. He is notafraid to spend money lavish
", if it promises good returns in the way
of crops. As Mr.. French very truly des-
cribes him-..he is, in general substan-
tial, self-reliant, independent man. welt
educated for his business. He is familiar
with the manual processes of labor. He
can hold the plough as well as his plough
man. and WELD the hoe to show his labor
ers the proper stroke, yet he does not labor
with his own hands. not because he despises
labor, but because he is fully occupied with
the direction of affairs" Here follows
picture Of his domestic life


In his family an English farmer upon
: large farm lives very much in the style of
the wealthiest New England land owners.
The same fact IS observable there as here
that the wife and daughters. by some means,
acquire more finished education than the
men, and conduct their household affairs
with grace and dignity.


With servants enough to relieve her Of
the drudgery of hard labor, the farmers
wife gives careful personal attention to her
household. and has leisure to entertain hand
somely the friends and guests of the family


This is a pleasant sketch Of rural life in
England. and it is, moreover, true to the
letter. It does not, however. account for
the splendid crops which these tenant farm
ers raise, or for the greater profit which they
draw from their holdings. These can only
be explained by the fact that their system Of
farming is more scientific than ours that
their operations are conducted more methodi-
cally, and that they have discovered and
adopted as an axiom one great principle
which underlies all others in relation to
agriculture the principle chat thigh farm
ing" under proper regulations, and guided
by knowledge of what the soil requires,
will invariably yield large returns and pay
handsome profits.