Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 1876)
r October. THE WEST SHORE: Concluded Viiit 4a ,0 lfl-itf-o. Cflin nrnhnhlu u T i .t 1 J "F "lc ground with a stone pick, and raised a small crop, as prices ruled low, and the export demand was limited. In the course of time Noah "became a hus bandman, planted a vineyard," and ex perimented a little in the wine business. Abraham was "very rich in cattle," while Lot had "flocks and herds and tents." Jacob gave his brother Esau S80 head of cattle, and had plenty left. When Elisha was sought by Elijah to receive the mantle of the prophet, he was found plowing with twelve yoke of oxen. He was probably dragging a tree-top over the ground to loosen up the surface. So far as history enlightens us, Chal. dca, Egypt, and China were the first countries where wheat and barley were raised to any extent, and their agricul tural implements were very rude. On the rich bottom of the Nile, after each annual overflow which left the land covered with muck, it was only neces sary to scatter the. seen nn.1 tnr ! - , , -".il Ull IUC hops to trend it in. Tim flt .1 :.. tion of a plow we have, is by Hcsiod u uu.vv consisting 01 a snare, handles, and beam, and used in Greece about 1000 years before Christ. The Greeks are said to have got their knowledge Of agriculture from Fo-vtit o,l had what they called very fine horses, tunic mm swine. 1 nc soil was mainly tilled hv n nifni.il m nn.l Un i-.n.. owners looked with contempt upon ...uu.v. win. owuii-u ins occupation. Thev hnrl a feur .i,...l I J I , ""' Winers, chief of whom was Xcnophon but a wiiiii.ii on parenment, which the Commoners couldn't read, and few of the land-owners would, couldn't be expected to exert much influence in advancing the interests of agriculture. The Greeks cared more for building cities than for cultivating the soil. The Romans, however, seemed to take more pride in fnrining. To be en gaged in cultivating the land was con sidered fl hii'h hnnnr nmnn tUn aU:i ity, especially after Cincinnati!! was ll-J C iL.- .t . luiii-u Hum me piow to pass through fields Of blood to trinm.-.hnl knnn Rome had many agricultural writers; v,iuo, uie orator, naa many encomiums bestowed upon him for having written a book on farming. In his book he said: "Our ancestors regarded it as a grand point of husbandry, not to have too much land in one farm, for they considered that more profit came from holding little, and tilling it well." Vir gil also said : "The farmer may praise large estates, but let him cultivate a small one." Varro, another agricul tural writer of note, says: "Nature has shown two paths which lead to a knowledge of farming, experience and imitation. Farmers hitherto by experi ments have established many maxims, and their posterity generally imitates them, but we ought not only to imitate others, but make experiments ourselves; not directed by chance but by reeason." Pliny, in recommending the planting of trees to protect the fields from high winds, says: "Men should plant while young, and not build till their fields are planted, and even then, they should take time to consider, and not be in too great haste." To give an idea of the views of men in that age, wo quote what Columella says of the points of a good milch cows. "A tall make, long, with a very large belly, very broad head, eyes black and open, horns grace ful, smoothc and black, cars hairy, jaws straight, dewlap and tail very large, hoofs and legs moderate." The same writer gives the following directions for the treatment of work oxen : "Af ter oxen get through plowing, and come home heated and tired, they must have a little wine poured down their throats, and after being fed a little, led out to drink, and if they will not drink, the boy must whistlc.to make them." The Roman was limited by law to the possession of only about six acres of land, and he spent two days in plow ing three-quarters of an acre. What the average yield was we have no means of knowing, but Pliny says that oo stalks of wheat, all grown from one seed were 6cnt to the emperor Au gustus, and at another time 340 from one seed were sent to the emperor Nero, trom Byzantium in Africa, ac companied by the statement that, "the soil, when dry, was so stift" that the strongest oxen could not plow it, but after rain, I have seen it opened by share, drawn by a wretched ass on the one side, and an old woman on the oth er." That soil was like some of the Soil of Oreo-nn Vint iI.a . --to , nn. H.-.U11 was even poorer than a team in Arkansas since Ilia un. T J . . . . . whs uown mere not long ago, and a friend told me about seeing a disgusted immigrant moving back to Red River from Texas. He had a two wheel cart with raw hide tire. The vehicle contained p. frii. . ...1. or corn mf.nl n i f i . . u i T ., ' rlt" uacon, ana an old bed-quilt, lie had lost an ox 011 - n.j, iw iiuu improvised a yoke, With an advantntre a , & 1 winciiuur l w"8 Avork,g Kmst the steer, ..... .. uure-ioot wire, who carried the babe, nmhett at tU k:.,.l j 1 1 r . u tllu Bate and shouted, "git," when passing a mud hole. fv fri.n,lc!,l l,f. ...l... ...-..n..mlu,mi,i -men vou don't lire Tm XT c: 11 . . he; "that kentry may do for a poor man, but it won't near do for me." That fellow. I aft ' " .V...11VU, nuin- aged somehow to get to Oregon, but i v .v. 1 ul, me ext steamer, swearing that "this kentrv hnH heen mnr. . gcrated nor Texas." Like all travel ers, however, he n.l.lo.l en...iL: his stock of knowledge in visiting new countries. While here, he learned the vims 01 Diue ointment, and "toted two boxes" back to Arkansas." Before the fall of the Roman Empire the land limit.ntmn Iniiru.n o . 1-.1 , " u Hllll-lHllU that a man could own as high as ,00 acres. Then niri-.A..W....A -:.ii.. "2 u(lllullulG laimuy IC11 into dlsrennte. (nf it .-- i 1 1 t.uiieu on mainly by serfs, and beggardly vas- .-. i neii tnc swarms ot northern barbarians nu-pni m-nr e..i 1?.. rope, the only place where they were partially checked was in Spain, a coun try held hv the Snr.. i : 1 j j ...v u...HVvii9,iuiuiui invau- ers from the East, and coming from the well waIIa-a.! l.l. t. . ......vim iiiuus ui oyna, rersia and Kc-vnt tlim. .... toi-., iiiiuuiiiicu a sys tem of irrigation called the Southern ojraiuiu 01 Agriculture, 111 distinction from the Northern Krcrniv, f n : ........ i xsiulllllv. Ihey built aqueducts, reservoirs, and canals, at an immense cost, and by this means produced such enormous crops, that, according to Gibbon, they in- v.vnvu ..iv milium icvenue 01 their country to $30,000,000, surpassing the revenues of all Christian monarchs. I have seen just such a system of agricul ture carried on in Chili, where the ground is merely stirred two inches (leen. Willi a Klnnlr A -I J to a point, and drawn by a yoke of oxen nun u buck i.isiieu to tnc norns and at tached tO a DOle Whirh Mri'f.e r.ir beam. Enough loose dirt i irnt in cover the seed, which is then thrown on the ground and bushed in, when the water is let on. With such tillage, the crops year after year are enormous. Much nf thr ftnil in tn r t w fe.v, . "at; w Santiago is exactly such land as that on whirh wn nrn stnn.Unn . Uri.:i..: C ,K, , mil; in ouil- tiairn. T nii! n vr.rv inl1Knn..i u ni- O-i V ....vmwui Ul.ull.ll traveler, who didn't seem to think iiiucii 01 uie country. "vhyr Baid he. "Ihev hnvo nn n!1 hi.ru nnik:nn but rocks." I was amazed at his eve sight, but said : Have you visited the market in KniilifitrnP 11AU Vn-.n lir-11 did you ever see 111 any country such vast quantities and superior quality of grain and vegetables? "No, I believe I na..r .11.1 " rn t T .V . ... u,u- i vu, sum 1, u rocKs will nroditre Ihnt. rnrlra ie AnA..u ... , 1 wt biiuiivu null forme. He laughed and said: "there "iutuniig in mm wmcn 1 nail not thourrht nf. Krnu lh .mi nf -II tl.:- was water, the best and cheapest ma nure in ine worm, and worth more than all vour rlri. nlnuin VVI.A the streams that go dashing down your iiiuuiiiuiu sines arc utuizcu as they were in SiViin. unit ns llio.r aM 1.. r1!.:!: il. value of your land will be increased iiuin mu iu iie luiu. In (iront Iti-.i:.. nO..P tl. C ... um.uiii, Ulll llV .JUAUIIS invaded the country and wrested it c . t i I. p : t ... Hum me nanus 01 tne Romans at the end of 400 years of occupation, during which, agriculture was in a wretched rnmlilinn. it tv.ic i Ir-.- 1 baxons attempted to raise anything but n nuie w neat, parley anu oats. 1 he results of labor were too uncertain and insecure, to oflcr encouragement to la- uur, w nere me laws gave no adequate security to life or nronertv. The ran. pic subsisted mainly by hunting and by kecpiiH' swine, which fattened ev ery vear on the mast of the hcarh nml oak. Besides, thev kept a ereat many cattle, about one-fifth of which perished every winter for want of food and shelter, while frequently a miserable murrain swept olT a much larger num. vi. ganiL-ii cruu ui euinic vcgeia bles were cultivated, and neither corn, nor potatoes, nor cahbages, nor turnips, were known in England till after the beginning of the sixteenth century. Even ns lnt no r ti .1. . vriT L 'iviiry tne v HI, in the beginning of the seven teenth century, Queen Catherine had to send to Flanders, or Holland, for salad to supply her table. Now you would like to know how these people lived. We find in an old book called the "Treasurie of Ancient and Modern Times." mlhlivhf") in tkA 4-..II ing description of one of their feasts: "The mcate served into the Table WaS alwflipo. in rrmnt rk.. Ullj . , to""-" v.u,i"vib, lllldl with pease and Bacon, Gammons of Ugc ncais, roongc salted, great Dieces Hpnf. hnt.t.l p..li- :.u i. tage about them, boy led Muttton,vcalc and other grnssc food, almost in everv ordinary family; and they gorged in these victuals, so long as they could cram any more into their bellies. Af- terWnrils thev hrmirrht nll Xf , J ""fa'.i uii wliici niuaies, answerable to the former, but roasted anu lumen oitentimcs with unsavory lard, but it would go for Pigs and Hares. After this Second Service had stood awhile on the Table well nccrc to r.0 effect, then came in more daintv Meatc of Foulcs, as Mallard, Wilil Ducks, Ring Doves, Young Pigeons, Partridges, Quails, Plovers, Wood cocks, Turtle, and others of like kindc, which arc carried away like the Second Service, almost never toucht for they (good men) had tilled their stomachs with the first course of mcates, feeding hungrily on them, and drinking Sower .I'!....., -....I. L.'.... r .. ...v,., .-.uvii us oummcr juarrclh, so they left the best and daintiest mcates indeed for their varlcts and base ser vants to feede on." That reminds me of livin? in West TniiiaG.. nnr.ri.. .n years ago meat, meat, nearly all meat. j....; u, vvuiuies we nau sweet cake that I cnuld t.-ilr. t un...i ..1 squeeze enough lard out of it to crease A nnlr nT I A.... I. I.I . W p..n ui uuuis, wur neaitn, nowever, was carefully looked after in the Spring, when, for six weeks we were put upon hogs' jowls, turnip greens, and Sassa fras tea the Sassafras to work the poi son of the pork out of the blood. The first writer on Agriculture in Fl,.i ..... c: a.i. "... u.. 1 ..8....iit n,iB on Aiiiiiuny ruzner bert, who published a "Bokc of Hus- .u..v, ..i ij. 11c siyieu nimscii a larmcr ot 40 years standing." What imnitu uuuiu i.iriiiiug m 40 years Was. "A hushnm!" rnnnnl lti..mA I... UI corn without cattclle, nor bv his cat- IaIIa ...111 . ... I I J . iv.iw wiiuuui corn, anu snepc, in myne OUinioil. is thl mnct r.rrtntAl.lA A-H..II.. I T - jj.w.iL.iiriLn, VAlllklll that any man can have." Then came ,,v,,uH ubbui, w iiu cnugiiicncu tne Sllicnnfl nn nrrrifiilli.rA llt. It . ....vu.iuiv 111 -1 ivc llllll- dred Points of Good Husbandry." A wiiueu 111 uoggcrci verse, ami which was ftniin-ht .iA.. A...I ...... I until it was so worn out, that in print ing a seconu edition, the publisher fontul it vi.ru .i;n;A..if n ci- - .... copy whole enough to print from. Now, this great light on agriculture was so much like mnnv wY,i nAin a' . deal now-a-days, that it may be of in- i" iw ins weignt as given oy Fuller. He is described as "success ively a musician, shoolmnstcr, serving man, husbandman, grazier, poet, more skilled in all than thriving in any vo cation, lie traded at large in oxen, sheen, d.'iirina. nml irrnin nf a!1 L:.ln t no profit. Whether he bought or sold, 11c iusi, iiuu wncn a renter nc impover ished himself, unit novAr nnrinl.n.l u: landlord." No wonder that farmers who followed him arc described as in a nlnut ilpnlnrnhl" rnmlilinn n.l half of the time on the point of slarva- nun. iiiocuuanuaiiKCSysteillol things nrevailed. nml nvn nu Inin na mf.ii Lord Karnes said "Our draught hor ses arc niiscraiiie creatures, without ..to." wui u..u Blillll-iy able to support their own weight, and A n..in.. I.. A ..I 1. I .1 " """Kni on ny 2 norscs, lhf riiliri in lli Iw.l.la l.i..h .....I L..l m fact enormous masses ol accumulated carin mat couiu not admit ol cross plow ing or cultivation, shallow plowing universal, ribbing, by which half of the land was left untitled, a general prac lice over the greater part of Scotland, a continual struggle between corn and wceus ior superiority, tnc roller almost linltniiwil. nn hfirrnwitwr l.li. and the seed sown into roiifh uneven ground, where half of it was buried. No branch of husbandry less understood than manure, potatoes generally planted in 1.-17V hf.tt KUinn lillt.. a I I.....I...I 1.. and very few farms in Scotland prnpor- iA-Ai.. ..l.ill I l -l?..1 r'. lIUiiu,,; u me BKIII Ullll HOIIIiy 01 mC tenant." Hitriniv the W...nil. .... fc.v.k ..LIIIUI, according to Flcta, the highest author ity We h.lVIV lh IL'Mnn ..IaI.I nf ...u . j A.-...b jinn ui w ncai per acre was only six bushels, and 300 1 years later, 57 acres on a farm at Haw-' sted yielded only 366 bushels, or less than six bushels and a half to the acre, and on an average of several years it's yield was about the same. During the long dark period that we have glanced at, the art of soil culture was carried o as high a point of per fection as could have been expected, considering the land was generally tilled by vassals and slaves who had no interest in it, ignorant of letters, and li able at any moment to be forced from the field into invading or resisting arm ics, and when even the scholars of the age knew almost nolhing of organic chemistry, and couldn't tell how and why manures promoted the growth of vegetation. For ages the winds swept over the plains, and the waters sought the ocean through the rivers without turning a mill. Even as late as 1840, Professor Lcihig astonished the world, and open ed the way for a new system of agri culture when he announced, that to manure an acre of land with 40 pounds of bone dust, prepared to be intimately mixed with the soil, by pouring over them half their weight of sulphuric acid, diluted with three or four pints of water, would be sullicicnt to supply three or four crops of wheat, clover, potatoes, turnips, etc., with the necessary phos phates. The discovery of printing, the right of owning land in fee simple by every farmer, the inventions ol machinery, me urns 01 organic chemistry, tne gen eral diffusion of knowledge, the intro duction of agricultural fairs, and the final recognition of woman as an equal and helpmate, in developing and per fecting all the appliances that tend to the progress, honor and glory of the race, have, within the last hundred years, made the pages of our history, being transmitted to posterity, more luminous than would all the concentra ted light of a thousand years before. You goto Coppsllill Cemetery in Bos ton, where Cotton and Increase Mather arc buried, and sec the rude tombstones carved with the same horrible figure everywhere, meant to represent an an gel, a deaths hcatl, a witch, or a devil, nobody knows which; and letters so roughly chiselled, that what you see of our fathers' status in art, throws a pall of darkness over their day, as an age of intolerance, bigotry, antl cruelty, as it was. Then visit Mount Auburn Cem etery, the work of their children. Wit ness the beautiful meandering walks, lined with flowers and shade trees ev erywhere, the cooling fountains of sparkling water, the polished marble monuments, with the most exquisite chiselling, telling who sleeps there, and surmounted with smiling cherubs, cut from the finest marble; with linger pointed heavenwards, to remind you that the emancipated spirit of the dust beneath, has gone upwards, and awaits your coining in the New Jerusalem. There, you sec in the works of modern art, written as with letters of gold, the moral status of New England as she is to-day, among her rocks and barren hills, the freest, most intelligent, enter- . prising and liberal people on earth. The discovery of printing, steam and the telegraph, advanced the race more in a hundred years than it hud done a thousand years before. The discover ies that arc yet to be made, by genius, that is slill agonizing to enter the inner vestibule of the Arcana of Nature, will no doubt eclipse all that have been made. I! so, it is beyond our power to estimate the character of posterity a hundred years hence. At the next Centennial Fair our children's children will be curious to know what manner of ptoplc assembled here in 1876, and what we had on exhibition, They will know, for the records will ho handed down to them, and their President and Orator will probably read over the opening address of President Watson, and perhaps mine, to sec how people thought and talked in those days. Through the dim vista of an inter vening hundred years, we can get but little belter outline of what thev will then be, than we get of what people were a thousand years ago. But wc do know that the line of march which a swarming humanity has taken up, leans onwards, and upwards, anil wc believe it will still go 011 till "Peace, and good will to man," will be written over every gate-way Hallelujah I be wafted on every breeze, and Glory I sung in every dark valley and corner of the world. Bend Hie Wnn-Kuoai lo frianili 10 Ilia Ext.
