THE ROMANCE OF THE LAND

Otago Witness, Issue 2761, 13 February 1907, Page 6

THE ROMANCE OF THE LAND

There is a prevalent idea that there is no romance in the occupation of farming. Some wiiters aixl artists have endeavoured to make an exception of the dairymaid, but those who know will a<jree that her duties are the most unromantic of any on the farm. Yet fanning is not without romance — indeed, is imbued with it, unless the application of the term he- denied to the exposition of the truths of animal and vegetable life. Modern authois have not found it a contjenial subject, though Tennyson made it the subject of a grand poem, and Rukr Haggard is clothing in powerful language some of his observations on land and farming. Ancient wuters, on the other hand, derived inspiration from agriculture in all its ramifications, and old English pnetiy and folk songs tell of the joys of the farmer and even the iural toiltr. It may be 6aid that modern farming is more of a business than was the homely louud of the old-time farmer: that the introduction of so much machinery and science lias driven the lomauce — or should it be s^id the poetry and pleasure? — away from fanning, and therefore count ry life and work ha\e come to be regarded as soidid and uninteresting. Thr-re is, no doubt, some truth in this conclusion : the milkmaid — where she ha 6 not made wav, unfortunately, for the male milker — is. in these dairy-factory days, often a monotonous toiler with little opportunity to either inspire or participate in romance; the ploughman's duties have little more variety, and so on through the list of ordinary farm workers. But these conditions are exceptional, and they will become still more 6o as the improvements in fanning methods and appliances which science and practice are introducing become more generally- adopted, reducing the hardships of the life of the farmer and his workers, and giving greater opportunities for the enjoyment of life, and with it the development of the romantic side of farminpr. What greater pleasure can theie be than tli.it which the farmer or the heidsman or shepheid, or even the poultry-keeper, enjoys in watching the growth of the offspring of favourite animals, noting day by day the development in it of the ideals which he had in view when he mated the parents? or what rnoie interesting study than observing the departure from these ideals? And, turning to the vegetable kingdom, the growth of plants under varied conditions and the "selection of the fittest" in them as well as in tlie faim animals, either by observation or by c-xpf-iiment, or by both, will in theniMhts <;ive pleasure to farm life, «<pait fiom their influence oa the profits

of the farm. Comparatively few farmer^ old or young, have had the opportnnitj of qualifying themselves for these intgji resting recreative studies, and what the]* do not possess they cannot impart to they? families or workers, and here is forcibly shown the necessity for general instruc* tion in agricultural and horticultural subjects and direction in Xature-study. "BacH to the land" has not yet become a erg in Xew Zealand in the sense in whicsi it is heard in many other countries ; but there is heie, unquestionably, a need fo£ extending the knowledge of the attractions of farm life, so that the mial populatioa may be increased and the prosperity of the" country be enhanced. Mr Jesse Col* lingy, president of the English Rural La j bourers' League, &ays : "The experience ofi history, ancient and modern, seems to show that there is a natural law under which no nation can remain permanently in th§ front rank unless its economy is based oii agriculture." And in the preface by Mr Justin M'Carthy to a book recently published — " The Return to the Land "—by Senator Jules Meline, formerly French Minister for Agriculture,, it is written : "The solution of the problem before us may be 6aid to be merely an expansion of a profound thought uttered long ago by a Chinese philosopher — a thought which should be inscribed upon the walls of our schools in letters of gold — ' The well-being of a people is like a tree ; agri-% culture is its roots, manufacture and com* merce are its branches and leaves ; if the root is injured the leaves fall, the branches break away, and the tree dice.' '* The author points out that for a time the industry of agriculture fell into disdain. "It only began once more to raise its head when Science at last turned her eyes upon it, and became aware that it; was indeed the first of all industries, not only because it was the most necessary, but because it was the most elevated scientifically, being in its essence the centre of all those sciences that find in the soil their principal field of action.'* It is an encouraging circumstance that these facts are widely recognised. In all parts of the world education is held to be incomplete if it does not include instruction in agriculture, and while many; of the schemes — that of New Zealand, for instance — are as yet but rudimentary, tl cir influence must have some effect. Agricultural research and experiment are engaging the talents and energies of many of the world's greatest scientists. The literature of agriculture is enormous, not only in the form of books, but also in articles in the ephemeral press; indeed, the space which is devoted to agricultural topics in the newspapers of th«f day is a striking feature of modern journalism, and in many cases, conspicuously in the leading Australian daily papers and in the weekly Otago Witness in New Zealand, the highest ability on the part of the contributors is evidenced. The agricultural publications of the various Colonial Governments, rot only Australasian, but also African and Canadian, and also the specialist press (from one of which some of the foregoing quotations are extracted)", are of especially high merit. Engineers and mechanicians everywhere are constantly improving agricultural machinery and implements ; and there is evidence at every point of the importance of agriculture. The one thing needful is a little more recognition of the lights and a little kss deepening of the shadows of iarming life. Very little, if any, imagination ■will bo called for in the writer of a "Romance of tho Land." which would show thafe farm life is neither monotonous .nor commonplace, but has j^. greater share of enjoyment than Ls to V 5V 5 found in any other sphere.