Prospects Of Farmers

'God helps them that help themselvop,'? was a saying of Pr. Frnnklin, and our farmers woulu do well to remetnbcr it and act upon il. We have seen that State legislation can do nothing to relieve their embar;assments', ond that natiönal mensures to secure an adequate raarket will not be adopted while those wlio live by robbing slaves are at the helm of government. Our noxt inquiry is,what cnr. the farmer do for himselfí We shalljust throw out our views: the reader will agreo with them ornot, as he fimls reasonable. I. The farmer who would be prosperous in these times nnut avoid the customary practice of buying goods on credit. It ie one of the principal sources of peenniary luss and personal unhappiness among farmers. In the first place, he who buys on credit poys for his goods from ten to thirly per cent more than he who pnys for them when he purchases them. Tliis is a large amount to pay for six or nine months credit. Again, the farmer has but so much valué to buy with, and if he buy on credit, the price will be higher, and of course, he must purchase a less amount of goods. Wc are uware that the farmer or his wife, or more commonly both of thera, think they must have things similar to those their neighbors have. They must do as other people do. But they should nsk themselves t)ie question, whether they can have any more things by getting in dobt for them? Of tvvo families who raise the same amount of erop.-?, one of which pays down for every thing, and the other pays every demand at the end ofan execution, whicli js best able to have all the articles they desire? Secondly, he who buys on credit is more inclined to purebase wiiat he does not absolutely necd, or more in araount than he i can pay for, or at a higher price than he would otüerwise give. He is deceived, too.by Fiis hopes. Heanticipatea that his crops will be large; or, if otherwise, the price will bo high; and in cithcr caso, he can easil y , e pny for what he wwitö. Whereas iv both l respects the reverse is frequently the case. Thini!y,he who makes bis purebases wben be ' lie carnes bis produce to market,can exchange ! it for euch articles as be need?, freqnently without the intervention of rnoney: whereas ' be wbo anticipates his crops is ustmlly obügcil to pay for bis goodá at the end of six or niue monthsin 'eastein funds or specie.' Fourthly, if the debtor bas not the funds, ' the note must be sued, and then there nre constables' and justices' fees to be paid. Tlie farmer may perbapsget a liltle respiteby stayino; ihe judgeiïient, and thus gc-tting one of his neighbors holden for the debt; but what satisTaction w there in tliat? Wben the judgrnent expires, èxecirtébn is issued, property is tittacbed, and costs piled upon costs. The debtor, reduced to the last extremily, runs nround after the creditor to ask a little more lenity; and then goes from place to plnce to borrow or liire the money at extravügant interest; and s.hould be siicceed in either case, i vvhich seldom happens, it only pionges him deeper in the mire. Aftera world of trou ble, awxiety, nnd expense, he at last bas tbc sntisfaction ofpaying thedebt, wiih perhapa an equal amount to justices and constables, wbo tbiis gpt their living out of his bard earningi. But no blame attuches to tbem. They ought to have cnrnpensalion for their time and labor; but in ibis case, tlie amount they reccive is a dead loss to the community. Sttch is the usual history of store debts. - There arCjof course, exceptions; but the rulo will generally bold good. Any person ecquainted with the amount of timo, labor, expense and unbappiness resulting from the collection of debts, cannot avoid the conclusión 1 that it is one of tlie greatest drawbacks toour 1 ireneral nrosnerilv.2. As far as possiblc, farmers shoultl raise ill the articles llioy wish to consume. We eed to have more branches of agricultural inustry. It is by mulliplying the sources oí' vcaith that statesgiow rich. Webelieve it will c found that nations seldom grow woalthy by aising exclusively one great agricultura! prouct, whetherit be cotton or wheat, or sunr. It has a tenüency to impair the producve qunlities ofthe soil; it admits of no conderable división of labor; it is produced chief f. by simple, rough labor, with but little help om the expediting processes of machincry; nlya small port ofthe natural resources of country is brought into requisition; the ïriabitants are dcpendant on foreigners for a naiket; and, in a word, they have but onc ïing to sel!, and all things to buy. For ïese and other rcasone, some ofour States re offering bounties on the raieing of silk, heep, and other articles. The State of Jaiïie, some years since, paid a considerable um as a bounty on wheat. The tendency of our farming has been to oncentrale on the production of one or two tapies, rather thun to raise what is needed for onsumpüon. What sums have been exponed at the stores every yea r by the wheat aisers to clolhe their families in woolen and i'iks of foreign manufacture. There are many minor branches of ngriculture which would conduce to the bapplnesa and comfort of sociey, and afford a lurgecompensation to the producers, ïn the castern states, great munbers )ecome wealthy by thepToducts of their orchards, which are sentto all narts of tlie erlubejy the raising of cranberries, strawberries, melón, and a vast nuniber of articles, each jinall in itself, bul considerable in the aggre orate. The same is true of their manufactures. Whereas in Michigan we cannot procure a nail, hammer, shovel, door hándle, or lock without going Out of the State for it. S. Farmers 3Íould be vigilant to secure the early introduction of lliose chemical and mechanical processes which affect their business. They do not renlize that a single invention may chaneBmaterially the state of agriculturol industry. It was by the invention of the Hfeam engine that Eugland has been able for n century to fight the baltles of Europe. By means of Whitney's cotton gin, the South have snpplied the world with cotton; and are títere not similar invenfions which will effect he interest of the Northwest? We think it s uot too much to say of the mass of our farming population, that they have too liltle inerest in improving their circumstances by ieeping up with the spirit of the age. Many of chem seém to tlnnk that nothing can be done more pvofitable than to follow the tracks of their ancestors. We wou Id not, indeed, íave the farmer implicitly believc every story of corn-stalk molasses, or lard oil, or other wonderful invenlion of which he may hear,but ;hey should not pass without exciting his attention. Their utility should be examined and scrutinized. It isos absurd and unreasonable to treat subjects with supercilioue contempt as to believe the statements respecting them with blind credulily. There are muny inventions yet to be iníroduced inlo the world, which were not dreamed of in our fathers' philosophy; and it should be the part of theii children to g've thpm a cordial welcome, and a fair trial . On some future occasion we intend to show how the intf?rests of our farmers are afl'ectei by the èzistence of slavery.CCJr'It will lie scen by the recent elections, that since the Liberty party 6tarted, the New Englanders have great difficulty in cboosinjr their Stal e Senators and Representatives; and when the party progresses somewhat further, there will be scarcely an election at the first trial. Their system of requiring a majorit)' of all the votos given is often very troublesome nor do wc sec any substantial benefits in it.