PREFACE.

It is therefore my goal to persuade the good Father-of-the-family French: "Pere-de-famille." In this context, it refers to the master of an estate or the head of a rural household. to take pleasure in his land, to be content with its natural qualities, and not to loathe or reject its inconveniences with such contempt and disdain that he ceases to strive—through his industry and continual diligence—to make it more fruitful or less troublesome over time. For to what purpose should he be vexed with the place where he must spend his life? Can he convert mountains into plains, or plains into mountains? Let him take comfort, then, in the providence of God, who has distributed to each what He knows to be necessary; even in this regard, He imposed upon man, because of his sin, this just penalty: To cultivate the earth in the sweat of his face original: "De cultiuer la terre en la ſueur de ſon viſage"—a reference to the biblical curse in Genesis 3:19.. Nevertheless, by His blessing and following His promises, He allows man to enjoy the fruit of his labor in the possession of earthly goods. And who could imagine a household as some Paradise without pain or inconvenience, when even the great States of the world are entangled in so many thorny difficulties? By this, we poor mortals shall learn that there is nothing perfect, nothing certain in this mortal life, as we strive toward the immortal. Therefore, our householder shall remember that he is on Earth; and, resolving to cultivate the Earth to live there with his kin, he shall take up this beautiful Science to guide his labor.

A SCIENCE more useful than it is difficult, provided that it is understood by its principles, applied with Reason, led by Experience, and practiced with Diligence. For this is the summary description of its use: SCIENCE, EXPERIENCE, DILIGENCE, the foundation of which is the blessing of God, which we must believe to be the Quintessence In early modern thought, the "fifth element" or the purest, most essential part of a substance; here, the vital spirit of the farm. and soul of our Husbandry French: "Meſnage," meaning the overall management of the farm, household, and resources.; and we must take as the principal motto of our house this beautiful maxim: WITHOUT GOD NOTHING CAN PROFIT. Upon this, we shall build our Agriculture, the practice of which we shall represent thus:

,, THE Householder must know what he has to do, understand the order
,, and the custom of the places where he lives, and set his hand to the work
,, in the right and opportune season for every labor of the field.

There are those who mock all books on Agriculture and send us back to the unlettered peasants, whom they say are the only competent judges in this matter, being grounded in Experience—the sole and certain rule for cultivating the fields. I admit with them that to discourse on rural Husbandry by books alone, without knowing the particular customs of the place, is to build in the air and to waste away through vain and useless imaginations.