A Speech by
Joseph Smith on the 1st December 1849 entitled; “On the present
depressed state of Agriculture and Commerce”
Who feels himself at liberty to a lowering of
our position in the scale to the exaltation of any other nation under
the sun? Who is prepared to sacrifice our national glory, our national
institutions, our national greatness, and our national privileges solely
for the exaltation, the benefit, the aggrandisement of the stranger and
foreigner? No, a Britain's heart is too patriotic for this; his love
for his country is too deeply rooted in his nature to make such a
sacrifice "How are we to compete with the foreigner"?
Land abroad costs little in purchasing, little
in cultivating, little in taxes, and because of its freshness is very
productive; whereas ours is the reverse-the price paid is high,
consequently the rents are high, the taxes high, and the expense of
cultivating it is great. The only approach to a balance in this vast
disproportion is the cost of freight or carriage in bringing it, which
is far from putting us on an equality;
therefore something ought to be done so that the competition may be fair
and equal".
This speech treats upon many suggestions made
for the remedy of agricultural depression, i.e. drainage,
artificial manures, reduction of rents." To the latter suggestion the
landlords are not all in a position to comply with, some of them having
bought their property at an exorbitant price. So we say that this state
of things would not be a permanent remedy. It would in some cases be
the ruin of this honourable essential class of men. That would be class
legislation with a vengeance; that would be to maintain the position of
the tenant to the utter ruin of the landlord. As a tenant-farmer I
scorn such a course "It is our wish to live and let live”.
We have no idea of rearing a temple of
greatness on the ruins of another. We seek not to raise one class or
one interest to the diminution of another. We consider all interests
and all classes to be closely interwoven, none can be dispensed with-the
ruin of one must soon be succeeded by the ruin of another. English life
and English society is a complicated and exquisitely beautiful piece of
machinery ~ when we are alarmed by confusion, rebellion, famine,
depression, we may rest assured some of the wheels are out of order.
Keep the wheels in order ... and all will be harmonious.
The great experiment of "Free Trade" has been
made, and so far it has utterly proved a failure to us as a nation. We
were told when Free Trade principles were agitated, that a repeal of the
Corn Laws would benefit all classes of the community, though at the time
we could not give the men credit for their sincerity. I don't think they
ever believed it would benefit the agricultural interest".
In 1866
Joseph Smith was one among the fortunate
farmers in escaping the Rinderpest, though
this scourge was ravaging the district all round. Having a large
quantity of grass land, the spring following the
Rinderpest cattle were very scarce, and also more difficult to
find on account of the markets being closed, hence the question arose
where was he to procure his grazing stock. Always full of resource
and contrivance he hit on the idea of going off to seek them, so in
company with Mr. West, a young man who was learning farming with him
at Normanby, they set out on horseback, riding over the moors to
Egton and through the districts which had
escaped the Rinderpest, through Rosedale,
Farndale, and
Bransdale, and to the outlying farms, picking up cattle in odd
ones just as the farmers had them to spare. In this way they secured
quite a herd and then arranged for the respective owners to send them
all to one meeting place on a given day. Many of the farmers were
very pleased to see a customer for their stock, as owing to the cattle
plague people who wished to buy dare not for fear of a return of the
plague; therefore, they hailed with delight his presence among them as
a buyer. Many were the tempting drinks of "mead" and other
intoxicants offered to them. "Thank you," they replied, "if you will
give us a drink of tea instead we shall be pleased to dismount and
partake of your hospitality”. This speculation on Mr. Smith's
part was a bold venture at the time; however, as the summer advanced,
this herd of cattle kept free from disease and thrived remarkably
well.
The disease
Rinderpest
killed vast numbers of cattle in Europe during the 18th and 19th
centuries. The devastating effects of the disease encouraged
far-sighted scientists to set up the first veterinary schools. By a
combination of slaughter and rigorous quarantine,
rinderpest was eliminated from Europe in the early 1900s.
The virus
is related to those that cause measles in people, distemper in dogs,
and peste des petits
ruminants in sheep and goats. Cloven hoofed animals are susceptible
to the virus, but not all show clinical signs. The incubation period
is usually 3 to 5 days, but with particularly mild strains it can
extend to 14 days
Treatment
There is no
treatment for infected animals. It is a highly contagious disease and
mortality is high.
In the spring of the year
1892, Joseph Smith had a sale of implements and stock at Huggate, and
finally retired from farming. For some time he had complained of
failing health and strength. To use his own words, he often said,
'I cannot do as I used to do, and' unless I can personally superintend
my business, I must give it up.' Having been engaged in
agriculture for nearly fifty years, he was advised to rest; but he soon
found that his active temperament would not allow him to “rust out”.
As a consequence, by way
of employment, he took some grazing land near York and other places,
which enabled him to continue his marketing pursuits. Through life
he had always been fond of buying and selling stock. Making his
home with his son at the Manor House farm, South
Holme, where he continued his preaching appointments, and also
taking part in many meetings in the district, he thus spent his time
very profitably. After reading and studying in the house for a
time, by way of relaxation, he would take his axe and cut up the
branches of old and decayed trees which had succumbed to the winter's
blast. This, by the way, had always been his favourite hobby.
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