The English improver improved, or, The svrvey of hvsbandry svrveyed discovering the improueableness of all lands some to be under a double and treble, others under a five or six fould, and many under a tenn fould, yea, some under a twenty fould improvement / by Walter Blith ... ; all clearely demonstrated from principles of reason, ingenuity, and late but most real experiences and held forth at an inconsiderable charge to the profits accrewing thereby, under six peeces of improvement ...

CHAP. I.

Treateth of the Excellency, Necessity, and Vse∣fulness of Improvement, and good Husbandry.

WHich appeareth partly by the Antiquity of it;* 1.1 for every thing is the more excellent, the more ancient, and nearer it comes to God, the first being of all things, which as all things nearest the Center move more strongly, so all Excel∣lency appeares most evidently, the nearer (if I may speak with reverence) to that great Majesty, the great Husbandman, God himself. First in his making the world, hee made all Creatures, and all Plants, Fruits, Trees, Herbs, and all bea∣ring Seed, for the food of Man and Beast; He also made those more excellent and glorious Creatures, as the Light, the Day, and Night, the Firmament, the Earth, and Seas, the Sun, Moon, and Starrs, all to be serviceable, and ministers unto the Creatures relief, and all the Creatures subservient to Man, and Man to Husbandize the fruits of the Earth, and dress, and keep them for the use of the whole Creation.

So God was the Originall, and first Husbandman, the pa∣tern of all Husbandry, and first projector of that great de∣sign, to bring that old Masse and Chaos of confusion unto so vast an Improvement, as all the world admires and sub∣sists from. And having given man such a Patern both for

precept and president for his incouragement, he makes him Lord of all untill the fall; And after that God intending the preservation of what he made, notwithstanding the great curse upon Adam, Eve, and Serpent, the Earth not going free, but a curse of Barrennesse cast upon it also, yet Adam is sent forth to till the Earth, and improve it, In the sweat of his face he must eat bread until be return to the Earth again.

And so down to Cain and Abel,* 1.2 the one Husbanding the Earth for Tillage, and the other the Sheep in Pasturing, and Grazing;* 1.3 and so down to Noah, he began to be an Hus∣bandman; and to Abrabhm, and to Iacob and Esan, and so a∣long still till they came to the Goverment by Kings, where Vzziah his commendation was beloved husbandry,* 1.4 and ma∣ny excellent things, as if Husbandry were the most excel∣lent, as indeed it is here on Earth; else ask Solomon the wisest, the second Husbandman or Improver of the world, and you shall find, how out of the depth of his experience, he cryes up diligence and activity in good Husbandry, there∣fore sendeth us to the Pismire, cryeth down the Sluggard, and Sloathfull, on whom commeth poverty as an armed man,* 1.5 and extolls the diligent as fittest to converse with Kings,* 1.6 whose very thoughts bring aboundance,* 1.7 even of the diligent, whose hand and heart are best to bear rule,* 1.8 when the idle shall be under Tribute. But to multiply more Scripture,* 1.9 where all experience holds it so clear, is but to prove a principle un∣gain-said; I'll say no more. But for the usefulnesse of it, it's no lesse than the maintenance of our Lives, Estates, this Com∣mon-wealth, and world, and the Improvement, or Advance∣ment of the fruits and profits of the Earth by Ingenuity, is little less than an addition of a new world; for what is gained hereby either above the naturall fruitfulnesse of the Earth, or else by reducement of that which is destroyed, or impoverished from his naturall fruitfulness, to greater fertil∣lity, is a clear augmentation or Addition to the Common-wealth.

All other callings proceeding hence, the Earth being the very womb that beares all, and the Mother that must nou∣rish and maintain all. The Merchant is a gallant servant

to the State, he fetches it from farre, and tis a gallant In∣richment to this Nation; but he purchaseth it from others, who could make good profit of it, if he buy it not, raiseth it not out of nothing, but parts with good Silver, or Gold, or some good commodity for it, and is a great Common-Wealths advantage.

But this Merchant of Husbandry, he raiseth it out of the Earth, which otherwise would yeeld little, unless this inge∣nuity fetch it out, possibly never discovered to be there. And what parts he with? or at what rates purchaseth he it at? E∣ven onely with the wages of the labouring man, whom he is bound both by the Law of God, Nature, and the Land, to maintain, who may be were he not maintained in work would cost as much to be maintained idly. Oh! the Excel∣lency, Antiquity, and Usefulness, of it. Improve the first and chiefest of thy Spirits on God in omnifying him above all, and in all, and the rest of thy wits and strength to serve thy station herein, accompting it the second thing necessary, a blessing being upon the head of him that tilleth Corn,* 1.10 and the thoughts of the diligent bring abundance.* 1.11 And so I proceed to the occasions of the Earths Barrennesse, being the first Ge∣nerall of my discourse.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Excellency, Necessity, Antiquity.
• * 1.2

  Gen. 4. 2.
• * 1.3

  Gen 9. 16.
• * 1.4

  •• Chr. 26. 11.
• * 1.5

  Prov. 6. 6.
• * 1.6

  Prov. 15. 19.
• * 1.7

  Prov. 20. 30.
• * 1.8

  Prov. 22. 21.
• * 1.9

  Prov. 12. 20.
• * 1.10

  Prov. 11. 26
• * 1.11

  Prov. 21. 5