56 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



owner may possess a natural aptitude for the proper care and 

 treatment of cattle — ^lie may liave a peculiar gift in the discrimi- 

 nation of those points which go to make up excellence, so that 

 by judicious crosses, his cattle may be constantly improving for 

 the yoke, for the dair}', or for beef Let him also, follow the 

 indications of nature, and thrift shall follow him. 



Supply of breadstuff's. 



In regard to the supply of breadstuff's grown in the State, 

 some towns report a small surplus ; some say, '-about enough," 

 or "enough of all except wheat," but the majority reply that a 

 sufficiency is not grown for home consumption. The deficiency, 

 however, seems to be mainly confined to the article of wheat. 

 The culture of wheat seems to have received widely varying 

 degrees of attention at diff"erent periods. Tiic law granting a 

 bounty on its production seems to have given a strong impulse 

 to its culture, which, however, was not permanent. The census 

 returns of 1840 state the crop that year at 848,1G6 bushels, 

 while that of 1850 is placed at only 296,259, which kittci". 

 though not a fjfivorable year, is probably an undcr-statement, 

 although we find by the same returns that the amount grown in 

 all the New England States was greatly diminished, the crop in 

 Massachusetts in 1850 being only about one-fifth of that of 1840. 



The obstacles to be encountered in its growtli here, are prob- 

 ably not materially diff"erent in kind or degree, from what is ex- 

 perienced in the other New England States. Some portions of 

 our soil seem to be as well adapted to this crop as any else- 

 where ; particularly is this true of what is known as the Aroos- 

 took country. In a report by Dr. E. PIolmes, of an agricultural 

 survey of this territory, made in 1838, under the direction of 

 the Board of Internal Improvements, he says, " Tlie staple crop 

 of the Aroostook farms is, and must ever be, wheat. For this 

 the climate and most of the soil is exceedingly favorable." "L 

 regret that I am not able to give more accurate statistical infor- 

 mation upon this and the other crops, such as the exact amount 

 of increase per bushel sown, ftxact amount of crop to the acre, 

 expense per acre of cultivating, &c. The great want of exact- 

 jiess in their operations, of which farmers almost everywhere 



