THE GROWING OF CORN. 109 



Mr. Hapgood. It is a variety I introdncecl m3^self. I 

 am a very modest man, you see. I do not rely upon twin- 

 ears at all. I saw in the " Country Gentleman " a report of 

 a discussion on the corn question in Pennsylvania, and there 

 was one member of the club who exhibited an ear of corn 

 fifteen inches long. It was a wonder to all who saw it, and 

 he was questioned very particularly in regard to the mode 

 of cultivation. If he had told the story without exhibiting 

 the corn, nobody would have believed it, probably ; but there 

 was the corn, and they could measure it. In the course of 

 his remarks, he stated to the audience that he regarded twin- 

 ears as of no account. If he could grow one ear on a stalk, 

 that was sufficient for him, and he sho^ild never be satisfied 

 with his corn-crop until he could grow a bushel of corn on a 

 rod of land. Well, I agree with him, from my experience, 

 that it is possible to grow a bushel of corn on a rod of 'land ; 

 but I do not think it is economy. I think it better to take 

 two acres of land and grow a bushel of corn on every two 

 rods rather than to make the effort to produce it on one rod. 

 My mode of cultivation is very simple. It is not expensive. 

 I have estimated very carefully, and I can raise corn for 

 twenty-six or twenty-eight cents a bushel. 



Mr. Hersey (of Hingham). I have listened to the lec- 

 turer with a great deal of pleasure. I think he has told us 

 man}- things which are of practical importance ; and, as they 

 come from one who has given the subject a good deal of 

 attention, it seems to me that it is important to all those 

 who are present, and, in fact, to the whole State. The corn- 

 crop is one of the most important crops which we grow, and 

 therefore any thing practical in relation to its growth is of 

 importance. 



There was one thing to which he did not allude, which I 

 rose to speak of. I presume he would agree with rae ; but 

 he could not, of course, cover ever}" thing. It is, I think, a 

 well-known fact, that, in this New-England climate, the 

 weather during the months of May and June is rather too 

 cold and wet for the growth of corn ; and therefore whatever 

 we do in the way of cultivation should be done in a direction 

 which will have a tendency to make the ground drier and 

 warmer. I think we should look to that fact, and that we 

 should endeavor to so stir the ground, that it will bring about 



