68 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



[Statement of G. L. Flook.] 



The crop of 1875 and 1876 was grass. The nature of the soil 

 was gravelly, low : it was broken up in the spring of 1877, 

 being ploughed to the depth of eight inches. I spread on 

 about ten dollars' worth of Stockbridge manure, and about 

 ten dollars' worth composted of hen manure and barnyard. 

 The cost of planting, harrowing, and ploughing, was seven 

 dollars ; the amount of seed, one peck of eight-rowed yellow 

 corn, worth twenty-five cents : it was culti vated twice, and 

 hoed three times. The cost of cultivation, ten dollars ; and 

 the cost of harvesting, eleven dollars and a quarter. The 

 fodder I estimate as worth twenty dollars. The crop was 

 a hundred and four bushels. 



[Statement of J. J. H. Gregory.] 



Previous to 1875 the land was in grass, and had been for 

 many years. In 1875 it was broken up, being at the time 

 badly run out. The crop of that year was Drumhead cab- 

 bages ; the ground being well manured with glue-waste and 

 leached ashes broadcast, with ground bone and hen-manure 

 in the hills. The crop of 1876 was potatoes, which received a 

 liberal manuring with fish-waste, glue-waste, potash, and su- 

 perphosphate, — the two latter in the drills. It was ploughed, 

 both last fall and spring, about seven inches deep. Previous 

 to the spring ploughing, eight cords — half of barn-manure 

 and half a compost of waste-fish and soil at the rate of one 

 part of fish to three of soil — were spread broadcast. Four 

 hundred and fifty pounds of muriate of potash were harrowed 

 in, and seven hundred and fifty pounds of the pomace of the 

 castor-oil bean were scattered in the drills. The drills were 

 made three feet and a half apart, and the corn dropped a 

 foot between the kernels. 



The entire cost of preparing the ground, and planting, was 

 about twelve dollars. Cost of the manure : barn-manure, 

 thirty-two dollars; fish-waste, fifteen dollars; muriate of 

 potash, twelve dollars ; bean-pomace, seven dollars. The 

 corn was planted May 15 ; but, owing to devastation from 



