262 AGRICULTURAL REPORT. > 
About thirty years ago Mr. W. H. Gage purchased the Colonel Chandler farm, situated 
in the southern part of Boscawen. The farm contained about 400 acres, 100 acres of 
which were tillable interval, and about 40 of low interval, which yielded fair crops of 
hay of various qualities, from good to very poor. The remainder of the land was forest 
and pasture. He gave $6,000 for the farm, one-third cash, about all the available funds 
he possessed. The farm had been rented for a number of years, and was badly ran 
down. The course of farming he has pursued for a number of years has been to feed 
the Lay and grain raised upon the farm to his cattle, sheep, and swine. ‘The rearing of 
fine stock has been a specialty with him, especially oxen. For the past twenty-five 
years he has received more prewiums for oxen, at our State and connty fairs, than any 
other farmer in the county. In March, 1869, he sold two yoke of oxen for $300. In 
March, 1870, two yoke for $750. It has been a maxim with him to increase the fertility 
of his farm, and consequently his crops. This he has accomplished by selling most 
of the products of his farmin the form of beef, pork, mutton and wool, butter and 
cheese. 
For many years past he has kept 4 to6 hogs. When 18 to 20 months old they have 
averaged, when dressed for market, about 500 pounds each. The clear pork is salted 
and sold during the succeeding summer at the large manufacturing village of Fishers- 
ville, at an average of 22cents per pound. Lard and hams from 20 to 22 cents. ‘There are 
kept about 30 head of cattle, 75 to 100 sheep, and 2 horses.. Corn annually grown from 
6 to 8 acres; yield per acre 55 bushels. Oats follow the corn; yield 60 bushels per 
acre, about one-half of which are sold at an average of 70 cents per bushel. 
The farm is now vained at $40,000, and other assets would bring his property well 
up to $50,000—the accumulations of a little over thirty years, 
The third and last farm I shall refer to is that now owned by Joseph B. Walker, 
Concord. This farm has been under cultivation about one hundred and forty years. 
Its original owner was the late Rev. Timothy Walker, the first settler and only min- 
ister of that town for fifty-two years. The farm came into the possession of his son, 
the late Judge Timothy Walker. Upon his death it became the property of his son, 
the late Captain Joseph Walker, whose son, Joseph B. Walker, the present owner of 
the farm, inherited it when only ten years eld, he being the only surviving member of 
the family. His guardian rented out the farm, which was thus managed for twenty 
years. In the mean time Joseph b. graduated at Yale College, studied law, and opened 
an oftice in Concord. Fle undertook to carry on the farm and his law business at the 
saine time. After two years’ trial of farming aud law, he found ono or the other must 
be given up. He had the good sense to quit law and become a farmer. 
During the twenty years the farm had been leased, the buildings and fences were 
sadly out of repair, larze portions of the fields were overrun with bushes, and there 
was a large decrease of hay and other crops during the period. 
The farm consisted of about 350 acres, 100 of which were Merrimack River interval, a 
large portion ef which could be plowed, and with manuring would yield fair crops of 
corn and grain. About 30 acres were either covered by the waters of Horseshee Pond, or 
were too wet for the production of hay. To drain the poud as far as practicable, he, four- 
teen years age, cut a large and deep ditch from the east end of the pond across the 
interval, nearly half a mile, tothe river. The interval is bounded on the north by the 
Merrimack River. The surface of the land on the river bank is about 14 feet above 
the usual summer low-water mark. From the river the land gradually slopes south- 
ward to Horseshoe Pond. Forty-five rods south of the river Mr. Walker commenced 
excavating the soil, for the purpose of putting in a plank drain from that point to the 
river. The south end of the ditch was 8 feet deep, but, as the ground rose gradually, 
before the bank of the Merrimack was reached it was 14 feet deep. Sound white-pine 
plank were used for making a box or pipe—inside 8 by 12 inches, 96 square inches— 
for the passage of the water from the open ditch to theriver. This box drain has done 
so well during the fourteen years it has been in operation that 45 rods more of similar 
drain have been put down during the past autuin, permitting the filling up of that 
length of open drain. From the covered drain to the pond the bottom of the open 
drain is boarded, the ditch being about 3 feet wide at the bottom. Before the floor 
was put in, rushes and aquatic grasses obstructed the flow of water, aud were gradu- 
ally filling the ditch. 
YT have thought it might be of practical wse to be thus particular in describing Mr. 
Walker's process of lowering the water of Horseshoe Pond several feet, thereby 
reclaiming about thirty acres of once almost worthless land, and: bringing it up to an 
average value of $100 per acre. This desirable object has been effected at an expense 
of about $800. During the eighteen years he has carried on the farm, the crops of hay 
and grain have been more than doubled. 
His annual clip of hay is about 120 tons, of which 70 to 80 tons ave sold, varying 
in price, in different years, from $18 to $30 per ton. 
As hay is his leading crop, grass immediately follows corn, without an intervening 
grain crop. Every autumn he plows about twelve acres of grass land, six acres of 
which are heavily manured and planted with corn; the following spring the other six 
