184 History of Hingham. 



very little. About this time coarse ground bone was introduced 

 and carefully tried, to test its value ; for rye it was found to be 

 better than barn manure. But commercial fertilizers were used 

 very sparingly by the farmers of this town until within a period 

 of twenty years. To-day they are very generally used by both 

 the large and small gardeners. 



The old method of cultivation was quite different from the 

 present. Formerly the horse plough and hand hoe were the only 

 implements used for cultivating hoed crops : but now the har- 

 row and cultivator, with the aid of the horse, are made to do 

 nearly all of the work of cultivating most of the annual crops. 

 The old method of hilling up corn and potatoes has been almost 

 entirely abandoned and level culture adopted ; and the more in- 

 telligent cultivators stir the surface of the soil often to keep it 

 not only free from weeds, but loose and light, especially in dry 

 weather, as it is found that if an inch of the surface be kept loose 

 and line it will prevent the crop on most soils from suffering from 

 drought. 



THE PRICE OF PRODUCE. 



It is very difficult to ascertain the real cash value of farm pro- 

 duce during the first century after the town was settled. There 

 was so little money in circulation that one article was exchanged 

 for another ; and it is not much more than a century ago that if 

 the farmer wanted a box or a bucket, he paid for the box or 

 bucket by filling it with corn, that being considered a fair price 

 for it. Whatever the farmer wanted at the country store was 

 paid for in corn, wheat, butter, eggs, etc. 



In the year 1688 the State Treasurer issued to the constables 

 of this town a warrant for the collection of taxes, which he stated 

 could be paid in current money, or grain at the following prices : 

 wheat, two shillings ninepence per bushel ; rye, two shillings ; 

 oats, tenpence ; malt and barley, two shillings sixpence; Indian 

 corn, fourteenpence per bushel. 



These prices may be considered as a fair cash value of these 

 products at that time. 



THE PRICE OF LAND. 



The prices of land have varied so much in different parts of 

 the town, and at different periods, that it is difficult, if not impos- 

 sible, to make any brief statement that will give a clear under- 

 standing of the subject ; but from careful reading of the old wills 

 and deeds, it is evident that farm lands were not very valuable 

 until after the close of the second war with England. 



From 1815 to 1825 there was a constantly increasing demand 

 for tillage land, and also wood land. This raised the price to 

 such a point that in some instances common tillage land was sold 



