Penjylvania, Germantown. 185 



and the firft time got a plentiful crop. But 

 the fame land being tilled for feveral years 

 fucceffively, without being manured, it at laft 

 muft of courfe lofe its fertility. Its pofleflbr 

 therefore leaves it fallow, and proceeds to 

 another part of his ground, which he treats 

 in the fame manner. Thus he goes on till 

 he has changed a great part of his pofleflions 

 into corn-fields, and by that means depri- 

 ves the ground of its fertility. He then 

 returns to the firft field, which now is pret- 

 ty well recovered; this he again tills as 

 long as it will afford him a good crop, but 

 when its fertility is exhaufted, he leaves it 

 fallow again, and proceeds to the reft as 

 before. 



It being cuftomary here, to let the cat- 

 tle go about the fields and in the woods 

 both day and night, the people cannot col- 

 lect much dung for manure. But by leaving 

 the land fallow for feveral years together, a 

 great quantity of weeds fpring up in it, and 

 get fuch ftrength, that it requires a confi- 

 derable time to extirpate them. From 

 hence it likewife comes, that the corn is 

 always fo much mixed with weeds. The 

 great richnefs of the foil, which the firft 

 European colonifts found here, and which 

 had never been ploughed before, has given 

 rife to this neglect of agriculture, which is 



ftill 



