472 INDIANA HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS 



somewhat hilly, clayey soil and gravelly — rocks, granite, 

 and slate. Timber, oak, chestnut, pine, &c. He says he 

 produces the best peaches in the world. No doubt they 

 are very good, if not superlatively so. The Skuppernong 

 grape is the only one that grows to perfection here, as 

 well as generally throughout the south. 



March 12th. Farmers are now busy planting corn. The 

 usual stand is one stalk in a place, three and a half 

 by four feet apart, or two stalks four by five feet, and 

 the average yield 10 to 15 bushels to the acre. The 

 weather is now as mild and lovely as May or June at New 

 York. 



Cotton, the staple crop here, is planted about the first 

 of April, three by four feet apart, and yields about 600 

 pounds in seed, to the acre, which makes about 200 

 pounds of ginned cotton. 



Greensborough, 20 miles below Madison, is another 

 county town; but it has not that lively appearance, 

 though it contains a good many gentlemen of wealth and 

 intelligence, among which may be ranked Dr. Poullain,^ 

 planter, merchant, and cotton manufacturer, who has 

 lately built a very tasty residence, and is ornamenting 

 and improving his grounds as every gentleman who has 

 the means should do, so as to make home attractive and 

 pleasant to every member of the family, as I believe is 

 the case with him. Senator Dawson,- who is said to be an 

 improving planter, also resides here. One evidence of his 

 disposition to improve, is the fact that he bought two 

 tons of Peruvian guano last spring, to experiment with 

 upon cotton. I very much fear, owing to the drouth the 

 result will be such as to discourage him from continuing 

 its application. But I hope Mr. Dawson is too good a law- 

 yer to give up his case because one witness may fail in 

 giving him the right testimony to sustain it. 



Speaking of lawyers, reminds me that some of the most 

 improving cultivators of the soil, are gentlemen of this 



* Dr. T. N. Poullain of Greene County, Georgia, was a member of 

 the Secession Convention. Knight, op. cit., 2:568. 

 'See Robinson, l:269n. 



