424 



who formerly had been a planter, but lately 

 a farmer, had no land left that would bring 

 a crop of tobacco, except the appropriating 

 some of the wood land ; and that is wanted 

 for fire: four hundred people want a deal of 

 wood for fire. And there is another incon- 

 venience which arises while the planter is 

 running over the fresh land, and raising 

 tobacco, and what is termed destroying his 

 estates, as the tobacco takes all the manure 

 he can procure : and, on such poor lands as 

 those of America, the manure is soon ex- 

 hausted, and the tobacco brings nothing to 

 the dung-hill, but resembles the boy in the 

 fable killing his goose that laid golden eggs. 

 And although manure will raise a plenti- 

 ful crop of tobacco for one year, in those 

 hot climates it has a very short duration. 

 Therefore the corn and grain crops are 

 light, and make little addition to the dung- 

 hill ; and the land becomes so poor, that the 

 crops do little more than supply "food for 

 the negroes, and dung for the garden. It 

 is well known that General Washington did 



