FOR PROMOTING AGRICULTURE. 71 



hurried, and that shortness of time was no object in com- 

 parison with good work. In the earliest ploughing match- 

 es time had been an important element in the decision. 



A departure from this standard was announced in the 

 programme for the show of 1825, and now, in 1830, the 

 new standard appears to have been rigidly insisted upon. 

 This change of standard is doubtless traceable to the 

 performance of a team and ploughman in the ploughing 

 match of the year 1819. The plough was entered for 

 the competition by Josiah Quincy, and no doubt the 

 ploughman followed his instructions. On that occasion 

 the single-yoke and double-yoke teams competed together. 

 Mr. Quincy's team was a single yoke. There were six 

 teams. The three double-yoke teams did the work in 38, 

 42 and 43 minutes, respectively. The two single-yoke 

 teams did it in 55 and 55 minutes, respectively. Mr. 

 Quincy's team did it in 1 hour and 49 minutes. All the 

 lots were, of course, of the same size. Doubtless the com- 

 mittee found their pre-conceptions to be rather shaken 

 up ; but after due cogitation and looking over the ground, 

 they made up their report to read : " In considering the 

 performance of Mr. Quincy's plough, your committee were 

 constrained, in some measure, by their construction of the 

 terms on which the premiums were offered (viz., " the 

 best work with the least expense of labor, 7 ') to place time 

 against good work, as the work of this plough was un- 

 questionably the best in the field, and the team under 

 exemplary discipline." Accordingly, Mr. Quincy, not- 

 withstanding the lateness of his team in arriving at the 

 end of the last furrow, was awarded the third premium. 

 It may be remarked, with a view to add desirable definite- 

 ness to this record, that from the beginning, the plough- 

 ing matches took place on some field a short distance 

 away from what may be called the show grounds. Prior 

 to the building of the Boston and Worcester railroad, a 

 field near Market street, now crossed by the railroad, was 

 used} and on some later occasions the ten acre lot opposite 

 to the Bull's Head tavern. 



