FARMERS' REGISTER. 



[No. 1 



" tons of mixed hay, worth S§ 12, 39 50 I 



"1836. Clover anil herds' grass, 3| (oris j 



" S15 per ton, 52 50 j 



2d crop ploughed under, preparatory 

 for corn. I 



" 1837. Planted latter part of April 

 with Badeii's twin corn, 4 feet 2 in- 

 ches each way; put a good handful of 

 ashes, iitne, and plaster of Paris com- 

 bined, in each hill; product over ten 

 barrels; say 10 at 83 50 per barrel, 35 00 



P. S. Can you not persuade Professor Rogers 

 to take a look at this out-of-the-way corner of the 

 slate? We have many sorts oi" stones about here, 

 (between the great and little falls of the Potomac,) 

 and some say gold, some say lead, some coal, 

 some copper, some have tbund limestone, &c. &c. 

 Sac: but I say we abound in worn-out lands and 

 bad farmers, who require the word of such a nr.an 

 as the professor, to make them set a proper value 

 on their possessions, and the means within their 

 reach of improvinir their lands. 



T. A. C. J. 



S394 27 



The above land received from two to three 

 bushels of ffypsum, annually put on at various pe- 

 riods, hut never failing to follow the sci,the with 

 a good dressing (f plaster. Ground plaster costs 

 from .^7 to $9 per ton in Geortreio^vrn. Fr-sh 

 lime, at kilns in Georgetown, in 1834, cost 15 cents 

 per bushel; now, 12.^- by the quantity. From 

 these data, let the skeptic make any deductions he 

 may thiidc proper for expense of cultivation, at the 

 highest wages for man and beast, and add interest 

 on all cost and cliarcjes, and still there must remain a 

 clear profit but little short of $50 per annum, from 

 rather less than one acre of ground, which, pre- 

 vious to manuring in 1831, was utterly worthless, 

 but is now considered rich. It has on it 30 flourish- 

 ing young apple trees just getting into beariuir, 

 and promises a good crop of wheat seeded the last 

 of October. 



N. B. The labor I employ is slave labor. The 

 putrescent manures are of course produced on the 

 premises; and, with the exception of wheat and 

 turnips, the above prices are couimanded for dro- 

 vers, and a relay of stage and other travelling hor- 

 ses which traverse the turnpike, and I get the 

 manure gratis, besides a good rent for an* 



establishment which cost me about $800. 



My location is just eight miles fiom George- 

 town market-house; of course, I have a choice of 

 the three markets of the District of Columbia, to 

 sell or buy at, where every article which the carlh 

 produces, which enters into the use of man, com- 

 mands, at all times, ready sale. Yet, I must tell 

 you. that lands almost adjoininir me, which pay a 

 good interest on their esiiiualed value, by sale of 

 wild berries, &c. from the uncultivated fields, or 

 from the product of dairies, wliere the cows de- 

 pend upon the woods and the commons for a sup- 

 port three-fourths of the year, are rapidly depopu- 

 iatinij, and runnmginto barren waste, by reason of 

 the mania, I must call it, which impels so many 

 persons to abandon the homes of tbeir fathers, and 

 the enjoyment of health, comparative ease, and 

 comfort, to seek their fortunes in the bogs and 

 cane-brakes of the south and south-west. 



When I sat down to write, I had not the least 

 intention of thus persecuting you with a lengthy 

 epistle, but the spirit seemed to move me, and I 

 thouirht it best to ffive it vent; and if you cannot 

 decypher this scrawl, you will not lose much by 

 it. but perhaps save me some mortification here- 

 after. . 



With grateful return for what you have done, 

 and are still doing, lor the agricultural interest of 

 the dear "old dominion," 1 subscribe myself your 

 friend and Bervanf, 



Tiios. Ap. C. JoNisa. 



'Illegible.— Ep. 



LIMING ON THE PASTERN SHORE OF MARY- 

 LAND. 



To the Editor of the Farmers' Register. 



Chestertown, Md., Feb. lllh, 1838. 



It gives me great pleasure to have it in my pow- 

 er to say, that there is a great spirit of improve- 

 mpnt amongst the farmers with us. In many pla- 

 ces, you will see fine fields of clover, where, a few 

 veai's ago, nothinsr but poverty grass was to be 

 seen; and in almost every direction, now. the far- 

 mers appear to be turning their attention to the 

 improvenient of their land; and if they will only 

 continue it, there is not much doubt but that they 

 will be richly compensated for their trouble; for 

 our lands are very susceptible of improvement, 

 and with projier management, may be made to 

 produce with any lands in the state. Within a 

 lew days past, there has been an agricultural so- 

 ciety fiirmed here; and if it can l)e conducted in the 

 manner tliat we now have it in contemplation, I 

 have no doubt hut that it will be productive of 

 much good to the farming interest. 



I received a circular from you some time ago, 

 but as it has only been within the last year or two 

 past, that any shell marl, or green sand, has been 

 carried out on our lands, I have been unable to get 

 hold of any inflirmation which would enable me to 

 give you any satisfi^ctory answer to the queries it 

 contained. , As soon as there has been sufficient 

 tit'ne to test the value of them, I will let you hear 

 from me. 



For several years past, many of the farmers of 

 this county have been using the shell lime with 

 great success. It has been used in various (]uan- 

 tities, from 100 to, upwards of 200 bushels per acre. 

 The quantity depends upon the condition that the 

 land was in. Where ii was thin, it has been deem- 

 ed advisable to give it a light dressing at first. 

 There is a great difierence of opinion with regard 

 to the manner in which lime should be applied; 

 some contending that it is better to spread it in the 

 (k'l, on the land that is to go in corn the follow- 

 ing spring; others, that it is better to apply it in the 

 spring, after the ground had been broken up. For 

 many years past, I have been using the shell lime 

 with great effect, and have generally applied it in 

 the spring, after the ground has been ploughed 

 and the corn planted. I have been in the habit of 

 carrying nut, in the spring, the manure that was 

 made in the farm-yard tlirough the winter, and af- 

 ter having it put in the fiirrow, and the ground 

 listed and ploughed out, I have hail a shovel fLill 

 , of lime spread over tlic nugc jioiu corn-hill to corn- 



