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who have spoken to me of the increase of the products of their 

 farms, and especially of their hay-crops within a few years. 



Jacob Pierce, of Woburn says, ten years ago he cut not more 

 than five tons of hay upon his farm. Now his crop is from 35 

 to 40 tons. Asa Locke, of the same town, says that thirty 

 years ago his farm did not yield four tons of hay ; now it pro- 

 duces forty tons. Francis Richardson, of Billerica, bought his 

 farm in 1S16. The yield was at that time two tons of hay. 

 He now cuts forty tons. Pursuing the business of a butcher 

 aid soap boiler, he has peculiar advantages, which are not 

 available to all, and shows that he understands the proper use 

 of them. 



19. Benjamin P. Hutchings in Carlisle, has made very great 

 improvements with very limited means. Twenty-two years ago 

 he did not obtain a single ton of English hay from his farm. 

 Now his crops are large, having sold the last year, besides re- 

 taining enough for his stock, standing grass to the amount of 

 sixty dollars, and liay in the market to the amount of two 

 hundred dollars. 



This farmer has used largely of the cotton waste and seed 

 obtained at Lowell, of which I have before spoken. He spread 

 it upon dry and gravelly grass land with great advantage ; the 

 grass was one third larger than that part of the field which 

 was manured with barn manure. The same substance, when 

 well rotted, produced on low lands excellent rye and pota- 

 toes. Its application to corn on low land was beneficial, on 

 high or dry land it was not so useful. This cotton waste costs 

 at Lowell 50 to 75 cents per load ; it is as heavy as barn man- 

 ure ; and should be well rotted and mixed with mould or com- 

 post before being used. 



20. Zaccheus Read, of Westford, whose farming is highly 

 creditable to him, has an example of irrigation on a small scale. 

 He conducts a small stream into a field on a side hill and by 

 carrying it in a zig-zag direction by channels or furrows on the 

 side hill is able to flash the water over the whole field. This 

 has been attended with great advantage. The experiment is on 



