THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



423 



a much more pleasant and rapid conveyance. 

 Even to my transient and hasty, as well as first 

 view of Ihis line of travel, there was much to 

 yield interest and information on the general agri- 

 culture of the country ; but I must confine my re- 

 marks to the use of green-sand earth, and matters 

 connected either nearly or remotely with that 

 mode ol improvement. 



Except where varied by the meadows and pas- 

 tures near Philadelphia and the Delaware, re- 

 claimed from the tide, (and mostly appearing to 

 be very imperlijctly reclaimed,) the road passed, 

 for more than twenty miles, as far as Gloucester 

 county reached, through very sandy lands, show- 

 ing, however, considerable ditierences of quality 

 and variety of surface. The level white sandy lands, 

 from Camden to the beginning of the green-sand 

 region, in any other locality would be deemed 

 almost worthless. But being supplied almost an- 

 naally with putrescent manures from Philadelphia, 

 and cultivated in crops of garden vegetables lor 

 that market, these deep sands are kepi both pro- 

 ductive and profiiable. If limed throughout, and 

 then dressed with the green sund of the neigh- 

 boring region, no doubt the putrescent manures 

 would last much longer, and the lands be liir more 

 productive. The non-use of the green-sand 

 earih, where other manures are used in such great 

 quantities and at great expense, would see'm to 

 indicate the opinion of the ui)fiiness of this soil to 

 be benefited by this earth. The peculiar face of 

 the country and soil about Woodbury, with the 

 alternations of sandy knolls or low ridges, and 

 shallow basins or hollows of wet, oozy land, 

 were described in the lorraor part of these renarks. I 

 This kind of land did not extend many miles I 

 south of Woodbury, and the wet basins disap- ' 

 peared, and all the soil was dry and sandy, and 

 becoming more undulating m ^gurlace. Still, 

 though much of very poor land was seen here and 

 elsewhere, no where m New Jersey did I have an 

 opportunity of seeing the poorest grade, so cele- 

 brated as "barren sands of Jersey;" nor even 

 any naturally pine-bearing lands. About Swedes- 

 borough, the sandy lands approached to a reddish 

 hue, and are of much better quality, and said to 

 be much more retentive of putrescent manures. 

 Approaching still nearer to Woodstown, and in- 

 deed generally throughout Salem county, the soil 

 is seldom too sandy, but varies from medium loam 

 to clay loam. Throughout the route from Wood- 

 bury to Oldmai.'s creek, (the dividing line of the 

 two counties,) here and there, though but sparsely, 

 were seen improvements made by the green-sand 

 earth, and which were especially evidenced by 

 good clover standing on soil that seemed too 

 sandy to bear it at all, even if aided by all that lime 

 and putrescent manures alone can do for such land. 

 But it was not until I reached the neighborhood 

 of Woodstown that these valuable imp'roveraents 

 o{ land became general. 



Here again I had occasion to congratulate my- 

 self as to the hands into which J fell. My first 

 used direction led me to David IVl. Davis, a resi- 

 dent of the village, and his kind attentions and 

 hospitality left me nothing lo desire, either as to 

 the means for obtaining the best information, or 

 \°S ^"y °^'i6'" accommodation and comfort that 

 his house and other means so abundantly afforded. 

 In addition to all that he could tell and show me 

 ol his own operations, he carried me to as many 



of the most interesting points for observation as 

 could be visited during my short stay, and enabled 

 me to see and to inquire of many of the fiirmera 

 most experienced in the use of green-sand earth. 

 He had not been a farmer more than a i'aw 

 years, and for the last seven has rented out his 

 principal landed property, and is engaged person- 

 ally in mercantile business. Such changes in 

 lower Virginia, or in any way placing farms"in the 

 hands of tenants, would be certainly ruinous to 

 the land, and greatly injurious to the iifteresis of 

 the owner. But not so tiere. Self-interest directs 

 to tenants a different course. And in this case 

 the improvements which had been commenced 

 and well prosecuted by the proprietor in person, 

 have been since well carried on, and nearly to 

 completion, by his tenants. Though fiiw per^-ons 

 have done better in improving land and crops and 

 income, by using this manure, and few probably 

 could have given me more full or correct inftjrma- 

 tion on this branch of agriculiural practice, still 

 Mr. Davis modestly disclaimed all pretension to 

 the qualifications and meiit of a good larmer, or 

 one having general aariculiural knowledge, and 

 desired that disclaimer to be made lo bear on all the 

 opinions that he might state in answer to my in- 

 quiries. 



Our first visit was to the diggings in Woods- 

 town. These, though forming several properties, 

 may be considered as a sinyle locality, all being 

 close together, and the diffijrence of distance being 

 no object 10 the purchaser. I found a wagon and 

 team of six fine mules just leaving the diggings, 

 with a load of 40 bushels of the earth.^"^ The 

 driver informed me that the farm to which he was 

 reaularlycarryingiheearthwasdisiantseven miles, 

 and that he made three loads in two days. The 

 liirmer by whom he was employed had several 

 other smaller teams also at work, and for a long 

 time before, drawing the earth to his different 

 farms; but wishing to get on faster, he had 

 lately added this wagon and team to the hauliu» 

 force. ° 



These Woodstown diggings extend over three 

 or four acres, all of which space has been exca- 

 vated, and the green-sand earth removed. There 

 was no digging then going on there, but plentiful 

 signs of the extent of recent work in many large 

 heaps, or mounds of conical shape, formed of 

 the excavated earth, standing to dry somewhat, 

 or wait until their different owners, who had 

 either dug them or bought them of the laborers, 

 should find it convenient to haul the earth to 

 I heir farms. This green-sand earth was the first 

 used in this neighborhood, and is the most highly 

 esteemed ; though it may well be doubted whe- 

 ther that opinion is not erroneous, and founded 

 merely on the effects being longer and more gene- 

 rally known. 



At Jonathan Cavvley's diggings, near a mile dis- 

 tant from the last, laborers were then excavating. 

 With a view of presenting actual and precise 

 facts, rather than conjecture or general state- 

 tnents, I asked him to inform me how many 

 farmers were then drawing earth fi-om his dig- 

 gings, and the distances to their several farm's. 

 This he did at leisure, and alterwards sent me 

 a memorandum of the following statement : 

 4 teams were hauling green-sand earth to distan- 

 ces from - - - - 12 to 13 miles 

 6 Irotn 6 lo 8 miles 



