h 7. 



Agricultural Letter from Gen. Washington. 



203 



irm. In the latter case, the cutting of that 

 -hich ripens first, and so on, must be ac- 

 amplished by the force of all the farms, in- 

 ;ead of each doing its own work. If the 

 ?ed on one farm was to be sown on another, 

 specially if seed which grew on a light soil, 

 'as to be sown on a stiff one; and that 

 r hich grew on a stiff one, sown on light 

 round, advantages would unquestionably 

 jsult from it. 



11th. The potatoes at the mansion house 

 lust be worked by the ploughs from Union 

 irm, and when this is required, it would be 

 est, I conceive, to accomplish the work in 

 day. 



12th. It is expected that the fences will be 

 lade secure, and no damage permitted with- 

 l them by creatures of any kind, or belong- 

 lg to any body — mine any more than others. 



13th. The greatest attention is to be paid 

 ) the stocks of all kinds on the farms ; and 

 re most that can be made of their manure 

 nd litter. They are to be counted regu- 

 irly, that no false reports may be made; 

 nd missing ones, if any, hunted for until 

 >und, or the manner of their going can be 

 ccounted for satisfactorily. 



14th. A weekly report, as usual, is to be 

 anded to Mr. Lewis. In this report, that I 

 lay know better how the work goes on, 

 lention when you begin to plough, hoe, or 

 therwise work in a field, and, when that 

 eld is finished. The increase, decrease and 

 hanges are to be noted as heretofore — and 

 3t me ask — 



15th. Why are the corn harrows thrown 

 side, or so little used, that I rarely, of late, 

 ver see or hear of their being at work] I 

 ave been run to very considerable expense 

 i providing these and other implements for 

 ly farms; and to my great mortification and 

 ijury, find, generally speaking, that where- 

 ver they were last used, there they remain, 

 i* not stolen, till required again; by which 

 leans, they, as well as the carts, receive so 

 luch injury from the wet weather and the 

 eat of the sun, as to be unfit for use: to re- 

 air or supply the place of which with new 

 nes, my carpenters, who ought to be other- 

 wise employed, are continually occupied in 

 hese jobs. Harrows, after the ground is 

 well broken, would certainly weed and keep 

 he corn clean, with more ease than ploughs. 



hope, therefore, they will be used. And 

 t is my express order that the greatest care 

 »e taken of the tools of every kind, carts 

 ,nd plantation implements, in future — for I 

 :an no longer submit to the losses I am con- 

 inually sustaining by neglect. 



16th. There is nothing I more ardently 

 lesire, nor indeed is there any more essen 

 lial to my permanent interest, than raising 



of live fences on proper ditches or banks; 

 yet nothing has ever been, in a general way, 

 more shamefully neglected or mismanaged ; 

 for, instead of preparing the ground properly 

 for the reception of the seed, and weeding 

 and keeping the plants clean after they 

 come up, the seeds are hardly scratched 

 into the ground, and are suffered to be smo- 

 thered by the weeds and grass, if they do 

 come up: by which means, the expense I 

 have been at in purchasing and sending the 

 seeds, generally from Philadelphia, together 

 with the labour, such as it is, that has been 

 incurred, is not only lost, but — and which is 

 of infinitely more importance to me — season 

 after season passes away, and I am as far 

 from the accomplishment of my object as 

 ever. I mention the matter thus fully, to 

 show how anxious I am, that all these seeds 

 which have been sown or planted, on the 

 banks of the ditches, should be properly at- 

 tended to; and the deficient spots made good 

 if you have, or can obtain the means for 

 doing it. 



17th. There is one thing I must caution 

 you against, without knowing whether there 

 be cause to charge you with it or not, — and 

 that is, not to retain any of my negroes, who 

 are able and fit to work in the crop, in or 

 about your own house, for your own pur- 

 poses. This I do not allow any overseer to 

 do. A small boy, or girl, for the purpose of 

 fetching wood or water, tending a child, or 

 such like things, I do not object to; but 

 so soon as they are able to work out, I ex- 

 pect to reap the benefit of their labour my- 

 self. 



18th. Though last mentioned, it is not of 

 the least importance, because the peace and 

 good government of the negroes depend upon 

 it — and not less so my interest and your own 

 reputation. I do, therefore, in explicit terms 

 enjoin it upon you, to remain constantly at 

 home, unless called off by unavoidable busi- 

 ness, or to attend Divine worship; and to be 

 constantly with your people when there. 

 There is no other sure way of getting work 

 well done and quietly, by negroes; for when 

 an overlooker's back is turned, the most of 

 them will slight their work, or be idle alto- 

 gether. In which case, correction cannot 

 retrieve either, but often produces evils 

 which are worse than the disease. Nor is 

 there any other mode but this, to prevent 

 thieving and other disorders, the conse- 

 quence of opportunities. You will recollect 

 that your time is paid for by me, and if I am 

 deprived of it, it is worse even than robbing 

 my purse, because it is also a breach of trust, 

 which every honest man ought to hold most 

 sacred. You have found me, and you will 

 continue to find me faithful to my part of 



