So. 8. 



Produce of Five Acres of Land. 



237 



;limate, situation, season, and a variety of 

 )ther circumstances, combine to throw doubts 

 )n results so obtained, however carefully con- 

 lucted. But this should not deter us from 

 jrosecuting the inquiry. On the contrary, 

 t is an additional reason for all, who have it 

 n their power, whether owner or occupier, 

 ;o contribute their share. 



'Assuming then, that the object in view is 

 )f sufficient importance to merit the atten- 

 ion of this Society, and that the few experi- 

 nents which have already been instituted, 

 lold out sufficient encouragement for ex- 

 acting a successful result, I trust I shall 

 leither be considered presumptuous, nor over 

 sanguine in expressing my hope, that the 

 Society will give the subject their best con- 

 sideration, and afford such aid as may seem 

 o them best calculated to secure the co- 

 )peration of practical agriculturists, in in- 

 stituting and reporting the results of expe- 

 riments, carefully made, on a regular and 

 systematic plan. We may not succeed to 

 ;he full extent, but I cannot help thinking 

 ;hat a wide, fertile, and unexplored field in 

 igricultural improvement, lies before us; and 

 ilthough it would be rash to venture an opin- 

 on as to the results, which the combined ef- 

 fect of science and enlightened practice may 

 irrive at, it would be equally rash, and less 

 jolitic, I apprehend, to rest satisfied with 

 )ur present knowledge. Let practical men, 

 ;herefore, establish facts by experiments, 

 carefully made, whether from the sugges- 

 tions of their own minds, or those of others; 

 ind let the duty of tracing these to the prin- 

 ciples of nature, on which they depend, be 

 zealously discharged by men of science ; and 

 perhaps, the progress may be more rapid, 

 ind the success greater, than it would be 

 either wise or prudent to anticipate at pre- 

 sent.' 



statements, I have no doubt of the correctness 

 of the yield as given by him. 



Produce of the Lot. 



From the New England Farmer. 

 Produce of five acres of land. 



To the Editor, — Though there is much 

 of romance in the accounts sometimes pub- 

 lished of large crops, so that a sober-minded 

 man hardly knows how much deduction to 

 make from them in order to believe any 

 part, yet it is also true, that facts in agricul- 

 tural, as well as in other matters, are often 

 stranger than fiction. I send you the follow- 

 ing statement of the produce of a plot of 

 land, measuring five acres and one and one- 

 sixth rods, for the past year, owned and cul- 

 tivated by Mr. Joshua Tappan, in Newbury, 

 Essex county, Massachusetts. I was on the 

 piece in October, and from what I saw of 

 the crops harvested, independent of his own 



Hamilton, Dec. 29th, 1842. 



The prices annexed to the above articles 

 are given by the editor, and not by Mr. 

 Dodge. We have put the sums low, gene- 

 rally, and some of them probably, are less 

 than Mr. Tappan sold the marketable part 

 of his crops for. But every one acquainted 

 with farming, well knows that most crops 

 have a refuse, unsaleable portion. This por- 

 tion is included usually in the gross amount 

 of crop, but cannot be sold for much. For 

 this reason, we must put prices low, or we 

 shall mislead many readers. 



The stover, or corn fodder, is not included 

 in the above : it probably was worth from 12 

 to 15 dollars. 



As the quality of the articles was un- 

 known to us, we probably have hit wide 

 from the true mark in many instances. Four 

 hundred dollars worth of products from five 

 acres of land, when prices are low as at 

 present, is a large amount. — Editor New 

 England Farmer. 



