Mil/, 1842. 



THE FAR M E R ' S MONTHLY VISITOR 



69 



cotton. A very fcilile region is more apt to be 

 run out limn a tiard soil requiring severe labor to 

 obtain the virgin produce. — Ed. F. M. Vis. 



For the Farmer's Monthly Visitor. 

 JMr. Editor: — I noticed in tlie last number of 

 tlie Visitor an enquiry by a correspondent whetb- 

 er slieep were a benefit to the soil. The " lacts" 

 mentioned in hi.s brief communication " which 

 go to establish the affirmative" are worthy of no- 

 ti(;e. My own experience of seven years dura- 

 lioji convinces me that none other of the domes- 

 tic animals are so great an iinj)rover of the soil 

 as a flock of sheep, not too numerous ibr the 

 quantity and quality of the lands that are to sup- 

 port them. They crop the herbage much closer 

 or nearer the surface than cattle; and if the pas- 

 ture is overstocked, the consequence is, (especi- 

 ally in a dry season) the surface and grass roots 

 beroiTie so much exposed to the scorching rays 

 of the sun as to destroy the last and most choice? 

 part of the feed. The land will then become 

 iinf bound, or overrun with irioss and other wild 

 herbage affording but little that is nutricious. 



When the soil is not too hard and flinty to ad- 

 mit the plough there is a remedy, and one or two 

 good crops of grain can be taken oft" and the 

 grazing nnich improved by new seedinjr. But 

 much of our high and mountain lands which are 

 naturally the best grazing for sheep, are too arid 

 and sterile for tillage. 1 think the better way is 

 not to overstock or feed too close ; or stock such 

 pastures with cattle every .second or third year, 

 and they will hold good and rather improve. — 

 Two and a half sheep to the acre are enough in 

 a common season for such pasture.". 



1 feed my intervale mouing lands with sheep 

 generally from September until the grass ceases 

 to be nutricious by the action of ihe frosts and 

 snows, and feel confident that the soil has been 

 improved. As I am obliged to drive my sheep 

 some few miles distant for summer pasture, — I 

 am under the necessity of turning them on to a 

 part of my mowing lands for a few weeks in the 

 spring, until the pastures get started. If a severe 

 drought comes on early in the season it proves 

 injuriou.s, and the quantity of bay is much less: 

 olherwisK I have thought my crops of hay were 

 quite as good if not better for the spring feeding. 

 The grass will not mature so early as that part 

 which was not spring fed, and this I find rather 

 convenient than otherwise, as it will not diminish 

 in quantity nor de[)reeiate in quality before I get 

 through my haying. I would not lie imderstood 

 as recommending spring feeding of mowing 

 hinds when it can be conveniently avoided; nor 

 do 1 write to instruct an^- one : there are hun- 

 dreds of your readers that have more knowledge 

 upon these matters than I can have, yet I am al- 

 ways ready to give my own experience, however 

 liniited it may be, on any subject pertaining to 

 the advancement of agriculture. 



I will now state my reasons briefly, why I have 

 come to the conclusion that .sheep are the best 

 kind of stock to improve the soil. It is now 

 seven years since I became the owner of the 

 fnm from which I am now writing, which to- 

 gether with a lot adjoining of which I then took a 

 lease, gave me sixty-seven acres of intervale to 

 cultivate for hay, grain, &c. I took out that 

 spring 110 common ox-cart loads of manure, 

 which was the product of all the winter feed of 

 the year previous. I stocked altogether with 

 sheep except the necessary team and two cows. 

 Pinco that time I have more than doubled the 

 number of sheep, proporlionably increased tlie 

 quantity of hay and grain, and at this time liavi 

 Just completed the drawing of manure for pres- 

 ent planting, and find that I have put out 257 

 loads in the same cart equally well filled as it 

 was seven years ago, and the product of precise- 

 ly the same land from which the 110 loads was 

 then taken. The query may arise, how many 

 loads of swamp tniick, turf, &.c. were mixed with 

 the barn manure to make tip this quantity. I 

 must say th.at this is a jjrivilege that I very much 

 desire, of which I would gladly avail myself were 

 it in my j.'ower : but unfortunately there are not 

 nn my premises any such advantages. I have 

 annually used about twenty pounds to the acre 

 of gypsiun- broadcast on my grass and spring 

 grain, and a compound of slaked lime, ashes and 

 gypsum on the planted fields, |)Ut into the rows 

 [liter the first hoeing, at the rate of about twelve 

 bushnls to the acre. Thi-' together with the kind 



of stock I have kept to consume the autumn and 

 winter feed has been my chief source of improve- 

 ment, I am satisfied that sheep are the best of 

 all the domestic animals for enricliing the soil ; 

 and my only fears are, that fcr want of a suffici- 

 ent and reasonable protection against foreign 

 competition, the wool grower will be obliged to 

 abandon the business." In conclusion Mr. Editor, 

 permit me to say that I most heartily rejoice to 

 learn the fact that the protection of American 

 ndustry has found an able advocate at the capital 

 of New Hampshire. 



J. W. COLBURN. 

 Springfield, Vt. May 9th, 1843. 



The bloody narratives connected with the early 

 history of the country lose none of their interest 

 as time recedes. Lovewell's fight took place one 

 hundred and seventeen years ago; yet the names 

 of the actors in that event are still familiar to 

 those acquainted with the towns which supplied 

 the little band. The battle was one of the hard- 

 est and longest fought by a few in nHiiiber of 

 any upon record in this country. As the most 

 accurate and intelligible account of this affair, 

 we present the following, extracted from the La- 

 dies' Companion for August 1840. 



The course of the Saco river winding through 

 alluvion brought down in the lapse of time 

 from the White Mountains above, formerly was 

 thirty-six miles within the limits of the present 

 town of Fryeburg. This fine position was a 

 most eligible point for the residence of the Pe- 

 qnawket tribe of Indians — it was a hunting 

 ground such as is seldom found. Although far 

 to the north in a warm, fertile soil, the Indians 

 could here raise corn. Animals of the fur kind — 

 the bear, moose and deer in the mountains, and 

 the beaver, otter, sable, mink, &c. on the numer- 

 :ams — presented fidl and successfiil em- 

 ployment to the hunter. The village or wigwam 

 nn elevated point near the Saco : from 

 this point the savages navigated downwards thir- 

 ty-six miles on the river — at no time more than 

 seven or eight miles from home : and at the ex- 

 treme point were able to return by backing their 

 light birdi-bark canoes and carrying them only 

 the distance of one mile and a half over land ! 



Around Lovewell's pond, at no very great dis- 

 tance, winds the Saco river, embracing the long 

 reach. That reach, by cutting an artificial ca- 

 nal a Cew years ago, was shortened several 

 miles. The change of the course of the river 

 has oi>ened several hundred acres of swamp 

 lands, draining them so as to produce hay spon- 

 taneously. The soil which has been brought 

 down in the lapse of ages from the mountains — 

 the rains and snows, aided by the frost and ex- 

 posure to the atmosphere, coming down in re- 

 ])eated floods, have doubtless lowered the apex 

 of the highest mountain in the long lapse of 

 time many thousand feet: the gorge at the eel 

 brated Notdi of the White Mountains is only the 

 track of one of the branches which all unite in 

 the level that composes the beautrful intervales 

 of Conway, N. H. and Fryeburg, Maine. The 

 material of which this fertile ground is comjios 

 ed certainly all came ont o-f the bosom of th( 

 mountains above, and is standing demonstration 

 that the great strength and richness of the 

 consist in the rocky, precipitous masses which 

 seem to be forbidden ground as the lesidence of 

 man. Of late years, however, mirch new hind 

 besides the rich intervales has been opened on 

 the sides of the mountains up the passes, from 

 whence flow the numerous mountain streams. 

 Rich and productive farms have within the last 

 ten or fil'teen years been added to the towns of 

 Albany, (late Burton) Jackson (late Adams) and 

 Chatham, each of which is situated on a diff^er- 

 eut stream composing one of the branches of the 

 Saco river : the young settlers who pitched upon 

 these lands in the wilderness have in many cases 

 made themselves comfortable and indepenilent. 

 In the town of Jackson, very lately, has been 

 discovered one of the richest mines of Iron ore 

 in America ; and we anticipate less than has 

 been realized at other points, when we predict 

 than twenty years from this time a rail road from 

 the seaboard will transport thousands of tons of 

 this mountain iron to those points where it will 

 be wanted for use. 



But we will no longer detain the reader from 

 the story which will be interesting to many who 

 peruse our Montlilv Yi-^ifri-. 



Lovewell's Fight. 



From the Ladies' Companion 

 BY SEBA SMITH. 

 ■' Old men shall shake their heads and say, 



Sad was the hour and terrible, 

 When Lovewell brave 'gainst Paugus went 

 With fifty men from Dunstable." 



Old Neio England Ballad. 

 Let us turn for a moment from the airy crea- 

 tions of fancy and imagination, which grace so 

 large a portion of these pages, to the contempla- 

 tion of a sober historical incident. I do not be- 

 lieve, Mr. Editor, that your twenty thousand fail- 

 readers, will gri'dgingly descend from the regions 

 of romance and poetry to review with me a stern 

 in real life. The earlier history of our 

 country abounds in incidents of romantic and 

 thrilling interest, which are scarcely surpassed in 

 the brilliant regions of fiction, and which, though 

 floating rn loose and ill-digested masses in pam- 

 phlets, public addresses, and old records, will one 

 day become embodied in a history of uncommon 

 value and unrivalled interest. The long and 

 bloody catalogue of Indian hostilities which have 

 marked every section ot' our territory, from the 

 time the English settlements were commenced at 

 Jamestown and Plymouth down to the present 

 day, presents scenes of heroic daring, toilsome 

 endurance, poignant suffering, and sanguinary 

 conflict, which may challenge the world for par- 

 allels. 



Lovewell's Fight, of which we propose to give 

 irief account at this time, occurred one hun- 

 dred and fifteen years ago ; May 8, old style, 

 172.5. The scene of the action was in the pres- 

 ent town of Fryeburg, in the State of Maine, 

 about fifty miles inland from Portland, and thirty 

 or forty from the White Mountains of New 

 Hampshire. That part of the country at that 

 time was one deej) and wide wilderness. Thero 

 were a few sc;ittered settlements along the coast 

 of Maine, south of the Kennebec ; but at the 

 time of Lovewell's fight, it is said there was no 

 white iidiabitant residing within fifty miles of 

 his battle ground. For many years the white 

 inhabitants had suffered exceedingly from the 

 incursions of the savages. The Penobscots, the 

 Norridj?ewocks, the Androscoggins, and the Pe- 

 quawkets had committed the most cruel and 

 bloody oxces.-'es year after year upon the defence- 

 less inhabitants of Maine and the frontier settle- 

 ments of New Haui|ishire. Incited by the French 

 settlers in Canada as well as their own warlike 

 and blood-thirsty natures, they had broken up 

 settlement after settlement, murdering most of 

 the inhabitants and carrying off" the rest into 

 tedious and almost hopeless captivity. These 

 outrages roused the government of Massachu- 

 setts, who at this time held jurisdiction over the 

 territory both of New Hampshire and Maine, to 

 more vigorous measures for the protection of the 

 inhabitants. Men and money were liberally fur- 

 nished for this purpose, and to give a stronger 

 stimulus to the exertion of the vohmteer com- 

 panies, a hundred pounds sterling was offered 

 for every Indian scalp that should be brought in. 

 A volunteer company of brave, daring and de- 

 termined spirits, was organized in the town of 

 Dunstable, New Hampshire, under the command 

 of Captain John Love .veil, in the spring of 1725. 

 In their first excursion they found a wigwam 

 containing one Indian and a boy. They killed 

 and scalped the Indian and carried the boy cap- 

 tive to Boston, where they received not only the 

 reward offered by law, but a handsome present 

 besides. On their second excursion they dis- 

 covered a party of ten Indians asleep around a 

 fire in the night. They killed every one, and 

 with the ten scalps stretched on hoops and ele- 

 vated on poles, they entered Dover, N. H. in tri- 

 umph on the twenty-fourth of February. They 

 then proceeded to Boston and received n thou- 

 sand pounds out of the public treasury. Stimu- 

 lated by success, Lovewell now conceived the 

 bold design of marching a hundred miles in the 

 wilderness and attacking the Pe<piawket tril)e at 

 their principal village on the Saco, where now 

 stands the pleasant village of Fryeburg. His 

 company seconded him with zeal, and all things 

 were soon in readiness for the important and 

 daring campaign. In this enterprise of so much 

 hazard and solemnity, they were accompanied 

 both bv a surgeon anil chaplain. The chaplain's 

 name was Jonathan Frye, a young gentleman of 

 liberal education, who had been graduated at 



