COSTS OF MARLING. 323 



doubted. It is necessary for the labours to be continued through 

 enough, time to test the ability of the teams to perform them, and 

 still keep in good condition. 



At different periods, and under varying difficulties and circum- 

 stances, I have carefully estimated the expenses of four considera- 

 ble jobs of marling, each of which was but a portion of the usual, 

 and as heavy labours of the teams, extending much beyond the 

 portions of time and labour particularly estimated. And all the 

 four operations, in greater or less degree, were attended with more 

 natural obstacles and difficulties than are generally to be encoun- 

 tered on other farms. I will describe in general the circumstances, 

 facilities, and difficulties of 'each of these jobs, and give the results 

 of the estimates of costs. The details of the operations, though 

 carefully noted, and some of the earlier of them before published, 

 in the preceding editions, will be omitted here, except as to a more 

 recent and much the largest operation, of which the facts were 

 observed so minutely, that they are deemed worth reporting in de- 

 tail ; and which will be so reported in a subsequent chapter. 



The labours and expenses of marling come under the following 

 four different heads: 1. Removing the overlay of earth; 2. Dig- 

 ging the marl and shovelling it into carts; 3. The carting to 

 the field ; and 4. The spreading. It rarely happens that all these 

 different operations are very easy which would constitute the 

 cheapest possible marling ; and if all were very difficult, the whole 

 would be (or at least so deemed by most persons) too costly to be 

 compensated by the eventual improvement. It usually happens 

 that the unusual facilities for some of these particular labours serve 

 to compensate in some measure the obstacles presented in others. 



The first job estimated was attended with such uncommon dis- 

 advantages that it may be deemed a failure, or as mostly lost 

 labour, and therefore not a fair subject for estimating costs. But 

 as the operations had been carefully noted, and as this work imme- 

 diately preceded, without any intermission, the second job, I will 

 state the first also. 



The two operations were but a small part of the excavation and 

 removal of a very large quantity of marl from this locality, enough 

 perhaps for 200 acres ; of which the portions estimated were among 

 the latest executed; and the most expensive, because of the then 

 much increased thickness of the overlying earth. 



The marl "cropped out/' or was exposed at the surface of a 

 steep hill-side (in large forest growth). The upper 6 feet of the 

 marl was dry and firm, but easy enough to dig ; the shelly portion 

 in small fragments, and amounting to 45 per cent, of the mass. 

 Below 6 feet, it was much poorer (not 20 per cent.), and was not 

 used, except for very short distances. 



I. The excavations for the first job, as usual on hill-side expo- 



