212 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



drought better than any other in the vicinity, and the second 

 crop was large, comparatively. 



There is no commercial fertilizer to my knowledge which is 

 more universally esteemed than ashes, both leached and un- 

 leached, and that by practical men who have used them long 

 enongli to learn what they are about. I would like well to 

 secure five hundred or a thousand bushels yearly, and there are 

 scores of others who would gladly do the same, but the -quantity 

 is limited, if the would-be purchasers are not. I refer, to spent 

 ashes. To use with peat as a corrective, a sweetener^ undoubt-: 

 edly unleached ashes at thirty cents a bushel, if of' good quality, 

 will prove a profitable investment. 



[At this point. Colonel Stone vacated the chair, introducing 

 the Hon. Charles G. Davis, of Plymouth, as the regularly 

 appointed chairman for the day.] 



The Secretary. We have present here to-day a member of 

 the New Hampshire State Board of Agriculture, who is very 

 much interested in the question of manures, and I would sug- 

 gest that he be requested to make some remarks upon the sub- 

 ject before the Board. I allude to Mr. Lawrence. 



Mr. Lawrence. I am sim{)ly a practical farmer from New 

 Hampshire, and I feel embarrassed in coming before you and 

 attempting to make a speech ; but, sir, my experience has cor- 

 responded so very nearly with that of the gentleman who has 

 given us such an interesting lecture this morning, that I felt 

 desirous of saying something in regard to this question. Before, 

 however, I proceed with that, I will say that I am the only 

 member of the Board of Agriculture of New Hampshire who is 

 present, and that I am here in their behalf and in their interest, 

 to ask that more shall be returned to us than we have given 

 to-day, and to say that we hope, at the future meetings of our 

 Board, we shall have the presence of some of the members of 

 your Board and of representatives pf the farmers of Massachu- 

 setts. We have held the present month, for the first time, a 

 meeting of the Board of Agriculture of New Hampshire. It 

 has been a very interesting session of two days, but I did not 

 see the young men present there that I see here ; neither did I 

 see that desire to occupy all the time that I have seen here. 



I live upon a farm of three hundred acres. It has descended 

 to me from my father, my grandfather and my great-grandfather, 



