ESSEX SOCIETY. 61 



about one acre and a quarter of this swamp was well cut and 

 carefully turned by him, (except the stumps and roots) it being 

 very important to have it well dried by exposure to the sun 

 and wind. In the years 1849-50, the same course was pursued 

 in regard to the remaining three and three quarter acres. As 

 much of it was turned in this way as possible, previous to 

 August, to enable us to burn it the more easily during that 

 month. After burning the top, all the roots and stumps were 

 removed and piled, to be taken off in the winter. Cross ditches 

 were then dug of about one and a half feet in depth, and of 

 the same width, making the beds about three rods in width. 

 Having completed the beds, we seeded down the same to 

 herds grass and red-top. In 1847, my man was at work on 

 the swamps sixty-seven days, which, at seventy-seven cents per 

 day, would be fifty-one dollars and fifty-nine cents. 



The second year there were one hundred and thirty-four 

 days' labor expended, at seventy-seven cents per day, amount- 

 ing to one hundred and three dollars and eighteen cents. 



The third year there were eighty-four days' labor expended, 

 at seventy-seven cents per day, amounting to sixty-four dollars 

 and sixty-eight cents. 



From this reclaimed piece, T collected at least thirty cords of 

 wood, consisting principally of pine roots and stumps, which I 

 judge were richly worth one dollar per cord, after being piled 

 on the swamp. The old turf ditches were filled with stumps 

 and sods and then a thin coating of gravel was put on the 

 whole of it, say one half of an acre. 



After I had seeded down the first acre and a quarter, appre- 

 hending a failure of the seed, in the early part of the spring of 

 1849, I sowed one bushel of spring rye, which yielded a very 

 large crop of straw, and thirteen bushels of grain ; and the 

 grass that subsequently grew so thickly, showed that my pre- 

 vious apprehensions were groundless. 



The following year, the same piece yielded, in the opinion 

 of competent judges, two tons of good hay to the acre. I also, 

 for the first time, mowed the piece seeded down in 1849, con- 

 sisting of about two and a quarter acres, and obtained for the 

 first crop a ton and a half per acre. I also mowed one ton of 



