60 ESSEX SOCIETY. 



third. I planted about eleven acres, viz., six to Indian corn, 

 three to broom corn, one to potatoes, one half an acre of sowed 

 corn for fodder, and one half an acre to carrots and other vegeta- 

 bles ; the whole of which was upon land sowed to oats the year 

 previous, without grass seed. The manure for the carrots, po- 

 tatoes, and about two acres of the corn, was ploughed in, at the 

 rate of five cords to the acre, in its green state. The broom 

 corn, and the remainder of the Indian corn, was planted on the 

 island, and manured with compost in the hill, and at the rate of 

 ten loads per acre, thirty-five bushels to the load. Half a gill 

 of wood ashes and plaster was applied to each hill at the time 

 of planting. I cultivated and hoed three times in the usual 

 manner. 



I sowed eight acres of spring rye on the island, on land plant- 

 ed to corn the year previous, with little or no manure, and on 

 which I spread one hundred bushes of leached ashes per acre, 

 and sowed ten pounds of southern clover per acre. These 

 ashes cost six cents per bushel at Haverhill, one mile distant, 

 and were boated to the island for one and a quarter cents per 

 bushel. I sowed an acre to barley, and another to rye, on the 

 home lot, having previously ploughed in about four cords of 

 green manure per acre, and seeded down with one peck of herds 

 grass, one bushel northern red-top, and three pounds southern 

 clover to the acre. Product of corn was two hundred and 

 forty bushels by estimation, rye on the island sixty-four bushels, 

 or eight bushels per acre by measure ; rye on home lot twenty 

 and one half bushels, barley twenty-two bushels, potatoes 

 yielded well, but more than one half rotted, and carrots one 

 hundred and fifty-six bushels on one quarter of an acre. Of 

 fruit I had about forty barrels of winter apples, mostly Bald- 

 wins, and over three hundred bushels of peaches. Kept in ad- 

 dition to the team, thirteen cows, and during the season made 

 two thousand eight hundred and twenty pounds of new milk 

 cheese, and butter sufficient for the family's use. 



The building of my barn, and other essoitial improvements, 

 occupied so much of my time the first year, that I could not 

 give that attention to the management of the farm, or keep so 

 accurate an account of the amount of sales and the profits and 



