SECRETARY'S REPORT. 265 



Mr. Folgcr was not brought up on a farm, but has carried on 

 the busmess of coopering till within the last five years, since 

 which he, with one man, and a boy part of the time, does all the 

 work on his above described farm, except at hay-time, when he 

 has help to get in the hay in the best order. Every statement 

 he makes can be relied on. 



Respectfully submitted. 



James Thompson. 



DUKES COUNTY. 



In presenting this brief report on the agricultural interests of 

 Martha's Vineyard, it may not be out of place to refer, in a few 

 words, to the agricultural features of the island, its soil, surface, 

 &c. 



The island is naturally divided into three distinct sections, 

 each of which presents a surface and soil peculiar to itself. 



Commencing with the western section, which includes Gay 

 Head, Chilmark and the north-western part of Tisbury, we find 

 a rough surface of hills and vales, rocky and uneven. From 

 the western extremity of Chilmark to the bounds of Tisbury, 

 there are ranges of hills, having a general direction from the south- 

 west to the north-east, running through nearly the entire width 

 of the island ; and the valleys between these hills are broken by 

 numerous smaller ranges, running in various directions. 



Underlying a great part of the town, at a depth which may 

 be roughly stated at from ten to thirty feet, is a bed of clay, a 

 large portion of it pure and free from grit, of various colors — 

 red, white, blue and yellow — and shading from one color into 

 another. At the western extremity of the island this clay forms 

 those beautifully variegated " cliffs of Gay Head." 



As we approach the bounds of Tisbury, this substratum either 

 lies at a greater depth or is entirely lost. 



The land of Chilmark is hard to cultivate, on account of its 

 roughness, and the stones and boulders which are strewn with 

 such prodigality over its surface, but the soil is good, and good 

 crops are raised where it is cultivated. The soil is a sandy 

 loam, mixed freely with coarse gravel and pebbles, with a subsoil 

 generally of yellow loam. 



This portion of the island is remarkable for the sweetness of 

 its pastures and the abundance of its springs of pure water ; 

 34* 



