WORCESTER SOCIETY. 167 



most favorable notice of the committee, and they of course 

 fail of the substantial applause of the society. 



The crops entered, were all visited by the committee, except 

 the acre of potatoes entered by Mr. Dodge, who being aware 

 that his crop would not come up to the requirements of the 

 society, (18,000 lbs. or 300 bushels per acre,) had carefully de- 

 posited them from the committee's observation. We cannot, 

 however, refrain from speaking of the potato crops which we 

 did visit, and very briefly name the experiments made by Mr. 

 Kilburn and by Mr. Thorndike, at the same time regretting 

 that those gentlemen did not make a full statement of all the 

 facts themselves, because it is in this way that that informa- 

 tion is obtained which it is the object of this society to acquire 

 and to disseminate. 



The soil on which Mr. Kilburn planted his potatoes, lays 

 low — bordering on swamp — is a black, sandy loam. The 

 variety of potato planted had not before fallen under the obser- 

 vation of either member of the committee. It is a long potato, 

 but larger, in proportion to its length, than the "long red." 

 The general color is red, but streaked with white like the 

 leopard potato. He obtained his seed from the town of Hol- 

 land, in Hampshire county, and therefore calls it "the Holland 

 potato." Dr. K.'s seed were large potatoes, so cut that but 

 two eyes were on one piece, and two pieces were put in a hill, 

 requiring six bushels of seed to an acre of ground, and planted 

 two feet by three and a half apart. Several hills were dug in 

 the presence of the committee, which yielded from four to seven 

 potatoes of large size to a hill ; some of them weighed from 12 

 to 13 ounces by the steelyards. One hill was dug, the seed of 

 which was one large potato, which was said to contain as 

 much seed as twelve other hills. From this hill were taken a 

 much larger number of potatoes, but they were far inferior in 

 size to those from other hills. 



The ground on which Mr. Thorndike experimented was a 

 piece of old tough pasture ; never before was it ploughed ; and 

 even at the ploughing, as the committee were informed, did 

 some of Mr. T.'s neighbors more than think that "to plough 

 the old pasture would prove a bad job." He is, however, 

 entitled to much credit for his perseverance, and will be richly 

 paid, in time to come, for subduing the " old pasture." The 



