316 HAMPSHIRE SOCIETY. 



forth — were led to devote much labor and earnest thought to 

 the improvement, in this respect, of the rural districts in New 

 England. 



They, aside from a consideration of the pecuniary benefits 

 which works of improvement might confer, would not tolerate, 

 in their vicinity, a marshy fen, that breeded swarms of summer 

 flies, and filled the air with the seeds of pestilence and death, 

 for the reason that the appreciation of the beautiful, and a 

 taste for what is grand in natural scenes of the community 

 around, would be in a manner perverted, by the daily sight of 

 such foul spots on Nature's fair vesture. 



But we will not farther tread the flowery fields of philosophy, 

 lest we should find ourselves irrecoverably lost in their mazy 

 paths; and so it only remains to announce who were the suc- 

 cessful competitors for your premiums. John A. Morton, of 

 Hadley, in consideration of the improvements on a plat of 

 ground presented by him, was awarded the first premium, of 

 ten dollars; and Edmund Hobart, of Amherst, drew six dollars 

 for his successful efforts in reclaiming swampy land. State- 

 ments of their work they have prepared, and they will accom- 

 pany this report. As your committee were limited to the be- 

 stowal of only two rewards, of course the remaining entries 

 must be passed over into oblivion. 



S. Powers, Chairman. 



John A. Morton^s Statement. 



The piece of meadow land, to which I ask your attention, 

 contains about two and a half acres. The soil, a part of it, 

 was a light peat mud, a part of it bearing on the clay, or bear- 

 ing a clayey subsoil. I commenced working upon it in August, 

 1848. It was covered with bogs, brush, and coarse water grass, 

 and consequently was of little or no value. >My first operation 

 was to ditch it. I cut a ditch on three sides, so as to drain off 

 the water. I then cut and burnt off the brush, and commeijced 

 work with a heavy meadow plough, two yoke of oxen, bog hoe 

 and ax, and turned it well over, ploughing about one-third acre 

 per day. The next May I dragged it thoroughly with a heavy 

 drag, and planted the peat with potatoes, and the clay or hard 



