HAMPSHIRE SOCIETY. 319 



highly instructive. These gentlemen, seem to us, not to have 

 engaged in the foolish strife of seeing how much corn they 

 could possibly take from a single acre, without regard to the 

 economy of the operation, but to have cultivated with a 

 wise reference to the profits. Others, within our knowledge, 

 have raised good crops at too great a cost : " have paid too 

 dear for the whistle." It signifies nothing to raise a hundred 

 bushels of corn on an acre, at the expense of half the manure 

 on a farm. These men have raised from 50 to 90 bushels to 

 the acre on large fields and at a small cost. For this we com- 

 mend them, and we hope others will profit by their example. 

 Mr. Moses C. Porter, of Hatfield, failed to comply, in all re- 

 spects, with the society's rules, and could not therefore com- 

 pete for the premium. His statement is not duly attested ; 

 and yet, from our personal acquaintance with him, knowing 

 him, as we do, to be a gentleman of strict integrity, we have 

 implicit confidence in every word which he states, except that 

 after due allowance for shrinkage, we believe his corn would 

 hold out just about 100 bushels but not more. We believe 

 that Mr. Porter has cleared more than fifty dollars from that acre 

 this year. Still we would guard ourselves and others against 

 wild conclusions with regard to the profits of corn growing. 

 It must be remembered, that in the growth of this crop, he has 

 used up a rich, deep turf, such as will not accumulate on his 

 land again for many years, and that in the mean time he must 

 either be content with less crops, or go to a great expense for 

 manure, and that in either case the profits must be diminished. 

 We, however, annex his statement, as one which we consider 

 highly instructive. 



In addition to the foregoing, we would state, that Mr. Elijah 

 Boltwood has this year raised an uncommonly fine crop of 

 corn. He has failed to comply with the society's requirement 

 of a written report. We examined the crop in September. 

 The growth was great, and was very nearly equal throughout 

 the field. He has since had a survey of an acre ; has harvest- 

 ed and measured the corn of that acre, and found it to be 180 

 bushels of ears, equivalent, as he supposes, to 90 bushels of 

 dry shelled corn. 



J. A. Nash, Chairman. 



