22 MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



support of tills farm, by the products being brought home and 

 spent, as sometimes is the case. 



The road runs nearly east and west, and divides the farm 

 into about equal parts north and south ; and my buildings are 

 situated nearly in the center of the farm, and stand a few feet 

 higher than the east or west terminus of the road. 



In September of 1849, twenty-four acres in front of the 

 buildings, on the south side of the road, were in eight different 

 lots, enclosed by more than two hundred rods of heavy, dilapi- 

 dated stone walls, which had been thrown up from time to 

 time from the adjoining lots, without any other apparent object 

 than to get rid of the small stones. About equal portions of 

 these eight lots were mowing and pasture alternately. The 

 twelve acres of pasture had been covered with brush and 

 stones, and were appraised by a former committee at seventeen 

 dollars per acre, as its only value for agricultural purposes at 

 that time. 



In September, 1849, I caused a drain to be cut thirty-three 

 rods in length by three and one-half feet in depth and three 

 in width, and found the subsoil so very different in all respects 

 that my attention was called to other portions of these pas- 

 tures, until I finally determined to under-drain each of them. 

 In three years we had cut six hundred rods of this drainage, 

 and used all the surface stones, as well as the two hundred 

 rods of inner wall, to fill the drains. Several hundred larger 

 stones than could be used in the drains were sunk on the spot 

 by digging a hole by the side of them and rolling them in j 

 then small stones were used to fill the hole within twelve inches 

 of the top ; stumps and brush were put on to keep the dirt from 

 falling down ; then the soil that was thrown out was brought 

 back with an ox shovel, and the ditches were filled. The bal- 

 ance of the subsoil was used to grade up between the ditches, 

 which were principally cut six rods asunder. In this way all 

 was left smooth for the plough, which was successfully passed 

 through tlicse lands. They were left to summer-till for one 

 year by the aid of the harrow occasional!}', and after this 

 dressed with manure and sowed to turnips and grass — one part 

 in 1850-51 ; the last was seeded this year. The old mowing 

 part of this lot was ploughed ten inches deep with a Michigan 



