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little spraying is being done. Help plenty and generally good. 

 Wages from $15 to $25 per mouth with board and from $20 to 

 $30 without. Otherwise than apples, the production of fruit is 

 very small. You may think I have a severe attack of the blues, 

 but I have lived on this farm seventy years, and regard this year 

 as the most discouraging of any. It is cold and dry, there is 

 nothing growing, and prices of farm produce are of the lowest. 

 Farms are depreciating in value every year. Are we ever to have 

 a change ? 



Sunderland (J. M. J. Legate). — The season is not as favor- 

 able as last year, on account of drought and wind. Pastures are 

 ver}^ short and the hay crop will be far below the average. Fall 

 seeding wintered quite well, but the drought has used it up. Apple 

 trees blossomed very fully, pears but little and peaches not at all. 

 Few insects doing damage as yet. No spraying is done here. 

 Help is very plenty and most of it is good. Wages are from $15 

 to $18 per month with board and $1.25 per day without. But 

 little attention is paid to the production of fruits for market aud 

 there is no material increase. The wind storm of the 18th ruined 

 nearly three-fourths of the onions in town, blowing the soil badly 

 on light land. Rain must come soon, or crops will be light. 



Neio Salem (Daniel Ballard). — The season is ten days 

 earlier than last year and much dryer. Pastures and mowings 

 are below the average, on account of drought. Some pieces of 

 fall seeding winter-killed. Large bloom of apples, not much of 

 pears and none of peaches ; small fruits bloomed well. Tent 

 caterpillars and currant worms are plenty. Spraying is but little 

 practised, but is increasing. Farm help is rather scarce ; one-half 

 is good help. Wages range from $10 to $18 per month with board 

 and from $1.25 to $1.50 per day without. Fruit production bears 

 the proportion of one-third to general farming and is on the 

 increase. 



HAMPSHIRE COUNTY. 



Prescott (W. F. Wendermuth). — Drought has injured past- 

 ures and mowings considerably. Fall seeding winter-killed badly. 

 Apples had the heaviest bloom for years, pears very light and 

 peaches none at all. The tent caterpillar is the only insect doing 

 damage now. No spraying whatever is done. Farm help is rather 

 scarce, but fairly good. Wages are $20 per month and $1 per day 

 with board. Apples constitute about one-fourth the money crop 

 and fruit growing is increasing rapidly. Fully one-half the peach 

 trees winter-killed aud the rest gave no bloom. Nothing is done 

 in small fruits. 



