14 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



are unequalled. Deep scientific knowledge is not necessary, 

 nor is big capital needed to get a start. A living to all 'tillers 

 of the soil is assured for the first season, and beyond that the 

 success of each and every one depends in agriculture, as in 

 anything else, entirely upon the personal equation, which 

 simply means individuality and common sense combined. 



Let me say that we know very little about market gardening 

 in this country; perhaps you do and I do, but our people as 

 a whole do not. Over in Paris a man on 3 acres of land will 

 dress wife and children well, will send the children to school, 

 and will be able to take trips out into the country on Sunday 

 and drink wine every day. He can do this because there is 

 no machinery in the business ; there is no dispute as to whether 

 28 inches or 36 inches is the best for corn or potatoes ; their 

 idea is to plant their crops as closely as they can, and so close 

 do they get them that in cultivating the man working among 

 them walks on his toes, stepping over the plants, and not 

 finding room enough to put his whole foot down. Every 

 square inch of his land is working. When cold weather comes, 

 he just covers it with glass and keeps it working. Seven dif- 

 ferent crops a year they take from the same land, — a pretty 

 good rotation. Whenever a European comes to this country, 

 he buys land and pays whatever he has to for it. I always 

 like to watch him when I can, as he has market gardening 

 down fine. What does he buy after he begins to work ? 

 Manure. What does he pay for it ? Whatever he has to. He 

 never says he will not pay over so much ; he gets it, and pays 

 the market price, whatever it is. If he has money enough, 

 he tills 10 acres ; if he has only money enough for 6 he tills 

 6 acres, because he knows there is no use spreading his manure 

 out over 60 acres just because he has 60 acres. The French- 

 man just outside of Paris raises a melon that he gets $2.50 

 for, instead of 10 cents, as we do. It is called the Dives melon, 

 and has the big Montreal melon beaten, and anything ever 

 raised at Rocky Ford simply left out of sight. 



I want to tell you a little more about what we have 

 been doing on Long Island, There is a big tract of land 

 right in the middle of the island that has always been said 

 to be of no value agriculturally. There has been a tradition 



