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OBSERVATIOl^S ON THE ABOVE STATEMENT AND REPORT. 



The reading of the above report gave rise to considerable 

 discussion at a meeting of the Trustees of the Society, when 

 reports of committees were under consideration, and I was 

 requested to append to the report some remarks. 



I desire to call attention briefly, first, to the written statement 

 of Mr. Horton, and second, to the observations of the Commit- 

 ee, and the extract presented from Mr. Colraan's "European 

 Agriculture." The points in Mr. H.'s statement which seem 

 extraordinary, relate not so much to the simple method 

 adopted in clearing his land, as to the alleged ash results ob- 

 tained and their assumed fertilizing influence upon the field. 

 To obtain ' ' twenty cart loads of ashes from two and one-half 

 acres of pasture land," it would be necessary for Mr. H. to 

 cut down in bushes, and dig up in roots, and haul to his "pile" 

 at least Jive hundred "cart loads" of the material. This is 

 apparent from the fact that such woods contain only about two 

 and one-half per cent, of ash constituents. A "cart load" of 

 ashes may be assumed to be forty bushels, weighing forty 

 pounds to the bushel; this gives in weight to the load 1600 

 pounds, and to the twenty loads, 32,000 pounds. It seems 

 utterly impossible to obtain 32,000 pounds of ashes from 

 bushes and roots taken from "two and one-halt acres of old 

 pasture land ;" and if obtained, the dressing would be enor- 

 mous. Another inexplicable point in this statement is : how 

 could Mr. H. plough the land, cut down the crop of bushes, dig 

 up the roots, and cart away the immense amount of material, at 

 a cost of only twenty dollars f Asa" great part of the dress- 

 mg, (ashes,) was blown ofi" by the wind," the fertility of the 

 field is presumably due to the manure applied. The loss of 

 twenty "cart loads" of dry wood ashes is a serious one, the 

 cash value being, upon the estimate above given, at thirty 

 cents a bushel, $240, more than twice the value of the hay 

 crop secured. 



It only need be said that it requires but a glance at this 



