91 



Our next visit was to the farm of Mr. Gregory at Mid- 

 dleton, wliere we found Mr. Gregory in the midst of his 

 harvest, and such a harvest ! Onions and cabbage to be 

 measured only by the acre, and other crops in abundance, 



all showing that the manager well understood his business. 



We must confess that here we passed one of the most 

 profitable days of our life, and only regret that our time 

 was limited, as a day or two could be passed with Mr. G. 

 with much profit. The corn crop is one of the most 

 profitable crops that can be grown by the average New 

 England farmer, as he always has a market for it at home, 

 while in the stocks he can raise more fodder per acre than 

 if it were in grass, thereby giving a double crop on tlie 

 same ground. While' the corn crop of the country is 

 immense, 2000 million bushels, enough to load ten trains 

 of cars reaching from Boston to San Francisco ; yet there 

 is little reason to believe but what corn can be grown to a 

 profit in the East if we would adopt Western methods, in 

 part at least, of cultivation. While even of more impor- 

 tance is the necessity of growing large crops, as the cost 

 of growing 75 bushels per acre is little more than that of 

 36 bushels, the average yield of the state in 1875. Here 

 we see the profit of large crops, still your committee do not 

 believe in large crops as often reported, and are of the 

 opinion that 100 bushels to the acre is very seldom raised 

 in this state. Mr. Gregory for instance estimates his corn 

 at 75 lbs. of ears to the bushel of shelled. corn, with 169 

 baskets weighing 44| lbs. each to the acre giving a yield 

 of 101 bushels per acre. This, in the estimate of your 

 committee is too large ; premiums being awai'ded only on 

 crops in a merchantable condition, and we are confident 

 that a large allowance should be made for loss in drying. 

 We have therefore adapted the rule of two baskets of ears 

 making one of shelled corn ; by this rule we find that Mr. 

 Ivillam's crop, 94i bushels, Mr. Lunt's 84 3-8 bushels, and 



