99 



plough, or hoe, either being chargeable. The shaking meadow has 

 the best surface and is easiest to bring to mowing. 



He began by draining an artificial pond of about 20 acres, made 

 by a dam to prevent the miring of cattle. " The soil was eight or 

 ten feet deep. He next drained a shaking meadow of 40 acres in 

 Guilford woods. A man standing upon it might shake the ground 

 several rods about him. It seemed to be only a strong sward of 

 grass roots laid over a soft mud of the consistence of pancake bat- 

 ter. There were but few bushes, but an abundance of cranberry 

 vines, and a great burthen of poor, wild grass. The meadow Avas 

 deemed so poor, that nonewoidd take it up. I was pitied as being 

 about to waste a great deal of money ; but they comforted them- 

 selves, that if I spent it unprofitably, others, that stood in need of 

 it, would get it. They are now of a different opinion." 



Without going into further detail of his mode of operation, he 

 remarks, that in " a little experience of these drained lands, we 

 find they will produce from 60 to 70 bushels of Indian corn per 

 acre, and flax," adding, " I design to try liquorice roots, barley. 

 Cape Breton wheat, cotton, indigo seed and wood for dyeing, which 

 I have sent for, as also water melon seed, from Archangel, Russia, 

 which, it is said, produces melons of a great size. But what I 

 have principally in view is hemp. New England doth not, I sup- 

 pose, expend less than several <£ 100,000 worth of hemp, yearly. 

 If we can raise more than to supply our own occasion, we may 

 send it home." 



In his " Second Essay," printed in 1749, in alluding to his 

 drained land he says, " some of it last Summer yielded great crops 

 of grass, and 80 bushels of Indian corn per acre." In alluding to 

 his "First Essay," he remarks, "I have tried hemp, with favor- 

 able results. It was a well proportioned harl and grew to the 

 height of 6i feet." 



Again in his " Third Essay," printed in 1751, he says, " The 

 drained land hath succeeded well two years past. Land that 

 might have been bought six years ago for X6 per acre, will now 

 sell for XlOO per acre ; nay, even although it be not cleared of 

 the wood and brush, provided the growth be killed with previous 

 flowing. Thus is verified what he said in the first Essay. " Time 

 may possibly discover it, [swamp land] to be the easiest of tillage, 

 the richest and bj3st land." Again in the "Third Essay," he adds 

 " Since the drained lands are so valuable, we should extend that 

 improvement as far as we can." 



He recommends the " subterraneous draining," of " frog ponds 

 or swamps with no visible outlets. Dig a hole until you find a 

 layer of gravel or coarse sand, and then by a ditch let the water 

 out of the pond or swamp into the hole, and possibly it may be 

 successful, thus removing a deformity ; for these frog ponds spoil 



