105 



CORN. 



, We award the first premium of $6,00, to Jabez Fisher^ 

 of Fitchburg, whose field, according to our estimate, pro- 

 duced ninety bushels per acre of sound, well-ripened corn. 



The second premium of $4,00, we award to Alonzo P- 

 Goodridge, of Fitchburg, whose field, by the same estimate, 

 yielded eighty-one bushels per acre. 



The Committee hesitated long in considering the claims 

 of these two competitors. It was exceedingly difficult to 

 decide which was the most profitable crop. The fact that 

 Mr. Goodridge has so improved an almost profitless pasture 

 as to make it produce upwards of eighty bushels of good 

 corn per acre, at a cost of about fifty-five cents per bushel, 

 we deem worthy of notice, and very creditable to him.— 

 We think Dr. Fisher's corn cost a little more per bushel, 

 although his method of manuring was such as to render it 

 impossible for us to ascertain precisely ; and we do not sup- 

 pose that the cultivation of the crop added materially to the 

 value of the land, as in the other case ; but then the crop 

 was larger, and the corn, although of the same variety — • 

 King Philip — was better, the ears being more fully devel- 

 oped, and the kernel brighter, and more plump. The shrink- 

 age in weight on the ear during the twenty-four days previ- 

 ous to the time of our decision, Nov. 10th, was three pounds 

 less per square rod. The fact, also, that he manured mainly 

 with a fertilizer which is usually allowed to run to waste, 

 and thus demonstrated clearly the importance of saving and 

 applying to our crops such articles, we considered worthy 

 of being taken into the account. 



The third premium, of $3,00, we award to Samuel Far- 

 well, 2d, master of the Fitchburg town farm, whose corn, 

 an eight-rowed yellow variety, presented a very fine appear- 

 ance, the ears being well developed, of good size, and com- 

 pletely filled. He had but twenty and one-half hills to the 

 rod. We think if he had planted twenty-five or thirty, he 

 would have had a larger crop, with little if any more 

 expense. The product was nearly seventy-five bushels per 



acre. 



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