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through the centre of the meadow, and for its whole length. This 

 drain is four feet wide at the top, and goes down some small depth 

 into the clay pan. Cross drains are then cut on both sides at right 

 angles with the main ditch, and made to empty themselves into it. 

 These drains are carried down into the hard pan, and vary in width 

 from eighteen inches to three feet, according to the quantity of water, 

 which they are likely to be required to carry off. They extend 

 from the main ditch to the margin of the meadow. The cost of the 

 main ditch was not ascertained ; but ten cents a rod by contract were 

 paid for making the side drains. The materials thrown out from the 

 ditches were immediately spread evenly upon the meadow, and with 

 the best advantage. 



The next step was to plough the meadow thus ditched and drained 

 in the autumn, and in the ensuing spring to sow this ground with 

 oats and grass seed, which were sowed on the furrow and harrowed 

 in. Of oats he sows from three to four bushels to the acre ; of grass, 

 seed, half a busliel of herds grass, one peck of red top, and one pint 

 of clover. After this in the winter time he manures the land upon 

 the oat stubble. He collects the night soil in the neighboring town. 

 With one cord of night soil he puts four cords of gravel or loam ; of 

 this mixture he puts ten cords to an acre, or twenty loads to an acre, 

 spreading it as evenly as possible. He designs to manure his land in 

 this manner once in four years, and let it remain permanently in grass. 

 His experiment so far has been successful, his meadows yielding 

 an average of two tons of the best English hay to an acre. In some 

 cases he has tried the effect of spreading clay from the bottom of his 

 ditches, a clay strongly mixed with sand, upon his meadows, and 

 finds it in its effects equal to the best manure. 



One measured acre, covered with hassocks, and producing only 

 the coarsest water grasses, he first drained completely ; then cut the 

 hassocks close to the ground while it was frozen ; put on a quantity of 

 gravel and manure ; sowed it with grass seed ; and harrowed it as 

 usual. From this acre he mowed four and a half tons of English hay 

 in one season. 



He has obtained from one measured acre of his meadow, manured 

 in the hill with green barn manure, four hundred bushels of potatoes. 

 This he stales as an average crop in such land thus managed. From 

 twenty acres in oats, cultivated as above described, he obtained one 



