1840.] SENATE— No. 36. 219 



extent, between the river at the bottom and the common level of the 

 surrounding country above. This little river, before reaching the 

 place, ran through a small town, and gathered, doubtless, some refuse 

 matter in its course. From this river the water was taken, at the 

 upper end of the valley, conducted along the edge, or bank, in a canal 

 or carrier, and from this carrier, at proper times, suffered to flow out, 

 very gently, spreading over, and irrigating the whole surface, trickling 

 and shining when he saw it, (and it was then November,) among the 

 light green of the new-springing grass, and collected below in another 

 canal, from which it was again let out, to flow in like manner over 

 land lying still further down towards the bottom of the valley. Ten 

 years ago, this land, for production, was worth little or nothing. lie 

 was told that some of it had been let for no more than a shilling an 

 acre. It has not been manured, and yet is now most extensively pro- 

 ductive. It is not flooded ; the water does not stand upon it ; it flows 

 gently over it, and is applied several times in a year, to each part, say 

 in March, May, July and October. In November, when he saw it, 

 the farmers were taking off the third crop of hay cut this season, and 

 that crop was certainly not less than two tons to the acre. This last 

 crop was mostly used as green food for cattle. When he spoke of the 

 quantity of tons, he meant tons of dried hay. After this crop was off, 

 sheep were to be put on it, to have lambs at Christmas, so as to come 

 into market in March, a time of year when they command a high 

 price. Upon taking off the sheep in March, the land would be watered, 

 the process of watering lasting two or three days, or perhaps eight or 

 ten days, according to circumstances, and repeated after the taking off 

 of each successive crop. Although this water has no doubt consider- 

 able sediment in it, yet the general fact shows how important water is 

 to the growth of plants, and how far even it may supply the place of 

 other sources of sustenance. Now we, in Massachusetts, have a more 

 uneven surface, more vallies with sloping sides, by many times more 

 streams, and such a climate that our farms suffer much oftener from 

 drought than farms in England. May we not learn something useful, 

 therefore, from the examples of irrigation in that country. 



