50 BOAED OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



Mr. EvAxs. I will speak just a moment on this matter 

 of black grass. It is something which the farmers of New- 

 bury think a great deal of. Presumably one-half of all 

 the hay they cut is black grass. The origin of black grass 

 on these marshes is peculiar. Something like one hundred 

 and fifty years ago it was found growing in a few isolated 

 spots, and during later years, perhaps through the annual 

 cutting of the marshes or for some other reason, it has been 

 spreading all over the marshes, so that at the present time 

 nearly one-half of the marshes of Newbury are in black grass. 

 In the town of Salisbury I find there is not nearly so much 

 black grass. We have it on the margin, but not on the 

 marshes as a whole. In regard to the magnitude of these 

 marshes I will say a word. Newbury is situated right in 

 the centre of an immense tract of salt marsh, running on the 

 one hand from the Gloucester region north into Hampton, 

 N. H. Within this county in this one tract of marsh we 

 have over 9,600 acres, and I presume that in Rockingham 

 County, N. H., there is nearly as much more. It is really 

 an immense tract of land for this particular crop, and when- 

 ever the time comes in future years that this land is re- 

 claimed, we are going to have the banner mowing land of 

 the Commonwealth, but I do not think we should attempt 

 to reclaim it at present. We have land enough, and we 

 should devote the salt marsh to the use for Avhich it is fitted, 

 and annually reap its harvest. There is no necessity of 

 tilling the soil of the marshes ; we only go down at the right 

 time and cut ofi" the harvest. You may call it almost the 

 harvest of the sea. In the matter of harvesting, the applica- 

 tion of machinery is doing away with the old methods of 

 swinging a scythe. The bringing in of the horse and mow- 

 ing machine and horse rake has taken away much of the 

 terror of this work, and we find, while it is rather more 

 difficult to handle than our upland grass, a little brain has 

 been put into it, and by the use of machinery we are gather- 

 ing in its products. When a gentleman said here that salt 

 grass could be harvested for |5 a ton, I could say that on my 

 land, fifty-five acres, which is three miles from my barn, the 

 average cost of harvesting and putting in the barn was about 

 $4.50 per ton. 



