38 ESSEX SOCIETY. 



large portions of the earth, and, what is more immediately the 

 concern of the Society, large portions of this county, now un- 

 sightly because unproductive, will soon, if ever, be clothed with 

 verdure, and present to the eyes of a grateful and enlightened 

 community, a harvest sufficiently full to take away hunger and 

 want even from the poor. 



As it respects the expense of this mode of cultivation, every one 

 can calculate the amount with sufficient accuracy for all practi- 

 cal purposes. The expense of the seed used, and the expense 

 of sowing and ploughing, is the whole. Your Committee, how- 

 ever, think that the expense of ploughing should not be reck- 

 oned in, as it is most certain that there is not hardly a field in 

 the whole county that would not, by an increased yield, more 

 than pay for an additional ploughing, without any reference to 

 a green crop to be turned in. 



In the choice of the kind of grain to be used in this mode of 

 culture, there seems to be but little choice. That kind which, 

 from the character of the soil or season of the year, is likely to 

 yield the greatest amount of vegetable material, should be taken. 

 Buckwheat seems to have been the kind more generally used, 

 and perhaps with good reason. Col. Benson, of Bradford, suc- 

 ceeded well with English or white mustard. His lot is of a 

 clayey character. 



Too high an estimate cannot be put upon the investigations of 

 science, especially those of chemistry, as a means of helping 

 forward the agricultural interest of the community, yet it can- 

 not be denied that there is many times a discrepancy between 

 the theories which science has formed, and the results of exper- 

 iments made in conformity with them. This fact should not, 

 however, disparage the importance of such scientific investiga- 

 tions. Demonstration enough has been given of their utility. 

 The only inference that should be drawn from the fact, is, that, 

 to whatever extent investigations have been pushed, there still 

 remains a wide and rich field which has not yet been travelled 

 over — much land in the world of knowledge untaken. We may 

 be permitted to add, that the discrepancy referred to calls, in a 

 special manner, to deeper investigation of the physiology of 

 plants, and more especially to the assimilating and changing 



