Genesee Country. 353 
HISTORICAL REMARKS ON THE EARLY SETTLEMENT OF 
THE GENiiSEE COUNTRY. 
BY J. TREMPER. 
Through all the country there were signs of extensive culti- 
vations having been made at a very early period; the ruins of 
old forts were also discovered, the gates and ditches still remain- 
ing, with evidence of their positions being well chosen for defence; 
from the decayed timber lying within them, and the standing 
timber growing over the fallen, it was conjectured that they must 
have been built over 200 years previously; swords with French 
inscriptions were frequently found among them, and also large 
collections of human bones. 1798 — The soil of the country has 
in every instance proved favorable to the production of grain; 
the long moderate summers seem well adapted to the raising of 
wheat, barley and oats; the two last so inferior on the coast, to 
the English, are here of a quality nearly as good. The crops of 
timothy, hay and clover, are here superior to most in America, 
and have been frequently known to produce from 3 to 4 tons per 
acre, of excellent well dried hay. The price of grain and average 
produce per acre, is nearly as follows: 
Price per Bushel. Bushels per Acre. 
Wheat S 1-00 from 25 to 30 
Rye -75 40 to 00 
Oats -50 40 to 50 
Indian Corn --- -50 30 to 60 according to cultivation 
Barley -70 60 
Timothy and clover, 10 dollars per ton, and from 2 to 3 tons per 
acre. The farmer of 1848 in looking over the above scale of 
prices and productivness of crops, as experienced by his prede- 
cessor of 1798 will be fully convinced that there has been a great 
falling off in the latter, at least since those days. The price of 
hay at that period seems to have been far above the average 
price per ton of the present day, while the scale of prices for 
grain would prove quite satisfactory as an average one. The 
productiveness of the land seems to have very' much diminished 
and indeed it has been for some years a general complaint, al- 
though, from the mode of cultivation it could not well be other- 
wise; I very much question if some of our good wheat counties 
upon an estimate of five years, would present an average of over 
10 bushels to the acre. 
The following statement will present the views entertained bv 
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