The Meadow. 473 
these little services, for keeping the highway through his premises 
in a good repair. 
The use of gypsum or plaster on meadow lands is another me- 
thod of keeping them in a productive condition. Though this 
substance has already come into much use among the best farmers 
its general adoption is not so great as the profit of the cultivator 
demands. From mistaken application, or some other cause, many 
still doubt its utility, while others may perhaps overrate its fer- 
tilizing qualities. It is but a few days since we heard a farmer 
of good observation and close calculation observe, that every ton 
of plaster sown upon his meadows gave him five tons of hay. 
This is surely a handsome profit. A ton of ground plaster, three- 
fourths of a mile from his farm costs seven dollars; allow for 
hauling to the farm and sowing two dollars, which at the ordinary 
prices of labor would be high, and the ton of plaster when sown 
stands at nine dollars. Take the five tons of hay and estimate it 
at seven dollars per ton, and he is benefitted by a net profit on the 
ton of plaster twenty -six dollars; a very handsome profit, to be 
sure on the investment. In many other instances as great a one 
may undoubtedly be realized, while in others it will no doubt fall 
short, and in some perhaps have an entire failure. 
These circumstances must depend on the quality and condition 
of the soil, two facts with which every farmer should be well ac- 
quainted, especially on his own premises. As a general rule, 
however, plaster may be profitably used on lands adapted to the 
growth of clover, and the winter grains, or corn. That it has in 
some instances failed on such lands may be true, and these failures 
may be and probably in most cases are owing to a misapplication. 
If sown in a windy time, it is liable to be blown away; if sown 
in a very dry time its influence is checked if not lost. We have 
known instances when it was sown and a dry season followed and 
its effects were not visible until the next )ear. We have sown it 
when threatening clouds were stretched over the horizon, pro- 
mising to drench the earth with their watery treasures, and despite 
the warning voice of neighbors and friends that it would all wash 
away, so that we should lose our money and labor too, and when 
the rains descended in torrents we began to think ourselves that 
something would happen to our plaster, and in fact we think there 
did, for having sown in haste lest the rain shoidd catch us with 
our work unfinished we were rather partial in our bestowment 
and sowed in streaks. The grass told every looker-on what we 
had done, and in two weeks those streaks were visible in the dif- 
ferent color of the grass for two miles. 
With regard to the condition of land at the time of application 
of plaster, we find that it is the opinion of many that it should be 
new stocked and recently manured. These things may be well 
