191 
FARM OF THE MESSRS. LATIIROP. 
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FARM OF THE MESSRS. LATHROP. 
We have just returned from a ten days’ excur¬ 
sion up the valley of the Connecticut, from its 
mouth to the borders of Deerfield, in Massachu¬ 
setts, and have been struck with wonder and sur¬ 
prise at the rich and varied beauty of its scenery; 
but above all, with its great fertility. Several of 
these localities, comprising the richest parts of the 
valley, we have not visited since childhood ; in the 
meanwhile, we have wandered over the most 
vaunted sections of the south and west, and with 
the recollections of the deep virgin soil of these re¬ 
gions fresh in our memory, we do not hesitate to 
say, that, with the exception of the Mississippi, 
not a valley there of the same length, can exceed 
the Connecticut in width and fertility of bottom, 
and general capability for agricultural purposes. 
The meadows of Northampton and several other 
towns, are equal to the boasted plains of Pick¬ 
away, on the Sciota. Here they annually obtain 
60 to 70 bushels of corn per acre, with ordinary 
cultivation; on the Sciota and Miami they can get 
no more; and yet the Connecticut valley has been 
hard cropped by the white man for 200 years, and 
how long before by the red man, no one knows ! It 
is customary with every traveller to harp upon the 
poverty of New England soil, as if the country 
were all mountainous rocks; poor, gravelly hills; 
and famished sandy plains. Such persons know 
not New England—they have scarcely taken a 
bird’s-eye view of it, and their observation may be 
set down as of the most superficial kind: for 
many is the sweet grass-producingmountain there 
—the fertile hill—and the deep, rich alluvial val¬ 
ley. Its soil, generally, though rather stony, is a 
quick and grateful one, and when judiciously 
stocked and cultivated, repays a fair percentage on 
the capital and labor expended upon it. This is a 
fruitful subject with us, and we could expatiate 
upon it to the end of a volume; and though space 
now forbids extended notices, yet jottings from our 
notes may be sprinkled over our columns for six 
months to come. Massachusetts is a glorious old 
state—we have revisited it with feelings of intense 
pleasure, and proud are we to add, that here we 
drew our natal breath—here received our first 
instruction—and here passed childhood’s golden 
hours. 
The Farm of Messrs. Wells and Paoli La - 
tkrop is situated about one mile above the flour¬ 
ishing village of South Hadley Falls.. It compri¬ 
ses about 200 acres, mostly of gently rolling land, 
naturally of a good, strong soil, but previous to 
their purchase in 1833, it had for a long time been 
under the shinning course of cropping, a “ course,” 
we regret to add, which still seems the most fash¬ 
ionable and general in the United States. The 
first movement here was to stock the land with as 
many animals as it would support, in order to 
make manure for its renovation ; they then gath¬ 
ered up all that was to be had at a reasonable rate 
in the neighborhood, and,in addition, made an im¬ 
mediate resort to plaster, at the rate of 100 lbs. or 
so to the acre—it costing ground, at the village, 
$8 per ton. Some parts of the farm were springy, 
and abounded with bushes, rushes, and coarse 
water-grass; these have been drained, plowed, 
cropped, and laid down to grass; and thus the 
patches which a short time ago were worthless 
swamps, are now among the best and most pro¬ 
ductive meadows. Where three fourths to one 
ton of hay were formerly cut, two and a half to 
three tons are now obtained, and there is not a 
doubt but the other crops have increased in an 
equal ratio, and that the whole products of the 
farm, on the average, have at least been trebled by 
the Messrs. Lathrop since they came into its pos¬ 
session; and we are glad to add, that they do not 
mean to stop here, but keep on the broad road of 
improvement, trusting that they may eventually 
quadruple if not quintuple them. Nor in such ex¬ 
pectations need any one be too sanguine; for we 
can point to several fields where not over 15 to 20 
bushels of corn were formerly grown to the acre, 
which now yield 75 to 100 under a careful system 
of improved cultivation, and rye, wheat, roots, and 
grass, in proportion. We scarcely know yet, in 
the United States, what a farm may be made to 
produce. 
The farm-house, barn, and out-buildings here, 
are over a hundred years old; but they are neat, 
and in good repair, and with the old trees surround¬ 
ing them, present a venerable appearance, which 
it is pleasing to contemplate. Nearer the road¬ 
side, Mr. Wells Lathrop has built him a tasteful 
residence, in modem style of architecture, with a 
pretty garden and ornamental grounds attached, 
belted in against the winds with thick rows of trees. 
The Stock .—This is nearly all of thorough bred 
Durhams, South Down sheep, and the celebrated 
Mackay breed of swine. This stock we examined 
with interest, and must express our gratification of 
its high value and careful breeding. Princess is a 
magnificent great cow, and the most extraordinary 
animal, m one respect, we ever heard of. She is 
now nineteen years old! yet does not look to be 
over ten or eleven, is in fine condition from grass 
pasture alone, and, what is most surprising, her 
flesh and hide still handle, in her old age, better 
than half the choice cows a dozen years her junior. 
She brought a highly promising calf last October, 
which we had the gratification of seeing not only 
alive , but playfully kicking, and showing vigor 
and constitution enough to carry it well through to 
the age of its dam. Talk about the delicacy of 
Durhams—their degeneracy of constitution—their 
want of hardiness and vigor—and the necessity ot 
restoring all these with some ill-bred, coarse, vul¬ 
gar, dunghill cross ! Bah ! We have not patience 
to listen to such nonsense, and shall be infinitely 
obliged to any one who will show us a cow from 
this breed, or, rather, no breed at all, of the same 
age, and as enduring as Princess. Come, gentle¬ 
men, it is an easy matter to theorize from books, talk 
glibly, and pen a paragraph; but just be so good as 
