[ 205 ] 
Having formerly resided in the northern parts 
of the county of Washington, where is perhaps the 
greatest body of clay land of any to be found in 
the state ; and having about the same time had fre« 
quent opportunities to observe the wonderful, I had 
almost said miraculous effects of the plaister 
(gypsum) manure on the gravelly and sandy soils 
of the middle counties-—it became a desirable ob¬ 
ject with me to discover a manure, that on the clay¬ 
ey soil might prove of similar, if not of equal utili¬ 
ty. In the course of my researches, several con¬ 
spicuous circumstances presented ; from each of 
which I have at times endeavored to draw some¬ 
thing favorable to my plan, viz. I always observ¬ 
ed, that where large heaps of logs or brush had been 
burned, the grain and grass, for at least the two 
succeeding years, were singularly rank and thrifty, 
even to that degree, that I have often seen it lodged 
on those places, when the rest of the field seemed 
scarcely worth reaping. But where gravelly ground 
had been burned in like manner, unless it contain¬ 
ed much clay ; I as constantly observed, that the 
vegetation was more or less injured. I at first at¬ 
tributed these beneficial effects on the clay ground, 
to the salts contained in the ashes produced from 
the wood. But I was soon taught to think differ¬ 
ently by observing the same effects where white- 
pine and hemlock logs had been burned, which 
yield very few ashes, and those containing little or 
no salt ; and I have even scraped off the top of the 
ground in some of those places, removing all the 
