Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1868-11-06

have not only been 'kept up" but
have in fact materially improved in
/ fertility. I speak of the up lands that
have been managed by the best farm
The bottom lands and the black lands
of the White Elm regions, have not
been so well treated. Here the prac-
| tice is to run in cQrn-the most profita-
bic crop We have, and the most valua-
bic crop for all purposes the earth any
where prOdUces-until the soil exhibits
decided symptoms of exhaustion, and
then to give it about two years in Glow
er; or If the land be too wet for this, in
/ timothy and red top, after which il is
| expected to produce as well as ever
/ Because these extraordinary lands pro-
| duce far crops under this management,
il is quite generally practicsd, though
much less profitable than a system that
would be more generous to the land.
Between the Olentangy
river and Alum Creek, the soil, rest
ing upon the black shale commonly
called slate), is somewhat different
| not so we'll adapted to the production
| of wheat and clover, though upon
/ produced with profit. Except near the
| streams, much of this land is quite fat,
and was, in q state of nature, very wet.
| 1t is "White elm, black Iand"-very
| rich, and where any attention has been
paid to the drainage of the surface wa
4
yorable seasons these lands produce
/ corn, as well as any of the bottoms, and
/ for hay, timothy and red top they are
| superior to the bottom lands
The middle of this district, at the time
/ of the construction through it of the
/ Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati
/ Railroad in 1850, was mostly an unbro-
! ken wilderness. Since that time, lands
that had been considered very undesir-
| able and of but little value, have been
| cleared up and improved, and are now
| selling at prices equal to the best lands
/ in the country.
The timber of this district, and east
waxd to the Licking county line, has
more white elm, ash, beech and soft
maple, and less hickory, white oak aud
/ walnut, than the western district. The
| main products here are corn and grass
there being from eleven to thirteen
| hundred acres in each of the townships.
| Harlem, for example, in the ex-
trenae southeast, reports for the year
| 1865 only thirteen acres in clover, while
Thompson, in the northwest, with far
| less improved land, has one hundred
! and seYenty-nine acres. Berkshire re-
ports but 227 acres, while SciotO has S3S
acres, being a much larger average than
any township in the county. The town
ships which produce the most wheat are
found to be those that grow the most
clover.
From Alum creek east, we have a
4 QEl6E auQ more uuQulaI4n2 surface.
| with a soil better adapted Except along
the creeks and brooks) to grazing and
meadows than to tillage purposes
/ though much of it may be profitablY
cultivated in grain.
The population here has a large in
/ fusion of the New England clement
The important township of Berkshire,
about the center of this district, con-
tain1Hg now the three villages of Sun
bury, Galena and Berkshire, was set
tied by Col. Mons. Bysbe and a colony
from Berkshire, Massachusetts,, as early
Allusion has already been made to
the character Of the population along
the SciOto river. Comparing the early
settlers of Radnor, for example, in the
west, with that of Berkshire a repre-
sentative township in the east we
should expect TO find the latter far IN
advance of the former, And for many
years in the early history of the coun-
ty, Berkshire was decidedly superior in
improvements and farm products
But the returns of the assessors show
| that the western township has of late
years been gaining tfeon her eastern
rival, and is now in advance of her in
the aggregate of farm products.
In 1866 these returns showed the num-
Der of cattle, horses and hogs in the
two townships as follows:
RADNoR.
/ Horses, Val Cattle Val Hogs Val
59I sl5,074 LIS s88,8i7 2577 s1i, ,i65 iii
/ BERKSHIRE.
4oo 2a,555 us 18474 953 455 IS
In sheep Berkshire has double as
many as RadnOr, or II, $50 to 6,255. The
value per head is about the same, which
is a little surprising, as in Radnor the
/ sheep are bred quite as much for mutt
| ton as for wool, and are, therefore, not
of the fine wool variety as general
thing, while in Berkshire the focks are
| mostly MerinOs of the finer grades.
In 1865 Berkshire had only 3O6 acres
| in wheat, with product of 3,517 bush
els, while Radnor had ], ,672 acres, pro-
ducing Is, 903 bushels, and Radnor g.
5S7 acres, producing liz $40 bushels In
oats, the townships are nearly equal, or
about 10000 bushels each. OF meadow
hay, Berkshire had 3, ,159 tons, and of
clover, go tons; Radnor, 2,149 tons of
hay, and 707 tons ofclover.
The dairies of Radnor produce 49, ,301
| pounds of butter, while Berkshire has
only 2S,S35. But Berkshire returns 81,
sos pounds of wool, while Radnor has
only Is, ,317. These two townships are
about the same size, Radnor rather the
larger, and were settled about the same
| time. The Radnor lands are supposed
to be the best; and yet if the returns of
l the assessors give the correct yield per
| acre, the Berkshire lands produce about
as well, except in wheat and clover.
/ The system of rotation practiced in
i the western district is followed here
when wheat and clover are grown, but
| as corn and grass are-the principal pro-
| ducts, this system is practiced to-Essst-s
| limited extent. The usual custom is o
cultivate in corn until the crop begins
| perceptibly to diminish, and then to
ststock down" to grass with some grain
crop. The land is continued in mead
ow as long as full crop is produced, ,
and then perhaps pastured for a few
years and when this begins to fail, it is
again ploWed up. This is supposed to be
the best system for keeping up the
! land, but for clay soils it is not so good
nor as profitable as more frequent pIoW-
ing with plenty of clover. These lands,
unless underdrained, very soon be-
| come t'sett1ed" so compactly that neith-
| er water nor air can penetrate them
We now come to speak more general
| ly of the products and farm manage
/ ment of the county at large. From the
returns of the United States Assessors
for 1860, it appears that Delaware had
| l46,97I acres of improved land, and 97.-
466 acres of unimprOVed or wood land
valued at 7,736, ,O32. These returns
| give as the total number OF acres in the
| county only IA, ,43S while the actual
| acreage upon which we pay taxes, as
sessed under the appraisement Of 1859
| so, appears to be 283, 1888 acres, of which
i 81 1886 are set down as 'farable or plow
/ land" 81 sos as stmeadoW or pasture
land" and 134, ,279 acres as "'uncultiva-
/ ted or wood land.'1 There is no doubt
| but these latter are the more correct
/ figures, though it is probable that con
! siderable of the land here set down as
| wood land, is used for pasturage. It
| will be observed that by both these re-
ports the quantity of improved land is
/ about the same.
WHEAT.
This crop in 1860 was failure, being
killed outright by hard freezing with
| high winds, when the ground was bare.
| In 1867 our crop was very superior in
quality and fair in quantity. In 1865
| there were II 1913 acres in wheat, pro-
| ducing 129,540 bushels. The crop of
! 1862 was the largest in acreage and
amount of grain the last ten years, to
| wit, two hundred and eighty-eight
thousand eight hundred and seventy
one bushels, from sixteen thousand six
hundred and ninety-six acres. During
| this period we had three failures two
from hard freezing in winter, thing
| that had never been heard of before