The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1870-05-27

weeds, very loose, exceedingly rich, and
decidedly superior to other lands for corn
ss.:::.sa . rect crops. These hills-sides arc a
god-send to s'Sang diggers," and abound
with Indian turnips, May-apples, sweet and
bitter sarsaparilla and copper-head snakes
There is no part of this county that is not
naturally adapted to all the grasses, and
hence it is naturally fertile. So much for
the character of the lands in nut. shell
now for the products
The productions of this county are all
the cereals, grasses and roots, with respec-
table crops of tobacco. The staple is corn,
though large crops of oats are raised Be
ing stock-raising section, the most pro-
titable crops are of course corn, rye, oats
and hay. Wheat is very uncertain, not
hitting" as we term it, more than once
in three or four years, but have thought
the failure was rather to be traced to de
fective tillage than the rigors of winter or
the ravages of insects. The corn crop,
imagine, rarely averages more than six
barrels to the acre, tho know some farms
that yield ten and even twenty. Take the
county by and large, and one season with
another, it is my opinion that wheat does
not average more than eight bushels per
acre, yet some farmers, in favorable seasons,
make from 80 to 40. Rye does somewhat
better-only because it is hartlier-and
probably averages from 10 to 12 bu. hels
per acre. and oats from 25 to 40. An orr
binary crop of hay is about two tons, and
II extra, three tons per acre, particularly
the variety known as evergreen, which
grows six feet high, and as thick as the
hair on dogs back. Buckwheat rarely
fails, and is of superior quality-and let
me say in passing, it makes the best whis-
key in the world. All root crops are pro-
life, and most of them yield generously in
any of our soils, if properly planted and
attended to. Hartford, however, excels us
in the Irish potato and ruta-baga as l
have never seen crop of the former here
equal to that of Mr.. John Moores in your
vicinity, last fall, or to the latter on the
farm of Mr. Robert Holland when I was a
boy.
And now, Messrs. Editors, having very
briefly alluded to the character and pro-
auctions of our soils-and brevity upon
all subjects is part of my religion-I APP
proach the difficult and delicate part of
my programme with misgivings and the
fear that may not be able to do it Justice
| allude to the former as well as present
manner Of cultivation. The last hope to
be able to manage in some sort but the first
may command power of imagination and
force Of language very much fear | do
not possess, and but for my promise to
ventilate them, would be very much dis
posed to "let them slide"
When l settled in these mountains be-
tween 30 and 40 years ago, many of the
farmers prepared the forest during the W in
ter for the corn crop ofthe following spring.
This they did by betting the heavy timber
and chopping out the underground. But
little grubbing was done, and the roots were
left in the ground TO be torn up by the
"bull-tongue," which was the first nipple
ment honored with the privilege of prepar-
ing The virgin soil for crop. Often have
| seen in these 'clearings' II squa tier with
his mule and bull-tongue, toiling, swearing
and sweating, as his rude complement, strik,
ing big root, would toss him into the air,
make him dance as many jigs as pair of
frozen brooches on clothes line, and throw
his mule backward on his "beam- ends" as
suddenly as If he had met thunder
in his path. Such farmers, however, man
aged to worry along by scratching the earth
about as deep as would turkey-hen in
search of food for her little ones, raise FAM
lily OF s or 10 white headed, bare footed.
long shirted, unwashed children, and about
as many dogs, produce a crop of stalks, Is
feet high and about as big as pipe stems,
with ears standing as straight up as those of
a rabbit, and about the size of mans finger.
The same ground, if properly cleared and
cultivated, would have produced from Is
to 20 barrels per acre.
Another class, who had gore through a
like experience years before, had Quit
clearing, but were still cultivating corn in
the same ground in which they had been
raising it for a score of years consecutiyelv,
and when at last mother earth became in
dipnant at such ruinous treatment, and
refused to respond, they would conclude to
''rotate" with wheat or rye, which was
sown broadcast among the standing stalks.
shoyelled in with the same everlasting
mule and bull tongue, and then left to take
its chances. The consequence was, if it
didn't freeze out they would have enough
| to make few cakes and pies at Christmas
but if it did, they only had their "troube
for their pains" and didn't seem to care q
copper, and lived on in hope.
| have known some men-and by tbo
way we have "a few of the same sort leftn-
who raised large families in log cabins 10
to 1G feet square, by cultivating from five
to dozen acres of corn on steep hill sides
with nothing upon earth but hoe Corn
was all they cared about cultivatine, with
a few beans, Shanghai cabbages and pump
kins, the latter kept from straying by be-
ing propped or scotched on the lawn side
with chunk or stone. The rifle kept
them in meat, and the axe felled the bee-tree
and filled their gourds with honey. Ihave
never, in my travels and intercourse with
men, seen happier people than these very
"squatters" on the hill-sides, who seemed
to have no concern beyond the present mo-
ment. They would toll at the hoe handle
all day long-both male and female-dance
the live-long night by the light of pine
knot, and it was no uncommon thing to
hear robust, bare-footed, rosy-cheeked
wood nymph exclaim at one of their frol-
les, "here, SAL hold my baby while run
a reel with this strange feller!"
The foregoing are imperfect outlines of
farming and living in the hills thirty-five
years ago, but great changes have taken
place, altho' most of our farmers are still
behind the progress of the age, and cult
vate too much land. Were they to con-
fine themselves to half the usual uuantity