I f # • I ^ AN ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF AGRICULTURE; COMPRISING THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF THE VALUATION, TRANSFER, LAYING OUT, IMPROVEMENT, AND MANAGEMENT OF LANDED PROPERTY; AND THE CULTIVATION AND ECONOMY OF THE ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS OF AGRICULTURE, INCLUDING ail t%t latent 3Imptot)emcnt0 ; A GENERAL HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE IN ALL COUNTRIES,- AND A STATISTICAL VIEW OF ITS PRESENT STATE. WITH SUGGESTIONS FOR ITS FUTURE PROGRESS IN THE BRITISH ISLES. By J. C. LOUDON, F.L.S., H.S., &c. AUTHOR OF THE ENCTCtOPEDIA OF UARDEMNG. ILLUSTRATED WITH UPWARDS OF EIGHT HUNDRED ENGRAVINGS ON WOOD BY BRANSTOK. , LONDON PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, BROWN, AND GREEN, PATERNOSTER-ROW ; AND SOLD BY CAREY AND LEA, PHILADELPHIA. 1826. c; Dc\ i London : i Printed by A. & R. Spottiswoode, New-Street- Square. PREFACE. Though the title of this work is sufficiently comprehensive, it may not be improper to state the grounds on which it lays claim to being the most complete body of Agriculture hitherto submitted to the public. The subject of Agriculture admits of two grand divisions ; the im- provement and general management of landed property, which may be termed Territorial Economy ; and the cultivation and treatment of its more useful animal and vegetable productions, which is called Husbandry, or Agriculture in a more limited sense of the term. Numerous as have been the publications on rural matters during the last twenty years, there are but two or three of them, whose titles might lead to a sup- position that they embraced both of these departments. Of these, two may be cited : the Complete Farmer, as the most extensive, and the Code of Agriculture, as the most recent. The Complete Farmer, or Dictionary of Husbandry, in two thick quarto volumes, with numerous plates, was published in 1807; it is copious to an excess, containing an immense mass of matter, new and old, good and bad. As a diction- ary of Husbandry, it was the best of its kind at the time of its publica- tion : but the rapid progress of Agriculture since its date, renders it at the present time quite an obsolete work. The Code of Agriculture, in one volume octavo, published in 1817, professes to be " a general view of the principles of the art, and an account of its most approved prac- tices." {Pref. p. xi.) By inspecting the contents of the work, however, it will be found limited to the Husbandry Department ; and of that to contain little more than a general outline. That it never was intended as more than a book on Farming, its first chapter, " On the Preliminary Points which a Farmer ought to consider, &c.," and an ob- servation of its author in his preface, sufficiently shews : " in addition," he states, " (to the Code) it would certainly be desirable to have a separate work on the Minutiae of Farming," " which," he continues, *' might be accomplished in another volume of a similar size." {Pref, p. xi.) The Code of Agriculture, therefore, has no other pretensions to being a complete view of the subject, than what the imagination may confer from the quaintness of its title. By this title it has been alleged, the author probably intended, " some allusion to the Code Napoleon, some mysterious reference to a body of laws, and some modest preten- A 2 iv PREFACE. sions to the character of an Agricultural Lawgiver." (Farmers Mag. vol. xviii. p. 78.) The Code, however, has great merit as a collection of useful precepts on Farming ; but not being a complete view of its subject ; and the Complete Farmer being obsolete, there remained ample room for a performance such as we have undertaken. This work, which we have termed an Encyclopcedia of Agriculture, on account of its comprehensiveness, professes to embrace every part of the subject; and what has never hitherto been attempted, a general History of Agriculture in all countries, and a condensed survey of its present state in every county of the British Isles. We have adopted a systematic arrangement as by far the best for instruction, and also as best admitting of compression ; and we have at the same time supplied a copious General Index to render the whole of the easiest access as a book of reference. All this could only be accom- plished by a very copious page, and the liberal use of engravings. By these means, much verbal description is avoided, ideas more forcibly expressed, and such a body of useful matter included in one volume as, by the system of detached copperplate engravings, and ordinary letter press, would have occupied half a dozen, and been high priced in pro- portion. Throughout this work, we have kept in view the following objects : in Part I., to depict Agriculture in the most universal sense, by giving a view of that of all countries ; in Part II., to depict the principles on which the operations and results of the Agriculture of all countries are founded ; and in Parts III. and IV., to apply these principles to that particular Agriculture which is practised in Britain, and similar climates. In pursuing these objects, we have aimed at language sufficiently free from provincial or obscure technology to be understood by all classes of readers. In depicting the Agriculture of Britain, we have held up to view that of the northern counties of Northumberland, Berwickshire, and East Lothian as examples, in most things, to the other parts of the empire. In addressing landlords, superior agents, valuators, and patrons, to point out the advantages of equitable and liberal conduct to their te- nants and dependants ; in discussing the duties of land stewards, bailiffs, and other serving agriculturists, to recommend habits of order, vigilance, and economy ; and finally, submitting to all classes of readers, the advan- tages of enlightening the minds and ameliorating the condition of the operative classes, by facilitating the attainment of instruction : pointing out the evils of early marriages increasing the comfort and improving the appearance of their cottages and gardens ; and, especially, by repaying their labor to a certain extent in productions calculated for their chief support. (See § 3841. and 44.96.) For in our opinion the peculiar comfort of all those engaged in agriculture as a profession, from the laborer to the gentleman farmer, will ever consist more in the possession ivithin themselves of the essential means of comfortable existence, than of PREFACE. V the power of accumulating fortunes, such as manufacturers and com- mercial men frequently acquire. As much of the value of a work of this kind will depend on the knowledge it conveys of the modern improvements in implements and buildings, particular attention has been paid to these subjects. Three- fourths of the implements and edifices of which engravings are given in Dr. Dickson's Practical Agriculture, and the Complete Farmer,. may be considered as obsolete, or greatly altered by subsequent im- provements. Many of these improvements have not found their way into any books, and for them we have had recourse to the originals, and to the most eminent Agricultural mechanics and manufacturers of implements : Our thanks in this respect are particularly due to the proprietors of Weir's Agricultural Repository, Oxford- Street, London, for permitting us to take sketches from their extensive collec- tion, and more particularly of those implements and machines which the late Mr. Weir invented or greatly improved. Our best thanks are also due to Mr. Morton, Leith-walk, Edinburgh, who is equally eminent as an Agricultural mechanist in Scotland. There is no implement or machine mentioned in this work which will not be found on sale, or may not be made to order in the establishments alluded to, in the best manner, and at an equitable charge. For important assistance in the Veterinary part of this work, our best thanks are due to an eminent professor. Through the kind assistance of this gentleman we have been enabled to bring together a body of popular information on the anatomy, physiology, pathology, breed- ing, rearing, and general treatment of the horse, the ox, the sheep, and other domestic animals, even to dogs and poultry, as we can safely assert is not to be found in any other Agricultural publication. It remains only to mention as a key to this work, that such technical terms as are used in a more definite sense than usual, are explained at the end of this preface ; such as are not common in general language, in the index ; and the abridged titles of books, or of proper names, are there also given at length. The systematic nomenclature of plants adopted, is that of our Encyclopcedia of Plants and Hortus Britannicus, now in great part through the press, with some exceptions which are noted where they occur. In the specific names of animals, we have followed Turton's edition of the Sy sterna Naturcc of Linnaeus : such chemical, mineralogical, and geological terms as occur, are those used by Sir H. Davy in his Agricultural Chemistry, and by Professor Brande in his Geology: and the weights and measures are always after the standard of England, unless otherwise expressed. More accuracy and consistency, it is hoped, has been attained in these par- ticulars, than is usual in even the best Agricultural works ; the dry rot is not here described as " a plant with leaves like the misletoe," as in A3 vi PREFACE. the Complete Farmer ; clover is not called a grass, the Scotch pine a fir, or tubers roots, as in the Code ; earth, soil, and mould are not con- founded as in most farming books ; and no cultivator is here told, as he is in Arthur Young's Farmers Kalendar {May, art. Hemp, 1st edit. 1790, 12th edit. 1823.) to make the rent per acre a criterion in choosing a soil for any plant. The recent changes, indeed, which have taken place in the market value of currency, render price a criterion of much too temporary a nature to be employed in any work which aims at general and perma- nent utility. For this reason we have in the Encyclopaedia generally avoided money calculations, indicating the value of objects or operations by the quantity of materials and labor requisite to pro- duce them ; or by stating their cost relatively to the cost of other articles. We have also avoided entering on the subject of state policy, as to the relative protection of Agriculture and manufactures, or of the protection of the home against the foreign grower of corn. Natural prices will always be safer for the farmer than artificial ones, and with low prices the farmer haa the chance of deriving a greater benefit on an extraordinary rise, and sustaining less loss on an extraordinary fall. If the prices of corn were one half lower than they are, neither farmers nor proprietors would find their comforts diminished; for the value of manufac- tures and importations would fall in proportion to that of Agricultural produce. Price, it is true, is not always value ; but they are never materially different for any length of time. By referring to the Kalendarial Index, those parts of this work which treat of farm and forest culture, and management, may be consulted monthly as the operations require to be performed ; and by recurring to the General Index, any particular subject may be traced alphabetically through all its ramifications of history, theory, practice, and statistics. Thus we have here combined an Agricultural Treatise, a Husbandman's Kalendar, and a Dictionary of Rural Affairs. J.C.L. Bai/sumter, June 19, 1825. vu THE FOLLOWING TERMS Being frequently used in a vague and indefinite manner, it will be of advantage to the reader to know beforehand the sense in which they are applied in this work. Other terms of less frequent use, or of various meaning, are explained in an alphabetical order in the General Index. Agriculture is used in its most extensive sense in the third line of the title page, and generally in the Historical part of the work (Parti.) as including territorial economy and husbandry. In most parts of this work, for example, in the words of the title page, " animal and vegetable productions of Agriculture," as synonymous with husbandr)\ In s HI. Of the Agriculture of Germany and other Northern States from the Fifth to the Seventeenth Century ... ib. IV. History of Agriculture in Britain from the Fifth to the Seventeenth Century - 36 1. History of Agriculture in Britain during the Anglo-Saxon Dynasty, or from the Fifth to the Eleventh Century - ib. Page 2. Of the State of Agriculture in Britain after the Norman Conquest, or from the Eleventh to the Thirteenth Century - 37 3. History of Agriculture in Britain from the Thirteenth to the Seventeenth Cen- tury - - - . - 40 4. History of Agriculture from the Death of Henry VIII. in 1547, to the Revo- lution in 1688 - - .41 V. History of Agriculture in ultra European Countries during the Middle Ages - 47 Chap. IV. Present State of Agriculture in Europe . 48 I. Of the Present State of Agriculture in Italy ib. 1. Of the Agriculture of Lombardy . ib. 2. Of the Agriculture of Tuscany . sf 3. Of the Agriculture of the Maremmes, or the District of Pestilential Air _ 55 4. Farming in the Neapolitan Territory, or the Land of Ashes - . .57 II. Of the Present State of Agriculture in Switzerland - - . - 59 1. Of the Agriculture of the Swiss Cantons ib. 2. Agriculture of the Duchy of Savoy - 62 III. Of the present State of Agriculture in France - - - - 65 1. Progress of French Agriculture from the time of Louis XIV. to the present Time ib. 2. Of the general Circumstances of France in respect to Agriculture - . QQ 3. Of the common Farming of France - 67" 4. Farming in the warmer Climates of France 70 IV. Present State of Agriculture in Holland and the Netherlands - - - 72 1. Present State of Agriculture in Holland ib. 2. Present State of Agriculture in the Ne- therlands - - - - 73 V. Present State of Agriculture in Germany 87 1. General View of the Agricultural Circum- stances of Germany - - . ib. 2. Agriculture of the Kingdom of Denmark, including Greenland and Iceland - 89 3. Agriculture of the Kingdom of Prussia 90 4. Agriculture of the Kingdom of Hanover 93 5. Present State of the Agriculture of Saxony 95 6. Present State of the Agriculture of the Kingdom of Bavaria - - - 96 ' 7. Present State of the Agriculture of the Empire of Austria - . . ib. VI. Of the present State of Agriculture in the Kingdom of Poland ... IQO VII. Present State of the Agriculture of Russia - - - .104 VIII. Present State of the Agriculture of Swe- den and Norway - . _ lOg IX. Present State of the Agriculture of Spain and Portugal - - - - 113 1. Present State of Agriculture in European Turkey - - . - ,120 Chap. V. Modern History and present State of Agricul- ture in the British Isles - . 122 I. Political History of Agriculture in Britain from tlie Revolution in 1668, to the pre- sent Time - - - .123 CONTENTS. Page 1. Professional History of Agriculture, from the Revolution to the present Time - 125 2. Of the Literature of British Agriculture from the Revolution to the present Time 130 3. Of the Rise, Progress, and present State of Agriculture in Ireland - - 132 Chap. VI. Present State of Agriculture in Ultra European Countries - - - - - 138 I. Present State of Agriculture in Asia - ib. 1. Present State of Agriculture in Asiatic Turkey - - - 139 2. Present State of Agriculture in Persia ib. 3. Present State of Agriculture in Independ- ent Tatary - - - .143 4. Present State of Agriculture in Arabia U). 5. Present State of Agriculture in Hindustan 145 6. Of the Agriculture of the Island of Ceylon 151 7. Present State of Agriculture in the Bir- man Empire, in Java, Malacca, Siam, Cochin China, Tonquin, Japan, &c. - 152 8. Present State of Agriculture in the Chi- nese Emi)ire - . . . 157 9. Present State of Agriculture in Chinese Tatary, Thibet, and Bootan - . 165 10. Present State of Agriculture in the Asiatic Islands, including also those of Australasia and Polynesia - - 166 II. Present State of Agriculture in Africa 170 1. Present State of Agriculture in Abyssinia ib. 2. Present State of Agriculture in Egypt 171 3. Present State of Agriculture in the Maho- metan States of the North of Africa - 175 4. Present State of Agriculture on the West- ern Coast of Africa - . . I77 5. Present State of Agriculture at the Cape of Good Hope - . .178 6. Present State of Agriculture on the East- em Coast of Africa, and the African Islands - - - . . 182 III. Present State of Agriculture in North America - - - .184 1. Present State of Agriculture in the United States . . . : .if,, 2. Present State of Agriculture in Mexico - 189 3. Present State of Agriculture in the British Possessions of North America . 191 4. Present State of Agriculture in the West India Islands . - - .192 IV. Present State of Agriculture in South America - - . ,198 BOOK II. AGRICULTURE AS INFLUENCED BY GEOGRA- PHICAL, PHYSICAL, CIVIL, AND POLITICAL CIRCUMSTANCES. Chap. I. Agriculture as influenced by Geographica Circumstances - - 202 Chap. II. Agriculture as influenced by Physical Circum- stances - . . . .203 Chap. III. Agriculture as affected by Civil, Political, and Religious Circumstances - - 205 Chap. IV. Of the Agriculture of Britain - - 207 PART II. AGRICULTURE CONSIDERED AS A SCIENCE. BOOK I. OF THE STUDY OF THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM WITH A VIEW TO AGRICULTURE. Chap. I. Of the Study of Systematic Botany -208 Chap. II. Vegetable Anatomy, or the Structure and Or- ganization of Plants . _ _ 210 I. Of the External Structure of Perfect Plants ib\ II. Of the External Structure of Imperfect Plants - . - . . 211 III. Of the Internal Structure of Plants - 213 1. Decomposite Organs . - . id. 2. Composite Organs ... 214 3. Elementary or Vascular Organs . 215 Chap. III. Vegetable Chemistry, or Primary Principles of Plants - - . . .216 I. Compound Products . . .217 II. Simple Products ■• - . . 226 Chap. IV. Functions of Vegetables - - . n,, I. Germination of the Seed - - - ii,\ II. Food of the Vegetating Plant - . 228 III. Process of Vegetable Nutrition . 233 IV. Process of Vegetable Developcment . 240 V. Anomalies of Vegetable Developcment . 244 VI. Of the Sexuality of Vegetables - _ 248 VII. Impregnation of the Seed - . 249 VIII. Changes consequent upon Impregnation 250 IX. The Propagation of the Species - .251 X. Causes limiting the Propagation of the XI. Evidence and Character of Vegetable Vi- tality Chap. V. Vegetable Pathology, or the Diseases and Ca- sualties of Vegetable Life - - 258 I. Wounds and Accidents - - , ib. Page II. Diseases - - - . - 259 HI. Natural Decay - - - .262 Chap VI, Vegetable Geography and History, or the Dis- tribution of Vegetables relatively to the Earth and to Man . - - . _ 263 I. Geographical Distribution of Vegetables . 264 II. Physical Distribution of Vegetables . ib. III. Civil Causes affecting the Distribution of Plants . - - - - 269 IV. Characteristic or Picturesque Distribution of Vegetables - - - - 270 V. Systematic Distribution of Vegetables - 271 VI. Economical Distribution of Vegetables . 272 VII. Arithmetical Distribution of Vegetables 273 VIII. Distribution of the British Flora, indi- genous and exotic - - . ib. Chap VII. Origin and Principles of Culture as derived from the Study of Vegetables - - 277 BOOK II. OF THE STUDY OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM WITH REFERENCE TO AGRICULTURE. ' Chap. I. Systematic Zoology, or the Language, Nomen- clature, Description, and Classilication of Animals 280 Chap II. Animal Anatomy . - . - 282 I. External Anatomy of Animals - «/>». II. Internal Anatomy of Animals . -284 1. Osseous Structure of Animals - ib. 2. Muscular Structure of Animals - 285 3. Structure of the Nervous System 287 Chap III. Animal Chemistry ; or the Substances which enter into thu Composition of the Bodies of Animals - . - . .288 CONTENTS. Chap. IV. Page Animal Physiology .... 291 I. Ot' tiie Digestive System - - - ib. II. Of the Circulating System - - ib. III. Of the reproductive System of Animals - 292 Chap. V. Animal Pathology ; or the Duration, Diseases, and Casualties of Animal Life . - 293 Chap. VI. Of the Distribution of Animals Chap. VII. Of the Economical Uses of Animals 295 298 pIAP. VIII. Principles of improving the Domestic Animals used in Agriculture . . . . 299 I. Of improving the Breed of Animals - ib. II. Of the general Principles of rearing, ma- naging, and feeding Domestic Animals 302 III. Of Feeding for Extraordinary Purposes 305 IV. Of the Modes of killing Animals . 307 BOOK III. OF THE STUDY OF THE MINERAL KINGDOM AND THE ATMOSPHERE, WITH REFERENCE TO AGRICULTURE. Chap. I. Of Earths and Soils . . . . I. Of the Geological Structure of the Globe and the Formation of Earths and Soils - II. Classification and Noemnclature of Soils - III. Of discovering the Qualities of Soils 1. Of discovering the Qualities of Soils by means of the Plants which grow on them 2. Of discovering the Qualities of Soils by Chemical Analysis 3. Of discovering the Qualities of a Soil me- chanically and empirically IV. Of the Uses of the Soil to Vegetables V. Of the Improvement of Soils 1. Pulverisation 2. Of the Improvement of Soils by Compres- sion - - - . .320 3. Of the Improvement of Soils by Aeration or Fallowing - - , . ib. 4. Alteration of the constituent Parts of Soils 321 5. Changing the Condition of Lands, in res- pect to Water - . .323 6. Changing the Condition of Lands, in res- pect to Atmospherical Influence - 325 7. Rotation of Crops ... 326 Chap. IL Of Manures ... . .327 I. Of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin 1. The Theory of the Operation of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin 2. Of the different Species of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin - ; 3. Of the fermenting, preserving, and apply- ble ib. ing of Manures of Animal and Vegetabl Origin . . - .334 II. Of Manures of Mineral Origin . .336 1, Theory of the Operation of Mineral Ma- nures - - - . - ib. 2. Of the diflferent Species of Mineral Manures 337 Chap. III. Of the Agency of Heat, Light, Electricity, and Water, in Vegetable Culture - - 342 I. Of Heat and Light . . . ib. II. Of Electricity - . -346 III. Of Water . . . ib. Chap. IV. Of the Agency of the Atmosphere in Vegeta- tion - - - . .347 I. Of the Elements of the Atmosphere - ib. II. Of the Means of prognosticating the Wea- ther - - . . . pi^i'j III. Of the Climate of Britain - . 3e0 BOOK IV. OF THE MECHANICAL AGENTS EMPLOYED IN AGRICULTURE. Chap. I. Pagc Of the Implements of Manual Labor used in Agriculture - - , . 3^1 I. Tools used in Agriculture - - _ ^j, II. Instruments - _ _ 3^54 1. Instruments of Labor . . if, 2. Instruments of Science ... 355 III. Utensils used in Agriculture - -368 IV. Hand Machines used in Agriculture - ib. Chap. II. Of Agricultural Implements and Machines drawn by Beasts of Labor I. Of Tillage Implements and Machines 1. Of Swing Ploughs, or such as are con- structetl without Wheels - 2. Wheel Ploughs - - - . 3. Of the Tillage Implements, known as Scarifiers, Scufflers, Cultivators, and Grubbers - 4. Of Tillage Implements of the Hoe Kind II. Of Machines for Sowing and Planting III. Of Harrows - . . . IV. Of Rollers V. Of Machines for laying Land even, and other occasional or anomalous Tillage Machines - - . . VI. Of Machines for reaping and gathering the Crop . - . . 1. Of Horse Rakes and Haymaking Ma- chines - - _ . 2. Reaping Machines - _ . VII. Machines of Deportation 1. Carts - - - . 2. Waggons - - . _ VIII. Machines for threshing and otherwise preparing Corn for Market IX. Mechanical and other fixed Apparatus, for the Preparation of Food for Cattle, and grinding Manure 372 373 ib. Sffl 402 - 406 Chap. IIL Edifices in use in Agriculture . . 408 I. Buildings for Live Stock . . jj, II. Buildings as Repositories, and for perform- ing in-door Operations . . 4J4, III. Of the Farmer's Dwelling- House .417 IV. Of Cottages for Farm Servants . . 419 V. Of the Stack-yard, Dung-yard, and other Enclosures immediately connected with Farm Buildings ... 422 VL Of the Union of the different Farm Build- ings and Enclosures in a Farmery . 425 Chap. IV. Of the Fences used in Agriculture . -430 I. Of the Situation or Emplacement of Fences 431 II. Of the different Kinds of Fences . 432 1. Ditch or Drain Fences . . ih 2. Of Hedge Fences 3. Of Compound Hedge Fences 4. Paling Fences 5. Wall Fences -433 - 438 - 439 - 443 Chap. V. Of Gates appropriate to Agriculture BOOK V. or THE OPERATIONS OF AGRICULTURE. Chap. I. Manual Labors and Operations . . 450 I. Mechanical Operations common to all Arts of Manual I.iabor ... /g II. Agricultural Labors of the Simplest Kind 451 III. Agricultural Operations with Plants . 453 IV. Mixed Operations performed by Manual Labor .... 4^ Chap. II. Agricultural Operations requiring the Aid of Laboring Cattle - - . , 45s CONTENTS. I. Operations for the Care of Live Stock II. Labors witli Cattle on the Soil III. Labors and Operations with the Crop Page - 468 - 470 - 474 Chap. III. Scientific Operations, and Operations of Order and general Management - ."'*'' I. Scientific Operations required of the Agri- culturist 1. Of Measuring relatively to Agriculture Pago 2. Of taking the Levels of Surfaces . 479 3. Of the Division and Laying out of Lands 480 4. Of estimating Weight/Powcr, and Quan- tities - - - - 482 5. Of estimating the Value of Agricultural Labor and Materials . - . 433 G. Of the Professional Etiquette of Land Surveyors, Appraisers, and Valuators, in making up their Plans and Ke|)orts .. 487 I. Operations of Order and Management ^ i'Jl PART III. AGRICULTURE AS PRACTISED IN BRITAIN. BOOK I. OF THE VALUATION, PURCHASE, AND TllANS- FER OF LANDED PROPERTY. Chap. I. Page Of the different Kinds and Tenures of laiulcd Property in the British Isles - - 494 I. Of the" Kinds of landed Property, and its different Tenures in England - - ib. II. Of the Kinds and Tenures of landed Pro- perty in Scotland ... 495 III. Of the Kinds and Tenures of landed Pro- perty in Ireland , - - - - 49(5 Chap. II. Of the Valuation of landed Property - - ib. Chap. IIL Of the PurcTiase or Transfer of landed Property 500 BOOK II. OF THE LAYING OUT, OR GENERAL AR- RANGEMENT OF LANDED ESTATES. Chap. I. Of consolidating Detached Property - - 502 Chap. II Of appropriating Commonable Lands - 503 I. Of the Origin and different Kinds of Com- monable Lands . - - ib, II. Of the general Principles of appropriating and dividing Commonable Lands - 505 Chap. III. Of the Choice of the Demesne or Site for the Proprietor's Residence - - . 508 Chap IV. On the Formation of Roads - . 510 I. Of the different Kinds of Roads - -511 II. Of the Line of Direction or laying out of Roads - - . . 512 III. Of the Form and Materials of Roads - 516 1. Of the P'ormation of Roads, and of their Wear or Injury - - - - H,, 2. Of M' Adam's Theory and Practice of Road-making • - - - - 518 3. Road-making as treateil of and practised by various eminent Engineers and Sur- veyors - - - - - 520 IV. Of paved Roads - - - . 536 V. Of Railroads - - - . 539 VI. Of the Preservation and Repair of Roads - 542 Chap. V. Of the Formation of Canals - . - -550 I. Utility of Navigable Canals - - ^ - ib. II. Of discovering the most eligible Rout for a Line of Canal - - . . 551 III. Of the Powers granted to Canal Com- panies by Gbvernnient - - 553 IV. Of the Execution of the Works Page - 554 Chap. VI. Of the Improvement of Estates by the Estab- lishment of Mills, Manufactories, Vil- lages, Markets, &c. 556 Chap. VII. Of Mines, Quarries, Pits, and Metalliferous Bodies .. . - - 500 Chap. VI IL Of the Establishment of Fisheries - -563 I. Of Marine Fisheries - - - ib. II. Of River, Lake, and other Inland Fisheries 565 Chap. IX, Of Plantations and Woodlands - - 568 I. Of the Soils and Situations which may be most profitably employed in Timber Plantation - - . . 5G0 II. Of the Trees suitable for different Soils, Situations and Climates - - ib. III. Of forming Plantations - - 571 IV. Of the Mixture of Tree« in Plantations - 578 V. Of the Culture of Plantations. - - 580 1. Of the Culture of the Soil among Trees - ib. 2. Of the Filling up of Blanks or Failures in Plantations - - . ib. 5. Of Pruning and Heading Down Trees in Plantations . - . .'JSl 4. Of Thinning Young Plantations -584 VI. Of the Improvement of Neglected Plan- tations - - . - 586 VII. Of the Treatment of Injured and Dis- eased Trees - - . - 587 VIII. Of the Products of Trees and their Pre- paration for Use or Sale. - - 589* IX. Of estimating the Value of Plantations and their Products, and of exposing them to Sale . - . - 595 Chap. X. Of the Formation and Management of Orchards 596 I. Of the Soils and Situations most suitable for Orchards - - - - 597 IL Of the Sorts of Trees and Manner of Planting . . - - //;. I I I. Of the Cultivation of Farm Orchards - 6(il IV. Of the Gathering and Keeping of Orchard Fruits - - . . em V. Of the Manufacture of Cider - -603 VI. Of the Machinery and Utensils necessary for Cider making . . . 606 Chap. XL Of the laying out of Farm and other Culturable Lands - - . - . 608 I. Of the Extent or Size of Farm and Cottage Lands - ..... ib. II. Of laying out Farms and Farmeries - 611 1. Of the Situation and Arrangement of the Farmery .... ib. 2. Of laying out Cottages - . - 619 3. Of laying out the Farm Lands - .621 CONTENTS. BOOK III. OF IMPROVING THE CULTURABLE LANDS OF AN ESTATE. CUAP. I. Page Of Draining Watery Lands - - 625 I. Of the Natural Causes of Wetness in Lands and the general Tlicory of DVaining - ib. II. Of the Methods of Draining Boggy Land - 628 III. Of the Methods of Draining Mixed Soils 634 IV. Of the Methods of Draining Retentive Soils - - - - -GS5 V. Methods of Draining Mines, Quarries, and Pits - - - - 637 VI. Of tlie Formation of Drains, and the Ma- terials used in Filling them - - 638 VII. Of the Implements peculiar to Draining (y):o Chap. II. Of Embanking and otherwise protecting Lands from the Overflowing or Encroachment of Rivers or the Sea . - - - 645 I. Of Embanking Lands from Rivers or the Sea - - - • H). 1. General Principles of designing Embank- ments - - - - - ib. 2. Of the different Descriptions of Banks in general Use for excluding Waters - 647 II. Of guarding the Banks, and otherwise im- proving the Course of Rivers and Streams 650 1. On guarding River Banks - - 651 2. Of Changing the Course of Rivers - 653 Chap. III. Of Irrigation, or the Improvement of Cultur- abie Lands and Farmeries by the Means of Water - - - - 654 I. Of Irrigation or the Preparation of the Sur- face of Lands for the profitable Applica- tion of Water .... ib. \. Of the Soils and Situations suitable for the Purposes of Watering Lands - - ^5 2. Of the Implements made Use of in Wa- tering Lands ; and of the Terms of Art peculiar to Works of that Kind - 656 3. Of the Preparation of Surfaces for Irriga- tion - - - , ^ : ^^^ II. Of Warping, or the Improvement of Land by Muddy Water - - - 665 1. Of the Irrigation of Arable Lands and of Subterraneous Irrigation - - 667 III. Of the Artificial Means of procuring Wa- ter for the Use of Live Stock - - ib. Chap. IV. Of the Improvement of Lands lying Waste, so as to tit them for Farm Culture - - 673 I. Of mountainous and hilly Grounds and their Improvement . _ . «7;. II. Of rocky or stoney Surfaces - - ib. III. Of improving woody Wastes or Wealds - 675 IV. Of Moors and their Improvements - 676 V. Of Peat Mosses, Bogs, and Morasses, and their Improvements - - 677 VI. Of Marshes and their Improvement - 679 VII. Of Downs and other Shore Lands - 680 Chap. V. Of the Improvement of Lands already in a State of Culture - - - 681 I. Of the general Principles and Modes of Pro- cedure in improving Estates already more or less improved - - ib. II. Of the Improvement of Farmeries and Farm Lands _ - . - ib. Chap. VI. Of the Execution of Improvements - 688 I. Of the different Modes of procuring the Execution of Improvements on Estates ib. II. General Cautions on the Subject of execut- ing Improvements - - - 690 BOOK IV. OF THE MANAGEMENT OF LANDED rUOrEUry. Chap. I. Page Of the Superintendants, or Executive Establish- ment of an Estate - - _ 692 I. or the Steward or Manager of an Estate, and his Assistants - . _ ib, II. Of the Land Steward's Place of Business, and what belongs to it - - 694 Chap. II. Of the Duties of Managers of Estates . 695 I. Of the general Principles of Business con- sidered relatively to Land-Stewardship - ib. II. Of the Management of Tenants - -696 1. Of the proper Treatment of Tenants - ib. 2. On the Business of letting Farms - 697 3. Of the different Species of Tenancy ib. 4. Of the Rent and Covenants of a Lease - 700 5. Of receiving Rents - . _ 702 III. Of Keeping and Auditing Accounts - 703 BOOK V. OF THE SELECTION, HIRING, AND STOCKING OF FARMS. Chap. I. Of the Circumstances of a Farm necessary to be considered by a proposed Tenant - 704 I. Of Climate in respect to Farming Lands - 705 II. Of Soil in respect to Farming Lands - 708 III. Of Subsoil relatively to the Choice of a Farm - - - .710 IV. Of the Elevation of Lands relatively to Farming - . - . . 711 V. Character of Surface in regard to Farming Lands - - - .712 VI. Of Aspect in respect to Farming Lands - ib. VII. Of the Situation of Farm Lands in regard to Markets - - . . n,, VIII. Of the Extent of Land suitable for a Farm - - - .713 IX. Of the Tenure on which Lands are held for Farming - - - 714 X. Of Rent - - - - - ib. XI. Of Taxes and other Burdens which affect the Farmer ... 716 XII. Of other Particulars requiring a Farmers Attention, with a view to renting of Land - - - -717 Chap. II. Considerations respecting himself, which a Farmer ought to keej) in view in selecting and hiring a Farm .... yjg I. Of the personal Character and Expectations of a professional Fanner - . iff. II. Of the Capital required by the Farmer - 719 Chap. III. On the Choice of Stock for a Farm - - 720 I. Of the Choice of Live Stock . - ib. 1. Live Stock for the Purposes of Labor - 721 2. Of the Choice of Live Stock for the Pur- poses of breeding or feeding - . 722 II. Of the Choice of Agricultural Implements, Seeds, and Plants - - - 725 III. Of the Choice of Servants - .726 Chap. IV. Of the general Management of a Farm . 728 I. Of keeping Accounts - - - ib. II. Management of Servants - - -732 III. Of the Arrangement of Farm Labor - 734 IV. Of domestic Management and personal Expenses - - - 736 BOOK VI. OF THE CULTURE OF FARM LANDS. Chap. I. Of the general Processes common to Farm Lands - ib. CONTENTS. Page I. Of the Rotations of Crops suitable to dif- ferent Descriptions of Soils - - 737 II. Of the Worliing of Fallows - - 740 III. Of the general Management of Manures 742 1. On the Management of Farm-yard Dung ib. 2. Of Lime and its Management as a Manure 744 IV. Of Composts of Earth, Lime, and Dung - 745 Chap. II. Of the Culture of the Cereal Grasses I. Wheat II. Rye - III. Barley IV. The Oat -746 - ib. -756 - ib. - 760 V. Cereal Grasses cultivated in Europe, some of which might be tried in Britain -763 Chap. III. Of the Culture of Leguminous Field Plants I. The Pea - . . . - to. II. The Bean - - - - 769 III. The Tare - - . , . TJ3 IV. Of other Leguminous Grains which might be cultivated in British Farming - 775 - 765 Chap. IV. Of Plants cultivated for their Roots or Leaves 776 I. The Potatoe -777 II. The Turnip .... -785 III. The Carrot - -793 IV. The Parsnep -797 V. The Field-Beet -798 VI. The Cabbage Tribe -799 VII. Of some other Plants which might be cultivated in the Fields for their Roots or Leaves - . _ -800 Chap. V. Of the Culture of Herbage Plants - ib. I. The Clover Family -801 II. Lucern .... . 806 III. Saintfoin -809 IV. Of various Plants which are or may be cultivated as Herbage and for Hay -812 Chap. VI. Of the cultivated Grasses ... 817 I. Of the tall growing or Hay Grasses - ib. 1. Of tall or Hay Grasses of temporary Du- ration - - - - 818 2. Of tall or Hav Grasses of permanent Du- ration -" - - - - 820 II. Grasses chiefly adapted for Pasturage - 824 III. General View of the Produce, Uses, Cha- racter, and Value of the principal British Grasses, according to the result of John Dake of Bedford's Experiments at Wo- burn - - - - 826 Chap. VII. Of the Management of Lands permanently under Grass .... 832 I. Perennial Grass Lands fit for mowing, or Meadow Lands - . . ib. II. Of permanent Pastures - .838 1. Of rich or feeding pastures - . ib. 2. Of hilly and mountainous Pastures - 841 III. Of the Improvement of Grass Lands, by a temporary Conversion to Tillage - 842 1. Of Grass Lands that ought not to be bro- ken up by the Plough - . 843 2. Of the Advantages and Disadvantages of breaking up Grass Lands - . . 844 3. Of breaking up Grass Lands, and after- wards restoring them to Grass _ ib. Chap, VIIL Of Plants cultivated on a limited Scale for various Arts and Manufactures - . 846 I. Of Plants grown chiefly for the Clothing -, m^""*^ . - . . if,^ 1. The Flax 2. Hemp ... 3. The Fuller's Thistle, or Teazle 4. Madder ... 5. Woad 6. Weld or Dyer's Weed 7. The Bastard Saffron - ib. - 851 - 852 - 854 - 855 - fV>6 - 857 Page 8. Of various Pkints which have been pro- posed as Substitutes for the Thread, and dyeing Plants grown in Britain . 857 II. Plants cultivated for the Brewery and Dis- tillery . . . .858 1. The Hop if, 2. Of the Culture of the Coriander and Ca- raway . . . -866 0. Of Plants which may be substituted for Brewery and Distillery Plants . - ib. in. Of Oil Plants . . . .867 IV. Plants used in Domestic EoMiomy . 869 1. Mustard . . . - 870 2. The Canary Grass . . - - ib. 3. Buck- Wheat - . -871 4. Of other Plants used in Domestic Eco- nomy ; which are or may be cultivated the Fields - . . .872 V. Of Plants which are or may be grown in the Fields for Medicinal Purposes - - 874 Chap. IX. Of Marine Plants used in Agriculture - 876 Chap. X. Of Weeds or Plants which are injurious to those cultivated in Agriculture - . 877 BOOK VIT. THE ECONOMY OF LIVE STOCK AND THE DAIRY. Chap. I. • Of the Horse '. . . . 880 I. Of the Varieties of the Horse - - ib. II. Organology or exterior Anatomy of the Horse . . . .885 III. The Anatomy or Osseous Structure of the Horse . . . . .892 1. Anatomy of the Head . . ib. 2. The Anatomy of the Trunk . . 894 3. The Anatomy of the Extremities - 895 IV. Of the Physiology or Functions of the Horse . . .896 1. General Functions of the Bony Skeleton - ib. 2. The Blood Vessels of the Horse - 898 3. The Absorbents of the Horse - - ib. 4. Nerves and Glands of the Horse - 899 5. Integuments of the Horse's Body - ib. 6. The Head generally - - - 900 7. The Ear ib. 8. The Eye and its Appendages - - ib. 9. The Nose and Sense of Smelling . 902 10. The Cavity of the Mouth - . ib. 11. The Neck . . . . 903 12. The Thorax or Chest - - -904 13. The Abdomen . . . ib. 14. The Organs of Generation - .907 15. The Foot - - - . ib. V. Of the Diseases of the Horse - 908 1. General Remarks on the healthy and dis- eased State of the Horse 2. Inflammatory Diseases of the Horse 3. Diseases of the Head 4. Diseases of the Neck 5. The Chest 6. Diseases of the Skin 7. Glanders and Farcy 8. Diseases of the Extremities 9. Diseases of the Feet VI. Veterinary Operations 1. Treatment of Wounds 2. Balls and Drinks 3. Fomentations and Poultices 4. Setons and Rowels 5. Blistering and Firing 6. Clystering and Physicking 7. Castration, Nicking, Docking, &c. 8. Bleeding ... VII. The Veterinary Pharmacopeia V III. The Shoeing of Horses IX. Criteria of the Qualities of various purposes X. Of Breeding Horses XI Of Rearing Horses XII. Of Training Horses XIII. Of the Art of Horsemanship ib. - 909 911 - 912 - ib. - 916 - ib. - 917 - 919 - 920 - ib. - 921 - ib. - ib. - 922 - ib. - ib. - 923 - ib. - 926 Horses for - 929 - 9'32 935 - 937 - 940 CONTENTS. Page XIV. Of the Feeding of Horses - - 941 XV. Of the Stabling and Grooming of Horses 943 XVI. Of the Management and Woirking of Horses - - - - 94.'5 1. Management and Working of Race Horses ib. 2. Of the Management and Working of the Hunter - - - - 946 3. Of the Working and Management of Riding Horses - - - 947 4. Of Horses in Curricles and Coaches - 948 5. Working of Cart, Waggon, and Farm Horses • - - - ib. Chap. The Ass 950 Chap. III. Of the Mule and Hinny, Hybrids of the Horse and Ass - 952 Chap. IV. Of Neat or Horned Cattle - - - 953 I. Of the Ox - - . - ib. 1. Of the Varieties and Breeds of the Bull - ib. 2. Criteria of Cattle for various Objects and •. Purposes .... 959 3. Of the Breeding of Horned Cattle . 961 4. Of rearing Horned Cattle - - 962 5. Of fattening Calves by Suckling - -963 6. Of fattening Horned Cattle - - 965 7. Of the Management of Cows kept for the Dairy . - - -966 8. Of Working Horned Cattle - . 970 9. Of the Anatomy and Physiology of the Bull and Cow . - - 972 10. Of the Diseases of Horned Cattle . 973 II. Of the Buffalo - - - .977 Chap. V. Of the Dairy and its Management - ib. I. Of the Chemical Principles of Milk, and the Properties of the Milk of different Ani- mals - - - .978 II. Of the Dairy House, its Furniture, and Utensils . - . .979 III. Of Milking, and the general Management of Milk - . . .0^3 IV. Of Making and Curing Butter . . 984 V. Of the Process of Cheese-making - -98(5 VI. Catalogue of the different Sorts of Cheeses and other Preparations made from Milk 989 Chap. VI. - 992 The Sheep I. Of the Varieties of Sheep - - - ib. II. Criteria of Properties in Sheep - -996 III. Of Breeding Sheep . - .997 IV. Of the rearing and general Management of Sheep 1000 1. Of the rearing and Management of Sheep on rich Grass and arable Lands - 1001 2. Of the rearing and general Management of Sheep on Hilly and Mountainous Page Districts, or what is generally termed Store Sheep Husbandry - . 1003 V. Of the Folding of Sheep - - - 1007 VI. Of Fatting Sheep and Lambs - 1008 VII. On the probable Improvement which may be derived from Crosses of the Merino Breed of Sheep - - 1010 VI II. Of the Anatomy and Physiology of Sheep .... 1012 IX. The Diseases of Sheep . - - ib. Chap. VII. The Swine .... 1014 I. Of the Varieties of the common Hog - 1016 II. Of Breeding and Rearing of Swine - 1018 III. Of Fattening Swine - - -1019 IV. Of curing Pork and Bacon - -1020 V. Of the Diseases of Swine - - ib. Chap. VIII. Of the Goat, Rabbit, Hare, Dormouse, Deer, and various other Animals, that are or may H)e subjected to British Agriculture - 1021 Chap. IX. Of Animals of the Bird kind employed in Agriculture .... 1034 I. Of Poultry Houses, and their Furniture and Utensils .... ib. II. Of Gallinaceous Fowls, their Kinds, Breeding, Rearing, and Management - 1035 HI. Anserine, or .-^.quatic Fowls - . 1043 IV. Diseases of Poultry - - - 1048 V. Of Birds of Luxury, which are or may be cultivated by Farmers - . - ib. Chap. X. Of Fish and Amphibious Animals subjected to Cultivation - - 1055 Chap. XI. Of Insects and Worms which are or may be subjected to Culture ... 1058 Chap. XII. Of Animals Noxious to Agriculture I. Of Noxious Mammalia . . . II. Birds injurious to Agriculture III. Insects injurious to Agriculture 1. Of the Physiology of the Insect Tribes - 2. Of Coleopterous Insects 3. Of Hemipterous Insects 4. Of Lepidopterous Insects 5. Of Neuropterous, or Nerve-winged In sects - 6. Of Hymenopterous Insects 7. Of Dipterous Insects 8. Of Apterous Insects 9. Gyrations for subduing Insects IV. Of the Worm Tribes injurious in Agrl culture ... 1063 ib. 1065 1066 ib. 1068 1069 - 1071 1072 1073 ib. 1075 ib. PART IV. STATISTICS OF BRITISH AGRICULTURE. BOOK I. OP THE TRESENT STATE OF AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. Chap. I, Page Of the different Descriptions of Men engaged in the Practice or Pursuit of Agriculture - 1076 I. Of Operators or serving Agriculturists - 1077 II. Commercial Agriculturists . - 1078 IlL Agricultural Counsellors, Artists, or Pro. fessors . ... 1079 IV. Patrons of Agriculture . . 1080 Chap. II. Page Of the different Kinds of Farms in Britain relatively to the different Classes of Society who are the Occupiers - . . 1081 Chap. III. Topographical Survey of the British Isles in respect to Agriculture . - - 1082 I. Agricultural Survey of England • - ib. II. Agricultural Survey of Wales -1130 III. Agricultural Survey of Scotland - 1134 IV. Agricultural Survey of Ireland - 1154 CONTENTS. Chap. IV. Page Of the Literature and Bibliography of Agri- culture - - - - 1162 I. The Bibliography of British Agriculture - ib. II. Bibliography of Agriculture in Foreign Countries _ _ _ 1171 1. Bibliography of French Agriculture - tb. 2. Bibliography of German Agriculture - 1175 3. Bibliography of Italian Agriculture - 1177 4. Of the Bibliography of the Agriculture of the other Countries of Europe - 1178 5. Agricultural Bibliography of North America - - - 1179 Chap. V. Of the Professional Police and Public Laws relative to Agriculturists and Agriculture - ib. KALENDARIAL INDEX GENERAL INDEX BOOK II. OF THK FUTURE PROGRESS OF AGRICULTURE IN BRITAIN. Chap. I. Page Of the Improvement of Agriculture by refin- ing the Taste of the Purchasers of its Pro- ducts, and increasing the Knowledge of Agricultural Patrons - - - 1181 Chap. II. On the Improvement of Agriculture by the better Education of those who are engaged in it as a Profession - - . 1182 I. On the Degree of Knowledge which may be attained by Practical Men, and on the general Powers of the human Mind as to Attainments . . - ib. II. Of the Professional Education of Agricul- turists - . - - 1184 III. Of the Conduct and Economy of an Agri- culturist's Life •. - - 1186 - 1197 f not ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF AGRICULTURE. THE first want of man is food, and his first resource for it the ground. Whether herbs or fruits were resorted to, must have depended on their relative abundance in the country where man found himself; but the latter would probably be preferred, till the use of fire was discovered in the preparation of the former. The first care and labor of man would thus be bestowed on fruit-trees, and hence gardening may be said to be the art of earliest invention. But man is also a carnivorous animal, and this pro- pensity of his nature would soon induce him to attempt domesticating such beasts of the earth as he found most useful in aflPording milk, clothing, or food ; or in performing labor. Hence the origin of pasturage, and the management of live stock. The in- vention of tillage would be coeval with the discovery of the use of the cereal grasses, and may be considered as the last grand step in the invention of husbandry, and the most im- portant, as lealding to the establishment of property in territorial surface. In the earlier stages of civilisation, these branches of economy, in common with all the arts of life, would be practised by every family for itself; but the advantages of separating occupations would soon present themselves, and the result of this principle in regard to rural culture and management, — the res rustica of the Romans and hus- bandry of old English authors, — is, that all their operations are now classed under the two designations of agriculture and gardening. Agriculture^ the art to which we here confine ourselves, as compared to gardening, is the culture and management of certain plants and animals for the food and service of man ; but relative to the present improved state of the art, it may be defined, the cultiva- tion and management of territorial surface on an extended scale, by manual and animal labor, for the production of objects and materials used for the food and service of man, and for various important purposes, in arts, manufactures, and civilised life. The importance of agriculture is obvious, not only by its aflPording the direct supply of our greatest wants, but as the parent of manufactures and commerce. With- out agriculture there can be neither civilisation nor population. Hence it is not only the most universal of arts, but that which requires the greatest number of operators : tlie main body of the population in every country is employed in the pursuit of agriculture ; and the most powerful individuals in almost all nations, derive their wealth and conse- quence from their property in land. In the earliest ages of mankind, before tillage was invented, the surface of the earth would be common to all the inhabitants, and every family would pasture their flock, and pitch their tent, or erect their hut, where they thought fit. But when tillage came in use, it became necessary to assign to each family a portion of territory, and of this portion that family became the proprietor, cultivator, and the consumer of the pro- ducts. Hence the invention of property in land, and progressively of purchased cultivators, B or slaves ; of hired cultivators, or laborers ; of commercial agriculturists, or farmers ; and of the various laws and customs in regard to the proprietorship and occupation of landed property. The practice of agriculture, however rude in early times, or in countries still com- paratively uncivilised, assumes a very different character among the most advanced nations. Not to mention the peculiarities of implements, machines, and domestic ani- mals, and the different kinds of culture and management requisite for the different countries and climates of the world, the local variations requisite even in Britain, are so considerable that an agriculturist whose experience and observation had been confined to one district, may be comparatively unfit to exercise his profession in another. The sheep farming of the North Highlands, the d dry farming of Gloucestershire, the hop culture of Kent, the woodlands of Buckinghamshire, and the hay management of Middlesex, have given rise to commercial agriculturists of very distinct varieties from the common corn farmer. The previous preparation of land for culture, by enclosure, drainage, embanking, road.making, &c, demands considerable science; and has given rise to artist agricul- turists, known as land-surveyors, and land-engineers. The relative changes as to rent and occupancy which take place between land-owners and farmers, and the valuation and transfer of landed property among monied men, have produced land-valuators and land- agents; from the direction of extensive estates, and the management of small concerns and farms, liave originated the serving agriculturists, known as land-stewards and bailiffs ; and the operators are shepherds, herdsmen, ploughmen, carters, spades«men, and hands of all work. The practice of agriculture, from having been chiefly confined to men of humble station, who pursued it as a matter of business or profit, has of late years been engaged in by men of rank, and other opulent or amateur practitioners, as matter of taste and recreation. The contrast between the simple and healthy pursuits of the country, and such as require intense application, and confine men chiefly to towns and cities, gives them a peculiar charm to the industrious and active citizen, while the idle and the opu- lent find relief in it from the ennui of inaction or a frivolous waste of time. Some magnificent displays of the art have thus been made by great landed proprietors on their demesne or home farms ; and very neat and tasteful specimens of culture, by retired citizens and other possessors of villas, farms, awAfermes ornees. These circumstances may be said to have raised the pursuit of agriculture to a comparatively dignified state to that in which it was formerly held ; while tlie political advantages which are enjoyed by all classes in a free and commercial country, have improved the circumstances of agricul- turists of every grade, and tended to raise them in the scale of society. The recent discoveries in chemistry and physiology have led to the most important improvements in the culture of plants, and the breeding and rearing of animals ; agri- culture is in consequence no longer an art of labor, but of science ; hence the advantage of scientific knowledge to agriculturists, and the susceptibility of the art of progressive advancement. " Agriculture," Marshal observes, " is a subject which, viewed in all its branches and to their fullest extent, is not oily the most important and the most difficult in rural economies, but in the circle of human arts and sciences. " For the purpose oragricultural improvement, societies have been established in every country of Europe, and in almost every county of Britain. Most of these, as well as se- veral eminent individuals, have stimulated cuitivators and breeders to exertion, by the offer of premiums, and other honorary rewards. Professorships of rural economy have also been instituted in some colleges ; and other independent georgical institutions have been established for public instruction, especially on the continent: — to which we may add, the publication of numerous books on the subject of agriculture and territorial im- provement. Such is the origin, the extent, the importance, and the interest of the subject of agriculture; from which it cannot be surprising that a varied and voluminous mass of knowledge has been accumulated on the subject, and is consequently more or less necessary for every one who would practise the art with success himself, or understand when it is well practised for him by others. To combine as far as practicable the whole of this knowledge, and arrange it in a systematic form, adapted both for study and reference, is the object of the present work. The sources from which we have selected, are the modern British authors of decided reputation and merit ; sometimes we have re- curred to ancient and to Continental authors, and occasionally, though rarely, to our own observation and experience : — observation chiefly in Britain, but partly also on the Continent ; and experience in Scotland, under the paternal roof, during our early years, — during some years' occupancy of two extensive farms in England, — and in the engineering and surveyyig departments during our practice for twenty years as a land- scape-gardener. {1. Th 2. Th 3. Th 4. Th 5. Th Part I. ORIGIN, &c. OF AGRICULTURE. jS, With this purpose in view, agriculture is here considered, in Part Book I. As to its origin, progress, and Tl. Among ancient and modern nations. present state, (.2. Under different geographical, physical, and political circumstances. The study of the vegetable kingdom. The study of the animal kingdom. I. As a science founded on -^ 3. The study of the mineral kingdom and the atmosphere. 1. The study of the mechanical agents employed in agriculture. 5. The study of the operations of agriculture. '1. The valuation, purchase, and transfer of landed property. 2. The laying out, or general arrangement, of landed property. 3. The improvement of culturable lands. 4. The management of landed estates. 5. The selection, hiring, and stocking of farms. 6. The culture of farm lands. .7. The economy of live stock, and the dairy. IV. Staflstically in Britain, ' g It S S fS'^^^es.. : A Kalendarial Index to those parts of the work which treat of culture and management, points out the operations as they are to be performed in the order of time and of the season : and A General Index explains the technical terms of agriculture, the abbreviations here made use of, and presents an analysis of the whole work in alphabetical, as the Table of Contents does in systematic, order. III. As an art comprehending PART L AGRICULTURE CONSIDERED AS TO ITS ORIGIN, PROGRESS, AND PRESENT STATE, AMONG DIFFERENT NATIONS, GOVERN- MENTS, AND CLIMATES. 1. The history of Agriculture may be considered chronologically, or in connection with that of the different nations who have successively flourished in the different parts of the world ; politically, as influenced by the different forms of government which have prevailed; geographically, as affected by different climates ; and physically, as influenced by the characters of the earth's surface. The first kind of history is useful, by displaying the relative situation of different countries as to agriculture ; instructive, as enabling us to contrast our present situation with that of other nations and former times ; and curious, as discovering the route by which agriculture has passed from primitive ages and countries to our own. The political and geographical history of the art derives its value from pointing out causes, favorable and unfavorable to improvement ; and countries and climates favorable qr unfavorable to particular kinds of cultivation and management. ; BOOK L HISTOR7 OF AGRICULTtTRE AMONG ANCIENT AND MODERN NATIONS. 2, Traditional history traces man back to the time of the deluge. After that catastfoplie, of which the greater part of the earth's surface bears evidence, man seems to have re- covered himself (in our hemisphere at least) in the central parts of Asia, and to have first attained to eminence in arts and government, on the alluvial plains of the Nile. Egypt colonised Greece, Carthage, and some other places on the Mediterranean sea ; and thus the Greeks received their arts from the Egyptians, afterwards the Romans from the Greeks, and finally the rest of Europe from the Romans. Such is the route by which agriculture is traced to our part of the world ; how it may have reached the eastern countries of India and China, is less certain ; though from the great antiquity of their inhabitants and governments, it appears highly probable that arts and civilisation were either coeval there, or, if not, that they travelled to the east fully more rapidly than they did to the west. 3. Jlie early history of man in America rests on very indistinct traditions : there arts and civilisation do not seem of equal antiquity as in Asia ; in North America they are *B 2 / HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. of very recent introduction ; but of the agriculture of either division of that continent, and of India and China, we shall attempt little more than some sketches of the modern history, and its present state. 4. The history of agriculture among the nations of what may be called classic antiquity is involved in impenetrable obscurity. Very few facts are recorded on the subject pre- viously to the time of the Romans. That enterprising people considerably improved the art, and extended its practice with their conquests. After the fall of their empire, it declined throughout Europe ; and during the dark ages was chiefly preserved on the estates of the church. With the general revival of arts and letters, which took place during the sixteenth century, agriculture also revived ; first in Italy, and then in France and Germany ; but it flourished most in Switzerland and Holland ; and finally, in recent times, has attained its highest degree of perfection in Britain. The modern agriculture of America is copied from that of Europe ; and the same may be said of the agriculture of European colonies established in different parts of the world. The agriculture of China, and the native agriculture of India, seem to have undergone no change for many ages. — Such is the outline which we now proceed to fill up by details, and we shall adopt the usual division of time, into the ages of antiquity, the middle ages, and the modern times. Chap. I. Of the History of Agriculture in the Ages of Antiquity ,• or from the Deluge to the Establish- ment of the Roman Umpire in the century jyreceding the vulgar cera. 5. The world as known to the ancients consisted of not more than half of Asia, and of a small part of Africa and Europe. During the inundation of the deluge, a rem- nant of man, and of other animals, is related to have been saved on the top of the high mountain of Ararat, near the Caspian sea, (j^^. 1.) and when the waters sub- sided, to have descended and multiplied in the plains of Assyria. As they increased in numbers they are related to have separated ; and after an unknown length of time to have formed several different nations and governments. Of these the principal are those of the Assyrian empire, known as Babylonians, Assyrians, Medes, and Persians, in Asia; the Jews and the Egyptians, chiefly in Africa ; and the Grecians, chiefly in Europe. Least is known of the nations which composed the Assyrian empire ; of the Jews more is known of their gardening and domestic economy, than of their field culture : the Egyptians may be considered the parent nation of arts and civilisation, and are supposed to have excelled in agriculture ; and something is known of that art among the Greeks. 6. The authors whose writings relate to the period under consideration are few, and the relations of some of them very contradictory. The earliest is Moses, who flourished B. C. 1 600 ; Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus, who wrote more particularly on the history and geography of Egypt, lived, the former in the fifth, and the latter in the sixth century, B. C. ; and Hesiod, the ancient Greek writer on husbandry, in the tenth cen- tury preceding our aera. 7. Estimating the value of the writers of antiquity on these principles, they may be con- sidered as reaching back to a period 1600 years before our a;ra, or nearly 3500 years from the present time ; and it is truly remarkable, that in the Eastern countries, at that period, the state of agriculture and other arts, and even of machinery, does not appear to have been materially different to what they are in the sunic countries at the present day. Book I. AGRICULTURE OF ANTIQUITY. 5 Property' in land was recognised, the same grains cultivated, and the same domestic animals reared or employed; some led a wandering life and dwelt in tents like the Arabs ; and others dwelt in towns or cities, and pursued agriculture and commerce like the fixed nations. It is reasonable indeed, and consistent with received opinions, that this should be the case ; for admitting the human race to have been nearly exterminated at the deluge, those who survived tliat catastrophe would possess the more useful arts, and general habits of life of the antediluvian world. Noah accordingly is styled a husband- man, and is said to have cultivated the vine and made wine. In little more than three centuries afterwards, Abraham is stated to have had extensive flocks and herds, slaves of both sexes, silver and gold, and to have purchased a family sepulchre with a portion of territory around it. Isaac his son, during his residence in Palestine, is said to have sown and reaped a hundred fold. Corn seems to have been grown in abundance in Egypt; for Abraham, and afterwards Jacob, had recourse to that country during times of famine. Irrigation was also extensively practised there, for it is said (Gen. xiii. 10.) that the plain of Jordan was watered everywhere, even as the garden of the Lord, the land of Egypt. Such is the amount of agricultural information contained in the writings of Moses, from which the general conclusion is, that agricultiy-e, in the East, has been practised in all or most of its branches from time immemorial. The traditions of other countries, however, as recorded by various writers, ascribe its invention to certain fabulous personages; as the Egyptians to Osiris; the Greeks to Ceres and Triptolemus; the Latins to Janus; the Sect. I. Of the Agriculture of Egypt. 8. The origin of agriculture has been sought by modern philosophers in natural cir- cumstances. Man in his rudest state, they consider, would first live on fruits or roots, afterwards by hunting or fishing, next by the pasturage of animals, and lastly, to all of these he would add the raising of corn. Tillage, or the culture of the soil for this pur- pose, is supposed to have been first practised in imitation of the effects produced by the sand and mud left by the inundations of rivers. These take place more or less in every country, and their effects on the herbage which spontaneously spring up among the de- posited sand and mud must at a very early period have excited the attention of the coun- tryman. This hypothesis seems supported by the traditions and natural circumstances of Egypt, a country overflown by a river, civilised from time immemorial, and so abundant in corn as to be called the granary of the adjoining states. Sir Isaac Newton and Stillingfleet accordingly, considered that corn was first cultivated on the banks of the Nile. Sir Isaac fixes on Lower Egypt ; but as Herodotus and other ancient Greek writers assert that that country was once a marsh, and as Major Rennel in his work on the geography of Herodotus is of the same opinion, Stillingfleet ( Works, vol. ii. 524. ) considers it more probable that the cultivation of land was invented in Upper Egypt, and proceeded downwards according to the course of the Nile. S. The situation and natural phenomena of Upper Egypt, Stillingfleet considers, rendered it fitter for the inveiition of cultivation than the low country ; " for while Lower Egypt was a marsh, formed by the depositions of the Nile, the principal part of Upper Egypt was a valley a few leagues broad, bounded by mountains, and on both sides declining to the river. Hence it was overflowed only for a certain time and season ; the waters rapidly declined, and the ground, enriched by the mud, was soon dry, and in a state fit to receive seed. The process of cultivation in this country was also most obvious and natural ; for the ground being every year covered with mud brought by the Nile, and plants springing up spontaneously after its recess, must have given the hint, that nothing more was necessary than to scatter th ' seeds, and they would vegetate. Secondly, the ground was prepared by nature for rec nving the seed, and required only stirring sufficient to cover it. From this phenominon the surrounding nations learned two things : first, that the ground before sowing should be prepared, and cleared from plants; and secondly, that the mixture of rich mould and sand would produce fertility. What is here stated may appear without foundation as to Upper Egypt ; because at present, in the vicinity of Thebes, water is raised by art. But this objection is obviated by the tes- timony of Dr. Pococke, who is of opinion that formerly Upper Egypt was overflowed, in the same manner as Lower Egypt was afterwards, and is to this day." {StiUingJleei' s Life and Works, &c. ii. 524.) 10. The invention of agricultural implements, must have been coeval with the invention of aration ; and accordmgly they are supposed to have originated in Egypt. Antiquarians are agreed, that the primeval implement used in cultivating the soil, must have been of the pick kind. (fg. 2.) A medal of the greatest antiquity, dug up at Syracuse, con- tained an impression of such an instrument (Encyc. B 3 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. gress till it became a plough has been recognised in a cameo, published by Menestrier, on which a pick-like plough is drawn by two serpents {Jig^ 3. a) : it may be also seen on a medal from the village of Enna, in Sicily, published by Combe (6); in a figure given by Spon, as found on an an- tique tomb (c); in an Etrus- can plough, copied from a fragment in the Roman col- lege at Rome, by Lasteyrie (rf) ; and as we still see in the instrument depicted by Niebuhr, as used for plough- ing in Egypt and Arabia at the present day. (e) Whatseems to confirm these conjectures is, that the image of Osiris is sculptured with a similar plough in each hand (^fig. 4. abed), and with a harrow (e) suspended by a cord ( /* ) over the left shoulder. This plough there can be little doubt was used in war as well as in agriculture, and seems to have been of that kind with which the Israelites fought against their enemies the Philistines (I Sam xiii. 19- 23.) ; it is thought by some to be the archetype of the letter alpha (the hieralpha of Kircher) : and by others the sounds necessary to conduct the processes of culture are thought to have founded the origin of language. Thus it is that agri- culture is considered by some antiquarians, as not only a, the parent of all other arts, but also of language and literature. f^l 11. Whether the culture of corn was invented in Egypt or not, all testimonies concur that cultivation was carried to a higher degree of perfection there than in any other country of antiquity. The canals and banks which still remain in Lower Egypt, and especially in the Delta, are evidences of the ex- tent to which embanking, irrigation, and drainage have been carried. These works are said to have been greatly increased by Sesostris,^ in the 17th or 18th century B.C. Many of the canals 'and drains have been long obliterated ; but there are still reckoned eighty canals, like rivers, all excavated by manual labor, several of which are twenty, thirty, and forty leagues in length. These receive the inundations of the Nile, and circulate the waters through the country, which before was wholly overflown by them. The large lakes of Moeris, Rehire, and Mareotis, formed vast reservoirs for containing the superfluous waters, from which they were con- ducted by the canals over the adjacent plains. Upon the elevated ridges, and even on the sides of the hills which form the boundary to the flat alluvial grounds, the water was raised by wheels turned by oxen ; and by a succession of wheels, and gradations of aqueducts, it is said some hills, and even moun- tains, were watered to their summits. All the towns at some distance from the Nile were sur- rounded with reservoirs for the supply of the inhabitants, and for watering the gardens. For this last purpose the water was raised in a very simple manner by a man walking on a plank with raised edges, or on a bamboo or other tube.. This is the machine alluded to by Moses, when he speaks of sowing the seed and watering it <•' with the foot," {Deut. xi. 10.) They also raised it by swinging it up in baskets [Jig. 5.) ; a mode which, like the others, remains in use at the present day. The water is lifted in a basket lined with leather. " Two men, holding the basket between them, by a cord in each end fastened to the edge of it, lower it into the Nile, and then swing it between Book I. AGRICULTURE OF ANTIQUITV. 7 them, till it acquires a velocity sufficient to enable them to throw the water over a bank into a canal. They work stark naked, or if in summer only with a slight blue cotton shirt or belt. " {Clarke s Travels, Sec.) 12. Of these immense embajikments, some of which served to keep in the river, and others to oppose the torrents of sand which occasionally were blown from the Great Desert, and which threatened to cover the country as effectually as the waters of the Nile, the ruins still remain. But in spite of these remains, the sand is accumulating, and the limits of cultivated Egypt have been annually decreasing for tlie last 1200 years; the barbarous nations to which the banks of the Nile have been subject during this period having paid no attention to cultivation, or the preservation of these noble works of antiquity. 1 3. Landed property, in ancient Egypt, it would appear, was the absolute right of the owners, till by the procurement of Joseph, in the eighteenth century B, C, the paramount or allodial property of the whole was transferred to the government. The king, however, made no other use of that right, than to place the former occupiers in the situation of tenants in capite ; bound to pay a rent: or land-tax of one fifth of the produce. This, Moses says, continued to be the law of Egypt down to his time ; and the same thing in confirmed by the testimony of Herodotus and ^trabo. 14. The soil of Egypt is compared by Pliny to that of the Leontines, formerly regarded as the most fertile in Sicily. There, he says, corn yields a hundred for one ; but Cicero, as Gouguetobserves, has proved this to be an exaggeration, and that the ordinary increase in that part of Sicily is eight for one. Granger (Relat. du Voy.fait en Egypte, 1730.), who paid much attention to this subject, says that the lands nearest to the Nile, which during the inundation were covered with water forty days, did not, in the most favorable seasons, yield more than ten for one ; and that those lands which the water covered only five days, seldom gave more than four for one. This, however, is probably owing to their present neglected state. 15. Of the animal or vegetable products of Egyptian agriculture^ very little is known. The ox seems to have been the chief animal of labor from the earliest period ; and rice at all times the principal grain in cultivation. By a painting discovered in the ancient Elethia, (^fig. 6.) it would appear the operation of reaping was performed much in the same way as at present, the ears being cropped by a hook, and the prin- cipal part of the straw left as stubble. Herodotus mentions, that, in his time, wheat was not cultivated, and that the bread made from it was despised, and reckoned not fit to be eaten. Beans were also held in abhorrence by the ancient inhabitants : but it is highly probable, that in latter times, when they began to have commerce with other nations, they would lay aside these and other prejudices, and cultivate what they found best suited to the foreign market. 1 6. Agriculture was no doubt the chief occupatio7i of the Egyptians : and though they are said to have held the profession of shepherd in abhorrence, yet it appears Pharaoh not only had considerable flocks and herds in his own possession, but was desirous of in- troducing any improvement which might be made in their management : for when Jacob, in answer to his questions, told him, that he and his family had been brought up to the care of live stock from their youth, he expressed a wish to Moses to have a Jewish bailiff' for the superintendence of his grazing farm : " if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle." (Ge7i. xlvii. 6.) Sect. II. Of the Agriculture of the Greeks. 17. T'he aboriginal Greeks or Pelasgi were civilised by colonies from Egypt, and re- ceived from that country their agriculture, in common with other arts and customs. Some of the ancient Greeks pretend that the culture of corn was taught them by Ceres ; but Herodotus and most of the ancients concur in considering this divinity as the same with the Egyptian Isis. There is no particular evidence that the Greeks were much attached to, or greatly improved agriculture ; though Homer gives us a picture of old King Laertesj divested of wealth, power, and grandeur, and living happy on a little farm, the fields of which were well cultivated. [Odyssey, lib. xxiv.) On another occa- sion, he represents a king standing amongst the reapers, and giving them directions by pointing with his sceptre. (Ibid. v. 550.) Xenophon highly commends the art; but the practical instances he refers to, as examples, are of Persian kings. 18. JVhat we knoiv of the agriculture of Greece, is chiefly derived from the poem of Hesiod, entitled Works and Days. Some incidental remarks on the subject may be found in the writings of Herodotus, Xenophon, Theophrastus, and others. Varro, a Roman, writing in the century preceding the commencement of our aera, informs us, that there were more than fifty authors, who might at that time be consulted on the sub»- B 4 8 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. ject of agriculture, all of which were ancient Greeks, excepting Mago the Carthaginian. Among them he includes Democritus, Xenophon, Aristotle, Theophrastus, and Hesiod. The works of the other writers he enumerates, have been lost ; and indeed all that remains of Democritus are only a few extracts preserved in the Geoponika, an agricultural treatise published at Constantinople by the Greeks of the fourth or fifth centuries of our a!ra. Xenophon, Aristotle, Homer, and others, touch on our subject but very slightly. Xenophon, after his banishment to Scillus, is said to have spent his time in literary pur- suits, and in improving and decorating his estate ; he wrote a treatise expressly on rural and domestic affairs, the third book of which is devoted to agriculture, entitled CEcono- mics^ in the form of a dialogue, and is even said to have given lessons on the subject. Of his treatise, Harte (Essoj/s, p. 201.) says, " I take it to be one of the plainest and most sensible performances amongst the writings of the ancients." Theophrastus, a disciple of Aristotle, wrote on natural history, and his history of plants possesses an as- tonishing degree of merit, for the age in which it was written. He is justly considered the father of botany, and his work contains some curious observations on soils and manures, and on various parts of agriculture and gardening. 1 9. But the writings of Hesiod are the chief resource for details as to Grecian agri- culture. This author flourished in the tenth century B. C., and was therefore contem- porary with Homer. He lived at Askra, a village at the foot of Mount Helicon, in Boeotia. There he kept a flock, and cultivated a soil, which he describes as " bad in winter, hard in summer, and never good," probably a stiff clay. As a poet who had written on various subjects, Hesiod was held in great veneration ; and Aristotle states, that when the Thesprotians destroyed the village of Askra, and the Orchomenians re- ceived the fugitives who escaped, the oracle ordered them to send for the remains of the poet who had given celebrity to the place. 20. The works of Hesiod, which constitute the first parts of his Poem, are not merely details of agricultural labors, but comprise directions for the whole business of family economy in the country. The poem sets out by describing the state of the world, past and present, for the purpose of exemplifying the condition of human nature. This condition entails on man the necessity of exertion to preserve the goods of life, and leaves him no alternative but honest industry or unjust violence ; of which the good and evil consequences are respectively illustrated. Dissension and emulation are repre- sented as two principles actively at work : much is said of the corruption of judges, and the evils of litigation : contentment is apostrophised as the true secret of happiness ; virtue and industry strongly recommended. The poet now proceeds to describe the prognostics of the seasons of agricultural labor, and gives directions for providing a house, wife, slaves, and two steers : how and when to cut down timber ; to construct carts and ploughs, and make clothes and shoes; when to sow, reap, dress the vine, and make wine. He then treats of navigation, and gives cautions against risking every thing in one voyage : he describes the fit seasons for the coasting trade, and ad- vises taking great care of the vessel at such time as she is not in use, and hanging up the rudder and other tackle in the smoke of the chimney. He concludes the " works" with some desultory precepts of religion, personal propriety, and decorum ; and enjoins some, curious superstitious observances relative to family matters. The Dai/s contains a division of the lunar month into holy, auspicious, and inauspicious, mixed and inter- mediary days, the latter being such as are entitled to no particular observance. 21. Property in land, among the Greeks, seems to have been absolute in the owner, or what we would term freehold. The manner of inheritance seems to have been that of gavel-kind ; the sons dividing the patrimony in equal portions. One of Solon's laws forbade that men should purchase as much land as they desired. An estate containing water, either in springs or otherwise, was highly valued, especially in Attica : and there a law existed relating to the depth of wells ; the distance they were to be dug from other men's grounds; what was to be done when no water was found; and other matters to prevent contentions as to water. Lands were enclosed, probably with a ring-fence, or boundary-mark ; or, most likely the enclosed lands were such as sur- rounded the villages, and were in constant cultivation ; the great breadth of country being, it may be presumed, in common pasture. Solon decrees, that " he who digs a ditch, or makes a trench nigh another's land, shall leave so much distance from his neighbor, as the ditch or trench is deep. — If any one makes a hedge near his neigh- bor's ground, let him not pass his neighbor's land-mark ; if he builds a wall, he is to leave one foot between him and his neighbor ; if a house, two feet. A man building a house in his field must place it a bow-shot from his neighbor's." {Potter's Antiq.) 22. The surface of Greece was, and is, irregular and hilly, with rich vales, and some rocky places and mountains : the soil is various ; clayey in some places, but most gene- rally light and sandy, on a calcareous subsoil. 23. The operations of culture, as appears by Hesiod, required to l)e adapted to the season : summer fallows were in Use, and the ground received three plougliings, one in { Book I. AGaiCXJLTURE OF ANTIQUITY. 1» autumn, another in spring, and a tliird immediately bdbre sowing the seed-. Manures were applied : in Homer, an old king is found manuring his fields with his own hands ; ; and the invention of manures is ascribed by Pliny to the Grecian king Augeas. The- ophrastus enumerates six different species of manures ; and adds, that a mixture of soils produces the same effects as manure. Clay, he says, should be mixed with sand, and sand with clay. The seed was sown by hand, and covered with a rake. Corn was reaped with a sickle ; bound in sheaves ; carted to a well-prepared threshing-floor, in an airy situation, where it might be threshed and fanned by the wind, as is still practised in niodern Greece, Italy, and other countries of the continent Afterwards it was laid up in bins, or chests, or granaries, and taken out as wanted by the family to be pounded in mortars, or quern-mills into meal. Thorns and other plants for hedges were procured from the woods, as we find from a passage in Homer, in which he represents Ulysses as finding Laertes digging and preparing to plant a row of quick-sets. {Odyss. lib. xxiv.) 24. The imj^lements enumerated by Hesiod, are a plough, of which he recommends two to be provided in case of accident ; a cart with two low wheels, and ten spans (seven feet six inclaes) in width. The plough consisted of three parts; the share-beam, the draught-pole, and the plough-tail. The share-beam is to be made of oak, and tlie other parts of elm or bay : they are to be joined firm with nails. Antiquarians are not agreed as to the exact form of 7 this implement. Gouguet conjectures it may not have been unlike one still in use in the same countries, and in the south of France : others, with greater probability, refer to the more simple plough still in use in Magna Grecia and Sicily (Jig. 7.), originally Greek colonies. The rake, sickle, and oxen-goad, are men- tioned ; but nothing said of their construction, or of spades, or other manual implements. 25. The beasts of labor mentioned, are oxen and mules : the former were most common ; and it would appear, from a passage in Homer (11. lib. xiii. v. 704.) were yoked by the horns. Four and a half years is recommended as the best age for purchasing oxen : in winter, both oxen and mules were fed under cover, on hay and straw, mast, and the leaves of vines and various trees. 26. Tfie most desirable age for a ploughman is forty : he must be well fed, go naked in summer, rise and go to work very early, and have a sort of annual feast, proper rest, and good food and clothing : — coats of kid skins, worsted socks, and half boots of ox hides in winter. He must not let his eye wander about while at plough, but cut a straight furrow ; nor be absent in mind when sowing the seed, lest he sow the same furrow twice. The vine is to be pruned and staked in due season ; the vintage made in fine weather, and the grapes left a few days to dry, and then carried to the press. , 27. The products of Grecian agriculture, were sheep, goats, swine, cattle, mules, asses, and horses : the grains and legumes at present in cultivation ; and the vine, fig, olive, apple, date, and other fruits. It does not appear that artificial grasses or herbage plants were in use ; but recourse was had, in times of scarcity, to the mistletoe and the cytisus : what plant is meant by the latter designation is not agreed on ; some consider it the medicago arborea, Linn. , and others the common lucerne. Hay was, in all probability, obtained from the meadows and pastures, which were used in common : flax, and pro- bably hemp, was grown. Wood for fuel, and timber for construction, were obtained from the natural forests, which, in Solon's time, abounded with wolves. Nothing is said of the olive or fig by Hesiod; but they were cultivated in the fields for oil and food, as well as the vine for wine. One of Solon's laws directs, that olive and fig trees must be planted nine feet from a neighbour's ground, on account of their spreading roots : other trees might be planted within five feet. 28. In Hesiod^ s time almost every citizen was a husbandman^ and had a portion of land which he cultivated himself, with the aid of his family, and perhaps one or two slaves ; and the produce, whether for food or clothing, appears to have been manufactured at home. The progress of society would, no doubt, introduce the usual division of labor and of arts ; and commercial cultivators, or such as raised produce for the purpose of exchange, would in consequence arise ; but when, and to what extent this was carried, at the time Greece became a Roman province (B. C. 100), the ancient writers afford us no> means of ascertaining. Sect. III. Of Ike jigricvltnre of the Jews, and other nations of Antiquity. 29. Of the agriculture of the nations contemporary ivith the EgyjHians and Greeks nothing is distinctly known ; but assuming it as most probable that agriculture was first brought into notice in Egypt, it may be concluded that most other countries, as well as Greece, would begin by imitating the practices of that cojiintry. *B 5 10 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. SO. On the agriculture of the JewSy we find there are various incidental remarks in the books of the Old Testament. On the conquest of Canaan, it appears that the different tribes had their territory assigned them by lot ; that it was equally divided among the lieads of families, and by them and their posterity held by absolute right, and impartial succesion. Thus every family had originally the same extent of territory ; but as it became customary afterwards to borrow money on its security : and as some families- became indolent and were obliged to sell, and others extinct by death without issue, landed estates soon varied in point of extent. In the time of Nehemiah a famine occurred, on which account many had ** mortgaged their lands, their vineyards, and houses, that they might buy corn for their sons and daughters ; and to enable them ta pay the king's tribute." (^JVehem. v. 2.) Some were unable to redeem their lands other- wise than by selling their children as slaves, and thereby " bringing the sons and daugh- ters of God into bondage." Boaz came into three estates by inheritance, and also a wife, after much curious ceremony. (Ruth i. 8. iv. 16.) Large estates, however, were not approved of. Isaiah pronounces a curse on those " that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst." While some portions of land near the towns were enclosed, the greater part was in common, or in alternate proprietorship and occupation, as in our common fields. This appears botli from the laws [and regulations laid down by Moses as to herds and flocks j and from the story of widow Naomi, who in the progress of her manoeuvres to ingratiate herself with Boaz, " came and gleaned in the field after the reapers, and her hap was to light on a j)art of the field, (that is, of the common field,) belonging unto Boaz." (Ruth a. 3.) 31 . It would appear that every proprietor cultivated his own lands, however extensive ; and that agriculture was held in high esteem even by their princes. The crown-lands, in King David's time, were managed by seven oflScers : one was over the store-houses, and others over the work of the field, and tillage of the ground — over the vineyards and wine-cellars — over the olive and oil-stores, and sycamore (Ficus'si/camorus, Linn.) plant- ations— over the herds— over the camels and asses — and over the flocks. (1 Chron. xxvii. 25.) King Uzziah " built towers in the desert, and digged many wells ; for he had much cattle both in the low country and in the plains ; husbandmen also and vine- dressers in the mountains, and in Carmel, for he loved husbandry." (2 Chron. xxvi. 10.) JEven private individuals cultivated to a great extent, and attended to the practical part of the business themselves. Elijah found Elisha in the field with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and himself with the twelfth. Job had five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she-asses, seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels. Both asses and oxen were used in ploughing ; for Moses forbade the Jews to yoke an ass with an ox, their step or progress being different, and of course their labors unequal. 32. Among the operations of agriculture are mentioned watering by machinery, plough- ing, digging, reaping, threshing, &c. ** The ploughman plougheth all day to sow ; he openeth and breaketh the clods of his ground. When he hath made plain the face thereof, doth he not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cummin [Cuminum cyminum, Linn.), and cast in the principal wheat, and the appointed barley, and the rye, in their place?" (/saiaA XX viii. 24, 25.) The plough was probably a clumsy instrument, re- quiring the most vigilant attention from the ploughman, for Luke (ch. ix. 62.) uses the figure of a man at plough looking back as one of utter worthlessness. Covered thresh- ing-floors were in use ; and as appears from the case of Boaz and Naomi, it was no uncommon thing to sleep in them during harvest. Corn was threshed in different ways, *' the fitches," says Isaiah, " are not threshed with a threshing-instrument, neither is a cart-wheel turned about upon the cummin ; but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and cummin with a rod (flail) ; bread-corn is bruised, because he will not be ever threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horse- men." (Ch. xxviii. 27, 28.) The bread-corn here mentioned was probably thenar of the Romans (mahe, Zea mays, L.), which was commonly separated by hand-mills, or hand-picking, or beating, as is still the case in Italy and other countries where this corn is grown. Corn was " winnowed with the shovel and with the van." (Id. xxx. 24.) Sieves were also in use, for Amos says, " I will sift the house of Israel as corn is sifted in a sieve." (Ch. ix. 9.) And Christ is re- presented by St. Luke as saying, ** Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that lie may sift you as wheat." Isaiah men- tions (vii. 25.) the *' digging of hills with the THattock :" to which implement the original f^ pick (Jig. 2.) would gradually arrive, first, by liaving the head put on at right angles, and pointed (fg. 8. a) ; next, by having it flattened, sharpened, and shod with iron (b,c); and lastly, by forming the head entirely of Book I. AGRICULTURE OF ANTIQUITY. II metal, and forked (ci), such probably as we see it in use in Judea, and the land of Canaan, at the present day. 33. Vineyards were planted on rising grounds, fenced round, the soil well prepared, and a vintage-house and watch-tower built in a centrical situation (Isaiah v. 2.), as is still done in European Turkey and Italy. Moses gives directions to the Jews for culti- vating the vine and other fruit-trees ; the three first years after planting, the fruit is not to be eaten ; the fourth, it is to be given to the Lord; and it is not till the fifth year that they are ** to eat of the fruit thereof." (Levit. xix. 25.) The intention of these precepts was to prevent the trees from being exhausted by bearing before they had ac- quired suflScient strength and establishment in the soil. 34. Of other agricultural operations and customs^ it may be observed with Dr. Brown, {Antiq. of the Jews, vol. ii. part xii. sect. 5, 6. ), that they differed very little from the- existing practices in the same countries as described by modern travellers. 35. The agricultural produce of the Jews was the same as among the Egyptians; com, wine, oil, fruits, milk, honey, sheep, and cattle, but not swine. The camel then, as now, was the beast of burden, and long journeys {Jig. 9.) ; and the horse, the animal of war and luxury. The fruit of the sycamore-fig was abundant, and in general use ; and grapes attained an astonishing size, both of berry and bunch ; the melon and gourd tribes were common. The returns of corn were in general good ; but as neither public stores, nor corn monopolisers, seem to have existed, dearths, and their attendant miseries, happened occasionally. A number of these are mentioned in Scripture, and some of extraordinary severity. 36. Of the agriculture of the other civilized and stationary nations of this period, scarcely any thing is known. According to Herodotus, the soil of Babylon was rich, well cul- tivated, and yielded two or three hundred for one. Xenophon, in his book of (Eco~ nomicSf bestows due encomiums on a Persian king, who examined, with his own eyes, the state of agriculture throughout his dominions ; and in all such excursions, according as occasion required, bountifully rewarded the industrious, and severely discountenanced the slothful. In another place he observes, that when Cyrus distributed premiums with his own hand to diligent cultivators, it was his custom to say, ** My friends, I have a like title with yourselves to the same honors and remuneration from the public ; I give you .^o more than I have deserved in my own person ; having made the self-same attempts with equal diligence and success." ((Econom. c. iv. sect. 16.) The same author else- where remarks, that a truly great prince ought to hold the arts of war and agriculture in the highest esteem ; for by such means he will be enabled to cultivate his territories effectually, and protect them .when cultivated. (Harte's Essays, p. 19.) 87. Phoenicia, a country of Asia, at the east of the Mediterranean, has the reputation of having been cultivated at an early period, and of having colonised and introduced agriculture at Carthage, Marseilles, and other places. The Phoenicians are said to have been the original occupiers of the adjoining country of Canaan ; and when driven out by the Jews, to have settled in Tyre and Sidon (now Sur and Saida), in the fifteenth century B. C. They were naturally industrious ; and their manufactures acquired such a superiority over those of other nations, that among the ancients, whatever was elegant, great, or pleasing, either in apparel or domestic utensils, was called Sidonian ; but of their agriculture it can only be conjectured that it was Egyptian, as far as local circumstances would permit. 38. The republic of Carthage included Spain, Sicily, and Sardinia, and flourished for upwards of seven centuries previous to the second century B. C. Agriculture was practised at an early period in Sicily ; and, according to some, Greece received that art from this island. It must have been also considerably advanced in Spain, and in the Carthaginian territory, since they had books on the subject. In 147 B. C, when Car- thage was destroyed by Scipio, and the contents of the libraries were given in presents to the princes, allies of the Romans, the senate only reserved the twenty-eight books on agriculture of the Carthaginian general Magon, which Decius Syllanus was directed to translate ; and of which the Romans preserved, for a long time, the original and the translation. (Encyc. Methodique, art. Agriculture.) 39. Italy, and a part of tlie south if France, would probably be partially cultivated from the influence of the Carthaginians in Sicily and Marseilles ; but the north of France, and the rest of Europe, appear to have been chiefly, if not entirely, in a wild *i$ 6 1» HISTCJ^Y OF A GEICTLTyHEi I'^rx I. state, a^d the scene of ihe paatoml and hunting employments of the ftoihaidic nations^ the Kelts or Celts, the Goths, and the Slaves. 40." The Indian, and Chinese nations appear to be of equal antiquity with the Egyptians. Joseph de Guigpes, an eminent French Oriental scholar, who died in the first year of the present century, has written a memoir (in 1759, 12mo.), to prove that the Chinese were a colony from Egypt : and M. de Guignes, a French resident in China, who pub- lislied at Paris a Chinese dictionary in 1813, is of the same opinion. The histories of the Oriental nations, however, are not yet sufficiently developed from the original sources, to enable us to avail ourselves pf the information they may contain as to tiie agriculture of so remote a period as that how under consideration. 41. Withr respect to ths American nations during this period, there are no facts on licord to prpv^ either their existence or their civilisation, though Bishop Huet, and the Abb6 Clavigero, think that they also are descendants of Noah, who, while in a nomadic stale, arrived in the western, through the northern parts of the eastern continent. Chap. II. iSistor^ of Agriculture among the Romans, or from the Second Centwy B. C, to ihe Fiflk Century of our tera. 42. We have now arrived at a period of our history where certainty supplies the place of conjecture, and which may be considered as not only entertaining but instructive. The attention of the Romans to agriculture is well known.- The greatest men amongst them applied themselves to the study and practice of it, not only in the first ages of the state, but after they had carried their arms into every country of Europe, and into many countries of Asia and Africa. Some of their most learned men, and one of their greatest poets wrote on it ; and all were attached to the things of the country. Varro, speaking of the farms of G* Tremellius Scrofa, says, " they are to many, on account of their culture, a more agreeable spectacle than the royally ornamented edifices of others." (^Var. de R. R. lib. i. cap. 2.) In ancient times, Pliny observes, the lands were culti- vated by the hands, even of generals, and the earth delighted to be ploughed with a share adorned with laurels, and by a ploughman who bad been honored with a triumph. (JVat. Hist. lib. xviii. c. 3.) The Romans spread their arts with their conquests; and their agriculture became that of all Europe at an early period of our aera. 43. TTie sources from which we have drawn our information being first related, we shall review, in succession, the proprietorship, occupancy, soil, culture, and produce of Roman agriculture. Sect. I. Of the Roman Agricultural Writers, 44. The Roman authors on agriculture, whose works have reached the present age, are Cato, Varro, Virgil, Columella, Pliny, and Palladius. There were many more, whose writings are lost. The compilation of Constantine Poligonat, or, as others consider, of Cassius Bassus, entitled Geoponicka, already mentioned (18.), is also to be considered as a Roman production, though published in the Greek language at Constan- tinople, after the removal thither of the seat of government. 45. M. Porcius Cato, called the Censor, and the father of the Roman rustic writers, lived in the seventh century of the repubhc, and died at an extreme old age, B. C. 150. He recommended himself, at the age of seventeen, by his valor in a battle against Annibal ; and afterwards rose to all the honors of the state. He particularly distinguished himself as censor, by his impartiality and opposition to all luxury and dissipation ; and was remarkably strict in his morals. He wrote several works, of which only some fragments remain, under the titles of Origines and De Re Rustica. The latter is the oldest Roman work on agriculture : it is much mutilated, and more curious for the account it contains of Roman customs and sacrifices, than valuable for its georgical information. 46. M. Terentius Varro died B. C. 28, in tlie 88th year of his age. He was a learned writer, a distinguished soldier both by sea and land, and a consul. He was a grammarian, a philosopher, a historian, and astronomer ; and is thought to have written five hundred volumes on different subjects, all of which are lost, except his treatise De Re Rustica, This is a complete system of directions in three books, on the times proper for, and the different kinds of, rural labour ; it treats also of live stock, and of the villa and ofl'iccs. As Varro was for some time lieutenant-general in Spain and Africa, and afterwards retired and cultivated his own estate in Italy, his experience and observation must have been very considerable. Book I. AGRICULTURE OF THE ROMANS. IS 47. Publius Virgilius Maro, called the prince of the Latin poets, was born at a village near Mantua in Lombardy about 70 B.C., and died B.C. 19, aged 51. He culti- vated his own estate till he was 30 years old, and spent the rest of his life chiefly at the court of Augustus. His works are the Bucolics, Georgics, and jEneid. The Geor"ics is to be considered as a poetical compendium of agriculture, taken from the Greelc and Roman writers then extant, but especially from Varro. 48. Luc. Jun. Moderatus Columella was a native of Gades, now Cadiz, in Spain, but passed most of his time in Italy. The time of his birth and death are not known, but he is supposed to have lived under Claudius in the first century. His work De Re Rustica, lib. xii. is a complete treatise on rural affairs ; including field operations, timber-trees, and gardens. 49. C. Plinius Secundus, surnamed the elder, was born at Verona in Lombardy, and suflbcated at the destruction of Pompeii in his 56th year, A.D. 79. He was of a noble family ; distinguished himself in the field and in the fleet ; was governor of Spain ; was a o-reat naturalist, and an extensive writer. Of the works which he composed none are extant but his Natural History in thirty-seven books ; a work full of the erudition of the time, accompanied with much erroneous, useless, and frivolous matter. It treats of the stars, the heavens, wind, rain, hail, minerals, trees, .flowers, and plants; an account of all living animals, birds, fishes, and beasts ; a geographical description of every place on the globe ; a history of every art and science, commerce, and navigation, with their rise, progress, and several improvements. His work may be considered as a compen- dium of all preceding writers on these subjects, with considerable additions from his personal experience and observation. 50. Rutilius Taurus Emilianus Palladius is by some supposed to have lived under Antoninus Pius, in the second, and by others in the fourth century. His work De Re Rustica is a poem in fourteen books, and is little more than a compendium of those which preceded it on the same subject. The editor of the article Agriculture, in the Encyclo^ jiedie Methodique, says it is too dull to be read as a poem, and too concise to be useful as a didactic work. 51. These works have been rendered accessible to all by translations; and a judicious and instructive treatise comjyosedfrom them by Adam Dickson, a Scotch clergyman, was published in 1788, under the title of The Husbandry of the Ancients. To this last work we are indebted for the greater part of what we have to submit on Roman agriculture. 52. The Roman authors, as Rozier has observed {Diet, de VAgr. art. Hist.), do not enable us to trace the rise and progress of agriculture, either in Italy or in any other country under their dominion. What they contain is a picture of their rural economy in its most perfect state : delivered in precepts, generally founded on experience, though some- times on superstition ; never, however, on theory or hypothesis. For, as the Rev. Adam Dickson states, *' instead of schemes produced by a lively imagination, which we receive but too frequently from authors of genius unacquainted with the practice of agriculture, we have good reason to believe that they deliver in their writings, a genuine account of the most approved practices ; practices, too, the goodness of which they had themselves experienced." (Husb. of the Anc. p. 16.) He adds, that if in the knowledge of the theory of agriculture, the Roman cultivators are inferior to our modern improvers ; yet in attention to circumstances and exactness of execution, and in economical manage- ment, they are greatly superior. Sect. II. Of the Proprietorship y Occupancy, and General Managem£nt of Landed Property among the Romans. 53. The Roman nation originated from a company of robbers and runaway slaves, who placed tliemselves under their leader Romulus. This chief having conquered a small part of Italy divided the land among his followers, and by what is called the Agrarian Law, allowed 2 jugera or li acre to every citizen. After the expulsion of the kings in the 6th century B. C, 7 yoke, or 3f acres were allotted. The custom of distributing the conquered lands, by giving 7 jugera to every citizen, continued to be observed in latter times ; but when each soldier had received his share, the remainder was sold in lots of various sizes, even to 50 jugera ; and no person was prevented from acquiring as large a landed estate as he could, till a law passed by Stolo, the second plebeian consul, B. C. 377, that no one should possess more than 500 jugera. This law appears to have remained in force during the greater period of the Roman power. "Whatever might be the size of the estate, it was held by the proprietor as an absolute right, without acknowledgment to any superior power ; and passed to his successors, agreeably to testament, if he made one ; or if not, by common law to his nearest relations. 54. In the first ages of the commonwealth, the lands were occupied and cultivated by the rtroprietors themselves ; and as this state of things continued for four or five centuries, it was probably the chief cause of the agricultural eminence of the Romans. When a 14 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. person has only a small portion of land assigned to him, and the maintenance of his family depends entirely upon its productions, it is natural to suppose that the culture of it employs his whole attention. A person who has been accustomed to regular and systematic habits of action, such as those of a military life, will naturally carry those habits into whatever he undertakes. Hence, it is probable, a degree of industrious appli- cation, exactness, and order in performing operations, by a soldier-agriculturist, which would not be displayed by men who had never been trained to any regular habits of action. The observation of Pliny confirms this supposition : he asserts that the Roman citizens, in early times, " ploughed their fields with the same diligence that they pitched their camps, and sowed their corn with the same care that they formed their armies for battle." {A^at, Hist. lib. xviii. c. 3.) Corn, he says, was then both abundant and cheap. 55. Afterwards, when Rome extended her conquests, and acquired large territories, rich individuals purchased large estates; the culture of these fell into different hands, and was carried on by bailiffs and farmers much in the same way as in modern times. Columella informs us that it was so in his time, stating, that " the men employed in agriculture are either farmers or servants ; the last being divided into free servants and slaves." (Col. lib. i. cap. 7.) It was a common practice to cultivate land by slaves during the time of the elder Pliny ; but his nephew and successor let his estates to farmers. r)(i. In the time of Cato the Censor, the author of The Husbandry of the Ancients observes, though the operations of agriculture were generally performed by servants, yet the great men among the Romans continued to give a particular attention to it, studied its improvement, and were very careful and exact in the management of all their country affairs. This appears from the directions given them by this most attentive farmer. Those great men had br»th houses in town, and villas in the country ; and as they resided frequently in town, the management of their country affairs was committed to a bailiff or over- seer. Now their attention to the culture of their lands and to every other branch of husbandry, appear from the directions given them how to behave upon their arrival from the city at their villas. " After the landlord," says Cato, " has come to the villa, and performed his devotions, he ought that very day, if pos- sible, to go through his farm; if not that day, at least the next. When he has considered in what manner his fields should be cultivated, what work should be done, and what not ; next day he ought to call the bailiff, and enquire what of the work is done, and what remains ; whether the laboring is far enough advanced for the season, and whether the things that remain might have been finished ; and what is done about the wine, com, and all other things. When he has made himself acquainted with all these, he ought to take an account of the workmen and working days. If a sufficiency of work does not appear, the bailiff will say that he was very diligent, but that the servants were not well; that there were violent storms ; that the slaves had run away ; and that they were employed in some public work. When he has given these and many other excuses, call him again to the account of the work and the workmen. When there have been storms, enquire for how many days, and consider what work might be done in rain ; casks ought to have been washed and mended, the villa cleaned, corn carried away, dung carried out, a dunghill made, seed cleaned, old ropes mended, new ones made, and the servants' clothes mended. On holidays, old ditches may have been scoured, a highway repaired, briers cut, the garden digged, meadows cleared from weeds, twigs bound up, thorns pulled, far (bread-corn, maize) pounded, all things made clean. When the servants have been sick, the ordinary quantity of meat ought not to have been given them. When he is fully satisfied in all these things, and has given orders that the work that remains be finished, he should inspect the bailiff's accounts, his account of money, of corn, fodder, wine, oil, what has been sold, what exacted, what remains, %vhat of this may be sold, whether there is good security for what is owing. He should inspect the things that remain, buy what is wanting for the year, and let out what is necessary to be employed in this manner. He should give orders concerning the works he would have executed, and the things he is inclined to let, and leave his orders in writing. He should inspect his flocks, make a sale, sell the superfluous oil, wine, and corn ; if they are giving a proper price, sell the old oxen, the refuse of the cattle and sheep, wool, hides, the old carts, old iron tools, and old and diseased slaves. Whatever is superfluous he ought to sell ; a farmer should be a seller, not a buyer." {Cat. cap. ii.) 57. The landlord is thus supposed by Cato to be perfectly acquainted ivith every kind of work proper on his farm, and the seasons of performing it, and also a perfect judge how much work both without and within doors ought to be performed by any number of servants and cattle, in a given time ; the knowledge of which is highly useful to a farmer and what very few perfectly acquire. It may be observed likewise, that the landlord is here supposed to enquire into all circumstances, with a minuteness of which there is scarcely even an actual farmer in this age that has any conception. 58. Varro complains that, in his time, the same attention to agriculture was not given as in former times ; that the great men resided too much within the walls of the city, and employed themselves more in the theatre and circus, than in the corn-fields and vineyards. (Var. de R. R. lib. i. Prof,) 59. Columella complains that, in his time, agriculture was almost entirely neglected. However, from the directions which he gives to the proprietors of land, it appears that there were still a few that continued to pay a regard to it ; for, after mentioning some things, which he says, by the justice and care of the landlord, contribute much to im- prove his estate, he adds, " But he should likewise remember, when he returns from the city, immediately after paying his devotions, if he has time, if not, next day, to view his marches, inspect every part of his farm, and observe whether in his absence any part of discipline or watchfulness has been dispensed with ; and whether any vine, any other tree, or any fruits are missing. Then likewise he ought to review the cattle and servants, all the instruments of husbandry, and household furniture. If he continues to do all these things for some years, he will find a habit of discipline established when he is old ; and Book I. AGRICULTURE OF THE ROMANS. 15 at no age will he be so much impaired with years as to be despised by his servants." {Col. lib. i. cap. 9.) 60. The earliest farmers among the Bomans seem not to have been upon the same footing as in Britain. The stock on the farm belonged to the landlord, and the farmer received a certain proportion of the produce for his labor. The farmer, who possessed a farm upon these terms, was called politor or polintor, from his business, being the dresser of the land ; and partuai'ius, from his being in a kind of co-partnership with his landlord, and his receiving a part of the produce of the farm for his labor. Cato takes notice of this kind of farmers only, and it is probable that there were no others in his time. " The terms," says he, " upon which land ought to be let to a. politor ; in the good land of Casinum and Venafrum, he receives the eighth basket ; in the second kind of land he receives the seventh ; in the third kind he receives the sixth. In this last kind, when the grain is divided by the modius, he receives the fifth part ; in the very best kind of land about Venafrum, when divided by the basket, he receives only the ninth. If the land- lord and politor husk the far in common, the politor receives the same proportion after as before ; of barley and beans divided by the modius, he receives a fifth." (Ch. xl. xli.) The small proportion of the produce that the politor received, makes it evident that he was at no expence in cultivating the land, and that he received his proportion clear of all deductions. 61. The coloniy or farmers mentioned by Columella, seem to have paid rent for their farms in the same manner as is done by the farmers in Britain. The directions given by this author to landlords concerning the mode of treating them, are curious as well as im- portant. A landlord, he says, ought to treat his tenants with gentleness, should show himself not difficult to please, and be more vigorous in exacting culture than rent, because this is less severe, and upon the whole more advantageous. For, where a field is care- fully cultivated, it for the most part brings profit, never loss, except when assaulted by a storm or pillagers ; and therefore the farmer cannot have the assurance to ask any ease of his rent. Neither should the landlord be very tenacious of his right in every thing to which the farmer is bound, particularly as to days of payment, and demanding the wood and other small things which he is obliged to, besides paying his rent, the care of which is a greater trouble than expense to the rustics. Nor is every penalty in our power to be exacted, for our ancestors were of opinion, that the rigor of the law is the greatest op- pression. On the other, the landlord ought not to be entirely negligent in this matter; because it is certainly true, what Alpheus the usurer used to say, that good debts become bad ones, by being not called for. I remember to have heard it asserted by L. Volusius, an old rich man, who had been consul, that an estate was most advantageous to the land- lord, which was cultivated by farmers, natives of the country, and born upon the lands, for these are attached to it by a strong habit from their cradles. So, indeed, it is my opinion, that the frequent letting of a farm is a bad thing ; however, it is still worse to let one to a farmer who lives in town, and chooses rather to cultivate it by servants than by himself. Saserna used to say, that from such a farm a lawsuit was got in place of rent. For which reason, we ought to be careful to retain in our farms the same in- dustrious farmers that, have been bred in the country, when it is not in our power to cultivate them ourselves, or convenient to do it by domestics ; which, however, cannot happen except in those countries that are laid waste by the severity of the climate, or barrenness of the soil. For wherever the climate is moderately healthful, and the soil moderately good, lands never produce so much under the care of a farmer, as under the care of a landlord, or even of a bailiff, unless his very great negligence or rapaciousness prevent it, both of which are, for the most part, owing to the fault of the landlord ; for it is in his power to prevent such a person from having the management of his affairs, or to remove him if placed in that office. However, in farms that lie at a distance, to which the landlord has not easy access, as all kinds of them are better under the manage- ment of free farmers than under bailiffs, so particularly corn farms, which a farmer cannot destroy, as he can a vineyard and other plantations ; for when such farms are cultivated by distant landlords, the oxen are greatly harassed, these and the other cattle ill fed, the land ill ploughed, and much more seed charged than sown. Besides these things, the produce of the land is not managed in such a manner as to turn out to any account ; for, when the corn is brought to the threshing-floor, during the threshing it is daily lessened by fraud or negligence ; tlie servants themselves carry it off*, and they allow it to be carried off" by thieves ; nor even after it is laid up, is it faithfully accounted for ; so that, when the manager and servants are in the fault, the land is rendered infamous. Wherefore a farm of this kind, if, as I have said, the landlord cannot be on the spot, in my opinion ought to be let. (^Col. lib. i.cap. 7.) 62. These directions are valuable even with reference to the present times; and they instruct us respecting the general management of landed property among the Romans. It appears that the landlord was considered as understanding every thing respecting the usbandry of his estate himself ; and that there was no agent, or intermediate person, 16 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. between him and the farmer. The farmers paid rent for the use of their farms, and were bound to a particular kind of culture, according to the conditions of their lease ; but they were perfectly free and independent of their landlords ; so much so, as sometimes to enter into lawsuits with them. On the whole they seem to have been upon the same footing as the farmers of Britain in modern times. Sect. III. Of the Surface, Soil, Climate, and other Agricultural Circumstances of Italy ^ during the time of the Romans. 63. The agriculture qf any country must necessarily take its character from the nature of that country. The extent and manner of cultivating the soil, and tlie kind of plants cultivated, or animals reared, must necessarily be regulated by the surface of the soil, the natural productions, the climate, the artificial state, and the habits of the people. 64. The climate of Italy is regular, dry, clear, and, as every body knows, considerably warmer than that of Britain, At the bottoms of the mountains, it is subject to severe storms of hail in summer, and snow in winter, which often do considerable damage ; but these are but accidental disadvantages ; and in the champaign lands and gentle declivities, the vine, the fig, and the olive, ripened anciently, as now, in open plantations from one extremity of Italy to the other. 65. The surface of Italy, as every reader knows, is very irregular. A ridge of hills and mountains passes through its whole length, forming numerous valleys of different degrees of extent ; some elevated and narrow, others low and watered by a river, a stream, or by lakes. The immense plain of the Po constitutes a capital feature towards the north- east ; the sandy plain of Calabria towards the south ; the marshy plain of Terracino, and the rocky coast of Genoa, towards the western shore. Columella and Palladius agree in stating, that the best situation of lands, is not so much on a level as to make the water stagnate, nor so steep as to make it run off with violence; nor so low as to be buried in the bottom of a valley ; nor so exposed as to feel the violence of storms and heats ; but that in all these a mediocrity is always best ; champaign lands exposed, and whose declivity affords the rain a free passage, or a hill whose sides gently decline, or a valley not too much confined, and into which the air has easy access, or a mountain defended by a higher top, and thereby secured from the winds tliat are most pernicious, or if high and rugged, at the same time covered with trees and grass. {^Col. lib. ii. cap. 2. ; Pal. lib. i. cap. 5. ) The situation of lands which Cato reckons the best, is at the foot of a mountain with a south exposure. Varro and Pliny concur in this opinion, and the latter states that the best lands in Italy are so situated. 66. The soil of Italy is as varied as the surface. About Genoa a yellow marly clay forms a base to schistous cliffs and hilly slopes; a blue clay containing sulphur and alum on the west coast, between Florence and Venice ; volcanic earth about Rome and Naples ; sand about Florence, and at the estuaries of most of the rivers ; rich black loam in the central parts of Tuscany ; rich, deep, soft, moist earth, and mild marly clay, in Lombardy. Columella divides the soils of Italy into six kinds ; fat and lean, free and stiff, wet and dry : these mixed with one another, he says, make great varieties. In common with all the other writers, he prefers a free soil. 67. The native productions of Italy, in an agricultural point of view, are, timber on the mountains, pastures on the hill sides, and meadow or very luxuriant grass-lands in the alluvial plains. The rich, low, and yet dry lands do not produce a close pasture, but a rough herbage, unless they are covered with trees ; the sandy soils produce little of any thing ; and the fens and marshes reeds and other coarse aquatics. Such were the productions of Italy antecedent to culture. 68. The artificial state of the country, in respect to agriculture, during the time of the Romans, seems to have differed less from its present state than will be imagined. The cultivated lands were open, and enclosures only to be seen near the villas. These were of small size, and chiefly gardens and orchards, excepting in the case of parks for game, formed by the wealthy, which never were very numerous. With the exception of part of Tuscany and Lombardy, this is still the case ; and the landscape, as Daniel Malthus has observed [Introd. to Girardin's Essay), which Pliny observes as seen from his villas, does not appear to have been different two thousand years ago, from what it is at this day. But the roads, canals, markets, and artificial water-courses for the irrigation both of arable and grass lands, are undoubtedly greatly increased since the time of the Romans : though they also practised irrigation. 69. The habits of a people take their rise, in a great degree, from the climate in which they lire, and the native or cultivated productions with which the country abounds. As respects agriculture, it may be sufficient to mention, that the great heat of the climate, by relaxing the frame, naturally produces indolence in many, and leads to a life of plunder in some. Hence then, as now, the danger from thieves and robbers in that country ; and hence, also, the custom of performing field labors early in the morning, and in the evening, arid resting during the mid-day heat. The general use of oil and wine as Book 1. AGRICULTURE OF THE ROMANS. 17 food and drink, and also of the fig as an article of nourishment, are hal)its which arise mediately from the circumstance of these articles being the artificial produce of the country ; but are ultimately, like most other habits, to be referred to the climate. 70. These liints respecting the natural and agricultural geography of Italy, during the time of the Romans, are confessedly too scanty to be of more use than to recal to the reader's recollection the information on the same subject with which his mind is already stored ; and by this means to enable him to form a due estimate of the nature and merits of the agriculture which we are about to describe. Sect. IV. Of the Culture and Farm Management of the Romans. 1 1 . The Roman authors are much more copious in describing farm culture and economy f than in relating the state of landed property as to extent and proprietorship. Their directions, being founded on experience, are in great part applicable at the present day : they are remarkable for their minuteness ; but we can only give a very brief compen- dium, beginning with some account of the farm and the villa, or farmery, and taking in succession the servants, beasts of labor, implements, operations, crops cultivated, animals reared , and profit produced. SuBSECT. 1. Of the Choice of a Farm, and of tlie Villa or Farmery, 72. In the choice of a farm, C-Bio recommends a situation where there are plenty of artificers, and good water ; which has a fortified town in its neighbourhood ; is near the sea, or a navigable river, or where the roads are easy and good. (^Cat. cap.l.) ,To these requisites Varro adds, a proper market for l)uying and selling, security from thieves and robbers, and the boundaries planted with useful trees. The interior of the farm was not subdivided by inclosures, which were seldom used but for their gardens, and in the villas of the wealthy, to form a park. 73. The soil preferred by Columella and all the Roman authors, is the fat and free, as producing the greatest crops, and requiring the least culture ; next, fat, stiff soil ; then, stiff and lean soil, that can be watered; and, last of all, lean, dry soil. 74. The state of a farm preferred by Cato and some other writers is that of pasture, meadow, and watered grass-lands, as yielding produce at least expence; and lands under vines and olives, as producing the greatest profit according to the expence. The opinions of the Roman agriculturists, however, seem to disagree on the subject of meadows, apparently from confounding a profitable way of management, with a capacity of yielding great profit with superior management, and none without. 75. The word Villa originally denoted a farm-house and its appurtenances. In the first age of the commonwealth, these were very plain and small, suitable to the plain manners of the people, and adapted to the small size of their farms : but, when the Romans had extended their empire, when they had become rich and luxurious, and particular persons were possessed of large landed estates, then the villas became large and magnificent. In the time of Valerius Maximus, there were villas that covered more ground than was in the estates of some of the ancient nobles. " Now," says he, " those think themselves very much confined whose houses are not more extensive than the fields of Cincinnatus." ( Val. Max. lib. iv. cap. 4. sect. 7.) In the days of Cato, it is probable that they had begun to extend their villas considerably, which makes him give a caution to the proprietors of land not to be rash in building. He recommends to them to sow and plant in their youth, but not to build till somewhat advanced in years. His words are remarkable : " A landholder," says he, " should apply himself to the planting of his fields early in his youth ; but he ought to think long before he builds. He ought not to think about planting ; but he ought to do it. When he is about thirty-six years of age, he may build, provided his fields are planted." (^Cat. cap. 3.) 76. Men should plant in their youth, and 7iot build till their fields are planted; and even then ought " not to be in a hurry, but take time to consider. It is best, according to the proverb, to profit by the folly of others." (Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 5.) The reason why these authors recommend greater attention to planting than building is, that the labouring oxen in Italy, in the time of the Romans, were fed, for several months in the year, with leaves and mast ; and the vine, the fig, the olive, and other trees, were cultivated for their fruit. 77. Build in such a manner that your villa may not need a farm, nor your farm need a villa. (Cat. cap. 3.) Varro assigns proper reasons for this. " In not attending," says he, " to the measure of the farm, many have gone wrong. Some have made the villa much smaller, and others much larger than the farm required. One of these is contrary to a man's interest, and the other hurtful to the produce of his lands. For we both build and repair the larger buildings at a greater expense than is necessary ; and, when the buildings are loss than what the farm requires, the fruits are in danger of being destroyed." (Var. de R.R. lib. i. cap. 11.) Columella expresses himself to the same purpose, and mentions two persons in particular who had fallen into C 18 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. each of the extremes. " I remember," says be, " that many have erred in this point, as these most excellent men did, L. LucuUus and Q. Scaevola, one of whom built a villa much larger, and the other much less than the farm required." (Col. lib. i. cap, 4.) 78. Plini/, noticing this remark of Cato's, observes that Lucullus had thereby rendered himself liable to the chastisement of the censors, having less occasion to plough his lands than to clean his house. " In this case," says he, " to plough less than to sweep, was a foundation for the chastisement of the censors." {PHn. Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 6.) 79. Proportion the expence of the building to the rent, or the projtts arising from the farm. " An edifice should be built according to the value of the farm and fortune of the master, which, immoderately undertaken, it is commonly more difficult to sup- port than to build. The largeness of it should be so estimated, that, if any thing shall happen to destroy it, it may be rebuilt by one, or at most by two years' rent or profits of the farm in which it is placed." (Pal. lib. i. tit. 8.) 80. The position of the villa, and the situation of its different parts, are also noticed by some of these authors. " Some art," says Pliny, " is required in this. C. Marius, of a very mean family, seven times consul, placed a villa in the lands of Misenum, with such skill in the contrivance, that Sylla Felix said, that all others in this respect were blind, when compared to him." (Pliyi. Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 7.) All of them advise that it shall not be placed near a marsh, nor fronting a river. Pliny cites the authority of Homer for this. Varro says, that such a situation is cold in winter and unhealthful in summer; that, in such a place, there are many small insects that, though invisible, enter the body at the mouth and nostrils, and occasion diseases. ( Far. de R. R. lib. i. tit. 12. ) Palladius gives reasons of the same kind. {Pal. lib. i. tit. 7.) Besides this, Varro directs, that, if possible, it shall be placed at the foot of a mountain covered with woods, in such a manner as to be exposed to the most healthful winds, and to enjoy the sun in winter and the shade in summer. An east exposure, he thinks, is the best for this purpose. ( Var, de R.R. lib. i. cap. 12.) Palladius proposes, that for the same purpose, the villa shall front the south-east ; that the prcetorium, or master's house, shall be a little higher than the rest of the villa, both to secure the foundations, and to have a more agreeable pros- pect. [Pal. lib. i. tit. 8.) It is probable that both these authors have Italy particularly in view. But Pliny extends his views further ; for he says, that the villa in warm climates ought to front the north, in cold climates the south, and in temperate climates the east. (Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 7.) Columella is more particular than any of the other authors, both in giving directions as to the situation of the villa, and giving reasons for the situation he recommends. [Col. lib. i. cap. 5.) 81. The villa is divided into three parts, the urbana, the rustica, and the fructuaria ; all the particulars of these. Columella says, ought to be properly placed with respect to each other. The urbana contained the apartments of the landlord ; the rustica con- tained the kitchen, the houses of the labouring servants, the stables, piggeries, and poultry houses, ponds for water, dunghills, on which, says Varro, som'e persons place necessary con veniencies for the family. (§ xii.) Adjoining the villa rustica, in the residence of opulent Romans, was placed the aviary, apiary, a place for dormice, a warren for hares and rabbits, a place for snails, and a large enclosure or park of fifty acres or more for retaining live deer and wild beasts taken in the chace. The fructuaria contained the oil and wine cellars, the places for the oil and wine presses, the corn-yards, barns, granaries, store-houses, repositories for roots and fruits, &c. 82. Both Columella and Palladius give directions how all these parts should be situated and constructed ; but though minute, they are not so explicit as to enable any one to delineate their ground plan. The same may be said as to the directions given by these authors, and by Pliny {Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. ), respecting the laying out of the villa urbana ; and the apartments for summer and winter. The subject of designing villas for the opulent belongs no doubt more to architecture than to agriculture ; and therefore we shall refer for details to the plans given by Castel {fig. 10.), and other modern authors, who have attempted to embody the descriptions of the ancient writers. 83. CasteC s general Arrangement of a Grand Roman Villa and its Environs, is as follows : (1) Praetorium. (11) OmithonofVarro. (20) Mill driven bywater. i^} l^^"'"?"''""'*^^"^^®?^- , (1'4 Vivarium, or park for wild beasts. (21) Temple of Ceres. (3) Canal, partmg the farm from the (13) Small woody islands for peacocks. (22 Corn-fields, ^retorium. (14) Place for turkeys (!!), rather swans, (23) Vineyards. (4) htone-bankstothecanal. and their keepers: turkeys being (24) Olive grounds. (5) Bridges. natives ofAmerica, and consequently (25) Meadows. (6) Museum. unknown to the Romans. (26) Orchard. II! S*"^"" ^'"i'^-. , . ^.. (15) For geese and their keeper. 27 Garden. (8) Part of the island surrounded by (16) Cochlearium. (28) Osier ground, that river. (17) Dormice. (29) Woods, &c. (9) The other river. (18) Apiary. (30) Connices. 10) Walk on the bank of that river. (19) Threshing floor and barn. ^' 84. It is remarkable that no directions are given as to the materials of which the villa should be built. 'ITiese would, in all probability, depend on local circumstances; rammed earth, timber, brick burned, or only dried in the sun, or stone, would be taken according Book I. AGRICULTURE OF THE ROMANS. 19 to convenience. The remains of villas which have reached modern times, are chiefly of brick stuccoed over. Pliny mentions walls in Africa and Spain, called formacii, the 10 formation of which, by cramming the earth between two boards, exactly agrees with the French mode of building mud walls, called eri pise. He also mentions walls of unburnt brick, of mud, of turf, and frames filled up with bricks and mud. (Xat. Hist. lib. xxxv. cap. 14.) SuBSKCT. 2. Of the Servants employed in Roman Agriculture, 85. The servants employed in Roman agriculture were of two sorts, freemen and slaves. When the proprietor or farmer lived on the farm and directed its culture, these were directly under his management ; in other cases there was a bailiff or overseer, to whom all the other servants were subordinate. This was the case so early as Cato's time, who is very particular in his directions respecting the care a bailiflT ought to take of the servants, the cattle, the laboring utensils, and in enacting his master's orders. 86. The bailiff^ was genei'ally a person who had received some education, and could write and keep accounts ; and it was expected that he should be careful, apt to learn, and capable to execute his master's orders with a proper attention to situations and circumstances. Columella, however, says, that * « the bailiff may do his business very well, though he is illiterate." Cornelius Celsus says, that " such a bailiff will bring money to his master oftener than his book ; because, being ignorant of letters, he is the less capable to C 2 20 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt I. contrire accounts, and is afraid to trust another, being conscious of fraud." (Co/, lib. i. cap. 8.) There are some other things mentioned by this author, with respect to tfje bailiff, that are very proper, and shew particularly the attention of the Romans. " He ought not," says he, " to trade upon his own account, nor employ his master's money in purchasing cattle or any other goods ; for this trading takes off his attention, and prevents him from keeping square accounts with his master. But when he is required to settle them, he shows his goods in the place of money. This, above all, he should be careful of, not to think he knows any thing he does not know ; and always be ready to learn what he is ignorant of. For as it is of great advantage to do a thing well, so it is most hurtful to have it ill done. This one thing holds true in all rustic work, to do but once what the manner of culture requires ; because, when imprudence or negligence in work- ing is to be set to rights, the time for the work is already wasted ; nor are the effects of the amendment such as to make up the lost labour, and balance the advantages that might have been gained by improving the season that is past." (Col. lib. i. cap. 8.) 87. The qualities of the other villa servants are represented by the same author in this manner: " The careful and industrious," says he, " should be appointed masters of the works ; these qualities are more necessary for this business than stature, or strength of body; for this service requires diligent care and art." Of the ploughman he says, 88. In the ploughman, though a degree of genius is necessary, yet it is not enough, " There should be joined to it a harshness of voice and manner, to terrify the cattle : but he should temper strength with clemency ; because he ought to be more terrible than cruel, that so the oxen may obey his commands, and continue the longer at their work, not being spent, at the same time, both with the severity of labour and stripes. But what the offices of masters of works and of ploughmen are, I shall mention in their proper places. It is sufficient at present to observe, that tallness and strength are of great use in the one, and of very little in the other; for we should make, as I have said, the tallest man a ploughman, both for the reason I have already mentioned, and because there is no rustic work by which a tall man is less fatigued than by ploughing ; because, when employed in this, walking almost upright, he may lean upon the handle of the plough." Of the common laborer he says, " The common laborer may be of any size, provided he is able to endure fatigue." And of the vme-dresser, *' Vineyards do not require such tall men, provided they are thick and brawny ; for this constitution of body is most proper for digging, pruning, and the other culture necessary for them. In this work diligence is less necessary than in the other works of husbandry ; because the vine-dresser ought to perform his work in company and under the eye of a director. Commonly wicked men are of a quicker genius, which this kind of work requires ; and, as it requires not only a stout servant, but one of an active contrivance, vineyards are commonly cultivated by slaves in chains." {Col. lib. i. cap. 9.) Thus we see, that, among the Romans, laborers were appointed to the different works of husbandry, according to their strength, size, and genius. 89. With respect to the wages of agricultural labor among the Romans, very little benefit can be derived from knowing the absolute sum of money paid for any article, unless it can be compared with the price of other commodities. The price of a slave in Cato's time, was about 501. ; in the time of Columella it had risen to 60/. ; or to the price of eight acres of good land. A good vine-dresser cost 661. 1 3s. 4d. and a good ploughman or laboser not less than 60/. The interest of money at this time was 61. per cent, per annum ; therefore, in stating the expence of farm labor, a slave must be rated at not less than 12/. percent, as being a perishable commodity ; so that one who cost 60/. would fall to be charged at the rate of 7/. 4s. per annum, besides his maintenance and clothing. This may give some idea of the wages that would be paid to a free servant who hired him- self by the year ; of which, however, there appears to have been no great number, their wages not being stated. Two reflections which arise from these statements may be men- tioned incidentally : the first, that a much greater proportion of capital was required to carry on Roman agriculture, than in Britain or any free country where the capital of labor was not purchased, but only the interest paid as the labor is performed ; and, secondly, that our farm servants, who in some places are paid from 15/. to 20/. per an- num, besides food and lodging, would, if they were to be purchased, cost the farmer from 150/. to 200/. each. A farmer, therefore, who occupied three hundred acres, and employed a capital of 3000/. and six servants, would require an addition to his capital of at least one third, if he were obliged to purchase those servants. 90. All the servants were maintained and clothed by the farmer or proprietor; and as may be supposed, it was the interest of the latter that this should be done in a good and sufficient manner. Columella mentions what he calls an old maxim, concerning the bailiff: " That he should not eat but in the sight of all the servants, nor of any other thing but what was given for the rest." He mentions the reason of this : " For thus," says he, " shall he take care that both the bread be well baked, and the other things pre- pared in a wholesome manner." (Co/, lib. i. cap. 8.) The same author mentions the treatment that masters ought to give their slaves: '* So much the more attentive," says he, "ought the master to be in his inquiry concerning this kind of servants, that they may not be injured in their clothes and other things afforded them, inasmuch as they are subject to many, such as bailiffs, masters of works, and gaolers ; and the more they are liable to receive injuries, and the more they are hurt through cruelty or avarice, the more they are to be feared. Therefore a diligent master ought to inquire, both at them- selves, and likewise the free servants in whom he may put greater confidence, whether they receive the full of what is allowed them ; he himself ought likewise to try, by tasting Book I. AGRICULTURE OF THE ROMANS. 21 the goodness of the bread and drink, and examining their clothes, mittens, and shoes." (Col. lib. i. cap. 8.) In another place, he says, "That the bailift' should have the family dressed and clothed rather usefully than nicely, and carefully fortified against the wind, cold, and rain ; all which they will be secured from, by sleeved leathern coats, old centones (thick stuff' used as bed-quilts) for defending their heads ; or cloaks with hoods. If the laborers are clothed with these, no day is so stormy as to prevent them from working without doors. " i6W. lib. i. cap. 8.) Cato likewise makes particular mention of the clothes of the slaves : "The vestments of the family," says he, "a coat and a gown three and a half feet long should be given once in two years; whenever you give a coat or a gown, first receive the old one ; of these make centones. Good shoes should be given once in two years." [Cat. cap. 59.) 91. Cato informs us what quality of bread and tvifie, and what other kinds qf meat were', given to laborers. Of bread, he says, each laborer was allowed at the rate of three pounds avoirdupois, or of three pounds twelve ounces avoirdupois in the day, according to the severity of their labor. " During the winter," says he, "the bailiff should have four modii of wheat each month, and during the summer fourmodii and a half; and the housekeeper, or the bailiff's wife, and the shepherd, should have three. During the winter, the slaves should have four pounds of bread each in the day ; from the time that they begin to dig the vineyard, to the ripening of the figs, they should have five pounds each ; after which they should return again to four." {Cat. cap. 56.) To this bread, there was a daily allowance of wine; during the three months that immediately followed the vintage, the servants drank a weak kind of wine called lora. The manner in which this liquor was made, is described both by Pliny and Columella ; and from the description given by them, it may well be supposed to be as good as the small beer given to servants in Britain. (Plin. 2^at. Hist. lib. xiv. cap. 10.) It does not appear that the Roman slaves were much restricted in the quantity ; Cato mentions no measure ; he only says, that they have this to drink for three months after the vintage ; he proceeds in this manner : " In the fourth month, each should get a hemina of wine in the day, which is at the rate of two and a half con^ii in the month ; in the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth months, each a sextary in the day, which is hve congii in the month ; in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh, each three hemince in the day, which is an amphora in the month. More than this, at the saturnalia and compitalia, to each man was given a congius. The quantity of wine for each man in the year is eight quadrantals ; however, as addition must be made according to the work in which the slaves are employed, it is not too much for each of them to drink ten quadrantals in the year." This allowance of wine, it must be acknowledged, was not inconsiderable, being at least seventy-four gallons in the year, or at an average 1.62 parts of a pint in the day. 92. Besides bread and wine, the slaves got what was called jjulmentarium, which answers to what in some parts of the country is called kitchen dripping or fat. (Plin. Nat. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 8.) For this purpose Cato recommends the laying up as many fallen olives as can be gathered ; afterwards the early olives from which the smallest quantity of oil is expected ; at the same time observing that these must be given sparingly, that they may last the longer. When the olives are finished, he desires salt fish and vinegar to be given, and besides, to each man a sextarius of oil in the month, and a viodius of salt in the year. ( Cat. cap. 18.) Columella, for this purpose, directs apples, pears, and figs, to be laid up : he adds, if there is a great quantity of these, the rustics are secured in no small part of their meat during the winter, for they serve for dripping or fat. (Col. lib. xii. cap. 14.) ScBSECT. 3. Of the Beasts of Labor used by the Romans. 9S. The laboring cattle used by the Romans, as well as all the ancient nations, were chiefly the ox, the ass sometimes, the mule for burdens, and but very rarely the horse. The horse, however, was reared ; but almost exclusively for the saddle, the chace, or for war. The respect for the ox which existed among the Egyptians, Jews, and Greeks, was continued among the Romans, so much so that Varro, and after him Columella and Pliny, adduces an instance of a man having been indicted and condemned for killing one to please a boy who longed for a dish of tripe. 94. The breeding, breaking, feeding, and working of the ox is very particularly treated of by the ancient authors. 95. Bulls, says Palladius, " should be tall, with huge members, of a middle age, rather young as old, of a stern countenance, small horns, a brawny and vast neck, and a confined belly." {Pal. lib iv' sect. 11.) 96. The cows. Columella "most approves of, are of a tall make, long, with very large belly, very broad forehead, eyes black and open, horns graceful, smooth and black, hairy ears, strait jaws, very large dewlap and tail, and moderate hoofs and legs." (Col. lib. vi. cap. 21.) 97. Breeders both of horses and cows, Virgil observes, should attend principally to the make of the female. " If any one," says he, " fond of the prize at the Olympic games, breeds horses; or if any one breeds stout bullocks for the plough, he chiefly attends to the make of the mother, who ought to be large in all her parts.^' ( Georg. iii. v. 49.) The same maxim is attended to by the best breeders of the present day ; and the reasons have been most satisfactorily and scientifically given by Cline. (Commun. to Board of Ag. &c. vol. iv.) 98. For breaking and training cattle to the yoke, Varro and Columella give very par- ticular directions. " To break bullocks," says Varro, «0) Sheep-houses. (51 and 32) Stables for the horses and foals. (33, 34, 35, and 36) Places for the hogs (37 and 38) Cisterns destined to receive the urine of the cattle. (39) Well. (401 Dung-pit, concave in the middle. (41) Pool serving to receive the super-abundant waters of the dung.pit, the weedings of the garden, &c. (42J Reservoirs to receive the waters of the farm-yard. (43) Entrance gateway, with dove-cote over. (44) Small trenches, or gutters. (45) Sheds destined for clover, cut green in summer, or'drv in winter. (46) Cistern for the wash-houses. (47) Situations of the com stacks, in years of abundance. 1 16 i ( 1 ^s \ JO /2 '! ..... ^ 1 / 2 16 ) ^^ ) ] " 6 1 J Book I. AGRICULTURE IN HOLLAND. 75 Four elevations i^fig. 61. a, b, c, d,) represent the four internal sides of the quadrangle. 61 , r, / d cj a 0 IB Q 4 Wl r £3 E] 13 □ || □ a ^ J a a III] EJ Ql / A. V m ED m C3 ED m 1 1 la El i 434. Vrlne cisterns are formed in the fields, to receive purchased liquid manure; but for that made in the farm-yard, generally in the yard, or under the stables. In the latter case, the urine is conducted from each stall to a common grating, through which it descends into the vault ; from thence it is taken up by a pump : in the best regulated farmeries there is a partition in the cistern, with a valve to admit the con- tents of the first space into the second, to be preserved there free from the more recent acquisition, age adding considerably to its eflScacy. This species of manure is relied on beyond any other, upon all the light soils throughout Flanders, and even upon the strong lands (originally so rich as to preclude the ne- cessity of manure), is now coming into great esteem, being considered applicable to most crops, and to all the varieties of soil. 435. The arable lands of Flanders include by far tlie greater part of the surface of the country. The crops raised are the same as those in Britain; but from local circumstances flax, hemp, chiccory, rape, spurry, madder, vs'oad, tobacco, and some others enter more generally into rotations. ^ 436. Fallows, according to Sir John Sinclair, are in a great measure abolished, even on strong land ; by means of which, produce is encreased, and the expense of cultivation, on the crops raised in the course of a rotation, necessarily diminished; and by the great profit they derive from their flax and rape, or colsat, they can afford to sell all their crops of graip at a lower rate. Notwithstanding this assertion of Sir John, it will be found that a fallow enters into the rotation on all the clayey soils of Flanders. 437. In regard to soil and culture, RadclifF arranges Flanders into eleven agricultural divisions, and we shall notice the soil and rotations, and some other features of culture, in the first six of these divisions. 438. Thejirst division extends along the north sea, and includes Ostend. This dis- trict consists of the strongest and heaviest soil which Flanders possesses, and a similarity of quality prevails generally throughout, with some occasional exceptions. It may be re- presented as a clay loam of a greyish colour, and yields the various produce to be expected from a strong soil ; rich pasture, wheat, beans, barley, and rape, considered as pri- mary crops ; and as secondary (or such as are not so generally cultivated), oats, carrots, potatoes, flax, and tares. In this division, however, though the nature of the soil may be stated under the general description of a clay loam, yet there are of this three degrees of quality, not to be marked by regular limits, but to be found throughout the whole, in distinct situations. It becomes the more necessary to remark this, as the succession of crops depends on the quality of the soil ; and as there are here three different degrees of quality, so are there three different systems of rotation. 439. Upon thejirst quality of soil, the succession is as follows : first year, barley ; second, beans ; third, wheat ; fourth, oats; fifth, fallow. For the second quality of soil, the succession is as follows . first year, wheat ; second, beans or tares ; third, wheat or oats ; fourth, fallow. For the third quality of soil, the succession is as follows : first year, wheat ; second, fallow ; third, wheat ; fourth, fallow. Besides these three qualities of strong soil, another of still superior fertility prevails in this district in considerable ex- tent, known by the denomination of Polders. 440. The polders, or embanked lands of Flanders, are certain areas of land reclaimed from the sea by embankment, whose surface, once secured from the influx of the tide, becomes the most productive soil," without requiring the assistance of any description of manure. They owe their origin partly to the collection of sand in the small branches of rivers, gradually increasing, so as naturally to embank a portion of land, and convert it into an arable and fertile soil. They also have proceeded from the contraction of the river itself, which, by the effect of the tides, is diminished in one place, wiiilst an alluvial soil is formed in another by its overflow. Hence it is, that within a century, entire polders in certain situations have been inundated, whilst, in others, new and fertile land has appeared, as if from the bosom of the water. These operations of nature pointed out facilities many centuries back, which excited the industry of the low countries, and has been rewarded by the acquisition of their richest soil. Tliese newly formed lands, before 76 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. their embankment, are called schorres. They are flooded at every tide by the water of the sea, and are augmented by mire, bits of wood, rushes, sea-weeds, and other marine plants decayed and putrid, also by shells and lishy particles which the ebb always leaves behind in considerable quantity. This growing soil soon produces various plants and grasses, and improves daily. When such lands have acquired a crust or surface of black earth, three or four inches deep, they may be embanked and fallowed. Those are always the most productive which have been deepened in their soil by the augmentations of the sea ; and experience proves, that in the corners and hollows where, from an obstructing boundary, the greatest quantity of mire has been deposited, the soil is doubly rich and good, and cannot be impoverished by the crops of many years. In some instances, the embankments are made on the part of government, in others, by companies or individuals, under a grant of a specific tenure, (generally twenty-one years), rent free, or according to circumstances, at some moderate annual payment. 441. The polder of Snaerskirke, near Ostend, contains about 1300 acres. It is of late formation, and was overflowed by a creek with its minor branches every spring tide. By constructing two banks and a flood-gate at the creek the sea is excluded, and the space subdivided by roads, and laid out in fields of thirteen acres each, surrounded by ditches. The bank is fifteen feet in height, thirty feet in the base, and ten feet across the top : the land which has been reclaimed by it, was let for a sheep pasturage at 600 francs (25/.) per annum, and was thrown up by the farmer as untenable. Upon being dried by this sum- mary improvement, the lots of which are one hundred, of thirteen acres each, and were sold by auction at an averaage of 7000 francs (29H. 135. 4rf.) each, would now bring nearly double that rate. They are let to the occupying farmers at 36 guilders the mesure, or about 21. 15s. the English acre, and are now producing superior crops of rape, of sucrion, (winter barley), and beans, which constitute the usual rotation ; this, how- ever, is varied according to circumstances, as follows : — 1 . oats, or rape ; 2. winter barley, or rape ; 3. winter barley ; 4. beans, pease, or tares. 442. Other examples of reclaimed lands are given. One called the Great Moor, reco- vered through the spirited exertions of M. Hyrwein, contains 2400 acres. Attempts had been made to recover it by the Spaniards, in 1610, but without success. This marsh was seven feet below the level of the surrounding land ; therefore, to drain it, the following operations became necessary : 443. To surround the whole with a bank of eight feet in height, above the level of the enclosed ground, formed by the excavation of afossee, fifteen feet wide and ten feet deep, which serves to conduct the water to the navigable canal.— 7b construct mills to throw the water over the bank into the fossee.— To intersect the interior by numerous drains from eight to twelve feet wide, with a fall to the respective mills, to which they conduct all the rain water, and all the sokeage water which oozes through the banks, 444. The mills in use for raising the water, are of a simple but effectual construction, and are driven by wind. The horizontal shaft above works an upright shaft at the bottom, of which a screw bucket, twenty -four feet in length, is put in motion by a l)evil wheel, at such an angle as to give a perpendicular height of eight feet from the level of the interior drain to the disgorging of the water, which is emptied with great force into the exterior canal. With full wind, each mill can discharge 150 ^owweawx of water every minute. The height of the building from the foundation is about fifty feet, one half of it above the level of the bank. The whole is executed in brick- work, and the entire cost 36,000 francs, about 1500/. British. It is judiciously contrived that the drains, which conduct the water to the mills, constitute the divisions and subdivisions of the land, forming it into regular oblong fields of considerable extent, marked out by the lines of ozier which ornament their banks. Roads of thirty feet wide lead through the whole in parallel directions. 445. The soil of this tract, which has been formed by the alluvial deposit of ages, is a clay loam, strong and rich, but not of the extraordinary fertility of some polders, which are cropped independent of manure for many years. The first course of crops commencing with rape, is obtained without manure, and the return for six years is abundant ; the second commences and proceeds as follows . 1st Year, fallow, with manure from farm-yard. 5th Year, clover. •id Ditto, sucrion (winter barley) 6th Ditto, beans and pease mixed. 3d Ditto, beans. 7th Ditto, oats. 4lh Ditto, wheat. 446. The second division adjoins Picardy, but does not extend to the sea. The soil may be described as a good loam of a yellowish colour, mixed with some sand ; but is not in its nature as strong as that in the former division. Its chief produce is wheat, barley, oats, hops, tobacco, meadow, rape-seed and flax, as primary crops; and as se- condary, buck- wheat, beans, turnips, potatoes, carrots, clover. This division, unlike the former in this respect, is richly wooded. 447. The general course of crops in this division is as follows : 1 . Wheat upon manured fallow. 7 Beans i' nV^^' 'T ^^'^^^ *''*^ ^'•^^- ' Or in lieu of the last three crops, thus : 4 xf.rnin^ 1 same year, without manure, •''• Fallow manured. "*• lurrupSyj ' ^ Ryp- y Flax, highlj manured with urine and rape take. 7'. Wheat. 6. Wheal. ^_ j^ manured. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN HOLLAND. 77 !). Wheat. H. Wheat. 10. Oats. l."}. Hops, with abundant marmre. 11. Turnips. - "^ This last crop remains fceneralljr five years, and the ground 12. Rye. is afterwards nt for any kind of produce. 13. Tobacco, three times ploughed, and richly manured. 448. In another part of this division, where hops are not grown, the following rotation is observed : 1. Potatoes, with manure. 9. Wheat. 2. Wheat. 10. Oats, 1 ..„_ „.,_ 3. Beans, with manure. 11. Turnips, J ^""^ ■^^^• 4. Rve. 12. Fallow, without manure. 5. VVheat, with manure. 13. Rye. 6. Clover, top-dressed with fishes. 14. Tobacco, richly manured. 7. Turnips, with manure. 15. Wheat. 8. Flax, highly manured with urine and rape cake. 449. In addition to those crops in some part of the district, particularly in the line be- tween Woomen and Ypres, magnificent crops of rape are cultivated, and are relied on as a sure and profitable return. Flax is also a crop upon which their best industry is bestowed, and their careful preparation of the soil is scarcely to be surpassed by that of the neatest garden. 450. In the fourth division the soil is a good sandy loam, of a light color, and is in a superior state of cultivation ; it yields a similai; produce to the foregoing division, with the same quality of hay ; but plantations are here more numerous. The succession is as follows : 1. Wheat, with dung. 10. Clover, with ashes, seed sometimes saved. 2. Clover, with ashes, seed sometimes saved. 11. Oats, without manure. 3. Flax, with urine and rape cake. 12. Flax, with urine and rape cake. 4. Wheat, with compost of short dung and various sweepings. 13. Wheat, with dung. .5. Potatoes, with farm-yard dung or night soil. CBeans, with dung. 6. Rye, with urine. 14.< Beet root, with rape cake, or 7. Rape seed, with rape cake and urine. t Tobacco, with rape cake in great quantities. 8. Potatoes, with dung. Turnips are also grown, but are taken as a second crop after 9. Wheat, with manure of divers kinds. ~ " rape, flax, wheat, or rye. 451. Passing over the other divisions to the eighth and ninth, we find the reporter describes them as of considerable extent, and in the poverty of their soil and abundance of their pro- duce, bearing ample testimony to the skill and perseverance of the Flemish farmers. The soil consists of a poor light sand, in the fifteenth century exhibiting barren gravel and heaths. The chief produce here is, rye, flax, potatoes, oats, buck-wheat, rape-seed, and wheat in a few favorable spots ; clover, carrots, and turnips generally. 452. On the western side of these districts, and where the soil is capable of yielding wheat, there are two modes of rotation : one comprising a nine years' course, in which wheat is but once introduced ; and the other a ten years' course, in which they contrive to produce that crop a second time ; but in neither instance without manure, which, in- deed, is never omitted in these divisions, except for buck-wheat, and occasionally for rye. The first course alluded to above, is as follows : 1st Year, potatoes or carrots, with four ploughings, and twelve 5th Year, oats with clover, with two ploughings, and ten tons tons of farm-yard dung, per English acre. and a half of farm-yard dung, per English acre, ^d Year, Jlax, with two ploughings, and 105 Winchester 6th Year, clover, top-dressed, with 105 Winchester bushels bushels of ashes, and 48 .hogsheads, beer measure, of of peat or Dutch ashes, per English acre. urine, per English acre. 7th Year, rtye, with one ploughing, and 52 hogsheads, beer 3d Year, reheat, with two ploughings, and ten tons and a measure, of night soil and urine. half of farm-yard dung, v%x English acre. 8th Year, oats, with two ploughings, and 52 hogsheads, beer 4th Year, rye and turnips, with two ploughings, and ten tons measure, of night soil and urine. and a naif of farm-yard dung, per English acre. 9th Year, buck wheat, with four ploughings, and without any manure. 453. Of the Flemish mode of cultivating some particular crops, we shall give a few ex- amples. The drill husbandry has never been generally introduced in the low countries. It has been tried in the neighbourhood of Ostend, forty acres of beans against forty acres of drilled crop, and the result was considered to be in favor of the system. But the row culture, as distinguished from the raised drill manner, has been long known in the case of tobacco, cabbages, and some other crops. 454. Wheat is not often diseased in Flanders. Most farmers change their seed, and others in several places steep it in salt water or urine, and copperas or verdigrise. The proportion of verdigrise is half a pound to every six bushels of seed ; and the time in which the latter remains in the mixture is three hours, or one hour if cows' urine be used, because of its ammonia, which is considered injurious. The ripest and plumpest seed is always preferred for seed. 455. Rye is grown both as a bread corn, and for the distillery. In Flanders fre- quently, and in Brabant very generally, the farmer, upon the scale of from one hundred to two hundred acres of light soil, is also a distiller, purely for the improvement of the land by the manure of the beasts, which he can feed upon the straw of the rye, and the grains of the distillery. 456. Buck-wheat enters into the rotations on the poorest soils, and is sown on lands not got ready in time for other grain. The chief application of buck- wheat is to the feeding of swine and poultry, for which it is pre-eminent ; it is also used in flour ; as a constituent in the liquid nourishment prepared for cattle and horses ; and bears no incon- siderable share in the diet of the peasant. Formed into a cake without yeast, it is a very wholesome, and not a disagreeable species of bread ; but it is necessary to use it while 78 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. fresh, as, if kept, it would turn sour sooner than bread made of barley, rye, or wheaten flour. Its blossom is considered to afford the best food for bees. If cut green, it yields good forage, and if ploughed in when in flower, it is thought one of the best vegetable manures in use. It is also said to be used in distillation ; but this is not generally ad- mitted to be the case. 457. Rape, colza, colsat, or cole seed, (not the brassica napus of Linnaeus, but the JE?. campestris of DecandoUe, and which he thinks a distinct species,) is considered an important article of Flemish agriculture. It is sometimes sown broad-cast, but the general and approved method is, by transplanting, which they allege, and apparently with great justice, to have many advantages : one is, that the seed-bed occupies but a small space, whilst the land which is to carry the general crop is bearing corn. By having the plants growing, they have time to harvest their corn, to plough and manure the stubble intended for the rape, which they put in with the dibble, or the plough, from the latter end of September to the second week of November, without apprehending any miscarriage. 458. The seed-bed is sown in August, and even to the middle of September. In October, or sooner, the stubble is ploughed over, manured, and ploughed again. The plants are dibbled in the seams of the ploughing, (each furrow slice being twelve inches broad,) and are set out at twelve inche& of pasture is not suffered to jirevent it; and the foals are found to thrive remarkably well in a close house. For this purpose, as well as for the general keep of the stock, a regular dietary is observed. The manger is formed of well-cemented brick-work, and in summer, clover, and in winter, carrots, are usually given; hay in very small quantities, but in all cases chopped straw mixed with com or beans, or both, and water aired by keeping in the stable, and whitened with a pretty strong proportion of barley-meal. "With every symptom of sufficient spirit, they are docility itself; and besides being obedient to the word, are guided in intricate cases, in a manner surprising to a stranger, by a single cord ; this rein is never thick, and, in some instances, is as small as a stout whipcord, and yet in the deeper soils three powerful horses abreast (the bridles of the middle and ofF-side horses being connected with that upon the near-side horse, to which this rein is alfixed,) are guided by it at all the turnings, the ploughman holding the rein in one hand, and his single-handed plough in the other, and performing his work with the most accurate straightness and predision. Of corn to market, a pair of horses generally draw two tons ; of manure to the field, one ton and half; and on the pavement in the towns, three tons, without appearing to be overloaded. 513. The shoeing of horses in Flanders is attended to with particular care, and in that country has long been practised the mode of preserving the bars of the hoof, and of letting the frog come in contact with the ground, recommended in England by Freeman and Professor Colman. The use of cockers, or turned heels, is, excepting in part, entirely abandoned. In two respects, however, the shoeing in Flanders differs from any of the methods in use with us. In one, that to prevent ripping, the hoofs of the fore-feet are pared away towards the toe, and the shoes so fitted, that the fore part shall not touch (within three-fourths of an inch) the same level surface, upon which the heel and middle of the shoe shall rest. 514. This preparation of the foot is in general use ; the horses are not thereby in any degree injured, and are particularly surefooted. The other point of difference is, that the shoe is nailed on flat and close to the foot, which, in depriving the iron of all spring, and all unequal pressure against the nails, may be in part the cause of the durability of the shoeing. 515. For shoeing vicious horses every precaution is taken by the use of the forge machine, a common appendage to the smiths in Flanders. If the horse is not altogether unmanageable his hind foot is tied to a cross bar, or his fore leg to a stilt and bracket ; but if he is extremely vicious indeed, he can be raised from the ground in a minute, by means of a cradle-sling of strong girth web, hooked to the upper side- rails, which, with a slight hand-spike, are turned in the blocks that support them (the extremities of the sling thereby coiling round them), till the horse is elevated to the proper height, and rendered wholly powerless. 516. The Flemish and Dutch dairies are more remarkable for the abundance than the excellence of their products; owing to the inferiority of their pastures, and the cows Book I. AGRICULTURE IN HOLLAND. 85 being kept the greater part of the winter in the house. In summer the principal article of food in Flanders is clover, cut and carried to the stall. On a small scale when pasturage is to be had, they are left at liberty ; when this is not the case, each cow is led by a rope, and permitted to feed round the grassy borders of the corn-fields, which are left about ten feet wide for this purpose. 517. The food for one cow in winter for twenty-four hours, is straw, eighteen pounds ; turnips, sixty pounds. Some farmers lx)il the turnips for them ; others give thera raw, chopping them with the spade : one or other operation is necessary to obviate the risk ot the animal being choked, where the turnips, which is usually the case in Flanders, are of too small a size. In lieu of turnips, potatoes, carrots, and grains, are occasionally given; bean-straw likewise, and uniformly a whit/:? drink, prepared both for t:ows and horses, and consisting of water in which some oilcake has been dissolved, and whitened with rye- meal, oatmeal, or the flour of buckwheat. 518. Iti the Dutch dairies the summer feed is pasturage day and night; in winter, hay, turnips, carrots, grains from the breweries, cakes of linseed, rapeseed, bean and other meals, and the white drink before mentioned. For the sake of cleanliness, the tails of the cows are tied to the roof of the cow-house with a cord during the time of milking. The cow-houses both in Flanders and Holland are kept remarkably clean and warm; so much so that a gentleman "spoke" to Radcliff ♦« of having drank coffee with a cowkeeper in the general stable in winter, without the annoyance of cold, of dirt, or any offensive smell." The Dutch are particularly averse to unfolding the secrets of their dairy management, and notwithstanding the pointed queries of Sir John Sinclair on the subject, no satisfactory idea was given him of their mode of manu> facturing butter or cheese. 519. The woodlands tf Flanders are of considerable extent ; but more remarkable for the care bestowed on them than for the bulk of timber grown. For the latter purpose, indeed, the soil is too poor ; most of these woods having been planted or sown on land considered too poor for tillage. 520, Informing artificial plantations, the general mode is to plough the ground three or four times , and take a crop of buckwheat ; afterwards the plants or seeds are inserted and hoed for a year or two, till they cover the surface. For the Scotch pine, which is sometimes sown alone on tlie poorest soils, the most com- mon and simplest mode, is that of burning the surface, to which process its heathy quality gives great fa- cility. The ashes being spread, tlie ground is formed into beds from six to fifteen feet wide, according to circumstances j the seed sown at the rate of six pounds to the English acre, and covered by a light shovel- ling from the furrows, which are sunk about two feet, not only to supply covering to the beds, but as drains to carry off the surface water. 521. Extensive artificial woods have been created in this manner, converting a barren soil into a state of production, the least expensive, very profitable, and highly ornamental. Of six years' grov/th, there exist florishing plantations (treated in this manner), from five to nine feet in height. At about ten years from its formation, they begin to thin the wood, and continue to do so annually, with such profit by the sale, as at the end of thirty years to have it clear of every charge ; a specific property being thus acquired, by indus** try and attention merely, without the loss of any capital. 522. Pine woods are often sotvn, and with great success, without the labor of burning the surface, as at Vladsloo, in the neighborhood of Dixmude, where a luxuriant crop of but five years' growth, and seven feet in height, had been cultivated by Madame de Cleir, by merely ploughing the heathy surface into beds of fifteen feet, harrowing, sowing at the rate of six pounds to the English acre, raking in the seed, and covering the beds lightly from the furrows, which are sunk about eighteen inches deep. 523. Another inodc of sowing, practised by the Baron de Serret, in the vicinity of Bruges, was productive of a growth not less luxuriant, merely by sowing the seed upon sand (taken from the excavation for « building) which was spread over the heathy surface, the secit raked in, and the furrows shovelled up. 524. The sowing of pine seed in many cases is adopted for the purpose of bringing waste land into an arable state, which, when the timber has been disiKJsed of, is found to yield admirable crops, from a surface soil formed by the accumulation of the leaves which have fallen for so many years. For this purpose also, the broom is frequently sown upon waste lands of a similar description, and at the end of four or live years is pulled away, leaving the soil capable of yielding crops of com. 525. The preservatio7i of trees is attended to in the strictest manner, not only by pro- prietors, but the government. As an example of this, Radcliff mentions, that at a certain season of the year, when the caterpillars commence their attack upon the trees, every farmer is obliged to destroy those upon his own premises, to the satisfaction of the mayor of his particular commune, or to pay the cost of having it done for him. As a proof of the strictness with which this is enforced, the governor sends round a circular letter annually, reminding the sous intendants and mayors of the obligations and penalties for non-performance. 526. There are a 7iumber (f royal forests in Flanders ; and besides these, all the trees on the sides of the public roads belong to the government. In West Flanders there are five, amounting together to nearly 10,000 acres. They are superintended by eighteen persons, an inspector, resident at Bruges; a deputy inspector, resident at Vpres; two gardes generaux^ and fourteen particidiers, or privates. The inspector is answerable for all ; from liim the garde general takes his instructions, and sees that they are enforced by the pri- vates, to whom is committed the regulation of tlae necessary labor. G 3 86 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 527. The cuttings take place periodically with respect to small trees and fire- wood, so as to secure an an- "nual produce ; but reserves are always left to become, eventually, large and valuable timber. •■ 528. The cutting of the taillis or coppice, chiefly used as tiro- wood, takes place every eleventh year ; that of the high and grosser coppice, every twenty-fillh year ; the felling of the half-grown forest trees every sixtieth year j and that of the full-grown forest trees, once in a hundred years. 529. In the management of coppices, it is considered essential to preserve the roots from stagnant water; the trenches originally formed for that purpose are from time to time cleared out ; and the sediment and manure from the falling leaves, vvrhich have accumu- ,lated in them, is carefully spread upon tne ridge, or rounded set, which the wood occu- pies. A second branch of regular attention is to remove all brambles and briars, A -third, to replace the old and fading stocks by new plantations. A fourth, to thin the stems with regularity and care. 530. The sorts of trees arc b\xc\\,oa.'k, service, ash, maple, elm, beech, poplar, aspen, wild pine, Wey- mouth pine, plane, lime, larch, Spanish chestnut, alder. A variety of pine, called the P«(M5 maritimum, has been tried on the sea-coast, and found to resist the sea breeze. It is said extensive plantations have been made of this tree on the coast of France, at Bourdeaux, and that it produces excellent timber ; but whether it is a distinct species, or a variety possessing any particular qualities, or merely the common wild or Scotch pine, in a favorable situation, does not appear. Most probably the latter circumstance is the case. The pine is liable to the attacks of tlie Dermestes pini- y^ perda, L. (Jig. 68.) on the wood of the old branches, and the larva of a species of 10/ ' moth, on the loading young shoots. The moth deposits its eggs among the buds at their extremities : the turpentine or rosin which oozes from the buds, protects the eggs till the insect is brought out by the warmth of the atmosphere, when vegetation commences ; it then inserts itself into one of the buds, which at this time begins to shoot, and lodging itself in the centre of it, perforates the young shoot up and down, till it either breaks off; or withers. 531. The domestic circumstances of the Flemish farmer and his servants are depicted by Radcliff in a favorable point of view. " Nothing," he says, " tends more to the uniform advancement of good farming, than a certain degree of ease and comfort in those who occupy the soil, and in the laboring classes whom they employ. Without it, an irregular, speculative, and anticipating extraction of" produce, always followed by eventual loss, is resorted to, in order to meet the emergencies and difficulties of the moment ; whereas, under different circumstances, the successive returns of a well regulated course, become the farmer's object, rather than the forced profit of a single year ; whilst he him- self is thus intrinsically served, his landlord secured, and his ground ameliorated. 532. The laborious industry of the Flemish farmer is recruited by intervals of decent and comfortable refreshment; and the farm- servants are treated with kindness and re- spect. They uniformly dine with the farmer and his family, at a clean table-cloth, well supplied with spoons, with four-pronged forks, and every thing necessary for their convenience. In Flanders, the gentlemen are all farmers, but the farmers do not aspire to be gentlemen ; and their servants feel the benefit. They partake with them of a plentiful and orderly meal, which varies accordmg to circumstances. One standing dish, however, is universal, a soup, composed of buttermilk, boiled and thickened with flour, or rye-bread, potatoes, salt pork, salt fish, various vegetables, and eggs : fresh meat and fresh fish occur occasionally, though not for daily consumption ; add to these, a plen- tiful supply of butter, or rendered lard, which is sometimes substituted; and when it is recollected that those articles of provision are always made palatable by very tolerable cookery, it will be allowed that the farmer's table is comfortably supplied. The potatoes are always peeled, and are generally stewed in milk ; a particular kind of kidneybean, as mentioned before, the feve haricot, sliced and stewed in milk also, is a frequent dish. No farmer is without a well-cultivated garden, full Qf the best vegetables, which all ap- pear at his own table ; and apples are also introduced into their cookery. The great fruit and vegetable markets of the towns are supplied by gardeners, who make that their subsistence ; but the gardens of the farmers, unless in case of redundance, are cultivated wholly for their own consumption." 533. The farm-servants partake of their master's fare, except in his refreshments of tea, coffee, and beer. 534. The day-laborers are not so well provided : they have, however, rye-bread, potatoes, buttermilk, and occasionally some salt pork. The laborer is, in general, very well able to support himself by his work: in a country where so much manual labor is required in weeding, the laborer's family is occupied pretty constantly in summer ; and in winter they spin. Each day-laborer has, in most cases, a small quantity of land, from a rood to half an acre, for his own cultivation. .53.5. Beggars in common times are scarcely to be seen, except in the towns, and but few there. In the country, habits of industry are kept up till health fails ; and to meet the inlirmilies of age, the poor possess a revenue trom pious donations, regulated by the government, and vested by them in commissions, ofw^hich the mayors of the diflbrent communes are presidents, respectively, in right of their oltice. 5o6. The clothing - winter ; it then becomes hard, and as white as snow, and is sold to the manu- facturers of liquors at a high price. The noted Italian liqueur, rosoglio, made also in Dantzic, is nothing more than this honey blanched by frost, and spirit : though the honey used is said to be that of the lime-tree, which is produced only in the forests of tliat tree near Kowno on the Niemen, and sells at more than three times the price of common honey. 619. The live stock of Austria consists of sheep, cattle, horses, pigs, and poultry. Considerable attention has lately been paid to the breeding of sheep, and tlie Merino breed has been introduced on the government estates, and those of the great pro prietors. The original Hun- garian sheep {Ovis strepsi- cero5)(_/i5. 74.) bears upright spiral horns, and is covered with a very coarse wool. " Improvementon this stock by crosses," Dr. Bright in- forms us, *' is become so general, that a flock of the native race is seldom to be met with, excepting on the estates of religious establish- ments." Baron Giesler has long cultivated the Merino breed in Moravia. In Hun- gary, Graf Hunyadi has paid great and successful attention to them for upwards of twenty years. His flock, when Dr. Bright saw it in 1814, amounted to 17,000, not one of which whose family he could not trace back for several generations, by reference to his registers. 620. The horned cattle of the Austrian dominions are of various breeds, chiefly Danish and Swiss. The native Hungarian breed are of a dirty white color, large, vigorous, and active, with horns of a prodigious length. The cow is deficient in milk ; but where dairies are established, as in some places near Vienna, the Swiss breed is adopted. 621. The Hungarian horses have long been celebrated, and considerable attempts made from time to time ^o improve them by crosses with Arabian, English, and Spanish breeds ; and, lately, races have been established for this purpose. The imperial breeding shed, or huras of MezChegyes, established in 1783, upon four commons, is the most extensive thing of the kind in Europe. It extends over nearly 50,000 acres ; employs 500 persons ; and contains nearly 1000 breeding mares of Besarabian, Moldavian, Spanish, or English extraction. 622. The breed of swine in some parts of Hungary is excellent. 623. Poultry are extensively reared near Vienna, and also frogs and snails. Townson has described at length the method of treating these reptiles, and of feeding geese for their livers. ( Travels in Hungary in 1196.) 624. The land tortoise likewise occurs in 7.5 great numbers in various parts of Hungary, more particularly about Fuzes -Gyarmath, and the marshes of the river Tlieiss ; and being deemed a delicacy for the table, is caught and kept in preserves. The preserve of Kesztheley encloses about an acre of land, intersected by trenches and ponds, in which the animals feed and enjoy themselves. In one corner was a space separated from the rest by boards two feet high, forming a pen . for snails. The upper edge of the boards was| spiked with nails an inch in height, and ^^^^^^j^/^f^^^f^f^^^^^J^ Z intervals of half an inch, over which these animals never attempt to make their way. This snail {Helix pomatia) {fig. 15 a.) is in H 2 100 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. great demand in Vienna, where sacks of them are regularly exposed to sale in the market, alternating with sacks of beans, lentils, kidneybeans, and truffles. [Jig. 15 b.) 625. The implements and operations of the agriculture of Austria differ little from those of Saxony. Dr. Bright has given a figure of the Hungarian plough and cart, [Jig. 72.), and blames their mode of depositing their corn in holes in the ground, lined with straw, by which it acquires ^a strong mouldy smell. Vineyards are carefully dug and hoed, and the shoots of the vines, in places where the winter is severe, laid down and covered with earth to protect them from the frost. Many of the great proprietors are introducin*'- the most improved British implements on their estates, and some have taken ploughmen from this country to instruct the natives in their use. Prince Esterhazy has English gardeners, bailiffs, grooms, and other servants. 626. The forests of the Austrian dominions are chiefly in Hungary, and on the borders of Gallicia on the Carpathian mountains. They contain all the varieties of needle or pine-leaved, and broad leaved- trees, which are indigenous north of the Rhine. The oaks of Hungary are perhaps the finest in Europe. The forest of Belevar on the Drave, was visited by Dr. Bright. It consists chiefly of different species of oak, the most luxuriant he ever beheld. Thousands measured at several feet above the root, more than seven feet in diameter ; continue almost of the same size without throw- ing out a branch, to the height of thirty, forty, and fifty feet, and are still in the most florishing and healthy condition. Timber there is of little value, excepting for the buildings wanted on the estate, or for hoops and wine barrels. In some cases the bark is not even taken from oak-trees ; but in others the leaf galls, and the Knoppern, or smaller galls, which grow on ^ the calyx of the acorn, are collected and exported for being used in tanneries. 627. The improvement of the agriculture of Austria seems anxiously desired both by the government and the great proprietors. Various legislative measures are accordingly adopted from time to time, societies formed and premiums offered. These will no doubt have a certain quantum of effect ; but the radical want, in our opinion, is inform- ation and taste for comfortable living among the lower classes ; and this can only be brought about by the general diffusion of village schools ; and by establishing easy rates, at which every peasant might purchase his personal liberty or freedom from the whole, or a certain part of the services he is now bound to render his lord. Sect. VI. Of the present State of Agriculture in the Kingdom of Poland. 628. Poland was formerly called the granary of Europe ; but this was when its boundaries extended from the Baltic to the Black Sea ; and when the Ukraine and Lithuania were included. At present its limits are so circumscribed, and its arable sur- face so indifferently cultivated, or naturally so infertile, that the kingdom of Poland, strictly speaking, furnishes little more corn than supplies its own population. The immense supplies of wheat sent to Dantzic are chiefly from the detached provinces of Gallicia, united to Austria, and from Volhynia and Podolia, now belonging to Russia. 629. The landed estates of Poland are almost every where large, and either belong to the crown, to the nobles, or to religious corporations. They are farmed by the pro- prietors, by means of stewards ; or let out in small portions on the meyer or leibeigener tenure. There are scarcely any free farmers or cottagers. Buonaparte passed an edict, while Poland was under his protection as a duchy, to annul the leibeigener tenure ; but it is said the peasants were too much afraid to trust to their own industry to take ad- vantage of it ; and it was never carried into effect. The nobles have generally houses on their estates, which they occupy, at least, part of the year ; at other periods it is taken care of by the steward, who is always admitted at the table of his lord, being himself what is called of noble descent. The estates of religious houses are of great extent : they are sometimes let to nobles or others on a corn rent, who generally sublet them ; and in a few cases they are farmed by the corporation. The postmasters on the different main roads invariably rent a considerable portion of land for the support of their horses. Most of these are meteyers, but some are free men, and pay a money rent ; and there are one or two instances of nobles farming the post. 630. The houses and offices of these noble postmasters {fig. 76.) afford the only distant resemblance to a British farm-yard, that is to be met with in Poland. The farm- house and farmery of the peasant postmaster are both included in an immense shed or barn, with a small apartment at one end for the master's dwelling, the remaining space di- vided for live stock and implements of every description, and for the cattle, carriages, and lodging place of travellers who may stop during night. Most of these places are sufficiently wretched as inns, but in the present state of things they answer very well for the other purposes to which they are applied, and are superior to the hovels of the farmers who are not postmasters, and who are clustered together in villages, or in the outskirts of towns. Some villages, however, in the south of Poland are almost entirely Book I. AGRICULTURE IN POLAND. 76 101 composed of Jews ; there the houses are generally of a superior construction, {Jig. 77.), 77 but still on the same general plan of a living room at one end of a large bam, the main area of which serves for all the purposes of a complete farmery. The buildings in Po- land, excepting those of the principal towns, are constructed of timber and covered with shingles. The sheds and other agricultural buildings are boarded on the sides ; but the cottages are formed of logs joined by moss or clay ; of frames filled up with wicker work and clay ; or of other modes and materials still more rude. The commonest kind have no chimnies or glass windows. 631. The climate of Poland, though severe, is much less precarious than that of the south of Germany or of France. A winter of from five to seven months, during the greater part of which time the soil is covered with snow, is succeeded by a rapid spring and warm summer; and these are followed by a short cold wet autumn. Under such a climate good meadows and pastures cannot be expected ; but arable culture is singularly easy on free soils, which the frost has rendered at once clear from most sorts of weeds, and soft and mouldy on the surface. 632. The surface of Poland is remarkably even, and the soil almost every where sandy to a great depth. In many places this sand is calcareous, and produces abundance of white clover naturally ; in others it is sterile, and only produces heath or stunted shrubs. On the borders of some of the rivers, as the Bog and the Narew, it is marshy, and abounds in acorus, iris, typha, and other aquatics or marsh plants. In no part of the present kingdom of Poland can it be called either hilly or stony, unless we except some parts on the borders of Silesia and Gallicia. It is almost need- less to observe, that enclosures are rarely seen in Poland. To the traveller, passing through the country, it appears an interminable forest, with here and there glades of coarse pasture, or small tracts of ploughed ground. 633. The arable culture of Poland is abundantly simple : the course of crops is, in most places, 1st, wheat, barley, or rye ; 2d, oats; 3d , fallow, or several years rest to commence with fallow. In a very few places clover is sown, and also beans or pease, but only in small quantities. The digitaria sanguinalis is sown as a plant of luxury in a few places, and the seeds used as rice : the buckwheat is also sown, and the seeds ground and used as meal. Almost every farmer sows linseed or hemp, to the extent required for home use, and some for sale. Rye is the bread corn of the country. Potatoes are now becoming general ; and succeed well in every part of the country. The mangold, or white beet, was cultivated in many places in 1811 and 1812, by order of Buonaparte, in order that the natives might grow their own sugar ; but that is now 'eft off, and the peasants have not even learned its value as a garden plant, producing chard and spinnage. Turnips or cabbages are rarely seen even in gardens ; few of the cottagers, indeed, have any garden ; those who have, cultivate chiefly potatoes, and kohl riibe. Many species of mushrooms grow wild in the woods and wastes, and most of these are carefully gathered, and cooked in a variety of ways as in Russia. The wastes or common pastures are left entirely to nature. There are some tracts of indifferent meadow on the Vistula, at Warsaw, Thorn, and Craccovie, and some on the tributary streams, which afford a tolerable hay in summer, and would be greatly improved by draining. H 3 102 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 634. The implements and operations are incredibly rude. We have seen lands plough- ed (after their manner) by one cow, tied by the horns to a sharpened pole j in other instances a pair of oxen drag a wretched .^^ ^^ ^^ '?8 implement (jig. 78. ) formed by the peasant, who is in all cases his own plough and wheel-wright, as well as liouse carpenter and builder. Their best or usual plough has no mould-board; and the crop is in many cases more indebted to the excellence ^^ of the soil, and the preceding winter's ^i^SI frost, than to the farmer. Horses are their general beasts of labor ; their harness is very rude, often of straw ropes, and twisted willow shoots. The body of their best mar- ^^^ ^^ ^^ 79 ket carts, in which even the lesser nobles visit each other, are of wicker-work {jig-19. ), and the axle a;nd wheels are made without any iron. 635. The live stock consists chiefly of |^ horses : there are few oxen ; not many cows, and very few sheep. Poultry are abundant, and swine ; but the latter of the yellow long-legged breed. The horses are very hardy animals, and of better shapes than might be expected from their treatment. Warsaw and Cracow are supplied with beef and veal, chiefly from the Ukraine. Mutton is little used. 636. The extensive forests of Poland are little attended to, excepting on the banks of the principal rivers, and where oak abounds, from which bark and whtel spokes may be procured. These are cut over regularly at intervals, and standards left in the usual way. The wild or Scotch pine forests, are the most extensive ; these perpetuate themselves by semination ; and the trees are often so crowded as to be of little use but as fuel. The chief proprietor of these forests is the crown, and the religious corporations, who, whenever they can find purchasers, are glad to let them thin out the best trees at a certain j-ate, and float them down the nearest stream, to the Vistula Pregel or Nieraen. A good deal has been said about the importance of felling timber at particular seasons. In Po- land, the operation generally takes place in summer, but not, as far as we could learn, from any regard to the effect on the timber. The trees are often notched half through a year or two before, in order to obtain resin. The other products of forests, as fuel, char- coal, ashes, hoops, poles, &c. are obtained in the usual manner. Game is abundant in them, and bears, polecats, &c. are to be seen in some places. 637. The manageinent of bees is a material article in the forest culture of Po- land. The honey is divided into three classes, namely lipiec, leszny, and stepowey prasznymird, thus described by How. {Gen. Rep. Scot, app.) 638. /-ip«?c is gathered by the bees from the lime-tree alone, and is considered on the Continent most valuable, not only for the superiority of its flavor, but also for the estimation in which it is held as an arcanum, in pulmonary complaints, containing very little wax, and being consequently less heating in its nature ; it is as white as milk, and is only to be met with in the lime-forests, in the neighborhood of the town of Kowno, in Lithuania. The great demand for this honey occasions it to bear a high price, inso- much, that a small barrel, containing hardly one pound weight, has Iwen known to sell for two ducats on the spot. This species of the lime-tree is peculiar to the province of Lithuania ; and is quite different from all the rest of the genus tiUa, and is called Kamienna lifsa, or stone-lime. The inhabitants have no regular bee-hives about Kowno ; every peasant who is desirous of rearing bees, goes into the forest and district belonging to his master, without even his leave, makes a longitudinal hollow, aperture or apertures in the trunk of a tree, or in the collateral branches, about three feet in length, one foot broad, and about a foot deep, where he deposits his bees, leaves them some food, but pays very little further attention to them, until late in the autumn ; when, after cutting out some of their honey, and leaving some for their maintenance, he secures the aperture properly with clay and straw against the frost and inclemency of the approaching season ; these tenements (if they may be so called), with their inhabitants, and the produce of their labor, are then become his indisputable property ; he may sell them, transfer them ; in short, he may do whatever he pleases with them ; and never is it heard that any depredation is committed on them, (those of the bear excepted). In Poland, the laws are particularly severe against robbers or destroyers of this property, punishing the offender, when detected, by cutting out the navel, and drawing out his intestines round and round the very tree which he has robbed. 639. JVhen spring arrives, the proprietor goes again to the forest, examines the bees, and ascertains whether there is sufficient food left, till they are able to maintain themselves ; should there not be a suf- ficient quantity, he deposits with them as much as he judges necessary till the spring blossom appears. If he observes that his stock has not decreased by mortality, he makes more of these apertures in the colla- teral branches, or in the trunk of the tree, that in case the bees should swarm in his absence, they may have a ready asylum. In the autumn he visits them again, carries the June and July work away with him, which is the lipiec, and leaves only that part for their food which was gathered by them before the commencement, and after the decay of the flowering of the lime-tree. 640. The leszny, the next class of honey, which is inferior in a great degree to the lipiec, being only for the common mead, is that of the pine forests ; the inhabitants of which make apertures in the pine-trees, similar to those near Kowno, and pay the same attention, in regard to the security of the bees, and their maintenance. The wax is also much inferior in quality} it requires more trouble in the bleaching, and is only made use of in the churches. 641. The third class of honey is the stepoiuey prasx^nymird, or the honey from meadows or places where there is an abundance of perennial plants, and hardly any wood. The province of Ukraine produces the very best, and also the very best wax. In that province the peasants pay particular attention to this branch of Book I. AGRICULTURE IN POLAND. 103 economy, as it is the only resource they have to enable them to defray the taxes levied by Russia; and they consider the produce of bees equal to ready money ; wheat, and other species of com, being so very fluctuating in price, some years it being of so little value, that it is not worth the peasant's trouble to gather it in : this has happened in the Ukraine, four times in twelve year* : but honey and wax having always a great demand all over Europe, and even Turkey, some of the peasants have from four to five hundred ule, or logs of wood in their bee-gardens, which are called paniekOy or bee-hives ; these logs are about six feet high, commonly of birch wood, (the bees prefer the birch to any other wood,) hollowed out in the middle for about five feet; several lamina of thin boards are nailed before the aperture, and but a small hole left in the middle of one of them, for the entrance of the bees. As the bees are often capricious at the begin- ning of their work, frequently commencing it at the front rather than the back, the peasants cover the aperture with a number of these thin boards, instead of one entire board, for fear of disturbing them, should they have begun their work at the front. It may appear extraordinary, but it is nevertheless true, that in some favorable seasons, this aperture of five feet in length, and a foot wide, is full before August ; and the peasants are obliged to take the produce long before the usual time, with the view of giving room to the bees to continue their work, so favorable is the harvest some summers. 642. The process of brewing mead in Poland is very simple : tlii' proportion is three parts of water to one of honey, and 50 lb. of mild hops to IGS gallons, which is called a waar, or a brewing. When the water is boiling, both the honey and hops are thrown into it, and it is kept stirring until it becomes milk warm ; it is then put into 3 large cask, and allowed to ferment for a few days ; it is then drawn off into another cask, wherein there has been aqua-vitae, or whisky, bunged quite close, and afterwards taken to the cellars, which in this country are excellent and cool. This mead becomes good in three years time; and by keeping, it improves like many sorts of wine. The mead for immediate drink is made from malt, hops, and honey, in the same proportion, and undergoes a similar process. In Hungary, it is usual to put ginger in mead. There are other sorts of mead in Poland, as wisniak, dereniak, maliniak ; they are made of honey, wild cherries, berries of the cornus mascula, and raspberries ; they all undergo the same process, and are most excellent and wholesome after a few years keeping. The lipiec is made in the same way ; but it contains the honey and pure water only. The honey gathered by the bees from the azalea pontica, at Oczakow, and in Potesia in Poland, is of an in- toxicating nature ; it produces nausea, and is used only for medical purposes, chiefly in rheumatism, scrophula, and eruption of the skin, in which complaints it has been attend- ed with great success. In a disease among the hogs called weugry, (a sort of plague among these animals,) a decoction of the leaves and bu^s of azalea is given with the greatest effect, and produces almost instantaneous relief. The disease attacks the hogs with a swelling of their throat, and terminates in large hard knots, not unlike the plague, on which the decoction acts as a digestive, abates the fever directly in the first stage, and suppurates the knots. It is used in Turkey, with the same view, the cure of the plague. 643. Such is lhej)resent state of agriculture in Poland, as it appeared to us in 1813 ; but it must always be recollected, that it does not include either that of Lithuania, or of Gallicia, which is of a much superior description. Since the middle of the 1 8th century some of the principal Polish nobles have occasionally made efforts for the improvement of the agriculture of their country ; but they have not been designed and directed in the best manner, and what is much worse, not steadily pursued. Splendid wooden houses and villages have been built, and foreign farmers induced to settle and cultivate the lands. In the first heat of the business, all went on well ; but the proprietors soon began to cool, to neglect their new tenants, and leave them to the mercy of their stewards, who, in Italy and Poland, are known to be the most corrupt set of men that can be met with. The oppression of these stewards, and the total disregard of their masters to their pro- mises and agreements made to and with these strangers, have either forced the latter to return home, or reduced them to the necessity of becoming servants in the towns, or in Germany ; and we know of instances where it has ruined men of some property There are one or two exceptions ; but we could produce names and dates in proof of the general truth of w^hat we have asserted. The failure of a dairy establishment, and of a brewery, both established before the commencement of the French revolution, is attribut- able to this sort of conduct in the proprietors. 644. The efforts to introduce a better culture inta Poland since the peace, have been more general, and conducted on more moderate and rational principles. British imple- ments have been imported in considerable numbers, and even six or more threshing ma- chines. Improved breeds of cattle and sheep have been procured from Prussia and Saxony ; scientific managers are obtained from the German agricultural schools, and what will contri- bute essentially to improvement, encouragement is given to foreigners to settle by letting or selling the crown lands, at moderate rates, and not only free from all feudal services for ever, but for a certain period exempted from government taxes. Add to this, that the leibeigeners and meyers of every description may buy up the services which they now render their lords, at very easy rates established by law ; and thus, according to their ambition and means, render themselves partially or wholly free-men. In short, the most judicious measures have been taken by the new government of Poland, for the improvement of the country ; and they have been followed up with considerable vigor by the proprietors. These pro- prietors are now a different and very superior class of men, to what they were fifty or sixty years ago.^ They have mostly been officers in the French army, and with it traversed the 104 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. greater part of Europe ; better educated than many of the French, and more engaging in their manners than the Germans, they may be considered among the first gentlemen of the Continent. The Polish peasantry are naturally a much more lively and ingenious race than those of Russia, with whom they are generally compared ; and they will gra- dually participate in the improvement of their masters. ^ SscT. VII. Present State of the Agriculture of Russia. 645. The rural economy of the Russian empire was first described by Professor Pallas in his travels to explore that country, made by order of the Empress Catherine. It has also been incidentally noticed by various travellers, as Tooke, Coxe, Clarke, and several French and German authors. From these and other works, and a personal residence which occupied nearly a year, in 1813 and 1814, we shall present a very concise state- ment of the agricultural circumstances of that semi-barbarous country. 646. The territory of Russia which may be subjected to aration, commences at the 43'' and ends at the GS*^ of north latitude. Farther north, the summers are too short for ripening even barley, and the climate too severe for the growth of pasture or trees. It is a black waste, productive of little more than lichens, and supporting a few rein- deer The southern extremity of Asiatic Russia, on the other hand, admits the culture of Italy, and even the southern parts in Europe, that of the maize district of France. 647. The climate of Russia has been divided into four regions, the very cold, cold, tem- perate, and hot. The very cold extends from 60° to 78 of N. latitude, and includes Arch- ano-el. In many of its districts there is scarcely any summer ; the spring has in general much /rost, snow, and rain, and the winter is always severe. In this region there is no agriculture. 648. The cold climate extends from 55^ to 60° N. latitude, and includes Cazan, Moscow, Petersburg, and Riga ; the summer is short, yet in many districts so warm, and the days so long, that agricultural crops usually come to perfect maturity, in a much shorter space of time than else where. The winters are long and severe, even in the southern parts of the region. The ground round Moscow is generally covered with snow for six months in the year, and we have seen it covered to the depth of several inches in the first week of June. 649. The moderate region extends from 50^ to 55° and includes Kioff, Saratoff, "Wilna, and Smolensko. The Siberia part of this region being very mountainous, the winters are long and cold ; but in the European part the winter is short and tolerably temperate, and the summer warm and aigreeable. The snow, however, generally lies from one to three months, even at Kiolf and Saratoff. 650. The hot region reaches from 43° to 50°, and includes the Taurida, Odessa, Astracan, and the greater part of Caucasus and the district of KiofF. Here the winter is short and the summer warm, hot and very dry. The atmosphere in all the different climates is in general salubrious, both during the intense colds of the north and the excessive heats of the southerly regions. The most remarkable circumstance is the shortness of the seasons of spring and autumn, even in the southern regions ; while in the very cold and cold regions they can hardly be said to exist. About Moscow the ter- mination of winter and the commencement of summer generally take place about the end of April. There the rivers, covered a yard in thickness with ice, break up at once and overflow their banks to a great extent ; in a fortnight the snow has disappeared, the rotten-like blocks of ice dissolved, and the rivers are confined to their limits. A crackling from the bursting of buds is heard in the birch forests ; in two days afterwards, they are in leaf; corn which was sown as soon as the lands were sufficiently dry to plough, is now sprung up, and wheat and rye luxuriant. Reaping commences in the government of Moscow in September, and finishes by the middle of October. Heavy rains and sleet then come on, and by the beginning of November the ground is covered with snow, which accumulates generally to two or three feet in thickness before the middle of January, and remains with little addition till it dissolves in the following April and May. The cli- mate of Russia therefore, though severe, is not so uncertain as that of some other coun- tries. From the middle of November till April it scarcely ever snows or rains ; and if the cold is severe it is dry, enlivening, and at least foreseen and provided for. Its greatest evils are violent summer rains, boisterous winds, and continued autumnal fogs. Late frosts are more injurious than long droughts ; though there are instances of such hot and dry summers, that fields of standing corn and forests take fire and fill whole provinces with smoke. (TooJce's View of the Russian Empire.) 651. The surface of Russia is almost every where flat, like that of Poland, with the exception of certain ridges of mountains which separate Siberia from the other provinces, and which also occur in Siberian Russia. In travelling from Riga, Petersburg, Wilna, or Brody, to Odessa, the traveller scarcely meets with an inequality sufficiently great to be termed a hill ; but he will meet with a greater proportion of forests, steppes or immense plains of pasture, sandy wastes, marshy surfaces, and gulleys or temporary water courses, than in any other country of Europe. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN RUSSIA. 105 652. The soil of Russia is almost every where a soft black mould of great depth, and generally on a sandy bottom. In some places it inclines to sand or gravel j in many it is peaty or boggy from not being drained; but only in Livonia and some parts of Lithu- ania was it inclined to clay, and no where to chalk. The most fertile provinces are those of Vladimir and Riazane east of Moscow, and the whole country of the Ukraine on the Black Sea, and of the Cossacks on the Don. In Vladimir thirty fold is often produced, and still more in Riazane. In many parts of the Ukraine no manure is used ; the straw is burned ; successive crops of wheat are taken from the same soil, and after a single ploughing each time, the stalks are so tall and thick that they resemble reeds, and the leaves are like those of Indian corn. 653. Landed j)roperty in Russia is almost every where in large tracts, and is either the property of the emperor, the religious or civil corporations, or the nobles. There are a few free natives who have purchased their liberty, and some foreigners, especially Germans, who have landed estates, but these are comparatively of no account. In the Ukraine, within the last thirty years, have been introduced on the government estates a number of foreigners from most countries of Europe, who may be considered as pro- prietors. These occupy the lands on leases of a hundred years or upwards, at little or no rent, on condition of peopling and cultivating them and residing there. In the country parts of Russia, there is no middle class between the nobles, including the priests, and the slaves. Estates are therefore either cultivated directly by the proprietors acting as their own stewards ; indirectly by letting them to agents or factors, as in Poland and Ire- land, or by dividing them in small portions among the peasantry. In general the pro- prietor is his own agent and farmer for a great part of his estate ; and the rest he lets to his slaves at certain rates of labor, corn, personal services, and sometimes a little money. These slaves, it is to be observed, are as much his property as the soil ; and in seasons of scarcity or in the event of any disaster, the lord is bound to provide them, and indeed deeply interested in doing so, in order at least to maintain the population, and if possible to obtain a surplus for sale, or for letting out to the towns. As in Poland the lands are everywhere unenclosed. 654. The farmeries attached to the houses of noblemen and the cottages of the paysants resemble those of Poland. They are almost every where constructed of timber ; the stove and its chimney being the only part built of brick or of mud and stones. The noblemen generally reside on their estates, and their houses are surrounded by the village which contains their peasants. These villages (^g. 80.) are in general dull and miserable 80 assemblages of log-houses all of one size and shape, with a small wooden church. The mansions of the poorer kind are merely cottages on a larger scale, with two apart- ments ; one used for all the purposes of the kitchen and other domestic offices, and the other for all the purposes of the family living rooms. The more wealthy nobles have wooden or brick houses stuccoed, or mudded and white washed. One nobleman in the neighborhood of Moscow has a British steward, who has drained, enclosed, and greatly improved his estate, and has built some farmeries (^fig, 81.), which might be mistaken for those of another country. 81 106 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Pari I. 655. The agricultural products of Russia may be known from its climates. The vegetables of the most northerly region are limited to lichens, some coarse grass, and some birch, abele, and wild pine forests. The animals are the reindeer, bear, fox, and otlier animals of the chace, or valued for their furs or skins. Some cows and sheep are also pastured in the northern parts of that region during the summer months. 656. The farming crops of the more southern regions are the same as in similar climates and countries. Winter and summer rye and oats are cultivated in every part of th6 empire, south of latitude 60^ ; winter wheat only in Russia as far as the Kama ; summer wheat both in Russia and Siberia ; barley and spelt plentifully in Russia. Pease, vetches, and beans are not cultivated in great quantities ; but buckwheat is extensively grown, and there is a large variety, called the tartarian millet ; panicum germanicum, and maize are grown in Taurida. Rice is cultivated in some parts of Taurida, and what is called manna {Festucafuitans) grows wild in most places that are occasionally overflown with water, particularly in the governments of Novogorod, Twer, Polotsk, and Smolensk. But the grain the most universally cultivated in Russia is rye, which is the bread corn of the country ; next oats, which furnishes the spirit in common use, and then wheat and barley. 657. The culture of herbage plants, of grasses, clover, turnips, &c., is rare in Russia. Hay is made from the banks of rivers or lakes ; and pasture obtained from the steppes, forests, grass lands in common, or arable lands at rest. 658. The clothing and other economical plants in cultivation, are flax, which is culti- vated to a great extent on the Volga; hemp is indigenous, and is cultivated both for its fibre and its seed. From the latter an oil is expressed much used as food during the time of the fasts. Woad is abundantly grown, madder and cotton has been tried in Astracan and Taurida. Hops grow wild in abundance in some parts of Siberia, and are cultivated in some European districts. Tobacco is planted in great abundance, and the produce in the Ukraine is of excellent quality. The potatoe is not yet in general cultivation, but has been introduced in different districts. Water melons, cabbages, turnips, and a variety of garden vegetables, are cultivated in the Ukraine and Taurida. Asparagus is extensively cultivated in the government of Moscow for the Petersburg market, and also turnips, onions, and carrots. Mushrooms are found in great plenty in the steppes and forests. About thirty species are eaten by the peasants, exclusive of our garden mushroom, which is neglected. Theirnames and habitats are given by Dr. Lyall. {History of Moscow, 1824. ) The common, and Siberian nettle, are found wild on the Ural mountains, and their fibres are prepared and wove into linen by the Baschkirs and Tatars. The rearing of silkworms has been tried in the Ukraine, and found to answer, as has the culture of the caper, and various other plants. 659. Of fruits grown on a large scale, or plentiful in a wild state in Russia, may be mentioned the raspberry, currant, strawberry, and bilberry. The hazle is so plen- tiful in Kazan, that an oil used as food is made from the nuts. Sugar, musk, and water melons thrive in the open air as far north as lat. 52^. Pears are wild almost every where, and cherries found in most forests. On the Oka and Volga are extensive orchards, principally of these fruits and apples. The apricot, almond, and peach succeed as standards in Taurida and Caucasus, and other southern districts. The quince is wild in forests on the Terek. Chestnuts are found singly in Taurida and districts adjacent. The walnut abounds in most southern districts. Figs and orange trees grow singly in Kitzliar and in Taurida, planted no doubt by the Tatars before they were driven out of that country. Lemons, oranges, and olives, according to Pallas, would bear the winter in Taurida ; and have been tried by Stevens, the director of a government nursery at Nikitka, in that country. The vine is cultivated in the govern- ments of Caucasus, Taurida, Ekatorinoslaf, and other places, and it is calculated that nearly one fourth part of the empire is fit for the culture of this fruit for wine. An account of the products of the Crimea is given by Mary Holderness, (Notes, &c., 1821.) from which it appears that all the fruits of France may be grown in the open air there, and that many of our culinary vegetables are found in a wild state. The Tatar inhabi- tants, who were driven out by the ambitious wars of Catherine, had formed gardens and orchards round their villages which still exist, and present a singular combination of beauty, luxuriance, and ruin. The gardens of the village of Karagoss form a wilder- ness of upwards of three hundred and sixty English acres, full of scenes of the greatest beauty, and through which, she says, it requires a little experience to be able to find one's way. [jVotes, 8ic., 125 — 135.) 660. The live stock of the Russian farmer consists of the reindeer, horse, ox, ass, mule, and camel as beasts of labor; the ox, sheep, and swine, and in some places the goat and rabbit, as beasts of clothing and nourishment. Poultry are common, and housed with the family to promote early laying, in order to have eggs by Easter, a great object with a view to certain ceremonies in the Russian religion. Bees are much attended to in the Ural, in some parts of Lithuania, and in the southern provinces. The Russian working horses are remarkably strong and hardy ; rather small, with large heads, long flabby ears, not handsome, but not without spirit. The best saddle horses are those of the Book I. AGRICULTURE IN RUSSIA. 107 Cossacks and Tatars in the Crimea. The horned cattle of the native breeds are small and brisk ; the cows give but little milk, which is poor and thin. A Dutch breed was intro- duced by Peter the Great, near Archangel, and do not degenerate. Oxen are much less used than horses as beasts of labor. 'J^he original Russian sheep is distinguished by a short tail about seven inches in length. The Merinos and other breeds from Germany have been introduced in a few places and promise success. The great graziers and breeders of horses, cattle, and sheep in Russia, are the Cossacks of the Don, the Kalmucks, and other Nomadic tribes. These supply the greater part of the towns both of Russia and Poland with butcher's meat ; and it is their hides and tallow that form so material an article of export. In the northern districts of Russia and Siberia, the chace is pursued as an occupation for a livelihood or gain. The chief object is to entrap by dogs and snares tliose animals whose skins are used as furs, and especially the sable. Next to the latter animal, the grey squirrel is the most valuable ; but the skins of foxes', martins, fish, otters, bears, wolves, lynxes, gluttons, ferrets, polecats, and a variety of others, are taken. The hunters pay a rent or tribute to government in sable skins, or in other furs regulated by the value of those. 661. The forests of Russia are least abundant in the southern districts; but the cold region may, like Poland, be described as one entire forest, with extensive glades. Forests of pine leaved trees (or needle leaved trees, as the German expression is,) are chiefly indigenous in the very cold, and cold regions. These include the spruce fir, the wild, and black pine, and the Siberian cedar or stone pine (Pinus cembra). The larch grows on most of the Siberian mountains. Among the leafy trees, the birch is the most com- mon, next the trembling poplar, willow, lime, and ash. The oak is not indigenous in Siberia ; the beech, elm, maple, and poplar, are found chiefly in the southern districts. Timber of construction, fuel, charcoal, bark, potashes, barilla, rosin, tar, pitch, &c., are obtained from these forests, which can hardly be said to have any sort of culture applied to them. 662. The implements and operations of Russian husbandry are the most simple and art- less that can well be imagined. Pallas has given figures of ploughs and other articles ; the former mere crooked sticks pointed, and drawn by horses, attached by ropes of bark or straw. Speaking of the operations, he says, " the cultivator sows his oats, his rye, oir his millet, in wastes which have never been dunged ; he throws down the seed as if he meant it for the birds to pick up ; he then takes a plough and scratches the earth, and a second horse following with a harrow terminates the work ; the bounty of nature supplies the want of skill, and an abundant crop is produced." This applies to the greater part of ancient Russia and Siberia ; but in Livonia and other Baltic provinces, and also in some parts of the Polish provinces of the Ukraine, the culture is performed in a superior manner with implements equal to the best of those used in Germany. In the Crimea, Mary Holderness informs us that the men dig in a sitting posture, and also that smiths work in the same manner, both smoking all the time ; they never grease the axles of tlieir carts, which, in consequence, make a disagreeable creaking noise, heard at a great distance ; when asked the reason, they answer, " we are not thieves and are therefore not ashamed that the world should ^2 ^^ ,^ hear of our movements." The most improved form of their carts [fig' 82.) in use round Petersburg, is evidently copied from those of the Dutch, and was probably introduced by Peter the Great. In the ;^ Ukraine they thresh out their corn by dragging boards studded with flints over it, and preserve it in pits in dry soil. In the northern provinces it is often dried on roofed frames of different sorts {fig. 83.) as in Sweden ; and about Riga and Mittau it is even kiln dried in the sheaf, before it can be stacked or threshed. The manner of 83 performing the operation of kiln drying in the sheaf, as it may :-t- j."- "'^=^. sometimes be applical)le in North Britain or Ireland in very late and wet seasons, we shall afterwards describe. (Part III. Book V. Ch.II.) 663. In no part of Europe are the field operations performed with such facility as in Russia, not only from the light nature of the soil, but from the severity and long continuance of the winters, which both pulverizes the surface and destroys weeds. The same reasons prevent grass lands, or lands neglected or left to rest, from ever acquiring a close sward, or tough rooty surface, so that even these are broken up with a very rude plough and very little labor. In short, there is no country in Europe where corn crops may be raised at so little expense of labor as in Russia, and as no more Qi^^*' than one corn crop can be got in the year in almost any country, so Russia may be said to be, and actually is, even with her imperfect cultivation, better able to raise im- 108 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Pam L mense quantities of corn than any part of the world, excepting perhaps similar parts of North America. 664. The improvement of Russian agriculture was commenced by Peter the Great, and continued by Catherine, and the present emperor. The peasants, on many of the government estates, were made free ; some of these estates were let or sold to freemen, and foreign agriculturists encouraged to settle on them. Rewards and premiums were given, and professorships of rural economy established in different parts of the empire. Some of the principal nobles have also made great efforts for the improvement of agri- culture. Count Romansow, about the end of the last century, procured a British farmer (Rogers), and established him on his estate near Moscow, where he has intro- duced the improved Scotch husbandry, drained extensively, established a dairy, and introduced the potatoe there, and on other estates belonging to his master. Others have made similar efforts, and several British farm bailiffs are now settled in Russia. The foreigners, merchants in Petersburg, or Riga, or in the employ of government, have also contributed to the improvement of agriculture. Many of these intending to establish their families in Russia, purchase estates, and some receive presents in land from the emperor. On these they in general introduce the culture of their native country, which, if only in the superiority of the live stock and implements, is certain of being better than that of the natives. In short, from these circumstances, and from the comparatively rational views of the present emperor, there can be no doubt of the rapid encrease of agriculture and population in Russia. Sect. VIII. Present State of the Agriculture of Sweden and Norway. 665. Sweden and Norway are not agricultural countries ; but still great attention has been paid to perfect such culture as they admit of, both by the government and indi- viduals. From the time of Charles XI., in the end of the seventeenth century, various laws for the encouragement of agriculture have been passed, professorships founded, rewards distributed, and the state of the kingdom, in respect to its agricultural resources, examined by Linnaeus and other eminent men. Norway, till lately under the dominion of Denmark, is chiefly a pastoral country ; but its live stock and arable culture have been much improved during the end of the last, and beginning of the present century, by the exertions of the Patriotic Society established in that country, which gives pre- miums for the best improvements and instructions in every part of farming. Our notice of the rural economy of these countries are drawn from Clarke, Thomson, James, and our own memoranda, made there in 1813. 666. The climate of Sweden and Norway is similar to that of the cold and very cold regions of Russia, but rather milder in its southern districts, on account of the numer- ous inlets of the sea. The lands on the sea-coast of Norway are not on this account so cold as their latitude would lead us to expect ; still the winters are long, cold, and dreary ; and the summers short and hot, owing to the length of the day and the reflection of the mountains. So great is the difference of temperature, that at Sideborg, in the latitude of Upsal, in June or July, it is frequently eighty or eighty-eight degrees, and in January at forty or fifty below the freezing point. The transition from sterility to luxuriant vegetation is in this, as it is in similar climates, sudden and rapid. In the climate of Upsal, the snow disappears in the open fields from the 6th to the 10th of May; barley is sown from the 13th to the 15th of that month, and reaped about the middle of August. In some parte of Norway corn is sown and cut within the short period of six or seven weeks. According to a statement published in the Amcen. Acad. vol. iv., a Lapland summer, including also what, in other countries, is called spring and autumn, consists of fifty-six days, as follows : — June 23, snow melts. July 1, snow gone. 9, fields quite green. 17, plants at full growth. 25, plants in full blow. Aug. 2, fruits ripe. 10, plants shed their seeds. 18, snow. From this time to June 23, the ground is every where covered with snow, and the waters with ice. In such a climate, no department of agriculture can be expected to florish. The cul- ture of corn is only prevalent in two districts. East Gothland, and the eastern shores of the Gulph of Bothnia, now belonging to Russia. 667. The surface of Sweden every body knows to be exceedingly rocky and hilly, and to abound in fir and pine forests, and in narrow green vallies, often containing lakes or streams. " Sweden," Dr. Clarke observes, " is a hilly, but not a mountainous country, excepting in its boundary from the Norwegian provinces. It has been remarked, that in all countries, the abutment of the broken strata, which constitute the earth's surface every where, causes a gradual elevation to take place towards the north-west ; hence, in all countries, the more level districts vnW be found upon the eastern, and the mountainous or metalliferous region upon the western side ; either placed as a natural boundary against the territory occurring next in succession ; or terminating in rocks of primary Book I. AGRICULTURE IN SWEDEN AND NORWAY. lOd formation opposed as cliffs towards the sea." (darkens Scandinavia.) This is precisely the case with Sweden : the south-eastern provinces are level and cultivated ; a ridge of mountains on the west separate it from Norway, and the intermediate space, from Gothenberg to Tornea, may be considered as one continued forest, varied by hills, rocks, lakes, streams, glades of pasture, and spots of corn culture. Norway may be consi- dered as a continuation of the central country of Sweden, terminated by cliffs opposed to the ocean, " The tops and sloping sides of the mountains," Dr. Clarke observes, ** are covered with a verdure ; farms are stationed on a series of tabular eminences, and grazing around them the herds of cattle all the way from the top to the bottom, and sometimes in places so steep, that we wonder how they could find a foot- ing. In some places the elevation of these farms is so extraordinary, that the houses and flocks appear above the clouds, and bordering on perpetual snow, and the actual sight of them is hardly to be credited. Every hanging-meadow is pas- tured by cows and goats ; the latter often brousinguponjutties, so fearfully placed, that their destruction seems to be inevit- able ; below is seen the village- church' with its spire, the whole built of plank (Jig. 84,); the cheerful bleatings of the sheep, mingled at intervals with the deep tones of the cow-herds' lures (Jig. 85. j, resounding from the woods, of wood, bound together by withy. 85 The lure is a long trumpet made of splinters 668. Of Finland, which we have included with Sweden and Norway, a considerable part is under corn culture ; the forests cleared, the lands enclosed, and population encreased. The whole country ap- pears decked with farm-houses, and village churches, rising to the view or falling from it, over an undulat- 'ing district, amidst woods and water, and rocks, and r^ri' large loose masses of granite : it may be called "^ Norway in miniature. Farther up the country, towards the north, there are scenes which were de- scribed to Dr. Clarke as unrivalled in the world. Every charm which the effect of cultivation can give ijl j^ to the aspect of a region where Nature's wildest ■^ features — headlong cataracts, lakes, majestic rivers, and forests — are combined, may there be seen." {Scandinavia, sect. ii. p. 459.) 669. The soil of the yallies is, in general, good friable loam, but so mixed with stones as to render it very troublesome to plough or harrow ; and in many places so much so, that where the vallies are cultivated it is chiefly with the spade. The only exception to these remarks is a considerable tract of comparatively even surface in South and East Gothland, where the soil inclines to clay and is well cultivated, and as prolific in corn crops as any in Europe. 670. The landed jyroperty of Sweden is generally in estates of a moderate size; in many cases their extent in acres is unknown ; their value being estimated by the number of stock grazed in summer. The proprietors almost constantly farm their own estates, or let them out at fixed rents, in money or grain, to cottagers or farmers. The largest arable farms not occupied by the proprietors are in Gothland ; but few of these exceed two hundred acres. The farm-build- r-^ 86 ings and cottages are there almost al- ways built of timber and thatched, on account of the warmth of these materials, though stone is abundant in most places. There are a few small enclosures near the farm-yard ; but to enclose generally could be of no use in a country where the snow, during six or eight months of the year, renders them nugatory both as shelters and fences. The fence in universal use is made of splinters of^. deal, set up in a sloping position, and fastened by withys to upright poles (Ji^. 86.) This is the only fence used in Sweden, Norway, Lapland, and Finland: and it is very common in Poland, Russia, and the northern parts of Germany. 110 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 671. The Swedish cottages are built of logs, like those of Poland (Jig. 87,), but they are roofed in a different manner. Above the usual covering of boards is laid birch bark, in the manner of tiles, and on that a layer of turf, so thick that the grass grows as vigorously as on a natural meadow. The walls are often painted red : they are very small, and gene- rally very close and dirty within^ at least in winter. There are various exceptions, however, as to cleanliness, especially among the post-masters, who are all farmers. The post-house at Yfre, north of Stockholm, was found by Dr. Clarke and his party so " neat and comfortable, and every thing belonging to it in such order," that they resolved to dine there. '* The women were spinning wool, weaving, heating the oven, and teaching children to read, all at the same time. The dairy was so clean and cool, that^ we preferred having our dinner there, rather than in the parlor. For our fare they readily set before us a service consisting of bacon, eggs, cream, curd, and milk, sugar, bread, butter, &c. ; and our bill of fare for the whole amounted only to twenty pence; receiving which they were very thankful. Cleanliness in this farmer's family was quite as conspicuous as in any part of Switzer- land. The tables, chairs, and the tubs in which they kept their provisions, were as white as washing could make them ; and the most extraordinary industry had been exerted in clearing the land, and in rendering it productive. They were at this time employed in removing rocks, and in burning them for lajvigation, to lay the earth again upon the soil." (Scandinavia, sect. i. p. 179.) 672. The cottages in Norwai/ are formed as in Sweden, covered with birch, bark, and turf. On some of the roofs, after the hay was taken. Dr. Clarke found lambs pas- turing ; and on one house he found an excellent crop of turnips. The galleries about their houses remind the traveller of Switzerland. 673. The cottages of the Laplanders are round huts of the rudest description (^fig. 88.) 674. The agricultural produce of Sweden are the common corns. Wheat and rye are chiefly grow- in South and East Goth- land ; oats are the bread- corn of the country ; and big or Scotch barley is the chief corn of Lapland and the north of Norway. The bean and pea are grown in Gothland, and' the potatoe, flax, and' enough of tobacco for home consumption, by every farmer and cottager. Only a few districts grow sufficient corn for their own consumption, and annual importations are regular. 675. The Lichen rangiferinus, or reindeer moss, (Jig. 89.), is not only used by the reindeer, but also as fodder for cows and other horned . cattle. It adds a superior richness to the milk . and butter. It is sometimes eaten by the inha- ^f^t^^^^JM/ ^^M^^ %JiL^J bitants ; and Dr. Clarke having tasted it, found '!^^'^^^'^^(, HW^ ^ it crisp and agreeable . 676. The Lichen roccella, which abounds near Gottenburg and othei^ parts of Sweden, was in considerable demand in the early part of last war .^^^^^K^^^^^JL^ffSM'i^i!^. as a scarlet dye. 677. The Lycopodium complanatum (Jig. 90.) ^'Vi-^ts.^'W/' v-o' 1 is employed in dyeing their woollen. Even the ^^ML'^^y^f ^O^j leaves, as they fall from the trees, are carefully ••^- • ^ *''" - - raked together and preserved, to encrease the stock of fodder. (Scandinavia, chap, xviii.) 678. Tar in Sweden is chiefly extracted from the roots of the spruce fir, and the more marshy the forest the more the roots are said to yield. Roots or billets of any kind are packed close in a kiln, made like our lime-kilns in the face of a bank. They are covered with turf and earth, as in burning charcoal ; at the bottom of the kiln is an iron pan into which the tar runs during the smothered combustion of the wood. A spout from the iron pan conveys the tar at once into the barrels, in which it arrives in this country. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN SWEDEN AND NORWAY. Ill 079. The native trees and plants afford important products for the farmer. " Tlie industry of the Norwegians," Dr. Clarke observes, " induces them to appropriate almost every thing to some useful purpose. Their summum bonum seems to consist in the produce of the fir (i. e. the wild pine, not the spruce fir). This tree affords materials for buildinj^ their houses, churches, and bridges; for every article of their household furniture; for constructing sledges, carts, and boats ; besides fuel for their hearths. With its leaves (here the spruce fir is alluded to) they strew their floors, and after- wards burn them and collect the ashes for manure. The birch affords in its leaves and tender twigs a grateful fodder for their cattle, and bark for covering their houses. The bark of the elm in powder, is boiled up with other food, to fatten hogs; sometimes, but rarely, it is mixed in the com- position of their bread. The flowers of the haeg-ber (Cornus mascula) flavor their distilled spirits. The moss, as a sub- stitute for mortar, is used in caulking the interstices be- tween their under walls. The turf covers their foofs. 680. The berries of the Cloud-berry {Rubus chameBmorus) {fig. 91.) are used in Lapland and the north of Sweden and Norway like the strawberry, and are esteemed as wholesome as they are agree- 91 VfeSs5 4^t' a^d the women iuy {fg. 109.) well made, and not unlike the antique. « The circumstances by which the amount of produce might be increased, are chiefly, per- haps, of a more general na- ture— a better form of go- vernment ; greater security to private property ; a more uniform distribution of the inhabitants; and the pre- vention of those monopolies in the export of grain, which 122 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. have hitherto been exercised by the Turkish rulers of the country. " ( TravelSf ^c, 2d edit. p. 281. 737. The agriculture of Albania differs in nq essential particular from that of Tliessaly. The common tenure on which land is let, is that of paying to the landlord half the produce. The vale of Deropuli is the most fertile and populous in Albania. The tillage, generally speaking, is remarkable for its neatness. The products are chiefly wheat, maize, tobacco, and rice. The returns afford a considerable surplus for exporta- tion ; and the tobacco is esteemed the best in Albania. Large flocks of sheep feed on the declivity of the mountains j and afford much coarse wool for the manufactures of the country. 738. The agriculture of Moldavia and Wallachia, two of the most northerly provinces of European Turkey, has been given by various authors, as Carra, Bauer, and Thornton. The climate of those provinces is very severe in winter. Spring begins in April ; sum- mer in June ; and in July and August the days are excessively hot, and the nights cold. Heavy rains begin in September, and snows in November. The surface is generally mountainous ; but the vallies dry and rich. The usual grains are cultivated, and also maize. They plough deep with six oxen, and never employ manure. They take a crop, and leave the land to rest alternately. The corn is trodden out by horses, and then laid up in pits. Flax and hemp are sown for local manufacture. Newly broken-up lands are planted with cabbages, which grow to a great size. The vine is cultivated on the southern declivities of hills, and the wine is said to equal that of Hungary. The mul- berry is cultivated for the silkworm ; and forests are extensive on the mountains. The common fruit trees are abundant, and an excellent variety of apple, called the doiniasca, grows wild. The olive and fig are too delicate for the climate. 739. But thejiasture lands are the most valuable parts of these provinces. The oxen are large and fleshy, and so numerous, that they form a principal article of export to Russia, Poland, and Germany. The buffalo thrives better here than in most parts of Europe ; and is valued for its strength and milk. The sheep winter on the Danube, and pass the summer on the Carpathian mountains ; their mutton is excellent, and the annual export- ation of the wool into Germany is very considerable. There are various breeds of horses ; they are brought up in great numbers, for the Austrian and Prussian cavalry. They are well formed, spirited, docile, and remarkable for the soundness of their hoofs. The carriage and draught horses are small but active, and capable of resisting fatigue. They live in the open air in all seasons, though in winter they are often attacked by wolves. Domestic fowls and game abound, especially hares. The honey and wine are of the finest quality. One author (Curra) mentions a kind of green wax, which, when made into tapers, diffuses an excellent perfume when lighted. Many of the cottages partake of the Swiss character, and are more ^.rvcr-^ 110 picturesque than those of Hun- gary or Russia {Jig. 110.) 740. The poorest agriculture in European Turkey is that of Romelia, including the coun- try round Constantinople. The surface is hilly, and the soil dry and stony, chiefly in pasture or waste. " The capital of the empire," Thornton observes, *< as the soil in its immediate vicinity is barren and ungrateful, receives from the neighbouring villages, and from the sur- rounding coasts of both the seas which it commands, all the culinary herbs and fruits f excellent flavor, which the most fastidious appetites can require ; and from the Asiatic coasts of the Black Sea, all materials necessary for fuel, or for the construction of ships and houses." Chap. V. Modern History and present State of Agriculture in the British Isles. 741. Having, in the preceding chapter, brought down the history of British agriculture to the revolution, we shall resume it at that period, and continue our view to the present time. As this period may be considered the most interesting of the whole series, we shall, for the sake of distinctness, arrange the matter under the separate sec- Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 123 tions of the political, professional, and literary history of agriculture in Britain, and sub- mit a separate view of the progress and present state of agriculture in Ireland. Sect. I. Political History of Agriculture in Britain from the Revolution in 1668, to the present Time. 742. That the agriculture and general prosjieritt/ of this country were greatly benefited hy the revolution is an indisputed point. That prosperity, as far as respects agriculture, is chiefly to be ascribed to the judicious corn-laws then promulgated. " In 1 670," a masterly writer on the subject remarks, " exportation was permitted, whatever the price might be ; and importation was virtually prohibited, by a duty of 165. per quarter, when wheat did not exceed 53s. 4d. ; of 85. when above that, and not exceeding 80s. ; and when above 80s. the duty of 5s. 4d., imposed by the act 1663, continued to be payable. Still, however, as there was a duty payable on exportation ; and as importation, from some defect in the law respecting the mode of ascertaining the prices at which the different duties were exigible, still continued at the low duty, the system by which exportation was encouraged, and importation in ordinary cases prohibited, was not completely established till 1688 and 1700. In the former of these years, a bounty of 5s. a quarter was given on exportation, when the price of wheat did not exceed 48s. , and in the latter the duties on exportation were wholly repealed. Under these laws, not only was the excess of exports very considerable, but the prices of grain, down to 1765, were much lower than during an equal number of years preceding 1688. This is not the place to inquire how far these laws had an influence in producing this phenomenon ; but the facts themselves are indisputable. Yet the mere circumstance of large exportations of grain does by no means prove the prosperity of agriculture ; far less is its cheapness in the home markets any evidence of the comfortable subsistence of the lower orders. Corn seems to have been raised in such abundance, not merely because the market was ex- tended by means of the bounty, but because there was little demand for other products of the soil, which have, since that time, withdrawn a large portion of the best arable land from the growth of corn. And the price was low, because neither the number nor wealth of the consumers had increased in a proportion corresponding to the supply. Before the accession of his present majesty, the number of acts for inclosure was only two hundred and forty-four ; — a clear proof that agricultural improvements proceeded raiuch more slowly than they have done since. And it cannot be disputed, that, owing to the imperfect culture of that period, when ameliorating crops did not enter largely into the courses of management, any given extent of land did not produce so much corn as under the improved rotations of modern husbandry." 743. The exportation of wool was prohibited in 1647, in 1660, and in 1688; and the prohibition strictly enforced by subsequent statutes. The effect of this on its price, and the state of the wool trade, from the earliest period to the middle of last century, are distinctly exhibited by the learned and laborious author of Memoirs on Wool, printed in 1747. 744. In 1765, the corn-laivs^established in the end of the seventeenth century began to be repealed, and ex- portation was prohibited, and importation permitted, without payment of duties, by annual acts, during the seven subsequent years. " A new system was established in 1773, allowing importation when the price of wheat jvas at or above 48s. per quarter, at the low duty of 6d. Exportation was prohibited when the price was 44s. ; and below that, the former bounty of 5s. per quarter continued to be payable." 743. By an act passed in 1791, the boiuity on exportation, when the price was under 44s. per quarter, remained unaltered ; but " exportation was permitted till the price was 46s. Importation was virtually pro- hibited by high duties when the price was below 50s. ; and permitted, on payment of a duty of Qd., when at or above 54s." 746. In 1804, " the corn-laws were altered for the third time, and the bounty on exportation was paid till the price of wheat was 48s. per quarter; and at 54s. exportation was prohibited. The high duty of 24s. M. was payable on importation till the price was 63s. ; above 63s. and under 66s., a duty of 2s. 6rf. ; and above 66s. the low duty of 6rf. By an act in 1805, importation into any part of Britain is to be regu- lated by the aggregate average price of the twelve maritime districts of England. Importation was never stopt under the law of 1804, till February 1815. 747. During the twenty-two years preceding 1821, about sixty millions of pounds sterling have been paid for foreign grain. " In bad seasons the prices have been enhanced to a most alarming degree, not- withstanding large bounties have been paid on importation. The average price of every successive period of ten years since 1765, has risen considerably ; and since 1795, the price has been seldom less than double the average of the first sixty years of the last century." 748. The corn-laws have recently undergone another change, after much discussion in par- liament, and a very general opposition on the part of the manufacturing and commercial classes, with a great number of publications on both sides, which will probably be not more lasting than those that have preceded it. By the 54th of the king, c. 69., (17th June, 1814,) the exportation of corn, meal, malt, and flour, from any part of the united kingdom, is permitted at all times, without payment of any duty, or receiving any bounty; and by the 55th, c. 26., (23d March, 1815,) importation is prohibited, (except for the warehouse, from whence it may be taken out for sale, when the prices are such as would permit importation,) till the price of wheat is 80s. ; rye, pease, and beans, 53s.; barley, bear, or bigg, 40s.; and oats 27s. per quarter. Above these prices, these difierent kinds of corn are admitted, without payment of any duty whatever. 124 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Paet I. From the British colonies in America, corn may be imported for home-consumption, without payment of any duty, when the prices are at or above, wheat, 675.; rye, pease, and beans, 44s. ; barley, bear, or bigg, 33s. ; and oats, 22s. per quarter. Ahnost all the restrictions on the inland corn trade were removed by the act, 1772 ; and the more just views of the present age have given freedom to the trade, in point of fact, though some of the old laws against forestalling, &c,, are still unrepealed. Yet it is not many years since punishments were inflicted for these imaginary crimes. {Ency. Brit, art. ^gr.) 749. Jgriculture in Scotland was at a low ebb at the period of the revolution. " The calamity of that evil had so oppressed the tenantry of Scotland, that many farms re- mained unoccupied. Proprietors were then as eager in searching after tenants who were able to stock and cultivate the ground, as farmers are now assiduous in seeking after farms. Improvements began to be made soon after the union, especially by some gentle- men of East Lothian, and by the efforts of the agricultural society of Scotland, established in 1723. It was now found beneficial to grant long leases, which were found greatly to increase the skill and industry of the tenants, by rendering them secure of enjoying the benefit of their improvements. A great stimulus was also given to farmers by the money circulated during the rebellion of 1745, which raised prices, and increased the tenants' capital stock. 750. A desire to imjrrove the roads of Scotland now began to manifest itself among the proprietors. The first act of parliament for collecting tolls on the highways in Scotland, was passed in 1750, for repairing the road from Dunglass bridge to Haddington. In ten years after, several acts followed for the counties of Edinburgh and Lanark, and for making the roads between Edinburgh and Glasgow. The benefit which agriculture has derived from good roads it would not be easy to estimate. The want of them was one great cause of the slow progress of the art in former times. At present, all the improve- ments introduced by M'Adam in the construction and preservation of the roads of England, are spreading with equal rapidity and good effect in Scotland. 751. The relaxing nf the rigor of entails, and abrogating the feudal system greatly bene- fited the agriculture of Scotland. The first was eflfected by an act in 1770, which re- laxed the rigor of strict entails, and extended the powers of proprietors, in so far as regards the improvement of their estates, and the granting of leases. The legal ab- rogation of the feudal system, by passing the jurisdiction act, was of material ad- vantage, in so far as the security of cultivators was thus increased, and their situation rendered infinitely more independent than in former times. 752. But the general progress of agriculture in Britain from the revolution to the middle of the eighteenth century, was by no means so considerable as from the great exportation of corn we should be led to imagine. The gradual advance in the price of land produce, soon after the year 1 760, occasioned by the increase of population, and of wealth derived from manufactures and commerce, has given a more powerful stimulus to rural industry, augmented agricultural capital in a greater degree, and called forth a more skilful and enterprising race of cultivators, than all the laws for regulating the corn trade could ever have effected. Most of the inventions for increasing produce and ecbnomising labor have either been introduced, or improved and greatly extended since that time ; and by means of both, the free surplus has been vastly increased for the supply of the general consumption. The passing of more than three thousand bills of inclosure, in the late reign, is a proof how much more rapidly the cultivation of new land has proceeded than in the former period ; and the garden-like appearance of the country, as well as the striking improvement in the condition of all classes of the rural population, display, in the most decided manner, the skill and the success with which this great branch of national industry is now followed throughout the greater part of Britain." 753. Since the conclusion of the American war in 1782, ** improvement has pro- ceeded with singular rapidity in every district ; and while the rental rolls of proprietors have been doubled, tripled, and quadrupled, the condition of the tenantry, and of the lower ranks, has been ameliorated almost in a proportional degree." {Ed. Encp. art. Agr.) 754. Since the peace of 1815, agriculture has sustained a severe shock from the fall of prices, occasioned by the lessened circulation of currency, the necessary preliminary to a return to a currency of the precious metals. In this shock many hundreds of farmers lost all their capital, and were obliged to become operatives to others ; while some, more fortunate, contrived to retain as much of the wreck of their property as enabled them to emigrate to other countries. Cleghorn, whose pamphlet on the depressed state of agriculture was honored with the prize of the Highland Society of Scotland, thinks this loss cannot have been less than one year's rental of the whole island. " The replies sent to the circular letter of the Board of Agriculture, regarding the agricultural state of the kingdom, in February, March, and April, 1 8 1 9, furnish a body of evidence which cannot be contro- verted, and exhibit a picture of widely spread ruin among the agricultural classes, and of Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 125 distress among all that immediately depend upon them, to which there is probably no par- allel." [See Cleghom on the Dq)ressed State of Agriculture, 1822.) After seven or eight years of severe suffering, both by landlords and tenants, things have now assumed a more stationary condition. Rents have been greatly lowered every where, in proportion to the fall of prices and the rise of parochial burdens, and both farmers and landlords are beginning gradually to recover themselves. SuBSECT. 1. Professional History of Agriculturej from the Revolution to the present Time. 755. From the restoration down to the middle of the eighteenth century, very little improve- ment had taken place, either in the cultivation of the soil, or in the management of live stock. Even clover and turnips (the great support of the present improved system of agri- culture,) were confined to a few districts, and at the latter period were scarcely cultivated at all by common farmers in the northern parts of the island. From the Whole Art of Hus- handry, published by Mortimer in 1706, a work of considerable merit, it does not appear that any improvement was made on his practices till near the end of last century. In those districts where clover and rye-grass were cultivated, they were cut green and used for soiling as at present. Turnips were sown broadcast, hand-hoed, and used for feeding sheep and cattle, as they were used in Houghton's time, and are still in most districts of England. 756. In the beginning of the eighteenth century, a considerable improvement in the process of culture was introduced by Jethro Tull, a gentleman of Berkshire, who began to drill wheat and other crops, about the year 1701, and whose Horse-hoeing Husbandry was published in 1731. " In giving a short account of the innovations of this eccentric writer, it is not meant to enter into any discussion of their merits. It will not detract much from his reputation to admit, that, like most other men who leave the beaten path, he was sometimes misled by inexperience, and sometimes deceived by a too sanguine imagination. Had Tull confined his recommendation of the drill hus- bandry to leguminous and bulbous-rooted plants generally, and to the cereal gramina only in particular circumstances ; and had he, without puzzling himself about the food of plants, been contented with pointing out the great advantage of pulverizing the soil in most cases, and extirpating weeds in every case, he would certainly have deserved a high rank among the benefactors of his country. A knowledge of his doctrines and practice, however, will serve as a necessary introduction to the present approved modes of culture." 757. TuU's theory is promulgated with great confidence ; and in the controversy which he thought proper to maintain in support of it, he scrupled not to employ ridicule as well as reasoning. Besides the Roman writers de Re Rustica, Virgil in particular, whom he treats with high disdain ; he is almost equally severe on Dr. Woodward, Bradley, and other writers of his own time. 758. Tull begins by showing that the roots of plants extended much farther than is commonly believed ; and then proceeds to inquire into the nature of their food. After examining several hypotheses, he de- cides this to be fine particles of earth. The chief, and almost the only use of dung, he thinks, is to divide the earth ; to dissolve the " terrestrial matter which affords nutriment to the mouths of vegetable roots ;" and this can be done.more completely by tillage. It is therefore necessary, not only to pulverize the soil by repeated ploughings before it be seeded ; but as it becomes gradually more and more compressed afterwards, recourse must be had to tillage while the plants are growing, or horse-hoeing j which also destroys the weeds that would deprive the plants of their nourishment. 759. The leading features of TuWs husbandry, are his practice of laying the land into narrow ridges of five or six feet, and upon the middle of these, drilling one, two, or three rows ; distant from one another about seven inches, when there were three ; and ten inches, when only two. The distance of the plants on one ridge from those on the contiguous one, he called an interval ; the distance between the rows on the same ridge a space, or partition : the former was stirred repeatedly by the horse-hoe, and the latter by the hand-hoe. ' 760. The extraordinary attention Tull gave to his mode of culture is, perhaps, without a parallel. " I for- merly was at much pains," he says, " and at some charge, in improving my drills, for planting the rows at very near distances ; and had brought them to such perfection, that one horse would draw a drill with eleven shares, making the rows at three inches and a half distance from one another; and, at the same time, sow in them three very different sorts of seeds, which did not mix ; and these two at different depths. As the barley-rows were seven inches asunder, the barley lay four inches deep. A little more than three inches above' that, in the same channels, was clover ; betwixt every two of these rows, was a row of saint- foin, covered half an inch deep. I had a good crop of barley the first year ; the next year two crops of broad clover, where that was sown ; and where hop clover was sown, a mixed crop of that and saintfoin ; but I am since, by experience, so fully convinced of the folly of these, or any other mixed crops, and more especially of narrow spaces, that I have demolished these instruments (in their full perfection) as a vain curiosity, the drift and use of them being contrary to the true principles and practice of horse-hoeing." {Horse-hoeing Husbandry, p. 62. London, 1762.) 761. In the culture of wheat he began with ridges six feet broad, or eleven on a breadth of sixty-six feet ; but on this he afterwards had fourteen ridges. After trying different numbers of rows on a ridge, he at last preferred two, with an intervening space of about ten inches. He allowed only three pecks of seed for an acre. The first hoeing was performed by turning a furrow from the row, as soon as the plant had put forth four or five leaves ; so that it was done before, or at the beginning of winter. The next hoeing was in'spring, by which the earth was returned to the plants. The subsequent operations depended upon the circumstances and condition of the land, and the state of the weather. The next year's crop of wheat was sown upon the intervals which had been unoccupied the former year ; but this he does not seem to think was a matter of much consequence. " My field," he observes, "whereon is now the thirteenth crop of wheat, has shown that the rows may successfully stand upon any part of the ground. The ridges of this field were, for the twelfth crop, changed from six feet to four feet six inches. In order for this al- teration, the ridges were ploughed down, and then the next ridges were laid out the same way as the for- mer, but one foot six inches narrower, and the double rows drilled on their tops ; whereby, of consequence, there must be some rows standing on every part of the ground, both on the former partitions, and on 126 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. every part of the intervals. Notwithstanding this, there was no manner of diflference in the goodness of the i-ows ; and the whole field was in every part of it equal, and the best, I believe, that ever grew on it. It is now the thirteenth crop, likely to be good, though the land was not ploughed cross ways." {lUd. p. 424.) 762. According to Tulip a rotation of crops of different species was altogether unnecessary ; and he labors hard to prove against Dr. Woodward, that the advantages of such a change, under his plan of tillage, were quite chimerical ; though he seems to admit the benefit of a change of the seed itself. But the best method of determining the question would have been, to have stated the amount of his crops per acre, and the quality of the grain, instead of resting the superiority of his management on the alleged saving of expence, when com- pared with the common broadcast husbandry. 763. On the culture of the turnip, both his principles and his practice are much more correct. The ridges were of the same breadth as for wheat ; but only one row was drilled on each. His management, while the crop was growing, difFers very little from the present practice. When drilled on the level, it is im- possible, he observes, to hoe-plough them so well as when they are planted upon ridges. But the seed was deposited, at different depths, the half about four inches deep, and the other half exactly over that, at the depth of half an inch. " Thus planted, let the weather be never so dry, the deepest seed will come up ; but if it raineth immediately after planting, the shallow will come up first. We also make it come up at four times, by mixing our seed, half new and half old, the new coming up a day quicker than the old. These four comings up give it so many chances for escaping the fly; it being often seen, that the seed sown over night will be destroyed by the fly, when that sown the next morning will escape, and vice versa : or you may hoe-plough them when the fly is like to devour them : this will bury the greatest part of those enemies : or else you may drill in another row without new ploughing the land." 764. Drilling, and horse and hand-hoeing, seem to have been in use before the publi- cation of TuU's book. " Hoeing," he says, " may be divided into deep, which is one horse-hoeing ; and shallow, which is the English hand-hoeing ; and also the shallow horse-hoeing used in some places betwixt rows, where the intervals are very narrow, as sixteen or eighteen inches. This is but an imitation of the hand-hoe, or a succedaneum to it, and can neither supply the use of dung, nor of fallow, and may be properly called scratch-hoeing." But in his mode of forming ridges, his practice seems to have been original ; his implements display much ingenuity ; and his claim to the title of father of the present horse-hoeing husbandry of Great Britain seems indisputable. A translation of TuU's book was undertaken at one and the same time in France, by three different per- sons of consideration, without the privity of each other. Two of them afterwards put their papers into the hands of the third, M.Du Hamel duMonceau, of the Royal Academy of Sciences, at Paris, who published a treatise on husbandry, on the principles of Tull, a few years after. But Tull seems to have had very few followers in England for more than thirty years. The present method of drilling and horse- hoeing turnips was not introduced into Northumberland till about the year 1780, [Northumberland Survey, p. 100.) ; and it was then borrowed from Scotland, the farmers of which had the merit of first adopting TuU's management in the culture of this root about 1 760, and from whom it has since made its way, but slowly, in the southern part of the island. 765. In the live stock of British agriculture, very little improvement had been made pre- viously to the middle of the eighteenth century, or later. About this time, the best breed of cattle and sheep were about Doncaster, in Yorkshire, and in Leicestershire, and the first grand and successful effort to improve them was made by Robert Bakewell, of Dishley in the latter county. Bakewell was born about 1730; and soon after arriving at the years of maturity, took an interest in improving the breed of sheep. His father was a farmer, and died in 1772 ; but the son had taken an active management of the farm for many years before that period, for we find him letting out rams in 1762. (^Hunth Agricul- tural Memoirs, 35. ) 766. By BakewelV s sJcil^ul selection at first, and constant care afterwards to breed from the best animals, without any regard to their consanguinity, he at last obtained a variety of sheep, which, for early maturity, and the property of returning a great produce of mutton for the food they consume, as well as for the small proportion which the weight of the offal bears to that of the four quarters, are altogether unequalled either in this or any other country. The Dishley or New Leicester sheep, and their crosses, are now spread over the principal corn districts of Britain ; and, from their quiet domesticated habits, are probably still the most profitable of all the varieties of sheep, on farms where the rearing and fattening of live stock are combined with the best courses of tillage crops. 767. The jiractice of Bakewell and his followers J&irhishes an instance of the benefits of a division of labor, in a department of business, where it was little to be expected. Their male stock was let out every year to breeders from all parts of England ; and thus, by judiciously crossing the old races, all the valuable properties of the Dishley variety de- scended, after three or four generations, to their posterity. By no other means could this new breed have spread so rapidly, nor have been made to accommodate itself so easily to a change of climate and pasture. Another recommendation of this plan was, that the ram-hirer had a choice among a number of males, of somewhat different properties, and in a more or less advanced stage of improvement ; from which it was his business to select Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 127 such as suited his particular object. These were reared by experienced men, who gave their principal attention to this branch alone ; and having the best females as well as males, they were able to furnish the necessary supply of young males in the greatest variety, to those farmers whose time was occupied with other pursuits. The prices at which Bakewell's rams were hired, appear enormous. In 1789, he received twelve hundred guineas for the hire of three brought at one birth ; two thousand for seven; and, for his whole letting, at least three thousand guineas. {Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) 768. Bakewell died in the iKginning of the present century : his chief coadjutors in the improvement of stock were Cully, and Bailey of Northumberland, whose valuable works on live stock, and other subjects, with some notices of their lives, will be found in the proper place in Part IV. of this work. 769. Merino sheep were first brought into England in 1788, when his majesty procured a small flock by way of Portugal. In 1791, another flock was imported from Spain. In 1804, when his majesty's annual sales commenced, this race began to attract much notice. Dr. Parry, of Bath, has crossed the Ryeland or Herefordshire sheep, with the merinos, and brought the wool of the fourth generation to a degree of fineness not excelled by that of the pure merino itself; while the carcase, in which is the great defect of the merinos, has been much improved. Lord Somerville, and many other gentlemen, have done them- selves much honor by establishing this race, so necessary to the prosperity of our woollen manufactures, and in removing its defects by their judicious management. [Encyc. Brit. art. Jgr.) 770. The other advances made in agriculture subsequently to the middle of the eighteenth cen- tury ^axe the general improvement of implements, especially of the swing plough, (Jig.lll.) Ill by Small, about 1790 ; the invention of the best description of threshing machine, (^.112.) by Meickle, soon afterwards; the improvement j|2 of the one horse cart (^fig. 113.) the invention of several reaping machines, by various artists ; the improved method of draining, by Elkington, in 1 760 ; the introduction of the ruta buga, or Swedish turnip, in 1 790 ; of the potatoe tuber into field culture, in 1788 ; of the rotation of crops, gradually from 1 700 ; the use of summer wheat, in 1800 ; and the sowing of winter wheat in spring, from 1795. Of these, and a variety of other topics, the historical details will be found where they are respectively treated of, in the course of this work. 771. The agriculture of Scotland, as we have seen (749.), was in a very depressed state at the revolution, from political circumstances. It was not less so in pointof professional knowledge. Lord Kaimes, that excellent judge of mankind, and sound agriculturist, declares, in strong terms, that the tenantry of Scot- 113 128 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. land, at the end of the seventeenth and beginning of the eighteenth century, were so be- numbed with oppression or poverty, that the most able instructor in husbandry would have made nothing of them. Fletcher of Salton, who lived in tlie best part of Scotland, and in the end of the seventeenth century, describes their situation as truly deplorable. In fact, many farms remained unoccupied ; even tenants rarely accepted of leases, at least they were shy, unwilling to accept them for any considerable number of years : hence improvement of every kind was totally neglected, and the general poverty ol" the te- nantry necessarily occasioned landed property to be of little value ; because, while rents were trifling, they were also ill paid, which of course placed many proprietors in some- thing like a state of mendicity. 772. John Cockbum, of Ormiston, East Lothian, a spirited individual, who arose at this time, and to whom the agriculture of Scotland is much indebted, deserves to be mentioned. He was born in 1685, and succeeded to the family estate of Ormiston in 1714. Cockbum, at an early period of his life, saw th© evils of the feudal system; and justly considered the qualities supposed to compose the character of a feudal chieftain as badly calculated to promote internal improvement. He saw that this was only to be done by forming and extending a middle rank of society, and increasing their prosperity. In fact, as an able writer, Brown, the founder of the Farmer s Magazine, has remarked, '* the middling ranks are the strength and support of every nation. In former times, what we now call middling classes were not known, or at least little known in Scotland, where the feudal system reigned longer than in England. After trade was introduced, and agriculture improved, the feudal system was necessarily overturned ; and proprietors, like other men, began to be estimated according to their respective merits, without receiving support from the adventitious circumstances under which they were placed. 773. When Cockbum succeeded to the estate of Ormiston, in 1714, the art of agriculture was imperfectlyi understood, and the condition of the tenantry was so reduced, that it could not be expected to see im- provements undertaken, unless the strongest encouragement was previously held out. This was done by Cockbum, even in his father's lifetime. As Robert Wight, one of the Ormiston tenants, had early shown an uncommon spirit to enter into Cockburn's views, being one of the first farmers in Scotland who inclosed by ditch and hedge, and planted hedgerow trees at his own proper charge, he was singled out for favour, and in 1718 received a lease of the Murrays, or Muir-house farm, of an uncommon long endurance. The lease was for thirty-eight years, and the rent 750^. Scottish money ; but upon paying a fine or grassum of 1200/. Scots, at the expiration of that term, a renewal of the lease was to be gsanted for nineteen years more, and so on from nineteen to nineteen years in all time coming. The two sub- scribing witnesses to the deed were Sir John Inglis of Cramond, Bart., and John Hepburn, Esq. of Humble, gentlemen invited on the occasion by Cockbum, in order that his example might animate them with the like liberal and patriotic desire to improve the agriculture of their respective properties. Alex- ander Wight, eldest son of Robert above named, possessed the house of Muir farm by tacit recolation till 17£5, at which period, agreeable to the plan adopted for encouraging substantial improvements,, a lease was.granted to him for thirty-eight years, and three lives therein named. This tenant, like his father, having entered warmly into Cockburn's measures, got that lease cancelled in 1734, when a new one was granted for nineteen years, renewable for every nineteen years in all time coming, upon payment of a fine equal to one years' rent of the premises. These were leading examples to Scottish landlords, and held out to other tenants of the Cockbum estate a noble encouragement to undertake improvements, seeing that their benevolent landlord was so ready to reward them. 774. Thus the foundation of Scottish improvement was laid by granting long leases. Many people at this time may think, that such a length of lease was unnecessary, and that the distinguished personage of whom we are speaking might have accomplished his object by granting leases of a more limited endurance. We would request such persons to reflect upon the state of the country, and the actual condition of the tenantry at the period under consideration. We ought not to judge of the prosperity of measures then employed, to introduce and encourage improvement, according to the rules of the present day, when tenants possess knowledge and capital sufficient for carrying through the most difficult and arduous undertakings. Let it also be remembered, that both knowledge and capital were the undoubted result of the ameliorated system then introduced. Cockbum laid the first stone of the system ; his brethren in different quarters assisted in rearing the fabric, though, perhaps, their aid was not in one instance so munificent. The success which accompanied it served, however, to convince almost the whole landholders of Scotland, that the surest way of extending improvements was to give the tenantry an interest in their accomplishment. Hence the bond of connection betwixt proprietors and tenants in Scotland is formed upon more liberal principles than prevail in any other country with which we are acquainted. No man in Scotland, at least very few men, will enter to the possession of land unless the security of a lease is previously granted ; and proprietors in general are so sensible of the benefit of that tenure, that few of them refuse to grant it for such a number of years as both parties may consider best adapted to the system of management meant to be exercised. {Ed. Encyc. art. Agr.) 773. In 1723, a number of landholders formed themselves into a Society of Improvers in the Knowledge of Agriculture in Scotland. The Earl of Stair, one of their most active mem- bers, is said to have been the first who cultivated turnips in that country. This society had exerted itself in a very laudable manner, and apparently with considerable success, in intro- Book L AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. ^29 ducing cultivated herbage and turnips, as well as in improving on the former methods of culture. But there is reason to believe, tliat the influence of the example of its members did not extend to the common tenantry, who are always unwilling to adopt the practices of those who are placed in a higher rank, and supposed to cultivate land for pleasure, rather than profit. Though this society, the earliest in the united kingdom, soon counted upwards of three hundred members, it existed little more than twenty years. Maxwell delivered lectures on agriculture for one or two sessions at Edinburgh, which, from the specimens he has left, ought to have been encouraged. 776. Draining, enclosing, summer-fallowing, sowing Jlax, hemp, rape, turnip, and grass seeds, planting cabbages after, and potatoes with the plough, in fields of great extent, are practices which were already introduced ; and, according to the general opinion, more corn was now grown where it was never known to grow before, than perhaps a sixth of all that the kingdom was in use to produce at any former period. 777. The Jirst notice of a threshing machine is given by Maxwell in his Trans- actions of the Society of Improvers, ^c. ; it was invented by Michael Menzies, advocate, and he obtained a patent for it. Upon a representation made to the society, that it was to be seen at work in several places, they appointed two of their number to inspect it : and in their report they say, that one man would be sufficient to manage a machine which would do the work of six. One of the machines was " moved by a great water wheel and treddles ;" and another, " by a little wheel of three feet in diameter, moved by a small quantity of water," This machine the society recommended to all gentlemen and farmers. {Encyc.Brit. and Ed, Encyc. art. Agr. Brown s Treatise on Rural AffairSt Introduction, ^c. ) ■ 778. Hope, of Rankeillor, was an active and indefatigable member of the Society of Improvers. He had studied agriculture both in England and foreign countries. Among other patriotic and skilful exertions of this gentleman, he drained the morass in the neighborhood of Edinburgh, then known as Straiton'a loch j 114 (1. Barn 2. Show-room 3. MiU-shed 4. Common stable 5. Riding horse do- 6.0x feeding-house 7. Cow-house 8. Hos])ital stable 9. Root and steam- ing-house 10. Cattle-sheds 11. Cart-shed la.Carpenter's shed 13. Smith's forge 14. Tool-house 15. Piggeries 16. Poultrj- 17. Well and cis tern ■^jlS. Farmers kit- ' chen; 19. Common par lor 20. Business room 21. Entrance) (rt. Com-bani /). Straw end c. Mill-shed d. Common stable e. Riding horse do, f. Hosvilal g. Cattle-shed /». Cart-ihed !. Piggeries y. Poultry ■fc. Piggeries ;. Tool -house m. Carpenter n. Smith o. Cattle-sheds ji. Root-house II. Cow-house r. Ox tecdmg-housf ». Wa»hing-pond t. Side road i(. Entrance to rick- yard r. Pond UK Side road a-. Maiaentranc 130 HISTORY OF AGRICULTRE. Part I. and hje projected the walks over the grounds now known as the meadow walks, which were long the most fashionable place of resort for the citizens. 779. The Dukes of Hamilton and Athol, Lords Stair, Hopeton, and Islay, were active members of this society, and especially Cockburn of Ormiston, already mentioned (772.), who was one of its principal pro- moters and founder. 780. Dawson, of Frogden in Roxburghshire, is a man to whom modern agriculture is more indebted than perhaps any other. Dawson studied the Norfolk agnculture for several years, and conceived the happy idea of combining it with the system of Tull,and improving on both. The result was his invention of the culture of turnips on raised drills, with the dung buried directly under the plants. He also extended the use of lime, and of artificial grasses and clovers, and on better principles ; and was the first to introduce the practice of ploughing with two horses without a driver. On these improvements depend the superior excellence of what is known as the convertible or Berwickshire husbandry. It is this husbandry which has thrown capital into the hands of the farmers of Scotland, and rendered the profession of farming there more respectable than in England. Scotland also has set the example, not only in improved modes of culture, and in implements and machines ; but in the more expensive department of the farm house and offices, numerous examples of which may be there found, both commodious in plan and disposition {f^s. 114. and 115.), and elegant in elevation, [fig. 116.) The laying out of the fields of .farms, the roads. fences, and water-courses, and especially the management of hedges, has been greatly improved ; and the breed of working horses {fig. 117.) cannot be equalled in any other country for strength, activity. docility, and hardiness. While we state'these particulars, we freely admit that the improvement of fatting animals has made incomparably greater progress in England, and also that the A 18 cottages ofthe laboring classes {fig. 118.) are in general more comfortable and neat in the latter country, and their gardens are also better cultivated. But the system of paying farm servants in kind, or chiefly so, almost peculiar to Scotland, far more than counterbalances every advantage which the English cot- tager at present possesses. We shall describe the practice at length in our survey of the agriculture of East Lo- thian, in the statistical department of this work. (See Part IV. Book I. Chap. S. Sect 3., and Index. SuBSECT. 2. Ofthe Literature if British Agriculture from the Bevolution to the present time. 781. The literature of English agriculture from the revolution is rich in excellent works* We have already, in detailing the professional improvements, noticed the writings of Mortimer and Tull. To these we now add the numerous works of Bradley, which appeared from 1717 to his death in 1732. They are all compilations, but have been of very considerable service in spreading a knowledge of culture, and a taste for rural improvement. Stephen Switzer, a seedsman in London, in 1729; Dr. Blackwell, in 1741 ; and Hitt, a few years afterwards, published tracts recommending the burning of clay as manure, in the manner recently done by Governor Beatson, of Suffolk ; Craig, of Cally in Kircudbrightshire, and some others. Lisle's useful Observatiom on Husbandry, were published in 1757 ; Stillingfleet's Tracts, in which he shows the importance of a selection of grasses for laying down lands, in 1759; and the excellent Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 131 Essaj/s of Harte, canon of Windsor, in 1764, The celebrated Arthur Young's first publication on agriculture, entitled, The Farmer s Letters to the People of England, &c. appeared in 1767; and was followed by a great variety of excellent works, including the Tour in France, and the Annals of Agriculture, till his pamphlet on the utility of the Board of Agriculture, in 1810. Marshall's numerous and most superior agricultural works commenced with his Minutes of Agriculture, published in 1787, and ended with his Revien) of the Agricultural Reports, in 1816. The last works we shall mention are those of Dr. R. W. Dickson, whose Practical Agriculture appeared in two quarto volumes, in 1 806, and may be considered as giving a complete view of the present state of agriculture at the time. Other works have appeared subsequently. In this sketch a great number of useful and ingenious authors are necessarily omitted ; but they will all be found in their places in the Literature of British Agriculture, given in the Fourth Part of this work. 782. The Scottish writers on agriculture in that country confirm our view of the low state of the art in the beginning of the eighteenth century The first work, written by James Donaldson, was printed in 1697, under the title of Husbandry Anato- mised ; or, an Enquiry into the present Manner of Teiling and Manuring the Qround in Scotland. It appears from this treatise that the state of the art was not more advanced at that time in North Britain, than it had been in England in the time of Fitzherbert. Farms were divided into infield and outfield ; corn crops followed one another, without the intervention of fallow, cultivated herbage, or turnips, though sometlung is said about fallowing the outfield ; enclosures were very rare ; the tenantry had not begun to emerge from a state of great poverty and depression ; and the wages of labor, com- pared with the price of corn, were much lower than at present ; though that price, at least in ordinary years, must appear extremely moderate in our times. Leases for a term of years, however, were not uncommon ; but the want of capital rendered it impossible for the tenantry to attempt any spirited improvements. 783. The Countrynuins Rudiments ; or, an Advice to the Farmers in East Lothian, how to labor and improve their grounds, said to have been written by Lord Belhaven, about the time of the union, and reprinted in 1723, is the next work on the husbandry of Scotland. In this we have a deplorable picture of the state of agriculture, in what is now the most highly improved county in Scotland. His lordship begins with a very high encomium on his own performance. " I dare be bold to say, there never was such a good, easy method of husbandry as tliis, so succinct, extensive, and me- thodical in all its parts, published before." And he bespeaks the favor of those to whom he addresses himself, by adding, " neither shall I affright you with hedging, ditching, marling, chalking, paring and burning, draining, watering, and such like, which are all very good improvements indeed, and very agreeable with the soil and situation of East Lothian ; but I know ye cannot bear as yet such a crowd of improve- ments, this being only intended to initiate you in the true method and principles of husbandry." The farm lands in East Lotliian, as in other districts, were divided into infield and outfield, the former of which got all the dung. ** The infield, where wheat is sown, is generally divided by the tenant into four divisions or breaks, as they call them, viz. one of wheat, one of barley, one of peas, and one of oats; so that the wheat is sowed after the pease, the barley after the wheat, and the oats after the barley. The outfield land is ordinarily made use of promiscuously for feeding their cows, horses, " sheep, and oxen : it is also dunged by their sheep, who lay in earthen folds ; and some- times, when they have much of it, they fauch or fallow part of it yearly." Under this management, the produce seems to have been three times the seed ; " and yet," says his lordship, « if in East Lothian they did not get a higher stubble than in other places of the kingdom, their grounds would be in a much worse condition than at present they are, though bad enough. A good crop of corn makes a good stubble, and a good stubble is the equallest mucking that is." Among the advantages of enclosures, he ob- serves, " you will gain much more labor from your servants, a great part of whose time was taken up in gathering thistles, and other garbage, for their horses to feed upon in their stables ; and thereby the great trampling and pulling up, and otlier de- struction of the corns, while they are yet tender, will be prevented." Potatoes and tqrnips are recommended to be sown in the yard (kitchen-garden). Clover does not seem to have been known. Rents were paid in corn ; and, for the largest farm, which he thinks should employ no more than two ploughs, the rent was " about six chalders of victual, when the ground is very good, and four in that which is not so good. But I am most fully convinced, they should take long leases or tacks, that they may not be straitened with time in the improvement of their rooms (farmsj ; and this is profitable both for master and tenant." 784. Maxwell's Select Transactions of the Society qf Improvers of the knowledge of Agriculture in Scotland, was published in 1743, (see 775.) and his Practical Husbandman, in 1757, including an Essay on the Husbandry of Scotland. In the latter he lays it down as a rule, that it is bad husbandry to take two crops of grain successively, which marks a considerable progress in the knowledge of modern culture ; K 2 132 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. though he adds, that in Scotland, the best husbandmen after a fallow take a crop of wheat ; after the wheat, pease, tlien barley, and then oats ; and after that they fallow again. The want of enclosures was still a matter of complaint. The ground continued to be cropped so long as it produced two seeds for one ; the best farmers were contented with four seeds for one, which was more than the general produce. 785. In 1 765, a treatise on agriculture was published by the Rev. Adam Dicksc^n, minister of Dunse, in Berwickshire, which is decidedly the best work on tillage which has appeared in the English language, and was and still is held in universal esteem among the practical formers of Scotland. 786. Jn 1777, Lord Xaimes published The Gentleman Parmer, being an attempt to improve agriculture by subjecting it to the test of rational principles. His lordship was a native of Berwickshire ; and had been accustomed to farm in that country for several years, and afterwards at Blair Drummond, near Stirling. This work was in part a compilation and in part the result of his observation ; and was of essential service to the cause of agricul- ture in Scotland. 787. In 1778, appeared Wight's Present State of Husbandry in Scotland. This is a valuable work ; but the volumes not appearing but at intervals of some years, it was of less benefit than might have been expected. 788. In 1783, Dr. Anderson published his Essays relating to agriculture and rural affairs : a work of science and ingenuity, wloich did much good both in Scotland and England. 789. In 1800 appeared The Farmer* s Magazine ; a quarterly work, exclusively devoted to agriculture and rural affairs ; and which has done more to enlighten both the proprietory and tenantry of Scotland than any other book which has appeared. It was at first con- ducted jointly by Robert Brown, farmer of Markle; and Robert Somerville, M. D. of Haddington. Afterwards, on Dr. Somerville's death, by Brown alone; and subsequently, on the latter gentleman's declining it, by Cleghorn, W. S., one of the most scientific agri- culturists of Scotland. The frequent recurrence that will be made to The Farmer s Magazine in the course of this work, will shew the high value which we set on it. The Husbandry of Scotland is the next work deserving of notice in this sketch of Scottish authors, published by Sir John Sinclair in 1810; and which may very properly complete the series, as it fulfils in an able and complete manner what the title 790. The rapid progress of agriculture in Britain is shown by nothing more clearly than the great number of societies that have been lately formed ; one or more in almost every county, for the diffusion of knowledge, and the encouragement of correct operations, and beneficial discoveries. Among these, the Bath and West of England Society, established in 1777, and the Highland Society ojf Scotland, in 1784, hold a conspicuous rank, and the establishment of the Board of Agriculture, in 1793, ought to form a new era in the history of the agriculture and rural economy of Britain. 791. j4 professorship of agriculture was established in the university of Edinburgh, in 1790, and the professor, Dr. Andrew Coventry, is well known as a man of superior qualifications for fulfilling its duties. 792. Professorships of agriculture, and even of horticulture, or rather of culture in ge- neral, are said to be partly provided for, and partly in contemplation, both in Oxford and Cambridge. 793. The rqwrts of the different counties, many of them surveyed a second time, and now reprinted, according to an uniform plan, have been followed by the General Report of the Agricultural State and Political Circumstances of Scotland ; and a similar work for England was understood to be in the contemplation of the board. But the con- tinuation of that institution was deemed unnecessary by parliament ; and its annual vote for its support being withdrawn, it ceased to exist in 1819. 794. The Code of Agriculture, published in 1819, by Sir John Sinclair, may be con- sidered as giving a succinct view of the most improved practices of British husbandry as actually practised by professional farmers. It is a work which has already been translated into several foreign languages, and passed through more than one edition in this country. SuBSECT. 3. Of the Risey Progress, and present State of Agriculture in Ireland. 795. Of the agriculture of Ireland very little is known up to a recent period. With a soil singularly prolific in pasture, and rather humid for the easy management of grain, it is probable that sheep and cattle would be the chief rural products for many centuries. In the twelfth century and earlier, various religious establishments were founded, and then it is most probable tillage on something like the Roman mode of culture would be introduced. The monks, says O'Connor, fixed their habitations in deserts which they culti- vated with their own hands, and rendered them the most delightful spots in the kingdom. 796. During the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries, the English were obliged to suppress the numerous rebellions of their Irish subjects by war, and the forfeited estates Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 133 of the rebels would in part be divided among the troops. This might end in introducing some agricultural improvements ; but there is no evidence that such was effected before the time of Elizabeth, when the enormous demesnes of the Earl of Desmond were for- feited, and divided amongst a number of English undertakers, as they were called, who entered into a stipulation to plant a certain number of English families on their estates, in proportion to the number of acres. Among others who received portions were, Sir Walter Raleigh, and Spenser, the poet. The former is said to have then introduced the potatoe. 797. The reign of James I. was one of comparative tranquillity for Ireland : the power of the judges, and of the English government, was extensively fixed ; the Irish laws and customs were abolished, and the English laws were established in all cases without ex- ception, through the whole island. Numerous colonies were also sent from England and Scotland, especially the latter, to occupy the forfeited estates j and seven northern counties were wholly allotted to undertakers. This was called the "plantation of Ulster," and was attended by the introduction of an improved agriculture, and by the linen manufacture, which is still carried on by the descendants of the first colonists in the same counties. 798. The city of London participated in this distribution of land, the corporation having accepted of large grants in the county of Derry. They engaged to expend 20,000/. on the plantation ; to build the cities of Derry and Colerain, and at the same time stipulated for such privileges as might make their settlement convenient and re- spectable. Under a pretence of protecting this infant settlement, or perhaps with a view of raising money, the king instituted the order of Irish baronets, or knights of Ulster ; from each of whom, as was done in Scotland with respect to the knights of Nova Scotia, he exacted a certain sum, as the price of the dignity conferred. {Wakefield.) 799. Of the husbandry of Londonderry, a curious account was published about a century ago, by the archbishop of Dublin. He states that there was little wheat grown, and that of very inferior quality ; the soil being considered as unsuitable to its production. Potatoes remained three or four years in the ground, reproducing a crop, which at the best was a very deficient one. Lime was procured by burning sea shells. The ap- plication of them in an imburnt state arose from accident. A poor curate, destitute of the means for burning the sea shells v/hich he had collected, more with a view to remove an evidence of his poverty, than in any hope of benefit, spread them on his ground. The success which attended the experiment occasioned surprise, and ensured a rapid and general adoption of the practice. ( Wakefield. ) The improvements made since the period of which the Archbishop treats, Curwen remarks, are undoubtedly very considerable : and whilst we smile at the very subordinate state of agriculture at that time, may we not on reasonable ground expect that equal progress will at least be made in this century as in the last? {Letters on Ireland, vol. ii. p. 246.) 800. A considerable impulse was given to the agriculture of Ireland after the rebellion of 164], whicli was quelled by Cromwell, as commander of the parliamentary army in 1652. Most of the officers of this army were yeomen, or the sons of English country gentlemen ; and they took pleasure in instructing the natives in the agricultural practices to which they were accustomed at home. Afterwards, when Cromwell assumed the protectorship, he made numerous grants to his soldiers, many of whom settled in Ire- land ; and their descendants have become men of consideration in the country. Happily these grants were confirmed at the restoration. Some account of the state of culture in that country at this time, and of the improvements which it was deemed desirable to in- troduce, will be found in Blythe's Improver Improved. Blythe was a colonel in the parliamentary army. 801. The establishment of the Dublin Society in 1749, gave the next stimulus to agri- culture and general industry in Ireland. The origin of the Dublin Society may be dated from 1731, when a number of gentlemen, at the head of whom was Prior of Rath- downey, Queen's county, associated themselves together for the purpose of improving the agriculture and husbandry of their country. In 1749, Prior, through the in- terest of the then lord lieutenant, procured a grant of 10,000/. per annum, for the better promotion of its views. Miss Plumtree considers this the first association ever formed in the British dominions expressly for such purposes ; but the Edinburgh Agri- cultural Society, as we have seen (775.), was founded in 1723. 802. Arthur Young s. Tour in Ireland was published in 1780, and probably did more good than even the Dublin Society. In this work he pointed out the folly of the bounty on the inland carriage of corn. His recommendation on this subject was adopted; and according to Wakefield, "from that hour may be dated the commencement of ex- tended tillage in Ireland." ( Wakefield's Statistical Account, and Curwen s Letters.) 803. The present state of the agriculture of Ireland is gi\en with great clearness and ability in the supplement to the Encyclopedia Britannica ; and from that source we have selected the following condensed account: — Ks 134 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 804. The climate of Ireland is considerably more mild than that of England, and the southern and western part of the island greatly more so than the northern. The difference in this respect, indeed, is greater than can be explained by the difference of latitude ; and is probably owing to the immediate vicinity of the Western ocean. On the mountains of Kerry, and in Bantry Bay, the arbutus and some other shrubs grow in great luxu- riance, which are not to be met with again till the traveller reaches the Alps of Italy. The snow in these parts of the island seldom lies for any time, and frost hardly ever continues beyond a few days, and while it lasts it is by no means intense. The mildness and hu- midity of the atmosphere produce a luxuriance and rapidity of growth in vegetation, to which no other part of the empire can afford any parallel ; and this appears in the most remarkable manner in the ivy and other evergreens, with which the kingdom abounds. These are not only much more plentiful, but far more luxuriant, and of much quicker growth, than in the most favored parts of Great Britain. To those who are accustomed to the dry weather of this island, the continued rains of the south and west of Ireland are extremely disagreeable : but it is to this peculiarity in their climate, that the Irish have to attribute the richness of their pasturage, an advantage which, coupled with the re- markable dryness and friability of the soil, points, in an unequivocal manner, to a rotation of crops, in which grazing should occupy a principal place. 805. The territorial surface of Ireland affords a pleasing variety, consisting in some parts of rich and fertile plains, in others of little hills and acclivities which succeed one another in frequent succession. The most elevated ground is to be found in the bog of Allan. Its height above the sea does not exceed 270 feet, yet, from this ridge, the waters of the river run to the different seas. This elevated ground is connected with the principal mountains of Ireland, diverging in the north from the hills of Tyrone, and leading in the south to those of Sleeve Bloom and the Galtees. The chains of moimtains are neither numerous nor considerable ; the most remarkable are, the Kerry mountains, those of Wicklow, the Sleeve Bloom chain between the King's and Queen's county, and the mountains of Mourne, in the south of the province of Ulster. 806. The soil of Ireland is, generally speaking, a fertile loam, with a rocky sub- stratum ; although there are many exceptions to this description, and many varieties. Generally speaking, it is rather shallov/ ; to which cause the frequent appearance of rocks near the surface, or at no considerable depth, is to be attributed. It possesses a much greater proportion of fertile land, in proportion to its extent, than either England or Scot- land. Not only is the island blessed with this extent of cultivateable ground, but it is almost all of such a quality as to yield luxuriant crops, with little or no cultivation. Sand does not exist except on the sea shore. Tenacious clay is unknown, at least near the surface. Great part of the land of Ireland throws up a luxuriant herbage, without any depth of soil, or any skill on the part of the husbandman. The county of Meath, in particular, is distinguished by the richness and fertility of its soil ; and, in Limerick and Tipperary, there is a dark , friable sandy loam, which, if preserved in a clean state, will yield crops of corn several years in succession. It is equally well adapted for grazing as for arable crops, and seldom experiences either a winter too wet, or a summer too dry. The vales in many of the bleakest parts of the kingdom, as Donegal and Tyrone, are remarkable for their richness of soil and luxuriance of vegetation, which may be often accounted for by the deposition of the calcareous soil, washed down by the rains of winter, which spreads the richest manure over the soil below, without subjecting the farmer to any labor. ( Wakefield, i. 79, 80.) 807. The bogs, or peat mosses, of Ireland, form a remarkable feature of the country, and have been proved by the parliamentary commissioners to be of great extent. They estimate the whole bogs of the kingdom at 2,330,000 acres, English. These bogs, for the most part, lie together. In form, they resemble a great broad belt, drawn across the centre of Ireland, with its narrowest end nearest to the capital, and gradually extending in breadth as it approaches the Western Ocean. The bog of Allan is not one contiguous morass, but this name is indiscriminately applied to a great number of bogs, detached from each other, and often divided by ridges of dry country. These bogs are not, in general, level, but most commonly of an uneven surface, swelling into hills, and di- vided by vallies, which afford the greatest facility to their being drained and improved. In many places, particularly in the district of Allan, the rivulets which these inequalities of surface produce, have worn their channels through the substance of the bog down to the clay, or limestone gravel beneath ; dividing the bog into distinct masses, and pre- senting, in themselves, the most proper situations for the main drains, and which, with the assistance of art, may be rendered effectual for that purpose. 808. The commissioners employed by government to report on the boss of Ireland, found three distinct growths of timber immersed below three distinct strata of bog. The timber was perfectly sound, though deprived of its bark, which has communicated its antiputrescent quality to the water, and of course has preserved every thing imbedded in the mass ; though, as Miss Plumtree remarks, without " any thing like a process of tanning ever taking place." The bogs of Ireland are never on low ground, and have therefore evidently originated from the decay of woody tracts. (Plumtrce's Residence in Ireland.) Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 135 809. Landed property in Ireland is more generally in large estates of some thousands of acres, than in small ones ; but in its occupation it is subdivided in a degree far beyond any thing which occurs in any other part of the empire. In some counties, as Mayo for example, there are upwards of 15,000 freeholders on properties of not more than 40s. value, and who are perhaps not worth 10^. each. These are, for the most part, tenants of the great proprietors possessing a life interest in their little farm. 810. In Ireland there are no inanorial rights separable from the right to the soil, as in England, nor legal poor rates, wliich are circumstances materially in favor of the former country. (Wakefield, i. 242.) 811. Leases are generally of long endurance ; and three lives, or thirty-one years, is a common rate. The price of land varies in different parts of Ireland. In the neighbor- hood of Belfast, and thence to Armagh, it brings thirty years purchase ; in the greatest part of the island, it does not exceed twenty ; and, in the richest districts, it may often be bought for sixteen or eighteen. The exposure of landed estates to public sale takes place very seldom, which is, perhaps, one cause of their not bringing so high a price as they would otherwise do. (Wakejield.) 812. Farming in Ireland is, generally speaking, in a very backward state. With a few exceptions, such as the county of Meath, and some other well- cultivated districts, the farmers are destitute of capital, and labor small crofts, which they hold of middlemen, interposed between them and the landlord. The fact that the landlord never, in Ireland, lays out any thing upon repairs or buildings, coupled with the general inability of the farmer to do either in a substantial manner, is very signifi- cant as to the state of agriculture. ( Tighe's Survey of Kilkenny, 412.; Wakefield, i. 244.) But the worst features of the rural economy of this island are the entire want of capital in the farmers, and the complete indifference of the landlord to the character, wealth, or industry of his tenant. " Capital," says Wakefifeld, " is considered of so little im- portance in Ireland, that advertisements constantly appear in the newspapers, in which it is stated, that the preference will certainly be given to the highest bidder. Bargains are constantly made with a beggar, as a new tenant, who, offering more rent, invariably turns out the old one, however industrious. Even if the unfortunate wretch has a little ready cash to begin with, it only serves, in ninety nine cases out of one hundred, as a temptation to the landlord, who, when the fact becomes known to him, finds means to obtain it under the name of a fine for possession." ( Vol. i. p. 587.) Regard to present gain, without the least attention to the future, constitutes the principal object of the Irish landlord. {Ibid. i. 304.) 813. The rent of land in Ireland from these causes, coupled with the excessive com- petition of the peasantry for small farms, as their only means of subsistence, has risen to a great height. (Townsend's Cork, 218. ; Wakefield,!. 582.) 814. Ireland is divided, by Wakefield, into nine agricultural districts, in each of wliich the mode of culture is somewhat different from what it is in the others. 815. The first district comprehends the flat parts of Antrim; the eastern side of Tyrone, Down, Armagh, Monaghan, and Cavan. Throughout this district, the farms are extremely small, and the land is generally dug with the spade. Potatoes, flax, and oats, are the crops usually cultivated, and these are grown till the land is exhausted, and suffered to " lie at rest," as they term it, till its strength is recruited by the cow, the goat, two or three sheep, and the poultry lying upon it, for some years. The ploughs used in tliis district are of the rudest structure, and perform their work in the most slovenly manner. Three or four neighbors unite their strength to each plough, every one bringing his horse, his bullock, or his cow. All the other operations of agiiculture are performed in an equally slovenly manner. The little wheat that is raised is " lashed," as they call it ; that is, the grain is knocked out by striking the sheaf across a beam placed above a cloth ; it is, however, afterwards threshed with a flail. This operation of threshing usually takes place in the highway, and 119 it is dressed by letting it fall from a kind of sieve, which, during a pretty strong wind, is held breast- high by a woman . Many cottars in this district have a cabin {fig. 119.) with no land attached to it. They hire an acre or two, for grass or potatoe land, from some cottar in their vicinity. The custom of hiring labourers is unknown. The neighbours all assist each other in their more considerable occupations, such as sowing, and reaping. The dwellings here are miserably small ; often too small to contain the numerous families that issue from their doors. Land is every where divided into the 'most minute portions. {Wake- field, i. 363. ; Dubourdieus Down, 39.) 816. Under the second district may be comprised the northern part of Antrim, Londonderry, the north and wc§t of Tyrone, and the whole of Donegal. Agriculture here is in a worse state than in the pre- K4 136 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. ceding district. There is no clover, and hardly any wheat. Clover is unknown, and the only mill for the preparation of grain is in Derry. {Ibid. i. S72.) 817. The third district comprehends the northern parts of Fermanagh. Here the farms are much larger than in the fonner, and the agricultural system pursued far superior. They plant potatoes on a lea, twice reversing the lands ; and the course is flax, oats, and weeds. Some wheat is grown, but oats is still the prevalent crop. In the neighborhood of Enniskillen, the farmers are so rich as to be able to eat butcher meat daily, and drink smuggled wine {Wakefield, i. 379.) 818. The fourth district comprehends Sligo, Mayo, Gahvay, Clare, and parts of Roscommon, and Longford. In some parts of this district the spade culture is pursued ; but, in general, the land is cul- tivated by a plough drawn by four horses abreast. In Roscommon, the old custom of yoking the horses by the tail is still continued, although, so early as 1634, an act of parliament was passed against this absurd practice. {Life of the Duke of Ormond, i. 79.) Oats are chiefly raised in this district, and, along the coast, barley is cultivated. A large portion of the rent depends on the illegal distilleries, and much of the district is let on lease to several persons jointly, according to the village system. {Ibid. i. 381.) , 819. In the fifth district, which comprehends Limerick, Kerry, the south side and nortliern part of Cork, and the county of Waterford, cultivation is in a very rude state ; little corn is grown here, with the exception of the southern part of Cork. Land is extremely divided, and the farms very small. The greater part is a grazing country. {Ibid. i. 387.) 820. The sixth district includes the southern parts of Cork. The spade culture is here almost universal, and the farms unusually small. Hogs constitute the main support of the poor. {Townsend's Cork, 194.) 821. The seventh district includes part of Tipperary, with Queen's county and King's county. The best farming in Ireland is observable in this district ; a systematic course of husbandry being pursued, by which the land is kept in good heart. Oxen and horses are used in the plough, and hedgerows and good wheat fallows are to be seen. Near Roseria the cultivation of turnips is followed, and they succeed well. Ninety acres is considered a large farm. Leases are generally for three lives. {Wakefield, i. 398.) 822. The eighth district comprises Wexford and a part of Wicklow. Beans are here sometimes intro- duced into cultivation, but they are sown broadcast, and never hoed. The mode of ploughing is very awkward; one man holds the plough, another leads the horse, and a third sits on it to keep it down. Notwithstanding this rude culture, however, the rents are enormous, owing to the demand for land created by an excessive population, who if they had not a portion of land to grow potatoes (getting no employ- ment) could not live. {Ibid. i. 407.) 823. The ninth district comprehends the northern part of Kilkenny, Kildare, the cultivated parts of Westmeath, Meath, and Lowth. Wheat here enters into the system of culture, but the preparatory fallows are very bad. Clover has been introduced into the district, but under the bad system of sowing it upon land exhausted, and covered by weeds. Farms are large, and the mode of culture similar to what is pursued in England, though the details are executed in a much more slovenly manner. {Ibid. i. 413.) 824. The agricuUuralimplements and operations used in Ireland are all of the rudest construction. The plough, the spade, the flail, the car, all equally partake of imper- fections and defects. The fallovi^s are not well attended to ; three ploughings are usually deemed sufficient, and, from the imperfection of the plough, the ground at the end is generally full of weeds. Trenching land is very general ; they form it into beds, and shovel out a deep trench between them, throwing up the earth. The expense of this operation is about eight shillings an acre. Wheat, as will be seen from the preceding details, is not by any means generally cultivated. It is unknown in Monaghan, Tyrone, Derry, Donegal, Sligo, Mayo, Leitrim, and Cavan, though it is grown to a consider- able extent in Kilkenny, Carlow, Dublin, Meath, Lowth, and parts of Limerick, Tipperary, Clare, and Cork. It is generally sown after potatoes or fallow. The Irish wheat is, for the most part, coarse and of inferior quality, and does not yield so much saccharine matter by twenty per cent, as the English. ( Wakefield, i. 429. 442.) 825. Barley is more generally cultivated in Ireland than wheat, and it is generally sown after potatoes. Oats, however, constitute the species of grain most extensively raised ; it is calculated, that throughout the whole kingdom there are ten acres of oats sown for one of any other species of corn. The Irish oats, however, are decidedly inferior to the English. 826. The potatoes of Ireland have long been celebrated, both on account of their quantity and excellent qualities : they are cultivated on every species of soil, either in drills or lazy beds. Potatoe land lets from six pounds six shillings to ten pounds ten shillings per acre ; and the expense of culture, including rent, varies from thirteen pounds to sixteen pounds per acre. The produce is from eight hundred stone to one thousand stone the acre, at twenty-one pounds to the stone; that is, from sixteen thousand eight hundred to twenty-one thousand pounds. {Ibid. i. 450.) 827. The indigenous grasses of Ireland are not of any peculiar excellence. Notwith- standing all that has been said of the florin grass, its excellence and utility may be called in question. Their hay is seldom from sown grasses, generally consisting of the spontaneous produce of the soil. Clover is almost unknown. Newenham calculates that there are not five thousand acres under this crop in the v/hole island. (Newenham, .314.; JFakeJield, i. 467.) 828. There are few live hedges in Ireland; in the level stone districts, stone walls, and in other places turf banks, are the usual fences. 829. The dairy is the most extensive and the best managed part o^ Irish husbandry. Kerry, Cork, Waterford, Carlow, Meath, West Meath, Longford, and Fermanagh, as well as the mountains of Leitrim and Sligo, are principally occupied by dairy farms. Butter is tlie chief produce. 'J he average number of co\vs on a dairy farm is thirty or forty ; three acres of land, of middling quality, are deemed necessary for the subsistence <)f each cow. The average produce of a cow is eight quarts in twenty-four hours in summer, and five in winter; four good milkers will yield half a cwt.'of butter in a Book I. AGRICULTURE IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 137 week. The best butter is made in Carlow; the worst in Limerick and Meath. Generally speaking, the Irish are very clean in making this article ; and it is exported to England, the East and West Indies, and Portugal. (Wakefield,!. 325., etseq.) The art of salting butter, Chaptal observes, is better known in Ireland than in any other country. (Chimie appliguS a V agriculture.) The grazing of Ireland is not, as in England, a part of the regular rotation of crops, but is carried on in a country exclusively devoted to the breeding of cattle, like the highlands of Scotland. Great tracts of the country also are devoted to the grazing of sheep. Roscommon, Galway, Clare, Limerick, and Tipperary are the chief breeding counties for sheep ; and Galway, Clare, Roscommon, Tipperary, and Meath, are the places where they are fattened. The sheep are of the long-wooled kind, and very large : they are never kept in sheep-folds, and hardly ever fed on turnips ; wliich is chiefly owing to the very limited demand for mutton among the labouring people. [Ibid.i. 341.) 830. The depressed slate of the agriculture of Ireland is considered as proceeding from the depressed state of the people. The main cause of their sufferings is traced by most writers (Young, Dewar, Newenham, Wakejield, Curwen, &c.) to the redundancy of population. In 1791, the population of the whole kingdom amounted to 4,200,000 per- sons, and it increases at the rate of one forty-sixth part per annum ; or, in other words, it doubles itself every forty-six years. As might be expected in a country where the increase in the number of mankind has so far outstripped the progress of its wealth, and the increase of its industry, the condition of the people is in every department marked by extreme indigence. (D^war, 91 ; Young, ii. 123.) The houses in which they dwell, the furniture in their interior, their clothing, food, and general way of life, all equally indicate the poverty of the country. The dress of the people is so wretched, that, to a person who has not visited the country, it is almost inconceivable. The Irish poor, indeed, have no conception of the comforts of life ; and if they felt their full value, they could not afford them, for though necessaries are cheap, conveniences of all sorts are very dear. 831. But while the Irish poor are in general destitute of all the accommodations, they hardly ever, except in years of extraordinary distress, know what it is to want the absolute necessaries of life. The unsparing meal of potatoes, at which the beggar, the pig, the dog, the poultry, and the children, seem equally welcome,' seldom fails the Irish laborer. 832. Hence the laziness of the lower Irish. Limited as their wants are to the mere sup- port of animal life, they do not engage in labor with that persevering industry which artificial desires inspire ; and the mode in which they are often paid, that is, the giving them a piece of potatoe land by the year, at once furnishes the means of subsistence, and takes away every stimulus to farther exertion. The farm-servants of the English or Scotch farmers, who carry on agriculture upon the improved system, are constantly em- ployed in some species of labor ; but after the potatoes of the Irish cottar are planted, there is hardly any tiling to be done abojit his little croft till the season of digging ar- rives. During a great portion of the year he is doomed to idleness, and the habits he acquires during the long'periods of almost total inaction, are too strong to be overcome when he is transferred to a more regular occupation. Such is the condition of the laboring classes. 833. Ireland exhibits an assemblage of the most contradictory circumstances. It is a country in which, under the most distressing circumstances, population has advanced with the most rapid pace, in which cultivation has advanced without wealth, and education without diffusing knowledge ; where the peasantry are more depressed, and yet can ob- tain subsistence with greater facility, than in any other country of Europe. Their miserable condition will not appear surprising when the numerous oppressions to which they are subject are taken into consideration. 834. In the foremost rank of their many grievances, the general prevalence of middle- men must be placed. It is difficult to estimate the extent of the misery which the system of letting and subletting land has brought upon the Irish cultivators. Middlemen have, in every country, been the inseparable attendants of absent proprietors : and in such a country as Ireland, where there are numbers of disaffected persons in every quarter, the vigilant eye of a superior inspector is more particularly required. 8;)5. The si/stem of under-letting lands often proves a great evil in Ireland. By the law of England, the landlord is entitled to distrain for payment of rent, not only the stocking which belongs to his immediate tenant, but the crop or stocking of a subtenant ; on the principle, that whatever grows on the soil ought to be a security to the landlord for his rent ; and in Scotland the same rule holds where the landlord has not authorized the subtack ; but if he has, the subtenant is free when he has paid to the principal tenant. There is little hardship in such a rule in England, where the practice of subletting is, generally speaking, rare ; but when applied to Ireland, where middlemen are universal, it becomes the source of infinite in- justice ; for the cultivator being liable to have his crop and stocking distrained on account of the tenant from whom he holds, and there being often many tenants interposed between him and the landlord, he is thus perpetually liable to be distrained for arrears not his own. The tenant, in a word, can never be .secure, though he has faithfully paid his rent to his immediate superior ; because he is still liable to have every thing which he has in the world swept off'by an execution for arrears due by any of the many lease- 138 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. holders who may be interposed between him and the landlord. It is obvious that such a system must pre- vent the growth of agricultural capital : this, joined to the exertions of the middlemen, has been the true cause of the universal prevalence of the cottage system, and the minute subdivision of farms. 836. The tithes in Ireland have long been collected with a severity of which hardly any European state furnishes an example. This has arisen from the wealth and influence of the clergy, joined to the destitute situation of their parisliioners. They fall, by the law of that country, only on the tillage of land ; the greater part of which is held by cottar tenants ; and thus the rich are exempted from bearing their share of the burden. 837. Another grievance^ though not so extensive, is the fine imposed upon a township, for having had the misfortune to have a seizure for illicit distillation made within it& bounds. 838. These evils have been attended with the usual depressing effects of oppression. They ' have prevented the growth of any artificial wants, or any desire of bettering their con-^ dition among the mass of the people. Despised by their superiors, and oppressed by all to whom they might naturally have looked for protection, the Irish have felt only the natural instincts of their being. Among the presbyterians of the north, and in the vicinity of manufacturing towns, highei" notions of comfort may have imposed some restraint on the principle of population ; but the poor humiliated catholics, enjoying no respectability or consideration in society, have sought only the means of subsistence ; and finding, without difficulty, potatoes, milk, and a hovel, have overspread the land with a wretched offspring. 839. To these causes of a redundant population, of which the government of the country is, directly or indirectly, the source, are to be added others of a different kind. 840. The first, is the influence of the parish priests, who encourage marriage, in order to increase their own emoluments, and the superstition of the people, who regard it as a religious duty. 841. The second cause, is the general ignorance of the people. 842. On the influence of education in restraining the tendency to early and imprudent marriage, it would be superfluous in this place to enlarge. 843. Various other circumstances have combined to multiply to a great degree the facilities of population, and to expand, in this country, beyond almost any other, the means of subsistence. 844. The fertility of the country may be mentioned as one of the most obvious of these circumstances. The soil of Ireland is in general so rich, that it will yield an alternate crop of wheat and potatoes for ever, without any very great labor, and with little manure. The introduction of the potatoe, and its singular adaptation to the soil and climate of Ireland, is another concurring cause. An acre of potatoes, according to Newenham, will yield four times as much nourishment as one of wheat. By thus expanding the means of human subsistence, the potatoe has greatly promoted the population of Ireland ; but as the able writer, from whom we have selected the above remaks, observes, " unless the people are predisposed, from other causes, to press upon the means of subsistence, it has no tendency to augment their redundance. Under the government and political institutions of the Irish, the population of the country would have been equally redundant, though much smaller than it now is, if they had lived on oats or wheaten bread. The introduction of the potatoe may be the cause why the population is now six in place of three millions : but it is not the cause why, during the whole period of this increase, the numbers of the people have been greater than, under existing circumstances, could be comfortably maintained." {Sup, Encyc. Brit. art. Ireland.) Chap. VI. Present State of Agriculture in Ultra European Countries. 845. In this department of our history the reader will not expect more than a very slight outline ; not only from our limited space and the comparative scarcity of materials, but because the subject is less interesting to general readers. We shall notice in succession the principal countries of Asia, Africa, Australasia, and America. Sect. I. Present State of Agriculture in Asia. 846. The agriculture of Asia is of a very different character from that of Europe, owing chiefly to the great difference of climate, and partly to the difference in civili- zation. The culture of this division of the globe is chiefly of two kinds, water culture and pasturage. Very little can be done without artificial watering, excepting in the northern and mountainous parts, where the climate resembles that of Europe. Even the palm and other fruit trees are watered in some parts of Persia and Arabia, and Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 139 several fruit-trees are regularly irrigated in India. The grand bread corn of Asia is rice, a watered grain ; and the most valuable fruits, those of the palm family ; the most useful agricultural laborer is the ox, and his family are also the most valuable as pasturage animals. SuBSECT. 1 . Present State of Agriculture in Asiatic Turkey. 847. Asiatic Turkey extends from the Archipelago 1050 miles to Ararat in Persia on the east, and from the Euphrates 1100 miles to the Caucasian mountains on the north. It contains a number of provinces differing materially from each other in natural circum- stances, and artificial culture ; but, unfortunately for us, very little is known of their agriculture. In general, the Asiatic Turks are to be considered as a wandering and pas- toral people, cultivating no more corn than what is suj9icient for their own maintenance ; and scarcely half civilized. 848. The climate of Asia Minor has been always considered as excellent. The heat of the summer is tempered by numerous chains of high mountains, some of which are covered constantly with snow. The aspect of Asiatic Turkey is mountainous, intermingled with spacious and beautiful plains, which afford pasture to the numerous flocks and herds of the Turkomans. The soil is various ; but the chief agricultural products are wheat, liarley, and doura (millet). It abounds also with grapes, olives, and dates. In Syria, the agri- culture is deplorable, and the peasants are in a wretched condition, being sold, as in Poland, with the soil, and their constant fare being barley bread, onions, and water. 849. The numerous mountains of Asiatic Turkey are frequently clothed with immense forests of pines, oaks, beeches, elms, and other trees ; and the southern shores of the Black Sea present many gloomy forests of great extent. The inhabitants are hence supplied with abundance of fuel, in defect of pit-coal, which has not been explored in any part of Asiatic Turkey. Sudden conflagrations arise from the heedless waste of the caravans, which, instead of cutting off a few branches, often set fire to a standing tree. The extensive pro- vinces of Natolia, Syria, and Mesopotamia, have been little accessible to European curiosity, since their reduction under the Turkish yoke. In Pinkerton's Geography we have a catalogue of those plants and trees that have been found wild in the Asiatic part of the Ottoman territory. Several dyeing drugs and articles of the materia medica are imported from tlie Levant, among which are madder, and a variety called alizan, wliich grows about Smyrna, and affords a much finer red dye than the European kind ; jalap, scammony, sebesten, the ricinus {Ricinus communis, fg. 120.), yielding by ex- pression castor-oil, squirting cucumber, coloquintida, opium poppy, and spikenard. The best horses in Asiatic Turkey are of Arabian extract ; but mules and asses are more gene- rally used. The beef is scarce and bad, the mutton superior, and the kid a favorite repast. Other animals are the bear, tiger, hyaena, wild-boar, jackal, and dogs in great abundance. On the summits of Caucasus is found the ibex, or rock- goat ; at Angora, singular goats and cats ; the gazel, deer, and hares in great abundance are found in Asia Minor. The partridges are generally of the red-legged kind, larger than the European ; fish is plentiful and excellent. SuBSECT. 2. Present State of Agriculture in Persia. 850. The climate of Persia is various in different parts ; depending less on difference of latitude than on the nature and elevation of the country, so that it is said to be the country of three climates. The northern provinces on the Caspian are comparatively cold and moist : in the centre of the kingdom, as Chardin observes, the winter begins in November, and continues till March, commonly severe, with ice and snow, the latter falling chiefly on the mountains, and remaining on those three days' journey west of Ispahan for eight months in the year. From March to May high winds are frequent ; but from May to September the air is serene, refreshed by breezes in the night. The heat, how- ever, is during this period excessive in the low countries, bordering on the India ocean and Persian gulf, in Chusistan, the deserts of Kerman, and also in some parts of the interior, particularly at Tehraun, the capital. From September to November the winds again prevail. In the centre and south the air is generally dry ; thunder and lightning are uncommon, and a rainbow is seldom seen ; earthquakes are almost unknown; but heat is often destructive in the spring. Near the Persian gulf the hot wind, called ** samiel," sometimes suffocates the unwary traveller. The summers are, in general, very mild, after ascending the mountains. To the north of Shiraz the winters are severe, insonuich, that in the vicinity of Tehraun and Tabreez, all communication is cut off for 140 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. several successive weeks between these cities and the adjoining villages. The climate, notwithstanding this sudden transition from heat to cold, is singularly healthy, with the exception of the provinces of Ghilan, and Mazanderam. The air is dry ; the dews not insalubrious. The atmosphere is always clear, and at night the planets shine with a degree of lustre unknown in Europe ; and as it seldom rains, here are none of those damps or pestiferous exhalations so common in the woody parts of Hindustan. 851. The surface of Persia is distinguished by a deficiency of rivers and a multitude of mountains ; its plains, where they occur, are generally desert. So that Persia may be divided into two parts by deserts and mountains ; and this division, it is said, has generally influenced its history and destinies in all ages. It is every where open, and no where presents a thriving populous appearance. Even the cities and their environs have some- thing of desolation and decay in their aspect, and many of them are actually ruined or neglected, of which Buschire and its territory {fig. 121.) is an example. The most fertile and thriving provinces arc those on the north. 852. The soil may be regarded as unfertile, and, according to Chardin, not more than one-tenth part was cultivated in his time. The mountains of this country, which are for the most part rocky, without wood or plants, are interspersed with vallies, some of which are stony and sandy, and some consisting of a hard dry clay, which requires continual watering; and hence the Persian cultivator is much employed in irrigation. In generalthe soil of Persia is light and sandy in the south and east j hard and gravelly in the west, and rich and loamy on the borders of the Caspian sea. 853. The landed j}ro})erty of Persia, like that of other despotic countries, is considered as wholly the property of the sovereign ; and held by the proprietors and occupiers on certain conditions of military service, and supplies of men and provisions in time of war. 854. The agricultural products of Persia are as various as the climate and soils. The wheat is excellent, and is the common grain used in bread making. Rice, which is in more universal use, is produced in great perfection in the northern provinces, which are well watered. Barley and millet are sown, but oats are little cultivated : in Armenias there is some rye. The vine is generally cultivated ; but in the north-west countries they are obliged to bury the shoots to protect them from the frost. The silkworm is cultivated in most parts of the country ; cotton and indigo are also grown, and na 122 country in the world equals Persia in the number and excellence of its fruits. 855. The date tree is grown in plantations in the proportion of fifty females to two males. The natives begin to impregnate the females with the blossoms of the male in March and April, alleging, that their proximity is not sufficient to ensure the produce of fruit : this practice has been car- ried on among them from the earliest ages. {Scot Waring" s Persia, chap, xxix.) 856. The most esteemed of the cultivated fi'uits of Europe are indigenous in Persia, and have pro- bably been diffused from hence over the western world. These are the fig, the pomegranate, the mulberry, the almond, peach, and apricot. Orange-trees {fig. 122.) of an enormous size, are found in the sheltered recesses of the mountains and the deep, warm sand on the shore of the Cas- pian is peculiarly favorable to the culture of the citron {fig. 123.), and the leguminous Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 141 fruits. Apples, pears, cherries, walnuts, melons, besides the fruits already mentioned, are everywhere to be procured at very low prices ; the quinces of Ispalian are the finest in the East; and no grape is more delicious than that of Shiraz. In the provinces bordering on the Caspian sea, and mount Caucasus, the air is perfumed with roses and other sweet-scented flowers. Among the vegetable j J productions we may enumerate cabbages, cucumbers, tur- / // nips, carrots, pease, and beans; and the potatoe, which has / been lately introduced, thrives remarkably well. Poppies, \\ from which an excellent opium is extracted, senna, rhubarb, 7 saffron, and assafcetida are produced in many parts of the kingdom. The vine grows here luxuriantly, and further to the south cotton and sugar are articles of common cultivation. Poplars, large and beautiful, and the weeping- willow, border the course of the streams, and the marshy tracts abound with the kind of rush that serves for the Persian matting. Ornamental shrubs or herbaceous plants are little known ; but the jasmine, the blue and scarlet anemone in the thickets, and the tulip and ranunculus in the pastures, are abundant and beautiful, and give an air of elegance to the country. 857. The saline deserts of Persia are for the most part destitute of trees, and sup- port hardly any plants except those that are also found on the sea-shore. On the high mountains they are much the same as those observed on the alps of Switzer- land and Italy. The plants on the hills and plains adjoining the Caspian are better known. 858. The live stock of Persia are the same as in European countries with some additions. According to Chardin, the Persian horses are the most beautiful in the East; but they yield in speed, and, as some say, in beauty also, to the Arabian; however, they are larger, more powerful, and all things considered, better calculated for cavalry than those of Arabia. There are several breeds of horses, but the most valu- able is that called the Turkoram, which are so hardy that they have been known to travel nine hundred miles in eleven successive days. The Arabian blood has also been introduced into this country. Their usual food is chopped straw and barley ; their bed is made of dung, dried and pulverised, and every morning regularly exposed to the sun. They are clothed with the greatest attention, accoriling to the climate and season of the year ; and during the warm weather kept in the stable during the day, and taken out at night. 859. Mules are also here in considerable request ; and the ass resembles the European ; but a breed of this animal has been brought from Arabia, of an excellent kind, the hair being smooth, the head high, and the motion spirited and agile. Although the mules are small, they are fairly proportioned, carry a great weight, and those that are intended for the saddle are taught a fine amble, which carries the rider at the rate of five or six miles an hour. The camel (Jig. 124.) is also common; and the animals which are ex- ported from Persia to Turkey, have, as Chardin says, only one hunch, while those of India and Arabia have two. Tlie Persian cattle in general resem- ble the European. Swine are scarce, except in the north- west provinces. The flocks of sheep, among which are those with large tails, are most numerous in the northern provinces of Erivan, or the Persian part of Armenia, and Balk. The few forests abound with deer and antelopes ; and the mountains supply wild-goats, and probably the ibex, or rock goat. Hares are common. The ferocious animals are chiefly concealed in the forests, such as the bear and boar, the lion in the western parts, the leopard, and, as some say, the small or common tiger. Seals occur on the rocks of the Caspian. The hyaena and jackal belong to the southern provinces. The seas abound with fish of various descriptions; the Caspian affords sturgeon, and delicious carp. The most common river fish is the barbel. The same sorts of wild and tame fowl are common in Persia and in Europe, with the exception of the turkey, whose nature does not seem to be congenial to this climate, Pi- 124 142 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. geons are numerous, and partridges are large and excellent, nightingale, enlivens the spring vdth his varied song. The Persians have been long accustomed to tame beasts of prey and even to hunt with lions, tigers, leopards, panthers, and ounces. The bool-beell, or oriental .25 860. The Persians hunt the quail in a curious manner {fig. 125.); they stick two poles in their girdle, upon which they place either their outer coat or a pair of trowsers, and these at a distance are intended to look like the horns of an animal ; they then with a hand-net prowl about the fields, and the quail seeing a form more like a beast than a man, permits it to approach so near as to allow the hunter to throw his net over it : in this manner they catch these birds with astonishing rapidity. 861. Of the impalements and operations of Persian agriculture little is known with precision. The plough is said to be small, and drawn by lean cattle, so that it merely scratches the ground. The plough of Erzerum {fiir. 126.), is a clumsy implement, on the share of which the driver stands, both for the sake of being carried along and of pressing down the wedge. After the plough and har- row the spade is used for forming the ground into squares, with ledges or little banks to retain the water. The dung used is chiefly human, and that of pigeons, mingled with earth and preserved for two years, to diminish its heat. 862. The dung of pigeons is so highly ^ ^ prized in Persia that " many pigeon-houses {fig. 1 27. ) are erect- ed at a distance from habitations for the isole purpose of col- lecting their manure. They are large round towers, rather broad- er at the bottom than at the top, and crowned by conical spiracles through which the pigeons descend. Their interior resembles a honeycomb, forming thousands of holes for nests ; and the outsides are painted and ornamented. The dung is applied almost entirely to the rearing of melons, a fruit indispensable to the natives of warm countries during the great heats of summer, and also the most rapidly raised in seasons of scarcity ; and hence the reason that during the famine of Samaria a cab of dove's dung was sold for five pieces of silver. (2 KingSy vi. 25. ) The Persians do not eat pigeons. {Moriers Second Journey, die. 141., 863. No arable culture is carried on in Persia without artificial watering ; and various modes are adopted for raising the element from wells and rivers for this purpose. The Persian wheel is well known. The deficiency of rivers in Persia has obliged the natives to turn all their ingenuity to the discovery of springs, and to the bringing of their streams to the surface of the earth. To effect this, when a spring has been discovered, they dig a well until they meet with the water ; and if they find that its quantity is suflScient to repay them for proceeding with the work, they dig a second well, so distant from the other as to allow a subterranean communication between both. ' They then ascertain the nearest line .of communication with the level of the plain upon which the water is to be brought into use, and dig a succession of wells, with subterranean communications between the whole suite of them, until the water at length comes to the sur- face, when it is conducted by banked-up channels into the fields to be irrigated. The extent of country through which such fields are sometimes conducted is quite ex- traordinary. In making the wells {fig. 128,) a shaft is first dug, then a wooden handle is placed over it, from; which is suspended a leathern bucket, which is filled with [ the excavated matter by a man below, and wound up by another above. Where the soil is against the mouth of the wells, they are secured by 128 Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 143 masonry. Tliis mode of procuring water is common to the whole of Persia, and has the great defect of being easily destroyed by an enemy. (Moriers Second Journey, 164.) 864. The forests of Persia are few, and chiefly in the mountains of Mazanderam and Ghilan, and those towards Kurdistan. The trees are several kinds of pines, the cedar and cypress, limes, oaks, acacias, and chestnuts ; the sumach is also abundant, and used for tanning ; manna is also procured from the fraxinus ornus. Very little fuel, and not much timber is used in Persia ; in the castles and principal houses, arches are employed instead of timber floors. SuBSECT. 3. Present State of Agriculture in Independent Tatary. 865. The extent of Inde^iendent Tatary can hardly be considered as well defined ; but Pinkerton measures it from the Caspian sea on the west to the mountains of Belus on the east, a space of 870 miles ; and from th mountains of Gaur to the Russian boun- daries on the north of the desert of Issim, a distance of 1500 miles. It is occupied by the Bucharian, Tungusian, Kirgusian, and other Tatar hordes, and is a celebrated and interesting country, as being the probable seat of the most ancient Persian kingdoms, and as having given birth to Zoroaster and other names eminent in oriental literature. Modern travellers represent the more civilized of tliis nation as indolent, but good- natured. They are easily recognised among other va- (^ 129 rietiesof man {fig. 129.) 866. The climate of this extensive country appears to be excellent, the heat even of the southern provinces being tempered by the high mountains capped with per- petual snow; and though situated in the parallel of| Spain, Greece, and Asiatic Turkey, the proximity of the Siberian deserts and the lofty alps render the sum- mer more temperate. 867. The surface of the country presents a great variety ; and there are numerous rivers, hills, and moun- tains. 868. The soil near the rivers is very productive, so that the grass exceeds the height of a man. In any other hands but those of the Tatars, this country might rival any Euro- pean region. 869. All that is known of the tillage of the Tatars, is, that rice and other grains are cul- . livated near the towns ; but that the great dependence of the people is upon their flocks^ and herds. Bucharia is the richest country, both in corn and cattle. There they have horses, camels, oxen, sheep, and goats, which some individuals reckon by thousands, and make large sales, especially of horses, to the Persians and Turks, They have also drome- daries, which furnish a considerable quantity of woolly hair, which they clip olFperiodically and sell to the Russians. The lambskins are celebrated, being damasked as it were by clothing the little animal in coarse linen ; but the wool of the sheep is coarse, and only used in domestic consumption for felts and thick cloths. The steppes, which are of im- mense extent, supply them with objects of the chace, 130 wolves, foxes, badgers, antelopes, ermines, weasels, mar , mots, &c. In the southern and eastern mountains are found wild sheep [Oids musimon), the ox of Thibet (JBos grunniens, fig. 130.), which seems to delight in snowy, alps ; with chamois, tigers, and wild asses. Therei seems throughout the whole of Tatary to be a defi- ciency of wood ; and the botany of this immense region^ is as little known as its agriculture. SuBSECT. 4. Present State of Agriculture in Arabia, 870. The extent of Arabia is somewhat greater than that of Independent Tatary. The climate is hot, but there-is a regular rainy season, from the middle of June to the end of September, in some mountainous districts, and from November till February in others. The remaining months are perfectly dry ; so that the year in Arabia consists only of two seasons, the dry and the rainy. In the plains, rain is sometimes unknown for a whole year. It sometimes freezes in the mountains, while the thermometer is at 86^ in the plains, and hence at a small distance are found fruits and animals which might indicate remote countries. 871. The general surface presents a central desert of great extent, with a few fertile oases or isles, and some ridges of mountains, chiefly barren and unwooded. The flor- ishing provinces, are those situated on the shores of the Red and Persian seas, the interior of the country being sterile for want of rivers, lakes, and perennial streams. The soil is in general sandy, and in the deserts is blown about by the winds. 872. The agricultural products are wheat, maize, doura, or millet, barley, beans, lentiles. 144 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. and rape, with the sugar-cane, tobacco, and cotton. Rice seems unknown in Yemen, and oats throughout Arabia : the horses being fed with barley, and the asses with beans. They also cultivate " uars," a plant which dyes yellow, and is exported in great quantities from Mocha to Oman; and " fua," used in dyeing red; likewise indigo. The wheat, in the environs of Maskat, yields little more than ten for one ; and in the best cultivated districts of Yemen, fifty to one ; but the durra sometimes much exceeds this ratio, yielding in the highlands 140, and in the Tehama, or plain, from 200 to 400. By tlieir mode of sowing, and watering this grain, the inhabitants of Tehama reap three suc- cessive crops from the same field in the same year. The plough [Jig. 131 . ) is simple, and the pick is used instead of the spade. 873. The indigenous, or partially cultivated plants and trees of Arabia are numerous, and several of them furnish important articles of commerce. The vegetables of the dry barren districts, exposed to the vertical sun, and refreshed merely by nightly dews, belong for th6 most part to the genera of aloe, mesembryanthemum, euphorbia, stapelia, and salsola. On the western side of the Arabian desert, nunterous rivulets, descending into the Red Sea, diffuse verdure ; and on the mountains from which they run vegetation is more abundant. Hither many Indian and Persian plants, distinguished for their beauty or use, have been transported in former ages, and are now found in a truly indigenous state : such is the case probably with the tamarind, the cotton tree (inferior to the Indian), tJje pomegranate, the banyan tree, or Indian fig, the sugar-cane, and many species of melons and gourds. Arabia Felix may peculiarly boast of two valuable trees, namely, the coffee {Coffea Arahica), found both cultivated and wild ; and the amyris opobalsamum, which yields the balm of Mecca. Of the palms, Arabia possesses the date, the cocoa-nut, and the great fan-palm. It has also the sycamore fig, the plantain, the almond, apricot, peach, the papaw, the bead tree, the mimosa nilotica, and sensitiva, and the orange. Among its shrubs and herbaceous plants may be enumerated the ricinus, the liquorice, and the senna, used in medicine ; and the balsam, globe, amaranth, the white lily, and the greater pancratium, distinguished for their beauty and fragrance. 874. The live stock of Arabia is what constitutes its principal riches, and the most valuable are those species of animals that require only succulent herbs for their nourish- ment. The cow here yields but little milk ; and the flesh of the ox is insipid and juice- less. The wool and mutton of the sheep are coarse. The bezoar goat is found in the mountains. The buffalo 132 is unknown ; but the camel and dromedary {fig' 132.) are both in use as beasts of burden. The k^ civet cat, musk rat, and -^ ^ ' other mountain animals, are valuable in commerce. Pheasants, partridges,and common poultry, abound in Yemen ; and there are numerous ferocious animals, birds of prey, and pestiferous insects. 875. But the horse is of all the animals of Arabia the most valuable. This animal is said to be found wild in the extensive deserts on the north of Hadramant : this might have been the case in ancient times, unless it should be thought more probable, that the wild horse of Tatary has passed through Persia, and has been only perfected in Arabia. The horses here are distributed into two classes, viz. the kadischi, or common kind, whose genealogy has not been preserved, and the kochlani, or noble horses, whose breed has been ascertain- ed for 2000 years, proceeding, as their fables assert, from the stud of Solomon. They are reared by the Bedouins, in the northern deserts between Bassora, Merdin, and the frontiers of Syria ; and though they are neither large nor beautiful, their race and here- ditary qualities being the only objects of estimation, the preservation of their breed is carefully and authentically witnessed ; and the offspring of a Kochlain stallion with an Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA, 145 ignoble race is reputed kadischi. These will bear the greatest fatigues, and pass whole days without food, living, according to the Arabian metaphor, on air. They are said to rush on a foe with innpetuosity ; and it is asserted that some of them, when wounded in battle, will withdraw to a spot where their master may be secure ; and if he fall, they will neigh for assistance ; accordingly, their value is derived from their singular agility, an extreme docility, and an uncommon attachment to their master. The Arabian steeds are •sometimes bought at excessive rates by the English at Mocha. The duke of Newcastle asserts, that the ordinary price of an Arabian horse is 1000/., 2000/., or even 3000/. ; and that the Arabs are as careful in preserving the genealogy of their horses, as princes in re- cording that of tlieir families : the grooms are very exact in registering the names of the sires and dams of these animals ; and some of them are of very ancient date in tiiis species of pedigree. It is affirmed that Arabian colts are brought up with camels' milk. 876. Of the agricultural implements and operations of Arabia almost nothing is known. Their plough, as we have seen (872. ), is a poor implement, and instead of a spade they use the pick. The principal exertion of the husbandman's industry is to water the lands from the rivulets and wells, or by conducting the rains. Barley is reaped near Sana in the middle of July ; but the season depends on the situation. At Maskat, wheat and barley are sown in December, and reaped in March ; but doura is sown in August, and reaped in the end of November. The Arabians pull up their ripe corn by the roots ; but the green corn and grass, as forage for their cattle, are cut with the sickle. In threshing their corn, they lay the sheaves down in a certain order, and then lead over them two oxen dragging a large stone. SuBSKCT., 5. Present State of Agriculture in Hindustan. 877. T/e^c/ma^eanriseflsowsofthis extensive region are considerably diversified by differ- ence of latitude and local situation ; nevertheless, through the wide regions of Hindustan there is some similarity of climate. Although in Thibet the winter nearly corresponds with that of Switzerland and other parts of Europe, in the whole extent of Hindustan, except in Cashmere, there can hardly be said to be a vestige of winter, except the thick fogs of our November ; and excessive rains, or excessive heats, form the chief varieties of the year. 878. The surface of the country is much diversified; but there are no mountains of any very great height ; the ghauts not being estimated at above three thousand feet. The vast extent of Hindustan consists chiefly of large plains, fertilized by numerous rivers and streams, and interspersed with a few ranges of hills. The periodical rains and intense heats produce a luxuriance of vegetation almost unknown to any other country in the globe; and the variety and richness of the vegetable creation delight the eye of every spectator. Bengal is a low, flat country, like Lower Egypt, watered and fertilized by the Ganges, as the former country is by the Nile; and which, like the lat- ter river, forms an immense delta, before it falls into the sea. The interior of the coun- try is so flat, that water runs only at the rate of three miles an hour ; and the ground rises from the sea towards the interior, at not more than four inches in a mile. 879. The soil varies, but is in most places light and rich: that of Bengal is a stratum of black vegetable mould, rich and loamy ; extending to the depth of six feet, and in some places fourteen, and even twenty feet ; lying on a deep sand, and inter- spersed with shells and rotten wood, which indicate the land to have been overflowed, and to have been formed by materials deposited by the rivers. It is easily cultivated without manure, and bad harvests seldom occur. In this country they have two harvests ; one in April, called the "little harvest," which consists of the smaller grains, as millet ; and the second, called the " grand harvest," is only of rice. 880. Landed jn-operty in Hindustan, as in all the countries of Asia, is held to be the absolute right of the king. The Hindu laws declare the king to be the lord and proprie- tor of the soil. All proprietors, therefore, paid a quitrent, or military services to the king or rajah, excepting some few, to whom it would appear absolute grants were made. In general, the tenure was military ; but some lands were appropriated to the church and to charitable purposes, and in many places commons are attached to villages as in Europe. Lands in Hindustan, and in Bengal more especially, are very much divided, and cultivated in small portions by the ryots, or peasants, who pay rent to subordinate proprietors, who hold of others who hold of the rajah. The actual culti- vators have hardly any secure leases ; they are allowed a certain portion of the crop for the maintenance of their families and their cattle ; but they are not intrusted with the seed, which is furnished by the proprietor or superior holder. The ryot, or cultivator^ is universally poor; his house, clothing, and implements of every kind, do not amount to the value of a pound sterling ; and he is considered as a sort of appendage to the land, and sold along with it, like his cattle. So little attention is paid to any agreement made with him, that in a good season. Dr. Tennant informs us, the zemindar, or superior holder, raises his demands to a fourth more than the rent agreed on. Custom has rendered this evil so comrnon that the miserable ryot has no more idea of obtaining redress fjgjn it L 146 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. tlian from the ravages of the elements. Since Bengal was conquered by the British, the government is, properly speaking, the proprietor of all the lands; and Tennant accordingly observes, that *' nine tenths of all the rent of Bengal and the provinces con- stitute the revenue of the company ; who are, in room of the Mogul emperor, the true proprietors of the soil, " (Recreations, il. 184.) 881. The agricultvral products of Hindustan are very various. Rice, wheat, and maize are the common grains ; but barley, pease, a species of tare or cytissus, called dohl, and millet, are also cultivated. Next to them the cotton plant and the sugar-cane are most extensively grown. To these may be added indigo, silk, hemp, poppy for opium, palma christi, sesamum, mustard, the cocoa-nut. which supplies a manufacture of cordage, and also a liquor called toddy ; guavas, plantains, bananas, pomelos, limes, oranges, and a great variety of other fruits besides what are cultivated in gardens, where the settlers have all the vegetables of European horticulture. The potatoe has been in- troduced, and though it does not attain the same size as in Europe, is yet of good quality. It is not disliked by the na- tives, but cannot be brought to market at so low a price as rice. 882. Tlie sugar-cane {Saccharum officinarum, fig. 133.) is cultivated in low grounds that may be flooded. The ground being cleaned and pulverized by one or two years fallow, is planted with cuttings of two or three buds, in rows of four feet apart and eighteen inches wide in the row : as they grow, each stool, consisting of three or more shoots, is tied to a bamboo reed, eight or ten feet long, the lower leaves of each cane being first carefully wrapt round it so as to cover every part, and prevent the sun from cracking it, or side shoots from breaking out. Watering and flooding in the dry season, and keeping open the surface drains during the pe- riodical rains, are carefully attended to. Nine months from the time of planting the canes are ten feet high, and ready to cut. The process of sugar making, like all others in this country, is exceedingly simple : a stone mortar and wooden pestle turned by two small bullocks, expresses the juice, which is boiled in pots of earthenware, sunk in the ground, and heated by a flue which passes beneath and around them, and by which no heat is lost. The whole expense of growing and bringing to market does not require above a third of the time, and a tenth of the money, which it does in the West Indies. 883. The indigo (Indigo/era tinctoria. Jig. 134.) is one of the most profitable articles of culture in Hindustan ; because an immense extent of land is required to produce but a moderate bulk of the dye ; be- cause labor and land here are cheaper than any where else ; and because the raising of the plant and its manufacture may be carried on without even the aid of a house. The first step in the culture of the plant is to render the ground, which should be friable and rich, perfectly free from weeds, and dry if naturally moist. The seeds are then sown in shallow drills about a foot apart. , Tlie rainy season must be chosen for sowing, otherwise if the seed is deposited in dry soil, it heats, corrupts, and is lost. The crop being kept clear of weeds, is fit for cutting in two or three months, and this may be repeated in rainy seasons every six weeks. The plants must not be allowed to come into flower, as the leaves in that case become dry and hard, and the indigo pro- duced is of less value ; nor must they be cut in dry weather, as they would not spring again. A crop generally lasts two years. Being cut, the herb is first steeped in a vat till i has become macerated and parted with its coloring matter ; then the liquor is let off into another, in which it undergoes the peculiar process of beating to cause the fecula to separate from the water. This fecula is let off into a third vat, where it remains some time, and is then strained through cloth bags, and evaporated in shallow wooden boxes placed in tlie shade. Before it is perfectly dry it is cut in small pieces of an inch square; it is then packed in barrels, or sowed up in sacks for sale. Indigo was not extensively cultivated in India before the British settlements were formed there ; its profits were at first so considerable, that as in similar cases its culture was carried too far, and the market glutted with the commodity. The indigo is one of the most pre- carious of oriental crops ; being lialile to be destroyed by hail storms, which do com- paratively little injury to the sugar-cane and other plants. 884. The mulherry is cultivated in a different manner from what it is in Europe. It is raised from cut- tings, eight or ten of which are planted together in one pit, and tlie pits are distributed over the field at the distance of two or three feet every way. These cuttings being well firmed at the lower ends, soon fonn stools about the height of a raspberry bush, and from these the leaves are gathered. The stools are cut over once a year to encoui-age the production of vigorous shoots from the roots. 88.7. Thepoppif {Papavcr somniferum) is cultivated on the best soil, well manured. The land sometimen receives as many as fifteen stirrings, and the seed is then dropped into shallow drills about two feet apart. During the growth of the plants tl)e soil is stirred, well watered, and sometimes top-dressed. In two months from the time of sowing, the capsules are ready for incision, which process goes en for two or three weeks, several horizontal cuts being made in the capsule one day, and the next the milky juice Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 147 which had oozed out, being congealed, is scraped off. This operation Ls generally repeated three times on each capsule ; and then the capsules are collected for their seed. The raw juice is kneaded with water evaporated in the sun, mixed with a little poppy oil, and lastly, formed into cakes, and covered with leave* of poppy, and packed in chests with poppy husks and leaves. 886. Tobacco in Hindustan is cultivated in the same manner as in Europe ; the soil must be rich and well pulverized ; the plants transplanted, and the earth stirred during their growth ; the main stems are broke oft", and the leaves are dried by being suspcmled on beds of withered grass by means of ropes, and shaded from the sun and protected from nightly dews. The leaves afford a much weaker odour than those of tlie tobacco of Europe or America. 887. The mustard, sesamum orientafis, flax, palma christi, and some other plants are grown for their seeds, which are crushed for oil. The use of the flax as a cloth- ing plant is not understood in India, hemp supplying its place. The mustard and sesamum are sown on the sand left by the overflowings of the rivers without any other preparation or culture than that of drawing a bush over the seeds to cover them. The palma christi is sown in patches three or four feet apart, grows to the size of a little tree, and is cut down with an axe when the seeds are to be gathered. The mill for bruising the seeds of these plants is simply a thick trunk of a tree hollowed into a mortar, in which is placed the pestle, turned by one or two oxen. 888. Palm trees of several species are in general cultivation in Hindustan. The most useful is the cocoa-nut tree (Cocos nuci- Jera, Jig. 135.) which grows almost perfectly straight to the height of forty or flfty feet ; and is nearly one in diameter. It has no branches, but about a dozen leaves spring immediately from the top : these are about ten feet long, and nearly a yard in breadth towards the bottom. The leaves V\ are employed to cover the houses of the natives ; "" and to make mats either for sitting or lying upon. The leaf when reduced to fine fibres, is the mate- rial of which a beautiful and costly carpeting is fabricated, for those in the higher ranks ; the coarser fibres are made into brooms. After these useful materials are taken from this leaf, the stem still remains, which is about the thickness of the ancle, and furnishes firewood. 889. The wood qf this paltn, when fresh cut, is spongy ; but becomes hard, after being seasoned, and assumes a dark- brown color. On the top of the tree a large shoot is pro- duced, which when boiled resembles brocoli, but is said to be of a more delicate taste ; and though much liked, is seldom used by the natives ; because on cutting it off the pith is exposed, and the tree dies. Between this cabbage-like shoot and the leaves, there spring several buds, from which, on making an incision, there distils a juice differing little from water, either in color or consistence. It is the employment of a certain class of men to climb to the top of the trees hi the evening, with earthen pots tied to their waists, which they fix there to receive the juice, which is regularly carried away before the sun has had any influence upon it. This licjuor is sold at the bazars by the natives, under the name of toddy. It is used for yeast, and forms an excellent substitute. In thi.s state it is drank with avidity, both by the low Europeans and the natives ; and it is reckoned a cooling and agreeable beverage. After being kept a few hours, it begins to ferment, acquires a sharp taste, and a slight intoxicating quality. By boiling it, a coarse kind of sugar is obtained ; and by distillation, it yields a strong ardent spirit, which being every where sold, and at a low price, constitutes one of the most destructive annoyances to our soldiers. The name given to this pernicious drink by Europeans, is pariah arrack, from the supposition that it is only drank by the pariahs, or out-casts, that have no rank. 890. The trees from which the toddy is drawn do not bear any fruit, on account of the destruction of the buds ; but if the buds be Icfl entire, they produce clusters of the cocoa-nut This nut, in the husk, is as large as a man's head ; and when ripe falls with the least wind. If gathered fresh, it is green on the outside; the husk and the shell are tender. The shell, when divested of the husk, may be about the size of an ostrich's egg, and is lined with a white pulpy substance, which contains about a pint and a half of liquor like water ; and though the taste be sweet and agreeable, it is different to that of the toddy. 891. In proportion as the fruit groivs old, the shell hardens, and the liquor diminishes, till it is at last entirely absorbed by the white milky substance; which gradually acquires the hardness of the kernel of the almond, and is almost aH easily detached from the shell. The natives use this nut in their victuals ; and from it they also express a considerable quantity of the purest and best lamp oil. The substance which remains after this operation supplies an excellent food for poultry and hogs. Cups and a variety of excellent utensils are made of the shell. 892. The husk of the cocoa-md is nearly an inch thick, and is, perhaps, the most valuable part of the tree ; for it consists of a number of strong fibres, easily separable, wliich furnishes the material for the greatest part of the Indian cordage ; but is by no means the only substitute which the country affords for hemp. This the natives work up with much skill. 893. The palmyra, a species of corypha, is taller than the cocoa tree ; and affords still greater supplies of toddy; because its fruit is of little request from the smallness of its size ; the produce of the tree is therefore generally drawn ofi' in the liquid state. This tree, like the cocoa, has no branches ; and, like it too, sends forth from the top a number of large leaves, which are employed in thatching houses, and in the manufacture of mats and umbrellas. The timber of the tree is much used in building. 894. The date tree {Phoenix dacli/Ufera), being smaller, makes not so conspicuous a figure in the Indian forest as the two last described. Its fruit never arrives at maturity in India owing to the heat : toddy is drawn from it, but not in such quantity, nor of so good a quality, as that which is produced by the other species of the same genn<;. L 2 148 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 895. The bamboo {Amndo bambos) is, perhaps, one of the most universally useful trees in the world ; at all events it is so in the tropical regions. There are above fifty varieties, all of which are of the most rapid growth, rising from fifty to eighty feet the first year, and the second perfecting its timber in hardness and elasticity. It grows in stools, which are cut over every two years, and thus the quantity of timler furnished by an acre of bamboos is immense. Its uses are almost without end. In building it forms entire houses for the lower orders, and enters both into the construction and furniture of those of the higher classes. Bridges, boats, masts, rigging, agricultural and other implements, and machinery, carts, baskets, ropes, nets, sailcloth, cups, pitchers, troughs, pipes for conveying water, pumps, fences for gardens and fields, &c., are made of it. Macerated in water it forms paper ; the leaves are generally put rovmd the tea sent to Europe ; the thick inspissated juice is a favorite medicine, is said to be indestructible by fire, to resist acids, and by fusion with alkali to form a transparent permanent glass. 896. The fruits of Hindustan may be said to include all those in cultivation ; since the hardier fruits of Europe, as the strawberry, gooseberry, apple, &c. are not only grown by the European settlers in cool situations, but even by the native shahs. The indigenous sorts include the mango, the mangostan (Jig. 136.), and the durion (Jig. 137.}, the noblest of known fruits next to the pine apple. 897. The natural pastures of Hindustan are every where bad, thin and coarse, and there is no such thing as artificial herbage plants. In Bengal, where the soil is deep and loamy to the depth of nioe and ten feet, a coarse bent, or species of juncus, springs up both in the pastuVe and arable lands, which greatly deteriorates the former as food for cattle, and unfits the latter for being ploughed. This juncus, Tennant observes, pushes up a single seed stem, which is as hard ds a reed, and is never touched by cattle so long as any other vegetable can be had. Other grasses of a better quality are some- times intermixed with this unpalatable food ; but during the rain their growth is so rapid that their juices must be ill fitted for nutrition. In Upper Hindustan, during the dry season, and more particularly the prevailing of the hot winds, every thing like verdure disappears ; so that on examining a herd of cattle, and their pasture, you are not so much surprised at their leanness, as that they are alive. The grass cutters, a class of servants kept by Europeans for procuring food for their horses, will bring provender from a field where grass is hardly visible. They use a sharp instrument, like a trowel, with which they cut the roots below the surface. These roots, when cleared of earth by washing, afford the only green food which it is here possible to procure. 898. The live stock of Hindustan consists chiefly of beasts of labor ; as the natives are by their religion prohibited the use of animal food. The horses are chiefly of Persian or Arabian extraction. The Bengal native horse is thin and ill-shaped, and never equals the Welsh or Highland poney, either in figure or usefulness. The buffalo is common, both tame and wild, and generally jet black, with semicircular horns, laid backwards upon the neck. They are preferred to the ox for jcarrying goods, and kept in herds for the sake of their milk, from which ghee, an universal article of Hindoo diet, is made. 899. The common ox of Hindustan is white, and distinguished by a protuberance on the shoulder, on which the yoke rests. Those kept for travelling-coaches are capable of performing long journies nearly in the same time with horses ; those kept by the poor ryots work patiently in the yoke beneath the vertical sun, for many hours,"^ and upon the most wretched food, chaff or dried straw. The cow is held sacred, and wor- shipped ; and paintings are made on the walls with her dung, which are objects of superstition. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 149 900. The sheep is small, lank, and thin ; and the wool chiefly black or dark grey. The fleece is harsh, thin, and hairy, and only used for a kind of coarse wrappers or blanket- ing. A somewhat better breed are found in the province of Bengal ; but the mutton of neither is good till the animals are improved by a year's good keeping. 901. The goat is kept for its milk, which is commonly used at the breakfast table ; and also for the flesh of the kids, which is more tolerable than mutton. 902. Swine are not very common, though herds may be seen in Bengal. They might be reared in abundance ; but the natives are strictly forbidden the use of pork ; and it is only eaten by the Europeans, and some of the 138 out-casts. Wild hogs are abundant, and do so much in- jury to the rice fields, that it is a material part of the ryot's business to watch them, which he does night and day, on a raised platform of bamboos {Jig. 138.) 903. The elephant is chiefly used in war, but is also kept by a few European gentlemen, for hunting or show. He is taken by stratagem, and by feeding and gentle usage soon becomes tame, docile, and even attached to his keeper ; but does not breed in a domesticated state. His food is the leaves and smaller branches of trees, and an allowance of grain. It is a singular deviation from general nature, that an old elephant is easier tamed than one taken young. 904. The camel is used chiefly as a beast of burden, and is valued for its uncommon power of abstinence from drink. He is also patient of fatigue, hunger, and watching to an incredible degree. These qualities have recommended the camel, as an auxiliary to British officers for carry- ing their baggage ; and from time immemorial, he has been used by merchants for con- veying goods over extensive tracts of country. 905. r/ie/jret/afori/ animals are numerous. Of 139 these the jackal {Jig. 139.) is the most remarkable. ,/'^''''*''"**'*'^-^-__,^,,,..,,,4^ He enters at night every farm-yard, village, and town, and traverses even the whole of Calcutta. His voracity is indiscriminate, and he acts as a sca- venger in the towns ; but, in the farm-yards he is destructive to poultry, if he can get at their roosts; and in the fields the hare and the wild pig r,ome- times become his prey. The numerous parish ^^^^^ dogs, which in general are mangy, are almost as troublesome as the jackal. Apes of different kinds haunt houses, and pilfer food and fruits. The crow, kite, mino, and sparrow hop about the dwellings of man with a familiarity unknown in Europe, and pilfer from the dishes of meat, even- as they are carried from the kitchen to the eating room. The stork is common ; and toads, serpents, lizards, and other reptiles and insects, are greatly kept under by him and other birds. 906. The implemeyits and operations of Hindustan^e agriculture are as simple as can well be imagined. The plough, of which Major Beatson has given several forms (Jig. 140.), is little better than a pointed stick, and is carried to the field on the shoulder like the spade. It scratches the sandy uplands, or the mud left by the rivers in a toler- able manner; but the strong lands of Bengal, that send up the juncus already mentioned (897.), appear as green after one ploughing as before; ^ only a few scratches are perceptible here and there, more resembling the digging of a mole than the work of the plough." To accomplish the work of pulverization, the ploughman repeats the operation from five to fifteen times, and at last succeeds in raising mould enough to cover the seed : one plough and pair is allowed to five acres. From this mode of repeatedly going over the same surface, and effecting a little each time, governor Beatson has drawn some inge- nious arguments in favor of the use of the cultivator in this country, which will be after- wards noticed. L 3 J50 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Parx I. 907. The early or hackery, has two wheels, and is drawn by two bullocks. The wheels -are under three feet in diameter, and the body of the carriage consists of two bamboos, united by a few cross bars, also of bamboo, and approaching each other the whole length of the machine, till they meet at a point between the necks of the cattle, where they are supported by a bar projecting sideways over the shoulders of both. By this the oxen or buffalos are often galled in a shocking manner, and the suppuration which takes place in consequence is, perhaps, not perfectly cured during the whole life of the animal ; the evil being aggravated by the crows, which set upon him as soon as he is relieved from the yoke. Reaping is often performed by pulling by the roots instead of cutting or mowing, and the grain or seed is separated from the strav/ or stalks, by treading with oxen_ on a smooth part of the field. 908. As no deparlmeiit of aration can be carried on without artificial watering, that operation becomes very expensive, and troublesome in elevated districts. In the Mong- heer district of Bengal, a deep well is dug in the highest part of the field. The fields, after beino- ploughed, are divided into little square plots, resembling the chequers of a backgammon table. Each square is surrounded with a shelving border, about four inches high, capable of containing water. Between the square chequers thus corlBtructed, small dykes are formed for conveying a rivulet over the whole field. As soon as the water has stood a sufficient time in one square for it to imbibe moisture, it is let off into the adjoining one, by opening a small outlet throuoh the surrounding dyke. Thus one square after another is saturated, till the whole field, of whatever extent, is gone over. 909. The tvater is raised in large leathern bags, pulled up by two bullocks, yoked to a rope. The cattle are not driven in a gin as ours, but retire away from the well, and re- turn to its mouth, according as the bag is meant to be raised, or to descend. The rope is kept perpendicularly in the pit, by a pulley, over which it runs. From the mouth of the well thus placed, the rivulets are formed to every part of a field. 910. In the district of Patna the wells are not so deep. Here the leathern bags are raised by long bamboo levers, as buckets are in several parts of this country. In a few places rice is transplanted, which is done with pointed sticks, and the crop is found to be better than what is sown broadcast. 911. In the hilly districts they neither plough nor sow ; what grain they raise is intro- duced'into small holes, made with a peg and mallet, in a soil untouched by the plough. The only preparation given it is turning away the jungle, and thus depositing the seed. In the vicinity of Rajamahl there are many tribes of peasants, who subsist partly by digging roots, and by killing birds and noisome reptiles. In these savage districts ninety villages have been taxed for two hundred rupees ; and yet this paltry sum could only be made up by fruits peculiar to the situation. The wretched state of these peasants. Dr. Tennant observes, outdoes every thing which an European can imagine. 912. Harvests are made at diflferent seasons of the year; and as often as a par- ticular crop is collected, the ryot sends for the brahmin, or parish priest, who burns ghee, arid says prayers over the collected heap, and receives one measure of grain for his trouble. 913. The selections we have now submitted will give some idea of the aboriginal agri- culture of Hindustan ; not in its details, but as to its peculiar features. It is evidently wretched, and calculated for little more than the bare sustenance of an extensive popula- tion; for though the revenue of the state is in fact the land rent ; that revenue, notwith- standing the immense tract of country from which it is collected, is known to be very little. The state of agriculture, however, both politically and professionally, is capable of great improvement ; and it is believed, the present government has already effected material benefits, both to the natives and itself. Wherever the British influence is pre- eminent, there Europeans settle, and introduce improvements ; and even the more indus- trious Asiatics find themselves in greater se- curity. The Chinese are known to be a re- markably industrious people, and many of them have established themselves in British- ' Indian seaports. Wathen ( Voyage, ^;-c. 18 14. J mentions, a corn-mill, combining also a bake- house, both on a large scale, and driven by a powerful stream of watgr, at Penang, near Madras, as having been established by Amee, a Chinese miller. The building ib in the^ Chinese taste, and forms a very picturesque' group in a romantic spot {Jig. 141.) About;; bixty people are employed; though great partj of the labor is done by machinery, and amons other things the kneading of the dough. The shipping ib the chief source of con- iiimptjon. ' Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 151 SuBSECT. 6, Of the jigriculture of the Island if Ceylon. 914. The agriculture of Ceylon is noticed at some length by Dr. Davy, who says the art is much respected by the Singalese. The climate of that country is without seasons, and differs little throughout the year in any thing but in the direction of the wind, or the presence or absence of rain. Sowing and reaping go on in every month of the year. 915. The soil of Ceylon is generally sUicious, seldom with more than from one to three per cent, of vegetable matter. Dr. Davy {Account, <^c.) found the cinnamon tree in a state of successful culture in quartz sand, as white as snow on the surface, somewhat grey be- low, containing one part in one hundred of vegetable matter ; five-tenths of water, and the remainder silicious sand. He supposes the growth of the trees may be owing in a considerable degree to the situation being low and moist. 916. The cultivation in the interior of Ceylon is almost exclusively of two kinds ; the dry and wet. The former consists of grubbing up woods on the sides of hills, and sow- ing a particular variety of rice and Indian corn ; the latter is carried on in low flat sur- faces, wliich may be flooded with water. Rice is the only grain sown ; the ground is flooded previously to commencing the operation of ploughing, and is kept under water while two furrows are given ; the water is then let off, and the rice being previously steeped in water, till it begins to germinate, is sown broadcast. When the seed has taken root, and before the mud has had time to dry, the water is re-admitted : when the plants are two or three inches high the ground is weeded, and any thin parts made good by transplating from such as are too thick. The watpr remains on the field till the rice be- gins to ripen, which is commonly in seven months : it is then let off and the crop cut down with reaping hooks, and carried to the tlireshing floor, where it is trod out by buffaloes. 917. The agricultural implements of the Singalese are few and simple; they consist of jungle hooks, {Jig. 142 a.), for cutting down trees and underwood; an axe (6) ; a sort of French spade or beche (c) ; a plough of the lightest kind (d), which the ploughman holds with one hand, the beam being attached to a pair of buflTaloes, by a yoke (e), and with the other, he carries a long goad (/), with which, and his voice, he directs and stimu- lates the animals. A sort of level ( g) is used for levelling the ground after plough- ing, which, like the plough, is drawn by a pair of buffaloes, the driver sitting on it to give it momentum. For smoothing tlie surface of the mud preparatory to sowing, a sort of light scraper (/<) is employed. The reaping hook (i) is similar to ours ; their winnow (k)^ is composed of strong matting, and a frame of rough twigs. The threshing floor is made of beat clay ; and previous to commencing tlie oper- ation of treading out, a charm {fg. 143 I.) is drawn on tlie middle of the floor. A forked stick (m) is used to gather and stir up tlie straw under the buffaloes' feet. (Davys Ceylon, 278. ) L 4 152 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 918. A Singalcse farm-yard bears some resemblance to one of tliis country {Jig. 144.) : but fewer buildings, and no barn is required. 144 919. An etnbaTikment, or retaining mound, by which an artificial lake of three or four miles in circumference is dammed up, is described by Dr. Davy. It is nearly a straight line across the valley, twenty feet high, and 150 or 200 feet wide; the side next the water forming an angle of 45°, and faced with large stones, in the manner of steps. This must have been a work of great labor to so rude and simple a people. SuBSECT. 7. Present State of Agriculture in the Jiirman Empire, in Java, Malacca, Siam, Cochin China, Tonquin, Japan, <^c. 920. The agriculture of these countries and others of minor note adjoining them, differs little as far as it is known from that of Hindustan. In all of them the sovereign is the lord of the soil ; the operative occupier is wretchedly poor and oppressed. The chief pro- duct is rice ; the chief animal of labor the buffalo or ox ; the chief manure, water ; and the chief material for buildings and implements, the bamboo. 921. The Birman empire is distinguished for the salubrity of its climate, and the health and vigor of the natives. In this respect tliey possess a decided pre-eminence over the enervated natives of the East j nor are the inhabitants of any country capable of greater bodily exertions than the Birmans. 922. The seasons of this country are regular, and the extremes of heat and cold are seldom experienced ; at least the duration of that intense heat which immediately precedes the commencement of the rainy season, is so short that the inconvenience of it is very little felt. The forests, however, like some other woody and uncultivated parts of India, are extremely pestiferous ; and an inhabitant of the champaign country considers a journey thither as inevitable destruction. The wood-cutters, who are a particular class of men, born and bred in the hills, are said to be unhealthy, and seldom attain longevity. 923. The soil of the southern provinces of the Birman empire is remarkably fertile, and produces as luxuriant crops of rice as are to be found in the finest parts of Bengal. Towards the north, the face of the country is irregular and mountainous, with headlong torrents and rivers in yawning chasms, crossed by astonishing bridges ; but the plains and valleys are exceedingly fruitful ; they yield good wheat and various kinds of small grain which grow in Hindustan, together with most of the esculent legumes and vegetables of India. Sugar-canes, tobacco of a superior quality, indigo, cotton, and the different tropical fruits in perfection, are all indigenous products of this country. Besides the teak tree [Tectoria grandis), which grows in many parts of the Birman empire, as well to the north of Ummerapoora, as in the southern country, there is almost every description of timber that is known in India. 924. The cattle used in some parts of the country for tillage and draught, are remarkably good ; they put only a pair of them to the plough, which is little diflerent from the plough of India, and turns up tlie soil very superficially. In their large carts they yoke four stout oxen, which proceed with the speed of a hand-gallop, and are driven by a country girl, standing up in her vehicle, who manages the reins and a long whip with ease and dexterity. Many of the rising grounds are planted with indigo; but the natives suffer the hills for the most part to remain uncultivated, and only plough the rich levels. They every where burn the rank grass once a year to improve the pasture. The Birmans will not take much pains; they leave half the work to nature, which has been very bountiful to tliem. In the neighbourhood of Loonghe many fields are planted with cotton, which thrives well ; sesamum is also cultivated in this soil, and is found to answer better than rice, which is most productive in low and moist grounds. In the suburbs of Pagahm, there are at least two hundred mills employed in expressing oil from the sosamuni seed. In this operation the grain is put into a deep wooden trough, and pressed by an uiiright timber fixed in a frame ; the force is increased by a long Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 153 lever, on the extremity of which a man sits and guides a bullock that moves in a circle ; thus turning and pressing the seed at the same time. The machine is simple, and yet effectually answers the purpose. 925. Among the vegetable jrroduclions of this country, we may enumerate the white sandal-tree, and the aloexylura verum, producing the true jet black ebony wood ; the sycamore fig, Indian fig, and banyan tree; the bignonia indica, nauclea orientalis^ corypha scribus, one of the loftiest of the palm trees, and excoecaria cochinchinensis, remarkable for the crimson under surface of its leaves. To the class of plants used in medicine and the arts, we may refer the ginger and cardamum, found wild on the sides of rivers, and cultivated in great abundance ; the turmeric, used by the natives of the coast to tinge and flavor their rice, and other food ; the betel pepper, fagara piperitae, and three or four kinds of capsicum ; the justicia tinctoria, yielding a beautiful green tinge ; morinda umbellata, gamboge, and carthamus, furnishing yellow dyes ; the red wood of the lawsonia spinosa, and cisalpina sapan, and the indigo. The bark of the nerium antidysentericum, called codagapala, and that of the laurus culilavan, the fruit of the strychnos nux vomica, the cassia fistula, the tamarind, and the croton tiglium, the inspissated juice of the aloe, the resin of the camphor tree, and the oil of the ricinus, are occasionally imported from this country for the European dispensaries. The cin- namon laurel, sometimes accompanied by the nutmeg, the sugar-cane, bamboo, and spikenard, are found throughout the whole country; the last on dry hills; and the bamboo and sugar cane in rich swamps. The sweet potatoe, ipomcea tuberosa, mad- apple, and love-apple (solanum melongena, and lycopersicon), nymphaea, nelumbo, gourds, melons, water-melons, and various other esculent plants, enrich, by cultivation, this country ; and the plantain, cocoa-nut, and sago palm, are produced spontaneously. The vine grows wild in the forests, but its fruit is indifferent for want of cultivation, and through excess of heat, to that of the south of Europe; but this country is amply supplied with the mango, pine-apple, sapindus edulis, mangostan plum, averrhoa, caram- bola, custard- apple, papaw-fig, orange, lemon, and lime, and many other exquisite fruits. 926'. The animals of the Birman empire correspond with those of Hindustan. The wild elephants of Pegu are very numerous ; and, allured by the early crops of rice,, commit great devastation among the plantations that are exposed to their ravages. The king is the proprietor of these animals; and one of his Birman majesty's titles is " lord of the white elephants and of all the elephants in the world." The forests abound with tigers. Their horses are small, but handsome and spirited, hardy and active ; and are frequently exported in timber-ships bound for Madras and other parts of the coast, where they are disposed of to considerable advantage. Their cows are diminutive, resembling the breed on the coast of Coromandel ; but their buffaloes are noble animals, much ^superior to those of India, and are used for draught and agriculture : some of them are of a light cream colour, and are almost as fierce as tigers, who dare not molest them. The ichneumon, or rat of Pharaoh, called by the natives ounbaii, is found in this country : but there is no such animal as the jackal in the Ava dominions, though they are very numerous in the adjoining country. Among the birds, which are the same with those of other parts of India, is one called the henza, the symbol of the Birman nation, as the, eagle was of the Roman empire. It is a species of wild fowl, called in India the Bramin goose ; but the natives of Ava do not deify this bird. 927. The agriculture of Java has been noticed by Thunberg, and more fully des- cribed by Sir Stamford Raffles. 928. The climate of Java, like that of other countries situated within about ten degrees of the equator, presents a perpetual spring, summer, and harvest. The distinction of weather is into wet and dry, never hot and cold, and rain depends on the winds. 929. The surface of the country is low towards the coast, but hilly in the interior ; Vnhealthy about Batavia, but in most other parts as salubrious as any other tropical country. 930. The soil is for the most part rich, and remarkable for its depth ; probably, as Governor Raffles conjectures, owing to its volcanic origin. 931. Landed property in Java is almost exclusively vested in the king, between whom and the cultivator there are no intermediate holders; and the cultivator is without lease or right beyond the will of the sovereign. The manner in which the king draws his income from the whole surface of the country is by burdening certain '* villages or estates with the salaries of particular officers, allotting others for the support of his relatives or favorites, or granting them for the use of particular charitable institutions ; in the same manner as before the consolidation act in Britain, the interest of particular loans was paid upon the produce of specific imports." Tradesmen, government oflScers, priests, and the government, are all alike paid in kind. 932. The crops raised by the farmer for home consumption are chiefly rice and maize, some wheat is also grown; but the staple article is rice, of which one pound and a half Picr day is considered sufficient nourishment for an adult. 154 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE Part I. 93S. The crops raised by the colonists are coffee, sugar, cotton, tobacco, and a variety of Other productions of the East. One of the principal articles is coffee, which is first raised in seed-beds, then transplanted under an open shed for the sake of shade, and then in about eighteen months removed into the garden or plantation where they are destined to yield their fruit. A plantation is laid out in squares, the distance of plant from plant being commonly about six feet, and in the centre of each four trees, is placed a dadap tree, for the purpose of affording shade, which in Java seems necessary to the health of the coffee plant. It is never pruned, grows to the height of sixteen feet ; will bear for twenty years : but a plantation in Java is seldom continued more than ten years. In general three crops of berries are produced in a season. 934. The live stock of the Java farmer, is the ox and buffalo, used in ploughing ; and the horse for burden : they have a few sheep, and goats, and poultry. 935. The i7iiplements are the plough, of which they have a common, or rice-ground, sort ; a dry-soil plough, and a garden or plantation plough, all of which are yoked to a pair of buffaloes, or oxen, in the same manner. The harrow ( Rg. 145 a), on which the driver sits, is a sort of rake ; and they have a sort of strong hoe, which they use as a substitute for a spade {b), and a lighter one, used as a draw hoe (c). Their knives for weeding, pruning, and reaping {Jig. 1 46 rt to/), are very curious ; one of them (g), is used both as an axe and bill, and another (A), as a thrust hoe and prun- ing hook. It is observed by Go- vernor Raffles, that in reaping they crop off " each separate car along with a few inches of the straw ;" an " operose process' ' which he was informed had its origin in some religious notions. Crops are generally dibbled or transplanted : no manure is even required or given in Java excepting water. In ploughing for rice, the land is converted into a semifluid mire, in which the plants are inserted. A curious mode is made use of to scare the birds from ripening crops. An elevated shed is raised in the middle of the plantation or field, within which a child on the watch touches from time to time a series of cords extending from the shed to the extremities of the field like the radii of a circle, and thus prevents the ravages of birds. The native cart of Java is a clumsy conjunction of boards, running on two solid wheels from five to six feet in diameter, and only from one to two inches broad on a revolving axle. It is drawn by two buffaloes. 936. The upas or poison tree, {Rhus, sp. ?) has been said to be a native of and pecu- liar to Java ; but Dr. Horsfield and other botanists have ascertained that there is no tree in the island answering its description : there are two trees used for poisoning war- like instruments, but neither are so powerful as to be used alone ; and, indeed, they are in no way remarkable either as poison plants or trees. The rafflesia arnoldii, the most extraordinary parasitic plant known to botanists, is believed to be a native of this island as well as of Sumatra, where it was originally found. 937. The roads of Java, Sir Stamford Raffles observes, are of a greater extent and of a better description than in most countries. A high road, passable for carriages at all seasons of the year, runs from the western to the eastern extremity of the island, a distance of not less than eight hundred English miles, with post stations and relays of horses every five miles. The greater part of it is so level that a canal might be cut along its side. There is another high road which crosses the island from north to south, and many intersecting cross roads. The main roads were chiefly formed by the Dutch Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 155 as military roads, and " so far," Governor Raffles continues, *' from contributing to the assistance of the agriculture or trade of Java, their construction has, on the contrary, in many instances been destructive to whole districts. The peasant who completed them by his own labor, or the sacrifice of the lives of his cattle, was debarred from their use, and not permitted to drive his cattle along them, while he saw the advantages they were capable of yielding reserved for his European masters, who thus became enabled to hold a more secure possession of his country." [History of Java, ^c. i. 198.) 938. Of the peninsula of Malacca very little is known. Agriculture is carried on in the marginal districts of the country ; but the central parts are covered with unexplored forests, which swarm with wild men and women, -^.^ 247 (Jig. 147.) monkies, tigers, wild boars, elephants, and other animals. Tiie chief grain cultivated is rice; and the chief exports are, pepper, ginger, gum, and other spices, raisins, and woods. Game and fruits abound, " The lands (Le Pouvre observer.) are of a superior quality ; and covered -with odoriferous woods; but the culture of the soil abandoned to slaves, is fallen into contempt- These wretched laborers, dragged incessantly from their rustic employments by their restless masters, who delight in war and mari- time enterprises, have rarely time, and never resolu- , tion, to give the necessary attention to the laboring of their grounds." 939. The kingdom of Siam may be described as a wide vale between two high ridges of mountains;, but compared with the Birman empire, the cultivated land is not above half the extent either in breadth or length. 940. 2'he agriculture of the Siamese does not extend far from the banks of the river, or its branches ; so that towards the mountains there are vast aboriginal forests filled with wild animals, whence they obtain the skins which are exported. The rocky and varie- gated shores of the noble gulf of Siam, and the size and inundations of the Meinam, conspire with the rich and picturesque vegetation of the forests, illumined at night by crowds of brilliant fire-flies, to impress strangers with admiration and delight. 941. The soil towards the mountains is parched and infertile ; but on the shores of the river consists, like tliat of Egypt, of a very rich and pure mould, in which a pebble can scarcely be found; and the country would be a terrestrial paradise if its government were not so despotic as to be justly reckoned far inferior to that of their neighbors the Birmans. Rice of excellent quality is the chief product of their agriculture ; wheat is not unknown ; pease and other vegetables abound ; and maize is confined to their gardens. The fertility of Siam depends in a great degree, like that of Egypt or the Nile, on tlieir grand river Meinam and its contributary streams. 942. The kingdom of Laos borders on China, and is surrounded by forests and deserts, so as to be of difficult access to strangers. The climate is so temperate, and the air so pure, that men are said to retain their health and vigor, in some instances, to tlie age of one hundred years. The flat part of the country resembles Siam, [fg. 148.) The soil on the east bank of the river is more fertile than that on the west. The rice h prcftned 156 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. to that of other oriental countries. Excellent wax and honey are produced in abundance, and the poppy, ginger, pepper, and other plants are cultivated, and their products ex- changed with the Chinese for their cloths. 943. Cambodia, like Siam, is enclosed by mountains on the east and west ; and fertilised by an overflowing river. ITie climate is so hot that the inhabitants are under the neces- sity of residing on the banks of the rivers and lakes, where they are tormented by mus- quitos. The soil is fertile, and produces abundance of corn, rice, excellent legumes, sugar, indigo, opium, camphor, and various medicinal drugs. The most peculiar product is the gamboge-gum (Stalagmitis cambogioides), which yields a fine yellow tint. Ivory, also, and silk, are very plentiful, and of little value. Cattle, particularly of the cow kind, are numerous, and cheap. Elephants, lions, tigers, and almost all the animals of the deserts of Africa, are found in Cambodia. It has several precious woods, among which are the sandal and eagle-wood, and a particular tree, in the juice of which they dip their arrows ; and it is said, that though a wound from one of the arrows proves fatal, the juice itself may be drank without danger. The country, though fertile, is very thinly peopled. 944. Cochin China presents an extensive range of coast, but few marks of tillage. Besides rice and other grains, sugar, silk, cotton, tobacco, yams, sweet potatoes, pumpkins (Jig. 149.), melons, and other culinary vegetables, are cultivated ; and cinnamon, pepper, ginger, cardamoms, silk, cotton, sugar, aula wood, japan wood, Columba and other woods and spice plants abound in the woods and copses. The horses are small, but active ; and they have the ox, buffalo, mules, asses, sheep, swine, and goats. Tigers, elephants, and monkies abound in the forests, and on the shores are found the edible swallows' nests, esteemed a luxury in the East, and especially in China. These nests are ascertained to be formed of a species of sea-weed, the fucus lichnoides of botanists. Almost every kind of domestic animal, except sheep, appears to be very plentiful. In Cochin China they have bullocks, goats, swine, buffaloes, elephants, camels, and horses. In the woods are found the wild boar, tiger, rhinoceros, with plenty of deer : they account the flesh of the elephant a great dainty, and their poultry is excellent. They pay little attention to the breeding of bullocks, as the tillage of their land is performed by buffaloes, and their flesh is not es- teemed as food. The sea, as well as the land, is a never-failing source of sustenance to those who dwell on the coast. Most of the marine worms distinguished by the name of molusca, are used as articles of food by the Cochin Chinese. All the gelatinous substances derived from the sea, whether animal or vege- table, are considered by them the most nutritious of all aliments ; and on this principle various kinds of sea-weeds, particularly the Jtixi and algce, are included in their list of edible plants. The Cochin Chinese collect likewise many of the small succulent, or fleshy plants, which are usually produced on salt and sandy marshes, which they either boil in their soups, or eat in a raw state, to give sapidity to their rice, which with them is the grand support of existence. In Cochin China they are almost certain of two plentiful crops of rice every year, one of which is reaped in April, the other in October. Fruits of various kinds, as oranges, bananas, iigs, pine apples, pomegranates, and others of inferior note, are abundantly produced in all parts of the country. They have very fine yams, and plenty of sweet potatoes. Their small breed of cattle does not appear to furnish them with much milk ; but of this article they make a sparing use, even with regard to their young children. 945. Tonquin, in regard to surface, may be divided into two portions, the moun- tainous and the plain. The mountains are neither rocky nor precipitous, and are partly <:overed with forests. The plain is flat like Holland, being intersected by canals and dykes, and varied by lakes and rivers. The chief agricultural product is rice, of which there are two harvests annually in the low country, but in the high lands only one. Wheat and wine are unknown. The nmlberry-tree is common ; and the sugar-cane is indigenous ; but the art of refining the juice is unknown. The live stock are chiefly oxen, buffaloes, and horses ; swine abound, and there are a few goats ; but asses and sheep are unknown. Dogs, cats, and rats are eaten. Poultry, ducks, and geese abound, and are found wild in the forests. The eggs of ducks are heated in ovens, and produce young, which swarm on the canals and ponds. The forests contain deer, boars, peacocks, a peculiar kind of partridge, andquails. (Jig. 150.) Thetigers^^^ are large and destructive ; one of which ~ is said to have entered a town, and to have destroyed eighty -five people. The wild "■tL Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. t57 elephants are also very dangerous; apes are found in these forests, and some of ihem of large size : these and the parrots are not a little destructive to the rice and fruits. The Tonquin plough consists of three pieces of wood, a pole, a handle, and a third piece, almost at right angles with the last, for opening the ground ; and they are siraply fixed with straps of leather : this plough is drawn by oxen or buffaloes. 946. The agriculture of Japan is superior to that of most eastern countries. 947. The climate of Japan is variable. In summer the heat is violent ; and, if it were not moderated by sea breezes, would be intolerable. The cold in winter is severe. The falls of rain commence at midsummer, and to these Japan owes its fertility, aneF also its high state of population. Thunder is not unfrequent : tempests, hurricanes, and earthquakes are very common. From Thunberg's thermometrical observations it appears that the greatest degree of heat at Negasaki was 98* in August, and the severest cold in January, 35". The face of the country presents some extensive plains, but more generally mountains, hills, and valleys ; the coast being mostly rocky and pre- cipitous, and invested with a turbulent sea. It is also diversified with rivers and rivulets, and many species of vegetables. 948. The soil of Japan, though barren, is rendered productive by fertilizing showers and manure, and by the operation of agriculturalindustry. 949. Agriculture, Thunberg informs us, is here well understood, and the whole country, even to the tops of the hills, is cultivated. Free from all feudal and ecclesiastical im- pediments, the farmer applies himself to the culture of the soil with diligence and vigour. Here are no commons ; and it is a singular circumstance, that if any portion be left uncultivated, it may be seized by a more industrious neighbor. The Japanese mode of manuring is to form a mixture of all kinds of excrements, with kitchen refuse, which is carried in pails into the field, and poured with a ladle upon the plants, when they have attained the height of about six inches ; so that they thus instantly receive the whole benefit. They are also very attentive to weeding. The sides of the hills are culti- vated by means of stone walls, supporting broad plats, sown with rice or esculent roots. Rice is the chief grain ; buckwheat, rye, barley, and wheat being little used. A kind of root, used as the potatoe {^Convolvulus edulis), is abundant, with several sorts of beans, pease, turnips, cabbages, &c. From the seed of a kind of cabbage, lamp oil is expressed ; and several plants are cultivated for dyeing ; with the cotton shrubs and mulberry- trees for the food of silkworms. The varnish and camphor trees, the vine, the cedar, the tea tree, and the bamboo reed, not only grow wild, but are planted for numerous uses. 950. In respect to live stock, there are neither sheep nor goats in the whole empire of Japan; and, in general, there are but few quadrupeds. The food of the Japanese con- sists almost entirely of fish and fowl, with vegetables. Some few dogs are kept from motives of superstition ; and cats are favorites of the ladies. Hens and common ducks are domesticated for the sake of their eggs. SuBSECT. 8. Present State of Agriculture in the Chinese Empire, 951. Agricultural improvement in China has, in all ages, been encouraged and honored. The husbandman is considered an honorable as well as a useful member of society ; he ranks next to men of letters or officers of state, of whom he is frequently the progenitor. The soldier, in China, cultivates the ground. The priests also are agriculturists, whenever their convents are endowed with land. Notwithstanding all these advantages, however, tlie Chinese empire is by no means so generally cultivated as Du Halde and other early travellers asserted. Some districts are almost entirely under cultivation ; but in many there are extensive wastes. 952. Dr. Abel is of opinion that that part of China passed through by Lord Amherst's embassy, the land " very feebly productive in food for man, fully equalled that which afforded it in abundant quantity." He never found extensive tracts of land in general cultivation, but often great industry and ingenuity on small spots ; and concludes that ** as horticulturists the Chinese may perhaps be allowed a considerable share of merit ; but on the great scale of agriculture, they are not to be mentioned with any European nations." {Narrative, ^c. 127.) 953. Barrow says, few families cultivate more than is sufficient for their own use ; that there are no teams, or dairies ; that they are ignorant of the art of fatting cattle ; and of the art of forming rotations of crops ; that their implements are barbarous ; and in short, that their agriculture, much as it has been vaunted by the Jesuits and some French philosophers, would be despised in Europe. 954. Livingstone, an intelligent resident in China, observes, ** The statement in the Encyclopcedia Britannica, that * Chinese agriculture is distinguished and encouraged by the court beyond all other sciences,' is incorrect, since it is unquestionably sub- ordinate to literature ; and it may be well doubted whether it ought to be considered as holding among the Chinese the rank of a science ; for, independently of that routine 158 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I, which has been followed, with little variation, from a very high antiquity, they seem to be entirely ignorant of all the principles by which it could have been placed on a scientific foundation." {Hort. Trans. V. 49.J 955. The climate of China is in general reckoned moderate, though it extends from the 50th to the 21st degree of south latitude, and includes three climates. The northern parts are liable to all the rigors of an European winter. Even at Pekin, at that season, the average of the thermometer is under 20° during the night, and in the day consi- derably below the freezing point. The heat of those parts which lie under the tropics is moderated by the winds from the mountains of Tatary. In the southern parts there is neither frost nor snow, but tliey are very subject to storms, especially about the time of the equinoxes ; all the rest of the year the sky is serene, and the earth covered with verdure. 956. The surface of the countri/, though in general flat, is inuch diversified by chains of granite mountains, hills, rivers, canals, and savage and uncultivated districts, towns innumerable, villages, and cottages covered with thatch, reed, or palm leaves, and in some places with their gardens, or forecourts, fenced with rude pales, as in England. {Jig. 151.) China, Dr. Abel observes, from the great extent of latitude contained in its boundaries, and from its extensive plains and lofty mountains, partakes of the advan- tages and defects of many climates, and displays a country of features infinitely varied by nature. Every thing artificial, however, has nearly the same characters in every province. 957. The soil varies exceedingly : it is in many parts not naturally fertile ; but has almost every where been rendered so by the application of culture and manure for suc- cessive ages. 958. The landed property of China is considered as the absolute right of the emperor : but the sub-proprietor, or first holder, is never turned out of possession as long as he continues to pay about the tenth part of what his farm is supposed capable of yielding. And, though the holder of lands is only considered as a tenant at will, it is his own fault if he is dispossessed. If any one happens to hold more than his family can con- veniently cultivate, he lets it to another, on condition of receiving half the produce, out of which he pays the whole of the emperor's taxes. The greater part of the poor pea- santry cultivate land on these terms. In China there are no immense estates, no mono- polizing farmers, nor dealers in grain. Every one can bring his produce to a free and open market ; no fisheries are here let out to farm. Every subject is equally intitled to the free and uninterrupted enjoyment of the sea, of the coasts, of the es- tuaries, of the lakes and rivers. There are no manor lords with exclusive privileges, nor any game laws. 959. The agricultural jtroducts of China extend to every useful vegetable. There is scarcely a grain, a fruit, a tree, or a culinary vegetable of Europe, or the rest of the world, that they do not cultivate ; and they have a number peculiar to themselves. Fowl and fish are not extensively reared, as the chief articles of diet are vegetables ; and they are ignorant of the use of milk, butter, or cheese. Rice is the common grain of the country ; a species of cabbage, the universal culinary vegetable ; swine, the most abundant live stock ; and tea, the chief plant of export. 960. The tea districts of China extend from the 27th to the 31st degree of latitude. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 159 According to the missionaries, it thrives in the more northern provinces ; and from Kcempfer it appears to be cultivated in Japan as far north as lat. 45''. It seems, according to Dr. Abel's observation, to succeed best on the sides of mountains, where there can be but little accumulation of vegetable mould. The soils from which he collected the best specimens consisted chiefly of sandstone, schistus, or granite. The land forming the Cape of Good Hope consisting of the same rocks, and its geographical position corresponding to that of the tea districts of China, Dr. Abel considers it miglit be grown there, if desirable, to such an extent as to supersede the necessity of procuring it from China. It grows well in St. Helena and Rio Janeiro, and will grow anywhere in a meagre soil and moderate temperature. 961. The culture of the tea plant in China has been given by various authors. It is raised from seeds sown where the plants are to remain. Three or more are dropped into a hole four or five inches deep; these come up without further trouble, and require little culture, except that of removing weeds, till the plants are three years old. The more careful stir the soil, and some manure it ; but the latter practice is seldom adopted. The third year the leaves are gathered, at three successive gatherings, in February, April, and June, and so on till the bushes become stinted or tardy in their growth, which generally happens in from six to ten years. - They are then cut-iii to encourage the production of fresh shoots. 962. The gathering of the leaves is performed with care and selection. The leaves are plucked off one by one : at the first gathering only the unexpanded and tender are taken ; at the second those that are full grown ; and at the third the coarsest. The first forms what is called in Europe imperial tea ; but as to the other names by which tea is known, the Chinese know nothing ; and the compounds and names are supposed to be made and given by the merchants at Canton, who, from the great number of varieties brought to them, have an ample opportunity of doing so. These varieties, though numerous, and some of them very different, are yet not more so than the dif- ferent varieties of the grape ; they are now generally considered as belonging to one species ; the thea bohea, now camellia bohea ifg. 152 «.) of botanists. Formerly it was thought that green tea was gathered exclusively from thea viridis ; but that is now doubtful, though it is certain there is what is called the green tea district, and the black tea district ; and the varieties grown in the one district differ from those grown in the other. Dr. Abel was unable to satisfy himself as to there being two species or one ; but thinks there are two species. He was told by competent persons that either of the two plants will afford the black or green tea of the shops, but that the^ broad thin-leaved plant (C. viridis) is pre- fi^red for making the green tea. 963. The tea leaves being gathered, are- cured in liouses which contain from five to ten or twenty small furnaces, about three feet high , each having at the top a large flat iron pan. There is also a long low table covered with mats, on which the leaves are laid, and rolled by workmen, who sit round it: the iron pan being heated to a certain degree by a little tire made in the furnace underneath, a few pounds of the fresh-gathered leaves are put upon the pan ; the fresh and juicy leaves crack when they touch the pan, and it is the business of the operator to shift them as quick as possible with his baro hands, till they become too hot to be easily endured. At this instant he takes off the leaves with a kind of shovel resembling a fan, and pours them on the mats before the rollers, who, taking small quantities at a time, roll them in the palm of their hands in one direction, while others are fanning them, that they may cool the more speedily, and retain their curl the longer. This process is repeated two or three times, or oftener, before the tea is put into the stores, in order that all the moisture of the leaves may be thoroughly dissipated, and tlieir curl more completely preserved. On every repetition the pan is less heated, and the operation performed more slowly and cautiously. The tea is then separated into the different kinds, and deposited in the store for domestic use or exportation. 964. The different sorts of black and green are not merely from soil, situation, and age of the leaf ; but after winnowing the tea, they are taken up in succession as the leaves fall; those nearest the machine, being the heaviest, is the gunpowder tea; the Hght dust the worst, being, chiefly used by the lower classes. That which is brought down to Canton undergoes there a second roasting, winnowing, packing, &c,, and many hundred women are employed for these purposes. 160 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 965. As more select sorts of tea, the blossoms of the camellia sasanqua {fig. 152, b.) appear to be collected ; as they are brought over land to Russia, and sold by Chinese and Armenians in Moscow at a great price. The buds also appear to be gathered in some cases. By far the strongest tea which Dr. Abel tasted in China, was that called Yu-tien, used on occasions of ceremony. It scarcely coloured the water, and on ex- amination was found to consist of the half expanded leaves of the plant. 966. As substitutes for tea used by the Chinese may be mentioned a species of moss common to the mountains of Shan-tung ; an infusion of ferns of difi'erent sorts, and Dr. Abel thinks the leaves of the common camellia and oil camellia may be added. Du Halde observes, that all the plants called tea by the Chinese, are not to be considered as the true tea plant ; and Kaempfer asserts that in Japan a species of camellia as well as the olea fragrans, is used to give it a high flavor. 967. The oil bearing tea plant (Camellia oleifera) is cultivated for its seeds, from which an oil is expressed, in very general use in the domestic economy of China. It grows best in a red sandy soil, attaining the height of six or eight feet, and producing a pro- fusion of white blossoms and seeds. These seeds are reduced to a coarse powder, either in a mortar by a pestle acted on by the cogs of a water-wheel {fig. 153.), or by a horizontal wheel, having small perpendicular wheels, shod with iron, fixed to its circumference, and acting in a groove lined with the same metal. The seeds wlien ground, are stewed or boiled in bags, and then pressed, when the oil is yielded. The press is a hollow cylinder, with a piston pressed against one end, by driving wedges at the side ; it is very simple and yet powerful. {Dr. Abel's Nar. 176.) An oil used as a varnish is extracted from another variety of the camellia, or tea plant (the Dryandria cordata of Thunb.) which is used as a varnish for their boats, and coarser articles of furniture. ' 968. The tallow-tree {Croton sebiferum) resembles the oak in the height of its stem and the spread of its branches, and its foilage has the green md lustre of the laurel; its flowers are small and yellow, and its seeds white. The latter are crushed either as the camellia seeds, or in a hollow trunk of a tree, lined with iron, by means of a wheel laden with a heavy weight, (^g. 154.), and suspended ■^.■y/<.^'^:^^ from a beam. The bruised matter next undergoes nearly the same process as the camellia seeds, and the oily matter is found to have all the propctties of animal tallow. It is mixed with vegetable oil and wax, to give it consistence, and then made into candles, which burn with great flame, emit much smoke, and quickly consume. f***^^ V ,«.^ ^e=a*i.\N.;!fc 969. The wax-tree^ or Pe-la, is a term which is not applicable to any one species of tree, but to such as are fastened on by a small worm, which runs up, and fastens to its leaves, covering them with combs. When these worms are once used to the trees of any district, they never leave them, unless Sdmething extraordinary drives them away. The wax pro- duced is hard, shining, and considerably dearer than that of bees. 970. The Sesamum orientale and the Ricinus communis, or castor oil plant, are cultivated for the esculent oils extracted from their seeds. They appear to have some method of depriving the castor oil of its purgative qualities, but Dr. Al)el thinks not completely. 971. Thecamphire tree {Laurus camphora) grows to the size of our elms or oaks. The camphire is procured by boiling the fresh-gathered branches of the tree, and stirring the whole with a stick, till the gum begins to adhere to it in the form of a white jelly. The fluid is then poured off into a glazed vessel, and left to concrete. " The crude camphire is then purified in the following manner : a quantity of the finely-powdered materials of some old wall, built of earth, is put as a first layer at the bottom of a copper basin ; on this is placed a layer of camphire, and then another of earth, and so on till the vessel is nearly filled ; the series being terminated with a layer of earth : over this is laid a covering of the leaves of the plant Po-tio, perhaps a species of mentha. A second basin is now inverted over the first, and luted on. The whole thus prepared, is put over a regulated fire, and submitted to its action for a certain length of time ; it is then removed and suffered to cool. The camphire is found to have sublimed, and to be attached to the upper basin, and is further refined by repetitions of the same process."* {Narrative, ^-c. 179.) 972. The oak is as much prized in China as in other countries, and is styled the tree of inheritance. There are several species in general use for building, dyeing, and fuel ; and the acorns are ground into a paste, which mixed with the flour of corn is made into cakes. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 161 973. The maidenhair tree (Salisburia adiantifolia) is grown for its fruit, which Dr. Abel saw exposed in quantities ; but whether as a fruit, a culinary vegetable, or a medicine, he could not ascertain. Kaempfer says, the fruit assists digestion. 974. The cordage plant {Sida tiluefolia) is extensively cultivated for the manufacture of cordage from its fibres. The common hemp is used for the same purpose, but the sida is preferred. A species of musa is also grown in some places, and its fibres used for rope and other purposes. 975. The common cotton, and also a variety bearing a yellow down, and from which, without any dyeing process, the nankeen cloths are formed, is also grown in different places. The mulberry is grown in a dwarf state, as in Hindustan. 976. The ground nut {Arachis hypogcea) ; the arum esculentum, or eatable arum ; the trapa bicornis ; the scirpus tuberosus, and nelumbium, all producing edible tubers, are cultivated in lakes, tanks, or marshy places. 977. The Nelumbium, Dr. Abel observes, with its pink and yellow blossoms, and broad green leaves, gives a charm and productiveness to marshes, otherwise unsightly and barren. The leaves of the plant are watered in the summer, and cut down close to the roots on the approach of winter. The seeds are in size and form like a small acorn without its cup ; are eaten green, or dried as nuts, and are often preserved in sweetmeats ; they have a nut-like flavor. Its roots are sometimes as thick as the arm, of a pale-green without, and whitish within ; in a raw state they arc eaten as fruit, being juicy and of a sweetish and refreshing flavor ; and when boiled arc served as vegetables. 978. The Scirjms tuberosus, or water chestnut, (J,gA55.) is a stoloniferous rush, almost without leaves, and the tubers are produced on the stolones. It grows in tanks, which are manured for its re- ception about the end of March. A tank being drained of its water, small pits are dug in its bottom ; they arc filled with human manure, and exposed to the sun for a fortnight ; their contents are next intimately blended with the slimy bottom of the tank, and slips of the plant inserted. The water is now returned to the tank, and the first crop of tubers comes to perfection in six months. (Rox. Coromandel.) 979. The millet {Hdcus) is grown on the banks of rivers, and attains the height ot sixteen feet. It is sown in rows, and after it comes up, panicum is sown between, which comes to perfection after the other is cut down. 980. Among the many esculent vegetables cul- tivated in China, the petsai, a species of white cabbage, is in most general use. The quantity consumed of it over the whole empire, is, according to all authors, immense ; and Dr. Abel thinks it may be considered to the Chinese, what the potatoe is to the Irish. It is cultivated with great care, and requires abundant manuring, like its congeners of the brassica tribe. Boiled, it has the flavor of asparagus ; and raw, it eats like lettuce, and is not inferior. It often weighs from fifteen to twenty pounds, and reaches the height of two or three feet. It is preserved fresh during winter by burying in the earth ; and it is pickled with salt and vinegar. 981. Almost every vegetable of use j as food, in the arts, or as medicine, known to the rest of the world, is cultivated in China, with perhaps a very few exceptions of equatorial plants. The bamboo and cocoa-nut tree, as in Hindustan, are in universal use :, in- digo is extensively cultivated ; sugar also in the southern provinces ; but it is rather a luxury than an article of common consumption. It is used mostly in a coarse granulated form ; but for exportation, and for the upper classes, it is reduced to its crystallized state. Tobacco is every where cultivated, and in universal use, by all ages, and both sexes. Fruits of every kind abound, but mostly bad, except the orange and the lee-tchee, Dimocarpus litchi, both of which are probably indigenous. The art of grafting is well known, having been introduced by the missionaries ; but they do not appear to have taken advantage of this knowledge to the improvement of their fruits. They have also an art which enables them to take off bearing branches of fruit, par- ticularly of the orange and peach, and transfer them, in a growing state, to pots, for their artificial rocks and grottos, and summer-houses. It is simply by removing a ring of the bark, plastering round it a ball of earth, and suspending a vessel of water to drop upon it, until the upper edge of the incision has thrown out roots into the eartli. 982. The live stock of Chinese agriculture is neither -abundant nor various. The greater part of their culture being on a small scale, and performed by manual operations, does not require many beasts of labor : their canals and boats supply the place of beasts of burden : and their general abstemiousness renders animals for the butcher less neccs- M 162 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. sary. They rear, however, though in comparatively small number, all the domestic animals of Europe ; the horse, the ass, the ox, the buffalo, the dog, the cat, the pig ; but their horses are small and ill-formed. The camels of China are often no larger than our horses ; the other breeds are good, and particularly that of pigs. The kind of dog most common in the south from Canton to Tong-chin-tcheu, is the spaniel with straight ears. More to the north, as far as Pekin, the dogs have generally hanging ears and slender tails. 983. The Chinese are exceedingly sparing in the use of animal food. Those important articles of milk, butter, and cheese, are wholly unknown to them. The broad-tailed sheep are kept in the hilly parts of the country, and brought down to the plains ; but the two animals most esteemed, because they contribute most to their own subsistence, and are kept at the cheapest rate, are the hog and the duck. Whole swarms of the latter are bred in large barges, surrounded with projecting stages covered with coops, for the reception of these birds, which are taught, by the sound of the whistle, to jump into the rivers and canals in search of food, and by another call to return to their lodgings. They are usually hatched by placing their eggs, as the ancient Egyp- tians were wont to do, in small ovens, or sandbaths, in order that the same female may continue to lay eggs throughout the year, which would not be the case if she had a young brood to attend. The ducks, when killed, are usually split open, salted, and dried in the sun ; in which state they afford an excellent relish to rice or other vegetables. 984. The wild animals are numerous. Elephants are common in the south of China, and extend as far as the thirtieth degree of north latitude in the provinces of Kiangnau and of Yiyi-nau. The unicorn rhinoceros lives on the sides of the marshes in the pro- vinces of Yun-nau and Quan-si. The lion, according to Du Halde and Trigault, is a stranger to China ; but the animal figured by Neuhoff, under the name of the tiger, seems to be the maneless lion known to the ancients, described by Oppian, and seen by M. Olivier on the Euphrates. Marco Polo saw lions in Fo-kien : there were some at the court of Kublai Khan. Tlie true tiger probably shows himself in the most southerly pro- vinces, where there are also various kinds of monkies, the long-armed gibbou or Simia longimana ; the Simia injiuens, or ugly baboon, and the Simia silvana, which mimics the gestures and even the laughter of men. The musk animal, which seems peculiar to the central plateau of Asia, sometimes goes down into the western provinces of China. The deer, the boar, the fox, and other animals, some of which are little known, are found in the forests. 985. Several of the birds of the country are distinguished for beauty of form and brilliancy of colour ; such as the gold and silver pheasants, which we see often painted on the Chinese papers, and which have been brought to this country to adorn our aviaries ; also the Chinese teal, remarkable for its two beautiful orange crests. The insects and butterflies are equally distinguished for their uncommon beauty. Silkworms are common, and seem to be indigenous in the country. From drawings made in China, it appears to possess almost all the common fishes of Europe; and M. Bloch, and M. de Lacepede had made us acquainted with several species peculiar to it. The Chinese gold-fish (Cyjyrinus auratus)^ which, in that countrj', as with us, is kept in basins as an ornament, is a native of a lake at the foot of the high mountain of Tien-king, near the city of Tchang-hoo, in the province of Tche-kiang. From that place it has been taken to all the other provinces of the empire, and to Japan. It was in 1611 that it was first brought to England. 986. The Jtsheries of China, as already noticed, are free to all ; there are no restric- tions on any of the great lakes, the rivers, or canals. The subject is not once men- tioned in the Leu-lee ; but the heavy duties on salt render the use of salt-fish in China almost unknown. Besides the net, the line, and the spear, the Chinese have several ingenious methods of catching fish. In the middle parts of the empire, the fishing corvorant {Pelicanus piscator) is almost universally in use; in other parts, they catch them by torch light ; and a very common practice is, to place a board painted white along the edge of the boat, which, reflex;ting the moon's rays into the water, induces ithe fish to spring towards it, supposing it to be a moving sheet of water, when they fall into the boat. 987. The imjflements of Chinese agriculture are few and simple. Tlie plough has one handle, but no coulter; there are different forms: some may be drawn by women, (Jig. 156 a), others are for stirring the soil under water, (i), and the largest is drawn by a, single buffalo or ox (c). Horses are never employed for that purpose. The carts are low, narrow, and the wheels so diminutive as often to be made without spokes. A large cylinder is sometimes used to separate the grain from the ear, and they have a winnowing machine similar to that which was invented in Europe about a century ago. The mosti ngenious machines are those for raising water for the purposes of irrigation ; 3 very ingenious wheel for this purpose has been figured by Sir George Staunton ; but I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 163 the most universally used engine is the chain-pump, worked in various ways by oxen, walking in a wheel, or by ^^-^ . -^ the hand ; and next to it ^'"^^ buckets worked by long levers, (fg. 157.), as in the gardens round London, Paris, Constantinople, and most large cities of Eu- rope. For pounding olei- ferous seeds they have also very simple and economi- cal machines, in which pes- tles on the ends of levers are worked by a horizontal shaft put in motion by a water-wheel, (fig. 15S.) The chief thing to admire in the implements and machines of India and China is their simplicity, and the ease and little expence with which they may be constructed. I ^7 ^^^ 988. The operations of Chinese agriculture are numerous, and some of them curious. Two great objects to be pro- cured are water and manure. The. former is raised from rivers or wells by the machines already mentioned, and dis- tributed over the cultivated surface in the usual manner, and the latter from every conceivable source. 989. The object of their (illfige, Livingstone observes, " appears to be, in the first instance, to expose the soil as extensively as possible ; and this is best effected by throwing it up in large masses, in which state it is allowed to remain till it is finally prepared for planting. When sufficient rain has fallen to allow the husbandman to flood his fields, they are laid under water, in which state they are commonly ploughed again, in the same manner as for fallow, and then a rake, or rather a sort of harrow, about three feet deep and four feet wide, with a single row of teeth, is drawn, by the same animal that draws their plough, perpendicularly through the soil, to break the lumps, and to convert it into a kind of ooze ; and as the teeth of this rake or harrow are not set more than from two to three inches apart, it serves at the same time, very effectually to remove roots, and otherwise to clean the ground For some pur- poses, the ground thus prepared is allowed to dry; it is then formed into beds or trenches; the beds are made of a convenient size for watering and laying on manure. The intermediate trenches are com ■ monly about nine inches deep, and of the necessary breadth to give to the beds the required eleva- tion ; but when the trenches are wanted for the cultivation of water plants, some part of the soil is removed, so that a trench may be formed of the proper dimensions. 99(). For these operations they use a hoe, commonly ten inches deep, and five inches broad, made of iron, or of wood with an iron border, and for some purposes it is divided into four or five prongs. By constant practice the Chinese have acquired such dexterous use of this simple instrument, that they form their beds and trenches with astonishmg neatness and regularity. With it they raise the ground which has not been ploughed, from the beds and trenches, by only changing it from a vertical to a horizontal direction, or employing its edge. It is also used for digging, planting, and in general for every purpose which a Chinese husbandman has to accomplish. 991. The collection of manure is an object of so much attention with the Chinese, that a prodigious number of old men, women, and children, incapable of much other labor, are cont>tantly employed about the .streets, public roads, and banks of canals and rivers, with baskets tied before them, and holding ia M 2 164 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Pam I. their hands small wooden rakee to pick up the dung of animals, and offals of any kind, that may answer the purpose of manure: this is mixed sparingly with a portion of stiff loomy earth, and formed into cakes, dried afterwards in the sun. It sometimes becomes an object of commerce, and is sold to farmers, who never employ it in a compact state. Their first care is to construct very large cisterns for containing, besides those cakes, and dung of every kind, all sorts of vegetable matter, as leaves, or roots, or stems of plants ; mud from the canals, and oHals of animals, even to the shavings collected by barbers. With all these they mix as much animal water as can be collected, or of common water, as can dilute the whole ; and, in this state, generally in the act of putrid fermentation, they apply it to the ploughed earth. In various part^ of a farm, and near the paths and roads, large earthen vessels are buried to the edge in the ground for the accommodation of the labourer or passenger who may have occasion to use them. In small retiring-houses, built also upon the brink of the roads, and in the neighborhood of villages, reser- voirs are constructed of compact materials, to prevent the absorption of whatever they receive, and straw is carefully thrown over the surface from time to time, to prevent evaporation. Such a value is set upon the principal ingiedient, called ta-feu, for manure, that the oldest and most helpless persons are not deemed wholy useless to the family by which they are supported. The quantity of manure collected by all means is still inadequate to the demand. 992. Vegetable or wood ashes, according to Livingstone, are esteemed the very best manure by the Chinese. The weeds which were separated from the land by the harrow, with what they otherwise are able to collect, arc carefully burnt, and the ashes spread. Tlie part of the field where this has been done is easily perceived by tlic most careless observer. Indeed the vigor of the productions of those parts of their land where the ashes have been applied is evident, as long as the crop continues on the ground. The ashes of burnt vegetables are also mixed with a great variety of other matters in forming the compositions which are spread on the fields, or applied to indi- vidual plants. 993. The plaster of old kitchens is much esteemed as a manure ; so that a farmer will replaster a cook- house for the old plaster, that he may employ it to fertilize his fields. 994. Of night-soil (ta-feu), the Chinese have a high notion : and its collection and formation into cakes, by means of a little clay, clay and lime, or similar substances, gives employment to a great number of indi- viduals. They transport these cakes to a great distance. This manure in its recent state is applied to the . roots of cauliflowers, cabbages, and similar plants, with the greatest advantage. 995. T/te dung aiul urine qf all animals is collected with great care; they are used both mixed and separately. The mixture is less valuable than the dung, and this for general purposes is the better, the oraer it is. Horns and bones reduced to powder, the cakes left after expressing several oils, such as of the ground-nut, hemp-seed, and the like, rank also as manures. Small crabs, the feathers of fowls and ducks, soot, the sweepings of streets, and the stagnant contents of common sewers, are often thought sufficiently valuable to be taken to a great distance, especially when water carriage can be obtained. 996. Lime is employed chiefly for the purpose of destroying insects ; but the Chinese are also aware of its fertilizing properties. 997. The C/iinese often manure the plant rather than the soil. The nature of the climate in the southern part of the empire seems to justify fully this very laborious but economical practice. Rain com- monly falls in such quantities and force as to wash away all the soluble part of the soil, and the manure on which its fertility is supposed to depend ; and this often appears to be so effectually done, that nothing meets the eye but sand and small stones. It is therefore proper that the Chinese husbandman should reserve the necessary nourishment of the plant to be applied at the proper time. For this purpose reser- voirs of the requisite dimensions are constructed at the corner of every field, or other convenient places. 998. With the seed or young jflant its proper manure is invariably applied. It is then carefully watered in dry weather night and morning, very often with the black stagnant contents of the common sewer ; as tlie plants advance in growth the manure is changed in some instances more than once, till their advance towards maturity makes any further application unnecessary. 999. The public retiring-houses are described by Dr. Abel, as rather constructed for exposure than concealment, being merely open sheds with a railway, over the reservoir. 1000. The mixture of soils is said to be a common practice as a substitute for manure : " they are constantly changing earth from one piece of ground to another ; mixing sand with that which appears to be too adhesive, and loam where the soil appears to be too loose, &c." 1001. The terrace cultivation is mentioned by Du Halde and others, as carried to great perfection in China ; but the observations of subsequent travellers seem to render this doubtful. Lord Amherst's embassy passed through a hilly and mountainous country for many weeks together : but Dr. Abel, who looked eagerly for examples of that system of cultivation, saw none that answered to the description given by authors. Du Halde' s description, he says, may apply to some particular cases ; but the instances which he ob- served lead him to conclude that terrace cultivation is in a great measure confined to their ravines, undulations, and gentlest declivities. 1002. Rows, or drills, are almost always adopted in planting or sowing ; and for this pur- pose the lands are laid flat, and not raised into ridges with intervening furrows. They are said to be particular in having the direction of their rows from north to south, which other circumstances being suitable is certainly a desirable practice. Before sowing, seeds are generally kept in liquid manure till they germinate. Barrow frequently saw in the province of Keang-see a woman drawing a light plough with a single handle (Jig. 156 a), through ground previously prepared ; while a man held the plough with one hand, and with the other cast the seed into the drills. 1003. Forests of immense extent exist on the mountains of the western districts of China, and abound in almost every species of tree known in Europe, and many others unknown. Besides timber and fuel, these forests supply many valuable products as Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 165 barks, gums, oils, and resins, used in the arts. Rosewood, ebony, sandalwood, Ironwood, and a great variety of others are sent to Europe for cabinet work. The Chinese aloe has the height and figure of an olive tree. It contains within the bark three sorts of wood ; the first, black, compact, and heavy, is called eagle-wood ; it is scarce ; the second, called calambooc, is light like rotten wood; the third, near the centre, is called calamba wood, and sells in India for its weight in gold ; its smell is exquisite ; it is an excellent cordial in cases of fainting, or of palsy. 1004. Tlie national agricultural fete of the Chinese deserves to be noticed. Every year on the fifteenth day of the first moon, which generally corresponds to some day in the beginning of our March, the emperor in person goes through the ceremony of opening the ground ; he repairs in great state to the field appointed for this ceremony. The princes of the imperial family, the presidents of the five great tribunals, and an immense number of mandarins attend him. Two sides of the field are lined with the officers of the emperor's house, the third is occupied by different mandarins ; the fourth is reserved for all the laborers of the province, who repair thither to see their art honored, and prac- tised by the head of the empire. The emperor enters the field alone, prostrates himself, and touches the ground nine times witli his head in adoration of Tien^ the God of heaven. He pronounces with a loud voice a prayer prepared by the court of ceremonies, in which be invokes the blessing of the Great Being on his labor, and on that of his whole people. Then, in the capacity of chief priest of the empire, he sacrifices an ox, in homage to heaven as the fountain of all good. While the victim is offered on the altar, a plough is brought to the emperor, to which is yoked a pair of oxen, ornamented in a most mag- nificent style. The prince lays aside his imperial robes, lays hold of the handle of the plough with the right hand, and opens several furrows in the direction of north and south ; then gives the plough into tlie hands of the chief mandarins, who, laboring in succession, display their comparative dexterity. The ceremony concludes with a distri- bution of money, and pieces of cloth as presents, among the laborers ; the ablest of whom execute the rest of the work in presence of the emperor. After tlie field has received all the necessary work and manure, the emperor returns to commence tlie sowing with simi- lar ceremony, and in presence of the laborers. These ceremonies are performed on the same day by the viceroys of all the provinces. SuBSECT. 9. Present State of A gnculture in Chinese Tatar y^ Thibet, and Bootan. 1005. Chinese Tatary is an extensive region, diversified with all the grand features of nature, and remarkable for its vast elevated plain, supported like a table, by the moun- tains of Thibet in the south, and Allusian chain in the north. This prodigious plain is little known ; its climate is supposed to be colder than that of France ; its deserts to consist chiefiy of a black sand ; and its agriculture to be very limited and imperfect. Wheat, however, is said to be grown among the southern Mandshurs. 1006. Thibet or Tibet is an immense tract of country little knovvn. It consists of two divisions, Thibet and Bootun. The climate of Thibet is extremely cold and bleak to- wards the south, for though on the confines of the torrid zone it vies in this respect with the Alps of Italy. That of Bootan is more temperate j and the seasons of both divisions are severe to those of Bengal. 1007. JrUh respect to surface, Bootan and Thibet exhibit a very remarkable contrast. Bootan presents to tlie view nothing but the most misshapen irregularities ; mountains covered with eternal verdure, and rich with abundant forests of large and lofty trees. Almost every favorable aspect of them, coated with the smallest quantity of soil, is cleared and adapted to cultivation, by being shelved into horizontal beds : not a slope or narrow slip of land between the ridges lies unimproved. There is scarcely a mountain whose base is not washed by some rapid torrent, and many of the loftiest bear populous villages, amidst orchards and other plantations, on their summits and on their sides. It combines in its extent the most extravagant traits of rude nature and laborious art. 10()8. Thibet, on the other hand, strikes a traveller, at first sight, as one of the least favored countries under heaven, and apjwars to be in a great measure incapable of culture. It exhibits only low rocky hills, witiiout any visible vegetation, or extensive arid plains, both of the most stern and stubborn aspect, pro- mising full as little as tiiey produce. 1009. The agriculture of Thibet has many obstacles to contend with. Its common pro- ducts are wheat, pease, and barley. Rice grows only in the southern parts. Turnips, pumpkins, and cucumbers are abundant. The greater part of the plants wliicli travellers have noticed arc such as are met with also in Europe and in Bengal. At the foot of the mountains are forests of bamboos, bananas, aspens, birches, cypresses, and yew-trees. The ash is remarkably large and beautiful, but the firs small and stunted. On the snow-clad mounUiins grows the rheum undulatum, which the natives use for medicinal purposes. TIic country contains, both in a wild and cultivated state, peaches and apricots, apples, pears, oranges, and pomegranates. The cacalia saracenica serves for tliu manufacture of chongf a spirituous and slightly acid liquor. M 3 ie6 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part 1. 1010. Thibet abounds in animals, partly in herds and flocks ; but chiefly in a wild state. The tame horses are small, but full of spirit and restive. The cattle are only of middling height. There are numerous flocks of sheep, generally of a small breed ; their head and legs are black, their wool fine and soft, and their mutton excellent ; it is eaten in a raw state, after having been dried in the cold air, and seasoned with garlic and spices. The goats are numerous, and celebrated for their fine hair, which is used in the manu- facture of shawls; this grows under the coarser hair. The yak, or grunting ox, fur- nished with long and thick hair, and a tail singular for its silky lustre and imdulating form, furnishes an article of luxury common in all the countries of the East. Tlie musk ox, the ounce, a species of tiger, the wild horse, and the lion, are among the animals of the country. 101 1. That elegant specimens of civil archi- tecture, both in the construction of mansions (fg. 159. ), or palaces, and in bridges and other public works, should be found in such a' country is rather singular. In Turner's jour- ney through this mountainous region, he found bridges of various descriptions generally of timber. Over broad streams, a triple or quadruple row of timbers project one over the other, their ends inserted into the rock. Piers are almost totally excluded, on accoount of the exreme rapidity of the rivers. The widest river has an iron bridge, consisting of a num- ber of iron chains which support a matted platform {fig. 160. ], and two chains are stretched above parallel with the sides, to allow of a matted border for the safety of the passenger. Horses are permitted to go over this bridge, one at a time. There is another bridge of a more simple construction, formed of two parallel chains, round which creepers are loosely twisted, sinking very much in the middle, where suitable planks are placed for a path. Another mode of passing rivers is by two ropes, of rattan, or stout osier, stretched from one mountain to another, and encircled by a hoop of the same. The passenger places himself between them, sitting in the hoop, and seizing a rope in each hand, slides him- self along with facility and speed over an abyss tremendous to behold. Chain and wire bridges, constructed like those of Thibet, are now becoming common in Britain ; and it is singular, that one is described in Ijutchinson's Durham (Newcast. 1785.) as having been erected over the Tees. SuBSECX. 10. Present State if Agriculture in the Asiatic Islands, including also those of Australasia and Polynesia. 101 2. The islands of Asia and Australasia form a great and important part of our globe ; and seem well adapted by nature for the support of civilized man, though at present they are mostly peopled by savages. Some European colonies have been made, especially in New Holland and Van Diemans Land, which will probably after a^ long and indefinite period, civilize the whole. The immense population, agriculture, commerce, power, and refinement, which may then exist in these scarcely known regions, are too vast and various Book!. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 167 for contemplation. We shall notice these islands in the order of Sumatra, Borneo, the Manillas, the Cclebezian isles, New Holland, New Guinea, New Britain, New Zealand, Van Diemans Land, the Pelew isles, the Landrone isles, Caroline isles. Sandwich isles, the Marquesas, the Society isles, including Otaheite, and the Friendly isles. 1013. Sumatra is an island of great extent, with a climate more temperate than that of Bengal, a surface of mountains and plains, one third of which is covered with impervious forests, and a soil consisting of a stratum of red clay, covered with a layer of black mould. The most important agricultural product is rice, which is grown both for home consump- tion and export. Next may be mentioned the cocoa-nut, the areca-palm, or betel nut tree, and the pepper. Cotton and coffee are also cultivated ; and the native trees afford the resin benzoin, cassia or wild cinnamon, rattans or small canes (Arundo rotang), canes for walkingsticks, turpentine, and gums ; besides ebony, pine, sandal, teak, manchineel, iron wood, banyan, aloe, and other woods. 1014. The pepper plant {Piper 7iigrum,Jig. 161 a.) is a slender climbing shrub, which also roots at the joints. It is extensively cultivated at Sumatra, and the berries exported to every part of the world. According to Marsden (Hist, of Surnatra), the ground chosen by the Sumatrans for a pepper-garden, is marked out into regular squares of six feet, the in- tended distance of the plants, of which there are usually a thousand in each garden. The next business is to plant the chinkareens, which serve as props to the pepper-vines, and are cuttings of a tree of that name, which is of quick growth. When the chinkareen has been some months planted, the most promising perpendicular shoot is reserved for growth, and the others lopped off": this shoot, after it has acquired two fathoms in height, is deemed sufllicientiy high, and its top is cut oft'. Two pepper- vines are usually planted to one chinkareen, round which the vines twist for support ; and after being suffered to grow three years (by which time they acquire eight or twelve feet m height), they are cut off" about three feet from tlie ground, and being loosened from the prop, are bent into the earth in such a manner that the upper end is returned to the root. This operation gives fresh vigor to the plants, and they bear fruit plentifully the ensuing season. The fruit, which is pro- duced in long spikes, is four or five months in coming to maturity : the berries are at first green, turn to a bright red when ripe and in perfection, and soon fall off" if not gathered in proper time. As the whole cluster does not ripen at the same time, part of the berries would be lost in waiting for the latter ones ; the Sumatrans, therefore, pluck the bunches as soon as any of the berries ripen, and spread them to dry upon mats, or upon the ground ; by drying they become black, and more or less shrivelled, according to their degree of maturity. These are imported here under the name of black pepper. 1015. IVhUe pepper is the ripe and perfect berries of the same species stripped of their outer coats. For this purpose the berries are steeped for about a fortnight in water, till by swelling their outer coverings burst ; after which they are easily separated, and the pepper is carefully dried by exposure to the sun ; or the berries are freed from their outer coats by means of a preparation of lime and mustard-oil, called *' chinam," applied before it is dried. Pepper, which has fallen to the ground over-ripe, loses its outer coat, and is sold as an inferior sort of white pepper. 1016. The betel leaf {Piper betle,Jig. 161 b.) is also cultivated to a considerable extent. It is a slender-stemmed climbing or trailing plant, like the black pepper, with smooth-pointed leaves. These leaves serve to enclose a few slices of the nut of the areca palm (erro- neously called the betel nut) . The areca being wrapped up in the leaf, the whole is covered with a little chunam or shell-lime to retain the flavor. The preparation has the name of betel, and is chewed by the better sort of southern Asiatics to sweeten the breath and strengthen the stomach ; and by the lower classes, as ours do tobacco, to keep off" the calls of hunger. The consumption is very extensive. 1017. The areca palm {Areca catechu) grows to the height of forty or fifty feet with a straight trunk, and is cultivated in the margins of fields for its nut or fruit, which is sold to prepare betel. 1018. Three sorts of cotton are cultivated, including the silk cotton {Bombax ceiba), a handsome tree, which has been compared by some to a dumb waiter, from the regularity of its branches. 1019. The live stock of Sumatra are horses, cows, bufililoes, sheep, and swine. They are all diminutive. The horse is chiefly used for the saddle, and the buffalo for labor. The wild animals are numerous, and include the civet cat, monkey, argus pheasant, the jungle or wild fowl, and the small breed found also at Bantom on the west of Java, and well known in Britain by that name. M 4 168 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 1020. Borneo is the largest island in the world next to New Holland. It is low and marshy towards the shore, and in this respect and in its climate, is similar to Java. The soil is naturally fertile ; but agriculture is neglected, the inhabitants occupying themselves in searching for gold, which they exchange with the Japanese for the neces- saries of life. 1021. The ava, or intoxicating ])epper (Piper methysticum), is cultivated here. It is a shrub with a forked stem and oblong leaves, bearing a spike of berries, and having thick roots. The root of this plant, bruised or chewed in the mouth, and mixed with the saliva, yields that nauseous, hot, intoxicating juice, which is so acceptable to the natives of the South Sea islands, and which is spoken of with so much just detestation by voyagers. A similar drink is made in Peru from the meal of the maize. They pour the liquor of the cocoa-nut, or a little water, on the bruised or masticated matter, and then a small quantity produces intoxication and sleep. After the use of it for some time, it produces inflam- mation, leprous ulcers, and consumption. It is cultivated in all the South Sea islands, excepting the New Hebrides and New Caledonia. {Spix's Travels.) 1022. The Manillas^ or Philijyjnne Islands, are a numerous group, generally fruitful in rice, cotton, the sugar-cane, and cocoa. The bread-fruit also begins to be cultivated here. 1023. The Celebezian Islands are little known. They are said to abound in poisonous plants; and the inhabitants cultivate great quantities of rice. 1024. The Moluccas, or Spice Islands, are small, but fertile in agricultural products. In some the bread-fruit is cultivated, also the sago palm, with cloves and nutmegs. The nutmeg-tree (Myristica moschata) grows to the size of a pear-tree, with laurel-like leaves ; it bears fruit from the age of ten to one hundred years. Tlie fruit is about the size of an apricot, and when ripe nearly of a similar color. It opens and discovers the mace of a deep red, growing over and in part covering the thin shell of the nutmeg, which is black. The tree yields three crops annually ; the first in April, which is the best ; the second in August ; and the tliird in December ; yet the fruit requires nine months to ripen it. When it is gathered, the outer coriaceous covering is first stripped off, and then the inner carefully separated and dried in the sun. The nutmegs in the shell are exposed to heat and smoke for three months, then broken, and the kernels thrown into a strong mixture of lime and water, which is supposed to be necessary for their preservation, after which they are cleaned and packed up ; and with the same in- tention the mace is sprinkled with salt water. 1025. New Holland, or what may be called the continent of Australasia, has a fine and salubrious climate ; and being on the southern side of the equator, the seasons are the reverse of those in Europe. The surface is in general low and level, and little occu- pied by mountains. TTie country is naturally rather barren than fertile ; the soil is sandy, and many of the lawns or savannahs are rocky and barren. Woods occur fre- quently, but there appear to be few or none of those extensive forests which cover such immense tracts in most new countries. The inhabitants being savages of the lowest grade, have no kind of agriculture or cultivation. That art, however, is making rapid progress round the British colony of Botany Bay. 1026. Papua, or New Guinea, partakes of the opulence of the Moluccas, and their singular varieties of plants and animals. The coasts are lofty, and abound with cocoa-trees ; in the interior, ^ » ^^^ mountain rises above mountain, richly clothed with woods of great variety of species, and abounding in--i^^ wild swine {Jig. 162.) Birds of paradise and elegant; parrots abound: they are shot with blunt arrows, or^ caught with bird-lime or nooses. The bowels and breast being extracted, they are dried with smoke and sulplmr, and sold for nails or bits of iron to such navigators as touch at the island. 1027. New Britain, New Ireland, the Solomon Isles, New Caledonia, aiid the New Hebrides, are litttle known. They are mountainous and woody, with fertile vales and beautiful streams. The nutmeg, cocoa, yam, ginger, pepper, plantains {Jig. 163.) sugar-canes, and other fruits and spice-trees abound. 1028. iVetoZea/awf/ has scarcely any agriculture; but plantations of yam, cocoa, and sweet potatoe. There is only one shrub or tree in this country which pro- duces fruit, and that is a kind of a berry almost taste- less ; but they have a plant (Phormium tenax), which answers all the uses of hemp and flax. There are two kinds of this plant ; the leaves of one of which are yel- low, and the other deep red ; and botli of them re- semble the leaves of flags ; of these leaves they make 163 Book I. AGRICULTURE IN ASIA. 169 lines and cordage, and much stronger than any thing of the kind in Europe. These leaves they likewise split into breadths, and tying the slips together, form their fishing- nets. Their common apparel, by a simple process, is made from these leaves ; and their liner, by another preparation, is made from the fibres. This plant is found both on high and low ground, in dry mould and deep bogs ; but as it grows largest in the latter, that seems to be its proper soil. It has lately been planted, and found to prosper, in the south of Ireland. 1029. Van Diemans Land is without indi- genous agriculture ; but its climate being similar to that of England, its surface and soil favorable for culture, and there being few natives, it is rapidly colonizing with British farmers. As a country to emigrate to, it appears the most desi- rable in Australasia, and superior to any in Asia. 1030. The Pellew Isles are covered with wood, and encircled by a coral reef. None of these islands have any sort of grain or quadruped ; but they are rich in the most valuable fruit and spice trees, including the cabbage-tree {^Areca oleracea. Jig, 164.), cocoa, plantain, and orange; and abound with wild cocks and hens, and many otlier birds. The culture of the natives only extends to yams and cocoa-nuts. 1031. The Ladrones are a numerous col- lection of rocky fragments, little adapted to agriculture. The isles of Guam and Tinian are exceptions. The latter abounds in cattle and fruits, the bread-fruit, and orange ; but is without agriculture. 1 032. The Carolines are a large group, inha- bited by savage ■, and without agriculture. 1033. The Marquesas are in general rocky and mountainous, and but very few spots are fit for cultivation. The inhabitants are savages, but cultivate rudely the yam in some places. They have, however, the ava, or intoxicating pepper (1021.); and procure also a strong liquor from the root of ginger for the same general purpose of accumulating enjoyment, for- getting care, and sinking into profound sleep. 1034. The Sandwich Isles resemble those of the West Indies in climate, and the rest of the South Sea islands in vegetable productions. The bread-fruit tree attains great perfection. Sugar-canes grow to an unusual size, one being brought to Captain Cook eleven and a quarter inches in circumference, and having fourteen feet eatable. Dogs, hogs, and rats, are the only native quadrupeds of these islands, in common with all others that have been discovered in the South Sea. The king is a civilized being, and in the time of Geo. II., and again in 1824, visited England. 1035. The island of Otaheite is surrounded by a reef of coral rocks. The surface of the country, except that part of it which borders upon the sea, is very uneven ; it rises in ridges, that run up into the middle of the island, and there form mountains, which may be seen at the distance of sixty miles : between the foot of these ridges and the sea is a border of low land, surrounding the whole island, except in a few places where t he ridges rise directly from the sea : the border of low land is in different parts of dillerent breadths, but no where more than a mile and a half. 103G. The soil of Otaheite, except on the very tops of the ridges, is extremely rich and fertile, watered by a great number of rivulets of excellent water, and covered with fruit- trees of various kinds. The low land that lies between tlie foot of the ridges and the sea, and some of the valleys, are the only parts of the island that are inhabited, and here it is populous : the houses do not form villages or towns, but are ranged along the wholie border, at the distance of about fifty yards from each other, with little plantations of plantams, the tree which furnishes them with cloth. 1037. The produce of Otaheite is the bread-fruit, {Artocorpus integrifoliayjig. 165.) cocoa- nuts, bananas of thirteen sorts, plantains, a fruit not unlike an apple, which, when ripe, is very pleasant; sweet potatoes, yams, cocoas {Aruvi colocassia, and Caladium esculenlum, both propagated by the leaves); a fruit known here by the name of jambu, and reckoned most delicious; sugar-cane, which the inhabitants tat raw; a root of 170 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. the saloop kind, which the inhabitants call pea ; a plant called ethee, ef which the root only is eaten ; a fruit that grows in a ^^^K W^^^^^IH 1 ^/ 1 03 pod, like that of a large kidney bean, which, "^ ^^ when it is roasted, eats very much like a chestnut, by the natives called whee ; a tree called wharra, called in the East Indies pandanes, which produces fruit something like the pine apple ; a shrub called nono ; the morinda, which also produces fruit ; a species of fern, of which the root is eaten, and sometimes the leaves: and a plant called theve, of which the root also is eaten : but the fruits of the nono, the fern, and the theve, are eaten only by the inferior people, and in times of scarcity : all these, which serve the inhabitants lor food, the earth produces spontaneously, or with little culture. They had no European fruit, gardenstuff, pulse, or legumes, or grain of any kind, till some seeds of melons and other vegetables were given them by Captain Cook. 1038. Of tame animals, the Otaheitans have only hogs, dogs, and poultry ; neither is there a wild animal in the island, except ducks, pigeons, parroquets, with a few other birds, and rats, there being no other quadruped, nor any serpent. But the sea supplies them with great variety of most excellent fish, to eat which is their chief luxury, and to catch it their principal labor. ' 1039. The Friendly/ Islands are in most respects similar to Otaheite. Tongataboo ap- pears to be a flat country, with a fine climate, and universally cultivated. The whole of this island is said to consist of enclosures, with reed fences about six feet high, inter- sected with innumerable roads. The articles cultivated are bread fruit, plantains, cocoa-nuts, and yams. In the other islands, plantains and yams engage most of their attention ; the cocoa-nut and bread fruit-trees are dispersed about in less order than the former, and seem to give them no trouble. Their implements of culture consist of pointed sticks of different lengths and degrees of strength. Sect. II. Present State of Agriculture in Africa. 1040. The continent of Africa in point of agricultural, as of political and ethical es- timation, is the meanest of the great divisions of the earth ; though in one corner of it (Egypt) agriculture is supposed to have originated. The climate is everywhere hot, and intensely so in the northern parts. The central parts, as far as known, consist of ridges of mountains and immense deserts of red sand. There are very few rivers, inland lakes, or seas, and indeed fully one half of the whole of this continent may be considered as either desert, or unknown. Some of the African islands are fertile and important, especially Madagascar, Bourbon, Mauritias, &c. We shall take tne countries of Africa in the order of Abyssinia, Egypt, Mahometan states of the north, western coast, Cape of Good Hope, eastern coast, Madagascar, and other isles. SuBSECT. 1. Present State of Agriculture in Abyssinia. 1041. The climate of Abyssinia, though exceedingly various in different parts, is in general temperate and healthy. The surface of the country is generally rugged and mountainous ; it abounds with forests and morasses ; and it is also interspersed with many fertile valleys and plains, that are adapted both to pasture and tillage. The rivers are numerous and large, and contribute much to general fertility. The soil is not naturally good, being in general thin and sandy ; but it is rendered fertile and productive by irrigation and the periodical rains. 1042. The agricultural irroducts are wheat, barley, millet, and other grains. They cultivate the vine, peach, pomegranate, sugar-cane, almonds, lemons| {jig. 166.), citrons, and oranges; and they have many! roots and herbs which grow spontaneously, and theirs soil, if properly managed, would produce many more. However, they make little wine, but content themselves with the liquor which they draw from the sugar-cane, and their honey, which is excellent and abundant. They have the coffee-tree, and a plant called ensete, which produces an eatable nou- Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 171 rishing fruit. The country also produces many other plants and fruits, that are adapted both for domestic and medicinal uses. Here is plenty of cotton, which grows on shrubs, like the Indian. Their forests abound with trees of various descriptions, parti- cularly the rock, baobab, cedar, sycamore, &c. 1043. The live stock of Abyssinia includes horses, some of which are of a very fine breed; mules, asses, camels, dromedaries, oxen of different kinds, [Jig. 167.) cows, sheep, and goats ; and these constitute the ])rincipal wealth of the inhabitants. Amongst the wild animals, we may reckon the ante- lope, the buffalo, the wild boar, the jack- al, the elephant, the rhinoceros, the lion, , the leopard, the hyaena, the lynx, ape, and ' baboon, which are very destructive to the fields of millet, as well as the common rat ; the zecora, or wild mule, and the wild ass ; the jerboa, the fennic, ashkoko, hare, &c. The liare, as well as the wild boar, is deemed unclean, and not used as food. Bruce saw no sparrows, magpies, nor bats ; nor many water-fowl, nor any geese, except the golden goose, or goose of the Nile, which is com- mon in every part of Africa ; but there are snipes in the marshes. The locusts of this country are very destructive; they have also a species of ants, tliat are injurious; but from their bees they derive a rich supply. 1 044. The agriculture of Abyssinia is of far less use to the inhabitants than it might be for want of application and exertion. There are two, and often three harvests in the year ; and where they have a supply of water, they may sow in all seasons ; many of their trees and plants retain their verdure, and yield fruit or flowers throughout the year; the west side of a tree blossoms first, and bears fruit, then the south side, next the north side, and last of all the east side goes through the same process towards the beginning of the rainy seasons. Their pastures are covered with fiocks and herds. They have grass in abundance, but they neglect to make hay of it ; and therefore they are obliged to supply this defect by feeding their cattle with barley, or some other grain. Notwithstanding the plenty, and frequent return of their crops, they are sometimes reduced almost to famine, either by the devastations of the locusts or grasshoppers which infest the country, or by the more destructive ravages of tlieir own armies, and those of their enemies. SuBSECT. 2. Pre:ieid State of Agriculture in Egypt. 1045. The climate of Egypt has a peculiar character from the circumstance of rain being very uncommon. The heat is also extreme, particularly from March to November; while the cool season, or a kind of spring, extends through the other months. 1046. The surface of the country is varied in some regions, but is otherwise flat and uniform. Far the greater part presents a narrow fertile vale, pervaded by the Nile, and bounded on either side by barren rocks and mountains. Tlie soil of Egypt has been variously described by different travellers, some representing it as barren sand, only- rendered fertile by watering, and others as '* a pure black mould, free from stones, of a very tenacious and unctuous nature, and so rich as to require no manure." The latter appears to prevail only in the Delta. 1047. The fertility of Egypt has been generally ascribed to the inundations of the Nile, but this is applicable in a strict sense only to parts of the Delta ; whereas, in other dis- tricts there are canals, and the adjacent lands are generally watered by machines. Gray's description of Egypt, as immersed under the influx of the Nile, though exquisitely poetical, is far from being just. In Upper Egypt the river is confined by high banks, which prevent any inundation into the adjacent country. This is also the case in Lower Egypt, except at the extremities of the Delta, where the Nile is never more than a few feet below the surface of the ground, and where of course inundation takes place. But the country, as we may imagine, is without habitations. The fertility of Egypt, ac- cording to Browne, an intelligent traveller, arises from human art. The lands near the river are watered by machines ; and if they extend to any width, canals have been cut. The soil in general is so rich as to require no manure. It is a pure black mould, free from stones, and of a very tenacious unctuous nature. When left uncultivated, fissures have been observed, arising from extreme heat, of such depth that a spear of six feet could not reach the bottom. 1048. The limits of cultivated Egypt are encroached upon annually, and barren sand is accumulating from all parts. In 1.517, the era of the Turkish conquest, lake Mareotis was at no distance from the walls of Alexandria, and the canal which conveyed the waters into the city was still navigable. At this day the lake has disappeared, and tlie lands 172 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. watered by it, wliich, according to historians, protluccd abundance of corn, wine, and various fruits, arc changed into deserts, in which are found neither shrub, nor plant, nor verdure. The canal itself, the work of Alexander, necessary to the subsistence of the inhabitants of the city, which he built, is nearly choked up, and preserves the waters only when the inundation is at its greatest height, and for a short time. About half a century ago, part of the mud deposited by the river was cleared out of it, and it retained the water three months longer. Schemes have lately been adopted for opening and per- fecting this canal. The Pelusiac branch, which discharges itself into the eastern part of the lake of Tanais, or Menzal6, is utterly destroyed. With it perished the beautiful province which it fertilized, and the famous canal begun by Necos, and finished by Ptolemy Philadelphus. The famous works executed by kings, who sought their glory and happiness in the prosperity of the people, have not been able to resist the ravages of conquerors, and that despotism, which destroys every thing, till it buries itself under the wreck of the kingdoms whose foundation it has sapped. The canal of Amrou, the last of the great works of Egypt, and which formed a communication between Fostat and Colzoum, readies at present no farther than about four leagues beyond Cairo, and loses itself in tlie lake of Pilgrims. Upon the whole, it may be confidently aflSrmed that upwards of one-third of the lands formerly in cultivation is metamorphosed into dreary deserts. 1049. Landed properti/ in Egypt is for the most part to be considered as divided between the government and the religious bodies, who perform the service of the mosques, and have obtained possession of what they hold by the munificence of princes and rich men, or by the measures taken by individuals for the benefit of their posterity. Hence, a large proportion of the tenants and cultivators hold either of the government, or the procurators of the mosques. But there is one circumstance common to both, viz. that their lands, becoming unoccupied, are never let but upon terms ruinous to the tenants. Besides the property and influence of the beys, the mamelukes and the professors of the law are so extensive, and so absolute, as to engross into their own hands a very considerable part : the number of the otlier proprietors is extremely small, and their property liable to a thousand impositions. Every moment some contribution is to be paid, or some damage repaired ; there is no right of succession or inheritance for real property, except for that called *' wakf," which is the property of the mosques ; every thing returns to government, from which every thing must be repurchased. According to Volney, the peasants are hired laborers, to whom no more is left than what is barely sufficient to sustain life ; but Browne says, that tliese terms can be properly applied to very few of them. 1050. The occupier of the land, assisted by his family, is the cultivator; and in the operations of husbandry scarcely requires any other aid. And the tenant of land com- monly holds no more than he and his family can cultivate, and gather the produce of. When, indeed, the Nile rises, those who are employed to water the fields are commonly hired laborers. The rice and corn they gather are carried to their masters, and nothing is reserved for them but dourra, or Indian millet, of which they make a coarse and taste- less bread without leaven ; this, with water and raw onions, is their only food through- out the year ; and they think themselves happy if they can sometimes procure a little honey, cheese, sour milk, and dates. Their whole clothing consists in a shirt of coarse blue linen, and in a black cloak. Their head-dress is a sort of cloth bonnet, over which tliey roll a long handkerchief of red w6ollen. Their lgg arms, legs, and breasts are naked, and some of them do not even wear drawers. Their habitations {fig. 168.) are mud-walled huts, in which they are suffocated with heat and smoke, and in which, besides the experience of other inconveniences, they are perpetually distressed with the dreaecies of larger tamarisk {TaTuarix orientalis, Forskal.) The wood of this tree serves for various purposes ; and among others, for charcoal. It is the only wood that is common in Egypt, either for fuel or for manufactures. Fenu-greek is cultivated for fodder, though for this use a plant called barsim, is preferred. The plant called " helbe," is cried about for sale in November in the streets of the towns ; and it is purchased and eaten with incredible avidity, without any kind of seasoning. It is pre- tended, that it is an excellent stomachic, a sjiecific against worms and the dysentery, and, inshort, a preservation against a great number of disorders. Lentils form a consider-!^ able article of food to the inhabitants of Upi>er Egypt, who ^ rarely enjoy the luxury of rice. The Egyptian onions are remarkably mild, more so than the Spanish, but not so large. They are of the purest white, and the lamina are of a softer and looser contexture than that of any other species. They deteriorate by transplantation ; so that much must de- pend on the soil and climate. They remain a favorite article of food with all classes ; and it is usual to put a layer or two of them, and of meat, on a spit or skewer, and thus roast them over a charcoal fire. We need not wonder at the desire of the Israelites for the onions of Egypt. Leeks are also cultivated and eaten in this country ; and almost all the species of European vegetables abound in the gardens of Rosetta. Millet and Turkey corn, the vine, the hennt5 or Egyi>tian privet, the water-melon (fig- 169.) are cultivated in Egyirt ; 169 174 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. and the country furnishes a variety of medicinal plants, as carthatnus, tinctorius {fig. 170.), senna, coloquintida, &c., and that curious rooted plant the mandrake (^g. 171.) ^^^ must at least be a native of the island of Canaan. * '^ ' 1058. The live-stock of Egyptian agriculture is princi- pally the ox, the buffalo, the horse, ass, mule, and camel. The oxen of Egypt are employed in tillage, and in giving motion to a variety of hydraulic machines ; and as they are harnessed so as to draw^ from the pitch of the shoulder, their withers are higher than those of our country ; and, indeed, they have naturally some resemblance to the bison {Bosferus)y or hunched ox. It has been said that the cows of Egypt bring forth two calves at a time ; an instance of fecundity which sometimes happens; but is not reckoned very com- mon. Their calves are reared to maturity, as veal, whicli is forbidden by the law of the Mahometans, and the Copts also abstain from the use of it, is not eaten in Egypt. 1059. The buffalo is more abundant than the ox, and is equally domestic. It is easily distinguishable by the con- stantly uniform colour of the hair, and still more by a remnant of ferocity and intractability of disposition, and a wild lower- ing aspect, the characteristics of all half-tamed animals. The females are reared for the sake of the milk, and the males to be slaughtered and eaten. The flesh is somewhat red, hard, and dry ; and has also a musky smell, which is rather un- pleasant. 1060. The horses of Egypt rank next to those of the Arabians, and are remarkable for their valuable (jualities. Here, as in most countries of the East, they are not castrated either for domestic use or the cavalry. 1061 . The nsses of Egypt have no less a claim to distinction than the horses ; and these, as well as those of Arabia, are esteemed for their vigor and beauty the finest in the world. They are some- times sold for a higher price than even the horses. They are more hardy than horses, less difficult as to the quality and quantity of their food, and are therefore preferred in traversing the deserts. Tlie handsomest asses seen at Cairo are brought from Upper Egypt and Nubia. On ascending the Nile, the influence of climate is perceptible in these animals, which are most beautiful irt the Said, but are in every respect inferior towards the Delta. With the most distinguished race of horses and asses, Egypt possesses also the finest mules; some of which, at Cairo, exceed in value the price of the most beautiful horses. 1062. The camel and dromedari/ , as every body knows, are the beasts of burden in Egypt, and not only answer all the purposes of our waggons and public conveyances, but bear the conveyances of luxury {Jig. 172.), in which the females of the higher classes pay their visits on extraordinary occasions. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. m 10G3. The agricultural implements of Egypt are simple ; but some of them, particularly the contrivances for raising water, very ingenious. The plough is of the rudest kind, as are the cart and spade. 1064. The operalions of threshing and sowing have been already described (1052-3,). That of irrigation is performed as in other countries. At present there are reckoned eighty canals in use for this purpose, some of them twenty, thirty, and forty leagues in length. The lands near the -river, as the Delta, are watered directly from it ; the water is raised by wheels in the dry season ; and when the inundation takes place, it is retained on the fields for a certain time by ^ a ^ 1*^3 small embankments made round them. 1065. iVuftia, the Ethiopia of the ancients, is amiserable country or desert, thinly in- habited by a wretched people, who live chiefly on millet, and dwell in groups of mud« huts, {Jig. 173.) SuBSECT. 3. Present State of Agriculture in the Mahometan States of the North of Africa. 1066. These are Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco; territories chiefly on the southern shore of the Mediterranean, rich, and celebrated in the ages of antiquity, but at present depressed by the barbarism and fanaticism of their rulers, who are in general tributary to the Porte. 1067. Tripoli is generally distinguished into maritime and inland. In neither is there much agriculture, for the inhabitants of countries on the coast live chiefly by commerce and piracy ; and those of the inland parts on plunder and robbery. There are a few fields of grain, chiefly rice, round the capital, date palms, olives, and what is called the lotus-tree {Zizyphus lotus), whose fruit is reckoned superior to the date, and makes excellent wine. 1068. The kingdom of Tunis was formerly the chief seat of Carthaginian power. The soil is in general impregnated with marine salt and nitre, arid springs of fresh water are more rare than of salt. But the Tunisians are much more agriculturists than their neighbors either of Tripoli or Algiers. The southern parts of the country are sandy, barren, and parched by a burning sun : the northern parts enjoy a better soil and tem- perature, and are more under cultivation : near the sea, the country is rich in olive- trees. The western part abounds in mountains and hills, and is watered by numerous rivulets ; it is extremely fertile, and produces the finest and most abundant crops. The first rains commonly fall in September, and then the farmers break up the ground, sow their grain, and plant beans, lentils, and garvancos. By May following, harvest commences; and we may judge of its productiveness by what the Carthaginians experienced of old (38. ) The ox and the buffalo are the principal beasts of labor, and next the ass, mule, and horse. Both the first and the last have here degenerated in size. They have a curiously-shaped cow (fg. 174.), which some consider a distinct species from the bos taurus, fcem. or common cow. 1069. The territory of Algiers, in an agricultural point of view, is chiefly distinguished by the fertile plain of Mettijiah, a vast country, which stretches fifty miles in length, and twenty in breadth, to the foot of one of the branches of Mount Atlas. This plain is watered by several streams ; the soil is light and fertile, and it is better cultivated than any other district of the kingdom. The country-seats and masharcas, as they call the farms of the principal inhabitants of Algiers, are found in these plains ; and it is chiefly from them that the metropolis is supplied with provisions. Flax, alhenna, roots, potherbs, rice, fruit, and grain of all kinds are produced here to such perfection, that the Metijiah may be justly reckoned the garden of the whole kingdom. 1070. In the inland provinces are immense tracts of country wholly uninhabited and uncultivated. There are also extensive tracts of brushwood, and some timber-forests. The fertility of the soil decreases in approaching Sahara or the Desert, although in its borders, and even in the desert itself there are some districts which are capable of culti- vation, and which produce corn, figs, and dates. These regions are inhabited by no- madical tribes, who, valuing themselves on their independence, endure with fortitude and resignation the inconvehiences attending their condition, and scarce regret the want of those advantages and comforts that pertain to a civilised state of society. 176 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 107 1. The seed-time hero, as in Tunis, Is during the months of October and November, when wheat, barley, rice, Indian corn, millet, and various kinds of pulse, are sown. In six months, the crops are harvested, trod out by oxen or horses, winnowed by throwing with a shovel against the wind, and then lodged in subterraneous magazines. 1072. The empire of Morocco is an extensive territory of mountains and plains, and chiefly an agricultural country. The mountains consist of limestone or clay, or a mix- ture of both, and no vestiges appear of granite, on which they are supposed to rest. The climate is temperate and salubrious, and not so hot as its situation would lead us to suppose. The rains are regular in November, though the atmosphere is not loaded with clouds : January is summer ; and in March barley -harvest commences. The soil consists either of pure sand, often passing into quicksand, or of pure clay ; often so abundantly mixed with iron ochre, that agricultural productions, such as wax, gum, wool, &c. are distinguished by a reddish tint, which, in the wool, cannot be removed by washing or bleaching. Cultivation, in this country, requires little labor, and, in general, no ma- nure ; all other weeds and herbaceous plants, not irrigated, are, at a certain season, burnt up by the sun, as in some parts of Spain (696.) ; the ground being then perfectly clean and dry, is rendered friable, and easily pulverised by the rains ; and one rude stir- ring suffices both for preparing the soil and covering the seed. The produce in wheat, rice, millet, maize, barley, chick-peas (^Cicer arietinum)y is often sixty fold; thirty fold is held to be an indiflerent harvest. 1073. In general they make use of no manure, except that which is left on the fields by their flocks and herds. But those people who inhabit places near forests and woods, avail themselves of another method to render the soil productive. A month or two before the rains commence, the farmer sets fire to the underwood, and by this confla- gration clears as much land as he intends to cultivate. The soil, immediately after this treatment, if carefully ploughed, acquires considerable fertility, but is liable soon to be- come barren, unless annually assisted by proper manure. This system of burning down the woods for the sake of obtaining arable land, though not generally permitted in states differently regulated from this, is allowable in a country, the population of which bears so small a proportion to the fertility of the soil, and in which the most beautiful tracts are suffered to remain unproductive for want of hands to cultivate them. In this man- ner the nomadic Arab proceeds in his conflagrations, till the whole neighborhood around him is exhausted ; he then packs up his tents and travels in search of another fertile place where to fix his abode, till hunger again obliges him to continue his migra- tion. Thus it is computed, that at one and the same time no more than a third part of the whole country is in a state of cultivation. 1074. Tfie live stock of Morocco consists of numerous flocks and herds. Oxen of a small breed are plentiful, and also camels ; the latter animal being used both in agri- culture, for travelling, and its flesh as food. The horses are formed for fleetness and activity, and taught to endure fatigue, heat, cold, hunger, and thirst. Mules are much used, and the breed is encouraged. Poultry is abundant in Morocco ; pigeons are ex- cellent ; partridges are plentiful ; woodcocks are scarce ; but snipes are numerous in the season ; the ostrich is hunted both for sport and for profit, as its feathers are a consider- able article of traflBc ; hares are good ; but rabbits are confined to the northern part of the empire, from Saracha to Tetuan. Fallow deer, the roebuck, the antelope, foxes, and other animals of Europe, are not very abundant in Morocco ; lions and tigers are not uncommon in some parts of the empire : of all the species of ferocious animals found in this empire, the wild boar is the most common : the sow has several litters in the year, and her young, which are numerous, serve as food for the lion. 1075. The nomadic agriculturists form themselves into incampments, called douhars, (Jig. 175.) and composed of numerous tents, which form a circle or crescent, and their 175 ^ flocks and herds returning from pasture occupy the centre. Each douhar has a chief, who is invested with authority for superintending and governing a number of these en- campments ; and many of the lesser subdivisions are again reunited under the govern- ment of a " bashaw ;" some of whom have 1000 douhars under their command. Their Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 177 tents, of a conical form, and about eight or ten feet high in the centre, and from twenty to twenty five in length, are made of twine, composed of goat's hair, camel's wool, and the leaves of the wild palm, so that they keep out water; but being black, their ap- pearance at a distance is not agreeable. In camp the Moors live in the utmost simpli- city, and present a faithful picture of the earth's inhabitants in the first ages. In the milk and wool of their flocks, they find every thing necessary for their food and cloth- ing. It is their custom to have several wives, who are employed in all domestic affairs. Beneath their ill-secured tents they milk their cows and make butter ; they sort and sift their wheat and barley, gather vegetables, grind flour with a mill composed of two round stones, eighteen inches in diameter ; in the upper one of which is fixed a handle by which it is made to turn upon an axle. They daily make bread, which they bake between two earthen plates, and very often on the ground heated by fire. 1076. N^o alteration in the agriculture of Morocco seems to have taken place for several centuries, owing to the insecurity of its government; every thing being despotic; and property in land, as well as the person and life, being subject to the caprice of the sovereign, and the laws of the moment. SuBSECT. 4. Present State of Agriculture on the Western Coast of Africa, 1077. Of the innumerable tribes wliich occujri/ tltis west coast of Africa, the principal are the Jalefs and Foulahs, and of the former little is known. The remaining part of the country consists of the territories of Benin, Loango, and ,7^ / ->. Congo. ''^ (Q^/¥\ 1078. The soil of the Fouiah countri/ is {ettile. The inhabitants are said to be diligent as farmers and graziers, and to raise millet, rice, tobacco, - cotton, pease, carob beans (Ceratonia siliqua,fig. 176.), roots, and fruits in abundance. Their live stock, however, constitutes their chief wealth, and accordingly they roam, pursuing a kind of wandering life, from field to field, and from country to country, with large droves of cows, sheep, goats, and horses ; removing, as the wet and dry seasons require, from the low to the high lands, and continue no longer in one place than the pasture for their cattle will allow. The inconvenience and labor of this roving life are augmented by the defence they are obliged to provide against the depredations of the Merce animals with which the countrya abounds ; as they are molested by lions, tigers, and elephants, from the^ land, and crocodiles from the rivers. At night they collect their herds * and flocks within a circle of huts and tents in which they live, and where they light fires in order to deter these animals from approaching them. During the day they often place their children on elevated platforms of reeds (Jig. 177.) for security from wild beasts, while they are hunting or pursuing other labors. The elephants are so numerous, that they appear in droves of 200 together, plucking up the small trees, and destroying whole fields of corn ; so that they have recourse to hunting, not merely as a pastime, but as the means of self-preservation. 1079. The English settleinent of Sierra-leone is situated to the west of the country of the Foulahs, on the river Senegal. It was formed in 1787, for the benevolent purpose of promoting African civilisation. A tract of land was purchased from the prince of the country, and a plantation established, in which is cultivated rice, cotton, sugar, pepper, tobacco, and other products; and gum arable (Mimosa niloticOf fg. 178.), and 177 " 178 other valuable articles are procured from the native woods. In tliese woods the pine apple grows wild in tlie greatest abundance and luxuriance. The fruit is large and highly flavored, and, when in season, may be purchased by strangers at less than a halfpenny each. A meal in common use by the natives is made from the pounded roots of the manioca (Jatropha manihot). This meal, after being first ground from the roof, IS made into a pulp and pressed to get rid of a poisonous juice. It is then re-dried and constitutes a wholesome farina, which forms almost the entire food of the slaves. N 178 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. 1080. Benin is an extensive country,- very productive of fruits, trees, and plants ; including the orange, cocoa, cotton, &c. and abounding in animals, among which is enumerated civet cats, and a sort of hairy sheep. Agriculture, however, is little attended to, the chief object being the commerce of slaves. - 1081. The inhabitants of Loango, instead of cultivating the land, content themselves with bread and fish, and such fruits, greens, and pulse, as the soil naturally produces. Cocoas, oranges, and lemons, are not much cultivated ; but sugar-canes, cassia, and tobacco, as well as the palm, banana, cotton, and pimento- trees, grow here plentifully. They have also a great variety of roots, herbs, fruits, grain, and other vegetables, of which they make bread, and which thoy use for food. They have few quadrupeds for domestic use, except goats and hogs, but poultry and various sorts of game are abundant : among the wild beasts they have the zebra, and a great number of elephants, whose teeth they exchange with the Europeans for iron. ■ 1082. Congo is an extensive and very fertile country ; but the inhabitants are indolent, and neglect its culture. The operations of digging, sowing, reaping, cutting wood, grinding corn, and fetching water, they leave to their wives and slaves. Under their management, several sorts of grain and pulse is culti- vated, especially maize, of which they have two crops in a year ; but such is the heat of the climate, that Wheat will not produce plump seeds ; it shoots rapidly up into the straw and ear ; the former high enough to hide a man on horseback, and the latter unfilled. Grass grows to a great height, and afibrds sheltering places for a number of wild animals and noisome reptiles and insects. The Portuguese have introduced a variety of palm and other fruit trees, which are better adapted for producing human food in such a climate. 1083. The boabab {Adansonia digitata) is a native of Congo. This tree, discovered by the celebrated French botanist, Adanson, is considered the largest in the world : several, measured by this gentle- man, were from sixty-five to seventy-eight feet in circumference, but not extraordinarily high. The trunks were from twelve to fifteen feet high, before they divided into many horizontal branches, which touched the ground at their extremities ; these were from forty-five to fifty-five feet lovig, and were .so large, that each branch was equal to a monstrous tree ; and where the water of a neighboring river had washed away the earth so as to leave the roots of one of these trees bare and open to the sight, they measured one hundred and ten feet long, without including those parts of the roots which remained covered. It yields a • fruit which resembles a gourd, and which » serves for vessels of various uses; the bark of which fur- ^ '^ nishes them with a coarse thread, which they form into ropes and into a cloth, with which the natives cover their middle from the girdle to the knees ; and the small leaves of which supply them with food in a time of scarcity, while the large ones are used for covering their houses, or by burning for the manufacture of good soap. At Sierra-leone, this tree does not grow larger than an orchard apple tree. 1084. Of the bark qf the infanda tree, and also of the mulemba, resembling in many respects our laurel, they form a kind of stuff or cloth, which is fine, and used for cloaks and girdles by persons of the highest rank. The oil of their palm-trees is used instead of butter ; with the moss that grows about the trunk, the rich commonly stuff their pillows ; and the Giagas apply it to their wounds with gped effect : with the leaves the Moors cover their houses, and they draw from these trees, by incision, a pleasant liquor like wine, which, however, turns sour in five or six days. 1085. Among other fruits and roots, they have the vine, which was brought thither from Candia, and yields grapes twice a year. 1086. The live stock common to other agricultural coun- tries, are here much neglected ; but , the Portuguese settlers have directed their attention to cows, sheep, and goats, chiefly on account of their milk. Like most parts of Africa, this country swarms with wild animals. Among these, the zebra, buffalo, and wild ass, are hunted, and made useful as food or in commerce. The dante, a kind of ox, whose skins are sent into Germany to be tanned and made into targets, called "dantes," abounds, and also the cameleon, a great variety of monkies, {fig. 179.), and all the sorts of domestic poultry and game. SuBSECT. 5. Present State of Agriculture at the Cape of Good Hope. 1087. TAe Dutch colonized the Cape of Good Hope in 1660, and the English obtained possession of it in 1795. 1088. The climate of this cape is not unfriendly to vegetation ; but it is so situated, within the influence of periodical winds, that the rains are very unequal, descending in torrents during the cold season, though hardly a shower falls to refresh the earth in the hot summer months, when the dry south-east winds prevail. These winds blast the foliage, blossom, and fruit, of all those trees that are not well sheltered ; nor is the human constitution secure against their injurious influence. As a protection from these winds the colonists who inhabit the nearest side of the first chain of mountains, beyond which* their effect does not very sensibly extend; divide that portion of their ground which IS appropriated to fruit groves, vineyards, and gardens, by oak screens; but they leave their corn lands altogether open. The temperature of the climate at the Cape is re- markably affected by local circumstances. In summer the thermometer is generally be- tween 70 and 80°/ and sometimes between 80« and 90°, but scarcely ever exceeds 95^ 1089. The surface of the country consists of some mountains and extensive barrenl like plains. The upper regions of all the chains of mountains are naked masses of sand- stone ; the vallies beneath thetn are clothed with grass, with thickets, and in some cases with impenetrable forests. The inferior hills or knolls, whose surfaces are generally composed of loose fragments of sandstone, as well as the wide sandy plains that connect them, are thinly strewed over with heaths and other shrubby plants, exhibiting to the eye an uniform and dreary appearance. In the lowest part of these plains, where the Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 179 waters subside, and, filtering through the sand, break ooit in springs upon the surface, vegetation is somewhat more luxuriant. In such situations the farm-houses are generally '.placed ; and the patches of cultivated ground contiguous to theiu, like the " oases" in the sandy deserts, may be considered as so many verdant islands in the midst of a bound- less w^aste. 1090. Soils, in this tract of 'countiy, are generally either a stiff clay, impenetrable by the plough till they are soaked by much rain ; or light and sandy, tinged with red, and abounding with small round quartzose pebbles. A black vegetable mould seldom ap- pears, except in patches of garden-ground, vineyards, and orchards, that surround the habitations, where, by long culture, manure, and the fertilizing influence of springs or rills of water, the soil is so far mellowed as to admit the spade at all seasons of the year. The extensive plains, known in the colony by the Hottentot name of " Karroo," which are interspersed between the great chains of mountains, exhibit a more dismal appearance than the lower plains, which are chequered with patches of cultivated ground ; and their hard surfaces of clay, glistening with small crystals of quartz, and condemned to per- petual drought and aridity, are ill adapted to vegetation. The hills that break tiiese barren plains, are chiefly composed of fragments of blue slate, or masses of feltspar, and argillaceous limestone. However, in those Kjarroo plains that are tinged with iron, and that are capable of being watered, the soil is extremely productive. In such situations, more especially in the vicinity of the Cape, they have the best grapes, and the best fruit of every sort. The great scarcity of water in summer is much more unfavorable to an extended cultivation than either the soil or the climate. 1091. Landed property was held by the original Dutch from the government of the Cape on four different tenures. The first tenure was that of an yearly lease, renewable for ever on condition of payment of a certain rent, not in general exceeding eight-tenths of. a farthing per acre: the second tenure a sort of perpetual holding, subject to a small rent : the third a holding on fifteen years leases at a quit-rent, renewable : and the last was that of " real estate " or freehold, the settler having purchased his farm at once for a certain sum. The second tenure is the most common in the colony. The lands were originally measured out and allotted in the following manner : a stake was stuck as near the centre of the future estate as could be guessed, and a man, starting from thence, walked for half an hour in a straight line, to each of the four points of the compass ; giving thus the radii of a circle that comprised a space of about 60C0 acres. 1092. Of these extensive farms, the greater partis, of course, mere sheep and cattle walks. They break up for tillage, patches here and there, where the plough can be directed with the least difficulty, or the soil is most inviting for the purpose. A slight scattering of manure is sometimes used, but more frequently none at all ; and it is astonishing to see the crops this soil, and even the lightest sands, will produce, with so little artificial stimulus. Seventeen successive crops of wheat without any manure have been taken. When the land is somewhat exhausted by a succession of crops, they break up fresh ground, and the old is suffered to lie fallow, as they term it, for many years ; that is, it is permitted to throw up plentiful crops of huge bushes and heath till its turn comes round again,- which may be in about seven years, when there is the trouble of breaking it up anew. The sheep and cattle are permitted to stray at pleasure, or are, perhaps, intrusted to the care of a hottentot. 1093. The agriciiitural products of the Cape farmers are chiefly wheat and other grains, pulse, wine, and brandy, wool, hides, and skins, dried fruits, aloes, and tobacco. The returns of grain and pulse are from ten to seventy, according to the nature of the soil and the sup{)ly of water. Barley, i. e. bear or bigg, is very productive, and is used only for feeding horses. Rye and oats run much to straw, and are chiefly used as green fodder, Indian corn thrives well, and is very productive ; and various kinds of millet, kidneybeans, and other pulse are extensively cultivated. The wheat is generally heavier, and yields a finer flour than that of England. It is all spring-wheat, being sown from the month of April to June. The returns are very various in the different soils : some farmers declare that they have reaped sixty and eighty for one ; the average may be from twenty to thirty ; but it is impossible to come to a true estimate upon this point, as no farmers can tell you the exact quantity sown upon a given quantity of acres. 1094. The vine, however, is the most profitable, and what may be considered the staple artiple of culture. Better grapes are not produced in any part of the world ; but the art of making wine and brandy from them admits of much improvement. Ten or twelve different kinds of wine are at present manufactured, having a distinct flavor and quality, according to the farms on which they are produced. 1095. The celebrated Constantia wine is made on two farms of that name, close under the mountains between Table bay and False bay. The white wine of that name is made on the farm called Little Con- stantia, and the other produces the red. The grape is the muscadel, and the rich quality of the wine is owing partly to the situation and soil of the vineyards, and partly to the care taken in manufacturing the wine. No stalks and no fruit but such as is fully ripe, are suttfered to go under the press j precautions rarely taken by the other farmers of the Cape. The muscadel grape grows at every fanti, and at some farms in Drakenstein, the wine pressed from it is equally good, if not superior, to the Constantia, though sold, on account of the name of the latter, at one sixth-part of the price. When they find that the wine i.s to be sent abroad, they adulterate it witli some other wine : for, according to their own returns, th« N 2 180 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. . Part I. quantity exported and consumed in Cape Town, as in the case of Madeira wine, greatly exceeds the quantity manufactured. 1096. The almond is a very productive tree at the Cape ; the tree thrives in the driest and worst soil, and the fruit, though small, is of excellent quality. Dried peaches, apricots, pears, and apples, are not only plentiful, but good of their kind ; dried grapes, or raisins, are not so well managed. Potash is pro- cured from a species of salsola which grows on the deserts ; and with this and the fat of sheeps' tails, the farmers make their soap. The berries of the candleberry myrtle {Myrica cerifera) supply a vegetable wax sold at Cape Town in large green cakes, from which odoriferous candles are made. 1097. The aloe soccotrhui'^and perjoli ta, cover large tracts of ground, and these afford the inspissated juice or resin of the apothecaries. The leaves of the plant are cut off one by one, and as they are cut, thrown into tubs. In a day or two after they are thrown in, the juice will have run out of itself, when the leaves are taken out and used as manure. The juice is then either clarified in the sun or by boiling, and when dry, cut into cakes and packed up for sale. 1098. The tobacco grown at the Cape is said to be as good as that of Virginia. Enough is grown for home consumption, which is considerable ; but none for exportation. 1099. The live stock of the Cape farmers is chiefly oxen, horses, sheep, swine, and poultry. There are only some districts adapted to grazing ; and the farmers who follow this department are in a much less civilized state than the others. The flocks and herds wander over immense tracts, for the use of which a rent or tax according to the number of beasts is paid. At night they are brought home to folds or kraals, which are close to the huts of the farmers, and are represented as places of intolerable filth and stench. 1100. The native cattle of the Cape are a hardy, long-legged, bony animal, more in the coach-horse line than fitted for the shambles. They are bad milkers, probably from the bad quality and scanty supplies of forage. 1101. The sheep are wretched beasts, more resembling goats, with wool that might be taken for frisly hair, and is in fact only used for stuffing chairs, or such like purposes ; the other parts of the body seem drained to supply the accumulation of fat upon the tail, which weighs from six to twelve pounds. 11C2. The Merinos, of which there are a few flocks, do very well : they are much degenerated for want of changing, and a proper selection of rams. 1103. The Ryelandy or Southdown sheep, would be a great acquisition here ; for the Cape mutton forms a detestable food. 1104. The Cape horse, which is not indigenous, but was introduced originally from Java, is a small, active, spirited animal ; a mixture of the Spanish and Arabian, capable of undergoing great fatigue ; and, as a saddle-horse, excellently adapted to the country. As a draught-horse for the farmer, he is too small j and the introduction of a few of the Suffolk-punch breed, would be a real benefit to the colony, as well as a source of profit to the importer. 1105. Pigs are scarce in the colony amongst the farmers. It is difficult to say why, excepting that there is more trouble in feeding them ; and they cannot be turned to graze like sheep. Poultry is, for the same reason, neglected. Indeed, bad mutton may be said to be the only food of the colonists. 1 106. The agricultural implements and operations of the Cape farmers are said to be performed in the rudest manner, and their crops are thought to depend principally on the goodness of the soil and climate. The plough of the Dutch farmers is a couple of heavy boards nailed together, and armed with a clumsy share, which it requires a dozen oxen to work. Their harrow, if they use any at all, is a few brambles. Their waggons (which will carry about thirty Winchester bushels, or a ton weight, and are generally drawn by sixteen and sometimes twenty oxen) are well constructed to go tilting up and down the precipitous passes of the kloofs with safety ; but they have no variety for the different roads. Burchell has given a portrait of one of these impos- ing machines {Jig. 180.). Their method of beating out the corn is well known; the sheaves are spread on a circular floor, surrounded by a low wall, with which every farm is supplied. The farmer's whole stock of brood mares and colts are then turned in, and a black man, standing in the centre, with a long whip to enforce his authority, the whole herd are compelled to frisk and canter round till the corn is trampled out of the ear. This is termed " tramping out." The winnowing is performed by tossing the trampled grain and dung in the air with shovels, or by exposing it to the wind in a sieve. 1107. The agriculture of the Cape appears capable of much improvement, were the farmers less indolent, and more ambitious of enjoying the comforts and luxuries of existence. Barrow is of opinion there might be produced an abundance of corn, cattle, and wine, for exportation ; but that to effect this, " it will be necessary to procure a new race of inhabitants, or to change the nature of the old ones." At the suggestion of this writer, an attempt was recently made by government to settle a number of British families at the Cape, as cultivators; but after they had gone out and remained there Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 181 above a year, they either died or returned completely ruined and disappointed- Neither the climate or mode of culture, indeed, are at all calculated for liritons : for French, German, or Italian peasantry, they may do much better. 1108. In the interior of the -country are many tribes of whom little or nothing is known ; but some of which are every now and then brought into notice by modern travellers. Some have been visited, for the first time, by the missionary Campbell ; and the account he gives of their agriculture, manufactures, and customs is often very 181 curious. It is astonishing how ingenious he found some tribes in cutlery and pottery; and the neatness and regularity of rhe houses of others is equally temarkable. In one place the ^houses were even tasteful ; they [were conical, and enclosed by large circular fences, {jig. 181.); and he found them threshing out the corn on raised circular threshing-floors («j, with flails, much in the same manner as we do. 1 109. The unimproved Hotten- tots form their huts {Jig. 182.) of mats bound on a skeleton of poles or strong hoops (Jig. 183.) Their form is hemispherical ; j they are entered by a low door, which has a mat shutter, and the\ are surrounded by a reedor mat! fence to exclude wild animals' and retain fuel and cattle. At- tempts to introduce European forms of cottages have been made by the missionaries, which, with a knowledge of the mere useful arts, will no doubt in time humanize and refine them. The missionary Kiishe 183 conducted Burchell along tlie valley of Genadendal, to exhibit the progress which the Hottentots under his instruction had made in horticulture and domestic order. The valley is a continued maze of gardens and fruit trees. *' The huts {Jig. 184,), une like those of Hottentot construction, ar- a rude imitation of the quadrangular build- ings of the colonist. They are generally from ten to fifteen feet long, and from eight to ten wide, having an earthen floor and walls white- washed • ■==^=,.=^;=^^^~ .-_- ~-^-==^=^:==^ 184 on their inside, com- posed of rough un- hewn poles, filled up between with reeds and rushes plastered with mud, and the whole covered with a roof of thatch The eaves being in general not higher from the ground than four or six feet, the doors could not l)e entered without stooping. A small unglazed window admitted light, but there was neither chimney nor any other opening in the roof by which the smoke might escape." {BurcheWs Travels, i. 112.) 1110. Tlie cattle of all the Hottentot and other tribes are kept in circular folds during night ; and it is remarkable that these folds are the only burial places known to be in use among that people. " Corn is preserved in Avhat may be termed large jars, of various dimen- sions, but most commonly between four and five feet high and three wide. The shape of these corn jars is nearly that of an eggshell, having its upper end cut off: sometimes their mouth is contracted in a manner wliich gives them a great resemblance to an European oil jar. They are formed with stakes and branches fixed into the ground and in- terwoven with twigs ; this frame- work being afterwards plastered within and without with loam and cow.dung. Frequently the bottoms of these jars are raised about six inches or a foot above the ground ; and the lower part of the stakes being then uncovered gives tJiem N 3 182 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. the appearance of standing on short legs. Their contents are usually protected by a covering of skin or str&w." This mode of keeping their corn and beans, Burcliell ob- serves, shows a degree of ingenuity equal to that which is displayed in the construction of their houses, and is to be admired for its simpHcity and perfect adequateness to the purpose. In the dwellings of the richer inhabitants, the back part of the houses is com- pletely filled with jars of this kind." (Traj^e/s, ii. 520.) 1111. The natives of the south of Africa live much on bulbous roots, of which their country is naturally more productive than any 185 other. Burchel has enumerated a considerable number which he saw them use. One of the most remarkable grows on the mountains of Graf- reynet, and is called Hottentot's bread i Ele- phantopus, Willd., Testudenaria, Salisb., _^g. 185.) Its bulb stands entirely above ground, and grows to an enormous size, frequently three feet in height ^ and diameter. It is closely studded with angular ligneous protuberances, which give it some re- semblapce to the shell of a tortoise. The inside is< a fleshy substance, which may be compared to a turnip, both in substance and color. From the top of this bulb arise f.everal annual stems, the branches of which have a disposition to twine round any shrub within reach. The taste of this bulb is thought to resemble that of the yam of the East Indies, the plant being closely allied to the genus Dioscorea. [BurcheWs Travels, ii. 147.) 1 1 12, The JBachapins are a people of the interior of South Africa, which were visited by Burchell. Their agriculture, he says, is " extremely simple and artless. It is performed entirely by women. To prepare the ground for sowing theV pick it up to the depth of about 186 four inches, with a kind of hoe or mattock, which differs in nothing from a carpenter's adze but in being two or three times larger. The corn they sow is tlie CafFre corn or Guinea corn, a variety of millet (Holcus Sorghum Caffrorum). They cultivate also a kind of kidneybean, and eat the ripe seeds, and also water-melons, pumpkins, and the calabash gourd for the use of its shell as a domestic vessel for drinking and various uses. They are inordinate smokers of tobacco, but they do not cultivate the plant. Burchell gave them some potatoes and peach stones to cultivate, with which they were exceedingly pleased and thankful. [Travels, n. 518.) 1113. The Bushman spade {fig. 186,) is a pointed stick about three feet long, to which there is affixod about the middle a stone to increase its power in digging up bulbous roots. This stone is about five inches in diameter, and is cut or ground very regularly to a round form, and perforated with a hole large enough to receive the stick and a wedge by which it is lixed to its place. {BurcheWs Travels, ii. 30.) SuBsECT. 6. Present State of Agriculture on the Eastern Coast of Africa, and the African Islands. 1114. Of the various countries on the east coast of Africa the chief is Mocaranga, whose agriculture may be considered as a specimen of that of the savage tribes of the other states. The climate is temperate, though tlie mountains called Supata, or the spine of the world, forming a great chain from north to south, are perpetually covered with snow ; the air clear and salubrious, and the soil fertile and well watered, so that its pastures feed a great number of cattle, more valued by the inhabitants than their gold. The inland parts of the country-, however, are sandy, dry, and barren. The products of the country on the coast, are rice, millet, and maize, but no wheat; sugar canes and cotton are found both wild and cultivated. They are without the ox and horse, but elephants, ostriches, and a great variety of wild animals abound in the forests. According to tfie doubtful accounts of tiiis country, the king on days of ceremony wears a little spade hanging by his side as an emblem of cultivation. 1115. The island if Madagascar is celebrated for its fertility, and the variety of its pro- ductions. Its climate is mild and agreeable ; and the surface of the country is divided into the east and western provinces by a range of mountains. The summits of these mountains are crowned with lofty trees of long duration, and the low grounds are watered by torrents, rivers, and rivulets, which flow from them. The agricultural pro- ducts arc rice, cotton, indigo, sugar, pulse, the yam, banana, cocoa, pepper, ginger, turmeric, and a variety of other fruits and spices. There are a great number of raw fruits and esculent plants, and many curious woods. Oxen and flocks of sheep abound ; but there arc no horses, elephants, lions, or tigers. The culture is very imperfect, the soil and the excellence of the seasons supplying the place of labor and skill. Book I. AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 183 1116. The Mauritius^ or Isle of France, is a productive island, chiefly indebted to the industry of the French, who have inJ:roduced tliere most of the grains, roots, and fruits of other parts of the world, all of which seem to thrive. The climate is excellent, and similar to that of the Bourbon and Canary islands. The surface is mountainous towards tlie sea coast, but within land there are many spots both level and fertile. The soil is, generally speaking, red and stony. The agricultural products are numerous. A crop of maize, succeeded by one of wheat, is procured in one season from the same field. The rice of Cochin- China is extensively cultivated; the manioc, or cassava (Jatropha Duinikot) of Brazil ; sugar, which is the chief product of export ; cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg trees, &c. Oranges, citrons, and guavas {Jig. 187.) abound; and pine apples are said to grow spontaneously. Many valuable kinds of woods are found in the forests ; and on the banks of the rivers are fed the flocks and herds of the country. 1117. The Isle of Bourhon dx^QYs \\t\\Q in its natural and agricultural circumstances from that of the Mauritius. 1118. St. Helena is a rugged, but beautiful island, dccupied by a few farmers, chiefly English. Their chief productions are cattle, hogs, and poultry ; and when the India ships arrive every house becomes a tavern. 1119. The Cajie Verd Islands are» in general, hot and unhealthy as to climate, and stony and barren as to soil. Some, however, produce rice, maize, bananas, oranges, cotton, and sugar- canes, with abundance of poultry. 1 1 20. The Canary Islands having been subject to Spain for many centuries, the agri- culture of the parent country prevails throughout. The climate is temperate, and the soil generally rich. The stock of the farm belongs to the pro- prietor of the soil, who lends it to the cultivator, on condition of getting half of the produce. The products are, wheat, barley, rice, oats, flax, anise seeds, coriander, the mulberry, grape, cotton, sugar-cane, dragon's blood-tree (Draccena) , and a variety of other esculent plants and fruits. ' The celebrated Canary wine is made chiefly in the islands of Teneritfe and Canary. Potatoes have been introduced within the last fifty years, and now constitute the chief food of the inhabitants. The archil {Lichen rocella, Linn. jig. 188 a.), a moss used in dyeing, grows wild on all the rocks ; and kali {Salsola kali, Jig. 188 6. ), from which soda is extracted, is found wild" on the sea-shore. The roots of the male fern {Pteris aquilina) are, in times of scarcity, ground into flour, and used as food. The live-stock of the Canaries consists of cattle, sheep, horses, and asses ; and the well-known Canary-bird, with a great variety of others abound in the woods. 1 121. The island of Madeira is chiefly celebrated for its wine. It is the boast of the islanders, that their country produces the best wheat, the purest sugar, and the finest wines in the world, besides being blest with the clearest water, the most salubrious air, and a freedom from all noxious reptiles. The first view of the island is particularly magnificent; the country rising in lofty hills from every part of the coast so steep as to bring very distant objects into a foreground. The sides of these hills are clothed with vines as high as the temperature will admit ; above this they are clothed with woods or verdure to their summits, as high as the sight can distinguish ; excepting those columnar peaks, the soil of which has been washed away by the violent rains to which those lati- tudes, and especially such elevated parts, are liable. Deep ravines or valleys descend from the hills to the sea, and in the hollow of most of them flows a small river, which in general is rapid and shallow. The soil is clay on the surface, and large masses of it as hard as brick, are found underneath. The island, it is said, when discovered by the Portuguese, was covered with wood; and the first step taken by the new settlers Avas to set fire to the wood. This conflagration is said to have lasted seven years, and to have been the chief cause of the fertility of the soil ; but whatever may have been the effect at first, this fertility could not have lasted for three centuries. 1 122. The lands of Madeira are cultivated on the metayer system : in entailed estates leases cannot be granted for a longer period than nine years ; but in no case can the tenant be dismissed till he is paid the full value of his improvements, N 4 184 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part L 1123. The vine is cultivated cliiefly in the French, but partly in the Italian manner. In the low grounds it is suffered to grow to a considerable height, and tied to trees, poles, or trellises ; on the sides of the hills the terrace-culture is adopted, and there the plants are kept lower, and tied to single stakes or low trellises. The variety of grape cultivated is what in France is called the Rhenish ; a sort of small black cluster ; but its character is greatly altered since its transplantation to Madeira. The grape from which the Malmsey Madeira wine is made is the Ciotat of the French, or parsley-leaved muscadine with a white berry. The quantity of genuine malmsey produced annually is very small; and of that a good deal is supposed to be manufactured with refined sugar. The quality of the wine here as every where else depends more on the aspect and soil than on the kind of grape. The best is grown on the south side of the island, on the lower declivities which point towards the south-east ; the west being always cooled by the sea breeze. ^ 1124. Wheat is grown on lands previously prepared by the culture of common broom. This is cut for fuel, and after a time, grubbed up and burnt on the soil. By these means, a crop of wheat is insured for a succession of years, more or less, according to the soil; after which the same process is again resorted to. For this purpose, the seeds of the broom are collected, and generally bear the same price by measure as wheat. 1125. The live-stock are not ViUmercus. Animals of all sorts, as in most mountainous countries, are small. The beef and mutton appears to a Briton lean and tasteless ; common poultry are small ; but ducks and turkeys equal those of England. Pork is rare, but excellent, when well fed. 1126. The tropical fruits are not readily pro- duced here. In the villages are found guavas, bananas, oranges, and shaddocks, (^g-. 189.) Pine apples are reared with great difficulty ; but neitlier the granadilla nor the aligator pear, though they grow vigorously, produce fruit. Sect. III. Present State of ^Agriculture in North America, 1 127. The climate of this region, which extends from the vicinity of the equator to the arctic circle, is necessarily extremely various. In general, the heat of summer, and the, cold of winter, are more intense than in most parts of the ancient continent. The middle provinces are remarkable for the unsteadiness of the weather. Snow falls plentifully in Virginia, but seldom lies above a day or two. Carolina and Florida are subject to in- sufferable heat, furious Whirlwinds, hurricanes, tremendous thunder, and fatal light- nings. The climate of the western parts is least known ; that of California seems to be in general moderate and pleasant. 1128. The surface o/ North America is nobly diversified with rivers, lakes, mountains, and extensive plains, covered in many places with forests. Its shores are, in general, low, irregular, with many bays and creeks ; and the central parts seem to present a vast fertile plain, watered by the Missouri and its auxiliary streams. New Mexico in surface is an alpine country, resembling Norway and Greenland ; Labrador, and the countries round the Hudson sea, present irregular masses of mountain, covered with eternal snow. In general, all the natural features of America are on a larger scale than of the old world. 1129. The agriculture of North America is chiefly that of the north of Europe; but in the provinces near the equator the culture of the southern parts of Europe prevails ; and in the West India islands, that of the warmest climates is followed ; there being no production of any part of the world which may not be there brought to perfection. — After this general outline of the agricultural circumstances of North America, we shall select some notices of the agriculture of the United States, the Spanish dominions in North America, British possessions, unconquered countries, and North American islands or West Indies. Subsect. 1. Present State of Agriculture in the United States. 11 30. The climate of the United States must necessarily vary in its different parts. In the N.E. the winters are very cold, and the summers hot, changing as you proceed southward. In the S. E., and along the gulf of Mexico, the summers are very hot, and the winters mild and pleasant. Among the mountains it is cold towards the N., and temperate in the S. Beyond the mountains, in the rich valleys of Ohio, Mississippi, and Missouri, the climate is temperate and delightful, till we approach the rocky moun- tains, when it is subject to extremes, the winters being very cold. The climate must be chilled among mountains constantly covered with snow. West of these mountains, the climate changes, until we reach the shores of the Pacific Ocean, where it resembles that of the western parts of Kurope. The prevailing winds are from the west, and as they pass over a wide expanse of Avater, they cool the air in summer, and in winter deluge the country with frequent rain. 1131. The seasons generally correspond with those in Europe, but not with the equality to be expected on a continent, as even during the summer heats single days will occur which require tlie warmth of a fire. The latitude of Labrador corresponds with that of Book I. AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 185 Stockholm, and that of Canada with France, but the temperature of those places is widely different. 1132. The surface of the country in the United States presents every variety. The north-eastern part on the coast is broken and hilly ; and is remarkably indented with numerous bays and inlets. Towards the S., and along the gulf of Mexico, the land is level and sandy, interspersed with many swamps, and numerous islands and inlets. At the outlets of many of the rivers, there is a large portion of alluvial land, which is par- ticularly the case along the Mississippi. Beyond the head of tide-waters, there is a tolerably rich and agreeably uneven country, which extends to the mountains. The mountainous district, on the Atlantic side of the country, is about 150 miles in breadth, ^nd 1200 miles in length. It extends in large ridges, from N.E. to S.W., and is known as the Allegany mountains. Beyond these the great valley of the Mississippi presents a surface of the finest land in the world. To the westward of this valley are the mountains of Louisiana, and beyond these the bold shores of the Pacific ocean. 11 33. The soil of the United States, though of various descriptions, is generally fertile ; often on the east of the Blue Mountains, in Virginia, a rich, brown, loamy earth; some- times a yellowish clay, which becomes more and more sandy towards the sea. There are considerable marshes and salt-meadows, sandy barrens producing only a few pines, and'sometimes entirely destitute of wood. On the west of the Apulachian mountains, the siiil is also generally excellent ; and in Kentucky some spots are deemed too rich for wheat ; but the product may amount to sixty bushels per acre. About six feet below the surface there is commonly a bed of limestone. 1 134. The landed property of the United States is almost universally freehold, having been purchased or conquered by the different states or the general government from the native savages ; and these, either lotted out to the conquering army, or reserved and sold afterwards according to the demand. 1135. The mode of dividing and selling lands in the United States is thus described by Birkbeck, "The tract of country, which is to be disposed of, is surveyed, and laid out in sections of a mile square, containing six hundred and forty acres, and these are subdivided into quarters, and, in particular situations, half quarters. The country is also laid out in counties of about twenty miles square, and townships of six miles square, in some instances, and in others eight. The townships are numbered in ranges, from north to south, and the ranges are numbered from west to east; and, lastly, the sections in each township are marked numerically. All these lines are well defined in the woods, by marks on the trees. This done, at a period of which public notice is given, the lands in question are put up to auction, excepting the six- teenth section, which is near the centre, in every township, which is reserved for the support of schools, and the maintenance of the poor. There are also sundry reserves of entire townships, as funds for the support of seminaries on a more extensive scale, and sometimes for other purposes of general interest. No government lands are sold under two dollars per acre ; and I believe they are put up at this price in quarter sections, at the auction, and if there be no bidding they pass on. The best lands and most favorable situations are sometimes run up to ten or twelve dollars, and in some late instances much higher. The lots which remain unsold are from that time open to the public, at the price of two dollars per acre ; one-fourth to be paid down, and the remaining three-fourths to be paid by instalments in five years ; at which time, if the payments are not completed, the lands revert to the state, and the prior advances are forfeited. When a purchaser has made his election of one, or any number of vacant quarters, he repairs to the land-office, pays eighty dollars, or as many times that sum as he purchases quarters, and receives a certificate, which is the basis of the complete title, which will be given him when he pays all ; this he may do immediately, and receive eight per cent, interest for prompt payment. The sections thus sold are marked immediately on the general plan, which is always open at the land-office to public inspection, with the" letters A. P., i. e. advance paid. There is a receiver and a register at each land-office, who are checks on each other, and are remunerated by a per centage on the receipts." 1 1 36. The price of land, though low when not cleared, rises rapidly in value after a very slight occupation and improvement. Instances are frequent of a rise of ICOO per cent, in about ten years. Cobbett, who resided in 1817, in Long Island, which may be con- sidered the middle climate of the United States, gives the price of a cultivated farm in that part of the country, " A farm, on this island," he says, " any where not nearer than thirty miles off, and not more distant than sixty miles from New York, with a good farm-house, barn, stables, sheds, and styes ; the land fenced into fields with posts and rails, the wood-land being in the proportion of one to ten of the arable land, and there being on the farm a pretty good orchard ; such a farm, if the land be in a good state, and of an average quality, is worth sixty dollars an acre, or thirteen pounds sterling; of course, a farm of a hundred acres would cost 1300/. The rich lands on the necks and bays, where there are meadows, and surprisingly productive orchards, and where there is loater carriage, are worth, in some cases, three times this price. But, what I have said will be sufficient to enable the reader to form a pretty correct judgment on the subject. In New Jersey, in Pennsylvania, every where the price differs with the circumstances of water-carriage, quality of land, and distance from market. — When I say a good farm- house, I mean a house a great deal better than the general run of farm-houses in Eng- land ; more neatly furnished on the inside ; more in a parlour sort of style ; though round about the house, things do not look so neat and tight as in England. " 1 1 37. The agriculture of the United States may be considered as entirely European, and chiefly British. Not only is the climate better adapted for the British agriculture, but the great majority of the inhabitants are of British origin. To enter into details of the products and processes of North American agriculture would therefore be super- fluous in a worJc principally devoted to British agriculture. All we shall attempt is, to 186 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. notice some of the leading peculiarities of North American agriculture, as resulting from national, political and civil circumstances. 1138. The natural circumstances of lands not under culture, chie^y affect the com- mencement of farming operations. In general, the lands purchased by settlers are: underwood, which must be felled or burned, and the roots grubbed up ; a laborious operation, which, however, leaves the soil in so rich a state, that it will bear heavy crops of grain, potatoes, and tobacco, with very little culture, and no manure for several years. Sometimes they are under grass, or partially covered with brushwood, in which the operation of clearing is easier. In either case, the occupier has to drain, where neces- sary ; enclose with a ring fence, if he wishes to be compact, to lay out and make the farm road, and to build a house and farmery. The latter he constructs of timber, sometimes plastered with neatness and taste, as in England, (Jig. 190.) but generally 190 •with logs and mud, as in Poland and Russia. (Jig. 191.) With timber also, he ge- nerally forms his fences, though thorn and other live hedges are planted in some of the earlier cultivated districts. I 1139. The usual practice of settlers with capital, may be very well exemplified in the case of Birkbeck. This gentleman having purchased an estate of liw acres, in the Illinois, and fixed on that part of it which he intended as his future residence and farm. " The first act was building a cabin, about two hundred yards from the spot where the house was to stand. This cabin is built of round straight logs, about a foot in diameter, lying upon each other, and notclied in at the comers, forming a room eighteen feet long, by sixteen ; the intervals between the logs ' chuncked,' that is, filled in with slips of wood ; and ' mudded,' that is, daubed \yith a plaster of mud : a spacious chimney, built also of logs, stands like a bastion at one end : the roof is well covered with four hundred clap boards of cleft oak, very much like the pales used in England for fencing parks. A hole is cut through the side, called, very properly, the 'door, (the through)' for which there is a ' shutter,' made also of cleft oak, and hung on wooden hinges. All this has been executed by contract, and well executed, for twenty dollars. I have since added ten dollars to the cost, for the luxury of a floor and ceiling of sawn boards, and it is now a comfortable habitation." 114(). An example of a settler who began with capital only sufficient to pay the first instalment of eighty dollars of the price of 160 acres of land is given by the same author, who had the information from the settler himself. Fourteen years ago, he " unloaded his family under a tree," on his present estate ; wl^ere he has now two hundred acres of excellent land, cleared and in good cultivation, capable of pro- ducing from eighty to one hundred bushels of Indian corn per acre. The poor emigrant, having col- lected the eighty dollars, repaired to the land-ofl[icc, and entered his quarter section, then worked his way, without another ' cent' in his pocket, to the solitary spot, which was to be his future abode, in a two-horse waggon, containing his family and his little all, consisting of a few blankets, a skillet, his rifle, and his axe. Arrived in the spring : after putting up a little log cabin, he proceeded to clear, with intense labor, a plot of ground for Indian corn, which was to be their next year's support ; but for the present, being without means of obtaining a supply of flour, he depended on his gun for subsistence. In pursuit of tlie game, he was compelled, after his day's work, to wade through the evening dews, up to the waist, in long grass or bushes, and returning, finds nothing to lie on but a bear's skin on the cold ground, exposed to every blast through the sides, and every shower through the open roof of his wretched dwelling, which he does not even attempt to close, till the approach of winter, and often not then. Under these distresses of extreme toil and exposure, debarred from every comfort, many valuable lives have sunk, which have been charged to the climate. The individual whose case is here included, had to carry the little grain he could procure twelve miles to be ground, and remembers once seeing at the mill, a man who had brought his corn sixty miles, and was compelled to wait three days for his turn. Such are the difficulties which these pioneers have to encounter ; but they diminish as settlements approach each other, and are only heard of by their successors. 1141. The political circumstances of the United States affect the agriculturist both as to the cost of production and the value of produce. It is evident that the want of popula- tion mu.st render the price of labor high, and the produce of land low. In this Parkinson, Birkbeck, Cobbett, and all who have written on the agriculture of America, agree. ** The simple produce of the soil," Birkbeck observes, "that is to say, grain, is cheap in America ; but every other article of necessity and convenience is dear in comparison. Every service performed for one man by another must be purchased at a high rate, much higher than in England." The cheapness of land affords the posses- sion of independence and comfort at so easy a rate, that strong inducements of profit are required to detain men in the condition of servitude. Hence the high price of all Book L AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 187 commodities, not simply agricultural ; of the labor of mechanics of every description ; and hence also the want of local markets for grain, because where three-fourths of the population raise their own grain, (which is the calculation,) the remaining fourth will use but a moderate proportion of the spare produce. The low rate of land and taxes, and this want of home markets, is the reason why the American farmer, notwithstanding the high price of labor, affords his grain so cheap for exportation. Notwithstanding the low rate of produce, the profits of the American farmers arie high, on account of the small capital required. With 2000/., Birkbeck calculates that a farm of 640 acres in the Illinois, may be purchased, stocked, and cultivated, so as to return, after deducting all expences, twenty-two percent., besides the value of the improvements made on the land, that is, its increased value, which, as has already been stated, (1138.) is incredible in a very short time. 1142. The agricultural products of the United States include all those of Britain and France. The British grains, herbage, plants, and fruits grown in every district. What appears at first sight very remarkable, is, that in America the native pastures, (excepting on the banks of the rivers,} consist entirely of annuals; and that is the reason why the country is generally bare and black in winter; but perennial grasses when sown in the uplands, are found to thrive in many situations.^ The greatest quantity of wheat is grown in Pennsylvania and New England. Maize ripens in all the districts, excepting some of the most northerly. Rice is cultivated in Virginia, and on the Ohio ; and the vine is indigenous in these and other provinces, though its culture has not yet been much attempted, and some French cultivators are of opinion, that the American soil and climate are unfavorable. This, however, is not likely to be the case, it being a native of the country. The government have established a Swiss colony for its culture, at Vevay, in Indiana, and another in Louisiana, for the culture of the olive. The mul- berry, tlie cotton, and the sugar-cane, are cultivated in Virginia, but not extensively. Sugar is procured plentifully in the woody districts by tapping different species of acer, especially the saccharinum in spring ; boiling the juice till it thickens, and then granulating it by letting it stand and drain in a tub, the bottom of which is pierced with small holes. The sugar obtained does little more than pay for the lalor. 1143. Of the line stock of the United States the breed of horses of English extraction is, in general, good, as are the cows and hogs. In many cases there is no limit to the number of these that may be grazed in the unoccupied woods : all that the farmer has to do, Ls to keep them irom bears and wolves, at particular seasons, and keep them tame, as in Russia and Switzerland, by giving them salt. Sheep are totally unfit for t.he climate, and state of the country, though a number of proprietors have been at great pams to attempt introducing the Merinos. " Mutton," Birkbeck observes, " is almost a-, abhorrent to an American palate, or fancy, as the flesh of swine to an Israelite ; and the state of the manufactures does not give great encouragement to the growth of wool of any kind; — of Merino wool less, perhaps, than any other. Mutton is sold in the markets of Philadelphia at about half the price of beef; and the Kentuckian, who would have given a thousand dollars for a Merino ram, wt)uld dine upoh dry bread rather than taste his own mutton. A few sheep on every farm, to supply coarse wool for domestic manufacture, seems to be all that ought at present to be attempted in any part of America that I have yet seen. Deep woods are not the proper abodes of sheep. Vvhen America shall have cleared away her forests, and opened her uplands to the breezes, they will soon be covered with fine turf, and flocks will be seen ranging over them here, as in otiier parts of the world. 1144. Agricultural operations in ^mmca are skilfully performed by the farmers of capital, who have all the best implements of Europe. By the poorest settlers this is not the case, for want ol" stock ; and by the native American farmers, from indolence, wliich, according to all accounts, is their general defect. An American laborer is most expert at the use of the axe and the scythe ; the spade he handles in a very awkward manner, and has no idea of banking, hedging, clipping, or cutting hedges, and many other operations known to every laborer in a highly cultivated and enclosed coUntry like Britain. But the versatility of talent of an American laborer amply compensates for his inexperience in these operations, and is more useful in his circumstances. In handling the saw, tlie hanuner, and even the trowel, the British laborer has no chance with him. Most of them can build a house, mend a plough or waggOn, and even the harness, and kill and dress sheep and pigs. 1145. Field labors in America require to be performed with much greater expedition than in England. The winter is long and severe, and the transition to spring is sudden ; this season in many provinces only lasts a few weeks, when summer commences, and the ground becomes too hard and dry for the operations of tillage. The operations of seed- time must tlierefore be performed with the greatest rapidity. The climate of New York may be reckoned one of the best in N. America. There the ground is covered with iJnovv, or rendered black bv frost in the beginning of December, and continues without 188 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. a speck of green till May. Ploughing generally begins in the last week of April ; oats are sown in that month ; and maize and potatoes about the middle of May.^ By the end of May the wheat and rye which has stood the winter, the spring-sown corn, the grass, and the fruit trees appear as forward as they are at the same period in England. There is very little rain during June. July, and August. Cherries ripen in the last week of June ; by the middle of July the harvest of wheat, rye, oats, and barley, is half over; pears ripen in the beginning of August; maize, (Jig. 192.) rye, and wheat, are sown during the whole of October ; is cut in the first week of September ; peaches and apples are ripe by the end of the month ; the general crop of potatoes are dug up in the beginning of November ; and also turnips and other roots taken up and housed ; a good deal of rain falls in September, October, and November, and severe frosts commence in the first week of December, and as above stated continue till the last week of April. Such is the agricultural year in the country of New York. Live stock requires particular attention during the long winter; and unless a good stock of Swedish turnip, carrot, or other roots has been laid up for them, they will generally be found in a very wretched state in April and May. 1146. The civil circumstances of the United States are unfavorable to the domestic enjoy- ments of a British farmer emigrating thither. Many privations must be suffered at first, and some probably for one or two generations to come. The want of society seems an obvious drawback ; but this Birkbeck has shewn is not so great as might be imagined. When an emigrant settles among American farmers, he will generally find them a lazy, ignorant people, priding themselves in their freedom, and making little use of their privileges ; but when he settles among other emigrants, he meets at least with people who have seen a good deal of the world and of life ; and who display often great energy of cha- racter. These cannot be considered as uninteresting, whatever may be their circumstances as to fortune; and when there is something like a parity in this respect and in intellectual circumstances, the social bond will be complete. It must be considered that one powerfully-operating circumstance must exist, whatever be the difference of circumstances or intellect ; and that is, an agreement in politics both as to the country left and that adopted. For the rest, the want of society may be to a certain degree supplied by the press ; there being a regular post in every part of the United States, and numerous American and European newspapers and periodical works circulated there. Birkbeck mentions that the Edinburgh and Quarterly Review, the Monthly and other magazines, and the London newspapers are as regularly read by him at the prairie in Illinois, as they were at his farm of Wanborogh in Suffolk, and that all the difference is, that they arrive at the prairie three months later than they did at his British residence. We have seen sketches of the houses erected by this gentleman, and some others who have settled around him, and we consider them as by no means deficient either in apparent com- modiousness or effect. They re- mind us of some of the best houses of Switzerland and Nor- way. {Jig. 138.) 1147. The want of domeslio servants is a considerable drawback in most parts of the United States ; but especially in the new settle- ments. Families who remove into Western America, Birkbeck observes, should bring with them the power and the inclination to dispense, in a great degree, with servants. To be easy and comfortable there, a man should know how to wait upon himself, and practise it. In other respects, this gentleman and his friends hope to live on their estates at the prairie, " much as they were accustomed to live in England." 1 148. jis a country for a British farmer to emigrate to, we consider the United States as superior to every other, in two respects. First on account of its form of government : by which property is secure, — personal liberty greater than any where else, consistently with public safety j and both maintained at less expence than under any government irt Book I. AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 189 the world. Secondly, on account of the stock of people being generally British, and speaking the same language. The only objection we have to America is the climate, the long and severe winter, and the rapid and hot spring and summer. Equally good land, and nearly as cheap, may be had in the south of Russia and in Poland, as in America ; but who that knows any thing of the governments of those countries, or even of Germany and France, would voluntarily put themselves in their power while the United States are accessible ? Who would live in a country of tyrannic nobles, often very deficient of moral principle ; and of a peasantry little better than hogs, and not so well fed and lodged as that animal is in England ? Who would live in a country of passports, of spies, and swarming with beggarly gentry, wohlgeborne, hochwohlgeborne, edilgeborne, hochedelgebome, &c. ; and where exists that precious article hochjagt; being a description of game which no man may pursue under the rank of prince ? Who would emigrate to Hanover if he could settle in France ; and who would go there if he could accomplish the voyage to the United States ? 1 1 49. Van Diemans Land and New Holland, next to the United States, are perhaps the most desirable places to go to ; and they are superior to America in climate ; but no man is safe under a delegated and distant administration of government ; and, besides, if a man is to leave his country, it seems prefe-r' le to emancipate hims'-lf at once from all the good and evil of the old world state of society and government, and plunge into a new and superior order of things. No person, however, should determine on so important a step without making himself, as far as practicable, master of all that has been said, written, or done on both sides of the question. For this purpose he may consult what has been published by Parkinson, England, Fearon, Wild, Birkbeck, Cobbett, Mellish, Helme, Dwight, Hodgson, and a variety of others. SuBSECT. 2. Present State of Agriculture in Mexico. 1 1 50. The climate of this extensive and recently/ revolutionized country is singularly diversified, between the tropical seasons and rains, and the temperature of the southern and even middle countries of Europe. The maritime districts of Mexico are hot and unhealthy, so as to occasion much perspiration even in January ; the inland mountains, on the other hand, present snow and ice in the dog-days. In other inland provinces, how- ever, the climate is mild and benign, with some snow of short duration in winter ; but no artificial warmth is necessary, and animals sleep all the year under the open sky. From April to September there are plentiful rains, generally after noon ; hail storms are not unknown ; thunder is frequent ; and earthquakes and volcanoes occasionally occur. The climate of the capital, in lat. 19*^ 25', differs much from that of the parts of Asia and Africa under the same parallel ; which difference seems to arise chiefly from the superior height of the ground. Humboldt found, that the vale of Mexico is about 6960 feet above the level of the sea, and that even the inland plains are generally as high as Mount Vesuvius, or about 3600 feet. This superior elevation tempers the climate with a greater degree of cold ; upon the whole, therefore, it cannot be regarded as un- healthy. 1151. The surface of the country is diversified by grand ridges of mountains, numerous volcanoes, some of which are covered with perpetual snow, cataracts worthy of the pencil of Rosa, delicious vales, fertile plains, picturesque lakes and rivers, romantic cities and villages, and an union of the trees and vegetables of Europe and America. 1152. The soil is often deep clay, surprisingly fertile and requiring no manure except irrigation. In some places it is boggy or composed of a soft black earth, and there are barren sands and stony soils in the elevated regions. 1153. Of the agriculture of Mexico some account is given by the abbe Clavigero and the baron de Humboldt. According to the first author, agriculture was from time immemorial exercised by the Mexicans, and almost all the people of Anahuac. The Toltecan nation employed themselves diligently in it, and taught it to the Thechemecan hunters, With respect to the Mexicans, we know that during the whole of their pere- grination, from their native country Atzlan, unto the lake where they founded Mexico, they cultivated the earth in all those places where they made any considerable stop, and lived upon the produce of their labor. When they were brought under subjection to the Colhuan and Tepanecan nations, and confined to the miserable little islands on the lake, they ceased for some years to cultivate the land, because they had none, until necessity and industry together, taught them to form moveable fields and gardens, which floated on the waters of the lake. 1154. The method of forming floating fields, and which they still practise, is extremely simple. They plait and twist willows, and roots of marsh plants, or other materials, together, which are light, but capable of supporting the earth of the field firmly united. Upon this foundation they lay the light bushes which float on the lake, and over all, the mud and dirt which they draw up from the bottom of the same lake. Their regular figure is quadrangular; their length and breadth various; but in general, they are about eight perches long, and not more than three in breadth, and have less than a foot of elevation above the surface of the water. These were the first fields which the Mexicans owned 190 ; HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. after the foundation of Mexico* tliere they first cultivated the maize, great pepper, and other plants, necessary for their support. In progress of time as those fields grew numerous from the industry of those iieople there were among them gardens of flowers and odoriferous plants, which were employed in the worship of their gods, and served for the recreation of the nobles. At present they cultivate flowerr,, and every sort of garden herbs upon them. Every day 'of the year, at sun-rise, innumerable vessels loaded with" various kinds of flowers and herbs, which are cultivated in those fields and gardens, are seen arriving by the canal, at the great market-place of that capital. All plants thrive there surprisingly ; the mud of the lake is an extremely fertile soil, and requires np water from the clouds. In the largest islands there is commonly a little tree, and even a little hut to shelter the cultivator, and defend him from rain or the sun. When the owner of an island, or the chinampa, as he is usually called, wishes to change his situa- tion to remove from a disagreeable neighbor, or to come nearer to his own family, he gets into his little vessel and by his own strength alone, if the garden is small, or with the assistance of others, if it is large he tows it after him, and conducts it wherever he pleases with the little tree and hut upon it. That'part of the lake where those floating fields are, is a place of infinite recreation, where the senses receive the highest possible gratification. These floating fields, Humboldt informs us, still exist : they are of two sorts; the one mobile and blown here and there by the winds, and the others fixed and united to the shore. The former alone merit the appellation of floating, and they are diminishing day by day. He assigns to them the same origin as the abbe Clavigero ; but thinks it probable that nature also may have suggested the first idea, and gives instances of small pieces of the surface, netted with roots and covered with plants, being detached from the marshy shores of other American lakes, and 'floating about in the water. The bean, pea, apple, artichoke, cauliflowers, and a great variety of other culinary plants are cultivated on them. 1155. A floating island, in a small lake in Haverhill, in New England, is mentioned by Dr. Dwiglit. It has, he was informed, immemorially floated from one shore to another, whenever it was impelled by a violent wind. Lately it has adhered for a considerable time to a single spot ; and may perhaps be so firmly fixed on the shelving bottom, as to move no more hereafter. Several trees and shrubs grow on its surface, and it is covered by a fresh verdure. {Travels, &c. vol. i. p. 371.) 1156. Having neither ploughs nor oxen, nor any other animals proper to be employed in the culture of the earth, the Mexicans, when they had shaken off the Tepanecan yoke, supplied the want of them by labor, and other more simple instruments. To hoe and dig the ground they made use of the confl, or coa, which is an instrument made of copper, with a wooden handle, but different from a spade or mattock. They made use of an axe to cut trees, which was also made of copper, and was of the same form with those of modern times, except that we put the handle in the eye of the axe, whereas they put the axe into an eye of the handle. They had several other instruments of agriculture ; but the neghgence of ancient writers on this subject has not left in our power to attempt their description. 1157. They irrigated their fields with the water of rivers and small torrents which came from the moun- tains, raising dams to collect them, and forming canals to conduct them. Lands which were high, or on the declivity of mountains, were not sown every year, but allowed to lie fallow until they were over-run with bushes, which they burned, to repair by their ashes the salt which rains had washed away. They surrounded their fields with stone enclosures, or hedges made of the penguin, which make an excellent fence ; and in the month Panquetzaliztli, which began on the third of December, they were repaired if necessary. 1158. In sowing of maize, the method they observed, and which they still practise in some places, is this: the sower makes a small hole in the earth with a stick, or drill probably, the point of which is hardened by fire ; into this h»)le he drops one or two grains of maize from a basket which hangs from his shoulder and covers them with a little earth by means of his foot ; he then passes forward to a certain distance, which is greater or less according to the quality of the soil, opens another hole, and continues so in a straight line unto the end of the field ; from thence he returns, forming another line parallel to the first. The rows of plants by these means are as straight as if a line was made use of, and at as equal distances from each other as if the spaces between were measured. This method of sowing, which is now used by a few of the Indians only, though more slow, is, however, of some advantage, as they can more ex- actly proportion the quantity of seed to the strength of the soil ; besides that there is almost none of the seed lost which is sown : in consequence of this, the crops of the fields which are cultivated in that manner are usually more plentiful. When the maize springs up to a certain height, they cover the foot of the plant round with earth, that it may be better nourished, and more able to withstand sudden gusts of wind. 1159. In the labors of the field the men were assisted by the women. It was the business of the men to dig and hoe the ground, to sow, to heap the earth about the plants, and to reap ; to the women it belonged to strip off" the leaves from the ears, and to clear the grain ; to weed and to shell it was the employment of both. 1160. They had places like farm-yards, where they stripped off the leaves from the ears, and shelled them, and granaries to preserve the grain. Their granaries were built in a square form, and generally Of wood. They made use of the ojameth for this purpose, which is a' very lofty tree, with but a few slender branches, and a thin smooth bark ; the wood of it is extremely pliant, and difl^cult to break or rot. These granaries were formed by placing the round and equal trunks of the ojameth in a square, one upon the other, without any labor except that of a small notch towards their extremities, to adjust and unite them so perfectly as not to suffer any passage to the light. When the structure was raised to a suflScient height, they covered it with another set of cross-beams, and over these the roof was laid to defend the grain from rains. Those granaries had no other door or outlet than two windows, one below which was small, and another somewhat wider above. Some of them were so large as to contain five or six thousand, or sometimes more /an^g-fls of maize. There are some of this sort of granaries to be met with in a few places at a distance from the capital, and amongst them some so very ancient, that they appear to have been built before the conquest ; and, according to information had from persons of intelligence, they preserve the grain better than those which are constructed by the Europeans. 1161. A little tower of wood, branches and mats they commonly erected close to fields which were sown, in which a man defended from the sun and rain, kept watch, and drove away the birds which came in flocks to consume the young grain. Those little towers are still made use of even in the fields of the Spaniards on account of the excessive number of birds. 1162. The woods which supphed them with fuel to burn, timber to build, and game for the diversion of the king, were carefully preserved. The woods of king Montezuma were extensive, and the laws of king Nezahualcojotl concerning the cutting of them particular and severe in their penalties. It would be of advantage to that kingdom, says Clavigero, that those laws were still in force, or at least that there was not so much liberty granted in cutting without an obligation to plant a certain number of trees ; as many people, preferring their private interest and convenience to the public welfare, destroy the wood in order to enlarge their possessions. 1 163. The breeding of animals was not neglected by the Mexicans : though there were no sheep, they bred up innumerable species of animals unknown in Europe. Bullock {Travels, 1824) informs us, that they are very curious in rearing and feeding swine ; and that an essential requisite in a Mexican swineherd is an agreeable voice ; in order that he may sing or charm the animals into peace when they quarrel and fight, and lull them Book I. AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 191 to sleep at proper times, to promote their fatting. Wind and sounds of every kind have been long known to have a powerful effect on this genus of animals. Private persons brought up techichis, quadrupeds, similar to little dogs ; turkeys, quails, geese, ducks, and other kinds of fowl. In the territories of the lords were bred fish, deer, rabbits, and a variety of birds ; and at the royal residences, almost all the species of quadrupeds, and winged animals of those countries, and a prodigious number of water animals and reptiles. We may say that in this kind of magnificence Montezuma II. surpassed all the kings of the world, and that there never has been a nation equal in skill to the Mexicans in the care of so many different species of animals, which had so much know- ledge of their dispositions, of the food which was most proper for each, and of all the means necessary for their preservation and encrease. 1164. The Mexican cochineal, so greatly valued in Europe on account of its dyes of scarlet and crimson, demands a great deal more care from the breeder than is necessary for the silkworm. Rain, cold, and strong winds destroy it. Birds, mice, and worms, persecute it furiously, and devour it ; hence it is neces- sary to keep the rows of opuntia, or nopal, where those insects are bred, always clean ; to attend constantly to drive away the birds, which are destructive to them ; to make nests of hay for them among the opuntia, by the juice of which they are nourished; and when the season of rain approaches, to raise them with a part of the plants, and guard them in houses. Before the females are delivered they cast their skin, to obtain which spoil, the breeders make use of the tail of the rabbit, brushing most gently with it that they may not detach the insects from the plants, or do them any hurt. On every lobe they make three nests, and in every nest they lay about fifteen cochineals. Every year they make three gatherings, reserv- ing, however, each time, a certain number for the future generation ; but the last gathering is least valued, the cochineals being smaller then, and mixed with the prickles of the opuntia. They kill the cochineal most commonly with hot water. On the manner of drying it afterwards the quality of the colour which is obtained from it chiefly depends. The best is that which is dried in the sun. Some dry it in the conialli, or pan, in which they bake their bread of maize, and others in the temazcalli, a sort of oven. {Clavigero, vol. i. p. 357 to 381.) 1165. The fruits of Mexico are very numerous, the banana, (Jig. 194.) and granadilla, (Jig. 195.) are very common. The bread-fruit and cocoa are extensively cultivated ; and a number of sorts of anona, or custard apple, (Jig. 196.), and especially the cheri- moyer (A. tripetala), which is much esteemed. In short, all the fruits of Europe and most of those of both Indies are to be found in the gardens of the nobles and the priests. SuBSECT. 3. Present State of Agriculture in the British Possessions of North America. 1 1 66. The principal British provinces in America are Canada, New 13runswick, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, and the adjacent islands of Newfound- land and the Bermudas. 1167. Canada is an extensive country, and the only British province in which agriculture is generally pursued. The climate of this country is extremely irregular ; in July and August, the heat is often 96', while in winter the mercury freezes. The ground is covered with snow from November till May, when it thaws suddenly, and vegetation is instantaneous. The surface of the country is generally mountainous and woody ; but there are savannas, and plains of great beauty towards Upper Canada. 1168. The soil consists principally of a loose dark-coloured earth, ten or twelve inches deep, lying on a bed of cold clay. This thin mould, however, is very fertile, and yields plentiful 192 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. crops, although it is worked every year by the French Canadians, without being ever manured. The manures chiefly used, since the practice of manuring has been in- troduced, by those who are the best farmers, are marie and gypsum, the former is found in great quantities in many places along the shores of the river St. Lawrence. 1 169. With respect to the jrroducts of Canada, the low country is peculiarly adapted to the growth of small grain. Tobacco also thrives well in it, but the culture is neglected, except in private use ; and more than half of what is used is imported. The snuff pro- duced from the Canadian tobacco is held in great estimation. Culinary vegetables arrive at great perfection in Canada, which is also the case with most of the European fruits. The currants, gooseberries, and raspberries are very fine ; the latter are indigenous, and are found very abundantly in the woods. A kind of vine is also indigenous ; but the grapes produced by it in its uncultivated state are very poor and sour, and not much larger than fine currants. In the forest there is a great variety of trees; such as beech, oak, elm,, ash, pine, sycamore, chestnut, and walnut ; and the sugar maple-tree is found in almost every part of the country. Of this tree there are two kinds; the one called the swamp maple, being generally found on low lands, and the other, the mountain or curled maple,, from its growing upon high dry ground, and from the grain of its wood being beauti- fully variegated with little stripes and curls. The former yields more sap than the latter, but its sap affords less sugar. A pound of sugar is frequently procured from two or three gallons of the sap of the curled maple, whereas no more than the same quantity can be had from six or seven gallons of that of the swamp tree. The maple sugar is the only sort of raw sugar used in the country parts of Canada, and it is also very generally used in the towns. 1170. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are intensely cold countries, and only partially civilised. The vale of St. John's river is the principal scene of cultivation in New Brunswick. The upland parts of the country are chiefly covered with forests of pines, hemlock, and spruce fir, beech, birch, maple, and some oak. The pines on St. John's river are the largest in British America, and afford a considerable supply of masts for the royal navy. Nova Scotia produces little grain ; supplies being sent from England. The soil is thin and barren, excepting on the banks of the river, where it produces grass, hemp, and flax. 1171. In the island of Cape Breton the soil is mere moss, and has been found unfit for agriculture. Newfoundland seems to be rather hilly than mountainous, with woods of birch, pine, and fir, numerous ponds and morasses with some dry barrens. The chief produce of these islands, as well as the other British possessions in America, is furs and skins ; and the same remark will apply to the Bermudas and other unconquered countries, which need not be further noticed. SuBSECT. 4. Present Slate of Agriculture in the West India Islands. 1172. The jnincipal West India islands are Cuba, St. Domingo, Jamaica, and Porto Rico ; and next the Windward islands, Trinidad, the Leeward islands of the Spanish, and the Bahamas. 1173. Cuba is an extensive and naturally fertile island, but from the indolence of the Spaniards not above a hundredth part of it is cleared and cultivated. Like most islands in the West Indies, it is subject to storms, but the climate is, upon the whole, healthy, and even temperate ; for though in this latitude there is no winter, the air is refreshed with rains and cooling breezes. The rainy months are July and August ; the rest of the year is hot. A chain of mountains extends the whole length of the island from east to west, and divides it into two parts; but the land near the sea is in general "^^^^ 197 level, and flooded in the rainy season. Tlie soil is equal in fertility to any in America, producing ginger, long pepper, and other spices ; aloes, mastich, cassia fistula, manioc, maize,-" cocoa, &c. Tobacco is one of its principal productions, and it is supposed to have the most delicate flavor of any produced in the new world. The cultivation of sugar has lately been" introduced ; but the indolence of the inhabitants renders it in every respect much less productive than it otherwise might be. The quantity of coffee is inconsiderable. The chief^ plantations are in the plains, and are cultivated by about 25,000 slaves. Among the trees are oaks, firs, palms, ^ cotton trees, ebony, and mahogany, (Swietenia Mahogani, Jig. 197.) In 1763 bees were introduced by some emigrants from Florida, and they multiplied so much in the hollows of old trees, that they soon obtained honey, enough for their annual consumption. In 1777 they' exported honey to the amount of 715,000 pounds. The Book I. AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 193 island abounds with mules, horses, sheep, wild boars, hogs, and fine black cattle. Tlie horned cattle have increased so much that the forests are filled with droves of them, which run wild, and are hunted and killed for their hides and tallow. The chief birds are paroquets, turtle doves, and partridges; water-fowl are numerous; and on the coast turtles are abundant ; mullets and shads are the principal fish. 1 174. Jamaica has been in possession of' the English since the middle of the seventeenth century. The climate is extremely hot throughout the year, though mitigated by various causes. The surface of the country is very irregular : a ridge of mountains from east to west divides it into two parts. At a small distance from the shore it rises into hills with gentle acclivity, which are separated from each other by spacious vales and romantic in- equalities. On the southern side of the island there are precipices and inaccessible cliffs, amidst which are vast plains, covered with extensive cane fields. To the inequalities of surface that distinguish this island it is owing, that, although the soil in many jjarts of the island is deep and very fertile, yet the productive land is but of small extent, in pro- portion to the whole. That which is actually cultivated is of a middling quality, and requires labor and manure to make it yield liberally. 1175. Landed property in Jamaica is in general freehold without manorial rights, and is chiefly in the enjoyment of individuals, though there is some government and corporation territory. Estates are generally small, few exceeding 1(X)0 acres : formerly they were managed by resident proprietors ; but at present, and for some time past, by far the greater number have been managed by agents or attorneys, who are represented by Roughley as a selfish, grasping, unprincipled set of men, " too ignorant to be planters, and too ostentatious, proud, and supine, to contribute to the good of their constituents." {Planter's Guide, p. 8.) They often contrive, by getting estates in debt and mortgaging them, ultimately to become the proprietors themselves. Some proprietors are so over-careful as to have what is called a planting attorney, and a mercantile attorney, the latter for the sale of produce, and the purchase of im- ported stores for the slaves. Besides these there are travelling agents who visit different estates, and make annual or biennial voyages to Europe to the proprietors ; an overseer for each estate, who has both free white men and slaves under him ; a head driver, a slave ; the head cattle and mule man ; the head boiler or manufacturer of sugar ; head carpenters, coopers, masons, coppersmiths, and watchmen ; a hot-house or hospital doctor or doctress midwife; the great gang of able men and women ; the second gang of rather weakly habits ; and the third, or weeding gang, composed of children ; cattle and mule boys, watchmen, invalids, and superanimated, and young children and infants. The qualifications, duties, and treatment of all these classes are discussed at length by Roughley, who gives a picture of culture and management very different from any thing belonging to the management of landed property, or the culture of farm lands in Britain. 117fi. The overseer, who is generally known by his hat and pipe {fig. 198.), should be a man of intelli- gence, tempered with experience, naturally humane, steadfast in well-devised pursuits, of settled sober habits, not given to keeping indiscriminate company, or suffering his subor- dinate white people to do so, thereby vitiating their manners ; presenting a gentleman-like appearance, keeping a regular, well-supplied comfortable table, without profusion, not only for himself and the white people under him, but for the benefit of such sick and convalescent slaves as require salutary and restor- ing nourishment. His bus'.ness hours will be fully occupied by the concerns of the estate, his leisure ones in the innocent enjoyment of some domestic amuse- ment. He must be kind and courteous to the young men under him, but giving or allowing them no opportunity to treat him with disrespei^t ;, attentive and hos- pitable to respectable strangers, cautious and wary how he suffers strollers to tempt his benevolence. He must not capriciously or suddenly discharge his white people (as is very often the case), taking care that no envious or jealous sentiment or idea arises in his mind, if his young men have merit on their side, or are caressed by their superiors. He must keep the slaves strictly to their work, yet not imposing on them unusuqj hours, or inflicting punishment for every trifling=l^ offence; but when punishment for crimes is necessary, to temper it with pru- dent mercy. He must be attentive to their real wants, not suffering them to4 tease him with their trifling complaints, or tamper with him by their arts, but" promptly satisfy them, by enquiring into their serious grievances. Above all things, he must not en- courage the spirit of Obea in them (which is horrible), or dishearten them by cohabiting with their wives, annulling thereby their domestic fehcities. He must not suffer their provision-grounds to be neglected, trespassed on, or ruined, or their houses to be out of repair or uncomfortable ; for it very often hapiwjns, that well-disposed slaves, by such freedoms taken with their wives, their well-established grounds ruined by thieves or cattle, their domestic quiet and comfort intruded upon, or their houses rendered unhabit- able by storm or casualty, become runaways. Their conduct influences others, till at last the strength of .the estate vanishes, the evil becomes notorious, and the plantation, of course, becomes neglected. The magistrates are then obliged to take this growing evil into serious consideration. Hunting parties are sent out (perhaps with little success) to bring in the fugitives ; martial law is at last proclaimed throughout the diseased district ; all sorts of people are harassed ; public trials are instituted ; some of the runaways are never caught ; others who are brought in undergo trial, and are convicted and sentenced to death or transportation for life. {Roughley, 40. 43.) 1177. The head driver is seen carrying with him the emblems of his rank and dignity, a polished staff or wand, with prongy crooks on it to lean on, and a sliort-handled flexible whip; his ottice combining within itself a power, derived principally from the overseer, of directing all conditions of slaves, relative to the precise work he wishes each gang or mechanic to undergo or execute. The great gang is comprised of the most powerful field negroes, and is always under his charge. These are the strength with which principally to carry into effect the main work in the field, and manufacture the sugar and rum. There are so many points to turn to, so many occasions for his skill, vigilance, steadiness, and trust- worthiness, that the sclv'ction of such a man, fit for such a place, requires circumsiwction, and an intimate knowledge of liis talents and capacity. A bad or indifferent head driver sets almost every thing at variance ; injures the negroes, and the culture of the land Ho is like a cruel blast that pervades everything, and spares nr- thing ; but when he is well-disposed, intelligent, clever, and active, he is the life and soul of an estate. He very often is an elderly or middle-aged negro, who has long been so «>mployetl. If it siiould be so ordered, that a new head driver is requisite to be put in commission, I must beg leave to lay before my readers my opinion of the proper choice of one. I may err, but hope not irretrievably. He should, in my judgment, be an athletic man ; sound and hardy in constitution ; of well-earned and reputed good character ; of an age, and, if possible, an appearance to carry respect; perhaps about thirty-five years old ; clean in his person and apparel ; if possible a native or Creole of the island, long used to field work, and marked for his sobriety, readiness, and putting his work well out of his hands. His civility should be predominant. 194 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. his patience apparent, his mode of inflicting punishment mild. He should be respectful to white people ; suffering no freedoms from those under him, by conversation or trifling puerile conduct. It is rare, in- deed to find this mass of perfection in a negro ; but you obtain a combination of most of these virtues ; and 'as to petty vices, always inherent in some measure in human nature, they must be looked over, when not too full of evil. The junior drivers likewise, if possible, should be men of this description ; but having a good master over them in the head driver, they will be induced to behave tolerably. (Bmighley, 79. 82.) 1178. T/ie laborers on a sugar Jamaica estate consist almost entirely of slaves, Creoles, natives, or Africans, with some free blacks and men of color or mixed progeny. The overseers are almost always whites, and sometimes also the head drivers. 1179. The buildings required fm- a sugar plantation are numerous and extensive. In a centrical situation by a stream or other supply of water, " an extensive .set of works, including an overseer's house, hospital or hot-house, mill-house, large mill-yard, mule stable, trash or fuel house, cooper and carpenter's shops, boiling and curing houses, a distilling house, tanks, cisterns, &c. should be built and so arranged as all to be seen from -the overseer's house. 1180. The overseer^s house, it would appear, must be both a comfortable and elegant building. It should be ■built compact and convenient, not over roomy; and raised sufliciently high from the foundation, with good ma.sonry work, to admit of suitable stores underneath, to keep all the plantation stores and supplies in. It should be placed so, that all the works can be seen from it, and not far from the boiling-house. The rooms should be all on the same floor, and closely boarded with seasoned stuff. Each white man should have a small bed-room to himself, with a glazed sash window on hinges, and a shutter to it. The bed-rooms should be eleven feet by nine each, of which five should be in every overseer's house on a sugar estate, leaving the overseer's room somewhat larger than the book-keeper's. A large well-covered piazza, with comfortable glazed windows, (to rise and fall occasionally,) will answer all the purpose of a dining and breakfast hall, and for walking in. Large centre halls in such houses are of very little use, take up a great deal of room, are very expensive, and make the house large, without any real convenience. A small back piazza, made comfortable by moving blinds with stops, would be proper for the servants. I think every dwelling-house on a plantation should have a small fire-place in it, with a well-raised chimney, for fire occasionally in damp weather to be made in ; it will be wholesome and preservative. The lire-place should be in an extreme angle of the dining piazza, and the overseer's cooking-room, washing- room, &c., should be apart from the house, though not far off, conveniently fitted up, and of moderate size The little appendages of a hog-stye, fowl-house, &c., to raise small stock in, are easily built at a small expense. [lb. 184, 185.) 1181. A lime kiln is an essential building for a sugar estate, a considerable quantity of lime being wanted to neutralize the acid of the expressed juice of the cane.' A fixed kiln at the works is best, as what lime is wanted can then be burnt at any time ; but it often happens that temporary kilns, composed of layers of stones and wood, with a funnel in the centre, are made in the woods, lighted and burnt, and the produce carried home. Such a kiln, twenty feet in diameter, and ten or twelve feet high, will produce lime enough to make sixteen hogsheads of sugar. (76. 314.) 1182. The houses of the slaves are grouped together on some estates, and scattered in different places in others, generally on the outskirts of the estate. They are low cottages of one or two apartments, with open sheds, and pieces of garden ground of from one-eighth to one-quarter of an acre attjiched to each, and some of them are kept neat, and have a clean, not uncomfortable appearance ; they are generally built with stone, and covered with shingles. 1183. Every building composing the works of a sugar estate should be composed of the most substantial materials, durable, hard, well-seasoned timber, well put together, and supported by the best mason work. They should be shingled instead of being thatched, and kept free from the hungry, destructive ant, who, by his mighty though diminutive efforts, will level a substantial building to the ground in a short time. Poisoning by arsenic is the most expedient mode of getting rid of them, as the living will feed on the dead, so that the whole nest, (.by devouring one another,) are thus killed. {lb. 194). 1184. The live stock of a sugar estate are chiefly oxen, spayed heifers, and mules, as beasts of labor : the overseer generally keeps a riding horse, as does the resident agent or proprietor if there are such ; and there are pigs and poultry, with some sheep for consumption. The cattle and mules are kept on the savannahs or open waste pastures, and on Guinea grass {Panicum) and Scotch grass [Panicum hirtellum, fig.199 a.) on which they are folded, tethered, or soiled. Mares and Spanish or Maltese jackasses are kept for breeding the mules ; and the cattle are in general reared on the estate. A jack should be from ten to twelve hands high, and either stubbled or put into a close pasture, with high, firm walls and gates to it. He should be regularly corned once a day at least ; should have pure water to drink, and not suffered to cover more than one mare daily. The mares should be put to him in season, and attended by an experienced groom. A proper covering pit should be made for the mare to stand in, with a surmounting stage for the jack to stand on. They should be daily taken and led out to exercise, kept well cleaned, and bv no means allowed to stay out in bad weather, but comfortably stabled, foddered, and littered. (lb. 141, 142.) 1185. The agricultural operations of Jamaica are for the most part performed by the 'manual labor of indigenous slaves, but natives are also imported from different parts of the coast of Africa. ITie soil is seldom either ploughed or dug, but generally worked with the hoe pick. The spade the negroes are awkward at using ; and they are not less expert at the plough. White ploughmen have been imported by some cultivators; but the prejudices of the overseers, the awkwardness of the oxen and negro drivers, and the effects of the climate in wearing out the spirits of the ploughman, are said to have dis- couraged its use. Long in 1774, Dr. Stokes, {Young's Annals of Agr. xviii. 148.) and others, have tried the plough, and strongly recommend it as doing the work better and lessening the necessity of having so many slaves. Roughley, however, who was " nearly twenty years a sugar planter in Jamaica," {Jamaica Planter s Guide, 1823.) is decidedly against it, whether drawn by negroes or cattle ; both because it does not do the work so well as the hoe, and because of the difficulty of getting ploughmen and properly trained beasts. It is probable, however, that necessity may ultimately lead to the use of the plough drawn by oxen, and that the operative man in the West India islands will in time assume the same attitude as in Europe.^ 1186. Tlie agricultural productions of Jamaica of the greatest importance are sugar, indigo, coffee, and cotton. The several species of grain cultivated in this island are maize or Guinea corn, yielding from thirty to sixty bushels an acre ; and various kinds of calavances, a species of pea ; and rice, but in no great quantity. The island abounds also with different kinds of grass, of excellent quality : the arti- ficial grass, called " Scots grass" {Panicum hirtellum^ fig. 199 a.) grows sponta- neously in most of the swamps and morasses of the West Indies ; and it is so pro- Book I. AGRICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 195 ductive, that a single acre of it will maintain five horses for a whole year. The <* Guinea-grass" (P. polt/gonuniy fig. 199 b.) is next in importance to the sugar-cane, as the grazing and breeding farms are chiefly supported by it. Hence arises the plenty of homed cattle, both for the butcher and planter; which is such, that few markets in Europe furnish beef of better quality, and at a cheaper rate than that of Jamaica. Mutton also \ is cheap and good. The seeds of the Guinea- grass were brought from the coast of Guinea, as food for some birds which were presented to Ellis, chief justice of the islands. The several kinds of kitchen-garden productions, that are known in Europe, thrive in the mountains of this island ; and the markets of Kingston and Spanish Town are supplied with cabbages, lettuces, carrot?, turnips, parsnips, artichokes, kidney-beans, green pease, asparagus, and various sorts of European herbs, in the greatest abundance. Other indi- genous productions, that may be classed among the esculent vegetables, are plantains, bananas, yams of several varieties, calalaa (a species of spin- age), eddoes (Arum and Caladium), cassavi, and sweet potatoes. Among the more elegant fruits of the island we may reckon the anana, or pine-apple, tamarind, papaw, guava, sweet-sop, cashew-apple, custard-apple, Akee tree [Jig. 200.), cocoa-nut, star-apple, grenadilla, avocado-pear, hog-plum, pindal-nut naesberry, mammee-sapota, Spanish gooseberry prickly-pear, anchovy-pear {Jig. 201 a.), and some others, for which Jamaica is probably indebted to the bounty of nature. For the orange, the lemon, lime, shad- dock, vine, melon, fig, and pomegranate, the West India islands are perhaps obliged to their Spanish invaders. The cinnamon has been lately introduced, and the mango {fig. 201 b.) is become almost as common as the orange. The mountains are generally covered with extensive woods, con- taining excellent timber ; such as the lignum vitae, log- wood, iron-wood, pigeon -wood, green-heart- braziletto, and bully-trees ; all of which are to a great degree heavy, as well as compact and impenetrable. Of softer kinds, for boards and shingles, the species are innumerable; and there are many beautiful varieties for cabinet-work; and among these we may enumerate the bread- nut, the wild lemon, and the well-known mahogany. O 2 196 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. ' Part I. 1187. The culture of the sugar-cane in Jamaica in some respects resembles that of the hop in this country. The ground being cleared and worked a foot or more in depth, the sets or cuttings of cane, which are the tops of the shoots cut off about a foot long, are planted in rows, generally five feet distant, and from two to five feet apart in the row, according to the quality of the soil ; more plants being allowed for poor soil than rich. The ground is kept clear of weeds, frequently stirred, and some earth drawn up to the plants. From each hill a number of shoots are produced : in six or more months these will generally be from seven to ten feet high ; the skin smooth, dry, and brittle, heavy with a gray or brown pith, and sweet glutinous juice. In this state the canes are cut, tied in bun- dles or sheaves, and taken to the mill to be divested of their leaves and decayed parts, and then passed through rollers to express their juice, &c. Cane plantations are made twice a-year, in May and June, or December and January, these being the rainy seasons. The first cutting of the canes often does not take place till a year after planting ; but an established plantation is cut over every six months. In good soil, the plants will last twenty years : in inferior soils not more than half the time. {Lett, to a Young Planter, Sfc. Lond. 1785. Martin's Essay on Plantership, in Young's Annals, xviii. p. 236. Rough- ley's Jamaica Planter's Guide, 1823.) 1188. The cotton plant cultivated in Jamaica is a different species from that grown in Italy, Malta, and the Levant. It is the gossypium barbadense, Linn, a suffruticose biennial, growing from six to fifteen feet in height, with lobed leaves and yellow flowers. It is propagated by the seed, which is set in rows, about five feet asunder, at the end of September, or beginning of October ; at first but slightly covered, but after it is grown up, the root is well moulded. The seed is subject to decay, when it is set too deep, especially in wet weather. The soil should not be stiff nor shallow, as this plant has a tap-root. The ground is hoed frequently, and kept very clean about the young plants, until they rise to a moderate height ; otherwise they are apt to be destroyed by caterpillars. It grows from four to six feet high, and produces two crops annually ; the first in eight months from the time of sowing the seed ; the second, within four months after the first ;and the produce of each plant is reckoned about one pound weight. The branches are pruned or trimmed after the first gathering; and if the growth is over- luxuriant, this should be done sooner. When great part of the pods are expanded, the wool is picked, and afterwards cleared from the seeds by a machine called a gin, composed of two or three smooth wooden rollers of about one inch diameter, ranged horizontally, close and parallel to each other, in a frame ; at each extremity they are toothed or channelled longitudinally, corresponding one with the other ; and the central roller, being moved with a tradel or foot-lath, resembling that of a knife-grinder, makes the other two revolve in contrary directions. The cotton is laid, in small quantities at a time, upon these rollers, whilst they are in motion, and, readily passing between them, drops into a sack placed underneath to receive it, leaving the seeds, which are too large to pass with it, behind. The cotton thus discharged from the seeds, is afterwards hand-picked, and cleansed thoroughly from any little ])articles of the pods or other substances which may be adhering to it. It is then stowed in large bags, where it is well trod down, that it may lie close and compact ; and the better to answer this purpose, some water is every now and then sprinkled upon the outside of the bag, the marketable weight of which is usually three hundred pounds. An acre may be expected to produce from two hundred and forty pounds to that quantity, or two hundred and seventy pounds on an average. {Long's Jam. vol. iii. p. 686, &c. and Browne.) 1189. The indigo cultivated in the West Indies is the same species as that grown in the East Indies and other places' {Indigofera tinctoria), though there are various species and varieties which affbrd a similar dye. Indigo thrives best in a free rich soil, and a warm situation, fre- quently refreshed with moisture. Having first chosen a proper piece of ground, and cleared it, hoe it into little trenches, not above two inches, .or two inches and a half in depth, not more than fourteen or fifteen inches asunder. In the bottom of these, at any season of the year, strew the seeds pretty thick, and immediately cover them. As the plants shoot, they should be frequently weeded, and kept constantly clean, until they spread sufficiently to cover the ground. Those who cultivate great quantities, only strew the seeds pretty thick in little shallow pits, hoed up irregularly, but generally within four, five, or six inches of one another, and covered as before. Plants raised in this manner are observed to answer as well, or rather better, than the others ; but they require more care in the weeding. They grow to full perfection in two or three months, and are observed to answer best when cut in full blossom. The plants are cut with reaping hooks, a few inches above the root, tied in loads, carried to the works, and laid by strata in the steeper. Seventeen negroes are sufficient to manage twenty acres of indigo ; and one acre of rich land, well planted, will, with good seasons and proper management, yield five hundred pounds of indigo in twelve months, for the plant ratoons (stools, stoles, or tillers ; i. e. it sends out stolones, or new growths), and gives four or five crops a-year ; but must be re- planted afterwards. {Browne.) 1900. The cojfee.tree {Jig. 202.) is less cultivated in Jamaica than in Bar- badoes, Domingo, and some other islands : the richness of the soil is found to lessen the flavor of the berry, when compared with those produced in the sandy, dry, hot soil, and arid climate of Arabia. In a rich soil and cool situation in Jamaica, Browne informs us that it produces so great a quantity of fruit, that the branches can hardly sustain the weight ; the fruit large and succulent, and the berries lax and clammy. Some affirm, that by keeping these, and other West India berries, for ten or fourteen years, they will become equal to the best now brought from Turkey. Small-grained coffee, or that which is produced in a dry soil and warm situation, will in about three years be as good as that in general use in London. 1191. In cultivating the coffee, the berries are sown immediately after being gathered, as they are found to retain their vegetative quality only a few weeks. In three months they are fit to transplant, either to a nursery or to a final plantation. In the low lands they are planted five feet apart, and in the mountains ten feet or more. In three years the plants will produce a crop, and contiime bearing a number of years. The ber- ries are gathered when they are just about to drop ; and are immediately carried to sheds, where they are dried upon cloths or mats, till the husk shrivels. They are then passed through between wooden rollers turned | by a mule, which separates the husk, after which they are winnowed, sifted, cleaned, exposed to the sun for a few days, and then barrelled up for sale. The produce of a good tree is from one pound and a half to two pounds weight. {Browne's Hist. ofJatn. p. 161.) 1192. The cocoa-root or eddoe, {Arum esculentum) and also a species of caladium, produce a root some- thing like the Indian yam {Dioscorea saliva, Jig.203.), but differ from them in lasting for several years. Both the cocoa root and yam are cultivated inuch in the same way as our potatoe. They have what thev call Bourbon cocoas and country cocoas, and Negro and white yams ; the yams have a stake driven in at each hill for the vines to twine on after the manner of hops. 1193. The plantain {Musa paradisiaca) is cultivated in rows ten feet apart, and the plants seven feet asunder in the row. The following account of the manner of planting and managing will give some idea of the mode in which agricultural operations are carried on by a slave population, and how they are described by a writer who has been " nearly twenty years" at the business. " The ground being all cleared from grass, bushes, and weeds, and lined out and pegged every seven feet, the great gang should be put in with hoes to dig the plaintain holes at every peg, ajNegro to each row. The holes should Book I. AGJIICULTURE IN NORTH AMERICA. 197 be dug deep, two feet long by sixteen inches broad, to give room for the large ponderous plantain sucker to be placed in them. The moukl must be hauled up to the edge of the hole, and broke if too large. The plantain suckers being ready and trimmed, each negro should take some, and place one good sucker at every hole in the piece, and begin to plant them, by taking a sucker, and placing it with the butt, or rooty end, in the bottom of the hole; make the sucker lie in a leaning, reclining, or half horizontal position in the hole, with the small, or sucker end of the plant, a little above the ground ; and when thus placed, draw the mould from the bank, and cover the plant well with it, leaving a little of the plant above the ground. In this manner the plantain walk should be formed. In a few weeks (if the weather is favorable) the young plantain- shoot will be seen rearing its perpendicular head, perhaps three or four growing from the same stock. They should then be carefully moulded, and cleared of grass and weeds when they are a few inches high. No cavities, or water- logging holes, should be near them. The banks must be le- velled about them, the holes filled, and properly closed up, and some fine mould given them, to encourage their growth. There will be no occasion to give them more than two mouldings till they are established ; but they must be care- fully kept clear from weeds or grass ; and when any dry trash happens to be hanging about them, it should be gentjy cut off with a knife, and placed about their roots, to keep them either free from too much sun or chill. A plantain-walk, well taken care of, will be in bearing twelve months after it is planted, amply repaying for the labor and trouble of planting it, and giving an almost inexhaustible supply of fine provisions, if the vicissitudes of hurricanes or storms (which this climate is unhappily subject to) does not destroy it, and which no human foresight or care can pre- vent. When a plantain-walk is made, there may be a row of cocoas (1192.) in the middle of the ten feet Slices, which will yield a crop by the time the plantain-walk bears fruit, but they must then be pulled up. A few banana {Musa sapientutn) suckers can be planted in the plantain. row, instead of plantain- suckers ; sometimes they are much in request, as a luscious, wholesome fruit, and for the strong, fine- flavored vinegar which is produced from them. After this piece of ground is thus planted, the whole of it may be sown with com (maize), which will not injure the plaintain-suckers, or trees, if it is not too close or thick. {Roughley, p. 413. 416.) 1194. The Indian arrow-root {Maranta arundinacea) is cultivated, and yields an annual supply of roots, which being washed, bruised, and compressed, yield a starch esteemed as a very light wholesome food for invalids. 1195. Other plants, in great variety, are cultivated both for culinary and medicinal purposes, and in the gardens of the overseers and agents almost every fruit in the world may be raised. 119P. The penguin {Broinelia penguin) is grown on the tops of ditches, and forms an impenetrable fence. 1197. Maize is grown among the canes, and in fields by itself in rows, four feet and a half apart, and the corn dibbled or set in patches of four seeds in a space six inches square. 1198. Guinea grass {Panicum polygonum, fig. 199 b.), and Scotch grass (fig. 199 a.), are the clovers or artificial herbage plants of Jamaica. They are i^erennial, and grow in small enclosures, which are either eaten down or mown. Cane tops, the leaves of maize, millet, and a variety of other herbage, is given to the mules or cattle. 1 1 99. Rats, mitSy and other vermiriy greatly annoy the canes : ticks (aestrus ?) of dif- ferent kinds, and flies, greatly annoy the cattle, and a great variety of evil propensities ' and diseases' assail the negroes and their children : among others Obea, and what Rough- ley calls " eating dirt," which he thus characterises: — " Too much tenderness gives the child a fretful longing for the mother, and her scanty milk engendering disease, and, what is worse than all, often (though secretly) giving it a growing liking for the hateful, fatal habit of eating dirt, than which nothing is more horribly disgusting, nothing more to be dreaded, nothing exhibiting a more heart-rending, ghastly spectacle, than a negro child possessed of this malady. Such is the craving appetite for this abominable cus- tom, that few, either children or adults, can be broken of it, when once they begin to taste and swallow its insidious slow poison. For if by incessant care, watchfulness, or keeping them about the dwelling-house, giving them abundance of the best nourishing food, stomachic medicines, and kind treatment, it is possible to counteract the effects and habit of it for some time, the creature will be found wistfully and irresistibly to steal an opportunity of procuring and swallowing the deadly substance. The symptoms arising from it are a shortness of breathing, almost perpetual languor, irregular throbbing, weak pulse, a horrid cadaverous aspect, the lips and whites of the eyes a deadly pale (the sure signs of malady in the Negro), the tongue thickly covered with scurf, violent palpitation of the heart, inordinate swelled belly, the legs and arms reduced in size and muscle, the whole appearance of the body becomes a dirty yellow, the flesh a quivering pellucid jelly. Tlie creature sinks into total indifference, insensible to every thing around him till death at last declares his victory in his dissolution. This is no exag- gerated account of the effects and termination of this vile and hateful propensity. (/6. 118. 120.) 1200. The agriculture of the other West India islands may be considered as similar to that of Jamaica. So many different kinds of East India fruits have not yet been introduced in them ; but the great articles of sugar, coffee, cotton, indigo, pepper, &c. are every where cultivated. One of the richest of these islands is St. Domingo, now independent, and known by its original name of Hayti. O 3 1D8 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. ]Part I. Sect. IV. Present State of AgricuUiire in South America. 1201. Tke climate of South America combines the most opposite extremes. The southern parts are subject to all the horrors of the antarctic frosts ; Terra del Fuego being subject to the almost perpetual winter of Greenland. Even under the torrid 2;one the cold is extreme on the Andes, and the heat and moisture equally extraordinary in the plains. The surface of the country is remarkably irregular : there are immense chains of mountains which stretch along the western coast from the one extremity of the country to the other. Many parts of the interior are still obscure; wide regions on the great river of Amazons being covered with impenetrable forests, and others flooded by the inundations. In the south there are vast saline plains, and small sandy deserts and savannahs. This country being, or having been, almost entirely under the Spa- niards and Portuguese, the cultivated parts display a slovenly agriculture, something like that of Spain ; the varied and abundant products of the soil depending more on nature than on man. Indeed minerals have always been more the objects of European nations in South America than vegetables. — After this general outline we shall, without regard to the recent political changes, offer such slight notices of South American agri- culture as we have been able to collect, under the divisions of Terra Firma, Peru, Chili, Paraguay, Brazil, Cayenne, Surinam, Amazonia, and Patagonia. 1202. The climate of Terra Firma is extremely hot throughout the year. From the month of May to the end of November, the season called winter by the inhabitants, is almost a continual succession of thunder, rain, and tempests ; the clouds precipitating the rain with such impetuosity, that the low lands exhibit the appearance of an ocean. Great part of the country is of consequence almost continually flooded ; and this, toge- ther with the excessive heat, so impregnates the air with vapors, that in many of the pro- vinces, particularly about Papayan and Portobello, it is extremely unwholesome. The soil of this country is very different, the inland parts being exceedingly rich and fertile, while the coasts are sandy and barren. It is impossible to view, without admiration, the perpetual verdure of the woods, the luxuriancy of the plains, and the towering height of the mountains. This country produces corn, sugar, tobacco, and fruits of all kinds ; the most remarkable is that of the manzanillo tree ; it bears a fruit resembling an apple, but which, under this appearance, contains a most subtile poison. The bean of Car- thagena is the fruit of a species of willow, about the bigness of a bean, and is an excel- lent remedy for the bite of the most venomous serpents, which are very frequent all over this country. 1203. In Peru the soil is dry, and has no rain, vegetation being supported by immense dews. The only spots capable of cultivation are the banks of the rivers, and other places susceptible of being artiflcially irrigated. The improvement of the mines is or ought to he the first object of attention in this singular country. 1204. Chili is an extensive, rich, and fertile country. The climate is the most deli- cious in the new world, and is hardly equalled by that of any region on the face of the earth. Though bordering on the torrid zone, it never feels extreme heat, being screened on the East by the Andes, and refreshed on the west by cooling sea-breezes. The tem- perature of the air is so mild and equable, that the Spaniards give it the preference to that of the southern provinces in their native country. The fertility of the soil corre- sponds with the benignity of the climate, and it is wonderfully accommodated to Euro- pean productions. The most valuable of these, corn, wine, and oil, abound in Chili, as if they had been native to the country. The soil, even that part of it which has been long in tillage, is so little degenerated by producing successive crops, that no manure is necessary. The grain, as some say, yields from 100 to 1 50 ; but by a more moderate and just estimate, as it is stated both by Molina and in Peyrouse's VoyagCy from 60 to 70 in the midland country, and in the maritime 40 or 50. 1205. Many of the plants of Chili are the same with those of Europe, and almost all the pot-herbs and fruits of our continent flourish there. The northern provinces produce the sugar-cane, the sweet potatoe, and other tropical plants. Maize is common and abundant ; the magu is a kind of rice, and the tuca a species of barley, both of which were cultivated before the arrival of the Spaniards. Pease and potatoes were also well known to the Chilese. Of the latter they have thirty different kinds : and it is even conjectured that this valuable root was first brought into Europe from this country. The large white strawberry of Chili is well known in English gardens. Many of its plants are valuable as dyes, and otliers as medicinal. Tiie vira-vira expels the ague ; the payco is excellent for indigestion. Wild tobacco abound.s in Chili, and also the annotto [Bixa orellana, fig. 204.) The beautiful flowers and shrubs are infinite. In- cense, not inferior to that of Aral^ia, is produced by a shrub, distilling tears of a whitish yellow, and of a bitter aromatic taste. The trunk of the puvi supplies excellent cork; the salsola kali is plentiful on the shores; and Chili induces seven kinds of beautiful myrtles, one of which yields an excellent stomachic wine i)rcarrcd by strangers to any muscatel. The crelon furnishes BpQK I. AGRICULTURE IN SOUTH AMERICA. 199 a tea, which is known as a vertrifuge. An acacia of the province of Quillota yields a balsam, that is used in the cure of wounils ; and the palqui is esteemed as a febrifuge, superior to the Peruvian bark. The cassia senna grows on the banks of the rivers Maypo and Salvia. Of ninety-seven kinds of trees that diversify the beautiful forests of Chili, only thirteen lose their leaves in winter. Cypresses, pines, and red and white cedars grow in the valleys of the Andes; the red cedars, particularly in the isle of Chiloe, are of an enormous size, so that from 700 to 800 planks, twenty feet long, may be cut from one" tree. The cinnamon-tree, that yields what is called winter's bark, is regarded as sacred by the Araucans, who present it as a token of peace. Beautiful woods of various colors are supplied by the Chilese forests. Vines, thougn none appear to be natives, flourish admirably well : they are found in the forests, arising from seeds deposited by the birds : on the confines of the river Mauli they are three or four feet high, and supported by stakes ; but further to the south they are left loose on the sides of the hills. The best wine is that which is obtained from the banks of the river Itati, and is commonly called wine of Conception ; it is red, generous, of an excellent flavor, and equal to the best in Europe. Muscatel wines are also ex- cellent. The vintage is April and May. All the other European fruits attain the greatest perfection. Most of tlie European animals have improved in this delicious climate and fertile country. The cele- brated Spanish sheep have not lost any of their distinguished qualities; the horned cattle are larger than those of Spain ; and the breetl of horses surpasses both in beauty and spirit the famous Andalusian race from which they spring. 1206. Paraguay is a fertile province, and singularly prolific in native vegetables. The climate is extremely hot : the surface of the country consists generally of extensive plains ; but some tracts are very mountainous. The soil is every where rich and deep ; and the native pastures so excellent, that the immense herds of wild oxen which feed on them are only valued for their skins ; the flesh being left tp be consumed by ravenous beasts and birds. Among the agricultural products may be mentioned the potatoe, of which they have several sorts of a large size, red, white, and yellow cotton, maize, wheat, and the vine. The latter is greatly injured by the ants ; but where that insect is kept under, the wine of Paraguay is excellent. The bean, pea, melon, cucumber, lettuce, turnip, mus- tard, cress, leek, onion, asparagus, and other European vegetables are found wild in the plains. The forests abound in the most valuable trees, among which is the cinchona, or Jesuits' bark, so called because the society of Jesus settled there had originally the monopoly of this medicine : the sarsaparilla, sassafras, guaiacum, dragon's blood, nux vomica, vanilla, theobroma, or chocolate plant {Jig. 205.), several z05 species of the ceratonia, the seeds of which are ground and made into bread. Palms, figs, peaches, pomegranates, lemons, oranges, are cultivated ; and the jujube, mulberry, granadilla, banana, pine -apple, and a great variety of other fruits, are found in a wild state. Of the live stock, the most abundant are the ox | and the camel ; but there are horses, asses, sheep, many wild swine {jig. 206.), and poultry. The bear, elk, deer, ostrich, and others, are in a wild state. 1207. Brazil is a country growing fast into opulence and im- portance. Its climate has been described by two eminent natu- ralists, Piso and Margrave, who observed it with philosophical ac- curacy, as temperate and mild, when compared with that of Africa. This they chiefly ascribe to the refreshing wind which blows continually from the sea. The air is not only cool, \ / ^'CV ^^^ chilly through the night, insomuch that the natives -^.\--M ^\tfJ) kindle fires every evening in their huts. Nieuhofi^, ^gwho resided long in Brazil, and Spix and Martins, ^recent travellers, confirm their description. The 'rivers in this country annually overflow their banks, and, like the Nile, leave a sort of slime upon the lands ; so that the soil, especially in the vicinity of the rivers, is extremely rich. The northern provinces are subject to heavy rains and storms ; but those of the south are more temperate and fertile. 1208. Among the vegetable productions of Brazil, we may reckon Indian corn, wheat, rice, manioc, sugar-canes, coffee, cocoa or chocolate, indigo, pepper, cactus, on which is bred the insect furnish- ing cochineal, and the noted Brazilian tobacco. The red, or Brazil wood, imported into this country, for the purpose of dyeing, is the property of the crown. To the class of esculent plants, we may refer those that are common to all the tropical regions of Ame- rica, such as, besides the cocoa and chocolate nut, tlie plantain, the banana, palms, the yam, potatoe, casava, together with many species of melons and gourds. The principal fruits are the pine-apple, the mango, and the tamarind. The warm aromatic plants found here in a truly indigenous state, and much used by the inhabitants as condiments to their food, or as the basis of various drinks, are the oranges and limes {Jig, 207.), the grapes, ginger, the turmeric, several species O 4 200 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. of pepper, American coffee, capsicum or Guinea pepper, and the wild cinnamon (Laurus canella). Several medicinal plants of high estimation grow here spontaneously, and in great abundance, such as the contraycrva, tlie Indian pink, the mechoacan, the jalap, the amyris which yields the gum clemi, and the guiacum. Besides the Brazil wood, this country furnishes for ornamental use, or for the purpose of dyeing, logwood, fustic, mahogany, ebony, rose-wood, satin-wood, and many others. Among its ornariiental plants are the Brazilian myrtle, the scarlet fucshia, and the amaryllis formosissima. 1209. Tlie genuine Ipecacuanha root {Cephaelis ipecacuana) grows wild in groups on the woody moun- tains of Serra de Mar, north from Riode Janiero to Bahia. The roots are pulled up by the negroes in the rainy season, dried in the sun, tied in bundles, and sold to the dealers of roots in Rio. The savages use an infusion of these roots as a vomit, much in the same way as we do. {Spix and Martius' Travels in Braxily ii. 221.) 1210. The pot tree [Lecythis ollaria) is one of the greatest ornaments of the woods ; its immense stem is above a hundred feet high, and spreads into a majestic ana vaulted crown, which is extremely beau- tiful in the spring when the rose-coloured leaves shoot out, and in the flowering season, by the large white blossoms. The nuts, which have a thick shell, are of the size of a child's head, with a lid which is loose all round, and which at length, when the weight of the fruit turns it downwards, separates, and lets the seed fall out. In a high wind it is dangerous to remain in the woods on account of these heavy nuts fall- ing from so great a height. The seeds are collected in great quantities by the Indians, who are extremely fond of them, and either eat them raw, or preserve them roasted and pounded, in pots, and the shells themselves are used as drinking cups. {Spix, vol. ii. p. 222.) 1211. Several species of Bromelia, or Paullinia, afford thread called gravata and imb^, which is prepared by maceration as in Sicily from the Agave Americana, and wove into cloth, or twisted into ropes and cordage. 1212. Mandiocca {Jatropha) is cultivated for the flour made from its roots : the Mandubi bean, for its seeds : Paraguay tea, which is used as a substitute for that of China, and broad beans, tobacco, maize, and other plants of Europe. 1213. The live stock of Brazil are chiefly horned cattle, which are abundant, and hunted merely for their hides : of these hides 20,000, it is said, are annually sent to Europe. These cattle are taken and killed more for the sake of their hides and tallow than their flesh ; though great quantities of the latter are applied to the use of such ships as sail from Pernambuco, Bahia, Todos os Santos, and Rio de Janeiro, to Guinea. The places which are chiefly frequented for procuring these cattle are Rio Grande and Rio Paraiba, lying to the northward of Pernambuco; and they are inhabited by Indians, called 'lapuyes; many of whom send annually large droves of cattle through the Tupipue nation. 1214. The musk, ox, deer, bear, hog, hare, and other useful animals, abound in the forests ; and there is some danger also from those of a noxious description, to guard against which the natives light fires, £08 and when they can afford it sleep in hammocks suspended from the trees. (Jig. 208.) 1215. Cayenne or French Guiana, is a fertile country, and has been long well cultivated by the colonists. The climate is salubrious ; the sur- face of the country is not moun- tainous, but abounds in hills and forests ; the soil is in general un- commonly fertile ; and the produc- tions it yields are of excellent quality. The Cayenne pepper [Capsicum annuum, and other species) is a noted produce of this country, and with sugar, cocoa, coffee, indigo, maize, cassia, and vanilla, form the chief articles of its commerce. The interior parts, though much neglected, and remaining obstructed by thick forests and underwood, feed nevertheless a great numbtr of horses, sheep, goats, and cattle, which roam at pleasure : the beef and mutton are reckoned ex- cellent. (Maison Ruslique de Cayenne, ^c, Paris, 1763.) 1216. Surinam is ^'^^^^^^~^^^^^^^S,_ 210 whom the tree is named. The cab- z^^^^^^^^^^^^^/^'^^^'^* bage tree is abundant, and besides ^^^IZzH' I? ,||j/J^ /[ the tender leaves produces a beetle ^^^^^^^^"^ ^^^ /4 v (fig. 210 a.) the larva of which (6) ^^V^^^J^ ^^ is eaten by the natives as a luxury. ^ — ^ A very interesting account of this colony is given by captain Sfedman, (Journal, tt-c. 2 vols. 4to. 1 794.) who filled an important military situation there for several years. This gentleman, in the midst of the most arduous duties, contrived to make himself tolerably comfortable. He built a country house there (Jig. 211.); kept a wife, pigs, bees, sheep, and cattle, and had children and slaves. He lived by turns with his family in a house, and with strange women in the woods, where he slept in hammocks (fg. 212.) and adopted many of the practices of the natives. He made many sketches, and kept a journal ; and after many years full of interesting adventures with the rebellious natives, and of endearing scenes with Joanna 211 212 C^ his local wife, he came home and wrote a very entertaining account of what he had seen and done. (See Siedmans Surinam, 2 vols. 4to. 1794.) 1218. Amazonia is an extensive, unconquered, or at least uncivilized country. In so far as it is known, its climate is more temperate than might be expected from its geogra- phical position. The surface of the country is clothed in most places by interminable forests, and its immense river is well known. The soil of a small settlement formed by the Portuguese, is very fertile, and produces corn, grain, and all kinds of tropical fruits ; besides a variety of timber, as cedar, brazil-wood, oak, ebony, iron-wood, log-wood, and other dyeing woods ; and also cocoa, tobacco, sugar-canes, cotton, cassava root, potatoes, yams, sarsaparilla, gums, raisins, balsam of various sorts, pine-apples, guavas, bananas, &c. The forests abound with wild honey, and also with tigers, wild boars, buffaloes, deer, parrots, and other curious birds {Jig. 213.), and game of va- rious kinds. The rivers and lakes afford an ample supply of fish, sea-cows, and turtles ; but the alligators and water serpents render fishing a dangerous employment. The trees, fields, and plants, are verdant throughout the year. 1219. Patagonia consists for the greatest part of open deserts and savannahs, with a few willow trees on the rivers. It seems t6 en- joy a temperate, but rather cool climate; but separated in tlie middle by the vast mountains of the Andes, one part of it differs widely from the other. To the northward of La Plata, this part of South America is covered with wood, and stored with an inexhaus- ^^^ tible fund of large timber : but to the southward of that river, the l.J eye can scarcely discover a smgle tree or shrub fit for any mechani- 213 20» HISTORY OF AaRICULTURE. Pari I. cal purpose ; but even this seemingly barren country has some good pastures, and nu- merous droves of wild horned cattle, and every district abounds with horses, which are supposed to have been brought hither by the Spaniards. 1220. Of the south American islands, that of Juan Fernandez abounds in pasture, cattle, and woods ; and Terra del Fuego, amidst its horrible snows, exhibits a variety of plants. The Falkland islands contain a variety of fowls and plants, somewhat resembling those of Canada. Georgia is a field of ice, in which, or in any of the other islands, there is no cultivation whatever. BOOK II. AGRICULTURE AS INFLUENCED BY GEOGRAPHICAL, PttVSICAL, CIVIL, AND POLITICAL CIRCUMSTANCES. 1221. Agriculture, considered in regard to climate^ territorial surface, and society, presents some features, which it may be instructive to recognize. Whoever has perused with attention the outline which we have now concluded of the field culture of the different nations of the world, must have a general and enlarged view of that art ; and must ne- cessarily have observed, that there are different species of territorial culture, founded on difference of geographical position or climate ; difference of physical circumstances or surface, and differences of civilization or human wants. The object of the present Book is to characterize these different species, and to refer to them the proper districts through- out the world. Chap. I. Agriculture as influenced hy Geographical Circumstances. 1222. The influence of climate extends not only to the kind of plant and animals to be cultivated, but to the mode of culture. A few useful plants are universal, and but a few. Of those belonging to agriculture, we may enumerate most of the pasture or hay grasses which are annuals, and of the cereal grasses, the wheat, rye, and barley. The oat, the pea, bean, turnip, potatoe, and the perennial pasture grasses, will neither thrive in veiy hot, nor in very cold climates ; the maize, millet, and rice can only be grown in warm countries, and the oat in temperate regions. The roots and fruits of what are de- nominated hot climates, as the yam, plantain, bread-fruit, &c. are limited to them ; and equally so the timber trees of temperate and torrid regions, as the oak and pine, the ma- hogany or teak-tree. 1 223. Animals as well as plants are similarly affected by climate. Some animals are universal, as the ox and swine, which are found in every latitude ; others are limited in their range, as the rein-deer, camel, elephant, and, considered as a cultured animal, the sheep. The horse and ass are nearly universal, but cannot be substituted for the rein- deer. The sheep will exist in India and also in Greenland, but lose their useful charac- ter in both countries ; in Greenland they require protection during nine months of the year, and in India their wool is changed to hair, and the carcase is too lean for the butcher. 1 224. The culture required for both plants and animals depends materially on climate. It is not easy for a person who has never been out of Britain to conceive a just idea of the aquatic culture even of Italy or Spain. In these countries though most crops, whether of grain or roots, require watering, yet some in the rainy season may be obtained in the usual way, as melons in Italy and onions in Spain. But in Arabia, Persia, and India no culture can be undertaken without water, excepting in the upper regions of mountains. The fundamental process of culture in these countries is to prepare the surface for the reception of water, and its circulation in trenches and gutters, and to procure the water by raising it from wells or rivers by machinery. Wherever the surface cannot be irrigated, no regular culture need be attempted or corn crop expected. Nature in such situations produces periodical crops of annual succulents or bulbous rooted plants; and man might, perhaps, to a certain extent, turn this circumstance of climate to account, by changing the sorts of annual bulbs, &c. from such as are useless, to such as are useful. The onion or edible crocus or cyperus might, perhaps, be substituted for the ixiaof the Cape; and the sesamura, or some rapid annual, furnishing useful seeds or Book II. AGRICULTURE UNDER VARIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES. 20^ herbage, for numerous annual weeds, and the cochineal cactus for the shewy but useless Mesembryantheraums and Stapelias of the African wastes. These, however, are only suggestions. 1225. Culture in the north of jBwro;)e depends for the most part more on draining lands oif their superfluous water, than on artificial supplies of that element. When irrigation is applied it is limited entirely to grass lands ; and that not for the purpose of supplying such lands with moisture, but for stimulating by manure held in solution by the water, and for increasing or maintaining heat. The greatest care is requisite to prevent this mode of watering from proving more injurious than useful ; but little danger results from the application of water in hot countries, and there it is valuable by moderating rather than increasing the temperature of the soil. Water in the north of Europe is generally supplied in more than sufficient quantity by the atmosphere ; and therefore one great object of the cultivator is to keep the soil thoroughly drained by surface gutters and subterraneous conductors ; to keep it pulverized for the moisture to pass through, and the roots to extend themselves ; well stocked with manure to supply nourishment ; freed from weeds, to prevent any of this nourishment from being wasted ; and to admit the light, air, and weather to the useful plants. In the hot countries keeping the soil free from weeds is generally a duty easily performed, and often rendered un- necessary; for whenever water is withheld even in the south of Spain (724.), every living thing is burned up with drought. It is remarkable that in the most northerly parts of Europe and America the same effect, especially as to fibrous rooted perennials, is produced by cold, and in Russia and New England, where there is scarcely any spring, the agriculturist has only to plough once, and sow in the same way as in the hot valleys of the south of Spain, and South America, where vegetation is equally rapid from the accession of moisture as it is in the cold plains of Russia from the influence of the sun during the long days of a northern summer. In hot countries putrescent manures are not altogether neglected, but they are much less necessary than in cold countries, and can be done without where there is abundance of water ; — there water, intense heat, and light, a consequent moist atmosphere, and a well pulverised soil, supply every thing necessary for luxuriant vegetation. 1226. Hence it is that agriculture considered geographically admits of two grand divisions, that of the cold climates, which may be called agriculture by draining and manures ; and that of the hot climates, which may be called agriculture by irrigation. To the former belongs the greater part of Europe, the north of Asia, the north of America, and part of the Australasian isles ; to the latter, Egypt, Persia, India, China, Africa, and great part of the south of America, and part of Australasia. As intermediate between agriculture by waterings and agriculture by draining^ may be mentioned that mixed culture by watering and manuring which prevails in the south of France, Spain, and Italy ; and as opposed to the aquatic culture of the torrid zone may be placed the rural economy of the arctic circle, which, from the prevalence of cold and ice, precludes all culture of the soil, admits little else than the growth of mosses and lichens, and is therefore limited to fishery and the chase. 1227. These leading'dixisions of culture are by no means so absolute as to be determinable by degrees of latitude^ so much depending on physical circumstances ; as elevation, soil, aspect, island, or continent, &c. ; but as an approximation which may impress some general ideas in the mind of the practical agriculturist, we submit the following : 1228. The agriculture of irrigation la&y be considered as extending thirty-five degrees on each side of the equator. 1229. The agriculture of manures and irrigation from the thirty-fifth to the forty-fifth degree north and south of the equator. 1230. The agriculture of draining and manures from the forty-fifth degree, north and south of the equator, to the sixty-seventh degree or arctic circle. 1231. The arts of fishing and huntings as the only means of subsistence, from the sixty- seventh degree, or arctic circle, to the pole. Chap. II. Agriculture as inflitenQed by Physical Circumstances. 1232. The physical circumstances which principally affect agriculture are temperafure and light, elevation, moisture, and soil. 1233. Temperature and light have the most powerful influence on the culture both of plants and animals. Elevation, when not considerable, admits of being rendered sub- servient to the processes of culture, and to the habits of dilFerent plants and animals ; 204 HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE. Part I. moisture may be moderated or increased, soil improved ; but temperature and light are in a great measure beyond human control. Hence it is that the plants and animals culti- vated by the agricultor, do not altogether depend on his skill or choice, but on his local situation. Not only the maize, rice, and millet, which are such valuable crops in Asia and Africa, cannot be cultivated in the north of Europe, but even within the extent of the British isles, some kinds of grain, pulse, and roots, cannot be grown to such perfection in certain districts as in others. Thus the Angus variety of oat will not come to the same perfection, south of London, that it does north of York ; and of different varieties the Dutch, Polish, and potatoe oat will succeed better in a warm climate, than the Angus, black, or moorland oat, which answer best for cokU moist, and elevated districts. The turnip arrives at a greater size in Lancashire, Berwickshire, and Ayrshire, than it does in Kent, Surrey, or Sussex, even admitting the best possible management in both countries. The pea requires a dry soil and climate, and more heat than the bean, and consequently thrives much better in the south of England, in Kent, and Hampshire, than in Scotland or Ireland. It is certain that the perennial grasses thrive best where the temperature and light is moderate throughout the year, as on the sea-coast in various countries, where mild- ness is obtained from the influence of the sea, and light from the absence of a covering of snow ; and also in the south of England, where the snow seldom lies, and where the tem- perature is moderate, and the nights not so long as they are farther north. It is equally certain that in America and Russia, where the cold is intense during winter, and the plants on the surface of the ground are deprived of light for six or seven months together by a covering of snow, all herbaceous vegetation is destroyed. Contrasted with these facts, may be mentioned as equally well ascertained, that annual plants in general attain a greater size, and a higher degree of perfection, where the winters are long, and the summers hot and light ; the reason of which seems to be that the alternate action of heat and cold, rain and ice, meliorates the soil and prepares it better for the nourishment of annuals than it can well be in countries where the soil is not only harder naturally, (for all coun- tries that have long winters have soft soils,) but more or lesS occupied by perennial weeds, insects, and vermin. In cold countries the insects are generally of that kind whose eggs go through the processes of the larva and chrysalis state under water, and land reptiles are generally rare. 1234. Elevation, when considerable, has an absolute influence on agriculture. Tlie most obvious effect is that of obliging the agriculturist to isolate his dwelling from those of other cultivators or villagers in the plains, and to reside on his farm. This is well exemplified in Switzerland and Norway. We have already noticed the judicious reflections of Bakewell on the subject as referable to the former country (336.), and have also referred to those of Dr. Clarke respecting Norway (591.). The latter author has depicted these alpine farms, both with his elegant pen and habile pencil {fg. 214.) . The ^^-^-^liilif:::^^ 214 farmeries are generally built with fir planks, and covered with birch bark, and turf. The inhabitants chiefly live by the dairy, and seldom see their neighbours or any human being beyond their own fire-side, excepting on the Sunday morning when they go to church, and on the Sunday afternoons in summer when they meet to dance (Jig. 215.), and amuse themselves. BodKlI. AGRICULTURE UNDER VARIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES. 205 1235. As elevation is known to lessen temperature in regular gradation ac- cording to the altitude above the sea, its influence on plants and animals must correspond. Three hundred feet in height are considered nearly equal to half a degree of latitude, and occa- sion a difference of temperature of nearly twelve degrees of Fahrenheit. Hence it is that the agriculture of the temperate may sometimes be adopted in the torrid zone, and that some of the mountains of Jamaica will produce be- tween their base and summit, almost all the plants of the world. Hence, also, that even in the limited extent of the island of Britain, a given elevation on mountains in Devonshire will be adapted for a different agriculture to the same elevation on tlie Cheviot, Grampian or Sutherland mountains ; and while wheat ripens at six hundred feet above the level of the sea in Cornwall, oats will hardly ripen at that height in the Western isles. 1 236. Elevation exposes plants and animals to the powerful operation of wind, and in this respect must influence the disposition of the fields, fences, plantations, and buildings of the agriculturist, as well as the plants and animals cultivated. It has some influence also on the density of the air and the supplies of water and vapour, and even in these respects must aftect the character of the agriculture. In Switzerland and Norway the upper mountain farms are completely above the mere dense strata of clouds, and their oc- cupiers are often for weeks together without getting a view of the plains or valleys below. 1237. That soil must influence the agriculture of a country appears at first sight very- obvious ; though if climate be favorable, time and art will render the soil fit for any species of culture. Naturally, however, soil has a powerful influence ; and the period under ordinary management will be considerable, before strong deep clays on a flat surface, can be rendered equally fit for the turnip or potatoe, with friable loams, or more gravelly or sandy soils. 1238. The influence of moisture on the state of lands, is naturally very considerable, and though draining and irrigation can effectually remove excess or supply deficiency, yet fen lands and chalk hills, such as we find in Huntingdonshire, Surrey, and other counties, will ever have a peculiar character of agriculture ; the marsh perennial hay- grasses will be the characteristic plants of the former, and saintfoin of the latter. 1239. As the general result of this outline of the influence of physical circumstances on agriculture, we may form a classification of that of any particular country to whichever of the four universal divisions (1228. to 1231.) it belongs. We submit the following : — 1240. The agriculture of water-fed lands, including fens, marshes, and marsh meadows. 1241. The agriculture of sun-burnt lands, including chalk, gravel, and sandy hills, where vegetation is annually more or less burned up during two or more of the summer months. 1 242. The agriculture of mountains, in which the farmery is placed on the farm, as distinguished from those cases in which the mountain lands or a part of them are appended to lands on the plain. 1243. Common agriculture, or that of the plains, valleys, and hills of a country in which all the crops and all the animals suitable tp the climate may be profitably cultivated and reared. Chap. III. Agriculture as affected by Civil, Political, and Religious Circumstances, 1 244. The influence of the state of society and government on agriculture, nmst obviously be very considerable, as well as climate and situation ; for it will signify little what a country is capable of producing, if the inhabitants are too barbarous to desire, too igno- rant to know, or too much oppressed to attain these products. Some of the finest lands in the world, capable of producing wheat, maize, rice, and the grape, are in- habited by savages, who live on game, wild fruits, or native roots ; or by half civilized tribes who cultivate maize, and yams, or some other local root. Even in Ireland, where the soil is better than in Britain, and with very moderate culture will produce excellent wheat and other corns, with beef, mutton, and wool, the greater part of the inhabitants from ignorance, oppression,, and in part as we have seen (840. j religious 206 HISTORY OF AGRICULTl/RE. Part I. slavery, fcontent themselves with roots and rags, the latter often the cast off refuse of other countries (830). 1 245. The state of civilization and refinement of a people not only influences agriculture by the nature of the products such a state requires, but also by the means it affords of pro- ducing these products. By the superiority of the means of information on every subject ; by the existing state of knowledge, for example, in mechanics, chemistry, and physiology, by which the implements and machines are improved, the operations of soils and manures regulated, the influence of water, the atmosphere, and the functions of plants and animals understood. The difference in the means taken to effect the same end in a poor but yet ingenious country, and in one rich and enlightened, is exemplified in China and India, compared with Britain ; and between a comparatively poor and intelligent country, and a rich ignorant country, in comparing Scotland and England, at least as far as agriculture is concerned. Wealth and ignorance, as contrasted with poverty and ingenuity, may also be exemplified in comparing the farmer of Hindustan with the English farmer. The latter to stir the soil, employs an unwieldly implement drawn by several oxen or horses ; the former uses a small light implement drawn by one ox or buffalo, but effects his object by repeating the operation many times. The Englishman effects it at once, often in spite of the worst means, by main force. The processes of Chinese manufacture are exceed- ingly curious and ingenious, and form a remarkable contrast to the rapid and scientific processes of Britain. There are many curious "''^ >«c^-^ practices in France and Germany, the result of poverty and ingenuity. In Brittany the whin is used as horse provender : to bruise the spines one man operates on a simple but ingenious machine {jig, 216.), and effects his purpose completely. Here the same thing is done by a couple of iron rollers turned by a horse or by water. But the farmer of Brittany, who would purchase a pair of whin bruising- rollers, must first sell the greater part of his stock and crop. 1246. The political state of a country will powerfully affect its agriculture. Where se- curity, the greatest object of government, is pro- cured at too high a rate, the taxes will depress the cultivator, and not only consume his profits, but infringe on his capital ; where security, either relatively to external circumstances, or internal laws, is incomplete, there the farmer wlio has capital will be unwilling to risk it ; < few who have capital will engage in that pro- fession ; and if any finds it profitable, the fear of exposing himself to exactions from government or his landlord, will prevent him from making a proper use of his profits either in the way of employment or consump- tion. Many instances of this state of things are to be found in the foregoing history. Wherever the metayer system, or short leases prevail, whatever may be the nature or practice of the government, these remarks will apply. Security and liberty at a moderate price are essential to the prosperity of agriculture, even more so than to manufactures or commerce. 1247. iie/i^w may be thought to have very little influence on agriculture: but in a Catholic or Mahommedan country where the religion enjoins a frequent abstinence from animal food , and long periodical fasts from even the produce of the cow, surely the rearing and feeding of stock for the shambles or the dairy cannot prosper to the same ex- tent as in a country less enslaved by prejudice, or whose religious opinions do not inter- fere with their cookery. The number of holidays is also a great grievance. 1248. The natural character of a people may even have some influence on their agri- culture, independently of all the other circumstances mentioned. The essential character of a people is formed by the climate and country in which they live, and their factitious or accidental character by their government and religion for the time being. The latter may alter, but the original or native character remains. Thus the French appear to be the same gay people which they were in the time of Julius Caesar ; and as far as history enables us to judge, the Greeks and Romans have only lost their accidental character. The love of society and social amusements inherent in every class of Frenchmen, will probably long prevent their agriculturists from isolating their farmeries, as in the vale of Arno and the Alpine regions of Europe, and indeed of every mountainous country. French and Italian farmers, in general, live together in villages, sometimes five or six miles distant from their farms : early in the morning the household set out with the cattle and Book II. AGRICULTURE CONSIDERED AS A SCIENCE. 207 implements, and their food for the day ; they work till near mid-day, and then refresh themselves, and repose under a tree, or in winter under a temporary shed ; at night they return, meet their neighbours, make a protracted supper, and amuse themselves in fiddling and dancing, till they have exhausted their superfluous spirits. 1249. The agriculture of the world in regard to the state of society may perhaps admit of the following divisions. — 1250. The agriculture of science y or modern farming, in which the cultivator is secure in his property or possession, both relatively to the government and landlord under which he lives, as generally in Britain and North America. 1 25 1 . The agriculture of habit, or feudal culture, in which the cultivator is a metayer, or a tenant at will, or on a short lease, or has covenanted to pursue a certain fixed system of culture. 1 252. Barbarian agriculture, or that of a semi-barbarous people who cultivate at ran- dom, and on land to which they have no defined right of possession, roots or grain without regard to rotation, order, or permanent advantage. 1 253. The economy of savages, such as hunting, fishing, gathering fruits, or digging up roots. Chap. IV. Of the Agriculture of Britain* 1 254. To which of these geographical, physical, and social divisions of agriculture that of the Bi-itish isles may be referred, is the next object to be determined, and we submit the following as its classification. 1255. Geographically it is the agriculture of draining and manures. 1256. Physically, those of water-fed and sun-burnt lands, mountains, and variable plains. 1257. Socially considered, it is the agriculture of science. 1258. The following parts of this work, therefore, are to be considered as treating of a kind of agriculture so characterized ; that is, of the agriculture of our own country. Who- ever has paid a due attention to what has preceded, can scarcely fail to have formed an idea of the agriculture of every other part of the world, suflScient to enable him to determine that very little in our art is to be learned any where else than among ourselves. PART 11. AGRICULTURE CONSIDERED AS A SCIENCE. 1 259. All knowledge is founded on exj^erience ; in the infancy of any art, experience is confined and knowledge limited to a few particulars ; but as arts are improved and extended a great number of facts become known, and the generalization of these, or the arrangement of tliem according to some leading principle, constitutes the theory, science, or law of an art. 1260. Agriculture, in common with other arts, may be practised without any knowledge of its theory ; that is, established practices may be imitated ; but in this case it must ever remain stationary. The mere routine practitioner cannot advance beyond the limits of his own particular experience, and can neither derive instruction from such accidents as are favorable to his object, nor guard against the re-occurence of such as are unfavorable. He can have no resource for unforeseen events but ordinary expedients ; while the man of science resorts to general principles, refers events to their true causes, and adapts his measures to meet every case. 1261. The object of the art of agriculture is to increase the quantity and improve the quality of such vegetable and animal productions of the earth as are used by civilized man ; and the object of the agriculturist is to do this with the least expenditure of means ; or, in other words, with profit. The result of the experience of mankind as to other ob- jects may be conveyed to an enquiring mind in two different ways : he may be instructed in the practical operations of the art, and their theory, or the reasons on which they are founded, laid down and explained to him as he goes along ; or he may be first instructed in genei-al principles, and then in the practices which flow from them. The former 2oa SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. mode is the natural or actual mode in which every art is acquired (in so far as acquire- ment is made) by such as have no recourse to books, and may be compared to the natural mode of acquiring a language without the study of its grammar. The latter mode is by much the most correct and effectual, and is calculated to enable an instructed agricul- turist to proceed with the same kind of confidence and satisfaction in his practice tliat a grammarian does in the use of language. 1262, In adopting what we consider as the preferable mode of agricultural instruction, we shall, as its grammar or science, endeavour to convey a general idea of the nature of veg'etables, of animals, of minerals, mixed bodies, and the atmosphere, as connected witli agriculture ; of agricultural implements and other mechanical agents ; and of agricultural operations and processes. ^ 263. The study of the science of agriculture may be considered as implying a regular education in the student, who ought to be well acquainted with arithmetic and mensur- ation, have acquired the art of sketching objects, whether animal, vegetable, or general scenery, of taking off, and laying down geometrical plans ; but especially he ought to have studied chemistry, hydraulics, and something of carpentry, smithery, and the other building arts : and as Professor Von Thaer observes, he ought to have some knowledge of all those manufactures to which his art furnishes the raw materials. BOOK I. OF THE STUDY OF THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM WITH A VIEW TO AGRICULTVRE. 1264. The various objects with which we are surrounded ?Lre either organized, having several constituent parts which united form a whole capable of increase by nourishment ; or they are inorganized, and only increased by additions to their external parts. To the first division belong the animal and vegetable kingdom, and their study is founded chiefly on observation ; to the second belongs the mineral kingdom, the study of which in masses, or geology and mineralogy, is also founded chiefly on observation ; and in re- gard to composition and elements, on experiment or chemistry. 1265. Vegetables are distinguished from animals as not being endowed with sentiment or a consciousness of existence. Their study has employed the attention of mankind from a very early period ; and has been carried to a high degree of perfection within the last century ; and more especially by the exertions of Linnaeus, Jussieu, Mirbel, and some other French philosophers. This study comprehends systematic botany, vegetable anatomy, vegetable chemistry, physiology, pathology, the distribution of vegetables, and vegetable culture. The study of these branches is of the ut^nost importance to the agri- culturist, especially that of vegetable physiology ; and though the limits of this work do not permit us to enter into the subject at great length ; yet we shall direct his attention to the leading points, and refer him to the best books. Chap. I. Of the Study of Systematic Botany. 1266. Glossology y or the study of the names of the parts of plants, is the first step in this department. 1267. All the arts and sciences require to express with brevity and pefspicuity a crowd of ideas unused in common language, and unknown to the greater part of men. Whence that multitude of terms, or tech- nical turns, given to ordinary words which the public turn often into ridicule, because they do not feel the use of them, but which all those are obliged to make use of, who apply themselves to any study what- ever. Botany having to describe an immense number of beings, and each of these beings having a great variety of organs, requires a great variety of terms. Nearly all botanists are agreed as to these terms, and in order that they may be universally understood and remain unchanged in meaning, they are taken from a dead or fixed language. 1268. A plant in flmver surveyed externally^ may be perceived to be composed of a variety of obvious parts, such as the root, the stem, the branch, the'leaf, the flower, the fruit, and perhaps the seed ; and other parts less obvious, as buds, prickles, tendrils, hairs, glands, &c. These, with their modifications, and all the relative circumstances which enter into the botanical description of a plant, constitute the subject of glossology, or the study of the language of botany. The reader may consult Smith's Introduction to Botany, or almost any recent work on the elements of botanical science. 1269. Phytography, or the na?ning and describing qf plants, is the next part of the subject to be considered. Before botany became a regular science, plants were named as individual beings, without regard to any re- lation which they had to one another. But from the great number of names to be retained on the memory, and the obvious affinities existing among certain individuals or natural families, some method was soon found necessary, and it was then deemed requisite to give such composite names as might recal to mind something of the individuals to which they were applied. Thus we have Anagalis flore caruleo. Mespilus aculeata pyrifolia, &c. In the end, however, the length of these phrases became inconvenient, and Linnaus, Book I. THE STUDY OF SYSTEMATIC BQTANY. 209 struck with this inconvenience, proposed that the names of plants should henceforth consist of two words only, the one the generic or family name, and the other the specific or individual name. 1270. The na?ncs of c/asscs and orders were originally primitive, or without meaning, as the Grasses of Tragus, Poppies of Bauhin, &c. ; and afterwards so compounded as to be long and complex, as the Polloplostemonopetalce, Eleutheronwcrastemones, &c. of Wachendorf. Linntcus decided, that the names of classes and orders should consist of a single word, and that word not simple or primitive, but expressive of a certain character or characters, found in all the plants which compose it. 1271. In applying natnes to plants, three rules arc laid down by botanists : 1st. That the languages chosen should be fixed and universal, as the Greek and Latin. 2d. That these languages should be used accord- ing to the general laws of grammar, and compound words always composed from the same language, and, not of entire words, &c. 3d. That the first who discovers a being, and enregisters it in the catalogue of nature, has the right of giving it a name ; and that that name ought to be received and admitted by naturalists, unless it belong to a being already existing, or transgress the rules of nomenclature. Every one that discovers a new plant may not be able to enregister it according to these laws, and in that case has no right to give it his name ; but the botanist who enregisters it, and who is in truth the discoverer, may give it the name of the finder, if he chooses. 1272. The whole vegetable kingdom is divided into classes, orders, genera, species, and varieties. A class . is distinguished by some character which is common to many plants ; an order is distinguished by having some character limited to a few plants belonging to a class ; a still more limited coincidence constitutes a genus J and each individual of a genus, which continues unchanged when raised from seed, is called a spe- cies. A variety is formed by an accidental deviation from the specific character, and easily returns by seed to the particular species from which it arose. 1273. For the purposes of recording and co7nmunicating botanical knowledge, plants are described, and this is done either by the use of language alone, or by language and figures, models or dried plants, conjoined. The description of plants may be either abridged or complete. The shortest mode of abridgment is that employed in botanical catalogues, as in those of Donn or of Sweet. The most exact descriptions are deficient without figures or an herbarium. Hence the advantage of being able to see plants at pleasure, by forming dried collections of them. The greater part of plants dry with facility between the leaves of books, or other paper, the smoother the better. If there be plenty of paper, they often dry best without shifting ; but if the specimens are crowded, they must be taken out frequently, and the paper dried before they are replaced. 1274. The language of botany may be acquired by two methods, analogous to those by which common languages are acquired. The first is the natural method, which begins with the great and obvious classes of vegetables, and distinguishes trees, grasses, &c. ; next individuals among these, and afterwards their parts or organs. This knowledge is acquired insensibly, as we acquire our native tongue. The second is the artificial method, and begins with the parts of plants, as the leaves, roots, &c. ascending to nomenclature and classification, and is acquired by particular study, aided by books or instructors, as one acquires a dead or foreign language. This method is the fittest for such as wish to attain a thorough knowledge of plants, so as to be able to describe them ; the other mode is easier, and the best suited for cultivators, whose object does not go beyond that of understanding their descriptions, and studying their physiology, history, and application. A very good method for a person at a distance from botanists, is to form a collection of dried specimens of all the plants which he wishes to know the names of, and to send them to the curator of the nearest botanic garden, requesting him to write the name below each speci- men, and refer to some work easily procured, such as Withering or Gray's Arrangement of British Plants, in which is given its description, uses, history, &c. Smith's Introduction, and the Elements of Decandolle and Sprengel, may be referred to as the best works on phytography and nomenclature. 1275. Taxonomy, or the classification of plants, is the last part of the study -ef'techno- logical botany. It is very evident, that, without some arrangement, the mind of man would be unequal to the task of acquiring even an imperfect knowledge of the various objects of nature. Accordingly, in every science, attempts have been made to classify the different objects that it embraces, and these attempts have been founded on various principles. Some have adopted artificial characters ; others liave endeavoured to detect the natural relations of the beings to be arranged, and thus to ascertain a connection by which the whole may be associated. In the progress of zoology and physiology, the fun- damental organs on which, to found a systematic arrangement have been finally agreed on. In both, those which are essential, and which discover the greatest variety, form the basis of classification. Animals are found to differ most from each other in the organs of nutrition, and plants in the organs of reproduction. 1276, Two kinds of methods of arranging vegetables have been distinguished by botanists, the natural and the artificial. A natural method is that, which, in its distribution, retains all the natural classes ; that is such into which no plants enter that are not connected by numerous relations, or that can be dis- joined without doing a manifest violence to nature. An artificial method is that whose classes are not natural because they collect together several genera of plants which are not connected by numerous relations although they agree in the characteristic mark or marks, assigned to that particular class or assemblage to which they belong. An artificial method is easier than the natural, as in the latter it is nature in the former the writer, who prescribes to plants the rules and order to be observed in their distribution. Hence, likewise, as nature is ever uniform, there can be only one natural method ; whereas artificial methods may be multiplied almost ad infinitum, according to the several different relations under which bodies are viewed. ^,, ,. ^ 1277 The object of the natural method is to promote our knowledge of the vegetable kmgdom by gener- alizing facts and ideas ; the object of the artificial method is to facilitate the knowledge of plants as indi- vidual objects The merits of the former method consist in the perfection with which plants are grouped together in natural families or orders, and these families grouped among themselves ; the merits of the latter consist in the perfection with which they are arranged according to certain marks by which their names may be discovered. Plants arranged according to the natural method may be compared to words arranged according to their roots or derivations ; arranged according to an artificial method they may be compared to words in a dictionary. The success attending attempts at botanical arrangement, both naturally and artificially, has been singularly striking. Linnaeus has given the most lieautiful artifi- cial system that has ever been bestowed by genius on mankind; and Jussieu has, with unrivalled ability, exhibited the natural alfinities of the vegetable kingdom. For the study of this department we refer to the works of Smith, Decandolle, and Gray, already mentioned, , 210 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. Chap. II. Vegetable Anatomy, or the Structure and Organization of Plants. 1278. Vegetables may he classed for the study of their anatomy and physiology, according as they are distinguished by a structure or organization more complicated or more simple. The former will constitute what may be denominated perfect plants, and will form a class comprehending the principal mass of the vegetable kingdom. The latter will con- stitute what may be denominated imperfect plants, and will form a class comprehending all such vegetables as are not included in the foregoing class. We shall first consider their external, and next their internal organization. Sect. I. Of the External Structure of Perfect Plants. 1279. The parts of perfect plants may be distributed into conservative and reproduc- tive, as corresponding to their respective functions in the economy of vegetation. 1 280. The conservative organs are such as are absolutely necessary to the growth and preservation of the plant, and include the root, trunk, branch, leaf, and frond. 1281. The root is that part of the plant by which it attaches itself to the soil in which it grows, or to the substance on which it feeds, and is the principal organ of nutrition. 1282. The trunk is that part of the plant which, springing immediately from the root, ascends in a vertical position above the surface of the soil, and constitutes the principal bulk of the individual. 1283. TTie branches are the divisions of the trunk, originating generally in the upper extremity, but often also along the sides. 1284. The leaf, which is a temporary part of the plant, is a thin and flat substance of a green color, issuing generally from numerous points towards the extremities of the branches, but sometimes also imme- diately from the stem or root, and distinguishable by the sight or touch into an upper and under surface, a base and apex, with a midrib and lateral nerves. 1285. The frond, which is to be regarded as a compound of several of the parts already described, con- sists of an union or incorporation of the leaf, leaf-stalk, and branch or stem, forming as it were but one organ, of which the constituent parts do not separate spontaneously from one another by means of the fracture of any natural joint, as in the case of plants in general, but adhere together even in their decay. It is found in palms and ferns. 1286. The conservative apjyendages are such accessory or supernumerary parts as are found to accompany the conservative organs occasionally, but not invariably. They are permanent in whatever species they are found to exist ; some being peculiar to one species, and some to another. But they are never found to be all united in the same species, and are not necessarily included in the general idea of the plant. They are denominated gems, glands, tendrils, stipulae, armature, pubescence, and anomalies. 1287. Gems or bulbs are organized substances issuing from the surface of the plant, and containing the rudiments of new and additional parts which they protrude; or the rudiments of new individuals which they constitute by detaching themselves ultimately from the parent plant, and fixing themselves in the soil. 1288. Glands are small and minute substances of various different forms,'found chiefly on the surface of the leaf and petiole, but often also on the other parts of the plant, and supposed to be organs of secretion. 1289. The tendiil is a thread-shaped and generally spiral process issuing from the stem, branch, or petiole, and sometimes even from the expansion of the leaf itself, being an organ by which plants of weak and climbing stems attach themselves to other plants, or other substances for support ; for which purpose it seems to be well fitted by nature, the tendril being much stronger than a branch of the same size. 1290. The stipulcE are small and foliaceous appendages accompanying the real leaves, and assuming the appearance of leaves in miniature. 1291. Ramenta are thin, oblong, and strap-shaped appendages of a brownish color, issuing from the surface of the plant, and somewhat resembling the stipulte, but not necessarily accompanying the leaves. 1292. The armature consists of such accessory and auxiliary parts as seem to have been intended by nature to defend the plant against the attacks of animals. 1293. The pubescence is a general term, including under it all sorts of vegetable down or hairiness,Vith which the surface of the plant may be covered, finer or less formidable than the armature. 1294. Anomalies. There are several other appen- dages proper to conser- vative organs, which are so totally different from • all the foregoing, that they cannot be classed with any of them ; and so very circumscribed in their occurrence, that they do not yet seem to have been designated by any peculiar appellation. The first anomaly, as af- fects the conservative ap- pendages, occurs in dio- ncea mnscipula or Venus's fly-trap (M 211 a). A second is. that which oc- curs in sarracenia pur- purea or purple side-sad- dle-flower (6). A third, which is still more singular, occurs in nepenthes distillatoria (c). The last anomaly Book I. EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF PLANTS. m is that of a small globular and membranaceous bag, attached as an appendage to the roots and leaves of some of the aquatics. It is confined only to a few genera, but is to be seen in great abundance on the roots or leaves of the several species of utricularia inhabiting the jwnds and ditches of this country ; and on the leaves of aldrovanda vesiculosa, an inhabitant of the marshes of Italy. In utricularia vulgaris this appendage is pear-shapetl, compressed with an open border at the small end, furnished with several slender fibres originating in the margin, and containing a transparent and watery fluid, and a small bubble of air, by means of which it seems to acquire a buoyancy that suspends it in the water. 1295. Tfie rejyroductive organs are such parts of the plant as are essential to its propaga- tion, whose object is the reproduction of the species, terminating the old individual, and beginning the new. It includes the flower, with its immediate accompaniments or peculiarities, the flower-stalk, receptacle, and inflorescence, together with the ovary or fruit. 1296. TJie fiower, like the leaf, is a temporary part of the plant, issuing generally from the extremity of the branches, but sometimes also from the root, stem, and even leaf, being the apparatus destined by nature for the production of the fruit, and being also distinguishable, for the most part, by the brilliancy of its coloring or the sweetness of its smell. 1297. The flower-stalk is a partial trunk or stem, supporting one or more flowers, if the flowers are not sessile, and issuing from the root, stem, branch, or petiole, and sometimes even from the leaf. 1298. The receptacle is the seat of the flower, and point of union between the different parts of the flower, or between the flower and the plant, whether immediate and sessile, or mediate and supported upon a flower-stalk. 1299. The inflorescence, mode of flowering, is the pecuBar mode of aggregation in which flowers are arranged or distributed upon the plant. 1330, The fruit is the rii)ened ovary, or seed-vessel which succeeds the flower. In popular language the term is confined chiefly to such fruits as are esculent, as the apple, the peach, and the cheiry ; but with the botanist the matured ovary of every flower, with the parts contained, constitutes the fruit. 1301. Appendages. The reproductive organs, like the conservative organs, are often found to be furnished with various additional and supernumerary parts, not at all essential to their constitution, because not always present, and hence denominated appendages. Many of them are precisely of the same character with that of the conservative appen- dages, except that they are of a finer and more delicate texture. Such are the glands, down, pubescence, hairs, thorns or prickles, with one or other of which the parts of the fructification are occasionally furnished. But others are altogether pecuh'ar to the repro- ductive organs, and are to be regarded as constituting, in the strict acceptation of the term, true reproductive appendages. Some of them are found to be proper to the flower, as the involucre, spathe, bracte, &c., aiid others to the fruit as the persisting calyx, exemplified in the pomegranate. Sect. II. Of the External Structure of Imperfect Plants. 1302. Plants apparen^lT/ defective in one or other of the more conspicuous parts or organs, whether conservative or reproductive, are denominated imperfect. The most generally adopted division of imperfect plants is that by wliich they are distributed into filices, equisitacese, lycopodinse, musci, hepaticae, algae, lichenae, and fungi. 1303. The filices, equisitacece, andlycopodiTi^, are for the tnost part herbaceous, and die down' to the ground in the winter, but they are furnished with a perennial root, from which there annually issues a frond bearing the fructification. The favorite habitations of many of them are heaths and uncultivated grounds, where they are found intermixed with furze and brambles; but the habitations of such as are the most luxuriant in their growth are moist and fertile spots, in shady and retired situations, as on mossy dripping rocks, or by fountains and rills of water. Some of them will thrive even on the dry and torren rock, or in the chinks and fissures of walls ; and others only in wet and marshy situations where they are half immersed in water. 1301. The tnossea {fig. 218.) are a tribe of imperfect plants of a small and diminutive size, consisting often merely of a root, surmounted with a tuft of minute leaves, from the centre of which the fructification springs, but furnished for the most part with a stem and branches, on which the leaves are closely imbri- cated, and the fructification terminal or lateral. They are perennials and herbaceous, aj)proaching to shrubby ; or annuals, though rarely so, and wholly herbaceous, the perennials being also evergreens. 1305. The hepaticee are a tribe of small and herbaceous plants resembling the mosses, but chiefly consti- tuting ftronds, and producing their fruit in a capsule that .splits into longitudinal valves. In their habits- P 2 M SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. tions, they affect for the most part the same Bort of situations as the mosses, being found chiefly In wet and shady spots, by the sides of springs and ditches, or on the shelvnig brinks of rivulets, or on the trunks of trees. Like the mosses, they thrive best also in cold and damp weather, and recover their verdure though dried, if moistened again with water. ,, . j i * ,. ^ i 1306 The also;, or sea-weeds, include not merely marine and many other immersed plants, but also a great variety of plants that are not even aquatics. All the algae, agree in the common character of having their herbage frondose, or but rarely admitting of the distinction of root, stem, and leaf 1 307. The utilily of the algoe is obviously very considerable, whether we regard them as furnishing an article of animal food, or as appli- cable to medicine and the arts. The fucus sac- charinus {fig. 219 o.), palmatus (6), and edulis (c), and several other fuci, are eaten and much relished by many people, whether raw or dressed, and it is likely that some of them are fed upon ' by various species of fish. The fucus lichenoides (Turnery c. 1 18.) is now believed to be the chief material of the edible nests of the East India swallows, which are so much esteemed for soups, that they sell in China for their weight in gold. When disengaged from their place of growth and thrown upon the sea-shore, the European algse are often collected by the far- mer and used as manure. They ai-e often also employed in the preparation of dyes, as well as in the lucrative manufacture of kelp, a commo- dity of the most indispensable utility in the im- portant arts of making soap and glass. 1308. The utility of the lichence is also worthy of notice. The lichen rangiferinus forms the principal nourishment of the reindeer during the cold months of winter, when all other herbage fails. The lichen islandicus is eaten by the Icelanders instead of bread, or used in the preparation of broths, and, like the lichen pulmonarius, has been lately found to be beneficial in consumptive affections. Many of them are also employed in the preparation of some of our finest dyes, or pigments ; and it is from the lichen parel- lus that the chemical analysist obtains his litmus. The lichens and the mosses seem in- stituted by nature to provide for the universal diffusion of vegetable life over the whole surface of the terrestrial globe. The powdery and tuberculous lichens attach themselves even to the bare and solid rock. Having reached the maturity of their species, they die and are converted into a fine earth, which forms a soil for the leathery lichens. These again decay and moulder into dust in their turn ; and the depth of soil, which is thus augmented, is now capable of nourishing and supporting other tribes of vegetables. The seeds of the mosses lodge in it, and spring up into plants, augmenting also by their decay the quantity of soil, and preparing it for the support of plants of a more luxuriant growth, so that in the revolution of ages even the surface of the barren rock is covered witli a soil capable of supporting the loftiest trees. 1309. The fungi are a tribe of plants whose herbage is a frond tf a fleshy er pulpy texture, quick in its growth, and fugacious in its duration, and bearing seeds or gems in an appropriate and exposed membrane, or containing them interspersed throughout its mass. They are also a tribe of plants that may be re- garded as the lowest in the vegetable scale, exhibiting a considerable resemblance to the tribe of zoophites, and thus forming the connecting link between the vegetable and animal kingdoms. The habitations they affect are very various, many of them vegetating on the surface of the earth {fig. 220 a), and some of them even buried under it ; others on stumps and trunks of rotten trees (6) ; others on decayed fruit ; others on damp and wet walls j and others on animal ordure. 1310. Uses of the fungi. The pow- der of the lycoperdons is said to be an excellent optic ; and is remarkable also for its property of strongly repelling moisture. If a basin filled with water, and a little of the powder strewed upon the surface so as to cover it only, the hand may be plunged into it and thrust down to the bottom without being wetted with a single drop of water. Several of the boleti, when dried, afford a very useful tinder ; and several of the agarics and tubers are used as articles of food, or as ingredients in the preparation of seasoning. The truffle (^.221.) is much Book I. INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF PLANTS. 213 esteemed for the rich and delicate flavor which it imparts to soups and sauces ; and the mushroom {Jig. 222.) and morel {Jig. 223. ) for their esculent property, and utility in the preparation of ketchup. ~ 223 \ Sect. IIL Of the Internal Structure of Plants. 1311. llie organs ofjdants discoverable by external examinaiioji, are themselves reducible in component organs, which are again resolvable into constituent and primary organs. These are called the decomposite, the composite, and the elementai-y. SuBSECT. 1. Decomposite Organs. 1312. The decomposite organs constitute the vegetable individual, and are distinguishable on external examination ; to the dissection of which we will now proceed, in the order of the seed, pericarp, flower, leaf, gem, and caudex, or branch, stem, and root, with their de- composite appendages. 1313. The seed. The mass of the seed consists of two principal parts, distinguishable without much dif- ficulty ; namely, the integuments and nucleus, or embryo and its envelopes. 1314. The integuments proper to the seed are two in number, an exterior integument and an interior in- tegument. 1315. The exterior integument, or testa, is the original cuticle of the nucleus, not detachable in the early stages of its growth, but detachable at the period of the maturity of the fruit, when it is generally of a membranaceous or leathery texture ; though sometimes soft and fleshy, and sometimes crustaceous and bony. It may be very easily distinguished in the transverse or longitudinal section of the garden-bean or any other large seed. 1316. The interior integmneni,'or suh-testa, lines the exterior integument, or testa, and immediately en- velopes the nucleus. Like the testa, to which indeed it adheres, it may be easily distinguished in the garden-bean {fig. 224.), or in a ripe walnut ; in which last it is a fine transparent and net-like membrane. 1317. The nucleus is that part of the seed which is contained within the proper integuments, consisting of the albumen with the vitellus, when present, and embryo. 1318. The albumen is an 'organ resembling in its consistence the white of an egg, and forming, in most cases, the exterior portion of the nucleus, but always separable from the interior or remaining portion. 1319. The vitellus is an organ of a fleshy but firm contexture, situated, when present, between the al- bumen and embryo; to the former of which it is attached only by adhesion, but to the latter by incor- l)oration of substance, so as to be inseparable from it, except by force. 1320. The embryo [a), which is the last and most essential part of the seed and final object of the fructification, as being the germ of the future plant, is a small and often very minute organ, enclosed within the albumen and occupying the centre of tiie seed. 1321. The cotyledon or seed-lobe (ft), is that portion of the embryo that encloses and protects the plant- let, and springs up during the process of germination into what is usually denominated the seminal leaf, if the lobe is solitary ; or seminal leaves, if there are more lobes than one. In the former case the seed is said to be monocotylcdonous ; in the latter case, it is said to be dicotyledonous. Dicotyledonous seeds, which constitute by far the majority of seeds, are well exemplified in the gardon-bean. As there are some seeds whose cotyledon consists of one lobe only, falling snort of the general number, so there are also a few whose cotyledon is divisible into several lobes, exceeding the general number. They have been denominated polycotyledonous seeds, and are exemplified in the case of lepidium sativum or common garden-cress, in which the lobes are six in number ; as in that also of the different species of the genus pinus, in which they vary from three to twelve. 1322. The plantlet, or future plant in miniature, is tlie interior and essential portion of the embryo, and seat of vegetable life. In some seeds it is so minute as to be scarcely perceptible ; while in others it is so large as to be divisible into distinct parts, as in the gardeu-bean. 1323. The pericarp,.iN\\\ch in ditterent species of fruit assumes so many varieties of contexture, acquires its several aspects, not so much from a diversity of substance as of modification. 1324. The valves of the capsule, but particularly the partitions by which it is divided into cells, are com- posed of a thin and skinny membrane, or of an epidermis covering a pulp more or less indurated, and in- r 3 S14 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part 11. terspersed with longitudinal fibres. The capsule of the mosses is composed of a douMe and net-Mice mem- brane, enclosed within a fine epidermis. 1325. The pome is composed of a fine but double epidermis, or, according to Knight, of two skins, enclosing a soft and fleshy pulp, with bundles of longitudinal fibres passing through it, contiguous to, and in the direction of, its longitudinal axis. 1326. The valves qf the legume are composed of an epidermis enclosing a firm but fleshy pulp, lined for the most part with a skinny membrane, and of bundles of longitudinal fibres, forming the seam. 1327. The mitshell, whether hard or bony, or flexible and leathery, is composed of a pulp more or less highly indurated, interspersed with longitudinal fibres, and covered with an epidermis. 1328. The drupe is composed of an epidermis enclosing a fleshy pulp, which is sometimes so interwoven with a multiplicity of longitudinal fibres as to seem to consist wholly of threads, as in the cocoa-nut. 1329. The berry is composed of a very fine epidermis enclosing a soft and juicy pulp. 1330. The scales of the strobile are composed of a tough and leathery epidermis, enclosing a spongy but often highly indurated pulp interspersed with longitudinal fibres that pervade also the axis. 1331. The flower-stalk, or peduncle supporting the flower, which is a prolongation of the stem or branch, or rather a partial stem attached to it, if carefully dissected with the assistance of a good glass, will be found to consist of the following several parts : — 1st, An epidermis, or external envelope ; 2dly, A paren- chyma, or soft and pulpy mass ; 3dly, Bundles of longitudinal threads or fibres, originating in the stem or branch, and passing throughout the whole extent of the parenchyma. The several organs of the flower are merely prolongations of the component parts of the flower-stalk, though each organ does not always contain the whole of sMch component parts, or at least not under the same modifications. The epidermis, however, and parenchyma are common to them all ; but the longitudinal threads or fibres are seldom, if ever, to be found, except in the calyx or corolla. 1332. The leafstalk, or petiole supporting the leaf, which is a prolongation of the branch or stem, or rather a partial stem attached to it, exhibits upon dissection the same sort of structure as the peduncle, namely, an epidermis, a pulp or parenchyma, and bundles of longitudinal threads or fibres. 1333. Gems. There exists among the diflferent tribes of vegetables four distinct species of gems, two peculiar to perfect plants, the bud and bulb, and two peculiar to imperfect plants, the propago and gongylus ; the latter being denominated simple gems, because furnished with a single envelope only ; and the former being denominated compound gems, because furnished with more than a single envelope. 1334. Buds are composed externally of a number of spoon - shaped scales overlapping one another, and converging towards a point in the apex, and often cemented together by means of a " ■ ■■ ■ > substance exudingfrom their surface. glutinous or mucilagii ippea cope, they will be found to consist, like the leaves or divisions of If these scales are stripped off and dissected under the micros- the calyx, of an epidermis enclosing a pulp interspersed with a net-work of fibres, but unacc<,mpanied with longitudinal threads. If the scales of a leaf-bud are taken and stripped off, and the remaining part carefully opened up, it will be found to consist of the rudiments of a young branch terminated by a bunch of incipient leaves imbedded in a white and cottony down, lieing minute but complete in all their parts and pro- portions, and folded or rolled up in the bud in a peculiar and aeterminate mamier. • 1335. Bu/6», which are either radical orcaulinary, exhibit In their external structure, or in a part of their internal structure that is easily detected, several distinct varieties, some being solid, some coated, and some scaly ; but all protruding in the process of vegetation the stem, le^, and flower, peculiar to their species. 1336. The propago, which is a simple gem, peculiar to some genera of imperfect plants, and exemplified by tia^rtner in the lirfiens, consists of a small and pulpy mass forming a gra- nule of no regular shape, sometimes naked, and sometimes covered with an envelope, which is a fine epidermis. 1337. The goiifrfflus, which is aLso a simple gem peculiar to some genera of imperfect plants, and exemplified by Gaertner in the fuci, consists of a slightly indurated pulp moulded into a small and globular granule of a firm and solid contexture, and invested with an epidermis. 225 1338. The caudex includes the whole mass or body both of the trunk and root ; its internal structure, like its external aspect or habit, is materially dif- ferent in different tribes of plants. 1339. The first general mode of the Internal structure of the caudex is that in which an epidermis encloses merely a homogeneous mass of pulp or slender fibre. This is the simplest mode of internal structure existing among vege- tables ; it is exemplified in the lower orders of imperfect plants, particularly the algjE and fungi. 1340. TJie second general mode of internal structure of the caudex is that in which an epidermis encloses two or more substances, or assemblages of sub- stances, totally heterogeneous in their character. A very common variety of this mode is that in which an epidermis or bark encloses a soft and pulpy mass, interspersed with a number of longitudinal nerves or fibres, or bundles of fibres, extending from the base to the apex, and disposed in a peculiarity of 226 manner characteristic of a tribe or genus. This mode prevails chiefly in herbaceous and annual or biennial plants, (fig. 225.) A second variety of this mode is that in which a strong and often thick bark encloses a circular layer of longitudinal fibres, or several such circular and concentric layers, interwoven with thin transverse and diver- gent layers of pulp, so as to form a firm and compact cyliYider, in the centre of which is lodged a pulp or pith. This mode is best exemplified in trees and shrubs (/g-. 226. j, though it is also applicable to many plants whose texture is chiefly or almost wholly herbaceous, forming as it were the connecting link between such plants as are purely herbaceous on the one hand, and such as are purely woody on the other. In the latter casethe wood is perfect; in the former case it is imperfect. The wood being imper- feet in the root of the beet, the common bramble, and burdock ; and perfect in the oak or alder. 1341. The appendages of the plant, whether consen'ative or reproductive, exhibit nothing in their internal structure that is at all essentially different from that of the organs that have been already described. ScBSECT. 2. ComposUe Organs. 1342. The composite organs are the epidermis, pulp, pith, cortical layers, ligneous layers, and vegetable fibre, which may be further analysed, as being still compound, with a view to reach the ultimate and elementary organs of the vegetable subject. 1343. Structure of the vegetable e/ddcrmis. The epidermis of the vegetable, which, from its resemblance to that ot the animal, has been designated by the same name, is the external envelope or integument of the plant, extending over the whole surface, and covering the root, stem, branches, leaves, flower, and fruit, with their appendages ; the summit of the .pistil only excepted. But although it is extended over the whole surface of the plant, it is not of equal consistence throughout In the root and trunk it is a tough and leathery membrane, or it is a crust of considerable thickness, forming a notable portion of the bark, and assuming some peculiar shade of color; while in the leaves, flowers, and tender shoots, it is a fine, colorless, and transparent film, when detached ; and when adherent, it is always tinged with some peculiar shade, which it borrows from the parts immediately beneath it. 1344. The pulp is a soft and juicy substance, constituting the principal mass of succulent plants, and a notable proportion of many parts even of woody plants. It constitutes the principal mass of many' of the fungi and fuci, and of herbaceous plants in general. Mirbel compares it to clusters of small and Book I. INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF PLANTS. 215 hexagonal colls or bladders, containing for the most part a colored juice, and formed apparently of the foldings an;l doublings of a fine and delicate membrane, in which no traces of organization are to be distinguished. _ ^ 1345. The pith is a soft and spongy, but often succulent substance, occupying the ^■^i centre of the root, stem, and branches, and extending in the direction of their longitu- dinal axis, in which it is enclosed as in a tube. The structure of the pith is precisely similar to that of the pulp, being composed of an assemblage of hexagonal cells con- taining a watery and colorless juice, or of cellular tissues and a parenchyma. 1346. The cortical layers, or interior and concentric layers, constituting the mass of the bark, are situated immediately under the cellular integument, where such integu- ment exists, and where not, immediately under the epidermis ; or they are themselves external. They are distinguishable chiefly in the bark of woody plants, but particularly in that of the lime-tree. They are composed of two elementary parts — bundles of longitudinal fibres constituting a network {fig. 227.), and a mass of pulp more or less indurated, filling up the meshes. The innermost of the layers is denominated the liber, and was used by the ancients to write on before the invention of paper. It is the finest and most delicate of them all, and often most beautifully reticulated {fig. 228 «), and varied by bundles of longitudinal fibre {b). But the liber of daphne lagetto is remarkable beyond that of all other plants for the beauty and delicacy of its network, which is not inferior to that of the finest lace, and at the same time so very soft and flexible that in countries of which the tree is a native the lace of the liber is often made to supply the place of a neckcloth. If the cortical layers are injured or destroyed by accident, the part destroyed is again regenerated, and the wound healed up without a scar ; but if the wound penetrates beyond the liber, the part destroyed is no longer regenerated. Or if a tree is bent so as to break part of the cortical fibres, and then propped up in its former position, the fractured fibres will again unite. Or if a portion of the stem is entirely decorticated and covered with a piece of bark, even from another tree, the two different barks will unite. Hence the practicability of ascertaining how far the liber extends. And hence also the origin of grafting, which is always effected by a union of the liber of the graft and stock. 1347. The ligneous layers, or layers constituting the wood, occupy the intermediate portion of the stem between the bark and pith ; and are distinguishable into two different sorts, — concentric layers and divergent layers. {Fig. 227.) 1348. The concentric layers, which constitute by far the greater part of the mass of the wood, are sufficiently conspicuous for the puriJOse of exemplifica- tion on the surface of a horizontal section of most trunks or branches, as on that of the oak and elm. But though they are generally described as being concentric, they are not always strictly so. For they are often found to extend more on the one side of the axis of the stem or branch, than on the other. Some authors say the excess is on the north side, but others say it is on the south side. The former account for it by telling us it is because the north side is sheltered from the sun ; and the latter by telling us it is because the south side is sheltered from the cold; and thus from the operation of contrary causes alleging the same effect, which has been also thought to be sufficiently striking and uniform to serve as a sort of compass, by which the bewildered traveller might safely steer his course, even in the recesses of the most extensive forest. But Du Hamel has exposed the futility of this notion, by showing that the excess is sometimes on the one side of the axis, and sometimes on the other, according to the accidental situation of the great roots and branches ; a thick root or branch producing a proportionably thick layer of wood on the side of the stem from which it issues. The layers are indeed sometimes more in number on the one side than on the other, as well as thicker. But this is the exception, and not the rule. They are thickest, however, on the side on which they are fewest, though not of the same thickness throughout. Du Hamel, after counting twenty layers on the one side of the transverse section of the trunk of an oak, found only fourteen on the other. But the fourteenth exceeded the twenty in thickness by one fourth part. But the layers thus discoverable on the horizontal section of the trunk are not all of an equal consistency throughout, there being an evident diminution in their degree of solidity from the centre, where they are hardest, to the circumference, where they are softest. The outermost layer, which is the softest of all, is denominated the alburnum, perhaps from its being of a brighter white than any of the other layers, either of wood or bark ; from which character, as well as from its softer texture, it is also easily distinguished. It does not acquire its utmost degree of solidity till after a number of years ; but if a tree is barked a year before it is cut down, then the alburnum is converted into wood in the course of that year. 1349. The divergent layers which intersect the concentric layers in a transverse direction, constitute also a considerable proportion of the wood, as may be seen in a horizontal section of the fir or birch, or ot almost any woody plant, on the surface of which they present an appearance like that of the radii of a circle. 1350. TJie structure of the concentric layers will be found to consist of several smaller and component layers, which are themselves composed of layers smaller still, till at last they are incapable of farther division. The concentric layers are composed of longitudinal fibres, generally forming a network ; and the divergent layers, of parallel threads or fibres of cellular tissue, extending in a transverse direction, and filling up the interstices of the network. 1351. The structure of the stem in plants that are purely herbaceous, and in the herbaceous parts of woody plants, is distinguished by a number of notable and often insulated fibres passing longitudinally throughout its whole extent, as in the stipe of apsidium filix mass, or leaf-stalk of the alder. These fibres, when viewed superficially, appear to be merely individuals, but when inspected minutely, and under the microscope, they prove to be groups or bundles of fibres smaller and minuter still, firmly cemented together, and forming in the aggregate a strong and elastic thread, but capable of being split into a number of component fibres, till at last you can divide them no longer. If the fibres of the bark are separated by the destruction of a part, the part is again regenerated, and the fibres are again united, without leaving behind them any traces of a wound. But if the fibres of the wood are separated by the destruction of a part, the part is never regenerated, and the fibres are never united. SuBSECT. 3. Elementary or Vascular Organs. 1352. Fibre, cellular tissue with or without parenchyma, and reticulated membrane , are the ultimate and elementary organs of which the whole mass of the plant is composed. If it is asked of what the elementary organs are themselves composed, the reply is, they are composed, as appears from the same analysis, of a line, colorless, and transparent membrane, in which the eye, aided by the assistance even of the best glasses, can discover no traces whatever of organisation ; which membrane we must also regard as constituting the ultimate and fundamental fabric of the elementary organs themselves, and, by conse- quence, of the whole of the vegetable body. It has been asked by some phytologistt P 4 216 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. whether or not plants are furnished with vessels analogous to the blood-vessels of the animal system. But if it is admitted that plants contain fluids in motion, which cannot possibly be denied, it will follow, as an unavoidable consequence, that they are furnished with vessels conducting or containing such fluids. If the stem of a plant of marigold is divided by means of a transverse section, the divided extremities of the longitudinal fibres, arranged in a circular row immediately within the bark, will be distinctly perceived, and their tubular structure demonstrated by means of the orifices which they present, particu- larly when the stem has begun to wither. Regarding it, therefore, as certain that plants are furnished with longitudinal tubes, as well as with cells or utricles for the purpose of conveying or containing their alimentary juices, we proceed to the specific illustration of both, together with their peculiarities and appendages. 1353. The utricles are the fine and membranous vessels constituting the cellular tissue of the pith and pulp already described, whether of the plant, flower, or fruit. Individually they resemble oblong bladders inflated in the middle, as in the case of some plants; or circular or hexagonal cells, as in the case of others. Collectively they have been compared to an assemblage of threads of contiguous bladders, or vesicles, or to the bubbles that are found on the surface of liquor in a state of fermentation. 1354. The tubes are the vessels formed by the cavities of the longitudinal fibres, whether as occurring in the stem of herbaceous plants, or in the foot-stalk of the leaf and flower, or in the composition of the cortical and ligneous layers, or by longitudinal openings pervading the pulp itself, as in the case of the vine. 1355. rA«far^e<«fce« are tubes distinguishable by the 229 twisted from right to left, or from left torijjht, in superior width of the diameter which they j)resent on .^-m»u^ **^^ iotm of a cork screw. They occur in most the horizontal section of the several parts of the ^SSS^Si ^''""4*"ce in herbaceous plants, particularly in 1356. Simple tubes (fig.^29.) are the largest of all the ||l|j|l|||lf|1|f| U ^^^S- ^'^^'^ tpiral tubes are tubes apparently spiral large tubes, and are formed of a thin and entire mem- IHW |i||| 1 °" ^ slight inspection, but which, upon minute brane, without any percentible disruption of con- liii I flJIi examination, are found to derive their appearance tinuity, and are found chiefly in the bark, though not ii ]i|l |i|l 0 ""^''ely from their being cut transversely by parallel confined to it, as they are to be met with also in the H»i|| l||||| fissures. alburnum and matured wood, as well as in the fibres NiiiRII till H 13G0. Mixed tubes are tubes combining in one In- of herbaceous plants. Ilillll III V dividual two or more of the foregoing varieties. 1357. Porous tubes resemble the simple tubes in their lUillll 111 I Mirbel exemplifies them in the case of the butomus general aspect ; but differ from them in being pierced |lini|i||| I umbellatus, in which the porous tubes, spiral tubes, ■with smalt holes or pores, which are often distributed HUlf ilullll il ^""^ *^^'se spiral tubes, are often to be met with united in regular and parallel rows. They are fuund in ffiffllHHtSlllSII i" one. most abundance in woody plants, and particularly in l|MD|||ill|i 1561. T^imaW :5. Bxlrad of catechu. This extract is obtained from an ljS5. Extract (\f guinijttina. This extract was obtained by infusion of the wood or powder of catechu in cold water. Its Fourcroy, by evaporating a decoction of the bark of the quin- color is pale brown ; and its taste slightly astringent. It is quina of St. Domingo in water, and again dissolving it in precipitated from its solution liy nitrate of lead, and yields by alcohol, which finally deposited by evaporation the peculiar distiUation carbonic and carburetted hydrogen gas, leaving a extractive. It is insoluble in cold water, but very soluble in IHJrous charcoal. boiling water ; its color is brown, and its taste bitter. It is 11384. Extract nf senna. This extract is obtained from an in- precipitated from its solution by lime water, in the form of a fusion of the dried leaves of cassia senna in alcohol. The color red powder ; and when dry it is black and brittle, breaking of the infusion is brownish, the taste slightly bitter, and the with a polished fracture. smell aromatic. It is precipitated from its solution by the 158G. Extract uf .tqfpron. This extract is obtained in great muriatic and oxymuriatic acids ; and when thrown on burning abundance from tjfie summits of the jjistils of crocus sativus, coals consumes, with a thick smoke and aromatic odor, leaving which are almost wholly soluble in jvater. behind a spongy charcoal. 1387. Extracts were formerly much employed in medicine; though their efficacy seems to have been overrated. But a circumstance of much more importance to society is that of their utility in the art of dyeing. By far the greater part of colors used in dyeing are obtained from vegetable extracts, which have a strong affinity to the fibres of cotton or linen, with which they enter into a combination that is rendered still stronger by the intervention of mordants. 1388. Coloring matter. The beauty and variety of the coloring of vegetables, chemists have ascribed to the modifications of a peculiar substance which they denominate the coloring principle, and which they have accordingly endeavored to isolate and extract ;"„ first, by means of maceration or boiling in water, and then by precipitating it from its solution. The chemical properties of coloring matter seem to be as yet but imperfectly known, though they have been considerably elucidated by the investigations of Ber- tholet, Chaptal, and others. Its affinities to oxygen, alkalies, earths, metallic oxides, and cloths fabri- cated, whether of animal or vegetable substances, such as wool or flax, seem to be among its most striking characteristics. But its afliinity to animal substances is stronger than its affinity to vegetable substances ; and hence wool and silk assume a deeper dye, and retain it longer than cotton or linen. Coloring matter exhibits a great variety of different tints, as it occurs in different species of plants ; and as it combines with oxygen, which it absorbs from the atmosphere, it assumes a deeper shade ; but it loses at the same time a portion of its hydrogen, and becomes insoluble in water ; and thus it indicates its relation to ex- tract. Fourcroy reduced colors to the four following sorts ; extractive colors, oxygenated colors, carbo- nated colors, and hydrogenated colors ; the first being soluble in water, and requiring the aid of saline or metallic mordants to fix them-upon cloth ; the second being insoluble in water, as altered by the absorp- tion of oxygen, and requiring no mordant to fix them upon cloth ; the third containing in their compo- sition a great proportion of carbon, but soluble in alkalies ; and the fourth containing a great proi)ortion of reain, but soluble in oils and alcohol. But the simplest mode of arrangement is that by which the dif- Book I. VEGETABLE CHEMISTRY. 219 ferent species of coloring matter are classed according to their effect in the art of dyeing. The principal and fundamental colors in this art are the blue, the red, the yellow, and the brown. \3S0.The finest of all vepetahlehlaesh that which hi-nownhy blue by the action of the atmosphere. The blue color of In- the name of indigo. It is the produce of the indigofera tinctoria, digo, therefore, is owing to its combination with oxygen. lAn., a shrub which is cultivated for the sake of the dye it l.'SOO. The principal red colors are such as are found to exist affords, in Mexico and the East Indies. The plant reaches in the root, stem, or flower, of the five following plants : rubia maturity in about six months, when its leaves are gathered tinctorum, lichen, roccella and parellus, carthamus tinctorius, and immersed in vessels filled with water till fermentation caesalpinia crista, and haamatoxylon campechianum. takes place. The water then becomes opaque and green, ex- 1.191. Yellow, which is a color of very frequent occurrence haling an odor like that of volatile alkali, and evolving bubbles among vegetables, and the most permanent among flowers, is of carbonic acid gas. When the fermentation has been con- extracted for the purpose of dyeing, from a variety of plants, tinned long enough, the liquid is decanted and put into other It is extracted from the reseda luteola, Lin., by the decoction of vessels, where it is agitated till blue flakes begin to appear. its dried stems. The coloring matter is precipitated by Water is now poured in, and flakes are precipitated m the means of alum, and is much used in dyeing wool, silk, and form of a blue powdery sediment, which is obtained by de- cotton. It is also obtained from the morns tinctoria, bixa cantation ; and which, after being made up into small lumps orellana or amotta, serratula tinctoria, genista tinctoria, rhus and dried in the shade, is the indigo of the shops. It is insolu- cotinus, rhamnus infectorius, and quercus tinctoria, or quer- ble in water, though slightly soluble in alcohol. But its true citron, the bark 'of which last affords a rich and (lermanent solvent is sulphuric acid, with which it forms a fine blue dye, yellow that is at present much in use. known by the name of liquid blue. It affords by distillation 1392. The brmvn coloring vmiter of vegetables \& very abundant, carbonic acid gas, water, ammonia, some oily and acid matter, particularly in astringent plants. It is obtained from the root and much charcoal ; whence its constituent principles are of the walnut-tree, and rind of the walnut ; as also from the most probably carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. sumac and alder, but chiefly from nut-galls, which are ex- Indigo may be procured also from several other plants besides crescences formed upon the leaves of a species of quercus, indigofera tinctoria, and particularly from isatis tinctoria or indigenous to the south of Europe, in conseqiience of the punc. woad, a plant indigenous to Britain, and thought to be the ture of insects. The best in quality are brought from the plant with the juice of which the ancient Britons stained their Levant. They are sharp and bitter to the taste, and extremely naked bodies, to make them look terrible to their enemies. If astringent ; and soluble in water by decoction when ground or this plant is digested in alcohol, and the solution evaporated, grated to a powder. The decoction strikes, with the solution while crystalline grwns, somewhat resembling starch, will be of iroft, a deep black, that forms the basis of ink, and of most Aeh behind ; which grains are indigo, becoming gradually dark colors used in dyeing cloths. 1393. Tannin. If a quantity of pounded nut-galls, or bruised seeds of the grape, is taken and dissolved in cold water, and the solution evaporated to dryness, there will be left behind a brittle and yellowish sub- stance of a highly astringent taste, which substance is tannin, or the tanning principle. It is soluble both in water and alcohol, but insoluble in ether. With the salts of iron it strikes a black. And when a so- lution of gelatine is mixed with an aqueous solution of tannin, the tannin and gelatine fall down in com- bination, and form an insoluble precipitate. When tannin is subjected to the process of distillation, it yields charcoal, carbonic acid, and inflammable gases, with a minute quantity of volatile alkali, and seems accordingly to consist of the same elements with extract, from which, however, it is distinguished by the peculiar property of its action upon gelatine. Tannin may be obtained from a great variety of other vege- tables also, as well as those already enumerated, but chiefly from their bark ; and of barks, chiefly from those that are astringent to the taste. The following table exhibits a general view of the relative value of different species of bark, as ascertained by Sir Humphry Davy. It gives the average obtained from 4801b. of the entire bark of a middle-sized tree of the several different species, taken in the spring, when the quantity of tannin is the largest. Oak - . - lb. Beech Spanish chestnut - 21 Horse-chestnut I^eicester willow (large) - 3.3 Sycamore Elm - 13 Lombardy poplar Common willow (large) - 11 Birch • . Ash - - . - 16 Hazel Black thorn - • - 16 Coppice oak - - - - 32 Inner rind of oak-bark - - 72 Oak cut in autumn - - - 21 Larch cut in autumn - • - 8 1394. Tannin is of the very first utility in its application to medicine and the arts ; being regarded by chemists as the general principle of astringency. The medical virtues of Peruvian bark, so celebrated as a febrifuge and antiseptic, are supposed to depend upon the quantity and quality of its tannin. In conse- quence of its peculiar property of forming an insoluble compound with gelatine, the hides of animals are converted into leather, by the important art of tanning. The bark of the oak-tree, which contains tannin in great abundance, is that which is most generally used by the tanner. The hides to be tanned are pre- pared for the process by steeping them in lime-water, and scraping off the hair and cuticle. They are then soaked, first in weaker and afterwards in stronger infusions of the bark, till at last they are completely impregnated. This process requires a period of from ten to eighteen months, if the hides are thick j and four or five pounds of bark are necessary on an average to form one pound of leather. 1395. Bitter principle. The taste of many vegetables, such as those employed in medicine, is extremely bitter. The quassia of the shops, the roots of the common gentian, the bark and wood of common broom, the calyx and floral leaves of the hop, and the leaves and flowers of chamomile, may be quoted as ex- amples. This bitter taste has been thought to be owing to the presence of a peculiar substance, different from every other vegetable substance, and has been distinguished by the name of the bitter principle. When water has been digested for some time over quassia, its color becomes yellow, and its taste in- tensely bitter ; and if it is evaporated to drj-ness, it leaves behind a substance of a brownish yellow, with a slight degree of transparency, that continues for a time ductile, but becomes afterwards brittle. This substance Dr. Thomson regards as the bitter principle in a state of purity. It is soluble in water and in alcohol ; but the solution is not much affected by re-agents. Nitrate of silver and acetate of lead are the only two that occasion a precipitate. The bitter principle is of great importance, not only in the practice of medicine, but also in the art of brewing ; its influence being that of checking fermentation, preserving the fermented liquor, and when the bitter of the hop is used, communicating a peculiar and agreeable flavor. The bitter principle appears to consist principally of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with a little nitrogen. 139a Narcotic principle. There is a species of medical preparations known by the name of narcotics, which have the property of inducing sleep ; and if administered in large doses, of occasioning death. They are obtained from the milky and proper juices of some vegetables, and from the infusion of the leaves or stem of others, all which have been supposed to contain in their composition some common in- gredient, which chemists have agreed to designate by the name of the narcotic principle. It exists in great abundance in opium, which is the concrete juice of papaver album, or the white poppy, from which it is obtained pure, in the form of white crystals. It is soluble in boiling water and in alcohol, as well as in all acid menstrua ; and it appears that tne action of opium on the animal subject depends on this prin- ciple. When distilled it emits white vapors, which are condensed into a yellow oil. Some water and carbonate of ammonia pass into a receiver ; and at last carbonijc acid gas, ammonia, and carburetted hydrogen, are disengaged, and a bulky charcoal left behind. Many other vegetable substances besides opiiun possess narcotic quaUties though they have not yet been minutely analysed. The following are the most remarkable : — the inspissated juice of lettuce, which resembles opium much in its appearance, is obtained by the same means, and possesses the same medical virtues ; the leaves of atropa belladonna, or deadly nightshade, and indeed the whole plant ; the leaves of digitalis purjjurea, or foxglove ; and lastly, the following plants, hyoscyamus niger, conium maculatum, datura stramonium, and sedum palustre, with many others belonging to the Linnaean natural order of Luridfe. 1897. Acids. Acids are a class of substances that may be distinguished by their exciting on the palate the sensation of sounicss. They exist, not only in the animal and mineral, but also in the vegetable kingdom ; &nd such of them as are peculiar to vegetables have been denominated vegetable acids. Of acids peculiar to vegetables chemists enumerate the following : — the oxalic, acetic, citric, malic, gallic, tartaric, benzoic, and prussic, "which exist ready formed in the juices or organs of the plant, and are ae- 220 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. cordfngly denominated native adds ; together with the mucous, pyromucous, pyrotartarous, pyrollgnous, camphoric, and suberic, which do not exist ready formed in the plant, and are hence denominated arti- ficial acids. They are consequently not within the scope of the object of the present work. 1598. Oxalic acid. If the expressed juice of the oxalis aceto- blues. It is soluble both in water and alcohol; andisdistln-r sella is left to evaporate slowly, it deposits small crystals of a pushed by its property of communicating to solutions of iron yellowish color and saltish taste, wliich are known by the a deep purple color. When exposed to a gentle heat it sub- name of the acidulum of sorrel, that is, a salt with excess of limes without alteration, but a strong heat decomposes it. acid, from which the acid may be obtained pure by processes Nitric acid converts it into the malic and oxalic acids. It is of ■well known to the chemist. It is not used in medicine or ereat utility in the art of dyeing, and forms the basis of all the 'arts, except in its state of acidulum, in which it is em- nlack colors, and of colors with a dark ground. It forms also ployed to make a sort of lemonade, and to discharge stains of the basis of ink ; and chemists use it as a test to detect the ink. It has been found also in oxalis corniculata, geranium presence of iron. acidum, in the several species of rumex, and in the pubescence 1403. Tartaric acid. If wine is kept for a length of time in a of cicer arietinum. cask or other close vessel, a sediment is precipitated which 1399. Acetic acid. The acetic acid, or vinegar, which is ge- adheres to the sides or bottom, and forms a crust known by the nerally manufactured from wine in a certain stage of ferment- name of tartar, which is a combination of potass and a pecu- ation, has been found also ready formed in the sap of several liar acid in excess. The compound is tartarite of potass, and trees, as analysed by Vauquelin ; and also in the acid juice the acid, in its state of purity, is the tartaric acid. It is cha- of the cicer arietinum, of which it forms a constituent part. racterised by the property of its forming with potass a salt that It was obtained also by Scheele from the sap of the sambucus is soluble with difficulty. It has been found in the following nigra ; and is consequently to be regarded as a native vegetable vegetable substances also : in the pulp of tamarinds, in the acid. It is distinguished from other vegetable acids by its juice of the grape, and mulberries, sorrel, and sumac, and forming soluble salts with the alkalies and earths. the roots of triticum repens, and leontodon taraxacum. It is 1400. Ciiruradrf. Citric acid is lhe|acid that exists in the juice not much used except among chemists. But the tartarite of lemon. Its taste is very sour in a state of purity, but ex- from which it is usually obtained is well known for its medical ceedingly pleasant when diluted with water. By a red heat it virtues under the name of cream of tarur. yields carbonic acid gas and carbonatedlhydrogene gas, and is 1404. 'Benzoic acid. From the styrax benzoin there exudes a re- reduced to a charcoal ; nitric acid converts it into oxalic and sinous substance, known in the shops by the name of benzoin, acetic acid, and with lime it forms a salt insoluble in water. and in which the benzoic acid is contained. It is distinguished It has been found unmixed with other acids in the following from the other acids by the aromatic odor and extreme volati- vegetable substances : in the juice of oranges and lemons, and lity. It has been obtained also from the balsams of tolu and in the berries of vaccinium oxycoccus, and vitis idfea, prunus storax ; and is used in pharmacy, in the preparation of boluses ]iadus, solanum dulcamara, and rosa canina. It has been found and electuaries, also in many other fruits, mixed with other acids. 1405. Prussic acid. The prussic acid is generally classed 1401. Malic acid. Malic acid is found chiefly inthe juice of among the animal acids, because it is obtained in the greatest unripe ap^>les, whence it derives its name. But it is found also abundance from animal substances. But it has been proved in the juice of barberries, alderberries, gooseberries, plums, to exist in vegetable substances also, and it is procured by dis- and common house-leek. tilling laurel leaves, or the kernels of the peach and cherry, or 1402. Gallic add. Gallic acid, as it is obtained in the greatest hitter.almonds. When pure it exists in the form of colorless abundance, so it derives its name from the nut-gall, from fluid, with an odor resembling that of jpeach-tree blossoms. It which it may be extracted by exposing a quantity of the powder does not redden vegetable blues. But it is characterised by its of nut-galls to a moderate heat m a glass retort ; and the acid property of forming a bluish -green precipitate, when it is will sublime and form crystals of an octahedral figure. Its poured, with a little alkali added to it, into solutions containing taste is austere and astringent. It strongly reddens vegetable iron. 1406. All vegetable acids contain carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, in one propm-tion or other ; and the prussic acid contains also a portion of nitrogen. The gallic acid contains more of carbon than any other vegetable acid, and the oxalic more of oxygen. 1407. Vegetable oils are of two kinds, the fixed and the volatile. The former are not suddenly affected by the application of heat ; the latter are very inflammable, 1408. Fixed oils. Fixed oils are but seldom found, except in the seeds of plants, and chiefly in such as are dicotyledonous. They are found also, though rarely, in the pulp of fleshy fruits, as in that of the olive, which yields the most abundant and valuable species of all fixed oils. But dicotyledonous seeds, which contain oil, contain also at the same time a quantity of mucilage and fecula, and form, when bruised in water, a mild and milky fluid, known by the name of emulsion. And on this account they are sometimes denominated emulsive seeds. Some seeds yield their oil merely by means of pressure, though it is often necessary to reduce them first of all to a sort of pulp, by means of pounding them in a mortar. Others require to be exposed to the action of heat, which is applied to them by means of pressure between warm plates of tin, or of the vapor of boiling water, or of roasting before they are subjected to the press. Fixed oil, when pure, is generally a thick and viscous fluid, of a mild or insipid taste, and without smell. But it is never entirely without some color, which is for the most part green or yellow. Its specific gravity is to water as 9403 to 1000. It is insoluble in water. It is decomposed in the acids, but with the alkalies it forms soap. When exposed to the atmosphere it becomes inspissated and opaque, and assumes a white color and a resemblance to fat. This is in consequence of the absorption of oxygen ; but owing to the appearance of a quantity of water in oil that is exjwsed to the action of the air, it has been thought that the oxygen absorbed by it is not yet perhaps assimilated to its substance. When exposed to cold it con- geals and crystallizes, or assumes a solid and granular form ; but not till the thermometer has indicated a degree considerably below the freezing point. When exposed to the action of heat it is not volatilized till it begins to boil, which is at G00° of Fahrenheit. By distillation it is converted into water, carbonic acid, and carburetted hydrogen gas, and charcoal ; the product of its combustion is nearly the same ; and hence it is a compound of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen. Fixed oils are generally divided into two sorts, fat oils and drying oils. The former are readily inspissated by the action of the air, and converted into a sort of fat. The latter are capable of being dried by the action of the air, and converted into a firm and trans- parent substance. 1409. The principal species of fat oils are the following : — 1410. Olive-oil, which is expressed from the pulpy part of the pounded to a paste in mortars of marble, which is afterwards fruit of olea europea. The fruit is first broken in a mill, and subjected to the action of the press ; and the oil is now ob- reduced to a sort of i>aste. It is then subjected to the action of tained as in the olive. a press, and the oil, which is now easily separated, swims on the 1412. Rapcsced-oil, which is extracteil from the brassica napus top of the water in the vessel beneath. It is manufacturetl and campestris. It is less fixed and less liable to become ran- chiefly in France and in Italy, and is much used throughout cid than the two former, and is manufactured chietly in Europe instead of butter, and to give a seasoning to tbod. Flanders. 1411. Oi/ (ifahnonrfi, which is extracted from the fruit of the 1413. Oil of bchen, which is extracted from the fruit of the amygdalus communis or common almond. The almonds are guilandina mohringa, common in Egypt and Africa. It is apt first well rubbetl or shook in a coarse bag or sack, to separate a to become rancid ; but it is without odor, and is on tliis ac- bitter powder which covers their epidermis. They are then count much used in jierfumery. 1414. The principal species of drying oils are linseed-oil, nut-oil, poppy-oil, and hempseed-oil. 1415. Linseedoil is obtained from the seeds of flax, which are 1417. Poppy-nil is extracted from the seeds of papaver somni- Renerally roasted before they are subjected to any other process, fenim, which is cultivated in France and Holland for this pur- for the purpose of drying up their mucilage and separating pose. It is clear and transparent, and dries readily ; and when more oil. ^vite it is without taste or odor. It is used for the same pur- 1416. Nul-oil is extracted from the fruit of corylus avellana, poses as the olive-oil, for which it is often .sold, and possesses or juglans regia. The kernel is first slightly roasted, and the nothing of the narcoUc properties of the poppy. oil then expressed. It is used in paintings of a coarser sort; 1418. Hempseed-oil is extracted from the seed of the hemp, and also in the seasoning of food by many of the inhabitants of It has a harsh and disagreeable taste, and is ased by painters in the middle .departments of France ; but it is apt to become this country, and very extensively for food in Russia, rancid. 1419. Volatile oils. Volatile oils, which are known also by the name of essential oils, are of very common occurrence in the vegetable kingdom, and are found in almost all the different organs of the plant. They are found in many roots, to which they communicate a fragrant and aromatic odor, with a taste somewhat acrid. ^ The roots of inula helenium, genista canariensis, and a variety of other plants, contain essential oils. They are found also in the bark of laurus cinnamomum, of lauriis sassafras, and pinus ; in the leaves ofjabiateplants, such as mint, rosemary, marjoram j and of the odorous umbcllifcra;, such as chervil. Book I. VEGETABLE CHEMISTRY. 221 fennel, angelica ; and of plants witli compound flowers, such as wormwood. They are found also tn the flower itself, as in the flowers of chamomile, and the rose ; and in the fruit, as in that of pepper and ginger, and in the external integuments of many seeds, but never in tlie cotyledon. They are extracted by means of expression or distillation, and are extremely numerous; and perhaps every plant {assessing a peculiar odor possesses also a peculiar and volatile oil. The aroma of plants, therefore, or the substance from which they derive their odor, and which is cognisable only by the sense of smell, is perhaps merely the more volatile and evaporable part of their volatile oil, disengaging itself from its combinations. Volatile oils are characterised by their strong and aromatic odor, and rather acrid taste. They are soluble in alcohol, but are not readily covcrted into soaps by alkalies. They are very inflammable, and are volatilised by a gentle heat. Like fixed oils, their specific gravity is generally less than that of water, on the surface of which they will float ; though in some cases it is found to be greater than that of water, in which they consequently sink. They are much in request on account of their agreeable taste and odor, and are pre- pared and sold by apothecaries and perfumers, under the names of distilled waters or essences ; as well as employed also in the manufacture of varnishes and pigments. 1420. Wax. On the upper surface of the leaves of many trees there may often be observed a sort of Tar- nish, which, when separated by certain chemical processes, is found to possess all the properties of bees'- wax, and is consequently a vegetable wax. It exudes, however, from several other parts of the plant besides the leaf, and assumes a more waxy and concrete form, as from the catkins of the poplar, the alder, and the fir ; from the fruit of the myrica cerifera and croton sebiferum ; but particularly from the antherae of the flowers, from which it is probable that the bees extract it unaltered. It was the opinion of Reaumur, however, that the pollen undergoes a digestive process in the stomach of the bee before it is converted into wax, though a late writer on the subject endeavours to prove that the wax is elaborated from the honey extracted by the bee, and not from the pollen. It is found also in the interior of many seeds, from which it is extracted, by means of pounding them and boiling them in water. The wax is melted and swims on the top. Wax, when pure, is of a whitish color, but without taste and without smell. The smell of bees'- wax is indeed somewhat aromatic, and its color yello\fr: But this is evidently owing to some foreign substance with which it is mixed, because it loses its smell and color by means of bleaching, and becomes perfectly white. This is done merely by drawing it out into thin stripes, and exposing it for some time to the atmosphere. Bleached wax is not affected by the air. Its specific gravity is 0'9600. It is insoluble in water, and in alcohol. It combines with the fixed oils, and forms with them a composition known by the name of cerate. It combines also with the fixed alkalies, and forms with them a compound possessing the properties of common soap. The acids have but little action on it, and for this reason it is useful as a lute to confine them, or to prevent them from injuring cork. When heat is applied to wax it becomes soft, and melts at the temperature of 142" if unbleached, and of 155" if bleached, into a colorless and trans- parent fluid, which, as the temperature diminishes, concretes again and resumes its former appearance. At a higher temperature it boils and evaporates, and the vapor may be set on fire by the application of red heat. Hence its utility in making candles. And hence an explication of the singular phenomenon ob- servable in the dictamnus fraxinella. This plant is fragrant, and the odor which it diffuses around forms a partial and temporary atmosphere, which is inflammable ; for if a lighted candle or other ignited body is brought near to the plant, especially in the time of drought, its atmosphere immediately takes fire. This phenomenon was first observed by the daughter of the celebrated Linnaeus, and is explained by sup- posing the partial and temporary atmosphere to contain a proportion of wax exuded from the plant, and afterwards reduced to vapor by the action of the sun. The result of its combustion in oxygene gas was, according to Lavoisier, carbonic acid and water, in such proportion as to lead him to conclude tiiat 100 parts of wax are composed of 8228 of carbon and 1772 of hydrogen. But owing to the little action of acids upon it, there seems reason to believe that it contains also oxygen as an ingredient. 1421. fVax possesses all the essential properties of a fixed oil. But fixed oils have the property of becom- ing concrete, and of assuming a waxy appearance when long exposed to the air, in consequence, as it seems, of the absorption of oxygen. Wax therefore may be considered as a fixed oil rendered concrete, perhaps by the absorption of oxygen during the progress of vegetation. But if this theory is just, the wax may be expected to occur in a considerable variety of states according to its degree of oxygenation ; and this is ac- cordingly the case. Sometimes it has the consistency of butter, and is denominated butter of wax, as butter of cocoa, butter of galam. Sometimes its consistency is greater, and then it is denominated tallow, as tallow of croton ; and when it has assumed its last degree of consistency, it then takes the appellation of wax. The following are its principal species : butter of cacao, butter of cocoa, butter of nutmeg, tallow of croton, and wax of myrtle. 1422. The butter of cacao \% extracted from the seeds of the 1424. Butter of mitmeg is obtained from the seeds of the theobroma cacao or chocolate plant, either by boiling them in myristica officinalis, or nutmeg-tree. •water, or by subjecting them to the action of the press after 1425. Tallom of croton is obtained from the fruit of the croton having exposed them to the vapor of boiling water. sebiferum. 1423. Butter of cocoa is found in tne fruit of cocos nucifera or 1426. The tvax.qf mj/rtte is obtained from the berry of the cocoa-nut-tree. It is expressed from the pulp of the nut, and is myrica cerifeia. even said to separate from it when in a fluid state, as cream separates from milk. 1427. Resins. Resins are volatile oils, rendered concrete Igr fmeans of the absorption of oxygen, or rather perhaps by the abstraction of part of their hydrogen. They have a slight degree of transparency, and their color is generally yellowish. Their taste is somewhat acrid ; but they are without smell when pure. Their specific gravity varies from I'OISO to 1*2289. They are non-conductors of electricity, and when excited by friction their electricity is negative. The species of resins are numerous. 1428. Ronn is a species of resin, of which there are several 1435. Ope composed of small opaque luble in water. But it is soluble in spirits of wine ; from nnd unpolished granules, somewhat similar to the powder of which circumstance it has been suspected, with some pro- i^arcb; out with a high magnifying power it appears transparent. bability, to be a resin. 1445. The use qf resins in the arts is very considerable ; but their medical virtues are not quite so great as has been generally supposed. They are employed in the arts of painting, varnishing, embalming, and perfumery 5 and they furnish us with two of the most important of all materials to a naval power, pitch and tar. 1446. Gum-resins. This term is employed to denote a class of vegetable substances, which have been regarded by chemists as consisting of gum and resin. They are generally contained in the proper vessels of the plant, whether in the root, stem, branches, leaves, flowers, or fruit. But there is this remarkable difference between resins and gum-resins, that the latter have never been known, like the former, to ex- ude spontaneously from the plant. They are obtained by means of bruising the parts containing them, and expressing the juice, which is always in the state of an emulsion, generally white, but sometimes of a different color ; or they are obtained by means of incisions from which the juice flows. This juice, which is the proper juice of the plant, is then exposed to the action of the sun, by which, in warm climates, it is condensed and inspissated, and converted into the gum-resin of commerce. Gum-resins, in their solid state, are brittle, and less transparent than resins. They have generally a strong smell, which is some- times alliaceous, and a bitter and nauseous taste. They are partially soluble both in water and in alcohol. When heated, they do not melt like the resins, nor are they so combustible. But they swell and soften by heat, and at last burn away with a flame. By distillation they yield volatile oil, ammonia combined with an acid, and have a bulky charcoal. The principal species of gum-resins which have been hitherto applied to any useful purpose are : — 1447. Galbanum, obtained from the rteni of the bubon gal- 1455. Myrrh, the plant yielding which grows in Abyssinia banum. and Arabia. Bruce says, it belongs to the genus mimosa ; 1448. .^nrnionioc, brought from Africa in the form of small but however this may be, myrrh is the juice of the plant tears ; the plant wliich yields it is thought to be a species of concreted in the form of tears. Its color is yellow, its odor ferula. strong but agreeable, and its taste bitter ; it is employed in 1449. Scammony, the produce of the conTolvulus scammonia. medicine, and is esteemed an excellent stomachic. 1450. Opoponax, obtamed from the pastlnaca opoponax. 145C. Assafatida, a. substance which is well known for its 1451. Euphorbium, the prodOce of the euphorbia officinalis ; strong and fetid smell, is obtained from the ferula assafwtida. Its taste is caustic ; it is considered as a poison, but is occa- At four years old the plant is dug up by the root. The root sionally employed in medicine. is then cleaned, and the extremity cut off; a milky juice 1452. Olibanum is obtained from the juniperus lycia, which exudes, which is collected ; and when it ceases to flow an- grows in Arabia, particularly by the borders of the Red Sea. other portion is cut off, and more juice extricated. The pro- It is the frankincense of the ancients. It exudes from in- cess is continued till the root is exhausted. The juice which cisions made in the tree, and concretes into masses about the has been collected soon concretes, and constitutes assafoetida. size of a chestnut. It is brought to Europe in small agglutinated grains of dif- 1453. Sa/?ai)enu>n is supposed to be obtained from the ferula fierent colors, white, red, yellow. It is hard, but brittle. Its persica. taste is bitter, and its smell insufferably fetid; the Indians 1454. Gamboge, or gumgutt, the produce of the mangostana use it as a seasoning for their food, and call it the food of cambogia. the gods. In Europe, it is used in medicine as an antispas- modic. 1457. Balsams. The substances known by the name of balsams are resins united to the benzoic acid. They are obtained by means of incisions made in the bark, from which a viscous juice exudes, which is afterwards inspissated by the action of the fire or air, or they are obtained by means of boiling the part that contains them. They are thick and viscid juices, but become readily concrete. Their color is brown or red ; their smell aromatic when rubbed ; their taste acrid ; their specific gravity 1'090. They are un- alterable in the air after becoming concrete. They are insoluble in water, but boiling water abstracts part of their acid; they are soluble in the alkalies and nitric acid. When heated they melt and swell, evolv- ing a white and odorous smoke. The principal of the balsams are the following : benzoin, storax, styrax, balsam of tolu, balsam of Peru. 1458. Benzoin is the produce of the styrax benzoin. 1461.'Ba/«am o/-^/cs o/cArtrcoflZ are insolubility in water, of which, however, it absorbs a portion when newly made, as also of atmospheric air. It is incapable of putrefaction. It is not altered by the most violent heat that can be applied, if all air and moisture are excluded; but when heated to about 800 it burns in atmospheric air or oxygene gas, and if pure, without leaving any residuum. It is regarded by chemists as being a triple compound, of which the ingredients are carbon, hydrogene, and oxygene. Charcoal is of great utility both to the chemist and artist as a fuel for heating furnaces, as well as for a variety of other purposes. It is an excellent filter for purifying water. It is a very good tooth-powder ; and is also an indispensable ingredient in the important manufacture of gunpowder. 1469. The sap. If the branch of a vine is cut asunder early in the spring, before the leaves have begun to expand, a clear and colorless fluid will issue from the wound, which gardeners denominate the tears of the vine. It is merely, however, the ascending sap, and may be procured from almost any other plant by the same or similar means, and at the same season ; but particularly from the maple, birch, and walnut- tree, by means of boring a hole in the trunk. It issues chiefly from the porous and mixed tubes of the alburnum ; though sometimes it does not flow freely till the bore is carried to the centre. A small branch of a vine has been known to yield from twelve to sixteen ounces, in the space of twenty-four hours. A maple-tree of moderate size yields about 200 pints in a season, as has been already stated ; and a birch- tree has been known to yield in the course of the bleeding-season, a quantity equal to its own weight. In the sap of fagus sylvatica, Vauquelin found the following ingredients : — Water, acetate of lime, with ex- cess of acid, acetate of potass, gallic acid, tannin, mucous and extractive matter, and acetate of alumina. In 1039 parts of the sap of the ulmus campestris, he found 1027 parts of water and volatile matter, 9*240 of acetate of potass, 1-060 of vegetable matter, 0-796 of carbonate of lime, besides some slight indications of the presence of sulphuric and muriatic acids ; and at a later period of the season he found the vegetable matter increased, and the carbonate of lime and acetate of potass diminished. From the above experi- ments, therefore, as well as from those of other chemists, it is plain that the sap consists of a great variety of ingredients, differing in different species of plants ; though there is too little known concerning it to warrant tlie deduction of any general conclusions, aa the number of plants whose sap has beea hithet. 224 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. to analysed \s yet but very limUed. It is the grand and principal source of vegetable aliment, and may be regarded as being somewhat analogous to the blood of animals. It is not made use of by man, at least in its natural state. But there are trees, such as the birch, whose sap may Ix? manufactured into a very pleasant wine ; and it is well known that the sap of the American maple-tree yields a considerable quantity of sugar. 1470. The proper juice. When the sap has received its last degree of elaboration from the different or- gans through which it has to pass, it is converted into a peculiar fluid, called the proper juice. This fluid may be distinguished from the sap by means of its color, which is generally" green, as in periwinkle ; or red, as in logwood ; or white, as in spurge ; or yellow, as in celandine ; from the two last of which it may readily be obtained by breaking the stem asunder, as it will then exude from the fracture. Its principal seat is in the bark, where it occupies the simple tubes ; but sometimes it is situated between the bark and wood, as in the juniper-tree ; or in the leaf, as in the greater part of herbs ; or it is diffused throughout the whole plant, as in the fir and hemlock ; in which case, either the proper juice mixes with the sap, or the vessels containing it have ramifications so fine as to be altogether imperceptible. It is not, however, the same in all plants, nor even in the different parts of the same plant. In the cherry-tree it is mucila- ginous ; in the pine it is resinous ; in spurge and celandine it is caustic, though resembling in appearance an emulsion. In many plants the proper juice of the bark is different from that of the flower ; and the proper juice of the fruit different from both. Its appearance under the microscope, according to Senebier, is that of an assemblage of small globules connected by small and prism-shaped substances placed between them. If this juice could be obtained in a state of purity, its analysis would throw a considerable degree oflight upon the subject of vegetation. But it seems impracticable to extract it without a mixture of sap. Senebier analysed the milky juice of euphorbia cyparissias, of which he had procured a small quantity considerably pure, though its pungency was so great as to occasion an inflammation of the eyes to the person employed to procure it. It mixed readily with water, to which it communicated its color. When left exposed to the air a slight precipitation ensued ; and when allowed to evaporate a thin and opaque crust remained behind. Alcohol coagulated it into small globules. Ether dissolved it entirely, as did also oil of turj^entine. Sulphuric acid changed its color to black ; nitric acid to green. The most ac- curate experiments on the subject are those of Chaptal. When oxymuriatic acid was poured into the peculiar juice of euphorbia, a very copious white precipitate fell down, which, when washed and dried, had the appearance of starch, and was not altered by keeping. Alcohol, aided by heat, dissolved two thirds of it, which the addition of water again precipitated. They had all the properties of resin. The remaining third part possessed the properties of woody fibre. The same experiment was tried on the juice of a variety of other plants, and the result uniformly was that oxymuriatic acid precipitated from them woody fibre. 1471. The virtues of plants have generally been thoiught to reside in their proper juices, and the opinion seems indeed to be well founded. It is at least proved by experiment in the poppy, spurge, and fig. The juice of the first is narcotic, of the two last corrosive. The diuretic and balsamic virtues of the fir reside in its turjientine, and the purgative property of jalap in its resin. If sugar is obtained from the sap of the sugar-cane and maple, it is only because it has been mixed with a quantity of proper juice. The bark certainly contains it in greatest abundance, as maybe exemplified in cinnamon and quinquina. But the peach-tree furnishes an exception to this rule : its flowers are purgative, and the whole plant aromatic ; but its gum is without any distinguished virtues. Malpighi regarded the proper juice as the principle of nourishment, and compared it to the blood of animals ; but this analogy does not hold very closely. The sap is, perhaps, more analogous to the blood, from which the proper juice is rather a secretion. • In one respect, however, the analogy holds good, that is, with regard to extravasated blood and peculiar juices. If the blood escapes from the vessels it forms neither flesh nor bones, but tumors ; and if the pro- per juices escapes from the vessels containing them, they form neither wood nor bark, but a lump or deposit of inspissated fluid. To the sap or to the proper juice, or rather to a mixture of both, we must re- fer such substances as are obtained from plants under the name of expressed juices, because it is evident that they can come from no other source. In this state they are generally obtained in the first instance whether with a view to their use in medicine or their application to the arts. It is the business of the chemist or artist to separate and purify them afterwards according to the peculiar object he may happen to have in view, and the use to which he purposes to apply them. They contain, like the sap, acetate of potass or of lime, and assume a deeper shade of color when exposed to the fire or air. The oxymuriatic acid precipitates from them a colored and flaky substance as from the sap, and they yield by evaporation a quantity of extract. But they differ from the sap in exhibiting no traces of tannin or gallic acid, and but rarely of the saccharine principle. 1472. Ashes. When vegetables are burnt in the open air the greatest part of their substance is evapo- rated during the process of combustion ; but ultimately there remains behind, a portion which is alto- gether incombustible, and incapable of being volatilised by the action of fire. This residuum is known by the name of ashes. Herbaceous plants, after being dried, yield more ashes than woody plants ; the leaves more than the branches ; and the branches more than the trunk. The alburnum yields also more ashes than the wood ; and putrified vegetables yield more ashes than the same vegetabtes in a fresh state, if the putrefaction has not taken place in a current of water. The result of Saussure's experiments on 1000 parts of different plants was as follows : — Gathered in May, dried leaves of the oak - . ... 53 farta qf athei. preen leaves of the oak • - ... 13 dried leaves of the rhododendron - - - 50 dried leaves of the ffisculus hiiipocastanum 72 trunk and branches of assculushippocastanum 35 Gathered in September, dried leaves of the a»culus hipiK)castanum 86 dried leaves of the oak - ... 55 green leaves of the oak - - • - 24 Go/Aered n'Aen in^ortjer, leaves of pisum sativum - - - 95 Gathered tv hen in /ruzV, leaves of pisum sativum - • • 81 leaves of vicia juba - - - - 20 Gaunkeld,.in Scotland, after a period of forty years' rest, yielir seeds. This very peculiar economy may be exemplified in the case of ruppia maritima, and several species of potamogeton, common in our ponds and ditches; from which we may fairly infer, that the flowers rise thus to the surface merely to give the pollen an opportunity of reaching the stigma uninjured. Eut the most remarkable example of this kind is that of the valisneria spiralis {Jig. 238.), a plant that grows in the ditches of Italy. The plant is of the class Diceda, pro- ducing its fertile flowers on the extremity of a long and slender stalk (a) twisted spirally like a corkscrew, which uncoiling of its own accord, about the time of the open- ing of the blossom, elevates the flowers to the surface of the water, and leaves them to expand in the open air. The barren flowers {Jb) are produced in great numbers upon short upright stalks issuing from a different root, from which they detach themselves about the time of the expansion of the female blossom, mounting up like little air-bubbles, and suddenly expanding when they reach the surface, where they float about in great numbers among the female blossoms, and often cling to them in clusters, so as to cover them entirely ; thus bringing the stamens and pistils into immediate con- tact, and giving the anthers an opportunity of discharging their pollen immediately over the stigma. When this operation has been performed, the now uncoiled stalk of the female plant begins again to resume its original and spiral form, and gradually sinks down, as it gradually rose, to ripen its fruit at the bottom of the water, .We have gathered (in 1819) these stalks, in the canals near Padua, upwards of ten feet long. Sect. VII. Impregnation of the Seed. 1592. The stamens and pistils are the male and female organs of vegetable generation, and the pollen is the substance by which the impregnation of the seed is effected ,- but how^ is the pollen conveyed to the ovary ? And what is the amount of its action ? 1593. Access of the pollen. When the stamens and pistils are situated near each other, the elastic spring with which the anther flies open, will generally be sufficient to disperse the pollen, so as that part of it must infaUibly reach the stigma in such flowers as do not perfect their stamens and pistils at the same time. The pollen is very generally conveyed from the anther to the stigma through the instrumentality of bees, and other insects peculiar to a species. The object of the insect in the discovery of honey, in quest of which, whilst it roves from flower to flower, and rummages the recesses of the corolla, it unintentionally covers its body with pollen, which it conveys to the next flower it visits, and brushes ott'as it acquired it by rummaging for honey ; so that part of it is almost unavoidably deposited on the stigma, and impregnation thus ettected. Nor is this altogether so much a work of random as it at first appears. For it has been observed that even insects, which do not ujjon the whole confine themselves to one species of flower, will yet very often remain during the whole day upon the species they happen first to alight on in the morning ; hence the impregnation of the females of Dioecious plants where no male is near. Hence also a sort of natural crossing of the breed of plants which might probably otherwise degenerate. 1594. Fecundation of the ovary. Admitting that the pollen is conducted to the ovary through the channel of the tubes of the style, how after all is the ovary fecundated j or the seed rendered fertile ? On this subject naturalists have been much divided ; and ac- cording to their several opinions have been classed under tlie respective appellations of ovarists, animalculists, and epigenesists. 1595. Ovarist. According to the opinion of the Ovarist, the embryo pre-exists in the ovary, and is fecundated by the agency of the pollen as transmitted to it through the style. 1596. Ammalculid. But the theory of the ovarists is not without its difficulties ; for as the embryo is never found to make its appearance till after fecundation, it has been thought that it must necessarily pre- exist in the pollen of the anther; from which it is conveyed to the ovary through the medium of the style, and afterwards matured. This theory was founded upon that of Leuwenhoeck, with regard to animal generation ; which supposes the pre-existence of animalcula in the seminal principle of the male ; the animalcula being conveyed in coitu to .the ovary of the female, where alone they are capable of developement. l.W?. Epigcnesist. The difficulties inseparable from both theories, together with the phenomenon of hybrid productions, have given rise also to a third ; this is the Theory of the Epigenesists, who maintain that the embryo pre-exists neither in the ovary nor pollen, but is generated by the union of the fecundating princii)les of the male and female organs ; the former being the fluid issuing from the pollen when it explodes, and the latter, the fluid that exudes from the surface of the stigma when mature. But if the seed is generated from the union of two fecundating principles which form an intermediate offspring, then female plants of the class Diaecia ought occasionally to produce seeds whose offspring shall be Jler- inaphrodite, or at least Monoecious, which was never yet known to happen, 1598. Hybrids. Although the arguments of the epigenesists are by no means satis- factory, yet it cannot be denied, that hybrid productions partake of the properties both of the male and female liom w hich they spring. This was long ago proved to be the fact by Bradley, and more recently confirmed by the experiments of Knight; as well as hap- pily converted to the advantage of the cultivator. 1599. Vegetable crossing. Observing that farmers who rear cattle improve theprogeny by means of crossing the breed. Knight argued from analogy, that the same improvement might be introduced into vegetables. His principal object was that of procuring new and improved varieties of the apple and pear to supply the place of such as had become diseaseil and unproductive. But as the necessary slowness of all experiments of the kind, with regard to the fruit in question, did not keep pace with the ardor of his desire to obtain in- formation on the subject, he was induced to institute some tentative exiieriments upon the common |)ea, — a i)lant well suited to his purpose, both from its quickness, of growth, and from the many varieties in form. 250' SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pint II. siae, and color, which it afforded. In 1787, a degenerate sort of pea was growing in his garden, which had not recovered its former vigor even when removed to a better soil. Being th us a good subject of experiment, the male organs of a dozen of its immature blossoms were destroyed, and the female organs left entire. "When the blossoms had attained their mature state, the pollen of a very large and luxuriant grey pea was introduced into the one-half of them, but not into the^other. The pods of both grew equally ; but the seeds of the half that were unimpregnated withered away without having augmented beyond the size to which they had attained before the blossoms expanded. The seeds of the other half were augmented and matured as in the ordinary process of impregnation ; and exhibited no perceptible difterence from those of other plants of the same variety ; perhaps because the external covering of the seed was furnished entirely by the female. But when they were made to vegetate in the succeeding spring, the ertect of the experiment was obvious. The plants rose with great luxuriance, indicating in their stem, leaves, and fruit, the influence of this artificial impregnation ; the seeds produced were of a dark grey. By im- pregnating the flowers of this variety with the pollen of others, the color was again changed, and new varieties obtained, superior in every respect to the original on which the experiment was first made, and attaining in some cases, to a height of more than twelve feet. {Phil. Trans. 1789.) Knight thinks his experiments on this subject afford examples of superfoetation, a phenomenon, the existence of which has been admitted amongst animals, but of which the proof amongst vegetables is not yet quite satisfactory. Of one species of superfoetation he has certainly produced examples ; that is, when, by impregnating a white pea-blossom with the pollen both of a white and grey pea, white and grey seeds were obtained. But of the other species of superfoetation, in vi?hich one seed is supposed to be the joint issue of two males, the example is not quite satisfactory. Such a production is perhaps possible, and further experiments may probably ascertain the facti but it seems to be a matter of mere curiosity, and not apparently con- nected with any views of ytility. 1600. The practicability qf improving the species, is rendered strikingly obvious by these experiments ; and the ameliorating effect is the same, whether by the male or female ; as was ascertained by impreg- nating the largest and most luxuriant plants with the ixjUen of the most diminutive and dwarfish, or tlie contrary. By such means any number of varieties may be obtained, according to the will of the experimenter, amongst which some will no doubt be suited to all soils and situations. Knight's ex- periments of this kind were extended also to wheat j but not with equal success. For tiiough some very good varieties were obtained, yet they were found not to be permanent. But the success of his experiments on the apple-tree were equal to his hopes. This was, indeed, his principal object, and no means of obtaining a successful issue were left untried. 'I'he plants which were obtained in this case were found to possess the good quahties of both of the varieties employed, uniting the greatest health and luxuriance with the finest and best-flavored fruit. 1601. Improved varieties of every fruit and esculent plant may be obtained by means of artificial impreg- nation, or crossing, as they were obtained in the cases already stated. Whence Knight thinks, that this promiscuous impregnation of species has been intended by nature to take place, and that it does in fact often take place, for the purpose of correcting such accidental varieties as arise from seed, and of con- fining them within narrower limits. All which is thought to be countenanced from the consideration of the variety of methods which nature employs to disperse the pollen, either by the elastic spring of the anthers, the aid of the winds, or the instrumentality of insects. But although he admits the existence of vegetable hybrids, that is, of varieties obtained from the intermixture of ditterent species of the same genus, yet he does not admit the existence of vegetable mules, that is, of varieties obtained from the intermixture of the species of different genera ; in attempting to obtain which he could never succeed, in spite of all his efforts. Hence he suspects that where such varieties have been supposed to take place, the former must have been mistaken for the latter. It may be said, indeed, that if the case exists in the animal kingdom, why not in the vegetable kingdom ? to which it is, perhaps, difhcult to give a satisfactory- reply. But from the narrow limits within which this intercourse is in all cases circumscribed, it scarcely seems to have been the intention of nature that it should succeed even among animals. Salisbury is of a different opinion, and considers {Hart. Trans, i. 364.) that new species may be created both by bees and the agency of man ; and the recent experiments of Herbert, Sweet, and others, seem to confirm this opinion. Sweet's experience leads him to conclude that the plants of all orders strictly natural may be reciprocally impregnated with success, and he has already, in the nursery-gardens of Messrs. Colville, produced many new geranise and rhoderacese. 1602. A singular or anomalous t^ffect of crossing, or extraneous impregnation, is the change sometimes un- dergone by the seed or fruit which is produced by the blossom impregnated. These efiects are not uniform results, but they are of frequent occurrence, and have attracted notice from a very early period. John Tur- ner observes (Hort.Trans. v. 63.) that Theophrastus and Pliny {Theophrast. Hist.Plant. 1. ii. c.4.; I'liniiHist. Nat. 1. xvii. c. 25.) seem to allude to it, and that the notion was entertained by Bradley, who, in his New Improvements in Planting and Gardening, after giving directions for fertilising the female flowers of the hazel with the pollen of the male, says, " By this knowledge we may alter the property and taste of any fruit, by impregnating the one with the farina of another of the same class, as, for example, a codlin with a pearmain, which will occasion the codlin so impregnated to last a longer lime ithan usual, and be of a sharper taste; or if the winter fruit should be fecundated with the dust of the summer kinds, they will decay before their usual time ; and it is from this accidental coupling of the farina of one kind with the other, that in an orchard, where there is a variety of apples, even the fruit gathered from the same tree differs in its flavor and times of ripening ; and, moreover, the seeds of those apples so generated, being changed by that means from their natural qualities, will produce different kinds of fruit, if they are sown. Turner, after quoting several instances, and, among others, one from the Philosophical Transactions " concerning the effect which the farina of the blossoms of different sorts of apples had on the fruit of a neighboring tree," states upwards of six cases of hybridised apples, that had come within his own observation, and concludes with the remark, that if there does exist in fruits such a liability to change, it will at once be evident to the intelligent cultivator how much care is requisite in growing melons, cucumbers, &c. to secure their true characters, even without reference to saving seed for a future crop. In the same volume of the Horticultural Transactions (p. 234.), an account is given of different-colored peas being produced in the same pod by crossing the parent blossom. All these facts seem to contradict the generally received opinion, that crossing only affects the next generation ; here it appears to affect the embryo offspring ; and a gardener who had no keeping apples in his orchard, might communicate that quality in part to his^summer fruit by borrowing the use of a neighbour's blossoms from a late variety. It is probable, however, that such counter-impregnations do not take place readily ; otherwise the produce of a common orchard would be an ever- varying round of monstrosities. Sect. VIII. Changes consequent upon Impregnation. 1603. The peculiar changes consequent upon impregnation^ whether in the flowers or fruit, may be considered as external and internal. 1604. External changes. At the period of the impregnation of the ovary the flower has attained to its ultimate state of perfection, and displayed its utmost beauty of coloring and richness of perfume. But as it is now no longer wanted, so it is no longer provided for in the economy of vegetation. Its period of decline has commenced ; as is indicated, first by the decay of the stamens, then of the petals, and then of the calyx, which wither and shrink up, and finally detach themselves from the fruit altogether, except in «oine particular cascB in which one or other of them becomes permanent and falls only with the fruit. The Book I. PROPAGATION OF THE SPECIES. 251 stigma exhibits also similar symptoms of decay, and the style itself often perishes. The part* oontiguoua to the flower, such as the bractes and floral leaves, are sometimes also aflected ; and finally the whole plant, at least in the case of annuals, begins to exhibit indications of decay. But while the flower wither* and falls, the ovary is advancing to perfection, swelling and augmenting in size, and receiving now all the nutriment by which the decayed parts were formerly supported. Its color begins to assume a deeper and richer tinge j its figure is also often altered, and new parts are even occasionally added — wings, crests, prickles, hooks, bloom, down. The common receptacle of the fruit undergoes also similar changes, becom- ing sometimes large and succulent, as in the fig and strawberry ; and sometimes juiceless and indurated, as in compound flowers. IGO.'j. Jnternal changes. If the ovary is cut open as soon as it is first discoverable in the flower, it pre- sents to the eye merely a pulpy and homogeneous mass. But if it is allowed to remain till immediately before the period of its impregnation, it will now be found to be divisible into several distinct parts, exhi- biting an apparatus of cells, valves, and membranes, constituting the pericarp, and sometimes the external coats of the seed. In this case the umbilical cord is also to be distinguished ; but the embryo is not yet visible. These changes, therefore, are to be attributed merely to the operation of the ordinary laws of vegetable developement, and are not at all dependent upon impregnation. But impregnation has no sooner taken place than its influence begins to be visible ; the umbilical cord, which was tbrmerly short and distended, is now generally converted into a long and slender thread. Sometimes the position of the seed is altered. Before impregnation the seeds of caryophyllus aromaticus and netrosideros gummifera, are horizontal ; after impregnation they become vertical. Before impregnation the magnolia seeds are erect; after impregnation they become inverted and pendulous. The figure of the seed is often also altered in passing from its young to its mature state ; changing from smooth to angular, from tapering to oval, from oval to round, and from round to kidney-shaped. But allseeds are not brought to maturity, of which the rudiments may exist in the ovary. Lagcecia and hasselquistia, produce uniformly the rudi- ments of two seeds, of which they mature but one. But the principal changes resulting from impregnation are operated in the seed itself, which, though previously a homogeneous and gelatinous mass, is now con- verted into an organised body, or embryo. Such are the phenomena, according to the description of Gasrtner, accompanying or following the impregnation of all flowers producing seeds ; exceptions occur where the fecundation is spurious and incomplete ; where the ovary swells, but exhibits no traces of perfect seed within, as often happens in the vine and tamus; or when barren and fertile seeds are intermingled together in the same ovary. This proceeds from some defect either in the quantity or quality of the pollen; but rather in the quality, as it is not^ always plants having the most pollen that produce the most seeds. The two stamens of the orchids fecundate 800O seeds, and the five stamens of tobacco fecundate 900 : while the 50 stamens of barringtonia, the 230 of thea, and the 80 of the caryophilli, fecundate only two or three ovaries. Sect. IX. The Propagation of the Species. 1606. As the life of the vegetable, like that of the animal, is limited to a definite period, and as a continued supply of vegetables is always wanted for the support of animals, what we call art, or nature operating by means of the animal man, has taken care to institute such means as shall secure the multiplying and perpetuating of the species in all possible cases. 1607. Equivocal generation. It was long a vulgar error, countenanced even by the philosophy of the times, that vegetables do often spring up from the accidental mixture of putrid water and earth, or other putrid substances, in the manner of what was called the equivocal generation of animals ; or at the very least, that the earth contains the principle of vegetable life in itself, which, in order to develope, it is only necessary to expose to the action of the air. The former alternative of the error has been long ago re- futed ; the latter has lost its hold, having been also refuted by Malpighi, who proved that the earth pro- duces no plant without the intervention of a seed, or of some other species of vegetable germ deposited in it by nature or by art. 1608. Propagation by seeds. When the seed has reached maturity in the due and regular course of the developement of its several parts, it detaches itself sooner or later from the parent plant, either singly or along with its pericarp, and drops into the soil, where it again germinates and takes root, and springs up into a new individual. Such is the grand means instituted by nature for the replenishing and perpetuating of the vegetable kingdom. 1609. Dispersion of seed. If seeds were to fall into the soil merely by dropping down from the plant, then the great mass of them, instead of germinating and springing up into distinct plants, would grow up only to putrefy and decay ; to prevent which consequence nature has adopted a variety of the most efficacious contri- vances, all tending to the dispersion of the seed. The first means to be mentioned, is that of the elasticity of the peri- carp of many fruits, by which it opens when ripe, Avith a sort of sudden spring, ejecting the seed with violence, and throw- ing it some considerable distance from the plant. This may be exemplified in a variety of cases ; the seeds of oats when ripe are projected from thecalyx with such violence, that in a fine and dry day you may even hear them thrown out with a slight and sudden snap in passing through a field that is ripe. The pericarp ofthcDorsiJerous Ferns [Jig. 239 a.) is furnished with a sort of peculiar elastic ring (h), intended, as it wwuld appear, for the very purpose of projecting the seeds. The capsules of the cucumber, geranium geum, and fraxindla, discharge their seeds also when ripe with an elastic jerk. But the pericarj) of impatiens, which consists of one cell with five valves, exhibits perhaps one of the best examples of this mode of dispersion. If it is accidentally touched when ripe it will immediately burst open, while the valves, coiling themselves up in a spiral form, and springing from the stem, discharge the contained seeds, and scatter them all around. The bursting of the pericarp of some species of pines is also worthy of notice. Ilie pericarp, which is a cone, remains on the tree till the summer succeeding that on which it was produced, the scales being still closed. But when the hot weather has commenced and continued for some time, so as to dry the cone thoroughly, the scales open of their own 252 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. accord with a sudden jerk, ejecting the contained seeds : and if a number of them happen to burst together, which is often the case, the noise is such as to be heard at some considerable distance. The twisted awn of avena fatua {Jig. 240.), or wild oat, as well as that of geranium cicutarium, and some others, seems to have been intended particularly for the purpo.se of aiding the further dispersion of the seed, alter being discharged from the plant or pericarp. This spiral awn or spring, which'is beset with a multitude of fine and minute hairs, possesses the property of contracting by means of drought, and of expanding by means of moisture. Hence it remains of necessity in a perpetual state of contraction or dilatation, dependent upon change of weather ; from which, as well as from the additional aid of the fine hairs, which act as so many fulcra, and cling to whatever object they meet, the seed to which it is attached is kept in continual motion till it either germinates or is destroyed. The awn of barley, which is beset with a multitude of little teeth all pointing to its upper extremity, presents also similar phenomena. For when the seed with its awn falls from the ear and lies flat upon the ground, it is necessarily extended in its dimensions by the moisture of the night, and contracted by the drought of the day. But as the teeth prevent it from receding in the direction of the point, it is consequently made to ad- vance in the direction of the base of the seed, which is thus often carried to the distance of many feet from the stalk on which it grew. If any one is yet sceptical with regard to the travelling capacity of the awn, let him only introduce an awn of barley with the seed uppermost between his coat and shirt sleeve at the wrist, when he walks out in the morn- ing, and by the time he returns to breakfast, if he has walked to any great distance, he will find it up at his arm- pit. This journey has been effected by means of the con- tinued motion of the arm, and consequently of the teeth of the awn acting as feet to carry it forward. 1610. Where distance of dispersion is required, nature is also furnished with a resource. One of the most common modes by which seeds are conveyed to a dis- tance from their place of growth is that of the instrumentality of animals. Many seeds are thus carried to a distance from their place of growth merely by their attaching themselves to the bodies of such animals as may happen accidentally to come in contact with the plant in their search after food ; the hooks or hairs with which one part or other of the fructification is often furnished serving as the medium of attachment, and the seed being thus carried about with the animal till it is again detached by some accidental cause, and at last committed to the soil. This may be exemplified in the case of the bidens and myosotis, in which the hooks or prickles are attached to the seed itself ; or in the case of galium aparine and others, in which they are attached to the pericarp ; or in the case of the thistle and the burdock, in which they are attached to the general calyx. Many seeds are dispersed by animals in consequence of their pericarps being used as food. This is often the case with the seeds of tlie drupe, as cherries, sloes, and haws, which birds often carry away till they meet with some convenient place for devouring the pulpy i)ericarp, and then drop the stone into the soil. And so also fruit is dispersed that has been lioarded for the winter, though even with the view of feeding on the seed itself, as in the case of nuts hoarded up by squirrels, which are often dispossessed by some other animal, that not caring for the hoard scatters and disperses it. Sometimes the hoard is deposited in the ground itself, in which case part of it is generally found to take root and to spring up into plants. Though it has been observed that the ground-squirrel often deprives the kernel of its germ before it deposits the fruit it collects. Crows have been also observed to lay up acorns and other seeds in the holes of fence-posts, which being either forgot or accidentally thrust out, fall ulti- mately into the earth and germinate. But sometimes the seed is even taken into the stomach of the animal, and afterwards deposited in the soil, having passed through it unhurt. This is often the case with the seed of many species of berry, such as the mistletoe, which the thrush swallows and afterwards deposits upon the boughs of such trees as it may happen to aligiit upon. The seeds of the loranthus americanus, another parasitical plant, are said to be deposited in like manner on the branches of the cocoloba grandi- flora, and other lofty trees ; as also the seeds of jthytolacca decandra, the berries of which are eaten by the robin, thrush, and wild pigeon. And so also the seeds of currants or roans are sometimes deposited, after having been swallowed by blackbirds or other birds, as may be seen by observing a currant-bush or young roan-tree growing out of the cleft of another tree, where the seed has been left, and where there may happen to have been a little dust collected by way of soil ; or where a natural graft may have been effected by the insinuation of the radicle into some chink or cleft. It seems indeed surprising that any seeds should be able to resist the heat and digestive action of the stomach of animals ; but it is undoubtedly the fact. Some seeds seem even to require it. The seeds of magnolia glauca, which have been brought to this country, are said to have generally refused to vegetate till after undergoing this process, and it is known that some seeds will bear a still greater degree of heat without any injury. Spallanzani mentions some seeds that germinated after having been boiled in water : and Du Hamcl gives an account of some others that germinated even after having been exposed to a degree of heat measuring 9^° of Fahrenheit. In addition to the instrumentality of brute animals in the dispersion of the seed might be added also that of man, who, for purposes of utility or of ornament, not only transfers to his native soil seeds indigenous to the most distant regions, but sows and cultivates them with care. 1611. The agencij of winds is one of the most effiictive modes of dispersion instituted by nature. Some seeds are fitted for this mode of dispersion from their extreme minuteness, such as those of the mosses, lichens, and fungi, which float invisibly on the air, and vegetate wherever they hapj)en to meet with a suitable soil. Others are fitted for it by means of an attached wing, as in the case of the fir-tree and liriodendron tulipifera, so that the seed, in falling from the cone or capsule, is immediately caught by the wind, and carried to a distance. Others are peculiarly fitted for it by means ol their being furnished with an aigrette or down, as in the case of the dandelion, goat's-beard, and thistle, as well as most plants of the class Si/ngenesia ; the down of which is so large and light in proportion to the seed it supports, that it is wafted on the most gentle breeze, and often seen floating through the atmosphere in great abundance at the time the seed is ripe. Some have a tail, as in clematis vita alba. Others are fitted for this mode of disj)ersion by means of^the structure of the pericarp, which is also wafted along with them, as in the case of etaphylea trifolia, the inflated capsule of which seems as if obviously intended thus to aid the dispersion of the contained seed by its exposing to the wind a large and distended surface with but little weight. And so also in the case of the maple, elm, and ash, the capsules of which are furnished, like some seeds, with a membranous wing, which when they separate from the plant the wind immediately lays hold of and drives before it. 1612. The instrumentality of streains, rivers, and currents of the ocean, is a further means adopted by nature for the dispersion of the seeds of vegetables. The mountain-stream or torrent washes down to the valley the seeds which may accidentally fall into it, or which it may happen to sweep from its banks when it suddenly overflows them. The broad and majestic river, winding along the extensive plain, and traversing the continents of the world, conveys to the distance of many hundreds of miles the seeds that may have vegetated at its source. Thus the southern shores of the Baltic are visited by seeds which grew Book I. PROPAGATION OF THE SPECIES. 253 in the interior of Germany, and the western shores of the Atlantic by seeds that have been generated in- the interior of America. I3ut fruits indigenous to America and the West Indies have sometimes been found to be swept along by the currents of the ocean to the western shores of Europe. The fruit of mimosa scandens, dolichos pruriens, guilandina bonduc, and anacardium occidentale, or cashew-nut, have been thus known to be driven across the Atlantic to a distance of upwards of illKX) miles ; and although the fruits now adduced as examples are not such as could vegetate on the coast on which they were thrown, owing to soil or climate, yet it is to be believed that fruits may have been often thus transported to climates or countries favo'rable to their vegetation. 1613. Propagation by gems. 'I'hough plants are for the most part propagated by means of seeds, yet many of them are propagated also by means of gems ; that is, bulbs and buds. 1614. The cauUnary bulb is often the means of the propagation of the species : it generally appears in the axil of the leaves, as in dentaria bulbifera and lilium bulbiferum ; or between the spokes of their umbels, as in allium canadense ; in the midst of the spike of flowers, as in polygonum viviparum and poa alpina. As plants of this last kind are mostly alpine, it has been thought to be an institution or resource of nature to secure the propagation of the species in situations where the seed may fail to ripen. 1615. T/ie bud, though it does not spontaneously detach itself from the plant and form a new individual, will yet sometimes strike root and develope its parts if carefully separated by art and planted in the earth : but this is to be understood of the leaf-bud only, for the flower-bud, according to Mirbel, if so treated, always perishes. 1616. Propagation by the leaves. The species may sometimes be propagated even by means of the leaves ; as in the aloe, sea-onion, and some species of arum, which if carefully deposited in the soil will grow up into new plants, by virtue, no doubt, of some latent gem contained in them. The fungi and lichens, according to Gartner, are all gemmiferous, having no sexual organs, and no pollen impregnat- ing a germ. In the genus Lycoperdon, the gelatinous substance that pervades the cellular tissue is con- verted into a proliferous powder ; in clavaria, the fluid contained in the cavities of the plant is converted into a proliferous powder also ; and in the agarics, hypnum, and poletus, vesicles containing sobolifer- ous granules are found within the lamina, pores, or tubes. Hedwig, on the contrary, ascribes to the fungi a sexual apparatus, and maintains that the pollen is lodged in the volva. But here it is to be recollected, as in the cases of the scutelte of the lichens, that all fungi are not furnished with a volva, and consequently not furnished with pollen. The confervas and ulvae, together with the genera Blasia and Riccia, are also, according to Ga;rtner, propagated only by gems ; while marchantia, anthoceros, jungermannia, and lycoperdon, are said to be propagated both by gems and seeds. 1617. Runners axe young shooKs issuing from the collar or summit of the root, and creeping along the surface of the soil ; but producing a new root and leaves at the extremity, and forming a new individual, by the decay of the connecting link, as in the strawberry. 1618. Slips. The process of raising perennials by slips is well known to gardeners, and should perhaps be regarded as an extension of the old plant, rather than as the generation of a new one ; though it serves the purpose of the cultivator equally well as a plant raised from seed, with the additional advantage of bearing fruit much sooner. But how is the root generated which the slip thus produces ? If the trunk of a tree is lopped, and all its existing buds destroyed, then there will be protruded from between the wood and bark a sort of protuberant lip or ring formed from the proper juice, and from which there will spring a number of young shoots. The formation of the root in the case of the slip is effected in the same man- ner, the moisture of the soil encouraging the protrusion of buds at and near the section ; and the bud that would have been converted into a branch above ground is converted into a root below. 1619. Layers. The mode of propagation by layers is practised upon trees that are delicate, and which cannot readily be propagated by means of slips ; in which case the root is generated nearly as in the former case, the soil stimulating the protrusion of buds which are converted into roots. In many plants, such as the currant and laurel, this is altogether a natural process, effected by the spontaneous bending down of a branch to the surface of the soil. 1620. Suckers or off-sets. Many plants protrude annually from the collar a number of young shoots, encircling the principal stem and depriving it of a portion of its nourishment, as in the case of most fruit-trees. Others send out a horizontal root, from which thereat last issues a bud that ascends above the soil and is converted into a little stem, as in the case of the elm-tree and syringa. Others send out a hori- zontal shoot from the collar or its neighborhood ; or a shoot that ultimately bends down by its own weight till it reaches the ground, in which it strikes root and again sends up a stem as in the currant-bush and laurel. The two former are called suckers or off-sets, though the term off-set should perhaps be restricted to the young bulbs that issue and detach themselves annually from bulbous roots. The latter is not desig- nated by any particular name, but may be regarded as a sort of natural layer, resembling also, in some respects, the runner ; from which, however, it is distinguished in that it never detaches itself spontaneously from the parent plant, as is? the case also with the two former. But if either of them is artificially de- tached, together with a portion of root or a slice of the collar adherring to it, it will now bear transplant- ing, and will constitute a distinct plant. 1621. Grafting and budding. The species is also often propagated, or at least the variety is multiplied, byjmeans of grafting, which is an artificial application of a portion of the shoot or root of one tree or plant to the stem, shoot, branch, or root of another, so that the two shall coalesce together and form but one plant. The shoot which is to form the summit of the new individual is called the scion ; the stem to which it is affixed is called the stock ; and the operation, when eftected, the graft. As thegraft is merely an extension of the parent plant from which the scion came, and not properly speaking a new individual, so it is found to be the best method of propagating approved varieties of fruit-trees without any danger of altering the quality of the fruit, which is always apt to be incurred in propagation from seed, but never in propagating from the scion. The scion will also bear fruit much sooner than the tree that is raised from seed ; and, if effected on a proper stock, will be much more hardy and vigorous than if left on the parent plant. And hence the great utility of grafting in the practice of gardening. Till lately grafting was confined to the ligneous plants, but it is now successfully practised on the roots and shoots of herbaceous vegetables ; and the dahlia is grafted by the root j the melon on the gourd ; the love-apple on the potatoe ; the cauliflower on the cabbage, &c. by the shoot. A very ingenious tract has been pub- lished on this subject, entitled, Essai sur la Gi(ffe de Vherbe des plantes et des arbres, par Monsr. Le Baron de Tschoudy, Bourgeois de Claris. Paris, 1819. Sect. X. Causes limiting the Propagation of the Species. 1622. Though plants are controlled chiejly by animalsy yet they also control one another. From the various sources of vegetable reproduction, but particularly from the fer- tility and dispersion of the seed, the earth would soon be overrun with plants of the most prolific species, and converted again into a desert, if it were not that nature has set bounds to their propagation by subjecting them to the controul of man, and to the depre- dations of the great mass of animals ; as well as in confining the germination of their seeds to certain and peculiar habitations arising from soil, climate, altitude, and other circumstances. In order to.form an idea of the manner in which these act upon vegeta- tion ; imagine that every year an enormous quantity of seeds, produced by the existing 254 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. I^art IL vegetables, are spread over the surface of the globe, by the winds and other causes already mentioned, all of these seeds which fall in places suitable for their vegetation, and are not destroyed by animals, germinate and produce plants; then among these plants, the strongest, and largest, and those to which the soil is best suited, develope themselves in number and magnitude so as to choke the others. Such is the general progress of nature, and among plants, as among animals, the strong florish at the expense of the weak. These causes have operated for such a length of time, that the greater number of species are now fixed and considered as belonging to certain soils, situations, and climates, beyond which they seldom propagate themselves otherwise than by the hands of man. Sect. XI, Evidence and Character of Vegetable Vitality/. 1623. The power of counteracting the laws of chemical affinity is reckoned the best and most satisfactory evidence of the presence and agency of a vital principle as inherent in any subject. This principle, which seems first to have been instituted by Humboldt, is obviously applicable to the case of animals, as is proved by the process of the digestion of the food, and its conversion into chyle and blood ; as well as from the various secretions and excretions effected by the several organs, and effecting the growth and developement of the individual, in direct opposition to the acknowledged laws of chemical affinity, which, as soon as the vital principle is extinct, begin immediately to give indication of their action in the incipient symptoms of the putrefaction of the deady body. But the rule is also applicable to the case of vegetables, as is proved by the intro-susception, digestion, and assimilation of the food necessary to their developement ; all indicating the agency of a principle capable of counteracting the laws of chemical affinity ; which, at the period of what is usually called the death of the plant, begin also immediately to act, and to give evidence of their action in the incipient symptoms of the putrefaction of the vegetable. Vegetables £ire therefore obviously endowed with a species of vitality. But admitting the presence and agency of a vital principle inherent in the vegetable subject, what are the peculiar properties by which this principle is cha- racterised ? 1624. Excitability. One of the most distinguishable properties of the vital principle of vegetables is that of its excitability or capacity of being acted upon by the application of natural stimuli, imj)elling it to the exertion of its vegetative powers ; the natural stimuli thus impelling it being light and heat. 1625. The stimulating itifluence of light upon the vital principle of the plant is discoverable, whether in the stem, leaf, or flower. The direction of the stem is influenced by the action of light, as well as the color of its leaves. Distance from direct rays of light or weak light produces etiolation, and its absence blanching. The luxuriance of branches depends on the presence and action of light, as is par- ticularly observable in the case of hot-house plants, the branches of which are not so conspicuously directed, either to the flue in quest of heat, or to the door or open sash in quest of air, as to the sun in quest of light. Hence also the branches of plants are often more luxuriant on the south than on the north side ; or at least on the side that is best exposed to light. The position of the leaf is also strongly aflTected by the action of light, to which it uniformly turns its upper surface. This may be readily perceived in the case of trees trained to a wall, from which the upper surface of the leaf is by con- sequence always turned ; being on a south wall turned to the south, and on a north wall turned to the north. And if the upper surface of the leaf is forcibly turned towards the wall and confined in that position for a length of time, it will soon resume its primitive position upon regaining its liberty, but particularly if the atmosphere is clear. The leaves of the mallow are said to exhibit but slight indi- cations of this susceptibility, as also sword -shaped leaves ; and also those of the mistletoe are equally susceptible on both sides. It had been conjectured that these effects are partly attributable to the agency of heat ; and to try the value of the conjecture, Bonnet placed some plants of the atriplex in a stove heated to 25" of Reaumur. Yet the stems were not inclined to the side from which the greatest degree of heat came; but to a small opening in the stoves. Heat then does not seem to exert any perceptible influence in the production of the above effects. Does moisture ? Bonnet found that the leaves of the vine exhibited the same phenomenon when immersed in water, as when left in the open air. Whence it seems probable that light is the sole agent in the production of the effects in question. But as light produces such effects upon the leaves, so darkness or the absence of light produces an effect quite the contrary ; for it is known that the leaves of many plants assume a very different position in the night from what they have in the day. This is particularly the case with winged leaves, which, though fully expanded during the day, begin to droop and bend down about sunset and during the fall of the evening dew, till they meet together on the inferior side of the leaf-stalk, the terminal lobe, if the leaf is furnished with one, folding itself back till it reaches the first pair; or the two side lobes, if the leaf is trifoliate, as in the case of common clover. So also the leaflets of the false acacia and liquorice hang down during the night, and those of mimosa pudica fold themselves up along the common toot-stalk so as to overlap one another. Linnseus has designated the above phenomenon by the aj)pellation of The Steep of Plants. The expansion of the flower is also effected by the action of light. 'Many plants do not fully expand their petals except when the sun shines ; and hence alternately open them" during the day and shut them up during the night. This may be exemplified in the case of papilionaceous flowers in general, which spread out their wings in fine weather to admit the rays of the sun, and again fold them up as the night approaches. It may be exemplified also in the case of compound flowers, as in that of the dandelion and hawkweed. But the most singular case of this kind is perhaps that of the lotus of the Euphrates, as described by Theophrastus, which he represents as rearing and expanding its blossoms by day, closing and sinking down beneath the surface of the water by night so as to be beyond the grasp of the hand, and again rising up in the morning to present its exi)anded blossom to the sun. The same phenomenon is related also by Pliny. But although many plants open their flowers in the morning and shut them again in the evening, yet all flowers do not open and shut at the same time. Plants of the same species are tolerably regular as to time, other circumstances being the same ; and hence the daily opening and shutting of the flower has been denominated by botanists The Horologium. Flora. Flowers requiring but a slight application of stimulus open early in the morning, while others requiring more open somewhat later. Some do not open till noon, and some, whose extreme delicacy cannot bear the action of light at all, open only at night, such as the cactus grandiflora, or night-blowing cereu*. But it seems somewhat doubtful whether or not light is the sole, agent in the present case; for PooK I. EVIDENCE OF VEGETABLE VITALITY. 255 it has been observed that equatorial flowers open always at the eamc hour, and that tropical Bowers change their hour of opening according to the length of the day. It has been observed also, that the flowers of plants that are removed from a warmer to a colder climate expand at a later hour in the latter. A flower that opens at six o'clock in the morning at Senegal, will not open in France or England till eight or nine, nor in Sweden till ten. A flower that opens at ten o'clock at Senegal, will not open in France or England till noon or later, and in Sweden it will not open at all. And a flower that does not open till noon or later at Senegal, will not open at all in France or England. This seoms as if heat or its absence were also an agent in the opening or shutting of flowers ; though the opening of such as blow only in the night cannot be attributed either to light or heat. But the opening or shutting of some flowers depends not so much on the action of the stimulus of light as on the existing state of the atmosphere, and hence their opening or shutting betokens change. If the Siberian sow-thistle shuts at night, the ensuing day will be fine ; and if it opens, it will be cloudy and rainy. If the African mari- gold continues shut after seven o'clock in the morning, rain is near at hand. And if the convolvulus arvensis, calendula fluvialis, or anagallis arvensis, are even already open they will shut upon the approach of rain, the last of which, from its peculiar susceptibility, has obtained the name of the poor man's weatherglass. But some flowers not only expand during the light of day ; they incline also towards the Sim, and follow his course, looking towards the east in the morning, towards the south at noon, and towards the west in the evening ; and again returning in the night to their former position in the morn- ing. Such flowers are designated by the appellation of Heliotropes, on account of their following the course of the sun ; and the movement they thus exhibit is denominated their nutation. This phenomenon had been observed by the ancients long before they had made any considerable progress in botany, and had even been interwoven into their mythology, having originated, according to the records of fabulous history, in one of the metamorphoses of early times. Clytie, inconsolable for the loss of the affections of Sol, by whom she had been formerly beloved, and of whom she was still enamoured, is represented as brood- ing over her griefs in silence and solitude ; where, refusing all sustenance, and seated upon the cold ground, with her eyes invariably fixed on the sun during the day, and watching for his return during the night, she is at length transformed into a flower, retaining, as much as a flower can retain it, the same unaltered attachment to the sun. This is the flower which is denominated heliotropium by the ancients, and des- cribed by Ovid as Flos qui ad solem veriitur. But it is to be observed, that the flower alluded to by Ovid cannot be the heliotropium of the moderns, because Ovid describes it as resembling the violet : much less can it be the sun-flower of the moderns, which is a native of America, and could not consequently have been known to Ovid ; so that the true heliotropium of the ancients is perhaps not yet ascertained. Bonnet has further remarked that the ripe ears of corn, which bend down with weight of grain, scarcely ever incline to the north, but always less or more to the south ; of the accuracy of which remark any one may easily satisfy himself by loooking at a field of wheat ready for the sickle ; he will find the whole mass of ears nodding, as if with one consent to the south. The cause of the phenomenon has been supposed to be a contraction of the fibres of the stem or flower-stalk on the side exposed to the sun ; and this contraction has been thought by De la Hire and Dr. Hales to be occasioned by an excess of transpiration on the sunny side ; which is probably the fact, though there seems upon this principle to be some difficulty in account- ing for its returning at night ; because if you say that the contracted side expands and relaxes by moisture, what is it that contracts the side that was relaxed in the day ? The moisture, of which it is no doubt still full, would counteract the contraction of its fibres, and prevent it from resuming its former position in the morning. 1626. Heat as well as light acts also as a powerful stimulus to the exertions of the vital principle. This has been already shown in treating of the process of germination ; but the same thing is observable with regard to the developement and maturation of the leaves, flower, and fruit ; for although all plants produce their leaves, flower, and fruit, annually, yet they do not all produce them at the same period or season. This forms the foundation of what Linnaeus has called the Calendarium FlorcB, including a view of the several periods of the frondescence and efflorescence of plants, together with that of the maturation of the fruit. 1627. Frondescence. It must be plain to every observer, that all plants do not protrude their leaves at the same season, and that even of such as do protrude them in the same season, some are earlier and some later. The honeysuckle protrudes them in the month of January ; the gooseberry, currant, and elder, in the end of February, or the beginning of March ; the willow, elm, and lime-tree, in April ; and the oak and ash, which are always the latest among trees, in the beginning or towards the middle of May. Many annuals do not come up till after the summer solstice; and many mosses not till after the com- mencement of winter. This gradual and successive unfolding of the leaves of different plants seems to arise from the peculiar susceptibility of the species to the action of heat, as requiring a greater or less degree of it to give the proper stimulus to the vital principle. But a great many circumstances will always concur to render the time of the unfolding of the leaves somewhat irregular ; because the mildness of the season is by no means uniform at the same period of advancement ; and because the leafing of the plant depends upon the peculiar degree of temperature, and not upon the return of a particular day of the year. Hence it has been thought, that no rule could be so good for directing the husbandman in the sowing of his several sorts of grain as the leafing of such species of trees as might be found by observation to correspond best to each sort of grain respectively, in the degree of temperature required. Linnjeus (Stillingfleet informs us) instituted some observations on the subject about the year 1750, with a view chiefly to ascertain the time proper for tlie sowing of barley in Sweden ; he regarded the leafing of the birch- tree as being the best indication for that grain, and recommended the institution of similar observations with regard to other sorts of grain, upon the grounds of its great importance to the husbandman, who may be said to attend to it in a manner instinctively ; but as all the trees of the same species do not come intoleaf precisely at the same time, and as the weather may alter even after the most promising indi- cations, no guide natural or artificial can be absolutely depended on with a view to future results. 1628. I^fftot-escence. The flowering of the plant, like the leafing, seems to dej>end upon the degree of temperature induced by the returning spring, as the flowers are also protruded pretty regularly at the same successive periods of the season. The mezereon and snowdrop protrude their flowers in February ; the primrose in the month of March ; the cowslip in April ; the great mass of plants in May and June ; many in July, August, and September ; some not till the month of October, as the meadow saffron ; and some not till the approach or middle of winter, as the laurustinus and arbutus. Such at least is the period of their flowering in this country ; but in warmer climates they are earUer, and in colder climates they are later. Between the tropics, where the degree of heat is always high, it often happens that plants will flower more than once in tlie year ; because they do not there require to wait till the temperature is raised to a certain height, but merely till the developement of their parts can be efTected in the regular operation of nature, under a temperature already suflScient. For the greater part, however, they flower during our summer, though plants in opposite hemispheres flower in opposite seasons. But in all climates the time of flowering depends also much on the altitude of the place as well as on other causes affecting the degree of heat. Hence plants occupying the polar regions, and plants occupying the tops of the high mountains of southern latitudes, are in flower at the same season ; and hence the same flowers are later in opening in North America than in the same latitudes in Euroi>e, because the surface of the eartli i$ higher, or the winters more severe. 256 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. ' 1629. Maturation of the fruit. Plants exhibit as much diversity In the warmth and length of time necessary to mature their fruit as in their frondescence and flowering ; but the plant that flowers the soonest does not always ripen its fruit the soonest. The hazel-tree, which blows in February, does not ripen its fruit till autumn ; while the cherry, that does not blow till May, ripens its fruit in June. It may be regarded, however, as the general rule, that if a plant blows in spring it ripens its fruit in sum- mer, as in the case of the currant and gooseberry ; if it blows in summer it ripens its fruit in autumn, as in the case of the vine ; and if it blows in autumn it ripens its fruit in the winter. But the meadow- saffron, which blows in the autumn, does not ripen its fruit till the succeeding spring. 1630. Such are the primary facts on which a Calendarium Florce, should be founded. They have not hitherto been minutely attended to by botanists ; and perhaps their importance is not quite so much as has been generally supposed ; but they are at any rate sufficiently striking to have attracted the notice even of savages. Some tribes of American Indians act upon the very principle suggested by Linna;us, and plant their corn when the wild plum blooms, or when the leaves of the oak are about as large as a squirrel's ears. The names of some of their months are also designated from the state of vegetation. One is called the budding month, and another the flowering month; one the strawberry month, and another the mulberry month ; and the autumn is desig- nated by a term signifying the fall of the leaf. Thus the proposed nomenclature of the French for the months and seasons is founded in nature as well as in reason. 1631. Cold. As the elevation of temperature induced by the heat of summer is es- sential to the full exertion of the energies of the vital principle, so the depression of temperature consequent upon the colds of winter has been thought to suspend the ex- ertion of the vital energies altogether. But this opinion is evidently founded on a mistake, as is proved by the example of such plants as protrude their leaves and flowers in the winter season only, such as many of the mosses ; as well as by the dissection of the yet unfolded buds at different periods of the winter, even in the case of such plants as pro- trude their leaves and blossoms in the spring and summer, and in which, it has been already shown, there is a regular, gradual, and incipient developement of parts, from the time of the bud's first appearance till its ultimate opening in the spring. The sap,^ it is true, flows much less freely, but is not wholly stopped. Du Hamel planted some young trees in the autumn, cutting off all the smaller fibres of the root, with a view to watch the progress of the formation of new ones. At the end of every fortnight he had the plants taken up and examined with all possible care to prevent injuring them, and found that, when it did not actually freeze, new roots were always uniformly developed. 1632. Energies of life in plants like the process of respiration in animals. Hence it fol- lows, that even during the period of winter, when vegetation seems totally at a stand, the tree being stripped of its foliage, and the herb apparently withering in the frozen blast, still the energies of vital life are exerted ; and still the vital principle is at work, carrying on in the interior of the plant, concealed from human view, and sheltered from the piercing frosts, operations necessary to the preservation of vegetable life, or protru- sion of future parts ; though it requires the returning warmth of spring to give that degree of velocity to the juices which shall render their motion cognizable to man, as well as that expression to the whole plant which is the most evident token of life ; in the same manner as the processes of respiration, digestion, and the circulation of the blood are carried on in the animal subject even while asleep ; though the most obvious indications of animal life are the motions of the animal when awake. Heat then acts as a powerful stimulus to the operations of the vital principle, accelerating the mo- tion of the sap, and consequent developement of parts ; as is evident from the sap's beginning to flow much more copiously as the warmth of spring advances, as well as from the possibility of anticipating the natural period of their developement by forcing them in a hot-house. But it is known that excessive heat impedes the progress of veget- ation as well as excessive cold ; both extremes being equally prejudicial. And hence the sap flows more copiously in the spring and autumn, than in either the summer or winter ; as may readily be seen by watching the progress of the growth of the annual shoot, which, after having been rapidly protruded in the spring, remains for a while stationary during the great heat of the summer, but is again elongated during the more moderate temperature of autumn. 1 633. Artificial stimnlayits. There are also several substances which have been found to operate as stimulants to the agency of the vital principle when artificially dissolved in water, and applied to the root or branch. Oxygenated muriatic acid has been already mentioned : and the vegetation of the bulbs of the hyacinth and narcissus is accelerated by means of the application of a solution of nitre. Dr. Barton, of Philadelphia, found that a decaying branch of liriodendron tulipifera, and a faded flower of the yellow iris, recovered and continued long fresh when put into water impregnated with camphor; though flowers and branches, in all respects similar, did not recover when put into common water. 1634. Irritability. Plants are not only susceptible of the action of the natural stimuli of light and heat, exciting them gradually to the exercise of the functions of their dif-" Book I. EVIDENCE OF VEGETABLE VITALITY. 257 ferent organs in the regular progress of vegetation ; they are susceptible also of the action of a variety of accidental or artificial stimuli, from the application of which they are found to give indications of being endowed also with a property similar to wliat we call irritability in the animal system. Tliis property is well exemplified in the genus Mimosa ,- but particularly in that species known by the name of the Sensitive Plant ,- and the dionaja muscipula and drosera. But sometimes the irritability resides in the flower, and has its seat either in the stamens or style. The former case is ex- emplified in the flower of the berberry, and cactus tuna, and the latter in stylidura glandulosum. 1635. Sensation. From the facts adduced in the preceding sections, it is evident that plants are endowed with a capacity of being acted upon by the application of stimuli, whether natural or artificial, indicating the existence of a vital principle, and forming one of the most prominent features of its character. But besides this obvious and ac- knowledged property, it has been thought by some phytologists that plants are endowed also with a species of sensation. Sir J. E. Smith seems rather to hope that the doctrine may be true, than to think it so. 1636. Instinct. There is also a variety of phenomena exhibited throughout the extent of the vegetable kingdom, some of which are common to plants in general, and some peculiar to certain species, that have been thought by several botanical writers to exhibit indications, not merely of sensation, but of instinct. The tendency of plants to incline their stem and to turn the upper surface of the leaves to the light, the direction which the extreme fibres of the root will often take to reach the best nourishment, the folding up of the flower on the approach of rain, the rising and falling of the water-lily, and the peculiar and invariable direction assumed by the twining stem in ascending its prop, are among the phenomena that have been attributed to instinct. Keith has endeavoured {Lin. Trans, xi. p. 11.) to establish the doctrine of the existence and agency of an in- stinctive principle in the plant, upon the ground of the direction invariably assumed by the radicle and plumelet respectively, in the germination of the seed. 1637. Definition of the plant. But if vegetables are living beings endowed with sensation and instinct, or any thing approaching to it, so as to give them a resemblance to animals, how are we certainly to distinguish the plant from the animal ? At the ex- tremes of the two kingdoms the distinction is easy ; the more perfect animals can never be mistaken for plants, nor the more perfect plants for animals, but at the mean, where the two kingdoms may be supposed to unite, the shades of discrimination are so very faint or evanescent that of some individual productions it is almost impossible to say to which of the kingdoms they belong. Hence it is that substances which have at one time been classed among plants, have at another time been classed among animals ; and there are substances to be met with whose place has not yet been satisfactorily determined. Of these I may exemplify the genus Corallina (Jig. 241.), which Linnaeus placed among 241 animals, but which Ga;rtner places among plants. Linnaeus, Bonnet, Hedwig, and Mirbel, have each given particular definitions. According to Keith, a vegetable is an organised and living substance springing from a seed or gem, which it again produces ; and effecting the developement of its parts by means of the intro-susception and assimil- ation of unorganised substances, which it derives from the atmosphere or the soil in which it grows. The definition of the animal is the coimterpart : an animal is an organised and living being proceeding from an egg or embryo, which it again produces ; and ef- fecting the developement of its parts by means of the intro-susception of organised sub- stances or their products. For all practical purposes, perhaps plants may be distinguished from animals with suflicient accuracy by means of the trial of burning ; as animal sub- stances in a state of ignition exhale a strong and phosphoric odor, which vegetable sub- stances do not'. 258 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. Chap. V. Vegetable Pathology, or the Diseases and Casualties of Vegetable Life. 1638. As plants are, like animals, organised and living beings, they are, like animals also, liable to such accidental ..injuries and disorders as may affect the health and vigor, or occasion the death of tlie individual. These are wounds, accidents, diseases, and natural decay. Sect. 1. Wounds and Accidents. 1639. A wound is a forcible separation of the solid parts of the plant effected by means^ of some external cause, intentional or accidental. 1640. Incisions are sometimes necessary to the health of the tree, in the same manner perhaps as bleeding is necessary to the health of the animal. The trunk of the plum and cherry-tree seldom expand freely till a longitudinal incision has been made in the bark ; and hence this operation is often practised by gardeners. If the incision affects the epidermis only, it heals up without leaving any scar ; if it pene- trates into the interior of the bark, it heals up only by means of leaving a scar ; if it penetrates into the wood, the wound in the wood itself never heals up completely, but new wood and bark are formed above it as before. 1641. Boring is an operation by which trees are often wounded for the purpose of making them part with their sap in the season of their bleeding, particularly the birch tree and American maple. A horizontal or rather slanting hole is bored in them with a wimble, so as to penetrate an inch or two into the wood, from this the sap flows copiously ; and though a number of holes is often bored in the same trunk, the health of the tree is not very materially affected. For trees will continue to thrive though subjected to this operation for many successive years; and the hole, if not very large, will close up again like the deep incision, not by the union of the broken fibres of the wood, but by the formation of new bark and wood projecting beyond the edge of the orifice, and finally shutting it up altogether. 1642. Girdling is an operation to which trees in North America are often subjected when the farmer wishes to clear his land of timber. It consists in making parallel and horizontal incisions with an axe into the trunk of a tree, and carrying them quite round the stem so as to penetrate through the alburnum, and then to scoop out the intervening portion. If this operation is performed early in the s})ring, and before the commencement of the bleeding season, the tree rarely survives it ; though some trees that are pecu- liarly tenacious of life, such as acer saccharinum and nyssa integrifolia, have been known to survive it a considerable length of time. 1643. Fracture. If a tree is bent so as to fracture part only of the cortical and woody fibres, and the stem or branch but small, the parts will again unite by being put back into their natural position, and well propped up. Especially cure may be excepted to succeed if the fracture happens in the spring ; but it will rtot succeed if the fracture is accompanied with contusion, or if the stem or branch is large ; and even where it succeeds the woody fibres do not contribute to the union, but the granular and herbaceous sub- stance only which exudes from between the wood and liber, insinuating itself into all interstices and finally becoming indurated into wood. 1644. Pruning. Wounds are necessarily inflicted by the gardener or forester in the pruning or lopping off the superfluous branches, but this is seldom attended with any bad effects to the health of the tree, if done by a skilful practitioner : indeed no ;further art is required merely for the protection of the tree be- yond that of cutting the branch through in a sloping direction so as to prevent the rain from lodging. In this case the wound soon closes up by the induration of the exposed surface of the section, and by the pro- trusion of a granular substance, forming a sort of circular lip between the wood and bark ; and hence the branch is never elongated by the growth of the same vessels that have been cut, but by the protrusion of new buds near the point of section. 1645. Grafting. In the operation of grafting there is a wound both of the stock and graft ; which are united, not by the immediate adhesion of the surfaces of the two sections, but by means of a granular and herbaceous substance exuding from between the wood and bark, and insinuating itself as a sort of cement into all open spaces : new wood is finally formed within it, and the union is complete. 1646. Felling is the operation of cutting down trees close to the ground, which certain species will sur- vive, if the stump is protected from the injuries of animals, and the root fresh and vigorous. In this case the fibres of the wood are never again regenerated, but a lip is formed as in the case of pruning ; and buds, that spring up into new shoots, are protruded near the section ; so that from the old shoot, ten, twelve, or even twenty new stems may issue according to its size and vigor. The stools of the oak and ash-tree will furnish good examples ; but there are some trees, such as the fir, that never send out any shoots after the operation of felling. 1647. If buds are destroyed in the course of the winter, or in the early part of the spring, many plants will again generate new buds that will develope their parts as the others would have done, except that they never contain blossom or fruit Du Hamel thought these buds sprang from pre-organised germs, which he conceived to be dispersed throughout the whole of the plant; but Knight thinks he has discovered the true source of the regeneration of buds, in the proper juice that is lodged in the alburnum. Buds thus re- generated never contain or produce either flower or fruit. Perhaps because the fruit-bud requires more time to develope its parts, or a peculiar and higher degree of elaboration ; and that this hasty production is only the effect of a great effort of the vital principle for the preservation of the individual, and one of those wonderful resources to which nature always knows how to resort when the vital principle is in danger. But though such buds do not produce flowers directly, as in the case of plants that bear their blossoms on last year's wood ; yet they often produce young shoots which produce blossoms and fruit the same season, as in the case of cutting down an old vine, or pruning the rose. 1648. Sometimes the leaves of a tree are destroyed \iaTt'\al]y or totally as soon as they are protruded from the bud, whether by the depredations of caterpillars or other insects, or by the browsing of cattle. But if the injury is done early in the spring, new leaves will be again protruded without subsequent shoots. Some trees will bear to be stripped even more than once in a season, as is the case with the mulberry-tree, which they cultivate in the south of France and Italy for the purpose of feeding the silkworm. But if it is stripped more than once in the season it requires now and then a year's rest. 1649. The decortication of a tree, or the stripping it of its bark, may be either intentional or acci- dental, partial or total. If it is partial, and effects the epidermis only, then it is again regenerated, as in the case of slight incision, without leaving any scar. But if the epidermis of the petal, leaf, or fruit, is destroyed, it is not again regenerated, nor is the wound healed up, except by means of a scar. Such is the case also with all decortications that penetrate deeper than the epidermis, particularly if the wound is not protected from the action of the air : if the decortication reaches to the wood, then new bark issues from between the bark and wood, and spreads till it covers the wound. But the result is not the same when the wound is covered from the air. In the season of the flowing of the sap Du Hamel detached a ring of bark, of three or four inches in breadth, from the trunks of several young elm-trees. Book I. DISEASES OF VEGETABLES. 259 t§klng care to defend the decorticated part firom the action of the air, by surrounding It with a tiilKJ of glass cemented above and below to the trunk. After a few days the tubes became cloudy within, particularly when it was hot ; but when the air became cool, the cloud condensed and fell in drops to tlie bottom. At last there began to appear, as if exuding from between the bark and wood of the up{)er part of the wound, a sort of rough scurfy substance j and on the surface of the wood, as if exuding from be- tween the longitudinal fibres of the alburnum, a number of gelatinous drops. They were not connected with the scurfy substance at the top, but seemed to arise from small slips of the liber that had not been com- pletely detached. Their first appearance was that of small reddish spots changing by degrees into white, and finally into a sort of grey, and extending in size till they at last united and formed a cicatrice, which was a new bark. 16;)0. Abortion or failure in the produce of flowers, fruits, or of perfect seeds, is generally the effect of accidental injuries, either directly to the flower or fruit, by which they are rubbed off or devoured by in- sects ; or to the leaves by insects ; or to the roots by exposure to the air or cutting off so much of them as essentially to lessen their power of drawing up nourishment. Other causes will readily suggest them- selves ; and one of the commonest, as to seeds and fruits, is want of sufficient impregnation. 1651. Premature inflorescence or fruiting is sometimes brought on by insects, but more generally by checks produced by cold or injuries from excessive heat, or long continued drought. Fruit is often rii)ened prematurely by the puncture of insects ; and a pine-apple plant of almost any age may be thrown into fruit by an hour or two's exposure to a frosty atmosphere in winter, or by scorching the roots in an over- hot tan-bed at any season. Sect. II. Diseases. 1652. Diseases are corrupt affections of the vegetable body, arising from a vitiated state of its juices, and tending to injure the habitual health either of the whole or part of the plant. The diseases that occur the nnost frequently among vegetables are the follow, ing : Blight, smut, mildew, honey-dew, dropsy, flux of juices, gangrene, etiolation, suffocation, contortion, consumption. 1653. Blight. Much has l)een written on the nature of blight ; and in proportion as words have been multiplied on the subject, the difficulties attending its elucidation have increased. 1654. n^ blight, or blast, was well known to the ancient Greeks, who were however totally ignorant of its cause, regarding it merely as a blast from heaven, indicating the wrath of their offended deities, and utterly incapable of prevention or cure. It was known also to the Romans under the denomination of rvbigo, who regarded it in the same light as the Greeks, and even beUeved it to be under the direction of a particular deity, Rubigus, whom they solemnly invoked that blight might be kept from corn and trees. It is still well known from its effects to every one having the least knowledge of husbandry or gar. dening ; but it has been very differently accounted for. And, perhaps, there is no one cause that will account for all the different cases of blight, or disease going by the name of blight ; though they have been supposed to have all the same origin. If we take the term in its most general acceptation I think it will include at least three distinct species — blight originating in cold and frosty winds, blight originating in a sort of sultry and pestilential vapor, and blight wiginating in the immoderate propagation of a sort of small and parasitical fungus. 1655. Blight, originating in cold and frosty winds, is often occasioned by the cold and easterly winds of spring, which nip and destroy the tender shoots of the plant, by stopping the current of the juices. The leaves which are thus deprived of their due nourishment wither and fall, and the juices that are now stopped in their passage swell and burst the vessels, and become the food of innumerable little insects that soon after make their appearance. Hence they are often mistaken for the cause of the disease itself; the farmer supposing they are wafted to him on the east wind, while they are only generated in the extra- vasated juices, as forming a proper nidus for their eggs. Their multiplication will no doubt contribute to the spreading of the disorder, as they always breed fast where they find plenty of food. But a similar disease is often occasioned by the early frost of spring. If the weather is prematurely mild, the blossom is prematurely protruded, which, though it is viewed by the unexperienced with delight, yet it is viewed by the judicious with fear. For it very often happens that this premature blossom is totally destroyed by subsequent frosts, as well as both the leaves and shoots, which consequently wither and fall, and injure if they do not actually kill the plant. This evil is also often augmented by the unskilful gardener, even in attempting to prevent it ; that is, by matting up his trees too closely, or by keeping them covered in the course of the day, and thus rendering the shoots so tender that they can scarcely fail to be destroyed by the next frost. 1656. Blight, originating in sultry and pestilential vapor, generally happens in the summer when the grain has attained to its full growth, and when there are no cold winds or frosts to occasion it. Such was the blight that used to damage the vineyards of ancient Italy, and which is yet found to damage our hop- plantations and wheat-crops. The Romans had observed that it generally happened after short but heavy showers occurring about noon, and followed by clear sunshine, about the season of the ripening of the grapes, and that the middle of the vineyard suffered the most This corresponds pretty nearly to what is in this country called the fire-blast among hops, which has been observed to take place, most commonly about the end of July, when there has been rain with a hot gleam of sunshine immediately after ; the middle of the hop-ground is also the most affected whether the blight is general or partial, and is almost always the point in which it originates. In a particular case that was minutely observed, the damage happened a little before noon, and the blight ran in a line forming a right angle with the sun- beams at that time of the day. There was but little wind, which was however in the line of the blight. {Hale's Body of Husbandry.) Wheat is also affected with a similar sort of blight, and about the same season of the year, which totally destroys the crop. In the summer of 1809, a field of wheat, on rather a light and sandy soil, came up with every appearance of health, and also into ear with a fair prospect of ripening well About the beginning of July it was considered as exceeding any thing expected from such a soil. A week afterwards a portion of the crop, on the east side of the field, to the extent of several acresi was totally destroyed ; being shrunk and shrivelled up to less than one half the size of what it had formerly been, and so withered and blasted as not to appear to belong to the same field. The rest of the field pro- duced a fair crop. 1657. Blight, originating in fungi, attacks the leaves or stem both of herbaceous and woody plants, such as euphorbia cypari'ssias, berberis vulgaris and rhamnus catharticus, but more generally grasses ; and particularly our most useful grains, wheat, barley, and oats. It generally assumes the appearance of a rusty-looking powder that soils the finger when touched. In March 1807, some blades of wheat were examined by Keith that were attacked with this species of blight ; the appearance was that of a number of rusty-looking spots or patches dispersed over the surface of the leaf, exactly like that of the seeds of dorsiferous ferns bursting their indusium. Upon more minute inspection these patches were found to con. sist of thousands of small globules collected into groups beneath the epidermis, which they raised up in a sort of blister and at last burst. Some of the globules seemed as if imbedded even in the longitudinal vessels of the blade. TTiey were of a yellowish or rusty brown, and somewhat transparent. But these groups of globules have been ascertained by Sir J. Banks to be patches of a minute fungus, the seeds of S 2 260 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. which, as they float in the air, enter the pores of the epidermis of the leaf, particularly if the plant is sickly ; or they exist in the manure or soil, and enter by the pores of the root. {Si?- J. Banks on Blisht 1805.) This fungus has been figured by Sowerby, and by F. Bauer, and Grew. It is known among fanners by the name of red rust, and as it affects the stalks and leaves only it does not materially which the crop. But there is another species of fungus known to the farmer by the name of red gum, injure attacks the ear only, and is extremely prejudicial. In the aggregate it consists of groups of minute globules interspersed with transparent fibres. The globules are filled with a fine powder, which explodes when they are put into water. It is very generally accompanied with a maggot of a yellow colour, that preys also upon the grain, and increases the amount of injury. The only means of preventing or lessening the effect of any of the different varieties of bliglit mentioned is proper culture. Palliatives are to be found in topical applications, such as flower of sulphur, and where the disease proceetls from, or consists of, innumerable minute insects, it may occasionally be removed. Grisenthwaite conjectures that in many cases in which the blight and mildew attack corn-crops, it may be for want of the peculiar food re- quisite for perfecting the grain ; it being known that the fruit or seeds of many plants contain primitive principles not found in the rest of the plant. Thus the grain of wheat contains gluten and phosphate of lime and where these are wanting in the soil, that is, in the manured earths in which the plant grows, it will be unable to perfect its fruit, which of consequence becomes more liable to disease. (New Theory of Agr. &c.) 1658. Smut is a disease incidental to cultivated corn, by which the farina of the grain, together with its proper integuments and even part of the husk, is converted into a black soot-like powder. If the injured ear is struck with the finger, the powder will be dispersed like a cloud of black smoke ; and if a portion of the powder is wetted by a drop of water and put under the microscope, it will be found to consist of millions of minute and transparent globules, which seem to be composed of a clear and glary fluid encompassed by a thin and skinny membrane. This disease does not affect the whole body of the crop, but the smutted ears are sometimes very numerously dispersed through- out it. Some have attributed it to the soil in which the grain is sown, and others have attributed it to the seed itself, alleging that smutted seed will produce a smutted crop. But in all this there seems to be a great deal of doubt. Willdenow regards it as origi- nating in a small fungus, which multiplies and extends till it occupies the whole ear. (Princip. of Bot. p. 3.56.) But F. Bauer of Kew, seems to have ascertained it to be merely a morbid swelling of the ear, and not at all connected with the growth of a fun- gus. ( Smith'' s Introd. p. 348.) It is said to be prevented by steeping the grain before sowing in a weak solution of arsenic. But besides the disease called smut there is also a disease analogous to it, or a diflPerent stage of the same disease , known to the farmer by the name of bags or smut-balls, in which the nucleus of the seed only is converted into a black powder, whilst the ovary, as well as the husk, remains sound. The ear is not much altered in its external appearance, and the diseased grain contained in it vnll even bear the operation of threshing, and consequently mingle with the bulk. But it is always readily detected by the experienced buyer, and fatal to the character of the sample. It is said to be prevented as in the case of smut. 1659. Mildew is a thin and whitish coating with which the leaves of vegetables are isometimes covered, occasioning their decay and death, and injuring the health of the plant. It is frequently found on the leaves of tussilago farfara, humulus lupulus, cory- lus avellana, and the white and yellow dead-nettle. It is found also on wheat in the shape of a glutinous exudation, particularly when the days are hot and the nights with- out dew. Willdenow says it is occasioned by the growth of a fungus of great minute- ness, the mucor erisyphe of Linnaeus ; or by a sort of whitish slime which some species of aphides deposit upon the leaves. J. Robertson (^Hort. Trans, v, 178.) considers it as a minute fungus of which different species attack different plants. Sulphur he has found the only specific cure. In cultivated crops mildew is said to be prevented by manuring with soot. 1660. Honey-dew is a sweet and clammy substance which coagulates on the surface of the leaves during hot weather, particularly on the leaves of the oak-tree and beech, and is regarded by Curtis, as being merely the dung of some species of aphides. This seems to be the opinion of Willdenow also, and it is no doubt possible that it may be the case in some instances or species of the disease. But Sir J. E. Smith contends that it is not always so, or that there are more species of honey-dew than one, regarding it particularly as being an exudation, at least in the case of the beech, whose leaves are, in consequence of an unfavorable wind, apt to become covered with a sweet sort of glutinous coating, similar in flavor to the fluid obtained from the trunk. 1661. It is certum, however, thut saccharine exuda/ionx are found on the leaves of mant/ plants, though not always distinguished by the name of honey-dew ; which should not perhaps be applied except when the exudation occasions disease. But if it is to be applied to all saccharine exudations whatever, then we must include under the appellation Of honey-dew, the saccharine exudations observed on the orange-tree by De la Hire, together with that of the lime-tree which is more glutinous, and of the poplar which is more resinous ; as also that of the cistus creticus, and of the manna which exudes from the ash-tree of Italy and larch of France. It is also possible that the exudation or excrement constituting honey-dew may occasionally occur without producing disease ; for if it should happen to be washed off soon after bV rains or heavy dews, then the leaves will not suffer. Washing is therefore the palliative : judicious cuU ture the preventive. 1 662. Dropsy. Plants are also liable to a disease which affects them in a manner similar to that of the dropsy in animals, arising from long continued rain or too abundairt wateriug. Book I. DISEASES OF VEGETABLES. 261 Willdenow describes it as occasioning a preternatural swelling of particular parts, and inducing putrefaction. It is said to take place chiefly in bulbous and tuberous roots, which are often found much swelled after rain. It affects fruits also, which it renders watery and insipid. It prevents the ripening of seeds, and occasions an immoderate pro- duction of roots from the stem. 1633. S'lccident plants. This disease generally appears in consequence of excessive waterings, and is generally incurable. The leaves drop, even though plump and green ; and the fruit rots before reaching . maturity. In this case the absorption seems to be too great in proportion to the transpiration ; but the soil when too much manured produces similar efFects. Du Hamel planted some elms in a soil that was particularly well manured, and accordingly they pushed with great vigor for some time ; but at the end of five or six years they all died suddenly. The bark was found to be detached from the wood, and the cavity filled up with a reddish-colored water. The symptoms of this disease suggest the palliatives j and the pre- ventive is ever the same — judicious culture. 1664. Flux of juices. Some trees, but particularly the oak and birch, are liable to a great loss of sap either bursting out spontaneously, owing to a superabundance of sap, or issuing from accidental wounds; sometimes it is injurious to the health of the plant, and sometimes not. 1665. There is a spontaneous extravasation of the sap of the vine, known by the name of the tears of the vine, which is not always injurious. As it often happens that the root imbibes .sap, which the leaves are not yet prepared to throw off", because not yet sufficiently expanded, owing to an inclement season, the sap which is first carried up, being propelled by that which follows, ultimately forces its way through all ob- structions, and exudes from the bud. But this is observed only in cold climates ; for in hot climates where the developement of the leaves is not obstructed by cold, they are ready to elaborate the Sap as soon as it reaches them. There is also a spontaneous extravasation of proper juice in some trees, which does not seem in general to be injurious to the individual. Thus the gum which exudes from cherry, plum, peach, and almond trees, is seldom detrimental to their health, except when it insinuates itself into the other vessels of the plant and occasions obstructions. 1666. But the exudation ofgu?n is sometimes a disease, and one for which there is seldom any remedy. It is generally the consequence of an unsuitable soil, situation, or climate. Cold raw summers will pro- duce it in the peach, apricot, and more under-sorts of plum and cherrj' ; or grafting these fruits on diseased stocks. Cutting out the part and applying a covering of loam or tar and charcoal to exclude the air are palliatives ; but the only effectual method, where it can be practised, is to take up the tree and place it in a suitable soil and situation. - 1667. The extravasation and corruption of the ascending or descending juices, has been known to occa- sion a fissure of the solid parts. Sometimes the fissure is occasioned by means of frost, forming what is called a double alburnum ; that is, first a layer that lias been injured by the frost, and then a layer that passes into wood. Sometimes a layer is partially affected, and that is generally owing to a sudden and partial thaw on the south side of the trunk, which may be followed again by a sudden frost. In this case the alburnum is split into clefts or chinks, by means of the expansion of the frozen sap. 1668. Chilblains. But clefts thus occasioned often degenerate into chilblains that discharge a blackish and acrid fluid to the great detriment of the plant, particularly if the sores are so situated that rain or snow- will readily lodge in them, and become putrid. The same injury may be occasioned by the bite or punc- ture of insects while the shoot is yet tender; and as no vegetable Qlcer heals up of its own accord, the sooner a cure is attempted the better, as it will, if left to itself, ultimately corrode and destroy the whole plant, bark, wood, and pith. The only palliative is the excision of the part affected, and the application of acoat of grafting wax. (Wilhknow, p. 35-1.) 1669. Gangrene. Of this disorder there are two varieties, the dry and the wet. The former is occasioned by means of excessive heat or excessive cold. If by means of cold, it attacks the leaves of young shoots and causes them to shrink up, converting them from green to black ; as also the inner bark, which it blackens in the same manner, so that it is impossible to save the plant except by cutting it to the ground. If by means of heat, the effects are nearly simflar, as may oftentimes be seen in gardens, or even in forests, where the foresters are allowed to clear away the moss and withered leaves from the roots. Sometimes the disease is occasioned by the too rapid growth of a particular branch, depriving the one that is next it of its due nourishment, and hence inducing its decay. Sometimes it is occasioned by means of parasitical plants, as in the case of the bulbs of the saffron, which a species of lycoperdon often attaches itself to and totally corrupts. 1670. Dry gangrene. The harmattan winds of the coast of Africa kill many plants, by means of inducing a sort of gangrene that withers and blackens the leaves, and finally destroys the whole plant. The nopal of Mexico is also subject to a sort of gangrene that begins with a black spot, and extends till the whole leaf or branch rots oft", or the plant dies. But plants are .sometimes affected with a gangrene by which a part becomes first soft and moist, and then dissolves into foul ichor. This is confined chiefly to the leaves, flowers, and fruit. Sometimes it attacks the roots also, but rarely the stem. It seems to be owing, in many cases, to too wet or too rich a soil ; but it may originate in contusion, and may be caught by infection. But the nopal is subject also to a disease calletl by Thiery, la dissolution, con- sidered by Sir J. E. Smith as distinct from gangrene, and which appears to be Willdenow's dry gangrene A joint of the nojal, or a whole branch, and sometimes an entire plant, changes in the space of a single hour, from a state of apparent health to a state of putrefaction or t at a cure is by si)eedy amputation below the diseased part. Sometimes the vital principle collecting and exerting all its energies makes a stand as it were against the encroaching disease, and throws off the infected part. {Smith's Intro- duction, p. 340.) 1671. Etiolation. Plants are sometimes affected by a disease M'hich entirely destroys their verdure, and renders them pale and sickly. This is called etiolation, and may arise merely from want of the agency of light, by which the extrication of oxygen is effected and the leaf rendered green. And hence it is that plants placed in dark rooms, or be- tween great masses of stone, or in the clefts of rocks, or under the shade of other trees, S 3 268 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. look aJways peculiarly pale. But if they are removed from such situations, and exposed to the action of light, they will again recover their green color. Etiolation may also en- sue from the depredation of insects nestling in the radicle, and consuming the food of the plant, and thus debilitating the vessels of the leaf so as to render them insusceptible of the action of light. This is said to be often the case with the radicles of secale cereale ; and the same result may also arise from poverty of soil. 1672. Suffocation. Sometimes it happens that the pores of the epidermis are closed up, and transpiration consequently obstructed, by means of some extraneous substance that attaches itself to and covers the bark. This obstruction induces disease, and the disease is called suffocation. 1673. Sometimes it is occasioned by the iniTnoderale growth of lichens upon the bark covering the whole of the plant, as may be often seen in fruit-trees, which it is necessary to keep clean by means of scraping off the lichens, at least from the smaller branches. For if the young branches are thus coated, so as that the bark cannot perfoim its proper functions, the tree will soon begin to languish, and will finally become covered with fungi, inducing or resulting from decay, till it is at last wholly choked up. 1674. But a similar effect is also occasionally produced by insects, in feeding upon the sap or shoot. This may be exemplified in the case of the aphides, which sometimes breed or settle upon the tender shoot in such multitudes as to cover it from the action of the external air altogether. It may be exemplified also in the case of Coccus Hesperidum and Acarus tellarius, insects that infest hot-house plants, the latter by spinning a fine and dehcate web over the leaf, and thus preventing the access of atmospheric air. Insects are to be removed either by the hand or other mechanical means, or destroyed by excess of some of the elements of their nutrition, as heat, or cold, or moisture, where such excess does not prove injurious to the plant ; or by a composition either fluid or otherwise, which shall have the same effects. Prevention is to be attempted by general culture, and particular attention to prevent the propagation of the insects or vermin, by destroying their embryo progeny, whether oviparous or otherwise. 1675. Sometimes the disease is occasioned by an extravasation of juices which coagulate on the surface of the stalk so as to form a sort of crust, investing it as a sheath, and preventing its further expansion. 1676. Sometimes the disease is occasioned from want of an adequate supply of nourishment as derived from the soil, in which the lower part of the plant is the best supplied, while the upper part of it is starved. Hence the top shoots decrease in size every succeeding year, because sufficient supply of sap cannot be obtained to give them their proper developement. This is analogous to the phenomena of animal life, when the action of the heart is too feeble to propel the blood through the whole of the system : for then the extremities are always the first to suffer. And perhaps it may account also for the fact, that in bad soils and unfavorable seasons, when the ear of barley is not wholly perfected, yet a few of the lower grains are always completely developed. {Smith's Introduction^ p. 344.) 1677. Contortio7i, The leaves of plants are often injured by means of the puncture of insects, so as to induce a sort of disease that discovers itself in the contortion or convolu- tion of the margin, or wrinkled appearance of the surface. The leaves of the apricot, peach, and nectarine, are extremely liable to be thus affected in the months of June and July. 1678. The leaf that has been punctured soon be^ns to assume a rough and wrinkled figure, and a reddish and scrofulous appearance, particularly on the upper surface. The margins roll inwards on the under side, and enclose the eggs which are scattered irregularly on the surface, giving it a blackish and granular appearance, but without materially injuring its health. In the vine, the substance deposited on the leaf is whitish, giving the under surface a sort of a frosted appearance, but not occasioning the red and scrofulous aspect of the upper surface of the leaf of the nectarine. In the poplar, the eggs when first deposited re- semble a number of small and hoary vesicles containing a sort of clear and colorless fluid. The leaf then becomes reflected and conduplicated, enclosing the eggs, with a few reddish protuberances on the upper surface. The embryo is nourished by this fluid ; and the hoariness is converted into a fine cottony down, which for some time envelopes the young fly. The leaf of the lime-tree in particular is liable to attacks from insects when fully expanded ; and hence the gnawed appearance it so often exhibits. The injury seems to be occasioned by some species of puceron depositing its eggs in the parenchyma, generally about the angles that branch off from the midrib. A sort of down is produced, at first green, and afterwards hoary ; sometimes in patches, and sometimes pervading the whole leaf; as in the case of the vine. Under this covering the egg is hatched ; and then the young insect gnaws and injures the leaf, leaving a hole, or scar of a burnt or singed appearance. Sometimes the upper surface of the leaf is covered with clusters of wart-like substances somewhat subulate and acute. They seem to be occasioned by means of a puncture made on the under surface, on, which a number of openings are discoverable, penetrating into the warts, which are hollow and villous within. The disease admits of palliation by watering frequently over the leaves ; and by removing such as are the most contorted and, covered by larva. 1679. Consumption. From barren or improper soil, unfavorable climes, careless planting, or too frequent flowering exhausting the strength of the plant, it often happens that disease is induced which terminates in a gradual decline and wasting away of the plant, till at length it is wholly dried up. Sometimes it is also occasioned by excessive drought, or by dust lodging on the leaves, or by fumes issuing from manufactories which may happen to be situated in the neighborhood, or by the attacks of insects. 1680. There is a consumptive affection that frequently attacks the pine-tree, called Teredo Pinorum {Wildenow, Princ. Bat. p. 351.), which affects the alburnum and inner bark chiefly, and seems to proceed from long continue _ 49 26 6 l\ ,\ i. Ericeae et Rhododendreae - 29 21 20 rk M ^•o Compositae _ - - 490 238 38 h 13 Umbelliferse 170 86 9 31 i^ ^ Cruciferae _ . . 190 106 22 t'j I'g 5*3 Malvaceae - - - 25 8 — . 1^3 ik Caryophylleae - - - 165 71 29 h 27 I Leguminoseae ... 230 96 14 Va tV ^ Euphorbeae - - * - 51 18 1 i T^ t Amentaceae _ _ .. 69 48 23 55 Conifereae 19 7 3 .k I ,b 3645 1884 497 1 1746. The most universal plants are the agamous fatnilies. Their germs are the only ones which nature developes spontaneously in all climates. The poly- trychum commune (Jig. 244.) grows in all latitudes; in Europe and under the equator ; on high moun- tains and on a level with the sea ; in short, wherever there is shade and humidity. No phanerogamous plants have organs sufficiently flexible to accommodate themselves in this manner to every zone. The alsine media, fragaria vesca, and solanum nigrum, have been supposed to enjoy this advantage ; but all that can be said is, that these plants are very much spread, like the people of the race of Caucasus, in the northern part of the ancient continent. (Humboldt.) Sect. VI. Economical Distribution of Vegetables. 1747. The plants chiefly employed in human economy differ in different climates and countries ; but some, as the cereal grasses, are in universal use ; and others, as the banana and plantain, only in the countries which produce them. Book I. DISTRIBUTION OF THE BRITISH FLORA. 273 1748. The bread-corn of the temperate climates is chiefly wheat and maize ; of the hot climates rice, and of the coldest climates barley. 1749. The edible roots of the old world are chiefly the yam, sweet potatoe, onion, car- rot, and turnip ; of the new the potatoe, 1 750. The oleraceous herbs of temperate climates are chiefly the brassica family, and other cruciferae. In hot climates pot-herbs are little used. Legumes, as the pea, bean, and kidney-bean, are in general use in most parts of the old world. 1751. The fntUs of the nnrtherii hemisphere belong chiefly to the orders of Pomaceae, Amygdalinese, Grossulareas, Rosaceae, Viticeas, and Amentaceae. 1752. The fruits of the East Indies belong chiefly to Myrtaceae, Guttifereae, Auranteae, Musacese, Palmse, Cucurbitaceae, Myristicese, &c. 1753. The fruits of China are chiefly of the orders of Auranteas, Myrtaceae, Rhamneae, Pomaceae,' Amygda- lineae, Palmae, &c. 1754. The fruits of Africahelong to Sapoteae, Palmae, Chrysobalanese, Guttifereae," A pocineae, Papilionacese, Musacese, and CucurbitaceEe. 1755. The fruits of South America belong to Annonaceae, Myrtaceae, Terebintaceae, Myristiceae, Palmae, Bromeliaceae, Sapoteae, Laurinje, Chrysobalaneae, Musaceae, Papilionaceae, and Passifloreae. 1 75^. The most showy herbaceous flowers of the temperate zone belong to Rosaceae, Liliacea^, Irideae, Ericinae, Ranunculacese, Primulaceae, Caryophylleae, Gentianeae, &c. Those of the torrid zone belong to the Scitaminese, Amaryllideae, Bignoniacea;, Mela- stomacese, Magnoliaceas, Papilionaceae, Apocineas, &c. 1757. The most useful timber-trees of temperate climates are of the pine or fir kind ; of warm climates the palm and bamboo. The universal agricultural order is the Graminece. Sect. VII. Arithmetical Distribution of Vegetables. 1758. The total number of species of plants known, amounted in 1820 to about 44,000, of which 38,000 have been described. According to Humboldt and R. Brown, they are thus distributed: in Europe 7000; in temperate Asia 1500; in equinoctial Asia and the adjacent islands 4500 ; in Africa .SOOO; in temperate America, in both hemispheres, 4000; in equinoctial America 13,000; in New Holland and the islands of the Pacific Ocean 5000 ; — in all 38,000. In Spitzbergen there are 30 species of perfect plants; in Lapland 534; in Iceland 533; in Sweden 1299; in Scotland 900; in Britain 1400; in Brandenburg 2000 ; in Piedmont 2800 ; in Jamaica, Madagascar, and the coast of Coromandel, from 4000 to 5000. It is now (anno 1824) believed that there may be from 100,000 to 200,000 species of plants. Such is the progress of ideas. Sect. VIII. Distribution of the British Flora, indigenous and exotic. 1 759. About thirteen thousand plants compose the Hortus Britannicus, or such species as admit of cultivation. Mosses, Fungi, Fuci, Algae, and Lichens are, with a few excep- tions, excluded. 1 760. The natives of Britain which enter into this Hortus are upwards of 1 400 species ; but the native British Flora contains in all above 3300 species. Of these there are about 1437 cotyledonous plants, and nearly 1893 of imperfect, or of what are termed, in the Jussieuean system, acotyledoneas. 1761. Of the cotyledonous or perfect plants, 182 are trees or shrubs ; 855 are peren- nials ; 60 are biennials ; and 340 annuals. Of the trees and shrubs, 47 are trees ; 25 above thirty feet high, and the remainder under thirty, but above 10 feet high. Of the perennials 83 are grasses ; the next greatest number belong to the two first orders of the class Pentandria ; the next to the Syngenesia ; and the third to Moncecia Triandria, or the Cyperace£B of Jussieu, comprehending chiefly the genus Carex. Most of the bien- nials belong to the first order of the 19th class, and the two first orders of Pentandria. There are 41 annual grasses ; 52 annuals belong to the two first orders of Pentandria ; and the next greatest number of annuals to Diadelphia Decandria, which includes the trefoils and vetches. 1762. Of the Cryj)togame<^, or imperfect plants, 800 are fungi ; 18 algse , 373 lichens ; 85 hepaticaj ; 460 musci ; and 130 ferns ; according to an estimate (in Rees's Cycloju art. Plant,] understood to be made by Sir J. E. Smith. 1763. In regard to the distribution of the perfect plants as to elevation, little or nothing has been yet generalised on the subject. In regard to soils, 276 are found in bogs, and marshy or moist places ; 1 40 on the sea-shores ; 1 28 in cultivated grounds ; 121 in mea- dows and pastures ; 78 in sandy grounds ; 76 in hedges and on hedge-banks ; 70 on chalky and other calcareous soils ; 64 on heaths ; 60 in woods ; 30 on walls ; 29 on rocks ; and 19 on salt-marshes; — reckoning from Galpine's Compend. Fl. Brit. 1764. In the distribution of the Cryptogamece, the ferns prevail in rocky places and wastes ; most of the musci, hepatici, and lichens, on rocks and trees ; most of the fuci and algee in the sea ; and of the fungi, on decaying vegetable bodies, especially trunks of trees, manures, &c. T 274 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part H. 1765. In respect to geographical distribution, the mountainous and|hilly districts of Eng- land and South Wales are most prolific ; the greatest number, according to extent of sur- face, are found in England and Wales, and the smallest number in Ireland. 1766. The genera of the native British Flora enter into 23 classes and 71 orders of the former, and 8 classes and 121 orders of the latter system. 1 767. With respect to the uses or aj)j)lication of the native Flora, there are about 1 8 sorts of wild fruits which may be eaten, exclusive of the wild apple and pear ; but only the pear, apple, plum, currant, raspl)erry, strawberry, and cranberry, are gathered wild, or cultivated in gardens. There are about 20 boiling culinary plants natives, including the cabbage, sea-kale, asparagus, turnip, carrot, and parsnep. There are about the same number of spinaceous plants, salading, and pot and sweet herbs, which may be used, but of which but a few only enter into the dietetics of modern cooks. There are three fungi, in general use, the mushroom, truffle, and morel ; and various others, as well as about eight species of sea-weeds, are occasionally eaten. There are about six native plants cultivated as florists' flowers, including the primula elatior, crocus, narcissus, dianthus, &c. Nearly 1 00 grasses, clovers, and leguminous plants are used in agriculture, or serve in their native places of growth as pasturage for cattle. Two native plants, the oat and the big, or wild barley, are cultivated as farinaceous grains. Most of the trees are used in the mechanical arts, for fuel, or for tanning : one plant, the flax, not an aboriginal Dative, but now naturalised, affords fibre for the manufacture of linen cloth. Various plants yield colored juices, which may be, and in part are, used in dyeing ; and some hundred species have been, and a few are still used in medicine. About 20 cotyledonous plants, and above 50 cryptogamese, chiefly fungi, are, or are reputed to be, poisonous, both to men and cattle. 1768. By the artificial Flora of Britain, we understand such of the native plants as ad- mit of preservation or culture in gardens ; and such exotics as are grown there, whether in the open ground, or in different descriptions of plant habitations. The total number of species which compose this Flora, or Hortus Britannicus, as taken from Sweet's cata- logue, is about 13,000, including botanists' varieties, and excluding agamous plants. This is nearly a fourth part of the estimated Flora of our globe, and may be considered in regard to the countries from whence the plants were introduced ; the periods of their introduction ; their obvious divisions ; their systematic classification ; their garden habit- ations ; their application ; and their native habitations. 1769. With respect to the native countries of the artificial Flora or Hortus Britannicus, of 970 species the native countries are unknown ; the remaining 12,000 species were first introduced from the following countries : — EUEOPE. Asia. Africa. America. Continent. Continent. Continent. S. Continent. N. Continent S. of Europe - 659 East Indies - 826 Cape of Good"! ooon Mexico - - 102 United States 1222 Spain - - 266 Siberia - - 364 ftope - y --60U Peru - - - 77 Carolina - 129 Italy ... 202 Levant - - 213 Barbary - - 77 Brazil - - - 74 Virginia - - 49 Hungary - - 173 China - - 205 Egypt - - Morocco - - 69 Guinea - - 33 Canada - - 28 Austria - - 171 Caucasus - . 67 13 Vera Cruz - 22 Missouri - . 24 Germany - - 134 Persia - - 37 Sierra Leone - 12 Caraccas - - 21 Louisiana - - 18 Switzerland - 117 Japan . . 3& Guinea - 11 Chili 29 Georgia - - 16 France - ' - 103 Syria - - - 19 Abyssinia - - 8 Buenos Ayres Various other") Places - 3 8 Florida . - - 9 Various other"? aar Parts - j *^ Various other! go Parts - i ^2 Algiers - * - 8 ^^^JrVriff 1 Various other") Parts - i 51 America and > 111 Islands. Islands. 5. Islands. the United Madeira - - 75 New So. Wales 239 Islands. Cayenne - - Falkland ") Islands - i 9 States - - J Candia - . 66 New Holland 152 Canaries - - 82 ^ N. Islands. Other Islands. 352 Ceylon - - 31 TenerifFe - - 21 Britain - - 1400 VanDieman's") oi Land - j 2^ SL Helena - 6 1 Terra del 7 J West Indies - ■^ Jamaica - 435 Cape Verde 1 Islands i 1 Fuego - i 248 Other Islands 73 1 Bahamas - 9 1 Other Islands 55 European plants in the artificial Flora of Britain ... - - 4169 Asiatic . - - - 2365 African _ - - . 2639 South America . . - . . - - 644 North America . . _ - . - - 2353 Native countries unknown - - 970 13,140 1 770. With respect to the dates of the introduction of the exotics from those different countries, the dates of the introduction of none are known before the time of Gerard, in Henry VIII.'s reign. From this author and Trew, it appears that 47 species were intro- duced on or before 1548, including the apricot, fig, pomegranate, &c. Those previously introduced, of which the dates are unknown, may be considered as left here by the Ro- mans, or afterwards brought over from France, Italy, and S,pain, by the ecclesiastics. Book I. DISTRIBUTION OF THE BRITISH FLORA. 275 and preserved in the gardens of the religious houses. Henry died in 1547 j but the plants introduced in the year after his death, may be considered as properly belonging to, his reign. Edw. VI. 1547 to 1553. During this troublous reign, only seven exotic species were added to tiie Britisii garden, chiefly by Dr. Turner, director of the Duke of Somerset's (then Lord Protector) garden at Zion House. Mary. 155,7 to 1558. No plants introduced. Elizabeth. 1558 to 1603. 533 species were introduced during "*■". """i ""- "■>^";' "f's '■"^ j«;»' "■ ""'i-ii mc msi lom this reign. Of these, '^88 are enumerated in the first edition of edition of the Gardeners' and Balanists' Dictionary ap{)eared, Gerard's Herbal, published 1557. Drake's voyage round the "'" =" '"'''" =-•-»-=-'• •--''"- -^^'= " -^ George I. 1714 to 1727. 182 planU, chiefly through the Chelsea garden. Georee II. 1727 to 1760. 1770 plants, almost entirely through the Chelsea garden, now in its zenith of fame under Miller. 375 of these plants are stated as introdmed in 1730 and 1731^ the latter being the year in which the first folio 239 in 1739, in which year the 4th edition of the same work appeared. 196 in 1752, and above 4()0 in 1758 and 1759, when subsequent editions were publislied. In the last, in 1765, the number of plants cultivated in England is stated to be more than double the number contained in the edition of George 111. 1760 to 1817. 6756 plants introduced, or con- siderably above half the whole number of exotics now in the gardens of this country. This is to be accounted for firom the general progress of civilisation, and the great extension of British power and influence in every quarter of tlie world; especially in the East Indies, at the tape of Good Hope, and New South Wales. The increasing liberality of intercourse whiclj now obuined among the learned of all coimtries, must also be taken into account, by which, notwithstanding the existence of political differences, peace reigned and com- merce florished in the world of science. George III. may also b^ said to have encouraged botany, aided by the advice, assistance, and unwearied efforts of that distinguished patron of science. Sir Joseph Banks, and the garden of Kew, and its late curator, Aiton, became the Chelsea garden, and the Miller of this reign. Most of the new plants were sent there, and first described in the Hortus Kewensis. The next greatest num. hers were procured bv the activity of the London nurser>men, especially Lee, and Loddiges, and described in the Botanical Manazine ; Andrew's Heathery ; the Botanical Register ; Lod- diges' Cabinet, and other works. The greatest number of plants introduced in any one year, during thLs period, is 336 in 1800, chiefly heaths and proteas from the Cape of Good Hope, taken from the Dutch in 1795. The following are the numbers annually introduced since that period : — ISOl. -. 116 1805. - 169 1809. - 48 1813. - 42 1802. - 169 1806. - 224 1810. - 68 1814. 44 1803. - 267 1807. - 61 1811. - 149 1815. - 192 1804. - 299 1808. - 52 1812. - .316 1816. - 301. «, pu ... world, Raleigh's discoveries in North America, and the con- sequent introduction of the tobacco and potatoe, took place during this reign. James I. 1603 to 1625. Only 20 plants introduced during this period. Charles I. 1625 to 1649. 331 plants introduced, which are chiefly mentioned bv Parkinson, the first eilition of whose work was published \\\ 1629. Parkinson was the king's herbalist, and Tradescant his kitchen-gardener. A taste for plants began to appear among the higher classes during this reign ; various private gentlemen had botanic gardens ; and several London merchants procured seeds and plants for Lobel, Johnston, and Parkinson, through their foreign correspondents. O. and R. Cromwell. 1649 to 1658. 95 plants introduced by the same means as before. Cromwell encouraged agriculture ; but the part he acted left no leisure for any description of elegant or refined enjoyment. C/tarlcs II. 1660 to 1685. 152 plants introduced, chiefly mentioned by Rav, Morrison, and different writers in the Transactions of the Royal Society, founded in 1663. The Oxford and Chelsea gardens were founded, or enlarged, during this reign. Sir Hans Sloane and Evelyn florished. Many native plants were now brought into notice by Ray and Wil- loughby. Jatnes II. 1685 to 1688. 44 plants introduced. WiUiam Sc Mani. 1688 to 1702. 298 species introduced, chiefly from the West Indies, and through Sir Hans Sloane and the Chelsea garden. Plunkenet succeeded Parkinson as royal herbalist during this reign; and botanists were sent from England, for the first time, to explore foreign countries. As in the two former reigns great additions were now made to the indigenous Flora, by Ray, Sibbald, Johnson, and others. Many of the 50 species annually presented to the Royal Society were natives. Anne. 1702 to 1714. 230 plants in great part from the East and West Indies, and through the Chelsea garden. Annual Average of 17 years, ending 1816, 156 species. 1771. With respect to the obvious character of the artificial Floray 350 species are hardy trees or shrubs ; of these 270 are trees above 10, and 100 trees above SO feet high. Of these, the larch, spruce fir, silver fir, and Lombardy poplar, sometimes attain the height of 100 feet. Above 400 species are hardy grasses. Of the tender exotics, the greater number are trees or shrubs, and the next greatest number annuals and bulbs. The- colors of the blossoms are generally rich and vivid in proportion to the warmth of the climate of which the plants are natives. 1772. Purchasable British Flora. The whole of the plants enumerated as forming the British Flora, are probably not at any one time all in existence in Britain. Many of them, especially the exotic species, which were introduced at Kew, have been lost there through accidents or diseases, and are wanting for a time till new seeds or plants are obtained from abroad. Had they been distributed among the nurserymen they would have been abundantly multiplied and spread over the country. Casualties happen even to hardy plants, and a species which at one time is to be found in moderate quantities in the nur- series is at another period comparatively scarce. Thus, if we reduce the actual number, of species to be found in cultivation at one time to from 9000 to 10,000, it will be found nearer the truth. In the public nurseries, varieties are very much cultivated, in order, as it were, to place the beauties of esteemed species in different points of view ; or to produce in vegetables something analogous to what are called variations in musical compositions. The following may be considered as a popular or horticultural distribution of tlie species and varieties obtainable from British nurseries. It is taken from a catalogue entitled Prodromus, &c. ; or Forerunner of the collection in Page's Southampton nursery-garden ' drawn up by L. Kennedy, (late of the Hammersmith nursery,) and published in 1818. It is a work of great practical utility, and with Sweet's Hortus, should be in the hands of every gardener, who has a collection of plants under his care. 1773. Hardi/ Plants. Sp.&Var. Trees above 30 feet high - - 100 Trees under 30 and above 101 onn feet high . . . j- 20(J Deciduous shrubs . . - 500 Roses, double and single - . 330 Evergreen shrubs . - 400 Hardy climbing shrubs Herbaceous plants . . . Grasses introduced in botanicl collections - - J Bulbous-rooted plants Aquatics Sp. & Var. 150 1774. Green-house and Dry-stove Plants. Trees and shrubs Heaths - Geraniums Proteas 8p. & Var. 1450 400 150 Climbers Succulents Mesymbryanthemums 'Bulbous-rooted planU T 2 Sp.&Var. 90 170 160 300 Marsh plants Biennials Sp.&Var» 70 - 300 Sp. & Var Herbaceous and stemless planu 340 276 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 1775. Hot-house Plants. Trees and shrubs - ... Climbers - . - - Succulent plants - • - Bulbous-rooted planU Herbaceous . - - - 1776. Annuals, native and exotic. Sp. & Var. 850 150 Hardy Half hardy Tender Esculent Sp. & Var. 300 140 100 200 Aquatics Reedy or scitaminous Used in agriculture exclusive of grasses Sp. & Var. 25 55 Sp.&Var. Total. Hardy, 4580; green-house and dry-stove, 3180 ; hot-house, 1463; annuals, 820; total, 10,043; of these, above 3000 may be considered as varieties, so that the actual hortus procurable in British nurseries, may be estimated, as to the British hortus of books, as 7 to 12, or including the cryptogamous plants, as 8 to 12. 1777. With respect to the application of the purchasable Flora of Britain, including species and varieties, we submit the following as only a rude outline, the subject not admitting of perfect accuracy from the ever- varying number of varieties. 1778. Varieties of Fruit-trees, and Fruit^-bearing Plants, for Sale in British Nurseries. Sp. & Var. Sp.&Var. Sp.&Var. Apples 300 Apricots ■" - 30 Cranberry 1 Pears 300 Plums 150 Mulberries 2 Medlars 2 Cherries 100 Filberts 6 Quinces Services 2 Grapes 50 Walnuts 3 3 Figs 30 Chestnuts 3 Oranges and JLemons Gooseberries 200 Melons 15 Peaches - '. 100 Currants 4 Pine-apples 20 Neetarines 50 Raspberries 10 Almonds 6 Strawberries . 20 Total 1417 1779. Esculent Herbaceous Plants, annuals and perennials, used in Horticulture. Sp.&Var. Sp. & Var. * Sp. & Var. Cabbage tribe - I 35 Pot herbs and gamishings 11 16 Edible wild plants which! 31 31 Leguminous plants • 3 59 Sweet herbs - 12 20 may be used - Esculent roots - - 10 45 Plants used in confectionary! ,^ ,<, Edible fungi Edible ftici . . - - 3 3 Spinaceous plants 6 10 and domestic medicine f " "" . 8 8 Alliaceous plants 7 18 11 18 Plants used as preserves andl ,„ «« pickles - - - J- 12 26 AsparaginouS plants Total 154 337 Acetaceous plants 1780. Florists' 25 40 Flowers, used in Floriculture. Sp.&Var. Sp. & Var. Sn.&Var. Bulboui-rooted Plants. Colchicums - 10 Tuberoits rooted Plants' Hyacinths . 200 Other sorts 100 Dahlias 400 TuUps - 300 Fibrous rooted Plants, I'iEonies 20 Crocuses ... . 100 Auriculas - 200 Ranunculuses 300 Narcissi . . 200 Polyanthi 100 Anemonies 200 Irises 60 Primroses 20 Fritillaries - 20 Cowslips 10 Total 2666 Crown-imperials 20 Pinks - 200 Dens canis 6 Carnations 300 1781. Hardy Timber-trees and Shrubs, used in Arboriculture, Floriculture, and Landscape-gardening. Sp.&Var. 20 Trees planted for timber . other useful purposes Trees planted for ornament Hedge-plants ... Sp.&Var. 100 Shrubs planted for various uses, as fuel, charcoal,") 20 bark, firewood, &c. J 180 Total 330 Plants used for dyeing Plants used for the clothing arts Sea plants used ... Mosses used in dyeing ... for various purposes^in the arts Used for distillation and perfumery Sp. & Var. - 2 2 - 2 2 6 6 - 1 1 - 6 6 Total 65 112 1782. Agricultural Herbaceous Plants, grown for Food for Men and Cattle, and for use in various Arts. Sp. & Var. Grains for human food - - - - - 4 20 leguminous seeds - .----4 10 Roots - - 6 20 Herbage plants, not grasses - - - - 9 15 grasses, and grasses for grains for the infe-"} g,. c.c nor animals - - - ../■'"•''' Plants used for furnishing oils and essences - - 5 5 1783. Miscellaneous applications of Hardy Perennials, native and exotic. Sp. & Var. Border-flowers, or such as are used in flower-gar- 1 -rnn dens and shrubberies, in ordinary cases about J Used in the modem pharmacopeias - - 50 Total 870 Sold by herbalists, and used by quacks and irregu-1 «„ ■ lar pracUtioners - . - J 1784. Ajrplication of curious hot-house exotics, or such plants of ornament as require the jirotection of glass. Of these there are in ordinary green-houses seldom more than 100 species and varieties, and not more than half that number in most of our plant-stoves. The remainder of this class are confined to the public and private botanic gardens, and to eminent public nurseries. Many of this division are of great importance in their na- tive countries, as the indigo, sugar-cane, tea-tree, cinnamon, &c. ; the mango, durion, and other excellent fruits, the palms, bamboos, &c. Even some, here treated as entirely ornamental, afford useful products in their own countries, as the camellia, sun-flower, &c. from the seeds of which oils are expressed in China and America. The cultivation Book I. PRINCIPLES OF VEGETABLE CULTURE. 277 or preservation of living specimens of these plants, therefore, in our green-houses and stoves, is a rational entertainment, and also useful, as many species become in time ac- climated, and some even naturalised ; and uses may in time also be discovered for such as are now merely looked on as objects of curiosity. But it is quite enough to justify much more than all the care that is taken to obtain and preserve them, that they contri- bute to elegant enjoyment ; for what is life when it does not exceed mere obedience to the animal instincts? 1785. With respect to the native habitations of the exotic jtart of tfie British HortuSj little can be advanced with certainty. In general it seems to appear that moist and mo- derately warm climates, and irregular surfaces, are most prolific in species; and judging of the whole world from Europe, we should venture to consider half the species of plants in existence as growing in soft and rather moist grounds, whether low or elevated. The soil of surfaces constantly moist, or inclining to be moist, whether watered from the at- mosphere or from subterraneous sources, is almost always found to be minutely divided, and generally of a black vegetable or peaty nature. Immense tracts in Russia and Ame- rica are of this description, and even when dry, resist evaporation better than any other. In such soils, the roots of plants are generally small and finely divided, as in the heaths, most bog plants, and nearly all the American shrubs. The next sort of habitation most prolific in species, appears to us to be arenarious soils in temperate climates, and in pro- portion to their moisture. Here the roots of plants are also small, but less so than in soils of the former description. On rocky and calcareous soils the roots of plants are ge- nerally strong and woody, or at least long and penetratiug. In clayey habitations, ex- clusive of the alluvial depositions of rivers, few plants are found, and these generally grasses, or strong fibrous-rooted herbaceous plants, or tap-rooted trees. Such at least is the amount of our generalisations ; but as our observation has been limited to Europe, and does not even extend to the whole of it, those who have visited Africa and Asia are much more capable of illustrating the subject. One conclusion we think the cultivator is fully entitled to draw, that the greater number of plants, native or foreign, will thrive best in light soil, such as a mixture of soft black vegetable mould or peat and fine sand kept moderately moist ; and that on receiving unknown plants or seeds, of the native sites of which he is ignorant, he will err on the safe side by placing them in such soils rather than in any other ; avoiding, most of all, clayey and highly manured soils, as only fit for certain kinds of plants constitutionally robust, or suited to become monstrous by culture. Chap. VII. Ori^n and Principles of Culture as derived from the Study of Vegetables. 1786. The final object of all the sciences is their application to purposes subservient to the wants and desires of vien. The study of the vegetable kingdom is one of tlie most important in this point of view, as directly subservient to the arts which supply food, clothing, and medicine ; and indirectly to those which supply houses, machines for conveying us by land, or by water, and in short almost every comfort and luxury. Without the aid of the vegetable kingdom, few mineral bodies would be employed in the arts, and the great majority of animals, whether used by man as laborers, or as food, could not live. 1787. Agriculture and gardening are the two arts which embrace the whole business of cultivating vegetables, for whatever purpose they are applied by civilized man. Their fundamental principles as arts of culture are the same ; they are for the most part suggested, by nature, and explained by vegetable chemistry and physiology (Chap. III. and IV.} ; and most of them have been put in practice by man for an unknown length of time, without much reference to principles. All tliat is neces- sary, therefore, for effecting this branch of culture, is to imitate the habitation, and to propagate. This is, or ought to be the case, wherever plants are grown for medical or botanical purposes, as in herb and botanic gardens. Nature is here imitated as exactly as possible, and the result is, productions resembling, as near as possible, those of nature. 1788. To increase the number and improve the qualities of plants, it is necessary to faci- litate their mode of nutrition by removing all obstacles to the progress of the plant. These obstacles may either exist under or above the surface ; and hence the origin of draining, clearing from surface-incumbrances, and tJie various operations, as digging, ploughing, &c. for pulverising the soil. Nature suggests this in accidental ruptures of the surface, broken banks, the alluvial depositions from overflowing rivers, and tlie earth thrown up by underground animals. Many of the vegetables within the 878 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. influence of such accidents are destroyed, but such as remain are ameliorated in quality, and the reason is, their food is increased, because their roots, being enabled to take a more extensive range, more is brought within their reach. 1789. It is necessary, or at least advantageous, to supply food artificially; and hence the origin of manuring. All organised matters are capable of being converted into the food of plants ; but the best manure for ameliorating the quality, and yet retaining the peculiar chemical properties of plants, must necessarily be decayed plants of their own species. It ie true that plants do not differ greatly in their primary principles, and that a supply of any description of putrescent manure will cause all plants to thrive ; but some plants, as wheat, contain peculiar substances, (as gluten and phosphate of lime,) and some manures, as those of animals, or decayed wheat, containing the same substances, must necessarily be a better food or manure for such plants. Manuring is an obvious imitation of nature, every where observable by the decaying herbage of herbaceous plants, or the fallen leaves of trees, rotting into dust or vegetable mould about their roots ; and by the effect of the dung left by pasturing or other animals. 1790. Amelioration of climate is farther advantageous, in improving the qualities of vegetables, by increasing or diminishing its temperature according to the nature of the plant; unless, indeed, it is situated in a climate which experience and observation §how to be exactly suited to its nature. Hence the origin of shelter and shade, by means of walls, hedges, or strips of plantation ; of sloping surfaces or banks, to receive more directly or indirectly the rays of the sun ; of rows, drills, and ridges, placed north and south in preference to east and west, in order that the sun may shine on both sides of the row, drill, or ridge, or on the soil between rows and drills every day in the year ; of soils better calculated to absorb and retain heat ; walls fully ex- posed to the south, or to the north ; of training or spreading out the branches of trees on these walls; of hot- walls ; of hot-beds; and finally of all the variety of hot- houses. Nature suggests this part of culture, by presenting, in every country, different degrees of shelter, shade, and surface, and in every zone different climates. 1791. The regulation of moisture is the next point demanding attention; for when the soil is pulverised, it is more easily dried by the penetration of the air ; when an increase of food is supplied, the medium through which that food is taken up by the plant should be increased ; and when the temperature is increased, evaporation becomes greater. Hence the origin of watering by surface or subterraneous irrigation, manual supplies to the root, showering over the leaves, steaming the surrounding atmosphere, Sec. This is only to imitate the dews and showers, streams and floods of nature ; and it is to be regretted that the imitation is in most countries attended with so much labor, and requires so much nicety in the arrangement of the means, and judgment in the application of the water, that it is but very partially applied by man in every part of the world, excepting perhaps a small district of Italy, But moisture may be excessive ; and on certain soils at certain seasons, and on certain productions at particular periods of their progress, it may be necessary to carry off a great part of the natural moisture, rather than let it sink into the earth, or draw it off where it has sunk in and injuriously accumulated, or prevent its falling on the crop at all ; and hence the origin of surface- drainage by ridges, and of under-draining by covered conduits, or gutters ; and of awnings and other covers to keep off the rain or dews from ripe fruits, seeds, or rare flowers. 1792. The regulation of light is the remaining point. Light sometimes requires to be excluded and sometimes to be increased, in order to improve the qualities of vege- tables ; and hence the origin of thinning tlie leaves which overshadow fruits and flowers, the practice of shading cuttings, seeds, &c., and the practice of blanching. The latter practice is derived from accidents observable among vegetables in a wild state, and its influence on their quality is physiologically accounted for by th^ obstruction of per- spiration, and the prevention of the chemical changes effected by light on the epidermis. 1793. Increasing the magnitude of vegetables, without reference to their quality, is to be obtained by an increased supply of all the ingredients of food, distributed in such a body of well pulverised soil as the roots can reach to ; of heat and moisture ; of a partial exclusion of the direct rays of the sun, so as to moderate perspiration ; and of wind, so as to prevent sudden desiccation. But experience alone can determine what plants are best suited for this, and to what extent the practice can be carried. Nature gives the hint in the occasional luxuriance of plants accidentally placed in favorable circumstances, and man adopts it, and improving on it, produces cabbages and turnips of half a cwt. ; apples of one pound and a half; and cabbage-roses of four inches in diameter ; productions which may in some respects be considered as diseased. 1794. To increase the number, improve the quality, and increase the magnitude of par- ticular parts of vegetables. It is necessary, in this case, to remove such parts of the vegetable as are not wanted, as the blooms of bulbous or tuberous rooted plants, when Book I. PRINCIPLES OF VEGETABLE CULTURE. 279 the bulbs are to be increased, and the contrary ; the water-shoots and leaf-buds of fruit- trees ; the flower-stems of tobacco ; the male flowers and barren runners of the cucumis tribe, &c. Hence the important operations of pruning, ringing, cutting off large roots, and other practices for improving fruits and throwing trees into a bearing state. At first sight these practices do not appear to be copied from nature ; but, indepen- dently of accidents by fire, already mentioned, which both prune and manure, and of fruit-bearing trees, say thorns or oaks, partially blown out by the roots, or washed out of the soil by torrents, which always bear better afterwards, why may not the necessity that man was under, in a primitive state of society, of cutting or breaking off branches of trees, to form huts, fences, or fires, and the consequent vigorous shoots produced from the parts where the amputation took place, or the larger fruit on that part of the tree which remained, have given the first idea of pruning, cutting off roots, &c. It may be said that this is not nature but art ; but man, though an improving animal, is still in a state of nature, and all his practices, in every stage of civilisation, are as natural to him as those of the other animals are to them. Cottages and palaces are as much natural objects as the nests of birds, or the burrows of quadrupeds ; and all the laws and institutions by which social man is guided in his morals and politics, are no more artificial than the instinct which congregates sheep and cattle in flocks and herds, and guides them in their choice of pasturage and shelter. 1795. To form new varieties of vegetables, as well as of flowers and useful plants of every description, it is necessary to take advantage of their sexual differences, and to operate in a manner analogous to crossing the breed in animals. Hence the origin of new sorts of fruits, grains, legumes, and roots. Even this practice is but an imitation of what takes place in nature by the agency of bees and other insects, and the wind ; all the difference is, that man operates with a particular end in view, and selects individuals possessing the particular properties which he wishes to perpetuate or improve. New varieties, or rather subvarieties, are formed by altering the habits of plants ; by dwarfing through want of nourishment : variegating by arenacious soils; giving or rather continuing peculiar habits when formed by nature, as in propagating from monstrosities — fasciculi of shoots, weeping shoots, shoots with peculiar leaves, flowers, fruit, &c. 1796. To propagate and preserve from degeneracy approved varieties of vegetables, it is in general necessary to have recourse to the different modes of propagating by exten- sion. Thus choice' apples and tree fruits could not be perpetuated by sowing their seeds, which experience has shewn would produce progeny more or less different from the parent, but they are preserved and multiplied by grafting ; others, as the pine-apple, by cuttings or suckers ; choice carnations by layers, potatoes by cuttings of the tubers, &c. But approved varieties of annuals are in general multiplied and preserved by se- lecting seeds from the finest specimens and paying particular attention to supply suitable culture. Approved varieties of corns and legumes, no less than of other annual plants, such as garden flowers, can only be with certainty preserved by propagating by cuttings or layers, which is an absolute prolongation of the individual ; but as this would be too tedious and laborious for the general purposes both of agriculture and gardening, all that can be done is to select seeds from the best specimens. This part of culture is the farthest removed from nature ; yet there are notwithstanding examples of the fortuitous graft ; of accidental layers ; and of natural cuttings, as when leaves, or detached por- tions of plants (as of the cardamine hirsuta) drop and take root. 1797. The preservation of vegetables for future use is effected by destroying or render, ing dormant the principle of life, and by warding off, as far as practicable, the progress of chemical decomposition. When vegetables or fruits are gathered for use or pre- servation, the air of the atmosphere which surrounds them is continually depriving them of carbon, and forming the carbonic acid gas. The water they contain, by its softening qualities, weakens the aflfinity of their elements ; and heat produces the same effect by dilating their parts, and promoting the decomposing effect both of air and water. Hence, drying in the sun or in ovens, is one of the most obvious modes of preserving vegetables for use, as food, or for other purposes ; but not for growth, if the drying processes is carried so far as to destroy the principle of life in seeds, roots, or sections of the shoots of ligneous plants. Potatoes, turnips, and other esculent roots, may be pre- served from autumn till the following summer, by drying them in the sun, and bury- ing them in perfectly dry soil, which shall be at the same time at a temperature but a few degrees above the freezing point. Corn may be preserved for many years by first drying it thoroughly in the sun, and then burying it in dry cool pits, and closing these so as effectually to exclude the atmospheric air. In a short time the air within is changed to carbonic acid gas, in which no animal will live, and in which, without an addition of oxygen or atmospheric air, no plant or seed will vegetate. The corn is thus preserved from decomposition, from insects, vermin, and from vegetation in a fi\x more t>fl[ectual manner than it can be in a granary. In this way the Romans preserved tiieir corn T 4 ■ 280 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. in chambers hewn out of dry rock, the Moors in the sides of hills, the Chinese, at the pre- sent time, in deep pits, in dry soil, and the aboriginal nations of Africa, as we have seen (1110.), in earthen vessels hermetically sealed. [Lasteyrie des fosses propres a la Conser- vation des Grains. Chaptal Chimie applique a V Agriculture, torn. ii. ch. 10.) The origin of these practices are all obvious imitations of what accidentally takes place in nature, from the withered grassy tressock to the hedgehog's winter store ; and hence the origin of herb, seed, fruit, and root rooms and cellars, and packing plants and seeds for sending to a distance. 1798. The whole of the arts of vegetable culture, is but a varied developement of the above fundamental practices, all founded in nature, and for the most part rationally and satisfactorily explained on chemical and physiological principles. Hence the great ne- cessity of the study of botany to the cultivator, not in the limited sense in which the term is often taken as including mere nomenclature and classification, but in that extended signification in which we have here endeavored, proportionately to our limited space, to present the study of the vegetable kingdom. Those who would enter more minutely into the subject will have recourse to the excellent work of Keith, from whom we have quoted at such length ; to Sir J. E. Smith's Introduction ; and to the elementary works of Willdenow and De CandoUe. BOOK II. OF THE STUDY OP THE ANIMAL KINGDOM WITH REFERENCE TO AGRICULTURE. 1799. Animals are distinguished from vegetables by beijig endowed with sentiment or reason, and locomotive powers. A general knowledge of their nature is of obvious uti- lity to whoever is engaged in the rearing or management of any department of them ; but, as they differ much more extensively in their natures than vegetables, that know- ledge is necessarily very extensive. Few, indeed, can be supposed to attain to any degree of eminence in every branch ; man is found sufficient for the physician, and the horse for the veterinary professor ; a slight general knowledge of the whole subject, and a more particular acquaintance with the names and pliysiology of the quadrupeds, birds, and insects of Britain, are what the agriculturist should chiefly aspire to. 1800. The subject of zoology has not beeji cultivated with so much success as that of botany; the systematic part, indeed, was attended to by Linnaeus, in common with the two other kingdoms of nature; but his arrangement of animals is much less satisfactory than his classification of plants ; and scarcely any thing was done in comparative anatomy and physiology till within the last half century. The greatest improvers of this science are Hunter and Cuvier ; but the most valuable works for the study of the agriculturist are Dr. Fleming's Philosophy of Zoology, and his British Fauna. It is from the first of these works that we have extracted the principal part of the following chapters, which we have arranged as Systematic Zoology, Animal Anatomy, Chemistry, Physiology, Pathology, Distribution, Uses, and Artificial Improvement, or Animal Culture. Chap. I. Systematic Zoology^ or the Language, Nomenclature, Description, and Classijication of Animals. 1801. The technical terms introduced in zoology are much more numerous than those of botany, because animals differ more among themselves than plants ; and because the anatomy of animals is greatly more complicated than that of vegetables. The technical terms most important for the agriculturist are those made use of in the veterinary art, and which he ought to study in works on that subject, and in scientific treatises on the domestic quadrupeds. As the terms of zoology are much less fixed, and have not en- gaged the attention of naturalists so much as those of botany, the chief dependence of the student must be on a knowledge of the Latin language, in which they are generally composed. 1802. In describing animals, naturalists follow the same rules in zoology as in botany ; but much more attention is requisite to the internal characters than in the latter science. In all cases the male is considered as the representative of the species. While the female, in some species, differs remarkably from the male in external characters, there is still an Book II. SYSTEMATIC ZOOLOGY. 281 agreement in structure, with the exception of the organs of the reproductive system, and the modifications of some parts subservient to their functions. When a female indivi- dual comes under notice, it is frequently very difficult, if not impossible, to determine the species to which she belongs, while external characters alone are employed. This difficulty, in the case of birds, meets the student at every step ; but it in a great mea- sure disappears, when the internal characters are chiefly relied on. In Great Britain, during the latter half of the last century, descriptions of animals were chiefly drawn up in a very superficial manner. The internal structure was in a great manner over- looked, and the more obvious varieties of color were selected, rather than the more characteristic appearances of the shape. Such, generally, are the descriptions of Pen- nant, Shaw, Donovan, and even Montagu. This is the more surprising, as the eminent naturalists who florished towards the end of the seventeenth and beginning of the eighteenth centuries (the golden age of British zoology), excelled in the minute details with which their descriptions abounded. The writings of Willoughby, Ray, and Ellis, furnish very striking examples. But descriptions are daily becoming more labored in their details, from the increase of species, and the necessity of determining the charac- ters on which their claim depends. This will contribute greatly to the progress of zoology. 1808. The best descriptions are often insufficient, iviihout the aid of drawings or specimens. Many relations of parts, and many gradations of form, may be perceived by the eye, which words are unable to express. Drawings therefore have largely con- tributed to the progress of zoology. Specimens can only be obtained generally of the smaller animals, though examples of the largest sorts are to be found in the public museums. Tliey are generally exhibited in a dried state ; but sometimes immersed in spirits of wine. Marme objects are prepared by maceration in fresh water. Dried sub- jects are commonly anointed with some poisonous liquid, to preserve them from the attacks of insects. In a small tract entitled Taxidermyf will be found plain instruc- tions for collecting and preserving zoological specimens. 1804. In naming animals, the same principles are followed as in naming plants ; but it is remarkable, as Dr. Fleming has observed, that while in botany and mineralogy, generic titles are frequently the names of those naturalists who have contributed to the advance- ment of these sciences, yet the generic titles of animals are never derived from the same source, nor similar honors bestowed on zoological observers. Specific names are, as in botany, adjectives in concord with the generic name as a substantive ; and should express some circumstance connected with color, form, habit, station, or distribution. In some cases the specific name is a substantive, and occurs either in the nominative or genitive case, and without reference to the gender of the name of the genus. This want of con- cord happens, when a species has been long known by a distinct appellation, and when this is employed in science as its specific name. Thus, in the genus Tardus, while one species is distinguished in the ordinary manner, viz. T. torquatus, another, T. merula, furnishes an example of the exception here referred to. "When the specific name is in the genitive case, it is always derived from the proper name of the zoologist who dis- covered it, or who contributed to illustrate its characters. Thus Liparis Montagui was so named by Donovan {British Fishes, tab. Ixviii.) in honor of the late George Montagu, Esq. who first detected it on the Devonshire coast. 'ITie application of the proper names of zoologists, to the construction of the specific names of animals, ought to be restricted to those who have illustrated the species. Of late years, however, this honor has been bestowed on observers to whom the species has even been unknown ; and not contented with using the names of zoologists, those of wives, friends, or patrons, have been exten- sively employed. To bestow zoological honors on those who are not interested in the progress of science is ridiculous; and to neglect the original discoverer, in order to do this, is base. It were better, perhaps, to proscribe the practice. 1805. The classification of animals is by no means established on so firm and philoso- phical a basis as that of plants. Two different methods have been employed ; the one founded on a particular system of organs which constitutes the artificial system of Linnaeus, and the other founded on the joint consideration of all the systems of organs, external and internal, from which has been established various natural methods, of which the most generally esteemed at present is that of Cuvier. A mixed method has been adopted by many naturalists, and is preferred by Dr. Fleming, who suggests some useful improvements, and has exhibited their application in the general arrangement of animals to be given in his Fauna, {Phil. Zool. ii. 160.) 262 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. Chap. II. Animal Anatomy. 1806. The leading organs of animal structure, may be conveniently arranged as ex- ternal and internal. Sect. I. External Anatomy of Animals. 1807. All aiiimals agree in possessing an exterior covering, or skin, to modify their sur- face, regulate their form, and protect them from the action of surrounding elements. In the more perfect animals, this organ consists of the following parts : the cuticle, — the Qorpus mucosum, — the corium, — the panniculus, — and the cellular web. 1808. T/ie cuticle is destitute of blood vessels, nerves, and fibres, and usually consists of a thin transparent membrane possessing little tenacity. In those animals which live on the land, it is more rigid in its tex- ture, and scaly and dry on its surface, than in those which reside in the water. In aquatic animals, it is in general smooth, often pliable ; and, in many cases its texture is so soft and delicate, that it appears like mucus. It assumes, likewise, other appearances, such as scales, nails, shells and plates, which deserve the attentive consideration of the naturalist, as furnishing him with important characters for the arrangement of animals. 1809. The mucus web occurs immediately underneath the cuticle, from which, in general, it may be easily disjoined ; but it is often so closely attached to the true skin below, as not to be separated even by maceration in water. 1810. The corium {Cutis vera), or true skin, lies immediately underneath the cuticle or mucus web. It is usually destitute of color. It consists in some animals, as quadrupeds, of solid fibres, which cross one another in every possible direction, and form a substance capable of considerable extensibility and elasti- city. It is more obviously organized than the two members by which it is covered. Blood vessels and nerves penetrate its substance, and may be observed forming a very delicate net work on its surface. 1811. The muscular web varies greatly in its appearance according to the motions which the skin and its appendices are destined to perform. It consists of a layer of muscles, the extremities of whose fibres are inserted into the corium externally, and adhere to the body internally in various directions. This layer is very obvious in the hedgehog and the porcupine, to assist in rolling up the body and moving the spines, and in birds, in the erection of their feathers. In man it can scarcely be said to exist, unless in the upper parts, where cutaneous muscles may be observed, destined for moving the skin of the face, cheeks, and head. Jn the skin of the frog, the only cutaneous muscles which can be observed, are seated under the throat ; the skin on the other parts of the body being loose and unconnected with the parts beneath. The use of thi» layer of the integument, is to corrugate the skin, and elevate the hairs, feathers or spines with which it is furnished. 1812. The cellular weh forms the innermost layer of the common integuments, and rests immediately on the flesh of the body. It consists of plates crossing one another in different directions, and forming a cellular membrane, varying in its thickness, tena- city, and contents, according to the species. In frogs it does not exist. The cells of this membrane are filled with various substances, according to the nature of the animal. In general they contain fat, as in quadrupeds and birds. In some of these the layer is interrupted, as in the ruminating animals, while it is continuous in others, as the boar and the whale. In birds, while a part of this web is destined for the reception of fat, other portions are receptacles for air. In the moon-fish the contained matter resembles albu- men in its chemical characters. 1813. The appendices of the skin are hairs, feathers, horns, scales, shells, and crusts. 1814. Hairs differ remarkably not only in their structure, but likewise in their situation. In some cases they appear to be merely filamentous prolongations of the cuticle, and subject to all its changes. This is obviously the case with the hair which covers the bodies of many caterpillars, and which sej^arates along with the cuticle, when the animal is said to cast its skin. In true hair the root is in the form of a bulb, taking its rise in the cellular web. Each bulb consists of two parts, an external, which is vascular, and from which the hair probably derives its nourishment ; and an internal, which is membranous, and forms a tube or sheath to the hair during its passage through the other layers of the skin. From this bulb, and enveloped by this membrane, the hair passes through the corium, mucus web, and cuticle. It usually raises up small scales of this last layer, which soon become dry and fall off, but do not form the external covering of the hair as some have supposed. The hair itself consists of an external horny covering, and a central vascular part, termed medulla ox pith. This horny covering consists of numerous filaments placed laterally, to which different kinds of hair owe their striated appearance. These filaments appear of unequal lengths, those nearest the centre being longest ; and, consequently, the hair assumes the form of an elongated cone, with its base seated in the skin. This form gives to the hair that peculiar property on which the operation of felting depends. In consequence of this structure of the surface, if a hair is seized at the middle between two fingers, and rubbed by them, the root will gradually recede, while the point of the hair will approach the fingers ; in other words, the hair will exhibit a progressive motion in the direc- tion of the root, the imbricated surface preventing all motion in the opposite direction. It is owing to this state of the surface of hairs, that woollen cloth, however soft and pliable, excites a disagreeable sen- sation of the skin in those not accustomed to wear it. It likewise irritates sores by these asijerities, and excites inflammation. The surface of linen cloth, on the other hand, feels smooth, because the fibres of which it consists possess none of those inequalities of surface by which hairs are characterised. - 1815. If a quantity of wool be spread upon a table, covered with a woollen cloth, and pressed down in different directions, it is obvious that each hair will begin to move in the direction of its root, as if it had been rubbed between the fingers. The different hairs thus moving in every direction become inter- woven with each other, and unite in a continuous mass. This is the felt with which hats are made. Curled hairs entwine themselves with one another more closely than those which are straight, though flexible, as they do not, like these, recede from the point of pressure in a straight line; and hence hatters employ various methods to produce curl in the short fur of rabbits, hares, and moles, which they employ. This is accomplished chiefly by applying the solution of certain metallic salts to the fur by a brush; so that, when the hairs are dry, the surface which was moistened, contracts more than the other, and produces the requisite curve. 1816. It is owing to the asperities of the surf ace~of hair that the spinning of wool is so difficult. This is in a great measure removed, by besmearing it with oil, by which the inequalities are filled up, or, at least. Book II. ANIMAL ANATOMY. 28S the asperities become less sensible. "When the wool is made into cloth, it is necessary to remove the oil, which is done by tiie process of fulling. The cloth is placed in a trough, with water and clay, and agitated for some time. The oil is removed by the clay and water, while the agitation, acting like pressure, brings the hairs into closer union, and the cloth is taken out, not only cleansed, but felted. The hairs of every thread entwine themselves with those which are contiguous ; so that the cloth may be cut without being sub- ject to ravel. It is to this tendency to felt that woollen cloth and stockings increase in density, and con- tract in dimensions, by being washed. In many places woollen stuffs are felted, on a small scale, by placing them in running water, or under cascades ; and the Zetlanders expose them to the motions of the tides, in narrow inlets of the sea. 1817. In general there is a close connection between the color of the hair and that of the mucus web. This is displayed in those animals which are spotted, in which the color of the skin is generally variegated like that of the hair. 1818. Hairs differ remarkably in form. In general they are round. Frequently on the body they are thickest in the middle. Sometimes they are flat, or two-edged j and, in the whiskers of seals, they are waved on the margins. In many animals they are long and straight ; while, in others, they are crisped, and are then termed wool. When stiff, they are termed bristles; and, when inflexible, sjnnes. 1819. Hair grows by the roots. In some species they are renewed annually; and in all they are readily reproduced. 1820. Hair is the most permanent of all the substances consisting of animal matter, resistmg putrefaction for a great length of time. 1821. i^ea^/ier* are nearly related to hairs; they consist of the quill, shaft, and web. The quill, like the hair, takes its rise in the cellular membrane : the central portion of the shaft has a texture like cork, and the web which usually occupies both sides of it is composed of what are called barbes, and the sides of these with barbules. Feathers exhibit great difference as to color : in some birds it varies with the seasons, in others with food, and in others with the extinction of life. Like hairs, feathers are not only renewed periodically, but they are readily reproduced, if accidentally destroyed. 1822. Horns take their rise in the same situation as hairs or feathers. They may be regarded as hairs agglutinated, and forming a hollow cone. The fibrous structure of horn may be perceived in many animals at the base, where it unites with the skin. At this part it receives the additions to its growth, the apex of the cone being pushed out in proportion as the increase takes place at the root, and on the inner surface. But horns differ remarkably from hair, in having their central cavity filled by a projection of bone or other solid substance from the body beneath. 1823. The different markings of the horns, particularly the transverse ridges, are indications of thedif. ferent layers of growth ; and in many cases the number of these ridges corresponds with the years of life. 1824. The color of the horn is, in general, distributed through the mass ; sometimes, however, it is col- lected into bands or threads. It seldom experiences much change during the life of the animal. It is permanent, or does not experience those periodical renovations which we have stated to take place with hair and feathers. The deciduous horns of the stag are different in their nature from true horns, and will be afterwards taken notice of. The term horn is usually restricted to the coverings of the projections of the frontal bones of oxen, sheep, and similar quadrupeds ; but various appendices of the skin, composed of the same materials, and equally permanent, although seated on other parts of the body, may with propriety be included under the same appellation; among these may be enumerated beaks, hoofs, claws, nails, and spurs. 1825. Beaks. The substance of these covers the external surface of the maxillary bones of birds, and is ccfmposed of horn. 1826. Hoofs resemble horns in their manner of growth, and in containing a central support, formed by the termination of the extreme bones of the feet. They grow from the inner surface and base, and are thus fitted to supply the place of those parts which are worn away by being exposed to friction against hard bodies. Hoofs are peculiar to certain herbivorous quadrupeds. 1827. Claivs resemble hoofs in structure and situation, deriving their origin from the skin, having a bony centre, and occurring at the extremities of the fingers and toes. 1828. iVai/* differ from horns and claws, in the circumstance of not being tubular, but consisting of a plate generally convex on the outer surface, and concave beneath. 1829. Spurs occur chiefly on what is termed the leg {tarsus) of gallinaceous birds. They are found, likewise, on the ornithorynchus. Like horns, they are supported in the centre by bone. 1830. Horns, hoofs, and similar parts, bear a close resemblance to one another in che- mical composition. When heated they soften, and may be easily bent or squeezed into particular shapes. They consist of coagulated albumen, witli a little gelatine ; and, when incinerated, yield a little phosphate of lime. 1831. Their use, in animal economy, is to protect the soft parts from being injiired by pressure against hard bodies. They are in general wanting, where the parts are in no danger of suffering from the in- fliuencc of such agents. When torn off from the base, they are seldom completely renewed, although very remarkable exertions are frequently made by the system to reiiair the loss. 1832. Scales vary remarkably in their form, structure, mode of adhesion, and situation in different animals. In general they are flat plates, variously marked. In some cases each scale consists of several plates, the lowest of which are largest ; so that the upper siurface becomes, somewhat imbricated. Some scales adhere by tlie whole of their cen- tral surface ; while others resemble the human nail, in having the distal extremity free. 284 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 1833. Shells consist of layers of an earthly salt, with interposed membranes of animal matter, resembling coagulated albumen. They grow by the addition of layers of new matter to the edges and internal surface. When broken, the animal can cement the edges and fill up the crack, or supply the deficiency when a portion is abstracted. 1834. The earthy matter of shells is lime, in union with carbonic acid. Phosphate of lime has likewise been detected but in small quantity. The color is secreted from the animal, along with the matter of the shell. 1835. Crusts are, in general, more brittle in their texture than shell. They exhibit remarkable differences as to thickness and composition. They differ from shells chiefly in containing a considerable portion of phosphate of lime, and in a greater subdivison of parts. In some cases, however, as the crusts of the bodies of insects, the earthy matter is almost absent, and they may be regarded as formed of cuticle alone. When they contain much earthy matter, as in the crusts of lobsters, the epidermis may be detected as a cover, and the corium beneath may be perceived as a very thin film. In many cases, these crusts are renewed periodically ; and, in all, they are readily repaired. Crusts occur in insects, the Crustacea, and the echinodermata, or sea-urchins, and star-fish. 1836. These different appendices of the skin ^ass, by insensible degrees, into one another, as hair into spines, horns into nails, scales into shells, and crusts into membranes. They have all one common origin) namely, the skin ; and independent of secondary purposes, they all serve for protection. 1837. The secretions of the skin are of three kinds, one class perfonning the office of lubricating the skin ; another of regulating the temperature of the body ; and a third of carrying ofl' the superfluous carbon. 1838. Unctuous secretions are confined to animals which have warm blood, and the cells of the cellular web filled with fat, mammalia and birds. 1839. Viscous secretions. In the animals with cold blood, secretions are produced, by the skin, of sub- stances diflfering in quality from those of warm-blooded animals; but destined to serve the same pur- poses, namely, to protect the skin from the action of the surrounding element. 1840. Sweat, in ordinary cases, exudes from the skin in a state of vapor; and when condensed consists of water with a small portion of acetic acid and common salt. This secretion is considered as intended to regulate the degree of animal heat, and pre- vent its accumulation beyond certain limits. 1841. Carbon is also emitted by the skin, and appears to be in effect a secondary kind of respiration, but the discovery is but recent. {See Ellis on the Germination of Seeds and Respiration of Animals^ 1807 and 1811.) 1842. Absorption. There are several circumstances which prove, that the skin of tlie human body, in particular states, is capable of exerting an absorbing power. Whether the absorption takes place by peculiar vessels, or by the exhaling vessels having their motions reversed, or whether absorption ever takes place in the state of health, are questions to which no satisfactory answer has been given. Sect. II. Internal Anatomy of Animals. 1843. Animal anatomy admits of three divisions, the osseous^ the muscular, and the nervous structure of animals, SuBSECT. 1. Osseous Structure of Animals. 1844. The organs of external anatomy are generally considered as destined for pro- tection ; while those of the interior of the animal, or the bones, give stability to the power, support the muscles, and afford levers for the execution of locomotion. Bones may be considered in regard to their composition, articulations, and arrangement. All bones are composed of the periosteum, cartilaginous basis, earthy matter and fat. 1845. The periosteunt bears the same relation to the bone as the skin to the body, serving as a covering for its surface, and a sheath for the different cavities which enter it. It varies in thickness, according to the nature of the bone. Its texture is obviously fibrous; and it possesses blood vessels. Its sensibility indicates the existence of the nerves. 1846. The cartilaginous basis consists of gelatine and coagulated albumen. The earthy matter is chiefly phosphate of lime, and the fat resembles that of the fixed oils. 1 847. Bones increase in size, not as in shells, scales, or horns, by the addition of layers to the internal surface, but by the expansion of the cartilaginous basis ; which, when it becomes saturated with earthy matter, is incapable of farther enlargement. This is the reason why the bones of young animals are soft and flexible, while those of old animals are hard and brittle. 1848. The projmrlion between the cartilaginous basis, and the earthy matter differs, not only in every animal according to age, the earthy matter being smallest in youth, but, likewise, according to the nature of the bone itself, and the purposes which it is destined to serve. The teeth contain the largest portion of earthy matter. Remarkable differences are likewise observable, according to the class or species. Book II. MUSCULAR STRUCTURE OF ANIMALS. 285 1849. Bone is readily reproduced^ in small quantities, especially in youth. In the case of fracture, the periosteum inflames and swells, the crevice is filled up by a cartilaginous basis, abounding in vessels, and the earthy matter is at length deposited, giving to the fractured part, in many cases, a greater degree of strength than it originally possessed. In animals of the deer kind, the horns, which are true bone, are annually cast off; a natural joint forming at their base, between them and the bones of the cranium, with which they are connected. They are afterwards reproduced under a skin or periosteum, which the animal rubs off when the new horns have attained their proper size. In some cases of disease, the earthy matter is again absorbed into the system, the cartilaginous basis predominates, and the bones be- come soft and tender. This takes place in the disease of youth termed rickety and in a similar com- plaint of advanced life, known under the name of mollifies ossium. In other instances, bone is formed as a monstrous production, in organs which do not produce it in a state of health, as the brain, the heart, and the placenta. {Monro's Outlines qf Anatomy, p. 63.) 1850. Cartilage can scarcely be said to differ in its nature, from the cartilaginous basis of the bone. It is of a fine fibrous structure, smooth on the surface, and re- markably elastic. It covers those parts of bones which are exposed to friction, as the joints, and is thickest at the point of greatest pressure. By its smoothness, it facilitates the motion of the joints, and its elasticity prevents the bad effects of any violent con- cussion. It is intimately united with the bone, and can scarcely be regarded as different from an elongation of the cartilaginous basis. Where it occurs at a joint with consider- able motion, it is termed articular or abducent cartilage. In other cases, it occurs as a connecting medium between bones which have no articular surfaces, but where a variable degree of motion is requisite. The ribs are united to the breast bone in this manner. Between the different vertebrae, there are interposed layers of cartilage, by which the motions of the spine are greatly facilitated. As these connecting cartilages are com- pressible and elastic, the spine is shortened when the body remains long in a vertical position, owing to the superincumbent pressure. Hence it is that the height of man is always less in the evening than in the morning. All these cartilages are more or less prone to ossification, in consequence of the deposition of earthy matter in tlie interstices. To this circumstance may be referred, in a great measure, the stiffness of age, the elasticity of the cartilages decreasing with the progress of ossification. 1851. The articulations of bones, exhibit such remarkable diflferences, in respect to surface, connection, and motion, that anatomists have found it difficult to give to each manner of union an appropriate name and character. We shall only notice the most obvious kinds and motions, and these admit of two divisions, the true joints and the motionless junctions. 1852. In the motionless junctions, the connecting surfaces come into close and per- manent contact, as in the serrated edges of the bones of the human skull, or the even edges of the bones of the heads of quadrupeds and birds. Sometimes a pit in one bone receives the extremity of another like a wedge ; as in the case of the human teeth : in other cases the one bone has a cavity with a protuberance at its centre, which receives another bone, as in the claws of cats, seals, &c. The human ribs are united with the breast- bone by the intervention of cartilage, as are the two sides of the lower jaw with such otlier in vertebral animals. 1853. In true joints the articular surfaces are enveloped with cartilage, remarkable for the smoothness of its free surface, and its intimate union with the bone, of which it forms a protecting covering. The periosteum is not continued over the surface of the cartilage, but is prolonged like a sheath over the joint, until it joins that of the opposite bone. It thus forms a close bag at the joint, in which nothing from without can enter, and from which nothing can escape. Into this bag the lubricating liquor termed synocra is conveyed. It is secreted by a mucous membrane on tlie interior, on which account, as it in some cases appears like little bags, the term cursa mucosa has been bestowed upon it. 1854. Ligaments. Besides the sheath formed by the continuation of the periosteum, and which is too slender to retain the bones in their proper place, the joints are furnished with ligaments. These are membranes of a dense fibrous texture, flexible, elastic, and possessed of great tenacity. They have their insertion in the periosteum and bone with which they are intimately united. The motions which joints of this kind are capable of performing, may be reduced to three kinds — flexion, twisting, and sliding. Inflexion, the free extremity of the bone which is moved, approaches the bone which is fixed, describing the segment of a circle, whose centre is in the joint In tunsting, the bone which is moved turns round its own axis, passing through the articulation. In sliding, the free extremity of the bone moved, ap- proaches the bone which is fixed, in a straight line. SuBSECT. 2. Muscular Structure qf Aniniqls. 1 855. The muscles are the organs by which motion is executed : they unfold the most singular mechanism of parts, and an infinite variety of movements. The muscles appear in the form of large bundles, consisting of cords. ' These, again, are formed of smaller threads, which are capable of division into the primary filaments. Each muscle, and all its component cords and filaments, is enveloped by a covering of cellular mem- brane, liberally supplied by blood-vessels and nerves. — At the extremities of the muscular fibres, where they are attached to the more solid parts, there are usually threads of a substance, diflfering in its appearance from the muscle, and denominated tendon or sinew. The tendons are, in general, of a silvery-white colour, a close, firm fibrous 286 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II- texture, and possess great tenacity. The threads of which they consist, are attached on the one extremity to the surface of a bone, or other hard part ; and on the other, they are variously interspersed among the fibres or bundles of the muscle. — They are consi- dered as destitute of sensibility and irritability, and form a passive link between the muscle and the bone, or other point of support. 1856. Muscles are the most active members of the animal frame. They alone possess the power of irritability and execute all the motions of the body. The causes which excite them to action, maybe reduced to' two kinds. In the first the will, through the medium of the nerves, excites the irritability of the fibres • and in the second, the action is produced by the application of external objects, either directly or by the medium of the nerves. The changes which take place in the tenacity of muscles after death, are very remarkable. The same force which they could resist with ease, in a living state, is sufficient to tear them to pieces after the vital principle has departed. 1857. The functions of the rrmsdes are either those of rest or motion. Many animals protect themselves against the disturbing movements of the air and water, by placing their bodies in a prone position. To give still greater efficacy to this protecting attitude, they retire to valleys, woods or dens, on the earth, or to the deepest places in the waters ; and are thus able, by the weight of their own bodies, and the advantage of their position, to outlive the elemental war. — But there are other animals, which, while they are equally cautious to make choice of proper situations for their safety, employ in addition, peculiar organs with which they are provided, to connect themselves more securely with the basis on which they rest. 1858. Grasping. — The most simple of these expedients, grasping, is displayed by bats, birds and insects, in the employment of their toes, with their claws, in seizing the objects of their support. In birds, the assumption and continuance of this attitude is accomplished by a mechanical process ; so that there is no expenditure of muscular energy. In every case of this kind, the claws are so admirably adapted to the station of the animal, that the detention of the body in the same spot during this state of rest, is accom- panied with little exertion. 1859. Suction. — The third method of fixing themselves employed by animals, is suction. The sucker varies greatly in its form, and even structure. In the limpet, and other gasteropodous mollusca, its surface is smooth and uniform ; and the adhesion appears to depend on its close application to every part of the opposing surface. In other animals, as the leech and the sea-urchin, the sucker is formed at the extremity of a tube ; the muscular motions of which may serve to pump out any air which may remain, after the organ has been applied to the surface of the body. 1860. Cementation — The fourth method, termed cementation, employed by animals to preserve them- selves stationary, consists in a part of their own bodies being cemented to the substance on which they rest This takes place in the common mussel, by means of strong cartilaginous filaments, termed the byssus, united in the body to a secreting gland, furnished with powerful muscles, and, at the other extre- mity, glued to the rock or other body to which it connects itself. In other cases, as in the oyster, the shell itself is cemented to the rock. 1861. The muscular motions of animals are standing, walking, leaping, flying, and swimming. 1862. In standing ifiis necessary that the parts of the body be so disposed, as that the centre of gravity of the whole body fall within the space which they occupy, and that the muscles have suflSicient power to counteract those movements which might displace the body from that position. It is obvious that the more numerous the limbs, and the more equally they are distributed on the inferior side of the body, the more securely will the centre of gravity be retained within the space which these feet include. 1863. Walking is defined by Cuvier, to be a motion on a fixed surface, in which the centre of gravity is alternately moved by one part of the extremities, and sustained by the other, the body never being at any time completely suspended over the ground. It is produced by the alternate flexion and extension of the limbs, aided' by the motions of the trunk, advancing the position of the centre of gravity in the intended direction. 1 864. In animals with many feet, as the myriapoda, walking is performed by so uniform a motion, that the body may be said to glide along the surface. 1865. In animals with four feet, " each step is executed by two legs only ; one belonging to the fore pair, and the other to the hind pair ; but sometimes they are those of the same side, and sometimes those of the opposite side." {Cuvier's Comparative Anatomy, Lect. vii. a, 1.) The latter is that kind of mo- tion in horses, which grooms term apace. The right fore-leg is advanced so as to sustain the body, which is thrownupon it by the left hind-foot, and at the same time, the latter bends in order to its being moved forward. While they are off the ground, the right-hind food begins to extend itself, and the moment they touch the ground, the left fore-foot moves forward to support the impulse of the right foot, which likewise moves forward. The body is thus supported alternately by two legs placed in a diagonal manner. "When the right fore-foot moves, in order to sustain the body, pushed forward by the right hind-foot, the motion is then called an amble. The body, being alternately supported by two legs on the same side, is obliged to balance itself to the right and left, in order to avoid falling ; and it is this balancing movement which renders the gait so soft and agreeable to women and persons in a weak state of body. (Cuvier's Comp, Anat. Lect. vii.) 1866. The serpentine motion consists in bringing up the tail towards the head by bending the body into one or more curves, then resting upon the tail, and extending the body, thus moving forward, at each step, nearly the whole length of the body, or one or more of the curves into which it was formed. Among the mollusca, and many of the annulose animals, the same kind of motion is performed by alternate contractions and expansions, laterally and longitudinally of the whole botly, or of those parts which are appropriated to progressive motion. 1?&1. Amode of moving analogous to walking, is performed by animals who have suckers, and is exemplified in the leech, which at every step advances nearly the whole length of its body. 1868. In the action of leaping, the whole body rises from the ground ; and for a short period is suspended in the air. It is produced by the sudden extension of the limbs, after they have undergone an unusual degree of flexion. The extent of the leap depends on the form and size of the body, the length and strength of the limbs. The myriapoda are not observed to leap. Many of the spiders and insects leap with ease both. Book IL NERVOUS STRUCTURE OF ANIMALS. 287 forwards, backwards, and laterally. In those, which are femarkable for this faculty, the thighs of the hind-legs are in general of uncommon size and strength. Among reptiles the leaping frog is well known, in opposition to the crawling toad. Among quadrupeds, those are observed to leap best, which have the hind legs longer and thicker than the fore legs, as the kangaroo and the hare. These walk with difficulty, but leap with ease. 1869. Serpents are said to leap, by folding their bodies into several undulations, which they unbend all at once, according as they wish to give more or less velocity to their motion. The jumping maggot, found in cheese, erects itself upon its anus, then forms its body into a circle, bringing its head to the tail ; and, having contracted every part as much as possible, unbends with a sudden jerk, and darts forward to a surjorising distance. Many crabs and podurae bend their tail, or hairs which supply its place, under their belly, and then suddenly unbending, give to the body a considerable degree of pro- gressive motion. 1870. Flying. — Flying is the continued suspension and progress of the whole body in the air, by the action of the wings. In leaping, the body is equally suspended in the air, but the suspension is only momentary. In flying, on the contrary, the body remains in the air, and acquires a progressive motion by repeated strokes of the wings on the surrounding fluid. The centre of gravity of the bodies of flying animals, is always below the insertion of the wings, to prevent them falling on their backs, but near that point on which the body is, during flight, as it were suspended. The action of flying is performed by animals belonging to different classes. Among the Mammalia, bats dis- play this faculty, by means of wings, formed of a thin membrane extending between the toes, which are long and spreading, the fore and hind legs, and between the hind legs and the tail. In birds, the wings, which occupy the place of the anterior extremi- ties in the mammalia, and are the organs of flight, consist of feathers, which are stronger than those on the body, and of greater length. Among reptiles, the flying lizard may be mentioned, whose membranaceous wings, projecting from each side of the body, without being connected with the legs, enable it to fly from one tree to another in search of food. A few fishes are likewise capable of sustaining themselves for a short time by means of their fins ; these are termed flying fish. Spiders are able to move in the air by means of their threads. 1871. Swimming is the same kind of action in water, as flying is in air. The organs which are employed for this purpose, resemble the oars of a boat in their mode of action, and in general possess a considerable extent of surface and freedom of motion. Swim- ming, however, is not confined to those animals which are furnished with oars or swimmers. Many animals move with ease in the water by means of repeated undulations of the body, as serpents, eels, and leeches ; or by varying the form of the body by alternate contractile and expansive movements, as the medusae. 1872. In these different displays of voluntary motion, the muscles are only able to continue in exercise for a limited period, during which their irritability diminishes, and the further exertion of their powers becomes painful. When thus fatigued, animals endeavor to place themselves in a condition for resting, and fall into that state of temporary lethargy, denominated sleep. 1873. The positions assumed by animals during sleep, are extremely various. In the horse, they even differ according to circumstances. In the field he lies down, in the stable he stands. Dogs and cats form their bodies into a circle, while birds place their heads under their wings. IST*. The ordinary shape of sleep is likewise exceedingly various in different animals, and in the same animal is greatly influenced by habit. It in general depends on circumstances connected with food. It is probable, that all animals, however low in the scale, have their stated intervals of repose, although we are as yet unac(juainted either with the position which many of them assume, or the periods during which they repose. SuBSECT. 3. Structure of the Nervous System. 1875. The nervous system, by containing the organs of sensation and volition, is that which distinguishes animal from vegetable beings. It consists in the vertebral animals, of the brain, the spinal marrow, and the nerves. 1876. The brain, exclusive of its integuments, appears in the form of a soft, compres- sible, slightly viscous mass. The spinal marrow originates with the brain, and consists of four cords united in one body. The nerves, also, originate in the brain or spinal mar- row. Some of them appear to have a simple origin ; but in general, several filaments, from different parts of the brain or spinal marrow, unite to form the trunk of a nerve. This trunk again subdivides in various ways ; but the ramifications do not always ex- hibit a proportional decrease of size. It frequently happens, that the branches of the same or of different nerves unite and separate repeatedly within a small space, forming a kind of net- work, to which tlie name jylexus has been applied. Sometimes filaments pass from one nerve to another ;, and, at the junction, there is usually an enlargement of medullary matter termed a ganglion. Numerous filaments, from diflferent nerves, often 288 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. unite to form a ganglion, from which proceed trunks frequently of greater magnitude than the filaments which entered. Thus nerves, very different in their origin, form communications with one another ; so that the whole nervous system may be considered as a kind of net-work, between the different parts of which an intimate connection sub- sists. In consequence of this arrangement, it is often matter of very great difficulty to ascertain the origin of those filaments, which unite to constitute the trunk of a nerve. In some instances, they appear to arise from the surface of the brain or spinal marrow ; in other cases, from the more central parts. 1877. The brain in the animals without vertehrtPs is destitute of the protecting bony covering, which forms the head and back bone in the vertebral animals. The brain itself is much more simple in its structure. Independent of very remarkable differences in the structure of the nervous system in the different genera of invertebral animals, there may still be perceived two models, according to which, the organs belonging to it are arranged. In the first, the brain is situated upon the oesophagus. It presents different forms, according to the species. It appears more like a ganglion, than the brain of the vertebral animals. It sends off several nerves to the mouth, eyes, and feelers. One on each side passes round the oesophagus ; these uniting below, form a ganglion ; in some cases, larger than what is considered the true brain. From this ganglion, nerves are likewise sent off to different parts of the body. The animals in which this nervous sys- tem prevails, belonged to the great division termed Mollusca. In the second, the brain is situated as in the mollusca, sends out nerves to the surrounding parts, and likewise one nerve on each side, which, by their union, form a ganglion, from which other nerves issue. This ganglion produces likewise a nervous cord, which proceeds towards the extremity of the body, forming throughout its length ganglia, from which small nerves proceed ; this cord, at its commencement, is, in some cases, double for a short distance. It has been compared to the medulla oblongata, and spinal marrow of the vertebral animals. This kind of nervous system is peculiar to the annulose animals. There are usually ganglia on the nervous cord, corresponding with the number of rings of which tlie body consists. 1878. The functions of the brain and nervous system; the organs of perception, as of touch, of heat, of light, of hearing, of smell, and of taste; and also the faculties of the mind, we pass over as belonging chiefly to the anatomy and physiology of the human frame, and therefore less immediately connected with the animals used in agriculture. The reader will find these subjects ably treated by Dr. Fleming. Chap. III. Animal Chemistry ; or tlie Substances which enter into tlie Composition of the Bodies of Animals. 1879.' The elementary principles of the animal kingdom have been ascertained with considerable precision ; but the binary, ternary, or other compounds which these form, have not been investigated with so much success. As these various ingredients are brought into union in the animal system by the agency of the vital principle, their state of combination may be expected to differ widely from the ordinary results of electric attraction. Wlien such compounds of organization are submitted to analysis, the influ- ence of the vital principle having ceased, the products obtained may be regarded, in many cases, as modifications of the elements of the substance, occasioned by the pro- cesses employed, rather than the display of the number or nature of the ingredients, as they existed previous to the analytical operations. Hence the great caution requisite in drawing conclusions regarding the composition of animal bodies. 1880. The elementary stibstances ivhich are considered as entering into the parts of ani- mals, are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, azote, phosphorus, sulphur, fluoric acid, muriatic acid, iodine, potash, soda, ammonia, lime, magnesia, silica, iron, and manganese. 1881. Carbon exists in various states of combination in the fluids as well as the solids of every animal, and has been detected in the form of charcoal in the lungs. When animal substances are exposed to a high temperature in closed vessels, the charcoal which is produced differs considerably from that which is obtained by the same means from vegetables. It is more glossy in appearance, and is incinerated with much greater difficulty. 1882. Hydrogen is universally distributed in the animal kingdom ; it occurs as a constituent ingredient of all the fluids, and of many of the solids. Tt is invariably in a state of combination with charcoal ; for, as far as we know, it has never been detected in an uncombined or separate state. It has been found in the human intestines, in the form of carburetted hydrogen. 1883. Oxygen is equally widely distributed with the preceding, in the fluids and solids of all animals, A constant supply of it from the atmosphere is indispensably necessary to the continuation of animal life. It occurs, not only in combination with other bodies, biit probably, likewise in a separate state, in the air-bag of fishes, in which it is found, varying in quantity, according to the species, and the depth at which the fishes have been caught. It is common, in union with charcoal, forming carbonic acid. 1884. Azotic gas is very widely distributed as a component part of animal substances. It occurs in almos all the fluids, and in those solid parts which have carbon as'a base. The almost universal prevalence of thi principle in animal substances, constitutes one of the most certain marks by which they may be distin Book II. ANIMAL CHEMISTRY. 289 guished from vegetables. Azote likewise occurg, in an uncomblned state, in the air-bag of swne nsheg. 1885. Phosphorus. This inflammable body exists, in union witli oxygen, in the state of phosphoric acid, in many of the solids and fluids of animals. Its existence, however, in an uncombined state, has not been satisfactorily determined, although there appears a tendency to refer the luminousness of se- veral animals to the slow combustion of this substance. Even phosphoric acid can scarcely be said to exist in a separate state, being found in combination with potash, soda, ammonia, lime, or magnesia. 1886. Sulphur, in combination, exists in considerable abundance in animal substances. It can scarcely be said to occur in a separate state in animals ; at least the experiments which may be quoted as encour- aging such a supposition, are by no means decisive. United with oxygen, in the form of sulphuric acid, it exists in combination with potash, soda, and lime. 1887. Fluoric acid has been detected in bones and urine, in a state of combination with lime. 1888. Muriatic acid exists in a great number of the animal fluids, in combination with an alkali, as in the ammonia and soda of urine. 1889. Iodine has been detected in sponge. 1890. Potash exists in combination with the sulphuric, muriatic, or phosphoric acids ; but it is far from abundant in animal fluids. 1891. Soda is present in all the fluids in various states of combination, and is more abundant than the preceding. It gives to many of the secretions the alkaline property of changing vegetable blues into green. It is found in union with the carbonic, phosphoric, sulphuric, and muriatic acids. 1892. y4/«woni« exists in its elements in all the fluids, and many of the solids of animals, and is fre- quently produced during putrefaction. These elements are likewise found united in the system, and the alkali then appears in union with the various acids, as the phosphoric, muriatic, and lactic. 1893. IAme,o{\vh\c\i the hard parts of animals, such as bones and shells, are chiefly composed, is of universal occurrence. It is always in a state of combination^ and chiefly with the carbonic or phosphoric acids. 1894. Magnesia occurs sparingly. It has been detected in the bones, blood, and some other substances, but always in small quantity, and chiefly in union with phosphoric acid. 1895. Silica occurs more sparingly than the preceding. It is found in the hair, urine, and urinarj calculi. 1896. Iron has hitherto only been detected in the coloring matter of the blood, in bile, and in milk. Its peculiar state of combination in the blood has given rise to various conjectures 5 but a satisfactory solu- lion of the question has not yet been obtained. In milk, it appears to be in the state of phosphate. 1897. Manganese, in oxide, has been observed, along with iron, in the ashes of hair. 1898. Such are the simple substances which have been detected by chemists in the solids and fluids of animals ; but seldom in a free state, and often in such various pro- portions of combination as renders it extremely difficult to determine their true condition. 1899. The compounds of organization are gelatine, albumen, fibrin, mucus, urea, sugar, oils, and acids. 1900. Gelatine occurs in nearly a pure state in the air-bags of different kinds of fishes, as, for example, isinglass, dissolved in hot water and allowed to cool, forms jelly. When a solution of tannin is dropped into a solution of gelatine, an union takes place, and an insoluble precipitate of a whitish color falls to the bottom. It is on the union of the tannin of the oak bark with the gelatine of the hides, that the process of tanning leather depends. Gelatine exists in abundance in different parts of animals, as bones, muscles, skin, ligaments, membranes, and blood. It is obtained from these substances, by boiling them in warm water ; removing the impurities, by skimming, as they rise to the sufface ; or by subsequent straining and clarifying. It is then boiled to a proper consistency. It is the characteristic ingredient of the softest and most flexible parts of animals. 1901. Gelatine is extensively used in the arts, under the names of glue and size, on account of its adhesive quality, and to give the requisite stiffness to certain articles of manufacture. In domestic economy, it is likewise employed in the form of jelly, and in the formation of various kinds of soup. What is termed Portable Soup is merely jelly which has been dried, having been previously seasoned, according to the taste, with different spices. 1 902. Albumen^ the white of an egg, exists in great abundance, both in a coagulated and liquid state, in the different parts of animals. Hair, nails, and horn, are composed of it. It appears likewise as a constituent of bone and shells ; and there are few of the fluid or soft part of animals, in which it does not exist in abundance ; what has hitherto been termed the Resin of Bile, is, according to Berzelius, analogous to albumen. 1903. Albumen is extensively used in tlie arts. When spread thin on any body, it soon dries, and forms a coating of vaniish. Its adhesive power is likewise considerable. When rubbed on leather, it increases its suppleness. But its chief use is in clarifying liquors. For this purpose, any substance abounding in albumen, as the white of eggs, or the serum of blood, is mixed with the liquid, and the whole heated to near the boiling point. The albumen coagulates, and falls to the bottom, carrying along with it the impurities which were suspended in the fluid, and which rendered it muddy. If the liquor contains alcohol, the application of heat is unnecessary. 1904. Fibrin exists in the blood, and was formerly called the fibrous part of the blood. It likewise exists in all muscles, forming the essential part or basis of these organs. It exhibits many remarkable varieties, as it appears in the flesh of quadrupeds, birds, and fishes ; but has not hitherto been turned to any particular use. 1905. Extractive exists in the muscles of animals, in the blood and in the brain. It communicates the peculiar flavor of meat to soups. In the opinion of Fourcroy^ the brown crust of roasted meat consists of it. 1 906. The soft parts of animals are constituted of these Jour substances, which also enter into the composition of the hard parts and of the fluids. They are readily distinguishable from one another. Extractive alone is soluble in alcohol ; gelatine is insoluble in cold, but soluble in hot water ; albumen is soluble in cold, and insoluble in hot water ; the fibrin is equally insoluble in hot and cold water. They are variously mixed or united j and as they consist of some elementary principles, cliiefly carbon, U 990 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTUHE. Part IL hydrogen, oxygen, and azote, it is probable that they are changed, the one into the other, in many cases by the living principle, — a transmutation which the chemist has succeeded in accomplishing, and which may soon be of advantage in the arts. The proportion of carbon appears to be least in gelatine and greatest in fibrin. 1907. Mucus occurs in a liquid state in the animal economy, as a protecting covering to different organs. It necessarily differs in its qualities, according to the purposes it is destined to serve. In the nose it defends the organ of smell from the drying influence of the air, — in the bladder, it protects the interior from the contact of the acid urine, — while it preserves the gall-bladder from the action of alkaline bile. It does not contain any suspended particles like the blood, but is homogeneous. (Dr. Youngy Annals of Phil. ii. p. 117.) When inspissated, it constitutes, in the opinion of some, the basis of the epidermis, horns, nails, feathers. But the difficulty of obtaining it in a pure state, and the discordant characters assigned to it by different chemists, prevent us from reposing confidence in the accuracy of the analysis of those substances, of which it is considered as forming an essential ingredient. 1908. Urea is a substance obtained by evaporation and trituration from the urine of the mammalia when in a state of health. In the human subject it is less abundant after a meal, and nearly disappears in the disease called diabetes, and in affections of the liver. 1909. Sugar exists in considerable abundance in milk, and in the urine of persons laboring under diabetes. In the latter fluid, it is to be considered as a morbid secretion of the kidneys, occupying the natural situation of the urea. In milk, ho^v- ever, it exists as a constituent principle, and may readily be obtained by the following process : evaporate fresh whey to the consistence of honey, dissolve it in water, clarify with the whites of eggs, and again evaporate to the consistence of syrup. On cooling, white cubical crystals will be obtained, but less sweet than vegetable sugar. 1910. Oi/s vary greatly as to colour, consistence, smell and other characters. They possess, however, in common, the properties of the fixed oils, in being liquid, either naturally or when exposed to a gentle heat, insoluble in water and alcohol, leaving a greasy stain upon paper, and being highly combustible. They are distinguished as spermaceti, ambergrease, fat, and common oils. 1911. Spermaceti constitutes the principal part of the brain of the whale, and is freed from the oil which accompanies it, by draining and squeezing, and afterwards, by the employment of an alkaline lie, which saponifies the remainder. It is then washed in water, cut into thin pieces with a wooden knife, and exposed to the air to dry. It is used in medicine and candlemaking. ► 1912. Ambergrease is found in the intestines of the spermaceti whale, and in those only which are in a sickly state. It appears to be the excrement, altered by a long retention in the intestines, and therefore scarcely merits a place among the natural ingredients of the animal system. Upon being voided by the animal, it floats on the surface of the sea, and has been found in various quarters of the globe. It usually contains the beaks of cuttle fish adhering to it. It is employed in small quantities by druggists and perfumers. 1913. Fat consists of two substances, suet and oil. It is usually purified by separating the vessels and membranes which adhere to it, by repeatedly washing with cold water, and afterwards melting it, along with boiling water. 1914. Tallow is the fat of ruminating animals, and is hard and brittle, while the fat of the hog, called lard, is soft and semifluid. Its uses as an article of food, in the making of candles, hard soap, and ointments, and to diminish friction, are well known. 1915. The properties of oils depends in a great degree on the mode of preparation, with the exception of the odor, which arises from the kind of animal from which the oil has been derived. Spermaceti oil is considered as the thinnest of the animal oils, and the fittest for burning in lamps. It is obtained from the spermaceti, by draining and pressure. Train oil is prooured by melting the blubber, or external layer of fat, found underneath the skin of diffferent kinds of whales and seals. From the process employed, it contains, besides the oil, gelatine, albumen, and other animal matters, which render it thick, dark^' colored, and disposed to become rancid. Fish oil is sometimes extracted from the entire fish, (as the sprat, pilchard, and herring, when they occur in too great quantities to be salted) by boiling in water, and skimming off the oil, as it appears on the surface. In general, however, the oil is obtained from the livers' of fish, in which it is lodged in cells. 1916. The acids found in animals consist of various proportions of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and azote. Some of them are peculiar to the animal kingdom, and others exist in equal abundance in plants. 1917. The uric or lithic acid, abounds in urine, and appears to be a production of the kidneys. The lactic acid is common in the animal fluids. The amniotic acid has been found in the uterus of a cow. Tihe formic acid, by distilling ants. The benzoic, oxalic^ acetic, and malic acids, are common both to plants and animals, but occur but seldom in the latter. 1918. These elementary substances, by combining in different proportions, exhibit a great variety of separate substances. The earthy salts are likewise abundant ; and when they occur in a separate state, they strengthen the albuminous framework, and form the skeleton, giving stability to the body, and acting as levers to the muscles. The alkaline salts occur in the greatest abundance in the secreted fluids. 1919. The Jluids consist of those juices which are obtained from our food and drink, such as the chyle, and are termed crude of the blood; or prepared from the crude fluids, and destined to communicate to every part of the body, the nourishment which it requires, and of those fluids which are separated from the blood, in the course of circulation, such Book II. DIGESTIVE AND CIRCULATING SYSTEMS. 291 as the bile, and termed secreted fluids. These are all contained in appropriate vessels, and are subject to motion and change. 1 920. The solids are derived from the fluids, and are usually divided into the soft and hard. The soft solids consist chiefly of what is termed animal matter, of combinations of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and azote. They consist of fibres, which are usually grouped into faggots ; of plates, which, crossing one another in various directions, give rise to cellular structure, or of a uniform pulpy mass. 1921. The fibrous texture may be observed in all the muscles, tendons, and ligaments, and in the bones of many animals, especially before birth. These fibres, however minutely divided, do not appear to be hollow, like those of the vegetable kingdom. 1922. The cellular texture is universally distributed in the form'of membranes, which invest every organ, the bundles of fibres in every muscle, and, by forming tubes with the addition of the fibrous texture, constitute the containing vessels. The substance gives form to all the different parts, and is that particular portion which is first formed, and which constitutes the frame on and within which the other materials of the system are deposited. It readily expands by the increase of its contents; and, with equal ease, contracts when the distending cause is removed. 1923. The pulpy texture is confined to the brain and nerves, the liver, kidneys, and other secreting organs of the system. Its composition appears to the eye homogeneous, and its form is regulated by its cellular envelope. 1924. These soft solids are alone capable of possessing the faculty of sensation. By their aid, the nervous energy is exerted on the different parts of the body j j^nd, through them, the impressions of external objects are received. 1925. The hard solids consist either of cartilage, which resembles, in its qualities, coagulated albumen ; or of bone, formed by various combinations of earthy salts. They are destitute of sensation, and are chiefly employed in defending the system from injury, giving it the requisite stability, and assisting the muscles in the execution of their movements. 1926. The proportion between the solids and fluids is not only remarkably diffferent in diflferent species, but in the same species, in the various stages of growth. CflAP. IV. Animal Physiology. 1927. The digestive circulation and reirroductive functions of animals come next in order. Sect. I. Of the Digestive System. 1928. The instinct of animals for foody presides over the organs of the stomach. Hunger is felt when the stomach is empty ; it is promoted by exercise, cold air applied to the skin, and cold, acid, or astringent fluids introduced into the stomach. Inactivity, warm covering, the attention diverted, and warm fluids, have a tendency to allay the sensation. 1929. Thirst is accompanied with a sensation of dryness in the mouth. This dryness may be occasioned by excessive expenditure of the fluids, in consequence of the dryness or saltness of the food which has been swallowed; or to their deficiency, from the state of the organs. 1930. Both hunger and thirsty besides being greatly influenced by habit, exhibit very remarkable peculiarities according to the species and tribes of animals. 1 93 1 . Those which live on the spoils of the animal kingdom are said to be carnivorous, when they feed on flesh ; piscivorous, when they subsist on fishes ; and insectivorous, when they prey on insects. Again those animals which are phytivorous, or subsist on the products of the vegetable kingdom, are either granivorous and feed on seeds ; graminivorous, pasturing on grass ; or herbivorous, browsing on twigs and shrubs. 1932. Besides those substances which animals make vse of as food, wafer is likewise employed as drink, and as the vehicle of nutritious matter. Salt is necessarily mixed with the drink of the inhabitants of the ocean, and is relished by man and many other animals. Other inorganic substances are likewise employed for a variety of purposes. Many savages make use of steatite and clay along with their food. The common earthworm swallows the soil, from which, in its passage through the intestines, it extracts its nourishment. • 1933. In some cases, substances are swallowed for other purposes than nourishment. Stones are retained in the stomach of birds to assist in triturating the grain. The wolf is said to satisfy his hunger, by filling his stomach with mud. Sect. II. Of the Circulating System. 1934. The food being reduced to a jmltaceous mass, and mixed with a variety of secreted fluids, by means of the digestive organs, is in this state denominated chyme. This mix- ture exhibits a chemical constitution nearly approaching that of blood, into which it is destined to be converted, by the separation of the useless from the useful part. This is effected by certain vessels called lacteals, which absorb the nutritious part of the chyme, and convey it to a particular receptacle. Another set of absorbents, the lymphatics, take up all the substances which have been ejected from the circulation, and which are no longer necessary in the particular organs, and communicate their contents to the store already provided by the lacteals. The veins receive the altered blood from the extremi- ties of tiie arteries or the glands, in which they terminate, and proceed with it towards U 2 293 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. the lungs, to be again aerated. In their progress, they obtain the collected fluid of the other absorbents, and, in the lungs, again prepare the whole for the use of the system. Thus, during the continuance of life, the arteries supply the materials by which the sys- tem is invigorated and enlarged, and oppose that tendency to decay, produced by the influence of external objects. The process continues during the whole of life, new matter is daily added, while part of the old and useless is abstracted. The addition is greatest in early life, the abstraction is greatest in old age. 1935. This continued system of addition and subtraction has led some to conclude, that a change in the corj)oreal identity of the body takes place repeatedly during the continuance of life, that none of the par- ticles of which it consisted in youth, remain in its composition in old age. Some have considered the change effected every three, others every seven years. This opinion, however, is rendered doubtful by many well known facts. Letters marked on the skin by a variety of substances, frequently last for life. There are some diseases, such as small-pox and measles, of which the constitution is only once susceptible ;i but it is observed to be liable to the attack of these diseases, at every period of human life. Sect. III. Of the reproductive System of Animals. 1936. Animals are reproduced in consequence of the functions of certain organs, with the exception of some of tlje very lowest in the scale. In those animals which possess peculiar organs for the preparation of the germ or ovum, some are androgynous, (man- woman) and either have the sexual organs incorporated, and capable of generating without assistance, or the sexual organs are distinct, and the union of two individuals is necessary for mutual impregnation : others have the sexual organs separate, and on dif- ferent individuals. The young of such animals are either nourished at first by the store of food in the egg, or by the circulating juices of the mother. Those species in which the former arrangement prevails, are termed oviparous, while the term viviparous is restricted to the latter. 1937. In all animals it is the business of the female to prepare the ovum or germ, and bring it to maturity. For this purpose, the germ is produced in the ovarium, farther perfected in the uterus or matrix, and finally expelled from the system through the vagina. The oflfice of the male is to impregnate the germ by means of the spermatic fluid. Tliis fluid is secreted in the testicles, transmitted by the spermatic ducts, and finally conveyed by the external organ to its ultimate destination. 1938. Among the viviparous animals, the reproductive organs present many points of resemblance, and ajipear to be constructed according to a common model. It is other- wise with the sexual organs of the oviparous tribes. They exhibit such remarkable dif- ferences in the form and structure of all their organs, that it is impossible to collect them into natural groups, or assign to them characters which they have in common. 1 93 IJ. The manner in which the eggs of birds are impregnated by the male, has not been satisfactorily determined. With the exception of the cicatricula, a female bird, in the ab- sence of the male, can produce an egg. The conjunction of the sexes, however, is neces- sary for the impregnation of the egg, and the effect is produced previous to the exclusion. 1 940. In many kinds of fishes and rej)tUes, the yolks, after being furnished with their glaire, are ejected from the body of the female, and the impregnating fluid in the male is afterwards poured over them. Impregnation can be effected readily in such cases, by the artificial application of the spermatic fluid. 1941. Impregnation in insects appears to take place while the eggs pass a reservoir containing the sperm, situated near the termination of the oviduct in the volva. 1942. The most simple mode of hatching is effected by the situation in which the eggs are placed by the mother, after or during their exclusion. In this mode, a place is usually selected where the eggs will be exposed to a suitable and uniform temperature, and where a convenient supply of food may be easily ob- tained for the young animals. Such arrangements prevail in the insect tribe. 1943. In the second mode, the mother, aided in some cases by the sire, forms a nest, in which she de- posits her eggs, and, sitting upon them, aids their hatching by the heat of her body. Birds in general hatch their young in this manner. 1944. In the last mode, the eggs are retained in the uterus, without any connexion, however, by circu- lating vessels, until the period when they are ready to be hatched, when egg and young are expelled at the same time. This takes place in some sharks and mollusca. The animals which exercise this last kind of incubation, are termed ovoviviparous. In the rana pipa, the eggs are deposited in a bag on the back, where they are hatched, and where the young animals reside for some time after birth. Some animals, as the aphis, are oviparous at one season, and ovoviviparous at another. 194.5. The young after being hatched, are, in many cases, independent of their parent, and do not stand in need of any assistance : they are born in the midst of plenty, and have organs adapted to the supply of their wants. Thus, many insects are hatched on, or within the very leaves which they are afterwards to devour. In other cases, the young are able to follow their parents, and receive from them a supply of appropriate food ; or if unable to follow, their parents bring their food to the nests. 1946. The changes which the young of oviparous ani?nals undergo in passing from infancy to maturity, have long attracted the notice of the inquisitive observer. The egg of the frog is hatched in the water, and the young animal spends in that element a part of its youth. While there it is furnished with a tail and external bronchise ; both of which are absorbed, and disapjjcar, when it becomes an inhabitant of the land. The infancy of the butterfly is spent in the caterpillar-state, with organs of motion and mastication which are peculiar to that period. It is destined to endure a second hatching, by becoming enveloped in a covering, and suffering a transformation of parts previous to appearing in its state of maturity. These metamorphoses of oviparous animals present an almost infinite variety of degrees of change, differing in character according to the tribes or genera. 1947. In birds, it is well known that one sexual union suffices for the production of impregnated eggs during the period of laying. This is a <;ase somewhat analogous to those quadrupeds which produce several young at a birth with one impregnation, differing, however, in, the circumstance that the eggs are fiooic II. ANIMAL PATHOtOGY. ^9^ not all produced at the same time, although they are afterwards hatched by the same incubation. In the aphides, or plant-lice, as they are called, one impregnation not only renders fertile the eggs of the indivi- dual, but the animals produced from these, and the eggs of those again, unto the ninth generation. 1948. Androgynous animals are of two kinds ; those where impregnatoin takes place by the mutual application of the sexual organs of two individuals ; and those where tlie hermaphroditism is complete. The raollusca exhibit examples of both kinds. 1 949. Geinmiparous animals are exemplified in the hydra or fresh water polypus, and other zoophytes. 1 950. Hybridous animals. In the accomplishment of the important purpose of ge- neration, it is observed, that in the season of love, individuals of a particular species are drawn together by mutual sympathy, and excited to action by a common propensity. The produce of a conjunction between individuals of the same species partakes of the characters common to the species, and exhibits in due time the characteristic marks of puberty and fertility. In a natural state, the selective attribute of the procreative instinct unerringly guides the individuals of a species towards each other, and a preventive aversion turns them with disgust from those of another kind. In a domesticated state, where numerous instincts are suppressed, and where others are fostered to excess, in- dividuals belonging to different species are sometimes known to lay aside their natural aversion, and to unite in the business of propagation. Instances of this kind occur among quadrupeds, birds, and fishes, among viviparous and oviparous animals, where impregnation takes place within, as well as when it is affected without the body. The product of such an unnatural union is termed a hybridous animal. The following cir- cumstances appear to be connected with hybridous productions. 1951. The parents must belong to the same natural genus or family. There are no exceptions to this law. Where the species differ greatly in manners and structure, no constraints or habits of domestication will force the unnatural union. On the other hand, sexual union sometimes takes place among indivi- duals of nearly related species. Thus, among quadrupeds, the mule is the produce of the union of the horse and the' ass. The jackall and the wolf both breed with the dog. Among birds, the canary and goldfinch breed together, the Muscovv and common duck, and the pheasant and hen. Among fishes, the carp has been known to breed with the tench, the crusian, and even the trout {Phil. Trans. 1771. p. 318.) 1952. The parents must be in a confined or domesticated state. In all those hybridous productions which have yet been obtained, there is no example of individuals of one species giving a sexual preference to those of an- other. Among quadrupeds and birds, those individuals of different species which have united, have been con- fined and excluded from all intercourse with those of their own kind. In the case of hybridous fishes, the ponds in which they have been produced have been small and overstocked, and no natural proportion observed between the males and females of the different kind. As the impregnating fluid, in such situ- ations, is spread over the eggs after exclusion, a portion of it belonging to one species may have come in contact with the impregnated eggs of another species, by the accidental movements of the water, and not in consequence of any unnatural effort. In all cases of this unnatural union among birds or quadrupeds, a considerable degree of aversion is always exhibited, a circumstance which never occurs among indi- viduals of the same species. 1953. The hybridous products are barren. The peculiar circumstances which are required to bring about a sexual union between individuals of different species, sufficiently account for the total absence of hybridous productions in a wild state. And, as if to preserve even in a domesticated state the intro- duction and extension of spurious breeds, such hybridous animals, though in many cases disposed to sexual union, are incapable of breeding. There are, indeed, some statements which render it probable that hybrid animals have procreated with perfect ones ; at the same time there are few which are above suspicion. Chap. V. Animal Pathology ; or the Duration, Diseases, and Casualties of Animal Life* 1 954. Each species of animal is destined, in the absence of disease and accidents, to enjoy existence during a particular period. In no species, however, is this term absolutely limited, as we find some individuals outliving others, by a considerable fraction of their whole lifetime. In order to find the ordinary duration of life of any species, therefore, we must take the average of the lives of a number of individuals, and rest satisfied with the approximation to truth which can thus be obtained. There is little resemblance in respect of longevity between the different classes, or even species of animals. There is no peculiar structure, by which long-lived species may be distinguished from those that are short-lived. Many species whose structure is complicated, live but for a few years, as the rabbit, while some of the testaceous moUusca, with more simple organization, have a more extended existence. If longevity is not influenced by structure, neither is it modified by the size of the species. While the horse, greatly larger than the dog, lives to twice its age, man enjoys an existence three times longer than the former. 1 955. The circumstances which regulate the term of existence in different species, ex- hibit so many peculiarities,, corresponding to each, that it is difficult to oflPerany general observations on the subject. Health is precarious, and the origin of diseases generally involved in obscurity. The condition of the organs of respiration and digestion, however, appears so intimately connected with the comfortable continuance of life, and TT 1 294 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. the attainment of old age, that existence may be said to depend on the due exercise of the functions which they perform. Whether animals have their blood aerated by means of lungs or gills, they require a regular supply of oxygene gas. But as this gas is ex- tensively consumed in the process of combustion, putrefaction, vegetation, and respi- ration, there is occasionally a deficiency in particular places for the supply of animal life. But, in general, where there is a deficiency of oxygen, .there is also a quantity of carbonic acid, or carburetted hydrogen present. These gases not only injure the system by occupying the place of the oxygen which is required, but exercise on many species a deleterious influence. To these circumstances maybe referred the difficulty of pre- serving many fishes and aquatic moUusca in glass jars or small ponds ; as a great deal of the oxygen in the air contained in the water, is necessarily consumed by the germi- nation and growth of the aquatic cryptogamia, and the respiration of the infusory animalcula. In all cases, when the air of the atmosphere, or that which the water con- tains, is impregnated with noxious particles, many individuals of a particular species, living in the same district, suffer at the same time. The disease which is thus at first endemic or local, may, by being contagious, extend its ravages to other districts. 1956. The endemical and epidemical diseases which attack horses, sheep, and cows, obtain in this country the name of murrain, sometimes also the distemper. The general term, however, for the pes- tilential diseases with which these and other animals are infected, is Epizooty. 1957. The ravages which have been committed among the domesticated animals, at various times, in Europe, by epixooties, have been detailed by a variety of authors. Horses, sheep, cows, swine, poultry, fish, have all been subject to such attacks ; and it has frequently happened, that the circumstances which have produced the disease in one species, have likewise exercised a similar influence over others. That these diseases arise from the deranged functions of the respiratory organs, is rendered probable by the circumstance, that numerous individuals, and even species, are affected at the same time, and this opinion is strengthened, when the rapidity with which they spread is taken into consideration. 1958. Many diseases, which greatly contribute to shorten life, take their rise from circumstances con- nected with the organs of digestion. Noxious food is frequently consumed by mistake, particularly by domesticated animals. When cows, which have been confined to the house, during the winter season, and fed with straw, are turned out to the pastures in the spring, they eat indiscriminately every plant presented to them, and frequently fall victims to their imprudence. It is otherwise with animals in a wild state, whose instincts guard them from the common noxious substances of their ordinary situation. The shortening of life, in consequence of the derangement of the digestive organs, is chiefly produced by a scarcity of food. When the supply is not sufficient to nourish the body, it becomes lean, the fat being absorbed to supply the deficiency ; feebleness is speedily exhibited, the cutaneous and intestinal animals rapidly multiply, and, in conjunction, accelerate the downfal of the system. 1959. The 2)ower of fastings or of surviving without food, possessed by some animals, is astonishingly great. An eagle has been known to live without food five weeks ; a badger a month ; a dog thirty-six days ; a toad fourteen months, and a beetle three years. This power of outliving scarcity for time, is of signal use to many animals, whose food cannot be readily obtained ; as is the case of beasts of prey and rapacious birds. But this faculty does not belong to such exclusively : wild pigeons have survived twelve days, an antelope twenty days, and a land tortoise eighteen months. Such fasting, however, is detrimental to the system, and can only be considered as one of those sin- gular resources which may be employed in cases where, without it, life would speedily be extinguished. In situations where animals are deprived of their accustomed food, they frequently avoid the effects of starvation, by devouring substances to which their digestive organs are not adapted. Pigeons can be brought to feed on flesh, and hawks on bread. Sheep, when covered with snow, have been known to eat the wool off each other's backs. 1 960. The various diseases to which animals are subject, tend greatly to shorten the period of their existence. With the methods of cure employed by different species, we are but little acquainted. Few accurate observations appear to have been made on the subject. Dogs frequently effect a cure of their sores by licking them. They eat grass to excite vomiting, and probably to cleanse their intestines from obstructions or worms, by its mechanical effects. Many land animals promote their health by bathing, others by rolling themselves in the dust. By the last operation, they probably get rid of the parasitical insects with which they are infected. 1961. But independent of scarcity, or disease, comparatively few animals live to the ordinary term of natural death. There is a wasteful war every where raging in the animal kingdom. Tribe is divided against tribe, and species against species, and neu- trality is no where respected. Those which are preyed upon have certain means which they employ to avoid the foe ; but the rapacious are likewise qualified for the pursuit. The exercise of the feelings of benevolence may induce us to confine our attention to the former, and adore that goodness which gives shelter to the defenceless, and pro- tection to the weak, while we may be disposed to turn precipitately, from viewing the latter, lest we discover marks of cruelty, where we wished to contemplate nothing but kindness. Book II. DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS. 295 Chaf. VI. Of the Distribution of Animals* 1962. The geographical distribution of each species of animal ^ Dr. Fleming observes, may be represented by a circle, towards the centre of which, existence may be comfort- ably maintained ; but as we approach the circumference, restraints multiply, and life at last becomes impracticable. Each species has a range peculiar to itself, so that the circle of different species intersect one another in every possible relation. Hitherto the geo- graphical limits of but few species have been satisfactorily determined. These chiefly belong to the larger species of quadrupeds, as the African and Asiatic elephants, the ass and the quagga, the lion, hippopotamus, and polar bear. In the tribes of the less perfect animals, the species of which have been investigated by few, the extent of their geographical distribution has been very imperfectly determined. They appear to be limited to circumstances connected with temperature, food, situation, and foes. 1963. The degree of heat at the equatorial regions appears to be most favorable for the increase of living beings, and they diminish ii^iiumbers as we approach the poles. There is no latitude, however, which tlie perseverance of man has yet reached, where living beings have not been observed. The icy shores of the arctic regions are peopled as well as the arid plains or shaded forests of tropical climates. When, however, an inhabitant of the colder regions is transported to a warmer district, the increased temperature is painful, the functions become deranged, and disease and death ensue. The inhabitants of the warmer regions, when transported to the colder districts, experience inconvenience from the change of temperature, equally hurtful to the system, and fatal to its continu- ance. The polar bear appears to be accommodated to live in a region, whose mean annual temperature is below the freezing point. In those districts where the individuals of a species are most vigorous and prolific, the temperature most suitable for existence prevails. The native country for the horse is probably Arabia. There he exists in a wild state in the greatest numbers. In the Zetland Islands, where he is nearly in a state of nature, he is approaching the polar limits of his distribution. He has become a dwarf. He does not reach maturity until his fourth year, seldom continues in vigor beyond his twelfth, and the female is never pregnant above once in two years. At the line, where the energies of the horse terminate, however, the reindeer becomes a useful substitute. Its equatorial limits do not reach the shores of the Baltic. 1964. To compensate the variations of the seasons a variety of changes take place in the circumstances of animals. The clothing of animals, living in cold countries, is not only different from that of the animals of warm regions in its quantity, but in its ar- rangement. If we examine the covering of swine of warm countries, we find it con- sisting of bristles or hair of the same form and texture ; while the same animals which live in colder districts, possess not only common bristles or strong hair, but a fine friz- zled wool next the skin, over which the long hairs project. Between the swine of the south of England, and Scottish Highlands, such differences may be observed. Similar appearances present themselves among the sheep of warm and cold countries. The fleece of those of England consists entirely of wool ; while the sheep of Zetland and Iceland possess a fleece, containing, besides the wool, a number of long hairs, which give to it, when on the back of the animal, the appearance of being very coarse. By means of this arrangement, in reference to the quantity of clothing, individuals of the same species can maintain life comfortably in climates which differ considerably in their average annual temperature. 1965. The process of casting the hair takes place at different seasons, according to the constitution of the animal with respect to heat. The mole has, in general, finished this operation before the end of May. The fleece of the sheep, when suffered to fall, is seldom cast before the end of June. In the northern islands of Scotland, where the shears are never used, the inhabitants watch the time when the fleece is ready to fall, and pull it off with their fingers. The long hairs, which likewise form a part of the covering, remain for several weeks, as they are not ripe for casting at the same time with the fine wool. 1966. The moulting of birds is another preparation for winter, which is analogous tb the casting of the hair in quadrupeds. 1967. The distribution o/" co^or in the animal kingdom, appears to be connected with the latitude as correlative with temperature. In the warmer districts of the earth, the colors of man, quadrupeds, and birds, exhibit greater variety, and are deeper and brighter, than in the natives of colder countries. Among the inhabitants of the tem- perate and cold regioils there are many species which, in reference to the color of their dress, do not appear to be influenced by tlie vicissitudes of the seasons. In others, a very marked difference prevails between the color of their summer and winter garb. A few U 4 296 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. of the more obvious instances of these changes, in British species, may be here pro- duced. 1968. The alpine hare is a very remarkable example. Its summer dress on the Grampian mountains is a tawney grey ; but in winter it is a snowy white. The hair of the ermine is of a pale reddish brown during summer ; in harvest it becomes clouded with pale yellow ; and in November is of a snow-white color. There are many examples of changes in the color of the clothing in the feathered tribe. The white grous or ptarmigan is of an ash color in summer, and fine white in winter. The black guillemot {Una grylle) is of a sooty black during summer ; during winter its plumage is clouded with ash colored spots on a white ground. This change of color in the dress of animals seems intended to regulate their temperature by the radiation or absorption of caloric : a black animal will give out its heat by radiation much slower than one in a white clothing. 1 969. The migration of animals is another circumstance affecting their distribution. Quadrupeds make only partial migrations ; as the stag and the roe from the mountains to the plains. The winged and finned quadrupeds migrate more extensively, as the great bat which inhabits England during summer, and spends its winters in a torpid state in Italy : and the Greenland seal, which migrates southwards to Ireland in winter. 1970. The migrations qf the feathered tribe are the most numerous ; but the same species which is migratory in one country, is in some cases stationary in another ; as the hnnet, which is migratory in Greenland, but stationary in Britain. Migrating birds are either summer birds of passage, which arrive in this country in spring : or winter birds of passage, which arrive in autumn and depart in spring. 1971. The summer birds of passage are, among water birds, the terns and gulls ; among land birds, the swallow, quail, turtle dove, &c. The winter birds of passage chiefly belong to the tribe of water fowls. The swallow, about whose migrations so many idle stories nave been propagated and believed, departs from Scotland about the end of September, and from England about the middle of October. In the latter month M. Adanson observed them on the shores of Africa after their migrations from Europe. He in- forms us, however, that they do not build their nests in that country, but only come to spend the winter. M. Prelong has not only confirmed the observations of Adanson, in reference to swallows, but has stated, at the same time, that the yellow and grey wag-tails visit Senegal at the beginning of winter. The former (Motacilla flava) is well known as one of our summer visitants. The nightingale departs from England about the beginning of October, and from the other parts of Europe about the same period. During the winter season it is found in abundance in Lower Egypt, among the thickest coverts, in different parts of the Delta. Those birds do not breed in that country, and to the inhabitants are merely winter birds of passage. They arrive in autumn and depart in spring, and at the time of migration are plentiful in the islands of the Archipelago. The quail is another of our summer guests, which has been traced in Africa. A few, indeed, brave the winters of England, and in Portugal they appear to be stationary. But in general they leave this country in autumn, and return in spring. They migrate about the same time from the eastern parts of the continent of Europe, and visit and re-visit in their migrations the shores of the Mediterranean, Sicily, and the islands of the Archipelago. While these birds perform those ex- tensive migrations which we have here mentioned, others are contented with shorter journeys. Thus the razor-billed auk {Alca torda), and the puffin {Alca arctica), frequent .the coast of Andalusia during the winter season, and return to us in the spring. 1972. Our summer birds of passage, thus appear to come to us from southern countries, and, after remaining during the warm season, return again to milder re- gions. A few of our summer visitants may winter in Spain or Portugal ; but it appears that in general they migrate to Africa, that unexplored country possessing every variety of surface, and consequently great diversity of climate. It is true that we are unacquainted with the winter retreats of many of our summer birds of passage, particularly of small birds ; but as these arrive and depart under similar circumstances with those whose migrations are ascertained, and as the operations which they perform during their residence with us are also similar, we have a right to conclude that they are subject to the same laws, and execute the same movements. What gives weight to this opinion, is the absence of all proof of a summer bird of passage retiring to the north during the winter season. 1973. In proof oi the accuracy of the preceding conclusion, we may observe that it is a fact generally acknowledged, that the summer birds of passage visit the southern parts of the country a few days, or even weeks, before they make their appearance in the northern districts. Thus, the common swallow {Hirundo rustica,) appears in Sussex about the beginning of the third week of April ; while in the neigh- borhood of Edinburgh it is seldom seen before the first of May. The cuckoo appears in the same district about the last week of April; in Edinburgh seldom before the second week of May. The reverse of this holds true with these summer visitants at their departure. Thus dotterells {Charadiius nwrinellus) forsake the Grampians about the beginning of August, and Scotland by the end of that month ; while they return to England in September, and remain there even until November. A difference of nearly a month takes place between the departure of the goatsucker {Caprimulgus Europceus) from Scotland and from the south of England. 1974. The torpidity or hybernation qf animals, is evidently designed to afford pro- tection against the cold of winter. There are several quadrupeds which become torpid, as the bat, hedgehog, marmot, hamster, dormouse, &c. The torpid animals of Britain usually retire in October, and re-appear in April. Previous to their entrance into this state of lethargy, these animals select a proper place, in general assume a particular position, and even in some cases provide a small stock of lood. 1975. All the torpid animals retire to a place of safety, where, .at a distance from their enemies, and protected as much as possible from the vicissitudes of temperatures, they may sleep out, undisturbed, the destined period of their slumbers. The bat retires to the roof of gloomy caves, or to the old chim- neys of uninhabited castles. The hedgehog wraps itself up in those leaves of which it composes its nest, and remains at ."the bottom of the hedge, or under the covert of the furze, which screened it, during summer, from the scorching sun or the passing storm. The marmot and the hamster retire to their subterranean retreats, and when they feel the first approach of the torpid state, shut the passages to thejtr habitations in such a manner, that it is more easy to dig up the earth any where else, than in such Book II. DISTRIBUTION OF ANLMALS. 297 parts which they have thus fortified. Having thus made choice of situations where they are protected from sudden alterations of temperature, and having assumed a position similar to that of their ordinary repose, these hybernating animals fall into a state of insensibility to external objects. In this torpid state they suffer a diminution of temperature ; their respiration and circulation become languid ; their irritability decreases in energy ; and they suffer a loss of weight. 1976. The abundance or scarcity of food has a powerful influence on the geograpliical distribution of animals. Many species of insects are restricted in their eating to one kind of plants, or are parasitical on one species of animal. The distribution of such animals is thus dependent on their food. The same remark is generally applicable to carnivorous and phytivorous animals. But, in many species, though the restriction is absolute as to the nature of the food, it admits of a considerable range with regard to the variety or kind. Thus, though the lion is restricted to flesh, his cravings are equally satisfied with the carcase of a horse, a cow, or even of man. The hog in general feeds on roots, but it is not confined to those of one kind of plant ; hence it can subsist where- ever the earth is clothed with verdure. 1 ^77. The seasons exercise a powerful influence on animals, directly, in reference to their temperature, and, indirectly, with regard to the production of their food. Thus, the insect that feeds on the leaves of a particular tree, can only enjoy its repast during that part of the season when this tree is in leaf. 'How, then, is life preserved during the remaining portion of the year ? The resources are numerous. It either exists in the form of an unhatched egg, an inactive pupa, in the imago state, requiring little food, or actually becoming torpid. 1978. The birds which feed on insects in summer, in this climate, are, from the absence of this kind of sustenance in winter, obliged to have recourse to various kinds of vegetable food during that season. Should this change of diet be unsuitable, migration to other districts, where a proper supply can be obtained, becomes indispensably requisite. In compliance with these regulations, we observe numerous mammalia, birds, and fishes, accompany the shoals of herrings in their journeys ; and the grampus and seal enter the mouths of rivers in pursuit of the salmon. The bats, which feed on insects in summer, could not in this country obtain a suitable supply of food. Yet the race is preserved, since the fall of temperature, which is destructive to insect life, brings on the winter torpor. With many quadrupeds, however, and even insects, especially the bee, where migration to more fertile districts is impracticable, and where torpidity is not congenial to the constitution, there is an instinctive disposition to be provident of futurity. Of quadrupeds which possess this disposition, the beaver and the squirrel may be considered as among the most remarkable. 1979. The influence of situation on the distribution of animals, is considerable. Some animals reside wholly in water ; others are amphibious. Among terrestrial animals, there are many which execute all the operations of life in one particular situation, in- fluenced, however by its various conditions. Such animals are necessarily limited to those countries where such situations occur. There are others, however, which shift their situations at particular seasons, without reference either to temperature or food. The curlew, which can at all times procure a subsistence on the sea-shore, and resist or counteract the changes of the seasons, retires during the period of breeding, to the inland marshes. The heron, which is equally successful in procuring food on the shore, is destined to build its nest on trees, and consequently must belake itself to wooded districts for the purposes of incubation. Its haunts in Britain are termed heronries or heronshaws. Many terrestrial animals, especially of the insect kind, pass the first period of their existence in the water. The old animals in consequence seek after that element in which to deposit their eggs, however independent they may be of its presence for their ordinary personal wants. 1980. The rapacity of some awma/s considerably aflTects the distribution and extension of others. Of all the foes of the animal tribe none is so powerful as man. Against many species, hostile to his interests, he carries on a war of extermination. Others he pursues for pleasure, or for the necessaries or luxuries of life which they yield. In these conquests, the superiority of his mental powers is conspicuously displayed, and his claim to dominion established. Unable to contend with many species in physical strength, he has devised the pit-fall and the snare, — the lance, the arrow, and fire arms. Aided by these, every animal on the globe must yield to his attempts to capture. The lion, the elephant, and the whale, fall the victims of his skill, as well as the mouse or the sparrow. Since the use of gunpowder, indeed, the contest is so unequal, that it is in the power of man to control the limits of almost every species whose stations are ac- cessible. The havoc which man thus commits in the animal kingdom has occasioned the extirpation of many species from those countries of which they were formerly the natural possessors. In this island, since the Roman invasion, some species of quadrupeds and birds have disappeared ; and others are becoming every year less numerous. Of those which have been extirpated, the bear and the beaver, the crane and the capercailzie, may be quoted as well known examples. The same changes are taking place in every cultivated region of the earth, each having within the very limited period of history or tradition, lost many of the original inhabitants. 1981. An acquaintance with the laws which regulate the geographical distribution of animals is indis. pensably necessary in our attempts to naturalise exotic species. The temperature most suited to their health, — the food most congenial to their taste, and best fitted to their digestive organs, — the situation to which their locomotive powers are best adapted, — and the foes against which it is most necessary t» 498 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IL guard them.'are circumstances on which we ought to bestow the most sorupulous attention, in order to in- sure success. There are many animals which can call forth but few counteracting energies, and, conse- quently, cease to thrive, upon the slightest alteration taking place in their physical condition. With others, the case is very different, and these we can easily naturalise. They can accommodate themselves to a variety of new conditions, and successfully resist the destructive tendency of the changes to which we subject them. 1982. The change in the condition of the animals we wish to naturalise, should, in all cases, be brought about as slowly as circumstances may permit. In this manner, the first counteracting effects of the system grow into organical habits, before all the evils of the situation are experienced, in which they are destined ultimately to reside. In this gradual manner, man has become fitted to reside in every climate, as well as many of the animals which he has reclaimed. 1983. The total number of species of animals hitherto described exceeds fifty thousand ; but of these, upvi^ards of forty thousand are insects or reptiles. 1 984. The British Fauna, or number of species of animals, native or naturalised in Great Britain, might be arranged as residents, periodical visitants, irregular visitants extirpated, extinct and naturalised animals. But, as Dr. Fleming has observed, British zoologists have paid little or no attention to the geographical distribution of the native animals. Species which really live in the country are associated with such as viftit it periodically, and with those which have been extirpated, have become extinct, or have been naturalised. The consequence is, that it is difficult to form a correct view of either the number or characters of our native animals. Chap. VII. Of the Economical Uses of Animals. 1 985. On the importance of animals in the arts as laborers, as furnishing food, cloth- ing, medicine, and materials for various manufactures, it is needless to enlarge. 1986. As laborers the quadrupeds are almost solely employed ; and of these the most universally useful is the horse, and next the ox and the ass. Without the constant use of these animals, the general economy of civilised life in the temperate climates, and more or less in every climate, would be entirely altered ; as would be the economy of Arabia, and many parts of Africa without the use of the camel. The dog is valuable as a messenger and watching animal, and has been and is employed in that capacity in all ages and countries. 1987. As articles of food man employs animals belonging to every class, from the quadruped to the zoophyte. In some cases, he makes choice of a part only of an animal, in other cases, he devours the whole. He kills and dresses some animals, while he swallows others in a live state. The taste of man exhibits still more remarkable differ- ences of a rational kind. The animals which are eagerly sought after by one tribe, are neglected or despised by another. Even those which are prized by the same tribe in one age, are rejected by their descendants in another. Thus the seals and porpoises, which, a few centuries ago, were eaten in Britain, and were presented at the feasts of kings, are now rejected by the poorest of the people. 1988. Those quadrupeds and birds which feed on grass or grain, are generally preferred by man to those which subsist on flesh or fish. Even in the same animal, the flesh is not always of the same color and flavor, when compelled to subsist on different kinds of food. The feeding of black cattle with barley straw, has always the effect of giving to their fat a yellow color. Ducks fed on grain have flesh very different in flavor from those which feed on fish. The particular odor of the fat of some animals seems to pass into the system unchanged, and, by its presence, furnishes us with an indication of the food which has been used. 1989. While many kinds qf animals are rejected as useless, there are others which are carefully avoid- ed as poisonous. Among quadrupeds and birds, none of these are to be found, while, among fishes and moUusca, several species are to be met with, some of which are always deleterious to the human constitu- tion, while others are hurtful only at particular seasons. 1990. The use of skins as articles of dress, is nearly coeval with our race. With ^he progress of civilisation, the fur itself is used, or the feathers, after having been subjected to a variety of tedious and frequently complicated processes. Besides the hair of quad- rupeds, and the feathers of birds used as clothing, a variety of products of the animal kingdom, as bone, shells, pearls, and corals, are employed as ornaments of dress, in all countries, however different in their degree of civilisation. 1991. Medicine. The more efficient products of the mineral kingdom have in th6 progress of the medical art in a great measure superseded the milder remedies furnished by animals and vegetables. The blister-fly, however, still remains without a rival ; and the leech is often resorted to, when the lancet can be of no avail. 1992. The arts. The increase of the wants of civilised life calls for fresh exertions to supply them, and the animal kingdom still continues to furnish a copious source of ma- terials for the arts. Each class presents its own peculiar offering, and the stores whicJ* yet remain to be investigated, appear inexhaustible. Book M. IMPROVING THE BREED OF ANIMALS. 299 Chap. VIII. Principles of imjrroving the Domestic Animals used in Agriculture, 1993. The animals xn use in British agriculture are few, and chiefly the horse, ox, sheep, swine, and domestic fov/ls. The first is used solely as a laboring animal, and the rest chiefly as furnishing food. In applying the general principles of physiology to these animals with a view to their improvement for the use of man, we shall consider in suc- cession the principles of breeding, rearing, and feeding. Sect. I. Of improving the Breed of Animals. 1994. By improvement of a breed is to be understood the producing such an alteration in shape or description, as shall render the animal better fitted for the labors he has to per- form ; better fitted for becoming fat ; or for producing milk, wool, eggs, feathers, or particular qualities of these. The fundamental principle of this amelioration is the pro- per selection of parents. Two theories have obtained notice on this subject, the one in favor of breeding from individuals of the same parentage, called the in-and-in system, and the other in favor of breeding from individuals of two different offsprings, called the system of cross breeding. As is usual in such cases, neither theory is exclusively correct, at least as far as respects agricultural improvement ; for, as will afterwards appear, the principles on which a selection for breeding so as to improve the carcase of the animal depends, will lead occasionally to either mode. 1995. That the breed of animals is imjrroved by the largest males, is a very general opinion ; but this opinion is the reverse of the truth, and has done considerable mischief. The great olyect of breeding, by whatever mode, is the improvement of form, and expe- rience has proved that crossing has only succeeded in an eminent degree, in those in- stances in which the females were larger than in the usual proportion of females to males ; and that it has generally failed where the males were disproportionally large. {Culleys Introduction, &c.) The following epitome of the science of breeding, is by the late eminent surgeon, Henry Cline, who practised it extensively on his own farm at Southgate. 1996. The external form of domestic animals has been much studied, and the propor- tions are well ascertained. But the external form is an indication only of internal structure. The principles of improving it must, therefore, be founded on a knowledge of the structure and use of internal parts. 1997. The lungs are of the first importance. It is on their size and soundness that the strength and health of animals principally depends. The power of converting food into nourishment, is in proportion to their size. An animal with large lungs is capable of converting a given quantity of food into more nourishment than one with smaller lungs ; and therefore has a greater aptitude to fatten. 1998. The chest, according to its external form and size, indicates the size of the lungs. The form of the chest should approacn to the figure of a cone, having its apex situated between the shoulders, and its base towards the loins. Its capacity depends on its form more than on the extent of its circumference ; for where the girth is equal in two animals, one may have much larger lungs than the other. A circle contains more than an ellipsis of equal circumference; and in proportion as the ellipsis deviates from the circle it contains less. A deep chest, therefore, is not capacious ; unless it is proportionably broad. 1999. The pelvis is the cavity formed by the junction of the haunch bones with the bone of the rump. It is essential that this cavity should be large in the female, that she may be enabled to bring forth her young with less difficulty. When this cavity is small, the life of the mother and her offspring is en- dangered. The size of the pelvis is chiefly indicated by the width of the hips, and the breadth of the waist, which is the space between the thighs. The breadth of the loins is always in proportion to that of the chest and i)elvis. 2000. The head should be small, by which the birth is facilitated. Its smallness affords other advantages, and generally indicates that the animal is of a good breed. Horns are useless to domestic animals, and they are often a cause of accidents. It is not difficult to breed animals without them. The breeders of horned cattle and horned sheep, sustain a loss more extensive than they may conceive ; for it is not the horns alone, but also much bone in the skulls of such animals to support their horns, for which the butcher pays nothing ; and besides this there is an additional quantity of ligament and muscle in the neck, which is of small value. The skull of a ram with its horns, weighed five times more than a skull which was hornless. Both these skulls were taken from sheep of the same age, each being four years old. The great difference in weight depended chiefly on the horns, for the lower jaws were nearly equal ; one weighing seven ounces, and the other six ounces and three quarters, which proves that the natural size of the head was the same in both, independent of the horns and the thickness of bone which supports them. In horneil animals the skull is extremely thick. In a hornless animal it is much thinner, especially in that part where the horns usually grow. To those who have reflected on the subject, it may appear of httle consequence whether sheep and cattle have horns ; but on a moderate calculation it will be found, that the loss in farming stock, and also in the diminution of animal food, is very considerable, from the pro- ductions of horns and their appendages. A mode of breeding which would prevent the production of these, would afford a considerable profit in an increase of meat, wool, and other valuable parts. 2001. The length of the neck should be proportioned to the height of the animal, that it may collect its food with ease. 2002. The muscles, and the tendons which are their appendages, should be large; by which an animal is enabled to travel with greater facility. 2003. The bones, when large, are commonly considered an indication of strength ; but strength does not depend on the size of the bones, but on that of the muscles. Many animals with large bones are weak, their muscles being small. Animals that have been imperfectly nourished during growth, have their bones disproportionately large. If such deficiency of nourishment originated from a constitutional delect, whicft^ 300 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. is the most fVequent cause, they remain weak during life. Large bones, therefore, gmerally indicate an imperfection in the organs of nutrition. 2004. To obtain the most improved form, the two modes of breeding described as the in- and-in and crossing modes, have been practised. The first mode may be the better practice, when a particular variety approaches perfection in form ; especially for those who may not be acquainted with the principles on which improvement depends. When the male is much larger than the female, the offspring is generally of an imperfect form. If the female be proportionately larger than the male, the offspring is of an improved form. For instance, if a well formed large ram be put to ewes proportionately smaller, the iambs will not be so well shaped as their parents ; but if a small ram be put to larger ewes, the lambs will be of an improved form. The proper method of improving the form of animals consists in selecting a well formed female, proportionately larger than the male. The improvement depends on this principle, that the power of the female to supply her offspring with nourishment, is in proportion to her size, and to the power of nourishing herself from the excellence of her constitution. The size of the foetus is generally in proportion to that of the male parent ; and therefore, when the female parent is disproportionately small, the quantity of nourishment is deficient, and her offspring has all the disproportions of a starveling. But when the female, from her size and good constitution, is more than adequate to the nourishment of a foetus of a smaller male than herself, the growth must be proportionately greater. The larger female has also a larger quantity of milk, and her offspring is more abundantly supplied with nourishment after birth. 2005. Abundant nourishment is necessary to produce the most perfect formed animal, from the earliest period of its existence until its growth is complete. As already observed, the power to prepare the greatest quantity of nourishment from a given quantity of food, depends principally on the magnitude of the lungs, to which the organs of digestion are subservient. To obtain animals with large lungs, crossing is the most expeditious method ; because well formed females may be selected from a variety of large size, to be put to a well formed male of a variety ; that is, rather smaller. By such a mode of crossing, the lungs and heart become proportionately larger, in consequence of a peculiarity in the circulation of the foetus, which causes a larger proportion of the blood, under such circumstances, to be distributed to the lungs than to the other parts of the body ; and as the shape and size of the chest depend upon that of the lungs, hence arises that remarkably large chest, which is produced by crossing with females that are larger than the males. The practice, according to this principle of improvement, however, ought to be limited ; for it may be carried to such an extent, that the bulk of the body might be so disproportioned to the size of the limbs as to prevent the animal from moving with sutRcient facility. In animals, where activity is required, this practice should not be extended so far as in those which are intended for the food of man. 2006. The characters of animals, or the external appearances by which the varieties of the same species are distinguished, are observed in the offspring ; but those of the male parent more frequently predominate. Thus in the breeding of horned animals there are many varieties of sheep, and some of cattle, which are hornless. If a hornless ram be put to horned ewes, almost all the lambs will be hornless ; partaking of the character of the male more than of the female parent. In some countries, as Norfolk, Wiltshire, and Dorsetshire, most of the sheep have horns. In Norfolk the horns may be got rid of, by crossing with Ryeland rams ; which would also improve the form of the chest, and the quality of wool. In Wiltshire and Dorsetshire, the same improvements might be made, by crossing the sheep with South Down rams. An offspring without horns, or rarely producing horns, might be obtained from the Devonshire cattle, by crossing with horn- less bulls of the Galloway breed; which would also improve the form of the chest j in which the Devonshire cattle are often deficient. 2007. Examples of the good effects of crossing may be found in the improved breeds of horses and swine in England. The great improvement of the breed of horses arose trom crossing with the dimi. nutive stallions. Barbs and Arabians ; and the introduction of Flanders mares into this country was the source of improvement in the breed of cart horses. The form of the swine has been greatly improved, by crossing with the small Chinese boar. 2008. Examples of the bad effects of crossing the breed are more numerous. When it became the fashion in London to drive large bay-horses, the farmers in Yorkshire put their mares to much larger stallions than usual, and thus did infinite mischief to their breed, by producing a race of small chested, long legged, large boned, worthless animals. A similar project was adopted in Normandy, to enlarge the breed of horses there, by the use of stallions from Holstein ; and in consequence, the best breed of horses in France would have beew spoiled had not the farmers discovered their mistake in time, by observing the offspring much inferior in form to that of the native stallions. Some graziers in the Isle of Sheppy conceived, that they could improve their sheep by large Lincolnshire rams ; the produce of which, however, was much inferior to the shape of the carcase, and the quality of the wool ; and the flocks were greatly impaired by this attempt to improve them. Attempts to improve the animals of a country by any plan of crossing, should be made with the greatest caution ; for by a mistaken practice, extensively pursued, irreparable mischief may be done. In any country where a particular race of animals has continued for centuries, it may be presumed that their constitution is adapted to the food and climate. 2009. The pliancy of the animal economy is such, that an animal will gradually accommodate itself to great vicissitudes in climate, and alterations in food ; and by de- grees undergo great changes in constitution ; but these changes can be effected only by degrees, and may often require a great number of successive generations for their accom- plishment. It may be proper to improve the form of a native race, but at the same time it may be very injudicious to attempt to enlarge their size ; for the size of animals is commonly adapted to the soil and climate which they inhabit. Where produce is nutri- tive and abundant, the animals are large, having grown proportionally to the quantity of food which, for generations, they have been accustomed to obtain. Where the produce is PookII/ improving THE BREED OF ANIMALS. 301 scanty, the animals are small, being proportioned to the quantity of food which they were able to procure. Of these contrasts, the sheep of Lincolnshire and of Wales are examples. The sheep of Lincolnshire would starve on the mountains of Wales. 2010. Crossing the breed of animals may be attended with bad effects in various ways ; and that even when adopted in the beginning on a good principle ; for instance, suppose some larger ewes than those of the native breed were taken to the mountains of Wales, and put to the rams of that country, if these foreign ewes were fed in proportion to their size, their lambs would be of an improved form, and larger in size than the native ani- mals ; but the males produced by this cross, though of a good form, would be dispro- portionate in size to the native ewes ; and, therefore, if permitted to mix with them, would be productive of a starveling, ill-formed progeny. Thus a cross, which, at first was an improvement, would, by giving occasion to a contrary cross, ultimately prejudice tlie breed. The general mistake in crossing has arisen from an attempt to increase the size of a native race of animals ; being a fruitless effort to counteract the laws of nature, 2011. The Arabian horses are, in general, the most perfect in the world ; which pro- bably has arisen from great care in selection, and also from being unmixed with any variety of the same species ; the males, therefore, have never been disproportioned in size to the females. s. 2012. The native horses of India are small, but well proportioned, and good of their kind. With the intention of increasing their size, the India company have adopted a plan of sending large stallions to India. If these stallions should be extensively used, a disproportioned race must be the result, and a valuable breed of horses may be irretrievably spoiled. 2013. From theory, from practice, and from extensive observation, the last more to be depended on than either, '* it is reasonable," Cline continues, " to form this conclusion: it is wrong to enlarge a native breed of animals, for in proportion to their increase of size, they become worse in form, less hardy, and more liable to disease." (^Communica- tions to the B. of Ag. vol. iv. p. 446.) 2014. The above opinions may be considered as supported by the most eminent prac- tical breeders, as Bakewell, CuUey, Somerville, Parry, and others, and by most theorists, as Coventry, Darwin, Hunt, Young, &c. T. A. Knight writes in the Com- munications to the Board of Agriculture in favor of cross breeding, as do Pitt and others in the County Surveys, but mostly from very limited experience. Sir J. S. Sebright, in a letter addressed to Sir Joseph Banks, on improving the breed of domestic animals, 1809, has taken the opposite side of the question, but the meaning he attaches to the term breeding in-and-in is so limited, as to render it a very different sort of breeding from that practised by Messrs. Bakewell and Culley, which has been generally so named and recommended by Cline and others, who favor, rather than otherwise, the in-and-in sys- tem. He says, " Magnell's fox-hounds are quoted as an instance of the success of breeding in-and in ; but upon speaking to that gentleman upon the subject, I found that he did not attach the meaning that I do, to the term in-and-in. He said that he fre- quently bred from the father and the daughter, and the mother and the son. This is not what I consider -as breeding in-and-in ; for the daughter is only half of the same blood as the father, and will probably partake, in a great degree, of' the properties of the mother. Magnell sometimes bred from brother and sister ; this is certainly what may be called a little close : but should they both be very good, and, particularly, should the same defects not predominate in both, but the perfections of the one promise to correct in the produce the imperfections of the other, I do not think it objectionable : much farther than this the system of breeding from the same family, cannot, in my opinion, be pursued with safety." (p. 10.) John Hunt, surgeon at Loughborough, a friend of Bakewell and Darwin, in a reply to Sir J. S. Sebright's pamphlet, entitled Agricidtural Memoirs, ^c. 1812, justly observes, that as Sir John has given no defini- tion of the term in-and-in, from what may be gathered from the above extract he seems to have been as near as possible of the same mind as Bakewell, whose practice it is on . all sides allowed, was " to put together those animals which were most perfect in shape without regard to affinity in blood. " This, in fact, is the general practice in all the best breeding districts, and especially in Leicestershire and Northumberland. 2015. George Cutlet/, a Northumberland farmer of great practice in breeding and feeding, in hi» Observations on Live Stock, not only concurs in this principle as far as respects quadrupeds, but con- siders it to hold good in the feathered tribe, and, in short, in animals of every kind. His conclusion is, " That of all animals, of whatever kind, those which have the smallest, cleanest, finest bones, are in general the best proportioned, and covered with the best and finest grained meat." " I believe," he adds, " they are also the hardiest, healthiest, and most inclinable to feed ; able to bear the most fatigue while living, and worth the most per lb. when dead." {Observations, 8(c. 222.) 2016. Cross breeding, under judicious management, might probably be often employed to correct the faults of particular breeds, or to impart to them new qualities. " Were I," says Sir J. S. Sebright, ** to define what is called the art of breeding, I should say, that it consisted in the selection of males and females, intended to breed together, in reference to each other's pierits and defects. It is not always by putting the best male 302 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IT. to the best female, that the best produce will be obtained ; for should they both have a tendency to the same defect, although in ever so slight a degree, it will in general preponderate so much in the produce, as to render it of little value. A breed of animals may be said to be improved, when any desired quality has been increased by art, beyond what that quality was in the same breed, in a state of nature ; the swiftness of the race horse, the propensity to fatten in cattle, and the tine wool in sheep, are improvements which have been made in particular varieties of the species to which those animals belong. What has been produced by art must be produced by the same means, for the most improved breeds will soon return to a state of nature, or perhaps defects will arise, which did not exist when the breed was in its natural state, unless the greatest attention is paid to the selection of the individuals who are to breed together. 2017. We must observe the smallest tendency to imperfection in our stock, the moment it appears, so as to be able to counteract it, before it becomes a defect ; as a rope dancer, to preserve his equilibrium, must correct the balance, before it is gone too far, and then not by such a motion, as will incline it too much to the opposite side. The breeder's success will depend entirely upon the degree in which he may happen to possess this particular talent. 2018. Regard should not only he paid to the qualities apparent in animals selected for breeding, but to those which have prevailed in the race from which they are descended, as they will always show themselves, sooner or later, in the progeny : it is for this reason that we should not breed from an animal, however excellent, unless we can ascertain it to be what is called well bred; that is, descended from a race of ancestors, who have, through several generations, possessed in a high degree the properties which it is our object to obtain. The offspring of some animals is very unlike themselves ; it is, therefore, a good precaution, to, try the young males with a few females, the quality of whose produce has been already ascertained ; by this means we shall know the sort of stock they get, and the description of females to which they are the best adapted. If a breed cannot be improved, or even continued in the degree of perfection at which it has already arrived, but by breeding from individuals so selected as to correct each other's defects, and by a judicious combination of their different properties (a position that will not be denied), it follows that animals must degenerate, by being long bred from tlie same family, without the intermixture of any other blood, or froni being what is technically called, bred in-and-in." 2019. Bakewell and Culley say, " like begets like," therefore breed from the best. Of this, says Sir J. S. Sebright, there can be no doubt " but it is to be proved how long the same family, hred in-and-in^ will continue to be the best." Crossbreeding appears no doubt more consonant to what takes place in nature than breeding from very near relationship ; and arguing from analogy, the result of certain experiments made by T. A. Knight, on the vegetable kingdom, seems to justify us in concluding that occasional crossing may become not only advantageous, but even necessary for the purpose of correcting defects. Nevertheless, as the last mentioned writer and Cline observe, it can only be safely resorted to by„skilful and experienced breeders. Sect. II. Of the general Principles of rearing^ managing, and feeding domestic Animals. 2020. Immediately after the birth of every animal, even of such as are domesticated, the rudiments of its education, as well as its bodily nourishment, are necessarily given by the mother. For this purpose the latter should, during her pregnancy, have been daily protected against all extremes of temperature, well provided with shade and shelter, and abundantly supplied with food and water. When the period of gestation arrives, she should, in general, also be separated from the rest of the flock or herd, and by whatever means the case may demand, kept comfortable and tranquil. 2021. After the birth, the first interference on the part of man should be that of supplying the mother with food of a light and delicate quality, compared to that which she had been in the habit of using, and also of administering the same description of food to the offspring, so far as it may by its nature be able to use it. The gentlest treatment should accompany these operations ; and the opportunity taken of familiarizing both parent and offspring with man, by gently caressing them, or at least, by familiar treatment on the part of the attendant. 2022. Js the animals increase in size and strength, they should have abundance of air, exercise, and food, according to their natures ; and whatever is attempted by man in the way of taming or teaching should be conducted on mild and conciliating principles, rather than on those of harshness and compulsion. Caresses, or familiar treatment, should generally be accompanied by small supplies of food, at least at first, as an inducement to render the animal submissive to them ; afterwards habit will, even in the inferior creation, render the familiarities of man agreeable to them for their own sake ; but even then, to keep up this feeling, small portions of select food should frequently be employed as a reward. By contrasting this method with that of taming or teaching animals by fear or compulsion, the advantages of the fonner nrode will be evident. Book II. REARING, &c. DOMESTIC ANIMALS. 303 ■ 2023. Interest is the grand mover of animals, as well as of man. In taming by fear, all the interest which the animal has is the avoiding an evil ; in taming by caresses and food, it is the attainment of enjoyment. The most extraordinary results are recorded as having been obtained by the mild mode with almost every species of animal on which it has been tried : to this may be advantageously joined, in the more powerful animals, hunger and fatigue. " The breeder Bakewell, surgeon Hunt informs us, at an advanced period of life, not only conquered a vicious restive horse, but, without the assistance of either grooms or jockies, taught this horse to obey his verbal orders with as great attention as the most accomplished ani- mal that was ever educated at Astley's school. Bakewell was accustomed to say, that his horse could do every thing but speak. The method which he took to conquer this vicious animal was never told, even to his own domestics. Reordered his own saddle and bridle to be put on this horse, which at that time was thought to be ungovernable, when he was prepared for a journey of two or three hundred miles ; and, that no one might be witness to the contest, he led the horse till he was beyond the reach of observation ; how far he walked, or in what manner this great business was accomplished, was never known ; but, when he returned from his journey, the horse was as gentle as a lamb, and would obey his master's verbal orders on all occasions. When what are called irrational animals are taught such strict obedience to the command of a superior order, it is in general supposed to be the effect of fear ; but Bakewell never made use of either whip or spur. "When on horseback he had a strong walking-stick in his hand, which he made the most use of when on foot ; he always rode with a slack rein, which he frequently let lie upon the horse's neck, and so great was his objection to spurs, that he never wore them. It was his opinion that all such animals might be conquered by gentle means ; and such was his knowledge of animal nature, that he seldom failed in his opinion, whether his attention was directed to the body or the mind." {Agri. Mem. p. 127.) 2024. The jmrposes for which animals are fed or nourished, are for promoting their enlargement or growth; for fitting them for 4abor; for the increase of certain animal products ; or for fattening them for slaughter as human food. We shall confine our remarks to the last purpose as being the most important, and as necessarily including much of what belongs to the three others. In doing this, the following points require to be attended to : abundance of proper food, a proper degree of heat, and protection against extremes of weather; good air, water, moderate exercise, tranquillity, clean- liness, comfort, and health. 2025. Food, though it must be supplied in abundance, ought not to be given to satiety. Intervals of resting and exercise must be allowed according to circumstances. Even animals grazing on a rich pasture have been found to feed faster when removed from it once a day, and either folded or put in an inferior pasture for two or three hours. Stall-fed cattle and swine will have their flesh improved in flavor by being turned out into a yard or field once a day ; and many find that they feed better, and produce better flavored meat when kept loose under warm sheds or hammels, one or two in a division, a practice now very general in Berwickshire. (See Hammel.') Coarser food may be first given to feeding animals ; and as they acquire flesh, that which is of more solid and substantial quality. In general it may be observed, that i:^ the digestive powers of the animal are in a sound state, the more food he eats, the sooner will the desired result be obtained ; a very moderate quantity beyond suflficiency con- stitutes abundance ; but by withholding this additional quantity, an animal, especially if young, may go on eating for several years, without ever attaining to fatness. Pro- perly treated, a well fed ox, of moderate size, will feed on a rich pasture in from four to six months, and in stalls or covered pens, with green or steamed food in a shorter period. 2026. In young growing animals, the powers of digestion are so great, that they require less rich food than such as are of mature age ; for the same reason also they require more exercise. If rich food is supplied in liberal quantities, and exercise withheld, dis- eases are generated, the first of which may be excessive fatness ; growth is impeded by very rich food, for experience shows, that the coarsest fed animals have uniformly the largest bones. Common sense will suggest the propriety of preferring a medium course between very rich and very poor nutriment. 2027. Mastication and cooking. Unless food be thoroughly deprived of its vegetative powers before it enters the stomach, the whole nourishment which it is capable of afford- ing cannot be derived from it. In the case of the leaves and stalks of vegetables, this is in general effected by mastication ; but it requires some care to accomplish it in the case of grains. Hence the advantage of mixing corn given to horses or cattle with chaff or chopped straw ; and hence, it is supposed by some, the intention of nature, in the in- stinct which fowls have to swallow small stones, is intended for the same object. But the most effectual mode of destroying the living principle, is by the application of heat ; and if vegetable food of every kind could be steamed or boiled before it was given to animals (at least in winter, and for fattening to slaughter, or feeding for edible products), it is rendered probable by analogy and experiment, that much more nourishment would be derived from it. 2028. Salt, it appears, from various experiments, may be advantageously given to most animals, in very small quantities ; it acts as a whet to the appetite, promotes the secretion of bile, and, in general, is favorable to health and activity. In this way only can it be considered as preventing or curing diseases ; unless perhaps in the case of worms, to which all salin^ and bitter substances are known to be injurious. 2029. That degree of heat which is aborigine, or has by habit, and the breeding from successive generations in a cold climate, become natural to animals, is necessary to their 9m SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part 11. well being ; and a somewhat increased degree in the cold months, or diminished degree in such as are oppressively warm, is advantageous in the fattening process. Where a sufficient degree of warmth to promote the ordinary circulation of the blood is not produced by the natural climate, or by exercise, it must be supplied by an artificial climate. Houses and sheds are the obvious resources both for this purpose, and for protection from extremes of weather. Cold rains and northerly winds are highly injurious, by depriving the external surface of the body of caloric more rapidly than it can be supplied from within by respiration, and the action of the stomach ; and also by contracting the pores of the skin, so as to impede cir- culation. When an animal happens to shed its covering, whether of hair, wool, or feathers, at such inclement seasons, the effects on its general health are highly injurious. The excessive heats of summer, by expanding all the parts of the animal frame, occa- sions a degree of lassitude, and want of energy even in the stomach and intestines ; and while the animal eats and digests less food than usual, a greater waste than usual takes place by perspiration. Nature has provided trees, rocks, caverns, hills and waters, to moderate these extremes of heat and weather, and man imitates them by hovels, sheds^ and other buildings, according to particular circumstances. 2030. Good air and water it may seem unnecessary to insist on ; but cattle and horses, and even poultry pent up in close buildings, where there are no facilities for a change of the atmosphere, often suffer on this account. A slight degree of fever is produced at first, and after a time, when the habit of the animal becomes reconciled to such a state, a retarded circulation, and general decay or diminution of the vital energies takes place. 2031. Water ought to fje soft and pure, as being a better solvent than such as is hard and charged with earthy particles. It ought to be of a moderate temperature, under that of the open air in hot weather, and exceeding it in winter. Deep wells afford this difference. In particular cases, as in those animals in a suckling state, or milked by man, warmed water has been found advantageous. Meals, or other light rich matters, are sometimes mixed with it ; but it does not clearly appear, excepting in the last case, that liquid food is so generally advantageous for fattening animals, as that which being equally rich is solid. Some judgment is requisite as to the time most proper for giving water to animals. In general, it does not appear necessary to supply it immediately after eating, for animals in a natural state, or pasturing in a field, generally lie down after filling themselves, and after the process of digestion seems to have gone on some time, they go in quest of water. Perhaps the immediate dilution of food, after being taken into the stomach with water, may, at the same time, weaken the digestive powers, by diluting the gastric juice. At all events the free use of water at any time, but especially during meals, is found to weaken digestion in the human species. As animals of every kind become reconciled to any habit, not ultimately injurious to health, perhaps for housed animals a stated quantity of water, given an hour, or an hour and a half after what may be called their meals, may be the best mode. 2032. Moderate exercise ought not to be dispensed with, where the flavor of animal produce is any object; it is known to promote circulation, perspiration, and digestion, and by consequence to invigorate the appetite. Care must be taken, however, not to carry exercise to that point where it becomes a labor instead of a recreation. In some cases, as in feeding swine and poultry, fatness is hastened by promoting sleep and pre- venting motion, rather than encouraging it; but such animals cannot be considered healthy fed ; in fact their fatness is most commonly the result of disease. 2033. Tranquillity is an obvious requisite, for where the passions of brutes are called into action, by whatever means, their influence on their bodies is often as great as in the human species. Hence the use of castration, complete or partial separation, shading from too much light, protection from insects, dogs, and other annoying animals, and from the too frequent intrusion of man. 2034. Cleanliness is favorable to health, by promoting perspiration and circulation. Animals in a wild state attend to this part of their economy themselves ; but in pro- portion as they are cultivated, or brought under the control of man, this becomes out of their power ; and to ensure their subserviency to his wishes, man must supply by art this as well as other parts of culture. Combing and brushing stall-fed cattle and cows is known to contribute materially to health ; though washing sheep with a view to cleaning the wool often has a contrary effect from the length of time the wool requires to dry. This often brings on colds, and aggravates tfie liver complaint, so incident to these animals. Bathing or steeping the feet of stalled animals occasionally in warm water would no doubt contribute to their health ; bathing swine two or three times a week in hot water, as in that used for boiling or steaming food, has been found a real advantage. 2035. Comfort, An animal may be well fed, lodged, and cleaned, without being comfortable in every respect ; and in brutes, as well as men, want of comfort operates on the digestive powers. If the surface of a stall in which an ox, or a horse stands, deviates much from a level, he will be continually uneasy ; and he will be uneasy during night, if its surface is rough, or if a proper bed of litter is not prepared every evening for it to repose on. The form of racks and mangers is often less commodious than it might be. A hay rack which projects forward is bad ; because the animal in drawing out the hay is teased with the hay seeds falling in its eyes or ears; and this form, it may be added, is apt to cause the breath of the animal to ascend through its food, which. Book II. FEEDING FOR EXTRAORDINARY PURPOSES. 305 must after a time render it nauseous. For this reason hay should lie as short a time as possible in lofts, but when practicable be given direct from the rick. Poultry of dif- ferent kinds are often crowded together without any regard to the comfort of the parti- cular kinds by attending to their peculiarities, such as the web feet of the duck tribe, the proper size of roosting sticks for the toed feet of the other tribes. Even the crowing of the cock must cause some degree of irritation, and consequently impede health and fattening by disturbing the repose of quiet fowls, such as the turkey or goose. Various other instances will occur to a reflecting mind ; and surely it must be a duty as agree- able as it is conducive to our own interest to promote as much as possible the comfort of those animals whose lives are shortly to be sacrificed for ours. 2036. Health. A good state of health will, in general, be the result of the mode of feeding and treatment which we have described ; but in proportion as our treatment, either of ourselves or other animals, is refined and artificial, in the same proportion are the functions of nature liable to derangement or interruption from atmospherical changes, and various accidental causes. When this takes place recourse must be had to art for relief. This is an obvious, natural, and reasonable practice ; though some contend that as every disease is only an effort of nature to relieve the being frot» some evil, it ought to be left to itself. To treat animals when in health artificially, and the moment when they become diseased to abandon them to nature, is a proposition so in- congruous and absurd, that one would suppose it would be rejected by the common sense of mankind. There are, however, some solitary instances of medical men having adopted this opinion ; but the melancholy result of their acting on it in the human species, as well as its utter rejection by all rational professors, and men in general, has reduced it to its intrinsic value. There may be much of quackery in medicine; and un- questionably there is a great deal in the art as applied to the brute creation by common practitioners ; but to reject the medical art altogether, becomes on the other hand a species of quackery just as despisable as the other, and not less dangerous ; for it cannot be much better for a patient to be left to die through neglect, than to be killed by over-much care. 2037. Farrienjy as applied to cattle and sheep, is a department of medicine in which perhaps greater ignorance prevails than in any other. The subject as applied to horses has, since the establishment of veterinary schools in this country, and in France, be- come better understood ; but the pupils from these establishments are so thinly scattered, that as Laurence (veterinary surgeon, and author of a Treatise on Horses) observes, it were desirable that country surgeons should in their different localities give instructions to the empirical local practitioners in the country, and to intelligent bailiffs; and that gentlemen of property might have such a sense of their own interest as to call in a sur- geon in all cases of the least difficulty. All that we can here do is to repeat our advice of studying the art of prevention rather than of cure ; to suggest that, in general, an analogy subsists between the constitution and diseases of the human and brute creation ; to avoid recipes and specific cures, rarely to bleed animals, unless by regular advice ; and to confine as much as possible the operations of cow doctors and smiths to giving warm drinks, gentle" purges, and glysters, which can seldom do any harm. Proprietors who can afford to employ intelligent bailiffs, or rather who give such men considerable salaries, should ascertain previously to hiring them, by means of general questions, or by reference to a professor, whether they know any thing of the subject. By thus creat- ing a demand for this species of knowledge, it would soon be produced in abund- ance. Sect. III. Of Feeding for Extraordinary Purposes. 2038. The extraordinary purposes of feeding may comprehend, promoting the growth, naturity, or obesity of particular parts of the body ; promoting the produce of milk or eggs ; or, for fitting an animal for hard labor or long journeys, fasting, and other privations. 2039. Feeding for extraordinari/ purposes, such as promoting the growth of the liver in geese ; the heart in turkeys ; producing excessively fat poultry, &c. seems to us utterly unjustifiable on principles of humanity, and unworthy of enlightened men. The prac- tice of pulling out the animal's eyes, nailing them to the spot, and cramming or forcing the food down their throats, is surely as repugnant to good taste and feeling, as the food so produced must be tasteless and unwholesome. Putting out the eyes of certain singing birds to improve their voice ; and some practices in the rearing of game cocks, and fancy pigeons, (at least the two first) seem equally reprehensible. 2040. The fattening qf fowls for the London market is a considerable branch of rural ecomony in some convenient situations. " They are put up in a dark place, and crammed with a paste made of barley meal, mutton suet, and some treacle or coarse sugar, mixed with milk, and are found to be completely ripe in a fortnight. If kept longer, the fever that is induced by this continued state of repletion renders them red and unsaleable, and frequently kills them." {Agricultural Report of Berkshire, by William Mavor, L.L.D. 8vo. London, 1813.) But fowls brought to this state of artificial obesity are never so well flavored in X 306 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. PaHh It the flesh, and probably not so Balubrious as those of the same species, fattened in a more natural way. The great secret of having fine pullets is cleanliness, and high keeping with the best com. 2041. The process followed in different parts of France to enlarge the liver, is de- scribed at length by Sonnini {Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle, art. Oie.); ** The object is to cause the whole vital forces to be determined towards this part of the animal, by giving it a kind of hepatic cachexy. In Alsace, the individual buys a lean goose, which he shuts up in a small box, so tight that it cannot turn in it. The bottom is furnished with a wide grating of rods, for the passage of the dung. In the fore part there is a hole for the head, and below it a small trough is kept always full of water, in which some pieces of wood charcoal are left to steep. A bushel of maize is sufficient to feed it during a month, at the end of which time the goose is sufficiently fattened. A thirtieth part is soaked in water each night, and crammed down its throat next day, morning and evening. The rest of the time it drinks and guzzles in the water. Towards the 2 2d day, they mix with the maize some poppy oil, and, at the end of the month, it is known by a lump of fat under each wing, or rather by the difficulty of breathing, that it is time to kill it, otherwise it will die of fat. The liver is then found weighing one or two pounds, and, besides, tJie animal is excellent for the table, and furnishes, during its roasting, from three to five pounds of fat, which is used in the cooking of vegetables. Of six geese, there are commonly only four (and these are the youngest) which answer the expectation of the fattener. They are kept in a cellar, or place with little light. 2042. The Roman qncures, who prized the livers of geese, had already observed, that darkness was favorable to this kind of education, no doubt, because it prevents all distraction, and directs the whole powers towards the digestive organs. The want of motion, and the difficulty of respiration, may be also taken into consideration ; the first by diminishing the waste of the system, and both by retarding the circulation in the vena portarum, of which the blood ought to become hydrogenated, in proportion as its carbon unites itself to the oxygen, which that liquid absorbs. This favors the formation of the oily juice, which, after having filled the cellular system of the body, enters into tlie biliary system and substance of the liver, and gives it that fatness and size wliich is so delightful to the palates of true gourmands. The liver thus only becomes enlarged consecutively, and the difficulty of respiration does not appear till the end, when its size prevents the action of the diaphragm. The leanness of geese subjected to this treatment is often mentioned ; but it can only occur in those whose eyes are put out, and feet nailed down to a board, as the consequence of this barbarous treatment. Among a hundred fatteners, there are scarcely two who adopt this practice, and even these do not put out their eyes till a day or two before they are killed. And, therefore, the geese of Alsace, which are free from these cruel operations, acquire a prodigious fatness, which may be called an oleaginous dropsy, the effect of a general atony of the absorbents, caused by want of exercise, combined with succulent food, crammed down their throats, and in an under oxygenated atmosphere." {Encyc. Brit. Sup. art. Food.) 2043. Early lamb. As an instance of both breeding and feeding for extraordinary purposes, we may mention the practice of those farmers who furnish the tables of the wealthy with lamb, at almost every season of the year, by selecting certain breeds of sheep, such as the Dorsetshire, which lamb very early, or by treating them in such a way as to cause the female to come in heat at an unnatural time. In this way, lamb is pro- cured as an article of luxury, as early as November and December ; and, on the contrary, by keeping the ewe on a cold and poor hilly pasture, the lambing season is retarded, and lamb furnished in September and October. 2044. Feeding for promoting the produce of milk or eggs. That which in plants or animals is produced for particular purposes in nature, may, by certain modes of treatment, be rendered, for a time, a habit in the plant or animal, without reference to its natural end. Thus in many cases annual plants may be rendered perennial by con- tinually pinching off their flowers as they appear ; and animals which give milk or lay eggs, may be made to produce both for a much longer time than is natural to them, by creating a demand in their constitutions for these articles by frequent and regular milk- ings, and by taking away every egg as soon as produced ; and then furnishing the con- stitution with the means of supplying this demand by appropriate food, — by rich liquid food, in the case of milking animals — , and by dry, stimulating, and nourishing food, in the case of poultry. 2045. Feeding to fit animals for hard labor, or long journeys. It seems agreed on, that dry rich food is the best for this purpose ; and that very much depends on rubbing, cleaning, and warmth, in the intervals between labor and rest, in order to maintain something of the increased circulation ; and, in ^hort, to lessen the influence of the transition from the one to the other. The quantity of water given should never be considerable j at least in cold coimtries and seasons. (See Horse.) Book II. MODES OF KILLING ANIMALS. 307 Sect. IV. Of the Modes of killing Animals. 2046. The mode of killing animals has considerable effect on the flesh qf the arrimal. Most of those slaughtered for food are either bled to death or are bled profusely imme- diately after being deprived of life in some other way. The common mode of killing cattle in this kingdom is, by striking them on the forehead with a pole-axe, and then cutting their throats to bleed them. But this method is cruel and not free from danger. The animal is not always brought down by tlie first blow, and the repetition is difiRcult and uncertain, and if the animal be not very well secured, accidents may happen. Lord Somerville (General Survey of the Agricidture of Shrojyshire, by Joseph Plymley, M. A. 8vo. London, 1803, p. 243.), therefore, endeavored to introduce the method of pithing or laying cattle, by dividing the spinal marrow above the origin of the phrenic nerves, as is commonly practised in Barbary, Spain, Portugal, Jamaica, and in some parts of England ; and Jackson says, that the " best method of killing a bullock, is by thrusting a sharp-pointed knife into the spinal marrow, when the bullock will immediately fall without any struggle, then cut the arteries about the heart." {Reflections on the Commerce of the Mediterranean, by John Jackson, Esq. F.S.A. Svo. London, 1804, p. 91.) Although the operation of pithing is not so difficult but it may, with some practice, be performed with tolerable certainty ; and although Lord Somerville took a man with him to Portugal to be instructed in the method, and made it a condition that the prize cattle at his exhibitions should be pithed instead of being knocked down, still pithing is not becoming general in Britain. This may be partly owing to prejudice ; but we have been told that the flesh of the cattle killed in this way in Portugal is very dark, and becomes soon putrid, probably from the animal not bleeding well, in conse- quence of the action of the heart being inteiTupted before the vessels of tlie neck are di- vided. It therefore seems preferable to bleed the animal to death directly, as is practised by the Jew butchers. 2047. Du Card's observations on pithing, deserve attention. This gentleman, a surgeon of the Shrewsbury Infirmary, after mature consideration, is against the practice, as causing more pain than it is intended to avoid. He says, ** Pain and action are so generally- joined, that we measure the degree of pain by the loudness of the cries, and violence of the consequent exertion ; and therefore conclude, on seeing two animals killed, that the one which makes scarcely a struggle, though it may continue to breathe, suffers less than that which is more violently convulsed, and struggles till life is exhausted. It appears, however, that there may be acute pain without exertion, perhaps as certainly as there is action without pain ; even distortions that at the first glance would seem to proceed from pain, are not always really accompanied with sensation. To constitute pain there must be a communication between the injured organ and the brain." 2048. In the old method of slaughtering, a concussion of the brain takes place, and therefore the power of feeling is destroyed. The animal drops, and although convulsions take place generally longer and more violent than when the spinal marrow is divided, yet there is, I think, reason to believe that the animal suffers less pain. The immediate consequence of the blow is the dilatation of the pupil of the eye, without any expression of consciousness or fear on the approach of the hand, 2049. From all thescK^ircurastances, DuGard concludes that the new method of slaughtering cattle is more painful than the old. The puncture of the medulla spinalis does not destroy feeling, though it renders the body quiescent, and in this state the animal both endures pain at the punctured part, and suffers, as it were, a second death, from the pain and faintness from loss of blood in cutting the throat, which is practised in both methods. Everard Home, in a valuable paper {Shrew. Rep. p. 250.) has suggested a mode of performing the operation, which would answer completely, could we be sure of having operators sufficiently skilful ; but we may the less regret the difficulty of getting new modes estabhshed when we thus see the superiority of an old custom under very improbable circumstances ; and if well meant reformers wanted any additional motives to care and circumspection, a very forcible one is furnished in the instance of the time and trouble taken to introduce this operation, and which, as it has been hitherto practised,Js tlio very reverse of what was intended. 2050. Jewish modes. The Mosaic law so strictly prohibits the eating of blood, that the Talmud contains a body of regulations concerning the killing of animals j and the Jews, as a point of religion, will not eat the flesh of any animal not killed by a butcher of their own persuasion. Their method is to tie all tlie four feet of the animal together, bring it to the ground, and, turning its head back, to cut the throat at once down to the bone, with a long, very sharp, but not pointed knife, dividing all the large vessels of the neck. In this way the blood is discharged quickly and completely. The effect is indeed said to be so obvious, that some Christians will eat no meat but what has been killed by a Jew butcher. Calves, pigs, sheep, and lambs, are all killed by dividing at once the large vessels of the neck. 2051. Animals which are killed by accident, as by being drowned, hanged, or frozen, or by a fall, or ravenous animal, are not absolutely unwholesome. Indeed, they only differ from those killed methodically in not being bled, which is also the case witli animals that are snared, and in those killed by hounds. Animals which die a natural death should never be eaten, as those are undeniable instances of disease, and even death being the consequence. 2052. Animals frequently undergo some prqyaration before they- are killed. They are X 2 308 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. commonly kept without food for some time, as if killed with fbll stomachs their flesh is considered not to keep well. Oxen are commonly fasted two or three days, smaller animals a day, but it is evident that the practice must not be carried too far, as the oppo- site effect will be produced by the animal falling off or getting feverish. Dr. Lister has stated that nothing contributes more to the whiteness and tenderness of the flesh of calves than often bleeding them,_ by which the coloring matter of the blood is exhausted, and nothing but colorless serum remains. A much more cruel method of preparation for slaughter used to be practised, though now much less frequently, in regard to the bull. By some ancient municipal laws, no butcher was allowed to expose any bull beef for sale unless it had been previously baited. The reason of this regulation probably was, that baiting had the effect of rendering the flesh or muscular fibre much more tender ; for it is a universal law of the animal economy that, when animals have undergone excessive fatigue immediately before death, or have suffered from a lingering death, their flesh, though it becomes sooner ridged, also becomes sooner tender than when suddenly deprived of life in a state of health. The flesh of hunted animals also is soon tender and soon spoils {Recherches de Physiologie et de Chimie Patfiologique , jmr. P. iV. Nysten. 8vo. Paris, 1811.) ; and it is upon this principle only, that the quality of pig's flesh could be improved by the horrid cruelty, said to be practised by the Germans, of whipping the animal to death. BOOK IIL OF THE STUDY OP THE MINERAL KINGDOM AND THE ATMOSPHERE, WITH REFERENC7E TO AGRICULTURE. 2053. The nature of the vegetable and animal kingdom having undergone discussion, the next step in the study of the science of agriculture is to enquire into the composition and 7iature of material bodies ^ and the laws of their changes. The earthy matters which com- pose the surface of the earth, the air and light of the atmosphere, the water precipitated from it, the heat or cold produced by the alternation of day and night, and by che- mical composition and resolution, include all the elements concerned in vegetation. These elements have all been casually brought into notice in the study of the vegetable kingdom ; but we shall now examine more minutely their properties, in so far as they are connected with cultivation. To study them completely, reference must be had to systems of chemistry and natural philosophy, of which those of Dr. Thomson {System of Chemis- try,) axid Dr. Young, [Lectures on Natural Philosophy,) may be especially recommended. Chap. I. Of Earths and Soils. 2054. Earths are the productions of the rocks which are exposed on the surface of the globe, and soils are earths mixed with more or less of the decomposed organised matter afforded by dead plants and animals. Earths and soils, therefore, must be as various as the rocks which produce them, and hence to understand their nature and formation it is necessary to begin by considering the geological structure of the territorial surface, and the manner in which earths and soils are produced. We shall next consider in succession the Nomenclature, Quality, Use, and Improvement of Soils. Sect. I. Of the Geological Structure of the Globe and the Formation of Earths and Soils. 2055. The crust, or under surface of the earth, is considered by geologists as presenting four distinct series of rocky substances ; the first, supposed to be coeval with the world, are called primitive, and consist chiefly of granite and marble, below which man has not yet penetrated. The second series, called by the Wernerians transition-rocks, are of more recent formation, and seem to have resulted from some great catastrophe, (probably that to which history gives the name of deluge,) tearing up and modifying the former order of things. Clay-slate is one of the principal rocks of this class, and next limestone, sandstone, and trap or whinstone. The third series are called secondary rocks, and seem to owe their formation to partial or local revolutions, as indicated by their compa- ratively soft or fragile structure, superincumbent situation, and nearly horizontal position. They are chiefly limestones, sandstones, and conglomerations of fragments of other rocks, as plum-pudding-stone, &c. and appear rather as mechanical deposits from water than as chemical compounds from fusion or solution. A fourth stratum consists of alluvial or earthy depositions from water, in the form chiefly of immense ^eds of clays, marls, or sands These strata are far from being regular in any one circumstance ; sometimes one Book III. OF EARTHS AND SOILS. 309 or more of the strata are wanting, at other times the order of their disposition seems partially inverted ; their continuity of surface is continually interrupted, so that a section of the earth almost every where exhibits only confusion and disorder to persons who have not made geology more or less their study. 2056. The situation of the mineral productions of England, is thus given by BakewelL From the western sic^e of the county ot Dorset, a waving line to Scarborough {fig. 244. * o, a) will part off, towards the McmboroughH^ 1. York. 7. Northampton 1. Durham 6. Leicester 11. Lancaster 16. Worcester 1. Richmond 8. Doncaster 8. Oxford 2. Whitby 7. Warwick VI. Liverpool 17. Shrewsbury 2. Skipton 3. Lincoln 9. London 3. Scarborough 8. Stow 13 Chester 18. Leommster 3. Aberconwy 4. Yarmouth 10. Winchester 4. Nottingham 9. Bath 14. Nantwich 19. Monmouth 5. Norwich 6. Huntingdon 11. Brighton 5. Derby 10. Exeter 15. Stattbrd 20. Caermarthea S.Bala 6. Bodmin German ocean, the chalk, calcareous sandstone, and other secondary strata or alluvial earths, in which no beds of workable coal or metallic veins occur. On the coast of Lincolnshire, and part of Yorkshire, there is a subterraneous forest (6) about seventeen feet under the present high water mark, and which seems to have extended eastward in the sea to a considerable distance. West of the line between Scarborough and Hull, the county is composed of secondary strata of different kinds, in many parts of which are b^s of ironstone and coal. This district is bounded on the north by mountains of metalliferous limestone, which terminate in Derbyshire, and extend in the west to the mountains of Wales and Devonshire (c, CyC, c). No metallic veins are found east of this line (r, c, c, c) in ^ny part of England. Along the western side of the island the primary and transition mountains are situated, in which metallic ores occur. They constitute the alpine parts of England, extending from Cornwall and Devonshire, through Wales, into the north-west parts of Yorkshire and Lancashire, and through Westmoreland and Cumber- Smith's very valuable County Geological Maps. ^51. The succession of alluvial, secondary, transition, and primary strata, in England, has been illu»>. trated by Professor Brande {Outlines of Geology) by two sections, supposed to be taken tlirough them. The first section {fig. 245.) commences with the blue clay of London (1), and proceeding westward through the counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorsetshire, and Devoiwhire, terminates at the Land's ♦ X3 310 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. End, in Cornwall. The rocks and earths presented in this line are, the Windsor alluvion (2), Hampshire and Salisbury-chalk (3;, alluvion (4), sandstone (5), aUuvion (6), Sherborne freestone (7), sandstone (8), 245 blue lias limestone (9), Blackdown sandstone (10), Devonshire red sandstone (11), mountam limestone (12), Dartmoor slate (13), granite (14), slate again (15), greenstone (16), Cornwall serpentine (17), slate killas (18), Cornwall granite (19), slate killas (20), and finally Cornwall granite. 2058. The second section {Jig. 246.) commences with the coal strata, and limestone resting upon slate 246 and granite in Cumberland, and thence proceeds towards the metropolis by Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire, and Hertfordshire. The passage is here exhibited from the primary rocks of Cumberland to the secondary hills of the southern counties. It shows the Cumber- Isad coal (a), limestone and slate (6), the Mossdale granite (c), slate (rf), grauwacke (e), Ribblesdale lime- stone (/), gritstone (e), Ashton coal {h), Derby limestone (i), Derby toadstone (k), gritstone (Z), gypsum (tw), sandstone (n), bmestone (o), Chamwood slate (»), Mountsorrel granite (q), red sandstone (r), lias limestone (s), Northampton oolite or freestone (t), Woburn sand (w), Dunstable chalk (v), and terminate* in the London clay (tu), with which the first section sets out 2059. The surface earth, or that which forms the outer coating of the dry parts of the globe, is formed by the detritus, or worn off parts of rocks and rocky substances. For in some places, as in chasms and vacuities between rocky layers or masses, earth occupies many feet in depth, and in otliers, as dn the summits of chalk hills or granite mountains, it hardly covers the surface. 2060. Earths are therefore variously composed, according to the rocks or strata which have supplied their particles. Sometimes they are chiefly formed from slate-rocks, as in blue clays : at other times from sandstone, as in siliceous soils ; and mostly of a mixture of clayey, slatey, and limestone rocks, blended in proportions as various as their situations. Such we may suppose to have been the state of the surface of the dry part of the globe immediately after the last disruption of its crust; but in process of time the decay of vegetables and animals form additions to the outer surface of the earths, and constitute •what are called soils ; the difference between which and earths is, that the former always contain a por- tion of vegetable or animal matter. 2061. The manner in which rocks are converted into soils. Sir H. Davy observes {Elem. of Agric. Chem. 188.), may be easily conceived by referring to the instance of soft granite, or porcelain granite. This substance consists of three ingredients, quartz, feldspar, and mica. The quartz is almost pure siliceous earth in a crystalline form . The feldspar and mica are very compounded substances ; both contain silica, alumina, and oxide of iron ; in the feldspar there is usually lime and potassa ; in the mica, lime and magnesia. When a granite rock of this kind has been long exposed to the influence of air and water, the lime and the potassa contained in its constituent parts are acted upon by water or carbonic acid ; and the oxide of iron, which is almost always in its least oxidised state, tends to combine with more oxygen ; the consequence is, that the feldspar decomposes, and likewise the mica ; but the first the most rapidly. The feldspar, which is as it were the cement of the stone, forms a fine clay : the mica, partially decom- posed, mixes with it as sand ; and the undecomposed quartz appears as gravel, or sand of different degrees of fineness. As soon as the smallest layer of earth is formed on the surface of a rock, the seeds of lichens, mosses, and other imperfect vegetables which are constantly floating in the atmosphere, and which have made it their resting-place, begin to vegetate ; their death, decomposition, and decay afford a certain quantity of organisable matter, which mixes with the earthy materials of the rock ; in this improved soil more perfect plants are capable of subsisting ; these in their turn absorb nourishment from water and the atmosphere ; and, after perishing, afford new materials to those already provided : the decomposition of the rock still continues ; and at length, by such slow and gradual processes, a soil is formed in which even forest- trees can fix their roots, and which is fitted to reward the labors of the cultivator. 2062. The formation of peaty soils is produced from very opposite causes, and it is interesting to con- template how the same effect may be produced by different means, and' the earth which supplies almost all our wants may become barren alike from the excessive application 'of art, or the utter neglect of it. Continual pulverisation and cropping, without manuring, will certainly produce a hungry barren soil ; and the total neglect of fertile tracts will, from their accumulated vegetable products, produce peat soils and bogs. Where successive generations of vegetables have grown upon a soil. Sir H. Davy observes, unless part of their produce has been carried off by man, or consumed by animals, the vegetable matter increases in such a proportion, that the soil approaches to a peat in its nature : and if in a situation where it can receive water from a higher district, it becomes spongy and permeated with that fluid, and is gene- rally rendered incapable of supporting the nobler classes of vegetables. 2063. Spurious peaty soil. Lakes and pools of Water are sometimes filled up by the accumulation of the remains of aquatic plants ; and in this case a sort of spurious peat is formed. The fermentation in these cases, however, seems to be of a different kind. Much more gaseous matter is evolved ; and the neigh- borhood of morasses, in which aquatic vegetables decompose, is usually aguish and unhealthy ; whilst that of the true peat, or peat formed on soils originally dry, is always salubrious. 2064. Soils may generally be distinguished from mere masses of earth by their friable texture, dark color, and by the presence of some vegetable fibre or carbonaceous matter. In uncultivated grounds, soils occupy only a few inches in depth on the surface, unless in crevices, where they have been washed in by rains ; and in cultivated soils their depth is generally the same as that to which the implements used in cultivation have penetrated. 2065. Much has been written on soils, and till lately, to very little purpose. All the Roman authors on husbandry treated the subject at length ; and in modem times, in this country, copious philosophical discourses on soils were published by Bacon, Evelyn, Bradley, and others ; but it may be truly said, that in no department of cultivation was ever so much written of which so little use could be made by prac- tical men. Sect. 1 1. Classification and Nomenclature of Soils, 2066. Systematic order and an agreed nomencluture are as necessary in the study of soils as of plants or animals. The number of provincial terms for soils which have foimd their way into the books on cultivation, is one reason why so little use can be made of their directions. 2067. A correct classification of soils may be founded on the presence or absence of organic and inorganic matter in their basis. This will form two grand classes, viz. primitive soils, or those composed entirely of inorganic matter, and secondary soils, or those composed of organic and inorganic matter in mixtures. These classes may be Book III. CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS. 311 subdivided into orders founded on the presence or absence of saline, metallic, and car- bonic matter. The orders may be subdivided into genera founded on the prevailing earths, salts, metals, or carbon ; the genera into species founded on their different mix- tures ; the species into varieties founded on color, or texture ; and sub- varieties founded on moisture, dryness, richness, lightness, &c. 2068v In naming the genera of soils, the first thing is to discover the prevailing earth or earths ; either the simple earths, as clay, lime, sand, or thp particular rocks from vv^hich the soil has been produced, as granite, basalt, &c. When one earth prevails, the generic name should be taken from that earth, as clayey soil, calcareous soil, &c. ; when two prevail to all appearance equally, then their names must be conjoined in naming the genus, as clay and sand, lime and clay, basalt and sand, &c. The great thing is preci- sion in applying the terms. Thus, as Sir H. Davy has observed, the term sandy soil should never be applied to any soil that does not contain at least seven eighths of sand; sandy soils that effervesce with acids should be distinguished by the name of calcareous sandy soil, to distinguish them from those that are siliceous. The term clayey soil should not be applied to any land which contains less than one sixth of impalpable earthy matter, not considerably effervescing with acids ; the word loam should be limited to soils, containing at least one third of impalpable earthy matter, copiously effervescing with acids. A soil to be considered as peaty, ought to contain at least one half of vegetable matter. In cases where the earthy part of a soil evidently consists of the de- composed matter of one particular rock, a name derived from the rock may with pro- priety be applied to it. ITius, if a fine red earth be found immediately above decom- posing basalt, it may be denominated basaltic soil. If fragments of quartz and mica be found abundant in the materials of the soil, which is often the case, it may be denominated granitic soil ; and the same principles may be applied to other like instances. In general, the soils, the materials of which are the most various and heterogeneous, are those called alluvial, or which have been formed from the deposi- tions of rivers ; and these deposits may be designated as siliceous, calcareous, or argil- laceous ; and in some cases the term saline may be added as a specific distinction, applicable, for example, at the embouchure of rivers, where their alluvial remains are overflown by the sea. 2069. In naming the species of soils, greater nicety is required to determine distinctions than in naming the genera ; and there is also some difficulty in applying or devising proper terms. The species are always determined by the mixture of matters, and never by the color or texture of that mixture which belongs to the nomenclature of varieties. Tlius a clayey soil with sand is a sandy clay, this is the name of the species ; if the mass is yellow, and it is thought worth while to notice that circumstance, then it is a yellow sandy clay, which express at once the genus, species, and variety. A soil con- taining equal parts of clay, lime, and sand, would, as a generic term, be called clay, lime, and sand; if it contained no other mixture in /considerable quantity, the term entire, might be added as a specific distinction ; and if notice was to be taken of its color or degree of comminution, it might be termed a brown, a fine, a coiarse, a stiff, or a free entire clay, lime, and sand. 2070. The following Table enumerates the more common genera, species, and varieties of soils. The application of the terms will be understood by every cultivator, though to attempt to describe the soils eitlier chemically, or empirically (as by sight, smell, or touch), would be a useless waste of time. From a very little experience in the field or garden, more may be gained in the study of soils, than from a volume of such descriptions. This table corresponds with the nomenclature adopted in the agricultural establishments of Fellenberg at Hofwyl in Switzerland, of Professor Thaer at Mcegelin in Prussia, of Professor Thouin in his lectures at Paris, and in general with that of all the continental professors. It is therefore very desirable that it should become as generally adopted as that of the Linnaean system in botany. The principle of the table may be extended sa as to include any other soil whatever. X 4 312 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. relay 1 Entire . - - .j f Earths alone - . 1 Lime ISand Entire .Entire PritnltlTe i Ferrugineous - Soils. relay - - -j Cupreous Saline - - Earths and Salts Ferrugineous - L or Metals. iUme Cupreous Saline - . Ferrugineous - .Sand - - Cupreous Saline - Loamy Peaty - - ' - Clay - - Mouldy Limy . . • .Sandy - Earths and or- ^Claye^ Loamy ... ganic remains; T,ime - - Sandy alone. Peat/ . - - .Mouldy - Clayey . . - Loamy ... .Sand - . Limy .... Peaty - .Mouldy - - Ferrugineous, loamy,&c. Ferrugineous, limy,&c. Ferrugineous, sandy,&c. •Clay - - Ferrugineous,mouldy&o Cupreous, loamy, &c. Saline, loamy, &c. rovement of Peat-Mass, 1795,) on a farm in Ayrshire, and has subsequently been brought into notice by J. Johnston, the first delineator and pro- fessor of Elkinson's system of draining. 2148. Manuring by irrigation. Irrigation with a view to conveying additions to the soil has long been practised, and is an evident imitation of the overflowing of alluvial lands, whether in meadow or aration. In the former case it is called irrigation or flooding, and in the latter, warping. Warping is used chiefly as a mode of enriching the soil by an increase of the alluvial depositions, or warp of rivers, during winter, where the surface is not under crop, and is common on the banks of the Ouse. 2149. The rationale of irrigation is thus given by Sir H. Davy. " In general in nature the operation of water is to bring earthy substances into an extreme state of division. But in the artificial watering of meadows, the beneficial effects depend upon many different causes, some chemical, some mechanical. Water is absolutely essential to vegetation ; and when land has been covered by water in the winter, or in the begin- ning of spring, the moisture that has penetrated deep into the soil, and even the subsoil, becomes a source of nourishment to the roots of the plants in the summer, and prevents those bad effects that often happen in lands in their natural state, from a long con- tinuance of dry weather. When the water used in irrigation has flowed over a calcareous Book III. CHANGING THE CONDITION OF LANDS. 325 country, it is generally found impregnated with carbonate of lime ; and in this state it tends, in many instances, to ameliorate the soil. Common river water also generally contains a certain portion of organisable matter, which is much greater after rains than at other times ; or which exists in the largest quantity when the stream rises in a cultivated country. Even in cases when the water used for flooding is pure, and free from animal or vegetable substances, it acts by causing a more equable diffusion of nutritive matter existing in the land ; and in very cold seasons it preserves the tender roots and leaves of the grass from being affected by frost. Water is of greater specific gravity at 42" Fahrenheit, than at 32°, the freezing point ; and hence, in a meadow irrigated in winter, the water immediately in contact with the grass is rarely below 40", a degree of temperature not at all prejudicial to the living organs of plants. In 1804, in the month of March, the temperature in a water meadow near Hungerford was examined by a very delicate thermometer. The temperature of the air at seven in the morning was 29°. The water was frozen above the grass. The temperature of the soil below the water in which the roots of the grass were fixed, was 43*'." Water may also operate usefully in warm seasons by moderating temperature, and thus retarding the over-rapid progress of vegetation. The consequence of this retardation will be greater magnitude and improved texture of the grosser parts of plants, a more perfect and ample developement of their finer parts, and, above all, an increase in the size of their fruits and seeds. We apprehend this to be one of the principal uses of flooding rice- grounds in the East ; for it is ascertained that the rice-plant will perfect its seeds in Europe, and even in this country, without any water beyond what is furnished by the weather, and the natural moisture of a well constituted soil. " In general, those waters which breed the best fish are the best fitted for watering meadows ; but most of the benefits of irrigation may be derived from any kind of water. It is, however, a general principle, that waters containing ferruginous impregnation, though possessed of fertilising effgcts when applied to a calcareous soil, are injurious on soils that do not effervesce with acids ; and tliat calcareous waters, which are known by the earthy deposit they afford when boiled, are of most use on siliceous soils, or other soils containing no remarkable quantity of carbonate of lime." SuBSECT. 6. Changing the Condition of Lands, in respect to Atmospherical Influence. 2150. The injluence of the weather on soils may be affected by changing the position of their surface and by sheltering or shading. 2151. Changing the condition of lands, as to solar influence, is but a limited means of improvement; but is capable of being turned to some account in gardening. It is effected by altering the position of their surface, so as that surface may be more or less at right angles to the plane of the sun's rays, according as heat or cold is to be increased or diminished. The influence of the sun's rays upon any plane are demonstrated to be as their number and perpendicularity to that plane, neglecting the effects of the atmo- sphere. Hence one advantage of ridging lands, provided the ridges run north and south ; for on such surfaces the rays of the morning sun will take effect sooner on the east side, and those of the afternoon will remain longer in operation on the west side ; whilst at midday his elevation will compensate, in some degree, for the obliquity of his rays to both sides of the ridge. In culture, on a small scale, ridges or sloping beds for winter-crops may be made south-east and north-west, with their slope to the soutli, at an angle of forty degrees, and as steep on the north side as the mass can be got to stand ; and on the south slope of such ridge, ceBteris paribus, it is evident much earlier crops may be produced than on level ground. The north side, however, will be lost during this early cropping ; but as early crops are soon gathered, the whole can be laid level in time for a main crop. Hence all the advantage of grounds sloping to the south south- east, or south-west, in point of precocity, and of those sloping to the north for lateness and diminished evaporation. Another advantage of such surfaces is, that they dry sooner after rains, whether by the operation of natural or artificial drainage ; or in the case of sloping to the south, by evaporation. 2152. Shelter, whether by walls, hedges, strips of plantation, or trees scattered over the surface, may be considered generally, as increasing or preserving heat, and lessening evaporation from the soil. But if the current of air should be of a higher temperature than that of the earth, screens against wind will prevent the earth from being so soon heated ; and from the increased evaporation arising from so great a multiplication of vegetable surface by the trees, more cold will be produced after rains, and the atmosphere kept in a more moist state, than in grounds perfectly naked. When the temperature of a current of air is lower than that of the earth, screens will prevent its carrying oflf so much heat; but more especially scattered trees, the tops of which will be chiefly cooled whilst the under surfaces of their lower branches reflect back the rays of heat as they radiate from the surface of the soil. Heat in its transmission from one body to another, follows the same laws as light : and, therefore, the temperature of the surface in a forest Y 3 320 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. will, in winter, be considerably higher than that of a similarly constituted soil exposed to the full influence of the weather. The early flowering of plants, in woods and hedges, is a proof of this : but as such soils cannot be so easily heated in summer, and are cooled like others after the sinking in of rains, or the melting of snows, the effect of the reflec- tion as to the whole year is nearly neutralised, and the average temperature of the year of such soils and situations will probably be found not greater than that of open lands. 2153. Shading the ground, whether by umbrageous trees, spreading plants, or cover- ing it with tiles, slates, moss, litter, &c. has a tendency to exclude atmospherical heat and retain moisture. Shading dry loose soils, by covering them with litter, or slates, or tiles, laid round the roots of plants, is found very beneficial, SvBSECT. 7. Rotation of Crops. 2154. Growing different crops in succession is a practice which every cultivator knows to be highly advantageous, though its beneficial influence has not yet been fully accounted for by chemists. The most general theory is, that though all plants will live on the same food, as the chemical constituents of their roots and leaves are nearly the same, yet that many species require particular substances to bring their seeds or fruits to perfection, as tlie analysis of these seeds or fruits often afford substances different from those which constitute the body of the plant. A sort of rotation may be said to take place in nature, for perennial herbaceous plants have a tendency to extend their circumference, and rot and decay at their centre, where others of a different kind spring up and succeed them. This is more especially the case with travelling roots, as in mint, strawberry, creeping crowfoot, &c. 2155. The rationale of rotation, is thus given by Su* H. Davy. " It is a great advan- tage in the convertible system of cultivation, that the whole of the manure is employed ; and that those parts of it which are not fitted for one crop, remain as nourishment for another. Thus, if the turnip is the first in the order of succession, this crop, manured with recent dung, immediately finds suflGlcient soluble matter for its nourishment ; and the heat produced in fermentation assists the germination of the seed and the growth of the plant. If, after turnips, barley with grass-seeds is sown, then the land, having been little exhausted by the turnip crop, affords the soluble parts of the decomposing manure to the grain. The grasses, rye-grass, and clover remain, which derive a small part only of their organised matter from the soil,' and probably consume the gypsum in the manure which would be useless to other crops : these plants, likewise, by their large systems of leaves, absorb a considerable quantity of nourishment from the atmosphere ; and when ploughed in at the end of two years, the decay of their roots and leaves affords manure for the wheat crop ; and at this period of the course, the woody fibre of the farm-yard manure, which contains the phosphate of lime and the other difficultly soluble parts, is broken down : and as soon as the most exhausting crop is taken, recent manure is again applied. Peas and beans, in all instances, seem well adapted to prepare ground for wheat ; and in some rich lands they are raised in alternate crops for years together. Peas and beans contain a small quantity of a matter analogous to albumen ; but it seems that the azote, which forms a constituent part of this matter, is derived from the atmo- sphere. The dry bean-leaf, when burnt, yields a smell approaching to that of de- composing animal matter ; and in its decay in the soil, may furnish principles capable of becoming a part of the gluten in wheat. Though the general composition of plants is very analogous, yet the specific difference in the products of many of them, prove that they must derive different materials from the soil ; and though the vegetables having the smallest system of leaves will proportionably most exhaust the soil of common nutritive matter, yet particular vegetables, when their produce is carried off, will require peculiar principles to be supplied to the land in which they g?ow. Strawberries and potatoes at first produce luxuriantly in virgin mould, recently turned up from pasture ; but in a few years they degenerate, and require a fresh soil. Lands, in a course of years, often cease to afford good cultivated grasses ; they become (as it is popularly said) tired of them ; and one of the probable reasons for this is, the exhaustion of the gypsum contained in the soil." 2156. The powers of vegetables to exhaust the soil of the principles necessary to their growth, is remarkably exemplified in certain funguses. Mushrooms are said never to rise in two successive seasons on the same spot ; and the production of the phenomena called fairy rings has been ascribed by Dr. Wollaston to the power of the peculiar fungus which forms it, to exhaust the soil of the nutriment necessary for the growth of the species. The consequence is, that the ring annually extends ; for no seeds will grow where their parents grew before them, and the interior part of the circle has been ex- hausted by preceding crops ; but where the fungus has died, nourishment is supplied for grass, which usually rises within the circle, coarse, and of a dark green color. 2157. A rotation is unnecessary f according to Grisenthimite ; and, in a strict chemical sense, wliat he asserts .cannot be denied, His theory is a refinement on the common Book III. MANURES. 327 idea of the uses of a rotation stated above ; but by giving some details of the constituent parts of certain grains and certain manures, he has presented it in a more clear and striking point of view than has hitherto been done. To apply the theory in every case, the constituent parts of all manures and of all plants (1st, their roots and leaves, and 2dly, their seeds, fruits, or grains,) must be known. In respect to manures this is the case, and it may be said to be in a great degree the case as to the most useful agri- cultural plants; but, unfortunately for our purpose, the same cannot be said of garden productions in general, though no branch of culture can show the advantage of a rota- tion of crops more than horticulture, in the practice of which it is found that grounds become tired of particular crops, notwithstanding that manures are applied at pleasure. If the precise effects of a rotation were ascertained, and the ingredients peculiarly neces- sary to every species pointed out, nothing could be more interesting than the results of experimental trials ; and whoever shall point out a simple and economical mode by which the potatoe may be grown successively in the same soil, and produce annually, neglecting the effects of climate, as dry and well -flavored tubers, or nearly so, as they generally pro- duce the first and second years on a new soil, will confer a real benefit on society. That wheat may be grown many years on the same soil by the use of animal manures, or such as contain gluten, Grisenthwaite's theory would justify us in belienng chemically ; and it ought to be fairly tried by such cultivators as Coke and Curwen, Till this is done in the face of the whole agricultural world, and the produce of every crop, and all the par- ticulars of its culture, accurately reported on annually, the possibility of the thing may be assented to from the premises, but will not be acted on ; and, in fact, even the best agricultural chemists do not consider that we are sufficiently advanced in that branch of the science to draw any conclusion, a priori, very much at variance with general opinion and experience. It should always be kept in mind, that it is one thing to produce a crop, and a different thing to grow crops with profit. 2158. The principles of rotations of crops, are thus laid down by Yvart and Ch. Pictet (Cours complet d' Agriculture, articles Assolement, and Succession de Culture ; and Traiti des Assolemens. Paris, 8vo. The first principle, or fundamental point is, that every plant exhausts the soil. The second, that all plants do not exhaust the soil equally. The third, that plants of different kinds do not exhaust the soil in the same manner. The fourth, that all plants do not restore to the soil the same quantity, nor the same quality of manure. The fifth, that all plants are not equally favorable to the growth of weeds. 2159. Thefdlowing consequences are drawn, from these fundamental principles : First. However well a soil may be prepared, it cannot long nourish crops of the same kind in succession, without becoming exhausted. Second. Every crop impoverishes a soil more or less, according as more or less is restored to the soil by the plant cultivated. x Third. Perpendicular rooting plants, and such as root horizontally, ought to succeed each other. Fourth. Plants of the same kind should not return too frequently in a rotation. Fifth. Two plants favorable to the growth of weeds, ought not to succeed each other. Sixth. Such plants as eminently exhaust the soil, as the grains and oil plants, should only be sown when the land is in good heart* Seventh. In proportion as a soil is found to exhaust itself by successive crops, plants which are least ex- hausting ought to be cultivatsd. 2160. Influence of rotations in destroying insects, Olivier, member of the Institute of France, has described all the insects, chiefly tipulae and muscse, which live upon the collar or crown of the roots of the cereal grasses, and he has shewn that they multiply themselves without end, when the same soil presents the same crop for several years in succession, or even crops of analogous species. But when a crop intervenes on which these insects cannot live, as beans or turnips, after wheat or oats, then the whole race of these insects perish from the field, for want of proper nourishment for their larva.^ {Mem, de la Societi Roijal et Centrale d Agr, de Paris, vol. vii.) Chap. II. Of Manures. 2161. Every specks of matter capable of promoting the growth of vegetables may be con- sidered as manure. On examining tlie constituents of vegetables, we shall find that they are composed of oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, and nitrogen, or azote, with a small proportion of saline bodies. It is evident, therefore, that the substances employed as manure should also be composed of these elements, for unless they are, there will be a deficiency in some of the elements in the vegetable itself; and it is probable that such deficiency may prevent the formation of those substances within it, for which its Y 4 328 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. peculiar organisation is contrived, and upon which its healthy existence depends. The elementary bodies above enumerated are all contained in animal, and the three first in vegetable matters. Sometimes vegetables, though very seldom, contain a small quantity of nitrogen. As certain salts are also constantly found to be present in healthy living vegetables, manures or vegetable food may, consequently, be distinguished into animal, vegetable, and saline. The authors whom we have already mentioned (2065.) as produc- ing the first chemical treatises on soils, were also the first to treat chemically of manures. Of these, the latest in the order of time is Sir H. Davy, from whose highly satisfactory work we shall extract the greater part of this chapter. Sect. I. Of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin. 2162. Decaying animal and vegetable substances constitute by far the most important class of manures, or vegetable food, and may be considered as to the theory of their operation, their specific kinds, and their preservation and application in practice. SuBSECT. 1. Tlie Theory of the Operation of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin. 2163. The rationale of organic manures is very satisfactorily given by Sir H. Davy, who, after having proved that no solid substances can enter in that state into the plant, explains the manner in which nourishment is derived from vegetable and animal sub- stances. 2164. Vegetable and animal substances deposited in the soil, as is shown by universal ex- perience, are consumed during the process of vegetation ; and they can only nourish the plant by affording solid matters capable of being dissolved by water, or gaseous substances capable of being absorbed by the fluids in the leaves of vegetables ; but such parts of them as are rendered gaseous, and pass into the atmosphere, must produce a comparatively small effect, for gases soon become diffused through the mass of the surrounding air. The great object, therefore, in the application of manure should be to make it afford as much soluble matter as possible to the roots of the plant ; and that in a slow and gra- dual manner, so that it may be entirely consumed in forming its sap and organised parts. 2165. Mucilaginous, gelatinous, saccharine, oily, and extractive Jluids, carbonic acid, and watery are substances that in their unchanged states contain almost all the principles necessary for the life of plants ; but there are few cases in which they can be applied as manures in their pure forms ; and vegetable manures, in general, contain a great ex- cess of fibrous and insoluble matter, which must undergo chemical changes before they can become the food of plants. 2166. The nature of the changes on these substances ; of the causes which occasion them, and which accelerate or retard them ; and of the products they afford, have been scientifi- cally stated and explained by our great agricultural chemist. If any fresh vegetable matter which contains sugar, mucilage, starch, or other of the vegetable compounds soluble in water, be moistened, and exposed to air, at a temperature from 55° to 80°, oxygen will soon be absorbed, and carbonic acid formed ; heat will be produced, and elastic fluids, principally carbonic acid, gaseous oxide of carbon, and hydro-carbonate will be evolved ; a dark-colored liquid, of a slightly sour or bitter taste, will likewise be formed; and if the process be suffered to continue for a time sufficiently long, nothing solid will remain, except earthy and saline matter, colored black by charcoal. The dark-colored fluid formed in the fermentation always contains acetic acid ; and when albumen or gluten exists in the vegetable substance, it likewise contains volatile alkali. In proportion as there is more gluten, albumen, or matters soluble in water, in the vegetable substances exposed to fermentation, so in proportion, all other circumstances being equal, will the process be more rapid. Pure woody fibre alone undergoes a change very slowly ; but its texture is broken down, and it is easily resolved into new aliments, when mixed with substances more liable to change, containing more oxygen and hydrogen. Volatile and fixed oils, resins, and wax, are more susceptible of change than woody fibre, when ex- posed to air and water ; but much less liable than the other vegetable compounds ; and even the most inflammable substances, by the absorption of oxygen, become gradually soluble in water. Animal matters in general are more liable to decompose than veget- able substances; oxygen is absorbed and carbonic acid and ammonia formed in the process of their putrefaction. They produce fetid, compound, elastic fluids and like- wise azote : they afford dark-colored acid and oily fluids, and leave a residuum of salts and earths mixed with carbonaceous matter. 2167. The principal animal substances which constitute their different parts, or which are found in their blood, their secretions, or their excrements, are gelatine, fibrine, mucus, fatty, or oily matter, albumen, urea, uric acid, and different other acid, saline, and earthy matters. 2168. General treatment if organic manures. Whenever manures consist principally of matter soluble in water, it is evident that their fermentation or putrefaction should be Book III. SPECIES OF MANURES. 329 prevented as much as possible ; and tlie only cases in which these processes can be useftil, are when the manure consists principally of vegetable or animal fibre. The circum- stances necessary for the putrefaction of animal substances are similar to those required for the fermentation of vegetable substances ; a temperature above the freezing point, the presence of water, and the presence of oxygen, at least in the first stage of the process. To prevent manures from decomposing, they should be preserved dry, defended from the contact of air, and kept as cool as possible. Salt and alcohol appear to owe their powers of preserving animal and vegetable substances to their attraction for water, by which they prevent its decomposing action, and likewise to their excluding air. SuBSECT. 2. Of the different Species of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin. 2169. The properties and nature of the manures in common use should be known to every cultivator : for as different manures contain different proportions of the elements necessary to vegetation, so they require a different treatment to enable them to produce their full effects in culture. 21 70. All green succulent j^lants contain saccharine or mucilaginous matter, with woody fibre, and readily ferment. They cannot, therefore, if intended for manure, be used too soon after their death. Hence the advantage of digging or ploughing in green crops, whether natural, of weeds, or sown on purpose ; they must not, however, be turned in too deep, otherwise, as Mrs. Ibbetson has shown (Philos. Mag. 1816), fermentation will be prevented by compression and exclusion of air. , Green crops should be ploughed in, if it be possible, when in flower, or at the time the flower is beginning to appear, for it is at this period that they contain the largest quantity of easily soluble matter, and that their leaves are most active in forming nutritive matter. Green crops, pond-weeds, the paring of hedges or ditches, or any kind of fresh vegetable matter, require no preparation to tit them for manure. The decomposition slowly proceeds beneath the soil; the soluble mat- ters are gradually dissolved, and the slight fermentation that goes on, checked by the want of a free communication of air, tends to render the woody fibre soluble without occasion- ing the rapid dissipation of elastic matter. When old pastures are broken up and made arable, not only has the soil been enriched by the death and slow decay of the plants which have left soluble matters in the soil, but the leaves and roots of the grasses, living at the time, and occupying so large a part of the surface, afford saccharine, mucilagin- ous, and extractive matters, which become immediately the food of the crop, and the gradual decomposition affords a supply for successive years. 2171. Rape-cake, which is used with great success as manure, contains a large quantity of mucilage, some albuminous matter, and a small quantity of oil. This manure should be used recent, and kept as dry as possible before it is applied. It forms an excellent dressing for turnip crops ; and is most economically applied by being thrown into the soil at the same time with the seed. 2172. Malt-dust consists chiefly of the infant radicle separated from the grain. Sir H. Davy never made any experiment upon this manure ; but has great reason to suppose it must contain saccharine matter, and this will account for its powerful effects. Like rape-cake, it should be used as dry as possible, and its fermentation prevented. 2173. Linseed-cake is too valuable as a food for cattle to be much employed as a manure. The water in which flax and hemp are steeped, for the purpose of obtaining the pure vegetable fibre, has considerable fertilising powers. It appears to contain a substance analogous to albumen, and likewise much vegetable extractive matter. It putrifies very readily. By the watering process, a certain degree of fermentation is ab- solutely necessary to obtain the flax and hemp in a proper state ; the water to which they have been exposed should therefore be used as a manure as soon as the vegetable fibre is removed from it. Washing with soap has been successfully substituted for watering^ by lie. 2174. Sea-weeds, consisting of difierent species of fuci, algse, and confervae, are much used as a manure on the sea-coasts of Britain and Ireland. By digesting the common fucus, which is the sea-weed usually most abundant on the coast, in boiling water, one- eighth of a gelatinous substance, will be obtained, with characters similar to mucilage. A quantity distilled gave nearly four fifths of its weight of water, but no ammonia ; the water had an empyreumatic and slightly sour taste ; the ashes contained sea-salt, car- bonate of soda, and carbonaceous matter. The gaseous matter afforded was small in quantity, principally carbonic acid, and gaseous oxide of carbon, with a little hydro-car- bonate. This manure is transient in its effects, and does not last for more than a single crop ; which is easily accounted for from the large quantity of water, or the elements of water, it contains. It decays without producing heat when exposed to the atmosphere, and seems, as it were, to melt down and dissolve away. A large heap has been entirely destroyed in less than tWo years, nothing remaining but a little black fibrous matter. Some of the firmest part of a fucus were suffered to remain in a close jar, containing at- mospheric air for a fortnight : in this time it had become very much shrivelled j the sides 830 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. of the jar were lined with dew. The air examined was found to have lost oxygen, and contained carbonic acid gas. Sea-weed is sometimes sutFered to cement before it is used ; but this process seems wholly unnecessary, for there is no fibrous matter rendered soluble in the process, and a part of the manure is lost. The best cultivators use it as fresh as it can be procured ; and the practical results of this mode of applying it are exactly conformable to the theory of its operation. The carbonic acid foraned by its in- cipient fermentation must be partly dissolved by the water set free in the same process ; and thus become capable of absorption by the roots of plants. The effects of the sea- weed, as manure, must principally depend upon this carbonic acid, and upon the soluble mucilage the weed contains ; some fucus which had fermented so as to have lost about half its weight, afforded less than one- twelfth of mucilaginous matter ; from which it may \)e fairly concluded that some of this substance is destroyed in fermentation. 2175. Dry straw of wheat, oats, barley, beans, and peas, and spoiled hay, or any other similar kind of dry vegetable matter, is, in all cases, useful manure. In general, such substances are made to ferment before they are employed, though it may be doubted whether the practice should be indiscriminately adopted. From 400 grains of dry barley- straw eight grains of matter soluble in water were obtained, which had a brown color, and tasted like mucilage. From 400 grains of wheaten straw, were obtained five grains of a similar substance. There can be no doubt that the straw of different crops, immediately ploughed into the ground, affords nourishment to plants ; but there is an objection to this method of using straw, from the difficulty of burying long straw, and from its rendering the husbandry foul. When straw is made to ferment, it becomes a more manageable manure ; but there is likewise, on the whole, a great loss of nutritive matter. More manure is perhaps supplied for a single crop ; but the land is less improved than it would be, supposing the whole of the vegetable matter could be finally divided and mixed with the soil. It is usual to carry straw that can be employed for no other purpose to the dunghill, to ferment, and decompose ; but it is worth experiment, whether it may not be more economically applied when chopped small by a proper machine, and kept dry till it is ploughed in for the use of a crop. In this case, though it would decompose much more slowly, and produce less effect at first, yet its influence would be much more lasting. 2176. Mere woody fibre seems to be the only vegetable matter that requires fermentation to render it nutritive to plants. Tanners' spent bark is a substance of this kind. A. Young, in his excellent Essay on Manure, states, " that spent bark seemed rather to injure than assist vegetation ;" which he attributes to the astringent matter that it contains. But, in fact, it is freed from all soluble substances, by the operation of water in the tan- pit ; and if injurious to vegetation, the effect is probably owing to its agency upon water, or to its mechanical eflfects. It is a substance very absorbent and retentive of moisture, and yet not penetrable by the roots of plants. 2177. Inert j^eaty matter is a substance of the same kind. It remains for years exposed to water and air without undergoing change, and in this state yields little or no nourish- ment to plants. Woody fibre will not ferment, unless some substances are mixed with it, which act the same part as the mucilage, sugar, and extractive or albuminous matters, with which it is usually associated in herbs and succulent vegetables. Lord Meadowbank has judiciously recommended a mixture of common farm-yard dung for the purpose of bringing peat into fermentation : any putrescible or fermentable substance will answer the end ; and the more a substance heats, and the more readily it ferments, the better will it be fitted for the purpose. Lord Meadowbank states, that one part of dung is suffi- cient to bring three or four parts of peat into a state in which it is fitted to be applied to land; but of course the quantity must vary according to the nature of the dung and of the peat. In cases in which some living vegetables are mixed with the peat, the ferment- ation will be more readily effected. 2178. Tanners^ spent hark, shavings of wood, and saw-dust will probably require as much dung to bring them into fermentation as the worst kind of peat. Woody fibre may be likewise prepared, so as to become a manure, by the action of life. It is evident, from the analysis of woody fibre by Gay Lussac and Thenard (which shows that it con- sists principally of the elements of water and carbon, the carbon being in larger quantities than in the other vegetable compounds) , that any process which tends to abstract carbo- naceous matter from it, must bring it nearer in composition to the soluble principles ; and this is done in fermentation by the absorption of oxygen and production of carbonic acid ; and a similar effect, it will be shown, is produced by lime. 2179. Wood-ashesy imperfectly formed, that is, wood-ashes containing much charcoal, are said to have been used with success as a manure. A part of their effects may be owing to the slow and gradual consumption of the charcoal, which seems capable, under other circumstances than those of actual combustion, of absorbing oxygen so as to become car- bonic acid. In April 1803, some well-burnt charcoal was enclosed by Sir H. Davy, in a tube, half filled with pure water, and half with common air ; the tube was hermetically sealed. The tube was opened under pure water, in the spring of 1804, at a time when. Book III. SPECIES OF MANURES. 331 the atmospheric tetiperature and pressure were nearly the same as at the commencement of the experiment. Some water rushed in ; and on expelling a little air by heat from the tube, and analysing it, it was found to contain only seven per cent, of oxygen. The water in the tube, when mixed with lime-water, produced a copious precipitate ; so that carbonic acid had evidently been formed and dissolved by the water. 2180. Manures from animal substances, in general, require no chemical preparation to fit them for the soil. The great object of the farmer is to blend them with the earthy constituents in a proper state of division, and to prevent their too rapid decomposition. 2181. The entire parts of the muscles of land animals are not commonly used as manure, though there are many cases in which such an application might be easily made. Horses, dogs, sheep, deer, and other quadrupeds that have died accidentally, or of disease, after their skins are separated, are often suffered to remain exposed to the air, or immersed in water, till they are destroyed by birds or beasts of prey, or entirely decomposed ; and in this case, most of their organised matter is lost for the land in which they lie, and a con- siderable portion of it employed in giving off noxious gases to the atmosphere. By covering dead animals with five or six times their bulk of soil, mixed with one part of lime, and suffering them to remain for a few months ; their decomposition would im- pregnate the soil with soluble matters, so as to render it an excellent manure ; and by mixing a little fresh quick -lime with it at the time of its removal, the disagreeable effluvia would be in a great measure destroyed ; and it might be applied in the same way as any other manure to crops. 2182. Fish forms a powerful manure, in whatever state it is applied ; but it cannot be ploughed in too fresh, though the quantity should be limited. A. Young records an experiment, in which herrings spread over a field, and ploughed in for wheat, produced so rank a crop, that it was entirely laid before harvest. The refuse pilchards in Corn- wall are used throughout the county as a manure, with excellent effects. They are usually mixed with sand or soil, and sometimes with sea- weed, to prevent them from raising too luxuriant a crop. The effects are perceived for several years. In the fens of Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and Norfolk, the little fishes called sticklebacks, are caught in the shallow waters in such quantities, that they form a great article of manure in the land bordering on the fens. It is easy to explain the operation of fish as a ma- nure. The skin is principally gelatine ; which, from its slight state of cohesion, is readily soluble in water : fat or oil is always found in fishes, either under the skin or in some of the viscera ; and their fibrous matter contains all the essential elements of vegetable substances. 2183. Amongst oili/ substances, blubber has been employed as a manure. It is most useful when mixed with clay, sand, or any common soil, so as to expose a large surface to the air, the oxygen of which produces soluble matter from it. Lord Somerville used blubber with great success at his farm in Surrey. It was made into a heap with soil, and retained its powers of fertilising for several successive years. The carbon and hydrogen abounding in oily substances, fully account for their effects ; and their dura- biUty is easily explained from the gradual manner in which they change by the action of air and water. 2184. Bo7ies are much used as a manure in the neighborhood of London. After being broken, and boiled for grease, they are sold to the farmer. The more divided they are, tlie more powerful are their effects. The expense of grinding them in a mill would probably be repaid by the increase of their fertilising powers ; and in the state of powder they might be used in the drill husbandry, and delivered with the seed, in the same manner as rape-cake. Bone-dust and bone-shavings, the refuse of the turning manu- facture, may be advantageously employed in the same way. The basis of bone is con- stituted by earthy salts, principally phosphate of lime, with some carbonate of lime and phosphate of magnesia ; the easily decomposable substances in bone, are fat, gelatine, and cartilage, which seems of the same nature as coagulated albumen. According to the analysis of Fourcroy and Vauquelin, ox-bones are composed of decomposable animal matter 51 ; phosphate of lime 37*7, carbonate of lime 10, phosphate of magnesia 1'3 ; — total 100. 2185. Horn is a still more powerful manure than bone, as it contains a larger quantity of decomposable animal matter. From 500 grains of ox-horn, Hatchett obtained only 1-5 grains of earthy residuum, and not quite half of this was phosphate of lime. The shavings or turnings of horn form an excellent manure, though they are not sufficiently abundant to be in common use. The animal matter in them seems to be of the nature of coagulated albumen, and it is slowly rendered soluble by the action of water. The earthy matter in horn, and still more that in bones, prevents the too rapid decomposition of the animal matter, and renders it very durable in its effects. 2186. Hair, woollen rags, and feathers, are all analogous in composition, and princi- pally consist of a substance similar to albumen united to gelatine. This is shown by the 332 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. ingenious researches of Hatchett. The theory of their operation is simikr to that of bone and horn shavings. 2187. The refuse of the different manufactures of skin and leather form very useful manures ; such as the shavings of the currier, furriers' clippings, and the offals of the tan-yard and of the glue-maker. The gelatine contained in every kind of skin is in a state fitted for its gradual solution or decomposition ; and when buried in the soil, it lasts for a considerable time, and constantly affords a supply of nutritive matter to the plants in its neighborhood. 2188. Blood contains certain quantities of all the principles found in other animal sub- stances, and is consequently a very good manure. It has been already stated that it contains fibrine ; it likewise contains albumen ; the red particles in it, which have been supposed by many foreign chemists to be coloured by iron in a particular state of combin- ation with oxygen and acid matter, Brande considers as formed of a peculiar animal substance containing very little iron. The scum taken from the boilers of the sugar- Isakers, and which is used as manure, principally consists of bullocks' blood, which has been employed for the purpose of separating the impurities of common brown sugar, by means of the coagulation of its albuminous matter by the heat of the boiler. 2189. The different species of corals, corallines, and sponges, must be considered as sub- stances of animal origin. From the analysis of Hatchett, it appears that all these substances contain considerable quantities of a matter analogous to coagulated albumen ; the sponges afford likewise gelatine. According to Merat Guillot, white coral contains equal parts of animal matter and carbonate of lime; red coral 46*5 of animal matter, and 53 "5 of carbonate of lime; articulated coralline 51 of animal matter, and 49 of carbonate of lime. These substances are never used as manure in this country, except in cases when they are accidentally mixed with sea-weed ; but it is probable that the corallines might be advantageously employed, as they are found in considerable quantity on the rocks, and bottoms of the rocky pools on many parts of our coast, where the land gradually declines towards the sea; and they might be detached by hoes, and collected without much trouble. 2190. x\mongst excrementitious animal substances used as manures, urine is the one upon which the greatest number of chemical experiments have been made, and the nature of which is best understood. The urine of the cow contains, according to the experiments of Brande : water 65 ; phosphate of lime 3 ; muriates of potassa and ammonia 15 ; sulphate of potassa 6 ; carbonates, potassa, and ammonia 4 ; urea 4. 2191. The urine of the horse, according to Fourcroy and Vauquelin, contains, of car- bonate of lime 1 1, carbonate of soda 9, benzoate of soda 24, muriate of potassa 9, urea 7, water and mucilage 940. In addition to these substances, Brande found in it phosphate of lime. The urine of the ass, the camel, the rabbit, and domestic fowls, have been submitted to different experiments, and their constitution have been found similar. In the urine of the rabbit, in addition to most of the ingredients above mentioned, Vau- quelin detected gelatine ; and the same chemist discovered uric acid in the urine of do- mestic fowls. Human urine contains a greater variety of constituents than any other species examined. Urea, uric acid, and another acid similar to it in nature, called rosacic acid, acetic acid, albumen, gelatine, a resinous matter, and various salts are found in it. The human urine differs in composition, according to the state of the body, and the nature of the food and drink made use of. In many cases of disease there is a much larger quantity of gelatine and albumen than usual in the urine, and in diabetes it con- tains sugar. It is probable that the urine of the same animal must likewise differ according to the different nature of the food and drink used; and this will account for discordances in some of the analysis that have been published on the subject Urine is very liable to change, and to undergo the putrefactive process ; and that of carnivorous animals more rapidly than that of graminivorous animals. In proportion as there is more gelatine or albumen in urine, so in proportion does it putrefy more quickly The species of urine that contains most albumen, gelatine, and urea, are the best as manures ; and all urine contains the essential elements of vegetables in a state of solution. During the putrefaction of urine the greatest part of the soluble animal matter that it contains is destroyed: it should consequently be used as fresh as possible; but if not mixed with solid matter, it should be diluted with water, as, when pure, it contains too large a quan- tity of animal matter to form a proper fluid nourishment for absorption by tlie roots of plants. 2192. Putrid urine abounds in ammoniacal salts; and though less active than fresh urine, is a very powerful manure. According to a recent analysis published by Berze- lius, 1000 parts of urine are composed of, water 933 ; urea 30*1 ; uric acid 1 ; muriate of ammonia, free lactic acid, lactate of ammonia, and animal matter 17*14. Tlie remainder different salts, phosphates, sulphates, and muriates. 2193. Dung of birds. Amongst excrementitious solid substances used as manures, one of the most powerful is the dung of birds that feed on animal food, particularly the dung of Book III. SPECIES OF MANURES. 33S sea-birds. The guano, which is used to a great extent in South America, and which is the manure that fertilizes the sterile plains of Peru, is a production of this kind. It exists abundantly, as we are informed *by Humboldt, on the small islands in the South Sea, at Chinche, Ilo, Iza, and Arica. Fifty vessels are laden with it annually at Chinche, each of which carries from 1500 to 2000 cubical feet. It is used as a manure only in very small quantities ; and particularly for crops of maize. Some experiments were made on specimens of guano in 1805. It appeared as a fine brown powder ; it blackened by heat, and gave off strong ammoniacal fumes; treated with nitric acid, it afforded uric acid. In 1806, Fourcroy and Vauquelin published an elaborate analysis of guano. They state that it contains a fourth part of its weight of uric acid, partly saturated with am- monia, and partly with potassa ; some phosphoric acid combined with the bases, and likewise with lime. Small quantities of sulphate and muriate of potassa, a little fatty matter, and some quartzose sand. It is easy to explain its fertilizing properties: from its composition it might be supposed to be a very powerful manure. It requires water for the solution of its soluble matter to enable it to produce its full beneficial effect on crops. 2194. The dung of sea-birds has never been much used as a manure in this country ; but it is probable that even the soil of the small islands on our coast much frequented by them would fertilise. Some dung of sea-birds, brought from a rock on the coast of Merionethshire, produced a powerful, but transient effect on grass. The rains in our climate must tend very much to injure this species of manure, where it is exposed to them, soon after its deposition ; but it may probably be found in great perfection in caverns or clefts in rocks haunted by cormorants and gulls. Some recent cormorants* dung, when examined, had not at all the appearance of guano ; it was of a greyish- white colour; had a very fetid smell, like that of putrid animal matter; when acted on by quick-lime, it gave abundance of ammonia; treated with nitric acid, it yielded uric acid. 2195. Nv^ht soil, it is well known, is a very powerful manure, and very liable to de- compose. It differs in composition ; but always abounds in substances composed of carbon, hydrogen, azote, and oxygen. From the analysis of Berzelius, it appears that a part of it is always soluble in water; and in whatever state it is used, whether recent or fermented, it supplies abundance of food to plants. The disagreeable smell of night- soil may be destroyed by mixing it with quick-lime ; and if exposed to the atmosphere in thin layers, strewed over with quick-lime in fine weather, it speedily dries, is easily pulverised, and in this state, may be used in the same manner as rape-cake, and delivered into the furrow with the seed. The Chinese, who have more practical know- ledge of the use and application of manures than any other people existing, mix their night-soil with one third of its weight of fat marl, make it into cakes, and dry it by exposure to the sun. These cakes, we are informed by the French missionaries, have no disagreeable smell, and form a common article of commerce of the empire. The earth, by its absorbent powers, probably prevents, to a certain extent, the action of moisture upon the dung, and likewise defends it from the effects of air. Desiccated night-soil, in a state of powder, forms an article of internal commerce in France, and is known under the name oi poudrette. In London it is mixed with quick-lime, and sold in cakes under the name of " desiccated night-soil. " 2196. Pigeons^ dung comes next in order, as to fertilising power. 100 grains di- gested in hot water for some hours, produced 23 grains of soluble matter, which afforded abundance of carbonate of ammonia by distillation ; and left carbonaceous matter, saline matter, principally common salt, and carbonate of lime as a residuum. Pigeons' dung, when moist, readily ferments, and after fermentation, contains less soluble matter than before; from 100 parts of fermented pigeons' dung, only eight parts of soluble matter were obtained, which gave proportionably less carbonate of ammonia in distillation than recent pigeons' dung. It is evident that this manure should be applied as new as possible; and when dry, it may be employed in the same manner as the other manures capable of being pulverised. The soil in woods, where great flocks of wood- pigeons roost, is often highly impregnated with their dung, and it cannot be doubted, would form a valuable manure. Such soil will often yield ammonia when distilled with lime. In the winter, likewise, it usually contains abundance of vegetable matter, the remains of decayed leaves, and the dung tends to bring the vegetable matter into a state of solution. Manuring was, and still is, in great esteem in Persia. 21 97. The dung of domestic fowls approaches very nearly in its nature to pigeons' dung. Uric acid has been found in it. It gives carbonate of ammonia by distillation, and im- mediately yields soluble matter to water. It is very liable to ferment. The dung of fowls is employed, in common with that of pigeons, by tanners, to bring on a slight degree of putrefaction in skins that are to be used for making soft leather ; for this purpose the dung is diffused through water. In this state it rapidly undergoes putrefaction, and brings on a similar change in the skin. The excrements of dogs are employed by the tanner with similar effects. In all cases, the contents of the grainer, as the pit is called in which soft skins are prepared by dung, must form a very useful manure. S9i SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2198. Rabbits* dung has never been analysed. It is used with great success as a manure by some farmers, who find it profitable to keep rabbits in such a manner as to preserve their dung. It is laid on as fresh as possible, and is found better the less it has fermented. 2199. The dung of cattle, oxen, and cows, has been chemically examined by Einhof and Thaer. They found that it contained matter soluble in water ; and that it gave in fermentation nearly the same products as vegetable substances, absorbing oxygen, and producing carbonic acid gas. 2200. The recent dung of sheep and of deer affords, when long boiled in water, solu- ble matters which equal from two to three per cent, of their weight. These soluble sub- stances, procured by solution and evaporation, when examined, contain a very small quantity of matter analogous to animal mucus ; and are principally composed of a bitter extract, soluble both in water and in alcohol. They give ammoniacal fumes by distil- lation, and appear to diflPer very little in composition. Some blades of grass were watered for several successive days with a solution of these extracts ; they evidently became greener in consequence, and grew more vigorously than grass in other respects under the same circumstances. The part of the dung of cattle, sheep, and deer, not soluble in water, appears to be mere woody fibre, and precisely analogous to the residuum of those vegetables that form tlieir food after they have been deprived of all their soluble materials. 2201. The dung of horses gives a brown fluid, which, when evaporated, yields a bitter extract, which affords ammoniacal fumes more copiously than that from the dung of oxen. 2202. In the treatment of the pure dung of cattle, sheep, and horses, there seems no reason why it should be made to ferment except in the soil, like the other pure dungs ; or, if suffered to ferment, it should be only in a very slight degree. The grass, in the neighborhood of recently voided dung, is always coarse and dark green ; some persons have attributed this to a noxious quality in unfermenting dung ; but it seems to be rather the result of an excess of food furnished to the plants. 2203. Street and road dung and the sweepings of houses may be all regarded as com- posite manures ; the constitution of them is necessarily various, as they are derived from a number of different substances. These manures are usually applied in a proper manner, without being fermented. 2204. Soot, which is principally formed from the combustion of pit-coal or coal, gene- nerally contains likewise substances derived from animal matters. This is a very powerful manure. It aflfbrds ammoniacal salts by distillation, and yields a brown extract to hot water, of a bitter taste. It likewise contains an empyreumatic oil. Its great basis is charcoal, in ^ state in which it is capable of being rendered soluble by the action of oxygen and water. This manure is well fitted to be used in the dry state, throvm into the ground with the seed, and requires no preparation. SuBSECT. 3. Of the fermenting, preserving, and applj/ing of Manures of Animal and Vegetable Origin. 2205. On the management of organic manures depends much of their value as food to plants. The great mass of manures procured by the cultivator are a mixture of animal and vegetable matters, and the great source of supply is the farm or stable yard. Here the excrementitious matter of horses, cattle, swine, and poultry, is mixed with straw, haulm, chaff, and various kinds of litter. To what degree should this be fermented before it is applied to the soil ? And how can it best be preserved when not immediately wanted? 2206. Jl slight incipient fermentation is undoubtedly of use in the dunghill ; for, by means of it a disposition is brought on in the woody fibre to decay and dissolve, when it is carried to the land, or ploughed into the soil ; and woody fibre is always in great ex- cess in the refuse of the farm. Too great a degree of fermentation is, however, very prejudicial to the composite manure in the dunghill : it is better that there should be no fermentation at all before the manure is used, than that it should be carried too far. The excess of fermentation tends to the destruction and dissipation of the most useful part of the manure ; and the ultimate results of this process are like those of combus- tion. It is a common practice amongst farmers to suffer the farm-yard dung to ferment till the fibrous texture of the vegetable matter is entirely broken down ; and till the manure becomes perfectly cold, and so soft as to be easily cut by the spade. Inde- pendent of the general theoretical views unfavorable to this practice, founded upon the nature and composition of vegetable substances, there are many arguments and facts which show that it is prejudicial to the interests of the farmer. 2207. During the violent fermentation which is necessar)"- for reducing farm-yard manure to the state in which it is called short muck, not only a large quantity of fluid, but likewise of gaseous matter is lost ; so much so, that the dung is reduced one half, or two Book III. SPECIES OF MANURES. S55 thirds in weight ; and the principal elastic matter disengaged, is carbonic acid with some ammonia ; and both these, if retained by the moisture in the soil, as has been stated before, are capable of becoming a useful nourishment of plants. In October, 1808, Sir H. Davy filled a large retort capable of containing three pints of water, with some hot fermenting manure, consisting principally of the litter and dung of cattle ; he adapted a small receiver to the retort, and connected the whole with a mercurial pneumatic apparatus, so as to collect the condensible and elastic fluids which might rise from the dung. The receiver soon became lined with dew, and drops began in a few hours to trickle down the sides of it. Elastic fluid likewise was generated ; in three days thirty- five cubical inches had been formed, which, when analysed, were found to contain twenty-one cubical inches of carbonic acid, the remainder was hydrocarbonate mixed with some azote, probably no more than existed in the common air in the receiver. The fluid matter collected in the receiver at the same time amounted to nearly half an ounce. It had a saline taste, and a disagreeable smell, and contained some acetate and carbonate of ammonia. Finding such products given oiF from fermenting litter, he introduced the beak of another retort, filled with similar dung, very hot at the time, in the soil amongst the roots of some grass in the border of a garden ; in less than a week a very distinct effect was produced on the grass ; upon the spot exposed to the influence of the matter disengaged in fermentation, it grew with much more luxuriance than the grass in any other part of the garden. — Besides the dissipation of gaseous matter, when ferment- ation is pushed to the extreme, there is another disadvantage in the loss of heat, which, if excited in the soil, is useful in promoting the germination of the seed, and in assisting the plant in the first stage of its growth, when it is most feeble and most liable to disease : and the fermentation of manure in the soil must be particularly favorable to tiie wheat crop, in preserving a genial temperature beneath the surface late in autumn and during winter. Again, it is a general principle in chemistry, that in all cases of decomposition, substances combine much more readily at the moment of their disengagement, than after they have been perfectly formed. And in fermentation beneath the soil the fluid matter produced is applied instantly, even whilst it is warm, to the organs of the plant, and consequently is more likely to be efficient, than in manure that has gone through the process ; and of which all the principles have entered into new combinations. 2208. Checking fermentation by covering. *' There are reasons sufficiently strong,*' Grisenthwaite observes, " to discourage the practice of allovdng dung heaps to ferment and rot without interruption. It appears that public opinion has slowly adopted the decisions of chemical reasoning, and dung-pies^ as they are called, have been formed with a view to save what was before lost ; a stratum of mould, sustaining the heap, being placed to receive the fluid parts, and a covering of mould being applied to prevent the dissipation of the aerial, or gaseous products. These purposes and contrivances, unfor- tunately, like many of the other operations of husbandry, were not directed by scientific knowledge. To cover is so commonly believed to confine, that there is no wonder that the practical cultivator adopted it in this instance from such a consideration. But it is in vain ; the elasticity of the gases generated is such as no covering whatever could possibly confine. If it were perfectly compact, it could only preserve as much carbonic acid as is equal to the volume or bulk of air within it ; a quantity too inconsiderable to be regarded, could it even be saved ; but every particle of it must be disengaged, and lost, when the covering is removed." 2209. Checking fermentation by watering is sometimes recommended ; but this prac- tice is inconsistent with just chemical views. It may cool the dung for a short time ; but moisture, as before stated, is a principal agent in all processes of decomposition. Dry fibrous matter will never ferment. Water is as necessary as air to the process ; and to supply it to fermenting dung, is to supply an agent which will hasten its decay. In all cases when dung is fermenting, there are simple tests by which the rapidity of the pro- cess, and consequently the injury done, may be discovered. If a thermometer, plunged into the dung, does not rise to above one hundred degrees of Fahrenheit, there is little danger of much teriform matter flying off". If the temperature is higher, the dung should be immediately spread abroad. When a piece of paper, moistened in muriatic acid, held over the steams arising from a dunghill, gives dense fumes, it is a certain test that the decomposition is going too far, for this indicates that volatile alkali is disengaged. 2210. In favor of the application of farm-yard dung in a recent state , a great mass of facts may be found in the writings of scientific agriculturists. A. Young, in the Essay on Manures, already quoted, adduces a number of excellent authorities in support of the plan. Many, who doubted, have been lately convinced ; and perhaps there is no subject of investigation in which there is such a union of theoretical and practical evidence. Within the last seven years Coke has entirely given up the system formerly adopted on his farm, of applying fermented dung ; and his crops have been since as good as they ever were, and his manure goes nearly twice as far. A great objection against 33 magnesia. When a magnesian limestone is burnt, the magnesia is deprived of carbonic acid much sooner than the lime ; and if there is not much vegetable or animal matter in the soil to supply by its decomposition carbonic acid, the magnesia will remain for a long while in the caustic state ; and in this state acts as a poison to certain vegetables. And that more magnesian lime may be used upon rich soils, seems to be owing to the circumstance that the decomposition of the manure in them supplies carbonic acid. And magnesia, in its mild state, i. e. fully combined with car- bonic acid, seems to be always a useful constituent of soils. Carbonate of magnesia (procured by boiling the solution of magnesia in supercarbonate of potassa,) was thrown upon grass, and upon growing wheat and barley, so as to render the surface white ; but the vegetation was not injured in the slightest degree. And one of the most fertile parts of Cornwall, the Lizard, is a district in which the soil contains mild magnesian earth. It is obvious, from what has been said, that lime from the magnesian limestone may be applied in large quantities to peats; and that where lands have been injured by the application of too large a quantity of magnesian lime, peat will be a proper and efficient remedy. 2228. A siiTiple test of rnagnesia in a limestone is its slight effervescence with acids, and its rendering diluted nitric acid, or aqua fortis, milky. From the analysis of Tennant, it appears to contain from 20*3 to 22-5 magnesia ; 29*5 to 31 •? lime ; 47-2 carbonic acid ; 0 8 clay and oxide of iron. Magnesia limestones are usually colored brown or pale yellow. They are found in Somersetshire, Leicestershire, Derbysliire, Shropshire, Z 2 340 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTlTRE. Part II. Durham, and Yorkshire ; and in many parts of Ireland, particularly near Belfast. In general, when limestones are not magnesian, their purity will be indicated by their loss of weight in burning ; the more they lose, the larger is the quantity of calcareous matter they contain. The magnesian limestones contain more carbonic acid than the common limestones ; and I have found all of them lose more than half their weight by calcination. 2229. Gypsum. Besides being used in the forms of lime and carbonate of lime, cal- careous matter is applied for the purposes of agriculture in other combinations. One of these bodies is gypsum or sulphate of lime. This substance consists of sulphuric acid (the same body that exists combined with water in oil of vitriol, and lime ; and when dry it is composed of 55 parts of lime and 75 parts of sulphuric acid. Common gypsum or selenite, such as that found at Shotover Hill, near Oxford, contains, besides sulphuric acid and lime, a considerable quantity of water ; and its composition may be thus expressed: sulphuric acid one proportion 75 ; lime one proportion 55'^ water two pro- portions 34. 2230. The nature of gypsum is easily demonstrated ; if oil of vitriol be added to quick-lime, there is a violent heat produced ; when the mixture is ignited, water is given off, and gypsum alone is the result, if the acid has been used in sufficient quantity ; and gypsum mixed with quick -lime, if the quantity has been deficient. Gypsum, free from water, is sometimes found in nature, when it is called anhydrous selenite. It is distin- guished from common gypsum by giving off no water when heated. When gypsum, free from water, or deprived of water by heat, is made into a paste with water, it rapidly sets by combining with that fluid. Plaster of Paris is powdered dry gypsum, and its pro- perty as a cement, and its use in making casts, depends upon its solidifying a certain quantity of water, and making with it a coherent mass. Gypsum is soluble in about 500 times its weight of cold water, and is more soluble in hot water ; so that when water has been boiled in contact with gypsum, crystals of this substance are deposited as the water cools. Gypsum is easily distinguished by its properties of affording precipitates to solutions of oxalates and of barytic salts. It has been much used in America, where it was first introduced by Franklin on his return from Paris, who had been much struck with its effects there. He sowed the words. This has been sown udth gypsum, on a field of lucern, near Washington ; the effects astonished every passenger, and the use of the manure quickly became general, and signally efficacious. It has been advan- tageously used in Kent, but in most counties of England it has failed, though tried in various ways, and upon different crops. 2231. Very discordant notions have been formed as to the mode of operation of gypsum. It has been supposed by some persons to act by its power of attracting moisture from the air ; but this agency must be comparatively insignificant. When combined with water, it retains that fluid too powerfully to yield it to the roots of the plant, and its adhesive attraction for moisture is inconsiderable ; the small quantity in which it is used likewise is a circumstance hostile to this idea. It has been erroneously said that gypsum assists the putrefaction of animal substances, and the decomposition of manure. 2232. The ashes of saintfoin, clover, and rye-grass, afford considerable quantities of gypsum ; and the substance probably is intimately combined as a necessary part of their woody fibre. If this be allowed, it is easy to explain the reason why it operates in such small quantities ; for the whole of a clover crop, or saintfoin crop, on an acre, according to estimation, would afford by incineration only three or four bushels of gypsum. The reason why gypsum is not generally efficacious, is probably because most cultivated soils contain it in sufficient quantities for the use of the grasses. In the common course of cul- tivation, gypsum is furr ished in the manure ; for it is contained in stable dung, and in the dung of all cattle fed on grass ; and it is not taken up in corn crops, or crops of peas and beans, and in very small quantities in turnip crops ; but where lands are exclusively devoted to pasturage and hay, it will be continually consumed. Should these statements be confirmed by future enquiries, a practical inference of some value may be derived from them. It is possible that lands which have ceased to bear good crops of clover, or artificial grasses, may be restored by being manured with gypsum. This substance is found in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Somersetshire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, &c. and requires only pulverisation for its preparation. 2233. Ujmn the use of sulphate of iron, or green vitriol, which is a salt produced from peat in Bedfordshire, some very interesting documents have been produced by Dr. Pearson ; and there is little doubt that the peat salt and the vitriolic water acted chiefly by producing gypsum. The soils on which both are efficacious are calcareous ; and sulphate of iron is decomposed by the carbonate of lime in such soils. The sulphate of iron consists of sulphuric acid and oxide of iron, and is an acid and a very soluble salt ; when a solution of it is mixed with carbonate of lime, the sulphuric acid quits the oxide of iron to unite to the lime, and the compounds produced are insipid and comparatively insoluble. Book hi. SPECIES OF MINERAL MANURES. 341 2234. Vitriolic impregnations in soils where there is no calcareous matter are injurious ; but it is probably in consequence of their supplying an excess of ferruginous matter to the sap. Oxide of iron, in small quantities, forms a useful part of soils ; it is found in the ashes of plants, and probably is hurtful only in its acid combinations. The ashes of all peats do not afford gypsum. In general, when a recent peat-ash emits a strong smell, resembling that of rotten eggs when acted upon by vinegar, it will furnish gypsum. 2235. Phosphate of lime is a combination of phosphoric acid and lime, one proportion of each. It is a compound insoluble in pure water, but soluble in water containing any acid matter. It forms the greatest part of calcined bones. It exists in most excremen- titious substances, and is found both in the straw and grain of wheat, barley, oats, and rye, and likewise in beans, peas, and tares. It exists in some places in these islands native, but only in very small quantities. Phosphate of lime is generally conveyed to the land in the composition of other manure, and it is probably necessary to corn crops and other white crops. 2236. Bone-aslies calcined and ground to powder will probably be found useful on arable lands containing much vegetable matter, and may perhaps enable soft peats to produce wheat ; but the powdered bone in an uncalcined state is much to be preferred in all cases when it can be procured. 2237. The saline compounds of magnesia will require very little discussion as to their uses as manures. In combination with sulphuric acid, magnesia forms a soluble salt. This substance, it is stated by some enquirers, has been found of use as a manure ; but it is not found in nature in sufficient abundance, nor is it capable of being made artificially sufficiently cheap to be of useful application in the common course of husbandry. 2238. Wood-ashes consist principally of the vegetable alkali united to carbonic acid ; and as this alkali is found in almost all plants, it is not difficult to conceive that it may form an essential part of their organs. The general tendency of the alkalines is to give solubility to vegetable matters ; and in this way they may render carbonaceous and other substances capable of being taken up by the tubes in the radical fibres of plants. The vegetable alkali likewise has a strong attraction for water, and even in small quantities may tend to give a due degree of moisture to the soil, or to other manures ; though this operation, from the small quantities used or existing in the soil, can be only of a second- ary kind. 2239. The mineral alkali or soda is found in the ashes of sea-weed, and may be pro- cured by certain chemical agencies from common salt. Common salt consists of the metal named sodium, combined with chlorine ; and pure soda consists of the same metal united to oxygen. When water is present, which can afford oxygen to the sodium, soda may be obtained in several modes from salt. Tlie same reasoning will apply to the operation of the pure mineral alkali, or the carbonated alkali, as to that of the vegetable alkali ; and when common salt acts as a manure, it is probably by entering into the composition of the plant in the same manner as gypsum, phosphate of lime, and the alkalies. Sir John Pringle has stated, that salt in small quantities assists the decomposi- tion of animal and vegetable matter. This circumstance may render, it useful in certain soils. Common salt, likewise, is offensive to insects. In small quantities it is some- times a useful manure, and it is probable that its efficacy depends upon many com- bined causes. Some persons have argued against the employment of salt ; because when used in large quantities, it either does no good, or renders the ground sterile ; but this is a very unfair mode of reasoning. That salt in large quantities rendered land barren, was known long before any records of agricultural science existed. We read in the Scriptures, that Abimelech took the city of Shechem, " and beat down the city, and sowed it with salt;" that the soil might be for ever unfruitful. Virgil reprobates a salt soil ; and Pliny, though he recommends giving salt to cattle, yet affirms, that when strewed over land it renders it barren. But these are not arguments against a proper application of it. Refuse salt in Cornwall, which, however, likewise contains some of the oil and exuviee of fish, has long been known as an admirable manure. And the Cheshire farmers contend for the benefit of the peculiar produce of their county. It is not unlikely, that the same causes influence the efl'ects of salt, as those which act in modifying the operation of gypsum. Most lands in this island, particularly those near the sea, probably contain a sufficient quantity of salt for all the purposes of vegetation ; and in such cases the supply of it to the soil will not only be useless, but may be injurious. In great storms the spray of the sea has been carried more than fifty miles from the shore ; so that from this source salt must be often supplied to the soil. Salt is found in almost all sandstone rocks, and it must exist in the soil derived from these rocks. It is a constituent likewise of almost every kind of animal and vegetable manure. 2240. Other compounds. Besides these compounds of the alkaline earths and alkalies, many others have been recommended for the purposes of increasing vegetation j such Z 3 342 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. f are nitre, or the nitrous acid combined with potassa. Sir Kenelm Digby states, that he made barley grow very luxuriantly by watering it with a very weak solution of nitre ; but he is too speculative a writer to awaken confidence in his results. This substance con- sists of one proportion of azote, six of oxygen, and one of potassium ; and it is not unlikely that it may furnish azote to fonja albumen or gluten in those plants that contain them ; but the nitrous salts are too valuable for other purposes to be used as manures. Dr. Home states, that sulphate of potassa, which was just now mentioned as found in the ashes of some peats, is a useful manure. But Naismith (Elements of Agriculture, p. 78.) questions his results ; and quotes experiments hostile to his opinions, and, as he conceives, unfavorable to the efficacy of any species of saline manure. Much of the discordance of the evidence relating to the efficacy of saline substances depends upon the circumstance of their having been used in different proportions, and, in general, in quantities much too large. 2241. Solutions of saline substances were used twice a week, in the quantity of two ounces, on spots of grass and corn, sufficiently remote from each other to prevent any in- terference of results. The substances tried were super-carbonate, sulphate, acetate, nitrate, and muriate of potassa ; sulphate of soda ; sulphate, nitrate, muriate, and carbonate of am- monia. It was found, that in all cases when the quantity of the salt equalled one thirtieth part of the weight of the water, the effects were injurious ; but least so in the instance of the carbonate, sulphate, and muriate of ammonia. When the quantities of the salts were one three-hundredth part of the solution, the effects were different. The plants watered with the solutions of the sulphates grew just in the same manner as similar plants watered with rain-water. Those acted on by the solution of nitre, acetate, and super-carbonate of potassa, and muriate of ammonia, grew rather better. Those treated with the solution of carbonate of ammonia grew most luxuriantly of all. This last result is what might be expected, for carbonate of ammonia consists of carbon, hydrogen, azote, and oxygen. There was, however, another result which was not anticipated ; the plants watered with solution of nitrate of ammonia did not grow better than those watered with rain-water. The solution reddened litmus paper ; and probably the free acid exerted a prejudicial effect, and interfered with the result. 2242. Soot doubtless owes part of its efficacy to the ammoniacal salts it contains. The liquor produced by the distillation of coal contains carbonate and acetate of amonia, and is said to be a very good manure. 2243. Soapers* waste has been recommended as a manure, and it has been supposed that its efficacy depended upon the different saline matters it contains ; but their quantity is very minute indeed, and its principal ingredients are mild lime and quick-lime. In the soapers' waste, from the best manufactories, there is scarcely a trace of alkali. Lime, moistened with sea-water, affords more of this substance, and is said to have been used in some cases with more benefit than common lime. 2244. The result of Sir H. Davy^s discussion as to the extent of the effects of saline sub- stances on vegetation, is, that except the ammoniacal compounds, or the compounds con- taining nitric, acetic, and carbonic acid, none of them can afford by their decomposition any of the common principles of vegetation — carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The alkaline sulphates and the earthy muriates* are so seldom found in plants, or are found in such minute quantities, that it can never be an object to apply them to the soil. The earthy and alkaline substances seem never to be formed in vegetation ; and there is every reason to believe, that they are never decomposed ; for, after being absorbed, they are found in their aslies. The metallic bases of them cannot exist in contact with aqueous fluids ; and these metallic bases, like other metals, have not as yet been resolved into any other forms of matter by artificial processes ; they combined readily with other elements ; but tliey remain indestructible, and can be traced undiminished in quantity, through their diversified combinations. Chap. III. Of live Agency of Heat, Light, Electricity, and Water, in Vegetable Culture. 2245. The particular agency of heat, light, and water in vegetation and culture has been so frequently illustrated, that it only remains to give a general idea of their natures, and to offer some remarks on electricity. Sect. I. Of Heat and Light. 2246. Tlie heat of the sun is the cause of growth, and its light the cause of maturity, in the veo'etable kingdom. This is universally acknowledged : animals will live without or with very little light ; but no plants whatever can exist for any time without the presence of this element. The agency of electricity in vegetation is less known. Book III. HEAT AND LIGHT. 343 2247. Two opinions are current re^)ecting the nature of heat. By some philosophers rt is conceived to be a peculiar subtile fluid, of which the particles repel each other, but have a strong attraction for the particles of other matter. By others it is considered as a motion or vibration of the particles of matter, which is supposed to differ in velocity in different cases, and thus to produce the different degrees of temperature. Whatever decision be ultimately made respecting these opinions, it is certain that there is matter moving in the space between us and the heavenly bodies capable of communicating heat ; the motions of which are rectilineal : thus the solar rays produce heat in acting on the surface of the earth. The beautiful experiments of Dr. Herschel have shown that there are rays transmitted from the sun which do not illuminate, and which yet produce more heat than the visible rays ; and Ritter and Dr. Wollaston have shown that there are other invisible rays distinguished by their chemical effects. 2248. Heat is radiated bij the sun to the earth, and if suffered to accumulate. Dr. Wells observes, would quickly destroy the present constitution of our globe. This evil is prevented by the radiation of heat from the earth to the heavens, during the night, when it receives from them little or no heat in return. But through the wise economy of means, which is witnessed in all the operations of nature, the prevention of this evil is made the source of great positive good. For the surface of the earth, having thus become colder than the neighboring air, condenses d, part of the watery vapor of the atmosphere into dew, the utility of which is too manifest to require elucidation. This fluid appears chiefly where it is most wanted, on herbage and low plants, avoiding, in great measure, rocks, bare earth, and considerable masses of water. Its production, too, tends to prevent the injury that might arise from its own cause ; since the precipitation of water, upon the tender parts of plants, must lessen the cold in them, which occasions it. The prevention, either wholly or in part, of cold, from radiation, in substances on the ground, by the interposition of any solid body between them and the sky, arises in the following man- ner : the lower body radiates its heat upwards, as if no other intervened between it and the sky ; but the loss, which it hence suffers, is more or less compensated by what is radi- ated to it, from the body above, the under surface of which possesses always the same, or very nearly the same temperature as the air. The manner in which clouds prevent, or occasion to be small, the appearance of a cold at night, upon the surface of the earth, is by radiating heat to the earth, in return for that which they intercept in its progress from the earth towards the heavens. For although, upon the sky becoming suddenly cloudy during a calm night, a naked thermometer, suspended in the air, commonly rises 2 or 3 degrees : little of this rise is to be attributed to the heat evolved by the condensation of watery vapor in the atmosphere, for the heat so extricated must soon be dissipated ; whereas the effect of greatly lessening, or preventing altogether, the appearance of a superior cold on the earth to that of the air, will be produced by a cloudy sky, during the whole of a long night. 2249. Dense clouds, near the earth, reflect back the heat they receivejrom it by radiation. But similar dense clouds, if very high, though they equally intercept the communication of the earth with the ^ky, yet being, from their elevated situation, colder than the earth, will radiate to it less heat than they receive from it, and may, consequently, admit of bodies on its surface becoming several degrees colder than the air. Islands, and parts of continents close to the sea, being, by their situations, subject to a cloudy sky, will, from the smaller quantity of heat lost by them through radiation to the heavens, at night, in addition to the reasons commonly assigned, be less cold in winter, than countries con- siderably distant from any ocean. 2250. Fogs, like clouds, will arrest heat, which is radiated upwards by the earth, and if they be very dense, and of considerable perpendicular extent, may remit to it as much as they receive. Fogs do not, in any instance, furnish a real exception to the general rule, that whatever exists in the atmosphere, capable of stopping or impeding the passage of radiant heat, will prevent or lessen the appearance at night of a cold on the surface of the earth, greater than that of the neighboring air. The water deposited upon tiie earth, during a fog at night, may sometimes be derived from two different sources, one of which is a precipitation of moisture from a considerable part of the atmosphere, in consequence of its general cold ; the other, a real formation of dew, from the condens- ation, by means of the superficial cold of the ground, of the moisture of that portion of the air, which comes in contact with it, In such a state of things, all bodies will be- come moist, but those especially which most i-eadily attract dew in clear weather. 2251. When bodies become cold by radiation, the degree of effect observed must depend, not only on their radiating power, but in part also on the greater or less ease with which they can derive heat, by conduction, from warmer substances in contact with them. Bodies, exposed in a clear night to the sky, must radiate as much heat to it during the prevalence of wind, as they would do if the air were altogether still. But in the former case, little or no cold will be observed upon them above that of the atmosphere, as the frequent application of warm air must quickly return a heat equal, or nearly so, to that Z 4 344 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. which they had lost by radiation. A slight agitation of the air is sufficient to produce some effect of this kind ; though, as has already been said, such an agitation, when the air is very pregnant with moisture, will render greater the quantity of dew, one requisite for a considerable production of this fluid being more increased by it, than another is diminished. 2252. It has been remarked, that the hurtful effects of cold occur chiefly in hollow places. If this be restricted to what happens on the serene and calm nights, two reasons from different sources are to be assigned for it. The first is, that the air being stiller in such a situation, than in any other, the cold, from radiation, in the bodies which it contains, will be less diminished by renewed applications of warmer air ; the second, that from the longer continuance of the same air in contact with the ground, in depressed places than in others, less dew will be deposited, and therefore less heat extricated during its formation. 2253. An observation closely connected with the preceding, namely, that in clear and still nights, frosts are less severe upon the hills, than in neighboring plains, has excited more attention, chiefly from its contradicting what is commonly regarded an established fact, that the cold of the atmosphere always increases with the distance from the earth. But on the contrary the fact is certain, that in very clear and still nights, the air near to the earth is colder than that which is more distant from it, to the height at least of 220 feet, this being the greatest to which experiments relate. If then a hill be supposed to rise from a plain to the height of 220 feet, having upon its summit a small flat surface covered with grass ; and if the atmosphere, during a calm and serene night, be admitted to be 10° warmer there than it is near the surface of the low grounds, which is a less difference than what sometimes occurs in such circumstances, it is manifest that, should both the grass upon the hill, and that upon the plain, acquire a cold of 10° by radiation, the former will, notwithstanding, be 10° warmer than the latter. Hence also the tops of trees are sometimes found dry when the grass on the ground's surface has been found covered with dew. 2254. A very slight covering will exclude much cold. I had often, observes Dr. Wells, in the pride of half knowledge, smiled at the means frequently employed by gardeners, to protect tender plants from cold, as it appeared to me impossible, that a thin mat, or any such flimsy substance, could prevent them from attaining the temperature of the atmosphere, by which alone I thought them liable to be injured. But, when I had learned, that bodies on the surface of the earth become, during a still and serene night, colder than the atmosphere, by radiating their heat to the heavens, I perceived imme- diately a just reason for the practice, which I had before deemed useless. Being desirous, however, of acquiring some precise information on this subject, I fixed, perpendicularly, in the earth of a grass plot, four small sticks, and over their upper extremities, which were six inches above the grass, and formed the corners of a square, the sides of which were two feet long, drew tightly a very thin cambric handkerchief. In this dis- position of things, therefore, nothing existing to prevent the free passage of air from the exposed grass, to that which was sheltered, except the four small sticks, and there was no substance to radiate heat downwards to the latter grass, except the cambric handker- chief. The temperature of the grass, which was thus shielded from the sky, was, upon many nights afterwards examined by me, and was always found higher than that of neighboring grass which was uncovered, if this was colder than the air. When the difference in temperature, between the air several feet above the ground and the un- sheltered grass, did not exceed 5°, the sheltered grass was about as warm as the air. If that difference, however, exceeded 5°, the air was found to be somewhat warmer than the sheltered grass. Thus, upon one night, when fully exposed grass was 11° colder tlian the air, the latter was 3° warmer than the sheltered grass ; and the same difference existed on another night, when the air was 1 4° warmer than the exposed grass. One reason for this difference, no doubt, was that the air, which passed from the exposed grass, by which it had been very much cooled, to that under the handkerchief, had deprived the latter of part of its heat ; another, that the handkerchief, from being made colder than the atmosphere by the radiation of its upper surface to the heavens, would remit somewhat less heat to the grass beneath, than what it received from that substance. But still, as the sheltered grass, notwithstanding these drawbacks, was upon one night, as may be collected from the preceding relation, 8°, and upon another 11°, warmer than grass fully exposed to the sky, a sufficient reason was now obtained for the utility of a very slight shelter to plants, in averting or lessening injury from cold, on a still and serene night. 2255. The covering has most effect when placed at a little distance above the plants or objects to be sheltered. A difference in temperature, of some magniluae, was always observed on still and serene nights, between bodies sheltered from the sky by substances touching them, and similar bodies, which were sheltered by a substance a little above them. I found, for example, upon one night, tliat the warmth of grass, sheltered by a Book hi. HEAT AND LIGHT. 345 cambric handkerchief raised a few inches in the air, was 3° greater than that of a neighbor- ing piece of grass which was sheltered by a similar handkerchief actually in contact with it. On another night, the diiference between the temperatures of two portions of grass, shielded in the same manner, as the two above mentioned, from the influence of the sky, was 4°. Possibly, continues Dr. Wells, experience has long ago taught gardeners the superior advantage of defending tender vegetables, from the cold of clear and calm nights, by means of substances not directly touching them ; though I do not recollect ever having seen any contrivance for keeping mats, or such like bodies, at a distance from the plants which they were meant to protect. 2256. Heat produced by walls. Walls, Dr. Wells observes, as far as warmth is con- cerned, are regarded as useful, during a cold night, to the plants which touch them, or are near to them, only in two ways; first, by the mechanical shelter which they afford against cold winds, and secondly, by giving out the heat which they had acquired during the day. It appearing to me, however, that, on clear and calm nights, those on which plants frequently receive much injury from cold, walls must be beneficial in a third way, namely, by preventing, in part, the loss of heat, which the plants would sustain from radiation, if they were fully exposed to the sky : the following experiment was made for the purpose of determining the justness of this opinion. A cambric handkerchief having been placed, by means of two upright sticks, perpendicularly to a grass-plot, and at right angles to the course of the air, a thermometer was laid upon the grass close to the lower edge of the handkerchief, on its windward side. The thermometer thus situated was several nights compared with another lying on the same grass-plot, but on a part of it fully exposed to the sky. On two of these nights, the air being clear and calm, the grass close to the handkerchief was found to be 4° warmer than the fully exposed grass. On a third, the difference was 6°. An analogous fact is mentioned by Gersten, who says, that a horizontal surface is more abundantly dewed, than one which is perpendicular to the ground. 2257. Heat from a covering of snow. The covering of snow, the same author ob- serves, which countries in high latitudes enjoy during the winter, has been very com- monly thought to be beneficial to vegetable substances on the surface of the earth, as far as their temperature is concerned, solely by protecting them from the cold of the atmosphere. But were this supposition just, the advantage of the covering would be greatly circumscribed ; since the upper parts of trees and of tall shrubs are still exposed to the influence of the air. Another reason, however, is furnished for its usefulness, by what has been said in this essay ; which is, that it prevents the occurrence of the cold, which bodies on the earth acquire, in addition to that of the atmosphere, by the radiation of their heat to the heavens during still and clear nights. The cause, indeed, of this additional cold, does not constantly operate ; but its presence, during only a few hours, might effectually destroy plants, which now pass unhurt through the winter. Again, as things are, while low vegetable productions are prevented, by their covering of snow, from becoming colder than the atmosphere in consequence of their own radiation, the parts of trees and tall. shrubs, which rise above the snow, are little affected by cold from this cause. For their uttermost twigs, now that they are destitute of leaves, are much smaller than the thermometers suspended by me in the air, which in this situation very seldom became more than 2° colder than the atmosphere. The larger branches, too, which, if fully exposed to the sky, would become colder than the extreme parts, are, in a great degree, sheltered by them ; and, in the last place, the trunks are sheltered both by the smaller and larger parts, not to mention that the trunks must derive heat, by con- duction through the roots, from the earth kept warm by the snow. In a similar way is partly to be explained the manner, in which a layer of earth or straw preserves vegetable matters in our own fields, from the injurious effects of cold in winter. (^Essay on Dew, &c. 1819.) 2258. The nature of light is totally unknown : the light which proceeds from the sun seems to be composed of three distinct substances. Scheele discovered that a glass mir- ror held before the fire reflected the rays of light, but not the rays of caloric ; but when a metallic mirror was placed in the same situation, both heat and light were reflected. The mirror of glass became hot in a short time, but no change of temperature took place on the metallic mirror. This experiment shows that the glass mirror absorbed the rays of caloric, and reflected those of light; while the metallic mirror, suffering no change of temperature, reflected both. And if a plate glass be held before a burning body, the rays of light are not sensibly interrupted, but the rays of caloric are intercepted ; for no sensible heat is observed on the opposite side of the glass ; but when the glass has reached a proper degree of temperature, the rays of caloric are transmitted with the same facility as those of light. And thus the rays of light and caloric may be separated. But the curious experiments of Dr. Herschel have clearly proved that the invisible rays which are emitted by the sun, have the greatest heating power. In those experiments, the dif- ferent colored rays were thrown on the bulb of a very delicate thermometer, and their 846 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. heating power was observed. The heating power of the violet, green, and red rays were found to be to each other as the following numbers ; — Violet, 16 '0; Green 22-4 ; Red, 55'0. The heating power of the most refrangible rays was least, and this power increases as the refrangibility diminishes. The red ray, therefore, has the greatest heating power, and the violet, which is the most refrangible, the least. The illuminating power, it has been already observed, is greatest in the middle of the spectrum, and it diminishes to- wards both extremities; but the heating power, which is least at the violet end, increases from that to the red extremity ; and when the thermometer was placed beyond the limit of the red ray, it rose still higher than in the red ray, which has the greatest heating power in the spectrum. The heating power of these invisible rays was greatest at the distance of half an inch beyond the red ray, but it was sensible at the distance of one inch and a half. 2259. The influence of the different solar rays on vegetation has not yet been stu- died ; but it is certain that the rays exercise an influence independent of the heat they produce. Thus plants kept in darkness, but supplied with heat, air, and moisture, grow for a short time, but they never gain their natural colors ; their leaves are white and pale, and their juices watery and peculiarly saccharine : according to Knight they merely expend the sap previously generated under the influence of light. {Notes to Sir H. Davy's Agr. Cliem. p. 402.) Sect. II. Of Electricity. 2260. Electrical changes are constantly taking place in nature, on the surface of the earth, and in the atmosphere ; but as yet the effects of this power in vegetation have not been correctly estimated. It has been shown by experiments made by means of the voltaic battery, that compound bodies in general, are capable of being decomposed by electrical powers, and it is probable that the various electrical phenomena occurring in our system, must influence both the germination of seeds and the growth of plants. It has been found that corn sprouted much more rapidly in water positively electrified by the voltaic instrument, than in water negatively electrified ; and experiments made upon the atmosphere show that clouds are usually negative ; and, as when a cloud is in one state of electricity, the surface of the earth beneath is brought into the opposite state, it is probable that in common cases the surface of the earth is positive. A similar ex- periment is related by Dr. Darwin, {P/iytologia, sect. xiii. 2, 3.) 2261. Respecting the nature of electricity different opinions are entertained amongst scientific men ; by some, the phenomena are conceived to depend upon a single subtile fluid in excess in the bodies said to be positively electrified, and in deficiency in the bodies said to be negatively electrified. A second class suppose the eflPects to be pro- duced by two different fluids, called by them the vitreous fluid and the resinous fluid ; and others regard them as affections or motions of matter, or an exhibition of attractive powers, similar to those which produce chemical combination and decomposition; but usually exerting their action on masses. 2262. A profitable application of electricity , Dr. Darwin observes, to promote the growth of plants is not yet discovered ; it is nevertheless probable, that in dry seasons, the erection of numerous metallic points on the surface of the ground, but a few feet high, might, in the night-time, contribute to precipitate the dew by facilitating the passage of electricity from the air into the earth ; and that an erection of such points higher in the air by means of wires wrapped round tall rods, like angle rods, or elevated on buildings, might frequently precipitate showers from the higher parts of the atmo- sphere. Such points erected in gardens might promote a quicker vegetation of the plants in their vicinity, by supplying them more abundantly with the electric ether. (Phytologia, xiii. 4.) J. Wi\lia.ms (Climate of Great i?ntom, 348.), enlarging on this idea, proposes to erect large electrical machines, to be driven by wind, over the general face of the country, for the purpose of improving the climate, and especially for lessening that superabundant moisture which he contends is yeai'ly increasing from the increased evaporating surface, produced by the vegetation of improved culture, and especially from the increase of pastures, hedges, and ornamental plantations. Sect. III. Of Water. 2263. Water is a compound of oxygene and hydrogene gas, though primarily reckoned a simple or elementary substance. " If the metal called potassium be exposed in a glass tube to a small quantity of water, it will act upon it with great violence ; elastic fluid will be disengaged, which will be found to be hydrogen ; and the same effects will be produced upon the potassium, as if it had absorbed a small quantity of oxygen ; and the hydrogen disengaged, and the oxygen added to the potassium, are in weight as 2 to 15 ; and if two in volume of hydrogen, and one in volume of oxygen, which have the weights of 2 and 15, be introduced into a close vessel, and an electrical spark passed tlirough them, they will inflame and condense into 17 parts of pure water." Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 347 2264. IFater is absolutely necessary to the economy of vegetation in its elastic and fluid state; and it is not devoid of use even in its solid form. Snow and ice are bad con- ductors of heat ; and when the ground is covered with snow, or the surface of the soil or of water is frozen, the roots or bulbs of the plants beneath are protected by the congealed water from the influence of the atmosphere, the temperature of which, in northern win- ters, is usually very much below the freezing point ; and this water becomes the first nourishment of the plant in early spring. The expansion of water during its congela- tion, at which time its volume increases one twelfth, and its contraction of bulk during a thaw, tend to pulverise the soil, to separate its parts from each other, and to make it more permeable to the influence of the air. Chap. IV, Of the Agency of the Atmosphere in Vegetation. 2265. The aerial medium which envelopes tfie earth may be studied chemically and phy- sically ; the first study respects the elements of which the atmosphere is composed ; and the second their action in a state of combination, and as influenced by various causes, or those phenomena which constitute the weather. Sect. I. Of the Elements of the Atmosphere. 2266. Water^ carbonic acid gas, oxygen, and azote, are the principal substances composing the atmosphere ; but more minute enquiries respecting their nature and agencies are necessary to afford correct views of its uses in vegetation. 2267. That water exists in the atmosphere is easily proved. If some of the salt, called muriate of lime, that has been just heated red, be exposed to the air, even in the driest and coldest weather, it will increase in weight, and become moist; and in a certain time will be converted into a fluid. If put into a retort and heated, it will yield pure water ; will gradually recover its pristine state ; and, if heated red, its former weight : so that it is evident that the water united to it was derived from the air. And that it existed in the air in an invisible and elastic form, is proved by the circumstances, that if a given quantity of air be exposed to the salt, its volume and weight will diminish, provided the experiment be correctly made. 2268. The quantity of%vater which exists in air, as vapor, varies with the temperature. In proportion as the weather is hotter, the quantity is greater. At 50^ of Fahrenheit, air contains about one 50th of its volume of vapor ; and as the specific gravity of vapor is to that of air nearly as 10 to 15 ; this is about one 75th of its weight. At 100°, sup- posing that there is a free communication with water, it contains about one 14th part in volume, or one 21st in weight. It is the condensation of vapor by diminution of the temperature of the atmosphere, which is probably the principal cause of the formation of clouds, and of the deposition of dew, mist, snow, or hail. 2269. The j)ower of different substances to absorb aqueous vapor from the atmosphere by cohesive attraction has lieen already referred to (2102.) The leaves of living plants ap- pear to act upon this vapor in its elastic form, and to absorb it. Some vegetables increase in weight from this cause, when suspended in the atmosphere and unconnected with the soil ; such are the house-leek, and different species of the aloe. In very intense heats, and when the soil is dry, the life of plants seems to be preserved by the absorbent power of their leaves; and it is a beautiful circumstance in the economy of nature, that aqueous vapor is most abundant in the atmosphere when it is most needed for the purposes of life ; and that when other sources of its supply are cut olF, this is most copious. 2270. The existence of carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere is proved by the following process : if a solution of lime and water be exposed to the air, a pellicle will speedily form upon it, and a solid matter will gradually fall to the bottom of the water, and in a certain time the water will become tasteless ; this is owing to the combination of the lime which was dissolved in the water with carbonic acid gas, which existed in the atmo^ sphere, as may be proved by collecting the film and the solid matter, and igniting them strongly in a little tube of platina or iron ; they will give out carbonic acid gas, and will become quick -lime, which, added to the same water, will again bring it to the state of lime-water. 2271. The quantity of carbonic acid gas in the atmosphere is very small. It is not easy to determine it with precison, and it must differ in different situations ; but where there is a free circulation of air, it is probably never more than one 500th, nor less than one 800th of the volume of air. Carbonic acid gas is nearly one third heavier than the other elastic parts of the atmosphere in their mixed state ; hence at first view it might be supposed 348 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. that it would be most abundant in the lower regions of the atmosphere j but unless it has been immediately produced at the surface of the earth in some chemical process, this does not seem to be the case ; elastic fluids of different specific gravities have a tendency to equable mixture by a species of attraction, and the different parts of the atmosphere are constantly agitated and blended together by winds or other causes. De Saussure found lime-water precipitated on Mount Blanc, the highest point of land in Europe ; and carbonic acid gas has been always found, apparently in due proportion, in the air brought down from great heights in the atmosphere by aerostatic adventurers. 2272. The principal consumption of the carbonic acid in the atmosphere seems to be in affording nourishment to plants j and some of them appear to be supplied with carbon chiefly from this source. 2273. The formation of carbonic acid gas takes place during fermentation, combustion, putrefaction, respiration, and a number of operations taking place upon the surface of the earth ; and there is no other process known in nature, by which it can be destroyed but by vegetation. 2274. Oxygen and azote are the remaining constituents of the atmosphere. After a given portion of common air has been deprived of aqueous vapor and carbonic acid gas, it appears little altered in its properties; it remains a compound of oxygen and azote, which supports combustion and animal life. There are many modes of separating these two gases from each other. A simple one is by burning phosphorus in a confined vo- lume of air ; this absorbs the oxygen and leaves the azote ; and 100 parts in volume of air, in which phosphorus has been burnt, yield 79 parts of azote ; and by mixing this azote with 21 parts of fresh oxygenegas artificially procured, a substance having the ori- ginal characters of air is produced. To procure pure oxygen from air, quicksilver may be kept heated in it, at about 600°, till it becomes a red powder ; this powder, when ignited, will be restored to the state of quicksilver by giving off oxygen. 2275. Oxygen is necessary to some functions of vegetables ; but its great importance in nature is its relation to the economy of animals. It is absolutely necessary to their life. Atmospheric air taken into the lungs of animals, or passed in solution in water through the gills of fishes, loses oxygen ; and for the oxygen lost, about an equal volume of car- bonic acid appears. 2276. The effects of azote in vegetation are not distinctly known. As it is found in some of the products of vegetation, it may be absorbed by certain plants from the atmo- sphere. It prevents the action of oxygen from being too energetic, and serves as a medium in which the more essential parts of the air act ; nor is this circumstance un- conformable to the analogy of nature ; for the elements most abundant on the solid sur- face of the globe, are not those which are the most essential to the existence of the living beings belonging to it. 2277. The action of the atmosphere on playits differs at different periods of their growth, and varies with the various stages of the developement and decay of their organs. If a healthy seed be moistened and exposed to air at a temperature not below 45°, it soon germinates, and shoots forth a plume, which rises upwards, and a radicle which descends. If the air be confined, it is found that in the process of germin- ation the oxygen, or a part of it, is absorbed. The azote remains unaltered ; no carbonic acid is taken away from the air ; on the contrary, some is added. Seeds are incapable of germinating, except when oxygen is present. In the exhausted receiver of the air-pump, in pure azote, or in pure carbonic acid, when moistened they swell, but do not vegetate ; and if kept in these gases, lose their living powers, and undergo putrefaction. If a seed be examined before germination, it will be found more or less insipid, at least not sweet ; but after germination it is always sweet. Its coagulated mucilage, or starch, is converted into sugar in the process ; a substance difl^icult of solution is changed into one easily soluble ; and the sugar carried through the cells or yessels of the cotyledons, is the nou- rishment of the infant plant. The absorption of oxygen by the seed in germination has been compared to its absorption in producing the evolution of foetal life in the egg ; but this analogy is only remote. All animals, from the most to the least perfect classes, re- quire a supply of oxygen. From the moment the heart begins to pulsate till it ceases to beat, the aeration of the blood is constant, and the function of respiration invariable ; carbonic acid is given off in the process, but the chemical change produced in the blood is unknown ; nor is there any reason to suppose the formation of any substance similar to sugar. It is evident, that in all cases of semination, the seeds should be sown so as to be, fully exposed to the influence of the air. And oite cause of the unproductiveness of cold clayey adhesive soils is, that the seed is coated with matter impermeable to air. In sandy soils the earth is always sufficiently penetrable by the atmosphere ; but in clayey soils there can scarcely be too great a mechanical division of parts. Any seed not fully sup- plied with air, always produces a weak and diseased plant. We have already seen ( 1 530. ) that carbon is added to plants from the air by the process of vegetation in sunshine ; and oxygen is added to the atmosphere at the same time. Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 349 Latitude. Places. Range of the Barometer. Greatest. Annual. 0" 0» 22 23 33 55 40 55 51 8 53 13 53 23 59 56 Peru - - - Calcutta - - Cape Town - Naples - - . Dover - - - Middlewich . Liverpool - - Petersburgh - 0 20 0 77 1 00 2 47 3 00 2 89 3 45 "o 89 1 ?0 1 94 1 96 2278. Those changes in the atmos])here which constitute the most important meteorological 2)henomena, may be classed under five distinct heads ; the alterations that occur in the weight of the atmosphere ; those that take place in its temperature ; the changes produced in its quantity by evaporation and rain ; the excessive agitation to which it is frequently subject ; and the phenomena arising from electric and other causes, that at particular times occasion or attend the precipitations and agitations alluded to. All the above phenomena prove to demonstration that constant changes take place, the consequences of new combinations and decompositions rapidly following each other. 2279. With respect to the changes in the weight of the atmosphere, it is generally known that the instrument called the barometer shows the weight of a body of air immediately above it, extending to the extreme boundary of the atmosphere, and the base of which is equal to that of the mercury contained within it. As the level of the sea is the lowest point of observation, the column of air over a barometer placed at that level is the longest to be obtained. 2280. The variations of the barometer between the tropics are very trifling, and it does not descend more than half as much in that part of the globe for every two hundred feet of elevation as it does be- yond the tropics. The range of the barometer increases gradually as the latitude advances towards the poles, till in the end it amounts to tv/o or three inches. The following Table will explain this gradual increase : — 2281. The range of the barometer is considerably less in North Ainerica than in the corresponding latitudes of Europe, particularly in Virginia, where it never exceeds 11. The range is more considerable at the level of the sea tlian on mountains ; and in the same degree of latitude it is in the inverse ratio of the height of the place above the level of the sea. Cotte composed a table, which has been published in the Journal de Physique, from which it appears extremely probable, that the barometer has an invariable ten- dency to rise between the morning and the evening, and that this impulse is most considerable from two in the afternoon till nine at night, when the greatest elevation is accomj^lished ; but the elevation at nine differs from that at two by four twelfths, while that of two varies from the elevation of the morning only by one twelfth, and that in particular climates the greatest elevation is at two o'clock. The observations of Cotte confirm those of Luke Howard ; and from them it is concluded, that the barometer is influenced by some depressing cause at new and full moon, and that some other makes it rise at the quarters. This coincidence is most considerable in fair and calm weather ; the depression in the interval between the quarters and conjunctions amounts to one tenth of an inch, and the rise from the conjunctions to the quarters is to the same amount. The range of this instrument is found to be greater in winter than in summer ; for instance, the mean at York, during the months from October to March inclusive, in the year 1774, was 1-42, and in the six summer months 1'016. 2282. The more serene and settled the weather, the higher the barometer ranges ; calm weather, with a tendency to rain, depresses it ; high winds have a similar effect on it ; and the greatest elevation occurs with easterly and northerly winds j but the south produces a dirictly contrary effect. 2283. The variations in the temperature of the air in any particular place, exclusive of the differences of seasons and climates, are very considerable. These changes cannot be produced by heat derived from the sun, as its rays concentrated have no kind of effect on air ; those, however, heat the surface of our globe, which is communicated to the imme- diate atmosphere ; it is through tliis fact that the temperature is highest where the place is so situated as to receive with most effect the rays of the sun, and that it varies in each region with the season ; it is also the cause why it decreases in proportion to the.height of the air above the surface of the earth. The most perpendicular rays falling on the globe at the equator, there the heat of it is the greatest, and that heat decreases gradually to the poles, of course the temperature of the air is in exact unison ; from this, it appears, that the air acquires the greatest degree of warmth over the equator, where it becomes insensibly cooler till we arrive at the poles; in the same manner, the air immediately above the equator cools gradually. Though the temperature sinks as it approaches the pole, and is highest at the equator, yet as it varies continually with the seasons, it is im- possible to form an accurate idea of the progression without forming a mean temperature for a year, from that of the temperature of every degree of latitude for every day of the year, which may be accomplished by adding together the whole of the observations and dividing by their number, when the quotient will be the mean temperature for the year. The "diminution," says Dr. Thomson, "from the pole to the equator takes place in arithmetical progression ; or to speak more properly, the annual temperature of all the latitudes are arithmetical means between the mean annual temperature of the equator and the pole. And as far as heat depends in the action of solar rays, that of each month is as the mean altitude of the sun, or rather as the sine of the sun's altitude. 2284. Inconsiderable seas, in temperate and cold climates, are colder in winter and warmer in summer than the main ocean, as they are necessarily under the influence of natural operations from the land. Thus the Gulf of Bothnia is generally frozen in winter, but the water is sometimes heated in the summer to 70°, a state, the opposite part of tlie Atlantic never acquires ; the German Sea is five degrees warmer in summer than the Atlantic, and more than three colder in winter ; the Mediterranean is almost 350 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. throughout warmer both in winter and summer, which therefore causes tlie Atlantic to flow into it ; and the Black Sea being colder than the Mediterranean, flows into the latter. 2285. The eastern parts of North A7mrica, as appears from meteorological tables, have a much colder air than the opposite European coast, and fall short of the standard by about ten or twelve degrees. There are several causes which produce this considerable difference. Thegreatest elevation in North America is between the 40th and 50th degree of north latitude, and the 100th and 110th of longitude west from Lon- don ; and there the most considerable rivers have their origin. The height alone is sufficient to make this tract colder than it would otherwise be ; but there are other causes, and those are most extensive forests, and large swamps and morasses, each of which ;exclude heat from the earth, and consequently prevent it from ameliorating the rigor of winter. Many extensive lakes lie to the east, and Hudson's Bay more to the north ; a chain of mountains extends on the south of the latter, and those equally prevent the accu- mulation of heat ; besides, this bay is bounded on the east by the mountainous country of Labrador, and has many islands ; from all which circumstances arise the lowness of the temperature, and the piercing cold of the north-west winds. The annual decrease of the forests for the purpose of clearing the ground, and the consumption for building and fuel, is supposed to have occasioned a considerable decrease of cold in the winter ; and if this should be the result, much will yet be done towards bringing the temperature of the European and American continents to something like a level. 2286. Continents have a colder atmosphere than islands situated in the same degree of latitude ; and countries lying to the windward of the superior classes of mountains, or forests, are warmer than those which are to the leeward. Earth always possessing a cer- tain degree of moisture, has a greater capacity to receive and retain heat than sand or stones, the latter therefore are heated and cooled with more rapidity : it is from this cir- cumstance tliat the intense heats of Africa and Arabia, and the cold of Terra del Fuego, are derived. The temperature of growing vegetables changes very gradually ; but there is a considerable evaporation from them : if those exist in great numbers, and congre- gated, or in forests, their foliage preventing the rays of the sun from reaching the earth, it is perfectly natural that the immediate atmosphere must be greatly affected by the ascent of chilled vapors. 2287. Our next object is the ascent and descent of water : the principal appearances of this element are vapor, clouds, dew, rain, frost, hail, snow, and ice. 2288. Vapor is water rarefied by heat, in consequence of which becoming lighter than the atmosphere, it is raised considerably above the surface of the earth, and afterwards by a partial condensation forms clouds. It differs from exhalation, which is properly a dis- persion of dry particles from a body. When water is heated to 212° it boils, and is ra- pidly converted into steam ; and the same change takes place in much lower temper- atures ; but in that case the evaporation is slower, and the elasticity of the steam is smaller. As a very considerable proportion of the earth's surface is covered with water, and as this water is constantly evaporating and mixing with the atmosphere in the state of vapor, a precise determination of the rate of evaporation must be of very great import- ance in meterology. Evaporation is confined entirely to the surface of the water ; hence it is, in all cases, proportional to the surface of the water exposed to the atmosphere^ Much more vapor of course rises in maritime countries or those interspersed with lakes, than in inland countries. Much more vapor rises during hot weather than during cold : hence the quantity evaporated depends in some measure upon temperature. The quantity of vapor which rises from water, even when the temperature is the same, varies according to circumstances. It is least of all in calm weather, greater when a breeze blows,, and greatest of all with a strong wind. From experiments, it appears, that the quantity of vapor raised annually at Manchester is equal to about 25 inches of rain. If to tliis we add five inches for the dew, with Dalton, it will make the annual evapor- ation 30 inches. Now, if we consider the situation of England, and the greater quantity of vapor raised from water, it will not surely be considered as too great an allowance, if we estimate the mean annual evaporation over the whole surface of tlie globe at 35 inches. 2289. A cloud is a mass of vapor, more or less opaque, formed and sustained at con- siderable height in the atmosphere, probably by the joint agencies of heat and electricity. The first successful attempt to arrange the diversified form of clouds, under a few general modifications, was made by Luke Howard, Esq. We shall give here a brief account of his ingenious classification. 2290. The simple modifications are thus named and defined : — 1 . Cirrus, parallel, flexuous, or diverging fibres, extensible in any or in all directions (Jig. 248 a) ; 2. Cumulus, convex or conical heaps, increasing upwards from a horizontal base (6) ; 3. Stratus, a widely-extended, continuous, horizontal sheet, increasing from below (c). 2291. The intermediate modifications which require to be noticed are, 4. Cirro-cumulus, small, well-defined, roundish masses, in close horizontal arrangement (d) ; 5. Cirro-stratus, horizontal or slightly inclined masses, attenuated towards a part or the whole of their circumference, bent downward or undulated, separate or in groups consisting of small clouds having these characters (e). 2292. The compound modifications are, 6. Cumulo-stratus, or twain cloud ; tlie cirro-' stratus, blended with the cumulus, and either appearing intermixed witli the heaps of the Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 248 551 latter, or superadding a wide-spread structure to its base (/) ; 7. Cumulo-cirro-stratus, vel Nimbus ; the rain-cloud, a cloud or system of clouds from which rain is falling. It is a horizontal sheet, above which the cirrus spreads, while the cumulus enters it laterally and from beneath (g, g) ; S. The Fall Cloud, resting apparently on the surface of the ground {h) . 2293. The cirrus appears to have the least density, the greatest elevation, the greatest variety of extent and direction, and to appear earliest in serene weather, being indicated by a few threads pencilled on the sky Before storms they appear lower and denser, and usually in the quarter opjwsite to that from which the storm arises. Steady high winds are also preceded and attended by cirrous streaks, running quite across the sky in the direction they blow in. - , . , 2294. The cujnulus has the densest structure, is formed m the Ipwer atmosphere, and moves along with the current next the earth. A small irregular spot first appears, and is, as it were, the nucleus on which they increase. The lower surface continues irregularly plane, while the upper rises into conical or hemi- spherical heaps ; which may afterwards continue long nearly of the same bulk, or rapidly rise into moun- tains. They will begin, in fair weather, to form some hours after sunrise, arrive at their maximum in the hottest part of the afternoon, then go on diminishing, and totally disperse about sunset. Previous to rain the cumulus increases rapidly, appears lower in the atmosphere, and with its surface full of loose fleeces or protuberances. The formation of large cumuli to leeward in a strong wind, indicates the ap- proach of a calm with rain. When they do not disappear or subside about sunset, but continue to rise, thunder is to be expected in the nigiit. 2295. The stratus has a mean degree of density, and is the lowest of clouds, its inferior surface commonly resting on the earth in water. This is properly the cloud of night, appearing about sunset. It compre- hends all those creeping mists which in calm weather ascend in spreading sheets (like an inundation of water) from the bottoms of valleys, and the surfaces of lakes and rivers. On the return of the sun, the 352 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. level surface of this cloud begins to put on the appearance of cumulns, the whole at the same time separat- ing from the ground. The continuity is next destroyed, and the cloud ascends and evaporates, or {masses oft' with the appearance of the nascent cumulus. This has long been experienced as a prognostic of fair weather. 2296. Transition of forms. The cirrus having continued for some time increasing or stationary, usually passes either to the cirro-cumulus or the cirro-stratus, at the same time descending to a lower station in the atmosphere. This modification forms a very beautiful sky, and is frequently in summer an attendant on warm and dry weather. The cirro-stratus, when seen in the distance, frequently gives the idea of shoals of fish. It precedes wind and rain ; is seen in the intervals of storms ; and sometimes alternates with the cirro- cumulus in the same cloud, when the different evolutions form a curious spectacle. A judgment may be formed of the weather hkely to ensue by observing which modification prevails at last. The solar and lunar halos, as well as the parhelion and paraselene (mock sun and mock moon), prognostics of foul wea- ther, are occasioned by this cloud. The cumulo-stratus precedes, and the nimbus accompanies rain. 2297. Deiv is the moisture insensibly deposited from the atmosphere on the surface of the earth. This moisture is precipitated by the cold of the body on which it appears, and will be more or less abundant, not in proportion to the coldness of that body, but in pro- portion to the existing state of the air in regard to moisture. It is commonly supposed that the formation of dew produces cold, but like every other precipitation of water from the atmosphere, it musf eventually produce heat, 2298. Phenomena of dew. Aristotle justly remarked, that dew appears only on calm and clear nights. Dr. Wells shows, that very little is ever deposited in opposite circumstances ; and that little only when the clouds are very high. It is never seen on nights both cloudy and windy ; and if in the course of the night the weather, from being serene, should become dark and stormy, dew which has been deposited will disap- pear. In calm weather, if the sky be partially covered with clouds, more dew will appear than if it were en- tirely uncovered. Dew probably begins in the country to appear upon grass in places shaded from the sun, during clear and calm weather, soon after the heat of the atmosphere has declined, and continues to be deposited through the whole night, and for a little after sunrise. Its quantity will depend in some measure on the proportion of moisture in the atmosphere, and is consequently greater after rain than after a long tract of dry weather ; and in Europe, with southerly and westerly winds, than with those which blow from the north and the east. The direction of the sea determines this relation of the winds to dew. For in Egypt, dew is scarcely ever observed except while the northerly or Etesian winds prevail. Hence also, dew is generally more abundant in spring and autumn, than in summer. And it is always very copious on those clear nights which are followed by misty mornings, which show the air to be loaded with moisture. And a clear morning, following a cloudy night, determines a plentiful deposition of the retained vapor. When warmth of atmosphere is compatible with clearness, as is the case in southern latitudes, though seldom in our country, the dew becomes much more copious, because the air then contains more moisture. Dew continues to form with increased copiousness as the night advances, from the increased refrigeration of the ground. 2^. Cause of dew. Dew, according to Aristotle, is a species of rain, formed in the lower atmosphere, in consequence of its moisture being condensed by the cold of the night into minute drops. Opinions of this kind, says Dr. Wells, are still entertained by many persons, among whom is the very ingenious Pro- fessor Leslie. {Relat. of Heat and Moisture, p. 37. and 132.) A fact, however, first taken notice of by Garstin, who published his Treatise on Dew in 1773, proves them to be erroneous ; for he found, that bodies, a little elevated in the air often become moist with dew, while similar bodies, lying on the ground, remain dry, though necessarily, from their position, liable to be wetted, by whatever falls from the heavens, as the former. The above notion is perfectly refuted by the fact, that metallic surfaces exposed to the air in a horizontal position, remain dry, while every thing around them is covered with dew. After a long period of drought, when the air was very still and the sky serene. Dr. Wells exposed to the sky, 28 minutes before sunset, previously weighed parcels of wool and swandown, upon a smooth, unpainted, and perfectly dry fir table, 5 feet long, 3 broad, and nearly 3 in height, which had been placed, an hour before, in the sunshine, in a large level grassfield. The wool, 12 minutes after sunset, was found to be 149 colder than the air, and to have acquired no weight. The swandown, the quantity of which was much greater than that of the wool, was at the same time 13° colder than the air, and was also without any ad- ditional weight. In 20 minutes more the swandown was 14i° colder than the neighboring air, and was still without any increase of its weight. At the same time the grass was 15" colder than the air four feet above the ground. Dr. Wells, by a copious induction of facts derived from observation and experiment, establishes the proposition, that bodies become colder than the neighboring air before they are dewed. The cold therefore, which Dr. Wilson and M. Six conjectured to be the effect of dew, now appears to be its cause. But what makes the terrestrial surface colder than the atmosphere? The radiation or pro- jection of heat into free space. Now the researches of Professor Leslie and Count Rumford have de- monstrated, that different bodies project heat with very difierent degrees of force. In the operation of this principle, therefore, conjoined with the power of a concave mirror of cloud, or any other awning, to reflect or throw down again those caloric emanations which would be dissipated in a clear sky, we shall find a solution of the most mysterious phenomena of dew. 2300. Rain. Luke Howard, who may be considered as our most accurate scientific meteorologist, is inclined to think, that rain is in almost every instance the result of the electrical action of clouds upon each other. 2301. Phenomena of rain. Rain never descends till the transparency of the air ceases, and the invisible vapors become vascular, when clouds form, and at length the drops fall : clouds, instead of forming gradually at once throughout all parts of the horizon, generate in a particular spot, and imperceptibly increase till the whole expanse is obscured. 2302. The cause of rain is thus accounted for by Dalton. If two masses of air of unequal temperatures, by the ordinary currents of the winds, are intermixed, when saturated with vapor, a precipitation ensues. If the masses are under saturation, then less precipitation takes place, or none at all, according to the degree. Also the warmer the air, the greater is the quantity of vapor precipitated in like circumstances. Hence the reason why rains are heavier in summer than in winter, and in warm countries than in cold. 2303. The quantity of rain, taken at an annual mean, is the greatest at the equator, and it lessens gradually to the poles ; so there are fewer days of rain there, the number of which increase in proportion to the distance from it. From north latitude 1 2° to 43° the mean number of rainy days is 78 ; from 43" to 46° the mean number is 103 j from 46° Booit III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 353 to 50°, IM; and from 51° to 60°, 161. Winter often prodooes a greater number of rainy days than summer, though the quantity of rain is more considerable in the latter than in the former season ; at Petersburgh rain and snow falls on an average 84 days of the winter, and the quantity amounts to about five inches; on the contrary the summer pro- duces eleven inches in about the same number of days. Mountainous districts are sub- ject to great falls of rain ; among the Andes particularly, it rains almost incessantly, while the flat country of Egypt is consumed by endless drought. Dalton estimates the quantity of rain falling in England at 31 inches. The mean annual quantity of rain for tlie whole globe is 34 inches. 2304. The cause why less rainfalls in the first six months of the year than in the last six months is thus explained. The whole quantity of water in the atmosphere in January- is usually about three inches, as appears from the dew point, which is then about 32°. Now the force of vapors of that temperature is 0*2 of an inch of mercury, which is equal to 2*8 or three inches of water. The dew point in July is usually about 58° or 59 ^'j cor- responding to 0*5 of an inch of mercury, which is equal to seven inches of water ; the difference is four inches of water, which the atmosphere then contains more than in the former month. Hence, supposing the usual intermixture of currents of air in both tlie intervening periods to be the same, the rain ought to be four inches less in the former period of the year than the average, and four inches more in the latter period, making a difference of eight inches between tlie two periods, which nearly accords with the pre- ceding observations. 2305. The mean monthly and annual quantities of rain at various places, deduced from the average for many years, by Dalton, is given in the following Table. fl 11 k fl ft f! Jo li It 1" 32 I-" Is WS ^s 'H O^ Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Inch. Fr. In. Fr. In. Inch. January - 2.310 2.177 2.196 3.461 5.299 3.095 1.595 1.464 1.228 2.477 2.530 February - 2.568 1.847 1.652 2.995 5.126 2.837 1.741 1.250 1.232 1.700 2.295 March . - 2.098 1.523 1.322 1.753 3.151 2.164 1.184 1.172 1.190 1.927 1.748 April - - May - - 2.010 2.104 2.078 2.180 2.986 2.017 0.979 1.279 1.185 2.686 1.950 2.895 2.573 2.118 2.460 3.4S0 2.568 1.641 1.636 1.767 2.931 2.407 June - - 2.502 2.816 2.286 2.512 2.722 2.974 1.343 1.73,8 1.697 2.562 2,315 July - - 3.697 3.663 3.006 4.140 4.959 3.256 2.303 2.448 1.800 1.882 3.115 August - 3.665 3.311 2.435 4..581 5.089 3.199 2.746 1.807 1.900 2.347 3.103 September 3.281 3.a54 2.289 3.751 4.874 4.350 1.617 1.842 1.550 4.140 3.135 October - 3.922 3.724 3.079 4.1.'>1 5.439 4.143 2.297 2.092 1.780 4.741 3.537 November 3.360 3.441 2.634 3.775 4 785 3.174 1.904 2.222 1.720 4.187 3.120 December- 3.832 3.288 2.569 3.955 6.084 3.142 1.981 1.736 1.600 2.397 3.058 36.140 34.121 27.664 39.714 53.944 36.919 21.331 20.686 18.649 33.977 2306. Frost, being derived from the atmosj)here, naturally proceeds from the upper parts of bodies downwards, as the water and the earth ; so the longer a frost is continued, the thicker the ice becomes upon the water in ponds, and tlie deeper into the earth the ground is frozen. In about 16 or 17 days' frost, Boyle found it had penetrated 14 inches into the ground. At Moscow, in a hard season, the frost will penetrate two feet deep into the ground; and Captain James found it penetrated 10 feet deep in Charlton island, and the water in the same island was frozen to the depth of six feet. Scheffer assures us, that in Sweden the frost pierces two cubits (a Swedish ell), into the earth, and turns what moisture is found there into a whitish substance, like ice ; and standing water to three ells or more. The same author also mentions sudden cracks or rifts in the ice of the lakes of Sweden, nine or ten feet deep, and many leagues long ; the rupture being made with a noise not less loud than if many guns were discharged together. By such means however the fishes are furnished with air, so that they are rarely found dead. 2307. T/ie history of frosts fumi.shes very extraordinary facts. The trees are often scorched and burnt up, as with the most excessive heat, in consequence of the separation of water from the air, which is therefore very drying. In the great frost in 1683, the trunks of oak, ash, walnut, and other trees, were miserably split and cleft, so that they might be seen through, and the cracks often attaided with dreadful noises like the explosion of fire-arms. 2308. Hail is generally defined as frozen rain, it differs from it in that the hailstones are not formed of single pieces of ice, but of many little spherules agglutinated together; neither are those spherules all of the same consistence ; some of them being hard and solid, like perfect ice ; others soft, and mostly like snow hardened by a severe frost. Hailstone has a kind of core of this soft matter ; but more frequently the core is solid and hard, while the outside is formed of a softer matter. Hailstones assume various figures, being sometimes round, at other times pyramidal, crenated, angular, thin, and flat, and sometimes stellated witli six radii, like the small crystals of snow. Natural historians furnish us with various accounts of surprising showers of hail in which the hailstones were of extraordinary magnitude. A a ^54 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part It. 2309. Snow is formed by the freezing of the vapors in the atmosphere. It differs from hail and hoar frost, in being as it were crystallised, which they are not. As the flakes fall down through the atmosphere, they are continually joined by more of these radiated spicula, and they increase in bulk like the drops of rain or hailstones. The lightness of snow, although it is firm ice, is owing to the excess of its surface in comparison to the matter contained under it ; as gold itself may be extended in surface till it will ride upon the least breath of air. The whiteness of snow is owing to the small particles into which it is divided ; for ice when pounded will become equally white. 2310. Snow is of great use to the vegetable kingdom. Were we to judge from appearance only, we might imagine, that so far from being useful to the earth, the cold humidity of snow would be detrimental to vegetation. But the experience of all ages asserts the con- trary. Snow, particularly in those northern regions where the ground is covered with it for several months, fructifies the earth, by guarding the corn or other vegetables from the intenser cold of the air, and especially from the cold piercing winds. It has been a vulgar opinion, very generally received, that snow fertilises the land on which it falls more than rain, in consequence of the nitrous salts which it is supposed to acquire by freezing. But it appears from the experiments of Margraaf, in the year 1731, that the chemical difference between rain and snow-water, is exceedingly small; that the latter contains a somewhat less proportion of earth than the former ; but neither of them contain either earth, or any kind of salt, in any quantity which can be sensibly efficacious in promoting vegetation. The peculiar agency of snow as a fertiliser, in preference to rain, may be ascribed to its furnishing a covering to the roots of vegetables, by which they are guarded from the influence of the atmospherical cold, and the internal heat of the earth is prevented from escaping. The internal parts of the earth are heated uniformly to the fifty-eighth degree of Fahrenheit's thermometer. This degree of heat is greater than that in which the watery juices of vegetables freeze, and it is pro- pagated from the inward parts of the earth to the surface, on which the vegetables grow. The atmosphere, being variably heated by the action of the sun in different climates, and in the same climate at different seasons, communicates to the surface of the earth, and to some distance below it, the degree of heat and cold which prevails in itself. Different ve- getables are able to preserve life under different degrees of cold, but all of them perish when the cold which reaches their roots is extreme. Providence has, therefore, in the coldest climates, provided a covering of snow for the roots of vegetables, by which they are protected from the influence of the atmospherical cold. The snow keeps in the internal heat of the earth, which surrounds the roots of vegetables, and defends them from the cold of the atmosphere. 2311. Ice is water in the solid state, during which the temperature remains constant, being 32 degrees of the scale of Fahrenheit, Ice is considerably lighter than water, namely, about one-eighth part ; and this increase of dimensions is acquired with prodi- gious force, suflScient to burst the strongest iron vessels, and even pieces of artillery. Congelation takes place much more suddenly than the opposite process of liquefaction ; and of course, the same quantity of heat must be more rapidly extricated in freezing than it is absorbed in thawing ; the heat thus extricated being disposed to fly off in all direc- tions, and little of it being retained by the neighboring bodies, more heat is lost than is gained by tlie alternation : so that where ice has once been formed, its production is in this manner redoubled. 2312. The northern ice extends about 9° from the pole ; the southern 18° or 20° ; in some parts even 30° ; and floating ice has occasionally been found in both hemispheres as far as 40° from the poles, and sometimes, as it has been said, even in latitude 41° or 42°. Between 54° and 60° south latitude, the snow lies on the ground, at the sea-side, throughout the summer. The line of perpetual congelation is three miles above the surface at the equator, where the mean heat is 84° ; at Teneriffe, in latitude 28°, two miles ; in the latitude of London, a little more than a mile ; and in latitude 80° north, only 1250 feet. At the pole, according to the analogy deduced by Kirwan, from a comparison of various observations, the mean temperature should be 31°. In London the mean temperature is 50° ; at Rome and at Montpellier, a little more than 60° ; in the island of Madeira, 70° ; and in Jamaica, 80°. 2313. Wind. Were it not for this agitation of the air, putrid effluvia arising from the habitations of man, and from vegetable substances, besides the exhalations from water, would soon render it unfit for respiration, and a general mortality would be the conse- quence. The prevailing winds of our own country, which were ascertained by order of the Royal Society of London, at London, are, Winds. Bays. 112 Winds. Bays. . Winds. Bays. South-west West . 53 South . 18 North-east 58 South-east . 32 North . - 16 North-west . 50 East . 26 The south wind blows more upon an average in each month of the year than any other, Winds. Days. South-west . 174 North-west - 40 Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 355 particularly in July and August ; the north-east prevails during January, March, April, May, and June, and is most unfrequent in February, July, September, and December ; the north-west occurring more frequently from November to March, and less so in September and October than in any other months. 2314. Near Glasgow^ the average is stated as follows : — Winds. Dam. 1 North-east - - lOl South-east - . 47 2315. In Irelnnd, the prevailing winds are the west and south-west. 2316. The different degrees of motion of wind next excite our attention ; and it seems almost superfluous to observe, that it varies in gradations from the gentlest zephyr, which plays upon the leaves of plants, greatly undulating them, to the furious tempest, calcu- lated to inspire horror in the breast of the most callous. It is also a remarkable fact, that violent currents of air pass along, as it were, within a line, without sensibly agitating that beyond them. An instance of this kind occurred at Edinburgh, where the cele- brated aeronaut Lunardi ascended in his balloon, which was conveyed with great velo- city by the wind at the rate of 70 miles an hour, while a perfect calm existed in the city and neighborhood. 2317. Causes of wind. There are many circumstances attending the operations of the air, which we term wind, that serve for a basis for well-founded conjectures, and those, united to the result of daily ob- servation, render the explanation of its phenomena tolerably satisfactory. It must be clear to the most common capacity, that as the rays of the sun descend perpendicularly on the surface of the earth under the torrid zone, that part of it must receive a greater proportion of heat than those parts where they fall obliquely ; the heat thus acquired communicates to the air, which it rarefies, and causes to ascend, and the vacuum occasioned by this operation is immediately filled by the chill air from the north and south. The diurnal motion of the earth gradually lessens to the poles from the equator : at that point it moves at the rate of fifteen geographical miles in a minute : this motion is communicated to the atmosphere in the same degree ; therefore, if part of it was conveyed instantaneously from latitude 30°, it would not directly acquire the velocity of that at the equator ; consequently, the ridges of the earth must meet it, and give it the appearance of an east wind ; the effect is similar upon the cold air proceeding from the north and south, and this similarity must be admitted to extend to each place particularly heated by the beams of the sun. The moon, being a large body situated comparatively near the earth, is known to affect the atmosphere in its revolutions by the pressure of that upon the sea, so as to cause the flux and reflux of it, which we term tides ; it cannot, therefore, be doubted, that some of the winds we experience are caused by her motion. 2318. The regular motion qf the atmosphere, known by the name of land arid sea breezes, may be ac- counted for upon the above principle : the heated rarefied land air rises, and its place is supplied by the chill damp air from the surface of the sea ; that from the hills in the neighborhood, becoming cold and dense in the course of the night, descends and presses upon the comparatively lighter air over the sea, and hence the land breeze. Granting that the attraction of the moon, and the diurnal movement of the sun afiects our atmosphere, there cannot be a doubt but a westward motion of the air must prevail within the boundaries of the trade-winds, the consequence of which is an easterly current on each side : from this, then, it proceeds that south-west winds are so frequent in the western parts of Europe, and over the Atlantic Ocean. Kirwan attributes our constant south-west winds, particularly during winter, to an oppo- site current prevailing between the coast of Malabar and the Moluccas at the same period : this, he adds, must be supplied from regions close to the pole, which must be recruited in its turn from the countries to the south of it, in the western parts of our hemisphere. 2319. The variable winds cannot be so readily accounted for ; yet it is evident, that though they seem the effect of capricious causes, they depend upon a regular system, arranged by the great Author of na- ture. That accurate and successful observer of part of his works, the celebrated Franklin, discovered in 1740, that winds originate at the precise points towards which they blow. This philosopher had hoped to observe an eclipse of the moon at Philadelphia, but was prevented by a north-east storm, that commenced at seven in the evening. This he afterwards found did not occur at Boston till eleven ; and upon enquiry, he had reason to suppose, it passed to the north-east at the rate of about 100 miles an hour. The manner in which he accounts for this retrograde proceeding, is so satisfactory, that we shall give it in his own words, particularly as his assertions are supported by recent observations, both in America and Scotland. He argued thus : — " I suppose a long canal of water, stopped at the end by a gate. The water is at rest till the gate is opened ; then it begins to move out through the gate, and the water next the gate is put in motion and moves on towards the gate ; and so on successively, till the water at the head of the canal is in motion, which it is last of all. In this case all the water moves indeed towards the gate ; but the suc- cessive times of beginning the motion are in the contrary way, viz. from the gate back to the head of the canal. Thus to produce a north-east storm, I suppose some great rarefaction of the air in or near the Gulph of Mexico ; the air rising thence has its place supplied by the next more northern, cooler, and therefore denser and heavier air ; a successive current is formed, to which our coast and inland mountains give a north-east direction." According to the observations made by Captain Cook, the north-east winds prevail in the Northern Pacific Ocean during the same spring months they do with us, from which facts jt appears the cold air from America and the north of Europe flows at that season into the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. 2320. Other descriptions of winds may arise from a variety of causes. As the atmo- sphere has been ascertained to be composed of air, vapor, and carbonic acid and water, it is well known these frequently change their aerial form, and combine with different substances, and the reverse ; consequently partial winds and accumulations must con- tinually occur, which occasion winds of different degrees of violence, continuance, and direction. 2321. The principal electrical phenomena of the atmosphere are thunder and lightm'ng. 2322. Thunder is the noise occasioned by the explosion of a flash of lightning passing through the air : or it is that noise which is excited by a sudden explosion of electrical clouds, which are therefore called thunder-clouds. 2323. The rattling, in the noise of thunder, which makes it seem as if it passed tlirough arches, is pro- bably owing to the sound being excited among clouds hanging over one another, and tlie agitated air passing irregularly between them. A a 2 556 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2324. The explosion. If high In the air and remote from us, will do no mischief; but when near, It may, and has, in a thousand instances, destroyed trees, animals, &c. This proximity, or small distance, may be estimated nearly by the interval of time between seeing the flash of lightning and hearing the report of the thunder, estimating the distance after the rate of 114^ feet for a second of time, or 3| seconds to the mile. Dr. Wallis observes, that commonly the difference between the two is about seven seconds, which at the rate above-mentioned, gives the distance almost two miles. But sometimes it comes in a second or two, which argues the explosion very near to us, and even among us. And in such cases, the Doctor assures us, he has sometimes foretold the mischiefs that happened. 2325. Season of thunder. Although in this country thunder may happen at any time of the year, yet the months of July and August are those in which it may almost certainly be expected. Its devastations is of very uncertain continuance ; sometimes only a few peals will be heard at any particular place during the whole season; at other times the storm will return at the interval of three or four days, for a month, six weeks, or even longer; not that we have violent thunder in this country directly vertical in any one place so frequently in any year, but in many seasons it will be perceptible that thunder-clouds are formed in the neighborhood, even at these short intervals. Hence it appears, that during this particular period, there must be some natural cause operating for the production of this phenomenon, which does not take place at other times. This cannot be the mere heat of the weather, for we have often a long tract of hot weather without any thunder ; and besides, though not common, thunder is sometimes heard in the winter also. As therefore the heat of the weather is common to the whole summer, whether there be thunder or not, we must look for the causes of it in those phenomena, whatever they are, which are peculiar to the months of July, August, and the beginning of September. Now it is generally observed, that from the month of April, an east, or south-east wind generally takes place, and continues with little interruption till towards the end of June. At that time, sometimes sooner and sometimes later, a westerly wind takes place ; but as the causes producing the east wind are not removed, the latter opposes the west wind with its whole force. At the place of meeting, there is naturally a most vehement pressure of the atmosphere, and friction of its parts against one another ; a calm ensues, and the vapors brought by both winds begin to collect and form dark clouds, which can have little motion either way, because they are pressed almost equally on all sides. For the most part, however, the west wind prevails, and what little motion the clouds have is towards the east : whence, the common remark in this country, that " thunder-clouds move against the wind." But this is by no means universally true : for if the west wind happens to be excited by any tem- porary cause before its natural period when it should take place, the east wind will very frequently get the better of it; and the clouds, even although thunder is produced, will move westward. Yet in either case the motion is so slow, that the most superficial observers cannot help taking notice of a considerable resist- ance in the atmosphere. 2326. Thunderbolts. When lightning acts with extraordinary violence, and breaks or shatters any thing it is called a thunderbolt, which the vulgar, to fit it for such effects, suppose to be a hard body, and even a stone. But that we need not to have recourse to a hard solid body to account for the effects commonly attributed to the thunderbolt, will be evident to any one, who considers those of gunpowder, and the several chemical fulminating powders, but more especially the astonishing powers of elasticity, when only collected and employed by human art, and much more when directed and exercised in the course of nature. "When we consider the known effects of electrical explosions, and those produced by lightning, we shall be at no loss to account for the extraordinary operations vulgarly ascribed to thunderbolts. As stones and bricks struck by lightning are often found in a vitrified state, we may reasonably suppose, with Beccaria, that some stones in the earth, having been struck in this manner, gave occasion to the vulgar opinion of the thunderbolt. 2327. Thunder-clouds are those clouds which are in a state fit for producing lightning and thunder. The first appearance of a thunder-storm, which usually happens when there is little or no wind, is one dense cloud, or more, increasing very fast in size, and rising into the higher regions of the air. The lower sur- face is black, and nearly level ; but the upper finely arched, and well defined. Many of these clouds often seem piled upon one another, all arched in the same manner ; but they are continually uniting, swelling, and extending their arches. At the time of the rising of this cloud, the atmosphere is commonly full of a great many separate clouds, that are motionless, and of odd whimsical shapes ; all these, upon the appear- ance of the thunder-cloud, draw towards it, and become more uniform in their shapes as they approach ; till, coming very near the thunder-cloud, their limbs mutually stretch towards one another, and they immediately coalesce into one uniform mass. Sometimes the thunder-cloud will swell, and increase very fast, without the conjunction of any adscititious clouds ; the vapors in the atmosphere forming themselves into clouds whenever it passes. Some of the adscititious clouds appear like white fringes, at the skirts of the thunder-cloud, or under the body of it ; but they keep continually growing darker and darker, as they approach to unite with it. When the thunder-cloud is grown to a great size, its lower surface is often ragged, particular parts being detached towards the earth, but still connected with the rest. Sometimes the lower surface swells into various large protuberances, bending uniformly down- ward ; and sometimes one whole side of the cloud will have an inclination to the earth, and the extre- mity of it nearly touch the ground. When the eye is under the thunder-cloud, after it is grown large and well-formed, it is seen to sink lower, and to darken prodigiously ; at the same time that a number of small adscititious clouds (the origin of which can never be perceived) are seen in a rapid motion, driving about in very uncertain directions under it. While these clouds are agitated with the most rapid motions, the rain commonly falls in the greatest plenty ; and if the agitation be exceedingly great, it commonjy hails. 2328. Lightning. While the thunder-cloud is swelling, and extending its branches over a large tract of country, the lightning is seen to dart from one part of it to another, and often to illuminate its whole mass. When the cloud has acquired a sufficient extent, the lightning strikes between the cloud and the earth, in two opposite places ; the path of the lightning lying through the whole body of the cloud and its branches. The longer this lightning continues, the less dense does the cloud become, and the less dark its appearance ; till at length it breaks in different places, and shows a clear sky. Those thunder-clouds are sometimes in a positive as well as a negative state of electricity. The electricity continues longer of the same kind, in proportion as the thunder-cloud is sim- ple and uniform in its direction ; but when the lightning changes its place, there com- monly happens a change in the electricity of the apparatus over which the clouds passed. It changes suddenly after a very violent flash of lightning ; but gradually when the lightning is moderate, and the progress of the thunder-cloud slow. 2329. Lightning is an electrical explosion or phenomenon. Flashes of lightning are usually seen crooked , and waving in the air. They strike the highest and most pointed objects in preference to others, as hills, trees, spires, masts of ships, &c. ; so all pointed conductors receive and throw off the electric fluid more readily than those that are terminated by flat surfaces. Lightning is observed to take and follow the readiest and best conductor ; and the same is the case with electricity in the discharge of the Leyden phial ; from whence it is inferred, that in a thunder-storm it would be safer to have one's clothes wet than dry. Lightning burns, dissolves metals, rends some bodies, sometimes strikes persons blind, destroys ani- Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. S57 mal life, deprives magnets of their virtue, or reverses their poles ; and all these are well known properties of electricity. 2330. With regard to places of safety in times of thunder and lightning. Dr. Franklin's advice is to sit in the middle of a room, provided it be not under a metal luetre suspend«l by a chain, sitting on one chair, and laying the feet on another. It is still better, he says, to bring two or three mattresses or beds into the middle of the room, and folding them double, to place the chairs upon them; for as they are not so good conductors as the walls the lightning will not be so likely to pass through them. But the safest place of all is in a hammock hung by silken cords, at an equal distance from all the sides of the room. Dr. Priestley observe?, that the place of most perfect safety must be the cellar, and especially the middle of it ; for when a person is lower than the surface of the earth, the lightning must strike it before it can possibly reach him. In the fields, the place of safety is within a few yards of a tree, but not quite near it. Beccaria cautions persons not always to trust too much to the neighborhood of a higher or better conductor than their own body, since he has repeatedly found that the lightning by no means descends in one undivided track, but tiiat bodies of various kinds conduct their share of it at the same time, in proportion to their quantity and conducting power. Sect. II. Of the Means of jrrogrwsticating the Weather. 2331. The study of atmospherical changes has, in all ages, been more or less attended to by men engaged in the culture of vegetables, or the pasturage of animals ; and we, in this country, are surprised at the degree of perfection to which the ancients attained in this knowledge. But it ought to be recollected, that the study of the weather in the countries occupied by the ancients, as Egypt, Greece, Italy, and the continent of Europe, is a very different thing from its study in an island situated like ours. It is easy to foretel weather in countries where months pass away without rain or clouds, and where some weeks together, at stated periods, are as certainly seasons of rain or snow. It may be as- serted with truth, that there is a greater variety of weather in London in one week, than in Rome, Moscow, or Petersburgh, in three months. It is not, therefore, entirely a proof of our degeneracy, or the influence of our artificial mode of living, that we cannot predict the weather with such certainty as the ancients ; but a circumstance rather to be accounted for from the peculiarities of our situation. 2332. A variable climate, such as ours, admits of being studied, both generally and lo- cally ; but it is a study which requires habits of observation and reflection like all other studies ; and to be brought to any useful degree of perfection must be attended to, not as it commonly is, as a thing bj chance, and which every body knows, or is fit for, but as a serious undertaking. The weather may be foretold from natural data, artificial data, and from precedent. 2333. The natural data for this study are, 1. The vegetable kingdom ; many plants shutting and opening their flowers, contracting or expanding their parts, &c. on ap- proaching changes in the humidity or temperature of the atmosphere ; 2. The animal kingdom-; most of which, that are lamiliar to us, exhibiting signs on approaching changes, of which those by cattle and sheep are more especially remarkable ; and hence shepherds are generally, of all others, the most correct in their estimate of weather ; 3. The mineral kingdom ; stones, earths, metals, salts, and water of particular sorts, often show- ing indications of approaching changes ; 4. Appearances of the atmosphere, the moon^ the general character of seasons, &c. The characters of clouds, the prevalence of parti- cular winds, and other signs are very commonly attended to. 2334. The influence of the moon on the weather has, in all ages, been believed by the generality of mankind : the same opinion was embraced by the ancient philosophers ; an4 several eminent philosophers of later times have thought the opinion not unworthy of notice. Although the moon only acts (as far at least as we can ascertain) on the waters of the ocean by producing tides, it is nevertheless highly probable, according to the ob- servations of Lambert, Toaldo, and Cotte, that in consequence of the lunar influence, great variations do take place in the atmosphere, and consequently in the weather. The following principles will show the grounds and reasons for their embracing the received notions on this interesting topic : — 2335. There are ten situations in the moon's orbit when she must particularly exert her influence on the atmosphere ; and when, consequently, changes of the weather most readily take place. These are, — ■ 1. The new, and 2. ihefuM moon, when she exerts her influence in conjunction with, or in opposition to the sun. 3. and 4. The quadratures, or those aspects of the moon when she is 90° distant from the sun ; or when she is in the middle point of her orbit, between the points of conjunction and opposition, namely, in the first and third quarters. 5. The perigee, and 6. The apogee, or those points of the moon's orbit,' in which she is at the least and greatest distance from the earth. 7. 8. The two passages of the moon over the equator, one of which Toaldo calls, 7. The moon's ascending, and the other, 8. The moon's descending equinox, or the two lunistices, as De la Lande terms them. 9. The boreal lunistice, when the moon approaches as near as she can in each lunation, (or period between one new moon and another,) to our zenith (that point in the horizon which is directly over our heads). 10. The austral lunistice, when she is at the greatest distance from our zenith ; for the action of the moon varies greatly according to her obliquity. With these ten points Toaldo compared a table of forty- eight years' observations ; the result is, that the probabilities, that the weather will change at a certain period of the moon, are in the following proportions : New moon, 6 to 1. First quarter, 5 to 2. Full moon, 5 to 2. Last quarter, 5 to 4. Perigee, 7 to 1. Apogee, 4 to 1. Ascending equinox, 13 to 4, Northern lunistice, 11 to 4. Descending equinox, 11 to 4. Southern lunistice, 3 to 1. 2336. That thtr new moon will bring with it a change of weather is in the doctrine of chances as 6 to 1. Each situation of the moon alters that state of the atmosphere which has been occasioned by the preceding one : and it seldom happens that any change in the weather takes place without a change in the lunar Aa 3 35« SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. situations. These situations are combined, on account of the inequality of their revolutions, and the greatest effect is produced by the union of the syzigies, or the conjunction and opposition of a planet with the sun, with the apsides, or points in the orbits of planets, in which they are at the greatest and least dis- tance from the sun or earth. The proportions of their powers to produce variations are as follows : New moon coinciding with the perigee, 33 to 1. Ditto, with the apogee, 7 to 1. Full moon coinciding with the perigee, 10 to 1. Ditto, with the apogee, 8 to 1. The combination of these situations generally occasions storms and tempests ; and this perturbing power will always have the greater effect, the nearer these com- bined situations are to the moon's passage over the equator, particularly in the months of March and September. At the new and full moons, in the months of March and September, and even at the solstices, esi)ecially the winter solstice, the atmosphere assumes a certain character, by which it is distinguished for three, and sometimes six months. The new moons which produce no change in the weather, are those that happen at a distance from the apsides. As it is perfectly true that each situation of the moon alters that state of the atmosphere which has been produced by another, it is, however, observed, that many situations of the moon are favorable to good and others to bad weather. 2337. The situations of the moon favor able to bad weather are the perigee, new and full moon, passage of the equator, and the northern lunistice. Those belonging to the former are, the apogee, quadratures, and the southern lunistice. Changes of the weather seldom take place on the very days of the moon's situations, but either precede or follow them. It has been found by observation, that the changes affected by the lunar situations in the six winter months precede, and in the six summer months follow them. 2338. The octants. Besides the lunar situations to which the above observations refer, attention must be paid also to the fourth day before new and full moon, which days are called the octants. At these times the weather is inclined to changes ; and it may be easily seen, that these will follow at the next lunar situation. Virgil calls this fourth day a very sure prophet If on that day the horns of the moon are clear and well defined, good weather may be expected ; but if they are dull, and not clearly marked on the edges, it is a sign that bad weather will ensue. When the weather remains unchanged on the fourth, fifth, and sixth day of the moon, we may conjecture that it will continue so till full moon, even sometimes till the next new moon ; and in that case, the lunar situations have only a very weak effect. Many observers of nature have also remarked, that the approach of the lunar situations is somewhat critical for the sick. According to Dr. Herschel, the nearer the time of the moon's entrance, at full, change, or quarters, is to midnight (that is within two hours before and after midnight), the more fair the weather is in summer, but the nearer to noon the less fair. Also, the moon's entrance, at full, change, or quarters, during six of the afternoon hours, viz. from four to ten, may be followed by fair weather ; but this is mostly dependent on the wind. The same entrance during all the hours after midnight, except the two first, is unfavorable to fair weather ; the like, nearly, may be observed in winter. 2339. The artificial data are the barometer, hygrometer, rain-gauge, and ther- mometer. 2340. By means of the barometer, Taylor observes, we are enabled to regain, in some degree at least, that foreknowledge of the weather, which the ancients unquestionably did possess ; though we know not the data on which they founded their conclusions. Chaptal considers that the value of the barometer as an indicator of the approaching weather, is greater than that of the lunar knowledge of the most experienced country- man, and indeed of all other means put together. (^Agriculture applique h Chimie, ^c. We shall therefore annex such rules as have hitherto been found most useful in ascer- taining the changes of the weather, by means of the barometer. 2341. The rising of the mercury presages, in general, fair weather ; and its falling foul weather, as rain, snow, high winds, and storms. 2342. The sudden falling of the mercury foretels thunder, in very hot weather, especially if the wind is south. 2343. The rising in winter indicates frost j and in frosty weather, if the mercury falls three or four divisions, there will follow a thaw : but if it rises in a continued frost, snow may be expected. 2344. When foul weather happens soon after the falling of the mercury it will not be of long duration } nor are we to expect a continuance of fair weather, when it soon succeeds the rising of the quicksilver. 2345. Jf, in foul weather, the mercury rises considerably, and continues rising for two or three days before the foul weather is over, a continuance of fair weather may be expected to follow. 2346. When foul weather happens soon after the falling qf the mercury, it will not be of long duration ; nor are we to expect a continuance of fair weather, when it soon succeeds the rising of the quicksilver. 2347. j(f, in foul weather, the mercury rises considerably, and continues rising for two or three days be- fore the foul weather is over, a continuance of fair weather may be expected to follow. 2348. In fair weather, when the mercury falls much and low, and continues falling for two or three days before rain comes, much wet must be expected, and probably high winds. . 2349. The unsettled motion of the mercury indicates changeable weather. 2350. Respecting the words engraved on the register-plate of the barometer, it may be observed, that they cannot be strictly relied upon to correspond exactly with the state of the weather ; though it will in general agree with them as to the mercury rising and falling. The words deserve to be particularly noticed when the mercury removes from « changeable' upwards ; as those on the lower part should be adverted to, when the mer- cury falls from * changeable' downwards. In other cases, they are of no use : for, as its rising in any part forebodes a tendency to fair, and its falling to foul weather, it follows that, though it descend in the tube from settled to fair, it may nevertheless be attended with a little rain, and when it rises from the words * much rain' to * rain' it shows only an inclination to become fair, though the wet weather may still continue in a less considerable degree than it was when the mercury began to rise. But if the mercury, after having fallen to * much rain,' should ascend to ' changeable,' it foretels fair weather, though of a shorter continuance than if the mercury had risen still higher ; and so, on the contrary, if the mercury stood at * fair' and descends to * chan- geable,' it announces foul weather, though not of so long continuance, as if it had fallen lower. 2351. Concavity of tlie surface of the mercury. Persons who have occasion to travel much in the winter, and who are doubtful whether it will rain or not, may easily ascer- Book III. OF THE ATMOSPHERE. 359 tain this point by the following observation : — A few hours before he departs, let the traveller notice the mercury in the upper part of the tube of the barometer ; if rain is about to fall, it will be indented, or concave ; if otherwise, convex or pro- tuberant. . 2S52. Barometer in spring. Towards the end of March, or more generally in the beginning of April, the barometer sinks very low, with bad weatlier ; after which, it seldom falls lower than 29 degrees 5 minutes till the latter end of September or October, when the quicksilver falls again low, with stormy winds, for then the winter constitution of the air takes place. From October to April, the great falls of the barometer are from 29 degrees 5 minutes to 28 degrees 5 minutes, and sometimes lower ; whereas during the summer constitution of the air, the quicksilver seldom falls lower than 29 degrees 5 minutes. It therefore follows that a fall of one tenth of an inch, during the summer, is as sure an indication of rain, as a fall of between two and three tenths is in the winter. 2353," Barometer relative to situation. It must, however, be observed, that these heights of the barometer hold Only in places nearly on a level with the sea ; for expe- riments have taught us, that for every eighty feet of nearly perpendicular height that the barometer is placed above the level of the sea, th^ quicksilver sinks one tenth of an inch : observations alone, therefore, must determine the heights of the quicksilver, which in each place denotes either fair or foul weather. 2354. The hygrometer is of various sorts, but cord, fiddle-string, and most of the sub- stances commonly used become sensibly less and less accurate, so as at length not to undergo any visible alteration from tlie different states of the air, in regard to dryness or moisture. 2355. A sponge makes a good hygrometer on this account, as being less liable to be changed by use than cord. To prepare the sponge, first wash it in water, and when dry, wash it again in water wherein sal ammoniac or salt of tartar has been dissolved ; and let it dry again. Now, if the air becomes moist, the sponge will grow heavier j and if dry, it will become lighter. 2356. Oil of vitriol is found to grow sensibly lighter or heavier in proportion to the lesser or greater quantity of moisture it imbibes from the air. The alteration is so great, that it has been known to change its weight from three drachms to nine. The other acid oils, or, as they are usually called, spirits, or oil of tartar per deliquiumy may be substi- tuted for the oil of vitriol. 2357. Steel-yard hygrometer. In order to make a hygrometer with those bodies which acquire or lose weight in the air, place such a substance in a scale on the end of a steel-yard, with a counterpoise which shall keep it in equilibrio in fair weather; the other end of the steel-yard, rising or falling, and pointing to a graduated index, will shew the changes. 2358. Line and plummet. If a line be made of good well dried whip cord, and a plummet be fixed to the end of it, and the whole be hung against a wainscot, and a line be drawn under it, exactly where the plummet reaches, in very moderate weather it will be found to rise above such line, and to sink below it when the weather is likely to become fair. 2359. The whalebone hygrometer, originally invented by De Luc, is esteemed one of the best now in use. 2360. The rain-gaugCy pluviometer, or hyetometer, is a machine for measuring the quantity of rain that falls. 2361. A hollow cylinder forms one of the best-constructed rain gauges : it 249 has within it a cork ball attached to a wooden stepi (Jig. 249. ), wliich passes through a small opening at the top, on which is placed a large funnel. When this instrument is placed in the open air in a free place, the rain that falls within, the circumference of the funnel will run down into the tube and cause the cork to float ; and the quantity of water in the tube may be seen by the height to which the stem of the float is raised. The stem of tlie float is so graduated, as to show by its divisions the number of perpendicular inches of water which fell on the surface of the earth since the last observation. After every observation the cylinder must be emptied. 2362. A copper funnel forms another very simple rain-gauge : the area of the opening must be exactly ten square inches. Let this funnel be fixed in a bottle, and the quantity of rain caught is ascertained by multiplying the weight in ounces by 173, which gives the depth in inches and parts of an inch. 2363. In fixing these gauges, care must be taken that the rain may have free access to them ; hence the tops of buildings are usually the best places, though some conceive that the nearer the rain-gauge is placed to the ground the more rain it will collect. Aa 4 300 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2364. In order to comjxire tlie quantities of rain collected in pluvloineters at diflferent places, the instruments should ba fixed at the game heights above the ground in all such places ; because, at different heights, the quantities are always different, even at the same place. 2365. Thermometer. As the weight of the atmosphere is measured by the barometer, so the thermometer shows the variations in the temperature of the weather ; for every change of the weather is attended with a change in the temperature of the air, which a thermometer placed in the open air will point out, sometimes before any alteration is per- ceived in the barometer. 2366. The scales of different thermometers are as follow. In Fahrenheit's the freezing point is 32 degrees, and the boiling point 212 degrees. In Reaumur's tlie freezing point is 0, and the boiling point 80 degrees. In the centrigrade thermometer, which is generally used in France, and is the same as that of Celsius, which is the thermometer of Sweden, the freezing point is 0, and the boiling point 100 degrees. As a rule for comparing or reducing these scales, it may be stated, that 1 degree of Reaumur's scale contains 2^ de- gress of Fahrenheit, and to convert the degrees of the one to the other, the rule is to multiply by 9, divide by 34, and add 32. One degree of the centigrade scale is equal to one degree and eight-tenths of Fahren- heit ; and the rule here is to multiply by 9, divide by 5, and add 32. Any of these thermometers may be proved by immersing it in pounded ice for the freezing point, and in boihng water for the boiling point, and if the space between these points is equally divided, the thermometer is correct. 2367. The study of tlie weather from precedent, affords useful hints as to the character of approaching seasons. From observing the general character of seasons for a long period, certain general results may be deduced. On this principle, Kirwan, on com- paring a number of observations taken in England from 1677 {Trans. Ir. Acad. v. 20.) to 1789, a period of 1 12 years, found : That when there has been no storm before or after the vernal equinox, the ensuing summer is generally drv, at least five times in six. That when a storm happens from an easterly point, either on the 19th, 20th, or Slst of May, the suc- ceeding summer is generally dry, at least four times in five. That when a storm arises on the 25th, 26th, or 2^th of March, and not before in any point, the succeed- ing summer is generally dry, four times in five. If there be a storm at S. W. or W. S. W. on the 19th, 20tli, 21st, or 22d of March, the succeeding sum- mer is generally wet, five times in six. In this country winters and springs, if dry, are most commonly cold; if moist, warm : on the contrary, dry summers and autumns are usually hot, and moist summers cold ; so that, if we know the moistness or dryness of a season, we can form a tolerably accurate judgment of its temperature. In this country also, it generally rains less in March than in November, in the proportion at a medium of 7 to 12. It generally rains less in April than October, in the proportion of 1 to 2, nearly at a medium. It generally rains less in May than September ; the chances that it does so, are, at least, 4 to 3 ; but, when it rains plentifully in May, as 18 inches or more, it generally rains but little in September; and when it rains one inch, or less, in May, it rains plentifully in September. 2368. The probabilities ofparticvlar seasons beingfollowed by others, has been calculated by Kirwan, and although his rules chiefly relate to the climate of Ireland, yet as there exists but little difference between that island and Great Britain, in the general appear- ance of the seasons, we shall mention some of his conclusions. In forty-one years there were six wet springs, 22 dry, and 13 variable ; 20 wet summers, 16 dry and 5 variable ; 11 wet autumns, 11 dry, and 19 variable. A season is accounted wet, when it contains two wet months. In general, the quantity of rain, which falls in dry seasons, is less than five inches, in wet seasons more ; variable seasons are those, in which there falls between 30 lbs. and 36 lbs,, a pound being equal to 157639 of an inch. January is the coldest month in every latitude ; and July is the warmest month in all latitudes above 48 degrees : in lower latitudes, August is generally the warmest. The diflTerence between the hottest and coldest months increases in proportion to the distance from the equator. Every habitable latitude enjoys a mean heat of 60 degrees for at least two months ; which heat is necessary for the production of cora Sect. III. Of the Climate of Britain, 2369. Tlie climate of the British isles, relatively to others in the same latitude, is tem- perate, humid, and variable. The moderation of its temperature and its humidity are owing to our being surrounded by water, which being less affected by the sun than the earth, imbibes less heat in summer, and from its fluidity is less easily cooled in winter. As the sea on our coasts never freezes, its temperature must always be above 33° or 34° ; and hence, when air from the polar regions at a much lower temperature passes over it, that air must be in some degree heated by the radiation of the water. On the other hand, in summer, the warm currents of air from the south necessarily give out part of their heat in passing over a surface so much lower in temperature. The vari- able nature of our climate is chiefly owing to the unequal breadths of watery surface which surround us ; on one side, a channel of a few leagues in breadth ; on the other, the Atlantic ocean. 2370. IVie British climate varies materially vdthin itself: some districts are dry, as the east ; others moist, as the west coast ; in the northern extremity, dry, cold, and windy ; in the south, warm and moist. Even in moist districts some spots are excessively dry, as part of Wigtonshire, from the influence of the Isle of Man, in warding off the watery clouds of the Atlantic ; and, in dry districts, some spots are moist, from the influence of high mountains in attracting and condensing clouds charged with watery vapor. Book IV, IMPLEMENTS OF AGRICULTURE. S61 2371. The deterioration of the British climate is an idea entertained by some; but whether in regard to general regularity, temperature, moisture, or wind, the alleged changes are unsupported by satisfactory proofs. It is not improbable but the humidity of our climate, as Williams alleges (Climate of Britain, &c. 1816J, has of late years been increased by the increase of evaporating surface, produced by the multiplicity of hedges and plantations ; a surface covered with leaves being found to evaporate con- siderably more than a naked surface. If the humidity of the climate was greater before the drainage of morasses and the eradication of forests for agricultural purposes, a comparative return to the same state by artificial planting and irrigation, must have a- tendency to produce the same results. However, it will be long before the irrigation of lands is carried to such a degree as to produce the insalubrious effects of undrained morasses ; and as to our woods and hedges, we must console ourselves with the beauty and the shelter which they produce, for the increase of vapor supposed to proceed from them. BOOK IV. OF THE MECHANICAL AGENTS EMPLOYED IN AGRICULTURE. 2372. Having taken a view of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, as supplying the subjects of agricultural improvement, and of the mineral kingdom, manures, and the weather, as the natural agents of their growth and culture ; our next course is to ex- amine the mechanical agents, or implements, machines, and buildings employed in agricultural operations. In a rude state of husbandry few implements are required be- sides the plough and the cart, and few buildings beside the stable and the barn. The ground is ploughed, and the seed thrown in and covered with a bush ; at harvest it is cut down and carted to the barn ; and the three grand operations of the farmer are sowing, reaping, and thrashing. But in our improved state of society, where all the science of mechanics as well as chemistry, is made to bear on agriculture, the imple- ments, machines, and buildings become numerous, and equally so the operations. Sa numerous are the former, indeed, that the theoretical enquirer is often puzzled in mak- ing a selection. The wbole of the most improved agriculture, however, may be, and in fact is, carried on with a very limited variety both of implements and buildings : intricate and complicated machines are not adapted for a rustic art like agriculture, and a great variety are not required for an art whose operations are so simple as almost to be uni- versally understood and practised. In our enumeration we shall include a number that we do not consider of much consequence ; but we shall always distinguish between the essential, and such as are comparatively objects of superfluous ingenuity and expense. We shall adopt the or^er of Implements of Manual Labor, Implements or Machines impelled by quadrupeds or other powers, Structures, and Buildings. Chap. I. Of the Implements of Manual Labor used in Agriculture* 2373. Though the most important implements of agriculture are drawn or put in action by beasts of labor, yet a few are used bi/ man alone, which cannot be dispensed with. These may be arranged as tools, or simple implements for performing operations on the soil ; instruments for performing operations on plants or animals, or other more delicate operations ; utensils for the deportation of materials ; and hand machines for various purposes. Sect. I. Tools used in Agriculture. 2374. The lever is an inflexible straight bar of iron or wood, employed in connection with a prop or fulcrum, on which it is supported. There are three kinds, but the most common is that in which the fulcrum is between the power and the weight. Its use in the removal of large stones or other heavy bodies is well known, and the advantage of its application depends on the distance of the power from the fulcrum, and the proximity of the weight. 2375. The pick or mattock consists of two parts, the handle, which ought to be formed of sound ash timber or oak, such as is obtained from the root or butt end of a middle aged tree j and the head, which should be formed of the best iron and pointed,, 362 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pa^t II. with steel. The handle ought to be perfectly cylindrical, as in using it one hand slides along it from the end next the operator towards the head. There are several varieties ; ttie first the pick, with the ends of the head pointed, used for loosening hard ground, gravel, &c. ; the second, the pick axe, with the ends wedge-shaped in reversed positions, used in digging up trees ; the third, the grubber, for grubbing up heath or small brush- wood ; and there are also the road pick, and some others. 2376. The spade consists of two parts, the handle of ash, generally ^out two feet nine inches long, and the blade of plate iron. There are several varieties; K with a curved outline to the extremity of the blade, by which it may be made to enter a stiff soil with less power ; 2. with a perforated blade, which in adhesive soils frees itself better from earth in the using ; 3. witli a sub-semicylindrical blade, which enters a stiff soil easier than the common form, is much stronger as a lever, and also frees itself well from tlje spitful of earth : this variety is what canal diggers chiefly use, and is called by them a grafting tool. There are other varieties and subvarieties used in draining, and for particular purposes ; which will be noticed at the proper place. 2377. The shovel differs from the spade in being made with a broader and thinner blade ; its use being to lift, rather than cut and separate. There are several varieties differing in the form and magnitude of the blade. One variety, the barn shovel, has the blade generally of wood, sometimes edged with iron. 2378. The turf-spade consists of a cordate or scutiform blade, joined to a handle by a kneed or bent iron shank. It is used for cutting turf from pastures, and in removing ant-hills and other inequalities. A thin section is first removed, then the protuberance of earth is taken out and the section replaced, which, cut thin, and especially on the edges, readily refits ; and the operation is finished with gentle pressure by the foot, back of the spade, or roller. One variety {Jig. 250. ) has one edge turned up, and is preferable where the turfs are to be cut square-edged and somewhat thick. 2379. The fork is of several kinds ; the dung-fork for working in littery dung, con- sisting of a handle like that of the shovel, and three or more prongs instead of a blade ; the hay or pitch-fork, for working with sheaves of corn or straw or hay, consisting of a long handle and two prongs ; and the wooden fork consisting of a shoot of willow, ash, or other young tree or sapling, forked at the extremity, barked and formed into a rude fork, sometimes used in hay-making, and similar operations. The prongs of forks to take up loose materials should be made square ; those for sheaves or more compact mat- ters or very littery dung, will work easiest when the prongs are round. 2380. The rake used in agriculture is of two kinds, the hay-rake and the corn-rake. Both consist of a handle and head set with teeth ; in the corn rake these are generally of iron. The garden-rake is sometimes used for covering small seeds. 2381. The hay-rake is usually made of willow that it may be light and easy to work ; and the teeth should be short, otherwise they are apt to pull up the stubble or roots of the grass in raking. Sometimes the teeth are made to screw into the head, and fasten with nuts, w^hich prevents their dropping out in dry seasons, 2382. The corn-rake {Jig. 251.) is of different dimensions and constructions in different counties. In general the length of the rake is about four feet ; and the teeth of iron about four inches long, and set from one to two inches apart. Young {Report of Norfolk) mentions one of these dimensions which had two wheels of nine inches diameter, and so fixed that the teeth may be kept in any posture at the will of the holder. It was used both for hay and com, and answered the purpose well. 2383. In East Lothian a corn-rake has been tried, which according to Somerville {Survet/,&c.) has been found to answer much better than the common corn rake. In this, the length of the head*^—— 77^— ••-•-- — — -^^^^^ is from ten to fifteen feet, the handle about seven feet, with a piece of wood across the end of it, by which it is drawn by two men. The teeth are of wood or iron, the last are the best, as well as the most durable, and are a little bent forward at the point, which gives them the power of retaining and carrying the ears along with them much better than they would otherwise do. To make clean work, especially if the ridges are rounded, the field is raked across ; in that way every thing is taken up ; but when it is preferred to draw the rake in the direction of the ridges, it may be tonsiderably improved by cutting the head into two or three lengths {Jig. 252.) j and join- Book IV. IMPLEMENTS OF AGRICULTURE. 363 ing them with hinges, which will allow it to bend and accommodate itself to the curvature of the ridges. The advantage of this kind of rake has been found considerable, even in cases where every possible attention has been paid to the cut- ting of the crop. 2384. Tlie stubble^ or dew rake, is merely a coarser sort of corn rake. 2385. The daisey rake, has teeth sharpened on both edges like lancets, and is used for raking oft* the flower heads or buds of daiseys, and other plants in grass lawns. 2386. The drill rake is a large headed rake, in which the teeth are triangular, in section like small coulters ; they are set at six or twelve inchesa distance, according to circumstances, and the implement is used to draw drills across beds or ridges, for sowing field crops of small seedfe or roots, such as onions, early turnips^ carrots, &c. or for planting saffron or Indian corn. 2387. The dung drag, or dung hack, is a two or three pronged implement, with a long handle for drawing the dung out of carts in different portions. The form of the prongs should be flat. 2388. The earth hack resembles a large hoe, and is used for emptying loads of earth or lime, or other pulverulent matters, in the same manner as the dung drag is used for em- ptying dung ; it is sometimes also used as a hoe, and for scraping and cleaning. 2389. The hand hoe, commonly used in agriculture, is of two kinds ; that with an entire and that vvith a perforated blade. The last variety is preferable for thinning crops or destroying weeds, as it does not collect the soil and the weeds together in heaps ; but where earthing up is the object, the common square blade is the best. The breadth of the blade may vary from two to twelve inches, according as the soil is adhesive or loose, or the plants to be thinned to a greater or lesser distance. An improvement for hoes to be used in stirring stiff" soils, consists in forming the blade with a prong or prongs on the opposite side of the broad blade, which can be used in very stiff" places to loosen them, by the operator's merely altering the position of the handle. The blades of all hoes enter the soil easier when curved than when straight, the wedge in the former case being narrower. 2390. Various improvements in hoes have been attempted by agriculturists. One with a trian- dy^ ^Jh,^ ^^^ "^f gular blade has been recommended as adapted ^T' "y( /Jt~VrziL to thin either at a greater or lesser distance, ac- ^— ^ ^-^ ^r^v^\±n^ cording to the depth it is thrust into the soil. Lord Somerville recommends the forked tool {jig. 253 a.) or heavy hoe, used in the vineyards on the continent; but it is an implement more op- pressive to the cultivator than a spade, as it requires him to stoop very low. Ducket, jun. recommends a treble hoe (6) for thinning ; another of a different description (c) for making drills by drawing ; one for making them by striking in a line, in order to form a trench for dung and potatoes {f) ; one for forming a drill in the common way (e) ; and, lastly, one for hoeing both sides of a drill at once (rfj. It is said that by this last tool two acres of barley may be hoed in a day, and that it makes good work among oats or wheat. But such hoeing, even on the slightest soils, can be little more than a mere scraping of the surface j and though the weeds may be cut, yet this is only one object of hoeing. 2391. The breast hoe, or breast plough, which is pushed before the operator like the thrust hoe of gardening ; and M'Dougal's hoe, which is drawn by a man before, and pushed by another behind, witli other varieties, need not be described. 2392. The scraper may be described as a broad hoe, of treble the usual size and strength, used in cleaning roads or court-yards, and sometimes in cleaning grassy surfaces. One with the ends of the blade turned an inch or two, is found more effective in scraping the mud or dust from roads. 2393. Of weeding tools used in agriculture there are three or four kinds ; one with a long handle and fulcrum to the blade, for digging docks and other tap rooted plants from pastures ; a common spud or spadelet for cutting smaller weeds in hedges or standing corn ; a thistle spud for cutting and rooting out thistles in pastures ; besides short handled weeders of different kinds, to be used in hand-weeding young and delicate broad cast crops, as onions, &c. in stiff" soils. 2394. Weeding pincers, or thistle drawers, (fig. 254.) are sometimes used for pulling thistles out of hedges and from among standing corn ; the handles are about two feet six 364 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. inches long, and the blades faced with plate iron made rough by cross channels or indentations. 2395. The besoms used in farming are commonly small fag- gots with handles, formed of birch spray for the stal)les and cattle- houses, and of broom, heath, straw, &c. for the barns. 2396. The straw rope twister or twisting crook, is used for twisting straw ropes, and consists of a stick or rod from two to three feet long, and from one to two inches diameter, either naturally or artificially crooked. At one end is a ring through which a cord is, passed, and the implement tied to the waist ; at the other is a^ notch on which the commencement of the rope is made. 2397. The jmtatoe dibber is exclusively used in planting potatoes in fine moulds ; but drilling is a mode generally to be preferred, as providing a better bed and a closer covering to the sets. 2398. The common dibber u?,eA. in agriculture, has several teeth or dibbles proceeding from a head, which having a handle, is pressed into the ground, and forms several holes at once, according to the number of dibbles, and these are regulated by the hardness of the soil. In strong clays the common garden dibber, shod with iron, is often used. 2399. The Jlail is a well known implement for beating out corn, now happily going out of use in the most improved districts, as it would every where, were the value of the hand threshing machine generally known. 2400. The essential agricultural tools are the pick, the spade, shovel, dung and hay- fork, hay-rake, common hand hoe, and besom. Sect. II. Instruments. 2401. The instruments used in agriculture maybe classed as the common and the scientific ; the former are used in executing, the latter chiefly in designing and laying out operations. SuBSECT. 1. Instruments of Labor. 2402. The instruments of labor peculiar to agriculture are few, and chiefly the scythe, reaping hook, and hay knife ; but there are some others common to agriculture and gardening, which are occasionally used, and they also shall be enumerated. 2403. The scythe is of three kinds ; one for cutting grass or herbage crops for hay, which consists of a thin steel blade attached at right angles to a handle of six or eight feet long; and the other for cutting corn, to which what is called a cradle is attached; the third is of smaller dimensions, and is exclusively used for cutting corn ; it is called the Hainault scythe. 2404. The Hainault scythe (fig. 255.) has a wooden handle an inch and a quarter in diameter, and is held in the mower's right hand by the bent part (a, b) about five inches long. The ^ straight part of the handle(c) is from 16 to 22 inches long, according to the height ^ of the mower. There is a leathern loop (6) through which the fore finger is passed, and there is a knob (a) at the extremity, which would prevent the hand slipping off, if the loop should break, or the finger slip out of it. The blade (d) is about 2 feet long, and 2f inches broad at the middle. The handle is attached to the blade in such a manner, as that its plane makes an angle with that of the latter, by which means the mower is able to cut a little upwards, but almost close to the ground without stooping, while the handle inclines to the horizon about 60 or 70 degrees. The line of the crooked part of the handle (a, b) if produced, would nearly pass through the point of the blade, which thus gives the means of controUing that point ; whilst the fore finger in the loop commands the heel {e). Along with the scythe a light staff (/>^)» terminating in an iron hook (A), is used by the mower. With the scythe in his right hand, he holds the hook in his left by the middle, the curved part of it over the scythe in a similar position to its blade, and above it, their points being exactly above each other. In working, the mower moves ^ both together, making the hook to pass behind the straw at about the mid- dle of its height, to separate and press it slightly down towards the left hand, while the blade follows with a motion from right to left to cut off the straw at from two to four inches above the ground. A great advantage of this im- plement is, that the operator is not required to stoop, by which his strength is less fflchausted, and he is said to cut double the quantity of corn which can be cut in the same time with the reaping-hook, and with less loss of straw. 2405. The cradle scytlie (Jig.256. ) is variously constructed : sometimes the cradle or receptacle into which the corn is gathered is of net-work, and at other times it consists of woven laths or wicker work. (See 398.) 2406. The reaping hook is a curved blade of steel, fixed in a short wooden handle ; it is of two kinds ; one serrated like a fine saw, which is used in cutting corn by handfulls, and is called a sickle hook ; the other smooth and sharp like a scythe, which is used to hack the corn over in the peculiar manner called bagging, and is called a cutting hook. 2407. Hutton^s improved reaping hook is serrated from the point through half its length like a sickle, and the remainder The advantage is, that the straws are not cut in entering the hook, is smooth and sharp. Book IV. IMPLEMENTS OF AGRICULTURE. 365 as is the case where tlie point is of the cutting kind, by which means fewer drop and are lost. With sickles reapers invariably make cleaner work than with the hooks for the above reason ; with hooks the straws are cut with less labor. ( Trans. Soc. Arts. vol. 28. ) 2408. The hay knife consists of a straight blade set at right angles to a short wooden handle ; both of considerable strength. It is used for cutting hay or straw when con- solidated in the rick or stack. An improvement of this instrument has been proposed, which consists in forming the blade like that of a common spade, sharp at the edges, by which the operator will cut downwards instead of obliquely, and not being obliged to stoop, will effect the same work with far less trouble. 2409. The wool shears are formed wholly of iron or steel, and worked with one hand. 2410. The hedge shears are of different kinds ; that called the averuncator is to be preferred for cutting off large shoots, as it makes a clean draw cut like a knife. Shears, however, are. not used in dressing hedges by the best agriculturists. 2411. The thatching knife consists of a blade similar to that of a scythe, inserted in a wooden handle like that of a reaping hook. For thatching with reeds, heath, or any rough and rigid thatch, the blade has a handle affixed to each end to enable the operator to work it with both hands. 2412. The stack -borer consists of a species, of auger, the cutting part of which is of very sharp steel, and the stem eight or ten feet long, with a moveable cross handle for working it. There is also a screw similar to a common bottle screw, which works on or round the stem of the augur, and is applied at intervals to draw out the cut hay. This instrument is used by extensive growers of meadow or natural hay to bore holes through hay ricks when they heat, or to try the quality of the article. The hole made by iJhe augur is about one foot in diameter. 2413. The hedge bill is of various kinds; most of them have long handles, but what are called bill-hooks, are a sort of axe with a hooked point and a short handle. 2414. The axe, saw, wedges and hammers, of different kinds and sizes, are used in agriculture, in felling trees, cutting them up, preparing fuel, driving nails, &c., but these and other instruments common to various arts need not be described. 2415. Blacklegs improved hatchet and bill-hooks for cutting underwood, faggoting, and gapstopping, are superior instruments for these purposes. The long handled Berwickshire hedge-bill for dressing hedges, and the long handled saw for cutting off large branches of trees, are preferred for cutting over old hedges and undergrowths by the collar. 241 6. The line and reel is occasionally wanted for the manual operations of agriculture, and should be procured rather stronger and with a longer line than those used in gardens. 2417. The potatoe setscoop is of two kinds ; ^_ one a hollow semiglobe, {Jig. 257 a. ), and the other (6) a section of that figure. They are only used when potatoes are very scarce, as in ordinary cases the larger the set the more strength and rapidity of growth in tlie young plant, 2418. The Edinburgh potatoe scoop {Jig. 258.) is by far the best, and indeed the only one deserving of use. The handle (a) has a round stem which passes through a piece of metal (d) and has there a semicircular knife or cutter {e) fixed to it. This cutter is sharp on both edges and turns on a pivot fitted in a ;piece of brass formed out of a piece of plate {b, c). This plate forms a shield to hold this instru- ment firm upon the potatoe, by placing the thumb of the left hand upon it, and pressing the points in which the cutter 13 fixed, into the tuber. Then by turning the handle half round with the right hand, the semicircular knife cuts out a set which is a segment of a small sphere {e,f, g). The only attention necessary in the use of this instrument is, that it is placed upon the potatoe, with the eye or bud in the centre of the diameter of the semicircle of the knife when laid flat on the tuber. The advantages of this scoop, besides that it is very quick in its operation, is that the pieces being aU exactly of one size, that is about an inch in diameter, may be pbnted by a bean barrow or drill machine, with much less labor and more accuracy than by the hand. 2419. The essential instruments of labor are the scythe, reaping hook, hay-knife,, wool-shears, hedge-bill, axe, saw, hammer, and line and reel. SuBSECT. 2. Instruments of Science. 2420. Scientific instrumejits are not much required in agriculture, the principal are for levelling, boring, and measuring. 2421. The levelis fTequent]y required in agriculture, for arranging surfaces for irri- gation ; tracing strata in order to cut off springs, well making, and a variety of other purposes. The simplest form is the common road or mason's level, and the most com- plete the spirit level, with a telescope and compass, such as is used by land surveyors ; but when operations of only moderate extent are to be performed, very convenient and economical substitutes, and if used with care, equally accurate instruments, may be 36Q SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. found iH the road or common levels (f^. 259.), water level, the triangular and the square level. 259 S=4. 2422. The ivater level is that which shews the horizontal line by means of a surface of water or other fluid ; founded on this principle, that water always places itself level or horizontal. The most simple level of this kind is made of a long wooden trough or canal, which being equally filled with water, its surface shews the line of level. It is also made with two cups, fitted to the two ends of a straight tube, about an inch in diameter, and three or four feet long, by means of which the water communicates from the one cup to the o>;her, and this pipe being moveable on its stand by means of a ball and socket, when the two cups shew equally full of water, their two surfaces mark the line of level. It may also be made with two short cylinders of glass, three or four inches long, fastened at each extremity of the pipe with wax or mastic. The pipe is filled with common or colored water, which shews itself through the cylinders, by means of which the line of level is determined ; the height of the water with respect to the centre of the earth, being always the same in both cylinders. This level is very simple and commodious for level- ling small distances. 2423. 7%e American or triangular level {fig. 260 a.) is formed of two pieces of thin wood joined by a cross bar, the whole in the form of the letter A. The manner of using it is simply thus : At the place from where the level is to be taken, drive a wooden peg into the ground, close in to the top, upon which one of the legs of the frame or A may rest ; then bringing round the other leg till it touch the ground, there drive in a second peg, turning round the other leg as before ; and where it touches the ground again, drive in another peg, and so on along the whole line to be levelled. Thus, with very little trouble, and with as much accuracy as with tlie finest spirit-level, may the course of a drain be easily ascertained. But as it is necessary that a drain should have as much declivity as to allow the water to run freely, it will be requisite, in taking the level, to regulate the direction of the line accordingly. Half an inch fall, in the length of the frame, will be sufficient For this purpose, it will be expedient to have, besides a number of wooden pegs, one iron pin with inches and halves marked regularly upon the sides of it from the top downwards. After having drove in the first wooden peg at the point from whence you mean to conduct the drain, and having rested the one leg of the frame upon it, turn round the other till it be level with the first peg ; there put in the iron pin, 80 that this leg of the frame may rest on the top of it, when level ; then drive in a wooden peg so far, as that the top of it may be half an inch lower than that of the iron pin. Place the leg of the frame again upon this second peg, turn it round to a level, putting in the iron pin till the top of it be equal with the foot of the frame ; then drive in another wooden peg close by the side of it, till the top of the wooden one be half an inch lower than that of the iron pin. Proceed in this manner so far as you mean to carry the drain, which will have the same degree of declivity all the way along. When made on a smaller scale, it is useful in ascertaining the proper descent along the bottom of a drain, while the workmen are laying it ; but when made for this purpose, the cross-bar must be fixed to the bottom of the legs, so that the A be- comes a A, or delta. 2424. The square level (Jig. 260b.), is made of several pieces; the usual length generally five feet and a half, and the ogQ height four or four feet and a half. It may be either used like the water level, or the American level. According to Marshal, it has been found " preferable to any other level now in use, as being equally accurate in ascertaining the re- lative heights of distant objects, as in minutely tracing step by step the required line of communication, so as to give every part of it an equal and uniform descent." 2425. T/ie object staff {Jig, 260 c.) is used with the water or square level : for either it should be exactly of the same height as the leVel ; the cross piece at top should be a foot or more in length, and three inches broad, painted white on one side for opposing to dark objects, and black on the other for opposing to such as are white. 2426. The levelling staff is composed of two pieces, {Jig. 260 d, h, and e, e), which slide on each other : they are each of about five feet in length, so as to form, when fully extend- ed, a rod often feet. They have a graduated line of feet into hundredth parts. The index (/) slides firmly on them; and is moved up or down (by signal) by the attendant who carries the staff, till the observer finds it coincide with the intersecting wires of his telescope. Its height on the staff, of course, marks the difference of the level. It has two horizontal and parallel black stripes, which at considerable distances are of use to direct the eye more readily to tlie fiducial edge (g). Book IV. IMPLEMENTS OF AGRICULTURE. S67 /V 2427. The meamring^chain, measuring-rod, pocket. rvie, Vo\^ ^°'. /trlnTS lines ; stakes for driving in at fixed points, and a variety of other mstruments, and the r append^es are occasionally required l,y the agriculturist who lays out estates or effects territorial improvements : but these not being strictly agricultural implemente do not re- quire to be described. ^ 2428. T/ie Sorer (^g. 261.) is an Instrument mvented tor CA ^ the purpose of searching or exploring the nature of soils. ^ J]!. ^^ d^c It is composed of two rods of iron (a,/, and h,g\ each six - feet long, and an inch in diameter. The end of one screws into the end of the other, after taking out the stopper (c), the use of which is to hinder either dirt or dust from getting into the screw. The screw is an inch and a half long, and three quarters of an inch in diameter: there is a steel point somewhat blunt (/ ) , to pierce the earth or any substance it may meet with. It should be about three inches long, and made with either three, four, or more sides, as may be thought most convenient. It is screwed into the rod (a) in the same manner, and with, a screw of the same size as is used in screwing the rods together. It has a groove six inches long, a third of an inch wide, and three quarters of an inch deep, rounded in the bottom, and intended to bring up part of each different layer through which it passes. When springs are sought for, a bit of sponge is put into the groove. At the end of the rod (g), is a screw to fix into another rod of the same kind, if it be found necessary to lengthen the instrument ; and this may be repeated, by the addition of more rods, to any depth desired. The handle of this instrument (/t, i), is two feet and a half long : this handle is fastened to the rod by means of a clasp ik, 1} lined with steel, fixed at one end by a hinge, and at the other by a screw (J), so that it may be placed at any height. A lever handle {m) serves to stop the borer when bringing it up from a considerable depth, and also to screw and unscrew the several bars or joints as occasion requires, and to put on or take off the steel point at the bottom. The other handle (i, h) is that by which the rod is held, and worked into the earth, either by turning it round, especially at first, or, after it has penetrated to some depth, by lifting it up, and letting it fall again, which it does with such force as to pierce even the hardest rocks ; especially if it work at any considerable depth, and has of course been lengthened accordingly ; for every foot of this rod weighs three pounds. Two men will easily sound the depth of twelve feet in less than a quarter of an hour, if they do not meet with many stones. When the rod becomes too heavy to be properly managed by hand, it may be raised by a rope fastened at one end to the handle, and at the other to a roller, or kind of windlass, erected at a proper height, perpendicularly over the hole, and turned with either one or two handles : when let go, it will fall with such weight as to strike each time very deep into the earth. 2429. For making 'this instrument, the toughest iron is the best : it should be well hammered, till its surface is quite smooth and even ; for the least roughness and inequality would occasion a friction, which would greatly retard its working. For the same reason, and also to increase the force of its fall, it is necessary that it should be perfectly straight ; wor should it ever be struck with a mallet, hammer, &c. to force it down, because a blow might bend it, and it would easily break aftervi^ards. The female screw must be turned like that in the breech of a gun-barrel, in a separate piece of iron, cross- ways to the grain ; and this piece must be afterwards well soldered on to one of the ends of the rod. The reason for this is, that if the female screw were bored only at the end of the rod, it would, by being hammered out in the same direction with the grain, be stringy and porous, and consequently so weak as to give way, or burst, in the working of the rod ; whereas, when made of a separate piece, taken cross-ways of the grain, the threads of the screw will run with the grain of the iron, and be thence considerably strengthened. A bit, like that of an auger, proportioned to the thickness of the rod, may at any time, when necessary, 262 l)e substituted instead of the steel point, to draw up a sample of the substance from the very bottom of the sounding. If the only thing wanted be to know the na- ture of the under soil and layers of earth, so far as they may effect the vegetation of plants, it will be quite suflScient to bore eight or ten feet deep. A greater depth is only requisite when water, marl, ore, &c. is sought for. 2430. The peat-borer {Jig. 262.), is a larger sort of borer, employed in peaty soils that are boggy, for the purpose of removing wetness. It has been used with advantage in some peat-mosses in Lancashire, by Eccleston. 2431. The draining auger, blasting auger, timber measurer, and other scientific instruments, not in general use in agriculture, will be best described in treating of the departments in which they are applied. 368 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part 11. 2432. The ordy essential scientific instrument, is the common level, which may be wanted to level drains, and water furrows, adjust the surface of roads, &c. Sect. III. Utensils used in Agriculture. 2433. The principal agricultural utensils are sieves, baskets, corn- measures, and sacks. 2434. Sieves are textures of basket work, wire, gut, or hair stretched on a broad wooden hoop. Sometimes also they are formed of skins or plate iron pierced with holes, and so stretched. They are used for separating corn, or other seeds from dust or other extra- neous matters. There are different varieties for wheat, beans, oats, rape seed, &c. 2435. The corn-screen (Jig. 263.), is a frame filled in with 263 wires, so set as to aHow dust and seeds smaller than corn to pass through it. It is chiefly used in granaries to free corn from the weevil. 2436. Baskets are made of wicker work of different shapes, but generally forming some section of a globose figure : they vary much in size ; those in most general use in agriculture, are from twenty inches to two feet diameter, and are used for carrying roots, chaff, cut straw, &c. from one place to another in the farmery. 264 2437. The seed carrier, or seed basket, (Jig. 264. ) is sometimes made of thin veneers of wood, bent into an irregular oval with a hollow to fit the ' seedsman's side, and a strap to pass over his head, and rest on his shoulder. In some places, a linen bag of a shape adapted to be borne by the right shoulder, and suspend the seed under the left arm, is used for the same 4)urpose. 2438. The feeding tub or trough, may be of any shape and size ; it is used for giving short or liquid food to swine, sheep, and other live stock. 2439. The pail is used for carrying water^ or other liquid food. 2440. The turnip tray, is a shallow moveable trough, or box, used to prevent waste when sheep are fed upon turnips. 2441. Tfie com bin, or corn chest, for containing oats or other grain for horses, may be an oblong box of any convenient size. Sometimes it is placed in the loft over the stable, and the corn is drawn out by a hopper below ; but for a farm stable this is need- less trouble : there it is commonly placed in the broad passage behind the horses, or in any spare corner. It should be stout, and have good hinges, and a safe lock and key. 2442. The Jlexible tube for relieving cattle that are hoven or choaked, consists of a strong leathern tube about four feet long and about half an inch in diameter, with a leaden nozzle pierced with holes at the insertion end. It should be kept in every far- mery. There is a similar one, on a smaller scale, for sheep, which should be kept by all shepherds. 2443. Corn measures consist of the lippie, peck, and bushel, with the strike or rolling pin to pass over the surface, and determine their fulness. The local measures of every country are numerous ; the Winchester bushel is the standard corn measure of England and Ireland; and the Linlithgow boll of Scotland. (See Index, article Weights and Measures.) 2444. Com sacks, or bags, are strong hempen bags, calculated to hold four bushels ; and in Scotland four firlots. 2445. Other utensils, as those of tlie dairy, poultry, and cyder-house, will be described in their appropriate places. 2446. The essential agricultural utensils are the sieve, basket, seed carrier, tub, pail, corn chest, flexible tube, corn measure, and corn sack. Sect. IV. Hand Machines used in Agriculture. 2447. Agricultural hand machines are generally portable; some are exclusively put in action by man, as the wheel-barrow ; and others, as the straw-cutter, sometimes by horses , water , or other pow ers. 2448. The common ladder is the simplest of manual machines, and is in constant use for forming and thatching ricks, and other purposes ; with or without the use of tressels and scaffolding. 265 2449. The wheel-barrow is of three kinds; the new ground work barrow (fig. 265. ) used in mov- ing earth or stones ; the dung barrow ( fig. 266.) for the farm yard; and the corn barrow (fig. 267.) for conveying corn from the stack-yard to the barn. The body of the latter (l), may be made to separate from the frame and wheel, and by means of levers (a) to be carried like the hand-barrow. Book IV. HAND MACHINES. 369 2450. 7%e sack'barrow is a two handed lever of the first kind, the fulcrum of which 267 2G6 is a pair of low wheels : it is a con- venient machine for moving sacks in a granary or barn floor, from one point to another. 2451. Thehayid- harrow is in frequent use in various de- partments of agriculture, where the soil is soft, or the surface uneven. Its bottom should be close and strong for carrying stones ; but may be light and open for dung or corn. 268 2452. Tliewinruming-mnchine {fig. 268.) is in use for cleaning corn, in most of the improved districts. There are different forms, but the best is that of Meikle, or the Berwickshire winnower, which, in- stead of one screen, has a set of sieves put in motion by the machine, by which , means the corn comes out, in most cases, U ready to be meted up in sacks. Some Vj; improvements have lately been made by f. Weir of London. 2453. The hand threshing machine (Jig.269.), is worked by two men, and one woman, and is greatly preferable to the flail for threshing the corn of a small farm, or for threshing clover, or other small seeds. The advantage consists chiefly in the completeness in which the grain is separated from the straw. 2454. The potatoe cleaner is a hollow cylin- der, or perforated cylinder, or barrel, with a wooden axle through its long diameter, and a handle at one end, by which it is turned like a barrel churn. A hinged board forms an open- ing for putting in and taking out the potatoes, which fastens with an iron hasp and staple. It is filled one-third with potatoes or other roots, and then placed in a cistern of water, by means of a crane or otherwise. In this state, being two-thirds immersed in the water, and one-third full of potatoes, it is turned round a few times, when the latter are found cleaned, and the barrel lifted out by the crane, emptied, filled, and replaced. 2455. The tumip-slicer is of different forms ; the old sort works by hand, like a straw- cutter of the original construction ; but a better sort consists of a hopper and knives, fixed upon a fly wheel [fig. 270.). The turnips press against the knife by their own weight, and a man turning the wheel, will cut a bushel in a minute. Gardener's turnip slicer is a highly improved form of this machine. 2456. The Uir nip -chopper is perhaps a more useful im- plement, than the turnip slicer. It is first made like the common nine-inch garden-hoc, forming an oblong square, with an eye to receive the handle : from the centre of the first hoe, another hoe crosses it at right angles, but this second hoe is not made solid as in the first common hoe, but is made like a Dutch hoe, the centre part of it being open the whole length of it. The turnip being pulled out of the ground by the angles of the hoe, is immedi- ately struck with it about the centre, which divides it into four, and if these four pieces are not small enough, the stroke is repeated upon each of the pieces until they are sufficiently so. It is supposed capable of being greatly improved by having two stoutish })rongs on the back or reverse part of tlie hoc, proceeding from the neck of the eye ; these prongs would pull up the turnips with infinitely more expedition, and the increased weight of the hoc would rather be in its favor by lessening the force necessary to split the roots. B b 370 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2457. The rope-twisting -machine (Jig. 271.), is a small wheel, the prolonged axle or spindle of which terminates in a hook, on which the rope is commenced. , It is commonly fixed to a port- able stand ; but is sometimes attached to a threshing-machine. It is used for twisting ropes of straw, hay, or rushes for tying ^on the thatch of ricks and other similar purposes. It is also used to form very thick ropes for forming straw drains. 2458. The draught-machine is a contrivance invented for the purpose of ascertaining the force or power of draught, in drawing ploughs, &c. 2459. Mare's draught-machine is a spring coiled within a" cylindrical case, having a dial-plate marked with numbers like that of a clock, and so contrived that a hand moves with the motion of the spring, and points to the numbers in proportion as the force is exerted : for instance, when the draught equals one cwt. over a pulley, the hand points to fig. 1 ; when the draught is equal to two cwt. it points to fig. 2, and so on. Till this very useful machine was invented, it was exceedingly difficult to compare tlie draught of different ploughs, as there was no rule to judge by, but the exertions of the horses as apparent to the eye ; a very undecisive mode of ascertaining their force. 2460. JBraby^s draught-machine {Jig. 272.), consists of two strong steel plates, joined at the ends, and forming a spheroidal opening between them. In using it, one end (a) is hooked on the muzzle of the plough or other implement, and to the other (i) the draught trees are attached. An indicator (c) points out the power applied in cwts. 2461.. The weighing-cage [Jig. 273.), is a contrivance made in the form of a sort 273 of open box or cage, by which any small animal, as a pig, sheep, calf, &c. may be very easily and expeditiously weighed, and with sufficient accuracy for the farmer's purpose. It is constructed on the principle of the common steel-yard, with a strong wooden frame and steel centres, in which the pivots of the lever are hung. And upon the short side of the lever is suspended a coop, surrounded by strong net- work, in which the animal intended to be weighed is placed ; the point of suspension is connected with the coop by means of two curved iron rods, which at the same time form the head of it. A common scale being hung on the longer side of the lever. 2462. The weighing-machine is a contrivance of the steel-yard kind, for the purpose of weighing cattle and other animals alive. A machine of this sort is of importance in the grazing and fattening systems where they are carried to any considerable extent, in ascertaining the progress made by the animals, and shewing how they pay for the use of any paiticular kind of food, or what power it has in promoting the fattening process. 2463. Weir's machine for weighing live bullocks, is by far the simplest and most econo- mical of these machines. 2464. The weighing-machine for sacks is a convenient piece of barn-furniture on the steel- yard principle. 2465. The common steel-yard will often be found useful for weighing corn or roots in large quantities ; for smaller quantities, there are a variety of ingenious contrivances, among the simplest and easiest managed of which are those of Medhurst and Harriot. 2466. The chaff-cutter is used for cutting hay or straw into fragments not larger than chaff to facilitate its consumption by cattle. There are numerous forms; one of the most common is that of M'Dougal {Jig. 274.), which is so formed, that in case of its being accidentally broken, it may be repaired by any common mechanic. The pressure of the straw is also capable of being regulated with great facility. But the great im- Book IV. HAND MACHINES. 274 371 provement is In having applied a spiral groove, ijistead of the endless screw, by which friction is much diminished, and the lever may rise to any height, without putting the machine out of work. 2467. The bruising- machine {Jig. 275.), is contrived for the purpose of bruising different sorts of grain, pulse, &c. as well as grinding ipalt. It is a simple imple- ment, constructed with two iron roUfers, of different dia- meters, turned true on their axles or spindles, each roller having a cog or tooth-wheel. A roller with grooves is fixed under the hopper, .to receive the grain from the hopper, and lay it on the two rollers. To one of the rollers is fixed a fly-wheel, 'llie machine is made to be worked by hand, or any other power. The upper wood frame is made to slide, and is regulated by a screw, ac- cording to the size of the grain, and will bruise it more or less, as may be required. 2468. Of hand-drilling-'/iiachines, there are a great many different kinds of various degrees of ijnerit. ITie sort to be recommended in any particular case will depend on the texture ^of the soil ; one which would answer well in a soft soil or sand might not succeed, in a stoney or loamy soil. As the fashions of drills are continually changing, we advise intending purchasers to describe their soil and kind of culture, as whether raised or flat-drilling, &c. to a respectable implement-maker ; in the mean time we sub- 276 mit a few of the establisheE forms 2469. Tfie bean or potatoe dibbling- machine {Jig. 276. ), consists of a single wheel, set with dibber points, and which may be placed wider or closer at plea- sure. It is pushed along by one man, and succeeds on friable soils, but can- not be depended on when the surface is rough or tenacious. Potatoe sets to be planted after this machine should be cut with the improved scoop (2418.). 2470. The common drill-barrow {Jig. 277.), consists of a frame and wheel, somewhat similar to that of a common barrow, with a hopper attached to contain the seed. It is used for the I purpose of sowing horse-beans, turnips, and such I like seeds, upon small ridges. In using it, tlie laborer for the most part wheels it before him, the seed being afterwards covered by means of a slight harrow, or sometimes by a shallow furrow. Bb 2 372 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2471. The bean-drill is a clumsy implement, better substituted by a box and wheel, to attach between the handles of any common plough, and thus deposit the seed after the furrow. (See Bean.) 2472. The turnip barrow-drill sows a single row at a time ; but is of difficult management on the tops of ridges ; for this purpose, it is desirable to have two wheels, one to go on each side of the ridge. A greatly improved va- riety of this machine, in use in Scotland {jig. 278.), has a barrel of water («) attached, which, by means of a tube, is dropped among the seed in the tract made by the coulter. This very useful appendage may be added to any drill-machine, whether worked by ma- nual or animal labor. 2473. The hand tumijy-roller (Jig. 279.), is used for rolling raised drills or ridges previously to and after sowing turnip-seed by a hand-drill. The use of such a roller leaves the ridges in a much better form for re- ceiving the seed than a common cylindrical roller, and after the seed is sown, when this roller is again used, the surface is left in the fittest state for retaining mois- ture, and for commencing the hoeing and thinning operations. 2474. The root-breaker or bruiser [Jig. 280. ) , is com- posed of two widely fluted rollers, placed under a hopper, turned by two men. It is used for breaking or bruising potatoes, turnips^ carrots, or other raw roots, into small or moderate sized pieces, before giving them to cattle or horses. The same implement may be set so close by means of two screws, as to serve for a whin-bruiser, or for breaking beans, or corn of any kind. 2475. Other machines, for particular dqmrtments, will be noticed in their proper places ; and some will be wanted which are not peculiar to agriculture, such as rat-traps (Jigs.2Sl. and 282.), mouse and mole-traps (^g. 283.) a fowling-piece for shooting birds, scares for deterring birds, and similar contrivances. ^03^ 283 2476. The essential hand-machines are the ladder, wheel, and hand-barrows, winnow- ing-machine, band-threshing machine, chaff-cutter, and turnip barrow-drill. Chap. II. Of Agricultural Implements and Machines drawn by Beasts of Labor. 2477. The fundamental implements of agriculture are the plough, tjie harrow, and tho cart : these are common to every country in the slightest degree civilized ; sufficiently Book IV. SWING PLOUGHS. 373 rude in construction in most countries, and only very lately brought to u high degree of perfection in Britain. Dr. Anderson (liccrentions in u4griculture, e set to any width, from about twelve to nearly twenty-four inches. 2543. Wilkie's horse-hoe and drill-harroiv {fig' 305.), is intended to be introduced be- tween the drills as soon as the plants appear above ground, and the operation is repeated at intervals, till the crop is thoroughly cleaned. The centre hoe is stationary, and the vight and left expand and contract in the same manner as in the horse-hoe. The depth •js regulated by the wheel at tlie point of the beam, and may be varied from one to six inches. The hoes cut the bottom of the space between the drills completely, while the harrow following, pulverises the soil, and rakes out the weeds. Should circumstances require, the wings of the harrow may be taken off, and the hoes only used ; or the hoes displaced, and the harrow only employed. 2544. Ulaikics inverted horse-hoe consists of a line of coulters set in a beam, and this beam attached to the axle of a pair of common wheels. It hoes several rows at once, and instead of being straight the coulters are all curved or kneed, and set back to back so as to include a row between each pair. The advantage of the kneed or bent form of the lower part of the coulter is, that the soil is pared off in a sloping direction from the plants, which are thus not so liable to be choked up with earth as by a broad hoe or share ; or to have their roots so much exposed to the air as by cutting perpendicularly down close to the row by a common coulter. It is chiefly adapted for drilled corn, and then it works several rows : in turnips it may work one or two according to the soil ; in all cases where the width between the rows admits, the agricultor should be more anxious to stir the soil to a good depth than to skim over a great extent of surface, merely cutting over the weeds. 2545. Morton's universal drill plough and harrow (fig. 306.) answers both as a double mould-board plough, and a horse-hoe ; is much approved of in the culture of drilled 806 crops ; and with some slight attentions it may be also employed as a small plough for taking the earth from the sides of the ridglets. When it is used as a horse-hoe, the mould-boards arc taken off, and two curved cutters or coulters, expand from the beam on Book IV. HORSE HOES. 385 each side to a less or greater distance according to the width of the interval between tlie plants, and approach each other in the bottom of the furrow where the share supplies their place. This machine is well adapted for light soils, and can be set to work very near the rows of plants ; it is particularly useful in cutting up annual weeds preparatory to hand-hoeing, which it greatly facilitates. When it is to be employed as a single or double mould-board plough, tlie cutters are witlidrawn. 2546. A double mould-board plough is formed of this implement, by applying its two mould-boards (g,g) ; and a paring plough by applying the expanding wings (b, d), and curved coulters (;>) ; a scuffler is 307 formed by applying twoscufflers (f) in places of these coulters ; a drill harrow by adding a tri- angular frame with tines (Jig. 307.), and which may be ren- dered in effect a brake harrow by increasing their size, or a horse-hoe by substituting hoes (k, k, k). Lastly, it may be rendered a paring pfough by substituting a suitable body and share [h). (Supp. Encyc. Brit. vol. i. p. 200.) 2547. Amos' s expanding horse-hoe and harrow {fig. 308.) is said to be much used in Lincolnshire. The hoe is constructed with expanding shares («, a,), which can be set to different distances as may be required, within the limits of twelve and thirty inches. The harrow which is attached to it, is found advantageous in clearing lands from suc- cessive crops of weeds, as well as in bringing them to a proper state for the purpose of cropping ; serving in this respect as a cultivator. 2548. The hoe and castor ivheel {fig. 309.) is said to enable the holder to guide the shares more correctly between narrow rows of corn drilled on a flat surface. It is not often required, and must be unnecessary if the rows have been correctly sown. "Z. 2549. The thistle hoe or hoe set/the {fig. 310.) is an invention by Amos. " It is used," he says, « for the purpose of cutting over thistles, and other injurious weeds in pasture lands. In the execution of the work it not only greatly reduces the expense, but executes it in a much closer manner than by the common scythe. One man and a horse are said to be capable of cutting over twenty acres in a day. The leading share (a) is made of cast steel, in the form of an isosceles triangle, whose equal sides are fourteen mches long, and its base twelve inches; it is about one eighth of an inch thick in the middle, tapering to a very fine edge on the outsides ; and the scythes {b, b, b) are fixed to four pieces of ash wood, three inches square, and two feet four inches long. These scythes are three feet long from point to point, four inches broad at the widest part, and made of cast steel. The agriculture, where such a machine as this is wanted, must surely be of a very rude and imperfect kind ; for even supposing the machine to cut over the thistles, that operation cannot be so efl'ectual as cutting tliem under the collar by hand with the spade or spud. C c 386 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2550. The only essential machine of this class is the hoe plough of Wilkie ; or any other similar one. Sect. II. Of Machines for Sowing and Planting. 2551. Machines for sowing or planting i7i rotvs, are very various and often too compli- cated. Harte says, the first drill machine was invented by a German, and presented to the court of Spain in 1647 ; but it appears, from a communication to the Board of Agriculture, that a sort of rude drill or drill plough has been in use in India from time immemo- rial. Their use is to deposit the seed in equidistant rows on a flat surface; on the top of a narrow ridge ; in the interval between two , ridges ; or in the bottom of a common furrow. Corn when drilled is usually sown in the first of these ways; turnips in the second; and peas and beans in the third and fourth. The practice of drilling corn does not .; however seem to be gaining ground, and even where it is found of advantage to have 311 n f\„ the plants rise in parallel rows, this is some- times done by means of what is called ribbing, a process more convenient in many cases than sowing with a drilling machine. 2552. Of com drills, Cooke's improved drill and horse-hoe (Jig. 311.) though not the most fashionable, is one of the most useful implements of this kind on light dry soils, even surfaces, and in dry climates. It has been much used in Norfolk and Suffolk, and many other parts of England. The advantages of this machine are said to consist; 1. In the wheels being so large that the machine can travel on any road without trouble or danger of breaking ; also from the farm to the field, &c. without taking to pieces. 2. In the coulter-beam (a), with all the coulters, moving with great ease, on the principle of the pentagraph, to the right or left, so as to counteract the irregularity of the horse's draught, by %vhich means the drills may be made straight : and where lands or ridges are made four and a half, or nine and a half feet wide, the horse may always go in the furrow, without setting a foot on the land, either in drilling or horse-hoeing. 3. In the seed supplying itself regularly, without any attention, from the upper to the lower boxes as it is distributed- 4. In lifting the pin on the coulter- beam to a hook on the axis of the wheels ; by which means the coulters are kept out of the ground at the end of the land, without the least labor or fatigue to the person who attends the machine. 5. In going up or down steep hills, in the seed-box being elevated or depressed accordingly, so as to render the distribution of the seed regular; and the seed being covered by a lid, and thus screened from wind or rain. The same machine is easily transformed into a cultivator, horse- lioe (^5-^ 12.) 5 scarifier, or grubber, all which operations it encounters exceedingly well; and by substituting a corn-rake, stuble-rake, or quitch-rake, for the beam of coulters, or hoes (a), it will rake corn-stubbles, or clean lands of root weeds. When corn is to be sown in rows, and the intervals hoed or stirred, we know of no machine superior to this one, and from being long in a course of manufacture, few can be made so cheap. But these ad- vantages, tliough considerable in the process Book IV. DRILL MACHINES. 387 of drilling, are nothing, when compared witli tliose which arise from the use of tJie horse- hoe ; with which from eight to ten acres of land may be hoed in one day, with one man, a boy, and one horse, at a trifling expense, in a style far superior, and more effectual, than any hand-hoeing whatever ; also at times and seasons when it is impossible for the hand-hoe to be used at all. 2553. The Norfolk drill or improved lever drill {Jig. 313. ^ is a corn drill on a larger scale than Cooke's, as it sows a breadth of nine feet at once : it is chiefly used in the light soils of Norfolk and Suffolk as being more expeditious thaw Cooke's, but it also costs about double the sum. 2554. Cooke's three roxu corn drill is the large machine in a diminutive form, and is ex- ceedingly convenient for small de- mesne farms where great neatness is attended to. It can be used as a cultivator, hoe, rake, &c. like the other. 2555. Of fMrni;) tZri/Zs. the best, when this root is cultivated on a large scale, is the improved Nor- thumberland drill {fig. 314.). The roller (a) which goes before the seed has two concavities, and thus i leaves the two ridges in the very best form for the seed (2473.); after these are sown, two light rollers | {h, h) follow and cover them. It is | drawn by one horse, sows two rows at once, and seldom goes out of I repair. ' 2556. Frenclis turnip drill {Jig. 315. ) is the most perfect implement of the kind. French was a Nor- thumberland mechanist, and in- vented the concavities in the tur- nip rollers (2473.); soon after which he died, and it was some- time before his invention attracted notice. Concave rollers, however, and curved coulters may be considered as two of the greatest improvements that have been made in the machines used in turnip culture since that root was first cultivated in drills. Besides the improvement of the concave rollers, this machine is easily put in and out of gear by means of a lever {a) ; and since it has become the fashion to sow pulverised manure with turnip seed , two hoppers {b, b) have Cc 2 388 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. been added for that purpose. The seed and manure, when deposited in the gutter 315 traced by the coulters (c, c), is covered by two small flat rollers as in the common Nor- thumberland drill, 2557. The Northumberland one row turnip drill (Jig- 316.) has two wheels which run in the hollows on each side of the drill or ridge to be sown ; by which means the sower is enabled to keep the row exactly in the centre of the drill. The ridges are ' previously rolled, either by a common or concave roller ; the latter being preferable, and as the horse goes in the furrow at one side of the drill to be sown, of course he draws from one side of the draught-bar of the bar- row. A small roller follows, and covers and presses in the seed. A recent improvement in this machine is the addition of a hopper (a), for pulverised manure, over which, a barrel of water might easily be suspended if deemed requisite. 2558. Of bean drills there are three kinds, all equally good : one for sowing in prepared drills or after the plough, which is pushed by manual labor, and has been already described (2469.) : one attach- ed to a light plough, which draws a fur- row in prepared soil and sows a row at the same time (Jig. 317.); and one which can be fixed between the handles of any common plough for the same purpose. The former has a wheel (a) to regulate the depth of the furrow, and a lever (b) to thro^he drill out of gear on turning at the ends of the ridges. It is an useful and very effective implement; though a skilful ploughman will eflfect the same object by a drill placed between the handles of a common swing plough. 2559. Weir s expanding bean drill to sow four rows, is affixed to a pair of wheels and axle, in the manner of Cooke's drill. The axle which passes through the drill boxes has four moveable brushes and cylinders, by which means any widths, within tliat of the axle, can be given. Where ground is prepared and ribbed, and where there is not a Cooke's drill on the premises, this machine may be resorted to with convenience. Book IV. DRILL MACHINES. 389 2560. IFeir's manuring one row turnip drill (Jig. 318.) is a remarkable improvement on llie Northumberland implement. It has a manure hopper (a) and a seed hopper (6), the same as the other; but the manure, in place of being dropped along with the seed, is deposited in a deep gutter, made by a coulter (c) which goes before; this manure is co- vered by a pronged coulter (d) which follows the other ; next comes the coulter which forms the gutter for the seed (e) . The seed is thus deposited about one inch above the manure. One roller of the concave kind goes before the machine, and another light one of the common kind follows after it : or without attached rollers, the drill may be affixed to one side of the common roller behind, which roller may prepare one drill and cover the seed sown on another eaqji course. 2561. A machine for dibbling beans, impelled by manual labor, has been already noticed (2469). A horse dibbling machine {jig. 319.) has been invented, though very little used, Co 3 ai90 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. and being rather complicated in its movements, it will require considerable simplification before it can be recommended. A heavy cast iron roller, with protruding angular rings, might form drills for the beans, and, probably, some machine of tliis sort might distribute them singly or nearly so, and at regular distances. But the best cultivators prefer sowing in drills, thicker than in dibbling, in order to admit of a wide interval for culture, so as not only to clean the surface as between dibbled rows, but to stir and work the soil, and produce a sort of semi-fallow. 2562. The block plough drill is an equiangular triangular block, SO inches to a side, with cast iron scuffler teeth and wooden blocks slipped over them. A field being ribbed or laid up in ridgelets with this implement, is next sown broadcast with wheat and bush- harrowed, by which the grain rises in rows, as accurately as if sown witli the drill. (^Farm. Mag. vol. xxiii. p. 406.) 2563. T/ie drill roller is so contrived as to form regular small incisions or drills in the ground at proper depths for the seed. It is merely a common roller mostly of iron, about seven feet long, about which are put cutting-wheels of cast iron, that turn round the common cylinder, each independently of the others, which cylinder generally weighs about a ton. It is drawn by three or four horses abreast, and driven by a man elevated behind them ; the cutting- wheels being moveable, may be fixed at any distance, by means of washers ; but the most common and favorite distances is four to six inches. It is said to have been found effectually productive of the principal benefits which have been de- rived from the operation of drill-ploughs, or the practice of dibbling and setting the corn by hand, with the great advantage of saving both time and expense ; as, by the use of this simple machine, one man may sow and cover five or six acres of corn in one day, using for the purpose three horses, on account of its weight. It was at first chiefly used on clover or other grass-leys on the first ploughing, but may be as properly employed on land which has been three or four times ploughed. The mode of working it is this : a clover-ley or other ground being ploughed, which the cultivator intends for setting or dibbling, this kind of roller is used to save the expense. It is drawn across the furrows, and cuts the whole field into little drills, four inches asunder; the seed is then sown broadcast in the common quantity, and the land bush-harrowed ; by which means the seed is deposited at one equal depth, as in drilling, and that depth a better one than in setting, and the crop rises free from the furrow-seams, which are the ill effects of common broadcast sowing, at least on a ley ploughed once." To us this machine, so much praised by some writers, seems merely an ingenious mode of increasing the expenses of culture. By the use of a plough, such as Small's, that will cut a square furrow, no machine of this sort can possibly become necessary. The land when ploughed will be left in little drills, and being sown broadcast, the seed will come up as if it had been drill-rolled or ribbed. It is admitted, however, that the pressure of the roller may be useful in soft lands, and may, possibly, as already mentioned (2515.), keep down the wire-worm. 2564. The drill watering machine (Jig. 320.) is an implement of recent invention by John Young, a surgeon, in Edinburgh. It is used for watering turnips and other drill crops in dry seasons; and promises to be a valuable addition to the amateur agricul- turist, in dry seasons or situations, or where it is an important object to secure a crop. It has been much approved of by the Highland Society of Scotland and the Dalkeith Farmer's Society. (See Farm. Mag. vol. xxi. p. 1.) The machine consists of a barrel, mounted upon a cart frame, which discliarges water from a ball stop-cock, having four mouths (a) which commimicate by means of a leathern hose, with four horizontal tubes {b, b, b, h), shut up at the end by a screw (c), which admits of the tube being cleaned. Book IV. HARROWS. 391 The tubes are placed parallel with the drills, two between the wheels of the cart, and one on the outside of each wheel ; the distance of the tubes, and their height fVom the surface, is regulated by hooks and chains; and the water is discharged in small streanris, through twenty projecting apertures in the under part of the tubes. The tubes are suspended by chains to the hooks in an iron rod, secured to the fore and back part of the frame of t!ie cart. The mouth of the funnel on the top of the barrel, is covered with a wire-cloth, to prevent any thing getting in to clog the apertures. As the quantity of water let out by the apertures is less than what is received into the tubes, the tubes are always full ; by which a regular discharge is kept up from all the apertures at the same time. As the machine advances, the stream which falls from the first aperture upon the plants, is fol- lowed up by a stream from all the apertures in the tube; therefore each plant must receive all that is discharged from twenty apertures. 2565. Estimate qf its operation. Supposing the barrel to contain 200 gallons, and the tubes.to be five feet long, the diameter of the tubes three-eighths of an inch, and the diameter of the apertures in the tubes to be one-sixteenth of an inch, 200 gallons will be discharged from 80 such apertures in two hours one-third. The diameter of the mouths of the stop-cock must be equal to the diameter of the tubes. The horse going at the rate of 2^ miles in one hour, in two hours and twenty minutes will go 5 miles five-sixths. The dis- tance between four drills is 6 feet 9 inches ; therefore, if we suppose a parallelogram to be 6 feet 9 Inches broad,and 5 miles five-sixths long, the area of this parallelogram will be 4 acres 3 roods 1-6 perches, which will be watered by 200 gallons in two hours and twenty minutes : and in one hour it will water 2 acres 7'27 Eerches, supposing the water to flow uniformly ; but the quantity given out upon the drills must be regu- ited by the progressive movement of the machine. 2566. In construction it is neither complicated nor expensive ; it may be erected upon the frame of a cart used for other purposes in husbandry; and the barrel and apparatus maybe furnished for about six pounds sterling, supposing the stop-cock and connecting-screws to be made of brass, and the tubes of copper or tin. This machine may be used for other purposes ; such as the application of urine as a manure, or of a solution of muriate of soda, which has been proposed for some crops. 2567. The essential drill machines are French's for turnips, Cooke's for corn, and the drill attached to a plough (2558.) for beans. Sect. III. Of Harrows. 2568. The harroio is an implement of equal antiquity with the plough, but it does not appear to have undergone so much improvement as that implement ; nor, indeed, is it capable of so much. The chief circumstances in which harrows have been rendered more applicable and convenient, seem to be in the position and mode of fixing in the tines or teeth, the direction of the bulls, and the manner in which the horses are attached in drawing the implements. It has been suggested by the author of The Gentleman Farmer, that no one harrow, whatever its construction may be, can be suitable for every sort of soil, or can act with equal effect on such grounds as are rough and smooth, or firm and loose : they must be adapted to the nature of the land, and the particular pur- poses the operator has in view. It is sufficiently evident, that in the lighter sorts of land, a small light harrow, with short tines or teeth, may be suflRcient for the purpose ; but in strong, heavy, and tenacious soils, or such as have been newly broken up from the state of old leys, or from a state of nature, such as commons, moors, and wastes, a harrow which has a much greater weight and longer teeth is to be preferred ; and even where the land is rough and not easily reduced, as in the fallowing and reducing of strong clays, two harrows combined with each other may frequently be proper and necessary, in order to fully separate and break down the cloddy soil. And for these uses, it has also been found better, especially where the land is stiflT, tenacious, and abounds much with the roots of weeds, that tlie harrows should not be too thickly set with teeth ; as under such circumstances, where they have a number of teeth, they not only soon fill and choak up, which prevents them from working, but are confined too much to the surface, by which the soil is very imperfectly broken down and reduced into a state of powdery fineness. 2569. The harrows most generally used {fg. .321.) are of an oblong shape, each con- taining twenty prongs or tines, five or six inches long beneath the hulls or bars in wliich they are inserted. It is still common for every harrow to work separately ; and though always two, and sometimes three, are placed together, each of them is drawn by its own horse. The great objection to this method is, that it is scarcely possible, especially upon rough ground, to prevent the harrows from starting out of their place, and riding on one another. To obviate this incon- venience, the exterior bulls of each are usually sur- mounted by a frame of wood, raised so high as to j ^"^S^ — -^-^ protect it from the irregular motions of its neighbor ; ^"^^'^^tsJ;^ ^ „ „ „ ■ but in many instances they are connected by chains Tt^ ^r ° « ° « ^^^r^ or hinges, or cross-bars, which is a preferable plan. I' il f ' * Another objection which has been made to the common harrow is, that the ruts made by the tildes are sometimes too near and sometimes too distant from one another ; but this is probably not a great fault when the soil requires io be pulverised as w ell as C c 4 392 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IT. tl>e seed covered, especially when they are permitted to move irregularly in a lateral di- rection. Where the soil is already fine, as it ought always to be before grass seeds are sown, lighter harrows are used, which are so constructed, that all the ruts are equidistant. 2570. Tlie angular- sided hinged harrow {Jig. 322. ) is one of the best implements of the kind, as it both operates on the ground with great regularity, and is less liable to ride or be deranged in turnmg, than the common, or the rhomboidal harrow. 2571. The improved Scotch or rhomboidal harrow [Jig. 323.), consists of two harrows joined together ; they are generally made heavy c-t*^ 323 or light, according to the purpose for which they are intended, or the nature of the ground on which they are to be employed. Iron rods are fixed in two bulls of each harrovi^, having hasps and hooks ; by this means the harrows are connected, and the same distance from one another is preserved, as that between any two bulls in the harrow ; and though the teeth are not placed equidistant from each other in the bulls of this, as well as in the bulls of the old harrow, nevertheless, the teeth in this harrow move in lines equidistant from each other, so that not any two teeth of these harrows move in the same track ; and, as they divide the surface into equal small parts, the ground must be pulverised in a more expeditious and superior manner, than can Jw done by the old common harrow. This advan- tage is obtained by forming the harrow not square, but of a rhomboidal shape, the angle of which must be according to the number of the teeth. 2572. The grass seed harrow is only a lighter construction of the rhomboidal harrow or of any other approved form. 2573. The brake or levelling harrow (Jg. 324.) is a valuable implement. It consists of two frames, the one trian- gular and the other oblong. By means of the handles, the oblong part of this brake can either be raised up or de- pressed ; so that when the ground is cut in small pieces by the teeth of the triangular harrow, then the cblong har- row following, its teeth being i)ressed down into the high parts, carry or drag part of the soil off from the heights; and when they are raised up by the handles, leave that soil ooooeiO^ mi in the hollow or low parts. By this means, the ground is brouglu nearly to one plain Book IV. ROLLERS. 393 surface, wheUicr tljat surFacc bo horizontal or sloping. Sometirries it may be found ne- cessary to place a greater number of teeth in the oblong part of the brake, so as they may be nearer to one another, and perform the operation more effectually. The teeth are made sharp or thin on the fore-edge, for cutting ; broad and thick on the back, for strength ; and tapering, from a little below the bulls to their joints. 2574. Grai/^ s seed-haiTOW for wet weather {fig. 325.), pro- mises to be useful in certain situations, as in a tenacious re- tentive soil and moist climate. The sowing of wheat under ex- isting circumstances, is one of the most important branches of the corn farmer's labor. In some backward seasons, it is almost impossible to get wheat land harrowed according to the common method, especially land that has been reduced by sum- mer-fallow, without subjecting it to poaching from the horses, which is not only unfavorable to the soil, but also occasions a great waste of seed. Hence it often happens, that a less quantity of grain is got sown than was intended, or requisite for the supply of the market. The beam (a) to which the harrows are attached, admits of being made shorter or longer as the width of the ridge requires ; the shafts have freedom to turn round either to the right hand or to the left, and the teeth of the harrows are placed square in the bulls, so that they can be drawn from either end at pleasure. The wheels {Jig, 326.) may be from three to four feet in diameter if made on purpose ; but for <^ the professional farmer it will be sufficient to borrow a pair from a one horse cart. 2^75. Harrows of various kinds are now very frequently made of iron, which, when the material is not too dear, is a desirable circumstance on account of their durability. 2576. The bush harrow (fig. 327.) is used for harrowing grass lands, and covering grass, or clover seeds ; small rigid branches of spray are interwoven in a frame, consist- ing of three or more cross-bars, fixed into two end-pieces in such a manner as to be very 327 rough and brushy underneath. To the extremities of the frame before are sometimes attached two wheels, about twelve inches in diameter, upon which it moves ; sometimes, however, wheels are not employed, but the whole rough surface is applied to, and dragged on, the ground. 2577. 3%c' onli/ essential implement (fthe harrow kind is the rhomboidal {fig. 323.). Sect. IV. Of Rollers. 2578. The roller is constructed of wood, stone, or cast-iron, according to conve- nience or the purposes for which it is to be used. For tillage lands, the roller is used to break the lumps of earth, and in some cases to press in and firm the ground about newly- sown seed ; on grass lands it is used to compress and smooth the surface, and render it better adapted for mowing. It has been matter of dispute whether rollers with large or small diameters have the advantage in point of effect upon the land. It is probable that there may be incouveniencies in both extremes. The roller should not, however, be so small as to require much loading, as by such means much time and labor is lost. A 394 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part 1L late writer advises, that in " constructing heavy rollers, the workmen should be careful that they have not too great a diameter, whatever the material be of which they are form- ed, as the pressure is diminished where the implement is of very large size, by its resting on too much surface at once, except an addition of weight in proportion be made. By having the roller made small, when loaded to the same weight, a much greater effect will be produced, and a considerable saving of expense be made in the construction of the implement." And he recommends that " all the larger sorts of rollers should have double shafts, in order that they may be drawn by two horses abreast ; and such as are employed for arable lands should have a scraper attached to them. This addition, he thinks, saves much time, and prevents the driver the trouble of constantly scraping the machine, especially in wet seasons, and clayey tena- 328 | n cious lands. Strong frames are also necessary for^^"^f?°'^i=s=:r- ' -»iQ — -iA. rollers, so that proper weights may be put upon them ; ^ and open boxes or carts (Jig. 328.) placed upon them may sometimes be requisite, m order to contain any additional weight that may be thought proper, as well as to receive stones or other matters that may be picked up from the ground. Pieces of wood or stone, as heavy as a man can lift, are the most suitable substances for loading these implements with, where they have not the advantage of boxes" for the purpose of containing such weighty substances. 2579. The common roller is employed for the common purposes of reducing soils, and for rolling wheat or other crops in the spring, and grass-seeds. It is generally about five or six feet long, and from fifteen to thirty inches in diameter ; but those employed for flattening one-bout ridges, in order to prepare them for drilling turnips upon, are commonly shorter and of much less diameter. 2580. The j^i^rted cast-iron roller was invented to remedy the inconvenience ex- perienced in the use of the common implement in turning at the ends of ridges or other places, where, from their not moving upon their axis, but being drawn along the surface of the ground, they are liable to bear it up, and make depressions before the cylinder comes again into the direct line of draught ; and at the same time they are not brought round without great exertion in the teams. The cylinder, in two pieces (fig. 329. ), obviates this inconvenience by enabling the two parts to turn round on their own axis, the one forward, and the other in a retrograde direction. 2581. The spiky or compound roller is occasionally employed in working fallows, or preparing stiflP bean land for wheat. In stifi* clay-ground, when ploughed dry, or which has been much trod upon, the furrow-slice will rise in large lumps, or liard clods, which tlie harrow cannot break so as to cover the seed in a proper manner. In this state of the ground, the rollers commonly used have little effect in breaking these hard clods. Indeed, the seed is often buried in the ground, by the clods being pressed down upon it by the weight of the roller. To remedy this, the spike-roller has been em- ployed, and found very useful ; but a roller can be made, which, perhaps, may answer the purpose better than the spike one. This roller is formed from a piece of hard wood, of a cylindrical form, on which are placed several rows of sharp-pointed darts, made either of forged iron, or cast metal. These darts, by striking the hard clods in a sloping direction, cut or split them into small pieces ; and, by this means, they must be more easily pulverised by the harrow. Book IV. LEVELLING MACHINES. 395 2582. The roller and water box (Jig. 329.) is sometimes used for watering spring crops, or clovers with liquid manure, previously rolling them. It has the advantage of a more perfect machine, in the holes being easily cleaned when choaked up with the thick- ened water. Such a machine can seldom require the roller attached. 2583. The furrow-roller (fg.330.), is con- trived for the purpose of rolling the furrows in steep hilly situations, and other places where the common sort cannot be employed. 2584. T/ie Norfolk drill-roller, and the ridge and furrow concave or scalloped roller attached to certain turnip-drills, have already been depicted (2553. and 2556.). 2585. The pressing plough is a term erroneously applied to a machine of the roller kind, which has been already described (2515.). 2586. The only essential roller for general purposes, is the parted cast-iron roller, with a scraper, and box over. Sect. V. Of Machines for laying Land even. Hind other occasional or atwmalous Tillage Machines. 2587. Various machines for agricultural purposes are occasionally brought into notice by amateur cultivators, and some even by the professional farmer. It is, indeed, the privilege and the characteristic of wealth and intelligence, to procure to be made what- ever particular circumstances may require, in every department of the mechanical agents of culture. We shall only notice a few, and that chiefly for the purpose of shewing the resources of the present age. 2588. Of machines for layiyig land level two may be noticed : in the first and best {fig. 331.), the horses are harnessed to a pole (a), which is joined to an axle having a pair of low wheels {b, c). Into this axletree are mortised two long side- pieces (rf), terminating in handles (e, e). Somewhat inclined to these long or up- per side pieces, shorter lower ones are joined by cross pieces, and connected by strong side-boards. The machine has no bottom ; its back part (/), is strongly attached to an axle {fig. 332 g), and to the bottom of this the scraper part {h) is firmly screwed. The front ends of the slide irons (fig. 331 m), turning up, pass easily through mortises in the upper side-pieces (d), where, by means of pins, the inclination of the slide irons, and of the back board, can be adjusted within narrow limits, according to the nature of the soil to be levelled, and the mass of earth previously loosened by ploughing. This earth the back board is intended to collect and force before it, until the machine arrives at the place where it is in- tended to be deposited. Here, by lifting up the hinder part of the machine by its handles (e, e), the contents are left on the ground, and the machine proceeds to a fresh hillock. [Supp. Encyc. Brit. i. 25.) 2589. The Flemish levelling machine {fig. 333.) may be considered as a shovel, on a large scale, to be drawn by *a pair of horses ; it collects earth at the pleasure of the holder, who contrives to make the horses turn over the shovel and empty the contents by merely letting go the handle (a), and recovering it by means of a cord (6), when emptied, as already described (501. J. fxscsooobcp 2590. The leveUing harrow (2573.) is adequate for all ordinary purposes. 396 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Paki II. Sect. VI. Of Machines for reaping and gatftering the Crop. 2591. The horse machines of harvest and hay time are chiefly the threshing macliine, the hay tedder, and horse rakes. SuBSECT. 1. (f Horse Rakes and Haymaking Machines. 2592. Raking machines are not in very general use ; but where corn is mown, they are successfully employed in drawing together the scattered stallcs, and are also of great use in hay-making. The saving in both cases ^^^ consists in the substitution of animal for manual labor. 2593. The common or Norfolk horse-rake (Jig. 334.) is employed for barley and oat crops, and also for hay. One man, and a horse driven by means of a line or rein, are capable of clearing from twenty to thirty acres, in a moderate day's work ; the grain being deposited in regular rows or lines across the field, by simply lifting up the tool and dropping it from the teeth, without the horse being stopped. 2594. The horse stubble rake [fig. 335.) is a large heavy kind of horse rake, having strong iron teeth, fourteen or fifteen inches in length, placed at five or six inches from each other, and a beam four inches square, and eight or ten feet in length. In drawing it two horses are sometimes made use of, by which it is capable of clearing a considerable quantity of stub- ble in a short time. In general, however, it is much better economy to cut the stubble as a part of the straw. 2595. The couch-grass rake differs little from the last, and is employed in fallowing very foul lands, to collect the couch-grass or other root weeds. It may be observed, however, that where a good system of cultivation is followed,, no root weeds will ever obtain such an ascendancy in the soil, as to render an implement of this kind requisite. 2596. Weirs improved hay or com rake {fig. 336.) is adjusted by wheels, and is readily put in and out of gear, by means of the handles {a, a) and bent iron stays (Jb,b). It is drawn by one horse in shafts (c), and is a very elFective implement. 2597. The hay tedding machine [fig. 337.), invented about 1800, by Salmon of Wo- burn, has been found a very useful implement, especially in making natural or meadow hay, which requires to be so much more frequently turned, and thinner spread out, than hay from clover and rye grass. It consists of an axle and pair of wheels, the axle forming the shaft of an open cylindrical frame, formed by arms proceeding from it, and from the extremities of which bars are fixed, set witli iron prongs, pointing outwards, and about six inches long and curved. There is a crank by which this cylinder of prongs is Book IV. RAKES AND REAPING MACHINES. 337 397 raised from the ground, when the machine is going to, and rctux-ning from, the field ; or when it is not wanted to operate. It is drawn by one horse, and, on the whole, answers as a tedding machine perfectly- In the neighborhood of London, where meadow hay is so exten- sively made, it is found to produce a great saving of labor, and is now coming into very general use. 2598. The hay swoop or sweei) {fig. 338.) is an implement for drawing or sweeping accumulations of hay to the cart or rick, or to any larger accumulations. Sometimes a rope is merely put round the heap, especially if it has been a few days in the cock, or piled up ; but the most gene- ral hay-swooj) consists of two curved pieces of wood, six or eiglit feet long, joined by upright pieces, so as to form something like the back of a chair. To the four corners of this, ropes are attached, which meet in the hook of a one horse Whipple tree («). SuBSECT. 2. Reaping Machines. 2599. Though reaping machines, as we have seen (133.), are as old as the time of the Romans, one of an effective description is yet a desideratum in agriculture. The high price of manual labor, however, will probably in time call forth such a reaping machine as may be employed in all ordinary situations, and this is, perhaps, all tliat can be desired or expected. Corn laid down, or twisted and matted by wind and rain, or growing among trees, or on very irregular surfaces, or steep sides of hills, will probably ever require to be reaped by hand. But independently of the high price of labor, despatch, as an able author observes (Supp. Encyc. Brit. i. 118), is a matter of great importance in such a climate as that of Britain. In reaping corn at the precise period of its maturity, the advantages of despatch are incalculable, especially in those districts where the difficulty of procuring hands, even at enormous wages, aggravates the danger from the instability of the season. It cannot, therefore, fail to be interesting ; and we hope it may be also useful, to record some of the more remarkable attempts that have been made towards an invention so eminently calculated to forward this most important operation. 2600. The first attempt at a reaping machine, so far as we have learned, was made by Boyce, who obtained a patent for a reaping machine fifteen or twenty years ago. This machine was placed in a two-wheeled carriage, somewhat resembling a common cart, but the wheels were fixed upon the axle, so that it revolved along with them. A'cog-wheel, within the carriage, turned a smaller one at the upper end of an inclined axis, and at the lower end of this was a larger wheel, which gave a rapid motion to a pinion fixed upon a vertical axis, in the fore part of the carriage, and rather on one side, so that it went before one of the wheels of the carriage. The vertical spindle descended to within a few inches of the surface of the ground, and had there a number of scythes fixed upon it horizontally. This machine, when wheeled along, would, by the rapid revolution of its scythes, cut down a portion of the corn growing upon the ground over which it passed, but having no provision for gathering up the com in parcels and laying it in proper heaps, it was wholly unsuited to the purjwse. 2601. An i?nprovement on this attempt was made by Plucknet, an agricultural implement maker, of London, some years afterwards. The principal alteration he made, was in substituting for the scythes a circular steel plate, made very sharp at the edge, and notched at the upper side like a sickle. This plate acted in the same manner as a very fine toothed saw, and was found to cut the corn much better than the scythes of the original machine. 2602. A machine, invented by Gladstones, of Castle Douglas, in the stewartry of Kircudbright, operated upon nearly the same principles with Plucknet's ; but Gladstone's made its work much better by intro- ducing a circular table, with strong wooden teeth notched below all around, which was fixed immediately over the cutter and jjarallel to it. The use of these teeth was to collect the corn and retain it till jt was operated on by the circular cutter. The corn, when cut, was received upon this table, and, when a suffi- cient quantity was collected, taken away by a rake or sweeper, and laid upon the ground beneath the Biachine, in separate parcels. To this machine was added a small circular wheel of wood, covered with 398 SCIENCE OF AGIIICULTURE. Part II. emery, which, being always kept in contact with the great cutter at the back ixirt, or opposite side to that where the cutting was ijerformed, kept it constantly ground to a sharp edge. 2603. Salmon of Woburn iTiade the next attempty and his invention, it is said, promised better than those we have mentioned. It was constructed upon a totally riitterent principle, as it cut the corn by means of shears; and it was provided with a very complete apparatus for laying it down in parcels as it was cut. 2604. The latest niachiilc {fig. 3j9.), and by much the most ingenif)us and promising of which we have received any account, is that constructed by Smith, of the Deanston Cotton Works, Perthshire. Smith's perseverance, his successive improvements, and ingenious yet simple contrivances for remedying defects, afford strong grounds to hope that he will ultimately succeed in rendering his machine a most valuable acquisition to agriculturists. He made the first trial of his machine upon a small scale, during the harvest of 1811. It was then wrought by two men. In 1812 he constructed one upon a larger scale, to be wrought by a horse ; but though he cut down several acres of oats and barley with considerable ease, it was found that, when met by an acclivity, the horse could not move the machine with proper effect. In 1813, he made a more successful attempt, with an improved machine, worked by one man and two horses ; and (1814) it was still farther improved by an additional apparatus, tending to regulate the application of the cutter, when working on an uneven surface. This ingenious machine has been again tried, in September 1815, and with much success. A Scotch acre (1^ acre English) of beans was cut down with ease in an hour and a quarter. The trials made with it on wheat, though not extensive, were satisfactory ; and in reaping oats, the com was laid down in the most regular manner. The cutter of this machine is circular, and operates horizontally ; it is appended to a drum connected with the fore-part of the machine, its blade projecting some inches beyond the periphery of the lower end of the drum ; and the machine is so con- structed as to communicate, in moving forward, a rapid rotatory motion to this drum and cutter, by which the stalks are cut, and, falling upon the drum, are carried round and thrown off in regular rows. This most ingenious piece of machinery will cut about an English acre per hour, during which time the cutter requires to be four times sharpened with a common scythe stone. The expense of this machine is estimated at from thirty to thirty-five pounds. If properly managed, it may last for many years j only requiring a new cutter every two or three years, a repair which cannot cost much. 2605. A machine for reaping the heads or seed pods of clover (Jig. 340.), where the second growth of that crop is left to stand for seed, 340 has been used in some parts of Norfolk and Suffolk. It consists of a comb, the teeth of which are lance- shaped, very sharp and set close. This comb is affixed horizontally to the fore -part of the bottom of an open box or barrow, which is drawn by one horse and guided by a man, who empties the barrow in regular lines across the field by means of an implement (a), which serves also to clean the teeth. 2606. A machine for moiving clover hay has frequently been attempted, but not yet perfected. One by Plucknet, of the Blackfriars Road, London, succeeded tolerably, but never came into use : it consisted of circular knives put into rapid motion, and the cut stalks guided to one side by a revolving cradle, like that attached to corn and scythes (2405.). It never came into use. Sect. VII. Machines of Deportation. 2607. The carriage or conveyance machines of agriculture are chie^y carts and wag- gons, and tlieir several varieties. SuBSECT. 1. Carts. 2608. Carts, like other implements, vary in their forms and modes of construction, according to the nature and situation of the roads, and many other local circumstances ; but, for the purposes of farming, those of the single-horse kind are in general the most advantageous and useful. The advantages of single-horse carts, Lord R. Seymour observes {Ann. Ag. xxvii.),are universally admitted, wherever they have been attentively compared with carriages of any other description. A horse, when he acts singly, will do half as much more work as when he acts in conjunction with another ; that is to say, that two horses will, separately, do as much work as three conjunctively : this arises, in Book IV. CARTS. 399 the first place, from the single horse being so near the load he draws; and, in the ixext place, from the point or line of draught being so much below his breast, it being usual to make the wheels of single-horse carts low. A horse harnessed singly, has nothing but his load to contend wita ; whereas, when he draws in conjunction with another, he is generally embarrassed by some difference of rate, the horse behind or before him moving quicker or slower than himself; he is likewise frequently inconvenienced by the greater or lesser Tieight of his neighbor : these considerations give a decided advantage to the single-horse cart. The very great ease with which a low cart is filled may be added ; as a man may load it, with the help of a long-handled shovel or fork, by means of his hands only ; whereas, in order to fill a higher cart, not only the man's back, but his arms and whole person must be exerted. To the use of single horses in draught there can be no objection, unless it be the supposed necessity of additional drivers created by it : the fact however is, that it has no such eflPect; for horses once in the habit of going singly, will follow each other as uniformly and as steadily as they do when harnessed together; and accordingly we see, on the most frequented roads in Ireland, men conducting three, four, or five, single-horse carts each, without any inconvenience to the passengers : such, likewise, is the case where lime and coal are generally carried upon pack-horses. In some of the northern counties of Britain also, one man manages two or three, and sometimes more, one-horse carts. 2609. Carts drawn by one or two horses, says a writer, whose authority is unquestionable (Supp. Encyc. Brit. ), are the only farm carriages of some of the best cultivated counties, and no other are ever used in Scotland, Their load depends upon the strength of the horses, and nature of the roads ; but in every case, it is asserted that a given number of horses will draw a great deal more, according to some one-third more, in single-horse carts than in waggons. Two-horse carts are still the most common among farmers in Scotland ; but those drawn by one horse, two of which are always driven by one man, are unquestionably preferable for most purposes. The carriers of the west of Scotland usually load from a ton, to a ton and a half, on a single-horse cart, and no where does it carry less than 12 cwt. if the roads are tolerable. 2610. Wheels, such as are broad, with conical or convex rims, are common in England ; in Scotland the wheels are generally narrow, though broader ones are beginning to be introduced. Those used for tlie common, or two-horse carts, are usually about 4^ feet high, and mounted on iron axles. The advantages of broad cylindrical wheels have been illustrated with much force and ingenuity in several late publications. {Communi- cations to the Board of Agriculture, vol. ii. and vol. vii. part i.) 2611. The Scotch one-horse cart in general use in husbandry is what is called a close coup cart, and is either used with- 341 out or with a fi-ame (Jig. 341.) for corn, straw or hay. On draw- ing out an iron pin, the fore part of the body rises up from the shafts, while the other end sinks and allows the load, whether of dung, earth, or stores in the close cart or of hay, or sheaves of corn on the cart and frame, to fall to the ground. 2612. The Scotch two-horse cart differs little from the one-horse cart, excepting in being larger. To prove the inferiority of double to single horse carts. Gray observes, " that whatever greater part of the load is placed before the centre of gravity, which is always in the axle, must rest constantly on the horse that is in the shafts. In going down hill, this burden must be considerably increased, especially if the load be high above the centre of the axle, or the descent steep ; and the additional burden upon the shaft- horse is always in proportion to these two causes united. But there is another disad- vantage ; for unless the line of the draught of the foremost horse be exactly in the line, from the hook of his collar to the centre of the axle, (which is hardly possible), he will perpetually be pulling down the hindmost horse, or, in other words, will be giving him more weight to carry. For, as the traces of the foremost horse are generally fixed u^jon the shafts, this throws his line of draught at a considerable angle above the centre of the axle ; from which it is evident, that although the road be ever so level , yet in every double or two-horse cart, the foremost horse must either not draw at all, or must brijig additional weight upon the horse in the shafts, which weight will always be in proportion to the force with which the trace-horse draws, and the largeness of the angle, which tlie line of his draught makes with the line from the hook of his collar to the centre of the axle. Besides, unless the driver be more careful than ordinary, and keep the trace horse to his duty, the other one has not only this great weight to carry, but also the whole load to draw. The angle is increased considerably, when the trace horse is of a lower sire 400 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Paut II. than the one in the shafts, which may frequently happen ; and by this moans, a still greater burden is laid upon the back of the horse employed in the shafts. 2613. Improved two-harse carts (Jig. 342.). It may be suggested to those who are fond of employing two-horse carts, that in order to adjust the traces of the fore horse with as little injury as possible to the one behind, and by this means make both their powers coincide, two iron frames are fixed into the axle, in each of which is placed a sheeve or whorle. Upon these sheeves, pass a rope or chain (a). In the outside of each shaft is fixed a long iron staple ; and on each staple, is placed an iron slider (5), having liberty to shift either forward or backward ; the chain from the collar of the shaft horse is hooked into the eye of the slider ; and the chain or rope, by which the foremost horse draws, passing from his collar (c), round on the sheeve at the axle,'is hooked into tlie other eye of the slider. By this means, the two horses are so connected, that if the one shall relax, immediately the exertion of the other horse presses the collar hard upon his shoulders, so that he must either exert himself, or be pulled backwards. Thus the ex- ertion of the two horses are united, so as to form one power, applied to the cart, in place of two powers, working generally against one another, which must be the case in the common way of attaching two horses to a cart. But, by this way of yoking, the shaft horse receives no additional burden from the exertion of the trace horse, as they both draw from one point, which is the centre of the axle, to the hooks of their respective collars, by which their powers must nearly coincide. If this coincidence does not take place, it is evident that the two horses will, to a certain degree, be pulling against one another, which must be extremely distressing to each in his turn, especially to the one in the shafts. 2614. The corn cart has a longer body than the close cart, and the sides and ends are open and support two rails along each. It is made to fit the axle and wheels of the close cart, and is chiefly used in haytime and harvest, when it is supposed to admit of laying on a larger load of sheaves or hay than the cart and frame. 2615. Lord SomervUles drag-cart {Jig. 343.) is constructed with a contrivance for 343 checking or regulating the rapidity of its motion in going down hills or other declivities. Tlie method for adjusting the position of the centre of gravity of the load, and to pre- vent its pressing too much on the cattle in going down hill, is by a toothed rack, screwed to the front of the cart, and worked by a pinion and handle (a) immediately connected with the pole. By means of this pinion and rack, the front of the carriage is elevated more or less, in proportion to the declivity of the hill, by which means the weight of the load is made to bear more on the axis, and less on the necks of the oxen. A friction drag (J) is made to press more or less on the side of the wheel, according to the steepness of the descent ; the one end of it is connected with the tail of the cart by a small chain, and the other end to the front, by means of a toothed rack, which catches on a staple in the front of the cart, by which the friction-bar may be made to press on the side of the wheel, more or less, at the discretion of the driver : the notches or teeth in this rack, it is observed, should be as close to each other as circumstances will permit. 2616. T7te advantages of the friction-drag, and other contrivances, are said to be, 1st. The method, which is equally simple and cxi»cdUious, of adjusting the centre of gravity of the load, so as to have a proper Book IV. WAGGONS. 401 bearing on the horses or cattle, in goincrdown hill. 2dly, The method of applying friction to the *ide of the wheel, to regulate the motion of the carriage in going down hill (instead of l(x;king the wheels), the advantages of which method appear to be as follow : namely, first, the pressure and degree of friction may, with great expedition, be adjusted to the steepness of the declivity, so that the carriage will neither press forward, nor require much exertion to make itSbllow the cattle ; secondly, the friction is so applied to the wheel, that a given pressure will have twice the effect in retarding the progress that it would have if im- mediately applied to the body of the carriage, or to the axis : and by applying the friction on both sides of the wheel, the risk of heating and destroying the friction-bar is much less than if the same degree of friction was applied in one place. 3dly, This apparatus is so conveniently placed, that it can be instantly applied or adjusted, without stopping the carriage, or exposing the driver to the same danger as ;n locking a wheel. And, 4thly, This contrivance will assume yet a greater importance when applied to both the hind wheels of waggons, by which means the resistance may always be proportioned to the steepness of the descent, the tearing up of the road prevented, the unnecessary exertion of the Cattle in drawing the locked carriage down hill avoided, the danger to which the driver is sometimes exposed in locking the waggon- wheel totally evaded, and the time now lost in locking and unlocking the wheel saved to the proprietor. 2617. The improved quarry cart has a bend in its iron axle, which brings it within four- teen inches of the ground, although moving on wheels more than five feet high. The ease with which it is drawn, loaded and unloaded, is superior to the common cart in tlie proportion of seven to three. 26 1 8. The three wheel cart is a low machine on wheels about two feet in diameter, the third wheel placed in the middle before, and gengrally of smaller size than the two others. It is used for convejdng earth or gravel to short distances, as in canal and road making, and for these purposes it is a most valuable machine, and in very general use. SuBSHCT. 2. Waggons. 2619. Waggons constructedi in different forms, and of various dimensions, are made use of in different districts of the kingdom ; and mostly without much attention to the nature of the roads, or the articles which are to be conveyed by them ; being, in general^ heavy, clumsy, and inconvenient. Waggons require much more power in the draught than carts, and are far from being so handy and convenient, which is certainly an ob- jection to them, though they carry a much greater load. There can be no doubt that more work may be done in any particular time, with the same number of horses, by carts than by waggons, in the general run of husbandry business, especially where the distance is small between loading and unloading. Waggons may perhaps be the most proper sort of conveyances for different sorts of heavy loads to a considerable distance ; but for home business, especially harvest and other field work, which requires to be speedily performed, carts seem decidedly preferable. 2620. Waggons, though they may possess some advantages over carts in long journeys-, and when fully loaded, the editor of The Farmer s Magazine observes, are now admitted to be much less convenient for the general purposes of a farm, and particularly on occasions which require great dispatch, as in harvesting the crop. 2621. The Gloucestershire waggon, according to Marshal, is the best in England. By means of a crooked side-rail, bending archwise over the hind-wheel, the bodies or frames of them are kept low, without the diameter of the wheels being much lessened. The bodies are likewise made wide in proportion to their shallowness, and the wheels run six inches wider than those of most other waggons, whereby advantages in carrying top -loads are evidently obtained. Rudge, in his survey of the above district, says, that in many districts, waggons are the principal carriages employed in getting in the hay, and are either full-bedded, or with three-quarter beds. The former have the advantage of a greater length of bed, but are not so convenient for turning ; the latter, though dimi- nished in size, have the convenience of locking the fore-wheels, and turning in almost as narrow a compass as a chaise, in consequence of the bed being hollowed out on each side near the middle, to admit the exterior part, or felloes of the fore-wheels. Botli waggons are capable of carrying nearly the same weight, though tlie former, being deeper in tiie bed, is somewhat better adapted for the carriage of heavy articles, such as bags of corn, &c. For the purpose of harvesting, or carrying hay and straw, their length and widtlj are increased by light ladders before and behind, and of similar contrivances called "rathes," the whole length of the sides. The ladders are put on and taken off' at pleasure, in both kinds, but the side additions are generally fixed, except in tlie strait- headed, which are in use on the western side of the Severn ; in these tliey axe made removeable, so as to leave tlie bed quite naked. 2622. The Berkshire waggon^^^^ .^^^^^^^ ^^ {Jig. 344.) is constructed on a sim- ple and convenient principle, not having the usual height or weight of other waggons, while it pos- sesses sufficient strength, and is easy in the draught. An im- provement suggested is that of leaving the space sufficiently deep in the body or bed for the fore- wheels to lock round in the shortest curve, as in the present manner of its construction, a great deal of time Dd 402 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. is lost turning at the ends of the swarths, in carrying hay, and on many other occasions. In this way, the inconvenience may be removed without doing the smallest injury to the symmetry or strength of the carriage. 2623. The Norfolk cart and waggon is formed by adding a pair of fore- wheels and shafts to a common cart, connected by a pole from axle to axle. It is said to be light, cheap, and convenient, and capable of carrying nearly as much hay or straw as the Berkshire waggon. 2624. Rood's patent waggon {Jig. 34:5.) is a contrivance whereby the same carriage b may, in a few minutes, be changed by the driver into two complete tip-carts of the com- mon dimensions, and applicable to all the uses of carts in general, or into one waggon, so complete, that a narrow inspection is necessaiy to distinguish it from a common waggon. The carts have a contrivance (a, a) to render them more safe and easy to the horse in going down a hill, and have moveable side-ladders, (6, b,) which will be found of great use in carrying corn, bark, &c. It may be constructed with perfect facility by the wheel-wrights of any county ; its shape and particular dimensions can be suited to the wishes of the owner, or to the local fashion of his neighborhood. The result of consi- derable experience and inquiries, enables its inventor to state, that it may, in any county, be completed for about five pounds more than the cost of two common carts. It must, however, be admitted to be somewhat more clumsy than a common waggon. Sect. VIII. Machines for threshing and otherwise prejyaring Corn for Market. 2625. Threshing and jrreparatory machines include threshing and winnowing machines, and awn and smut machines. Threshing machines are common in every part of Scotland, on farms where the extent of tillage-land requires two or more ploughs ; and they are every year spreading more and more in England and Ireland. They are worked by horses, water, wind, and, of late, by steam ; and their powers and dimensions are adapted to the various sizes of farms. Water is by far the best power ; but as a supply cannot be obtained in many situations, and as wind and steam require too much expense for most . farms, horses are employed more generally than any other power. Where wind-mills are erected, it is found necessary to add such machinery as may allow them to be worked by horses occasionally in very calm weather ; and the use of steam must be confined, for the most part, to the coal districts. 2626. The operation of separating the grain front the straw was long performed by the flail, to the manifest injury of both the fanner and the commimity ; for though, in some cases, the work was tolerably well performed, yet in a greater majority of instances it was otherwise. A quantity, perhaps, equal to the seed over the county, was lost even in the best cases ; but where the allowance to tlie thresher was either a proportion of the produce, known by the name of lot, generally a twenty-fifth part; or, when he was paid in money, at so much per boll, the temptation to do the work in a slovenly manner was so great, that a quantity, perhaps double of what was required for seed, was lost upon many farms ; an evil that did not escape the notice of intelligent men, by several of whom attempts were made to construct ma- chines that would do the work more perfectly ; this, therefore, seems to have led to the construction and use of this valuable machine. 2627. The first threshing-machine, as before observed (777.), was invented by Menzies, brother to the then sheriff-depute of East Lothian ; the machinery was driven by a water-wheel, which put in motion a number of flails of the same kind with those used in threshing by the hand. Trials made with these machines were so far satisfactory, that a great deal of work was done in a given time, but owing to the velocity required to do tlie work perfectly, they soon broke, and the invention fell into disgrace. 2628. Another attempt, some time in the year 1758, was made by a farmer in the parish of Dumblane, in Perthshire. His machine was constructed upon principles similar to the flax -mill, having an upright shaft with four arms inclosed in a cylinder, three and a half feet in height, and eight in diameter, within which the shaft and its arms were turned with considerable velocity by a water-wheel. The sheaves, being presented by the hand, were let down from the top upon the arms, by which the grain was beat out, and, together with the straw, descended through an opening in the floor, where they were separated by riddles and fanners, also turned by the water-wheel. 2629. A third attempt, about twenty years after, was made by Elderton, near Alnwick, and Smart, at Wark, both nearly about the same time. Their machine was so constructed as to act by rubbing, in place of beating out the grain. The sheaves were carried between an indented drum, about six feet in dia- meter, and a number of rollers of the same description ranged round the drum, towards which they are pressed by springs, in such a way as to rub out the grain, when the drum was turned round. Upon trial. Book IV. THRESHING MACHINES. 403 this machine was also found ineffectual, as along with its doing very little work in a given time, it bruiscti the grain, and so materially hurt its appearance, as to lessen its value considerably in the market. 265o. The machine in its then imperfect state, was seen by the late Sir Francis Kinloch, Bart, of Gilmcr- ton, a gentleman well acquainted with mechanics, and who had paid much attention to country affairs ; it occurred to him that the machine might be rendered more perfect, by inclosing the drum in a fluted cover, and fixing on the outside of it four fluted pieces of wood, capable of being raised a little from the circum- ference by springs, in such a way as to press again.^t the fluted cover, and to rub out the grain as the sheaves passed between them; but after repeated trials, it was found to bruise the grain nearly as much as the model from which it was copied. In that state it remained for some time, and was afterwards sent by Sir Francis to a very worthy and ingenious character, Meikle of Know Mill, in his neighborhood, a mill-wright by profession, who had for a considerable time employed his thoughts upon the same subject. After much consideration and several trials, it appeared to Meikle that the purpose of separating ;the grain from the straw might be accomplished upon a principle different from any that had hitherto been attempted, namely, by skutches acting upon the sheaves by their velocity, and beating out the grain, in place of pressing or rubbing it out ; accordingly a model was constructetl at Know Mill, in which the grain was beat out by the drum, to which it was presented through two plain feeding-rollers, which were afterwards altered for fluted ones. The first machine on a large scale, executed upon this principle, was done by a son of jMeikle's, for Stein, of Kilbagie, in the year 1786, which, when linished, i)erformed the work to the satisfaction of all parties, and established Meikle's principle of beating out the corn as superior to all others. This superiority it still maintains, and is likely ever to do so. 2631. Many improvements have been made on these machines since their introduction. One of the most useful of these, perhaps, is the method of delivering the straw, after at has been separated from the corn by the circular rake, to what is called a travelling-shaker, which carries it to the straw-barn. This shaker, which revolves like the endless web used in cotton and other machinery, is composed of small rods, placed so near as to prevent the straw from falling through, while any thrashed corn that may not liave been formerly separated, drops from it in its progress, instead of falling along with it, where it would be trodden down and lost. 2632. Improved tnode of yoking the horses. It is well known that the work of horses in thresh ing-mills is unusually severe, if continued for any length of time ; that they sometimes draw unequally ; that they, as well as the machine itself, are much injured by sudden jerks and strains, which are almost iniavoidable ; and that, from this irregularity in the impelling power, it requires much care in the man who presents the corn to the rollers, to prevent bad thrashing. It is theretbre highly desirable that the labor should be equalized among the horses, and the movements of the machine rendered as steady as possible. A method of yoking the horses in such a manner as compels each of them to take his projjer share of the labor, has accordingly been lately introduced, and the necessary apparatus, which is neither compUcated nor expensive, can be added to any machine worked by animal iwwer. (Farmer'slMagazine, vol. viii. p. 279. \ 2638. and fig. 346.) 2633. Winnowing 7nachin€S added. All well-constructed thresh ing-mills have one winnowing machine, which separates the chaff from the corn before it reaches the ground ; and a second sometimes receives it from the first, and gives it out ready for market, or nearly so. If the height of the building does not admit of this last addition, a separate winnowing machine, when the mill is of great power, is driven by a belt from it. In either of these ways there is a considerable saving of manual labor. 2634. Advantages of threshing machines. With a powerful water-mill, the editor of The Farmer^s Magazine observes, it cannot be doubted, that corn is threshed and dressed at no more expense than must l)e incurred for dressing alone, when threshed with the flail. Besides, the corn is more completely detached from the straw ; and, by being threshed expeditiously, a good deal of it may be preserved in a bad season which would have spoiled in a stack. The »reat advantage of transferring forty or fifty quarters of grain in a few hours, and under the eye ot the owner, from the yard to the granary or market, is of itself sufficient to recommend this invaluable machine, even though there were no saving of expense. 2635. The specific advantages resulting from Vie use of the thres/dng machine, are thus stated in The Code of Agriculture : 1. From the 8uj)eriority of this mode, one-twentieth part more corn is gained from the same quantity of straw, than by the old fashioned method. 2. The work is done more expe- ditiously. 3. Pilfering Is avoided. 4. The grain is less subject to injury. 5. Seed corn can be procured without difficulty from the new crops, for those to be sown. 6. The market may be supplied with grain more quickly in times of scarcity. /. The straw, softened by the mill, is more useful for feeding cattle. 8. If a stack of corn be heated, it may be throshetl in a day, and the grain, if kiln-dried, will be pre- served, and rendered fit for use. 9. The threshing-mill lessens the injury from smutty grain, the balls of smut, not being broken, as-when beaten by the flail ; and, 10. By the same maciiine, the grain may be separated from the chaff and small seeds, as well as from the straw. Before the invention of threshing- mills, farm-servants and laborers endured much drudgery; the large corn farmer sustained^ much damage from bad threshing ; and had much trouble, vexation, and loss, from careless and 'wicked servants; but now, since the introduction of this valuable machine, all his difficulties, in these resi)ects, are obviated. 2636. The advantage that might be derived by the public, were threshing mills tised in every case, for seiiarating corn from the straw, is thus estimated by Brown of Markle. The number of acres producing grain in Great one-twentieth part of the produce, or in quais, HriUin, at 8,000,000 ters, at 1,200.000 The averaffc produce in quarters, at 3 nrs. per acre. The value of that increased quantity at -lO*. per at 21,000,000 quarter £.2,400,000 The increaseti quantity of prain produced by The saving in the expense of labor, at 1*. per tJueshinR-mills, instead of using the flail, at ? I quarter - - . - il,200,000 2G37. A variety of threshing machines have been made in England, both on the rubbing and beating, or scutching principle, and some combining both modes; but none have been found to answer the purpose of separating the grain from the straw so well as those of Meikle, which is the kind exclusively used in Scotland and the north of England. 26\38. Meikle's two horse threshing viachine ivith the neiu invented yoking apparatus {Jig. 346. )> is the smallest size of horse engine which is made. From the limbers, or hanging pieces (a), by which the cattle draw when working this machine, proceed the chains or ropes to which the horses are yoked, being united by .m iron frame, placed upon a lever, having liberty to turn on a bolt ; one end of each of two single ropes is fixed to this iron frame, and upon their other ends are fixed small blocks ; in each of which is placed a rinming shecve ; aiid over these shceves, pass double ropes or chains. One horse is yoked to these chains at the one arm, and fhe other at the other, so that the chains or ropes by which they draw, l>eing connected l)y the blocks, and the sheeves having lil)erty to move either way, if onr; of the horses relax, D d 2 404 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. immediately the other presses the collar to his shoulders. For instance, if the horse yoked to the chains at one arm (Jig. 347 a.) were to relax, then the one yoked at the other (A) would instantly take up his rope, and pull the collar hard to his shoulders, so that the lazy horse must either exert himself, or be drawn backward j until tlie hooks, to which he is yoked, rest on the limbers. Thus each horse spurs up his fellow, they being both connected by the ropes and sheeves ; their exertions are united, so as to form one 347 power applied to the machine, instead of two powers, independent of one another. By this means, the draught will always press the collars equally upon the horses' shoulders, and though they are working in a circle, yet the strains of the draught must press fair, or equal, on their shoulders, without twisting their body to either side. This advantage cannot be obtained in the common way of yoking horses in a threshing machine, unless the draught-chains on each side of the horse be made in exact proportion in length to the diameter of thp circle in which he walks, or the chain next to the centre of the walk made a little shorter than the one farthest from it, which is often neglected ; but in this way of yoking the horses, the strain of the draught will naturally press equal on his shoulders when pulling, which of course must be less severe on the animal when walking in a circle. 2639. The advantages of this viethod of yoking horses to a threshing machine, which was invented by Walter Samuel, blacksmith at Niddry, in the county of Linlithgow, have been fully ascertained by experience, and acknowledged by the most intelligent farmers in Scotland. They are as follow : Book IV. THRESHING MACHINES. 405 fVl 1st. The very great comparative case obtained for the cattle, in this the heaviest part of their work. This, without doubt, is a real saving of labor ; for it is no exaggeration to affirm, that five horses, yoked by this apparatus to a threshing machine, will perform with equal ease the labor of six horses, or equal strength and weight, yoked in the common way, each horse being independent of the rest. 2dly. A very great saving results in the tear and wear of the machine, from the regularity and unifor- mity of the movement. This will be acknowledged by any judge of the subject who witnesses the per- formance. The sudden jerks and strains that generally take place in the usual way, are found to be quite removed ; the machinery moving with that kind of uniformity as if driven by water. In consequence of which, the work is better performed, and that in a very perceptible degree. 2640. Meikles water threshing machine {Jig. 348.), is the preferable engine when a supply of water can be obtained. The main axle 348 or shaft (a), upon which is fixed the water-wheel (J), has placedupon its circum- ference cast metal seg- ments fc), the teeth of which turn the pinion which is fastened on the axle of the threshing drum; the platform, on which the un- threshed corn is spread, joins the feeding rollers, that conduct the corn for- ward to the threshers ; next the threshing-drum is LaI^ the straw-shaker, driven by a leathern belt, passing over a sheeve, fixed on an iron spindle, connected with the axle of the water-wheel, and the sheeve on the axle of the shaker. 2641. Meikle's threshing machine to be driven hy water or by four horses {Jig. 349.), is 349 Ot. a powerful and convenient engine, as advantage may be taken of water when it is abundant, and in dry seasons horses can be applied. To this machine the improved apparatus for yoking the horses is appended, and by the simple operation of varying the positions of the pinions on the common shaft (a), which communicate with the water and horse wheel (6, c), threshing may be carried on without interruption, either with the water or the horses separately ; or a small quantity of water may be applied to assist the horses at any time, when a sufficient supply of water cannot be obtained to impel the machine alone. 2642. Meikle's threshing machine to be driven either by wind or six horses^ {Gray, PI. XII.) is a powerful but costly erection. On large corn farms, however, it will answer to erect such machines ; and there are frequent instances in Berwickshire and Northumberland, of farmers incuring that expense on the security of twenty-one years leases. The machinery of the wind power of this machine is fitted up with a small van to turn the large ones to face the wind, and with the machinery necessary to roll on or oif the sails according as the wind increases or diminishes ; by which means the naturally unsteady power of wind is rendered as regular as that of horses or water. The threshing part of this machine contains the usual apparatus, and also a complete set of fanners and screens for cleaning the corn. To the board upon which the unthreshed grain is spread, and introduced between the feeding rollers, succeeds the drum, with the threshers, or beaters, fixed upon the extremity of its arms ; then the shaker, that receives the straw from the threshing drum, and conveys it to the second shaker, by which it is thrown down a sloping scarce, either on the low floor, or upon a sparred rack, which moves on rollers, turned by the machine, and by this means is con- veyed into the straw-shed, or else into the barn yard. One searce is placed below the Dd 3 406 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. threshing-drum, while its circular motion throws out the straw at an opening, into the straw-shaker, which conveys it to the seconed (2453.), all of them work by horses, and generally with one, or at most two. The most complete have a large frame of separating beams into which the gudgeons of the larger wheels work„ and which retains the whole of the machinery in place. In general, there is no fanners j but sometimes a winnowing machine is driven by a rope from the threshing machinery. Such machines are considerably more expensive, in proportion to their power, than fixed machines; they are, therefore, not mucli used, and indeed might often be profitably substituted by the hand machine. 2645. IV^eir^s jwrtable tivo horse power threshing viachine is one of the best in England. The corn is threshed on Meikle's skutching principle, and is sometimes fed by fiuted rollers, and sometimes introduced through a hopper directly over the drum, a mode which is found not to break the straw so much as the common mode. 2646. Lester's portable threshing machine received the straw without the intervention of rollers, and separated the corn entirely by rubbing. It was an ingenious, but very imperfect machine, and never came into use. 2647. Forrest of Shif7iaVs portable threshing machines have been employed in several parts of Warwickshire, Shropshire, and adjoining counties. It combines the rubbing and skutching methods, but does not perform either perfectly. Meikle's machines, in fact, can alone be depended on, for completely separating the grain from the straw ; though some others may render the straw less ineligible for thatch, or for gratifying the present taste in litter of the London grooms. 2648. Tfie smut machine{Jig.350. )is the invention of Hall late of Ewel, in Surrey, now of the Prairie in the United States. It resembles that used for dressing flour, and consists of a cylinder per- forated with small holes, in the inside of which are a number of brushes, which are driven round with great rapidity. The wheat infected with smut is put into the cylinder, by a hopper («), and the constant friction occasioned by the rapid motion of the brushes (6), effectually separates the smutty grain, which is driven out by the holes of the cylinder. Hall finds that it requires much more power to clean wheat by this machine, than to dress flour. A machine on this construction, might be a very useful appendage to every thresh- ing machine, for the purpose of effectually clean- ing all wheat intended for seed, or such wheat, meant for the market, as had a great proportion of smut in it. (Stevenson s Surrey y-^. 141.) 2649. To take the awns from barley where a threshing machine is used, a notched spar lined on one side, with plate iron, and just the length of the rollers, is fixed by a screw bolt at each end to the inside of the cover of the drum, about the middle of it, so as the edge of the notched stick is about one-eighth of an inch from the arms of the drum as it goes round. Two minutes are sufficient to put it on, wlien its operation is wanted, which is, when putting through the barJey the second time; and it is as easily taken oflT. It rubs off tlie awns completely. Sect. IX. Mechan^xal and other fixed Apparatus, for the Preparathm of Food for Cattle, and grinding Manure. 2650. The principal food preparing contnvances, are the steamer, boiler, roaster, breaker or bruiser, and grinder. 2651. An apparatus for steaming food for cattle, the editor of The Farmer's Magazine observes, should be considered a necessary appendage to every arable and dairy farm, of a moderate size. The advaritiige of j)reparing diff\rent sorts of roots, as well as even 350 "ijeeJB Book IV. STEAMING APPARATUS. 407 grain, chafF, and liay, by moans of steaming apparatus, for the nourishment of cattle, begins now to be generally understood. It has been long known that many sorts of roots, and particularly the potatoe, become much more valuable by undergoing this sort of prepara- tion. And it is equally well known that when thus prepared they have been employed alone as a substitute for hay, and with cut chaff both for hay and corn, in the feeding of horses, as well as other animals. To a farmer who keeps many horses or cattle, or even swine or poultry, the practice of boiling their food in steam is so great a saving, and an ad- vantage, that it deserves the most particular attention. Though potatoes have often been given raw to both horses and cattle, they are found to be infinitely preferable when cooked by steam, as they are rendered thereby much drier, and more nutritive, and better than when boiled in water ; this has been long since shown by the experiments of Wakefield, of Liverpool, who in order to ascertain it, fed some of his horses on steamed and some on raw j)otatoes, and soon found the horses on the steamed potatoes had greatly the advan- tage in every respect. Those on the steamed potatoes looked perfectly smooth and sleek, while the others were quite rough. Eccleston also found them useful instead of corn ; and the extensive and accurate trials of Curwen, have placed the utility and advantage of them in this way beyond all dispute. Curwen has found that in their preparation in this way the waste of the potatoe is about one-eighteenth part, and that straw when given along with them answers equally well as hay, as the horses keep their condition and do their work equally well. 2652. A steaming apparatus on a grand scale has been erected at Workington, by Curwen, of which an accurate ground plan and section with a copious description, are given in The Comj)lete Farmer. (Art. Steaming Apparatus.) Though very extensive, it is less perfect than some others which we shall describe. 2653. An economical steaming and washing machine has been described by Grey, in his Implements of Husbandry, iS(C. The parts of this machine are few and simple; the potatoes are washed and emptied into a large chest to drip ; and when a sufficient (quantity is washed, this chest, by a motion of the crane, empties itself into a steaming- box, placed almost immediately over the boiler; by which means a large quantity of po- tatoes or other materials are steamed at once. The chief advantage attending the use of tliis simple steaming apparatus, he says, consists in saving manual labor, lifting on and oflf the tubs for holding the potatoes, or other materials to be steamed; also the expense of erec- tion and repairs of leaden or cojjper pipes, turn-cocks, &c. Its superiority over one with a number of steaming tubs, especially in a large operation, will be at once perceived by those vvho have paid attention to the subject. The steaming boiler may be made of any approved form, and of a size proportioned to the steaming-box, with a furnace of that construction which alfords the greatest quantity of heat to tlie boiler, with the smallest waste of fuel. The steaming-box may be made either of cast metal plates, enclosed in a wooden frame, or of stout pkmks, well joined, and firmly fixed together. It has been found by experience, that a box, eight feet in length, five feet wide, and three feet deep, will serve for cooking, in the space of one hour, with the attendance of one person, a sufficient quantity of potatoes to feed fifty ordinary horses, allowing each horse thirty-two pounds weight per day.' The boiler and steaming-box, however, ought to be made of a size in proportion to the number of cattle to be fed, or the quantity of materials to be steamed; both boiler and steaming box may be made of any form and proportion that will best answer the intended purpose, with the least expense. 2654. A steaming 7nachine on a simple and ,,^ -- c^--— y economical jdan (fig. 351.), consists of a ^"^ boiler and wooden chest or box placed over or near it. The box may be of any size, and so placed as to be supplied and emptied by wheel or hand barrows in the easiest manner, n^""ir-^ either by the end or top, or both, being made /^ >r — S to open. If the box is made 8 feet by 5, and | r~~ 3 deep, it will hold as many potatoes as will I | feed 50 cows for 24 hours, and these may be I ^ I steamed in an hour. (i^. Afa^f. vol. xviii. p. 74.) -^ 2655. Boilers or boiling machines are only had recourse to in the case of very small establishments. By means of fixed boilers, or boilers suspended by cranes, on the Lodi dairy principles (270), roots may be boiled, and chalT, weak corn, and other barn refuse, rendered more palateable and nutritive to cattle. Hay tea also may be made, which is a salutary and nutritive drink for horses or cattle when unwell, or for calving cows. Food for swine and poultry may also be prepared in this way : or water boiled and salted to half prepare chaff and culmiferous messes for animals. 2656. A baking or roasting oven has been recommended for preparing the potatoe by Pierrepont {Comm. Board of Ag. vol. iv.), which he states to be attended with superior advantages ; but as, independently of other considerations, the use of such an oven must Dd 4 408 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. be limited to potatoes, a steaming machine, which will prepare any sort of fbod, is undoubt- edly preferable for general purposes. Many speculative plans of this sort, however in- genious, chietly deserve notice as beacons to be avoided, or to prevent their being invented and described a second time. Chap. III. Edifices in use in Agriculture. 2657. A variety of buildings are necessary for carrying on the business of field cul- ture ; the nature and construction of which must obviously be different, according to the kind of farm for which they are intended. Suitable buildings, the editor of The Partner's Magazine observes, are scarcely less necessary to the husbandman than implements and machinery; and might, without much impropriety, be classed along with them, and considered as one great stationary machine, operating more or less on every branch of la- bor and produce. There is nothing which marks more decidedly the state of agriculture in any district, than the plan and execution of these buildings. 2658. In erecting a farmery, the first thing that deserves notice is its situation, both in regard to the other parts of the farm, and the convenience of the buildings them- selves. In general, it must be of importance on arable farms, that the buildings should be set down at nearly an equal distance from the extremities ; or so situate, that tlie access from all tlie different fields should be easy, and the distance from those most remote, no greater than the size of the farm renders unavoidable. The advantages of such a position in saving labor, are too obvious to require illustration ; and yet this matter is not nearly so much attended to as its importance deserves. In some cases, however, it is adviseable to depart from this general rule ; of which one of the most obvious is, where the command of water for a threshing-mill, and other purposes, can be better secured in another quarter of the farni. 2659. The form most generally apj^rovedfor a set of offices, is that of a square, or rather a rectangular parallelogram ; the houses being arranged on the north, east, and west sides, and the south side fenced by a stone wall, to which low buildings, for calves, pigs, poultry, &c. are sometimes attached. The space thus inclosed is usually alloted to young cattle : these have access to the sheds on one or two sides, and are kept separate accord- ing to their size or age, by one or more partition-walls. The farmer's dwelling-house stands at a short distance from the offices, and frequently commands a view of the inside of the square ; and cottages for servants and laborers are placed on some convenient spot, not far from the other buildings. 2660. The different buildings required for the occupation of land are chiefly those de- voted to live stock, as the stable, cow-house, cattle sheds, &c. ; those used as repositories or for conducting operations, as the cart-shed, barn, &c. ; and human habitations or cot- tages and farm-houses. After noticing the separate construction of these edifices, we shall exemplify their combination in different descriptions of farmeries. Sect. I. Buildings for Live Stock. 2661. Buildings for agricultural live stock are the stable, cow-house, cattle houses and cattle slieds, sheep houses, pig-styes, poultry houses, rabbitry, pigeonry, and bee-house. 2662. The stable is an important building in most farmeries j it is in general placed in the west side of tlie square, with its doors and windows opening to the east. No- tJiing conduces more to the health of horses than the having a good and wholesome air. The situation of the stable should always be on a firm, dry, and hard ground, that in winter the horse may go out and come in clean ; and where possible, be built some- what on an ascent, that the urine and other liquid matters may be easily conveyed away by means of drains for the purpose. As there is no animal that delights more in clean- liness than the horse, or that more dislikes bad smells, care should be taken that there be no hen-roost, hog-styes, or necessary houses near the place where the stable is to be built. The swallowing of feathers, which is very apt to happen, when hen-roosts are near, often proves injurious to horses. The walls of a stable ought to be of brick rather than stone, and should be made of a moderate thickness, two bricks or a brick and a half at least, or the walls may be built hollow, not only for economy, but for the sake of warmth in the winter, and to keep out the heat in the summer. The windows should be proportioned in number to the extent, and made on the east or north side of the building, that the north wind may be let in to cool the stables in the summer, and the rising sun all the year round, especially in winter. They should either be sashed or have large casements for the sake of letting in air enough ; and there should always be close wooden shutters, Book IV. BUILDINGS FOR LIVE STOCK. 40^ turning on bolts, ttet tlie light may be shut out at pleasure. Many pave the whole stable with stone, but that part which the horse is to lie on is often boarded with oak planks, which should be laid as even as possible, and cross- wise rather than length-wise ; and there should be several holes bored through them to receive the urine and carry it off un- derneath the floor by gutters into one common receptacle. The ground behind should be raised to a level with the planks, and be paved with small pebbles. There are mostly two rings placed on each side of the manger, or stall, for the reins of the horse's halter to run through, and a logger is to be fixed to the ends of these, sufficient to poise them per- pendicularly, but not so heavy as to tire the horse, or to hinder him from eating ; the best place for him to eat his corn in, is a drawer or locker, which need not be large, so that it may be taken out at pleasure to clean it, by which means tlie common dirtiness of a fixed manger may be avoided. Many people are against having a rack in their stables ; they give the horse his hay in a trough bin, formed of boards with an open bottom. 2663. A lofty stable is recommended by White {Treatise on Veter. Med. p. 1.), fifi teen or twenty but never less than twelve feet high, with an opening in the ceiling for ventilation. The floor he prefers is brick or limestone, inclining not more from the manger to the gutter than an inch in a yard. Some litter, he says, should always be al- lowed for a horse to stale upon, which should be swept away as often as is necessary. This, with a pail or two of water, thrown upon the floor, and swept off while the horse is at exercise, will keep the stable perfectly clean, and free from offensive smells. 2661. 7%^ depth of a stable should never be less than twenty feet, nor the height less than twelve. The width of a stall should not be less than six feet clear. But when there is sufficient room, it is a much better plan to allow each horse a space of ten or twelve feet, where he may be loose and exercise him- self a little. This will be an effectual means of avoiding swollen heels, and a great relief to horses that are worked hard. With respect to the rack and manger. White prefers the former on the ground rising three feet high, eighteen inches deep from front to back, and four feet long. The manger, eighteen inches deep, eighteen inches from front to back, and five feet in length. The rack he prefers being closed in front, though some farmers prefer it open, alleging that horses when lying down will thus be enabled to eat if they choose, A close-fronted rack, however, is better adapted for saving hay. The back jwrt of the rack should be an inclined plane made of wood ; should be gradually sloped towards the front j and should terminate about two feet down. Such a rack will hold more hay than ever ought to be put before o«e horse. The advantages of this rack are numerous : in the first place, the hay i» easily put into it, and renders a hay-loft over the stable unnecessary ; which ought to be an inducement to the builder to make the stable as lofty as it ought to be, and render the ventilation unnecessary. All the hay that is put into this manger will be eaten, but in the common rack it is well known that a large portion of the hay is often pulled down upon the litter, and trodden upon, whereby a considerable quantity is often wasted. It prevents the hay seeds or dust from falling upon the horse, or into his eyes; and what is of considerable importance, though seldom attended to, there willi)ean inducement to the horse-keeper to give the horse hay in small quantities at a time, and frequently, from the little trouble which attends putting it into the rack. The saving in hay that may be effected by the use of this rack is so apparent, that it need not be dwelt upon. A great saving also may be made in oats by so fastening the horse's head during the time of feeding that he cannot throw any of them out of the manger. This kind of rack and manger, from being boarded up in front, will effectually prevent the litter from being kept constantly under the horse's head and eyes, by which he is compelled to breathe the vapors which arise from it. It will also prevent him from getting his head under .the manger, as sometimes happens, by which means, not unfre(|uently, the poll evil is produced. The length of the halter should be only four feet from the head sUiU to the ring through which it passes : this will admit of his lying down with ease, and that is all which is required. The ring should be placed close to that side where the manger is, and not in the centre of the stall. The side of the stall should be sufficiently high and deep to prevent horses from biting and kicking each other. When tiie common rack and manger are 'preferred, the rack staves should be perpendicular, and brought nearly down to the manger, and this may easily be done with- out the necessity of a hay-loft, and the manger may be made deep and wide as describetl. 2665. The window of the stable should be at the south-cast end, and the door at the opposite end. The window should be as high as the ceiling will admit of, and in size proportioned to that of the stable. In one of twelve feet high, it need not come down more than four feet, and it will then be eight feet from the ground, and out of the way of being broken. The frame of the window should be moveable upon a pivot in the centre, and wpened by means of a cord running over a pulley in the ceiling, and fastened by means of another cord. With a window of this kind, in a stable of three or four horses, no other ventilation will be required: a person never need be solicitous about finding openings for the air to enter, where there is sufficient room above, and means for it to escape. A stable thus constructed will be found con- ducive to the health and comfort of horses, and will afford an inducement to the horse-keeper to attend to every little circumstance which may contribute to cleanliness. He will not allow the smallest bit of dung to remain swept up at one end of the stable, as it commonly is. The pails should be kept outside, and not standing about the stable, as they commonly are. If it is necessary to take off' the chill from water, it is much better, and more easily done, by the addition of a little hot water, than by suffering it to stand in the stable ; and while the horses are at exercise, the litter should be all turned out to dry, and the brick floor well washed or swept out. A little fresh straw may then be placed for the horses to stale upon. Litter thus dried during the day will serve again as well as fresh straw for the bottom of the bed, and be perfectly free from smell. The litter necessary to be kept under a horse that he may stale with comfort, and without splashing himself, is not considerable, and may be changed once a day. A great saving may be made in litter by turning it out, and drying it as described; and if a shed were built adjoining a stable, it might be done at all times, and might serve also to exercise and clean a horse in wet weather. 2666. Neither dogs, fowls, nor goats, should ever be permitted to enter a stable ; and dung should be kept at a distance from it. A good contrivance in cleaning horses, is, to have two straps, one oti each side the stall, about one yard from the head of it. By these the horse may be fastened during the time he is cleaned, by which he will be effectually prevented from biting the manger or the horse-keeper ; and being kept back in tlie stall, the mau will be better able to clean the front of his fore-legs, chest, and neck, and be able to move round him This is better than strapping him to the rack, 2667. Farm stables iti Scotland, the editor of The Farmer s Magazine observes, " are constructed in such a mauner, that all the horses stand in a line with their heads towards tlie same side-wall, instead of standing iu two lines, fronting opposite walls, as for- 410 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. merlvi Those lately erecttxl arc at least sixteen feet wide within walls, and sometimes eighteen, and the width of each stall upon the length of the stable is commonly five feet. To save a little room, stalls of nine feet are sometimes made to hold two horses, and, in that case, the manger and the width of the stall are divided into equal parts by what is called a Iialf trevice, or a partition about half the depth of that which separates one stall from another. By this contrivance, each horse indeed eats his food by himself; but tlie expense of single stalls is more j' than compensated by the greater ease, security, and comfort of the horses. The trevices or partitions which divide the stalls, are of deals two inches thick, and about five feet high ; but, at the heads of the horses, the partition rises to the height of seven feet {Jig. 352 a), and the length of the stall is usually from seven to eight feet. In many cases the end stall has a door or frame of boards to fit in between it and the back wall (A), in order to enclose food of any kind, a sick horse, a foal, or mare and foal, &c. 2668. The manger (c) is generally continued the whole length of the stable. It is about nine inches deep, twelve inche.s wide at the top, and nine at the bottom, all inside measure, and is placed about two feet four inches from the ground. Staples or rings are fixed on the breast of the manger, to which the horses are tied. 2669. Tlie rack for holding their hay or straw, is also commonly continued the whole length of the stable. It is formed of upright spars {d), connected by cross rails at each end, and from two to two and a half feet in height. The rack is placed on the wall, about one foot and a half above the manger, the bottom almost close to the wall, and the top projecting outwards, but the best plan is to place it upright (c, d, a,). The spars are sometimes made round, and sunk into the cross-rails, and sometimes square. In a few stables lately built, the round spars turn on a pivot, which facilitates .the horse's access to the hay, without requiring the interstices to be so wide, as to permit him to draw it out in too large quantities. 2670. Immediately above the racks is an opening in the hay-loft, through which the racks are filled. "When it is thought necessary, this may be closed by boards moving on hinges. 2671. The racks in some of the best stables occupy one of the angles between the wall and trevices, and form the quadrant of a circle. The simrs are perjjendicular, and wider placed than in the hanging racks. The hay -seed falls into a box below, instead of being dropi)ed on the ground, or incommoding the eyes and ears or" the horses. 2672. Bchiml the horses, and about nine feet from the front wall is a gutter, having a gentle declivity to the straw yard or urine pit Allowing about a foot for this, there will remain a width of eight feet to the back wall, if the stable be eighteen feet wide; a part of which, close to the wall, is occupied with corn-chests and places for harness. 2673. With a view to save both the hny and the seed, it is an advantage to have tlie hay-stacks so near the sUible as to admit of the hay being thrown at once upon the loft. In some stables there is no loft, and the hay is stored in a separate apartment 2674. The stable floor is, for the most part, paved with undressed stoucs ; but in some instances, the space from the gutter to the back, is laid with flags of freestone. 2675. Horse-hammels, or small sheds, with yards to each, have been used as stables in a few instances, and with great success in Berwickshire. Each shed holds two horses, with a nitch for their harness : to each shed there is an open straw-yard, of small size, with a water trough, and a gate large enough to admit a cart to take out the dung. John Plerriot, of Ladykirk, has long used these buildings for his horses with great success. He has lost none by death for a number of years, and tliey seldom have colds or any other disease. His horses lie in these open hammels in winter ; and it is remarked, that in frosty weather, when snow is falling, and lying on the ground, the animals do not go under cover, but prefer to lie out, with their backs and sides covered with snow. It is well known, that if a horse is kept out in winter, he will have no grease, nor swelled legs, and perhaps few other diseases. These hammels seem to have all these advantages, at the same time that they protect the animal from* damp, and prevent his back from being kept wet by heavy or long continued rains. Every farmer who keeps a large stock of horses, occasionally loses one by inflammation, brought on by coughs and colds ; but the horses of the farmer alluded to, become aged, and he has not had occasion to purchase a young horse for several years. ( Hush, of Scot. i. 26. ) 2676. Cattle-sheds are used either for lodging milch cows, or for feeeding cattle for the butcher. The principal requisites in buildings of this description are, that they be capable of being well aired ; that they are so constructed as to re ^'^d for a farmer and his family rather in a better style, may contain a principal entrance and lobUy (a) ; parlor (b) ; closets (c) ; store-room for meal, cheese, &c. (rf) ; lumber room for small imple- ments [e) ; beer cellar (/) ; pantry {g) ; dairy f/j) ; staircase (i) ; kitchen, with an oven under the stairs, and a boiler on the other side of tlic fire place [k] ; coals or wood, and back -entry il) ; pig-stye, with a small opening towards the kitchen for throwing in dish- water, offals, &c. (m) ; and poultry-house {n) ; with two garret bedrooms over the wings ; two good bedrooms and a closet up stair§, and a garret in the roof. 2716. A farm-house of the second lower scale 'fg. 362.', executed at Burleigh in Rutlandshire, contains a principal entry (a) ; parlor (h) ; kitchen (c) ; stair (d) ; dairy (e) ; pantry fy) ; cellar f^ ; and cheese-room (A. The three latter are attached to the back part of the house by a continuation downwards of the same roof. By making their ceilings only seven and a half or eight feet high, some small bed-rooms may be got above them, having a few steps down from the floor of the front rooms, or a few steps up from the first landing-place. The back-door of the kitchen enters into a brew- house and wash-house, the fire place and copper being behind the kitchen vent. Beyond this brew-house is a place for holding firewood, &c. j in the back wall of which are openings to feed the swine. In the kitchen is an oven ; and below the grate a very good contrivance for baking occasionally, but principally used for keeping the servants' meat warm. It consists of a cast-iron plate, and door like an oven. The chamber- floor is divided into two rooms for wards, and two small ones backwards. 2717. Farmers' dwelling-houses, containing more accommodation and conifort, and displaying appropriate taste and expression of design, will be found in a succeeding section, where farmeries are treated of, and also where we treat of laying out farms. (Part III.) Sect. IV. Of Cottages for Farm Servants. 2718. Collages for laborers are necessary appendages to every farm or landed estate, and no improvement is found to answer the purpose better than building these on a com- fortable and commodious plan. In the southern counties of the island, where the farmer's laborer is supposed to change his master once a year, or oftener, the whole busi- ness of cottages is commonly left to accident ; but in the nortli a certain number of married servants are kept on every farm, and a fixed place near the farmery is appointed for their situation. These habitations are in the tenure of the farmer, in common with the other buildings of the farm ; and whenever a married servant changes his master he changes his habitation. 2719. The accommodation formerly considered suited for farm laborers, consisted of two rooms. That on the ground floor not being less than twelve feet square, with a sleeping room of the same size over, and sometimes on the same floor. But this is justly deemed too small for an ordinary laborer's family. " Humanity," Beatson observes, "shudders at the idea of an industrious laborer, with a wife, and perhaps five or six children, being obliged to live, or rather exist, in a wretched, damp, gloomy room, of 10 or 12 feet square, and that room without a floor ; but common decency must revolt at considering, that over this wretched apartment there is only one chamber, to hold all the miserable beds of this miserable family. And yet instances of this kind, to our shame be it spoken, occur in every country village. How can we expect our laborers or their families to be healthy, or that their daughters, from whom we are to take our future female domestics, should be cleanly, modest, or even decent, in such wretched habitations ?" 2720. Cottages for farm servants, it is observed by the able author of the article Agriculture, in the Supplement to the Encyc. Britannica, ** are usually set down in a line, at not an inconvenient distance from the farm-yard. Each of them contains two apartments, with fire-places and garret sleeping rooms over. Adjoining is commonly a cow-house, hog-stye, shed for fuel, necessaiy, a small garden, and sometimes other appendages of comfort and enjoyment. As an example of the minimum of modem accommodation, we may fi refer to two cottages on a farm in Berwickshire, as described in the re- port of that county. They contain each a kit- chen {fig. 363 «.) small parlor and store-room (6), with two good bed- rooms over, and a dairy under the staircase — There is a garden behind 363 1 ff E e 2 420 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. rr mmi 364 1 R ' c |i r-m •M Hh i u H 3= Jl, m s a ( y 0 (c), a place for a calf or pigs, or for fuel (d), water-closet (e), and dung-heap (/). The laborer's cows, in this case, are kept at the farmery along with those of the farmer. 2721 . A double ploughman s cottage and coiu-honse {fig. 3(54. ) may be tlius arranged. Both may contain a kitchen (a) with an oven, and there may be a small parlor or store-room (i), a dairy and pantry (c), with two bed-rooms over. Detached may be a pig- stye {d), water-closet (e), place for fuel (/), and cow-house (^r), with gardens adjoining, dung-heap, porch, step -up, &;c. as in the other place. 2722. In regard to the construction of cottages much information may be obtained from a work entitled, A Series of Plans for Cottages^ by J. Wood, of Bath. This author lays down the fol- lowing seven principles, as the means of obviating the inconveniencies to v-hich cottages, as usually built, are liable: — 2723. The cottage should be dry and healthy ; this is effected by keeping the floor sixteen or eighteen inches above the natural ground ; by building it clear of banks, on.an open spot of ground, that has a declivity or fall from the building; by having the rooms not less than eight feet high — a height that will keep them airy and healthy ; and by avoiding having chambers in the roof. 2724. They should be warm, cheerful, and comfortable. In order to attain these points, the walls should be of a sufficient thickness (if of stone, not less than sixteen inches ; if of brick, at least a brick and a half) to keep out the cold of the winter, or the excessive heat of the summer. The entrance should be screened, that the room, on opening the door, may not be exposed to the open air ; the rooms should receive their light from the east or the south, or from any point betwixt the east and the south ; for, if they receive their light from the north, they will be cold and cheerless ; if from the west, they will be so heated by the summer's afternoon sun, as to become comfortless to the poor laborer, after a hard day's work ; whereas, on the contrary, receiving the light from the east or the south, they will be always warm and cheerful. So like the feelings of men in a higher sphere are those of the poor cottager, that if his habitation be warm, cheerful, and comfortable, he will return to it with gladness, and abide in it with pleasure. 2725. They should be rendered convenient^ by having a porch or shed, to screen the entrance, and to hold the laborer's tools ; by having a shed to serve as a pantry, and store-place for fuel ; by having a privy for cleanliness and decency's sake ; by a proper disposition of the windows, doors, and chimneys ; by having the stairs, where there is an upper floor, not less than three feet wide, the rise or height not more than eight inches, and the tread or breadth not less than nine inches ; and, lastly, by proportioning the size of the cottage to the family that is to inhabit it ; there should be one lodging-room for the parents, another for the female, and a third for the male children ; it is melancholy, he says, to see a man and his wife, and sometimes half a dozen children, crowded together in the same room, nay, often in the same bed ; the horror is still heightened, and the inconveniency increased, at the time the woman is in child- bed, or in case of illness, or of death ; indeed, whilst the children are young under nine years of age, there is not that offence to decency, if they sleep in the same room with their parents, or if the boys and girls sleep together, but after that age they should be kept apart. 2726. Cottages should not be more than twelve feet wide in the clear, that being the greatest width that it would be prudent to venture the rafters of the roof, with the collar-pieces only, without danger of spreading the walls ; ajid by using collar-pieces, there can be fifteen inches in height of the roof thrown into the upper chambers, which will render dormer-windows useless. 2727. Cottages should be always built in pairs, either at a little distance from one another, or close ad- joining, so as to appear one building, that the inhabitants may be of assistance to each other, in case of sickness or any other accident. 2728. For economy, cottages should be built strong, and with the best of materials, and these materials well put together ; the mortar must be well tempered and mixed, and lime not spared ; hollow walls bring on decay, and harbour vermin ; and bad sappy timber soon reduces the cottage to a ruinous state. Although cottages need not be fine, yet they should be regular ; regularity will render them ornaments to the country, instead of their being, as at present, disagreeable objects. 2729. A piece of ground should be allotted to every cottage, proportionable to its size ; the cottage should be built in the vicinity of a spring of water — a circumstance to be attended to; and if there be no S])ring, let there be a well. 2730. On the foregoing seven jrrinciples, he recommends all cottages to be built. They may be divided into four classes or degrees: first, cottages with one room; /«econdly, cottages with two rooms; .thirdly, cottages with three rooms ; and, fourthly, cottages with four rooms; plans of each of which, that have great merit in their dis- tribution, may be seen in his veiy able work. 2731. An economical mode of constructing the walls of brick-built cottages, is described by Dearn, in a Tract on Hollow Walls (London, 1820). These walls are only nine inches wide, and built hollow, by laying the courses alternately lengthways on edge, and crossways on the broad fac. °. Another description of hollow walls has been invented by Silverlock of Chiches, ter, and used by him in building garden walls (See Enci/c of Gardening), in which al I the bricks are laid on edge, but alternately length- ways and crossways of the wall ; or, in bricklayers' language, header and stretcher. Book IV. FARM-COTTAGES. 421. Either of these modes suit very well for cottages of one story, and if well plastered inside the house, they will be warmer and dryer than solid walls even of fourteen inches thickness. Hollow walls of any height may be built by laying the bricks flat ways, and joining the outer and inner four inch, or single brick walls, by cross bricks at moderate distances. 2732. jln economical mode of forming staircases to cottages^ is de- scribed by Beatson, and has been adopted in a few places. Its merit consists in occupying exactly half the room which is required for stairs on the ordinary plan. This is effected by dividing every step into two parts (fig. 365 a and b], and making one part double the height of another. In ascending such a stair the left foot is set on the left step (fl), and the right foot on the right step (b,) alternately to the top of the stair. It is therefore clear, that as the steps for the right and for the left foot are in the same line, and although neither foot rises each time higher than seven inches and a half above the other, yet every time that one foot is moved, it rises fifteen inches higher than it was before. Suppose in a stair of this kind, that each tread or breadth for the foot is nine inches, and that each rise of the one foof above the other is seven inches and a half, consequently as each foot rises the height of two steps, or fifteen inches, every time it is moved, it is plain that six steps of this kind will rise as high as twelve in the common way, and will require only one half the size of a hatch or opening in the floor above, that would be required for those twelve steps as usually constructed. This will be of considerable advantage, where much is required to be made of little room, and will of course give more space to the chambers above ; but it has the disad- vantage of being disagreeable, and even dangerous to descend, especially for pregnant women and young children. 2733. Mud walls, built in the French manner, or en pise, are recommended by Beatson, Crocker, and others, and also ** walls composed of soft mire and straw," but these we consider, with Wood, as the reverse of economical in the end, and totally unfit for our climate and degree of civilization. 2734. Of what are called ornamental cottages for laborers, we shall say little. Utility is a beauty of itself, but there are higher degrees of that sentiment excited by the appear- ance of convenience and abundance ; by the evidence of design or intelligence in the contriver as displayed in the elevation and general effect, and by classical imitative or picturesque forms in the masses and details. The great evil, however, is that these ornamental cottages, as generally constructed, are felt by the occupiers to be very uncom- fortable habitations, every thing being sacrificed by the designer to external appearance. This is in the very worst taste, and has, in most parts of the country, brought ornamental cottages into ridicule. Utility, therefore, is the main consideration, and nothing ought to be considered as ornamental that is at all at variance with this property. 2735. As an example of a cottage orna- mented in the least degree (Jig. 366.) we sub- mit a specimen in the gothic style, by Hol- land. It contains an entrance lobby, and stair (a), kitchen (h), small parlour and store- room (c), cow-house (rf), pig-stye (e), poul- try (/), and water closet (g). Over the kitchen is a bed-room with a fire place, and another communicating with it over the cow-house. 2736. A cottage ornamented in the second degree (fig. 367.), contains an entrance and lobby (fl), kitchen (6), stair (c), parlor, or store-room (d), back kitchen (e), cow- house (/), and water closet [g), with two good bed rooms over the centre of the building, and two garrets over the wings. fl 2737. A double ornamental cottage, erected by Lord Penryhn, in Wales (fi^. 368. ), contains a porch, lobby, and stair (a), kitchen and living room (6), parlor (c), with cellars and pantry under, and to each house two bed-rooms over. It must be confessed, however, that this cottage is more ornamental than convenient. n v -i • tt 2738. A double ornamental cottage, wUh latticed windows (fig. 369.), built m Hert- fordshire, on a very dry soil, contains, on the ground floor, the kitchen and hving room (a), pantry (b), and small light closets (c), with a stair up to two good bed-rooms above and down to a dairy, cellar, fuel-room, and other conveniences beneath. It is placed in a Ee 3 366 I — ]n-r~ir-iPn 422 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. neat garden, with piggery, bee -house, poultry, dung-pit, water closet, covered seat or bower, pump-well, and other appendages to each cottage. 2739. A variety of other plans of cottages will be found connected with the plans of farmeries, and in cur Topograp/it/ of Agriculture (Part IV.) Sect. V. Of the Stack-yard, Dung-yard, and other Enclosures immediately connected with Farm Buildings. 2740. The different appendages ivhich are common to farm buildings arc the dung-yards, pits and reservoirs, the rick-yard, the straw-yard, the poultry-yard, drying yard, garden, orchard, and cottage-yards. These necessarily vary much, according to situation and other circumstances, but all of tliem are more or less essential to a complete farmery, 2741. The dung-yard and pit is placed in almost every case in the centre of the main yard. A pavement, or causeway, ought to be carried round the yard, next to the houses, of nine or hfteen feet in width, according to the scale of the whole : the remaining part of the yard should either be enclosed with a wall with various doors to admit cattle, carts, and wheel barrows, or on a small scale, it may be entirely open. From this space the earth should be excavated so as to form a hollow deepest at the centre, or at the lower end if the original surface was not level ; and from the lowest part of this hollow should be conducted a drain to a reservoir for liquid manure. The bottom of this excavation, or dung basin, ought to be rendered hard, in order not to take the impression of cart wheels, in removing the dung, and impervious to moisture, in order to prevent absorption. 2742. For these purposes, it may be either paved, the stones being set on a layer of clay ; or what will generally answer equally well, it may be covered with a thick coat of gravel or chalk, if it can be got, and then well-rolled, mixing some loam with the gravel, if it is found not to consolidate readily. To prevent as much as possible a superfluity of rain-water from mixing with the dung and diluting its drainings, all ex- ternal surface-water should be prevented from entering the farm-yard by means of drains, opened or covered ; and that which collects on the inner slopes of the roofs should, in every case, be carried off by gutters. Such is the opinion of most agricul- turists as to the situation of the farm yard, dung-hill, and reservoir ; but, in addition to these requisites, it is now very properly considered as equally important that there be urine-pits, either open or covered. 2743. The uritutrium, or urine-pit, is constructed in or near to the stables and cattle-sheds, for the immediate reception of the drainage of these buildings, un- mixed with rain-water. It is found from experience that a very considerable addition of the richest kind of manure is thus obtained on every arable farm. At the same time it is proper to observe, that no benefit, but a loss, will be sustained if the urine is so com- pletely drained from the straw, as to leave it too dry for fermentation. Where there are no stall-fed cattle, an able author {Supp. En. Brit. i. 12] ) is of opinion there will be no more urine than what will be required for converting the straw into manure. Whea Book IV. STACK-STANDS. 423 cattle are fed at the stake, however, he considers a reservoir as essential. Allan, of Gray crook, near Edinburgh, recommends that there should be two, in order that as soon as one is full, it should remain in that state till the urine becomes putrid before it be taken away. The urine is either applied to the land in its liquid state, or mixed with peat, earth, &c. The reservoirs may be either vaults of masonry, or wells ; in either case, the hole for the pump should be sufficiently large to admit a man to clean out the sediment when it accumulates. A very desirable plan seems to be, to have these vaults, or wells, chiefly within the cattle-house, as in Flanders, but partly also without, to admit room for the pump-hole, close by the wall on the inside of the surrounding paved road. It is needless to add, that such constructions ought to be made water-tight by the use of some cement, or by puddling with clay outside of the masonry. 2744. The stack-yard^ or enclosure within which corn, hay, &c. is stacked, is placed exterior to that side of the building which contains the barn. Stack-yards should always be sufficiently spacious and airy, having a Urm dry bottom ; and some advise them to be ridged up, to prevent the accumulation of surface-water, as by the ridges being pretty well raised in the middle, and covering the places where the stacks are to be built, either with rough stones, with a mixture of gravel, or paving them in the same manner as streets, much advantage would be gained at little expense. But a much better method is to have them raised considerably above the surface, and placed upon pillars of wood or stone, with a covering of wood round the circumference, and beams laid across. The inclosing of stack-yards should be well performed, either by means of walls or palings, or better with a sunk fence ; as in that way the stacks will have the full benefit of the air from top to bottom, a circumstance of no small moment, as it is often found, especially in wet seasons, where the fence of the stack-yards is only a low wall, that the whole of the stacks are damaged or spoiled as high up as the wall reaches, while the upper part is perfectly safe. Should any addition be required to the sunk-fence, a railing upon the top may be quite sufficient. This fully shows the vast advantage of having stack-yards sufficiently airy. The proper arrangement of the stands, for their being removed to the threshing-mill, is also a matter of much conse- quence in the economy of the work that is to be performed in them. 2745. A stack-yard, arranged on principles pectdiarly well planned and Judicious, has been formed by Mitchell, of Balquharn, near Alloa. His stacks are divided into regular rows, and there is a road on each side of every double row, besides a road round the whole yard. (See our Jig. 114. and 115.) This plan is attended with the following ad- vantages ; 1st, by these parallel roads, there is a greater degree of ventilation ; 2dly, he can re- move any stack he pleases, as necessity or markets require ; 3dly, in the hurry of harvest there is no confusion or loss of time, whatever may be the number of men or horses employed ; and 4thly, by having the rows arid the stacks regularly numbered, there is no difficulty in ascertaining what each field of the farm produces. 2746. Corn-stands are requisite fixtures of the stack-yard ; they are basements of timber or ma- sonry, and sometimes of iron (Jig.SlOa.), on which to build the stack, and their object is to keep the 370 fcuul jfii in\ pLM flUl Ll-U aji II 11 ffiLJlJl /I i\ LL1\ lUi \u\ 'dJJ \L\\ it n w ]\ jl 1/ il l\ to uuiia tne stacK, ana uieir oujeci i!> lu kccjj uic | [ p - — ^ ■ — pj ■ lower part of the stack dry, and exclude vermin. JvF SjP ^ ^ "^ O* The usual mode of constructing stands is to place 1 M M J I a stout frame of timber on upright stones, two jjj, JJX JH. XJ, M^ feet high, and having projecting caps of flat stones. They are also constructed wholly of stone, of circular or polygonal walls (Jig. 371 «, 6), built to the same height as in the for- mer case, in a rather slanting manner out- wards, and covered on the tops with copings of oak-planking or flat stones, which project over the edges several inches, and in that way prevent the ascent of rats and mice to the stacks. In both these modes, pieces of timber are placed as a frame in the middle to support the grain upon, and generally a cone of spars in the centre, to form a column of air in the heart of the corn. Some suppose the first of these sorts of corn-stands to be the best for general purposes, as being more easily as well as more cheaply con- structed, and at the same time permitting the air to enter and circulate with more freedom Ee 4 424 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. underneath, in the bottom of the stand, which is of much advantage. It is obvious that the form of these stands or basements must vary according to that in which the stacks are to be made, which is different in different districts. But wiierever the threshing machine is introduced, the circular base, as producing a stack of a moderate size, with other ad- vantages, is generally preferred. 2747. Cast-iron stands for stacks (Jig. 372.) with or without funnels formed by hollow cones or triangles, have recently been introduced, and found advantageous in point of economy, and admitting of stacking the corn, somewhat earlier. The pillars of these stands are three feet high, and weigh one-half cwt. each. A stack re- quires seven pillars, besides the framing, which may either be made of poles or young trees. In the wet climate of Clackmannanshire, wheat has been stacked in five days, beans in eight, and barley and oats in ten days, and some- times earlier. No vermin can find their way into these stacks to consume the grain, and the straw is better pre- served. The cone or triangle keeps up a circulation of air, and prevents heating, or other damage. (Gen. Rep. of Scotland, \o\.i\. App.^.'M 9.) ^^^ 2748. Hay-stands, according to some, may be formed ""^^^.cs^- in the same manner as those for corn, only it is seldom necessary to have them made of such expensive materials. A simple frame of wood is mostly sufficient, with proper bearers laid across for the support of the stack. These stands are much better than the common practice of building the ricks on loose pieces of wood laid across in the bottom, and filled in with brush or faggot wood, as is often the case ; and earthy floors or foundations should never be thought of for this purpose, as the dampness must injure a considerable part of the hay at the bottom. Where faggots are not scarce, however, and the ground on which a hay- stack is built is rather elevated, no stand can ever become necessary. 2749. The stack-funnel fausse or boss, as it is called in the north, whether the stand be of wood, iron, or stone, may be formed of a few poles placed on a circular (fig, 370 6. ) square or angular base (fig. 372. i, having a few short spars nailed across (fig. 370 6), or a straw rope wrapped round. 2750. The stack-cover is a cloth or canvass covering, for suspending over stacks during the time of their being built to protect them from rain. A simple implement of this sort has long been in use in Kent ; but it has been improved on by Sir Joseph Banks, so as to become more manageable, though somewhat more costly. It consists of two long upright poles fixed into two cart wheels : a rope, managed by blocks and tackle, connects the poles at top, and supports, raises, or lowers the canvass roof in the usual manner of managing tents and sails. Its construction and use will be afterwards more particularly described. 2751. The straw-yard is a term applied to enclosures in or about the fann-yard, in which cattle are turned in loose to eat straw. In most cases this enclosure occupies the centre of the farm- yard, and includes the dung-bason, or it is a subdivision of the yard ; but in some cases enclosures and sheds are erected exterior to the farm -yard, and near the straw and root-house. The great object in arranging straw-yards of this description, is to provide a sufficient extent of sheds open to the south for cover to the cattle in severe weather, and high fences or sheds on the east or west sides according to their position, relatively to the main yard, for shelter. 2752. The poultry-yard in most cases may be a very small enclosure, as the poultry of common farmeries should be allowed to range over the straw-yards and most parts of the premises, to pick up what cannot be got at by swine. 2753. A tradesman's -yard or small enclosure is often appended to the smith's and carpenter's shops, as well to contain timber as implements in want of repair, &c. 2754. A kitchen-garden is an essential appendage to the dwelling-house. Its situa- tion should be apart from the farmery, so as not to interfere with it, or be injured by the blowing in of straws, &c. The size of the garden will, of course, depend somewhat on that of the house and farm ; but as a small farmer with a large family will require as many or more vegetables than one of a higher class, there can be no impropriety in the garden being largq. As potatoes and turnips, and sometimes other vegetables, may be had of better quality from the field, some abatement of size may be allowed on this account. In general, the garden need not be under a fourth, nor exceed half an acre. The best fence is a wall, and next a close oak paling ; but if neither of these can be had, a thorn hedge will answer, though its roots always rob a portion of the accompanying border, and it harbours vermin. The best form is a parallelogram, lying east and west, Book IV. FARMERIES. 425 whicli may be intersected by walks, so as to divide it into four or six other parallelograms, with a surrounding border as broad as the enclosure fence is high. 2755. An orchard may either be regularly formed on an allotted space ; or fruit trees may be scattered over a lawn or piece of grass ground which may surround the house. In a convenient part of this orchard, posts should be fixed as a drying ground, unless that operation is performed by heated air or steam in the house. 2756. J'Jie gardens appended to the laborer s cottages may contain from one-eighth to one-sixth of an acre. Their situation should always adjoin the house, but whether they should surround it or enclose it on one or more sides, must depend on the position of the cow-house belonging to each cottage. In some cases, and perhaps it is the best plan, these cow-houses form a range by themselves in a small field devoted to their use, and placed behind the row of cottages. Sect. VI. Of tlie Union of the different Farm Buildings and Enclosures in a Farmery, 2757. In fixing the arrangement of a set of farm buildings, the first thing, according to Beatson, to be taken into consideration, after choosing the situation, is the nature and pro- duce of the farm. From these may be judgedthe different kinds of accommodation that will be necessary. For example, every farm must have, first, a dwelling-house ; secondly, a barn suitable to the extent of arable land in the farm, either with or without a threshing mill, but always with one, if possible; and it should be endeavored to place it so that it may go by water, if a supply can be had ; thirdly, stables, the dimen. sions of which must be determined according to the number of horses necessary for the farm ; fourthly, cow-houses, or feeding-houses, or both, according to the number of cows and cattle, and so on, till the whole accommodations, and their dimensions, are fixed upon. Having ascertained these, and the situation for building on being also settled, the ground must be carefully and attentively viewed ; and if not very even, the different levels must be observed, and the best way of conducting all the necessary drains, and carrying off all superfluous moisture. Also the best situation for dung and urine-pits, or reservoirs, which will, in a great degree, ascertain at once where the cattle- houses and stables should be. These being fixed on, the barn should be as near them as possible, for the convenience of carrying straw to the cattle ; and the barn-yard should be contiguous to the barn . These main points being deterniined on, the others will easily be found ; always observing this rule, to consider what is the nature of the work to be done about each office, and then the easiest and least laborious way to per- form that work, so far as it is connected with other offices. In case this should not be sufficiently explicit, suppose, by way of illustration, the situation of a feeding-house is to be considered of. The nature of the work to be performed here is, bringing food and litter to the cattle, and taking" away their dung. The place from whence the greatest part perhaps of their food and all their litter comes, is the barn ; therefore the feeding- house should be as near the barn as possible. If turnips or other roots, or cabbages, make a part of their food, the most commodious way of giving these must be determined on ; whether by having a root -house adjoining the cattle-house, and that filled occasionally, or by having a place to lay them down in, near the heads of the stall, from whence they are thrown in at holes left in the walls for tliat purpose. The easiest method of clearing away the dung must also be considered, and the distance'from the main dung-pit and urine reservoir. The same general rule being observed in determining on the site of all the other offices or accommodations, together with a careful examination of the ground to be occupied (upon which the arrangement of the offices in a great measure should de- pend), any person conversant in rural affairs, who attends to these particulars, and can, lay down his ideas in a drawing, may easily direct the planning and building Of a very commodious set of offices. "With respect to the site of the dwelling-house, it may be remarked, that, although a house being situate in the middle of a regular front, is in some points of view the most pleasing way, and in many situations perhaps the best, yet, unless the ground and otlier circumstances in every respect favor such a disposition, it should not invariably be adhered to ; for it may often happen, that a much better situation for the dwelling-house may be obtained at a little distance from the offices, a pleasing uniformity be observed in them at the same time, and the house be more healthy and agreeable. In some cases, and for some kinds of farms, it may be particularly ne- cessary to have the house so placed, in respect to the offices and farm-yard, as to admit of their being constantly inspected, and the labor that is to be performed in them attended to and overlooked. 2758. The particular requisites of a farmstead, Marshall observes, " are as various as the intentions of farms. A sheep-farm, a grazing-farm, a hay-farm, a dairy-farm, and one under mixed cultivation, may require different situations, and different arrange- ments of yards and buildings. On a farm of the last species, which may be considered 426 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. as the ordinary farm of this kingdom, the principal requisites are, shelter, water, an area or site sufficiently flat for yards and buildings ; with meadow land below it, to re- ceive the washings of the yards ; as well as sound pasture-grounds above it for a grass- yard and paddocks; with private roads nearly on a level, to the principal arable lands ; and with suitable outlets to the nearest or best markets." The first of which when wanting, in the desired situation, may in time be supplied by plantations and mound- fences. And where there is not a natural supply of water, a well, water-cellar, or arti- ficial rill may, he says, furnish it. 2759. For a farm under mixed husbandry, the particulars, to be arranged according to Marshall, may be thus enumerated ; namely, 1 . A suit of buildings, adapted to the intended plan of management, — as a dwelling-house, barns, stables, cattle-sheds, cart- shed. 2. A spacious yard, common to the buildings, and containing a receptacle of stall-manure, whether arising from stables, cattle-sheds, hog-styes, or other buildings ; together with separate folds, or straw-yards, furnished with appropriate sheds, for par- ticular stock, in places where such are required. 3. A reservoir, or catchpool, situated on the lower side of the buildings and yards, to receive their washings, and collect them in a body for the purpose of irrigating the lands below them. 4. A corn-yard, conve- nient to the barns j and a hay-yard contiguous to the cow or fatting-sheds. 5. A gar- den and fruit-ground near the house. 6. A spacious grass-yard or green, embracing the whole or principal part of the conveniences ; as an occasional receptacle for stock of every kind ; as a common pasture for swine, and a range for poultry ; as a security to the fields from stock straying out of the inner yards ; and as an ante-field or lobby, out of which the home- grounds and driftways may be conveniently entered. In re- spect to the distribution or management of these different objects, he remarks, that in order to make it with good effect, great caution, study, and patience are required, that the most may be made of given circumstances. " An accurate delineation of the site which is fixed on, requires," says he, " to be drawn out on a scale; the plannist study- ing the subject, alternately, upon the paper, and on the ground to be laid out ; continuing to sketch and correct his plan, until he has not a doubt left upon his mind ; and then to mark out the whole upon the ground, in a conspicuous and permanent manner, before the foundation of any particular building be attempted to be laid. It may," he thinks, ** be naturally conceived by a person who has not turned his attention to this subject, that there must be some simple, obvious, and fixed plan to proceed upon. But seeing the endless variety in the mere dwelling-places of men, it is not to be wondered at, if a still greater variety of plans should take place where so many appurtenances are required, and these on sites so infinitely various ; nor that men's opinions and practices should differ so much on the subject, that on a given site, no two practical men, it is more than probable, would make the same arrangement." There are, however, he says, "certain principles which no artist ought to lose sight of in laying out" such buildings and con- veniences. '* The barns, the stables, and the granary, should be under the eye, — should be readily seen from the dwelling-house." And "the prevailing idea, at pre- sent, is, that the several buildings ought to form a regular figure, and enclose an area or farm-yard, either as a fold for loose cattle, or, where the stalling of cattle is practised, as a receptacle for dung, and the most prevailing figure is the square. But this form is, he thinks, more defective than the oval or circle, the angles being too sharp, and the corners too deep. Besides, the roadway, necessary to be carried round a farm-yard in order to have a free and easy passage between the different buildings, is inconveniently lengthened or made at greater expense. The view of the whole yard and buildings from the house on one side of it, is likewise more confined." He had formerly sug- gested tlie plan of a polygon, or many- sided figure, or an irregular serai-octagon, with the dwelling-house and stables on the largest side, having ranges of cattle-stalls opposite. But has since formed one on the complete octagon {jig- 373.), the dwelling-house (a) being on one side, and the entrance gateway and granary oppo- site, the remaining six sides being occu- pied by stables and cattle-sheds (c, rf), and other out-buildings (e), a barn and thresh- ing machine [f), with a broad-way {g), dipping gently from the buildings, and surrounding a wide shallow dung-bason (A), which occupy the rest of the area of the yard. Externally is a bason (t), for the drainings of the yard ; and grass enclosures for calves, poultry, and fruit-trees, and rick-yard. This is given as a hint to those engaged in lay- Book IV. FARMERIES. 427 ing out and directing buildings of this sort, which they may adapt to the particular na- ture of the site or situation of such erections. 2760. An example of tht arrangement of a small farm-house and offices {jig. 374.), is given by Beatson, which he considers as very convenient. At the north-vrest corner is the barn (a), with a water threshing-mill ; a straw-house (A) ; being a con- tinuation of the barn above, for holding a quantity of straw after it is threshed, or hay, that it may be at hand to give to the cattle in the feeding-house below. The upper part of this straw-house may consist of pillars to support the roof, 374 with about eight feet space between them, whereby a good deal of building will be saved. In the floor should be hatches, at convenient distances, to put down the straw to the cattle below. A court for the dung-hill (c) has a door to it from the feeding-house, and a large entry at the other end to admit carts to take away the dung : on the outside of this should be a urine-pit, in the most convenient place, according to the form of the ground ; a cow-house (d), has a door also to the dung-court ; and a calf- pen (e), with a rail across to keep in the calves, even though the doors are all open, adjoins ; there is a stable, with a harness-room, and a place for keeping corn [f) ; a root-house {g), over which, or over the barn, may be a granary ; a shed for carts {h) ; a place for keeping large implements, as ploughs and harrows [i) ; for keeping smaller implements, as "" spades, shovels, rakes, forks, &c. and for laying by old iron and many other useful things that might otherwise be lost or thrown away {k) ; a pond for washing the horses* feet (/) ; which slopes down from each extremity towards the middle, where it is deepest, that the horses may easily go in at one end, and come out at the other, with a rail at each end, to prevent them going in during frost, or when not wanted to go ; a pump, with a trough for the horses or cattle to drink in, especially while other water is frozen, or when the water in the pond is dirty (m) ; but if it can be contrived so that the water which drives the mill may run through this pond, it will be preferable as being at all times clean and wholesome. One material advantage of this arrangement, Beatson remarks, is, that the fodder consumed upon the farm goes progressively for- ward from the barn-yard through the cattle houses to the dung-hill, without the ■^ i c i a u :- b ■p b d tSMM 9 1 Iv Mi % ''locfcf/^. 428 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt II. unnecessary labor generally occasioned by carrying it backwards and forwards ; for it comes from the barn-yard into the barn, where it is threshed. It is then put in the straw-house, and given to the cattle immediately below ; and after passing through them, it is thrown into the dung-court. A rick of straw, or hay, built behind the stable or cow-house, or in a shed contiguous to either, with proper conveniences, will have the same progressive course to the dung-hill ; for, it will be observed, the coxu- munication from these is equally easy from without or within ; the rail across the calf- pen being intended chiefly to keep in the calves, while the doors on each side are open when conveying the dung that way from the stable to the dung-hill. 2761. The ground plan of the dwelling-house to this farmery (n), has a dairy, pantry, and various conveniences behind for keeping swine, poultry, coals, &c. The stair to the upper chambers rises from either side to the same landing-place j from whence are a few steps up to the chamber-floor. 2762. A convenient Berwickshire farmery (Jig. 375.), has the following accommoda- tions : a smith's work-shop detached from the court-yard (a) ; straw-rooms (6); barn with threshing machine driven by water (c) ; cattle sheds (rf) ; root-rooms and imple- njents, or if preferred, hammels (e) ; stable (/) ; fatting cattle (g) ; cart-shed (h) ; cattle- sheds for feeding (i) ; riding-horse (k) ; tools (I) ; single men's room or bailiff (w). 2763. As an example f a commodious arrangement for an arable farm managed for a gentleman farmer by his bailiff, both resident at the farm (fg. 376.), we give the fol- 376 I -^ -6- nn R □ ^ ^ 1^ ^ D- yi ___j ^ . ^ jjij ^ nl...-D D. — Cj^ a Q a a i a Tol^ lowing details. The dwelling-house of the master contains two good sitting-rooms on the parlor floor ; three bed- rooms on the first floor, and attics over them, and over the cellar two kitchen oflSces. The farmery consists of a cart-shed (a) ; stable (b) ; riding- horse (c) ; barn (rf) ; mill-shed (e) ; cattle-shed (f); steaming place (g); root-house (h) ; cow-house (i) j fatting cattle (k) ; bailiff's house (/, m, n) ; piggeries (o). Book IV. FARMERIES. 429 2764. As an elegant and commodious design we give the following from the General Report of the Agricultural State of Scotland. The dwelling-house contains two parlors (fg. 377 a, b) ; kitchen (c) ; dairy (d) ; pantry (e) ; dining parlor (/) ; bed-rooms (g, h) ; cellars (i). The farmery consists of cart-sheds and granary over (a) ; riding horse stable (b) ; common stable (c) ; stalled cattle ((/) ; places for tools and other arti- cles of the cattle attendant (e) ; entrance from the spacious root or turnip shed (/) ; straw (g); threshing-machine and water-wheel (A); granaries and straw-lofts over (gy I, m) ; tools and sundries (i) ; smith's shop ( j), and carpenter (^j. n nnnnin ^ 2765. As an example of a very complete farmery, with a threshing-machine^ driven by steam, to be formed by a bailiff for the proprietor, we give that of the Dayhouse in Staf- fordshire {fg. 378.). The lands contain nearly 500 acr«ss of mixed soil, and the buildings, besides the bailiff's house, which consists of a parlor (a) ; family room (6) ; brew-house (c) ; kitchen (d) ; pantry (e) ; milk-house (/) ; bed-rooms (g) ; attics {h). 2766. The farmery contains the following accommodaldons. Men servants' day- rooms (a) ; sleeping ditto, above {b) ; hackney stable (c) ;; shed for implements {d) ; cart-horse stables (e) ; hay-loft (f) ; tool-house (g) ; barn and steam-engine (h) ; feed- ing and cow-tyings {i] ; turnip-house (j) ; great granary and hay-room {k) : this room is used for the annual agricultural dinner given by Lord Stafford. Small granary (/) ; corn-loft (m) ; straw-lofts (n, o) ; pig-styes, and hen-houses over {p). 430 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. t=5 ja a IS Feet Chap. IV. Of the Fences used in Agriculture. ^ 2767. Fences, next to implements, machinery, and suitable buildings, are in most situations '* indispensable to the profitable management of arable land. They are not only necessary to protect the crops from the live stock of the farm, but often contribute, in no small degree, by the shelter they afford, to augment and improve the produce itself. On all arable farms, on which cattle and sheep are pastured, the ease, security, and comfort, which good fences give, both to the owner and the animals themselves, are Book IV. FENCES USED IN AGRICULTURE. 431 too evident to require particular notice. And as there are few tracts sp rich as to admit of crops being carried off the land for a succession of years, without the intervention of green crops consumed where they grow, fences, of some description or other, can very rarely be dispensed with, even in tlie most fertile and highly improved districts." The same able author complains of the general mismanagement of this branch of husbandry, by which means fences not only often become comparatively useless, but even injurious by the space they occupy, and the weeds they shelter. This, he says, " is particularly the case with thorn hedges, which are too often planted in soils where they can never, by any management, be expected to become a sufficient /ence ; and which, even when planted on suitable soils, are in many cases so much neglected when young, as ever afterwards to be a nuisance, instead of being an ornamental, permanent, and impenetra- ble barrier, as with proper training, they might have formed in a few years. (Sup. Encyc. Brit. art. Ag.) Fences may be considered in regard to their emplacement or siuation, and their form or kind. Sect. I. Of the Situation or Emplacement of Fences. 2768. Tlie emplacement or disposition of fences on a farm or an estate, will depend on the purposes for which they are made. In laying out an estate, their disposition will depend on the natural surface and situation of roads ; water-courses j on the lands to be planted with trees, and on a variety of other considerations which will come under review in the succeding part of this work. The situation of fences on a farm depends on a great variety of circumstances, as the extent of the farm ; its climate, whether pasture, or arable, or mixed ; on the inequalities of the surface ;^ on the nature of the soil ; on the supply of water, and on the course of husbandry to be followed. 2769. In. determimng the subdivisions of an arable farm, the excellent author above quoted observes, " whatever may be the kind of fence which it is thought advisable to adopt, we would recommend that particular attention be paid to the course of crops which the quality of the soil points out as the most advantageous ; and that upon all farms, not below a medium size, there should be twice the number of enclosures that there are divisions or breaks in the course. Thus, if a six years' rotation be thought the most profitable, there should be twelve enclosures, two of which are always under the same crop. One very obvious advantage in this arrangement is, that it tends greatly to equalize labor, and, with a little attention, may contribute much to equalize the produce also. On large farms, where all the land under turnips and clover, for instance, is near the extremity of the grounds, or at a considerable distance from the buildings, sup- posed to be set down near the centre, it is clear, that the labor of supplying the house and straw-yard stock with these crops, as well as the carriage of the manure to the field, is much greater than if the fields were so arranged, as that the half of each of these crops had been nearer the offices. But by means of two fields for each crop in the rota- tion, it is quite easy to connect together one field near the houses, with another at a distance, and thus to have a supply at hand for the home stock, while the distant crops may be consumed on the ground. The same equalization of labor must be perceived in the cultivation of the corti-fields, and in harvesting the crops. The time lost in travelling to some of the fields, when working by the plough, is of itself a matter of some consequence on large farms. But the advantages of this arrangement are not confined to the equalization and economy of labor ; it may also, in a great measure, render the annual produce uniform and equable, notwithstanding a considerable diversity in the quality of the soil. A field of an inferior soil may be connected with one that is naturally rich, and in the consumption of the green crops, as well as in the allowance of manure, the poor land may be gradually brought nearer, in the quantity and quality of its pro- duce, to the rich, without any injury to the latter. Thus a field under turnips may be so fertile, that it would be destructive to the succeeding corn crops to consume the whole or the greater part on the ground ; while another may be naturally so poor, or so defi- cient in tenacity, as to make it inexpedient to spare any part for consumption elsewhere. By connecting these two under the same crop, — by carrying from the one what turnips are wanted for the feeding-houses and straw-yards, and eating the whole crop of the other on the ground with sheep, the ensuing crop of corn will not be so luxuriant on the former as to be unproductive, while the latter will seldom fail to yield abundantly. The same plan will also be advantageous in tlie case of other crops. Hay or green clover may be taken from the richer field, and the poorer one depastured ; and on the one wheat may succeed both turnips and clover, while the more gentle crops of barley and oats are appropriated to the less fertile field. These observations are particularly applicable to turnip soils, of such a quality as not to require more than one year's pasturage, and which are therefore cultivated with corn and green crops alternately ; but the same prin- ciple may be extended to clay lands, and such as require to be depastured two or more years in succession. 432 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2770. Whei'e hedges are emjiloyed as fences, it is of importance that tlie ditches be drawn in such a direction as to serve the purposes of drains, and also that they may receive the water from the covered drains that may be required in the fields contiguous. According as the line of the fence is more or less convenient in this respect, the expense of draining may be considerably diminished or increased. Sect. II. Of the diffierent Kinds of Fences. 2771. Fences in regard to kind, may be arranged as live fences, dead fences, and mixed kinds ; but there are four elementary species which are the foundation of all the others ; the hedge, the ditch, the wall, and the paling. The hedge, when formed of the white or black thorn, of the plum, or crab, or of the holly, is the cheapest, tnost dura- ble, and the handsomest of all fences on a good deep soil : the ditch is the best on low flat wet lands requiring much drainage ; the wall is the best for farming purposes in almost all cases whatever; and the paling, whether fixed or temporary (as of hurdles), is the most convenient as a nurse-fence to hedges for immediate or temporary use, and for fencing in parks and scenery, where an air of lightness and freedom are objects of approbation. From these simple or fundamental fences, a variety of compound ones may be formed, a few of which we shall proceed to enumerate. SuBSECT. 1 . Bitch or Drain Fences. 2772. Ditch fences, in their simple and original state, were considered rather in the light of open drains than as fences. In a variety of instances, ditches are made for this purpose only, where there is no intention whatever to enclose the field. They are, how- ever, sometimes meant as a fence, but, in such cases, they are made very deep and wide ; and the earth taken out of them is sometimes formed into a bank, the height of which, when added to the depth of the ditch, forms a tolerable barrier. In general, however, the greatest value of the ditch is met with when it is used in conjunction with other fences. 2773. The form of ditches is various ; some of them being of a uniform width both at top and bottom ; others are wide above, and have a gradual slope downwards ; a third kind have one side sloping and the other perpendicular. For whatever purpose the ditch is meant, the sloping form is by much the best ; as it not only costs less money in the digging, but is at the same time much more durable, and has a neater appearance. Where open ditches are indispensably necessary for the drainage of the field, the sloping ditch is preferable to every other ; as the sides are not liable to tumble in or be undermined, or exca- vated by the current of the water, when properly executed. The slope should be considerable ; perhaps not less than three times the width at top that it is at bottom. 2774. The open ditch, with a wall or perpendicular sides, is liable to much objection, both in its simple and compound state : in its simple state the sides are perpetually tumbling in, especially after frosts or heavy rains, and if the field round which these ditches are made has any considerable declivity, the bottom is undermined, and large masses tumble down, bringing the hedge along with them. 2775. The simple ditch, with a bank of earth, consists merely of a ditch sloping gradually towards the bottom ; the earth taken out of it being formed into a bank on one side, leaving a scarcement, or projecting space, of six or eight inches, on the side where the bank is formed, to prevent the earth from tumbling in and filling up the ditch. 2776. The double ditch, with a bank between, (Jig. 379.) is not often used, unless in cases where it is meant either to plant hedges or trees on the bank between the ditches. Considered as a fence, either with or without a hedge, it has an advantage over the single ditch, as the earth taken out of the two ditches, when properly laid up, will form a bank of a somewhat formidable appearance, and which cattle will not very readily attempt to break over. For the purposes of open drainage, it is well adapted, especially by the sides of highways, where the lands have a considerable declivity towards the road ; the ditcn next the field, by receiving the water on that side, pre- vents it from overflowing and washing the road, a circumstance which very frequently happens in such situations ; while the ditch on the side next the road, by receiving and carrying off the moisture that falls upon, and which would otherwise lodge there and destroy it, keeps it constantly dry and in good repair. "Where double ditches are made in the immediate vicinity of high grounds, or on the sides of high- ways, care should be taken to prevent the water from the furrows, or side-drains, from running into the main ditch at right angles. "Where this is neglected, much trouble and inconvenience arises ; as when the water comes from the height, during heavy rains in a straight line into the ditch, it presses with accelerated force against the sides of it ; and if the soil is of a loose incoherent nature, the bank will be undermined and washed away in many places. To prevent this, nothing more is requisite than to alter the direction of the furrows, or small side-ditches, a few yards from their opening into the main ditch. 2777. The bank of earth, with an upright facing of turves, and a slope behind, is a very common sort of fence, and in some situations extremely useful ; in making folds, for instance, for the confinement of sheep or cattle. It is also valuable on the sides of highways, for defending the adjoining grounds, and for laying off clumps or belts of planting in the middle or comers of arable fields, for enclosing stack-yards, cottages, gardens, &c. The front of the bank is made of a very steep slope, with the turf pared off from the surface of the sloping ditch, and the mound at the back with the earth taken out of it. 2778. The ha-ha, or sunk fence, is calculated chiefly for -_ fields that require no shelter, and where an uniform unbroken ^.^^'^ 380 prospect is an object, as is the case in gardens and extensive lawns : but in all situations where shelter is wanted, the sunk- , fence ought to be avoided, unless a hedge is planted upon the top of it. Sometimes a medium between the sunk and raised fence (^^.380.) is adopted, which makes both a durable and unobtrusive barrier. 2779. The dovble ditch and hedge is now general in many parts of Britain, especially upon what are termed cold lands ; from an idea, that a single row of plants would not Book IV. HEDGE-FENCES. 433 grow sufficiontly strong or tliick to form a proper fence. The atlvocates for this fence farther allege, that in addition to the two rows of plants forming a more sufficient fence, an opportunity is alForded of planting a row or rows of trees on the middle of the bank. 'H\^/ fi81 (Jig- 381.). This fence is liable to many objections: the ex- IP pense of forming the ditches, the hedge-plants made use of, and ^ A I the ground occupied thereby, being double of what is re- I \f~\/ "i quisite in a single ditch and hedge. From twelve to eighteen s^ V Y I or twenty feet is the least that is required for a double ditch and hedge : this space, in the circumference of a large field, is so considerable, that upon a farm of 500 acres, divided into fifteen enclosures, the fences alone would occupy above forty acres. By throwing up a bank in the middle, the whole of the nourish- ment, not only of both hedges, but also of the row of trees, is confined solely to that space, which, from its being insulated by the ditclies, and elevated so much above the common surface, not only curtails the nourishment of the hedges and row of trees, but exposes thein to all the injuries arising from drought, frost, &c. The idea of two rows of plants making a better fence than one is certainly no good reason for such an unnecessary waste of land and money ; as, in almost every instance, where the plants are properly adapted to the soil and climate, dhe row will be found quite sufficient ; but, if it should be preferred to have two rows, the purpose will be answered equally well with a single ditch, or even without a ditch at all. SuBSEcr. 2. Of Hedge- Fences. 2780. Hedge-fences are of two kinds ; either such as are made up of dead materials, or such as are formed of living plants of some sort or other. 382 278 1 . Dead hedges (Jig. 382.) are made with the prunings of trees, or the tops of old thorn or other hedges that have been JA cut down ; and are principally intended for temporary purposes, such as the protection of young hedges till they have acquired a ™i»vs™™TOmMrw'»c'M'P^\^^^^^ ^ sufficient degree of strength to render them fencible without ^Ww«*M«»'smm any other assistance. For this purpose the dead hedge is well adapted, and lasts so lono- as to enable the live fence to grow up and complete the enclosure. In many cases however, dead hedges are had recourse to as the sole fence, and where there is no inten- tion of planting quicks, or any other hedge. From their very perishable nature, however, they are found to be exceedingly expensive ; so much so, indeed, that, after the first or second year, they cannot be kept in repair at a less expense than from a fifth to a tenth part of the value of the land, and sometimes more. When dead hedges are meant for the protection of young live fences, if the quick fence is planted upon the common sur- face, the dead hedge is made in a trench or furrow immediately behind it, in such a way as to prevent the sheep or cattle grazing in the enclosed field from injuring it. Where the quick fence, however, is planted upon the side of a ditch, the dead hedge is for the most part made on the top of the mound formed by the earth taken out of the ditch : these are called plain dead hedges, being made by cutting the thorns or brush-wood, of which they consist, into certain lengths, and putting them into the earth. We call them plain, in opposition to other descriptions of dead hedges where more art is used : such as the dead hedge with upright stakes wattled, and the common plaited hedge bound together at the top with willows. 2782. In respect to live hedges they are made either entirely with one kind of plants, or a mixture of different kinds ; and for that purpose almost every tree or shrub known in Britain is either wholly or in part employed. The success of every attempt made to rear good fences will be found ultimately to depend on the plants being suited to the soil and climate, the preparation of the soil, the time and mode of plant- ing, the age of the plants, their size, the dressing or pruning of the tops and roots betbre planting, weed- ing, hoeing, pruning, and after-management. 2783. The proper choice of hedge plants is of the first importance. Many failures in this part of the business might be enumerated ; especially in the more elevated situations, where great labor and expense have been employed to raise hedges of hawthorn, which, after many years' care and attention, were found totally unfit for such inclement regions. In such situations, experience has now sufficiently proved, that good fences can be reared in a short time with beech, birch, larch, and the Huntingdon willow : hedges of these kinds ought, therefore, to be the only ones used in hilly countries, or upon cold wet soils ; the three first upon the dry soils, and the last, with the addition of poplars, upon such as are wet or marshy. In the low country, however, and in the less elevated parts of the uplands, the white thorn will be found the best upon all the dry, or mode- rately dry, parts of the soil; especially the difterent kinds of loamy, sandy, or gravelly lands : upon clays, or cold wet soils, however, beech, crab, birch, poplar, willow, and alder, may be used with advantnge. The birch, poplar, alder, and Huntingdon willow, are peculiarly calculated for the coldest, wettest, and most marshy parts ; while beech, crab, &c. will be found to answer best upon the stiff clays. Hazel, sweet-briar, moun- tain-ash, and indeed all the different kinds of forest-trees that are at present known to Ff 434 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. delight in dry soils, may also be successfully employed for making hedges in the low lands ; but whichever of these is used, they should, if possible, be without mixture. It is seldom that any soil, however good, will be found equally favorable to the growth of plants opposite in their natures ; this circumstance alone will render their growth unequal, and of course make the fence faulty and defective. These defects in the fence, and inequalities in the growth of the plants, will increase with time, become every day more apparent, and be every day more sensibly felt ; as the plants which have thus ac- quired the ascendancy will continue to keep it, and not only shade the weaker ones, and prevent them from enjoying the influence of the sun and air, but also deprive them of nourishment. Independent of these considerations, there is another, it is observed, of equal, perhaps greater, moment, that requires to be mentioned ; allowing the soil to be equally favorable to the growth of the whole plants of which the mixture consists, there are certain plants which are highly inimical to the growth cf others, when planted in their immediate vicinity ; ivy and honeysuckle, for instance, when mixed with thorns, or other plants in a hedge, never fail to destroy such of the hedge-plants as they fasten upon ; indeed moss, which is known to be one of the worst enemies to all hedges, is not more dangerous or more certainly ruinous ; even the different kinds of sweet-briar, virgin's bower, brambles, briony, cleavers, &c. have the same effect ; and in the end never fail to produce a gap in that part of the edge where they grow, by smothering the other plants. 2784. The preparation of the soil/or hedges, is one of those points intimately connected with, and, indeed, essential to, their success. Except in a very few instances, however poor the soil may be, or however strong the cohesion of its parts, no attempt is made either to break that cohesion by tillage, or improve its quality by enriching or alterative manures : the young plants being for the most part laid upon the old surface, which has perhaps never been opened by the labor of man, and their roots covei-ed with the earth taken out of the ditch, consisting very often of the poorest and coldest till, or of earths loaded with iron or other metallic impregnations. To those who have considered the matter with the smallest attention, the fate of such a hedge will not appear doubtful ; the surface upon which the plants are laid will be so hard and impervious to the roots, as to preclude tlie possibility of their penetrating it; of course, their only chance of either extending themselves, or procuring nourishment, is by spreading out between the surface and the mound made by the earth taken out of the ditch, or by striking up into the mound, where, though the soil will be sufficiently open to admit of this, the roots, in place of finding an establishment in a situation friendly to their growth, will very often be either starved or poisoned. 2785. With respect to the age at which hedge-plants ought to be used, it is very common, especially where young hedges are made with thorns, to plant them of one, two, or three years old, seldom exceeding this last age. Plants of this description, when put into the earth at a proper season of the year, upon land that is well prepared, and that are after- wards carefully kept clean, and the eartli soft and loose, by regular weeding and digging, seldom fail to make good fences ; such young plants, however, are, it is observed, long in a state of infancy, and require great nursing and the most complete protection to bring them to perfection, and are liable to be either much hurt or totally destroyed by many accidents that would produce little or no effect upon older and stronger plants. Much time might be saved in the rearing of hedges, and the fences be much more perfect and useful, if older plants were employed for that purpose. Three years old is certainly the youngest that should be planted, and if they are even six or seven years old, so much the better : the prevailing idea that plants of that age will not thrive if transplanted, is totally unfounded. Thorns of six or seven years old, in place of being no thicker than a common straw, will be at a medium more than an inch in circumference : we leave those who are judges to determine how far a plant of this last description will be superior to one of twa years old, and how much sooner it will answer the purposes of a fence. 2786. In respect to the size of thorns or other hedge-plants, it may be necessary to observe, that, whei> the plants are once obtained, they should be separated into sorts, according to their size and apparent strength, picking out the largest first, and so on downwards. This will be attended with several very material advantages, which those who have made observations on the subject will very readily under- stand; plants of the same size and strength, when planted together, keep pace with each other ; no one of them takes from the earth more than its own share of nourishment, of course the growth of the whole is regular and uniform ; and the hedge, when arrived at a certain age, becomes a substantial efficient fence, of an equal height throughout, and free of any gaps : whereas, when no pains have been taken in assort- ing the plants, and they are planted promiscuously, great and small, strong and weak, the consequence is, that the strongest plants very soon outgrow suth as are weaker, and not only overtop them, but also deprive them of that nourishment which they so much require: as the hedge advances in age, the evil becomes greater, small stunted plants and innumerable gaps appearing throughout the whole line of the fence ; interspersed with others remarkable for their strength and luxuriance. 2787. This assorting of hedge-plants has a farther advantage ; namely, that of putting it in the power of the person who plants the hedge to put down the large, strong, healthy plants upon the poorest part of the line of the fence, and to set such as are smaller and weaker upon the richer and more fertile parts. He has it also in his power, by a more careful preparation of the soil, and bestowing a greater proportion of manure upon the spaces where the small plants are set, to give^ them that nourishment and assistance Book IV. HEDGE-FENCES. 4^5 which they require, and which would very soon enable them to form a fence equal tg that part occuiwed by the strongest plants. 2788. In regard to ths dressing and pruning qf kedgo-jylants before they are put into the earth f there is perhaps no part of the system of managing them, or forest trees, more hurtful and defective than that now pursued in the common nurseries. It is a very common practice with nurserymen, in the spring, when they wish to clear their ground for other purposes, to take up great quantities of thorns and other hedge-plants ; and after pruning the tops, and cutting off nearly the whole of the roots, to tie them up in bundles, and lay these bundles in heaps till they are called for. In that mutilated state they often remain for many weeks, with the inangled roots naked and unprotected, exposed to every inclemency of the weather, before they are sold. In place of this treatment, the defects of which are so obvious, and the consequences resulting from it so hurtful, no hedge-plants should be lifted out of the nursery-ground till the day or at least a few days before that on which they are to be replanted, and in place of the severe pruning and dressing already mentioned, every root, even to the smallest fibre, should be carefully preserved, and the use of the knife confined entirely to the necessary curtail- ing of the tops. Where this care is taken, and the plants are put into the ground at a proper season, they will suffer no kind of check, and when the spring arrives grow luxuriantly and with vigor. 2789. In tlie ofler-management of the hedge, complete weeding, loosening, and laying new eartli to the roots, for the first three or four years, are indispensable requisites ; for, whatever pains may have been previously taken in dunging and summer-fallowing the soil, unless it is properly attended to and kept clean afterwards, this dunging and summer-fallow, in place of being useful, will prove hurtful to the fence ; as the manure and tillage, by enriching and opening the soil, will encourage and promote the growtli of weeds ; which, under circumstances so peculiarly fortunate, will become so luxuriant, as either to destroy or materially injure the growth of the hedge, imless they are kept down by frequent and complete cleanings. In loosening the earth about the roots of hedges, whetlier old or young, it will be of advantage, if there is soil enough to admit of it, to lay up a few inches of it to the roots ; doing this frequently encourages them to push out branches near the bottom, which prevent them from growing thin and open, a fault to which almost all hedges are liable, if due pains are not taken to prevent it. 2790. On the pruning and after-management of hedges will depend a very consider- able part of their beauty and future value. There is, perhaps, no part of the subject upon which a greater contrariety of opinion at present prevails, than the age at which the pruning of hedges ought to commence, the manner of that pruning, or the season of the year at which it may be given with the greatest possible advantage and the least risk ; the practice with some is, to prune, from the first year, not only the lateral branches, but the tops also ; they give as a reason, that cutting off the extremities of the shoots contributes to thickening of the hedge, by making them push out a great number of new ones. The fallacy of this argument, and the mischief with which the practice is attended, we shall have occasion to notice afterwards. As to tlie manner of pruning, or the form of the hedge, these seem, Vith many, to be matters of indifference, no attention being paid to dressing them in such a way as to have them broad at bottom, and tapering gradually towards the top : many of them being not only of one width from top to bottom, and not a few much heavier and broader above than they are below, it is obvious that such hedges can neither look well nor be useful. 2791. The season at tvhich they are trimmed is in many instances an improper one ; for In place of choosing that time when the plants arc least in danger of suffering from an effusion of their juices, which is cither at a late period in the autumn, very early in the spring, or about midsummer, the pruning is given late in the spring season, when the sap is flowing : the check and injury they must receive from having the whole of their extremities cut oft at that period may easily be conceived. In speaking of the treatment of hedge-plants before they are put into the ground, notice lias been taken of the necessity of preserving the roots as much as possible, and at the same time shortening the tops : this last operation has two good effects ; by curtailing the top and branches, the roots have less to nourish ; and by leaving only two or three inches of the top above ground, in place of growing up with a single stem, it sends out two or three; and as these strikeout from the plant so near the earth, each of them has the same effect, and strengthens the hedge as much as the original stem would have done by itself; with this addition, that, in place of one prop or support, the hedge will have three or four. 2792. After this first pruning, however, no hedge should be touched, or at least very gently, for some years ; from an inattention to this circumstance, and the injudicious application of the knife or shears at an early period, many young hedges are rendered useless, which, under different treatment, would have made excellent fences, with one half the trouble that was requiretl to destroy them. The practice of cutting over the tops yearly, which is done with a view to render the hedge thicker and more perfect, is one of those mistakes which we would naturally have supj)osed common sense and observation would have sooner corrected ; the effect produced being, in almost every instance, the very reverse of what wa.-* intended : shortening the main stem of a thorn or any other plant makes it throw out a number of small stems immediately at the place where it has been cut ; and if this operation is repeated once or twice a- year, every one of these is again subdivided, as it were, by sending out more branches : thus, in a course of years, during which the hedge makes very small progress upwards, if it be examined, instead of bein^; found to consist of strong vigorous plants, with a good main trunk, each reaching from top to bottom df the hedge, and a sufiicient number of lateral branches throughout the whole length of it, it will be found, by such repeated cuttings, in the same stunted situation as certain young trees and shrub.*>«M><>t -^ \ ^ \ 1 1 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 , [ . 1 1 1 larger quadrupeds kept in British parks, as horses, wild cattle, buffaloes, deer, &c. Painted green, or even with the paint called blue anticorrosion (ground glass and oil chieHy), or coated over with the pyrolignous liquor from the gas works, such fences are not obtrusive, and less liable to suggest ideas of limitation, confinement, restraint. Sec. than walls or pales. Similarly characterized fences may be composed of connectetl hurdles (^. 391.), which are valuable and probably the cheapest of any fence in dividing rich and extensive 'pastures, such as a park let out to a farmer for several years grazing. For poultry, or for excluding hares, rabbits, &c. the lower part of such fences is covered with a wire netting (fig. 392.). Book IV. WALL-FENCES. 443 SuBSECT. 5. Wall-Feikces. 28S1. Wall-fences are constructed of different sorts of materials, and aro of various kinds. Tliey are for tho most part good fences, though some of them, as tliose of the earthy kinds, are not by any means durable, and, therefore, should not be formed where other better sorts can be had recourse to. In the construction of walls, it is essential that the stones be either taken from a quarry, or consist of the largest land-stones broken in such a manner as that they may have a good flat surface, in order that they may bind well ; that they be built by masons and well pinned ; that they have as dry and deep a foundation as possible, in order to guard against frosts, &c. ; that they be made wide at the bottom, and tapering upwards to about the breadth of ten inches, when the coping is to be applied ; that the coping consist of materials that cannot be readily overturned or removed ; as, upon the manner in which it is finished, much of the future value and durability of the wall will be found to depend. 2832. Dry sloiie ivalls are of three kinds, round stones gathered from the fields, and coped with turves ; quarried stones, upon which some paiqs have been bestowed to put them into proper shape ; and the Galloway dike, so denominated from its being originally used in that country. 2833. The wall or dike made with nnind or land^stones, l)y laborers, and covered with a coping of turf, is a very indifferent fence. In most instances, it is not only very ill constructed as to shape, being of one uniform thickness from top to bottom, but the stones, from their round figure, do not present a sufficient surface to each other, to bind and give stability to the building. This fence has long been known , and is still very common in the remote parts of the country, upon estates where the first rude essay is made in the way of improvement, and where masons cannot readily be had. In such situations, it has a two-fold benefit ; the surface is cleared of many stones that would otherwise have presented a considerable obstacle to its cultivation, and the field is at the same time enclosed: but, though these objects are accomplished for a time, their benefit is not permanent, as the wall is perpetually tumbling down ; even the cattle rubbing against it make considerable gaps in many places; and in that way, great trouble and expense are annually required to keep it in repair. 2834. The wall in ivhich the stones are quarried 393 (^fig' 393.), and put together by skilful masons, broad at bottom, tapering gradually upwards, and finished at top with a substantial coping, has a very neat ap- pearance, and has been known to last thirty and even , forty years without repairs. A good foundation is highly essential in the construction of this fence; from nine to twelve inches is the smallest depth that it should be below the common surface^ especially if the soil is open and porous, and the largest and heaviest stones shoold always be laid undermost. 2835. Tlie Galloway dike or lonll [Jig. 394. ) is princi- 394 pally employed for enclosing high grounds that are depas- tured with sheep, for the confining of which it seems well calculated. From two feet to two and a half, at the bot- tom, it is built in a regular compact manner with dry stones, in every respect the same as a dry stone wall, with a broad base, tapering gradually upwards : the building is then levelled with a course of flat stones, resembling acop- ing, in such a manner as that these flags or flat stones shall project two or three inches over the wall on each side. Above these flat stones is laid a course of rugged round ones, placed upon each other in a way secure enough to give stability to the building, but at the same time so open as to leave a considerable vacuity between each ; by which means a free passage is afforded to the light and wind, which blows through them with a violent whistling noise. This rough open part of the building is generally raised three feeta1>ove the regular part of it, gradually tapering upwards, till it terminates in a top of about nine inches broad, every course of the rough stones being smaller than that immedi- ately beneath it. Its tottering appearance is so well calculated to prevent sheep, cattle, or other animals, from approaching it, that it is seldom indeed that any attempt is made to leap over it. This circumstance, together with the ease with which the stones are procured, in most of the situations where the Galloway dike is used, renders it a valuable fence. 2836. Stone and lime loalls, in order to be durable, should have a good foundation, deep enough to prevent them from being hurt by frosts, with a broad base, tapering gradually upwards. This fence, when properly executed, is, next to hedges, the most durable of any ; it is, however, very expensive ; and its superiority over the dry stone wall is so trifling in point of durability, as to render the latter the most eligible, it being greatly cheaper, and answering every purpose of a fence equally well. For the building of 444 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. this wall, stones taken from the quarry are to be preferred to the common land-stones ; for though a mason may be able to remedy, in some measure, the inequality of surface in land-stones, by mixing plenty of lime with them, yet experience proves, that walls made with such stones, notwithstanding every care on tlie part of the builder, are much less perfect, and last much shorter time, than where quarried stones are employed. This, like every other stone fence, should be secured at the top with a substantial coping. Stone fences of every description not only form complete enclosures at once, and by that means allow the proprietor to enter into immediate possession of every advantage that can arise from the enclosing of his fields, but, by the little room they occupy, a considerable portion of land is saved that would have been occupied by some other fences. • 2837. In the construction of walls qf stone mid clap, the clay is used like lime, and is meant to answer the same purpose. It requires slender observation, to convince intelligent persons, that a wall made with such materials in the ordinary way cannot be a durable one ; for if the clay made use of in building the fence has been very moist, the summer's heat will dry it so much, as to leave considerable chasms in the building ; tliese chasms must necessarily deprive many of the stones of that support which they require, and in that way endanger the building. This, however, is not the only inconvenience with which this kind of wall is attended ; the effect of the summer's sun upon the clay parches it so completely, that when the wet weather commences about the end of autumn, it absorbs the moisture like a sponge, and if it is overtaken by frost while in that state, the fabric swells, bursts, and tumbles down 2838. Walls of stone and clay, dashed ivith lime, differ in no respect from that described, except in the harling or dashing that is given them. Where that operation is well performed, and at a proper season of the year, the coating of lime, by preventing the entrance of moisture, will add greatly to the durability as well as beauty of the wall; so much so indeed, that some fences made in this way, where the clay was properly tempered, and did not contain too much moisture, and where a harling or dashing of lime was afterwards given, have been known to last nearly as long as walls made entirely with stone and lime. 2839. The dry stone wall, lipped with lime, differs from the ordinary dry stone wall, in having about two or three inches of it on each side lipped with lime, which gives it the appearance of being built entirely with stone and lime. Where the external appearance of a fence is an object, something is gained by this practice ; in point of real duration, however, it seems to possess very little advantage over the common dry stone wall, which, when properly executed, lasts equally long. 2840. Dry stonewalls, lipped and harled, are much the same, nothing more being added than a harling or dashing of lime after the other work is finished : this addition is to be considered merely as an im- provement upon their appearance, and not as contributing to increase their utility, or render them more durable as fences. 2841. Dry stoned walls, pinned and harled, are much the same : the mason only carefully pins or fills up all the interstices of the building with small stones, after they have been built in the ordinary way, and afterwards dashes or harls them over with lime. The pinning, by filling up every vacant space, and 'affording complete support to the stones in every part of the surface, adds considerably to the durability of the building, and the harling afterwards gives the whole a finished substantial appearance, which renders them at once agreeable to the eye, and lasting as fences. 2842. The dry stone wall, with a light paling upon the top, is sometimes made, and for particular pur- poses answers well, and has a handsome appearance when well executed. 2843. Brick walls are seldom had recourse to for ordinary enclosures, except in situations where stones are extremely scarce, as is the case in some counties for pleasure-grounds, or for park or garden-walls. 2844. Frame walls are constructed in the following manner: a frame of deal boards, of a width and height proportioned to that of the intended fence, is placed upon the line in which it is intended to be made, a proper foundation having been previously dug ; the frame is then filled with stones of all sorts, gathered principally from the adjoining fields ; when the frame is filled to the top with such stones, a quantity of liquid mortar is poured in amongst them, sufficient to fill up every interstice ; the whole is suffered to remain in that state till it is supposed that the mortar has acquired a suitable degree of firmness to give stability to the building, which in summer, when the weatlier is warm and dry, will not require above a day or two. The frame is then removed, and placed a little farther on in the same line, in such a manner as that one end of it shall join immediately with that part of the work from which it had been removed. Ir) that way the line of fence is gradually completed, which, when the lime is of good quality and well mixed with sharp sand, and the proper pains taken to incorporate it with the stones, presents a smooth uniform surface, and will doubtless form a substantial and durable fence. 2845. Turf walls are met with in almost every upland or hilly district throughout Britain, and for temporary purposes are found very useful. In a variety of instances this sort of fence is used for enclosing fields, and is practised for that purpose to a very considerable extent; in others, however, it is used for the formation of folds, pens, or other places of confinement for cattle during the night. In general, the fence is made witli turf only, pared oft' from the adjoining surface, and used without any mixture of earth ; in other cases, the wall consists of a facing of turf on each side, while the space between is filled up with loose earth. For a fold, this fence answers extremely well ; but for enclosing a field, or indeed any other use where durability is required, it should never be had recourse to, as, from the moment it is finished, its decay commences, and no pdins or attention will be able to keep it in repair after it has stood two or three years. 2846. Stone and turf walls are also very common in many situations, where better and more durable ones could be made at equal, perhaps less, expense. In many instances, liowever, they are had recourse to, from necessity, where lime is either very dear, or not attainable at any price. Book IV. GATES APPROPRIATE TO AGRICULTURE. 445 28*7. Mud walls with a mixture of straw, were formerly frequent in many places, not only for surrounding small enclosures and stack-yards, but also for constructing the walls of farm-houses and offices, and for subdividing houses into different apartments. When either the outside walls, or the inside divisions of a house are made of these materials, the custom is, to take a small quantity of straw, and incorporate it with a sufficient projwrtion of clay; the straw in this case answers the same purpose as hair in plaster- lime. When a sufficient number of these are made, the work is begun by laying a stratum at the bottom of the intended wall ; when this is done, and the diflferent pieces firmly kneeded, or wrought together with the hand, a flat deal board is applied on each side, which being properly pressed, and rubbed against the build- ing in a horizontal direction, not only serves to consolidate the work, but gives it a degree of smoothness and uniformity ; successive stratums are added, till the wall is raised to the intended height, taking care to taper it gradually upwards. Walls made in this way, if properly constructed, will last for many years, and if dashed or harled with lime, at a proper season of the year, will have an appearance no way inferior to such as are made with stone and lime, along with this addition to their appearance, the harling or dashing with lime, if properly done, will, by preventing the access of moisture, render them much more durable. 2848. Rammed earthy or enpisS walls, are very common in France, both as fences and walls for buildings. They have been described at great length in the communications to the Board of Agriculture, and in other works, and tried in various parts of this country with tolerable success, though they are by no means suited either to our moist climate, or degree of civilization. In constructing them the earth is previously pounded, in order to crumble any stones therein ; clay is added thereto in a small quantity, about one-eighth part. It is all beaten and mixed up together by repeated blows with a mallet about ten inches broad, and ten or fifteen inches long, and two inches thick. The earth being thus prepared, and slightly wetted, the foundation of the wall is dug ; this is laid with stone, and when it is about one foot high above the surface of the ground planks are arranged on each side, and the space between filled with the earth intended for the wall. It is strongly beaten ; and this method is continued successively, till the wall is completed. the " ~ 2849. Stamped earth walls are the invention of Francois Cointeraux. Earth prepared in the same manner as for rammed walls, is put into a mould or box of any size, generally that of the pro- posed wall's thickness in width, one or two feet long, and about one foot high {fig. 395 a). The mould is a strong oaken or iron box, and the earth being placed in it, is compressed either by the ac • tion of a press acted on by a lever or screw, or a stamping engine 395 similar to the pile driver, or great forge hammer. The stone, or solid body of earth (6), thus acquired, is then used in the same way as common hewn stone, and either bedded or merely jointed with lime mortar ; it is tlien washed or harled, both for effect and duration. B Chap. V. Of Gates appropriate to Agriculture, 2850. The gate may I)e considered as a moveable part of a fence, or as a frame of timber, or iron, readily moved and calculated to give a convenient inlet and outlet to enclosures. Gates may be considered in regard to the principles of their construction, and fixing ; the materials of which they are made ; and their different kinds. 2851. With respect to constructio7i the great object is, to combine strength with light- ness. The absolute strength of materials depends on their hardness and tenacity. A gate, therefore, consisting of one solid plate of wood or iron, would seem to require most force to break or tear it in pieces. But this would not be consistent with lightness and economy, and in the use of such a gate it would be found to [open 'and shut with more diflliculty, than one less strong. The skeleton of a plate of wood or iron is, therefore, re- 3t>C sorted to by the employment of slips or bars, disposed and joined together on mechanical principles. These principles, applied to car- pentry, direct the use of what are called ties and strutts, in the judicious composition of which, as far as construction is concerned, consists the whole art of carpentry. A tie (Jig. 396 a.) is a bar, or piece of timber, so placed in a structure as to resist a drawing or twisting power; a strutt (6) is one so placed as to resist weight, or whatever has a tendency to press or crush. The horizontal bars of a gate are all ties ; the diagonal and perpendicular ones strutts^ On the judicious combination of these ties and strutts, depends the abso- lute strength of the gate ; and on their light- ness, and on the general form of tlie gate, depends its adaptation for opening and shutting by means of hinges. 446 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 265^. Tlie construction of a gate best adapted for ojyening and skvtthtg, is next to bo considered. All gates, after being hung, have from their gravitation a tendency to deviate from tlieir original position, to sink at the head or falling post, and thus no longer to open and shut freely. If the construction and hanging of the gate were perfect, this could not possibly take place ; but as the least degree of laxity in trussing the gate, or want of firmness in fixing the post in the ground, will occasion, after frequent use, a sensible depression at the head, it becomes requisite either to guard against it as much as possible, in the first construction ; or to have a provision in the design of the upper hinge (fg. 397.), for rectifying tlie deviations as they take place. 2853. In order to understand the construction best calculated to resist dejrressiov, sup- pose a gate hung, and resting on its heel (fg. 396 ct, acting as a strut, and maintained there by its upper liinge (rf), acting as a tie, then the bottom rail of the gate considered as representing the whole, becomes a lever of the second kind, in which the prop is at one end (c), the power at the other (g), and the weight placed between them in the line of the centre of gravity of the gate (t). Now, as two equal forces, to hold each other in equili- brium, must act in the same direction, it follows that the power acting at the end of the lever (5), will have most infiuence when exerted at right angles to it in the line (g, e), but as this cannot be accomplished in a gate where the power must be applied obliquely, it follows, that a large angle becomes requisite ; that the greater the angle, the greater the power, or in other words, the less the strain on the construction of the gate, or the less the tendency to sink at the head. The half of the right angle (c, e,g) seems a reasonable limit, by which, if the power requisite to hold the weight in equilibrium, when acting at a right angle, be as the side of a square of the length of the lower bar of the gate (^', c), then the power requisite to effect the same end, when acting at an angle of 45 degrees, is as the diagonal to this square {g,li:. By changing the square to a parallelogram, the relative proportions will still be the same, and the advantages and disadvantages will be rendered more obvious. 2854. Parker s compensation hinge for gates which are much in use ( Jig . 397.), is an excellent corrective to their falling ; all that is necessary when the gate sinks at the head is to screw it up by tlie nut (a), till it regains its original position. For road and farm yard gates the hinges are valuable parts of the construction. 2855. A gate should be so hung as to haiie two falls ; one to the hanging post, to make it catch, and the other to a point at a right angle with the gateway, so as to keep it fully open. To effect this purpose, having set the post perpendicular, let a plumb-line be drawn upon it : on this line, at a proper height, place the hook, so that it may project three inches and a half from the face of the post; and at a convenient distance below this place the lower hook an inch and a half to one side of the perpendicular line, and pro- jecting two inches from the face of the post ; then place the top loop or eye two inches from the face of the hanging style, and the bottom loop three inches and a half: thus hung, the gate will have a tendency to shut in every position. A gate so hung will have a tendency to shut in every position ; because if the weight of the gate be represented by a diagonal line from the heel to the head, this, by the resolution of forces, is resolvable into other two lines ; one perpendicular, and the other horizontal ; the former repre- senting that part of the weight which presses in a perpendicular position, and the latter that part of the weight which presses in a horizontal direction, and gives the gate a tendency to shut. {Northuvib. Rep. 63.) 2856. Gates are generally constructed of timber, and whatever kind may be used, it is essential that it be well seasoned, as without attention in this respect, they are soon de- ranged in their structure by the heat of the sun : they should also be well and correctly put together. Oak is undoubtedly the best sort of wood for the purpose, where dura- bility is the object ; though some of the lighter kind of woods, as deal, willow, &c. will often last a great length of time, as, from their lightness, they are not so apt to destroy themselves. The lighter gates are made towards the head or opening part the better, Book IV. GATES APPROPRIATE TO AGRICULTURE. 447 provided tliey bo sufficiently strong for the purpose they are to serve ; and on this account the top bars may, in many cases, as where horses are to be kept, bo loft considerably stronger than the others. If this be not done, tlicy are liable to be broken by the animals rubbing their necks upon them, except where they are made very high. Gates arc generally made eight and an half or nine feet in width, and from five to six feet in height ; the bars being three or four feet broad, and five or six in number. In particular instances a smaller bar is introduced between the two lowermost ones, in order to prevent small animals getting through. 2857. Iron, both hammered and cost metal, has long been in use for ornamental gates (Jig. 398.), and has lately come into use in soiue districts for field gates. Their eligibility must depend on their price and durability relatively to wood. At the ordinary prices of wrought iron and oak, they will be found of doubtful economy ; cast iron gates are too heavy, and too liable to be broken, for agricultural purposes. 2858. The posts or pillars to which gates are attached should, in all convenient cases, be fonned of stone; as this material, when hewn and properly constructed, will last for ages. When formed of wood, oak or larch are the best sorts. The latter, where suit- able, should be used without removing the bark, which has been found to add greatly to their durability. In some places it is customary to plant trees for gate-posts, and after they have attained a certain size and thickness, to cut them over about ten feet above the surface : where the trees thrive, they form the most durable of all gate-posts ; in many instances, however, they misgive, and much trouble is necessary to repair the defect. Where the posts are made of dead timber, they should always be strong, and the wood well prepared; that part which is let into the earth should also be defended, by dip- ping it in coarse oil, or giving it a coat of pyrolignous liquor; and all that is above ground exposed to tlio action of the weather, should be well covered with one or two good coats of oil-paint. The expense of tliis preparation is but trifling, while tlie benefit is very great. 2859. The substance of a gate-post, according to Parker, should be from eight to ten inches square, or, for very heavy gates, a foot square would not be too large. If made of still larger size, it is better. And he says, that the steadiness of a gate-post depends, in a great measure, upon the depth to which it is set in the ground, which ought to be nearly equal to the height of it. Five or six feet is, in general , fully sufficient. But the posts may be kept in their places by a strong frame-work placed under the ground, extending between the posts. 2860. The fastenings of gates, it is observed by Parker {Essay, &c. 1816.), are as various as the blacksmiths who construct them: the subject occupied his attention in connection with tlie hanging of gates, and he has introduced various improved forms. One of the most secure {fg. 399.), is a spring-latch (a), opened by a lever — __ (6), which works in a groove of the upper bar of the gate, and there- | fore cannot be rubbed open by cattle, while, by means of a knob at — L _ the end of the lever, and rising up against the top of the upright bar (c), so that cattle cannot touch it, it is very easily opened by persons on horseback with or without a stick or whip. 2861. A simple, economical, and effective spring-latch consists of a bolt (fig. 400 a.). ./^a 399 h jQ ^^ ^^ cM^ 4C0 which is loose, and plays freely, in two mortised open- ings in the upright bars, and is kept in place by a spring (b). The gate may be shut from either side, when the bar, striking against the projection (c) on the falling post is pushed back, till, arriving at the mortise T' (e), the spring (6) forces it in, and the gate is shut ^^^ securely. Such a gate is easily opened by a rider. This is a good latch for the common field gates of a farm. a 448 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. 2862. For gates of an ornamental kind, Parker says, he does not know a better latch than the crooked lever (Jig. 401.) now in common use. 2863. Gates are of (liferent kinds (Jigs. 402. and 403. ), according to the particular custom of the district; but the principal sorts made use of are the swing-gate, the folding-gate, the slip-bar gate, and the wicket and turn-about gate. 401 5. d I 403 2864. The improved swing-gate of the northern counties is well adapted for agricultural purposes. There is a projection on the fore-part of the hanging-style, which rises nine inclies, and on which the lower end of the diagonal bar, passing up- wards, rests; there is also a diagonal bar through which the three middle horizontal bars pass. It is found to be a very strong and durable gate. 2865. In Parkers improved swing-gate, the diagonal bar rising from the low er part of the heel of the gate meets the middle of the rail, and the two upright bars are placed at proper distances between the middle and the head of the gate : these cross-bars must, he thinks, assist very much in keeping the gate together; but what is most to be guarded against is, its sinking at the head, and to prevent which, this gate (he says) is well contrived. 2866. The tressel-bar gate {Jig. 404.) consists of two bars, one hung by a few links to each gate-post, and in the middle of the opening, where the bars meet, they are supported by two legs like a tressel, and may be padlocked, or fastened by a pin and a few links, (&c. In the prome- nade at Florence such gates are made use ■ of to close the larger carriage openings. 2867. The slip-bar gate is, perhaps, the most durable of any, especially where the gate-posts are of stone, with proper openings left for the reception of the bars. The only objection that can possibly be made to the slip-bar gate is, the trouble of opening and shutting ; which, when servants or others are passing through it, in a hurry, occasions its being frequently left open. In other respects, it is preferable to every other description of gate, both in the original cost, and greater durability. It is to be noticed, however, that upon the verge of a farm or estate, especially where it is bounded by a high road, the slip-bar gate will not answer, as it does not admit of being locked, or secured in the same w^ay as other gates ; but in the interior of a farm or estate, it will be found the cheapest sort of gate. 2868. The chained slip-bar gate, though more expensive, is not liable to the same ob- jections as the last. Here the bars are connected by a chain down the middle of the gate, and, therefore, if one bar is padlocked to the post, none of them can be moved till that one is unlocked. 2869. The turn about, or wicket-gate, is only used in cases where there is a necessity for leaving an entry for the people employed to pass backwards and forwards. This purpose they answer very well, and at the same time keep the field completely enclosed, as they require no trouble to shut them in the time of passing. 2870. Styles are contrivances for man to pass over or through fences, without the risk of even permitting the larger quadrupeds to accompany or follow him. There are many forms perfectly well known every where ; as by steps over a wall ; by a zig-zag passage, formed by stakes, through a hedge or paling ; a turning-bar or turnstyle, &c. 2871. I'he style of falling bars (Jig, 405.) is chiefly used in pleasure-grounds, or be- 405 Book IV. OPERATIONS OF AGRICULTURE. 449 tween paddocks: it consists of bars light at one end (a), and heavy at the other (6), with concealed joints or pivots, in an upright post (c), placed nearer one end of the bars than the other. Tlien, while the weight of the short ends of the bars keeps them in a fencible position, a slight pressure on the other end will form a passage (rf), which any- one may easily step across. 2872. Bridges are frequently required on estates and farms for crossing ditches and water-courses. They are generally large stone conduits or barrel-drains ; or in the case of large streams, arches of masonry. In the case of small drains, wooden pipes or boarded tubes are sometimes resorted to, and even earthen pipes have been used ; but masonry should always have the preference. 2873. The double or folding-gate {^fig. 406.), is considered by some to be much more I durable than those of the swing kind; be- cause the bars, from being only half the length, render the joints afeof the gate not so liable to be broken, or the hinges to be hurt by straining. On the other hand, such gates require more time and attention in the opening and shutting, and the latter operation is troublesome to perform, when both halves have fallen at the head. These gates are not, therefore, in such general use in agriculture as the swing kind ; but they are common as gates to parks, and other scenes of dignity and ornament. 2874. Clarke's window-sash gate (Jig. 407.) is a recent invention, which may be of use in some cases, especially in farm-yards. It is suspended by two weights, and opens and shuts exactly on the principle of the window-sash. The weights may be of stone or cast-iron, and the pulleys are of iron, and nine inches diameter. It was applied in the first instance to a cattle-court ; but has since been 408 erected in different situations. Its advantages the inventor con - siders to be the following: It is easy to open (6), or shut (a) ; remains in whatever situation it is placed ; is not liable to be beat to pieces by the action of the wind ; shuts always perfectly Idose, whatever be the height of the straw or dung in the court ^or gate-way ; a cart may be driven quite close on either side before opening ; is perfectly out of the way when fully open, and not liable to shut on what is passing ; the gate bottom not liable to decay by being immersed in the dung, as is com- monly the case with cattle-court gates ; not liable to go out of order ; may be erected in a hollow place, where a swinging-gate could not open either outwardly or inwardly; and is likely to be more durable than ordinary gates. A small gate of this description (Jig. 408.) is said, by Lasteyrie (Col. de Machines ^c), to have been long in use by the Dutch. BOOK V. OF THE OPERATIONS OF AGRICULTURE. 2875. The operations of agriculture are effected under the direction of man, and by means of the mechanical agents, or implements and buildings which We have passed in review in the preceding book. They are either made directly on plants or animals, which may be considered the objects of agriculture ; or on the soil and climate, which are the natural agents of growth and culture. They may be arranged as manual labors and operations, operations with beasts of labor, and mixed operations. 450 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt II. Chap. I. Manual Labors and Operations. 2876. The labors and operations of any art can seldom be described with great ad- vantage. Whoever wishes to acquire them should resort at once to the scene of practice : no description, however minute, will teach a man to dig, plough, or mow, equal to a few hours' trial in the field, though a knowledge of the mechanical principles on which the implements and the human machine acts in such operations, will, afford some assistance in acquiring them, and in performing them with ease. Our observations shall chiefly be directed to these parts of the subject, and to the most suitable weather and other circum- stances for the performance of the different field labors of the manual kind. We shall arrange these as manual labors common to all arts ; manual operations on the soil ; and mixed manual operations, or such as are performed on the soil, plants, and animals together or connectedly. Sect. I. Mechanical Operations common to all Arts of Manual Labor. 2877. All the operations which man performs with impalements or machines, are, as far as his own person is concerned, reducible to lifting, carrying, drawing, and thrusting. Man himself, considered as an engine, derives his power from alterations in the position of his centre of gravity, and he applies it chiefly by his hands, arms, and legs, acting as levers of the third kind. 2878. Lifting is performed by first stooping or lowering the centre of gravity, and at the same time throwing it to one side. The object being then laid hold of by the hands, the body is raised, and the centre of gravity, in being restored to its true position, acts as a counterbalancing weight to the weight to be raised. The weight retained by the hand is now raised a certain height, never exceeding half that of the man ; if to be raised higher, recourse is had to muscular strength, or the power of the arms to act as levers. 2879. Carrying. To carry a thing is merely to walk with a greater weight than before, and walking is performed by a series of alternate derangements and adjustments of the centre of gravity, slow or rapid, according as the person may walk or run. Accord- ing to Delolm, the most advantageous weight for a man of common strength to carry horizontally is 112 lbs. ; or, if he returns unladen, 135 lbs. 2880. Drawing. Ih this operation, the upper part of the body is thrown forward, so as to act as a power to counterbalance or lift up the body or weight to be moved ; and by joining to this lifting motion the operation of walking, the weight is at once lifted up and drawn along. This compound operation is exemplified in a horse, when straining at a draught in a plough or cart. He first lowers his chest, then raises it, and lastly steps forward. When drawing at ease, the lifting motion is scarcely distinguishable from the progressive one. 2881. Pushing or thrusting is ^QxiormeA. exactly on the same principles as drawing, and differs from it chiefly in the kind of implement or machine which requires to be employed, all machines which are to be pushed requiring to be attached to the animal machine by parts acting by their rigidity ; whereas those to be drawn may be attached by parts acting by their tenacity merely. 2882. Wheeling is a mode of carrying materials in which the weight is divided between the axle of the wheel and the arms of the operator. The arms or shafts of the barrow thus become levers of the second kind, in which the power is at one end, and the ful- crum at the other, and the weight between them. The weight is carried or moved on by the continual change of the fulcrum with the turning of the wheel ; and this turning is produced by the operator throwing forward his centre of gravity so as to push against the wheel by means of the moveable axle, &c. The chief obstacles to wheeling are the roughness or softness of the surface to be wheeled on. Where this is firm, there wheel- ing will be best performed with the greater part of the load resting on the axle; but when soft and deep, the centre of gravity should be nearest the operator, who will find. it easier to carry than to overcome excessive friction. Dry weather is obviously prefer- able for this operation. " With wheelbarrows," Dr. Young observes, " men will do half as much more work as with hods. 2883. All these operations may be varied in quantity, either by a variation in the weight or gravity of the man, or moving power ; or by a variation in the time or rapi- dity of his motions. Thus a heavy man may, in one movement, lift a weight ten times greater than can be done by one of less weight ; but a light man may, by increasing the time of performance, lift the same weight at ten times. A man, who in digging can apply with his feet five cwt. of his weight towards pushing the wedge or blade of the spade into the soil, has an apparent advantage over a lighter man who can only apply three cwt. of mere gravity for that purpose ; but yet the latter may equal the former, by accompanying his power or foot with a proportionate increase of motion. The power in this last case Book V. LABORS OF THE SIMPLEST KIND. 451 is said to be obtained by the momentum, or quantity of matter in a body multiplied by the velocity with which it Is moved. Power, therefore, we thus ascertain, is obtained by matter and motion jointly, and what may be deficient in the one, may be made up by excess in the other. Tlius, a small, light workman may (though with more animal exertion,) produce as much work as a larger or heavier man : for if we suppose the quantity of matter in the large man to be thirty, and his motion at the rate of two, then if the quantity of matter in the small man be twenty, and his motion at the rate of three, he will produce an equal effect with the large man. As small human machines, or men, are generally constructed of finer materials, or more healthy and animated, than large ones, the small man performs his rapid motions with nearly as great ease to himself as the heavy man moves his ponderous weight; so that in point of final result they are very nearly on a par. Sect. II. Agricultural Labors of the Simplest Kind. 2884. The manvxil labors of the field are, next to the general labors enumerated, among the simplest required of the human operator, who, provided he has health and strength, may perform them with very little skill. 2885. Breaking stones is an easy labor requiring very little skill, and no great degree of strength. The stones are previously reduced in the quarrying, or otherwise, to such sizes as can be broke by one or more blows of an iron headed hammer. In general they are broke on the same plane on which the operator stands, but the blow has more effect when the stone is raised about eighteen inches, and for small stones, the most work will be done when they are broke on a table nearly as high as a man's middle, which is now the practice under the direction of the best road makers. 2886. Picking. The pick is a blunt wedge, with a lever attached to it nearly at right angles, and the operation of picking consists in driving in the wedge so as to produce fracture, and then causing it to operate as a compound lever by the first lever or handle, so as to effect separation, and thus break up and loosen hard, compact, or stony soils. It is also used to loosen stones or roots ; and the pick-axe is used to cut the latter. For breaking and pulverizing the soil, the most favorable conditions are, that the earth should be moderately moist, to facilitate the entrance of the pick, but in tenacious soils not so much so as to impede fracture and separation. 2887. Digging. The spade is a thin wedge, with a lever attached in the same plane, and the operation of digging consists in thrusting in the wedge by the momentum (or weight and motion,) of the operator, which effects fracture ; a movement of the lever or handle next effects separation, whilst the operator, by stooping and rising again, lifts up the spitful or section of earth on the blade or wedge of the spade, which, when so raised, is dropped in a reversed position, and at a short distance from the unbroken ground. The separation between the dug and undug ground is called the trench or fur- row ; and when a piece of ground is to be dug, a furrow is first opened at that end of it where the work is to commence, and the earth carried to that end where it is to termi- nate, where it serves to close the furrow. In digging, regard must be had to maintain an uniform depth throughout, to reverse the position of each spitful, so as what was before surface may now be buried; to break and comminute every part where pul- verisation is the leading object ; to preserve each spitful as entire, and place it separated or isolated as much as possible where aeration is the object ; to mix in manures regularly where they are added ; to buiy weeds not likely to rise again, and to remove others, and all extraneous matters, as stones, &c. in every case. For all these purposes a deep open trench is requisite, and that this may not be diminished in width and depth in the course of the operation, it must never be increased in length. If allowed to become crooked by irregular advances in the digging, it is thus increased in length, and neces- sarily diminished in capacity, unless, indeed, the dug ground is allowed to assume an uneven surface, which is an equally great fault. Digging for pulverisation, and mixing in manures, is best performed in dry weather ; but for the purposes of aeration, a de- gree of moisture and tenacity in the soil is more favorable for laying it up in lumps or entire pieces. The usual length of the blade of the spade is from ten inches to a foot, but as it is always inserted somewhat obliquely, the depth of pulverisation attained J)y simple digging seldom exceeds nine inches, and in breaking up firm grounds it is seldom 80 much. 2888. Shovelling is merely the lifting part of digging, and the shovel being broader than the spade, is used to lift up fragments separated by that implement or the pick. 2889. Marking xvith the line is an operation preparatory to some others, and consists in stretching and fixing the line or cord along the surface by means of its attached pins or stakes, in the direction or position desired, and cutting a slight continuous notch, mark, or slit in the ground, along its edge with the spade. 2890. Trenching is a mode of pulverising and mixing the soil, or of pulverising and changing its surface, to any greater depth tlian can be done by the spado alone. For Gg 2 452 SCIENCE O^ AGRICULTURE. Paet II. trenching with a view to pulverising an(l changing the surface, a trench is formed like the furrow in digging, but two or more times wider and deeper ; tlie plot or piece to be trenched is next marked off with the line into parallel strips of this width ; and beginning at one of these, the operator digs or picks the surface stratum, and throws it in the bottom of the trench. Having completed with the shovel the removal of the surface stratum, a second, and a third, or fourth, according to the depth of the soil and other circumstances, is removed in the same way ; and thus, when the operation is completed, the portion of the different stratums is exactly the reverse to what they were before. In trenching, vdth a view to mixture and pulverisation (Jig. 409.), all that is necessary is to open at one corner of the plot, a trench or excavation of the desired depth, three or four feet broad, and six or eight feet long. Then proceed to fill this excavation from one end by working out a similar one. In this way proceed across the piece to be trenched, and then return, and so on in parallel courses to the end of the plot, observing that the face or position of the moved soil in the trench must always be that of a slope, in order that whatever is thrown there may be mixed, and not deposited in regular layers as in tlie other case. To effect this most completely, the operator should always stand in the bottom of the trench, and first picking down, and mixing the materials, from the solid side (a), should next take them up with a shovel, or throw them on the slope or face of the moved soil (6), keeping a distinct space of two or three feet between them. For want of attention to this, in trenching new soils for plantations, or other purposes, it may be truly said that half the benefit derivable from the operation is lost. In general in trenching, those points which were mentioned under digging, such as turning, breaking, dunging, &c. required to be attended to, and sometimes an additional object, that of producing a level from an irregular surface, is desired. In this case double care is re- quisite to avoid forming subterraneous basins or hollows, which might retain water in the substratum, at the bottom of the moved soil, and also to mix inferior with better soil, &c. where it becomes requisite to penetrate into depositions of inferior earthy matters. 2891. Ridging is a mode of finishing the surface, applicable either to dug or trenched grounds, which, when so finished, are called ridge-dug or ridge-trenched. Instead of being formed with an even surface, ridged grounds are finished in ridges or close ranges of parallel elevations, whose sections are nearly equilateral triangles. Hence, suppos- ing the triangles to touch at their bases, two-thirds of more surface will be exposed to the influence of the atmos])here and the weather, than in even surfaces. 2892. Forking. The fork is composed of two or three separate, parallel, and uni- form wedges, joined so as to form one general blade, which is acted on like the spade, by means of a shoulder or hilt for thrusting it into the matters to be forked, and a lever or handle for separating and lifting them. Forking is used for two purposes ; for pul- verising the soil among growing crops, and for moving vegetable manures. In the first case the operation is similar to digging, the only difference being that pulverisation is more attended to than reversing the surface ; in the other, the fork separates chiefly by drawing and lifting ; hence, for this purpose a round-pronged (or dung) fork, pro- duces least friction during the discharge of the fork-full and reinsertion ; and a broad- pronged fork separates and lifts more readily the soil. Dry weather is essentially requisite in forking soils, and most desirable for spreading manures; but dung-hill's may be turned during rain, with no great injury. 2893. Dragging out dung or earth is performed by the dung-drag, and is adopted in the case of distributing dung from a cart in regular portions or little heaps over a field. When lime, in a state of pulverisation, earth, or sand, is to be distributed in the same way, a scraper or large hoe is used ; and sometimes for want of these the dung-drag, aided by the spade or common hoe. 2894. Hund-hocing is performed by drawing or thrusting the wedge or blade of the draw or thrust-hoe along the surface of the soil, so as to cut weeds at or under the surface, and slightly to pulverise the soil. It is used for four purposes, sometimes to- gether, but commonly separate; first, to loosen weeds or thin out plants, so as those hoed up may die for want of nourishment, or be gathered or raked off, for which pur- pose either the thrust or draw-hoe may be used ; the second, to stir the soil, and for this purpose when no weeds require killing, the pronged hoe is preferable, as being thrust deeper with less force, and as less likely to cut the roots of plants ; the third, is to draw Book V. OPERATIONS WITH PLANTS. ! 453 up or accumulate soil about the stems of plants, for which purpose a hoe with a large blade or shovel, will produce most effect; and the fourth, is to form a hollow gutter or drill, in which to sow or insert the seeds of plants, for which a large or small draw-hoe may be used, according to the size of the seeds to be buried. The use of the hoe for any of the above purposes requires dry weather. ^^q 2895. Hoeing between rows of crops, is sometimes performed by what is called a hoe-plough, which is a small plough having a share with double fins, and drawn by one man, and pushed by another. It is in use in India, and is sold in London under the name of the Indian hoe-plough, but it is more for the exercise of amateurs on free soils, than for useful culture. In this way a master may exercise both himself and his valet, and clear his potatoes or turnip crop at the same time. The Dutch have a hoe ifig. 410.), which is drawn and pushed at the same time, for the purpose of cleaning walks, or scraping turf or mud from roads or court-yards. 2896. Hand raking is performed by drawing through the surface of the soil or over it, a series of small equidistant wedges or teeth, either with a view to minute pul- verisation, or to collecting herbage, straw, leaves, stones, or such other matters as do not pass tlirough the interstices of the teeth of 'the rake. The teeth of the rake being placed nearly at right angles to the handle, it follows that the lower the handle is held in performing the operation, the deeper will be the pulverisation when that is the object ; and, on the contrary, that the higher it is held, the interstices being lessened, the fewer extraneous matters will pass through the teeth. The angle at which the handle of the rake is held must therefore depend on the object in view ; the medium is forty-five degrees. For all raking, dry weather is essentially requisite, and for raking hay the angle which tlie handle of the rake makes with the ground's surface, ought to be fifty degrees. 2897. Scraping may be described the drawing a large broad blunt hoe along the sur- face, for the purpose of collecting loose excrementitious or other useless or injurious matters from roads, yards, or from grassy surfaces to be rolled or mown. The Dutch hoe (Jig. 410.) is a good road and lawn scraper. 2898. Sweeping is a mode of scraping by a bundle of flexible rods, twigs, or wires, which enters better into the hollows of irregular surfaces, and performs the operation of cleaning more effectually. In agriculture it is used in barns and in stables^ though shovelling is generally sufficient for the common stable and ox-house. 2899. Screening or sifting earth or gravel, are operations performed with the gravel- sieve or earth screen for separating the coarser from the finer particles. The materials require to be dry, well broken, and then thrown loosely on the upper part of the screen, which being a grated inclined plane, in sliding down it, the smaller matters drop through while the large ones pass on and accumulate at the bottom. In sifting, the same effect is more completely, but more laboriously produced by giving the sieve a circular motion with the arms. 2900. Gathering is a very simple operation, generally performed by women and child- ren, as in taking up patatoes or other roots, or picking up stones, weeds, or other mat- ters considered injurious to the surface on which they lie or grow. 2901. Cleaning roots or other matters, is generally performed by washing, and on a large scale, by the root washing machine, which has already been described, together witli the mode of using it. 2902. Various manual labors and operation might be added; such as slicing turnips ; chopping them with the chopping hoe (2456.) in the fields; cutting straw or hay into chaff; bruising beans or other grain, or whins, or thistles between rollers; pushing a drill-barrow, &c. ; all which require only bodily exertion, with very little skill ; being performed by the aid of machines, which in describing, we have also indicated the mod^ of working (2466. to 2474.). Sect. III. AgriculturcU Operations with Plants. 2903. Agricidtural operations with the vegetable kingdom rank higher than those with the soil or machines, as requiring not only strength, but some of them a considerable de- gree of skill. 2904. Weeding^ however simple an operation, requires a certain degree of botanical skill to know what to weed or extract. These are such plants as it is not desired to cul- tivate. The operation is performed in various ways : by the hand simply ; by the hand, aided with a broad-pointed knife, or a bit of iron hoop ; by the hand, aided by gloves tipped with iron ; by pincers, as in weeding tall weeds from growing corn, or close- hedges, or out of water ; and by the aid of forks, spuds, or other weeding tools. In weeding, it is essential that the weeder know at sight the plants to be left from such as are to be removed, which in agriculture is generally a matter of no difficulty, as, how- ever numerous the weeds, the cultivated plants are but few. In weeding ferns, thistles, nettles, &c. from pasture lands, it has been found that breaking or bruising them over Gg 3 454 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. renders the roots much less liable to spring again the same season, than when they are cut or even pulled up. For this sort of weeding the pincers seem well adapted. 2905. Thinning or reducing the number of plants on any surface, is sometimes per- formed by hand, but most generally by the hoe. Thinning, to be perfectly performed, ought to leave the plants at regular distances ; but as this can seldom be done, owing to the irregularity with which seeds come up, whether sown in drills or broadcast, an attempt to compensate the irregularity is made by a similar irregularity in the distances allowed between the plants at such places. Thus, if turnips in rows are to be thinned out to nine inches distance in the row, and a blank of eighteen inches or two feet occurs, the last two plants on each side the blank may be left at half the usual distance, or less, by which means each plant having ample room on one side, they will grow nearly as large as if left at the usual distance. The same principle is to be attended to in thinning broadcast crops, or trees in a plantation. Thinning may be performed in moist weather ; but dryness is greatly to be preferred, especially where the hoe is used. 2906. Planting is the operation of inserting plants in the soil with a view to their growth, and the term is also applied to the insertion of seeds, roots, or bulbs, when these are inserted singly. 2907. Planting as applied to seeds and tubers, as beans, potatoes, &c. is most frequently performed in drills, but sometimes also by making separate holes with the dibber. In either case, the seeds or sets are deposited singly at regular distances, and covered by raking or harrowing, with or without pressure, according as the soil is more or less loose, and dry, or moist. In general, planting seeds or tubers in drills, or in single openings made by a draw hoe or spade, is greatly preferable to planting with the dibber, because, in the former case, the earth can seldom be placed in close and somewhat firm contact with the seed or set ; a circumstance essential to its speedy germination, and vigorous future growth. 2908. Planting, as applied to pla?its already originated^ is commonly termed trans- jilanting. Transplanting may be considered as involving four things : first, the pre- paration of the soil to which the plant is to be removed ; secondly, the removal of the plant ; thirdly, its preparation ; and, fourthly, its insertion in the prepared soil. Pre- paration of the soil implies, in all cases, stirring, comminution, and mixing ; and some- times the addition of manure or compost, according to the nature of the soil and plants to be inserted. The removal of the plant is generally eflfected l)y loosening the earth around it, and then drawing it out of the soil with the hand ; in all cases avoiding, as much as possible, to break or bruise, or otherwise injurethe roots. In the case of small seedling plants, merely inserting the spade, and raising the portion of earth in which they grow, will suffice ; but in removing large plants, it is necessary to dig a trench round, or on one side of the plant. In some cases, the plant may be lifted with a ball or mass of earth, containing all or great part of its roots ; and in others, as in the case of large shrubs or trees, it may be necessary to open the soil around them a year previously to their removal, and cut the larger roots at a certain distance from the plant, in order that they may throw out fibres to enable them to support the operation of transplantation. By two years previous preparation, and the use of a machine {Jig. 411.), very large trees of such kinds as stole may be removed ; but resinous trees seldom succeed. 2909. The preparation of the jilant consists in pruning its roots, and top or shoots In the smallest seedlings, such as cabbage-plants and thorns, all that is necessary is to shorten a little the tap or main root ; but in seedlings of trees two or three years old, or in transplanted or large trees, several of the side shoots will require to be shortened, and also the roots, always proportioning what is taken off the top or shoots, to what has been taken from the root ; that the latter may be duly fitted to support the former. 2910. The insertion o/" the removed plant in the prepared soil, is performed by making an excavation suitable to the size of the plant's root, inserting it therein, filling up the interstices with fine earth, and then compressing the whole by the hand, dibber, foot, or, what is best, by abundant watering. Plants should not be inserted deeper in the soil than they were before removal ; they should be placed upright, and the same side should be turned towards the sun as before ; the fibrous roots should be distributed equally round the stem among the mould or finer soil ^ and the most difficult and important part of the whole, is to compress the earth about the roots without crowding them or injuring Book V. OPERATIONS WITH PLANTS. 455 them by bruises. The only effectual way of attaining this end is after carefully spread- ing the fibres, and distributing them as equally as possible among the mould, to give abundant waterings, holding the vessel from which the water is poured as high as pos- sible, so as to consolidate the earth by that means, rather than by compression with the foot. On an extensive scale, however, this cannot be done, and in planting seedlings or cuttings it is not required, as these have few and short fibres, and may he Jirjned suffici- ently by the planting instrument, or the foot. It should never be forgotten that, in all planting, it is an essential point to have the earth firmly compressed to tlie roots, and espe- cially to the lower parts or extremities. Any one may be convinced of this, by planting one cabbage loosely, and another compressing the root well with the dibber at the lower part : or, instead of a cabbage, try a cutting, say of gooseberry, elder, or vine : both no doubt will grow, but the growth of the plant or cutting compressed at the lower extre- mity, will be incomparably more vigorous than that of the other. 'J911. Water'ing becomes requisite for various purposes; as aliment to plants in a growing stiite ; as support to newly transplanted plants ; for keeping under insects ; and keeping clean the leaves of vegetables. One general rule must be ever kept in mind during the employment of water ; that is, never to water the top or leaves of a plant when the sun shines. A moment's reflection »will convince any one that this rule is agreeable to the laws of nature, for during rain the sun's rays are intercepted by a panoply of fog or clouds. All artificial watering, therefore, should be carried on in the evening, or early in the morning, unless it be confined to watering the roots, in which case, transplanted plants, and others in a growing state, may be watered at any time j and if they are shaded from the sun, they may also be watered over their tops. 2912. Sowing is the operation of dispersing seeds over the surface of the soil, with a view to their future vegetation and growth. Where seeds are deposited singly, they are said to be planted, as in the case of dibbling wheat or beans ; where they are dropped in numbers together, they are said to be rown. When dropped in numbers together in a line, they are said to be drilled or sowed; and when scattered over the general surface by the hand, they are said to be sown broadcast. 2913. In broadcast solving, the operator being furnished with a basket (^fig' 264.), or sheetful of seed hanging on his left side, takes out a handful with his right hand, and disperses it by a horizontal and rather rising movement of the arm to the extent of a semicircle, gradually opening his hand at tne same time. The most usual practice when land is laid up in ridges of equal breadth, and not too wide, as five or six yards, is that of dispersing the seed regularly over each land or ridge, in opce walking round ; the seedsman, by different casts of the hand, sowing one half in going, and the other in returning. In doing this, it is the custom of some seedsmen to fill the hand from the basket or bag, which they carry along with them, as they make one step forward, and disperse the seed in the time of performing the next ; while others scatter the seed, or make their casts, as they are termed by farmers, in advancing each step. It is evident, therefore, that in accomplishing this business with regularity and exactness, there is con- siderable difficulty, the proper knowledge and habit of which can only be acquired by experience. It is cbnsequently of importance for the cultivator to perform the opera- tion himself, or to be careful in selecting such persons as are conversant with the busi- ness, as he may odierwise incur much unnecessary expense in the waste of seed, and run considerable risk in respect of his crops. 2914. Saidng. The saw is a conjoined series of uniform wedges, which, when drawn or thrust in succession across a branch or trunk, gradually wears it through. In perform- ing the operation, the regularity of the pressure and motion are chiefly to be attended to. In green or live shoots, the double-toothed saw produces less friction on the sides of the plate, by opening a large channel for its motion. Where parts are detached from living trees, the living section ought generally to be smoothed over with a knife, chisel, or file ; and a previous precaution in large trees, is to cut a notch in the lower part of the branch immediately under and in the line of the section, in order to prevent any accident to the bark, when the amputated part falls off. Sawing is a coarser mode of cutting, mowing, or shaving ; or a finer mode of raking, in which the teeth follow all in one line. 291 5. Cutting is performed by means of a very sharp wedge, and either by drawing this dirough obliquely or across the body to be cut, as in using the knife ; or by press- ing or striking the axe or hedge-bill obliquely into the body, first, on one side of an imaginary line of section, and then on the other, so as to work out a trench across the branch or trunk, and so effect its separation. The axe, in gardening, is cliiefly used in felling trees, and for separating their trunks, branches, and roots into parts. The knife is extensively used for small trees, and the hedge-bill and chisel for those of larger size. In amputating with the knife, one operation or draw-cut ought generally to be suf- ficient to separate the parts; and this ought to be made with the knife sufficiently sharp, and the motioa so quick as to produce a clean, smooth section, with the bark uninjured. Gg 4 456 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Paut II. 2916. Every draw-cut produces a smooth section, and a fractured or bruised section ; and one essential part of cutting living vegetables, is to take care that the fractured section be on the part amputated. Another desirable object is, that the section of the living or remaining part should be so inclined {Jig. 412 a.), as not to lodge water or overflowing sap, and so far turned to the ground [d), or to the north, as not to be struck by the direct rays of the sun. To accomplish both these purposes, as well as to make sure of having the fractured section on the part amputated, the general practice is to cut from below, or from the under edge of the branch or shoot, unless the position of the leading bud occasions a deviation from the rule (6). The cuts should also be made, in all shoots of not more than three or four years old, within from one-fourth to half an inch, or a little more, of the bud intended to take the lead ; when this is not done, and half an inch or more of shoot is left without a bud (c and c), the consequence is, the stump dies back to the bud in the course of the season (g), and if not carefully cut off'(/), will end in a decaying orifice both unsightly and injurious. The bud selected for a leader ought always to be a leaf-bud, and in general the plane of the section ought to be parallel to the angle which the bud makes with the stem {d). Exceptions occur in the case of plants with much pith (A), as the vine, elder, &c. in cutting the year-old shoots of which, an inch or more ought to be left, as these always die back a few lines ; and thus the leading bud might be injured, if this precaution were not taken. In pruning roots, the same principle, as far as applicable, ought to be attended to ; the trunk or stem when cut over ought to be sloped to the north («), and the lateral roots cut so as the section may be on the under side {k), and therefore less likely to rot than when the cut faces the surface of the ground (/), or is bruised by neglecting to form the smooth section on the attached extremity. 2917. In like manner, when pruning a large tree, the section of amputation ought to be made so oblique as to throw off the rain ; as generally as possible, it should be turned from the sun, and rather downwards than upwards, irj order to shield it from heat and cracking ; and whenever it can be done, it should be made near a branch, shoot, or bud, which may take the lead in the room of that cut off, and thus, by keeping the principle of life in action at the section, speedily heal up the wound. 2918. In cutting with the chisel, the blade is applied below the branch to be amputated, so as to rest on the trunk or main branch, and so applied, a quick blow with a mallet is given to the handle of the chisel by the operator or his assistant. If this does not effect a separation, it is to be repeated. In forest-pruning it is often advantageous to apply one cut of the chisel on the underside of the branch, and then saw it through with the forest-saw from the upper. 2919. Clipinng is an imperfect mode of cutting adapted for expedition, and for small shoots. The separation is effected by bruising or crushing along with cutting, and, in consequence, both sections are fractured. In agriculture, it is chiefly applied for keep- ing hedges in shape ; but the hedge-knife, which operates by clean, rapid draw-cuts given always from below, is generally preferable, as not decreasing the live ends of the amputated shoots. The new pruning-shears and the averuncator, it is to be observed, by producing cuts much more like the draw-cuts of knives, are greatly to be preferred to the common hedge-shears. 2920. The best seasons/or sawing, cuttingy or clipping living trees are early irf spring, and in midsummer. Early in autumn, trees are apt to bleed ; later, and in winter, the section is liable to injury from the weather; but trees pruned early in spring remain only a short period before they begin to heal ; and in those pruned at midsummer, wounds heal immediately. There are, however, exceptions as to spring-pruning in ever- greens, cherries, and other gummiferous trees ; and summer- pruning is but ill adapted for forest work or trees in crowded scenery. 2921. Sjditting is an operation generally performed on roots of trees remaining in the soil for the purpose of facilitating their eradication. The wedge, in its simplest form, and of iron, is driven in by a hammer or mallet, till it produces fracture and separation, when the parts are removed as detached, &c. 2922. Pruning, or the amputation of part of a plant with the knife, or other instru- ment, is practised for various purposes, but chiefly on trees, and more especially on those of the fruit-bearing kinds. Of two adjoining and equal sized branches of the same tree, if the one be cut off, that remaining will profit by the sap which would have nourished the other, and both the leaves and the fruits which it may produce will exceed their natural size. If part of a branch be cut off which would have carried a number of fruits, those wUch remain will set, or fix better, and become larger. On the observation of these facts is founded the whole theory of pruning ; which though like many other practices of culture, cannot be said to exist very obviously in nature, is yet the most essential of all operations for the culture of fruit produced on trees. 2923. The objects of pruning may be reduced to the following : promoting growth and bulk ; lessening bulk ; modifying form ; adjusting the stem and branches to the roots ; renewal of decayed plants or trees ; and removal or cure of diseases. 2924. Pruning for promoting the growth and bulk of a tree, is the simplest object of pruning, and is that chiefly which is cmployetl by nursery-men with young trees of every description. The art is to cut off all Book V. OPERATIONS WITH PLANTS. 457 the weak lateral shoots, that the portion of sap destined for their nourishment may be thrown into the strong ones. In some cases, besides cutting off the weak shoots, the strong ones are shortened, in order to produce three or four shoots instead of one. In general, mere bulk being the object, upright shoots are en- couraged rather than lateral ones ; excepting in the case of trained trees, where shoots are encouraged at all angles, from the horizontal to the perpendicular, but more especially at the medium of 45 degrees. In old trees, this object is greatly promoted by the removal, with the proper instruments, ot tlie dead outer bark. 2925. Fruning for lesseninnthe bulk of the tree is also chiefly confined to nursery practice, as necessary to keep unsold trees fiortable. It consists in little more than what is technically called heading dmuti ; that is, cutting off the leading shoots within an inch or two of the main stem, leaving, in some cases, some of the lower lateral shoots. Care is taken to cut to a leaf bud, and to choose such from among the side, upper, or under buds of the shoot, according as the succeeding year's shoots may be wanted, in radiated lines from the stem, or in oblique lines in some places to fill up vacancies. It is evident that this unnatural operation persisted in for a few years must render the tree knotty and unsightly, and in stone- fruits, at least, it is apt to generate canker and gum. 2926. Pruning for modifying the form of the tree embraces the management of the plant from the time of its propagation. In rearing trees planted for timber, it is desirable to throw the timber produced, jis much as possible, into long compact masses; and hence pruning is employed to remove the side branches, and encourage the growth of the bole or stem. Where this operation is begun when the trees are young, it is easily performed every two or three years, and the progress of the trees under it is most satisfactory ; when, however, it is delayed till they have attained a timber size, it is, in all cases, much less conducive to the desired end, and sometimes may prove injurious. It is .safer in such cases to shorten or lessen the size of lateral branches, rather than to cut them off close by the stem, as the large wounds produced by the latter practice either do not cicatrize at all, or not till the central part is rotten, and has contaminated the timber of the trunk. In all cases, a moderate number of small branches, to be taken oft' as they grow large, are to be left on the trunk, to facilitate the circulation of the sap and juices. Where timber-trees are planted for shelter or shade, unless intermixed with shrubs or copse, it is evident pruning must be directed to clothing them from the summit to the ground, with side branches. In avenues, and hedge-row trees, it is generally desirable that the lowest branches should be a considerable dis- tance from the ground ; in trees intended to conceal objects, as many branches should be left as possible; and in others, which conceal distant objects desired to be seen, or injure or conceal near objects, the form must be modified accordingly. In all these cases, the superfluous i)arts are to be cut oft" with a clean sec- tion, near a bud or shoot if a brarich is shortened, or close to the trunk if it is entirely removed ; the ob- ject being to facilitate cicatrization. 2927. Pruning for adjusting the stem and branches to the roots is almost solely applicable to transplanted trees, in which' it is an essential operation ; and should be performed in general in the interval between removal and replanting, when the plant is entirely out of the ground. Supposing only the extremities of the fibres broken off, as is the case in very small plants and seedlings, then no part of the top will require to be removed ; but if the roots have been broken or bruised in any of their main branches or ramifications, then thepruner, estimating the quantity of root of which the plant is deprived by the sections of fracture and other circumstances, peculiar and general, will be able to form a notion of what was the bulk of the whole roots before the tree was undisturbed. Then he may state the question of lessening the top to ad- just it to the roots, thus:— as the whole quantity of roots which the tree had before removal, is to tlie whole quantity of branches which it now has, so is the quantity of roots which it now has to the quantity of top which it ought to have. In selecting the shoots to be removed, regard must be had to the ultimate cha- racter the tree is to assume, whether a standard, or trained fruit-tree, or ornamental bush. In general, bearing-wood and weak shoots should be removed, and the stronger lateral and upright shoots, with leaf or shoot-eyes, left. 2928. Pruning for renewal of the head is performed by cutting over the stem a little way, say its own thickness above the collar, or the surface of the ground. This practice applies to old osier-beds, coppice woods, and to young forest-trees. Sometimes also it is performed on old, or ill-thriving fruit-trees which are headed down to the top of their stems. This operation is performed with the saw, and better after sca- rification, as in cutting off" the broken limb of an animal. The live section should be smoothed with the chisel or knife, covered with the bark, and coated over with grafting-clay, or any convenient compo- sition, which will resist drought and rain for a year. Those who are advocates for pruning when the sap is dormant, will not of course be able to perform the operation of scarification, and covering the section with l)ark. 2929. Pruning for curing diseases has acquired much celebrity since the time of Forsyth, whose am- putations and scarifications for the canker, together with the plaster or composition which he em- ployed to pirotect the wounds from air, are treated of at large in his Treatise on Fruit-Trees. Almost all vegetable diseases either have their origin in the weakness of the individual, or induce a degree of weakness ; hence to amputate a part of a diseased tree is to strengthen the remaining part, because the roots remaining of the same force, the same quantity of sap will be thrown upwards as when the head and branches were entire. If the disease is constitutional, or in the system, this practice may probably, in some cases, communicate to the tree so much strength as to enable it to throw it off; if it be local, the amputation of the part will at once remove the disease, and strengthen the tree. 2930. Mowing is the operation of cutting down corn, grass, and other herbage crops with the scythe. It requires great force in the operator, and also a twisting motion of the body wliich brings ahuost every muscle into action, and is in short one of the most severe of agricultural labors. The chief art consists in cutting the crop as close to the surface of the ground as possible and perfectly level, pointing the swaths well out so as to leave scarcely any ridges under them. In the mowing of grain crops, such scythes as are shorter in the blade than the common ones, and to which either a cradle or two twigs of ozier put semicircular-wise into holes made in the handles near the blades, in such a manner that one semicircle intersects the other, are made use of. Commonly in mowing barley, oats, or other grain, the corn is on the right hand of the workman ; but M. de Lisle adopted something like the Hainault metliod of mowing wheat (2404.), in which the corn was at his left hand : he mowed it inwards, bearing the corn he cuts on his scythe, till it comes to that which is standing, against wJiich it gently leans. After every mower a gatherer follows, which may be a lad, or a woman. The gatherer keeps within live or six feet of the mower, and being provided either with a hook or stick about two feet long, gathers up the corn, making it into parcels, and laying it gently on the ground ; this must be done with spirit, as another mower immediately follows, and to every mower there is a particular gatherer. And to do this work properly, the mower should form but one tract with his feet, advancing in a posture neariy as if he was going 458 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. to fence, one foot chasing the other. In this manner the standing corn is mowed ; and the workman should take care to have the wind at his left, as it bears the corn towards the scythe, and causes it to be cut nearer the ground. When wheat is bent, the workman takes the corn as it presents itself to him, which has the same effect as if the wind was at his left side. And when it is laid, it is more troublesome to the gatherer, because the cut corn is apt to be mixed with that which is standing ; but a good mower takes the advantage of the wind, and cuts it against the way it is laid. No particular directions can be given for corn that is lodged and entangled, unless it be to take it as it is inclined, as if the wind were on the back of the mower. 2931 . The usual method of mowing grain, is in the same manner as for grass, the scythe only having a cradle or bow fixed upon the heel of the handle [Jig' 256.). In the *< practice of most departments, the scythe is swung horizontally or nearly level, leaving the stubble of almost an even height ; or if it rise on either side, forming what ai-e called swath-))alks, the butts of the swaths are suffered to rest upon them, the heads or ears of the corn falling into the hollow or close mown part of the preceding swath width. They are of course liable, in a wet season, not only to receive an undue portion of rain water, but to be fouled with the splashings of heavy showers. But in the Kentish practice, which is said to excel those of other districts, the position of the swaths is different. Here, the heads of the corn rest on the top of the swath-balk, provincially the ' beever,* which is left of extraordinary height, as ten to fifteen inches; so that the wind has a free circulation beneath the swaths. The workman, in performing this judicious operation, proceeds with his right foot forward, entering the point of his scythe with a downward stroke, and raising it as abruptly out, bringing the handle round to the left until it forms nearly a right angle with the line of the swath, carrying the corn in the cradle three or four feet behind the place where it grew, lifting it high, and letting it fall on the beever behind his left foot, and in the position above described. The disadvantages of this method are, the loss of some straw, the incumbrance arising from the length of stubble, and a little additional labor ; but in a district where cattle are not numerous, the loss of straw is not felt, and in any country the principle of laying the heads, instead of the butts of the corn upon the swath-balk, whether left high or low, might be well adopted." 2932. In the cutting of grass crops for the purpose of being converted into hay, it is ne- cessary that they be in the most suitable states of growth and maturity, for affording the best and most nutritious fodder. With this view they should neither be cut at too early a period, or suffered to stand too long; as in the former case there will be considerable loss in the drying, from the produce being in so soft and green a condition, and in the latter from a large proportion of the nourishing properties being expended. Grass when mown before it becomes in full flower, while the rich saccharine juice is in part retained at the joints of the flower-stems, is in the most proper condition for being cut down, as at that period it must contain the largest proportion of nutritious materials, but which then begins to be absorbed, and taken up in proportion as the flowers expand, and the seeds ripen, so as to constitute the meal or starch of the seed lobes, and is either dispersed upon the land, or fed upon by birds ; the grass stems with their leaves being left in a similar situation to that of the straw of ripened grain. But there are other circumstances, besides those of ripeness, to be attended to in determining the period of cutting crops of grass, as in some cases when they are thick upon the ground the bottom parts become of a yellow color before the flowering fully takes place ; under such circumstances it will often be the most advisable practice to mow as soon as the weather will possibly admit ; for if this be neglected, there will be great danger of its rotting, or at any rate of its acquiring a disagreeable flavor, and of becoming of but little value. Where grass is very tall, as is often the case in moist meadows, it is liable to fall down and lodge, by which the same effects are produced. 2933. In cutting rouen or second crops of grasSy more attention will be requisite than in the first, as the crops are mostly much lighter and more difficult to cut, the scythe being apt to rise and slip through the grass without cutting it fairly, except when in the bands of an expert workman. Crops of this sort should always be cut as much as possible when the dew is upon them ; and as soon as ever there is a tolerable growth, as by wait- ing, the season is constantly getting more unfavorable for making them into hay; and when not well made this hay is of little or no value. When the grass has been decided to be in the proper condition for being cut down, a set of mowers proportioned to tlie extent of the crop should be immediately provided. In some districts, it is the custom to pay these laborers by the day, but a better and more general practice is, to let the work at a certain price by the acre. The extent or proportion of ground that can be mown in any given space of time, mUst obviously vary much according to the nature of the ground, the fulness of the crop, and the goodness of the workman, but in general an acre is sup- posed a full day's work for an expert mower. 2934. The moiving of weeds and coarse tussocks of grass in pasture should take place before they come into flower, or at all events before they ripen their seed. Bruising or Book V. OPERATIONS WITH PLANTS. 459 clipping with a sort of blunt wooden shears is consideral preferable for ferns, thistles, and nettles (2904.), as they are said not to spring up again the same season, which they are apt to do if cut over with the clean cut of the scythe. 2935. T/iemmdng of weeds in rivers and ponds is done in the usual way^from a boat, in which the operator stands, and is rowed forward by another as required. Sometimes scythe-blades are tied or ri vetted together, and worked by means of ropes like a saw from one shore to the other ; but the- first mode is generally reckoned the best, even in public canals, and is unquestionably so in agriculture. 2936. The Hainault moving is a process which is exclusively applicable to corn crops ; it has been long practised in Flanders, and though various attempts have been made at ditferent times and places to introduce it to this country, and notwithstanding the great ^vantages promised, it is still little known. It has lately been practised with success on the estate of G. H. Rose, Esq. at Muddeford, in Hampshire. We have already described the implement, and the mode of using it. The breadths of corn cut at every stroke, are carried forward by the joint operation of the blade ai>d the hook, and collected at the left hand of the mower, where he leaves them standing almost erect, but leaning to the left against the standing corn. When as much is cut as will make a sheaf, the mower turns to the left so as to face the standing corn, introduces his hook behind the middle of the leaning parcels, and at the same time the scythe points near the bottom ; then mowing sideways to the left, returning over the ground he has mown, he draws and collects the cut corn, still by means of the hook and scythe preserving the erect position of the straw to the place where the last collecting operation ended ; then wheeling round to the left with the hook still embracing the middle of the whole cut corn, he stops the motion of the scythe, whilst the hook still moves forward to the left, so as to overset the corn and lay it evenly along on tl)e stubble, with the ears towards the right, ready for the binder. In oversetting the collected corn he uses his left foot if necessary. The mower now ad- vances to the front, and comrtiences the cuts for a new sheaf as before, always working towards the standing corn and not from it. With the Hainault scythe, about twice as much corn, it is said, may be cut in the same time, as with the common reaping hook, and a great deal more of the straw is saved. -i 2937. Heaping is the operation of cutting corn with the hook or sickle, the former called provincially bagging, the latter shearing or reaping. The operation of reaping is most general in the northern counties. The corn is cut in handfuls with the sickle (2406.;, and these are immediately deposited upon bands, formed by twisting together a i'evf of the stalks of the corn at the ends next the ears, and afterwards bound up into sheaves, in order to their being set up into shocks or hattocks. This method is in most instances adopted with the wheat and rye crops in every part of the island, as in cutting them with the scythe it is difficult to be performed without much loss being sustained by the shedding of the grain. And in addition, it is of great advantage to have these sorts of crops bound up regularly into sheaves, the straw being much better. 2938. In bagging, the operator hooks up the corn towards him, and then lays it on bands as in reaping. By this mode corn is cut lower than by reaping with the sickle, but rather more straws drop unless great care is taken. 2939. Sheaving and shocking, or as termed in the north binding and stocking, are operations performed for the most part immediately after the corn is cut. In binding it is tied up in sheaves or bundles by the bands already mentioned ; and in shocking or stocking, the sheaves are set on end in pairs leaning against each other and covered or otherwise by what are called heading sheaves, laid on the upright ones so as to cover and l)rotect the ears from the weather, and act as a roof to the shock or stook. The number of sheaves brought together in a stook, and even the modes of placing them, vary in dif- ferent districts. The operation is performed with most care and neatness in the wet climates of the north. 2940. Gailing is a species of sheaving and shocking of considerable importance in late or wet climates. In performing the operation the sheaves are tied near the top, not loosely, as described by Marshal, but very tightly; the binder then takes hold of the sheaf with one hand, and with the other spreads. the bottom, so that when erected it has precisely the appearance of the straw covering of a bee-hive ; the top is then compressed to exclude the rains. When the single sheaves (gaites) have remained in this position for a few days, if the weather is unpromising, they are formed into very small ricks of a conical figure, tapering, however, but little till near the top. When the sheaves are piled up successively in building, the butt-ends are carefully spread so as to cover com- pletely the ears, and thus serve as thatch for the sheaves underneath. A large sheaf is used for the hood, put on in the same way as in a common stack. The little building is then secured with a rope, and the grain thus thatched with its own straw bids defiance to the heaviest rains. 2941 . In the reaping of grain crops, whether the sickle, hook, or scythe be employed for the purpose, there is much difference in the height at which the crops are cut in different 460 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. places* In some it is the practice to have the business performed in as close a manner as possible ; while in others a stubble of eight, ten, and fifteen inches or more is left. These different practices having their advocates, one party supposing that the work proceeds more slowly where it is executed in so close a manner, while the other contend that the contrary is the case. But as the stubble which is left is not only useless to the land, but in many cases very troublesome in its succeeding culture, being frequently under the necessity of being removed, it would seem to be the best as well as cheapest practice, to have the business constantly executed in a close manner. By this means the agricultor will not only have more litter at command for the bedding of his yards, stalls, and other places, and consequently an increase of manure, but with much less waste of grain, and at the same time be freed from the trouble and expense of removing the stubble. It has, indeed, been fully shown, by a careful trial, made with the view of ascertaining the difference between high and low reaping, that the advantage is con- siderably in favor of the latter. 2942. The use of the sickle and the scythe in reaping grain crops have each their advan- tages and disadvantages. In the first manner, the crops are deposited with more regula- rity and exactness, and consequently bound into sheaves with greater facility and despatch. Besides, in many cases less loss is incurred by the shedding of the grain in the time the work is performing ; but the labor is executed with greater difficulty and trouble. The latter possesses the superiority of being more expeditious, and of being performed to any degree of closeness that may be required ; while it has the evident disadvantage of leaving the cut grain in a more irregular and uneven situation, by which it is rendered less fit for being bound up into sheaves, which in many cases is an inconvenience of great consequence. When the grain has attained a high degree of ripeness, tliere may, like- wise, be great loss sustained, by its being shed during the operation, in this way of reaping or cutting the crop. Where this method is practised, it is, however, not unfrequently the case to have it bound into sheaves, though the more common custom is to let it remain in the rows or swaths till fit for being put into the stack. When bound, it is generally the practice to cut it inwards against the crop on which it rests. In the other case, it is cut in the manner of grass for hay. It is obvious, therefore, that where operators are procured with difficulty, this mode of reaping is the most advisable, while under the contrary circumstances, the former may be had recourse to with more advantage, as the work may be executed in a neater and more exact way. 2943. Reaping, whatever mode be adopted, is often let hy the acre to persons that go about for harvest work, and it may, in many cases, be best performed in this manner; but great attention should be paid by the cultivator to see that the grain is cut and bound up in a proper method, and that the work be not performed in improper weather. The prices vary according to the nature of the crops, the season, and other circumstances. 2944. Pulling is a mode of taking a crop, applicable chiefly to flax and hemp. These are pulled in handfuls, the earth beat and shaken from their roots, and after the handfuls have lain a day or more separately, they are collected together and tied in bundles. In the case of hemp, it being a dioecious plant, the male stalks are pulled some weeks before the others. Dry weather is preferable for the operation. 2945. Digging up or forking up, is occasionally resorted to for taking crops of roots, as potatoes, carrots, &c. In performing this operation, the principal thing is to avoid cutting or bruising the roots with the spade or fork, and to separate the roots from the soil by first lifting up the spitful and then throwing it down in such a way as to break and scatter it , and bring to light the roots or tubers. When crops of this sort are planted in rows, they are frequently raised by a plough, the coulter being withdrawn. Sect. IV. Mixed Operations performed by Manual Labor, 2946. The mixed agricultural operations differ little from the last as to the skill or strength required in the operator : they are chiefly ropemaking, thatching, turning straw or hay, drawing or sorting straw, flail- threshing, hedging and ditching, weighing, measuring, stack-building, sheep-shearing, paring and burning turf, burning clay, and forming compost soils or manures. 2947. Strawrope making is an operation which requires two persons when performed in the usual manner with a crook (2396.). In this case the person who forms the rope is stationary, and the twister moves from him backwards the length of the rope ; but if the crook is turned by machinery, as for example, by a movement from a thrashing machine, or by a detached machine turned by hand (2457.), then the person who forms the rope moves backwards as he lets out the material to be twisted. These sorts of ropes are commonly made of oat or rye straw ; but they are also formed of coarse hay or rushes, long moss, ferns, &c. In all cases the material requires to be moistened and thoroughly mixed together before made use of by the ropemaker. 2948. Thatching is the operation of covering the roofs of buildings, stacks, &c. with some sort of thatch. It is an art that requires considerable care, attention, and practice BookV. mixed operations by manual XABOR. 461 to perform it in a proper manner. Before this business is begun, it is necessary that the materials of whatever kind they may be, should undergo some preparation. With articles of the straw kind the usual method is this : the substances after l)eing well moistened with water, are drawn out in handsful perfectly straight and even, into re- gular lengths, and the short straw separated from them, leaving them placed in con- venient bundles to be carried to the thatcher by the person who has the serving of him. '2949. The application of thatch to stacks of hay or corn, is performed by different methods, according to the nature of the materials employed. Where long straw is made use of, the operator or workman usually begins at the eaves or bottom of the roof, de- positing it in handsful in regular breadths till he reaches the top, the different handsful being so placed endways as to overlap each other, the upper ends being constantly pushed a little into the bottom parts of the sheaves. In this manner he gradually proceeds breadth after breadth till the whole of the roof is covered, which is usually done to the thickness of about four or five inches- And in order to retain the thatch in its place, short sharp pointed sticks are sometimes thrust in, in a slanting direction upwards, and sometimes small sticks sharpened at the ends are bent and thrust in along the top parts and sides. But as the water is apt to follow the course of the sticks, it is a bet- ter practice to make use of ropes of twisted straw for this purpose. In some cases these are applied only round the bottom parts of the roof and the sides ; while in others, which is a much better and more secure method, they are applied in such ^23 a manner over the whole stacks as to form a sort of net or lozenge-work of nine or twelve inches in width in the meshes {Jig. 413.), the ends being well fastened either to the sides of the stack under the eaves, or to a rope carried round in that situation on purpose to fasten them to. This method of tying on the thatch should always be had recourse to where the stackyards are greatly exposed to the effects of wind, as without such precautions much injury and loss may frequently be sustained by the farmer. It is in common use in Northumberland and northwards. 2950. In the application of stubble as a thatch for ricks it is mostly put on by sticking one of its ends into the roof of the stack in a regular and exact manner, so as that it may stand very close and thick ; when the other, with such loose straws as may occur, is to be cut over or pared off with the thatching knife, or a very sharp tool for the purpose, so as to form a neat and impenetrable thatch, having the appearance of a 414 newly thatched house roof (fg' 414.); the whole being well secured in its place by short pegs made for the purpose, somewhat in the same way as in the other stacks. 2951. The time of commencing the thatching of hay and com stacks should be delayed until they have fully settled, as under the contrary circumstance it is sure to rise into ridges afterwards, and by that means admit the water to pass down into them, and of course do much in- jury to the corn or hay. 2952. In the thatching of the roofs of houses or other buildings with any of the sorts of straw, the same rules are in some respects to be followed, only the materials are to be laid on to a considerable thickness and be more firmly secured. They are applied in regular narrow slips, or what in some districts are termed gangSy from the eaves of the building to the ridges, the ladder being moved forward as the work proceeds. Tlie thatch is secured by short sharpened sticks thrust in where necessary. And bended sticks sharpened at each end are likewise sometiines made use of near the ridges, being thrust in at each end. In finishing tlie work, the thatcher employs an iron-toothed rake, with which the whole is raked over from the top to the bottom, so as to render it completely smooth and even, and take away all the short straws. 2953. The method of thatching with reedf according to Marshall, who seems to have paid much attention to the subject, in his account of The Rural Economy of Norfolk^ is this : " No laths being made use of, in laying it a little of the longest and stoutest of the reed is scattered irregularly across the naked spars, as a foundation to lay the main Coat upon : this partial gauze-like covering is called the ^Jleaking.' " 2954. On this Jicaking the main covering is laid, and fastenetl down to the spars by means of long rods — provincially, *' swai/s" — laid across the middle of the reed, and tied to the spars with rope yarn, or with " bramble bonds," which formerly were much in use, but which are now nearly laid aside, especially for new roofs. 2955. iftrrf is7wt laid on in longitudinal courses, in the manner that straw thatch is usually put on, nor is the whole caves set at once. The workman begins at the lower corner of the roof, on his right hand for instance, and keeps an irregular diagonal line or face, until he reach the ui)per corner to his left, a nar- row eaves-board being nailed across the feet of the spars, and some fieaking scattered on ; the thatcher begins to " set his eaves," by laying a coat of reed, eight or ten inches thick, with the heads resting upon the fleakine, and the butts upon the eaves-board. He then lays on his sway (a rod rather thicker than a large withy), about six or eight inches from the lower points of the reeds; whilst his assistant, on the inside, runs a needle, threaded with rojK! yarn, close to the spar; and in this case, close to the upper edge of the caves-board. The thatcher draws it through on one side of the swav, and enters it again on the contrary side, both of the sway and of the spar : the assistant draws it through, unthreads it, and with the two ends of the yarn, makes a knot round the siKir, thereby drawing the sway, and 462 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. consequently the reed right down to the roof; whilst thethatcher above, beating the sway and pressing it down, assists in making the work the firmer. The assistant having made good the knot below, he proceeds with another length of thread to the next spar, and so on till the sway be bound down the whole length ; namely, eight or ten feet. This being done, " another stratum of reed is laid on upon the first, so as to make the entire coat eighteen or twenty inches thick at the butts; and another sway laid along, and bound down, about twelve inches above the first." 2956. The eaves are adjusted and formed, not square with the spars, but nearly horizontal ; nor are they formed by cutting; but by "driving" them with a " legget," a tool made of a board eight or nine inches square, with a handle two feet long, fixed upon the back of it, obliquely, in the manner of the tool used by gardeners in beating turf. The face of the legget is set with large headed nails to render it rough, and make it lay hold of the butts of the reeds. Then another layer or reed is laid on, and bound down by another swat/, somewhat shorter than the last, and placed eighteen or twenty inches above it ; and above this another, and another, continuing to shorten the sways until they be brought off to nothing, and a triangular corner of thatching formed. After this, the sways are used their whole length, what- ever it happens to be, until the workman arrives at the finishing corner. By proceeding in this irre- gular manner seams between the courses are prevented, and unnecessary shifting of ladders avoided. 2957. The face of the roof is formed and adjusted like the eaves, by driving the reed with the legget ; which operation, if performed by a good workman, not only gives the roof a beautiful polished surface, but at the same time fastens the reed, which being thickest towards the butts, becomes like a tapering pin, the tighter the farther it is driven. 2958. Finishing the ridge of the roof. In the case of reed running from four to six or eight feet long, the heads meet at the ridge of the roof, whilst the butts are still at a distance from each other. For this reason, as well as for that of the wear being less towards the ridge, the shortest (which is generally the worst) reed is saved for the upper part of the roof. But even supposing the uppermost courses to be only four feet long, and that the heads (belonging to the two sides) be interwoven in some degree with each other, the butts will still remain six or seven feet asunder ; and the ridge of the roof consequently be left in a great measure exposed to the weather. In order to remedy this inconveniency, and to give a finish to the ridge, a cap — provincially a " roof of straw is set on in a masterly, but in an expensive manner. In this operation, the workman begins, it is observed, by bringing the roof to an angle, with straw laid long-way upon the ridge, in the manner in which a rick is topt up; and to render it firm, to keep in its place, and to prevent the wind from blowing it off, or ruffling it, he pegs it down slightly witli "double broaches;" namely cleft twigs, two feet long, and as thick as the finger, sharpened at both ends, bent double, and perhaps with the twisting the crown, and perhaps barbed, by partial chops on the sides, to make them hold in the better. This done, the workman lays a coat of straight straw, six or eight inches thick across the ridge, beginning on either side at the uppermost butts of the reed, and finishing with straight handsful evenly across the top of the ridge. And having laid a length of about four feet in this manner, he proceeds to fasten it firmly down, so as to render it proof against wind and rain. This is done by laying a ' hroachen Ugger^ (a quarter-cleft rod as thick as the finger, and four feet in length) along the middle of the ridge, pegging it down at every four inches with a double broach, which is thrust down with the hands, and afterwards driven with the legget, or with a mallet used for this purpose. The middle ligger being firmly laid, the thatcher smooths down the straw with a rake and his hands, about eight or nine inches on one side, and at six inches from the first, lays another ligger, and pegs it down with a similar number of double broaches, thus proceeding to smooth the straw, and to fasten on liggers at every six inches, until he reach the bottom of the cap. One side finished, the other is treated in the same manner; and the first length being completed, another and another length is laid, and finished as the first ; until the other end of the ridge be reached. He then cuts off the tails of the straw square and neatly with a pair of shears, level with the uppermost butts of the reed, above which the cap (or most properly the rooflet) shows an eaves, of about six inches thick ; and, lastly, he sweeps the sides of the main roof with a bough of holly ; when the work is completed. 2959. Trussing straw or hay is the operation of binding it in bundles for more con- venient deportation. In trussing hay from a rick it is cut into cubic masses with the hay knife (2408.), and tied by a hay rope passing once across each of its sides. If the trusses are intended for the market, they are weighed with a steelyard, and each truss of old stacked hay must weigh 56 pounds, and of new hay, during June, July, and August 60 pounds. 2960. Straw is commonly trussed by tying it into bundles by a band of a handful of straws, or a short rope across the middle of the bundle, or by a particular mode of twisting and turning back the two straggling ends of a loose armful of straw, and tying these ends in the middle. This mode, easier practised than described, is termed in the north bottling or windling. When wheat straw or any other sort is to be trussed for thatch, it is first drawn into regular lengths leaving out the refuse as already alluded to under thatching. In London, the straw sold for litter is always required to be trussed in this manner, and each truss is required to weigh 56 pounds. 2961. Threshing by the Jlail is still a very general practice in most of the southern counties, though all intelligent men agree that it is more expensive and less effectual than threshing by a machine. Even on the smallest sized farms where a horse machine would be too expensive, either the hand machine, or portable machine (245,3.) might be employed. Besides threshing cleaner, and that too in a manner independently of the care of the operators, the work is performed without the aid of expensive threshing floors, goes on rapidly, is a more agreeable description of labor for servants, employs women and children, and, finally, exposes the corn to less risk of pilfering. 2962. In the flail mode of threshing, the produce is constantly exposed to the depredations of the persons that are employed in executing the business, which is a great objection, and in many cases proves a source of great loss to the farmer, as he cannot by any means prevent the impositions to which it is liable. It has been observed by Middleton, in his Survey of Middlesex, that " where threshers are employed by the day, they frequently do not perform half the work that ought to be done in the time, nor even that in a perfectly clean manner." And that if " it be executed by the quarter, or by the truss, the freest corn is threshed out, and the rest left in the ear." The same thing takes place in a greater or less degree in every other mode that can be devised for having the work performed by the hand; and it is consequently only by the general introduction and use of the threshing machine that the property and interest of the farmer can be fully secured, and work be executed with a proper degree of economy. 2963. In respect to the mode of threshing corn try the flail, it is the practice in some districts for only one person to be employed upon a floor, but as two can thresh together with equal if not greater expedition and dispatch, it must be an ineconomical and disadvantageous mode. But where more than two laborer* Book V. MIXED OPERATIONS BY MANUAL LABOR. 463 thresh together, which is sometimes the case, there must be frequent Interruptions, and a consequent loss of time. The flail or tool by whicli this sort of business is performed should be well adapted to the size and strength of the person who makes use of it, as when disproportionately heavy in that part which acts upon the grain, it much sooner fatigues the laborer, without any advantage being gained in the beating out of the grain. The best method of attaching the different parts of the implement together is probably by means of caps and thongs of good tough leather. Iron is however sometimes employed. Irr threshing most sorts of corn, but particularly wheat, the operators should wear thin light shoes, in order to avoid bruising the grains as much as possible. In the execution of the wojk, when the corn is bound into sheaves, it is usual for the threshers to begin at the ear-ends, and proceed regularly to the others, then turning the sheaves in a quick manner by means of the flail, to proceed in the same way with the other side, thus finishing the work. 29t>l. The quantity of cam that a laborer will thresh with the flail in any given period of time, must depend on the nature of the grain, the freeness with which it threshes, and the exertions of the laborer ; in general it may be of wheat, from one to one and an half quarter, of barley from one and a half to two quarters; and of oats mostly about two in the day. The exertions of laborers in this sort of work in the northern districts of the kingdom are however much greater than in those of the south ; of course a much larger proportion of labor must be performed. In some places it is the practice to thresh by the measure of grain, as the bushel, quarter, &c., while in others it is done by the threave of twenty-four sheaves, and in some by the day. In whatever way the agricultor has this sort of business performed, there is always much necessity for his constant inspection, in order to prevent the frauds and impositions that are to frequently practised upon him by the persons engaged in the execution of it. 2965. The practice of whipping out grain is resorted to in some districts with wheat when the straw is much wanted for thatch. The operator takes a handful and strikes the ears repeatedly against a stone, the edge of a board, or the face of a strong wattled hurdle, till the corn is separated. 2966. Rippling is the operation of separating the boles or seed pods of flax and hemp by striking in the manner of whipping, or more commonly by dra%ving them through an implement of the comb kind, constructed with several upright triangular prongs set near together in a strong piece of wood. 2967. Hedging and ditching, the operation of making and mending fences and open water-courses of the different kinds already enumerated, consists of the combined application of digging, shovelling, cutting, clipping, and faggoting, described in this and the two foregoing Sections. 2968. Faggoting is a term applied to the dressing or binding of the prunings or superfluous branches and spray of hedges. The bundles are made of different sizes in different parts of the country, and in the same place according to the purpose to which they are to be applied. They are tied with willow, hazel, or some other pliable wood twisted before application. 2969. Stacking wood for fuel, occurs in the practice of common agriculture when hedges and pollard trees or tree-roots are stocked or dug up. The wood, whether roots or trunk, is cut into lengths of from eighteen inches to two feet with a saw, then split with iron wedges into pieces of not more than one and a half, or two inches in diameter, and built into an oblong stack generally three feet broad and high, and six feet long. 2970. Stacking wood for burning, stewing for tar, or pyrolignous acid, charring, and similar purposes, is peculiar to forest culture, and will be treated of in the proper place. (See Part III. or Index.) 2971. Paring and burning is the process of paring off the surface of lands in a state of grass, in order to prepare them for arable culture by means of fire. In the method of performing the process, there is some slight difference in the practice of different districts, and an attention to the nature of the lands is as necessary as in other cases of husbandry. It would seem that some soils, as those of the more clayey and heavy kinds, would be most benefited by having the fire to come as much as possible into contact with the whole of the superficial parts of them, without being carried too far, as by that means they may be rendered more proper for the reception of the roots of vegetables after being slightly ploughed, as well as more suitable for supplying nourish- ment to them ; while in others, as those of the more light and thin description, it might be most advantageous merely to consume the thin paring of sward after being piled up for the purpose ; without permitting the fire to exert its influence upon the mould or soil immediately below, as in this way there would not probably be so much danger of injuring the staple by destroying the vegetable matters contained in such soils. Of course, in the first of these modes of burning the sward, the sods or parings should be piled up as little as possible into heaps, the advantage of a suitable season being taken to apply the fire to them in the state in which they lie, or are set at first after being cut up, or after a few only have been placed together, as happens in some instances where they are, immediately after being cut, set on edge to dry, and placed in serpentine directions, in order to prevent them from falling over ; but in the latter cases they should be formed or built up into little circular heaps or piles, somewhat in the form and size of the little cocks made in hay-fields, the sods being placed the grass-side downwards, in order to admit air : but the openings both at the bottoms and tops, after they have been fully set on fire by some combustible substance, such as straw, &c. are to be closed up, as well as those in other parts covered by an addition of sods ; so as that the combustion may proceed in a slow, smothering manner, such as is practised in the making of char- 464 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. coal. When the whole of the earth in each of the piles has been acted upon by the fire, the heaps may be suffered to extinguish themselves by slowly burning out. 2972. A variety of this operation, called skirting or peat burning, is practised in Devon- shire and Cornwall, for breaking up and preparing grass lands for the reception of fallow crops J a part of the sward or surface is alternately left unturned, upon which the next thin furrow slice is constantly turned, so that the swards of each come in contact, by which means the putrefactive fermentation is speedily excited, and the greatest part of the grassy vegetable matter converted into manure ; what ultimately remains undestroyed being, after repeated cross-cuttings with the plough, and harrowings, collected into small heaps and burnt, the ashes being then spread evenly over the land. 2973. With respect to the implements used in paring, different kinds are made use of in different parts of the island : that which was the most employed in the infancy of the art, was a kind of curved mattock or adze, about seven or eight inches in length, and five or six in breadth ; and which, from its shape, would appear to have been better adapted for cutting up the roots of brush-wood, furze, broom, or other coarse shrubs, than for paring off the surface of a field free from such incumbrances. Where the sod is pared off by manual labor, the ordinary breast-spade, in some places called the breast-plough, and in Scotland the flaughter-spade (2378.), is mostly employed. In working the tool, the laborer generally cuts the sods at about an inch or an inch and a half thick, and from ten to twelve broad ; and when the spade has run under the sod to the length of about three feet, he throws it off, by turning the instrument to one side, and proceeds in the same way, cutting and throwing over the sods, the whole length of the ridge. In this way of performing the operation the laborers, by following each other with a slice of the sward or surface of the land, accomplish the business with much ease, and in an expedi- tious manner. 2974. In the fenny districts, on the eastern coasts, where paring and burning is prac- tised on a large scale, the horse-paring plough is used, made of different constructions,, according to the circumstances of the ground to be pared. These ploughs (fg' 415.) are calculated for paring off the sward or sod of such grounds as are level, and where neither stones, brush-wood, ant hills, nor other impediments obstruct their progress ; but where such obstructions present themselves g=T^^^ J^n\ r\ the breast-spade, or the common ^^^ \o = Lh team-plough, with a small al- teration of the share, will be found preferable, both in re- spect to the extent of ground that can be pared, and the su- perior manner in which the work in such cases can be performed. Ploughs, from their great expedition and regularity of performing the business, should always be made use of where the nature and situation of the land will admit them, in preference to such tools as require manual labor. 2975. In some of the toestern counties, the common plough only is used. There the old grass fields, when it is proposed to burn the sward, are rib or slob furrowed about the beginning of winter ; and being again cross-ploughed the following spring, the sods are collected and managed in the manner mentioned in speaking of skirting. In those cases the plough has, however, a wing turned up on the furrow side of the plough-share, by which the furrow is cut any breadth required. 2976. The season for paring and burning is April, May, and June: the particular period must, however, always depend much on the state of the weather and the nature of the crop. When the east winds prevail, in February arfd March, this sort of business may sometimes be carried on. But for accomplishing the work with the greatest dis- patch, and also with the least trouble and expense, a dry season is obviously the best. The prudent cultivator should not embark in the undertaking, unless there be a reason- able probability of his accomplishing it while the weather keeps dry and favorable. The latter end of May or the beginning of June, when the hurry of the spring-seed time is ovfer, in the more northern districts, when a number of hands can be most easily procured may, upon the whole, be considered as the best and most convenient season ; as at this period the green vegetable products are in their most succulent state, and of course may probably afford more saline matter ; but in the more southern counties either a much earlier season must be taken, or the interval between the hay season and the harvest time must be fixed upon, the latter of which is, on the principle just stated, evidently the best, where the extent of ground to be burnt is not too large. In other seasons it would fre- quently be impossible to procure a sufficient number of hands for performing the busi- ness. In bringing waste lands into cultivation, where an extensive tract of ground is to undergo this process, the autumn may, in many cases, afford a convenient opportunity Book V, OPERATIONS ON THE SOIL. 465 for the operation. A good deal depends on tlie crops that are to be sown after paring and burning. When rape or turnips are to be cultivated, the end of May, or the be- ginning of June, will be the most proper time : but if barley or oats are to be sown, the paring and burning must be completed as early in spring as the nature of the season will admit ; and when lands are pared and burned as a preparation for a crop of wheat, July, or even the beginning of August, may, in favorable seasons, answer ; but it is better to have the ground ready sooner if possible. 2977. In respect to the depth to which lands ofdiff^erent qualities may be jmred with the most advantage, it is obvious that, as it can hardly be proper to pare light, thin, stapled soils, to the same depths as those of the more deep and heavy kinds, it should, in some degree, be regulated by their particular nature, and tlieir differences in respect to depth and heaviness. Boys, who is in tlie habit of breaking up thin chalky soils, and such as have been in tillage, in this way, observes, that in Kent, where the method of paring most in use is with douni-shares or breast-ploughs, they take off turfs as thick as the nature of the soil will admit, from half an inch to two inches ; the thicker the better, provided there be a sufficient portion of vegetable matter contained within them to make them burn well. The most usual depths of paring are, from about one to three inches. 2978. In regard to burning, when the season is not very wet, the turfs will commonly bd sufficiently dried in about a fortnight or three weeks, even without being turned ; but in rainy weather they require a longer time, and must be turned more than once to pre- vent their striking out roots and shoots, which might hinder them from burning. 2979. Spreading the ashes. As soon as the turfs have fully undergone the process of burning, and are reduced to the state of ashes and a powdery earthy matter, the whole should, as soon as possible, be spread out over the land in as regular and equal a manner as the nature of the work will admit of; for without great attention in this respect, great inequality in the crops may take place; besides the soil will be made lighter in some places than in others, which may be disadvantageous in the same way. The spreading, where it can by any means be accomplished, should always be performed be- fore any rain falls ; as where this point is not attended to, a great loss may be sustained by the saline matters being carried down in a state of solution, and their beneficial ef- fects in a great measure lost before the crops are in a condition to receive them. In order to secure the full influence of the ashes, the land is frequently slightly ploughed over immediately after the ashes are spread out. And it is stated by Donaldson, that those who are more than ordinarily attentive in this respect, only rib or slob furrow the field, so that the ashes kher burning may be covered up with the greater expedition and dispatch. By tliis mode they cannot probably, however, be so equally mixed with the soil as by that of ploughing the whole field with a very slight furrow, So as just to cover them. 2980. The expense of the opei-alion of paring and burniiig will vary according to the nature and situation of the land, the method in which it is performed, and the customs of the district in regard to the price of labor. On the thin sort of chalky soils it is stated by Boys, tliat the expense for paring at a moderate thickness, where the land is not very flinty, is about equal to four or five ploughings. 2981 . The operation of drying and burning day for manure is in several respects similar to that of paring and burning the verdant surface. The practice of burning clay has at various times been pursued with energy and success, and at other times has fallen into neglect. The oldest book in which it is mentioned is probably 2'he Country Gentle- man^ s Companion, by Stephen Switzer, Gardener, London, 1732. In that work it is stated, that the Earl of Halifax was the inventor of this useful improvement; and that it was much practised in Sussex. There are engravings of two kilns for Ijurning clay, one adopted in England, and the other in Scotland ; where it is said to have been ascer- tained, that lands reduced by tillage to poverty, would produce an excellent crop of turnips, if the ground were ploughed two or three times, and clay ashes spread over it. In tfie same work, there are several letters, written in the years 1730 and 1731, stating, that the plan of burning clay had answered in several parts of England ; and accounts were received from Scotland, that upon experiment it had answered better than either lime or dung, but was found too expensive. The practice is described at length in EllLs's Practical Farmer, or Hertfordshire Husbandman, 1732. In 1786, James Arbuthnot, of Peterhead, tried several successful experiments with burning clay, and various others have since been made in different parts of the empire. In 1814, the practice was revived and written on by Craig, of Cally, near Dumfries, and soon after by General Beatson, near Tunbridge ; by Curwen, Burrows, and several correspondents of agricultural journals. In Ireland, it would appear, the practice prevails in severat places, and Craig says, he adopted it from seeing its effects there. The result of the whole is, that the benefits of this mode of manuring have been greatly exaggerated ; though they certainly appear to be considerable on clayey soils. Alton [Farmer s Mag. vol. xxii. p. 423.) compares this rage for burning clay, which existed in 1815, to the florin mania of a few years prior date. In 1822, he found few of the advocates for these H h 466 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. improvements disposed to say much on the subject, and saw veiy few clay kilns smoking. ** To give my ultimatum upon this subject," he says, " I regret that the discoverers of fiorin grass, and of the effects of burnt clay, have so far overrated their value. Both are useful and proper to be attended to ; — the grass to be raised on patches of marshy ground, and used as green food to cattle in winter ; and tlie burnt earth as a corrector of the mechanical arrangement of a stubborn clay soil ; and I have no doubt, but if they had been only recommended for those valuable purposes, they would have bten brought into more general use than they yet are, or will be, till the prejudice against them, arising from the disappointment of expectations, raised high by too flattering descriptions, are removed." 2982. The action of burnt clay on the soily is thus described by the same author. " It must be obvious to every person that has paid attention to the subject, that when clay, OT other earth, is burnt into ashes like brick-dust, it will not (unless acids are applied to it) return again to its former state of clay, but will remain in the granulated state of ashes or friable mould, to which it was reduced by the operation of burning. An ad- mixture of that kind, with a strong adhesive clay, must evidently operate as a powerful manure, by changing the mechanical arrangement of the latter, and rendering it more friable ; giving greater facility to the protection of redundant moisture, and to the spread- ing of the roots of vegetablSs in quest of food. The application of as much water, sand, or any similar substance, would have exactly the same effect in opening, and keeping open, the pores of an adhesive clay soil, and converting it into the quality of loam. Be- sides this, which would be a permanent improvement upon the staple or texture of every clay soil, burnt clay or torrefied earth may sometimes acquire, in that operation, a small quantity of soot or carbonic matter, that may, in favorable circumstances, operate for one season as a manure, or as a stimulus to a small extent, to the growth of vegetables. This at least may be the case, if the clay or earth burnt shall abound with vegetable matter, and if the burning is conducted in such a smothered way, as to prevent the smoke or vegetable matter from escaping. But as it is the subsoil that is recommended, ' and seems to be generally used for burning, it is impossible any considerable quantity of vegetable matter can be found in it. 2983. The calcareous matter in the soil, it is said, will be calcined and formed into lime by the operation of burning. But, I am disposed to consider this argument as far more plausible than solid. Calcareous matter is no doubt found, on chemical analysis, to a certain extent in some soils ; perhaps some per- ceptible portion of it may be found in every soil. But it is seldom or never found in any soil, to such an extent as to be of much use as a manure to other land. Even where the soil is impregnated with a large portion of calcareous matter, if it is not in the form of limestone, but minutely mixed with it, the burn- ing cannot either increase or much alter the lime. If it is in the form of stones, however small, or in what is called hmestone gravel, there is little chance of its being calcined in the operation of burning the clay ; it would go through that ordeal unaltered. Any change, therefore, that can be made upon the small portion of calcareous matter in the soil by burning in the manner directed, can scarcely have any perceptible effect, when that matter is applied as manure to other soils. And though it is possible that some qualities in particular soils, unfavorable to vegetation, may be corrected by burning, and that in some other instances the fire may render the clay more nutritive to plants (though I have not been able to trace this, or even to conjecture how it can happen), yet I am much disposed to believe, that its effect as a mechanical mixtwre in opening the pores of the soil, is the chief improvement that can be derived from the application of burnt clay as a manure. If it has any other effect, it must be from the soot or carbonic matter collected during the operation of burning ; or perhaps it may acquire by the torrefaction something of a stimulating quality, that may for a short time promote the growth of particular plants. But these qualities can only be to a small extent, and continue to act for a very Umited period. {Far. Mag. XX ii. 422.) 2984. The action of burnt clay, according to a writer in The Farmer s Journal, is at least three-fold, and may be manifold. It opens the texture of stubborn clays, gives a drain to the water, spiracles to the air, and affords to the roots facility of penetrating. Clay ashes burned from turves, containing an admixture of vegetable matter, con- sist, in some small proportion, of vegetable alkali, or potass, a salt which is known to be a good manure. It also, in most cases, happens, that a stiff cold clay is impreg- nated with pyrites, a compound of sulphuric acid and iron. Although the chemical attraction between these two bodies is so strong, that it is one of the most difficult opera- tions in the arts totally to free iron from sulphur, yet a very moderate heat sublimes a large portion of the sulphur. The iron is then left at liberty to re-absorb a portion of the redundant sulphuric acid, which too generally is found in these soils, and thereby sweetens the land ; and it is probable, that the bright red, or crimson calx of iron, which gives coloring to the ashes when over burnt, is beneficial to vegetation in the present case, insomuch as it is, of itself, one of the happiest aids to fertility, as is exemplified in the red marl strata, and red sand strata throughout the kingdom. The evolution and recom- bination of different gases, no doubt, materially affect the question ; but it is reserved for accurate chemical observers to give us an account of the processes which take place in this respect. Curwen notices, that clay ashes do no benefit as a top-dressing on grass, which is in part to be explained by reason that the ashes, when spread on the surface of the grass, cannot exert the mechanical action on the soil in the ways enumerated. Neither can the calx of iron come so immediately in contact with the particles of the soil, for tlie producing of any chemical effept, as it would do if the ashes were ploughed Book V. OPERATIONS ON THE SOIL, 4G7 in. In short, like many other manures which are laid on the surface, unless it contains something soluble which may be washed into the ground by rains, it does very little good; and the feeble proportion of vegetable alkali is probably the only soluble matter the ashes contain. However sanguine may be the admirers of burnt clay, all experience confirms, that the most beneficial clay-ashes are those which are burnt from the greatest proportion of rich old turf, ancient banks, roots of bushes, and other vegetable matters ; and I conceive the value of mere powdered pottery (for sucjfi it is) may easily be over- rated. (jP. Jourtu 1819.) 2985. The common method of burning clay is to make an oblong enclosure, of the dimensions of a small house (say 15 feet by lOj of green turf sods, raised to the height of 3^ or 4 feet. In the inside of this enclosure, air-pipes are drawn diagonally, which communicate with holes left at each corner of the exterior wall. These pipes are formed of sods put on edge, and the space between these so wide only as another sod can easily cover. In each of the four spaces left between the air-pipes and the outer wall, a fire is kindled with wood and dry turf, and then the whole of the inside of the enclosure or kiln filled with dry turf, which is very soon on fire ; and on the top of that, when well kindled, is thrown the clay, in small quantities at a time, and repeated as often as neces- sary, which must be regulated by the intensity of the burning. The air-pipes are of use only at first, because if the fire burns with tolerable keenness, the sods forming the pipes will soon be reduced to ashes. The pipe on the weather side of the kiln only is left open, the mouths of the other three being stopped up, and not opened, except the wind should veer about. As the inside of the enclosure, or kiln, begins to be filled up with clay, the outer wall must be raised in height, always taking care to have it at least 15 inches higher than the top of the clay, for the purpose of keeping the wind from acting on the fire. When the fire burns through the outer wall, which it often does, and particularly when the top is overloaded with clay, the breach must be stopped up immediately, wliich can only be effectually done by building another sod wall from the foundation, opposite to it, and the sods that formed that part of the first wall are soon reduced to ashes. The M'all can be raised as high as may be convenient to throw on the clay, and the kiln may be increased to any size, by forming a new wall when the previous one is burnt through. 2986. The principal art in burning consists in having the outer wall made quite close and impervious to the external air, and taking care to have the top always lightly, but completely covered with clay ; because if the external air should come in contact with the fire, either on the top of the kiln, or by means of its bursting through the sides, the fire will be very soon extinguished. In short, the kilns require to be attended nearly as closely as charcoal pits. Clay is much easier burnt than either moss or loam ; — it does not undergo any alteration in its shape, and on that account allows the fire and smoke to get up easily between the lumps ; whereas moss and loam, by crumbling down, are very- apt to smother the fire, unless carefully attended to. No rule can be laid down for regu- lating the size of the lumps of clay thrown on the kiln, as that must depend on the state of the fire ; but I have found every lump completely burnt on opening the kiln ; and some of them were thrown on larger than my head. Clay, no doubt, burns more readily if it be dug up and dried for a day or two before it be thrown on the kiln ; but this operation is not necessary, as it will burn though thrown on quite wet. After a kiln is fairly set a going, no coal or wood, or any sort of combustible is necessary, the wet clay burning of itself, and it can only be extinguished by intention, or the carelessness of the operator, — the vicissitudes of the weather having hardly any effect on the fire, if properly attended to. It may, perhaps, be necessary to mention, that when the kiln is burning with great keenness, a stranger to the operation may be apt to think that the fire is ex- tinguished. If, therefore, any person, either through impatience, or too great curiosity, should insist on looking into the interior of the kiln, he will certainly retard, and may possibly extinguish the fire ; for, as before mentioned, the chief art consists in keeping out the external air from the fire. Where there is abundance of clay, and no great quantity of green turf, it would perhaps be best to burn the clay in draw-kilns the same as lime. 2987. An improved method of burning clay \\2i^heen adopted by Colonel Dickson, at Hexham, and other gentlemen, in Northumberland. Instead of building a kiln, gratings or arches of cast iron are used to form a vau Itor funnel for the fuel, and over this funnel the clay is built. The grated arches are made about two feet and a half long, two feet diameter, and about fourteen inches high. One grating is to be filled with brushwood, stubble, or any other cheap fuel, and the clay as it is dug, built upon it to a convenient height, leaving small vacancies, or boring holes, to allow the heat to penetrate to the middle and outer parts of the clay. When a suflficient quantity is built upon the first grating, another is added at either or both ends, filled with similar fuel, and the clay built upon them as before. This process is continued until 10, 12, or a greater number, of the gratings have been usedv when one end is built up or covered with clay, and at the other, under the last grating, a fire is made of coals or faggot wood. The end at which the H h 2 468 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. fire is made should face the wind if possible, and if the process has been properly con- ducted the clay will be effectually burnt. By commencing with a centre grating in the form of a cross {Jig- 416. ^ the workman may build from four ends in the place of two ; this contrivance will afford a facility in the work, and have a draft of wind at two entrances. 2988. The advantage of this mode of burning clay is the savinc' of cartage, as the clay may be always burned where it is dug. 2989. Burning clay and surface soil by lime without fuel, has been practised by Curwen, {Farm. Mag. vol. xvi. p. 11, 12.) in the following manner. Mounds of seven yards in length, three and a half in breadth, are kindled with seventy-two Winchester bushels of lime. First, a layer of dry sods or parings, on which a quantity of lime is spread, mixing sods with it, then a covering of eight inches of sods, on which the other half of the lime is spread, and covered a foot thick ; the height of the mound being about a yard. In twenty-four hours it will take tire. The lime should be immediately from the kiln. It is better to suffer it to ignite itself, than to effect it by the operation of water. When the fire is fairly kindled, fresh sods must be applied. Mr. Curwen recommends obtaining a sufficient body of ashes before any clay was put on the mounds. The fire naturally rises to the top. It takes less time, and does more work to draw down the ashes from the top, and not to suffer it to rise above six feet. The former practice of burning in kilns was more expensive ; did much less work ; and, in many instances, calcined the ashes, and rendered them of no value. 2990. Use of pyrites in burning clay. A writer in The Farmer s Journal (Dec. 1821\ asserts that " the greater part of niglny beds of cold clay contain in them a substance, or ingredient, which is in itself, to a great degree, combustible, as is known to every brick-burner. This probably is, in most cases, the sulphur of the pyrites contained in the clay ; but be it what it may, it prevails to such a degree, that a very small quantity of fuel is usually sufficient to burn a very large body of clay. It is only requisite to have sufficient fuel to set fire to the heap at first, so as to raise a body of heat ; and, for the rest, the clay will nearly burn of itself, being judiciously arranged round and upon the burning centre. The ashes are in the best state when they have been exposed only to a moderate heat ; namely, to a heat not only far below what will produce vitrification, but even so low as not to produce a permanent red color : the black ashes, or dirty red, and brownish red, being made superior in value to bright red ashes, that is, to well burnt bricks. The heat is moderated chiefly by the judicious application of the crumbs and mouldering fragments of clay or soil, so as to prevent the draft of the air through the apertures between the large clods or tufts from being too free. A very small admixture of vegetable fuel suffices to keep up the fire. 2991. The application of burnt clay as a manure is the same as that of lime: it is spread over fallows or lands in preparation for turnips, at the rate of from thirty to fifty loads or upwards per acre. ?. II. Agricultural Operations requiring the Aid of Laboring Cattle. 2992. Operations requiring the aid of laboring cattle, are in a peculiar manner entitled to the appellation of agricultural. Almost all the operations described in the former Chapter, may be performed by common country laborers j but those we are now to enter on, are exclusively performed by farm servants. They may be classed as operations for the use and management of live stock, labors on the soil, and compound operation . ■ Sect. I. Operations for the Care of Live Slock. 2993. Herding or tending of cattle is the simplest operation with domestic animals. It consists in conducting them to a certain pasturage ; keeping them within the pre- scribed limits; preventing them from injuring one another; observing if any are dis- eased, and the like. It is commonly performed with the aid of the dog, and by boys or girls for a small herd or flock, and aged or elderly men for larger herds. In modern times, the place of the cow and cattle herd is generally supplied by fences ; but where large Hocks of sheep are kept, it is still necessary to have a shepherd; not, in many cases, so much to keep the flock together and in its proper place, as to watch the progress of their Book V. OPERATIONS FOR THE CARE OF LIVE STOCK. 469 growth, the approaches of disease, parturition, &c. In almost all cases, mild and gentle treatment ought to be made the shie qua non of the herdman's conduct. 2994. Cleaning cattle is the operation of rubbing, brushing, combing, and washing their bodies and picking their feet. The legs of cattle, when soiled by labor, are com- monly washed by walking them two or three times through a pond, formed on purpose, in or near to farmeries. As soon as they are put in the stable and unharnessed, the legs, and such parts as are wetted, should be powerfully rubbed with dry straw, so as to dry the hair , and tlie same process should be applied to the rest of the body if they have been in a state of copious perspiration. At the same time their feet should be picked, and their hoofs freed from any earth or small stones which may have lodged under the shoe, or in the case of laboring oxen between the hoofs. Combing and brushing can only be per- formed when the hair and skin are perfectly dry, and in farmeries is generally done in the morning when they are first fed, and in the evening when last fed. In general, it may be considered as experimentally decided, that cleaning cattle of every description, cows and oxen, as well as horses, contributes much to their health as well as to their beauty. If swine were cleaned as regularly as horses, there can be no doubt they would be equally benefited by it. Some amateurs have their feeding swine regularly cleaned ; but the greater part of professional agriculturists content themselves with fixing one or more rubbing posts in each stye, with frequent renewing of the litter. 2995. Feeding or supplying food to cattle^ is an operation which, like every other, however simple or Immble, requires attention and a principle of action. Food ought to be given at stated times, in such quantities as to satisfy but not glut the animals, and varied in quality so as to keep alive appetite. Water ought to be regularly supplied according to the kind of food, the state of the animal, and the season of the year. Cat- tle, who are fed in part on green food or roots, will require less water than those fed on dry hay, straw, or corn ; and cattle that have been at work and perspiring, will require more water than such as have been idle or at pasture. In summer, cattle fed on dry food obviously require more water than in winter, owing to the increased perspiration. The case of sick animals must be regulated by the nature of their disease, or directed by the veterinary surgeon. In treating of agricultural animals, (Part III.) we shall give the diseases, and treatment of each. 2996. 2Vie harnessing of cattle requires attention, §rst, that the harness be in complete order; and secondly, that it fit the parts of the animal to which it is applied. Collars and saddles are the leading articles, and when they gall or in any way incommode the animal, they are ruinous to his comfort, and soon render him unfit for labor. Even when they fit properly, an improper mode of fixing the collar-blades (hames), and tying the girth of the saddle, may greatly annoy tlie animal, and render him restive during the whole period he is in yoke. 2997. The yoking of draught animals requires still more attention than harnessing them. To know when an animal is properly yoked, or placed in proper circumstances to perform the kind of labor assigned to him, it is necessary to have clear ideas as to the kind of power to be exerted by the animal, whether drawing, carrying, pushing, or two, or all of these. The horse and ox draw from their shoulders, carry from their back, and push with their breech. The point of resistance in all weights, or objects to be dragged or pushed along the ground's surface, lies below the centre of gravity ; and in all cases of drawing, a line from this point of resistance to the collar of the animal, should form a right angle with the plane of the collar-bone. Hence the necessity of not suspending the plough chains from the back of the animal by means of the back band, as is some- times done, but of allowing them to hang freely so as to form a straight line from the collar blades through the muzzle of the plough to the point of resistance. Hence also the advantage of yoking two horses in a cart by means of the endless rope or chain already described (2613.). In yoking animals where the labor is principally carrying a weight, as in carting, great care is requisite that the weight be not oppressive, and that the sus- pending chain move freely in the groove of the saddle so as to produce a perfect equipoise. Various opinions are entertained as to the weight which a horse can carry with or without drawing at the same time. According to the practice of experienced carters, if a one-horse cart is loaded with 20 cwt., 5 cwt., but not more, may be allowed to rest on the back of the horse by means of the traces, chain, and saddle. This is meant to apply where the roads are level ; in going up or down hill to admit of the same proportion of weight, the traces, or shafts, or the bearing chain, must be lowered or raised according to circumstances. Yoking animals to push only, is a case that seldom or never occurs ; but it will be useful to mention, that as the line of the breech of animals is nearly perpendicular to the horizon, so the principle being, that the line of exertion should be at right angles to the exerting surface ; so the direction of pushing or backing, as it is commonly called, may be a horizontal line, or a line parallel to the surface on which the animal stands. 470 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pari II. Sect. II. Labors with Cattle on the Soil. 2998. Plotcghing is justly considered the most important of agricultural operations, as on the manner in wliich this is performed, depends the facility of executing all succeeding operations on the same piece of land. The plough acts as a wedge, separating a portion of the soil and turning it over at the same time. If this wedge is properly constructed, and if the soil presented everywhere the same resistance to it, it vvou Id require no holding, but would maintain its position when drawn along by the cattle ; but as the least ine- quality of surface, or tenacity, or the additional resistance of a root or stone destroys the equilibrium of the forces acting against the wedge, the presence of the holder or ploughman becomes necessary to adjust its position. In two-wheeled ploughs, however, this is done in a great measure by the wheels, but not so rapidly as by the instantaneous move- ment of the holder on the ends of the handles acting as levers. The manual operation of holding the plough in a proper position, and directing the horses or cattle which draw it at the same time, is only to be acquired by experience ; when once attained it is perhaps the most agreeable and healthy of agricultural exercises, the body being kept upright, the arms and legs brought into action, and also the eye and the mind, to keep the furrow straight and of regular width and depth, and the voice to speak to the horses. It is almost needless to mention that the art of drawing a straight furrow with a plough in which the horses are yoked in pairs, consists in keeping each of the horses a small distance apart, so as to see forward between them ; and next to fix the eye on two or more objects beyond the land to be ploughed, and keep these objects and the coulter or muzzle of the plough always in one line. By far the best practical directions for ploughing have been given by the author of the article Agriculture in the supplement to the Encyclopcedia Brit., which we shall quote at length. 2999. Three different points require particular attention in ploughing : 1. The breadth of the slice to be cut ; 2. its depth ; and 3. the degree in which it is to be turned over ; — which last circumstance depends both upon the construction of the plough, particularly the mould-board, and the care of the ploughman. > 3000. The breadth and depth of the furrow-slice are regulated by judiciously placing the draught on the nozzle or bridle of the plough ; .setting it so as to go more or less deep, and to take more or less land or breadth of slice, according as may be desired. In general, the plough is so regulated that, if left to itself, and merely kept from falling over, it would cut a little broader and a little deeper than is required. The. ' coulter is also placed with some inclination towards the left or land side, and the point of the sock or share has a slight tendency downwards. 3001. The degree to which the furrow-slke turns over, is in a great measure determined by the proportion between its breadth and depth, which for general purposes is usually as three is to two ; or when the furrow is nine inches broad, it ought to be six inches in depth. "When the slice is cut in this proportion, it will be nearly half turned over, or recline at an angle of forty or forty-five degrees ; and a field so Elougbed will have its ridges longitudinally ribbed into angular drills or ridgelets. But if the slice is much roader in proportion to its depth, it will be almost completely overturned, or left nearly flat with its original surface downwards; and each successive slice will be somewhat overlapped by that which was turned over immediately before it. And finally, when the depth materially exceeds the width, each furrow-slice will fall over on its side, leaving all the original surface bare, and only laid somewhat obhquely to the horizon. 3002. Ploughing with the breadth and depth nearly in the proportion of three to tivo, is best adapted for laying up stubble land after harvest, when it is to remain during winter exposed to the mellowing influence of frost, preparatory to fallow or turnips. 5003. The shallow furrow of considerable width, as five inches in depth by eight or nine wide, is under- stood to aitswer best for breaking up old leys ; because it covers up the grass turf, and does not bury the manured soil. 3004. Ploughing with the depth of the furrow considerably exceeding the width, is a most unprofitable and ■ uselessly slow operation, which ought seldom or never to be adopted. 3005. The most generally useful breadth of a furrow-slice is from eight to ten inches, and the depth, which ought to be seldom less than four inches, cannot often exceed six or eight inches, except in soils uncom- monly thick and fertile. When it is necessary to go deeper, as for carrots and some other deep-rooted plants, a trench ploughing may be given by means ot a second plough following in the same furrow. 3006. Shallow ploughing ought always to be adopted after turnips are eaten on the ground, that the manare may not be buried too deep ; and also in covering lime, — especially if the ground has been pulve- rized by fallowing, because it naturally tends to sink in the soil. In ploughing down farm-yard dung, it is commonly necessary to go rather deep, that no part of the manure may be left exposed to the atmosphere. In the first ploughing for fallows or green crops, it is advisable to work as deep as possible, and no great danger is to be apprehended, though a small portion of the subsoil be at that time brought to the surface. 3007 The furrow-slices are generally distributed into beds varying in breadth according to circumstances ; these are called ridges or lands, and are divided from one another by gutters or open furrows. These last serve as guides to the hand and eye of the sower to the reapers, and also for the application of manures in a regular manner. In soils of a strong or retentive nature, or which have wet close subsoils, these furrows serve likewise as drains for carrying off the surface water, and being cleared out, after the land is sown and harrowed, have the name of water furrows. 3008. Ridges are not only different in breadth, but are raised more or less in the middle, on different soils On clayey retentive soils, the great point to be attended to is the discharge of superfluous water. But narrow ridges or stitches oi from three to five feet, are not approved of in some of the best cultivated counties. In these a breadth of fifteen or eighteen feet, the land raised by two gatherings of the plough, is most commonly adopted for such soils ; such ridges being thought more convenient for manuring, sowing, harrowing, and reaping, than narrower ones ; and the water is drained off quite as effectually. 3009. Ridges on dry porous turnip soils, may be formed much broader ; and were it not for their use in directing the laborers, may be, and sometimes are, dispensed with altogether. They are often thirty, or thirty-six feet broad,(which in Scotland are called band-win ridges, because reaped by a band of shearers, commonly six, served by one binder. If it be wished to obliterate the intermediate furrows, this may be tloue by casting up a narrow ridgelet or single bout-drill between the broad ridges, which is afterwards levelled by the harrows. 3010. The mode of forming ridges, straight and of uniform breadth, is as follows ; let us suppose a field perfectly level that is intended to be laid off into rid<;es of any determinable breadth. The best plough- man belonging to the farm conducts the operation, with the aid of three or more poles shod with iron, in Book V. LABORS WITH CATTLE. 47l the following manner : The first thing is to mark off the head ridges, on which the horses turn in ploughing, which should in general be of an equal breadth from the bounding lines of the field, if these lines are not very crooked or irregular. The next operation, assuming one straight side of the (ield, or a line that has been made straight, as the proper direction of the ridges, is to measure off from it with one of the poles (all of them of a certain length, or expressing specific measures), half the intended breadth of the ridge, if it is to be gathered, or one breadth and a half if to be ploughed flat ; and there the ploughman sets up a pole as a direction for the plough to enter. On a line with this, and at some distance, he plants a second pole, and then in the same manner a third, fourth, &c., as the irregularity of the sur- face may render necessary, though three must always be employed, — the last of them at the end of the intended ridge, and the whole in one straight line. He then enters the plough at the first pole, keeping the line of poles exactly between his horses, and ploughs down all the poles successively ; halting his horses at each, and replacing it at so many feet distant as the ridges are to be broad ; so that when he reaches the end of the ridge, all his poles are again set up in a new Une parallel to the first. He returns however, along his former track, correcting any deviations, and throwing a shallow furrow on the side opposite to his fonner one. These furrows, when reversed, form the crown of the ridge, and direct the ploughmea who are to follow. The same operations are carried on until the whole field is marked out. This is called feiring in Scotland, and striking the furrows in England. It is surprising with what accuracy these lines are drawn by skilful ploughmen. 3011. Another 7nethod has been 3.AoTi)te(!i for the same purpose, which promises to be useful with less experienced workmen. A stout lath or pole, exactly equal in length to the breadth of the intended ridge, is fixed to the plough, at right angles to the line of the draught, one end of which is placed across the handles exactly opposite the coulter, while the other end projects towards the left hand of the plough- man, and is preserved in its place by a rope passing from it to the collar of the near side horse. At the outer end of the lath, a coulter or harrow tine is fixed perpendicularly, which makes a trace or mark on the ground as the plough moves onwards, exactly parallel to the line of draught. By this device, when the plough \s feiring the crown of one ridge, the marker traces the line on which the next ridge is to be Jeired. {General Report of Scotland, vol. i. p. 354.) 3012. The direction and length of ridges, are points which must evidently be regulated by the nature of the surface, and the size of the field. Short angular ridges, called butts, which are often necessary in a field with irregular boundaries, are always attended with a considerable loss of time, and ought to be avoided as much as possible. 3013. In ploughing steep land it is advisable to give the ridges an inclination towards the right hand at the top, by which, in going up the acclivity, the furrow falls more readily from the plough, and with less fatigue to the horses. Another advantage of forming ridges in a slanting direction on such land is, that the soil is not so apt to be washed down from the higher ground, as if the ridges were laid at right angles. "Wherever circumstances will permit, the best direction, however, is due north and south, by which the grain on both sides of the ridge enjoys nearly equal advantages from the influence of the sun. 3014. Ribbing, a kind of imperfect ploughing, was formerly common on land intended for barley, and was executed soon after harvest, as a preparation for the spring ploughings. A similar operation is still in use in some places, after land has been pulverized by clean ploughings, and is ready for receiving the seed. By this method only half the land is stirred, the furrow being laid over quite flat, and covering an eciual space of the level surface. But, except in the latter instance, where corn is meant to grow in pa- rallel lines, and where it is used as a substitute for a drill-machine, ribbing is highly objectionable, and has become almost obsolete. 301 5. Land thus formed into ridges, is afterwards cultivated without marking out the ridge» anew J until the inter-furrows have been obliterated by a fallow or fallow crop. This is done by one or other of the following modes of ploughing. 1. If the soil be dry, and the land has been ploughed flat, the ridges are split out in such a way, that the space which the crown of the old ridge occupied is now allotted to the open furrow between the new ones. This is technically called crown arid furrow jdoughing, 2. When the soil is naturally rather wet, or, if the ridges have been raised a little by former ploughings, the form of the old ridges, and the situation of the inter-furrows, are preserved by what is called casting, that is, the furrows of each ridge are all laid in one direction, while those of the next adjoining ridges are turned the contrary way ; two ridges being always ploughed together. 3. It is commonly necessary to raise the ridges on soils very tenacious of moisture, by what is called gathering, which is done by the plough going round the ridge, beginning at the crown and raising all the furrow slices inwards. 4. This last •peration, when it is wished to give the land a level surface, as in fallowing, is reversed by turning all the furrow-slices outwards ; beginning at the inter- furrows, and leaving an open furrow on the crown of each ridge. In order to bring the land into as level a state as possible, the same mode of ploughing or cleaning, as it is called, may be repeated as often as necessary. 3016. With respect to ploughing relatively to time, in the strongest lands, a pair gf good horses ought to plough three quarters of an acre in nine hours, but upon the same land, after the first ploughing, on friable soils, one acre, or an acre and a quarter is a common day's work. Throughout the year, an acre a day may be considered as a full average, on soils of a medium consistency. The whole series of furrows on an English statute acre, supposing each to be nine inches broad, would extend to 19,360 yards ; and adding twelve yards to every 220 for the ground travelled over in turning, the whole work of one acre may be estimated as extending to 20,416 yards, or eleven miles and nearly five furlongs. 3017. In jdoughing relatively to season, it is well known, tliat clayey or tenacious soils should never be ploughed when wet ; and that it is almost equally improper to allow tliem to become too dry ; especially if a crop is to be sown without a second ploughing. The state in whicJi such lands should be ploughed is that which is commonly indicated by the phrase, « between the wet and the dry," — while the ground is slightly moist, mellow, and the least cohesive. 3018. The season best for ploughing the first time for falloiv or green crops, is immedi- ately after harvest, or after wheat sowing is finished ; 'and when tliis land has been gone Hh 4 472 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II, over, the old tough swards, if there be any, are next turned up. The reasons for ploughing so early are sufficiently obvious ; as the frosts of winter render the soil more friable for the spring operations, and assist in destroying the weed roots. In some places, however, the first ploughing for fallow is still delayed till after the spring seed-time. 3019. The cultivator, grubber, scvffler', scarifiers and such like implements (2533.), are used to lessen the number of ploughings in fallows or light free soils. Their operation differs from that of the plough in not reversing the surface, and therefore they can never, as some have proposed, become a substitute for that implement. Still the grubber is a valuable implement. William Lester, late of Northampton, who is said first to have invented an implement of this kind, declares himself confident that one man, a boy, and six horses, will move as much land in a day, and as effectually, as six ploughs : — meaning land in a fallow state, that has been previously ploughed. We have elsewhere pointed out the mode of using this description of tillage implements (2;)27.), one great advantage of which is that they may be used by the unskilful, and even by operators who cannot guide a plough. 3020. The operation if harrowing is intended both to drag out weeds and to cover the seeds when sown. It is obvious that implements of different sizes are not only necessary, but even that these implements should be worked in different ways, according to the strength and condition of the soil on which they are employed, and the nature of the work to be executed. When employed to reduce a strong obdurate soil, not more than two of the common sort (2569.) should be yoked together, because they are apt to ride and tumble upon each other, and thus impede the work, and execute it imperfectly. It may also be remarked that on rough soils, harrows ought to be driven as fast as the horses can walk ; because their effect is in direct proportion to the degree of velocity with which they are driven. In ordinary cases, and in every case where harrowing is meant for covering the seed, and the common implement in use, three harrows are the best yoke, because they fill up the ground more effectually, and leave fewer vacancies, than when a smaller number is ^ employed: the improved forms, \ o wT calculated to cover the breadth of two or more of the old harrows by one frame (Jig. 417.), are only calculated for flat ridges ; or for working dry lands in which ridging is not requisite. 3021. The harrow-man s at- tention, at the seed process, should be constantly directed to prevent these implements from riding upon each other, and to keep them clear of every impediment, from stones, lumps of earth, or clods, and quickens or grasi roots ; for any of these prevent the implement from working with perfection, and causes a mark or trail upon the surface, always unpleasing to the eye, and generally detrimental to the vegetation of the seed. 3022. Harrowing is usually given in different directions, first in length, then across, and finally in length, as at first. Careful agricultors study, in the finishing part of the process, to have the harrows drawn in a straight line, without suffering the horses to go in a zig-zag manner, and are also attentive that the horses enter fairly upon the ridge, without making a curve at the out-set. In some instances, an excess of harrowing has been found very prejudicial to the succeeding crop ; but it is always necessary to give so much as to break the furrow, and level the surface, otherwise the operation is imper- fectly performed. 3023. Horse hoeing is the operation of stirring the ground between rows of vegetables, by means of implements of the hoe, coulter, or pronged kind, drawn by horses. Who- ever can guide a jilough will find no difficulty in managing any implement used for stirring ground. The easiest kinds are those which have few hoes or coulters, or shares, and a wheel in front ; and the easiest circumstances, wide intervals between the rows, and a loose friable soil. Wherever soil is hard, rough, rounded, as in the case of high- raised ridges, there should not be more than three prongs or shares in the implement, because more than three points can never touch a curved surface, and be in one plane ; and if not in one plane, they will never work steadily, equally, and agreeably. 3024. Turnip hoeing of every kind is accordingly exceedingly easy ; but stirring the Book V. LABORS WITH CATTLE. 473 earth between rows of beans on a strong clay soil in a time of drought is proportionally difficult, and sometimes, when tlie ground rises in large lumps, dangerous for the plants. In stirring the soil between rows of beans, cabbages, or other plants, on strong or loamy soils, a small plough often answers better than any of the pronged or coulted implements, at least for the first and last operation of bean culture. Dr. Anderson, indeed, affirms with great truth, that nearly all the various operations of horse-hoeing may be executed by the common swing-plough in an equally effectual manner, as by any of the hoe- ploughs usually made use of, 3025. Drilling, or the deposition of seed in rows by means of a drill machine, is an operation that requires considerable care in the performance. The points that require particular attention are keeping the rows straight and at equal distances throughout their length, depositing the seed at a proper depth, and delivering the seed in proper quantity according to its kind and the nature of the soil. For these purposes the ground must have been previously well prepared by ploughings and harrowings, excepting in the particular case of drilling beans with one furrow. This operation is generally performed in the course of ploughing, either by a person pushing forward a bean-drill barrow, or by attaching a hopper and wheel, with the necessary apparatus to the plough itself. The mode of regulating the depth of the drill, and the quantity of seed delivered, must depend on the kind of drill used, and only requires attention in the holder. In drilling turnips the land is most generally made up into ridgelets 27 or 30 inches centre from centre, by a single bout (go about), or return of the common plough. The North- umberland machine which sows two rows at once, is then drawn over them by one horse walking between the ridges without a driver, the holder at once performing that operation and keeping the machine steady on the tops of the drills. One of the two rollers of this machine smooths the tops of the ridges before the seed is deposited, and the other follows and compresses the soil and covers the seed. 3026. In drilling corn several rows are sown at once, and great care is requisite to keep the machine steady and in a straight line : for most soils two horses and a driver arc required for this purpose ; the driver aiding in filling the hopper with seed, &c. 3027. In all cases of drilling it must be recollected that the principal intention of the operation is to admit of horse-hoeing the crop afterwards ; hence the necessity of straight rows and uniform distances ; and hence also the advantage of burying the manure under the drill or row, that it may not be exposed to the air in after-working. 3028. Rolling is the operation of drawing a roller over the surface of the ground with the view of breaking down the clods, rendering it more compact, and bringing it even and level ; or it may be limited to smoothing and consolidating the surface. It is prac- tised both upon the tillage and grass lands, and is of much utility in both sorts of husbandry. In the former case it is made use of for the purpose of breaking down and reducing the cloddy and lumpy parts of the soil in preparing it for the reception of crops, and in rendenng light soils more firm, even, and solid, after the seed is put in. It is likewise found beneficial to the young crops in the early spring in various instances. In order to perform this operation in the most complete and effectual manner a roller of considerable weight is necfessary ; and in order to prevent, as much as possible, the ground from being injured by the feet of the animals that draw it, as may frequently be the case where they follow each other in tlie same tract, it is the best practice to have them yoked double, as by that means there will be less treading on the same portion of surface. Where two horses are sufficient to execute the work more should never be made use of; but if a third should be found necessary, it may be attached as a leader in the middle before the other two : a greater number of horses can seldom or ever be of any material advantage in this sort of work. It is necessary to see that every part of the surface re- ceives the due impression of the implement, and that the head lands are not injured by the turnings. On lands where the work is regularly performed, it will seldom be requisite to pass more than once in a place, but in other cases it may often be done more frequently with benefit, and in particular cases a more frequent repetition of the operation is abso- lutely requisite in order to bring the ground into a proper state. 3029. In rolling grass lands it is necessary to attend in a particular manner to the season, as it cannot be performed with advantage either when the surface is in too dry or too moist a condition. In these cases the work of rolling may be advantageously per- formed at different seasons, as in the beginning of the autumn, and in the commence- ment of the year, or very early spring months : but the latter is the most common period. In the drier descriptions of land it may frequently be performed in the most beneBcial manner, after the land has been rendered a little soft by a moderate fall of r;iin ; but in those of tlie contrary sort, it may be necessary to wait till the superabundant moisture be so much dried up, as to admit the animals employed in drawing the machine without poaching, or otherwise injuring the surface of the ground while the process is going on. The rolling of watered meadows, it has been remarked by BoswelJ, should be executed towards the latter end of February or beginning of the following month, 474 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. after the land has been left in a dry state for a week or ten days. The work should be performed lengthwise of the panes, going up one side of the trenches and down the other. And in the case of rolling the common hay lands, it is a good mode to proceed up one side of the field and down the other, somewhat in a similar manner, as by that means the work may be the most completely executed. 3030. Horse-raking, or the collecting the scattered straws of com or hay crops by the rake, is an operation of little art or trouble in the execution. The proper implement being employed, it is generally drawn by one horse, conducted by a man, who walks behind, and when the rake tills, lifts it up without stopping the horse, and always at the same place, so as to deposit the rakings in regular rows across the field. The same mode is followed whether in raking hay, corn, stubble, or weeds from fallow grounds. 3031. Driving carts and waggons, though the easiest of all operations, is very fre- quently shamefully performed by servants. Almost every body knows this ; and it is humiliating to consider that we are considered the most inhuman nation in Europe in our treatment of horses. In most other countries these animals, and even oxen, are taught to obey the word of the driver ; but in Britain he requires both halter or rein, and a whip ; and in most parts of England the slightest movement from right to left is indicated to the animal by the latter implement. Driving is more especially neglected, or wretchedly performed, near large towns, and especially round London, where little or no attention is paid to avoiding the ruts ; choosing the best part of the road ; going in a direct line ; altering the position of the load (by means of the back chain or the construc- tion of the cart where that admits of it) in going up or down hill ; or seeing whether both horses (where two are used) , draw equally. The reverse of this conduct ought to be that of a careful and humane driver, who being first certain that his cattle are pro- perly yoked and his load fairly adjusted so as to be neither too heavy nor too light for the wheel or shaft horse, will see that they proceed along the best part of the road in a straight line, avoiding the ruts when deep or unequal — that all the horses draw equally as far as practicable — that proper care and tim.ely precautions be taken to avoid other machines meeting or passing, and that no sudden motion or jerk of the horses, be re- quired on any occasion. In dividing tlie road where it is steep or in a bad state, the horses ought to be drawn aside gradually, and gradually led on again ; it being easier to descend or ascend either a good or bad convex road obliquely, than at an acute angle. Lastly, servants ought on no account to be allowed to ride on laden carts or waggons, especially the former ; or to walk at a distance from them either before or behind. There are many other points which require attending to in this department of agriculture, such as not striking animals on the head or legs ; nor kicking them, or using a pole or handle of any implement that may be at hand, in administering chastisement ; but these must be left to the care and discretion of masters, whose interest it is to be most vigilant in watching those who are engaged in this department. 3032. One mode of lessening the evils of careless driving and inhumanity to animals, consists in employ- ing chiefly married servants, and as is generally the case, letting each have the exclusive care and working of one pair of horses. Such men are steadier, and remain much longer in their situations than single men, and are therefore more likely to feel an interest in the welfare and good condition of their horses, as well as in the good opinion of their employer. 3033. Driving cattle in a threshing machine required particular care before the inge- nious invention described (2638.) to equalize the draught of the different animals ; where this invention is applied it requires, little more than speaking to such of the cattle as have a tendency to relax in their exertions. Sect. III. Labors and Operations with the Croju 3034. Labors with the crop, chiefly comprise stacking and housing. 3035. Stacking is the operation of building or piling up unthreshed corn, hay, straw, or other dried crops in convenient forms, and so as to admit of their being thatched as a defence from the weather. Stacks are of various forms and dimensions, according to circumstances ; in some districts they are formed square or oblong, both for hay and corn ; but where threshing machines are in use, the circular base with cylindrical body, diverging a little at the eaves, and a conical top, is decidedly preferred, as being more conve- nient in size and form, and better adapted for early stacking in wet seasons than any other. For hay the form of the stack is a matter of less consequence ; the long square or oblong shapes, are perhaps the most safe and convenient, especially when not too broad, as they are the most suitable to cut from in trussing hay for sale. 3036. In respect to the sizes of corn-stacks of the square sort, they of course vary greatly according to circumstances ; but they should never be made too large, as there is a great deal more risk in securing and getting in the grain from them; and from their being built at different times, they do not settle altogether in so perfect a manner, or resist the effects of the weather and keep the grain so well as those of less dimensions that can be com- pleted at once : and in addition, they are less convenient in the threshing out, especially Book V. LABORS WITH THE CBOP. 475 where the flail is employed. The chief advantages they possess are those of taking some- thing less in thatch and labor in covering them. S037, Tlie proper size of the hay-stack should probably be different in some degree according to tlie state and nature of the hay ; but a middling size is perhaps the best, as from twenty to thirty loads of about one ton each, as there are inconveniences in both small and large stacks, the former having too much outside, while the latter are liable to take on too much heat, and at tlie same time permit less moisture to be preserved in the hay. In small stacks the bellying forms with very narrow bottoms have often much ad- vantage, and are in some districts termed sheep-stacks, probably from the slovenly prac- tice of slieep having been permitted to feed at them. 3038. In building every descriptioyi of stack, the stem or body should be so formed as to swell gradually outwards, quite up to the part termed the eaves, as by this method it is more perfectly secured against the entrance of moisture, and at the same time requires a less space of stand to rest upon. And when the building of them is well performed, they liave equal solidity, and stand in as firm a manner. 3039. T/ie stem should contain about two-thirds, and the roof one-third of the whole stack. If it be built on a frame, the stem should contain less and the roof more; if on a bottom the reverse. The comers of the stem should not be built too sharp ; should be carried up snug ; by which the sides will look fuller, and the swell given by the pressure will be more perceptible. 3040. The ends of the roo/ should have a gentle projecture, answerable to the stem ; and the sides should be carried up rather convex, than flat or concave. Perhaps a roof gently convex shoots off the rains pre- ferably to any other. * 3041. Where com is stacked that has not been sheaved, and in building hay-stacks it is the usual practice to have a number of persons upon the stack, the corn or hay being forked up and deposited on the different sides all round in a similar method ; after this other parcels are laid all round on the inside of these, so as to bind them in a secure manner from slipping outwards ; the operator proceeding in the same manner till the whole of the middle space is perfectly filled up : when he begins another course in the same method, and goes on in this mode, with course after course, till he has raised the whole of the stem ; when he begins to take in for the roof, in a very gradual manner, in every succeeding course until the whole is brought to a ridge or point, according to the manner the stack is formed in. But for the purpose that the roofs may throw off the water in a more perfect and effectual manner, they should be made so as to have a slight degree of fullness or swell about the middle of them, and not be made flat, as is too fre- quently the practice with indifferent builders of stacks. 3042. In stacking, where the com is bound into sheaves, there is seldom more than one person employed in managing the work of building the stack, except in cases where the dimensions are very considerable ; in which cases it is found necessary to have a boy to receive the sheaves from the pitcher, and hand them to the man who builds the stack. In executing the work it is of the utmost importance that the centre of the stack be con- stantly kept in a somewhat raised state above that of the sides, as by this means the sheaves have a sloping direction ' outwards, by which the entrance of moisture is more efi'ectually guarded against and prevented. To accomplish this in the most perfect method, the work;nan begins in the middle of the stand or staddle, setting the sheaves to- gether so as that they may incline a little against each other, placing the rest in succes- sive rows against them till he comes to the outside, when he carries a course of sheaves quite round, in a more sloping manner than in the preceding courses. The bottom of the stack, being formed in this way, it is afterwards usual to begin at the outside, and advance with different courses round the whole, placing each course a little within the other, so as to bind them in an exact and careful manner, till the stacker comes to the middle. And all the different courses are to be laid on in a similar manner until the whole of the stem is raised and completed ; when the last outside row of sheaves is, in most cases, placed a very little more out than the others, in order to form a sort of pro- jection for the eaves, that the water may be thrown off more effectually. But in cases where the stems of the stacks are formed so as to project outwards in the manner already noticed, this may be omitted without any bad consequences, as the water will be thrown off easily without touching the waste of the stack. And the roof is to be fonned by placing the sheaves gradually a little more in and in, in every course, until it comes to a ridge or point, according to the form of the stack, as has been already observed. But in forming and constructing this part of the stack, great care should constantly be taken to give the ear-ends of the sheaves a sufficiently sloping direction upwards, in order that they may be the better secured from wetness. And to the outside should be given a rounded form, in the manner that has been already noticed. 3043. K funnel or chimney is frequently formed or left in circular stacks, especially in wet districts, in order to prevent their taking on too much heat; where these funnels are not formed with the basement of timber, iron, or masonry, as already shown (2746.), they arc produced by tying a sheaf up in a very tight manner, and placing it in the mid- dle on the foundation of the stack, pulling it up occasionally as the building of the stack proceeds all round it. In setting up ricks in bad harvests, it is a practice in some places. ^7« SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. particularly with barley crops, to have three or four pretty large poles tied together, by winding straw ropes round them, set up in the middle, round which the stacks are then built. But except the stacks are large, or the grain when put into them in an iiiaperfect condition, such openings are quite unnecessary. 3044. The stacking of hay requires much care and attention in the person employed for the purpose, though less than that of building corn stacks. There should constantly be a proper stand or foundation, somewhat raised by wood or other materials, prepared for placing tlie stacks upon ; but nothing of the coping kind is here necessary. In the business of stacking hay, the work should constantly be performed as much as possible while the sun is upon the hay, as much advantage is thus gained in its quality : and it is necessary to have a stacker that has been accustomed to the business, and a proper number of persons to help upon the stack, in order that it may -be well spread out and trodden down. 3045. The building of hay-stacks should be conducted much in the same way as those of loose grain (3041.) ; the middle of the stack being always well kept up a little higher than the sides, and the sides and ends well bound in by the proper application of the successive portions of hay as the work advances, and during which it is a good way, where there are plenty of hands, to have the sides and ends properly pulled into form, as by this means much after-labor is prevented. It is likewise of advantage, that the hay should be well shaken and broken from the lumps, during the operation of stacking. The form in which the stacks are built is not of much consequence, but if large, and made in the square form, it is better not to have them too broad, or of too great width, as by this means they are less apt to heat. With the intention of preventing too much heat, sometimes in building hay-stacks, as well as those of the grain kind, holes, pipes, and chimneys are left in the middle, that the excessive heat may be discharged. But there is often injury sustained by them, from their attracting too much moisture. 3046. The hay-stacks of Middlesex, it is observed by Middleton, are more neatly form- -ed and better secured than any where else. At every vacant time, while the stack is carrying up, the men are employed in pulling it with their hands into a proper shape, and about a week after it is finished the whole roof is properly thatched, and then secured from receiving any damage from the wind, by means of a straw rope, extending along the eaves, up the ends, and near the ridge. The ends of the thatch are afterwards cut evenly below the eaves of the stack, just of sufficient length for the rain water to drip quite clear off the hay. When the stack happens to be placed in a situation which may be suspected of being too damp in the winter, a trench of about six or eight inches deep is dug round, and nearly close to it, which serves to convey all the water from the spot, and renders it perfectly dry and secure. 3047. The stack guard (fig' 418.), or covering of canvass, is employed in some dis- tricts to protect the stack while building in a wet season. In Kent and Surrey, the half worn sails of ships are made use of for this purpose, though in most parts of the north, a covering of loose straw or hay is found sufficient in ordinary cases ; but where, from a continued rain, the stack is penetrated some way down, a part is removed on recom- mencing, and dried before being replaced. It is observed by Marshal, that a sail cloth thrown over, and immediately upon the hay of a stack in full heat, is liable to do more injury by increasing the heat, and at the same time checking the ascent of the steanj, than service in shooting off rain water. The improved method of spreading the cloth, he de- scribes as follows : two tall poles (a, a) are inserted firmly in two cart wheels (/;, b), which are laid flat upon the ground at each end of the stack, and loaded with stones to increase their stability. Another pole of the same kind, and somewhat longer than the stack, is furnished at each end with an iron ring or hoop, large enough to admit the up- right poles and to pass freely upon them. Near the head of each of the standards is a BookV. scientific operations. 477 pulley (c, c), over which a rope is passed from the ring or end of the horizontal pole, by which it is easily raised or lowered, to suit the given height of the stack. A cloth being now thrown over the horizontal pole, and its lower margins loaded with weights, a com- plete roof is formed and neatly fitted to the stack, whether it be high or low, wide or narrow ; the eaves being always adjusted to the wall plate, or upper part of the stem of the stack ; thus effectually shooting off rain water, while the internal moisture or steam escapes freely at either end as the wind may happen to blow. This contrivance is readily put up or taken away ; the poles being light are easily moved from stack to stack, or laid up for another season, and the wheels are readily removed or returned to their axles. On the whole, it answers as a good substitute for the improved construction brought into use by Sir Joseph Banks, and is much less expensive. This construction, instead of the ring running on the poles, has blocks and tackle (c, c), and instead of weights to dis- tend the cloth, ropes (rf, d) are used to tighten it and keep it detached from the sides of the stack, so as to admit a more free circulation of air. 3048. A stacking stage (Jig. 4 1 9. )> or scaffold, has been contrived for finishing the upper parts of high stacks, but it can seldom be requisite when a judicious size of stack is adoj^ted. This stage, which consists of a frame fa) and a moveable platform (6), easily under- stood and constructed, is set against the stack when it becomes so high, that it is inconvenient to pitch on to it from the cross plank of a waggon. The platform is commonly fixed by means of the chain pins and holes, about fourteen feet from the ground, which is about the • height of a waggon load of hay. Should it be fixed lower, it would be of no use; and should it be fixed much higher, it would be found too high for a man to pitch on to, when the waggon is nearly empty. 3049. The term housing is chiefly applied to crop's of the root kind, as potatoes, carrots, turnips, &c. Potatoes being gathered in dry weather are preserved by being laid up in heaps, excluded from rain and frost more particularly, and from the weather generally, whether dry, moist, cold, or hot. The mode of doing this in some places is to form them into heaps on the surface of the soil, and cover them with a thick layer of straw, and on that another of earth. Sometimes also, where the soil is dry, they are buried in pits and similarly covered ; but for common agricultural purposes, by much the best motle is to lay them up in a house, securing them from all extremes of weather by a covering of straw. By this mode they are much easier got at when a portion is wanted, than by any other in use. 3050. I?i housing carrots and Swedish or yellow turnips, the same modes may be adopted as for potatoes ; but in housing white turnips, as they are apt to rot when heaped up, the best mode is to spread them thinly on any surface covered from the rain, but freely exposed to the circulation of air. This mode, it must be evident, can only be adopted to a limited extent, and, indeed, is only resorted to as a precautionary measure during winter, when frosts, snows, or continued rains, might interrupt the lifting and carting from the fields of the usual supplies for feeding stock. 3051. Various modes of housing and preserving these and other roots, will be treated of as each particular crop comes into notice in a succeeding Book (VI.) Chap. III. Scientific OjyerationSf and Operations of Order and general Management, 3052. All the operations which have hitherto been described require to be practically known to every farm servant or operative agriculturist ; the few about to be described belong more particularly to the superintendant or master: they may be arran'^ed as scientific operations, and operations of order and management. Sect. I. Scierdific Operations required of the Agriculturist. 3053. The scientific operations required of the agriculturist are chiefly the measuring surfaces, measuring solids, taking the levels of surfaces, dividing lands ; and valuing 'lands, timber, leases, and farming stock. A knowledge of the more common practices of surveying, measuring, and the calculation of annuities may be considered as essential to every agriculturist, whether farmer, land agent, or proprietor, who is desirous of having clear ideas on the subject of letting labor, hiring or letting farms, or purchasing estates. Such knowledge is not to be expected in detail in this work, but must be procured from the ordinary school, and annuity books, and is indeed implied in a regular education. All we propose here is to direct the reader's attention to the most important points of the art of surveying, and lay down the leading principles of valuing agricultural property. 478 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. SuBSECT. 1. Of Measuring relatively to Agricidture. 5054. The measuring oflandy or other objects, comprises three distinct operations ; viz. taking the dimensions of any tract or piece of ground ; delineating or laying down the same in a map or draught, and calculating the area or superficial contents. The dimen- sions on a small scale are best taken by rods of wood, but in all ordinary and extensive cases by a chain of iron, as being less likely to contract or expand by changes of temper- ature, than cord lines or tapes. In measuring a simple figure, such as a square field, nothing more is necessary than to take the length and breadth, which multiplied together give the superficial area; but as few fields are square, or even right angled, it becomes necessary to adopt some guiding line or form within the field, and, from that line or form to measure to the diflPerent angles, so as to be able from the dimensions taken, either to calculate the contents at once, or to lay down the form of tlie field on paper, according to a certain scale, or proportion to its real size, and from that to take dimensions and cal- culate the contents. The simplest and most accurate mode of ascertaining the contents of all irregular figures is by throwing them into triangles ; and this also is the most accu- rate mode of measuring and protracting a whole landed estate, however large. In short, a triangle is the form universally adopted, whether in surveying a single field, or a whole kingdom. To find the contents of a triangle every body knows that it is only necessary to multiply half the perpendicular into the base. These two principles properly under- stood, form the foundation of measuring, protracting, and estimating the contents of ter- ritorial, and all other surfaces. In surveying hilly lands, an allowance is made both in protracting them, and calculating their contents, well known to surveyors, and not necessary to be entered into here. 5055. In measuring solid bodies, the rule is to " find the area of one end, and multiply that by the length. " This rule is of universal application, whether to land as in excavat- ing or removing protuberances ; to ricks of corn ; heaps of dung ; timber ; or water. The area of one end, or of one surface, whether the end, side, top, or bottom, is found exactly on the same principles as in ascertaining the superficial contents of land, and if the figure diminishes in dimension in the course of its length, as the top of a rick, or tlie trunk of a tree, the mean length or half is taken as a multiplier. 3056. Measuring objects by the eye, though a mode that can never be depended on as the foundation for any important calculation or transaction, yet should be constantly practised by young men for the sake of gaining habits of attention, and acquiring ideas as to number and quantity at first sight. The principle on which this sort of eye measure- ment is acquired, is that of ascertaining the actual dimension of some near object, and applying it as a measure to all the others seen beyond it. Thus, if a man is seen standing by a post or a tree at a distance, taking the height of the man at five and a half, or six feet ; apply the figure of the man to the tree, and find how many applications will reach its top ; that number multiplied by the ordinary height of a man, will of course be a near approximation to its height. Again, supposing this tree one in a row or avenue, then to estimate the length of the avenue, measure the third or fourth tree by the man, and measure by the same means the distance of that tree from the first, then state the question thus : as the difference between the height of the first and fourth tree is to the horizontal distance between them, so is the difference between the first and last tree of the avenue, to the length of the avenue. In this way, the length and breadth of a field may be esti- mated by observing the height of the hedge, at the nearest side, and the apparent height at the farthest points. The breadth of ridges and their number, teams at work, or cattle grazing, or accidental passengers, are all objects of known dimensions, which may be made use of in this way of estimating the contents of lands. In regard to houses, the doors, and windows, and size of bricks, stones, boards, tiles, &c. are obvious and certain guides. 3057. The recollection of surfaces and of country is a matter of considerable interest to every one, but especially to the agriculturist. The most eflfectual mode of impressing scenery on the memory is by the study and practice of sketching landscape. In addition to this it will be useful to pay attention to the natural surface and productions, as, kind of tree or crop, hills, valleys, flats, lakes, rills, &c. ; also, the distant scenery, as whether flat, hilly, cultivated, waste, woody or watery ; what processes are going on ; what the style of houses, dress, &c. Having attended to these details, the next and the most important aid to the memory is, to recollect what portion of country already known to us it most resembles. 3058. In endeavoring to recollect the surface and objects composing an entire estate some leading central object, as the house, should be fixed on, and the bearings of other objects relative to it, ascertained in idea. Then either by going over the estate, or by a favorable position on the house-top, or some other eminence, the outline of the fields, or other scenery nearest the house, may be taken down, or remembered, and also the distant scenery, or that exterior to the estate. In riding through a country which it is desired to Book V. TAKING THE LEVELS OF SURFACES. 479 recollect, a sketch should be made in imagination of the road and the leading objects adjoining ; another of what may be called the objects in the middle distance ; and finally, one of the farthest distance. If instead of the imagination, a memorandum book were used, and the sketches accompanied with notes, the country examined would be firmly impressed on the memory. In this way temporary military maps are formed by the en- gineers of the army in a few hours, and with astonishing accuracy. SuBSECT. 2. Of taking the Levels of Surfaces. 3059. Levelling^ or the operation of taking the levels of surfaces, is of essential use in agriculture for ascertaining the practicability of bringing water to particular points in order to drive machinery ; for irrigation ; for roads led along tlie sides of hills ; for drainages, and various other purposes. There are few works on the earth's surface more useful, grand, and agreeable than that of a road ascending, passing over, and descending a range of steep irregular mountains, but every where of the same and of a convenient slope ; next to this is a canal passing through an irregular countiy, every where on the same level. 3060. Two or more places are said to be on a true level when they are equally distant from the centre of the earth. Also, one place is higher than another, or out of level with it, when it is farther from the centre of the earth : and a line equally distant from that centre in all its points, is called the line of true level. Hence because the earth is round, that line must be a curve, and make a part of the earth's circumference, or at least parallel to it, or concentrical with it. 3061. The line of sight given by the operation of levelling^ is a tangent, or a right line perpendicular to the semidiameter of the earth at the point of contact, rising always higher above the true line of level, the farther the distance is, which is called the apparent line of level, the difference of which is always equal to the excess of tlie secant of the arch of distance above the radius of the earth. 3062. The common methods of levelling are sufficient for conveying water to small dis- tances, &c. but in more extensive operations, as in levelling for canals, which are to con- vey water to the distance of many miles, and such like, the difference between the true and the apparent level must be taken into the account, which is equal to the square of the distance between the places, divided by the diameter of the earth, and consequently it is always proportional to the square of the distance ; or from calculation almost eight inches, for the height of the ajyparent above the true level at the distance of one mile. Thus, by proportioning (he excesses in altitude according to the squares of the distances, tables shewing the height of the apparent above the true level for every hundred yards of distance on the one hand, and for every mile on the other, have been con- structed. (See Br. Huttons Mathematical Dictionary, art. Level.) 3063. The operation of levelling is performed by placing poles or staves at different parts or points from which the levels are to be taken, with persons to raise or lower them, ac- cording to circumstances, when the levelling instrument is properly applied and adjusted. In describing the more common levels used in agriculture, (2421.) we have also given some account of the mode of using them for common purposes. Their use, as well as that of the different kinds of spirit levels, will be better acquired by a few hours' practice with a surveyor than by any number of words : and indeed in practice, whenever any very important point or series of levels are to be taken, it will commonly be found better to call in the aid of a land surveyor than to be at the expense of imple- ments to be seldom used, and by which errors might easily be made by a very skilful person not accustomed to their frequent use. 3064. Levelling to produce an even line (fig. 420.), as in road making, whether that line be straight or curved in direction, can only be determined on an irregular surface by measuring down from an elevated level line (a), or from level lines in parallel di- 420 rections, and so transferring the points by horizontal levels to the proper line. Straight rods are the ready means of measuring down, and the points must be marked by hil- 4S0 SCIENCE OF AGRICl/LTURE. Part II. locks or liollows (i), or by smootli-headed stakes driven into the surface, and protruding above, or sunk under it, according to the obstructions. 3065. Lines of uniform declivity or acclivity (fig, 420 e, e, e) are readily formed on the same principle. In this and the former case, the common level and the horning pieces (a and rf), with measuring-rods and stakes, arc all the instruments required. SuBSECT. 3. Of the Division and laying out of Lands. 3066. The division of lands is one of the most important and not the least difficult parts of the land surveyor's art. In intricate cases, as in the subdivision of large es- tates or commons, the professional surveyor will generally be resorted to, but it is essen- tial for the land-steward and proprietor, and even for the farmer, or professional Culti- vator, to know the general principles on which this business is founded. We shall there- fore shortly develope these principles from Dr. Hutton's valuable Dictionary, and next offer some general rules of our own, for ordinary cases of dividing and laying out lines. 3067. In the division of commons, after the whole is surveyed and cast up, and the proper quantities to be allowed for roads, &c. deducted, divide the net quantity remain- ing among the several proprietors, by the rule of fellowship, in proportion to the real value of their estates, and you will thereby obtain their proportional quantities of the land. But as this division supposes the land, which is to be divided, to be all of an equal goodness, you must observe that if the part in which any one's share is to be marked off, be better or worse than the general mean quality of the land, then you must diminish or augment the quantity of his share in the same proportion. 3068. Or divide the ground among the claimants in the direct ratio of the valve of their claims, and the inverse ratio of the quality of the ground allotted to each ; that is, in proportion to the quotients arising from the division of the value of each person's estate, by the number which expresses the quality of the ground in his share. 3069. ^nt these regidar methods cannot always be put in practice ; so that, in the di- vision of commons, the usual way is, to measure separately all the land that is of dif- ferent values, and add into two sums the contents and the values ; then the value of every claimant's share is found by dividing the wliole value among them in proportion to their estates ; and lastly, a quantity is laid out for each person, that shall be of the value of his share before found. 3070. It is required to divide any given quantity of ground, or its value, into any given number of parts, and in proportion to any given number. — Rule. Divide the given piece, or its value, as in the rule of fellowship, by dividing the whole content or value by the sum of the numbers expressing the proportions of the several shares, and mul- tiplying the quotient severally by the said proportional numbers for the respective shares required, when the land is all of the same quality. But if the shares be of different qualities, then divide the numbers expressing the proportions or values of the shares, by the numbers which express the qualities of the land in each share ; and use the quotients instead of the former proportional numbers. Ex. 1. If the total value of a common be 2.%0/. it is required to determine the values of the shares of the three claimants A, B, C, whose estates are of these values, 10,000, and 15,000, and 25,000/. The estates being in proportion as the numbers 2, 3, 5, whose sum is 10, we shall have 2,5000 -?- 10= 250; which being severally multiplied by 2, 3, 5, the products 500, 750, 1250, are the values of the shares required. Ex. 2. It is required to divide 300 acres of land among A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H, whose claims upon it are respectively in proportion as the numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 10, 15, 20. The sum of these proportional numbers is 64, by which dividing 300, the quotient is 4 ac. 2r. 30 p., which being multiplied by each of the numbers, 1, 2, 3, 5, &c. we obtain for the several shares as annexed : Ex. 3. It is required to divide 780 acres among A, B, and C, whose estates are 1,000, 3,000, and 4,000/. a year ; the ground in their shares being worth 5, 8, and 10 shillings the acre respectively. Here their claims are as 1, 3, 4; ^ ^ .^92 and the qualities of their land are as 5, 8, 10 ; therefore their quantities *-^ ^^ \ - must be as one-fifth, three-eighths, two-fifths, or by reduction, as 8, 15, 16. Now the sum of these numbers is 39 ; by which dividing the 780 acres, the quotient is 20; which being milltiplied severally by the three numbers 8, 15, 16, the three products are 160, 300, 320, for the shares of A, B, C, respectively. 3071. To cut off from a plan a given number of acres, ^c. by a line drawn from any point in the side of it. — Rule. Let a (fig. 421.) be the given point in the ^. plan, from which a line is to be drawn cutting off" suppose J 5 ac. 2 r. 14 p. Draw a b cutting off" the part ab c as near as can be judged equal to the quantity proposed ; and let the true quantity of a be, when calculated, be only 4 ac. 3n. 20 p. which is less than 5 ac. 2 r. 14 p. the true quan- tity, by Oac. 2 r. 34 p. or 71,250 .square links. Then measure ab, which suppose: Ac. R. P. A = 4 2 30 B = 9 1 20 C = 14 0 10 D = 23 1 30 R = 37 i! 00 F = 46 3 20 Cr = 70 1 10 H Sum = 93 3 00 = 300 0 00 1 Book V. DIVIDING AND LAYING OUT LANDS. 481 1,234 links, and divide 71,250 by 617, the half of it arid the quotient 115 links, will be the altitude of the triangle to be added, and whose base is a,b. Therefore if upon the cen- tre bp with the radius 1 15, an arc be described, and a line be drawn parallel to a, b, touch- ing the arc, and cutting b,d in rf ; and if a, rf l)e drawn, it will be the line cutting off the required quantity a, r/, c, a. On the other hand, if the first piece had been too much, then d must have been set below h. In this manner, the several shares of commons to be di- vided, may be laid down upon the plan, and transferred from thence to the ground itself. 3072. The simplest mode of dividing lands, and tliat by which the agriculturist will make fewest errors is, by trial and correction. Thus, supposing apiece of unenclosed land of irregular shape to contain thirty-eight acres and a half, and it is desired to lay it out in three fields, each of the same extent. Take a plan of the field and lay it down on paper; divide it into three parts as near as possible by the eye : then ascertain the contents of one of the outside divisions, which will be either somewhat too little or too much. Suppose it too little by half a rood; then as the length of the straight line of the division is 1000 links, and 1000 links in length and 100 in breadth make an acre, and as half a rood is the eighth of an acre, it follows that by extending the line the eighth part of 100 links, or 12'4 links at both ends, or 24 "8 links at one end, the requisite quantity will be added. Then go through the same operation with the ^projected field on the other extreme of the plot, and this being corrected, the middle field must necessarily be of the exact contents of each of the two others ; but to prove the whole, this field also may be tried in the same manner. 3073. I7i dividing afield with a view to sowing different crops in certain proportions : say, for example, one acre and a half of common turnip, one acre of Swedish turnip, three quarters of an acre of potatoes, and five acres of pease. Suppose the field a parallel- ogram or nearly so, then first ascertain the length of tlie ridges, and next state the question thus : Such a length being given, required the breadth to give a fourth of an acre; that being the smallest fraction in the proportions to be laid out ; then if the length of the ridges be ten chains, the breadth requisite to give a quarter of an acre will be 25 links ; consequently a breadth of five times that space will be required for the common turnips; four times for the Swedish turnips ; three times for tlie potatoes, and twenty times for the pase. 3074. In all more intricate cases, first lay down the plan of the space to be divided on paper, to a large scale, say a chain to an inch ; then cover the paper with lines, drawr so as to form squares, each square containing a certain number of feet and yards, or say pole each; then on these squares adjust the figure, whatever it may be: thus, supposing it desired to lay out a thicket of trees on the face of a hill, the outline of which shall resem- ble the outline of the profile of a horse, dog, or say a human head, and yet shall contain only one acre : lay down the outline of the horse or head on a large scale, and divide it into squares ; then by trial and correction ascertain what each square must necessarily contain. Say that there are 130 entire squares and 40 parts of squares, making up in all 160 squares ; each of these squares must of course contain exactly one pole or 625 links, and their sides the square root of that number or 25 links. From these data it is easy to lay down the figure with perfect accuracy. 3075. The laying out lines on lands, for the purposes of roads, fences, &c. requires to be well understood by the agriculturist. On a plain surface, the business of tracing straight lines is effected by a series of poles, so placed that the one nearest the eye con- ceals all the rest. Where a straight line is to be indicated among objects or inequalities, not more than fifteen or twenty feet high, its plan or tract on the earth ( a, bjfig. 422.) 422 may be found by the use of poles, a few feet higher than the elevation of the obstructions, the director being placed on a step-ladder, or other elevation at one end. Where this method 482 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. cannot be adopted on account of the height of the inequalities, the line must either be formed along the summits of these inequalities, which may be done if they are houses, hills, or trees ; or parallel lines (c, d, e) formed where practicable, and the main line found by ofF-sets (f,g,h) from those collateral lines at such places as are suitable. A third method, but one not always perfectly accurate, is to take a plan of the field or scene of operations, and on this to set out the proposed line ; then by ascertaining its bearings and distances relatively to the obstructions, it may be transferred from the paper to the ground. In carrying straight lines through woods, lanterns have been used; but a much more correct method is to elevate poles above the surface of the wood. 3076. Continuous lines may always be made perfectly straight, however irregular the surface, by following the same parallel as indicated by points of the compass; or by the shadow of the operator during sunshine. If the needle does not move, or the shadow of the spectator be always projected at the same angle to his course, the direction in which he walks, in either case, must be straight. The mode of forming right lines in such cir- cumstances being understood, the formation of right lined figures is merely a repetition of the process, uniting each side by the required angle. 3077. Curved lines on irregular surfaces are in general only to be laid down by the previous establishment of straight lines ; first, leading straight lines, and next secondary straight lines, which shall form skeletons to the curves. A second mode and on a large scale, by much the most certain, is to find the leading points of the curves, by trian- gles from a known base or known bases ; but as both modes are rare, they need not be enlarged on. SuBSECT. 4. Of estimating Weighty Power, and Quantities. 3078. Ascertaining the weight of objects is a part of agricultural knowledge, no less ne- cessary than that of measuring their superficial or solid contents. In all ordinary cases, as of grain, roots, bundles of straw, bushels of lime, &c. this is best done by a common steelyard, suspended from a beam or a triangle of three posts. Cart or waggon loads are weighed on those well-known platforms sunk in the ground at toll gates ; or sometimes by steelyards on a very large scale. Cattle are weighed by machines of a particular kind, which have been already described (2461. to 2463.). The weighing of cattle and grain chiefly concerns the farmer, and is of consequence, in the first case, to ascertain the progress of fattening animals,or the weight of those ready for the butcher ; and, in the second, to determine the quantity of flour that may be produced from a given quantity of grain. 3079. Estimating the quantity of power requisite to draw any implement or machine, is performed by the intervention of the draught machine already described (2460. j, between the power and the implement. It would not be diflficult to construct all agricultural implements with a fixed draught machine and index, which would at all times, when they were at work, shew the amount of power employed in moving them; but such an arrangement would be of little use. 3080. Estimating the quantity of work which servants and cattle ought to perform in a given time, is an art that ought to be familiar to every agriculturist. In general no absolute rule can be laid down, because so much depends on soils, roads, cattle, and other circumstances ; but in every particular case the rate or market price of labor per day being given, and the quantity of work ascertained which a man can fairly perform in a certain time, a rate per yard, pole, or acre, or per solid quantity, if materials are to be moved, can easily be determined on. A farmer should know by memory the number of ridges or of single furrows, or bouts, which it requires to make an acre on every field of his farm. This will aid him in every operation that requires to be performed on these fields — the quantity of manure, seed, ploughings, harrowings, hoeings, mowing, reaping, raking, &c. ; as well as produce, whether of corn, hay, roots, or the number of cattle or sheep that may be grazed there for any given time. 3081. Road work, ditching, hedging, draining, trenching, ^c. ought to be subjected to similar calculations, so as if possible to let out all work not performed with the master's own men and cattle, by contract or quantity, instead of by time. As spade work is nearly the same in most parts of the country, certain general rules have been laid down by canal contractors and others, which, though seldom strictly followed up, yet it may be useful to know. Thus in moving ground, as in digging a drain, or the foundations of a building, if the soil is soft, and no other tool than the spade is necessary, a man will throw up a cubic yard of 27 solid feet in an hour, or 10 cubic yards in a day. But if picking or hacking be necessary, an additional man will be required ; and very strong gravel will require two. The rates of a cubic yard, depending thus upon each cir- cumstance, will be in the ratio of the arithmetical numbers 1, 2, 3. If, therefore, the wages of a laborer be 2s. 6d. per day, the price of a yard will be 3rf. for cutting only, 6d. for cutting and hacking, and 9d. when two hackers are necessary. In sandy ground, when wheeling is requisite, three men will be required to remove 30 cubic yards in a day, to the distance of 20 yards, two filling and one wlieeling ; but to remove the J Book V. VALUING LABOR AND MATERIALS. 483 same quantity in a day, to a greater distance, an additional man will be required for every 20 yards. 3082. To find the price of removing any number of ciihic yards to any given distance : Divide the distance in yards by 20, which gives the number of wheelers ; add the two cutters to the quotient, and you will have the whole number employed ; multiply the sura by the daily wages of a laborer, and the produce will be the price of 30 cubic yards. Then, as 30 cubic yards is to the whole number, so is the price of 30 cubic yards to the cost of the whole. Example. — What will it cost to remove 2,750 cubic yards to the distance of 120 yards, a man's wages being three shillings per day? First, 120 -¥■ 20 = 6, the number of wheelers; then -f- 2 fillers = 8 men employed, which, at three shillings per day, gives twenty-four shillings as the price of 30 cubic yards ; then 30 : 24 : : 2,750 and 24 x 2,750 -r-' 30 = 1 lOZ. SuBSECT. 5. Of Estimating the Value of Agricidtural Labor and Materials. 3083. Estimating the value of work done is a necessary part of agricultural knowledge, and is founded upon the price of labor and the time of performance. The price of labor is every where determined by the operations of the public, and therefore in any given case can seldom admit of much difference of opinion. In a theoretical view of the sub- ject the proper wages for a laborer in England has been considered for ages, to be a peck of wheat ; and that of a horse the amount of his keep, expenses of a year's shoeing, and ten per cent, on his value or cost price at a fair age, added together, and divided by the num- ber of days such horse is supposed to work in a year ; this brings the value of the day's work of a horse to something more than once and a half the value of the day's work of a man ; so that supposing a laborer's wages two shillings per day, a man and a pair of horses would be worth eight shillings per day. This, however, it mus't be acknowledged, v is a calculation not to be always depended on, as local circumstances continually intervene to alter the proportions. In all cases of valuing labor, therefore, all that the valuator can do is to ascertain the local price, and to estimate from his own experience the time requisite to perform the work. 3084. In estimating the value of labor and of materials, considerable difficulty occurs in some departments of agriculture. Thus in valuing fallows and sown crops it is often a nice point to determine satisfactorily the value of the manure or other dressings ; and in valuing the tillages or the condition of the arable lands of an out-going tenant, regard must be had not only to the actual number of ploughings a field may have been subjected to, the preceding or current year, but to the position which the state of that field holds in the rotation, and to the value which may still be in the soil of manures or limings given to former crops. Supposing a field fallowed, limed, and dunged in the year 1820, and tJiat when it fell to be valued in the spring of the year 1824, it was drilled with beans on one furrow, it would be no adequate compensation for the tenant to be paid for one ploughing, the beans, and the drilling; the fallow, the dung, and especially the lime given in 1820, must be considered as extending their influence even to this crop, and there- fore an allowance ought to be, and generally is made for these three articles, besides the mere value of the labdr and seed. What this allowance should be it does not seem easy to determine : land valuers and appraisers have certain rules which they go upon, which are known to few but themselves, but which having ourselves been initiated in the busi- ness, we know to differ considerably in different parts of the country. Some calculate that the value of dung extends to the fourth year, and declines in a geometrical ratio, or in tlie proportion 1, 2, 4, 8. Others limit its effects to three years. Lime is allowed in some places to produce effects for three years only, and in others, especially on new lands, for twelve and fourteen years, and its value is generally supposed to decline in the proportion of 1,2, 3, &c. Naked fallow is generally considered as of beneficial influence for five years, where it occurs every seven or eight years, and shorter periods in proportion. A crop sown on a single furrow after a drilled crop which has been manured, is considered as partaking of the manure or other dressings according to the extent to which these have been given, and generally in the same ratio as in manured fallows. 3085. In estimating the value of materials alone, the first thing is to ascertain their quantity, and the next their market price. Thus, in the case of heaps of manure, the cubic contents must first be found, by finding the area of the base of the heap, and its mean depth, and multiplying the one into the other ; next the quality of the material, must be examined, and the expense of purchasing it in the nearest. town or source of purchase, with the addition of the expense of carriage to the spot where it lies. Ricks, whether of straw or hay, are valued in a similar manner. Crops in a growing state are valued according to what they have cost, including tillage, manures, seed, rent, taxes,, and other out-goings, and ten per cent, on the outlay of capital ; crops arrived at matu- rity are valued according to their quantity and quality, deducting the expenses of reap- ing, threshing, &c. In coal countries an allowance is made for thorn-hedges which I i 2 484 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. have been newly cut ; but the reverse is the case where fuel is scarce, an allowance being made according to the quantity of brush or lop on the hedge. Xhe lop of pollards and prunings of hedge-row trees to a certain height, is generally valued to the tenant ; but a better mode is for the landlord to take the timber-trees entirely under his own management 3086. In valuing live-stock, a variety of circumstances require to be taken into con- sideration. The value of all young animals may be considered as prospective ; the chief value of others depends on their breeds ; of some, on accident or fashion ; and of fed animals on their actual value to the butcher. Draught cattle may be valued on an ab- stract principle, derived from the probable value of their lives and labor ; but in general nothing is to be depended on but a knowledge of the market price, and this ought to be familiar to every valuator. 3087. In valuing buildings, regard must be had to their absolute use as such, and to their effect on the value of surrounding property. In the case of buildings merely useful as farmeries, it will sometimes happen that more buildings are erected than the most approved mode of husbandry requires, as in the' case of large barns and granaries, ornamental pigeon-houses, &c. : these can be valued on no other principle than that of the value of the materials, supposing them taken down ; and in regard to an in-coming tenant they are to be considered as a drawback, rather than as of any value.- 3088. In valuing orchards, hop-grounds, osier plantations, and similar crops, it is usual for the first two or three years irfter planting, to allow only the cost, rent, all outgoings, and ten per cent, on their amount ; but afterwards, the trees and plants having taken virith the soil, and promising abundant crops, they are valued prospectively in the mode in which we shall next describe as applied to young plantations of timber-trees. 3089. In valuing young jtlantations, when they are only of two or three years' growth, it is usual to proceed as in valuing orchards ; but afterwards, when their growth is be- coming rapid, and the fences in a sufficient state, the plantation is valued prospectively in the following manner : — The contents being known, and the number of healthy young trees per acre ascertained, then their value at any distant period, not exceeding twenty or twenty-five years, is estimated ; and whatever sum that estimate amounts to, the pre- sent value of that sum will give an idea of the value of the plantation, allowing liberally for accidents to the trees, and other unforeseen circumstances. Thus, suppose a plant- ation of oaks, intended as copse, or actually established as such, to have grown four years, its present value would be next to nothing ; but if arrived at its twentieth year, it would fetch fifty pounds per acre. Then the question is, required the present value of fifty pounds due sixteen years hence, the market price of money being five per cent. ? and this, according to any of the modern annuity tables (say Bayleys 4to. 1808. tab. iv.), is 22/. 18s. This principle is applicable to all kind of valuing by anticipation ; and there is no other mode of valuing applicable to young plantations. 3090. In valuing saleable trees, their number per acre, or their total number, being ascertained, an average value must be made of each tree, according to its worth as fuel, timber, fence-wood, bark for the tan-pit, and other particulars, due allowance being made at the same time for the expenses of felling, cutting up, sorting, carriage, &c. The usual practice in this case, as well as in the valuation of copse-woods, will be given in treating of wood-lands in the succeeding Part of this work. 3091. In valuing Jtelds Jhr rent, regard must be had to their soil and subsoil as of the greatest importance ; next to their aspect, form, length, and style of ridges ; and, lastly, as to the sort of crops or rotation which may be followed on them, and their state of cul- ture. Supposing the valuator to decide in his own mind as to the rotation, his next business is to calculate the expense and produce df the whole course ; and after deduct- ing all expenses whatever, and ten per cent, per annum on the capital employed, the balance may be considered as the rack rent which such a field may afford. 3092. In valuing a farm for rent, each field must be valued separately in the manner above stated, and a particular rent per acre determined for each field, as well as an ave- rage rent for the whole farm. In some cases it is customary to value the farm buildings, dwellings, yards, gardens, &c. but when that is done, a sum in proportion to their value is deducted from the supposed profits as household and other expenses, so that no advan- tage is gained by it. It is by means of those buildings, threshing machine, and other con- veniencies, that so much can be paid for each field, and therefore to pay for the buildings, and pay also for their advantages, would be unjust. It must be further obvious, that a great variety of other considerations must be taken into account before even the value of a single field can be ascertained, such as distance from markets, roads, parochial and country towns, price of labor, &c. But after all, it is seldom that land is taken or let on such valuations ; rent, like price of every kind, depending more on the quantity of land in the market, and the number of tenants in want of farms, than on the real value of land. This, indeed, often tends to the ruin of farmers, by obliging them to give higher rents than the land can bear j but the same thing takes place in every other trade or profession. Book V. VALUING RENTS AND TILLAGES. 485 3093. The amount of the reid of lands is commonly determined in money alone ; but owing to the fluctuations in the value of this commodity, rents are in some places made payable partly in money, and partly in corn, (or beef or wool in some cases,) or in money, and the money value of a certain quantity of jiroduce per acre. In some cases the money value of the produce is determined by its price in the district for the current or preceding year ; and in other cases by an average of the money price for the preceding three, five, or seven years. This plan has, within the last seven years, been adopted in many parts of Scotland, and been generally approved of, both by landlords and tenants. There is no plan that will in every year be perfectly 'equitable, and for this reason many consider the money rent as on the whole the simplest and best, as it certainly is that which occasions less trouble to all parties. 3094. The valuatioti of leases well deserves the study of the culturist, and especially of the farmer, who may often wish or find an opportunity of purchasing a renewal of his lease, or have occasion to dispose of an improved rent, or in other words, sub-let his farm at a profit. It is customary, in many parts of the kingdom, for landlords to compound with their tenants, by accepting a sum of money paid down in place of advancing the rent at the expiration of a former or a current lease. To be able to point out the exact amount of the sum to be paid in any transaction of this nature, according to the annual profit, and the number of years for which the lease is to be granted, must obviously be particularly useful. The valuation of church leases and of college lands, is of not less importance, as these for the most part are let on twenty-one years leases, renewable for seven years longer at the end of every seven years ; or on leases for lives, every life being renewable as it drops, for a certain sum to be determined according to the age of the life to be put in, and the value of the lands. 3095. The jn-mciple on which all calculations, as to the value of leases, is made, is as fol- lows : a sum being fixed on, which is considered or agreed on as the worth or profit which the tenant has in the lease, and the time which the lease has to run, or for which it is to be renewed being agreed on, then the purchaser of the lease or of the renewal pays down to the seller the present value of an annuity equal to the profit or worth, reckoning money at its market price, or at what is called legal interest. Thus, should it be suitable to the convenience of both parties to renew a lease of twenty-one years, of which only one year had expired, the tenant ought to pay the landlord 75. 2d. for every pound of profit he has in the lease. Should it be asked how the tenant is to pay the landlord only 7*. 2d. out of each pound that he had of profit in the one year that has elapsed, it is answered, that the landlord had no right to receive the 75. 2d. until the expiration of twenty years, which is the number the lease has yet to run ; and that this sum of 75. 2d. laid out at com- pound interest, at 5 per cent., payable yearly, would, at the end of twenty years, amount exactly to 1/. ; so that the landlord has received just the amount of what he was entitled to, and no more. 3096. Or, as the most customary period at which to renew, during the currency of a lease of twenty- one years, is when seven years have elapsed, then the exact sum that ought to be paid for adding seven years will be 21. 18s. 5d. for every 1/. of annual profit, because 21. } 85. 5d. laid out at compound interest, will, in twenty-one years, the length of lease obtained by paying it, amount exactly to 71., the profit that would have accrued to the landlord during the seven years of renewal. 3097. The method of determining all questions as to the renewal of leases, sale of profits on sub-leases, &c. is easily learned from the common books of arithmetic ; and the value of lives from tables composed from a long series of observations in different places, as at London, Northampton, &c. But practical men can seldom have recourse to so tedious a method as calculating for themselves, by which, for want of daily practice, serious errors might be made. They therefore have recourse to published tables on the subject, by which the most intricate questions of this kind may be solved by the humblest individual who can add and subtract, in a few minutes. The tables in most repute at present are nailers Tables for the purchasing and renewing of Leases, 1 807 ; Clarke's Enquiry into the Mature and Value of leasehold Property and Ife Annuities, ivith m,any Tables, 1 806; and there is a useful pocket compendium entitled, Tablesfor the purchasing Estates, Leases, Annuities, and the renewing of Leases, by W. Inwood, London, 1811. There is a recent work on The Valuation of Rents and Tillages, by J. S. Bayldon, which is the best of its kind extant. 3098. The questions following, and others of similar importance to agriculturists, and indeed to all men of property, may be answered from these tables. Question. What sum must be paid down for a lease for twenty-one years to make five per cent, and get back the principal ? Answer. Twelve years and three-quarters purchase of the annual rent. Q. What sum ought to be paid for a lease granted on a single life aged thirty, to make four per cent, and get back the principal ? A. Fourteen years and three quarters purchase of the clear annual rent. Q. What sum ought to be paid for a lease held on two lives of twenty and forty years, but determinable on the death of either, to pay five per cent, and get back the princiixil ? , A. Ten years purchase. li 3 486 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II. ■ Q, What sum ought to be paid for a lease held like the last on two lives of twenty and forty years, but to continue during the existence of either of the lives, to pay five per cent, and get back the principal ? A. Sixteen years purchase. Q. What sum or fine ought a tenant to give for the renewal of four years lapsed in his lease of ten ye irs, in order to make seven per cent, interest of his money and get back the principal ? A. Two years and a quarter purchase of the annual value or clear profit which he makes of the holding. Q. A farmer is offered a lease during the life of a person aged thirty years, to what term certain is that CO isidered equivalent ? A. Twenty-one years. Q. In a lease held originally on three lives, but of which one is dropped, the ages of the lives in pos- session being forty and sixty ; what sum ought the tenant to pay for passing in a new life, aged fifteen, in order to make five per cent, interest and return the principal ? A. Three years and a quarter of the clear improved rent or profit which he has in the lease. Q. A has an estate in land and houses let for 105/. per annum. He wishes to sell the reversion of this rent after the death of his father aged sixty-five years, his wife aged forty-one, and himself aged forty- three ; required the sum that must be paid by the purchaser ? A. The father's life is worth ten years ; tne wife's twenty ; and his own eighteen years ; say twenty- one years ; as the probable period at which the property will fall to the purchaser of the reversion. Then the value to the latter is the present value of an annuity of 105/. a year, due twenty-one years hence. This, calculating interest at 51. per cent., is 761/. 5s. and at 4/. per cent. 1155/. 3099. In the valuation of freehold landed properti/, the clear annual value must first be ascertained by a minute examination of every part of the estate, and of every in- ternal and external circumstance affecting it. An estate may be neglected, or underlet on short or long leases, or overlet by means of bonuses, or favorable conditions given to the tenants ; or it may be burdened by parochial taxes ; these, and a number of other cir- cumstances require to be taken into consideration in determining its annual value. The annual value is often different from the annual produce, and therefore, in making a cal- culation of the sum to be paid for an estate, the difference between them forms an essen- tial part of the data. Tlius an estate of the annual value of 100^. may be let on a lease of which fourteen years and a half were unexpired for 80^., in which case there must be deducted from the price the present value of an annuity of 20/. for fourteen years and a half Thus if twenty- five years purchase or 2500/. was the price agreed on, there must be duducted 200/. 3100. In determining the sum to be paid for estates in perpetvity there are no guides of universal application but the state of the market and public opinion. However, a sort of abstract principle has been laid down as applicable to this country, which it may be worth while to notice. N. Kent, a land agent of much experience, says, (Hints to Gentlemen of landed Property, &c. 1793. p. 266.) "the want of a criterion to determine the price of estates creates doubt ; and doubt impedes the transfer ; any thing therefore that can aid the purpose of passing estates from one person to another, with the greater facility, may ])e properly introduced here. " Suppose then that the gradual scale, by way of an outline, be taken up thus : When the fundg stand pretty steady at four per cent, the standard of mortgages may be considered at four and a half: the fee simple on the neat return of land ought then to be current at three ; copyholds of inheritance upon a fine certain, at three and a half j copyholds with a fine at the will of the lord, at four. TJiis general rule is short, and may be registered in the mind of every man of business. At the same time Kent stales, that " nineteen times out of twenty, estates are bought and sold upon round numbers." 3101 . In making calculations of the value of estates, the following rules deserve notice. In order to know the number of years' purchase that ought to be given for an estate in perpetuity, according to the several rates of interest which the purchaser may wish to make of his money, it is only necessary to divide 100 by the rate of interest required, and the quotient will shew the number of years' purchase that ought to be given. 3102. JVith resj^ect to the value of freehold estates, or the gross swwi which ought to be paid for the same, Bailey observes, we may either multiply the number of years' purchase, found as above, by the annual rent of the estate, or we may "multiply the annual rent of the estate by 100, and divide the product by the rate of interest which we propose to make of our money ; the quotient will be the sum required." For example, the sum •which ought to be paid for a freehold estate, of the clear rent of 90/. per annum, so that the purchaser may make 4 per cent, interest of his money, is found either by multiplying 25 by 90, which gives 2250/. for the sum required ; or by multiplying 90 by 100, which produces 9000 ; and then dividing this product by 4, which gives 2250/. as before. The first way is the most expeditious, where the number of years' purchase is an even quan- tity ; but the latter will be found the most ready, where the number of years' purchase is a fractional quantity, or is not precisely known. Thus, the gross sura which ought to be paid for a freehold estate of the clear rent of 150/. per annum, in order that the purchaser may make 7 per cent, interest of his money, is found by multiplying 150 by 100, which produces 15,000, and then dividing this product by 7, which gives 2142/. 175. 2d. for the sum required : now if, in answering this question, we had begun by finding the number of years' purchase which ought to have been given for the same, the process would have been rendered much more tedious and intricate. Book V. PLANS AND MAPS OF ESTATES. 487 3103. In. order to find the clear annual rent which a freehold ought to produce, so as to allow the purchaser a given rate of interest for his money, we must ** multiply the gross sum paid for the same, by the given rate of interest, and then divide the product by 100; the quotient of which will be the annual rent required :" thiis, if a person gives 5940^. for a freehold estate, and he wishes to make 6 k per cent, interest of his money, then 5940 multiplied by 6'5, will produce 38610*0, which, divided by 100, willquote 386*100, or 386/. 2s. , for the clear annual rent required. Lastly, 3104. The rate of interest allowed to the purchaser of a freehold, is much more readily and more exactly ascertained than in the case of leases for terms, as we have nothing more to do here than to " multiply the clear annual rent of the estate by 100, and then divide the product by the sum paid for the estate ; the quotient will be the rate of interest re - quired :" thus, if a person gives 2000/. for a freehold estate, of the clear rent of 85/. per annum, then 85, multiplied by 100, will produce 8500, which, divided by 2000, will quote 4*25, or 4^ per cent, for the rate of interest required. 3105. The valuation of mines and minerals is not a matter of much difficulty when it extends merely to quarries of stone, lime, chalk, gravel, or other bodies " open to the day," or worked from the surface. If the qi|antity is indefinite, then the annual income afforded forms the ground- work ; if it is limited, then the joint consideration of the quan- tity, and the probable time the current demand may take to exhaust it. The valuation of metallic mines belongs to a distinct class of professors known as mineral surveyors, and is a matter foreign to agriculture, which confines itself to the earth's surface, or at least to the epidermis of its upper crust. SuBSECT. 6. Of the professional Etiquette of Land Surveyors, Appraisers, and Valuators, in making up their Plans and Beports. 3106. For protracting rural objects various modes have been adopted by land-surveyors : trees are sometimes shown by small crosses or cyphers, triangles or dots (fig. 423. a) ; by an orbiculate line representing the extension of the branches or head, and a dot in the place of the trunk (a and e) ; by the same, with the addition of a shadow, taken when the sun is south or south-west, and his elevation exactly 45°, by which the points of the com- pass are readily ascertained throughout the plan, and the shape of the head, and the height of the tree exhibited' (e) ; sometimes an elevation or profile of the tree is given, either in foliage (f), or to show the form of the trunk and branches (g), or merely to give a rude idea of a tree (c) . Hedge-rows, whether with or without trees, are either shown in elevation or profile (/«), or in vertical profile or bird's-eye view (i). They may be de- lineated either in skeleton or foliage. Buildings may be shown either in general plan (k), detailed plan (/), vertical profile of the roof (m), elevation (ri), perspective view (o); or a plan may be given (^>), and a diagonal elevation (y) taken and placed opposite the plan in the margin of the map. A pictorial surveyor, who understands perspective, and is desirous of conveying a correct idea of the subject he is to measure and delineate, will readily find expedients for attaining success. 3107. In protracting elevations and depressions on jmjier the simplest way is to introduce sections, in dotted or otherwise distinguished lines, to prevent their being mistaken for surface-lines ; or in wavy surfaces, figures may be introduced, thus -g: or 4, to denote their elevation above, or depression below, some piece of water, or other surface fixed on as a medium. Some excellent observations on this subject will be found in Major Lehman's Topographical Flan Drawing, as translated by Lieutenant Sibern, [oblong fol. Lond. 1822), which it is to be hoped will soon be appropriated in the popular books on land surveying, and adopted in practice. 3108. Where it is in contemplation to form canals, or other reservoirs or pieces of water, tlie elevations and depressions or levels must be taken and recorded either by sections or arithmetically with the greatest accuracy ; and, in some cases, sections may require to be taken to show particular trees, buildings^, the depth of water, or other objects. (Jg. 424.) 3109. With respect to the elevations and hapes of hills and mountains they are only to be measured correctly by the quadrant anc' theodolite, in the hands of regular land sur- veyors. Their shape and dimensions are laid tlown in maps in the same manner as tliose li 4 488 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. 424 Part II. of smaller deviations from the flat surface. Inaccessible dimensions of height, as of trees or buildings, are obtained by the quadrant, or by relative comparisons of shadows ; of depth, as of water or wells, by rods ; of breadth or length, by finding the two angles of a triangle whose base shall be in one extremity of the distance ; and apex in the other. These, and many other equally simple problems in trigonometry, need not be enlarged on, because they must be supposed to form a part of general education. 3110. In j)ortraying the general surface of land estates, different modes have been adopted by modern land surveyors. The first we shall mention is the old mode of giving what may be called the ground-lines only ; as of roads, fences, water. courses, situations of buildings and trees, {fg. 425. ) This mode has no other pretensions than that of ac- curacy of dimensions, and can give few ideas to a stranger who has not seen the property, beside those of its contents and general outline. 425 426 3111. In the second, elevations of the o6;Vcifs are added to these lines ; but which, in crowded parts, tend much to obscure them, {fig 426.) This mode is perhaps the best calculated of any to give common observers a general notion of an estate ; more especially if ably executed. Very frequently, however, this mode is attempted by artists ignorant of the first principles of drawing, optics, or perspective, and without taste. 427 Book V. MAPPING ESTATES. 489 3112. In the third, a vertical profile, or geometrical bird's-eye view, that is, a bird's- eye view in which all the objects are laid down to a scale, is presented. In this the upper surface of every object is seen exactly fls it would appear to an eye considerably elevated above it, and looking centrically down on it. {Jig. 427. ) This mode, properly executed, is calculated to give a more accurate idea of the furniture or surface -objects of an estate than any other ; and if the declivities be correctly indicated, and the shade of the hollows and eminences to be laid on with reference to some medium elevation, referred to or illus- trated by sections, taken in the direction of indicated lines (0...6), it will give an equally correct idea of the variations of the ground. In short, it is the best mode for most pur- poses, and is now coming into general use. 3113. yi very complete method of giving the plan of an estate, is to adopt the profile manner and include such a portion of the plans of the adjoining estates or country as shall be cont lined within a circle of moderate extent [Jig. 428.), the centre of which may 428 be the centre of the demesne-lands, family-mansion, or prospect-tower. Around a map so formed, the distant scenery, as seen from the roof of the house, or prospect-tower, may form a panoramic circumference, or margin of prospects. (Jig. 428.) In all these modes, dimensions and contents are given or obtainable along with effect; in all those which fol- low, effect or general appearance only is obtained. 3114. The natural bird's-eye view is intended to give a general idea of the external ap- pearance of an estate. In this the eye of the spectator is supposed to be considerably elevated above the centre of the estate, and all the objects are portrayed exactly as they would appear to him in that situation ; largest in the centre, and gradually diminishing to the circumference of the circle of vision. In such a delineation, parts of other adjoining estates may often require to be included, in order to complete the circle ; but these arc necessary to the general idea, and can easily be distinguished from the principal property by minute marks on the delineation. 3115. In the panoramic view, the delineator supposes himself placed on an eminence, as the roof of the mansion, wbere centrical, and looking round on all tliat he sees on every side. Where there is a prominent hill, or where the mansion is on an eminence, this is a very desirable mode of giving a general idea of a domain, and by the aid of hori- 490 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IL zontal lines, and lines converging to them from the centre of vision, some idea may be had, on flat surfaces at least, of the relative heights and distances of objects. 3116. A simple mode is to give a general view, or distant prospect of the estate, or its principal parts (^5-. 429.), as seen from some elevated conspicuous hill, building, or object near it ; or if the estate, as is frequently the case, is situated on the side of a hill, or range of hills, a situation on the plain, or flat grounds opposite to it, will be suflScient. 429 3117. In delineating maps the most durable mode in point of durability is on parch- ment ; but where there is a chance of alterations being made on the estate, as in the lines of roads, fences, streams, &c., it is better to delineate on paper, as the correspond- ing alterations can be made on the map with greater ease. Such colors as are stains, and do not wash out, are proper for maps and plans on parchment ; but where alterations may require to be made, or where shadows or any thing like picturesque effect is to be attempted, water colors alone must be used. To delineate estates and plans of every kind in a beautiful and expressive manner, much depends on having the very best instru- ments and colors, and in knowing how to use them. The sight of good models is also an important matter, and for this we may refer to Horner's elegant work, The Art of delineating Estates, 1813; and the very scientific work of Lehman, already mentioned (p. 487.). 3118. i>i the writing or printing on maps, great want of taste is often displayed. No principle can be more obvious than that the name of a thing, or the ornaments of an object, should not be made more conspicuous than the theory or object itself. Yet this rule is constantly violated in plans of estates by the large ornamental writing or print interspersed in and around them ; conspicuous Ijlazonry of the name of the estate and its owner at some corner, and of the compass and scale in others. All these adjuncts should be kept in due subordination to the main delineation. 3119. Models of every mountainous estates will be found preferable to any descrip- tion of maps, or views, for giving a correct idea of them. Such models might be formed in plaster of Paris, wax, or various other materials, and colored after nature. 3120. Beference books are essential accompaniments to maps or models, and are of various kinds. Sometimes they merely contain the names and contents of the fields or other parts or divisions, with the state of culture or condition in which they are. In other cases the soil and subsoil are described, but in the most complete cases each farm is described, together with the history of its occupation or improvement under the following or similar heads : — Name, parish, extent, boundaries, when first enclosed, Low let and managed hitherto, to whom and for how much let at present, description of the far- mery and house, contents, fences, trees, ponds, soil, subsoil, surface, expense, &c. of each field; number of timber trees on the farm, copse woods, and various matters. In addition to such a description as the above, some add in the reference book a separate map of each farm, which renders the whole very comprehensive ; and as nothing can be more interesting than the contemplation of a man's own property on all sides, and in every possible bearing, these books are generally valued above all others by country gentlemen. 3121. The valuations of farming stock, tillage, and leases, being of temporary use, are made out with little form. In most cases the value of particular articles is not given, but only an enumeration of them, and the sum total. The valuators have the separate values in their private memorandum books ; and in cases where two valuators are employed, one on each side, if an umpire is obliged to be called in, in consequence of disagreement, then the parties have reference to their notes. In some cases of valuations by two parties, the umpire being appointed beforehand, accompanies the valuators, hears their Book V. ORDER AND MANAGEMENT. 491 discussion on each article as it comes under review, and decides any difference that may occur as they go on. This is considered the best mode, and is that generally adopted in the case of valuations made by order of the Court of Chancery. 3122. In making up valuations for purchasing or selling estates, a report is generally required to accompany the valuation, stating the ground on which it is made. Such a report embraces a great variety of objects according to the nature and extent of the property, and ought to be drawn up in a clear and systematic manner, with such a table of contents and an index as may render it of easy reference. Sect. II. Operations of Order and Management. SI 23. The business of agriculture, whether in the management of extensive estates or tlie culture of single farms, requires to be conducted in an orderly and systematic manner. For this purpose a certain establishment of operators, a certain style of books of accounts, and great attention in all commercial transactions, may be considered the fundamental requisites. 3124. The establishment of co-operators and servants, must depend on the extent of the subject of management. An extensive landed estate, containing besides farming lands, woods, quarries, mills, mines, waters, manorial rights, game, and villages, will require a series of subordinate managers ; but in general a steward as a head manager, a steward's clerk or assistant, or in some cases a local steward, are all the managers that are requisite ; the subordinate care of quarries, woods, game, &c. being performed by a quarryman, forester, gamekeeper, or by common servants of tried fidelity. 3125. The gradation of operators required on farms, Ae^endiS on theix size. When- ever the master does not labor himself, a foreman or operator having some charge is requisite, and in very extensive cases where there is a considerable extent of grazing ground as well as tillage lands, a head ploughman and a head herdsman will be found advantageous. There should also be a confidential laborer, or headman of all work, to superintend and accompany women and children in their operations, as in hoeing, weed- ing, planting potatoes, &c. The grand point to be aimed at by the steward of an exten- sive estate, and the occupier of a large farm, is to hit on the proper number of sub- managers ; and to assign each his distinct province, so as the one may never interfere with the other. Having attained this, the next thing is to keep the whole machine in regular action, to keep every man, from the lowest operator to the highest, strictly to his duty. All operators ought to be adequately remunerated, and it is better in general to pay a liberal price and require vigilant, skilful, and active exertion, than to cheapen labor, and so encourage indolence and bad execution. For the lower class of laborers, especially such as are hired by the year, it will often be necessary to attend as well to the food they eat, as to their constancy at work. In the case of farm servants, for example, it will generally be found preferable to board and lodge single men, than to substitute a sum of money, which they will in many cases either save or spend, otherwise, than so as to strengthen their bodies. Where labor is done by the job, all that is requisite is to see that it is done well, and.according to agreement ; and this, as we have already observed, is the best mode wherever it can be adopted. 3126. Orderly conduct in the lower classes of workmen, is a point to which we would wish particularly to direct the attention of the bailift' and farmer. Regularity in their hours, neatness and cleanness in their dress ; punctuality in cleaning and putting away in the proper places their implements of labor or harness ; humanity to working, and other animals ; decency in general deportment and conversation, and ambition to excel in their particular department. Neatness and order, whether on an estate, a farm, a stable, a dwelling-house, or in a man's dress and manner, forms an index to every thing else. Estates and farms where these qualities prevail, are always well-managed and cultivated ; a neat and clean stable is a sure sign of well-conditioned horses, and of economical feeding ; a dwelling-house, with neatness around and within, is an index of comfort and peace ; and a decently dressed and well behaved man or woman, are sure to be approved, whatever may be their station. 3127. The necessity of order and neatness we are most anxious to impress on tlie minds of all descriptions of masters and managers. Order, it has been well observed, is "Heaven's first law." It is, indeed, the end of all law: witliout it, nothing worth having is to be attained in life, even by the most fertile in resources ; and with it much may be accomplished with very slender means. A mind incapable of an orderly and regular disposition of its ideas or intentions, will display a man confused and disorderly in his actions ; he will begin them without a specific object in view ; continue them at random, or from habit, without knowing well why, till, some accident or discordant result puts an end to his present progress, unman's him for life, or awakens reflection. But a well-ordered mind reflects, arranges, and systematizes ideas before attempting to realize them, weighs well the end in view, considers the fitness of the means for attaining that end, and the best mode of employing these means. To every man who has the 492 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt II. regulation and disposal of a number of servants, this mode of orderly arrangem6nt is essentially necessary in order to reap the full effects of their labors ; and to no man is it of more imp ortance tlian to agriculturists, whose cares are so various, and the success of whose operations, always connected with, and dependant on living beings, depends so much on their being performed in the fitting moment. 3128. Projrriety relates to what is fitting and suitable for particular circumstances; it is the natural result of an orderly mind, and may be said to include that part of order which directs the choice and adaptation of means to ends, and of ideas and objects to cases and situations. It belongs to order for a master to allow workmen proper periods for rest and refreshment ; propriety dictates the time and duration of these periods, and prudence suggests the wisdom of departing as little as possible from established practices. Decorum is the refinement of propriety. 3129. Neatness, as opposed to slovenliness, is well understood; it consists in having every thing where it ought to be ; and in attending to the decorum of finishing operations, and to minute things in general. 3130. As maxims of order and neatness which ought to be continually present to the mind both of masters and servants, we submit the following: 3131. Perform every operation in the proper season. The natural, and therefore the best indications for the operations of sowing and reaping, transplanting, &c. are given by the plants themsel ves, or by the progress of the season as indicated by other plants. But there are artificial kalendars or remembrancers, the use of which is to remind the master of the leading crops and operations of culture and management throughout the year. But, even if such books were made as perfect as their nature admits of, still they are only calculated to aid the memory, not to supply the place of a watchful and vigilant eye, and habits of attention, observation, reflection, and decision. Unless a steward or farmer has these, either naturally, or partly natural and partly cultivated, in a considerable degree, he will be but little better than a common laborer as to general management and culture of garden scenery. 3132. Perform evert/ operation in the best manner. This is to be acquired in part by practice and partly also by reflection. 3133. Complete every jiart of an operation as you proceed. Tliis is an essential point in field operations, and though it cannot always be attended to, partly from the nature of the operation, partly from weather, &c. yet the judicious fanner or bailiff will keep it in view as much as possible. 3134. Finish one job before you begin another. This advice is trite, but it is of great importance ; and there are few cases where it cannot be attended to. 3135. In leaving off working at any job, leave your work and tools in an orderly manner^ 3136. Attend strictly to the hours of commencing labor, and eqvxiUy so to those of leaving > ^ S o* o2 •§ .^ Q to 2^ s 111 ^1 733: €!3 S2ffl.i^Sz 11^ .2^ c3> Z^ -^ o i5g ri ht 3S=^a •"MX •sanx •uns li I.S2 SiJ . 1: s o « oj Si S 22 a. -w CD (o 00 o o o_ S 2= s - -3 3141. 7n commer- cial dealings the agri- culturist requires to be particularly vigilant, because the nature of his occupation and pur - suits have not that ten- dency to sharpen his bargaining faculties which is given by a life of trade or manu- facture. The purchase of an estate is so weighty a transaction, that few men trust to their own judgment as to value, and legal ad- vice is always taken as to the validity of the title, &c. ; but stewards in dealing vn'th timber merchants, workers of quarries, gravel deal- ers, brick makers, and others, require to be ever on their guard. The farmer and bai- liff require particular caution as to market- ing, which is an im- portant business, and not to be excelled in but after long experi- ence in attending fairs and markets; learning the various devices of sellers, to deceive or enhance the price of their goods; and of buyers to depreciate what is exposed to sale. It would not be too much to say, that no man goes to market, whether to buy or sell, without carrying with him the intention to deceive. To farmers who deal chiefly in live stock, marketing is by far the most dif- ficult and important part of their business. There are salesmen or brokers indeed for transacting business in behalf of farmers, as there are agents for effecting transfers of landed property; but in neither case is it safe to trust entirely to their judgment and probity. Personal experience in this as in every depart- ment of his art, is what ought to be aimed at by every agriculturist. 494 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Pari III. PART III. AGRICULTURE AS PRACTISED IN BRITAIN. 3142. In the first Part of this work we have endeavored to give a concise view of the actual state of agriculture in every country, with a view to interest the reader in the subject, and prepare him for entering in detail on the elementary principles of the art. In the second Part, these principles and elementary departments of agricultural knowledge, have been developed in successive views of the nature of vegetables, animals, and soils, and the mechanism and science of agricultural implements and operations. As far as these elementary principles go, they are applicable to the agriculture of every part of the world, with the modifications required by different physical and geographical circum- stances ; but as such an application is not required, in a work designed principally for this country, we limit this part of our work to the agriculture of Britain, in its most im- proved mode of practice. In the extensive sense in which we have applied the terra Agriculture, this will include, 1st, the valuation, purchase, and transfer ; 2d, the laying out or arrangement ; 3d, the improvement ; and 4th, the management of landed pro- perty ; 5th, the hiring and stocking of farms ; 6th, the culture of farm lands ; and 7th, the economy of live stock and the dairy. BOOK L OP THE VALUATION, PURCHASE, AND TRANSFER OP LANDED PROPERTT. 3143. On the existence ofjirojierty depends all human improvement. Personal property is the first acquirement of man; but scarcely any progress is made in civilization till property in land is established and rendered secure. Landed property, indeed, is the basis on which every other material property is founded, and the origin from which it has sprung. Tlie landed estates of Britain, as a species of property, may be considered in regard to tenure, valuation, and transfer. Chap. I. Of the different Kinds and Tenures of landed Projyertf/, in the British Isles. 31 44. jis landed property is somewhat different as to tenure, in the three United Kingdoms, we shall notice the leading features of each separately. Sect. I. Of the Kinds of landed Property, and its different Tenures in England. 3145. Territorial projyerty in England, Marshal observes, aptly separates into two principal divisions ; — namely, into possessory property, or the actual possession of the lands and their appurtenances ; and into abstract rights arising out of them. 3146. Possessory property comprises, the soil, or land itself; the minerals and fossils it covers ; the waters annexed to it ; the wood and herbage it produces ; and the build- ings, fences, &c. thereon erected. 3147. Abstract rights are, seigniorial, as chief rents, &c. ; manorial, as quit-rents, fines, &c. ; prescriptive, as common rights; predial, as tithes; parochial, as taxes. 3148. Advowson and parliamentary interest vai^t he added; as they are not unfre- quently attached to landed property. 3149. Possessory property is further liable to analysis, and to more particular distinc- tions. 3150. Freehold. If lands are held unconditionally, and in full possession, without any other superior than the constitution and laws of the country, they are termad free hold ; a term which admits of still further distinctions. Book I. TENURES OF LANDED PROPERTY. 495 3151 . Feefarmhold. If they are liable to regular and fixed annual payments, beneath their rental value, and without being liable to fine, heriot, or forfeiture, they axefeefarm~ hold, or other inferior holding. 3152. Coj)yhold. If they are held of a superior, as part of a royalty, honor, or manor, and are liable to fines, or other outgoings, on account of deaths, transfers, or other cir- cumstances, they are copyhold ; and are subject to the ancient customs of the royalty, honor, or manor, of which they are respectively a part. 3153. Leasehold. If they are held by special agreement for a definite term, whether of lives or years, they are leasehold; which admits of various distinctions ; namely, lA)ng leasehold, as for a thousand years. Life leasehold, with a fine certain, or under certain limitations, on renewal. Life leasehold, with an uncertain fine ; payable to a proprietor or other superior, who has merely re. served a conventional rent ; the tenant having paid down a sum of money to obtain-the lease, and the right of alienation : agreeably to the practice of the west of England. Life leasehold, with an uncertain fine, payable to a proprietor, who receives the full rent of the land, at the time of granting the lease, the lessor having a power ot alienation, according to the practice of ^Vales, and some parts of England. Leasehold for an ordinary term (as for less thafi a hundred years) with the powet of alienation. 3154. Tenure is the general term for these several holds, or rights of possession. Even the lowest of them gives a sort of temporary property in the land, which is thereby rendered liable to bargain and sale, as property. That species of holding which is given by a lease, without the power of alienation or transfer, being merely the right of occu- pancy, will be classed among other holdings of a similar nature, in treating of leases and tenancy. (See Book II.) 3155. Legal possession of landed property is gained, by grant, as from the crown ; hy prescription, or long usage; by descent, as from an ancestor; by deed of gift, or set- tlement ; by the testament of the deceased owner ; hy forfeiture, as to a mortgagee ; by purchase, either entered on a court roll, or ratified by a deed of conveyance. 3156. The title. Through whatever legal channel possession is obtained, the tradi- tion, record, or deed, that witnesses the fact, gives the title of the possessor ; by which he is enabled to hold his lands, and legally to convey them to another. Such is tlie tenure of lands in England. Sect. II. Of the Kinds and Tenures of landed Property in Scotland. 3157. The kinds of landed property in Scotland are the same as in England, excepting that manorial rights apart from the right to the soil, are unknown. 3158. The tenure of lands in Scotland differs very little from the English tenures. All lands are either held allodially, that is independently of any superior ; or they are held by feudal tenures, by which all lands are considered theoretically as belonging to the crown. The different descriptions of these are termed feu-holding, blanch-holding, burgage, and mortmain. There are also some local tenures, as that of Udal, Loch- maben, &c. 3159. Feu-holding. The most ancient feudal tenure in Scotland, was by military service; for all vassals .were at first obliged, by the nature of their grant, to serve the superior in war, in such manner, and as often, as his occasions called for it. This species of holding, which was known under the name of ward-holdingj is now abolished, (by 20 Geo. 3. c. 50.), and requires no farther explanation. 3160. Blanch-holding. Where the vassal, in place of feu-duties and personal services, as above described, only pays a small duty to the superior, in full of all demands, and merely as an acknowledgement of his right, whether in money, as a penny Scotch, or in some other article, as a pair of gilt spurs, a pound of wax, &c. it is called blanch-holding. This tenure deviates, more than any other, from the original nature of feus ; but next to feu, it has now become the most general species of holding. 3161. Burgage-holding is a tenure, by which royal burghs hold of the sovereign, the houses and lands that lie within the limits described in their several charters of erection. Tlie proprietor of the burgage lands is liable to pay the municipal taxes ; but all the political rights are vested in the magistracy, or town-council of the burgh. It is very limited in its extent. 3162. Mortmain is described by Erskine as the tenure by which any feudal subjects are held, which have been granted in donation to churches, monasteries, or other corpor- ations for religious, charitable, or public uses. Strictly speaking, the only lands now held in mortmain, are a few bursaries belonging to the universities, the tenure having been declared superstitious, and the other lands held by it given to the crown. Lands BOW destined for charitable purposes, are vested in trustees, and held by feu or blanch. 496 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Sect. III. Of the Kinds and Tenures of Landed Property in Ireland. 3163. The kinds of landed property in Ireland are limited to freehold and leasehold ; there are no manorial rights apart from the soil as in England, or feudal rights or holdings as in Scotland. 3164. The tenure of lands in Ireland is very simple. It is in general derived from grants made by the crown on the payment of a certain quit rent received by the excise collector of the district. This is the fundamental tenure, and the only other is leases granted by such proprietors ; some of these leases are for ever, or on lives, re- newable for ever on payment of a certain fine for tlie insertion of a new life when one drops, or for leases of 999 years, and almost every variety of term with and without lives between that and 21 years. There are no feudal tenures in Ireland ; the only abstract right being that of tithes and parochial or other taxes. (See Wakefield's Account of Ireland.) Chap. II. Of the Valuation of Landed Property. 3165. When lands are valued with a vieiv to sale or purchase, the tenure is the first subject of attention. The nature of the tenure often occasions some difficulty in as- certaining its value, but by ascertaining the value of the fee-simple, or freehold tenure, the value of inferior holdings may be found by known rules of calculation, the prin- cipal of which we have already noticed (3094). 3166. The fee- simple value of lands is liable to fluctuation, by general causes ; and is likewise affected, and in much higher degree, by local circumstances. Lands of the selfsame quality are of fivefold value, in one situation, comparatively with what they are worth in another : not merely, though principally, on account of the rental value, or the current price they will let for, to tenants, in different situations ; but through other less permanent causes ; — as the quantity of land at market, and the number and value of purchasers, in a given district ; as well as the temporary spirit which prevails in it, witih respect to the possession of landed property, at the period of sale : — cir- cumstances that are worthy of attention, by a purchaser whose views are not confined to any particular spot. 3167. The usual method of coming at the fee-simple value of land is, to ascertain its fair rental value, or price by the year, and to multiply this by the number of years' purchase which the existing demand for land will bear, in the given situation, at the time of sale. 3168. The number of years^ purchase, or the ratio between the rent and the sale value of lands, varies greatly, as from twenty to forty, twenty-five to thirty being the more ordinary numbers. Thus, a parcel of land whose fair rental value is one hundred pounds, is, in common cases, worth from two tliousand five hundred to three thousand pounds. 3169. But the real rental value, which is the only firm groundwork tp proceed upon, whether in the purchase or the management of landed property, cannot easily be ob- tained. Speaking generally of the lands of England, it is what very few men are able to set down. It is true, that, in every district, and almost every township, there are men who tolerably well know the rate at which the lands of their respective neighborhoods are usually let. But interchange them, reciprocally, into each others districts, and their errors would be egregious, for reasons already suggested. Nor can a mere provincial- ist, especially in a district which is unenlightened by modern improvements, be aware of the value, even of his own farm, under the best course of management of which it may be capable : nor can he see, through the double veil of ignorance and prejudice, the more permanent improvements that may be made upon it, so evidently as one who has a more general knowledge of rural subjects, and is in the habit of detecting and prose- cuting such improvements. Yet it very materially concerns an intended purchj^er, in these improving times, to know, before he make his last offer for an estate, whether it is, or is not, capable of being improved beyond its existing value ; and what, if any, is the probable amount of improvement : for he is else liable to lose a valuable purchase, through his being out-bidden by a better informed candidate. These facts being evident, it follows, that before an offer be made, especially for a large purchase, it is no more than common prudence, in a man who is not himself a judge, to call in two- fold assistance : a provincial valuer, to estimate its fair market price, to the tenants of the neighborhood in which it lies ; and a man of more general knowledge, to check Book I. VALUATION OF LANDED PROPERTY. 497 his valuation, and to estimate tlie improvements of which the lands are evidently capable. 3 1 70. The leading particulars which affect the value of an estate, and which require to be considered in its estimation, are quantity, quality, situation, state, outgoings, and abstract rights. 3171. The quantity of the land is the groundwork of the estimate ; though it has little weight in the scale of valuation. The fee-simple value of an acre of land may be less than twenty shillings, or it may be more than a hundred pounds. Nevertheless, it is on the quantity the rental value is calculated ; and it is usual for the seller to exhibit a ** particular" of the estate on sale ; showing, or which ought to show, not only the ag- gregate quantity, but the number nf acres that each piece or parcel contains ; and ought, most particularly, to specify the distinct quantities of the lands of different qualities, in order that their several rental values, may, with greater accuracy and ease, be ascer- tained. 3172. The intrinsic quality of'the land is another essential basis of calculation. But even this, in a general view of the value of lands throughout the kingdom, is often of secondary consideration : for, in many cases, their values are given by situation, rather than by soil and substrata. In some cases, as has been already said, the value of the situation may be live-fold that of the intrinsic value of the land. This excessive influ- ence of situation, however, is limited in its effects, and is chiefly confined to the environs of towns, and other extraordinary markets for produce : a great majority of the lands of England owe their values less to situation than to intrinsic quality j and to come at this, with sufficient accuracy, is the most requisite, and, at the same time, the most difficult part of valuation, as it depends almost wholly on extemporary judgment, exercised on the frequently few data which rise to the eye, in passing over the field of estimation. It is almost needless, therefore, to observe, that, to acquire the degree of judgment necessary to this critical task, it is requisite to know the productiveness of lands of different appearances : a species of knowledge which scarcely any thing but mature practice, in the cultivation of lands of different qualities, can sufficiently teach ; though long habit may do much, in ordinary cases, towards hitting off the value of lands, without an extensive knowledge of the practice of agriculture. There are, however, cases in which we find both of these qualifications insufficient to give an ac- curacy of judgment, even among provincial valuers ; and a man who ventures to step forward as a universal valuist, should either have an extraordinary talent for his line of profession, or should, after a suitable initiation, have had great experience in rural concerns, in various parts of the kingdom. 3173. On situalio?!, the value of lands, aggregately considered, depends less, than on intrinsic quality ; though, without doubt, situation has great influence. Thus, an acre of land whose intrinsic quality renders it, in an ordinary situation, worth twenty shillings an acre, would not, in some districts, be worth more than fifteen shillings ; while in others it would bear to be estimated at twenty-five shillings, or a higher rent, to a farmer on a large scale, and away from the immediate environs of a town, or any populous district of manufacture'; for reasons that will appear in examining the different parti- culars of situation. 3174. In the temperature of situation, whether it is given by elevation, aspect, or exposure, we find a powerful influence, which is capable of altering, exceedingly, the value of lands. The same soil and subsoil, which we not unfrequently see on exposed mountains, and hanging to the north, and which in that situation are not worth more than five shillings an acre, would, if situated in a sheltered vale dis- trict, and lying well to the sun, be worth twenty shillings, or a greater rent. Even on climature, some- thing considerable depends. In the south of England, harve.st is generally a month earlier tlian in the northern provinces ; though it is not regulated exactly by the climate or latitude of places, a circumstance that requires to be attended to, by those who estimate the value of estates. For an early harvest is not only advantageous in itself, but it gives time to till the ground, or to take an autumnal crop; which are advantages that a late harvest will not so well admit of And another kind of temperature of situation has still more influence on the value of lands ; namely, the moistness of the atmosphere. A moist situa. tion not only gives an uncertain and often a late harvest, but renders it difficult and hazardous, as is too frequently experienced on the western coasts of this island. 317i5. Even in the turn of surface we find exercise for the judgment. Lands lying with too steep or too flat surfaces, especially retentive arable lands, are of less value than those which are gently shelving, so as to give a sufficient current to surface water, without their being difficult to cultivate. Steep-lying lands are not only troublesome and expensive, under the operations of tillage, but in carrying on manures and getting off" the produce. Lands lying with an easy descent, or on a gently billowy surface, may be worth more by many pounds an acre, purchase money, than others of the same intrinsic quaUty, hanging on a steep. 3176. ^ supply of water is another consideration of some weight, in valuing an estate ; for domestic purposes, for the uses of live stock, and for the purpose of irrigation. There are situations in which a copious stream of calcareous water would enhance the fee-simple value of a large estate some thousand l)ounds. 3177. A sufficient supp/i/ of manure, whether dung, lime, marl, or other melioration, at a moderate price, and within a moderate distance of land carriage, materially adds to the intrinsic value of lands. 3178. The established practice of the country in which an estate' lies is capable of enhancing or depre-ss- ing the value of it exceedingly. Even the single pointjof practice of ploughing light and loamy lands with two oxen, or two active horses, instead of four heavy ones, is capable of making a differeifice on good land, which is kept alternately in herbage and corn crops, of five to ten shillings an acre a year ; or ten pounds an acre purchase money. Kk 498 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3179. The price of labor is another regulator of the marketable price of land in a given district. It is always right, however, to compare this with the habits of exertion and industry which prevail among farm workmen, before the neat amount of labor can be safely set down. 3180. The price of living, or expense of housekeeping prevalent among farmers, has its share of influence on the value of lands. In the more recluse parts of the north of England, farmers and their servants are fed, clothed, and accommodated at nearly half the expense of those of a similar degree, in many parts of the more central and southern provinces. It is not here intended to intimate how husbandmen, their servants and laborers ought to live. As they are the most valuable members of the community, they are well entitled to such enjoyments as are compatible with care and labor. All that is meant, in iBtating this fact, is to convey a hint to the purchasers of estates. For, in a country where frugality pre- vails, lands of a given quality will ever bear a higher rent than they will where a more profuse style of living has gained a footing. It is a work of time to change the customs and established manners of a country. 3181. The spirit of improvement, or the prejudice against it, which prevails in a district of sale, is a circumstance of some value to a purchaser. For if the former is in a progressive state, especially if it is still in the earlier stages of its progress, a rapid increase of rent may, with a degree of certainty, be ex- pected : whereas, under the leaden influence of the latter, half a century may pass away, before the golden chariot of improvement can be profitably put in motion. 3182. In markets, more than in any other circumstance, we are to look for the existing value of lands. Their influence is not confined to towns and populous places of manufacture ; for in ports, and on quays, whether of inlets, estuaries, rivers, or canals, markets are met half way : even by good roads their dis- tance from the farm yard may be said to be shortened. 3183. In this detail of the particulars of situation, with respect to the value of landed property, we perceive the attentions requisite to be employed, by a valuer who is called upon to act in a country that is new to him. A provincialist, or even a professional valuer, who acts in a district, the existing value of whose lands he is sufficiently ac- quainted with, determines, at sight and according to the best of his judgment, on their respective values ; for he knows, or ought to know, their current prices ; what such and such lands let for in that neighborhood ; what he and his neighbors give, or would give for lands of the same quality and state, without adverting to the particular circumstances of situation (they being given, in the established current prices which have arisen out of these circumstances) ; resting his judgment solely on the intrinsic quality and existing state of each field or parcel as it passes under his eye. But let his skill be what it may, in a country in which he has acquired a habit of valuing lands, he will, in a distant district, the current market prices of whose lands may be ten, twenty, or fifty per cent, above or below those which he has been accus- tomed to put upon lands of the same intrinsic qualities and existing states, find himself at a loss, until he has learnt the current prices of the country, or has well weighed the cir- cumstances of situation ; to which, in every case, he must necessarily attend, before he can determine their value under an improved practice, or venture to lay down general rules for their improvement. 3184. The existing state of lands, or the manner in which they lie, at the time of sale, is the next class of circumstances which influence their marketable value. 3185. Their state with respect to enclosure is a matter of great consideration. Open lands, though wholly appropriated, and lying well together, are of much less value, except for a sheep walk or a rabbit warren, than the same land would be in a state of suitable enclosure. If they are disjointed and intermixt in a state of common field, or common meadow, their value may be reduced one third. If the common fields or meadows are what is termed Lammas land, and become common as soon as the crops are off", the depres- sion of value may be set down at one half of what they would be worth, in well-fenced enclosures, and unencumbered with that ancient custom. Again, the difference in value between lands which lie in a detached state, and those of the same quality that lie in a compact form, is considerable. The disadvan- tages of a scattered estate are similar to those of a scattered farm. Even the single point of a want of convenient access to detached fields and parcels is, on a farm, a serious evil. And it is en the value of farms that the value of an estate is to be calculated. 3186. The state of the roads, whether public or private, within an estate, and from it to the neighboring taarkets, or places of delivery of produce, is an object of consideration to a purchaser. 3187. The state of the watercourses, or shores and ditches, within and below an estate, requires to be ex- amined into J as the expense of improvement or rej^aration will be more or less, according to their existing state, at the time of purchase ; or, perhaps, by reason of natural causes, or through the obstinacy of a neighbor, and the defectiveness of the present laws of the country in this respect, the requisite improve- ment cannot be effected at any expense. 3188. The state of drainage of lands that lie out of the way of floods or collected water, requires to be taken into consideration. Foi^ although the art of draining is now pretty well understood, it cannot be practised, on a large .scale, without much cost. 3189. I'he state of the lands, as to tillage and manure, is entitled to more regard than is generally paid to it, in valuing them. But even to a purchaser, and still more to a tenant for a tenn, their state, in these respects, demands a share of attention. Lands, that are in a high state of tillage and condition, so as to be able to throw out a succession of full crops, may be worth five pounds of purchase money an acre, more than those of the same properties, which are exhausted by repeated crops, and lie in a useless state of foulness : from which they cannot be raised, but at a great expense of manure and tillage. 3190. The state, as to grass or arable, is better understood, and generally more attended to. Lands in a state of profitable herbage, and which have lain long in that state, are not only valuable as bearing a high rent, while they remain in that state, but after the herbage has begun to decHne, will seldom fail to throw out a valuable succession of corn crops. Hence, the length of time which lands, under valuation, have lain in a state of herbage, especially if it has been kept in a state of pasturage, is a matter of enquiry and estimation. 3191. Lastly, the state of farm buildings and fences is a thing of serious consideration. Buildings, yards, and enclosures that are much let down, and gone to decay for want of timely reparation, incur a very great expense .to raise them again to their proper state. And, when great accuracy of valuation is called for, as when the purchase value of an estate is left to reference, and when the tenants are not bound, or if bound are not able to put them in the required state, it becomes requisite to estimate the expense which each farm, in that predicament, will require to put it in sufficient repair, so as to bring the Book I. VALUATION OF LANDED PROPERTY. 499 whole into a suitable state of occupation. And the same principle of valuation holds good in ordinary purchases. 3192. Deductions, encumbrances, and outgoings are leases, tithes, taxes, lixed pay- ments, repairs, and risks. 3193. Leases. In considering the nature of leasehold tenures, it appears that, by a long lease, the fee-simple value of an estate may be, in effect, annihilated. Even a lease for lives, with a mere conventional rent, may reduce it to nearly one third of its fee- simple value. And every other kind of lease, if the rent payable be not equal to the fair rental value at the time of sale, is an encumbrance ; even to a purchaser who has no other object in view than that of securing his property on land, and receiving interest, in rent, for the money laid out. If personal convenience be immediately wanted, or improvements required to be done, a lease, though the tenant pay a full rent, becomes an obstacle to the purchase. 31 94. Tithes. If in valuing lands they are considered as tithe free, the tithe, or modus, if any, requires to be deducted as an encumbrance j and seeing the great variation in the values of tithes and moduses, according to customs and plans of occupation, it is the plainest way of proceeding to value all lands, as free of tithe, and afterward to make an allowance for whatever they may be estim^tted to be worth : an allowance wliich, in some cases, as on corn-land estates, forms a considerable portion of the fee-simple value of the lands ; while on grass-land estates, especially such as are pastured by cattle, this encumbrance, so galling to the corn-grower, is in great part avoided. 3195. Taxes. Although it may be called the custom of England for proprietors to pay the land tax, and the occupier all other taxes, yet this is not the universal practice.. Nor is it, in valuing an estate on sale, and to be let at will, a matter to be enquired into. The annual amount of the payable taxes and other outgoings is the fact to be ascertained. For whosoever discharges them, they come as a burtlien upon the gross value of the lands, out of which they are payable ; for if a tenant pay them, his rent is, or ought to be, estimated and fixed accordingly. If, however, an estate, on sale, is already let under lease for a term to come, it is highly requisite to ascertain what parts of the annual outgoings and repairs are discharged by the tenants, and what the pro- prietor will be liable to, during the term to run. The land tax, where it still exists, is extremely uncertain as to its value, and the poor tax is equally varying in different situations. The church, highways, and county rates are, taking them on a par of years, less liable to local uncertainty, and are consequently less entitled to enquiry, by a valuist. 3196. Fixed payments, or rent charges, such as chief rents, quit rents, annuities, endowments, schoolmasters' salaries, charitable donations, &c. to which an estate is liable ; also 3197. Repairs of public works, buildings, roads, &c. incumbent on the estate on sale, are subjects of inquiry and estimation ; as well as the ordinary repairs above noticed. And moreover, 3198. The hazard or risk, which naturally, or fortuitously, attends the lands under valuation ; as that of their being liable to be inundated in summer, or to be torn away by floods, at any season ; is entitled to raiature consideration. For although these evils may generally be remedied, by river breaks and embankments, the erecting of these is mostly attended with great expense; and the estimated value of this becomes, in course, a fair deduction. 3199. Appurtenant to an expensive estate, there are generally other valuable consider- ations, besides the purchase value of the lands. These are, 3200. Minerals and fossils, whether metals, fuels, calcareosities, or grosser earths. 3201. Waters, whether they are valuable for fisheries, decoys, mills, domestic pur- poses, or the irrigation of lands. 3202. Timber, of woods and hedgerows. 3203. Buildings that are not let with the farms ; but which bear rent, independent of the lands ; yet which, when scattered over an estate, may well be considered as belong- ing to landed property. 3204. The estimated value of evident improvemeTits. 3205. The abstract rights which arise out of appropriated lands, or their appur- tenances ; as 3206. The right of cmmnonage, which is generally of some value, even when commons lie open, and may be of more, when they shall be enclosed ; provided the cost of enclosure do not turn out to be more than the extra value of the appropriated lands, above that of the common right in their ojien state. 3207. The right of seigniority to fee-farm rents, or other chief rents, payable to the possessor of the lands on sale, out of the lands of other proprietors. These rents, though small, are of certain value in themselves; and the idea of superiority which they convey to some men's minds, may be worth more than the pecuniary value; which, indeed, where the sums are very small, (as is often the case) is much lowered by the expense of collecting them : beside the trouble, vexation, private quarrels, and lawsuits they are hable to excite, when, through neglect, they are half forgotten, and the vassal is willing to catch at '.he circumstance, to try to get rid of the teazing and humiliating encumbrance. This, however,, may serve to account for their having been handed down with reverential care, through a succession of ages ; until, in many i|utance», even their origin, and much more the circumstances attending it, are difficult or K k 2 500 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. impoaeible to trace. But, surely, a man of a liberal turn of mind, who has no Interest in legal contests, and who prefers solid gold to a'trinket, would not hesitate to collect these scattered wrecks of property, and to convert them to a more civilized, rational, and profitable purpose. On the other hand, any man of an independent spirit would pay more than a fair price, would pay liberally, to be exonerated from so base a burden. If, however, a vassal's chains sit easy uj)on him, let him wear them. What is here meant to to be intimated is, that he ought to have, in liberality, if not in law, a fair opportunity of throwing them off 3208. The rights of feudality y or manorial rights, are, at present, if not in their origin, very different from those last mentioned. In the day of their establishment, they appear to have been founded in wisdom and a degree. of political necessity ; and, by the correcting hand of time, they arrived at a high degree of political perfection. The simple and easy mode of transferring property, which the feudal system estab- lished, was well adapted to the illiterate age in which it had its rise. Even in these lettered days, and among the ruins of feudal rights, the copy of a court-roll is considered as the clearest title a man can have to his possession ! what a hint is this to modern legislators I The value of feudal rights is to be estimated by the quit rents, fines, heriots, escheats, and amerciaments, which long custom and a train of circum- stances have attached to the given court. And beside what relates to the appropriated lands of the manor, the lord has a profit arising from the commonable lands (if any lie within it) as lord of the soil ; which can- not be broken without his permission. Hence the fossils and minerals, which it covers, belong to him ; as well as the timber which grows upon the waste, and the waters that are annexed to it. He is moreover, in ordinary cases, lord of the game which inhabits or strays upon this manor. This, however, being a right of pleasure, rather than of profit, has no fixed standard of estimation. 3209. The right of tithe, when attached to an estate, is the most desirable of abstract rights, arising out of landed property. For, as far as the right extends, (whether to a lay rectory, or a vicarial impropriatorship) the lands which it covers become, in effect, tithe free ; as every judicious proprietor incorporates the rents of the tithe with those of the lands out of which it is payable : thus (if the right, as it generally is, be rectoriall freeing them wholly from the encumbrance of tithes, as a tax on improvements, and as an obstacle to the growth of corn. The value of tithes, as has been intimated, is so various, that nothing but local information can enable a valuist to estimate them with sufficient truth. 3210. The right of advowson, or the privilege of appointing a pastor, to propagate religion and morality upon an estate, properly enough belongs to its possessor ; as no other individual is so intimately concerned in the moral conduct of its inhabitants. 3211. The right of representation or election, or the appointment (in whole or in part) of a legislator, to assist in promoting good order, in the nation at large, equally belongs to the owner of territorial surface. Chap. III. Of the Purchase or Transfer of Landed Property. 3212. In bargaining for an estate there are two methods in use ; the one by public bid- dings, and the other by private treaty. In either a certain degree of caution is requisite ; and in both an accurate valuation is the best safeguard. 3213. Among the jrreliminaries of purchase, 6y ;mm/e cowfracf, the particulars which may be required to be furnished by a seller, are first to be enumerated. These are ; the quantities of the several pieces of the lands on sale, together with the maps, or rough drafts, of the same : the tenure under which they are holden : some assurance as to the title of the seller, and his right of alienation : the tenancy under which the several farms are let ; and, if on lives, the ages of the nominees ; if for a term of years, the number unexpired ; if at will, the notices (if any) which the tenants have had. 3214. An abstract of the covenants under which they are let; particularly on those which relate to taxes and repairs, to the expenditure of produce, to the ploughing of grass lands, &c. 3215. The existing rents and profits receivable; whether for tenanted lands, appurte- nances, or abstract rights ; with the estimated value of the demesne, and the wood lands in hand ; together with the estimated value of the timber growing upon the estate on sale, as well as of the minerals and fossils which it may contain : the outgoings to which the estate is liable : the proposed time of the delivery of possession : the price and the mode of payment expected. 3216. The particulars of instructions to be given to a surveyor, or other valuer, of an estate to be purchased, may next be particularized ; it will be right, however, to premise, that much, in this respect, depends on the probability of purchasing, and on the time al- lowed for making the estimate. 3217. In cases of sale by jmblic auction, where there can be no certainty as to purchase, and where the time for valuation is limited, a rough estimate of each farm, and a general idea of the value of the timber and other appurtenances, may be all that can be prudently ascertained. 3218. But, in a sale by private contract, where the refusal of an estate is granted, and time allowed for deliberate survey, a more minute investigation may be proper, especially when there is every reason to believe that a bargain will take place. For the same report will not only serve as a guide to the purchase, but will become a valuable foundation on Book II. LAYING OUT ESTATES. 501 which to ground the future management of tlie estate. For these, and other reasons, a purchase by private contract is most to be desired, by a gentleman who is not in ti\c habit of personally attending public sales, and is unacquainted with the business of auction rooms. 3219. The particulars to be required from a surveyor y or surveyors, are principally these : the rental value of each field or parcel of land, with the state in which it lies, as to arable, meadow, pasture, or woodland : the value of the timber and other appur- tenances : the characteristic, and the state of management of each farm or tenement, with the eligibility of its occupier, together with the state of repair of buildings, gates, fences, watercourses, and roads : the amount of the encumbrances and outgoings : and, lastly, the probable value of the improvements of which the estate may appear to be capable ; whether by ordinary or extraordinary means. 3220. The subjects of treaty after these particulars of information are procured are few. The two statements have been duly compared, so that no misunderstanding can take place between the parties, the price, with the times and mode of payment, are the principal mat- ters of agreement. A clear understanding respecting the custody of title deeds, and the expenses of conveyance, require, however, to be enumerated among the preliminaries of purchase. 3221. The business of negociation is best carried on by letters, which become vouchers of facts. Wliatever is done by interview, requires to be reduced to writing, and to be read l)y, or to, the parties, before they separate, that no possibility of misconception may arise. And, added to these precautions, it is proper, in large purchases, and when ab- stracts of intricate title deeds are to be made out, and examined, that a legal contract, or memorandum of agreement, should be entered into, for the mutual satisfaction and surety of the parties. 3222. This contract, and the deed of conveyance, fnamely the instrument which is le- gally to transfer the property from the seller to the purchaser,) may be said to conclude and ratify the business of purchase ; and in this part of it legal assistance is essentially ne- cessary, to examine existing deeds, and see that the seller has a legal right and clear title to the land, and a legal power to dispose of it, as well as to draw up, or examine, the fresh deed of conveyance, and see that it is sufficient to transfer the property, legally and ade- quately, to the purchaser. 3223. The preservation of titles may be adverted to before dismissing this subject. In Scotland, deeds of conveyance, and other deeds, are registered in one magnificent build- ing, whose internal economy is as admirably adapted to its design, as its outward form is beautiful. And, in England, there are two counties (Yorkshire and Middlesex) which are termed register counties ; in which abstracts of deeds are preserved, and so arranged as to be readily referred to. Hence, in cases where the original deeds are destroyed, or lost, these registered abstracts are sufficient evidences of their having existed, and capable of se- curing the titles of estates to their rightful owners ; and are moreover valuable, in pre- venting fraudulent practices, particularly respecting mortgages. Nevertheless, the other comities of England remain, from reign to reign, destitute of these advantages. BOOK II. or THX LATINO OUT, OR GENERAL ARRANGEMENT OF LANDED ESTATES. 3224. The laying out of an extensive landed estate embraces a variety of subjects, and requires extensive information and enlarged views of political, agricultural, and even of \noral improvement. In new countries, such as America, where an estate is laid out ab origine, this is more particularly the case ; but the observation will also apply to many parts of the British isles, where estates, long since appropriated, require rearraage- raent and improvement. 3225. Among the different objects of attention in laying out or re-arranging a landed estate, one of the first is its consolidation, or the rounding off or simplifying the outline so as the whole may be brought into a compact form. This envis de s'arrondir seems to have existed, and the proximity and intermixture of property to have been felt as an evil by landed proprietors in all ages. Ahab desired the field of Naboth, because it was near to his house ; and Marvel, the attorney (Massingers New Way to Pay Old Debts, <|-c.) advised his client to " hedge in the manor of Master Frugal," because " his land, lying in the midst of yours, is a foul blemish." 3226. In consolidating property in Britain, an equally desirable object is the appro- priation of commonable lands, which, in England, can only be effected under the author Kk 3 502 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. rity of a special act of the legislature ; but is accomplishfed with less difficulty in Scot- land, and is rarely necessary in Ireland. 3227. The arrangement of the interior of an estate naturally follows the determination of the ring-fence, and the complete possession of all that is within. Here the first thing will probably be to determine the demesne lands, or site of the proprietor's residence, and the extent of territory he means to attach to it and retain in his own occupation. Then follows the intersection of the estate with roads, and probably a canal ; the choice or determination of the sites for towns, villages, manufactories, and mines, mineral quarries, or fisheries, if such exist naturally. Lastly, the grounds to be planted being determined on, the remaining part of the property will consist of the lands to be let out for cultivation by farmers, or other tenants of the soil. In conformity with this view of the subject, we shall consider, in succession, the consolidating of estates, the appropriating of commonable lands, the choice of demesne, road-making, canal-making, the establish- ment of villages and manufactories, the working of mines and quarries, the establishment of fisheries, the formation of plantations, the planting of orchards, and the laying out of farms and farm-lands. Chap. I. Of consolidating Detached Property. S228. The advantages of a compact estate over one whose lands lie scattered and inter- mixed with other men's properties, are evident. The management, whether of detached farms, as part of an estate, or scattered fields, as parts of a farm, is conducted with in- conveniency : beside the unpleasant altercations to which intermixed lands are liable to give rise. The different methods of compressing landed property into the required state, are by exchange, by purchase, and by sale. 3229. Where the lands of two projyrietors lie intermixed with each other, an amicable exchange is the most eligible. And were it not for the childish piques and petty jealousies which so frequently take root between neighboring proprietors (and are cherished perhaps by their officious friends), lands of this description could not long exist ; the evil, in almost any case, being easily removed. Each party having chosen one, or, in extensive concerns, two referees ; and the two or four so chosen, having named a third or fifth, the required commission is formed ; and bonds of arbitration being signed, the commissioners proceed, as under an act of appropriation of common- able lands, to assign each proprietor his rightful share, in the most profitable situation which the given circumstances will permit. This mode of proceeding might be adopted by the most distant parties, or the most inveterate enemies ; and, doubtlessly, with ad- vantage to the property and peace of mind of each. 3230. Where an estate or a farm is disjointed, by the intermediate lands of others, it is not only pleasurable to be possessed of them, but profitable to purchase them, even at a higher price than they are intrinsically worth ; consequently, at much more than their value, as detached lands, to their proprietor. Yet such is often the waywardness and ill-judged policy of the holders of lands so situated, that they will rather continue to hold them with disadvantage, than sell them at a fair price. An equitable way of deter- mining a matter of this sort is to ascertain the value of the lands to the holder, as detached lands, and likewise their value to the candidate, as intermixed lands ; and to let the mean between the two values be the selling price. By this method, both parties become actual and equal gainers. If the possessor of such lands should lie in wait for an exorbitant ofiPer, the most efficient mode of proceeding is to offer a high number of years' purchase on their fair rental value, indifi'erently considered, in the situation irl which they lie, and to propose to settle such rental value hy arbitration. This is a sort of ofter which every honest man can readily understand ; and if the holder has any character to lose in his neighborhood, he cannot refuse it ; if he has not, a calculation of the difference between the rent he is receiving and the interest of the money ofl[ered, consequently of the annual loss which he is sustaining by not accepting the offer, will, sooner or later, bring him to a sense, if not of his duty as a member of society, of his own interest. 3231. It is, in general, right management to dispose of the detached j^arts of an estate^ and%to add to the main body. The whole is then more easily superintended, and ma- naged at less expense ; while small properties, if suitable steps be taken, and proper seasons of disposal caught, will generally fetch more than larger parcels, of equal rental value, timely and judiciously purchased. 3232. In selling, as in purchasing estates, two methods present themselves. They may be sold by auction or by private contract. To raise a sum of money expeditiously, the Book II. APPROPRIATING LANDS. 503 former may be the most eligible ; though attended with more expense and more notoriety than the latter ; which, for the purpose under view, and when expedition is not neces- sary, will generally, if properly conducted, be found preferable. To conduct a sale of detached lands with judgment and reputation, the first step is to have them deliberately valued by at least two men of character and ability, and to divide them into parcels or lots, according to situation, and so as to render them of superior value to adjacent pro- prietors. Then fix upon each parcel such value as it is fairly worth to the owner of the lands with which it is naturally united ; and give him the refusal of it. Such parcels as are not disposed of in this way, may either lie open to private contract, or be sold by public auction ; the motive for selling being, in either and every case, openly declared. It is to be remarked, however, that for a sale by auction, a fresh arrangement of lots will be required : the principle of allotment being in this case the reverse of the former. At an auction, a certain degree of competition is requisite to raise the article on sale to its full value; and it is no more than common prudence in the seller to make up hiS lots in such a manner as will bring together the greatest number of competitors. Chap. II. Of appropriating Commonable Lands, 3233. Commonable lands, or such as lie intermixed or are occupied in common by the inhabitants according to certain laws and customs, may be considered in regard to their origin and kinds, and their appropriation or division. Sect. I. Of the Origin and different Kinds of Commonable Lands. 3234. A very few centuries ago, nearly the whole of the lands of Britain lay in an open, and more or less in a commonable state. ( See Fitzherbert on the Statute Extenta Manerii. ) Each parish, or township, (at least in the more central and northern districts) comprised ditFerent descriptions of lands ; having been subjected, during successive ages, to speci- fied modes of occupancy, under ancient and strict regulations, which time had converted to law. These parochial arrangements, however, varied somewhat in different districts ; but, in the more central and greater part of the kingdom, not widely ; and the following statement may serve to convey a general idea of the whole of what may be termed com- mon-field townships, throughout England. 3235. Each parish or township was considered as one common farm; though the tenan- try were numerous. (See also Blackstone's Commentaries, art. Tithing of Townsh.) Round the village in which the tenants resided, lay a few small enclosures, or grass yards, for rearing calves, and as baiting and nursery grounds, for other farm stock. This was the common farmstead, or homestall, which was generally placed as near the centre of the more culturable lands of the parish or township as water and shelter would permit. 3236. Round the 'homestall lay a suit of arable fields, including the deepest and soundest of the lower grounds, situated out of water's way, for raising corn and pulse ; as well as to produce fodder and litter for cattle and horses, in the winter season ; and, in the lowest situation, as in the water-formed base of a rivered valley, or in Swampy dips, shooting up among the arable lands, lay an extent of meadow grounds, or ings, to afford a supply of hay, for cows and working stock, in the v/inter and spring months. 3237. On the outskirts of the arable lands, where the soil is adapted to the pasturage of cattle, or on the springy slope of hills, less adapted to cultivation, qr in the fenny bases of valleys, which were too wet, or gravelly lands, thrown up by water, which were too dry to produce an annual supply of hay with sufficient certainty, one or more stinted pastures, or hams, were laid out for milking cows, working cattle, or other stock which required superior pasturage, in summer. 3238. The bleakest, worst-soiled, and most distant lands of the township, were left in their native wild state, for timber and fuel, and for a common pasture, or suit of pastures, for the more ordinary stock of the township, whether horses, rearing cattle, sheep, or swine ; without any other stint, or restriction, than what the arable and meadow lands indirectly gave , every joint-tenant, or occupier of the township, having tlie nominal privilege of keeping as much live stock on these common pastures, in summer, as the appropriated lands he occupied would maintain in winter. 3239. The aj)pro]rriated lands of each township were laid out with equal good sense and propriety. That each occupier might have his proportionate share of lands of ditFerent qualities, and lying in different situations, tlie arable lands, more particularly, were divided into numerous parcels of sizes, doubtless, according to the size of the given township, and the number and rank of the occupiers. 3240. The whole was subjected to the same plan of management, and conducted as one common farm, for which purpose the arable lands were divided into compartments, . Kk 4 504 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. or " fields,*' of nearly equal size, and generally three In number, to receive, in constant rotation, the triennial succession of fallow, wheat (or rye), and spring crops (as barley, oats, beans, and peas) : thus adopting and promoting a system of husbandry, which, howsoever improper it is become, in these more enlightened days, was well adapted to the state of ignorance, and vassalage, of feudal times; when each parish or township had its sole proprietor ; the occupiers being at once his tenants and his soldiers, or meaner vassals. The lands were in course liable to be more or less deserted by their occupiers, and left to the feebleness of the young, the aged, and the weaker sex. But the whole township being, in this manner, thrown into one system, the care and management of the live stock at least, would be easier and better than they would have been under any other arrangement. And, at all times, the manager of the estate was better enabled to detect bad husbandry, and enforce that which was more profitable to the tenants and the estate, by having the whole spread under the eye at once, than he would have been, had the lands been distributed in detached unenclosed farmlets ; besides avoiding the expense of enclosure. And another advantage arose from this more social arrangement, in barbarous times : the tenants, by being concentrated in villages, were not only best situated to defend each other from predatory attacks ; but were called out, by their lord, with greater readiness, in cases of emergency. Therefore, absurd as the common -field system is, in almost every particular, at tliis day, it was admirably suited to the circum- stances of the times in which it originated ; the plan having been conceived in wisdom, and executed with extraordinary accuracy, as appears in numberless instances, even at this distance of time. 3241 . Uninhabited tracts or forests. In dilTerent parts of Britain there were and still are extensive tracts of land, some of them of a valuable quality, which lie nearly in a state of wild nature, which were never inhabited, unless by freebooters and homebred savages. These uninhabited tracts are styled forests ; and heretofore, many or most of them have been attached to the crown ; and some of them are still under royal patronage. Whether they were originally set out for royal pastime, merely, or whether the timber which stood on them was of peculiar value, or whether, at the time of laying out town- ships, those tracts were impenetrable woods, inhabited by wild beasts, and, when these were destroyed, or sufficiently overcome to render them objects of diversion, were taken under the protection of the crown, is not, perhaps, well ascertained. There were also tracts of that description in diflTerent parts of England, but which appear, evidently, to have been enclosed from a state of woodland or common pasture; though it is possible they may have been nominally attached to neighboring parishes. Of this description, principally, are the Wealds of Kent and Sussex, and many other old enclosed lands, in different parts of the kingdom, whose fields or enclosures are of irregular shapes, and their fences crooked. These woodland districts are like the forest lands, divided into manors, which have not an intimate connexion or correspondence with parishes or townships : a further evidence, that they were in a wild state, when the feudal organization took place. 3242. In the western extreme of the island^ the common-field system has never, per- haps, been adopted ; has certainly never been prevalent, as in the more central parts of England. There, a very different usage would seem to have been early established, and to have continued to the present time, when lords of manors have the privilege of letting off the lands of common pastures, to be broken up for corn ; the tenant being restricted to two crops ; after which the land is thrown open again to pasturage. And it is at least probable, that the lands of that country have been cleared from wood, and brought into a state of cultivation, through similar means. At present, they are judiciously laid out, in farms of different sizes, with square straight lined enclosures, and with detached fann- steads, situated witUin their areas ; the villages being generally small and mean ; the mere^ residences of laborers. Circumstances these are, which strongly evince that the common field system never took place, in this part of the island, as it did in the more central parts of England. Ireland, also, has been enclosed (though not fenced) from time immemorial. 3243. The feudal organization having lost its original basis, has itself been mouldering away, more particularly during the last century. A great majority of the appropriated common-field lands and commons have been partially, or wholly enclosed; either by piecemeal, each proprietor enclosing his own slip, a very inconvenient mode of enclosure, or by general consent, the whole of the proprietors agreeing to commit their lands to the care and judgment of arbiters, or commissioners, who, restoring the fields to their original intirety, reparceled them out, in a manner more convenient to the several proprietors, and laid each man's portion, which had consisted of numberless narrow slips, in one or more well shaped grounds. 3244. In England this requires to be effected by a separate act of parliament for each enclosure. In these acts comniissioners are named, or directed to be chosen by the proprietors, who, according to certain instructions in the act or law, and the general principles of equity, divide the township among all who hav« an i)iterest in it. It appears by the statute books, that from the year 1774 to the year 1813, no fewer than two thousand six hundred and thirty-two acts of enclosure have been passed; the average in the fir»t twenty years being thirty-seven, and in the last twenty years ninety-four. . ^ Book II. DIVIDING COMMONABLE LANDS. 505 3245. In Sootland a general bill of enclosure was passed by the parliament tn 1695, and in consequence of it the whole country has for nearly a century past been in distinct possessions. In Ireland, as we have already remarked, no enclosure act became necessary, and the country is consideied as suficring from the long continued minute diversion of landed property. 324(5. As a contrast to the.gcfwral eagerness for enclosing, it may be usefVil to present the moderate, and in our opinion, judicious observations of Loch, to whom it appears very doubtful how far the indiscriminate enclosure of commons, arising out of the high nominal prices of grain, has been in every instance of ad- vantage to the nation. Many of them, he says, certainly, could never pay the expense of obtaining the act, — of the commissioners' fees, — of the construction of the fences, — and of bringing the land into cultivation. I n this respect there has been a dead loss of capital to the country. It is conceived that it is not carrying this feeling too far, to regret the destruction of some of those beautiful and picturesque forests and chases which once surrounded London, and to hope that this may go no ftirther. It may even be permitted, perhaps, to in- clude within this regret as a national loss, the destruction of Windsor forest, the most appropriate accom- paniment of the noblest royal residence in Europe. The preservation of some of these chases is as essential to the poorer classes of the metropolis as to the rich. To the former they afford health, exercise, and amuse- ment; in the latter they produce and cherish that love of the country, and of rural sports, so important in a constitutional point of view. They nourish that feeling for and knowledge of the beauties of nature, (freed from the love of gain as connected with the productions of the soil,) which enlarge our understand, ings, and exalt every better sentiment of the heart, encouraging the practice of the social virtues, and t;hecking those more selfish habits, which the general distribution of great wealth is too apt to engender. There cannot be a doubt that not only for these reasons would the abstaining from some of these enclo- sures have been beneficial, but, in an economical point of view, it would have been most advantageous to tlie nation. In how many ways could not the capital, thus lost, have been beneficially applied, both for the individual and the country ! How much a richer man would the land-owner have been, if he had saved much of this expense, and permitted a more liberal importation of foreign corn ! How much better would it have been for the country ! In this, as in every other instance, it might be demonstrated, that that which would have been best for one, would have been so for all, and that the same system must always benefit equally the English landlord, tenant, merchant, manufacturer, and artisan. Sect. II. Oftlie general Pniiciplet ^ approjmaiing and dividing Commonable Lands. 3^47. There are few lands in Britain unnjyjyropriated, excepting in England, and these may be classed as forest lands, and other extensive wastes, on which several manors, or adjacent townsliips, have a right of common pasturage ; commonable lands of distinct townships or manors, whose appropriated lands are wholly enclosed, and in a state of mixed cultivation ; commonable lands of townships, whose arable fields, &c. are partially enclosed; and commonable lands of townships, whose arable fields remain wholly open. 3248. The principles on which the ajyjrropriation of those lands requires to be conductedy are thus laid down by Marshal. By an established principle of the general law, or con- stitution of the country, immemorial custom establishes right. Hence the original rights and regulations respecting the lands under view, are not now the proper subjects of investigation ; nor are the changes that may have taken place during a succession of centuries, from the origin of forests and townships, to the latest time which is no longer within memory, objects of enquiry ; but solely, the acquired rights which exist in a given case at the time of appropriation, and which would continue to exist were it not to take place. The possessor of a cottage which has enjoyed, time immemorial and without interruption, the liberty of pasturage, though such cottage were originally an encroach- ment of a freebooter, or an outlaw, has indisputably as legal a claim to a proportionate share of the commonable lands, as the possessor of the demesne lands of the manor has, merely as such, although they may have descended from father to son, from the time of their severalty ; for it is evidently on the estimated values of the respective rights which exist y and which can be rightfully exercised in tinie to come, and on tliese alone, that a just and equitable distribution can be effected. 3249. But before the distribution of commonable lands among the owners of common pasturage can take place, the more abstract rights which belong to commons require to be estimated, and the just claims of their possessors to be satisfied. These are principally manorial rights, and the rights of tithes. 3250. Manorial claims are to be regulated by the particular advantages which the lord of a given manor enjoys, and which he will continue to enjoy while the commons remain open and unappropriated; whether they arise from mines, quarries, water, timber, alien tenants, fuel, estover, pannage, or game. His claim as guardian of the soil that is pro- ductive of pasturage only, is in most cases merely honorary; and it remains with par- liament to fix the proportional share of the lands to be appropriated, which he shall be entitled to as an equivalent for such honorary claim. 3251. But in the case of thriving timber standing on the property, the claim of the lord of the manor in right of the soil is more substantial ; for out of this he has in effect a real yearly income, equal to the annually increasing value of the timber ; a species of advan- tage which, if the commons remain open and unappropriated, he will in course continue to enjoy so long as the timber continues to increase in value. His claim, therefore, in this respect, depends on the quantity of timber, and its state of growth taken jointly. Young thriving timber not only affords an annual increase of value at present, but will continue its benefits for many years to come, if it be suffered to remain undisturbed on the soil ; and its owner, doubtless, has a prospective claim on the soil which supports it during the estimated period of its future increase; whereas dotards and stinted trees which afford no 506 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. increase of value, do not entitle their owner to any share of the soil they stand upon. The trees themselves, or their intrinsic value, appears to be all that the lord has a right to claim. 3252. The claims oftUhe owners, aggregately considered, are more complex and obscure. In cases where the great and small tithes are united, and in which the tithe of wool and Iamb, and that of grain, roots, and herbage belong to the same owner, it may seem to be reasonable that he should have the option of receiving land of equal value to the existing value of the tithes, or of taking the chance of their value, in the state of culti- vation. But seeing the evil tendency of corn tithes, and the impropriety of laying on so harmful a burden, as they are now become, upon lands that have never borne it, there can be little risk in saying that it would be at least politic in parliament to prevent it. Be- sides, it stands part of the statute law, that lands which have never been under tillage, shall not pay tithes during the first seven years of their cultivation ; during which time the incumbent's income might, by leaving the tithe to take its course, be materially abridged, and his circumstances thereby be rendered distressful. On the whole, there- fore, it appears to be proper in this case, that the law to be enacted should instruct com- missioners to set out lands equal to the existing value of the tithes at the time of appro- priation, and where much corn land shall be appropriated, to set out a further quantity equal to the estimated reversion of their extra value, (if any arise in the estimate,) seven years after the appropriation shall have taken place. 3253. Again, in cases in which the tithe of lamb and wool, and the tithe of com, ^c. be- long to separate oivners, the line of rectitude and strict justice to all parties appears to be still more difficult to draw. The former is clearly entitled to land, or a money payment equal to his loss of tithe. But the right of the latter is less obvious. To cut him off entirely from any share of the lands, and likewise from any share of tithes to arise from them after they shall be appropriated, may seem unjust ; he may be a lay rector, and may have lately purchased the tithes, or a clerical rector who has recently bought the advowson, under the expectation of an enclosure. On the other hand it appears to be hard, that the proprietors of the parish should first give up land for the tithe of wool and lamb which will no longer exist, and then be liable to a corn tithe on the same lands, after they shall have bestowed on them great expense in clearing and cultivation. Indeed, the injustice of such a measure is evident. A middle way, therefore, requires to be sought. And it will be difficult, perhaps, to find one which has more justice in it than that which is pro- posed for the first case. Thus, after the value of the lamb and wool tithe, &c. has been ascertained, and land set out as a satisfaction for it, estimate the value of the corn tithe, &c. seven years after the time of appropriation ; and set out a further quantity for the reversion of the extra value (if any) of the latter over the former, and in this manner free the lands entirely from this obstacle to their improvement. 3254. If any other abstract claim, on the lands to be appropriated, be fairly made out, or any alien right (as that of a non-parishoner, or extra-manorial occupier, who has ac- quired, by ancient grant, or by prescription, the privilege of depasturing them) be fully proved, its value requires to be accurately estimated, and land to be assigned in lieu of it. 3255. The remainder of the unstinted commons of a given township or manor belong to the owners of its commonright lands and houses. But in what proportion may be difficult to determine with mathematical precision. Nevertheless, by adhering strictly to the general principle, on which alone an equitable appropriation can be conducted, — namely, that of determining each man's share by the benefit which he has a right to receive at the time of appropriation, and which he might continue to receive, were it not to take place, — truth and justice may be sufficiently approached. 3256. One of the first steps, toward an equitable distribution of unstinted commons, is to ascertain the commonright houses, and to distinguish them from those which have no right of commonage ; and which, therefore, can have no claim to any share of the lands of the unstinted commons, further than in the right of the lands they stand upon. By an ancient and pretty generally received, though somewhat vague, idea respecting the rights of commonage, the occupier of every commonright house has the privilege of depasturing as many cattle, sheep, or other live-stock, on the common in summer (provided that it must be understood that it is large enough to permit every occupier to exercise this right), as the grounds he occupies within the township or manor can properly maintain in winter ; and no one can exceed that proportion ; for the surplus of the pasturage, if any, belongs to the lord of the soil. (See Fitzherbert and Blackstone.) 3^57. Under this regulation, the appropriated lands of a common field township, which are not occupied jointly with a commonright house, may be said to be deprived, during the time they are so occupied, of their right of commonage ; and in some of the private bills of enclosure, which have been suffered to pass through parliament, the lands which happened to be in this state of occupancy, at the time of passing the bills, were deprived of their interest in the common lands, for ever j notwithstanding, perhaps, they had a Book II. DIVIDING COMMONABLE LANDS. 50T few years preceding this accidental circumstance an undoubted right to their portion of them ; a right which, a few weeks or a few days afterward, might have reverted to them, without the smallest taint, by the temporary alienation. If any of the appropriated lands of a township or manor have been estranged from its commons, during time immemorial ; have never been occupied jointly with a commonright house, or in any way enjoyed, of riglit, the cojnmon pasturage within memory ; they may with some reason be said to have lost their right, and be excluded from a participation. 3258. By this ancient and in a degree essential usage, commonright houses have a clear right to the lands of the commons y superior to that of the ground tliey stand upon ; especially if they rightfully enjoy a privilege of partaking of the fuel and pannage (as acorns, masts, &c.) they afford ; for these properly belong to the houses, not to the lands ; and still more especially, if they are conveniently situated for enjoying the several benefits which the commons afford in their wild state. And whatever a commonright house is worth, merely as such, that is to say whatever it will let or sell for, over and above a non- commonright house of the same intrinsic value, it certainly ought to participate in the distribution, according to such extra value. 3259. The true proportionate shares of the pommonright lands are to be ascertained on the same principle. For although the ancient regulation respecting commonrights may continue in force, while the commons remain open and unappropriated, it would be found troublesome or unmanageable as a rule to their just appropriation. There are few, if any, commons (of commonlield townships at least) that now afford pasturage in summer for all the stock which the appropriated lands are capable of maintaining in winter ; so that their several proportions only could be used ; and these proportions may be calculated with much greater certainty and dispatch, on the respective rental values of the lands, than on the more vague and troublesome estimation of the quantities of stock .they would winter ; which, indeed, would be best calculated by the rental value of the land. Consequently in adopting this, as the basis of calculation, the ancient rule is, in effect^ complied with. {Blackstone, I3ook III. c. xvL sect. 2.) 3260. But although each commonright occupier has a right to stock in jyroportion to the productiveness or rental value of his appropriated lands, every one could not do this with equal profit, and of course could not receive equal benefit. Lands situated on the side of a common are much more beneficial in this respect, than lands which lie a mile or two from it, with bad roads between them ; and it is the real advantage which an occupier can fairly receive, that is the true guide in the partition ; which consequently ought to bp conducted, not on the rental value of the land, abstractly considered, but on this and its situation, with respect to the commonable lands jointly. In other words, it is the rental values of the commonright lands while the commons remain open, not what they will become after the commons are enclosed, which I conceive to be the proper groundwork of appropriation. 3261. In cases where commonable lands are wholly attached to manors, and not common to tlie parish or township in which they are situated, as in forests and woodland districts, the selfsame principle of distribution is applicable. The remainder of the commons (after the owners of abstract rights have been satisfied) belong to the commonright lands and houses; no matter whether such lands and houses belong to copyhold tenants ex- clusively, or to copyholders and freeholders jointly, provided the immemorial custom of the manor make no distinction in their respective rights ; the well established customs of manors being in all cases rules of conduct, and unerring guides to commissioners. Her^ inay be said to end the greater difficulties as to the principles of appropriation ; the rest is merely technical ; the works of admeasurement, estimate, and calculation j operations that are familiar to professional men in every district, and want nothing but applicatio4 and integrity to render them sufficiently complete. 3262. The technical routine of the business of conducting an enclosure is as follows : The act being passed, and two or more commissioners named, these commissioners meet on a certain day at a certain place within the township or parish, having previously given public notice of their intention. The chief business of that day is the fixing of a land surveyor and an attorney to the commission. At a second meeting the commissionersj surveyor, attorney, and some of the principal proprietors or their agents, attend and make a general perambulation of the township, in order to point out to the surveyor the different properties with their limits, &c. The surveyor now proceeds to make a correct map of the whole. This done, the commissioners, attended by the surveyor, proceed to value each separate lot or piece, and having done this, they next advertise different meetings for the purposes of hearing the rights of townsmen, &c. Next they set about dividing the lands according to these rights, reserving proper roads for footpaths, quarries, gravel- pits, wells, springs, &c. for public purposes. When this is done, and set out on the ground, contractors are next employed to carry the whole into execution, the expense of which and also of the commission is generally paid by the sale of a part of the lands. 508 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Chap. III. Of the Choice afiliA Demesne or Site for tlie Proprietor's Residence. 3263. The most desirable situation for the mansion of the owner of a landed estate, will in almost every case be somewhere near its centre. The advantage of being at an equal distance from every part of the boundaries ; of having as much as possible on every side that which we can call our own ; of not being overlooked by near neighbors ; and of reposing as it were in the bosom of our own tenantry, cottagers, cattle, and woods, are obvious, and felt by every one. There may be instances where, from a public road passing through the centre of an estate, or of a town or village there situated, or mining works carried on, and similar circumstances, it may not be desirable to form a centrical residence ; but such cases are not common, and in laying out an estate newly appropriated, or re-arranging an old one, may always or very generally be avoided. It may happen, however, that an estate may be so extensive, or its surface so hilly or mountainous, that a centrical situation may be dispensed with for other advantages. When an estate is situated near an extensive lake, at the foot of high mountains, or includes an extent of sea-shore, it will generally be found preferable, in point of effect and enjoyment, to place the mansion near these interesting features. Proximity to the sea, though it be on the margin of our estate, can never be offensive ; for if the ocean does not belong to us, neither does it belong to any one else ; nearly the same thing may be said of an im- mense lake, which at least is for the greatest part devoid of visible appropriation, and the same thing may often be observed of rivers and mountains, especially if the latter are of a savage, or wooded character. 3264. Various other circumstances must also be taken into view in fixing on the situ- ation of a mansion and demesne ; such as its healthfulness, prospects, exposure, water, the nature of the soil, and the extent of territory. 3265. To be healthy, a situation should in almost all cases be somewhat elevated above the adjoining surface; and though this cannot be the case with respect to the whole of the demesne lands, it should at least apply to the spot intended for the dwel- ling-house. Even a level situation is objectionable in point of health, because when the usual plantations have grown up round the house, they tend to stagnate the air and generate moisture, and thus deteriorate the atmosphere, to their own height, which is gene- rally equal or greater than that of the house. Besides, a flat situation can never have views of much beauty, and can only be interesting by the plants or other objects immediately under the eye, and the elevated grounds or hills, if any, in the extreme distance. - On an ele- vated situation, even though surrounded by trees higher than the house, the frequent and varying winds will always prevent the stagnation of the air, and sweep away the accumulation of moisture from the evaporation of so many leaves. 3266. The nature of the soil requires to be attended to, even with a view to health. On a level, a gravelly or sandy soil is generally more apt to generate damp in the lower parts of a house, than a clayey soil ; but on an eminence gravel has not this ob- jection ; in the former case, the water lodged in the stratum of gravel finds its way from all sides to the excavation made for the foundations of the house; in the latter, the declivity on every side carries it away. Clay not too adhesive, chalk, or rock, are the best surfaces to build on in a flat ; on an elevated situation any soil will do j but chalk, rock, or gravel are to be preferred. 3267. The prosjyects from the immediate site of the mansion, and from those parts of the adjoining grounds which will be laid out as pleasure-ground, or recreative walks, demand some consideration. Such prospects should consist of what painters call middle and third distances, bold, distinct, and interesting ; the fore-ground or first distance being formed by the artificial scenery of the pleasure-ground. Noble features in pros- pects, are rivers, lakes, or mountains ; interesting ones, are churches or their spires, bridges, aqueducts, ruins of ancient castles or abbeys, water-mills, distant towns or cities, distant canals, and sometimes roads, &c. : pleasing rural objects, are picturesque cot- tages, neat farmeries, field barns, and sometimes distant wind-mills ; for objects offensive, ' when near, often become valuable features at a distance. Something depends on the state of civilisation of the country, and its general character; the sight of a road, sea- port, canal, or even a neighboring mansion, would be preferred to most others in many parts of Ireland, Russia, or America. 3268. 27ie exjwsure with regard to the sun, and the prevailing winds of a country, also requires attention. It was the custom of former times, in the choice of domestic situations, to let comfort and convenience prevail over every other consideration. Thus the ancient baronial castles were built on the summits of hills, in times when defence and security suggested the necessity of placing them there ; and difficulty of access was a recommendation : but when this necessity no longer existed (as mankind are always apt to fly from one extreme to the other), houses were universally erected in the lowest situ- Book II. CHOICE OF DEMESNE LANDS. 509 ations, with a probable design to avoid those inconveniences to which lofty positions had been subject ; hence the frequent sites of many large mansions, and particularly ab- beys and monasteries, the residence of persons who were willing to sacrifice the beauty of prospect for the more solid and permanent advantages of habitable convenience ; amongst which, shelter from wind, and a supply of water for store fishponds, were pre- dominant considerations. (^Enquiry, ^c. by RejHon, p. 83.) In hilly countries, or in any country where the surface is varied, the choice is neither made in the bottoms (fig. 430 a), nor on the summits of hills (c), but generally on knolls, or on the south or south-east side of considerable eminences (b), where a raised platform occurs, either naturally or raised by art from the earth of the foundations ; and the rising grounds behind [d) are planted both for effect and shelter. d 430 S269. The proximity of water is essential to the comfort of every country residence. Where there are none in springs or surface streams, it may indeed be collected from the roofs of buildings and otherwise, and filtered, and preserved sweet and cool in tanks imderground; but supplies obtained in this way are precarious, expensive, and the water is inferior to that obtained from the soil, either by local wells, or conveyed from a distance in pipes or drains. Water is also extensively required in country residences for the use of gardeners, sometimes for fish ponds ; at a moderate distance, and on a lower level it is always desirable in considerable quantity for the purpose of forming artificial lakes, or river-like reservoirs. Few home features are finer than where the house is situated on a knoll which slopes down on two or more sides, to one encircling piece of water. (Jig, 431.) 431 3270. The nature of the soil is an inferior consideration to the others, because all bad soils are susceptible of great improvement ; but still it should be taken into consi- deration along with other objects. A soil retentive of surface water, such as some clayey and soft peaty soils, is the worst, as it is always unpleasant to walk on after rains, and easily poached by cattle and horses. Such soils also require more expense in drain- age and roads, and are much less suitable for garden and farm culture, than firmer soils, and such as are naturally friable or dry. 3271. The subsoil is sometimes of more importance than the soil, for the former in general can only be improved by draining, and subsoils differ materially in their sus- ceptibility of this improvement. A bad subsoil is an eflPectual barrier to the thriving of timber trees, and as thejse constitute the finest ornament of every country-seat, the importance of choosing a subsoil either naturally, or capable of being rendered by art pervious by and congenial to their roots, is sufficiently obvious. 510 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3272. Where the surface-soil is dri/ and poor, but on a dry subsoil, and all other cir- cumstances are favorable, it may often be desirable for a proprietor to fix on such a situation for his demesne, because such a surface is proljably among the least valuable as farm lands ; because land to be laid out as a park is not required to be rich ; and because it will not be difficult to ameliorate all that part wanted as farm and garden ground. 3273. The extent that should be kept as a demesne is more easily determined than any of the foregoing points. The general wealth of the proprietor and his style of living are here the leading guides. The extent of the demesne may bear very different relations to the extent of the estate; because the proprietor may have other estates and other sources of wealth. He may have chosen a small estate, on which to fix his residence, from its local advantages ; or he may prefer a small demesne on a large estate, from his style of life and the habits of his establishment, 3274. The park, in general, occupies much the largest part of the demesne lands. In a civilized and populous closely-cultivated country, like Britain, nothing can be more noble than a large forest-like park surrounding the mansion. In partially cultivated countries or open field countries, it is less imposing ; and in countries scarcely appro- priated and but thinly distributed with spots of culture, the park becomes a less noble feature, and less a mark of wealth and distinction than a well-hedged and regularly- cropped farm. 3275. The apparent extent of a park depends much less on its contents in acres, than on the inequalities of its surface, the disposition of its woods and waters, and the conceal- ment or inobtrusiveness of its boundaries. An extensive flat, surrounded by a belt, and interspersed with clumps, may be great, but can hardly be felt as grand or interesting, by any but the owner : the acres it occupies will be guessed at by hundreds, and the esti- mate will generally be found to fall short of the reality. On the other hand, a hilly park, ingeniously wooded with one or more pieces of water, and probably rocks, bridges, and other objects, will appear to a stranger of much greater extent than it really is ; and sets rational estimate at defiance : such a park is certainly much more grand and picturesque than one of mere *' bulk without spirit vast." 3276. The home or demesne farm and farmery will be regulated in extent and style of cultivation by the wants and wishes of the proprietor. It is sometimes a determinate space in the least picturesque part of the demesne ; and sometimes, the greater part of the park is brought in succession under the plough and the sickle. 3277. The kitchen-garden is the next and only remaining large feature in the demesne : it is generally placed near the house and stable offices, so as to have a convenient and un- obtrusive communication with the kitchen court, and the livery-stable dung heap. 3278. The pleasure ground, or lawn and shrubbery, often surround the house, offices, and kitchen-garden ; and sometimes embrace them only on two or three sides. 3279. The details of all these and other different parts of the demesne belongs to land- rscape gardening and architecture, and requires no further notice in this work. (See JEncyc. of Gard. Part III. Book IV. and Encyc. of Architecture.) Chap. IV. On the Formation of Roads. 3280. The advantages of good roads is so obvious and so generally acknowledged, as to need no comment. Roads, canals, and navigable rivers, have been justly called the veins and arteries of a country, through which all improvements flow. The Romans, aware of their importance, both in a military and civil point of view, constructed them from Rome to the utmost extent of their empire. With the dismemberment of that empire, the roads became neglected and continued so during the dark ages. In modern times attention was first paid to them on a large scale by the government of France, in the seventeenth cen- tury ; and in England in the beginning of the century following. About the middle of the eighteenth century considerable expense had been incurred in road-making, in several districts, and the expenses of toll-gates begun to be felt as oppressive- This produced An Enquiry into the State of the Public Roads,hy the Rev. H. Homer, &c. 1767. which may be considered as the origin of scientific research on the art of road-making in England. 3281. In Scotland, the first turnpike act, as we have seen (750.), was passed in 1750 ; since which period existing public roads have been improved, and many new ones formed; but tHe great impulse there was given after the act for abolishing heritable jurisdictions by the money advanced by government, and the able military engineers sent from England to conduct the roads in the Highlands. The appearance in Britain about this time of a new order of professional men, under the name of civil engineers, also contributed to the same effect. Book II. KINDS OF ROADS. 511 3282. In Ireland, very little attention was paid to the art of road-making before the establishment of the Dublin Society : but the subject was treated of in the early volumes of their transactions, and some useful instructions there given, as it is generally under- stood, by R. L. Edgevvorth ; and the surface as well as substrata of that country being singularly favorable for road-making, the art soon began to make considerable progress. This was greatly owing to the exertions of Edgeworth, well known as a scientific engineer and as the author of a tract on roads, published in 1810. 3288. The extraordinary increase of toll duties in England having been felt as a very heavy burden by the landed interest during the last twenty years, has drawn the attention of various persons to the subject of roads, and given rise to important improvements ; both in laying them out, and in forming and repairing them. By far the most useful of these may be considered the mode of forming, practised since 1816, by L. M'Adam, of Bristol ; for which its author was rewarded by parliament. That mode is now with more or less variation adopted in a considerable number of districts in the three kingdoms, and together with the attention and emulation it excites, promises to effect an entire revolution in the state of the public roads everywhere. At the same time it is but candid to state with Paterson,of Montrose, author of two tracts (1819 and 1822) on the subject, that in many districts a considerable improvement had previqjasly taken place in the state of the roads, simply from a greater attention being made to keep them dry, and constantly to obliterate the ruts. 3284. But ilf*-4dam's plan of making roads is not only superior to all others for country roads ; but promises to be equally valuable as a substitute for pavement or cause- ways in towns. It has been tried in some of the principal streets of the metropolis, and will probably soon become general in all the great thoroughfares. (See Observ. on Roads by J. L. M^Adam, Esq. 1822.) 3285. In the following view of the present state of knowledge as to roads we shall avoid entirely that part of the subject which relates to national or parochial management, and confine ourselves to the kinds, direction or line, the form, the materials, and the execu- tion, and the repairs. Sect. I. Of the different Kinds of Roads. 3286. Though all roads agree in being tracts of passage from one point to another^ yet they diflfer in their magnitude, construction, and other modes of adaptation, for that pur- pose. Most good roads consist of two parts ; one " metalled" or coated with stones for the use of carriages and horses h)// c 432 a {fig. 432 a) ; another of common earth or soil, as a border to the metalled part (6), or for the use of pedestrians ; and probably a footpath for the latter (c). Several kinds of roads are distin- guished by the relative proportions of these two parts ; but some also are characterised by otlier circumstances. 3287. National roads, or highways, are such as communicate between the capital cities and sea-ports of a country, and are tliose of the greatest magnitude. In Britain, the metalled part of such roads where they are most frequented, as within a few miles of large towns, is from 30 to 50 and even to 60 feet wide, with footways on each side of 12 feet wide or upwards, and in no case is the metalled part of the road narrower than 20 feet ; that width being requisite to admit of one loaded waggon passing another. Many, or most of these narrower national roads are without footpaths, and often want a sufficient bordering of earth road, or footpath. 3288. Parochial roads may be considered as secondary highways, deriving their name from the circumstance of being made and supported by the parish in which they are situated ; whereas the others are the work of government, or of the counties in which tliey are situated, and are supported by tolls levied on carriages and animals, passing over them, whereas the others are supported by parocliial rates or assessments. 3289. Lanes are parish or private roads generally narrow, and often either not me- talled at all, or very imperfectly so ; sometimes they are called drift-ways, but that term is more properly applied to the green or unmetalled space, which runs parallel to any made road. 3290. Estate roads are such as are made by landed proprietors on their own territoiy, for the purpose of intercommunication and connection with public roads. 3291. A farm-road is either one which leads to a farmery, from a public road, or which leads from Uie farmery to different parts of the farm. Such roads are never narrower than 16 feet, to admit of two carriages passing each other ; but they are often only half metalled, presenting a turf road for summer, dry weather, and for empty carriages and foot passengers, and a metalled or winter road, for winter and loaded carriages. In a road from a highway to a farmery, it may often be advisable to place tlie metalled road in the middle, and keep the earth road at each side, on account of admitting the sun and 512 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. air more readily to tlio metalled road ; but In roads within a farm, it is found a great convenience in casting out manure, or bringing home produce, for the loaded carts to have uninterrupted possession of the metalled road, and the others of the earth road. In many cases, farm roads of this description are only metalled in the horse tracks {Jig. A^Sa.),&.nAwhee\ ruts (6, b), which, on dry firm bottomed land, and with care- ful preservation, is found to answer very well. 3292. Horse roads are paths for the transit of single horses with a rider, or a back load : they are commonly of earth, and from six to ten feet wide : the statute width is eight feet. S293. Footpaths are tracks for pedestrians ; sometimes metalled to the width of three or four feet ; but often of the natural surface. 3294. Rail roads are roads exclusively for the use of carriages, and are characterised by a rail commonly of iron, but sometimes of wood laid along the track of each wheel, in order to produce the effect of a perfectly even surface. In general, the carriages for such roads, have their wheels low, and of a particular construction to tit the rails ; but in. some cases the rails have grooves for the use of common narrow wheels. Such roads are almost exclusively in use, at coal and other great mineral works ; but some have proposed to introduce them as side roads, to the more public highways. For this purpose, also, it has been proposed instead of iron rails, to lay down granite stones of a foot or eighteen inches in breadth, which would render them suitable for any description of wheels or axles. 3295. Paved roads are of three kinds ; those with small stones, or causeways, which are most common ; those with large blocks of stone, and those with sections of timber trees. The first, though almost peculiar to towns, yet form the whole of the metalled road in some cases of country roads ; and in others a space of ten or twelve feet in the middle, or at each side is causewayed, for the use of the heavier carriages. Broad stones are sometimes used for covering part of a road, destined for the greatest part of the traf- fick, or for forming wheel tracks. In the latter case, they are always squared or regularly jointed, but in the former, the most irregular forms may be used. Timber causewaying, is only used in entrance courts, to town mansions, for the sake of avoiding the noise made by the wheels of carriages and horses' feet on stone. For this purpose timber paving is excellent, and lasts for a very long time. On the continent, fine timber is used for this purpose, but oak or larch would no doubt last longer. 3296. Planked roads are formed over morasses, or in particular cases by laying down a flooring of planks, on which carriages pass for temporary purposes. A permanent kind of road of this description has been made by weaving (or wattling) an endless hurdle of the breadth of the road, and covering it with a coating of gravel or broken stones. The advantage of this mode is, that the road may be made on a bog before the substratum dries, and even if it is so soft as not to bear a man. By the time the hurdle rots the base will be consoli- dated and fit to bear any thing. 3297. Approach roads and walks are roads which come under the subject of gardening. 3298. Tlie * term metaV in road making is applied to the stony or gravelly materials laid on to form tlie main part of the road. Sect. II. Of the Line of Direction or laying out of Roads. 3^99. Before carriages of burden were in use, little more was required than a path upon hard ground, that would bear horses. All marshy grounds were therefore shunned ; the fords of rivers were resorted to, and the inequality or circuit of the road was of much less consequence, than when carriages, instead of pack-horses, began to be employed. When carriages were first employed, they probably were light and narrow, and did not require to have roads of any considerable breadth or firmness. And when roads had once been thus traced, indolence and habit prevented any great exertions to lay them out in better lines, or to repair them in any manner beyond what present convenience absolutely required. When heavier carriages and greater traflfic made wider and stronger roads necessary, the ancient track was pursued ; ignorance and want of concert in the proprietors of the ground, and, above all, the want of some general effective superintending power, conti- nued this wretched practice. (Edgeworth on Roads, p. 3.) At length turnpikes were es- tablislied, and laws passed investing magistrates with authority to alter established lines, so that now the chief obstacle to the improvement of the lines of public roads is the expense. 3300. In laying out roads, a variety of circumstances require to be taken into consi- deration ; but the principal are evidently their line or direction, and its inclination to the horizon. Book IL DIRECTION OF ROADS. 513 3301. The most perfect line, according to Marshal, is that which is straight and level. But this is to be drawn in a country only which is perfectly flat, and where no obstruc- tions lie in the way ; joint circumstances that rarely happen. Where the face of the country, between two points or places to be connected by a road, is nearly but not quite level, by reason of gentle swells which rise between them, a straight line maybe perfect, — maybe the most eligible under these circumstances. But where the intervening country is broken into hill and dale, or if one ridge of hill only intervenes, a straight line of carriage road is seldom compatible with perfection. In this case, which is nearly ge- neral, the best skill of the surveyor lies in tracing the midway between the straight and the level line. The line of perfection, for agricultural purposes, is to be calculated, by the time and exertion, jointly considered, which are required to convey a given burden, with a given power of draught from station to station. On great public roads, where expe- dition is a principal object, time alone may be taken as a good criterion. 3302. A regular method of finding out the true line of road, between two stations, where a blank is given, where there is no other obstruction than what the surface of the ground to be got over presents, is to ascertain, and mark at proper distances, the straight line ; which is the only certain guide to the surveyor. If the straight line be found to be ineli- gible, each mark becomes a rallying point, in searching, on either side of it, for abetter. If two lines of equal facility, and nearly of equal distance from the straight line, present themselves, accurate measurements are to determine tlie choice. If one of the two best lines which the intervenmg country affords is found to be easier, the other shorter, the ascent and the distance are to be jointly considered j the exertion and tlie time required are to be duly weighed. 3303. The nature of tlie ground, the source of materials, and the comparative expense of forming the road, by two doubtful lines, as well as their comparative exposure, are also to be taken into consideration. Although, in some places, Paterson observes, it may be of little consequence, either to the traveller, or to the public in general, which way the bendings are turned, provided the level is nearly obtained, — yet a great deal may depend upon those turns or bendings for the real benefit and advantage of the road. In bend- ing it one way, you may have no metals that will stand any fatigue, unless at a great dis- tance and expense ; while, in turning it the other way, you may have metals of the very best quality, in the immediate vicinity. In the one way, too, you may be led over ground of a wet bottom, where even, with twelve or fourteen inches deep of metals, tliere would be difficulty in keeping a good road ; while, in the other, you may have such a dry bottom, that the road would be much easier upheld with seven or eight inches of metals. So that the tract that may appear most eligible to the eye, at first sight, may not always be the one that should be adopted. " A combination of all the requisites I have already men- tioned, should be studied, as far as possible ; and where these cannot be found all to unite, the one possessing the most of these advantages, and subject to no other material objec- tion, should, of coui'se, be adopted." {Treatise on Roads, p. 19.) 3304. Roads, Edgeworth observes, should be laid out as nearly as may be, in a straiglit line ; but, to follow with this view the mathematical axiom, that a straight line is the shortest that can be drawn between two points, will not succeed in making the most com- modious roads ; hills must be avoided, towns must be resorted to, and the sudden bends of rivers must be shunned. All these circumstances must be attended to, therefore a per- fectly straight road cannot often be found of any great length. It may perhaps appear surprising, that there is but little difference in the length between a road that has a gentle bend, and one that is in a perfectly straight line. A road ten miles long, and perfectly straight, can scarcely be found any where, but if such a road could be found, and if it were curved, so as to prevent the eye from seeing further than a quarter of a mile of it, in any one place, the whole road would not be lengthened mor^ than one hundred and fifty yards. It is not proposed to make serpentine roads merely for the entertainment of tra- vellers ; but it is intended to point out, that a strict adherence to a straight line is of much less consequence than is usually supposed ; and that it will be frequently advan- tageous to deviate from the direct line, to avoid inequalities of ground. It is obvious, that, where the arc described by a road going over a hill, is greater than that which is described by going round it, the circuit is preferable ; but it is not known to every over- seer, that within certain limits it will be less laborious to go round the hill, though the circuit should be much greater than that which would be made in crossing the hill. Where a hill has an ascent of no more than one foot in thirty, the thirtieth part of the whole weight of the carriage, of the load, and of the horses, must be lifted up, whilst they advance thirty feet. In doing this, one thirtieth part of the whole load continually resists the horses' draught ; and in drawing a waggon of six tons weight, a resistance equal to' the usual force of two horses must be exerted. 3305. A perfectly level road is not always the best for every species of draught. Slight and sliort alternations of rising and falling ground are serviceable to horses moving L 1 514 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. swiftly ; the horses have time to rest their lungs, and different muscles : and of this experienced drivers know well how to take advantage. Marshal concurs in this opinion, and also Walker, Telford, and most engineers ; and Paterson considers that it would not be proper to line a road upon a perfect level, even to the length of one mile together, although it could be quite easily obtained. It is a fact, he says, well known to most people, at least every driver of loaded carriages knows by experience, that where a horse, dragging a load over a long stretch of road, quite level, will be exhausted with fatigue ; the same length of a road, having here a gentle acclivity, and there a declivity, will not fatigue the animal so much. This is easily accounted for. On a road quite level, the draught is always the same, without any relaxation ; but on a gentle ascent, one of his powers is called into exercise ; on the descent, another of his powers is called into action, and he rests from the exercise of the former. Thus are his different muscular powers moderately exercised, one after another ; and this variety has not the same tendency to fatigue. 3306. A dry foundation and clearing the road from water, are two jmportant objects which, according to Walker {^Minutes of Evidence before a Committee of the House of Commons, 1819), ought to be kept in view in lining out roads. " For obtaining the first of these objects it is essential that the line for the road be taken so that the foundation can be kept dry, either by avoiding low ground, by raising the surface of the road above the level of the ground on each side of it, or by drawing off the water by means of side drains. The other object, viz. that of clearing the road of water, is best secured by selecting a course for the road which is not horizontally level, so that the surface of the road may in its longitudinal section, form in some degree an inclined plane ; and when this cannot be obtained, owing to the extreme flatness of the country, an artificial incli- nation may generally be made. When a road is so formed, every wheel-track that is made, being in the line of the inclination, becomes a channel for carrying off the water, much more effectually than can be done by a curvature in the cross section or rise in the middle of the road, without the danger, or other disadvantages which necessarily attend the rounding a road much in the middle. I consider a fall of about one inch and a half in ten feet, to be a minimum in this case, if it is attainable without a great deal of extra expense. 3307. The ascent of hills, it is observed by Marshal, is the most difficult part of laying out roads. According to theory, he says, an inclined plane of easy ascent is proper; but as the moving power on this plane is " neither purely mechanical, nor in a sufficient degree rational, but an irregular compound of these two qualities, the nature and habits of this power" require a varied inclined plane, or one not a uniform descent, but with levels or other proper places for rests. According to the road act the ascent or descent should not exceed the rate or proportion of one foot in height to thirty-five feet of the length thereof, if the same be practicable, without causing a great increase of distance. 3308. As precedents for roads through hilly countries, Telford [Minutes before the Committee of the House of Commons, ^c. 1819,) refers to those which he has lately made through the most difficult and precipitous districts of North Wales. " The longitudinal inclinations are in general less than one in thirty ; in one instance for a considerable distance there was no avoiding one in twenty-two, and in another, for about two hundred yards, one in seventeen ; but in these two cases, the surface of the road-way being made peculiarly smooth and hard, no inconvenience is experienced by wheeled carriages. On flat ground the breadth of the road-way is thirty-two feet ; where there is side cutting not exceeding three feet, the breadth is twenty-eight, and along any steep ground and precipices, it is twenty-two, all clear within the fences ; the sides are protected by stone walls, breast and retaining walls and parapets ; great pains have been bestowed on the cross drains, also the draining the ground, and likewise in constructing firm and substantial foundations for the metalled part of the roadway." 3309. The road between Capel Cerig and Lord PenryrCs slate quarries, may also be adduced as an example of a very perfect enclosed plain in which the ascent is accurately divided on the whole space. 3310. Cutting through loio hills to obtain a level, is recommended by some, who, as Paterson observes, will argue, " that where the hill of ascent is not very long, it is better, in that case, to cut through it in a straight line, and embank over the hollow ground on each side, than to wind along the foot of it. This, however, should only be done where the cutting is very little indeed, and an embankment absolutely necessary. Few people, except those who are well acquainted, are aware of the great expense of cutting and embanking ; and the more any one becomes acquainted with road-making, the more, it may be presumed, will he endeavor to avoid those levels on the straight line that are obtained only by cutting and embanking, and will either follow the level on the curved line round the hill ; or where this is impracticable, will ascend the hill, and go over it by various windings, avoiding always abrupt or sudden turnings." {Treatise, *c. p. 15.) Book II. DIRECTION OF ROADS. 515 331 1. All crossings, intersections, and abuttings of roads, should be made at right angles, for the obvious reason of facilitating the turning from one road to the other, or the more speedily crossing. Where roads cross each other obliquely, or where one road abuts on another at an acute angle, turning in, or crossing, can only be conveniently performed in one direction. 33 1 2. In laying out a road over a hill or mountain of angular Jigure and considerable height, much practical skill as well as science are requisite. In order to preserve a moderate inclination, or such a one as will admit of the descent of carriages without locking their wheels, a much longer line will be required than the arc of the mountain. In reaching the summit or highest part to be passed over, the line must be extended by winding or zig-zagging it along the sides, so as never to exceed the maximum degree of steepness. This may occasion a very awkward appearance in a ground plan, but it is unavoidable in immense works. If a hill, 50 feet in perpendicular height {Jig. 434.), 434 b has an arc (a, b, c), or would require 150 feet of road (a, b, c) to go over its summit in a straight line, then to pass over the same hill on a road rising at the rate of two inches in six feet (the slope of the Simplon road), would require a length of 600 feet. If this length were extended in a straight line [d, b, e) on each side, it would require an enormous mound, and an immense expense ; but by being conducted in a winding direction (5), up the hill on one side, and down the other, the same end is gained at a moderate cost. Such works shew the wonderful power and ingenuity of man ^ and perhaps no example exists where this is so displayed in road-making as in the case of the Simplon. 3313. In laying out a road towards a river, stream, ravine, or any place requiring a bridge or embankment, an obvious advantage results from approaching them at right angles ; and the same will apply in regard to any part requiring tunnelling or crossing by an aqueduct, &c. 3314. In tracing out winding railroads, or such carriage roads as are only to be metalled in the horse track and paths of the wheels, some management is necessary in the case of quick bends. Where the line is straight, the horse path ought to be exactly in the middle between the wheel tracks. But, where the road winds, and most especially at a quick bend, the horse track ought ever to incline toward the outer side of the curve; by which the wheels will be uniformly kept on the middles of the supports prepared for them. Hence, it is advisable to dig the trench for the horse path (Jig. 433 a.}, first ; and to draw a carriage for which the road is intended, with the horses walking in this middle trench : thus marking out, by the impressions of the wheels, the precise middle lines of the outer trenches, in every part of the road, from end to end. 3315. The directions of roads through an extensive estate, cannot be determined on without having in contemplation the other fundamental improvements, such as the situations of villages, farmeries, mills, or other objects ; and these artificial improvements must be taken in connection with the natural surface, soil, materials, waters, &c. ; the probable system of agriculture that will be pursued, and the external intercourse. A hilly country under aration, will evidently require more roads than if chiefly under pasture ; and, indeed, other circumstances the same, a country abounding in hills and valleys, requires many more roads than one of a more even surface. The roads in such a country are also more expensive, on account of the bridges, and extra work at their abutments. On an estate composed of gentle hills chiefly intended for arable or con- vertible husbandry, the best situation for the roads will generally be found about half way between the bottoms and highest surfaces. By this means the labor of carting up the produce from the fields below the road, and carting up the dung to the fields above it, is evidently much less than if the road were either entirely on the highest ground or the lowest. Bridges over the brooks or open ditches necessary for drainage in valleys, are also rendered less frequent. 3316. Accurate sections of the rises and falls of the natural surface on which a road is to be formed should always be taken before the line is finally determined on. As the figure of an exact section of this sort on any ordinary scale, would convey no data sufficiently accurate for execution, it is usual to adopt one scale for the length, and another for the rises and falls of the road, and to mark the latter with the dimensions as taken on the survey. LI 2 516 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III Sect. III. Of the Form and Materials of Roads. 3317. On the structure and composition of roods, men of science and practical road- makers are much more divided than on their laying out. The subject is of itself of greater importance in old countries, because it more frequently occurs that a road is to be enlarged or renewed, than that a new line is to be devised. We shall first lay down the fundamental principles of the formation, and wear of roads, and next treat of form- ing them, and of the different kinds of road materials. SuBSECT. 1. Of the Formation of Roads, and of their Wear or Injury. ' 3318. A road may be defined a path of transit on the earth's surface, for men, animals, and machines ; — of sufficient width for the given traffick ; — of sufficient strength and solidity for the given weight; — of sufficient smoothness to permit no impediment ; and of as great durability as possible. 3319. The width is obviously determinable by the nature and extent of the traffick : every road should be made sufficiently broad to admit two of the largest sized carriages which are in use in the country or district, to pass each other ; and highways and roads near towns should be made wider in proportion to their use. The maximum and minimum can only be determined by experience : sixty feet is the common and legal width of a turnpike-road in Britain, and this includes the footpath. 3320. The strength of a road depends on the nature of the material of which it is formed, and of the basis on which it is placed. A plate of iron or stone of the road's ■width placed on a compact dry soil would comprise every thing in point of strength ; but as it is impracticable to employ plates of iron or stone of such a size to any extent, recourse is had to a stratum of small stones or gravel. The great art, therefore, is so to prepare this stratum, and place it on the basis of the road, as that the effect may come as near as possible to a solid plate of material. To accomplish this, the stones or gravel should be broken into small angular fragments, and after being laid down of such a thickness as experience has determined to be of sufficient strength and durability, the ■whole should be so powerfully compressed by a roller as to render it one compact body, capable of resisting the impression of the feet of animals, and the wheels of carriages in a great degree, and imperveable by surface water. But the base of the road may not always be firm and compact ; in this case it is to be rendered so by drainage, artificial pressure, and perhaps in some cases by other means. 3321. The durability of a road as far as it depends on the original formation, will be in proportion to the solidity of its basis ; the hardness of the material of which the surface stratum is formed ; — its thickness ; — and the size and form of the stones ■which compose it. The form and size of the stones which compose the surface-stratum have a powerful influence on a road's durability. If their form is roundish, it is evident they will not bind into a compact stratum ; if it is large, whether the form be round or angular, the stratum cannot be solid ; and if they are of mixed sizes and shapes, though a very strong and solid stratum may be formed at first, yet the wheels of carriages and the feet of animals operating with unequal effect on the small and large stones, would soon derange the solidity of the stratum to a certain depth, and consequently, by admit- ting rain and frost to penetrate into it, accelerate its decay. A constant state of moisture, even without any derangement of surface, contributes to tlie wearing of roads by friction, and hence one requisite to durability is a free exposure to the sun and air by keeping low the side fences ; and another is keeping a i oad clear of mud or dust, the first of which acts as a spunge in retaining water, and the second increases the draught of animals, and of course their action on the road. Both the strength and the durability of a road will be greater when the plate or surface-stratum of metals is flat or nearly so, than when it is rounded on the upper surface : first, because no animal can stand upright on such a road with a regular bearing on the soles of its feet ; and, secondly, because no wheeled carriage can have a regular bearing, excepting on the middle or crown of the road. The consequence of both these states is the breaking the surface of the plate into holes with the edges of horses' feet, or ruts by the plough- like effect of wheels on the lower side of the road, or the reiterated operation of those ■which pass along the centre. ,3322. The smoothness of a road depends on the size of the stones and on their com- pression either by original rolling or the continued pressure of wheels. The con- tinued smoothness of a road during its wear depends on small stones being used in every part of the stratum ; for if the lower part of it, as is generally the case in the old style of forming roads, consists of larger stones, as soon as wheels or water penetrates from above, these stones will work up and produce a road full of holes and covered with loose stones. Book II. WEAR OF ROADS. 517 3323. The wear or decay of roads takes place in consequence of the friction, leverage, pressure, grinding and incision of animals and machines, and the various effects of water and the weather. 3324. Friction will in time wear down the most durable and smooth material. Its effects are more rapid when aided by water, which insinuates itself among the particles of the surfaces of earthy bodies, and being then compressed by the weight of feet or wheels, ruptures or wears them. Even when not compressed by wheels or other weights, the action of frost, by expanding water, produces the same effect. This any one inay prove by soaking a soft brick in water and exposing it to a severe frost. 3325. The leverage of the feet of animals has a tendency to depress one part of the surface and raise up another. The line which forms the sole of every animal's foot may be considered as a lever of the second kind, in which the fulcrum is at the one extremity [fig. 435 a), the power at the other (6), and the weight between them (c). Hence the injury done to the road, even if formed on the best construction, will be as the pressure on the fulcrum : this amounts to the half of the weight of bipeds and their loads, and a fourth of that of quadrupeds. But if the stones of the road are large, that is, if they are more than two inches in breadth, the horse's foot acts as a compound lever, and by depressing one end of the stones and raising the other, deranges the surface of the stratum, and renders it a receptacle for water, mud, or dust. 3326. The leverage of wheels is of a nature to l)e less injurious to roads than that of the feet of animals, be- cause the fulcrum {fig. 436 a), is continually changing its position. But if the stones of the road are large, then the wheel acts as a compound lever, and raises up the one end (6), and presses down the other (n), of every stone it passes over, and in this case becomes more injurious on a bad road than the feet of loaded animals. The reiterated operation of this effect by wheels following in the same track, soon destroys badly constructed roads. 3327. Such being the effect of leverage, and especially of compound leverage, in wearing roads, it becomes of the first importance to ascertain that size and shape of stone on which its effects will be least ; that is to say, how short a compound lever may be made use of consistently with other advantages. This must in general be a matter of experience, and chiefly depends on the hardness of the stone. The size must always be sufficiently large, and the shape sufficiently angular to form, when embedded, a compact, hard, and immoveable stratum, and the smaller the size the better, provided that object be obtained. Two inches in diameter may be considered the medium size. 3328. The mere j)ressure of objects on a smooth road does little mischief, and hence the advantage of perfectly cylindrical wheels, and a road as nearly level as practicable. But if the surface of the road is rough, the pressure both of cylindrical wheels, and the feet of animals, may do mischief by forcing down a loose stone among others of dif- ferent sizes, and thus loosening the latter and raising the largest to the surface. Where a road, however, is composed of materials of small size, the pressure of cylindrical wheels, when the surface is clean and dry, will probably always be of greater service by acting as a roller, than of injury by the friction of the pressure. 3329. Grinding is produced by the twisting motion of the feet of horses or other animals when pulling hard or carrying a heavy weight, and by the twisting, dragging, or sliding of wheels from whatever cause. The grinding of wheels. Fry observes, " may in every case be defined to be the effect produced on any substance interposed between two bodies, one of which has a sliding motion, yet so firmly confined or pressed between them, that the moving body cannot slide over the interposed substance ; but, in conse- quence of the pressure, the interposed substance, adhering firmly both to the fixed and to the moving body, is necessarily lacerated or torn asunder, and reduced to atoms. This is the process in corn-mills, in drug-mills, and in every other mill, properly so called. I remember," he adds, " frequently when a boy, to have trodden with one heel on a piece of soft brick, or of dry old mortar, which was firm enough to bear the weight of my body, uninjured ; but, on giving my body a swing round witli my other foot, I have instantly reduced it to powder. The action in this case is very obvious : the weight of my body confined the piece of brick firmly to the ground j my heel was also LI 3 518 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. pressed by the same weight firmly upon the brick ; one part of the brick therefore remain- ing confined to the ground, and the other part being carried round by my heel, the brick of course was torn asunder and reduced to powder. This I conceive is a simple elucidation of the difference between pressing and grinding, and this is the difference of the effects on the materials of our roads, produced by the use of upright cylindrical •wheels, whicli act only by pressure, by the use of conical wheels, which by their constant twist, act also by grinding, and by very convex roads, by which means the wheels of all carriages, excepting such as occupy the crown of the road, whether cylindrical or otherwise, act in the same twisting, sliding, and grinding manner." (06s. on Roads, Sj^c. 1819.) 3330. By the incision of objects passing along roads, we allude to the dividing operation of wheels, which, independently of their effect as moving levers, act also as moving wedges, or perhaps, more properly, as endless saws in forming ruts or deepening such as are already made. Flat roads, so as to produce less temptation to follow in the mid- dle track, watchful repair, and broad wheels, are the mitigators of this description of wear. 3331. Water is one of the most serious causes of the wear of roads. As we have already observed (3324.), it acts, aided by pressure, like gunpowder in rending the sur- face of bodies. Frozen it acts exactly in the same manner; and when it has penetrated deeply into a stratum of materials, a thaw produces their entire derangement. Mud is formed in consequence of the presence of water and dust, or earth, and acts as a sponge to retain it, and perpetuate its bad effects. A well-composed and thoroughly com- pressed substratum will not imbibe water unless it rests in ruts or other hollows. To form such a stratum, therefore, and obliterate all hollows as soon as they appear, and to remove mud and dust, are the palliatives of this mode of wear. On such a road heavy showers may do good by washing away the earthy particles, dung, and other in- jurious earthy or vegetable matters. 3332. Wind is mostly a favorable agent to roads by drying them and blowing off the lighter dust ; but in some cases, in very exposed situations, it has been known to blow the dust into heaps, and sometimes to carry off larger particles than could be spared. The last evil is fortunately rare ; the other only requires the removal of the accumulated heaps of dust. SuBSECT. 2. Of M' Adam's Theory and Practice of Road-making. 3333. M'Adam agrees with other engineers, that a good road may be con- sidered as an artificial flooring, forming a strong, solid, smooth, surfaced stratum, sufficiently flat to admit of carriages standing upright on any part of it, capable of car- rying a great weight, and presenting no impediment to the animals or machines which pass along it. In forming this flooring, M'Adam has gone one step beyond his predecessors in breaking the stone to a smaller size than was before practised, and in forming the entire stratum of this small-sized stone. By the former practice a basement of large stones are first laid, then stones a degree smallei*, and, lastly, the least size on the surface. It is in this point of making use of one small size of stones throughout the stratum, that the originality of M' Adam's plan consists, unless we add also his assertion, " that all the roads in the kingdom may be made smooth and solid in an equal degree, and to continue so at all seasons of the year." It is doubted by some, whether this would be the case in the northern districts at the breaking up of frosts, and especially in the case of roads not much in use, and consequently consisting of a stratum less consolidated, and more penetrable by water. M'Adam, probably, has much frequented pul)lic roads in view. " The durability of these," he says, " will of course depend on the strength of the materials of which they may be composed, but_ they will all be good while they last, and the only question that can arise respecting the kind of materials, is one of duration and expense, but never of the immediate condition of the roads." (i2e- marks on Roads, ^c. p. 11.) The following observation of Marshal is worthy of re- mark, as tending to confirm to a certain extent the doctrine of M'Adam. " It may seem needless to repeat, that the surface of a road which is formed of well-broken stones, binding gravel, or other firmly cohesive materials, and which is much used, pre- sently becomes repellent of the water which falls upon it : no matter as to the basis on which they are deposited ; provided it is sound and firm enough to support them." 3334. M'Adanis theory of road-making may be comprised in the following quotation from his Report to the Board of Agriculture (vol. vi. p. 46.). *' Roads can never be rendered perfectly secure until the following principles be fully understood, admitted, and acted upon : namely, that it is the native soil which really supports the weight of traffick ; that while it is preserved in a dry state it will carry any weight without sinking, and that it does, in fact, carry the road and the carriages also ; that this native soil must previously be made quite dry, and a covering impenetrable to rain, must then be placed over it to preserve it in that dry state ; that the thickness of a road should only be regu- Book If. M'ADAM'S ROADS. 519 lated by the quantity of material necessary to form such impervious covering, and never by any reference to its own power of carrying weiglit. 3335. The erroneous opinion so long acted upon, and so tenaciouslt/ adhered to, that by placing a large quantity of stone under the roads, a remedy will be found for the sinking into wet clay, or other soft soils, or in other words, that a road may be made suffi- ciently strong, artificially, to carry heavy carriages, though the sub-soil be in a wet state, and by such means to avert the inconveniences of the natural soil receiving water from rain, or other causes, has produced most of the defects of the roads of Great Britain. At one time M' Adam had formed the opinion that this practice was only a useless expense ; but experience has convinced him that it is likewise positively injurious. 3336. If strata of stone of various sizes be placed as a road, it is well-known to every skilful and observant road-maker, that the largest stones will constantly work up by the shaking and pressure of the traffick; and that the only mode of keeping the stones of a road from motion, is to use materials of a uniform size from the bottom. In roads made upon large stones as a foundation, the perpetual motion, or change of the position of the materials, keeps open many apertures, through which the water passes. • 3337. Roads placed upon a hard bottom, it has also been found, wear away more quickly than those which are placed upon a Soft soil. This has been apparent upon roads where motives of economy, or other causes, have prevented the road being lifted to the bottom at once ; the wear has always been found to diminish, as soon as it was possible to remove the hard foundation. It is a known fact, that a road lasts much longer over a morass than when made over rock. The evidence produced before the committee of the house of commons, showed the comparison on the road between Bristol and Bridgewater, to be as five to seven in favor of the wearing on the morass, where the road is laid on the naked surface of the soil, against a part of the same road made over rocky ground. 3338. The common practice, on the formation of a new road is, to dig a trench below the surface of the ground adjoining, and in this trench to deposit a quantity of large stones ; after this, a second quantity of stone, broken smaller, generally to about seven or eight pounds weight ; these previous beds of stone are called the bottoming of the road, and are of various thickness, according to the caprice of the maker, and generally in proportion to the sum of money placed at his disposal. On some new roads, made in Scotland in the summer of 1819, the thickness exceeded three feet. That which is properly called the road is then placed on the bottoming, by putting large quantities of broken stone or gravel, generally a foot or eighteen inches thick, at once upon it. Were the materials of which the road itself is composed properly selected, prepared, and laid, some of the inconveniences of this system might be avoided ; but in the careless way in which this service is generally performed, the road is as open as a sieve to receive water; which penetrates through the whole mass, is received and retained in the trench, whence the road is liable to give way in all changes of weather. A road formed on such prin- ciples has never effectually answered the purpose which the road-maker should con- stantly have in view ; namely, to make a secure, level flooring, over which carriages may pass with safety, and equal expedition, at all seasons of the year. 3339. An artificiid road in Britain is only required to obviate the inconvenience of a very unsettled climate. Water, with alternate frost and thaw, are the evils to be guarded against ; consequently nothing can be more erroneous than providing a reservoir for water under the road, and giving facility to the water to pass through the road into this trench, where it is acted upon by frost to the destruction of the road. As no artificial road can ever be made so good and so useful as the natural soil in a dry state, it is only necessary to procure and preserve this dry state of so much ground as is intended to be occupied by a road. 3340. The first operation in making a road should be the reverse of digging a trench. The road should not be sunk below, but rather raised above, the ordinary level of the adjacent ground; care should at any rate be taken, that there be a sufficient fall to take off' the water, so that it should always be some inches below the level of the ground upon which the road is intended to be placed : this must be done, either by making drains to lower ground, or if that be not practicable, from the nature of the country, then the soil upon which the road is proposed to be laid, must be raised by addition, so as to be some inches above the level of tlie water. 3341. Having secured the soil from under-ivater, the road-maker is next to secure it from rain-water, by a solid road made of clean dry stone or flint, so selected, prepared, and laid, as to be perfectly impervious to water ; and this cannot be effected unless the greatest care be taken that no earth, clay, chalk, or other matter, that will hold or conduct water, be mixed with the broken stone ; which must be so prepared and laid, as to unite with its own angles into a firm, compact, impenetrable body. 3342. The thickness of such road is immaterial, as to its strength for carrying weight ; this object is already obtained by providing a dry surface, over which the road is to be LI 4 520 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. placed as a covering or roof, to preserve it in that state : experience having shown, that if water passes through a road, and fill the native soil, the road, whatever may be its thick- ness, loses its support, and goes to pieces. In consequence of an alteration in the line of the turnpike-road, near Rownham-ferry, in the parish of Ashton, near Bristol, it has been necessary to remove the old road. This road was lifted and re-laid very skilfully in 1806; since which time it has been in contemplation to change the line, and conse- quently it has been suffered to wear very thin. At present it is not above three inches thick in most places, and in none more than four ; yet on removing the road, it was found that no water had penetrated, noi; had the frost affected it during the winter preced- ing, and the natural earth beneath the road was found perfectly dry. 3343. Several new roads have been constructed on this principle within the last three ypars. Part of the great north road from London, by Hoddesdon, in Hertfordshire; two pieces of road on Durdham Down, and at Rownham-ferry, near Bristol ; with several private roads in the eastern part of Sussex. None of these roads exceed six inches in thickness ; and although that on the great north road is subjected to a very heavy traffick (being only fifteen miles distant from London), it has not given way, nor M'as it affected by the late severe winter (1819-20,; when tlie roads between that and London became impassable, by breaking up to the bottom, and the mail and other coaches were obliged to reach London by circuitous routes. It is worthy of observation, that these bad roads cost more money per mile for their annual repair, than the original making of this useful new road. 3344. Improvement of roads, continues M'A., upon the principle I have endeavored to explain, has been rapidly extended during the last four years. It has been carried into effect on various roads, and with every variety of material, in seventeen different counties. These roads being so constructed as to exclude water, consequently none of them broke up during the late severe winter (1819-20j; there was no interruption to travelling, nor any additional expense by the post-office in conveying the mails over them, to the extent of upwards of one thousand miles of road." 3345. On M^ Adam's theory the only practical road-maker who has published his opi- nion, is Paterson, of Montrose. He says {^Letters and Communications, ^c. 1822,) ** These certainly ought to be considered as the grand first principles of road-making." He commends M* Adam's reasoning on these principles, but objects, as we think with reason, to his drainage of three or four inches as being insuflftcient. He adds, however, that though he considers M'Adam's system as erroneous and defective in draining and pre- paring the road for the materials ; yet in regard to the materials themselves, the method of preparing and putting them on, and keeping the road free from ruts by constant at- tention, has his entire approbation. These principles, however, he adds, " are not new ; but have been acted upon before. In regard to small breaking, he certainly has had the merit of carrying that mode to greater extent than any other individual that I have heard of; and the beneficial effects arising from it, have consequently been more extensively seen and experienced." (^Letters on Road-making, p. 49.) SuBSECT. 3. Road-making as treated of and practised by various eminent Engineers and Surveyors. 3346. The subject of forming a road may be considered as to breadth, drainage, fences, base of the hard materials or artificial stratum, upper line of the stratum, com- position of the stratum, size of the materials, laying, and compressing. 3347. With respect to breadth the site of every public road, according to Marshal, ought to be sufficiently ample to admit of its division into three travelable lines, namely, 1. A middle road of hard materials, for carriages and horses in winter and wet seasons; 2. A soft road, formed with the natural materials of the site, to be used in dry weather, to save the unnecessary wear of the hard road, and to favor the feet of travelling animals ; as well as for the safety, ease, and pleasantness of travelling in the summer season ; and 3. A commodious path, for the use of foot passengers, at all seasons. There are few roads, even in the environs of populous towns, so public as to require a hard road of more than two statute poles (thirty-three feet) in breadth ; and every public road ought, under ordinary circumstances, to have a line which is travelable at any season, and of ample width to permit two carriages to pass each other, with freedom and safety. This ample width let us set down at one statute pole. In deep clayey districts, where hard materials are difficult to be procured, a single road, of half a pole in breadth, with dilations at proper distances, to let carriages pass each other, may, in many recluse situ- ations,, be advisable. 3348. Seventy feet in width seems to be considered by Farey, Walker, Telford, and most engineers, as sufficient near the largest towns, and in the case of the metropolis and some others, they consider that ten or twenty feet in width may be paved. The London Commercial road, executed under the direction of Walker, is seventy feet wide ; ten feet on each side are occupied as footpaths, twenty feet in the centre is paved for heavy Book II. ROAD MAKING OF ENGINEERS. 521 carriages, and there is fifteen feet of gravel road at each side for h'ght carriages and saddle horses. Tliis road has been executed for sixteen years, and has given the greatest satisfaction ; but Walker thinks that considerable improvement would be found from paving the sides of a road, upon which the heavy traffick is great, in both directions, and leaving the middle for light carriages, the carmen or drivers walking upon the foot- paths or sides of the road, would then be close to their horses, without interrupting or being in danger of accidents from light carriages, which is the case when they are driving upon the middle of the road ; and tlie unpaved part being in the middle or highest part of the road, would be more easily kept in good repair. But unless the heavy traffick in both directions is great, one width, say ten or twelve feet, if very well paved, will be found sufficient ; and in this case, the paving ought to be in the middle of the road. The width of many of the present roads is, besides, such, that ten or twelve feet can be spared for paving, while twice that width would leave too little for the gravelled part. Although the first cost of paving is so great, he does not think that any other plan can be adopted so good and so cheap in those places where the materials got in the neighborhood are not sufficient for supporting the roads. A coating of whinstone is, for instance, more durable than the gravel with which the roads round London are made and repaired ; but much less so than paving ; although the freight and carriage of the whinstone, and of tlie paving-stones, whach form the principal items of the expense, are nearly the same. 334 9. Roads ought to be wide and strong, Edgeworth observes, in proportion to their vicinity to great towns, mines, or manufactories. As they approach the capital, they should be wider and stronger than elsewhere. When a number of roads leading to a great city combine and fall into one, the road from that junction should be proportion- ably solid and capacious. Near the capital, the width of roads is however often restricted by buildings, that cannot with propriety be suddenly removed, but every opportunity for removing these buildings, and for widening the road, should be attended to, and no future buildings or encroachments should be allowed. And, though in some cases it appears reasonable, to permit the erection of new buildings, and the making new planta- tions, nearer than thirty feet from the centre of a road, upon condition that security should be given to the public for the constant preservation of the road that is thus injured ; it is, however, far safer to prohibit what is injurious to public convenience, than to compromise with individuals : cases of private hardship may, and must occur, but it is part of the true glory of Britain, that there exists no exemption in our laws in favor of the rich. 3350. Proportioning the breadth of roads to the traffick, for which they may be employed, is not sufficiently attended to. In remote places, where there is but little traffick, the waste of ground occasioned by superfluous width of roads, is an error of considerable magnitude. There are many places where roads of twenty feet breadth would suit the public convenience, as well as if they were twice as broad. Now it is clear, that if a road is one pole or perch wider than is necessary, there is a waste of 320 perches in a mile, equal to two acres of ground, which, at the rate of three pounds per acre, would, if the road had been once well made, keep half a mile of such road, as is here alluded to, in good repair. 3351. The breadth of the road and the width of the metals, according to Paterson, should depend on circumstances different from the former. For a few miles in the vicinity of such cities as London or Edinburgh, the most proper breadth at which a road should be formed, is probably from sixty to seventy feet, and the metals from twenty-five to thirty-five feet. While in the neighborhood of such towns as Newcastle or Perth, it will be sufficient that it be formed forty feet broad, and that the width of the metals be about eighteen or twenty feet. These are the breadths presumed to be tlie most eligible in such situations. But rules cannot be given to suit every situation : the breadth ought to be regulated according to the extent of the run of commerce, or traffick, upon the road. As a general rule, however, for public roads over the different counties of Great Britain, I should suppose the following might, in most cases, be adopted. Take for instance, the road betwixt Edinburgh and Glasgow, or betwixt Edinburgh and Aberdeen, by the way of Dundee. These roads are formed in general from thirty-five to forty feet wide ; and the breadth of the metals is from fourteen to sixteen feet, for the most part. Such roads as these would be found to answer very well, in general, over the kingdom. A breadth sufficient for the general purposes of country travelling, according to M'Adam, is sixteen feet of solid materials, with six feet on each side formed of slighter materials. The Bristol roads, he says, are made with stone about the width of sixteen feet. 3352. Narrow roads, it is judiciously observed by Fry, are almost always in bad con- dition, which is to be accounted for from the circumstance of every carriage being obliged to go in the same ruts ; and as each rut is generally only six inches wide, one foot of tlie road only is worn by the wheels instead of the whole breadth of it ; which would be the case if the road were, of a proper width, and if it were well constructed. If a road be laid out, from twenty to thirty feet wide, so flat as that a carriage may stand nearly upr,ight on every part of it, and if moderate care be taken by the surveyor to prevent the 522 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. first formation of ruts, such a road will be worn by the wheels nearly alike on every part of it : provided also that the ground on each side, for at least four or five feet, be mode- rately flat, so as not to excite fear in the drivers of carriages ; but if there be deep ditches close to the sides of the road, or if the circumjacent land fall off very abruptly to the depth of two or three feet, whereby fear of approaching the edges would operate on the minds of the drivers, every driver will instinctively avoid the danger on either hand; and a road so circumstanced will, in spite of any care of the surveyor, inevitably be worn into ruts in the middle. There is a remarkable instance of this kind in a piece of road on Durdham Down, near Bristol. This road is a causeway over a piece of soft ground ; and although it is from twenty to twenty-five feet wide, yet, as the ground falls away abruptly on both sides of it, it has been found impossible, for more than twenty years past, to his knowledge, to prevent deep ruts being formed along the mid- dle of it ; notwithstanding the Down itself consists of hard limestone ; and the other roads upon the Down are as fine and even as any roads in England. Were this piece of road widened out on each side, in an easy slope about five feet, by rubbish of any kind, and by the scrapings of the road itself, whereby the instinctive operation of fear of ap- proaching the sides of the present road would be obviated, that piece of road would be found to wear as fairly as the other roads on the same Down. 3353. In regard to the drainage of roads, Marshal directs to examine the site in every part to ascertain whether offensive waters lodge beneath it, as quicksands ; or land springs break out in a wet season. If defects of this kind be found, effectual drains are td be run up to them, from the ditches or outer side drains of the site. 3354. When roads rjin through marshy ground, Edgeworth observes, " the substratum must be laid dry by proper drainage ; and where the road is liable, from the flatness of the country, to be at times under water, the expense of raising it above the water must be submitted to in the first instance. All drains for carrying off water should be under the road, or at the field side of the fences, and these drains should be kept open by con- stant attention, and should be made wide at the outlet." 3355. The side drains, Telford and Walker recommend to be in every instance on the field side of the fence. In cases, Telford observes, where a road is made upon ground where there are many springs, it is absolutely necessary to make a number of under and cross drains to collect the water and conduct it into the side drains, which should always be made on the field side of the fences. The orifices of these cross drains should be neatly and substantially finished in masonry. 3356. The nnethod of draining which Paierson has found the most elective, is thus described : '* Before the materials are put on, run a drain along the middle of the road, all the way, from two to three feet deep ; then fill it with stones up to the sur- face, making tliose at bottom of a pretty good size, and those at the top fully as small as the road materials. And, in order that the quantity of stones used for the said drain may be as little as possible, and every way to save expense, it may be made as narrow as it can possibly be dug. From this leading drain make a branch here and there, to convey off the water to the canals on the sides of the road." This mode of draining he has found, from experience, to be so beneficial, that a road so drained would be better and more durable with eight inches, than it would otherwise be with twelve inches of mate- rials. And, not only so, but that on such a road there would be a saving on the incidental repairs, ever afterwards, of about one-half of the labor, and at least one-third of the material. 3357. All moisture from under the road materials must be carried off by such drains. Then, if the materials are properly broken, they will become so firm and solid that little or no water will get through them ; and if it should, this drain would carry it away. So that, under any view of it, the utility of these drains must be very apparent : but when we consider that, to have the ground under the road materials perfectly dry, is to insure a good road, these drains become indispensably necessary, and the expense is a mere trifle. There are two miles of road, which were made on this plan under Paterson's directions, which have stood all the winter rains without injury, and which promises to be one of the finest roads in the kingdom. There is another road of ten miles, that he has lately planned, for the greater part of which he has specified two such drains, run- ning parallel to each other, and five feet apart. And he would even recommend three or four parallel drains where there is a great breadth of metals, excepting where the road is formed over dry sand, or open gravel. Although the effect of such drains will be at all times beneficial to the road ; in time of a thaw, after there has been a few weeks of frost, it will be peculiarly so. In frost, the surface of the road, though wet before, be- comes dried, the water being absorbed by the road, or otherwise condensed by the frost. But no sooner is this succeeded by a thaw, than the absorbed, or condensed water, again makes its appearance all over the surface of the road. This is the time that these drains are so peculiarly beneficial. 3358. Where such drains are ivanting, the road, on the return of a thaw, throws up to the surface all the water it had imbibed ; and, in many places, the materials Book II. ROADS OF ENGINEERS. 523 swelling up, become quite loose and open. This is a natural consequence, where the material is not thick, and where the soil under the road is not perfectly dry. But where a road is dried in the way described, it will be uniformly seen, that the water, instead of spewing out on the return of a thaw, is sucked in by the drains, so leaving tlie surface of the road quite dry. It may be observed, at such times, that the places of the road where a few roods of such drain had been introduced, presented to the eye, at a quarter of a mile distance, quite a contrast to the other parts of the road, — the one opaque and dry, from the moisture being sucked in — the other all wet and glister- ing^Jrom its being thrown out to the surface. {Patersons Letters, &c. 44. 48. 84.) 3359. 'The surface-drains, or water-tables, should be made a few inches lower than the side of the road, and of the common width of a spade at the bottom, and they should have frequent cross drains under the path and fence, back into the outer side drain. 3360. jrater-tables across the road become requisite in some cases, as in flat roads on a steep slope. These shoUld always be made at right angles to the road, with their sides gently sloping, to occasion as little obstruction to carriages as possible. In some few cases, where roads are liable to floods, or are deficient in drainage, these surface-tables may require to be made of a considerable breadth and paved ; in this case Greig {App. to Strictures on Road Police, p. 219.) directs to fay six feet of the bottom of it flat, and twelve feet on each side, to rise at the rate of one inch in the foot, which will make the depth one foot ; and from the size, no carriage will feel any jerk or shake in passing it. The pavement should be made of hammered stones, of nearly equal depth, each stone from nine to twelve inches long on the surface,' and four to eight inches broad, and nine inches to a foot deep ; the under-side to be flat in the under-face, and not of an irregular or angular under-surface, as in that case it would not be solid. (^Appendix to Greig's Strictures, p. 219.) 3361. Bridges and embankments of different degrees of magnitude, are required in all lines of road of any length or variety of surface. The subject of large bridges we leave to the engineers ; no department of their art having attained higher perfection, of which the wonderful erections by Telford, in almost every mountainous district in Britain may be referred to as proofs. We confine ourselves entirely to such stone arches as may be designed by road- surveyors, and built by country masons. In many cases, cast- iron might be substituted for stone with economy and advantage as to water-way ; but though the principle of constructing both cast and wrought iron bridges is perfectly simple, the execution, and especially the putting up, requires more skill, and is attended with much more risk than the erection of either stone or timber bridges. 3362. One loiu arch is in general the most desirable description of common road- bridge. But most of the country bridges, as Clarke observes, consist of several small, high, semicircular arches : where there is a single arch, the stream passes without inter- ruption ; if there are two or three in the same situation, the space through which the water is to pass is necessarily contracted by the width of the piers. Ice, and large bodies carried down by floods, frequently stop up the small arches, and the accumulated water- carries away the bridgej but if such accidents should not happen, the constant currents rushing against those piers wash out the mortar, loosen the stones, and very soon under- mine tlie work, if it is not extremely well put together, which is seldom the case. Unless the river or stream is narrow, or the banks very high, a semicircle is an inconvenient shape for an arch ; it has been adopted on account of the insufficiency of the abutments, and because the pressure is more perpendicular ; but scientific engineers in all countries, now construct their bridges with wide openings, and make the arches either semi-ellipses, or segments of large circles — so that the space above the highest floods is comparatively little, and the ascent over the bridge inconsiderable. In country bridges in Ireland, Clarke continues, ihe foundations are invariably, and often intentionably, defective : the mason considers himself an honest man, if his bridge lasts seven years ; whereas, from the durability of materials in this country, it ought to endure for ages. Whatever is under water is out of sight, and is generally composed of loose stones, thrown promiscuously together, on which the masonry is erected, and all the pains and ex- pense are bestowed on the cut-ivaters and wings, when the heaviest stones, and those accurately jointed, ought to be laid in the foundations. The greatest attention should be paid to the quality of the materials : the stones should be large, and laid in level courses, in the best mortar, composed of sharp sand, free from loam, and quicklime, accurately mixed together ; the coping of the parapet is generally so slight, that it is broken down as soon as built, and the entire parapet quickly follows; — it ought to be of large heavy stones, roughly hammered, and there should be substantial quoins at the ends of the parapets with an immovable stone over them. 3363. Arches not exceeding eight feet span may be semicircular; tunnels not exceeding eighteen inches wide, may be covered with strong flags, and either flagged or paved imder, and there ought to be across either end a deep long stone, sunk below the surface of the current, and under the walls, to prevent the water from undermining the work j 524 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. if the stones are square and heavy, those small conduits may be built without mortar, except at the ends. 3364. In building tunnels or arches across a road in a flow bog, great pains must be taken with the foundation, or the whole structure will inevitably sink : the building of those should be deferred as long as possible, till the peat has subsided, and has obtained a tolerable consistence ; then make an opening equal to the whole work, and sink it eigh- teen inches below the intended bottom of the arch or gullet ; collect a quantity of black thorn bushes, and tie them in faggots of the same size ; place these in regular courses in the direction of the road, and lay across them a platform of strong plank three inches thick, the whole length and width of the intended mason work ; on this build your arch, and make an allowance in the height of the abutments for sinking. "Wherever walls are necessary to support banks, and prevent their crumbling down upon the road, if large even stones can be procured, they will not require any mortar ; when mortar is used, there ought to be a great many apertures in the work to give vent to the water, otherwise the pent-up moisture from behind will push out the wall. In many cases, where embankments can be made of earth and sods, they are to be preferred to masonry, which is extremely expensive at the commencement, and very perishable — for mortar soon loses its cementing quality, when exposed alternately to frost and damp. 3365. Draining the site of a road on ajiow-bog, according to Clarke, is a tedious oper- ation, and often requires some years. A single drain at each side will not be sufficient, as the water from the adjacent moss would fill it up as fast as it was made. Lay out the road here sixty feet wide, which will allow for the banks when the whole shall be finished; make a drain at each side six feet wide, and at a distance of fifteen or twenty feet more, parallel drains of the same width. If the interval between the parallel drains is after- wards cut away regularly for fuel, it will tend still to the condensation of the moss. 3366. Open drains in the case of ground liable to sink, or to moulder down by frost, ought to be made very much sloped on the sides, especially the side next the road, other- wise, after repeated scouring out, the road will be found to have sunk at the sides ; a very common case, and highly injurious in the case of narrow roads. Whenever this tendency to sink is observed, it should be made up by the scrapings of the road, or by other materials. Roads made over bogs, and artificial mounds, are particularly liable to sink at the sides, which should be immediately counteracted to prevent the bad consequences. 3367. Fences along the sides of roads are essential in all enclosed countries ; and all engineers and road-makers agree, that they should never be allowed to rise of a greater height than what is necessary for a fence. To give free admission to the sun and air by keeping the fences low. Marshal considers as providing an inexpensive, yet most accurate method of cleaning roads, incomparably more so than washing or scraping. The legis- lature, Edgeworth observes, has limited, in several instances, the height of hedges to five feet ; but this limitation is neglected or evaded. Even were it strictly adhered to, it would not be sufficient for narrow roads ; the hedges would be still too high, for it is the sweeping power of the wind, which carries off dust in dry weather, and which takes up moisture in wet. In fact, roads become dry by evaporation ; and when they are ex- posed to the sun and wind, the effect of heat and ventilation are more powerful than any surface drainage that could be accomplished. 3368. Walker observes, that the advantage of having the hedge next the road, consists in its greater safety to the traveller, particularly if a ditch of any considerable depth is necessary, and in the hedge being supported in its growth from the ground under tlie road, without drawing upon the farmer's side of the ditch. 3369. The fences, Telford observes, form a very material and important subject, with regard to the perfection of roads ; they should in no instance be more than five feet in height above the centre of the road, and all trees which stand within twenty yards from the centre of it ought to be removed. I am sure that twenty per cent, of the expense of improving and repairing roads is incurred by the improper state of the fences and trees along the sides of it, on the sunny side more particularly ; this must be evident to any person who will notice the state of a road which is much shaded by high fences and trees, compared to the other parts of the road which are exposed to the sun and air. My observations, with regard to fences and trees, apply when the road is on the same level as the adjacent fields ; but in many cases, on the most frequented roads of England, more stuff has been removed from time to time than was put on ; the surface of the road is con- sequently sunk into a trough or channel from three to six feet below the surface of the fields on each sides ; here all attempts at drainage, or even common repairs, seem to be quite out of the question ; and by much the most judicious and economical mode, will be to remove the whole road into the field which is on the sunny side of it. (Exam, before the House of Commons, <^c.) 3370. In the junction of roads, whether of a bye-road with a principal road, or two bye or principal roads, their respective levels ought, if possible, to be the same, and the materials ought to be rather broader than usual at the point of turning. In like manner Book II. ROADS OF ENGINEERS. 525 the communication of fields by gates ought to be carefully managed, so as not to injure the public road, the footpath, the water table, or the inner drain. All gates should open inwards to the fields, and not to the road. 3371. That plantations of trees should not be made close to roads all are agreed. What the distance ought to be, must depend on the elevation of the country, the soil and sub- soil, the breadth of the road, its direction, whether the plantation is to be made on the north or south side of the road, its thickness, kind of tree, &c. An elevated situation is always more exposed to the wind than a level or hollow ; and a dry soil and subsoil will always, other circumstances being the same, have a favorable effect on the roads which pass over them. A broad road, and one winding in its direction, has chances of the direct influence of tlie sun and wind, according to the obliquity of its angles : a road running north and south, though planted closely on both sides, will enjoy the sun during a part of every day in the year ; one running east and west, planted on the south side, with trees forty feet high, will enjoy no sun but through the interstices of the branches during the three winter months. Supposing the average height of the sun from ten to two o'clock during these three months to be 20 degrees, then a tree forty feet high will throw a shadow every day during that period, upwards of 100 feet long, which may shew that no plantation should be made nearer the south sides of roads than 80 or 100 feet. On the north-east and west sides, they may be nearer, according to the elevation and natural tendency to dryness of the site, and also taking it into consideration whether the trees are evergreens, and with or without underwood. The least injurious trees are single rows trained to high stfems, properly pruned in, or foreshortened. 3372. The preparation of the base of a road, for the reception of the metals or hard ma- terials, is a matter of primary importance. Marshal, Edge worth, and some other writers, with almost all practical men, seem to have entertained much less enlightened notions on this subject than M' Adam. 3373. Marshal's preparation consists in striking ofFtiie protuberances, and filling up the hollow pans : the footpath and the higher side of the soft road being raised with the earth which is required to be taken off the bed of the hard road ; whose base or founda- tion ought to be formed with peculiar care. Every part is required to be firm and sound : dry earth, or hard materials, being rammed into every hollow and yielding part. In a dry situation, as across a gravelly or stoney height, little more, he says, is required than to remove the surface mould, and lay bare the rock, or bed of gravel, beneath it : and, then, to give the indurate base a round or a shelving form, as the lying of the ground may require. In this way, a travelable road may be made, and kept up, at one-tenth of the expense incurred by the ordinary practice in this case ; which is to gather up the sur- face-soil into a ridge, and, on this soft spongy bed, to lay, coat after coat, some hard ma- terials, — fetched perhaps from a distance. 3374. A soft bed is now found by far the best, and M'Adam has proved in the case of part of the road between Bridgewater and Cross, that a stratum of hard materials covering a morass will last longer than a similar stratum laid on rock . indeed it may be questioned whether a properly made road on a bog, which yields by its elasticity, will not last longer than one on a firm surface. We have been told by a gentleman of some experience in road-making, that in Ireland this is actually found to be the case. " Precisely," as Fry observes, •* for the same cause that a stone placed upon a wool-pack would bear a greater pressure before it would be broken, than it would if placed on an anvil. " [Essay on Wheel Carriages, ^c. App. 129.) 3375. Covering the base if an unsound road with faggots, branches, furze or heath, is recommended by Edgeworth. Flat stones, he adds, if tl)ey can be had, should then be laid over the faggots, and upon them stones of six or seven pounds' weight, and, lastly, a coat of eight or ten inches of pounded stone. If the practicability of consolidating a mass of stones of six or eight ounces weight and under each, so as to act as one plate or floor- ing, be admitted, then the faggots and flat stones must at least be useless, and the stones of six or seven pounds weight injurious ; because whenever the upper stratum had worn down a few inches, some of these stones, and eventually the greater number, would be worked up to the surface, and the road destroyed or put in a state to require lifting, breaking, and relaying. 3376. A basement of trees, bavins, or bushes, is made use of by Walker when the ground is very soft. They carry off the water previous to the materials of the road, being so consolidated as to form a solid body, and to be impervious to water. Bushes are, how- ever, not advisable to be used, unless they are so low as always to be completely moist. When they are dry and excluded from the air they decay in a very few years, and produce a sinking in place of preserving the road ; a thickness of chalk is useful for the same purpose in cases where bushes are improper, the chalk mixing with the gravel or stones becomes concreted, and presents a larger surface to the pressure. 3377. The base of the road is constructed by Telford of an elliptical form; if it is upon clay or other elastic substance, which would ictain water, he would recommend to 526 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. cover the whole bottom of the road with vegetable soil, in cases where the natural shape of the ground admits; he would not remove the original surface ; and where there are inequalities he would fill them up with vegetable soil, so as to cut off all connection with clay. 3378. In forming the basis of a road on a flow bog, Clarke directs to strip the heathy sods (tussocks) off the whole surface of the side-drains, and place them with the heath uppermost on the space intended for the road ; or if a sufficiency of brushwood or furze can be procured, it will answer still better ; proceed to let off the water at the lowest ends of the drains, leaving an open channel in the middle of each ; after the water has run off for some time, so as to allow the moss to become somewhat finer, throw off another spit ; and repeat this operation month after month, and year after year, till the space for the road becomes compact and dry ; and be sure to keep it in that state by cleaning the drains frequently ; tliere should be eight or ten inches of tough clay laid over the tussocks or brushwood, which will be greatly the better to be consolidated by rollers ; this part of the road may be left rather higher in the centre than the other parts, to allow for settling. There is no situation where it is more diflRcult to make a good road than through a flow bog, but if once made w the most easy to horses. 3379. In forming the basis of a road on thin moor, the whole of the peat should be re- moved from the space on which the road is to be made ; for, if allowed to remain between the hard subsoil and the small stones, the weight of carriages would press down the latter, force up the black peat through them, and totally spoil the road ; this happens only where there is a thin, soft, peaty stratum between two hard bodies, for in deep bog, the elas- ticity of the foundation yields to the superficial pressure, and contributes to the durability of the materials ; after this has been so removed, the surface, when formed and drained, will be ready for the road materials. 3380. Informing the base or metal bed, Paterson observes, " it is common to cut it to the exact breadth and depth of the metals, and to make it quite flat in the bottom, or level from the one side of the metals to the other. Supposing this metal-bed to be formed fourteen feet broad, and nine inches deep, on a breadth of fourteen feet, the metals would require to be about three inches higher in the middle than on the sides. In this case then, they would be nine inches deep on the sides, and twelve on the middle ; and as it is evident that the middle of the road, where the metals are deepest, is not subjected to so much fatigue and waste from the tread of the horses' feet, as that nearer the sides is from the grinding of the wheels, this is, therefore, a waste of metals on the middle of the^ road. But this is not the greatest evil of which I complain. The metal -bed being cut into the solid ground, and^a^ in the middle, and having the earth on each side about nine inches higher than it, — this, upon any other ground than that of dry sand or gravel, forms a bed for retaining the water, as well as for holding the metals, which often deluges the middle of the road with mud or gutters, when it might be prevented. I would therefore propose, that a metal-bed of fourteen feet broad should, instead of being level, have a rise in the middle of at least four inches, which will make a declivity from the middle to each side of nearly two inches in the yard. Then supposing the surface of the metals to have the same shape as mentioned above, viz. three inches higher on the middle than on the edges, the metals on the sides will be the same depth as formerly mentioned, namely, nine inches ; but instead of twelve inches on the middle, they will then only be seven inches deep, which makes a saving of five inches. This saving of five inches on the middle, or two inches and a half on the whole breadth of the metals, is very considerable ; but this is not the only benefit arising from this mode of procedure. The metal-bed having a slope from the middle to each side of the road, so far from retaining the water, runs it off from the middle ; and this will be of more service in keeping the road in good order ever afterwards, than if you were to put three or four inches more of additional depth to the metals on the common plan. This appears to me to carry so much of common sense on the face of it, that I am surprised it has not ere long this time been generally adopted." Here Paterson seems to infer that water may, or rather does, penetrate the stratum of metal to the base, which, in properly made roads will at least, not often be the case. The argument of a saving in materials is quite sufficient to justify him and Telford in adopting the elliptical form for a basis. 3381. ^ soft base is always preferred by M'Adam, who drains effectually and puts no intervening material between the metals and the earth, even if it were a bog, " provided it admitted a man to walk over it." (Examination, <^c. 1819.) The Somersetshire morass is so extremely soft, he says, *' that when you ride in a carriage along the road, you see the water tremble in the ditches on each side ; and after there has been a slight frost, the vibration of the water from the carriage on the road, will be so great as to break the young ice. I never use large stones on the bottom of a road ; I would not put a large stone in any part of it, nor faggots, nor any material larger than will weigh six oupces. If a road be made smooth and solid, it will be one mass, and the effect of the Book II. ROADS OF ENGINEERS. 527 substrata, whether clay or sand, can never be felt in effect by carriages going over the road ; because a road well made unites itself in a body like a piece of timber or a board. 3382. An instructive proof of the preference given by M'Jdam to a sof} base is derived from a case which occurred near Montrose. This case was sent to him by Paterson in the following report. " This road," says the reporter, '* for about a mile, goes over a bank of sea-beach, many feet in depth, and all round stones from two to live or six inches in diameter. Always as the stones above three inches work up, and make their appearance on the surface, they are taken off to the side of the road, and broken to the ordinary size. This has been done several times every year for many years back, but the road always continues loose and open as ever." The answer of M'Adam was, " I am of opinion that you will not have a good and solid road over this beach, until you have a depth of eight or ten inches of properly broken metals on the surface; and probably it might be an improvement to put under them a few inches of soil, as the bottom is so very loose. But although the great mass of stones, over which this road is made, is of the best quality, yet as the greater part of them are under three inches diameter, I am afraid that were they even broken to my size, they will not bind together as if broken from larger stones." 3383. M^Adains Answer. — " The road you, have sent me a report of, is novel in its situation, but very far from hopeless. The sea-beach, of which it is wholly composed, should be picked ; that is to say, the large sized pebbles should be carefully removed from the surface, and carried to the side of the road, and there broken, not to what your surveyor calls my size, which is six ounces, but smaller, say to three or four ounces. And / must also ivarn i/ou, that any round stone, when broken in half so as to form a hemis- phere, is nearly as unmanageable and as little likely to consolidate in a road, as one left quite round ; therefore, with regard to weight, your stones must be taken so as to form as many angles as possible. No large pebble must be left in sight upon the bottom of the road, otherwise they will work up through the broken stones, of which your road will be composed ; but having prepared a surface upon which to place your road, by removing the large sized pebbles (I mean all above six ounces), and even covering the surface with sand soil or other soft matter, lay on ycur properly broken stones." Paterson entirely concurs with M'Adam in regard to the advantage of a soft base, adding in his last pub- lication [Letters, &c. 1822.), "although the ground under the materials can never be too dry, the materials never unite so firm when placed upon a hard rock, or upon gravel, as they do upon earth, moss, or sand. There should always, therefore, be a few inches of the one or the other of these, put under the road as a bed for the materials, where it is on a rocky or gravelly bottom." 3384. Wlieri, the basis consists partly of frniy and partly of loose TnaterialSf or moved earth, some nicety is required to determine the allowance for the sinking of the latter, and indeed roads, under such circumstances, cannot often be finished out of hand. Some judicious directions on this subject are given by Paterson. '* When a road," he observes, ** is formed along the side of a hill, or sloping bank, the earth that is produced from the side-cutting makes up a part of the breadth of the road ; so that the road is formed, part- ly on the solid ground, end partly on the embankment. All new-made-up earths, or embankments, subside a little, whatever be the nature or quality of the stuff of which they are composed. For which reason, that part of the breadth of the road, that is formed upon the embankment, should be raised a little higher than the solid ground. No pre- cise rule can be given to ascertain exactly how much the different kinds of earths, clays, gravel, &c. will subside ; but the following has been found so near to the truth, in most cases, that it may with safety be admitted as a general rule. 3385. At all places where there are embankments, whether over hollow ground, or along the side of a sloping bank ; for every foot that these embankments or mounds are raised in height, one inch may be allowed for subsiding. So that if an embankment, or the outer edge of a road formed from the side-cutting, requires, for instance, six feet deep of forced earth to bring it to the level required, in that case it should be made six inches higher, — namely, six feet six inches upon the newly-made-up ground. And it will be found, in general, to be about six months, from the time that the embankment has been made, until it has become properly consolidated together. 3386. 2'he materials of the road may be considered in regard to their nature or kind, the proper size and weight ; the outline of their upper surface, and the mode of laying them on, and consolidating them. 3387. Stone is universally allowed to be the best kind of material for roads, and granite, trap, or flint, the best species; next in order are some sorts of limestone, and hard sandstone. Soft claystone is the worst. Limestone is the principal material in Wiltshire, Somerset- shire, Gloucestershire, and Ireland : Granite and trap in the north of England and Scotland ; slatestone in North Wales ; sandstone pebbles in Shropshire and Stafford- shire ; flint in Essex, Susse?^, and part of Kent ; and gravel ia Middlesex and Surrey. *' The stones used for the metals of any road," Paterson observes, " should always be the 528 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. hardest and most durable that the place or neighborhood can afford. But this dura- bility will be found in a great measure to depend on the dryness of the road. Freestone, of a moderate hardness, such as chemists would term No. 6., * that would with difficulty yield to the knife,* will make a very good road on a dry sloping bank, exposed to the sun and air, or even on a level surface that has a dry gravelly bottom. Nay, even seven or eight inches deep of such metals on such situations, will make a better road than twelve inches of the best metals, where the bottom is constantly damp, and will actually surpass it in point of durability. This, however, is not meant to give a preference to those metals, but merely to show the great difference there is betwixt a wet and a dry bottom ; and that such metals will answer very well in the situations above described. Still it must be held as a general rule, to take the best and hardest metals the neighborhood can afford, as formerly mentioned." 3388. But the hardest metals will not ahvays be found the most durable ; and here it may be remarked, as another general rule, with some exceptions, that the worse they are to break, the greater their durability. Some stones, for instance, as hard as No. 9. of mine- ralogists, " such as would give a few feeble sparks with strit," are so free that they will fly under the stroke of a hammer like so many pieces of glass. These, although very hard, being of a quality so free and brittle, will grind down by the wheels rather easily, and in time of rains will be formed into mud ; while, on the other hand, there are stones not harder than No. 7. that are so tough, that there is great difficulty in breaking them. Yet these latter, although two degrees softer, will absolutely last longer than the former, on any road whatever. 3389. Flints reduced to a small size, and mixed with chalk, make an excellent road in dry weather ; but clialk being very absorbent of water they become slippery and soft in moist weather, and are much affected by frost. 3390. Whinstone, M*Adam, and all road engineers, agree in considering the most durable of all materials ; and wherever it is well and judiciously applied, the roads are comparatively good and cheap. Fry, however, has uniformly observed, in various parts of England, that where limestone is used, the roads are the best, and this superiority is not in his opinion owing merely to the hardness of this substance, but also to its adhesive or cementing property : how, otherwise, he says, are we to account for the firmness and solidity of the roads around Bristol, that are made of white limestone. 3391. Gravel h of two kinds, that obtained from pits, and that from the beds of rivers. Gravel is generally silicious and hard ; otherwise indeed it would have been worn down to sand, in undergoing the operation which has rendered it gravel. This material is chiefly used on the roads round London : it is often found, Paterson observes, "to answer very well in point of durability. But such kind of gravel, being composed chiefly of hard sand, and smooth, little, round stones, does not so easily bind together, and seldom make a very firm road. On the other hand, stones that are broken have so many sides that they readily lock into one another ; whereas the small round gravel keeps rolling and shifting about by every motion of the wheels. All road metals, therefore, should be of stones as large as to require breaking before they are used. The roads on which gravel will be found to answer best, are those which are neither too wet nor too dry. I have seen a road made with such kind of materials, not only easily rutted in time of the winter rains ; but the same road, in the drought of summer, became as loose as ashes, and was then also very easily rutted ; while in a medium betwixt these two extremes, it answered exceedingly well. Upon the whole, it would be improper to use gravel for any turnpike or public road, where stones can be got that require to come under the hammer." {Treatise, ^c. p. 31.) 3392. The gravel of which roads are usually formed, is mixed with a large portion of clay, and because the component parts of gravel are round, and want the angular points of contact, by which broken stone unites, and forms a solid body ; the loose state of the roads near London, is a consequence of this quality in the material, and of tlie entire neglect, or ignorance of the method of amending it. 3393. Gravel is the worst material for making roads subject to great traffick. Telford, on being asked his opinion of it by the road committee, replied, " I am of opinion that the materials in the whole valley or plain round London being entirely silicious, or flints, and easily ground to dust, are very improper. This must be evident to every person who travels near London in any direction." In this opinion M'Adam concurs. 3394. Artificial materials for roads are sometimes had recourse to, when stone or gravel is not to be procured, and sometimes used because unfit for any thing else. They are chiefly the scoria of founderies, dross, cinders, &c., to which may be added burnt ""clay ; the last a very perishable material. It is burned in clamps like bricks, and differs from them in being in irregular masses, and in not having been previously worked. 3395. The preparation of materials relates chiefly to their proper size or weight, and cleaning from earthy matters. Book II. FORM AND MATERIALS OF ROADS. 529 8396. Breaking the materials evenly is a point. Marshal observes, on which very milch depends. For by doing tliis, the wear of the road becomes regular. "Where the heads of large stones rise above the general surface, they become obstacles to carriages, and stumbling blocks to horses: beside their tending, by the jolting motion which they give to carriages, to indent the surface on either side of them; and thus to increase the roughness, and hasten the decay of the road. 3397. The proper sizes of road stones requires much latitude. Not only the in- tended use of the road, but the nature of the material, is to be considered. A road for broad- wheeled carriages of burden, only, may be made of larger stones than one for narrow wheels. And hard stones require to be broken smaller than those vi'hich more readily wear down, and form a travelable surface. For when once the surface of the materials becomes united and cemented together, and its rock-like texture established, tlie stones that are crushed, and the smaller fragments which are splintered off, in wear, serve to encrust and bind together the stratum of stones which lie next, in succes- sion, beneath : especially if proper attention be paid to tlie irregularities of wear, and to bring back the surface, wherever it is requisite, to its original evenness of convexity : so that it may, in every part, act as an arch, and may be able to resist, with the greatest firmness, the weight with which it may be impressed. 3398. Informing and repairing roads, with stones of size, a considerable share of the expense arises from the labor of reducing the materials ; and, in consequence, the smaller they are broken, the greater becomes the expense. This, on ordinary occasions, is a serious consideration. Hence, in constructing and repairing common roads, it is ad- visable, — instead of reducing the surface stones to small fragments, with the hammer, at a great cost, — to cover them with materials that are already reduced ; as the rubbish of stone quarries, soft stones or gravel, or the scrapings of the road to be repaired.. Such cementing materials being washed and worked down, by rains, and the action of carriages and the feet of travelling animals, among the surface stones, assist much in binding and fixing them in a firm crust; and in making the road immediately passable, by horses and light carriages : most particularly, if the whole be compressed, and united together, with a heavy roller (suitable to the purpose) repeatedly passed over the surface. Such is Marshal's opinion ; how much it differs from M* Adam's and Paterson's, cannot but be remarked by the reader. ' 3399. The size of stones })ref erred by Edgeworth, is not specifically mentioned ; but on bogs, he would lay stones of six or seven pounds weight : he elsewhere observes, that no stones larger than inch and a half diameter should be left on the surface of the road. 3400. The size lohich Walker approves of, he has not given in very definite terms ; and his observation as to the foundation acting by an arch is in our opinion erroneous. He says, *< Where whin or other stone is to be used, the size of the pieces into which it is broken should decrease as we approach the surface, the superficial coat- ing not exceeding a cube from one inch to one inch and a half. If the foundation is bad, breaking the bottom stone into small pieces is expensive and injurious, upon the principle I have above described, and also for the same reason that an arch formed of whole bricks, or of deep stones, is to be preferred to one of the same materials broken into smaller pieces ; for in some counties the materials will admit of the foundation of the road being considered as of the nature of a flat arch, as well as of being supported by the strata directly under it. 3401. The size of metals, according to Patcrson, should be different for the upper and under surfaces of roads : and both shoidd be regulated according to the situation of the road, and the nature of the ground over which it is formed. " Such small broken metals as are most proper for a road formed on a sloping bank, or on a very dry bottom, would be quite improper for a road that is perfectly level, and is much subjected to dampness. In the former case, even six or eight inches deep of such metals will make a good road ; but in the latter case, twelve or fourteen inches will be found inadequate. In the former case, too, the metals should be of such a size as may fill and pass through a ring from two to two inches and a half in diameter ; and in the latter cases, they should not be under three inches ; as under that size I have never found them to make a durable road in such situations. Every road that has more than eight inches deep of metals, should have the half of these in the bottom broken considerably larger than those on the top. If the road, however, has a dry hard bottom, there is not so much need for this ; but if the bottom is soft and wet, it is of the greatest service in making a firm road, and preventing the metals from sink- ing: and the softer the bottom, the larger, of course, they should be." But it is to be remarked, that the same author in his Letters, ^c. published three years afterwards, says, <« In my former treatise I proposed, where the bottom was soft, to have tlie under course of stones a little larger than those at top. This I have seen of service, in several cases : but my mode of draining, which should never be neglected, supersedes this entirely. Mm 530 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3402. The criterion of si%e adopted by MAdam, is six ounces, or under, for every part of the stratum. 3403. The size approved of by Clarke is not defined, but it should, he says, be small. ** The common practice is to lay a stratum of stones nearly the size of a man's head, as a foundation, and to cover them with two or three inches of smaller ones ; l)ut, from ex- perience and observation, I am decidedly of opinion, that all the stones should be small, and as nearly as possible of the same size, for though a road made as above described, may be very good at first, the wheels of carriages will grind the small stones to powder, the large ones will then rise to the surface, and the road will become intolerably rough ; and though frequently repaired with new materials the same cause will produce a simi- lar effect; whereas, if all the stones are small, and nearly of the same size, they will soon be cemented into one solid mass, and will be worn evenly to the last, so that no repairs will ever be necessary, but the addition of a few broken stones occasionally. " ( 06^. on Roads, p. 11.) 3404. The mode of preparing gravel is nearly the same by all the best road engineers, who agree with Telford, that it ought to be completely cleansed of every particle of clay or earthy substance, and its difterent sizes ought to be selected and arranged by means of riddling or washing. In the use of the riddle, the particles of earth or clay adhere so much to the stones that it frequently requires to be exposed to the sun, air, and frost for several months, and then riddled over again. In this gravel, the stones are of dif- ferent sizes and different shapes; all those that are round ought to be broken with a small hammer. Some attempt to attain tlie same end sooner by washing ; but this is both a more expensive, and less effectual mode than that of taking advantage of the weather, . 3405. The mode of breaking stones recommended by Edgeworth is by persons sitting, and using small hammers. A hard stone should be used as an anvil, and the stone to be broken may be advantageously held in a forked stick. Attempts have been made some years ago to break limestone for roads, by the force of horses, wind, and water. Stampers, shod with iron, and raised by proper mill- work, were employed ; they were let to fall upon blocks of whinstones. These mills were found profitable for breaking limestone to powder, as a manure, where fuel was scarce, but they crushed the stone to dust rather than to fragments ; if lighter stampers were employed they frequently failed to break the stone. Feeding the mill was also found difficult and dangerous. Tliis unsuccessful attempt should not discourage mechanics from farther trials. Stones pre- viously broken to the size of five or six inches, might be thrown upon a strong circular horizontal grating, made of cast-iron. The stones might be forced downwards through this grating by an iron rammer on an edge ; they would thus be broken to fragments that could not exceed a certain size, and that would not be reduced to powder. 3406. The manner of breaking, according to Telford, is of great importance. More de- pends, he says, on the weight, shape, and manner of using hammers than any one can conceive who has not had much experience in road-making ; the difference in managing this operation being not less than ten per cent. ; and is, besides, of equal importance towards the perfection of the road ; the size and weight of the hammer he would appor- tion to the size and weight of the stones, and the stones should l)e broken upon the heap, not on the ground. It must be evident that using round stones instead of broken ones, will be the means of deranging the position of those near them, and of grinding them to pieces. 3407. According to M^Adam the only method of breaking stones both for effect and economy, is by persons sitting ; the stones are to be placed in small heaps, and women, boys, or old men past hard labor, must sit down with small hammers and break them, so as none shall exceed six ounces in weight. 3408. Breaking by machinery. On a new line of road, between Bury and Bolton, in Lancashire, a rotatory steam-engine is attached to a machine similar to a stone-mill, but considerably stronger, which breaks the stones to cover the road at the astonishing rate of seventy or eighty tons in ten hours. The engine is moveable on wheels, so that it can be removed to any part of the road without being taken to pieces. (^London Journal of the Arts, ^c. Sept. 1822.) 3409. M^ Adams criterion for size is weight. On being asked by the road com- missioners to mention the dimensions, he stated, that there was very little difference in the weight of the stones used in road-making. " I did imagine," he says, '* that a dif- ference existed, but having weighed six ounces of diflerent substances, I am confident there is little difference in appearance and none in effect ; I think that none ought to exceed six ounces ; I hold six ounces to be the maximum size. If you made the road of all six-ounce stones it would be a rough road ; but it is impossible but that the greater part of the stones must be made under that size." * Do you find ^ measure or ring through which the stones will pass, a good method of regulating their size ?' — " That is a very BooKir. FORM AND MATERI/xLS OF ROADS. 5Si good way, but I always make my surveyors carry a pair of scales, and a six-ounce weight in their pocket, and when they come to a heap of stones, they weigh one or two of the largest, and if they are reasonably about the weight, they will do ; it is impossible to make them come exactly to it. " 3410. IVith respect to the size of stones, Paterson disapproves of six ounces being made the maximum as proposed by Mbanks having discovered this fact, have, from time immemorial, run lines of nets, during the fishing season, across the lower ends of these lakes or valleys, half a mile or more, perhaps, in width ; the nets being suspended in such a manner, that they are lifted from the ground by the current of'the tide in flow- ing upward ; so that the fish find no diflSculty in passing beneath them into the lake. But, on the tide's turning, their lower edges fall down close to the sand, and effectually jirevent the salmon from retreating. They are, in consequence, left dry, or in shallow water, easily to be taken by hundreds perhaps, at once. 3618. The other remarkable method, which is practised in the Firth of Solway, is founded on a well-known habit of salmon, when they first make the land, and enter into narrow seas and estuaries, to keep much along the shore : no matter, whether to hit, with greater certainty, their native rivers, or to rub off the vermin, with which, in ge- neral, they are more or less infested, when they return from the ocean, or in search of food. This method of taking salmon, if not a modern invention, has recently been raised to its present degree of perfection, by an enterprising salmon fisher and farmer in the neighborhood of Annan ; who has turned it to great profit. At a short distance below the mouth of the river Annan, he has run out a long line of tall net fence, several hundred yards in length, and somewhat obliquely from the line of the shore, with which it makes an acute angle, and closes in with it, at the upper end : thus forming, in eflfect, an artificial lake ; one side of which is the l^each, the other the net fence. The lower end is ingeniously guarded, with nets of a more trap-like construction than those which are in use for natural lakes; in which fish are found to lie more quietly, until the turn of the tide. In this immense trap, great quantities, not of salmon only, but of cod, ling, soals, and other white fish are taken. Marshal knows no place in the island where sea fishing, for salmon, can be studied with so much profit as on the shores of Annandale. 3619. River fishing for salmon is chiefly done with the seine, or long draught net, whose construction and use are universally known. In rivers which are liable to fre- quent and great changes of depth, and strength of current, by reason of tides and floods, it is desirable to have nets of different textures, as well as of different depths *. as, one of the construction best adapted to the ordinary state of the water, and to the size of the fish that frequent it (salmon peels, trouts, mullets, and other small sized fish are, in some rivers, commonly taken with salmon) ; and another with more depth, and wider meshes ; to be used during high water and strong currents, when the larger salmon do not fail to hasten upward : and the same strength of hands which is able to draw a close shell on it, can work a deeper one with wider meshes. In wide rivers, with flat shores, a variety of nets are required of different lengths as well as depths, to suit every height and width of the water. 3620. In rivers traps are set for salmon. The most common device of this kind is the weir, or salmon leap ; namely, a tall dam run across the river, with a sluice at one end of it, through which the principal part, or the whole, of the river at low water, is suffered to pass with a strong current ; and in this sluice the trap is set. 3621. The construction of salmon weirs. Marshal conceives to be, in all cases, dan • gerous, and in many highly injurious to the jiropagation of salmon. And although it would be altogether improper to demolish those which long custom has sanctioned, yet he is of opinion that it would be equally improper to sufter more to be erected ; at least, until some judicious regulations are made respecting them : regulations which cannot be delayed without injury to the public. 3622. It now only remains to speak of poaching, or the illegal taking of groivn salmon. There are already severe penalties inflicted for this crime ; which, compared with that of destroying young salmon, might, in a public light, be deemed venial ; the latter deserving tenfold punishment. For tlie grown salmon that are taken, in season, by poachers, becomes so much wholesome food. There is no waste of human sustenance by the practice. Nevertheless, as theft, the crime is great, and ought to be punishable as such. As an iiuprovement of the present law, Marshal proposes to make the receiver, in this as in other cases of theft, equally punishable with the thief. If poachers were not encouraged by purchasers of stolen salmon, the practice would not be followed. 3623. Lake fisheries are of small extent, and are chiefly confined to one or two mountainous districts ; and, even there, unless where char or trout abound, as in Keswick and Lochlomond, their value is small, and their improvements few. The Lochfine fishery is to be considered as marine, it being in fact an inlet of the sea. 3624. Poolfshing is, in most parts, peculiar to the seats of men of fortune, and the country residences of minor gentlemen. Surrey and Berkshire are, perhaps, the only O o 4 568 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. districts in which fish pools are viewed as an object of rural economy. On every side of the metropolis, something of this kind is observable. But it is on the south side, in adjoining parts of Surrey and Sussex, where the practice of fish breeding may be said to be established. There fish pools have been, and still are formed with the view of letting them to dealers in carp and other pond fish ; or of stocking them, and disposing of the produce, as an article of farm stock, as pigs, rabbits, poultry, or pigeons. In a general view of the kingdom, fish pools can scarcely be considered as an object worthy of consideration, in the improvement of landed estates. Yet there are situations, in which they may be formed with profit : as in the dips and hollows of extremely bad ground ; especially if waters, which are genial to any of the species of pond fish, happen to pass through them, or can be profitably led to them. Even where the water, which can be commanded, is of an inferior quality, a profitable breeding pool may be formed, to stock ponds of a more fattening nature. 3625. The craw-fish, though most delicious eating and a native of England, neither abounds in sufficient quantities to be brought to market nor is reared by individuals. It requires warm rich marshy lands, and a calcareous soil. 3626. The leech is an amphibious animal of the moUusca order, common about some of the lakes in the north of England, as Keswick. Formerly considerable quantities used to be picked up and sent to London, and other places ; but the market is now chiefly supplied from the continent. Chap. IX. Of Plantations and Woodlands. 3627. Without trees, a landed estate may be very profitable on account of its mines, waters, and farm lands ; but it will be without the noblest characteristic of territorial surface. It may possess the beauty of utility in a high degree, and especially to the owner ; but it will not be much admired by the public, nor contribute greatly to the ornament of the country — for what is a landscape without wood? It is not meant, however, that plantations of trees should be made on estates for the sake of ornament ; on the contrary, none need ever be made which shall not be at the same time useful, either from the products of the trees individually, or their collective influence on sur- rounding objects. 3628. Trees have been planted and cherished in all countries, and from the earliest ages; but the formation of artificial plantations chiefly with a view to profit, appears to have been first practised, on a large scale, about the end of the sixteenth century, when the insufficiency of the natural forests, which had hitherto supplied civilized society in Eng- land with timber and fuel, rendered planting a matter of necessity and profit. In the century succeeding, the improved practice of agriculture created a demand for hedges and strips for shelter; and the fashion of removing from castles in towns and villages to isolated dwellings surrounded by verdant scenery, led to the extensive employment of trees both as objects of distinction and value. For these combined purposes, planting is now universally practised on most descriptions of territorial surface, for objects prin- cipally relating to utility, and in all parks and grounds surrounding country residences for the joint purposes of utility and beauty. 3629. Woodlands are lands covered with wood by nature, and exist more or less on most extensive estates. Sometimes it is found desirable partially or wholly to remove them, and employ the soil in the growth of grass or corn ; at other times their character is changed by art, from coppice or fuel woods, consisting of growths cut down period- ically, to trees left to attain maturity for timber. 3630. In our view of the subject of trees, we shall include some remarks on improving and managing woodlands, which might have been referred to tlie two following Books ; but for the sake of unity we prefer treating of every part of the subject together. The ornamental part of planting, we consider, as wholly belonging to gardening, and indeed the entire subject of trees may be considered as equally one of gardening and of agricul- ture, being the link by which they are inseparably connected. For a more extended view of the suljject, we refer to our Encyclopctdia of Gardening, and Uncyclopcedia of Plants : in the former will be found all that relates to the culture of trees collectively ; in the latter, all that relates to their botanical character, history, uses, height, native country, and other subjects, with their individual propagation, soil, and culture. We shall here confine ourselves to the soils and situations proper for planting, the trees suitable for particular soils and situations, the operations of forming and managing artificial plantations, and the management of natural woods. Book II. SOILS FOR TREES. 569 Sect. I. Of the Soils and Situations which may be most projttahly employed in Timber Plantation. 3631. As a general principle of guidance in planting, it may be laid down that lands fit for the purposes of aration should not be covered with wood. Where particular pur- poses are to be obtained, as shelter, fencing, connection, concealment, or some other object, portions of such lands may require to be wooded ; but in regard to profit, these portions will always be less productive than if they were kept under the plough. The profits of planting do not depend on the absolute quantity of timber produced, but on that quantity relatively to the value of the soil for agricultural purposes. Suppose a piece of ground to let at 20s. per acre, for pasture or aration, to be planted at an expense of only 10/. per acre ; then in order to return the rent, and 51. per cent, for the money expended, it ought to yield 30s. a year ; but as the returns are not yearly, but say at the end of every fifteen years, when the whole may be cut down as a copse, then the amount of 30s. per annum, at 51. per cent, compound interest, being 321. 8s., every fall of copse made at the interval of fifteen years ought to produce that sum per acre clear of all ex- penses. Hence, with a view to profit from the fall of timber, or copse wood, no situation capable of much agricultural improvement should be planted. 3632. The fittest situations for planting extensively are hilly, mountainous, and rocky surfaces ; where both climate and surface preclude the hope of ever introducing the plough ; and where the shelter afiforded by a breadth of wood will improve the adjoining farm lands, and the appearance of the country. Extensive moors and gravelly or sandy soils may often also be more profitably occupied by timber trees than by any other crop, especially near a sea-port, coaleries, mines, or any other source of local demand. 3633. On all hilly and irregular surfaces various situations will be indicated by the lines offences, roads, the situations of buildings, ponds, streams, &c. where a few trees, or a strip, or mass, or row, may be put in with advantage. We would not, however, advise the uniform mode of planting recommended by Pitt in his Survey of Staffordshire, and in The Code of Agriculture ; that of always having a round clump in the point of intersection of the fences of fields. This we conceive to be one of the most certain modes ever suggested of deforming the surface of a country by planting; the natural character of the surface would be counteracted by it, and neither variety nor grandeur substituted ; but a mono- tony of appearance almost as dull and appalling as a total want of wood. 3634. Near all buildings a few trees may in general be introduced ; carefully however avoiding gardens and rick yards, or to shade low buildings. In general fewest trees should be planted on the south side of cottages ; and next on their north-west side ; farms and farm buildings in very exposed situations {fig. 453.) and also lines of cottages, may be surrounded or planted on the exposed side by considerable masses. 3635. Wherever shelter or shade is required plantations are of the first consequence, whether as masses, strips, rows, groups, or scattered trees; all these modes may occa- sionally be resorted to with advantage even in farm lands. 3636. Wherever a soil cannot by any ordinary process be rendered ft for com or grass, and will bear trees, it may be planted as the only, or perhaps the best mode of turning it to profi.t. There are some tracts of thin stony or gravelly surfaces covered with moss, or very scantily with heath, and a few coarse grasses, which will pay for no improvement whatever, excepting sowing with the seeds of trees and bushes. These growing up will, after a series of years, form a vegetable soil on the surface. The larch, Scotch pine, birch, and a species of rough moorland willow (salijc) are the only woody plants fit for such soils. 3637. Wherever trees mil pay better than any other crop they will of course be planted. Tliis does not occur often, but occasionally in the case of willows for baskets and hoops, which are often the most profitable crop on moist deep rich lands ; and ash for hoops and crate ware, on drier, but at the same time deep and good soils. Sect. II. Of the Trees suitable for different Soils, Situations, and Climates. 3638. Every species of tree ivillgrow in any soil, provided it be rendered suflSciently dry ; but the eflfects of soils on trees are very different, according to the kind of tree and the situation. A rich soil and low situation will cause some trees, as the larch and common pine, to grow so fast that their timber will be tit for little else than fuel j and the oak, elm. 570 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. &c. planted in a very elevated situation, w^hatever be the nature of the soil, w^ill never attain a timber size. In general, as to soils, it may be observed that such as promote rapid growth, render the timber produced less durable, and the contrary ; that such soils as are of the same quality for a considerable depth are best adapted, other circumstances being alike, for ramose-rooted trees, as the oak, chestnut, elm, ash, and most hard-vpooded trees ; and that such soils as are thin, are only fit for spreading or horizontal rooted trees, as the pine and fir tribe. 3639. A table of soils and the trees suitable to them is given in The Agricultural Survey of Kent, which may be of some use. It indicates the trees which grow naturally on a variety of soils and subsoils, which may be considered its greatest merit ; and next the sorts which may be planted on such soils as yielding more profit ; with the application to use or form in which that profit is obtained. Surface Soil. Heavy and gravel- ly loams. Sandy loams. Flinty strong loam. Gravelly and sandy loams. Gravelly, sandy, and flinty loams. Flinty, dry, poor gravelly loams. Flinty and gravelly loams. Ditto. Lightish black loam. Flinty gravelly loams. Chalky, flinty, gra- velly loam. Gravelly loam. Gravelly and chalky loams. Gravelly loami Ditto. Sandy gravel. Stone, shatter, and gravelly loam. Stone, shatter, and gravelly loam. Gravelly loam. Sandy loam. Sandy loam and stone shatter. Gravelly loam and stone shatter. Ditto. Gravelly and sandy loam. Gravelly loam flinty. Wet spongy land. Drier ditto. Light sandy loam. Light gravelly loam. Subsoil. Heavy loam with chalk. Heavy loam. Heavy loam. Gravelly loam. Heavy gravelly flinty loam. Chalk at 2 feet depth with gta.-\ velly loam. Chalk 4 feet with deep gravelly loam. With a few flints, but nearly as above. Dry sandy gravel. Strong loam with flints. Chalk, with some gravelly loam. Heavy flinty and poor loam. Gravelly loam with chalk. Ditto. Gravelly loam and heavy loam. Gravelly and sandy loam. Strong loam with ragstone. Gravelly loam with some stone. Gravelly loam with some stones. Gravelly loam. Gravelly loam with ragstone. Deep loam, heavy clay and gravel. Gravelly loam. , Strong clay and loam. Gravel with clay and some flint. Moist and boggy earth. Ditto more dry. Dry gravelly earth. With dry gravel. Common Growth. Planted Growth. Birch, hornbeam, oak, ash, hazel, beech, &c. Ditto. Ditto. * Ash, beech, oak, hazel, &c. Ash, beech, horn- beam, and oak. Beech, oak, &c. Ash, oak, hazel, &c. Oak, hazel, beech, and ash. Birch, elm, ash. Oak, ash, beech,&c. Ditto. Oak, ash, hazel, and beech. Oak, ash, &c. Ash, oak, & beech. Ditto. Ditto, Scotch pine. Oak, hazel, birch. &c. Oak, birch, aspen, hazel, and ash. Oak. Birch, oak, horn- beam, &c. Oak, ;beech, birch, hazel, ash. Ditto. Ditto. Oak, and ditto. Scrubby oak, hazel, &c. Alder, willow. Poplar. Mountain ash, ash. Ash. Oak,ash, chestnut, willow, lime, wal- nut. Elm, beech, Wey- mouth pine, com- mon spruce. Willow and chest- nut. Chestnut, ash. Ash, beech, larch, &c. Beech, larch, &c. Ash, larch, &c. Chestnut, ash, and willow. Ash, elm, &c. Ash, &C. Ditto. Ash, oak, &c. Ash and chestnut. Oak, larch. Scotch pine. Larch,chestnut,&c. Birch, oak, &c. Ash, chestnut, and willow. Chestnuts. Chestnut, &c. Ditto. Ditto. Ditto. Ash, larch, &c. Oak, ash. Alder, osier, wil- low, &c. White poplar, wil- low. Scotch pine, silver fir. Sycamore. Uses of. Timber, hop-poles, cordwood,hurdles. bavins for bakers! and lime-works. Ditto. Timber, fencing poles,and as above. Hop-poles, fencing poles, and all as above. Timber, fencing, hop-poles, cord- wood for charcoal, bavins, &c. Cordwood, bavins, and hop-poles. Cordwood, hop- poles, bavins, stakes, ethers, &c, Hop-poles, fencing poles, stakes, cord wood, &c. Various uses in husbandry. Poles, bavins,cord. wood, &c. Ditto. Common produce a few poles, cord- wood, bavins, &c. plantation many poles, and the above. Poles, cordwood, &c. Ditto The same Poles, stakes, ethers, &c. &c. Oaken tillers, small timber poles, &c. Fencing poles,hop- poles, cordwood, &c. Hop-poles, fence poles, &c. Fence poles, hop- poles, &c. Ditto. Ditto, Ditto. Poles, fire-wood, &c. as above. Timber and ditto. Hurdles,h op-poles, &c. Hop-poles, &c. Hop-poles. Timber-turnery, &c. Book IL FORMING PLANTATIONS. 571 3640. JVith respect to climate^ the species of tree which grows nearest the regions of perpetual snow are the birch, common pine, wliite beam, larch, mountain ash, and elder. A warmer zone is required for the sycamore and hornbeam ; and still more for the beech, ash, elm, and maple. The evergreen firs prefer dry sheltered dingles and ravines, not far up the sides of hills; and tlie oak, chestnut, lime, poplars, tree willows, and a va- riety of American trees, will not thrive at any great elevation above the sea. The hardiest shore trees are the sycamore, beech, and elder; but on sheltered shores, or such as are little subject to the sea-breeze, pines, firs, and most sorts of trees will thrive. 'J641. The sort of product desired from planting, as whether shelter, effect, or timber, copse, bark, fuel, &c. and what kinds of each, must be in most cases more attended to than the soil, and in many cases even than the situation. The thriving of trees and plants of every kind, indeed, depends much more on the quantity of available soil, and its state in re- sj)ect to water and climate, tlian on its constituent principles. Moderately sheltered and on a dry subsoil, it signifies little whether the surface strata be a clayey, sandy, or calca- rous loam ; all the principal trees will thrive nearly equally well in either, so circum- stanced; but no tree whatever in these or in any soil saturated with water, and in a bleak exposed site. For hedge-row timber, those k^inds which grow with lofty stems, which draw their nourishment from the subsoil and do least injury by their shade, are to be pre- ferred. These, according to Blakie, are oaks, narrow-leaved elm, and black Italian pop- lar; beech, ash, and firs, he says, are ruinous to fences and otherwise injurious to farmers. {On Hedges and Hedge-row Timber, p. 10.) Sect. III. Of forming Plantations. 3642. The formation of plantations includes enclosing, preparation of the soil, and mode of planting or sowing. 3643. The enclosing of plantations is too essential a part of their formation to require enlarging on. In all those of small extent, as hedges and strips, it is the principal part of the expense ; but to plant in these forms, or any other, without enclosing, would be merely a waste of labor and property. The sole object of fencing being to exclude the domestic quadrupeds, it is obvious, that whatever in the given situation is calculated to effect this at the least expense, the first cost and future repairs or management being taken into consideration, must be the best. Where stones abound on the spot, a wall is the best and cheapest of all fences as such ; but, in the great majority of cases, recourse is obliged to be had to a verdant fence of some sort, and generally to one of hawthorn. This being itself a plantation, requires to be defended by some temporary barrier, till it arrives at maturity ; and here thd remark just made will -again apply, that whatever ten>po- rary barrier is found cheapest in the given situation will be the best. Hedge fences are in general accompanied by an open draiij, which, besides acting in its proper capacity, fur- nishes at its formation a quantity of soil to increase the pasturage of the hedge plants ; an excavation ^Jig. 454 a), ^r.. A ^ andan elevation (f), to aid in the formation of a temporary fence. A hedge enclosing a plantation, requires only to be guarded on the exterior side, and of the various ways in which this is done, the following may be reckoned among tlie best and most generally applicable : by an open drain and paling, or line of posts and rails (rt), the plants inserted in a facing of stone, backed by the earth of the drain (b) ; an excellent mode, as the plants generally thrive, and almost never require cleaning from weeds ; an open drain and paling, and the hedge on the top of the elevation (c) ; no open drain, but the soil being a loam, the surface-turves formed into a narrow ridge, to serve as a paling, a temporary hedge of furze sown on its summit, and the permanent hedge of thorn or holly within (d); and an open drain, but on the inside, the exterior being protected by a steep bank sown with furze (e). The first of these modes is the most general, the second the best, and tlie fourth the cheapest, where timber is not abundant, Separaticn fences are commonly formed in the first, second, or third manner, but with a paling on both sides. 3644. In the preparation of the soil for planting, draining is the first operation. What- ever may be the nature of the soil, if the plants are intended to thrive, the subsoil ought to be rendered dry. Large open drains may be used, where the ground is not to undergo much preparation ; but where it is to be fallowed or trenched, under drains become re- (juisite. It is true they, will in time be choked up by the roots of the trees ; but by tliat period, as no more culture will be required, they may be opened and left open. Many si- tuations;, as steep sides of hills and rocky irregular surfaces, do not admit of preparing tlie soil by comminution previously to planting ; but wherever that can be done, either by 572 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IH. trenching, digging, or a year's subjection to the plough, it will be found amply to repay the trouble. This is more especially requisite for strips, for shelters or hedge-rows, as tli« quick growth of the plants in these cases is a matter of the utmost consequence. The general mode of planting hedges by the side of an open drain, renders preparation for them, in many cases, less necessary; but for strips of trees, wherever it is practicable, and there is at the same time no danger of the soil being washed away by rains or thaws, as in some chalky hilly districts ; or blown about by the wind, as in some parts of Norfolk, and other sandy tracts, preparation by a year's fallow, or by trenching two spits deep, cannot be omitted without real loss, by retarding the attainment of the object desired. There are instances stated, of promising oak plantations, from oaks dibbed into soil altogether unimproved, and of plantations of Scotch pine, raised by merely sowing the seeds on a heath or common, and excluding cattle (General Report of Scotland, ii. 269.) ; but these are rare cases, and the time required and the instances of failure are not mentioned. The practice is obviously too rude to be recommended as one of art. The best situations for planting, without any other culture but inserting the seeds or plants, are surfaces par- tially covered with low woody growths, as broom, furze, &c. " The ground which is covered, or rather half covered, with juniper and heath," says BufFon, " is already a wood half made. Osier plantations are an exception to these remarks, as to the value of the situation and soil ; they require a deep, strong, moist soil, but one not springy, or conti- nually saturated with water; and it will be in vain to plant them without draining and trenching it two or more feet deep." 3645. Whether extensive plantations should be sown or planted, is a question about which planters are at variance. Miller says, transplanted oaks will never arrive at the size of those raised where they are to remain from the acorn. (Diet. Quercvs. ) Marshal pre- fers sowing when the ground can be cultivated with the plough. (Plant, and Rur. Om. i. 123.) Evelyn, Emmerich, and Speechly are of the same opinion; Pontey and Nicol practice planting, but offer no arguments against sowing where circumstances are suit- able. Sang says, *' It is an opinion very generally entertained, that planted timber can never, in any case, be equal in durability and value to that which is sown. We certainly feel ourselves inclined to support this opinion, although we readily admit, that the matter has not been so fully established, from experiment, as to amount to positive proof. But although we have not met with decided evidence, to enable us to determine on the com- parative excellence of timber raised from seeds, without being replanted, over such as have been raised from replanted trees, we are left in no doubt as to the preference, in re- spect of growth, of those trees which are sown, over such as are planted." (Plant. KaL 43. ) He particularly prefers this mode for raising extensive tracts of the Scotch pine and larch (p. 430.), and is decidedly of opinion, "that every kind of forest tree will suc- ceed better by being reared from seeds in the place where it is to grow to maturity, than by being raised in any nursery whatever, and from thence transplanted into the forest." (p. 344.) Dr. Yule iCaled. Hort. Mem. ii.), in a long paper on trees, strongly recom- mends sowing where the trees are finally to remain. *' It is," says he, " a well ascer- tained fact, that seedlings allowed to remain in their original station, will, in a few seasons, far overtop the common nursed plants several years older." 3646. The opinion of Dr. Yule, and in part also that of Saiig, seems to be founded on the idea that the tap-root is of great importance to grown-up trees, and that when this is once cut off by transplanting, the plant has not a power of renewing it. That the tap- root is of the utmost consequence for the first three or four years is obvious from the eco- nomy of nature at that age of the plant; perhaps for a longer period; but that it can be of no great consequence to full-grown trees, appears highly probable from the fact, that when such trees are cut down, the tap-root is seldom to be distinguished from the others. The opinion that young plants have not the power of renewing their tap-root, will, we believe, be found inconsistent with fact ; and we may appeal to Sang and other nursery- men, who raise the oak and horse-chestnut from seed. It is customary when these are sown in drills, to cut off their tap-roots without removing the plants at the end of the second year's growth, and when at the end of the third or fourth year they are taken up, they will be found to have acquired other tap roots, not indeed so strong as the first would have been had they remained, but suflScient to establish the fact of the power of renewal. We may also refer to the experiment recorded by Forsyth, which at once proves that trees have a power of renewing their tap-roots, and the great advantages from cutting down trees after two or three years' planting. Forsyth " transplanted a bed of oak-plants, cutting the tap- roots near to some of the side-roots or fibres springing from them. In the second year after, he headed one half of the plants down, and left the other half to nature. In the first season, those headed down made shoots six feet long and upwards, and completely covered the head of the old stem, leaving only a faint cicatrix, and produced new tap-roots up- wards of two feet and a half long. That half of the plants that were not headed, were not one fourth the size of the others. One of the former is now eighteen feet high, and fifteen inches in circumference, at six inches from the ground: one of the largest of the Book II. FORMING PLANTATIONS. 573 latter measures only five feet and a half in height, and three inches and tliree quarters in cir- cumference, at six inches from the ground." {Tr. on Fruit Trees, 4to edit. 144.) The pine and fir tribes receive most check by transplanting; and when removed at the age of four or five years, they seldom arrive at trees afterwards; those we should, on most occa- sions, prefer to sow, especially upon mountainous tracts. But for all trees which stole, and in tolerable soils and situations, planting strong plants, and cutting them down two or three years afterwards, will, we think, all circumstances considered, be found preferable to sowing. 3647. On the subject of disposing the plants in plantations, there dre different opinions ; some advising rows, others quincunx, but the greater number planting irregularly. According to Marshal, " the preference to be given to the row, or the random culture, rests in some measure upon the nature and situation of the land to be stocked with plants. Against steep hangs, where the plough cannot be conveniently used in cleaning and cultivating the interspaces, during the infancy of the wood, either method may be adopted ; and if plants are to be put in, the quincunx manner will be found preferable to any. But in more level situations, we cannot allow any liberty of choice : the drill or row manner is undoubtedly the most eligible."^ (Plant, and Rur. Orn. p. 123.) Pontey considers it of much less consequence than most people imagine, whether trees are planted regularly or irregularly, as in either case the whole of the soil will be occupied by the roots and the surface by the shoots. Sang and Nicol only plant in rows where culture with the horse-hoe is to be adopted. In sowing for woods and copses, the former places the patches six feet asunder and in the quincunx order. *' It has been demon- strated (Farmer s Mag. vii. 409.), that the closest order in which it is possible to place a number of points, upon a plain surface, not nearer than a given distance from each other, is in the angles of hexagons with a plant in the centre of each hexagon." Hence it is argued, that this order of trees is the most economical ; as the same quantity of ground will contain a greater quantity of trees, by 15 per cent, when planted in this form than in any other. (Gen. Rep. ii. 287.) It is almost needless to observe, that hedge plants should be placed at regular distances in the lines, and also the trees, when those are in- troduced in hedges. Osier plantations, and all such as like them require the soil to be dug every year, or every two years, during their existence, should also be planted in regular rows. 3648. The distances at which the plants are placed must depend on different circum- stances, but chiefly on the situation and soil. Planting thick, according to Nicol, is the safer side to err on, because a number of plants will fail, and the superfluous ones can be easily removed by thinning. " For bleak situations," he observes, " that from thirty to forty inches is a good medium, varying the distance according to circumstances. For less exposed situations, and where the soil is above six inches in depth, he recommends a distance from four to five feet. For belts, clumps, and strips of a diameter of about one hundred feet ; the margin to be planted about the distance of two feet, and the interior at three feet. In sheltered situations of a deep good soil, he recommends a distance of six feet, and no more. " {Pract. Plant.) 3649. According to Sang, '' the distances at which hard-timber trees ought to be planted are from six to ten feet, according to the quality of the soil, and the exposed or sheltered situation. When the first four oaks are planted, supposing them at right angles, and at nine feet apart, the interstices will fall to be filled up with five nurses, the whole standing at four and a half feet asunder. When sixteen oaks are planted, there will necessarily be thirty-three nurses planted ; and when thirty-six oaks are planted, eighty-five nurses ; but when a hundred principal trees are planted in this manner, in a square of ten on the side, there will be two hundred and sixty-one nurse-plants required. The English acre would require five hundred and thirty-six oaks, and one thousand six hundred and ten nurses." (Plant. Kal. 163.) Pontey says, " in general cases, a distance of four feet is certainly close enough ; as at that space the trees may all remain till they become sale- able as rails, spars, &c." 3650. The number of plants which may be planted on a statute acre = 160 rods, or poles, = 4840 yards = 43,560 feet, is as follows : — Feet apart. No. of Plants. 1 43,560 U iy,3«) 2 10,8!K) 21 6,969 3 ..„ 4,840 3i 3,556 4 2,722 4^ „ 2,232 5 1,742 Feet apart. 6 No. of Plants. 1,210 889 Feet apart. 15 No. of Plants, 193 7 16 170 8 680 17 150 9 537 18 134 10 435 19 120 11 360 302 20 108 12 25 69 13 257 30 48 14 222 3651. The size of the plants depends jointly on the site and the kind of tree; it is uni- versally allowed that none of the resinous tribe succeed well when removed at four or more years' growth ; but if the soil is of tolerable quality, prepared by digging or sum- 574 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. mer pitting, and the site not bleak, plants of such hard woods as stole may be used whose stems are an inch or more in diameter. 3652. Nicol is of opinion, *' That generally trees three, or at most four years old from the seed, and which are from twelve to twenty-four inches high, will, in any situation or soil, outgrow those of any size under eight or ten feet, within the seventh year." {Pract. Plant. 130.) 3653. Sang observes, " The size of plants for exclusive plantations must, in some mea- sure, depend on their kinds ; but it may be said, generally, that the plants being trans- planted, they should be from a foot to eighteen inches in height, stiff in the stem and •well rooted. Plants for this purpose should seldom be more than three years from the seed ; indeed never, if they have been raised in good soil. Many of them may be suf- ficiently large at two years from the seed ; and if so, are to be preferred to those of a greater age, as they will consequently be more vigorous and healthy. The larch, if pro- perly treated, will be very fit for planting out at two years of age. A healthy seedling being removed from the seed-bed at the end of the first year, into good ground, will, by the end of the second, be a fitter plant for the forest, than one nursed a second year. The next best plant for the purpose, is that which has stood two years in the seed-bed, and has been transplanted for one season. This is supposing it to have risen a weakly plant ; for, if the larch rise strong from the seed the first season, it should never stand a second in the seed-bed. The ash, the elm, and the sycamore, one year from the seed, nursed in good soil for a second season, will often prove sufficiently strong plants. If they be weakly, they may stand two years in the seed-bed ; and then being nursed one season in good soil, will be very fit for planting out in the forest. The oak, the beech, and the chestnut, if raised in rich soil, and well furnished with roots at the end of the first year, and having been nursed in rows for two years, will be very fit to be planted out. But if they be allowed to stand two years in the seed-bed, and be planted one year in good ground, they will be still better, and the roots will be found well feathered with fine small fibres. The silver fir and common spruce should stand two years in the seed-bed. If transplanted into very good soil, they may be fit for being planted out at the end of the first year ; but, more generally, they require two years in the lines. The Scots pine should also stand for two years in the seed-bed, and should be nursed in good ground for one year ; at the end of which they will be much fitter for being planted, than if they were allowed to stand a second year in the lines. They are very generally taken at once from the seed-bed ; and in land bare of heath or herbage, they succeed pretty well ; nevertheless, we would prefer them one year nursed. The above are the hardy and most useful forest trees ; and from the observations made, whatever respects the age or size of other kinds, may easily be inferred." (Plant. Kal. 158.) 3654. According to Pontey, " the best general rule is, to proportion the size of the plants to the goodness of the soil ; the best of the latter requiring the largest of the former. Still on bleak exposures this rule will not hold good, as there the plants should never be large, for otherwise the greater part would fail froin the circumstance of wind- waving, and of those that succeeded, few, if any, would make much progress for several years ; firs of a foot, and deciduous trees of eighteen inches, are large enough for such places. As in extensive planting, soils which are good and well sheltered but seldom occur, the most useful sizes of plants, for general purposes, will be firs of a foot, and deciduous trees of eighteen inches, both transplanted. None but good-rooted plants •will succeed on a bad soil, while on a good one, sheltered, none but very bad-rooted plants will fail ; a large plant never has so good a root, in proportion to its size, as a small one; and hence we see the propriety of using such on good soils only. Small plants lose but few of their roots in removal ; therefore, though planted in very moderate- sized holes of pulverised earth, they soon find the means of making roots, in proportion to their heads. It should never be forgotten, that, in being removed, a plant of two feet loses a greater proportion of its roots than a tree of one, and one of three feet a greater proportion than one of two, and so on, in proportion to its former strength and height, and thus the larger the plants, so much greater is the degree of languor or weakness into which they are thrown by the operation of transplanting." {Prof. Plant. 161.) 3655. The seasons for j)lanting are autumn and spring ; the former when the soil and situation are moderately good, and the plants large; and the latter, for bleak situations. Necessity, however, is more frequently the guide here than choice, and in extensive designs, the operation is generally performed in all moderately dry open weather from October to April inclusive. " In an extensive plantation," Sang observes, " it will hardly happen but there will be variety of soil, some parts moist and heavy, and others dry and light. Tlie lighest parts may be planted in December or January ; and the more moist, or damp parts, in February or March. It must be observed, however, that if the ground be not in a proper case for planting, the operation had better be delayed. The plants will be injured, either by being committed to the ground when it is in a sour and wet, or in a dry parched state. At a time when the soil is neither wet nor dry, Book II. FORMING PLANTATIONS. 575 the operation of planting is most successfully performed. The mould does not then adhere to the spade, nor does it run in; it divides well, and is made to intermingle with the fibres of the plants with little trouble ; and in treading and setting the plant upright, the soil is not worked into mortar, which it necessarily must be, if in a wet state, evidently to the great detriment of the plants. It is therefore improper to plant (m a retentive soil in the time of rain, or even perhaps for some days afterwards, or after a fall of snow, until it has for some days disappeared. Whereas, on a dry absorbent soil, it may be proper to plant in the time of gentle showers, immediately after heavy rains, or as soon as the snow is dissolved." {Plant. Kal. 157.) 3656. Pontey is a decided advocate for autumn preparation of the soil, and spring planting. " Autumn planting," he says, " is advisable only in few cases, while spring planting may properly apply to all." 3657. According to Sang, the proper time for planting the pine and fir tribes, and all evergreens, is April, or even the first fortnight in May. " Attention should be paid, that no greater number of plants be lifted from tlie nursury than can be conveniently planted on the same day. Damp weather is the best. When very dry, and the plants rise destitute of earth at their roots, their roots should be dipped in mud (puddle) so as to be coated over by it. In all cases, care shtjuld be taken not to shake off any ad- hering earth from plants at the time of planting." (^Plant. Kal. 341.) 3658. The operation of inserting the plants in the soil is performed in various ways j^ the most general mode, and that recommended by Marshal and Nicol, is pitting ; in which two persons are employed, one to operate on the soil with the spade, and the other to insert the plant and hold it till the earth is put round it, and then press down the soil with the foot. Where the plants are three feet high or upwards, this is the best mode ; but for smaller plants modes have been adopted in which one person performs the whole operation. 3659. Sang describes five kinds of manual operation employed by him in planting, and in part in sowing-trees : by pitting; by slitting simply, or by cross, or T slitting; by the diamond dibber ; by the planting-mattock ; and by the planter. In filling an area with plants, he first plants those intended as the final trees, and afterwards the nurses ; or one set of operators plant the former, while another follow with the latter, imless the time for removing the nurses, as in the case of evergreen pines and firs, should be later than that for planting the principals. " The plants, if brought from a distance, should be shoughed, i.e. earthed; or they may be supplied daily from the nursery, as circumstances direct. All the people employed ought to be provided with thick aprons, in which to lap up the' plants ; the spadesmen, as well as the boys or girls ; the latter being supplied by the former as occasion may require. All of them should regularly fill their aprons at one time, to prevent any of the plants being too long retained in any of the planters' aprons. One man cannot possibly set a plant so well with the spade, unless in the case of laying, as two people can ; nor, supposing him to do it as well, can he plant half as many in the same space of time as two can. A boy ten years of age is equal, as a holder, to the best man on the field, and can be generally had for less than half the money. Hence this method is not only the best, but the least expensive." (Plant. Kal. 167.) 3660. By pitting. " The pit having been dug for several months, the surface will therefore be encrusted by the rains, or probably covered with weeds. The man first strikes the spade downwards to the bottom, two or three times, in order to loosen the soil ; then poaches it as if mixing mortar for the builder ; he next lifts out a spadeful of the earth, or, if necessary, two spadesfull, so as to make room for all the fibres, without their being anywise crowded together ; he then chops the rotten turf remaining in the bottom, and levels the whole. The boy now places the plant perfectly upright, an inch deeper than when it stood in the nursery, and holds it firm in that position. The man trindles in the mould gently ; the boy gently moves the plant, not from side to side, but upwards and downwards, until the fibres be covered. The man then fills in all the re- maining mould ; and immediately proceeds to chop and poach the next pit, leaving the lx)y to set the plant upright, and to tread the mould about it. This in stiff wet soil he does lightly ; but in sandy or gravelly soil he continues to tread until the soil no longer retains the impression of his foot. The man has by this time got the pit ready for the next plant, the boy is also ready with it in his hand, and in this manner the operation goes on. On very steep hangs which have been pitted, the following rule ought to be bbserved in planting ; to place the plant in the angle formed by the acclivity and surface of the pit ; and in finishing to raise the outer margin of the pit highest, whereby the plant will be made to stand as if on level ground, and the moisture be retained in the hollow of the angle, evidently to its advantage." {Plant. Kal. 167.) 3661 . The slit method, either simply or by the T method, is not recommended by Sang ; but necessity may justify its adoption occasionally. " We would not recommend plant- ing by the slit, unless where there is no more soil than is absolutely occupied by the fibres 576 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Paet III. of the herbage which grows on the place. Excepting on turf, it cannot be performed ; nor should it be practised, if the turf be found three or four inches thick. By pitting in summer, turf is capable of being converted into a proper mould in the space of a few months ; and the expense of pitting, especially in small plantations, can never counter- balance the risk of success in the eyes of an ardent planter. The most proper time to perform the operation of slitting in the plants, is when the surface is in a moist state. On all steeps the plant should be placed towards the declivity, that the moisture may fall to its roots ; that is to say, in planting, the spadesman should stand highest, and the boy lowest on the bank ; by which arrangement the plant will be inserted at the lower angle of the slit." {Plant. Kal. 170.) 3662. Planting with the diamond dibber, he says, *' is the cheapest and most expeditious planting of any we yet know, in cases where the soil is a sand or gravel, and the surface bare of herbage. The plate of the dibber {Jig. 455 a) is made of good steel, and is four inches and a half broad where the iron handle is welded to it ; each of the other two sides of the triangle is five inches long ; the thickness of the plate is one fifth part of an inch, made thinner from the middle to the sides, till the edges become sharp. The length of the iron handle is seven inches, and so strong as not to bend in working, which will require six-eighths of an inch square. The iron handle is furnished with a turned hilt, like the handle of a large gimlet, both in its form and manner of being fixed on. The planter is furnished with a planting bag, tied round his waist, in which he carries the plants. A stroke is given with the dibber, a little aslant, the point lying inwards ; the handle of the dibber is then drawn towards the person, while its plate remains within the ground : by this means a vacuity is formed between the back of the dibber and the ground ; into which the planter, with his other hand, introduces the roots of the seedling plants, being careful to put them fully to the bottom of the opening : he then pulls out the dibber, so as not to displace them, and gives the eased turf a smart stroke vi^ith the heel ; and thus is the plant completely firmed. The greatest error the planter with this instrument can run into, is the imperfect introduction of the roots. Green, or unprac- tised hands, are apt to double the roots, or sometimes to lay them across the opening, in- stead of putting them straight down, as above directed. A careful man, however, will become, if not a speedy, at least a good planter in one day ; and it is of more importance that he be a sure hand, than a quick one. A person who is of a careless or slovenly dis- position, should never be allowed to handle a dibber of this kind." 3663. Planting with the plant- ing-mattock {fig. 455 b) is resorted to in rocky or other spots where pitting is impracticable. " The helve or handle is three feet six inches long; the mouth is five inches broad, and is made sharp ; the length from it to the eye, or helve, is sixteen inches ; and it is used to pare off the sward, heath, or other brush that may happen to be in the way, previous to easing the soil with the other end. The small end tapers from the eye, and terminates in a point, and is seventeen inches long. " By this instrument the surface is skimmed off " for six or eight inches in diameter, and with the pick-end dug down six or eight inches deep, bringing up any loose stones to the surface ; by which means a place will be prepared for the reception of the plant, little in- ferior to a pit. This instrument may be used in many cases, when the plants to be planted are of small size, such as one-year larch-seedlings, one year nursed ; or two-year Scots pines, one year nursed ; and the expense is much less than by the spade." {Plant. Kal. 385.) 3664. Planting with the forest-planter {Jig. 455 c). " The helve is sixteen inches long, the mouth is four inches and a half broad, and the length of the head is fourteen inches. The instrument is used in planting hilly ground, previously prepared by the hand- mattock. The person who performs the work carries the plants in a close apron ; digs out the earth sufficiently to hold the roots of the plant ; and sets and firms it without help from another : it is only useful when small plantsare used, and in hilly or rocky situations. " {Plant. Kal. pref xxiv.) 3665. Pontey prefers planting by jntling, in general cases ; the holes being made dur- ing the preceding summer or winter, sufficiently large, but not so deep into a reten- tive subsoil as to render them a receptacle for water. When the plants have been brought from a distance he strongly recommends puddling them previously to planting ; if they seem very much dried, it would be still better to lay them in the ground for eight or ten days, giving them a good soaking of water every second or third day, in order to Book II. FORMING PLANTATIONS. 577 restore their vegetable powers ; for it well deserves notice, that a degree of moisture in soil sufficient to support a plant recently or immediately tak'en from the nursery, would, in the case of dry ones, prove so far insufficient, that most of them would die in it. The pud. dling here recommended may also be of great service in all cases of late planting where small plants are 'used; Pontey's method is (after puddling) to tie them in bundles, of two or three hundreds each ; and thus send them, by a cart-load at once, to where wanted ; where such bundles being set upright, close to each other, and a little straw carefully applied to the outsides of them, may remain without damage in a sheltered situation any reasonable time necessary to plant them. Where loose soil happens to be convenient, that should be substituted in the place of straw. 3666. j4 puddle for trees is made by mixing water with any soil rather tenacious, so in,, timately as to form a complete puddle, so thick that when the plants are dipped into it, enough may remain upon the roots to cover them. The process of puddling is certainly simple, and its expense too trifling to deserve notice : its eSects, however, in retaining, if not attracting moisture, are such that, by means of it, late planting is rendered abundantly more safe that it otherwise would be. It is an old invention, and hence it is truly asto- nishing that it is not more frequently practised. If people were to adopt it generally in spring planting, Pontey believes the prejudice'^ in favor of autumn practice would soon be done away. {Prof Plant. 167.) 3667. Pontey s methods of planting are in general the same as those of Sang : he uses a mattock and planter of similar shape ; and also a two or three pronged instrument, which we have elsewhere denominated the planter's hack. {Encyc. of Gard. § 1 305. ) " This in- strument," he says, " has been introduced of late years as an improvement on the mattock and planter, being better adapted to soils full of roots, stones, &c. ; it is likewise easier to work, as it penetrates to an equal depth with a stroke less violent than the for- mer : it is also less subject to be clogged up by a wet or tenacious soil. The length of the prongs should be about eight inches, and the distances between them, when with three prongs, one and a half, and with two prongs, about two inches ; the two- pronged hack should be made somewhat stronger than the other, it being chiefly intended for very stony lands, or where the soil wants breaking, in order to separate it from the herbage, &c. These tools are chiefly applicable to plants of any size up to about two feet, or such as are generally used for great designs, where they are used as a substitute for the spade, in the following manner : The planter being provided with a basket holding the plants required (the holes being supposed prepared, and the earth left in them), he takes a tree in one hand, and the tool in the other, which he strikes into the hole, and then pulls the earth towards him, so as to make a hole large enough to hold all its roots; he then puts in the plant with the other, and pushes the earth to its roots with the back of the planter; after which, he fixes the plant, and levels the soil at the same instant with his foot : so that the operation is performed by one per- son, with a degree of neatness and expedition which no one can attain to who uses the spade. It is known to all planters, that but few laborers ever learn to plant well and expeditiously in the common method, without an assistant: this method, however, requires neither help nor dexterity ; as any laborer of common sagacity, or boy of fifteen, or even a woman, may learn to perform it well in less than half an hour. The facility with which these tools will break clods, clear the holes of stones, or separate the soil from herbage, the roots of heath, &c. (the former being previ- ously mellowed by the frost), may be easily imagined." {Prof. Plant. 173.) The adoption of a small mattock for inserting plants, we recollect to have seen recom- mended in a tract on planting in the Highlands, by M'Laurin, a nurseryman, pub- lished at Edinburgh upwards of twenty years ago. 3668. An expeditious mode of slit planting is described in the General Report of Scot- landf as having been practised for many years on the duke of Montrose's estate. It is as follows : " The operator, with his spade, makes three cuts, twelve or fifteen inches long, crossing each other in the centre, at an angle of sixty degrees, the whole having the form of a star. {fig. 456. ) He inserts his spade across one 456 of the rays (a), a few inches from the centre, and on the side next himself; then bending the handle towards himself, and almost to the ground, the earth opening in fissures from the centre in the direction of the cuts which had been made, he, at the same instant, inserts his plant at the point where the spade intersected the ray (a), pushing it forward to the centre, and assisting the roots in rambling through the fissures. He then lets down the earth by removing his spade, having pressed it into a compact state with his heel ; the operation is finished by adding a little earth, with the grass side down, completely covering the fissures, for the purpose of retaining the moisture at the root, and likewise as a top-dressing, which greatly encourages the plant to pusli fresh roots between the swards." (Vol. ii. p. 283.) Pp 578 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Sect. IV. Of the Mixture of Trees in Plantations. 3669. The object of mixing trees in plantations is threefold : that of sheltering the weaker but ultiinately more valuable kinds by the stronger and hardier ; that of drawing as much profit from the soil as possible ; and that of producing variety of appearance. 3670. With respect to sJielter many situations are so exposed, that it is extremely diffi- cult to rear trees without some mode of protecting them from the cold winds of spring during their early growth. This is sometimes done by walls, the extent of whose influ- ence, however, is but very limited ; by thick planting, or by planting the more hardy and rapid growing species, to nurse up and protect such as are more tender, but ultimately more valuable. The proportion of nurses to principals is increased according to the bleakness of the site : Pontey says, *' Both authors and planters are in the habit of err- ing egregiously, in regard to the proportion of principals and nurses, as they generally use as many or more of the former than the latter, though it is very easy to show, that they ought to use three times as many of the latter as the former. For instance, when trees are planted at four feet apart, each occupies a surface of sixteen feet ; of course four of them will occupy sixty-four, or a square of eight feet ; and, therefore, if we plant three nurses to one principal tree, all the former might be displaced gradually, and the latter would still stand only eight feet apart. 3671. Nurse plants should, in every possible case, be such as are most valued at an early period of growth. The larch and spruce fir should be used liberally, in every case where they will grow freely ; still it is not intended they should exclude all others, more particularly the bircH, which has most of the properties of a good nurse, such as numerous branches and quick growth, on any tolerable soil or situation. It is not, however, like the others, a wood of general application. {Profitable Planter, p. 113.) Sang also adopts the proportion of three nurses to one principal, and employs chiefly the resinous tribe, and looks to them for reimbursement till the hard timber lias attained to a foot in diameter, under which size hard timber is seldom of much value. His principals are planted at from six to ten feet apart, according to the soil and situation. (Plant. Kal. p. 166.) 3572. In procuring shelter much depends on the mode of commencing and continuing plantations on bleak sites. Sang, who has had extensive experience in this part of planting, observes, that " every plain, and most fields and situations for planting, in this country, have what may be called a windward side, which is more exposed to the destructive blast than any other. It is of great importance to be apprised of this circumstance, and to be able to fix upon the most exposed side of the proposed forest plantation. Fix, then, upon the windward side of the space which is to be converted into a forest, mark off a hori- zontal stripe or belt, at least a hundred yards in breadth. Let this portion of ground be planted thick, say at the distance of thirty inches, or at the most three feet, with a mixture of larch, sycamore, and elder, in equal quantities or nearly so, if the soil be adapted for rearing these ; but if it be better adapted for Scots pines, then let it be planted with them at the distances prescribed for the above mixture. We have no other kinds that will thrive better, or rise more quickly in bleak situations, than those just mentioned. When the trees in this belt or zone have risen to the height of two feet, such hard-wood trees as are intended ultimately to fill the ground should be introduced, at the distance of eight or ten feet from each other, as circumstances may admit. At this period, or per- haps a year or two afterwards, according to the bleak or exposed situation of the grounds, let another parallel belt or zone, of nearly equal breadth, be added to the one already so far grown up, and so on, till the whole grounds be covered. It is not easy here to determine on the exact breadth of the subsequent belt or zones ; this matter must be regulated by the degree of exposure of the grounds, by the shelter afforded by the zone previously planted, and by such like circumstances." {Plant. Kal. p. 29.) 3673. In situations exposed to the sea breeze a similar plan may be successfully fol- lowed, and aided in effect, by beginning with a wall ; the first zone having reached the height of the wall, plant a second, a third, and fourth, and so on till you cover the whole tract to be wooded. In this way the plantations on the east coast of Mid Lothian, round Gosford-house, were reared; in Sang's manner, the mountains of Blair and Dunkeld were clothed ; and examples, we are informed, might be drawn from the Orkney and Shetland islands. 3674. The practice of mixing trees with a view of drawing as much nourishment from the soil as possible, and giving, as it used to be said, more chances of success, was till very lately generally apprpved of. Marshal advises mixing the ash with the oak, be- cause the latter draws its nourishment chiefly from the subsoil, and the former from the surface. Nicol is an advocate for indiscriminate mixture {Practical Planter, p. 77.), and Pontey says, " both reason and experience will fully warrant the conclusion, that the greatest possible quantity of timber is to be obtained by planting mixtures." {Prof. Planter, p. 119.) "We are clearly of opinion," says Sang, " that the best method is Book II. OF MIXING TREES. 579 to plant each sort in distinct masses or groups, provided the situation and quality of the soil be properly kept in view. There has hitherto been too much random work carried on with respect to the mixture of different kinds. A longer practice, and more expe- rience, will discover better methods in any science. That of planting is now widely ex- tended, and improvements in all its branches are introduced. We, therefore, having a better knowledge of soils, perhaps, than our forefathers had, can with greater certainty assign to each tree its proper station. We can, perhaps, at sight, decide that here the oak will grow to perfection, there the ash, and here again the beech ; and the same with respect to the others. If, however, there happen to be a piece of land of such a quality, that it may be said to be equally adapted for the oak, the walnut, or the Spanish chestnut, it will be proper to place such in it, in a mixed way as the principals ; because each sort will extract its own proper nourishment, and will have an enlarged range of pastur- age for its roots, and consequently may make better timber trees. 3675. By indiscriminately viixing different kinds of hard- wood plants in a plantation, there is hardly a doubt that the ground will be fully cropped with one kind or other ; yet it' very often happens, in cases when the soil is evidently well adapted to the most valuable; sorts, as the oak perhaps, that there is hardly o»e oak in the ground for a hundred that ought to have been planted. We have known this imperfection in several instances severely felt. It not unfrequently happens, too, that even what oaks or other hard-wood trees are to be met with, are overtopped by less valuable kinds, or perhaps such, all things considered, as hardly deserve a place. Such evils may be prevented by planting with attention to the soil, and in distinct masses. In these masses are insured a full crop, by being properly nursed for a time with kinds more hardy, or which afford more shelter than such hard-wood plants. There is no rule by'wl^ch to fix the size or extent of any of these masses. Indeed, the more various they are made in size, the better will they, when grown up, please the eye of a person of taste. They may be extended from one acre to fifty, or a hundred acres, according to the circumstances of soil and situation : their shapes will accordingly be as various as their dimensions. In the same manner ought all the resinous kinds to be planted, which are intended for timber trees; nor, should these be intermixed with any other sort, but be in distinct masses by themselves. The massing of larch, the pine, and the fir of all sorts, is the least laborious and surest means of good, straight, and clean timber. It is by planting, or rather by sowing them in masses, by placing them thick, by a timous pruning and gradual thinning, that we can with certainty attain to this object." {Plant. Kal. 162 and 166.) Our opinion is in perfect consonance with that of Sang, and for the same reasons ; and we may add as an additional one, that in the most vigorous natural forests one species of tree will gene- rally be found occupying almost exclusively one soil and situation, while in forests less vigorous on inferior and watery soils, mixtures of sorts are more prevalent. This may be observed by comparing New Forest with the natural woods round Lochlomond, and it is very strikingly exemplified in the great forests of Poland and Russia. 3676. With respect to the appearance of variety, supposed to be produced by mixing a number of species of trees together in the same plantation, we deny that variety is pro- duced. Wherever there is variety there must be some marked feature in one place, to distinguish it from another ; but in a mixed plantation the appearance is every where the same ; and ten square yards at any one part of it, will give nearly the same number and kind of trees as ten square yards at any other part. " There is more variety," Repton observes, " in passing from a grove of oaks to a grove of firs, than in passing through a wood composed of a hundred different species, as they are usually mixed together. By this indiscriminate mixture of every kind of tree in planting, all variety is destroyed by the excess of variety, whether it is adopted in belts, clumps, or more extensive masses. For example, if ten clumps bo composed of ten different sorts of trees in each, they become so many things exactly similar ; but if each clump con- sists of the same sort of trees, they become ten different things, of wliich one may here- after furnish a group of oaks, another of elms, another of chestnuts, or of thorns, &c. In like manner, in the modern belt, the recurrence and monotony of the same mixture of trees of all the different kinds, through a long drive, make it the more tedious, in proportion as it is long. In part of the drive at Woburn, evergreens alone prevail, which is a circumstance of grandeur, of variety, of novelty, and, I may add, of winter comfort, that I never saw adopted in any other place, on so magnificent a scale. The contrast of passing from a wood of deciduous trees to a wood of evergreens, must be felt by the most heedless observer ; and the same sort of pleasure, though in a weaker degree, would be felt, in the course of a drive, if the trees of different kinds were collected in small groups or masses by themselves, instead of being blended indis- criminately." (Enquiry into Changes of Taste, ^c. p. 23.) 3677. Sir WiUiam Chambers, and Price, agree in recommending the imitation of natural forests in the arrangement of the species. In these, nature disseminates her plants by scattering their seeds, and the offspring rise round the parent in masses or Pp 2 580 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. breadths, depending on a variety of circumstances, but chiefly on the facility which these seeds afford for being carried to a distance by the wind, the rain, and by birds or other animals. At last that species which had enjoyed a maximum of natural advantages is found to prevail as far as this maximum extended, stretching along in masses and irregular portions of surface, till circumstances changing in favor of some other species, that takes the precedence in its turn. In this way it will be generally found, that the number of species, and the extent and style of the njasses in which they prevail, bears a strict analogy to the changes of soil and surface ; and this holds good, not only with respect to trees and shrubs, but to plants, grasses, and even the mossy tribe. Sect. V. Of the Culture of Plantations. 8678. Most men consider a tree when once planted, as done with; though, as every one knows, tlie- progress and products of trees, like those of other plants, may be greatly increased or modified by cultivating the soil, pruning, and thinning. SuBSECT. I, Of the Culture of the Soil among Trees. S679. With respect to the culture of the soil, it is evident, that young plantations should be kept clear of such weeds as have a tendency to smother the plants ; and though this is not likely to take place on heaths and barren sites, yet even these should be looked over once or twice during summer, and at least those weeds removed which are conspicuously injurious. In grounds which have been prepared previously to plant- ing, weeding, hoeing by hand, or by the horse hoe, and digging or ploughing, become necessary according to circumstances. The hoeings are performed in summer to destroy weeds, and render the soil pervious to the weather ; the ploughing and diggings in winter are for the same purpose, and sometimes to prepare the soil for spring crops. These, both Pontey and Sang allow, may be occasionally introduced among newly-planted trees ; though it must not be forgotten that relatively to the trees, the plants composing such crops are weeds, and some of them, as the potatoe, weeds of the most exhausting kind. Sang uses a hoe of larger size than usual {fig. 455 d.) 3680. In preparing lands for solving woods. Sang ploughs in manure, sows in rows six feet apart, by which he is enabled to crop the ground between, with low growing early potatoes, turnips, and lettuce ; but not with young trees as a sort of nurserj', as they prove more scourging crops than esculent vegetables ; nor with grain, as not admitting of culture, and being too exhausting for the soil. Marshal, and some other authors, how- ever, approve of sowing the tree seeds with a crop of grain, and hoeing up the stubble and weeds when the crop is removed. 3681. Pontey observes, " that wherever preparing the soil for planting is thought necessary, that of cultivating it for some years afterwards, will generally be thought the same ; slight crops of potatoes with short tops, or turnips, may be admitted into such plantations with advantage for two or three years, as they create a necessity for annually digging or stirring the surface, and tend very materially to accelerate the growth of the plants. It may be objected, that such crops must impoverish the soil, and no doubt but such is the fact, so far as common vegetables are concerned ; but as to the production of wood, its support depends, in a great measure, on a different species of nutriment ; and hence, I could never observe, that such cropping damaged it materially." {Profit. Plant, p. 153.) 3682. Osier plantations, for baskets, willows, and hoops, require digging and cleaning during the whole course of their existence ; and so do hedge-rows to a certain extent, and some ornamental plantations. SuBSECT. 2. Of the Filling uj) of Blanks or Failures in Plantations. 3683. Filling up blanks is one of the first operations that occurs on the culture of plantations next to the general culture of the soil, and the care of the external fences. According to Sang, " a forest plantation, either in the mass form or ordinary mix- ture, should remain several years after planting, before filling up the vacancies, by the death of the hard wood-plants, takes place. Hard- wood plants, in the first year, and even sometimes in the second year after planting, die down quite to the surface of the ground, and are apparently dead, while their roots, and the wood immediately above them, are quite fresh, and capable of producing very vigorous shoots, which they frequently do produce, if allowed to stand in their places. If a tree, such as that above alluded to, be taken out the first or second year after planting, and the place filled up with a fresh plant of the same kind, what happened to the former may probably happen to the latter ; and so the period of raising a plant on the spot may be protracted to a great length of time ; or it is possible this object may never be gained. 3684. The filing up of the hard-wood kinds in a plantation which has been planted after trenching, or summer fallow, and which has been kept clean by the hoe, may be done Book II. PRUNING TREES. 581 with safety at an earlier period than under the foregoing circumstances ; because the trees, in the present case, have greater encouragement to grow vigorously after planting, and may be more easily ascertained to be entirely dead, than where the natural herbage is allowed to grow among them. 3685. But the ^filling up of larches and pines may take place the first spring after the plantation has been made ; because such of these trees as have died are more easily distinguished. In many cases where a larch or pine loses its top, either by dying down, or the biting of hares or rabbits, the most vigorous lateral branch is elected by nature ta supply the "deficiency, which by degrees assumes the character of an original top. Pines, and larches, therefore, which have fresh lateral branches, are not to be displaced, although they have lost their tops. Indeed no tree in the forest, or other plantation, ought to be removed until there be no hope for its recovery. 3686. If the filling up of plantations be left tmdone tiU the trees have risen to fifteen or twenty feet in height, their roots are spread far abroad, and their tops occupy a con- siderable space. The introduction of two or three plants, from a foot to three feet in height, at a particular deficient place, can never, in the above circumstances, be attended with any advantage. Such plants may, indeecj, become bushes, and may answer well enough in the character of underwood, but they will for ever remain unfit for any other purpose. It is highly improper then, to commence filling up of hard- wood plantations, before the third year after planting ; or to protract it beyond the fifth or the sixth, March is tlie proper season for this operation. [Plant. Kal. 295.) SuBSECT. 3. Of Pruning and Heading Down Trees in Plantations. 3687. Pruning is the most important operation of tree culture, since on it, in almost every case, depends the ultimate value, and in most cases, the actual bulk of timber pro- duced. In the purposes of pruning, as for most other practicable purposes, the division of trees into resinous or frondose-branched trees, and into non-resinous or branchy- headed sorts is of use. The main object in pruning frondose-branched trees, is to pro- duce a trunk with clean bark and sound timber; that in pruning branchy-stemmed trees, is principally to direct the ligneous matter of the tree into the main stem or trunk, and also to produce a clean stem and sound timber, as in the other case. The branches of frondose trees, unless in extraordinary cases, never acquire a timber size, but rot off from the bottom upwards, as the tree advances in height and age ; and, therefore, whe- ther pruned or not, the quantity of timber in the form of trunk is the same. The branches of the other division of trees, however, when left to spread out on every side, often acquire a timber-like size ; and as the ligneous matter they contain is in general far from being so valuable as when produced in the form of a straight stem, the loss by not pruning off their side branches or preventing them from acquiring a timber-like size is evident. On the other hand, when they are broken off by accident, or rot off by being crowded together, the timber of the trunk, though in these cases increased in quantity, is rendered knotty and rotten in quality. 3688. With respect to the manner of pruning. Sang observes, *' where straight tim- ber is the object, both classes in their infancy should be feathered from the bottom upwards, keeping the tops light and spiral, sometliing resembling a young larch {fig. 457 a). The proportion of their tops should be gradually diminished, year by year, till about their twentieth year, when they should occupy about a third part of the height of the plant ; that is, if the tree be thirty feet high, the top should be ten feet (6). In all cases in pruning off the branches, the utmost care must be taken not to leave any stumps sticking out, but cut them into the quick. It is only by this means that clean timber can be procured for the joiner ; or slightly stemmed trees to please the eye. It is a very general practice to leave snags or stumps (c) ; before the bole can be enlarged suflSciently to cover these, many years must elapse ; the stumps in the meantime become rotten ; and the consequence is, timber which when sawn up (rf), is only fit for fuel." 3689. Pontey justly observes, " that the sap of a tree may be considered as the raw ma- terial furnished by nature ; and man, the ma- nufacturer who moulds it into the form most useful for his purpose. P p 3 A moderate quantity ^82 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. of leaves and small wood is necessary to every tree ; but all above that quantity are of no use to the plant, and of little value to its owner." (Forest Pruner, 152 and 153.) 3690. The great importance of the leaves of trees must never be lost sight of : in attending to these instructions their use is not, as Pontey asserts, to attract the sap, but to elaborate it when propelled to them, and thus form the extract or food taken in by the plant, into a fluid analogous to blood, and which is returned so formed by the leaves into the inner bark and soft wood. It must be a very nice point, therefore, to determine the 3uaptity of branches or leaves that sl)ould be left on each tree ; and if no more are left lan what are necessary, then in the case of accidents to them from insects, the progress of the tree will be doubly retarded. Experience alone can determine these things. Both Pontey and Sang agree that " strength is gained as effectually by a few branches to a head as by many." 3691. The general seasons of pruning are winter and spring, and for the gean mid- summer, as it is found to gum very much at any other season. Pontey says, " as to the proper seasons of pruning there is only one difficulty ; and that is, discovering the wrong one, or the particular time that trees will bleed. Only two trees have been found which bleed uniformly at certain seasons, namely, the sycamore, and firs, which bleed as soon as the sap begins to move." 3692. In spring jrruning desist when bleeding takes place. As a general rule, Pontey thinks " summer preferable to winter pruning ; because, in proportion as wounds are made early they heal so much more in the same season." (Forest Pruner, 236.) Sang sus- pends pruning from the end of February to the middle of July, but carries it on during every other month of the year ; pruning the gean, or any other tree very apt to gum, Only in July and August. (Plant. Kal. 268. J 3693. With respect to the implements to be used. Sang observes, " in every case where the knife is capable of lopping off" the branch in question, namely, in tiie pruning of infant plants, it is the only instrument necessaiy. All otiier branches should be taken off' by the saw. A hatchet, or a chisel, should never be used. Every wound on the stem, or bole, should be quite into the quick, that is, to the level and depth of the bark ; nor should the least protuberance be left. The branch to be lopped off" by the saw should, in all cases, be notched or slightly cut on the under side, in order to prevent the bark from being torn in the fall ; and when the branch has been removed, the edges of the wound, if anywise ragged, should be pared smooth with the knife. If the tree be vigorous, nature will soon cover the wound with the bark, without the addition of any plaster to exclude the air. In the shortening of a strong branch, the position of which is pretty upright, it should be observed to draw the saw obliquely across it, in such a manner as that the face of the wound shall be incapable of retaining moisture ; and afterwards to smooth the edges of the bark with a knife." (Plant. Kal. 181.) 3694. In eveinf case where the branches are too large for the knife, Pontey prefers the saw as the best and most expeditious instrument ; and one, the use of which is more easily acquired by a laborer than that of either the bill or axe. In " large work" he uses the common carpenter's saw ; for smaller branches, one with somewhat finer teeth, with the plate of steel, about twenty inches long. — Having stated what is general in prun- ing, the next thing is to submit some particular applications of the art to resinous and non-resinous timber-trees, copse-wood, osier-holts, hedges and hedge-rows, and trees in parks. 3695. Resinous trees, Pontey and Sang agree, should not be pruned at so early an age as the non-resinous kinds. Sang commences about the sixth or eighth year, accord- ing to their strength or vigor, and removes no more than one or two tiers of branches at once. Pontey, when the plants are about eight feet high, gives the first pruning by «* displacing two, or at most three tiers of the lower branches ; after which, intervals of three years might elapse between the prunings, never displacing more than two tiers at once, except more shall prove dead." (Forest Pruner, 204.) Sang judiciously ob- serves, " excessive pruning, either of pines, larches, or deciduous trees of any sort, is highly injurious, not only to the health of the plant, but to the perfection of the wood. If a sufficient number of branches are not left on the young plant to produce abundance of leaves, perfectly to concoct its juice, the timber will be loose in its texture, and liable to premature decay." (Plant. Kal. 182.) Tlie opinions of Nicol and Monteith are at variance with those of Pontey and Sang, as to pruning resinous trees, Nicol advises leaving snags (Pract. Plant. 213.), and Monteith {Forest. Guide, 45.) says, "never cut off* a branch till it has begun to rot, as the bleeding of a live l)ranch will go far to kill the tree." 3696. Non-resinous trees. Sang observes, *' should be pruned betimes, or rather from their infancy, and thenceforward at intervals of one, or at most two, years. If the . pruning of young forest-trees is performed at intervals of eight or ten years, the growth is unnecessarily thrown away, and wounds are inflicted which will ever after remain blemishes in the timber; whereas, if the superfluous or competing branches had been Book II. PRUNING TREES. 58S removed annually, and before they obtained a large size, the places from which they issued would be imperceptible, or at least not hurtful to the timber, when it came to the hand of the artist." 3697. The pruning of all deciduous trees should be begun at the top, or at least those branches which are to be removed from thence should never, be lost sight of. *' Having fixed upon what may be deemed the best shoot for a leader, or that by which the stem is most evidently to be elongated and enlarged, every other branch on the plant should be rendered subservient to it, either by removing them instantly, or by shortening them. Where a plant has branched into two or more rival stems, and there are no other very strong branches upon it, nothing more is required than simply to lop off the weakest clean by the bole, leaving only the strongest and most promising shoot. If three or four shoots or branches be contending for the ascendancy, they should, in like manner, be lopped off, leaving only the most promising. If any of the branches which have been left further down on the bole of the plant at former prunings have become very strong, or have extended their extremities far,, they should either be taken clean off, by the bole, or be shortened at a proper distance from it; observing always to shorten at a lateral twig of considerable length. It is of ii^portance that the tree be equally poised ; and, therefore, if it have stronger branches on the one side than the other, they should either be removed or be shortened. Tluis, a properly trained tree, under twenty feet in height, should appear light and spiral, from within a yard or two of the ground to the upper extremity ; its stem being furnished with a moderate number of twigs and small branches, in order to detain the sap, and circulate it more equally through the plant. 3698. The subsequent pi-unings of trees of this size, standing in a close plantation, will require much less attention ; all that is wanted will consist in keeping their leading shoots single. From the want of air, their lateral branches will not be allowed to ex- tend, but will remain as twigs upon the stem. These, however, frequently become dead branches ; and if such were allowed to remain at all on the trees, they would infal- libly produce blemishes calculated greatly to diminish the value of the timber : hence the impropriety of allowing any branch to die on the bole of a tree ; indeed, all branches should be removed when they are alive ; such a method, to our knowledge, being the only sure one to make good timber. From these circumstances, an annual pruning, or at least an annual examination of all forests, is necessary. (Plant. Kal.) 3699. Heading down such non -resinous trees as stole, we have already stated to be an important operation. After the trees have been three or four years planted. Sang directs, that " such as have not begun to grow freely should be headed down to within three or four inches of the ground. The cut must be made with the pruning-knife in a sloping direction, with one effort. Great care should be taken not to bend over the tree in the act of cutting. By so bending, the root may be split, a thing which too often happens. The operation should be performed in March, and not at an earlier period of the season, because the wounded part might receive much injury from the severe weather in January and February, and the expected shoot be thereby prevented from rising so strong and vigorous." (Plant. Kalend. 297.) Buffon, in a Memorial on the Culture of Woods, presented to the French government in 1 742, says he has repeated this experiment so often, that he considers it as the most useful practice he knows in the cul- ture of woods. 3700. For the purjwse of producing bends for ship-timber, various modes of pruning have been proposed, as such bends always fetch the highest price. According to Pon- tey, " little is hazarded by saying, that if plenty of long, clean, straight, free-grown trees could be got, steaming and a screw apparatus would fonri bends." 3701. Monteith, a timber valuator of great experience, and in extensive practice, says, the value of the oak, the broad-leaved elm, and Spanish chestnut, depends a good deal on their being crooked, as they are all used in ship building. He says he has seen trees successfully trained into crooked shapes of great value, in the following manner: *' If you have an oak, elm, or chestnut, that has two stems, as it were, striving for the supe- riority, lop or prune off the straightest stem ; and if a tree that is not likely to be of such value be standing on that side to which the stem left seems to incline to a horizontal position, take away the tree, and thus give the other every chance of growing horizon- tally At this time it will be necessary to take away a few of the perpendicular shoots off the horizontal branch ; and, indeed, if these branches, which is sometimes the case in such trees, seem to contend, take away most of them ; but if they do not, it is better at this time not to prune over much, except the crooked shoots on the horizontal branch, till they arrive at the height of fifteen, or even twenty feet. By this time it will be easily seen what kind of tree it is likely to form ; and, if it inclines to grow crooked, lighten a little the top of the tree, by taking off a few of the crooked branches on the straighter side, allowing all the branches to remain on the side to which the tree inclines to crook, to give it more weight, and to draw most of the juice or sap that way, Pp 4 584 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. and it will naturally incline more to tlie crook ; at the same time clearing away any other tree on the crooked side, that may be apt, with the wind, to wliip the side of the tree to which it inclines to crook. Also taking away such trees of less value as may prevent it from spreading out to the one side more than to the other." He adds, " I have myself tried the experiment with several oak trees at about twelve feet high, that were a little inclined to crook, and that had also a main branch inclined to a horizontal position. In the course of less than twenty years, I had the pleasure of seeing some of these very trees grow so very crooked that the branch would work in with the main stem or bod^ of the tree, to a complete knee, or square, which is tlie most valuable of all trees; and, as ten ' trees of crooked oak are required for one straight one, it is of the most essential consequence to have crooked oak trees ; and besides, an oak tree, properly crooked, that will answer for a large knee, (say the main branch, to be fit to work in with the body or trunk of the tree without much waste of wood], is nearly double in value to the same number of straight trees ; and, indeed, knees of oak are extremely scarce, and difficult to be got." 3702. Pontey " knows of no way by which bends of tolerable scantlings (knees ex- cepted) can be produced with certainty and little trouble, but from a side branch kept in a bent position by the branches of another tree or trees overhanging its stem." {Forest Pruner, 174.) 3703. Coppice woods, in so far as grown for poles or bark, require pruning on the same principle as timber trees, in order to modify the ligneous matter into stem, and produce clean bark. In as far as they are grown for fence wood, fuel, or besom spray, no pruning is required. 3704. Osier holts require the laterals to be pinched off the shoots intended for hoops ; those of the basket^maker seldom produce any. The stools, also, require to be kept free from dead wood, and stinted knotty protuberances. 3705. Hedges require side pruning, or switching, from their first planting, so as gra- dually to mould them into " the wedge shape, tapering from bottom to top on both sides equally, till they meet in a point at the top. Two feet at bottom is a sufficient breadth for a five feet hedge | a greater or less height should have the bottom wider or nar- rower, accordingly. In dressing young hedges, either of the deciduous or evergreen kinds, the sides only should be cut till the hedge arrive at the proposed height, unless it be necessary, for the sake of shelter, to cut their tops over, in order to make the hedges thicker of branches. Such cutting of the upright shoots, however, is not of any great use in this respect ; because every hawthorn hedge sends out a number of side shoots, which, if encouraged, by keeping the top wedge-shaped as above, will make it abundantly thick." {Sang, 447.) In pruning hedges, some use shears; but the hedge-bill is the most proper instrument, producing a smooth unfractured section, not so apt to throw out a number of small useless shoots as generally follow the bruised cut of the shears. 3706. Hedge-row trees require to be pruned to a tall, clean, erect stems, as at once producing more timber, and doing least injury to the ground under their drip and shade. 3707. Trees in strips for shelter, or screens for concealment, ought to be furnished with branches from the bottom upwards ; unless undergrowth supply this deficiency. Where this is not the case, care should be had that the trees be pruned into conical shapes, so as that the lower branches may be as little as possible excluded from the influ- ence of the weather by the upper ones. 3708. Trees for shade, where shelter from winds is not wanting, should be pruned to ample spreading heads with naked stems ; the stems should be of such a height that the sun's rays, at midday, in midsummer, may not fall within some yards of the base of the trunk ; thus leaving under the trees, as well as on its shady side, a space for the repose of men or cattle. SuBSECT. 4. Of Thinning Young Plantations. 3709. The properly thinning out of plantations. Sang observes, "is a matter of the first importance in their culture. However much attention be paid to the article of pruning, if the plantation be left too thick, it will be inevitably ruined. A circulation of air, neither too great nor small, is essential to the welfare of the whole. This should not be wanting at any period of the growth of the plantation ; but in cases where it has been prevented by neglect, it should not be admitted all at once, or suddenly. Opening a plantation too much at once, is a sure way to destroy its health and vigor. In thinning, the consideration which should, in all cases, predominate, is to cut for the good of tlie timber left, disregarding the value of the thinnings. For, if we have it in our choice to leave a good, and take away a bad plant or kind, and if it be necessary that one of the two should fall, the only question should be, by leaving which of them shall we do most justice to the laudable intention of raising excellent and full sized timber for the benefit Book II. THINNING PLANTATIONS. 585 of ourselves and of posterity ? The worst tree should never be left, but with the view of filling up an accidental vacancy. 3710. In thinning mixed plaritations, the removing of the nurses is the first object which generally claims attention. This however should be cautiously performed ; other- wise the intention of nursing might, after all, be thwarted. If the situation be much exposed, it will be prudent to retain more nurses, although the plantation itself be rather crowded, than where the situation is sheltered. In no cases, however, should the nurses be suffered to overtop or whip the plants intended for a timber crop ; and for this reason, in bleak situations, and when perhaps particular nurse plants can hardly be spared, it may be sometimes necessary to prune off the branches from one side entirely. At subsequent thinnings, such pruned or disfigured plants are first to be removed ; and then those which, from their situation, may best be dispensed with. 3711. ^t tvhat period of the age of the plantation the nurses are to be removed, cannot easily be determined; and, indeed, if the nurses chiefly consist of larches, it may with propriety be said, that they should never be totally removed, while any of tlie other kinds remain. For, besides that this plant is admirably calculated to compose part of a beauti- ful mixture, it is excelled by few kinds, perhaps, by none as a timber tree. 3712. But when the nurses consist of inferior kinds, such as the mountain ash or Scots pine, they should generally be all moved by the time the plantation arrives at the height of fifteen or twenty feet, in order that the timber trees may not, by their means, be drawn up too weak and slender. Before tliis time it may probably be necessary to thin out a part of the other kinds. The least valuable, and the least thriving plants, should first be condemned, provided their removal occasion no blank or chasm; but where this would happen, they should be allowed to stand till the next, or other subsequent revision. 3713. At what distance of time this revision should take place, cannot easily be determined ; as the matter must very much depend on the circumstances of soil, shelter, and the state of health the plants may be in. In general the third season after will be soon enough ; and if the plantation be from thirty to forty years old, and in a thriving state, it will require to be revised again, in most cases within seven years. But one invariable rule ought to prevail in all' cases, and in all situations, to allov/ no plant to overtop or wliip another. Respect should be had to the distance of the tops, not to the distance of the roots of the trees ; for some kinds require more head room than others ; and all trees do not rise perpendicular to their roots, even on the most level or sheltered ground. 3714. With respect to the final distance to which trees, standing in a mixed plantation, should be thinned, it is hardly possible to prescribe fixed rules ; circumstances of health, vigor, the spreading nature of the tree, and the like, must determine. Whether the trees are to be suffered to stand till full grown ; which of the kinds the soil seems best fitted for ; whether the ground be flat or elevated ; and whether the situation be exposed or sheltered, are all circumstances wliich must influence the determination of the ultimate distance at which the trees are to stand. It may, however, be said in general, that if trees be allowed a certain distance of from twenty five to thirty feet, according to their kinds and manner of growth, they will have room to become larger timber. 3715. Plantations of Scots pine, if the plants have been put in at three, or three and a half feet apart, will require little care until the trees be ten or twelve feet high. It is necessary to keep such plantations thick in the early part of their growth, in order that the trees may tower the faster, and push fewer and weaker side branches. Indeed, a pine or soft-wood plantation should be kept thicker at any period of its growth, than any of those consisting of hard- wood and nurses already mentioned ; and it may sometimes be proper to prune up certain plants as nurses, as hinted at above for nurses in a mixed plantation. Those pruned-up trees are of course to be reckoned temporary plants, and are afterwards to be the first thinned out ; next to these, all plants which have lost their leaders by accident, should be condemned ; because such will never regain them so far, as after to become stately timber ; provided that the removal of these mutilated trees cause no material blank in the plantation. Care should be taken to prevent whipping ; nor should the plantation be thinned too much at one time, lest havock be made by prevailing winds ; an evil which many, through inadvertency, have thus incurred. This precaution seems the more necessary, inasmuch as Scots pines, intended for useful large timber, are presumed never to be planted except in exposed situations and thin soils. At forty years of age, a good medium distance for the trees may be about fifteen feet every way. It may be wortliy of remark, that after a certain period, perhaps by the time that the plantation arrives at the age of fifty or sixty years, it will be proper to thin more freely, in order to harden the timber ; and that then this may be done with less risk of danger, from the strength the trees will have acquired, than at an earlier period ; but still it should be done^radually. 3716. Plantations of sprUce and silver firs, intended for large useful timber, should be kept much in the manner above stated, both in their infancy and middle age. . As 586 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. already remarked, planting and keeping them as thick as is consistent with their healtli, is the best means of producing tall, straight, clean stems, and valuable timber. When planted for screens or for ornament, they require a different treatment ; which will be noticed in the proper place. " To larch plantations, the above observations will also apply, and indeed they are applicable to plantations of all kinds of resinous trees. It may be proper here to remark, that the exposed margin of all young plantations should be kept thicker than the interior. The extent to which this rule should be carried, must be regulated according to the degree of exposure of the situation, the age of the plants, the tenderness of the kinds, and other circumstances." Autumn, or very early in the spring, are the proper seasons for thinning where the trees are to be taken up by the root and replanted elsewhere ; winter for thinning for timber and fuel ; but such trees as are valuable for their barks should be left untouched till the sap rises in April or May. 3717. Copse-woods require thinning when young, like other plantations, and when once established the stools require to be gone over the second year after cutting, and all superfluous suckers and shoots removed. This operation should be repeated annually, or every two or three years, in connection with pruning, till within three or four years of the general fall of the crop. Sect. VI. Of the Improvement of Neglected Plantations. 3718. Neglected and mismatuiged plantations will include the greater number in Bri- tain. The artificial strips and masses have generally never been thinned or pruned ; and the natural wood or copse-woods improperly thinned or cut over. It is often a difficult matter to know what to make of such cases, and always a work of considerable time. *' Trees," Sang observes, " however hardy their natures may be, which have been reared in a thick plantation, and consequently have been very much sheltered, have their natures so far changed, that if they be suddenly exposed to a circulation of air, which, under different circumstances, would have been salubrious and useful to them, will become sickly and die. Hence the necessity of admitting the air to circulate freely among trees in a thick plantation, only gradually, and with great caution." 3719. -A jflontation which has become close and crowded^ having been neglected from the time of planting till perhaps its twentieth year, should only have some of the smallest and most unsightly plants removed; one, perhaps, in every six or eight, in the first season ; in the following season, a like number may be removed ; and, in two or three years afterwards, it should be gone over again, and so on, till it be sufficiently thinned. It will be proper to commence the thinning, as above, at the interior of the plantations, leaving the skirts thicker till the last ; indeed, the thinning of the skirts of such a plant- ation should be protracted to a great length of time. With thinning, pruning to a certain extent should also be carried on. " If the plantation," Sang observes, " consists of pines and firs, all the rotten stumps, decayed branches, and the like, must be cut off close by the bole. It will be needful, however, to be cautious not to inflict too many wounds upon the tree in one season ; the removing of these, therefore, should be the work of two or three years, rather than endanger the health of the plantation. After the removal of these from the boles of the firs and larches, proceed every two or tliree years, but with a sparing hand, to displace one or perhaps two tiers of the lowermost live branches, as circumstances may direct, being careful to cut close by the trunk, as above noticed. In a plantation of hard-wood, under the above circumstances, the trees left for the ultimate crop, are not to be pruned so much at first as might otherwise be required ; only one or two of their competing branches are to be taken away, and even these with caution. If it be judged too much for the first operation to remove them entirely, they may be shortened, to prevent the progress of the competition ; and the remaining parts may be removed in the following season ; at which time, as before observed, they must be cut close by the bole." (Plant. Kal. 467.) 3720. The operatio7i of thinning and pruning, thickening or filing up, or renewing portions that cannot be profitably recovered, should thus go on, year after year, as ap- pearances may direct, on the general principles of tree culture. And for this purpose, the attentive observation and reflection of a judicious manager will be worth more than directions which must be given with so much latitude. Pontey has noticed various errors in 3721. Kennedy's Treatise on Planting, and even in Sang's Xalendar, on the simple subject of distances, which have originated in their giving directions for anticipated cases which had never come within their experience. " Most people," he says, *' take it for granted, that if trees stand three feet apart, they have only to take out the half to make the distances six feet, though to do that, they must take down three times as many as they leave. By the same rule, most people would suppose that twelve feet Book II. :neglected plantations. 587 distance was only the double of six ; but the square of the latter is only thirty-six, while that of the former is one hundred and forty-four, or four times the latter ; so that to bring six feet distances to twelve, three trees must be removed for every one left." {profitable Planter, 256, and Forest Pruner, 21.) 3722. Copse-woods are sometimes imjrroved by turning them into woods, which requires nothing more than a judicious selection and reservation of those shoots from the stools which are strongest, and which spring more immediately from the collar. But a greater improvement of copse- woods consists in cutting over the overgrown and protuberant stools by the surface of the soil (Jig. 458 a, b, c, d), which has been found by Mon- teith completely to regenerate them. The operation is performed with a saw, in a slanting direction, and the young shoots being properly thinned and pruned, soon estabh'sh themselves securely on the circumference of large and perhaps rotten-hearted roots. {Forester s Guide, 60.) 3723. Neglected hedge-row timber may be improved by pruning according to its age. Blakey recommends what he calls fore-shortening, or cutting-in, as the best method both for young and old hedge-row timber. " This operation is performed by short- ening the over-luxuriant side- branches {Jig. 459 a), but not to cut them to a stump, as in snag- pruning ; on the contrary, the ex- tremity only of the branch should be cut off, and the amputation effected immediately above where an auxiliary side-shootsprings from the branch on which the operation is to be performed [h) ; this may be at the distance of two, four, or any other number of feet from the stem of the tree; and suppose the auxiliary branch which is left (when the top of the branch is cut off) is also over-luxuriant, or looks unsightly, it should also be shortened at its sub-auxiliary branch, in the same manner as before described. The branches of trees, pruned in this manner, are always kept within due bounds ; they do not extend over the adjoining land to the injury of the occupier, at least not until the stem of the tree rises to a height (out of the reach of pruning), when the top-branches can do comparatively little injury to the land. By adopting this system of pruning, the bad effects of close pruning on old trees, and snag-pruning on young ones, will be avoided, the country will be ornamented, and the community at large, as well as indi- viduals, benefited." Sect. VII. Of the Treatment of Injured and Diseased Trees. 3724. With respect to wounds, bruises, casualties, and defects of trees, such small wounds as are rcciuired to be made by judicious pruning, easily heal up of themselves ; large wounds, by amputation of branches above six inches diameter, should, if possible, never be made. Even wounds of six inches diameter or under will heal quicker by the appli- cation of any material that excludes the air and preserves the wood from corruption ; and we agree with Sang in recommending coal-tar, or the liquor produced from coals in manufacturing gas. It is, however, less favorable to the progress of the bark over the wound than a coating of clay or cow-dung covered with moss to keep it moist. Pontey recommends putty and two coats of paint over it. In case the wood, at a bruised or amputated place, has by neglect become already corrupted, the rotten or dead wood is to be pared out quite into the quick, and the wound is then to be dressed with tar or clay^ covered with a piece of mat, sacking, or moss. A wound, hollowed out as above, may at first appear an unsightly blemish ; but, in subsequent years, nature will lay the coats of wood under the new-formed bark thicker at that place ; and probably may, in time, fill it up to be even with the general surface of the tree. 3725. Ah fractures, by whatever means produced, are to be managed as the circum- stances of the case require. If a large branch be broken over at the middle of its lengthy It should be sawn clear off close by the lateral which is nearest to the bole of the tree : but, if there is no lateral, or branch, capable to carry forward the growth, cut the main or fractured branch in quite to the bole. In both cases, treat the wound as above recom- mended. 588 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Paut III. 3726. Interior rotting, arising from the dampness of the soil, cannot by the art of man be cured; though it might have been prevented by timous draining. The hearts of trees frequently rot, where there is no excess of moisture, and especially such as have been produced from old roots left iu the ground by a previous felling. Such roots when in good ground, send up very great shoots, with few leaves in proportion to their sizes ; by the absence of a profusion of these, properly to concoct the juices so abundantly supplied by the roots, the fibre of the wood is loose and imperfect ; the next season will produce more leaves in proportion to the supply of juices, yet not a sufficient number for making timber ; several years may pass before this event will arrive : thus crude and ill-digested timber disposed to premature decay is the foundation over which subsequent coatings of ■wood are laid : yet, however perfect these may be, they do not prevent the progress of decomposition going on in the interior. Nature teaches how necessary numerous leaves are to the proportion of the solid wood ; the cotyledons and subsequent leaves of a one- year old tree, are a thousand times greater, compared to its solid contents, than are leaves to the solid contents of the first year's shoots from roots like the above. 3727. Shakes often arise from the weight and multiplicity of top branches, and might have been prevented by timous pruning. Shakes or rents in the boles of trees, however, often happen where there is no excess of tops. Sometimes the rain running down from the branches, wets one part of the bole, while the rest is comparatively dry. If this cir- cumstance is succeeded by an intense frost, before the wetted side become dry, the bole may be rent for a length, and perhaps to the depth of the core. Shakes or rents, like the above, are difficult to cure. The best method of helping them, is to trace out their upper extremity, caulk it up with oakum, and pitch it over, to prevent the rain descend- ing that way in future. (Sang. ) 3728. I7i cases ofhoUownesSf Pontey recommends probing to the bottom, letting out the water, if any, with an auger, drying the cavity with a cloth, filling it with dry sand, plugging it with wood and oakum, and then painting it over. 3729. Decorticated stems or branches by ligntning, or otherwise, if the soft wood is not much injured, will heal over and become covered with bark ; and this the more certainly and rapidly if the air be excluded by a coating of adhesive matter, as cow dung and quick lime, or tying on moss or bandages of mat or cloth. Pontey gives an instance in which such treatment was successful in the case of an apple tree. [Pruner, 230.) We have witnessed it on an extensive scale on the trunk of a pear tree ; and we are informed, on the best authority, of other cases now under progress, in the government garden of the Luxemberg, at Paris. 3730. Withered or decayed tops, may arise from age and incipient decay ; but also, as Pontey states, from improper pruning, or the want of it. We often see it from improper pruning elms, which, after having been close pruned to their summits for many years, are left entirely to nature; in that case they branch out luxuriantly below, and the top withers. By neglecting to thin out the branches dn the,stems of non-resinous trees the same effect may be produced. 3731. Stinted bushy tops on very tall naked stems, show a deficiency of nourishment, from these circumstances ; and on short stems from defects of the soil. Obliquely placed misshapen heads, in detached trees, commonly proceed from the same causes and want of shelter. Stinted growth, both in tops and stems, is also produced by ivy, and by lichens, mosses, miseltoe, and other parasites. Ivy compresses the bark, precludes its expansion, as well as excludes air and moisture, by which the outer bark becomes rigid and corky. — Happily, both men and trees will live a long time under the influence both of deformity and disease. 3732. Excessive exudations of gum and resins are peculiar to resinous and some other trees when over pruned, or pruned at improper times. Mildew, honeydew, and blight ; three popular names applied to the effects of certain insects of the aphis kind, attack the oak, beech, poplar, and many trees; all that can be said is, if proper regimen has been regularly attended to, trees will overcome these and all other enemies. 3733. Insects and vermin. Almost every tree has its particular insect of the hemip- terous and dipterous families, and many of the coleoptera are common to all. The foli- age of the small leaved elm of hedges is often almost entirely destroyed in the early part of the season by tenthredinidae ; and those of the larch and Scotch pine have suffered ma- terially in some seasons from aphides. The aphis laricea, L. {Eriosomata, of Leach,) increased to an alarming extent from 1800 to 1802, on the larch, on account of three dry seasons following each other ; but, though it retarded their growth, it ultimately destroyed very few trees. Sang says, he has known it since 1785; that it dirties more than in- jures the tree, and is now (1819) thought little of. Indeed, almost every species of tree has been known to have suffered in some one or more seasons, and in particular districts from insects ; for which, on so large a scale, there seems to be no applicable remedy, but patiently waiting till their excess, or the increase of other vermin, their natural enemies. Book II. PRODUCTS OF TREES. 589 or a change of seasons, cause them to disappear. Trees properly cultivated and managed, generally overcome such enemies. The hare is well known to be injurious to young trees, and especially to laburnums, by gnawing off their bark. Coating their stems witli dung and urine, fresh from the cow-house, is said to be an effectual remedy. It may be put on with a brush to the height of two feet ; a barrow load will suffice for a hundred trees, with stems of three or four inches in diameter ; and its virtue, after laid on, endures at least two years. {Bull, in Cald. Hort, Mem. iv. 1 90. ) Sect. VIII. Of the Products of Trees and their Prqmration for Use or Sale. 3734. The ordinary products of trees made use of in the arts are leaves, prunings, or spray, thinnings, seeds, flexible shoots, bark, branches, roots, and trunks. Trees also afford sap for wine and sugar, and extract for dyeing ; but these products are of too accidental or refined a nature for our present purpose. 3735. The leaves and sprat/ of trees when gathered before they begin to decay, maybe given to cattle either in their fresh state or dried and stacked up for winter use, as is practised in various countries. In this country, however, leaves and spray, as the clippings of hedges and small prunings, are only used as manure ; or as a substitute for tanners' bark in gardens. 3736. The thinnings, when not beyond a suitable age, and taken up properly, and at a proper season, may be planted in other situations, or as single trees and groups ; or they may be used as hoops, hop-poles, poles for garden training, for fencing, for props in coaleries ; and for a great variety of purposes; those, whose barks are useful for tanning, should not be cut down, or rooted up till May, but the others at any time during winter. It is common to sort them into lots, according to their kind or size; and to faggot up the spray for fuel, besom stuff, or for distilling for bleacher's liquid, 3737. The seeds of trees in general cannot be considered of much use beyond that of continuing the species. The seeds of the oak, beech, and sweet chestnut, however, are valuable for feeding swine, and where they abound may either be swept together after they drop, and carried away and preserved dry in lofts or cellars for that purpose ; or if other circumstances are favorable, swine may be driven under the trees to collect them. These and other seeds, as the haw and holly, are also eaten by deer. The seeds of the trees mentioned, and of all the resinous tribe, are in general demand by the nurserymen for the purposes of propagation. The seeds of almost all other trees and shrubs are also in limited or occasional demand ; or may be collected for private sowing. They generally ripen late in the season, and are to be collected in the end of autumn or beginning of winter, with the exception of a few, such as the elm, poplar, willow, and one or two others, which ripen their seeds in May and June. 3738. In osier grounds, willows produce flexible shoots, and whether intended for the basket-maker or cooper, should not be cut till the second season after planting, in order to strengthen the stools; but by the third autumn the crop will be fit for the basket- maker, and in the fourth, plantations intended for the cooper (hoops requiring the growth of two years) will be seady. The seasons for cutting are November and March ; after the former period the wounds are apt to be injured by frost, and after the latter the sap is too far advanced ; some is lost by bleeding, and the buds are developed too suddenly to admit of proper strength in the shoots. The cut should be made within three buds of the point whence the shoot issued, in a sloping direction, and the section on the under- side. In cutting hoop-willows, the swell at the bottom of the shoot only should be left, that being furnished with abundance of buds for future growth. After being cut, the hoops are trimmed from any side-shoots, and tied up in bundles of a hundred, of six scores each, which, in 1 820, sold for from four shillings to five shillings a bundle. The willows are sorted, into three sizes, and tied in bundles two feet in circumference, within a foot of the lower ends. When to be peeled, they are immediately after cutting set on their thick ends in standing water, a few inches deep, and there they remain till the sap ascends freely, which is commonly by the end of the succeeding May. " The apparatus' for peeling is simply two round rods of iron, nearly half an inch thick, sixteen inches long, and tapering a little upwards, welded together at the one end which is sharpened, so as that it may be easily thrust down into the ground. When thus placed in a piece of firm ground, the peeler sits down opposite to it, and takes the willow in the right hand by the small end, and puts a foot or more of the great end into the instrument, the prongs of which he presses together with the left hand, and with the right draws the willow towards him ; by whicii operation the bark will at once be separated from the wood : the small end is then treated in the same manner, and the peeling is completed. Good willows peeled in the above manner, have been sold for some seasons past, at from six shillings and sixpence to seven shillings the bundle of four feet in circumference. After being peeled, they will keep in good condition for a long time, till a proper market be found." 590 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3739. Copse-woods are generally cut over when the shoots of the stools have attained from three to five inches' diameter at their bases ; some grown chiefly for hop-poles, and ware or stuff for crates, hampers, or wattled hurdles, arc cut over earlier, and others, where small timber for fencing and other country purposes is wanted, are left later. In some parts of Herefordshire, where the oak grows with great rapidity, copse-woods are cut over every twelve years ; in the highlands of Scotland, where it grows much slower, the time varies from twenty to twenty-five or thirty years. ** The bark is there considered as having arrived at its utmost perfection and at its highest value, at the age of between twenty and thirty years : under that age, its virtues are weak ; above it, the bark becomes coarse and loses its sap. Another important rea- son for cutting down oak coppice-wood about the above period, is suggested in the Stirlingshire Report, p. 218. ; namely,' that it is a fact established by experience, that it will not renew itself, if it remains uncut, beyond the space of about forty years.* " {Gen. Rep. of Scotland, 218.) Where there is a considerable tract of copse-wood, it is common to divide it into portions, in number according to the period of cutting. These are to be cut in rotation, so that when the last portion is cut over, the first is again ready for cutting. 3740. The season for cutting the kinds of trees whose barks are not made use of, is winter and early in spring ; but the oak and other trees which are peeled, are left till the middle of April or May. Birch and larch woods will peel nearly a month earlier than the oak. Should there be no frost, birch and larch may be peeled about the beginning of April ; but the birch is commonly allowed to stand till July, and the peeling of it is commenced after that of the oak has been completed. The reason is, there is an outer skin upon birch-bark which requires to be taken off, as it is of no use to the tanner, and renders that part which is of use more difficult to be ground ; the month of July is the only time at which the two barks can be separated with ease, as at this time the juice or sap has made its circulation through the tree and bark, and this circumstance renders the separation more easy. From the beginning of May to the middle of July is the usual time for barking the oak. The earlier in the spring this operation is per- formed on the oak, both for the growth, if a natural wood, and for the bark, the better. When the sap has begun to rise, the bark will easily be detached from the wood, and it ought then to be taken off without loss of time ; and if the whole could be taken off before the leaf is completely developed, the bark would be better. After the sap has arisen to the leaf and new growth, the bark becomes more dry, and requires more beating to separate it from the wood. And when what is called the black sap is descending the tree, the bark taken off is black, and loses its original color ; at this time also the bark begins to throw off a scurf, more especially young bark without much cork on it ; this outer skin having less of the proper sap or juice, and being much drier when taken off, will weigh less, and consequently will not be so valuable. If possible, oaks should be barked by the middle of June, as every ton of bark taken off after the first of July will be deficient two cwt. per ton, compared with the same quantity taken off in May or early in June. 3741 . The termination of cutting is generally fixed for the fifteenth day of July, and after this date there should not be a single stool of oak wood cut that is intended for the growth; and as soon as possible after the fifteenth, the \Vhole of the wood and bark should be carried away, that the young growths may not be disturbed or injured, as at this time they will have made considerable progress ; at any rate, there should neither be wood nor bark remaining within the new cut hag after the first of August ; nor should either horse or cart be permitted to enter it after that period, for after the beginning of August, oaks make what is termed a lammas growth, and the future prosperity and health of the coppice, in a great measure, depend on the first year's growth, as far as regards form and vigor of the shoots. {Forester s Guide, 69.) 3742. The best mode of cutting is evidently that of using a saw, and cutting the shoots over in a slanting direction close by the surface. When the stool, after having been cut several times, has acquired considerable diameter, it is customary in the midland counties. Marshal states, to hollow it out in the centre, from a notion that by rotting away the central roots, the circumferential stems will grow more vigorously, and become as it were separate plants. This is in fact the case in very old copses. For several cuttings, however, it must evidently be the safer policy to keep the stool highest in the middle to throw off the rain, and preserve it sound. 3743. Monteith says, " It will be found, upon experiment, perfectly evident, that stools dressed down to the surface of the ground, (taking care always not to loosen the bark from the root, or allow it to be peeled off in the smallest degree below the earth, but rounded down level to it,) will send forth the most vigorous shoots, and stand the weather, and be the stoutest and best throughout the age of the coppice." {Forester s Guide, 61.) From the late season at which the trees to be barked are generally Book II. PRODUCTS OF TREES. 591 cut, they often receive considerable injury, both from that circumstance, and the manner in which the operation is performed. Monteith appears to us to have furnished the best directions for executing the work in a safe manner. He first sends a person furnished witli an instrument witli a sharp cutting edge [fig. 460 a) through the copse, whose business is " to trample down the long grass or foggage all round the root, and then, to make a circular incision into the bark so deep as to reach the wood, at about an inch above the surface of the earth ; thus the bark when taken off, will injure no part of that which is below the circular incision." S744. The root of the tree being thus prqyared, the cutters ought to proceed to their part of the work, not with an axe, however, as is most generally recommended, but with a saw, because, in cutting with the axe, unless the root of the tree be so small in diameter as to be severed in one or two strokes at most, the axe loosens the root to such a degree, that it not only loses the present year's growth, but often fails altogether to grow. Therefore if the diameter of the root be six inches, or upwards, it should always be cut with a cross-cut saw ; entering the saw about half an inch above where the circular in- cision has been made into the bark, if a small tree j but if the tree be ten or twelve, or more inches in diameter, the saw ought to be entered two inches above it. 3745. There are two advantages to be derived from cutting with the saw ; it has no ten- dency to loosen the root of the tree, but leaves it in such a condition as to be more easily and properly dressed ; it also saves a portion of the wood that would otherwise be de^ stroyed by the axe. On no pretence should oaks of six inches' diameter be cut with an axe, but always with a saw. Having cut through the tree with a saw, take a sharp adze, and round the edges of the stool or root, going close down to the surface of the earth, taking with the adze both bark and wood, sloping it up towards the centre of the stool, taking particular care always that the bark and wood both slope alike, as if they formed one solid body, being sure always that the bark be not detached from the root. An objection has been made to this mode of cutting with the saw, as taking up too much time ; but I have found that two men with a cross-cut saw, kept in good order, will cut as much as two men will with an axe. [Forester s Guide, 58.) 3746. The disbarked timber is prepared for sale by being sorted into straight poles of the largest size, stakes and other pieces fit for palings, faggots, fuel, &c. The unbarked wood is similarly sorted, and affords, where there is much hazel or ash, cord wood or bundles of clean shoots for making packing crates, hampers, &c. , poles for hops, larger poles for fences, rails, paling-stakes, stakes and shoots for hurdles, besom-stuff, spray for distillation, and a variety of other objects according to the local demand, or the op- portunity of supplying a distant market by land- carriage. The brush or spray of non- resinous trees is called in some places ton-wood, and is used for distilling the pyrolig- nous acid used in bleach-fields and calico print-works. " When wood of this description is sent to Glasgow, where there are extensive works for the purpose of distilling it, it sells readily at from \l. 2s. to II. lOs. per ton; but when there are large cuttings, par- ticularly of young woods, it is worth while to erect boilers near the wood to distil it, as these boilers can be erected at no great expense, and in this case the liquid is easily carried in casks to where it is consumed, at less expense than the rough timber could be ; of course it will pay much better. Small wood of this description is also used for char- coal : but in distilling it, there is part of it made into charcoal, which will supply the demand of that article, so that it is by far the most profitable way, when there is any great quantity to dispose of, to erect boilers and distil it ; unless where the local situation of the wood will admit of its being shipped at a small expense, and carried to where the works mentioned are carried on. All kinds of non-resinous woods will give the extract in question; but oak, ash, Spanish chestnut, and birch, are the best." {Forester^ s Guide, 155.) Where the pak grows slow, as in the highlands, the but-ends of the poles are used for spokes for chaise wheels. ** Long spokes are from thirty to thirty-two by three inches and a half broad, and one inch and a half thick, and the short ones for the same purpose, from twenty-two to twenty four inches long, and the same sizes other- wise. Cart-wheel spokes, from twenty-six to twenty-eight inches long, four inches broad by two inches thick. These are the sizes they require to stand when rough blocked from the axe. Small wood when sold for this purpose, brought, in 1820, 2s. a cubic foot, measured down to three inches square." (Monteith,) 3747. In soToe cases copse-woods are sown with grass-seeds, and pastured by sheep, horses, and cattle. Some admit the animals the fifth year after the last cutting, others, not till the eighth : but Monteith thinks this should never be done till the fifteenth year. If the ground is properly covered with trees, it can seldom be advantageous to admit any species of stock unless during a month or two in winter. 3748. In the operation of barking trees, " the barkers are each furnished with light short-handed mallets, made of hard-wood, about eight or nine inches long, three inches square at the face, and the other end sharpened like a wedge, in order the more easily 592 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. to make an incision in the bark, which is done all along the side of the tree which happens to l>e uppermost, in a straight line : and as two barkers are generally employed at one tree, it is proper, that whilst the one is employed in making an incision with the mallet, as above, the other being furnished with the barking-bill [Jig. 460 a), cuts the bark across the tree, in lengths of from two feet six inches to three feet. Having thus made the incision in tlie bark, both ways, the barkers being also each furnished with peeling irons of different sorts [b, c, d, e), if the tree or piece of timber to be barked is such as the two barkers can easily lift; one end of it, this is placed on two pieces of wood three feet long, and called horses ; these are about the thickness of a paling-stake, and have a forked end on each about six inches long, the other end sharpened to go into the ground ; two of these horses are placed in a triangular form against one another, one end of the piece to be peeled being raised on the horses, the two barkers standing opposite to each other, and entering the peeling-irons into the incision made by the mallet, and pressing the iron downwards between the bark and the timber. In this way it will be found very easy to take the bark off in one whole piece round the tree; and, if possible, let these pieces be as long as the incisions made in the bark. In some cases, where there is not much sap, the bark may require a little beating with the square end of the mallet, to cause it to separate easily from the wood; but the less beating with the mallet the better, asit has a tendency to blacken the bark in the inside, or fleshy part of it, so that when the tanner sees it, he supposes it to be damaged, and undervalues it. The branches of the tree be- ing previously all lopped off with the axe, the persons, in number according to the extent of the work, with the bill smooth all the branches, cutting them in lengths of from two feet six inches to three feet, down as small as one inch in circumference. The barkers, principally women, are eacli provided with a smooth hard stone of about six or eight pounds weight, beside which they sit down, and having collected a quantity of saplings, branches, or twigs, they hold it on the stone with one hand, and with the mallet in the other, they beat the piece till the bark be split from the wood, from the one end to the other, and taking it off all the length of the piece, if possible, then lay it regularly aside, till a bundle of considerable size is formed." 3749. Drying the bark. The point most particularly to be observed in this art is, putting the bark up to dry ; which is done by setting it upon what is called the lofts or ranges. These are erected by taking forked pieces of the loppings, called horses, the one three feet long, the other two feet six inches, and driving each about four inches into the ground, opposite one another, about two feet asunder in the breadth, and as much betwixt them, lengthways, as will admit long small pieces of wood to be put upon them, and as many of these must be put together as will hold the bark of every day's peeling. These ought to be erected in as dry and elevated a spot as can be found in the margin of the wood, or better on its outside. The bark being carried and laid on this loft, with the thick ends of it all laid to the high side of the range, and the small bark laid on to the thickness of about six inches ; and the bark taken off the largest of the wood laid regularly on the top, which serves for a covering, and the lofts or ranges having a declivity of about six inches, the rain will run off them readily, and if properly put up in this manner, they will keef^ out a great deal of rain. After it has lain in this state for three days, if the weather is good and dry, it ought to be all turned over, and the small bark spread out, so as not to allow it to sit together, which, if much pressed, it is apt to do ; and if it does so with the natural sap in it, it has a chance of moulding, which is extremely hurtful to the bark, and both lessens it in weight and in value. After the bark has stood on the ranges about eight or ten days, if the weather be good, it may either be put into a house or a shed, or if intended to be put up into a stack, it may now be done. A stack of bark ought never to exceed eight feet in width, and twelve or fifteen feet in height, raised in the middle like a haystack. If it is to stand any length of time in the stack, it ought to be thatched, and in that state may remain all winter. The greatest care ought to be taken to preserve the color of the inner parts of the bark, because the color of it is gene- rally looked to as a principal criterion of its value. Before being put into the stack. Book II. PRODUCTS OF TREES. 593 the natural sap ought to be dried out of it, in order to prevent its fermenting ; because if a fermentation takes place in one part of the stack, it generally goes through and spoils the whole. The same mode of treatment will do for all kinds of bark as well as the oak ; but the birch has an outer or shredy skin upon it, that is rejected by the tanner, and, as already observed, must be peeled off. 3750. Choppmg the bark. " When the bark is ready for the tanner, it has to undergo the work of chopping, which is done by driving in two or more stakes into the ground, with a fork on the upper end of each, leaving them about two feet six inches from the ground, and laying a long small piece of wood across between die two, where a number of people stand, and the bark is carried and laid down behind them, which they take up in their hands and lay on the cross tree, and then, with a sharp whittle or bill in the other hand, they cut it into small pieces, about three inches in length; when this is done, it is trampled into bags, which hold about two hundred weight each, and in these bags it is weighed when sold by the ton, in tons, hundred weights, quarters, and poinds, and in the above manner delivered to the merchant or tanner." (Forester's Guide, 199.) 3751. Po//rtr(/- .1, I -3. ^ I in r^ S3 il^ Iff g |£3 g-ia ^ 11 ii|| 1 1 ||ip||i|| il?|tii!|i illllll jimiifl K -3 si I tE it « _ S-^ a a) 4j c ™ aj *■ = 3!' . I o M H <1 H Ck Q H CO HH K^ pq H w P^ O m ; 11, ill c e a III • a) i 1 1 1 • 1 &l I -sis II ^1 I 2I! « s ° II |g«§ I ||§§"igg§i -3 "8 T3 -e -a « -a ts t! S 3 ? g g S O 3 3'^ ^ •3 fc. ^ E.3 S ES| ES S -a II E^ « |>T3 ^1 tc a:>^ggi-;gaxr S^ Kt2 K ^1^ 1^ i I 1^ 55 rSfifi £H fob till t fabfafa a Kbaaar^^i^t^ S S^ b bb ;S^-a '^|'i''^-Sc' <§ •§! «2 PI'S "lis waa Esa -I s a a 8. §8 g I •a ^1 .1 I. II. §• 1 •%! ll I' C.S ^1 1. I liflfjili to' Ribstone pippin, * oslin ditto, * Rogar ditto, * Kentish ditto, summer greening, winter ditto^ * Yorkshire f * royal codling, * Kentish ditto, * Carlisle ditto, * royal russet, (very eood), Marjpiret apple (good), * whil Wheeler's ditto, * royal pearmain, * loan's ditto (good),* golden w Norfolk beating (good), stiawberry, * p Book II. PLANTING ORCHARDS. 599 3778. The most approved sorts of cider apples we have enumerated and partially de- scribed in the accompanying table (3777). It will be particularly observed that some of the sorts form much more handsome trees than others, and should therefore be preferred for hedge-rows, and indeed in all cases where the quality of the fruit is not objectionable. Some also have smaller-sized fruit than others, and these are to be preferred for situations exposed to much wind. 3779. The colors of good cider fruit are red and yellow ; the color to be avoided ia green, as affording a liquor of the harshest, and generally of the poorest quality. The pulp should be yellow, and the taste rich and somewhat astringent. Apples of a small size are always, if equal in quality, to be preferred to those of a larger, in order that tlie rind and kernel, which contain the aromatic part, may be the easier crushed witli the pulp. 3780. The sorts of baking apples most suitable for orchards are the calvilles, of which there are several varieties, including the hawthorndean for early use ; the pearmains for autumn use, and the russets for winter and spring. Many other sorts might be named, but an inspection of the fruit markets will prove that these are the best, and further details belong to books on gardening. 3781. The dessert apples Jit for orchards are therathripes or Margarets for earliest use j the jenneting, pomroy, summer pearmain, and Kentish for summer use; the golden, downton, and other pippins, especially the ribstone pippin, with the nonpareil and other small russets, for autumn, winter, and spring use. The following list is given by Nicol as including a fit collection both of kitchen and dessert apples for a private orchard ; those marked thus * being preferable : ire greening, * margin rhite hawthorn dean> . . _ _.„,,,, * purse-mouth (vert rennet, * Kentish ditto (good), * grey leadington, scarlet ditto, good). 3782. The most approved sorts of cider pears are the following r Barland, Pom. Her. t. 27., Forsyth, p. 143., fruit very austere, hardy upright tree. Holraore, Pom. Her. t. 20., Forsyth, p. 144., upright tree, Huffcap, Pom. Her. t 24., Forsyth, p. 144., fruit austere, large, hardy trees. Oldtield, Pom. Her. t. 11., Forsyth, p. 141., large tree. Kough cap, Forsyth, p. 144., very austere, hardy free-growing tree- Squash temton. Pom. Her. 1. 13., Forsyth,'p. 144<, fruit very austere, upright tree and great bearer. 3783. In choosing pears for planting in orchards, the description of the plant is a matter of very considerable importance, as pear trees attain a much greater age and size than apples. In our opinion the planting of pears in hedge-rows ought to be more en- couraged than the planting of apples, as they are calculated, when dried, to be used in soups ; or, when stewed green, to aflford a light and agreeable nourishment ; and perry is at least a more wholesome and exhilirating liquor to most constitutions than cider. 3784. The baking and dessert pears ft for orchards, according to Nicol, are the fol- lowing : * Jargonelle, Crawford or lammas, * camock or drummond, * Scot's ditto, musk robin (good), saffron, * hanging leaf (very * grey achan, swan egg, * mooifowl egg, * yair, * golden knap, good), the pound pear, cadilac, warden (for baking. . (good), LongueviUe, * summer bergamot, * autumn ditto, 3785. The best sorts of baking plums are the following : Damson, buUace, muscle, winesour, and magnum bonum. which thrives onlv on a calcareous 'soil, and grows Wild in Of these the damson is by fiir the best, and neat the winesour, abundance in the West Riding of Yorkshire. 3786. The following are excellent dessert ])lums for an orchard : * Green-gage, Orleans, * damask (black, good), white perdi- ditto or imperial, * drap d'or (yellow, good)* Of these thegreen- gron, * blue ditto, blue gage, * white magnum bonum, red gage, Orleans, and damask are much the best. 3787. The cultivation of the plum appears to us deserving of more encouragement than it generally meets with. Not only does the fruit make excellent pies and tarts, but it may be kept in large quantities, so as to be ready for that purpose at any period o^ the year. They also make a good wine, and with other fruits and ingredients form one of the best substitutes for port. The damson, buUace, and some other varieties, will grow and bear very high flavored fruit in hedges where the soil is dry below and not too thin. The fruit of the sloe is, for wine making, superior to that of the plum, and ftearly as good for tarts. 3788. The cherry is of more limited culture than any of the foregoing fruits, because chiefly used for eating, and not being of a nature to keep. Near large towns they may be cultivated to a certain extent. In Kent and Hertfordshire are the cherry orchards which afford the chief supplies for the London market. The sorts are chiefly the caroon, small black or Kentish, the May-duke, and the morella ; but Holman's duke, the black heart, and the large gean, will do well in orchards. 3789. The walnut and Spanish chestnut may be advantageously planted on the outskirts of orchards to shelter them, and a few of them in hedge-rows where the climate is likely to ripen their fruit. The chestnut can hardly be considered as ripening north of Loiv- Qq4 600 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. don, and the walnut north of Newcastle. Both trees, however, may be planted for their timber in moderately-sheltered situations, in most parts of the British isles. 3790. The elder is not beneath notice as an orchard tree. It need seldom be planted as standards ; but in unpruned hedges on a soft, deep, and rather rich soil, it yields great quantities of fruit, which is readily manufactured into a sort of wine that is esteemed by many persons when warmed, and forms a comfortable evening draught for the cottager. No tree requires less care, it propagates readily by cuttings or seeds, and requires little or no pruning ; but though it will grow in any soil whatever, it will produce no fruit worth mentioning on any but one tolerably deep and rich, and must be cut down when it begins to show indications of age. 3791. The jUhert, currant, gooseberry ^ raspberry, and some other fruits, are cultivated extensively near large towns ; but the treatment they require renders them in our opinion quite unfit for farm orchards. 3792. In choosing trees for orchards, standards, sufficiently tall to admit of horses and cattle grazing under them, should always be preferred. Maiden plants, or such as are only two years for the bud or graft, are the most certain of success ; the apples being worked on crab, the pears on wilding, and the cherries on gean stocks. The common baking plums need not be grafted at all, but the better sorts should either be grafted or budded on damson stems'. Where budded or grafted chestnuts and walnuts can be got, they should always be preferred as coming much sooner into bearing. The former may be had from the Devonshire nurseries, and some public gardeners about London are now attempting to inarch and bud the walnut. 3793. With respect to the distance at which orchard trees may be jdanted, every thing will depend on the use which is intended to be made of the ground. Where the soil is to be pastured or dug, they may be planted in quincunx and close; but where it is to be ploughed, they should either be planted in rows with sufficient space between for one broad, or two ordinary ridges; or they should be planted in squares to admit of ploughing both east and west, and north and south. 3794. The Herefordshire orchardists recommend that the rows should extend from north to south, as in that direction each part of every tree will receive the most equal portions of light and heat. The distance between each row, as well as the space between each tree, should depend on the situation and soil. Where the former is high and exposed, the trees should be closely planted to afford each other protection ; and when the latter is poor and shallow, their growth will in course be less luxuriant, and they will conse- quently require less room. But in low and sheltered situations, and in deep and rich soils, widel" intervals should be allowed. In the former instances, twelve yards between each row, and six between each tree, are sufficient ; in the latter, twenty-four yards between each row, and eight between each tree, will not be too much. 3795. As a general guide as to distance, Nicol states the ultimate space at which apple and pear trees should stand, in a properly planted and close orchard, as from thirty to forty feet, less or more, according to the quality of the soil ; taking, as the medium, thirty- six feet. In a poor soil and a bleak exposure, where the trees may not be expected to grow very freely, thirty feet is sufficient; whereas in good soil, and a sheltered situation, forty may not be too much. Cherries and plums may be planted at from twenty-four to thirty-six feet, according to soil and situation, as above, taking, as a medium, thirty feet for the ultimate distance at which they are to stand clear of one another. But it would be advisable, in the first instance, to plant four trees for one that is intended ultimately to remain t planting the proper kinds at the above distances first, and then temporary plants between them each way. These temporary plants should be of the free growing sorts that begin to bear early; such as the nonsuch and hawthorndean apples, the May-duke cherry, and the Crawford and yair pears ; or any others known to produce fruit sooner after planting. These should be considered and be treated as temporary plants from the beginning, and must give place to the principal trees as they advance in growth, by being pruned away bit and bit, and at last stubbed up entirely. In bleak situations, if forest and other hardy trees be planted among the fruit trees, it may not be necessary to plant so many (if any) temporary fruit trees ; or these may chiefly consist of the hardier sorts, such as the hawthorndean apple, the May-duke and morella cherries, and the Scotch geans, which produce fruit the soonest. 3796. In the operation of planting great care ought to be taken not to insert the plants deeper in the soil than they were before removal. Tliis is a very common ferror in every description of tree planting ; and in retentivie soils is ruinous to the tree. Sir C. M. Burrel recommends, as an useful practice, in wet soils, or where the substratum is not suited to the apple or the pear, to plant the trees on hillocks of easy ascent, as for instance one foot higher in the centre than the level of the field, and sloping gradually to that level, for three or four feet every way from the centre. By that practice, the roots Will naturally follow the good svxrface earth; whereas, if they are planted in holes, the roots are apt to shoot into ^e prejudicial subsoil, to the eventual injury of the plants, by canker and other Book II. CULTIVATING FARM ORCHARDS. 601 diseases. When trees are thus planted on small hillocks, the under -drains may pass be- tween the rows with greater utility. Sect. III. Of the Cultivation of Farm Orchards. 3797. The trees being carefully planted, watered, and tied to tall strong stakes, require little more than common attention for several years. Every autumn or spring they should be looked over, and all cross irregular shoots made during the preceding summer cut out, suckers (if any) removed from their roots, and side growths cleared from their stems. 3798. The object in jrrtining i/oung trees, Nicol observes, is to form a proper head. Generally speaking, the shoots may be pruned in proportion to their lengths, cutting clean away such as cross one another, and fanning the tree out towards the extremities on all sides; thereby keeping it equally poised, and fit to resist the effects of high winds. When it is wished to throw a young tree into a bearing state, which should not be thought of, however, sooner than the third or fourth year after planting, the leading branches should be very little shortened, and the lower or side branches not at all ; nor should the knife be used, unless to cut out such shoots as cross one another. 3799. ^fter an orchard-tree is come into bearing, Abercrorabie says, continue at the time of winter pruning, either every year, or every two, three, or four years, as an occasion is perceived, to cut out unproductive wood, crowded spray, and decayed parts. Also reduce long and outrunning ramblers and low stragglers, cutting them to some good lateral that grows within its limits. Where fruit-spurs are too numerous, then cut the strongest and most unsightly. Also keep the tree pretty open in the middle. If it be necessary to take off large branches from aged trees, use a chisel or saw, and afterwards smooth the wound with a sharp knife. In case old wood is to be cut down to young shoots springing below, to make the separation in summer will be of more advantage to those young shoots, tliough it is not a common practice, on account of the liability of many stone-fruit bearers to exude gum, when a large branch is lopped in the growing season. Observe to keep the stem clear from all lateral shoots, and eradicate all suckers from the root. 3800. On aged trees, that have run into a confusion of shoots and branches, and whose spurs have become clustered and crowded, the saw and the knife may be exercised with freedom ; observing to cut clean away all useless spray, rotten stumps, and the like useless excrescences. Thin out the spurs to a moderate consistency, so as to let the air circulate freely among the leaves and fruit in the summer season, and to admit the rays of the sun, so as to give the fruit color and flavor. 3801. In pruning the apple tree and all other standard trees. Knight observes, the points of the external branches should be every where rendered thin and pervious to the light, so that the internal parts of the tree may not be wholly shaded by the external parts : the light should penetrate deeply into the tree on every side ; but not any where through it. When the pruner has judiciously executed his work, every part of the tree, internal as well as external, will be productive of fruit ,- and the internal part, in unfavor- able seasons, will rather receive protection than injury from the external. A tree thus pruned, will not only produce much more fruit, but will also be able to support a much heavier load of it, without danger of being broken ; for any given weight will depress the branch, not simply in proportion to its quantity, but in the compound proportion of its quantity, and of its horizontal distance from the point of suspension, by a mode of action similar to that of the weight on the beam of the steel-yard; and hence a hundred and fifty pounds, suspended at oiae foot distance from the trunk, will depress the branch which supports it no more than ten pounds at fifteen feet distance would do. Every tree will, therefore, support a larger weight of fruit without danger of being broken in proportion as the parts of such weight are made to approach nearer to its centre. 3802. IFhere a tree is stinted, or the head ill shaped, from being originally badly pruned. Or barren from having overborne itself, or from constitutional weakness, the most expe- ditious remedy is to head down the plant to within three, four, or five eyes (or inches, if an old tree) of the top of the stem, in order to furnish it with a new head. The recovery of a languishing tree, if not too old, will be further promoted by taking it up at the same time, and pruning the roots ; for as, on the one hand, the depriving too luxuriant a tree of part even of its sound healthy roots will moderate its vigor ; so, on the other, to relieve a stinted or sickly tree of cankered or decayed roots ; to prune the extremities of sound roots ; and especially to shorten the dangling tap-roots of a plant, affected by a bad subsoil ; is, in connection with heading down or very short pruning, the renovation of the soil, and draining, the most availing remedy that can be tried. 3803. A tree often becomes stinted from an accumulation of moss, which aflfects the functions of tlie bark, and 1-enders the tree unfruitful. This evil is to be removed by Scraping the stem and branches of old trees ; and on young trees a bard brush will effect 602 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the purpose. Wherever the bark is decayed or cracked, Abercrombie and Forsyth direct its removal. Lyon, of Edinburgh, has lately carried this practice to so great a length as even to recommend the removal of part of the bark of young trees. Practical men, in general, however, confine the operation to cracked bark which nature seems to attempt throwing off; and the effect in rendering the tree more fruitful and luxuriant, is acknowledged by Neill, in his Accourd of Scottish Gardening and Orchards^ and by different writers in The London and Edinburgh Horticultural Transactions. 3804. The other diseases to which orchard trees are subject are chiefly the canker, gum, mildew, and blight, which, as we have already observed, are rather to be prevented by such culture as will induce a healthy state, than to be remedied by topical applications. Too much lime, Sir H. Davy thinks, may bring on the canker, and if so, the replacing a part of such soil with alluvial or vegetable earth, would be of service. The gum, it is said, may be constitutional, arising from offensive matter in the soil; or local, arising from external injury. In the former case, improve the soil ; in the latter, apply the knife. The mildev/, it is observed by T. A. Knight and Abercrombie, " may be easily subdued at its appearance, by scattering flour of sulphur upon the infected parts. " As this disease is now generally considered the growth of parasitical fungi, the above remedy is likely to succeed. For the blight and caterjnllars, Forsyth recommends burning of rotten wood, weeds, po- tatoe haulm, wet straw, &c. on the windward side of the trees when they are in blossom. He also recommends washing the stems and branches of all orchard trees with a mixture of ^' fresh cow-dung with urine and soaj)'Suds, as a whitewasher would wash the ceiling or walls of a room." The promised advantages are, destruction of insects and "fine bark;" more especially, he adds, " when you see it necessary to take all the outer bark off*." 3805. With the Herefordshire orchardists jiruning is not in general use; the most ap- proved method is that of rendering thin and pervious to the light, the points of the external branches, so that the internal branches of the tree may not be wholly shaded by the external parts. Large branches should rarely or never be amputated. The instrument generally used for the purpose of pruning, is a strong flat chisel, fixed to a handle six feet or more in length, having a sharp edge on one of its sides, and a hook on the other. {Knight's Treatise on the Apple and Pear. ) 3806. TAe cu^^Mre o/"//te 5oi/ among orchard trees is always attended with advantage; though it can so seldom be properly conducted in farm orchards, that in most cases it is better to lay them down with grass seeds for pasture. To plough between the trees and take corn crops, even if manure is regularly given, cannot be any great advantage unless a space of six or eight feet radius is left round each tree. If such a space is left, and yearly dug but not cropped, the trees will thrive well; and a ridge between each two rows may be sown with corn. The greater number of orchards in Herefordshire and Gloucestershire are under pasture ; but the most productive are those trees grown in hop grounds. In Kent, in some instances, the interspaces of young orchards are occupied by hops, in others by filberts, and in grown orchards tile latter are sometimes seen. Some old orchards are likewise in permanent sward, others under arable or garden crops, and some in saintfoin, while others are in lucern. Sect. IV. Of the Gathering and Keeping of Orchard Fruits. 3807. The gathering of orchard fruits, and especially apples, should be performed in such a manner as not to damage the branches, or break off" the fruit spurs or buds. Too frequently the fruit is allowed to drop, or they are beat and bruised by shaking the tree and using long poles, &c. Nicol directs that they should never be allowed to drop of themselves, nor should they be shaken down, but should be pulled by the hand. This may be thought too troublesome a method ; but every body knows that bruised fruit will not keep, nor will it bring a full price. The expense of gathering, therefore, may be more than defrayed, if carefully done, by saving the fruit from blemish. 3808. With regard to keeping of kernel fruits, the old practice, and that recommended by Marshal and Forsyth, commences witli sweating, though Nicol, and other modern gardeners, omit this process. Marshal, the author of An Introduction to Gardening, observes that those fruits which continue long for use should be suffered to hang late^ even to November, if the frost will permit, for they must ])e well ripened, or they will shrink. Lay them on heaps till they have sweated a few days, when they must be wiped dry. Let them then lay singly, or at least thinly, for about a fortnight, and be agaiii wiped, and immediately packed in boxes and hampers, lined with double or treble sheets of paper. Place them gently in, and cover them close, so as to keep air out as much as possible. Preserve them from frost through the winter. Never use hay for the purpose. Kernel fruits and nuts keep no where better than when mixed and covered witli sand in a dry cool cellar in the manner of potatoes. Buried in pits well protected from moisture, russets have been found to keep perfectly fresh a year from the time of their being gathered. The keeping of cider fruits is not approved of, it being found best tor Book II. MANUFACTURE OF CIDER. 603 crush them after they have been thinly spread for a few days on a dry boarded floor. Many of the Herefordshire growers carry them direct from the tree to the crushing mill. Sect. V. Of tlie Manufacture of Cider. 3809. Cider is commonli/ manufactured bi/ the grower of the fruit, though it would certainly be better for the public if it were made a distinct branch of business like brewing or distill- ing. ** The true way to have excellent cider," Marshal observes, "is to dispose of the fruit to professional cider makers. The principal part of the prime cider, sold in London and elsewhere, is manufactured by professional men ; by men who make a business of manufacturing and rectifying cider ; even as distillers, rectifiers of spirit, and brewers, follow their businesses or professions ; and like them too conduct their operations, more or less, on scientific principles." (Rev. of Agr. Rep. vol. ii. p. 294.) It is allowed on all hands that the operation is most slovenly performed by the farmer, and that it is very difficult to procure this liquor in good quality. The operation of cider making is as simple as that of wine making or brewing, and will be perfectly understood from the following directions, chiefly drawn from the-treatises of Crocker and Knight, that any person possessing an orchard, or a few hedge-row fruit trees, may make a supply for'his own use. The first business is the gathering and preparation of the fruit; the se- cond, grinding and pressing ; and the last, fermenting and bottling. 3810. In gathering cider apples, care should be taken that they be thoroughly ripe before they are taken from the tree ; otherwise the cider will be of a rough harsh taste, in spite of all the endeavors of the operator. It is observed by Crocker, in his tract on The Art of Making and Managing Cider, that the most certain indications of the ripeness of apples, is the fragrance of their smell, and their spontaneously drop- ping from the trees. When they are in this state of maturity, in a dry day, the limbs may, he says, be slightly shaken, and partly disburdened of their golden store ; thus taking such apples only as are ripe, and leaving the unripe longer on the trees, that they may also acquire a due degree of maturity. It may not, he thinks, be amiss to make three gatherings of the crop, keeping each by itself. The latter gathering, as well as wind-falls, can however only be employed in making inferior cider : the prime cider must be drawn from the former gatherings. 3811. On the proper mixture of fruits, or rather on their proper separation, the merit of cider will always greatly depend. Those whose rinds and pulp are tinged M'itb green, or red without any mixture of yellow, as that color will disappear in the first stages of fermentation, should be carefully kept apart from such as are yellow, or yellow intermixed with red. The latter kinds, which should remain on the trees till ripe enough to fall without being much shaken, are alone capable of making fine cider. Each kind should be collected separately, as noticed above, and kept till it becomes perfectly mellow. For this purpose, in the common practice of the countrj^, they are placed in heaps of ten inches or a foot thick, and exposed to the sun and air, and rain ; not being ever coveted, except in very severe frosts. The strength and flavor of the future liquor are increased by keeping the fruit under cover some time before it is ground ; but unless a situation can be aflforded it, in which it is exposed to a free current of air, and where it can be spread very thin, it is apt to contract an unpleasant smell, which will much affect the cider produced from it. Few farms are provided with proper buildings for this purpose on a large scale, and the improvement of the liquor will not nearly pay the expense of erecting them. It may reasonably be supposed, that much water is absorbed by the fruit in a rainy season ; but the quantity of juice yielded by any given quantity of fruit will be found to diminish as it becomes more mellow, even in very wet weather, provided it be ground when thoroughly dry. The advantages, there- fore, of covering the fruit will probably be much less than may at first sight be expected. No criterion appears %o be known, by which the most proper point of maturity in the fruit can be ascertained with accuracy; but it improves as long as it continues to ac- quire a deeper shade of yellow. Each heap should be examined prior to its being ground, and any decayed or green fruit carefully taken away. The expense of this will be very small, and will be amply repaid by the excellence of the liquor, and the ease with which too great a degree of fermentation may be prevented. (Crocker.) 3812. In grinding theajyples into pommage, several methods are practised ; but the two most chiefly in use are by the bruising-stone with a circular trough (fg. 462.), and the apple-mill. In the trough, the apples are thrown in and bruised by the motion of the stone, as it is moved round by a horse, in the way that tanners grind bark. This is an ancient method, and still in use in some parts of Devonshire ; and although it has its inconveniences in bruising some apples too much and some too little, it is not without its advocates in those parts of the country, the inhabitants of which allege that it bruises the kernels of the fruit better than otlier machines. 604 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3813. The a}^)le-mill is an iron machine. Where iron-mills have been tried, this metal has been found to be soluble in the acid of apples, to which it communicates a brown color and an unpleasant taste. No combination has been ascertained to take place between this acid and lead; but as the calx of this metal readily dissolves in, and communicates an*extremely poisonous quality to, the acetous juice of the apple, it should never be sufifered to come into contact with the fruit or liquor. {Knight on the Apple and Pear. ) 3814. Whether the pommage shovld immediately after grinding be conveyed to the press, there to be formed into a kind of cake, or what is called the cheese ; or whether it should remain some time in that state before pressing, ciderists have not agreed. Some say it should be pressed immediately after grinding ; others conceive it best to suffer it to remain in the grinding-trough, or in vats employed for the purpose, for twenty-four hours, or even two days, that it may acquire not only a redness of color, but also that it may form an extract with the rind and kernels. Both extremes are, Crocker thinks, wrong. There is an analogy, he says, between the making of cider from apples, and wine from grapes ; and the method which the wine-maker pursues ought to be followed by the cider-maker. When the pulp of the grapes has lain some time in the vats, the vintager thrusts his hand into the pulp, and takes some from the middle of the mass; and when he perceives, by the smell, that the luscious sweetness is gone off, and that his nose is affected with a slight piquancy, he immediately carries it to the press, and by a light pressure expresses his prime juice. In like manner, should the ciderist determine the time when his pulp should be carried to the press. If he carry it immediately from the mill to the press, he might lose some small advantage which may be expected from the rind and kernels, and his liquor may be of lower color than he might wish. If he suffer it to remain too long unpressed, he will find to his cost that the acetous ferment- ation will come on before the vinous is perfected, especially in the early part of the cider- making season. He will generally find that his pulp is in a fit state for pressing in about twelve or sixteen hours. If he must of necessity keep it in that state longer, he will find a sensible heat therein, which will engender a premature fermentation ; and he must not delay turning it over, thereby to expose the middle of the mass to the in- fluence of the atmosphere. Knight's opinion is, however, that it should remain twenty- four hours before it is taken to the press. 3815. The pommage being carried to the press, and a square cake or cheese made of it, by placing very clean sweet straw or reed between the various layers of pommage ; or by putting the same into the hair-cloths, and placing them one on another. It is of importance that the straw or weed be sweet, and perfectly free from any fustiness. lest the cider be impregnated therewith. Particular care ought also to be taken to keep bair-cloths sweet, by frequently washing and drying, or the ill effects of their acidity will be communicated to the cider. To this cake or cheese, after standing awhile, a slight pressure is at first to be given, which must be gradually increased until all the must or juice is expressed ; after which, this juice must be strained through a coarse hair-sieve, to keep back the gross feculencies of the juice, and be put into proper vessels. These vessels may be either open vats or close casks ; but as, in the time of a plentiful crop of apples, a number of open vats may by the ciderest be considered an incumbrance in his cider-rooms, they should be generally carried immediately from the press to the cask. Thus far, says Crocker, cider-making is a mere manual operation, performed with very little skill in the operator ; but here it is that the great art of making good cider com- mences ; nature soon begins to work a wonderful change in this foul-looking, turbid, fulsome, and unwholesome fluid; and, by the process of fermentation alone, converts it into a wholesome, vinous, salubrious, heart-cheering beverage. 3816. Fermentation is an intestine motion of the parts of a fermentable body. This motion, in the present case, is always accompanied with an evident ebullition, the bub- bles rising to the surface, and there forming a scum or soft and spongy crust, over the whole liquor. This crust is frequently raised and broken by the air as it disengages itself from the liquor, and forces its way through it. This effect continues whilst the Book II. MANUFACTURE OF CIDER. 605 fermentation is brisk, but at last gradually ceases. The liquor now appears tolerably clear to the eye, and has a piquant vinous sharpness upon the tongue. If in this state the least hissing noise be heard in the fermenting liquor, the room is too warm, and atmospheric air must be let in at the doors and at the windows. Now, continues Crocker, is the critical moment which the ciderist must not lose sight of; for, if he would have a strong, generous, and pleasant liquor, all further sensible fermentation must be stopped. This is best done by racking oft' the pure part into open vessels, which must be placed in a more cool situation for a day or two ; after which it may again be barrelled, and placed in some moderately-cool situation for the winter. The Herefordshire cider-farmers, after the cider has perfected its vinous fermentation, place their casks of cider in open sheds throughout the winter ; and, when the spring advances, give the last racking, and then cellar it. In racking, it is advisable that the stream from the racking-cock be small, and that the receiving-tub be but a small depth below the cock, lest, by exciting a violent motion of the parts of the liquor, another fermentation be brought up. The feculence of the cider may be strained through a filtering-bag, and placed among the second-rate ciders ; but by no means should it be returned to the prime cider. In this situation the cider will, in course of time, by a sort of insensible fermentation, not only drop the remainder of its gross lees, but will become transparent, highly vinous, and fragrant. 3817. According to Knight, after the fermentation has ceased, and the liquor is become clear and bright, it should instantly be drawn off*, and not suffered on any account again to mingle with its lees ; for these possess much the same properties as yeast, and would inevi- tably bring on a second fermentation. The best criterion to judge of the proper moment to rack oft* will be, the brightness of the liquor ; and this is always attended with external marks, which serve as guides to the cider-maker,- The discharge of fixed air, which always attends the progress of fermentation, has entirely ceased ; and a thick crust, formed of fragments of the reduced pulp, raised by the buoyant air it contains, is col- lected on the surface. The clear liquor being drawn oft* into another cask, the lees are put into small bags, similar to those used for jellies : through these whatever liquor the lees contain gradually filtrates, becoming perfectly bright ; and it is then returned to that in the cask, in which it has the eflPect, in some measure, of preventing a second ferment- ation. It appears to have undergone a considerable change in the process of filtration. Its color is remarkably deep, its taste harsh and flat, and it has a strong tendency to be- come acetous ; probably by having given out fixed and absorbed vital air. Should it become acetous, which it will frequently do in forty-eight hours, it must not on any ac- count be put into the cask. If the cider, after being racked oflT, remains bright and quiet, nothing more is to be done to it till the succeeding spring ; but if a scum collects on the surface, it must immediately be racked off" into another cask ; as this would pro- duce bad effects if suffered to sink. If a disposition to ferment with violence again appears, it will be necessary to rack off* from one cask to another, as often as a hissing noise is heard. The strength of cider is much reduced by being frequently racked off*; but this arises only froaia a larger portion of sugar remaining unchanged, which adds to the sweetness at the expense of the other quality. The juice of those fruits, which pro- duce very strong ciders, often remains muddy during the whole winter, and much atten- tion must frequently be paid to prevent an excess of fermentation. 3818. The casks, into which the liquor is put whenever racked off*, should always have been thoroughly scalded, and dried again ; and each should want several gallons of being full, to expose a larger surface to the air. 3819. The above precautions neglected by the ciderist, the inevitable consequence will be this : Another fermentation will quickly succeed, and convert the fine vinous liquor he was possessed of into a sort of vinegar ; and all the art he is master of will never restore it to its former richness and purity. When the acetous fermentation has been suflfered to come on, the following attempts may be made to prevent the ill eff*ects of it from running to their full extent. A bottle of French brandy ; half a gallon of spirit extracted from the lees of cider ; or a pail-full of old cider, poured into the hogshead soon after the acetous fermentation is begun : but no wonder if all these should fail, if the cider be still continued in a close warm cellar. To give eff*ect to either, it is necessary that the liquor be as much exposed to a cooler air as conveniently may be, and that for a con- siderable length of time. By such means it is possible fermentation may, in a great measure, be repressed: and if a cask of prime cider cannot from thence be obtained, a cask of tolerable second-rate kind may. These remedies are innocent ; ])ut if the far- mer or cider-merchant attempt to cover the accident, occasioned by negligence or inat- tention, by applying any preparation of lead, let him reflect, that he is about to commit an absolute and unqualified murder on those whose lot it may be to drink his poisonous draught. 3820. Stumming, which signifies the fuming a cask with burning sulphur, may sonie- times be advantageous. It is thus performed : Take a stripe of canvas cloth, about twelve 606 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. inches long and two broad ; let it be dipped into melted brimstone : when this match is dry, let it be lighted, and suspended from the bung of a cask (in which there are a few gallons of cider) until it be burnt out. The cask must remain stopped for an hour or more, and be then rolled to and fro, to incorporate the fumes of the match with the cider ; after which it may be filled. If the stumming be designed only to suppress some slight, improper fermentation, the brimstone-match is sufficient ; but if it be required to give any additional flavor to the cider, some powdered ginger, cloves, or cinnamon, &c, may be strewed on the match when it is made. The burning these ingredients with the sul- phur will convey somewhat of their fragrance to the whole cask of cider ; but to do it to the best advantage, it must be performed as soon as the vinous fermentation is fully perfected. 3821. Cider is generally in the best state to he put into the bottle at two years old, where it will soon become brisk and sparkling ; and if it possesses much richness, it will remain with scarcely any sensible change during twenty or thirty years, or as long as the cork duly performs its office. 3822. In making cider for the common use of the farm- house, few of the foregoing rules are attended to. The flavor of the liquor is here a secondary consideration with the far- mer, whose first object must be to obtain a large quantity at a small expense. The apples are usually ground as soon as they become moderately ripe ; and the juice is either racked off at once as soon as it becomes bright, or more frequently conveyed from the press im- mediately to the cellar. A violent fermentation soon commences, and continues until nearly the whole of the saccharine part is decomposed. The casks are filled up and stopped early in the succeeding spring, and no further attention is either paid or required. The liquor thus prepared may be kept from two to five or six years in the cask, accord- ing to its strength. It is generally harsh and rough, but rarely acetous ; and in this state, it is usually supposed to be preferred by the farmers and peasantry. When it has become extremely thin and harsh by excess of fermentation, the addition of a small quan- tity of bruised wheat, or slices of toasted bread, or any other farinaceous substance, will much diminish its disposition to become sour. 3823. The produce of cider or perry by the acre, can only be guessed at, by first ascer- taining the number of trees. From an orchard of trees, in full bearing, half a hogshead of cider may, in seasons ordinarily favorable, be expected from the fruit of each tree. As the number of trees on the acre varies from ten to forty, the quantity of cider must vary in the same proportion, that is, from five to twenty hogsheads. Pear-trees, in equally good bearing, yield fully one-third more liquor : therefore, although the liquor extracted from pears sells at a lower price than that produced from apples, yet the value by the acre, when the number of trees is the same, is nearly on a par. Sect. VI. Of the Machinery and Utensils necessary for Cider making, 3824. The machinery of the common ciderist, includes the mill-house, mill, press, cloth, vat, and cask, with their appurtenances. 3825. Marshal, in The Rural Economy of Gloucestershire, remarks, that a mill-house, on an orchard-farm, is as necessary as a barn. It is generally one end of an out-build- intr ; or, perhaps, an open shed, under which straw or small implements are occasionally laid up. The smallest dimensions, to render it any way convenient, are twenty -four feet by twenty ; a floor thrown over it, at seven feet high ; a door in the middle of the front, and a window opposite ; with the mill on one side, the press on the other side of the window ; as much room being left in front, towards the door, for fruit and utensils, as the nature of the mill and the press will allow. The utensils belonging to a mill-house are few : the fruit is brought in carts or baskets, and the liquor carried out in pails. 3g26. Oftlie common cider mill {Jig. 462.), there jjH?, ___^ are several varieties formed on the principles of the 463 ^gg^^fmrni W= ■■ ^==SJjiilii^B?Tte^ bark mills of tanners. The circle enclosed by the '^0^^mBm ^^^=^ ' __^^^^^lffl^ trough is sometimes divided into compartments for B^^^^BM ^ llfHBm containing different varieties of the same fruit |W^g=gfflMB ; ./W"^*%t>--------*»l8^yJ (_/!/)■, 463.) The size of the runner varies from two I^^hmMf y^^^Lv^^^^^^^^^^^^^i and a half to four and a half feet diameter, and from ^^■|K1|SB^^^^^=^^^^^^^^^=^^^|| i nine to twelve inches in thickness; which, in gene- 'SS^^S^^^mi\z^^r^ — IT^' ' ^ modes of employment and subsistence, the bond which had hitherto con- nected the landlord and cultivator became more and more feeble, and it was soon found necessary to establish it upon other foundations than those of feudal protection and dependence, the connection between landlord and tenant came gradually and generally to assume that commercial form, which is at once most conducive to their own interest, and to the general welfare. 3845. The want of capital ready to be embarked in agricultural pursuits, was one great obstacle to this change. Under the feudal system there could be little or no accumula- tion. Property in land was the only means of obtaining the command of labor, and a share of the produce its only recompence. Accordingly upon the breaking up of the feudal system, large tracts were taken into the immediate possession of landholders themselves, because no suitable tenants could be found. The constant superintendence required in cultivating corn lands, as well as the absurd restrictions of those times upon the corn trade, and the constant demand for British wool on the continent, occasioned these tracts to be laid to grass and pastured with sheep. Hence the grievous complaints, during two centuries, of the decay of husbandry and farm-houses. But this resource of land proprietors was effectual only on soils of an inferior description ; on good arable land, the only method by which a part of the produce could reach them in the shape of rent, was to enlarge their farms. The old occupiers were too numerous to spare any considerable part of the produce, and generally too indolent and unskilful to make any great exertions to augment it. In these circumstances, the landholder must either have virtually abandoned his property, or reduced the number of its inhabitants, who were no longer permitted by law to make him that return which had been the original condition of their tenures. But the population of the towns was now gradually increasing, and it was necessary, for the supply of their wants, as much for the benefit of the landholders, that a large disposable produce should be obtained from the soil. The measure of enlarging farms was, therefore, in every view, indispensable. Even such of the tenants themselves, as it was necessary to displace, might have felt but a slight and temporary inconvenience, had the change been gradual. Some of them would have found employ- ment in towns, and others as hired laborers and artisans in the country. The dismission of the small tenants seems, however, to have been the occasion of much misery ; for in the sixteenth century, manufactures and commerce had made comparatively little progress in Britain. In the present times, any length to which the private interest of landholders could operate in this manner, would in a national point of view be too inconsiderable to deserve notice. It is in this way that farms have been enlarged, the most skilful and industrious of these small tenants were naturally preferred, and their possessions afterwards enlarged as their capital increased. The consequence every where has been a better system of cultivation, affording a higher rent to the land proprietor, and a greater supply of land produce for the general consumption. 3846. The enlargement of farms can proceed only for a time and to a Very limited extent. The interest of the landlord, which gave the first impulse, is ever vigilant to check its progress, when it is attempted to carry the measure beyond due bounds. It is in this that the security of the public consists, if it were ever possible that the public Book II. ARRANGEMENT OF FARMERIES. 611 interest should be endangered by the enlargement of farms. Accordingly, in most of qux counties, a few tenants, of superior knowledge and capital, have been seen to hold con- siderable tracts of land, which, after a few years, were divided into a number of separate farms. The practice of these men is a lesson to their neighbors ; and their success never fails to bring forward, at the expiration of their leases, a number of competitors. Whenever skill and capital come to be generally diffused, there can be few instances of very large farms, if a fair competition be permitted. No individual, whatever may be his fortune and abilities, can then pay so high a rent for several farms, each of them of such a size as to give full room for the use of machinery, and other economical arrange- . ments.as can be got from separate tenants. The impossibility of exercising that vigilant superintendence, which is so indispensable in agricultural concerns, cannot long be com- pensated by any advantages which a great farmer may possess. His operations cannot be brought together to one spot, like those of the manufacturer ; the materials on which he , works are seldom in the same state for a few days, and his instruments, animated and mechanical, are exposed to a great many accidents, which his judgment and experience must be called forth instantly to repair. 3847. It has been said, indeed, that a great farmer may pay a higher rent, because he saves the family expenses of a number of small tenantS' But from what fund do these tenants maintain their families? It ought to be either from the profits of their capital, or the wages of their labor, or from both combined, and certainly not from the landlord's just share, in the shape of an abatement of rent. If they cannot pay so high a rent, it must be because their capital and labor are less productive to the public than those of the large farmer. Such men might, in most cases, be employed with more advantage, even to themselves, in some other profession. 3848. The various other reasons assigned for the great enlargement of firms are equally nugatory. There is generally no saving to the landlord in buildings and fences ; and a very small difference of rent will pay for the trouble of keeping accounts, and settling with twenty tenants instead of one. The fact certainly is, that the principal, if not the only reason why farms have been enlarged, is, the higher rent paid by their occupiers. To pay this rent, they must bring to market more produce, and this they are enabled to do, by the distribution of their crops and live stock to suitable soils and pastures ; by an economical arrangement and regular succession of labor throughout the year; by the use of machinery ; and, still more than all, perhaps, by the investment of capital in those permanent improvements, which augment both the quantity and value of their products. Rent, in fact, is an almost unerring measure of the amount of the free produce ; and there is no better criterion for determining whether a tract of country be laid out ^in farms of a proper size, than the amount of the rent paid to its proprietors. Their interest is, in this instance, completely identified with that of the great body of the people. 3849. If we examine the various sizes of farms in those districts where the most perfect freedom exists, and the best management prevails, we shall find them determined, with few exceptions, by the degree of superintendence which they require. Hence, pastoral farms are the largest ; next, such as are composed both of grazing and tillage lands ; tlien such rich soils as carry cultivated crops every year ; and, finally, the farnis near large towns, where the grower of corn gradually gives way to the market-gardener, cul- tivating his little spot by manual labor. The hills of the south of Scotland are distributed into farms of the first class ; tlie counties of Berwick and Roxburgh into those of the second ; and the smaller farms of the Lothians and of the Carse of Gowrie, where there seems to be no want of capital for the management of large farms, are a sufficient proof of the general principle which determines the size of farms. (Sup.Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) Sect. II. Of laying out Farms and Farmeries. 3850. The arrangement of farms naturally divides itself into whatever relates to the farm- ery or home stall, and what relates to the arrangement of the fields, roads, fences, and waterr courses. In a country like Britain, long under cultivation, it is but seldom that these can be brought completely under the control of the improver ; but cases occur where this may be done without restraint, as in the enclosure of large commons; and in Ireland and the highlands of Scotland, the opportunities are frequent. SuBSECT. 1. Of the Situation and Arrangement of the Farmery. 3851. The general principles of designing farmeries and cottages haviug been already treated of: we have in this place chiefly to apply them to particular cases. Thou<'h the majority of farms may be described as of mixed culture, yet there are a num- ber which are almost exclusively devoted to pasture, as mountain farms ; to meadow culture, as irrigated or overflown lands; lands in particular situations, as in fenny dis- tricts, and those situated on the borders of some description of rivers : — there are others in which peculiar crops are chiefly raised, as in the case of the hop and seed farms of Rr 2 6i3 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Kent, Essex, and Surrey. AH these require a somewhat diflferent kind and extent of accommodation in the farm buildings. 3852. The requisites for a farmery common to most characters of farms are, a centrical situation, neither too high nor too low, shelter, water, exposure to the south or south- east, in preference to other points ; a level or flat area of sufficient extent for the build- ings, yards, and gardens ; grass-land sufficient for one or more small enclosures ; and suitable outlets to the different parts of the farm, and to public roads and markets. 3853. Some of these requisites may be supplied by ar^, as shelter, by plantations; water, by wells and ponds ; a flat, by levelling ; grass-lands, by culture ; and the direction of the roads depends entirely on the designer. But in some cases the situation of the farmery cannot be rendered centrical, as frequently happens in the fenny districts of Cambridgediire, where danger might be incurred from extraordinary floods ; and in the case of mountainous sheep farms, where a centrical situation might be so elevated as to be deprived of most of the other requisites. Still, even in these cases, the general requi- sites ought to be attained as far as practicable, and there are degrees of attainment as to a centrical situation to be arrived at, even among fens and mountains. 3854. Excellent examples of different descriptions of farmeries, are to be found in Ber- wickshire, Northumberland, East Lothian, and on the Marquess of Staffiard's estates in Shrc^shire, Staffordshire, and Sutherland. Besides a great number of cottages and farm- eries of different descriptions, thirty-seven new farmeries have been erected by the Marquess of Stafford, in Shropshire alone. Loch, Lord Stafford's agent, in describing these (^Ac- count of Improvements on the M. of Stafford's Estates, ^c), states, that " much attention and consideration has been given to the plans of these buildings, with the view of combining as many advantages as possible, and of arranging the different parts in such a way, as to save the time of the tenant and his people, and in order that their extent might be reduced to the least size practicable, securing at the same time the accommodation re- quired. The most approved plans in both ends of the island were consulted, and a gradual improvement has been made on them. The latter ones combine the advantages of the English and Scotch buildings, avoiding, it is hoped, their respective defects. To almost every one of these homesteads is attached a threshing machine, constructed on the best principles; wherever water could be obtained, tliat has been made use of as the impelling power ; and of late, some of the more extensive farms have been provided with steam-engines for that purpose." 3855. In selecting a few of these examples, the first we shall mention is that of Sidera or Cider Hall, in Sutherland, erected in 1818. The soil of this farm is of a light and excellent quality, particularly suited to the Norfolk rotation of husbandry, which is followed by Rule, the new tenant, a native of the county of Roxburgh. The house and homestead cost 220(V. It is built in the most sufficient manner, of stone and lime, and covered with Easdale slate, from the west coast of Scotland. In the garden, which is an old one, there are several apple, pear, and gean, or small black cherry trees, of so considerable a size, with some of the finest holly trees to be met with any where, as to rfiovv that there is nothing in the climate to prevent the growth of even the more delicate kinds of timber, if not exposed to the sea breeze. 3856. The accommodations of the house Qxe, on ihQ groxxnA floor, a parlor, lobby, and staircase, family room, pantry, kitchen, open yard, and flower-garden ; of the chamber story, a bed-room and -bed-closet, two bed-rooms, maid-servant's room, and bed-room. The offices contain a cart-house, stable, tool-house, threshing-mill, and straw-house, horse-course, cattle-sheds, dairy, calf-pen, cow-byre, feeding-byre, boothy {i. e. booth or lodge) for ploughman ; pigstyes, and poultry above ; paved way, and cattle-yards. 3857. As an example of a Northumberland farmery for a farm of from 400 to 500 acres, we have recourse to The Gen. Rep. of Scotland. The accommodations are as fol- low : in the dwelling-house are the entrance, stairs to chambers, and cellars, and lobby, dining-room, pantry, coal-closet, parlor, business-room, kitchen, back kitchen, dairy, store- room, poultry, farm servants' kitchen, boiling-house, root-house, riding-horse stable. In the economical buildings are a cart-shed, straw-barn, and granary over ; corn-barn, hinds, byre for three cows, byre for ten cows, with feeding passage in the centre ; calf-house, loose horse place, stable, feeding sheds for cattle, with feeding passage along tlie centre ; pigs, dung-places, straw-yards, cart-shed, and open court. The aspect of the house is south, and the garden and orchard are in front of it. 3858. As an example of a very complete farmery for a turiiip and barley soil, we give that of Fearn {fig. 465.), erected by the Marquess of Stafford in the parish of Escall Magna, in Shropshire, in 1820. The farm contains 460 acres of turnip soil ; and the farmery the following accommodations, including a threshing machine, driven by steam. In the house are two parlors (a, a), family-room (6), brew-house, two stories (c), pantry (dj, milk-house (e), kitchen {f], bed-rooms {g), men servant's bed-room (/j). In the court offices a hackney-stable {i), stair under-cover ik), waggon-shed, and granary over (/}, tool-house im), cow-house (»), places for turnips and straw {o,p), steam-engine (q), Book II. ARRANGEMENT OF FARMERIES. 61S bam (r), straw or other cattle-food (s), stall-fed cattle (t), stables (u), turnip-houses (v), piggeries, poultry, tools, and necessary (w), cattle-sheds to each yard (x). R SI h — j:i-5_izljii V V V { W°^° □ y D dU Zl 1 II \ / 3859. As an example of a farmery to he managed by a bailiffs we give that of Skelfcoy also in Sutherland. The farm consists of 450 acres, the greater part taken from a heathery waste. It contains a suitable house for the grieve or bailiff, and attached ia the oflSces are a threshing machine, combining a corn or meal-mill. Its accommoda-^ R r 3 614 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III ~r . 1 1 ill 466 n pftD n n nnn tions are a chaff-house, corn-rooms, threshing-mill, with water-wheel and straw-house ; cattle-sheds, poultry-houses, and piggery ; stables, byres, cart-shed, cattle-shed, dairy, meal-house, lodge for ploughmen, paved way, and cattle-yards. 3860. As an example of a small farmery in the county of Stafford, we select that of Knollwall. {fig. 466.) The extent is 104 acres ; the soil is strong and rather wet, and there are some water and other meadows. The house and yard-buildings are of brick and tile, and their accommodations are, a kitchen (a), brew-house (6), parlor (c), sit- ting-room {d)y pantry (e), milk-house {f), court-yard open fg), coals {h), hackney- stable {i)y turkey-house {k), pigstyes (/), waggon-horse stable (m), corn-bay (n), barn (o), straw bay (;>), cow-tyings \q), fodder-bins (r), calf-houses (s), and waggon- shed, granary over, connected with barn, {t) 3861. As an example of a middle-sized farmery on a clayey soil, we may refer to that of Newstead, in Staffordshire. This farm contains 314 acres, and the tenant. Ford, is said to be an example to the whole country. The accommodations of the farmery are, in the dwelling-house, a house-place and kitchen, master's-room, brew-house, dairy, pantry, parlor, bed-rooms, cheese-room, attics. In the court a shed for waggons, with granary over, hackney stable, waggon - horse stable, cattle-sheds, turnip-houses, fodder-house, straw-bays, threshing-mill, with water-wheel, corn-bay, tool-house, workshop, bay for unthreshed corn, small granary, and pigstyes. 3862. As an example of an economical farmery for a farm of 50 or 60 acres, we copy from The General Report of Scotland. The accommodations are ; in the house, a kitchen, parlor, store-room, pantry, with three bed-rooms, and a light closet over ; closet, milk-room, and scullery. In the economical buildings are a stable, with a loose stall, byre for ten cows, cattle-shed, barn, cart-shed, with granary over ; pigstyes and cattle- yard. This appears one of the most compact and eligible plans for the farmeries of arable farms under 100 acres. 3863. As an improved Berwickshire farmery, we submit another specimen from The General Report. Its accommodations are calculated for a farm of 600 acres, and consist, in the dwelling-house range, of a porch, lobby, dining-room, parlor, kitchen, scullery, coal-place, store-room, dairy, pantry, business-room, poultry, steaming-house, bailiff 's- room. The economical buildings contain a riding-horse stable, tool-house, cart- shed, with granary over ; corn-barn, straw-barn, feeding-house for 36 head of cattle, root-house, byre for cows, calf-pens, stable for ten horses, pigs, with yard and troughs, cattle-sheds, dung-basin, and urinarium under ; cattle-yards, cart-road paved, rick- yard, mill track, open court, lawn, garden, and orchard. 3864. A farmery for a turnip soil of from 600 to 900 acres, from the same work, deserves consideration as a very complete specimen of arrangement. Omitting the farm-house, the economical buildings contain a stable, cow-house, servants' cow, root- house, young horses stable, straw-barn, corn-barn, stable, cart-shed, place for pickling, wheat, killing sheep, or other odd jobs; feeding-house, carpenter's workshop, pigs, geese, common poultry, turkeys, pigs, cattle-sheds, dung and straw court with urinariums in the centre of each, paved cart-road round, open court between the yard and dwelling- house-rick -yard, paddocks of old pasture, ponds for drinking and washing the horses' legs. 3865. The accommodations for a farm-house, suitable to such a design and to the style of life which the person who can occupy such a farm is entitled to enjoy, are as follow : — In the parlor story there is a lobby with staircase to chambers and cellars, drawing-room, bed-room, a family work-room, dining-room, business-room, kitchen, barrack-room or man-servant's room, &c. ; store-room, dairy, and on the first-floor two best bed-rooms, two other bed-rooms, bed-closets, and another closet ; over are servants' rooms. 3866. As a farmery for an arable farm n^SiX London of 350 acres {fig. 467.), we shall give as an example one erected (with some variations) in the county of Middlesex, in 1810. It is to be observed, that in Middlesex farming, a great object is hay, especially meadow hay for the London market, which gives rise to the covered spaces for loaded carts [x) ; it being the custom to load the carts at night, place them under cover, and yoke and go on the road early the following morning. The accommodations of this farmery Book II. ARRANGEMENT OF FARMERIES. 615 467 r are, in the dwelling-house, a lobby and stair (a), dining-room (6), drawing-room and green-house (c), a housekeeper's room, nursery or butler's pantry {d), dairy (e), kitchen {/), back kitchen and brew-house (g), gig-house or coach-house (/«]j small stable (t), harness-room and stjiir to mens' room and hay-loft (Jc). In the economical buildings are a granary [1), pigs (m), carts or odd articles (71), water-closet (0), poultry (;;)> litter for the stable {q^, stable for twelve horses (r), chaff-room (5), litter («), room for cutting hay into chaff (w), places for horse food, or straw, hay, &c. (v), cattle sheds (w), open colonade for loaded hay-carts (a:), straw end of barn [y], corn-floor (z), unthreshed corn and corn-floor (^), machine (1), mill course (2), cows (3), cow-food (4), calves (5)» bailiff's house (6) , implements (7), wood-house, coals, &c. (8), kitchen-court to i^iaster's house (9), garden (10), poultry-yard (11), bailiff's garden (12), lawn, shrubbery, and sheep-walk (13), pond (14), rickyard (15), stack-stands (16), urinarium (17). 3867. In the elevations of this farmery {Jig. 468,), some attention has been paid tp effect, by intermingling tiees, chiefly oaks, tJborns, and honeysuckles.^ 468 R r 4 616 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3868. An anomalous design of a farmery for a hay-farm {fig. 469.), calculated for effect and for inspection from the sitting-room (a, a) contains the following economical buildings : — A poultry-house with granary over (o), a chaise-house with men's room over (6), rabbits (c), tools (rf), carts (e), open sheds for carts or other implements (/), sick horse or cow, &c. (g), pigs {h), stable (i), calves (A:\ cows (Z), open passage lighted from above and pump (m), saddle-horse, &c. (n), straw (o), chafF-cutting room (;j), hand- threshing-machine (9), unthreshed corn (r), loaded carts of hay (s, t), hay-ricks with roof moveable on wheels to protect the hay while binding (m), ponds {v), lawn (ly), yard {x). Sitting in the circular room (a, a), the master may look down the light passage which has a wire door, and along the oblique front of the buildings, and see every door that is opened. He may also, as appears by the elevation {fig, 470.) see thfe ineii binding bay under the moveable covers. Book IL ARRANGEMENT OF FARMERIES. CI7 3869. jin anomalous design for a corn and stall'/eeding-fami (Jig. 471.), in stacks are built on the tops of the stables, cattle, and cart-sheds (a), may be pleasing in effect; but not likely to be so use- ful as the more simple plans. The hay, roots, and straw, are stacked in the central circle (6), and very readily sup- plied to the stable (c), cow-stalls (d), or feed- ing yards (e). The threshing-machine (/), is driven by water which is supplied by a cir- cuitous route (g), from the pond near the house (h). The elevation (Jig. 472.), has a good effect which tlJe noticed as 618 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. when all the stacks are in their places, and untouched ; but as they are removed to the barn the appearance of the flat-roofed sheds will not be so consonant to established notions of beauty and neatness. 3870. A farmery for a meadow-farm of 250 acres near London {fig. 473.), ™ay be arranged as follows : — The house may contain a porch, lobby, and stair to chambers and 473 cellars (a), parlor (6), bed-room or study (c), pantry (rf), kitchen (e), lumber-room (/), business-room (g), back kitchen (Ji), coal cellar, and maid's room over (i), wood-house (Ar), yard and pump (Z), pigs (m), chaise {n), poultry (o), tools and roots, &c. (p), two stalls, and a saddle and harness place {q), harrows and large implements, &c. (r), bailiff's house or men's lodge (s), cows [t], chaff-cutting room, and granary over (w), straw-barn (v), corn-floor (w), unthreshed corn (x), stable and stall for litter (;/), loaded or empty carts and implements (s), watering-trough (^ , rick-stands (1), bailiff's garden (2), master's garden (3), lawn (4), paddock of old grass (5). 3871. An anomalous design for a turnip farm of 500 acres (fg. 474.), contains a dwelling-house (a), on an eminence commanding not only the farmery (6), but great part of the farm. It is surrounded by the ricks for shelter (c), and by a pond (rf), which drives the threshing-machine (e), and forms a foreground to the distant scenery. There is a large feeding-shed (/), a bailiff's house and garden (g), and the other usual accommodations. The elevation of the feeding -sheds and end of the barn looking towards the house is simple and not inelegant, (fg. 116.) Farmeries of this sort are not submitted as examples for general imitation ; but merely as sources of ideas to such as have the designing of this species of rural buildings, for employers who have a taste for design and for originality, and who can afford to gratify that taste. It is a poor business, and one which never can procure much applause, when a proprietor of wealth and cultivated mind, erects for his own use the same sort of farmery, or, indeed, any other buildings, as the tenants who support him. In East Lothian, Berwickshire, North- umberland, and on the Marquess of Stafford's estates both in England and Scotland, are some noble examples of substantial, commodious, and even elegant farmeries. (See Gen. Rej). of Scotland, and Loclis Imp. . on the Marq. of Staffvrd's Estates^ &c. 8vo* 1819.) Book II. LAYING OUT COTTAGES. 619 . SuBSECT. 2. Of laying out CoitageSi 3872. Cottage buildings include a variety of habitations from the farm-house down- wards. On a large estate there will be cottages for tradesmen and mechanics, with and without fields and gardens; others for market-gardeners and nurserymen, surrounded by gardens and orchards ; for operative manufacturers; for day laborers ; and on the farm lands near the farmeries, for ploughmen and herdsmen. The extent of ground which ought to accompany these cottages must be determined entirely by the demand ; the re- gular laborer and ploughman require the least ; and the gardener and tradesman^ who keep a horse or horses, and cow, the most. 3873. A cottage fit for a tradesman, me* chanic, or bailiflf', given in The General Report of Scotland, contains the following accommo- dations : a porch, lobby, living room, two closets with beds, pantry and dairj', fuel and lumber-place, pig, and garden. The cow is kept at the farmery, if for a bailiff; the poultry over the fuel place, and the bees on stands in the open garden. 3874. A double cottage ofordy one floor {fig- 475.) contains in each, the kitchen (a), with oven (6), pantry and dairy (c), lobby, {d), two bed-rooms {e,e), entrance door [f), front court-yard {g), pigs {h), necessaries [i]. The gardens are at each end, and the cows supposed to be kept at the farmery. 3875. A cottage on a smaller scale con- tains the entrance and stair, parlor, bed-room with two good bed-rooms over. Behind 620 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the main body of the house is a leantoo, containing the kitchen dairy and pantry, brew- ing, fuel, and lumber place. The usual appendages are detached. 3876. A double cottage for two married ploughmen, given in The General Report of Scotland^ contains a porch, and stair to bed-rooms, living-room, pantry and dairy, back kitchen, cow or pig-house, gardens, and two good bed- rooms to each. 3877. A laborer's cottage, with cow- house and piggery {fig' 476.), as com- monly contructed in the south of Scotland, is thus arranged : — the cow- house(a) and piggery (c)are in a leantoo. The dwelling contains, on the ground floor, an entrance and stair to bed-gar- rets (6), large kitchen and living-room {eU dairy and pantry (d), coal and wood (g), necessary (h), 3878. A good tradesman's cottage (fig. 477.) is thus arranged: — parlor (a), kitchen (6), closet (c), dairy and pantry (d), closet to parlor (e), tool-house (/), poultry(g), back entrance to the kitchen and fuel place (h) , back entrance to house and stair (i) ; over are two good bed-rooms ; be- hind is a small court- yard, and the garden surrounds the whole. 3879. Where cottages are erected as pic- turesque objects, various external forms and styles of design may be adopted, and at the same time the requisite degree of comfort preserved within. Three may be grouped together (fig. 478.) and each have the usual accommodations of kitchen (a), parlor (A), with the usual closets and garret bed- rooms 477 cottages of upper servants. the demesne lands of proprietors, Gothic elevations (fig. 479.), Chi- nese, Swiss, and Italian (fig. 480.), and every other variety may be adoptedi 20 23 atfttt Book II. LAYING OUT FARM LANDS. 621 3880. For entrance lodges there are many elegant designs by Gandy, Robertson, Papworth, and others : some simple and modern, and others in imitation of the elder styles of building. 3881. Avery simple entrance lodge of one story (Jig. 481,) may contain a kitchen (a), parlor and bed-room opening into it (J), pantry (c), and closet (d). Towards the road there may either be a bow projection or porch. Detached, in the garden and concealed by trees and shrubs, may be the usual appendages to comfortable cottages. SuBSECT. 3. Of laying out the Farm Lands. 3882. In arranging farm lands the principal consideration is the size and shape of the fields, and the next access to them and to the farmery by proper roads. 3883. With respect to roads, sometimes a farm is situated on both sides of a highway ; in which case all the fields may be made to open into it, either directly or through an in- tervening field. Here no private road is wanting, excepting a few yards to reach the farmery. But when, as is most generally the case, the lands are situated at a distance from a great road, and approached by a lane or bye -road, then from that bye-road a pri- vate road is required to the farmery, and a lane or lanes from it so contrived as to touch at most of the fields of the farm. In wet and clayey soils, these lanes must be formed of durable materials ; but in dry soils, provided attention be paid to fill in the cart ruts as they are formed (by the leading out of dung, or home of corn,) by small stones, gravel, or even earth, the lane may remain green ; and being fed with sheep or cattle will not be altogether lost. It is essentially necessary to make a piece of road at the gate of every enclosure, being the spot which is most frequently in use. Without this precaution, it often becomes a mire where corn is thrown down and spoiled in har- vest, or if it is attempted to avoid the mire, the gate-posts and neighboring fence are often damaged. {Communications to the Board of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 251.) 3884. With good private roads a farmer will perform his operations at much less expense, the labor of the horses will be much easier ; a greater quantity or weight of grain and other articles may be more expeditiously carried over them ; manure can be more easily conveyed to the fields ; the harvest can be carried on more rapidly ; and wear and tear of every description will be greatly reduced. {Code of Agriculture, p. 158.) 3885. The form and size of fields have too often been determined without much regard to the size of the farm, the exposure and the equability of the soil. This is the more to be regretted in the case of live fences, which ought to endure for a long course of years, and which cannot be eradicated without considerable expense. In The Code of Agriculture it is observed, that " when a whole farm is divided into fields of various sizes, it is difficult to form a plan, so as to suit a regular rotation of crops, or to keep very accurate accounts. Whereas, by having the fields in general of a large size, the whole strength of a farm, and the whole attention of the farmer is directed to one point; while an emulation is excited among the ploughmen, when they are thus placed in circumstances which admit their work to be compared. Some small fields are certainly convenient on any farm, for grazing and other purposes, to be afterwards explained. On elevated situations also, the shelter derived from small enclosures is of use. 3886. A number of small enclosures, irregularly shaped, surrounded with trees or high hedges in corn farms, and more especially in corn lands situated in a flat country, where shelter is unnecessary, is exceedingly injurious to the farmer. Besides the original expense of making the enclosures, the injury done to the crops of grain, produced by the want of a free circulation of air, and the harbor afforded to numbers of small birds; the very site of numerous hedges, with their attendant ditches, and the uncultivated slips of land on both sides of them, consume a much larger proportion of arable land than is commonly imagined. Hedges, especially if accompanied by rows of trees, greatly exhaust the ground of its fertility, nourish weeds, the seeds of which may be widely disseminated, and, by tlie ex- clusion of air, the harvesting of the crop is carried on more slowly. Even upon meadow land, small enclosures, encircled by hedges, are injurious, as they prevent the circulation of air for making or drying the hay. Small enclosures, with high hedges and trees, are also extremely injurious to the roads, in their neighborhood. 3887. With fields of a considerable size less ground is wasted, and fewer fences are to uphold. The crops of grain, being more exposed to wind, can be harvested earlier, and it suffers less from damp seasons. Small enclosures in pasture are more productive in winter, being better sheltered ; but in summer the larger and more open tlie enclosures are the better; for in hot weather both cattle and sheep always resort to the most airy places. It is easier also, when they are in pasture, to obtain a supply of water in large fields than in small ones : indeed fields are sometimes so small, that it is very difficult to procure an adequate supply of water, even in winter. But the conclusive argument in favor of large arable fields is this, that where fields are small, much time and labor are wasted by short turnings ; and it is now ascertained, " that if fields are of a regular shape, and the ridges of a proper length, five ploughs may do as much work as six 622 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. ploughs in fields of a small size, and of an irregular shape ; while every other branch of labor (such as dunging, sowing, harrowing, reaping, and carrying in the harvest), can be executed, though not altogether, yet nearly in the same proportion." (^Husb. of Scot. vol. i. p. 41. and Sup. Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) 3888. The circumstances on which the size of fields ought to depend are, the extent of the farm in which they are situated, the nature of the soil and subsoil, the rotations adopted, the number of ploughs on the farm, the inclination of the ground, its being in pasturage or otherwise, and the nature of the climate. {Code.) 3889. Extent of the farm. The size of fields ought certainly, in some measure, to depend upon the extent of the possession. In small farms near towns, from six to twelve acres may be sufficient; but where farms are of a considerable extent, fields from twenty to even fifty acres, and, in some particular cases, as high as sixty, may be used to advan- tage. In general, however, even on large farms, when permitted by local circumstances, fields of a medium size, as from fifteen to twenty-five English acres, are recommended by competent judges. 3890. Soil and subsoil. In dividing a farm into fields, the nature of the soil and sub- soil ought to be kept in view. "Where the soil is various, it would be proper to separate the light from the heavy. They are not only better calculated for different crops and different rotations, but are naturally adapted to be cultivated at different seasons. It is unfortunate, therefore, to have soils of a heterogeneous nature mingled in the same field. But where this partially takes place, for instance, where there are only one or two acres of light soil, to ten or twenty of strong soil, let the following plan be adopted : — At any slack time, either in summer or winter, more especially when the field is under fallow, employ two carts and horses with four fillers, to cover the acre or two of light soil, with the strong soil contiguous, and the soil in the field will then become more uniform. In fields where light soils predominate, the plan might be reversed. This plan, though at first expensive, is attended with such advantages, that whenever it is necessary and practicable, it ought to be carried into effect. 3891. The rotation adopted. It may be considered as a good general rule, to divide a farm according to the course of crops pursued in it ; that is to say, a farm with a rotation of six crops should have six fields, or twelve, according to circumstances. It is proper to have a whole field, if the soil be uniform, under one crop ; and every farmer of experience knows the comfort of having the produce of the farm as equal every year as the soil and season will admit of. 3892. Number of ploughs. It is likewise proper that the size of fields should be some- what in proportion to the number of horses and ploughs on the farm. For instance, where six two-horse ploughs are kept, and where it is difficult, from the nature of the soil, to have the fields of a larger extent, sufficiently dry, from eighteen to twenty-five English acres are considered to be a convenient size. With twelve horses, a field of that extent can always be finished in four, or at the utmost in five days; there is less risk, therefore, of being overtaken by bad weather, and prevented from completing the preparation of the land for the intended crop. When the fields are of too great an extent, in proportion to the stock kept, a considerable interval must occur between the sowing of the first and of the last part ; and it will in general be desirable to have each field cleared at the same time in harvest. The harrowing also is done more economically, when the field is sown at once, than in several portions ; and where rolling is required, that operation being most effectually done across, it cannot well be accomplished till the field has been completed. Hence the advantages of having the size of the fields in some degree commensurate to the stock of working animals upon the farm. 3893. Inclination of the ground. It is, however, evident that the size of the fields must in some respects depend on the flatness, or the hilly shape of the ground. Even on dry land, if there be a rise on the ground, from fifteen to twenty chains is sufficient length ; for if the ridge be longer, the horses become much fatigued if compelled to plough a strong furrow up hill beyond that length in one direction. This objection, however, to large fields, may in some measure be obviated, by giving the ridges and furrows in such fields as are on the sides of a hill, such an obliquity as may diminish the difficulties of the ascent. 3894. Pasturage. Where the system of grazing and tillage is alternately followed (more especially where the fields are pastured for two or three years in succession), it is convenient to have the fields of from twenty to perhaps thirty English acres. The farmer is thus enabled to divide his stock, which he cannot well do with larger fields. The cattle or sheep remain more quiet than if a greater number were collected together, and less grass is destroyed by treading. When such a field has been pastured for some time, the stock should be removed to another, till the grass in the former has renewed, and is fit for being eaten. Such a size also, in general, suits graziers better than larger ones, and consequently fields of this extent, when in pasture, generally let for more rent. Book II. LAYING OUT FARM LANDS. 623 3895. Climate. The last circumstance to be considered in determining the proper size of fields, is the nature of the climate. In dry and cold climates, small enclosures are desirable on account of shelter ; whereas, in wet countries the fields under culture can- not be too open and airy for the purpose of drying the ground, of bringing forward and ripening the grain, and of enabling the farmer more easily to secure it during an un- favorable harvest, by having a free circulation of air. But though on large farms, fields should in general be formed on an extensive scale, yet there is a convenience in having a few smaller fields near the farm-house for keeping the family cows ; for turning out young horses, mares, and foals ; for raising a great variety of vegetables ; and for trying experiments on a small scale, which may afterwards be extended, if they shall be found to answer. Where enclosures are too large for particular purposes, and where no small fields, as above recommended, have been prepared, large fields may be subdivided by sheep-hurdles, a sort of portable fence well known to every turnip-grower. In this way, great advantage may be derived from the constant use of land that would other- wise have been occupied by stationary fences ; and the expense of subdivisions, which, on a large farm, would necessarily have been numerous, is thereby avoided. This fence is perfectly effectual against sheep, though it is not so well calculated for stronger animals. On dry soils, where sheep are generally pastured, it is not unlikely that by using moveable hurdles, the expense of permanent fences might in a great measure be saved. 3896. The shape ofjklds may be either square or oblong, 3897. Square fields. The advantage of having the fences in straight lines, and the fields, when large, of a square form, is unquestionable, as the ploughing of them, under this arrangement, can be carried on with much greater dispatch. Some farmers, whose fields are of a waving or uneven shape, and who enclose with hedge and ditch, carry their fence through the hollows, or best soil, with a view of raising a good hedge, thus often sacrificing, for the sake of the fence, the form of their field. A straight line, however, is preferable, even though it should be necessary to take some particular pains to enrich the soil for the hedge, where it is thin and poor, on any elevation. By means of the square form, an opportunity is afforded of ploughing in every direction, when necessary; and less time is lost, in carrying on all the operations of husbandry in a field of that form than of any other shape. When the waving form is necessary to secure proper water runs, plantations may be so disposed as to reduce the fields to squares or oblongs, and the fences to straight lines. Rectangular fields have another advantage, that in fields of that shape it may be known, whether the ploughmen have performed their duty, the quantity of work done being easily calculated, from the length and breadth of a cer- tain number of ridges. 3898. OMong fields. When fields are small, an oblong shape should be preferred, that the ploughings may be dispatched with as few turnings as possible. This form has also other advantages. The fields are more easily subdivided, and water can in almost every case be got, by making proper ponds in the meeting or joining of three or four fields, whose gutters or. ditches will convey water to the ponds. In turnip soils, where the shape is oblong, it is easier to divide the turnips with nets or hurdles, for the conve- nience of feeding them off with sheep. If the ridges are too long, and the field dry and level, the length may be reduced by making cross head-lands, or head-ridges, at any place that may be considered the fittest by the occupier. (Code of Agr. 152 to 157.) 3899. Hedge-row trees are very generally objected to by agriculturists. Notwithstand- ing the garden-like appearance which they give to the landscape, " it seems to be agreed by the most intelligent agriculturists that they are extremely hurtful to the fence, and for some distance to the crops on each side ; and it is evident, that in many instances the highways on the sides of which they often stand, suffer greatly from their shade. It has therefore been doubted, whether such trees be profitable to the proprietor, or beneficial to the public ; to the farmer they are almost in every case injurious, to a degree beyond what is commonly imagined. (Supp. to Encyc. Brit. art. Agr. ) 3900. The opinion of Loch, a well informed and unprejudiced improver of landed property, is of an op- posite description. He says, there is no change in the rural economy of England more to be regretted than the neglect which is now .shown to the cultivation and growth of hedge-row timber. The injury which it does to the cultivation of the land is much exaggerated, especially if a proper selection of trees is made; but even the growth of the ash, so formidable to agriculturists, might be defended on the ground, that without it the best implements employed in the cultivation of the soil could not be made. It is well known that good hedge-row timber is by far the most valuable both for naval and domestic piirpdses. Its superior toughness rendering it equally valuable to the ship and to the plough-wright The value which itis-of in affording shelter, is also of material use; besides, the raising of grain is not the only purpose of life, or the only matter to be attended to, nor the only object worthy of attention. The purposes of war and of national glory, the protection and the extension of our commerce, the construction and repair of buildings, and even the enjoyment arising from the rich and beautiful effect produced by such decoration and ornament, are all objects of material importance to the well-being and constitution of a highly cultivated state of society. Even upon the more narrow ba.sis of individual utility, this practice might be defended and recommended ; for it is not useless to consider how many families and estates have been preserved, when pressed by temporary difficulties (from which none are exempted), from a fall oi hedge. row timber. One of the best legacies wliich a great proprietor can leave his country and his family is an estate well stocked with such trees. '* 624 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 482 ^gS^ ■^gBj8U^6«ra^aafc^.,^a««>, 3901. The gates of fields should in most cases be placed in the middle of that side of the field which is nearest the road ; and not in an angle, or at one corner, unless par- ticular circumstances point out this as the preferable mode . 3902. The drainage and water-courses, if any, on farm lands, require to be attended to in laying out the fences, so as if possible to make the ditches of the latter serve as open drains ; also, when opportunity offers, for conveying streams to be used in irrigation, or for driving machinery. The fences and roads will, to a certain extent, be guided by the course of such stream or streams. 3903. As an example of laying out farm lands from a newly-enclosed common, we submit the case of a flat surface, a strong retentive clay soil, a moist climate, a situation distant from markets, with no other ob- ject in view than that of making as much of the lands as possible. A public road {'fig^ 482 a) passes the farm, and the farniery is approached by a private road {b . The size of the farm deemed proper is 350 acres; the most pro- fitable mode of occupation is, 180 in arable, and the remainder in pasture. The arable subjected to a ro- tation of, 1st, beans, drill- ed, or naked fallow, dunged; 2d, wheat; 3d, clover and rye-grass, fed off or mown for soiling cattle; 4th, wheat or oats, if the clover was mown, dunged. The grass-lands are supposed to be wfaoUy fed off chiefly with cattle ; but also with ten cows, for butter and breeding, and a few sheep. 3904. The buildings {e) are placed in tlie centre of the farm, and contain stabling for four work-horses, and open sheds for eight oxen ; 130 feet of sheds for thirty fatting cattle ; a barn, with threshing-machine impelled by wind ; houses for ten cows, and other conveniences in proportion. There is a kitchen-garden, orchard, rick-yard, and two paddocks (rf,/), adjoining the farmery. 3905. The grass-fields (g), contain only ten acres each, to admit of the great advan- tage of shifting the stock from one to another. They are most distant from the farmery, because requiring least cartage; and some of them bemg in the lowest part of the farm, they may be irrigated. Trees are avoided in the fences, as injurious in flat surfaces and adhesive soils, 3906. The arable lands (h), are preserved in the centre, to save carting to and from the farmery ; and the enclosures are four times the size of the grass-fields, each shift forming one large enclosure, containing four fields, divided only by open ditches for carrying off the surface water. The two small central fields shown under aration, are supposed alternately in turnips, potatoes, cabbages, &c. for cows, &c. and wheat. The paddocks and closes are for calves or colts. 3907. The chief, and almost sole products of this firm will be wheat and beef ; the former best worth sending to a distant market ; the latter easily transported to any dis- tance ; and both staple commodities. Book III. DRAINING. 625 BOOK III. OP IMPROVIN'G THE CULTURABLK LANDS OP AN ESTATE. 3908. Havi^^g completed the general arrangement of an estate, the next thing is to improve the condition of that part of it destined to be let out to tenants, and from which, as already observed, the chief source of income is derived. The farm lands being enclosed and subdivided, and the farmeries and cottages l)uilt in their proper situations, in many cases no other improvements are wanted on the soil than such as are given by the tenant in the ordinary course of culture. But there are also numerous cases, in which improvements are required which could not be expected from an occupier having only a temporary interest in his possession ; and these form the present subject of discussion. Such improvements are designated by agriculturists permanent, as conferring an in- creased purchasable value on the property, in opposition to improvements by a temporary occupier, the benefits of which are intended to be reaped during his lease. The latter class of improvements include fallows, liming, marling, manuring, improved rotations^ and others of greater expense, according to the length Of lease, rent, and encouragement given by the landlord ; the former, and which we are now about to discuss, include draining, embanking, irrigating, bringing waste lands into cultivation, and improving the con- dition of lands already in a state of culture. Chap. I. Of Draining Watery Lands, 3909. Draining is one of those means of improvement, respecting the utility of which agriculturists are unanimous in opinion. Though practised by the Romans (143.), and in all probability in some cases by the religious fraternities of the dark ages, it was not till after the middle of the last century that its importance began to be fully understood in Britain ; and that some individuals, and chiefly Dr. Anderson and Elkington, began to practise it on new principles. About the same time, the study of geology became more general, and this circumstance led to the establishment of the art on scientific principles. The public attention was first excited by the practice of Elkington, a farmer and self- taught professor of the art of draining in Warwickshire and the adjoining counties. On the practice of this artist most of the future improvements have been founded ; and they have been ably embodied in the account of his practice by Johnston, from whose work we shall draw the principal materials of this section, borrowing also from the writings of Dr. Anderson, Marshal, Smith, Farey, and some others on the same subject. After submitting some general remarks on the natural causes of wetness in lands, we shall consider in succession the drainage of boggy lands, hilly lands, mixed soils, retentive soils, and mines and quarries ; and then tJie kinds of drains, and draining materials. Sect. I. Of the Natural Causes of Wetness in Lands, and the general Theory of Draining, 3910. The successful practice of draining in a great measure depends on a proper knowledge of the structure of the earth's upper crust ; that is, of the various strata of which it is composed, as well as of their relative degrees of porosity, or capability of admitting or rejecting the passage of water through them, and likewise the modes in which water is formed, and conducted from the high or hilly situations to the low or level grounds. In whatever way the hills or elevations that present themselves on the surface of the globe were originally formed, it has been clearly shown, by sinking large pits, and digging into them, that they are mostly composed of materials lying in a stratified order, and in oblique or slanting directions downwards. Some of these strata, from their nature and properties, are capable of admitting water to percolate or pass through them ; while others do not allow it any passage, but force it to run or filtrate along their surfaces without penetrating them in any degree, and in that way to conduct it to the more level grounds below. There it becomes obstructed or dammed up by meeting with impervious materials of some kind or other, by which it is readily forced up into the super-incumbent layers where they happen to be open and porous, soon rendering them too wet for the purposes of agriculture ; but where they are of a more tenacious and impenetrable quality, they only become gradually softened by the stagnant water below them ; by which the surface of the ground is, however, rendered equally moist and swampy, though somewhat more slowly than in the former case; It may also be observed, that some of the strata which constitute such hilly or mountainous tracts are found to be continued with much greater S s 626 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. regularity than others ; those which are placed nearest to the surface at the inferior parts of such hills or elevations, being mostly broken or interrupted before they reacli the tops or higher parts of them ; while those which lie deeper, or below them at the bottom, show themselves in these elevated situations. Thus, that stratum which may lie the third or fourth, or still deeper, at the commencement of the valley may form the uppermost layer on the summits of hills or mountainous elevations. This arrangement or distribution of the different strata may have been produced partly by the circumstances attending the original elevation of such mountainous regions, and partly from the materials of the original exterior strata being dissolved and carried down into the valleys by successive rains and other causes, and thus leaving such as were immediately below them in an ex- posed and superficial state in these elevated situations. {Darwin s Phytologia, p. 258.) 3911. These elevated strata frequently jrrove the means of rendering the grounds below wet and swampy ; for, from the night dews, and the general moisture of the atmosphere, being condensed in much greater quantities in such elevated situations, the water thus formed, as well as that which falls in rain and sinks through the superficial porous ma- terials, readily insinuate themselves, and thus pass along between the first and second, or still more inferior strata which compose the sides of such elevations ; until their descent is retarded or totally obstructed by some impenetrable substance, such as clay; it there becomes dammed up, and ultimately forced to filtrate slowly over it, or to rise to some part of the surface, and constitute, according to the particular circumstances of the case, different watery appearances in the grounds below These appearances are, oozing springs, bogs, swamps, or morasses, weeping rocks from the water slowly issuing in various places, or a large spring or rivulet from the union of small currents beneath the ground. This is obvious from the sudden disappearance of moisture on some parts of lands, while it stagnates, or remains till removed by the effects of evaporation on others ; as well as from the force of springs being stronger in wet than dry weather, breaking out frequently after the land has been impregnated with much imoisture in higher situations, and as the season becomes drier ceasing to flow, except at the lowest outlets. The force of springs, or proportion of water which they send forth, depends likewise, in a great measure, on the extent of the high ground on which the moisture is received and detained, furnishing extensive reservoirs or collections of water, by which they become more amply and regularly supplied. On this account, what are termed bog-springs, or such as rise in valleys and low grounds, are considerably stronger and more regular in their dis- charge, than such as burst forth on the more elevated situations or the sides of eminences. (^Johnston's Account of Elkington s Mode of Draining Land, p. 15.) 3912. The waters condensed on elevated regions are sometimes found to descend, for a very considerable distance, among the porous substances between the different conducting layers of clayey or other materials, before they break out or show themselves in the grounds below ; but it is more frequently the case to find them proceeding from the con- tiguous elevations into the low grounds that immediately surround them. 391 3. The nature of the slratu^n of materials on which the water proceeding from hills has to penetrate^ must considerably influence its course, as well as the effects which it may produce on such lands as lie below, and into which it must pass. Where it is of the clayey, stiff marly, or impervious rocky kinds, and not interrupted or broken by any other kind of materials of a more porous quality, it may pass on to a much greater distance, than where the stratum has been frequently broken and tilled up with loose porous materials, in which it will be detained, and of course rise up to the surface. 3914. These sorts of strata extend to very different depths in different situations and dis- tricts, as has been frequently noticed in the digging of pits, and the sinking of deep wells, and other subterraneous cavities. The clayey strata are, however, in general found to be more superficial than those of the compact, tenacious, marly kinds, or even those of a firm, uninterrupted, rocky nature, and seldom of such a great thickness ; they have, nevertheless, been observed to vary greatly in this respect, being met with in some places of a considerable thickness, while in others they scarcely exceed a few inches. 3915. The intervening porous substances, or strata where clay prevails, are found, for the most part, to be of either a gravelly or loose rocky nature. Stiff marly strata, which approach much to the quality of clay, though in some instances they may present them- selves near the surface, in general lie concealed at considerable depths under the true clayey strata, and other layers of earthy or other materials ; they have been discovered of various thicknesses, from eight or ten feet to considerably more than a hundred. {Darwin's Phytologia, p. 259.) The intervening materials, where strata of this nature are predominant, are most commonly of the more sandy kinds ; possessing various degrees of induration, so as in some cases to become perfectly hard and rocky, but with frequent breaks or fissures passing through them. The loose, friable, marly strata are capable of absorbing water, and of admitting it to filtrate and pass through them. 3916. Thus the valleys and more level grounds must co?istantly be liable to be overcharged with moisturCf and to become, in consequence, spouty, boggy, or of the nature of a morass. Book III. DRAINING. 627 accordingly as they may be circumstanced in respect to their situation, the nature of their soils, or the materials by which the water is obstructed and detained in or upon them. 3917. JFhere lands have a sufficient degree of elevation to admit of any over-proportion of moisture readily passing away, and where the soils of them are of such an uniform sandy or gravelly and uninterrupted texture, as to allow water to percolate and pass through them with facility, they can be little inconvenienced by water coming upon or into them, as it must of necessity be quickly conveyed away into the adjacent rivers or small runlets in their vicinity. 3918. But where grounds are in a great measure Jlat, and without such degrees of ele- vation as may be sufficient to permit those over-proportions of moisture that may have come upon them from the higher and more elevated grounds, to pass readily away and be carried oflf', and where the soils of the lands are composed or constituted of such materials as are liable to admit and retain the excesses of moisture ; they must be exposed to much injury and inconvenience from the retention and stagnation of such quantities of water. Such lands consequently require artificial means to drain and render them capable of affording good crops, whether of grain or grass. 3919. Lands of valleys and other low places, a§ well as, in some cases, the level tracts on the sides or borders of large rivers and of the sea, must also frequently be subject to great injury and inconvenience from their imbibing and retaining the water that may be thus forced to flow up into or upon them, either through the different conducting strata from the hills and mountainous elevations in the neighborhood, or the porous materials of the soils. In these ways they may be rendered swampy, and have bogs or morasses produced in them in proportion to the predominancy of the materials by which the water is absorbed and dammed up, and the peculiarity of the situation of the lands in respect to the means of conveying it away. 3920. To perform properly the business of draining, attention should not only be paid to the discrimination of the differences in regard to the situation of the lands, or what is commonly denominated drainage level ; but also to the nature, distribution, and depth of the materials that constitute the soils or more superficial parts of them, as upon each of these some variety, in respect to the eflTects arising from water retained in them, may depend. 3921. Wetness of land, so far as it respects agriculture, and is an object of draining, may generally depend on the two following causes : first, on the water which is formed and collected on or in the hills or highei grounds, filtrating and sliding down among some of the different beds of porous materials that lie immediately upon the impervious strata, forming springs below and flowing over the surface, or stagnating underneath it ; and secondly, on rain or other water becoming stagnant on the surface, from the retentive nature of the soil or surface materials, and the particular nature of the situation of the ground. The particular wetness which shows itself in diflferent situations, in the forms of bogs, swamps, and morasses, for the most part proceeds from the first of these causes ; but that superficial wetness which takes place in the stiff, tenacious, clayey soils, with little inclination of surface, generally originates from the latter. 3922. The most certain and expeditious method of draining, in such cases, is that of intercepting the descent of the water or spring, and thereby totally removing the cause of wetness. This may be done where the depth of the superficial strata, and conse- quently of the spring, is not great ; by making horizontal drains (fig. 483 a) of consi- derable length across the declivities of the hills, about where the low grounds of the valleys begin to form, and connecting these with others (6) made for the purpose of con- veying the water thus collected into the brooks or runlets (c that may be near. Where the spring has naturally fonned itself an outlet, it may frequently only be necessary to bore into it (e) or render it larger, and of more depth ; which, by aflfording the water a more free and optn passage, may evacuate and bring it ofTmore quickly, or sink it to a level so greatly below that of the surface of the soil, as to prevent it from flowing into or over it. Ss 2 G28 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 3923. Where the uppermost stratum is so extremely thick as not to be easily penetrated, or where the springs, formed by the water passing from the higher grounds, may be con- fined beneath the third or fourth strata of the materials that form the declivities of hills or elevated grounds, and by this means lie too deep to be penetrated to by the cutting of a ditch, or even by boring (Darwin's Phytologia, p. 263. } ; the common mode of cut- ting a great number of drains to the depth of five, six, or more feet, across the wet morassy grounds, and afterwards covering them in such a manner as that the water may suffer no interruption in passing away through them, may be practised with advantage, as much of the prejudicial excess of moisture may by this means be collected and carried away, though not so completely as by fully cutting off the spring. 3924. As water is sometimes found upon thin layers of clay, which have underneath them sand, stone, or other porous or fissured strata, to a considerable depth ; by perfor- ating these thin layers of clay in different places, the water which flows along them may frequently be let down into the open porous materials that lie below them, and the sur- face land be thus completely drained. 3925. Where morasses and other kinds of wetnesses are formed in such low places and hollows as are considerably below the beds of the neighboring rivers, they may, proba- bly, in many instances, be effectually drained by arresting the water as it passes down into them from the higher grounds, by means of deep drains cut into the sides of such hills and rising grounds, and, after collecting it into them, conveying it away by pipes, or other contrivances, at such high levels above the wet lands as may be necessary : or where the water that produces the mischief can by means of drains, cut in the wet ground itself, be so collected as to be capable of being raised by means of machinery, it may in that way be removed from the land. 3926. The drainage of lands that lie below the level of the sen, can only be effected by the public, and by means of locks erected for the purpose of preventing the entrance of the tides, and by wind-mills and other expensive kinds of machinery constructed for tlie purpose of raising the stagnant water. 3927. T/ie superficial wetness of lands, which arises from the stifl* retentive nature of the materials that constitute the soils and the particular circumstances of their situations, is to be removed in most cases by means of hollow surface drains, judiciously formed, either by the spade or plough, and filled up with suitable materials where the lands are imder the grass system ; and by these means and the proper construction of ridges and furrows where they are in a state of arable cultivation. 3928. Having thus explained the manner in which soils are rendered too wet for the purposes of agriculture, and shown the principles on which the over-proportions of moisture may, under different circumstances, be the most effectually removed, we shall proceed to the practical methods which are to be made use of in accomplishing the business in each case. Sect. II. Of the Methods (f Draining Boggy Land. 3929. In the drainage of wet or boggy grounds, arising from springs of water beneath them, a great variety of circumstances are necessary to be kept in view. Lands of this de- scription, or such as are of a marshy and boggy nature, from the detention of water beneath the spongy surface materials of which they are composed, and its being absorbed and forced up into them, are constantly kept in such states of wetness as are highly improper for the purpose of producing advantageous crops of any kind. They are, therefore, on this account, as well as those of their occupying very extensive tracts in many districts, and being, when properly reclaimed, of considerable value, objects of great interest and importance to the attentive agricultor. Wet grounds of these kinds may be arranged under three distinct heads : first, such as may be readily known by the springs rising out of the adjacent more elevated ground, in an exact or regular line along the higher side of the wet surface ; second, those in which the numerous springs that show themselves are not kept to any exact or regular line of direction along the higher or more elevated parts of the land, but break forth promiscuously throughout the whole surface, and particularly towards the inferior parts [fig. 484 a), constituting shaking quags in every direction, that have an elastic feel under the feet, on which the lightest animals can scarcely tread without danger, and which, for the most part, show themselves by the luxuriance and verdure of the grass about them ; that sort of wet land, from the oozing of springs, which is neither of such great extent, nor in the nature of the soil so jieaty as the other two, and to which the term bog cannot be strictly applied, but which in respect to the modes of draining is the same. {.Johnston s Account of Elkington's Mode of Draining Land, p. 19.) 3930. In order to direct the proper mode of cutting the drains or trenches in draining lands of this sort, it will be necessary for the draining engineer to make himself perfectly acquainted with the nature and disposition of the strata composing the higher grounds, and the connection which they have with that which is to be rendered dry. This may in Book III« DRAINING BOGS. 629 i(-.^ general be accomplished by means of levelling and carefully attending to what has been already observed respecting the formation of hills and elevated grounds, and by inspect- ing the beds of rivers, the edges of banks that have been wrought through, and such pits and quarries as may have been dug near to the land. Rushes, alder-bushes, and other coarse aquatic plants, may also, in some instances, serve as guides in this business ; but they should not be too implicitly depended on, as they may be caused by the stagnation of rain-water upon the surface, without any spring being present. The line of springs being ascertained, and also some knowledge of the substrata, a line of drain (Jig. 484 b, b) should be marked out above or below them, according to the nature of the strata, and excavated to such a depth as will intercept the water in the porous strata before it rises to the surface. The effect of such drains will often be greatly heightened by boring holes (c) in their bottom with the auger. Where the impervious stratum (Jig. 485 a), that lies immediately beneath, the porous (b), has a slanting direction through a hill or rising bank, the surface of the low lands will, in general, be spongy, wet, and covered with rushes on every side (c). In this case, which is not unfrequent, a ditch or drain (d), properly cut on one side of the hill or rising ground, may remove the wetness from both. But where the impervious stratum dips or declines more to one side of the hill or eleva- tion than the other, the water will be directed to the more depressed side of that stratum ; the effect of which will be, that one side of such rising ground will be wet and spongy, while the other is quite free from wetness. 3931. Where water issues forth o?i the surface at more places than one, it is necessary to determine which is the real or principal spring, and that from which the other outlets are fed ; as by removing the source, the others must of course be rendered dry. When on the declivity or slanting surface of the elevated ground from which the springs break forth, they are observed to burst out at diflf'erent levels according to the difference of the wetness of the season, and where those that are the lowest down continue to run, while the higher ones are dry, it is, in general, a certain indication that the whole are connected, and proceed from the same source ; and consequently that the line of the drain should be made along the level of the lowermost one, which, if properly executed, must keep all the others dry. But if the drain was made along the line of the highest of the outlets, or places where the water breaks forlh, without being sufficiently deep to reach the level of those below, the overflowings of the spring would merely be carried away, and the wetness proceeding from that cause be removed ; while the main spring, still continuing to run, would render the land below the level of the bottom of the drain still preju- diciously wet, from its discharging itself lower down over the surface of the ground. This, Johnston states, was the custom, until Elkington showed the absurdity of the practice of drainers beginning to cut their trenches wherever the highest springs showed themselves between the wet and the dry ground, which not being of a depth sufficient to arrest and take away the whole of the water, others of a similar kind were under the S s 3 630 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. necessity of being formed at different distances, to the very bottom of the declivity : these being afterwards in a great measure filled with loose stones, merely conveyed away portions of surface water, without touching the spring, the great or principal cause of the wetness. The effects of drains formed in this manner he asserts to be, that of ren- dering the surface of the land in some degree drier, so long as they continue to run with freedom ; but as they are liable soon to be obstructed and filled up by sand or other materials, the water is often forced out in different places and directions, and thus renders the land equally wet, if not more so, than it was before. In addition to this, it is a more difficult task to drain the ground a second time in a, proper method, from the natural appearance of the ground being so much changed, and the bursts of the old drains, as well as the greater difficulty of ascertaining the real situation of the springs. 3932. It may sometimes happen, however, that where the highest are the strongest outlets, they may be the main or leading springs; those which show themselves lower down in the land being merely formed by the water of the main spring overflowing, and finding itself a passage from an opening, or the porous nature of the materials of the soil near to the surface, and from being obstructed somewhat further down in the ground by some impervious stratum. This circumstance must, therefore, it is observed, be fully ascertained before the lines for the ditches or drains are marked out. 3 933. In cases where the banks or rising grounds are formed in an irregular manner (Jig- 486.), and from the nature of the situ- 486 ation, or the force of the water under- neath, springs abound round the bases of the protuberances, the ditches made for the purpose of draining should always be carried up to a much higher level in the side of the elevated ground than that in which the water or wetness appears ; as far even as to the firm unchanged land. By this means the water of the spring may be cut oflT, and the ground com- pletely drained; which would not be the case if the trench or drain were formed on the line of the loose materials lower down where the wa- ter oozes out, which is liable to mis- lead the operator in forming the conducting trench, or that which is to convey the water from the cross-drain on the level of the spring to the outlet or opening by which it is discharged. But where the main or principal spring comes out of a perpendicular or very steep bank, at a great height above the level of the outlet into which it may discharge itself by means of a drain ; it will neither be necessary nor of any utility to form a deep trench, or make a covered drain, all the way from such outlet up to it ; as from the steepness of the descent the water would be liable, when the drain was thus cut, from the thin strata of sand", and other loose materials, always found in such cases, to insinuate itself under the bricks, stones, or other substances of which the drain was formed ; to undermine and force them up by the strength of the current, or, probably, in some instances, block the drain up by the loose sand or other matters, which may be forced away and carried down by it. In situations of this kind, Johnston observes, it is always the best way to begin just so far down the bank or declivity as, by cutting in a level, the drain may be six or seven feet below the level of the spring; or of such a depth as may be requisite to bring down the water to a level suitable to convey it away with- out its rising to the surface, and injuring the lands around it. The rest of the drain, whether it be made in a straight or oblique direction, need not be deep, and may, in many instances, be left quite open ; it should, however, be carefully secured from the treading of cattle, and, where the land is under an arable system of cultivation, also from the plough. Where it is covered, the depth of about two feet may be sufficient. There will not, in such drains, be any necessity fo the use of the auger in any part of them. 3934. Where there is a difficulty in ascertaining the line of the spring, and conse- quently that of the cross drain, either from its not showing itself on the surface, or from there not being any apparent outlet, it may, generally, be met with in carrying up the conducting drain for conveying away the water : as soon as the operator discovers the spring, he need not proceed any further, but form the cross drain on the level thus discovered to such a distance on each side of the tail, or terminating part cf the strata, of whatever sort, that contains the water, as the nature of the land, in regard to situation or other circum- stances, may demand. Where, in forming a cross-drain, the line indicated by the spirit or Book III. DRAINING bogs: 631 other level is found to be in some places below that of the spring, and where, in boring in this direction, water is not found to follow, it will be necessary to make short drains or cuts of the same depth with the cross-drain, from it quite up to the source of the spring; for, if the drain be cut below the line of the spring, the possibility of reaching it by means of an auger is lost, as where the under stratum is clay, and there is no under water, the use of the auger cannot be effectual ; and if it be made above the line of the spring, it will be requisite to cut and bore much deeper, in order to reach it, the ground being in general higher in that part : besides, the portion of porous stratum below the drain may contain a sufficient quantity of water to render the land wet, and that may readily get down underneath the trench, between the holes formed by boring, and break out lower down. 3935. In situations where the extent of bog in the valley between two banks or eminences is so narrow and limited as that the stratum of rock, sand, or other materials that contains the water, may unite below the clay at such a depth as to be readily reached by the auger {Jig. 487 a), it will seldom be necessary to have more than one trench up the middle, well perforated with holes [b] by means of the auger; cross or branching drains being unnecessary in such cases. For notwithstanding the springs, that render the land inju- riously wet in these cases, burst out of the banks or eminences on every side, for the most part nearly on the same level, the reservoir from which they proceed may be dis- covered in the middle of the valley, by penetrating with the auger through the layer of clay, that confines and forces the water to rise up and ooze out round the superior edge of it, where it forms an union with the high porous ground. From the drain being made in the hollowest part of the land, and the porous stratum containing the water being then bored into, it is obvious that the ditch or drain thus formed being so much lower than the ordinary outlet of the springs, the pressure of water above that level, which is the bottom of the drain, must be such as to force that which is under the drain or trench through the holes made by the auger, and in many instances, until a considerable quantity of the water is evacuated, make it rise to a greater height than the level of its natural outlet. The effect of which must be, that the water forming the spring, having found by these means a fresh and more easy passage, will quickly relinquish its former openings, and thus be prevented from running over and injuring the ground, that previously lay lower down than it. 3936. But in swamps or bogs that are extensive and very wet, other drains or cuts than such as convey off the springs must be made ; as, notwithstanding the higher springs •which chiefly cause the wetness may be intercepted, there may be lower veins of sand, gravel, or other porous materials, from which the water must likewise be drawn off. In cases of this nature, where the land is to be divided into enclosures, the ditches may be formed in such directions as to pass through and carry off collections of water of this kind, as well as those that may be retained in the hollows and depressions on the surface of the land. There are in many places very extensive tracts of ground that are rendered wet, and become full of rushes and other coarse plants, from causes of such a nature as cannot be obviated by the making of cither open or covered drains, however numerous they may be. Lands in this situation are frequently termed holms, and mostly lie on the sides of such rivers and brooks as, from the frequency of their changing and altering their courses between their opposite banks, leave depositions of sand, gravel, and other porous materials, by which land is formed, that readily admits the water to filtrate and pass through it to the level of the last-formed channels^ and which preserves it constantly in such a state of moisture and Wetness, as to render it productive of nothing but rushes and other aquatic plants; and if a pit or ditch be made in lands under these circumstances, it quickly fills with water to the same level as that in the watercourse. This effect is, how- ever, more liable to be produced, as well as more complete, where the current of the Ss 4 632 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. water is slow, and its surface nearly equal with that of the land, than where its descent is rapid. Under such circumstances, while the river or brook remains at the ordinary height, no advantage can be gained, whatever number of drains be formed, or in what- ever direction they may be made. The chief or only means of removing the wetness of land proceeding from this cause is, that of enkrging and sinking the bed of the stream, where it can be effected at a reasonable expense : where there is only one stream, and it is very winding or serpentine in its course, much may however be effected by cutting through the different points of land, and rendering the course more straight, and thereby less liable to obstruct the passage of the water. But in cases where there are more than one, that should always be made the channel of conveyance for draining the neighbor- ing land, which is the lowest in respect to situation and the most open and straight in its course. It may likewise, in particular instances, be advantageous to stop up and divert the waters of the others into such main channels, as by such means alone they may often be rendered deeper, and more free from obstruction : the materials removed from them may serve to embank and raise up the sides to a greater height, as while the water can rise higher than the outlets of the drains, and flow backwards into them, it must render the land as wet as it was before they were formed, and the expense of cutting them be thrown away. 3937. The collected rain-water becoming stagnant on a retentive body of clay, or some other impervious material, as it can have no outlet of the natural kind, causes such lands to become soft and spongy, thus forming bogs of a very confined kind. As such bogs are often situated very greatly below the ground that surrounds them, the opening of a main drain, or conductor, to convey off the water collected by smaller drains, would be attended, in many instances, with an expense greater than could be compensated by the land after it had been drained. The thickness of the impervious stratum that retains and keeps up the water in such cases is often so great, that though the stratum below be of a porous and open nature, such as sand, rock, or gravel, the water cannot of itself penetrate or find a passage from the one into the other ; consequently, by its continued stagnation above, all the different coarse vegetable productions that have for a great length of time been produced on its surface, and probably the upper part of the soil itself, are formed into a mass or body of peat earth, equally soft and less productive than that of any bog originating from water confined below, and which is only capable of sustaining the weight of cattle in very dry seasons, when the wind and sun have exhaled and dried up a great part of its surface moisture ; but even then it is incapable of admitting the plough upon it. 3938. As the cause of these kinds of bogs is materially different from that of those which have been already noticed, their drainage must of course be accomplished in a different way. The following method of proceeding is recommended as perhaps the least ex- pensive. In the middle, or most depending part of the ground, the first drain (^fg. 488 a), may be cut, into which all the others should be made to lead ; the number and direction of which must be regulated by the extent of the bog. They should be cut through the peat, or moist spongy upper soil, to the sur- face of the clay, or other retentive stratum of materials, which must then be perforated or bored through in order to let the water down into the pervious stratum below, by which it may be absorbed and taken up. The same feffect might be produced by forming one large well, or pit, in the middle or lowest part of the bog, by digging through into the porous stratum below, and connecting the other drains with it, as by such a method the trouble and expense of boring along the drains would be saved. In these cases, when drains are made, they should always be cut as narrow as it is possible to make them, and after the holes have been formed in them by boring, filled up with loose stones to within about a foot and a half of the surface, which space may be made up by a por- tion of the earth that had been taken out, putting in turf with the green side to the stones before the earth is thrown in. By this means the water and prejudicial moisture of the peat, or upper soil, may be taken away by the drains, and pass off through the holes that have been formed in their bottoms. But where pits are employed, these should only be filled with small stones to the level of the bottom of the drain, the filling being performed as soon as possible after they are formed [Anderson s Treatise on Drain- ing, p. 88.) ; where there is a chalky stratum below, after taking it out, the flints con- tained in it mayte made use of in this way with much advantage; and where the drains caii be carried into quarries, where the stone is much fissured, nothing more will be ne- cessary. Where land of this sort is afterwards to be ploughed, great attention should be Book III. DRAINING BOGS. 633 given to the forming of the ridges and giving them a regular descent tov^ards themain drain, which will contribute greatly to the assistance of the others in conveying off heavy falls of rain-water when they occur. 3939. But a necessary precaution previous to any attempt to drain lands of this kind in the way that has been described, is to ascertain whether the porous stratum under the clay be dry, and capable of receiving the water when let down into it ; or already so loaded with moisture itself, as, instead of receiving more from above, to force up a large quantity to the surface, and thus increase the evil it was intended to remove. This may be the case in many instances, and the substratum contain water which affords no appear- ances of wetness on the surface, at the place, on account of the compact body of clay that is placed over it, but which, from its being connected with some spring that is higher, may flow up when an opening or passage is given it, either by means of a pit or the auger. In this way a greater quantity of water might be brought to the surface, which, from its being confined by the surrounding banks, would render the ground much more wet than before, and in particular situations produce very great degrees of wetness. When the surrounding high ground declines lower than the bog, though it may be at a considerable distance, by the aid of the level, and the appearance of the surface, the nature of the stratum underneath may, in some degree, be ascertained ; and, notwithstanding it may already contain water, a drain may be formed into it to carry off that water, and what may likewise be let down into it from the retentive stratum that lies above it. It must be confessed, however, that cases where surface water can be let down through a re- tentive stratum to a porous one that will ac- tually carry it off, are very rare. When these occur, it is chiefly in limestone or coaly dis- tricts, where the surface is hilly or rugged {Jig. 489.), and more calculated for the pur- suits of the mineralogist than the agricultor. 3940. Draining hilli/ lands is not in gene- ral attended with great expense, as the drains need seldom be covered or filled up, only in such places as may be sufficient for passages for the animals to cross by. And though, where the depth of the trench does not come to the water confined below, it may be neces- sary to perforate lower, there need not be any fear that the holes will fill up, even where the drain is left open ; as the impetuosity of the water itself, will remove any sand or mud that may fall into them, where much flood or surface water does not get in. Small open- ings may, however, be made along the upper side of the trench, in order the more effectually to secure them against any obstructions ; and in these the perforations may be made, leaving the mouth of the holes about six inches higher than the bottom of the drain, which will be without the reach of the water that may be collected during the time of heavy rains. 3941. The sides or declivities of many hills, from the irregularity of the disposition of the strata that compose them, are often covered with alternate portions or patches of wet and dry ground. By the general appearance of the surface and the vegetable products that are grown upon it, the nature and direction of the internal strata may frequently be ascertained with so much certainty as to determine the line or direction of a drain with- out the necessity of examining below the surface of the land. As the ease or difficulty of draining such grounds depends solely on the position of the different strata of which the hill or elevation may be formed, and upon the erect or slanting direction of the rock, or other retentive body in which the water is contained ; where the rock has a slanting or horizontal inclination, the whole of the different springs or outlets, that show themselves on the surface, may originate from or be connected with the same collection or body of water, and may be all drained and dried up by cutting off, or letting out, the main body of water, by which they are supplied, at the inferior part of the reservoir, or that part where the water would of its own accord readily run off if it were not confined beneath an impervious covering of clay or some other material. 3942. But in cases where the rock lies in an erect or perpendicular form, and contains only partial collections of water, in some of the more open cracks or fissures of the stone, that discharge themselves at various openings, or outlets, that have not the least connec- tion with each other, it would be an idle and fruitless endeavor to attempt the cutting of them off by means of one drain {Jig. 490 a), or by boring into any one of them in par- ticular, without cutting a drain into each {a, b, c). In tliis case it is more advisable to make the main drain wholly in the clay, with small cuts made up to each outlet, than along the place where the springs burst out ; as in that line of direction it would be too greatly in 634 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 490 the rock, and consequently be extremely difficult to cut, on account of the nature and dis- position of the stone : when the water passing out on the line of the springs can be found by the auger in the main drain, at the point where it joins it, it will, it is observed, be the more completely cut off; but where this is not practicable, the depth of the small cuts may reduce it to such a level as will prevent its flowing over and injuring the surface of the land below it. 3943. In such hills as are constituted of alternate strata of rock, sand, and clay, the surface of the latter may frequently be wet and swamp, while that of the former is dry, and capable of producing good crops of grass ; in all such cases, in order to drain the land completely, as many cuts will be necessary as there may happen divi- sions of wet and dry soil : the summit, or most elevated part of such hills, being mostly formed of loose porous materials, through which the rain and other water descends, till its passage becomes obstructed by some impervious bed or stratum, such as clay, when it is forced up to the surface, and runs or oozes over the obstructing stratum ; and after having overflowed, the upper clay surface is immediately absorbed and taken up by the succeeding porous one, and, sinking into it in the same way as before, passes out again at the lower side of it, and renders the surface of the next clayey bed prejudicially wet as it had done in the first. In this way the same spring may affect all the other strata of the same kind of which the hill consists, from the highest part down the whole of the declivity, and produce in the bason, or hollow at the bottom, a lake or bog, should there not happen to be a passage or opening to take away the water. In order effectually to drain hills of this kind, it will be the most advisable to begin by forming a trench along the upper side of the uppermost rushy soil^ by which means the highest spring may be cut off; but as the rain and other water that may come upon the next portion of porous soil may sink down through it to the lowest part, and produce another spring, a second cut must be made in that part to prevent the water from affecting the surface of the succeeding clayey bed. And similar cuts must be formed so far down the declivity as the same springs continue in the same way to injure the land, and in some cases a sufficiency of water may probably be obtained to irrigate the land below, or some other useful purpose. Sect. III. Of the Methods of draining Mixed Soils. 3944. Where the soil is of a mixed and varied nature, but the most prevailing parts of the clayey kind, the business of draining is considerably more tedious and difficult than where the superficial and internal parts have greater regularity. In such sorts of lands, as all the different collections of -water are perfectly distinct from each other, by means of the beds of clay that separate them, eaih collection becomes so much increased, or ac- cumulated, in the time of heavy rains, that they are filled quite to the level of the surface of the day by which they are surrounded ; when the water getting a free passage, as it would over the edges of a bowl or dish, overflows and saturates the surface of that bed of clay in such a manner, as to render it so perfectly wet and sour, that its produce becomes not only annually more and more scanty, but the soil itself more sterile and unpro- ductive. 3945. From the sand-beds (fg. 491 a, a, a) in such cases having no communication with each other,'it must evidently require as many drains {b,b,b) as there are beds of this kind, in order fully to draw off ... the water from each of them. .-/r;:Vs,. ^^^ A drain or trench is therefore Q'd:, recommended to be cut from the nearest and lowest part of ^5* •..•.;-.•. --■'/i-. the field intended to be drained ^^§^^' (c), up to the highest and most distant sand-bank ( III Tt 642 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. and the. opposite is left of the width of a common sod ; i. e. nine inches wide. These sods are taken out at a spade's depth, and laid carefully by the side of the drain for covers. The sods (a), resembling bricks in their size and shape, are then dug, and laid carefully on the same side as the sods intended for covers. The drain is then sunk to its proper depth, and the stuff taken out is thrown to the other side. The bottom is levelled with proper draught for the water, and set with the sods like bricks (a), two in height on each side (c) ; these are covered with the larger sods set obliquely [b) ; the grass side of each sod being turned downwards. (Jg. Rep. of Cheshire, 214.) .,^^^^^^09 ^^^«^ 3977. The mole drain (Jig. 509. ) is formed by the draining- ^^^^^^SM§^^m/m//////i P^*^"S^^ °^ ^^^^ name, already described (2522.) , with the man- ^^^^^B^^^By "^'* ^^ using it. It is chiefly useful in pasture-lands,and espe- ^^^Fj'mm/^ cially in such as have some declivity, or are formed into ridges. 'lllllllumluiM 3978. The wheel drain is a very ingenious invention, de- Bcribed in The Agricultural Report of the County of Essex. It consists of a draining- wheel of cast-iron, that weighs about 4 cwt. It is four feet in diameter; the cutting- edge or extremity of the circqniference of the wheel is half an inch thick, and increases in thickness towards the centre. At fifteen inches deep it will cut a drain half an inch wide at the bottom, and four inches wide at the top. The wheel is so placed in a frame^ that it may be loaded at pleasure, and made to operate to a greater or less depth, accord- ing to the resistance made by the ground. It is used in winter when the soil is soft ; and the wheel tracks are either immediately filled with straw ropes, and lightly covered over with earth, or they are left to crack wider and deeper till the ensuing summer ; after which the fissures are filled with ropes of straw or of twisted twigs, and lightly covered vvith the most porous earth that is at hand. Thus, upon grass or ley lands, hollow drains, which answer extremely well, are formed at a trifling expense. It is said, that twelve acres may be fully gone over with this draining- wheel in one day, so as to make cuts at all necessary distances. 3979. Surface-gutters made by cart-ioheels have been used by Middleton, on meadows in Surrey. To the felly of a common cart-wheel (fg. 510 a), is added a piece of wood, the section of which is a truncated triangle (b), and on this is fixed a piece of 510 iron completing the triangle (c). The cart is loaded and driven so as the pre- pared wheel may run in the furrow ; or, if there are no furrows, both wheels may be prepared, and the loaded cart drawn by two horses, may be led over the whole field, forming parallel gutters, at four or five feet distance. The advantage of this mode of surface draining is, that the herbage is only pressed down, not destroyed, and rises up again in spring. The operation, for that reason, requires to be renewed every winter. 3980. The best season for marking out and forming drains, is the spring or beginning of summer ; because then, the land springs being still in vigor, are more easily discovered and traced than at a later period. When the ground is soft on the surface, it is a useful precaution, after the line of drain is indicated, to cart on the materials for filling before digging the drain, as the weight of the carriages and horses are apt to press in the sides of the drain. In the case of straw, turf, or earth drains, where the ground is of a firm texture, this precaution does not apply. In filling drains, the earth should always be raised somewhat above the general surface, to make allowance for sinking. 3981. Informing small drains, chiefly for retentive soils, the common plough has been used in many places, and with some advantage. The method practised by Young, of Clare, and which he has himself described in The Annals of Agriculture, from very ample practice, is this : he says, when he has marked the drains in a field usually a rod asunder, he draws two furrows with a common plough, leaving a baulk betwixt them about fifteen inches wide ; then with a strong double-breasted plough, made on purpose, he splits that baulk, and leaves a clean furrow fourteen or fifteen inches below the sur, face; but where the depth of soil requires it, by a second ploughing he sinks it to eight-, een or twenty inches : it is then ready for the land- ditching-spade, with which he digs, fifteen inches deep, a drain as narrow as possible. But the method followed by some farmers, who do not possess ploughs made on purpose for the work, is this : With their common plough, drawn by four or five horses, and usually stirring about four or five inches deep, they turn a double furrow, throwing the earth on each side, and leaving a baulk in the middle. This baulk tliey raise by a second bout, in the same manner : then they go in the open furrow twice, with their common double-breast plough, getting what depth they can. After this they shovel out all the loose mould and inequalities to the breadth of about a foot ; and thus having gained a clear open furrow, the depth varying according to the soil and ploughs, but usually about eight or nine inches, they dig one spit with a draining spade sixteen inches deep, thus gaining in the whole twenty-four or twenty-six inches. But as this depth is seldom sufficient, when necessary they throw Book III. DRAINING IMPLEMENTS. 643 out another, or even two otiier spits, which makes the whole depth from thirty to forty inches. 3982. The duration of drains must necessarily depend on the nature of the materials with which they are filled, and in some measure on the quality of the soil, as certain species of land have the power of preserving wood or other perishable materials much longer than others. Stones last till accidental causes impede the flowing of the water, and may last for ever. Wood perishes in certain periods, but it does not follow that the drains should stop ; if the earth arches, the water will necessarily continue to flow, which is found to be the case when wood, straw, and stubble, are rotten and gone. Drains that have been filled with bushes and straw, both which were rotten, have been observed to run well forty years after making. 3983. The expense of drains will of course vary with the soil, depth, price of labor, &c. , and these circumstances are so different in different districts, and even in difierent parishes, that it accounts for the various reports of writers on the subject. Those far- mers who are most solicitous to have the work well performed, contract with men only for digging and leaving clean, in order that the filling may be done by men paid by the day, as a greater security that it should be executed with all possible care ; whatever may be the expense and trouble incurred in draining, it may be safely asserted, that if the work is judiciously contrived, and properly executed, no kind of outlay will prove so beneficial to the cultivator. 3984. The enemies of drains, according to Marshal, are moles, field mice, and the roots of trees ; the two first may be kept under by traps or other devices ; but the last enemy is not easily guarded against but in the laying out of the drain, which should always if possible be kept distant from trees or woody plants of any description. Sect. VII. Of the Implements peculiar to Draining. 3985. The tools peculiar to draining are chiefly of the spade kind ; there are also boring instruments of different kinds. 3986. The draining-scoop (fg. 511 a, b, c), is a crooked kind of tool made use of in some cases for clearing out the loose materials from the bottoms of drains. It is formed of different sizes and breadths, according to the drains, and in working is drawn or pushed along the bottom. 3987. The draining shovel (d], is another sort of implement employed for the same purpose as the above. I It is made with a crooked handle, and the edge of the . shovel part is turned up, in order to prevent the ma- \: ^\ terials from falling off. 3988. The draining sod knife (e), is an implement made use of with great benefit in scoring or cutting ^ out the sward in forming drains. 3989. Draining spades (/, g, h), are made of different breadths, so as to follow each other, and cut the drains narrow at the bottoms. An upper and pointed draining-spade, [g] is in general use, and a wooden one (A) is employed in peat soils. 3990. The draining straio-twistin^ engine, is a machine of very simple construction, already described (2457.), and capable of being readily removed, contrived for the pur- pose of twisting straw into ropes, in order to the filling of drains with it. 3991 . The common borer and peat borer have been already described (2428. 2430.) 3992. The common draitiing auger 512 (Jig. 512.), consists of four parts, the shell or wimble, the chisel, the rod, and the handle. The auger shell or wimble (e), as it is variously ^called, for excavating the earth or strata through which it passes, is generally from two and a half to three and a half inches in diameter ; the hollow part of it one foot four inches in length, and constructed nearly in the shape of the wimble used by carpenters, only the sides of the shell come closer to one another. The rods (a) , are made in separate pieces of four feet long each, that screw into one another to any assignable length, one after another, as the depth of the hole requires. The size above the auger is about an inch square, unless at the joints, where, for the sake of strength, they are a quarter of an inch more. There is also a chisel and punch (6), adapted for screwing on in going through hard gravel, or other metallic substances, to accelerate the passage of the auger, which could not otherwise perforate such hard bodies. The punch Tt 2 J" 11 ""^ 1 . — ^ ^ ::=m I 644 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II I. is often used, when the auger is not applied, to prick or open the sand or gravel, and give a more easy issue to the water. The chisel is an inch and a half or two inches broad at the point, and made very sharp for cutting stone ; and the punch an inch square, like the other part of the rods, with the point sharpened also. There is a shifting handle of wood (rf), that is fastened with two iron wedges affixed to it, for the purpose of turn- ing round the rods in boring ; and also two iron keys (/, c), for screwing and unscrew- ing the rods, and for assisting the handle when the soil is very stiff, and more than two men required to turn it. 3993. To judge when to make use of the borer is a difficult part of the business of drain- ing. Some have been led into a mistaken notion, both as to the manner of using it, and purpose for which it is applied. They think, that if by boring indiscriminately through the ground to be drained, water is found near enough the surface to be reached by the depth of the drain, the proper direction for it is along these holes where water has been found, and thus make it the first implement that is used. The contrary is the case, and the auger is never used till after the drain is cut ; and then for the purpose of per- forating any retentive or impervious stratum, lying between the bottom of the drain and the reservoir or strata containing the spring. Thus does it greatly lessen the trouble and expense that would otherwise be requisite in cutting the trench to that depth to which, in many instances, the level of the outlet will not admit. 3994. The manner of using it is simply thus : in working it, two, or rather three men are necessary. Two stand above, one on each side of the drain, who turn it round by means of the wooden handles, and when the auger is full they draw it out ; and the man in the bottom of the trench clears out the earth, assists in pulling it out, and directing it into the hole, and he can also assist in turning with the iron handle or key, when the depth and length of rods require additional force to perform the operation. The work- men should be cautious in boring, not to go deeper at a time without drawing, than the exact length of the shell, otherwise the earth, clay, or sand, through which it is bor- ing, after the shell is full, makes it very difficult to pull out. For this purpose the exact length of the shell should be regularly marked on the rods, from the bottom up- wards. Two flat boards, with a hole cut into the side of one of them, and laid along, side of one another over the drain in the time of boring, are very useful for directing the rods in going down perpendicularly for keeping them steady in boring, and for the men standing on when performing tlie operation. 3995. The horizontal auger {Jig. 513.), is another boring instrument employed in particular cases. It was invented by Halford, of Hathern, in Leicestershire, but is little used. The advantages of it are, in some cases, considerable, by lessening the expense of cutting, and performing the work in a much shorter time. Where a drain or water-course has to pass under a bank, road, hedge, wall, riviAet of water, or for drying marl-pits, &c. it may be used to advantage in excavating a sufficient passage for the water, without opening a trench. In laying leaden pipes for the conveyance of water, it is also useful in making a hole in which the pipe may be laid without opening a cut on purpose. For tapping springs, or finding water at the bottom of a hill, either for the supply of a house, or for draining the ground, it may likewise be used with suc- cess ; as the water of the spring when hit on, will flow more easily, and in greater abundance through a horizontal or level, than through a perpendicular outlet. 3996. The manner of using it is this : suppose a lake or pond of water, surrounded with high banks, to be emptied, if the ground declines lower on the opposite side, find the level of the bank where the perforation is to be made. There smooth the surface of the ground so as to place the frame nearly level with the auger, pointing a little up- wards. It requires two men to turn the handles at top (a), in order to work it ; and when the auger or shell is full, the rods are drawn back by reversing the lower handle (b) ; and B^oJ^ III- EMBANKING. 645 other rods added at the joint when the distance requires them. In boring through a bank of the hardest clay, two men will work through from thirty to forty feet in a day provided there is no interruption from hard stones, which will require the chisel to be fixed on m place of the shell, and longer time to work through. If the length to be bored through is considerable, or longer than the whole length of the rods, a pit must be sunk upon the line, down to the hole, for placing the frame when removed, and the operation earned on as before. Chap, II. Of Embanking and othermse protecting Lands from the Overflowing or Encrqpchment of Rivers or the Sea. 3997. Lands adjoining rivers or the sea, are frequently subject to be overflowed, or washed away, or to be injured by the course of rivers being changed during great floods. The subject of this chapter therefore embraces that of embanking and guarding the banks of rivers. Skct. I. Of Embanking Lands from Rivers or the Sea. 3998. The great value of alluvial soil to the agriculturist, no doubt, gave rise to the invention of banks, or other barriers, to protect soils from the overflowing of their accom- panying rivers. The civilized nations of the highest antiquity were chiefly inhabitants of valleys and alluvial plains; the soil, moisture, and warmth of which, by enlarging the parts, and ameliorating the fruits of the vegetable kingdom, afforded to man better nou- rishment at less labor than could be obtained in hilly districts. The country of Paradise, and around Babylon, was flat, and the soil saponaceous clay, occasionally overflowed by the Euphrates. The inhabited part of Egypt was also entirely of this descriptioti. Historians inform us, that embankments were first used by the Babylonians and Egyp- tians, very little by the Greeks, and a good deal by the Romans, who embanked the Tiber near Romej and the Po for many stadia from its embouchure. The latter is perhaps one of the most singular cases of embankment in the world. 3999. The oldest embankment in England is that of Romney Marsh, as to the origin of which, Dugdal'e remarks, " there is no testimony left to us from any record or historian." {^History of Embanking and Draining.) It is conjectured to have been the work of the Romans, as well as the banks on each side of the Thames, for several miles above London, which protect from floods and spring tides, several thousand acres of the richest garden ground in the neighborhood of the metropolis. The commendement of modern embankments in England took place about the middle of the seventeenth century, under Cromwell. In the space of a few years previously to 1651, 425,000 acres of ferts, morasses, or overflowed muddy lands, were recovered in Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Hampshire, and Kent; and let at from 2s. 6d. to 305. an acre. [Harte^s Essays, p. 54., 2d edit.) Vermuyden, a Fleming by birth, and a colonel of horse under Cromwell, who had served in Germany during the thirty years' war, was the principal undertaker of these works. 4000. Very little has been written on the subject of embankments, as a separate branch of art, by British authors. Dugdale's work is entirely historical and topographicaL But the writings of Smeaton, Young, Gregory, &c., contain the general principles oh \vhich is founded the art of embanking, and every other operation connected with water,- and Beatson, in Communication to Board of Agriculture. Dr. Anderson, Marshal, and some others, have written on the practice of the art. The works of this sort constructed in our own times will be found described in The Agricultural Reports of the maritime Counties, especially of Lincolnshire, by Arthur Young. We shall first submit sonie general remarks on the principles of designing embankments, and next describe the prin- cipal kinds of banks with their application. SUbsect. 1. General Principles of designing Embankments, 4001. The theory of embanking. Marshal observes, is beautifully simple. Th6 out- ward waters having been resisted by a line of embankment, and having receded, thoise that have cbllected internally are enabled, by their own weight, to open a valve, -svhich is placed in the foot of the bank, and effect their escape : thus securing the embanked lands from inundation, though beset on every side with water. 4002. The pressure of still ivater against the sides of the vessel containing it,- being as its depth, it follows, that a bank of any uiateiial whatever, impervious to water, whose section is a right angled triangle, and the height of whose perpendicular side is equal to that of the water it is to dam in, will balaiice or resist this water, whatever may be the Tt 3 «4€ PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. breadth of the surface of the latter; and, therefore, that as far as width or extent is con- cerned, it is just as easy to exclude the Atlantic ocean as a pond or a river of a few yards in width. 4003. Embankments may be considered in regard to their situation, direction, con- struction, and materials. 4004. The situation of the hank should be such that its base may not be exposed unnecessarily, to the immediate action of the waves, or the current. And, where the quantity of water is limited, as that of land floods in a particular river may be said to be, the more room it has left to spread in, the less height and strength the bank will require ; and the power of the current will be proportionably lessened. It is to be recol- lected, however, in all cases where the channel of the water is liable to be warped or filled up, by sulliage, that the narrower the space is, in which the water is confined, the stronger will be its current, and the less silt will, in ordinary cases, be deposited. 4005. The direction of embankment should be free from sharp angles, so as to occasion the least possible resistance to the current, whether of a land-flood, or the tide. 4006. In the construction or form of the bank there are certain principles to be ob- served. Its height and strength ought ever to be proportioned to the depth and weight of water which it will have to sustain : and, to increase its firmness, the inner face should lean towards it, as a buttress. But it is on the construction of the outer face, its strength, firmness, and durability principally depend. This ought to be made sloping, to a degree of flatness ; for the twofold purpose of preventing resistance, and taking oft" the weight of water. In diflScult cases, the outer surface may form an angle with a per- pendicular line of 45 to 60 degrees, according to the force to be guarded against, and the materials to be employed. 4007. The materials of the body of the bank (as well as of the inner face), where the foundation is sound and firm, and the bank can be carried up, at a proper season, with- out great molestation from the water, may generally be the natural soil of the lands to be embanked. And, where merely the weight of stagnant or slowly moving water is to be guarded against, the outer slope may be of the same material. But where force, whether of waves or a strong current, will act immediately upon the bank, its outer face ought to be made proof against it ; and its base to be particularly guarded, to prevent its being undermined ; the most mischievous and irreparable disaster of embankments. Hence, when the foundation is not sufiiciently firm, piles, timber, and masonry may be required, to insure success. And no man ought to begin a work of this nature, with- out attentively guarding it against every probability of miscarriage. 4008. A system of drains andjioodgates is requisite for the purpose of freeing the em- banked lands from internal waters. 4009. In designing and setting out the main drain, or discharging channel, on the outside of the embankment, there are points which require particular attention. The situation of the outfall, or mouth, with respect to the current of the water into M'hich it opens, is of considerable importance. It ought to be such, that the current of the receiving water will not warp up the channel of the drain ; but such, on the contraiy, as will tend to clear the mouth and keep the channel free. If it were not to preserve the requisite character of an " elementary work, it might be deemed unnecessary to add, that the mouth of the discharging drain should be situated as low as given circumstances and a prudent ex- penditure will allow, beneath the floodgate of the embankment ; in order that, by inducing a sufiicient current, the floodgate, as well as the mouth of the channel, may become free from obstructions. Against the open sea, or a wide estuary, where there is no disgorging channel, but where the waves reach the foot of the embankment, two floodgates may be required ; one on the outer side to sustain the force of the waves, and prevent their blowing up the inner works ; the other within to secure the passage the more effectually. The outer gate in this case is liable to be lifted with the agitation of the waves, and thereby to admit much water; but the inner valve being in a still undisturbed situation effectually stops its progress. 40 1 0. Where the discharge is made immediately behind a shifting beach, and especially where the floodgate is necessarily placed level with or beneath the general surface of the gravel bank, through which the waters have been wont to force a channel, the valve is liable to be buried, and the channel to be closed up by every spring tide, and by every gale of wind which sets in upon it ; and cannot be kept free but by unceasing labor and expense. In an obstinate case of this kind on Lord Cawdor's estate, in Pembrokeshire, the dis- charging floodgate is defended by a covered channel, carried out through the line or ridge of beach into the sea ; being made strong enough to sustain the weight of the heaviest breakers. This, it is true, has been effected at a great expense, but nevertheless the im- provement being of considerable magnitude, with great profit ; and in every case, where an External valve is required, and where it is liable to be silted up, or loaded with sand or gravel, great attention to the outward channel, or some defence is necessary. For the floodgate) when loaded, cuts off* all commum'caiion between the pent up waters and the Book III. EMBANKMENTS. 647 materials that impound them. They cannot, by loosening the obstructing matter, as nature would otherwise direct them, force their way through it j nor by surmounting it, can they wear down a channel, and thus set themselves at liberty. 4011. In ordinary cases, the outer floodgate may be guarded by a pile fence or jetty, run out from the foot of the embankment, across the known drift of the beach ; and in such a manner as not to interrupt the outfall channel of the water ; the gravel, &c. which such a safeguard may accumulate, being removed from time to time as occasion may require. 4012. The best construction of the Jloodgate for the uses now under consideration is the common valve, hingeing at the top, swinging outward and falling into a rabbeted frame. In forming and hanging a floodgate of this construction, there are a few particulars worthy of attention. It should be made of seasoned wood, and ought to be double; the boards or planks of which it is formed being made to cross each otl>er, to prevent its casting. It should fall truly, and fit neatly within a surrounding rabbet (to lessen the power of the waves to lift it) ; but not so closely or tight as to stick when swelled by moisture. To prevent this, as well as to give it additional tightness, its edges should not be square, but should bevel somewhat inward in the manner of a bung ; the rabbet in the frame being made to answer it. In fixing the frame, it ought to be suffered to lean or batter inward ; in which position the door will shut closer, and be less liable to the action of the waves in an exposed situation than it would if it were hung perpendicularly. It ought not, however, to lie so flat or heavy as to prevent the free escape of the internal waters. 4013. The internal waters which rise within or fall upon the area of the embanked lands, are to be collected by a main drain, continued upward from the floodgate ; and furnished with branches to spread over every part of the field of improvement, so as to draw the water as it collects, from every dip and hollow place, and thus free tl>e surface effectually from stagnant water ; saving such only as may be wanted for the use of pas- turing stock. 4014. If alien waters have a natural and accustomed channel through the emfeanked area, it may be found necessary to raise a suitable bank at a proper distance on each side of the stream ; in order to prevent its overflowing the area in times of floods, \fliere it is found that an outlet cannot be had low enough to free the area entirely from surface water, it is requisite (though no alien waters intrude) to form an embanked channel or reservoir ; to gain the required outfall, and to throw the waters which lodge on the lower grounds into this receptacle ; by a draining mill, of which there are a great variety of constructions. 4015. ^« embanked channel, if the banks are raised high enough, or are placed wide enough asunder, so as to contain a sufficient body of water, may have a further use ; which, in some cases, maybe of the highest importance to an improvement of this nature. For, by the help of folding floodgates, such as are commonly seen in use for the locks of navigable canals placed at the lower end of this canal or reservoir, a body of water may be collected and rapidly'discharged ; by whicli easy means, not only the channel of the outer drain, but its mouth, if judiciously contracted, may, from time to time, be cleared from obstructions. Where alien waters of a good quality pass through the field of im- provement, an embanked channel may be profitably applied in watering the lands; and where alien waters, which have not a natural or fortuitous passage through it can be commanded, and conducted to it at a moderate expense, they may prove highly beneficial, for either or both of these purposes. SuRSECT. 2. Of the different Descriptions of Banks in gejieral Use for excluding Waters. 4016. Mounds or banks for excluding rivers or the sea are generally formed of earth, but sometimes also of masonry and even of wood. 4017. The earthen wall {fig. 514.) is the simplest description of embankment, and is frequently erected by temporary occupiers of lands on the general principle of enclosing and Subdividing, which is sometimes made a condi- tion of tenure between the landlord and tenant* This wall applies to lands occasionally, but rarely overflowed or inundated ; and is set out in a direction generally parallel to the river or shore. Its base is commenced on the surface from two to five feet wide, regularly built of turf on the outsides, with the grassy sides underneath. The middle of the wall is filled up with loose earth. , The wall is carried up with the sides bevelled towards the centre, so as to finisli in a width of one foot or eighteen inches at five or six feet in height. Collateral to such walls, and at tlie distance of three or four feet, a small open drain is formed, as well to collect the surface water of the grounds within, as that which, in time Tt 4 648 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. of floods, will necessarily ooze through a wall of this construction. The water so col- lected is let through the wall by tubes, or tunnels of boards 515 {Jig. 515.), with a valve opening outwards on their exterior extremity. When the flow of water from without approaches, | \j_ it shuts the valve, which, remains in this state till the flood sub- ^^^ sides, when the height of the water within being greater than that without, it presses open the valve and escapes. "Walls and valves of this kind are common enough in the drier parts of the fenny districts of Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. 4018. The earthen mound (Jig, 516 516.) is the most general descrip- tion of embankment, and as it is^ executed at considerable expense, is^^ only undertaken by such as have a ^ permanent interest in the soil. This barrier applies to sea lands overflowed by every spring tide, and to alluvial plains inundated by every flood. It is set out in a direction parallel to the shore, and to the general turns of the river, but not to its minute windings ; and it is placed farther from or nearer to the latter, according to the quantity of water in time of floods, the rapidity of the current from the declivity of the bed, the straight course of the stream, and the intended height of the bank. The two sides of such a mound are generally formed in different slopes. That towards the land is always the most abrupt, but can never be secure if more so than 45° ; that towards the water varies from 45° to 15° ; the power of the bank to resist the weight of the water, as well as to break its force when in motion, being inversely as its steepness. The power of water to lessen the gravity of bodies, or in other words, to loosen the surfaces over which they flow or stand, is also lessened in a ratio somewhat similar. 4019. The formation of the earthen mound consists merely in taking earth from the general surface of the ground to be protected, or from a collateral excavation, distant at least the width of the mound from its base line, and heaping it up in the desired form. The surface is then in general cases covered with turf, well rolled in order to bind it to the loose earth. The earth of such mounds is generally wheeled by barrows ; but some- times it is led by carts placed on a wooden roller instead of wheels, which, with the treading of the horses, serves in some degree to consolidate the bank. 4020. The excavation serves the same purposes as the open drain in the earthen wall ; and similarly constructed sluices or valves are introduced on a larger scale. Some- times also the interior water is drawn off by windmills, and thrown over the mound into the river. This is very common in Huntingdonshire, and might be greatly improved on by employing steam-engines for entire districts, one of which, of a ten horse power, would do the work of twenty mills, and this in calm weather, when the latter cannot move. 4021. Embankments of this description are the most universal of any, and their sections vary from a scalene triangle of ten feet in base, and three feet in height, as on the Forth near Stirling, and the Thames at Fulham, to a base of 100 feet, and a height often feet, as in the great bank of the Ouse, near Wisbeach. The great rivers of Germany and Holland are embanked in this way, when so far from the sea as to be out of the reach of the tide ; as the Vistula at Marienwerder, the banks of which, near Dantzic, are above fifteen feet in height ; the Oder, the Elbe, &c. All these banks are closely covered in every part with a grassy surface, and sometimes ornamented with rows of trees. 4022. But near the seoy where such banks are washed by every tide when the course of the wind is towards the shore, and by all land-floods and spring-tides, grass is only to be found on and near their summits. The rest of the bank is bare, and to preserve it from the action of waves, currents, and the stones, pieces of wood, and other foreign matters which they carry with them, the surface is covered with gravel, reeds, or straw, kept down by pieces of wood ; faggots, wicker hurdles, nets of straw ropes, straw ropes laid side by side and fastened, or handsfuU of straw fixed in the ground with a dibber {Neale's Travels inGermany, ^c. chap, i.}, or any other contrivance, according to the situation, to prevent the washing away of the bank. It is common to attribute to these coverings the powelr of breaking the force of the waves ; but this power depends, as we have already stated^ on the slope of the bank and its smoothness ; and the use of the surface covering, and of the constant attention required to remove all obstacles which may be left on it by floodis and tides, is to prevent the loosening power of the water from wearing it into holes, tor this purpose, a sheet of canvass or straw-netting is as good, whilst it lasts, as a covering of plate iron or stone pavement. 4023. ^11 banks whatever require to be constantly watched in time of foods or spring- tides, in order to remove every object, excepting sand or mud, which may be left by the water. Such objects, put in motion by the water, in a short time wear out large holes. These holes, presenting abrupt points to the stream, act as obstructions, soon become much larger, and if not immediately filled up, turfed over, and the turfs pinned down, or the new turfs rendered by some other means not easily softened and raised up by the Book III. EMBANKMENTS. 649 CC water, will end in a breach of the bank. A similar effect is produced by a surface formed of unequal degrees of hardness and durability. The banks of this description in Holland, at Cuxhaven, and along the coast of Lincolnshire, are regularly watched throughout the year ; the surface protection is repaired whenever it goes out of repair ; as is the body of the bank in the summer season. 517 4024. The mound ivith pu d- dte wall {Jig. 511.) It generally happens that the earth of such banks is alluvial, and their foundation of the same de- scription ; but there are some cases where the basis is sand, silt, or gravel; or a mud or black earth, as in some parts of Cambridgeshire and Lin- colnshire, which does not easily become so compact. Here it is common, before beginning * ' —————— ————________ . the bank, to bring up what is called a puddle-ditch, or section 6f clay (a), in the centre of the highest part of the mound in the direction of its length, and of three or five feet wide, according to the depth of the stratum of silt (6), and the intended height of the bank (c). When the clay of this puddle-ditch is well worked, either by men's feet or clay rammers, the bank will be perfectly impervious to water, and if against a mild stream or shore, need not contain such an accumulation of earth as where the imperviousness of the bank to water depends chiefly on the mass of materials. As already observed, the important point to attend to in this variety of mound is, to found the section, or wall of clay, so deep as to be in contact with a stratum (a) either by induration ; or its argillaceous nature, impervious to water. 4025. Mounds with reversed slopes. In some cases of embanking rivers, as where they pass through parks, it is desirable to conceal, as much as possible, the appearance of a bank from the protected grounds. Hence the mound is simply reversed, the steepest side being placed next the water. It is proper to observe, that such banks are not so strong, by the difference of the weight of the triangle of water which would rest on the prolonged slope, were it placed next the river, and are more liable to be deranged in surface in proportion to the difference of the slopes, the water acting for a longer period on every part of the slope. , 4026. Mound faced with stones. This is the same species of mound, with a slope next the water of forty-five or fifty degrees, paved or causewayed with stones or timber. In Holland this pavement or causeway is often formed of planking or bricks ; but in England generally with stones, and the mortar used is either some cement which will set under water, or, what is better, plants of moss firmly rammed between them. The objection to such banks -are their expense, and their liability to be undermined invisibly by the admission of the water through crevices, &c. They are, therefore, chiefly used where there is little room, or where it is desirable to narrow and deepen the course of a Ifiver. 4027. Mound protected hy a wicker hedge. This is a Dutch practice, and, where appearance is no object, has the advantage of not requiring watching. Wicker-work, however, subjected to the strain of waves, will be obviously less durable, than where it lies flat on the ground, and can only decay chemically. This wicker hedge is sometimes a series of hurdles supported by posts and studs ; but generally in Britain it is a dead hedge or row of stakes, wattled or wrought with bushes presenting their spray to the sea or river. Besides placing such a hedge before a bank, others are sometimes placed in parallel rows on its surface ; the object of which is to entrap sand, shells, and sea weeds, to increase the mass of mound, or to collect shells for the purpose of carrying away as manure. 4028. The sea ivall {fig. 518.) is an embankment formed to protect abrupt and earthy shores or banks of rivers, and consists of a wall, varying in thickness, and in the inclination of its surface, according to the re- iquired height, and other circumstances. Belidor, in his Traite de Hi/draulique, has given the exact curve which the section of such a wall ought to have (a, 6), in order to resist loose earth, and which is somewhat greater than . — ^^^ ._^ where the earth behind the wall is supposed to be chiefly " ~~ firm. Some fine examples of such walls, for other purposes, occur in the Caledonian - Canal, and perhaps the finest in the world are the granite walls which embank the Neva at Petersburgh, the construction of which may serve as an example of a river cased with stone on a foundation of soft bog earth. 650 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4029. Embankments for fixing drf ting-sands, shells, or mud. In several tracts of coast, the sea at ordinary tides barely covers a surface of sand ; and these sands in dry weather, during high winds, are drifted and blown about in all directions. Great part of the north shores of the Solway Frith, of Lancaster Bay, and of the coast of Norfolk, is of this description. Young, in hi':-, Farmer s Letters, informs us, that a considerable part of the county of Norfolk was drift sand, even as far inland as Brandon in Suffolk, before the introduction of the turnip culture; and Harte (Essay I.) states that some of what is now the richest land in Holland, was, about the middle of the sixteenth century, of this description. The suggestion of any mode, therefore, by which, at a moderate expense, such tracts could be fixed, and covered with vegetation, must be deemed worthy of notice. The mode which nature herself employs is as follows : After the tides and wind have raised a marginal steep of land as high as high water-mark, it becomes by degrees covered with vegetation, and chiefly by the elymus arenarius, triticum junceum, various species of juncus, and sometimes by the gallium verum. With the exception of the first of these plants (the leaves and stalks of which are manufactured into mats and ropes in Anglesea, and the grain of which is sometimes ground and used as meal in Ireland), they are of no other use than fixing the sands, which, being composed in great part of the debris of shells, expand as they decay, and contribute to raising the surface still higher, when the fibrous roots of good grasses soon destroy the others. 4030. To assist nature infxing drift-sands, it is only necessary to transplant the elymus, which is to be had in abundance in almost every sandy, coast in Britain ; and as it would be liable to be blown away with the sands, if merely inserted in the common way, it seems advisable to tie the plants to the upper ends of willow or elder rods, of two or three feet in length, and to insert tliese in the sand, by which means there is the double chance of the grass growing, and the truncheon taking root. The elder will grow exposed to the sea breeze, and no plant throws out so many and such vigorous roots in proportion to its shoots. 403 1 . The mode by which such sands were fixed in Holland was by the formation of wicker- work embankments, and by sticking in the sands branches of trees, bushes, furze, &c. in all directions. These obstructed the motion of the sands, and collected masses of sand, shells or mud, and sea-weeds around them, which were immediately planted with some description of creeping grass ; or, what was more frequent, covered with a thin coating of clay, or alluvial earth, and sown with clover. Though the most certain and least ex- pensive mode of gaining such lands be undoubtedly that of seconding the eflTorts of nature, by inserting bushes, and planting the elymus in this way ; yet it may sometimes be desirable to make a grand eflPort to protect an extensive surface, by forming a bank of branches, which might, in a single or several tides, be filled with sand and shells. It is evident, that such a bank might be constructed in various ways ; but that which would be most certain of remaining firm, and effecting the purpose, would be one regularly constructed of framed timber, the section of which would resemble a trussed roof; each truss being joined in the direction of the bank by rafters, and the whole inside and surface stuck full of branches. To retain it firm, piles would require to be driven into the sand, to the upper parts of which would be attached the trusses. The height of such a barrier would require to be several feet above that of the highest spring-tides ; and the more its width at base exceeded the proportion of that of an equilateral triangle the better. 4032. A mode suited to a less extensive scale of operation, is to intersect a sandy shore in all directions^ with common dead, or wicker-work hedges, formed by first driving a row of stakes six or eight feet into the ground, leaving their tops three or four feet above it, and then weaving among these stakes, branches of trees, or the tops of hedges. The Dutch dre said to weave straw ropes in this way, and thereby to collect mud in the manner of voarping. This mode being little expensive seems to deserve a trial in favorable situa- tions ; and, in so doing, it must not be forgotten, that much depends on the immediate management of the surface, after it is in some degree fixed. In an extensive trial of this sort at present in progress on the west coast of Scotland, under an English gentle- man, seeds and roots are baked in a mixture of loam and dung in the gravel, and then formed into masses, and scattered over a sandy surface. These, from their weight, will not, it is thought, be moved by the water or the wind ; but becoming more or less covered with sand, the mass will be kept moist, and the seeds and roots will grow, and, fixing themselves in the soil, will in time cover the surface with verdure. The experi- ment is ingenious, and we hope will be crowned with success. Sect. II- Of guarding the Banks, and otherwise improving the Course of Rivers and Streams. 4033. The subject of guarding the banks of rivers, is of considerable interest to th6 proprietors of lands situated in hilly districts, where, in the valleys and on the hill sides, the streams often produce ravages on the banks, and sometimes change their courses. 4034. The natural licence tf rivers, Marshal observes, is- not only destructive of Book III. GUARDING RIVER BANKS. 651 landed property, frequently of lands of the first quality ; but is often the cause of dis- putes, and not unfrequently of legal contentions, between neighboring proprietors. A river is the most unfortunate boundary line of an estate. Even as a fence, unless where the water is unfordable, a river, or rapid brook, which is liable to high floods, is the most tormenting and inefficient. Proprietors have therefore a double interest in ac- commodating each other, as circumstances may require, with the lands of river banks, so as to be al)le to fix permanent boundary lines between their properties. When the owners of estates cannot, by reason of entails or settlements, or will not for less cogent reasons accommodate each other, they have a line to tread which they cannot deviate from with prudence, much less with rectitude ; namely, that of cautiously guarding their own lands, without injuring those of their neighbors ; for a lawsuit may cost ten times the value of the sand banks, and islets of gravel, to be gained by dexterity of management. 4035. IVie operatio7is for improving rivers have for their object that of preventing them from injuring their banks, accelerating their motion, and lessening the space of ground which they occupy, or altering their site. These purposes are effected by piers or guerdes for altering the direction of the curr&nt ; works for protecting the banks ; and by changing or deepening the river's course. 4036. The principles on which these operations are founded axe chie^y ivfo ; first, that water like every other body when it impinges on any surface, is reflected from it at a similar angle to that at which it approached it ; and, secondly, thut the current of water, other circumstances alike, is as the slope of the surface on which it runs. On the first of these principles is founded the application of piers for reflecting currents ; and on the second, that of straightening rivers, by which more slope is obtained in a given length of stream, and of course greater rapidity of motion obtained. SuBSECT. 1. On guarding River Banks, 4037. A common cause of injury to the banks of rivers is produced during floods. A tree or branch carried down by a stream, and deposited, or accidentally fixed or retained in its banks, will repel that part of the stream which strikes against it, and the impulse (contracted more or less by the general current) will direct a substream against the opposite bank. The effect of this continual action against one point of the opposite bank is, to wear out a hole or breach ; and immediately above this breach it is customary to place a protecting pier to receive the impulse of the substream, and reverberate it to the middle of the general stream. But if this pier is not placed very obliquely to the substream, as well as to the general stream, it will prove injurious to the opposite bank, by directing a subcurrent there as great as the first ; and, indeed, it is next to impossible to avoid this ; so much so, that Smeaton, in almost every instance in which he was con- sulted in cases of this sort, recommended removing the obstacle where that could be done, and then throwing loose stones into the breach. 4038. Injuries by floods, according to Marshal, are to be remedied in two ways ; the one is to sheath the injured banks of the bays {fg- 519 o, 6, c), with such materials as will resist the circuitous current ; and let the river remain in its crooked state. The other, to erect piers [d), to parry off the force of the current from the bank, and direct it forward ; with the twofold intention of preventing further mischief, and of bringing back the course of the river to its former state of straightness. It is to be observed, that the operation of guarding the immediate bank of a sharp river bend, against a heavy current meeting with great resistance, by sheathing it with stones, is generally a work of much difficulty and expense, even where materials can be easily procured : while that of divert- ing the current by a pier may frequently be accomplished at a comparatively small cost ; and its effect be rendered infinitely more salutary and permanent. For it is plain, that if the accidental obstruction mentioned, had been timely removed, no bad efiect would have ensued : and tlVe river would have continued its direct course. Or if, through neglect, it had been suffered to remain awhile, until its mischief was discoverable ; even then, if it had been moved from its station to the opposite side of the river, and placed in the part affected, this small counterpoise might have recovered the balance of the cur-« 652 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. rent, and directed it into its wonted channel. And in almost any case, by judiciously placing, in a similar manner, a pier or other obstruction proportioned to the magnitude of the power to be counteracted, the like effect may be produced. 4039. In the use of jneis great caution is requisite, for a very little reflection will show, that they are more likely to increase than to remedy the evil they are intended to cure. We have seen the injurious effects of such piers on the Tay and the Dee ; and on a part of the Jed near Crailing they are so numerous, that the stream is, to use a familiar phrase, banded about like a foot-ball, from one shore to the other ; behind every pier an eddy is formed, and if the stream does not strike the pier exactly, a breach in the bank takes place. Many of these piers have, in consequence, been taken down. The vise of such piers can only be justified where the obstruction, from ill-neighborhood or some such cause, cannot be removed from the opposite bank ; or where, as is sometimes the case, it arises from an island of sand or gravel thrown out by the river near its middle, and which, however absurd it may appear, the interested parties cannot agree as to who may remove it. The case of buildings also being in danger, may justify such a pier for immediate protection ; but if such breaches are taken in time, a few loads of loose stones dropped in the breach, as recommended by Smeaton, will effect a remedy without the risk of incurring or occasioning a greater evil. 4040. In the construction of piers, attention is required to secure the foundation, either by first throwing in a quantity of loose stones, which the water will in a great measure dis- pose of so as to form a flat surface; or by the use of piles either under, or in single or double rows around those parts of its base in contact with the river, [fig' 520 a.) The elevation (b), where it is not required to act with great violence on the opposite shore, ought to be bevelled back on all sides exposed to the water, towards the middle of the structure (c). In the most important cases stones are the only fit materials, and these ■should be regularly jointed and laid in cement according to the best practice of masonry. But, in general, a case of wicker work, of the proper shape, may be filled in with loose stones, some earth, together with the roots of such plants as tussilago petasites, elymus arenarius, gallium, &c. These will form a barrier of considerable durability for some years, and probably till the evil is so far subdued that, when the wicker case decays, its contents will have sufficiently consolidated to effect the object without further care. If not, the wicker case may be renewed. In ordinary cases, a mere wicker hedge project- ing into the water will effect the object without further trouble. 4041. The sheath, or land-guard of loose stones, which Marshal recommends, and which, in effect, is the mode already mentioned (4037.) as preferred by Smeaton, is ap- plicable to the following cases : First, where the river is confined in the part where it is required to be bent, by rocks or otherwise, to ah unaltered channel ; as it frequently is, in subalpine situations ; and, secondly, where a deep pool occurs, in that part, in low water, so as to render it difficult to get a proper foundation for a pier. Where the foot of the injured bank is covered with a pool at low water, shelve off the brink of the bank, and shoot down loose stones from the top of it ; suffering them to form their own slope, in the action of falling, and by the operation of succeeding floods^ continuing Book III. CHANGING THE COURSE OF RIVERS. 653 to pour them down, until the bank be secured, at least from minor floods, and then slope back the upper part, to give freedom to floods of higher magnitude. 4042. JFhen the channel of a rapid river is narrow and the banks undermined and washed away by the torrents, what Marshal terms the land-guard is to be used. 4043. Informing a land-guard for this purpose, he says, the foundation should be laid pretty deep, to guard against any accidental scoopings from the floods. The wall ought to be carried up dry, or without mortar, the stones being laid with their ends outward, their inner ends pointing to the same centre, like those of an arch, and to be backed with gravel, or earth, rammed in firmly behind, as the facing is carried up. The coping or uppermost course of the stones is to be securely bound, with thick tough sods (8 or 10 inches deep), whose surfaces, when beaten down, ought to lie even with that of the stone- work; and similar sods require to belaid, with a gently rising slope, until they unite smoothly with the natural turf of the land to be defended ; so that the waters of floods, when they rise above the stonework, may have no abruptness to lay hold of, but may pass away smoothly over the surface of the land, as they commonly do over smooth greensward, without injury. Finally, the stones are to be beaten forcibly into the bank, with a ram- mer, a mallet, or a small battering-ram, adapted to the purpose ; thus rendering the whole compact and firm, to resist the current. Where vacancies or fissures still appear, long splin- ters of stone are to be driven in, as wedges, to increase the firmness, and prevent the cur- rent from tearing out an unguarded stone. It follows, in course, that the largest and longest of the stones ought to be used where the greatest resistance is known to be required. 4044. The repairs of a bulwark of this sort, like every other species of river fence, re- quire to be attended to from time to time, especially after great floods. If the found- ation be laid bare, it requires to be re-covered with rough gravel, or with stones thrown loosely against it. If any of the facing stones be displaced or loosened, they are to be replaced with others, or to be wedged in afresh. Or, if the turf which binds them at the top be disturbed, the torn part should be cut out square, and be firmly and completely filled up with fresh turves. SuBSECT. 2. Of Changing the Course of Rivers. 4045. A river whose course is in a straight line, or nearly so, hardly ever makes any en- croachment on its banks, unless perhaps in very large rivers, when they rise above their usual level, either by an increase in their own waters, or their flow being in some degree interrupted by the tides. Hence, whenever a river is narrow in its channel, and winds considerably, any mischief it commonly occasions may be prevented by deepening and straightening the course of the stream. {^Code of Agr. p. 319.) 4046. The alteration of the course of a river or brook is attended with diflSculty and ex- pense, according to the particular circumstances belonging to it. In a simple case, in which one straight cut only is required, the principal diflSculty, and that which requires the best skill of the artist, lies in directing the current of the first flood, out of the old into the new channel. But if a bend of the old channel can be made use of, this diflSculty may be said to vanish. The mouth of the new cut receives the current with a straight course; consequently, "if it be made of suflScient capacity, the river, in a flood, can have no propensity left towards its old channel : and the loose materials which rise in forming the mouth of the new cut, will generally be sufficient to turn the stream at low water into it. But if a suitable bend cannot be approached by the new cut, a directing pier will be required to bend the flood current, and give it a straightforward course into the new chan- nel : a watertight dam being formed be^tween the point of the pier and the firm bank of the new channel to prevent the water from regaining its wonted course. 4047. An entirely neiu bed or channel, however, is much to be preferred where it can be obtained; for in an altered course, when the stream passes alternately through new soil and through a part of its oldbed, its action on surfaces which are so different in regard to induration ends, if great care is not taken, in holes and guUeys in the new bank, which require to be constantly filled up with loose stones thrown in, and left to be fixed by the pressure and motion of the water. I n the case of a river passing near a house {Jig. 521.) this is sometimes of considerable importance. 521 654 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4048. Cutting the new channel is merely a work of manual labor ; being attended with no other difficulty than what may arise from the expense, which will depend on the size of the river, the nature of the ground to be cut through, and the value of labor in the given district. It is mostly to be ascertained with sufficient accuracy by previous calculations. (See 3082.) 4049. The size of the netv cut may be small, compared with that of the old channel. For the current of floods, by carrying off the earthy particles with which they come in contact, will soon enlarge it. It is nevertheless right to give ample room in the new channel, lest the first flood should prove high, and, by bursting its bounds, force its way back to its former course. 4050. u4 new river course requires to be carefully attended to, during a few years after it is opened, — to see that its channel preserves its straightness, and that no breaches are made or threatened in its banks. Considering the uncertainty of extraordinary floods, it cannot be said to be out of danger in less than three years ; hence it becomes prudent, when a work of this nature is contracted for, or undertaken to be done by measurement at an estimated price or prices, previously agreed upon (as it generally oughtj, that the un- dertaker should agree to preserve the straightness of the channel, and uphold its banks, during that or some other time fixed upon ; and to deliver them up at the end of the term, in the state and condition specified in the contract. 4051 . A case of straightening the course of a river is given in The Code of Agriculture. The Waters, which in their crooked course were formerly almost stagnated, now run at the ordinary rate of the declivity given them. They never overflow their banks. Cattle can now pasture upon those grounds in which they would formerly have been swamped. The surface of the water bi'ing now in general four, and sometimes six feet, below that of the adjacent fields, this cut serves as a general drain to the whole valley ; so that three hundred acres of meadow may be converted into arable land ; sixty acres of moss may be improved into meadow; and five hundred acres of arable land are rendered of double their former value, (p. 319.) Chap. III. Of Irrigation or the Improvement of Culturable Lands and Farmeries, hy the Means of Water. 4052. The imjnovement of lands by water is of three kinds : — irrigation, or the appli- cation of water to the surface of the soil, and especially of grass lands, as a species of culture ; warping, or the covering the soil with water to receive a deposition of earthy matter ; and the procuring or preserving of water by wells, reservoirs, and other means, for the use of farmeries, live stock in the fields, or the domestic purposes of the farmer or cottager. Sect. I. Of Irrigation or the Preparation of the Surface of Lands for the jyrofitable Application of Water. 4053. Irrigation in its different forms may be considered an operation of culture as well as of permanent improvement. It is accordingly in many cases eflfected by tenants, but always, as in the case of improving wastes, in consequence of extraordinary encou- ragement from the landlord, by long leases, money advanced, or other advantages. 4054. The application of ivater to the surface of lands for the purpose of promoting vegetation has been practised, as we have seen (180.), from the earliest ages in warm countries. It is an essential article for the culture both of the cereal and pasture grasses, and indeed of most herbaceous crops in all the tropical climates, and even in a great degree in the south of Europe. In the greater part of Italy and Spain, few crops are raised without being irrigated ; and even in the south of France, potatoes, maize, madder, and sometimes vines^ and orange trees, fas at Hieres,) have water applied to their roots, by furrows and other gutters and trenches formed on the surface. The system of watering grass lands was revived in Italy in the ninth century, and seems to have been practised in a few places in Britain from the time of the Romans; there being meadows near Salisbury which have been irrigated from time immemorial. In 1610, the public atten- tion was called to it by Rowland Vaughan, in a work entitled, " Most improved and long experienced Water Works; containing the manrier of summer and winter drowning of meadow and pasture, by the advantage of the least river, brook, fount, or water mill adjacent ; thereby to make those grounds {especially if they be dry) more fertile ten for Book III. IRRIGATION. 655 4055. But the principal efforts in watering lands have been made during the latter end of the last, and beginning of the present century, in consequence of a treatise on the subject by George Boswell, published in 1780 ; and various others by the Rev. Thomas Wright, of Auld, in Northamptonshire, which appeared from 1789 to 1810. The practice, however, has been chiefly confined to England, there being a sort of national prejudice, as Loch has observed {Improvements on the Stafford Estates, ^c.J, against the practice in Scotland, though its beneficial effects may be seen as far north as Sutherland, where rills on the sides of brown heathy mountains, never fail to destroy the heath plants within tlieir reach, which are succeeded by a verdant surface of grasses. A valuable treatise on the subject of irrigation in Scotland, by Dr. Singer, will be found in The General Report of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 610. In England the best examples of water- ing are to be found in Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. In our view of this subject, we shall first consider the soils and situations suitable for irrigation, and next the different modes of effecting it, known as flooding, irrigating, warping, irrigation on arable lands, and subterraneous irrigation. SuBSECT. 1. Of the Soils and Situations suitable for the purposes of Watering Lands. 4056. The theory of the operation of water on^lands we have already developed. It appears to act as a medium of conveying food, as a stimulus, as a consolidation of mossy soils, as a destroyer of some descriptions of weeds or useless plants, and as the cause of warmth at one season, and of a refreshing coolness at another. From these circum- stances, and also from what we observe in nature, there appears to be no soil or situation, nor any climate, in which watering grass-lands may not be of service; since the banks of streams between mountains of every description of rock, and in every temperature from that of Lapland to the equator, are found to produce the richest grass. One circum- stance alone seems common to all situations, which is, that the lands must be drained either naturally or by art. The flat surfaces on every brook or river, after being covered with water during floods, are speedily dried when they subside, by the retiring of the waters to their channel. 4057. The most proper soils for being watered are all those which are of a sandy or gravelly friable nature, as the improvement is not only immediate, but the effects more powerful than on other descriptions of land. There are also some strong adhesive sour wet lands, such as are common in the vicinity of large rivers, v.'hich are also capable of being improved by watering, but the beneficial effects are not in such cases so soon pro- duced as on those of the first sorts, nor is the process so advantageous to the farmer, on account of the very great expense to which he must, in many cases, be put to by previous draining. There are some other lands, as those which contain coarse vegetable produce tions, as heath, ling, rushes, &c. which may likewise be much improved by watering. It must be kept constantly in mind in attempting this sort of improvement, that the more tenacious the soil is the greater the command of water ought to be for effecting the pur- pose, as a stream capable of watering fifteen or twenty acres of light dry land, would be found to be beneficial in but a small degree when applied to watering half the same quantity of cold clayey ground such as in their natural state abound with coarse plants. On all soils of the last kind a considerable body of water is requisite for the purpose of floating them in order to produce much benefit, and where that cannot be procured, this mode of improvement will seldom answer the farmer's intention or be advantageous in the result. 4058. Smith, an experienced irrigator, supposes that " there are only a few soils to which irrigation may not be advantageously applied : his experience, he says, has deter- mined, that the wettest land may be greatly improved by it, and also that it is equally beneficial to that which is dry." {Obs. on Irrigation, c^c.) But that as many persons unacquainted with the nature of irrigation may be more inclined to the latter supposi- tion than the former, he explains the reason of wet land being as capable of improvement from flooding as that which is completely dry before. It is that in the construction of all water meadows, particular care must be taken to render them perfectly dry when the business of floating shall terminate ; and that the season for floating is in the winter and not the summer, which those who are unacquainted with the process have too generally supposed. All peat bogs are certainly of vegetable origin, and tliose vege- tables are all aquatic. It follows that the same water which has produced the vege- tables of the bog would, under due management upon the surface, produce such grasses, or other vegetables, as are usually grown by the farmer ; and he lias hitherto had reason to think, that this may be considered as a general rule for determining the situation of any experiments with water. The lands that permit of this sort of improvement with the most success are such as lie in low situations on the borders of brooks, streams, or rivers, or in sloping directions on the sides of hills. 4059. The quality of the water, like that of marl or other manures, is supposed by some to be a matter of the first importance ; but it is novt fully proved, by the accurate 656 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. experiments of an able chymist, and by the extraordinary growth of grasses in Pristley meadow, in Bedfordshire, that ferruginous waters are friendly to vegetation, when pro- perly applied. (Smithes Observations on Irrigation, p. 28.) Lead or copper never does good, and it is well known, that waters of that description, after they have been brought into fields, by levels cut at a considerable expense, have again been diverted, and suffered to flow in their original channels. Waters that are impregnated with the juices that flow from peat-mosses, are considered by many not worth applying to the soil. It is objected to them, that they are soon frozen ; that they convey no material nutriment ; and that they are commonly loaded with such antiseptic substances, as will retard, instead of promoting vegetation. {Br. Singer s Treatise, p. 579.) It is urged, on the other hand, that a want of sufl^cient slope in the meadow, or of proper management in regard to the water, may have occasioned the disappointments experienced in some cases, when bog- waters have been applied. {Derbyshire Report, \o\. ii. p. 463.) 4060. The advantages of watering lands must, in a material degree, depend on the climate. It is evident that the benefit to be derived from this process in Sweden for example, where the summers are short, must be greatly inferior to what it is in Lom- bardy where grass grows all the year ; and much less in Perthshire, where grass ceases to grow for at least three, and often four months in the year, than in Gloucestershire or Ireland, where its growth is not interrupted above a month or six weeks, and sometimes not at all : most grasses vegetating in a temperature of 33 or 34 degrees. Still, however, as the most luxuriant pastures are found on lands naturally watered, both in Sweden and Perthshire, it would appear worth while to imitate nature in cold as well as warm countries. According to many writers on the sul)ject, the benefits attending watering in England, are immense. In Davis's Survey of Wiltshire, it is calculated that 2000 acres of water meadow will, on a moderate estimate, produce in four or five years, 10,000 tons of manure, and will keep in permanent fertility 400 acres per annum of arable land. 4061. Watering poor land, especially if of a gravelly nature, is stated in The Code of Agriculture to be by far the easiest, cheapest, and most certain mode of improving it. *' Land, when once improved by irrigation, is put in a state of perpetual fertility, without any occasion for manure, or trouble of weeding, or any other material expense. It becomes so productive, as to yield the largest bulk of hay, besides abun- dance of the very best support for ewes and lambs in the spring, and for cows and other cattle in the autumn of every year. In favorable situations, it produces very early grass in the spring, when it is doubly valuable; and, not only is the land thus rendered fertile, without having any occasion for manure, but it produces food for animals, which is con- verted into manure, to be used on other lands, thus augmenting, in a compound propor- tion, that great source of fertility." Were these advantages more generally known, or more fully appreciated, a large proportion of the kingdom might become like South Cerney, in Gloucestershire, where every spring, or rivulet, however insignificant, is made subservient to the purpose of irrigation, fertilizing, in proportion to its size, either a small quantity, or a large tract of land. {Gloucestershire Report, p. 280.) SuBSECT. 2. Of the Implements made Use of in Watering Lands; and of the Terms of Art peculiar to Works of that kind, 4062. The principal instrument made use of in the preparation of lands for watering, is the level, different descriptions of which have already been given. The level is neces- sarily employed to take the level of the land at a distance, compared with the part of the river, &c. whence it is intended to take the water, to know whether it can or cannot be made to float the part intended to be watered. It is found very useful in undertakings of this nature, especially when on a large scale, though the workmen too frequently dispense with the use of it, bringing the water after them to work by. In drawing a main they begin at the head, and work deep enough to have the water to follow them ; and in drawing a tail drain they begin at the lower end of it, and work upwards to let the water come after them. The level should, however, be made use of as being more certain and correct. Brown, an experienced irrigator in the west of England, recommends a level {fig. 522 a), which when not in use may be closed [b) like a walking stick. There is also a compass level {Jig. 523.), which may be used in the same way. 4063. A line and reel, and a breast-plough, or turf spade {Jig. 250.), are likewise absolutely necessary. The use of the two former are well known ; but as the line is mostly used in the wet, it should for this purpose be larger and stronger than those employed in gardening. The turf spade should be of the best description, being '- ^ ^ principally employed in cutting turfs for the sides of the channels. Book III. IMPLEMENTS OF IRRIGATION. 657 523 4064. The spades made use of in this sort ofivork {jig. 524 a), should have the stems considerably more crooked than those of ^ly other sort ; the bit being of iron, about a foot wide in the middle, terminating in a point ; a thick ridge running perpendicu- larly down the middle, from the stem almost to the point ; the edges on both sides should be drawn very thin, and as they are obliged to be kept very sharp, they should be often ground and whetted. This necessarily wears them away, and they soon become narrow ; they are then used for the narrow trenches and drains, whilst new ones are used for the wider. ^ From the stems being made crooked, the workmen, standing in the working position in the bottom of the trench or drain, are enabled to make them quite smooth and even. Shovels of different forms (^Jig. 525 a, b), and a scoop for lifting water (c), are also requisite. 4065. The crescent (Jig. 524 b) is another tool made like the gardener's edging iron, only much larger, having the form of a crescent, being very thin, and well steeled, with a stem about three feet long, and a cross handle to bear upon. It is used for tracing out the sides of the mains, trenches, drains, &c. 4066. The turf knife {fg. 526.) has a scymiter-like blade, with a tread for the foot (a.) and a bent handle (b) ; it is used for the same purpose as the crescent, and by some preferred. 4067. Wheelbarrows also become necessary to remove the clods to flat places; which may be open, without sides or hinder parts. 4068. Handbarrows are likewise sometimes made use of where the ground is too soft to admit of the wheelbarrows, and where clods require to be removed during the time the meadow is in water. 4069. Three-wheel carts, ^c. are, however, necessary, when large quantities of earth are to be removed, particularly when it is carried to some distance. 4070. Scythes, of different sorts, {fig. 527 a, b), are required to mow the weeds and grass, when the water is running in the trenches, drains, &c. 4071. Besides these, forks (c), and long four or five tinedhacksj are requisite to pull 527 ^"T 4] out the roots of the sedge, rushes, reed, &c. which grow in the large mains and drains. The crooks should be made light, and have long stems, to reach wherever the water is so deep that the workmen cannot work in it. 4072. And stout large water-proof boots, having tops so as to draw up half the length of the thigh, are indispensable ; they must be large enough to admit a quantity of hay to be stuffed down all round the legs, and be kept well tallowed, to resist the running water for a length of time. 4073. The terms made tise of are very dififerent. 4074. A ware is an erection across a river, brook, rivulet, main, &c. made often of timber only, sometimes of bricks, or stones and timber, with from two to eight, or ten thoroughs (openings) to let the water through, according to the breadth of the stream. Its height is always equal to the depth of the stream compared with the adjacent land. Its use is, when the hatches are all in their proper places, to stop the whole current, that the water may rise high enough to overflow the banks, and spread over the adjoining Uu 658 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. land ; or, by stopping the water in its natural course, turn it through mains, cut to convey it another way, to some distant lands, to water them. 4075. A sluice {Jig. 528 a, b) is made exactly as a ware, only it has but one thorough ; for if there are more than one, it becomes a ware. 528 Fs==^-=f^ -w 4076. A trunk is a covered sluice, being constructed in all cases where two streams of water are to cross each other at the point of discharge, to serve as a bridge. 4077. A carriage is a sort of small wooden or brick aqueduct, built open, for the purpose of carrying one stream over another, and is the most expensive conveyance belonging to the business of watering. 4078. A drain sluice, or drain trunk, signifies such as are placed in the lowest part of a main, as near to the head as a drain can be formed, and situated low enough to drain the main, &c. It is placed with the mouth at the bottom of the main, being let down into the bank ; and from its other end a drain is cut to communicate with some trench- drain that is nearest. It is a contrivance used to carry off the leakage through the hatches when they are shut down, to convey the water to other grounds, or to repair the main, &c. 4079. Hatches, (Jig. 528 c) are floodgates, variously constructed. A particular kind, which have about a foot, to take off, so as to permit the water to flow over that much of the hatch where it appears to be useful in irrigation has been in use, but is not found to answer. They are best when made whole ; they may be made of any timber, but oak and elm are the best. 4080. The term head main is used to signify a ditch drawn from the river, rivulet, &e. to convey the water out of its usual current to water the lands laid out for that purpose, through the means of lesser mains and trenches. The head main is drawn of various breadths and depths, according to the quantity of land to be watered ; to the length, or to the fall or descent of the land it is cut through. And it often happens that smaller mains are taken out of the head main ; the only difference between them is, the one being much less than the other, and are mostly cut at, or nearly at, right angles with the other, though sometimes many degrees less. The use of both the large and small mains is to feed the various trenches with water, which branch out into all parts of the meadow, and convey the water to float the land. These smaller mains are by some called carriages, but impro« perly, for it is confounding them with the open trunk, called by that name, as seen above. 4081. The trench is a narrow shallow ditch, made to take the water out of the mains to float the land with. It ought always to be drawn in a straight line from angle to angle, with as few turnings as possible. It is never made deep, but the width is in proportion to the length it runs, and the breadth of the pane, between that and the trench drain. It is always cut gradually narrower and narrower to the lower end. 4082. The trench drain is cut parallel to the trench, and as deep as tlie tail drain water will admit when necessary. It ought always to be cut, if possible, so as to come down to a firm stratum of sand, gravel, or clay. If the latter, a spade's depth into it will be of great advantage ; its use is to carry away the water immediately after it has run over the panes from the trench. It need not be drawn up to the head of the land, by five, six, or more yards, according to the nature of the soil. Its form is the reverse of the trench, being narrower at the head, or upper part, and gradually wider and wider, till it comes to the lower end and empties itself into the tail drain, which is a receptacle for all the water that runs out of the other drains, that are so situated as not to empty themselvea into the river ; and therefore it should run nearly at right angles with the trenches, but, in general, the preference is given to draw it in the lowest part of the ground, and to use it to convey the water out of the meadow where there is the greatest descent ; this is generally found in one of the fence ditches : for which reason a fence ditch is mostly used for that purpose, answering two purposes, fencing the meadow, and draining it at the same time. 4083. A pane of ground is that part of the meadow which lies between the trench and the trench drain, and is the part on which the grass grows that is mown for hay ; it is wa- Book III. TERMS OF IRRIGATION. 659 tered by the trenches and drained by the trench drains, consequently there is one on each side of every trench. And a way pane is that part of the ground which lies in a properly watered meadow, on that side of a main where no trenches are taken out, but is watered the whole length of the main over its banks; a drain runs parallel with the main to drain the way pane ; its use is for a road to convey the hay upon out of the meadows, instead of the teams crossing all the trenches. 4084. The term bend is applied to a stoppage made in various parts of those trenches which have a quick descent, to obstruct the water. It is made by leaving a narrow slip of greensward across the trench, where the bend is intended to be left, cutting occasionally a piece, wedge fashion , out of the middle of it. Its use is to check the water, and force it over the trench into the panes ; which, if it were not for those bends, would run rapidly on in the trench, and not flow over the land, as it passes along. The great art of watering meadows consists in giving to every part of each pane an equal quantity of water. 4085. A gutter is a small groove cut out from the tails of those trenches, where the panes run longer at one corner than the other. Its use is to carry the water to the extreme point of the pane. Those panes which are intersected by the trench and tail drains meet- ing in an obtuse angle, want the assistance of thesfe gutters to convey the water to the longest side. Another use of them is, when the land has not been so well levelled but some parts of the panes lie higher than they ought, a gutter is then drawn from the trench over that high ground, which otherwise would not be overflowed. Without this precaution, unless the flats were filled up (which ought always to be done when materials can be had to do it) , the water will not rise upon it : and after the watering season is past, those places would appear rusty and brown, whilst a rich verdure would overspread the others ; and at hay-time the grass in those places would be scarce high enough for the scythe to touch it, whilst that around them, which has been properly watered, will from its luxuriancy lie down. Though this method of treating those places is mentioned, it ought always to be reprobated ; for every inequality in water meadows should either be levelled down or filled up. Here the irrigator's skill is shown, in bringing the water over those places where it could not rise of itself, and in carrying it off from others where it would otherwise stagnate. 4086. The term catch drain is sometimes applied to another method made use of to water the land when the water is scarce, and it is this : when a meadow is pretty long and has a quick descent, the water runs swiftly down those drains, one or more of tjiem are, at a proper place, close stopped, till the water flowing thither rises higher and higher, either till it strikes back into the tail drains, so high as to rise upon the sides of the panes (in that case it will not succeed, and must be cut open again to let the water free), or till it flows over the banks of the drain, and waters the ground below; then the design succeeds, and (in proportion to the quantity of water thus collected) it is to be conveyed upon the land, either in a small main, out of which trenches are to be drawn with their pro- per drains, or by trenchep taken immediately out of it. But a catch drain is by no means recommended ; and it is broper to remark, that even when this method succeeds, the water having been so lately strained over the ground, it is supposed by the watermen to be not so enriching as it was before it was used, and therefore nothing but absolute necessity can justify its adoption. 4087. The bed of a river, main, trench, &c. is the bottom of them. 4088. The term pond means water standing upon the land, or in the tail drain, trench drains, &c. so as to injure the ground near them; and is occasioned sometimes by the flats not having l)een properly filled up ; and at other times, when a ware being shut close, to water some high ground above it, the water is thrown back upon the ground contiguous. In this case the lesser evil, whichever it is, must be borne with. 4089. And a turn of water means so much land in a meadow as can be watered at one time. It is done by shutting down the hatches in all those wares where the water is in- tended to be kept out, and opening those that are to let the water through them. The quantity of land to be watered by one turn, must vary with the size of the river, main, &c. as well as with the plenty or scarcity of water. 4090. The head of a meadow is that part into which the river, main, &c. first enters ; and the tail of a meadow is that part out of which the river, &c. last passes. 4091. The upper side of a maiuy or trench, is that side which (when the main or trench is drawn at, or nearly at, right angles with the river, &c.) fronts the part from whence the river entered. Consequently the lower side is the reverse. 4092. And the upper pane \x\ a meadow is that pane which lies upon the upper side of the main, or trench, t])at is drawn at right angles with the river : that is, when the river, &c. runs north and south, entering at the north, and the mains and trenches are drawn east and west, all those panes, which li^ on the north side of the main, &c. are called the upper panes, those on the soutli side are called the lower. But it may be noticed, that where the mains, trenches, &c. run parallel with the river, the panea on either side are not dis- tinguished from each other. Uu 2 660 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4093. Meadows are of two sorts ; flowing, calculated for a fiat country ; and catch-work, for sloping grounds. 4094. Flowing meadows. Where the ground is flat, the soil is formed into beds, or broad ridges, like those met with at bleach-fields. They are commonly from 30 to 40 feet wide, and nine or ten poles in length ; as, in such situations, the great object is, when once brought on, to be able to carry off' the water quickly. Hence it is necessary to throw up the land in high ridges, with drains between them, More of the failures in irrigation arise, from the ridges not being suflftciently high, and the slopes not being suflSciently steep, than from any other cause. (Code.) 4095. Catch-work meadows. It is diflScult to give an intelligible written description of the mode of making these meadows. To be properly understood, the operation must be seen, "t may, however, in general be remarked, that the system is calculated for slop- ing groun o ; and that after the water is brought from the original stream, into a new cut, it is stopped at the end, on as high a level as the case admits of, by which the water is made to fill the trench, and run over at the side, and flood the land below it. But as the water would soon cease to run equally, and would wash the land out in gutters, it has been found necessary to cut small parallel trenches, at the distance of from 20 to SO feet, to catch the water again (hence the name originated), and the same plan of spreading or diffusing is continued, until the water reaches the main drain at the bottom of the mea- dow. It is a great advantage attending the catch-work system, that it is not only less expensive, but the same quantity of water will do much more work. (Code.) SuBSECT. 3, Of the Preparation of Surfaces for Irrigation, 4096. Artificial irrigation^ Smith observes, is produced by diverting the water of a brook out of its accustomed channel (where there is a fall) in such a manner that the new watercourse being kept nearly level, the space between the old and new channel may be floated ; the water being brought upon the land by the new channel and taken away to the old one. Thus a constant discharge and succession of water is retained without such an accumulation as would make it appear bright upon the land, or without such a deficiency as would leave any part of it not perfectly floating, for the art of irrigation may be most properly called floating, not soaking nor drowning. Soaking the soil, similar to the eflfects produced from a shower of rain, is not suflScient for the general pur- poses of irrigation, nor will damming up water and keeping it stagnant upon the surface like that in a pond, or on the fens, produce the desired effect. 4097. Stagnating water on land may properly be called drowning, because it drowns or covers all the grass, thereby rendering the plants beneath it in some degree aquatic, or the herbage disposed to make such a change ; whereas the herbage of a water meadow should, by the construction and good management of the latter, enjoy the fulLbenefits of both the elements of air and water. Practice has proved that there is no better method of doing this, than by keeping water passing over the surface of the land with a brisk cur- rent ; not so brisk as to wash away the soil, and yet in sufficient quantity to cover and nourish the roots, but not too much to hide the shoots of the grasses : hence appears the nicety of adjusting the quantity of water; and hence it also appears,, that one main drain to bring the water on the upper side of the mead, and another on the lower side to take it away, will not be adequate to all the purposes of sucb an accurate regulation. If the space between the upper channel or main feeder, and the lower one or main drain, should therefore be wider than is proper for the good adjust- ment of the water, that is, so that every part of the space shall have enough water passing over it and no part too much, then that space must be divided into smaller spaces by in- termediate drains, which shall catch and re- distribute the water. As the water is brought by the main feeder upon the higher side of a piece of ground which slopes towards the main drain, and down which sloping surface the water will run very readily, it does not to persons unacquainted with irrigation, at first sight appear necessary to make such a number of intermediate catch drains ; but it is proved by experience, that however re- gular the slope of ground may appear to the eye, that the water will find a number of irregularities, forcing itself into gutters or channels, and defeat the purposes of irrigation ; in the hollow places by excess, and in high ones by the want of water. Jlence the water, which was scattered over the surface of the first space, being all collected in the catch drain, may by the skill of the floater be let out upon those parts of the bed below which appear to need the most assistance. 4098. The work should always he well formed at first in all cases of improvements of this nature. Temporary means of making dams and hatches to divert the water out of its usual channel may, says Smith, " sufiSce to try an experiment, or for a tenant who has but a short term in the grounds to be irrigated ; but every land-owner who enters upon such work in this temporary m.anner, sadly mistakes his own interest ; indeed it is frequently more difficult to repair than to renew upon large streams when the foundations Are often destroyed by the force of the water. The same principle holds good upon Book III. IRRIGATION. 661 small streams, and even in the drains and feeders of a water meadow. Wherever the channels are so constructed as to make a fall, or much increase the rapidity of the stream, it is constantly disposed to wear away the sides of its channel or undermine a dam. To repair these defects, land must be dug away and wasted each time it is re- placed witii the loss of labor. The consequent ill management of the water renders it more advisable, and perhaps cheaper, to make all such works of masonry- When works are well done at first the owner ever finds much pleasure in viewing them ; and even the laborers feel much more interested in their good management. 4099. The expenses of making a water meadow are not easily estimated. Much de- pends on the original state of the ground, the size and fall of the streams to be used, the cost of hatches and length of the main feeders, which may be necessary for diverting the water out of its orighial channel, and even upon the charge for levelling land, which differs materially. Some soils are much harder and more difficult to move than others, and in certain situations, building materials are very scarce and dear. This last circum- stance must make a considerable variation in the price of the hatches, where the stream is large. It is also impossible to tell with any degree of certainty, what proportion these ex- penses should bear to the quantity of land irrigated, for some situations will require much more masonry than others. 4 100. Before entering upon the execution of a water meadow, it is necessary to consider fully, whether the stream of water to be made use of will admit of a temporary wear or dam to be formed across it, so as to keep the water up to a proper level for covering the' land without flooding or injuring other adjoining grounds; or if the water be in its na- tural state sufficiently high without a wear or dam ; or to be made so by taking it from the stream higher up more towards its source ; and by the conductor keeping it up nearly to its level till it comes upon the meadow or other ground. And still further, whether the water can be drawn off the meadow or other ground in as rapid a manner as it is brought on. And having in addition to these an attention to all such other difficulties and ob- structions as may present themselves, from the lands being in lease through which it may be necessary to cut or form the mains or grand carriers, from the water being necessary for turn- ing mills, from the rivers or brooks not being wholly at the command of the irrigator, and from small necks of land intervening, so as to prevent the work from being performed to the greatest advantage, the operator may be in a situation to commence his operations. 4101. In order to have an equal distribution and ni^event waste, S^nith states, that na part of a meadow, either in catch work or beds, should be so formed as to be floated di- rectly from the main feeder ; but all the main feeders should be ke])t high enough to discharge the water into the small feeders with considerable velocity and through a nar- row opening. The motion of water is truly mechanical ; it requires a great deal of ingenuity, and a perfect knowledge of lines and levels to make it move over the ground in a proper manner. No two pieces of land being exactly alike, renders it still more difficult to set out a water meadow ; but even if the figure of two pieces be alike, the inequalities of surface will proI)ably vary. Each meadow, therefore, requires a different design, unless the land owner makes up his mind to the heavy expenses of paring off* banks, and filling up such hollows as may be necessary to reduce it to some regular me- thod. The construction to be varied according to the nature of the ground. This constitutes the difference between the water meadows of Berkshire and Devonshire, Those of the latter are upon small streams carried round the sides of the hills, and are chiefly catch- work ; those of the former being near large rivers and boggy ground, arc thrown up into ridges to create a brisk motion in the Avater, and also for the essential purpose of draining off' all superfluous moisture, which might be injurious to the grasses when shut up for feeding or mowing. Where tliere is much floating to be done with a little water, or rather where the great fall of a small stream will admit of its being car- ried over a vast quantity of ground and used several times, it is desirable to employ it in such a way that the meadows so irrigated mutt not be exhibited as perfect models. If it should answer the purpose of a coat of manure upon such an extent of ground, it is all that can be expected, and will amply repay the expense. Losing fall is wasting water. 4102. The drains of a water meadoiv require no greater declivity than is necessary to carry the water from the surface, therefore the water ought to be collected and used again at every three feet of the fall, if it be not catch-work. It is sometimes difficult to do this in bed-work meads, but where the upper part of the meadow is catch-work or in level beds, and the lower part not too much elevated, it may be done. By collecting and using the water again in the same piece of ground before it falls into tl:e brook, a sci of hatches is saved, and it is not necessary to be very particular about getting the upper yntt into high ridges, since that part of the meadow which is near the hatches generally be- comes the best, and the \owet end of the field being often tlie wettest or most boggy in its original state, requires to be thrown up the highest. If the land is of a drv absorbent U u 3 662 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. r — 1 a. d c ^^=1 -^ b a d ^ nature before floating, it is not necessary that it should be thrown up into high beds, but merely as much inclined as will give the water a current. 4103. Inclined planes are absolutely necessary for tlie purpose of irrigation* To form these between straight and parallel lines, it is necessary to dig away land where it is too high, and move it to those places where it is too low, to make such an uniformity of sur- face. The new made ground will of course settle in hollows proportioned to the depth of loose matter which has been recently put together, but this settlement will not take place until the new soil has been completely soaked and dried again j therefore these de- fects cannot be remedied before the second or third year of watering : it will then require more skill to manage a water meadow for the three or four first years, than it can after- wards. 4104. Properly to construct a water meadow is much more difficult than is commonly imagined. It is no easy task to give an irregular surface that regular yet various figure which shall be fit for the overflowing of water. It is very necessary for the operator to have just ideas of levels, lines, and angles ; a knowledge of superficial forms will not be suflficient; accurate notions of solid 529 geometry (obtained from theory or prac- tice) are absolutely necessary to put such a surface into the form proper for the reception of water without the trou- ble and expense of doing much of the work twice over. {Obs. on Irrigation^ 4105. As an example of irrigating a ^| meadow from both sides of a river we take the following case from Boswell's '^ treatise. From the upper part of the grounds, two main drains (Jig. 529 a, a) axe formed at right angles to the river, one running north the other south, across the meadow, to within about six yards of the fence ditches which sur- ro.und it (6), and are used. for tail drains : by means of these fence ditches the water is discharged into the river. A wear erected across the river forces the water into either of the main drains, which is done by shutting the other wear close. When there is not water enough, or it is not convenient to water both parts of the meadow at once, by shutting close one of the wears, the current is forced into that main whose wear is open, thence to be conveyed through the trenches over the panes, to water that side of the meadow ; then by shutting that, and opening the other, the opposite main is filled, and by means of the trenches that side of the meadow is watered in the same manner ; and lastly, by shutting them both, and opening the river wear, the water flows in its usual course, and the land on both sides is laid dry. From the main drains (a, a) the water flows along the highest part, or crowns of the ridges in the trenches (c), and is carried ofi'to the tail drains by the tiench drains (rf). 4106. As an example of an irregular surface watered from one side of a river, we shall have recourse to the same author. There is a wear {fg. 530 e) erected across the river, and another across the head- main (o), from which proceed three main and branch trenches (g, g, g, and/, f), which water the whole meadow. There is a tail drain [b) for carrying off the whole of the water by means of the drain trenches (d, d). The water having thus passed over the field, is -returned to the river by the tail drain, already men- tioned. When it is desired to withhold the water, the wear of the head main (a) is shut, and that of the river (e) opened. It will be observed, that in this design there are branch trenches (/» f)> a"d various gutters {h, A), taken out of the ends of some of the trenches, to carry Book III. IRRIGATION* 663 the water to the longest corner of the panes, and sometimes taken out of different parts of the trendies, to water some httle irregularities in the panes, which, without such assist- ance, would not have any water upon them. There is a sluice (i) erected at the end of one of the small mains, to force the water into the branch trench adjoining (/), that bein^ the highest ground. 4107. A vert/ complete piece of irrigation (Jig. 531.) was formed for the Duke of Bed- ford, by Smith, at Pristley. The water is supplied from a brook (a), to a main feeder with various ramifications (b, b', the surface is formed into ridges (c, c), over which the water flows, and is carried oif by tlie drains in their furrows ( rf, rfi , to the main drains (e, e) , and to the brook at different places (/,/,/)• There are bridges (g) over the main feeders, small arches over the main discharging drains {h^, and three hatches {(). 4108. As an example of catch-work loateringy we may refer to a case {jig. 532.), give» in a recent work by John Brown [Tieatisi on Irrigation, 1817.) In this the field of operations being u.i the steep =..Jc of a hill, a mam carrier u led from the sluice (a), directly across the declivity {b), and lateral feeders ic) taken out from it at regular dis- tances. These feeders have stops of turf, at regular distances (d), by which raea^s the water is dispersed. After watering a space of from twenty to forty feet in breadth, it Uu4 664 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt III. is again collected by the small drains in the furrows, and returned lower down to another feeder. The advantage of this method, Browne observes, " relates more materially to the sides of hills, and to porous soils that are by some thought inca- pable of being watered. The chief point is to get the water to the highest level possible ; and in case the soil be porous, one main carrier only will require puddling, in order to prevent the water from sinking away : when that is done, no difficulty what- ever is found in taking it in small streams vertically, or directly down the slope (c), and putting stops (d) to arrest its progress occasionally, which will throw it on each side ; and when those stops are placed one above another, it will have the eflfect of spreading the water on the land, somewhat similar to a fan when extended. The stops need only be sods or turfs, one laid lengthways in the gutter, and one across it, which may be raised or lowered according to the declivity : these sods or turfs will require probably a small wooden peg to fasten them at first ; and by the time the land requires a second watering, the roots of the grass will have sufficiently fastened them ; and they need not be removed, unless occasionally for the purpose of watering any separate part below, when the stream may be too small to water the whole piece at once ; and the small cuts for conveying the water will be less expensive in cleaning, not being so liable to choke up as those carried on what is termed horizontal or level gutters. 4109. As an example of the benefit of flooding, we refer to Loch Ken, in Kircud- brightshire, the most striking instance known in Great Britain of advantage being de- rived from the inundations of a lake. At the head of that beautiful piece of water, there is a flat of about 240 statute acres, which is rendered, by flooding, one of the richest spots in Scotland. Many acres in it produce at the rate of three tons of hay each, and some parts of it have been cropped with grain for twenty-five years in succession, with- out any manure, except what it receives frpm the inundations it experiences. These, however, leave behind them a variety of enriching substances. {Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. iv. 260.) 41 10. Floating upwards. The ancient and now obsolete practice of flooding, or, as it was termed, of floating upwards, was practised in various parts of the kingdom. For that purpose, the water was penned, in times of floods, by means of a dam or floodgate across the bottom of the meadow or flat to be watered. The waters were not suffered to remain long upon the land, but were let off as soon as it was judged that they had deposited their sediment. The benefit arising from this method of using floodwaters, it is said, was considerable ; but when the improved mode of irrigation, by floating ridges was introduced, and found more advantageous, the other was discontinued. (^MarshaVs Midland Counties, Minute 27.) 4111. Watering land by machinery. If the land be put in a proper form for irrigation, and supplied with a good stream at proper seasons, there can be no difference from the method of getting it on the surface ; and if all other circumstances are equally favor- able, the same fertility may be expected from water thrown up by a drain-mill, as that which runs from a brook. (Smith's Observations on Water Meadows, &c. p. 93.) A cheap and effectual power for raising water in sufficient quantities to flow about ten acres at a time, would be an invaluable acquisition ; for a productive water meadow is probably the true mark of perfection, in the management of a farm. (Middlesex Report, p. 322.) 4112. Sea water. Smith suggests the idea of employing machinery, to raise not only fresh, but even sea water, for irrigation. (Observations, p. 87.) It is well known, how much all kinds of stock are improved by salt marshes, and how beneficial to them, is a moderate quantity of saline matter. There are many parts of the kingdom where, by the aid of machinery, these advantages might be obtained at a moderate expense. (^Code.) 4113. The exjyense of irrigation varies according to the nature of the work. Where the catch-work system is practicable, in favorable situations, the forming may be done as low as ten shillings per acre. This fact is, in many cases, decisively in favor of this natural and simple mode, which requires also much less water, and often answers fully as well as flat flooding. {General Report, vol. ii. p. 598.) The expense of bed -work, as it is called, is, however, considerable. If the ground to be flooded, be smooth on its surface, or in regular ridges, and if the water can easily be brought to the meadow, with a temporary wear, supposing the extent to be almost twenty acres, it may be done at from 51. to 10^ per acre ; but if the land be of large extent, with an irregular surface ; if a. large conductor, and a proper wear shall be required, with hatches both in it, and also in the feeders ; and if the aid of a professional person, to lay out and oversee the work, be necessary, (which is generally the case), the expense will vary from 10/. to 20/. per acre. (General Report, vol. ii. p. 598.) Nay, in Wiltshire, where they are anxious to have their meadows formed in the most perfect manner, with that regularity which the nice adjustment of water demands, the expense per acre has amounted to 40/. (Smith's Observatioris on Irrigation^ p» 56.) Book in. WARPING. 665 4114. Objections to irrigation have been made on the supposition that it renders a country unhealthy; but as the water is continually kept in motion, this is not likely to be the case, and indeed is found not to be so in Gloucestershire, Lombardy, and other countries where it is extensively practised. Others think that though the produce may be increased, it becomes in a few years of so course a nature, mixed with rushes, and water plants, that cattle frequently refuse to eat it, and when they do, their appearance proclaims that it is far from being of a nutritious quality. {Rutland Report, p. 114.) But this objection is never applicable to meadows skilfully made, and properly managed ; and whenever the grasses are coarse, they should be cut earlier if intended for hay. Rushes and water plants are proofs that the meadow lies too flat and is ill managed. (Code.) 4115. The jrrincipal impediments to irrigation are the claims of different individuals on one stream, as millers, canal owners, &c. ; the intermixture of property and interests ; and the existence in some cases of adverse leases. 4116. The formation and arrangement of surfaces for irrigation, however simple in principle, is in practice one of the most difficult operations of agricultural improvement. Whoever, therefore, contemplates extensive and intricate works of this kind, will find it desirable to call in the assistance of a professor ^nd contractor of reputation. In Glou- cestershire there are a class of men known as *' flooders," who have under them a com- pany of men accustomed to every part of the work, and who accompany their chief to execute works in any part of the country. Sect. II. Of Warping, or tlie Improvement of Land by Muddy Water. 4117. Warj)ing is a mode of fertilizing lands by depositing a coat of mud on their surface. This may be practised on the borders of large rivers and estuaries, into which sea tides flow ; or where floods are frequent,, provided, however, that in either case the waters contain alluvial matters in a state of suspension. According to the best inform- ation that can be obtained (Marshal, in R. JEcon. of York. 1788. Day, West Riding Report, p. 171.), warping was first practised on the banks of the Humber, by one Barker, a small farmer at RawclifF, between 1730 and 1740. It was afterwards extended by Richard Jennings, of Armin, near Howden, in 1743; but it was about the year 1753 before it was attempted by any other person. It was first brought into notice by Marshal, in 1788, and subsequently in the Report of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and is now practised by various proprietors and farmers on the Humber, the Trent, and other rivers. It has been long practised in Italy (267.) in a somewhat different manner to what it is in this country, and may be considered as of Egyptian origin 4118. The theory of warping is thus given by Arthur Young. The waters of the tides that come up the Trent, Ouze, Dun, and other rivers which empty themselves into the great estuary of the Humber, is muddy to an excess ; insomuch that in summer, if a cylindrical glass, twelve or fifteen inches long, be filled with them, it will presently deposit an inch, and sometimes more, of what is called warp. Where this warp comes from is a dispute. The Humber, at its moutli, is clear water ; and no floods in the countries washed by the warp rivers bring it, but, on the contrary, do much mischief by spoiling the warp. In the very driest seasons and longest droughts, it is best and most plentiful. The im- provement is perfectly simple, and consists in nothing more than letting in the tide at high water to deposit the warp, and permitting it to run off' again as the tide falls ; this is the aim and effect. But to render it efficacious, the water must be at command, to keep it out and let it in at pleasure ; so that there must not only be a cut or canal made to join the river, but a sluice at the mouth to open or shut, as wanted ; and that the water may be of a proper depth on the land to be warped, and also prevented flowing over contiguous lands, whether cultivated or not, banks are raised around the fields to be warped, and from three or four to six or seven feet high, according to circumstances. Thus, if the tract be large, the canal which takes the water, and which, as in irrigation, might be called the grand carrier, may be made several miles long : it has been tried as far as four, so as to warp the lands on each side the whole way, and lateral cuts made in any direction for the same purpose ; observing, however, that the effect lessens as you recede from the river ; that is, it demands longer time to deposit wai-p enough for pro- ducing benefit. 4119. The effect of warping is very different from that of irrigation ; for it is not the water that works the effect, but the mud, so that in floods the business ceases, as also in winter ; and it is not to manure the soil, but to create it. What the nature of the land may be intended to be warped, is not of the smallest consequence: a bog, clay, sand, peat, are alike eligible : as the warp raises it in one summer from six to sixteen inches thick ; and in the hollows or low places, two, three, or four feet, so as to leave the whole piece level. Thus a soil of any de[)th you please is formed, which consists of mud of a vast fertility, though containing not much besides sand and gravel. 4120. In respect to the method of executing the work, it is described in the following Uianner in The Agricultural Survey of the West Riding of Yorkshire, by Lord Hawke. 666 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III, The land to be warped must be banked round against the river. The banks are made of the earth taken on the spot from the land : they must slope six feet; that is, three feet on each side of the top or crown of the bank, for every foot perpendicular of rise : their top or crown is broader or narrower, according to the impetuosity of the tide, and the weight and quantity of water ; and it extends from two feet to twelve : their height is regulated by the height to which the spring tides flow, so as to exclude or let them in at pleasure. In these banks, there are more or fewer openings, according to the size of the ground to be warped, and to the cljoice of the occupier ; but in general they have only two sluices; one called the floodgate, to admit; the other called the clough, to let off the water gently ; these are enough for ten or fifteen acres: when the spring tide begins to ebb, the floodgate is opened to admit the tide, the clough having been previously shut by the weight of the water brought up the river by the flow of the tide. As the tide ebbs down the river, the weight or pressure of water being taken from the outside of the clough next the river, the tide water that has been previously admitted by the flood- gate opens the clough again, and discharges itself slowly but completely through it. The doughs are walled on each side, and so constructed as to let the water run off, between the ebb of the tide admitted, and the flow of the next ; and to this point par- ticular attention is paid. The floodgates are placed so high as only to let in the spring tides when opened. They are placed above the level of the common tides. Willows are also occasionally planted on the front of the banks, to break the force of the tides, and defend the banks by raising the front of them with warp thus collected and accumulated : but these willows must never be planted on the banks, as they would destroy them by giving the winds power to shake them. 4121. The season for warjnng begins in the month of July, and proceeds during the summer season, and as this sort of business can only be performed at that season, every occasion of having it executed should be embraced, l)y having the work in perfect repair, that every tide may be made to produce its full effect. With regard to the advantage of doing this work in the summer months, it may be remarked that at these times the lands not only become the soonest dry, a circurastcince which must always fully take place before the process of cultivation can be carried on, but the tides are less mixed with fresh water, in which condition they are constantly found the most effectual. 4122. In regard to the expense of this mode of improving lands, it must differ much in different cases, according as the circumstances of situation and distance vary ; but it can seldom exceed 12/. or 15/. the acre, according to Young, and in most instances it must be greatly below such estimates. But it is remarked by Day, in The Agricultural Survey of the same district, that no estimate can be made without viewing the situation of the lands to be warped, and the course and distance it will be necessary to carry the warp to such lands : 1st, The situation of the lands must be considered ; 2d, The quantity of land the same drains and doughs will be sufficient to warp ; Sd, The expense of building the doughs, cutting the drains, embanking the lands, &c. An estimate of these expenses being made, then it will be necessary to know the number of acres such doughs and drains will warp, before any estimate per acre can be made ; there- fore it will be easy to conceive that the greater quantity of land the same doughs and drains will warp, the easier the expense will be per acre. In Day's opinion, there are great quantities of land in the country, which might be warped at so small an expense, as from 4/. to 8/, per acre, which is nothing in comparison to the advantages which arise from it. He has known land which has been raised in value by warping, from 51 to upwards of 40/. and 50/. per acre; therefore it is easy to conceive that the greatest ad- vantages arise upon the worst land, and the more porous the soil the better, as the wet filters through, and it sooner becomes fit for use. The advantages of warping are very great ; as, after lands have been properly warped, they are so enriched thereby, that they will bring very large crops for several years afterwards without any manure ; and when it is necessary, the lands might be warped again by opening the old drains, which would be done at a very trifling expense, and woul.l bring crops in succession for many years, with very little or no tillage at all, if the lands were kept free frou) quick grass, and other weeds, which must be the case in all lands where they are properly managed ; besides, the drains which are made for the purpose of warping are the best drains that can be constructed for draining the lands at the time they are not used for warping, which is another very great advantage in low lands. 4123. T'he best mode of cultivating new-warped land must depend principally on the nature of the warp and of the subsoil. In The Code of Agriculture it is recommended to sow it with clover, and to let it lie under that crop for two years, in order that it may be brought into a state fit for corn. It does not answer to sow land, immediately after it is warped, with wheat, even though fallowed; but after white or red clover for two years, a good crop of wheat may generally be relied on. Nor is it proper, when land is warped, to plant it with potatoes, or to sow it with flax, being at first of too cold a nature ; though these crops may answer, if the land be not too strong for potatoes, Book III. SUBTERRANEOUS IRRIGATION. 667 after it has been for two or three years in cultivation. In the quality of warped land, there are most essential differences, some will be very strong, and in the same field some will be very friable. The land nearest the drain is in general the lightest, owmg to the quantity of sand that is deposited as soon as the water enters the field ; the land farthest from the drain is in general the best. The produce of warped land varies much, but in general it may be stated as abundant. (Code, 315.) SuBSECT. 1. Of the Irrigation of Arable Lands and of Subterraneous Irrigation. 4124. The irrigation of arable lands is imiversal in warm countries, and even in the south of France and Italy. The land is laid into narrow beds, between which the water is introduced in furrows during the growth of the crop, and absorbed by the soil. In other cases, the crop is grown in drills and the water introduced between each row in the furrow. In this mode of irrigation no collecting drains are required, as the whole of the water laid on is absorbed by the soil. The principal expense of this oper- ation is that of preparing the lands by throwing the surface into a proper level or levels; the main or carrier is conducted to the higher part of the field, and the rest is easy. A particular description of the practice, as carried on in Tuscany, is given by Sigismondi. (Agr. de la Toscane) Some account also of tlie practice in Spain and the East Indies, will be found in our outline of the agriculture of these countries. • 723. and 908.) 4125. Subteri-aneous irrigation appears to have been first practised in Lombardy, and first treated of by Professor Thouin. [Annales du Musee, ifc.) It consists in saturating a soil with water from below, instead of from the surface, and is effected by surround- ing a piece of ground by an open drain or main, and intersecting it by covered drains communicating with this main. If the field is on a level, as in most cases where the practice is adopted in Lombardy, all that is necessary is to fill the main and keep it full till the lands have been sufficiently soaked. But if it lies on a slope, then the lower ends of the drains must be closely stopped, and the water admitted only into the main on the upper side : this main must be kept full till the land is soaked, when the mouths of the lower drains may be opened to carry off the superfluous water. The practice is applicable either to pasture or arable lands. 4126. In Britain, subterraneous irrigation has been applied in a very simple manner to drained bogs and morasses, and to fen lands. All that is necessary is to build a sluice in the lower part of the main drain where it quits the drained grounds, and in dry weather to shut down this sluice, so as to dam up the water and throw it back into all the minor open drains, and also the covered drains. This plan has been adopted with success, first, as we believe, by Smith, of Swineridge Muir, in Ayrshire, and subse- quently by Johnston, in the case of several bog drainages executed by him in Scotland. It is also practised in Lincolnshire, where it was introduced by the advice of the late engineer Rennie, after the coiHpletion of a public drainage at Boston. Sect. III. Of the Artificial Means of Procuring Water for the Use of Live Stock- 4127. Water is su]yj)lied by nature in most parts of the British isles, and retained with little art both at farmeries and in fields. There are exceptions, however, in different districts, and especially in chalky soils, gravels, and some upland clays. In these cases water is procured for cattle by some of the following means: By conducting a stream, from a distant source, as in a work of irrigation; by collecting rain- water from roads, ditches, or sloping surfaces, in artificial ponds, or reservoirs; by collecting it from the roofs of buildings, and preserving it in covered cisterns ; by sinking a well, or a pipe, either in the field, or the farm yard; and by artificial springs. 4128. An artificial streain will in most cases be found too expensive an operation to be undertaken for the supply of drinking water for live stock ; but this purpose may frequently be combined with that of watering lands or driving machinery. In the North Riding of Yorkshire, there is a tract extending for many miles, entirely destitute of water, except what flows along the bottoms of the deep valleys by which it is in- tersected, and little relief could consequently be afltbrded by streams thus distantly and inconveniently situated, to the inhabitants of the uplands, or their cattle. About the year 1770, a person of the name of Ford devised the means of watering this district, by means of rills brought from the springs that break out at the foot of the still loftier moorland hills, that run parallel to and to the north of this tract, in some instances at the distance of about ten miles. The springs he collected into one channel, which he carried, in a winding direction, about the intervening tract, according to its level, and along the sides of the valleys, until he gained the summit of the arid country which he wished to supply with water ; and when this was accomplished, the water was easily conveyed to the places desired, and also to the ponds in all the fields, over a considerable tract of ground. 668 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4129. Collecting rain-water from roads, ^c. in ponds, or drinking pools. Formerly, it is probable, something of this art has been practised throughout the kingdom : most villages, and many old farmsteads, have drinking pools for stock, which appear to have been formed or assisted by art. In strong-land grazing districts, pits have evidently been dug, to catch the rain-water fortuitously collected, by furrows and ditches ; or by landsprings. On the chalk hills of the southern counties, the art has been long estab- lished, and continued down to the present time ; and, on the wolds or chalk hills of Yorkshire, an improved practice has been introduced by Robert Gardner of Kilham, which gained an establishment towards the end of the last century, and has spread rapidly over the adjacent heights, with great profit to the country. In every dry-land situation, it may be practised with high advantage to an estate, and is well entitled to attention. 4130. The mode^ of constructing these collecting ponds is described in The Jnnals of Agriculture (vol. vi.), and illustrated by a section {fig. 533.). The ground plan is circular, and generally forty or 533 fifty feet in diameter, and the exca- vation is not made deeper in the centre than five feet. This exca- vation being cleared out, a layer of clay (a, b, c) suflficiently moistened, is to be carefully beaten ajiid trod down into a com- pact and solid body of about the thickness of a foot. Upon this a layer of quick -lime is finely and uniformly spread over the whole, of one inch or upwards in thickness. Next is another layer of clay of about one foot in thickness ( turned into the former, at such a depth as to lie out of the reach of the plough. But it is frequently necessary to reduce their size by the force of gunpowder before they can be re- moved. Loose stones are commonly moved by levers, and rolled on a ^ sledge ; but sometimes they are raised by a block and tackle attached to a triangle with a pair of callipers to hold the stone {fg. 539.). The stone may also be raised by boring a hole in it obliquely and then in- serting an iron bolt with an eye {Jig. 540.), which though loose will yet serve to raise the stone in a perpendicular direction. 540 4170. The mode of bursting or rending rocks or atones by gunpowder, is a simple, though dangerous operation. When a perforation or hole is to be made in a rock or stone for the purpose of blasting with ^gunpowder, the prudent workman considers the nature of the rock, and the inclination or dip of the strata, if it is not a detached fragment, and from these determines the calibre, and the depth and direc- tion of the bore or recipient for the gunpowder. According to circumstances, the diameter of the hole varies from half an inch to two inches and a half, the depth from a few inches to many feet, and the direc- tion varies to all the angles from the perpendicular to the horizontal. The implements for the performance of this operation are rude, and so extremely simple and familiar, as hardly to require description ; and the whole operation of boring and blasting rocks is so easily performed, that, in the space of a few weeks, an intelligent laborer may become an expert quarrier. 4171. The operation of ramming frequently gives rise to accidents, but a recent im- provement, that of using a wadding of loose sand, or of any earthy matter in a dry state, Book III. IMPROVING WOODY WASTES. 675 answers all the purposes of the firmest ramming or wadding. It has been used for upwards of ten years at Lord Elgin's extensive mining operations at Charlestown in Fifeshire, and also in removing immense bodies of rock from the Calton hill at Edinburgh, by Stevenson, an eminent engineer, whose article on the subject of blasting, in The Supplement to the Encyc. Brit., deserves the attention of such as use the process in work- ing quarries or clearing rocky or stoney grounds. Sect. III. Of improving Woody Wastes or Wealds. 4172. With surfaces partially covered with bushes and stumjis of trees, ferns, &c., the obvious improvement is to grub them up, and apply the land to cultivation according to its nature. 4173. T/ie growth of large trees is a sign that the soil is naturally fertile. It must also have been enriched by the quantity of leaves which in the course of ages have fallen and rotted upon the surface. Such are the beneficial effects of this process, that after the trees have been cut down, the soil has often been kept under crops of grain for a number of years without interruption, or any addition of manure. Land thus treated, however, ultimately becomes so much reduced, by great exhaustion, that it will not bear a crop worth the expense of seed and labor. ( Communications to the Board of Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 257.) It is evident, however, that this deterioration entirely proceeds from the improvident management previously adopted. In reclaiming such wastes, the branches of trees that are felled are generally collected and burnt ; and the ashes are either in whole or in part, spread on the ground, by which the fertility of the soil is excited. Indeed, where there is no demand for timber on the spot, nor the means of conveyance to any advantageous market, the whole wood is burnt, and the ashes applied as manure. 41 74. Much coppice land has been grubbed up in various parts of England, and brought into tillage. Sometimes woods are grubbed for pasture merely. In that case the ground should be as little broken as possible, because the surface of the land, owing to the dead wood and leaves rotting time out of mind upon it, is much better than the mould below. It soon gets into good pasture as grass land, without sowing any seed. [Communications to the Board of Agriculture, vol. iv. p. 42.) But by far the most eligible mode of con- verting wood land into arable, is merely to cut down the trees, and to leave the land in a state of grass until the roots have decayed, cutting down with the scythe from time to time any young shoots that may arise. The roots in this way, instead of being a cause of anxiety and expense, as they generally are, become a source of improvement ; and a grassy surface is prepared for the operation of sod -burning. (^Marshal's Yorkshire, vol. i. p. 316.) 4175. Natural woods and plantations have been successfully grubbed up in Scotland. In the lower Torwood in Stirlingshire, many acres of natural coppice were cleared ; and the land is now become as valuable as any in the neighborhood. (Stirlingshire Rqwrt, p. 213.) On the banks of the Clyde and the Avon, coppices have been cut down, and after being drained, cultivated, and manured, the land has been converted into productive orchards. In Perthshire. also, several thousand acres of plantations have been rooted out, the soil subjected to the plough, converted into good arable land, and profitably employed in tillage. (Perthshire Report, p. 329.) 4176. For jniUing up or rending asunder the roots of large trees, various machines and contrivances have been invented. Clearing away the earth and splitting with wedges is the usual mode ; but blasting is also, as in the case of rocks and stones, occasionally resorted to. For this purpose a new instrument, called the blasting-screw (Jig- 541.) f has been lately applied with consider- \ able success to the rending or splitting of large trees and logs of timber. It consists of a screw (a), an auger (b, c) , and charging-piece (rf). The screw is wrought into an auger-hole, bored in the centre of the timber ; here the charge of powder is inserted, and the orifice of the hole in the log is then shut up or closed with the screw, when a match or piece of cord, prepared with saltpetre, is introduced into a small hole (a), left in the screw for this purpose, by vvhich the j^owder is ignited. The appli- cation of this screw to the purposes of blasting is not very obviously necessary, because, from what we have seen (4171.) it would appear that the auger-hole being charged with powder and sand, would answer every purpose. One great objection to the process of blasting applied to the rending of timber is, the irregular and uncertain direction of the fracture, by which great waste is sometimes occasioned. It may, however, be necessary Xx 2 €76 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. to resort to this mode of breaking up large trees, when cut down and left in inacces- sible situations, where a great force of men and of implements cannot easily be procured or applied; and certainly it is one of the most effectual modes of tearing their stools or roots in pieces. (Sup. Encyc. Brit. art. Blasting.) 4177. Land covered with furze, broom, and other shrubs, is generally well adaptedf r cultivation. The furze, or whin ( Ulex europesus), will grow in a dense clay soil j and where they are found in a thriving state, every species of grain, of roots and grasses, may be cul- tivated with advantage. Tlie broom, on the other hand, prefers a dry, gravelly, or . sandy soil, such as is adapted for the culture of turnips. A large proportion of the arable land, in the richest districts of England and Scotland, was originally covered by these two plants ; and vast tracts still remain in that state, which might be profitably brought under cultivation. For that purpose, the shrubs ought to be cut down, the ground trenched, or the plants rooted out by a strong plough, drawn by four or six horses, and the roots and shrubs (if not wanted for other purposes) burnt in heaps, and the ashes spread equally over the surface. (Com. to the B. of Ag. vol. ii. p. 260.) In many places, shrubs and brushwood may be sold for more than the expense of rooting them out. When coal is not abundant, and limestone or chalk can be had, the furze should be employed in burn- ing the lime that is used in carrying on the improvement. (Oxfordshire Report, p. 232.) It requires constant attention, however, to prevent such plants from again getting pos- session of the ground, when it is restored to pasture. This can best be effected, by ploughing up the land occasionally, taking a few crops of potatoes, turnips, or tares in rows, and restoring it to be pastured by sheep. In moist weather also, the young plants should be pulled up and destroyed. (Code.) 4178. Fern (Pteris and Osmunda) is a very troublesome weed to extirpate, as, in many soils, it sends down its roots into the under stratum, beyond the reach of the deepest ploughing ; but it is a sign of the goodness of any soil, where it grows to a large size, June or July are the best seasons for destroying it, when the plants are full of sap, and when they ought to be frequently cut. They are not, however, easily subdued, often ap- pearing after a rotation of seven years, including a fallow, and sometimes requiring ano- ther rotation, and cutting them repeatedly, before their final disappearance can l)e effected. Lime, in its caustic state, is peculiarly hostile to fern ; at the same time, it can hardly be completely eradicated, but by frequent cultivation, and by green crops assisted by the hoe. ( Oxfordshire Rqmrt, p. 234. and 240.) 4179. The heath (Erica) is a hardy plant, palatable and nutritious to sheep; and under its protection, coarse grasses are often produced. When young, or in flower, it may be cut and converted into an inferior species of winter provision for stock. But where it can be obtained, it is desirable to have grass in its stead. For that purpose, the land may be flooded, or the heath burnt in March or April, and kept free from stock for eighteen months ; in consequence of which, many new grasses will spring up, from the destruction of the heath, and the enriching quality of the ashes. The improvement is very great; more especially if the land be drained, and lime or compost be applied. (Gen. Rep. of Scot. vol. ii. p. 359.) But if the land be too soon pastured, the grasses, being weak and tender, the sheep or cattle will pull them up with their roots, and the pas- ture is materially injured. [Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. iv. p. 465.) Where it is proposed to cultivate the land for arable crops, the lime applied should be in a finely powdered state, highly caustic, and as equally spread as possible. (Com. to the B. ofAg^ vol. ii. p. 264.) 4180. Paring and burning is a speedy and effectual modS of bringing a surface covered with coarse herbage into a state of culture. Some have recommended making a com- post of the pared surface, with lime ; or building folds or earthen walls of the sods, which, by the action of the atmosphere, become friable and fertile ; but these processes are slower and not so effectual as paring and burning. In coarse rough pastures, ant-hills frequently abound, which paring and burning effectually destroys. (Code.) Sect. IV. Of Moors and their Imj)rovements. 4181. Moorlands are of various descriptions. Sometimes they are in low and mild si- tuations, where theuppersoilisthin,orscantilysuppliedwith vegetable mould; and where the bottom or under-stratum is impervious and barren. These, in general, may be re- claimed with more or less advantage, according as they are near manure or markets, and other means of improvement. Others, on the contrary, are in situations much elevated above the level of the sea; where the surface is covei-ed with heath and other coarse plants, and frequently encumbered with stones. Such moors are seldom worth the expense of cultivation, and from their height are only calculated for woods or pasturage. 4182. Moors which are not placed in high or bleak situations, where the surface is close- swarded, or covered with plants, and where the subsoil is naturally either not altogether wet, or capable of being made sufficiently dry at a moderate expense, may not only be reclaimed, but often cau be highly improved by the common operations of farm culture ; Book III. IMPROVING BOGS, &c. 677 by paring and burning; by fallow and linning; or by trenching or deep ploughing. Vast improvements on different sorts of moory lands have been made in Yorkshire, where there are immense tracts of moors. It is stated in The Agricvitural Report of the North Riding of Yorkshire, that an improvement was made upon Lockton moor, on a quantity of land of about seventy acres, which would not let for more than Is. per acre, before it was enclosed. Of this forty-eight acres were pared and burnt, and sown with rape, except about an acre sown with rye ; the produce about sixty quarters. The rye grew very strong, and in height not less than six feet, and was sold, while standing, for five guineas the acre. The land was only once ploughed, otherwise the crop of rape would pro- bably have been much better. One hundred and twenty chaldrons (each thirty-two bushels) of lime were ploughed into the field; which, for want of more frequent ploughing, probably was not of the service it otherwise might have been. Part of the land was afterwards sown down with oats and grass seeds ; the former of which afforded but a moderate crop, the latter a very good one, and has since produced two loads, 120 stones each, per acre. The seeds sown were rye-grass, rib-grass, white clover, and trefoil ; of these, the first succeeded amazingly, the others not so well ; potatoes throve very well ; turnips not equal to them. A farm-house has been built upon it, which now, along with five acres more of the same kind of land, is let on lease at thirty pounds per annum. The soil consisted, in general, of benty peat, upon red gritstone, with a mixture of clay upon limestone; this last is, in some places, at a considerable depth, in others, sufficiently near the surface for lime to be burnt on the premises. Sect. V. Of Peat Mosses, Bogs, and Morasses, and their Improvement. . 4183. Mossy and boggy surfaces occupy a very considerable portion of the British isles. In Ireland alone there are of flat red bog, capable of being converted to the general pur- poses of agriculture, 1,576,000 acres ; and of peat soil, covering mountains, capable of being improved for pasture, or beneficially applied to the purposes of plantation, 1,255,000 acres, making together nearly three millions of acres. Mossy lands, whether on mountains or plains, are of two kinds ; the one black and solid, the other spongy, con- taining a great quantity of water, with a proportion of fibrous materials. 4184. Black mosses, though formerly considered irreclaimable, are now found capable 6f great melioration. By cultivation, they may be completely changed in their quality and appearance ; and from a peaty, become a soft vegetable earth of great fertility. They may be converted into pasture ; or, after being thoroughly drained, thriving plan- tations may be raised upon them ; or, under judicious management, they will produce crops of grain and roots ; or, they may be formed into meadow-land of considerable value. 4185. Flow, fluid, or spongy mosses, abound in various parts of the British isles. Such mosses are sometimes from ten to twenty feet deep, and even more, but the average may be stated at from four to eight. In high situations, their improvement is attended with so much expense, and the returns are so scanty, that it is advisable to leave them in their original state ; but where" advantageously situated, it is now proved that they may be profitably converted into arable land, or valuable meadow. If tliey are not too high above the level of the sea, arable crops may be successfully cultivated. Potatoes, and other green crops, where manure can be obtained, may likewise be raised on them with advantage. 4186. Peat is certainly a production, capable of administering to the support of many valuable kinds of plants. But to efl'ect this purpose, it must be reduced to such a state, either by the application of fire, or the influence of putrefaction, as may prepare it for their nourishinent. In either of these ways, peat may be changed into a soil fit for tlie production of grass, of herbs, or of roots. The application of a proper quantity of lime, chalk, or marl, prepares it equally well for the production of corn. (Code.) 4187. The fundamental improvement of all peat soils is drainage, which alone will in a few years change a boggy to a grassy surface. After being drained, the surface may be covered with earthy materials, pared and burned, fallowed, dug, trenched, or rolled. The celebrated Duke of Bridgewater covered a part of Chatmoss, with the refuse of coal-pits, a mixture of earths and stones of diffVfrent qualities and sizes, which were brought in barges out of the interior of a mountain j and, by compressing the sur- face, enabled it to bear pasturing stock. Its fertility was promoted by the vegetable mould of the morass, which presently rose and mixed with the heavier materials which were spread upon it. {Marshal on Laiulcd Property, p. 46.) 4188. The fenny grounds of Huntingdonshire are in some cases improved by applying marl to the surface. Where that substance is mixed with the fen soil, the finer grasses florish beyond what they do on the fen soil unmixed; and when the mixed soil is ploughed, and sown with any sort of grain, the calcareous earth renders the crops less a})t to fall down, the produce is greater, and the grain of better quality than on any other part of the land. {Huntingdonshire Report, ^. ZQl.) Xx 3 678 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IU 4189. Covering the surface of peat bogs with earth has been practised in several parts of Scotland. Clay, sand, gravel, shells, and sea ooze, two or three inches thick, or more, have been used, and land, originally of no value, has thus been rendered worth from 21. to 31. and even 41. per acre. The horses upon this land, must either be equipped with wooden clogs, or the work performed in frosty weather, when the surface of the moss is hard. Coarse obdurate clay (provincially till), is peculiarly calculated for this process, as, when it is blended with peat, and some calcareous matter, it contains all the proper- ties of a fertile soil. [Clydesdale Report, p. 150, note.) This is certainly an expensive method of improving land, unless the substance to be laid upon it, is within 500 yards distance : but where it can properly be done, the moss thus obtains solidity, and after it has been supplied with calcareous earth, it may be cultivated, like other soils, in a rotation of white and green crops. In the neighborhood of populous towns, where the rent of land is high, the covering substance may be conveyed from a greater distance than 500 yards. (Code.) 4190. Rolling peaty surfaces has been found to improve them. The greatest defect of soft soils is, that the drought easily penetrates them, and they become too open. The roller is an antidote to that evil, and the expense is the only thing that ought to set bounds to the practice of this operation. It also tends to destroy those worms, grubs, and insects, with which light and fenny land is apt to be infested. The roller for such soils ought not to be heavy, nor of a narrow diameter. If it be weighty, and the diameter small, it sinks too much where the pressure falls, which causes the soft moss to rise before and behind the roller, and thus, instead of consolidating, it rends the soil. A gentle pressure consolidates moss, but too much weight has a contrary effect. A roller for moss ought therefore to be formed of wood, the cylinder about four feet diameter, and mounted to be drawn by two or three men. Three small rollers working in one frame, {Jig. 542.), have sometimes been so drawn. If horses are employed, they ought to have clogs or pattens, if likely to sink. The oftener the rolling is performed, on spongy soils as long as the crops of corn or grass will admit of it, the better, and the more certain is the result. 4191. An extensive tract of moss in the county of Lancashire has been recently improved by the celebrated Roscoe of Liverpool, in a very spirited and skilful manner. Chatmoss in that county is well known ; its length is about six miles, its greatest breadth about three miles, and its depth may be estimated from ten to upwards of thirty feet. It is entirely composed of the substance well known by the name of peat, being an aggregate of vegetable matter, disorganized and inert, but pre- served by certain causes from putrefaction. On the surface it is light and fibrous, but becomes more dense below. On cutting to a considerable depth, it is found to be black, compact, and heavy, and in many respects resembling coal. There is not throughout the whole moss the least intermixture of sand, gravel, or other material, the entire sub- stance being a pure vegetable. About 1820, Roscoe began to improve TrafFord moss, a tract of three hundred acres, lying two miles east of Chatmoss ; and his operations on it seem to have been so successful as to encourage him to proceed with Chatmoss. In the improvement of the latter, he found it unnecessary to incur so heavy an expense for drainage as he had done in the former. From observing that where the moss had been dug for peat, the water had drawn towards it from a distance of fifty to a hundred yards, he conceived that if each drain had to draw the water only twenty-five yards, they would, within a reasonable time, undoubtedly answer the purpose. The whole of the moss was therefore laid out on the following plan. 4192. A main road, Roscoe states, " was first carried nearly from east to west, through the whole extent of my portion of the moss. This road is about three miles long and thirty-six feet wide. It is bounded on each side by a main drain, seven feet wide and six feet deep, from which the water is conveyed, by a considerable fall , to the river. From these two main drains, other drains diverge, at fifty yards distance from each other, and extend from each side of the road to the utmost limits of the moss. Thus, each field contains fifty yards in front to the road, and is of an indefinite length, according as the boundary of the moss varies. These field-drains are four feet wide at the top, one foot at the bottom, and four feet ^.nd a half deep. They are kept carefully open, and, as far as my experience hitherto goes, I believe they will sufficiently drain the moss, without having recourse to underdraining, which I have never made use of at Chatmoss, except in a very few instances, when, from the lowness of the surface, the water could not rea- dily be gotten off without open channels, which might obstruct the plough." 4193. The cultivation of the moss then proceeds in the following manner: — " After setting fire to the heath and herbage on the moss, and burning it down as far as practica- ble, I plough a thin sod or furrow, with a very sharp horse-plough, which I burn in small lieaps and dissipate : considering it of little use but to destroy the tough sods of the €rioph6r», nardus stricta; and other plants, w^hose matted roots are almost imperishable. Book III. IMPROVING MARSHES. 679 The moss being thus brought to a tolerable dry and level surface, I then plough it in a regular furrow six inches deep, and as soon as possible after it is thus turned up, I set upon it the necessary quantity of marl, not less than two hundred cubic yards to the acre. As the marl begins to crumble and fall with the sun or frost, it is spread over the land with considerable exactness, after which I put in a crop as early as possible, sometimes by the plough, and at others with the horse-scuffle or scarifier, according to the nature of the crop, adding, for the first crop, a quantity of manure, which I bring down the navigable river Irwell, to the borders of the moss, setting on about twenty tons to the acre. Moss land thus treated, may not only be advantageously cropped the jirst year with green crops, as potatoes, turnips, &c. but with any kind of grain ; and as wheat has, of late, paid better to the farmer than any other, I have hitherto chiefly relied upon it, as my first crop, for reimbursing the expense." 4194. The expense of the several ploughings, with the burning, sowing, and harrow- ing, and of the marl and manure, but exclusive of the seed, and also of the previous drainage and general charges, amounts to 18^ 5s. per acre ; and in 1812, on one piece of land thus improved, Roscoe had twenty bushels of wheat, then worth a guinea per bushel, and on another piece eighteen bushels ; but these were the best crops upon the moss " Both lime and marl are generally to be found within a reasonable distance ; and the preference given to either of them will much depend upon the facility of obtaining it. The quantity of lime necessary for the purpose, is so small in propor- tion to that of marl, that, where the distance is great, and the carriage high, it is more advisable to make use of it ; but where marl is upon the spot, or can be obtained in sufficient quantity at a reasonable expense, it appears to be preferable." Roscoe is thoroughly convinced, after a great many different trials, that all temporizing expedi- ents are fallacious; and "that the best method of improving moss land is by the application of a calcareoxis substance, in sufficient quantity to convert the moss into a soil, and by the occasional use of animal or other extraneous manures, such as the course of cultivation, and the nature of the crops, may be found to require." 4195. Roscoe^ s contrivance for conveying on the marl, seems peculiar. It would not be practicable, he observes, to effect the marling at so cheap a rate, (lOA per acre,) were it not for the assistance of an iron road or railway, laid upon boards or sleepers, and moveable at pleasure. Along this road the marl is conveyed in waggons with small iron wheels, each drawn by one man. These waggons, by taking out a pin, turn their lading^ out on either side; they carry about 15 cwt. each, being as much as could heretofore be conveyed over the moss by a cart with a driver and two horses. 4196. An anomalous mode of treating peat bogs was invented and practised by the late Lord Kaimes, which may be applicable in a few cases. This singular mode can be adopted only where there is a command of water, and where the subjacent clay is of a. most fertile quality, or consists of alluvial soil. A stream of water is brought into the moss, into which the spongy upper stratum is first thrown, and afterwards the heavier moss, in small quantities at a time ; the whole is then conveyed by the stream into the neighboring river, and thence to the sea. The moss thus got rid of, in the instance of Blair Drum- mond, in Perthshire, was, on an average, about seven feet deep. Much ingenuity was displayed in constructing the machinery, to supply water for removing the moss, previous, to the improvementof the rich soil below. It required both the genius and the perseverance of Lord Kaimes, to complete this scheme ; but by this singular mode of improvement, about 1000 English acres have been already cleared, a population of above 900 inhabi- tants furnished with the means of subsistence, and an extensive district, where only snipes and moor-fowl were formerly maintained, is now converted, as if by magic, into a rich and fertile carse, or tract of alluvial soil. (Code.) In The General Report of Scot' land, Appendix, vol. ii. p. 38, will be found a detailed account of this improvement. Sect. VI. Of Marshes and their Improvement. 4197. A tract of land on the borders of the sea or a large river, is called a marsh : it differs from the fen, bog, and morass, in consisting of a firmer and better soil, and in being occasionally Hooded. Marshes arc generally divided into fresh water marshes and salt water marshes ; the latter sometimes called saltings or ings : fresh water marshes differ from meadows, in being generally soaked with water from the subsoils or springs. 4198. Fresh water marshes are often found interspersed with arable land, where springs rise, and redundant water has not been carried off; and may be improved by a course of ditching, draining, and ploughing. Where large inland marshes are almost constantly covered with water, or the soil is extremely wet, they may be drained, as large districts. in the fens of Lincolnshire have been, and made highly valuable. Tlie object, in that case, is, by embankments, draining, and other means of improvement, to convert these marshes into pasture or meadow, or even arable lands ; and where such improvements cannot be accomplished, the most useful woody aquatics, as willows, osiers, &c. may be grown with advantage. X X 4 680 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4199. "Bxnnneytnarsh is one of the most extensive and fertile of fresh water marshes in Britain. It contains near gl.OOO acres ; besides which Walland marsh and Dinge marsh, which are comprised within the walls, contain the fonncr 12,000, and the latter 8,000 acres. Boys informs us that " the internal regu- lations of these marshes are committed to the superintendance of expenditors. These are appointed by the Commissioners of Sewers, and are to take care that the repairs of the walls are maintained in due order, and that the costs attending the same be levied on each tenant according to the number of acres occupied by him ; for which purpose they are to cause assessments to be made out, with the names of the occupiers, and the rateable proportions to be borne by them respectively ; and these rates, which must be confirmed by the commissioners, are termed scots ; and that when any occupier refuses to pay his scot, theexpenditors can obtain a warrant from the commissioners empowering them to distrain for the same, as for any other tax." These marshes are both appropriated to the purposes of breeding and feeding. 4200. Salt water marshes are subject to be overflowed at every spring tide, or at other times, when by the violence of the wind, or the impetuosity of the tide, the water flows beyond its usual limits. Their goodness is in a great measure analogous to the fertility of the adjoining marshes; and the extent of them differs according to the situation. Embankments, as it is remarked in The Code of Jgriculture, are perhaps the only means by which tliey can be effectually improved, especially when they are deficient in pasture. However, where pasture abounds, they are in some cases more valuable than arable lands, the pasture operating as a medicine to diseased cattle. 4201. Marshes on the Thames. In The Agricultural Survey of Kent it is asserted, that great profit is made by the renters of marshes in the neighborhood of London bordering on the Thames, from joisting of horses, the pasture being deservedly accounted salubrious to that useful animal ; for which reason, such horses as have been worn down by hard travel, or long afflicted with the farcy, lameness, &c. have fre- quently been restored to their pristine health and vigor, by a few months' run in the marshes, especially on the saltings ; but as every piece of marsh land in some measure participates of this saline disposition, so do they all of them possess, in a comparative degree, the virtues above mentioned, and for this reason the Londoners are happy to procure a run for their horses, at 45, or 5s. per week. And another method practised by the graziers in the vicinity of London, is to purchase sheep or bullocks in Smithfieldat a hanging market, which being turned into the marshes, in the lapse of a few weeks are not only much improved in flesh, but go off at a time when the markets being less crowded, have considerably advanced in price, and thus a twofold gain is made from this traffick ; and as many of the wealthy butchers of the metropolis are possessed of a tract of this marsh land, they have, from their constant attendance at Smithfield, a perfect knowledge of the rise and fall in the markets, and consequently are enabled to judge with certainty, when will be the proper time to buy in their stock and at what period to dispose of them. 4202. In vario^is districts of the island that are situated on the borders of the sea, or near the mouths of large rivers, there are many very extensive tracts of this description of land, which by proper drainage and enclosure maybe rendered highly valuable and productive. This is particularly the case in Somer- setshire and Lincolnshire, as well as that mentioned above. In the former of these counties, vast im- provements have, according to Billingsley, as stated in his able Survey, been effected by the cutting of ditches, for the purpose of dividing the property, and the deepening of the general outlets, to discharge the superfluous water. Many thousand acres which were formerly overflowed for months together, and consequently of little or no value, are now become fine grazing and dairy lands. Sect. VII. Of Downs and other Shore Lands. 4203. Downs are those undulating smooth surfaces covered with close and fine turf met with in some districts on the sea-shore ; the soil is sometimes sandy, and at other times clay or loam. In inland situations there are also down lands, as in Wiltshire, Lincolnshire, and Yorkshire ; in the two latter counties they are called " wolds. " 4204. Sandy downs on the sea-shore, are often more valuable in their natural state, than after cultivation. In a state of nature they frequently afford good pasture for sheep and rabbits, and at other times produce grasses that may be used as food for cattle, or as litter. But the great object should be to raise plants which contribute to fix these soils, and to prevent them from being drifted by the winds, which often occasion incalculable mischief. The most suitable plants for the purpose, are the elymus are- narius, j uncus arenarius, arundo donax, ononis communis, gallium verum, tussilago peta- sites, and a variety of other creeping^rooted plants and grasses. Of woody plants, the elder is one of the best for resisting the sea breeze, and requires only to be inserted in the sand in large truncheons. Where the sands on sea^shores are mixed with shells, and not very liable to drift, if they can be sheltered by fences or an embankment, and sown with white clover, it will be found 543 both an economical and profitable improve- ment, 4205. Poor sandy soils, in inland dis- tricts are not unfrequently stocked with rabbits. When the production of arable lands are high, it is found worth while to break up these warrens and cultivate corn and turnips; but it frequently happens that taking the requisite outlay of capital, and the expenses and risk into consideration, they do not pay so well as when stocked with rabbits. Such lands are generally well adapted for planting ; but in this, as in every other case where there is a choice, circumstances must direct what line of im- provement is to be adopted. Book III. IMPROVING FARMERIES. 681 . 4206. Shores and sea beaches of gravel and shingle^ without either soil or vegetation, are perhaps the most unimprovable spots of any ; but something may be done with theiu by burying the roots of the arenarious grasses along with a little clay or loamy earth. Of these, the best is the elymus arenarius (^fig. 543 a), already mentioned ; and E. geniculatus (b), and sibiricus (c), would probably succeed equally well. The last grows on the sandy wastes of Siberia, and the preceding is found on the shores of Britain. Chap. V. Of the Tmprovevient of Lands already in a stale of Culture. 4207. A profitable application of many of the practices recommended in the Cliapters of this and the foregoing Book may be made to many estates which have been long under cultivation. It is certain, indeed, that the majority of those who study our work will have that object more in view, than the laying out or improvement of estates ab origine. Few are the estates in Britain in which the farm lands do not admit of in- creased value, by rectifying the shape of fields, adjusting their size, improving the fences, draining the soil, or adding to the shelter ; and few are the farmeries that may not be rendered more commodious. Of this, we shall give a few examples, after recognising general principles and modes of proceeding. Sect. I. Of the general Principles aiid Modes of Procedure, in improving Estates already more or less improved. 4208. The groundwork of improvement, on which a practical man may tread with safety and full effect, is an accurate delineation of the existing state, together with a faithful estimate of the present value of the lands and other particulars of an estate to be improved. A general map of the appropriated lands, promptly exhibiting the several farms and fields as they lie, and showing the existing watercourses, embankments, fences, and buildings; the woodlands, standing waters, morasses, and moory grounds ; the known mines and quarries ; together with the commonable lands (if any) belonging to the estate, forms a comprehensive and useful subject of study to the practical inaprover. It is to him, what the map of a country is to a traveller, or a sea-chart to a navigator. If an estate is large, a faithful delineation of it will enable him in a few hours to set out with advan- tages, respecting the connexions and dependencies of the whole and its several parts, with which as many days, weeks, or months could not furnish him, without such scientific as- sistance. If on the same plan appear the rental value of each field or parcel of land, and the annual produce of each mine, quarry, woodland, and productive water in its present state, the preparatory information which science is capable of furnishing may be consi- dered as complete. And it remains with the artist to study with persevering attention the subject itself, in ordef to discover the species Of improvements of which it is sus- ceptible, and the suitable means of carrying them into effect. 4209. The species of improvements that are incident to landed property are numerous. They may, however, be classed under the following heads : tlie improvement of the out- line, and general consolidation of an estate by purchase, sale, or exchange : the improve- ment of the roads; of the mines and minerals; of the towns, villages, mills, and manu- factories; of the waters; of the woods and plantations; and of the farmeries and farm lands. This last subject is the most common, and it is to it that we shall devote the succeeding section. To discuss the other species of improvement, as applied to old estates, would necessarily include so much of what has already passed in review in the foregoing Book, as to be wearisome to the reader. Sect. II. Of the Imjrrovement of Farmeii&s and Farm Lands. 4210. Farm lands are of more or less value according to the means of occupying them. Arable lands in particular require buildings and other conveniences, proportioned to the size of a farm. We frequently see tenants curbed in their operations, and incurring a waste of produce, tlirough the want of sufficient homestalls. On the other hand, we sometimes observe a prodigality of expenditure on farm buildings ; thus not only sinking money unnecessarily, but incurring unnecessary expenses in subsequent repairs, by ex- tending homesteads beyond the sizes of farms. In some cases, therefore, it will be found necessary to curtail the extent of farm buildings, as large barns ; in others to enlarge the yards, and in many to add and re-arrange the whole. The subject therefore may be con- sidered in regard to design and execution ; but as we have already treated fully on laying out new farmeries, we shall here offer only a few general remarks as to alterations. 4211. In improving the plan of a farmery the given intention is first to be maturely- considered, and the several requisites to be carefully ascertained. The given site is next 682 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III to be delineated, so as to show the existing buildings, yards, roadways, and entrances ; and then, by maturely studying the plan alternately with the site itself, to endeavor to trace out the most suitable alterations ; all the while keeping in view the perfection of arrangement, the situation and value of the existing buildings, and the expenses of alter- ation ; returning to the charge repeatedly, until the judgment be fully satisfied. It is much easier to plan and erect a new farmstead, than to improve one which is already erected. The former requires science and ingenuity only ; the latter good sense and judgment also. 4212. In executing improvements on oldfarmenes some difficulty occurs as to the in- corporation of new and old materials. If the situation and plan are likely to be of per- manent approval, the new erections may be made in the most substantial manner; keeping it in view that the old, which are repaired at the time, may afterwards be wholly renewed. But if the repairs and improvements are not to extend further than the duration of a lease, or ti}l, by the expiry of various leases, some general plan of im- provement can be determined on, then old materials or less permanent erections may be adopted. 4213. As an example of adding jmrt of a newly-enclosed common-field to a srnall anciently enclosed grass farm {fig. 544. j, we give the following case : 544 4214. The farmery [a] and ancient enclosed fields (h), are separated from the common field by a road, and bounded on the other side by a lake. The soil is a soft black earth on a gravelly subsoil ; the surface a gentle slope towards the lake. The farm-house is sup- posed to be already placed in this ancient part ; and the object in view is to unite a large portion of the common field, when enclosed to each ancient farm, so as to get a fair rent for the lands at the least expense. The soil of this common field is a light poor sand, with nearly a flat surface. The circumstances of the country are favorable to large farms, the climate is dry, and the situation such as to require shelter. The number of acres to be enclosed and added to this farm is 1 200. These will be most advantageously culti- vated in six shifts of, 1, turnips (c) ; 2, barley (rf) ; 3, artificial grasses (e) ; 4 and 5, the same (/, ^r) j q^ wheat or oats (A). Each shift is proposed to be separated by a plantation Book III. IMPROVING FARM LANDS. 683 for shelter, and no inferior divisions are made. In two of the plantations are field-barns, sheds, &c. where the corn grown on one-half of the arable lands is threshed by a moveable threshing-machine, and the straw consumed by cattle. There are cottages at each of these barns for laborers to attend to the stock, &c. The ridges in each of the breaks or shifts are supposed to extend their whole length ; or they may be ploughed as if the whole break were only one ridge, by which means not a moment is lost in turning at the ends. Sec. Hereford or Devon oxen are supposed the beasts of labor on this farm. 4215. In place of the above rotation, wheat may be added after the second year of arti- ficial grasses, and one shift kept entirely under saintfoin. This saintfoin division must of course be changed every sixth or seventh year. However, if a proper mixture of artificial grasses are sown, such as red, white, and yellow clover, rib-grass, burnet, saint- foin, timothy, cocksfoot, rye-grass, and soft grass, the produce will be superior to that from either saintfoin or lucern alone, on a soil such as this, or even perhaps on any soil. Every agriculturist of observation must be aware that the efforts of annual and biennial plants are powerful for a few years at first, and that they uniformly produce a greater bulk than perennials : the latter seem to compensate for this temporary bulk by a steady durable produce. 4216. The old pasture near the house is supposeif to be irrigated from the upper part of the lake, by a cut passing near the house. These pastures are particularly advantageous for early lambs, milch cows, &c. and for stock in general in seasons of great drought. 4217. Correcting the outlines of fields is one of the most obvious sources of ameliorri- tion on many, perhaps on most estates. The advantages of proper sized and shaped enclosures have been fully pointed out, when treating of laying out farm lands, and in altering existing fences the same principles must be steadily kept in view ; for though, unless by a total eradication of all the existing fences, every requisite may not be attainable, yet such a number may be gained as amply to compensate for the expense. In altering the shape and size of fields, besides the advantages resulting from the improve- ment in form, it will generally be found that a number of culturable acres may be added to the farm in proportion to the crookedness of the fences and their width. Better drainage and roads will also be obtained, and where ornament is an object, a park-like appearance may be produced by leaving as single trees a part of what may have stood in the eradicated hedge-rows. 4218. As an example of improving the shape and size of fields, we shall refer to a farm of 350 acres, situated in Middlesex, (fig. 545. ) In this case, the fields were larger than M CJicrins usual, but the fences were in many parts from ten to fifteen yards in width, more resembling strips of copse wood than fences, as they contained hazel, dogwood, black and white thorns, wild roses, brambles, and a variety of native shrubs. The lines of these fences were so ill calculated for carrying off* the surface water, that in one half of the fields there were open gutters for the discharge of the water collected in the hedge- row ditches. 4219. In the centre of one field (25), for example, above an acre was rendered waste by the water from other fields (19, 20, and 21), which water, it is curious to remark, might, if led over the same acre agreeably to the principles of irrigation, have produced 684 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. annually at least two and a half loads of good hay, in place of annually rendering the produce of this acre unmarketable. The water of some fields (as 1 6, 18, and part of 19), ran in a diagonal direction through another (15), two acres of which might have been irrigated by it to advantage. 4220. In the farm when altered {jig. 546.), the fields are more uniform in shape and size ; their sides are parallel, and better adapted for ploughing the lands in straight ridges. All the surface-water is carried off by the open fence drains. Access is had to every field by the shortest possible road from the farmery. Only two-thirds the number of gates formerly required are requisite. Fifty acres are rendered useful which were formerly lost, or pernicious, by occupying space for which rent was paid, and by harbouring insects and noxious weeds ; and as much rich vegetable earth is obtained from the old hedge banks, as spread abroad in every direction may be said to manure at least ten acres. The whole is more open • and healthful ; and, from the number of single trees thrown into the fields, more elegant, and bearing a greater resemblance to a park. A part near the house (1, 2, 3) is in permanent pasture, and the rest (4, 5, 6, &c.) under a course of fallow, wheat, clover, beans, wheat. 4221. As an example of altering the fields and consolidating a farm, we submit the case of a meadow-farm, with the arable lands in a common field state. (Jig. 547. ) By an act of enclosure, these scattered arable lands (a), were exchanged for others adjoin- ing the meadow grounds (Jig. 548 6), and the whole rendered more compact and commodious. This farm being intersected by a public lane affords an example in which no private roads are wanting. The size and shape of the fields was improved, and the broad fences reduced as in the preceding case, and attended with the same advan- tages in an agricultural point of view. 4222. But though in altering broad fences there are obvious and indisputable advantages to the farmer, yet, as justly observed by Loch, gain is not every thing. " The fences on the Marquess of Staflfbrd's estates," he says, " were liable to the same objection which is applicable to a great proportion of the counties of England. They are not composed of quick, at least but in a scanty degree ; they for the most part consist of bushes, growing from the stump of every sort of forest-tree, intermixed with hazel, birch, hornbeam, maple, alder, willow, &c. They are planted on high and dry mounds, and thus are subject to constant decay. They occupy too much ground, provided agriculture alone was the occupation of life. But as they give great protection, when they thrive, to the game, they become an important object of preservation, inasmuch as every thing must be of consequence which contributes to the sport, and has the effect of retaining the gentry of England much upon their estates. For this reason, it may occasionally be proper to consider of the best way to preserve these hedges at the least expense, in place of substituting more perfect ones in their stead ; nor should one object exclusively be attended to in the agricultural improvements of so great and so wealthy a country. 4223. When farm-lands are exposed to high ivinds, interspersing them with strips or masses of plantation is attended with obviously important advantages. Not only are such lands rendered more congenial to the growth of grass, and corn, and the health of pasturing animals, but the local climate is improved. The fact, that the climate may be thus improved, has, in very many instances, been sufficiently established. It is, indeed, astonishing how much better cattle thrive in" fields even but moderately sheltered than Book III. SHELTERING FARM LANDS. 686 they do in an open exposed country. In the breeding of cattle, a sheltered farnij ojr a sheltered corner in a farm, is a thing much prized ; and, in instances where fields are taken by the season for the purpose of fattening them, those most sheltered never fail to bring the highest rents, provided the soil be equal with that of the neighboring fields which are not sheltered by trees. If we inquire into the cause, we shall find, that it does not altogether depend on an early rise of grass, on account of the shelter afforded to the lands by the plantations ; but, likewise, that cattle which have it in their power, in cold seasons, to indulge in the kindly shelter afforded them by the trees, feed better ; because their bodies are not pierced by the keen winds of spring and autumn ; neitlief is the tender grass destroyed by the frosty blasts of March and April. [Plant. Kcd» p. 121.) 4224. The operation of skreen plantations, in exposed situations, Marshal observes, is not merely that of giving shelter to the animals lodging immediately beneath them ; but likewise in breaking the uniform current of the wind, — shattering the cutting blasts, and throwing them into eddies : thus meliorating the air to some distance from them* Living trees communicate a degree of actual warmth to the air which envelopes them. Where there is life there is warmth ; — not only in animal, but vegetable nature. The severest frost rarely affects the sap of trees. Hence it appears, that trees and shrubs properly disposed, in a bleak situation, tend to improve the lands so situated, in a threefold way, for the purposes of agriculture : namely, by giving shelter to stock ; by breaking the currents of winds ; and by communicating a degree of warmth or softness to the air, in calmer weather. 4225. The proper disposal of skreen plantations for this purpose is in lines across the most offensive winds, and in situations best calculated to break their force. Placed across valleys, dips, or more open plains, in bleak exposures, they may be of singular use. Also on the ridges, as well as on the points, and hangs, of hills. 4226. The width of skreen plantations ought generally to be regulated by the value of the land for agricultural uses, and the advantages of the situation for the sale and deli- Very of timber. In ordinary cases, from two to four statute poles may be considered as an eligible width. 4227. The form of plantations for shelter, however, will not in every case be that of a stripe or belt of uniform width. In hilly, rocky, and other situations, different forms will suggest themselves according to the situation and the objects in view. In rocky abrupt sites (^^. 549.;, the plantation will consist of a number of masses («, 6,c), of forms determined by the rocks and precipices, among which some of the most valuable pasture may be left as glades (f/, e), for use, effect, and for the sake of game. Strips and hedges for shelteriug, or separating arable lands, should be formed as much as possible in straight and parallel lines, in order not to increase the expense of tillage. 636 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. 549 Part III. by short and irregular turnings. Straight parallel strips, on irregular surfaces, have a more varied appearance at a distance, than strips ever so much varied on a flat surface ; for, in the former case, the outline against the sky is varied as much as that on the earth. In extensive, hilly pastures, in which it is often desirable to produce shelter, and at the same time to plant only the most rocky and unproductive spots, the forms may be of the most irregular description ; and by planting chiefly on the eminences and slopes {Jig. 550. ), shelter will be most effectually produced, the pasture improved, the least valuable ground rendered productive in copse or timber, and the greatest richness and picturesque beauty conferred on the landscape. There are some fine examples of this on the hilly districts of Fife- shire ; there, on many estates where nothing was sought for but profit and shelter, the greatest beauty has been produced ; and the picturesque tourist now passes through glades and valleys, pas- tured by well-fed cattle and sheep, enlivened by rocks, thickets, hanging-woods, and occasional rills and lakes. Fifty years ago scarcely a tree was to be seen, and only the most inferior descriptions of live stock. 4228. The species of woody plants best adapted for shelter, are the rapid growing and evergreen ^ji^-Si trees, as the Scotch pine, and such as are at the same time clothed with branches from the ground up- wards, as the spruce fir, the best of ail trees for shelter, unless the situation is very elevated. Among the deciduous trees, the fast-growing branchy sort are most desirable, as the larch, birch, poplar, wil- low ; in very elevated situations, the birch, moun- tain-ash, and Scotch-pine, exposed to the sea breeze, the elder and sycamore. To maintain a branchy, leafy screen from the ground upwards, intermix trees and shrubs which stole ; or such as grow under the shade and drip of others, as the holly, hazel, dog- wood, box, yew, &c. To produce shelter, and yet admit of the growth of grass below the trees, prune any sort to single stems, and use chiefly deciduous sorts. 4229. In bleak and barren situations, Marshal observes, the larch will generally be found the most profitable, as timber. 13 ut, being deciduous, it does not in winter, when its services are most wanted, afford so much shelter as the common pine. A skreen, to shelter live stock, should be close at the bottom. It is, otherwise, injurious rather than beneficial. Not only the blast acquires additional current, but snow is liable to be blown through, and to be lodged in drifts on the leeward side, to the annoyance and danger of sheep that have repaired to it for shelter. A larch plantation margined with spruce firs, and these headed at twelve or fifteen feet high, would afford the required shelter, for a length of years. The firs, or pines, thus treated, would be induced to throw out lateral boughs, and feather to the ground : while the larches, in their more advanced state of growth, would, by permitting the winter's winds to pass through the upper parts of the skreen, break the current and mellow the blast. 4230. In more genial situatiotis, the beech, by retaining its leaves in winter, especially while it is young, forms a valuable skreen. If the outer margins were kept in a state of coppice wood, and cut alternately, and the middle ranks suffered to rise as timber trees, the triple purpose of skreen plantations might be had in an eminent degree, and almost in perpetuity. 4231. In deep'Soiled, vale districts, which not unfrequently want shelter, skreens of oak might be managed in a similar way. Hollies, or other hardy evergreens, planted as Book III. SHELTERING FARM LANDS. 687 underwood, in groves of either of the above descriptions, would, if suitable situations were assigned them, assist much in this intention. 4232. A tall impervious fence is, for the purpose of shelter to pasturing stock, nearly- equal to a depth of coppice wood, and infinitely preferable ^to an open grove of timber trees ; beside its additional use as a fence. There appears, one species of fence which is peculiarly adapted to this purpose. This is the coppice mound hedge of Devonshire and South Wales; namely, a high wide bank or mound of earth, planted with coppice woods. This becomes, immediately on its erection, a shelter and a guard to pasture grounds. 4233. The method of forming fences of this intention is that of carrying up a stratum of earth, between two sod facings, " battering," or leaning somewhat inward, to the re- quired height ; and planting on the top the roots and lower stems of coppice plants, gathered in woods, or on waste grounds ; or with nursery plants, adapted to the given situation. If the mound be carried to a full height, as five or six feet, and a])out that width at the top, and this be planted with strong plants, with stems cut off about two feet above the roots (in the usual practice of Devonshire), a sufficient fence is thus immediately formed against ordinary stock. But if the bank be lower, or if nursery plants be put in, a slight guard, run along the outer brink, on either side, and leaning outward, over the face of the mound, is required (especially against sheep) until the plants get up. If a hedge of this kind be raised as a plantation fence, (^specially on the lower side pf ^ slope) 688 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the outer side only requires to be faced with sods ; the hedge plants being set in a rough shelving bank, on the inner side. 4234. The species of hedge woods, proper for mound fences, depends entirely on the soil and situation. On mounds of bad soil, in a bleak situation, the furze alone affords much shelter, and a good fence. The sides being kept pruned, so as to show a close firm face rising above the top of the bank, it is a secure barrier, even against the wilder breeds of Welsh sheep. The beech is commonly planted in high exposed situations ; and in places more genial to the growth of wood, the hazel, the ash, and the oak are the ordinary plants of hedge mounds. The willow tribe have a quality which recommends them, in situations where they will florish : they grow freely from cuttings, or truncheons set in the ground ; whereas to secure the growth of ordinary coppice woods, rooted plants are required. The rock-willow (Salix caprea) will grow in high and dry situations. 4235. On thin-soiled stone?/ surfaces, tall mounds are difficult to raise ; and there stone walls are not only built at a small expense, but are convenient receptacles for the stones with which the soil is encumbered. But a stone wall, unless it be carried up to an inor- dinate height, at a great expense, is useless as a skreen ; may be said to be dangerous as such, in a bleak exposed situation, for as soon as the drifting snow has reached the top of the wall, on the windward side, it pours over it, and inevitably buries the sheep which may be seeking for shelter on the leeward side. Hence, in a situation where shelter is required, it is necessary that a stone fence should be backed with a skreen plantation. 4236. To plant trees for shade may in some cases be requisite for agricultural purposes. Where this is the case, close plantations are seldom desirable, a free circulation of air being necessary to coolness ; therefore trees with lofty stems, and large heads, pruned to single stems are preferable : the oak, elm, chestnut, and beech, for thick shade ; the plane, acacia, and poplar, for shade of a lighter degree. 4237. ^n example of sheltering a hill farm bi/ plantation, and at the same time im- proving the shape and size of fields, shall next be given. No farming subject affords better opportunities of introducing hedge- rows, and strips of planting than hill-farms. The one under consideration {fg. 55 1 .) is a small estate farmed by its owner ; it consists of nearly 370 acres ; and is situated in an elevated, picturesque part of a central English county. The soil is partly a flinty loam or chalk, and partly a strong rich soil, incumbent on clay. The fields (1 to 34^, are very irregular, bounded by strips of timber and copse. By the alterations and additions proposed {fig. 552.), all the most hilly and distant spots will be kept in permanent pasture ; and the exposed and abrupt places, angles, &c. planted chiefly with oaks for copse, and beech for timber and shelter. Chap. VI. Of the Execution of Improvements. 4238. The mode in which improvements are executed is a point of very considerable importance, and may materially affect their success as well as their expense. We shall first consider the different modes of execution, and next offer some general cautions to be held in view in undertaking extensive works. Sect. I. Of the different Modes of procuring the Execution of Improvements on Estates. 4239. The necessary preliminari/ to the execution of an improvement, is a calculation ilitary,, the latter with naval affairs. Every heir apparent, therefore, to a large landed property, should be regularly, or at least more or less, bred up in the knowledge of rural affairs^, so as to fill with honor and profit the high station he has in view. But if the possessor of an estate has not been fortunately initiated in the knowledge which belongs to his> station, the task of acquiring it is far from great. " 4267. On a large estate we generally find a resident manager, a land steward, a man wh» has some knowledge of what is termed country business, and who acts under the control of his employer, or of a confidential friend, who is more conversant in rural concerns;, or perhaps of a law agent, who knows less of them ; or such residing steward, espe- cially of a detached estate which lies at some distance from the residence of its proprietor, acts without control. In the last case, if he is a man of judgment, it is fortunate botb for the landlord and tenant. But, on the contrary, if such possessory manager wants- those requisite qualifications, the consequence becomes mischievous to the lands, their occupiers, their proprietors, and the community. 4268. The requisite acquirements of an acting manager, according to Marshal, are * knowledge of agriculture, surveying, planting, some knowledge of mechanics, natural history, and a master of accounts. Agriculture is the only firm foundation on which the other required attainments can be securely reposed. It is not more essentially valuable in the superintendence, than in the improvement of an estate. It is difficult to become an accurate judge of the value of lands without a practical knowledge of their uses ; nor can any man without it, properly appreciate the management of occui-- piers, much less assist them in correcting their errors, and improving their practice. 4269. Land-siirveying is a requisite qualification. Not so much however, for the purpose of measur-- ing and mapping an estate, at large, as for checking and correcting the works of professional men, as well as to assist in laying out its lands to advantage. 4270. Planting, and the management of woodlands, are acquirements that cannot be dispensed with.- Nor should his knowledge and attention be confined to the surface of the estate entrusted to his care ; he ought to have some acquaintance with natural history, chemistry, and experimental philosophy, to' enable him to form just notions on the subject of the subterrene productions which it may contain. 4271. Some knowledge of mechanics, and other sciences that are requisite to the business of an engineer,, may be highly useful in pro.-^ecuting the improvements incident to landed property. 4-272. A competent knowledge of rural architecture, the doctrine of the strength of materials, and the • superintendence of artificers, may be said to be of daily use. 4273. A thorough knowledge of accounts is essentially requisite to the manager of a landed estate. 4274. He should be a min of good character, of upright principles, and conciliatory manners ; to set an example of good conduct to the tenants, and to become their common counsellor and peace-maker, in those trifling disputes which never fail to arise among the occupiers of adjoining land ; and which too frequently bring on serious quarrels and lawsuits, that end in the ruin, not only of themselves, but of the tenements they occupy. A proprietor has, therefore, an interest in checking such disputes in the bud. And no man can do this with so much effect, as a manager in whom they have a proper cbnfidence ; and who possessies a due share of j)opularity on the estate. 4275. The acting manager requires certain assistants on a large estate ; especially if it lies in a detached and scattered parts. Those in general use, are a ground officer and clerk. 4276. A land-reeve, woodward, or ground officer, is required on each district or der partment of a large estate ; to attend, not only to the woods, and hedge-timber, but tO the state of the fences, gates, buildings, private roads, driftways, and watercourses;^ also to the stocking of commons (if any), and encroachments of every kind; as well as to prevent, or detect, waste and spoil, in general, whether by the tenants of the estate, or others ; and to report the same to the manager. 4277. The office clerk, book-keeper, or under steivard, is employed to form registers, make out rentals, &c. ancj keep the accounts of the estate ; as well as to assist the man- ager in his more active employments ; also to act as his substitute in case of sickness, or absence ; and to become his successor in tlie event of his deatli, or other termination* of his stewardship. 4278. A law assistant, solicitor, or attorney, may next be considered as requisite to tlie good management of a landed estate. For although much is to be done by judicious regulations, and the timely interposition and advice of a resident manager, such are thcr Y y S 694 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. frailties of human nature, that, in a state of civilised society, and of property, legal assistance will sometimes be necessary. The error of country gentlemen consists, not in employing lawyers, but in committing the management of their landed estates to them. 4279. In the feudal system^ under which every manor court was a court of law, we may perceive the origin of law land-stewards. It is allowed by the best agricultural writers in Europe (Chateauvieux, Timer, Thouin, Sigismondi, Jovellanos, Young, Marshal, Brown, Coventry, ^c), that these men by their rigid adherence to precedent in the clauses of leases, have contributed most materially to retard the progress of agricultural improvement. 4280. The land-surveyor is another professional man, whom the superintendant of an estate may want to call in occasionally. Not merely to measure and map the whole or parts of the estate, but to assist in matters of arbitration, and the amicable settlement of disputes ; or to act himself, as valuer or referee. Sect. II. Of the Land Steward's Place of Business, and what belongs to it. 4281. A manager s place of business may be considered in regard to its situation, accom- modation, and appropriate professional furniture. 4282. The situation of the place of business should be under the roof of the proprie- tor's principal residence ; round which, and in its neighborhood, some considerable parts of his estates may be supposed (as they ever ought) to lie. If a large bulk of his property lie at too great a distance for tenants to attend at the principal office, and on which he has a secondary residence, an inferior office is there required for such detached part. And it may be laid down as a rule, in the management of landed property, Marshal observes, that every distant part of an estate ought to have a place upon it (be it ever so humble) in which its possessor may spend a few days comfortably ; to diffuse over it a spirit of good order and emulation. He has known the most neglected and almost savage spot, such as are many landed estates in Ireland, reclaimed and put in a train of improvement by this easy method. 4283. The accommodation requisite for a principal office, are a commodious business room, a small anti-room ; and a safe-keep, or strong room fire proof, for the more valuable documents. 4284. The j)rofessional furniture with which an office of this description requires to be supplied are maps, rental-books, books of valuation, register, legal papers, and some others. 4285. A general map of the whole estate on a large scale is an obvious requisite ; and portable separate maps, with accompanying registers and other descriptive particulars, are useful in proportion as improvements may be in contemplation. 4286. Books of valuation are essential, especially where there are numerous small holdings on short terms. In these registers is contained the number, name, admeasure- ment, and estimated value of each field, and every parcel of land, as well as of each cottage, or other building, not being part of a farmstead, on the several distinct parts or districts of the estate. The valuations being inserted in colums, as they arise, whether by general surveys, or incidentally ; headed with the names of their respective valuers, so that whenever a farm is to re-let, these columns may be consulted, and its real value be fixed, in a re-survey, with the greater exactness. 4287. A general register of timber trees, copsewood, and young plantations is particu- larly wanted where there is much hedge-row timber. Marshal directs to specify in this register the number of timber trees in each wood, grove, hedge-row, and area, with the species, number, and admeasurement of each tree. He also recommends separate pocket-books, containing the particulars of each division, or of a number of contiguous divisions, for the occasional use of the manager and wood-reeve. 4288. Contracts, agreements, accounts, letters on business, and other documents, should be intelligibly endorsed, dated or numbered, and arranged so as to be easily referred to A book of abstracts, or heads of papers of greater importance, should be made out to be referred to on ordinary occasions^ and likewise to serve as an index to the originals, which require a more secure repository than a common business-room. 4289. Legal documents, such as title deeds, legal decisions, awards of arbitration, counterparts of leases, securities, cash, bills, passed accounts, &c., as being the most important objects, should be carefully deposited in the safety-chest or strong room. 4290. Portable registers of the tenanted lands in convenient pocket volumes, with maps on a small scale heading every farm, are a most invaluable description of books both for the manager and his employer. Two opposite pages being appropriated to each farm with its map, the following information should be given : — Book IV. LAND STEWARDSHIP. e&S Name of the farm and its number of acres. The eligibility of the plan and circumstances of The name of the tenant and the existing rent. the farm. The tenancy ; if on lease, the term of expiring. The eligibility of the occupier. Any extraordinary covenant of the lease. The eligibility of the present rent. The number of cottages let with the farm. The state of the buildings, fences and gates, roads, The number of timber trees growing on it. and watercourses. The number of orchard trees growing on it. The state of cultivation, and condition of the Jiv* stock. 4291. Add, among other things, the following, viz. The repairs more immediately wanted. With any other incident of occurrence respecting The improvements of which the whole is suscep- the farm or its occupier, that requires to be re*. tible. membered ; and with references to the books and The agreements entered into with the tenant. papers which may pertain to the several particulars j The permissions granted him. thus having at one view a complete abstract of the The injunctions delivered to him. history and present state of every farm, together With a hint as to his personal character, and the with the particulars of attention whicli each will number and general character of his family, require. 4292. The trouble of forming an abstract of this kind, or of renewing it, when filled, or in order to adapt it to the varying circumstances of the several farms, is inconsider- able, compared with its uses; which are not only obvious to theory, but are fully- established in practice. On returning to an estate, after twelve months' absence. Marshal has generally found, that, by consulting a register of this sort, and, through its means, making systematic enquiries respecting the incidents that have occurred on the several farms during his absence ; he, in this summary way, and before he entered upon a fresh view, became better acquainted not only with the general interests but with the more ordinary business, of the estate, than the acting manager, who had constantly resided upon it, without such a remembrancer. This abstract or remembrancer, he says, ought not to comprehend tenanted farms only ; but should comprise woodlands, quarries, the demesne, &c., in hand; as well as the more important improvements going on: each of which ought to have its separate folio assigned it. To a proprietor, or his con- fidential friend, who only goes over his estate occasionally, such an intelligent com- panion is essentially serviceable. He cannot profitably direct, nor safely advise with, an acting manager, or other agent or officer of the estate, until he has consulted so infallible an oracle. The utility of such a register, while a proprietor is absent from his estate, if he can be said to be so, with such a faithful mirror in his possession, is too obvious to require explanation. 4293. Among the instruments necessary fur a manager's office, may be included those requisite for surveying, mapping, levelling, measuring timber, and every description of country work, together with boring machines, draught measurers, weighing scales, some chemical tests, models, and such other articles as may be required or rendered useful by particular circumstances. 4294. An agricultural library may be considered an essential requisite ; including works on rural architecture, the prices and measuring of work, and other fluctuating matters; and one of the best Encyclopajdia's of universal knowledge. We have already (4243.) suggested an important use to which such a library might be applied. 4295. Such an establishMent and place of business as has been described, we agree with Marshal in thinking many will consider as in some degree superfluous or extravagant. In many cases we admit it would be so ; but it is impossible to be determined what things can be done without, unless a particular case were given. Such a minute register of farms, for example, would be quite ridiculous on an estate in East Lothian, where tenants are of sufficient wealth and respectability of manners to be treated as men ; and not watched and schooled like tliose which Marshal seems generally to have in view. Chap. II. Of tkd Duties of Managers of Estates^ 4296. The VaAous duties of the manager, or the proprietor of a landed estate, may be considered under the heads of general business, business with tenants, and auditing accounts. Sect. I. Of the general Principles of Business considered relatively to Land-Stewardship^ 4297. The first and most general principle, in this and every other department of business, is to embrace readily the several matters as they occur : and not, on the con- trary, to put them off' from time to time, until they accumulate ; and render the task of transacting them difficult and irksome. The only artifice, it may be said, which a man of character can well einploy in business, is that of endeavouring to render it pleasurable. And, by meeting it cheerfully, as it rises, or as it becomes ripe for dispatch^ Yy 4 696 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. this desirable end will generally be obtained. For, in that state a man not only enters upon it with pleasure himself, but he will generally find his opponent in the same temper of mind. Whereas through delay, misunderstandings, idle tales, and groundless surmises, are liable to intervene ; the minds of both to be soured ; a distant coolness to take place between them ; and a barrier to be raised, which, though altogether imaginary, nothing but the mystic wand of the law may be able to remove. 4298. There are three distinct methods of conducting business. The first is that in which the parties meet, with fair intentions, to find out the point of equity, and there to close. In the second, they enter upon business, guarded with cunning, and armed with trick and artifice, as gamblers draw round a table, to take every advantage, fair or otherwise, which they can effect with impunity. The last method lies in the courts of law and equity. 4299. A business founded on honorable intentions is the only one in which a man of honor can voluntarily appear. Here honest men come as indifferent persons to arbi- trate the matter in reference. In every settlement between man and man, there is a point of equity and right, which all good men are desirous to find ; and -when men of liberal minds fortunately meet and join in the search, it is seldom difficult to be dis- covered. Should some little difference of opinion arise, let them call in an umpire to decide between them ; or leave the whole to the decision of three capable and dis- interested men. 4300. A man of strict integrity may become entangled in business with a man of looser principles. In this case, it behoves him to be upon his guard ; but still to enter into the negociation with temper and civility. There is even a politeness in affairs of business which cannot be departed from on any occasion. Interruptions and schisms frequently arise, especially between men who are of keen sensibility, and who (though passably honest) are tenacious of their own interests, from mere matter of punctilio. The mind of either being once soured by neglect, or ruflfled by disrespectful behaviour, the smooth path of peaceful negociation is broken up, a spirit of warfare is roused, and advantages are taken, or attempted, which calm reason would not have suggested. Hence, when men of unequal degree are brought together in business, it is incumbent on the superior to set the example of liberality and civility of demeanor. 4301. In extreme cases there is no resource but the law; and here the most that an honest man can do is to procure, without loss of time, the best advice ; and to spare no exertion or useful expense in bringing the dangerous and tormenting business to a speedy conclusion. Not only is a man's property endangered, while it is tossed on the troubled sea of the law ; but his time and attention are led astray ; and his peace of mind is liable to be broken in upon ; thus deranging his ordinary concerns, and disturb-- ing the stream of life. How much legal disputation might be prevented by a timely attention to business ! 4302. Informing connections in businessy select the man who has a character to lose. This principle should be invariably acted on. For if a man cf established good cha- racter be properly treated, and determinately closed in with, in case he demur, or swerve from the right line of conduct, he will not forfeit his good name by doing a disreputable action ; and must therefore come forward to the point of equity and justice. Sect. II. Of the Management of Tenants. 4303. The general treatment of tenants and cottagers may be considered as the most important part of every land-steward's occupation : it includes the mode and conditions of letting lands ; and the time and manner of receiving rents. SuBSECT. 1. Of the proper Treatment of Tenants. 4304. On every large hereditary estate, there are established customs and usages, to which the proprietor and the occupiers consider themselves mutually amenable, though no legal contracts may subsist between them. Even where imperfect leases, or other legal agreements exist, still there is generally much left for custom and usage to determine. Though some of these may be improper, yet they ought to be strictly observed by its superintendant, until better can be placed in their stead ; not merely on the score of moral justice, but, in the same observance, to set an example of integrity and good faith to the tenants. If a superintendant imprudently break through a custom or a covenant, what can he say to a tenant who follows his example ? 4305. A manager ought to set an example to the tenants under his care, of liberality and kindness. This is more especially applicable to the case of cottagers and others who rent small holdings. There are numberless small favors which he can bestow upon them without loss, and many with eventual advantage to the estate. A spirited improving tenant should be refused nothing that he can reasonably ask — should have favors voluntarily conferred upon him ; not merely as a reward for the services which he individually is rendering the estate, but to induce its other tenants to follow hi>i Book IV. LETTING FARMS. 697 example, and to make known to the whole that their conduct is observed, and distinc- tions made between good and bad managers. 4306. Estates, like men, have their good and bad characters. No skilful farmer who has a capital to lose, will take up his residence on an estate of known bad character. On the contrary, when once an estate has acquired the character of good faith and proper treatment of its tenantry, men of money and spirit will ever be anxious there to gain a footing. Beside, the character of an estate will ever involve that of its possessor. And, setting income at nought, it surely behoves a man of property to pay some atten- tion to the character of his estates. For what can well add more to the permanent re- spectal)ility of a family of rank or fortune than having its estates occupied by a wealthy and respectable tenantry? 4307. In a Hate of civilised society andproperti/, one of the great arts of life is to teach character and interest to go hand in hand, and on ordinary occasions to endeavor to turn every incident, as it fortuitously occurs, to their mutual advantage. Jf a tenant of capital and an improving spirit be found upon an estate, give him due encouragement, for the purposes already explained. On the contrary, if another is found to possess re- fractory habits, to swerve from his engagements, or to injure the lands in his occupation, it is but common prudence to take the first legal and fair' opportunity of dismissing him, and supplying his place with another who is better qualified to fill it ; not more with a view of rescuing his particular farm from further injury, and of making an example of him, in terror to others of similar habits, than to preserve and heighten the character of the estate 4308. These remarks -may he considered as applicable chiefly to small tenants, or such as from ignorance and want of leases may be considered as in a state of bondage. It ought never to be in the power of a landlord to make **an example of a tenant in terror to others ;" it is enough if this power be left to the laws. A tenant who rents a farm on certain conditions, and fulfils them, is, in point of obligation, on an equality with his landlord ; neither is obliged to the other : and while the one does not require tlipse acts of kindness and liberality which Marshal inculcates, the other is not entitled to that submission and slavish deference so common among tenants at will, and indeed most others in England. It is justly observed by Brown ( 2'reat. on Bur. Aff. ), that the moral excitement, or degree of encouragement given to the tenant for improving the ground put under his occupation, is regulated entirely by the terms or conditions of the lease under which he holds possession. If the conditions be liberal and judicious, and accom- modated to the soil and situation of the land thereby demised to the tenant, all that is obligatory upon the proprietor is faithfully discharged. But when matters are otherwise, when the tenant possesses under a short lease, when the covenants or obli- gations are severe in the first instance, and ultimately of little avail towards for- warding improvement ; it may reasonably be inferred that the connection is improperly constituted, and that little benefit will thence follow either to the public or to the parties concerned. SuBsECT. 2. On the Business of letting Farms. 4309. There are three methods of letting a farm : putting it up to public auction^ and taking the highest bidder for a tenant ; receiving written proposals, and accepting the highest offer, and asking more rent for it than it is worth : haggling with diO'er- ent chapmen, and closing with him who promises to give the most money, without regard to his eligibility as a tenant. After a variety of obvious remarks, Marshal concludes, that "seeing in every situation, there is at all times a fair rental value, or market price of lands, as of their products, tliere appears to be only one rational, and eventually profitable method of letting a farm ; and this is to fix the rent, and choose the tenant. In the choice of a tenant every body knows the requisite qualifications to be, capital, skill, industry, and character. The respective advantages of these qualities are amply developed in The Treatise on Landed Properly. SuBSECT. 3. Of the different Species of Tenancy. 4310. The different holdings in use in Britain, are at will, from year to year, for a term of years, or for a life or lives. 4311. The tenant holding at will, or until the customary notice be given by either party to the other, is without any legal contract, or written agreement ; the only tie b©-- tween the owner and the occupier being the custom of the estate, or of the country in wliich it lies, and the common law of the land. This may be considered as the simple liolding which succeeded the feudal or copyhold tenure; but which is now fast going into disuse. 4312. liolding from year ta year, imder a written agreement, with specified covenants, is a more modern usage, and becoming more and more prevalent in some j)arts of J-Ingland, and among small tenants, even where leases for a term of years were formerly granted. 698 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4313. Leases for a term of years, o.^ seven, fourteen, twenty-one, or a greater num- ber of years, certain ; but without the power of assignment, unless \^'ith the consent of the lessor. 4314. Leases for lives; as one, two, three, or more, without the power of assignment. In Britain, life leases of this description are now rarely granted. In Wales and Ireland they are still prevalent; the rent being there settled according to the value of the land at the time of letting; as on granting a lease for a term. And in the western extreme of England, what are termed life-leases are still common. But they are rather pledges for money taken up, or deeds of sale for lives, than leases. For nearly the whole of the estimated sale value of the land, during the life tei-m, is paid down at the time of pur- chase ; the seller reserving only a quit rent, or annual acknowledgement. 4315. A lease for a term of years, or for two or more lives, can alone be favorable for the progress of agriculture. A farmer holding at will, or from year to year, may plough, sow, and reap ; but he will, if a prudent man, be very careful not to make im- provements, well knowing that the first effect would be, a rise of rent or a notice to quit. Leases for a single life have the great disadvantage of uncertainty as to duration, both as landlord and tenant ; and though the latter may insure a certain sum on his life for the benefit of his family, yet it were l)etter that he should lay out that money in im- proving the farm. Leases on lives, renewable, are for all purposes of culture as good as freehold ; but they have this disadvantage to a tenant, that they require a considerable part of his capital paid down, and a further draught on his capital on the falling in of any of the lives. Even the first of these payments would embarrass the great majority of professional farmers, and disable them from bestowing proper cultivation on the soil ; but to a farmer with a surplus capital no description of lease can be better, as he lays out his surplus capital at the market rate of interest, and is, as it were, his own annuitant. To the landlord such leases cannot be advantageous, because, there being fewer who can compete for them, lands let on these conditions, do not fetch their full price. 4316. The fundamental principle from which both the duration and conditions of leases ate established is evidently this : A. agrees to lend to B. a certain article for his use for an equivalent in money ; but such is the nature of this article, that in order to use it with advantage, B. must possess it during a considerable time ; he, therefore, requires a security from A. to that eflfect ; and A. on his part requires a security from B. that he will return the article at least in as good condition as when it was lent to him. The term of years for which the article is to be lent, and the precautions taken to ensure its return without deterioration, are founded on experience, and vary according to the pe- culiar circumstances of lender and borrower. In general, however, this is obvious; that where the period of lending is not sufficient for profitable use ; or the conditions re- quired for ensuring the lender an undeteriorated return of the article unreasonable, the value of the loan or rent will be proportionably diminished. {Sup. Enc. Brit. art. Agr.) 4317. In recurring to what actually exists in the best cultivated districts, we shall quote the excellent observations of an experienced farmer and approved public writer. " The general principle which should regulate the connection between landlord and tenant seems to be, that while the farm ought to be restored to the owner at the expiration of the tenant's interest, at least without deterioration, the tenant should be encouraged to render it as productive as possible during his possession. In both of these views, a lease for a term of years is scarcely less necessary for the landlord than for the tenant ; and so much is the public interested in this measure, that it has been proposed by intelligent men, to impose a penal tax on the rent of lands held by tenants at will. 4318. That the value of the property is enhanced by the security ivhich such a lease confers on the tenant, will be put beyond all doubt, if the rents of two estates for half a century back are compared ; the one occupied by tenants at will, and the other by tenants on leases for a moderate term, and where the soil and situation are nearly alike in every respect. If the comparison be made between two tracts, originally very different in point of value, the advantages of leases will be still more striking ; while that which is held by tenants at will remains nearly stationary, the other is gradually, yet effectually, improved, under the security of leases, by the tenants' capital ; and, in no long period, the latter takes the lead of the former, both in the amount of the revenue which it yields to the proprietor, and in the quantity of produce which it furnishes for the general consumption. The higher rents and greater produce of some parts of Scotland than of many of the English counties, where the soil, climate, and markets are much more favorable, must be ascribed to the almost universal practice of holding on leases in the former country, in a much greater degree than to any of the causes which have been frequently assigned. Less than a century ago, what are now the best cultivated districts of Scotland were very far behind the greater part of England ; and, indeed, had made very little progress from the time of the feudal system. It is not fifty years since the farmers of Scotland were in the practice of going to learn of their southern neighbors an art, which was then very imperfectly kaown in their own country. But in several parts of England there has been Book IV. SPECIES OF TENANCY. 699 ■little or no improvement since, while the southern counties of Scotland have uniformly advanced ; and at present exhibit very generally, a happy contrast to tlieir condition in the middle of the last century. 4319. In respect to farmers themselves^ it cannot be necessary to point out the advantages of leases. It may be true, that, under the security of the honor of an English landlord, tenants at will have been continued in possession from generation to generation, and acquired wealth which he has never, like the landholders of some other countries, attempt- ed to wrest from them. But there are few individuals in any rank of life, who continue for a length of time to sacrifice their just claims on the altar of pure generosity. Something is almost always expected in return. A portion of revenue in this case is exchanged for power, and that power is displayed not only in the habitual degradation of the tenantry, but in the control over them, which the landlord never fails to exert at the election of mem- bers of parliament, and on all other political emergencies. No prudent man will ever invest his fortune ii\ the improvement of another person's property, unless, from the length of his lease, he has a reasonable prospect of being reimbursed with profit ; and tlie servility which holding at will necessarily exacts, is altogether incompatible with that :^irit of enterprise which belongs to an enlightened and independent mind. 4320. Every measure which has a tendency to fetter the productive powers of the soily must deeply affect the public at large, as well as depress one of the largest and most valuable classes. It is clearly their interest, that corn and other provisions should be supplied in abundance, and the people of England may justly complain of the want of leases, as one of the principal causes which checks the improvement of their own territory. 4321. JFhat ought to be the term of a lease, can only be determined by a reference to the circumstances of each particular case. Lands naturally rich, or such as have already been brought to a high degree of fertility, requiring no great investment of capital, and returning all or nearly all the necessary outlay within the year, may be advantage- ously held upon short leases, such as perhaps give time for two, or at most three, of the rotations or courses of crops to which the quality of the soil is best adapted. The practice of England in this respect is extremely various, almost every term, from twenty years downwards, being found in different parts of it. In Scotland, by far the most common period is nineteen years, to which it was formerly the practice, in some places, to add the life of the tenant. In that country, even when it is thought expedient to agree for a much longer term, this is still expressed in periods of nineteen years, a sort of mysterious cycle, which seems to be no less a favorite with the courts of law, than with landholders and farmers. Yet this term is somewhat inconvenient, as it can never correspond with any number of the recognised rotations of arable land. 4322. A lease for twenty years, it has been maintained by several writers, is not sufficient to reimburse a tenant for any considerable improvements, and landholders have often been urged to agree to a much longer term, which, it is alleged, would be not less for their own interest than for that of the tenant. This is a question which our limits do not permit us to discuss, but, after viewing it in different lights, assisted by the experience of long leases in different parts of Scotland, we cannot help expressing some doubts of their utility, even in so far only as regards the parties themselves ; and we are decidedly of opinon, that a greater produce will be brougiit to market, from any given extent of land held on successive leases of twenty years, for half a century, than if held on one lease of that duration, whether the term be specified or indefinite, as is the case of a lease for life. As a general mode of tenure, leases for lives seem to us particularly objection- able. 4323. The great advantages of a lease are so well known in Scotland, that one of her best agricultural writers, himself a landed proprietor, has suggested a method of confer- ring on it the character of perpetuity, to such an extent as, he thinks, wo.uld give ample security to the tenant for every profitable improvement, without preventing the landlord from resuming possession upon equitable terms, at the expiration of every specified period. But tlie author of this plan (Lord Kaimes), in his ardent wishes for the advance- ment of agriculture, at that time in a very backward state in his native country, seems to have overlooked the difficulties that stood in the way of its adoption ; and the great advance in the price of produce, and consequently in the rate of rents, since his lordship wrote, have long since put an end to the discussion which his proposal excited. For a form of a lease on his plan, the reader may consult Bell's Treatise on Leases ,- and the ob- jections to the plan itself are shortly stated in the supplement to the sixth edition of The Gentleman Farmer, recently published. 4324. Long leases granted upon condition of receiving an advance of rent at the end of a certain number of years have been granted ; but covenants of this kind, meant to apply to the circumstances of a distant period, carmot possibly be framed in such a maimer as to do equal justice to both parties ; and it ought not to be concealed, that, in every case of a very long lease, the chances are ratlier more unfavorable to the landholder than to the 700 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Par-t III. fanner. If the price of produce shall continue to rise as it has done, till very lately, for the last forty years, no improvements which a tenant can be expected to execute will compensate the landlord's loss ; and if, on the other hand, prices shall decline, the capital of most tenants must be exhausted in a few years, and the lands will necessarily revert to the proprietor, as has been the case of late in many instances. Hence a landholder, in agreeing to a long- lease, can hardly ever assurp himself, that the obligations on the part of the tenant will be fully discharged throughout its whole term, while the obligations he incurs himself may always be easily enforced. He runs the risk of great loss from a de- preciation of money, but can look forward to very little benefit from a depreciation of produce, except for a few years at most. Of this advantage a generous man would sel- dom avail himself; and, indeed, in most instances, the advantage must be only imaginary, for it would be overbalanced by the deterioration of his property." (Suj). Encyc. Brit. art. Jgr.) 4325. There are various objections made to leases of nineteen or twentij-onc years. Some of these are of a feudal and aristocratical nature; such as the independence it gives the tenants who may become purse-proud and saucy under the nose of their landlord, &c. A greater objection has arisen from the depreciation of British currency during the last ten years of the eighteenth, and first ten of the nineteenth centuries. Various schemes have been suggested to counteract this evil ; but the whole of them are liable to objections, and it may be safely stated, that it admits of no remedy, but the generous interference of the landlord. SuBSECT. 4. Of the Rent and Covenants of a Lease. 4326. To avert the evils of fixed money rents, and long leases, both to landlords and tenants, the best mode known at present is the old plan of corn rents. This plan was first revived in 1811, by a pamphlet published in Cupar, which attracted considerable attention, and has led to the adoption in various parts of Scotland, of a mixed mode of paying rents, partly in corn or the price of corn, and partly in money. In hilly districts, instead of corn, wool, or the price of wool for an average of years, is sometimes fixed on. We shall quote from the same intelligent writer, on the duration of leases, his sentiments on corn rents, and subjoin his observations on covenants. 4327. Though the most equitable 'mode of determining the rent of lands on lease, would be to make it rise and fall with the price of corn ; yet, " a rent paid in corn is liable to serious objections, and can seldom be advisable in a commercial country. It necessarily bears hardest on a tenant when he is least able to discharge it. In very bad seasons, his crop may be so scanty, as scarcely to return seed and the expenses of cultivation, and the share which he ought to receive himself, as the profits of his capital, as well as the quan- tity allotted to the landlord, may not exist at all. Though, in this case, if he pays a money rent, his loss may be considerable, it may be twice or three times greater if the rent is to be paid in corn, or according to the high price of such seasons. In less favorable years, which often occur in the variable climate of Britain, a corn rent would, in numer- ous instances, absorb nearly the whole free or disposable produce, as it is by no means un- common to find the gross produce of even good land reduced from twenty to fifty per cent, below an average, in particular seasons. And it ought to be considered, in regard to the landlord himself, that his income would thus be doubled cr trebled, at a time when all other classes were suflTering from scarcity and consequent dearth ; while, in times of plenty and cheapness, he might find it diflScult to make his expenses correspond with the great diminution of his receipts. It is of much importance to both parties, that the amount of the rent should vary as little as possible irom any unforeseen causes, though tenants in general would be perhaps the most injured by such fluctuations. 4328. To obviate these and other objections to a corn rent, and to do equal justice at all times to both landlord and tenant, a plan has been lately suggested for converting the corn into money, adopting for its price, not the price of the year for which the rent is payable, but the average price of a certain number of years. The rent, according to this plan, may be calculated every year, by omitting the first year of the series, and adding a new one; or, it may continue the same for a certain number of years, and then be fixed according to a new average. Let us suppose the lease to be for twenty-one years, the average agreed on being seven years, and the first year's rent, that is, the price of so many quarters of corn, will be calculated from the average price of the crop of that year, and of the six years preceding. If it be meant to take a new average for the second and every succeed- ing year's rent, all that is necessary is, to strike off the first of these seven years, adding tiie year for which the rent is payable, and so on during all the years of the lease. But this labor, slight as it is, may be dispensed with, by continuing the rent without variation for the first seven years of the lease according to the average price of the seven years im- mc'diately preceding its commencement, and, at the end of this period, fixing a new rent, according to the average price of the seven years just expired, to continue for the next seven years. Thus, in the course of t\venty-one years, the rent would be calculated only Book IV. COVENANTS OF LEASES. 701 three times; and for whatever quantity of corn the parties had agreed, the money pay- ments would be equal to the average price of fourteen years of the lease itself, and of the seven years preceding it ; and the price oi' the last seven years of the old lease, would de- termine the rent during the first seven years of the new one. 4329. The landlord and tenant could not suffer, it has been thought, either from bad seasons or any change in the value of the currency, should such a lease as this be extended to several periods of twenty-one years. The quantity of corn to be taken as rent, is the only point that would require to be settled at the commencement of each of those periods; and though this would no doubt be greater or less, according to the state of the lands at the time, yet it may be expected, that in the twenty-one years preceding, all the tenant's judicious expenditure bad been fully replaced. Instead of the twofold difficulty in fixing a rent for a long lease, arising from uncertainty as to the quantity of produce, which must depend on the state of improvement, and still more perhaps from the variations in the price of that produce, the latter objection is entirely removed by this plan ; and in all cases where land is already brought to a high degree of fertility, the question about the quan- tity of produce may likewise be dispensed with. 4330. If the corn rent plaii he applied to leases of nineteen or twenty-one years, the inconve- nience resulting from uncertainty as to the amourft of rent, as well as other difficulties which must necessarily attend it, would be as great perhaps as any advantages which it holds out to either of the parties. If it be said that a rent, determined by a seven year's average, could not suddenly nor materially alter, this is at once to admit the inutility of the con- trivance. The first thing which must strike every practical man is, that corn is not the only produce of a farm, and in most parts of Britain, perhaps not the principal source from which rent is paid; and there is no authentic record of the prices of butcher meat, wool, cheese, butter, and other articles in every county to refer to, as there is of corn. This is not the place to inquire whether the price of corn regulates the price of all the other pro- ducts of land, in a country whose statute books are full of duties, bounties, drawbacks, &c. to say nothing of its internal regulations; but it is sufficiently evident, that if corn does possess this power, its price operates too slowly on that of other products to serve as a just criterion for determining rent on a lease of this duration. Besides, in the progress of agriculture, new species or varieties of the cerealia themselves are established even in so short a period as twenty-one years, the prices of which may be very different from that of the corn specified in the lease. What security for a full rent, for instance, would it give to a landlord, to make the rent payable according to the price of barley, when the tenant might find it more for his interest to cultivate some of the varieties of summer wheat, lately brought from the continent? or, according to the price of a particular va- riety of oats, wlien, within a i'ew years, we have seen all the old varieties superseded throughout extensive districts, by the introduction of a new one, the potatoe-oat, which may not be more permanent than those that preceded it ? There can be no impropriety, indeed, in adopting this plan, for ascertaining the rent of land kept always in tillage ; but it would be idle to expect any important benefits from it, during such a lease as we have mentioned. 4331 . The corn rent plan, in the case of much longer leases, will no doubt diminish the evils which we think are inseparable from them, but it cannot possibly reach some of the most considerable Its utmost effect is to secure to the landholder a rent which shall in all time toxMJme be an adequate rent, according to the state of the lands and the mode of culti- vation known at the date of the lease. But it can make no provision that will apply to the enlargement of the gross produce from the future improvement of the lands them- selves, or of the disposable produce from the invention of machinery and other plans for encouraging labor. And the objections just stated, in reference to a lease of twenty-one years, evidently apply much more forcibly to one of two or three times that length. Old corn-rents, though much higher at present than old money-rents, are seldom or never «o high as the rents could now be paid on a lease of twenty-one years. But, independent of these considerations, which more immediately bear upon the interests of the parties themselves, one insuperable objection to all such leases is, that they partake too much of the nature of entails, and depart too far from tliat commercial character which is most fa- vorable to the investment of capital, and consequently to the greatest increase of land produce. 4332. -4 lease for a term of years is nut, in all cases, a sufficient encouragement to spirited cultivation; its covenants in respect to the management of the lands may be injudicious; the tenant may be so strictly confined to a particular mode of culture, or a particular course of crops, as not to be able to avail himself of the beneficial discoveries which a pro- gressive state of agriculture never fails to introduce. Or, on the other hand, though this is much more rare, the tenant may be left so entirely at liberty, that either the necessity of his circumstances, during the currency of the lease, or his interest towards its expiration, may lead him to exhaust the soil, instead of rendering it more productive. When a lease therefore is eitlier redundant or deficient in this respect; where it either permits the lands to 702 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. be deteriorated or prevents their improvement; the connection between landlord and tenant is formed upon other views, and regulated by some other principle, than the general one on which we think it should be founded. 43.'}3. Restrictive covenants are always necessary to the security of the landlord, notwith- standing the high authority of Dr. Smith to the contrary, and in some cases beneficial to the tenant. Their expediency cannot well be questioned in those parts of the coun- try where an improved system of agriculture has made little progress. A landholder, as- sisted by the advice of experienced men in framing these covenants, cannot adopt any easy or less offensive plan for the improvement of his property, and the ultimate advantages of his tenantry. Even in the best cultivated districts, while farms continue to be let to the highest responsible offerers, a few restrictive covenants cannot be dispensed with. The supposed interest of the tenant is too feeble a security for correct management, even dur- ing the earlier part of a lease, and in the latter part of it, it is thought to be his interest, in most cases, to exhaust the soil as much as possible, not only for the sake of immediate pro- fit, but frequently in order to deter competitors, and thus to obtain a renewal of his lease at a rent somewhat less than the lands would otherwise bring. 4334. With tenants at will, and such as hold on short leases, restrictive covenants are more necessary than with tenants on leases of nineteen or twenty years ; but in many instances, they are too numerous and complicated, and sometimes even inconsistent with the best courses of modern husbandry The great error lies, in prescribing rules by which a tenant is positively required to act, not in prohibiting such practices and such crops as experience has not sanctioned. The improved knowledge, and the liberality of the age, have now expunged the most objectionable of these covenants ; and throughout whole counties, almost the only restriction in reference to the course of crops is, that the tenant shall not take two culmiferous crops, ripening their seeds in close succession. This single stipulation, combined with the obligation to consume the straw upon the farm, and to apply to it all the manure made from its produce, is sutficient not only to protect the land from exhaustion, but to ensure in a great measure its regular cultivation ; for half the farm at least must, in this case, be always under either fallow or green crops. The only other necessary covenant, when the soil is naturally too weak for carrying annual crops without intermission, is, that a certain portion of the land shall be always in grass, not to be cut for hay but depastured. According to the extent of this will be the interval between the succession of corn crops on the same fields ; if it is agreed that half the farm, for instance, shall always be under grass, there can be only two crops of corn from the same field in six years. In this case not more than two-sixths being in corn, one-sixth in green crops or fallow, and three-sixths in clover or grasses, it becomes almost im- possible to exhaust any soil at all fitted for tillage. There are few indeed that do not gradually become more fertile under this course of cropping. It is sufficiently evident, that other covenants are necessary in particular circumstances ; such as permission to dispose of straw, hay, and other crops from which manure is made, when a quantity of manure equal to what they would have furnished is got from other places ; and a prohibition against converting rich old grazing lands or meadows into corn lands. In this place we speak only of general rules, such as are applicable to perhaps nine-tenths of all the arable land of Britain, and such as are actually observed in our best cultivated counties. 4335. For the last four years of a lease, the same covenants are generally sufficient, only they require to be applied with more precision. Instead of taking for granted, that the proportion of the farm that cannot be under corn will be properly cultivated, from the tenant's regard to his own interest, it becomes necessary to make him bound to this effect in express terms ; the object generally being to enable the tenant, upon a new lease, to carry on the cultivation of the lands, as if the former lease had not terminated. What these additional stipulations should be, must depend in part on the season of the year at which the new lease commences, and in part on the course of crops best adapted to the soil, and the particular circumstances of every farm. 4336. With respect to the form of a lease, as no one form would suit every district, nothing specific can be laid down with advantage. The lawyers of every estate have particular forms, and it is easy for them, in concert with the proprietor or manager, to obliterate useless or injurious restrictions, and substitute such as may be deemed best for the estate, or in harmony with the progress of the age." {^Sup. Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) SuBSECT. 5. Of receiving Rents. 4337. The business of receiving the rents and pr()fits of a landed estate, simple as it may seem, is subject to analysis, and entitled to consideration. Indeed, on large pro- perties, on which not farm rents only, but various other profits are to be received ; as cottage rents, tithe compositions, chief rents, and perhaps, quit rents of copyhold lands ; the business becomes so complex as to require to be methodised and simplified, in order to obtain the requisite facility and dispatch. This is generally best effected by appoint- ing distinct days, or distinct parts of the day, for each receipt, so that the different tenants and suitors may know their hours of attendance. 4338. The business of holding manor courts depends on whether they are held of right, or merely by custom. If the copyhold tenure is so far worn out in any manor, that there are not two ancient or feudal tenants remaining within it, the court has lost its legal power ; it cannot by right, take cognizance of crimes, nor enforce amerciaments. Nevertheless, manorial courts have their uses, in regulating farm roads, driftways, and watercourses, and in preventing nuisances of different kinds within a manor ; and it is generally right to preserve the custom of holding them for these purposes. 4339. Where copyhold courts remain in force, and where legal forms are to be observed, a law " steward of the manor" is proper to hold them. It is not necessary, however. Book TV. STEWARD'S ACCOUNTS. 703 tliat courts of this kind should interfere with the receipt of farm rents ; or that a business of this nature should in auy way clash with the general receivership of the estate. Employ an attorney to hold courts, as a surveyor to arbitrate disputes, or an engineer to plan works of improvement. 4310. The propriety of having fixed days for receiving the rents of Jarms is evident, and some consideration is required to determine on the season of the year for holding them, so as not to oblige the farmer to forced sales of his produce. In England and Ireland, farm rents are generally due at Ladyday and Michaelmas, and in Scotland at Candlemas and Lammas. But the proper times of paying them depend on the market- able produce of an estate, and on the season of the year at which it goes in common course, and with the best advantage to market. A tenant should never be forced to sell his produce with disadvantage ; nor when he has received his money for it, ought he to be at a loss for an opportunity of discharging his debt to his landlord. On corn-farm estates, or those whose lands are kept in a state of mixed cultivation, which comprise the great mass of farm lands in this kingdom, Michaelmas may be considered as one of the worst times of the year, at which to call upon tenants for their rents. It is at the close (or, in the northern provinces, perhaps at the height) of harvest, when the farmers' pockets are drained by extra labor, and when they have not yet had time to thresh out their crops to replenish them ; nor is the summer's grass at that season yet consumed, nor off'-going stock, perhaps, yet ready for market. In Norfolk, Marshal found the end of February or beginning of March, a very fit time to pay the half year's rent due at Michaelmas ; and June for paying those due at Ladyday. In some districts of tlie north it used to be the custom not to demand the first half year's rent, till the tenant was a year in his farm, by which means he had the use during his lease of nearly a year's rent in addition to his actual capital. But farmers there, being now considered as possessed of more wealth than formerly, the first half year's rent of the lease is paid nine months after possession, and the last half year's rent of the term on or immediately before its expiry. 4341. The proper days for receiving rents ore to be sought for in the local circum- stances of an estate, and the district in which it lies : most especially in the fairs of the neighborhood at that season; and in other stated times, at which the tenants are accustomed, in conformity with the practice of the country, to receive for their dairy produce, or other articles, delivered in to dealers ; fixing the rent days, immediately after these days of imbursement. 4342. On the subject of arrears, a good deal has been said by Marshal ; but it is one of those which may very safely be left to the good sense and discretion of the proprietor •or his manager. Sect. III. Of Keeping and Auditing Accounts. 4343. Clearness and brevity constitute the excellence of accounts, and these excel- lencies are only to be obtained by simplicity of method. Where lands lie in detached estates so as to require different receivers, a separate account is necessarily required for each receivership ; but to preserve this simplicity and clearness, it is necessary that the several sets should be precisely in the sam.e form. 4344. The ground-work of the accounts peculiar to a landed estate, is the rent-roll : from this receiving rentals are to be taken, and with these and tlie miscellaneous receipts and disbursements incident to the estate, an account current is to be annually made out. 4345. The receiving rental, or particulars which a receiver wants to see, at one view, when receiving the rents of an estate under judicious management, — where rents are jegularly received, — and where occupiers pay taxes and do ordinary repairs, — are few: the name of the farm, the iiame of the tenant, and the amount of his half year's rent, only are required. But upon an estate, on which arrears are suffered to remain, and on which matters of account are liable to take place, a greater number of particulars are necessary ; as the name of the farm, of the tenant, his arrears, his half year's rent, any other icharge against him, any allowance to be made him, and the neat sum receivable, leaving a blank for the sum received and another for the arrear left. 4346. Accounts current are required to be delivered in annually by the acting manager, who ought generally to be the receiver. If the current receipts and disbursements are numerous, as where extensive improvements are going on, and woods, mines, quarries, &LC. in hand, such accounts may be given in monthly which will show the progress of the several concerns, and simplify the business at the end of the year. 4347. On the best managed estates it is usual, besides the books vvhich have been mentioned, to keep a ledger ; opening separate accounts for farm lands, woods, mines, quarries, waters, houses and their appurtenances, public works, &c. : and where a pro- prietor has several detached estates, besides such accounts being kept on each, one master ledger contains accounts for each property. This, indeed, is nothing but an obvious 704 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. application of mercantile book-keeping to territorial property, the advantages of which cannot but be as great in the one case as in the other. 4348. In auditing estate accounts, the rent accounts are to be checked with the arrears of the preceding year ; the column of rents with the rent-roll, corrected up to the last term of entry in order to comprise the fresh lettings, and the columns of account with the particulars ; those of allowances being signed by the respective tenants. 4349. The monthly accounts of receipts and disbursements, as well as the annual pay- ments, are to be compared with vouchers. The receipts are checked by deeds of sale, contracts, and other written agreements, the awards of referees, or the estimates of surveyors, the market prices of produce, &c. &c. ; the receiver, in every case, identifying the person, from whom each sum was received. Each disbursement requires a direct and sufficient voucher, endorsed and numbered ; with a corresponding number affixed to the charge in the account ; so that they may be readily compared. 4350. 2%e most essential part of the office of an auditor is that of entering into the merits of each receipt and payment ; and considering whether the charges correspond with the purposes for which they are made ; and whether the several sums received are adequate to the respective matters disposed of; by these means detectijig, and thence- forward preventing, imposition and connivance. This, however, is an office which no one but a proprietor, or other person who has been conversant with the transactions that have taken place upon the estate, and who has a competent knowledge of rural concerns, can properly perform. It may therefore be right to repeat, that if a proprietor has not yet acquired a competent knowledge of his own territorial concerns, to form an adequate judgment of the different entries in his manager's account, let him call in the assistance of those who are conversant in rural affairs, to enable him to judge of any particular parts that may seem to require it ; and not set his hand to an account which he does not clearly understand ; nor authorize another to sign it, who may have less knowledge than he has of its merits. BOOK V. OF THE SELECTION, HIRING, AND STOCKING OF FARMS, 4351. Farms or lands let out to men who cultivate it as a business or profession, exist in all highly civilised countries. Sometimes the farmer or tenant pays to the pro- prietor or landlord a proportion of the produce, determined yearly, or as the crops ripen; and sometimes he pays a fixed quantity of produce, or labor, or money, or part of each of these. In Britain, where farming, as a profession, is carried to a higher de- gree of perfection than in any other country, the connection between landlord and tenant is regularly defined by particular agreements and general laws ; and the latter, on en- tering on a farm, engages to pay a fixed sum for its use for a certain number of years. This sum is fixed according to the estimated value of the land ; but being fixed, and for a certain time, it admits of no abatement in proportion to the quantity or value of the produce, as in the proportional or metayer system, general in most countries (265. and 585. ) ; and hence the necessity of a farmer maturely considering every circumstance connected with a farm before he becomes its tenant. The subjects of consideration form the business of this Book, and naturally divide themselves into such as relate to the farm ; to the farmer ; and to the landlord. Chap. I. Of the Circumstances of a Farm necessary to be considered by a proposed Tenant. 4352. Whoever intend'; to become a professional, or rent-paying farmer, will, in search- ing for a farm, find it necessary to attend to a great variety of considerations. Those of the greatest importance may be included under climate, soil and subsoil, character of surface, topographical position, extent, buildings, roads, fields, tenure, rent, and out- goings. In The Code of yigricidture, a more valuable collection of facts as to these points is brought together than in any other work, and from it, therefore, we shall select the greater part of the following sections. Book V. CLIMATE OF FARMING LANDS. 705 Sect. I. Of Climate in respect to fanning Lands. 4353. The climate of a farm is one of the circumstances over which human art has less control than any other ; and a farmer who has but a temporary interest in his possession may be considered as incapable of exercising any influence over it. He may improve the soil and subsoil by draining and culture ; and the buildings, roads, and fences by additions and alterations ; but it is for the landlord to attempt improving the climate by planting, and for a future generation to enjoy the effects. 4354. Sufficient attention, it is said in The Code of Agriculture, " is rarely paid by the farmer to the nature of the climate in which his operations are carried on. Unless the system he adopts be calculated for the weather his crops are likely to experience, every exertion will often terminate in disappointment. The system that is, proper for warm and dry situations, is not suitable for cold and wet ones ; and in a bleak and backward climate, the nature of the soil ought not only to be attended to, but the utmost care ought to be paid to the early sowing of the earliest varieties of seed. Even the species of stock to be bred, or kept on a farm, should in a great measure be regulated by the climate. Hence, this is a subject which the diligent farmer will invariably study with the greatest solicitude. Climate and soil, Curwen justly remarks, are, above all other considerations, those which the farmer ought constantly to keep in view." {Report to the Workington Society.) 4355. In considering the climate of a country, the following points are of peculiar im- portance : its general character, and the means of its improvement ; its local heat ; the light it furnishes ; the quantity of its moisture ; the prevailing winds ; its position, whether maritime or inland ; the regularity of the seasons ; the phenomena to which it is liable ; the productions best suited to it ; the expenses it may occasion in cultivation ; and its suitableness for the introduction of exotic plants, and animals from other climates. 4356. The general character of a climate not only depends on position or latitude, but likewise on the elevation of a country above the level of the sea ; its general aspect ; the vicinity to mountains, forests, bogs, marshes, lakes, and seas; the nature of the soil and subsoil, and the power which the former possesses of retaining heat and moisture ; the direction of the winds ; the length of time the sun continues above the horizon ; the difference of temperature between the day and the night ; and the extent of dry surface in the neighborhood. The result of these particulars combined, form, what may be called, the general character of climate. Some of the causes of an unfavorable climate cannot be remedied by any human effort ; in other cases art may effect much ; but that art is ge- nerally such as the farmer can seldom undertake unless with a very long lease. Ame- liorations of this sort, therefore, belong to the landlord. 4357. The importance of heat, as a stimulus to vegetation, cannot be doubted. It is at a certain degree of heat that vegetation commences, and it becomes nearly stationary when the temperature falls below it. There are, comparatively speaking, but few plants calculated for very cold countries, and these are seldom valuable ; whereas in warm and temperate regions, the variety is great, and their value unquestionable. Indeed, such is the effect of cold, that while the thermometer is below 40*^ of heat, the strongest plants become torpid, and remain in that state while it continues. Revived by the warmth of spring, and strengthened by the heat of summer, they acquire fresh life and vigor, and are thus better enabled to withstand the rigors of the succeeding winter. 4358. An increased temperature, when not carried to excess, will augment the quantity of nutritive matter in a j^lant, or improve the quality of fruit grown under its influence. Thus English barley, of equal weight, is more valuable than the Scotch, because, from growing in a warmer climate, and enjoying the advantage of a greater quantity of heat and light, it is more fully ripened. It thence acquires more saccharine matter, and produces a greater quantity of spirits, or of malt liquor. It is also proved, by the experiments of Sir Humphry Davy, that wheat ripened in a more regular and warmer climate, contains more of that valuable article called gluten, than the same species of grain when raised in England. 4359. The average heat of the year is not, however, of so much importance to the growth of plants, as its duration, and its steadiness at a certain degree, during the sea- son when tiie grain is ripening. This gives the uniform climates of the continent a great advantage over our variable seasons, in the production of the more delicate sorts of fruit ; which, in this island, are often injured by the frosts in spring, and seldom ripen in a northern climate, where the greatest summer heat is both unsteady and of short duration. 4360. The quantity of solar light which a climate furnishes, is likewise an important object of inquiry. Light is essential to increase the proportion of starch or farina ; to complete the formation of oils in plants; and to give to fruits their proper color and flavor. It has also the effect of augmenting saccharine matter, insomuch that those Zr 706 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. sugar-canes which are exposed to the sun, have more of that important ingredient than when they grow under shade. Nor ought the observation to be omitted, that darkness and h'ght have effects directly opposite upon vegetables. Darkness favors the length of the growth, by keeping up the pliancy of their parts; light consolidates them, and stops growth, by favoring maturation. Hence, in the northernmost regions, plants go through all their stages of growth at a time when the sun no longer quits the horizon ; and the light, of which they thus experience the unremitting effect, hardens them before they have time to lengthen. Their growth is therefore quick, but of short duration. They are robust, but undersized. (Mirbel.) It has been remarked also, that a soil, not re- tentive, will be more productive in a wet climate than in a dry one. Hence, in the western coasts of England, as in Lancashire, where the quantity of rain that falls annu- ally varies from forty to sixty inches, a siliceous sandy soil is much more productive than the same species of soil in the eastern districts, where seldom more than from twenty-five to thirty-five inches of rain fall in a year. In wet climates also, even wheat and beans will require a less coherent and absorbent soil than in drier situations. At the same time, weather moderately dry, is the most favorable to a great produce of corn ; and the blos- soms of wheat, in particular, set best if no rain falls in the flowering season. 4361. The importance of moisture to vegetation is obvious to every one. Water con- stitutes a large proportion of every plant, and is the vehicle of the food of plants held in solution. Hence, without so essential an ingredient, they must either become stunted in their growth, or perish. In dry weather, when vegetation seems at a stand, no sooner do showers of rain fall, than a rapid growth, of every kind of herbage, or of corn, immedi^ ately succeeds, even on poor dry soils, where otherwise, however well manured, vegeta- tion would make but slow progress. 4362. The quantity of rain that falls annually in any country, is a very inferior consi- deration, when compared with that of the general and equable distribution of that quan, tity throughout the several days and months of the year. A great quantity, at the same time, is rather hurtful than beneficial ; whereas those moderate, but golden showers^ which regularly fall on a soil calculated to receive them, are real sources of fertility. It is by this that the character of a climate, whether wet or dry, is chiefly determined, and the operations of agriculture are principally influenced. 4363. The utility of a moist atmosphere, with a view to vegetation, is, in some respects, peculiarly remarkable. Thus in wet climates, as on the western coasts of England, Scotland, and Ireland, crops of grain and potatoes are found to exhaust the soil less than in dry situations, Oats in particular are impoverishing in a greater degree in dry climates, than in moist opes ; and in the former, should be sown much earlier than in the latter. 4364. The disadvantages of a wet climate to a farmer, more especially if accompanied with a retentive soil, are very great. It is calculated, that in the richest district in Scot- land, the Carse of Gowrie, there are only about twenty weeks in the year fit for plough- ing; whereas in several parts of England, they have thirty weeks, and in many cases i;nore, during which this essential operation can be performed. Hence ploughing must be much more expensive in the one case than in the other. 4365. The season of the year in which ruin abounds, is likewise of much importance. An excess is prejudicial in any season, but is peculiarly so in autumn, when it often lodges the grain by its violence, or, by its long continuance, prevents the corn from being properly harvested. The hopes of the husbandman are thus blasted, and the fruits of his toil and industry are frequently diminished, and sometimes entirely lost. 4366. Dews have a great effect in furnishing jilants with moisture ; and, indeed, with- out their aid, vegetation, in warm and dry climates, could not go on. Even in tempe- rate regions, dews are beneficial. In Guernsey, on the coast of Norinandy, the autumnal dews are singularly heavy, so much so, that in the middle of a hot day, the dew-drops are not quite exhaled from the grass. From this moisture, the after-grass receives great benefit. Dr. Hales estimated the quantity of dew that falls in one year, at three and a half inches : Dalton at nearly five inches. In this matter, however, it is not easy to be correct. 4367. The prevailing winds have a great influence on the character of a climate, and a powerful effect on vegetation When they pass over a large expanse of water, they are usually of a warmer or higher temperature in winter, than those which blow over high lands ; more especially if such come from countries covered with snow. Hence the east and north-east winds, which have passed over the coldest regions of Europe, are much colder than the west and south-west winds, which blow over the Atlantic Ocean, and oftener occasions blights. The former are comparatively drier, unless when accompanied by those thick mists, called haars, arising from the copious evaporation of the German Ocean. The latter are loaded with the vapors of the Atlantic, and often, from excess pf moisture, are rendered prejudicial. The strength of the prevailing winds, or the Book V. CLIMATE OF FARMING LANDS. 707 violence with which they act, more especially during harvest, ought likewise to be con- sidered. If they are very violent, they are apt to affect the crops, and of course it be- comes an object to suit the produce to thera ; and to form fences, enclosures, and plan- tations accordingly. 4368. A maritime position occasions a more equal temperature in a climate. Where a great body of land is exposed to the heating rays of the sun, the air becomes much warmer than it would if resting upon a small body of land, contiguous to, or surrounded by the ocean. On the otlier hand, as the sea always preserves nearly the same tempera- ture, and, except in the most northern regions, is never frozen, it communicates warmth, in the cold seasons of the year, to the air passing over it, which had been cooled in its passage over continents covered with ice and snow. Hence islands are more temperate than continents. It appears indeed, that the thermometer has not so great a range on the sea coast, as in the more inland parts of Great Britain, even at an elevation of 400 feet above the level of the sea. Of the influence of proximity to the sea, many proofs might be brought forward. It is in consequence of this circumstance, that the city, of Moscow, which is situated somewhat farther south than Edinburgh, experiences winters much more severe. Another effect of a maritime position is, that strong winds which blow from the sea, are sometimes accompanied by salt spray, or vapor, which is inju- rious to crops of grain, and the leaves of trees. But when it comes in moderation, those saline particles, with which the westerly winds are loaded, contribute to the verdure of the fields in pasture. 4369. The nature of the inland position is also of much importance. The relative po- sition of the neighboring hills, occasioning a material difference of climate, exposing some districts to great severity of weather, and by protecting others from that disadvantage, greatly promoting their fertility. 4370. In many countries the seasons are regular. In others, as in Great Britain, they are extremely variable, and often change, in the space of a few hours, from dry to moist, from hot to cold, from clear to cloudy, and from a pleasant serenity to all the violence of a tempest. But such irregularities of climate, however uncomfortable, are often favo- rable to vegetation, and compensated by the advantages they produce. It is not in countries where the seasons of heat and cold, wind and rain, are periodical, or where the greatest regularity of clinlate takes place, that mankind are the most healthy or vigo- rous, or the useful productions of the soil most perfect. Perhaps a sameness of climate, as well as of other things, is prejudicial rather than useful. Where a climate is incon- stant, the air is refined and purified by the frequent changes it undergoes ; and the dis- advantages which originate from that source, are often counteracted, or at least essentially mitigated, by judicious management, and persevering exertions. 437 1 . The climate of a country is likewise affected by atmospherical and natural phe- nomena ; by earthquakes ; volcanos ; violent thunder storms ; lightning ; hail storms in summer; early frosts ; whirlwinds and hurricanes; water-spouts; and by that atmos- pheric appearance, known under the name of the aurora borealis, so frequently to be seen in northern, and sqmetiines, even in southern regions ; but these phenomena, for the most part only occasional, sometimes prevent greater calamities, and in this country are rarely attended with permanent evils. 4372. Early frosts are higlily injurious to the blossoms of fruit trees ; and autumnal frosts creep along the banks of rivers, destroying the corn in the flowering season, and blasting the stems of potatoes in low situations. Winter frosts are ultimately ratlier favorable to vegetation ; and snow, particularly when it covers the ground for some time, and gradually melts away. 4373. The size, and, in many cases, the value of the productions of a country, depend upon its climate, by whose influence their growth may either be advanced or retarded. The same species of tree, which, in a temperate climate, will rise to a great height, and swell to an immense size, in an exposed situation will remain small and stunted. By a favorable climate also, the most barren spots, which in a cold country must remain com- pletely waste, in a warm one may be rendered productive. Thus, where the climate is adapted to the culture of the vine; rocks, which in Great Britain, and in colder countries, would in general be of little or no worth, in the southern provinces of France may yield as much in valuable produce, as the cultivated land in their neighborhood. The real excellence of a climate, however, depends on its yielding, in perfection and abundance, the necessaries of life, or those which constitute the principal articles of food for man, and for the domestic animals kept for his use. In this point of view, a meadow is much more productive, and in some respects more valuable than either a vineyard or a grove of oranges ; though the one may be situated in a cold and variable climate, and the other in a country celebrated both for its regularity and warmth of temperature. 4374. Even the nature of the articles raised, depends upon the climate. Thus, in many elevated parts, both of England and Scotland, wheat cannot be grown to advantage, Zz 2 708 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. and in some of the high-lying districts of the latter, it has never been attempted. In several of the northern counties, it has been found necessary to sow, instead of the two- rowed barley, the inferior sort called bear, or big ; and oats, from the hardy quality of the grain, are found to be a more certain and more profitable species of corn, than any other; while in humid districts, peas or beans cannot be safely cultivated, from the period- ical wetness of the autumn. On the whole, without great attention to the nature of the climate, no profitable system can be laid down by any occupier of land. ■4375. An iriferior climate greatly augments the expenses of cultivation, because a num- ber of horses are required for labor, during the short period of the year, when the weather will admit of it, which, at other seasons, are a useless burden upon the farm. When to this are joined an uneven surface, and an inferior quality of soil, arable land is of little value, and yields but a trifling rent. 4376. Exotic plants or animals can only be naturalized in climates with success by paying attention to that whence they were brought, and by endeavoring, either to render the one as similar to the other as circumstances will admit of, or to counteract, by judi- cious management, the deficiencies of the new one. 4377. In order to ascertain the nature of a climate, the farmer, in modern times, has many advantages which his predecessors wished for in vain. The progress of science has given rise to many new instruments, which ascertain natural phenomena with a consi- derable degree of accuracy, instead of conjectures, or systems being founded on loose or general experience. It may still be proper to study the appearance of the heavens, and not to despise old proverbs, which often contain much local truth ; but the vane now points out the quarters whence the winds blow, with all their variations ; the barometer, often enables us to foretel the state of the weather that may be expected ; the thermometer ascertains the degree of heat; the hygrometer, the degree of moisture ; and the pluvio- meter, or rain-gauge, the quantity of rain that has fallen during any given period ; and by keeping exact registers of all these particulars, much useful information may be de- rived. Thei nfluence of different degrees of temperature and humidity, occurring at different times, may likewise be observed, by comparing the leafing, flowering, and after- progress of the most common sorts of trees and plants, in different seasons, with the period when the several crops of grain are sown and reaped each year. Sect. II. Of Soil in respect to farming Lands. 4378. The necessity of paying attention to the nature and quality of the soil, need not be dwelt upon. By ascertaining the qualities it possesses, or by removing its defects, the profits of a farmer may be greatly increased. He must, in general, regulate his measures accordingly, in regard to the rent he is to offer ; the capital he is to lay out ; the stock he is to keep ; the crops he is to raise ; and the improvements he is to execute. Indeed, such is the importance of the soil, and the necessity of adapting his system to its peculiar properties, that no general system of cultivation can be laid down, unless all the circumstances regarding the nature and situation of the soil and subsoil be known ; and such is the force of habit, that it rarely happens, if a farmer has been long ac- customed to one species of soil, he will be equally successful in the management of another. From the attention to the nature of soils, many foolish, fruitless, and ex- pensive attempts have been made to introduce different kinds of plants, not at all suited to them ; and manures have often been improperly applied. This ignorance has likewise prevented many from employing the means of improvement, though the expense was trifling, and within their reach. From ignorance also of the means calculated for the proper cultivation of the different soils, many unsuccessful and pernicious practices have been adopted. Soils may be considered under the following general heads : Sandy ; gravelly ; clayey ; stoney ; chalky ; peaty ; alluvial ; and loamy, or that species of arti- ficial soil, into which the others are generally brought, by the effects of manure, and of earthy applications, in the course of long cultivation. 4379. Though sandy soils are not naturally valuable, yet being easily cultivated, and well calculated for sheep, that most profitable species of stock, they are often farmed with con- siderable advantage ; and when of a good quality, and under a regular course of husbandry, they are invaluable. They are easily worked, and at all seasons ; they are cultivated at a moderate expense ; are not sp liable to injury from the vicissitudes of the weather ; and in general they are deep and retentive of moisture, which secures excellent crops even in the driest summers. The crops raised on sandy soils are numerous, such as common turnips, potatoes, carrots, barley, rye, buck-wheat, pease, clover, saintfoin, and other grasses. This species of soil, in general, has not strength enough for the pro- duction of Swedish turnips, beans, wheat, oats, flax, or hemp, in any degree of perfection, without much improvement in its texture, the addition of great quantities of enriching manure, and the most skilful management. In Norfolk and Suffolk, it is found that poor sandy soils, unfit for any other purpose, under saintfoin, will produce, after the first year, about two tons per acre, of excellent hay, for several years, with an after-grass, Book V. SOIL OF FARMING LANDS. 709 • extremely valuable for weaning and keeping lambs. How much more beneficial, than any crops of grain that such soils usually yield ! (Young's Kalend. 123.) 4380. The fertility of sandy soils, is in proportion to the quantity of rain that falls, com- bined with the frequency of its recurrence. As a proof of this, in the rainy climate of Turin, the most prolific soil has from seventy-seven to eighty per cent, of siliceous earth, and from nine to fourteen of calcareous ; whereas in the neighborhood of Paris, where there is much less rain, the silex is only in the proportion of fVom twenty-six to fifty per cent, in the most fertile parts. 4381. Gravelly soils differ materially from sandy, both in their texture and modes of management. They are frequently composed of small soft stones, sometimes of flinty ones ; but they often contain granite, limestone, and other rocky substances, partially, but not very minutely decomposed. Gravel, being more porous than even sand, is generally a poor, and what is called, a hungry soil, more especially when the parts of which it consists, are hard in substance, and rounded in form. Gravelly soils are easily- exhausted, for the animal and vegetable matters they contain, not being thoroughly in- corporated with the earthy constituent parts of the soil, (which are seldom sufficiently- abundant for that purpose,) are more liable to be decomposed by the action of the atmos- phere, and carried off by water. 4382. A gravelly soil, free from stagnant water, gives such an additional warmth to the climate, that vegetation is nearly a fortnight earlier, than where other soils predomi- nate. About Dartford and Blackheath, in Kent, such soils produce early green pease, winter tares, rye, autumnal pease, and occasionally wheat, in great perfection. 4383. Gravelly soils, in a wet climate, answer well for potatoes ; in Cornwall, in a sheltered situation, with a command of sea-sand, and of sea- weed, they raise two crops of potatoes in the same year. 4384. Poor gravelly soils, full of springs, and those sulphureous, are very unfriendly to vegetation ; and are better calculated for wood than for arable culture. 4385. The stoney, shaley, or stone-brash soils of Gloucestershire, and the midland counties of England, are much mixed with small stones, but have more frequently sand, or clay, or calcareous loam, in their composition, than gravelly soils, and are therefore generally preferable. 4386. A clayey soil is often of so adhesive a nature, that it will hold water like a dish. In a dry summer, the plough turns it up in great clods, scarcely to be broken or separated by the heaviest roller. It requires, therefore, much labor to put it in a state fit for pro- ducing either corn or grass, and it can only be cultivated, when in a particular state, and in favorable weather. Though it will yield therefore, under a proper system of manage- ment, great crops, yet being cultivated at a heavy expense, requiring stronger instruments, and stouter horses, it is seldom that much profit is obtained, unless when occupied by a judicious and attentive farmer. The best management of clay soils, is that of the Lo- thians. There they are found well calculated for growing crops of beans, wheat, oats, clover, and winter tares j but are not adapted for barley, unless immediately after a fal- low ; nor for potatoes, unless under very peculiar management. In regard to turnips, they do Hot usually thrive so well in clays, as in soils which are more free and open. But it is now ascertained, that the Swedish, and above all, the yellow turnip, may be raised in them with advantage ; that the quality is superior ; that if they are taken up early, the soil is not injured ; and that there is no difficulty in preserving them. Clays become good meadow-lands, and answer well for hay, or soiling, when in grass ; but from their aptitude to be poached, they are, iii general, unfit to be fed by heavy cattle in wet weather. In dry seasons the after-grass may be used to feed neat cattle till October, and sheep till March. A stiff clay, when not cold or wet, with a strong marl under it, is preferred in Cheshire and Derbyshire, for the dairy. 4387. On reclaimed peat-bogs, oats, rye, beans, potatoes, turnips, carrots* cole-seed, white and red clover, may be cultivated. Wheat and barley have succeeded on such lands, after they have been supplied with abundance of calcareous earth; and the fiorin grass (Jgrostis stolonifera), seems likewise to be well adapted to that description of soil in a warm climate. In Leicestershire, and other counties, they have great tracts of meadow land, which, in many instances, are the sites of lakes filled up, the soil of which is composed of peat and sediment; the former originally formed by aquatic Vegeta- tion, and the latter brought down by rains and streams from the upland. This forms a soil admirably calculated for grass. 4388. The fens in Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and several other districts ill Eng- land, consist of peat and sediment. 4389. Chalky soils principally consist of calcareous matter, m.ixed with various dther substances, in greater or lesser proportions. Where clayey or earthy substances are to be found in such soils in considerable quantities, the composition is heavy and productive ; >vhere sand or gravel abounds, it is light, and rather unfertile; The ei-Ops chiefly CtJlii- 710 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. vated on chalky soils, are pease, turnips, barley, clover, and wheat ; and however much the soil is exhausted, it will produce sainttbin. 4390. Chalky soils are in general Jitter for tillage than for grazing; for without the plough, the peculiar advantages derived from this soil by saintfoin, could not be obtained. The plough, however, ought not to extend to those fine chalky downs, (called ewe leases in Dorsetshire), which, by a very attentive management during a number of years, have been brought to a considerable degree of fertility as grazing land, and which are so use- ful to sheep in the winter season. A chalky soil that has been in tillage, permits water to pass through it so freely in winter, and is so pervious to the sun's rays in summer, that it is the work of an age to make it a good pasture of natural grasses, more especially when the chalk lies near the surface. Hence, in the western counties of England, several thousands of acres of this soil, though not ploughed for thirty years, have scarcely any grass of tolerable quality upon them, and are literally worth nothing. Such soils ought lo be laid down with saintfoin. 4391. Alluvial soils are of two sorts; one derived from the sediment of fresh, and the other of salt water. Along the sides of rivers, and other considerable streams, water- formed soils are to be met with, consisting of the decomposed matter of decayed veget- ables, with the sediment of streams. They are in general deep and fertile, and not apt to be injured by rain, as they usually lie on a bed of open gravel. They are commonly em- ployed as meadows, from the hazard of crops of grain being injured, or carried otF by floods, if cultivated. 4392. Alluvial soils, arising from the operations of salt water, called salt marshes in England, carses in Scotland, and polders in Holland and Flanders, are composed of the finest parts of natural clay, washed off by running water, and deposited on flat ground, on the shores of estuaries, where they are formed by the reflux of the tide, and enriched with marine productions. They generally have a rich, level surface, and being deep in the staple, they are well adapted for the culture of the most valuable crops. Hence wheat, barley, oats, and clover, are all of them productive on this species of soil ; which is like- wise peculiarly well calculated for beans, as the tap-root pushes vigorously through it, and finds its nourishment at a great depth. From the great mass of excellent soil, the fertility of these tracts is nearly inexhaustible ; but from their low and damp situations, they are not easily managed. Lime, in considerable quantities, is found to answer well upon this species of soil. 4393. The term loamy soil is applied to such as are moderately cohesive, less tenacious than clay, and more so than sand. Loams are the most desirable of all soils to occupy. They are friable; can in general be cultivated at almost any season of the year; are ploughed with greater facility, and less strength than clay ; bear better the vicissitudes of the seasons ; and seldom require any change in the rotation adopted. Above all, they are peculiarly well adapted for the convertible husbandry; for they can be changed, not only without injury, but generally with benefit, from grass to tillage, and from tillage to 4394. As to the comparative value of soil, it has been justly remarked, that too much can hardly be paid for a good soil, and that even a low rent will not make a poor one pro- fitable. The labor of cultivating a rich and a poor soil, is nearly the same; while the latter requires more manure, and consequently is more expensive. Poor soils, at the same time, may have such a command of lasting manures, as lime or marl, or even of tempo- rary sorts, like sea-weed, or the refuse of fish, as may render them profitable to cultivate. It is a wise maxim in husbandry, that the soil, like the cattle by whom it is cultivated, should always be kept up in good condition, and never suffered to fall below the work it may be expected to perform. Sect. III. Of Subsoil relatively to the Choice of a Farm. 4395. On the nature of the understratum depends much of the value of the surface soil. On various accounts its properties merit particular attention. By examining the subsoil, information may be obtained in regard to the soil itself ; for the materials of the latter are often similar to those which enter largely into the composition of the former, though the substances in the soil are necessarily altered, by various mixtures, in the course of cultiva- tion. The subsoil may be of use to the soil, by supplying its deficiencies, and correcting its defects. The hazard and expense of cultivating the surface are often considerably augmented by defects in the under- stratum, but which, in some cases, may be remedied. Disorders in the roots of plants are generally owing to a wet or noxious subsoil. Subsoils are retentive, or porous, 4396. Retentive subsoils consist of clay, or marl, or of stone beds of various kinds. A retentive, clayey subsoil is in general found to be highly injurious* The surface soil is soaked with water, is ploughed with diflficulty, and is usually in a bad con^^ dition for the exertion of its vegetative powers, until the cold sluggish moisture of Book V. ELEVATION OF FARMING LANDS. 711 the winter be exhaled. By the water being retained in the upper soil, the putre- factive process is interrupted, and manures are restrained from operating, conse- quently the plants make but little progress. Hence, its grain is of inferior quality, and when in grass, its herbage is coarse. 4397. A stoney subsoil, when in a position approaching to the horizontal, is in general prejudicial, and if the surface-soil be thin usually occasions barrenness, unless the rock should be limestone, and then the soil, though thin, can easily be converted into healthy pastures, and, in favorable seasons, will feed a heavy stock. They will also produce good crops of corn, though subject to the wire-worm. 4398. A porous subsoil is uniformly attended with this advantage, that by its means all superfluous moisture may be absorbed. Below clay, and all the variety of loams, an open subsoil is particularly desirable. It is favorable to all the operations of hus- bandry ; it tends to correct the imperfections of too great a degree of absorbent power in the soil above ; it promotes the beneficial effects of manures ; it contributes to the preservation and growth of the seeds ; and ensures the future prosperity of the plants. Hence it is, that a thinner soil, with a favorable subsoil, will produce better crops than a more fertile one, incumbent on wet clay, or pn cold and non-absorbent rock. Lands whose substratum consists of clean gravel or sand, can bear little sun, owing to their not having the capacity of retaining moisture, and their generally possessing only a shallow surface of vegetable mould. In England this soil was formerly called rye-landt being more generally cropped with that species of grain than any other. When such soils are cultivated for barley , they should be early and thick, with seed soaked forty- eight hours in water, or in the exudation from a dung-heap. Thus its simultaneous germination, and ripening at the same time, may be secured. Sect. IV. Of the Elevation of Lands relatively to Farming. 4399. The elevation of lands above the level of the sea has a material influence on the kind and quality of their produce. Land in the same parallel of latitude, other circum- stances being nearly similar, is always more valuable in proportion to the comparative lowness of its situation. 4400. In the higher districts the herbage is less succulent and nourishing, and the re- production slower when the land is in grass ; while the grain is less plump, runs more to straw, is less perfectly ripened, and the harvest is also later when the produce is corn. It has been calculated that in Great Britain sixty yards of elevation in the land are equal to a degree of latitude; or, in other words, that sixty yards perpendicularly higher, are, in respect of climate, equal to a degree more to the north. In considering the crops to be raised in any particular farm, attention ought therefore to be paid to its height above the level of the sea, as well as to its latitude. In latitude 54° and 55°, an elevation of 500 feet above that level is the greatest height at which wheat cart be cul- tivated witli any probable chance of profit ; and even there the grain will prove very light, and will often be a month later in ripening than if sown at the foot of the hills. 4401. The usual maximum of elevation may be reckoned between 600 and 800 feet for the more common sorts of grain ; and in backward seasons the produce will be of small value, and sometimes will yield nothing but straw. It is proper, at the same time, to remark, that in the second class of mountains in the county of Wicklow, in Ire- land, where no other grain is considered to be a safe crop, rye is cultivated with success. Where the soil is calcareous, however, as on the Gloucestershire and Yorkshire wolds, from the superior warmth of that species of soil, compared to cold clays or peat, barley grows in great perfection at an elevation of 800 feet above the level of the sea. Some experiments have been made to raise corn crops, at even a higher elevation, on the cele- brated mountain Skiddaw, in Cumberland, but unsuccessfully. 4402. The greatest height at which corn ivill grow, in the more remote parts of Scot- land, so as to yield any profit to the husbandman, is stated to be at 500 feet above the level of the sea. At the same time corn has been produced, in other districts of that country, at still higher elevations, in particular at the following places : — Feet above the Level Feet above ike £9vef qfllte Sea. qfthe Sea. Parishof Hume, in Roxburghshire - 600 Doubruch, in Braemar, Aberdeenshire 1294' Upper Ward of Lanarkshire - - 760 Lead-hills, in Lanarkshire ^ . - 1S64 4403. These and other instances of land being cultivated on high elevations, however, are merely small spots, richly manured, and, after all, producing nothing but crops of inferior barley and oats, and seldom fully ripe or successfully harvested. It is only where the soil is sandy or gravelly, that corn will at all answer in Scotland on such elevated situ- ations ; and even then, only when the seasons are propitious, and when there are local advantages, favorable to warmth and shelter, in the situation of the landis. Zz 4 7J2 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Sect. V. Character of Surface in regard to farming Lands. 4404. A hiUy irregular surface, whether at a high or low elevation above the sea, is unfavorable to farming. The labor of ploughing, driving home produce, and driving out manure, are greatly increased, while the soil on the summit of steep hills, mounts, or declivities, is unavoidably deteriorated. On the sides of slopes the finer parts of the clay and mould are washed away, while the sand and gravel remain. Hence the soil in such districts often wants a proper degree of tenacity for supporting corn crops. A great part of the manure that is applied in such situations, is likewise soon lost. From various causes also they are colder than the plains. 4405. Many extensive countries have no perceptible rise. These have their advantages from uniformity of soil, where it is rich. In other districts, the surface is of a waving description, an inequality which contributes much to the ornament of the country, by the agreeable relief which the eye constantly meets with in the change of objects ; while the universal declivity which prevails more or less in every field is favorable to the cul- ture of the land, by allowing a ready descent to any water with which the surface may be encumbered. Sect. VI. Of Aspect in respect to farming Lands. 4406. Aspect, in hilly or mountainous districts, is an important subject of attention to the farmer ; more especially where the climate is unfavorable. It is proved in a variety of instances, both in the central highlands of Scotland, and in other parts of the king- dom, that where the aspect of a hill is towards the north, the soil is more fertile than when it lies with a southern exposure. This is attributed to the variations from frost to thaw in the spring months, which are greater in a southern than a northern aspect. Hence, while the soil to the north remains locked fast, and secured from waste, the other is loosened by the sun, and carried oflT by showers falling in the intervals of thaw. 4407. Soils which face the south are more liable to have their substance carried away by heavy rains, which are generally impelled from the south and south-west. But though the soil to the north often produces the heaviest crops of grass and hay, yet from possess- ing a more genial climate, and from the earlier and more powerful action of the sun, both corn and grass are harvested earlier on land which has a southern, than on that which has a northern aspect ; and superiority of quality thus compensates for any infe- riority in the quantity of the produce. Sect. VII. Of the Situation of Farm Lands in regard to Markets. 4408. No farming can go on without markets. The system of farming to be adopted on any particular farm, and the expense attending it, must materially depend on its situ- ation, in regard to markets ; to the facility with which its produce can be conveyed, where a contiguous market is wanting ; to vicinity to manure, to fuel, and to water. 4409. The advantages resulting from a vicinity to a market, or to a large town, by which that is insured, are very great. Some crops, as those of potatoes, turnips, and clover, are frequently sold on the ground, without any further trouble or expense to the farmer ; and great quantities of manure may be purchased at a moderate expense. In such situations also there is a ready sale for every article the farm can produce ; and the articles sold are not only brought to market at a small expense, but the payment is im- mediate. For all these reasons, it is contended, and apparently with justice, that the neighborhood of a capital is the most profitable spot to farm in, notwithstanding the high rent of land, and the great expense of labor. 4410. Where markets are not at hand, the farmer ought to take into consideration what articles will best suit those at a distance to which his produce must be sent. In such a situation, unless there are facilities for the conveyance of so bulky an article as corn by good roads, or by water-carriage, it is advisable, instead of cultivating grain, to attend either to the dairy husbandry, or to the breeding of stock which can be fattened in other districts where good markets are more numerous. This plan, by which the dairy, the breeding, and the fattening of stock, are made distinct professions, is highly bene- ficial to the country at large. Stock can be reared cheaper in remote districts than where land is dear and labor high. On the other hand, the purchaser of lean stock avoids the expense and risk of breeding great numbers of animals. His attention is not distracted by a multiplicity of objects ; he can alter his system from cattle to sheep, or from sheep to cattle, as is likely to be most profitable ; his business is sim- plified, and the capital he lays out is speedily returned. The division of professions between breeding and feeding (though they may be united in circumstances peculiarly favorable), is on the whole a most important link in the progress of agricultural pros- perity. Book V. EXTENT OF FARMING LANDS^. 713 4411. In regard to facility of conveyance, the state of public roads» bridges, iron rail- ways, canals, rivers rendered navigable, and harbors, deserves the consideration of the farmer, and will most materially influence the value of produce. 4412. The situation of the farm in regard to manures, for an easy access to lime, chalk, marl, sea-weed, &c. is of essential advantage to cultivation. The price at which these articles can be purchased, their quality, their distance, and expense of conveyance^ are likewise of importance. Farms, for example, possessing the advantage of sea- weed contiguous, and in abundance, can pay from fifteen to twenty per cent, more rent per acre than otherwise could be aflTorded. 4413. Vicinity to fuel in the cold and moist regions of Europe, are important consi- derations to the farmer. In the same county, even in England, the difference of ex- pense is often material. In the Hebrides, from the moistness of the climate, the expense of fuel is reckoned equal to a third part of the rent of the land ; and farmers who pay, in some cases, 150/. per annum, would give 200/. if the landlord would supply them and their servants with fuel, 4414. Where a farmer is under the necessity of using peat, from the labor attending the cutting, spreading, drying, and conveying it ffom a distance, several weeks of his horses and servants are devoted to that sole purpose; and much valuable time is lost, which ought to have been employed in the cultivation of his farm. It has been well remarked, that many farmers, to save five guineas on coal, often expend twenty, in thus misapply- ing the labor of their horses. 441 5. fVhere wood is used, it occupies a great deal of ground, that might often be cul- tivated to advantage : and it is not of a lasting quality. Coal is preferable, for general purposes, to every other species of fuel ; and besides its domestic application, its superi- ority for burning lime, that important source of fertility, or calcareous clay, also of much value to the farmer, is an object of great moment. The tenant, therefore, who resides in the neighborhood of coal, more especially if limestone or calcareous substances are at jio great distance, farms at less expense, can afford to pay a higher rent, and may derive more profit from the land he cultivates, than if in these respects he were differently circumstanced. Sect. VIII. Of the Extent of Land suitable for a Farm. 44 1 6. The extent of ground which a farmer proposes to occupy, demands due consideration. If it be beyond his capital to cultivate or improve, he can derive no profit by taking it. On the other hand, a small occupation may not be worthy of his attention. 4417. Farms as to size may be divided into three sorts: small farms under 100 acres; moderate-sized farms, from 100 to 200 acres ; large farms, from 200 to 1000 acres, and upwards, of land fit for cultivation. The expense of labor is now so great, and the rent of land so high, that the profits of a small farm are not suflBcient, with the utmost frugality, or even parsimony, to maintain a family with comfort. 4418. Moderate-sized farms are well calculated for the dairy system, for the neigh- borhood of large towns, and where capital is not abundant. Tliere are few trades, in which a small capital can be employed to a greater advantage than in a dairy farm, yet there is no branch of agriculture where such constant and unremitting attention is required. That is not to be expected from hired servants ; but it is in the power of the wives and daughters of the farmer to perform, or at any rate to superintend, the whole concern^ without whose aid it cannot be rendered productive. 4419. iWbdera^e -sizerfyar?Hs are general in the neighborhood of towns. This neces- sarily results from the high rents paid in such situations ; the shortness of the leases usually granted of land near towns ; and the necessity the farmer is under, of selling, in small quantities, the articles produced on his farm. On this subject it has been remarked, that farmers in the vicinity of large towns resemble retail shopkeepers, whose attention must be directed to small objects, by which a great deal of money is got, the greater part of which would be lost, without the most unremitting attention. The farmer at a distance from markets, who cultivates on a great scale, may be compared, on the other hand, to a wholesale trader, who, as his profits are less, requires a greater extent of land, for the purpose both of engaging his attention, and of enabling him to support that station of life in which he is placed. There is this difference also between farmers in the neighborhood of towns, and those who reside at a distance from them, that the former find it more profitable to sell their produce, even such bulky articles as turnips, potatoes, clover, hay, and straw, than to fatten cattle for the butcher; and they are enabled to do so, without injury to their farms, as they can procure dung in return. 4420. Farms of the largest size differ in respect to the capital required. A mountain breeding farm of 5000 acres will not require more to stock it than an arable farm of 500 acres, and much less expense of labor to carry it on. In all cases the safe side for the farmer to lean to, is to prefer a farm rather under than exceeding his capital : and Jet him consider well beforehand whether he is going to comraenee a retail farmer for 714 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. daily markets, or a manufacturer of produce on a large and ample scale ; for the spirit, attention, and style of living of the one differs materially from that of the other. Sect. IX. Of the Tenure on which Lands are held for Farming. 4421 . Per])etual tenures, or absolute property in land, can never come into consideration with a farmer looking out for a farm. A proprietor cultivating his own property cannot, in correct language, be said to be a farmer, for to constitute the latter an essential requisite is the payment of rent. 4422. The leases on which lands are let for farming, are for various terms and with very different covenants. The shortest lease is from year to year, which unless in the case of grass lands in the highest order, and of the richest quality, or in some other very peculiar circumstances, no prudent man, whose object was to make the most of his skill and capital, would accept of. Even leases for seven or ten years are too short for general purposes ; fourteen or fifteen years seems to be the shortest period for arable lands so as to admit of the tenant paying a full rent ; but fourteen years, when the lands to be entered on are in bad condition, is too short a period, and twenty-one years much better for the true interest of both parties. In farming, however, as in every other occupation where there is more skill and capital in want of employment than can find subjects to work on, farms will be taken under circumstances, both in regard to leases and rent, that are highly unfavorable to the farmer ; and if they do not end in his ruin will keep him always poor, and probably not only pay less interest for his capital than any other way in which he could have employed it, but also infringe on its amount. Tiie rapid depreciation of currency which took place in Britain during the wars against the French deceived many farmers, and flattered them for a time with the gradual rise of markets year after year. However high land might be taken at the commencement of a lease, it was always considered a consolation that it would be a bargain by the time it was half done ; and that the farmer's fortune would be made during the last few years of its endurance. When the currency of Britain was permitted to find its level with that of other countries, the delusion ceased, and the majority of farmers partially or wholly ruined. 4423. In regard to the covenants of a lease, it is necessary that there should be such in every one as shall protect both landlord and tenant. Certain general covenants in regard to repairs, renewals if necessary, timber, minerals, entry and exit crops, are common to all leases. Regulations as to manure are required where hay and straw, and other crops, are sold not to be consumed on the farm. Water meadows, rich old grass lands, copse woods, hop grounds, orchards &c., require special covenants. Fewest covenants are required for a mountain breeding farm ; and in all cases there should be a clause entitling the tenant to an appeal, &c. and a hearing from the landlord, and perhaps a jury of landlords or agents and farmers, against covenants as to cropping, repair, or renewals, which may, from extraordinary circumstances, press particularly heavy on the tenant. 4424. The power of the landlord to grant a lease, with liberal conditions, may in some cases be required to be ascertained by the tenant ; and in Scotland, where it is illegal to sublet a farm unless a clause to that effect has been asserted in the original lease, a farmer may cease to be the master of his own property, unless he has taken care to see that clause inserted. In England, as in every country where the laws are founded in equity, subletting a farm is no more proliibited than subletting a dwelling-house or a shop. Sect. X. Of Rent. 4425. The rent of land, in a general point of view, must always depend on a variety of circumstances ; as the wealth of the country ; its population ; the price of produce ; the amount of public and other burdens ; the distance from markets ; the means of conveyance ; the competition among farmers ; and other less important considerations ; but the rent of any particular farm must be regulated by the nature of the soil ; the duration of the tenure, and the covenants contained in the lease ; the capital to be invested by the farmer in its culture ; and the expenses to which he is liable. 4426. The rent of poor land cannot possibly be the same as in the case of fertile lands. The labor of ploughing, harrowing, sowing, &c. when the land is in cultivation, is nearly the same, and yet the produce is greatly inferior, not only in quantity, but in quality. Indeed, where the produce is inconsiderable, or the quality much inferior, the whole, or nearly the whole, may be swallowed up by the expense of labor, and no rent whatever can be afforded, more especially in adverse seasons. 4427. The duration of the tenure must have a considerable effect in fixing the rent. No farmer can afford to pay the same sum for land on a short, as if he held it on a long lease. The covenants, also, which are in fact a species of rent, must influence the money payments. 4428. Rent must also depend oA the capital invested in the cultivation of the farm. Book V. RENT OF FARMING LANDS. 715 Thus, if a farmer can lay out only 41. of capital per acre, he may not be able to afford for it a higher rent than 1 Os. per acre ; if he lays out 71. he may pay 1 45. ; and with a capital of 10/. per acre, he may be enabled to pay 18s. or 205. of rent. 4429, The proportion of produce which should be paid as retit, is a question that has long been considered as abstruse, mysterious, and very difficult to resolve. Some have supposed, that one-fifth was a reasonable proportion, while others contend for a fourth, or even a third part of the produce of arable land. But all former calculations on this subject are rendered fallacious by the effects of modern improvements. The rent ought certainly to depend upon the amount of the disposable produce ; and that produce in grain is greatly augmented, both by a diminution of the coiisumption on the farm, effected by improved implements, and a more correct arrangement of labor, and like- wise a better cultivation of the land in tillage. Hence, while the price of wlveat has greatly advanced during the last twenty years, above the average price of the preceding twenty, the rent of land has not only risen, but in a higher proportion. More grain,, and that of a better quality, has been produced on the same extent of land, and a greater amount of disposable surplus has gone to market. Out of this surplus disposable pro- duce, it is evident, that the rent must be paid.. But it is difficult to divide its amount between the landlord and tenant, as so much depends upon the seasons^ and on the prices of the different articles which the farm produces. In bad seasons also, every deficiency of produce, in the acres set apart for supporting home population, must be made up from the disposable surplus ; nor is it possible to apply the same rules to all situations, soils, and climates, in all the various districts of aa extensive country. It may be proper, however, to give some general idea of the proportion of produce paidi as rent, in Scotland, and in England. 44.S0. In Scotland, the following table states what is considered to be a fair proportion^ where the land is cultivated : Per acre. Where land produces ]0^. 10*. per acre per annum, one-third, or - - - -£3 11 0 Where laud produces 61. 12s. per annum, one- fourth, or----- -113 0 Where land produces only 4/. 5s. per acre, one-fifth, or - - - - - -0 17 0 4431. In regard to grazing farms, they are let on principles totally different from the arable ; namely, according to the quantity of stock they can maintain ; and as they are not liable to the same expense of management, both the landlord and the tenant receive larger shares of the produce than in the case of arable farms. 4432. In England, the tenant is allowed, on arable land, what is considered to be one moiety of the surplus, after defraying the expenses of cultivation, the taxes to which he is liable, and every other outgoing. Hay land requires much less of his attention^ and for this he only obtains one-third of the surplus. But the profits of grazing, depending much on superior judgment in buying and selling stock, as vi^ell as skill in preventing, or curing their diseases, the grazier is entitled to a share of the surplus, fully equal to that of his landlord. It has been contended, as a general principle, that as both the expense of cultivating land, and the value of its produce, are infinitely various, a farmer ought to calculate what profit he can make on his wliole farm, without enter- ing into details ; it being of little consequence to him, whether he pays at the rate of 10/. or 10s. per acre, provided he makes an adequate interest on the capital invested. That is certainly a fair criterion on which a tenant may calculate what he ought to o.Ter ; but a landlord, in estimating the rent he ought to insist on, will necessarily take into his consideration, the produce that his land is capable of yielding, and what proportion of it, or of its value, at a fair average, he has reason to expect, under all the circum- stances of the case. 4433. What the j^rqfits are to tohich a farmer is entitled, is a subject of much dispute. On the one hand it is contended, that the produce of land is of such universal and absolute necessity to the existence of mankind, that it is not reasonable it should yield to him who raises it, more that a fair profit. On the other hand it is urged, that a farmer is entitled to be fully recompensed for the application of a considerable capital, exposed to the uncertainty of the seasons, when it is managed with economy, and con- ducted with industry and skill ; and it has also been observed, that it is seldom more money is got by farming, than an adequate interest for the capital invested. This is owing to competition, the articles produced being in numberless hands, who must bring them to market ; and necessity, the goods of the farmer being in general of a perish- able nature, on the sale of which he depends, for the payments he has to make, and the subsistence of his family. To prove how moderate the profits of farming in general are, it appears from the most careful inquiries, that on arable farms they rarely exceed from ten to fifteen per cent, on the capital invested, which is little enough, considering that few employments are more subject to casualties than farming, or require more uniform attention. Some arable farmers, possessed of superior skill and energy, and H-ho have got leases on reasonable terms, may clear from fifteen to twenty percent.. 716 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. while others, who are deficient in these qualities, or pay too high rents, frequently become insolvent. Certain it is, that the great majority of farmers merely contrive to live and bring up their families ; adding little or nothing to their capital, but that nominal addition which takes place in consequence of the depreciation of the currency. 4434. In grazing farms the case is different, as they are attended with less expense of labor, and produce articles of a more luxurious description, for which a higher price will be given. Hence, in such farms, fifteen per cent, and upwards, is not unusual. Be- sides, the grazier is more of a trader than the mere arable farmer; is frequently buying as well as selling stock, and sometimes makes money by judicious speculations, though occasionally, from a sudden fall of stock, his losses are considerable. The gra- zier who breeds superior stock, and thence incurs great expense, is certainly well en- titled to more than common profit for his skill and attention. 4435. In regard to the mode in which rent should be paid, it is proper to consider, whether the whole, or at least part of the rent, ought not to depend upon the price of grain, not for the season, but on an average of a certain number of years preceding that for which the rent is due. By this plan, neither the landlord nor the tenant can suffer from the fluctuating price of grain, whereas, without some such arrangement, the tenant, on the one hand, cannot make a fair offer of rent, lest the price of grain should fall too low ; nor on the other hand, can the landlord grant a lease of considerable duration, lest the price of grain should, in the progress of time, rise much higher. It seems therefore to be for the interest of both parties, that on arable farms a part of the rent should be pay- able in money and part in corn, and not in kind, but in money, according to the average value of a number of years. This plan is enforced by law to the extent of one-third in college leases, and thus an income is secured in some degree proportioned to the value of money. It is not, however, without its difficulties. The amount of rent for improv- able and well cultivated farms, does not depend so much on the price of grain as is commonly imagined. A large proportion of such farms usually produce green crops, the value of which depends upon the prices of beef, mutton, and wool, and not on that of grain. Various circumstances also may arise, which may reduce the price of particular sorts of grain below its usual level, (for example, barley, when the distilleries are stopped; ; or may raise it disproportionably much higher, in case a large proportion of the wheat crop should be destroyed by rust or mildew. But if the proposed payment, by the conversion of corn into money, be extended to the various sorts of grain usually cultivated in the district, and be restricted to one-half of the rent, it does not seem liable to any material difficulty. If the payment also depends on the average of seven or more years, the main objection to a corn rent, that the farmer is often liable to pay the most when he is the least able to do it, is removed. (See 4327.) 4436. The periods of jjai/ment ought to be made so convenient to the tenant, that he may not be under the necessity of selling the produce of his farm to disadvantage, for the sake of ready money (4340.), nor should he be compelled to pay his rent out of his capital, for that would cripple all his future exertions. The periods should vary according to the nature of the occupation, and the time when the tenancy commenced. On the whole, the most successful farmers are those, who embark a capital sufficiently large in their undertaking ; who feel it their duty to watch over that capital with unceas- ing care, and to add to it whenever it is practicable ; and who have agreed to pay a fair, but not a speculative rent, for the lands they cultivate. Sect. XI. Of Taxes and other Burdens which affect the Farmer. 4437. Farmers are subjected to the payment of various taxes besides the rent paid to the landlord; some of them imposed for local purposes, and others for the general expenses of the state. The real amount of such burdens, every careful tenant ought accurately to know, before he bargains for his lease. They may be classed under the following heads : parochial, national, and miscellaneous. 4438. Parochial taxes are for the support of the clergyman, for the maintenance of the p6or, and in Scotland, for providing a parochial schoolmaster. The mode of sup- porting the clergy in England, by paying them a tenth part of the produce of the land in kind, is highly injurious to agriculture, and a bar to improvement. It is a great bar to improvementj because an improving farmer, one more enlightened or more spi- rited than his neighbors, would pay more tithe by means of his outlay and exertions, but it is not certain that he would likewise receive more profit. The produce would be more, but the expense Would be greater. Nothing can be more obnoxious than a law, by which, when a person expends a large sum, either in reclaiming wastes, or augment- ing the fertility of land already cultivated, he should be under the necessity of yielding up one-tenth of its produce to a person who has been liable to no share of the expense, who has run none of the risk, and who has sustained none of the labor attending the improvement. A commutation of tithe, therefore, instead of its being exacted in kind| would be one of tlie greatest benefits that could be conferred on agriculture; and there Book V. LOCALITY OF FARMING LANDS. 717 is not the least difficulty in effecting it, by giving to the tithe-owner, either a proportion of the land, or by converting the tithe into a perpetual corn rent. Both these plans have been adopted in a variety of cases, by local acts in England, and they ought nowr to be enforced as a general system. 4439. An assessment for the maintenance of the poor, is another parochial burden, which is annually increasing, and which, if not speedily regulated upon proper princi- ples, will inevitably absorb a very large proportion of rent in England. Indeed, there are instances, where between the years 1815 and 1822, it has absorbed the whole. This tax is the most dangerous of all for the farmer, on account of its fluctuation, and in- deed, it may be said that it never falls but continually rises. During infancy, in sick- ness, and in old age, assistance may be necessary; but, as Malthus justly observes, the poor-laws hold out support to the vicious and idle, at the expense of the prudent and the industrious. These payments also destroy the spirit of independence, and those ideas of honest pride which stimulate a man to use his utrnost exertions in support of himself and his family ; and on its present footing, the boon is administered by the parish officers with caution and reluctance, and received by the poor with dissatisfaction and ingratitude. 4440. In Scotland, the poor are in general mSaintained hy voluntary contributions ; but when these are not found to be sufficient, the proprietors of the parish, with the clergy- man and vestry, or kirk-session, are directed to make a list of the indigent persons in the parish, and then to impose an assessment for their relief, one half to be paid by the proprietors, and the other half by the tenantry. 4441. The national burdens in general, as the duties on houses and windows, and other assessed taxes ; or assessments for the support of militia-men's wives and families, for the conveyance of vagrants, or the prosecution of felons, fall no heavier upon the farmer, than upon other classes of the community; but there is one impost which is severely felt by the arable farmer, namely, the tax on horses employed in husbandry. The inequality of that tax is strongly objected to ; for lands, when pastured, and neces- sarily subject to the least expense, pay no part of it. The burden consequently falls ex- clusively on the lands in tillage, which, as a necessary consequence, must prevent the farmer from giving so high a rent on arable land as he would on grass land, in pro- portion to the produce. 4442. There are likewise various miscellaneous burdens affecting the farmer, as statute assessments for bridges, which are of such public utility, that moderate rates for their maintenance properly applied, cannot be objected to ; statute labor on the highways ; constable dues, which are seldom of much moment ; charges of the churchwardens, including the repairs of the church ; and in some populous parishes, there is sometimes a burial-ground tax. All these are paid by the occupiers. In some places also, there is a sewer's tax, chargeable on the landlords, where it is not otherwise settled by express contract. Adstriction to mills, however, is the severest burden where it exists, for not only is the expense of grinding double or treble what ought to be exacted, but the farmer is bound to carry his grain to be manufactured by a person, in whose skill or honesty he cannot always place any dependence. 4443. As an example of the payments made by a farmer in England, whose rent is annually 500/. the following is submitted : Tithes are compounded for at - - _ Poor's assessment is 5s. on the pound - - Church assessment - - Highway assessment . _ - House tax and window tax - - Horse tax and dog tax - - Stamped receipts for these and other payments - - The whole are very nearly 53 per cent., or -- - -£264 00 4444. T/ie vexations to which farmers in England are subjected, from various uncertain burdens, oper- ates as a premium to Scottish agriculture. It is ingeniously and justly remarked, that physical circum- stances are much more favorable to agriculture in England, than in her sister country ; but these advantages are counteracted by the accumulation of moral evils, which might be removed if the legislature were to bestow on matters connected with the internal improvement of the country, and the means for promoting it, a portion of that attention, which it so frequently gives to the amelioration or improvement of our foreign possessions. Sect. XII. Of other Particulars requiring a Farmer's Attention, with a view to renting of Land. 4445. A variety of miscellaneous particula7's require consideration, before a prudent farmer will finally resolve to undertake the cultivation of a farm ; as, the nature of the property on which the farm is situated ; in particular, whether the estate is entailed, and to what ex- tent the possessor of the estate is authorized to grant a lease ; the character of the landlord, and in case of his decease, that of his family, and of those whom they are likely to con- sult; the real condition of the farm in regard to the enclosures, drainage, buildings, &c. • the crops it has usually produced, and the manner in which it 1ms been managed for some £100 0 0 125 0 0 6 5 0 13 10 0 10 0 0 7 10 0 1 15 0 718 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. years preceding ; the general state of the district, in regard to the price of labor, and the expense of living; the character of its inhabitants, in particular of the neighboring farm- ers and laborers; and whether they are likely to promote or to discourage a spirit of im- provement ; the probability of subletting to advantage in case of not liking the situation, finding a better bargain, or of death. The chances of settling one's family; as of marrying daughters, or of sons' making good marriages. The social state of the farmers, or those that would be considered one's neighbors; the number and tone of clergy, and lawyers ; the game, and the chances of disputes concerning it ; the morals of the serving class ; schools, places of worship, &c. It is evident, that in hardly any one instance can all the circum- stances above enumerated be favorably combined. But the active and intelligent farmer will not be discouraged by the obstacles he may have to surmount ; but will strenuously endeavor, by exertion, industry, and perseverance, to overcome the difficulties he must unavoidably encounter, Chap. II. Considerations respecting Himself, which a Farmer ought to keep in view in selecting and hiring a Farm. 4446. Whoever intends to embrace farming as a profession, will be less likely to meet with disappointment, if he previously examines a little into his own disposition and talents ; and weighs his expectations against ordinary results. Nor is it less essential that he should estimate justly the extent to which his capital may be adequate, and keep regular accounts. Sect. I. Of the personal Character and Eoqyectations of a iirofessional Farmer. 4447. Every one who proposes to farm with success, Professor Thaer observes, ought to unite energy and activity, to reflection, to experience, and to all necessary knowledge. It is true, he says, farming has long been considered as an occupation fit for a young man incapable for any other, and such have sometimes succeeded; but this has always been chiefly owing to a fortunate concurrence of circumstances, which it is not now very easy to meet with. 4448. The practice of agriculture consists of an infinite number of particular opera- tions, each of which appears easy in itself; but is often for that very reason the more difficult to execute to the precise extent required ; one operation so often interferes with another. To regulate them according to the given time and strength, and in such a way that none is neglected, or causes the neglect of others, requires at once a great deal of attention and activity, without inquietude; of promptitude without precipitation; of gene- ral views, and yet with an extreme attention to details. 4449. To casualties and accidents, no business is so much exposed as farming, and therefore to enjoy an ordinary degree of happiness. Professor Thaer considers it essential that the farmer possess a certain tranquillity of mind. This, he says, may either be the result of a natural phlegmatic habit of body, or of elevated views in religion, or philosophy. These will enable him to bear with every misfortune arising from adverse seasons, or the death of live stock ; and only permit him to regret accidents which result from his own neglect. 4450. The expectations of profit and happiness which a young farmer has formed ought to be well weighed against the profits and happiness of farmers in general. However superior a farmer may consider his own talents and abilities, he may rest assured there are a number as skilful and adroit as himself, and just as likely to realize extraordinary advantages. Let none therefore engage in farming, thinking to make more money than other farmers similarly circumstanced with himself. If from a happy concurrence of circumstances he is more than usually successful, so much the better, and let him consider it as partly owing to good fortune as well as good farming ; but never let him set out on the supposition of gaining extraordinary advantages with only ordinary means. 4451. The profits of farming are much exaggerated by people in general : but it may be asserted as an unquestionable fact, that no capital atfbrds less profit than that em- ployed in farming, except that sunk in landed property. This is the natural result both of the universality of the business and of its nature. Farming is every where practised, and every one thinks he may easily become a farmer; hence high rents, which neces- sarily lessen the profits on capital. From the nature of farming the capital employed is seldom returned. A tradesman may lay out and return his capital several times a year; but a farmer can never, generally speaking, grow more than one crop per annum. Suppose he succeeds in raising the best possible crops in his given circum- BookV. capital of the farmer. 719 stances, still his profits have an absolute limit: for if an ordinary crop be as five, and the best that can be grown be as seven, all that the most fortunate concurrence of circumstances will give is not great and easily foreseen. It is hardly possible for a farmer, paying the market price for his land, to make much more than a living for himself and family. Those few who have exceeded this, will be found to have bad leases at low rents ; indulgent landlords ; to have profited by accidental rises in the market or depreciation of currency ; or to have become dealers in corn and cattle : and rarely indeed to have realized any thing considerable by mere good culture of a farm at the market price. Very different is the case of a tradesman, who, with the properties which we have mentioned as requisite for a good farmer, seldom fails of realizing an independency. 4452. Many persons, chagrined with a city life, or tired of their profession, fancy they will find profit and happiness by retiring to the country and commencing farming. In- dependently of the pecuniary losses attending such a change, none is more certain of being attended with disappointment to the generality of men. The activity required, and the privations that must be endured, are too painful to be submitted to ; whilst the dull uniformity of a farmer's life to one accustomed to the bustle of cities, becomes intolerable to such as do not find resources in their fire-sides, their own minds, or, as Professor Thaer observes, in the study of nature. 4453. The most likely persons to engage in farming with success, are the sons of farmers, or such others as have been regularly brought up to the practice, with their own hands, of every part of agriculture. TJiey must also have an inclination, as well as competent understanding of the theory or principles of the art. Books are to be found every where, from which the science of the art is to be obtained ; and there are eminent farmers in the improved districts who take apprentices as pupils. In The Husbandry of Scotland, the case is mentioned of Walker, of Mellendean, an eminent farmer in Rox- burghshire, who rents about 2866 acres of arable land, and is distinguished for his skill in agriculture, who takes young men under him as apprentices, who, instead of receiving wages, have uniformly paid him ten pounds each. Some of them remain with him two years, but the greater number only one. They eat in his kitchen, where they have always plenty of plain wholesome food. He takes none who are above living in that way, or who will not put their hand to every thing going forward on the farm. He has sometimes been offered ten times the above sum, to take in young gentlemen to eat and associate with his owji family, but that he has uniformly declined. These young men have an opportunity of attending to every operation of husbandry, as practised on Walker's farm ; and are taught to hold the plough, tor sow, to build stacks, &c. Sect. II. Of the Capital required by the Farmer. 44:54:. The importance of capital in every branch of industry is universally acknow- ledged, and in none is it more requisite than in farming. When there is any deficiency in that important particular, the farmer cannot derive an adequate profit from his exertions, as he would necessarily be frequently obliged to dispose of his crops for less than their value, to procure ready money ; and it would restrain him from making advantageous purchases, when even the most favorable opportunities occurred. An industrious, frugal, and intelligent farmer, who is punctual in his payments, and hence in good credit, will strive with many difl[iculties, and get on with less money, than a man of a different character. But if he has not sufficient live stock to work his lands in the best manner, as well as to raise a sufficient quantity of manure ; nor money to purchase the articles required for the farm, he must, under ordinary circumstances, live in a state of penury and hard labor ; and the first unfavorable season, or other incidental misfortune, will probably sink him under the weight of his accumulated burdens. Farmers are too generally disposed to engage in larger farms than they have capital to stock and cultivate. This is a great error ; for it makes many a person poor upon a large farm, who might live in comfort and acquire property, upon one of less extent. No tenant can be secure without a surplus at command, not only for defraying the common expenses of labor, but those which may happen from a'ny unexpected circumstance. When a farmer, on the other hand, farms within his capital, he is enabled to embrace every favorable opportunity of buying when prices are low, and of selling when they are high. 4455. The amount of capital required must depend upon a variety of circumstances; as whether it is necessary for the farmer to expend any sum in the erection, or in the repair of his farm-house and offices ; what sum an in-coming tenant has to pay to his predecessor, for the straw of the crop, the dung left upon the farm, and other articles of similar nature ; the condition of the farm at the commencement of the lease, and whether any sums must be laid out in drainage, enclosure, irrigation, levelling ridges, &c. ; whether i is necessary to purchase lime, or other extraneous manures, and to what extent ; on 720 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the period of entry, and the time at which the rent becomes payable, as this is sometimes exacted, before there is any return from the lands, out of the actual produce of which it ought to be paid ; and, lastly, on its being a grazing, or an arable farm, or a mixture of both, 4456. In pasture districts, the common mode of estimating the amount of capital necessary, is according to the amount of the rent ; and it is calculated, that in ordinary pastures, every farmer ought to have at his command, from three to five times the rent he has agreed to pay. But in the more fertile grazing districts, carrying stock worth from 201. to 30/. and even upwards, per acre, (as is the case in many parts of England,) five rents are evidently insufficient. When prices are high, ten rents will frequently be required, by those who breed superior stock, and enter with spirit into that new field of speculation and enterprise. 4457. The capital required by an arable farmer varies, according to circumstances, from 51. to 10/. or even 15/. per acre. An ignorant, timid, and penurious farmer lays out the least sum he can possibly contrive ; and consequently he obtains the smallest produce or profit from his farm. These, however, will always increase, when accom- panied by spirit and industry, in proportion to the capital employed, if judiciously ex- pended. At the same time, attention and economy cannot be dispensed with. It is ill-judged to purchase a horse at forty guineas, if one worth thirty can execute the labor of the farm ; or to lay out sums unnecessarily upon expensive harness, loaded with useless ornaments. Prudent farmers also, who have not a large capital at command, when they commence business, often purchase some horses still fit for labor, though past their prime, and some breeding mares, or colts ; and in five or six years, they are fully supplied with good stock, and can sometimes sell their old horses without much loss. In every case, such shifts must be resorted to, where there is any deficiency of capital. 4458. A mixture of arable and grass farming is, on the whole, the most profitable method of farming. Independently of the advantages to be derived from the alternate husbandry (which are always considerable), the chances of profit are much more numerous from a varied system, than where one object is exclusively followed. Where this mixed mode of farming is practised, the farmer will frequently rely on the purchase of lean stock, instead of breeding his own ; and derives great advantage from the quickness with which capital thus employed is returned. But, in that case, much must depend upon judicious selection. In general it may be said, that to stock a turnip- land arable farm, will require, at this time (1823), 51. or 61. and a clay-land farm from 71. or 8/. per acre, according to circumstances. 4459. This capital is necessarily divided into two parts. The one is partly expended on implements, or stock of a more or less perishable nature, and partly vested in the soil ; for this the farmer is entitled to a certain annual gain, adequate to replace, within a given number of years, the sum thus laid out. The other is employed in defraying the charges of labor, &c. as they occur throughout the year ; the whole of which, with the interest, should be replaced by the yearly produce. These two branches of expense on a farm are the first to be attended to, both in order of time, and in magnitude of amount. 4460. The most satisfactory statement hitherto given of the profit derived from the ex- penditure of an adequate capital in arable farming, is that furnished by George Rennie, Esq. of Phantassie, in East Lothian. On a mixed soil of 702 English acres, he states the profits at II. 5s. per English acre, or about 14 per cent, on the capital employed. Rennie is one of the very first practical agriculturists in Scotland, and has been so suc- cessful as to purchase the farm which he occupies. {Code, ^c. p. 70 — 73.) Chap. IIL On the Choice of Stock for a Farm. 4461. The stocking of a farm may be considered as including live stock, implements, servants, and seed. A considerable portion of a farmer's capital is employed in ma- nures, tillages, labor, &c. but a farm being once engaged, the above are the only descrip- tions of stock which admit of a choice. Sect. I. Of the Choice of Live Stock. 4462. The animals required by a farmer are of two kinds ; such as are employed to assist in labor, and such as are used to convert the produce of the farm into food, or other disposable commodities. Book V. CHOICE OF LABORING STOCK. 721 SuBSECT. 1. Live Stock for the Purj)oses of Labor. 4463. The animals of labor used in British farming are exclusively the horse and the ox. Much difference of opinion formerly prevailed, as to which of these twro animals should be preferred, and the preference has generally been given by speculative writers to the ox, and by practical farmers to the horse. Lord Kainxes in the last century, and Lord Somerville in the present, may be considered the principal advocates for the ox. To their arguments, and to all others, the following objections have been stated by the able author of the supplement to the 6th edition of The Gentleman Farmer i and they may be considered as conveying the sentiments, and according with the practice of all the best informed, and most extensive British farmers. 4464. Thefint objection to oxen is, that they are unfit for the various labors of modern husbandry,— for travelling on hard roads in particular, — f for all distant carriages, — and generally for every kind of work which requires dispatch : and what sort of work often does not in this variable climate? A great part of a farmer's work is indeed carried on at home, and it may still be thought that this may be done by oxen, while one or more horse-teams are employed in carrying the produce to market, and bringing home manure and fuel. But it is unnecessary to appeal to the author of The Wealth o/ Nations, to prove the impracticability of this division of labor, unless upon very large farms ; and even on these the advantages of such an arrangement are at best extremely problemaitical. The different kinds of farm-work do not proceed at the same time ; but every season, and even every change of weather, demands the farmer's at- tention to some particular employment, rather than toothers. When his teams are capable of performing every sort of work, he brings them all to bear for a time upon the most impqrtant labors of every season ; and when that is dispatched, or interrupted by unfavorable weather, the less urgent branches are speedily executed by the same means. This is one cause, more important perhaps than any other, why oxen have ceased to be employed ; for even ploughing, which they can perform better than any other kind of work, is scarcely ever going forward all the year j and for some months in winter, the weather often prevents it altogether. 4465. Another objection is, that an ox team capable of performing the work of two horses,' even such kind of work as they can perform, consumes the produce of considerably more land than the horses. If this be the case, it is of no great importance, either to the farmer or the community, whether the land be under oats, or under herbage and roots. The only circumstance to be attended to here, is, the carcase of the ox : the value of this, in stating the consumption ot* produce, must be added to the value of his labor, He con- sumes, from his birth, till he goes to the shambles, the produce of a certain number of acres of land; the return he makes for this is so much beef, and so'many years' labor. The consumption of produce mtist there- fore be divided between these two articles. To find the share that should be allotted to each, the first thing is to ascertain how many acres of grass and roots would produce the same weight of beef from an ox, bred and reared for beef alone, and slaughtered at three or four years' old, "What remains has been consumed in producing labor. The next thing is to compare this consumption with that of the horse, which produces nothing but labor. By this simple test, the question, viewing it upon a broad national ground, must evi- dently be determined. Everyone may easily make such a calculation suited to the circumstances of his farm ; none that could be offered would apply to every situation. But it will be found, that if even three oxen were able to do the work of two horses, the advantages in this point of view would still be on the side of the horses ; and the first objection applies with undiminished force besides. 4466. The monei/- price of the horse and ox, it is evident, is merely a temporary and incidental circum- stance, which depends upon the demand. A work ox may be got for less than half the price of a horse, be- cause there is little or no demand for working oxen, while the demand for horses by manufactures, com- merce, pleasure, and war, enhance the price of farm-horses, as well as of the food they consume. Those who wish to see horses banished from all sorts of agricultural labor, would do well to consider where they are to be reared for the numerous wants of the other classes of society. Besides, if two oxen must be kept for doing the work of one horse, it ought to be foreseen, that though beef may be more abundant than at present, there will be a corresponding deficiency in the production of mutton and wool, A greater [portion of the arable land of the country must be withdrawn from yielding the food of man directly, and kept un- der cattle crops, which, howevcer necessary to a certain extent for preserving the fertility of the soil, do not return human food, on a comparison with corn-crops, in so great a proportion as that of one to six from any given extent of land of the same quality. 4467. The demand for oxen is confined almost every where to the shambles ; and by the improvements of modern husbandry, they are brought to a state of profitable maturity at an early age. No difference in price at setting to work, — no increase of weight while working, — no saving on the value of the food consumed, can ever make it the interest of tillage farmers generally, t3 keep oxen as formerly, till they are eight or ten years old. They judiciously obtain the two products from different kinds of animals, each of them from the kind which is best fitted by nature to afford it, — the labor from the horse, and the beef alone from the ox. And though the price of the horse is almost wholly sunk at last, during the period of his labor he has been paying a part of it every year to a fund, which, before his usual term expires, becomes sufficiently large to indemnify his owner. The ox, on the other hand, is changed three or four times during the same period ; and each of them gives nearly as large a carcase for the food of man, as if his days had been unprofitably prolonged in executing labor, from which he has been gradually exempted in Britain, in France, and in other countries, very nearly in proportion to the progress of correct systems of husbandry. 4468. The description of horse which a farmer ought to choose will depend chiefly on the soil of the farm, and partly also on the quantity of road-work. Stiff lands require obviously a heavier and more powerful breed than such as are light and hilly. In the latter case, two of the best breeds are the Clevelands and Clydesdale, or some local cross with these breeds. In general, it is not advisable to procure horses from a climate mate- rially different from that where they are to remain ; and therefore, for various reasons, a prudent farmer will look out for the best in his neighborhood. Often, however, he is 3 A 730 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. obliged to take the stock of his predecessor, and this he can only get rid of or improve to his mind by degrees. The farm-horses in most parts of England are much too cum- brous and heavy, and are more fitted for drawing heavy drays or waggons in towns, than for the quick step required in the operations of agriculture. 4469. The objections of Davis of Longleat to the using of large heavy-heeled horses, in preference to the smart, the active, and the really useful breeds, merit particular attention. In some situations, the steepness of the hills and the heaviness of the soil require more than ordinary strength ; but in such cases, he maintains, that it would be better to add to the number of horses, than to increase their size. Great horses not only cost propor- tionably more at first than small ones, but require much more food, and of a better quality, to keep up their flesh. The Wiltshire carter also takes a pride in keeping them as fat as possible ; and their food (which is generally barley) is given without stint. In many instances, indeed, the expense of keeping a fine team of horses, amounts nearly to the rent of the farm on which they are worked. They are purchased young when two years old colts, and sold at five or six years of age for the London drays and waggons. The expense of their maintenance is very seldom counterbalanced by the difference of price, more especially as such horses are gently worked when young, that they may attain their full size and beauty. In ploughing light soils, the strength of a dray-horse is not wanted ; and in heavy soils, the weight of the animal does injury to the land. SuBSECT. 2. Of the Choice of Live Stock for the Purposes of breeding or feeding. 4470. The most desirable properties of live stock destined for food are considered in The Code of Agriculture, in respect to size, form, a tendency to grow, early maturity, hardiness of constitution, prolific properties, quality of flesh, a disposition to fatten, and lightness of offal. 4471. Before the improvements introduced by Bakewell, the value of an animal was entirely judged of by its bulk ; and if a great size could be obtained, more regard was paid to the price the animal ultimately fetched, than to the cost of its food. Of late, since breeders began to calculate with more precision, small or moderate-sized animals have been generally preferred, for the following reasons : — 4472. Small-sized animals are more easily kept, they thrive on shorter herbage, they collect food where a large animal could hardly exist, and thence are more profitable. Their meat is finer grained, produces richer gravy, has often a superior flavor, and is commonly more nicely marbled, or veined with fat, especially when they have been fed for two years. Large animals are not so well calculated for general consumption as the moderate-sized, particularly in hot weather ; large animals poach pastures more than small ones ; they are not so active, require more rest, collect their food with more la- bor, and will only consume the nicer and more delicate sorts of plants. Smalt cows of the true dairy breeds give proportionably more milk than large ones. Small cattle may be fattened solely on grass of even moderate quality ; whereas the large require the richest pastures, or to be stall-fed, the expense of which exhausts the profit of the farmer. It is much easier to procure well-shaped and kindly-feeding stock of a small size than of a large one. SmalUsized cattle may be kept by many persons who cannot afford either to purchase or to maintain large ones, and by whom the loss, if any accident should happen to them, can be more easily borne. The small-sized sell better; for a butcher, from a conviction that, in proportion to their respective dimensions, there is a greater superficies of valuable parts in a small than in a large animal, will give more money for two oxen of twelve stone each per quarter, than for one of twenty-four stone. 4473. In favor of the large-sized, it is, on the other hand, contended, that without debat- ing whether from their birth till they are slaughtered the large or the small one eats most for its size, yet on the whole the large one will pay the grazier or farmer who fattens him as well for its food ; that though some large oxen are coarse-grained, yet where attention is paid to the breed (as is the case with the Herefordshire), the large ox is as delicate food as the small one ; that if the small-sized are better calculated for the consumption of private families, of villages, or of small towns, yet that large cattle are fitter for the markets of great towns, and in particular of the metropvolis ; that were the flesh of the small-sized ox better when fresh, yet the meat of the large-sized is un- questionably more calculated for salting, a most essential object in a maritime and com- mercial country, for the thicker the beef the better it will retain its juices when salted, and the fitter it is for long voyages ; that the hide of the large ox is of very great conse- quence in various manufactures ; that large stock are in general distinguished by a greater quietness of disposition ; that where the pastures are good, cattle and sheep will increase in size, without any particular attention on the part of the breeder ; large animals are therefore naturally the proper stock for such pastures ; that the art of fattening cattle, and even sheep, with oil-cake, being much improved and extended, the advantage of that practice would be of less consequence, unless large oxen were bred, as small oxen Book V. CHOICE OF FATTING STOCK. 723 can be fattened with grass and turnips, as well as oil-cake ; and, lastly, that large oxen are better calculated for working than small ones, two large oxen being equal to four small ones in the plough or the cart. 4474. Such are the arguments generally made use of on both sides of the question ; from which it appears that much must depend upon pastures, taste, mode of consumption^ markets, &c. and that both sides have their advantages. The intelligent breeder, how- ever, (unless his pastures are of a nature peculiarly forcing,) will naturally prefer a moderate size in the stock he rears. Davis, of Longleat, one of the ablest agriculturists England has produced, has given some useful observations on the subject of size. He laments that the attempts which have been made to improve the breeds of cows, horses, and sheep, have proceeded too much upon the principle of enlarging the size of the animal ; whereas, in general, the only real improvement has been made in the pig, and that was by reducing its size, and introducing a kind that will live hardier, and come to greater perfection at an earlier age. 4475. Though it is extremely desirable to bring the shape of cattle to as much perfection as possible, yet profit and utility ought not to be sacrificed for mere beauty which may please the eye but will not fill the pocket, and which, depending much upon caprice, must be often changing. In regard to form, 'the most experienced breeders seem to concur in the following particulars : — That the form or shape should be compact, so that no part of the animal should be disproportioned to the other parts, and the whole distinguished by a general fulness and rotundity of shape ; that the chest should be broad, for no animal whose chest is narrow can easily be made fat ; that the carcase should be deep and straight ; that the belly should be of a moderate size; for when it is more capacious than common in young animals it shews a diseased state, and in older ones it is considered a proof that the animal will not return in flesh, in milk, or in labor, the value of the extra quantity of fruit which it consumes ; that the legs should be short, for the long-limbed individuals of the same family or race are found to be the least hardy, and the most difficult to rear or to fatten ; and that the head, the bones, and other parts of inferior value, should be as small as is consistent with strength, and with the other properties which the animal ought to possess. In animals bred for the shambles, the form must likewise be such as to contain the greatest possible proportion of the finer compared to the coarser and less valuable parts of the animal. This, by selection, may be attained, and thus the wishes of the consumer may be gratified. As to the broad loins and full hips, which are considered as a point of excellence in parti- cular breeds, it is evident that the old narrow and thin make, required improvement ; but the alteration is now carried to a faulty excess, and often occasions great difficulty and danger in calving. 4476. The form of animals has fortunately attracted the attention of an eminent sur- geon, Henry Cline, Esq. of London, whose doctrines we have already laid down at length (1995.), and the substance of which is : — That the external form is only an indi- cation of the internal structure ; that the lungs of an animal is the first object to be attended to, for on their size and soundness the health and strength of an animal prin- cipally depend; that the external indications of the size of the lungs are the form and size of the chest, and its breadth in particular ; that the head should be small, as by this the birth is facilitated ; as it affiards other advantages in feeding, &c. and as it generally indicates that the animal is of a good breed ; that the length of the neck should be in proportion to the size of the animal, that it may collect its food with ease ; and that the muscles and tendons should be large, by which an animal is enabled to travel with greater facility. It was formerly the practice to estimate the value of animals by the size of their bones. A large bone was considered to be a great merit ; and a fine-boned animal always implied great size. It is now known that this doctrine was carried too far. The strength of an animal does not depend upon the bones, but on the muscles ; and when the bones are disproportionably large, it indicates, in Cline's opinion, an imperfection in the organs of nutrition. Bakewell strongly insisted on the advantage of small bones ; and the celebrated John Hunter declared that small bones were gene- rally attended with corpulence in all the various subjects he had an opportunity of examining. A small bone, however, being heavier and more substantial, requires as much nourishment as a hollow one with a larger circumference. 4477. Among the qualities for which thorough-bred cattle and sheep are distinguished, that of being good growers, and having a good length of frame, is not the least essen- tial. The meaning of which is, that the animal should not only be of a strong and healthy constitution, but speedily should grow to a proper size. As specimens of rapid growth, a steer of three years old, when well fed, will weigh from 80 to 90 or 100 stone, 14 lb. to the stone ; and a two-year old Leicester wedder, from 25 to 28 lb. per quarter, immediately after his second fleece is taken from him. Animals having the property of growing, are usually straight in their back and belly ; their shoulders well thrown back, and their belly rather light than otherwise. . At the same time, a gauntness and paucity 3 A 2 724 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. of intestines should be guarded against, as a most material defect, indicating a very un- thrifty animal. Being too light of bone, as it is termed, is also a great fault. A good grower, or hardy animal, has always a middling sized bone. A bull distinguished for getting good growers, is inestimable ; but one whose progeny takes an unnatural or gigantic size, ought to be avoided. 4478. Arriving soon at perfection, not only in point of growth or size, but in respect of fatness, is a material object for the farmer, as his profit must in a great measure de- pend upon it. Where animals, bred for the carcass merely, become fat at an early age, they not only return sooner the price of their food, with profit to the feeder, but in general also, a greater value for their consumption, than slow-feeding animals. This desirable property greatly depends on a mild and docile disposition ; and as this docility of temper is much owing to the manner in which the animal is brought up, attention to inure them early to be familiar, cannot be too much recommended. A tamed breed also has other advantages. It is not so apt to injure fences, or to break into adjacent fields ; consequently it is less liable to accidents, and can be reared, supported, and fattened, at less expense. The property of early maturity, in a populous country, where the consumption of meat is great, is extremely beneficial to the public, as it evidently tends to furnish greater supplies to the market ; and this propensity to fatten at an early age, is a sure proof, that an animal will fatten speedily at a later period of his life. 4479. In the wilder and bleaker parts of a country, the possession of a hardy and healthy constitution, is a most valuable property in stock. Where the surface is barren, and the climate rigorous, it is essential that the stock bred and maintained there, should be able to endure the severities and vicissitudes of the weather, as well as scarcity of food, hard work, or any other circumstance in its treatment, that might subject a more delicate breed to injury. In this respect, different kinds of stock greatly vary ; and it is a matter of much consequence, to select, for different situations, cattle with constitutions suitable to the place where they are to be kept. It is a popular belief, that dark colors are indications of hardiness. In mountain breeds of cattle, a rough pile is reckoned a de- sirable property, more especially when they are to be kept out, all winter. It enables them to face the storm, instead of shrinking from it. Hardy breeds are exempted from various diseases, such as having yellow fat, also being blackfleshed, defects so injurious to stock. 4480. The prolific quality of a breed is a matter deserving attention. The females of some breeds both bear more frequently than usual, and also have frequently more than one at a birth. This property runs more strikingly in sub- varieties, or individual fami- lies ; and though partly owing to something in the habits of animals, and partly to their previous good or bad treatment, yet in some degree seems to depend upon the seasons, some years being more distinguished for twins than others. In breeding, not only the numbers, but the sex of the offspring, in some cases, seem to depend upon the female parent. Two cows produced fourteen females each in fifteen years, though the bull was changed every year. It is singular, that when they produced a bull calf, it was in the same year. Under similar circumstances, a great number of males have been produced by the same cow in succession, but not to the same extent. 4481. Breeds are likewise distinguished by /Ae g'T/a/i^i/ of their flesh. In some kinds it is coarse, hard, and fibrous ; in others of a finer grain or texture. In some breeds also, the flavor of the meat is superior ; the gravy they produce, instead of being white and insipid, is high colored, well flavored, and rich ; and the fat is intermixed among the fibres of the muscles, giving the meat a streaked, or marbled appearance. Breeds whose flesh have these properties, are peculiarly valuable. Hence two animals of nearly the same degree of fatness and weight, and who could be fed at nearly the same expense to the husbandman, will sell at very different prices, merely from the known character of their meat. 4482. A disposition to fatten is a great object in animals destined for the shambles. Some animals possess this property during the whole progress of their lives, while in others, it only takes place at a more advanced period, when they have attained their full growth, and are furnished at the same time with a suitable supply of food. There are in this respect other distinctions : most sorts of cattle and sheep, which have been bred in hilly countries, will become fat on low land pastures, on which the more refined breeds would barely live ; some animals take on fat very quickly, when the proper food has been supplied, and some individuals have been found, even in the same breed, which have, in a given time, consumed the least proportional weight of the same kind of food, yet have become fat at the quickest rate. Even in the human race, with little food, some will grow immoderately corpulent. It is probably from internal conformation, that this property of rapid fattening is derived. 4483. The advantages and disadvantages of fattening cattle and sheep, at least to the extent frequently practised at present, are points that have of late attracted much public Book V. CHOICE OF IMPLEMENTS. 725 attention. But any controversy on that subject can only arise from want of proper dis- crimination. Fat meat is unquestionably more nourishing than lean, though to digest this oily matter, there are required, on account of its difficult solubility, a good bile, much saliva, and a strong stomach ; consequently none, excepting those who are in the most vigorous state of health, or who are employed in hard labor, can properly digest it. Though fat meat, however, is unfit for general consumption, yet experiments in the art of fattening animals, are likely to promote useful discoveries; and though, in the course of trying a number of experiments, errors and excesses may be committed, yet on the whole, advantage may be derived from the knowledge thus to be obtained. As the bone also gains but little in the fatting animal, and the other offal becomes proportionably less, as the animal becomes more fat, the public has not sustained much loss by over- fatted animals. To kill even hogs till they are thoroughly fat, is exceeding bad economy. An ox or cow, though the little flesh it has may be of good quality, yet presents, when lean, little but skin and bone ; and if slaughtered in that state would neither indemnify the owner for the expense of breeding and maintaining it, nor benefit the public. A coarse and heavy-fleshed ox, which would require a very long time, and much good food to fatten, may be slaughtered with most advantage -while rather lean. It is not, however, so much the extent of fat, as the want of a sufficient quantity of lean flesh, of which the consumer complains ; for it cannot be doubted, that the lean flesh of a fat animal is superior in quality, and contains more nourishment, than any other meat. 4484. Handling well. The graziers and butchers in various parts of the kingdom have recourse to the hand, and the feeling of the skin, or cellular membrane, for ascertaining a disposition to fatten ; and since Bake well directed the public attention so much to breed- ing, that practice has become more generally known. Handling cannot easily be defined, and can only be learnt by experience. The skin and flesh of cattle, when handled, should feel soft to the touch, somewhat resembling that of a mole, but with a little more resistance to the finger. A soft and mellow skin must be more pliable, and more easily stretched out, to receive any extraordinary quantity of fat and muscle, than a thick or tough one. The rigid-skinned animal must therefore always be the most difficult to fatten. In a good sheep, the skin is not only soft and mellow, but in some degree elastic. Neither cattle nor sheep can be reckoned good, whatever their shapes may be, unless they are first-rate handlers. The improved short-horned breed, be^des their mellowness of skin, are likewise distinguished by softness and silkiness of hair. Too great a length, however, ought not to be aimed at, since it is not easy, in that case, to preserve a due proportion in the appearance of the animal, without which it cannot be considered perfect. 4485. Lightness of offal. An animal solely bred for the shambles, should have as little ofFal, or parts of inferior value, as possible (consistently with the health of the animal), and consequently a greater proportion of meat applicable as food for man. This, therefore, the skilful farmer will also keep in view in selecting his species of stock. (Code, ^c.) Sect. II. Of, the Choice of Agriadtural Implements, Seeds and Plants. 4486. The variety and excellence of agricultural implements is so great that the prudent farmer in regard to that, as well as in every other branch of his art, must study economy. He should not incur an unnecessary expense in buying them, nor in purchasing more than are essentially requisite, and can be profitably used. This maxim ought to be more especially attended to by young improvers, who are often tempted, under the specious idea of diminishing labor, and saving expense, to buy a superfluous quantity of imple- ments, which they afterwards find are of little use. {Coventry's Disc. p. 47.) It is remarked by an intelligent author on matters of husbandry, that a great diversity of implements, as they are more rarely used, prove in general a source of vexation and disappointment, rather than of satisfaction to the farmer. 4487. The different implements required by the farmer are : those of tillage, for drilling Or sowing corn ; for reaping corn ; for harvesting corn ; for threshing and cleaning corn ; for mowing and harvesting hay ; of conveyance ; for draining ; for harnessing stock ; for rolling land ; for the dairy ; and, for miscellaneous purposes. 4488. In jmrchasing implements, the following rules are to be observed : they should be simple in their construction, both that their uses may be more easily understood, and that any common workman may be able to repair them, when they get out of order ; the materials should be of a durable nature, that the labor may be less liable to inter- ruption from their accidental failure ; their form should be firm and compact, that they may not be injured by jolts and shaking ; and that they may be more safely worked by country laborers, who are but little accustomed to the use of delicate tools. In the larger machines, symmetry, and lightness of shape, ought to be particularly attended to : for a Jieavy carriage, like a great horse, is worn out by its own weight, nearly as much as by what he carries. The wood should be cut up and placed in a position the best calcu- t3 A 3 726 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. lated to resist pressure ; and mortises, so likely to weaken the wood, should, as much as possible, be avoided ; at the same time, implements should be made as light as is con- sistent with the strength that is necessary. Their price should be such, that farmers in moderate circumstances can afford to buy them ; yet for the sake of a low price, the ju- dicious farmer will not purchase articles, either of a flimsy fabric, or a faulty form ; and implements ought to be suited to the nature of the country, whether hilly or level, and more especially to the quality of the soil ; for those which are calculated for light land, will not answer equally well in soils that are heavy and adhesive. (Code.) 4489. In the choice of seed corn regard must be had to procure it from a suitable soil and climate, and of a suitable variety. A change from one soil to another of a different quality, is generally found advantageous ; but this is not always the case as to climate. Thus some of the varieties of oats, as the Angus oat, which answers well in most parts of Scotland, is found not to fill in the ear, but to shrivel up after blossoming in the south of England. In like manner, the woolley-chafed white wheats of Essex and Kent, rot in the ear, when grown in the moist climate of Lancashire. In settling on a farm in a coun- try with which the farmer is little acquainted, he will often find it adviseable to select the best seed he can find in the neighborhood, and probably to resift it and free it from the seeds of weeds and imperfect grains. Particular care is requisite in selecting the seed of the bean and pea, as no crop depends more on the variety being suited to the soil and cli- mate. Thus, on hot gravelly soils in the south, the late grey pea would produce little haulm and no pulse; but the early varieties, or the pearl pea, will produce a fair propor- tion of both. 4490. The only small seeds the farmer has to sow on a large scale, are the different va- rieties of turnip, and probably the mangoldwurzel and carrot. No expense or trouble should be spared to procure the best turnip seed; as if that is either mixed by impregna- tion with other varieties of the Brassica tribe, or has been raised from a degenerate small bulbed parentage, the progeny will never come to any size. The same may be said of carrot or mangold seed, raised from small misshapen roots. Even rape seed should be raised from the strongest and largest bulbed plants, as^ these always produce a stronger progeny. 4491 . Of the plants which the farmer has to choose for stock, the chief is the potatoe, and every one knows that no circumstances in the soil, climate, or culture will compensate for planting a bad sort. The potatoe requires a climate rather humid as otherwise, and rather moderate and equable in temperature than hot : hence the best crops are found in Lancashire, Dumfriesshire, and Ayrshire in Britain, and in Ireland where the climate is every where moist. Excellently-flavored potatoes are also grown on mossy lands in most parts of the country. The prudent farmer will be particularly careful in choosing this description of plant stock, and also in changing it frequently so as to ensure prolificacy and flavor. Sect. III. Of the Choice of Servants. 4492. On the moral and prof essional character of his servants much of the comfort of the farmer depends, and every one who has farmed near large towns, and at a distance from them, knows how great the difference is in every description of laborers. The servants required in farmeries are the bailiff or head ploughman, common ploughmen, shepherds, laborers of all work, herdsmen, and women. Sometimes apprentices and pupils are taken j but their labor is not often to be much depended on. 4493. A bailiff h required only in the largest description of farms, occupied by a pro- fessional farmer ; and is not often required to act as market man. In general young men are preferred, who look forward to higher situations, as gentlemen's bailiffs or land stew- ards. Most farmers require only a head ploughman, who works the best pair of horses and takes the lead of, and sets the example to, the other ploughmen in every descrip- tion of work. 4494. Ploughmen should, if possible, be yearly servants, unless they are married and have families. Weekly or occasional ploughmen are found comparatively unsteady; they are continually wandering from one master to another, and are very precarious supports of a tillage farm : for they may quit their service at the most inconvenient time, unless bribed by higher wages ; and the farmer may thus loose the benefit of the finest part of the season. Where day laborers, however, are married, they are more to be depended upon, than unmarried domestic servants, more especially when the laborer has a family, which ties him down to regular industry. 4495. The mode of hiring servants at what are called public statutes, so general in many parts of England, is justly reprobated, as having a tendency to vitiate their minds, en- abling them to get places without reference to character, exposing good servants to be corrupted by the bad, promoting dissipation, and causing a cessation of country business for some days, and an awkwardness in it for some time afterwards. When hiring servants, it would be extremely important, if possible, to get rid of any injurious perquisites, which Book V. CHOICE OF SERVANTS. 727 are often prejudicial to the interests of the master, without being of any advantage to the servant. For instance, in Yorkshire and in other districts, it is a custom to give farm servants liquor, both morning and evening, whatever is the nature and urgency of the work. Nothing can be more absurd than permitting a ploughman to stop for half an hour in a winter day to drink ale, while his horses are neglected and shivering with cold. 4496. The following plan of maintaining the hinds or ploughmen in the best cultivated districts in Scotland, is found by experience to be greatly superior to any other mode hitherto adopted. 4497. Proper houses are built for the farm servants, contiguous to every farmstead. This gives them an opportunity of settling in life, and greatly tends to promote their future welfare. Thus also the farmer has his people at all times within reach, for carry- ing on his business. 4498. The farm servants, when married, receive the greater part of their wages in the produce of the soil, which gives them an interest in the prosperity of the concern in which they are employed, and in a manner obliges them to eat and drink comfortably ; while young men often starve themselves in order to save money for drinking or clothes; in either of which cases they are deficient in the requisite animal strength. At least, under this mode of payment, they are certain of being supplied with the necessaries of life, and a rise of prices does not affect them; whereas, when their wages are paid in money, they are exposed to many temptations of spending it, which their circumstances can ill afford ; and during a rise of prices they are sometimes reduced to considerable dif- ficulties. From the adoption of an opposite system, habits of sobriety and economy, so conspicuous among the farm servants of Scotland, and the advantages of which cannot be too highly appreciated, have arisen and still prevail in these districts. 4499. A most important branch of this system is, that almost every married man has a cow, of a moderate size, kept for him by the farmer all the year round. This is a boon of great utility to his family. The prospect of enjoying this advantage has an excellent effect upon the morals of young unmarried servants, who, in general, make it a point to lay up as much of their yearly wages as will enable them to purchase a cow and furniture for a house when they enter into the married state. These savings, under different cir- cumstances, would most probably have been spent in dissipation. 4500. They have also several other perquisites, as a piece of ground for potatoes and flax, (about one-eighth part of an acre for each) ; liberty to keep a pig, half a dozen hens, and bees; their fuel is carried home to them; they receive a small allowance in money per journey, when sent from home with corn, or for coals or lime; and during the harvest, they are maintained by the farmer, that they may be always at hand. 4501. There are no where to be met with, more active, respectable, and conscientious ser-* vants, than those who are kept according to this system. There is hardly an instance of their soliciting relief from the public. They rear numerous families, who are trained to indus- try, and knowledge in the operations of agriculture, and whose assistance in weeding the crops, &c. is of considerable service to the farmer. They become attached to the farm, take an interest in its .prosperity, and seldom think of removing from it. Under this system, every great farm is a species of little colony, of which the farmer is the resident governor. Nor, on the whole, can there be a more gratifying spectacle, than to see a large estate, under the direction of an intelligent landlord, or of an agent competent to the task of managing it to advantage ; where the farms are of a proper size ; where they are occupied by industrious and skilful tenants, anxious to promote, in consequence of the leases they enjoy, the improvement of the land in their possession ; and where the cultivation is carried on by a number of married servants, enjoying a fair competence, and rearing large families, sufficient, not only to replace themselves, but also from their surplus population, to supply the demand, and even the waste, of the other industrious classes of the community. Such a system, there is reason to believe, is brought to a higher degree of perfection, and carried to a greater extent, in the more improved districts of Scotland, than perhaps any other country in Europe. {Code, ^c.) 4502. A she])herd is of course only requisite on sheep farms ; and no description of farm servant is required to be so steady and attentive. At the lambing season much of the farmer's property is in his hands, and depends on his unwearied exertions early and late. Such servants should be well paid and comfortably treated. 4503. The laborers required on a farm are few ; in general, one for field operations, as hedge and ditch work, roads, the garden, cleaning out furrows, &c. ; and another for attending to the cattle, pigs, and straw-yard, killing sheep and pigs when required, &c. will be sufficient. Both will assist in harvest, hay-time, threshing, filling dung, &c. These men are much better servants when married and hired by the year, than when accidental day laborers. 4504. The female servants required in farmery are casual, as hay-makers, turnip hoers, &c. ; or yearly, as house, dairy, and poultry maids. Much depends on the steadi* 3 A 4 728 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. ness of the first class, and it is in general better to select them from the families of the married servants, by which means their conduct and conversation is observable by their parents and relations. A skilful dairymaid is a most valuable servant, and it is well when the cattle-keeper is her husband ; both may live in the farmer's house (provided they have no children), and the man may act as groom to the master's horse and chaise, and assist in brewing, butchery, &c. In the cheese districts, men often milk the cows and manage the whole process of the dairy ; but females are surely much better calcu- lated for a business of so domestic a nature, and where so much depends on cleanliness. 4505. Farmers' apprentices are not common, but parish boys are so disposed of in some parts of the west of England, and might be so generally. They are said to make the best and steadiest servants ; and indeed, the remaining in one situation, and under one good master for a fixed period, say not less than three years, must have a great tendency to fix the character and morals of youth in every line or condition of life. 4506. Apprentices intended for farmers are generally young men who have received a tolerable education beforehand, and have attained to manhood or nearly so. These pay a premium, and are regularly instructed in the operations of farming. We have al- ready alluded to the example of Walker, who considers such apprentices, notwithstanding the care required to instruct them, rather useful than otherwise. (^Ilusb. of Scot. vol. ii. p. 106.) 4507. To train ploughmen to habits of activity and diligence is of great importance. In some districts they are proverbial for the slowness of their step, which they teach their horses, whereas these animals, if accustomed to it, would move with as much ease to themselves, in a quick, as in a slow pace. Hence their ploughs seldom go above two miles in an hour, and sometimes even less; whereas where the soil is light and sandy, they might go at the rate of three miles and a half. Farmers are greater sufferers than they imagine, by this habitual indolence of their workmen, which extends from the plough to all their other employments, for it makes a very important difference in the expense of labor. Where the land however is stiff, and deep ploughing is necessary, the operation ought not to be too much hurried. (^Code.) Chap. IV. Of the general Management of a Farm. 4508. The importance of an orderly systematic mode of managing every concern Is Sudicientiy obvious. The points which chiefly demand a farmer's attention are the ac- counts of money transactions, the management of servants, and the regulation of labors. Sect. I. Of keeping Accounts. 4509. It is a maxim of the Dutch, that " no one is ever ruined who keeps good ac- counts" which are said, in The Code of Agriculture, to be not so common among farmers as they ought to be ; persons employed in other professions being generally much more attentive and correct. Among gentlemen farmers there is often a systematic regularity in all their proceedings, and their pages of debtor and creditor, of expense and profifc are as strictly kept ds those of any banking-house in the metropolis. But with the gene- rality of farmers, the case is widely different. It rarely happens, that books are kept by tliem in a minute and regular manner ; and the accounts of a farmer, occupying evert i large estate, and (consequently employing a great capital, are seldom deemed of suf- ficient importance to merit a share of attention, equal to that bestowed by a tradesman^ on a concern of not one-twentieth part of the value. There is certainly some difficulty in keeping accurate accounts respecting the profit and loss of so uncertain and compli- cated a business as the one carried on by the farmer, which depends so much on the weather, the state of the markets, and other circumstances not under his control ; but the great bulk of farming transactions is settled at the moment, that is to say, the article is delivered, and thfe money instantly paid, so that little more is necessary than to record these properly. In i-egard to the expenses laid out on the farm, an accurate account of them is perfectly practicable, and ought to be regularly attended to by every prudent and industrious occupier. By examining these, a farmer is enabled to ascertain the nature and the extent of the expense he has incurred, in the various operations of agri- culture ; and to discover what particular measures, or what general system, contributes to profit, or occasions loss. The principle of economy may thus be introduced into the management of a farm, and the lessening of expense effected, which is every day be- coming of greater importance, as bearing a higher proportion to the produce of the farm. 4510. To record pecuniary transactions is not the only object to be attended to in thes accounts of a Jarraer. It is necessary to have an annual account of the live stock, and Book V. KEEPING ACCOUNTS. 729 of their value at the time; of the quantity of hay unconsumed; of the grain in store, or in the stack-yard ; and of the implements and other articles in which the capital is in- Tested. An account, detailing the expense and return of each field, according to its productive contents, is likewise wanted, without which it is impossible to calculate the advantage of different rotations, the most beneficial mode of managing the farm ; or the improvements of which it is susceptible. Besides the obvious advantages of enabling a man to understand his own affairs, and to avoid being cheated, it has a moral effect upon the farmer of the greatest consequence, however small his dealings may be. Experience shews that men situated like small farmers (who are their own masters, and yet have very little capital to manage or to lose), are very apt, to contract habits of irregularity, procrastination, and indolence. They persuade themselves that a thing may be as well done to-morrow as to-day, and the result is, that the thing is not done till it is too late, and then hastily and imperfectly. Now nothing can be conceived better adapted to check this disposition, than a determination to keep regular accounts. The very con- sciousness that a man has to make entries in his books of every thing that he does, keeps his attention alive to what he is to do ; and the act of making those entries, is the best possible training to produce active and pains-taking habits. 4511. The accounts of gentlemen farmers or of the bailiffs they employ, it is said in The Code, cannot be too minute ; but in regard to rent -paying farmers the great objects are to have them short and distinct. For this purpose a journal for business transactions, such as purchases, sales, agreements, hirings, and other real or prospective arrange- ments ; a cash-book and a ledger, will, in our opinion, be suflScient, with the ^d of me- morandum books. But for greater accuracy, or rather for more curious farmers, the fol- lowing models are given in The Code of Agriculture. The gentleman farmer and bailiff will find various descriptions of " Farmer's account books" among the booksellers. One in very general use is Harding's Farmer s Account Book. 4512. Weekly Journal of Transactions, from Monday. State qf Weather. | Bar. Ther. Wind. Rain. Tuesday. Wednes. Thursday. Friday. > Saturday. Sunday. 4513. Weekly State of Labor, from to ' Warines of Men Jtnd Horses. Mon. Tues. Wed. Thurs. Friday. Satur. No. of Days.) RAte per Day. Total. |, Daily Laborers - - "£? S. d. Farm Servants - - • - Horses - - . . Taskwork - - . — Work by Tradesmen - 730 4514. PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Cash Account. Part III. Dr. Ciuh received. Cat\ paid, Cr. | When received. Of whom received. On what account received. Amount. When paid. To whom paid. On what account paid. Amount. Total received. £ s. d. - £ s. d. Articles from the Farm consumed [Amount qf ). When. By whom. What Articles. L. s. d. Totol paid - . 4515 Management of Arable Land. 1 1 1 2 < When beRun. PREPARING. 1 Ploughing, Harrowing, Rolling. \^ Manure. Sowing Seed. 1 o S5 J, 1 s Amount. " 1 Amount. 1 i 1 a, Amount. £ s. d. £ Si d. ' ^e s. d. 4516. Management of Pasture Land. > 6 1 How many Head of CtUtle fed. Produce cf Hay, S^c. 1 i K i - 1 33 Anibunt. When begun. i 35 Amount paid. How many Loads, at per Load. Amount. Posted to Folio. £ s. d. £ *. d. £ S. d. Book V. 4517. FORMS OF ACCOUNTS, Management of Woodland. 7aEi m quantity qf Bark. Cost Cutting down. 4518. Account of Crojis. Sort. Threshed. Bought. Sold. Sown. Consumed. Where, and by 1 whom consumed Where sown. Ground* - Quarters. Bushels. Il L. I. d. i L.s.d. fl L.s.d. il L. s. d. t 11 L. 3. d. 1 fa o II k 'Is L..t.d. cqpH L. M. Wheat - - . ■ ' Barley - - - Oats , - - - Hay ... . Potatoes. - 4519. Dairy Account of Milk, Butter , and Cheese. Sunday.] Mon.| Tues. 1 Wed. 1 Thurs. | Friday.] sat. 1 Total PrlceJ Amount, j 1 MUked . ^ - Made into But--? ter & CheeseJ Consumed - - Qts. Pts. ats. Pts. Qts. Pts. Qts. Pts. Qts. Pu. Qts. Pts. Qts. Pts. *. d. L. «. d, 1 3 M Made;- - - - Sold . , - - Consumed - - lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs. lbs. . 1 Made . . - Sold - . - Consumed . - 732 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4520. Stock Account. Increase and Decrease of Live Stock. 1 What Part qf the Farm occupied bf, Ike Cattle. | Description. Increase by Decrease by '' Date when sent in. When taken out. Number and Description of Cattle. No. of the Field. Nature of the Crop in the Field. , - No. Pur. 5 chase. 1 1 4 w Rams d Ewes Spaniard 1 Wethers cc R. Lambs E. Lambs Spaniards Ditto _ Bulls Cows . - I o Oxen . U Heifers . B. Calves u C. Calves ' Boars ^ ^ S Sows - Barrows - Pigs - - ~ Horses . 1 Mares - w Colts . - Turkies . Poults . «• Fowls - r - T3 Chickens . Geese . - a Goslings . 1 1 Ducks - Ducklings - Pigeons - Eggs - - - 4521. The account books for a common farmer, may be a cash-book for all receipts and payments, specifying each ; a ledger for accounts with dealers and tradesmen ; and a stock book for taking an inventory and valuation of stock, prop, manures, tillages, (and every thing that a tenant could dispose of or be paid for on quitting his farm) once a year. Farm-, ing may be carried on with the greatest accuracy and safety, as to money matters, by Wieirts of the above books, and a few pocket memorandum books for laborers' time, jobs, &e. With the exception of a time-book, such as we have before described (3 140.}, we -should never require more, even from a proprietor's bailiff; to many of whom the nine forms just given (4512. ) would only puzzle ; — to some we have known them lead to the greatest errors and confusion. No form of books, or mode of procedure, will enable a farmer to know whether he is losing or gaining but that of taking stock. Valuing pro- duce consumed, and crediting the farm with it, is in practice nonsense ; and the same may be said of various items in most of these nine forms. An approximation to the pr(ifits yielded by particular crops or modes of management, may always be made by the farmer or bailiff from recollection. There can never be a field on the farm, which he cannot at the" time of reaping the crop, tell how often it has been ploughed ; when manured, what the seed was worth, &c. ; and from these artd the other usual data, he can easily make out a Dr. and Cr. account, sufficient for all practical purposes. Sect. II. Management of Servants. 4522; Ih order that servants may he able and iJbilling to do their ivoi'k, it is necessary that Ihey be well fed, comfortably lodged, and decently clothed. The last requisite may be Book V. MANAGEMENT OF SERVANTS. 733 left to their qwn judgment, allowing an adequate sum or wages for that purpose : but the feeding and clothing of farm servants, and especially of single 'men, requires to be seen to by the master. Without this attention on the part of the latter, the sum al- lowed for these purposes will either be in part hoarded up, or idly spent, in either case lessening the physical strength, and often injuring the moral faculties of the man. 4523. In former times, the servants lived at the same table with their masters, and that is still the practice in those districts where the farms are small. On moderate-sized, and on large farms, they are usually sent to a separate table ; but of late a custom has beea introduced of putting them on board-wages. This is a most pernicious practice ; which often leads them to the ale-house, corrupts their morals, and injures their health. It is a better plan, with a view of lessening trouble, to board them with the bailiff; but it is still more desirable for the farmer, to have them under his own eye, that he may attend to their moral conduct. He will find much more useful assistance, from the decent and the orderly, than from the idle and the profligate. 4524. The best mode of managing yearly married servants, whether ploughmen or la- borers, we conceive to be that already referred to (4496.) as practised in Northumber- land, and other northern counties. Marshal (Review of Bailey s Northumberland) calls it a remain of feudal times ; but certainly, if it is Iso, it appears one of those remains which should be carefully preserved. "We may challenge the empire to produce servants and farm operations equal to those where this system is adopted. The great excellence of the system consists on its being founded in the comfort of the servant. 4525. The permanent laborers on a farm ought to be treated in the same manner as the ploughmen ; and indeed it is much to be wished, for the sake both of humanity and morality, that all married laborers, who live in the country, should have gardens attached to their cottages, if not a cow kept, and a pig, and fowls, in the manner of the Scottish ploughmen. Some valuable observations on this subject will be found in The Husbandry of Scotland, and The Code of Agriculture, 4526. Tem-porary laborers, or such as are engaged for hay-making, reaping, turnip- \ hoeing, &c, are for the most part beyond the control of the farmer as to their living and lodging. It is a good practice, however, where hay-making and reaping is performed by the day, to feed the operators, and to lodge such of them as have not homes in the neigh- borhood, on the premises ; providing them with a dry loft, and warm blankets. Piece or job-work, however, is now becoming so very general, in all farm operations performed by occasional laborers, that attention to these particulars becomes unnecessary, and the farmer's chief business is to see that the work be properly done. 4527. A day's work of a country laborer is ten hours during the spring, summer, and autumn quarters. Farmers, however, are not at all imiform in their hours of working during these periods. Some begin at five o'clock, rest three hours at mid-day, during the more violent heat of the sun, and fill up their day's work, by beginning again at one o'clock, and ending at six in the evening. Others begin at six, and end at six, allowing half an hour at breakfast, and an hour at dinner. But although these be the ordinary hours, both for servants and laborers, during the more busy seasons of the year, yet neither of them will scruple to work either sooner or later, when occasion requires. In regard to the winter months, the hours of labor are from the dawn of morning, as long as it is light, with the allowance of about half an hour at mid-day for dinner. 4528. That the rate of labor must in a great measure depend upon the price of grain, is a general principle. In England, the value of a peck of wheat, and in Scotland, of a peck of oatmeal, (being the principal articles of subsistence of the lower orders of the people in the two countries,) were long accounted an equivalent to the daily pay of a laborer. In both countries, however, the price of potatoes has, of late years, had a con- siderable influence in the rate of labor ; and in England, the effects of the poor Jaws have tended to keep down that rate below the increased price of provisions, and thus have deranged the natural progress of things. It has been ascertained, that a man, his wife, and from two to three children, if wheat is their habitual food, will require ten gallons weekly. When they live on bread, hard working people ought to have the best kind, as that will furnish the most nutrition. How then could a laborer and his family exist, upon wages of from 6s. to 9s. per week, when wheat is from 8^. to 105, or I2«. per bushel ? The difference is compensated by the poor-rates, a most exceptionable mode of making up the deficiency ; for labor would otherwise have found its own level, and the laborer would have obtained the price of a bushel and a half of wheat weekly. 4529. In Scotland, the rate of labor has increased beyond the price of provisions. Prior to 1792, the average price of a peck of oatmeal was Is. Id. and the average price of a day's labor in summer, Is. l^d. which nearly corresponded with the principle above stated: but the average price of a peck of oatmeal, in 1810, was Is. 3|rf. whilst the average price of a day's labor was Is. W^d. which shews, in a most satisfactory manner, the very great improvement that lias taken place, in the lot of the laboring classes, in that part of the united kingdom. {Gen. Rep. vol. ill. p. 262.) 734 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4530. The practice of giving laborers grain, ^c. at a cheap rate, was adopted by- George III. who carried on farming operations to a considerable extent, allowing his laborers flour at a fixed price, whatever wheat might sell for. This benevolent system has been practised by several gentlemen farmers, some of whom have allowed bread, and others a daily quantity of milk, at moderate prices. The same system is general in several of the western counties, as in Dorset, Devon, and Cornwall, where the laborers have a standing supply of bread-corn ; of wheat at 6s. and of barley at 35. per bushel. 4531. In the wages of labor, as well as in every thing else, moderation is desirable. It is remarked, that high wages have a tendency to throw laborers out of employment, as farmers in general, and even small proprietors, are unable to give such wages ; hence they are obliged to carry on their work with fewer hands, or to postpone improvements, which otherwise they would have undertaken. Nor is that all. The laborers themselves suffer by it, and so does the public. In the fens of Lincolnshire, wages have risen in harvest time, from 3s. 6d. to 7s. nay to 10s. 6d. per day, every day's hiring taking place at a certain spot, where masters, whose work is in haste, outbid each other, and thus raise the wages to that exorbitant height. The consequence was, that tlie laborers got drunk, would not work above four days out of the six, dissipated their money, hurt their constitutions, contracted indolent and vicious habits, and their labor was lost to the community, for at least one-third part of the time, at a most important crisis. (Corfe,^c.') 4532. Most descriptions of country labor, performed without the aid of horses, may be let by the job. Farey, in his excellent Report of Derbyshire, informs us, that besides all ordinary labor, the late John Billingsley, of Ashwick Grove, in Somersetshire, let his ploughing, harrowing, rolling, sowing, turning of corn when cut, hay-making, &c. by the acre, and from which he found great advantages, even where his own oxen and horses were used, by the takers of the work. Whether we regard dispatch, economy, perfection of rural works, or the bettering of the condition of the laborers therein, nothing will contribute so much to all these, as a general system of letting works at fair and truly apportioned prices, according to the degree of labor and skill required, in each kind of work. Few persons have doubted that dispatch and economy are attain- able by this method, but those who have indolently or improperly gone about the letting of their labor, have uniformly complained of its being slovenly done, and of the prone- ness of the men to cheat, when so employed. These last are to be expected in all modes of employment, and can only be counteracted, or made to disappear, by com- petent knowledge and due vigilance in the employer, or his agents and foremen, who ought to study and understand the time and degree of exertion and skill, as well as the best methods, in all their minutiae of performing all the various works they have to let. At first sight, these might seem to be very difficult and unattainable qualifications in farmers' bailiffs, or foremen, but it is nevertheless certain, that a proper system and perseverance will soon overcome these difficulties. One of the first requisites is, the keeping of accurate and methodical day-accounts of all men employed ; and, on the measuring up and calculating of every job of work, to register how much has been earned per day, and never to attempt abatement of the amount, should this even greatly exceed the ordinary day's pay of the country ; but let this experience gained, operate in fixing the price of the next job of the same work, in order to lessen the earnings by degrees, of fully competent and industrious men, to If to 2^ times the ordinary wages when working by the day. 4533. Select the men into small gangs, according to their abilities and industry,'and always set the best gang about any new kind of work, or one whose prices want regulating, and encourage these by liberal prices at first, and gradually lower them, and by degrees introduce the other gangs to work with or near to them at the same kind of work. On the discovery of any material slight of, or deceptions in the work, at the time of measuring it, more than their proportionate values should be deducted for them, and a separate job made to one of the best gangs of men, for completing or altering it : by which means shame is made to operate, with loss of earnings, in favor of greater skill, attention, and honesty in future. When the necessity occurs of em.ploying even the best men by the day, let the periods be as short as possible, and the prices considerably below job earnings, and contrive, by the offer of a desirable job to follow, to make it their interest and wish to dispatch the work that is necessary to be done by the day, in order to get again to piece-work. The men being thus induced to study and cotitrive the readiest and best methods of performing every part of their labor, and of expending their time, the work will unquestionably be better done than by the thoughtless drones who usually work by the day. And that these are the true methods of bettering the condition of the laborers, Malthus has ajbly shewn in theory, and all those who have adopted and persevered in them, have seen the same in practice. {Farey^s Derbi/shire, vol. iii. 192.) Sect. III. Of the Arrangement of Farm Labor. 4534. The importance of order and system we have already insisted on (3127.), and the subject can hardly be too often repeated. To conduct an extensive farm well, is not a matter of trivial moment, or to the management of which every one is competent. Much may be effected by capital, skill, and industiy ; but even these will not always Book V. ARRANGEMENT OF LABOR. 735 ensure success, without judicious arrangement. With it, a farm furnishes an uninter- rupted succession of useful labor during all the seasons of the year ; and the most is made that circumstances will admit of, by regularly employing the laboring persons and ' cattle, at such works as are likely to be the most profitable. Under such a system, it is hardly to be credited how little time is lost, either of the men or horses, in the course of a whole year. This is a great object ; for each horse may be estimated at three shillings per day, and each man at two shillings. Every day, tiierefore, in which a man and horse are unemployed, occasions the loss of at least five shillings to the husbandman. 4535. ^s the foundation of a proper arrangement, it is necessary to have a plan of the farm, or at least a list of the fields or parcels of land into which it is divided, describ- ing their productive extent, the quality of the soil, the preceding crops, the cultivation given to each, and the species and quantity of manure they have severally received. The future treatment of each field, for a succession of years, may then be resolved on with more probability of success. With the assistance of such a statement, every autumn an arrangement of crops for the ensuing year ought to be made out ; classing the fields or pieces of land, according to the purposes for which they are respectively intended. The number of acres allotted for arable land, meadow, or pasture, will thus be ascertained. It will not then be difl^icult to anticipate what number of horses and laborers will be required during the season for the fields in culture, nor the live stock that will be necessary for the pasture land. The works of summer and harvest will likewise be foreseen, and proper hands engaged in due time to perform them. 4536. A farmer should have constantly in view a judicious rotation of crops, according to the nature and quality of his soil, and should arrange the quantity and succession of labor accordingly. Team labor, when frost and bad weather do not intervene, should be arranged for some months ; and hand labor, for some weeks, according to the season of the year. " A general memorandum list of business to be done," may therefore be useful, that nothing may escape the memory, and that the most requisite work may be brought forward first, if suitable to the state of the weather. In this way, the labor will go on regularly, and without confusion, while by a proper attention, either a distribution of labor, or an occasional consolidation of it, may be applied to every part of the farm. 4537. As general rules, connected with the arrangement, and the successful manage- ment of a farm, the following are particularly to be recommended. 4538. The farmer ought to rise early, and see that others do so. In the winter season, breakfast should be taken by candle light, for by this means an hour is gained, which many farmers indolently lose ; though six hours in a week are nearly equal to the working part of a winter day. This is a material object, where a number of servants are employed. It is also particularly necessary for farmers to insist on the punctual performance of their orders. 4539. The whole farm should be regularly inspected, and not only every field examined, but every beast seen, at least once a day, either by the occupier, or by some intelligent servant. 4540. In a considerable farm, it is of the utmost consequence to have servants specially appropriated for each of the most important departments of labor ; for there is often a great loss of time, where persons are frequently changing their employments. Besides, where the division of labor is introduced, work is executed not only more expeditiously, but also much better, in consequence of the same hands being constantly employed in one particular department. For that purpose, the ploughmen ought never to be employed in manual labor, but regularly kept at work with their horses, when the weather will admit of it. 4541. To arrange the oj)eratio7i of ploughing, according to the soils cultivated, is an object of essential importance. On many farms there are fields, which are soon ren- dered unfit to be ploughed, either by much rain, or by severe drought. In such cases, the prudent farmer, before the wet season commences, should plough such land as is in the greatest danger of being injured by too much wet ; and before the dry period of the year sets in, he should till such land as is in the greatest danger of being rendered unfit for ploughing by too much drought. The season between seed time and winter may be well occupied in ploughing soils intended to be sown with beans, oats, barley, and other spring crops, by means of the grubber (2533.). On farms where these rules are attended to, there is always some land in a proper condition to be ploughed ; and there is never any necessity, either for delaying the work, or performing it improperly. 4542. Every means should be thought of to diminish labor, or to increase its power. For instance, by proper arrangement, five horses may do as much labor as six perform, according to the usual mode of employing them. One horse may be employed in cart- ing turnips during winter, or in other necessary farm work at other seasons, without the necessity of reducing the number of ploughs. When driving dung from the farm-yard. 7S6 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. three carts may be used, one always filling in the yard, another going to the field, and a third returning ; the leading horse of the empty cart ought then to be unyoked, and put to the full one. In the same manner, while one pair of horses are preparing the land for sowing turnips, the other three horses may be employed in carrying the dung to the land, either with two or three carts, as the situation of the ground may happen to require. By extending the same management to other farm operations, a considerable saving of labor may be effected. 4543. Previously to engaging in a work, whether of ordinary practice, or of intended improvement, the best consideration of which the farmer is capable ought to be given to it, till he is satisfied that it is advisable for him to attempt it. When begun, he ought to proceed in it with much attention and perseverance, until he has given it a fair trial. It is a main object, in carrying on improvements, not to attempt too much at once ; and never to begin a work without a probability of being able to finish it in due season. 4544. By the adoption of these rules, every farmer will he master of his time, so that every thing required to be done, will be performed at the proper moment ; and not delayed till the season and opportunity have been lost. The impediments arising from bad weather, sick servants, or the occasional and necessary absence of the master, will, in that case, be of little consequence, nor embarrass the operations to be carried on ; and the occupier will not be prevented from attending to even the smallest concerns con- nected with his business, on the aggregate of which his prosperity depends. Sect. IV. Of domestic Management and personal Expenses. 4545. On domestic affairs, a hint may suffice. Young farmers beginning house- keeping, like most others in similar circumstances, are apt to sink too great a proportion of their capital in furniture, and furnishing riding-horses, carriages, &c. ; and some- times to live up to, or even beyond, their income. We do not mean that farmers should not live as well as other men of the same property ; but merely that all beginners should live within their income. Even in the marketing expenses care is requisite; and the prudent farmer will do well, every penny or sixpence he lays out, to reckon up in his mind what that sum per day would amount to in a year. The amount will often astonish him, and lead to economy, and where practicable, retrenchment. Saving, as Franklin has inculcated, is the only certain way of accumulating money. 4546. In regard to housekeeping, it is [observed in The Code of Agriculture, that the safest plan is, not to suffer it to exceed a certain sum for bought articles weekly. An annual sum should be allotted for clothing, and the personal expenses of the farmer, his wife, and children, which ought not to be exceeded. The whole allotted expense should be considerably within the probable receipts ; and if possible one -eighth of the income an- nually received, should be laid up for contingencies, or expended in extra improvements on the farm. BOOK VI. OF THE CULTURE OF FARM LANDS. 4547. The business of farming consists of the culture of vegetables, and the treatment or culture of animals ; in practice these are generally carried on together, but may be more conveniently treated of apart. In this Book, therefore, we confine ourselves to the culture of vegetables, and shall consider in succession the general processes of culture ; the culture of corn and pulse j of roots and leaves ; of herbage plants ; of grasses ; and of manufactorial plants. Chap. I. Of the general Processes common to Farm Lands. 4548. Among general processes, those which merit particular notice in this place, are the rotation of crops, the working of fallows, and the management of manures. The theory of these processes has been already given in treating of soils and manures (Part II. Book III.) ; and it therefore only remains to detail their application to practice under different circumstances. Book VT. ROTATION OF CROPS. 737 Sect. I. Of the Rotations of Crops suitable to different Descriptions of Soils. 4549. The proper distribution of crops, and a plan for their succession, is one of the first subjects to which a farmer newly entered on a farm requires to direct his attention. The kind of crops to be raised are determined in a great measure by the climate, soil, and demand ; and the quantity of each, by the value, demand, and the adjustment of farm labor. 4550. In the adjustment of farm labor, the great art is to divide it as equally as possible throughout the year. Thus it would not answer in any situation to sow exclu. sively autumn crops, as wheat or rye ; nor only spring corns, as oats or barley ; for by so doing all the labor of seed-time would come on at once, and the same of harvest work, while the rest of the year there would be little to do on the farm. But by sowing a portion of each of these and other crops, the labor both of seed time and harvest is divided and rendered easier, and more likely to be done well and in season. But this point is so obvious as not to require elucidation. 4551. The succession or rotation of crops, is a point on which the profits of the farmer depend more than on any other. It is remarked by Arthur Young, that the agricultural writers, previously to the middleof the eighteenth century, paid little or no attention to it. They recite, he says, courses good, bad, and execrable, in the same tone; as matters not open to praise or censure, and unconnected with any principles that could throw light on the arrangement of fields. The first writer who assigned due importance to the subject of rotations seems to have been the Rev. Adam Dickson, in his Treatise on Agriculture, published in Edinburgh, in 1777 ; and soon afterwards Lord Kaimes, in his Gentleman Farmer, illustrates the importance of the subject; both writers were probably led to it by observing the effects of the Norfolk husbandry, then beginning to be introduced to Berwickshire. But whatever may have been the little attention paid to this subject by former writers, the importance of the subject of rotations, and the rule founded on the principles already laid down, that culmiferous crops ripening their seeds should not be repeated without the intervention of pulse roots, herbage, or fallow, is now " recognised in the practice and writings of all judicious cultivators, more generally perhaps than any other." (Edit, of Farmer's Mag.) 4552. The Si/stem o/rof actons is adopted for every soil, though no particular rotation can be given for any one soil which will answer in all cases, as something depends on climate, and something also on the kind of produce for which there is the greatest market demand. But wherever the system of rotations is followed, and the several processes of labor which belong to it properly executed, land will rarely get into a foul and exhausted state ; or, at least if foul and exhausted under a judicious rotation, " matters would be much worse were any other system followed." 4553. The particular cro])s which enter into a system of rotation must obviously be such as are suited to the soil and climate, though as the valuable author so often quoted ob- serves, " they will be somewhat varied by local circumstances ; such as the proximity of towns and villages, where there is a greater demand for turnips, potatoes, hay, &c. than in thinly-peopled districts. In general, beans and clover, with rye-grass, are inter- posed between corn crops on clayey soils ; and turnips, potatoes, and clover and rye-grass, on dry loams and sands, or what are technically known by the name of turnip soils. A variety of other plants, such as pease, tares, cabbages, and carrots, occupy a part, though commonly but a small part, of that division of a farm which is allotted to green crops. This order of succession is called the system of alternate husbandry ; and on rich soils, or such as have access to abundance of putrescent manure, it is certainly the most productive of all others, both in food for man and for the inferior animals. One half of a farm is, in this course, always under some of the different species o{ cereal gramina, and the other half under pulse, roots, cultivated herbage, or plain fallow. 4554. But the greater part of the arable land of Britain cannot be maintained in a fertile state under this management; and sandy soils, even though highly manured, soon become too incohesive under a course of constant tillage. It, therefore, becomes necessary to leave that division or break that carries cultivated herbage, to be pastured for two years or more, according to the degree of its consistency and fertility ; and all the fields of a farm are treated thus in their turn, if they require it. This is called the system of convertible husbandry, a regular change being constantly going on from aration to pasturage, and vice vtrsd. 4555. Not to repeat the same kind of crop at too short intervals is another rule with regard to the succession of crops. Whatever may be the cause, whether it is to be . sought for in the nature of the soil, or of the plants themselves, experience clearly proves the advantages of inti^oducing a diversity of species into every course of cropping. When land is pastured several years before it is brought again under the plough, there may be less need for adhering steadily to this rule; but the degeneracy of wheat and other corn crops recurring upon the same land every second year for a long period, has been very gene- 3 B T»8 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. rally acknowledged. It is the same with what are called green crops ; beans and pease, potatoes, turnips, and, in an especial manner, red clover, become all of them much less productive, and much more liable to disease, when they come into the course, upon the same land, every second, third, or fourth year. But what the interval ought to be has not yet been determined, and probably cannot (from the great number of years that experiments must be continued to give any certain result) be determined, until the component parts of soils, and particularly the sort of vegetable nourishment which each species of plant extracts from the soil, have been more fully investigated. 4556. A change of the variety, as well as of the species, and even of the plants of the game variety, is found to be attended with advantage ; and in the latter case, or a change of seed, the species and variety being the same, the practice is almost universal. It is well known, that of two parcels of wheat, for instance, as much alike in quality as possible, the one, which had grown on a soil differing much from that on which it is to be sown, will yield a better produce than the other that grew in the same, or a similar soil and climate. The farmers of Scotland, accordingly, find that wheat from the south, even though it be not, as it usually is, better than their own, is a very advantageous change ; and oats and other grain, brought from a clayey to a sandy soil, other things being equal, are more productive than such as have grown on sandy soil. {Suj)p. Encyc. Brit. art. Agr. 144.) 4557. The following are examples of rotations suited to different soils, as given in Brown's excellent Treatise on Rural Affairs. The basis of every rotation, he says, " we hold to be either a bare summer fallow, or a fallow on which drilled turnips arc cultivated, and its conclusion to be with the crops taken in the year preceding a return of fallow or drilled turnips, when of course a new rotation commences. 4558. Rotation for strong deep lands. According to this rotation, wheat and drilled beans are the crops to be cultivated, though clover and rye-grass may be taken for one year in place of beans, should such a variety be viewed as more eligible. The rotation begins with summer fallow, because it is only on strong deep lands that it can be profit- ably practised ; and it may go on for any length of time, or so long as the land can be kept clean, though it ought to stop the moment that the land gets into a contrary con- dition. A considerable quantity of manure is required to go on successfully ; perhaps dung should be given to each bean crop ; and if this crop is drilled, and attentively horse-hoed, the rotation may turn out to be one of the most profitable that can be exercised. 4559. Rotation for loams and clays. Where it may not be advisable to carry the first rotation into execution, a different one can be practised ; according to which labor will be more divided, and the usual grains more generally cultivated ; as, for instance, 1. Fallow, with dung. 4. Barley. 7. Beans drilled and horse-hoed. 2. Wheat. 5. Clover and rye-grass. 8. Wheat. 3. Beans, drilled and horse-hoed. 6. Oats or wheat. This rotation is excellently calculated to insure an abundant return through the whole of it, provided dung is administered upon the clover stubble. Without this supply, the rotation would be cripplied, and inferior crops of course produced in the concluding years. 4560. Rotation for clays and loams of an inferior description. This rotation is calcu- lated for soils of an inferior description to those already treated of. 1. Fallow, with dung. 3. Clover and rye-grass. 5. Beans, drilled andhorse-hoed. 2. Wheat. 4. Oats. 6. Wheat. According to this rotation, the rules of good husbandry are studiously practised, while the sequence is obviously calculated to keep the land in good order, and in such a condition as to ensure crops of the greatest value. If manure is bestowed, either upon the clover- stubble, or before the beans are sown, the rotation is one of the best that can be devised for the soils mentioned. 4561. Rotation for thin clays. On thin clays, gentle husbandry is indispensably ne- cessary, otherwise the soil may be exhausted, and the produce unequal to the expense of cultivation. Soils of this description will not improve much while under grass ; but, unless an additional stock of manure can be procured, there is a necessity of refreshing them in that way, even though the produce should, in the mean time, be comparatively of small value. The following rotation is not an improper one. 1. Fallow, with dung. 3. Grass pastured, but not too 5. Grass, 2. Wheat. early eaten. 6. Oats. 4. Grass. This rotation may be shortened or lengthened, according to circumstances, but should never extend further in point of ploughing, than when dung can be given to the fallow- break . Hiis is the keyston« of the whole ; and if it is neglected, the rotation is rendered Book VI. ROTATION OF CROPS. 739 4562. Rotation for peat earth soils. These are not friendly to wheat, unless aided by a quantity of calcareous matter. Taking them in a general point of view, it is not advis- able to cultivate wheat, but a crop of oats may almost be depended upon, provided the previous management has been judiciously executed. If the subsoil of peat earth lands be retentive of moisture, the process ought to commence with a bare summer fallow ; but if such are incumbent on free and open bottoms, a crop of turnips may be substituted for fallow ; according to which method, the surface will get a body which naturally it did not possess. Grass, on such soils, must always occupy a great space of every ro- tation, because physical circumstances render regular cropping utterly impracticable. 1. Fallow, or turnips with dung. 3. Clover, and a considerable circumstances permit the land to 2. Oats of an early variety. quantity of perennial rye-grass. be broken up, when oats are to be 4. Pasture for several years, till repeated. 4563. Rotation for light soils. These are easily managed, though to procure a full return of the profit which they are capable of yielding, requires generally as much at- tention as is necessary in the management of those of a stronger description. Upon light soils, a bare summer fallow is seldom called for, as cleanliness may be preserved by growing turnips, and other leguminous articles. Grass also is of eminent advantage upon such soils, often yielding a greater profit than what is afibrded by culmiferous crops. 1. Turnips. 3. Clover and rye-grass. 2. Spring wheat, or barley. 4. Oats or wheat. This is a fashionable rotation ; but it may be doubted whether a continuance of it for any considerable period is advisable, because both turnips and clover are found to fall off when repeated so often as once in four years. Perhaps the rotation would be greatly improved were it extended to eight years, whilst the ground, by such an extension, would be kept fresh and constantly in good condition. As for instance, were seeds for pasture sown in the second year, the ground kept three years under grass, broke up for oats in the sixth year, drilled with beans and pease in the seventh, and sown with wheat in the eighth ; the rotation would then be complete, because it included every branch of hus- bandry, and admitted a variety in management generally agreeable to the soil, and always favorable to the interest of cultivators. The rotation may also consist of six crops, were the land kept only one year in grass, though few situations admit of so much cropping, unless additional manure is within reach. 4564. Rotation for sandy soils. These, when properly manured, are well adapted to turnips, though it rarely happens that wheat can be cultivated on them with advantage, unless they are dressed with alluvial compost, marl, clay, or some such substances as will give a body or strength to them, which they do not naturally possess. Barley, oats, and rye, the latter especially, are, however, sure crops on sands, and in favorable seasons will return greater profit than can be obtained from wheat. 1. Turnips, consumed on the ground. 3. Grass. 2. Barley. 4, Rye or oats. By keeping the land three years in grass, the rotation would be extended to six years, a measure highly advisable. 4565. These examples are sufficient to illustrate the subject of improved rotations j but as the best general schemes may be sometimes momentarily deviated from with ad- vantage, the same able author adds, that " cross cropping, in some cases, may perhaps be justifiable in practice; as, for instance, we have seen wheat taken after oats with great success, when these oats had followed a clover crop on rich soil ; but, after all, as a gene- ral measure, that mode of cropping cannot be recommended. We have heard of an- other rotation, which comes almost under the like predicament, though, as the test of experience has not yet been applied, a decisive opinion cannot be pronounced upon its merits. This rotation begins with a bare fallow, and is carried on with wheat, grass for one or more years, oats, and wheat, where it ends. Its supporters maintain that beans are an uncertain crop, and cultivated at great expense ; and that in no other way will corn, in equal quantity and of equal value, be cultivated at so little expense, as according to the plan mentioned. That the expense of cultivation is much lessened, we acknowledge, because no more than seven ploughings are given through the whole rotation ; but Whether the crops will be of equal value, and whether the ground will be preserved in equally good condition, are points which remain to be ascertained by ex- perience." {Brown on Rural Affairs.) 4566. As a general guide to devising rotations on day soilsj it may be observed, that winter or autumn sown crops are to be preferred to such as are put in in spring. Spring ploughing on such soils is a hazardous business, and not to be practised where it can possibly be avoided. Except in the case of drilled beans, there is not the slightest necessity for ploughing clays' in the spring months ; but as land intended to carry beans ought to be early ploughed, so that the benefit of frost may be obtained, and as the seed furrow is an ebb one, rarely exceeding four inches in deepness^ the hazard of spring 3 B 2 740 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Pam III. ploughing for this article is not of much consequence. Ploughing with a view to clean soils of the description under consideration, has little effect, unless given in the summer months. This renders summer fallow indispensably necessary, and without this radical process, none of the heavy and wet soils can be suitably managed, or preserved in a good condition. 4567. To adopt a judicious rotation of cropping for every soil, requires a degree of judgment in the farmer, which can only be gathered from observation and experience. The old rotations were calculated to wear out the soil, and to render it unproductive. To take wheat, barley, and oats in succession, a practice very common thirty years ago, was sufficient to impoverish the best of land, while it put little into the pockets of the farmer ; but the modern rotations, such as those which we have described, are founded on principles which ensure a full return from the soil, without lessening its value, or impoverishing its condition. Much depends, however, upon the manner in which the different processes are executed, for the best arranged rotation may be of no avail, if the processes belonging to it are imperfectly and unseasonably executed. (See 2158.) Sect, II. Of the working of Fallows. 4568. The practice of falloiving, as we have seen in our historical view of Greek and Roman agriculture, has existed from the earliest ages ; and the theory of its beneficial effects we have endeavored to explain. (2125.) The Romans with their agriculture in- troduced fallows in every part of Europe, and two crops, succeeded either ar's fallow, or by leaving the land to rest for two or more years, became the rotation on all soils and under all circumstances. This mode of cultivating arable land is still the most universal in Europe ; its prevalence till very lately in Britain created a powerful aversion to naked fallows, by which a crop was lost every year they occurred, and called forth numerous attempts to shew that they were unnecessary, consequently an immense public loss. This anti-fallowing mania, as it has been called, was chiefly supported by Arthur Young, Nathaniel Kent, and others, members or correspondents of the Board of Agriculture: it was at its greatest height about the beginning of the present century, but has now spent its force, and after exhausting all the arguments on both sides, as an able author has observed, " the practice does not appear to give way, but rather to extend." 4569. The edcjiediency or inexpediency of pulverising and cleaning the soil by a barefal- loWy is a question that can be determined only by experience, and not by argument. No reasons, however ingenious, for the omission of this practice, can bring conviction to the mind of a farmer, who, in spite of all his exertions, finds, at the end of six or eight years, that his land is full of weeds, sour and comparatively unproductive. Drilled and horse hoed green crops, though cultivated with advantage on almost every soil, are probably in general unprofitable as a substitute for fallow, and after a time altogether inefficient. It is not because turnips, cabbages, &c. will not grow in such soils, that a fallow is re- sorted to, but because, taking a course of years, the value of the successive crops is found to be so much greater, even though an unproductive year is interposed, as to induce a preference to fallowing. Horse-hoed crops, of beans in particular, postpone the recur- rence of fallow, but in few situations can ever exclude it altogether. On the other hand, the instances that have been adduced, of a profitable succession of crops on soils of this description, without the intervention of a fallow, are so well authenticated, that it would be extremely rash to assert that it can in no case be dispensed with on clay soils. In- stances of this kind are to be found in several parts of Young's Annals (f jigri- culture ; and a very notable one, on Greg's farm of Coles, in Hertfordshire, is accurately detailed in the sixth volume of The Communications to the Board of Agricul- ture. 4570. The principal causes of this extraardinary difference amor) g men of great experience, may probably be found in the quality of the soil, or in the riature of the climate, or in both. Nothing is more vague than the names by which soils are known in different districts. Greg's farm, in particular, though the soil is denominated " heavy arable land," and " very heavy land," is found so suitable to turnips, that a sixth part of it is always under that crop, and these are consumed on the ground by sheep; a systtm of management, which every farmer must know to be altogether impracticable on the wet tenacious clays of other districts. It may indeed be laid down as a criterion for determining the question, that wherever this management can be profitably adopted, fallow, as a regular branch of the course, must be not less absurd than il is injurious, both to the cultvator and to tiie public. It is probable, therefore, that, in debating this point, the opposite parties are not agreed about the quality of the soil ; and in particular, about its property of absorbing and retaining moisture, so different in soils, that in common language have the same denomination. 4571. Another cause of difference must be found in the climate. It is well known, that a great deal more rain falls on the west than on the east coast of Britain ; and that between the northern and southern coun- ties there is at least a month or six weeks' difference in the maturation of the crops. Though the soil therefore be as nearly as possible similar in quality and surface, the period in which it is accessible to agri- cultural operations must vary accordingly. Thus, in the south-eastern counties of the island, where the crops may be all cut down, and almost all carried home by the end of August, much may be done in cleans- ing and pulverising the soil, during the months of September and October, while the farmers of the north are exclusively employed in harvest work, which is frequently not finished by the beginning of November. Book VI. FALLOWING. 741 In some districts in the south of England, wheat is rarely sown before December ; whereas in the north, and still more in Scotland, if it cannot be got completed by the end of October, it must commonly be de- layed till spring, or oats or barley be taken in p'ace of wheat. It does not then seem of any utility to enter farther into this controversy, which every skilful cultivator must determine for himself. All the crops, and all the mf)de> of management which have been purposed as a substitute for fallow, are well known to such men, an:l would unquestionably have been generally adopted long ago, if, upon a careful consideration of the advantages and disadvantages on both sides, a bare fallow was found to be unprofitable in a course of f'ears. The reader who wishes to examine the question fully may consult, among many others, the fol. owing : — Young's Annals qf Agriculture, and his writings generally ; Hunter's Georgical Essays ; Dick- son's Practical Agriculture ; Sir H. Davy's Agricultural Chemistry ; The Agricultural Chemistry of Chap- tal ; Brown's Treatise on Rural Affairs ; The County Reports ; and The General Report of Scotland. 4572. Fallows unnecessary on friable soils. However necessary the periodical recurrence of fallow may be on retentive clays, its warmest advocates do not recommend it on turnip soils, or on any friable loams incumbent on a porous subsoil ; nor is it in any case necessary every third year, according to the practice of some districts. On the best cultivated lands it seldom returns "oftener than once in six or eight years, and in favorable situations for obtaining an extra supply of manure, it may be advantageously dispensed with for a still longer period. {Suppl. to Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) 4573. The operation offallowing, as commonly practised in England, is a very different and comparatively useless, or at least ineffectual operation, to what it ought to be. In most places the first furrow is not given till the spring, or even till the month of May or June ; or, if it is given earlier, the second is not given till after midsummer, and on the third the wheat is sown. Land may rest under this system of management; but to clean it from weeds, or pulverise it, or give it the benefits of aeration and heat, is im- possible. The farmer in some cases purposely delays ploughing his fallows for the sake of the scanty bite the couch and weeds afford to his sheep ; and for the same reason having ploughed once, he delays the second ploughing. It is not to be wondered at, that under such a system the theoretical agriculturist should have taken a rooted aversion to what are thus erroneously termed fallows. The practice of the best farmers of the northern counties is very different, and that practice we shall here detail. 4574. A proper fallow in variably commences after harvest ; the land intended to be fallow- ed getting one ploughing, which ought to be as deep as the soil will admit, even though a little of the till or subsoil is brought up. This both tends to deepen the cultivated, or manured soil, as the fresh accession of hitherto uncultivated earth becomes afterwards incorporated with the former manured soil, and greatly facilitates the separation of the roots of weeds during the ensuing fallow process, by detaching them completely from any connection with the fast subsoil. This autumnal ploughing, usually called the winter furrow, pro- motes the rotting of stubble and weeds : and if not accomplished towards the end of harvest, must be given in the winter months, or as early in the spring as possible. In giving this first ploughing, the old ridges should be gathered up, if practicable, as in that state they are kept dry during the winter months ; but it is not uncommon to split them out or divide them, especially if the land had been previously highly gathered, so that each original ridge of land is divided into two half ridges. Sometimes, when the land is easily laid dry, the furrows of the old ridges are made the crowns of the new ones, or the land is ploughed in the way technically called crown-and-f arrow. In other instances, two ridges are ploughed together, by what is called castings which has been already described. After the field is ploughed, all the inter-furrows, and those of the headlands, are carefully opened up by the plou'gh, and are afterwards gone over effectually by a laborer with a spade, to remove all obstructions, and to open up the water furrows into the fence ditclies, wherever that seems necessary, that all moisture may have a ready exit. In every place where water is expected to lodge, such as dishes, or hollow places in the field, cross or oblique furrows are drawn by the plough, and their intersections carefully opened into each other by the spade. Wherever it appears necessary, cross cuts are also made through the head ridges into the ditches with a spade, and every possible attention is exerted, tliat no water may stagnate in any part of the field. 4575. As soon as the spring seed-time is over, the fallow land is again ploughed end-long. If formerly split, it is now ridged up; if formerly laid up in gathered ridges, it is split or cloven down. It is then cross-ploughed ; and after lying till sufticiently dry to admit the harrows, it is harrowed and rolled re- peatedly, Add every particle of the vivacious roots of weeds brought up to view, carefully gathered by hand into heaps, and either burnt on the field, or carted off to the compost midden. The fallow is then ridged up, which places it in a safe condition in the event of bad weather, and exposes a new surface to the harrows and roller ; after which the weeds are again gathered by hand, but a i)reviou8 harrowing is necessary. It is afterwards ploughetl, harrowed, rolled, and gathered as often as may be necessary to reduce it into fine tilth and completely to eradicate all root-weeds. Between these successive operations, repeated crops of seedling weeds are brought into vegetation and destroyed. The larvas likewise of Various insects, together with an infinite variety of the seeds of weeds, are exposed to be devoured by bhrd8, which are then the farmer's best friends, though often proscribed as his bitterest enemies. 4576. The use of the harrow and roller in the fallow jirocessy has been condemned by some writers on husbandry, who allege, that frequent ploughing is all that is necessary to destroy root-weeds, by the baking or drying of the clods in the sun and wind ; but experience has ascertained, that frequently turning over the ground, though absolutely necessary while the fallow process is going on, can never eradicate couch-grass or other root-weeds. In all clay soils, the ground turns up in lumps or clods, which the sfiveriJst drought will not penetrate so sufficiently as to kill the included roots. When the lind is again ploughed, these lumps are turned over and no more, and the action of t!h« SB 3 742 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. plough serves in no degree to reduce them, or at least very imperceptibly. It may be added that these lumps likewise inclose innumerable seeds of weeds, which cannot vege- tate unless brought under the influence of the sun and air near the surface. The diligent use, therefore, of the harrow and roller, followed by careful hand-picking, is indispensably necessary to the perfection of the fallow process. {General Report of Scotland, vol. iv. p. 419.) 4577. When effectually reduced to fine tilth, and thoroughly cleaned from roots and weeds, the fallow is ploughed end-long into gathered ridges or lands, usually fifteen or eighteen feet broad ; which are set out in the manner already described, in treating of the striking of furrows oxfeiring. If the seed is to be drilled, the lands or ridges are made of such widths as may suit the construction of the particular drill-machine that is to be employed. After the land has been once gathered by a deep furrow, proportioned to the depth of the cultivated soil, the manure is laid on, and evenly spread over the surface, whether muck, lime, marl, or compost. A second gathering is now given by the plough ; and this being generally the furrow upon which the seed is sown, great care is used to plough as equal as possible. After the seed is sown and the land thoroughly harrowed, all the inter-furrows, furrows of the headlands, and oblique or gaw furrows, are carefully opened up by the plough, and cleared out by the spade, as already mentioned, respecting the first or winter ploughing. 4578. The expense of fallowing must appear, front what has been said, to be very con- siderable, when land has been allowed to become stocked with weeds ; but if it be kept under regular management, corn alternating with drilled pulse or green crops, the sub- sequent returns of fallow vt^ill not require nearly so much labor. In common cases, from four to six ploughings are generally given, with harrowing and rolling between, as may be found necessary ; and, as we have already noticed, the cultivator may be em- ployed to diminish this heavy expense. But it must be considered, that upon the manner in which the fallow operations are conducted, depend not only the ensuing wheat crop, but in a great measure all the crops of the rotation. (Supp. to Encyc. Brit. art. Agr. 128.) Sect. III. Of the general Management of Manures. 4579. The manures of animal, vegetable, or mineral origin have been already described, and their operation explained (2161.) But a very few of these substances can be ob- tained by farmers in general ; whose standard resources are farm- yard dung and lime, and composts of these with earth. It is on the management of these that we propose to deliver the practice of the best British farmers. SuBSECT. 1 . On the Management of Farm^yard Dung. 4580. The basis of farm-yard dung is straw, to which is added in its progress through the farm-yard the excrementitious substances of live stock. From every ton of dry straw, about three tons of farm-yard dung may be obtained, if the after-management be properly conducted ; and, as the weight of straw per acre runs from one ton to one and a half, about four tons of dung, on an average of the different crops, may be produced from the straw of every acre under corn. {Husbandry of Scotland, vol. ii.) Hence (it may be noticed) the great importance of cutting corn as low as possible; a few inches at the root of the stalk weighing more than double the same length at the ear. 4581. The conversion of straw into farm-yard dung in the farmery, is thus effected : The straw is served out to cattle and horses in the houses and fold-yards, either as provender or litter, and commonly for both purposes ; turnips in winter, and green clover in summer are given to the stock both in the houses and yards ; on this food the animals pass a great deal of urine, and afford the means of converting the straw into a richer manure than if it were eaten alone. All the dung from the houses, as they are cleaned out, is regularly spread over the yards, in which young cattle are left loose where litter is usually allowed in great abundance; or over the dunghill itself, if there be one at hand. This renders the quality of the whole mass more uniform ; and the horse- dung, which is of a hot nature, promotes the decomposition of the woody fibres of the straw. 4582. The preparation of the contents of the farm-yard for laying on the land, is by turning it over ; or, what is preferable, carting it out to a dunghill. The operation of carting out is usually performed during the frosts of winter : it is then taken to the field in which it is to be employed, and neatly built in dunghills of a square form, three or four feet high, and of such a length and breadth as circumstances may require. What is laid up in this manner early in winter, is commonly sufficiently prepared for turnips in June ; but if it be not carried from the straw-yards till spring, it is necessary to turn it once or oftener, for the purpose of accelerating the decomposition of the strawey part of the mass. When dung is applied to fallows in July or August, preparatory to autumn sown wheat, a much less degree of putrefaction will suffice than for turnips : a clay soil, on which alone fallows should ever be resorted to, not requiring dung so much rotted as a finely pulverized turnip soil ; and besides, as the wheat does not need all the benefit of the dung for some time, the woody fibre is gradually broken down in the course of the winter, and the nourishment of the plants continued till spring, or later, when its effects are most beneficial. Book VI. FARM-YARD DUNG. V48 4583. In the application of farm-yard dung to land under tillage, particular attentioa is paid to the cleanness of the soil ; and to use it at the time when, from the pulverisation of the ground, it may be most intimately mixed with it. The mOst common time of manuring with farm-yard dung is, therefore, either towards the conclusion of the fallowing operations, or immediately before the sowing of fallow crops. If no dung can be procured but what is made from the produce of the farm, it will seldom be possible to allow more than ten or twelve tons to Qvery acre, when the land is managed under a regular course of white and green crops ; and it is thought more advantageous to repeat this dose at short intervals, than to give a larger quantity at once, and at a more distant period in proportion. [General Report of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 517.) Farm-yard dung, it is well known, is greatly reduced in value by being exposed to the atmosphere in small heaps, previous to being spread, and still more after being spread. Its rich juices are exhaled by the sun, or washed away by the rains, and the residuum is com- paratively worthless. This is in an especial manner the case with long fresh dung, the far greater part of which consists of wet straw in an entire state. All careful farmers, accordingly, spread and cover in their dung with the plough, as soon as possible after it is brought on the land. 4584. The use of fresh dung is decidedly opposite to the practice of the best farmers of turnip soils ; its inutility, or rather injurious effects, from its opening the soil too much, is a matter of experience with every one who cultivates drilled turnips on a large scale. As the whole farm-yard dung, on such land, is applied to the turnip crop, it must necessarily happen that it should be laid on in different stages of putrefaction ; and what is made very late in spring, often after a very slight fermentation, or none at all. The experience of the effect of recent dung is accordingly very general, and the result, in almost every case, is, that the growth of the young plants is slow ; that they remain long in a feeble and doubtful state j and that they seldom, in ordinary seasons, become a full crop, even though twice the quantity that is given of short muck has been allowed. On the other hand, when the manure is considerably decomposed, the effects are immediate, the plants rise vigorously, and soon put forth their rough leaf, after which, the beetle or fly does not seize on them; and in a few weeks, the leaves become, so large, that the plants probably draw the greatest part of their nourishment from the atmosphere. Though it were true, therefore, that more nutritive matter were given out by a certain quantity of dung, applied in a recent state, and allowed to decompose gradually in the soil, than if applied after undergoing fermentation and putrefaction, the objection arising from the slowness of its operation, would, in many instances, be an insuperable one with farmers. But there seems reason to doubt whether fresh strawey manure would ferment much in the soil, after being spread out in so small a quantity as has been already mentioned ; and also, whether, in the warm dry weather of summer, the shallow covering of earth given by the plough would not permit the gaseous matters to escape, to a much greater amount than if fermentation had been completed in a well built covered dunghill. 4585. Another great objection to the use of fresh farm-yard dung is, that the seeds and roots of those plants with which it commonly abounds, spring up luxuriantly on the land ; and this evil nothing but a considerable degree of fermentation can obviate. The mass of materials consists of the straw of various crops, some of the grains of which, after all the care that can be taken, will adhere to the straw; of the dung of different animals voided, as is often the case with horses fed on oats, with the grain in an entire state ; and of the roots, stems, and seeds of the weeds that had grown among the straw, clover, and hay, and such as had been brought to the houses and fold-yards with the turnips and other roots given to live stock. 4586. The degree of decomposition to which farm-yard dung should arrive, before it can be deemed a profitable manure, must depend on the texture of the soil, the nature of the plants, and the time of its application. In general, clayey soils, as more tenacious of moisture, and more benefited by being rendered incohesive and porous, may receive manure less decomposed than well pulverised turnip soils require. Some plants, too, seem to thrive better with fresh dung than others, potatoes in particular ; but all the small-seeded plants, such as turnips, clover, carrots, &c. which are extremely tender in the early stage of their growth, require to be pushed forward into luxuriant vegetation with the least possible delay, by means of short dung. 4587. The season lohen manure is applied, is also a material circumstance. In spring and summer, whether it be used for corn or green crops, the object is to produce an im- mediate effect, and it should therefore be more completely decomposed than may be necessary, when it is laid on in autumn for a crop whose condition will be almost stationary for many months. {Sup. Ency. Brit. art. Agr.) 3 B 4 744 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Pakt III. SoBSECT. 2. Of Lime and its Management as a Manure. 4588. Lime is by far the most important of the fossile manures ; and indeed it may be asserted that no soil will ever be fit for much, that does not contain a proportion of this earth, either naturally or by artificial application. Next to farm-yard dung, lime is in most general use as a manure, though it is one of a quite different character; and when judiciously applied and the land laid to pasture, or cultivated for white and green crops alternately, with an adequate allowance of putrescent manure, its effects are much more lasting, and, in many instances, still more beneficial than those of farm-yard dung. Fossil manures. Sir H. Davy observes, must produce their effect, either by becoming a constituent part of the plant, or by acting upon its more essential food, so as to render it more fitted for the purposes of vegetable life. It is, perhaps, in the former of these ways, that wheat and some other plants are brought to perfection after lime has been applied, upon land that would not bring them to maturity by the most liberal use of dung alone. This being an established fact may be considered one of the greatest importance to all cultivators. 4589. With regard to the quantity of lime that ought to be applied to different soils, it is much to be regretted that Sir Humphrey Davy has not thought proper to enter fully into the subject. Clays, it is well known, require a larger quantity than sands or dry loams. It has been applied, accordingly, in almost every quantity from 100 to 500 bushels or upwards, per acre. About 160 bushels are generally considered a full dress- ing for lighter soils, and 80 or 100 bushels more for heavy cohesive soils. 4590. In the application of lime to arable land, there are some general rules commonly attended to by diligent farmers, which we shall give nearly in the words of a recent publication. 1. As the effects of lime greatly depend on its intimate admixture with the surface soil, it is essential to have it in a powdery state at the time it is applied. 2. Lime having a tendency to sink in the soil, it should be ploughed in with a shallow furrow. 3. Lime may either be applied to grass land, or to land in preparation for green crops or summer fallow, with almost equal advantage ; but, in general, the latter mode of application is to be preferred. 4. Lime ought not to be applied a second time to moorish soils, unless mixed up as a compost, after which the land should be immediately laid down to grass. 5. Upon fresh land, the effect of lime is much superior to that of dung, The ground, likewise, more especially where it is of a strong nature, is more easily wrought; in some instances, it is said, the saving of labor would be sufficient to induce a farmer to lime his land, were no greater benefit derived from the application than the opportunity thereby gained of working it in a more perfect manner. (General Report qf Scotland, vol. ii. p. 536.) 4591. In liming for improving hilly land, with a view to pasture, a much smaller quan- tity has been found to produce permanent and highly beneficial effects, when kept as much as possible near the surface, by being merely harrowed in with the seeds, after a fallow or green crop, instead of being buried by the plough. As this is a matter of much importance to farmers of such land, especially when lime must be brought from a great distance, as was the case in the instance to which we are about to allude, the successful practice of one of the most eminent farmers in Britain cannot be too generally known. A few years after 1 154^ says Dawson, •' having a considerable extent of outfield land in fallow, which I wished to lime previous to its being laid down to pasture, and finding that I could not obtain a sufficient quantity of lime for the whole in proper time, I was induced, from observing the effects of fine loam upon the surface of similar soil, even when covered with bent, to try a small quantity of lime on the surface of this fallow, instead of a larger quantity ploughed down in the usual manner. Accordingly in the autumn, about twenty acres of it were well harrowed, and then about fifty-six Winchester bushels only of unslacked lime were, after being slacked, carefully spread upon each English acre, and immediately well harrowed in. As many pieces of the lime, which had not been fully slacked at ^rst, were gradually reduced to powder by the dews and moisture of the earth, to mix these with the soil, the land was again well harrowed in three or four days thereafter. This land was sown in the spring with oats, with white and red clover and rye-grass seeds, and well harrowed, without being ploughed again. The crop of oats was good ; the plants of grass sufficiently numerous and healthy; and they formed a very fine pasture, which continued good until ploughed some years after for corn. About twelve years afterwards, I took a lease of the hilly farm of Grubbet ; many parts of which, though of an earthy mould tolerably deep, were too steep and elevated to bes kept in tillage. As these lands had been much exhausted by cropping, and were full of couch-grass, to destroy that and procure a cover of fine grass, I fallowed them, and laid on the same quantity of lime per acre, then harrowed, and sowed oats and grass seeds in the spring exactly as in the last mentioned experiment. The oats were a full crop, and the plants of grass abundant. Several of these fields have been now above thirty years in pasture, and are still producing white clover, dnd other fine grasses ; no bent or fbg has yet appeared upon them. It deserves particular notice, that more than treble the quantity of lime was laid upon fields adjoining, of a similar soil, but which being Book VI. COMPOSTS. 745 fitter for occasional tillage, upon them the lime was ploughed in. These fields were also sown with oats and grass-seeds. The latter throve well and gave a fine pasture the first year ; but afterwards the bent spread so fast, that, in three years, there was more of it than of the finer grasses." 4.592. The conclusions which Dawson draws from his extensive practice in the use of lime and dung, deserve the attention of all cultivators of similar land. 1. That animal dung dropped upon coarse, benty pastures, produces little or no improvement upon them ; and that, even when sheep or cattle are confined to a small space, as in the case of folding, their dung ceases to produce any beneficial effect, after a few years, whether the land is continued in pasture, or brought under the plough. 2. That even when land of this description is well fallowed and dunged, but not limed, though the dung augments the produce of the subsequent crop of grain, and of grass also for two or three years, that there- alter its effects are no longer discernible either upon the one or the other. 3. That when this land is limed, if the lime is kept upon the surface of the soil, or well mixed with it, and then laid down to pasture, the finer grasses continue in possession of the soil, even in elevated and exposed situations, for a great many years, to the exclusion of bent and moss. In the case of Grubhet hills, it was observed, that more than thirty years have now elapsed. Besides this, the dung of the animals pastured upon such land adds every year to the luxuriance, and improves the quality of the pasture ; and augments the productive powers of the soil when afterwards ploughed for grain ; thus pro- ducing, upon a benty outfield soil, effects similar to what are experienced when rich infield lands have been long in pasture, and which are thereby more and more enriched. 4. That when a large quantity of lime is laid on such land, and ploughed down deep, the same effects will not be produced, whether in respect to the permanent fineness of the pasture, its gradual amelioration by the dung of the animals pastured on it, or its fertility when afterwards in tillage. On the contrary, unless the surface is fully mixed with lime, the coarse grasses will in a few years regain possession of the soil, and the dung thereafter deposited by cattle will not enrich the land for subsequent tillage. Lastly. It also appears from what has been stated, that the four shift husbandry is only proper for verjr rich land, or in situations where there is a full command of dung. That by far the greatest part of the land of this country requires to be continued in grass two, three, four, or more years, according to its natural poverty; that the objection made to this, viz. that the coarse grasses in a few years usurp pos- session of the soil, must be owing to the surface soil not being sufficiently mixed with lime, the lime baving been covered too deep by the plough. {Fanner's Magazine, vol. xiii. p. 69.) Sect. IV. Of Composts of Earth, Lime, and Dung. 4593. Mixing farm yard dung, in a stale of fermeyitation, with earth, in which there is much inert vegetable matter; as the banks of old ditches, or what is collected from the sides of lanes, &c., will bring this inert, dead matter, consisting of the roots of decayed grasses and other plants, into a state of putridity and solubility, and prepare it for nourishing the crops or plants it may be applied to, in the very manner it acts on peat. Dung, however, mixed with earth, taken from rich arable fields which have been long cultivated and manured, can have no effect as manure to other land that the same earth and dung would not produce applied separately ; because there is generally no inert matter in this description of earth to be rendered soluble. 4594. Mixing dung, earth, and quick-lime together, can never be advisable ; because quick-lime will render some of the most valuable parts of the dung insoluble. (See 2223.) It will depend on the nature of soil or earth, whether even quick-lime only should be mixed with it to form compost. If there be much inert vegetable matter in the earth, the quick-lime will prepare it for becoming food for the plants it may be applied to ; but if rich earth be taken from arable fields, the bottoms of dung-pits, or, in fact, if any soil full of soluble matter be used, the quick-lime will decompose parts of this soluble matter, combine with other parts, and render the whole mass less nourishing as manure to plants or crops, than before the quick-lime was applied to it. Making composts, then, of rich soil ot this description, with dung or lime, mixed or separate, is evidently, to say no more of it, a waste of time and labor. The mixtures of earths of this description with dung produces no alteration in the component parts of the earth, where there is no inert vegetable substances to be acted on ; and the mixture of earth full of soluble matter with dung and quick-lime, in a mass together, has the worst effects, the quick-lime decom- posing and uniting with the soluble matter of the earth, as well as that of the dung ; thus rendering both, in every case, less efficient as manures, than if applied separately from the quick-lime, and even the quick-lime itself inferior as manure for certain soils, than if it had never been mixed with the dung and earth at all. {^Farmer^s Magazine, vol. xv. p. .351.) 4595. Mixing dung in a state of fermentation ivith peat, or forming what in Scotland are called meadow-bank middens (2177.) is a successful mode of increasing the quantity of putrescent manure. The peat being dug and partially dried may either be carted into the farm-yard and spread over the cattle court, there to remain till the whole is carted out and laid upon a dunghill to ferment ; or it may be mixed up with the farm- yard dung as carted out. If care be taken to watch the fermenting process, as the fire of a clay kiln is watched, a few loads of dung may be made to rot many loads of peat. Adding lime to such composts does not in the least promote fermentation, while it renders the most valuable parts of the mass insoluble. Adding sand, ashes, or earth, by tending to consolidate the mass, will considerably impede the progress of fermentation4 746 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Chap. II. Of the Culture of the Cereal Grasses, 4596. The com crops cultivated in Britain are, wheat, rye, barley, and oats. Other culmiferous plants, as the maize, millet, and rice, have been tried with partial success in warm districts, but they have no chance whatever of ever becoming general in our climate. 4597. On the culture of culmiferous plants, a few general remarks may be of use to the young farmer. Culmiferous plants, like most others, have two sets of roots. The first ori- ginate with the germination of the grain, and are always under the soil, and are called the seminal roots ; the second spring from the first joint which is formed above the sur- face of the soil, and from that joint strike down into the soil ; these are called the coronal roots. The coronal roots appear chiefly intended for drawing nourishment from the soil ; and, as Professor Martyn has observed, are judiciously placed for this purpose, the richest part of all soils being on or near the surface. These fibres are of larger diameter, more succulent, and never so long as the seminal or tap-root. From these facts as to the roots of culmiferous plants, some important hints may be derived as to their culture. The use of stirring the surface in spring to facilitate the entrance of the coronal roots, is obvious ; the immediate effect of a top-dressing is also apparent, and also that manures may be ploughed in too deep to give the full amount of their beneficial effects to corn crops or grasses. Sagret, a scientific French agriculturist, proved experimentally, that where any of the grains or grasses are etiolated immediately after germination, by growing too rapidly, or being sown too thick, or in too warm a season, the first joint from which the coronal or nourishing roots spring, is raised above the ground, and in consequence either throws out no roots at all, or so few, as to nourish it imperfectly, in which case it either dies before it comes into flower, or before the seed is matured. {Mem, de la Soc Jg. de Seine, torn, ii.) 4598. The nutritive products of the plants to be treated of in this section, are thus given by Sir H. Davy. Whole 1 Extract, | Systematic Names. English Names. The quantity analysed, of each sort 1000 parts. quantity of soluble or nutri- tive mat- ter. Mucil. age or starch. Saccha- rine mat- ter or sugar. Gluten or albu- men. or matter I rendered insoluble durmg the oper- ation. Triticum hybernum Middlesex wheat, average crop - 955 765 190 aestivum Spring wheat ... 3Iildewed wheat of 1806 940 700 _ 240 210 178 32 Blighted wheat of 1804 650 520 130 Thick-skinned Sicihan wheat of 1810 - 955 725 230 Thin-skinned Sicilian wheat of 1810 - 961 722 _ 239 Wheat from Poland 950 750 200 North American wheat 955 730 225 Hordeum vulgare - Norfolk barley 920 790 70 60 Avena sativa Oats from Scotland 743 641 15 87 Secale cereale Rye from Yorkshire ... 792 645 38 109 Sect. I. Wheat, — Triticum, L. Triandria digynia, L. and GraminecR, J. Fro- ment, Fr. j Weitzen, Ger. ; and Grano, Ital. 4599. "Wheat is by far the most important of the cereal grasses, the flour made from its grains or seeds, from the quantity of gluten it contains, making the best bread in the ■world. A greater proportion of mankind are nourished by rice than by wheat, but there is no grain which comes near this species in its qualities for bread-making. Rice and maize are comparatively unfit for it, and oats, barley, and rye but imperfectly so. Rye, however, comes nearer to wheat in its bread-making qualities, than any other grain. 4600. Of what country wheat is a native, is totally unknown ; it has been supposed of Asia and Africa, and unquestionably it is more likely to belong to these parts of the world than any other; but all that can be advanced on this subject is conjecture. Wheat, with the exception as it is said of some parts of the southern coast of Africa, is cultivated in every part of the temperate and torrid zones, and in some places as high as 2000 feet above the level of the sea. It has been cultivated from time immemorial in Britain, but in few places at a greater elevation than 600 feet. Of course the elevation to which any plant can be cultivated, always depends on the latitude of the situation. 4601. Species and varieties, ifg. 553.) Botanists reckon seven species of triticum, which are or may be cultivated for their grains, besides many varieties and subvarieties of those in common culture. The species or subspecies are. 1. Triticum aestivum. Summer wheat or spring wheat (a). 2. hybernum, Lammas wheat (6). 3. compositum, Egyptian wheat («). 4. turgidum, Turgid wheat (dQ. 5. Triticum polonicum, Polish wheat (e). 6. spelta. Spelt wheat (/). 7. monococcum, One-grained wheat [g). Book VI The first, second, fourth, and fifth sorts, are by many botanists considered as only va- rieties, and it is doubtful whether the third and sixth may not be the same; the seventh has all the marks of a distinct species, but it is very questionable whether, if much cul- tivated, it would always continue to produce one row of grains. 4602. The spring or summer wheat (o) is distinguished from that generally sown, by its narrower ears, longer beards, smaller grains, and shorter and more slender straw, and also, that it will not endure our winters. It is commonly sown in April, or even so late as May. It was known to Parkinson in 1666, but has never been much cultivated, excepting in Lincolnshire. It was tried and given up in Northumber- land and Mid Lothian, and also in some counties near London. Many varieties of summer wheat were transmitted a few years ago to the president of the Board of Agriculture from the Agricultural Society of Paris, for the purpose of experiment, and were divided among several distinguished agriculturists, {Communications to the Board of Agriculture, vol. vii. p. 11.) ; but there has not yet been time for estab. lishing their comparative merits, or their adaptation to the climate of Britain. Summer, or as it is often called, spring wheat, has however been long and extensively cultivated in some parts of England, par- ticularly in Lincolnshire ; and it is probable may be found a valuable crop in the southern counties ; but the trials that have been made in the north, do not seem to entitle it to a preference over winter wheat sown in spring, or even oats or barley, in that climate. " 4603. Of the winter or common wheat (6), there are a great number of varieties. Professor Martyn, in Miller's Dictionary, has described forty-nine sorts, and Professor Thaer speaks of a hundred, but affirms that those who describe them know nothing about them, and in all probability include one sort under different names. All the varieties may be reduced to two, the white, and the brown or red grained. As subvarieties, there are the bearded and beardless, the woolly-chafFed, and thin or hairy chaffed, both of the reds and whites. To these some add another variety, which is the spring-sowing common wheat. It is stated by those who maintain that this variety exists, that through long sowing, the progeny, after a number of generations, acquires a habit of coming earlier into blossom than seed from winter-sown grain. This we think very likely, but are not aware that the variety is distinctly known by any recognizable marks in the plants. The red or brown wheats are universally considered as more hardy than the white, but as yielding an inferior flour : the woolly-white is supposed to yield the best flour ; but woolly-chafFed wheats are considered as more liable to the mildew than any other. 4604. The Egyptian, or many-spiked wheat (c), the turgid grey pollard or duck-bill wheat (rf), and the Polish wheat (c), may, for all agricultural purposes, be considered as only varieties of the common winter wheat. They are cultivated in a few places in England, and seeds of them may be procured from the public botanic gardens ; but they are in little estimation. 4605. Spelt wlieat {d), the epautre of the French, is known by its stout straw, whit'h is almost solid, and by its strong spikes, with chaff partially awned, the awns long and stiff. The chaff adheres so close to the grain as not to be separated without great difficulty. This grain, as we have seen, is a good deal sown in the south of Europe. In France it is sown in spring, on land too coarse for common wheat, and it ripens in July and August. It is the principal wheat sown in Suabia and the north of Switzerland ; and is a good deal sown in Spain. The grain is light, and yields but little flour ; but it is said to contain a larger portion of gluten than common wheat, and for that reason is recommended as superior to any other in pastry and confectionary. It is not cultivated in Britain. 4606. The one-grained wheat (g) is known by its small thin spike, and single row of grains; the leaves and straw are remarkably small, but very hard ; and the plants tiller remarkably. It is chiefly cultivated in the mountainous parts of Switzerland, where its straw, like that of the former species, is much u.sed for thatching. The grain makes a brown light bread ; but its great excellence, according to Villars, is for gruel. 4607. To procure new varieties of wheats, the ordinary mode is to select from a field a spike or spikes from the same stalk, which has the qualities sought for ; such as larger grains, thinner chaff, stiffer straw, a tendency to earliness or lateness, &c. ; and picking out the best grains from this ear or ears, to sow them in suitable soil in an open airy part of a garden. When the produce is ripe, select the best ears, and from these the best grains, and sow these, and so on till a bushel or more is obtained, which may then be sown in a field apart from any other wheat. In this way, many of the varieties of our common winter wheat have been obtained ; as the hedge-wheat which was reared from the produce of a stalk found growing in a hedge in Sussex, by one Wood, about 1790. Other varieties have assumed their distinctive marks from having been long cultivated on the same soil and climate, and take local names, as the Hertfordshire red, Essex white, &c. 748 TRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 4608. Marshal (Yorkshire) mentions a case in which a man of accurate observation, having, in a piece of wheat perceived a plant of uncommon strength and luxuriance, diffusing its branches on every side, and setting its closely-surrounding neighbors at defiance, marked it ; and at harvest removed it sepa- rately. The produce was 15 ears, yielding 604 grains of a strong-bodied liver-colored wheat, differing, in general appearance, from every other variety he had seen. The chaff was smooth, without awns, and of the color of the grain ; the straws stout and reedy. These 604 grains were planted singly, nine inches asunder, filling about 40 square yards of ground, on a clover stubbie, the remainder of the ground being sown with wheat in the ordinary way; by which means extraordinary trouble and destruction by birds •were avoided. The produce was two gallons and a half weighing SO^lbs. of prime grain for seed, besides some pounds for seconds. One grain produced 35 ears, yielding 1235 grains ; so that the second year's pro- duce was sufficient to plant an acre of ground. What deters farmers from improvements of this nature is probably the mischievousness of birds ; from which at harvest it is scarcely possible to preserve a small patch of corn especially in a garden or other ground situated near a habitation ; but by carrying on the improvement in a field of corn of the same nature, that inconvenience is got rid of In this situation, however, the botanist will be apprehensive of danger from the floral farina of the surrounding crop. But from what observations Marshal has made he is of opinion his fears will be groundless. No evil of this kind occurred, though the cultivation of the above variety was carried on among white wheat. 4609, But the most systematic mode of procuring new varieties, is by crossing two sorts, as in breeding : that is, by impregnating the female organs of the l)lossoms of one ear with the fecundating matter or pollen of the male organs of the blossom of another variety of a different quality. Thus, supposing a farmer wished to render a very good variety which he was in the habit of cultivating somewhat earlier. Let him procure in the blossoming season, from a very early soil, some spikes of an early sort just coming into blossom, and let him put the ends of these in water and set them in the shade so as to retard their fully blossoming till the plants he has destined to become the females come into flower. Then let him cut out all the male organs of the latter before they have advanced so far as to impregnate the stigma ; and having done this, let him dust the stigma with the blossoming ears of the early or male parent. The impregnated stalks must then be kept apart from other wheats so as the progeny may be true. When the grains ripen, sow the best, and from the produce when ripe, select the earliest and finest spikes for seed. Sow them and repeat the choice till a bushel or two of seed is pro- cured. This operation has been successfully performed by T. A. Knight (1600.), and though it may be reckoned loo delicate for farmers in general, it will be looked on by the philosophical agriculturist as not improbably leading to as important results as has attended the practice in the case of garden fruits and flowers. 4610. The propagation of wheat by transplanting may be employed to expedite the progress of cultivat- ing a new variety of ascertained excellence. To shew what may be gained in time by this mode, we shall quote from The Philosophical Transactions an account of an experiment made by C. Miller, son of the celebrated gardener of that name, in 1766. On the 2nd of June, Miller sowed some grains of the common ted wheat J and on the 8th of August, a single plant was taken up and separated into 18 parts, and each part planted separately. These plants having pushed out several side shoots, by about the middle of ted wheat J and on the 8th_of August, a single plant was taken up and separated into 18 parts, and each jse plants having pushed out several side shi September, some of them were then taken up and divided, and the rest of them between that time and the middle of October. This second division produced 67 plants. These plants remained through the •winter, and another division of them, made about the middle of March and the 12th of April, produced 500 plants. They were then divided no further, but permitted to remain. The plants were, in general, stronger than any of the wheat in the fields. Some of them produced upwards of 100 ears from a single root. Many of the ears measured seven inches in length and contained between 60 and 70 grains. The whole number of ears which, by the process above-mentioned, were produced from one grain of wheat, was 21,109, which yielded three pecks and three quarters of clean corn, the weight of which was 47 lbs. 7 ounces ; and from a calculation made by counting the number of grains in an ounce, the whole number of grains was about 386,840. By this account we find, that there was only one general division of the plants made in the spring. Had a second been made. Miller thinks the number of plants would have amounted to 2000 instead of 500, and the produce thereby been much enlarged. 4611. In making a choice from all the species and vaiieties which vee have named, the thin-skinned white "wheats are preferred by all the best British farmers whose soil and climate are suitable for this grain, and for sowing in autumn. In late situations, and less favorable soils and climates, the red varieties are generally made choice of; and these are also generally preferred for sowing in spring. Red wheats, however, are con • sidered as at least fifteen per cent, less valuable than the white varieties. No sub-variety ever continues very long in vogue ; nor is it fitting that it should, as degeneracy soon takes place, and another and better is sought for as a successor. Hence the on'y re- Commendation we can give as to the choice of subvarieties, is to select the best from among those in use by the best farmers in the given situation, or nearest well-cultivated district. 4612. The soils best adapted for the culture of wheat, are rich clays aiid heavy loams ; but these are not by any means the only description of soils on which it is cultivated. Before the introduction of turnips and clover, all soils but little cohesive were thought quite unfit for wheat ; but even on sandy soils, it is now grown extensively, and with much advantage after either of these crops. The greater part of the wheat crop throughout Britain, however, is probably still sown upon fallowed land. When it succeeds turnips consumed on the ground, or clover cut for hay or soiling, it is com- monly sown after one ploughing ; but upon heavier soils, or after grass of two or more years, the land is ploughed twice or three times, or receives what is called a rag fallow. (Supp. Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) 46 1 3. On rich days, wheat may be cultivated almost every second year, provided due care Book VI. WHEAT. 749 is taken to keep the land clean, and in good condition. A summer fallow once in four, six, or eight years, according to seasons and circumstances, is, however, necessary ; and manure should either be apph'ed on that fallow for the first crop of wheat, or, what some people think preferable, should be laid on the wheat-stubble for a crop of drilled beans, which ensures the succeeding crop of wheat. If the first crop of beans has been com- pletely cleaned, there is no difficulty of repeating, and even of extending the course ; and the crops will be little inferior to those gained at the beginning of the rotation, pro- vided manure has been bestowed to each crop of beans. In this way, when the ground is fallowed every fourth year, two crops of wheat and one of beans are gained from manuring once ; when fallowed every sixth year, three crops of wheat and two of beans are gained from manuring twice ; and, when fallowed every eighth year, four crops of wheat and three of beans from manuring thrice. In the first-mentioned shift, less manure is bestowed than in any of the other two ; and if the soil is of good quality, it will support itself; whereas, in the shifts of six and eight, unless foreign manure is pro- cured, it rarely happens that they can go on successfully for any length of time, without abstracting dung from other parts of the farm on which they are practised. [Brown's Tr. on Rural Affairs.) 4614. In cultivating wheat on thin clays, the rotations just mentioned are inapplicable. A six-course shift of a different kind has, however, been successfully followed by many- people ; but it requires every branch of the work to be well executed. 1st, a summer fallow, dunged at the rate of twelve or fourteen double loads per acre ; 2d, wheat ; 3d, grass; 4th, oats; 5th, pease and beans drilled; 6th, wheat. If manure can be given in the middle of the shift, every one of the crops may be expected good ; but if that is withheld, there will necessarily be a proportionable ialling off in the two last crops. Husbandmen must, however, regulate their practice according to their means ; though it deserves to be remarked, that, if greater attention were paid to the collecting of materials which ultimately are converted into manure, many deficiencies in the article would be fully supplied. {Brown ) 4615. Excellent wheat may be grown on light soils, with the exception of soft' sands. Such soils, however, are not constitutionally disposed to the growth of that grain ; nor will they, under any management, bear such a frequent repetition of it as those already mentioned. Summer fallow on them may safely be dispensed with ; because a crop of turnips, which admits every branch of the cleaning process to be more perfectly executed than even a naked or bare fallow does, may be profitably substituted. Wheat here comes in with propriety after turnips, though, in general cases, it must be sown in the spring months, unless the turnips are stored ; in which case, it may be sown in November, or it may be sown after clover, for the fourth crop after the rotation ; or in the sixth year, as a way-going crop, after drilled pease and beans, if the rotation is extended to that length. But, take it any way, it is scarcely possible to raise wheat so extensively upon light soils, even where they are of the richest quality, as is practicable upon clays ; nor will a crop of equal bulk upon the one, return so much produce in grain as may be got from the other. To enlarge upqn this point would only serve to prove what few husbandmen will dispute, though, it may be added, that, on thin sands, wheat ought not to be ven- tured, unless they are either completely clayed or marled, as it is only with the help of these auxiliaries that such a soil can gain stamina capable of producing wheat with any degree of success. (Brown. ) 4616. The culture of the soil intended fur wheat varies according to its nature, and the preceding and following crops. " On soils really calculated for wheat, though in dif- ferent degrees, summer fallow is the first and leading step to gain a good crop or crops of that grain. The first furrow should be given before winter, or so early as other operations upon the farm will admit ; and every attention should be used to go as deep as possible ; for it rarely happens that any of the succeeding furrows exceed the first one in that re- spect. The number of after-ploughings must be regulated by the condition of the ground and the state of the weather; but, in general, it may be observed, that plough- ing in length and across, alternately, is the way by which the ground will be most com- pletely cut, and the intention of fallowing accomplished. It has been argued, that harrowing clay soils, when summer fallowed, is prejudicial to the wheat crop ; but, without discussing this point (such a discussion being unnecessary!, it may merely be stated, that, in a dry season, it is almost impracticable to reduce real clays, or to work them too small ; and that, even in a wet one, supposing they are made surface-smooth, they will, when ploughed up again, consolidate into clods or big lumps after forty-eight hours' drought, and become nearly as obdurate as ever. It is only on thin soils, which have a mixture of peat earth, and are incumbent on a bottom impervious to water, that damage is at any time sustained by over harrowing. Such are generally of a weak tex- ture, and may be broken down with facility by the roller and harrow. If caught by much rain before the pores are in some measure closed, the moisture is greedily ab- sorbed; and being prevented from going downwards by the hardness of the subsoil, the 750 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. whole surface becomes a kind of mortar or paste, unless previously well ridged up; which, to a certain extent, prevents the consequences from being dangerous. These evils, however, must be submitted to by the possessors of such soils, if they want to have them sufficiently fallowed and prepared in a proper manner ; for, without reducing them, couch-grass, and especially moss, with which they are commonly stored, can- not be eradicated. If they are reduced in the early part of the season, the danger is small ; but to break them down in the latter part ought always to be avoided, unless called for by imperious necessity. 4617. When wheat is sbwn after beans, it rarely happens, in this northern climate, that more than one ploughing can successfully be bestowed. Before this is given, it is ad- vantageous to cross-harrow the land, which levels the drills, and permits the ploughing process to be executed with precision. Almost in every case, the ridges should be ga- thered up, so that the furrows may be well cleared out, and the plants preserved from injury during the inclement winter season. Clover land should be neatly ploughed, and well laid over, so that the roots of the grasses may be buried and destroyed ; for it frequently happens, that crops of wheat after clover and rye-grass, are greatly injured by inattention to the ploughing process. In short, sowing wheat after clover may be ild-boards, which covers both the seed and the manure in the most perfect manner. When beans are sown by the other method, in the bottom of a common furrow, the dung must be previously spread over the surface ef the winter or spring ploughing. Three ploughs then start in succession, one immediately behind another, and a drill barrow either follows the third plough, or is attached to it, by which the beans are sown in every third- furrow, or at from twenty-four to twenty-seven inches asunder, according to the breadth of the furrow- slice. 4777. Anotfier approved way qf sowing beans, when dung is applied at seed-time, is to spread the dung and to plough it down with a strong furrow ; after this shallow furrows are drawn, into which the seed is deposited by the drill-machine. Whichever of these modes of sowing is followed, the whole field must be carefully laid dry by means of channels formed by the plough, and when necessary by tbe shovel; for neither then nor at any former period should water be allowed to stagnate on the land. 4778. The dibbling of beans is considered by Arthur Young as an excellent method, when well performed; but the grand objection to it is the difficulty of getting it well done. When it becomes the common husbandry of a district, the workmen find that great earnings are to be made by it ; and this is much too apt to make them careless, and eager to earn still more ; and if a ver}' minute attention be not paid to them, by the constant attendance of the farmer, they strike the holes so shallow, that the first peck of a rook's bill takes the seed, and acres may be destroyed, if the breed of those birds be encouraged. Boys are employed for weeks together to keep the fields> but all works Book VI. THE BEAN. 771 that depend on boys are horribly neglected, and thus the farmer suffers materially ; but if the seed is deposited two and a half, or (better) three inches deep, it is not so easily eradicated. In some districts, as Middlesex, Surrey, &c. the method is, to plant this pulse in rows stricken out by a line, by which a great saving is made in the article of seed, a circumstance which is thought to compensate for the extraordinary charge of this mode of husbandry ; and thus far may be fairly acknowledged, that the method of planting beans by the dibber is greatly to be preferred to that of sowing the seed at random j the economy of this agricultural process is thus explained : the rows are marked out one foot asunder, and the seed planted in holes made two inches apart : the lines are stretched across the lands, which are formed about six feet over, so that when one row is planted, the sticks to which the line is fastened are moved by a regular measurement to the distance required, and the same method pursued till the field is completed. The usual price for this work is ninepence per peck, and the allowance two bushels per acre. Great confidence must necessarily be reposed in the people who transact the business of planting beans by the dibber, who, if inclined to fraud, have it in their power to deceive their employer by throwing great part of the seed into the hedge, from which their daily profits are considerably enhanced, their own labor spared, and every discovery effectually precluded, till the appearance of the crop, when the frequent chasms in the rows will give sufficient indications of the fraud ; and by this time, per- haps, the villainous authors of the mischief may have escaped all possibility of detection, by having conveyed themselves from the scene of their iniquity. 4779. The quantity of seed allowed is very different in the southern and northern parts of Britain ; in the former, even when the rows are narrow, only two bushels or two bushels and a half; but in Scotland, seldom less than four bushels to the English statute acre, even when sown in ridgelets twenty-seven inches distant, and a bushel more when sown broad-cast. We seldom have seen thin beans turn out well, unless the soil is particularly rich ; nay, unless the rows close, weeds will get away after the clean- ing process is finished, thereby disappointing the object of drilling, and rendering the system of little avail towards keeping the ground in good condition. Both irr the broad-cast and drill husbandry, it is common to mix a small quantity of pease along with beans. This mixture improves both the quantity and quality of the straw for fodder, and the pease-straw is useful for binding up the sheaves in harvest. 4780. The after culture of the bean crop commences with harrowing just before the young plants reach the surface. When sown in rows, in either of the modes already mentioned, the harrows are employed about ten or twelve days after ; and, being driven across the ridgelets, the land is laid completely level for the subsequent operations, and the annual weeds destroyed. 4781. After the beans have made some growth, sooner or later, according as the soil may happen to be encumbered with or free from weeds, the horse-hoe is employed in the interval between the rows ; and followed by the hand-hoe for the purpose of cutting down such weeds as the horse-hoe cannot reach ; all the weeds, that grow among the beans beyond the reach pf either hoe, should be pulled up with the hand. The same operations are repeated as often as the condition of the land, in regard to cleanness, may require. 4782. Before the introduction of the horse-hoe, which merely stirs the soil, and cuts up the weeds, a common small plough, drawn by one horse, was used in working between the rows, and is still necessary where root-weeds abound. This plough goes one bout, or up and down in each interval, turning the earth from the beans, and forming a ridge- let in the middle ; then hand-hoes are immediately employed ; and after some time, a second hand-hoeing succeeds to destroy any fresh growth of weeds. The same plough, with an additional mould-board, finally splits open the intermediate ridgelet, and lays up the earth to the roots of the beans on each side. The benefit of laying up the earth in this manner, however, is alleged to be counterbalanced by the trouble which it occasions in harvest, when it is difficult to get the reapers to cut low enough, and may be properly dispensed with, unless the soil be very wet and level. 4783. In moist warm seasons, this grain hardly ever ripens effectually ; and it is ex- ceedingly difficult to get the straw into a proper condition for the stack. In such cases, it has been found of advantage to switch off the succulent tops with an old scythe blade set in a wooden handle, with which one man can easily top-dress two acres a day. This operation, it is said, will occasion the crop to be ready for reaping a fortnight earlier, and also, perhaps a week sooner ready for the stack-yard after being reaped. 4784. Before reaping beans the grain ought to be tolerably well ripened, otherwise the quality is impaired, whilst a long time is required to put the straw in such a condition as to be preserved in the stack. In an early harvest, or where the crop is not weighty, it is an easy matter to get beans sufficiently ripened; but, in a late harvest, and in every one where the crop takes on a second growth, it is scarcely practicable to get them thoroughly ripened for the sickle.. Under these circumstances, it is unnecessary tp let beans stancj 3 D 2 772 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. uncut after the end of September, or the first of October ; because any benefit that can be gained afterwards, is not to be compared with the disadvantages that accompany a late wheat seed-time. Beans are usually cut with the sickle, and tied in sheaves, either with straw ropes, or with ropes made from pease sown along with them. It is proper to let the sheaves lie untied several days, so that the winning process may be hastened, and, when tied, to set them up on end, in order that full benefit from the air may be obtained, and the grain kept oflf the ground. {Brown. ) 4785. Beans are sometimes mowrif and in a few instances, even pulled up by the roots. They should in every case be cut as near the ground as possible, for the sake of the straw, which is of considerable value as fodder, and because the best pods are often placed on the stems near the roots. They are then left for a few days to wither, and afterwards bound and set up in shocks to dry, but without any head sheaves. (Supp. S^c.) 4786. Beans are stacked either in the round or oblong manner, and it is always proper, if the stack be large, to construct one or more funnels to allow a free circulation of air. 4787. T/ie threshing of beans is nearly as easy as that of pease. Threshing them by a machine may be considered advantageous as breaking the coarser ends of the straw, and separating the earth from their root-ends, or roots, if they have been reaped by pulling. 4788. The produce of beans, when proper management is exercised, and where diseases have not occurred, is generally from twenty-five to thirty-five bushels per acre. Donaldson says, that a crop of beans, taking the island at large, may be supposed to vary from six- teen to forty bushels, but that a good average crop cannot be reckoned to exceed twenty. In Middlesex, Middleton tells us, that bean-crops vary fiom ten to eighty bushels per acre. They are rendered a very precarious crop by the ravages of myriads of small black insects of the same species. The lady-birds {Coccinella) are supposed to feed on them, as they are observed to be much among them. Foot says, the average produce is from three and a half to four quarters per acre. In Kent, A. Young thinks, they probably ex- ceed four quarters ; but in Suffolk, he should not estimate them at more than three j yet five or six are not uncommon. 4789. The produce in haulm, in moist seasons, is very bulky. 4790. I7i the application of beans, the grain in Scotland is sometimes made into meal, the finer for bread and the coarser for swine ; but beans are for the most part applied to the purpose of feeding horses, hogs, and other domestic animals. In the county of Middlesex, all are given to horses, except what are preserved for seed, and such as are podded while green, and sent to the l^ondon markets. When pigs are fed with beans, it is observed that the meat becomes so hard as to make very ordinary pork, but good bacon. It is also supposed that the mealmen grind many horse-beans among wheat to be manufactured into bread. 4791. Thefiour of beans is more nutritive than that of oats, as appears in the fattening of hogs ; whence, according to the respective prices of these two articles, Dr. Darwin suspects that pease and beans generally supply a cheaper provender for horses than oats, as well as for other domestic animals. But as the flour of pease and beans is more oily, he believes, than that of oats, it may in general be somewhat more diflScult of digestion ; hence, when a horse has taken a stomach-full of pease and beans alone, he may be less active for an hour or two, as his strength will be more employed in the digestion of them than when he has taken a stomach-full of oats. A German physician gave to two dogs, which had been kept a day fasting, a large quantity of flesh food; and then taking one of them into the fields, hunted him with great activity for three or four hours, and left the other by the fire. An emetic was then given to each of them, and the food of the sleeep- ing dog was found perfectly digested, whilst that of the hunted one had undergone but little alteration. Hence it may, he says, be found advisable to mix bran of wheat with the pease and beans, a food of less nutriment but of easier digestion ; or to let the horses eat before or after them the coarse tussocks of sour grass, which remain in moist pastures in the winter ; or, lastly, to mix finely-cut straw with them. It is observed in the fifth volume of The Bath Papers, that it has been found by repeated experience, that beans are a much more hearty and profitable food for horses than oats. Being out of old oats the two last springs, the writer substituted horse-beans in "their stead. In the room of a sack of oats with chaff, he ordered them a bushel of beans with chaff, to serve the same time. It very soon appeared the beans were superior to the oats, from the ife, spirit, and sleekness of the horses. 4792. Bean straw, when mixed with pease. Brown considers as affording almost as much nourishment when properly harvested, as is gained from hay of ordinary quality ; when it is well got the horses are fonder of it than of pease straw. It should either be given when newly threshed, or else stacked up and compressed by treading or coverings, as the air is found materially to affect both its flavor and nutritive quality. 4793. 2Vie produce of beans in meal is like that of pease, more in proportion to the grain than in any of the cereal grasses. A bushel of beans is supposed to yield fourteen Book VI. THE TARE. 773 pounds more oif flour than a bushel of oats, and a bushel of pease eighteen pounds more, or, according to some, twenty pounds. A thousand parts of bean flour were found, by Sir H. Davy, to yield 570 parts of nutritive matter, of which 426 were mucilage or starch, 103 gluten, and 41 extract, or matter rendered insoluble during the process. 4794. The diseases of beans are, the rust, the honey-dew, mildew, and black fly or aphides. These diseases are brought on by very dry weather ; the fly almost always succeeds the honey-dew ; both are most prevalent on the summits of the plants, and some have attempted to mitigate the evil by cutting them off. In general, however, these diseases are without remedy, either preventive or positive. In extreme cases they destroy both the leaves, stalks, and fruit ; and when this is foreseen, the best thing the farmer can do is to mow them or plough them down, and prepare the land for wheat o otherwise, according to the rotation. Sect. III. The Tare. — Vicia sativat L. Diadel. Decan. L. and Leguminosete, J. Vesce, Fr. ; Wicke, Ger. ; and Loglio, Ital. 4795. The tare, vetch, or fitch (Vicia sativa,fig. 564.), has been cultivated for its stem and leaves from time immemorial. It is considered as a 564 native plant, and is found wild also in China and Japan. Ray, in 1686, informs us that the common tare or vetch, was then sown almost all over Europe ; that it was chiefly used in England, mixed with pease and oats, to feed horses ; but that it was sometimes sown separately for soiling cattle, and was reputed to cause milch cows to yield much milk. The tare. Brown observes, is of hardy growth, and, when sown upon rich land, will return a large supply of green fodder for the consumption of horses, or for fatten- ing cattle. 4796. The varieties of tares are chiefly two, the winter and spring tare ; both have local names, as gore vetch, rath ripe vetch, &c. Some consider them as distinct species, but this is doubtful. As the result of an experiment tried for two years at Bury, in Suffolk, Professor Mar- tyn observes, that there appears a material difference in the constitution, if we may so call it, of the two tares in ques- tion. Not to say any thing of a trifling difference in the color and size of their seeds, the only visible marks of distinction seems to be a disparity in the first leaves of the upright stalks, which, in the spring tare, are elliptic and rounded or notched at the end ; but in the winter tare, linear and drawn to a point. The leaves on the branches which afterwards issue below, and in time form the bulk of the plants, are the same in both vetches. But whatever the difference may be, it is evident that the seeds of the two sorts ought to be kept separate, since each sown out of its proper season is found not to prosper. ' 4797. JSFeiv varieties of tare may be obtained by the usual means ; and it is thought that some of the numerous species of this plant, which are natives of Europe, might be cultivated with advantage. The vicia narbonnensis and seratifolia are cultivated in Ger- many. Dr. Anderson has recommended the V. sepium ; and a writer in The Bath Agricultural Transactions, the V. cracca. Some species of lathyrus, orobus, and ervura, might probably also be tried with success. 47 98. In choosing hetween the spring and winter tare, every thing must depend on the intention of the crop. If the object is to have early feed, the winter variety is im- doubtedly to be preferred ; but where the land is foul and requires to be two or three times ploughed in spring, or where a late crop is desired, or a crop for seed, then the spring variety will generally deserve the preference. 4799. The soil preferred by the tare is a clay, but they will grow in any rich soil not over dry. In a moist climate, the haulm grows so luxuriant as to rot at bottom ; and in one over dry it is deficient in length. A dry season, however, is on the whole more favorable than a moist one, as this crop soon covers the surface. 4800. The preparation of the soil seldom consists of more than one ploughing, if fof autumn sowing ; and of a winter and spring ploughing, when to be sown in spring. If in the latter case, the land is very foul, several ploughings are given, or one plough- ing and several stirrings with the cultivator. In general, tares succeed some of the corn crops. In England manure is sometimes given either with a view to eating them off early, and following with a crop of turnips, or to the enriching the soil for a crop of Vrheat. 4801. The tin/ie of sowing depends on the kind of tare, and the purpose in view. The winter variety is .sown in September and October ; and the first sowing in spring ought to be as early as the season will permit. If they are to be cut gfeen for soiling througli- 3 D 3 774 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. out the summer and autumn, which is the most advantageous method of consuming them, successive sowings should follow till the end of May. Summer tares, when meant for seed. Brown observes, ought to be sown early, " otherwise the return will be imper- fect ; but when for green food, any time betwixt the first of April and the latter end of May will answer well, provided crops in succession, from the first to the last mentioned period, be regularly cultivated. Instances are not wanting of a full crop being obtained even when the seed was sown so late as the middle of June, though sowing so late is a practice not to be recommended. In Middlesex, the winter-sowings are commenced about the beginning of August : in the northern counties no winter-sowings are made, as the tare there will not endure the severity of tht season. 4802. The mode of sowing tares is mostly broad-cast, which should be performed as evenly as possible over the surface of well-prepared land ; the seeds being after- wards covered in by proper harrowing, in order to prevent their being picked up by birds, and ensure their perfect vegetation and growth. It has been suggested, how- ever, that in rich clean soil, it is probable the row-method would succeed well with this sort of crop, as Marshal states, is the practice in some of the southern districts of the island. After the seed is sown, and the land carefully harrowed, a light roller ought to be drawn across, so that the surface may be smoothed, and the scythe permitted to work without interruption. It is proper also to guard the field for several days against the depredations of pigeons, who are remarkably fond of tares, and will pick up a great part of the seed, unless constantly watched. 4803. The quantity of seed to an acre is from two and a half to three and a half bushels, ac- cording to the time of sowing, and as they are to be consumed green or left to stand for a crop. When tares are intended for seed, less seed is required than when they are grown for soiling or for drying the haulm. A writer in The Farmer s Magazine (vol. i.) has sug- gested that the most productive method of sowing this crop, when intended for seed, is to mix them amongst beans when drilled, at the rate of one firlot of tares to one boll of beans. From trials made, it is ascertained, it is said, that the quality of the tares is vastly improved by being blended with beans, as, by clinging to the latter, they are kept from the ground, and enjoy the full benefit of the sun, for ripening them in a perfect manner; and they are in this way much easier harvested than when sown by themselves. They answer, at the same time, for bands to tie the principal crop ; and the produce may, on an average of seasons, be considered as at least double. A little rye sown with winter tares, and a few oats with the spring sort, not only serve to support the weak creeping stems of the tares, but add to the bulk of the crop by growing up through the interstices. 4804. In the choice of the seed it is hardly possible to distinguish the grain of the winter from that of the spring variety : the former is alleged to be rather smaller and lighter colored ; but the only reliance must be on the honesty of the vendor. Plump seed and a sample free from the seeds of weeds, will of course be selected, whatever be tiie variety. 4805. The after culture given to tares consists merely in pulling out the larger weeds, unless they are in rows, in which case the horse or hand-hoe is applied ; or intended for seed, in which case weeding must be more particularly executed. 4806. In reaping tares for soiling they ought always to be cut with the scythe, as, the sickle by breaking asunder the stalks, and tearing up a number by the roots, renders the second crop of little value. When mown early, they will in a moist season produce three mowings, but generally two. In reaping tares for seed, they may be either mown or taken with the sickle, and treated like pease in drying, stacking, and threshing* 4807. Tares are eaten off the ground in some places by diflferent kinds of live-stock, particularly by sheep ; and as the winter-sown variety comes very early in spring, the value of this rich food is then very considerable. The waste, however, in this way, even though the sheep be confined in hurdles, must be great ; and still greater when consumed by horses or cattle. 4808. Tare crops are sometimes made into hay, in which case more attention is found necessary than in those of most of the artificial grasses, as wet is more injurious to them, and they require more sun and air ; but in other respects they demand the same cautious management, in order to preserve the foliage from being lost. The time for cutting for this purpose is, according to the author of The Synopsis of Husbandry, when the blossoms have declined and they begin to fall and lie flat. When well made, the hay is of the ^est and most nutritious quality or properties. ' 4809. The produce of tares cut green is, according to Middleton, ten or twelve tons per acre, which is a large crop ; and when made into hay at about three tons the acre, which shows the disadvantage of making these crops into hay. And it is found, that the spring tare crops are lighter, and most liable to be injured by a dry season. 4810. The produce in seed is likewise found to be considerable, being by some stated at from three to six sacks ; but in other instances forty bushels, or more, have been ob- tained from the atre., 4811 . In the ajrp'lication of tares they are found to be a hearty and most nourishing food Boor VI. EXOTIC LEGUMES. 775 for all sorts of cattle. Cows give more butter when fed with this plant than with any other food whatsoever. Horses thrive better upon tares tlian they do upon clover and rye- grass; and the same remark is applicable to fattening of cattle, who feed faster upon this article of green fodder, than upon any kind of grass or esculent with which we are acquainted. Danger often arises from their eating too many, especially when podded ; as colics, and other stomach disorders, are apt to be produced by the excessive loads which they devour. Perhaps a great quantity of fixed air is contained in this vegetable j and as heavy crops are rarely dry at the root when cut, it is not to be wondered that acci« dents often happen, when the animal is indulged with the unrestrained consumption of Ihem. Were oat straw mixed with the tares in the racks or stalls in which they are de- posited, it is probable that fewer accidents would follow, though this assistant is only re- quired when the tares are wet, foul, or over succulent. If the plants be cut green, and given to live-stock, either on the field, or in the fold-yards, there is, perhaps, no green crop of greater value, nor any better calculated to give a succession of herbage from May ta November, The winter-sown tare, in a favorable climate, is ready for cutting before clover. The first spring crop comes in after the clover must be all consumed or made into hay ; and the successive spring sowings give a produce more nourishing for the larger animals than the aftermath of clover, and may afford green food at least a month longer. In the county of Sussex, Young observes, "tare crops are of such use and importance that not one-tenth of the stock could be maintained without them; horses, cows, sheep, hogs, all feed upon them ; hogs are soiled upon them without any other food. Tliis plant main-r tains more stock than any other plant whatsoever. Upon one acre, Davis maintained four horses in much better condition than upon five acres of grass. Upon eight acres he has kept twelve horses and five cows for three months without any other food : no artificial food whatever is equal to this excellent plant." This statement must be coupled with the .usual produce of turnips in Sussex, 10 or 15 tons per acre: hence the supposed supe- riority of tares to every other green crop. Tares cut green. Professor Timer observes, draw no nourishment from the soil whatever, while made into hay, they aflford a fodder preferred by cattle to pease-straw, and more nutritive than hay or any other herbage. 4812. The use of the grain of tares is generally for reproduction ; but they are also given to pigeons, by whom they are highly relished, and it is thought they would form a very good food for poultry. In Germany they are given to horses, cows, sheep, and swine. 4813. The diseases of tares are so fe w as to be of no consequence. A crop is sometimes, but rarely, lost by mildew. Sect. IV. Of other Leguminous Grains, which might be cultivated in British Farming. 4814. The lentil, kidneybean, and chick pea are grown both in France and Germany as field plants for their grains, to be used as food. They 365 are by no means likely to become articles of general cul- ture in Britain ; but it is worth while to know that they may be cultivated here instead of being imported, and also that they form Very eJcCellent articles of human food. 4815. The lentil is the jErvumlens, L. Les lejitilles, Fr. ; Lentzen) Ger. ; and Lenticcia, Ital. (fg. 565.) It is a legume of the greatest antiquity, being in esteem in Esau*s time, and much prized in eastern countries ever since. In Egypt and Syria, they are parched in a frying- pan and sold in the shops, and considered by the natives as the best food for those who Undertake long journeys. The lentil is considered a native of France, but has been known in England from the earliest agricultural records. In Gerarde's time, they were sown like tares, tlieir haulm given to cattle, and the grain to pigeons, and used in meagre soups. 4816. There are three varietiei of lentils cultivated in France and Germany; the small brown, which is the lightest flavored, and the best for haricots and soups ; the yellowish^ which is a little larger, and the next best ; and the lentil of Provence, which is almost as large as a pea with luxuriant straw, and more fit to be cultivated as a tare, than fdt the grains as human food. 4817. A dry lUarm saiidy soil is requisite for the lentil ; it is sown rather later than the pea, at the rate of a bushel or one and a half bushels to the acre ; in other respects its culture and harvesting are the same, and it ripens sooner. The lentil, Young ob- serves, is a crop not uncommon about Chesterford in Essex, where they sow a bushel an acre on one ploughing in the beginning or middle of March. It is there the custom to make hay of them, or seed them, for Cutting into chaff for trough-meat for sheep and horses, and they sow them on both heavy and dry soils. It is, however, added, that the whole country is of a calcareous natilre. It is likewise stated, that attention should 3 D4 776 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part II be paid not to water horses soon after eating this sort of food, as they are apt to hove them. They are likewise asserted to be cultivated for the same purpose in Oxfordshire, and probably in other districts. 4818. The produce of the lentil in grain is about a fourth less than that of the tare ; and in straw it is not a third as much, the plants seldom growing above one and a half feet high. The straw is, however, very delicate and nourishing, and preferred for lambs and calves, and the grain on the continent sells at nearly double the price of pease. EinhofF obtained from 3840 parts of lentils, 1260 parts of starch, and 1433 of a matter analogous to animal matter. 4819. The use of the lentil on the continent is very general, both in soups and dressed with a butter sauce as haricot. They are imported from Hamburgh, and sold in Lon- don for the same purpose. 4820. The chick pea [Cicer arietinum, fig. 55.), grows naturally in the south of Eu- rope, and is cultivated there for the same purposes as the lentil, but it is too delicate for field culture in this country. 4821. The kidneybean {Phaseolus vulgaris, 1j. Haricot, Fr. ; Schminkbohne, Ger. ; BVidi Fagiuolo, Ital.) is a native of India, but ripens readily in dry summers in most parts of Britain. Its culture has been hitherto confined to gardens, but it might be grown equally well in dry, warm, rich, and sheltered soils, being grown in the fields of Germany, Switzerland, and similar climates. The sort generally used for this purpose is the small dwarf white ; the ground is prepared by several stirrings, and the seed is dibbled in rows eighteen inches or two feet asunder in the beginning of May. The ground is hoed and weeded during the summer, and the crop is ripe in August. It is usually harvested by pulling up the plants, which, being dried, are stacked or threshed. The haulm is of little bulk or use, but the grain is used in making the esteemed French dish called haricot, which it were desirable the cottagers of this country were made acquainted with. There is perhaps no other vegetable dish so cheap and easily cooked, and at the same time so agreeable and nourishing. The beans are boiled and then mixed with a little salt butter or other fat, and a little milk or water, and flour. From 3840 parts of kidneybean, EinhofF obtained 1805 parts of matter analogous to starch, 851 of vegeto-animal matter, and 799 parts of mucilage. Haricots and lentils are much, used in all Catholic countries during Lent and maigre days, as they, from their peculiar constituents, form so excellent a substitute for animal food. During the prevalence of the Roman religion in this country, they were probably much more generally used than at present ; as reformations are often carried farther than is necessary, possibly lentils may have been left off by Protestants, lest the use of them may have been considered a symptom of popery. 4822. The lupin {Lupinus luteus, L. fig. 566.), was cultivated by the Romans as a legume, and is still occa- sionally grown in Italy. The grain was formerly, and is occasionally now used as food ; but more generally the whole plant is mown and given as herbage to cattle, and sometimes the crop is ploughed down as manure. Chap. IV. Of Plants cultivated for their Roots or Leaves. 4823. Plants cultivated for their roots or leaves are various, and most of them ati adapted both for human food and that of domestic animals ; but some are chiefly ot entirely grown for the nurture of live-stock. The plants which we include under thi* head, are the potatoe, turnip, carrot, parsnep, beet, cabbage tribe, lettuce, and chiccory. The culture of roots may be considered a branch of farming almost entirely of modern origin, and more peculiarly British than any other department. Turnips were culti- vated by the Romans, and in modern times brought into notice as objects of field cul- ture in the last century, but they were most imperfectly managed, and of very little utility in agriculture till their culture was undertaken by the British farmer. The poratoe, carrot, and parsnep, were also first cultivated in the fields of this country. Fri* able or light soil, superior pulverisation, and manuring, the row-method, and careful after-culture, are essential to the maturation of the plants to be treated of in this Chapter j and hence the importance of such crops as preparations for those of the bread corns. Book VI. THE POTATOE. 777 4824. The nutritwe products of these plants are thus given by Sir H. D&vy : c„.t-„,, „ ,„- IThe quantity analysed. Systematic name. ■ f ^^^^ ^^t 'lOOO parts. Whole quantity of soluble or nutritive matter. Mucilage Saccharine or matter or starch. sugar. Gluten or albumen. Extract, or matter ren- dered inso- luble during evaporation. Solanum tuberosum - Potatoe - j Beta vulgaris - - Red beet Brassica rapa - - ! Common turnip - var. ruta baga Swedish turnip - Daucuscarota - - , Carrot Parsnep Betacicla - - [White lieet Brassica oleracea - Cabbage From 260 to 200. 148 42 64 98 99 136 73 From 200 to 155. 14 7 9 3 9 13 41 From 20 to 15. 121 34 51 95 90 119 24 From 40 to 30. 13 1 2 4 8 2 Sect. 1. The Potatoe. — Solanum, tuberosum ^Ij. Pentan. Monog. Ij. and Solanece, J. Pomme de Terre, Fr. ; Cartoffel, Ger. ; Tartu fflo or Porno di Terra, Ital. 4825. The potatoe is supposed to be a native of South America ; but Humboldt is very doubtful if that can be proved ; he admits, however, that it is naturalised there in some situations. Sir J. Banks {Hort. Trans, vol. i. p. 8.) considers that the potatoe was first brought into Euro|)e from the mountainous parts of South America, in the neigh- borhood of Quito, where they were called papas, to Spain, in the early part of the sixteenth century. From Spain, where they were called battatas, they appear to have found their way first to Italy, where they received the same name with the truffle, taratotifli. The potatoe was received by Clusius, at Vienna, in 1598, from the governor of Mons, in Hainault, who had procured it the year before from one of the attendants of the Pope's legate, under the name of taratoufio, and learned from him that it was then in use in Italy. In Germany it received the name of cartoffelj and spread rapidly even in Clusius's time. 4826. To England the potatoe was brought from Virginia by thQ colonists sent out by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1584, and which returned in July 1 586, and "probably," ac- cording to Sir Joseph Banks, *' brought with them the potatoe." Thomas Herriot, in a report on the country, published in De Bry's Collection of Voyages, (vol. i. p. 17.) de- cribes a plant called openawk, with ** roots as large as a walnut, and others much larger ; they grow in damp soil, many hanging together, as if fixed on ropes ; they are good food, either boiled or roasted." Gerarde, in his Herbal, published in 1597, gives a figure of the potatoe, under the name of the potatoe of Virginia, whence, he says, he received the roots ; and this appellation it appears to have retained, in order to distinguish it from the battatas, or sweet potatoe {Convolvulus baltatas), till the year 1640, if not longer. ** The sweet potatoe," Sir Joseph Banks observes, "was used in England as a delicacy long before the introduction of our potatoes : it was imported in considerable quantities from Spain and the Canaries, and was supposed to possess the power of restoring decayed vigor. The kissing comfits of FalstafF, and other confections of similar imaginary qua- lities, with which our ancestors were duped, were principally made of these and of eringo roots." 4827. The jwtatoe was first planted by Sir William Raleigh on his estate of Youghall, near Cork, and Gough says, was "cherished and cultivated for food" in that country before its value was known in England ; for, though they were soon carried over from Ireland into Lancashire, Gerarde, who had this plant in his garden in 1597, under the name of Battata Virginiana, recommends the roots to be eaten as a delicate dish, not as common food. Parkinson mentions, that the tubers were sometimes roastedj and steeped in sack and sugar, or baked with marrow and spices, and even preserved and candied by the comfit-makers, 4826. For encouraging the cultivation of potatoes, with the view of preventing famine, the Royal Society took some measures in 1633. Still, however, althougli their utility as an article of food was better known, no high character was bestowed on them. In books of gardening, published towards the end of the seventeenth century, a hundred years after their introduction, they are spoken of rather slightingly. " They are much used in Ireland and America as bread," says one author, "and may be propagated with advantage to poor people." " I do not hear that it hath been yet essayed," are the words of another, " whether they may not be propagated in great quantities, for food for" swine or other cattle." Even the enlightened Evelyn seems to have entertained a pre- judice against them: "Plant potatoes," he says, writing in 1699, "in your worst ground. Take them up in November for winter spending ; there will enough remain for a stock, though ever so exactly gathered." But the use of potatoes gradually spread, as their excellent qualities became better understood. It was near the middle of the eighteenth century, however, before they were generally known over the country : since that time they have been most extensively cultivated. In 1796, it was found, that in the county of Essex alone, about 1700 acres were planted with potatoes for the supply 778 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. of the London market. This must form, no doubt, the principal supply ; but many- fields of potatoes are to be seen in the other counties bordering on the capital, and many ship-loads are annually imported from a distance. In every county in England, it is now more or less an object of field culture. 4829. Potatoes^ as an article of human food, are, next to wheat, of the greatest importance in the eye of the political economist. From no other crop that can be cultivated will the public derive so much food as from this valuable esculent; and it ad- mits of demonstration, that an acre of potatoes will feed double the number of people that can be fed from an acre of wheat. Potatoes are also a nourishing and healthy food, relished by almost every palate ; and it is believed there is hardly a dinner served up for six months in the year without them, In any part of the kingdom. Notwithstanding all these things, and they are of great importance in one point of view, we are doubtful whether potatoes can be placed so high in the scale as several other articles of produce, when the profit and loss account of the agriculturist is to be ascertained. They require a great deal of manure from the farmer; while, generally speaking, little is returned by them ; they are a bulky unhandy article, troublesome in the lifting and carrying processes, and interfering with the seed season of wheat, the most important one to the farmer. After all, from particular circumstances, they cannot be vended unless when raised in the vicinity of large towns ; hence they are in most respects an unprofitable article to the agriculturist. To him the real criterion is the profit which potatoes will return in feed- ing beasts ; and here we apprehend, the result will altogether be in faVor of turnips, and ruta baga, as the most profitable articles for that purpose. 4830. What is called the yam, or Surinam potatoe, is of more importance to the farmer, because with this variety he has an excellent assistant to his turnip crop, or rather a suc- cedaneum, which is of material benefit when turnips are consumed. Perhaps this root may be cultivated with greater advantage than ruta baga upon many soils, as the preca- riousness of ruta baga has been acknowledged by almost every one who has treated upon the subject. It requires soil of the best quality, and a large dose of rich dung, to insure even a middling crop of ruta baga ; therefore it can never be generally nor profitably cultivated by common farmers. On the other hand, yams present every advantage which can be got from ruta baga, and are not so pettish in their growth. Their culture is a matter of far less difficulty, as they will grow upon soils where ruta baga would starve. They require less manure, and may be planted as late in the season as the other, thereby enabling the farmer to bestow the like previous preparation upon the ground, the want of which is a general argument against ordinary potatoe husbandry. By taking them up in October or November, they may be safely housed, arid the ground directly ridged up and sown with wheat. (Brown. ) 4831. The value of potatoes as a fallow crop, and as an article of food for cattle com- pared with turnips and cabbages for the same purposes. Marshal observes, may be consi- dered thus : Potatoes are more nutritious ; and, in the opinion of those who have used them, fatten cattle much quicker than either turnips or cabbages. Potatoes, too, being secured from the severities of winter^ are a more certain article of fatting than turnips or cabbages ; both of which are liable to perish under an alternacy of frost and thaw ; and the turnip, more particularly, is locked up, or rendered more difficult to be come at, during a continuance of snow or frost. Turnips and cabbages, if they out- weather the severities of winter, occupy the soil in the spring when it is wanted to be prepared for the succeeding crop ; While potatoes, if properly laid up, are a food which may be con- tinued without inconVeniency until the cattle be finished, or the grass has acquired the requisite bite for finishing them in the field. On the other hand^ potatoes are a dis- agreeable crop to cultivate : the planting is a tedious dirty business ; and taking them up, may be called the filthiest work of husbandry, especially in a wet autumn. A pow- erful argument for the extensive culture of potatoes as food for liVe-stock is, that in seasons of scarcity they can be adopted as human food. Here, as in many other points, the opinion of Marshal and other English agriculturists, is rather at variance with that of the Northumberland and Berwickshire cultivators. 4832. The varieties w of cocks ; a carrier and raker on each side of the ridge on which the cocks are placed, and a person on the ridge, who builds them. But when the crop is not weighty, more rakers are required, as a greater space must be gone over. 5009. As the cocks are thus placed in a line, it is easy to put two or more into one afterwards ; and the larger cocks may be speedily drawn together, to be put into tramp-ricks, by means of ropes thrown round their bottoms, and dragged along by a horse. It is impossible to lay down any rules for the management of hay, after it is put into cocks ; one thing is, however, always attended to, not to .^hake out, scatter, or expose the hay oftener than is necessary for its preservation. Sometimes the cocks have been put up so large, that they never require to go to a tramp-rick, but were carted to the stack-yard, without ever being broken, and put up in alternate layers with old hay. But where this is attempted, there must not be much clover. The practice of mixing the new with the old hay is, however, a good one, and saves a great deal of time and labor, at the same time that the old hay is much improved by the mixture. 5010. 'ThQ\}e%tm&r\a^ex%A\&a.\>x>xo\eoi spreading out the swaths of clover and rye-grass, though this is often necessary with natural grasses, which are cut an* harvested later in the season. The more the swath is kept unbroken, the hay is greener, and the more fragrant, 5011. Another mode of hay-making, said to have been originally practised in Lancashire, has been found to answer well in the moist atmosphere of the west of Scotland. This is called tippling or rippling ; and if the grass be dry, the operation begins as soon as it is mown. " In making a tipple, a person with his rightrhand, rolls the swath inwards, imtil he has a little bundle; then the same is done by the left, until lioth meet, and form eight to twelve pounds, or nearly so. This bundle is then set up against the legs, or between the feet ; a rope is twisted of the grass, while the bundle is supported in this manner, and tied round it near its top ; and from the top are drawn up a few straggling stems, which are twisted to make the tipple taper to a point, and give it as much a conical shape as possible. If the crop is strong, there is a row of tipples placed on e^ch swath ; if light, two of these are put into one row. After standing a few Ijqurs, they become so smooth on the outside, that the heaviest rains seldom wet them through ; and when Book: VI. CLOVER FAMILY.' 805 wet, they are soon dried again in good weather. As soon as ready, they are put into the suxnmer^rick, or, if very dry, even the winter-stack, but are never opened out or tedded, to make them dry, as they never require it. By this method, not a blade is lost, and the hay is nearly as green as a leaf dried in a book. In a moderate crop, one woman will tipple to one mower, and a woman will rake to two tipplers, or two swathers. But where the crop is strong, it may require three women to keep pace with two mowers. After the hay is put up in this manner, the crop may be considered as secure, though it may continue wet weather for a considerable length of time." {General Report of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 11.) 5012. Hay is stacked in circular or oblong stacks, the latter form being most generally approved of, and carefully thatched, as has been already observed in regard to corn. It is never advisable to allow this kind of hay to become heated in any considerable degree, in the stack, though a slight exudation, with a very gentle warmth, is usually perceptible,- both in the field-ricks and in the stacks, for a few days after they are built. But this is a quite different thing from that intentional heating, carried so far, in many instances, as to terminate in conflagration. 5013. The after-groivth or second crop of clover is vigorous or weak, according to the proportion of clover plants to rye-grass, to the time when the first crop was cut, and to the moisture and warmth of the season. When the first cutting has been made early for soiling, there will sometimes be three cuttings in one season. The first of these after- cuttings may be made into hay, and sometimes -the second; but in general, both are con- sumed by soiling or pasturing, unless in some dry warm districts, as Norfolk, and parts of Suffolk, Kent, &c., when the second growth is left to ripen its seed. In the northern counties the second crop is seldom made into hay, owing to the difficulty of getting it thoroughly dried at a late period of summer, when other more urgent operations usually employ all the laborers of a farm. If it be cut for this purpose, the best method of saving it, is to mix it up with straw , which will absorb a part of its juices. It is often cut green, as a part of the soiling system ; or, where a sheep stock is kept, pastured by the old ewes, or other sorts, that are to be fattened the ensuing winter on turnips. 50 H. In consuming clover and other herbage plants by j^asturing or eating down on the spot, three methods have been adopted, tethering, hurdling, and free pasturage. 5015. Tethering may be considered a rude practice, and is chiefly confined to the north of Scotland and Ireland. In The Agricultural Report qf Aberdeenshire, it is stated, that there are some cases, where the plan of tethering can be practised with more profit than even soiling. In the neighborhood of Peter- head, for instance, they tether milch-cows on tfieir grass fields, in a regular and systematic method ; moving each tether forward in a straight line, not above one foot at a time, so as to prevent the cows from treading on the grass that is to be eaten ; care being always taken, to move the tether forward, like a {)erson cutting clover with a scythe, from one end of the field to the other. In this way, a greater num- )er of cows can be kept, on the same quantity of grass, than by any other plan ; except where it grows high enough to be cut, and given them green in houses. In one instance, the system was carried to great perfection, by a gentleman who kept a few sheep upon longer tethers, following the cows. Sometimes also, he tethered horses afterwards upon the same field, which prevented any possible waste, for the tufts of grass produced by the dung of one species of animal, will be eaten by those of another kind, without reluctance. This system was peculiarly calculated for the cow-feeders in Peterhead; as, from the small- ness of their holdings, they could not affbrd to keep servants to cut, or horses to carry home the grass to their houses, to be consumed in a green state. (Code.) 5016. In hurdling off clovers or herbage crops, a portion of the field is enclosed by hurdles, in which sheep are confined ; and as the crop is consumed, the pen is changed to a fresh place, until the whole is fed off. This practice is very extensively adopted at Holkham, and is peculiarly calculated for light and dry soils. Its advantages are, that the grass is more economically consumed ; that the stock thrive better, having daily a fresh bite ; and that the dung that falls, being more concentrated, is more likely to be of use. 5017. In the common pasturing of clover, the stock are introduced into the field earlier than in tethering or hurdling, in order to avoid the loss that would be sustained by cattle or sheep treading ad libitum on tall herbage. Indeed, the principal advantage of pas- turing clovers is, that sheep and lambs may be turned on them more early than on com- mon grass-lands. Sometimes this advantage is taken for a month or six weeks, in the beginning of summer, and the field afterwards shut up for a crop of hay ; but more frequently the red clovers are only pastured the second year. When white and yellow clovers are sown, the herbage is sometimes not mown at all, but pastured for three or more years, and sometimes a little red clover being sown along with these, a crop of hay is takers the first year. 5018. The produce cf clover-hay, without ary mixture of rye-grass, on the best sofk. is from two to three tons per acre, and in this state in the London market it generally sells 20 per cent, higher than meadow-hay, or clover and rye-grass mixed. The weight of hay from clover and rye-grass varies, according to tl>o soil and the season, from one to three tons per English acre, as it is taken from the tramp-riclcs ; biit after being stacked, and kept till spring, the weight is found to be diminished 25 or 30 per cent. 5019. The value of clover and rye-grass hay, in comparison with the straw of beans, or pease, may be in the proportion of three to two ; and with the finest straw of corn crops, in the proportion of two to one. One acre of red or broad dovor tvill go as far in feeding horses or black cattle, as three or four of natural grass. And when it is w*t y F 3 806 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. occasionally, and given to them fresh, it will, probably, go still much farther, as no part of it is lost by being trodden down. With the exception of lucern, and the herbage of rich marshes, there is no crop, by which so much stock can be supported, as by clover. It may be profitably employed in fattening sheep in spring, and with this food, they will soon be ready for the butcher. Afterwards, a crop of hay may be got, and two or three weeks after the hay has been taken off, sheep intended to be fattened on turnips, may be turned in, and kept there, until the turnips are ready for them. 5020. The nutritive products of clovers will be found in the table. (4984.) 5021. The saving of clover seed is attended by considerable labor and difficulty. Clover will not perfect its seeds, if saved for that purpose early in the year ; there- fore it is necessary to take off the first growth either by feeding or with the scythe, and to depend for the seed on those heads that are produced in the autumn. Seed-clover turns out to good account in those years when the crops are not injured by the blight, which is often fatal to them, or by the rains in the autumn, which sometimes prove their destruction ; for the time of harvesting this seed falling out late when rainy weather may be expected, renders it, on that account, very tedious. 5022. When the first crop is fed off, it is eaten till about the end of May, frequently by ewes and lambs ; and this is understood to be an advantageous practice, because the land is less exhausted, and the green food is of great value for stock in the spring months. It is not uncommon, however, to cut the first growth for a hay crop, and this should be done earlier than Usual. The growth thus reserved for seed must be suffered to remain till the husks become perfectly browt), when it is cut and harvested in the usual manner, leaving it on the field till it is very dry and crisp, that the seeds may become more fully hardened ; it may then be laid up dry, to be threshed out at the farmer's convenience. Much labor and expense are necessary in separating the seed from the capsule, or seed-coat, especially when it is effected by threshing, which seldom costs less than from five to six or seven shillings per bushel. By the use of mills the work may be done much cheaper. 5023. The produce in seed may generally be ft-om three to four or five bushels per acre, when perfectly clean, weighing from two to three hundred weight. But there is great uncertainty in the pfoduce of clover seed, from the lateness of the season at which it becomes ripe ; and the fertility of the soil is con- siderably impaired by such a crop. Yet the high value of the seed is a great inducement to the saving of it, in favorable situations. {Dickson's Practical Agriculture, vol, ii. p. 863.) 5024. The diseases of clover are the blight or mildew, and suffocation or consumption, from insects, slugs, and worms. It often happens that clover after being repeated at short intervals on the same soil, either fails or does no good ; whether that is owing to a disease or to a defect in some peculiar substance, which enters into the food of the plant, does not appear to be clearly ascertained. A top dressing with ashes or lime, is said to be unfavorable to the slug ; but where vermin of this sort are very numerous, the most certain remedy is a naked fallow well worked in the hottest months. Sect. II. Lucern. —^ Medicago sativa, L. Diadel. Decan, L. and Leguminoseee, J. La Lucerne, Fr, j Futterklee, Ger. ; and Medica, Ital. (Jig. 569.) 5025. Lucern is a deep rooting perennial plant, sending up numerous small and tall clover-like shoots, with blue or violet spikes of flowers. It is a native of the south of Eu- rope, and appears to be acclimated in the warmer parts of England. Lucern or medic is highly extolled by the Roman writers, and also the cytissus, the latter a low ever- green shrub. Lucern is much grown in Persia and Lima, and mown in both countries all the year round ; it is also of unknown antiquity in old Spain, Italy, and the south of France. It was introduced to England from the latter country, according to Miller, in 1657. It is mentioned by Hartlib, Ely the, and other early writers, and was tried by Lisle ; but it excited little attention till after the publi- cation of Marte's Essays, in 1757. It is now only culti- vated in a few places, and chiefly in Kent. Columella estimated lucern as the choicest of all fodder, because it la.sted many years, and bore being cut down four, five, or six times a year. It enriches, he says, the land on which it grows, fattens the cattle fed with it, and is often a remedy for sick cattle. About three quarters of an acre of it is, he thinks, abundantly sufficient to feed three horses during the whole year. But though it was so much esteemed by the ancients, and has been long cultivated to advantage in France and Switzerland, it has yet found no great reception in this country. If any good reason can be given for this, it is, that lucern is a less hardy plant than red clover, requires three or four years before it comes to its full growth, and is for these and other reasons, ill adapted to enter into general rotations. Where the climate and soil suit, per- haps, a field of it may be advantageously sown, adjoining the homestall, to afford early cutting or food for young or sick animals, for which it is said to be well adapted ; but though it will produce good crops for eight or ten years, yet from the time thef Book VI. LUCERN. 807 farmer must wait till this crop attains its perfection, and from the care requisite to keep it from grass and weeds, we do not think it is ever likely to come into general culture. 5026. There are no varieties of the lucern deserving the notice of a cultivator. What is called the yellow lucern, or Swiss lucern, is the Medicago falcata {Jig. 570.), a much more hardy and coarser plant, common in several parts of England, but not cultivated any where excepting in some poor soils in Switzerland. 5027. The soil for lucern must be dry, friable, inclining to sand, and with a subsoil not inferior to the surface. Unless the subsoil be good and deep, it is in vain to attempt to cultivate lucern. According to Young, the soils that suit lucern, are all those that are at once dry and rich. If, says he, they possess these two criteria, there is no fear but they will produce large crops of lucern. A friable deep sandy loam on a chalk or white dry marly bottom, is excellent for it. Deep putrid sand warp on a dry basis, good sandy loam on chalk, dry marl or gravel, all do well; and in a word, all soils that are good enough for wheat, and dry enough for turnips to be fed on the land, do well for lucern. If deficient in fertility, they may be made up by manuring, but he never yet met with any land too rich for it. 5028. The preparation of the soil consists in deep ploughing and minute pulverisation; and in our opinion, the shortest \>^ay to effect this, is to trench it over by the spade to two or three feet in depth, burying a good coat of manure in the middle or at least one foot from the surface. This is the practice in Guernsey, where lucern is highly prized. 5029. The climate for lucern, as we have already hinted, must be warm and dry ; it has been grown in Scotland and Ireland, and might proliably do well in the southern counties of the latter country, but in the former it has not been found to answer the commendations of its admirers. 5030. The season most proper for sowing lucern, is as early as can be done in the spring months, as in this way the plants may be fully established before the season be- comes too hot. The latter end of March, for the more southern districts, may be the most proper period ; and the beginning of the following month for those of the north. When sown late, there is more danger of the plants being destroyed by the fly, as has been observed by Tull. If the plants be intended to be transplanted out in the garden method, it will also be the best practice to sow the seed-bed as early in the spring as the frosts will admit, in order that they may be strong, and fit to set out about the beginning of August. 5031. The manner qf sowing lUCCrn is either broad-cast or in drills, and either with or without an accompanying crop of corn for the first year. Broad-cast, and a very thin crop of barley or other spring corn, is generally, and in our opinion, very properly preferred, Arthur Young, who has treated largely on this plant, observes, that " the greatest success by far that has been known, is by the broad'Cast method, which is nearly universal among the best lucern farmers, even among men who practise and admire the drill husbandry in many other articles. But as they mostly (not all) depend on severe har- rowing for keeping their crops clean, which is a troublesome and expensive operation, he still ventures to recommend drilling, but very different drilling from that which has been almost universally practised, viz. at distances of eighteen inches or two feet. Objections to these wide intervals are numerous. If kept clean hoed, the lucern licks up so much dirt, being beaten to the earth by rain, &c. that it is unwholesome, and the plants spread so into these spaces, that it must be reaped with a hook, which is a great aTid useless expense. For tiiese reasons, as well as for superiority of crop, he recommends drilling at nine inches, which in point of produce, mowing, and freedom from dirt, is the same as broad-cast ; and another ad- vantage is, that it admits scarifying once a year, which is much more powerful and effective than any- harrowing. These facts are sufficient to weigh so much with any reasonable man, as to induce him to adopt this mode of drilling, as nearer to broad-cast by far than it is to drills at eighteen to twenty-four inches, which open to a quite different system, and a set of very different evils. Nine inch rows might practically, but not literally, be considered as broad-cast, but with the power of scarifying. And in regard to the material point, of with or without corn, two considerations, he .says, present thanselves. One is the extreme liatMlity of lucern to be eaten by the fly, which does great mischief to many ctoiw when very young, and against which the growing of corn is some protection. The value of the barley Or oats is another object not to be forgotten. It is also gained in the first year's growth of the lucern, which is very poorly productive even if no corn be sown, so that he must own himself clearly an advocate for drill- ing in among corn, either between the rows of nine inch barley, or across drilled barley, at a foot if perhaps the latter is the best method, as there is less probability of the crop being laid to'the damage of theliucern. The quantity of seed-corn should also be small, proportioned to the richness of fl>e land, from one bushel to a bushel and a half, according to the fertility of the soil, another security against the mischief of locking. If these precautions are taken, it would be presumptuous to say that success must follow, that being always, and in all things, in other hands than oura ; seed may prove bad, the fly may- eat, and drought prevent vegetation, but barring such circumstances, the farmer nviy rest satisfied that he has done what can be done, and if he does succeed, the advantage will be unquestiotiable." 5032. The erience. He has frequently seen horses beating the whins with their hoofs, so as to bruize the prickles, and then eat them, even in the months of April and May ; and he says, that sheep •which have been used to this food, certainly pick off the blossoms and the young pods at that season, and probably the prickles also, so that it is possible the opinion may only be a vulgar error. This is, he thinks, the best way of rearing whins as a crop for a winter food for cattle or horses. But for sheep, who Book VI. SPURRY, BROOM, &c. 815 take to this food very kindly when they have once been accustomed to it, less nicety is required ; for if the seeds be simply sown broad-cast, very thin (about a pound of seed per acre) upon the poorest soils, after they come up the sheep of themselves will crop the plants, and soon bring them into round close bushes, as this animal nibbles ort'the prickles one by one very quickly, so as not to be hurt by them. Sheep, how- ever, who have not been used to this mode of browsing do not know how to proceed, and often will not taste them ; but a few that have been used to the food will, he observes, soon teach all the rest how to use it. 5078, Another veru economical loay qf rearing whins, but which he has seen practised rather than experienced himself, is this : let a farm be enclosed by means of a ditch all round, with a bank thrown up on one side, and if stones can be had, let the face of that bank be linetl with the stones, from bottom to near tiie top, this lining to slope backwards with an angle of about sixty or seventy degrees from the horizon. Any kind of stones, even round ones gathered from the land, will answer the purpose very well ; upon the top of the bank sow whin-seeds pretty thick, and throw a few of them along the face of the bank. Young plants will quickly appear. Let them grow for two years, and then cut them down by means of a hedge-bill, sloping down by the face of the bank. This mode of cutting is very easy, and as the sectls soon insinuate themselves among the crannies of the stones, the whole face of the bank becomes a close hedge, whose shoots spring up with great luxuriance. If another ditch b« made on the other side of the bank, and if this be managed in the same way, and the hedge cut down only once every second year (and in this way it affords very good food for beasts), the inside and outside being cut down alternately, the fence will at all times continue good, as the hedge at the top will at all times be complete. This mmie of rearing whins is, he remarks, both convenient and economical. But where stones cannot be obtained for making the facing, the bank very soon moiilders down, and becomes untit for the pur- poses of a fence. Circumstances have, he says, prevented him from ascertaining what is the weight of the crop that maybe thus attained, but bethinks he fhay safely venture to say, that it is at least equal to that of a crop of green clover ; and if it be considered, that this affords a green succulent food during winter, on which cattle can be fatted as well as on cut grass in summer, it will, he thinks, be admitted, that it must be accounted even a more valuable crop than clover. After being cut, he also remarks, that it springs up the following season with greater vigor than before, and in this situation acquires a degree of health and succulence very different from what it is ever observed to possess in its natural state. He has seen shoots of one season near four feet in length. The prickles too are sojsoft, and the stems so tender, that very little bruising is necessary ; indeed horses, that have been accustomwi to this food, would eat it without any bruising at all ; but cattle, whose mouths seem to be more tender, always require it to be well bruised. How long crops of this sort may continue to be annually cut over, without wearing out, he cannot say, but he believes a long while in favorable circumstances ; however, one thing is necessary to attend to in order to guard against its being destroyed : as, during the beginning of the season, nature seems to be solely employed about the great work of fructification only, and it is not till near Midsummer that the whin begins to push forth its wood-bearing branches, which advance with great luxuriance only during the latter part of the season, it may hapj)en, that if care be not taken to have the grass that springs up on the field, before the whin begins to send out its shoots, eaten close down, that grass will acquire such a luxuriance before the young branches of the whin begin to advance, as to overtop them, and choke them entirely. Whoever, therefore, has a field under this particular crop, must, he says, be careful to advert to this circumstance, or if the field be in good heart, he will infallibly lose it. The field therefore should lie kept as a pasture, bare as possible during the beginning of the season, and the cattle should only be taken from it when the shoots of the whin are discoveretl to begin to advance with vigor. Under this management, he presumes, it may be kept for many years, and yield full crops ; but unless the mowers be particularly attentive at the beginning, to cut it as low as possible, it will very soon become impossible to cut the field with a scythe, as the stumps will soon acquire so much stretigth as to break the scythe when it happens to touch them. 5079. The spurry, (Spergula arvcnsis, L. Jig. 63.) is a diminutive annual weed, on dry sandy corn-lands, in most parts of Europe. In Germany and the Netherlands, it is sown on the corn stubbles, and in the intervals of time that occur between some crops is fed with sheep. It may be sown and reaped in eight weeks, either in autumn or spring. It is said to enricli the milk of cows, so as to make it afford ex- cellent butter ; and the mutton fed on it is preferable to that fed on turnips. Hens eat spurry greedily, -and it is supposed to make them lay a great number of eggs. Whether in hay, or cut green, or pasture. Von Thaer observes, it is the most nourishing, in proportion of its bulk, of all forage, and gives the best flavored milk and butter. It has been recommended to be cultivated in England ; but it is not likely that such a plant can ever pay the expense of seed and labor in this country, even on the poorest soil, or at all events, as Professor Martyn observes, we have many better plants for such soils. 5080. The commo7i broom, {Spartium scopanim, L. Jig. 515.) is cultivated in the southern parts of France, on the poorer sorts of soil, in the same way as hemp, for the pur- pose of stripping the bark from it, and converting it into a kind of thread. It is likewise cultivated in these places as a winter-food for sheep, and it is said they eat it with great avidity, preferring it to many other plants. It is, however, liable to produce diseases of the urinary passages, by its diuretic qualities. It has been recommended by Young, to be cultivated in England, as food for sheep and horses, who are said to eat it after they get accustomed to it ; also for thatch, ropes, besoms, food for bees, fuel, and burning on the spot to improve the soil. Its culture is the same as tliat of the whin ; but very peculiar, indeed, must be that situation, where its culture is attempted for any of the above purposes. It is a useful protection of game in plantations, from which source abundance may be had for besoms. The Spanish broom, (S. Junceum, L. 816 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Jig. 576,) species. might be grown perhaps still more advantageously than the common 576 577 5081. The parsley, (jipium petroselinum, L. Jig. 511) is a well known biennial with a large sweet tap-root. It is a native of Sicily, but endures the British winter like a native plant. It is sown along with clover and grass seeds in some places, and especially in Lin- colnshire, as a preventive of the rot in sheep. Fleet, of Hampshire, famous for curing the rot in sheep, cultivates it largely with success; he sows half a bushel to the acre, with a bushel of rye-grass, with spring corn ; and he finds that it lasts in the ground till it is permitted to seed. He feeds it constant- ly, it being excellent for sheep, and when suffered to get a-head pigs feed wonderfully upon it in the autumn. After September, it will not, he says, run to seed. When it was ploughed up he obtained good oats. The land was poor, and in the next round of the course, the clover was much the better for the parsley having been sown or the clover omitted ; for in a field half parsley, half clover, when the clover came again to be sown, it was excellent on the parsley half, but bad on the clover part. In laying down land to grass, Hoyte, in the fourth volume of Communications to the Board oj Agricvlture, ad- vises the sowing with twelve pounds of white clover, two pounds of red clover, two pecks of rye-grass, and two pounds of parsley to the acre, as the parsley stands two years, and by its diuretic qualities prevents the sheep from dying of the red-water, which too luxu- riant clovers are apt to produce. It has also been sown with success in Scotland, where it was greedily eaten by horses, cows, and hogs. The seed requires a longer period to germinate than that of any other agricultural plant, and might probably be advantageously prepared by steeping and turning. It must be fresh, as two year old seed will not grow ; it is easily procured by the pound or bushel, from the seedsman, and as easily raised by letting a few drills in a garden shoot into flower stems. 5082. The wall Jlower, {^Cheiranthus cheiri, L.) is a well known garden flower, and at the same time a native, and very hardy on dry soils. Like the parsley it is an antisep- tic, and has been recommended to be cultivated for the same purposes, and in the same manner. 5083. The bird* s foot trefoil, (Lotus comiculatus, L. fg. 578.) has been tried as a .substitute for white clover on moist lands, and seems to succeed very well, but to have no particular advantages over the clover. 5084. The oriental bunias, (Bunias orientalis, L. fg. 579 a.) is a perennial 579 578 plant, with leaves, branches, and its general habit of herbage, not unlike the wild chic- cory. It is a native of the Levant, and has been cultivated by way of experiment in the Book VI. GRASSES. 817 grass garden, at Woburn. It is less productive than chiccory, bears mowing well, and affords the same nutriment, in proportion to its bulk, as red clover. {Agricid. Chem, p. 374.) 5085. The yarrow {Achillea millefolium, L. Jtg. 579 6.), the common and alpine ladies* mantle {Alchemilla vulgaris and alpina, L.), and others have been tried among perennial grasses, sown in parks, with a view to give flavor to milk, butter, mutton, and venison. Sinclair considers yarrow as an essential ingredient of the most fattening and healthy pastures. In all the pastures most celebrated for fattening or dairy produce, which he examined in Devonshire, Lincolnshire, and in the vale of Aylesbury, yarrow was present more or less in every part of the surface. {Hort. Gram. Wob. 2d edit. 412.) Chap. VI. Of the cultivatef} Grasses. 5086. The forage or hay and pasture grasses, of which we are now about to treat, are' found clothing the surface of the earth in every zone, attaining generally a greater height, with less closeness at the root in the warm climates; and producing a low, close," thick, dark green nutritive herbage, in the cooler latitudes. The best grass pastures, those which are most productive and nutritive, are such as are found in countries that have least cold in winter, and no excess of heat in summer. Ireland, Britain, and part of Holland and Denmark, may equal or surpass any countries of the world in this respect; but in every zone where, there are high mountains, there are certain positions between the base and summit, where, from the equability of the temperature, turf may be found equal to that in marine islands. It is a singular circumstance in regard to grasses, that in the greater part of North America, the sorts that grow naturally on the plains are almost all annuals, and consequently with the first frost they die, and the ground re- mains naked till a fresh crop rises from the self-sown seeds next spring. Nearly the same thing may be said of Poland and Russia, excepting on the banks of rivers and en the mountains. 5087. The universal presence of the forage grasses, and the rapidity with which all soils become covered" with them when left uncultivated, is the obvious reason why their systematic selection and culture is but of recent date. Though the Romans cultivated clovers, and were careful of their meadows, it does not; appear that the seeds of the proper grasses were collected and sown by them. None of the agricultural writers, from Peter of Bologna to Parkinson in 1640, say a word about sowing grasses, though they all mention clover and lucern. This branch of culture appears to have originated in England about the mid- dle of the seventeenth century, and the grass made choice of was the rye-grass. The first mention made of it for cultivation is in Dr. Plot's Oxfordshire, printed in 1G77. " They have lately sown," says he, " ray-grass, or the gramen loliaceum, by which they improve any cold, sour, clay-weeeping ground, for which it is best, but good also for drier upland grounds, especially light stony or sandy land, which is unfit for saintfoin. It was first sown in the chiltern parts of Oxfordshire, and since brought nearer Oxford by. one Eustace, an ingenious husbandman of Islip, who, though at first laughed at, has since been followed even by those very persons that scorned his experiment." The first grass tried after rye-grass, appears to have been the Phleum pratense by Rocque of Walham Green, about 1760. Soon after the seed of cock's-foot grass was introduced from Virginia, under the name of orchard-grass, by the Society of Arts {Ann. Reg. 176.5, 141.) ; fox-tail was tried at a later period, from the suggestions of Stillingfleet and Curtis. 5088. Stillingfleet, about 1759, drew the attention of the reading agriculturist to the selection of dif- ferent species of grasses; as did Dr. Anderson about the same time, and Swayne {Gramina Pasciia), and Curtis {Observations on British Grasses), soon afterwards. The origin of this attention to grasses and' native plants may be traced to the practice of forming local floras by Iwtanists, and especially to the Flor^i> Suecia of Linnaeus ; and the British Floras of Hudson, Withering, Lightfoot, Smith, &c. in which the medical and economical properties of the plants were mentioned ; and, in imitation of Linn^us, parti, cular notice taken of the animals which fed upon them. 5089. John Duke of Bedford made the latest and most laborious efforts towards attaining a knowledge of the comparative value of all the British and some foreign grasses worth cultivating. The result is given in an appendix to Sir H. Davy's Agricultural Chemistri/, and more at large in Sinclair's Hortus Gramincui Woburnensis, 8vo. 2d edit. 1825, and as it is of considerable interest, we shall afterwards present an abstract. 5090. With respect to the general culture of grasses, though no department of agriculture is more simple, in the execution, yet, from the nature of grasses, considerable judgment is required in the design. Though grasses abound in every soil and situation, yet, all the species do not abound in every soil and situation in- differently. On the contrary, no class of perfect plants are so absolute and unalterable in their choice in this respect. The creeping-rooted and stoloniferous grasses will grow readily on most soils ; but tlie fibrous-rooted species, and especially the more delicate upland grasses, require particular attention as to the soil in which they are sown ; for in many soils they will either not come up at all, or die away in a few years, and give way to the grasses which would naturally spring up in such a soil when left to a state of nature. Hence in sowing down lands for permanent pasture, it is a good method to make choice of those gras.ses which thrive best in adjoining and similarly-circumstanced pastures for a part of the seed j and to- mix with these what are considered the very best kinds. .'3091. New and excellent varieties of many of the grasses, especially, those used or fit to be used in the (convertible husbandry, might no doubt be obtained by selection and cross breeding, and it is much to be- wished that this were attempted by cultivators. — The grasses to be here treated of may be classed as tall sorts, or those best fitted for hay ; and dwarf grasses, or those fit only for pasturage : those experimented, on at Woburn will next be noticed. £ect. I.^ Of the tall growing or Hay Grasses. 5092. The hay grrrses^or the purposes of agriculture may be advantageously divided into those of tempor.-.ry, and those of permanent duration. 3 G 618 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Fart III. It SuBSECT. 1 . Of tall or Hay Grasses of temporart/ Duration. 5093. The most valuable of this division are the biennial, or, as it is commonly but erroneously called, the annual and subper- ennial rye-grass (Jig. 580 a) the cock's-foot grass (Jj, and woolly soft grass (c). Where a crop of hay is desired within the year, it is necessary to resort to such grasses as are an- nuals in the strict sense of the word, and none can be better for this purpose than the common oat, cut and made into hay when it comes into flower. Next in order may be mentioned the other cereal grasses and the annual varieties of bromus : the latter, how- ever, are very coarse grasses, though prolific in culm. 5094. The biennial rye-grass (Lolinm jfer- enne, var. biennis, L.J is well known, as being universally sown, either with or with- out clover, among corn crops, with a view to one crop of hay the succeeding season, attains a greater height, and produces a longer, broader spike of flowers, than the perennial rye-grass, and the produce in hay is considered greater than that of any other annual grass, equally palateable to cattle. It prefers a rich loamy soil, but will grow on any surface whatever, not rock or undecajed bog. 5095. The perennial rye-grass (LoHum perenne, L. Ivraie vivace, Fr. ; JDaurende Lolche, Ger. ; and Loglio vivace, Ital. ) differs from the other in being of somewhat smaller growth, and in abiding for several years, according to the variety and the soil and culture. Many consider this grass coarse, benty, and very exhausting to the soil; but after all the .experiments that have been made on the other grasses, none have been found to equal it for a course of mowing and pasturing for two, three, or seven years. It is sown in Italy, and especially in liOmbardy, and also in France and Germany, along with cloyer, for the same purposes as in this country; and, as Von Thaer has re- marked, though some have tried other species, both in these countries and in England, they have in the end returned to rye-grass. When intended as a pasture-grass, if stocked hard, and when for hay, if mo.wn early, the objections to it are removed. ( Code of Agriculture.) G. Sinclair says the circumstance of its producing abundance of seed, which is easily collected, and vegetates freely on any soil, its early perfection and abundant herbage the first year, which is much relished by cattle, are the merits which have upheld it to the present day, and will probably for some time to come continue it a favorite grass among farmers. But the lattermath is inconsiderable, the plant impo- verishes the soil in a high degree if not cut before the seed ripens. When this is neglected, the field after midsununer exhibits only a brown surface of withered straws. liCt the pii-odnce and nutritive powers of rye-grass be compared with those of the cock's- foot-grass, ^nd it will be found inferior nearly in the proportion of 5 to 18 ; to meadow fox-tail of 5 to 12; and to meadow fescue of 5 to 17. {Hort. Gram. Wob. 2d edit. 215. and see § 5100.) In a subsequent page he observes, " The new varieties, however, of this species of grass, which have been discovered of late years, remove in a considerable degree the serious objections which applied to the common rye-grass" {lb. 412.) The Varieties alluded to are all perennial, and as under : Slender rye-grass, common ; Cmnpound or broad spiked^ye-grass, I'ounU m rich soils, lone ^ader giass, and chiefly in beaten parts, as cart-ways, &c. It has a short broad spike, crowded with spikelets at the top. Pacey's rye-grass, fotind in rich meadow lands, and intro- duced by Pacey, a cultivator in the uplands of Stalibrdshire : spike nearly upright, spikelets shorter than in the compound r. g. the stem fumishecl with long leaves, and the root leaves arjfe and numerous. Sinclair considers this the most valuable Tariety of the rye-grass. Whttrijorth's rye-f(mss, introduced by G. Whitworth, Esq. of Acre House, Lincobishire, an eminent cultivator of the Fascua grainina, who, in ISiiB, .had 60 varieties of Lolium perenne under experiment. Stickney's rye-gra^s, introduced by Sticknev of Holdemess. Rujsees rye-grass, first cultivated by thelate B. Holditch, Esq. Editor of The Fanner's Jaumai. from seed obtained of a plant in a rich fen pasture, pointed out to Holditch by the Duke of Bedford. Church bennet, or Church bent-grass, an excellent variety of rye-grass, cjiUivated in some parts of Berkshire. All rthe above, excepting the two first, are extjellent varieties. Pacey's and Russel's are considered the best. ^096. The proportipnal value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at tjie time the seed is ripe, is as 10 to 11. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 4 to 10, and to that at the time the seed is ripe, as ,4 to 11. 5097. The seed of perennial rye-grass is not to be distinguished from^that of the annual variety. It may be collected by hand, in most parts of Britain, from old pastures, and a considerable quantity is annually so got in Kent and Sussex. It i$ also grown purposely for seed' in England and Scotland. Formerly it was the practice for farmers to collect the seed which dropped from the,hay used by their horses; but rye-grass, grown for hay, is now cut by all judicious farmers, when it is just coming into flower; and therefore to colle(;t the glumes or empty husks can be of no use as seed. It has also been a common practice, in regard to rye-grass, to let the mixed c rep of that and clover stand till the seeds of the former have attained a con- siderable degree of ripeness, wtibn it is cut down and made into hay, in the usual manner ; and the seeds of the rye-grass are separatfed by the use of the flail, commonly before the hay is put into the field-ricks. Sometimes, when but a spiall quantity is wanted, the hay is merely shaken well upon a cloth, when it i9 Book VI. HAY GRASSES. 819 building in the stack-yard ; or afterwards in the stable-loft, before it is put into the horse's racks. But in all of these methods, in order to obtain good seed, the clover must remain uncut beyond the proper season • and it is thus materially injured in quality, while the value of the rye-grass seed, in such a crop, is merely a secondary consideration. 5098. When seed is the principal object of the culture of rye-grass, it ought not to be mixed with clover at all, though it may be sown along with any of the kinds of corn, and treated the year after in every respect as a crop of corn ; bound up in sheaves, built in stacks, threshed with the flail, and dressed by the winnowing, machine in the same manner. 5099. The difficulty of distinguishing between the annual and perennial varieties of rye-grass has led to the practice, in some places, of cutting or pasturing the first year's crop, and taking a crop for seed the second year. If the growth of the rye-grass plants be close and vigorous the second year, there is reason to be satisfied that the seed is of the perennial variety ; and though red clover has been sown with the rye- grass, a great part of it disappears by that time, and forms but a small portion of the second year's cutting. (Sup. Encyc. Brit. art. Agr.) 5100. The cock's-foot grass {Dactylis glomerata, L. Jig. 580 b) is an imperfect peren- nial, and grows naturally on dry sandy soils. This grass may be known by its coarse ap- pearance, both of the leaf and spike, and also by its whitish green hue. One writer says, he has cultivated it largely and to his satisfaction on wet loams on a clay marl bottom, upon which the finer grasses are apt to give way in a few years to the indigenous produce. If suffered to rise high, it is very coarse ; but fed close, is a very valuable sheep pasture. He has sown two bushels an acre, and 10 lbs. tommon red clover; and when the clover wears out, the grass fills the lands and abides well in it. It grows well in winter. It has been found highly useful as an early sheep feed. It is early, hardy, and productive, but is a coarser plant than rye-grass, and requires even greater attention in regard to being cut soon, or fed close. It does best by itself, and the time of its ripening being different from that of clover, it does not suit well to be mixed with that plant. The pasturage it affords is luxuriant, and particularly agreeable to sheep. It is cultivated to a great ex- tent, and with astonishing success at Holkham. The quantity of sheep kept upon it, summer and winter, is quite surprising ; and the land becomes renovated by laying two or three years under this grass, and enriched by the manure derived from the sheep. A field, in the park at Woburn, was laid down in two equal parts, one part with rye-grass and white clover, and the other part with cock's-foot and red clover : from the spring till midsummer, the sheep kept almost constantly on the rye-grass; but after that time they left it, and adhered with equal constancy to the cock's-foot during the remainder of the season. In The Code of Agriculture, (p. 497. third edit. J it is stated that Sinclair, of Woburn, con- siders " no grass so well suited for all purposes as cock's-foot ;" and in the second edition of H. Gramineus Wobumensis, it is observed, that if one species only is thought prefer- able to another in the alternate husbandry, that species is the Dactylis glomerata, from its more numerous merits. But a certain supply of the most nutritious herbage throughout the season will be in vain looked for from any one species of grass, but only where nature has provided it in a combination of many. None appear better fitted for mixing with Dactylis than Festuca duriuscula and pratensis, Poa trivialis, Holcus avenaceus, Phleum pratense, Lolium perenne, and white clover. " A combination thus formed, of three parts cock's-foot, and, one part of these species just mentioned, will secure the most productive and nutritive pasture in alternation with grain crops, on soils of the best quality ; and even on soils of an inferior nature, under the circumstances of unfavorable seasons, will afford nutritive herbage, when otherwise the land would have been com- paratively devoid of it, if one species of grass only had been employed." (^Hort. Granu Wob. 2d 'edit. 414.) 5101. The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at the time the seed is ripe, in as 5 to 7 nearly. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 6 to 10 ; and to that at the time the seed is ripe, as 6 to 14. J-ixty-four dr, of the straws at the time of flowering aftbrd of nutritive matter 1.2. dr. The leaves or lattermath, and the straws simply, are therefore of equal proportional value ;' a circutnstance which will point out this grass to be more va- luable for permanent pasture than for hay. The above details prove, that a loss of nearly one-third of the value of the crop is sustained, if it is left to the period when the seed is ripe, though the proportional value of the grass at that time is greater, i. e. as 7 to 5. The produce does not increase if the grass is left growing after the period of flowering, but uniformly decreases; and the loss of lattermath, (from the rapid growth of the foliage after the grass is cropped) is very considerable. These circumstances point out the necessity of keeping this grass closely cropped, either with the scythe or cattle, to reap the full benefit of its merits. 5102. The woolly soft grass (Holcus lanatus, 'L.fig. 580 c) is an imperfect perennial, and rather late flow- ering grass, of a soft unsubstantial appearance, and found chiefly in poor dry soils. It is, however, a very common grass, and grows on all soils, from the richest to the poorest. It affords abundance of seed which is light, and easily dispersed by the wind. It was cultivated at Woburn on a strong clayey loam' and the proportional value which the grass at the time the seed is ripe, bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 11 to 12. Voung, of Essex, observes of this grass, that it flourishes well on any moist soil and should be sown chiefly with a view to sheep, for it is not equally good for other stock : many acres of it have been cultivated on his farm for sheep, and it has answered greatly when kept close fed. Marshal in his Midland Counties, mentions it as a good grass for cows and other cattle, but bad for horses. In his Rural Economy qf Yorkshire, he, however, condemns it in toto. 51U.'3. According to Sinclair, of Woburn, " it appears to be generally disliked by all sorts of cattle. The produce is not so great as a view of it in the fields would indicate ; but being left almost entirely untouched by cattle, it appears as the most productive part of the herbage. The hay which is made of it, from the number of downy hairs which cover the surface of the leaves, is soft and spongy, and dis- liked by cattle in general." The Woburn experiments lead to the conclusion that the holcus'mollis is a better hay plant than the species here noticed ; but as that is a more durable pei'ennial it is less fitted for the temporary purposes of the grasses of this section. 3 G 2 820 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5104. With respect to the cultvre of these grasses, it may be considered as ne same as that given to rye-grass, as discussed when treating of clover and rye-grass (5002.). The seeds of all of them are sold by the principal seedsmen, or may be gathered on grass- fields, or hedge wastes, by women or children at an easy rate. SuBSECT. 2. Of tall or Hay Grasses of permanent Duration. 5105. 2^0 permanent grass has hecn found equa\ to the rye-grass for the purposes of convertible husbandry, but others have been selected which are considered superior for hay meadows. The principal of these are the fescue, fox-tail, and meadow-grass. Agricul- turists, indeed, are not all agreed on the comparative merits of these grasses with rye- grass, but there are none who do not consider it advisable to introduce a portion of each, or most of these species along with rye-grass, in laying down lands to permanent pasture. The nutritive joroducts of these grasses, of perennial rye-grass, and of that singular grass fiorin, are thus given by Sir H. Davy : Systematic name. English name. Whole quantity of soluble or nutritive matter. Mucilage or starch. Saccha- rine mamphlets by the same gentleman. It appears to be exclusively adapted for moist peat soils or bogs. In The Code of Agriculture, it is said, " On mere bogs, the florin yields a great weight of herbage, and is, perhaps, the most useful plant that bogs can produce." According to Sir H. Davy, the florin grass, to be in perfection, requires a moist climate or a wet soil ; and it grows luxuriantly in cold clays unfltted for other grasses. In light sands, and in dry situations, its produce is much inferior as to quantity and qua- lity. He saw four square yards of florin grass cut in the end of January, in a meadow exclusively appro- priated to the cultivation of florin, by the Countess of Hardwicke, the soil of which is a damp stiff" clay. They afforded twenty-eight pounds of fodder, of which one thousand parts afforded sixty-four parts of nutritive matter, consisting nearly of one-sixth of sugar, and five-sixths of mucilage, with a little extrac- tive matter. In another experiment, four square yards gave twenty-seven pounds of grass. Lady Hard- wicke has given an account of a trial of this grass ; wherein twenty-three milch cows, and one young hoise, besides a number of pigs, were kept a fortnight on the produce of one acre. On the Duke of Bedford's farm, at Maulden, florin hay was placed in the racks before horses, in small distinct quantities, alternately with common hay j but no decided preference for either was manifested by the horses in this tr^al. 5120. There are other species afagrostis, as the A. palustris and repens, and some va- rieties of the A. stolonifera, that on common soils are little diflferent in their appearance and properties from fiorin. Of one of these, the narrow-leaved creeping bent [A. stotb' nifera, var. angustifolia), the following remarks are made in the account of the Woburn experiments. " From a careful examination of the creeping-bent with narrow leaves, it will doubtless appear to possess merits well worthy of attention, though perhaps not so great as has been supposed, if the natural place of its growth and habits be impartially taken into the account. From the couchant nature of this grass, it is denominated couch-grass, by practical men, and from the length of time that it retains the vital power, after being taken out of the soil, it is called squitch, quick, full of life, &c. 5121 . The culture of Jiorin is different from that of other grasses. Though the plant will ripen its seeds on- a dry soil, and these seeds being very small, a few pounds would be sufficient for an acre, yet it is generally propagated by stolones or root-shoots. The ground being well pulverised, freed from weeds, and laid into such beds or ridges as the cultivator may think advisable ; small drills an inch or two deep, and six or nine inches asunder, are to be drawn along its surface, with a hand or horse-hoe, or on soft lands by the hoe-rake. In the bottom of these drills, the fiorin shoots (whether long or short is of no consequence) are laid in lengthways, so as their ends may touch each other, and then lightly covered with a rake, and the surface rolled to render it fit for the scythe. In six months the whole surface will be covered with verdure, and if the planting be performed early in spring, a large crop may be had the same autumn. Any season will answer for planting, but one likely to be followed by showers and heat is to be preferred. Tliose who wish to cultivate this grass will consult Dr. Richardson's New Essay on Fiorin Grass (1813), and also The farmer's Magazine for 1810-14. Our opinion is, that neither fiorin, Timothy, or floating fescue, are ever likely to be cultivated in Britain ; though the two last may perhaps succeed well on the bogs and moist rich soils of Ireland, where, to second the influence of the soil, there is a moist warm climate^ 5122. A number of other species of tall grasses, well adapted for meadows and hay- making, might be here enumerated ; but we have deemed it better to treat only of the most popular sorts, of which seeds may be purchased, all ihe others of any consequence will be found in a tabular view (Sect, III.), accompanied by a summary statement of their products, in hay and aftermatii, nutritive matter, and general character. 5123. The preparation of the soil, and solving of the usval meadow grasses, differs in nothing from that of clover and rye-grass already given ; the after treatment of dry mea- dows^ iticluding the making of natural hay, will be found in the succeeding Chapter on the management of grass-lands, and that of watered meadoVvs was naturally given when treating of their formation. f4053.) 3 G 1 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. ?ART IIL Sect. II. Grasses chiefly adapted Jbr Pasturage, 5124. Of pasturage grasses we shall make a selection of such as have been tried to some extent, and of which the seeds are in the course of commerce. On soils in good condi- tion, and naturally well constituted, no better grasses can be sown for pasturage than those we have described as tall grasses for hay -meadows ; but for early and late pas- turage, and secondary soils, there are others much more suitable. 5125. Tilt pasture grasses for early pasturage on all soils, are the anthoxanthura odo- ratum, holcus odoratus, avena pubescens, and poa annua. ■ 5126. The pasture grasses for late herbage on all soils are chiefly the different species of agrostis and phleum. 5127. The pasture grasses for poor or secondary soils are the cynosurus cristatus, festuca duriuscula and ovina, poa compressa, cristata, and angustifolia. 5128. The grasses that afford most nutritive matter in early spring, are the fox-tail grass and the vernal grass ; the former has been already mentioned as one of the best hay-grasses. 5129. Tlie sweet-scented vernal grass, {Anthoxanthum odoratum, Jig. 583 a) , is common in almost all pastures, and is that which gives the fragrance to natural or meadow-hay. It is chiefly valuable as an early grass, as, though it is eaten by stock, it does not appear to be much relished by them. From the Woburn experiments, it appears that the small- ness of the produce of this grass renders it improper for the purpose of hay j but its early growth, and the superior quantity of nutritive matter which the lattermath affords, com- pared with the quantity afforded by the grass at the time of flowering, causes it to rank high as a pasture-grass, on such soils as are well fitted for its growth ; such are peat-bogs, and lands that are deep and moist. 5130. The downy oat grass, {Avena jnihescens, b), according to the Woburn ex- periments, possesses several good qualities, which recommend it to particular notice ; it is hardy, early, and more productive than many others which affect similar soils and situations. Its growth after being cropped is tolerably rapid, although it does not attain . to a great length if left growing ; like the poa pratensis it sends forth flower-stalks but once in a season, and it appears well calculated for permanent pasture on rich light soils, 5131 . The annual meadoiv grass (Poa annua, c), is the most common of all grasses^ and the least absolute in its habits. It is almost the only grass that will grow in towns and near works where the smoke of coal abounds. Though an annual grass, it is found in most meadows and pastures perpetually flowering, and affording an early sweet herbage, relished by all stock, and of as great importance to birds as wheat is tO' man. It hardly requires to be sown, as it springs up every where of itself. However^ it may not be amiss to sow a few pounds of it per acre wherever perpetual pasture (not hay) is the object. 5132. The fine bent grass (Agrostis vulgaris, d), is one of the most common' grasses, and according to the Woburn experiments, one of the earliest. The A. palus- tris is nearly as early in producing its foliage, though both flower late, and neither are very prolilic either in bulk or nutritive matter. 5133. The narrow-leaved meadow g7'ass (Poa angustifolia, e), though it flowers' exp, yet is remarkable for the early growth of the leaves. According to the Woburn' experiments the leaves attain to the length of more than twelve inches before the middle' of April, and are soft and succulent; in May, however, when the flower- stalks make their appearance, it is subject to the disease termed rust, which affects the whole plant ; the consequence of whicli is nianifl'st in the great deficiency of produce in the ciop at the time the seed is ripe, being one half less than at the time of the flowering of the Book VI. PASTURE GRASSES. 825 Avena flavescens. Hordeum pratense. Cynosurus cristatus. Fesluca duriuscula. Trifolium repens. Lathyrus pratensis. Festuca duriuscula. grass. Though this disease begins in the straws, the leaves suffer most from its effects, being at the time the seed is ripe completely dried up : the straws, therefore, constitute the principal part of the crop for mowing, and they contain more nutritive matter in proportion than the leaves. This grass is evidently most valuable for permanent pasture^ for which, in consequence of its superior, rapid, and early growth, and the disease beginning at the straws, nature seems to have designed it. The grasses which approach nearest to this in respect of early produce of leaves, are the poa fertilis, dactylis glome- rata, phleum pratense, alopecurus pratensis, avena elatior, and bromus littoreus, all grasses of a coarser kind. 5 1 34. The best natural pastures of England y examined carefully during various periods of the season, were found by Sinclair, of Woburn, to consist of the following plants : — Alopecurus pratensis. Anthoxanthum odoratum. Bromus arvensis (frequent.) Dactylis glonierata. Holcus avenacetis. Poa annua. Festuca pratensis. Vicia sepium. Avena pratensis. Phleum pratense. Lolium perenne. These afford the principal grass in the spring, and also a great part of the summer produce. Poa trivialis. Poa pratensis. Holcus lanatus. Trifolium pratenss. i These yield produce principally in summer and autumn. Achillea millefolium. Agrostis stolonifera and palustris. Triticum repens. 'Z These vegetate with most vigor in autumn. Ranunculus acris. Plantago lanceolata. Rumere iicetosa. The first and last of these plants are to be considered as injurious ; and the other is of little value as herbage. {Hort. Gram. Wob. 2d edit. 133.) 5135. The above mixture sown at the rate of four or five bushels to the acre, on well prepared soil without corn or other crop of any kind, could hatdly fail of producing excellent pasture the following year, and for an endless period. The best time for sowing is July or August, as spring sown seeds are apt to suffer with the droughts of June and July. Fifteen of the above sorts are to be had from the seed shops ; and all of them may be gathered from natural pastures, or bespoke from collectors. , Sinclair, of Woburn, having entered into the seed and nursery business, and having expressed his intention to devote his particular attention to supplying the public with grass and other agricultural seeds, will probably render such seeds more common in commerce. (Advt. by Cormack, Son and Sinclair.) 5136. Of late pasture grasses the different species of cat's-tail (Phleum), and bent- grass (Agrostis), are the chief, and especially the Timothy and fiorin-grass. The grasses. Sir H. Davy observes, that propagate themselves by stolones, the different species of agrostis, supply pasture throughout the year ; and the concrete sap, stored up in their joints, renders them a good food even in winter. 5137. Of pasture grasses for inferior soils one of the most durable is the dogVtail grass ^Cynosurus cristatus, ^fig. 584 a). This is a very common grass on dry, clayey, or firm surfaces. It is one of the best grasses for parks, being highly relished by the South Down sheep and deer. 5138. The hard fescue grass (Festuca duriuscula, b), is one of the best of the dwarf sorts of grasses. It is grateful to all kinds of cattle; hares are very fond of it; at Woburn they crop it close to the roots, and neglect the festuca ovina, and festuca rubra, which grow contiguous to it. It is present in most good meadows and pastures, and with F. ovina is the best for lawns. 5139. The fesluca glabra (c), and hordiforinis (d), greatly resemble the hard fescue, and may be considered ascqually desirable as pasture and lawn grasses. 5 140. The yclloiv oat grass (Avena Jlavcscens), is very generally cultivated, and appears, from the Woburn experiments, to be a veiy valuable grass for pasture on a clayey soil. 826 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5141. Of pasture grasses for inferior soils and upland situations, one of the principal is the festuca ovina, ^ * ^ or sheep's fescue grass (Jig. 585 a) This grass is pecu- liarly adapted for hilly sheep pastures. It is a very dwarf grass, but relished by all kinds of cat- tle. According to Sinclair's experi- ence, " on dry soils; that are incapable of producing the larger sorts, this should form the principal crop, or rather the whole ; for it is seldom or ever, in its natural state, found intimately mixed with others, but by itself. 5142. The Poa alpina {b), Alopecurus alpinus, and Aira ccespitosa (c), Briza media (rf), and minima, and Agrustis Iiv7nilis and vulgaris, are all dwarf mountain grasses, well adapted for hilly parks or lawns. 5143. On the ctUture of these grasses it is unnecessary to enlarge, as it must obviously be the same a» that of rye-grass or any of the others. The chief difficulty is to get the seed in sufficient quantity, for which a good mode is to contract with a seedsman for the quantity wanted a year before hand. With aH the pasture grasses, excepting the last class, we should recommend at least half the seed used to be that of the perennial rye-grass ; and we think it should also form a considerable part of the seeds used in laying down all meadows, excepting those for the aquatic or stoloniferous grasses. These, if they thrive, are sure to choak and destroy it, and therefore neither rye-grass, or any other grass, should ever be sown with Timothy grass or fiorin. 5144. The formation of grass?/ surfaces hy distributing pieces of turf over them, has long been practised in gardening, in levelling down raised, or filling up hollow fences, and in other cases of partially altering a grassy surface ; it is said to have been first used in agriculture by Whitworth, of Acre-house, Lincolnshire, and in 1812 it was brought forward on a large scale by John Blomtield, of Warhara, in Norfolk, a tenant of Coke's. Blomfield planted eleven acres in this way. An account of the process, which is styled transplanting turf, or inoculating land with grass, has been published by Francis Blaikie, Coke's steward. (On the Conversion of Arable Land into Pasture, 12mo. 1817.) 5145. An abstract of the process of transplanting turf, and an ofnnion on it, are thus given in The Code o Agriculture. A piece of good, clean, sweet old turf, which ought principally to consist of fibrous rooted plants, is cut into small pieces of about three inches square, and placed about six inches apart on the surface of ground pressed for that purpose. In this way one acre of turf will plant nine acres of arable land. The pieces of flag should be carefully placed with the grass side uppermost, and the plants pressed well into the ground. No more turf should be cut, carried, and spread in any one day than is likely to be planted before night. If the transplanted turf is found deficiept in any particular species of favorite plants, a» white clover, permanent red clover, &c. the seeds of those plants should be sown upon the young pasture in April. When the ground is in proper temper (between wet and dry) the pasture should be frequently well pressed down by heavy rollers, which will cause the plants to extend themselves along the ground rather than rise into tufts, which otherwise they would be apt to do. No stock should be permitted to feed upon the transplanted pasture in the first spring or summer, nor until the grasses have perfected and shed their seeds. Indeed the pasturing should be very moderate until the mother grass-plants and their young progeny have united and formed a compact turf. The expense of this operation is about 2/. 10*. per statute acre ; without making any allowance for the charges incurred by summer fallowing the arable land on which the turf has been transplanted ; nor for the year's rent, poor's rates, and taxes for that year ; nor for restoring the land whence the turf plants were taken, to its previous state. This plan seems to be \vell calculated to promote the improvement of light soils, not naturally of a grassy nature, for the grasses and their roots being once formed on a rich soil, will probably thrive afterwards even on a poor one, as they will derive a considerable proportion of their nourishment from the atmosphere. For light and gravelly soils, therefore, where permanent pasture is desirable, the plan cannot be too strongly re- dommended ; and if it were found to answer on peat, after the surface was pared for the reception of the plants, and burnt to promote their growth, it would be a most valuable acquisition to sheep farmers in many districts of the country. Thus far Sir John Sinclair, but from facts related by Sinclair of Woburn, it appears to be a plan of little or no merit, only brought into notice by its novelty. {^H. G. Wob. 2d edit. 420, 421.) Sect. III. General View of the Produce, Uses, Character, and Value of the princijml British Grasses, according to the result of John Duke of Bedford's Exjyenments at Woburn. 5146. In all permanent ])astures, Sir H. Davy observes, nature has provided a mixture of Various grasses, the produce of which differs at different seasons. Where pastures are to be made artificially, such a mixture ought to be imitated ; and, perhaps, pastures superior to the natural ones may be made by selecting due proportions of those species of grasses fitted for the soil, which afford respectively the greatest quantities of spring, summer, lattermath, and winter produce ; a reference to the results of the Woburn experiments, he adds, will show that such a plan of cultivation is very practicable. 5147. The manner in which these experiments were conducted is thus described. " Spots of ground, each containing four square feet, in the garden at Woburn Abbey, were enclosed by boards in such a manner that there was no lateral communicaiion between the earth included by the boards, and that of the gar- den. The soil was removed in these enclosurcB, and new soils supplied j or mixtures of soils were made Book VI. PASTURE GRASSES. 837 in them, to furnish as far as possible to the different grasses those soils which seem most favorable to their growth ; a few varieties being adopted for the purpose of ascertaining the effect of different soils on the same plant. The grasses were either planted or sown, and their produce cut and collected, and dried at the proper seasons, in summer and autumn, by Sinclair, his Grace's gardener. For the purpose of deter- mining) as far as possible, the nutritive powers of the different species, equal weights of the dry grasses or vegetable substances were acted upon by hot water till all their soluble parts were dissolved ; the solu- tion was then evaporated to dryness by a gentle heat in a proper stove, and the matter obtained carefully weighed. This part of the process was likewise conducted with much address and intelligence by Sinclair, by whom all the following details and calculations are furnished. The dry extracts supposed to contain the nutritive matter of the grasses, were sent to me for chemical examination. The composition of some of them is stated minutely; but it will be found from the general conclusions, that the mode of deter- mining the nutritive power of the grasses, by the quantity of matter they contain soluble in water, is sufficiently accurate for all the purposes of agricultural investigation." {Agr. Chem. app.) 5148. The leading results of these experiments we have endeavored to present in a tabular view; farther details will be found in the paragraphs (antecedent and posterior) referred to in the first column. On the other columns of the table, it may be observed, that the height is given more by a guess than measure- ment, and after the appearance of the plants in a state of nature or medium sous, it is to be regretted, that the height of the plants at Woburn, were not included in the published details. The time of flower- ing is given, as it took place at Woburn, on which it is observed, that " to decide positively the exact period or season, when a grass always comes into flower, and perfects its seed, will be found impracticable ; for a variety of circumstances interfere. Each species seems to possess a peculiar life in which various periods may be distinctly marked, according to tha. varieties of its age, of the seasons, soils, exposures, and mode of culture." 5149. The soils, as denominated in the column devoted to them, are thus described. 1st, By loam, is meant any of the earths combined with decayed animal, or vegetable matter, 2nd, Clayey loam, when the greatest proportion is clay, 3d, Sandy loam, when the greatest proportion is sand. 4th, Brown loam, when the greatest proportion consists of decayed vegetable matter. 5th, Rich black loam, when sand, clay, animal, and vegetable matters are combined in unequal proportions, the clay greatly divided, being in the least proportion, and the sand and vegetable matter in the greatest. The terms light sandy soil, light brown loam, &c. are varieties of the above, as expressed. The abbreviations of the names of books and native soils, wiU be found in common with all the other abbreviations used in this work explained in the General Index, 5150. On the nutritive products^ Sir H. Davy has the following valuable remarks, some of which on the operations in the animal economy of the different substances, composing the nutritive matter, the agriculturist will find useful, as applied to the tables before given (4598. 4738, &c.) of the nutritive products of the corns, legumes, and rootg. The only substances which Sir H. Davy detected in the soluble matters procured from the grasses, are mucilage, sugar, bitter extract, a substance analogous to albumen, and different sa^- line matters. Some of the products from the aftermath crops, gave feeble indications of the tanning principle. In the experiments made on the quantity of nutritive matter in the grasses, cut at the time the seed was ripe, the seeds were always separated : and the calculations of nutritive matter made from grass and not hay. 5151. The order in which these substances are nutritive, is thus given : " Jhe albumen, sugar, and mu- cilage, probably when cattle feed on grass or hay, are for the most part retained in the body of the animal ; and the bitter principle, extract, saline matter, and tanning, when any exist, probably for the most part are voided in the excrement, with the woody fibre. The extractive matter obtained by boiling the fresh dung of cows, is extremely similar in chemical characters to that existing in the soluble products from the grasses. And some extract, obtained by Sinclair from the dung of sheep and of deer, which had been feeding upon the lolium perenne, dactylis glomerata, and trifolium repens, had qualities so analogous to those of the extractive matters obtained from the leaves of the grasses, that they might be mistaken for each other. The extract of the dung, after being kept for some weeks, had still the odor of hay. Sus- pecting that some undigested grass might have remained in the dung, which might have furnished mucilage and sugar, as well as bitter extract, I examined the soluble matter very carefully for these sub- stances. It did not yield an atom of sugar, and scarcely a sensible quantity of mucilage." Sinclair, in com- paring the quantities of soluble matter afforded by the mixed leaves of the lolium perenne, dactylis glomerata, and trifolium repens, and that obtained trom the dung of cattle fed upon them, found their relative proportions, as 50 to 13. 5152. From these facts it appears probable that the bitter extract, though soluble in a large quantity of water, is very little nutritive; but probably it serves the purpose of preventing, to a certain extent, the fermentation of the other vegetable matters, or in modifying or assisting the function of digestion, and may thus be of considerable use in forming a constituent part of the food of animals, A small quantity of bitter extract and saline matter is probably all that is needed, and beyond this quantity the soluble mat- ters must be more nutritive in proportion as they contain more albumen, sugar, and mucilage ; and less nu- tritive in proportion as they contain other substances. 5153. In cmnparing the cotnposition of the soluble products afforded by different crops from the same" grass. Sir H. Davy found, in all the trials, the largest quantity of truly nutritive matter, in the crop cut when the seed was ripe, and least bitter extract and saline matter ; most extract and saline matter in the autum- nal crop ; and most saccharine matter in proi)ortion to the other ingredients, in the crop cut at the time of flowering, 5154. The greater proportion qf leaves in the Spring, and particularly in the late autumnal crop, accounts for the difference in the quantity of extract; and the inferiority of the comparative quantity of sugar in the summer crop, probably depends upon the agency of light, which tends always in i)Iants to convert sac- charine matter into mucilage or starch. Amongst the soluble matters afforded by the different grasses, that of the elymus arenarius {fig. 543 a.) was remarkable for the quantity of saccharine matter it contain- ed, amounting to more than one-third of its weight. The soluble matters from the different species of festuca, in general afforded more bitter extractive :matter, than those from the different species of poa. The nutritive matter from the seed crop of the poa compressa was almost pure mucilage. The soluble matter of the seed crop of phleum pratense, or meadow cat's-tail, atlQ^rded more sugar than any of the poa or festuca species. The soluble parts of the seed crop of the holcus mollis, and holcus lanatus, con- tained no bitter extract, and consisted entirely of nmcilage and sugar. Those of the holcus odoratus afforded bitter extract, and a peculiar substance having an acrid taste, more soluble in alcohol than in water. All the soluble extracts of those grasses, that are most liked by cattle, have either a saline or subacid taste; that of the holcus lanatus is similar in taste to gum arabic. Probably the holcus lanatus, which is so common a grass in meadows, might be made palatable to cattle by being sprinkled over with salt. 5155. No difference was found in the nutritive produce of the crops of the different grasses cut at the same season, which would render it possible to establish a scale of their nutritive powers ; but probably the solu- ble matters of the aftermath crop are always ffom one-sixth to one-third less nutritive, than those from the flower or seed crop. In the aftermath the extractive and saline matters are certainly usually in ex- cess ; but the aftermath hay mixed with summer hay, particularly that in which the fox-tail and soft Brasses are abundant, would produce an excellent food. .. ^28 PRACtlCE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5156. Ta hie oft] e Grasses experimented on at t Systematic Name and Authority. English Name and Native Country. Where figured or described. Natural !l 1 Time of flowering Wobum. Time of ri]>eiiing the Seed at Wobum. Soil at Wobum. Natural Soil and Situation as in Smith's Flora Brit, 5157. Anthoxanthum odora- \ Sweet-scented vernal 1 grass, Brit. J E,B.647 Peren. 12 April 29. June 21. Brown sandy loam Meadows 1 5158 Holcus odoratus, Host.l 0. A. 1 Sweet-scented soft grass, 1 Ger. J Host.N.A. Peren. 14 April 29. June 25, Rich sandy loam Woods,moist miia. 5159. Cynosurusceeruleus, E.b. Blue moor grass, Brit. E.B. 1613 . 20 April 30. June 20, Light sandy soil Pastures 5142. f Alopecurus alpin. E. B. iPoaalpina, E. B. Alpine foxtail grass, Scot. K.B.1126 Peren. 6 May 20. June 24. Sandy loam Alpine meadow grass,Scot. E.B. 1003 Peren. 6 May 50, Jmie 30. Light sandy loam Scotch Alps 5109. Alopecurus pratensis, E.B. Meadow foxtail grass, Brit. E. B. 848 Peren. 24 May 30. June 24. f Clayey loam L Sandy loam Meadows 5111. Poa pratensis, E. B. | Smooth-stalked meadow 1 grass, Brit. E.B. 1073 Peren. 18 1 May 30. July 14. Bog earth and clay Mead. & pastures 5161. Poa ceerulea, var. praO tensis, E. B- J Short blueish meadow" grass, Brit. E.B. 1004 Peren. 14 May 30. July 14. Bog earth and clay Meadows 5160. Avana pubescens, E. B. Downy oat grass, Brit. Barley -like fescue grass,"} Hungary J — Peren. 18 June 13. Julys. Rich ^dy soil Chalky pastures 6162. f Festuca hordiformis or 1 iPoa hordiformis, H.C.J - Peren. 18 June 13. July 10. Manured sandy soil Cornfields , 5113. Poa trivialis, E. B. Roughish mead. gr. Brit. E.B. 1072 . 20 June 13. July 10. Man. lipht br, loam Brown loam Meadows 5163. Festuca glauca, Curtis Glaucous fescue gr. Brit. — Peren. 12 June 13. July 10. Chalky pastures 5164. Festuca glabra. Wither. Smooth fescue gr. Scot. — Peren. 9 June 16. July 10. Clayey loam Mountains 5165. Festuca rubra. Wither. Purple fescue grass, Brit. — Peren. 12 June 20. July 10. Light sandy soU Mead. & pastures. 5166. Festuca ovina, E.B. Sheep's fescue gr. Brit. E. B. 585. Peren. 6 June 24. July 10. Dry pastures Briza media, E. B. Common quaking gr. Brit. E.B. 340. Peren. 16 June 24. July 10. Rich brown loam Pastures 5100. Dacljlis glomerata, E.B.j Rough-head, cock's-footl grass, Brit. J E.B.335. Peren. 24 June 24. July 14, Rich sandy loam Soft moist soils Bromus tectorum. Host.! G. A. J NoddinguencUtedbromel grass, Eur. j - Annual 12 June 24. July 16, Light sandy sou Hedges 5167. Festuca cambrica, Huds. Cambridge fescue gr. Brit, Annual 14 June 28. July 16. Light sandy soil Drv pastures ■ 5168. Bromus diandrus, E. B. Ujiright brome grass, Brit. Narrow-lea. mea. gr. Brit. E.B. 1006 Annual 18 Jime 28. July 16. Rich brown loam Com fields 5169. Poa angustifolia, With. — Peren. 24 June 28. July 16, Brown loam Meadows _ 5170. 'Avena elatior, CurtisT - Holcus avenaceus,Wil.> en \ Tall oat grass or \ Itnot grass, Brit. J E.B. 813 Peren. 50 June 28. July 16. - Arable lands 5171. 'Poa elatior, Curtis 1 \_Avena elatior, var. Tall meadow grass, Scot. - Peren. 30 June 28. July 16. Rich clay loam Meadows 5172, !• estuca duriuscula, E. B. Hard fescue grass, Brit. E. B. 470 Peren. 12 July 1. July 20, Light sandy loam Pastures ' Bromus erectus, E. B- Upright peren. br. gr. Brit. E.B. 471 Peren. 36 — Rich sandy soil Light sandy soil Chalky pastures 5173. Milium etfusum, E. B. Common millet grass, Brit. E.B. 1106 Peren. 40 .July 1. July'20, Wocd^"^ 5106. Festuca pratensLs, E. B. Meadow fescue grass, Brit. E. B. 1592 E. B. 315 Peren. 30 July 1. July 20. Bog soil & coal ashes Meadows 5095. Ixilium perenne, E. B. Perennial rye grass, Brit. Peren. 24 July 1. July 20. Rich brown loam Loamy pastures 5174. Poa maritima, E. B. Sea meadow grass, Brit. E.B. 1140 Peren. 12 Light brown loam Salt marshes 5177. Festuca loliacea, E.B. Spiked fescue grass, Brit. CresteBrit. Lobed bent grass, Brit. E. B. 875 Annual 36 Aug. 2. Aug. 15. Light sandy sou Sandy Agrostis lobata, Curtis — 20 Aug. 6. Aug. 20. Sandy soil Sandy pastures 5120. Agrostis repens. With. ■ Black or creeping rooted ") bent, bl. couch, Brit. J - Peren. 26 Aug. 8. Aug. 25. Clayey loam Arable lands Triticum repens, E. B. Creephig rooted wheat 1 gr. or couch gr. Brit, j E.B. 848 Peren. 30 Aug. 10. Aug. 30. liight clayey loam Arable lands Alopecnnis agrestis Slender foxtail grass, Brit. E.B. 1172 Annual 8 Aug. 10. Sept. 8. Light sandy loam Road sides Bromus asper, E. B. Hairy stalked br. gr. Brit. Mexican bent gr. S. Amer. E. B. 1310 Annual 48 Aug. 10. Sept. 10, Li-ht sandy .soil Black sandy soil Moist san. places A. mexicana, Hort. K. K. B. 1556 Peren. 24 Aug. 15. Sept. 25. Rich pa,stures Stipa pennata, E.B. Long awned fea. gr. Brit. E. B. 909 Peren. 20 Aug. 15. Sept, 25. Heath soil Peat bogs Meliacffirulea, Curtis Purjile melic grass, Brit. Peren. 20 Aug. 29. Sept. .50. Liglit sandy soil Sandy pastures I'halarls canariensis, E. B, Com. Canary grass, Brit. E. 8^760 Annual 26 Aug. .50. Sept. 30. Clayey loaiii (\iltivated fields Dactylis cynosuroidus, \ Lift. i Amtr. cock's f.tot.gr. N. A . - 21 Aug. .50. Oct. 20. Clayey '-^am Loamy nastvires Book VI. WOBURN GRASSES. 829 JFubum, arranged in the Order of their Flowering. it 11 fi Kind of Itoots. Produce, at the Time ot flowering, per Acre in lbs. Produce, when the Seed i,- , ripe, per Acre in lbs. Loss or Gain by Cutting, when in Flower, in Nutritive Matter, in lbs. LosKor Gain by Cutting, when in Seed, in Nutritive Matter, in lbs. Produce ol the Latter, math, per Acre, in lbs. General Character: Grass. Hay. II II Grass. Hay. is M 311 188 i 0 J 188 0 11 3828 5157. Fibrous 7827 2103 5723 12ii 6125 1837 4287 6806 An early pasture grass. 'j158. - 9528 2441 7087 61G 27225 9528 17696 2233 1600 - - 160(, 17015 1129 The most nutritive of early flow. gr. 5159. 5142. 5109. Fibrous fFibr. iPibr. Creep. | 5445 5445 20418 8507 14*52 6125 2552 3993 14293 127 478 13i 6806 12931 5819 7111 398 4*61 1 8167 255 .\ot deserving culture Not worth culture. A good grass for lawns, j One of the best meadow grasses. 5111. Creepinj.' 10209 2871 7337 279 8507 3403 5104 199 79 79 4083 111 Good early hay grass. ■ilGl. Creeping 7486 2246 5240 233 ». ilGO. 51G2. Fibrous 15654 13672 5870 4083 9783 9528 366 478 6806 1361 5445 212 154 154 • 6806 21i A good pasture grass on a rich soiL ■.US. .11G3. 51G4. 5165. 5166. Fibrous Fibrous Fibrous Fibrous Fibrous Fibrous 7486 9528 14293 10209 9528 2246 4811 5717 3557 3096 5240 5717 8576 6651 6431 23.''< 446 44C 239 40«f(x>m0 38'. . . . . . . . A vile weed in arable lands. Fibrous Fibi^us Fibrous 81G7 13612 19057 9528 7486 54450 3I64I 5(K)3 4083 9528 6670 12387 34541 6074 28071 4679 1 17697 .36752 22.'^ 425 595 409 187(J ; -_ \ -_ - J ] Unfit for culture. Deserves trial. .\ot worth culture. V good lawn gra.ss. ;jrown for its seeds. 69123 •41654 27769 1S9S • 83d PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5157. Anthoxanthum otloratum, E. B. — The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at the time the seed is ripe, is as 4 to 13. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the tiirie the seed is ripe, is nearly as 9 to 13. 5158. Holcus odoratus, Hors. G. A. — The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at the time the seed is ripe, is as 17 to 21. The grass of the lattermath crop, and of the crop at the time of flowering, taking the whole quantity, and their relative proportions of nutritive matter, are in value nearly as 6 to 10 : the value of the grass at the time the seed is ripe, exceeds that of the latter-math, in proportion as 21 to 17. Though this is one of the earliest of the flowering grasses, it is tender, and the produce in the spring is inconsiderable. If, however, the quantity of nutritive matter which it affords, be compared with that of any of those species which flower nearly at the same time, it will be found greatly superior. It sends forth but a small number of flower-stalks, which are of a slender structure compared to the size of the leaves. This will account in a great measure for the equal quantities of nutritive matter afforded by the grass at the time of flowering, and the lattermath. 5159. Cynosurus ccsruleus, E. B. — The produce of this grass is greater than its appearance would denote ; the leaves seldom attain to more than four or five inches in length, and the flower-stalks seldom arise to more. Its growth is not rapid after being cropped, nor does it seem to withstand the effects of frost, which if it happen to be severe and early in the spring, checks it so much as to prevent it from flowering for that season ; otherwise the quantity of nutritive matter which the grass affbrds (for the straws are very inconsiderable), would rank it as a valuable grass for permanent pasture. 5160. Avena puhescens, E. B. — The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at the time the seed is ripe, is as 6 to 8. The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that of the lattermath, is as 6 to 8. The grass of the seed-crop, and that of the lattermath, are of equal value. The downy hairs which cover the surface of the leaves of this grass, when growing on poor light soils, almost entirely disappear when it is cultivated on a richer soil. 5161. Poa ccerulea, var. pratensis, E. B. — If the produce of this variety be compared with that of poa pratensis, it will be found less ; nor does it seem to possess any superior excellence. The superior nutritive power does not make up for the deficiency of produce by 80 lbs. of nutritive matter per acre. 5162. Festuca hordiformis, H. Cant. — This is rather an early grass, though later than any of the pre- ceding species : its foliage is very fine, resembling the F. duriuscula, to which it seems nearly allied, differing only in the length of the awns, and the glaucous color of the whole plant. The considerable produce it affords, and the nutritive powers it appears to possess, joined to its early growth, are qualities which strongly recommend it to further trial. 5163. Festuca glauca, Curtis. — The proportional value by which the grass at the time of flowering exceeds that at the time the seed is ripe, is as 6 to 12 The proportional difference in the value of the flowering and seed crops of this grass is directly the reverse of that of the preceding species, &nd affords another strong proof of the value of the straws in grass which is intended for hay. The straws at the time of flowering are of a very succulent nature ; but from that period till the seed be perfected, they gradually become dry and wiry. Nor does the root-leaves sensibly increase in number or in size, but a total suspension of increase appears in every part of the plant, the roots and seed vessels excepted. The straws of the poa trivialis are, on the contrary, at the time of flowering, weak and tender ; but as they advance towards the period of ripening the seed, they become firm and succulent j after that period, however, they rapidly dry up, and appear little belter than a mere dead substance. 5164', Festuca glabra, Wither. B. — The proportional value which the grass at the time the seed is ripe bears to that of the crop at the time of flowering is as 5 to 8. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that of the crop at the time of flowering, is as 2 to 8, and to that of the crop, at the time the seed is ripe, is as 2 to 5. The general appearance of this grass is very similar to that of the festuca duriuscula : it is, however, specifically different, and inferior in many respects, which will be manifest on comparing their several produce with each other ; but if it be compared with some others, now under general cultivation, the result is much in its favor, the soil which it affects being duly attended to. 5165. Festuca rttbra. Wither. B. — The proportional value which the grass at the time of flowering bears to that at the ti^e the seed is ripe, is as 6 to 8. This species is smaller in every respect than the preceding. The leaves are seldom more than from three to four inches in length ; it affects a soil similar to that favorable to the growth of the festuca ovina, for which it would be a profitable sub- stitute, as will clearly appear on a comparison of their produce with each other. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the time the seed is ripe is as 6 to 8, and is of equal value with the grass at the time of flowering. 5166. Festuca ovina, E. B. — The dry weight of this species was not ascertained, because the smallness of the produce renders it entirely unfit for hay. 5167. Festuca cambrica. Hud. — This species is nearly allied to the festuca ovina, from which it differs little, except that it is larger in" every respect. The produce, and the nutritive matter which it affords, will be found superior to those given by the F. ovina, if they are brought into comparison. 5168. Bromus diandrus, Curt. Lond. — This species, like the festuca cambrica, is strictly annual ; the above is therefore the produce for one year, which, if compared with that of the least productive of the perennial grasses, will be found inferior, and it must consequently be regarded as unworthy erf culture. 5169. Poa angustifoHa, With. 2 — In the early growth of the leaves of this species of Poa, there is a striking proof that early flowering in grasses is not always connected with the most abundant early pro- duce of leaves. In this respect, all the species which have already come under examination are greatly inferior to that now spoken of. The culms are most valuable for the manufacture of the finest straw plait. 5170. Avena elatior. Curt. — This grass sends forth flower-straws during the whole season ; and the lat- termath contains nearly an equal number with the flowering crop. It is subject to the rust, but the dis- ease does not make its appearance till after the period of flowering ; it affects the whole plant, and at the time the seed is ripe the leaves and straws are withered and dry. This accounts for the superior value of the latteirmath over the seed crop, and points out the propriety of taking the crop when the grass is in flower. 5171. Poa elatior, Curt. — The botanical characters of this grass are almost the same as those of the avena elatior, differing in the want of the awns only. It has the essential character of the holci, (florets, male and hermaphrodite ; calyx husks two-valved, with two florets) ; and since the avena elatior is now referred to that genus, this may with certainty be considered a variety of it. 5172. Festuca duriuscula, E. B. — The proportional value which the grass at the time the seed is ripe, bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 6 to 14 nearly. The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 5 to 14, and to that at the time the seed is ripe 5 to 6. The above particulars will confirm the favorable opinion which was given of this grass when speaking of the F. hordiformis, and F. glabra. (5162. and 5164.) Its produce in the spring is not very great, but of the finest quality, and at the time of flowering is considerable. If it be compared with those affecting similar soils, such as poa pratensis, festuca ovina, &c, either considered as a grass for hay, or permanent pasture, it will bo found of greater value. 5173. Milium ejff'usum — Th\s species in its natural state seems confined to woods as its place of growth ; but the trial that is here mentioned, confirms the opinion that it will grow and thrive in open exposed situations. It is remarkable for the lightness of the produce in proportion to its bulk. It produces foliage early in the spring in coasiderable abundance ; but its nutritive powers appear comparatively little. Book VI. WOBURN GRASSES. 831 5174. Poa maritima, E. B. — The proportional value which the grass of the lattermath bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 4 to 18. 5175. Avena pratensis, E. B. — The proportional value which the crop, at the time the seed is ripe, bears to that at the time of flowering, is as 4 to 9. 5176. Bromus multifioruSy'E. B. — This species is annual, and no valuable properties have as yet been ciculari$ - Ditto ditto • • % 832 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5192. Panicum sanguinaJe, E. B. — This species is strictly annual; and from the results of this trial, its nutritive powers appear to be very inconsiderable. 5193. The grasses which afford the best culfnsfor straw plait are, according to Sinclair, as follow : For lieath or moor soil. Festuca ovina, duriuscula and hor- Moist soils. Agrostis canina, fascicularis, canina mutica," diformis, Nardus stricta. stolonifera angustifolia, stolonifera cristata, alba, stricta,. Dry soils. Cynosurus cristatus, poa anRustifplia, hordeum repens, poa nemoralis, angustlfolia. pratense> anthoxanthum odoratum, agrostis lobata, spica Cereal grasses. Wheat, spelt-wheat, rye and oats, have ventl, flavescens and vulgaris mutica, avena pubescens, fes- been sown on poor soils, and cut green and bleached, but tuca heterophylla. are found interior to the above grasses for the finest plat. 5194. The period for cutting the culms is when they are in blossom. They are bleached by pouringr boiling water over them, in which they remain ten minutes, and are afterwards spread on a grass plat for seven or eight days. Sinclair found letting the culms remain in hot water from one to two hours required only two or three days bleaching. When bleached they are taken up, washed clean, and put in a moist state in a close vessel, where they are subjected to the fumes of burning sulphur for two hours. Green culms, im- mersed for ten minutes in a strong solution of acetic acid, and tiien subjected to the sulphureous acid gas, are bleached perfectly white in half an hour. Green culms, immersed for fifteen minutes in muriatic acid, diluted with twenty times its measure of water, and then spread on the grass, became in four days as per- fectly bleached as those culms which were scalded and bleached eight days on the grass. The texture of the straw was not in the least injured by these processes. The application of the sulphureous acid gas to the moistened culms, even after scalding and bleacliing on the grass, had, in every instance, the eftect of greatly improving the color, and that without being productive of the smallest injury to the texture of the straw. (^Hort. Gram. Wob. 2nd edit. 427.) 5195. To imitate the Leghorn plait in the most perfect manner, the straws should be plaited the reverse •way of the common English split-straw plait. In the English plait, the straws are flattened by a small hand-mill made for the purpose, but the Leghorn plait has the straws worked without flattening, and pressure is applied after the plait is made. These two points are essential to be observed by those who wish to rival the finest Leghorn manufacture. By reversing the common mode of plaiting, the fingers have a much greater power in knitting firmly and intimately the straws, and the round or unflattened state of the straws allows of their being more closely knitted j a circumstance that gives an appearance- similar to the real Leghorn plait. {Ibid.) Chap. VII. Of the Management of Lands permanently under Grass. 5196. In every country by far the greater proportion of perennial grass lands is the work of nature : and it is not till an advanced period in the progress of agriculture thai, much attention is paid to their management. But as the extension of tillage, planting, ' and the formation of parks and gardens, limits the range of the domestic animals, their food becomes more valuable ; and it then becomes an object to increase it by the culture of roots and artificial herbage on some lands, and by the improved management of the spontaneous productions of others. In a highly cultivated country like Britain, there- fore, those lands retained in grass either are, or ought to be, such as are more valuable to the owners in that state than they would be in any other. Such lands naturally divide them-- : selves into two classes : those which are fit either for mowing or pasture ; and those which are fit for pasture only. Sect. I. Perennial Grass Lands ft for mowing, or Meadow Lands. 5197. Under the term meadow, we include all such land as is kept under grass chiefly . for the sake of a hay crop, though occasionally, and at particular seasons of the year, it may be depastured by the domestic animals ; and we usually include und&r this term the notion of a greater degree of moisture in the soil, than would be thought desirable either for permanent pasture or lands in tillage. Where hay is in great demand, as near large towns, and especially if a good system of cropping be but little understood, a great deal of arable land may be seen appropriated to hay-crops ; but the most valuable meadows are such as are either naturally rather moist, or that are rendered so by means of irrigation. There are three descriptions of these meadows : on the banks of streams and rivers ; on the uplands, or more elevated grounds ; and bog-meadows ; and each of these kinds may be stocked with grasses either naturally or by art, and may be irrigated by one or other of the different watering processes already described. (4053.) 5198. River-meadows, or those which are situated in the bottoms of valleys, are in ge- neral by far the most valuable. They are the most productive of grass and hay, yielding sustenance for cattle through the summer and the winter, and producing an everlasting source of manure for the improvement of the adjoining lands. The soil is deep and com- monly alluvial, having been deposited by water, or washed down from the adjoining eminences ; the surface is even from the same cause ; and what is of considerable im- portance, has a gradual declivity or surface-drainage to the river or stream, which almost invariably flows in the lowest part of every valley, and which is essential to this descrip- tion of meadow. The principal defects to which such lands are liable are, the oozing out of springs towards their junction with the rising lands, and the inundations of the river or stream. The former evil is to be remedied by under-draining, and the latter by Book VI. GRASSLANDS. 833 embanking. Such meadows are generally slocked with the best grasses ; and their cul- ture consists of little more than forming and keeping open a sufficient number of surface- gutters or furrows to carry off the rain-water ; rooting out such tufts of rushes or bad grasses and herbage, as may occasionally appear ; destroying moles, and spreading the earth they throw up ; removing heavy stock whenever their feet poach the surface ; shut- ting up, bush-harrowing, and rolimg at the commencement of the growing season ; and finally so adjusting the mowing and pasturing as to keep the land in good heart without laying on manure. 5199. The most suitable meadows for irrigation are of this description ; the necessary drains and other works are executed with greater care, and with less expense, and the management, as we have seen (4057.), is also comparatively easier than in watering sloping surfaces. 5200. Upland meadows, or mowing lands, are next in value to those of valleys. The soil is either naturally good, and well adapted for grass, or, if inferior by nature, it is so situated as to admit of enriching it by ample supplies of manure. Of this last de- scription are the upland meadows, or hay lands of Middlesex ; which, though on the most tenacious, and often stony clays, are yet, by the abundance of manure obtained from the metropolis, rendered as productive as the best upland soils employed as hay lands. The roots of perennial grasses, whether fibrous or creeping, never strike deep into the soil ; and thus deriving their nourishment chiefly from the surface top dressings of well -rotted manure repeated on the same field for centuries, forms at last a thin black stratum among the roots of the grass, which produces the most luxurious crops. 5201. The culture of upland meadows requires more attention and expense than those of valleys ; being more difficult to drain, and requiring regular supplies of manure. The irregular surface of uplands is apt either to contain springs or to stagnate the surface water; the first produces marsh plants and coarse herbage, and the latter destroys or weakens whatever is growing on the surface, and encourages the growth of moss. Both evils are to be remedied by the obvious resources of drainage. Moss is a very common enemy to grass lands, and is only to be effectually destroyed by rich dressings of manure. Rolling, and top-dressings of lime and salt, have been recommended for de- stroying it ; but there is no mode by which it can be subdued and kept under, but by adding strength to the grass plants, and thereby enabling them to suffocate their eriemy. Moss is never found on rich lands unless they are completely shaded by trees. Besides mole-hills, upland meadows, when neglected, are frequently troubled with ants, which form heaps or hillocks of grass and earth, more injurious and more difficult to get quit of than those of moles. The mode of taking moles is a simple operation, and will be described in the proper place : that of destroying ants is more complicated and tedious, and being peculiar to grass lands, shall here be described. 5202. Ant-hills, or habitations, are injurious to meadow lands, by depriving the farmer of a crop in proportion to the surface they occupy, and by interfering with the operations of rolling and mowing. They consist of little eminences, composed of small particles of sand or earth, lightly and artfully laid together, which may often be computed at a tenth part, or more, of old grass lands. And in some places, where negligence has suffered them to multiply, almost half of it has been rendered useless; the hills standing as thick together as grass-cocks in a hay-field : and what is very surprising, this in- dolence is defended by some, who affirm, that the area or superficies of their land is thereby increased ; whereas it is well known that very little or no grass ever grows thereon, and, therefore, if the surface be increased, the produce is proportionably decreased. 5203. In order to remove ant-hills, and destroy the insects, it has been a custom in some places, at the beginning of winter, and often when the weather was not very cold, to dig up the ant-hills three or four inches below the surface of the ground, and then to cut them in pieces, and scatter the fragments about : but this practice only disseminates the ants, instead of destroying them, as they hide themselves among the roots of the grass for a little time, and then collect themselves together again upon any little emi- nence, of which tliere are great numburs ready for tlieir purpose, such as the circular ridges round the hollows where the hills stood before. It is, therefore, a much better method to cut the hills entirely off, rather lower than the surface of the land, and to let them lie whole at a little distance, with their bottom upwards : by this means the ants, which are known to be very tenacious of their abodes, continue in their habitations until the rains, by running into their holes of communication, and stagnating in the hollows formed by the removal of the hills, and the frosts which now readily penetrate, destroy them. If a little soot were thrown on the places, and washed in with the rains, it would )»robably contribute greatly to the intended effect. The hills, when rendered mellow by the frosts, may be broken and disiMjrsed about the land. By this method of cutting the hills, one other advantage is gained ; the land soon becomes even and fit for mowing, and the little eminences being removed, the insects are exposed to the wet, which is very disagreeable and destructive to them. It would, perhaps, be a better practice than that of suffering the hills to remain on the ground, to collect the parts of them which have been pared oflinto a heap, in some convenient place, and then form them into a compost, by mixing a portion of quick-lime with them. In wet weather these insects are apt to accumulate heaps of sandy particles among the grass, called by laborers sprout-hills, which quickly take oft' the edge of the scythe. These hills, which are very light and compressible, mav be conveniently removed by frequent heavy rolling. 5204. In the Norfolk mode of cutting and burning ant-hills, the process is, to cut them up with a heart- shaped sharp spade or shovel, in irregular lumps of from ten to fifteen inches in diimeter. and from two 834 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. to five or six inches thick. These are to be turned the grass-side downwards, until the mould-side is thoroughly dry, and then to be set the grass-side outwards, until they are dry enough to burn. The fire may be kindled with brushwood, and kept smothering, by laying the sods or lumps on gradually, as the fire breaks out, until ten or fifteen loads of ashes are raised in one heap, which the workmen formerly completed for a shilling or eigh teen-pence each load of ashes. The places from which the hills have been removed may be sown with grass-seeds. Besides the destruction of the ants, this is a ready, though by no means an economical way of raising manure, and m some cases ought not to be neglected, on grounds where such a process is required. On some soils ashes are found in themselves an excellent manure ; and, perhaps, generally, ashes raised in this way, would be found highly advantageous as bottomings for farm-yards and dunghills. 5205. Where grass lands are sufficiently/ rolled vv'ith a heavy roller once or oftener every year, no ant-hills will ever be formed greater than the roller can compress, and conse~ quently no injury will be sustained. In this, as in most other cases of disease, proper regimen is the best cure. In domestic economy, various directions are given for de- stroying bugs, lice, and other vermin ; but who ever had any to destroy, who attended properly to cleanliness ? 5206. The surface of some grass lands that have been long rolled are apt to get into that tenacious state denominated hide bound. When this is the case, scarifying the turf with a plough, consisting only of coulters, or harrow-teeth, so that the whole surface may be cut or torn, is to be recommended. That tenacious state, rolling tends to in-, crease ; whereas, by scarifying, the surface is loosened, and the roots acquire new means of improved vegetation. This operation seems particularly useful, when it precedes the manuring. When hay land of a retentive quality is pastured by cattle or horses in wet seasons, it receives much injury from their feet, and becomes what is technically called poached. Every step they take, leaves an impression, which rain fills with water, and then the hole stands full like a cup. This wetness destroys the herbage, not only in the hole, but that also which surrounds it, while at the same time the roots of the grasses, as well as the ground, are chilled and injured. No good farmer, therefore, will permit any cattle to set a foot on such land in wet weather, and few during the winter months, on any consideration. Sheep are generally allowed to pasture on young grasses in dry weather, from the end of autumn to the beginning of March ; they are then removed, and it rarely happens that any animal is admitted till the weather be dry, and the surface so firm as to bear their pressure, without being poached or injured. 5207. In manuring upland meadows, the season, the sort, the quantity, and the fre- quency of application are to be considered. 5208. With regard to the season at which manure should be applied, a great difference of opinion prevails among the farmers of England. In the county of Middlesex, where almost all the grass lands are preserved for hay, the manure is invariably laid on in Oc- tober (Middlesex Report, p. 224.), while the land is suflSciently dry to bear the driving of loaded carts without injury, and when the heat of the day is so moderated as not to exhale the volatile parts of the dung. Others prefer applying it immediately after the hay-time, from about the middle of July to the end of August, which is said to be the " good old time" (Com. to Board of Agriculture, vol. iv. p. 1S8.) ; and if that season be inconvenient, any time from the beginning of February to the beginning of April, (Dickson s Practical Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 915.) It is, however, too common a practice to carry out the manure during frosty weather, when, though the ground is not cut up by the carts, the fertilizing parts of the dung are dissipated, and washed away by the snow and rains before they can penetrate the soil. 5209. There is scarcely any sort of manure that will not be useful when laid on the surface of grass grounds ; but, in general, those of the more rich dung kinds are the most suitable for the older sort of sward lands; and dung, in composition with fresh vegetable earthy substances, the more useful in the new leys or grass lands. In Middlesex it is the practice of the best farmers to prefer the richest dung they can procure, and seldom to mix it with any sort of earthy material, as they find it to answer the best in regard to the quantity of produce, which is the principal object in view ; the cultivators depending chiefly for the sale of their hay in the London markets. It is the practice to turn over the dung that is brought from London in a tolerable state of rottenness, once chopping it well down in the operation, so as to be in a middling state of fineness when put upon the land. It is, necessary, however, that it should be in a more rotten and reduced state when applied in the spring, than when the autumn is chosen for that purpose, {Dickson's Practical Agriculture, vol, ii. p. 915.) 5210. Some interesting experiments have been made with different kinds of manure, for the purpose of ascertaining their effects, both in regard to the quantity and quality of the produce on different kinds of land. Fourteen lots, of half an acre each, were thus manured, and the grass was made into^ hay, all as nearly alike as possible. The greatest weight of hay was taken from the lot manured with horse, cow, and butcher 's dung, all mixed together, of each about an equal quantity. It lay in that state about two months ; and was then turned over, and allowed to lie eight or ten days more, after which it was put on the land before it had done fermenting, and spread immediately. And to ascertain the quality of the produce of the different lots, a small handful from each was laid down on a dry, clean place, where there was little or no grass, and six horses were turned out to them one after another. In select- ing the lots, there seems to have been little difference of taste among the horses; and all of them agreed in rejecting two lots, one of which had been manured with blubber mixed with soil, and the other with soot, in both instances laid on in the month pf April preceding. (Lancashire Report, p, 130. et scq.) 521 1 . The proportion of manure that is necessary must, in a great measure, depend upon the circumstances of the land, and the facility of procuring it. In the district of London, where the manure is of a very good and enriching quality, from its being produced in stables and other places where animals are highly fed, the quantity is usually Book VI. GRASS LANDS. 835 from four or five to six or seven loads on the acre, such as are drawn by three or four horses, in their return from taking up the hay to town. (Dickson's Pract. Agr. vol. ii. p. 916.) 5212. Manure is laid on at intervals of time more or less distant, according to the same circumstances that determine the quantity of it. Though there are some instances of bay grounds bearing fair crops every year during a length of years, without any manure or any advantage from pasturage, except what the after-grass has afforded (Marshal's Review of Eeporls to the Board of Agriculture, p. 183. Western Dejmrtment) ; yet, in general, manure must either be allowed every third or fourth year, in the land depastured one year, and mown the other ; " or what is better, depasture two years and mow the third." (Northumberland Report, p. 111.) A succession of hay crops without manure, or pasturage, on meadows not irrigated, is justly condemned by all judicious farmers, as a sure means of impoverishing the soil. .5213. Bog meadows are the least valuable of any ; they are of two kinds, peat bogs and earthy bogs. The first are situated in hollows or basins, which, from having no natural outlet for water, and not being so deep or so plentifully supplied with that element as to constitute lakes, become filled ^p with aquatic plants and mosses. By the decay of these after a certain time, and the drainage and culture of art, a surface of mossy soil is formed on which some of the inferior grasses may be sown or will spring up natu- rally. In warm moist climates and where the mould of the bog is rich, fiorin or Timothy grass may be found to answer; but in'^general the woolly soft grass and cock's-foot are resorted to, unless indeed lime be applied, or a coating of sand or earth, in which cases the clovers and better grasses will sometimes answer. These bogs are in general too soft for pasturing any other a;nimals than sheep. 5214. Earthy bog meadows are situated either in hollows or on slopes. They are formed by an accumulation of water in the subsoil, which not finding a free passage in any one point, spreads under and filtrates upwards through a considerable extent of surface. The grasses on such meadows before they are drained, are chiefly of the sprot or juncus kind ; but by draining the quality of these is improved, and better kinds appear. Such meadows yield a considerable produce of coarse hay ; they abound chiefly in cold hilly districts devoted to breeding. 5215. The culture and management of bog meadows differs in nothing essential from that of the river kinds. A lighter roller is used in spring, the greatest care is taken in eating down the latter grass, whether by small cattle or sheep ; and in some cases, in very dry weather in summer, the main drains are dammed up for a few weeks in order to stagnate the water, and supply the soil with moisture. No manure is ever given unless in the case of some cultivated peat bogs, which are dressed with earthy or saline mixtures. 5216. As branches of culture common to every descrijHion of hay lands may be men- tioned, the hay-making, the application of the after-grass, and pasturage. 5217. The making of natural or meadow hay has been carried to greater perfection in the neighborhood of London than any where else, and may therefore, with great pro- priety, be recommended as an example to the rest of the kingdom. The following ac- count of it is drawn from Middleton's Agricultural Survey of Middlesex. 5218. IFhen the grass is nearly ft for mowing, the Middlesex farmer endeavors to select the best mowers, in number proportioned to the quantity of his grass and the length of time it would be advisable to have it in hand ; which having done, he lets it out, either as piece work, or to be mown by the acre. In the latter way, each man mows from one acre and a half to an acre and three quarters per day ; some there are who do two acres per day during the whole season. About the same time he provides five hay-makers Tmen and women, including loaders, pitchers, stackers, and all others), to each mower. These last are paid by the day, the men attending from six till six, but the women only from eight till six. For an extra hour or two in the evening, when the business requires dispatch, they receive a proportionate allowance. 5219. The mowers usually begin their ivork at three, four, orfve o'clock in the mornings and continue to labor till seven or eight at night ; resting an hour or two in the middle of the day. Every hay-maker is expected to come provided with a fork and a rake of his own ; nevertheless, when the grass is ready, and laborers scarce, the farmer is frequently obliged to provide both, but for the most part only the rake. Every part of the oper- ation is carried on with forks, except clearing the ground, which is done with rakes ; and loading the carts, which is done by hand. 5220. First day. All the grass mown before nine o'clock in the morning is tedded, in which great care is taken thoroughly to loosen every lump, and to strew it evenly over all the ground. By this regular method of tedding grass for hay, the hay will be of a more valuable quality, heat more equally in the stack, consequently not so liable to damage or fire ; will be of greater quantity when cut into trusses, and will sell at a better price ; for when the grass is suffered to lie a day or two before it is tedded out of the swath, the upper surface is dried by the sun and winds, and the interior part is not dried, but withered, so that the herbs lose much, botli as to quality and quantity, which are very material circum- stances. Soon after the tedding is linished, the hay is turned with the" same degree of care and attention ; and if, from the number of hands they are able to turn the whole again, they do so, or at least as much 3 H 2 836 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. of it as they can, till twelve or one o'clock, at which time they dine. The first thing to be done after dinner, is to rake it into what are called single wind-rows ; and the last operation of this day is to put it into grass-cocks. 5221. Second day. The business of this day commences with tedding all the grass that was mown the first day after nine o'clock, and all that was mown this day before nine o'clock. Next, the grass- cocks are to be well shaken out into staddles (or separate plats) of five or six yards diameter. If the crop should be so thin and light as to leave the spaces between these staddles rather large, such spaces must be immediately raked clean, and the rakings mixed with the other hay, in order to its all drying of an uniform color. The next business is to turn the staddles, and after that, to turn the grass that was tedded in the first part of the morning, once or twice, in the manner described for the first day. This should all be done before twelve or one o'clock, so that the whole may lie to dry while the work-people are at dinner. After dinner, the first thing to be done, is to rake the staddles into double wind-rows ; next, to rake the grass into single wind-rows ; then the double wind-rows are put into bastard-cocks ; and lastly, the wind-rows are put into grass-cocks. This completes the work of the second day. 5222. Third day. The grass mown and not spread on the second day, and also that m'own in the early part of this day, is first to be tedded in the morning, and then the grass cocks are to be spread into stad- dles as before, and the bastard.,cocks into staddles of less extent. These lesser staddles, though last spread, are first turned, then those which were in grass-cocks j and next the grass is turned once pr twice before twelve or one o'clock, when the people go to dinner as usual. If the weather has proved sunny and fine, the hay which was last night in bastard-cocks, will this afternoon be in a proper state to be carried ; but if the weather should, on the contrary, have been cool and cloudy, no part of it probably will be fit to carry. In that case, the first thing set about after dinner, is to' rake that which was in grass-cocks last night into double wind-rows ; then the grass which was this morning spread from the swaths into single wind-rows. After this, the hay which was last night in bastard-cocks, is made up into full-sized cocks, and care taken to rake the hay up clean, and also to put the rakings upon the top of each cock. Next, the double wind-rows are put into bastard-cocks, and the single wind-rows into grass-cocks, as on the preceding days. 5223. Fourth day. On this day the great cocks, just mentioned, are usually carried before dinner. The other operations of the day are such, and in the same order, as before described, and are continued daily until the hay harvest is completed. 5224. As general rules, the grass should, as much as possible, be protected both day and night, against rain and dew, by cocking. Care should also be taken to proportion the number of hay-makers to that of the mowers, so that there may not be more grass in hand at any one time, than can be managed according to the foregoing process. This proportion is about twenty hay-makers (of which number twelve may be women), to four mowers ; the latter are sometimes taken half a day to assist the former. But in hot, windy, or very drying weather, a greater proportion of hay -makers will be required than when the weather is cloudy and cool. It is particularly necessary to guard against spreading more hay, than the number of hands can get into cocks the same day, or be- fore rain. In showery and uncertain weather, the grass may sometimes be suffered to lie three, four, or even five days in swath. But before it has lain long enough for the under side of the swath to become yellow (which, if suffered to lie long, would be the case), particular care should be taken to turn the swaths with the heads of the rakes. In this state, it will cure so much in about two days, as only to require being tedded a few hours when the weather is fine, previous to its being put together and carried. In this manner, hay may be made and put into the stack at a small expense, and of a mode- rately good color ; but the tops and bottoms of the grass are insufficiently separated by it. 5225. The hay tedding machine has been invented since Middleton described the hand process as above. This machine {Jig. 337.) is found to be a most important saving of ma- nual labor. It is computed that a boy and horse with the machine will tedd as much in an hour as twelve or fifteen women. The hay-rake, which may be added to the same axle when the tedder is removed, is also an equal saving, and a requisite accompaniment to it ; as where few or no women are kept for tedding, there must necessarily be a deficiency of rakers. These machines are coming into general use near London, where the price of manual labor is high and hands sometimes scarce. They are also finding their way ambng the proprietors of extensive parks in all parts of the country, as saving much labor in making hay from natural pasture. 5226. There are no hay-stacks more neatly formed, nor better secured, than those made in Middlesex. At every vacant time, while the stack is carrying up, the men are em- ployed in pulling it, with their hands, into a proper shape ; and, about a week after it is finished, the whole roof is properly thatched, and then secured from receiving any damage from the wind, by means of a straw rope, extended along the eaves, up the ends, and on each side of the ridge. The ends of the thatch are afterwards cut evenly below the eaves of the stack, just of sufficient length for the rain-water to drip quite clear of the hay. When the stack happens to be placed in a situation which may be suspected of being too damp in the winter, a trench, of about six or eight inches deep, is dug round, and nearly close to it, which serves to convey all the water from the spot, and renders it perfectly dry and secure. 5227. During the hay harvest it is of great advantage to the farmer, to give constant personal attendance on every party, directing each operation as it goes on. The man who would cure his hay in the best manner, and at a moderate expense, must not only urge the persons who make the hay, the men who load the waggons, and those who make the stack, but he should be on the alert, to contrive and point out the manner in which every person may do his labor to the. most advantage. Unless he does this, one Book VI. GRASS LANDS. 837 moiety of the people in his hay-field will be of no material use to him ; and if he should be absent for an hour or more, daring that time, little or nothing will be done. The farmers of Middlesex engage many hay-makers: some of them have been known to employ two or three hundred ; such men find it necessary to be on horseback, and the work-people find them sufficient employment. A man of energy will make the most of every hour, and secure his hay while the sun shines : one of an opposite description lounges his time away, and sulFers his hay to be caught in the rain, by which it is fre- quently half spoiled. Or if the latter should have the good fortune of a continuance of dry weather, his hay will be a week longer in the field than his neighbor's, and the sap of it dried up by the sun. 5228. The waste of grass, on being dried into hay, is supposed to be three parts in four by the time it is laid on the stack ; it is then further reduced, by heat and evaporation, in about a month, perhaps one-twentieth more, or 600 lb. of grass are reduced to 95 lb. of hay; and between that and 90, it continues through the winter. From the middle of March till September, the operations of trussing and marketing, expose it so much to the sun and wind, as to render it considerably lighter, probably 80 ; that is, hay which would weigh 90 the instant it is sejKirated from the stack, would waste to 80 (in trussing, exposure on the load, and at market for about 24 hours), by the time it is usually delivered to a purchaser. During the following winter, the waste will be little or nothing. It is nearly obvious, that the same hay will weigh on delivery 80 in sum- mer, and 90 in winter. From this circumstance, and others which relate to price, a farmer may determine what season of the year is the most advisable for him to sell his hay. 5229. In making the hai/ of bog meadows, considerable care is requisite both from the inferiority of the climates where such bogs abound, and from the nature of the grasses they produce. In some cases, the grass is of so soft a quality, that it is diflScult to convert it into hay. To prevent its being consolidated in the cocks, it must be frequently opened up, and when the weather permits, completely exposed to the sun and wind ; this sort of grass being only capable of sustaining a very moderate degree of fermenta- tion. 5230. When the natural herbage is of a coarser description, it may be put into small cocks, in rather a green or damp state, so as to go through the progress of " a sweating," or slight fermentation. The woody fibres in coarse hay, are thus rendered more palata- ble and nutritious, while its condition for becoming fodder, is considerably improved : but when any warmth becomes perceptible, if the weather will permit it, the hay should be spread out, and put into large cocks the moment it is in a dried state. 5231. In the moister pastoral districts, in the north-west parts of Scotland, hay-barns are necessary, the construction of which is as open as possible, for the purpose of drying, as well as preserving the hay. In some of these districts, a curious device has been fallen upon, of making the hay, when dried, into ropes of two fathoms in length, and then twisted twofold. Being thus compressed, less room is required in the barn, and in this shape, it is carried, with greater facility, to distant glens, for the use of cattle during stormy weather. 5232. In making florin hay (if hay it may be called, which is never dried) it is merely cut and put into small cocks, from which it is commonly taken as wanted. When it is to be put into larger cocks, it must be proportionally better dried. The stolones of this grass being remarkably vivacious, cannot easily be so dried as to admit of stacking in large bodies. 5233. The salting of hay, at the time of stacking, has been practised in Derbyshire and in the North Riding of Yorkshire. The salt, particularly when applied to the crop of rouen, or when the first crop has received much rain, checks the fermentation, and prevents moulding. If straw be mixed with the hay, the heating of the stack is still further prevented, by the straw imbibing the moisture. Cattle will eat, not only such salted hay, but even the straw mixed with it, more eagerly than better hay not salted, and also thrive as well upon it. The quantity recommended is, a peck of ground rock salt to a ton of hay. By this application, hay that had been flooded, was preferred by cattle to the best hay that had not been salted. 5234. To make hay-ica. Boil at the rate of a handful of hay to three gallons of water, or if the water be poured boiling hot on the hay, it will answer nearly as well. Give it to the cattle and horses to drink when cold ; or it' the cattle and horses are anyways ill, and under cover, give it them blood warm. This drink is so extremely nutritive, that it nourishes tlie cattle astonishingly, replenishes the udders of the cow with a prodigious quantity of milk, makes the horse stale plentifully, and keeps him healthy and strong ; and by this method one truss or hundred of hay will go as far as eight or ten otherwise would do. The cattle and horses do not seem to like it at first ; but if they are kept till tiiey are very thirsty, they will drink freely of it ever afterwards. The hay after being used as before-mentioned and dried, may be used as litter for horses and cattle; it will make very good manure, and save straw, which is a consider- able advantage, especially where there is a scarcity of that article. {Davis's Hep. of Wilts.) 5235. The after-grass on allmeadoivs is generally fed off'; on firm lands, and in the diy season, by either sheep or heavy cattle ; but in the winter only by sheep, unless the soil is so dry as not to be injured by the feet of cows or horses. The feet of the latter are 3 H 3 838 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. much less injurious than those of the former; but their bite being closer is more apt to tear up the plants, than the bite of the horned tribe. In Middlesex cattle are generally- removed from meadow-lands in November ; horses in the month following, and sheep allowed to remain till February. In Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, and on many river- meadows, every description of stock is allowed to remain till April, and sheep to May. In some districts, the whole of the after-growth is preserved from every species of stock till the following May, when it is fed off for sheep : but this greatly retards the hay crop for that year. It is evident that a good deal must depend on the farmer's other re- sources for keep to his stock. 5236. The after-grass, where manure is very abundant, is sometimes made into hay or rouen, a soft and not very nutritive food, given to cows or sheep ; but this is reckoned a bad practice, even in the neighborhood of London, where manure may be had in abundance. It is also the usage of some to leave the after-grass on the ground without being eaten till spring, when it is said to be preferable, for ewes and lambs, to turnips, cabbages, or any other species whatever of what is termed spring-feed. This mode of management, which is strongly recommended by Young, and in some cases by Marshal also, is un- known in the north, where, though it is, in many instances, found beneficial, with a view to an early spring growth, not to eat the pasture too close before winter, it would be at- tended with a much greater loss of herbage, than any advantage in spring could com- pensate, to leave the after-growth of mown grounds untouched till that season. 5237. A system of alternate mowing and feeding is practised on some hay lands, partly to save labor and manure, and partly to subdue mosses and coarse grasses. On some soils even rich grass lands, when annually mown, become subject to weeds ; for it tends to encourage moss, and gives advantage to the stronger rooted grasses, which gradually change, and deteriorate the nature and quality of the herbage. The bottom becomes thin, the white clover disappears, and coarser plants occupy the ground. When this takes place, the pasture should be fed, instead of being mown, for the space of two or three years, until the weeds have been subdued, and the finer grasses re-appear. 5238. By adopting the plan of mowing and feeding alternately, a farmer, it is said, may goon longer without the application of manure, but his fields, in the end, will be ruined by it. It is contended, that to maintain a proper quantity of stock, the land must be accustomed to keep it, particularly in the case of sheep ; that where land has been used to the scythe, if manured for pastures, it will often produce more grass, but that grass will not {ccBteris paribus) support so much stock, nor fatten them nearly so well ; and that old pasture will not produce so much hay as land that has been constantly mowed ; for each will grow best as they have been accustomed to grow, and will not readily alter their former habits. On the other hand, it is asserted, that many expe- rienced farmers prefer the system of feeding and mowing alternately, as they find, that under that system, the quality and quantity of the hay has been improved ; and the pas- turage, in the alternate year, has been equally sweet and productive. Sect. II. Of permanent Pastures. 5239. Permanent pastures may he divided into two kinds : rich or feeding lands ; and hilly or rearing pastures. Under the former, we may comprehend all old rich pastures that are capable o? fattening cattle ; and under the second, such as are adapted to rearing them only, or are more advantageously depastured with sheep. SuBSECT. 1. Of rich or feeding Pastures. 5240. Feeding pastures may include such as are equally fit for hay -lands, or for being converted to arable husbandry ; their characteristic being, that they are used for feeding stock, and keeping working animals and milk-cows in good condition. We have men- tioned in a former chapter, that pasturage for one, two, or more years, is frequently in- terposed in the course of cropping arable land, to prevent that exhaustion of the soil which is commonly the consequence of incessant tillage crops. The same culture and manage- ment that is recommended here for rich grass lands, is equally applicable to them ; there being no difference, excepting that the latter are generally considered less suitable for fatting heavy stock, such as large oxen, than rich old turf. 5241. The culture and management of feeding pastures, whether of a few years or per- petual duration, may be considered in regard to those necessary operations that have been already noticed, under the former section, — such as the extirpation of weeds and noxious shrubs, clearing away ant and mole-hills, the application of manure, the time of stock- ing, the number of the animals, and whether all should be of one or of different species, — the extent of the enclosures, and the propriety of eating the herbage close, or leaving it always in a rather abundant state ; all these are questions which it is scarcely possible to decide in a satisfactory manner, by the application of general rules. They can only be resolved, with any pretensions to utility, by a reference to the particular circumstances of each case ; for the practice of one district, in regard to these and other points, will be Book VI. PASTURES. 839 found quite inapplicable to others where the soil and climate, and the purposes to which the pastures are applied, are materially different. 5242. The iveeding of pastures should be regularly attended to. Weeds in pastures injure the farmer by the ground they occupy, the seeds they disperse, and sometimes, by influencing the quality of milk, or the health of the cattle. Small creeping weeds cannot be removed on the large scale of a farm ; but large perennial plants, such as the dock, fern, nettle; and biennials, such as the thistle, ragweed, together with rushes and coarse tufts, or tussocks of tall oat-grass, s!iould never be permitted to shoot up into flower. The dock ought to be taken out by the root with the dock-weeder, and the others cut over with spadlets or spuds. Nettles may be mown over, as may some other weeds, and some descriptions of rushes and fern is most effectually killed by bruising or twisting asunder the stem, when the frond or herb is nearly fully expanded. Smaller weeds may be mown, and this operation should never be deferred later than the appearance of the flowers. Where the sloe-thorn forms part of the enclosure-hedges, or the English elm, hoary poplar, and some other trees, grow in or around the field, they are apt to send up suckers ; these should be pulled up, otherwise they will soon become a serious nuisance. In some parts of England, especially in the c^tral districts, the hedge wastes, from the spread of the sloe-thorn and creeping rose (^Rosa arvensis), are sometimes six or ten yards in width. 5243. To prevent the grotvth of mosses is one of the greatest difficulties in the manage- ment of old pasture lands ; by these the finer species of grasses are apt to be overwhelmed, and the coarse sorts only remain. Drainage, and the use of rich composts, are in this case necessary. Harrowing and cross harrowing with a common harrow, or with what are called grass harrows (^Jig. 586.), which go from one to two inches deep, with » sprink^ ling of grass-seeds afterwards, and some lime or well prepared compost, are the mosC^^ likely means of destroying the moss, and improving the pasture. Feeding sheep witb oil cake, and allowing them to pasture on the land, has also been found effectual for the destruction of moss, jind bringing up abundance of grass. But the radical remedy is to plougii up such grass lands upon the first appearance of moss, or before it has made any considerable progress, and sow them with corn. 5244. The removal of ant and mole-hills sliould be attended to during the whole summer. The manner of destroying ants has already been described ; mole-hills spread on grass lands may be considered as of service rather than otherwise. These operations, together with weeding, and spreading the manure dropped by the larger stock, should go on together at intervals during the whole summer. 5245. The application of manures to grazing lands, which not being used as hay grounds- afford no means of supply, may certainly be considered a preposterous practice, and one that must be ruinous to the other parts of a farm ; yet in The Code of Agi'iculture it is stated, that " to keep grass in good condition, a dressing of from thirty to forty cubic yards or cart-loads of compost, is required every four years. The application of unmixed putrescent manure will thus be rendered unnecessary, which ought at least to be avoided, in meadows appropriated for the feeding of dairy cows, from its affecting the quality of the milk." (p. 476.) Grass lands kept at an expense of this kind will seldom, it is believed, be found to remunerate a farmer sufficiently. The same thing is recommended (probably from inadvertence or mere following the tract of preceding writers), in Dick- son s Practical Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 953. But, excepting the dung dropped by the pasturing animals, which should always be regularly spread from time to time, it may belaid down as a rule of pretty extensive application, that if grass lands do not preserve their fertility under pasturage, it would be much better to bring them under tillage for a time,- than to enrich them at the expense of land carrying crops of ?Jorn. (Sup- i^c. art. Agr.) 5246. Teathing or stacking on the field, or carrying to be consumed there during winter, the provendcr that ought to have furnished disposable manure for the use of the farmat large, is another practice not less objectionable. It is to no purpose that such a wasteful practice is defended, on dry light soils which are- alleged to be thus benefited by the treading of the cattle. {Marshal's Rural Economy of Yorkshire, vol. iL- 3 H 4 840 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III- p. 131.) During the frequent and heavy falls of rain and snow in winter, there is scarcely any land so dry as not to be injured by the treading of heavy cattle ; and were there any thing gained in this respect by this management, it would be much more than counterbalanced by the loss of a great part of the manure, from the same cause. The able writer to whom we have just now referred, very properly disapproves of carting on manure in winter; and for the same reason, namely, the loss.of it, which must necessarily be the consequence, he ought to have objected to foddering on the land, or teathing at that season. The practice, however, is but too common in those districts, both in South and North Britain, where the knowledge of correct husbandry has made but little progress. It is equally objectionable, whether the fodder be consumed on meadows where it grew, or on other grass lands. The fodder should, in almost every instance, be eaten in houses or fold-yards, instead of the dung being dropped irregularly over the surface ; or, as must be almost always the case, accumulated in some spots sheltered by trees and hedges, to which the animals necessarily resort during the storms of winter. 5247. The time of stocking pastures in spring, must evidently be earlier or later, ac- cording to the climate, and in the same climate according to the season ; and the state of growth, which it is desirable that the grass should attain before being stocked, must in some degree be determined by the condition and description of the animals to be employed in consuming it ; whether they are only in a growing state or approaching to fatness ; whether milk cows or sheep, or a mixture of animals of different species. It conveys no very precise idea respecting these points, though the remark itself is just, to say that the herbage should not be allowed to rise so high as to permit the coarser plants to run to seed ; and that it is bad management to suffer store stock to be turned upon a full bite. {Marshal's Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. 129.) The great objects to be aimed at are, that the stock, of whatever animals it may consist, should be carried forward faster or slower, according to the purposes of their owner ; and that no part of the herbage should be allowed to run to waste, or be unprofitably consumed. But nothing but careful inspec- tion of the land and of the stock, from time to time, can enable any grazier to judge with certainty what are the best measures for attaining these objects. " Fatting cattle," says Marshal, " which are forward in flesh, and are intended to be finished with grass, may require a full bite at first turning out. But for cows, working oxen, and rearing cattle, and lean cattle intended to be fatted on grass, a full bite at the first turning out is not requisite. Old Lady-day to the middle of April, according to the progress of spring, appears to me, at present, as the best time for shutting up mowing grounds and opening pastures." {MarshaVs Yorkshire, \o\.n. p. 152, 153.) 5248. In regard to the state of the growth of pastures when first stocked, some distinction should be made between new leys and old close swards. To prevent the destruction of the young plants, whether of clover or other herbage, on the former description of pasture, Which would be the consequence of stocking them too early, especially with sheep, they should be allowed to rise higher than would be necessary in the case of old turf; and to secure their roots from the further injury of a hot summer, it is advisable not to feed them close in the early part of the season, and probably not at any time throughout the whole of the first or second season, if the land is to be continued in pasture. The roots of old and firm sward, on the other hand, are not in so much danger, either from close feeding or from the heats of summer ; and they are in much less danger from the frosts and thaws of winter. 5249. "With regard to the stock which should be employed, all soils rather moist and of such a quality, as is the case with rich clays, as to produce herbage suited to the fattening of cattle, will, in general, be more advantageously stocked with them than with sheep ; but there can be no other rule for the total exclusion of sheep, than the danger of the rot; nor any other general rule for preferring one kind of stock to another, than their comparative profits. {Sup. art. Agr^ 5250. Whether the stock should be all of one or of different kinds, is anotheriquestion to be discussed. With regard to a mixed stock, the sentiments and practice of the best graziers seem to be in its favor. " It is generally understood that horses and cattle in- termixed will eat grass cleaner than any species will alone, not so much from their separately aflfecting different grasses, as from the circumstance of both species disliking to feed near their own dung. " {Marshal's Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. 154. ) " Some few graziers follow the old custom of keeping only one kind of stock upon the same ground, whilst others, we think, with more propriety, intermix with oxen and cows a few sheep, and two or three colts in each pasture, which both turn to good account, and do little injury to the grazing cattle. In some cases sheep are a real benefit, by eating down and destroying the ragwort {Senecio jacobtea), which disgraces some of the best pastures of the county, where oxen only are grazed. " {Northumberland Beport, ^^^ 126.) And in Lincolnshire, where grazing is followed to a great extent, and with uncommon success, as well as in most other districts, the practice seems to be almost invariably, to keep a mixed stock of sheep and cattle on the same pasture (^Lincolnshire Report, p. 174.), in proportion varying with the nature of the soil and the quality of the herbage. 5251. To estimate the number of animals that may be depastured on any given extent of ground, is oviously impossible, without rel'erence to the particular spot in question ; and the same difl'erence existi with regard to the propriety of feeding close, or leaving the pastures rough, that prevails in most other parts of this subject. Though there be loss in stocking too sparingly, the more common and dangerous error is in overstocking, by which the summer's grass is not unfrequently entirely lost 5252. Wzth respect to the size of enclosures, small fields are much to be preferred to large ones, for heavy stock. Besides the advantages of shelter, both to the animals and the herbage, small fields enable the grazier either to separate his stock into small parcels, by which means they feed more at their ease, or to give the best pastures to that portion of them which he wishes to come earliest to inarket. ^fhe advantages of moderate sized enclosures are well known in the best grazing counties ; but the subdivisions are in some Book VI. HILLY PASTURES. 841 instances much more minute than is consistent with the value of the ground occupied with fences, or necessary to the improvement of the stock. In all cases, says Marshal, where fatting cattle or dairy cows make a part of the stock, and where situation, soil, and water will permit, every suit of grazing grounds ought, in my idea, to consist of three compartments. One for head stock (as cows or fatting cattle) ; one for followers (as rearing and other lean stock); and the third to be shut up to freshen for the leading stock. {MarshaVs Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. 158.) 5253. Large enclosures are in general best adapted for sheep. These animals are not only impatient of heat and liable to be much injured by flies, in small pastures often sur- rounded by trees and high hedges, but they are naturally, with the exception perhaps of the Leicester variety, much more restless and easily disturbed than the other species of live stock. " Shieep," says Lord Kaimes, " love a wider range, and ought to have it, because they delight in short grass : give them eighty or ninety acres, and any fence will keep them in ; confine them to a field of seven or eight acres, and it must be a very strong fence that keeps them in." (Gentleman Farmer, p. 203.) Though fields so large as eighty or ninety acres, can be advisable only in hilly districts, yet the general rule is nevertheless consistent with experience^ in regard to all our least domesticated varieties. 5254. JFith respect to the propriety/ of eating the herbage close, or leaving it rather in an abundant state, an eminent agriculturist observes, that there seems to be a season, some time during the year, when grass lands, particularly old turf, should be eaten very close, not merely for the sake of preventing waste, but also for the purpose of keeping down the coarser kinds of plants, and giving to the pastures as equal and fine a sward as pos- sible. The most proper period must partly depend upon the convenience of the grazier ; but it can hardly be either immediately before the drought of summer or the frost of winter. Some time in autumn, when the ardent heat of the season is over, and when there is still time for a new growth before winter, may be most suitable for the land itself, and generally also for the grazier, his fat stock being then mostly disposed of, or carried to the after-grass of mown grounds. The sweeping of pastures with the scythe, may be employed as a substitute for this close feeding ; the waste and labor of which, however, though they be but trifling, it does not seem necessary to incur on rich grazing lands, under correct management. {Sup. E> Brit. art. Agr.) 5255. Fogging pasture lands is a practice which is sometimes adopted in districts where there is a scarcity of winter food. Under that system, fields in pasture are shut up early in May, and continued in that state till November or December, when the farmer's stock is turned in, and continue to pasture, till the May succeeding. Such ma- nagement, however, can only be advisable on a soil of the driest nature, which will not be injured by poaching in the wettest seasons. It is practised in a few places in Cardiganshire ; but is considered by Thos, Johnes, Esq. of Ha- vod, as being the result of necessity, the farmers not being able to bring suflScient stock to eat it down in season, when its nutritive powers are in their best state. 5256. Water should be provided for every field under pasture ; and also shelter and shade, either by a few trees, or by a portable shed, which may be moved with the stock from one enclosure to another. Where there are no trees, rubbing posts are also a desirable addition. In Germany they have portable sheds which are employed both in summer and winter, and generally with a piece of rock-salt fixed to a post for the cattle to suck at. {Jig, 587. ) SuBSECT. 2. Of Hilly and Mountainous Pastures. 5257. mill/ pastures include such low hills as produce fine short herbage, and are with much advantage kept constantly in pasture, though they are not altogether inacces- sible to the plough ; as well as such tracts as, from their acclivity and elevation, must necessarily be exclusively appropriated to live stock. The former description of grass lands, though different from the feeding pastures, of which we have just treated, in re- spect of their being less convenient for tillage management, are nevertheless in other cir- cumstances so nearly similar, as not to require any separate discussion. These low hills are for the most part occupied with sheep, a very few cattle being sometimes depastured towards their bases ; and they frequently comprise herbage suflSciently rich for fattening sheep, together with coarser pastures for breeding and rearing them. 5258. In regard to the management of upland pastures, of the rules which judicious farmers practise, the following deserve to be selected. To enclose those pastures, as the same extent of land, when sheltered, and properly treated, will feed a greater 843 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. , Part III. quantity of stock, and to better purpose, than when in an open and exposed state. Not to overstock upland pastures ; for when this is done, the cattle are not only starved, and the quantity of herbage diminished, but the soil is impoverished. When the pasture ground is enclosed and subdivided, so as to admit of it, the stock ought to be shifted from one enclosure to another, at proper intervals ; giving the first of the grass to the fattening, in preference to the rearing stock. This practice tends to increase the quantity of grass, which has thus time to get up ; and the ground being fresh and untainted, when the stock returns to it, more especially if rain has fallen, they will feed with greater appetite and relish. The dung dropt by the stock, while feeding, should be spread about, instead of its being sutFered to remain, in a solid body, on the place where it was dropt. Where the large and the smaller kinds of stock are to be fed on the same pastures, the larger species should have the first bite ; and it is not thought by some advisable to pasture land with a mixed collection of different species of live stock, unless the field be extensive, or unless the herbage varies in different parts of the field. It is generally found, that the grass produced by the dung of cattle or horses, is injurious to sheep, producing grass of too rich a quality for that species of stock. There is no mode by which such pastures are more effectually improved, than by the application of lime, either spread upon the surface, or mixed with the soil. In the latter case, it is essential, that the lime should be mixed with the sur- face soil only ; as lime is apt to sink, if covered deep by the plough. The coarse grasses would, in that case, regain possession of the soil, and the dung afterwards deposited by the cattle, will not enrich the land in the same manner as if the lime had been incor- porated with the surface only. (Code.) 5259. Mountainous pastures, from which the plough is altogether excluded, have been commonly classed among waste lands ; even such of them as bear herbage by no means of inconsiderable value ; as well as heaths and moors, with patches of which the green pastures are often checquered. The general term wastes, is therefore a very indefinite ex- pression ; and, indeed, is not unfrequently made to comprehend all that extensive division of our territory that neither produces corn nor rich herbage. Yet it is on such tracts that by far the greater part of our butcher's meat and wool is grown, and not a little of the former fully prepared for the market. Foreigners and superficial readers at home must accordingly be greatly mistaken, if they imagine that what are called wastes, by the Board of Agriculture, and other writers on rural economy, are really altogether un- productive ; and it would still be a grosser error to believe, that all those wastes owe their continuance to neglect or mismanagement ; and that any exertions of human in- dustry can ever render the greater part of them, including all the mountainous tract of Great Britain, more valuable than they are at present, without a much greater expendi- ture of capital, than, under almost any circumstances, they could possibly return. {Suj). art. ^gr.) 5260. The chief improvements of which mountainous jyastures are susceptible, are those of draining and sheltering by plantations. Some parts might probably be enclosed by strips of plantation between stone walls, or by stone walls alone; but as the stock on mountain pastures are generally under the care of a herdsman, the advantages of change of pasture and alternate eating down and saving or sparing the grass, by keeping out the cattle, are obtainable without the use of fields. Sect. III. Of the Improvement of Grass Lands, by a temporary Conversion to Tillage. 5261 . The practice of breaking up grass lands, either with a view to their being soon after restored to that state, or to their permanent retention in aration, has occasioned much dis- cussion, and even attracted the attention of the Legislature, and the Board of Agriculture. In The Code of Agriculture, it is stated, that a " much larger proportion of the united kingdom, than is at present so cultivated, might be subject to the alternate system of husbandry, or transferred from grass to tillage, and then restored to grass. Much of the middling sorts of grass lands, from 200 to 400 feet above the level of the sea, is of this description; and all well-informed husbandmen, and friends to the general pros- perity of the country, regret, that such lands are left in a state of unproductive pasturage, and excluded from tillage. 5262. A very extensive inquiry was made, in consequence of a requisition from the House of Lords to the Board of Agriculture, in December 1800, " into the best means of converting certain portions of grass lands into tillage, without exhausting the soil, and of returning the same to grass, after a certain period, in an improved state, or at least without injury ;" and the information collected by the Board, upon that subject, is in the highest degree satisfactory and important" 5263. On this subject the ojnnion of one of our first writers is, " that though it be im- possible to deny that much grass land in England would be more productive, both to the proprietor and occupier, under a good course of cropping, than under pasture ; yet it is no less certain, that there are large tracts of rich grazing land, which, in the present state of the demand for the produce of grass lands, and of the law of England, with re- gard to tithes, cannot be employed more profitably for the parties concerned, than in pasture. The interest which the Board of Agriculture has takenin this question, with Book VI. IMPROVING GRASS LANDS. 843 a view to an abundant supply of corn for the wants of a rapidly increasing population, seems, therefore, not to have been well directed. Instead of devoting a large portion of their volumes to the instruction of farmers, regarding the best method of bringing grass lands into tillage, and restoring them again to meadow or pasture, without deterioration ; the first thing required was, to attempt removing the almost insuperable obstruction of tithes, by proposing to the legislature an equitable plan of commutation. If some bene- ficial arrangement were adopted on this head, there is no reason to doubt, that individual interest would soon operate the wished-for change ; and that all grass lands capable of yielding more rent and profit under tillage than under pasture, would be subjected to the plough, as fast as the demands of the population might require. {Sup. E. B. art. Agr.) 5264. In giving the essence of the information collected by the Hoard, we shall first state the opinions as to such grass lands as should not be broken up, and next the direc- tions for breaking up and laying down the others. SuBSECT. 1. Of Grass Lands that ought not to be broken vp by the Plough. 5265. There are various sorts of grass lands that ought not to be broken up ; as water meadows ; salt marshes ; lands apt to be overflowed ; lands near large populous towns, where the produce of grass land is always in demand, and consequently dear ; and low lying tracts, in the valleys of mountainous countries, particularly in chalky districts where old meadow land is scarce, and where a portion of it, to raise early and late food for stock, gives a great additional value to the adjoining upland. But whether rich lands, which have long remained in grass, and continue productive, should ever be converted into tillage, is a question respecting which a great diversity of opinion has been entertained. 5266. The lands considered as best adapted for permanent pasture, are of three kinds : strong tenacious clays, unfit for turnips, or barley, which are said to improve the more, the longer they are kept under a judicious system in grass ; soft clayey loams, with a clayey or marly bottom or substratum ; and, rich sound deep-soiled land, or vale land, enriched by nature at the expense of the higher grounds, generally lying in a situation favorable with respect to climate. 5267. The advantages of such pastures are represented in the strongest light. It is affirmed that they feed cattle to a greater weight ; that they are not so easily scorched by the summer's drought ; that the grasses are more nutritive both for sheep and cattle j that milch cows fed upon them give richer milk, and more butter and cheese ; that the hoofs of all animals pastured on them are much better preserved j that they produce a greater variety of grasses ; that when properly laid down, they yield a succession of pasture throughout the whole season; that the herbage is sweeter, and more easily digested ; and that they return an immense produce at a trifling expense. 5268. To break up lands possessing these advantages, it is said, can only be justified by the most urgent public necessity, and to prevent the horrors of famine. The real value of such lands will appear, by considering their rent and produce. The grass lands in Lincolnshire are accounted the richest in the kingdom. The rents are various, from II. 15s, to 3/. per acre, and the value of the produce from Si. per acre to 10/. This produce arises from beef, mutton, and wool, and is obtained, subject to little variation from the nature of the seasons, and at a trifling expense. The stock maintained per acre on the best grazing lands, surpasses what could be fed by any arable produce. It is not at all uncommon to feed at the rate of from six to seven sheep in summer ; and about two sheep in winter. The sheep when put on the grass may weigh from 1 8 lbs. to 20 lbs. per quarter, and the increase of weight would be at the rate of 4 lbs. per quarter, or 16 lbs. per sheep. But suppose in all only 100 lbs. at 8rf. per pound, that would amount to SI. 17s. Kkl. The wool would be worth about two guineas more, besides the value of the winter keep, and the total may be stated at about seven pounds per acre, got at little expense. Such lands, it is evident, cannot be better employed than in feeding stock. 5269. Grass land on tenacious clays and heavy loams, when brought in a succession of years, or perhaps of ages, into a state of great productiveness, cannot be ploughed without the risk of great injury, and are more profitable in the pro besides the alluvial kinds, are deep and friable loams, and such as contain a large proportion of vegetable matter in their composition. Strong clays do not answer well, nor soils of a gravelly or dry sandy nature. But whatever be the kind of soil, it ought neither to be in too poor nor in too rich a condition ; because, in the latter case, the flax is apt to grow too luxuriant, and to produce a coarse sort ; and, in the former case, the plant, from growing weakly, affords only a small produce. {Tr. on Rural Affairs,) 5295. If there be water at a small depth below the surface of the ground, it is thought hy some still better, as is the case in Zealand, which is remarliable for the fineness of its flax, and where the soil is deep and rather stiff', with water almost every where, at the depth of a foot and a half or two feet under- neath it. It is said to be owing to the want of this advantage, that the other provinces of Holland do not succeed equally well in the culture of this useful plant ; not but that fine flax is also raised on high lands, if they have been well tilled and manured, and if the seasons are not very dry. It is remarked, in the letters of the Dublin Agricultural Society, that moist stifF soils yield much larger quantities of flax, 'and far better seed, than can be obtained from light lands ; and that the seed secured from the former may, with proper care, be rendered full as good as any that is imported from Riga or Zealand. M. Du Hamel, however, thinks that strong land can hardly yield such fine flax as that which grows on lighter ground. ^ •■ 5296. The place offiax in a rotation of crops is various, but in general it is considered as a corn or exhausting crop, when the seed is allowed to ripen ; and as a green, or pea, or bean crop, when the plant is pulled green. Flax, Donaldson observes, is sown after all sorts of crops, but is found to succeed best on lands lately broken up from grass, la Scotland, the most skilful cultivators of flax generally prefer lands from which one crop of grain only has been taken, after having been several years in pasture* "When such lands have been limed or marled, immediately before being laid down to grass, the crop of flax seldom or never misgives, unless the season prove remarkably ad- verse. In the north of Ireland flax is generally sown by the small farmers after potatoes. In Belgium, it is supposed not to do well after pease or beans ; nor to succeed if sown oftener on the same soil than twice in nine years, f Von Thaer.) 5297. The preparation of the soil, when grass land is intended for flax, consists in breaking it up as early in the season as possible, so that the soil may be duly mellowed by the winter frosts, and in good order for being reduced by the harrows, when the seed process is attempted. If flax is to succeed a corn crop, the like care is required to pro- cure the aid of frost, without which the surface cannot be rendered fine enough for receiving the seed. Less frost, however, will do in the last, than m the first case ; there- fore, the grass land ought always to be earliest ploughed. At seed-time, harrow the land well before the seed is distributed, then cover the seed to a sufficient depth, by giving a close double tine of the harrows. Water-furrow the land, and remove any stones and roots that may remain on the surface, which finishes the seed process. 5298. The ordinary s^asoTi of sowing flax seed is from the middle of March to the middle or end of April, but the last week of March and the first ten days of April is esteemed the best time.; and accordingly within these periods the greatest quantity of flax-seed is sown in this country. In France and Italy it is often sown in the autumn, by which a larger crop is produced, especially when seed is desired. 5299. The quantity of seed depends on the intention of the crop. When a crop of seed is intended to be taken, thin sowing is preferable, in order that the plants may have room to throw out lateral shoots, and to obtain air in the blossoming and filling seasons. But it is a mistake to sow thin when flax is intended to be taken, for the crop then becomes coarse, and often unproductive. From eight to ten pecks per acre, is the proper quantity in the last case, but when seed is the object, six pecks will do very well. {Brown.) Thick -sown flax runs up in height, and produces fine soft flax ; if sown thiUj it does not rise so high, but spreads more and puts forth many side branches, which pro- duce abundance of seed, and such seed is much better filled, plump, and heavy, than the seed produced from thick-sown flax. {Donaldson.) 5300. In the choice of seed, that which is of a bright brownish color, oily to the feel, and at the same time weighty, is considered the best. Linseed, imported from various countries, is employed. That brought from Holland is, however, in the highest esti- mation, as it not only ripens sooner than any other that is imported, but also produces greater crops, and flax of that quality which best suits the chief manufactures of the country. American seed produces, in common, fine flax, but neither the quantity of flax nor of the pods, provincially the " bolls," which contain the seeds, is so large as the produce from Dutch linseed. Riga seed yields a very coarse sort of flax, but a greater quantity of seeds than any other. It is common in some parts of Scotland to sow seeds saved from the crop of the preceding year, especially when that crop was raised from seed imported from Holland. The success of this practice is found to depend greatly on changing the seed from one sort of soil to another of an opposite nature ; but the saving in the expense of purchasing that sort of seed, in place of what is newly imported from 848 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Holland, is so inconsiderable, and the risk of the crop misgiving so much greater in the one case than in the other, that those only who are ignorant of the conse- quences, or who are compelled from necessity, are chargeable with this act of ill-judged parsimony. Flax seed is by some farmers changed every three years, but many have sown the same seed ten years in succession without perceiving any degeneracy. When any degeneracy takes place, the seed of flax grown on a different soil, as moss, moor, sand, &c. without any view to the produce in fibre, will, it is said, answer as well as foreign seed. 5S01. The manner of sowing is almost always the same, but when seed is the main object, drilling may be adopted, by which seed will be saved in sowing, cleaning con- ducted at less expense, and the plants rendered more vigorous and branchy by the stir- ring of the soil, and the admission of air between the rows. The fibres of flax grown in this way, however, will be shorter and less equal in thickness throughout their length, than flax grown by the broad-cast mode, and tolerably thick. 5302. The after 'Culture of flax consists chiefly in weeding, but sometimes it com- mences with rolling the surface, which is a very proper operation when the soil is very dry, the season advanced, or the earth very porous. By this process the earth is pressed firmly to the seeds, and they are thereby stimulated to vegetate sooner, and the drought is kept out. On some soils, and in wet or stormy seasons, flax is apt to be laid, to guard against which some cultivators run across their flax field slender poles fixed to stakes ; but a better method is to run small ropes across the field, both lengthwise and breadth-- wise, where necessary, for these being fastened where they intersect one another, and supported by stakes at due distances, form a kind of net-work, which is proof against almost every accident that can happen from tempestuous weather. 5303. In Scotland a crop of flax is sometimes weeded by turning a flock of sheep at large into the field. They will not taste the young flax plants, but they carefully search for the weeds, which they devour. . 5304. The flax crop is taken by jndling, on which there is a considerable difference of opinion. None, however, think of pulling it before it comes into flower, when fibre is the sole object; or before the seed in the capsules acquires a brownish color, when fibre and seed jointly, or seed alone, is the object. Some argue for pulling while it is green, in order that its fibres may be softer and finer : others, with the same view, pull it up before its seeds are quite formed; and others again think that it should not be pulled till some of the capsules which contain the seeds have begun to open, being of opinion that the fibres of green flax are too tender, and that they fall into tow. On the other hand, it is certain the fibres of flax which has stood till it is very ripe, are always stiff and harsh, that they are not easily separated from the reed, and that they do not bleach well. Here, therefore, as in most other cases, both extremes should be avoided, and it con- sequently seems most reasonable to think that the properest time for pulling flax, is when its stalks begin to turn from a green to a yellow, when its leaves begin to fall, and when its seeds begin to be brown. Donaldson observes, that a crop of flax frequently grows short, and runs out a great number of seed-bearing branches. When that is the case, the seeds, not the flax, ought to be the farmer's chief object, and the crop should be allowed to stand till the seeds are in a great measure perfected. But that when the crop thrives, and is likely to become more valuable for the flax than the seeds, it should be pulled soon after the bloom drops off, and before the pods turn hard and sharp in the points. When flax is grown for its fibre. Brown considers it the safest course to take it a little early, any thing wanting in quantity, being, in this way, made up by the superiority of quality. 5305. The operation of pulling fax differs according to the intention of the crop. When it is grown for the fibre it is pulled and tied immediately into sheaves like corn, being carried off immediately to be watered. But when the seed is to be taken from the plant, it is pulled and laid in handfuls. 5506. In pulling flax, it is usual, when it is intended to save the seeds, to lay it in handfuls, partly across each other; the reason for which is, that the business of rippling is thereby facilitated, as the ripplers, in place of having to separate each handful from the bundle, lind it by this simple precaution already done to their hand. Although it is of much importance, yet it very seldom happens, that much attention is bestowed to separate the different sorts of flax from each other, in pulling the crop. In most fields, there are varieties of soils ; of course some parts of a field will produce fine flax ; others coarse ; some long ; and some short : in a word, crops of different lengths and quahties. It cannot be supposed that all these sorts of flax will undergo an equal degree of watering, grassing, breaking, and heckling, without sustain- ing great injury. 5307. As the flax is pulled, it is laid together by handfuls, with the seed end turned to the south. These handfuls should neither lie quite in a line with each other, nor directly across, but a little slanting upwards, so that the air may easily pass through them. Some, instead of this method, tie the handfuls of flax loosely at the top, then spread out their roots, and thus set several of them to- gether upright upon their roots. In either of these ways, the flax is generally left twelve or fourteen days in the field to dry it. This drying is certainly not necessary for the rippling, because the ripple will separate the capsules from the flax as effectually before it has been dried as it will afterwards ; and if it be done with a view to ripen the seed, it should be considered, that the flax will be more hurt bv the longer time of steeping, which will become necessary in consequence of this drying, than the seed'can be be- nefited ; because, the more the membrane which connects the fibres to the reed is dried, the greater must be the degree of putrefaction necessary to loosen and destroy the cohesion of this connecting membrane j the Book VI. FLAX. 849 finer parts of the flax itself must necessarily be destroyed by this degree of putrefaction ; and if the putre- faction does not arise to such a degree as to destroy the cohesion of this membrane, the fibres of the flax will adhere so strongly to the reed, that the force necessaiy in scutching will prove equally detrimental to the flax. The i)ractice adopted in some parts of Britany seems therefore much laore rational, which is, to ripple the flax after it has lain in the air two or three days j but even one day will be sufficient, if the weather is dry. 5308. In the process of ripjyling, which is the next operation, a large cloth should be spread on a convenient spot of ground, with the ripple placed in the middle of it. lu performing this business, the pods containing the seeds are forced from the stalks by- means of the iron comb called a ripple, fixed on a beam of wood, on the ends of which two persons sit, who, by pulling the seed end of the flax repeatedly through this comb, execute the operation in a very complete manner. It is remarked by the author of The Present State of Husbandry in Great Britain, that " those who bestow much attention on the cultivation of flax in Scotland generally ripple off the seed, even when there is no intention of saving it ; as it is found, when flax is put into water without taking off the pods, the water soon becomes putrid, in consequence of which the flax is greatly- injured." 5309. The management of the capsules and separation of the seed, is the next operation. The capsules obtained should be spread in the'Sun to dry, and those which separate from the pods of their own accord being the fullest and ripest, should be set apart for sowing, in case the precaution of raising some flax purposely for seed has not been attended to. The capsules are then broken, either by treading or by threshing, in order to get out the remaining seeds, the whole of which, as well as the former, should be carefully sifted, winnowed, and cleaned. When the seed is laid up, it must be frequently stirred, or ventilated, to prevent its heating. Even this second seed affords a considerable profit, by the oil which it yields, and also by being used when broken for fattening of cattle. 5310. To facilitate the separation of the fibre from the bark, it is necessary to accelerate the process of decay or putrefaction. This may be done in differentw ays, but the chief are those of bleaching alone, or of steeping and bleaching. Bleaching is a tedious and laborious operation M'hen it is intended as a substitute for steeping, but it is the most certain for not injuring the fibre, and may be adopted on a small scale when steeping places are not at hand. In Dorsetshire, and some other places, flax, instead of being steeped, is what is called dew-retted ; that is, the stalks are allowed to arrive at that state in which the harl or woody parts, separate most easily from the boon, reed or fibre, by a more gradual process, that of ripening by the action and influence of the dew. This is nothing more than exposing the flax to the influence of the weather for a longer period than is necessary, when the operation of watering has been previously performed. Steeping, however, is the most universal practice both in Britain and on the continent. Of late, an invention has been made by Lee of Middlesex, by which with the aid of soft soap and machinery, the fibre is more completely separated than by steeping, and uninjured by that process. When flax is to be separated by this new process, the cultivator has only to pull it in handfuls, dry it, bind it into sheaves or faggots, and put it up in stacks like corn, till wanted by the manufacturer. 5311. Steeping or watering, however, is and will be the general practice till flax dressing machines come into universal use. In performing this operation, the flax, whether it has been dried and rippled, or pulled green, is loosely tied into small bundles, the smaller the better, because it is then most equally watered. These sheaves ought to be built in the pool in a reclining upright posture, so that the weight placed above may- keep the whole firm down. The weights made use of are commonly stones placed on planks, or directly on the flax. 5312. The Flemish mode of steqnngflax, as described by RadcHff, is said to improve the quality of the flax ; and greatly increase its whiteness. This mode differs from the common practice, in placing the bundles in the steep vertically, instead of horizontally ; in im- mersing the flax by means of transverse sticks, with that degree of weight annexed which shall not push it down to the bottom, but leave it the power to descend sponta- neously towards the conclusion of the steepage ; and in leaving at first a space of at least half a foot between the bottom and the roots of the flax. The spontaneous descent of the flax is an indication of its being suflUciently steeped ; and the strength and quality of the fibre are said to be much better preserved by this mode, in which the temperature of the atmosphere acts with most force on the upper part of the plant, which needs it most. 5313. The water 7nost proper for stee]nng fax should be clear, soft, and in standing pools. Compared with running water, pools occasion the flax to have a better color, to be sooner ready for the grass, and even to be of superior quality in every respect. When soft clear stagnating water cannot be obtained without art, a pit or canal is commonly- formed, adjoining to a river or stream, whence water can be easily brought. This pit or canal is filled with water for some time (a week or two) before it be proposed to pull the flax ; by this means the water acquires a greater degree of warmth than river-water possesses, and which contributes gr< liy to facilitate the object farmers have in view in 3 I 850 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. immersing green flax in water, namely, to make the harl or flaxy substance part easily and completely from the boon or reed. 5314. The period that flax ought to remain in the water, depends on various circum- stances ; as the state of ripeness in which it was pulled, the quality and temperature of the water, &c. The most certain rule by which to judge when flax is sufficiently watered, is, when the boon becomes brittle, and the harl separates easily from it. In warm weather, ten days of the watering process is sufficient ; but it is proper to examine the pools regularly after the seventh day, lest the flax should putrefy or rot, which sometimes happens in very warm weather. Twelve days will answer in any sort of weather j though it may be remarked, that it is better to give too little of the water, than too much, as any deficiency may be easily made up by suffering it to lie longer on the grass, whereas an excess of water admits of no remedy. (Broivn.) 5315. Grassing or bleaching flax is the next operation, the intention of which is to rectify any defect in the watering process, and carry on the putrefactive process to that point when the fibre will separate from the bark, boon, reed or harl, (as the woody part of the stem is called) with the greatest ease. In performing this operation, the flax is spread very thin on the ground, and in regular rows ; the one being made to overlap the other a few inches, with a view of preventing, as much as possible, its being torn up and scattered by gales of wind. Old grass-ground, where the herbage does not grow to any great height, is the best for the purpose ; as when the grass or weeds spring up so as to cover the flax, it is frequently rotted, or at least greatly injured thereby. 5316. The time allowed for grassing is regulated by the state of the flax, and seldom exceeds ten or twelve days During this time it is repeatedly examined, and when it is found that the boon has become very brittle, so that, on being broken, and rubbed between the hands, it easily and freely parts from the harl, it is then taken up, a dry day being chosen for the purpose, and, being bound in sheaves, is either sent directly to the mill, which is the usual practice in the northern districts, or broken and scutched, by a machine or implement for the purpose. 5317. Steeping flax in hot water and soft soap ('said to be the invention of Lee, and for which he was granted by parliament a secret or unenroUed patent) is said to separate the fibre from the woody matter better than steeping in water ; and this in the short space of two or three hours, and either with green flax, or such as has been dried and stacked for months or years. 5318. The dressing of flax consists of various operations, such as scutching, tracking, or breaking, by which the woody part is broken ; and heckling or combing, by which the fibre is separated from the woody part, and sorted into lengths. These operations are often all performed by the cottager, or small farmer, who grows flax for the purpose of spinning the fibre in his own family. But there are also public flax mills, impelled by water or other powers, by which flax is scutched, and it is then heckled by professed hecklers. 5319. A method of preparing flax in such a manner as to resemble cotton in whiteness and softness, as well as in coherence, is given in The Swedish Transactions (or the year 1747. For this purpose a little sea-water is to be put into an iron pot or an untinned copper-kettle, and a mixture of equal parts of birch-ashes and quick-lime strewed upon it ; a small bundle of flax is to be opened and spread upon the surface, and covered with more of the mixture, and the stratification continued till the vessel is suffici- ently filled. The whole is then to be boiled with sea-water for ten hours, fresh quantities of water being occasionally supplied in proportion to the evaporation, that the matter may never become dry. The boiled flax is to be immediately washed in the sea by a little at a time, in a basket, with a smooth stick at first, while hot; and when grown cold enough to be borne by the hands, it must be well rubbed, washed with soap, laid to bleach, and turned and watered every day. Repetitions of the washing with soap expedite the bleaching ; after which the flax is to be beat, and again well washed; when dry, it is to be worked and carded in the same manner as common cot- ton, and pressed betwixt two boards for forty- eight hours. It is now fully prepared and fit for use. It loses in this process near one-half its weight, which, however, is abundantly compensated by the improvement made in its quality. 5320. Lee's method of breaking flax and hemp, without dew-retting, was invented in 1810, and was the first step towards a great improvement, brought nearer perfection by the new patent machines of Messrs. Hill and Bundy. 5321. HUl and Bundy' s machines {fig. 589.) are portable, and may be worked in barns or any kind of out-house; they are also well- calculated for parish work-houses and chari- table institutions; a great part of the work being so light that it may be.ground, not only conduces to the health and vigor of the plants, but also prevents the crops from bei»g blighted, or what the hop-farmers call fire-blasted, which often happens towards the middle of a large close planted hop ground ; while the otitsides, in consequence of the more free circulation of air that there takes ptace, receive no injury whatever. 5399. Bantitster asserts, that those fields that lie within a few miks of the sea, or in the neighborhood of Marshy or fenny levels, are seldom favorable to the growth of hops, as such grounds generally miscarry in a blasting year ; and though, from the fertility of the soil, they may perhaps bring a plentiful crop in' those seasons when the growth is general, such situation is by no means an eligible spot for a hop groiuid. In Worcestershire and Herefordshire hops are very generally grown bfetween the rows of fiuit trees in dug or ploughed orchards. 5400. In preparing the soil previously to planting, considerable attentioii is necessary by fallowing, or otherwise, to destroy the weeds, and to reduce the soil to as pulverised a state as possible. The ridges should also be made level, and dung applied with a liberal hand. The most effectual preparation is trenching either by the plough or by manual labor. 5401 . The mode of planting is generally in rows, making the hills six feet distant from each other ; though there are some people who, from avaricious motives, prefer a five-feet plant. But as this vegetable, when advanced in growth, produces a large redundancy of bind or vine, and leaves, it should seem that six feet cannot be too wide a distance ; and that those which are planted closer will, from too confined a situation, be prevented from en- joying a free circulation of the air ; from which much injury may proceed, as blasts, mildews, mould, and other accidents, not to mention the disposition of the vine to house or grow together at the tops of the poles, whereby the hops are so overshadowed as to be debarred the influence of the sun, and thus not arrive to half their growth. 5-i02. As the planters differ in their numlter of hills to be made on the same given quantity of land, so are they no less capricious as to the manner of placing them ; some choosing to set them out with the most cautious regularity in rows of equal disUnccs, whilst others prefer a triangular plant. The fonner method has this advantage over the other ; that the intervals may, in the early jwrt of the summer, be kept clean by means of the cultivator and harrow, from which the latter is excluded by their irregular station ; and thus the ground must be tilled by the hoe at a great increase of charge, as the same labor 860 PRACTICE O^ AGRICULTURE. Part III. might be perfottned to as much advantage With one Tiofse, a man, and a boy, who will do more work in a day than half a dozen laborers can with a hoe. 5403. The ordinary season for planting is spring, in February or March ; but if bedded plants, or such as have been nursed for one summer in a garden are used, then by planting in autumn some produce may be liad the succeeding year. But, according to the author of The N'eiu Farmer's Calendar, " the time for planting is commonly that of dressing and pruning the old vines when cuttings may be had, which is in March or April ; but when root-sets are used, as on the occasion of grubbing up an old plantation, October to the beginning of November. But at whatever period they are planted, great care should be taken that the same sorts be planted together, as by this means there are advantages derived in their after-culture. " 5'104. The plants or cuttings are procured from the old stools ; each should have two joints or eyes; from the one which is placed in the ground, springs the root ; and from the other the stalk, provineially the bind ; they should be made from the most healthy and strong binds, each being cut to the length of five or six inches. Those to be nursed are planted in rows a foot apart, and six inches asunder in a garden ; and the others at once where they are to remain. 5405. The mode of performing, the operation of planting in Kent is as follows : the land having been pre- viously cleaned and prepared, dung is laid on the field in small heaps near the places where it is proposed to plant the hop slips or sets. These places are commonly marked off, by placing a number of stakes at proper and regular distances ; that done, small pits are formed by taking out a spit or spade depth of earth ; and the earth below being gently loosed, a certain quantity, about half a bushel, of dung is laid thereon ;. then the earth that was formerly taken out is again replaced, and so much added as to form a small hillock. On this hillock, five, six, or seven sets, procured from the roots or shoots of the old stock, are dibbleortunity to prune and dress the stocks. The earth being then cleared away from the principal roots by an iron instrument called a picker, the remains of the former years' vines are cut off, together with the shoots which were not allowed to attach themselves to the poles the former season, and also any young suckers that may have sprung up about the edges of the hills ; so that nothing is allowed to remain'that is likely to injure the principal roots, or impede their shooting out strong vigorous vines at the proper season. After the roots are properly cleaned and pruned, the hills are again formed, with an addi- tion, if not every year, at least every second or third year, of a proper quantity of compost manure, that had been previously laid in small heaps on the hop-ground in the course of the winter, or in the early part of spring. At this season such sets are procured as may be wanted for the nursery, or for new plantations. 5417. The yearly operation of stacking or setting the jioles^ commences towards the end of April, or at whatever period, earlier or later, the shoots have risen two or three inches. The poles are straight slender shoots of underwood, ash, oak, chestnut, or willow, from sixteen to twenty feet high. These poles are set two, but more frequently three, to a hill : they are so placed as to leave an opening towards the south, to admit the sun- beams. The manner of fixing them is by making deep holes or openings in the ground with an iron crow. Into these holes the root-ends are put, when the earth is rammed so hard about them, that they very seldom alter from the position in which they were placed, except on occasion of very violent gales of wind. Great care is necessary in placing the poles, and no less judgment and experience in determining what ought to be the proper height. When very long poles are set in a hop ground, where the stocks are too old or too young, or where the soil is of indifferent quality, the stocks are not only greatly ex- hausted, but the crop always turns out unproductive; as, till the vines reach the top, or rather till they overtop the poles, which depends on the strength of the stocks and the quality of the soil, the lateral branches on which the hops grow, never begin to shoot out, or make any progress. 5418. Planters are much divided in their sentiments as to the number of poles to be set against each hill. Three poles are the general allowance, observing to place the stoutest pole to the northern aspect of the hill ; though it is no uncommon practice to set four poles, and in strong land five or six, to a hill. In l>ehalf of this latter mode it is urged, that, where the land usually produces a great redundancy of vine, it is prudent to set a number of poles answerable to the luxuriancy of the shoots. But, if a free circula- tion of the air be a matter of that injportance to the well-being of a crop of hops, as is generally imagined, (and this is a doctrine which it is believed cannot be controverted), the incumbrance of the hills, with an additional number of i)oles, cannot fail to be of infinite dis-service to the future growth of the hops ; and it will be readily acknowledged, that the quantity of hops on the same given number of hills will be more considerable, where three poles only are set up, than when the hills are crowded with a larger Dumber ; whether we consider the mischief likely to accrue from the stagnated air, or from the redundancy of the vine, by which the hops are prevented from arriving to their proper size or growth. The chief art in poling a hop-ground is, first, to pitch the hole to a proper depth, about twenty inches : next to set down the pole with some exertion of strengtJi, so th^ the same being well sharpened may fix 862 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. itself firm at the bottom ; thirdly, that the tops of the poles may stand in such a direction as to lean out- wards from the hill, to prevent, as much as possible, the housing of the vine ; and lastly, to tread the earth close to the pole with the foot. For want of regard to these particulars in the laborer, a moderate blast of wind will loosen the poles, so as not only to occasion a double expense, but the hazard of injuring the future crop is very great, by tearing asunder the vine, which, from its great luxuriancy, will become twisted together, or, as it is termed, housed at the extreme parts of the poles. 5419. With respect to the species of woods proper for poles, it is suggested that they ap- pear to prefer a rough soft bark, to one which is more smooth and polished. An exr- perienced grower particularises the maple, whose bark is peculiarly soft and warm ; adding, that he has frequently observed, when the morning has been cold, the sensitive leader of a tender fresh-poled vine reclining its head against the velvet bark of the maple, while others held theirs aloof, from chilly smooth-barked poles. This is probably a general law, or ordinance of nature, to climbing plants ; and may be essential to their preservation, showing, in a palpable manner, the perception and strength of vegetable instinct. 5420. And in regard to the size of the pole, hops, likewise, it is well known, have their instinctive choice or approbation, with respect to the thickness of their support; embracing, with greater readi- ness, a pole that is moderately small, than one which is thick at the bottom. The ordinary circum- ference of poles, at tlie thickest end, may be set down at six to nine inches, tapering to the size of a •walking-cane at the top. And the length from fifteen to twenty feet, or upwards. DifFerent grounds require different lengths of pole. In the rich grounds, in the neighborhood of Maidstone, the poles of grown hops stand, in general, from fourteen to sixteen feet above the hills, and have from eighteen inches to two feet beneath the surface. But, on weaker lands, poles are not seen to rise more than ten to twelve feet high. Hence, a variety of ground is convenient ; as the poles, by decaying at the roots, grow shorter, and, in a course of years, get too short for strong vines, on rich land. They are, in this case, sold and transferred to less productive lands, and vines of humbler growth. 5421. New poles have sometimes the bark shaved off, under an idea that it saves them from the worm ; ■while some men are of opinion, that there is a warmth in the bark, which is acceptable to the young vines; and although in two or three years the bark drops off", the surface of the wood has, by that time, acquired a degree of softness. Whether a hard, smooth, polished pole, is unfriendly to the hop or not, to peel the poles would evidently be improper, as promoting their decay. 5422. Short light poles are usually pointed in hand, without other support. But the tall heavy pole requires something to keep the top steady. This is simply had, by tying together three poles of equal length, two or three feet from their tops ; and setting them up in the form of what are called triangles, in use for loading timber on wheel-carriages. The top of the pole to be sharpened, being dropped in between the points or horns of the triangles, receives the required stay ; a block being placed in a con- venient situation below, to work upon. And this sort of work, whether on new or on old poles, is some- times done before they are stacked, or set up in piles ; sometimes immediately before they are used. But in pointing poles that have been used, the part which stood in the ground the preceding year is struck off, if much tainted, and a fresh point given to the sound part. But, if the bottom part remain firm, it is sharpened again for another season. 5423. Tiling the shoots or vines to the poles is the last operation in the after or summer culture of the hop. This requires the labor of a number of persons : women are generally employed, who tie them in several different places with withered rushes, but so loosely as not to prevent the vines from advancing in their progress towards the top of the poles. When the vines have got to such a height as to be beyond reaching with the hand, proper persons go round, and, using standing ladders, tie all the vines that appear inclined to stray from the poles. 5424. The season for this operation varies from the middle of May to the end of June, and one impor- tant part of the operation consists in selecting the shoots. The forwardest vine should always be extir- pated, as it is well known that the branches arising from these early shoots will produce little, if any fruit. The second shoots, where the hills are not overloaded with plants, and where the ground is not of a nature to send forth a very luxuriant vine, may with safety be tied up. But where the land is apt to push forward a great redundancy of shoots, where the vine is always strong and vigorous, and where the failure in the crop chiefly arises from this cause, the greatest prudence is necessary, at the season for tying, to make choice of a proper vine ; especially in years which may be supposed to be attended with a blast ; such as those wherein an easterly wind has prevailed throughout the month of March, whence one may fairly conclude that the same weather will happen during the course on the month of May, which never failsto bring the long-winged fly. In such a season it would be well worth while to eradicate all the vine which first appears, arid trust to a latter shoot, so as to protract the tying till the last week in May. This hint was taken from the observations made on the poor and thin" lands in such blasting years where the vine is naturally backward, and seldom becomes fit for the tyers till towards the latter end of May, when that on the forward ground will have advanced nearly to the tops of the poles, and to an inattentive observer seems to promise fair for a crop ; whereas, to those who have been con- versant in these matters, the loss of the crop, though the vine at that time be green and flourishing, may be easily foreseen ; whilst on the poorer soils there is generally a saving crop even in years when the blast is most prevalent. These considerations, he says, have suggested the protracting the growth of the vine in the manner above-mentioned, which seems conformable to reason and experience. 5425. Taking the crop is a most important operation in the hop economy. Hops are known to be ready for pulling when they acquire a strong scent, and the seeds become firm and of a brown color, which, in ordinary seasons, happens in the first or second ■week of September. And when the pulling season arrives, the utmost assiduity is re- quisite on the part of the planter, in order that the different operations may be carried on ■with regularity and dispatch ; as the least neglect, in any department of the business, proves in a gieat degree ruinous to the most abundant crop, especially in precarious seasons. Gales of wi"nd at that season, by breaking the lateral branches, and bruising the hops, prove nearly as injurious as a long continuance of rainy weather, which never fails to spoil the color of the crop, and thereby render it less saleable. Book VI. THE HOP. 8G3 5426. As a preparation for puJling the hops, frames of wood, in number proportioned to the size of the ground, and the pickers to be employed, are placed in that part of the field which, by having been most exposed to the influence of the sun, is soonest ready. These frames, which are called bins or cribs, are very simple in the construction, being only four pieces of boards nailed to four posts, or legs, and, when finished, are about seven or eight feet long, three feet broad, and about the same height. A man always attends the pickers, whose business it is to cut over the vines near the ground, and to lay the poles oa the frames to be picked. Commonly two, but seldom more than throe, poles are laid on at a time. Six, seven, or eight pitkers, women, girls, and boys, are employed at the same frame, three or four being ranged on each side. These, with the man who sorts the poles, are called a set. The hops, after being carefully separated from the leaves and branches, or stalks, are dropped by the pickers into a large cloth, hung all round within-side the frame on tenter-hooks. When the cloth is full, the hops are emptied into a large sack, which is carried home, and the hops laid on a kiln to be dried. This is always done as soon a.s possible after they are picked, as they are apt to sustain considerable damage, both in color and flavor, if allowed to remain long in sacks in the green state in which they arc pulled. In very warm weather, and when they are pulled in a moist state, they will often heat in five or six hours: for this reason the kilns are kept constantly at work, both night and day, from the commencement to the conclusion of the hop- picking season. 5427. To set on a sufficient number of hands, is a matter of prudence, in the picking season, that the oasts or kilns may never be unsupplied with hops ; and if it is found that the hops rise faster than could have been expected, and that there are more gathered in a day than can be conveniently dried off, some of the worst pickers may be discharged ; it being very prejudicial for the green hops to continue long in the sacks before they are put on the oast, as they will in a few hours begin to heat, and acquire an unsightly color, which will not be taken off in the drying, especially if the season be very moist; though, in a wet hop, ping, it is no easy matter to prevent the kilns from being overrun, supposing that there were pickers enough to supply them if the weather had been dry, because in a wet cold time the hops require to lie a considerable while longer on the kiln, in order that the superabundant moisture may be dried up. It ig therefore expedient in this case that each measuring be divided into a number of green pockets or pokes. The number of bushels in a poke ought never to exceed eleven ; but when the hops are wet, or likely to continue together some time before they go on the kiln, the better way is to put only eight bushels in a sack, pocket, or poke. 5428. Donaldson asserts, that diligent hop-pickers, when the crop is tolerably abundant, will pick from eight to ten bushels each in the day, which, When dry, will weigh about one hundred weight; and that it is common to let the picking of hop-grounds by the bushel. The price is extremely variable, depend- ing no less on the goodness of the crop than on the abundance or scarcity of laborers. The greatest part of the hops cultivated in England are picked by people who make a practice of coming annually from the remote parts of Wales for that purpose. 5429. The operation of drying hops is not materially different from that of drying malt, and the kilns, or oasts, are of the same construction. The hops are spread on a hair-cloth, and from eight to ten, sometimes twelve, inches deep, according as the season is dry or wet ; and depending also on the state of the hops in regard to ripeness. A thorough know- ledge of the best method of drying hops can only be acquired by long practice. The general rules are to begin with a slow fire, and to increase it gradually, till, by the heat on the kiln, and the warmth of the hops, it is known to have arrived at a proper height. An even steady fire is then continued for eight or ten hours, according to the state or circumstances of the hops, by which time the ends of the hop-stalks become quite shrivelled and dry, which is the chief sign by which to ascertain that the hops are pro- perly and sufficiently dried. They are then taken off the kiln, and laid in a large room or loft till they become quite cool ; and they are now in condition to be put into bags, which is the last operation the planter has to perform previous to sending his crop to be sold. 5430. When hops are dried on a cockle-oast, sea-coal is the usual fuel, of which a chaldron is generally esteemed the proper allo\^tance to a load of hops. On the hair kilns, charcoal is commonly used for this purpose. Fifty sacks of charcoal are termed a load, which usually sells for about fifty shillings. The price for burning is three shillings per load, or twelve .shillings for each cord of wood. The process of drying having been completed, the hops are to be taken off the kiln, and shovelled into an adjoining chamber called the stowage-room ; and in this place they are continually to be laid as they are taken off the kiln, till it may be thought convenient to put them into bags, which is rardy done till they have lain some time in the heap; for the hops, when first taken ofi'the kiln, being very dry, would (if put into the bags at that time) break to pieces, and not draw so good a sample as when they have lain some time in the heap ; whereby they acquire a considerable portion of toughness, and an increase of weight, 54.S1. The bagging of hops is thus performed : — in the floor of the room, where the hops arc laid to cool, there is a round hole or trap, equal in size to the mouth of a hop bag. After tying a handful of hops in each of the lower corners of a large bag, which serve afterwards for handles, the mouth of the bag is fixed securely to a strong hoop, which is made to rest on the edges of the hole or trap ; and the bag itself being then dropped through the trap, the packer goes into it, when a person who attends for the purpose, puts in the hops in small quantities, in order to give the packer an opportunity of packing and trampling them as hard as possible. When the bag is filled, and the hops trampled in so hard as that it vvill hold no more, it is drawn up, unloosed from the hoop, and the end sewed up, other two handles having been previously formed in the corners in the manner mentioned above. The brightest and finest colored hops are put into pockets or fine bagging, and the bro vn into coarse or heavy bagging. The former are chiefly used for brewing fine ales, and the latter by the porter brewers. But it is to be observed, that where hops are intendo strong, as to require being a Uttle exhausted to make it fit for corn. Caraway and coriander are oftenest sown with- out teazle : the latter being a troublesome and uncertain crop, arid the produce of caraway much greater without it. 5454. The produce of caraway, on the very rich old leys in the hundreds or low lands of Essex, has often been twenty cwt. to the acre. Theteis always a demand for the seed in the London market. 5455. The uses of the caraway are the same as those of coriander, and its oil and other preparations are more used in medicine. Dr. Anderson says, both the roots and tops may be given to cattle in spring. SuBSECT. 3. Of Plants which may be substituted for Brewery and Distillery Plants. 5456. There are a great many pla7its with bitter juices which are or may be substituted for hops. In Sweden, Norway, and the north of Scotland, the heath {Erica, L.) and com- mon broom, were, and still are, occasionally used for that purpose. In some parts of France and Germany nothing else is used but broom tops. In Guernsej', the Teucrium scordonia is used and found to answer perfectly. In England, the different species of mugwort and Book VI. OIL PLANTS. 867 wormwood have been used for that purpose; and the foreign bitter, quassia, a tree of Guiana, is still used by the porter brewers. Whoever has good malt, therefore, or roots, or sugar, and understands how to make them into beer, need be at no loss for bitters to make it keep. 5457. Of the carminative seeds there are a very considerable number of native or hardy plants that furnish them of equal strength, with those of the caraway and coriander, and, of flavors to which the drinkers of cordials and liqueurs are also attached. Such, are the fennels {Fceniculum), cultivated in C>ei-many, parsley, myrrh, angelica, celery, carrot, parsnep, cowparsnep, and many other umbelliferous plants, avoiding, however, the hem- lock, fool's parsley, asthusa, and some others which are poisonous. In Dantzic, where per- haps, more seeds are used for flavoring spirits than any where else, several of the above and other plants are employed. Kiimmel, their favorite flavor, is that of the cumin (Cuminum cj/minum'), an annual plant, a native of Egypt, and cultivated in the south of Europe ; but too tender for field culture in this country. But caraway or fennel seeds are very generally mixed with cumin, or even substituted for it in distilling kiimmel -wasser. Sect. III. Of Oil Plants. . 5458. In Britain there are few plants grown solely for t/ie production of oil; though oil is expressed from the seeds of several plants, as the flax, hemp, &c. grown for other pur- poses. Our chief oil plant is the rape. 5459. Rape is the Brassica napus, L. ; Navette^ Fr. ; RUbsamen, Ger. ; Naba sil- vestre, Span. ; and Rapa silvatica, Ital. It is a biennial plant of the turnip kind, but with a caulescent or woody fusiform root, scarcely fit to be eaten. Von Thaer considers the French and Flemish colza (^Kohlsaat, Ger.) a different plant from our rape; colza is more of the cabbage kind, and distinguished by its cylindrical root, cut leaves, and greater hardiness. Decandolle seems to be of the same opinion. 5460. According to these writers, Brassica campestris oleifera is the colsat or colza, or rape of the continent, the most valuable plant to cultivate for oil ; its produce being to that of the Brassica napus, or British colsat or rape, as 955 to 700. It is distinguished from the B. napus by the hispidity of its leaves. It would be desirable for agriculture, Decandolle observes, that in all countries, cultivators would examine whether the plant they rear is the B. campestris oleifera or the B. napus oleifera, which can easily be ascertained by observing whether the young plant is rough or smooth ; if hispid, it is the B. cam- pestris ; if glabrous, the B. napus. Experiments made by Gaujuc, shew the produce of the first, compared to that of the second, to be as 955 to 700. (Hort, Trans, v. 23.) 5461. For its leaves as food for sheep, and its seeds for the oil mantfacturer, rape, or coleseed, has been cultivated from time immemorial. It is considered a native, flowers in May, and ripens its seeds in July. It may be grown by sowing broad-cast, or in rows, like the common turnip, or transplanted like the Swedish turnip. The culture of rape for seed has been much objected to by some, on account of the great degree of exhaustion of the land that it is supposed to produce ; but where it is grown on a suitable soil and pre- paration with proper attention in the after-culture, and the straw and offal, instead of being burnt, as is the common practice, converted to the purposes of feeding and littering cattle, it may, in many instances, be the most proper and advantageous crop that can be employed by the farmer. 5462. The soils best suited for rape are the deep, rich, dry, and kindly sorts ; but, with plenty of manure and deep ploughing, it may be grown in others. Young says, that upon fen and peat soils and bogs, and black peaty low grounds, it thrives greatly, and especially on pared and burnt land, which is the best preparation for it ; but it may be grown with perfect success on the fenny, marshy, and other coarse waste lands, that have been long under grass, after being broken up and reduced into a proper state of preparation. As a first crop on such descriptions of land, it is often the best that can be employed. Tlie author of The Neio Farmer s Calendar thinks, that this plant is not perhaps worth attention on any but rich and deep soils ; for instance, those luxuriant slips that are found by the sea-side, fens, or newly broken grounds, where vast crops of it may be raised. 5463. The preparation of old grass lands, if not pared and burned, need be nothing more than a deep ploughing and sufficient harrowing to bring the surface to a fine mould • and this operation should not be commenced in winter as some recommend, on account of the grub and wire-worm having time to rise to the surface; but in February or March, immediately before sowing, or in July or after the hay crop is removed, if the sowing is deferred till that season. When sown on old tillage lands, the method of pre- paration is pretty much the same as that which is usually given for the common turnip : the land being ploughed over four or five times, according to the condition it may be in, a fine state of pulverisation Or tilth being requisite for the perfect growth of the crop. In 3 K2 868 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III this view, the first ploughing is mostly given in the autumn, in order that the soil may b» exposed to the influence of the atmosphere till the early part of the spring, when it should be again turned over twice, at proper intervals of time; and towards the begin- ning and middle of June one or two additional ploughings should be performed upon it in order that it may be in a fine mellow condition for the reception of the seed. 5464. The place in a rotation of crops, which rape occupies, is commonly between twO' of the culmiferous kind. On rich soils it may be succeeded to the greatest advantage by wheat, as it is found to be an excellent preparation for that sort of grain ; and by it& being taken off early, there is sufficient time allowed for getting the land in order for sowing wheat. 5465. The season of sowing rape is the same as that for the common turnip, and the manner, whether in broad-cast or rows, the same. The row method on the flat surface seems the best for newly broken up lands, and the rows on ridglets, with or without manure, the best for lands that have been under the plough. Where the object is the keep of sheep in autumn or winter by eating it down, the broad-cast method and thick sowing is evidently the best, and is that generally resorted to in Lincolnshire and the fenny districts. The quantity of seed when sown thick may be a peck an acre, but whea drilled or sown thin, two or three pounds will suffice. The seed should be fresh, black, and plump. Vacancies may always be filled up by transplanting. 5466. The season of transplanting begins as soon after the corn harvest as possible, being generally performed on the stubble of some description of corn crop. One deep ploughing, and a sufficient degree of harrowing to pulverise the surface, is given, and the plants may be dibbled in in rows a foot apart, and six inches in the row or narrower, according to the lateness of the season of planting, and the quality of the soil ; for it must be considered that plants transplanted so late as September or October will be far from being so strong the succeeding spring, as those sown in June and left where they are to run. The seed-bed from which the plants are obtained should have been sown in the June or July preceding the transplanting season, and may be merely a ridge or two in the same or in an adjoining field. We have already noticed (457.) the Flemish mode of transplanting by laying the plants in the furrow in the course of ploughing, but as the plants cannot be properly firmed at the lower part of the root, we cannot recommend it. 5467. The after-culture of rape is the same as that of the turnip, and consists in hoe- ing and thinning. The plants on the poorer soils may be left at six or eight inches apart or narrower, but on the rich they may be thinned to twelve or fifteen inches M'ith advantage to the seed. Few are likely to grow the plant on ridglets with manure ; but if this were done, the same distance as for turnips will ensure a better crop of seed than if the plants were closer together. In close crops the seed is only found on the summits of the plants; in wide ones on rich soils, it also covers their sides. When rape seed is grown purposely for sheep keep, no hoeing, thinning, or weeding, are neces- sary. Rape grown for seed will not be much injured by a very slight cropping by sheep early in the autumn, but considerably so by eating down in winter, or the suc- ceeding spring. The seed begins to ripen in the last week of June, and must then be protected as much as possible from birds. 5468. In harvesting rape great care is requisite not to lose the seed by shaking, chaff- ing, or by exposing it to high winds or rains. 5469. It is reaped with the hook, and the principal point is to make good use of fine weather ; for as it must be threshed as fast as reaped, or at least without being housed or stacked like other crops, it requires a greater number of hands in proportion to the land, than any other part of husbandry. The reaping is very delicate work, for if the men are not careful, they will shed much of the seed. Moving it to the threshing-floor is another work that requires attention ; one way is to make little waggons on four wheels with poles, and cloths strained over them ; the diameter of the wheels about two feet, the cloth body five feet wide, six long, and two deep, and drawn by one horse, the whole expense not more than 30s. or 405. In. large farms, several of these may be seen at work at a time in one field. The rape is lifted from the ground gently, and dropt at once into these machines without any loss ; they carry it to the threshers, who keep hard at work, being supplied from the waggons as fast as they come, by one set of men, and their straw moved off the floor by another set ; and many hands of all sorts being em- ployed, a great breadth of land is finished in a day. Some use sledges prepared in the same way. All is lia- ble to be stopped by rain, and the crop much damaged ; it is, therefore, of very great consequence to employ as man)^ people as possible, men, women, and boys, to make the greatest use of fine weather. The seed is likewise sometimes cleaned in the field, and put into sacks for the market. But when large quantities ofseed are brought quickly together, as they are liable to heat and become mouldy, it maybe a better method to spread them out thinly over a barn, granary, or other floor, and turn them as often as may be necessary. 5470. The produce where the plant succeeds well, and the season is favorable for securing the seed, is forty or fifty bushels or more on the acre. Marshal thinks, indeed, that on the whole it may be considered as one of the most profitable crops in husbandry. There have been, says he, instances, on cold unproductive old pasture-lands, in which tlie produce of the rape crop has been equal to the purchase value of the land. The Book VI. PLANTS OF DOMESTIC ECONOMY. 869 seed is sold by the last of ten quarters, for the purpose of having oil expressed from it, by mills constructed for that use. The price varies considerably, but has lately seldom been much below 30^. the last. 5471. The use of the siied for crushing for oil is well known; it is also employed as food for tame birds, and sometimes it is sown by gardeners, in the same way as mustard and cress, for early salading. 5472. The rape-cake and rape-dust, the former adhering masses of seed husks, after the oil has been expressed, and the latter loose dry husks, are used as a top dressing for crops of different kinds. T^liey are reduced into powder by a malt mill, or other grinding machine, aind sometimes sown broad-cast over young clovers, wheats, &c. and at other times drilled along with turnip seed. Four cwt. of powder sown with turnip seed in drills, will go over one acre, but three times the quantity is required for an acre sown broad-cast. Expe- ruence has proved, that the success of this manure depends in a great measure on the following season. If rain happens to fall soon after the rape-dust is applied, the crop is generally abundant, but if no rain fall for a considerable period the effects of this manure are little discernible, either on the immediate crop, or on those which succeed it. There are turnip drills contrived so as to deposit the manure along with the seed. (2560.) 5473. The use of the haitlm to cattle in winter is very considerable. The stover (pods and points broken off in threshing) is as acceptable as hay, and the tops are eaten with an avidity nearly equal to cut straw, at least better than wheat straw. When well got, the smaller stalks will be eaten up clean. The offal makes excellent litter for the farm-yard, and is useful for the bottoms of mows, stacks, &c. The haulm of this plant is frequently burned ; and, in some places, the ashes, which are equal to potash, are sold : by which practice, if no manure be substituted, the soil must be greatly deteriorated. It is a custom in Lincolnshire, sometimes to lay lands down with cole, under which the grass seeds are found to grow well. But this sort of crop, as has been already observed, is most suited to fresh broken-up or burned lands, or as a successor to early pease, or such other green crops as are mowed for soiling cattle. 5474. The use of the leaves as a green food for sheep, is scarcely surpassed by any other vegetable, in so far as respects its nutritious properties, and that of being agreeable to the taste of the animals ; t»ut in quantity of produce, it is inferior to both turnips and cabbages. In this view the crops are fed off occasionally from the beginning of November to the middle of April: being found of great value, *n the first period, in fattening dry ewes, and all sorts of old sheep; and, in the latter, for support- ing ewes and lambs. The sheep are folded upon them in the same manner as practised for turnips, in which way they are found to pay from 50s. to 60s. the acre; that quantity being sufficient for the sup- port of ten sheep, for ten or twelve weeks, or longer, according to circumstances. Rape has been found, by •experience, to be superior to turnips in fattening sheep, and, in some cases, even to be apt to destroy them by its fattening quality. In The Corrected Report of Lincolnshire, it is likewise observed, that that which is grown on fresh land has the stem as brittle as glass, and is superior to every other kind of food in fattening sheep ; while in that produced on old tillage land, the stem is tough and wiry, and has com* paratively little nourishment in it 5475. Among other plants which viay he cultivated hy the British farmer as oil plants, may be mentioned all the species of the Brassica family, the Sinapis or mustard family, and the Raphanis or radish family, with many others of the natural order of cru- <;iferae. The seeds of these plants, when they remain too long on the seedsman's hands for growing, are sold either for crushing for oil, or grinding with mustard seed. This includes a good deal of wild charlock and wild mustard seed, which is separated in the jirocess of cleaning grain by farmers, among whose corn these plants abound, and sold to the seed agents, who dispose of it to the oil or mustard millers. Various other cruciferje, as the Myaglum sativum, Raphanus chinensis, var. oleiferus, both cultivated in Germany, the Erysimum, Sisymbrium officinale, Turrites, &c. might also be cultivated for both purposes. 5476. The small or field poppy (Papaver Rhoeas ; Oilette, Fr.), and also the Maw seed (F. sornniferum, var. Padot, Fr.), a variety of the garden poppy, are, as we have seen (460.), cultivated on the continent as oil plants. The oil being esteemed in domestic economy next to that of the olive. Other species might be grown for the same purpose, all of them being annual plants require only to be sown on fine rich land in April ; thinned out when they come up, to six or eight inches distance, according to the species ; kept clear of weeds till they begin to run, and as the capsules ripen to be gathered by hand, and dried in the sUn. 5477. The sunflower (^Helianthus annuus ; Tumesol, Fr., and GirasolCy Ital.) has been cultivated in Germany for its seeds, which are found to yield a good table oil, and its husks are nourishing food for cattle. Sect. IV. Plants used in Domestic Economy. 5478. Among agricultural plants used in domestic economy, we include the Mustard, Canary, Buck'wheat, Cress, Tobacco, Chiccory, and a few others ; with the exception of the two first, they are grown to a very small extent in Britain, and therefore our account of them shall be proportionately concise. 8 K 3 870 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. SuBSECT. 1 . Mustard. — Sinajns, L. Tetrad. Siliq. L. and CrucifertB, J. Moutarde or Seneve, Fr. ; Senf, Ger. ; Mostaza, Span. ; and Senajm, Ital. 5479. There are two species of mustard in cultivation in the fields, the white mustard (Sinajns alba, fig. 596 a), and the black or common (Sinapis nigra, b). Both are annuals, natives of Britain and most parts of Europe, and cultivated there and in China, for an unknown period. White mustard flowers in June, and ripens its seeds in July. Black mustard is rather earlier. Mustard is an exhausting crop, but profitable when the soil answers, and especially in breaking up rich loamy lands, as it comes off earlier, and allows time for preparing the soil for wheat. In breaking up very rich grass lands, three or four crops are sometimes taken in succession. It cannot however be considered as a good general crop for the farmer, even if there was a demand for it, as, like most of the commer- cial plants, it yields little or no manure. The culture of black or common mustard is by far the most extensive, and is chiefly carried on in the county of Durham. The seed of the black mustard, like that of the wild sort, and also of the wild radish, will remain in the ground, if below the depth of three or four inches, for ages without germinating, hence, once introduced it is difficult to extirpate. Whenever they throw the earth out of their ditches in the Isle of Ely, the bank comes up thick with mustard ; the seed falling into the water and sinking to the botttom, will remain embalmed in the mud for ages without TCgetation. 5480. Any rich loamy soil will raise a crop of mustard, and no other preparation is required than that of a good deep ploughing and harrowing sufficient to raise a mould on the surface. The seeds may be sown broad-cast at the rate of one lippie per acre ; harrowed in and guarded from birds till it comes up, and hoed and wed before it begins to shoot. In Kent, according to the survey of Boys, white mustard is culti- vated for the use of the seedsmen in London. In the tillage for it, the ploughed land is, he says, harrowed over, and then furrows are stricken about eleven or twelve inches apart, sowing the seed in the proportion of two or three gallons per acre in March. The crop is afterwards hoed and kept free from weeds. 5481. Mustard is reaped in the beginning of September, being tied in sheaves, and left three or four days on the stubble. It is then stacked in the field. It is remarked that rain damages it. A good crop is three or four quarters an acre : the price from 7s. to 205. a bushel. Three or four crops are sometimes taken running, but this must in most cases be bad husbandry. 5482. The use of the white mustard is or should be chiefly for medical and horticultural purposes, though it is often ground into flour, and mixed with the black, which is much stronger, and far more difficult to free from its black husks. The black or common mustard is exclusively used for grinding into flour of mustard, and the black husk is separated by very delicate machinery. The French either do not attempt, or do not suc- ceed in separating the husk, as their mustard when brought to table is always black. It is, however, more pungent than ours, because that quality resides chiefly in the husk. The constituents of mustard seed appear to be chiefly starch, mucus, a bland fixed oil, an acrid volatile oil, and an ammoniacal salt. The fresh powder, Dr. Cullen observes, shews little pungency ; but when it has been moistened with vinegar and kept for a day, the essential acrid oil is evolved, and it is then much more acrid. 5483. The leaves of the 7nustard family, like those of all the radish and brassica tribe, are eaten green by cattle and sheep, and may be used as pot-herbs. The haulm is commonly burned ; but is better employed as litter for the straw-yard, or for covering underdrains, if any happen to be forming at the time, 5484. As substitutes for either the black or common mustard, most of the Cruciferse enumerated when treating of oil plants (5475.), may be used, especially the Sinapis arvensis or charlock, S. orientalis, Chinensis, and Brassicata, the latter commonly cul- tivated in China. The Raphanis raphanistrum, common in corn-fields, and known as the wild mustard, is so complete a substitute, that it is often separated from the refuse corn and sold as Durham mustard seed. SuBSECT 2. The Canary Grass. — Fhalaris Canariensis, L. GraminecB, J. (Jig. 597.) Tria7i. Dig. L. and 5485. The canary grass is an annual, with a culm from a foot to eighteen inches in heightj and lively green leaves almost half an inch in width. The seeds are thickly Book VI. PLANTS OF DOMESTIC ECONOMY. 871 5 is grown in the fields in Essex, the seed being in some demand in the London market* Book VI. PLANTS OF DOMESTIC ECONOMY. 879 It is sown on any sort of soil, but strong loam is the most productive. After being well pulverised on the surface, the seed is sown broad-cast and lightly harrowed in. The season of sowing for the largest produce is March, but it will ripen if sown the first week in May. The quantity of seed to an acre varies from two to four pecks, according to the richness of the land ; the seed will not grow the second year. No after-culture is required but weeding. The crop is reaped and left in handfuls to dry for a few days, and then threshed out like rapeseed or mustard in the field. 5502. The use of the cress seed is chiefly for sowing to cut for young turkeys ; and for forcing salads by the London cooks on hot moist flannels and porous earthenware vessels. A very considerable quantity "is also used in horticulture, it being one of the chief early salads, and cut when in tne seed leaf. The haulm, is of very little use as litter, and on the whole, the crop is exhausting, 5503. The culture of the chiccory as an herbage plant has already been given (5074.) ; when grown for the root to be used as a substitute for coflPee, it may be sown on the same soil as the carrot, and thinned out to the same distance as that plant. These roots are taken up in the first autumn after sowing in the same manner as those of the carrot. When they are to be manufactured on a large scale, they are partially dried, and in that state sold to the manufacturers of the article, who wash them, cut them in pieces, roast them on a kiln, and grind them between fluted rollers into a powder, which is packed up in papers, containing from two ounces to three or four pounds. In that state it is sold either as a substitute for coffee, or for mixing with it. But when a private family cultivate tliis plant for home manufacture, the roots are laid in a cellar among sand, and a few taken out as wanted, washed, cut into slices, roasted in the coffee roaster till they become of a brown color, and then passed as wanted through the coflfee mill. 5504. The value of the chiccory as a cojffee plant. Von Thaer observes in 1810, is proved by its having been cultivated for that purpose for thirty years. Dr. Howison has written some curious papers on the subject in The Caledonian Horticultural Memoirs, (vol iv.), and both that gentleman and Dr. Duncan approve of its dietetic qualities. The former indeed says, he thinks it preferable to c6ffee, which may be a matter of taste, as some prefer the flavor of the powdered roots of dandelion to that of either coffee or chiccory. Dr. Duncan is of opinion that chiccory might be cultivated with great national advantages as a substitute for the exotic berry. {Disco, to Caled. Hort. Soc. 1820.) 5505. Of the tobacco, there are two species which may be cultivated in this country : the Nicotiana tabaccura, or Virginia tobacco, which is almost the only sort imported, and the N. rustica, common tobacco, the Bauern tabac of Germany, and cultivated in that country, Sweden, and many parts of France, Switzerland, Holland, &c., both for private use and manufacture for public sale. Almost every one who occupies a cottage and garden in these countries grows as much as supplies their pipes ; but it is rarely made into snufF or chewing tobacco by private families. The culture of tobacco is pro- hibited in Britain for political reasons ; but before that law was given, it was grown and cured in a very sufficient manner by farmers both in England and Scotland. At present every family may grow a sufficient quantity for their own use. 5506. The soil for tobacco must be deep, loamy, and rich ; well pulverised before planting.and frequently stirred and kept free from weeds during the growth of the plants. The plants in this country should be raised in a warm part of the garden : the seed is very small, and should be sown and lightly covered, and then the surface pressed down with the back of the spade in the middle of March. In May they will be fit to transplant, and should be placed in lines three feet apart every way. If no rain fall, they should be watered two or three times. Every morning and evening the plants must be looked over, in order to destroy a worm which sometimes invades the bud. When they are about four or five inches high, they are to be cleared from weeds and moulded up. As soon as they have eight or nine leaves ; and are ready to put forth a stalk, the top is nipped off, in order to make the leaves longer and thicker. After this the buds which sprout at the joints of the leaves are all plucked, and not a day is suffered to pass without examining the leaves, to destroy a large caterpillar, which is sometimes very destructive to them. 5507. The following is the mode of taking and fermenting the leaues'm America. When they are fit for cutting, whicli is known by the brittleness of the leaves, they are cut with a knife close to the ground ; and after lying some time, are' carried to the drying shed or house, where the plants are hung up by pairs, upon lines, leaving a space between, that they may not touch one another. In this state they remain to sweat and dry. When perfectly dry, the leaves are stripped from the stalks, and made into small bundles, tied with one of the leaves. These bundles are laid in heaps, and covered with blankets. Care is taken not to overheat them, for which reason the heaps are laid open to the air from time to time, and spread abroad. This operation is repeated till no more heat is perceived in the heaps, and the tobacco is then stowed in casks for exportation. 5508. To save seed allow one or two of the best plants to run, they will flower and be very ornamental in June, July, and August, and ripen their seeds in September and October. 5509. Jn the manufacture of tobacco, the leaves are first cleaned of any earth, dirt, or decayed parts ; next they are gently moistened with salt and water, or water in which some other salt, and sometimes other ingredients have been dissolved, according to the taste of the fabricator. This liquor is called tobacco sauce. The next operation is to remove the midrib of the leaf, then the leaves are mixed together to render the quality of whatever may be the final manufacture or application equal ; next they are cut into pieces with a fixed knife, and crisped or curled before a fire ; the succeeding operation is to spin them i.ito cords, or twist them into rolls by winding them with a kind of mill round a stick. These operations are per- formed by the grower, and in this state (of rolls) the article is sent from America to other countries, where the tobacconists cut it into chaff like shreds by a machine like a straw-cutter, for smoking ; form it into small cords for chewing ; or dry and grind it for snuff. In manufacturing snuff various matters are added to give it an agreeable scent ; and hence the numerous varieties of snuff. The three principal kinds are called rappees, Scotch or Spanish, and thirds. The first is only granulated ; tlie second is reduced to a very fine powder, and the third is thfe siftings of the second sort. In a former section (5439.) we have hinted that no farmer who cultivates the hop nce so early as about the year 1720. It began to be manufactured in the Orkney Islands in the year 1723, but in the western shires of Scotland, the making of kelp was not known for inany years after this date. The great progress of the bleaching of linen cloth in Ireland, first gave rise to the manufacture of kelp in that kingdom ; and from Ireland it was transferred to the Hebrides about the middle of the eighteenth century. On the shores of England the kelp plants are not abundant. 5529. Of the different marine plarits which are eraployedfor the manufacture of kelp, the Fucus vesiculosus {fg. 600 a), is considered by kelp makers as the most productive ; and the kelp obtained is, in general, supposed to be of the best quality. 5530. TTiefudili nodosus (6), is considered to afford a kelp of equal value to that of the abovfe species, though perhaps it is not quite so productive. 5531. The fucus serratus (c) or black weed, as it is commonly called, is neither so productive, nor is the kelp procured from it so valuable as that obtained from the other two. This weed is seldom employed alone for the manufacture of kelp; it is in general mixed with some of the other kinds. 5532. The Jucus digitatus (rf), is said to afford a kelp inferior in quality to any of the others; it forms the principal part of the drift-weed. 5533. The plants are cut in May, June, and July, and exposed to the air on the ground, till they be nearly dried, care being taken to prevent them, as much as possible, from being exjjosed to the rain. They are then burned, either in a pit dug in the sand or on the surface of the ground, surrounded by loose stones, forming in both ways a inide sort of kiln, A peat fire is kindled on the ground, and the weed gradually added, till the Book VI.: MARINE PLANTS. 877 fire extends over the whole floor of the kiln ; the weed is then spread lightly on the top, and added in successive portions. As it burns it leaves ashes, which accumulating towards evening, become semifused, and are then well stirred. Another day's burning increases the mass ; and this is continued till the kiln is nearly filled. On some occa- sions the kiln consists of a cavity in the ground, over which bars of iron are placed j and on this the ware is burned, the ashes falling into the cavity, where they are well worked by the proper instruments. 5534. Kelp is generally divided into two kinds ; the cut- weed kelp, and the drift- weed kelp ; the former made from the weed which has been recently cut from the rocks, the latter from that which has been drifted ashore. The latter is supposed to yield a kelp of inferior quality. Some specimens of kelp, however, made from sea-weed which had been drifted asliore, tend to prove that this is not always the case. Weed which has been exposed to rain during the process of drying, affords a kelp of inferior quality. It is of the utmost importance to the manufacturer of kelp, to keep his weed as much as possible free from rain. For this purpose many employ sheds ; when these are not at hand, the weed which has been laid out to dry, should be collected into one heap during the rain ; when this ceases, it should again be immediately spread out. It has often been matter of dispute, how old the plants should be before they be cut. In general, three years is the time allotted. This, however, from some trials which have been made to ascertain this point, seems to be too long. From experiments, it appears, that the pro- duce of kelp, from one ton of three years old weed, is only eight pounds more than that from the same quantity of two years old ; from this we would conclude, that the weed ought to be cut every two years. Though perhaps less weed may be procured from the same extent of ground occupied by weed of two, than of three year's growth, yet the difference may not be so great as to render it worth while to allow the weed to remain for three years. 5535. In order to increase the quantity of kelp, it has been suggested to the Highland Society, that the seed of the salsola soda might be imported and cultivated at a small distance from the shore, with the design of mixing the plant with the sea-ware, for the improvement of the kelp. It was formerly imagined, that the barilla plant would not produce any quantity of alkali, worth its cultivation, if planted in France ; but in the year 1782, some spirited individuals procured a quantity of barilla seed, and made a plantation of it near the coast of the ^Mediterranean, in the province of Languedoc, and had the satisfaction for several years, to find, that the barilla which they produced from these plants, was of a quality equal to that which they usually procured from Alicant. Why, then, may not a similar attempt in our own country be equally successful ? 5536. Other plants. If the growers of kelp could contrive to make some considerable plantations of the most productive of the kali, or of fumitory, wormwood, and other inland plants, which yield large quantities of potash, and collect the crop to burn with the other materials, the carbonate of potash resulting from their incineration would decompose the sea salt, and a great accumulation of carbonate of soda would be pro- duced. It was proved long ago by Du Hamel, that the marine plants produced soda merely in consequence of their situation, for, when they have been cultivated for some years in an inland spot, they yield only potash. 5537. There are immense tracts of shore on the mainland and islands of Scotland which may be easily culti vated for the production of kelp, from which at present not one penny is derived. All the cultivation requisite is, to place whin or other hard stones, not under the size of the crown of a hat, upon such vacant spaces. Contracts have been made to plant shore lands in the Highlands with such stones, at the rate of 20/. per Scots acre. Such stones are generally to be found at high-water mark, on all the shores of the lochs of the Highlands. They are put into a boat at high water, then carried to the ground to be planted, and thrown overboard, and on the ebb of the tide they are^ distributed regularly over the shore, preserving a clear space round every stone of one foot, which distance, after very minute examination, appears to be the most eligible for producing the greatest crop, of ware. It is evident these stones should be of a round shape, the more surface being exposeil to the alternate action of the air and water, so much more kelp-ware will be produced from a given space or ground. In four years the first crop may be cut, which, on the above data, will yield about four per cent, on the original expense. But the crop may be manufactured into kelp in every third year there- after, which, on the same data, is equal to about five per cent. In this improvement there is no hazard of bad crops, and if the manufacture is begun early enough in the season, there is little danger to be- apprehended from bad weather, it being understood that tlie operation of kelp-making can be carried on. should there be no more than two dry days in eight. {Highland Society's Trans, vol. viii.) Chap. X. Of Weeds or Plants which are iryurious to those cultivated in Agriculture. 5538. Every plant which appears where it is not wanted may be considered injurious, though some are much more so than others. A stalk of barley in a field of oats is a weed, relatively to the latter crop, but a thistle is a weed in any crop j weeds, therefore, may be classed as relative and absolute. 878 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part iii.- 5559. Relative weeds, or such cultivated plants as spring up where they are not wanted, give comparatively little trouble in extirpating them. The most numerous are the grasses when they spring up in fields of saintfoin or lucern, or among corn crops in newly broken up grass lands. The roots of chiccory, in fields that have been broken up after bearing that crop for some years, of madder, liquorice, &c. are also of difficult extirpation. "When the potatoe crop has not been carefully gathered, or mustard has been allowed to shed its seed, they also occasion trouble. Other similar cases will readily occur to the practical man, and need not be mentioned. 5540. Absolute weeds, or such native plants as are considered injurious to all crops, are very numerous, and may be variously arranged. Some affect in a more peculiar manner corn-fields and tillage lands, and these are chiefly annuals, as wild mustard, wild radish, poppy, blue bottle, cockle, darnel, &c. ; or biennials, as the thistle ; or perennials, as couch- grass, knot-grass, black couch, polygonum, &c. ; on lands laid down to grass for a few years, dock, ox-eye daisy, ragweed, &c. Others infest grass lands, and these are chiefly perennials, such as crowfoot, one of the most difficult of weeds to extirpate ; thistles, docks, rushes, sedges, moss, and an endless variety, of others. Some are more particu- larly abundant in hedges, of which the reedy and coarse grasses, as couch-grass, brome- grass, and the climbing and twining plants, as goose grass ( Galium aparine), and the twiners, as bindweed (Convolvulus), are the most injurious. 5541. With^regard to the destruction of weeds, they may be classed first, according to their duration. All annuals and biennials, as sand- \\V'/ 601 wort (Jig. 601 b), and sorrel (c), are eflfectually destroyed by cutting over the plant at any point be- low that whence the seed leaves originated, as this prevents them from ever springing again from the roots. Perennials of the fibrous-rooted kind may be destroyed in the same manner, as the crowfoot, ragweed, the fibrous-rooted grasses, and many others. Some fusiform rooted perennials may also be destroyed by similar means ; but almost all the thick rooted perennials require to be wholly eradi- cated. 5542- The perennial weeds which require their roots to be wholly eradicated, may be classed according to the kind of roots. The first we shall mention are the stoloniferous roots or surface shoots of plants, by which they propagate themselves. Of this kind is the creeping crowfoot, goosefoot or wild tansey, and other potentillas, mints, strawberries, black couch- grass, and most of the agrostidoe and other grasses. The next are the under-ground creeping roots, as the couch-grass, convolvulus arvensis, and other species, of bind-weed, coltsfoot (Jig. 601 a) sowthistle, several tetradynamous plants, as todflax, scrophularia, nettle, hedge-nettle, {Stachys), lamium, ballota, &c. Some of these, as the bindweed and corn-mint, are ex- tremely difficult to eradicate ; a single inch of stolone, if left in the ground, sending up a shoot and becoming a plant. The creeping and descending vivacious roots are the most difficult of all to eradicate. Of this class are the polygonum amphibium, (^fig. 602 a), the reed (Arundo pthragmites), the horse-tail {Equisetum,Jig. 602 b), and some others. These plants abound in deep clays, which have been deposited by water, as in the carses and clay-vales of Scotland. In the carse of Falkirk for example, the roots of the polygonum amphibium are found every where in the subsoil alive and vigorous. They send up a few leaves every year in the furrows and on the sides of drains, and when any field is neglected or left a year or two in grass, they are found all over its surface. Were this tract to be left to nature for a few years, it would soon be as completely co- vered with the polygonum as it must have been at a former age, when it was one entire marsh partially covered by the Firtli of Forth. The horse-tail is equally abundant in many soils, even of a drier description ; and the corn thistle, (Serratula arve?isis,Jig.60l e) even in dry rocky grounds. Lightfoot [Flora Scotica) mentions plants of this species dug out of a quarry, the roots of which were nineteen feet in length. It would be useless to attempt eradicating the roots of such plants. The only means of keeping them under, is to cut off their tops or shoots as soon as they appear; for which purpose, lands subject to them are best kept in tillage. In grass lands, though they may be kept from rising high, yet they will, after being repeatedly mown, form a stool or stock of leaves on the surface, which will suffice to strengthen their roots, and greatly to injure the useful herbage plants and grasses. Book VII. WEEDS. 879 5543. Tuberous and bulbous rooted weeds, are not very numerous; wild garlick, arum, and bryony, are examples, and these are only to be destroyed by complete eradication. 5544. Ramose, Jusiform, and such like rooted perennials, of which rest-harrow, fern, and scabious are examples, may in general be destroyed by cutting over below the collar or point where the seed-leaves have issued. Below that point the great majority of plants, ligneous as well as herbaceous, have no power of sending up shoots ; tln)Ugh there are many exceptions, such as the dock, burdock, &c. among herbs, and the thorn, elm, poplar, cherry, crab, &c. among trees. 5545. A catalogue of tveeds could be of little use to the agriculturist, as the mere names could never instruct him as to their qualities as weeds, even if he knew them by their proper names. Besides, weeds which abound most, and are most injurious in one district, are often rare in another. Thus, the poppy abounds in gravelly districts, the charlocks on clays, the chickweed, groundsoil, nettle, &c. only on rich soils. A local flora, or any of the national floras, as Lightfoot's Flora Scotica, and Smith's British Flora, by pointing out the native habits of indigenous plants, may be of considerable use to the agriculturist who has acquired a slight degree of the science of botany, so as to enable him to refer any plant which he may pick up in flower, not knowing the name, to its place in the arrangement of the book. BOOK VII. THE ECONOMY OF XIVH STOCK AND THE DAIRY. 5546. Tlie grand characteristic of modern British farming, and that which constitutes its greatest excellence, is the union of the cultivation of live stock with that of vegetables. Formerly in this country, and in most other countries, the growing of corn and the l-earing of cattle and sheep constituted two distinct branches of farming j and it was a question among writers, as Von Thaer informs us it still is in Germany, which werfe the most desirable branches to follow. The culture of roots and herbage crops at last led gradually to the soiling or stall feeding husbandry, in imitation of the Flemings ; and afterwards, about the middle of the last century, to the alternate husbandry, which is entirely of British invention, and has been the means of improving the agriculture of the districts where it is practised, more etfectually than any thing else. It is observed * 3 K 8 880 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. by Brown, that ** though horses, neat cattle, sheep, and swine are of equal importance to the British farmer with corn crops, yet we have few treatises concerning the animals, compared with the immense number that have been 'written on the management of arable land, or the crops produced upon it. But though so little has been written, the improvement of those animals has not been neglected ; on the contrary, it has been studied like a science, and carried into execution with iJie most sedulous attention and dexterity. We wish it could be stated, that one half of the care had been applied to the selecting and breeding of wheat and other grains, which has been displayed in select- ing and breeding the best proportioned and most kindly feeding sheep. A comparison cannot, however, be made with the slightest degree of success ; the exertions of the sheep- farmers having, in every point of view, far exceeded what has been done by the renters of arable land. Even with cattle considerable, improvement has taken place. With horses, those of the racing and hunting kinds excepted, there has not been correspondent improvement ; and as t» swine, an animal of great benefit to the farmer, in consuming offal which would otherwise be of no value, it is to be regretted that very much remains to be done." 5547. The first important effort in the improvement of live stock, was made by Robert Bakewell, of Dishly, about 1730; and the first scientific work which appeared on the subject, was by George Cully, in 1782. Bakewell wrote* nothing himself; but the principles on which he acted in selecting and breeding cattle and sheep, have been developed, by his contemporaries, in various agricultural reports. Some excellent obser- vations on the subject have also appeared from the pens of Cline, Dr. Coventry, Sir. J. Sebright, Hunt of Leicester, and others. The improvement in the sciences of compara- tive anatomy and physiology has also led to an amended practice both in breeding and in pathology. The example of various opulent proprietors and farmers in all parts of the empire, tended to spread this improvement, by which the pursuit became, fashionable. Add to these the accounts of the management of live stock in almost every county of the British Isles, as contained in Marshal's Works and the County Re- ports. From these sources we shall draw the information we are about to submit, and shall adopt the arrangement of the horse, the ass, the mule and hinny, the bull family and the dairy, the sheep, the swine, minor stock, and injurious animals or vermin. Chap. I. The cultivated Horse. — Equus Caballus, L. ; Mammalia Belluce, L. ; and Pacht/dermes Solipedes, Cuvier ; Cheval, Fr. ; Pferde, Ger. ; Caballo, Span. ; and Cavallo, Ital. 5548. The horse family, by far the most important among the brute creation as a servant to man, includes several species both in a wild and cultivated state, as the Equus hemionus or wild mule, a native of Arabia and China, and which it is supposed would form an excellent race of small horses, could they be reduced to a state of domestication ; the E. asinus, or ass, well known ; the E. zebra, or striped ass; the E. quagga, by some considered a variety of the zebra ; and the E. bisulcus or cloven-footed horse, a native of Chili, and by many supposed to belong to a distinct genus. 5549. The common horse, justly considered as the noblest of animals, is found in a wild state in the deserts of Great Tartary, in the southern parts of Siberia, and in other parts of Asia, and in the interior of Africa. He is of th^ greatest antiquity, and has long been domesticated and cultivated in most parts of the earth, for the various purposes of war, hunting, parade, the saddle, or draught ; and in some places, partly for his flesh and the milk of the female. The parts of a horse, when no longer endowed with life, are applied to various useful purposes : the blood for manure ; the bones are broken and boiled, to produce oil, and afterwards are ground into an excellent manure ; some of the bones are also used in the mechanical arts. The flesh supplies food for the domestic carnivorous animals, the cat and dog ; for carnivorous birds, as the hawk, eagle, &c., kept for amusement or curiosity ; and for fish and various similar purposes. We shall con- sider the horse, in regard to its varieties, organology, anatomy, physiology, diseases, breeding, rearing, training, feeding, and working. Sect. I. Of the Varieties of the Horse. 5550. The varieties of the domestic horse vary exceedingly in different countries. The Arabian horse {fig, 603.) is a portrait of one brought by Buonaparte from Book VII. VARIETIES OF THE HORSE. 881 Egypt, and now living in the royal garden of Paris,) are reckoned the best, and their inhabitants the most expert in horsemanship. The care taken by the Arabs in pre- serving the breeds of their horses, is most 603 remarkable. None but stallions of the finest form and purest blood are allowed access to their mares, which is never permitted but in the presence of a professional witness or pub- lic officer, who attests the fact, records the name, and signs the pedigree of each. The Persian horses are considered next in value ; and after them the horses of Andalusia in Spain. The Barbary horses are descended from the Arabians, and much esteemed. Jackson [Empire of Morocco, p. 42.) men- lions ouQ very fleet variety, used for hunting the ostrich, and fed entirely on camel's milk. In Algiers they are said not to like to castrate their horses, but only squeeze their testicles when they are about three months old, which renders them incapable of propagation. The horses of India are small and vicious, the climate being unfavorable to their greater developement. Those of Tartary are of a moderate size ; but strong, muscular, full of spirit and active. The Tartars are considered skilful riders. Like the Kalmucks, they eat their flesh as we do that of oxen, and use their milk either in curd or fermented. 5551. Of the European varieties of the horse, those of Italy were formerly in greater esteem than at present ; but still, those of the Neapolitans shine both under the saddle- and in traces. Great numbers are bred in Sicily ; those of Sardinia and Corsica are small, but active and spirited. The Swiss horses partake of the same qualities. 5552. The Spanish horses are much commended : some make them second to the Arabians, and place them before the Barb. Those of the finest breeds are generally finely carcassed and well limbed horses, active, ready and easy in their paces, docile and affectionate to their owners, full of spirit and courage, but tempered with mildness and good nature ; they are for the most part, of a moderate size. Those which are bred in Upper Andalusia are deemed the most valuable. The Portuguese horses, or rather mares, were famous of old for being very fleet and long-winded ; but of late it is said they are much degenerated. * 5553. France abounds in horses of all kinds, but does not excel in native breeds ; the best of those fit for the saddle come from Limousin : they resemble the Barbs in many particulars, and like them are fittest for hunting, but they are supposed not to be fit for work before they are seven or eight years old. There are also very good " Bidets" or ponies, in Auvergne, Poitou, and Burgundy. Next to those of Limousin, Normandy claims precedence, for a well formed and useful breed. Lower Normandy and the district of Cotentin furnish some very tolerable coach horses, and which are more active and appear more elastic in their motions than the Dutch horses. They have, however, a noble race of large draught horses equal to any seen in England, and, among which, the chestnut color seems to prevail. The French horses generally are apt to have their shoulders although oblique, yet too loose and open, as those of the Barbs are usually too confined and narrow. 5554. The Flemish horses^ aro inferior in value to the Dutch, having usually large heavy heads and necks; their feet also are immoderately large and flat, and their legs subject to, watery humours and swellings. 5555. i/o^Za»d furnishes a race of horses which are principally serviceable in light draught work : the best come from Friesland. 5556. Germany is not destitute of good horses, and such as prove useful for many purposes ; but they are reckoned to ue heavy and defective in wind. The Germans possess, however, finer breeds obtained from Turks and Barbs which are kept as stallions ; they obtain also some good specimens from the Italians and Spaniards. As racers and hunters they are inferior to the Hungarian and Transylvanian horses. The horses of Bohemia are not distinguished by any eminent qualities. The Hussars and Transylvanians are accustomed to slit the nostrils of their horses, under a notion of giving their breath a free passage, and improving their wind, as well as to render them incapable of neighing, which, in the field, would be often inconvenient. The Croatian horses are nearly allied in qualities and character to the Hungarian and Bohemian : these, as well as the Poles, are remarkable for being, as the French term it, " Begut," or keeping the mark in their teeth as long as they live. 5557. The Polish horses are hardy, strong, and useful, but they are generally of a middling size. In the marshy parts of Prussia, and towards the mouth of the Vistula, there is a breed of tall, strong bofses, resembling those of Friesland, but of inferior value. 555S. TAd? Aorierating on the lengthened spinous processes of the dorsal vertebrge with increased advantage, elevate the fore parts higher ; and even in default of this form in the fore parts, yet a corres- ponding effect is produced in foreign horses by the great strength and expansion of their haunches and croups, and by the greater inclination in their hinder extremities towards the common centre of gravity of the body : for as speed depends first on the extent to wJiich the angles of the limbs can be opened, and secondly, on the efforts of the body in its transit to counteract the tendency to the common centre of gravity, the earth; .so it is evident that the form which is the most favorable to speed, is less so to' safety or flexibility in progression. 5567. The Irish road horse, or hunter, coeval with, or probably in some measure subsequent to the culture of the old English road horse, was a still mora, excellent breed. "With similar properties, but an improved form, with a great acquired aptitude for leaping, it gained the name of the Irish hunter ; and when the dogs of the chace were less speedy than they now are, this horse was equal to every thing required of him as a hunter; even now the possessors of the few which remain find, particularly in an enclosed and deep country, that what others gain by si)eed these accomplish by strength to go through any ground, aiid activity sutticient to accomplish the most extraordinary leaps. As roadsters, these horses have ever proved valuable, uniting durability, ease, and safety with extreme docility. In form thev may be considered as affording a happy mixture of an improved hack with our old English roadster. 5568. The British varieties of saddle horse of tr^ore inferior description are very numerous, as cobs, galloways, and ponies. Cobs are a thick, compact, hackney breed, from fourteen hands to fourteen hands two inches high, in great request for elderly and heavy persons to ride, or to drive in low phaetons, &c. Galloways and ponies are lately in much request also for low chaises ; a demand which will lead to a cultivation of their form; the number bred requires little increase, as several waste districts or moors throughout England are already appropriated principally to the purpose of rearing ponies. 5569. The British varieties of war or cavalri/ horse, and of carriage and cart horse, are considered to have been derived from tRe German and Flemish breeds, meliorated by judicious culture. Most of the superior varieties contain a mixture of Arabian or Spanish blood. Cavalry horses are found amongst the larger sort of hacknies ; and the observations made in the late wars sufficiently shew the justice of the selection. Except in a few unhappy instances, where a mistaken admiration of the Hulans had led to selecting them too light, the English cavalry horse possessed a decided superiority over the best French horses in strength and activity, as well as over the Germans, whose horses, on the other hand, by their bulk and heavy make, were incapable of seconding the efforts of the British dragoons. The coach, chariot, and stage horses are derived, many of them from the Cleveland bays, further improved by a mixture of blood. Others are bred from a judicious unitm of blood and bone, made by the breeders in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and other midland counties. 5570. The vnriefies of draught horse were originally as numerous as the districts from whence they were brtni, each having its favorite breed; but since the intercourse among farmers and breeders has been greater, those in common use are so mixed as to render it difficult to determine of what variety they partake t!ie most. At present, the principally esteemed draught horses are the Suffolk punch, the Cleveland bay, the black, and the Lanark or Clydesdale. The native breeds of draught horses of England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, are much too small for the purposes of agricultural draught as now conducted ; but by cultivation, the improved breeds pointed out, have furnished such animals as are equal to every thing re- quired of them. 5571. The black horse {fig. 608), bred in the midland counties of England, is a noble and useful animal ; and furnishes those grand teams we see in the coal, flour, and other heavy carts and waggons about London ; where the immense weight of the animal's body assists his accompanying strength to move the heaviest loads. But the present sy.stcm of farming requires horses of less bulk and more activity for (he usual agricultural jmr- poses, better adapted for travelling, ami more capable of enduring fatigue; consequently this breed is seldom seen in the improved farms. The black cart horse is un- derstood to have been formed, or at least to have been brought to its present state, by means of stallions and mares imported from the low countries ; though there appears to be some difference in theaccounts that have been preserved, in regard to the places from whence they were originally brought, and to the persons who introduced them, {Culley o» Live Stock, p. 32., and ' 3 L '2 884 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Marshal's Economy of the Midland Counties, vol. i. p. 306.) Marshal, under too confined a view, and probably prejudiced against the breed on account of its fancied want of spirit, as well as for the alleged tendency to become flat and pommiced in the feet, is most unreasonably severe on it, when he says, " the breed of grey rats, with which this island has of late years been overrun, are not a greater pest in it than the breetl of black fen horses ; at least while cattle remain scarce as they are at present, and while the flesh of horses remains to be rejected as an article of human food." (Marshal's Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. l&i). The present improved sub-variety of this breed is said to have taken its rise in six Zealand mares, sent over from the Hague by the late Lord Chesterfield, during his embassy at that court. 5572. The Cleveland bays {Jig. 609.), which owe some of their most valuable properties to crosses witl» the race-horse, have been long celebrated as one of the best breeds in the island ; but they are said to have degenerated of late. They are reared to a great extent in Yorkshire, the farmers of which county are remarkable for their knowledge in every thing that relates to this species of live stock. In activity and hardiness, tliese horses, perhaps, have no superior. Some capital hunters have been produced by putting full-bred stallions to mares of this sort; but the chief object latterly has been to breed coach- horses, and such as have sufficient strength for a' two-horse plough. Three of these horses carry a ton and a half of coals, travelling sixty miles in twenty-four hours, without any other rest but two or three baits upon the road ; and frequentlv perform this labor four times a-week. 5573. The Siijffblk pmich {fig. 610.)"is a very useful ani- .610 mal for rural labor, and is particularly esteemed by the farmers of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex, but the merit of this breed seems to consist more in constitutional hardi- ness than in any apparent superiority of shape. " TJieir color is mostly yellowish or sorrel, with a white ratch or blaze on their faces ; the head large, ears wide, muzzle coarse, fore-end low, back long, sometimes, but always very straight, sides flat, shoulders too far forward, hind-quarters middhng, but rather high about the hips, legs round and short in the posterns, deep- bellied, and full in the flank. Here, perhaps, lies much of the merit of these horses ; for we know, from obser- vation and experience, that all deep-bellied horses carry their food long, and, consequently, are enabled to stand longer and harder days' works However, certain it is, that these horses do perform surprising days' works. It is well known, that the Suffolk and Norfolk farmers plough more land in a day than any other peo- ple in the island ; and these are the kind of horses every where used in those districts." {Culley on Live Stock, p. 27.) Since Culley's time much pains have been taken to improve this useful breed, and to render them, by cultivation, fitted not only for heavy but for light work. So great has been the estimation of this breed in Ireland, that Bercsford of , procured from Suffolk a cart stallion, for which he gave a hundred guineas ; and which he allowed to cover all the Suffolk mares brought to him gratis. 5574.. The Clydesdale horse {fig. 611.) has been long in high repute in Scotland and the north of England ; and, for the purposes of the farmer, is probably equal to any other breed in Britain. Of the origin of this race, various accounts have been given, but none of them so clear, or so well authenti- cated as to merit any notice. They have got this name, not because they are bred only in Clydesdale or Lanarkshire, for the same description of horses are reared in the other western counties of Scotland, and over all that tract which lies between the Clyde and the Forth, but because the principal markets at which they are sold, Lanark, Carnwath, Rutherglen, and Glasgow, are situated in that district, where they are also preserved in a state of greater purity than in most other parts. They are rather larger than the Suffolk, punches, and the neck is somewhat longer ; their color is black, brown, or grey, and a: white spot on the face is es- teemed a mark of beauty. The-breast is broad ; the shoulder thick, with the reaching cartilaginous portion of the blade-bone nearly as high as the withers, and not so much thrown backwards as in road horses ; the hoof round, and usually black, with wide heels ; the back straight and broad, but not too long ; the bucks visible, but not prominent, and the space between them and the ribs short ; the tail heavy, and well haired ; the thighs meeting each other so near as to leave only a small groove for the tail to nest on. One most valuable property of this breed is, that they are remark- ably true pullers, a restive horse being rarely found among them. 557.5. The Welsh horse {fig. 612 a) bears a near resemblance, in point of size and hardiness, to the best of the native breed of the highlands of Scotland, and other hilly countries in the north of Europe. It is too small for the present two-horse ploughs ; but few horses are equal to them for enduring fotigue on the road. " I well remember," says Culley, « one that I rode for many years, which, to the last. BooKVrr. ORGANOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 885 would have gone upon a pavement by choice, in preference to a softer road." {Observations on Live ■»ocA-,p. 35.) 612 5576. The galloway {b), so called from its being found chiefly in that province of Scotland, has now become very rare ; it is a little horse, of much the same size with the former, or rather larger ; the breed having been neglected from its unfitness for the present labors of agriculture. The true galloways are said to resemble the Spanish horses; and there is a tradition, that some of the latter, that had escaped from one of the vessels of the Armada, wrecked on the coast of Galloway, were allowed to intermix with the native race. Such of this breed as have been preserved in any degree of purity, are of a light bay or brown color, with black legs, and are easily distinguished by the smallness of their head and neck, and the clearness of their bone. 5577. The still smaller horses of the Highlands and isles qf Scotland, (c) are distinguished from larger breeds by the several appellations of ponies, shelties, and in Gaelic of garrons or gearrons. They are reared in great numbers in the Hebrides, or western isles, where they are found in the greatest purity. Different varieties of the same race are spread over all the Highland district, and the northern isles. This ancient breed is supposed to have been introduced into Scotland from Scandinavia, when the Norwegians and Danes first obtained a footing in these parts. " It is precisely the same breed that subsists at present in Norway, the Feroe Isles, and Iceland, and is totally distinct from every thing of horse kind on the continent of Europe, south of the Baltic. In confirmation of this, there is one peculiar variety of the horse in the Highlands, that deserves to be noticed : it is there called the eel. backed horse. He is of different colors, light bay, dun, and sometimes cream-colored ; but has always a blackish list that runs along the ridge of the back, from the shoulder to the rump, which has a resemblance to an eel stretched out. This very singular character subsists also in many of the horses of "ilker's Hebrides, vo\. i'l. IX 158.) "The High" sometimes only nine, and seldom twelve hands high, excepting in some of the southern of the Hebrides, Norway, and is no where else known." {Walker's Hebrides, vo\. i'l. p. 158.) "The Highland horse is where the size has been raised to thirteen or fourteen hands by selection and better feeding. The best of this breed are handsomely shaped, have small legs, large manes, little neat heads, and are extremely active and hardy. The common colors are grey, bay, and black ; the last is the favorite one." {General Report of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 176.) Sect. II. Organology or exterior Anatomy of the Horse. 5578. A just knowledge of the exterior conformation of the horse, to l)e able to form a correct judgment of the relative qualities of the animal, fonns the ne plus ultra of a scientific horseman's aim ; but it is a branch of knowledge not to be ob- tained without much study and experience. In considering a hor.se exteriorly, his age, his condition, and other circumstances should be attended to ; and without which attention it is not possible to determine, with precision, the present or future state of a horse when he is seen" under various peculiarities. A horse of five years old, though considered as full grown, yet experiences very considerable alterations of form after that period. He then becomes what is termed furnished ; and all his points, before hidden in the plumpness of youth, now shew themselves. He is, in fact, more angular, and in a painter's eye would be more picturesque, but less beautiful. A horse likewise low in flesh and condition, is hardly the same animal as one in full flesh and condition; and again, the sleekness acquired from relaxed labor, with full and gross feeding, is very unlike the robust form acquired from generous diet with correspondent exertion. 5579. The examination of the subject of organology is conveniently pursued by dividing it into head, neck, trunk, or body, and extremities or legs. The greater number of well proportioned horses, with the exception of the head and neck, come within a quadrangle; but not one strictly equilateral as depicted by Lawrence (llichardj, and Clark, but one whose horizontal dimensions are usually between a twenty-fourth and twenty-eighth greater than their perpendiculars. It must, however, be kept in mind, that with some considerable deviations from this quadrangular form, many horses have proved superiorly gifted in their powers ; and that a deviation from these proportions, appears in some instances^ as in that of the race horse, not only favorable, but necessary also to his exer- tions. Nature will not be limited, and the perfection of her operations is not alone de- pendant on an arbitrary arrangement of parts, but on a harmony and accordance of the whole, internal as well as external. To the artist, however, such admeasurement is useful, inasmuch as it prevents any sihgular departure from a symmetrical appearance, ■which is but too common among our animal draughtsmen. To the amateur it also offers a convenient, though not an tinerring guide. Our exemplification of the organ- ology appears by placing a blood and a cart horse within the same square {fg.61^], by which the differences between the various parts of the one and the other are readily con- trasted. 3 L 3 tB6 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 5580. The organs of the head. The head of the horse is remarkable for its dimensions, formed by an elongation of the jaws ; yet in him, as in most of the grazing tribes, its bulk is in an inverse proporti on to the length of the neck, otherwise the muscles would not be able to lift it It is an important part considered as relative to beauty alone, it being in the inferior heavy breeds but little marked by grace or expression ; but in the improved varieties it presents lines worthy the painter's i)encil and the poet's fancy. Neither is it too much to say, that in no part of the body is this amelioration of breed so soon detected as in the head. Can anything be conceived more dissimilar than the small inexpressive features of the cart horse, and the bold striking ones that grace the head of the blood horse ? The quick succession of movements in his pointed ears, the dilatations of his expanded nostrils, or his retroverted eyes, which give fire and animation to the character of his head when under the influence of any excitement. This is the more worthy of remark, when it is considered that some of the principal aids to expression iti the human countenance are wanting in the horse. Man borrows much of his facial expression from his eye- brows, and when to these the varied action of the mouth is added, it amounts to more than a half of the total expression. A great accession of beauty is gained in the improved breeds by the increase to the facial angle, which in them is about 25°, but in the heavy breeds is usually only 23° {a a a a). 5581. The ears [b b) in the improved breeds are small and pointed ; in the heavy they are not only large and ill shaped, but they frequently separate from each other : these defects gave rise to the barbarous custom of cropping, now happily in a great measure abolished. The ears are criteria of the spirit, aS well as of the temper; we have seldom seen a horse which carried one ear forward and the other back- ward during his work, that was not hardy and lasting. Being not subjected to early fatigue, he is atten.. tive to every thing around him, and directs his ears different ways to collect sound from every quarlen Ihe ears are also indications of temper, and a horse is seldom either playful or vicious, but his ears are laid flat on the neck. It is fortunate that we are provided with such a warning, by an animal that does not want craft to surprise us, nor strength to render his resentment terrible. 5582. The forehead next presents itself (c c), straight, and of a proper width in the improved breeds, adorned by nature with an elegant portion of hair, which, detaching itself from the rest of the mane, flovvs down the face to protect both that and the ears from the attacks of insects. 5583. The eyes {d d) deserve particular attention, not only for their utility, but as objects of beauty and expression. In the blood horse the orbitary fossa?, or eye sockets, are more prominent and more inclined, by which the axes of his eyes diverge more from each other than those of the heavy breed ; by which not only he is enabled to see further behind him, but the prominence of his eyes gives great beauty and expression to the blood head. The further consideration of the eyes and their criteria of soundness, will be postponed to the anatomical detail. In old horses most of the fat of the body which is superficially placed, becomes absorbed : in this way the eye, which is usually embedded in a vast quantity of this matter, losing its assistance, sinks within its orbits, and thus the cavities above, called eye-pits, shew themselves deeply in an aged horse. 5584. From the ears to the angle ofthejaivs [e e) large vessels and extensive glands are situated. "Within these branches of the posterior jaw is lodged the throat, and it will be observed how necessary it is that these branches should expand sufficiently to admit of the motions of the head, particularly of those in- fluenced by the reining-in of the bridle ; otherwise the blood vessels and other parts must be injuriously pressed upon. 5585. The hollow between the jaws is called the channel, and at the under part of it (/) a considerable branch of an artery proceeds from the inner side over and around the outer, and which branch forms the most convenient situation for feeling the pulse of the horse. 5586. The face (g) of the improved breed of horses presents either a straight line, or one slightly curved inwards towards the lower part ; whereas in the heavy breeds, it is very commonly Ibund to be curved outward. This part comprises, as with man, from the forehead to the lips. When the face is covered with white, it ie considered a blemish j but when a white siwt only exists in the;;forehead, it ia considered a beauty. Book VII. ORGANOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 8«7 5587. TJie 7narJcinffs in the face are useful to describe a horse by, and frequently lead to the recovery of a strayed or stolen one. In regimental accounts these marks are carefully noted. When a spot extends down the f;ice, it is termed a blaze ; and when further continued into the muzzle, it is called blaze and snip. When a star is distinct, but with it there are white markings which begin some distance below it, and are continued downwards, it is called a race. 5588. The inuxxle {h h) includes the lips, mouth, and nostrils ; the darker the colour of this part the more is the horse esteemed : very dark brown horses are an exception, for in them it is usually of a tan color, and is praised both as a beauty and indicative of excellence. 5589. The lips should be thin, firm, and by no means loose and pendulous, as is the case in very old or very sluggish horses. 5590. The form of the mouth, as receiving the bit, is important. It is also of more consequence than is usually supposed, that the commissureor opening of the mouth be sufficiently deep; when shallow, it is not only inelegant, but it will not admit a bridle favorably into its proper resting place upon the bars. Within the mouth are situated the teeth, which are so placed as to have interrupted portions of jaw above and below of considerable extent. These vacancies are called bars, anA are parts of extreme importance to the horseman, as it is by means of agents called bits resting on these parts, and operating on their sensi- bility by means of a lever, the long arm of which is in the hand of the rider, that he ensures obedience. In aid of this mechanism, to one portion of this lever is attached a chain, called a curb, which acting on the outer part of the chin, increases the pressure. This latter part has been called the barb or beard, but its situation is evidently above that. In the examination of a horse intended to wear a bitted bridle, it is also of considerable irnportance that both the bars and barbs should be thin, and not covered with thick fleshy matter which deadens their sensibility. If scars or cicatrices are seen on them, particularly in the bars, being the remains of former injuries, they in a great measure render the uth insensible, and are greatly against the proper action of the bit : and ifc is to be observed that a scar on one side is worse than one on both. 5591. The teeth {fig. 614.), which present themselves on the lower parts of the jaws, are the incisive and canine. The two front incisives are popularly called nippers or gatherers («). The two next adjoining, separators or middle teeth (6), / \_^/^ 614 and the outer, the corners {c\, but it would be more definite to say the first, second, and third incisives, beginning at the corner. The tusks or tushes (rf d) occupy part of the intermediate space between the I ^\c incisive and grinding teeth. The teeth, as criteria of age, will be con- sidered in another place, and as organs of digestion, they will be further noticed in the anatomical detail. v / 11 1. 5592. The organs of the neck. The exterior parts which compose \j^ ^^"fey ^ the neck are first the upper surface, which is furnished throughout its whole extent with an elegant assemblage of hair called mane (e e). In some instances, as in stallions, it is of enormous length and thick. ^^-^_^.,._^;^^ ness. In a cream-colored one exhibited some years ago, it was so long ;r ^ as to be susi)ended in a bag. Nature appears particularly to have studied the beauty of the animal by this gift ; had it been designed as a guard, it would have grown on botii sides : whereas when not altered bv art, as in cavalry horses, it naturally hangs to one side only. In dark colored horses it is commonly black, but in horses of colors approaching to a light hue, the reverse is frequently seen, and the mane and tail are in these often lighter than the body. 5593. To make the hairs qf the mane and tail lie smooth is an object with most horsemen, but the pulling the hair out in tufts by wrajiping it round the fingers is a most erroneous practice, and not only at the time frustrates the end intended, but a mane so pulled, will seldom hang well after. The writer of this has always made use of a three-pronged angular mane puller, which, if used two or three times a week, Avill bring both mane and tail into perfect order, and will keep them so. This iron is manufactured and sold by Long, veterinary instrument maker in Holborn, London. 5594. The upper surf ace qf the neck { i ) s-hould form a moderate but elegant curve, which is greatly favorable to beauty : this curve is however not so considerable in the pure eastern variety as in the better sort of northern horse. 5^395. The under surface of the neck (k k) should be nearly straight ; in the cock throttled horse it arches outwards, and the upper surface in these instances is sometimes hollowed inwards in equal pro- portions, when such horse is called ewe-necked. When this deformity is considerable, it prevents the head from being carried in its true angle, and particularly so under the action of the bridle; in which cases the nose being projected forwards carries the axis o.' the eyes upwards, such horses are called star gazers ; and it is to be observed that they are seldom safe goers. In mares and geldings a very just crite- rion of a sluggi.sh disposition, may be formed from the presence of a considerable quantity of flesh on the upper surl'ace of the neck : when the crest is very thick and heavy, it is almost an unerring prognostic of a decided sluggard. In stallions it liowever forms a distinctive sexual mark, and therefore is less to be depended upon in them. In a well proportioned horse, the length of the neck, the length of the head, and of the angle uniting the two, should give the height of the withers from the ground. "When tJhe neck is too long, the head must of course gravitate by the increased length of the arm of the balance ; it likewise seldom presents a firm or proper resistance to the bridle. When on the contrary the neck is too short, the head is frequently ill placed, and the lever in the hand of the rider will be too short also. 5596. The organs of the trunk or carcase are various. Considered as a tvhole, Clark has not unaptly likened it, when separated from the limbs, to a boat; within which are disposed various important viscera. The bony ribs he likens to the wooden ones encom- passing the vessel, and the sternum or breast bone, being perpendicularly deep and thin, carries the resemblance further, and fits the machine to cleave the air as the boat ■does the water. Within this animal vessel, according with the justest mechanical principles, the weightiest of the viscerae, the liver is placed in the centre, and the others follow nearly in the relative order of their grayity ; so that the lungs, the lightest of the whole, are stowed in front, where great weight would have been most disadvan- tageous. 5597. The shoulders {a a, b b) are commonly considered as extending from the withers above to the point in front, and to the line behind formed from the elbow upwards : but a correct description considers them as those parts immediately concerned in motion ; that is, of the scapula or blade-bone, and its attachments. The shoulders are too apt to be confounded with the withers above, and with the arm below, erroneously 'called the point of the shoulders. From this confusion, great error is committed in appreciating their nature and action; but this is removed by recourse to the skeleton {fig.Ulo i,k,l). Thewithenv {e e) ■maybe justly proportioned atibesametime that the shoulders are narrow, straight, and altogether badly formed, and vice versa. The shoulders should be muscular and narrow, but not heavy : and to de- termine between these essential points, requires the eye of experience in the viewer, and the presence 'of condition In the viewed. A tnuscular shoulder is essentially necessary, when we consider that 3 L 4 8&8 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the fore extremities are wholly connected by muscle, and not as in man, by the intervention of the bony union of the clavicle or collar bone. In the horse, therefore, we find that large muscular masses unite the shoulder blade, by its upper and inner surfaces, to the chest ; while other powerful muscles sus- pend as it were the machine between them- By this contrivance, elasticity is preserved and strength gained ; for had the shoulders possessed a bony connection, when the body is propelled forwards, its weight and force being received by the fore extremities, painful and hurtful shocks would have been experienced at every step. Powerful muscles for the shoulders are also as necessary for progression as for attachment ; but here strength is not alone all that is wanted, just proportion and proper situation are also requisite. 5598. The centre of action in the shoulders {c) \s in their common centre, and the extent of action of any part moving on its centre, is dependent on the length of such part ; the motion the shoulder enjoys is confined to the perpendicular backwards, and to as great an elevation of the muscles as they will admit of forwards. It will be therefore evident that the more oblique is the situation of the shoulder blade, the greater number of degrees it can go through ; it must be as evident also that when the shoulder blade is long and deep, as well as oblique, that this advantage is increased. It is commonly observed, although it is not invariably the case, that when the shoulder is short, it is also upright {b b). Obliquity and length in the shoulder favor the safety of the progression also, for as the angles tormed between the shoulder, the arm, and fore arm, are consentaneous, and make, when in action, a bony arch ; so the obliquity and length of the shoulders is favorable to a due elevation of the limb, on which, in a great degree, depends the safety of progression. Thus mares are, ceteris paribus, more unsafe than horses, their shoulders being short to correspond with the low mare-like forehand; and their decreased obliquity usually regulates an increased obliquity in the whole limb downwards, or, as is familiarly ex- pressed, they stand with their legs under them. Unfevorable as is this form of the mare, both for the speed and safety of their action, it was given for purposes advantageous to the animal : for, by such a position in the fore extremities, the hinder are raised higher to afford additional security against the evils of gravitation, and dislodgement of the foal from the pelvis. Tew rules can be laid down In the exterior conformation that are more important, or of such general application, as that a short and upright shoulder, particularly when united with an inclined direction of the whole limb backwards, is a sure mark of an unsafe goer, and commonly, though not invariably, of a slow one also. It now and then happens indeed, that horses havmg defective shoulders, prove speedy and good movers, which would appear to contravene these principles ; but it will be found, that wherever horses, having these defects in their fore parts, are yet good, it, in every instance happens that, in them, the hinder parts are particularly and ini- usually strong and well placed, which serves to make up the deficiency. Indeed, it appears probable, that the hind and fore parts do not bear the same relative proportion in all horses alike ; in blood horses, the withers are not always high, and although their shoulders are commonly deep and oblique, yet the fore limbs are altogether short in proportion to the hinder, in a great number of the fleetest racers : for, as speed appears to be a principal end in their formation, and as comparative anatomy furnishes us with abundant proof that all animals destinetl to make considerable leaps, which is, in fact, speed, are low before; the end of their formation is really best answered by this arrangement of parts; it is also more than probable that although speed in the gallop may be found with a defective forehand, that yet, in the slower paces of the canter, trot, and walk, a justly formed shoulder is more immediately requisite. This subject will be still further elucidated when we treat on the mechanical properties of the skeleton. 559&. Thetvithers (ee) are formed by the long transverse processes of the dorsal vertebrae (p), and as their use is to serve as levers to muscles, so their length and the height of the withers must be of great advantage, and enable such horses to go liigh above their ground; for the muscles of the back, acting to greater advantage, elevate the fore parts more forcibly. From this we may also learn that the elevation of the fore parts, or the horse's going above his ground, is not altogether dependant on the motion of the shoulders, nor on the height to which the animal maybe inclined to lift his legs; but likewise, on the extent to which the fore half of the machine is altogether elevated by the action of the dorsal and lumbar muscles. When the withers are high, or the forehand well up, as it is termed, it is fovorable to the cele- rity and to the safety of the action ; but as these properties are less wanting in the heavy breeds, we find in them a considerable variation of form : in the cart horse, whose heavy forehand is of great service, as he draws by an effort to preserve himself from the tendency his weight gives him to the centre of gravity ; so the more weighty and bulky he is before, and the nearer he approximates this centre, the more advantageously he will apply his powers. It is not here intended to be hinted that nature gave him this form purposely to enable him to draw : this indeed would be an argument of necessity ; but this form has been judiciously imposed on him by men, by regulation of the sexual intercourse, and by a careful selection of specimens having some of the requisites to propagate from, until at last we have produced the mas- sive, weighty animal whose powers astonish'as well as benefit us. 5600. The breast or coMw^tT (//) is the part between the point of the arms or shoulders, and which should be moderately wide and extended : wiien it is otherwise, the horse is seldom durable, or even strong, although he may be speedy ; neither have the lungs sufficient room for expansion, nor the muscles great extent of attachment; frequently too it accompanies a general flatness of ribs, anH want of circular form in the carcase in general ; all which, experience has shewn to be necessary to the per^ fection of the machine. The breast, may however, be too wide ; it may also hang over or project beyond the. perpendicular of the fore limbs, so as to overweigh the machine : this form, however, though unfavorable to the saddle horse, for the reasons just assigned, is much desired in the heavy draught horse. 5601. T7te back. Where the withers end the back commences (g) ; the length should be moderate only, for a long cylinder cannot be so strong as one of less length ; long-backed horses are easy because the action and the reaction are considerable ; but what is gained in elasticity is lost in strength. When the back is too short, the extremities .are so much approximated that they frequently overreach each other ; the back should be nearly straight, it has naturally an inclination in the line of its gravity ; but this exi ists in very different degrees in different horses. When the incurvation inwards is considerable, such horses are called saddle-backed, and are Usually considered as Weak ; but to keep up the counterpoise, so the crest in such horses is generally good ; they also ride pleasantly^ and commonly carry much apparent carcase ; sometimes indeed too much. When the back is curved upwards, it is called roach^, backed ; when considerably so, it is unfavorable to the liberty of action, as well as to the elasticity of motion ; and for the reasons given, with too short aback, a horse is often found to overreach : in these cases, to counteract the curve outward, the head is also carried low usually. A short-backed horse is in considerable request with many persons, who do not consider that when it is too much so, there is seldom great speed ; for the hinder extremities cannot be brought sufficiently under the body to propel the mass forwards. 5602. Thi loins (/«) may be considered as the part which extends from immediately behind the hinder edge of the saddle when properly placed, extending from thence to the rump. Anatomically it begins at the sacrum (fig. 615 z), whose processes being sometimes defective or interrupted, leave an inden- tation, as though the union between the back and loins was incomplete ; and such horses are said to be badly loined : but although it may in some measure deprive the muscles of some slight attachments ; yet the evil is not so considerable as is imagined. The width of the loins is of considerable import to the strength of the animal, as it affords a greater surface for the attachment of the powerful muscles of the! back and loins ; and the muscles themselves should be so prominent, as to seem to swallow the back Book VII. ORGANOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 88^ bone between them. When the protuberances of the ilium or haunch bone are very prominent, the horse is said to be ragged hipped ; but it operates to his disadvantage only in appearance, as extent in these parts, being favorable to muscular attachment, is always beneficial. 5603. The croup extends from the loins to the setting on of the tail {n n). It should be long and only slightly rounded, which is another characteristic of the blood or improved breed. In the cart horse, on the contrary, it is seen short and much more considerably rounded (n n). A long croup is in every point of view the most perfect, for it affords a very increased surface for muscular attachment, and although the large buttocks of the cart horse would at first sight convey an idea of great strength and extent, yet attentively viewed, it will be found that the early rounding of the sacral line, the low setting on of the tail, and the small space which necessarily exists between the hips and buttocks, all tend to lessen the surface of muscular attachment, compared with the broad croup, wide haunches, and deep spread thighs of the blood horse. 56()4. The flank {k), is the apace contained between the ribs and haunches; when too extensive, it indicates weakness, because it is tiie consequence of too long a back ; and such a horse is said not to be well ribbed up. When the transverse processes of the lumbar ^vertebrae are short, as in bad loined horses, this part is hollow. The flank is usually looked to also as" indicative of the state of respiration : thus, when it rises and falls quicker than ordinary, unless violent exertion has just been used, it beto- kens present fever, or otherwise, chronic disease of the lungs. 5o05. .The belly (i). Having taken a tour round the upper parts of the carcase, we will carry the survey downwards and forwards. Anteriorly, the ribs should be wide upwards, and as much deepened below as possible, which affords what is termed great depth in the girth. This form greatly increases the surface of attachment of the motive organs, the muscles, and also allows room for the free expansion of the lungs, and consequently is favorable to the wind. Posteriorly, the ribs should form the body as much as possible into a circular figure, that being of all iathers the most extended, and affording the best surface for the absorption of nutriment ; thus barrelled horses, as they are termed, are greatly admired. When the chest is too flat and straight, the belly is also small ; hence, neither can the blood absorb its vital principle from the air, nor the lacteals the chyliferous juices from the intestines; these horses are therefore seldom durable. As less nutriment is taken up by the constitution, so less is eaten, thus also they are seldom good feeders ; and as the pressure on the intestines must be considerable from the small containing surface, so they are usually likewise what is termed washy ; that is, easily purged, whereby an additional cause of weakness exists, from the too early passing off of the food. Such horses are, however, verv commonly spirited and lively, although not lasting. A knowledge of the advantages gained by a circular form of carcase or belly, as affording the greatest capacity, is what constituted Bakewell's grand secretin the breeding of cattle: he always bred from such animals as would be most likely to produce this form, well knowing that no other would fatten so advantageously. 5606. The whirlbone (/), among the jockies and grooms, is the articulation of the thigh bone, with the pelvis, or basin, and forms the hip joint. The ligaments of this powerful joint are sometimes extended, and a very obstinate lameness is usually the consequence. Thus the situation of the thigh {I, m), is in the horse, as in most quadrupeds, enveloped within the range of the trunk. 5607. The stifle (w) corresponds with the knee of the human figure, and is the point at the lower portion of the flank It is evident that the part below this, which is generally called the thigh or gascoin, is erroneously so named. It should be very muscular and extended, it should also make a considerable angle with the femur or thigh, and form a direct line under the hip or haunch. Its length in all animals destined for speed is considerable. 5608. 'The fore extremities or legs. In treating on the mechanical properties of the skeleton, we shall have to point out the essential differences between the geometrical structure and functions of the fore and hinder extremities. We sh9,ll here content our- selves with a simple examination of the individual parts. 5609. The arm of the horse (6) is apt to be overlooked, nor, without some consideration, does it strike the observer, that thearm covered with muscles, and enveloped within the common skin of the chest, ex- tends from the elbow {a) to the point of the shoulder, as it is termed, but correctly to its own point below and before the shoulder blade [flg. 615). The same reasons which render a muscular, oblique, and deep shoulder advantageous, also make it desirable that this part should be muscular and extensive in length and breadth, and that its obliquity should be proportionate to that of the shoulder : from whence it results, that the more acute the angle between them, the greater will be the extent of the motion gained by the flexion and extension of the parts. 5610. The fore arm (c), which horsemen consider and call the arm, is placed upright to counter, act the angular position of the real arm and shoulder bones. As it is always found long in animals destined for great speed, as we witness in the hare and greyhound, it should therefore be of considerable length when speed is a requisite quality ; but for the cadences of the manege, where the elasticity is re- quired to be distributed equally through all parts of the limb, it is chosen short The fore arm is broad and large, particularly upwards, for here the powerful muscles that operate the motions of the parts be- low, are almost all of them situated. To i)revent encumbrance, and to give solidity, these muscles dege- nerate into tendons and ligaments below the fore arm ; but abope, it is essentially necessary to strength that they should be large and well marked. 5611. The knee (d), so called, is properly, with reference to human anatomy, the carpus or wrist. It is composed of many bones to enable it to resist the jar arising from the action of the perpendi- cular parts above and below it. All the joints of the extremities, but particularly those of the knee and hock, should be broad, that the surface of contact may be increased, and the stability augmented ; by this means likewise, a more extensive attachment is afforded to muscles and ligaments; their insertions are also thereby removed farther from the centre of motion. 5612; As criteria of safe goiuf;, t/ie knees should be particularly examined When it is contemplated X6 purchase a horse, to see whether the skin has been broken by falls ; and in this, very minute attention is required ; for sometimes the wound heals so perfectly, or otherwise so much art is used in shaving the hair, blistering, coloring, and rubbing it down, picking out the white or staring hairs, &c., that more than common nicety is required to detect a slight scar. It is, however, prudent to remember, that it \i not every horse whose knees betray a scar, that is a stumbler : the best may have a fall in the dark. It is also necessary to caution persons against the. admission of a very common prejudice, that when a horse has once been down, however little he may have hurt his knees, he is rendered more liable than before to a similar accident. If his limbs have not been weakened by the accident, or if the scar be not sufficiently large to prevent the free bending of the knee, he is not at all more liable to fall than another horse. If, therefore, a horse with a scar on his knee have the forehand good, and if his action correspond thereto, he ought not to be refused on this ground : but with a diirercnt conformation he ought to be steadily rejected, let the tale told be ever so plausible. In gross heavy horses a scabby eruption often seats itself around the inner bend of the knee (/<), which is called mallenders. 5613. The canon or shank (e) carries the limb down elegant, light, straight, and strong. Much strrss is deservedly laid on the necessity that this part of the limb should be wide when viewed laterally. Viewed in front, its being thin- is favorable, because made up as it is principally of bone and tendon, any addition to it beyond these must arise from useless cellular matter, or otherwise from matter worse than useless, being placed there by disease. Any thickening of the part generally or partially, should ba 890 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. looked on with suspicion ; as, if natural, likely to interfere with motion without adding to strength ; or if accidental, as a mark of acquired injury likely to remain. In the bony skeleton may be seen within and behind the knee, an apparatus destined to remove the acting ligaments and tendons from the centre of motion, by which great advantage is gained in the strengthening and facilitating their flexions. It is a default in this conformation that renders horses tied in under the knee, as it is usually termed, and such horses are the best proof of the truth of the reasoning here offered; for they are invariably found to bear exertion badly ; their legs at an early period become bowed or arched, and totter on the slightest exertion. In cart horses this conformation is very common ; but in them it is of less consequence than in those destined for quicker motion, where the elevation of the limb is so extensively and so frequently repeated. To render this subject familiarly clear, we will recommend that a cord be j)laced round the ball of the thumb, and passed up close to the arm until it reaches the bend : with tlie other hand, by straightening and extending this cord, but held close to the arm, endeavour to flex the hand and wrist inwards : operated in this way it will require great force to do it ; but remove the hand only two inches from the arm, and the bound hand will yield readily to a less force. Exactly the same happens to the ligaments and tendons called back sinews which flex or bend the fore legs ; for by an apparatus, formed from the position of one of the carpal bones, { pis if or ?n is,) they are, in well formed legs, set out wide from the knee. 5614. The back sinews should not only be large and firm, but they should, like the limb generally, be very distinct from the knee to the fetlock]: in this course, if any thickening be observed, it betokens former injury, as extension or rupture of ligamentous fibres, which usually have a disposition to recurring weak- ness. If a hard swelling appear on the inner side, not on the tendon, but on the bone, a splint is present which is more or less injurious as it is nearer or farther from the knee, or distinct from or situated among the tendons and ligaments ; but when it is considerable in size, hot to the feel, and extends inwards and backwards among them, it usually produces mo.'t injurious consequences. To detect these evils the eye alone should not be trusted, particularly where there is much hair on the legs, as on cart horses, and even on hacknies in the winter, but the hand should be deliberately passed down the shank before and behind. An enlargement or scar situated close to and on the inner side of the knee, must not be mistaken for a splint ; it more frequently arises from a custom some horses have when trotting fast, of elevating their legs and cutting this part with their shoes, and thence called the speedy cut. 5615. The pastern and fetlock {f J). General usage has apphed the term fetlock to the joint itself, and pastern to the part extended from the fetlock to the foot ; properly speaking, the fetlock or footlock is only the posterior part of the joint, from whence grows the lock or portion of hair, which, in many horses, flows over and around the hinder part of the foot ; a short and upright pastern is inelastic, and such horses are uneasy goers ; they are unsafe also, for the pastern being already in so upright a position, requires but little resistance, or only a slight shock, to bring it forwards beyond the perpendicular; and the weight of the machine then forces the animal over. Nor are these the only evils arising from this formation, for the ends of the bones being opposed to each other in nearly a perpendicular direction, receive at each movement a jar or shock, which leads to an early derangement of the joint, and to the appearance called overshot. On the contrary, when the pasterns are too long they are frequently too oblique also ; and although their elasticity may be pleasant to the rider, such formation detracts from the strength of the limb. These joints both before and behind are very subject to what is called windgalls, ■which are swellings formerly supposed full of air, whence their name; but they are now known to con- tain an encreased quantity of the mucus destined to lubricate the parts in their motions. These puffy elastic tumours are originally small and hidden between the lower end of the canon, and the flexor tendon, or back sinew ; but when hard work has inflamed all the parts, the secretion in them becomes increased, and then they become visible to the eye ; but unless they are so considerable as to obstruct the due action of the parts, they are no otherwise objectionable than as they tell a tale of inordinate wear of the limbs generally. 5616. The form of the pasterns influences the defect called cutting, which arises from a blow given to either the fore or hind fetlocks by one leg to the other during its elevation. Horses narrow in the chest, or which turn their toes out, or have other peculiarities of form, cut permanently, and are then very objectionable; but others only cut when fatigued, or when very low in flesh. Young horses often cut, and when they become furnished, leave it off. 5617. The feet {g g). The.se es.sential and complex organs will be more fully examined in the ana- tomical detail, but much also presents itself to the consideration in an exterior examination. Horses might be presumed to be naturally born with perfect feet; but experience shows that defects in these organs are hereditary. In some, the peculiarities of climate operate; and in others, a constitutional predisposition exists ; dependant on some cause with which we are unacquainted. 5618. Climate influences the form of the horse's foot. In the arid plains of the east, where every impediment is removed for an extensive search for food, the feet are hard, dry, and small ; this form, notwithstanding the alterations of breed and culture, in some degree still adheres to the blood or abori- ginal eastern horse : artificial habits have extended the evil, and now small and contracted feet are to be seen in every variety, excepting in the coarse heavy breeds. 5619. Constitutional and hereditary causes operate on the feet. That a constitutional predisposition exists in the production of a particular form of foot, we know from the fact, that dark chestnut horses are more prone to contraction of the hoofs than any other colored horse : and that the form of the foot is hereditary, may be gained from the known circumstance that some of the Lincolnshire stallions always get large flat-footed progeny; while some full bred entire horses entail small upright feet on all their ^offspring. 5620. Local situation will also affect the form of the feet. The effect of situation is remarkably exem- plified in the horses which we used to obtain from Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, and some parts of Norfolk and Yorkshire, before « he draining system was perfected. These horses had, almost invariably, large, flat, heavy feet ; which however convenient and natural they might prove to the animals while Inoving on the quaggy surface of marshy districts, yet were found very unfit for quick, light movements in drier situations. Such horses go heavily and stumble ; and as the horn of which these enormous feet are formed, is always weak, the anterior or front part yields to the heat and inflammation brought Nonby exercise on hard roads, and falls inwards, which letting the weight of the l)ody fall on the soles pushes that downward; and at last fVom a concave, it presents a convex .surface. The feet cannot then bear shoeing, but with much art and diflRculty : pain and tenderness bring on lameness and uselessness ; and therefore horses with such feet should be rejected. Feet preternatural ly small, are equally objectionable, as betokening a disposition to contraction. Horses with a tendency to founi'.ered feet stand with pain in the stable, first placing one foot before, and then shifting it to place the other in the same situation. The "icontraction usually begins in the heels, which are found higher than natural, and drawn inwards ; the foot altogether is likewise narrower, and the sole hard and hollow. When a preternatural fulness is seen around the coronets, ring-bone may be suspected ; and if heat and hardness be accomjianied with any tenderness in going, its existence is certain. But although too much horn is to be avoided^ too little produces a weak foot; in which the heels, quarters, and soles all participate: the thin horn cannot resist the impressions of the stones on the road, and then lameness ensues. The under surface of the foot should exhibit a full healthy wide frog with bars prominent and properly inflected. The con- cavity of the sole should be particularly attended to ; when less than natural, it is weak, when more, it indicates contraction ; from whence such feet have been called too strong. White feet are objectionable, W;ause they are found more liable to this evil than others. Corns are an evil to which the under surface ■^f the foot is liable, and which should always be looked for on the purchase or examination of a horse ; tft>r which purpose, it would be well that the fore shoes should be removed, and the foot carefully pared Book VII. ORGANOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 891 by a judicious or clever smith. Merely picking out the foot will often, also, detect the remains of former cuttings or parings out of the corns. Some hoofs are very brittle, and a horse with this defect should, in every instance, be rejected. The evil may in general be easily detected by the marks of the fragile parts detaching themselves from every old nail hole. This kind of foot, particularly in hot wea- ther, breaks away till there is no room for the nails to hold ; when the horse of course becomes useless. Sandcracks are also another evil to which the feet are liable ; and which should engage the attention in the examination of a horse : they consist of longitudinal fissures ; one only is usually present at once ; but that one if deep is fully equal to produce lameness. The subject of the feet will be concluded by art observation on their general appearance, well worthy of attention. The eye should be directed to the degree and to the manner in which the shoes are worn; which will often save much useless trouble in'trying a horse. A stumbling horse may be frequently, nay, commonly detected by simply lifting up one fore foot : for the unequal wearing away of the shoe at the toe, while the other parts remain good, is a full proof of his going unsafely and digging his toes. 5621. On a review of the conformation of the fore extremities, it may be remarked, that whereas the hinder may l)e considered as more particularly concerned in impelling the machine forwards with its re- quisite velocity ; yet, that upon a proper form and a true direction of the various component parts of the fore limbs must depend the stability, the truth, and the safety of the movements. Viewed anteriorly, the fore legs should stand rather widest at the upper part, inclining a little inwards below ; but when we view them latterly, they should present a perpendicular from the arm downwards; and the toe should place itself directly under the point of the shoulder, as it is called. If the foot should stand beyond this, which is seldom the case, the action will be confined, for the limb will have already passed over a point of its ground ; such a horse, however, generally treads even, flat, and safe ; and, in proportion as it stands in the direct line downwards, he generally inherits these desirable properties. When the foot stands behind the perpendicular line, the defect is considerable, by the rRwioval of the centre of gravity too much for* ward, by which an increased tendency to stumble and fall is entailed ; and as the fact in general accom. panies a want of extent and obliquity in the shoulder, so it likewise lessens the speed. 5622. The hinder extremities. We have already described the thigh, correctly so called, which is so concealed by muscles as frequently to escape this consideration of it, by which the part immediately below it popularly receives the name of thigh, but is, in fact, the leg. 5623. The leg (1, 2), commonly called the thigh, in well formed horses is powerfully furnished with muscles, and very extended in its figure ; it should also make a considerable angle with the femur or real thigh, and form a direct line under the hip or haunch ; for the same reasons that make it desirable to have a long arm in the fore extremities, it is also advantageous that the leg should be so likewise, and which is the form usual among all quadrupeds of speed. 5624. The hock (2) is the important joint immediatelv below the leg, or thigh commonly called, and is in-- terposed between the tibia and tarsal bones {fig. 615), purposely to increase the extent of attachmenty and to break the shock of great exertion ; it may be considered as the most complex and important joint of the botly : like the knee, it should be extended and broad; for, in proportion as the calcaneum or point of the hock (5), and which is the real heel, extends itself beyond the other bones ; so the powerful tendo achilles inserted into it, acts with a longer lever, and with a greater increase of power. This joint is sub- ject to several important diseases, which in the examination of ahorse, require particular attention ; wherr a soft puffy swelling is discovered in the ply or bend of the hock (3), it is termed a blood spavin, which will be noticed among the diseases ; it is, in fact, a similar enlargement with the windgalls before mentioned, and what has been said on them equally applies to these. When similar mucous capsules become enlarged on each side of the hock, the enlargement receives the name of thorough-pin. A small bursal enlargement is some- times found at the very point of the hock (5), and is then called a capulet; to all which, what has been said on wind galls, applies, that they are only to be deemed of consequence when so large as to inter- fere with the motion of the parts they are situated with, or near , or, as indicative of an undue portion of work. The ligaments at the back of the hock sometimes become strained or extended, and heat, in- flammation, and swelling follow, which is then called a. curb. As rest or very mild treatment soon re- duces it, it is not to be considered as of great consequence. The inner part of the joint at the ply or bend, is sometimes attended with a skin aflection similar to the mallenders before alluded to, and is called *t/- lenders (4) ; but themo.st serious disease to which the hock is liable, is a disease of the ligaments of some of the dorsal bones. Sometimes one or more of these bones take on spavin : to detect the existence of this affection, the hocks should be attentively viewed from behind, When any enlargement in the spavin place (3, 4) may be easily detected. The mechanism of this joint will be further considered when we* treat of the skeleton generally. 5625. The color of horses does not depend on their real skin as with man, but upon an exterior beautiful covering which nature has given them, called hair j nevertheless, the hair is, in some measure, influenced by the skin, as light skinned horses have light hair^ and when the hair is light, the eyes are usually so likewise : hair presents many varieties of tint, so hor-es are said to be of various colors. Buffon has conjectured that horses were originally of one color, which he presumes to be bay ; but such wild horses as have been seen, and which have been supposed to be pure originals, have not justified this opinion. This same author has divided the colors of the horse into simple, compound, and strange or extraordinary. 5626. The simple colors are bay, chestnut, dun, sorrel, white, and black; bat/ \s a. very prevailing tint among European horses, and admits of many shades, but is admired in all : there are bright bays, blood bays, dark and dapi)led bays ; brown bay is a very esteemed color, and consists of bay and black in unequal proportions in different horses : brown horses are highly ])rized ; the darker varieties have usually beautiful tan markings, as about the muzzle, &c : they have commonly also black manes and tails, with logs and feet of the same hue ; and it may be here remarked, that horses of comjK)unded colors, of whatsoever tint the mane and tail may be, will be found invariably formed of one of the compounding" colors; thus light greys, which area comi)Ound of black and white, have often white manes and tails : sorrels, again, whicji are formed of white, with a small proportion of red, have also frequently white manes and tails: cAca/hm/, which is also a very common color, admits of almost as many shades as the bay, from the lightest tint to the deepest tone. Very light chistnuts have frequently still lighter manes' and tails, with mealy legs and light feet; s6 marked, they are certainly not to be chosen for strength^ durabilitv, or pliancy of temper : the suttblk punch, however, may be considered in some degree an ex- ception, although, the true breed are hardly so light as those hinteil at here. Dark chestimts are con-' sidered, and with justice, as fiery in their dispositions; they are also more subject to contracted feet thanr horses of any other hue. Dun'\s, a color that has several varieties; it is sometimes accompanied with a white mane and tail, at others they are seen even darker than the rest of the hair. In some, a list or line of deeper tint extends along the back, which is regarded by some as an indication of hardihood : p" 892 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. similar line is sometimes seen in the bay. Dun horses do not appear to be at all influenced in their quali- ties by their color, or rather, no criteria are offered by it, for there are good, bad, and indifferent in all the varieties of shade. The sorrel is a variety of the chestnut, but not a favorite one. White, as a native color, is not in much estimation, neither is it verv common, for many horses are white only through age, as all light-grey, and flea-bitten horses become so. Black is a very usual color, and in the large heavy northern breed, it seems to be an original tint ; and, perhaps it is to this their goodness may be attributed, for, among the lighter breeds, there are more indifferent black horses than of any other color. The tempers of black horses are commonly in the extreme, either sluggish to stupidity, or "fiery to excess. The color itself admits of many shades; but a perfect black horse is more unusual than it is generally thought to be : a star in the forehead is common to relieve the ebon hue ; and in the absence of that, a few white hairs on the breast frequently interrupts the uniformity. It is perhaps on this principle that black horses have white legs so often as they do. 5627. The compound colors may be considered as those in which the hairs are compounded, but not the colors themselves; otherwise the bay, the chestnut, brown, &c. might be considered as compounded colors. The roan is a mixture of red and white : its varieties are the common, the red, and the dark. All the roans are esteemed. Grey admits of a great number of shades and varieties, but all are com- pounded of black and white, except the iron grey, which receives a few bay hairs among the black and white ; a considerable prejudice exists in favour of this colour. Greys are light or dark ; there are also the dappled, the markings of which are extremely beautiful, and the silver grey. Grey horses become lighter by age : many old white horses have been grey until age overtook them. Grey horses, like black, admit of no settled character; though unlike them, they are not to be generally disapproved of. They have, however, all the extremes within their range ; the darker ones are usually good, the lighter ones not generally so. 5628. The extraordinary colors are not very numerous, and it may be remarked, that white is always the relieving tint, intermixed with distinct markings, in various proportions, of bay, brown, black, or chestnut. Flea-bitten is grey or white, with small bay spots. When these spots are very large, and have a marginal surface of lighter markings, they give the name tiger colored ; and although they are un- common with usi they are not unfrequent in Germany and JJarbary. Pied or pie-bald is one of the most numerous extraordinary colors, and is usually composed of two colors, in distinct large markings. Now and then a third interferes : there are pies of all original colours with white, and all are held in estimation. 5629. Color, as a criterion of mental and personal qualities, is laid much stress on by many persons : and notwithstanding the adage, that "a good horse cannot be of a bad color," long experience has shown that in general cases, certain tints are usually accompanied by certain qualities of person or dispo- sition. As a general rule, dark coloured horses are certainly the best ; but as before observed, it is pe- culiar that black, as the darkest of all, should form an exception to this rule. Light shades appear un- favorable to strength and durability; they are also accompanied frequently with irritability, and perverseness of temper. Something like a general law in the animal economy seems to prevail, to make white a distinctive mark of weakness. Age, which is the parent of weakness, brings with it white hairs, both in man and in horses, and most other quadrupeds. The hair formed after a wound has robbed a part of its original covering, is often white, because the new formed surface is yet in a state of debility. It is likewise a fact well known among the observant, that the legs and feet when white, are more obnoxious to disease than those of a darker tone. The Arabs remark, that light chestnut horses iiave soft tender feet. It is the observance of these peculiarities, that has at length guided our taste, and formed our judgment of beauty. With us much white on the legs is considered as a deformity, and is expressively called/oi/Z marked, whereas pied markings in other parts are reckoned beautiful. In Africa, however. Captain Lyon informs us a superstitious dependance is placed on horses with legs and feet stockened with white. It does not appear that climate has the same influence on the color of horses, as on other do- mesticated animals. In all latitudes in which the horse can live, he is black or white indiscriminately; but as he cannot endure extreme rigour, it is not necessary he should vary. Sect. III. The Anatomy or Osseous Structure of the Horse. 5630. All quadrupeds are formed on an earthy base called bone, and the assemblage of bony parts is called a skeleton. Bones are formed of earth and membrane (1844J ; they are covered also by an investure called periosteum. The earthy jjart is the last formed, and consolidates the bones as the animal becomes fitted to exert all his powers. This deposit of earth in the bones appears to be hastened by any thing that permanently quickens the circulation : heat does this, and hence the human and brute inhabitants of warm climates come to perfection sooner than those of northern regions ; but they are generally smaller, for by preternaturally hastening the earthy deposit before the mem- branous part of the l)ones becomes fully evolved or grown, they will not attain the bulk they are capable of. Undue exertion has the same etfect, and thus we learn why horses too early and too hard worked become stinted in their growth. Pressure likewise occasions an early, and also a preternatural ossification : in this way the parts of the spine which bear heavy loads, present large masses of bone, brought on by this cause alone. For the same reasons, horses early worked put out splints, spavins, and other bony con- cretions. Bones are all of them, more or less, hollow: within their caverns an oily fluid is secreted, called medulla or marrow, which serves for their support, and of the consti- tution generally. The bones have nerves, blood vessels, and absorbents. Bones are capable of reproduction, as is proved by their uniting when broken ; and also by the yearly renewal of the antlers of the deer, which are not horn as in the ox or sheep, but pure bone. Bones are connected together by articulation : when such articula- tion is moveable, it is termed a joint. In some cases bones articulate by suture or indentation of parts, as in the skull. We shall consider, in succession, the anatomy of the head, trunk, and extremities. SuBSECT. ] . Anatomy of the Head. 5631. The hones of the head are the occipital, {fig. 615 between a Sib) which is the largest bone of the skull : in tlie colt it is composed of several pieces which unite by age, by two apophyses ; it articulates with the atlas (a) or first of the cervical or neck vertebrae. At its posterior surface it is perforated by a large hole, which gives passage to the, spinal marrow. The two frontal bones (6) unite also by age; Book VII. ANATOMY OF THE HORSE. 893 behind them is lodged the anterior and inferior portion of the brain. A division of their bony surface* forms two cavities called the frontal sinuses, which are lined by the nasal or smelling membrane throughout. The union of these two bones is by means of the sagittal sutura The remainder of the bones of the skull are the two parietals, the two temporals, divided into a squamous and petrous portion, within the latter of which is situated the internal ear ; and to the former the posterior or lower jaw arti- ticulates. The sphenoid and ethmoid bones are hollow and irregular, serving to intersect and attach the others ; and also to assist by their cavities in extending tbe pituitary or smelling membrane. 5&3'2. The bones of the face are ten pairs and two single bones. The nasal (c) pair within their union, hold the septum narium or long cartilaginous plate which separates one nostril from the other. These bones also greatly assist to extend the surface of the smelling organ. In the old heavy breeds, it was very common to "see these bones arched outwards ; but in the improved breed, particularly in those ap- proaching full blood, it is not uncommon to find them slightly curved inward. The fossae within these bones are the principal seat of glanders. The two angulars form a considerable portioji of the orbits of the eyes. The two malar, jugal, or cheekhones occupy also a portion of the orbits. The superior maxillary bones (c) are the largest of the face bones, and contain all the upper molar teeth. The inferior or inter- maxillary bones {d) are wanting in man, in whom the face is short : these bones concur with the former in forming alveoli or sockets for lodging the teeth. The superior palatines, the inferior palatines, the pieregoids, the two anterior, and the two posterior turbinated bones, with the vomer or plough share, make up the remaining facial bones, with the exception of the posterior maxillary or lower jaiv bone (/), ■which on its anterior edge is pierced to lodge the teeth ; at the upper part it extends itself into two angular branches, each of which ends in two processes, and an intermediate groove. The most superior of these processes articulates with the upper jaw. This bone throughout shows the most admirable mechanism ; the molar or grinding teeth, on whom most is dependent, and whose exertions are greatest, are placed near the centre of motion ; and as the upper jaw in most animals is fixed, or nearly so, it was necessary that the lower should have considerable extent of motion for the puri)Ose of grinding ; and it is accord- ingly so formed as to admit of motion in every direction. The os hyuidcs is a bone situated within the head at the root of the tongue, to which it serves as a support, and for the attachment of muscles. .5633. The teeth of the horse are the hardest and most compact bones of the body. There are usually forty of them in the horse, and there are thirty-six in the mare; in which latter, the tushes are usually wanting. In anatomical language, they are divided into incisores, cuspidati, and molares, or according to the language of farriers and horsemen, into twelve nippers (fig. 6lia,b, c), four tus/ies (dd), and twenty- four grinders, which numbers are equally divided between the two jaws. The teeth are received into in- dentations or sockets between the bony plates of the jaw, called alveoli, by cone like roots. The bodies of the teeth are principally composed of two substances, one of the nature of common bone< giving bulk and form, and one of extreme hardness, placed in man and carnivorous animals, wholly without the teeth to give strength and durability : but in the horse and other granivorac, the latter' particularly, is placed in the grinders, in perpendicular plates, within the body of the teeth ; by which contrivance, a rough grinding surface is kept up ; for tlie mere bony parts wearing faster than the lamella" of enamel, it follows that ridges remain to triturate the vegetable matter that passes between the teeth. 5634. There are tux) sets of teeth, a temporaneous or milk set, and a permanent or adult set, in which wise provision, man and most brutes participate. The milk set are some of them, as the molars, apparent at birth ; there being usually six grinders in each jaw, three on each side in the new born foal, and which number of this set is never increased. The nippers begin to ai)pear soon afterbirth, and follow a regular order of succession until the animal is three or four months old ; at which time he begins to require sup- port from herbage as well as milk. The temporaneous set, remove gradually one after another ; had they all been displaced at the same time, or even had several of them fallen out together, the animal must have suflTered great inconvenience, and perhaps have been starved. This removal, which commences at the age of two years and a half, and is completed between the fourth and fifth year, is effected by the action of the absorbents on their fangs, and appears to be occasioned by the stimulus of the pres- sure received from the growing teeth under them. For although these two sets appear with an interval of some years between them ; yet the rudiments of both are formed at nearly the same period, and both sets may be thus seen in a dissected jaw. Regulated by the stimulus of necessity, as soon as the tempo- raneous set falls out, the permanent appears : and that such appearance follows the necessity is evident ; for a premature or accidental removal of the colts teeth is soon followed by the appearance of the others. 894 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Dealers and breeders aware of this, draw the milk teeth to make their colts appear as horses. It was necessary there should be two sets of teeth, for as they grow slowly in proportion to the jaws ; so had there been but one only, the disproportion of growth between the teeth and jaws must have separated them. 5635. The forms qf the teeth vary more than their structura The incisive or nippers are round, which is favorable for the pressure they undergo ; the upper more so than the lower. On the upper surface a hollow is seen in the young tooth, which, not extending through the whole substance, naturally wears out with the wear of the tooth ; and as a considerable degree of regularity occurs in this wearing away in all horses, it has gradually settled into the general criterion of age. The nippers are not all of them exactly similar ; the corner teeth differ most in being nearly triangular, and in having an internal wall or side, which does not become level with the rest until long after the others. The cuspidate tusks or tushes are permanent, appearing at about five years or rather earlier ; those in the front jaw are usually nearer the nippers than those below. Each presents a slight curve, which follows the direction of all the canine or pugnatory teeth of other mammalia. The pointed e.xtremity wears away by age, leaving merely a buttoned process,|which may serve as a guide to the age when a horse is suspected to be bishoped, as it is called, from a man of that name who was peculiarly dexterous in imitating on old teeth the dis- tinctive cavity of youth. The molar or grinding teeth are stronger in the upj)er than in the lower jaw ; which was necessary, as they form the fixed point in the process of grinding. The upper surface pre- sents nearly a long square, indented from the alteration of the enamel with the bony portions ; and as the interior or upper teeth hang over the posterior, so the ridges of the one set are received into the depressions of the other. o636. Wear of the teeth. The teeth, in a state of nature, would probably present a surface opposed to each other for mastication, to the latest period of the most protracted life ; but the removal of the animal from moist food to that which is hard and dry, must occasion an unnatural wear in those organs ; and hence, although the teeth of the horse, even in a domesticated state, are not subject to the caries of the human ; yet the grinders are liable to become thus injured by continued exertion. In the young or ;adult horse, the upper and under grinders do not meet each other horizontally ; on the contrary, they have naturally an inclination obliquely inwards; and those of the upper jaw present small spaces between each other, while those of the lower are more continuous: by which means as the food, but particularly as interrupted portions, as grain, become ground, they fall within the mouth to be replaced under the grind- ing surface, if necessary, by the joint action of the tongue and muscles of the cheek. This arrangement becomes in a great measure frustrated in old horses, by the superior wear of the inner surface of the upper grinders, as well as by the general misapplication of the surfaces of both upper and under tei'th,^ by constant attrition when worn down to the gums nearly. The unfortunate animal feels sensible of this!, and endeavours to remedy it by throwing the wear on the outer edge, by an inclination of tUa'ower jaw and of the head in general ; and which is so particular in its ai)pearance as to engage the attent;on of the by.standers. This- defect may be in a considerable degree remedied by casting the animal, and having opened and wedged the mouth so as to keep it so, with a well-tempered concave file, to remove the in- equality as much as may be. "When the defect is considerable, and the horse is mild and quiet, it is better to file the inequalities every day, which will gradually but efTectuallifwear thorn down. It how- ever happens, that the inclination thus to wear is commonly resumed, and gradually the same loss of nutriment takes place: in which case, soft moist food, as carrots, mashes, soiling, or grazing, must be substituted for harder substances, and if corn be actually necessary, let it be bruised. Whenever an old horse betrays symptoms of want of condition, or weakness and emaciation, that neither his mode of feeding, nor his ratio of work will account for, and particularly if whole grains should be found in his dung, his teeth should be examined carefully. This undue wearing of the teeth occasions another evil often, which is ulceration of the cheeks, by reason of the projecting ragged surface of the uneven teeth, which can only be remedied by the removal of such portions. These projecting portions are called by farriers wolves' teeth. SuBSECT. 2. The Anatomy of the Trmik. 5637. The trunk of the skeleton consists of the spine, the pelvis, and the thorax or chest, composed of the ribs and sternum. 5638. The bony column called the spine, is made up of seven cervical, eighteen dorsal, six lumbar, and five sacral vertebrae, with the addition of thirteen or fourteen small tail-bones. The spinal bones are thus divided on account of the varieties they present ; they have, however, some characteristics in com- mon. Each is composed of a spongy bony body, with protruded points called ])rocesses, which processes unite to form a hollow through which the spinal marrow is transmitted ; and by some of these processes the vertebraa are articulated with each other, as well as by their bodies, by which their strength as a column is much increased. Though but little motion exists between any two vertebrae, yet the flexibility of the whole spine is considerable. 5639. The cervical or neck vertebrtr {g, h), are called by farriers and butchers, the rack bones. It is remarkable that, let the neck be long or short, the number of bones is the same in most quadrupcd.s. The first and second diftfer from the rest in figure, and present some other peculiarities. The first is the only one of them to which the great suspensory ligament of the neck does not attach itself, which would have interfered with freedom of motion. It articulates with the se^cond by receiving its tubercular pro- cess within it, and from which process the second of these bones has been called dentata. Between these two neck bones is situated a part, where the spinal marrow is exposed from any bony covering ; at which part butchers plunge a pointed knife into what they call the pith of the neck, when they want to kill their animals instantaneously, and without eflf'usion of blood ; from whence it is called pithing. The remaining five neck bones are not very dis.^^imilar from each other. 5640. The dorsal vertehrce {y) are now and then, though rarely, nineteen in number; they do not differ materially from each other, but in the length of the spinous })rocesses of the first seven or eight. It is to these elongated spines that we owe the height of the withers, and as the intention of these parts seems principally to serve as levers for the muscles of the back inserted into them ; so we can readily understand why their increased or diminished height is favorable or unfavorable to progression. These like the former articulate with each other by processes as well as by the anterior and po.^terior surfaces of their bodies ; between each of which is interposed a substance semi-cartilaginous in its structure, which is most compressible at its sides, these permitting the motion of the spine. 5641. The six lumbar vertebrce differ from the foregoing in having a longer body, and very long trans- verse processes to make up for the deficiency of ribs in the loins. These bones often unite by the pressure of heavy weights, and sometimes spontaneously by age, and thus we need not be surprised at the stiffness with which some old horses rise when down. 5642. The five sacral vertebm {%) are united into one to give strength to the column, and to serve as a fixed support to the pelvis, or basin, with which it is interwedged. From this detail it will appear how admirably this spinal column is adapted to its important functions of serving as a flexible but powerful support to the machine; and how by the formation of a large foramen within the substance of each vertebra, a bony canal is offered for the safeguard of the spinal marrow, from whic-h, through lateral openings in these vertebra the spinal nerves are given off in pairs. The pelvis or basin (2) is composed of the sacrum, the two ossa innominata and coccygis. The ossa innominata in the foetal colt before birth are each composed of the ilium, the ischium, and the pubis, before birth all traces of this division are Book VII. ANATOMY OF THE HORSE. 895 lost. The 'ilium is the most considerable, and forms the haunches by a large unequal protuberance which, when very prominent, occasions the horse to be called ragged hipped. The next largest portion is thQischium or hip bone, on each side. It forms a part of the cotyloid cavity, or hollow for the thitth bone, and then stretches back also into a tuberosity which forms the jwints of the buttocks. The pubis or share bone is the least of the three : in conjunction with the former it forms the acetabulum or cavity in whicii the head of the thifrh-bone lodges. The pelvis or basin is attached to the sacrum by ligaments of immense strength ; but it has no bony union, by which means, as in the tore extremities, some play is given, and the jar of pure bony connection is avoided. The ossa coccj/gis, or bones of the tail, vary from eight to sixteen, but are very commonly thirteen or fourteen. 5043. The thorax or chest comprises the sternum or breast bone, and the ribs. The sfernufn (w) of the horse is inclined like the keel of a ship to which the ribs are attached by strong ties. The ribs {x x) are usually eighteen to each side, of which eight articulate with the sternum, and are called true, while the remaining ten, uniting together by intervening cartilages, are called false ribs. The centrals are the longest, those more anteriorly as well as posteriorly are less so: the first is placed perjjendicularly, the second less so, and their obliquity as well as dimensions increase as they advance, so as to enlarge the chest to an almost circular form, which is the most desirable ; but when they are less arched, the belly partakes of the defect, and a flat-sided horse is always without much carcase also. SuBSECT. 3. The Anatomy of the Extremities. 5644. An examirMion of the bony parts of the limbs excites our admiration at the wonderful mechanism displayed in their formation : but this is not all, they must be regarded as presenting parts which appear less useful than intended to keep up that vast chain of continuity and similarity observable throughout nature's works. In the follow- ing explanation we shall have occasion to notice several of these. 564.5. The scapula or shoulder blade presents itself first (k, I), and is a broad and ratlier triangular bone very unlike the same bone of the human figure, having neither acromion, coracoid, nor recurrent process : neither is its situation at all similar to the human blade bone apj)lied to the back ; for in this instance the horse may be said to have no proper back, but to be made up of sides and chest. In man, the scapula is in a direct angle with the humerus, but in the horse it does not pass out of the plane of the arm. Its supsrior surface is furnished with a considerable cartilage {I, in), by means of which its surface is aug- mented without weight. The posterior surface ends in a superHcial cavity called glenoid, which receives the head of the humerus or arm bone. It is divided in its upper surface by its spine. The shoulder blade, as has been already shown in the exterior conformation, has neither bony nor ligamentous union, but is lield in its situation by very powerful muscles^ as the serratus major, j>ectorals, and others. Its usual situation is to a i)lane j)erppndicular to the horizon, at an angle of thirty degrees ; and it has a motion in its greatest extent of twenty degrees: hence, as it does not pass beyond the perpendicular backwards, so the more oblique its natural situation, the more extensive are its motions. 5343. The humerus or arm bone {m), is so concealed by muscles as to be overlooked by a cursory ob- server, and hence the radius or next bone is popularly called the arm. It extends from what is called the point of the shoulder, but which in fact is a protuberance of its own to the elbow, forming an angle with the scapula, and extending obliquely backwards as that does forwards. Near its upper extremity it sends off a very powerful head to articulate with the shoulder blade. The motions of the humerus are necessarily confined to a removal from its inclined.point backward to the perpendicular line of the body. When this bone is too long, it carries the fore legs too much under the animal, and if this defect be joined to a shallow upright shoulder, the evil will be increased. It however fortunately happens that oth the angle and extent of these two parts are usually regulated by each other. 5647. The fore arm {n n, o o) is composed of the radius {oo), and an appendage united to it, which in man and some animals, forms the ulna (n n), but which as the leg of the horse requires no ro- totary motion was unnecessary in him. Here, however, to keep the link of resemblance in all her children of the higher order, nature has stretched out a large process ; which in the colt is really distinct, and may then deserve the name of ulna ; and in the adult horse unites with the radius, and serves as an attachment to muscles. On the .slightest insjiection of the skeleton, it will appear how much the motions of the fore leg must depend on the length and obliquity of this process ; which acting on the princi. pie of a lever in the extension of the arm, must necessarily, as it is either long or short, make all the difference between a long and a short purchase. The breadth of the arm as it is called, at this part, will from this reasoning be seen lo be very important. This bone articulates with the knee by its inferior portion. 5648. The carpus or wrist, called the knee (pp), is composed of seven bones, whose principal uses appear to be to extend the surface of attachment of ligaments and tendons, and by their interruptions to lessen the shocks of progression. It may be remarked that all hoofed quadrupeds have the anterior extremi- ties permanently in the state of pronation, or with what is called the back of the wrist turned outwards. The carpal bones articulate with each other, and have one investing capsular ligament, by which means the smallest wound of the knee which penetrates this ligament, has the cffectof oj)ening the whole joint : hence the quantity of synovia or joint oil which escapes in these cases, and hence also the dangerous con- sequences which ensue. 5f)49. The metacarpus {q q,rr), canon or shank, is formed of one large metacarpal bone (q), and two small ones (r). Here the wide palm of the human, and the paw of the digitated animal, is formed into one solid cylindrical bone, and two small additamentorai, called splint bones ; which are united with it by strong ligamentary attachment, converted by age into a bony one. Although these additions may some- what increase the surface of attachment, their principal use appears to be to keep up the connection with thedigitii, of which they api>ear the rudiments. In the cow there are no splint bones, but the uniformity is more perfectly kept up by the divided hoof: in her, therefore, the canon branches at its inferior surface into condyles for the reception of the two claws. 5650 The pastern {t I). The rest of the extremity below the canon, consists of one phalange only, comprising all the mechanism, and a double portion of comi)lexity of all the phalanges of the digitated tribes. Four bones enter into its composition with two small sesamoids {s s) to each fetlock ; placed there not only to act as a spring and prevent concussion, but to throw the tendon of the foot which runs over them, farther from the centre of motion. The pastern bone is situated obliquely forwardj and on which obliquity depends the ease and elasticity of the motion of the animal : nevertheless when it is too long, it requires too great efforts in the tendons and ligaments to preserve it in its situation ; and thus long jointed horses must be more subject to fatigue and to strains than others. 5651. Thelesser pastern or coronari/ bone {t,v) reccwestUe grcHt pastern, and below expands into a considerable surface articulating with the cottln and navicular bones. 5652. The coffin bone {vv) forms the third phalange, and corresponds in shape with the hoof It is very porous, and laterally receives two j r-minent cartilages. It is around the outer surface of this bone that the sensible lamina are attached ; and the inferior surface receives the flexor tendon. 5653. The navicular nut or shuttle bone is situated at the posterior i>art of the coffin, and unites with that and the preceding bone. 5654. The posterior extremities difer much from, the anterior, not only in their superior «95 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURi:. Part III. -Strength, and in the different lengths and directions of the parts, but also, in some degree, in their uses. 5655. The femur or thigh bone (3, 4) is the largest of the body, its vast indentations and risings, almost peculiar to it, shew the great strength of the muscles inserted into it. It articulates with the acetabulum 'Or hip joint by a strong head called the w/i/VZ-AortdJ. In this situation it is held not only by a powerful capsular ligament, and still more powerful muscles, but by an admirable contrivance resulting from a liga- mentous rope, which springs immediately from the middle of its head, and is firmly fixed within the socket of the joint. In its natural situation it is not perpendicular as the human femur, but inclines to an angle of about 45°. This bone presents large protuberances for the attachment of very powerful muscles called trochanters. Throughout it exhibits a mechanism uniting the combined qualities of celerity and strength unknown to other animals. The inferior end of this bone is received by its condyles into depressions of the tibia, while the patella or knee-pan slides over the anterior portions of both bones. 5656. The patella (5), which is by farriers called the stifle, is nearly angular, and serves for the insertion of some of the strongest muscles of the thigh, which are then continued down to the leg. It thus appears to act as a pulley. 5657. The tibia or leg bone (6, 6) is usually in horsemen's language called the thigh. It is a bone formed of a large epiphysis, with a small attached part called the fibula (7), a long body, and an irregular inferior ,end, adapted to the peculiarities in shape of the principal bones of the back with which it articulates. The obliquity in the situation of this bone corresponds with that of the femur, being as oblique back- wards as the former is forwards. The length of the tibia is a prominent character in all animals of quick .progression ; and in this respect it corresponds with the fore arm, and the remarks before made on that, apply with even more force to this — that length is advantageous to the celerity, but less so to the ease of the motion. 5658. The fibula (7, 7) forms a prominent instance, in common with the splint bones, of what was re- marked in the outset of our osteological detail of the extremities — that many parts whose uses were not apparent, would be found to be organs of harmony, placed in the body to prevent the interruption to the completing the general plan of animal organization. In this way the fibula appears but a process spring, ingfrom the posterior part of the tibia, forming but the rudiments of the human bone of that name. In the ox it is wanting J in the dog and cat, as requiring numerous motions in their limbs, it is, on^the contrary, perfect. 5659. The tarsus, or hock of the horse (10, 10), is a striking instance of the perfect mechanism displayed in the bony structure of this admired animal. It is formed by an assemblage of six bones, and sometimes of seven; while in the ox, sheep, and deer, there are seldom more than five. Between these bones there is little motion, yet there is sufficient to give a spring to the parts, and to preserve the joints from the vCfFects of shocks, &c. As the human anatomy is generally received as the standard of comparison, we must, in order to a proper consideration of the hock, consider it as the instep and heel ; and all the parts beyond it as the foot. The human tarsus, and that of some quadrupeds, as the monkey, and some varieties of the bear, makes a right angle with the tibia in standing or walking; but in the horse, the hock makes an open angle with the tibia, and is far removed from "the ground. In him and the greater number of quadrupeds, all the bones from the hock downwards are much elongated, and form a part of the upright pillar of the limb. In the horse, therefore, the point of the hock is the true point of the heel, and, as in the human figure, the great twisted tendons of the gastrocnemii muscles are inserted into it : but the appella- tion of tendo achilles, would be too forced here. A broad hock, as already observed in the exterior con- firmation, may be now still more plainly seen to be very important to strength and speed; for the longer the calcaneum or heel bone Of the hock, the longer must be the lever that the muscles of the thigh act by ; and a very slight increase or diminution in its length must make a very great difference in the power of Ihe joint. It is by this tendon acting on this mechanism, that when the animal has inclined the angle between the canon and the tibia, or in other words, when the extremities are bent under him in the gallop or trot, that he is enabled to open it again. The bones of the hock, like those of the knee, are united together by strong ligamentous fibres ; and it is to an inflammation of those uniting the (Calcaneum and cuboid bones, that the disease called curb is to be attributed ; and to a similar inflam- matory affection of the ligaments in the front of the hocks, that .v/?«w«* of the first stage are owing: in the latter stages the periosteum and bones themselves become affected. The remainder of the bones below do not differ so essentially from the corresponding bones in the fore extremities as to need an individual description. It may, however, be remarked, that the hinder canon or shank bone is longer than the fore, and that the pastern is also the same, but is less oblique in its situation ; by which wise provision the horse is enabled to elevate and sustain his body entirely on his hinder parts without danger, which would not have been the case if the obliquity of those parts had been considerable. Sect. IV. Of the Physiology or Functions of the Horse. 5660. The admirable mechanism displayed in the composition of the body of the horse, will appear by considering its various functions generally and particularly as a whole. SuBSECT. 1. General Functions of the Bony Skeleton. 5661. The skeleton of the horse will be found to present nearly a quadrilateral figure, having an inclined cylinder resting on four supporting pillars. The spinal column, as the inclined cylinder, serves as a base for the soft parts, and is found not truly liorizontal, but dipping downwards over the fore legs; by which the propelling force of the hinder extremities is relieved by the maximum of strength thus transferred. The increased weight of the hinder part of the cylinder, is admirably counterpoised by the head and neck, \vhich are projected forwards ; by these means leaving the line of direction near the centre of the whole. The length of the cylinder may be such as not to support its own weight; nature, therefore, has limited the length of the spines of animals : hence, ce/e- ribus paribus, a long-backed horse must be weaker than a short one ; and thus, likewise, small horses can carry proportionably more than larger ones. The four pillars which support this cylinder, are not perpendicular partially ; but they are so totally : for a perpendicular drawn from their common centre of gravity, will be found to fall nearly in their common base, by which means they are supported as firmly as though their in- dividual axes had been in a line perpendicular to the horizon. Had they been perpen- dicularly opposed to each other, there could have been but little elasticity, and conse- quent ease in motion : every exertion would have proved a jar, and every increased effort would have produced taxation or fracture. To increase our admiration of this Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 897 mechanism, we need only turn our attention to the contra-disposition of these angles in the fore and hinder supporting pillars. Had these angles presented themselves in the same direction, the body must have been precipitated forward or backward ; but each offering a counteraction to the other, the body is firmly sustained within them. 5662. The bony masses are operated on by viuscles, for tliis deviation from a perpendi- cular direction in the various bony portions of the limbs, must necessarily have powers to correct it, which is done by the muscles ; and wherever the angles are found most extensive, the muscles will be found proportionally strong and large. This muscular exertion, to counterbalance the angular inclination, occasions fatigue ; as the set of muscles immediately employed becoming weary, the animal is obliged to call another set into action, which change is necessarily more or less frequent as the animal is weaker or stronger. 5663. The extent of the action of the bony portions of the extremities^ is the produce of the length and direction of the various parts entering their composition, and of the different angles they are capable of forming, as progression itself is effected by these angles closing, and suddenly extending themselves again. The force of the action arises from the direction of the component parts of thetingles, in combination with the agency of the muscles. The repetition of the action is dependant on the muscles alone ; but as the original action arose out of the length and direction of the parts, so it will be evi- dent that fn every subsequent repetition, it will be more or less extensive, as these are more or less perfect in their formation, even though the muscular exertions should be the same : thus some strong animals cannot move so fast as others with less strength, as the cart-horse and racer, or greyhound and mastiff. 5664. The bony mechanism of the fore and hinder extremities presents some differences. That of the fore limb may be said to exhibit altogether a different character. The fore-leg bones are much less angular, and appear framed purposely to receive the weight imposed on them by the impulse of the hinder limbs. This weight they are destined to sustain, until the elevation is forced on them by the tendency the general inclined mass has to meet the ground, or to find its common centre in the earth. The fore extremi- ties, under this view of the matter, could not have been placed with equal wisdom in any other situation, nor have taken any other form. The hinder extremities having less weight on them, and at no time bearing an increase of pressure as the fore do, by the impetus communicated from behind, are much more angular ; and their angles, by being thrown into a backward direction, afford the necessary impetus for the projec- tion of the body forward. This important operation of impelling the mass being almost wholly dependent on the hind extremities, as that of sustaining it is principally con- fined to the fore extremities ; so the former are also much stronger in point of mus- cular apparatus ; by which their angles can be advantageously opened and closed with superior effect in progression. 5665. The appendages to bone are cartilage or gristle, periosteum, medulla or marrow, ligaments, and synovia or joint oil. Cartilages are of three kinds, articular (1850.) which cover the ends of th^ bones by a thin layer, enabling them to"slide easily on one another; nonarticular, or such as are placed between bones immovably joined ; unattached, as those of the ears and larynx ; and temporary, as the ends of bones in very young animals before their earthy deposit is completed. The general nature of cartilage is smooth, white, solid, elastic, and hard. The periostcu?n is a general uniting membrane to bones and their appendages (1845.), on?. the skull, called pericranium; when it covers ligaments, peridesniium ; and perichondrium when it invests cartilage. Its uses appear to be to furnish vessels to the bones. It is little sensiVsle, except under inflammation, when it becomes highly so. Medulla, or marrow, is a soft fatty substance deposited in the cavities of bones. 5666. Ligaments (1854.) are close, compact, fibrous substances, of immense strength in the horse, necessary to bones as a connecting medium ; ligament is also a common membrane in every part of the body. The nature of ligament is considered as inelastic ; there are, however, many exceptions, of which the cervical and metacarpal and metatarsals are instances. In some cases they are semicartilaginous. The suspensory ligaments attach and suspend parts, as that of the thigh bone to its socket, &c. Capsular ligaments surround the two opposed ends of jointed bones, and form a complete cavity. 5667. The synovia or joint oil, being secreted from the inner surface of the capsular ligaments, fills up this cavity, and aftbrds a slippery medium, which enables the bones to slide readily over each other. 5668. Muscle is that part of the body of the horse which we term flesh, to distinguish it from skin, gristle, bone, ligament, &c. ; and the phenomena it exhibits, are so universal, that we are warranted in considering that it exists in every animal. Muscles appear composed of bundles of reddish fibres, the ultimate division of which it is impossible to trace. When a number of these fibres are connected together into a determinate form and circumscribed extent, it is called a muscle ; and as the motions of an animal are very various, and as almost all motion is operated through the agency of the muscles ; so the peculiar shape they take on is very varied. Mu.scular fibre is spread over the body, and it has been very properly remarked, that our ideas of it are probably too limited : thus it constitutes a principal part of all the viscera, and enters, it is probable, into the composition of many membranes. But what is more generally considered as a muscle, is a distinct botly having its determinate parts. To the generality of muscles, particularly to those ending in bones, is added a portion of a very different nature, called tendon. 5669. Tendons are infensible, inelastic, tough, fibrous substances, of a whitish colour : expanded into thin layers, they are called aponeuroses. The tendons are eminently useful to muscles, for the size of the termination is thereby diminshed, without the strength ibeing decreased. What would have become of the lightsome elegant limb, had their large muscular masses been continued downwards of the di- mensions we witness them above in the shoulder and thigh, instead of the condensed substance of the tendons or back, and fore sinews? Muscles are highly vascular, as their color testifies; but the tendons are very little so, hence their powers of life are very different : one can regenerate itself with ease, the other with extreme difficulty. The muscles also possess a large ^hare of nerves, and consequently of sensibility and irritability, to which properties the surprising phenomena they exhibit must be attri- 3 M 898 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. buted ; while their extreme vascularity furnishes them with powers to keep the energies requisite for these agencies. They contract and shorten at pleasure, acquire a power of acting dependant on their situation, and can change the fixed for the movable point, and vice versa. 5670. Muscles are voluntary and involuntary. The former are immediately under the influence of the will, as those of the legs, eyes, mouth, &c. Involuntary muscles are such as are not under the guidance of the will, and whose functions go on without control, as the heart, the respiratory and digestive mus- cular organs. Voluntary muscles have usually antagonists, whereby the perpetual tendency to contraction is counterbalanced : they are also usually covered by a cellular or membranous covering, called fascia, and their tendons by another, but stronger investure, called theca or sheath. At the tendinous extremity there is usually a capsule containing a quantity of lubricating mucus, the diseased increase of which forms what is termed windgall. SuBSECT. 2. The Blood Vessels of the Horse. 5671. The arteries are long membranous canals, composed of three strata, which are called tunicce or coats, as, an external elastic, a middle muscular, and an internal cuticular. Each" of these coats is the cause of some important phenomena, as well in disease as in health. The elastic power enables them to admit a larger quantity of blood at one time than another, and thus they are turgid under inflammation : by this also they can adapt themselves to a smaller quantity than usual ; otherwise a small hemorrhage would.prove fatal. The muscular tunic appears to exist in much greater proportion in the horse than in man, and this accounts for his greater tendency to inflammation, and also why inflammatory affections run to their terminations so much sooner in the horse than in man. The arteries gradually decrease in their diameter as they proceed from the heart. Our knowledge of the terminations of these vessels is very confined ; we know they terminate by anastomosis, or by one branch uniting with another. They termi- nate in veins, and they terminate on secreting surfaces, in which case their contents become changed, and the secretion appears under a totally different form. Another common termination of the arteries is by exhalant openings, by which sweat is produced. The use of the arteries is evidently to convey blood from the heart to different parts of the body, and according to the part the artery proceeds from, or pro- ceeds to, so does it receive an appropriate name. 5672. The aorta is the principal member of this system. Originating from the left ventricle of the hpart it soon divides into two branches, one of which, the anterior, or aorta ascendens {fig. 618 ;j), proceeds forward to be divided into two principal divisions — the carotids (q), by which the head is furnished, and the axillaries, by which the fore limbs receive their blood, under the names of humeral, radial, and meta- carpal arteries. The posterior, or aorta descendens (o), which is distributed to the trunk and hinder ex- tremities, forms the other branch. 5673. The pulmonary artery is a trunk of five or six inches in length ; arising out of the anterior ven- tricle of the heart, and is continued by the side of the aorta. It soon divides and enters the lungs, through which it ramifies. 5674. ThQ veins are vessels, which return the blood of the body which has been distri- buted to it. They have less solidity, and possess two tunics or coats only. They usu- ally accompany the arteries in their course, but are more numerous, being wisely (fividecl into a superficial and a deep seated set, to avoid the dangerous effects of interruption. To prevent the return of the blood they are furnished with valves also. 5675. The original venal trunks of the horse are ten in number; as the anterior cava, the posterior cava, and eight pulmonary, to which may be added the vena portae. 5676. The vena cava passes out of the heart by two trunks from separate parts of the right auricle. The anterior, or cava ascendens {fig. 618 n), opposite to the first rib, divides into four principal trunks ; two axillaries, and two jugulars, {fig. 618 r). The axillaries furnish the fore limbs under the names of the hu- meral, the ulnar, and the metacarpals. The jugulars (r) run up one on each side of the trachea to re- turn the blood of the head. The posterior, or cava descendens (o), returns the blood from the body and hinder extremities. 5677. The vena portce is formed from the veins returning the blood from the viscera, which, uniting to en- ter a sac of that viscus, are ramified through all parts of the liver, to have some remarkable operation performed in their contained blood. Collected again after this operation, the blood is returned by the vena hepatica, and carried into the posterior cava. 5678. The blood is a homogenous fiuid, contained in the heart, arteries, and veins, and constantly cir- culating through the whole body. It appears formed with the body ; is red in the arteries, and purple in the veins. (5723.) The component parts of the blood are the cruor or coagulum; the coagulable lymph, fibrin, or gluten ; and the serum. The coagulum is composed of red globules, whose intensity of color is less in the horse than in man. A red color is not necessary to the essential properties of blood, seeing the blood of some animals is white ; and even some parts of the horse's body are fur- nished with colorless blood, as the transparent part of the eye, &c. The coagulable lymph or fibrin, (1904.), appears the most essential part of the blood, and from which all the parts are formed. The se- rum seems to dilute the whole. The quantity contained in the body is uncertain : young animals pos- sess more than older, and hence bear bodily injuries better. It is less in quantity in fat than in lean animals; and in domesticated than in those which run wild. An animal will lose 1.15th before he dies. A horse lost 44 pounds without apparent injury. Probably the quantity contained in the body may vary according to circumstances: between 1.8th, and 1.10th of the whole mas's, is a fair medium. 5679. The pulse. P'rom the contraction of the heart and consequent dilatation of the arteries to receive the blood, and pass it onward to all parts of the body, which is called the diastole; so a dilatation of the heart and contraction of the arteries necessarily occurs, which is called the systole: and these two causes operating alternately produce the phenomena of circulation. The momentary increase in capacity in the diameter of the artery is called the pulse. As there is seldom disease present, without some alteration in the circulation also, so the pulse is attended to as an indication of health or disease. The circulation being carried on over the whole body, the pulse may be felt universally ; but some situations are more favorable than others ; as the heart itself, the pasterns, at the root of the ear, &c. : but the most convenient of all, is at the branch of the posterior jaw, where the maxillary artery may be rea- dily detected, {fig. 618 t). The natural pulse in the horse is about 45 beats in a minute ; in the ox the same; m man 75; m the dog 90. When the pulse is much accelerated, the circulation is accelerated also. If to its quickness, fulness of vessels and hardness are apparent, the circulation is morbidly hur- ried, and inflammation general or partial is present. (5878.) SuBSECT. 3. The Absorbents of the Horse. * 5680. The absorbent system is a very extraordinary and a very important one, for if the blood builds up and repairs parts, the absorbents pull down, remove, and take them away again. They are com- posed of the lymphatics and lacteals. Both kinds, although thin and transparent, are strong, and appear to have a contractile power : where very minute they are called capillaries. The lacteal absorbents are situated in the mesentery and intestines, from whence they draw the chyle or nutritious fluid by which the blood is nourished and augmented, by being carried forward from the mesentery into a tube called the Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 899 thoracic duct, which, passing up by the side of the aorta, pours its contents into the heart through the medium of the jugular vein. The lymphatic absorbents differ from the latter only, in being situated over the whole body, and being the recipients of the various matters of the body ; whereas the lacteals appear to absorb the chyle only. From numerous facts, we know that the various organs are continually suffering a destruction and a removal of parts, and that what the absorbents take away, the arteries renew ; and to this constant change, most of the alterations of the body are to be attributed as regards the structure of parts. We use our power over these vessels in the horse medicinally. We stimulate the absorbents to take up diseased solutions of fluids from various parts of the body, as in watery sweUings in the legs by mercury, and by friction, or by pressure in the way of bandage. When deposits are made of hard matter, on ligament or bone, we stimulate them by blistering or by firing. It is by stimulating the absorbents that splints and spavins are removed. Exercise is a very powerful stimulus to absorbents ; thus it is that swelled legs are removed by half an hour's exercise. In the horse, the lymphatics are more liable to disease than the lacteals, but in man the reverse. Farcy diseases the lymphatics irreparably. SuBSECT. 4. Nerves and Glands of the Horse. 5^1. The nervous system of the horse is composed of white medullary cords, springing from the brain and spinal marrow, whence they are generally distinguished into the cerebral and spinal nerves : the internal structure of these bodies is fibrous, and their ramifications extend to every part of the body; it is supposed that the brain is the seat of sensation and volition, and that the nerves are only the messengers of it. The sensibility of a part is usually proportioned to the number and size of its nerves ; nervous in- fluence occasions motion. From some cause, unknown to us, some motions are voluntary, and some involuntary ; but both are brought about by nervous agency. As the nerves are the media of sensation ; so a division of their cords has lately been attempted, with success, to relieve certain painful affections ; the most prominent instance is, in the division of the pastern nerves for the relief of the painful affection of founder. Tetanus, or locked jaw, which seems a morbid irritation on the nerves, has been recommended to be treated in the same way. 5682. The cerebrine nerves, arising in pairs immediately from the brain, are the olfactory, optic, motores oculi, pathetici, trigemini, abducents, auditory, lingual, par vagum, and the pair called the intercostal or g7-eat syjnpathetic, from its extensive connection. 5683. The spinal nerves are those which arise immediately from the spinal marrow, as the cervicals, hu~ merals, ulnar, metacarpal, and pastern nerves^ the dorsal, the lumbar, crural, sciatic, popliteal, sacral^ and the nerves, to the posterior extremities, which correspond with those of the anterior. 5684. The glands are numerous, and placed in every part of the body ; they may be characterized as secretory bodies, composed of all the different vessels inclosed in a membrane ; their office appears to be to secrete or form some fluid, as the liver secretes bile, and the kidney urine. They are classed into folliculose, globate, glomerate, and conglomerate; they also receive specific. names according to their situations, or according to the fluid they secrete, as lachrymal, salivary, &c. SuBSECT. 5. Integuments of the Horse's Body. 5685. The common integuments may be considered as the hair, the cuticle, the epidermis, or in- sensible or outer skin, the rete mucosum, which is immediately under this, the cutis, sensible or true skin, the cellular membranes, which contain fat and other fluids, and the panniculus carnosus or fleshy pan- nicle ; to these rnay be added, the unguis, nails or hoofs, which we shall describe separately. 5686. Hair is the clothing of brutes, and hence is very important to them, and as it enters largely into the arts, it is also important to us. (1814.) It appears to be a production of the true skin, arising from a bulbous end, which penetrates the rete and cuticle in the form of an elongated cone. In some parts hairs appear, singly, as about the muzzle ; in others in masses, as on the mane, tail, and over the body generally, as an inclined congregated mass ; hair varies in color, and therefore appears by nature intended both for ornament and use. 5687. The cuticle is situated immediately under the hair (1807,), and appears a hard insensible cover- ing, purposely placed to guard or defend the sensible skin underneath. The cuticle lines many of the large openings of the body, as the mouth, from whence it is continued into the stomach, lining one half of it. It is perforated by innumerable small vessels that give' out and take in various matters; through these blisters act on the true skin, inflame it, and force it to secrete a quantity of fluid, which thus pushes the cuticle from the cutis. It exists before birth, and is speedily renewed afterbirth, when accidentally destroyed, and, like the true skin, thickens by pressure ; it is constantly undergoing changes ; it exfoliates in the form of powder, or little scales, over every part of the body, and is that substance called dandriff, which grooms are so careful to remove with the currycomb. The rete mucosum is a. mucilaginous substance placed hke a net between layers of cuticle and cutis ; and although very universal in animated nature, its ^use is unknown. 5688. The cutis, corium, or true skin. (1810) This very general investure of the body is situated imme- diately under the two former ; it is very vascular, and is furnished with innumerable small villous processes of exquisite sensibility, and which, without doubt, were intended to constitute it as the real organ of touch. It is much thickened by pressure ; asses, from the beatings they are subjected to, have it of immense thick- ness on the rump. It naturally also exists in various degrees of density according to the wants of the animal. Like the cuticle it is perforated by numerous openings which correspond with those of the latter membrane. Its composition appears principally gelatine, and hence it is employed in the manufacture of glue ; its gelatine uniting with the matter called tannin, becomes insoluble in water, and then forms leather; and the value of the horse's hide in this particular is sufficiently known. 5689. AdijMse membrane and fat. These form very considerable parts of the body of most animals. The adipose membrane is not so universal as the skin ; some parts are completely without it, as the eyelids, ears, sheath, and some parts of the extremities. It is cellular, but the cells fortunately do not communicate or the fat would gravitate. The/aHs the unctuous juice poured or rather secreted into these cells. Itap- Sears in greater quantities, and indifferent degrees of consistence in some parts than in others: in the elly of some it is lard, and suet in others; within the bones it is oleaginous in all. Different quadrupeds have their fat of different degrees of consistence, from the firm suet of the ox, and the tallow of the sheep, to the soft lard of the hog, and the intermediate state of the horse ; it guards the parts, it preserves warmth, but above all, it is a depot against occasional want : thus a fat animal can sustain itself without food much longer than a lean one. The torpid bear comes from his hibernation emaciated, because his constitution has been subsisting on his fat. 5690. Cellular membrane. (1812.) This complete investure of the body enters every part, and is formed of communicating cells, as we see by the practice of butchers who blow up their meat'; and also by the emphysematous effects of a fractured rib, and the gaseous distention in some putrid diseases ; it exists in different quantities, and under various modifications of density throughout the body, and is a very uni- versal medium of connection in the form of ligament. 5691. Panniculus carnosus. (1819.) The fleshy pannicle was kindly given to quadrupeds in lieu of hands, to enable them to corrugate or pucker the skin, and thus to shake oft" dust and insects. It is a thin muscular expansion peculiar to brutes, but not to all ; the swine family being denied it. By its attach- ments it can operate variously,, as we see by the uses the horse makes of it j it is very vascular, and sensible also from the numerous nerves which enter it. 3 M 2 900 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. SuBSECT. 6'. The Head generally. 5692. The parts of the head are external and internal ; some of these have been touched on, as the integuments, &c. : such as have not vi^ill follow in the order of their magnitude or situation. 5693. The brain of the horse {fig. 616 a, b, c), is M «y ^ rf* contained within the hoi- q\q ^ '/ f ' low of the skull, and is \ / / surrounded by two cover- ^ ings, the dura; and pia mater, between which lies a third membrane called the tunica arach- noidea. The duplica- tures of these membranes are called septa and falx. The brain is divided into three portions, the cere- brum, cerebellum, and medulla oblongata. The cerebrum, or greater brain (a), is divided into two hemispheres and two lobes ; it has an outer or cortical substance, and an inner, the substantia alba,or medullary matter. The cerebellum, or lesser brain [h), is contained within the occipital bone, and is in the horse placed superiorly and ])Osterior- ly to the cerebrum. It is less than the cerebrum, and is divided into four lobes, and like the form- er is composed of two substances, a cortical and a medullary. The me- dulla oblongata (c) is a medullary continuation of the cerebrum and ce- rebellum, and is conti- nued upwards and back- wards to the edge of the ferumen magnum of the OS occipitis, to be conti- nued under the name of spinal marrow. The medulla spinalis,or spinal marrow (A), is a direct continuation of the me- dulla oblongata, and like that is composed of a cortical and medullary part. It has lately been discovered to be hollow in the horse, ox, sheep, hog, and dog. It leaves the skull by the great foramen 'of the occipital bone, and is continued backwards in a bony canal formed by the vertebra, giving off in its passage the spinal nerves in pairs. The brain presents four cavities called ventricles, it has also many prominences, and peculiarities, which our limits will not admit of noticing, but which is less necessary, as in no part of brute anatomy is the analogy so close to the human as in the brain of the horse. With the exception of the situation, to describe the one is to portray the other. SuBSECT. 7. The Ear, 5694. The number and situation of the ears of the horse are sufficiently known. The internal parts do not differ from those of the human, but the outer are adapted to his situation and habits. These exterior parts are composed of , the skin, the outer hair, the cartilages, and the muscles by which they are moved. The skin within the ears is furnished with sebaceous glands, which secrete a bitter matter, noxious to insects ; and further to guard against these, it is filled with hair; which the false taste of grooms induces them to remove, and thus to expose the animal to dust, hail, rain, and insects. 5695. The form of the ear is dependent on the concha cartilage, which is found pointed and small in the Arabian, but large and broad in the heavy breeds. The cavity within the concha is thrown into folds throughout, which increases its surface, and reflects the sonorous waves. This outer ear is attached to the internal, by connecting cartilaginous portions and appropriate ligaments. The parts of the internal ear are, the meatus auditorius internus, or passage; the membrana tympani, or separating membrane between the external and internal parts; the tympanum, drum, or barrel of the oar; and the labyrinth. The eustachian tube is an opening at the upper and anterior edge of the hollow of the tympanum, forming a duct which is in part bony, and in part cartilaginous ; extending from the tympanum to a large and peculiar cavity at the posterior part of the nasal fossa. 5696. The sense of hearing is formed through the medium of the expansion of the soft portion of the auditory nerve over the internal ear ; sounds, therefore, entering the cavity of the concha, are reflected alternately from its sides into the tympanum, whose oscillations are imparted to the brain. SuBSECT. 8. The Eye and its Appendages. 5697. The appendages to the eye are first, a funnel-shaped cavity formed by the con- currence of the bones of the skull, called the orbit, not placed directly in front as in man, but inclining laterally, to enable the animal to embrace a larger field of view. The eyelids are an upper and under, of which the upper is the most considerable, and Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 901 enjoys the greatest motion. United, they form an admirable curtain to defend the eye from dust, insects, and the light during sleep ; and are moved by two appropriate mus- cles. Attached to the edge of each is a cartilaginous rim, called the tarsus. The ciliOf or eyelashes, are not, as in the human, above and below ; the upper lid only is fur- nished with hairs, and which are not placed in one, but in several smaller rows. The horse has no supercilia or eyebrows, unless we reckon as such the few long hairs over the orbits. The lachrymal gland is a body lodged within the upper part of the orbit, and is furnished with five or six excretory ducts, which secrete the lachrymas or tears to lubricate the surface of the globe. The superfluous tears are carried off by two openings at the inner angle, called puncta lachrymalia, by which means the tears are at once carried into the nose, and not as in man first into a lachrymal sac. The cnruncula lachrt/malia is a small black substance in view at the inner canthus, whose office appears to be to direct the tears aright in this course. The haw, or nictating membrane^ is an important part, seen when the eye is drawn inwards, but which is at all other times hidden within the fatty matter surrounding the globe of the eye. Though called a membrane it is cartilaginous, and when the eye is forcibly withdrawn into the socket, it is pressed out from the inne»- angle, and passes completely over the surface of the globe, to which its shape is adapted. A moderate pressure only, shows about half of it; and it is thus seen in tetanus or stag-evil, by the action of the retractor muscle ; and under inflammation of the eye it also becomes visible, which has led ignorant farriers to cut it off, under a suspicion that it formed one cause of the disease. The use of this nictating membrane cannot be for a moment dubious. It is denied to man and to monkies, because they, having hands, can with their fingers re- move dust and dirt from the eyes ; but to the horse and most other quadrupeds, it is essen- tially necessary for these purposes. . , 5698. A diagram of the eye {fig. 617.) dis- .^^^f^^'^^^^S. .--^ plays the transparent cornea in front of ^ /"vi A \V*''^ the eye (a), the crystalline lens (6), its "••..,_ / 6y\ /\ , -^^ jl posterior convexity (c), its anterior con- ^ 'r--^ U I \ "^ *^- vexity (rf), the iris, or curtain {e, /), the / "^■••... /— — i__^ ill anterior chamber occupied by the aqueous ,y I ^ '" L_r!rrr:rnr9i|t y» humor of the pupil (g), the posterior ^ 1 ^y ... -''^ tl!.^^^^^--^'^//!" chamber filled with the vitreous humor \ ^ '''Z\- — — 7 -t. ''li-. i (k h), the retina («"), the choroid coat (Ar), ^fi ^\-' /?(! \ / '^ (// the sclerotic coat (Z), and optic nerve (»?), f. ,,-*•*"' \^«' jil \ / ..A* rays of light showing the different degrees ' ^"^"-m^ vj^piK' — -7IV of refraction they suffer in passing through ^^^ig^- <^ir^ the humors of the eye (« n). ^^^bh^^ 5699. The globe of the eye is composed of coats, chambers, and humors, and is operated on in its move- ments by muscles. It may be considered as forming a large cup posteriorly, with a smaller cup appHed to its margin anteriorly ; or as though the segment of a large sphere were adapted to that of a smaller one. The substance which gives figure and consistence to the larger segment is the sclerotic coat (l), which is very firm and fibrous. The anterior cup or segment is supplie(i by the cornea, which is transpa- rent, and formed of thin concentric plates of very different degrees of convexity in different animals, and often of similar animals ; to a defect in which is ascribed the indistinct vision or starting of some horses. The cornea {a) is vascular and sensible, and in an inflamed state it admits the red blood, as we see by the universal redness over the whole ; at other times it admits only the colorless parts of that fluid. Immediately within'the sclerotic coat is a thin vascular membrane, called the choroides (k), which is spread over it nearly as far as the cornea, where it turns in and expands into the ciliary processes. It also, by a peculiar fold, forms a ligament, after which it produces another projection into the cavity of the eye, termed the uvea. It is here continuous, and presents a veil perforated in the centre. 5700. The pupil of tlie eye (g) is the perforation which is seen annular in the human, oblong in the horse, ox, and sheep, and peri>endicular in the cat. The anterior surface of the uvea is covered with a membrane, termed iris, on which the color of the eye depends ; in man it is grey, brown, black, or blue ; in the horse it is usually brown, but now and then white, when the animal is said to be wall- eyed. At the central margin of the iris are seen, in a strong light, some little globular bodies or bags, covered with a black pigment. They are usually attached to the upper margin only, but when any exist on the lower they are small ; they have been mistaken for disease. The iris (e,f) is capable of accom- modating itself to circumstances ; that is, it can enlarge the diameter of the central aperture or pupil (g). so as to admit or shut out the rays of light. Over the central surface of the choroid expansion is spread a dark mucous substance, called nigrum pigmentum. In animals, whose vision is distinct at night, this pigment is found of a lighter color ; in man it is very dark, and his crepuscular vision is, therefore, indistinct. In the grazing tribes it is of a greenish cast, lost in azure blue j in the predaceous tribes it is still lighter. Under this pigment is the mucous expansion, peculiar to quadrupeds, called tapetum. The optic nerve (m) penetrates the sclerotic coat, and becomes expanded on its inner surface, in a membranous lamen of exquisite fineness, called retina. On this it is supposed objects are painted, and thus taken cognizance of by the brain. 5701. The humors of the eye are the vitreous, the crystalline, and the aqueous. The vitreous humor (A A) is of a jelly-like consistence, and occupies all the globe, except those parts taken up by the other humors. The crystalline humor forms a lenticular body of moderate consistence, and is, therefore, more properly called a lens (h). It is doubly convex (c, rf), its posterior side resting in a concavity of the vitreous humor. It is not of equal consistence throughout, being much firmer in the middle. Different animals have the lens of diflcrent figures, to suit the purposes of their existence : in fishes it is nearly spherical, but in quadrupeds, lenticular. It is a diseased opacity of this body that forms cataract The aqueous humor is a limpid fluid which fills up the spaces not occupied by those already described. 5702. The muscles of the eye. The motions of the eye ball are operated by seven muscles ; four recti or .straight, which elevate, depress, and draw to and from ; two oblique, which rotate the eye, and a retrac- tor or choanoid, which is peculiar to quadrupeds, to draw the eye within the socket, and thus preserve it from danger, draws the globe onwaids. 5703. The phenomena of vision^ If the diagram be examined, it will be evident that the eye of the horse presents an optical instrument of exquisite workmanship and mechanism, admirably fitted to collect the luminous rays from the various objects around, and to transmit them with truth to the brain. If the 3 M 3 902 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. luminous rays reflected from objects passed through the eye in a rectilinear course, as they do through the atmosphere, no cognizance at all useful to the animal could be taken of them by the eye ; all would be glare and indistinctness : but being refracted or bent by the media, through which they pass, the rays finally meet at a point called their focus or focal point Neither would one simple line of refraction have been sufficient to have answered all the purposes of perfect vision, under its various modifications. It is necessary that the refraction should be increased in its passage by increased degrees of density in the media of its transit (» n). In the passage of the rays through the cornea and aqueous humor, they must encounter their first refraction ; and it is evident, that the more convex the anterior portion of the eye may be, the more will this refraction be increased. We need not, therefore, be surprised that a gogglery or horse with this form of eye, should start. The next and largest degree of bending which the rays receive occurs in their passage through the crystalline lens, which from its lenticular form must necessarily be considerable ; in their progress through the vitreous humor a farther refraction is eiFected, till meeting in a point on the retina, a perfect representation of the object or objects viewed is obtained ; the rays form- ing in their passage numerous cones, the basis of which will be the object viewed, and the apex of each a radiant point. Amidst the number of objects around, it appears that the eye has a capability of collecting rays from such only as are immediately necessary for the purposes of the animal it belongs to ; hence, although the general field of view may fall under an angle of vision, yet such rays only as are imme- diately capable of this convergency produce effect, all others are lost in the black pigment of the eye, apparently placed there purposely to absorb the superfluous rays. As the eye must necessarily have a vast variety of objects painted on it, whose distances are widely different ; there must be some optical adjustment of the powers of the part to enable it to effect a distinct vision of all objects near or remote. But whether this takes place by means of the angle formed on the two opposite axes, or as has been more lately taught, by a muscular power in the lens itself, is not yet satisfactorily ascertained ; certain it is that after the loss of one eye, time is required both in the human and brute subject for the remaining eye to learn to adjust itself to judge of relative distances ; which fact is certainly in favor of the opinion tha'd an angle formed between the eyes regulates the judgment of distances. In this way we can account for the well known fact, that hunters, which have before the loss of an eye been excellent and sure leapers, have afterwards lost the power of measuring their leaps. Were it not for some adjustment of the optical organ itself, the rays reflected from objects very near the eye would fall behind it, and those from distant ones would, from being almost parallel, meet together before the retina. The mechanical adjustment of the focus is also assisted in some measure by the iris, which contracts almost to a point when we look at a very minute object ; and by this means only permits such rays to pass through as penetrate the centre of the lens, by which such rays will be very much refracted ; but when the eye regards distant objects, the iris becomes dilated, and the rays are then viewed through the edges of the lens, and their inclination is thereby lessened. 5704. The criteria of soundness in the eyes are gained by a careful examination of them ; and wliich experience has shown to be best made by placing the horse within a stable, with his head nearly approach- ing the stable door, which should be fully open. Small eyes are found more prOne to inflammation than large, and large goggling eyes are more liable to accompany a starting horse than lesser ones : and when the convexity is extreme, not only is the starting in proportion ; but such eyes are more liable than others to become affected with the disease popularly termed glass eyes, but correctly gutta serena. It is not however to be understood that all starters have defective eyes ; many are so from natural timi- dity, and still more from harsh usage. The eyes should be examined together, not only to observe whether each presents an equal degree of clearness in the transparent part and within the pupil ; but also that an equal degree of contraction exists between each of the pupils. This is of much consequence : if any inequality in size or form be observable between the pupils, the least of them has been in some way affected, and will probably become so again. It is even more suspicious when a turbid milkiness ap- pears on any part of the transparent portion ; and equally so, when the inferior part looks other than clear ; or in a very strong light, with a lively bluish tinge. When it is at all turbid, viewed under various aspects, regard it attentively, and there may probably be found an inward speck of perfect white j which is the nucleus or central point of an incipient cataract. 5705. A glassy greenish cast in the eye should occasion suspicion, and the hand should be placed over such eye so as to exclude the light ; remove the hand suddenly and watch the motions of the iris or cur- tain of the pupil. If it do not contract, carry the examination still further, and it will probably be found such eyes are totelly blind. A blind horse usually carries his ears about, as though in alarm, on his leaving the stable ; he also lifts his feet on such occasions, particularly in strange quarters, higher than a sound horse. SuBSECT. 9. The Nose and Sense of Smellingi 5706. The organ af smell is, in most quadrupeds, the next in importance to that of vision, and in many points of view it is even more so. With the herbivorous tribe, it forms their principal means of judging between the noxious and the innoxious. It is not therefore to be wondered, that it should in these tribes form so large a portion of the head ; nor that it should be so exquisitely gifted with sensibility, or so admirably formed to answer its important purposes. The external parts of the nasal organ are the two nostrils, and as much of their convolutions and linings as come into immediate view. Internally these two cavities are carried upwards into the pharynx, but completely divided by a cartilaginous septum, {^fig. 616/). In this course they communicate with numerous openings and cavities, formed within the bones of the skull, (5631.) the wliole of which are lined by one continuous mem- brane of exquisite vascularity and sensibility; being largely furnished with blood vessels, which gives them such a ready tendency to inflame and become red, as we witness und^r only a slight degree of exertion, and as we see more evidently when violent colds or inflammations on the chest are present. Its sensibility is derived from the olfactory nerves, which are spread over all its surface. It is this mem- brane which is the peculiar seat of glanders, becoming first inflamed, and next ulcerated throughout its extent; and Sis the membrane itself appears to be continued to the pharynx and larynx, so we need not wonder why the glanders proceeds to disease the lungs ; nor why a common cold, which is at first a simple inflammation of this membrane, so readily degenerates into inflammation of the lungs. The common in- teguments or coverings of other parts are extended over the nose, but it is little furnished with fat. Of hairs it has a fine thin covering to the edges of the nostrils, and a longer set, which are carefully removed in trimming. By a fold of the skin, within which is a cartilage, the false nostril, as it is termed, is formed, whose use appears to be to keep open the canal for the transmission of air, and yet to offer an interruption to extraneous matter. Wlien the nostrils are a little separated, a small canal may be seen, which is the nasal duct for the transmission of the superfluous moisture from the eyes. The horse breathes or respires wholly through his nostrils in all ordinary cases. 5707. The sense of smelling. The volatile particles from all odorous bodies are continually passing off from them, and consequently some must reach the olfactory organs, whose capability of taking cogni- sance of their qualities appears derived as before pointed out, by the expansion of nervous fibrillsB from the olfactory nerves which transmit impressions to the brain. SuBSECT, 10. The Cavity of the Mouth. 5708. The external parts of the mouth are the lips, cheeks, and beard. The lips are made up of flesfty masses so disposed as to give them motion every way ; they are covered over with a very fine expansion of skin almost devoid of hair, their exquisite sensibility forms them into an organ of touch ; and in this Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 909 noint of view they may be considered as supplying the part of the points of the* fingers in man. The cheeks are equally muscular and movable, but are more furnished with hair ; and the beard, in ad- dition to its thin hairy expansion, has a set of long hairs. 5709. The internal parts of the motUh are the teeth, already described (5591.), the gums," the alveolary edges, the palate, the tongue, and the parts of the great posterior cavity. The gums axe a spongy substance which embraces and holds fast the teeth in their alveolary sockets. The membrane which covers the gums at the lower part of the channel forms a kind of fold to connect and confine the tongue on each side. These folds are called the barbs, and are apt to be mistaken and cut off as excres- cences. The bars are the spaces in the jaw left between the grinders and nipper teeth ; and which man, ever ready to take advantage for his own puri)Oses, has applied to ensure obedience by placing on its sensitive surface the pressure of the bridle bit. The palate forms a bony arch, covered by membranous folds, which are apt, when the stomach is affected, to become swollen, in which case the horse is said to have the larapas or lampers. (5756.) By means of these rugose folds, the food is retained within the mouth. The curtain of the palate or velum palati, which is situated at the extreme end of the pala- tine arch, is stretched directly across the hinder mouth, and is not intercepted as in man by the pendulous body, termed uvula. This palate curtain is intended to shut out the communication between the mouth and the great cavity of the fauces, which it docs at all times, except when the horse is .swallowing, at which period the curtain is forced back and the food passes. From this cause likewise the horse is prevented breathing but by his nostrils ; and when any air does pass by the mouth, as in coughing, crib. biting, &c., it is only effected by a forcible displacement of the curtain. 5710. The tongue is a long fleshy mass {fig. 616 and the sublingual also. SuBSECT. 11. The Neck. 5716. The external parts qfthe neck are the common coverings which have been described ; the cervical ligament, the muscles, and the jugular or neck veins, &c. The cervical ligament {fig. 616 /), is a very strong substance, in some j)arts semimuscular, and in all extremely elastic, stretched from the occipitil bone along the back of all the cervical vertebrae exce{}t the first. Continued on the spinous processes of the dorsal vertebrae, it fills up the dip or depression of the spinal column of the neck, so completely as to form the neck either into a plane, or an elegantly convex line upwards. By its extreme tenacity, the ponderous mass of the head is preserved in its situation, without the necessity of an immense mass of muscle, which would, without this contrivance, have been necessary. It is to an injury received at the upper and anterior part of this ligament, that the pole evil is owing. The muscles of the neck are too numerous to allow of particularization ; it is sufficient to say, they most of them run longitudinally. The jugular veins run one on each side of the neck superficially, on the side of the trachea and windpipe, and form the vessel usually bled from {fig. 618 r). A few inches before they reach the angle of the jaw, each divides to furnish the head. 5717. The internal parts qf tJie nd-cA are the Vertebra;, within which passes the spinal marrow. The carotid arteries pass up under the jugular veins, near the oesophagus {fig^ 618 s). The trachea or wind- pipe {fig. 618 g), is a large canal for the transmission of air, formed by alternate rings of membrane and segments of cartilage, rendering it at once flexible, yet cylindrically hollow. The a'sophagus {fgs. 616 h .5- 618*), is the continuation of the funnel-like cavity of the pharynx. It is externally muscular, and internallv membranous and cuticular, by which formation it is elastic, to allow of distension in 3 M 4 904 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the act of swallowing. The oesophagus penetrates the chest between the mediastinum, and passing along the spine {fig. 618 I), through an opening in the diaphragm, terminates in the stomacli. SuBSECT. 12. The Thorax or Chest. 5718. The chest of the horse is bounded anteriorly by the matters filling up the space between the two first ribs, posteriorly by the diaphragm, laterally by the ribs, above by the vertebrae, and below by the sternum or breast bone. In dissecting the horse, after the interior membranes, muscles, &c. are thrown back {Jig. 616 hbhb), there appear the lobes of the lungs {cccc)'y the heart (d) ; mediastinum or membran- ous division of the chest (ee); the sternum or breast-bone {f) ; the ensiform cartilage {g) • tendinous centre of the diaphragm (/i, i). 5719. When the chest is opened a smooth polished membrane is seen, which covers the surface, and then is reflected over its contents ; this is called the pleura : and by a junction of the two plurfe, a division of the chest into two nearly equal portions is effected, which membranous division is called the mediastinum. By this division of the chest into two parts, very important benefits arise ; as when one cavity is opened the lungs immediately collapse, but the respiration may be carried on by the other. In a similar manner ulceration may proceed to destroy the lobes of one side of the chest, as in glanders, but may be checked by the mediastinum from proceeding to the other. The pleura does not, as in man, appear to take on inflammation independently of the substance of the lungs ; thus the horse is not subject to pleurisy. The thymus gland, which is a considerable body in the colt, and which forms the sweetbread in calves, is hardly discernible in the old horse. It is situated between the folds of the mediastinum, but its uses are unknown. 5720. The diaphragm or midriff {fig.616 i, h) is a very important part of the body of the horse, dividing the chest from the belly by its disk, but which is far from elliptical, extending much further backwards than forwards. Its fibres radiate from their origins to unite in one tendinous centre (h). In a state of rest it is anteriorly convex, and posteriorly concave ; but [at each inspiration these appearances are nearly reversed. (5724.) It is perforated for the passage of the vena cava, the aorta, the vena azygos, thoracic duct, and oesophagus, all which pass through it by means of three openings. 5721. The heart {fig. 616 d) is the great agent of circulation, and thus is made independent of the will ; were it otherwise, man and other animals might cease to live at their own discretion. The pericardium is first seen surrounding the heart so completely, that it swims within it by means of a little fluid termed liquor pericardii. The heart is a composition of membranous and muscular fibres, having four principal cavities, and several openings. It is situated between the mediastinum, so as to occupy a cavity of its own, dis- tinct from either side of the chest. Its base is in a line with the dorsal vertebrs, and its apex is directed to the left of the sternum, between the eighth and ninth ribs. Its two ventricles are immediately within its body, and its two auricles are rather without, appended to it. The left ventricle contains arterial blood, and from it originates all the arteries except the pulmonary. The right ventricle is the reservoir of the venous blood, and it receives all the veins except the pulmonary. "Within the ventricles are valves to prevent the return of the blood. The auricles are less muscular than the ventricles ; the left, or pulmonary, opens into the left ventricle : and the right, communicates with the right ventricle. Into the right and larger auricle the anterior and posterior cavas enter by two openings, and into the left, the pulmonary veins pass. 5722. The circulation of the blood may be shortly described as originating with the left ventricle of the heart, which sends its blood, by means of the great vessel called the aorta, to all parts of the body. It is received by the veins in like manner from ail parts, and proceeds to return its blood into the heart by means of the two great veins called cavas, which pour the returned blood into the right auricle, wliich immediately forces it into the right ventricle. From the right ventricle it is again forced out into the pulmonary artery, which carries it throughout the lungs to undergo a change, and to be finally returned by eight trunks into the left auricle, which immediately empties it into the left ventricle to renew the process described. 5723. The lungs are spongy masses divided into right and left, with lesser divisions called lobes. Their color varies according to age : thus, in the colt they are of a light lively pink ; in the full grown horse they approach to a greyer tint; and in the very old subject they are of a still deeper tone. The I ironchia are continuations of the trachea or windpipe, which, dividing on its entrance into the chest, ramifies throughout the substance of the lungs, giving these masses their spongy cellular structure, in which distribution the air vessels are accompanied by ramifications of the pulmonary artery and veins. From the extreme vascularity of these parts they are very liable to inflammation. 5724. The theory of respiration. — By some extraordinary sympathy, the colt at birth gasps, and air rushes into the lungs before collapsed : having once felt this stimulus, by a common consent between the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, the cavity of the chest is diminished to expel the air received, and to inspire a fresh quantity ; and which process is then continued through life. The body appears vitally nourished by two sources : the one through the medium of digestion, the other by means of the blood itself; which, in its progress through the body, gives out its vital principles of heat to the mass, and vitality to the muscular fibre : for unless the blood effect its part in tiie contractile phe- nomena, it will be invain for nervous influence to exert its power. Having given out these principles, it is returned by the veins, and is passed forwards into the lungs, circulating throughout their substance, and imbibing by their contiguity or continuity with the air vessels, oxygen gas from the atmosj)heric air contained in them. In return for the oxygen received, carbon is given out, which passes off in the form of aqueous vapor. As the blood is renovated, so the air it acted on is deteriorated, and is therefore expired from the chest to make room for a fresh inhalation, to oxygenate a fresh quantity of blood, and thus to renovate afresh the vital powers subservient to its influence. SuBSECT. 13. The Abdomen. 5125. The viscera of the abdomen includes the .stomach {fig.SlSa); lobes of the liver [b b) ; omentum or cawl attached to the whole inferior curvature of the stomach (c) ; the spleen (rf) ; the kidneys {ee) ; the rectum (/) ; the ovaria [gg] ; the uterus {h) ; the bladder distended with urine (i) ; the diaphragm or muscular partition dividing, the belly from the chest {k k) ; oesophagus or gullet proceeding to the stomach (/) ; trachea (m) ; vena cava ascendens [n) ; aorta descendens (o), which passes through' the abdomen (a a) , as does the cava descendens {b) ; the aorta ascendens (;>) ; carotid' arteries (^) ; jugular veins (r)} oesophagus (.s) ; and maxillary artery, forming the most convenient situation for feeling the pulse (i), complete the viscera and general appearances of the horse when laid open. 5726. The abdomen or cavity of the belly is the largest cavitv of the body, and forms an extensive oval __ vault, containing very important viscera, which may be considered { as . the chylopoetic, the" Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE. 905 urinary, and the spermatic, all which are invested by a membrane called the peritoneum, which, after covering each of these organs separately, is reflected over the cavity of the belly itself. It is very strong, and very elastic, as we perceive by the effects of dropsy, great fatness, and likewise by the increase in pregnancy. The umentutn or cawl (c) is the fatty apron which first presents itself on opening an animal's body, extending in some, as the dog, pig, &c., into the pel- vis ; but in the horse it is less considerable, by which he is not subjected to cpislocele as they are. Its uses are unknown. 5727. The stomach and its di- gestive functions. The horse has one stomach only, and that a very small one, drawing a very wide line of separation by this means between his family and the ruminants. In fact the stomach of tlie horse may be regarded as intermediate be-, tween the triturating muscular one of fowls, and the mem- branous one of the graminivo- rae. It is peculiarly constructed to keep up this intermediate character, being partly membra- nous, partly muscular, and part* ly cuticular ; in which latter formation much of its peculi- arity consists, and which it shares in common with asses, rats, and mice; whose habits of living on grain give them a like claim to this wise provision In a state of rest, or only mode- rately distended, its direction is across the abdomen, with its two orifices directed upwards; but the cardiac or recipient orifice, to which the oesophagus is at- tached, the most so ; while the pyloric or expellent orifice is rather lower, and more inclined backward. The situation of the stomach is immediately contiguous to the diaphragm or great breathing muscle ifig- 618 k k), from which we are at no loss to understand why a very full meal obstructs respi- ration ; and why it is so impru- dent to gallop a horse very hard after drinking or eating fully. Small as the stomach is in a natu* ral state, it is yet capable of great distention, as has been witnessed in stomach staggers, when upwards of half a hundred weight of undi- gested food has been extracted from it. The membranous portion of the stomach is gained from the peri- toneum ; within this is situated its muscular part, principally composed of longitudinal and transverse layers, by which its motions in digestion are regulated. Around the cardiac or recipient orifice, a strong band of circular fibres is very evident, which effectually constringes this part, and prevents regurgitation or vomiting in the horse, except under extraordinary circumstances of muscular relaxation and sympathy. It has been already shown that the anterior part of the alimentary canal, as the mouth, throat, and gullet, are lined with cuticle or skin. This cuticle is continued into the stomach, and lines nearly a half of its internal surface, whose office seems to be a more perfect comminution of the food, which the horse has no opportunity of remasticating like the ox, sheep, &c. The villous or sensible portion of the stomach is thrown into folds, so as greatly to increase its surface : here the comminuted food in its passage becomes saturated with the solvent gastric juice, and is then passed forward into the intestines. 5728. The derangerncnts of the stomach may be explained from its anatomy. Tliough small, and its sensible parts still smaller, yet it is subject to more diseases, and to more frequent derangement than is generally supposed. It has been proved to be muscular, and that its digestive functions are performed by means of its muscularity. It has also been shown that the contractile energy of the muscular fibre, is mainly gained from the oxygen derived from the blood ; whatever tends to interrupt this separation, as an unhealthy state of the lungs, too quick action of them, &c. must derange the action of the stomach also. The perfection of its digestive powers is also derived from its secreting healthy gastric juice, consequently whatever interrupts this process, must likewise interfere with stomachic health, and that such health is more often impaired than is generally supposed, and that many ailments, attributed to other causes, are really dependent on an affection of this organ, experience and observation will fully evince. Out of condition is a most frequent complaint among horsemen ; their horses are out of condition, and unfit for work : the appearances are various, but are all well known ; yet it is seldom considered, that it is owing in every seven cases out of ten, to the stomach being morbidly affected. (5756.) It is evident that too full feeding must derange it, not only by keeping it constantly dis- tended, and thus weakening its capacity ; but by entrenching too much on its secreting office, and requiring an inordinate quantity of gastric fluid to saturate an undue quantity of farinaceous matter. The bots, that are frequently found on its cuticular coat, and are there probably harmless, sometimes displace themselves, and settle on the villous part, where they must occasion uneasiness and probable inflammation. 5729. The intestines {fig. 616 k, I) in the horse may be considered not merely as secerning organs alone, as in man and many animals, but as really digestive organs, and continuations of the sto- machic viscer" This is more particularly the case with the small intestines, and may therefore entitle them to the term of alimentary canal, and the large to that of the excremental ; the for- mer measure from twenty-one to twenty-three yards in length, and the latter from seven and a half to eight yards and a half, according to the size of the animal. The duodenum is the first of the §maU intestines, commencing at the pyloric orifice of the stomach ; the jejunum, which is the next and larger portion, and the ilium {fig. 616 e), which is still longer, form the remainder. The alimentary 906 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. as ^^'^ V-. canal in its structure does not differ fVom the sensible part of the stomach, having like that two plans of muscular fibres, a circular and a longitudinal, by which its peristaltic motions are regulated ; the longitu- dinal shortening the canal, and the circular diminishing its size. The alimentary part of the intestinal canal ends with this small gut, which itself terminates abruptly in the coecum or first of the large intestines (Jig. 619 a), and which intestine commences what has been termed g| q the excremetititious canai. This entrance is effected in such a manner as to leave, by a protrusion of its surface inwards, a kind of valvular appara- tus, which prevents the return of the contents. 5730. The large intestines {fig. 616 k k), in the horse are really deserving of that name, being very capacious ; while in man and carnivorous ani- \ ( / mals they are little different from the small. They occupy and com- ^- ^, JJ pletely fill up the lower portion of the abdomen : the coecum occupies "^-^ the right side, and carries its blind end towards the diaphragm, which is not furnished with an appendix as the human. A careful inspection of this intestine will show that the appellation of excrementitious canai does not wholly apply to it ; but that on the contrary, it performs some of the offices attributed to the smaller intestines. The colon commences small from the side of the base of the ccGcum, but soon enlarging, it makes a turn around the abdomen, when contracting it ends in the rectum, and passes backwards to the anus. Along the course of the large intestines are muscular bands, which throw their surfaces into folds, and also form them into a continuation of cells (fig. 616 m). By these means, the matters are detained to be acted on more fully, and finally they are expelled in dry hardened balls. 5731. The digestive process in the horse is one of the most curious as" well as one of the most important which goes on in the body. The various actions of an animal body produce relaxation and waste, which are indicated by fatigue and hunger. To restore the one, rest is required, and to restore the other, food becomes necessary. For the herbivorous tribes, vegetable matter is sought for, which being collected, is masticated by the grinders and mixed with saliva, until it becomes a softened mass, when it is passed backwards by the tongue and molar muscles, through the arch of the palate in the form of a bolus. Received into the pharynx, which rises to receive it, and the action of which forces down the epiglottis, all impediment is removed to its falling in the open funnel of the oesophagus ; which having received it, the spiral fibres of the oesophagus force it inwards into the stomach. While the food remains within the cuticular part, it is acted on by pressure, but being further removed, it meets the action of the gastric fluid, by which it is reduced to a pultaceous mass called chyme. In this state it is passed into the small intestines : for in the horse, as before observed, the process of digestion is by no means completed in the stomach, as in man and many animals. The exertions of the horse require that he should eat largely and nutritiously; but the bulky viscera of the ox would have ill suited with his necessities ; for he is not only strong, but his motions are designed to be quick also : it was therefore necessary that some speciality should occur to meet these seeming discordances. This consists in the mode of digestion, which being but partially completed in the stomach, requires a less bulk in that organ, the intestines participating in the labor. A horse will eat two or three pecks of corn or ten pounds of hay at a meal, and yet in a natural state his stomach will not hold half of either. He will also drink two jpails of water, when the same organ cannot hold one. What is taken into the stomach is therefore quickly passed through it, and more is required. A horse cannot fast long without injury and pain ; his food does not produce a lasting effect in the constitution as animal food does on the carnivorse. A dog fed once a day will thrive, and when fed every other day only, will not suffer materially ; but no horse fed once a day would support himself : even oxen and sheep, as having a slower digestion and more intestinal room, can bear fasting better than the horse. As an animal destined for quick as well as great exertions, his wants prompt him to take in a moderate portion of food only at a time, which his digestive powers Culiarly fit hira to convert into nutriment quickly and eflScaciously, by distributing the task through a g tract of canal ; instead of confining it, as in man and the carnivore, to one simple organ, the stomach. 5732. The chyme passes into the duodenum from the stomach, where it receives the addition of the pan- creatic and biliary fluids, whose ducts open into that part of the intestinal tracts. Conducted onwards by the creeping peristaltic motion it passes through this long alimentary tract rather rapidly in the horse ; but it remains sufliciently long to receive further additions from the secreting surfaces of the smaller in- testines, and probably to have its work of division and absorption begun in it. Arrived at the larger part of the intestinal tract, it is purjiosely delayed to be fully strained and separated, the open mouths of the lacteals spread over the villous surface, receiving the nutritious part under the name of chyle, and the residue being carried backward, and thrown out as dung. The chylous orifices belong to minute tubes termed lacteals, which pass onwards enveloped in membranous folds termed mesentery, until uniting in one trunk called thoracic duct, their contents are poured into the heart, whereby they become mixed with and converted into blood, producing an increase to its quantity ; as the alteration it receives in the lungs is an amelioration of its quality, which it has been shown is equally necessary. 5733. The liver may also be considered as a digestive organ {fig. 618 b b), inasmuch as it secretes a fluid whose office appears to be to quicken the action of the intestines ; at the same time that perhaps the very matter separated tends to purify that blood which has been already distributed to the chylopoetic viscera. All other animals, except the horse, ass, and deer, are furnishgd with a receptacle for the bile, where it may be retained and rendered more acrid : but the horse has no gall bladder, and in his foetal state, an- other speciality presents itself in this organ, which is, that he is deprived of a canalis venosus, and thus the whole of the abdominal blood flows through the liver. From this simplicity of structure in the horse he is seldom affected with obstructed, or concrete bile; but the organ itself is liable, to inflammation, and also to a chronic disease of it through the medium of the stomach. 5734^ The pancreas is an assistant to digestion also, as we have reason to conclude by its pouring its con- tents into the duodenum with the bile. It is situated behind the liver, between the stomach and loft kidnev. 5735. The spleen or milt, {fig. 618 d), is a spongy body situated at the greater extremity of the stomach, whose use is likewise not clearly ascertained ; but has been supposed to be that of a reservoir of blood for the use of th6 stomach. 5736. The kidneys are two excremental glands {e e) situated in the lumbar region, the right more ante- rior than the left. In many brutes, as the ox, sheep, and hog, they are embedded in fat ; but in the horse, dog, and the predatory tribes, they are seldom so. The structure of the kidneys exhibits an ex- ternal reddish part, an internal whitish part, and a cavity called the pelvis. From this cavity passes out the duct called the ureter, and brings with it the urine which is secreted within the kidney. The ureters convey the urine to the bladder. 5737. TheM»^ne appears to be a f cecal separation from the blood, and is in some measure connected with the skin in its office. Ilius, when the perspiration is great, the urine is less ; and on the contrary in winter, when the perspiration is small, the urine is more considerable. The kidneys of the horse are more easily stimulated into increased action by dzwre'^zcs than the human or those of most other animals ; and sub- stances which would not appear potent, act with violence on his urinary organs. Thus mow -burnt hay, kiln-dried oats, &c., will produce diabetes. 5738. The bladder of the horse {fig. 61^ i), is a membranous sac for the reception of the urine. It rests on the pubis, and is immediatsly under the rectum. It is in part muscular, by which it can expel its contents almost to the last drop. At its neck ^s a kind of sphincter to prevent the involuntary escape of urine, and at its posterior part it is pierced by the ureters. To the bladder is attached a membranous pipe caMed the urethra, which passes through the penis, and by that means ejects the urine. Book VII. PHYSIOLOGY OF THE HORSE, 907 SuBSECT. 14. The Organs of Generation. 5739. The male generative organs are most of them external, on the contrary in man they are mostly internal ; but in both the one and the other they are connected with the urinary organs, so that one general formation is made to answer a double purpose. 5740. The male organs of generation consist of the testes or testicles, which are two in number, that in case one should suffer injury, one may remain to carry on the great vvork of reproduction. In the fcetal colt they are lodged within the belly, but after birth they descend into a bag prepared for them. The scrotum is this hag, whose situation is between the hinder extremities. It contains the testicles in two sacs, one appropriate to each. Each testicle is enveloped by two tunics, called vaginalis and alduginea, obtained from the peritoneum. To each testicle is attached an appendage called the epididymis. The vasa ileferejitia are the united trunks of the secretory vessels of the testicle continued from the epididy- mis. Each vas deferens proceeds to join the vesicula seminales of that side to run parallel with it and to terminate near it in the urethra. The prostate glands are in the horse two, whose use,- like the hollow bodies called seminal receptacles, is not obvious, but probably they dilute the semen. 5741. The penis or yard is a long body, in one part nearly prismatic, and in another cylindrical. In the usual state the penis is hidden within the sheatk, which is a prolongation of the skin of the abdomen. The body of the yard is composed of two cavernous flattened portions closely connected, a spongy canal, which is the urethra before mentioned as the continuation of the bladder, and the glans or head, which appears in the horse a distinct part. The penis is^capable of being distended by means of its blood vessels, which fill its cells to turgidity, particularly under the excitement of lust. 5742. The generating use of the male organs is principally derived from the vivifying principle con- tained in the semen secreted within the testicles, and which the horse is impelled by lust to plant in such a situation as shall produce its effect in the formation of a foetus. In the act of copulation therefore, itap- pears that the nervous influence acts on the muscular systemof the penis, whereby the arteries carry more blood, while the veins are rendered unable from some cause to effect its removal ; by which the cavernous cells of the penis become filled, and the member thereby erected ; when, from the friction produced by the female vagina, the penis becomes stimulated into a more exquisite sensation, with which the vasa deferentia and vesiculas seminales participate, then by the assistance of the crcmaster muscles, the semen and diluting fluids become pressed out, and by a "convulsive eiibrt are injected into the generative organs of the mare. The stimulus of the retained semen being now removed, the appetite becomes sa- tisfied, the nervous influence is removed from the vessels, and the penis returns to its ordinary size. 5743. The female generative organs are first the bag or mammce. In the multiparous animals, as the hog, the dog, and rabbit, these bags are numerous, and distinctly placed along the line of the abdomen ; but in the uniparous, as the mare, cow, sheep, &c., one bag, situated between the hind legs, contains the secretary of the whole. In the mare there are two nipples or teats, Which form excretory ducts to the milk secreted within. In ordinary cases, the milk is prevented from flowing out by valves, which open on pres- sure upwards : the colt, sensible of this, is observed to push up the teat with its nose ; pigs and puppies with their feet, &c. The milk in different animals has different proportions of certain component parts, but in each it has thosebest adapted to the animal it is intended to nourish. The volva or sheath is the long oval opening immediately below the anus, at the inferior commissure of which is situated the clitoris, whose structure is not unlike the male penis. Above this, and rather more internally, is situated the urethra, which in the mare is a short membranous canal. The vagina is a long membranous canal above the last described farts, capable of great distention ; but in its natural state about 9 or IG inches long and 2^ in diameter, t is placed horizontally between the bladder and rectum, and terminates in the neck of the womb. The uterus {fig. 618 p) of the mare is very dissimilar to the human, being not an uniform bag ; but having a body and two branching horns, in which, in the multiparous animals, the young are lodged. The extre- mity of each cornua has a small concealed tube attached to it called ihe fallopian tube,&nA a little beyond are seen the oval oblong bodies called ovaria, (fig. 618 gg). 5744. Conception, pregnancy, and evolution of the foetus. (Esfrum, heat, or horsing is in animals not constant, but returns at such periods that the evolution of the foetus consequent on it shall take place at the most convenient season of^the year. The horsing of the mare produces an inflammation in the va- gina and vulva, from whence are ejected what are termed the heats. In this disposition all the parts unite, and when by the injected semen pregnancy has been produced, a vesicle from the ovaria enters the fallopian tubes ; and by this means becomes deposited in the womb to be nourished into maturity. In its residence within the womb, it is covered with expansions from the neighboring parts ; and i! derives its nourishment from a communication with the mother by a fleshy tube called the umbilical cord, and thus situated, it swims within a fluid called the liquor amnii : so circumstanced, the foetus continues to grow, un- til the distention it occasions, becomes too great for the capacity, when the muscular fibres of the uterus, powerfully assisted by the diaphragm and abdominal muscles, contract, and thus force both the foal and the membranes into the world. 5745. The new bornfoal^ on its entrance into active life, finds its organs of immediate necessity in a full" state of capacity. Unlike the infant, it is far from indigent, but can run and perform the common phenomena of an animal with dexterity and ease. Its powers are however not sufl[iciently developed to enable it to live independent : it has therefore a necessity for seeking support from the mother, from whose person it derives its food in the form of milk ; and it may therefore be now considered in some measure as carnivorous. Gradually it becomes fitted to perform all the more matured functions, and when fully able to counteract its own wants, it sympathises only with itself; when the parent's care being no longer ne- cessary, lactiferous secretion ceases, her generative organs prepare anew for the same great work, and she again feels oestrum or heat. 5746. The period of gestation varies in different marcs, one hundred and two mares were observed by Tessier, of which 3 foaled on the 311th day, 1 on the 314th, 1 on the 325th, 1 on the 326th, 2 on the 3.'53th 47 from the 340th to the S50th, 25 from the 350th to the 360th, 21 from the 360th to the 377th, and 1 on the S94th day : which gives a latitude of 83 days in the time of gestation. SuBSECT. 15. Tlie Foot. 5747. '^TYiQfeet of the horse present in their united functions a series of springs with great complexity of structure. An unreflecting observer considers only the horny box, and perhaps attaches as little merit to its mechanism, as he would to a well turned wooden leg of a man. But a little examination will convince him that all the complex- ity, all the admirable mechanism displayed in the assemblage of four Angers and a thumb, are here concentrated within this horny box and its appendages. As the parts which compose the hind and the fore feet do not materially differ, a description of one foot will serve for the whole. 5748. On examining a perpendicular section of the foot and pastern (fig. 620.), there appears the coffin- bone (a), the navicular or nut bone (b), the coronary or little pastern bone (c), the larger pastern 908 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. bone (d), the back sinew or great flexor tendon of the foot (e), the same tendon sliding over the navicular bone (/), its termination or insertion into tlie bottom of the coffin bone {{r), the clastic matter of the sensible frog {h}, the insensible or horny frog («), the horny sole (k), which includes the parts of the sensible foot; the outer wall of the hoof (/), the elastic processes (w), the attachment of the extensor tendon to the coffin bone (n), ana its attachment to the coronary bone (o), which completes the section. 5749. The coffin bone (.fig. 620 a) adapts itself to the form of the lioof, or rather is adapted by nature to this eligible form. The eminence in front receives the insertion of the tendon of the great extensor muscle of the foot, whose upper attachment is to the humerus or arm bone where it is fleshy, but as it passes onwards, it becomes tendinous, expanding over every joint, both to prevent ■friction, and to embrace and give attachments -to each bone, by which a simultaneous movement of the whole limb is made. In the hinder limb, this extensor and its two lesser adjuncts arise from the tibia and in part from the femur. To the sides of the coffin bone are attached the lateral cartilages, and around its surface are marks of the attachment of the laminated substance. 5750. The coronary or small pastern bone (c), articulates with the coffin at its posterior part, and articulating also with both these is the navicular or nut bone (/), whose attachmei?ts to them are effected by ligaments, 5751. The hoof is cortical, or rather, as Clark observes,' slightly truncated, and is a secretion as well from the vascular parts of the foot as from the skin, as our nails are from the portion of skin called the quick. The structure of the hoof is firm and fibrous ; externally plane and convex, but internally concave and laminated. The quarters are the lateral parts. As the horn approaches the heels it becomes soft, and is reflected inwards. The heels are parted by the horny frog (Jig. 621 b), and without the frog on each side, the hoof inflects its fibres to form the bars which are seen on the under surface {fig, 621 c). 621 622 d" In a healthy foot (Xio-.621.) the heels are round, wide and smooth {a a), the frog fully expanded (h), the bars or binders distinct (c), no corns in the usual angle (rf), the sole broad, and con- cave (d). In a diseased foot (fig. 622.), the heels are high and drawn together by con- traction (a a), the frog narrow and filled with 'W fissures from contraction and thrush (6), and the sole greatly shortened in its transverse dia- meter which is morbidly counterbalanced by the increased heights in the truncated form(c). When the hoof is removed, the sensible orfieshy sole{fig. 620 k), above which it immediately lies, presents itself, covering the whole of the horny sole, except so much as is taken up by the sensible frog (h). This part is exquisitely sensible and vascular, and thus we learn why injuries to it from punctures, produce such serious efl^ects ; and why very slight pressure from contraction of the hoof gives so much pain. The sensible frog and the sensible sole form the insensible frog and sole ; but when from pressure, too much moisture, or other causes, the sensible frog, instead of forming horn, secretes pus or matter as in thrush, the structure of the whole becomes injured, and the horny frog, thus losing its support, gradually wastes and decays. It is therefore evident that no thrush can be entirely harmless, as is erroneously supposed. Above the sensible frog and sole, is the great flexor tendon, or back sinew, inserting itself into the vaulted arch of the coffin, {fig. 620^.) This important tendon arising from its parent muscle above the knee, whose origin is taken from the humerus and ulna, in its passage unites with an assistant flexor, but which latter is principally distributed to the pastern bones ; While the perforans, so called because it is perforated by the assistant flexor tendon, is inserted into the vault of the coffin. In the posterior extremities the attachments of these two leading flexors, and a smaller lateral one, are from the femur and tibia. 5752. The sensible lamince. Around the surface of the coffin bone, it has been noticed that there are hnear indentations to which about five hundred semicartilaginous leaves are attached. Each of these is received between two of the horny lamellee which line the interior of the horny hoof: and when it is considered what a vast surface of attachment is formed by these means, the strength of the union will not be wondered at. No violence can separate these parts, and their use, as so many springs to support the actions of an animal, at once weighty, strong, and extremely agile, must be apparent. The vessels and nerves of the foot are derived from the metacarjial arteries, veins, and nerves, which pass behind the pastern, when the main trunks divide to proceed to each side of the foot, and are ramified from thence throughout. It is a divi.sion of the metacarpal nerve on each side of the lesser pastern, or of the larger, as occasion suits, which forms the nerve operation, now in vogue as a remedy for founder. Sect. V. Of the Diseases of the Horse. 5153. The diseases of the horse are as numerous and as important as his complicated structure and the artificial state of his present mode of life would lead one to expect. Until of late the treatment of these diseases was confined to the hands of ignorant farri- ers, presumptive grooms, or shoeing smiths ; and the fate of the animals was commensu- rate with the wretched treatment they were subjected to. The establishment of a school for the veterinary art, has disseminated an improved practice, and spread im- proved practitioners throughout the country ; and we would earnestly recommend an application to one of established reputation in all cases of difficulty and danger. But us it is not always that such a one is within reach, to enable the agriculturist to have in his own hands the means of informing himself, or of being a check on others, we sub- mit a concise view of the diseases of the head, neck, trunk, and extremities, preceded by some general observations. SuBSECT. 1. General Remarks on the healthy and diseased Slate of the Horsei 5754. Condition of horses. Being in condition, in stable language, signifies not only perfect health in- ternally, but such an appearance externally, as the philosopher would call unnatural, or at least artifi- cial: while the amateur considers it as an essential requisite to the other qualities of the horse. This external condition is denoted by a sleek, short, shining coat, with a degree of flesh neither bordering on fatness, noremaciation. Even in this sense of the term, condition must be varied according to the use* Book VII. DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 909 of the animal. In the cart horse, provided there be sleekness of coat, looseness of hide, sound wind, freedom from grease or swelled legs, with good digestion ; a fulness and rotundity of bulk, instead of detracting from his beauty or impeding his exertions, will add to ithe one and assist the other. In the coach horse, the hackney, the hunter, and the racer, a different condition is expected, varying in diiferent degrees from that of the cart horse. In both cart horse and racer, it is equally necessary that the various internal organs should be in a state to act uninterruptedly for the benelit of the whole : but in addition to this, it is necessary to the racer, that the greatest possible quantity of animal fibre should be condensed into the smallest possible bulk ; and that the absorption of all useless fat and other interstitial matter should be promoted by every possible means, as essentially necessary to unite lightness of body, with full strength and elasticity. It is in the attempts to produce such a state in its full perfection, that all the secrets of training consist : but whether a total departure from natural rules, by unnatural heat, deprivation of light, stimulating food, restraint from water, and excessive clothing, are best calculated to promote it, admits of much doubt; and it is to be observed that the dawn of reason and science appears to be shining through the crevices of these darkened casements ; for even at Newmarket the system has lately much relaxed from its artificial rigor. 5755. To bring a horse into condition, not only should the purposes he is intended for be taken into account, but also his previous state. If he be taken up from grass with much flesh on him, it is evident that what is required is to remove the soft interstitial matter it may be supposed he has gained by green food, and to replace it by hard flesh ; and also to produce a sleeknes of coat and beauty of appearance. To accomplish tliese ends, the horse should be accustomed to clothing and the full heat of the stable by de- grees only; and also by degrees only to the meditated change of food; which is best done by mashes. In two or three days a mild dose of physic may be given, during all which moderate exercise only should be allowed, as walking, but which may be continued two hours at a time. After the physic has set, begin to dress his coat, increase his exercise and his food, and accustom him to an increase of warmth. In four or five days time again mash hira for two days, and give a second dose of physic, a very little stronger than the first. (5875.) After this, still further increase his warmth, his exercise, and his food, by which his belly will be taken up, his flesh will harden, and his coat will begin to fall. A third dose of physic, or urine balls, &c. are only necessary in the training of hunters, &c., and even in these, a gradual increase of exercise, rather long continued than violent, with proper food, will efiect the end, if not so quickly, more beneficially to the animal. To bring a lean horse into condition, a somewhat different plan should be pursued. If from grass, still mash him for a day or two, by no means stint him in his water, and with his mash let corn be also soaked. If corn be speared or malted, it will produce flesh sooner. But even here, give tlie horse moderate walking exercise, and if he be not too much reduced, add a mild dose ol physic to prevent his heels flying, or his getting hide bound by the increased food; but if great emaciation forbid the physic, give him nightly an alterative. {Fet. Phamt. 5881. No. 1.) As his- appearance improves, gradually harden his food and increase his exercise. 5756. Diseased condition of horses. What has been already said relates to that alteration from one state to another, neither being an unhealthy one, which custom has rendered necessary ; thus a man in train- ing for running or fighting, and a man out of training, are both considered equally healthy. But there are circumstances that produce a morbid state of condition, different from all these. It is common to hear persons say " my horse is sadly out of condition, and 1 cannot tell either what is the matter with him, or how to get him into better case." Various are the causes that may produce this ; a sudden alteration of the food, or temperature, or of habits altogether, may become a cause. Removing a horse from grass to a heated stable, full feeding, and hard exercise will often do it : therefore these changes should always be gradual. Bad food, as mow-burnt hay, musty oats, beans, &c., likewise mineral waters, foul air, &c., are frequent causes. Diabetes, or profuse staling, is often brought on by these means, and the condition of the horse becomes greatly reduced. It is requisite, therefore, to enquire whether any of these errors are in existence, and to immediately remove them : but it often happens that the stomach has become relaxed and the hide become bound ; neither of which readily remove, even though the original evil may be amended. When the relaxed stomach has produced lampas, treat the mouth as described under that disease (5777.), but the stomach itself must be principally attended to. First mash and give a dose of physic ; after it has set, commence the treatment, if the horse be of a full habit, by a mode- rate bleeding and a nightly alterative {Vet. Pharm. 5881. No. 1. or 2.) But if he be not in full, but in low flesh, commence by a Aa.\\y tonic, (Fc^ P/iarw. 5882. A^o. 1. or 2.) which will gradually remove the swelling within the mouth, and loosen the hide. A sudden cold applied to the skin often brings on a want ot condition with surfeit. In which cases bleeding, nightly alteratives ( Vet. Pharm. 5881. No. 1. or 2.) with or without an assistant dose of physic, as the habit of the horse may require, constitute the proper treat- ment. Worms form another cause of morbid condition wliich are to be removed as described (5809.). Excessive fatigue is also productive of a bad state of condition,vih\ch often proves very obstinate. Turning out to very good grass is the quickest cure, and when that is impracticable, soiling in the stable, or feeding with carrots, parsneps, beet root, &c. will be food restoratives ; as medicines give tonics daily. ( Vet. Pharm. 5882. No. 1. or 2.) It will be only necessary to add, that in considering the state of a horse's condition, the effect is apt to be mistaken for the cause, and the symptoms for the disease. Hide bound and lampas are not in themselves any thing more than effects, or symptoms ; the former being com- monly, and the latter being always dependent on a deranged state of the stomach: both are therefore to be treated accordingly. Exactly the same will apply to all the other symptoms of morbid condition. SuBSECT. 2. InfiammatoTy Diseases of the Horse. 5757. The injlammatory diseases of the horse are numerou.s, but his fevers are few ; a febrile state being generally brought on by the inflammation of some important organ. Inflammation may be considered as general or diffused, and local or confined, and both seem to arise from an affection of the blood vessels, and perhaps from a pecu- liar state of the blood itself. 5758. General or diff'used ivfiammation constitutes fever or extensive inflammatory affection, and appears to consist in an increased action of the heart and arteries, accom- panied with an increase of heat. In some instances where the fever is purely symptom- atic, and dependent on the inflammation of some important organ, as of the lungs, or the intestines, the circulation appears retarded rather than increased, from interrup- tion arising to its passage through the heart. 5759. Local or confined inflammation is also dependent on an affection of the blood vessels, but confined principally to the blood vessels of the part affected. It is be- tokened by redness in the skin, tumor or swelling, heat and tenderness, with pain. Inflammations, both diffused and local, are brought on by excitements, such as over- feeding, excessive heat, the reaction produced after cold, and the reaction produced by inordinate exertion. Those more exterior, arise from injuries, the application of im- 910 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. proper substances, &c. Inflammations terminate in various ways; but it is to be remarked, that in consequence of tlie very large circulatory system in the horse, his febrile affections rage higher, and terminate sooner than in man. The usual termination of in- flammatory affections in the horse, are by resolution, effusion, suppuration, and gangrene. Schirrus is not at all a common termination of inflammation in the horse. 5760. Injlammation of the brain (pkrenitis), brain fever, phrensy fever, staggers, mad and sleepy. There are few diseases more likely to be mistaken by inexperienced farriers than this ; it is not to be wondered at, therefore, if indifferent persons should be led into error by it. It apjjcars in two forms, a violent frantic one, and a sleepy lethargic one, and the latter appearance is also common to a disease, not dependent as this is, on idiopathic inflammation of the brain ; but on a paralytic afltection of the stomach, and thence it is called stomach staggers. This latter affection, however, may be distinguished from the former by attending to the color of the eyelids, nose linings, mouth, &c., which " in stomach staggers are usually more yellow than red : whereas in sleepy staggers, they are more red than yellow. Inflammation of the brain shows itself in general cases by disinclination to food and motion, drowsiness, accompanied by a heaviness and closing of the eyelids, with moisture and redness of them ; and also of the linings of the mouth and nose. Sometimes these symptoms increase until the horse becomes coma- tose, and after a few frightful struggles, he sinks to rise no more. In these cases the pulse is apt to be oppressed instead of increased. But most frequently after the first stages he becomes furious, plunges about, and is vicious to himself and others, approaching to a state of madness, in which state he continues till he sinks from his own exertions, when he rises again to renew his violence. 5761. The causes of staggers may be various : the immediate are either an original accumulation of blood within the brain, or the translation of the inflammation of some organ to tlie brain : as a remote cause it is often brought on by too full feeding, without sufficient exercise, and particularly in horses at one time working very hard, and at another suffered to remain inactive} but which horses, whether used, or not, are equally fed. Sudden cold, violence, &c. may bring it on. 5762. The treatment of staggers should be begun by abstracting a very large quantity of blood promptly, hy opening both jugulars, and letting the horse bleed to the amount of ten or even twelve quarts ; repeat- ing the same until the delirium ceases. After the first bleeding, back rake, throw up a laxative clyster \Vet. Pharm. 5895.), blister the head, promote a current of free air in the stable, and treat altogether as .directed under other febrile affections. 576o. Locked jaw, st:ig-evil, or tetanus, arises from cold, excessive fatigue, sometimes perhaps from worms, but more often from a wound of some part, as pricks in shoeing, &c. Such wound is seldom in a recent state; but after two or three weeks' continuance, sometimes after it has healed even: it follows •docking, gelding, and nicking frequently; and is preceded by a flabby unhealthy state of the wound. It appears as an affection of the brain, which transmits its morbid irritation, particularly to the nerves at- tached to muscles, by which they become cramped, or maybe considered as in a high state of action, giving the horse a peculiar look of energy, as though immediately stopped from full speed ; with his nostrils ex, tended, his head raised, and nose carried forward ; his legs straddle wide, and his tail is cocked and quivers, as after violent exercise. The jaws will now be feund, if not closed, yet nearly so, when he is called jaw set. 5764. The treatment is not often successful, but, however, it is sufficiently frequent that it is so, to de- serve the utmost attention. Blaine informs us that enormous bleedings have succeeded; but he places his principal dependence on the appfication of cold by the means of ice, or of constant dashing with cold water, with an active blister applied the whole length of the spine. Balls of camphor and opium, to the amount of two drachms of each, may be given every three hours. If any room remains in the mouth, the ball may be passed up by means of a stick, or it may be given as a drink by means of a syringe ; and even when the mouth is entirely closed, he informs us we may give a drink by the nostrils. Moorcrofl •used cold also. Fearon, on the contrary, has experienced benefit from a bath, heated to ninety degrees, and kept at that temperature for three hours. White recommends camphor and opium; Wilkinson of Newcastle has been very successful by keeping up heat and stimulus over tlie skin in general, by means of newly stripped sheep skins put on hot Perhaps if the body were previously rubbed with oil of turpentine one part, and common oil two parts, it might assist Wilkinson's plan. When locked jaw arises from nick- ing, it might be prudent for a veterinary surgeon to dissect down on the nerves of the tail, and divide them ; and when from nicking, it would be advisable at once to cut off another portion of the tail, which practices in both instances would afford a moderate chance of saving the animal. It is necessary further to remark, that it is of great consequence that the bowels be kept free from fa;ces, by raking and clysters. With regard to the latter they are very imjwrtant in this disease, as a medium, commonly the only one, of giving support. A horse has been kept alive on nourishing clysters alone, for seven or eight davs. {Vet. Pharm. 5897.) 5765. Catarrhal fever, epidemic catarrh, influenza, distemper, cold, motfoundering, Sfc. These names •apply to one common disease, which often in rainy, variable seasons, appears as an epidemic, and affects thousands of horses at once. It is observed to be particularly prevalent in this form in the spring of some years, more than of others. It is not contagious, like the more mahgnant form, but is brought on as an epidemic by the same causes being applied to nearly all subjects alike ; which are alternations of heat with oold, moisture and dryness, &c. In crowded cities and large towns it is more prevalent than in more open situations, and it is more frequently found in the young than in aged horses. Where it does not exist as an epidemic, it is brought on by an accidental cold taken. It is of great consequence to distin- guish it from pure inflammation of the lungs, with which it is very apt to be confounded; and which mistake is often a fatal one, from the treatment being in some essential particulars diflTerent. Inflamma- tion of the lungs commences by a short cough, without much other disturbance to the health, than the pain it gives the horse to cough, but which is often so considerable as to make him stamp his feet while coughing. If a horse in the distemper coughs early, it is not a hollow, harsh sounding, and distressing cough of this kind ; if he expresses uneasiness, it is principally from a sore throat, which is very common in distemper, but by no means common in pneumonia. The sore throat in distemper gives the horse a dis- position to refuse his food, or he cliews it and lets the quid fall without swallowing it. He refuses water, particularly if it be placed on the ground ; his cough is quick, short, and usually sounds more moist than harsh and dry ; but though common, this is not invariably the case; his eyes are heavy and moist, his breathing is quickened, and his ears and legs are alternately hot and cold. His nose on looking into it is redder than usual, and sometimes his glands, as well submaxillary or jaw glands, as his parotid or vives, are tumefied. On the second or third day excessive weakness comes on; the cough becomes more painful, the pulse is quickened, and the nose begins to run. After which the horse either runs off the disease by this suppuration, or it goes on to destroy him by the height of the fever, and degree of weak- ness produced, or by suffocation from water in the chest. Now and then, although recovery takes place, an obstinate cough is left ; and in a few cases the disease terminates in glanders. 5766. T/fte^r^Trt^/rt^w^ may in some cases be cut very short ; for as in almost every instance a shivering fit begins the disease, so when many horses are in a stable, and the disease is very prevalent, those who have not been attacked should be watched, and the moment such an attack does take place, give of siucet spirit of nitre, or when not at hand of spirit of hartshorn, an ounce, in a pint of sound ale. Exercise the horse briskly, then well hand rub him, clothe him warmly ; and it is more than probable that the disease will be cut short. But should it proceed, or should the disease have gone on unobserved to the appearance of the symptom Retailed, begin by bleeding moderately, if the horse be not already Book VIL DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 911 weak ; or if there have not appeared the running of matter from the nose. If there have, the bleeding had better be dispensed with, unless the fever appear, from the quick full pulse and redness of the inner sur- face of the nostrils and eyelids, to be still so considerable as to require it; in which case we must not be deterred Irom one moderate bleeding; and which, if the febrile symptoms do not abate, may be even repeated.' It will, however, in general cases, be advisable to avoid bleeding after the second day of the attack, or after the running has appeared from the nose, or after considerable weakness has come on. In all cases a very cool temperature is essentially requisite : hot stables, or hot clothing are very pernicious ; but particularly the former. A hood is not improper over the head, because it encourages the running to make an early appearance ; and for this reason a warm mash may advantageously be hung round the neck three or four times a day. Before the running commences, give night and morning the fever powder {Vet. Pharm. 5909. No. 1. or 2.) in a mash or drink : after the running has come on, or as soon as the weakness has become considerable, give night and morning either of the fever drinks. {Vet. Pharm. 5910. No.S. or 4.) Malt mashes, when the weakness is great, are proper; at other times bran mashes with ])lenty of chilled water are best. To relieve the throat, rub the outside with mild liquid blister, {Vet. Phaim. 5894.), and if the weather be warm enough to allow it, two or three hours turning out in a field each day is proper. Green meat in the stable, when it can be procured, should, likewise be given. 5767. Malignant epidemic, murrain, or pest. Now and then the distemper or influenza assumes a character of uncommon malignance, which is happily not frequent here, but not unfrequent in con, tinental countries, sweeping off a third of the horses and kine, without any means being found sufficient to arrest its progress. In these cases it is found highly contagious, attacking almost all the horses as well as cattle within its sphere of action, or which communicate with each other. Dr. Layard, and Osraer, English writers of established reputation, noticed the appearances of this disease long ago ; and their descriptions are not different from the milder kind noticed (5765.) but in degree. The throat is intensely sore, and the mouth ulcerated ; the glands of the head Swell, and sometimes these and other parts sup- purate and burst. The matter from the nose is bloody, and the stench intolerable; the weakness is also peculiarly great, and shews itself early. 5768. The treatment recommended by Blaine is the early use of malt mashes ; even ale is indispensable! Green meat should be allowed and a very cool stall is necessary, having a fr^e communication with the open air. As medicine, three doses are necessary, every day, of the malignant epidemic fever drink {Vet. Pharm. 5912.) ; half a pint of yeast with a pint of ale has been given, with good effect, three, times a day ; also, to prevent the infection from spreading, fumigate the stables and all the outhouses with the preventive fumigation {Vet. Pharm. 5913.) SuBSECT. 3. Diseases of the Head. 5769. Epilepsy, megritns, sturdy, or tumsick, arc epileptic attacks of greater or less violence, and which are apt to be confounded with the accidental strangulation that sometimes takes place, from a collar too tight, or from driving a horse hard up hill, &c. The epileptic fit makes its appearance by a sudden stop ; if the hcgrse be in action he shakes his head, looks wild and irresolute, but after some time he proceeds; when more violent, he suddenly falls down, is convulsed, dungs and stales insensibly, and remains some time before he recovers. This disease, like staggers, is generally the consequence of too full a habit ; and is, therefore, best relieved by bleeding, and a more moderate diet ; and, where it is convenient, a run at grass should be allowed to alter the habit. 5770. The diseases of the horse's eyes are not numerous, but they are very destructive. The principal are ophthalmia and gutta serena. 5771. The ophthalmia, lunatic, or moon-blindness, is a very peculiar disease among horses, affecting their eyes generally about their full growth, but sometimes later, and seldom earlier. It is but little known among mules and asses, and unknown in oxen and sheep. It does not, however, appear to be a disease natural to the horse, as wild, or even horses little subjected to artificial restraints, are not observed subject to it. But among others, it is become so common as to have the tendency handed down in the breed ; the progeny of some stallions being more prone to it than others. It is often very sudden in its attack, the eyelids being found swelled and almost closed to avoid the light ; they are also very red within, and the haw is half drawn over the surface ; the tears flow down the face perpetually, and the whole head is hot ; now and then these appearances come on gradually. The suddenness of the attack makes tlie complaint to be attributed to accident, as blows, hay seeds within the eye, &c., and it is frequently difficult to get the owner of such a horse, to believe that a constitutional attack, as it usually is, can come on so suddenly. Sometimes as it comes on, so it goes off as quickly, the eye from being opaque and milky, in twenty-four hours becoming clear and almost well. When such an attack has taken place, even if nothing be done, the horse sooner or later amends, and the eye or eyes, for it is sometimes one and sometimes both that are so attacked from the peculiar glassy appearance of the eye, arise from a paralysis of the optic nerve. As the eye is not materially altered in appearance, a horse often becomes blind without its being noticed, until his cautious ste[>ping, quick motion of his ears, &c., give notice of the case. On examination it will be found that the pupil remains dilated, however great the light, and the eye is irrecoverably lost. In tlie very early stages, blisters to tiie forehead and stimulants to the eyes, (as tvhite vitriol a drachm, water four ounces, may be tried, but with faint hopes of success. 5773. Pole evil. This complaint commonly requires the attendance of an experienced practitioner ; but the prevention is often in the power of owners, and others about horses ; and to this point we shall par- ticularly direct their attention. Pole evil is commonly the effect of accident. Kepeated small blows of the manger, or continued pressure from hanging back on the halter, &c., will, if not remedied, produce swelling at the nape of the neck with some tenderness. In tliis early state, if the collar be removed and the part be kept continually wet with vinegar and water, the swelling will often disperse; but if, in spite of this, it proceeds to suppuration, let a vent be made for the matter by a seton (5868) po that it_may readily flow out. Introduce nothing healing, but encourage a free discharge, and it may 912 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. yet heal at once. " When such is not the issue, the disease attacks the ligaments ; sinuses form, and the matter burrows under the skin and muscles, when a seton must be introduced from the opening above and should be brought out at the bottom : the seton should be then daily wetted with the liquid blister. {Fet. Pharm. 5893.) Should this plan fail, escharotics will be required in the form of scaldinfr mixture. ( Vet. Pharm. 5917.) 511^. Strangles, vives, or ives. This disease has been likened to the human measles, because it usually attacks every horse, and most of them at a young period, between three and five years ; it is fortunate when it attacks colts at grass, as it seldom occasions inconvenience, and which has led some persons into «rror by turning their horses out as soon as attacked ; but it is not found that stabled horses, thus turned out, pass through the disease more mildly, but the contrary, except the disease exists under its very mildest form. White has conjectured that colts breeding the strangles while at grass, are afterwards exempt from glanders, but this wants contirmation. Prosser has also affirmed, that inoculation by the matter of strangles, is good, because it mitigates the complaint, and renders the horse not liable to any future attack ; but the practice has never gained ground : when strangles occurs in the stable, and now and then also in the field, it proves a severe disease, and shews itself under the appearance of a cold, with cough, sore throat, and swelling of the glands under the jaws, or behind and under the ears. Sometimes there is not much external swelling, and the tumors break inwardly, and nature effects a cure; at others they break outwardly, and the disease runs off that way, and sometimes the swellings disperse either by nature or art, which breeders think unfavorable, as they suppose it renders the animal liable to a future attack, but many so treated, pass the remainder of their lives without more affection. 5775. The treatment of strangles. When the swelling lingers, and neither comes forward or recedes, poul- tices are preferable to fomentations, which, by leaving the horse wet, promote evaporation and produce cold. Peal recommends blistering the part, as the best means of promoting suppuration. The horse should be kept very cool, and bran mashes with warm water should be his principal support, unless the complaint last long, and produce much weakness, when malt mashes should be substituted ; bleeding is only ad- visable when the early symptoms are violent, as heaving at the flanks, extreme soreness of throat, with much swelling around it, and considerable cough, in which case, bleeding and fever medicines are proper. 5776. Vives, or ives, is supposed to be a relic of the latter complaint, and it does appear now and then that after the strangles, the parotid or vive glands do remain enlarged (5794.), which occasions the disease in question ; resolution may be attempted by mercurial frictions, suppuration should be avoided, other- wise the gland may be destroyed. 5777. Diseases of the mouth, lampas. All horses, but particularly very young ones, are liable to enlarge- ment of the rugffi or ridges of the palate, dependent not on any local disease confined to the part itself, but occasioned by an affection of the whole passage of the mouth, throat, and stomach. Itis usual to attend to the part only, which is scarified or burnt to little purpose, when a mild dose of physic, or gentle alteratives, would prove more certain expedients j to which may be added rubbing the part with bay salt, or with vinegar. 5778. Bridle sores. When the bit in colt breaking, or in hard pulling horses, has hurt the bars, care is requisite to prevent the bone becoming carious. Touch daily with eegyptiacum, and cover the bit with leather, unless total rest can be allowed. 5779. Diseases of the teeth are fully treated of under the anatomical description of the bones. (5636.; SuBSECT. 4. Diseases of the Neck. 5780. Fistulous withers are brought on usually by pressure from a saddle with too low or narrow a tree, and what has been said both with regard to orevention and cure on the subject of pole evil, applies here also. (5868.) 5781. Sore throat is common to horses in colds, in influenzas, and in strangles. (5765. 5774.) In every case, the horse finds great difficulty in reaching every thing that stretches his neck downwards or upwards; his water therefore should be held to him, and his hay should be pulled for him: omission of these services greatly aggravates the sufferings of horses laboring under sore throat. 578'2. Swelled neck. A very serious swelling sometimes follows on bleeding with a rusty or poisoned lancet, or fleam, and sometimes from causes not apparent. (5878.) SuBSECT. 5. 21ie Chest. 5183. Injlammalion of the lungs is a disease to which the horse is peculiarly liable, as we might a priori suspect, from the vast dimensions of his circulatory system, and the vast alteration from a natural state to which we subject him, and thereby increase his pulmonary circulation. 5784. The causes are these deviations remotely, but the immediate attack is generally brought on by sudden colil, acting on a heated surface, and thus it is that knackers and collarmakers in frosty wea- ther expect a glut of horses that die from this disease. Hard riding is a very common cause, and high feeding also; it often commences slowly, a hard dry cough has been slightly noticed, but occasioning no alarm for two or three days : gradually, however, the cough appears to give the horse pain ; he ioc- casionally shivers, and his ears and feet feel colder than the rest of his body; he heaves at the flanks, and the lining of his nose is inflamed, and his eyelids also : the appetite now becomes affected, and although there is not much apparent pain, except when the horse coughs; yet there is much anx- iety of countenance present. The pulse is usually small but quick; if in this state the horse be taken out and exercised quickly, it is almost always fatal to him : it likewise happens that this com- plaint is sometimes mistaken for distemper, and from a fear of profuse bleeding, the only remedy that is to be depended on, is omitted, and the horse is lost. At the veterinary college, in these cases, a small dose of aloes is given every six hours, and after being bled and rowelled, the horse is turned out in the open air; and it is affirmed that many recover from this treatment. Certain it is that the stable in which ahorse is placed in this disease can hardly be too cool; but when entirely turned out, his feet and legs cannot conveniently be hand-rubbed, or bandaged up to promote circulation ; neither can we blister a horse when turned out, so conveniently ; and on bUstering we depend as the second source of cure. 5785. The treatment is to be commenced by attempts at lessening the action of the arterial system by early and large bleedings, as seven or eight quarts from a large horse, and which should be repeated in five or six hours if he be not relieved in his breathing. Immediately rub into the brisket, on the chest, and be- hind the fore legs, the blister (Fet. Pharm. 5890. No. 1.). Give half a dose of physic, and assist it by mashes and warm water, which, if not readily taken, horn down. Back-rake also, and throw up the laxative clyster, ( Fet. Pharm. 5895.). Avoid all exercise, clothe moderately, allow a free circulation of cool air through the stable, and rub the legs frequently, and when not under this process, keep them bandaged up to the knees with hay-bands or woollen cloths. The terminations of this complaint are various. It is not uncommon for the horse to appear better, to eat and to drink, and to excite every hope of a perfect recovery ; but on some sudden exertion he falls down and expires. On examination after death, it is found that effusion of a large quantity of serous fluid has taken place in the chest. 5786. Thick wind is another termination of pneutnonia, by leaving the bronchial passages charged with coagulated blood. Moderate exercise and soiUng inthe stable with mild mercurial physic, form the best modes of treatment; but it frequently happens that the cough resists all these, and terminates in broken wind. Book VII. DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 913 5787. Roaring is also a termination cj" pnevmonia, in which case the lungs are not affected, but con- gealed blood, under the name of coagulable lymph, remains in the trachea or windpipe, and obstructs the free passage of the air ; by means of which the roaring noise is made. It is in vain to expect a cure : blistering the throat sometimes slightly relieves it. 5788. Chronic cough is also a terminatioti of pneumonia, and appears dependent on a peculiar irrita- bility the disease leaves in the bronchial passages, which are found afterwards mcapable of bearing any sud- den alteration of temperature: thus horses with this kind of cough are excited to it as soon as the sta- ble door opens, and by every exertion, by drinking, by eating, and, in fact, by any thing that alters the situation of the body, or is new to the part. But besides pneumonia or inflammation of the lungs i)ro- ducing it, it is often brought on likewise by gross feeding, which, weakening the stomach, impoverishes the blood, and thus injures the lungs which are fed by tiiat blood. "Worms also by the same means are a cause of chronic cough. It is thus that we expect to derive benefit by mediums acting on the stomach. Green food is often found useful, but particularly carrots. The hay should be excellent in quality and small in quantity ; and it will be found that soiling in the stable, but particularly a course of carrots, forms a better plan of treatment than turning out. If worms be suspected, treat as under that head. (5809.) Formulae of chronic cough balls are seen in the Vet. Pharm. (5900.) 5789. Broken wind is also sometimes broug/it on l)y pneu7nonia, and sometimes by occult causes. It is often occasioned by over-exertion after full meals, in which the lungs become permanently weakened, perhaps ruptured in their air cells. Inexperienced persons find some difficulty in detecting broken wind from other chest affections, as chronic cough, occasional colds, &c. &c. 5790. Criteria of broken umd. The cough which accompanies broken wind is a short deep hollow grunt- jng noise, and the short grunting expiration is peculiarly excited by turning a horse quickly round, strik- ing him smartly with a stick at the same time, which often produces the deep sound without the cough ; and which is so significant as never to be mistaken whei> once heard and attended to : but the principal peculiarity arises from -the beating of the flanks, which operate rather by three efforts than by two as usual. In the first, the air is drawn in, in the usual manner, and the flanks fill up as in common ; but in the next, the falling of the flanks is by no means natural, for it is nottione by a gradual sinking of the sides, but it takes place at once, with a kind of jerk, as though the horse] were sighing; and then a third effort takes place by a more slow drawing up of the muscles of the belly and flanks, to press out the remaining air. Broken wind destroys the fecundity of the mare, and hence argues permanent alteration of structure ; it is also always incurable, but horses may be rendered very useful that have it, by feed- ing them very nutritiously, but with their food [much condensed in bulk. Little hay should be allowed, and that little should be wetted, water in any other way should be given but sparingly, for which they are however very greedy : from which circumstance, as well as that they are peculiarly flatulent, we learn, that the vitiation of the lungs is cither aggravated by the deranged state of the digestive organs ; or, which is more probable, that the digestive powers become weakened from the state of the lungs, 5791. Diseases of the belli/. Inflamed stomach seldom attacks the horse as an idiopathic affection, but it is not unfrequent for the stomach to become inflamed by mineral poisons as well as rendered inert by vegetable ones. 5792. Mineral poisons inflame the stomach acutely, and produce excessive distress, and cold sweats ; the animal lies down, rolls, gets up again, looks short round to his ribs, stamps with his fore feet, and his pulse beats quick and short. When arsenic or corrosive sublimate have occasioned the malady, a viscid mucus distils from the nose and mouth, and the breath is fcetid. "When copper in the form of vitriolic salts, or verdigris has been given, to the foregoing symptoms are usually added ineflectual attempts to vomit. Immediately the poisoning is discovered, pour down two ounces oi sulphuretted potash y in a quart of water, or in the absence of that, an ounce of common potash in the same quantity cf water : or when no better substitute is at hand, even strong soap suds are advisable. Mineral poisons have also another mode of acting, and are often received into the constitution, neither by design to do mis. chief, nor by mistake ; but are purposely given as remedies. In this way, both mercury and arsenic are frequently given for worms, glanders, farcy, &c., in daily doses, which, when even of considerable mag- nitude, occasion for many days no inconvenience: all at once, however, the constitution becomes fully saturated with the poison, and although before diffused throughout the blood, it now appears to return and act on the stomach to the great surprise of the owner. In these oases the symptoms are not usually so violent as in the former instance, but they arc equally fatal. A similar treatment with the one already prescribed is necessary, and as soon as the first symptoms are abated, give laxatives. In all these cases, large quantities of linseed tea should be horned down, the back should be raked, and clysters thrown up, blood should also be taken away plentifully. As a })reventive to this latter mode of poisoning, whenever mineral agents are used, it js prudent every five or six days to stop a while, and then recommence, by which the constitution will part with the previous quantity. 5793. Salivation is also anotlier mode of poisoning, and though not equally injurious to the stomach, it often proves distressing, and sometimes fatal. Whenever, therefore, mercurials are given, carefully watch the gums, and as soon as they look red, and the horse quids his hay, give hijn a mild purge instead of his mercurial. .'379'1. Vegetable poisons also inflame the stomach, but by no means in an equal degree with the mineral poisons ; nor is it supposed that it is the inflammation they raise that proves destructive, but by an eflTect communicated through the stomach -to the nervous system. Digitalis purpurea or foxglove, taxus baccata or yew, cenanthe oocata or water dropwort, cicuta I'w-osa or water hemlock, phellandrium aqu^i- ticu7n or water parsley, conium maculatum or common hemlock, are all poisonous in a high degree to horses, and may be taken accidentally by the animal as food, or given injudiciously as medicine. Nico- tiana or tobacco, and the vegetable acid or vinegar, are also poisonous, and are sometimes productive or injurious consequences by over-doses, when intended as remedies. It is little known that a pint of strong vinegar has destroyed a horse. As we cannot remove the matters from the stomach, we must endeavor to neutralize their effects by acids and demulcents, as oil, butter, &c. Thus, when narcotics have been taken, a drachm of sulphuric acid or oil of vitriol may be given in a quart of ale; or six ounces ot vinegar, with six of gin, and a quart of ale, may be tried. 5795. Stomach staggers. This peculiar complaint, which is even yet but little understood, appears de« pendent on a particular state of stomach, acting on particular foods ; and not on what is taken in, acting on the stomach, as was supposed by Coleman, White, and others. From later communications of White^ he also now appears to consider it as originating in " a peculiar state of stomach." Blaine appears always to have characterised it as " a specific inflammation of the stomach." It appears among horses of every description, and at grass as well as in the stable ; and there is reason to think it epidemic, as it is prevalent, in some seasons more than in others. It may, perhaps, be regarded now and then as endemic also ; under which circumstance it appears confined to low wet situations, where long marshy grass is abundant, and where noxious aquatic plants mix themselves with the grasses. When it occurs at grass, the horse is found stupidly dull, or asleep with his head resting against something. This has occasioned the disease to be called the sleepy staggers : and it has often been confounded wiih the phrenitis or inflammation or the brain. (5760.) In the stable the horse doses, and rests his head in the manger; he then wakes up and falls to eating, which he continues to do until the distention of the stomach becomes enormous; for the peculiarity of the complaint consists in the total stop that is put to digestion, and the uneasy feel of the distention consequent to such indigestion appears to deceive the horse, and by a morbid excitement toforce- him to take in more. In this way he continues eating until the distention prevents the return of the blood from the head, and the animal dies apoplectic, or his stomach bursts with oyer-disteution. More frc~ 3 N 914 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. quently,' however, the stomach becomes flabby, inert, and paralytic, and after death presents marks of inflammation towards the pylorus. 5796. The treatment. When recovery has taken place, it has occurred only when the disease has been very mild, and has been assisted by stimulating the stomach into action by purgatives, at once active and invigorating, as an ounce of aloes dissolved in half a pint of gin. When a horse of extreme value is at- tacked, croton oil might be tried to the amount of 20 or 25 drops in two ounces of tincture of aloes. Warm water in small quantities, or mixed with common salt, should be frequently passed do\Vn. Remove every eatable, rake, clyster, and hand-rub ; and if the determination to the head be extreme, bleed, other- wise avoid it. 5797. Inflammation of the bowels, enteritis, or red colic, is a very distinct disease from the gripes, gullion, or fret, with which it is, however, very ai)t to be confounded to the destruction of many horses. The pe- ritoneal inflammation of the bowels, the one here treated on, is an aflection of their outer covering. 5798. The causes are various. It is not unfrequently brought on by a sudden translation of cold after great heats, as swimming during hunting, or from the removal of a horse from grass at once into heated stables, clothing and hard food ; neglected gripes, or long-continued costiveness, excessive riding, and the immediate drinking of cold water, have brought it on. It begins by restlessness, loss of appetite, some uneasiness ; the mouth is hot and dry, the inner membranes of the mouth, nose, and eyelids, are often redder than natural. As the disease advances, the pain, before not violent, now increases so as to force the horse to lie down and rise again frequently ; and when very violent, he kicks at his belly, or looks round at his sides, pawing his htter very frequently. The pulse is usually small, quick, or hard ; some- times it is more full and small, but always hard. Breathing is quickened, the extremities are alternately hot and cold, but continue longer cold than hot ; and the animal is costive : sometimes pain may force away a few hardened balls of fasces, but the principal contents are retained. Blaine has given the distin- guishing features between this disease and colic, under which head we have stated them. 5799. The treatment must be active and immediate, or a fatal termination may be expected. Begin by abstracting a considerable quantity of blood ; from a large horse to the amount of seven or eight quarts ; proceed to back-rake, throw up a large clyster of warm gruel. Give by the mouth, if the expense be not considered an object, a pint of castor oil, mixed by means of the yolk of two eggs, with half a pint of broth or gruel. If the expense be objected to, give olive oil instead, following it up in half an hour by a gruel drench, in which six ounces of Ep.som salts have been dissolved. A sheep-skin, immediately as it is re- moved from the sheep, may be applied to the belly, which should first be well rubbed with the stronger liquid blister. {Vet. Pharm. 5893.) In four hours repeat the bleeding, if a considerable improvement have not taken place, and if the bowels be not unloaded, give more oil, and clyster frequently, having first back-raked. Avoid exercise; first hand- rub, and afterwards wrap up the extremities to the knees. As a clear passage for the dung is found, the symptoms mitigate, and the animal slowly recovers ; but he must be fed at first very sparingly. 5800. Inflammation of the inner surface qf the intestines is, in some measure, difFerent from the former, which is rather an affection of their outer covering ; whereas this is usually confined to their villous surface, and may be brought on by superpurgation from over-strong physic, or from mineral acids being taken in, particularly mercurials, which often exert more influence on the bowels than on the stomach. It differs from the former in the symptoms being generally accompanied with purging ; neither is there usually so much pain or uneasiness present, nor such cold extremities; but where from the violence of the inflammation these symptoms are present, bleeding to the amount of three or four quarts is a proper preliminary, but can hardly be with propriety continued. The same stimulants to the outside of the belly should be used as in the last disease ; but here, clothing is recommended as well as warmth in the stable, as also hand-rubbing to keep up the circulation in the extremities. Give astringent drink {Vet. Pharm. 5883. No. 1. or 2.) with a pint^of boiled starch every three hours, and give the same by clyster with two quarts of pot liquor, or tripe liquor, free from salt. 5801. Dysenteric inflammation of the horse's bowels is happily not very common, but now and then appears, and is then called by farriers molten grease ; they mistaking the morbid secretion from the in- testines, for the fat of the body melted down and passing off thus. But dysentery is a peculiar inflam- mation of the mucous surface of the intestines, not contagious as in the human, nor epidemic, nor exhibiting a putrid tendency ; but is peculiarly confined to a diseased increase in the mucous secretions, yet very different from simple diarrhoea, which is a mere increase in the peristaltic motion, by which the common aliments are quickly passed through the intestines, and ejected in a liquid form by an in- crease in their watery secretion. Whereas in the dysentery of the horse, the mucous of the intestines separates from them in large quantities; and comes away with the dung surrounding it ; but when it does not pass in this way it appears in membranous films like sodden leather, or in stringy evacuations, like morsels of fat floating in water ; sometimes there is a little bloody appearance. The usual symptoms of fever are always present, but not in a very high degree. 5802. The causes are cold, over-riding, and not unfrequently acrid substances within the intestines : change of food has occasioned it. 5803. The treatment. In the first stages bleed considerably, and give as the first internal remedy six ounces of castor oil, which will amend the fsecal evacuations considerably ; afterwards administer the following: powdered ipecacuanha, a drachm ; powdered opium, a scruple ; liquid arrow-root, eight ounces. Should this not check the evacuation, and should it continue as mucous as at first, again give castor oil, and then follow it up by either of the drinks directed for the cure of scouring or looseness. ( Vet. Pharm. 5883.) 5804. Diarrhoea or looseness. This complaint originates in an increased peristaltic motion of the intestines with an increase of their watery secretion, and is distinguished from dj^sentery by the purging being complete from the first, and seldom occasioning much fever or disturbance in the general health, unless exceedingly violent. The stools are merely solutions of the aliment, and unmixed with mem- branous films as in dysentery or molten grease. It sometimes succeeds to over-strong physic ; at others the food enters into new combinations, and forms a purge. Some horses have their bowels constitution- ally weak, as lank-sided small carcased ones, where the mechanical pressure hurries the contents forwards. Salt mashes and sea water will purge horses violently sometimes. It is always proper to encourage warmth in the skin, and to change the food. The change should be generally from one more moist to one less so, as beans, &c. Barley will sometimes stop looseness ; malt usually increases it. Buck-wheat is often a check to habitual diarrhoea. Eflicacious astringents will be found in the Vet.Pharm. (5883.) Repeat either of these night and morning. Give but little water and that little warm. 5805. Colic, flatulent, or spas7nodic, called also gripes, fret, or gullion, is an important, because a frequent, disease, and because it frequently destroys either quickly by its irritation, or by its degenerating into the red or inflammatory colic, when improperly treated or long continued. It is usually very sudden in its attack. 5806. The causes of colic are not always apparent. It is sometimes occasioned by intestinal stones, which accumulate to a great size, remaining for years in the cells of the colon, until some accidental displacement occasions an interruption to the peristaltic motion. Cold in its various forms is a parent of colic ; but under the form of cold water given when a horse is hot, it is most common. In some horses it is so frequent as to become a constitutional appendage. 5807. The distinguishing marks between colic and inflammation of the bowels are gained, according to Blaine, by attending to the following circumstances. In gripes the horse has violent fits of pain, but they remit, and he has intervals of ease. The pain in red colic is more uniform and less violent. In gripes, the pulse is, in general, natural ; in red colic it is quicker than natural, and commonly small. Book VII. DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 9^5 The extremities are not usually cold in gripes ; in red colic they usually are. In gripes, the horse attempts to roll on his back, which in red colic he seldom does. There are no marks of fever with gripes, as red eyelids, inflamed nostrils, &c. ; but in red colic they are always present. "When the complaint has continued some hours it is always proper to bleed to prevent its ending in inflamma- tion : bleeding in the mouth is cjuite useless. Back-rake, and throw up clusters of warm water, one after another as fast as possible, which often overcomes the irritation. La losse recommends a curious remedy, but as it can always be obtained, and has the sanction of long experience, it may be tried. An onion is pounded and mixed up with some powdered savine : in default of which, use powdered ginger. This is to be introduced up the rectum as high as possible, and the horse is to be then moved briskly about. An onion put up the fundament whole has long been a domestic remedy. The following is recommended by Blaine : spirit of vitriolic cether, an ounce s powdered opium, one drachm ; oil of turpentine, three ounces; warm ale, a pint. He also recommends the following more simple remedy as always at hand : the ex- pressed juice of two or three large onions, common gin, comtnon oil, of each half a pint ; mix and give. White recommends a pint of brandy, or of gin, with water, as an excellent carminative. Clark, who has expressly written on gripes, extols the virtues of a mixture thus made; which, if it have the qualities he attributes to it, and which there is no reason to doubt, no agriculturist, coach, or post master should be without it : pimento berry, called also allspice, ground fine, half a pound ; spirits of ivine, and of water, of each a pint and a half ; infuse these together, and keep for use. Give a quarter of a pint every hour until full relief is obtained ; hand rubbing, wisping, or fomenting the bowels with hot water at the time. 5808. Infiammation of the intestines from wounds in the belly frequently occurs; and these injuries may happen in leaping over hedges or pale gates, or may be inflicted by the horns of a cow. Sometimes the strong tendinous covering of the belly is ruptured, while the skin remains entire,; the gut then pro- trudes and forces out the skin into a tumor. The first thing to be done is to put the gut back, taking <;are at the same time, otherwise extensive inflammation follows, to remove any dirt or other matter that may be sticking to it ; for which purpose, should it be found necessary, it may be wa.shed with warm water, but with nothing stronger. If the gut cannot be returned, from its being full of air, and the opening in the belly be too small to put it back again, such opening may be carefully enlarged to the necessary size. But if the animal can be thrown upon his back conveniently, a great deal may be done that cannot otherwise be accomplished ; after the gut is returned the skin only should be stitched up, and a cushion of several folds of old linen and tow being placed in the wound, it should be kept in its situation by means of a wide bandage rolled round the body, and carefully secured. The animal should then be copiously bled, and have his bowels emptied by clysters. The only food he should be allowed is grass, or bran mashes, and that only in moderate quantity. When the distention of the intestines wholly prevents their return, it would be prudent to puncture them with a very fine instrument, and thus to suffer the air to escape, which, although subjecting the horse to the risk of inflammation, is better than the certainty of death by having the intestines protruded. 5809. Worms of horses are found, as bots, in the stomach, but which as they attach themselves to the hard insensible part of that organ seldom do harm. Clark fancifully supposes they do good, and devises means for furnishing them when not in existence. The bot is the larva of the oestrus equi, a fly which deposits its eggs, it is supposed, on the grasses on which horses feed, and probably on parts of the horse himself, from whence they pass into the stomach by the food or by being licked off. Certain it is they get there» are hatched, and there remain hanging to the coats of it by two tentaculae, receiving the juices of the masticated food as nutriment. After a considerable time they make their way out by the anus, drop on the ground, and are first transformed into chrysalids, and afterwards into parent flies. When bots fix themselves on the sensible portion of the stomach they may do harm ; but no medicine that we know of will destroy them. The teres or large round worm sometimes occasions mischief, when it exists in great numbers, such as a staring coat, binding of the hide, irregular appetite, and clammy mouth. The best remedy is the spigelia marylandica or Indian pink, in daily doses of half an ounce. l'a;nia are not common in the horse, now and then they exist, and are best combated by weekly doses of oil of turpen- tine, three ounces at a time, mixed by means of the yolk of an egg with half a pint of ale. Tfie ascaris or thread worms are best removed by mercurial purgatives. The existence of worms may be known by the appearance of a yellow matter under the tail, and by the disposition the horse has to rub his fun- dament. Blaine recommends the following vermifuge : powdered arsenic, eight grains, pewter or tin finely scraped, f'enicc turpentine, half an ounce, make into a ball, and give every morning. He also recommends salt to be given daily with the food ; which agrees with our own experience as one of the best vermifuges known. It is a fact acknowledged by the residents along the sea-coast, that horses troubled with worms will often voluntarily drink largely of sea water, and thus cure themselves. 5810. The diseases of the liver are acute inflammation or hepatitis, and chronic inflammation or yellows. Hepatitis is the acute inflammation of this organ, which, like the lungs, stomach, and intestines, may spontaneously take on the affection. The symptoms are not unlike those which attend red colic, blit •with less violence. If it be not however arrested, the termination will be equally fatal. About the third day, the whites of the eyes turn yellow and the mouth also. Bleeding, blistering, and purgatives form the methods of cure as practised in red colic. 5811. Chronic inflafnmation or yellows. The liver of horses is less complex than that of many other ani- mals, and is therefore not very liable to disease ; indeed some authors affirm that the horse is never affected with jaundice, but that the yellowness of skin i,s a mere stomach attectioh : this is, however, erroneous, and not only does the liver become hardened and thickened occasionally; but the bile becomes diseased, and is thrown out in that state by the blood over the body. If fever be present, bleed» but if the symptoms present no token of active inflammation, give each night, ten grains of calomel, ahd every ten days, work it off" with a mild dose of physic. It is, however, necessary to remark, that ilris not every yellowness of the skin (hat betokens either an acute or chronic inflammation of the liver. It is the property of every serious inflammation of any of the important organs of the chest and belly, to communicate a portion of the evil to the other organs immediately in conjunction with the liver: thus an affbction of the stomach or intestines, cf the inflammatory kind, very often occasions redness of the membranes of the nose, eyelids, &c, &c. .^812. Diseases of the urinary organs. Inflammation of the kidnies is an idiopathic affection, not one of frequent occurrence; but as brought on by injuries, such as over-riding, heavy loads, or violent diu- retics, it isnot unfrequent: when idiopathic, it may be the effect either of cold, he.iting food, or a trans- lation of some other inflammation, in which cases, it comes on suddenly, and assumes the same febrile appearances that other intestine inflammations produce; but there is not often great apparent pain, but a frequent inclination to stale, the quantity made being so small as almost to amount to a stoppage of urine, whichislessor more complete, as one or both kidnies are affected. What little urine is made is also at first very thick, and then bloody. When the disease is the effect of external injury, the urine is not so. scanty, but is more bloody ; and this symptom precedes the other. There is usually'much i)ain and stiff- ness about the loins, and we learn from Blaine, that a swelling and a paralytic affection of the hind leg of the side of the affected kidney, sometimes is a feature in the complaint. To distinguish this inflani- 7nation from that of the neck or'body of the bladder, with which it may be confounded, the same author recommends that the hand be passed up the rectum, when, if the affection belong to the kidnies, the bladder^ whether full or empty, will not be hotter than usual ; but the contrary occurs when any part of the bladder is the seat of the disease. > 5813. The treatment must be active, and in most respects similar to what has been recommended for ,red colic, as regards bleeding, emptying the bowels, and endeavoring to lessen the arterial action by bleed., ing : but here we must carefully abstain from irritating the kidnies by diuretics internally, or blisters ex- 3 N 2 916 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. temally. A newly stripped sheep skin placed over the loins, or active fomentations of hot water, are the only sources of counterirritation that are proper; neither should diluting liquors be pressed, on account of the distention they occasion, but no evil can arise from clystering. 5814. Inflammation of the bladder. When the body of the bladder becomes inflamed, there is frequent staling from the very first attack ; but when the neck of the bladder is the seat of the evil, the squeezing out of a few drops will only take place when the bladder has become filled, which may be known by pass- ing the hand up the rectum. The treatment will be alike in both cases, and is the same as recom- mended for the last affection. It must be evident, that warm, mild, and frequent clystering, must here be peculiarly advisable. 5815. Strangury or suppression of urine ; incontinence of urine ; bloody urine. Strangury may arise from an injury done to the kidnies, or to the bladder, by strains, or by the absorption of irritating matters. In these cases, bleed if there be fever, and if not, merely give the horse absolute rest ; mash him, give gruel, and warm his water for drink. Bloody urine should be treated in the same way ; some horses have such a natural or acquired weakness of kidnies, as to stale blood with their urine on every occasion of over-exertion : the means frequently used for relief are such as aggravate the complaint, and indeed are often the occasion of it, which are diuretics. Strong diuretics injure horses more than strong physic, and benefit them less than any other of the popular means made use of. In retentions of urine, but par- ticularly in the case of bloody urine, they are absolutely improper. 5816. Diabetes, profuse staling, or pissing evil. This disease is more frequently forced on the horse, by long continued diuretics, or from a similar effect brought on by kiln-dried oats, mow-burnt hay, and some green vegetables, than acquired from constitutional indisposition. The horse first stales often and profusely, he then becomes weak and faint, and sweats on any exertion. If it be at all constitutional, his hide is bound from the beginning, and his urine will have a sweet taste ; but if his appetite were good, and his coat sleek, bright, and elastic when the urine was first observed to be immoderate, the evil arises from some fault in the feeding, clothing, exercise, or other management of the horse. Examine into these matters, particularly into the food, and next the water. Enquire whether diuretics have been given, under an erroneous supposition of increasing the condition, and alter what may be amiss. If this do not remove the complaint, try the following, after Blaine's directions : liver of sulphur two drachms, uva ursifour drachms, oak bark one ounce, catechu half an ounce, alum, half a drachm, : give as a daily drink in a pint of water. 5817. Stone and gravel. Calculous concretions are not uncommon in the large intestines of horses, where they grow sometimes to an enormous size, lodged in one of the cells usually, and where they occasion but little inconvenience, except a displacement occurs, when serious evils, as colic, inflammation, or total stoppage, follow. In the bladder, stone is very seldom found ; and there is reason to believe, that though gravel is a common term m the farrier's list, that it seldom if ever occurs ; injuries of the kidnies and bladder being usually mistaken for it. SuBSECT. 6. Diseases of the Skin. 5818. Mange is a contagious disease not uncommon among low bred and badly kept horses, but which is seldom generated in those properly managed. When it is the effect of impoverished blood, a diflTerent course of feeding must be substituted, not heating, but cooling though generous ; as carrots, speared com, malt mashes, stable soiling, &c. When it arises in full fed horses, bleed twice, lower the feed, ing, substituting for corn, soilings, carrots, or bran mashes. Give a nightly alterative ( Fet. Pharm. 5881. No. 1. or 2.), and dress with either of the mange dressings. ( Vet. Pharm. 59^.) After a cure has been effected, carefully clean all the apartments with soap and water. 5819. Surfeit wUl now and then degenerate into mange, but more generally it is brought on by a fulness of habit acted on by sudden transitions from cold to heat, or heat to cold ; it is likewise not unfrequently the consequence of over-fatigue. If it show a disposition to spread, and the skin become scaly and scurfy, treat as under mange; otherwise treat as directed under want of condition. (575B.) 5820. Warbles are of the nature of surfeits in many instances, in others they are brought on by the pressure of the saddle, which either suppurate and burst, or become indolent and remain under the name of sitfasts. In the early state, bathe them with chamberlye or vinegar : if they proceed to suppuration refrain, and when they neither go back or come forward, put on a pitch plaster, and if this do not promote suppuration, let the sitfast be dissected out 5821. Warts are common to old horses, and had better be put up with, unless they be situated in some inconvenient or very conspicuous part. In this case tie a thread tightly around the root, and the wart will drop off, or it may be cut off. Blaine recommends the following, when warts are too numerous to be 80 removed : crude sal ammoniac two drachms, powdered savin one ounce, lard an ounce and a half. 5822. Hidebound is a state of the skin, where the interstitial matter between that and the fleshy pan- nicle is not in a state to allow of its pliancy and elasticity. The binding down of the hide thus closely, acts on the hair, which it protrudes in a contrary direction to its naturally inclined position ; and thus a staring coat usually accompanies hide binding. In considering the subject of condition (5756.), we have seen that it is not a disease of itself, but is in every instance a symptom only. SuBSECT. 7. Glanders and Farcy, ■ 5823. TIte glanders is the opprobrium medicorum, for hitherto no attempts have succeeded in the cure of more than a few cases. By some peculiar anomaly in the constitution of the horse, although con- clusive proofs are not wanting that this and farcy are modifications of one disease, and can each generate the other ; yet the one is incurable, while the other is cured every day. When glanders has been cured, the time and labor necessary to accomplish the end has swallowed up the value of the horse ; and has also in many supposed instances of cure, left the animal liable to future attacks which have occurred. The experiments on glanders, pursued at the veterinary college and by White of Exeter, have thrown reat light on the disease itself, its causes, connections, and consequences ; but have done little more. rom these we are led to conclude that glanders will produce farcy, and that farcy can produce glanders. That glanders is highly infectious, and that such infection may be received by the stomach, or by theskin when it is at all abraded or sore: and it is also probable that it is received by the noses of horses being rubbed against eacli other. White's experiments go to prove that the air of a glandered stable is not in- fectious ; but this matter is by no means certain, and should not be depended on without a greater body of evidence. 5824. The marks of glanders area discharge of purulent matter from ulcers situated in one or both nostrils, more often from the left than the right. This discharge soon becomes glairy, thick, and white- of-egg-like : it afterwards shows bloody streaks, and is foetid. The glands of the jaw of the affected side, called the kernels, swell from an absorption of the virus or poison, and as they exist or do not exist, or as they adhere to the bone or are detached from it, so some prognosis is vainly attempted by farriers, with regard to the disease ; for in some few cases these glands are not at all affected, and in a great many they are not bound down by the affection to the jaw. As there are many diseases which excite a secre- tion of matter from the nose, and which is kept up a considerable time ; so it is not always easy to detect glanders in its early stages. Strangles and violent colds keep up a discharge from the nostrils for weeks sometimes. In such cases a criterion may be drawn from the existence of ulceration within the nose, when- ever the disease has become confirmed. These glanderous chancres are to be seen on opening the nostril a little way up the cavity, sometimes immediately opposed to the opening of the nostril ; but a solitary chancre should not determine the judgment. The health often continues good, and sometimes the condition also, until hectic takes place from absorption, and the lungs participate, when death soon closes the scene. f Book VII. DISEASES OF THE HORSE. 917 5825. The treatment of glanders, it has already been stated, is so uncertain that it is hardly worth the at- tempt ; however, when the extreme value of the horse or the love of experiment leads to it, it may be re- garded as fixed by experience, that nothing but a long course of internal remedies, .drawn from the mineral acids, can effect it. These have all been tried in their endless variety : White recommends the mildest preparations of mercury, as cethiops mineral ; ujider the conviction that,the more acrid prepara- tions disturb the powers of the constitution so much, as to destroy as effectually as the disease. At the veterinary college the sulphate qf copper (blue vitriol) has been long in use. Others have used the sul. phates of iron and zinc. Clark recommends the daily administration of a drink or ball,* composed of the following ingredients : sulphate qf zinc 15 grains, powdered cantharidesl grains, powdered allspice 15 grains ; of which he gives one or two extraordinary proofs of utility. 5826. Thefarcy is a disease more easily cured than the glatiders, of which our daily experience convinces us ; farcy, or farcin, attacks under distinct forms, one of which affects the lymphatics of the skin, and is called the bud or button farcy : the other is principally confined to the hind legs, which it affects by large indura- tions, attended with heat and tenderness. A mer^ dropsical accumulation of water in the legs sometimes receives the name of tua/er/a;cx/; but this has no connection whatever with the true disease in question^: farcy is very contagious, and is gained from either the matter of farcy or from that of glanders. 5827. Treatment (f farcy. The distended lymphatics or buds may often be traced to one sore, which was the originally inoculated part, and in these cases the destruction of this sore, and that of all the farcied buds, will frequently at once cure the disease, which is here purely local. But when the disease has proceeded farther, the virus must be destroyed through the medium of the stomach ; although even in these cases, the cure is rendered more speedy and certain, destroying all the diseased buds, by caustic or by cautery. Perhaps no mode is better than the dividing them with a sharp firing iron ; or if deeper seated, by opening each with a lancet, and touching the inner surface with lapis infernalis. The vari- ous mineral acids may any of them be tried as internal remedies with confidence ; never losing sight of the necessity of watching their effects narrowly, and as soon as any derangement of the health appears, to desist from their use ; oxymuriate of quicksilver (corrosive sublimate) may be given in daily doses of fifteen grains ; oxide of arsenic may also be given in similar doses. The subacetate of copper (verdi- gris) may also be tried, often with great advantage, in doses ofa drachm daily. Blaine joins these prepara- tions, and strongly recommends the following : oxyynuriate qf quicksilver, oxide of arsenic, subacetate of copper, qf each eight grains ; sulphate of copper one scruple ; make into a ball and give every morning, carefully watching the effects, and if it be found to occasion distress, divide, and give half, night and morning. The same author professes to have received great benefit from the use of the following : the expressed juice of clivers or goose-grass, a strong decoction qf hempseeds, and of sassafras, of each six ounces, to be given after the ball. It remain's to say, that whatever treatment is pursued will be rendered doubly efficacious if green meat be procured, and the horse be fed wholly on it ; provided the bowels will bear such food ; but if the medicines gripe, by being joined with green food, add to the diet bean-meal. When green meat cannot be procured, carrots usually can ; and when they cannot, still potatoes may be boiled, or the corn may be speared or malted. As a proof of the beneficial effects of green meat, a horse, so bad with farcy as to be entirely despaired of, was drawn into a field of tares, and nothing more was done to him, nor further notice taken of him, although so ill as to be unable to rise from the ground when drawn there. By the time he had eaten all the tares within his reach, he was enabled to struggle to more j finally he rose to extend his search, and perfectly recovered. SuBSECT. 8. Diseases of the Extremities. 5828. Shoulder strains are very rare, most of the lamenesses attributed to the shoulder belong to other parts, and particularly to the feet. Out of one hundred and twenty cases of lameness before, Blaine found that three only arose from ligamentary or mus- cular extension of the shoulder, or rather of the adductor and sustaining muscles : when shoulder strain does happen, it is commonly the consequence of some slip, by which the arm is forced violently outwards. It is less to be wondered at than at first seems probable, that farriers mistake foot lameness for shoulder strains, when we reflect that a contracted foot occasions inaction, and favoring of the limb ; which thus wastes the muscles of the shoulder. Seeing that one shoulder is smaller than the other, the evil is attributed to that, and it is pegged, blistered, swam, and fired, to the torture of the animal and the increase of the foot's contraction by the confinement. In real shoulder strains, the toe is dragged along the ground while in motion ; at rest it is planted forward, but resting on the point of the toe. When the lameness is in the foot, the horse points his foot forward also, but he does so with the whole limb unbent, and the foot flat. These differences are highly necessary to attend to, as well as the peculiar diflficulty there is in moving down hill, which he does with reluctance, and by swinging his leg round to avoid flexing it. This lameness may be farther brought to the test by lifting up the fore leg considerably, which, if the evil be in the shoulder, will give evident pain. The muscles between the fore legs are likewise tumefied and tender in these 5829. The treatment consists, when it is recent, in bleeding in the plate vein, rowelling in the chest, and fomenting with hot water two or three times a day. When the heat and tenderness have subsided, first bathe daily with the astringent wash for strains (Vet. Fharm. 5886,, iVo.l.) for a week; and afterwards, if necessary, proceed to blister in the usual manner. 5830. Strain in the whirl bone (5655.). This important joint is sometimes strained, or its ligaments and muscles unnaturally extended, from a greater force being applied to them than their structure is able to bear, or their powers to resist : a laesion takes place of some of their fibrillae, or in lesser injuries their elasticity is injured by being put on the stretch beyond their power of returning. In all such cases, the parts react, and inflammation follows ; by which heat, tenderness, and swelling ensue. 5831. Treatment The first indication is the same in this as in all ligamentary strains, which is to moderate the inflammation by fomentations, &c. &c., and when that nas subsided, to endeavor by astringents and bracers to restore the tone of the parts : after which, if any swelling remains, from the extravasated blood becoming organised, to promote its absorption by mercurial frictions, and blistering. This applies to all strains, and will direct the treatment therefore of that of strain in the articulation of the thigh with the body also. 5832. Strain in the stifle, is treated in the same manner. 5833. Strain or clap in the hack sineivs. This is generally an injury done to the sheaths of the tendons, or of the ligaments which bind them down. In very aggravated cases, it sometimes occurs that even the tendons themselves are extended beyond their capacity. The heat, swelling, and tenderness, are first to be combated by fomentations, and if these be extreme, bleed also, and give a dose of physic. .Next proceed to poultice with saturnine applications, until the heat and swelling are reduced : then use tonics, 3 N 3 918 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. astringent wash, {Vet. Pharm. 5886. No. 1. or 2. ) : bandage and exercise very carefully. If swelling remain after heat, pain, and lameness are past ; or when lameness only remains, after ^all heat is gone, proceed to blister mildly twice. In all cases of ligamentary extension when the heat has subsided, the part may be considered as in a state of atony ; and bandages judiciously applied are then proper, particularly during the day. 5834!. Rupture of the tendons and ligaments of the leg. It is very seldom that the tendons themselves are ruptured, but the suspensory ligaments are more often so, and the evil is called breaking down. It is usually very sudden, and the fetlock is brought almost to the ground. A perfect cure is seldom ob- tained ; but the inflammation should be moderated by the means already described, and the heels should be raised. A laced stocking or firm bandage, when the inflammation has subsided, is necessary; and firing is often prudent as a permanent bandage. 5835. Strains of the ligaments of the fetlock and coffin joints often occur, and may always be distinguished by the heat, tenderness, and swelling. Treat as already described. In all strains of the leg, attended with inflammation, a goulard poultice is a convenient and useful application. The goulard water should be mixed with bran, and a worsted stocking being drawn over the foot, and up the leg, it is first tied around the foot ; the poultice is then put in, and the stocking fastened around the leg above the injury. (5867.) 5836. Mallenders and sellenders are scurfy, scabby eruptions, affecting the back of the knee, and ply of the hock ; common only in coarse, low-bred, and in cart-horses. Wash with soft soap every day, after which anoint with an unguent formed of equal parts of mercurial ointment, tar, and Turner's cerate. 5837. Broken knees. The usual cases of broken knees are referribie to woimds in general ; and the treatment of them in no wise differs therefrom, with this caution, that here it is more immediately neces- sary, both for appearance and safety, that if any flap of skin hang apart, to cut it off, or the wound will Ileal with rugosed edges. But when the joint of the knee is broken into by the violence of the injury, it becomes of a very different nature, and is known first by the extreme lameness and swelling that occur ; and next, by the escape of a slippery mucus not unlike the white of an egg. If this continue to escape, violent inflammation follows, and either the horse or the joint are lost by it. Farriers are apt to attempt to stop the flow of the jom^oz/, as it is called, by oil of vitriol, or other escharotics, which treatment is usu- ally followed by the most disastrous consequences. It is, however, necessary to stop the immediate flow, by other means ; the best of which is by a fine budding-iron heated. Should the laceration be consider- able, this cannot be done; but the treatment must then consist of saturnine poultices, bleeding, low diet, and the other antifebrile remedies, until the swelling has subsided, when apply the astringent paste recommended by Clark, made of pipe-clay and alum, every day ; but by no means introduce any escha- rotics. On the subject of broken knees, a prejudice prevails, that a horse that has once broken his knees, is more liable to fall again than a horse that has not before fallen down ; but unless the knees be injured so as to become stiff by such an accident, the supposition is wholly erroneous. Horses fall as often by treading on sharp stones when they have corns, as they do by stumbling : and as corns sometimes come on rapidly by pressure, so such a horse becomes afterwards liable to trip, and this gives rise to the opinion formed, that when once he has been down he will ever after be liable to it. 5838. Splints and bone spavins. The former are usually situated on the inner side of the canon or shank before; and as they are situated, so they are more or less injurious. "When buried, as it were, within the tendons or back sinews, they are very apt to lame the horse seriously ; but when situated on the plain bone, unless they be very large, they seldom do much injury. If a splint be early attended to, it is sel- dom difficult to remove. Blaine recommends the swelling to be rubbed night and morning for five or six days, with a drachm of mercurial ointment, rubbing it well in ; after which to apply a blister, and at the 6nd of a fortnight or three weeks to apply another. In very bad cases, he recommends firing in the lozenge form. 5839. Bone spavin is an exostosis of the hock bones, the treatment of which in no wise differs from that of splint; except that as a spavin in general is more injurious than a splint, so it is more necessary to com- mence the treatment early, and to continue it energetically. It also unfortunately happens, that from the complexity of structure on the hock, spavin is not so easily removed as sphnt, and more usually requires the application of firing. 5840. Ring bone is of the same nature, being an exostosis or bony circle formed around the coronet, the treatment of which is the same with splint and spavin. 5841. Blood spavin, bog spavin, and thoroughpin, are all of them originally of the nature of windgalls, and are nothing more than enlargements of the bursal capsules described in the anatomy, as surrounding tendons, ligaments, and bones, to furnish them with a lubricating medium. By over-exertion or hard work these bursal bags become extended, and their contents increased, and distended into puffy swellings in the hock, called, when on the ply, bog spavin. The pressure of this sometimes occasions a varicose state of the superficial vein, which passes directly over it on the inner side of the hock, and which enlargement then receives the name of Woorfsjocrj/iw. When the bursal enlargement extends through the hock, it is called thoroughpin. When it is situated below, in the bursas of the flexor tendons, near the fetlock joint, it receives the name of windgall. 5812. The treatment of all these cases must be similar in principle, and consists in lessening the dis- tended sac ; not as was formerly practised to the destruction of the horse often, by letting out the con- tents of these windgalls ; but by strengthening the sides of the tumors by stimulants or by pressure. The more active stimulants are the liquid blister ( Vet. P^arm-. 5893.), milder ones are found in the astringent wash. ( Fet. Pharm. 5886. No. 1.) Bandages assist greatly, when well applied to the part, and in desperate cases firing has been resorted to, which is nothing more than a more violent stimulant, and a more perma- nent bandage. 5843. Capulet is a bursal enlargement of the point of the hock, and is to be treated by friction, astringents, and bandage. 5844. Curb is an inflammation of the ligaments at the back of the hock, and is usually removed by astringents. {Vet. Pharm. 5886.) When it does not give way to these, the sweating liquid blister may be applied. (Frf. Pharm. 5894.) » 5845. Cracks and grease may be considered as modifications of one and the same aflfection, and are com- monly brought on by some neglect in all horses ; but when they occur in any but the thick. heeled low- bred animals, they are invariably so. Over-feeding or under-feeding, but much more frequently the former, will bring it on. A very frequent cause of it is the practice of washing the legs of horses, and suffering them to dry of themselves. In every case, without exception, washing the legs should be avoided, unless they be rubbed perfectly dry afterwards. When horses have long hairs about their heels, and are washed and then left wet, the evil must be doubled ; as the evaporation going on, cools and chills the heels, and thus produces a species of chilblain : and we well know how difficult these are to heal when broken. Cracks in the heels very often occur in horses removed too suddenly into full keep from previous straw or grass, or from these to a hot stable; which, by the heat and moisture of the litter, occasions a determin- ation of blood and humors to the legs, and they break out into cracks or scabs, from which issue a bloody ichor, or a more thick matter. Between the sores the hair stares and gets pen-feathered, and the horse finds difficulty and pain in moving. 5846. The treatment must depend on the state in which the animal is at the present If there be reason to suspect the horse to be full and foul, bleed, lower his food, soil him in the stable; or mash and give a mild dose of physic. But when some mismanagement is the sole cause, remove that, and if the case be a severe one, by means of an old stocking drawn over the foot, bury the whole heel in a poultice, made of scraped carrots or turnips ; which will subdue the irritation, and bring the parts into a state to bear the application of the astringent paste ( Vet. Pharm. 5888. No. 2,), or if more convenient, of the astringent wash Book VII. DISEASES OF THE HORSE* 9J9 {.Vet. Pharm. 5886. No. 1. or 2.) Moderate exercise should be continued, and the heels carefully cleaned from dirt by soft soap and water on each return therefrom ; after which, always again apply the astringent. 5847. Grease is nothing more than an aggravated state of the same attection, and is more common to the hind than to the fore legs. Coarse flesny-legged horses are peculiarly prone to the aflfection, from the great accumulation that takes place in their legs ; and from the difficulty that the capillaries find in carry- ing the increased quantity of lymph upwards. In these, long stable confinement should be avoided, and when that is impossible, it should be counteracted by exercise frequently and judiciously administered. Many cart horses never go out but to work : they often work three days incessantly, or nearly so j and they perhaps rest two days entirely. Can it be wondered at, that the change occasions swelling, 'acting on the weakness and exhaustion of previous fatigue? and could not this be avoided by turning out for an hour ; or walking for half an hour night and morning ? Stable soiling should be used ; bleeding and physicking also in very bad cases ; and when the inflammation and irritation or soreness are great, the poultices recommended for cracks, should be applied until these circumstances are removed; when commence the use of some of the astringents recommended. {Vet. Pharm. 5886.) White has stated two remarkable cases of grease cured by the application of corrosive sublimate, in the form of a wash, as of too drachms of sublimate to ten ounces of water ; increasing it to three drachms, if the pain occasioned by the V first be not too considerable. Blaine says that the clivers or goose-grass has been known to be of great service in bad cases of grease : half a pint of the expressed juice to be given daily as a drink ; and a poul- tice of the herb to be applied to the heels. In some cases of long standing when the running has ceased, a thickened state of the limb remains, which is best removed by firing, and which likewise is a preventive to a return. SuBSECT. 9. Diseases of the Feet. 5848. Founder of the feet is qf two hinds, an acute and a° chronic. Acute founder is a disease that, until lately, was less understood than almost any other. After a very severe day's work, or when very much heated, if a horse get a sudden chill by standing in snow or cold water, it is not uncommon for him to be seized with universal stiffness and every symptom of great fever. Such a horse is said to be body foundered. By degrees, however, it is observed that the animal has an extreme disinclination to remain on his feet ; from whence it will appear that the whole of them are affected. When the horse draws his hind feet under him, his fore only are affected : and when he draws his fore feet under him, the hinder feet are the seat of the complaint ; but which is seldom the case. On feeling the feet they will be found intensely hot, and the pastern arteries will beat with great violence. After a few days, unless the disease abate, a separation of the hoofs from the coronet takes place, and at last they fall entirely off 5849. The treatment. At the commencement of the disease bleed largely, as well by the neck as from the toe of each affected foot, by paring, until the blood flows freely. After which immerse each foot in a goulard poultice, (5867.), give the fever powder or drink {Vet. Pharm. 590P. and 5910), litter iip to the belly ; and if amendment do not take place, renew the bleedings, and blister round the pasterns. 5850. Chronic founder, contraction or fever in the feet. The artificial life that horses lead, subjects them to many diseases ; one of the principal of which is that of contracted feet. Blaine considers a neglect of sufficient paring of , hoof, the application of artificial heat from hot stables, and hotter litter, the depri- vation of natural moisture, constitutional liability, and the existence of thrushes, as among the principal causes of this evil. It is more common to blood horses than to others ; and he observes, that dark chestnuts Are of all others most prone to it The appearances of a contracted foot, as contrasted with a healthy one, we have already displayed. (5751.) It is there shewn that the contracted hoof becomes longer, higher, and narrower : the heels [Jig. 621 a a) particularly are drawn in, and seem to screw the frog between them, which becomes wasted and thrushy_from this pressure. The hinder hoofs are seldom affected, 5851. The treatment qf contraction in the feet. It is better to prevent, than to be under the necessity ol attempting to cure the evil. Prevention may be practised by avoiding the acting causes. As soon as at all suspected to be likely to occur, keep the hoofs i)ared low ; never suflPer the horse to stand on litter, nor allow the stable to be too hot, feed moderately, and never allow the horse to go without daily exercise ; whatever increases the general fulness of habit, flies to the feet. Above all, keep the feet moist by means of wet cloths tied loosely around the coronet, falling over the whole hoof, but not extending beyond the edge. Then moisten repeatedly, and stop the feet (5918.) every night. When contraction has already taken place, many plans have been recommended ; as jointed shoes by Coleman, Clark, and others ; but it is not found that mechanical expansion in this way produces permanent benefit. The most effectual mode is to obvi- ate all previous causes of contraction ; and then to thin the hoofs around the heels from each quarter so thin as to be able to produce an impression by means of the thumb : in fact, to remove so much of the born as is consistent with safety, from the coronet downwards. It is also prudent to put in a score or two from above downwards, drawn a quarter of an inch deep on each side towards the front of the hoof; but whether this be done or not, the front of the hoof should be rasped thin about an inch in width ; by which means a hinge is formed, which operates most advantageously in opening the heels. After this is done, tips should be put on, and the horse should be turned out to grass, where he should remain three months, by which time the new formed heels will have reached the ground, and will bear a shoe. This process is fully described by Blaine in his Veterinary Outlines, where a plate completely elucidates the operation, and to which we would recommend the reader. 5852. The pu7nicedfoot is a very common consequence of acute founder, in which the elasticity of the lamina* becoming destroyed, the support of the coffin bone is removed, and it rests wholly on the sole, which it gradually sinks from a concave to a convex surface, drawing with it the front of the hoof inwards. In weak, broad, heavy feet, this evil comes on sometimes without founder ; the treatment can be only pal- liative, a wide webbed shoe exactly fitted to the foot, without at all pressing on it, prevents the lameness consequent to the disease. A shoe exactly the contrary to this has been tried in some cases with benefit, the form of which has been one with a web so narrow as only to cover the crust, but so thick as to remove the feet from accidental pressure. In other cases, no ishoe answers so well as a strong bar shoe. (5932. ) 5853. Corns are most troublesome ailments, to which horses are very liable, and which injure and ruin thousands ; they are wholly accidental ; no horse having any peculiar tendency to them, but being al- ways brought on them by some improper pressure, usually of the shoe, or from something getting in be- tween the shoe and the horny heel. A siioe too long worn is a very common cause, and a still more frequent one is the clubbing the heels of the shoe ; neither is it necessary to the production of corns, that the shoe itself should press on the sole ; but they are equally produced when the outer horn of the heels or of the bars, is the immediate offending part, rendered so by too luxuriant growth, by unequal wear, or bv secondary pressure from the shoe, or by gravel working in. {fig. 6L>1). It is the fleshy sole itself that is bruised, from which, a speck of extravasated blood follows ; and if not immediately relieved, it gathers, or the part becomes habitually defective, and instead of forming healthy horn, it always afterwards forms a spongy substance of extreme sensibility, and thus always is liable to produce pain and lameness when exposed to pressure. „,..., . . « 5854. The treatment of corns is seldom difficult or unsuccessful at their first appearance, but afterwards, it can be only palliative. Blaine directs that by means of a fine drawing knife, every portion of diseased horn should be pared away, and the extravasation underneath likewise. Having done this, he advises to introduce some butter of aittimony into the opening, to place over this some tow. Which should be kept in its place by means of a splint. If any contraction of the heels {fig. 621 a a) be present, it will materially assist 8 N 4 920 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the cure" to lower them, and to' thin the hoof a little around the quarters, and afterwards to put on a shoe without heels opposed to the corn, or a shoe chambered opposite the weak part ; or a bar shoe may be applied, so framed as completely to leave the heel untouched. Introduce the butter of antimony once or twice more, with the interval of two days between, and then turn the horse out to grass : in about six weeks' time the foot will be sound. The treatment of corns, when of long standing, does not mate- rially differ : for although they are never wholly eradicated, they may be rendered but little troublesome. The diseased part must be carefully pared out at each shoeing, and such a shoe put on as will completely free the heel from pressure. 5855. Running thrush is always a dangerous disease, and few errors in horse management are more glaring than the common one of supposing they are necessary to carry off humors. If less food, more exercise, cool stables, and dry standings, were substituted to correct the fulness, instead of thrushes, which invariably contract the feet whenever they continue any length of time, it would save many valuable horses. To the cure, begin by clearing out all the fissures of the frog {fig. 621 a a) from loose ragged horn, and then introduce to the bottom of the sinuses, by means of a thin piece of wood, some of the thrush paste {Vet. Phartn. 5885.), smeared on tow, which will enable it to be held within the cleft, especially if it be guarded by splints of wood passed under the shoe ; renew the dressing daily : turning out to grass mavbe practised to great advantage for thrushes by this mode of dressing. 5856. Sandcracks are fissures in the hoqf's, commonly of those before, and usually towards the inner, but now and then towards the outer quarter also, from above downwards : from the crack, a little oozing of blood or moisture is seen ; and the sensible parts underneath getting between the edges of horn, being pressed on, lame the horse. White recommends to fire the fissure crossways, so as to destroy the con- nection between the divided and the undivided parts of the hoof 5857. Pricks or punctures in the feet are often very serious evils, either when received by nails in shoeing, or by one picked up on the road, &c. The danger arises from the inflammation, which is always great from any injury done to the sensible and vascular parts within the foot. This inflammation quickly proceeds to suppuration ; and the matter is apt to make its way upwards, unless it find a ready vent below. When it does not break out at the coronet, it will often penetrate under the sole, and finally disease the bones, ligaments, or cartilages, and produce quittor. It is very seldom that a horse is pricked in shoeing, but that the smith is aware of it by the peculiarity of the feel on the hammer, and by the flinching of the animal. At such times werehe to immediately withdraw the nail a little, enlarge the opening, and intro- duce some spirit within the puncture, nothing would occur ; but on the contrary, he sends the horse home to avoid trouble, who, the next or following day, is found lame, and with his foot hot. If the nail be only driven too near the sensible lamiuEe, it will only require to be removed to free the horse from his evil ; but if it have been driven through, and have wounded them, then suppuration ensues, and on examin- ing the foot by the pincers when the shoe is removed, he will flinch at the pressure on the diseased part. It is probable, on the removal of the shoe, that matter will at once flow out at the immediate nail hole ; if not, the drawing knife will soon detect the injury. If the heat be great, and instead of matter, bloody dark ichor flows out, wrap the foot up in a poultice ; but if healthy matter flows out, this will not be neces- sary : sometimes it is requisite to detach all the horn that is underrun by the matter ; but when the injury has not proceeded to this extent, apply over the part a pledget of tow steeped in friar's bafeam ; tack on the shoe lightly, and retain the dressing by means of splints, which are thin pieces of wood (the withy which binds birch brooms, is convenient for the purpose,) passed under the shoe ; repeat the dressing daily, and avoid moisture, which would encourage quittor. A nail picked upon the road, and which passes through the sole, below or through the frog, is to be treated in the same manner, and also when the matter breaks out at the coronet; but when a nail is picked up, and penetrates the coffin joint, which is known by the synovia or joint oil appearing ; such opening should be immediately stopped by paring towards the wounded joint, and then applying a heated budding-iron, not to the capsular ligament itself, but to the skin immediately near it ; if this be inconvenient, put a pledget dipped in a little butter of antimony, just within the opening, but do not press it into the cavity of the joint: if this be insuflicient to stop the flow, but more particularly if the original wound penetrated to the bone, it is probable that the bone itself will become in some measure diseased, which is known by the rough grating felt at the point of the probe when passed. In this case, enlarge the opening so as to be able to scrape the diseased bone away. Bruises of the sole, from whatever cause, will all fall under some of these points of view, according as the case may be. 5858. Quittor and canker are the consequences of these injuries when neglected, or originally extensive. In these cases either the bones, ligaments, or cartilages, or all, become diseased ; and a cure can only be obtained by removing the diseased parts by the knife or by caustic. 5859. Treads, over-reach, 8;c. A wound on the coronet is not uncommon from one foot being placed on the other ; or the hinder foot may strike it, &c. First wipe away the dirt, and remove any loose edges that cannot unite; avoid washing, unless stones and dirt are suspected to be within, and bind up, having first placed over the wound a pledget of lint or tow moistened with balsamic tincture, or tincture of myrrh, or of aloes, &c. Over-reaching, or over-stepping, is often an injury done 'to the fetlock joint before, by the hinder foot, or to the back sinew higher up. Sometimes it is simply a violent bruise, at others the laceration is extensive, in which case treat as a tread ; and when no laceration has taken place treat as a bruise or strain. 5860. Cutting is a defect to which some horses are liable from their form, as when they turn their toes out, or have bent legs. Others cut only when they are lean, which brings their legs nearer together. Weak horses cut because they cross their legs when fatigued, and young unfurnished horses cut at youthful periods, and grow out of it afterwards. The part in which a foot interferes with the opposed limb is very different. When it strikes the shank high up it is called speedy cut, and is best remedied by wearing knee boots or rollers. When it is at the fetlock the cutting is at the side, or rather backward, according to circumstances. Some horses cut by the edge of the shoe, others by the hoof at the quarters ; and some by the point of the heels It is to be remarked, that it is better to put up with the evil of cutting, than to do as is too frequently done, which is, to pare away the hoof until it excites contraction. The shoe may be feather edged, or it maybe set a little within the cutting quarter; but by no means alter the size or the form of the hoofs themselves, and particularly avoid taking liberties of this kind with the fore feet. Boots, or rollers, are but little trouble to put on, and when not buckled too tight never injure : whereas to allow a horse to continue to cut produces a callus, and often throws the animal down. Sect. VI. Veterinary Operations. 5861. The genera] practices to be here enumerated are chiefly the treatment of wounds, the application of fomentations, setons, blisters, clysters, and physicking ; and the ope- i-ations of castrating, nicking, bleeding, &c. SoBSECT. 1 . Treatment of Wounds. > 5862. A lo-WHrf must be treated in some measure according to the part of the horse's body in which it happens ; but there are some principles to bo observed alike in all horse surgery. There are like- wise a few, which, as they differ from the principles of human surgery, should be first noticed, and which should guide the practice of those who might be misled by ana'logy. The wounds of horses, Tiowever carefully brought together and confined in their situation, as well as shut out from the sti- Book VII. VETERINARY OPERATIONS. 921 mulus of the external air, are seldom disposed to unite at once, or, as it is called in surgical language, by the first intention. It is always, therefore, necessary to expect the suppurative process : but a» the adhesive inflammation does now and then occur, we should never wash with water or other liquids a mere laceration, if no foreign matter, as dirt, &c., be suspected to be lodged within it, still less should we stuff it with candle or tents of any kind. On the contrary, it should be carefully and smoothly brought together, and simply bound up in its own blood j and if it do not wholly unite at once, and by the first intention, perhaps some portion of it may 5 and, at all events, its future progress will be more natural, and the disfiguration less than when stuffed with tents, tow, &c., or irritated with heating oils or spirits. When an extensively lacerated wound takes place, it is common, and it is often necessary to insert sutures, or stitches, into the lips of the wound : and here we have to notice another considerable variation from the principles of human inflammation, which is, that these stitches in the horse, ox, and dog, soon ulcerate out, seldom remaining longer than the third or fourth day at farthest. It therefore is tlie more necessary to be careful, that by perfect rest, and the appropriation of good bandages, we secure the wound from distortion. In this we may be assisted by strips of sticking plaster, made with diachylon and pitch : but these strips should be guarded from touching the wound itself by means of lint or tow first put over it. When, in addition to laceration in a wound, there is a destruction of substance, then the caution of washing will not apply, as it will be necessary to bathe with some warming spirit, as, tincture of 7nyrrh, tincture of aloes, or friars^ balsam, to assist in restoring the life of the part, and in preventing mortification. Bleeding must be stopped by pressure and astringents, as powdered alum : when it is very considerable, the vessel from whence the blood comes must be taken up. When great inflammation follows wounds or bruises, counteract it by bleeding, a cooling temperature, opening medicines, and continual fomentations to the part itself. SuBSECT. 2. JBallssLnd Brinks. 5863. Mode of giving a ball. Back the horse in his stall, and being elevated on a stool, (not a bucket turned up side down,) gently draw the tongue a little out of the mouth, so as to prevent its rising to resist the passage of the hand: the tongue should however not be laid hold of alone, but it should be held firmly by the fingers of the left hand against the jaw. The ball previously oiled, being taken into the right hand, which should be squeezed into as narrow a shape as possible, must be passed up close to the roof of the mouth, and the ball placed on the root of the tongue, when both hands being withdrawn, it will readily pass down. This mode is much preferable, when a person is at all handy, to using a balling iron. At Long's, veterinary surgeons' instrument maker, is sold a clever machine for this purpose. 5864. Mode of giving a driiik. Exactly the same process is pursued, except that a horn holding the liquid matter is forced up the mouth ; the passage being raised beyond the level line, the liquid is poured out from the larger end of the horn, and when the tongue is loosened it is swallowed. Clark, however, ingeniously proposes to substitute the smaller end of the horn, the larger being closed, by which, he says, the horn can be forced up the mouth between the teeth, and poured farther back so as to ensure its not returning. SuBSECT. 3. Fomentations and PouUiees, 5865. Fomentations are very commonly recommended of various herbs, as ruej chamomile, St. John'9 wort, wormwood, bay leaves, &c. ; but the principal virtue is to be found in warmth and moisture, which unload the vessels : but this warmth ought not to be too considerable, except when the inflammation is within, as in inflamed bowels. Here we foment to stimulate the skin, and cannot foment too hot : but when we do it at once to an inflamed part, it ought not to be more than of blood heat ; and it should be continued long, and when removed the part should be dried or covered, or cold may be taken, and the inflammation increased instead of diminished. Anodyne fomentations are made of poppy heads, and of tobacco, and are frequently of great use. 5866. The method of applying fomentations is conveniently done by means of two large woollen cloths wrung out of the heated liquors ; as one is cooling the other should be ready to be applied. 5867. Poultices act in the same way as fomentations in allaying irritation and inflammation ; but are in some respects more convenient, because they act continually. It is an error to suppose that poultices, to be beneficial, should be very hot : however hot they may be applied, they soon become of the tem- perature of the surrounding parts. When poultices are applied to the extremities, a stocking, as has been before stated, is a convenient imethod of application. When it is drawn over the leg and bound around the lower part of the hoof, or of the pastern, or otherwise, the matter of the poultice may be put within, and it may be .then kept in its situation, if high up on the extremity, by means of tape fastened to one part of it, and passed over the withers or back to the oiher side, and again fastened to the stocking. In this way, also, loose bandages maybe retained from slipping down. Cold poultices are often useful in the inflammations arising from strains, &c. In these cases bran and goulard water form a convenient medium : but when the poultice is necessarily hot, a little linseed meal added to the bran will render it adhesive, and give it consistence. It is a very necessary caution in this, as in every instance where bandages are wanted around the extremities, to have them broad, and only so tight as to secure the matters contained, as in a poultice, or as in common bandaging. It is often supposed that *' as strong as a horse," denotes that nothing can be too strong for him, nor any means too violent to hurt him. The horse, on the contrary, is one of the most tender animals alive j and a string tied very tight round the leg would occasion, first a falling off of the hoof, next a mortification of the rest of the limb, and lastly the death of the animal; and all this as certainly as though he were shot with a- bullet through the head. StJBSECT. 4. Setons and Rowels. 5868. Setons are often useful in keeping up a drain to draw what are termed humors from parts ; or by their irritations on one part, they lessen the inflammation in another part not very remote, as when applied in the cheek for ophthalmia or inflamed eyes. They also in ;the same way lessen old swellings by exciting absorption. Another useful action they have is to make a dependent or convenient orifice for the escape of lodged matter : thus a .'eton passed from the upper part of the opening of pole evil, through the upper part of the integuments of the neck, as low as the sinuses run, will often effect a cure without farther application. The same with fistulous withers, which sometimes run under the shoulder blade, and appear at the arm point ; in which cases a blunt seton needle, of sufficient length to be passed down to that point, and to be then cut down upon, will form the only elhcicnt mode of treatment. Setons may be passed in domestic farrierv, with a common packing needle and a skain of thread, or piece of tape : but in professional farriery they are made by a proper needle armed with tape or lamp cotton, or skalns of thread or silk smeared over with digestive ointment. When the seton needle is removed, the ends of the tape should be joined together, or otherwise knotted, to prevent them from coming out. 5869. Kernels in their intention act as setons, and as irritating a larger surface, so when a general drain is required they act better ; as in grease, &c. : but when their action is confined to a part only, setons are more convenient. Anv person may apply a rowel by making an incision in the loose skin about an inch, separating with the finger its adherences around, and then inserting in the opening a piece oi round leather with a hole in the middle smeared with a blistering ointment. Then plug the opening with tow, and in three days, when the suppuration has begun, remove it. The rowel leather is afterwards to be daily moved and cleaned. 922 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. SuBSECT. 5. Blistering and Firing. 5870. Blistering answers the same purposes as setons ; and is practised by first cutting or shaving the hair from the part, wlien the blistering ointment {Vet. Pharm. 5890.) should be well rubbed in for ten minutes, or a quarter of an hour. Some of the ointment after the rubbing may be smeared over the part. The head of the horse should now be tied up to prevent his gnawing or licking. If a neck cradle be at hand it may also for safety be put on ; in wMch case the head may let down the third day. 5871. A neck cradle for blistered horses is very convenient for other occasions also, when the mouth is to be kept from licking or biting other parts j or to keep other parts from being rubbed against the head. It is of very simple construction, and may be made by a dozen pieces of wood of about an inch and half diameter, as old broom handles, &c. These bored at each end admit a rope to be passed through ; and as each is passed on, a knot may be tied to the upper part of the pieces of the cradle, two inches apart; and those which form the lower part, four inches : by which means the neck will be fitted by the cradle when it is put on ; and the horse will be prevented from bending his head to lick or gnaw parts to be protected. When the lower parts of the legs, particularly of the hinder, require blistering, it is necessary to bear in mind that in gross ;full horses, particularly in autumn, grease is very apt to follow blistering ; and almost certainly if the back of the heels below the fetlock be blistered. First, therefore, smear this part over with lard or suet ; and afterwards avoid touching it with the ointment. After blistering in summer, the horse is often turned out before the blistered parts are quite sound ; in this case guard them from flies by some kind of covering, or they may become fly-blown : and like- wise the fourth or fifth day rub into the blistered part some oil or lard to prevent the skin from cracking. 5872. Sweating or liquid blisters ( Vet. Pharm. 5894.) are only more gentle stimulants, which are daily ap- plied to produce the same effects on a diseased part without removing the hair. Of course less activity is expected ; yet as the action is repeated, they are often more beneficial even than blistering itself: as in old strains and stiffnesses. 5873. Firing, as requiring the assistance of an experienced practitioner, we shall not describe; it will be only prudent to point out that it is a more active mode of blistering ; and that it acts very powerfully as a stimulant, not only while its effects last as blisters do, but also after its escharotic effect is over, by its pressure ; and in this way it is that it operates so favorably in bony exostosis, as splints and spavins; and in this way it is so useful in old ligamentary weaknesses ; because by lessening the dilatability of the skin it becomes a continual bandage to the part. SuBSECT. 6. Clystering and Physicking. 5874. Clystering should always be preceded by back-raking, which consists in oiling one hand and arm, and passing them up the fundament, and by that means to remove all the dung balls that can be reached. The large pewter syringe for clystering, is neither a useful or safe machine. A much better consists in a turned box pipe, to which may be attached a large pig or ox-bladder, by which four or five quarts of liquid can be administered at one time. {Vet. Pharm. 5895. ^o5898.). The pipe should be previously oiled, by which means it passes more easily : the liquor should then be steadily pressed up ; and when the pipe is removed, the tail should be held.down over the fundament a little to prevent the return of the clyster. In some cases of a spasmodic nature, as gripes and locked jaw, great force is made by the bowels to Yctum the clyster, and nothing but continued pressure over the fundament can enable it to be retained. Clysters not only act in relaxing the bowels, but they may be used as means of nutriment when it cannot be taken by the mouth ; as in locked jaw, wounds of the mouth, throat, &c., &c. In locked jaw, it was observed by Gibson, that he kept a horse alive many days by clysters alone : and by clysters also, many medicines may be given more conveniently than by the mouth. 5875. Physicking of horses. It is equally an error to refrain altogether from giving horses physic, as it is to give it on every occasion, as some do. Neither is it necessary for horses to be bled and physicked every spring and autumn, if they be in perfect health, and the less so, as at this time they are generally weak and faint from the change going on in their coats. Nor is it always necessary to give horses physic when they come from grass or a straw yard ; provided the change from the one state to the other be very moderately brought about. But on such a removal, it certainly expedites all the phenomena of condition, (5754 ), and such horses are less likely to fall to pieces, as it is termed, afterwards. (5155.) In various mor- bid states physic is particularly useful, as in worms, hide-bound, from too full a habit, &c. &c. It is not advisable to physic horses in either very cold, or very warm weather. Strong physic is always hurtful : all that physic can do is as well operated by a mild as by a strong dose, with infinitely less hazard. No horse should be physicked whose bowels have not been previously prepared by mashing for two days at least before. By these means the physic will work kindly, and a moderate quantity only is requisite. Most of the articles put into the purging balls for horses, to assist the aloes, are useless. Jalap will not purge a horse, nor rhubarb either. Aloes are the only proper drug to be depended on for this purpose, and of all the varieties of aloes the socotorine and Cape are the best. {Vet. Pharm. .5915.) Barbadoes aloes are also not improper, but are thought more rough than the socotorine. For formulae of purging balls, see Vet. Pharm. (5915.) Blaine gives the following as the process. 5876. Physicking process. The horse having fasted an hour or two in the morning from food, but having had his water as usual ; give him his purge, and two hours after offer him a little chilled, but not warm water, as is often done, by which horses are disgusted from taking any : it may be here remarked that in this particular much error is frequently committed. Many horses will drink water with the chill taken off, provided it be perfectly clean, and do not smell of smoke from the fire, kettle, or saucepan : but few, very few, will drink warm or hot water ; and still fewer, if it be in the least degree greasy or smoky. After the ball has been given two hours, a warm bran mash may be offered, and a very little hay. He should have walking exercise as usual, moderately clothed : and altogether he should be kept rather more warm than usual. At noon mash again, and give a little hay, which should be repeated at night, giving him at intervals chilled water. On the following morning the physic may be expected to work ; which if it do briskly, keep the horse quiet : but should it not move his bowels, or only relax them, walk him quietly half an hour, which will probably have the desired effect. Continue to give mashes and warm water, repeating them every two or three hours to support him. When physic gripes a horse, give him a clyster of warm water, and hand rub the belly, as well as walk him out. If the griping prove severe, give him four ounces of gin in half a pint of sound ale, which will soon relieve him. On the next day the physic will probably set, but should it continue to work him severely, pour down some boiled starch ; and if this fail, turn to the directions under diarrhoea. (.5804.) The horse should return to his usual habits of full feeding, and full exercise by degrees ; and if more than one dose be to be given, a week should intervene. It is often requisite to make the second and third doses rather stronger than the first. A very mild dose of physic is likewise often given to horses while at grass in very warm weather, and without any injury. When worms, or skin foulness are present, and mercurial physic is deemed necessary, it is better to give two drachms of calomel in a mash the previous night, than to put it into the purging ball. SuBSECT.. 7. Castration, Nicking, Docking, ^c. 5877. The operations of castration, docking, nicking, and that of cropping (which is now seldom practised), all require the assistance of a veterinary surgeon ; and it is only necessary to remark of them, that the after treatment must be the same as in all other wounds. To avoid irritation, to preserve a cool tempe- rature and a moderate diet ; and if active febrile symptoms make their appearance, to obviate them by bleeding, &c., &c. It likewise is proper to direct the attention of the agriculturist who attends to these T3ooK VII. VETERINARY PHARMACOPi:iA. 925 matters himself, that the moment the wound following any of these operations looks otherwise than healthy, locked jaw is to be feared, and no time should be lost in seeking the best assistance that can be obtained. (5763.) SuBSECT. 8, Bleeding. 581H. Bleeding is a very common, and to the horse a very important operation, because his inflamma- tory diseases, on account of the great strength of his arterial system, run to a fatal termination very soon, and can only be checked in the rapidity of their prc^res&, by abstracting blood, which diminishes the momentum of circulation. Bleeding is more particularly important in the inflammatory diseases of th« horse ; because we cannot, as in the human, lower the circulation by readily nauseating the stomach. Bleeding also lessens irritation particularly in the young and plethoric, or those of full habit : hence we bleed in spasms of the bowels, in locked jaw, &c., with good effect. Bleeding is general or topical. General, as from the neck, when we mean to lessen the general momentum. Topical, when we bleed from a particular part, as the eye, the plate vein, the toe, &c. Most expert practitioners use a large lancet to bleed with ; and when the habit of using it is acquired, it is by far the best instrument, parti- cularly for superficial veins where a blow might carry the fleam through the vessel In common hands the fleam {fig. 623.), as the more general instrument,; is best adapted to the usual cases requi>ing the agriculturist's notice. Care should, 623 however, be taken not to strike it with vehemence ; and the hair being first wetted and smoothed down, it should be pressed close between the hairs, so that its progress may not be impeded by them. A ligature should be first passed round the neck, and a hand held over the eye, unless the operator be very expert, when the use of the _ fingers will dispense with the ligature. The quantity of blood taken \ I / is usually too small. In inflammatory diseases, a large horse, parti- M/ cularly in the early stage of a complaint, will bear to lose eight or ten quarts : "and half the quantity may betaken away two or three times afterwards, if the violence of the symptoms ssem to require it ; and the blood should be drawn in a large stream to do all the good it is capable of. After the bleeding is finished, introduce a sharp pin, and avoid drawing the skin away from the vein while pinning, which lets the blood escape between the vein and skin : wrap round a piece of tow or hemp, and next day remove th6 pin", which might otherwise inflame the neck. In drawing blood, let it always be measured : letting it fall on the ground prevents the ascertaining the quantity ; it also prevents anv observation on the state of the blood, which if it form itself into a cup-like cavity on its surface, and exhibit a tough yellow crust over this cavity, it betokens an inflammatory state of body that will require further bleedings, unless the weakness forbid. After the bleeding, it now and then happens, from rusty lancets, too violent a stroke with the blood stick, or from drawing away the skin too much while pinning up, that the orifice inflames and hardens, and ichor is seen to ooze out between its edges. Immediatelv this is discovered, recourse must be had to an able veterinary surgeon, or the horse will lose the vein, and perhaps his- life. Sect. VII. Tlie Veterinary Pharmacopeia. 5879. The foWow'ingformulcsfor veterinary jwactice have been compiled from the works «of the most eminent veterinary writers of the present day, as Blaine, Claric, Laurence, iPeel, White, &c. ; and we can from our own experience also, confidently recora- jnend the selection to the notice of agriculturists, and the owners of horses in general. 'It M'ould be prudenit for such as have many horses, and particularly for such as live at a •distance from the assistance of an able veterinarian, to keep the more necessary articles by them in case of emergence : some venders of horse drugs keep veterinary medicine chests ; and where the compositions can be depended on, and the uncompounded drugs are genuine and good, one of these is a most convenient appendage to every stable. The best arranged veterinary medicine chest we have seen, was in London, at the veterinary elaboratory of Youatt of Nassau Street, Middlesex Hospital. 5880. The veterinary pharmacopeia for oxen, calves, and sheep has been included in the arrangement. When.any speciality occurs, or where distinct recipes are requisite, they hax'e been carefully noticed ; it will therefore only be necessary to be kept in mind, that with the exception of acrid substances, as mineral acids, &c. , which no cattle bear with equal im- punity with the horse; the remedies prescribed require about the following proportions. A .large ox will bear the proportions of a moderate sized horse ; a moderate sized cow something less ; a calf about a third of the quantity ; and a sheep about a quarter, or at nio^ a third of the proportions directed for the cow. It is also to be remarked, that tlie degrees in strength in the different recij)es, are usually regulated by their numbers, the mildest standing tirst 5881. Alteratives. 2. I Winter's bark in powder, 3 drachm": Levigated antimony. 2 draChms. gl"^" ^l^J^^'.^U'r^r'* ^ half drachm.. Cream of tartar. Gentian, do. 3 drachms. Flower of sulphur, each half an ounce. . Make either of these into a ball with honey, and •*^ *^ , give every monnng. 3 Cream of tartar. White vitriol, 1 drachm." Nitre, of each half an ounce. Ginger or pimento ground, 2 drachms. 3. Powdered quassia, half an ounce. iEthiops mineral, Ale, 8 ounces. — Mix, and give as a drink- Levigated antimony, 4. Powdered resin, each SdrachmS. Arsenic, 10 grains. Give in a mash, or in corn and bran a little wetteiJ, Oatmeal, 1 ounce, every uight, or make into a ball with honey. Mix, and give in mash or moistened corn nightly. 5882. Tonic Alteratives. 5S83. Astringent Mixtures for Diarrhea, Lax, or 1. Scouring. Gentian, 1. Aloes, Powdered ipecacuanha, 1 drachm. Ginger. Do., opium, half a drachm. Blue vitriol, in powder, of each 1 drachm, " Prepared chalk, 2 ounces. Oak bMk in powder, 6 dracbras. Boiled starch, 1 pint. 924 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Suet, 4 ounces ; boiled in Milk, 8 ounces. Boiled starch, 6 ounces. Powdered alum, 1 drachm. ' The following has been very strongly recom- mended in some cases, for the.lax (rf, horses and cattle. 3. Glauber's salts, 2 ounces. Epsom do., 1 ounce. Green vitriol, 4 grains. Gruel, half a pint. When the lax or scouring at all approaches to dysentery or molten grease, the following drink should be first given. 4. Casjtor oil, 4 ounces. Glauber's salts (dissolved), 2 ounces. Powdered rhubarb, half a drachm. Powdered opium, 4 grains. Gruel, 1 pint. 5884. Astringent Balls for Diabetes or Pissing Evil. Catechu (Japan earth), half an ounce. Alum powdered, half a drachm. Sugar of lead, 10 grains. Conserve of roses to make a ball. .5885. Astringent Paste for Thrush, Poot-rot, Foul in the Foot, SfC. Prepared calamine. Verdigris, of each half an ounce. "White vitriol. Alum, of each half a drachm. Tar, 3 ounces : mix. >5886. Astringent Washes for Cracks in the Heels, Wounds, %c. Sugar of lead, 2 drachms. White vitriol, 1 drachm. Strong infusion of oak, or elm bark, 1 pint : mix. 2. Green vitriol, 1 drachm. Infusion of galls, half a pint. Mix, and wash the parts three times a day. 5887. Powder for Cracks, S(C. 3. Prepared calamine, 1 ounce. Puller's earth, powdered. Pipe clay, do., of each 2 ounces. Mix, and put within gauze and dab the moist sur- faces of the sores frequently. 5888. Astringent Paste for Grease. 1. Prepared calamine, Tutty powdered, Charcoal, do. of each 2 ounces. Yeast enough to make a paste. 2. To the above, if more strength be required, add of alum and verdigris, each a drachm. 5889. Astringent Wash for Do. 3. Corrosive sublimate, 2 drachms. Spirit of wine or brandy, 1 ounce. Soft water, 10 ounces. Rub the sublimate in a mortar with the spirit till dissolved, then add the water. This is a strong preparation, and has often proved successful in very bad cases of grease, which have resisted all the usual remedies. 589a Blisters. 1. A general one. Cantharides powdered, 2 ounces. Venice turpentine, do. Resin, do. Palm oil or lard, 2 lbs. Melt the three latter articles together, and when not too hot stir in the Spanish flies. 2. 5891. A strong cheap Blister, but not proper to be used in Fevers or Inflammations, as of the Lungs, Bowels, 8(c. Euphorbium powdered, 1 ounce. Oil of vitriol, 2 scruples. Spanish flies, 6 ounces. - Palm oil or lard. Resin, of each, 1 lb. Oil of turpentine, 3 ounces. Melt the resin with the lard or palm oil. 'Having previously mixed the oil of vitriol with an ounce of water gradually, as gradually add this mixture to the melted mass ; which again set on a very slow fire for ten minutes more : afterwards remove the whole, and when beginning to cool, add the powders previously mixed together. 3. 5892. A Mercurial Blister for Splints, Spavins, and Ringbones. Of either of the above, 4 ounces. Corrosive sublimate>finely powdered, half a drachm 4. 5893. Strong Liquid Blister, Spanish flies in gross powder, 1 ounce. Oil of origanum, 2 drachms. Oil of turpentine, 4 ounces. Olive oil, 2 ounces. Steep the flies in the turpentine three weeks, strain ofiT, and add the oil. 5. 5894. Mild Liquid or Sweating Blister. Of the above, 1 ounce. Olive oil or goose grease, one and a half ounce. 5895. Clysters, a. Laxative one. 1. Thin gruel or broth, 5 quarts. Epsom or common salts, 6 ounces. 5896. Clyster for Gripes. 2. Mash two moderate sized onions. Pour over them oil of turpentine, 2 ounces. Capsicum, or pepper, half an ounce. Thin gruel, 4 quarts. 5897. Nutritious Clyster. 3. Thick gruel, 3 quarts. Strong sound ale, 1 quart. or 4. Strong broth, 2 quarts. Thickened milk, 2 quarts. 5898. Astnngent Clyster. 5. Tripe liquor, or suet boiled in milk, S pints. ' Thick starch, 2 pints. Laudanum, half an ounce, or 6. Alum whey, 1 quart. Boiled starch, 2 quarts. 5899. Cordial Balls. Gentian powdered, 4 ounces. Ginger, do., 2 ounces. Coriander seeds, do., 4 ounces. Carraway, do. 4 ounces. Oil of aniseed, a quarter of an ounce. Make into a mass with honey, treacle, or lard, and give one ounce and a half for a dose. 5900. Chronic Cough Balls. 1. Calomel, 1 scruple. Gum ammoniacum, Horse radish, of each 2 drachms. Balsam of Tolu, Squills, each 1 drachm. Beat all together, and make into a ball with honey, and give every morning fasting; 5901. Drink for the same, 2. Tar water. Lime water, of each half a pint. Tincture of squills, half an ounce 5902. Powder for the samt, 3. Tartar emetic, 2 drachms. Powdered foXglove, half a drachm. Powdered squill, half a drachm. Calomel, 1 scruple. Nitre, 3 drachms. • Give every n ight in a malt mash. Book VII. VETERINARY PHARMACOPEIA. 025 5903. Diuretic Balls. Resin, yellow, 1 lb. Nitre, half a pound. Horse turi'entine, half a pound. Yellow soap, quarter of a pound. Melt the resin, soap, and turpentine over a slow fire; when cooling, add the nitre. For a strong dose, an ounce and a half, for a mild one an ounce. It should be kept in mind, that mild diuretics are always equal to what is required ; and that strong diuretics are always hurtful. 5904. Diuretic Powders. Yellow resin, powdered, 4 ounces. Nitre, ditto, 8 ounces. Cream of tartar, ditto, 4 ounces. Dose— .6, 8, or 10 drachms nightly, which some horses will readily eat in a mash. 5905. Urine Drink. Glauber's salts, 2 ounces. Nitre, 6 drachms. Dissolve in a pint of warm water. 5906. Embrocations.-~Cooling for Inflammations. 1. Goulard's extract, half an ounce. Spirit of wine or brandy, 1 ounce. Soft water, 1 quart Mindererus spirit, 4 ounces. "Water, 12 ounces. 5907. For Strains, \ Bay salt, bruised, half a pound. Crude sal ammoniac, 2 ounces. Sugar of lead, quarter of an ounce. ; Vinegar, 1 pint and a half. "Water, 1 pint. 590a For the Eyes. Sugar of lead, 1 drachm. "White vitriol, 2 scruples. "Water, 1 pint. 2. Brandy, 1 ounce. Infusion of green tea, 4 ounces. Tincture of opium, 2 drachms. Infusion of red roses, 4 ounces. 3. Rose water, 6 ounces. Mindererus spirit, 3 ounces. 4. Corrosive sublimate, 4 grains. Alkohol, 1 ounce. Lime water, 1 pint. 5. Alum, powdered, 1 drachm*' Calomel, half .a drachm. Mix, and insert a little at one corner of the eye. The custom of blowing it in alarms the horse. 5909. Fever Powders. 1. Tartar emetic, 2 drachms. Nitre, 5 drachms, 2. Antimonial powder, 2 drachms. Cream of tartar, Nitre, of each 4 drachms. 5910. Fever Drink. 3. Sweet spirit of nitre, 1 ounce. Mindererus spirit, 6 ounces. Water, 4 ounces. 5911. Epidemic Fever Drink. 4. Sweet spirit of nitre, 1 ounce. Simple oxymel, 6 ounces. Tartar emetic, 3 drachms. 5912. Malignant Epidemic Fever. 5. Simple oxymel, Mindererus spirit, Beer yeast, of each 4 ounces. Sweet spirit of nitre, 1 ounce. 5913. Fumigations for purifying infected Stables^ Sheds, 4-c., , Manganese, 2 ounces. Common salt, ditto. Oil of vitriol, 3 ounces. "Water, 1 ounce. Put the mixed manganese and salt into a bason ; then, having before mixed the vitriol and water very gradually, pour them by means of tongs, or any thing that will enable you to stand at a sutHcient distance, on the articles in the bason gradually. As soon as the fumes rise, retire and shut up the door close. 5914. Hoof Liquid. Oil of turpentine, 4 ounces. Tar, 4 ounces. "Whale oil, 8 ounces. This softens and toughens the hoofs extremely, when brushed over them night and morning. 5915. Purging Medicines. . Balls — very mild. Aloes, powdered, 6 drachms. Oil of turpentine, 1 drachm. . Mild. Aloes, powdered, 8 drachms. Oil of turpentine, 1 drachm. Strong. Aloes, powdered, 10 drachms. Oil of turpentine, 1 drachm. The aloes may be beaten with treacle to a mass, adding, during the beating, the oil of turpentine. All spices, oil of tartar, cream of tartar, jalap, &c. are useless, and often hurtful additions,^ 5916. Liquid Purge. Epsom salts dissolved, 8 ounces. Castor oil, 4 ounces. Watery tincture of aloes, 8 ounces. Mix.— The watery tincture of aloes is made by beating powdered aloes with the yolk of egg, adding water by degrees ; by these means half an ounce of aloes may be suspended in eight ounces of water ; and such a purge is useful when a ball cannot be got down, as in partial locked jaw. j 5917. Scalding Mixture for Pole Evil. Corrosive sublimate, finely powdered, 1 drachm. Yellow basilicon, 4 otonces. 5918. Foot Stoppings. Horse and cow dung, each about 2 lbs. Tar, half a pound. 5919. Wash for coring out, destroying Fungus^ or proud Fleshy l^c, SfC. Lunar caustic, 1 drachm. Water, 2 ounces. 5920. Wash for Mange. Corrosive sublimate, 2 drachms. Spirit of wine or brandy, 1 ounce. Decoction of tobacco. Ditto of white hellebore, of each 1 pint.' Dissolve the mercury in the spirit and then add the decoctions. 5921. Ointments for Healing. 1. Turner's cerate, 4 ounces. AVhite vitriol powdered, half a drachm. Lard, 4 ounces. 5922. For Digesting. 2. Turner's cerate, 2 ounces. White vitriol, 1 drachm. Yellow basilicon, 5 ounces, 5923. For Mange. Sulphur vivum, 8 ounces. Arsenic in powder, 2 drachms. Mercurial ointment, 2 ounces. Turpentine, 2 ounces. Lard, 8 ounces. Mix, and dress with every morning, 5924, For Scab or Shab in Sheep, Mallenders and Sellenders in Horses, and foul Blotches and Eruptions in Cattle in general. Camphor, 1 drachm. Sugar of lead, half a drachm. Mercurial ointment, 1 ounce. 926 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. Sect. VIII. The Shoeing of Horses. 5925. The importance of the subject of shoeing to the agriculturist is sufficiently- attested by the immense number of inventions which the ingenuity of philosophers and artists are every day devising, to render the system complete. Almost every veterinary- professor has his favorite shoe ; and we find one of the most ingenious of the present day endeavoring to force on our notice, and introduce into our stables the French method ; which, with the exception of the mode of nailing on, White observes, is the very- worst he ever saw. The French shoe [fig. 624 a) has a wide web g24 towards the toe, and is concave above, and convex below (6), on the ground surface, by which neither the toe nor heel touch the ground (c) ; but the horse stands pretty much in the same way with an unhappy cat, shod by unlucky boys with walnut shells. But as Blaine observes, in reference to these inven- tions, "No one form of foot defence can be offered as an universal pattern." It is, he continues, plain that the principles of shoeing ought to be those that allow as little departure from nature as circumstances will justify. The practice also should be strictly consonant to the principles ; and both ought to con- sist, first, in removing no parts but those which, if the bare hoof were applied to natural ground, would remove of themselves. Secondly, in bringing such parts in contact with the ground (generally speaking) as are opposed to it in an unshod state; and above all, to endeavor to preserve the original form of the foot, by framing the shoe thereto ; but never to alter the foot to the defence. The shoe at present made at the forges of the most respectable smiths in the cities and large towns throughout the kingdom, if it have not all the requisites, is, however, so much improved on, that with some alterations, not difficult either to direct or adopt, is the one we shall hold up as the most eligible for general shoeing. It is not that a better might not be offered to the notice ; and in fact such a one we shall present to our readers ; but so averse are the generality of smiths to have any improve- ments forced on them, and so obstinately determined are they to adhere to the forms handed down to them by their forefathers, that their stupidity or malevolence, or both, frequently makes the improvement itself, when seemingly acquiesced in, a source of irreparable injury. It is for these reasons we would recommend to agriculturists in general, a modified shoe of the common stamp. 5926. The improved shoe for general use (fig. 625.), is rather wider than what is usually made. Its nail holes (a) extend no further towards 625 the heels than is actually necessary for security ; by which the expansion of these parts is encouraged, and contraction is avoided. To strengthen the attachment, and to make up for this liberty given to the heels, the nails should be carried around the front of the shoe (c). The nail holes, on the under or ground surface of the shoe («), are usually formed in a gutter, technically called the fullering ; but in the case of heavy treading powerful horses, this gutter may be omit- ted, or if adopted, the shoe in that part may be steeled. The web, should be quite even on the foot or hoof surface (6 1, and not only be rather wider, but it should also have rather more substance than is common : from half an inch to fi-ve eighths in thickness, according to circumstance, forms a fair proportion ; when it is less it is apt, in wearing, to bend to pressure and force ou't the clinches. A great error is committed in setting shoes out so much wider than the heels themselves : this error has been devised to correct another, which has been that of letting horses go too long without shoeing ; in which case, if the heels of the shoe were not too wide origi- nally, as the foot grew, they became lost within the heels ; and thus bruised and pro- duced corns : but as we will suppose that few will wish to enter into a certain error to avoid an uncertain one, so we recommend that the heels of the shoe should stand only- wide enough to prevent the expansion of the quarters pushing the heels of the feet over the outer edge of the heels of the shoe : for which purpose if the iron project rather less than a quarter of an inch, instead of three-eighths, or even half an inch, as it fre- quently does, many advantages will be gained. Whoever attentively examines a shoe well set off at the heels, as it is termed, will find only one third of its flat surface protecting the heels ; the remainder projects beyond, and serves but to form a shelf to lodge dirt on ; or as a convenient clip for another horse to tread on ; or for the wearer to cut his own legs with ; or to afford a more ready Iiold for the suction of clayey Book VII. SHOEING OF HORSES. 927 grounds to force off the shoe by. The heels of the common shoe are likewise not in general sufficiently long for the protection of the foot ; and which defect, more than a want of width, causes the tendency to press on the crust of the heels. It is further to be observed, that if the decreased width of the outer standing of the heels, and the in- creased width of the web, should make the inner angle of the shoe heel in danger of interfering with the frog, the corner may be taken off. In forging this shoe, it may be bevelled, or left plane on both surfaces, or rather nearly so, for it is usual with most smiths to thin it in some degree towards the inner edge. This shoe is appli- cable to most feet, is easily formed, and as such, in country places is all that can be expected. 5927. The injurious effects of bad shoeing would only require to be known to excite every endeavor to obviate them ; and there are some circumstances in the more common shoes of country smiths, that ought to be impressed on the mind of every agricultu- rist, and guarded against by every one who possesses a horse. It is too frequently observed that the ground side of their shoe is convex, and that the inward rim, when the foot is on the ground, is the lowest part; on which it is evident the weight must first press ; and by which pressure, the crust will be forcibly thrust on the extreme edge of the shoe ; and the only resistance offered to its being forced from it, depends on the nails and clinches, instead of its just application to the ground, and the sup- port derived from the uniform pressure of the whole. Every shoe should therefore be perfectly level on its ground surface: nor should any shoe be put on that has not. been tried on a plane iron purposely made for such trial ; which irons are kept in some smithies, but are absent from too many. The substance of the shoe should be the same throughout, forming two parallel lines of upper and under surface; in plain language, the heels, instead of being clubbed as is too frequent, should be the exact thickness of the toe. Neither should the width at the heels diminish in the pro- portion it usually does ; on the contrary, for a perfectly formed foot, the web should present an uniform width throughout. 5928. Varieties in form of foot, differences in size, weight, and uses of horses, will necessarily make deviations in the form and substance of shoes. The very shoe recom- mended may be considered as a variation from what would be immediately necessary, were the feet generally perfect ; but it is to be considered that there are but very few feet but what have undergone some unfavorable alteration in their form, which makes them very sensible to concussion. It is for this reason, therefore, that it is recommended, that a shoe be used, for general purposes, somewhat wider and thicker than the common one. In weak, tender, flexible feet, it will be found particularly advantageous ; and here the benefit of wide heels to the shoe will be most apparent. Good as the roads now are, yet most horses are occasionally subjected to travel on bad ones ; some know no other : to these the addition of one, or at the most, two ounces to each shoe is nothing ; but the ease to the horse, and its superior covering, as well as support, is incal- culable. In very young, very light, and very firm feet, the width and substance may be somewhat diminished at pleasure, and particularly in situations where the roads are uniformly good ; but a very long and extensive experience has assured us, that the shoe portrayed, is one well calculated to meet the ordinary purposes of travelling, and the present state of the art of horse shoeing. 5929. An improved shoe on the present plan (Jig- 626.}, would be found to unite all the perfections of the modern English improvements, . 626 with some derived from our neighbors the French. What has since been called a seated shoe was introduced by Os- mer ; but from the obstinacy and ignorance of smiths, as it could not be brought into general use, it became little thought of, until revived by Clark of Edinburgh ; by whom it was patronized and recommended. It finally was taken up by Moorcroft, and has ever since attracted some attention, and continues to be forged in some shops where the work is superiorly done ; and where the employers have liberality enough to pay for such work, and judgment enough to discriminate between its advantages and those of the common shoe. If to this shoe were added the French mode of fastening it to the foot, we think the improvement would almost shut out all others. On examining the figure it will be seen that this shoe presents a flat surface opposed to the ground [a), but a concave one towards the sole (b) ; but that this concavity does not begin, as in some seated shoes near the outer edge, but embraces two thirds only of the web, leaving by this means a suflficient surface for the crust : but this bevelling is not intended to reach the heels ; it stops short of them (c , leaving the web at this part plane for the heels to rest upon. The 928 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Paat III. great advantages of this seating are, first, that as the crust rests on a flat surface instead of an inclined plane, as most of the common forged shoes present, so its position is maintained entire, and the inclination to contraction is in a great degree avoided. The nailing on of this shoe we veould recommend to be after the French method, which consists in conical nail holes, punched with a square countersink (d), into which arc received conical nails (e), whicli exactly fill up the countersink; by which means so long as any part of the base of the nail remains, the shoe must be held firmly on, and which is not the only advantage gained ; for the nail holes being obliquely formed, and at some distance from the outer rim, act less detrimentally on the crust of the foot. 5930. To prepare the foot Jor the application of the shoe is also an important con- sideration. Avoid taking off more than one shoe at a time ; otherwise the edges of the crust become broken away. Observe that the clinches are all carefully removed. Let the rough edges of the crust be rasped away; after which, the sole should be pared throughout until a strong pressure with the thumb can produce some yielding : too strong a sole tends to heat and contraction, too weak a one will not require paring. In this paring imitate the natural arch of the sole as much as possible. The line of concavity sliould not begin, as it usually is made to do, from the extreme margin of the foot, but should begin from the inner line of the crust only ; by which means the crust, or outer wall of the hoof, will have a firm bearing on the flat surface of the shoe. Let no heated shoe be applied to correct the inequalities that may be left, unless it is for a moment, only to observe, but not burn them ; but still more carefully avoid putting a plane shoe on an uneven foot. The portion of sole between the bars and quarters \jig. 622 d) should be always pared out as the surest preventive against corns. The heels also should be reduced to the general level of the foot, never allowing their hard- ness to serve as an excuse for being left ; neither suffer the inner heel to be lowered more than the outer. After all the rest has been done, the frog should be so trimmed as to remain on an exact level with the returns of the heels, and no more. The custom of taking away the point or angle of the horny inflexions of the heels, under the false term of opening the heels, is to be carefully avoided. Let all these operations be per- formed with a drawing knife. The butteris should never be allowed to come near the foot of any horse but the largest and coarsest of the cart breed. 5931. The shoes for the hind feet are someivhat different to the fore, being a little squarer at the toe for about an inch ; to which squareness the hoof is to be also adapted by rasping it slightly so, avoiding, however, to do it injuriously. By this mode a steady point of bearing is afforded to the hinder feet in the great exertions they are often called upon to make in galloping, leaping, &c. They are, when thus formed, less liable, also, to interfere with the fore shoes by clicking. When horses click or over-reach very much, it is also common to square, or rather to shorten the toes of the hinder shoes ; but not to do so by the horn ; by which, the hoof meets the middle of the fore shoe instead of the shoe itself; and the unpleasant noise of the stroke or click of one foot against the other is avoided. g27 5932. Varieties which necessarily occur in shoeing. The bar shoe {.fig' 627.), is the most important variety, and it is to be regretted that so much prejudice prevails against the use of this «hoe, which can only arise from its supposed unsightly appear- ance as betokening unsoundness. As a defence to weak thin feet it is invaluable, as it removes a part of the pressure from the heels and quarters, which can ill bear it, to the frog which can well bear it ; but a well formed bar shoe should not have its barred part raised into an edge behind, but such part should be of one uniform thickness throughout the web of the bar, which, instead of being the narrowest, should be the widest part of the shoe. The thickness of the bar should be greater or less (a), so as to be adapted to take only a moderate pressure from the frog. When the frog is altogether ulcerated away by thrush, the bar may be altogether plain ; but this form of shoe is still the best for these cases, as it prevents the tender surface from being wounded. In corns this shoe is invaluable, and may then be so made as to lie off the affected part, which is the great desideratum in corns. 5933. The hunting shoe is made lighter than the common one, and it is of consequence, that it is made to sit as flat to the foot as it can safely do without pressing on the sole : by which the great suction in clayey grounds is much lessened. Hunting fore shoes should also be as short at the heels as is consistent with safety to the foot, to avoid the danger of being pulled off by the hinder shoes : nor should the web project at all. It is the custom to turn up the outer heel to prevent slipping ; which is done some- times to both fore and hind feet, and sometimes only to the latter. As this precaution can hardly be avoided in hilly slippery grounds, it should be rendered as little hurtful Book VII. CRITERIA OF HORSES. 929 as possible by making the tread equal ; to which purpose, thicken the inner heel and turn up the outer. This is better than lowering the outer heel to receive the shoe, which still leaves both the tread and foot uneven. 5934. The racing shoe^ or plate i is one made as light and slender as will bear the weight of the horse, and the operations of forging, grooving, and punching : to enable it to do which, it ought to be made of the very best Swedish iron. Three, or at most four nails, are sufficient on each side ; and to avoid the interfering of the hind with the fore feet, the heels of the fore shoes are made as short as they can safely be. As racers are shod in the stable, tlie owners should be doubly careful that the plate is an exact fit. Many pairs ought to be brought and tried before any are suffered to be put on, and which is more important than is at first considered. 5935. Grass shoes or tips are very short pieces placed on the toe alone, in horses turned to grass in summer ; at which time they are essentially necessary to guard the fore feet, which otherwise become broken away, and irretrievably injured. They should be looked at occasionally to see that they do not indent themselves into the soles. 5936. Frost shoes, (fig. 628 a) have the ends turned up to prevent the foot from sliding; unless the turning up or cjrikin be hardened, they soon wear level and require to be renewed, to the injury of the foot by such frequent removals. To remedy this, many inventions have been tried ; one of the best of these is that of Dr. Moore, in which the frost clip is made distinct and moveable by means of a female screw (6) worked in it, to which a knob or wedge (c), and male screw (rf) are adapted ; a key (e) being used for fixing or remov- ing it. 5937. High calkins^ or turn ups, however objectionable in ge- neral shoeing, yet, in precipitous counties, as those of Devonshire, Yorkshire, and of Scotland, &c., are absolutely necessary for their draught horses. It greatly obviates the evils of uneven pressure, if a calkin be also put to the toe ; and it would be still better were these calkins steeled, particularly the fore ones. 5938. The shoeing of diseased feet is necessarily very various, and is too often left to the discretion of the smith, by which the evils themselves are greatly aggravated, if he be ignorant. The most prominent alterations for these purposes will be found described under the respective diseases of the feet requiring them. 5939. Horse pattens are in use by some cultivators who occupy soft or mossy soils. Those esteemed the best are constructed of alder or elm, and are fixed to the hoof by means of three links and a staple, through each of which passes a leathern strap that goes twice round the hoof, and is fastened by a buckle. The staple is placed behind the patten, which is ten inches one way, by ten and a half the other. The links are about three inches in length, and rivetted through pieces of hoop iron to prevent the wood from splitting. After numerous trials it has been found that pattens made in this way, answer tlie purpose better than any other kind. (Farm. Mag.) Sect. IX. Criteria of the Qualities of Horses for various purposes. 5940. The general criteria of the qualities of a horse are derived from inspection and trial. His outward appearance among judges affords a pretty just criterion of Iiis powers, and a moderate trial usually enables the same judgment to decide on the disposition to exercise such powers. 5941. The criteria of a horse derived from his color have been already noticed. (5629.) As a general principle dark are preferable to liglit horses, except in the instance of black, which has fewer good horses within its range, particularly in the lighter breeds, than any other. Grey hearses are also, in some degree, an exception to tlie rule ; for there are many good greys. Bay and brown are always esteemed colors. 5942. The criteria of action are derived from a due consideration of the form gene- rally, and of the limbs particularly ; as well as from seeing the horse perform his paces in hand. 5943. The criteria of hardihood are derived from the form of the carcase, which should bo circular, or barrelled ; by which, food is retained, and strength gained, to perform what is required. Such horses are also generally good feeders. 5944. The criteria of spirit, vigor, or mettle, as it is termed, are best derived from trial. It should always be kept in mind, that a hot fiery horse is as objectionable as a horse of good courage is desirable. Hot horses may be known by their disinclination to standstill; by their mettle being raised by the slightest exercise, especially when in company. Sucli horses seldom last long, and under accident are impetuous and frightened in tiie extreme. A good couraged horse, on the contrary, moves with readi- ness as well alone as in company : he carries one ear forward and one backward; is at- tentive and cheerful, loves to be talked to, and caressed even while on his journey ; and 3 O 930 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. if in double harness, will play with his mate. Gcod couraged horses are always the best tempered, and, under difficulties, are by far the most quiet, and least disposed to do mischief. 5945. The criteria of a race-horse, derived from fonn, are, that he have the greatest possible quan- tity of bone, muscle, and sinew, in the most condensed form. There should be a general length of parts to afford stretch, scope, and elasticity, with great muscles \ ardened by condition, to act on the length of these parts advantageously. In particular his hind-limbs should be furnished with ample thighs, and broad hocks, which should below set. His fore arm ought also to be broad, and the knee, like the hock, should be near the ground. 5^yi6. The criteria of a hunter are, that he have somewhat similar pro])ortions with the racer, but v/itb more bulk to enable him to continue his exertions longer, aid to carry more weight. In him, a good car- Case is essentially necessary to fit him to go through a long chase ; and the more, if he be required to hunt more than one or two days in the week. Some light canased horses will do one day's hunting work a week very well ; but knock up at more. The hunter should be well formed in his loins, and well let down in his thighs to propel him forward in his gallop, and give him strength to rise sufficiently to cover his leaps. It is also of great use to a hunter to be a good trotter ; many such horses, when fatigued, break out of the gallop and relieve themselves by trotting, particularly over heavy ground. 5947. The criteria of a hackney. If it be necessary that the hackney be well formed behind to give him strength, and to propel him forward, it is even of more consequence that he be well formed before ; and in this kind of horse the hind parts are in some mea- sure subordinate to the fore, as safety is ])referable to speed. The head in the hackney should be small, and well placed on a neck of due length and substance to make a proper appui for the bridle ; and that proper resistance to the hand, so pleasant to the feel, and so necessary for ease and safety. The shoulders should be ob- lique and well furnished with muscle, but not heavy ; and the withers in particular should be high. The elbows should be turned rather out than in, and the legs should stand out straight, and by no means fall under the horse, or it betokens a stumbler. The pasterns should neither be too oblique, which bespeaks weak- ness ; nor too straight, which wears the horse out, and is unpleasant to the rider. The carcase should be round, or the horse will be washy and weak ; the loins straight, wide, and ribbed home ; the thighs of good substance ; and although the being cat- hammed, or having the hocks turned inwards, is defective in beauty, it often bespeaks a trotter. 5948. The criteria of a cavalry horse are, that he have considerable extension of bulk or size, to enable him to carry weight, with good carcase to allow him to feed c oarsely, and yet thrive at piquet or on service. He should have also liberty of action ; but great speed is not requisite. The best cavalry horses are those formed of the united properties of hackneys, and very light draught horses. 5949. The criteria of road horses for quick draught, or coach, chariot, stage and post chaises, &c., are derived from the immediate purposes for which they are intended; as requiring either strength or speed in greater proportions. To make them safe, the fore- hand should rise, the back should be straight, the step should be short but quick, which fatigues least. As they approach the hunter in form, they are best fitted for quick work ; and as they resemble the best kind of light agricultural horses, they are calcu- lated for heavy draught, as coaches, &c. But in all, a portion of blood gives courage, durability, and condenses strength into lessened bulk ; by which activity is gained. It is of great consequence to a coach-horse that the neck and head be so formed as to be enabled to rein-in well to the bridle. 5950. The criteria of a dray-horse are, that he be very broad-breasted and muscular, and thick in the shoulders, which should not lie backward. Nor should the fore-hand be up, as recommended in the road-horse ; for, by holding up their heads, such horses may be choked by the collar, as they would, if so formed, draw too much by the throat, and their wind being thus stopped, would be in danger of falling down. The neck of a dray-horse is not the better for being long, and the head should be proportionate to it. Like all horses, he should be chosen with short legs, and good strong hoofs. He ought to be thick in his thighs, and large in bone ; but above all, he ought to be a steady collared horse, with courage to make him true to a severe pull ; and yet, without a hot fiery spirit to make him fretful. 5951. The criteria of a waggon-horse are, in some respects, different from those of the dray-horse. He should be more weighty, and altogether larger. Rapidity of motion is greatly subordinate, in the heavy stage-waggons usually seen on our roads, to strength. It is all collarwork; nothing is gained from the momentum of the dragged mass, ■which, the instant the pull ceases, stands still. The waggon horse should be patient in the extreme ; willing to lie to his collar up hill, and yet settle into his own share of work on level ground. As his exertions are constant, it is of the greatest consequence that he be a good feeder. 5952. The criteria of a horse peculiarly adapted to the labors of agriculture, are thus given by Culley. His head should be as small as the proportion of the animal will ad- mit; his nostrils expanded, and muzzle fine; his eyes cheerful and prominent; his ears small, upright, and placed near together ; his neck, rising out from between his shoulders with an easy tapering curve, must join gracefully to the head ; his shoulders, being well Book VII. CRITERIA OF HORSES. 931 thrown back, must also go into his neck (at what is called the points) unperceive^, which perhaps facilitates the going much more than the narrow shoulder ; the arm, or fore- thigh, should be muscular, and tapering from the shoulder, to meet a fine, straight, sinewy, and bony leg ; the hoof circular, and wide at the heel; his chest deep, and full at the girth ; his loins or fillets broad and straight, and body round ; his hips or hooks by no means wide, but quarters long, and the tail set on so as to be nearly in the same right line as his back ; his thighs strong and muscular ; his legs clean and fine-boned ; the leg-bones not round, but what is called lathy or flat. 5953. The chief points in afarviing cart-hose, in the opinion of the author of the New Fanner s Calendar, are, '* neck not locg, nor too thick ; short legs, rather flat than round and gummy ; fore-feet even, not too distant ; wide chest; strong, but not high, shoulders; considerable length of waist, supported by a wide loin ; quarters full, and rather raised ; strong muscular thigh ; size, fil'teen hands one inch, to sixteen hand§ high. Being somewhat forelow, gives them an advantage in draught ; and a moderate length of waist insures speed in the walk. 5954. The horse used in husbandry, according to the writer of the Experienced Farmer, ought to be larger, but in other respects like the road horse ; and, instead of walking two or three miles an hour, be able to walk four or five. In that case he would be able both to plough more land in a given time, and work in the cart or wag- gon with more dispatch, when wanted. In harvest time, a nimble and strong horse is valuable. In drawing manure into the field, or corn to the market, the farmer will also find his account in strength and activity ; for. as the draught in all these cases is light one way, such horses would do their business with speed. The small farmer need not with this kind of horse keep an idle one ; he might carry his master to market, and plough the remainder of the week. 5955. In a horse for the plough, according to Brown, both strength and agility are re- quired ; a dash of blood, therefore, is net disadvantageous. It is not size that confers strength, the largest horses being often soonest worn out. A quick even step, an easy movement, and a good temper, are qualities of the greatest importance to a working horse ; and the possession of them is of more avail than big bones, long legs, and a lumpy carcase. To feed well is also a property of great value ; and this property, as all judges know, depends much upon the shape of the barrel, deepness of chest, strength of back, and size of the hips or hooks v.'ith which the animal is furnished. If straight in the back, and not over short, high in thi ribs, and with hooks close and round, tlie animal is generally hardy, capable of undergcing a great deal of fatigue, without lessen- ing his appetite, or impairing his working powers; whereas horses that are sharp pointed, flat ribbed, hollow backed, and wide set in the hooks, are usually bad feeders, and soon done up when put to hard work. 5956. The criteria of a horse' sage are derived from the appearance of the teeth. Ac- cording to La Fosse the younger, there ere these appearances. The horse is foaled with six molar or grinding teeth in each jaw (Jie Stock, vol. ii. p. 74). Blaine's remarks on the subject of castration appear worthy of notice : he says, when the breed is particularly good, and many considerable expectations are formed on the colt, it is always prudent to wait till twelve months: at this period, if his fore parts are correspondent with his hinder, proceed to castrate; but if he be not suffi- ciently well up before, or his neck be too long and thin, and his shoulders spare, he will assuredly improve by being allowed to remain whole six or eight months longer. Another writer suggests for experiment, the spaT/ing of mares, thinking they would work better, and have more wind than geldings. ( Marshal's Yorkshire, vol. ii. p. 169.) But he does not appear to have been aware that this is by no means a new experiment : for Tusser, who wrote in 1562, speaks of gelding Jillies as a common practice at that period. The main objection to this operation is not that brood mares would become scarce, as he supposes, but that, by incapacitating them from breeding in case of accident, and in old age, tlie loss in this expensive species of live stock would be greatly enhanced. An old or lame mare would then be as worthless as an old or lame gelding is at present. 5982. The rearing of horses is carried on in some places in so systematical a manner, as to combine the profit arising from the advance in the age of the animals, with that of a moderate degree of labor, before they are fit for the purposes to which tliey are ulti- mately destined. In the ordinary practice of the midland counties, the breeders sell them while yearlings, or perhaps when foals, namely, at six or eighteen months old, but most generally the latter. They are mostly bought up by the graziers of Leicestershire, and the other grazing parts of that district, where they are groion among the grazing Stock until the autumn following. At two years and a half old, they are bought up by the arable farmers, or dealers of Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, and other western counties, when they are broken into harness, and worked till they are five, or more generally, six years old. At this age the dealers buy them up again to be sent to London, where they are finally purchased for drays, carts, waggons, coaches, the army, or any other purpose for which they are found fit. (Marshal's Economy of the Midland Counties, vol. i. p. 311.) 5983. In the west of Scotland, a similar mode of transferring horses from hand to hand, is common. The farmers of Ayrshire, and the counties adjacent, who generally grow corn on not more than one-fourth, or at the most, one-third of their arable land, and occupy the remainder with a dairy stock, purchase young horses at the fair of Lanark and Carn- wath, before mentioned ; work them at the harrows in the following spring when below two years old ; put them to the plough next winter, at the age of two and a half, and continue to work them gently till they are five years old, when they are sold again at the Rutherglen and Glasgow markets at a great advance of price, to dealers and farmers from the south-eastern counties. A considerable number of horses, how- ever, are now bred in the Lothians, Berwickshire, and Roxburghshire, the very high prices of late having rendered it profitable to them, even upon good arable ground ; but many farmers of these counties, instead of breeding, still prefer purchasing two and a half or three and a half year old colts, at the markets in the west country, or at New- castle fair, in October ; they buy in a certain number yearly, and sell an equal number of their work horses before they are so old as to lose much of their value, so that their stock is kept up without any other loss than such as arises from accidents ; and the greater price received for the horses they sell, is often sufficient to cover any such loss. {General Report of Scotland, \o\. iii. p. 182.) Book VII. TRAINING HORSES. 937 Sect. XII. Of Training Horses. 5984. Horses are trained for various purjmses, but principally for carrying our persons or drawing our burdens. F'ormerly, burdens were principally borne on the back by pack-horses, but the improvements in our roads have removed them from the back, to machines called carriages, drawn by means of harness applied over the person of the horse. Under saddle, we train horses as racers, hunters, hacknies, or troop horses. In harness we use them in coaches, stages, chariots, and various lighter vehicles, or we em- ploy them in waggons, carts, ploughs, and various other agricultural or commercial machines. Horses are held in obedience by means of bridles, with appendages called reins, which are long or short, as used in riding or driving. Horses are directed and urged forward by whip, spur, and language, and they are chastised by the same means. 5985. The directive language used to horses ought to be everywhere the same, which is the more easily accomplished, as words or phrases are sufficient for giving every requi- site direction to a horse. The first of these words may be "on," or go on, or merely the common chuck of the tongue, &c. as used by all coachmen in the world ; the second to make the horse go to the right-hand side, " right-hand;" the third, to the left-hand side, " left-hand ;" the fourth to make them stop, may be " stop," or " stand still. " Any attempt to modify these directions, ought to be given in the correct language of the country, and not in provincial words, as go on, slowly, briskly, right-hand, a little round, or turn, left-hand, a little, or left-hand and round, stop, or stand gently, &c. As a proof that only four words are requisite for giving every requisite direction to horses, we may mention that foreigners in Stockholm, Petersburgh, and Moscow, who know nothing of the language, require only four corresponding words of Swedish or Russian, to direct the native coachmen and sledge drivers to any street, house, or place, the situation of which they know by the maps, or otherwise. 5986. The three natural and ordinary movements of horses are, walking, trotting, and galloping, to which, some horses naturally add another, which is known by the name of •' ambling," or " pacing j" the tiot is, perhaps, the most natural motion of a horse, but the pace, and even the gallop, are most easy to the rider. 5987. In training saddle horses, the first thing is to make them familiar with man, and other general objects, and which is best effected at the earliest periods, which then saves almost all the trouble of breaking, and docility follows as a matter of course : to effect this, the greatest kindness should be used to the colts from the moment they are dropped: they should be accustomed to be handled, should be fed with bread, patted in various parts of the body, have light matters put on their heads and backs, and subjects of different colors and forms should be shown them with caution. While at foot, the mare and foal should be led out into roads, and where carriages pass, during which time, nothing should be allowed to intimidate the foal. By this management, the animal will be easily prepared for the future operations ; and it is thus that the single foal the ploughed land farmer breeds, and which daily follows the mother in her work, as it were breaks itself. 5988. Backing is the next operation, and if the colt has been judiciouslj- used, and taught familiarity and docility by early handling and kindness, it is by no means difficult. It should be commenced be- fore the colt is two and a half or three years old. The first backing of a horse is a thing of great consequence, as his value afterwards very much depends on it. The application of the saddle should be gradually done, and without alarm to the horse. After a colt has become habituated to the saddle and bridle, and has been exercised some time, morning and evening in them, and become somewhat obedient, he is to be taken to some ploughed lands, the lighter the better ; he must be made to trot over these in the hand sufficient to slightly tire him. This should be at first done in a cavesson, to insure obedience. Care being taken that all the tackling be good and firm, and every thing in its due and proper place; then a person is to hold his head and another to mount him; but this must by no means be done suddenly, or at a jerk, but very gradually and slowly, by several risings and heavings. If he bear this patiently, the person is to seat himself firmly on his back ; but if he be troublesome and not tame enough, the person is to forbear the attempt to mount, and he is to be trotted In the hand over the same ploughed lands again, till he is more fatigued and will- ing to receive the rider quietly on his back : when this is done, the person who is on his back must encou- rage him, and the man who has his head must lead him a few paces forward ; all the while encouraging him. The feet are to be fitted well in the stirrups, and the toes turned out, afterwards the rider is to shrink and move himself in the saddle, and the person who holds his head is to withdraw his hand a little farther from the mouth. As the rider moves his toes forward, the holder must move him forward with the rein, till he is made to apprehend the rider's motion of body and foot, which must always go together, and with spirit, and will go forward without the other's assistance, and stay upon the restraint of the rider's hands. When this is accomplished, let him be cherished, and again have grass and bread to eat; and then let the rider mount and alight several times, encouraging him between each time, and thus he is to be managed till he will go on, or stand still at pleasure. This being done, the long rein may be laid aside, and the band about the neck, which are always used on this occasion, and nothing will be necessary but the trenches and cavesson, with the martingal. A groom must lead the way before ; or another hor.se going only straight forwards, and making him stand still when desired. In this manner, by sometimes following, and sometimes going before another horse on the trot, the creature will by degrees be brought to know that it is his business to be quiet and governable. 5989. To teach a horse the different movements of walking, trotting, galloping, and ambling, comes next in order. 5990. Walking is the slowest and least raised of all a horse's movements. It is performcti, as any one mjy observe, by the horse's lifting up its two legs on a side, the one after the other, beginning with the 938 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. hind leg first. Thus if he leads with the legs of the right side, then the first foot he lifts is the far hind foot, and in the time he is setting it down (whicli in a step is always short of the tread of his fore foot on the same side) he lifts his far fore foot, and sets it down before his near fore foot. Again, just as he is setting down his far fore foot, he lifts up his neir hind foot, and sets it down again just short of his near fore foot ; and just as he is setting it down, he lifts his near fore foot, and sets it down beyond his far fore foot. This is the true motion of a horse's legs in a walk ; and this is the pace in which many things are best taught. For instance when the horse ii to be taught to turn to the right and left, or from one hand to another, he is first to be taught it on th j walk, then on the trot, and finally on the gallop. The walk is a pace to which team, carriage, and read horses should constantly be well broke, as being of great use in all such cases and intentions. It is an excellent pace too, in a saddle horse, when well performed by being properly taught. 5991. Li trotting the limbs are diagonally employed; but their tenses or times, or rising and falling, are very different, as it is conducted slow or fast. In the slow trot the diagonal legs are elevated and replaced simultaneously ; while those on the ground are preparing to elevate themselves, and the horse is for a moment on tiptoe ; but until the original diagonal legs are set down, these are not wholly elevated ; therefore tlie horse is during the moderate trot at no time without support. But it is very different when the trot is accelerated, as to nine or ten miles an hour ; for then there is a period in every spring made by the diagonal nembers, when all the feet are in the air at the same time ; and the body completely suspended from the ground by these means. Thus during this accelerated action, the off fore leg and near hind leg having been elevated in the air before they meet the ground, tht: near fore leg and the off hind one are not only prepared, as in the slow trot, to elevate themselves, but actual- ^X^^Stti^ ^^^ ly do so before the others are yif set down ; consequently, the feet ^* at this precise time, must be all in air. {Jig. 631.) To speed in the trot, it is necessary that a horse pick up his feet quick, and extend them far forward. To the safety also, it is necessary he ele- vate his knee ; at the same time the general elevation of the whole is operated by high withers, and obliqt e shouldei s. 5992. Three qualities are essentially necessary to make the trot us^ul. It ought to be extended, supple, and even, or equal : these three qualities mutuc lly depend upon each other, so that you cannot pass to the supple trot, without having first worked upon the extended trot ; and you can never arrive at the even and equal trot, without having practised ihe supple. The extended trot is tliat in which the horse trots out without retaining himself, being quit? straight and going directly forwards ; and this conse- quently is the kind of trot with which you must begin. The stipple trot is that in which the horse, at every motion he makes, bends and plays his joints by the elasticity of the organs composing them ; as those of his shoulders, his knees, and feet, which no colts or raw horses can execute, who have not had their limbs suppled by exercise, and who always trotAvith a surprising stitTness and awkwardness, without the least spring or play in their joints. The corn or equal trot is that in which the horse makes all his limbs and joints move so equally and exactly, tl at his legs never cover more ground one than the other, nor at one time more than another. To do this, the horse must necessarily unite and collect all his strength, and if the expression maybe allowed, distribute it equally through all his joints. To go from the extended trot to the supple, you must ge itly and by degrees hold in your horse; and when by exercise he has attained sufficient ease and sup )leness to manage his limbs readily, you must insensibly hold him in still more and more, and by degrees you will lead him to the equal trot. 5993. The manner of trotting a colt who has never been backed is as follows : put a plain snaffle in his hiouth ; fit a cavesson to his nose, to the ring of ^hich tie a longe of a reasonable length. Let a groom hold this longe, who, having got at some distarce from the colt, must standstill in the middle of the Circle which the horse will make. Let another follow him with a long whip or chambriere in his hand. The colt being alarmed, will be forced to go forward, and to turn within the length of the cord, the groom must hold it tight in his hand; by this means le will draw in, or towards the centre, the head of the colt, and his croupe will of consequence be without the circle. In working a young horse after this manner do not press or hurry him. Let him nalk first, and afterwards put him to the trot. If you neglect this method his legs will be embarrassed ; he will lean on one side, and be more upon one haunch than the other ; the inner fore foot will strike against the outer one, and the pain which this will occasion will drive him to seek some means of defence, and make him disobedient. If he refuses to trot, the person who holds the chambridre will animate 1 im by trotting him, or striking the ground with it. If he offers to gallop instead of trotting, the groom must shake or jerk the cord that is tied to the cavesson, and he will fall into his trot. {Berenger^s Art q; Horsemanship, vol.i. ch. 4.) The value of this longing in a circle is incalculable, inasmuch as it supples the jhoulders, and gives them a greater extent of action. It also increases the action of the whole limb downwards, and accustoms the horse to affect other move- inents, to be performed with an elevated hand. 5994. The gallop is the swiftest natural pace of a horse, performed by reaches or leaps ; the two fore feet being raised almost at the same time; and when these are in the air, and just ready to touch the ground again, the two hind feet are lifted almost at one ;. In galloi)ing, the horse may lead with which fore leg he pleases; the most usual way is that with the right, in which case the gallop is said to he just; but whichsoever it be, the hind leg of the same side nust follow it next, which forms an even or equal gallop ; otherwise the legs are said to be disunited, and tlie gallop to be false ; to remedy which disorder, the rider must stay the horse a little on the hand, and he p him on the s])ur on the contrary side to that on which be is disunited. However, this rule has not been alv/ays strictly observed; for hunting horses have been trained to lead indifferently with both legs, becai se it has been found, that a horse which has never been suffered to gallop but with his right fore leg, has been worn out on one side, when he has been fresh and sound on the other. In order to make a stop in a gallop straight forwards, the rider should carefully put his horse together, without altering or disturbir g the appui, and throw his body back a little to accom- pany the action, and to relieve the horse's shou:ders. In doing this he should seize the time of making the stop, keeping the hand and body quite still, exactly when he feels the horse put his fore feet to the ground, in order that by raiising them immediately by the next motion which he makes, he may be upon Book VII. TRAINING HORSES. 939 his haunches. When horses do not put out their strength sufficiently, they should be galloped briskly, and then slowly again by turns, and they will thus oe compelled to obey the hand and hcul. In the slow gallop, as well as in the trot, it is sometimes n ^cessary to close the heels to the horse's sides, which is called pinching i but this should be done in such a manner as not to make the horse abandon himself upon the hand, and care must be taken that he be upon his haunches, and not upon his shoulders ; and, there- fore, when he is pinched, he should be kept in ;he hand. To put a horse well together, and make him bring his hinder legs under him, the rider must clase his legs upon him, putting them very much back; this will oblige him to slide his legs under him ; at the same instant let the hand be raised a little to sup- port him before, and yielding again immediatelj'. Let him be thus supported, and have the rein again from time to time, till he begins to play and bend lis haunches, and gallops leaning and sitting down, as it were, upon them ; let the rider then press him with the calves of his legs, and he will thus become quick and sensible to the touch. If a horse has toc' fine a mouth, gallop him upon sloping ground ; thi.s will oblige him to lean a little upon the hand, in order the better to put himself upon the haunches ; and through fear of hurting his bars, he will be prevented from resisting the operation of the bit. If the horse is heavy in hand, gallop him up sloping griund; and when his appui is too strong, this will lighten him The gallop serves to assure and make steaiiy a weak and delicate mouth, and also to supple a horse, and make him steady and active in his limbs. [Berenger's History and Art of Horsemanship, vol. ii. p. 104, &c.) 5995. In galloping in a circle the horse is confired always to lead with his fore leg, within the turn ; otherwise he is said to gallop false. But here, too, the hind leg of the same side must follow. The varie- ties of gallop are a. hand-gallop, a. Canterbury -ga, lop, a school-gallop, S(C, A smooth gallop, close to the ground, the French call the English gallop, galo}) a VAnglois. 55)91). The canter is different from the gallop in sorie essential particulars. Whether the gallop be fast or slow, still the legs are at one period wholly removed from the ground, and the horse is all in air. In the canter, on the contrary, at no period is the horse co'nplctely elevated from the ground, but has always one or more points of contact with it. Blaine descri jes its operation thus : when performed on the right, the horse commences by first placing his ofF hind leg a little beyond the other; at nearly the same instant he elevates the fore hand, and places first the near Ton leg on the ground ; the off doubling over and beyond, is placed in an instant after it. In the next mo\enient the hind legs are thrown in, and, while elevated, the off fore leg becomes raised from the ground ; but the near fore leg is not elevated until the hinder ones are replaced. The near fore leg is, therefore, the whole point of support in cantering at each re- move, and thus it is that cantering horses alwavir fi; st fail on that leg. 5997. The amble is a peculiar kind of pace, by wl ich the horse changes sides at each remove; two legs of a side being always in the air, and two on the g-ound. An amble is usually the first natural pace of young colts, which, as soon as they have strength enough to trot, they quit. There is no such thing as an amble in the manege ; the riding-masters allowing if no other paces beside walk, trot, and gallop; their reason is, that a horse may be put from a trot to a gallop, without stopping him ; but not from an amble to a gallop without stopping. This movement, wh ch is very laborious to the horse, and in which he ought not to be indulged, except on smooth ground, is very easy to the rider ; it has not the hardness of a trot, because the hind leg moves along with the fore one, and creates no resistance to the motion. It is, how- ever, now never taught, and therefore any direction s regarding it would be useless. 5998. The training of cavalry homes is exclusively performed in the military establish- ments, and therefore can never be required of the farmer or breeder. 5999. The training of coach horses conmences with taming, walking, trotting, and refjeated longing; and next with yoking and driving in a break or four-wheeled frame, with no other load than that of the coach iox or seat placed in the usual position, the driver and his assistant sitting on a board f xed to the perch or hind axle, in order to be ready at a moment's notice, to descend aid restrain, or direct the horses. Coach horses, from 15 to 16 hands high, should walk light five miles an hour, and trot twelve. They should be first accustomed to this exercise in the country, next in the outskirts of a large city, and lastly in the most crowded streets. eOOO, The age at which a horse is fit to i^e worked in a coach, is four and a half or five years ; but by the fraudulent practice both of the country and town dealers, horses of three and four years old are frequently employed. The first business of the Yorkshire dealer, who has three or four year old colts to dispose of, is to draw their corner teeth, in order to make them have the mouths of those of five. They also undergo the opera- tion of docking and nicking; and after lia>ing been kept two or three months on mashes, made of bran, ground oats, or boiled corn, they are sold to the London dealers, who, it is said, sell these three or four years old horses as if they were five years old. They are then taken into immediate work, either for the coach or saddle ; and in a few months are completely destroyed by this premature j.nd too severe labor. The drawing of the teeth is not a fraud practised on the Loidon dealers; they ktioio the deception, and insist upon its being done by the country dealers. It is requisite to be done some months before the London dealers finally sell them w use, or the tooth which denotes a horse to be five years old would not be grown, consequently the deception could not have taken place. 6001. The training of cart and j dough h )rs€s commences with taming before they are a year old, with walking and rubbing them diiwn in the stable Avhen they are two, and with training to work when they are of three years growth. They should be placed under the charge of a very steady careful s.'rvant, who will teach them to back, and to go into the shafts. They ought not, ho\\ever, to be made to draw any other than a very light empty cart, till their fourth or fifth year; nor ought they to be put into the shafts of a threshing machine before their fifth year. The first work to which an agricultural horse may be applied, is harrowing; but this during the fourth year only half a day at a time, or with a light harrow the whole day. Next he may be put to plough with similar care and caution in regard to strength. In general, agricultural horses require very little training ; but one tiling is too often ntglected, and that is, teaching plougli iior.ses a quick step, and keeping them at that step e/cr after in working them. By not attending 940 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. to this, and leaving the step to be regulated by lazy, spiritless ploughmen, the loss to many farmers is very considerable. Sect. XIII. Of the Art of Horsemanship. 6003. Horsemanship, as an art, is unquestionably of very ancient date, and it is curious how very different are the modes by which it is practised in different countries ; but ■which differences are yet principally confined to the situation of the legs of the rider: for wherever the horse is used to carry the person, it is by the rider placing himself astride the animal. Horses were used in this way for centuries before any apparatus was used or applied to their bodies to spare fatigue to the rider ; and we know that the first saddles were mere pads strapped round the body, but without the appendages of stirrups. In England, riding is systematically divided in two kinds, which are manege and jockey riding. 6003. Manege riding, called also riding the great horse, in the strict application of the term, was formerly more practised than at present ; and required a system of education for both horse and rider long and severe. Horses perfectly broke for the manege, were taught several paces and motions, as ambling, pacing, passaging, yerking, capriole, and cornetti. The practice of these artificial cadences, it is supposed, injures the natural pace of the horse; and this circumstance, united to a particular form of horse (defective for other purposes) being required for the elasticity of these actions, has tended to bring manege riding, as formerly practised, into disrepute. Manege riding also taught the constant application of the seat of the body of the rider, to the seat of the saddle, during all the motions of the horse ; and as a severe education, and a particular form, had bestowed ease and elasticity to the rudeness of the manege horse, the inconveniences of this seat were not felt. But when another form of horse, capable of great speed over excellent roads, was in general use, this kind of riding was found hurtful to both horse and rider ; fatiguing the one, and injuring the other. 6004. The art of proper riding, as practised among experienced horsemen, is derived from a knowledge of the judicious application of the aids of the bridle, as taught in our schools, and as practised in the army ge- nerally : and also from a proper application or placing the body on the horse. These we certainly owe to manege riding ; and a knowledge of them is as essential to the safety of the rider, as it is to the grace of his appearance as a horseman. The proper art of riding embraces all that is taught in the best schools, or practised on the road ; and is equally applicable to both. This is allowed to its fullest extent by those who have possessed themselves of the requisite information, and practise on the subject ; but is denied by those who, wedded to field riding, contend that the perfection of horsemanship consists in a snaffle bridle and a jockey seat. 6005. The use qf the curb bridle is considered in the schools to be essential to good riding : by it the horse is not wily restrained, but he is also aided and assisted. He is alternately thrown on his hauches, or forced on his forehand, by which changes fatigue is prevented to both. Great nicety, however, is required in the use of the curb ; and without an inclination and ability to use it lightly and dexterously, a snaffle is the best and safest bridle. The curb is to be operated by a gentle turn of the wrist only ; and the action of the hand in this respect should be as fine, and as pliable as the fishing rod and line. The force of the curb should in every instance be portioned to the mouth of the horse. 6006. The best form of saddle for general riding is one in which the cantle is not so high as the military, nor so low as the racing saddle. The pommel should be no more raised than is necessary to keep the whole completely free from the withers. The stirrups should be substantial, not only to prevent breaking ; but also that by their weight they may fall to the foot when accidentally slipped away ; which is of more con- sequence than at first sight may appear. If they are of the spring kind, it is also desirable : but it is still more so, that the spring stirrup leather should "be used; which prevents the danger arising from horses catching the leather in the projections of doors, gates, &c. Having saddled and bridled our horse we will proceed to mount our rider. 6007. If youwould mount with ease and safety, sa.ys'Rwghes, stand rather before the stirrup than be- hind it; then, with the left hand, take the bridle short, and the mane together, help yourself into the stirrup, with your right, so that, in mounting, your toe do not touch the horse. Your foot being in the stirrup, raise yourself till you face the side of the horse, and look directly across the saddle ; then, with your right hand, lay hold of the hinder part of the saddle, and, with your left, lift yourself into it. When mounted, let your yjosition on the saddle be square, and the purchase of your bridle such as not to pull your shoulders : and let your body be in such an even posture as if you held a rein in each hand. In holding the bridle, grasp the reins with your hand, which should be held perpendicular with the reins passed, the lower within the hand, and the upper, between the fore and next fingers, {fig. 632. ). The reins are then brought over the fore finger and firmly held by the thumb. It is often directed to place the little finger between the lower reins ; the practice III' of this may be optional with the rider, and in a very fine hand is desirable. The bridle should be held at such a length as to enable you if your horse stumbles, to raise his head and support it with your arms ; and by throwing your body backwards at the same time you frequently save a horse that would other- wise fall. 6008. A graceful and proper seat on horseback is greatly de- pendent on a right disposition of the legs and thighs, which should hang nearly straight down, easily, and without force or constraint : all which is brought about from above ; by placing the body flat and evenly on the saddle, and opening the knees, \ whereby the fork will come lower on the saddle, {fig. 633. ) The thighs should be api^lied to the saddle and to the sides of the horse by their inner surfaces, so as to bring in the knees and .... . toes ; and although the line may be properly broken by some little irregularities, yet the foot, ''^ \ ^ odo the knee, the hip, and shoulder, should deviate but little from one perpendicular line. The ball of the foot should rest within the stirrup, and should be even with the heel, or very slightly elevated above it. Avoid any stiffiiess in the legs, thighs, or body ; all should be lax, but in a state to be able to embrace the horse, either for support, or as aids to him. The loins particularly, should be lax and pliable, as a coachman's on his box ; and for the same reasons ♦ for by sitting thus loosely, the rough motions of both are broken. To depend on the embrace of the knees for support, is to lose the benefit of a true equipoise of body, and is rather to stick on a horse than to sit on one, 6009. When you are troubled with a horse that is vicious, which stops short, or, by rising or kicking, en- deavors to throw you off, you must not bend your body forward, as is commonly practised in such cases; because that motion throws the breech backward, and moves you from your fork, or twists and casts you out of your seat : but the right way to keep your seat, or to recover it when lost, is, to advance the lower part of your body, and to bend back your shoulders and upper part. In flying or standing leaps, a horse- man's best security is the bending back of the body. The rising of the horse does not affect the rider'* Book VII. FEEDING HORSES. 941 seat ; he is chiefly to guard against the lash of the animal's hind legs, which is best done by inclining the body backward. But the usual method of fixing the knees in all cases of danger only serves, in great shocks, to assist the violence of the fall. To save yourself from being hurt, in these cases, you must yield a little to the horse's motion ; by which means you will recover your seat, if displaced, or keep it at such times as would dismount an unskilful horseman. 6010. IJ your horse grow; unruly, take the reins separately, one in each hand, put your arms forward, and hold him short, but do not pull hard with your arms low ; for, by lowering his head, he has the more li- berty to throw out his heels : but if you raise his head as high as you can, this will prevent him from ris- ing before or behind; nor, while his head is in this position, can he make either of these motions. Is it not reasonable to imagine, that, if a horse is forced towards a carriage which he has started at, he will think he is obliged to attack or run against it ? Can it be imagined that the rider's spurring him on, with his face directly to it, he should understand as a sign to pass it ? These rational queries are submitted to the serious consideration of such as are fond of always obliging their horses to touch those objects at which they are, or aflfect to be, frightened. 6011. Indifferent horsemen, Lawrence observes, should never venture on horseback without spurs. Those who reflect upon the predicament of being placed between a deep ditch and a carriage, at which their horse shies will see the necessity of this precaution. 6012. Previous to mounting, every person will find his account in examining the state of both horse and furniture with his own eyes and hands; for, however good and careful his groom may generally be, it is a maxim, that too much ought not to be expected from the head of him who labors with his hands. Besides, all such sedulously avoid trouble, particularly in nice matters. For example, see that your curb is right, that your reins are not twisted, that your girths, one over the other, still bear exactly alike ; that the pad be not wrinkled up ; but, above all, that your saddle lies exactly level upon the horse's back. 6013. On getting off the horse's baCk, hold the bridle and mane in the same manner as when you mounted, hold the pommel of the saddle with your right-hand ; to raise yourself, bring your right leg over the horse's back, let your right-hand hold the hind part of the saddle, and stand a moment on your stirrup, just as when you mounted. But beware that, in dismounting, you bend not your right knee, lest the horse should be touched by the spur. 6014. The jockey mode of riding is practised in its fullest extent in racing. With some modification it is also in use by many who esteem themselves excellent fox-hunters. With still greater modification it is by its advocates practised also on the road. English post-boys unite these two kinds of riding in a manner at once easy to themselves and horses. True jockey riding consists in the use of a snaffle bridle, which is held firmly ; and, as an advocate for it expresses himself, to enable the rider to give his horse the proper pulls. To this end, the same writer recommends a firm seat, upright, and as you would sit in a chair, with the knees nearly as much bent, and turned inward ; the toes somewhat out and upward ; the leg falling nearly straight, and the foot home in the stirrup (^;£r. 634.) ; elbows close to the sides ; hands rather above the horse's withers, or pommel of the saddle ; and the view directed between his ears. The same writer further advocates the jockey mode, by commenting on the decline of riding-house forms, and , the universal preference given to expedition, which, as he says, fully confirm the superior use and propriety of a jockey-seat. Indeetl, our riding-schools are now, he continues, considerably reformed from the stiflTness of ancient practice in all respects. It was the practice formerly in the schools, and indeed pretty generally upon the road, to ride with the tip of the toe only in the stirrup ; as if it were of more consequence to prepare for falling with safety, than to endeavor to sit securely. Those who preserve a partiality for this venerable custom, we would advise to suspend a final judgment, until they have made a few more essays upon a huge cock-tail half bred, of that kind which ' cannot go, and yet won't stand still,' and will dart from one side of the road to the other, as if he really desired to get rid of his burden. Nor is the ball of the foot a proper rest ; chiefly because inconvenient to that erect, or rather almost kneeling, posture, which is required in speedy riding. The riding-house seat is preserved by the balance or equipoise of the body solely ; that recommended here by the firm hold of the knee, which is obviously strengthened by the opposite directions of the knee and toe, the one in, the other outward. Sect. XIV. Of the Feeding of Horses. 6015. The feeding of horses generally/, is an important feature in their management. In considering the food> for horses, we are apt to locate our notions to the matters around us, without taking into account that every country has its peculiar products. White observes that the best food for horses is hay and oats ; and had he added for English horses, it might have been just, but without such notice the assertion is much too confined. In some sterile countries, horses are forced to subsist on dried fish, and even vegetable mould ; in Arabia on milk, flesh balls, eggs, broth, &c. In India, where the native grasses are tall, but little nutritious,' the better sorts are fed on Indian corn, rice, millet, &c. ; and the poorer on rushes, sedge, leaves, &c. In the West Indies on maize, Guinea corn, and sugar-cane tops; and in some instances on the sugar itself, in the form of molasses. In France, Spain, and Italy, besides the grasses, the leaves of limes, vines, the tops of acacia, the seeds of the carob tree, &c.are used. 6016. The food of British horses may be divided into herbage, grain, roots, and mixtures. Of kerb~ age, the principal kind is theprojjer gramina, eaten either moist, or dried into hay. When eaten moist in their natural state, such a horse is said to graze ; but when these matters are cut and carried into the stable to a horse, he is said to be soiled. Hay is herbage cut during its flowering and seeding processes, which being subjected to the action of the sun and air a proper time, arc then collected into large masses called ricks, where a certain degree of fermentation takes place before the matter is fitted to be- come wholesome or nutritious, or before it receives such alteration as fits it for resisting further decom- position and decay. The judicious managementof this fermentative process forms one of the great- est desiderata in hay making. Pursued to a proper extent, the remaining moisture acting on the farinaceous parts, as the seeds, &c., in conjunction with the heat evolved during the process, as it were malts the whole, and sugar is produced Pushed beyond this, the hay becomes carbonised, and mow burnt ; its nutritive properties are lessened, and its noxious qualities increa.sed. it being found in this state to excite diabetes, sweating, and extreme weakness and emaciation. (575b) The quality of the hay is too little attended to, but which is of very great importance; and more particularly so where little corn but much hay is given. Hay should therefore be of the best, whether meadow, clover, or mixed. Many horses thrive best on clover hay, particularly draught horses. It is very grateful to horses, and it saves much waste of saliva ; to sprinkle hay witli water, has the same effect, but it should only be done as it is wanted. 6017. Hay should never be given in large quantities at a time, horses breathe on it, become disgusted, and then waste it. They also, when it is good, eat too much, and distend their stomachs, and then 942 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. become crib-biters. Hay should not be kept in the stable in great quantities, otherwise it becomes im- pregnated with the volatile alkali of the stable, and is hen spoiled. As substitutes for hay, the straw of wheat, barley, oats, and rye are used; but these jre much less nutritive, and ratner serve to excite mastication by mixing them with other matters, than o be depended on for animalization. On hay, when good, many horses subsist; and when no exertions are required of them they are sufficiently nourished by it. 6018. The grain tised as horse food is of various kinds, possessing, it is supposed, different degrees of nutriment, according to their different praportions of gluten, sugar, or farinaceous matter. In South Britain, oats are almost exclusively used a., horse grain; and which, according to the experi- ments of Sir Humphrey Davy, as we have seen (4598.), contain 748 parts of nutritious matter out of 1000. In wheat, 955 parts of 1000 are nutritious ; but wheat is seldom given with us except to racers and hunters, or on extraordinary occasions when great excitement is required, when it is sometimes given in the form of bread. Barley is more frequently given than wheat, anc contains 920 parts in 1000 of nutritious particles. Made into malt, where its sugar is evolved, it beccmts still more highly nutritious. Barley appears to have been the principal horse food of the ancients. 6019. The pulse used as horse food, are the seed.) of beans, peas, vetches, &c. Beans are seldom given alone on account of their heating and astrin!;ent qualities, but are mixed with straw or hay, cut into chaff, either whole or broken. 6020. The roots used as horse food, are such as contain much sugar, but in which the gluten is in small proportion only. Carrots stand deservedly high, on this list. They are favorable to con- dition, as the skin and hair always look well under their use. They are highly nutritious we know, from the fattening that occurs from them. They alofenerate good flesh, as we know horses can work on them, and have their wind increased by their use; ncieed, so favorable are they to the proper action of the lungs, that a course of carrots will frequently remove the most obstinate coughs. The parsnep has similar properties. Swedish turnips, as having the saccharine particles in abundance, are also found good. Beet-root likewise. 6021. Mixtures, or mixed food, is formed of seve]al kinds among agriculturists ; and it possesses many advantages, as it can be varied to every taste, and made either cooling as an alterative, or nutritious and stimulating as a tonic. Although it is principally usjd for waggon, post, and farm horses, it would be better were its use more universal. Of this manger leeding, one of the best is formed from a chaff made of one part best meadow or clover hay, and t vo parts wheatcn straw; to three bushels of this mixture add one of bruised oats. The importance o;' bruising or flattening the oats is very great. When used whole, the grains are apt to slip betwem the teeth or the chaff in mastication. In fact, corn when either given alone, or with chaff, would, in most instances, benefit by bruising. To horses under great exertion, the stomach must be, to a certiin degree, weakened also; in such cases, by bruis- ing their corn, not only the work of mastication is much of it spared, but that of the stomach also. In old horses with worn teeth, bruised oats are of great consequence. Fast eating hordes do not properly masticate more than one half of their corn ; much of i . remains in the dung so perfectly unaltered, that it will afterwards vegetate ; anel the celebrated agriculturist Curwen states, that during his residence in India, in a season of scarcity, half famished wretches actually fo lowed the cavalry, and drew their principal sub- sistence from the unchewed grains of corn extracted fom the excrement of the horses. Of this manger food, three, four, five, or six pecks may be given dail; , according to size and exertions required ; and as but little bay is required, so hard worked horses are enabled to lie down much more, instead of standing on their already fatigued limbs to eat hay. 6022. Cooked food is also now much used by practical jgriculturists for horses. The articles made use of are potatoes, carrots, turnips or parsneps. To hors is with their digestion weakened by hard work, old age, or other causes, food in sufficient quantities, thus already reduced to a pultaceous mass, resembling chyme, without the loss of time, or the waste of saliv.i, may be very important : for as Curwen very judiciously observes, a horse will consume nearly six lours in eating a stone of hay, whereas he will eat a stone of steameti potatoes in twenty minutes. Hoises are observed of themselves to lie down after eating cooked food sooner than other times. 6023. The quantity of food to be given to i. horse must be regulated by circumstances, the principle of which is the exertions or nature of the work required of him. If this be simply laborious, as drawing of loads, or :a!Tying of weights, all that is requisite is that the food be sufficiently nutritious. The I)u k from whence such nutriment is gained is not a matter of import : but if such exe?rti mi are to be combined with celerity, as in our racers, hunters, &c. ; it is evident tliat such feeding is best adapted to the end required which combines nutriment without bulk ; and which increases the durability by increasing the mental irritability, and thus giving tone and courage. These are found to be better derived from a proportionate allowance of grain or corn, than any other mode of feeding at present known. It remains only to add, that although ex- perience has fully proved this, in all cases where the exertions are extreme ; yet it has also led to another evil, by introducing a olcn of treating all horses of value alike. Thus most of the more valuable hacknies, th2 carriage horses of the wealthy, &c., are accustomed to be fed, not as though their exertions were moderate ; but as though tliey were unceasing, to the great injury of i hemselves, and to the destruction of a vast quantity of valuable corn. To thousands of such horses, at least one third of their hay and corn might be advantageously abstracted. 6024. Too great a quantity of food injures not only the community but the horse also. The stomach becomes distended by over-feeding, and it then becomes weak and inca- pable of a healthy digestion ; crib-biting, hidt:-boimd, and pursiveness follow ; or when the stomach does digest this undue quantity, it generates fulness, which shews itself in inflammations or foulness, appearing in the fcirni of cracks and grease. 6025. A horse in full work, of whatever kind, will re juire, according to his size, a peck of sound oats in twenty-four hours ; and when the work is unremittin;;, as in post horses, even more [may be required. Some post horses have an unlimited quantity given thim ; but this practice is always erroneous. If they eat more, it serves only to distend the stomach unduly, and also to require stronger digestive powers : if they blow on it they leave it, and it is wasted, or a more greedy one swallows it up without mastication ; and both stomach, horse, and master, are thereby roDbed. The oats should be of the very best, with a thin skin, and should weigh from thirty-eight to forty pounds the bushel. They should also be sweet and free from must, and not kiln-dried. When put into a wide manger and spread about, being first sjjrinkled with water, their benefit is increased. No horse will recuire more than eight or ten pounds of hay, in twenty-four hours : from six to eight pounds are usually sufficient. When it can be conveniently done, the quantity of both hay and corn should be divided into four portions. The largest portion both of hay Book VII. STABLING AND GROOMING HORSES. 943 and corn should be given at night; the next in quantity in the morning; the other two portions at noon, and about four in the afternoon. This however must depend on tlie work of the horse, and other circumstances. 6026. Watering of horses IS an important part of their management, and many errors are committed relative to it. It is equally erroneous to debar them frori it, as it is to allow them too much ; and the former is much the most common evil. In sumriaer, or vhen from great perspiration, the animal juices are wasted, it generates fevers, and wastes the strength j nd spirits. All horses prefer soft water, and as nature is unerring, there is no doubt but that it is the loost wholesome. As some horses drink quicker than others, it is not a good custom to take riding horse; to a pond, unless at night, when the quantity cannot harm them ; or when not intended for early wor ; the next morning, as hunting, &c. 6027. The necessart/ quantity of water for a horse should be regulated by circumstances, as the weather, the work, &c. In common cases, a large horse requires rather more than the half of a large stable pail full twice in the day. At night a full pail should be al owed. Horses should never be galloped after drinking; it has destroyed thousands, by gripes, indimnntions, and broken wind. This custom also uses horses to expect they are to run away directly they are ac:;identally watered at any time. Others, expect- ing they are to be fatigued with a gallop, will avoid drink ng at all. The most that should ever be done, is to suffer no horse to drink his fill at a river or pond ; but having giving him half what is necessary, walk him ten minutes, and then give him all that is required, j.nd walk him again. Sect. XV. Of the Stabling and Grooming of Horses. 6028. The stabling of horses is likewise a mcst important point in their management, the more so as being wholly a deviation from n iture ; hence, under the most judicious management it is liable to produce some depiirtwre from health, and as some times managed, is most hurtful to it. Clothing, dressing or combing, and exercise, are also highly important. 6029. Every stable should be large, cool, and airy. It is too common to suppose that warmth is so con- genial to horses, that they cannot be kept too liot ; bul there is reason to suppose that many of the diseases of horses are attributable to the enervating effects of unnatural heat, and of an air breathed and rebreathed over again. Blaine says. Is it not alike repug lant to reason and experience, to expect to keep animals in health, that from stables heated to sixty degrees, and further protected by warm clothing, are first stripped, and then at once exposed to a temperature at the freezing point ? If it be argued that habit and exercise render these less hurtful, it will be easy to answer that their original hardihood is lost by confinement and artificial treatment ; and that neither d< es exercise always tend to obviate the effects of this sudden change : for our best carriage horses, and hackneys also, have often to wait hours in roads and streets the convenience of their owners, or the pleasure of the groom. 6030. The heat of a stable should be regulated by a thermometer, and the heat shown by it should never exceed 50" of Fahrenheit in winter, or 62° or 63° in sumrier. To renew the air, the stable should be well ventilated ; and which is best done by trunks or tubes parsing from the ceiling through the roof. 6031. A stable should not only be well ventilated, but it should be light also ; arid the windows should be so constructed as to admit light and air, without making a current of wind on the bodies of the horses. Darkened stables are very hurtful to the eyes ; neither d( they, as was formerly supposed at Newmarket, tend to the condition or rest of a horse. 6032. A stable should have a close ceiling to keep the du?t and dirt from the hay-loft from entering the horses' eyes. It also necessary to prevent the ammoniac il gases from ascending and lodging in the hay. It is preferable that the hay-loft be altogether removed from over the stable ; and if a very high ceiling even to the roof were substituted, it would be for the benefit of the horses. 603.3. The form of the rack and manger should be attended to. Sloping racks are disadvantageous, as encouraging dust in the eyes. They should therefore je upright, and by no means so high as they usually are, by which the head and neck are put injuriously on the stretch. As a proof that this is unpleasant to horses, many of them first pull out all t le hay, and then leisurely eat it. The manger should be wide at the bottom, and of a proper height : cf re should be taken that no splinters are present to endanger the lips, nose, and mouth. The halter reins should, in good stables, be suffered to run within a groove within the manger post, to prevent the nin entangling the legs. 6034. The stalls of a stable should be wide. Strains in t!ie back, and sometimes even worse evils, are the consequence of the standings being too narrow. Bails am objectionable from the ease with which horses can kick over them ; and alse from the quickest feeder getting most food, when several horses stand together bailed. 6035. The acclivity of the stalls is a matter of much dispute : when too much raised, as in dealers' stables, they i)ut the back sinews on the stretch, and fatigue hors(s much. It is more natural that they should be even; or that a very slight slope only be allowed to carry off the urine. The best mode, however, of carrying off the urine, is by means of a small grating to ea:h stall, communicating with a cess pool without doors, which should be closed uj), that a current of air may not come through the grating. Such a contrivance will effectually carry off the water, and pre\entthe volatile alkali of the urine from impreg- nating the air around. For the same reasons the dung should be removed, if possible, wholly without the stable as soon as dropped; for the exhalations froii that are also ammoniacal, and consequently hurtful. To this cause alone, we may attribute many diseases; particularly the great tendency stabled liorses have to become aftectetl in the eyes. The punge icy of this effluvia is familiar to every one on entering a close stable in the morning, and when the long-soiled litter is removed, it is absolutely unbearable. 6036. The litter of horses should be kept dry and sweet, and should be often removed. When it is suffered to remain, under the notion of making bett( r dung, the horse may be ruined ; neither does the manure benefit as is supposed ; for when it is removed to the dung pit, the close confinement does it more good than the open exposure in the stable, when it parts with its salts, on which its properties as manure partly depend. 6037. Horses should not stand on litter during the d ly, although very generally suffered to do so. Litter is thought to save the shoes and even the feet, by j reventing the uneven surface of the stable from hurting them : but it holds the urine ; it tenders the fee : ; it heats them also ; and is very apt to encou- rage swelling at the heels : as we know by removing it, vhen they immediately go down. A little litter may be strewed behind to obviate the effect of kicking, (r the splashing of urine in mares. 60.38. The clothing of horses is apt to be carried to as erron 30us an extent, as the heat of their stables. Wien horses go out in cold weather, and are intended to have merely a long walking exercise, then clothing is very proper: but it must be evident, that when taken clothe! from a stable and exercised briskly so as to jjroduce perspiration, it is erroneous; for not only are the clothes wetted and thus liable to give cold, but the horse is unfitted to go out afterwards with a sadcle only. S;id(lle horses kept in condition stand clothed in a kersey sheet, and girted with a broad roller, >vith occasionally the addition of a quarter-piece ; the breast-plate is sometimes put on when going out to exercise ; the hood is used to race-hor.ses only, except in case of sickness. All horses, excepting rac<;rs, are best without clothing in the summer season. 6039. The grooming or dressing of horses i:> generally thus practised : having tied 944 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part IIL up the horse's head, take a curry-comb, and curry him all over his body, to raise the dandrifF or scurf, beginning first at his neck, holding the left cheek of the head-stall in your left hand, and curry him from the setting on of his head, all along his neck, to his shoulder, and so go all over his body to the buttocks, down to his hocks ; then change your hands, and curry him before on his breast, and laying your right arm over his back, join your right side to his left, and curry him all under his belly to his chest, and so all over very well, from the knees and shoulders upwards : after that, go to the far side, and do in like manner. Then take a dead horse's tail, or a dusting- cloth of cotton, and strike that dust away which the curry-comb has raised. Then take a round brush, made of bristles, and dress him all over, both head, body, and legs, to the very fetlocks, always cleansing the brush from that dust which it gathers, by rubbing it upon the curry-comb. After that, take a hair-cloth, and rub him again all over very hard, both to take away the loose hairs, and to help to lay his coat ; then wash your hands in fair water, and rub him all over with wet hands, as well head as body; for that will cleanse away all those hairs and dust the hair-cloth left. Lastly, take a clean cloth, and rub him all over till he be very dry, for that will make his coat smooth and clean. Then take another hair-cloth (for you should have two, one for his body and another for his legs), and rub all his legs exceedingly well, from the knees and hocks downwards to his very hoof, picking and dressing them very carefully about the fetlocks from gravel and dust, which will lie in the bending of his joints. 6040. The curry-comb should not be too sharp, or, at least, not used in a rude and severe manner, so as to be an object of torture and dread, instead of delight and gratification to the horse. It is too often the fate of thin-skinned horses to suffer much from the brutality of heavy-handed and ignorant fellows, who do not recollect that the unhappy animal is suffering, every time he writhes and attempts to escape from the comb or brush, the same tortures that they themselves experience when tickled on the soles of their feet. 6041. The care of the legs and feet forms a most important branch of stable discipline. The legs must be kept perfectly dry, and so clean that not a speck of dirt be suffered to lodge in any crevice under the knee or fetlock, or around the coronet, and withal preserved cool and free from stiffness and inflam- mation. Dirt suffered to form a lodgment, or wet remaining upon the legs in cold weather, will fret the skin, and cause cracked heels, mallenders and sellenders, rat's-tails, crown-scab, and such a train of stable plagues, as may baffle the most vigorous efforts during a whole winter. From want of care, the best flat- legged horses, whatever may be their condition, will soon become greased. Much care should likewise be taken not to irritate and add to the inflammation of the legs, by harsh rubbing ; and if they be moderately bandaged with linen or woollen, which every groom knows how to perform neatly, it will contribute to cleanliness and the general end. Some gallopers are apt to crack the skin of their heels in exercise : in that case, supple the skin occasionally with simple ointment, thougli, in general, warm- water will be a sufficient preservative. Pains and soreness in the shins and shank-bones are often the consequence of exercise over hard ground in very dry seasons, for which there is no better palliative than frequent warm emollient fomentations. It forms a part of the constant attention of a good horse-keeper, to see that the feet of his horses be well-cleansed beneath the shoe with the picker from all small stones or gravel, at every return from abroad, The shoes must be examined, that their ends do not press into the crust, and that the nails be fast , and that the clinches do not rise to cut the horse. In these cases, instant applica- tion must be made to the farrier : horses ought by no means to remain in old shoes until the toe is worn away, or the webs become so thin that there is danger of their breaking, unless in case of brittle hoofs, when it is an object to shoe as seldom as possible. Upon the average, good shoes will wear near a month. Steeling the toes is, in general, an useful practice, but less necessary when the best iron is made use of. Where any tendency to dry hoofs exists, the feet should be stopped with equal parts of clay, cow dung, and chamberlye every night, otherwise, twice or three times a week will be sufficient. A still better stopping is made by adding a little tar to the other matters. It is also prudent, when the hoofs have any tendency to hardness and contraction, to water the front part of the stall a little; and also occasionally, or constantly, to hang around the hoofs an apparatus, made by doubling a circle of woollen cloth over a tape, which .should be tied around the fetlocks loosely : the two segments of the cloth will then fold around the hoof, and correspond to it in shape. This may be dipped in water, and will be found very convenient in keeping the feet moist and cool. Very brittle hoofs are greatly benefited by brushing them over with a mixture of whale oil and tar. It is considered as beneficial, in general, to take off the shoes of a horse who is necessitated to stand long in the stable, and who does no work, and to substitute tips ; thCj growth of the crust, and the enlargement of the heels being thereby promoted. 6042. The care of the furniture and trappings is another part of the duty of a horse-keeper. These are best kept in order by being instantly rubbed clean after use, and placed in a dry situation; by which method, neither oil nor scouring-paper is otlen found necessary. Great care should be taken to dry the pads of the saddles after journies, and never to put a hardened and damp saddle upon the horse's back. The same is also necessary with regard to the body-clothes. TJie pads of the saddles ought to be kept perfectly soft, and free of dirt and sweat ; and, after use, should be dried either in the sun or by the fire, and hung in a dry place : the clothes also should be washed much oftener than they generally are, and ever kept perfectly dry, and in a sweet state. 6043. The exercising of horses is essentially necessary for their health, as it counteracts the effects of the artificial life we force on them. High feeding, heated stables, and un- natural clothing are, particularly the first, counteracted by proper exercise ; and without it, horses become pursive, fat, heavy, and greased ; for, when the secretions do not find themselves natural vents by perspiration, &c., they will find themselves artificial ones. Exercise keeps down the fat, and it also hardens and condenses the muscles by drawing their fibres nearer together ; it likewise enlarges the muscles. Thus the appearance, as well as the feel, when we handle the flesh of a horse in condition by proper exercise, is totally different from those of one merely full of flesh by fat, &c. Exercise increases the wind by taking up the useless fat, and by accustoming the lungs to expand themselves. 6044. The quantity of exercise necessary for a horse must be regulated by a variety of circumstances ; as age, constitution, condition, and his ordinary work. A young horse requires more exercise than an old one, but it should be neither very long, nor very fatiguing. Some colts are observed to come out of the breaker's hands with Bplints and spavins, owing to the severe exercise they have undergone. When Book VII. MANAGEMENT OF RACE HORSES. 945 horses are in general work, a little walking exercise in the morning in body cloths, if the condition be very high, or the weather be very cold, is all that is necessary : but, on days when their common work is not expected to occur, a full fed horse should be exercised twice a day, an hour at each time; or, if only once a day, then an hour and a half or two hours' exercise should be given; two-thirds of which ought to be passed in walking; the other should be passed in a moderate trot in the hackney, and divided into galloping and trotting in the hunter. The racer has his regular gallops at stated periods; but the exercise of each should always finish with a walk of suflicient length, to bring the horse in cool, both in person and temper. Sect. XVI. Of the Management and Working of Horses. 6045. The working of horses includes the racing, hunting, and journeying of saddle horses j and the treatment in harness of coach, waggon, cart, and farm horses. SuBSECT. 1 . Management and Working of Race Horses. 6046. In the managing and working of race horses, three things are to be considered, the preparation of the horse, the conduct of the rider, and the after treatment of the horse. The preparation of a race horse for running a race is not the work of a few days, if there be any great dependence on the success. A month at least is required to harden his muscles in training, by proper food and exercise, and to refine his wind, by clearing his body to that degree of perfection that js attainable by art. It is first ne- cessary to ascertain correctly the present state of the horse, as whether he be low or high in flesh ; and in eitlier case, a proper estimate should be formed of the time and means required to bring him into true running condition. 6047. If a race horse be low in flesh, it is necessary to judge of the cause of such state, and to act accordingly, the necessary proceedings for which were detailed in treating of condition. (5756.) It is to be remarked, that spices are less to be depended on for this purpose than generous food, as malt mashes ; and if any thing of the kind be used, let it be the simple cordial ball. ( Vet. Pharm. 5899.) Feed frequently, and by little at a time : while he is thus low, let his exercise be walking only, and by no mians spare his water, or he will become hide-bound : carefully watch him, that full feeding may not disagree by making his heels swell, or his coat unthrifty; and if such appearances occur, mash him, and begin his scourings, otherwise abstain from physicking until he is in better health. As he improves in condition, increase his exercise, but not to such a degree as to make him sweat : his food must now be the best oats and beans, with wheaten or barley bread ; the beans and oats are to be put intp a bag, and beaten till the hulls are all off, and then winnowed clean ; and the bread, instead of being chipped in ihe common way, is to have the crust clean off. 6()48. If the horse be in good flesh and spirits when taken up for his month's preparation, cordials are altogether unnecessary ; and the chief business will be to give him good food, and so much exercise as will keep him in wind, without over-sweating, or tiring his spirits. "When he takes larger exercise after- wards, towards the end of the month, it will be proper to have some horses in the place to run against him. This will put him upon his mettle, and the beating them will give him spirits. Tliis, however, is to be cautiously observed, that he has not a bloody heat given him for ten days or a fortnight before the plate is to be run for; and that the last heat that is given him the day before the race, must be in his clothes : this will make him run with greatly more vigor when stripped for the race, and feeliisg the cold wind on every part. In the second week, the horse should have the same food and more exercise: and in the last fortnight he must have dried oats, that have been hulled by beating; after this jockies wet them with the whites of eggs, beaten up, and then laid out in the sun to dry ; and when as dry as before, the horse is to have them : this sort of food being considered by them as very light of digestion, and very good for the creature's wind. The beans in this time should be given more sparingly, and the bread should be made of three parts wheat and one part beans, or of wheat and barley in equal parts. If he should become costive under this course, he must then have bran-water to drink, or some ale and whites of eggs beaten together ; and keep his body moist. In the last week all mashing is to be omitted, and barley-water given him in its place; and everyday, till the day before the race, he should have his fill of hay ; then he must have it given him more sparingly, that he may have time to digest it ; and in the morning of the race-day, he must have a toast or two of white bread soaked in ale, and the same just be- fore he is led out of the field. This is an excellent method, because the two extremes of fulness and fasting are at this time to be equally avoided ; the one heating his wind, and the other occasioning a faintness that may make him lose. After he has had his food, the litter is to be shook up, and the stable kept quiet, that he may be disturbed by nothing till he is taken out to run, 6049. In the choice of a rider for winning a race, it is necessary, as far as possible, to select one that is not only expert and able, but honest. He must have a very close seat, his knees being turned close to the saddle skirts, and held firmly there ; and the toes turned inwards, so that the spurs may be turned outward to the horse's belly ; his left hand governing the horse's mouth, and his right the whip. During the whole time of the race, he must take care to sit firm in the saddle, ,without waving or standing up in the stirrups. Some jockies fancy the last a becoming seat, but it is certain, that all motions of this kind do really incommode the horse. In spurring the horse, it is not to be done by sticking the calves of the legs close to the horse's sides, as if it were intended to press the wind out of his body ; but, on the contrary, the toes are to be turned a little outwards, that the heels being brought in, the spurs may just be brought to touch the sides. A sharp touch of this kind will be of more service toward the quickening of a horse's pace, and will sooner draw blood than one of the common coarse kicks. The expert jockey will never spur his horse until there is great occasion, and then he will avoid striking him under the fore lx)wels between the shoulders and the girt ; this is the tenderest part of a horse, and a touch there is to be reserved for the greatest extremity. 6050. As U> whipping the horse, xiou^ht always to be done over the shoulder, on the nearside, except in very hard running, and on the jwint of victory; then the horse is to be struck rt as he can by 3 P 946 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. •awing the snaffle backward and forwards in his mouth, and by that means forcing him to open his mouth, which will give him wind, and be of great service. If there be any high wind stirring in the time of riding, the artful jockey will let his adversary lead, holding hard behind him, till he sees an op- portunity of giving a loose ; yet, in this case, he must keep so close behind, that the other horse may keep the wind from him; and that he, sitting low, may at once shelter himself under him, and assist the strength of the horse. If the wind happen to be in their back, the expert jockey is to keep directly behind the adversary, that he may have all the advantage of the wind to blow his horse along, as it were, and at the same time intercept it in regard to his adversary. 6051. When running on level smooth ground, the jockey is to beat his horse as much as the adversary will give him leave, because the horse is naturally more inclined to spend himself on this ground ; on the contrary, on deep earths, he may have more liberty, as he will there spare himself. 6052. In riding up kill the horse is always to be favored, by bearing him hard, for fear of running him out of wind; but in running down hill, if the horse's feet and shoulders will bear it, and the rider dares venture his neck, he may have a full loose. If the horse have the heels of the rest, the jockey must always spare him a little, that he may have a reserve of strength to make a push at the last post. 6053. On the jockey's knowing the nature of the horse that is to run against him, a great deal depends ; for by managing accordingly, great advantages are to be obtained : thus, if the opposite horse is of a hot and fiery disposition, the jockey is either to run just behind him, or cheek by joul with him, making a noise with the whip, and by that means forcing him on faster than his rider would have him, and consequently, spending him so much the sooner ; or else keep him just before him, in such a slow gallop, that he may either overreach, or by treading on the heels of the fore-horse, endanger tumbling over. Whatever be the ground that the adversary's horse runs worst on, the cunning jockey is to ride the most violently over; and by this means it will often happen, that in following he either stumbles or claps on the back sinews. The several corrections of the hand, the whip, and the spur, are also to be observed in the adversary, and in what manner he makes use of them : and when it is perceived by any of the symptoms of holding down the ears, or whisking the tail, or stretching out the nose like a pig, that the horse is almost blown, the business is to keep him on to this speed, and he will be soon thrown out or distanced. If the horse of the opponent looks dull, it is a sign his strength fails him ; and if his flanks beat much, it is a sign that his wind begins to fail him, and his strength will soon do so too. 6054. The after-management of a horse who has run, includes the treatment between the heats, and the treatment after the race is over. After every heat for a plate, there must be dry straw, and dry clothes, both linen and woollen, ready to rub him down all over, after taking off the sweat with what is called a sweat-knife ; that is, a piece of an old sword-blade, or some such thing. After the horse has been well rubbed, he should be chafed all over with cloths wetted in common water, till the time of starting again. When it is certainly known that the horse is good at the bottom, and will stick at the mark, he should be rid every heat to the best of his performance ; and the jockey is, as much as possible, to avoid riding at any particular horse, or staying for any, but to ride out the whole heat with the best speed he can. If, on the contrary, he has a fiery horse to ride, and one that is hard to manage, hard-mouthed, and difficult to be held, he is to be started behind the rest of the horses with all imaginable coolness and gentleness ; and when he begins to ride at some command, then the jockey is to put up to the other horses ; and if they ride at their ease, and are hard held, they are to be drawn on faster ; and if it be perceived that their wind begins to rake hot, and they want a sob, the business is to keep them up to that speed ; and when they are all come within three quarters of a mile of the post, then is the time to push for it, and use the utmost speed in the creature's power. 6055. When the race is over, the horse is immediately to be clothed up and rode home ; and immediately on his coming into the stable, the following drink is to be given him : Beat up the yolks of three eggs, and put them into a pint and a half of sound ale, made warm ; and let it be given with a horn. After this, he is to be rubbed well down, and the saddle-place rubbed over with warm water and vinegar, and the places where the spurs have touched, with the same ; after this he should have a feed of rye-bread, then a good mash, and at some time after these as much hay and oats as he will eat. His legs, after this, should be bathed some time with a mixture of vinegar and water. SuBSECT. 2. Of the Management and Working of the Hunter. 6056. The managing and working of the hunter includes his preparation for hunt- ing, his condition, and his treatment while taking his regular day's work in the field, whether after buck, fox, or hare hounds. 6057. The preparation of the hunter must, like that of the race horse, be commenced by an estimate of his state and condition. If taken fresh from grass, it should be in due time ; first, that he may be well prepared ; and next, because the grass does not yield much nutriment in the heat of summer. A still better method is to continue to let him run out in the day and graze, having a shed to house himself from heat and rain- He is also to be fed and exercised, nearly as in the common training, for hunting con- dition. In this way he is sure to be free from cracks, hidebound, or surfeit ; and he will prove infinitely more hardy afterwards. It is even the practice with some of the best sportsmen, to allow their horses to run out all the hunting season, unless the weather be very severe ; when they are only stabled in a loose place. They are allowed as much corn as they can eat, and are found, if a little rougher in their coats, infinitely superior in hardihood, and exemption from the dangers of cold. 6058. A hunter taken from grass or in very low case, should be treated as already fully detailed -under condition. (5755.) Great care must be taken that all the alterations in heat of stable, clothing, feeding, &c., are gradually brought about ; by which means his flesh will harden gradually, and by using first walking exercise, and increasing it as he advances in flesh and strength, his wind also will become excellent. 6059. In the physicking of hunters, particularly when they are low in flesh, much caution is requisite, that it be not over.done. It is the practice with some, and by no means a bad one, to give no physic ; but to give more time in the preparation. Others again give mild grass physic, which is an excellent plan, when the weather is fine. {See physicking, 5875.) 6060. The preparation of a hunter in full flesh and not from grass, depends principally on regular exercise, and the best hard food ; physicking him or not, according as he may be suspected to be foul, or as his wind may seem to want mending ; but above all, whatever is done, should be done regularly ; and Book VII. MANAGEMENT OF RIDING HORSES. 947 his exercise should be rather long continued than violent. Oats, with beans, are the proper hard food for hunters, taking care that the beans do not constipate the bowels ; which must be obviated by bran mixed with the other food, if such should be the case. Bread is not necessary, but for tender delicate horses ; but every tl)ing should be of the best. • 6061. The day before a horse is to hunt it is common to treat him somewhat differently, but which is seldom necessary. It is evident he should be well fed, and that not late at night, that he may lie down early. Some feed in the morning, which others avoid; but when it is considered, as has been fully explained (5731.), how ill a horse bears fasting, it will be at once seen, that if very early in the morning, as by five o'clock, he could be fed with a moderate quantity of com wetted, it would tend to support him through the day. 6062. On the return of a horse from hunting, the care bestowed on him should be extreme j as on it depends the immediate recovery of his strength. If he have fasted very long, and particularly if he be disinclined to eat of himself ; horn down a pint of ale, with two pints of thick gruel. No prudent sports- man will bring in a horse hot ; but if unavoidable accidents prevent this caution, let the horse be again led out for a few minutes, hooded and clothed ; but he must have fresh clothes when afterwards dressed. Encourage him to stale as quickly as possible, after which proceed to hand-rub him all over carefully, placing before him a little of the best hay well sprinkled with water. If he refuse this, offer him three ;3g well-limbed, and large, being most- ly bred out of fine Spanish mares. They are sometimes fifteen or six- teen hands high, and the best of them worth forty or fifty pounds. No creatures are so proper for large burdens, and none so sure-footed. They arcmuch stronger for draught than our horses, and are often as thick-set as our dray-horses, and will travel several months together, with six or eight hundred weight ui)on their backs. Some think it surprising that these animals are not more propagated here, as they are so much hardier and stronger than horses, less subject to diseases, and capable of living and working to twice the age of a horse. Those ( that are bred in cold countries are more hardy and fit for labor than those bred in hot ; and those which arc light made arc fitter for riding than horses, as to the walk and Book VII. HORNED CATTLE. 953 trot ; but they are apt to gallop rough ; though these do it much less than the short-made ones. The general complaint made against them is, that they kick and are stubborn ; but this is owing to neglect in breeding them, for they are as gentle as horses in countries where they are bred with proper care. 6102. In the breeding of jnules, mares that are of a very large breed and well made should be employed. They should be young, full of life, large barrelled, but small limbed, with a moderate sized head, and a good forehand. It is found of advantage to have the foals from the time of their being dropped often han- dled, to make them gentle : it prevents their hurting themselves by skittish ness and sudden frights ; and they are much easier broken at the proper age, and become docile and harmless, having nothing of that viciousness which is so commonly complained of in these animals. They may be broken at three years old, but should never be permitted to do much hard work till four, as they are thus secured from being hurt by hard labor, till they have acquired strength enough to bear it without injury. An expert breeder of these animals found, that feeding them too well while young, though it made them very fat, was far from being any advantage to them ; as it was not only incurring a much larger expense than was any way necessary, but also made them wonderfully nice and delicate in their appetites ever after, and also by increasing their weight of flesh, rendered them more subject to strains and hurts in their morning gambols. He therefore contented himself with giving them food enough to prevent their losing flesh, and to keep up their growth without palling their appetites with delicacies, or making them over-fat : he also took care to defend them from the injuries of the weather by allowing them stable room, and good litter to sleep on, besides causing them every day to be well rubbed down with a hard wisp of straw by an active groom. This was scarcely ever omitted, particularly in cold, raw, wet weather, when they were least inclined to exercise themselves. When three years old, mules are proper for use. 6103. The shoe for the mule is for the fore foot very similar to that which farriers call the bar shoe. It is very wide and large, especially at the toe, where it sometimes pro- jects four inches and upwards beyond the hoof. This excess is given it with a view to enlarge the basis of the foot, which is in general exceedingly narrow in this animal. The shoe for the hind feet is open at the lieels, like the horse's slioe : but it is lengthened at the toe, like the preceding one. Mules are however by no means invariably shod in this manner ; it is not unusual to shoe them either like horses or asses, as they approach the one or the other in size or work required. Chap. IV. Of Neat or Homed Cattle. — Bos, L. Mammalia Pecora, L. RuminaleiB, Cuv. Betes a corne, Fr. ; Viek, Ger. ; Ganado, Span., and Bestiam£, Ital. 6104. The neat or horned cattle used in agriculture are included under two species of Bos ; the B. taurus or Ox, and the B. bubulus or Buffalo ; the latter less used in Britain than on the continent and in other countries. These animals are more univer- sally used as beasts of draught and burthen than the horse, and have the additional advan- tage of furnishing excellent food and other valuable products. There is scarcely a coun- try in which the ox or the buffallo is not either indigenous, or naturalized and cultivated ; while in many parts of the world, the horse is either wanting, or reserved for the purposes of war or the saddle. Sect. I. Of the Ox. — Bos Taurus, L. Ochs, Ger. ,- Bceuf, Fr. ; Buey, Span., and Bv£, Ital. 6105. Tlie male ox is the Bull, Taureau, Fr. ; Slier, Ger.; Toro, Span, and Ital.; and the female the Cow, Vache Fr. ; Kuh, Ger.; and Vaca, Span, and Ital. The bull and cow inhabit various parts of the world, and, as already observed, are domesticated every where. In most countries, however, they are the mere creatures of soil and climate, the same attention in breeding and rearing that is bestowed on the horse being withheld ; the natural habits little restrained or the form improved for the purposes of milking, fattening, or for labor. It is almost exclusively in Britain that this race of animals have been im- proved so as to present breeds for each of these purposes, far superior to what are to be found in a state of nature or in any other country. Notwithstanding this, however, much certainly remains to be known regarding the nutriment afforded by different kinds of her- bage and roots ; the quantity of food consumed by different breeds, in proportion as well to their weight at the time, as to the ratio of their mcrease, and the propriety of employ- ing large or small animals in any given circumstances. Even with regard to the degrees- of improvement made by fatting cattle generally, from tlie consumption of a given weight of roots or herbage, no great accuracy is commonly attempted ; machines for weighing the cattle themselves and their food, from time to time, not being yet in general use in any part of Britain. We shall consider the bull family as to his variety, criteria, breeding,, rearing, feeding, working, fattening, and milking : the manufacture of milk will be treated of in a succeeding chapter. SuBSECT. 1 . Of the Varieties and Breeds of the Btdl. 6106. The varieties of the wild ox are the Bonasus and the Bison (fg. 130.; ; the 954 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. 639 640 first with a long mane, and the last with a gibbous back. They inhabit the woods in Madagascar and many other countries of the east ; and the bison is even said to be found in Poland. 6107. The varieties of the cultivated ox are the European, Indian, Zebu, Surat, Abyssinian, Madagascar, Tinian, and African. From the European variety have been formed the ditferent breeds cultivated in Britain. They are very numerous, but we shall only notice such as are in most esteem. These different breeds are generally distin- guished by the length or flexure of their horns, by the absence of horns, by the dis- tricts where they are supposed to have originated, abound, or exist in the greatest purity, or by the name of the breeder. 6108. The long-homed or Lancashire breed of cattle (fig. 639.) is distinguished from others by the length of their horns, the thickness and firm texture of their hides, the length and closeness of their hair, the large size of their hoofs, and coarse, leathery, thick necks ; they are likewise deeper in their fore quarters, and lighter in their hind quarters than most other breeds ; narrower in their shape, less in point of weight than the short horns, though better weighers in proportion to their size ; and though they give considerably less milk, it is said to afford more cream in proportion to its quantity. They are more varied in their color than any of the other breeds ; but, whatever the color be, they have in general a white streak along their back, which the breeders term finched, and mostly a white spot on the inside of the hough. {Culley, p. 53.) In a general view, this race, notwithstand- ing the singular efforts that have been made towards its improvement, remains with little alteration ; for, excepting in Leices- tershire, none of the subvarieties (which differ a little in almost every one of those counties where the long horns prevail) have undergone any radical change or any obvious im- provement. The improved breed of Leicestershire [jig. 640.), is said to have been formed by Webster, of, Cauley near Coventry, in Warwick- shire, by means of six cows brought from the banks of the Trent, about the beginning of the present cen- tury, which were crossed with bulls from Westmoreland and Lancashire. Bakewell, of Dishley in Leicestershire, afterwards got the lead as a breeder, by selecting from the Cauley stock ; and the stocks of several other eminent breeders have been traced to the same source. (Marshal's Midland Counties^ vol. i. p. 318.) 6109. The short-horned, sometimes called the Dutch breed, is known by a variety of names, taken from the districts where they form the principal cattle stock, or where Q^Y most attention has been paid to their improve- ment ; thus, different families of this race are distinguished by the names of the Holder' ness, the Teeswater, the Yorkshire, Durham, Northumberland^ and other breeds.' The Teeswater breed, a variety of short horns, established on the banks of the Tees, at the head of the vale of York, is at present in the highest estimation, and is alleged to be the true Yorkshire short-horned breed. Bulls and cows from this stock, purchased at most extraordinary prices, are spread over all the north of England, and the border counties of Scotland. The bone, head, and neck of these cattle are fine ; the hide is very thin ; the chine full ; the loin broad, and the carcase throughout large and well -fashioned ; and the flesh and fatting quality equal, or perhaps superior to those of any other large breed. The short-horns give a greater quantity of milk than any other cattle ; a cow usually yielding twenty-four quarts of milk per day, making three firkins of butter during the grass season : their colors are much varied, but they are generally red and white mixed, or what the breeders call flecked. The heaviest and largest oxen of the short- Book VII. VARIETIES OF THE BULL FAMILY. 955 horned breed, when properly fed, victual the East India ships, as they produce the thickest beef, which, by retaining its juices, is the best adapted for such long voyages. Our royal navy should also be victualled from these ; but by the jobs made by contractors, and other abuses, it is feared our honest tars are often fed with beef of an inferior quality; however, the coal ships from Newcastle, Shields, Sunderland, &c. are wholly supplied with the beef of these valuable animals. These oxen com- monly weigh from sixty to a hundred stone (fourteen pound to the stone), and they have several times been fed to one hundred and twenty, one hundred and thirty, and some particular ones to upwards of one hundred and fifty stone, the four quarters only. {Culley, p. 48.) 6110. In comparing the breeds oflmg and short-homed cattle, C\i\\ey observes, that the long-homs excel in the thickness and firm texture of the hide, in the length and closeness of the hair, in their beef being finer grained, and more mixed and marbled than that of the short-horns, in weighing more in pro- portion to their size, and in giving richer milk ; but they are inferior to the short-horns, in giving a less quantity of milk, in weighing less upon the whole, in affording less tallow when killed, in being generally slower feeders, and in being coarser made and more leathery or bullish in the under side of the neck. In few words, says he, the long-horns excel in the hide, hair, and quality of the beef; the short-horns in the quantity of beef, tallow, and milk. Each breed has long had, and probably may have, its particular advocates ; but if he may hazard a conjecture, is it not probable that both kinds may have their particular advantages in different situations? Why not the thick, fltm hides, and long close-set hair of the one kind, be a protection and security against those impetuous winds and heavy rains to which the west coast of this island is so subject; while the more regular seasons and mild climate upon the east coast are more suitable to the constitutions of the short-horns. 6111. The middle-homed breeds comprehend in like manner, several local varieties, of which, the most noted are the Devons, the Sussexes, and the Herefords ; the two last, ac- cording to Culley, being varieties of the first, though of a greater size, the Herefords being the largest. These cattle are the most esteemed of all our breeds for the draught, on account of their activity and hardiness; they do not milk so well as the short-horns, but are not deficient in the valuable property of feeding at an early age, when not em- 642 ployed in labor. 6112. The Devonshire cattle {Jig. 642.) are of a high red color (if any white spots, they reckon the breed impure, particularly if those spots run one into another), with a light-dun ring round the eye, and the muzzle of the same color, fine in the bone, clean in the neck, horns of a medium length, bent up- wards, thin-faced, and fine in the chops, wide in the hips, a tolerable barrel, but rather flat on the sides, tail small, and set on very high ; they are thin skinned, and silky in handling, feed at an early age, or arrive at maturity sooner than most other breeds. [Culley, p. 51). Another author observes, that they are a model for all persons who breed oxen for the yoke. {Parkinson on Live Stock, vol. i. p. 112). The weight of the cows is usually from thirty to forty stone, and of the oxen from forty to sixty ; the North Devon variety, in particular, from the fineness in the grain of the meat, is held in high estimation in Smithfield, {Dickson's Practical Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 120). 6113. Lawrence savs, that the red cattle of North Devon and Somerset are doubtless one of our original breeds, and one of those which has preserved most of its primitive form : the excellence of this form for labor is best proved by the fact, that the fashionable substitution of horses has made no progress in the district of these cattle, by their high repute as feeders, and for the superior excellence of their beef, which has been acknowledged for ages. They are, he says, the speediest working oxen in England, and will trot well in harness ; in point of strength, they stand in the fourth or fifth class. They have a greater resemblance to deer than any other breed of neat-cattle. They are rather wide, than middle-horned, as they are sometimes called ; some, however, have regular middle horns, that is, neither short nor long, turned upward and backward at the points. As milkers, .they are so far inferior to both the long and short-horns, both in quantity and quality of milk, that they are certainly no objects for the regular dairy, however pleasing and convenient they may be in the private family way. 6114. The Sussex and Hereford- shire cattle {Jig. 643.) are of a deep red color, with fine hair and very thin hides ; neck and head clean, the face usually white, horns neither long nor short, rather turning up at the points ; in gene- ral, they are well made in the hind quarters, wide across the hips, rump, and sirloin, but narrow in the chine, tolerably straight along the back, ribs too flat, thin in the thigh, and bone not large. An ox, six years old, when fat, will weigh from sixty to one hundred stone, the fore-quarters generally the heaviest; the oxen are mostly 956 . PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Pari III. worked from three to six years old, sometimes till seven,wheii they are turned olF for feeding. The Hereford cattle are next in size to the Yorkshire short-horns : both this and the Gloucester variety are highly eligible as dairy stock, and the females of the Herefords have been found to fatten better at three years old than any other kind of cattle except the spayed heifers of Norfolk. (^Marshal's Ecojiomy of Gloucestershire. ) 61 15. The polled or hornless breeds. The most numerous and esteemed variety is the Galloway breed {Jig. 644. ), so called from the pro- 644 vince of that name, in the south-west of Scotland, where they most abound. The true Galloway bul- lock " is straight and broad on the back, and nearly level from the head to the rump, broad at the loins, not, however, with hooked bones, or projecting knobs, so that when viewed from above, the whole body appears beautifully rounded ; he is long in the quarters, but not broad in the twist ; he is deep in the chest, short in the leg, and moderately fine in the bone, clean in the chop and in the neck ; his head is of a moderate size, with large rough ears, and full, but not prominent eyes, or heavy eyebrows, so that he has a calm though determined look ; his well-proportioned form is clothed with a loose and mellow skin, adorned with long soft glossy hair." {Galloway Report, p. 236.) The prevailing color is black or dark-brindled, and, though they are occasionally found of every color, the dark colors are uniformly preferred, from a belief that they are connected with superior hardiness of consti- tution. The Galloways are rather undersized, not very diiferent from the size of the Devons, but as much less than the long horns, as the long horns are less than the short horns. On the best farms, the average weight of bullocks three years and a half old, when the greater part of them are driven to the south, has been stated at about forty stone, avoirdupois; some of them, fattened in England, have been brought to nearly one hundred stone. 6116. Theeeneral properties of this breed are well known in almost every part of England, as well as in Scotland. They are sometimes sent from their native pastures directly to Smithfield, a distance of four hundred miles, and sold at once to the butcher; and in spring, they are often shown in Norfolk, immedi- ately after their arrival, in £is good condition as, or even better than, when they began their journey ; with full feeding, there is perhaps no breed that sooner attains maturity, and their flesh is of the finest quality. CuUey was misinformed about the quantity of milk they yield, which, though rich, is by no means abun- dant ; it is alleged not to be more than seventy or eighty years since the Galloways were all horned, and very much the same in external appearance and character, with the breed of black cattle which prevailed over the west of Scotland at that period, and which still abound in perfection, the largest sized ones in Argyleshjre, and the smaller in the Isle of Skye ; the Galloway cattle, at the time alluded to, were coupled with some hornless bulls, of a sort which do not seem now to be accurately known, but which were then brought from Cumberland, the effects of which crossing were thought to be the general loss of horns in the former, and the enlargement of their size : the continuance of a hornless sort being kept up by select- ing only such for breeding, or, perhaps, by other means, as by the practice of eradicating with the knife, the horns in their very young state. {Coventry on Live Stock, p. 28.) 6117. The Suffolk duns, according to Culley, are nothing more than a variety of the Galloway breed : he supposes them to have originated in the intercourse that has long subsisted between the Scotch drovers of Galloway cattle, and the Suffolk and Norfolk graziers who feed them. The Suffblks are almost all light duns, thus differing from the Galloways, and are considered a very useful kind of little cattle, particularly for the dairy. (Culley, p. 66. Parkinson, vol. i. p. 116.) 6118. The cattle of the Highlands of Scotland are divided into a number of local varieties, some of which differ materially from others, probably owing to a difference in the climate and the quality of the herbage, rather than to their being sprung from races originally distinct, or to any great change effected either by selection or by crossing with other breeds. It is only of late that much attention has been paid to their im- provement, in any part of this extensive country ; and in the northern and central Highlands the cattle are yet, for the most part, in as rude a state, and under manage- ment as defective, as they were some centuries ago. These cattle have almost exclusive possession of all that division of Scotland, including the Hebrides, marked off by a line from the Frith of Clyde on the west, to the Murray Frith on the north, and bending towards the east till it approaches in some places very near to the German ocean. Along the eastern coast, north of the Frith of Forth, the Highland cattle are intermixed with various local breeds, of which they have probably been the basis. There are more or less marked distinctions among the cattle of the different Highland counties ; and, in <:ommon language, we speak of the Inverness-shire, the Banff*shire, &c. cattle, as if they were so many separate breeds ; but it is only necessary in this place to notice the two more general varieties, now clearly distinguishable by their form, size, and general pro- perties. 6119. The most valuable of these are the cattle of the Western Highlands and Isles, Book VII. VARIETIES OF THE BULL FAMILY. 957 commonly called the Argyleshire breed {Jig. 645.), or the breed of the Isle of Skye, one of the islands attached to the county of Argyle. The cattle of the Hebrides are (\j\,^ m„n called ki/loes, a name which is often applied in the south to all the varieties of the High- land cattle, not as a late writer [Dickson s Practical Agriculture, vol. ii. p. 1 1 24. ) has imagined, from the district in Ayrshire called Kyle, where very few of them are kept, but from their crossing, in their progress to the south, the kyloes or ferries in the mainland and Western Islands, where these cattle are found in the greatest perfection. [General Rej)ort of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 26.) 6120. A bull of the Kyloe breed should be of a middle size, capable of bemg fattened to fifty stone avoirdupois. His color should be black or dark brown, or reddish brown, without any white or yellow spots. His head should be rather small, his muzzle fine, his horns equable, not very thick, of a clear green and waxy tinge ; his general appear- ance should combine agility, vivacity, and strength ; and his hair should be glossy, thick, and vigorous, indicating a sound constitution and perfect health. For a bull of this description, Macneil, of Colonsay, in 1812, refused 200 guineas; and for one of an in- ferior sort he actually received 170/. sterling. Macdonald, of Staffa, bought one, nine years old, at 100 guineas. (Report of the Hebrides, p. 425.) 6121. The lean weight of the best stock, from three to four years old, when they are commonly sold to the south, is from twenty-six to thirty stone the four quarters ; but when brought to good pastures, they can be easily raised to fifty stone and upwards. There is, perhaps, no other breed whose weight depends so much on feeding ; nor any that fattens and grows so much at the same time. They are exceedingly hardy, easily maintained, speedily fattened on pastures where large animals could scarcely subsist ; their beef is fine in the grain, and well marbled or intermixed with fat; and their milk is rich, but small in quantity. 6122. The other variety of Highland cattle is the Norlands, or North Highlanders, including the stocks of the counties of Ross, Cromarty, Sutherland, Caithness, and parts adjacent Their hides are generally coarse ; backs high and narrow ; ribs flat ; bones large ; and legs long and feeble for the, weight of the chest ; and they are considered very slow feeders. But though this description be but too applicable to the cattle of the greater part of that remote district, considerable improvement has been effected in many parts of it, by crossing with the Skye or Argyle breeds, within the last twenty years. 6123. The cattle of Orkney and Zetland, are of a most diminutive size ; an ox weigh- ing about sixty pounds a quarter, and a cow forty-five pounds. They are of all colors, and their shapes qre generally bad ; yet they give a quantity of excellent milk ; fatten rapidly when put on good pastures ; and, in their own district, are considered strong, hardy, and excellent workers, when well trained to the yoke, and so plentifully fed as to enable them to support labor. 6124. Of the Fifeshire cattle, CuUey observes, " you would at first imagine them distinct breed, from their upright white horns, being exceedingly light lyered and thin thighed, but I am pretty clear it is only from their being more nearly allied to the kyloes, and consequently less of the coarse kind of short horns in them." [Culley, p. 69.) Notwithstanding this opinion, the cattle of the North-eastern counties of Scotland re- quire, for every useful purpose, to be mentioned separately from the Highland herds; and as all of them have a general resemblance, it will only be necessary in this place to notice the Fife cattle in particular. There are various traditions about the origin of this variety. It is said to have been much improved by English cows sent by Henry VII. to his daughter, the consort of James IV. who usually resided at the palace of Falkland, in that county ; and as there is some resemblance between the cattle of Fife and Cam- bridgeshire, they are supposed to have been brought originally from the latter county. Others ascribe the origin of the present breed to bulls and cows sent by James VI. /"James I. of England), in pajTnent of the money which his obliging neighbors in Fife are said to have advanced for his equipment, when he went to take possession of the English throne. [Rqwrt of Nairn and Moray, p. 305.) 6125. Tlie prevailing color of the Fife cattle is black, though sometimes spotted or streaked with white, and some of them are altogether grey. The horns are small, white, generally pretty erect, or at least turned up at the points, bending rather forward, and not wide spread like the Lancashire long-horned breed. The bone is small in proportion to the carcase ; the Umbs clean, but short ; and the skin soft. They are wide between the hook-bones ; the ribs narrow, wide set, and having a great curvature. They fatten quickly, and fill up well at all the choice points ; are hardy, fleet, and travel well, and are excellent for labor, both at plough and cart A good cow of this breed gives from eighteen to twenty-four quarts of milk per day, yielding from seven to nine pounds of butter, and from ten to twelve pounds ot cheese per week (twenty-four ounces to the pound) for some months after calving. {,Fife Report, p. 251. and 253.;) 6126. The cattle of Aberdeenshire, the largest of which are said to have been pro- duced by crossing with -Fife bulls, have been long highly esteemed in the soutliern mar- kets. It is observed, that every succeeding generation of them has encreased in size, for the last thirty years ; and that the native breed has doubled its former weight since 958 PRACTICE OF AGRICULTURE. Part III. the introduction of turnips. (Aberdeenshire Report, p. 468.) Tlie color is commonly- black, but there are many of a red and brindled color. They are thinner in the buttock, in proportion to their weight ; and deeper in the belly, in proportion to their circum- ference, than the west Highlanders, and they yield a much larger quantity of milk. Many of them are brought to the south of Scotland, and kept during winter in the straw yards, for which they suit better than smaller cattle, as they are not so impatient of confinement. The ordinary weight of middle-sized oxen, at from three to five years old, is from forty to fifty stone; but after being worked for some time, and thoroughly fattened, they have been known to reach double this weight. 6127. Of the Welsh cattle, (Jig. 646.) ".there g^g seem to be two distinct kinds. The large sort are of a brown color, with some white on the rump and shoulders, denoting a cross from the long-horns, though in shape not the least resembling them. They are long in the legs, stand high according to their weight, are thin in the thigh, and rather narrow in the chine ; their horns are white and turned up- wards ; they are light in flesh, and next to the Devons, well formed for the yoke ; have very good hoofs, and walk light and nimble. The other sort are much more valuable ; color black, with very little white ; of a good useful form, short in the leg, with round deep bodies ; the hide is rather thin, with short hair ; they have a likely look and a good eye ; and the bones, though not very small, are neither large nor clumsy; and the cows are considered good milkers. " (Parkinson on Live Stock, vol. i. p. 135.) 6128. The Aldemey cattle are to be met with only about the seats of a few great landholders, where they are kept chiefly for the sake of their milk, which is very rich, though small in quantity. This race is considered, by very competent judges, as too delicate and tender, to be propagated to any extent in Britain, at least in its northern parts. Their color is mostly yellow or light red, with white or mottled faces; they have short crumpled horns, are small in size, and very ill shaped ; yet they are fine boned in general ; and their beef, though high colored, is very well flavored. I have seen, says Culley, some very useful cattle bred from a cross between an Alderney cow and a short horned bull. 6129. The Irish cattle, Culley thinks, are a mixed breed between the long-horns and the Welsh or Scotch, but more inclined to the long-horns, though of less weight than those in England. 6130. The last variety of cattle we shall mention is one entirely of luxury, it is the wild breed, (Jig. 647.) which is found only in the parks of a few great proprietors, who 647 preserve the animals as curious and ornamental, or for the sake of their high-flavored beef. Those kept at Chillingham Castle, in Northumberland, a seat belonging to the Earl of Tankerville, have been very accurately described in the Northumberland Report, and in Culley's book on live stock, so often quoted. Their color is invariably of a creamy white ; muzzle black ; the whole of the inside of the ear, and about one-third of the outside, from the tips downward, red ; horns white, with black tips, very fine, and bent upwards ; some of the bulls have a thin upright mane, about an inch and a half, or two inches long. The weight of the oxen is from thirty five to forty-five stone. Book VIL CRITERIA OF THE BULL FAMILY. 959 and the cows from twenty-five to thirty-five stone the four quarters (fourteen pounds to the stone). The beef is finely marbled, and of excellent flavor. From the nature of their pasture, and the frequent agitation they are put into by the curiosity of strangers, it is scarcely to be expected they should get very fat ; yet the six years old oxen are generally very good beef, from whence it may be fairly supposed that, in proper situa- tions, they would feed well. 6131. The habits of these animals are entirely rude ; at the first appearance of any person they set off in full gallop, and, at the distance of about two hundred yards, make a wheel round and come boldly up again, tossing their heads in a menacing manner ; on a sudden they make a full stop, at the distance of forty or fifty yards, looking wildly at the object of their surprise, but, upon the least motion being made, they all again turn round, and fly off" with equal speed, but not to the same distance, forming a shorter circle, and again returning with a bolder and more threatening aspect than before ; they approach much nearer, probably within thirty yards, when they again make another stand, and again fly off: this they do several times, shortening their distance, and advancing nearer and nearer till they come within such a short distance, that most people think it prudent to leave them, not choosing to provoke them farther. 6132. When the cows calve, they hide their calves for a week or ten days in some sequestered situation, and go and suckle them two or three times a day. If any person come near the calves, they clap their hea