Tag AE | an tor = th ) Bhisvio Cou - , st > : i P : ei \ - © 4! ae are etal | Liepy - 3 athe dhs Seri ARE bs ‘Mie Mt des SE - ‘~~ = a tiba, * Dated by the internet Archive i of Uusiversity Libraries “] ; ‘ , : $ ~~ 54 aw *¢ sata " << 4 i t rai. * ois 5 hie. Se 23a " 5 at Bett cet, hel sige | 54 ~ - é d E i ¢ Te pee ee a ig <4 § ' ea rages my , ’ evs SPhdter bry rs a ‘ bys ; te yi : ih elif eee) GOres oil. eeeciten 4 ok be Prt Gt ( : , , , F toa 7x RMR ATEN ES) f ; E git (ie Sch vovyes w bind (ASME MO: 7 ‘ ease Mu ath, He Reb ot my AEN Ct) ‘ tee id eee OTE OE pene) Oa | SORT 7 es 5 a LETTERS anv PA a Agriculture, Planting, &c. SELECTED FROM THE CORRESPONDENCE Bath and Weft of England Society FOR THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF AGRICULTURE, | | MANUFACTURES, ARTS, | AND COMMERCE. BATH, PRINTED, BY ORDER OF THE SOCIETY, BY R. CRUTTWELL; AND SOLD BY C. DILLY, POULTRY, LONDON, AND BY THE BOOKSELLERS OF BATH, BRISTOL, SALISBURY, 4 GLOCESTER, EXETER, &C. &C. : M DCC xXCIlI, eo N T..8.N The OF i POL ME Vi PAGE Ixrropuction ac ee A Series of Letters on Planting and the Management of Woods, by Thomas South, e{q. Letter I. Dimenfions of an Oak, felled in the year 1758 in “Langley-Wood, near the New-Foreft —— 8 bet —— If. Onthe Growth of Elms _ ——- Ir —— II. On Abele — pies, 23 Alder — — -_ 25 Afh — == — 26 Beech _ —_ —— 28 Fir —— — a 32 ——IV. Defcription of Fyfield’s Oak, &c. ee 33 Dimenfions of the Bull Oak —. 46 —— V. An Effay on the Growth of Oaks, and the produc- tion of crooked Timber for Naval Purpofes Aq Additional Letter, by the fame, on his Intention of publifhing a Treatife on the Management of Wall-Fruit Trees 64 A Defcription of the Inftrument called a Sward-Cutter, invented by the Hon. Robert Sandilands — 72 Queries of Mrs Le Blanc, refpecting the Culture of Turnip- Rooted Cabbages, with Aniwers to the fame, by Sir T/omas Beevor, bart. — 87 Letter on various Subjects, from Sir Thomas Beevor, bart. 89 Queftions addreffed by the Commiffioners of the Land Revenue, to the Chairman of the Quarter-Seffions of the County of Nor- folk; with Anfwers tranfmitted. By the fame. —-- 94 On Mowing Cabbage. By the fame -- Tor On the chara¢teriftick Diftinftions of Plants. By the fame 103 On the beft Method of planting Mangel-Wurzel, and of its Ufe and Value for feeding Pigs, Cattle, &c. By Mr. Fofeph Wimpey 106 Of the Caufe of Smut in Wheat. By the fame _— 116 On the Drill-Hufbandry. By the fame. On Field-Mice, and on the tranfplantation of Wheat. By Mr. - Fobn Wagstaffe aa 127 On the Grafting of Crab-ftocks, White-thorns, &c. with Apples and Pears. By the fame. —— 132 On the Saccharine quality of Pears, Maple-Sugar, &c. By *- the fame. On Mangel-Wurzel, and other Crops for feeding Cattle. By Ff. Franklen, eq. —— _—— — 139 —— —_ 138 Dig On Wool, Sheep, &c. By the Rev. Charles Onley aioe 143 On Planting, Grafting, and making Cyder. By Mr. F..N. Morfe 151\ On a particular kind of Apple, &c. By Mr. F. Holt _ 160 On tranfplanting Wheat. By the fame 163 On the lofs of Weight in Grain, &c. By the fame ——s_ 167 Obfervations on the Subjects propofed in a circular Letter, by the Bath and Weft of England Society. By Thomas Davis, efy. 19% Obfervations on the fuppofed neglect and tcarcity of Oak Timber. By the fame 177 On Smut in Wheat, and a new Method of fowing by Hand, &c. By Mr. Fames Wyborn ——e 186 On Smut in Wheat continued. By the fame 19 Thoughts on the fame Subject. By WR. — | 195 Further Remarks on the Caufe of the Smut in Wheat. By Mr. Fofeph Wimpey 198 On Potatoes. By the fame 206 On the beft Method of providing for the Poor. Preliminary Remarks. By W. M. 208 Twenty Minutes Obfervations on a better Mode of providing for the Poor, &c. kc. By Mr. Richard Pew, F.R.S.EL — 219 Remarks on the fame; and collateral Subjects continued. By 1V.M. 238 Letter from Mr. Pew refpecting his Pamphlet , — 249 Letter from the Dean of Glocelter to Dr. Stonhoufe, on the fame 252 A Plan for the better Maintenance and Regulation of the Paro-' chial Poor. . By Thomas Hall, e/q. 254 On the Damage of Fir-Plantations, &c. kc. By ¥. Barnard, efg. 259 On the Subject of the laft Article, Planting, &c. By Mr.B.Pryce 264 On the fame Subjects. By ohn Ward, efq. 270 On Shetland or Zetland Sheep and Wool, and finenefs of Wool, , By Mr. F. Thompfon 2G On Mifcellaneous Topics of Hufbandry. By ¥. Franklen, cfg. - 283 Extract of a Letter from a Gentleman in Scotland, on Ruta-Baga 291 On Butter-making, and the Author’s Pamphlet on Dairying. By Mr. F. Twamley — 294 Remarks on Planting, Inclofures, &c. By E.C. GLE — 299 On the Culture of Rape, as a Food for Cattle. By Mr. Rawfon 307 On the Maple-Sugar of America. By Mr. Clifford — 31 Obferyations on a Tour into Suffolk a Surry. By R. P. Anderdon, ¢ /q- On the expediency of fowing Wheat cake in the Spring. By Mr. ‘Fofeph Wimpey. —. 334 On the Culture of Potatoes, and feeding Hogs with them, during feven Years. By Fohn Billingsley, ef. —— 339 318 Pee Oo Dewees FEO N; HE ufual period of two years having elapfed, this volume was fent to the prefs, and would have been fooner publifhed, but unforefeen impediments prevented. Since the publication of the fifth volume, the So- ciety has been attentive to the various fub- jects of publick utility included in its plan. It will naturally be fuppofed that a Society which has now exifted fifteen years, fhould frequently take a retrofpective view of the ftate of agriculture, before and fince the pe- riod of its eftablifhment; and that this great ‘fubject fhould be contemplated in connexion with the growing ftate of the trade, manu- factures, and population of the kingdom:-—a population which is generally believed to be rapidly increafing, and which, if fo, may fairly be confidered as a natural confe- quence . The quence of a flourifhing trade, and moft ex- tenfive commerce. In thefe refpects this empire may be brought into an enviable -comparifon with the moft powerful coun- tries of Europe: and in proportion to its importance, in thefe points of view, may be confidered, under Providence, its internal ftrength, its fecurity, and its capacity for happineis. While fuch confiderations animate the breafts of an induftrious, benevolent, and brave people, thofe among them who are poflefled of ability, and actuated by benevo- lence, cannot but feel an increafing {folici- tude, that agriculture and planting may con- tinue to be aided with all the energy that their augmented importance demands. That the benefits of agriculture, and indeed the -abfolute neceflity of its improvement, are felt more powerfully than ever, is a truth which no other argument than the increafing de- mand for the necefflaries of life, is required to confirm. The landed gentlemen, and thofe daily enriched by commerce, are now emu- lous tea Te lous in the ftudy of agriculture; the im- provement of poor, wafte and barren lands, is become a favourite undertaking; and a laudable enquiry feems to be general, How the face of the country, according to its local circumftances, can be rendered moft productive 2 This general enquiry, and the confequent ex- ertions, may in no fmall degree be imputed to the publick-fpirited inftitutions in the | kingdom, among which Tue BaTH AND West or Encianp Society has the ho- nour of holding no inconfiderable place. The effect of fuch eftablifhments, though gradual and diffufed, has undoubtedly been fure and happy. For under all the circumftances of increafed demand, it 1s an obvious truth that the fupply of every necefflary, and moft of the comforts, of life, is not only abundant, but in general eafy of acquifition to the ho- neft and induftrious of all defcriptions. This augmented fupply has been furnithed, in fome degree, by the increafe of lands brought into cultivation; but perhaps far more by im- provements in the general fyftem. Great, [ x ] Great, of late years, have thofe improve- ments been in the progreflive extinétion of fummer fallows, by means of ameliorating, -and at the fame time profitable, feeding crops. That it has been an age of {peculative, as well as practical, experiment, will be allowed; and the confeflion may be made without regret. For though individuals may have frequently failed in different projects, the contrary muft never be expected in firft experiments. It is not in human wifdom to devife at once the means of reaping from all-bountiful nature the fulleft produce of her powers. In the prefent {tage of experimental difcovery, fun- dry profitable facts have been afcertained, refpecting the relative value of crops, and articles of food for live ftock. Of the publick importance of Mangel- Wurzel, but little expectation is now formed; and while turnip crops, in various fituations, will continue to maintain their importance, it feems, from confirmed experience, that large cabbages, carrots, parfnips, turnip-rooted cab- bage, ruta-baga, and potatoes, will be found of increafing confequence to the nation. Of Pes] Of thefe the ruta-baga, or Swedifh turnip, feems at prefent to be leaft generally known, tho’ with an undoubted profpect of foon be- coming not only we// known, but very highly efteemed for its productive growth, its nutri- tion, and its hardinefs. The feed has hi- therto been dear, but may foon be expected much cheaper.. And it will be patriotick in gentlemen, and farmers in general, to fave as much as they conveniently can for fale the next feafon. | Of the potatoe, that common but inva- luable root, much remains to’ be confi- dered and proved. Its value to the poor of this country was largely anticipated, by that late eminent and worthy man Dr. Joun FoTuERGILL; he caufed large plantations to be made near London, with a view of afcer- taining, and rendering more conipicuous, the vaft importance of this formerly humble article. It was not then, or till of late years, fuppofed by practical farmers in general, that it would foon become ah article of immenfe confequence in field culture, both with a view to ei) t to preparing the earth for a fine wheat crop, and as a moft abundant fupply of food for the live ftock of afarm. In thefe different points of view, the papers heretofore pub- lifhed on the fubject, in thefe volumes, may have ferved to excite a profitable attention; but the mafterly experimental memoir, con- tained in the prefent volume, from a gentle- man to whofe exertions and publick fpirit his country is largely indebted, will give peculiar fatisfaction. From the clear manner in which he has detailed his experiments, and the large fcale on which they were made, much may be known and inferred, concerning the ufes and advantages of this very important root; and it is not without a hope of national ad- vantage, that the paper in queftion is recom- mended to particular attention. The fame gentleman is now voluntarily conducting an experiment, by feeding fix forts of fheep through the current year, in fuch a manner as to afcertain, as far as fuch an experiment may do it, the difputed point, which is the beft race of fheep for general flock, with fax: * with regard both to the wool and carcafe? This fubjec will continue to employ the atten- tion of the Society ‘till fome determinate facts are afcertained, that may lead to publick con- viction. How far the general improvement of the quality of Britifh wool is practicable, fo as to fuperfede the neceffity of a large foreign fupply, is a queftion agitating elfewhere; and this Society cannot be inattentive to its folu- tion. It might poflibly be found that a ge- neral national alteration of the ftock of fheep, in favour of fine wool, would be in- compatible with the national intereft, both with refpect to the quantity of wool and of mutton. Whether the quantity, and confe- quently the cheapnefs of mutton, would not be in danger of being facrificed to finenefs of wool; or whether the coarfenefs of moft of our wool, compared with Spanith, be, un- der all circumftances, an evil ; are queftions of no {mall moment, Some gentlemen, of much candour and reflection, will not be difap- pointed if this Society fhould ultimately fix in a confirmed opinion, that there is no race of fheep in Britain but what has its advan- tages, Pisa J tages, for particular fituations and expofures. We have no wool, however coarfe, but what is ufeful. Our different manufactures for home and foreign trade, require the different forts already known, confume them all, and even call for more. If it fhould be found that the prefent fyftem of artificial feeding, neceffary to increafe the quantity of mutton, (and which confequently increafes wool) is incompatible with a general improvement in the finenef3 of wool, ftill that increafed quantity of human food, a proportionable increafe of wool and manure, and the adaptation of fheep to the circumftances of the diftrict, are objects of higher national importance, than a uniform finenefs of wool. Thefe points may now be confidered as in a fairer train for inveftiga- tion than heretofore: and the refult may be expected at a future day. So long as Britifh genius and advantages for manufacture, on a comparifon with thofe of other European nations, continue what they are, fo long muft wool of fome fort be imported. And the queftion then will moft probably be, which may be imported to greateft advantage, that which [ w ] which is mo, or that which is /ea/? compa- tible with the firft of all objects, an impro- ving agriculture? If the /atter of the two, then it may be deemed a happy circumftance, that that fort is to be imported, which, from its compattnefs, lies in leaft room; and which may be paid for, in part at leaft, by the lighter and coarfer manufactured articles made from the combing wool of our own country. Refpecting the volumes now before the publick, it has been fuggefted by one or more of the Society, that a General Index of the various topics might be found ufeful. It therefore may become the care of the proper Committee to have fuch an index furnifhed in the next volume, if fuch fhall be deemed particularly neceflary. It now remains to invite gentlemen who are in the habit of agricultural experiment, to communicate whatever facts they may afcer- tain, that are cither new in themfelves, or which they may deem of a ufeful’ tendency in the advancement of knowledge. Such favours [ xvi ] favours will be ever thankfully -received, And it is prefumed that a candour of atten- tion, and a conftant regard to the publick intereft, will continue to be exercifed by the Committees of this Society. Bath, Fuly 10, 1792. LETTERS ee oe a. S TO THE BATH AND WEST OF ENGLAND AGRICULTURE SOCIETY. ArTICcLE I, A Series of Letters on Planting, and the Management of Woods, from Tuomas Soutu, E/q; to the Secretary. Letter I. Sir, HE memoirs you obligingly fent ‘hither gra- tified me exceedingly ; they contain an am- ple fund of Agricultural Experiments; but that grand national object, the growth of timber, has hi- therto been fparingly treated of. It may not be ge- nerally known, that the deftruction of Oak, to- wards the middle of the prefent century, became fo very rapid, as to occafion public enquiry in 1771, the returns* to which afcertained, that the * Vide thefe Returns in the Commiffioners 3d Report, p. 72- Wor. VI, B | naval Lie naval Timber had decreafed in quantity within forty or fifty years, then paft, to the amazing amount of four-fifths on an average through the kingdom. What an alarming circumftance, to a maritime {ftate like this! And the misfortune is, that fuch devaftation {till continues, both in publick and in private woods. ‘To demonftrate what a heavy lofs is fuf- tained by the community, through the imprudence _ of private owners, I ftate the following facts. The year before laft, there were fourfcore Oaks felled in this neighbourhood, whofe aggregate con- ténts fcarcely exceeded twenty tons; and in 1758, a fingle tree was felled, but a very few miles from the fpot, which contained in itfelf twenty-eight tons. The foil where thefe diminutive fticks were produced, was of a nature equally propitious to the growth of oak, as that of Langley-Wood, and moft of them had room to fpread in; confequently fuch, had they been permitted to remain, would have be- come Naval Timber. Let what encouragement foever be given to promote private plantations, they. muft be long in repairing fuch loffes as thefe. Our modern planters, I fear, purfue the ornamental, more than the ufeful plan. Oaks, being tardy growers, are feldom propagated ; the filver, fpruce, Scotch firs, and other free-growing trees, are pre- ferred y. crooked, eae ferred. One ingenious correfpondent* of yours cut down his firs, indeed, for the fake of his oaks, _and another for the fake of his beeches.t The planters of oaks and beeches deferve every encou- ragement, as both find place ih Naval Architec- ture ; the latter, if long and ftrait, ferve to plank the bottoms of fhips, up to the light water line, equally well with the former, and at lefs than half the expence. The moft fuccefsful planter I ever heard of, is your correfpondent Mr. Marfham, It does not often happen, that men have a tafte for fuch purfuits, at the early age when he began his career; and in the courfe of things, it as feldom happens, that men attain his patriarchal years. To plant in 1720, and contemplate his improve- ments in 1790, is an inftance fcarce to be equalled. May his patriotic endeavours long be crowned with the bleffings they deferve! From the publick * T think this mode of planting oaks a very good one, as like- wife this gentleman’s method of rendering crooked faplings ftrait. Though I profefs myfelf an advocate for rendering ftrait ones * + I fee no neceffity for cutting down all the firs in this cafe, for the beech would have kept pace with them and flourifhed, and there cannot be a more ornamental wood than a mixture of firs and beeches, efpecially on a declivity, the contrafts between the deep green of the one, and the paler hue of the other, form a pleafing objeét inthefummer months. The golden tinge of the latter en- riches the fcene in autumn, and even when bronzed in the winter, they have no unpleafing effect. B 2 much Le. much is expected. Inclofures of foreft land, if conducted with propriety, may prevent national ruin; for timber is become fcarce on the continent. as well as here; the increafe of commerce caufes fuch a demand, that it rifes in value every where. The fcarcity of knees* and crooks of large di- menfions is now feverely felt ; it is with difficulty the docks get fuppled, fo that fhips are often at a ftand for want of them; the kine’s forefts have been productive of many of thefe moft valuable ar- ticles, but they are nearly exhaufted; and the me- thods propofed by the furveyors for raifing timber in Dean Foreft, is by no means likely to remedy the defect. Planters fhould not only confider what fuits their refpective foils, but to what ufes their timber may be appropriated. The elm ought to be led up tall and ftrait for keel-pieces, fhip’s pumps, water-pipes, &c. Arbele, if brought to great length and fubftance, will make good beams and rafters for barns, cottages, &c. ; for this tim- ber, (not being fubject to the worm) whilft under thatch that admits no wet, will continue found © above a century. The perfection of afh lies in. its being free and tough, properties fought after by * So great was the deficiency towards the clofe of laft war, that the old fhips intended to keep up appearances only, were ordered to be repaired with afhen knees and crooks, coopers, vege coopers, wheelwrights, and coach-makers. Beech, as a quick grower, repays the planter’s toil; it thrives well on chalky hills, and may be trained ei- ther to long boles for fhip-planking, or to branchy crooks for mill-wheels; it is excellent in water- works of all kinds, for, where conftantly kept wet, it is as durable as oak itfelf ; and the prefent fcar- _city of that moft valuable timber, requires that we fhould employ every fubftitute we can in its place. The growers of oak fhould be moft particularly at- tentive to the fituation and demand. In inland countries, where carriage is a drawback, and pre- vents a profitable communication with the fea, timber, if thinned in due feafon, cannot be drawn up too faft. The houfe-carpenter, in fituations like this, is the chief purchafer, and {trait lengths are his delight. In the maritime counties, a large crook in the bole of a tree doubles its value, and admits it into a dock-yard, when but two-thirds the contents of a ftrait one. Floor timbers, com- pafs-pieces, knees, &c. are the bafis of naval ar- chitecture, and cannot be difpenfed with ; fuch, when choice and large, carry in much inferior tim- ber with them; and without a due proportion of fuch, no contract is ever made by the Navy-board, nor can the merchant expect payment for what he has delivered, till the moft ufeful of thefe articles B 3 have ~ [i ¢ 7 have been provided. Wherefore, fooner than lay out of 4 or soool. for any leneth of time, he will give more than its value for a lot that fuits him. By the third report of the Land Revenue Commiffioners, it appears, that there are 18,000 acres of land in Dean Foreft, Gloucefterfhire, de- figned to be fet apart for inclofure, and the growth of oak timber ; but the method propofed by the furveyors is not likely to be productive of fuch as is moft valuable; thick planting, with timely thinning, may produce ftrait boles, and, in a fuit- able foil like this, large and long-lived timber ; but to raife knees and crooks, requires a contrary practice ; which, if the fociety think it worth their attention, I will endeavour to explain hereafter.. In the mean time, have inclofed fuch particulars re- fpecting the famous Langley-Wood Oak, as may ferve to ftimulate the poffeffors of thriving trees, to’ preferve them carefully till they indicate approach- ine decay; whenever that is obfervable, even though in parks and pleafure grounds, the axe fhould be applied forthwith ; for it is a wafte almoft as fhameful to leave fuch a tree as the Colthorp Oak* to perifh, as itis to cut fourfcore young ones, to fupply. the place of one at full growth, It is not the age, but the condition of the tree, however, that * See Hunter’s edition of Evelyn’s Silva. fhould cy 4 fhould determine its fate; in fome foils the oak never vegetates freely, becomes ftunted and dead- topt in its goth or 6oth year ; to let fuch ftand, even though of ten feet meetings only, is folly; and to cut thriving trees of meetings fo very fmall, is madnefs in the extreme. It is, when of this fize, that they begin to pay beft for ftanding; they then yearly improve both in quantity and quality of their contents ; the blee leffens as the fpine increafes; the arms become meafureable one after the other, and though the body may not increafe in circumference quite fo much annually*, as it had done when younger; the length and bulk of the limbs will add confiderably to the contents and value of the tim- ber. If this, Sir, fhould prove acceptable to the gentlemen of the fociety, I have minutes of another famous oak, meafured twice by myfelf, and can trace, I think, the rate at which it proceeded, I am, Sir, your very humble Servant, Boffington, Hants, aL. SOUTH. Of. 2, 1790. * That accurate obferver, Mr. Marfham, finds that oaks do not in the fecond century increafe fo much annually in circumference, as they did in the firft ; notwithftanding which, they increafe much more in folid contents yearly, as I am prepared to demonftrate. B 4 Dimenfions L?@ Dimenfions of an Oak felled in the Year 1758, in Langley Wood, delonging to the Bifbop of Salifbury, upon the Verge of the New Foreft. THIS tree ftood fingly in the wood, and ex- tended its maffive branches near forty feet each way. Its head was all knees and crooks, aptly fuited to naval purpofes ; its bole or fhaft was fhort, not exceeding twenty feet in length, but was full fix feet in diameter at the top, and perfeétly found ; it was felled in an unufual manner for the preferva- tion of its crooks, which were cut off one by one, whilft the tree was ftanding, and lowered by tackles to prevent their breaking. The two largeft arms were fawed off at fuch diftances from the bole, as to make the moft capital firft-rate knees; {caf- folds were then erected, and two pit-faws being braced together, the body was firft cut acrofs half through at the bottom, and then fawed down the middle perpendicularly, between the two ftumps of arms that had been left; at the end of one of which, ftood a perpendicular bough, bigger than moft timber trees ; to prevent this being injured, a bed was made of fome hundreds of faggots to catch jt when it fell. This half was fo weighty, that it crufhed a new timber carriage to pieces, the inftant it tm] it was lodged upon it ; and none in the country be- ing found ftrong enough, the king’s carriage was fent purpofely from Portfmouth to convey it to the dock-yard. It was drawn in general by twelve horfes, affifted occafionally by eight others. The drivers were obliged to find the moft level ground, and inftead of drawing it to Portfmouth, as was in- tended, made the fhorteft way acrofs the foreft to the fea-fide. This tree was fold in the firft place for forty pounds; was bought of that purchafer by the late Mr. White, of Anville, timber-merchant, for an hundred pounds, who is fuppofed to have cleared an hundred pounds more ; which he poffibly might do, for the contents, as I was informed a few years fince on the fpot, amounted to thirty-two loads of hewed timber, which at half a crown a foot, no unufual price for naval crooks, amounts to 200}. precifely, befides faggots, &c. futficient to defray the expences. N. B. Having tranfmitted this account (through the medium of a friend) to Mr. Marfham, he obligingly returned me the annexed particulars, in the fum of which, he feems to fall fhort of the quantity I have ftated; but this is eafily recon- ciled 3 [ 1 ] ciled ; his admeafurements being manifeftly taken. (by a country carpenter) in round timber, ‘and mine from the marks when {quared, which would make twenty-eight tons, equal to ane: two loads at leatt. Meafures of the Oak in Langley Wood, felled by Dr. Thomas bifbop of Sarum, in 1758. Length | Inches | Contents in Pieces Feet. | Girt. | Cubic feet. Tons. he be Fete Body 20 54 405 10 Oo] 5 Limbs aft 30 23 TIO 2 3,0 2d 23 19% 60h i 2 |. of 3d, 24 19 60 I 2] 0 qth. 28 19% 74 a aa sth. 28 22 94. 2 1] 4 6th 20 17 40 I o}]o 7th. 19 134 24. ° 2) 4 Sth 23 11s 21 ° 2 ie goth. 23 15 35 or 3 zoth 13 13 29 ° 219 zith 26 13 365 ° 3 4 a2th 20 10% 15 ° x i-5 13th 16 145 23% ro) 2 | 3% 34th, 25 12 25 ° 2] 3g 10453 || 26 o | 6% There were befides in feveral fmall pieces of ufeful {tuff for the navy, 74 feet ; fo in all 28 tons, The breadth of the tree acrofs (near the ground) where it was cut, was twelve feet, and had above 300 rings of annual growth, Thefe [or J Thefe meafures were given to Mr. Marfham, of Stratton in Suffolk, by Mr. Fellows, of Shotti- fham, Norfolk, brother to Mrs. Eyre of New- houfe, whofe carpenter took them by her order. The account of felling, Mr. Marfham acquaints my iriend was nearly the fame as above. ————L—L——_—E_—E_ Letter Ii, On the Growth of Elms. Sir, HE elm delights in a rich black mould, where it attains its largeft fize. It thrives well, and produces the tougheft and beft timber ina hazely loam. It. will grow on gravel, but dif- graces chalk, and detefts morafs, It requires an open fpace, and much room for its roots to fpread in; if confined in groves, it de- ceives the planter ; the borderers only arrive at per- fection, whilft thofe near the centre, though firaight, are weak ; and if through imprudence -the large protective trees be cut down, the remainder, inftead of improving, become dotards ; for being relieved from the denfe atmofphere, which had forced all the [ 1 ] the fap the root could imbibe to the upper extre- mities for vent, their fhafts break out into innu- merable {prays, that exhautt the fap before it reaches the top, which confequently perifhes for want of fupply. Thefe trees fhould therefore be either planted fingle, in fmall clumps, or in hedge-rows. The latter is the moft profitable method, as the fuckers which fpring from the roots will, under the pro- tection of the hedge, furnifh a continued fucceffion. I have heard of elms containing twelve tons round meafure ; fome of my own are three, one, } believe, fix or more; and I remember one, for which its owner refufed twelve guineas. This was the majeftick ornament of a pleafure-ground. Its fhaft was fifty feet in length, without fpray or ble- mifh ; viewed at a diftance, it made the fineft may- pole that ever eyes beheld, having a round head like a garland at the top. It has been fince fallen, but what it fold for, or whither it went, I cannot fay ; though probably to the dock-yard, being fit for a keel of the firft magnitude. On fight of this tree, it evidently appeared to have been as much in- debted to art as nature for the elegance of its form; and ag it grew oppofite to the centre of a gentle- man’s f 43° 4 man’s houfe, I concluded that the gardener who planted, had, with unremitted diligence, attended to its improvement, till trained towards the perfec- tion it at length arrived at. There is now ftanding on a knoll, in a meadow of mine, an elm which was poffefed of great beauty likewife, though of a different kind; the bole of it, which is only eight feet long, was, in 1766, ten feet and a half in circumference at three* feet from the ground. Its branches formed a conoid, whofe diameter at the bafe was one and twenty yards. It continued growing in this form till the memorable hurricane on Shrove-Tuefday, 1781, which tore off the lower limbs, and fpoiled the re- gularity of its fhape ; thus mutilated, it weathered the ftorm, which blew down and broke to fhivers feventy others, fome of which were four tons apiece. Cruel lofs! But why fhould I lament? The fame ftorm that overthrew the timber, purified the air from noxious vapours, and might thus preferve the life of its proprietor. This tree, notwithftanding its having been fo much difmembered, meafures, in 1790, thirteen feet fix inches in circumference, at * This was then the {malleft part of the bole, and is meafured from the higheft ground, it being four feet and LM ei on the lower fide, the [4 ] the fame height from the ground, having gained thirty-fix inches in twenty-four years, 7. e. an inch and a half annual increafe. \ The amount of the contents, in the fmall compafs between the branches and the ground, is amazing, for eight feet by 40 + inches girt is equal to 100 feet, or two tons and a half of round timber. The upper part of the fhaft and the remaining branches are large, fo that I cannot eftimate it at lefs in the whole than fix tons ; but it is not of half the value as if the contents had been in one continued fhaft. This ftick, though now forming a new and not ungraceful head, muft, upon the principle before laid down, be fallen within thefe twenty years, or it will rot internally by wet admitted through the ftumps of the branches. No perfon having yet anticipated what may be further faid on this fubject, I fhail proceed to lay all the plain facts I am mafter of ‘before the Society, and conclude with obfervations, refulting from fuch growths as have been particularly noticed by myfelf In 1738, an avenue of above feventy elms was planted in double.ranks by my predeceffor, in the front of this houfe, the fummits of their branches are at prefent fixty feet or upwards. Thofe in the rows [ 15 ] rows next the fun are from feven feet to fix, whilft thofe in the northern rows, though of the fame height, are only from fix to three feet and a half in circumference. One particular tree in the beft afpect near the houfe, in 1770, meafured four feet in circumference at four feet from the ground. Its prefent admeafurement is feven feet fix inches, i. €. a yearly increafe of above two inches. This is a rapid growth indeed, but is thus accounted for. It obtained more room on cutting down its neigh- bour, which overhung the houfe, and the root of that being. grubbed up, the earth was loofened a great way round, and frefh mould added to preferve the level. The tree in confequence put out large branches, following the roots in that direCtion. A fingle row of trees planted in the fame foil, and at the fame time, are of equal height, but of in- creafed bulk; thefe are from eight feet two inches, to feven feet in circumference, at the fame diftance from the ground, and contain on an average almoft double the timber, vz. fome of them near two tons, In 1766, I planted three hundred elms, fome fingle, others in clumps, the remainder in hedge- rows, and in the two following years, filled up the vacancies caufed by failure. One of the finele trees IS [ 16 ] is now three feet four inches and a half in cir« cumference,* the fhaft is about twelve feet long, and the head proceeds in four equal upright branches. The next largeft is alfo a fingle tree, having a long ftraight fhaft near thirty feet to a bough, and upwards of forty feet to the fummit of its branches, its circumference is two feet eight inches only. But the timber of this tree will, from its length and ftraightnefs, yield double the price of that of the other hereafter. Thofe in the clumps keep pace with this in height, but do not equal it in bulk. Thofe in the hedge-rows were of different forts, the beft of them came from a nurfery at South- ampton, and are now about the fize of thofe in the clumps; the others from Salifbury; thefe did not from the firft appear to have been free growers, and the longer they ftand, the further they will be be- hind their competitors. All thefe have thrown out numerous fuckers from their roots, fo that where one hundred and fifty only were planted, there are * N. B. The circumference of all thefe was taken at four feet from the ground, now , a now five hundred at leaft. N.B. Some of the off- {pring of the Salifbury trees, promife to 294 tim- ber before their parental {tocks. Elms may be raifed by protection only ; for the ftool of a timber-tree when fallen, will throw up ‘many fuckers; fence thefe round with rough rail- ing, and in eight or ten years they will be out of danger of cattle. They at firft proceed flowly, but if duly thinned, and trained properly, will make _ good trees. ‘The way to thin them to advantage, is to dig deep amongft them the year before; cut- ting off the roots of the weakeft, which eaufes them to throw out frefh fibres, and fits them for removal. About fix years ago, my gardener trenched a piece of ufelefs ground behind fome cot- tages, and planted it with refufe fuckers thus pre- pared. The poor people availed themfelves of the circumftances, fet the ground with beans and po- tatoes, and have continued to crop it ever fince. This has been of fervice to them, and of infinite benefit to the trees; which by means of this an- nual culture, have far outftript their undifturbed brethren, and almoft double their contents. The fuckers adhering to old ftools, do not keep pace with maiden trees planted of the fame fize: Vou. VI. © the L =? A the reafon is obvious; the roots they throw out are for a long while confined to a foil already exhaufted by a like production, which checks their progrefs. If the ground between them were to be dug once a a year, and a few barrows of very rotten dung* turned in for two or three years fucceffively, I doubt not but they would pay by the quicknefs of their growth ; but it is an experiment I have not tried, The fuckers which arife from my young trees in the hedge-rows, grow fafter than new-planted mai- den trees of the fame fize, having frefh mould to root in, and receiving at the fame time, fome nou- rifhment from the parental ftock. The planting elins in hedge-rows is neverthelefs in fome refpeéts objectionable, for the tenant in general thinks him- felf intitled to their fhrouds, which he lops in a flovenly manner, at fuch time as he deems moft profitable, wiz. every twelve or fourteen years. The faggots are then an object of fome confe- quence, as well as the relief he gives to his paftures and crops. But the misfortune is, that the wounds he makes are too large to heal over ; the knots be- come turgid, inftead of fmooth, admit water, and injure the timber. To prevent this, they fhould * Mr. Marfham’s famous oak, of his own planting, has been much forwarded by digging round and manuring it. be bao. 4 be trained for the firft thirty years with circum{pec- tion. By repeated trimmings at fhort periods, the fhafts will be rendered clean and unproductive of fprays, and the heads reduced into a narrow com- pafs, and at fuch a height from the ground, as neither to annoy the crops, or four the grafs by fhade. In confequence of a doubt being ftarted, whether the fhaft of a tree lengthens inch by inch through its whole extent, or only by the addition of new wood to the top;—in March, 1786, after trim- ming up three young elms, I fhortened the under- bough that was left in each, and dropt a line and plummet to the ground. The length of the fhafts No. I. was twenty-feven ; of No. II. twenty-eight ; of No. III. thirty feet; at which lengths 1 opened the ftrands of the line, and inferted a mark of red tape, put it carefully by till March 1790, when . trimming the trees afrefh, as is my conftant prac- tice every fourth year, the line, when applied with its marks to the foot of the fame branch in each tree refpectively, held the plummet fufpended above the ground, and proved an uniform advance in length of their fhafts, from eight to ten inches ; the fhorteft-having gained the leaft, the longeft the moft, viz, two inches and a half in a year, C2 Odbjervaiions E25. Odjervations and Conclufions drawn from the pre- ceding Premifes. i. As the growth of Elm bears proportion to the extent of ground allotted for its roots to range in; thofe who would propagate large timber, mutt -never plant too clofe. 2dly. That though branchy elms are the quickeft growers*, they are not the moft profitable to the planter; for fuch timber is little fought after, and one branch only being accepted by the merchant as timber, the reft all go with the top, which re- duces the contents exceedingly. 3dly. ‘That -as the value of. this timber confifts more in the length and bulk of the fhaft, than in * That branchy trees are the quickeft growers, I believe to be invariably the cafe, and may be thus accounted for: the fap im- bibed by the roots, is a compound of aqueous and nutritious mat- ter ; the quicker it is in its paflage, the greater is the demand upon the roots, which extend themfelves accordingly in fearch of frefh fupplies ; the branches follow their diréétion, and {till increafe the demand ; and the more branches a tree has, and the nearer they are to the ground, the fooner the fap perfpires off its aqueous par- ticles, depofiting the nutritious ones by the way. Wherefore. the timber is more amply fed by an accelerated current of fap, than by a tardy one, confequently branchy timber increafes more in proportion, than that which is clean fhafted, where the fap is longer in its progrefs, finding no outlet till it reaches the top. the L 21 ] the crooks and contents of its branches, it is the bufinefs of planters to train them up tall and ftraight, to keep their fhafts clean, and not to fuf- fer them to branch till within a few feet of the top. 4thly. The prefent method of lopping, though conducive to the lengthening of the fhaft, fills it full of rough protuberances, which, by admitting wa- ter, are very prejudicial to the timber, and occafion the defects fo generally complained of. . 5tbly. The fhaft of the elm advances inch by inch through its whole contents, that is, every inch lengthens yearly; by this means it advances more or lefs in proportion to its length, befides the ad- dition of new wood at the top; fo that a branch now thirty feet from the ground, will (in a grow- ing ftick) five years hence be removed higher by a foot, confequently the timber is increafing in length beneath that branch, as well as above it. Lafily. The growth of elm is to that of oak, in a hazely loam like mine, as three to two, and the value of the timber, if long and ftraight, as two to three, The profits of the planter, therefore, both in oak and elm, will be nearly on an equality. C 3 Lo f 22 J To train up Elms to long ftraight Shafts. Care fhould be taken in planting, to fhorten all the fide-fhoots, and leave the leading fhoot intire. In three or four years afterwards, cut the lower- moft of the fhortened fhoots clean off, and fhorten moft of the maiden fhoots above them, carefully preferving the leading fhoot, and prevent its having a competitor; at Midfummer following, ftrip off all fuch fprays as have put forth from the fides of the wounds (by hand.) Proceed in this manner every three or four years, cleanfing about four feet of the ftem at a time, fhortening the upper branches, cutting off clofe thofe which were shortened at the preceding trimming, and ftripping afrefh at Midfummer, till thirty or forty feet of fhaft is obtained without {pray or blemifh ; they may then be left to themfelves, for the fhaft will lengthen fome feet, and fhould they put out more {prays from the lips of the old wounds, fuch may be ftripped off by hand, from time to time, till this vicious inclination ceafes. Beautiful and valuable ‘timber will be thus obtained at a very trifling expence, which the pea-fticks that come off will nearly defray. The {[ 23 ] The advantage that arifes from fhortening fome of the maiden fhoots at every trimming, confifts in checking their growth; which caufes them to be fmall at the bafe, in proportion to the bole of the tree*; confequently the wounds are but trifling, foon. heal over, and the bark becomes fmooth. It is. advifeable to prevent thefe trees from forking at the top as long as poffible, for they are very apt to break off at the forks which injures the timber. Boffington, OG. 25, 1790. Ei Letter III, ABELE. Sir, HE rapid growth of this timber having been already afcertained by a former correfpon» dent, I have little to add, fave that not being fub. ’ ject to the ravages of the worm, it is applicable to more ufeful purpofes than that gentleman has af- figned to itt. After the ftorm in 1781, which not only blew down my elms, but my barns likewife, I rebuilt one of five bays, and twenty-four feet * I fearce need fay that bole and fhaft are fynonymous terms. } Ithink Abele muft be too fpongy for the turner. C4 long [ 24 J | long in the beams, and roofed it intirely with this timber ; and from the experience of others, toge= ther with the prefent appearance of beams, rafters, &c. have reafon to think that my grand-children will not find fault with it. In an: out-houfe roofed at the fame time with elm, there are mani- feft figns of the worm already, which will. in the end deftroy it. But let it not be underftood, that I recommend the ufe of abele under any covering but thatch, which if not fuffered to gully into holes will always protect it from wet, on which alone the durability of the timber depends; the drippings from a broken tile, flate, &c. caufe it foon ta perifh. Thefe trees are often fubject to warty excref- cences, which, when large, imbibe moifture, and bring on decay. Whilft the plants are young, they do little injury, yet it is advifeable to root up fuch as are much disfigured with them, to give room to thofe which are healthy. I have fome of the true Abele or Populus Alba, which are now forty feet long in the fhaft, and fix feet four inches in circum- ference at five feet from the ground; their exaét age 1 do not know, but their contents exceed two tons of timber each, and I judge them to be fifty years old. The fa] The fpecies your correfpondent mentions, (as received under the denomination of the: Dutch Beech) furpaffes them in quicknefs of growth. But J much fufpect that his trees are very branchy. ALDER, As patten-makers’ timber merits little regard, but being the moft beautiful of the whole aquatic tribe, is extremely ornamental along the banks of ferpentine rivulets, or planted as fingle trees in fpringy gravels, or peaty bogs, where little elfe will grow. Placed in a. border round abeles, the latter run above them, and form a pleafing contrat. From the authority of great mafters in their way, Miller, Mortimer, &c. 1 was induced to plant a waggon-load of truncheons, in the year 1764, in fituations above defcribed. I was flattered the next fummer with every profpect of fuccefs, their fhoots being ftrong and grofs, but lo! the year following, one and all perifhed, not having ftruck a fingle root. Being fatisfied that this could not be owing to a defect in the foil, I replanted the fame in 1766, with fmall-rooted flips taken from old itubs, few of which failed ; moft of them have been cut twice for brufh-wood, poles, &c. and of thofe planted fingle, one has formed a conical top of great beauty, and [ 26 J an@ its bole is three feet feven inches in circumfe- rence, midway between the branches and the ground, Mr. Miller recommends this timber as excellent in water-works, but I can fay nothing of its merits myfelf, having never tried it. When charred, it makes the beft coal for gunpowder. Asa. The growth of afh in foils adapted to its nature, is little inferior to that of elm or beech.* But there is no timber whatfoever that differs more in its va- lue than this does, according to its fituation. The productions of dry and healthy ground (unim- paired by the farmer’s bill-hook) will prove accept- able to moft purchafers. ‘Thofe of woods are ge- nerally clean in the fhaft, free-cleft, and more valu- able than the former. The nearer the ground, the tougher is the timber, the fhaft therefore is co- veted, the brittle branch rejected. + If thefe trees are removed when ten or twelve feet hich, their grain acquires a degree of tenacity * Videp. 445, Society’s Mem. vol. 5. + The buyers of this tintber accept the fhaft and its conftinua- tion, or beft bough ; the reit, be they ever fo large, go with the top, very Vie J very prejudicial to the timber. My predeceffor, about the year 1750, planted a row of them in a place fince converted into a garden. Their fhafts were apparently fo clean, as to engage a cooper’s notice, who purchafed them at a good price, viz. 36s. per ton, but told me afterwards, they were clung, and did not anfwer his purpofe,* fo he re- fold them to a country carpenter at a lofs, One of thefe trees, which was left ftanding, meafures now four feet eight inches in circumference at four feet from the ground. Afh timber, when raifed in damp meadows, or moorifh foils, becomes light, fpongy, brittle, and of fmall value, in comparifon of that on dry and healthy fpots. In meadows, they will attain a fize ¢ which cannot be expected in moors and bogs ; for when the roots reach the peat, the bark grows moffy, and the top decays ; how long ftubs may be productive of poles, in fuch fituations, remains * 3. e. They would not cleave into hoops. Clung—a provin- cial term, fignifying that the grain adheres too clofely to fepa- rate freely. + Anafh in my mill mead, which in 1760 contained 34 feet of timber, being apparently at a ftand, was felled laft fpring, and then meafured 60 feet, viz. an increafe of 26 feet in thirty years. It was a fine butt to look at, but was eftimated at no more than 2ss.‘per ton. N. B. The top had been decaying, and the growth fagnated for five or fix years paft. to [ 8 J to be determined, but experience convinces me, that afh, thus planted, will never become timber of any value, »as the roots muft perith.-before the. tree arrives to Psifegtion ~ Ath trees in dairy plots are MPL as. their leaves. make the butter rancid. and worthlels s mixed with beeches in. an open grove, they. run to great lengths, are, free-cleft, and make valuable timber. Coach- makers, wheelwrights, &e, like the fhafts when a little bent, more than whenper= fectly ftraight. The cooper has no objection to the latter. . BrEcn. ; The propagation of Beech is ftrongly to be re- commended as a free-grower, and applicable to many ufeful purpofes. It faves oak (as, before mentioned) in planking fhips bottoms, and in ring- ing mill-wheels; its clofe grain and. firm texture render it unparalleled in water-works of all kinds, for when conftantly kept wet, it appears as per- fe€tly found at forty years end,* as when. firft, immerfed. The mortices and tenents chafed by . the influx and eflux of water will in time be the _™* Of this I have had frequent proof, having known the. fame beechen cell, when turned, and frefh morticed, laft two.wiers, and found enough afterwards to make the plating of an outhouse, one ee one enlarged, and the other diminifhed, but the wear in this timber is nothing like fo great as that in elm; wherefore head-cells in mill races, wiers, &c. fhould be of beech, in preference to any tim- ber whatfoever ; and, as the very offal is the moft valuable cleft-wood, yielding a guinea a cord to the malfter, there are few trees more profitable. to the planter in countries where there is a demand for it. The beech is the chief ornament of the Cheltern- hills in Buckinghamfhire, and of the Horfe-fhoe hills in this county. It delights in chalky foils and lofty fituations; it is more profitable in open groves or mingled with afh, than in coppices of under- wood ; itruns up in the former with a long clean fhaft, it branches in the latter to the deftruéction of all around it.* Yet both length of fhaft and branchy crooks have in this timber their refpective values for the purpofes above-noticed, which makes me wonder, that the timber bears no g-eater price than from 6d. to 8d. a foot, whilft elm fetches rod, and a fhilling. + 1 have many beeches of large fizes # No. Bs Nothing but holly will grow under the drip of beech, {trufles only excepted. ) . + Notwithftanding the body of the beech, however clean, fetches a price: inferior to firaight elm, yet the limbs and offal are worth more than thofe of elm, and there is a difference of meafure which * brings them nearly to a par in price, for the buyer claims an allow- ance of an inch in a foot girt, on account of the roughnefs and thick- 2 {o neis £ 3° 4 fize, and great beauty; one that has been meafured repeatedly was, at Midfummer 1769, fix feet two inches and a half in circumference, at five feet from the ground*, and at Midfummer laft, was eight feet, feven inches and a half, viz. it increafed twenty-nine inches in twenty-one years, being above one inch and one third yearly. The fhaft of this tree is about forty feet long, as ftraight as an ar- row, it breaks all round into {mall branches, and contains between two and three tons of timber. nefs of the bark in the latter, but claims no deduétion for the fnooth bark of the former ; another confideration for the planter is, that elm requires a foil worth 20s, per acre, whilft the beech will grow in white land, {carce worth 7s, per acre. * That is, five feet on the lower fide, or four feet on the upper. Query, What will be the contents of this tree at 24. years end, af- ter the fame rate of growth ?—A fhaft tapering regularly from a circumference of 8 feet 8 inches at its bafe, to four feet at itsfummit, will girt 19 inches in the middle ; for the girt at top 12 inches, added to the girt at bottom 26 inches, are equal to 38, which divided by 2, are equal to 19 inches the girt midway ; and 40 feet by 19 girt, are equal to 100 feet of timber, its prefent fuppofed content. Then at 24 years end, allowing an inch only ina year for the extenfion of the fhaft in length, it will have gained two feet additional length, and 24. times one inch 4, are equal to 32 inches, equal to 8 inches girt, added to its prefent meafure rg inches, are equal to 27 inches ; then 42 feet by 27 inches, are equal to 212 feet, feven inches; fo that in 24 years it will gain 112 feet, viz. it will more than double its pre- fent contents, which it has been fixty years at leaft in attaining.— May this prove an incitement to thofe who have thriving trees, to preferve thein, till they have apparently done growing ! In {i Sd In the year 1768, I planted fome hundreds of young trees in fingle and double rows along the fide . of chalky hills. Thefe are now thirty feet high, and 1 in circumference from eighteen to twenty inches at four feet from the ground; they were originally drawn from the woods from three to four feet high, and a general failure being prognofticated by un- fuccefsful beech-planters, I placed them thicker than I would have done, and planted them alternately, the beft at full length, and the worft cut down to the loweft eye, which was left even with the fur- face of the ground ; there were not one in an hun- dred of the former which lived, nor one in a hun- dred of the latter which failed. An upright growth of thirty feet, in two and twenty years, in a poor fhallow foil, is as much as could be expected ; they would have increafed fafter in bulk, if they had been permitted to have fpread ; but my defign be- ing to draw them into long fhafts, they were fre- quently trimmed for that purpofe, and promife to make fine trees hereafter. N. B. Beeches may be trained to long ftraight fhafts, after the manner of elms, with this dif- ference only—that a {pray muft be left near the end of every fhortened branch to keep it alive, etherwife it perifhes, and becomes a faulty knot. Beeches [ 32 J Beeches are the worft neighbours oaks can have, they grow fo much fafter, and extend their roots fo far as to weaken, if not ftarve them. When the former overhangs the latter, that affuredly dwindles, becomes dead topped, and worthlefs. Fir. Though I do not think the Scotch Fir in this country can ever equal the Yellow Deal from the Baltick, yet it may be worth propagating, as of ufeful purpofe in ordinary buildings. The dryer the ground on which this timber grows, the flower is its progre{s, but the clofer are its pores, and the more fuperior its quality.* When planted in rich land, thefe trees will fhoot three or four feet in a feafon, and equal, if not furpafs the abele in growth. My plantations, though chiefly confined to chalky banks, ina north-weft expofure, evince, that when once rooted, few obftacles will prevent a profitable progrefs. From obferving the miftakes of others in endeavouring to ornament their naked downs too {uddenly, I learnt the neceffity of planting firs, when a foot high only, and by opening the ground fome time before, inverting the turf at the bottom of the holes, and throwing the mould upon it in hillocks, * I fhould imagine, that the firs planted by. Mr. Allen; near Claverton Down, will prove very fine timber hereafter. to 2 ae to meliorate, my plantation fucceeded well; for though the foil is {carcely fix inches deep, the firs, fet in 1766, are now thirty feet high, and from two feet fix inches to two feet in circumference, at four feet from the ground ; fome few planted at the fame time, in a deeper foil, and warmer fituation, are now above three feet round. ‘Spruce firs planted in 1766, likewife in a toler- able good foil, are now forty feet high, and from two feet-ten inches and a half to three feet round. I have feen plantations which far furpafs either of thefe in growth, but they occupied ground infi- nitely more valuable. : Yours, &c. Ty. SOUTH. SS eee Lerrer IV. Defcription of Fyfields Oak, now ftanding ina Wood near Romfey in the County of Southampton. Sir, HIS tree, in 1788, was ten feet eleven inches, _and is now nearly eleven feet one inch in cir- cumference, at fix feet from the ground. Vou. VI. D It [ 34 ] feet inc, It is in height to the firft live branch "' From thence upwards, to where the bole leffens fuddenly, is at leaft an equal diftance, 21 6 Thus far it diminifhes gradually, like the maflive fhaft of a Doric column. The continuation of the bole extends near 12 feet farther ; and by comparing it with a tree at hand, it appeared to be 5 feet in circumference, and at the height of 50 feet from the ground - - - 12 "6 Length of the bole - - SEN or more. The very top branches are timber, the tree ap- pears to be in a growing ftate, and though tradition fays it is 150 years of age, its yearly increafe is little (if any thing) lefs than an inch, and the beft judges allow it to contain twelve loads of timber at leaft. From thefe given premifes, I will endeavour to lay down a {ketch of its progrefs during the latter half of its exiftence, in order to demonftrate that oak-timber will pay its poffeffor good intereft for {tanding till it arrives at maturity. But in fo doing, ~ I muft deviate from the true form of the upper branches, (becaufe it would be difficult to calculate their it am I their real progrefs, without meafuring them) and imagine the head to be divided into four equal ones 5 for the purpofes of proving, in the firft place, the impoffibility of their being timber at the outfet of the calculation, and in the fecond, that they will continue to bear their proportion to the increafe of the fhaft; which I fhall attempt in a manner fo plain and fimple as to be intelligible to the com- mon farmer. It will be allowed, I prefume, that an oak, ina good foil and fituation, may, at 75 years from the _ acorn, have acquired 40 feet length of fhaft, being 14 inches girt at the bafe,* 12 in the middle, and 10 inches at the top. Suppofe this terminating in four equal branches, then it is manifeft, that none of thefe branches can be meafurable timber at this time ;+ for their ageregate contents at the bafe can- not exceed the fimple content of the top of the fhaft, which is under 12 inches girt. The meafure of fuch an oak will be a ton, and its value, as being under naval fize, three pounds at the moft, * What is called the girt of timber, 1s one-fourth part of its circumference. _ t Oak timber is meafurable as far as it holds fix inches girt, and no farther, D2 Then, 0 36°] Then, in a moderate way of growth, it will in- creafe one inch in circumference, being one quarter of an inch girt yearly ; and as it is found by expe- riment, that a fhaft of elm, thirty feet long, ex- tends itfelf ten inches in four years, we may at leaft allow an inch a year for fuch extenfion in a fhaft of oak of forty feet. It follows then, that at the end of twelve years, when eighty-feven years of age, the fhaft will be a foot longer, and having in- creafed in girt three inches, it will meafure forty feet in length by fifteen inches girt, equal to fixty- four feet nine parts, the content whereof will be one ton, twenty-four feet, nine parts. As the fhaft is now increafed to more than twelve inches fquare at the top, the four branches will begin to be mea- furable at the bafe, In the next twelve years, at 99 years of age, pro- ceeding at the fame rate, it will have acquired another foot additional length of fhaft, and three inches increafed girt; and will meafure as follows, viz. 42 feet by 18 inches girt, (equal to 94 feet 6 inches) the content whereof is 2 tons, 14 feet, 6 in. and the four branches will be meafurable timber to the length of two feet each, and their contents, if feven inches and a half girt, will be 2 tons, 17 feet, 7 inches. In EJ In the next twelve years, (at 111 years of age) a third foot is added to the length of the fhaft, and it becomes 21 inches girt; its contents then will be 3 tons, 11 feet, 8 inches, and the four branches will-become meafurable, four feet in length, and girt nine inches, confequently will contain 3 tons, 20 feet, 8 inches. The next twelve years, (when 123 years of age) by acquiring another foot of fhaft, with a girt in- creafed to 24 inches, it will contain 4 tons, 16 feet, and the four branches will be meafurable, fix feet in length, at 10 inches girt, containing 16 f. 8 in, making in all 4 tons, 32 feet, 8 inches. We will now allow 13 years for a like addition to the length and girt of the fhaft, which (at 136 years of age) will then be 45 feet by 27 inches, equal to 5 tons, 27 feet, 9 inches; the four branches will be meafurable nine feet in length, and girt 11 inches, equal to 30 feet, 4 inches; together will containing 6 tons, 18 feet, 1 inch, Laftly, we will take 14 years to fupply an ad- ditional foot to the length, and three additional in- ches to the girt of the fhaft; which will then be 4 feet long by 30 inches girt, equal to feven tons, D3 feven [38 +] feven feet, and the four branches will become mea- furable, 12 feet in length, and girt 12 inches, equal to 1 ton, 8 inches ; and the whole contents (at 150 years of age) willbe equal to 8 tons 15 feet, round meafure, viz. 12 loads of fquare timber, value 48/. to 50/*. The growth of this capital ftick, being thus traced without exaggeration, it may ferve to fhew the manifeft difadvantage of cutting young trees in foils which will bring them to maturity.— Its firft 75 years were fpent in acquiring a. fin- gle ton; whereas, the laft 75 years produced above feven times as much in quantity, befides the increafe of value as naval timber ; which taken together will pay its proprietor compound intereft at 3/. 15s. per cent. for the latter period ; and who can lay out money to fo great advantage, confider- ing the fluctuation of the ftocks in the firft place, (lucky hits only excepted) and the irregularity of the payments of intereft, and the inftability of pri- vate fecurities? = 4 * A ton of round was always reckoned equal to a load and a quarter of {quare timber, but the hewers now manage their bufinefs fo dexteroufly, as to bring it equal to aload and half. Thus the furveyors of Dean Foreft eftimate 14,400 tons, girt meafure, to amount to 21,600 loads, fquare meafure, and value it at 4l. per load. Wide Commiflioners’ third Report, By [39 ] By Smart’s Tables it appears, That the ameunt of 1]. in 75 yrs. at 4p. cent. compound intereft, £-Decimalpts, is - - - - - = - ==138,9452,5466 Andin fametime at 33 p. ct. =13,1985,5083 which added together, and divided by 2 wet quotes - 2)3251438,0504 The amount of 1]. for 75 } years at 31. 15s. per ct. f £-16,0719,0252 Which multipliedby - - - - - 3 The value of the tree at the commencement ee j the amount of 3]. in7$ ys. of the term, produces § £.48,2157,0756 dat 3]. 15s. compd. intereft Mr. Marfham, for whofe opinion I havea great veneration, obferves, that trees which increafe one inch and a half per annum in circumference, during the firft century, do not gain fo much in circum- ference in the fecond. Though I allow this to be the cafe, it will appear, that they increafe more in their folid contents notwithftanding. In proof whereof, ft. it. Take the difference between 131 8 the contents of the fhaft in its hundredth year, and - - 94 6 itscontentsin preceding period, and divide it by theNo. ofys1z)37 2{quotes 3f. 1 inch for its an- nual increafe, ve 31 between the 87th and the rooth year of its growth. ‘Then take the difference between - 287 0 the contents of the fhaft in its 1soth year, and - - - 227 g its contents in the period im- mediately preceding, ’ and divide bythe No. of ys. 14) 59 3(4 f.23 inches, 33 5 4 Shews, [ 40 ] Shews, that notwithftanding its annual increafe in circumference was diminifhed, yet the annual in- creafe of its folid contents was greater by one foot one inch and 1-third, from the 135th to the 150th year of its growth, than it was between the 87th and the 1ooth year, befides the increafed meatfure of its limbs not taken into confideration. Were an accurate regifter to be kept of the growth of oaks for 150 years together, (as an in- genious correfpondent has wifhed) we fhould then be at a certainty refpecting it; and not depend upon conjecture, as in the prefent inftance; but in which there being no intention to deceive, and the inferences being fairly drawn from known: cir- cumftances, the conclufion cannot deviate widely from the truth. As the obviating objections is preferable to the an{wering them, and the increafe of the branches may, to perfons little converfant in timber, appear in this calculation far too great; I. think it neceffary to explain the principles on which I proceeded. . , It is evident, that the contents of the limbs, be their number more or lefs, amount inthe whole to the quantity of timber the fhaft would have contained, it 4ay J contained, had it extended: itfelf upwards to the length the branches are meafurable. .. The four imaginary ones that I have adopted, therefore, may be confidered as a continuation of the fhaft tothe extent of 12 feet. Then, As the top of the fhaft in its 75th year was equal to to feet girt ; in its ggth year, by the addition of one-fourth of an inch yearly, it ‘will girt 16 inches in that place; leffening in its advances to- wards the top, which is fuppofed to have gained two feet; this at 15 inches girt is equal to three feet one inch. In:its 111th year, the fame part of the fhaft will be 1g inches girt ; and four feet the fuppofed length of additional timber will be equal to nine: feet, as the mid-girt will be 18 inches only, In the next period, the girt at the fame place will be 22 inches. This, if continued: fix fect, at 20 inches only in the girting-place, is equal to 16 feet eight inches, ' To proceed : the old top of the thaft now takes 13 years to increafe to 25 inches, andits advanced length [42 length 9 feet, will, at 22 + inches girt, be equal to 30 feet 4 inches; and Laftly, the faid top increafes to 28 inches girt, and the additional length of timber, being 12 feet at 24 inches girt, equal to one ton eight feet, fet down as the meafure of the branches; which, it may be obferved, are here fuppofed to lengthen: more than in proportion to a foot in a period, though the fhaft was confined to that.extent ; as in faét branches when they become timber, always do. _ For being of great length, before they attain meafurable fub- ftance ; upon their increafe in bulk, the menfuration extends as rapidly at leaft, as the progrefs here af- figned to it; viz. from two to three {feet in 12 or 14 years. ‘Thus large branches in oak, contribute greatly to the increafe and value of the timber, as is evident by that of Langley-Wood. : In the manor of Dibden, belonging to Lord Malmfbury, on the eaftern bounds of the New Foreft, are fome capital oaks ; one in particular is larger than Fyfields at equal diftance from the ground, but inferior to it in height and folid con- tents. This is 11 feet eight inches round; at fix feet the fhaft is ftraight, and exceeds 30 feet in | length; Ewe 4 length ; it has four or five large branches, and may contain about eight loads of timber. A lower limb or two has been mutilated, yet the tree is at pre= fent found, but feems nearly at its beft, The three inftances of well-grown oaks before ftated are enough to fhew the advantage accruing to their owners, and the community in general, by refraining from cutting trees whilft thriving. Thofe who would feek for more, and are within reafonable diftance, I would refer to Longleat ; where there are many objects of this kind, of fuf- ficient grandeur to excite their emulation. May the noble poffeffor long enjoy the pleafure of fetting fuch an example of forbearance ; and may his Lordfhip leave it in charge with his defcendants, to , watch over the oaks he has brought to fuch perfec- tion, and convert them to naval purpofes on the firft apparent indication of decay ; by no means fuffering fuch valuable productions to moulder away in burly deformity, millennial monuments of their owner’s folly, from generation to generation hereafter | Of fuch, there are too many at this time ex- tant; the Cawthorp Oak, though a magnificent ruin, with the Greendale Oak delineated in Hun- ter’s edition of Evelyn’s Sylva, and Bull-oaks, in various [ 44 J various places, are of thisnumber. The latter are thus denominated, from the no uncommon:circum- ftance of bulls taking fhelter within them, which thefe animals effect, not by going in and turning round, but by retreating backwards into the cavity till the head only projects at the aperture... ‘The one J am about to particularize ftands in the middle of a pafture, bears the moft, venerable marks of anti- quity, gives the name compounded of itfelf,,and its fituation.to the farm on which it Grows,’ Vid. Oakley Farm, .and was.the favourite retreat of a bull. ‘I'wenty people, old and young, have crouded into it at.atime;,a calf being fhut up there. for convenience, its dam, a two-year-old heifer, con- {tantly went in to fuckle it, -and,left fufficient room for milking her. It is fuppofed.to be near a |thou- fand years old ;. the body jis nothing :but..a hell, covered with burly protuberances ;* the upper part of the fhaft is hollow Jike a chimney, it hasbeen mutilated of all its limbs, but from their ftumps arife a number of {mall branches, forming a brufhy, head, fo remarkable for fertility; that in years of plenty it has piodee two facks of acorns ina * Tt meafures in the middle round thefe burls 29 feet 3 mches, round the ftumps of the old arms 31 feet 6 inches in the fmalleft part ; between two and three feet from’ the ground’ itis a feet in circumference, feafon. ['%45. J feafon. Thefe particulars, extraordinary as they may feem, I had from the farmer’s own mouth, whofe father and himfelf have occupied the land for very many years, and from appearances I think they may be credited.) About twenty years ago, I had the:curiofity to:meafure this tree; its head was as green and vigorous laft fummer as it was atthat time; and though hollow as a tub, it has increafed in its meafure fome inches. Upon the whole, this bears every mark of having been a fhort ftemmed branchy tree, of the firft magnitude, fpreading its arms in all directions round it... In memory of the prefent tenant, the laft remaining branch, one of the {malleft, was found,. extended forty feet from the trunk, and was cut off in his father’s time for re- pairs upon the farm. The aperture. is a-{mall ill-formed Gothic arch, hewed out, or enlarged with an ax, and the bark now curls over the wound—a fure fign that it conti- nues growing; and -hence it is evident, that the hollow oaks of enormous fize, recorded by anti- quaries, did not obtain fuch bulk whilft found, for the fhell increafes when the fubftance is no more. The blea,. and the inner bark, receive annual tri- butes of nutritious particles from the fap in its pro- erefs to the leaves, and from thence acquire a | power [ 46 ] power of extending the outer-bark, and increafing its circumference flowly. Thus a tree, which at 300 years old was found, and fix feet diameter, like the Langley Oak, would, if left to perifh gradually, in its thoufandth year become a fhell of ten feet. diameter ; and hence it is natural to conclude, (as appearances juftify it) that this tree, when in per- fection, was nearly, if not quite, equal to that ama- zing one which belonged to the bifhop of Salif- bury. How fhameful, to let nature have pro- duced an oak like this in vain! BS am; ares ez0 Boffington. T. SOUTE: Dimenfions of the Bull Oak, in Wedgenock-Park, Warwick/hire.* i: Ca abe t yard from theground -— - ihe k 3 t foot above the ground bo ie DQG 6 feet from the ground - - IQVOR WO Broadeft fide - a - Re a Clofe to the ground - = =) 1808 iF Height of the trunk, about - 4 1 0 The infide is quite decayed ; and when I faw it, a cow anda fheep had fheltered themfelves within it. The head is very round and flurifhing. aT oO, * Gent. Mag. Sept. 1783. LETTER fay 4 Lerrer. V. An Effay on the Growth of Oaks, and on the Proe duttion of Crooked Timber for Naval Purpojes.* —— SSO «* Let India boaft.her plants, nor envy we ** The weeping amber and the balmy tree, ** While by our Oaks the precious loads are born, ** And realms commanded which thofe trees adorn.” Pore. SESS SSS Sir, ROVIDENCE with infinite wifdom hath or- dained, that every country fhould abound in productions the moft ufeful or falutary to its inha- bitants. * Among the amufements which the country affords, I know none more delightful in itfelf, and beneficial to the publick, than that of Planting. I could mention a nobleman, whofe fortune has placed him in feveral parts of England, and who has always left thefe vi- fible marks behind him, which fhew he has been there; he never hired a houfe in his life, without leaving, all about it, the feeds of wealth, and beftowing legacies on the poiterity of the owner. Had all the gentlemen of England made the fame improvements upon their eftates, the whole country would have been at this time as one great garden. Nor ought fuch an employment to be looked upon as too inglorious for men of the higheft rank. There have been heroes in this art, as well as in others.* We are told in parti- cular, of Cyrus the Great, that he planted all the Leffler Afia. There is indeed fomething truly magnificent in this kind of amufe- ment < * William Duke of Cumberland, Bagfhot Heath. Eas al bitants. This fea-girt ifland depends upon oaks for its commerce and protection. Thefe are found therefore in a variety of foils, in lands both ftiff and light, both wet and dry but attain their fulleft mag- nitude ment: it gives a nobler air to feveral parts of nature ; it fills the earth with a variety of beautiful fcenes, and has fomething in it like creation. For this reafon, the pleafure of one who plants is fomething like that of a poet, who, as Ariftotle obferves, is more delighted with his productions, than any other writer or artift whatfoever. Plantations have one advantage in them, which is not to be found in mott other works, as they give a pleafure of a more laft- Ing date, and commonly improve in the eye of the planter. When you have finifhed a building, or any other undertaking of the like nature, it immediately decays upon your hands ; you fee it brought to the utmoft point of perfection, and from that time haftening to its ruin. On thecontrary, when you have finifhed your planta- tions, they are {till arriving at greater degrees of perfection as long as you live, and appear more beautiful in every fucceeding year than they did in the foregoing. But I do not only recommend this art to men of eftates as a plea- fing amufement, but as it is a kind of virtuous employment, and may therefore be inculcated by moral motives ; particularly from the love which we ought to have for our country, and the regard which we ought to bear to our pofterity. As to the firft, I need only mention, what is frequently obferved by others, that the in- creafe of foreft trees does by no means bear a proportion to the deftruétion of them, in fo much that, in a few ages» the nation may be at alofs to fupply itfelf with timber fufficient for the fleets of England. ; Spe&ator, No. 583—~20th Auguft, 1714. > The writer little thought, that in lef than one age, his pre- diction would come to pafs, [ 49 ] hitude in rich black earth, in ftrong moift loams, and in fandy loams, or fands, with a ftratum of clay beneath. Their tap-roots require fome depth to {trike in, their growth is quickeft where the ground is free,* but in ftubborn clay is very flow till their roots have penetrated far; then they begin to thrive and produce the tougheft and moft lafting timber. A famous inftance of longevity, durability, and the amazing bulk they will attain in foils which fuit them, has been particularized in the Lang- dey Oak. + A living and unexampled proof of the rapi- dity of their growth, when affifted by culture, may -be feen at Stratton in Norfolk; where an Oak, planted by Mr. Marfham in 1720, is now above eight feet round at fourteen feet from the ground; but this had the advantage of manure, tillage, and * Kennedy, in his treatife on planting moors and commons, fays, (vol. I. p. 127) ‘ That in black moorith-land, where long heath ‘¢ grows, Oaks thrive fafter, and make finer fhoots, than in any “¢ other foil.” What pity then it is but all fuch moors were planted ! I have feen oaks of large fize protrude themfelves from fiffures of rocks, where no foil appeared. To clothe the naked crag with timber, merits our warmett praife. + This tree was perfectly found at 300 years old. wor. Vi. E other Bee sing ether judicious treatment, to which its hafty pro- orefs may be attributed, and to which few planters can or will attend. | \ The growth of middle-aged oak is generally from one inch 1-third, to an inch in circumference yearly ; between its twentieth and its hundredth year, it fometimes exceeds this meafure; and in its fecond century falls within it. But as the folidity of the fhaft confifts lefs in its length, than in the fquare of its diameter in the girting place, a fmall addi- tion to the diameter there enlarges the fquare abun- dantly. Wherefore, though the circumference from the hundredth to the hundred and fiftieth year, may not increafe fo faft as it did to the hundredth, the folid contents will be increafing fafter; for as the {quare of the diameter* 40= 1600 exceeds the {quare of 245767, fo will the contents in the 1soth year exceed the contents in the 100th, when its annual enlargement was 1-8th of an inch greater. * Forty inches was the diameter of Fyfields Oak, in its r50th year : - - 40 a X40 ——e 1600 = Its fquare. + Twenty-four inches diameter of the fame in its 1ooth year, 24, X24 576 = Its fquare, Under ee Under the defcription of Fyfields Oak, Ihave endeavoured to prove, that this timber, though not fo quick of growth at firft as the fofter woods, will pay ample intereft to fuch proprietors as give it time to come to maturity. For oaks in the end will exceed in magnitude fuch trees as outgrew them in their infancy ; the period of the growth of the latter being over, before the oak begins to extend its timber through its limbs, it is then that it increafes rapidly ; it is then that it pays for ftand- ing; itis then that it makes amends for flow ad- vances in the early ftages of its progrefs; producing more timber in the laft twenty years, than it did in the whole firft century ; and (quite the reverfe of -elm) the larger and more crooked the limbs are, (however fhort the bole) the more valuable is the timber. Tall ftraight oaks, when of full fize, are beautiful objects, whether fingle or in woods. They are re- quifite for beams, for kelfons, ftern-pofts and plank- - ftocks; and great is the confumption of the latter ; for fhips are planked both within and without with oak, fave beneath the light water-line, where beech performs that office. The growth of oaks like thefe is the chief aim of the generality of planters; and feems to have been the immediate defign of the B)2 furveyors Li peg furveyors of Dean Foreft. Should their plan be adopted,* the trees will draw one another up fo faft, that fcarce a crooked one will be found in 18 thoufand acres, fave round the out-fkirts; and the foil will be full of ftubs, which, as oak robs oak, muft check the growth of the furviving timber. Planters of all kinds (as before obferved) fhould attend to the ufes to which their timber may be ap- propriated. | Inclofures made at Government’s ex- pence, therefore, fhould be nurferies for timber adapted to government purpofes. The marine, be- ing the firft and principal objeét, fhould in the firft place be provided for. Trees difperfed on open commons and extenfive waftes, have hitherto pro- duced the choiceft timber ; and though the returns of the forefts have of late years, through mif- * They propofe to turn"fods upfide down, at three feet apart, to plant one or two acorns in each fod with a dibber, taking out at the end of ten years every other tree ; at the end of fifteen yearsevery other tree again, to leave them at twelve feet apart ;* at twenty-five years growth, to fell 132 trees on an acre; at thirty-five years growth, to leave the trees at twenty feet apart; and at forty-five years to leave 75 upon an acre, &c. &c. © This is evidently a miftake ; for to fet them at twelve feet dif- tance from each other, feven out of eight muft be cut down. The whole indeed is incomprehenfible, for after fetting the trees at 12 feet apart, it would requirea conjuror to fet them at 20 feet. management, | ses management, been very fcanty ;* yet they have confifted of fuch valuable knees and crooks as the merchants would have found it difficult to have furnifhed. And if no provifion be made for grow- ing fuch in future, we, like the French,t fhall be reduced to the neceffity of ufing iron-braces in- ftead of timber-knees.{ In the prefent fcarcity of thefe valuable articles, it is not only the bufinefs of the furveyors, but the duty of every member of the community, who is bleft with the means, to try at their production. The French have attempted it by fufpending weights to the heads of flender fap~ lings, bowing them haftily towards the ground, which is not only an expenfive, but inefficacious method, for it injures the plant by {training the bark and rupturing the fap-veffels. Let us take nature for our guide, ftudy her means, and imitate her ways. * Two thoufand loads yearly on an average of the laft 20 years. The confumption of the docks is 25,000 loads. + Vide Falconer’s Marine Dictionary—article Knee. } The contrattors for India fhips have been already neceffitated to ufe iron braces, through the fcarcity of large knees, and in trz- ding fhips they are found convenient, as leaving more room for the freight ; but ina man of war, the folidity of the timber knees adds greatly to the ftrength and ftability of her fides, enabling them to refift the batteries of the enemy for longer continuance, and pre- ferving the men in great meafure from the deftructive power 9°; fplinters, . E23 Whoever set] Whoever traverfes a foreft, with the eye of cu- riofity awake, muft remark, that almoft every thorn becomes a nurfe for timber. Acorns, or beech- mafts, or fometimes both, dropped by birds or fquirrels, vegetate freely under the fhade and pro- tection of the bufhes, till they rife above the bite of cattle. Small-groupes and fingle trees are thus produced ; their guardian thorns when overpowered perifh. Then, having open fpace for their roots to range in, their growth becomes rapid, their bodies bulky, their limbs large and extenfive ; cattle refort to them for fhelter, enrich the ground with their droppings, the timber derives advantage from the manure, becomes productive of knees, crooks, and compafs pieces, the chief requifites in naval archi- tecture. Vide No. I. If lords of manors, and men of landed property, would purfue the hint which nature here throws out, and employ the aged and infirm, to collect and dib among the thorns (with which the waftes, furzy commons, and aukward corners of their eftates abound) fuch tree-feeds as the foil is beft adapted to; how foon would the face of the country. be improved! What varieties of flourifhing trees would in a few years prefent themfelves ! What provifion made for pofterity hereafter ! Parks Plate I. =e , 5 i re ONE) Male iy ‘ou PENS A Oia | * Parks and pleafure-grounds might be rendered enchantingly beautiful, by clumps of quickéets, black-thorns, hollies, &c. interfperfed here and there for the protection of acorns,* purpofed to be fown among them. Under their umbrage, oak- faplings, which delight in fhade, would thrive ex- ceedingly ; be fafe from the brouze of cattle, with- out the expence of fencing, and the lawns become bounded with ftately timber, not only a lafting but improving ornament to future generations. Why fhould we truft to chance to fow our woods? What would be the expence of a bufhel or two of acorns fet by hand a year before each cutting ? when a man might pafs between the ftubs, planting them in vacant places at ten or a dozen fteps apart; at _ fuch diftances they would have room to grow with- out annoying the underwood, till their own value made amends for its deficiency. a a Clofe planting I profefs myfelf no friend to; oaks drawn up like hop-poles, excite my indignation ; * Some years acorns are fcarce and difficult to be got, but as fuch years of fcarcity generally fucceed to years of plenty, num- bers of feedling oaks may be drawn from wheat-ftubbles in the neighbourhood of woods, which if taken up careful and planted the fame day, will grow readily and gain a year. Bova for bE $6 Y for it is with planters as with gardeners, the one thins not his trees, nor the other his fruit, till the mifchief has been done; we fuffer them to remain and impair each other, before we have refolution to difplace them; and at laft perform the bufinefs ill or {paringly ;* not reflecting, that one prime oak, or one prime beech, is worth a fcore of ftarvelings. Vide Mr. Nichols’s Account of a Plantation in New Foretft. | | In plantations thus begun, however divefted of incumbrances in the advanced ftages of their * T remember a circular thicket of oaks on an eminence, which had at a diftance the moft pleafing effect, affuming the appearance of one immenfe round head, reaching almoft tothe ground. Ona nearer approach, the ftems of the clufter became vifible, but ftood fo thick, that like the famous Indian Fig, they feemed to form a congeries uniting in one trunk. When amongft them, however, they were from 4 to 6 feet apart, drawn up to the height of 50 feet or more, but fo flender as not to exceed 6 inches diameter in the middle of their fhafts. They were great favourites of their owner, who fet the acorns whilft a boy under the direétion of his father, in whofe time they had been thinned twice, and once by himfelf afterwards ; on my lamenting that they had fo little fpace alloted them, he acknowledged more room would have been better, and in a few years after thinned them rafhly, taking away two-thirds at once, which he fold for 75. a piece, leaving the beft, as he thought, to improve. But thefe, divefted of their fupporters, bent like reeds before the wind, and after every fudden’guft, reverberating forcibly, clafhed their branches one againft the other till dafhed to pieces, thofe in the outer ring alone efcaping. This hopeful grove of plants thus perithed at half growth for want of early thinning. growths TK sy ne Ah AA K Aa bses7 growth, few if any knees or naval crooks will be found, except upon their borders ; we muft look for thefe either in fingle trees, like No. I. in fmall groupes or in hedge-rows. In groupes, one or other often gains the maftery, as reprefented in No. II. or III. and forces the reft to bend forward till they have room for afcent. Trees, when few in num- ber, enjoy a liberty nearly equal to fingle ones; each has a fpace where its roots may draw nu- trition;“@nd as thefe and the branches ufyally follow the fame direction, the leading rvots of the infe- rior trees will tend outwards, and finding nothing to obftruct their paffage, will furnifh fupply fufficient to keep them thriving, notwithftanding the fupe- riority of their antagonitts, | In this age, when our ftock of timber is fo very low, and our impatience fuch, that we cannot wait till the fmall quantity that is left attains maturity, we muft not expect to find many capital crooks in branches like thofe of the Langley Oak, but muft produce them in the ftem or bole of the tree ;* which can only be done by a regular and conftant * Deformity in a tree, like the fame defeét in the human body, deviates from the line of beauty, but national intereit requires it to be promoted, that we may not, like our neighbours, be compelled to fubftitute iron braces in the room of knees and crooks. oppreffion ; h 58] oppreffion ; the effect whereof may be feen in. figures No. II. and III. and in hedge-rows where the timber ftands thick, as No. 1V. reprefents. The centre ftick of the three, growing behind the others, and not finding room to fpend its fap by rifing betwixt their tops, made its way out to the fun and air, as appears in the draught annexed, forming a capital knee and valuable crook above it. In thefe inftances we find a plain and ufeful leffon, viz. that trees, impelled to a certain direction whilft young, will continue growing in the fame di- rection as long as they exift. Their natural ten- dency is doubtlefs towards a perpendicular; but if conftrained to change this difpofition early, they will proceed horizontally till they have room to afcend freely ; and though they then immediately rife upwards, the curve they have taken, will in ereat meafure be preferved, even when the op- preffors which caufed it are no more. Hence it is manifeft, that any quick-growing trees of {mail value, may be ufed as inftruments for forcing feed- ling oaks out of their upright line, Cuttings of coppice withy* will, by the freedom of their growth, * It may be obferved, that I no where recommend the beech as a companion to ‘the oak. It is in faét too mighty for it. When one ftands near the other, the tree of the firft confequence yields to the quicker growth of its rival, and comes to little. ' ‘s (as ‘ * ‘ ' “VY yet ‘ vs - , ‘ Ms oi oy 4 r BOs re fw dt ae t ’ ¥ + Ae ¢ be te a pa. mS ny, f CIN LYE Weas\ Tet be ; ow i - MM ‘ : Bs ‘eA } ' M | alanaa | y ~~. ew de ' NT nia ee ol ee ita ais aMaeaisy Ate Bhs py : whi wiheivig dd, , at Vo ae] ; AL te “ 7 ' » » * ule we a! ae ha ™ " : Cr), \ ’ vw alin + spdhee dy one idle y ' i s# i ‘h “a F ThwCe oak ' \ ai é ae J } ‘i a a. 7 ry ‘ ¢ ; ; ~ ‘ 7 - } . ae \ < “ * A ' ‘ : | ‘ ‘ * For] the machine within fide ; the timber (when of fir) four inches {quare, placed on two wheels B. B. three feet diameter, a little more. or lefs, (the old fore- wheels of a chaife may anfwer the purpofe) to fup- port the hind part of the machine. C. C. &c. fix ftrong pieces of wood, called bulls, three feet long, five inches and a half broad, the thicknefs fix inches at FE, No. 2, and tapering ' to three inches at F. Into thefe bulls are fixed the cutting wheels, which are iron, 13 inches diameter, 3-quarters of an inch thick at the centre, about an inch diameter, for piercing holes to fix the iron axles in; from that they are to be of fuch thicknefs, as to allow the edges to be well fteecled. Thefe wheels are ‘fixed by two bolts going through the bulls, with eyes on one end, for the axles of the wheels to run in, and nuts and fcrews on the other, to make them very firm by, and funk in the bulls, to prevent their interfering with the weights L. refting on them. G. G. in No. 1, are hollow pieces of wood, called thorles, each three inches and a half long, which in- clofe the bolt M. and keep the bulls C. C. at their proper diftances, but may be made longer or fhorter at pleafure, as the ward requires to be cut in larger or fmaller pieces. They are in two pieces, and bound together, and jointed by a ftrap of leather or cord, [ 74] cord, which allows them to be readily changed, when the cutting wheels require to be kept at more or lefs diftance, The iron-bolt M. No. 1. goes through two pieces of wood or iron, feven inches long, clear of the wood, fupported by iron ftays, fixed to the frame, and through all the bulls, as at T. No. 3, it re- quires to be ftrong, as the draught of the horfes terminate there, H. H. No. 2 and 3, a cylinder or fegment of wood, feven inches diameter, called a rocking-tree, which goes acrofs the frame, and moves on the pivots fixed into it, one at each end, fupported by an iron- bolt, or piece of wood morticed into the frame, eight inches high, as appears in No. 2 and 3, to which fix chains or ropes are fixed by hooks, at dif. ferent diftances, as you want your cuts, at 9, 8, 7, or 6 inches from one another, and are joined to the end of each bull, in which the cutting wheels run; fo that when the rocking tree is turned about by the Jever I. fixed in the middle of it, all the bulls, with their cutting wheels, are raifed out of the ground at once, as in Ne. 3, by which means the machine may be turned, or moved from place tg place with great eafe, without any danger of ftrain- jng the wheels, N. B, [ 7 N.B. The rocking tree is not delineated in No. 1, in order that the plan of the frame may be more eafily underftood. L. L. No. 1, 2,.3, are weights of free-{tone, 26 inches long, fix inches broad, the under one four inches thick, the upper one of the fame dimen- fions, and three inches thick, which will weigh (ace cording to the gravity of the ftone) about four ftone the under, and three the upper, all of them having two holes in them, thro’ which iron fpikes, firmly fixed in the bulls, pafs, in order to keep them fteady. When the ground is eafily cut, the under ftone, of four ftone weight may anfwer ; when more dif- ficult, the other {tone of three ftone weight may be added, fo that every wheel may have feven ftone weight upon it, which has been found fufficient for the ftiffeft land and taugheft fward the machine has ever been tried on. Caft-iron weights will anfwer fully better, but are more expenfive, which the in- ventor wifhes by all means to avoid. The lever I. No. 2, 3, which ought to be five feet long, muft have a fliding rope on it, fixed to the back part of the frame, fo that when the cutting wheels are all taken out of the ground three or four inches, tC 76, a inches, by the rocking tree’s being turned partly round by the lever, the rope is then fixed to it, by putting a loop at the end of the rope over the pin R. No. 3, (it ought to be placed three feet four inches from the extremity of the lever I.) which keeps all the cutting wheels out of the ground till the machine is turned, and then, by moving the loop of the pin, it flips back towards the frame, and the lever is gently let back to its place, as in No. 2, by which the cutting wheels are put into their for- mer pofture, by the weights fixed on the bulls in which they run. The levers may be made of good tough afh. | P. No. 1, a {mall bolt of iron, with a hook on one end of it, (one is fufficient) to ftrengthen the bolt M. to be hooked on the centre of it, and joined to the frame by a nut and {crew. The grooves, in which the cutting wheels run, may be covered below at the hinder part with a plate of thin black iron, fix inches long, three in- ches broad, having a flit in it where the wheels run, to prevent (if found neceffary) any grafs, weeds, or fmall ftones, from filling the grooves, and clagging the wheels; the form of which is feen at the letter z To [ oy I To the frame, as feen at No. 1, are fixed (for a double-horfe Sward-cutter) three fhafts, as in a wageon, of fuch length, ftrength, and diftance from one another, as any workman may think proper. For a fingle-horfe, Sward-cutter (which has. only four cutting wheels) a pair of fhafts are ufed, and may make the two fides of the frame without any joinings. The width of the frame, in proportion to the double-horfe Sward-cutter, is as four to fix. It is recommended for a double-horfe Sward- cutter to have eight bulls and wheels, that when it is ufed to reduce hard cloddy fummer fallow, or land for barley, before the laft furrow, or even af- ter it, the whole weight, 42 ftone, employed in fward-cutting the ftiffeit land and tougheft fward, may be applied to the eight bulls then at fix inches from one another: the four ftone weights to be ap- plied to fix of the bulls, and two of the three ftone weights to each of the additional bulls, which is thought will prove a fufficient weight for the pur- pofe, and will effectually prevent a clod, at any time, of more than fix inches broad, from efcaping being broke to pieces. In the fame manner, a fingle-horfe Sward-cutter may have fix bulls for the above-mentioned pur- pofe ; . 78 _ pofe; the 28 ftone belonging to it, divided thus : the four ftone weights to four of the bulls, and two of the three {tone weights to each of the additional bulls. It was thought better to be rather minute here, than trouble the perfon employed in ufing the {ward-cutter with any calculations. That the inftrument may come as cheap as pof-. fible to the publick, the inventor is of opinion, that the expence of the two wheels and the iron axle (which is confiderable) may be faved, by joining ftrongly to the frame at S. No. 3, a piece of wood with a little curve at the extremity of it, refembling the foot of a fledge, formerly much ufed in Scot- land, to carry in the corn from the field; the part of it refting on the ground being kept 18 inches (the half diameter of the wheels) from the frame, by a ftrong fupport of wood. As the two outer bulls next the frame are apt to get under it, fo as to prevent the cutting wheels from being taken out of the ground, a thin flip of iron fixed to the infide of the frame, nearly oppofite to the back end of the bulls, of convenient length, will be found necefiary. A fort [ % J zt foort Account of the ufes of the Inftrument called a Sward Cutter, with the advantages attending it, and the manner of ufing it. THE original intention of this machine was to prepare old grafs-ground for the plough, by cut- ting it acrofs the ridges, in the beginning of, or during winter, when the ground is foft, in order to anfwer all the purpofes that Mr. Tull propofed by his four-coulter plough, fo ftrongly recommended by him for bringing grafs-ground that has been long refted into tilth. This the Sward-cutter has been found to do, much more effectually and ex- peditioufly, as Mr. Tull’s plough, with four coul- ters, cut the fward in the fame dire¢tion with the plough, and is liable, from every ftone, or other obftruction any of the coulters meet with, to be thrown out of its work altogether, or the inftru- ment broke, to which the Sward-cutter, confifting of four, fix, or more cutting wheels, is never liable, from their being entirely independent of one an- other, cutting the ground acrofs the ridges before plowing, and rendering that operation eafier to two horfes than it would be to three without its being cut. The furrow being cut acrofs, falls finely from the plough in fquares of any fize required, not under fix inches, in place of long flips of tough fward, | '. feldom [ 80 ] feldom and imperfectly broke by the four-coultered plough. Any perfon who reads Mr. Tull’s defcription of his four-coultered plough, and what he propofed by it, will foon fee the great advantage the fward- cutter has over it, in producing the defired effect of bringing old refted grafs-ground into tilth; an ob- ject univerfally allowed to be of no {mall importance to agriculture. This inftrument is very fit for preparing ground for burnbating, as it will fave much hand-labour. It may be properly ufed in crofs-cutting clover, of one or two years ftanding, to prepare the ground for wheat, if the land be ftiff and moift enough. It may be applied to cutting and crofs-cutting pafture-ground, intended to have manure of any kind put upon it to meliorate the grafs. In this it will far exceed the fcarificator, mentioned in one of Mr. Young’s tours, as that inftrument is liable, as well as the four-coultered plough, to be thrown out of its work when meeting with a ftone or other in- terruption. This the fward-cutter is proof againtft, which is looked on as its greateft excellence. In [ 8 ] In preparing for barley, the fward-cutter excels a roller of any kind, in reducing the large hard clods in clay land, occafioned by a fudden drought, after its being plowed too wet; and it is likewife very proper for reducing fuch clay land, when under a fummer-fallow. In this operation the fward-cut- ter is greatly to be preferred to the cutting roller, likewife mentioned by Mr. Young in one of his tours, from its wheels being all dependent one on another, fo that when one is thrown out by a ftone, three or four muft fhare the fame fate: befides, the cutting roller has but feven wheels in fix feet, and the fward-cutter has fix in four feet three inches. at nine inches diftant; and, if neceflary, may have them fo near as fix inches, After old grafs-ground is cut crofs with the fward-cutter, and plowed, it has a very uncom- mon and worklike appearance, from each f{quare, turned over by the plough, being raifed up an inch or two at the fide laft moved by the earth-board ; fo that the field, when finifhed, is all prettily waved, and refembles a piece of water when blown on by a gentle breeze. By this means a very great deal of the land’s furface is expofed to the froft, and other influences of the air, which cannot fail to have a good effect on it. Vor. VI. G Twe [ 82 j Two horfes are fufficient for the draught of a double-horfe {ward-cutter, and one horfe for a fingle-horfe one; one man manages the machine, and drives the horfes. He begins his operation by firft meafuring off twenty or thirty paces from the machine, lefs or more, as he inclines, and there fixes a poie. He then cuts the field crofs, as near” at right angles with the ridges as he can. When the cutting wheels are paft the laft furrow about a yard or fo, and the machine is upon the outmoft ridge of the field: on which it muft turn, he mutt ftop the horfes, then take hold of the lever I. fig. 1, No. 2, and by pulling it to him, he raifes the cutting wheels out of the ground, which are kept fo by the loop of the rope being put over the pin R. in the lever I. No. 3, till the machine is turned andbrought to its proper place, which is done by meafuring off the fame diftance formerly done on the oppofite fide of the field. When the cutting wheels are exactly over the outmoft furrow, then, on the horfes being {topped, flipt off the pin R. and the lever returned to its former place, as reprefented No. 2, which allows the weights L. L. &c.to force the cutting wheels into the ground again. He then goes on till the interval betwixt the firft and fecond ftroké of ‘the machine is all cut. In this manner the field-is to be finifhed, after which you may begin to plow when £-33. ] when you pleafe. N.B. There muft be a pole at each fide of the field. It is of no confequence whether the land to be fward-cut is in crooked ridges, or ftraight, in flat ridges, or in very high-raifed ridges; fuch as are frequently met with in Scotland. Be the furface ever fo uneven, it does not fignify, as the cutting wheels being all independent of one another, are forced by their weights into every furrow or hollow. One Sward-cutter will cut as much in one day as fix ploughs will plow. The land may lie feveral months in winter after being f{ward-cut, when there is no vegetation to make the cuts grow together again before it is plowed; but the fooner it is plowed after cutting, the better, that it may have the benefit of all the winter’s froft, which makes it harrow better and eafier at feed time. When the ground is harrowed, the harrows ought to go with the waves that appear after plow- ing, not againft them, as by that means they are lefs apt to tear up the furrows all cut into fquares. This need only be attended refpecting the firft two tines, as they are called, of the harrowing. G2 Any [ %& ] Any common wright and fmith may make the inftrument. It is very ftrong, very fimple, and eafily managed, and moved from place to place ; and if put under cover, will laft many years. — Fig. II. is the plan of a harrow invented by Mr. Sandilands, which he recommends in a particular manner, and to which he has given the name of the Chain and Screw Harrow. Its properties are, that if your ridges are high, and you with to harrow them from one end to the other, by lengthening the chain (which the ferew commands) the har- row, when drawn along, forms an angle down- wards, and miffes none of the curve of the ridge, fo © far as it extends, which may be nine feet, the dif- tance from A. to B. The diftance from C. to D. is five feet fix inches. When the crowns ‘of the ridges have got what is thought fufficient harrowing lengthwife, you fhorten the chain by the {crew, which forms an angle upwards; the harrow is then drawn by the horfes, one on each fide of the fur- row, which completely harrows it, and the fides of the ridge if eighteen feet broad, 3 When you want to harrow even ground or high ridges acrofs, with the fcrew you can bring the harrow to be horizontal, fo as te work as a folid harrow without a joint. | bs 4 The teeth are formed and fixed in the common manner, fquare, not in the fafhion of coulters, and are nine or ten inches below the wood, and of fuch ftrength as is thought the land requires. The teeth cut, or rather tear the ground at every four inches without variation, though feemingly placed irre- gularly without any rifk of choaking, except fome- times at the extreme angles, where the teeth are ne- ceffarily near each other, which may be cleaned with the greateft eafe, by raifing them a litcle from the ground. The figures 1, 2, &c. point out where the twelve teeth on each fide the harrow are placed. Where a ftrong brake-harrow is not neceffary, by making the teeth fhorter or lighter, you may have forty-eight teeth, which will tear the ground at every two inches, or near it, cover the feed well, and make a fine mould. It is recommended, that harrows for every pur- pofe, and of any fize, be made on the above prin-~ ciple, from which no tooth can ever follow the track of another, and all are kept conftantly acting. Fig. 3, and 4, the plan and profile of a harrow likewife invented by Mr. Sandilands, called a Wrack Harrow, from its very expeditious manner of brine- G-3 ing [ 86 ] ing the wrack or roots of couch-grafs and other weeds together. It confifts of a plank of timber, fix feet long, nine inches broad, and two inches thick, in which there are two rows of teeth fixed, twelve in front, and thirteen in rear, about four inches row from row, and about five inches from each other, which, in effect, brings the teeth to operate at two inches and a half one from another. They are in length about feven inches below the wood, three quarters of an inch fquare, not fharp, but pointed diamond ways, fo as not to penetrate the foil, but only to catch what by preceding thorough harrowing is brought above ground. To the plank is joined fhafts for a horfe, and handles for a man, of fuch length and ftrength as any workman may think necefiary. The manner of ufing the harrow is as follows-: When the land is fo well harrowed, as that all the roots of the quickens or couch-grafs, &c. are brought to the furface, the harrow is drawn acrofs the field, the holder preffing a little, not much, on the handles, till the plank is immediately over the firft furrow; on which, without ftopping the horfe, he fuddenly lifts the harrow which the fhafts fup- port before; by this means, all the ftuff gathered by the harrow, drops in the furrow ; fo on he mutt 80; oe ae go; and when he has croffed the field, he turns to the right or left, and croffes the ridges again, as mentioned, obferving not to mifs any of the land, keeping clofe by the laft track. From this opera- tion, the whole wrack, &c. is left in the furrows, ready to be carted off the field, or burnt, as the far- mer chufes. If the horfe is not fteady, a boy mutt be employed to lead him. ArtTicte III. Queries of Mr. Le Buanc, refpecting the culture of Turnip-rooted Cabbages, with Anfwers to the fame, by Sir Tuomas Beervor, Bart. of RE they not a much longer time before they are fit to be hoed than turnips ? A. Yes, three weeks or a month. Q. 2. Is not the hoeing confequently the more difficult and expenfive, as the weeds have the greater advantage over them ? A. Ina wet feafon the hoeing is certainly more difficult; ona clean fallow, and in a dry feafon, very G 4 little ff 886 J little more; and I have never paid more for hoeing them, than for commién turnips. Q. 3. The colour of the plant being darker than that of a turnip, and more difficult to diftinguifh from the charlock, which generally abounds in tur- nip fallows, particularly the moft early fown, is it not another reafon why the hoeing fhould be more difficult and expenfive? A, My workmen fay, they can readily diftinouith them from charlocks ; and have never yet charged me more for them. 2.4. How many times are they hoed, and at what price ? A, This muft depend partly on the feafon; they are generally twice hoed, 4s. for the fixit hoeing, and 2s. for the fecond, &. 5. Fas it ever been obferved, that the hard- nefs of the root affects the fheep’s teeth ; that objec- tion having been made to them by fhepherds ? yi. Not keeping any breeding fheep, but only wethers, which are fold fat after having fed on them in the latter part of the fpring of one feafon, or two at the moft; I have never obferved the mifchief charged to them, 2.6, Je [. %. J Q. 6. Is there any difficulty in making the fheep _ eat them up clean ? A. Thave not obferved any, by making a lean ftock follow the fat ; but if there be, hogs will greedily eat up all the pieces, and thrive greatly upon them. SS s Articte IY. On various SuBjects, To the Secretary. SIR, Fiethel, Nov. 20, 1791. HE honour done me by your affurance, that -the Gentlemen of the Bath Society would be pleafed to receive the communication of any fuch facts or opinions, connected with their views, as fhall have fallen under my obfervation, being too flattering not to have excited in me the utmoft am- bition to comply with their defire ; I have, in con- formity with their wifhes, ventured to addrefs to you a few articles of information on fome of the dif- ferent fubjects of their enquiries. Immediately on the receipt of your laft letter, I made frequent en- quiry amongft the Gentlemen of my acquaintance in this county, who have large fir plantations on their eftates, whether they had ever obferved that ereat [ 9° ] great damage done amongft them by the /guirrels, which is fo much complained of by fome gentlemen in the counties of Somerfet and Wilts; and I have reafon to believe, from that enquiry, that the evil is not confined to the abovementioned counties, as on two eftates in this county, on which I believe the plantations of Fir are by far the moft confiderable, —I mean thofe of the Marquis of Townfhend and Mr. Coke,—I am informed by the latter Gentle- man, that the injury done to thofe trees is fo very great, that the price of a fhilling per head is paid by him for all fuch of thefe mifchievous little ani- mals as are deftroyed in his plantations; at the fame time he told me, that, in Lord Sherborne’s park in Gloucefterfhire, the mifchief done by thefe animals among the beech trees is very confiderable : in my own plantations, neither beech nor fir-trees, of which laft I have many, have fuffered from them ; but they every year bite off moft of the young fhoots of the young horfe-chefnut trees, fo as totally to deprive them of one of their principal ornaments, that of their fowers, for which they have long been profcribed by me. In anfwer to your enquiry, refpecting Oak Plan- tations, I have inclofed to you thofe returned by the gentlemen of this county, to the queftions on that [ 91 ] that fubject, addreffed by the Commiffioners of the Land Revenue to the Chairman of their Quarter- feffions; which anfwers, having been drawn up from the beft information that could be obtained from feveral principal timber merchants, as well as from the obfervations which were communicated to me by fome of the moft intelligent gentlemen of this county, may, I think, be fairly deemed, though perhaps not the univerfal, yet the general opinion of thofe here, who are moft and beft informed upon the fubject. In the 2d Number of the fecond volume of Dr. Anderfon’s periodical publication, called the Bez, you have, I make no doubt, feen a new and eafy method of forcing early potatoes, very accurately defcribed by the Doétor, as alfo in the 8th No. of the 3d volume of the fame entertaining and ufeful performance, the account which I gave him of my accidental difcovery of the mode of obtaining them in the moft early part of the fpring. To that account, whether it fhall ferve only for amufement, or may eventually be of any public benefit, I hope I may be allowed to add, that in order to fee whether the Potatoes, produced as therein mentioned, had all the properties of thofe growing in the regular and ordinary courfe, and would reproduce as good a crop [ 92 j crop as their parent roots; I took fome of thofe which had grown inthe houfe, and planted them in my garden; which, although planted fo late as in the latter part of the month of June, have grown well, and afforded me feveral roots as large and good as any of thofe grown this year in the field; at this my furprife has been the greater, becaufe the fets had but a few eyes, and thofe were very fmall. If this experiment fhould ever enable a poor man, whofe ftock of Potatoes has been much diminifhed by the wants of himfelf and family, to find a fuf- ficiency for his future crop, it cannot be deemed wholly ufelefs, I have this year on my farm fome acres of the Swedith Turnip, called Ruta Baga, which notwith- ftanding the drynefs of the fummer have grown to a reafonable fize, weighing upon an average about three pounds and a half each without their leaves ; this crop was not fown until the 27th of June, whereas had it been fown earlier, which the drought prevented, I am very certain the plants had been much larger; as on thofe gentlemen’s lands where they were fown in May, the roots are at leaft one third bigger. However, their want of fize never di- minifhes the crop fo much as is apprehended, if, at the time of hoeing them, they are left proportionably thicker E 93 3 thicker on the ground. From that experience which I have had of them, I conceive from eight to ten inches to be a fufficient diftance for thefe plants. On the firft of October laft, I had fome of thofe which had perfected their feeds in the autumn taken out of the ground, and found their roots found and very palatable; but for a juft and true account of thefe moft valuable turnips, and the proper ufe of them, I cannot do better than refer all farmers to the account given of them in the eighth Number of the Third Volume of the Bex. The dibbling of wheat, notwithftanding the in- troduction of Mr. Cook’s drill-plough by feverak gentlemen and fome farmers upon their lands, ftill continues to be the moft general and favourite practice of this county; if the crops raifed by this method be equally good, (and no experience has yet proved them to be otherwife) I cannot but with, for the fake of the poor, that it may never be aban-= doned for any other. I am, with real regard and efteem, ‘Your’s, T. BEEVOR. Queftions C 94 ] Queftions addreffed by the Commiffioners of the Land Revenue to the Chairman of the Quarter-Seffions of the County of Norfolk. Queftion if. Werner the quantity of large oak timber in general, fit for the ufe of the navy, growing in the county aforefaid, is increafed or di- minifhed within memory? | Anfwer. It is certainly diminifhed in fome parts of the county, but not generally fo. Q, 2. Whether particularly the quantity of /juch timber, growing in woods, is increafed or dimi- nifhed? 4. The quantity of /uch timber growing in woods appears to be inconfiderable, and neither much in- creafed or diminifhed. Q. 3. Whether there is an increafe or decreafe of the quantity of fuch timber growing in hedge- rows ? 4. The timber in the hedge-rows is decreafed, owing to the circumftances mentioned in the next an{wer. | 2, 4. Whether the growth of oak timber in hedge-rows is generally encouraged, or whether NS the Lis the grubbing up of hedge-rows for the enlarging fields'and improving arable ground is become com- mon’ in the county? Pe F rom the conyerfion of pafture land to arable, the enlargement of fields, and above all, the mif- chievous practice of both the farmer and the poor, of trimming up, and cutting off all the lateral branches, the trees in the, hedge-rows are few and little worth in many places. | 2, 5. Whether in fuch oaken woods as are cut at ftated times in fucceffion, it is cuftomary to leave young faplings at each cutting? and if fo, whether they are generally barked at the fecond fall and cut down for country ufes, or preferved for timber ? A. There is in every part of the county proper attention paid to the leaving young faplings, which are never barked at the fecond fall, nor felled for country ufes: Fir being in almoft general ufe, ex- cept when oak is abfolutely neceflary. Q. 6. Whether the improvement of roads and the navigable canals, made during the laft thirty years, have not, by reducing the expence of carriage, been the means of bringing large fupplies to the Dock-yards, which could not otherwife have been brought there? : 4. The [ s J A. The timber in this county was always well fituated for removal, and though the roads are much better than formerly, yet the price of land carriage is increafed from 3d. to 6d. per load, per mile, within the laft 20 years, which may be accounted for from the high price of horfes, the extra charge of keeping them, and other fundry reafons. There is no navigable canal in the county, nor have larger fupplies of timber been fent to the dock-yards on the above accounts. 9.7. Whether of late years greater quantities of timber have not, in confequence of this increafed ' facility of carriage, been felled in thofe parts of the country which were before inacceffible, than they will be able permanently to fupply? 4A. There are few or no parts in this county which are, or ever were inacceffible, nor any ereatly increafed facility of carriage; therefore no greater quantity of timber has been felled on thofe accounts. - 2, 8. Whether the general confumption of oak tumber for building, or other ufes, within the county, is increafed or diminifhed; and to what caufe in your opinion is fuch increafe or decreafe to be im- imputed? A, The rt ae A, The ufe of oak timber for building, &c. is certainly diminifhed for the following reafon, to wit, from the cheapnefs of fir-timber, and the great eafe with which it is worked, and converted to ufe. 9, 9. Whether the price of oak timber, for car- penters or other ufes, is increafed within the laft ' 40 years, and in what proportion? A.. The price of oak timber for carpenters and country ufes, is very little, if at all, increafed within the laft 40 years, for the reafon mentioned in the foregoing anfwer. Q, 10. Whether the improvements of roads, and the navigable canals, have not introduced the ufe of coals in parts of the country, in which wood was before generally ufed for fuel? and whether in fuch parts the demand for underwood, and the value of it, have been increafed or leffened? A, The ufe of coals is much more general than formerly, partly perhaps owing to the improvement of the roads, but more to the decreafe of pollard trees and hedge-rows: the value of fire-wood is fomewhat increafed. Q, 11. Whether in thofe parts of the country in which underwood is more valuable, in confequence Vou, VI, H of 98 3 | of a demand for hop-poles, or from other caufes, it has become the practice for many years more than formerly, to cut down the great timber-trees on ac- count of the injury they doto the underwood ? A. There are few or no hops grown in this county; and the great timber-trees are not more cut down for the benefit of the underwood than heretofore. &, 12. Whether there has been a greater quan- tity of woodland, formerly producing oak, converted to tillage within memory, than of land of a fit foil newly planted with oak? A, It is generally thought, there has not for up- wards of fifty years back. 2. 13. Whether the plantations which have been made within memory, have been chiefly of oak, 0 or of the kinds of trees not fit for the navy? A. From about 20 to 40 years back, Scotch fir, and other foft and ornamental wood, were much planted: fince that time, oaks have been much more planted and fown. 2.14. Whether there are any commons, or commonable woods, of confiderable extent in the county ? [ 99 ] county? and whether the quantity of timber grow- ing in fuch woods or commons is confiderable? A, There are not many wafte or commonable woodlands of any confiderable extent in this county ; and the quantity of timber in thofe few which there are, is not confiderable. Q. 15. Whether the timber in fuch commons or commonable woods, is well preferved, or fuffers sreat depredation and wafte? A. What few timbers there are, feem to have little care taken of them; in general they fuffer much de- predation. 9. 16. Whether on fuch commons or common- able woodlands, as have been divided and inclofed, any confiderable quantities of wood or timber have been raifed? A, The commons and commonable lands which have been inclofed, have been either large arable fields, or pafture land, which has been chiefly on its inclofure converted to arable: of courfe no great quantity of wood can have been raifed in them. Q. 17, Whether a further divifion and inclofure of fuch commons and commonable woodlands, H 2 would [; 190 } would in your opinion be the means of increafing the quantity of wood and timber ?* A. A divifion and inclofure, under proper regu- Jations, might poffibly be the means of increafing the quantity of timber; but unlefs there was fome »mpulfory claufe inferted in the aét to fet apart a certain proportion for the growth of timber, fuch lands would chiefly be ufed in tillage. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. The growth and improvement of oak timber, is certainly a matter of fo much confequence, and of fuch great national concern, that the want of it can- not be too greatly dreaded, or precautions for the prevention of it too foon adopted: however, at pre- fent there does not feem to be in this county any juft ground to apprehend the want of it, at leaft of {mall timber. ‘The only two ports of note here, for building and repairing fhips, are Yarmouth and Lynn, in which there has been no alteration in the price of timber for many years, excepting only fmall occafional fluctuations init. Andif the price of large - oak timber has in the kingdom at large increafed (as it is faid to have done) from 7s. 6d. to 108. per * Any further obfervations or information, on the fubject of the preceding queftions, will be very acceptable. Dated, Land Revenue Office, Dec, 20th, £790. load, f mr | joad, it fhould at the fame time be remembered, that the confumption of oak timber between the years 1777 and 1783, fix years only, was more than for the preceding 23 years. In the year 1783, 1 have been informed there were 43 fail of the line, and 52 forty-gun fhips building in the public and private yards; befides ten Eaft-Indiathips of goo tons each. 30 aE eis ARTICLE V. Oz Mowinc CaBBAGE. To THE SECRETARY. .DEAR SiR, ARE manner in which the gentlemen of your . Society have always received thofe few arti- éles of intelligence which it has been in my power to communicate -to them, is expreffed by you in fuch terms, as to imprefs upon me the higheft fenfe of their candour, as well as of your polite and moft friendly difpofition towards me. I with I could flatter myfelf, that I had.ever been, or could yet be deferving of their and your efteem. By a note inclofed in your laft letter, you tell me that a gentleman had been with you, wifhing to know, whether the mowing Cabbage had been 3 | found fh toe. J found by me to fhoot again, after having been fed down; to which, I am forry to anfwer, that it did not do fo with me, in any fuch degree, as to make it worth preferving for that purpofe: when I fay that I am forry to anfwer fo, it is becaufe, had the refult of the trial been otherwife, the cultivation of thofe plants would have been an invaluable prac- tice, on fuch hot burning foils as will afford little or no grafs in the fummer feafon. However, it mutt be obferved, that mine were fed down by fheep, perhaps too clofely, and that the very few fprouts which afterwards appeared, were, I believe, fome of them eaten down by the hares, The anfwers to the queries, which I tranfmitted to you in my laft letter, were fuch as, on the moft exact and ftriét enquiry, I could obtain from the principal timber merchants, as well as from the beft informed gentlemen of this county; and I have rea- fon to think may be fully relied upon. I have the fatisfaction to be able to add, that the propaga- tion of oaks, by fowing the acorns, and planting young trees from the feed-beds, is now frequently and extenfively practifed here by gentlemen in their ornamental and other plantations, Lain, “eac, THOMAS BEEVOR. Llethel, Fan. 7, 1792 : Ee aeg Articie VI, On Accuracy in the Charaéterifiick Diftinfions of Plants, Sc. To THE SECRETARY. Dear Sir, N almoft all the communications of new difco~ veries and experiments, particularly in agricul- ture, it has been obferved, that the firft publifhers of them are fo apt to fee, and reprefent them in a flattering light, that the public, perpetually deceived and difappointed in their high-raifed expeCtations, becomes fceptical, and even averfe to all trial of them. Would Gentlemen, therefore, be fatisfied, with barely relating, and with due precifion mark- ing, the feveral refpective difadvantages, as well as the advantages attending the culture of the particu- lar plants they judge proper to recommend to no- tice, we fhould much feldomer hear the reproachful terms of fpeculative and vifionary triflers beftowed upon them. What has led me to make the above remark, is, that amongft all the plants lately re- commended for the winter food of cattle, (to wit, the Mangel-Wurzel, Turnip-rooted Cabbage, Ruta-Baga, Mowing-Cabbage, and Cow-Cabbage) pone of their particular properties have been fo dif- sive criminated [ 104 | criminated and fairly ftated, as to have left the cul- tivators without fome confiderable fhare of difap- pointment, in the proper ufe and value of them. To do this juftly, I feel myfelf fo very incompetent, that I fhall leave the tafk to others better qualified, and of more leifure, refting contented with having furnifhed the hint only. ‘To explain my meaning, { would, for inftance, have it mentioned among their other properties, (if by experience it fhould be found to be fo,) that the Mangel-Wurzel will not endure our frofts, if left in the ground during the winter;—that the Turnip-rooted Cabbages will refiit the fevereft frofts, but are attended with very great trouble and expence to get them out of the earth; that when taken up they require to be cut to enable the cattle to eat them, and fhould be ufed only the Jaft of all other green food, which they will well fupply, until there is a fufficiency of grafs ;—that the Ruta-Baga plants, though they appear to afford the fweéteft and moft nutritive food of all the roots, and though the value of the root has been found to be little or nothing diminifhed, even after it has borne its feed, yet will it not abide the feverity of froft much if at all better than the common turnip;* to which may be added, that one confiderable ad- vantage attendant upon them, as well as the Turnip- rooted Cabbages, is the vaft abundance of food they each [ tos q each of them fupply by their bufhy tops in the fpring ;—that the Mowing Cabbage feems better calculated for cplinary ufes, than for cattle;—and that the Cow Cabbages, to pay the greateft profit, fhould certainly be all fpent before Chriftmas. Of the juftice of all the above hints, I will not prefume abfolutely to vouch, but that they. have appeared in fuch a light to me, I will venture to fay; and as the fole defign of this letter is but, to invite better and fuller information; if that end be obtained by it, it will not have proved quite ufelefs, although it fhould be thought not void of miftakes, F.am,) Sir, With great regard, your’s, ' THOMAS BEEVOR. Hethel, March 1, 1792. * N.B. On the ftrongeft part of the foil they-have, with me, grown the largeft, to upwards of four pounds each; and contrary, I think, to the common turnips, they rot univerfally from the tap- root upwards, fo that all of them above ground appear and prove to be quite found, and uninjured by the froft, whilt almoft all the part in the earth is quite decayed, and a mere pulp. . OBsERVATION. The weight of this plant, as flated by Sir Thomas, swe find to be far below the average weight, produced on the flrongeft hands in other parts of the kingdom. ARTICLE fa goe,. 7 Articie VII. On the beft Method of planting Mancut-WurzeL, and of its Ufe and Value for feeding Pigs, Cattle, Sc. To THE SECRETARY. SiR, Apprehend the beft and moft acceptable return I can make your very refpectable Society for the Mangel-Wurzel feed you were fo kind as to fend me, will be to fend them a particular account of the method I ufed in the culture, and the ufes I applied it to, with my obfervations thereon, It was the beginning of April when I received the feed; as 1 had no ground ready for fowing, it was the 13th of the fame month before I could put it into the ground, which was by no means in fit condition for fowing; but as the feafon was already too far ad- vanced, no time was to be loft. I had the ground ploughed up in two-bout ridges, which makes them about three feet wide from the middle of one fur- row to that of another; the tops of the ridges about two feet, and the furrow or interval between them one. By this method the mould on the ridges was laid confiderably thicker, which is a great advantage to tap-rooted plants of every kind. My method of planting was as follows; ; 1 have Li 07 4 I have a fhort cylinder, or rather roller, made of oak, about two feet long, and 14 or 15 inches dia- meter. The length is divided into five equal parts, and in the circumference of each is inferted a cir- cular row of wooden tines or pegs, exactly fix inches diftant from each other. They were cut out of fpine oak an inch and a half fquare, bluntly pointed at top, and projeét about three inches from the furface of the roller. This inftrument, being drawn along upon the middle of a ridge, indents the fame in five lines, with holes exactly fix inches every way from each other. I began with planting three rows out of the five in each ridge, that is to fay, the middle and two outfide ones. This was done by dropping two feeds in each hole. The rows then are one foot afunder, and the feeds in the rows juft fix inches, When one ridge was planted in this manner, I thought the plants would be much too near, and the interyals too narrow for horfe-hoeing. In the remainder of the ridges, therefore, I only planted two rows, next the outfide ones, leaving out the middle and the two outfide ones, and in the rows pafled every other hole, fo that the plants would now ftand a foot apart in the rows, and the intervals were two feet wide, which was quite fufficient for horfe-hoeing, At {..298 J At length the plants came up very regularly and well; but the ground having had but one plough- ing, the weeds very foon overtopped them. Wo- men were then fet to work to weed them by hand, which they performed very completely. The plants at that time made a wretched appearance ; but in lefs than a month after were indeed very promifing. The weeds came up again very thick, and grew faft; the hand-hoes were then fet to work, and immediately followed by the horfe-hoe. This left them very clean, gave them frefh well pulverized earth, and from this time they grew very rapidly. In July the outfide leaves feemed to have at- tained their full growth nearly; they were therefore plucked off, and given to the pigs. This mode of planting fucceeded very well, yet I think it is capable of confiderable improvement. When I plant this article again, I will have the cround ploughed in ridges of the fame fize as before; but inftead of two or three rows, I would have but one, which fhould be exactly in the middle ot each ridge, the fpare ground then between the sows would be a yard wider, which would admit of the horfe-hoe being worked very freely. The feed fhould be dropped eight or nine inches apart, and one [ 109 ] one good feed only inahole. Suppofing all fhould grow, then the plants would ftand three feet row from row, and at eight or nine inches diftance in the rows; but this would be juft double the num- ber of plants neceflary; for 16 or 18 inches is quite near enough. Sufficient, therefore, might be drawn from thefe, to fupply the deficiencies that would neceflarily happen from imperfect feeds, &c. and if not wanted might be eafily cut up with the weeds in hand-hoeing, for they fhould by no means be fuffered.to ftand too thick. ‘[ have at this time fome plants in a very thriving condition, which were’ tranfplanted; and though in general 1 have no great opinion of tranfplanting: tap-rooted plants, efpecially fuch whofe roots con- {titute the principal part of the produce, yet I know not if, upon the whole, this would not be the moft profitable method of cultivating this plant. In that cafe, the feeds fhould be fown in a nurfery-bed as early in March as the feafon will admit, and in the interim between fowine and tranfplanting, the ridges fhould be well prepared for the reception of the plants. The advantage of being removed into a clean well-pulverized foil is great indeed, if a fa- vourable feafon be taken for that bufinefs! It is the method 1 have followed feveral years’ with the turnip~ fn fF turnip-rooted cabbage, and I am well convinced it is the moft profitable and ceconomical of any ufage in practice, It may, perhaps, be thought by fome too labori- ous and expenfive, but if they would make the ex- periment, they would foon be conyinced of the contrary. A dexterous labourer would fet a large piece of ground in a day, and when fet they would be done with, all but weeding; for being planted at due and regular diftances, the whole.of the opera- tion at once is finifhed. But if the feeds are fown or dropt, the plants muft be fet out to a proper diftance, which would be found to be as expenfive as tranf{planting, and the ground by no means fo clean and in fuch perfect condition as it mutt be made for tranfplanting. The difficult queftion is, whether the roots of the. tranfplanted would be equally fine with thofe which had never been re- moved. This, from fome obfervations I have made, feems to depend much upon the age and fize of the plants when they are removed... The root in its firft growth pretty much refembles the carrot, and if it be drawn when not above three or at moft four inches long, and the hole in which it is to be planted be made deep enough to receive it without bending or diftorting it, the root will receive no in- jury s f stir 2] jury; but if it be bent, broken, or twifted, it will certainly occafion an unnatural fhape, and I fhould fear diminith its fize. Being planted in this manner at the diftance of - three feet row from row, the intervals by horfe- hoeing may be kept perfectly clean, and the ground between the plants equally fo by hand-hoeing. The foil then would be in a moft defirable ftate for a crop of barley the {pring following. In the next place, I propofe to give fome account of the crop and its beneficial ufes. Between July and November, both inclufive, the leaves were cut three times, and a plentiful crop there was at each cutting. We began with plucking off the outfide leaves, but this was foon found too tedious and troublefome. I therefore ordered them to be cut clean off about an inch above the crown of the reot. This is a neceflary precaution, for if they are cut too clofe, the rain lodges on the top and rots the root. A dextrous labourer witha fharp knife with a long blade would cut enough for a great many hogs ina fhort time. The Jaft winter was very mild, and neither the herbage nor roots fuffered any injury from froft, P. 282+ 2 froft; indeed they put forth frefh leaves through the winter; therefore I did not take up any of the roots till the end of December; I then caufed about half of them to be taken up, piled in a heap in the barton, and covered them over with ftraw. This preferved them tll the time came for planting them out for feed. The other half, left in the ground to ftand for feed, is now (in Auguft) vigorous and healthy, and promifes a large quantity of feed, as do thofe alfo which were tran{fplanted; but they do not ftand fo firmly in the ground as thofe that were not removed, I am next to fpeak of the ufes they were put to, The leaves were cut every morning, and given freth to the pigs two or three timesa day. It is not eafy to defcribe how voracioufly they ate them. I know no food they are equally fond of.. Even the hogs that are fatting would often leave their peafe and barley-meal, to feed on the leaves of the Mangel Wurzel. The cows alfo ate them with an exceed- ing good appetite, and were certainly very defirous of them. After harveft the weaned calves were turned into the field, at one end of which they crew, they foon found them out, feafted delicioufly upon them, and were manifeftly improved by them, During [aes | During the time the plants were growing, I often gave a few of the roots and greens together, but neither cows or pigs were at all fond of the roots, in that ftage of their growth; they always left the greateit part of them. This circumftance alarmed me; but was entirely done away in the winter, for then both cows and pigs ate them as kindly as they would have done any food whatever. .The roots in general were fo hard and firm, that I found it ne- ceffary to have them cut in flices, which a labourer did with ‘a fmall bill-hook on a treffel, and could cut feveral bufhels in an: hour. The greateft inconvenience that attends them is the great quantity of mould that fo firmly adheres tothem. The roots are covered with innumerable fibres, which embrace the mould too firmly to be eafily feparated from it. This is a matter of no great fignification in feeding hogs, who are con- {tantly delving in the dirt; but perhaps ic is not’ quite fo clear that in time it might not prove inju- rious to cow cattle. As my cows and pigs were fed with them pro- mifcuoufly together with other food, I am unable to afcertain what would be the amount of the pro- duce on any given quantity of land valued in Vou. Vi. I money ; [ ara ¥] money; but lam pretty certain, that an acre of land planted as above, would well maintain twenty {tore pigs from fix to eight months, and in that time - their improvement could not be lefs than 14 or 1gs.a pig. The labour of preparing this article of food would indeed be a confiderable deduétion from the fum, whatever might be the amount. How- ever, at all events, it muft be allowed tobe a very valuable article of culture, and well worthy the hufbandman’s attention, I am, Sir, your’s, &c. JOSEPH WIMPEY. ‘ Bockhampton, Aug. 10, 1790. P.S. 1 obferve Sir Thomas Beevor’s account of the Mangel-Wurzel( Art. 36. vol. 5,) is by no means fo favourable as the above. More than half of his plants were not found and fit for ufe in March, Whereas mine, efpecially thofe left in the ground, were not injured at’ all by the cold of the winter, The laft winter, it 1s true, was uncommonly mild, but I fear, indeed, that they cannot bear the feve- rity of ahard one. From Sir Thomas’s account in a former paper, of the fuperior fize of his, I fhould apprehend bots a apprehend his foil is richer and moifter than, mine. He fays (I think) that fome of his were 18 inches _in circumference, and upwards; whereas the largeft of mine were not more than 14 or 15; but the far greater part were only from 10 to 12. My foil is gravelly and dry, which feems not favourable to the large growth of this root, but then it is lefs fufcep- tible of froft, and probably for that reafon they were not fo liable to be injured by it. The ftems of fome of my plants are now feven feet high, and nearly as thick as a man’s hand-wrift. The feeds feem nearly of a full fize, but are as green as ever, and I think will not be fit to cut thefe five or. fix weeks. At all events, I think this plant would afford a very large quantity of defirable food for fix months out of the twelve, (fay, from the beginning of July to the end of December) and in a favourable feafon, two or three months longer. But in fevere winters I am afraid there can be no dependance upon it after Chriftmas, unlefs means fimilar to thofe ufed to preferve potatoes be adopted for their prefervation. I 2 ARTICLE [16 J Articie VII. Of the Caufe of the Smut in Wheat. In a Letter to the SECRETARY. Sir, j bey a former paper on this very difficult fubject,* I obferved, it was no unufual thing to meet with ears both of fmutty and found corn iffuing from the fame root. Alfo, that it frequently happened that fmutty and found grains were to be found in the fame ear. That I hadthen by me the corn I had picked out of fuch an ear. It contained forty fmut balls, 21 grains that appeared to be perfeétly found, and five grains which had one end black and {mutty, and the other found. Thefe I made the fubje& of experiment, the refult of which I now beg leave to lay before the Society for their con- fideration. , On the 2d of September 1789, I put the twenty- one grains abovementioned into a two-ounce phial of pump-water, which I very well fhook together. It was then fet by till the next day, when the water was poured off, and the corn divided into two par- cels. Having filled a two-quart garden-pot with common mould, ten of the grains were fet in five - * Article xvii. vol. 56. | holes ree. holes about two inches deep. The other eleven erains were returned into the phial, being firft nearly filled with a ftrong pickle of falt and wa- ter. After ftanding 24 hours, thefe were alfo fet in a garden-pot, in all refpects fimilar to the other. My intention in thefe different proceffes was to dif- cover, 1ft, if corn froma fmutty ear, merely by rincing in fimple water, would produce found corn free of {mut; and 2dly, if a ftrong folution of falt and water would more effectually anfwer that defirable purpofe, as was generally believed and infifted on. | ‘The beginning of December I obferved the plants feemed much crouded, and wanted more fuftenance than the {mall quantity of earth the pots contained could fupply.. On the 8th day, therefore, I took them out of the pots, and planted them ina row in the field, about eight inches apart, keeping, however, the plants of each pot feparate. There was no perceivable difference in the plants, both pots had fhot vigoroufly, and it was truly amazing to fee the immenfe quantity of roots the pots con- tained ; the fides being completely lined, with the fame running round and round, to an incredible length, from whence it feems very probable, that the roots of wheat in good land, well pulverized, I. 3 may ‘ae may extend and collect fuftenance at fome feet diftance from the parent feed. At this feafon vegetation is nearly at a ftand. It was the end of March, or beginning of April, be- fore the plants began to fhew the leaft appearance of recovery from the check occafioned by tranf- planting: however, they then began to fhoot vi- goroufly, and at length acquired an uncommon degree of ftrength, length, and fize of ear and plumpnefs of grain, and from 12 to 24 offsets, or ftalks from each plant. I reckon I am much within compafs in fuppofing that the produce of thefe 21 grains was not lefs than 15,000, and the grain as plump and fine as ever I faw, and every corn perfectly free from fmut. It would be ri- diculous to fuppofe, that this corn was in any refpect better than it would have been from found and per- fect feed, Its extraordinary vigour J impute folely to its being tranfplanted into frefh ground, well pulverized, which could not fail to give much ad- ditional fuftenance and ftrength to the plants, and would probably afford the greateft produce pof- fible on any given quantity of land. But I am fen- fible it could never anfwer the extra expence, nor be at all practicable on a large fcale, notwithftanding fome mere fpeculative men have wildly imagined _ the contrary, From [; rEg. I i From this account, it is as certain as experiment can make it, that a fmutty crop of wheat is not the neceflary refult of fowing feed from corn that is fmutty ; nor that it owes its corruption to any vi- cious principle or defect in the feed. In this ex- periment we fee the feed, rinfed or foaked in fimple water, produced as clean and perfect grain as that which was foaked in a ftrong folution of falt and water; and therefore were not in the leaft tainted by the fmutty grains in the fame ear, nor at all affected by the caufe, whatever it was, that vitiated them; or if they were, that the foaking and rinfing in fimple water was as effectual to the prefervation of the crop from fmut, as the ftrong pickle. But it is a truth univerfally known from experience, that in unfavourabie years corn is generally fmutty, notwithftanding brining, liming, and every precau- tion hitherto ufed to prevent it. From all which it clearly appears, that the general caufe of the fmut does not exift in the feed, but is owing, if not al- together, yet in a very great degree, to fome viti- ating principle in the air, a conftant concomitant of cold, wet, ftormy, tempeftuous fummers, which are ever attended by fmutty crops. My reafon for fuppofing the fmut may fometimes poffibly be de- rived from the feed will appear hereafter. I 4 In [190.7 In the above experiment, one thing occurred which I muft not omit, for it well deferves to be noticed. .Qne part of the feed was foaked in clear water Only, the other in a ftrong folution of {alt and water. I could perceive no difference in the plants on a comparative view, from the’ time of their firft coming up to the maturity of their growth, except in their tillering. The plants in both experiments were equally vigorous, equally tall and ftrong, the ears equally long, large and full, and the grains equally plump and heavy ; but thofe fteeped in the brine tillered out confiderably more, that is, put out many more ftalks, than thofe fteeped in water only; confequently were much more produétive. What the fuperior frudtification was owing to, is well worth enguiry.. The feed was out of the fame ear, and though fet in two different pots, it wasin the fame earth, and tranfplanted into the fame ground ; the culture in every refpect the fame; the only difference was, in one the feed was fteeped in clear water 24 hours, and then planted; the other, after being fleeped 24 hours in the fame water, was {teeped 24 hours more in fale and water, The queftion is then, and a very interefting one it is, whether the fuperior fecundity of the latter was owing to the feed being fteeped.twice as long as the other, or to its being impregnated with the falt ufed 8 F (eae fj ufed in the folution, or to fome fecret caufe not dif covered, and poffibly not capable of being dif- covered, by the experimentor. By repeating and varying thefe experiments, it would be eafy to difcover, whether fertility is pro- motable by fteeping a longer or a lefs time in wa- ter; and 2dly, if water in which a good quantity of falt has been diffolved, does not encourage and promote vegetation more than fimple water ?— If it fhould be found to do fo in any confiderable degree, I cannot have a doubt but a ftrong lixivium made of wood afhes would promote it much more. I have always been of opinion, that fuch men- ftruums were ufelefs, or at moft, that their aids at _ beft extended no further than the firft rudiments of plants; but the fact recited above ftrongly inclines me to repeat the experiment, in order, if poffible, to fully afcertain the facts. In the next place I propofe to give an account of an experiment made with the five grains men- tioned above, which were fmutty at one end, and found at the other. Thefe were fet in a {mall gar- den-pot like the former, one of which only came up. In the {pring it feemed to want more room; I therefore dug a hole in the ground, and, taking the | mould fT) maa. mould out whole from the pot, it was planted in the fame without difturbing the roots. It foon grew vigoroufly, but never had the healthy and robutt appearance of the former. It had always a fickly ereenifh yellow look, which betrayed its malady ; notwithftanding its ftems grew to a good height, and tillered furprifingly. I counted 24 ears from this fingle grain, moft of them of a good length, but lank and thin, very unlike the appearance of thofe fmutty ears which are not affected till the blowing feafon; for thefe very often are the fineft and plumpeft ears in the field, till that time. Of thefe 24 ears, 23 of them were entirely fmutty, not a found corn could be found among them. The other was quite a {mall underling ear, which did not appear till a full month after the other, but al- ways bore a healthy countenance. This ear pro- duced 14. corns only, and thofe fmall and thin, but found and perfect. Thefe were planted again laft Auguft, and are now as fine and promifing as any corn in the field. From this experiment it feems to appear, that a grain which is vitiated with the fmut, yet has enough of the vegetative principle found to enable it to erow, infallibly produces fmutty grain. ‘That one car, oR ear, and one only, out of 24, fhould be found, is indeed very ftrange; but perhaps not more fo than that, in the animal creation, the offspring of a dif- tempered fire may in general be affected by the Vitiated ftamina of the fire, yet fome one or more may efcape the hereditary taint; and appear per-. fectly found. From thefe, and the experiments of the former paper, the following corollaries are clearly deducible: y?. That found grains, from very fmutty ears, produce as clean and as found crops as feed from _corn that is perfectly free from fmut. adly. That feed from the foundeft and cleanett crops doth frequently, in wet, cold, unfavourable feafons, produce f{mutty crops, in fpite of fteeping, brining, liming, change of feed, and every device and invention which the wit of man hath ever practifed. 3dly. That in fine, dry, warm fummers, it fre- quently happens there is little or no {mut at all, and that in many inftances, where fmutty feed has been fown, the produce has been clean and perfectly free from the fmut. 4thly. That [ 124 ] 4thly. That the fmut is not an hereditary difeafe, proceeding from a corrupt or vitiated ftamina in the feed, but ufually and almoft entirely occafioned by fome blight or vitiating principle in the atmofphere, which corrupts or deftroys the vivifying principle, at the time of its blowing and fecundation, sthly. If the fmut ever proceeds from diftempered feed, it can be only from fuch as hath the germ or feminal principle found and entire; for mere {mut balls are as incapable of vegetation as powder of poft, or the moft effete matter in nature; but this is a cafe fo rare as not to be adequate to the pro- duction of a millionth part of the fmut that hap- . pens; therefore it muft generally proceed from fome malignant principle, which at fome feafons fubfifts in the air, 6rbly, and laftly, If the caufe of the fmut does not fubfift in fome latent or occult corrupt principle in the feed, but is generally occafioned by the in- temperance of the air, fix or eight months after the feed was fown, it feerns perfectly nugatory to ufe any means to remedy or prevent a diforder, which has no exiftence, even in its caufe, and moft pro- hably may never happen, unlefs it could be made appear, that fuch means beftowed fuch a degree of ftreneth fs aes..4 ftrnneth and vigour to the plants, as might render them lefs fufceptible of any malignant impreffion from the atmofphere, which might happen to reign during any future ftage of their growth. I have now feveral mofe experiments in profecu- tion, having fet many fmall quantities of found grain, picked from f{mutty ears at different times. At prefent they all appear very promifing, but the refulc cannot be known till the-next harveft, when, if found interefting, 1 may probably requeft leave to lay them before the Society. Liam; Sir, + _ Your much obliged fervant, North-Bockhampton, JOS. WIMPEY. Dec. 21ff; 1790. ? ARTICLE IX. On the Dritt Huspanpry. Dear Sir, OU will probably be much furprized to hear, after fo many years practice, I fhould not yet be able to make up my mind refpecting the beft, that is, the moft beneficial mode of praétifing the Drill [326 J Drill Hufbandry. But praétical hufbandry is at- tended with fuch a variety of circumftances, and thofe fo differently combined, that the fame method of practice is often attended with fuch different fuccefs, as puzzles and perplexes the agent, and leaves the judgment in doubt. I am at this mo- ment at a lofs, whether it is beft to drill wheat in fingle, or in 2, 3, or 4,rows. I have tried them all, but whatI have generally praétifed is drilling on three-bout ridges, 3 rows, 11 or 12 inches afunder. Three-bouts form a ridge about 41 feet broad; three rows, at the diftance above, occupy 2 feet, and the , horfe-hoe running along the fide of each outfide row, at about 3 inches diftance from the fame, leaves the ridge 2‘ feet broad, and the intervals between the ridges about, 2 feet. This has been my ufual method, which has commonly fucceeded well; but as I have conftantly obferved that the outfide rows are by far the ftrongeft and moft vigorous plants, J am much inclined to believe that two rows only on two-bout ridges would be as productive, and leave the ground in better condition. However, as the fame machine will fow any number of rows from five to two, every perfon may determine for himfelf. I will therefore get. one made as foon as I conveniently can, and fend it as you direét; though I am fome- what E rsp] what afraid I may put your patience a little to the ftretch, but it fhall be as little as I can.* I am &c. North-Bockhampton, | jj OS. WIMPEY. May, 1791. ARTICLE X. On Field Mice, and the Tranfplantation of Wheat. GENTLEMEN, |e fometimes happens from heavy rains, and long continuance of rain following a late harveit, that the lands intended to be fown with wheat are not in proper condition to receive that grain; pre- vented by this circumftance, fuch land may yet be in refervation for a favourable period in the enfuing fpring, for the reception of autumnal fown wheat ; and I have reafon to believe, from the following experienced procefs, that no fignal difadvantage would refult from fuch a neceffary prevention. In the fpring of this year, as well as at equal periods, many years paft, I obferved in many fown * This promife has been performed, fields, E 6.2 fields, large tuffocks of bladed wheat, which I knew arofe from the refervoirs of corn collected by the field moufe ; which tuffocks either fprout from her magazine when faturated by rain, or more probably by the death of the architect. I took a part of two or three of thefe tuffocks matted together at the roots, and divided them fingly, or rarely left more than two roots conjoined ; I placed them in dibbled holes, on a frefh turned- up bank, much under the fame regulation as the practice of dropping wheat in Norfolk; with this difference only, by a flant direétion of a fhorter dib- ble preffing the earth to the fibres. I had the pleafure of feeing that thefe generally fucceeded; though not in a foil fo well adapted for wheat, as that whence thefe cluftered parcels were taken; yet'they are now profperous in ear, with a full fathomed grain, as thofe in the field from whence they were extracted. Perhaps expectation from the hoards of the field mice, which yet with us feems every year certain, would be a too precarious dependance: ftill a cer- tainty might be derived from thinning a proud pro- duce (which would be mended by its reduction) or an [ 129 J an unfailing one procured, by thickly ftrewing as many pecks of wheat:on a plot of ground as there -are half acres in contemplation for planting; which quantity I am perfuaded would be more than fuffi- ‘cient, were fuch an affigned {pace guarded from the depredation of birds, and the inread of mice. : Perhaps it may not be unufeful to give’a fketch of a hiftory of this delving animal: not merely as illuftrative of the foregoing plan of planting, but te point out an early mode of diminifhing its numbers, whichremove more feed corn than the hufbandman is aware of; I believe frequently more than the winged ravagers which he is often on his guard againft. “The fketch of hiftory I propofe, is fuggefted bythaving been ‘frequently of a party, with other fchool lads, in traverfing the ftubbles for the habita- tions of the field mice, from which excurfions we rarely returned without numerous captives. Our fional of difcovery was a {mall heap of mould, thrown fometimes by, and:oftentimes over the firft entrance of their runs; generally at uncertain diftances, there were other holes; fometimes» many fcreened ‘by thickets of ftubble or weeds; thefe when we found we ftopped up; and then traced their avenues from the firft entrance through many winding paths, a little beneath the furface;’ at other times it led to.a Vor, VI. K cell , [ 10 ] cell containing their neft, fometimes with callow young, but more frequently the half-grown progeny were gone off with the old pair to the extremity of their runs. ‘To avoid what might be deemed a puerility of defcription, I fhall remark in point, that on one fide of their avenue, in a larger {pace than where their neft was formed, there is ever to be found, if we fought for it, a refervoir of corn: I think I diftinctly remember having nearly filled my hat with this treafured provifion. The lately adopted mode of hufbandry has a certainty in unfettling, but not reducing the number of thefe corn-devourers; a means fomewhat fimilar to this boyifh amufement muft be adopted to prevent their ravages. By the prefent mode of hufbandry their dwelling is broken in upon, but its inhabitants continue; when the plough breaks in upon their runs, they have a long period before it croffes the extremity of the fpace, when they muft neceffarily fally; and it fhould feem they more generally poffefs themfelves of the newly fown fields of wheat, where they fill new magazines with its grain,* fecure from ' * In the intermediate period from the exhaufting of this corn, Ihave reafon to believe their fubfittence is acorns and beech matts, having found, on the margin of a corn field, carried deep into the earth, a confiderable quantity of the former ; and laft year had the mortification of obferving, in a piece of land dropped with acorns almoit every hole opened during a few nights. dcfeleion : C mr J deftrugtion, fafe from the talons of the owl; and here, after they have exhaufted their magazine, for months they find fubfiftence from the earlieft ereen formation of the grain to its {tate of maturation, at which period it is manifeft they breed numeroufly, Our laws and the occupiers of land have fet a price ona winged fpecies of pillagers; while thefe fcarcely obvious fubterranean deftroyers pillage with fecret and more certain deftruétion; and the farmer’s undoubted friend, and their natural enemy, the owl, is rarely protected, and too eafily permitted to be wantonly deftroyed, But to drop thefe remarks; permit me to urge the principal object of this communication, by re- peating, that a {mall portion of wheat might be thickly fown at the ufual period of fowing, and tran{planted early in the {pring to ground to be prepared, and then ready for its reception; and if this be done with equal attention as wheat is dibbled, I am confirmed in opinion, from the foregoing ex- periment, that its produce will be little if any thing inferior to what refults from a common fown crop, Your friend refpectfully, JOHN WAGSTAFFE. K 2 ARTICLE Arricire XI. Oit tbe Gr afling’ Crab-Stocks, White-Thorns, €8¢. with Apples and Pears. GENTLEMEN, of phate hada pleafure in grafting, I fome years fince practifed it upon fome forward ftems, ih a layer of crab-thorn, the fide of a new in- clofure, which layer had been laid in about three , years before; thefe ftems I grafted with divers fpecies of apples, and had the pleafure of remarking, that about two-thirds of my grafts fucceeded; from thence I entertained the expectation, that in a fub- fequent year or two the uningrafted might be cut down to form the quick hedge, and the ingrafted crow up at the requifite diftance, and form a row of ufeful trees; but my object was defeated by the un- generous or felfifh notice (I conceive) that was paid to my fuccefs, as moft of thefe grafted ftocks (they being at a diftance from my houfe) were taken away, and to preferve the few remaining, I was ob- liged to take them up myfelf. Though ftopt in this progrefs on my crab-tree hedge, at the approach of the {pring of laft year (1790) I pitched on a white- thorn hedge, of many years growth, the boundary - of a garden, and marked at due diftance many of its r 133 f its ftrait and fmooth-barked ftems, and ingrafted them with fcions from various pear-trees, which rather more generally fucceeded than the apple fcions in the firft experiment; and in the courfe of the fummer of that year, fome of them fhot from. 24 to 40 inches. The fuccefs of thefe excited me to a far- ther trial in the {pring of this year, and with, equal fuccefs i in their certainty, of taking, though they are not quite, equal t to. the luxuriancy, of the fummer fheot in their predeceffors of the former year. Thofe firft ingrafted have improved on their former:years vigour, in the additional length of their fhoot, and increafed. thicknefs, of their ftem, while the fize of their {purs indicates, to my conception, a probability of throwing out fome blofioms in the enfuing {pring. I may remark that one of the firft ingrafted, I removed to the fide of a wall, which removal it {carcely felt; as the firft {pring fhoot was thirty-eight inches, and the next year’s fhoot meafured twenty- nine inches; and this fum of five feet feven inches from a white-thorn, that after many years growth had not fhot in bole four feet from the ground. 1 am therefore perfuaded, on the foundation of thefe premifes, that in any future inclofure of land, pecu- liarly thofe inclofures that may be in contiguity to a habitation, hedges formed of either or both thefe fpecies of thorns grafted, (and better fences of quick K 3 growth, er erowth, I conceive, have not hitherto been planted) or the grafting at proper diftances of their moft pro- mifing and vigorous ftems, may be highly ufeful. Any extent of a partitioned farm may be thus advantageoufly inclofed, and fuch partition-hedges thus ingrafted. Perhaps the fyftem may be more advantageous ina {mall than a large farm. Each of fuch boundaries might be productive of fruit, in the fame proportion with an equal number, and fame fpecies of trees planted in an orchard, and that with- out diminution of the growth of corn, or any re- duction of fummer or winter forage, and a more fheltered pafturage might continue the cattle longer abroad. ‘Thus the neceffary, but commonly barren fences, may be rendered fubfervient to a pleafurable profpect, and the fupply of a confiderable portion of food to numerous families; andin a year favour- able to thofe fruits, the making of a beverage grate- ful to moft, neceffary to many, and to thoufands of | our fellow fubjeéts their moft natural draught. ; 1 had more to have faid, relative to pears; but as thefe remarks are already extended to a length that might demand an apology, I fhall refpectfully poftpone for your future judgment, what I wifh further to offer refpecting this fruit. Norwich, Dee. Your friend, 26th, 1791, JOHN WAGSTAFFE, Bras: J Articte XII. On the faccharine Quality of Pears, Maple-Sugar, €c. GENTLEMEN, Y laft letter to you, contains an account of certain experimented facts; by which the boundaries (the hedge-rows) of the field might be made ufeful to the fupplying a large portion of edible fruit, without any injury to the fence, or diminution of its arable product, But what I have now with fubmiffion to propofe, concerning one fpecies of fruit, viz. pears, is hitherto, I conceive, unexperimented; but which, under the encouragement of your fociety, may become not merely a fuccedaneum for fugar; as in feveral in- ftances, which I fhall take the liberty of reciting, it _has effectually fupplied, but under fomewhat of a chemical procefs their faccharine extract may poffi- bly be granulated into its abfolute fubftance, The fluid extracted from a fpecies of maple, per- haps two* of the maples of America, may be ad- duced in certain evidence, that fugar is not the pro- duce of the cane only, as it is generated from the * The acer faccharinum, and acer regundo, maple f 336 J maple tree in fubftance and quality not diftinguith- ble from the product of that plant. Now the action of fire on pears, in the common culinary procefs, gives even to the moft auftere of this fruit a faccharine quality: I have. had different. fpecies of pears, fome of them hard, ftoney, and un- palatable, baked at different times; all of which, when duly baked, are more or lefs replete with this quality, infomuch that their pulp, added ina pro~ portion of about a fourth or fifth part to. apples. baked in {mall pies, gives the required fweemnele and it has feemed to me pleafing to every palate as though fweetened with fugar: the, fame requifite fweetnels is likewife communicated | by t the infpiffated juice in which they are baked, which juice or fyrup is formed by.a por tion of beer or water. put to ‘the pears before they are put into the oven; and which feems to attract the native “Juice. of the. pear, ina larger proportion than what. might flow if baked without an added fluid, This apparent fyrup i im- preffes the palate with the fweetnefs of real fugar, and which imparts to milk and the acid pulp of apples, its {weet quality, not diftinguifhable in thefe fubjeéts from what it is ufed for. I therefore cannot but find. myfelf interefted, in earnefily wifhing that fome encouragement might be fan 8 be, given, to afcertain whether fuch a-fubftance as {ugar is not obtainable from this lufcious fruit when thus prepared by fire. I need not add, what I con= ceive muft appear from what has preceded, that in fome inftances it may ferve as a fuccedaneum to leffen the confumption of what is now, by the man- ner of its being obtained, become obnoxious to the public fenfibility; and the extracting -this quality from a fruit ‘eafily propagated, (congenial, if not native, to our climate) will in its confequence be favourable to the intereft as well as convenience of this kingdom.* T with to add to what I have mentioned in my former communication on this fubjeét, of the mode in which this fruit may be propagated, and in addi- tion to hawthorn ftocks, obferve, that they take with known facility upon the quince, the ftacks of which may be eafily propagated by their cuttings. I farther with to obferve, that in unifon with the fpirit of difinterefted patriotifm, which hath dif- tinguifhed the Bath Society, they may find it eligi- ble to encourage the reception of feeds or feminal plants of the acer faccharinum of America: and I * So far as this is connected with the political intereft of the nation, deeper confiderations are involved, may Eb age] may farther notice, that with a large fample of re- fined fugar, which I laft fummer received from thence, I received a paper of its feeds; two plants from which made their appearance in autumn, and I perfuade myfelf more will in the enfuing {fpring, as thefe feeds are in formation and genus like our maple feed, and I have no doubt but their habits are like them, and afhen keys, which rarely vegetate until they have laid in the earth at leaft one winter. Tt may not be improper to fubjoin an extract from a letter I received, with the above-mentioned fugar and feeds, from a refpectable character of Pennfyl- vania, (viz. Henry Drinker) on the progrefs their manufactory of fugar had made, dated in a {pring month of 1791. ‘ Laft year one perfon brought «© to market from a neighbourhood not ten miles «< {quare, about fifty tierces of this (brown maple) « fugar, weighing from twelve to fifteen tons. In ¢«¢ aJl probability the exertions and advances made ‘© in this truly promifing bufinefs, will produce ten “<< times the quantity ever before made,” I am, fincerely and refpettfully, &c, Norwich, Feb. JOHN WAGSTAFFE, 24th, 1792. ARTICLE [ 139 ] Articie XIII. On Mangel-Wurzel, and other crops for Feeding Cattle. TO THE SECRETARY. DEAR SIR, I AM. forry and furprized to read Dr. J. Anderfon’s letter in your $th vol. p. 146, depreciating the root of Scarcity. It is very clear he had not the true fort, as he fays he bought it at a common feed fhop. I have never yet been able to buy un- mixed feed at any fhop; always finding a great proportion of red and green beet; therefore I fhall always raife my own feed, which requires very little trouble. Dr. Lettfom’s defcription and account of the true fort is very accurate, but it is not worth while for a great farmer to gather the leaves; and it is very doubtful whether the root will increafe more by taking away fome of the leaves; if they fall and rot on the ground, they will preferve moif- ture, and be of fervice there. But the great queftion is as to the weight and value of the roots, for feed- ing horfes, cattle, fheep, and hogs, or any of them, and whether they have any, and what advantage over the plants and roots before in ufe. This is a very copious fubject, and I have not time to write fully on every part of it, Doctor L- 140, J Doctor Anderfon, p. 150, fays, ‘ The fibres that « {pring from the roots are fo numerous and ftrong ‘* as to entangle a great deal of earth among them, « from which it is difficult to difengage it; in wet “© weather in winter, I do not {fee how it would be * poffible, &c.”’ The root: ‘of the beet is entively underground, with ftrong fibres likethe turnip-tooted cabbage, but the true Mangel-Wurzel grows moftly above the ground and is very eafily drawn; and all thofe animals will, when ‘hungry; éat at firft both root and leaves; but fome creatures are atifirft averfe to new food, and will refufe turnips, carrots, &c. which they af. terwards become very fond of, fo'that no one fhould judge and determine precipitately, as it is known that many fheep will almoft ftarve before they will eat turnips. All writers:do not fufficiently diftinguith the ctops that beft fuit clay-land, ftrong loam, and a light fandy gravel; nor do they give diftin® ac- counts of thofe crops that may be drawn off the land at Michaelmas, in order to fow wheat, and thofe that will beft ftand the winter to be eaten off the land, which is the cheapeft and moft beneficial method, where the {oil and fituation 1s dry enough ; but even in that cafe to raife potatoes, mangel- wurzel, carrots, or parfnips, in the fummer fallows, | and [ t41 J arid houfe fuch ‘crops ‘before winter, ‘néai’ the fold yards for cattle, &c. will enable the farmer to keep more ftock in winter to:tread his {traw} and greatly increafe ‘that valuable thing on a farm called dung or muck. Waving land of various forts, I-practife a little of each, and find no difficulty in farming advan- tageoufly, but to get ‘my workmen to be honeft and diligent; as I can feldom fpare time to look after them fuficiently, the very beft bailiff cannot or will net eet as much done as the matter can. I fee for the firft time'a fhort account of the roota baga, and mowing cabbage, in Sir Tho. Beevor’s letter, of which I wifh for further information, and to'obtain the feed next fpring. Sir Thomas feems’ to think Mangel-Wurzel of little or no fuperior value, as it will not ftand the froft; which fo very large a root, growing mottly above the ground, cannot be expected to do; for roots are @enerally tender in proportion to their bulk, and the quicknefs of their srowth: and it is fo with trees, the floweft growers are moft hard and durable. I think that turnip-rooted cabbage ftands the? winter better than any other root in ufe, but it grows flowly, and never produces fo large.a crop as the other roots 1 have mentioned; and there 1S [ 142 ] is much trouble and difficulty in feparating the earth (if clammy and {tiff) from the roots. On the whole I know no crop fo certain, and fo productive and ufeful, as potatoes; they will feed moft, if not all kinds of ftock. Thofe farmers who have moft leifure, fhould af- certain for their own government, in their refpec- tive foils and fituation, the comparative degree of nourifhment in a given weight of each root now in ufe, to feed every kind of farmer’s ftock; perhaps the leaft perifhable, are at once the moft folid and the moft nourifhing. Thofe that abound with faccharine juices are certainly fo; and fuch are car- rots and parfnips, which are difficult and uncertain to raife and keep free from weeds, and are only fit for a deep light foil. I write ina hurry thefe general ideas, as they occur to me; if they are of any ufe I fhall be glad. ‘Andon: Sit: 3 Your obliged humble fervant, Lamnibangle, J. FRANKLEN. “July 19th, 479°. ARTICLE [ 143 ] ArTicLte XIV. On Woon, SHEEP, &c. TO THE SECRETARY. SIR; HE premium offered by the Bath Agricultural Society, for afcertaining in the Weftern Counties, by any experimental method, the beft breed of Sheep in Carcafe and Wool, feems perfeétly judicious. Both thefe being equally effential to us: the one as adding to the fupply of food; the other, to the means of induftry obtaining it. The great miftake of either, feparately attended to, I conjec- ture to be, the rearing on an enormous carcafe a very coarfe, though long wool; which can only be applied to thofe inferior manufactures, in which the ingenuity is fo trivial, that the raw material makes nearly half the value of the fabrick; or the rearing on a fmall carcafe, of moderate meat, a {mall quan- tity of that fine wool, fo effential to the more deli- cate and artful manufactures. Wool of this fort, at the rate of one to two pounds per fheep, is col- lected here from the moft ragged ramblers of our commons; and worth, when culled, half-a-crown a pound. The extent, fhortnefs, and fweetnefs of their feed, throwing the value into the {mall fleece. But to encourage, or even permit, as in fpite of our { m4 J our boafted improvements is ftill done, a collec- tion of commonage, for affording a feanty pittance of fhort feed, on a wide ramble, in order to gather in return a few fleeces, comparatively, of even the fineft wool, would be fupporting the boaft of manu- facture at the expence of food and population. At fuch expence is the pride of Spain in her flocks now fupported,—a policy far from enviable! That the fineft broad-cloth has gradually decreafed in’ goodnefs, and the narrow-cloth equally improvedy is very palpable; and has probably arifen from an increafe by cultivation of that fort of pafturage, which maintains a far greater number of the beft fheep, with fome diminution in their fleece of finer wool ;—too great a mixture of Spanifh with Eng- lifh wool in the fabrick, in order to remedy this decline of our own, only procuring the ufual fine- nefs at the expence of the old texture. Since the improved culture of Norfolk and Suffolk, by converting extenfive fheep-walks into fine inclofures of wheat, barley, clover, and turnips, with rye and. tares; the wool: of their provincial fpecies has decreafed in. finenefs 5. but been amply compenfated by the larger quantity raifed on more numerous flocks, fupporting and fupported by the moft:improved agriculture; and at the:fame time fupplying [iets © al {upplying the market with fome of the beft winter mutton, The Suffex South-Down breed, lately introduced into thefe counties, will feel the fame effect of change, from fhort, natural, and extenfive, to confined, fucculent and artificial paflurage; and however profitable on the whole to the grazier, and beneficial to the community, as from the greater numbers fupported on a given quantity of pafturage every late trial at prefent confirms; yet from the very beneficial mode of their fupport, will gradually decline in the delicacy of their fleece, unlefs amply and annually fupplied with additions to the flock from the original {tock on the Downs. The wool of them in this neighbourhood has been fold hitherto at 2d. and 3d, per pound lower than the fame in Suffex ; and the wool of the fecond year of impor- tation from Suffex, of the’ fame fheep, was not equal to that of the firft. I have been informed, by a very eminent manu- facturer, that many years fince an attempt, from a fuppofed fimilarity of pafture, was made to intro- duce the long-wooled Lincolnfhire breed into the hundreds of Effex. The ftaple was perfect at the firft year, declined in the fecond, and was loft at the fifth. Repeated new fupplies and croffings might | have kept up fomewhat of the fpecies, and fettled at WV .Olsr Vis i | laft [ 146 ] laft a near approach to it. This is now trying here between the Norfolk and the South-Downs; and promifes a breed that may unite very tolerable wool with a very fine carcafe; equally proper for the fold and artificial pafturage ; of a bulk fuperior to the South-Downs, inferior to the Norfolk, but fmaller in the bone, rounder in the form, tamer in difpofition, and thriving with equal profit on lefs food. From the drawing and defcription of the Moufflon, a wild fheep of Tartary, and fuppofed by fome na- turalifts to be the primitive race; the Norfolk, of all our fpecies, feems moft like this original. A lean long head, large curved horns, a rifing back- bone; when ftanding, the fore-legs ftraight, the hinder bent inwards, ftrong in his whole make, agile in his movements, and in look wild and bold. Neither this, nor any other provincial fort, have been attempted to be reared to an higher degree of perfection, by perfeverance in culling, preferving, and occafionally crofling the more peculiarly per- _ fe& ones of the breed, till the Leicefterfhire Society aftonifhed the kingdom, and I may fay, all Europe, with their {kill in the trial, their fuccefs in the event, and the incredible return to their perfeverance and fagacity, from the price paid by thofe who moft laudably ee 7 aa laudably aimed at fharing in the pride and benefit of fuch improvement. If any little artifice of trade hath been exerted in this extraordinary foeculation, the publick has probably fhared fully in its refult, by the ardour raifed and excited to follow up fuch an example, by equal attempts; which, if in other counties, more fuitable for foil and fituation for that purpofe, can produce a finerftaple of wool on a carcafe tolerably equivalent, will probably be fill more beneficial, in not only fupplying the market with fine meat, but the manufactory with as fine wool. That the extremeft finenefs in wool may, in fome climates be united with the longeft ftaple, I have proof in avery fmall quantity that I took from one of a few rough fleeces, brought as a little adventure by the Captain of an Eaft-India fhip from the Manillas; it is white as fhow, and foft as filk; was bought by the very ingenious manufac- . turer at eight fhillings the pound, and fo readily acknowledged by him to have a far fuperior value in the purpofes to which, from its delicacy, it could extenfively be applied; (the advanced price of the raw material being comparatively as nothing to the value of the improved manufacture ingenuity can make of it;) that an order was given to collect je) in \ [ 148 J in the Eaft-Indies, at a more advanced price, any quantity that could be procured of the fame. Yet fuch was the influence of the ?E/prit du Corps, (of which all profeffions have their full fhare) that even this inftance did not convince the propriety of al- lowing, by an.open fale, the beft price as the ne- ceflary encouragement for raifing at home the beft wool the foil and climate would allow, and of thus preventing the manufacturers of our coarfeft and inartificial fabricks from affuming, to the reftraint of every fine one, too large a portion of our wool; by the encouragement thus given to the grower, to confider the quantity as more valuable than the quality of his fleece. A moft glaring abfurdity! which, as far as legiflative approbation of it can go, muft continue, till that period, when a reform in our mode of election and reprefentation fhall have, agreeably to the fpirit of the conftitution, re- ftored to the landed intereft an influence and energy equivalent to that of the manufacturers. It is prouder to deferve, than to receive publick encouragement; and from a tafte extremely pro- moted, in my opinion, among Country Gentlemen, - by the writings of Arthur Young, efq; of amufing themfelves in agricultural purfuits, it feems as if the improvement of fheep and wool would, rife . under Ema under its oppreffion, and be fhewn to have deferved a fairer treatment. Grazing ought ever to be the leading obje¢t in the farming of mere Gentlemen; and to them, that of fheep will be the moft amu- fing, and the leaft hazardous. The verieft farmer, to a full flock muft have, and extremely confide in, for every profit, aregular fhepherd; the Gentleman needs do no more; and with a little additional al- Jowance will, in this traffick, and this alone, ftand on as fafe footing for his amufement, as his tenant -does for his fupport, againft wafte, idlenefs, and impofition. For the arable neceffary for the fup- ply of artificial feed during winter and fpring, need be only in fuch very moderate quantity, as to re- quire little labour and expence; the moft extenfive lawn is thus turfed by the clofe bite, and thickened by the manure of the flock; the fineft wool, for that fhould certainly be a principal object, is gra- dually obtained; and the breed, found by expe- rience moft fuitable to it, maintained on a foil kept by that very means in a conftant ftate of im- provement. Exclufive of the private advantage of thus cultivating a demefne in the moft profitable mode, and the rational entertainment refulting from experiment on an animal whofe varieties are fo great, as to receive from change of climate and food a perceptible diftinétion of form and qualities; v3 the Se) L 150 ] the general benefit of every county is immediately confulted by the only means in which the common farmers can gain the chance at an eafy charge, and {fpeedy rate, to have the beft breeds gradually con- veyed within their reach; and the kingdom thus ftocked with what is moft profitable under its pre- fent circumftances. To aconfiderable increafe of population, we muft certainly attribute the alarming report of a late committee, that this kingdom does not at prefent grow more corn than is neceffary for its own con- fumption. It is therefore in policy a criminal dif- grace to permit the waftes to remain. uninclofed, » even where they are a tolerable fheep-walk; when by an apportionment of wafte to individuals, under the prefent rotation of crops on arable land, flocks, upon the whole of fuperior value, might be kept up in not inferior numbers; and with due encou- ragement, not lefs delicate in the wool. At the fame time, they would contribute by the fold to raife corn for the fupport of that multitude to which the manufacturing of their fleece affords employ- ment, and in confequence has added to the increafe, From the North of Scotland, where the climate renders grazing the only proper agriculture, we may Be ogsted may expect, under the attention, induftry, and ex- pence of its patriot adventurers, the beft breed for the fineft fleece, and confequently, I prefume, of lefs valuable carcafe. But in England, to reach perfection in the latter, and approach to it in the former, is agreeable to our fky and foil; neceffary to our culture and population ; and every encourage- ment and reward that roufes competition for their mutual attainment, excited by publick virtue, and regulated by good fenfe. I am, refpectfully, your’s, &c. CHARLES ONLEY. Stifted-Hall, Effex, Fan. 31, 1792. ARTICLE XV. On Planting, Grafting, and making Cyder. TO THE SECRETARY, _ Sir, Premium being offered by the Bath and Weft of England Society for the beft practical Effay, founded on experience, on raifing Apple- Stocks, and the moft fuccefsful method of grafting and E 152 J and raifing apple-trees for the orchard; together with the beft effay on gathering apples, making them into cyder, and of managing that cyder until it fhall become fit for ufe; induces me to tranfmit through your hands the method I have fuccefsfully practifed. If it fhould be confidered worthy the attention of the Society, I fhall efteem it the higheft honour. I am, Sir, your obedient fervant, J. N. MORSE. Newent, Dec. §, 1791. After the apples are ground in a mill, and the juice for cyder (or if crabs, the verjuice) is preffed from the rind, ftalks, core and kernels; this is called the muf?, and fhould be crumbled quite fmall, and Jaid thin on a board floor to dry; for if it be laid thick, it will heat and deftroy the vegetation of the kernels. To prevent its heating it fhould often be turned with a malt-fhovel, Prepare a piece of ground by well digging and clearing from weeds, keeping the furface fmooth ; and in February or March lay the muft thereon, and fhovel-turn it in, that it may be two inches deep; | in Fers3? J in about fix weeks the young plants will appear, and muft be kept clean from weeds; let them remain two or three years in the feed-beds, when they _fhould be taken up, and the tap-root cut off, as alfo fome of the fpreading branches. There now fhould: be another piece of ground prepared by - double digging, wherein to tranfplant the ftocks, Jaid out in beds four feet wide; plant them in rows acrofs the beds about one foot diftance between the rows, and eight or ten inches diftance in the rows ; let them ftand here three years, when they muft muft again be taken up, the roots and tops dreft, and planted in rows about eighteen inches diftance in the rows, and three feet between the rows; but four feet is better, as it will be more room to dig the eround between them, which fhould be done at leaft once a year, and kept clean from weeds, &c. by hoeing. Tranfplanting them twice, and pruning their roots, makes them root better and ftronger, and commonly rife with a wig or fibery root, They are to ftand in this nurfery until of fuffi- cient fize to plant in orchards; fome may be large enough when ten years old, others not until fourteen or fifteen; for they may be of very different fizes, although fown and planted at the fame time. Here they are to be carefully trained up ftraight, and ; pruned C 154 ] pruned every year, by’cutting off five or fix of the largeft_ knots or {prays each year, and not many more in one year, as it would make the ftock grow top-heavy and throw out more branches, This pruning fhould be done in the {pring feafon, as the wounds will heal fooneft when the fap is rifing; but if pruned in autumn or winter, the wounds will be long in healing, and be very black, and continue fo for years. | Stocks ought to be flrong for planting orchards that they may the fooner grow out of the way of cattle, which very often does them great injury. The fize I choofe to plant is from one inch and a quarter to one inch and a half in diameter at the grafting place; that is, about five feet fix inches from the ground. | The method I purfue in planting orchards is, firft lay out the field by fetting up ftakes equidiftant; 20 or 22 yards from each other, I look upon as the beft diftance. After they are properly arranged, dig a hole confiderably larger than will take the roots of the ftock, that the earth may be foft and mellow for them to ftrike therein more freely; have your {tock ready with the roots and head pruned, particularly thofe that were bruifed in raifing; place iv f 15 ] it upright in the hole. If fome better mould, fuch as ftreet-fhovelings, or a compoft made with rotten dung, good mould and lime, (lime kills the ants, which are very deftructive to ftocks and trees,) were mixed with the foil to fill the hole, it will ex- pedite the growth of the ftock. Care fhould be taken to fill up every vacancy between the roots, fhaking the ftock well whilft filling; when filled, tread the earth down to the roots pretty hard, then have a ftake four or five feet long driven fideways in the ground leaning againft the ftock, pointing to the weft wind, and firmly tie the ftock to the ftake with an ozier twig, placing a hayband be- tween the ftock and the ftake, to prevent galling; this will prevent the wind fhaking the ftock, which very often injures it, and prevents its taking root. We fhould then have fix or eight black-thorns, pointed and ftuck in the ground round the ftock, reaching up to the head; thefe fhould be tied in two places with twigs, to prevent cattle or fheep from broufing on, or rubbing, or peeling the ftocks, which they are very apt to do, particularly young fheep. I have had ftocks peeled quite round by fheep. The greafe of the wool, when fheep rubs again{t them, injures and retards their growth, “Where wood is plenty, if three pofts be erected tri- angularly round the ftock, and laths nailed to the pofts, L 156 J pofts, it is the beft fence. The ftocks muft now ftand three years to take full root; at the expiration thofe that have made free fhoots fhould be erafted with what fort of apples the planter may pleafe. The method of grafting thefe large ftocks is that in the clift, and performed as follows: firft, with a faw cut off the head of the ftock in a fmooth place, — at five feet or five feet fix inches from the ground, pare it very fmooth; then with a ftrong knife and mallet cleave the ftock about one and half inch down, a little on one fide the heart of the ftock ; draw out the knife and put a wedge, driving it eafy in the flit at the top to keep it a little open. Then with a knife made for that purpofe, only open the flit about one and half inch long, half an inch wide on the rind, bringing it to a feather-edge near the heart, and toa point at the bottom of the flit. You muft now have your grafts or fcions ready, which muft be cut with a keen knife very fmooth to fit, and place it in the clift, fo that the rind of the graft may exactly meet the rind of the ftock. If the ftock be large enough you may put another graft on the other fide; when rightly placed, draw out the wedge at top, taking care not to difplace the grafts, and the ftock will clofe in and hold faft the grafts, when you mutt have fome fmooth clay mixed with [357 7 with fine hay, made into pledgets, and wind round the grafts and ftock, making it {mooth on the out- fide; this will keep the wet and air out of the crown of the ftock, and the fun from exhaufting the fap. The beft time for performing this bufi- nefs is in February and March. Whip-grafting is practifed with creat fuccefs, and generally on {mall ftocks about half an inch in diameter. The graft or fcion nearly the fize of the ftock. This ftock mutt be cut off in a floping direction, and the graft alfo, about one and half inch in length; pare both ftock and graft {mooth, and to fit each other, par- ticularly betwixt the wood and rind, that the fap may freely circulate; then cut a flit or tongue about half an inch in the fcion upward, the fame in the ftock downward, to receive the tongue in the {cion; in that manner fix the graft in the ftock; immediately tie a ftring of foft bafs or yarn round to keep the ftock and graft in its right pofition, and immediately cover the place with fome grafting clay. In May or June the bandages muft be taken off. Saddle-grafting is fomewhat fimilar; the ftock being cut off floping, and the f{cion made to fit, and tied on as in whip-grafting, Apples [ 158 J Apples fhould be gathered when full ripe, and will quit the tree by gentle fhaking; if gathered before ripe the cyder will be rough and hard, and feldom pleafant or good flavoured. Lay them on the ground in a fruit-yard, better if upon a gravel walk, as the wet will run from them and they will lie dry in the bottom; fhould not lie thicker than ten or twelve inches, and are better kept without than within doors.’ Care fhould be taken to place fruits of equal ripenefs and good qualities by themfelves; for if of different ripenefs the cyder will be apt to ferment too much, which will caufe it to grow hard, and never be rich, full and fine-flavoured. When the fruit is thoroughly mellow, it muft be committed to the mill for the purpofe of cyder- making, made with a ftone chafe and roller, fome- thing fimilar to a bark or a fugar-mill. The roller drawn round the chafe by a horfe. Here it fhould be ground to a pulp, that no bit of apple may be feen, and until you cannot hold it in your hand, if you take a handful and fqueeze it; the kernels and rind will then be well broken, and will give the l- quor a fine flavour. Let it be put into tubs or ° hogfheads with one head out, and remain there two days, then prefs it through hair-cloths. I ufe four- teen or fifteen, putting about two pails full in each, turning [ 159 ] turning up the fides and corners; then put another on until the whole are filled, when prefs it with a fcrew; put the juice into hogfheads; after it has been there a few days it will work and throw up a thick fubftance at the bung-hole, fomewhat like barm, but of a darker colour; when. this appears it generally is dropt fine, and fhould be immediately rack’d into a clean cafk; for if the fubftance be fuf- fered to fall, the grounds from the bottom will rif, and the whole will be in a ferment and very foul, and perhaps muft be rack’d three or four times be- fore it can again be feparated and got fine; and will run a rifque of making the cyder harfh. So long as it remains fine and free. from fermenting, it may remain in the cafk, but if it ferments much it fhould be rack’d, and the grounds or lees* taken from it; it often requires four or five rackings. Cyder made with different forts of apples keeps beft by breaking and mixing together; but this fhould not be done until it is fine, when the proprietor may blend it to his palate. After the whole is done, a bung may be placed over the bung-hole, but fhould *N.B. The lees may be dropt through a bag or bags of coarfe cloth, made in the form of a jelly-bag, witha hoop fown round the top to hold about a pail full; by doing this very little cyder will be wafted, and the droppings added to the cyder will be a means to keep it from fermenting, and will alfo help the colour. not * S80. ¥4 not be clofe ftopt until February or March, when it it will be fit for fale or ufe. If cyder do not fine, fome people ufe ifinglafs. For one hogfhead of a hundred gallons beat about one ounce and a half and pull it to pieces ; add to it about two quarts of liquor, and whifk it together; next day add more liquor, and whifk it: repeat this until it be diffolved, and beaten fine. Rack your foul liquor, throw in the diffolved glafs, and ftir it together with a ftick. As foon as it drops fine, rack it off into a clean cafk. Cyder fhould not be bottled until fixteen or eigh- teen months after it is made, as it would endanger the breaking the bottles. J. N. Morse. ArRTIcLE XVI. On a@ particuluar Kind of Appur, Se. TO THE: SECRETARY. Sir, RTICLE xxth of the 4th volume of your Society’s Papers is furely interefting to the planters of orchards. Your judicious comment ina note, and humane invitations to the publick to fur- | nifh , wr | nifh fcions of fuch different fruit as may contribute to the general good, by improving the ftock of fo valuable an article, merits praife.—If the following character of the fruit: of a certain apple-tree be thought worthy of your Society’s attention, a few {cions are at their fervice. 23] Having purchafed a fmail freehold in the year 1777, the laft proprietor informed me there was a certain tree in the orchard (which orchard in general was in a deplorable ftate) of fo excellent a kind, that they could always fell the fruit at an advanced price; nay, was fo good as to require no fugar when made into apye. Being a little hard of belief to- wards this laft affertion, trial at leaft ought to be made, which was done by adding the ufual fpices, referving only the fugar. The confequence was, the paftry was fo well relifhed, that this apple to this day maintains its fuperiority at table, without the addition of a grain of fugar.* I requefted an eminent nurferyman in this neighbourhood to ex- amine the tree and the fruit, and inform me, if he could, what kind it was. Of the tree he could form no guefs; having tafted the fruit, he called it the Orange Pippin, the fhape being fimilar to an old, * Quere, If a fair trial were made, would not many kinds of our veft table-fruit do the fame ? Wor: Vi: M fruit faba J fruit of that name, and its colour when ripe fonie- thing refembling an orange. He begged a few {cions, (the kind it fhould feem was not general) and has difperfed fince, over the country, great numbers. ‘The fhape of the tree is the beft poffible for an apple, its branches extending horizontally, and when loaden with fruit, bending downwards. It is a conftant and generally productive bearer; I think never quite barren. As to the flavour of its fruit, the neareft I can compare it to, is that of the Ribftone Pippin, but not quite fo high (i. e. inferior probably.) After Chriftmas it lofes fome of its excellencies, but will keep found till the feafon of goofeberries. It is no bad ceconomy, when any particular plant is found congenial to, or to flourifh in a certain foil, to cultivate that plant. As this tree agreed fo well with my ground, and the fruit had fo many recom~ mendations of its own, I determined that this apple (retaining a few varieties) fhould be chiefly culti- vated here. The young plants. are but lately be- come bearers. Iam forry to obferve, that although the*fruit is good, it is yet inferior to the parent ftock: here then appears a degeneracy. I have not yet learned how it has anfwered in other places. Such as it is, a few fcions are at the Society’s fervice, by fending [y nage J fending dire€tions how and whither they may be fent, in a line directed to, Sir, Your obedient fervant, JOHN HOLT. Walton near Liverpool, ‘fan. 3, 1790. (> This gentleman’s offer was thankfully accepted, and the {cions difpofed of to gentlemen moft likely to propagate them. We take this opportunity of repeating, that if any gentlemen who may think themfelves poffefled of fuperior fruits, will be fo obliging as to offer fcions to the publick, through the medium of the Secretary of this Society, it will be deemed an effential fervice. Articre XVII. On Tranfplanting WueEat, Se. TO THE SECRETARY. SIR, Beg leave to offer a few thoughts upon dividing and tranfplanting Wheat, on which fubject a premium has been offered, upon two varied ex- periments, and which originated, it may be pre- fumed, from the amazing quantity raifed from a fingle grain of corn, repeatedly divided and tranf- Rit? planted 2 [ 164 ] planted, as recorded in your tranfactions; I cannot refer to the particular volume, not being in poffef- fion of the work.* It is a fact well known, that to eftablifh fome favourite hypothefis, or in purfuit of fome favourite {cheme, perfeverance in the profecution has been almott incredible, to enfure a fuccefsful iffue: hence different effects from different motives. In other words, when reduced to common practice in the rude hands of the labourer, who has no other mo- tive to action than to obtain the hire of his induftry, the effects are not always favourable. The wifdom of providence has ordained, that the moft ufeful knowledge is with leaft difficulty obtained; and the moft ufeful practices moft eafily executed. The act of dividing a root of corn, which confifts of feveral branches, requires no {mall degree of de- licacy in the operation, to preferve fome part of the original root to each feparately divided ftem. To this difficulty may be added, the chance of obtain- ing a proper and feafonable opportunity; without moifture either from fhowers or watering, the plants mutt inevitably perifh under the operation: under the moft favourable circumftances, the plants re- * Vol. ui. page 3388. quire [ 165 ] quire fome portion of time to acquire their former health and vigour, confequently this check, accord- ing to the number of repetitions, will proportion- ably retard the maturity of the grain. Nor is this reafoning from theory, but aétual experience; and that the cultivator of this extraordinary produce was well aware of thefe facts, is evident: for the grain of wheat was committed to the earth, if I recolleé& truly, in June, four months previous to the natu- ral feafon of fowing this fpecies of grain; fo that it had this length of time, or nearly two feafons, or one fummer in advance, as it were, to aid thefe feveral checks or drawbacks on vegetation. From the foregoing premifes it fhould feem, that although the fact may be practicable by the dili- gently curious, it can never become ufeful to the practical cultivator. Far from depreciating thefe ingenious trials of perfevering induftry and {kill; they may be productive of utility, and ought to be recorded. Hints generate hints; and the experi- ment under confideration has produced the follow- ing, of feparating the different branches from a fingle potatoe, and replanting each {tem thus di- vided, and taken from the original fet. Whether this practice will be productive of any good, re- mains to be afcertained, as this experiment is only M 3 in L466) in procefs; but this I already obferve, that the {tems feparate without difficulty, (no lefs than four- teen from ove root) and vegetate again with vigour; more fo than any fpecies of grain I have hitherto divided or tranfplanted. It cannot be doubted that a moift feafon was adopted. I cannot forbear mentioning one method of tranf- planting wheat, which may be worthy the attention of the induftrious labourer, to whom a few hours extra work may not be an object equal to the faving of purchafing feed, or faving the grain for the ufe of his family: it was this fpecies of ceco- nomy that pointed out that ufeful method of dib- bling wheat, firft practifed in Norfolk: I mean collecting feedling plants from the wheat-ftubbles which have been felf-fown the preceding autumn. — Thefe plants are not of the leaft utility to the farmer, but are fometimes, by hurricanes or other accidents, fo abundant on the ground as to afford fufficient ftock to plant many acres. It may happen the autumnal feafon is not favourable to the feed har- veft, the land may be wet, &c. In fuch cafes thefe feedling plants, which would otherwife be loft, may be rendered. extremely ufeful. Under thefe cir- cumitances, I planted a piece of potatoe ground in March laft with feedling plants, collected from a wheat- [ 567 J wheat-ftubble, which at this prefent juncture have a moft promifing afpect. I wifh you health to fee the Lancafhire apple flourifh in your neighbourhood. And am, Srr, With much.efteem, Your obedient fervant, 1 HORT, Walton, near Liverpool, May 31, 1799. ArticLe VIII. On the Lofs of Weight in Grain, Se. TO THE SECRETARY. Dear Sir, ROM a variety of experiments made upon evaporation, I have feleéted and fent the:fol- lowing, as falling more properly under the plan of your Society. The faéts may afford fome ufeful hints to the farmer, and ferve to inftruct him, that befides [ 168 J befides the rats, mice, and other vermin, he has a fecretand filent, but never-ceafingenemy, continually making depredations upon his property, as the fol- lowing experiments, to afcertain-the lofs that grain, efpecially wheat, fuftaias, williverify. EXPERI M EAN* Es. AuGUST 31h, 1789. Gathered and rubbed a few ears of wheat during a clowing fun, which being immediately put into the {cales weighed 2 ounces 11 drams. October the i8th, being put into the fcales again, then weighed 2 ounces 7 drams. The lofs of weight per bufhel of 70 pounds (the cuftomary meafure of this neigh- bourhood) is 6 pounds, 8 ounces, and 3 drams, nearly, or almoft one-tenth of the whole in 49 days. Gut this is the greateft lofs that grain can poffibly ‘aftain, which, although perfeétly ripe, had neither the advantage of being dried in the fun after being reaped, nor had it undergone the procefs of fermen- tation after being got together. N.B. Thirty- cwO grains weighed one penny-weight. BaRLEY. Exp. IJ. Sept.)2. Under -the fame circumftances put into the feales 2.ounces and:2 drams of barley; which [ 169 J which, being tried again Oct. the 18th, weighed 1 ounce and 12 drams, or, at 60 pounds to the bufhel, had loft 8 pounds, 4 ounces, and 22 drams, or about one feventh of the whole in forty-feven days, N.B. Twenty-four grains of this barley weighed one pennyweight two grains, fo that this corn mutt have been fofter, or in a lefs matured ftate, than the grains of wheat in the firft experiment. Since 24 grains of plump wheat are reckoned to weigh one pennyweight, and hence the ftandard of that weight; whereas we fee the pennyweight took 32 grains. WHEAT. Exp. II]. Oé7. 22d. Put into the fcales fix ounces three drams, which in 24 days loft three drams, or after the rate of two pounds one ounce, fifteen drams, per bufhel. WHEAT. Exp. 1V. Yan. 8th, 1790. Took two ounces two drams of wheat, which in thirty-two days loft after the rate of 2 pounds 15 drams per bubhel. From thefe experiments it appears that the decreafe in weight was pretty regular from the time of harveft, and the time taken in afcertaining the lofs of [ 170 ] of each quantity: in other words, that the fum of the matter evaporated becomes gradually lefs ac- cording to the length of time kept on hand, but proves that the fooner the crop is brought to mar- ket, ceteris paribus, the greater is the advantage to the farmer. N.B. The number of grains to a pennyweight in the two laft experiments was omitted, or forgotten to be regiftered. After the lofs fuftained in the experiment No. 4 had been afcertained, the grain was expofed a few minutes before the fire, and when weighed again had loft three pennyweights, If fuch be the lofs in weight of «grain, we may conclude the potatoe, which evidently contains a confiderable quantity of water, mutt alfo fuffer by evaporation, although its quality may by this lofs be improved. Aug. 27th, 1789. Tooka pint-eye potatoe, frefh from the earth and well cleaned, which weighed two ounces, nine dwts, and twenty grains; the day following it had loft twenty grains; two days after twenty-fix grains; in fourdays morethirty-one grains; in ten days more, or at the end of feventeen days, it had loft forty grains. But we obferve it loft as much the firft day, as the laft fixteen; in three days, fix Lowy J] fix grains; whereas in thirteen days more, it only loft fourteen grains. If fuch be the progrefs of nature, we may natu- rally conclude this effect is increafed by the culinary procefs. A potatoe that weighed 2 ounces, 7 dwts. and § grains, in its natural ftate, after being roafted only weighed 1 ounce, 5 dwts. another before being put into water weighed 2 ounces, 5 dwts. and 6 grains, but immediately after being boiled, had loft 54 grains. Left you fhould fear I am entering upon a fyftem of cookery, I abruptly conclude. Sir, Your obedient fervant, JOHN HOLT. Walton, near Liverpool, Nov. iff, 1790. ARTICLE Ci eo) ArTIcLE XIX. Odjervations on the Subjeéis propofed by the Bath Society, in their Circular Letter of Fuly 30rb, 1791, for Enquiry of the feveral Perfons to ewhom the faid Letter was addreffed, Extrad from Crrcutar Letrer. “The Society has been informed, that great damages * have been done to many Fir Plantations (particu- “Jarly among the Scotch firs) by fquirrels preying “* upon the bark.” *¢ Generally done in the fpring, when the winter hoards “¢ of thefe little animals are exhaufted.”’ “ The injury has been generally done, by gnawing the ‘« bark quite round the leader of the tree, a few feet ** below the top, the fquirrels chewing it for the fake ** of the moifture, and dropping the weody part like * faw-duft on the ground.” ** The tree thus barked decays in that part, lofes its top “by the firft rough wind, and of courfe gradually “¢ nerifhes. The fociety wifh to know, how far ** fuch complaint is general.” OBSERVATIONS, ANY hundred Scotch firs were damaged by the fquirrels, in Lord Bath’s plantations, in the fpring of 1788. Some few have been damaged fince, [ 373 J] fince, but not in any ‘degree equal to the extent as at that time. Thefe trees (which were then about 16 years old) were gnawed round the ftem, about 10 or 12 feet from the ground, in the manner defcribed in the Society’s letter. The trees lingered through that and part of the next year; but the bark immediately below the wound, {welling and forming a callous, the greatelft part of the trees were broken off by the winds in the autumn and winter of 1789. I made the following obfervations, on the kind of trees the fquirrels chiefly preyed on, and the na- ture of the plantations in which thofe trees grew. They attacked only Scotch firs, though fpruce, filver, and larch, were in the fame plantation. They chiefly fell upon the moft luxuriant and fafteft growing trees, whofe bark was thinneft, and of courfe moft full of turpentine. They fpared the rugged barked trees, or where they began upon fuch trees, they left them without barking them round. The time was in March and April; and the plantation was near a large native foreft, where the Che eke -3 the fquirrels abounded, and from which they were probably allured by the number of fir cones, of which it is well known they are very fond, and when they had finifhed the cones, they began upon the bark, Luckily the plantation where the mifchief was done, had its due proportion of beeches and other foreft trees, fo that the lofs was not long felt, as the Scotch firs, which were only planted for nurfes to the foreft trees, would have been taken away in a few years, if this accident had not happened. The remedy is obvious and not difficult, viz. to fhoot the fquirrels, as they are eafily feen and heard when about this work; but they muft be watched clofely the moment they begin, as it is aftonifhing what a number of trees a few of them will fpoil in two or three days. There is this fource of comfort to planters, viz. that in large plantations, where foreft trees, fuch as beech, oak, &c. will grow, fuch trees fhould by all means be planted, and fufficiently thick to form a wood, when their nurfes the Scotch firs are removed. For although Scotch firs are more profitable, and the timber really more ufeful, than is generally under- ftood, yet as the period of their growth, or at leaft 3 of t ms | of their beauty, is much fhorter than that of deci- duous trees, provifion fhould be made for the perma- nency of the plantation as well as for its prefent beauty; and in plantations where fcarce any thing but Scotch firs will grow, and fuch foils there are, the fquirrels, if any fhould find their way thither, cannot live through one winter for want of food, and of courfe may eafily be kept under; befides (as was before obferved) the bark of the firs growing on fuch foils, will be fo hard and rugged, that the {quirrels will be able to do very little mifchief. The fociety will, 1 hope, excufe my giving my opinion (the refult of my own experience and ob- fervations) on modern plantations in general. The fault is not fo much in the kind of trees ufually planted, for all trees are fit for fomething or other, and the worft may be applied to fave the ufe in many cates of thofe that are better; and in general that is the moft proper kind of tree to plant, which agrees beft with the foil and fituation; but the great fault has been owing to the mode of making the plantations, and in the management of them after- wards. We do not fufficiently follow nature as our guide. Wedo not firft confider what kind of a wood we wifh to have, and then take the methods which nature t 76 J nature points out to get fuch a wood. If we with to have a grove of large fpreading trees, where the foil and fheltered fituation warrant the probabi- lity of the fuccefs of fuch an attempt, we muft not plant our trees fo thick as to deprive them of all their under branches, on which the beauty of every tree, taken individually, depends, and thereby make a wood of poles inftead of trees. If we plant to cover a bleak, expofed, barren fpot of ground, where, if we do not plant the trees thick, it is ufelefs to plant at all, and where of courfe the under branches of the trees cannot be preferved; we mutt not make our plantations, as is too frequently done, of fo fmall a fize, that, inftead of being (as they are intended to be) a fhelter to the adjacent country, the trees will not even fhelter each other from the winds, but become mofly and ftunted, and catch colds which they never recover. And when the owner has flattered himfelf for 30 or 40 years, that he fhall live to fee the fruits of his labour come to perfection, he finds he has it all to do over again. The great damage generally done to planta- tions, next to that of fuffering them to be eaten up by cattle, which is not uncommon, is by, the cold winds (in this county the fouth-weftern) : which [; aay] which affects them moft ferioufly, when they bégin to throw off their lower branches, and leave their bodies naked. To this period we ought to look forward in all our plantations, Till that time, trees tay be made to grow and thrive in almoft any fituation; but fhelter is perhaps of more confe- quence than foil to the growth of trees. If thar cannot be obtained from the natural fituation, we muft make the plantations a fhelter to themfelves. In the firft place we muft make them big enough, that the wind ‘may not blow through them when grown up; and fecondly we muft thin them early and often, and inure them gradually to bear that de- gree of cold, which it will be neceffary for them to bear, when nature has deprived then of their under branches, and left their bodies naked. Plantations fo made and managed, will prove beneficial to the owner, ornamental to the country, and ufeful to the community. Otjfervations on the fuppofed Neglecé and Scarcity of Oak Timber. Extra from the Society's Letter. * AS from the fuppofed negle& and fcarcity of Oak ‘© ‘Timber, planting and the prefervation of woods is * become an object of great national confequence. “© The fociety wifh to know your fentiments on the Vou, VI, N “ prefent Ly 3¢8: J S prefent {tate of oak plantations in general, and how « far you think the /arch, or any other tree capable “ of being fubftituted for af in any branch of fhip “ building, has been attentively cultivated.” $UU The following obfervations refalting from an experience ~ of near 30 years, and that a-very extenfive one; not only in planting, but in cutting down and conver ting every kind of timber, as well for the navy as for home, ufes, are re[pectfully offered to the Society. OBSERVATIONS, IMBER isanarticle of commerce. The fear- city of any article of commerce is ufually owing to the increafed demand, or the leffened pro- duction of that article. The increafed demand i is ufually followed by an increafed attention to the production. The /carcity of any article, in itfelf in- difpenfible, and the neglef in the production of that article, is therefore a paradox in commerce. To prove that the fcarcity of oak timber is a chimera, and to convince every Briton that the navy, the pride and bulwark of bis ifle, will never want Englifh oak to enable it to keep up that fuperiority it has always held among maritime powers, will not be I truft a difficult tafk. J am fure it will not be unacceptable to the fociety, the great objet. of whofe iaftitution is, “ that this generation fall not leave the world worfe than they found it,” To [ 179 ] To confine our obfervations at prefent to oak timber for fhip-building; if fuch timber were really {carce, the price would rife. The contrary is the fact. In the merchants yards, futtocks and large knees are funk confiderably in value fince the con- _clufion of the war; and yet thefe are the pieces the moft in requeft, and the moft difficult to procure, Government have not actually altered the Dock- yard prices, for more than 20 years paft; but they have virtually funk them of late, by increafing the metings of the timber which they take in. That is, they now reject timber under a certain fize, which till of late they were obliged to take to induce the dealers to bring them the large pieces they wanted. They now take the large pieces at the old price, and _ reject the fmall. The price of fhip-timber is there- fore really lefs than at the conclufion of the laft war; and as we have now a profpect of a long continu- ance of peace, there is every probability of its being ftill lower, or at leaft not advancing, efpecially as it is well known that our navy is in fuch a ftate, that, even admitting we were again involved ina war, it would want only common repairs for fome years to come. There is now in the county of Hants alone, tim- ber enough to fupply nearly the common confump- i yee! tion [ ‘180 4 tion of Porfmouth yard, and in the other maritime counties nearly fufficient for all the reft of the yards. But a great deal of oak in diftant parts of the king- dom, will now find its way to the fea-ports, by means of the many canals in the kingdom, which formerly were confumed only in the domeftick ufes of the county where it grew, while thofe fame canals will bring back deal at a cheaper price to fupply thofe domeftick ufes. | The ufes of oak leffen every day. Houfes were. formerly built almoft entirely with oak timber; but now the innumerable new houfes in Bath, Briftol, London, Manchefter, Birmingham, &c. have very little oak in them. Deal anfwers the purpofe at a much cieaper rate.* ‘The great fear would be, provided that oak was only wanted for fhip-build- ing, that the price of it would fink fo low as to make it hardly worth growing. Even now it would be difficult to tind almoft any kind of timber, that does not pay better for planting than oak; but * In confequence of the numerous buildings alluded to, or from an increafed foreign demand, or fcarcity in the Northern countries, or perhaps from a combination of all thofe caufes, fir timber is now f much advanced, that the cultivation of oak, with a view to build- ing ufes, feems fo preient itfelf again as an object. And it is pro- bable that the beti ipecies of fir, which grow faster, will not be raifed im vain for the common ules of home confumption, luckily ft wm Pe luckily. there are thoufands of acres in this kingdom, where oak is the weed of the country, and grows with- out planting; and luckily there are two or three purpofes, for which oak timber is wanted befides _ fhip-building, which will make it worth the owners while to encourage the growth of it in foils of that defcription, and will keep up its price in peace as well as in war. ‘Firft; The continual and increafing demand for bark for tanning, which is now fo great, that the _ bark is worth in inland fituations, nearly one-third of the value of the timber; and, if the timber is {mall and near the fea-coaft, nearly one-half. Secondl ; The amazing and increafing demand for beer cafks, of which the confumption is increafed to an aftonifhing degree. And Thirdy; The demand for laths and fpokes for wheels, with which the market is never over- ftocked, Thefe ufes of oak timber, viz. for barrels, fpokes, and laths, requiring only the ftraiteft timber, will leave the crooked pieces, the great defderata of fhip- Luilding, purpofely for that ufe; and as by means of a ie the [ 182 J the canals, thofe pieces can be got to the fea-ports as cheap from the inland counties as by land-carriage from the maritime counties, there will be no danger of want of oak timber, either in the King’s or the merchants’ yards; or that the price of it will rife higher than its real value, compared with the value of other timber, But admitting the fcarcity of oak ever to be real, I beg leave to ftate to the fociety my reafons for thinking that larch will never be a fubftitute for oak in fhip-building. The ftrength of a fhip depends on the tightnefs and folidity of its conftruction. The ftrait pieces of timber ufed in a fhip are very few, the greateft part are crooked. And to attain the neceflary tightnefs and folidiry of the whole, thofe crooked pieces muft grow in the very fhape they are to form in the fhip. No Englifh timber admits of that variety of fhape but oak; and if there were any that did, there is no other that will ftand wet and dry. Larch is a ftrait-grained tree, and cannot be brought into any of the crooked ufes of a fhip, nor will it ftand wet and dry for planking, It may fup- ply the place‘of deal for flooring’; but the price of © foreign deal at the fea-ports will probably be always lower [ 183 i lower than the price at which larch will be worth for country ufes, where it grows. The larch is a beautiful tree, and doubtlefs a very ufeful tree; but I much queftion whether more has not been faid of it than it deferves, at the fame time that the poor Scotch firs, with all their faults, have been depreciated much below heir deferts; though they will grow on land whereon larch will not grow. The larch will certainly anfwer all the purpofes of fir for timber, but it is not fo ftrong nor fo heavy as Scotch fir. I have cut a folid foot of each out of two trees of equal fizes and equal ages; the larch weighed only 51, and the fir 6o0lb.; and if our Scotch firs grew as thick together, as they do abroad, as we may fee by the ufers which are ufed for fcaf- folding, it would be a much ftronger erained timber than our’s generally is;—only the quicknefs of the growth and the bignefs of the knots make it other- wife. The Englith grown fpruce and filver fir tim- ber are fully equal to any white deal we get from abroad. The Marquis of Bath has ufed Enelith grown fir, for almoft all domeftick purpofes, in the dry, for 20 years paft, and finds no wood except oak equal to it; and we have an inftance of a cart-houfe, which has been built with Englith grown fir upwards of 70 years, now almoft as perfect as when new. If [ 184 J If therefore the ufes of oak timber for domeftick purpofes can, as undoubtedly many of them can, be fupplied by other timber, of which there are fuch amazing quantities daily planted; I think we need not be afraid that the fearcity of oak timber for fhip-building will ever be alarming, Let us at leaft firft be convinced, that the price rifes, before we be- lieve that there is any fcarcity at all. For it is as evident, as that effect follows caufe, that there can be no real fcarcity, fo long as the price continues nearly the fame, much more when that of the crooked pieces, fo indifpenfably neceffary in the con- ftruction of a fhip, are funk from 25 to 30 per cent, The fubjec&t of trees and timber has been my favourite ftudy, and my daily employ, for near 30 years. The number of trees that have been planted under my direétion, and the quantity of timber of which I have had the difpofal, have been greater than can fall to the lot of many men. Any com- munications which the fociety may at any time with on this fubject, fhall be given with the greateft pleafure, By their aad your obedient fervant, THOMAS DAVIS. P.S. Since [. 5 J P.S. Since writing the above letter, I have feen Jarge quantities of oak timber in Devon and Corn- wall, cut down merely on account of the high price of bark; the buyers of which offered to fell the tim- ber again, as foon as they had ftripped (viz. barked) it, from 6d. down to 4d. a foot; and yet this tim- ber was fit for building fmall coafting vefiels, for which the demand increafes, as that for fhips of war decreafes. Does this look like a fcarcity? If there fhould be a likelihood that the vaft de- mand for bark, particularly in Ireland, will occafion much timber to be cut in wafte, merely for the bark, the fociety would do fervice to the publick, by offering @ very handfome reward for a chemical pre- paration, to anfwer the purpofes of oak bark in tanning leather. It has been many times attempted with fome degree of fuccefs; but the principal ob- jection has been, that the price would be too great for general ufe ; but when it is confidered that the fame bark which fells in England at 41. a ton, is now worth more than gl. in Ireland; a chemical pre- paration which would anfwer as well as bark, after the rate of 6]. per ton, would ferve Ireland, and keep the Englifh bark at home (where there is no fear of a demand for it) at the price at which it is now fold, ARTICLE [ 186 } ARTICLE XX. On Smut in Wheat; new method of fowing by Hand, Se. TO THE. SECRETARY. Str, j N the sth volume of the Society’s Papers, Art. 17, I obferve an anonymous writer on the {mut in wheat, who profeffes to have made it a fub- ject of enquiry, affert, it is caufed by a cold wet feafon whenin bloom. He muft have been very in- ' attentive not to have obferved, that fmutty ears not only never blow in any feafon, but have never any fiens of that which, appearing on wheat. ears, is called bloom, and which in ears of wheat are to be found inclofed, by opening the chaff before blowing ; but if the weather at that time prove cold and un- favourable, fo muchas to prevent the chaff opening and the bloom from being difcharged, no grain is produced therein, as it caufes what 1s here techni- cally called a mi/s in the ear: therefore if the wea~ ther has any thing todo with the caufe of fmut, (which I doubt) it certainly muft be in a much earlier ftlate of vegetation than your correfpondent {fuppofes; for the {mut is to be difcovered as foon as the wheat is podded; and immediately on the burfting of the pod, if the ear be picked out, it will | be i sey J be found to contain a very fmall’green bud; and if that ear (before ever having been expofed to the atmofphere) be rubbed on the hand, it will give out that difagreeable odour, of which we are very fenfible in the more advanced ftage of it, but contains not the leaft appearrance of what is deemed bloom in a wheat ear; therefore, I apprehend, his fmutty wheat in the cold wet fummer proceeded more from the preceding damp harveft, whereby the feed was more infected with the difeafe (which I have ob- ferved) than from the feafon in which it grew. I am willing to admit his argument, that none but he who can repel blights can reward the hufbandman; — but hope that the fociety will not on fuch grounds ftop their enquiries. The phyfician might on this principle withhold his aid; for we all know that man muft die, but nobody knows when, and all wifh to poftpone the day. He is very far from having proved that blight is the caufe of fmut: from many years clofe attention to this enquiry, I am certain it gene- rally is not; for I cannot caufe a blight, but certainly can the fmut in wheat, either in a wet or dry fummer. I never difcovered any difference in the roots or knots, but it is to be diftinguifhed by an attentive obferver, before it comes to ear, having more the appearance of a wild oat than wheat, the leaf is of a darker green, and fo is the ear on its firft appearance. Sir [ 188, ] Sir T. Beevor’s drill roller is, I think, an imple- ment well adapted for wheat which requires a clofe bottom, but I fhould prefer drilling for barley, as it delights in a warm loofe fituation; but as the well looking of Sir T. Beevor’s work depends in a great meafure on the corn being well fown, and as through moft countries, I have obferved that bufinefs is generally badly done, I am induced to fend you what I think the greateft improvement the old hufbandry has met with in this century; (1 have not feen it practifed elfewhere, nor any account of it in the agricultural publications) that is to fay, the xew method of fowing by hand; the old method was to fow in warps, viz. 20 furrows at the time, proceeding down the right hand fide of the warp, and returning on the left fide, cafting the feed with the right hand acrofs the warp, the whole was finifhed, and probably, as either going or returning the feed{- man was obliged to caft againft the wind, the work was badly done. By the new method, the feedfman always cafts before the wind, takes a lefs quantity in his hand, and advances feven furrows each time, which is about three times over a warp, exactly as tiles are placed; if in the beginning he proceeds to fow with his right hand, at the end he advances feven furrows and returns fowing with his left hand, pro- ceeding alternately with his right and left hands, till the L ore5 *] the fietd is finithed; the only care required is to de- liver the corn thin on the mark, by which method it is'in all weathers accurately fown, and not liable to be hand-platted. I have for feveral years drilled the greateft part of my corn, and have experienced that feven inches is the moft profitable diftance for the farmer; nine and ten inches is too far (except on very rich land) as in thin land, the corn will be too much expofed to weeds and injury by dry weather. It was my former practice, and I am fatisfied I was right when I re- linquifhed it. Nothing has depreffed the fpirit for drilling fo much, as the fallacious idea held forth and maintained by its enthufiaftick advocates, that large crops may .be obtained with little feed, and rows at a great diftance; the defpicable crops I have feen from fuch management, could not efcape the obfervation and cenfure of thofe of another opinion, when a generous diftribution of double the quantity of feed would not only have prevented the ridicule, but have been doubly advantageous to the theorift. Some feed may no doubt be faved, and enough to pay the expence of drilling; I never drill lefs than two bufhels of wheat, feven inch furrows, and three and half barley; whatever may have been faid to the cqptrary, I never found the old farmers fo fhallow , ) pated, [ 190 Jj pated, as to withhold themfelves froma what, they /azw a fuccetsful practice, confequently this mode of drilling is generally adopted in this part of Kent, the event juftifying the practice. Drilling has been in vogue here near 40 years, and I believe the work no where better done, or better implements for the purpofe. I with you could perfuade Mr. Wimpey to favour me with an account of his five-furrew drill, in the 4th article.* There is no farmer. in this country of 4ol. per annum without a. drill, and I have no doubt would procure better were they to be had on eafy terms. Being furrounded with water, and much infefted with rats, I have tried various recipes without effe@, viz. the Miller’s infallible powder, Dutch pate, Northy’s fpecifick, arfenick, fublimate, and opium, all which have been eaten without deftroying, I verily believe, five rats; we never found more than two. Perhaps the fociety may be in poffeffion of a fpecifick for this kind of vermin; furely it is a defi- deratum in rural ceconomy, and well worth enquiring after. I will thank you for the belt recipe you have.t Your moft obedient humble fervant, JAMES WYBORN. Hull, near Deal, Feb, 17th, 1792. * This drill is how at the fociety’s rooms, and is partly defettbed in this volume.———+_ A premium is offered for the difcovery. F wt] ees mL, On the Smut in Wheat continued, by ibe fame. SIR, N# ibbdgaeess is :a motto ‘tics every man » who wifhes to inveftigate abftrufe fubjeéts, ought always 'to have before him. »Is:not fmut ball a fubftance in its nature generated through a wheat grain and its plant? Strange and abfurd as this _ hypothefis may appear to us at firft fight, yet if we - reflect on the various phenomena in the animal and vegetable fyftem, that daily prefent themfelves to us, we fhall perhaps think it not altogether unwor- thy of our attention and enquiry. ‘The oftrich, we are told, trufts her ege to warm fand to produce its progeny ; the cuckow, we know, in our own coun- try, depends on the incubation of the hedge-fparrow to produce, and afterwards to its foftering care to nourifh its young, till it is able to procure fufte- nance for itfelf. . We fee the mifletoe produced and nourifhed by various kinds .of trees; the like of many ipecies of mofs; cabbage-feed producing col- liflowers, and colliflower feed. cabbages, and mules partaking of both. We know divers infects are produced on and within vegetables; but to come nearer to the queftion: as well as {mut ball, cockel Srows [ 192 ] erows in the ears that nature feemed to have formed for wheat, and (as in fmut) I have feen ears which contained part cockel and part wheat; may not this poffibly proceed from an imperfect generation? I never knew, or heard it afferted, that ear cockel (as it is called) was ever found amongft wheat, where it was not obferved in the feed before fowing; that it grew {pontaneoufly, or was caufed by an untoward feafon. It is a {mall, nearly black berry, about the fize of a {mut ball, the flour is greyifh; that part of the ear which contains them, I am informed, does not bloffom; as I have obferved by fmut; and I do not recollect ever to have feen it grow amongft any wheat but the old Kentifl; brown, of which there is now very little fown in this part of Kent. I fhall leave the field open for other opinions, by only _ faying, it may poffibly be produced in this manner, or be a difeafe, as I have obferved in the laft va- lume of Young’s annals. It is fuficient for the farmer to know the faét, that fmut is generally produced by fmut; at leaft that it caw be fo produced; but how that is effected, we muft leave to Lewenhoc, and other nice ob- fervers of the works of nature;* for whether, as I , * Sce the contrary opinions majntained by the writer alluded to ia 2 following paper. ) have [853.3] have faid before, it is produced by generation, or is ‘a difeafe, it is immaterial, if we know a rémedy that will ftop its progrefs, either by curing the latter, or rendering impotent the former. Afolution of fub- limate, arfenick, or other cauftick alkali, my expe- rience tells me, will anfwer our expectations; that of arfenick is a fafe, clean, and cheap remedy; a firft confideration to a practical farmer! But we are told in your 5th vol. p. 245, ‘ that it is fo dange- “¢ rous and abfurd, that men of common fenfe are *¢ afraid and afhamed of the praétice.” Are then mercury, antimony, opium, and bark, the bafis of of the Materia Medica, to give place to powder of poft, becaufe in injudicious hands they have pro- duced the worft confequences? and their prefcribers be accufed of wanting common fenfe? Surely not. Herculean difeafes require Herculean remedies ; the folution of arfenick has not been ufed only on an acre or two of land by way of experiment, but on hundreds of acres, to the entire fatisfaction of my- felfand other farmers that have ufed it; and they “may reft affured (provided the corn be fown within 24 hours after immerfion) that no danger will arife to the feed, although it may have been many hours in the water, and no lime ufed; but as the weather at that feafon is uncertain, it is beft to wet it as you have occafion; fifteen minutes is fufficient for its be- Vou. VI. O ing [ 194 ] ing in the water, and it will be dry enough for fowing in an hour or two after; if any fufpicion of fmut in the feed, it may remain fome hours in the water without injury. I ufe no lime, it drilling better without. This is the practice of, Sir, your moft obedient humble fervant, JAMES WYBORN. Hull- Place, Feb. 225 1792. P.S. My gardener, a very ingenious Scot, has of- ten affured me, that in the early culture of cucumbers in frames, on finding a female open and expanding herfelf before any male was prefent, he has had re- courfe to alittle dry duft from the border, which has fo tickled her fancy as to produce in a few days as fine a cucumber as the farina of the ftouteft male could have effected; if this be true, (and I have no reafon to doubt his word) furely it militates againft fome received opinions. This experiment is eafily tried by any who wifh to be better fatisfied. We read that the duft which arifes like fmoke from that {pecies of fungus called puff-ball, appears on a'mi- crofcopic obfervation to be the embryos of that fpe- cies, or fo many little puff-balls. I with thofe who — have an opportunity would thus examine the pow- der of {mut ball. ARFICLE L. emgs. ArTicLE XXII. Thoughts on the fame Subject. TO THE SECRETARY: SIR, Gentleman put into my hands the five vo- lumes publifhed by the order of the Bath Society for the encouragement of Agriculture. I have perufed them with much pleafure and great attention, and think in general the fubjects treated of are carried to great perfection. We have an old adage, 4 word to the wife is fufficient; if by a few hints I can any ways affift the gentlemen concerned in that laudable inftitution, it will give me much fatisfaction. The fubject I have contemplated on moft, is, What are the caufes which produce the Smut in Wheat? The following I fuppofe are the principal: if. Avoid fowing infected feed, procuring it from a friend you can rely on. 2dly. After having properly watered your feed, (no brine required) lime it plentifully, for I think much depends on this procefs, to keep the feed from O2 injury [ 196 J injury whilft it lies on the furface of the ground, or but flightly covered; for I imagine the difea/e then begins, and continues ’till the fmut-balls are formed; befides, the lime acts as a ftimulator after it is effectually covered. If the injury be owing, as fome of your corre- {pondents have fuppofed, to the inclemency of the weather at the time of blooming; what hall we fay, when we fee two adjoining lands, for inftance, in a common field, belonging to different occupiers, who ufed different feed, begin their blowing at the fame time; one fhall be almoft free from fmut, and the other very much injured? This cannot be owing to the atmofphere, for they have both the fame.* Every grain, when committed to the earth has, or fhould have, its embryo perfect ; and having ab- forbed fome moifture, a fermentation commences, and the fixed air in the corn begins its motion, and by a rapid circulation warms the germ and its con- comitant parts; fome part at that juncture receives a check, and a mortification enfves, but in fo fimall a way as not to affect the great progrefs of vegeta- tion, ’till nature has almoft finifhed her work. * See Mr, Wimpey’s opinion on this point, in his next letter. To a = f on 7 To prevent this malady, having got good feed, limed after the ufual-manner, fow early before the fevere froft begins; for I imagine it perforates the grain, and wounds fome part of it. Sometimes ina very wet morning the lime is wafhed from the feed, and this contributes to produce fmut. At prefent this is chiefly ideal, not fufficiently authenticated: by experience. The pureft feed, if fown dry and late in the autumn, will moft probably turn to fmut, to — the very, great lofs of the farmer. We know good and fmutty, corns are produced in the fame ear. ‘Is it-very improbable but nature,has given to each grain a tube or conductor from its root? If fo, it may account for my hypothefis. T have taken the liberty to trouble you with my thoughts on this very interefting fubject, fuppofing, under your patronage, it may undergo a farther in- veltigation, I am, Gentlemen, With great refpect, Your obedient fervant, Maidenhead, Berks. W.R. fa EAS. Ae e. 2 ARTICLE [ 198 ] ArtTicLe XXIII. Further Remarks on the Cauje of the Smut in Wheat ; and on planting Potatoes, In a Letter to the SECRETARY. ’ SIR, ar a former letter on this fubjeét, I mentioned my having then more experiments on foot, with a view to the further inveftigation of the caufe of the fmut in wheat; I now do myfelf the honour of requefting leave to fubmit the refult to the confide- ration of your very refpeétable Society. It is true, that, although thofe experiments were numerous, they have afforded no new difcovery; I mean nothing different from the refult of thofe I formerly related; yet I think they may be of great ule, as they may ferve to corroborate and confirm the opinion I maintained refpecting the caufe of an evil fo extenfiye and alarming. To give a circumftantial relation of each experi- ment would be both tedious and unimportant ; fuf- fice it then to fay, they were made with found corn picked out of {mutty ears, fet at different times and on different foils, prepared by fleeping in different liquors ; [ 199 | liquors; fome in fimple water, and fome without any preparation at all. The refult was, that one fmutty ear was not to be found in any one of the experiments. It is true indeed the wheat of laft year was in general pretty free from fmut; but if the caufe of the evil originate in the feed, and not in the feafon, the produce of the above experiments would have been juft as liable to the fmut, being taken from fmutty ears, as in any other feafon whatever. » Some of the feed of thofe experiments was fteeped ‘ in a folution of falt, fome in a lixivium of wood afhes, fome in a folution of fugar, fome in ftrone ale, fome in clear water, forne were fet dry as they came from the ear; but at harveft there was no perceptible difference, either as to ftrength of plants, or foundnefs and plumpnefs of grain. I could not perceive that any advantage had been gained by any of the infufions made ufe of, excepting that the corn from the unwafhed feed abounded much more with weeds, than-that from the feed which had been fteeped and wafhed; which was rather contrary to what 1 had hoped and expected, from a former ex- periment of fteeping, which feemed to promife an increafe of fertility and produce, There [' 200, ]}j There is one experiment, however, L would beg Jeave to relate a little more particularly : The firft experiment I made on fmutty wheat was four years ago, on fome found corns I picked out of a fmutty ear of white wheat, faid to be qriginally from Canada. The corn from this feed, I have continued to plant ever fince, to try if there, would be any return of the original taint, or fymp- tom of that diforder. The produce ever fince has. been not only free from it, but the grain remarkably, plump and fine. Inthe harveft of 1790 the whole ot it was nearly deftroyed by birds. I did.not fave a tenth part of it, and that from the weakeft and lateft ripe ears; however, I faved,all I could, and planted it in my garden the Augutt, following; and to prevent a like devaftation from the birds, J, had, part of a ridge dug in the middle ofja field, of wheat.referved for that, purpofe, and in February following tran{planted it there, in rows, at.g, inches, diftance, and 6 inches, apart in the rows; when the plants were about.a foot high, they were completely eat down by, the. hares, and, Lthought them de- firoyed irrecoverably ; but they foon fhot up again, and at harveft produced as long and. fine ears, and plump found good corn, as ever faw. ‘The pro- duce was at the rate of 37: buthels to the acre, and the [ 20: J] the weight of the bufhel 72, pounds, g gallon mea- fure. The foil a poor binding loamy fand, which if undifturbed. foon grows moffy. It had borne fix drilled. crops in fucceffion, four of them wheat, without any manure whatever. From this and fome. other obfervations I -have made on tranfplanted wheat, I am convinced no mode of practice would equal tranfplanting as to quantity of produce; but from the great labour and expence, and number of hands it would require, that mode of cultivation on a large feale is abfo- lutely impracticable, and therefore not to be thought of. But to return to our fubject. Some. who favour the opinion that the caufe of the. fmut is from the depravity of the feed, have obferved, that “‘ when two adjoining fields have “« begun their blooming at the fame time, but be- «longing to different owners, and therefore fown «¢ with different feed, one fhall be almoft free from “ fmut, and the other greatly infefted with it; this “* cannot be owing to the atmofphere, (fay they,) “ for they have both the fame; now what then can “ be faid to this by thofe who fuppofe the fmut is “€ owing to the unfavourablenefs of the weather at “ the time, of blooming ? ‘I anfwer, 362: 4 I anfwer, the objection feems calculated to give countenance to their opinion, but it by no means enters far enough into the bufinefs to inveftigate the truth; for though the fields are contiguous, and their atmofphere equally fo; correctly and truly {peaking, the latter may be no more the fame than the former, probably in refpeét to quality far more different. When we fpeak of the atmofphere, we mean, not only the circumambient air, but every principle of whatever nature or kind that floats in it. Thefe are fometimes of avery malignant na- ture, and extend far and near, but are frequently confined to a kind of ftream or current, like water in ariver, and affect thofe objeéts only which ftand in their way and obftrucé their paffage. It is not very uncommon to {fee trees and plants. blighted and blafted on one fide, while the other fhews not the leaft fign or mark of being injured: Such par- tial fufferings happen at times to almoft every field, and. every kind of plant it bears. It hath many times fallen within my obfervation, that the eaft.and fouth fides of a field of wheat have been exceedingly fmutty, when the north and weft, and the other parts of the field, have been little aifeéted by it. But further, we have frequently found both found and finutty ears growing from the fame [ 203 ] fame root; and what is ftill more, found and f{mutty erains, at the fame time in one and the fame ear. To imitate our objectors, then, and attempt to obviate one difficulty by ftarting another; will they permit me to afk what they can fay to this? If fmutty feed infallibly produces a fmutty crop, as they maintain, what produces the found ears which grow out of the fame root with the fmutty ears, and the found grains which are found in the fame ear with che fmut-balls? This fingle obfervation clearly refutes their whole argument. It is an eftablifhed maxim in phyficks, ** that the fame cau/es infallibly produce the fame *¢ effects; and were it not fo, human knowledge of any future event would be an impoffible thing; for this is the principle which directs aétions to ends ; without it, intention or defign would have no objeét. To fay then that both found and {mutty grain proceed from the fame root, which root is vitiated and de- praved, yet is the efficient caufe of both, is as pal- pable a contradiétion as to affert, that good whole- fome blood, and a putrid, malignant, poifonous ichor, may be taken from the fame vein at one and the fame moment,* ' © ® A friend of Mr. Wimpey’s, on reading this remark, obferves, that even this may be poflible, The ftream of the fame moment may contain good and highly contaminated particles. T at E 204 } Ic is univerfally admitted, that the fmut moftly abounds, in cold, wet, inclement feafons. If the fmut then, as thefe gentlemen think, proceed from corrupt or vitiated feed, we fhould find moft of it the year following any year in which it much abounded ; for if it proceed from fmutty, feed as. its fole caufe, as they maintain, certainly every fucceed- ing crop would increafe in fmut, as. the quantity of fmautty feed: fown would in fome degree at leaft be in proportion to the quantity of fmut in the crep,of the year preceding; therefore, if this were the cafe, the fmut would annually increafe, till in a very ‘few . years we fhould have none that would be free from fmut; that is, it: would be all fimut, and we fhould have no wheat at all; for fimut-balls: contain no- thing but an effete ftinking powder, totally deftitute of every principle of life, and therefore never vege- tate at all. Bue this is fo far ftom being the cafe, that a very fmutty year is often fucceeded. by one that has little iffany fmut. This generally hap- pens as often-as a damp, cold, inclement feafon is fucceeded: by one that is warm, dry, and favour- able to the growth and ripening: of grain. In fhort; it is not eafy to enumerate the argu- ments that might be adduced in fupport and con- firmation of the epigion here advanced ; I thall r therefore ime therefore content myfelf with the recital of the two recent cafes following: In the year 1790, a near neighbour of mine, an intelligent farmer, in a large way of bufinefs, pro- cured a fample-of-very fine, clean, found wheat, of which he purchafed enough to. fow a large field. The reft of his land he fowed with wheat of his own growth. From the feed he had purchafed he hoped to reap enough good corn to fupply him with feed for his whole crop the following feafon, but at harveft how great was his difappointment! The produce of his fine feed turned out very {metty, whereas the crop from the féed of his own growth had little if any in it. Another farmer, who lived about a mile from me, being rathér in low circumftances, was induced to fow, the fame feafon as above, fome very fmutty wheat he had by him; it not being convenient to purchafe good clean feed; but very fortunately for him, his crop proved as clean and as good as any in the neighbourhood, having very little if any fmut in it.—T hefe cafes are far fromm being fingular, for many fuch have come to my knowledge. Now if any advocate for the-opinion that the fmut proceeds from feminal corruption or depravity, will account [ 206 J account for the poffibility of thefe facts confiftently. with his own principles, I will be one of the fir to vote him a ftatue to perpetuate his fame for ini- imitable fkill in the folution of difficulties, Of POTATOES. I formerly had the honour of fubmitting to the confideration of your Society (vol. v. p. 230.) an account of an experiment to difcover whether whole potatoes or cuttings are to be preferred in planting. —From that account, it clearly appeared, that the advantage lay greatly on the fide of cuttings. But as, from long experience, I know conclufions drawn from fingle experiments cannot be fafely depended on, and the refult of that experiment differing fo widely from an account given by a very refpectable correfpondent of the Society, whofe accuracy is well known, and of whofe probity and veracity I have the higheft opinion; I refolved to repeat my for- mer experiment as exactly as poffible, by way of eftablifhing a fact fo interefting to the public if found juft, or of retracting an error if it fhould appear to be one. In the fpring of 1791, I prepared about three acres of ground, and in April planted it with po- tatocs. [ #7 J tatoes. A certain quantity of the lareeft and fineft were felected, one half of which were planted whole, the other cut into pieces of a moderate fize. An exact account of each was kept at taking up, when it appeared that the acreable produce was much the fame as in the former experiment; but as the cut potatoes planted’nearly four times the ground that the whole fets did, the advantage lay in the fame proportion on the fide of planting with cut potatoes; therefore I think there cannot be the leaft doubt that the preference is to be given to cuttings, as the fuccefs of the two experiments fo nearly coincides, I have been ufed for fome years to furnifh my neighbours with potatoes for planting. The latt feafon one of them defired I would let him have them all fmall. He faid he had planted fmall ones feveral years, that he found them equally productive with the largeft, and faved much trouble in cutting. Others preferred the largeft, who carried their ceco- nomy much further; they it feems ufed to pare them, eat the flefhy part, and plant the rinds only. Upon enquiry, I found it was not an unufual prac- tice among the cottagers, and I have been credibly informed they get as large crops and as good po- tatoes in that method of planting as in any other whatever, If this be a fact, it feems to appear that | the [ 208 ] the flefhy part of the bulb is of no ufe in fupplying nourifhment to the young fruit after the fibrous roots have put forth and laid hold of the ground, Perhaps an experiment of this fort may be thought worth making. I am, Sir, your moft obedient fervant, JOSEPH WIMPEY. | Bratton-Clovelly near Okehampton, Devon, April 1792. ARTICLE XXIV. On the beft Method of providing for the Poor. WITH PRELIMINARY AND SUBSEQUENT CONSIDERA-# TIONS, BY THE SECRETARY. f ‘HE materials which compofe the former vo- lumes of this Society, are for the moft part a recital of experiments and practical opinions in the great department of Agriculture. To advance the knowledge of that fcience was a primary object in the inititution of the Society, and it is confeffedly an object, in every enlightened country, paramount to every other confideration, The favourable re- ception [ 209 ] ception thefe volumes have met with among the landed gentlemen, and liberal-minded farmers, may be confidered as a proof that: the proceedings of the Society have not been unfuccefsfully devoted to their main end. The papers contained in the prefent volume, though a continuation of former exertions in the publick caufe, will be found to embrace objects of improvement beyond the common province of the farmer. Among them that of planting, the em- bellifhment of eftates, and the provifion of a na- tional ftore of oak timber, are confidered as par-- ticularly worthy of the publick attention; the atten- tion efpecially of opulent land-owners, who poffefs from that opulence, and from their leifure, powers of exertion peculiar to themfelves. In this clafs of the community there are obvioufly other powers of doing good, which, happily exerted, muft redound to their lafting honour, and no lefs to the happinefs and folid glory of their country. Nor will it be a circumftance of fmall encouragement to an exertion of their natural influence, when an object fhall be held out, in the accomplifhment of which the manu- facturer and the fedulous tradefman are found qua- lified as able coadjutors. To the latter defcription of citizens it will alfo afford much encouragement, Vou, VI. P to [ 210 | to be fupported in their efforts by the weight and influence of the former, To both, it muft bea {trong inducement to a cordiality of exertion, where the end to be accomplifhed by their joint endea- vours is diétated at once by political wifdom, and the benevolent laws of the Supreme Being. The object which, by the encouragement of the proper com- mittee, I am induced to confider in this paper, is, THE BEST METHOD OF PROVIDING FOR THE POOR. This is an object which needs no apology ina work like the prefent; it isa moft important branch of political ceconomy, clofely connected with the general good, and, in the prefent ftate of the country, of immenfe magnitude. A learned and truly refpectable Phyfician, a Vice- Prefident of this Society, gave, in a former volume; his thoughts on the moft fimple and obvious means of preferving the health of labouring perfons, em- ployed in agriculture. That paper has been re- ceived with the praife due to its merit, and will be regarded as a valuable directory to the benevolent farmer and matter, ftudious of the health of his fervant. - It is with due refpect to equal benevo- dence, Pi Pars SJ lence, and due deference to fuperior abilities, that a fervant of the Society prefumes to follow him in re- fiections for the comfort and happinefs, not only of the fame clafs, but of every clafs of labouring people. A patriotic fenator* was employed for a feries of years, in framing a bill for the regulation of the Poor Laws, and thereby to leffen the general bur- den of the country, by fimplifying the parochial management, guarding againft the fuffering of the worthy, and the impofitions of the idle and licen- tious poor. What, if any, will be the refule of his labours in parliament for thefe ends, is yet to be proved. Every friend to the general happinels of mankind, muft wih that fuch a bill may be adopted at laft, as may tend to the aid of virtuous indigence, and the moft effectual correction of publick abufe. While this great and difficult fubject fhall be in agi-« tation, it is much to be defired, that gentlemen of leifure and talents in different parts of the country, would give that attention to it which the liberal views of fo active an advocate have invited, and which its importance fo loudly calls for. In every civilized country its interior political ceconomy, which involves the moral good and the * Mr. Gilbert, | sige focial ime. 3 focial comfort of a large proportion of inconfiderate and impotent perfons, is a ftudy highly worthy of the philofopher and the Chriftian. In this country, poffeffing as it does, in an emi- nent manner, various local advantages, the lights of knowledge, the freedom of religion, and com- paratively happy in the freedom of its government ; fuch men are peculiarly called on to exert their ta- Jents for the prevention of mifery, and the promo- tion of general order and happinefs in the fubordi- nate clafles of Society. The perfect attainment of thefe ends, by national laws and regulations, is not to be expected. Human laws, the fchemes of hu- man imperfection, and which are neceffarily in fome degree theoretical, muft ever be inadequate to the production of perfect virtue, and confequent felicity. It is fufficient if they be the beft that human pru- dence could devife, to anfwer the beft ends. “Such laws will at leaft ferve as general fecurities of order, union, and profperity. But after all which the wifeft policy can enaét, a large field will remain open for the more private offices of the active and benevolent citizen; and whatever can be privately done, by plans of local economy, moving on the provident principles of morality and virtue, will be io much in aid of the. wifeft laws of the ftate; or rather Peor3t} rather it will fupply the natural and neceffary defect ofthem. What can be more worthy of a wife and good man, than to be employed in effecting a good, which a government cannot accomplifh, and that by exercfing, moft to his own rational delight, the be- nevolence of his own mind ? Of the Vagrant Poor,—thofe who under various pretences wander about the country without any vifible means of getting a maintenance, and who furnifh but too common a fufpicion of their being worfe than flurdy beggars,—we fhall fay but little. As vagrants, the laws now in force provide for their being treated as they too generally deferve ; and if fuch perfons were more frequently taken into cuftody, and compelled to give an account of themfelves, it would be equally good in its confequences to them and to the community, In this refpect the activity of magiftrates, in pu- nifhing the idle and profligate on the one hand, while on the other they exercife their authority in their diftri€ts, to prevent parochial oppreffions, and negléé&ts of duty towards the diftreffed, will prevent much irregular ftrolling, and correct the motives to it, This very important part of a ma- giftrate’s duty, though in itfelf an unpleafant and invidious one, cannot be too much commended, Ps wherever [ 24 J wherever difcharged with a due regard to juftice and humanity. The charaéer of fuch a vigilant and worthy magiftrate will operate to the terror of idle wanderers, while the cafually diftreffed poor traveller will be fecured from famine, gg the bitter temptation to fteal. But the clafles of poor for whofe benefit this article is principally intended, are, the refident 1a- bourers in hufbandry, manufactures, and mechanics. Such may be faid to form the bulk, and the valuable bulk too, of the people in this country ; to render their poverty the leaft irkfome to themfelves and to the publick, and as much as poffible to prevent poverty, will be allowed in every point of view to be a work of exalted charity and univerfal be- nefit. It wifely anticipates natural evil, by the timely application of moral principles. ‘This we may fairly hope is practicable in moft parifhes, be- caute it has been found eafily practicable in various ftuations. The eftablifhment of Provident Societies, for a provifjon in health againft the day of ficknefs, has been tried, and wherever it has been tried, the effet has been uniformly good. The mode of this provifion has been in its outline generally the fame, 1, Cry [ oy J ive. by inducing the labouring clafies to appropriate fome fmall ‘part of their earnings to a fund, from which they may draw fuccour in the hour of need. This plan has indeed fometimes originated with the moft fenfible of the poor themfelves, and has been catried into effect without much patronage from the wealthy. But where the latter have been active in aiding, by their example and protection, this com- mendable difpofition, it has fucceeded in a pro- portionable degree. And fo confiderable in fome inftances has that degree been, as to make ita matter of furprife that fuch ceconomy has not been univerfal! ‘The reafon, indeed, of this defect of exertion is to be found, where every other moral defect has its origin; in the natural propenfity of the human mind to do thofe things which ought not to be done, and to omit thofe which fhould be performed. E To dwell on a moral defect is a far lefs pleafing tafk, than to urge the wifdom and happinefs of doing well. This, therefore, we will endeavour to do, -as the moft likely means of engaging that atten- tion, which may be favourable to the end in view. Now with every common deduétion from the good- nefs of human nature, it feems obvious that the mind of man is prone to commend, at leaft, the _ amiablenefs f. .216) 9 amiablenefs of yirtue, and fincerely to approve thofe deeds of focial kindnefs which appear moft confpicuous in any character. Never, perhaps, was there an inftitution, well-planned by human forefight for alleviating human mifery, that did not fooner or later gain the applaufe of the publick. The virtuous active citizen, wherever he has been found devoting his labours and his wealth to the protection of the indigent, the maimed, or the fick, has been generally beloved while living, and his memory after death has been honoured and re- vered. The hero may be remembered, from the fplendor of his devaftations, with a mixture of admi- ration and difguft: the fage will be renowned for the acutenefs of his judgment; but it is the cha- racter formed on the principles of “ the Man of «© Rofs,” that excites the tribute of univerfal efteem. Such a tribute produces a reflected pleafure on the mind that beftows it; while the benevolent feelings’ of that man who deferves it, are his own higheft reward. ‘They preferve in his bofom a perpetual glow of delight, with which mere amufement or fenfuality can never be connected, Various have been the outlines of plans, fub- mitted to the publick examination, with a view of bringing the fubject before parliament, fo as to obtain f a7 obtain a wational reform, by authority. But im- provements by inftitutions of authority, have long been waited for in vain. Some have held forth the neceffity of large buildings under the names of work-houfes, houfes of induftry, &c. to be efta-~ blifhed in certain diftriéts through the nation, for carrying on different branches of manufa¢ture, by means of the indigent, who fhould want relief; thereby fuppofing that fuch poor would be more certainly employed, more regularly fuperintended, better provided for, and at a cheaper rate. Others have reprobated that fyftem 7x toto, and maintained that while fuch houfes would be attended with an enormous expence of building, they would do nothing towards leflening the general burden; but that the poor in them, committed as to fo many’ jails, would be rendered unhappy; their morals, from a crowded way of life, would become more corrupt; their labour would be lefs, and their work worfe done; confequently, that manufactures would be injured: that the maintenance of the poor would coft more, and that the peafantry would be enervated by fuch early confinement and reftraint. Under fuch contradictory opinions, the fubject has received but little elucidation; and the uncer- tainty * 2 er a tainty of a new national regulation continues -as great as ever; while, notwith{tanding the flourifh- ing ftate of moft manufactures, the poors-rates are making a conitant advance. The laft circumi- ftance mult prove, either, that population has been rapidly increafing, or that the fyftem of ma- naging the poor is dajly becoming worfe. The former of thefe may be true; the latter cannot be the cafe, without a national degeneracy in the morals and habits of the poor. To obviate fuch a pros bable evil, as well as to lighten the general burden, it has been a favourite theory of feveral intelligent writers, that-the poor may be made to maintain themfelves. Under the’ preffure of infufficient mil- lions of expenditure, this fhould feem a paradox; and yet fo plaufible, and indeed rational, have been fome calculations, that the poffibility of almoft real- izing fuch a {cheme, is not void of hope. Among the moft ingenious of thofe fchemes may be confidered that of Mr. Pew, late of Welling- borough, but now of Shaftefbury. His treatife, which is intitled Tawenty Minutes Obfervations on a better Mode of providing for the Poor, feems to have been long undefervedly out of print, and not to have been known in proportion to its merit. As containing facts, refpeéting an affociation in one place, attended with remarkable fuccefs, and rea- foning [cote i] foning very fairly from thofe fo general advantages of the like nature; it has been thought advifeable by the Committee. of this Society’s papers to folicit the author’s confent to its being republifhed at the Society’s expence. And it was with particular plea- fure that the Committee received his confent for that purpofe in the moft obliging terms. In ju tice to the mafterly, outline which this tract exhibits, and to the ftyle and manner of the author, the whole is given without alteration. Twenty Minutes Obfervations on a better Mode of pro- viding for the Poor ; in which it is rendered probable that they may be effectually relieved, in @ manner more agreeable to the general Feelings of Mankind, at the fame time that Iwo Millions jierling, or more, may be annually faved to the nation. By Reh a kh EE Ww, Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, Edimburgh. PREFACE. Regulations which tend to increafe the happinefs of in- dividuals, at the fame time that they diminifh the general burthens of the community, will command the attention of a difcerning Legiflature. “The author flatters himfelf that both thefe ends may be in a great meafure accom- plifhed, by the plan he is about to propofe; and he there- fore makes no apology for communicating bis fentiments to the publick. Twenty [ 220 ] Twenty Minutes Obfervations ec. HE rapid and enormous increafe of the poor’s rate in this kingdom, during the laft few years, has for fome time created in the landed intereft the moft general and juft apprehenfions; many plans have been fuggefted, and many fchemes devifed, to remedy or diminifh the grievance, but hitherto with little or no effect; nor ought it perhaps to be ex- pected that the burthen fhould ever be totally re- moved, although it may be very much alleviated. At any rate, it is an object of the moft ferious con- cern, that its increafe fhould, if poffible, be prevented, and its prefiure, as far as can be, equalized. To this end there is reafon to hope that the bills lately framed by Mr. Gilbert may a good deal contribute; but is there not a noflibility of doing fomething more? Thofe bills are rather calculated to correét the evil; may we not ja fame meature, by anticipa- tion, prevent it?—IJn this perfuafion, I fhall venture co offer a few obfervations.—I believe it may be alferted with juftice, that moft of the diftreffes of the poor in this country are more artificial than real diftrefles; they do not depend fo much on any difi- culty in procuring the neceflaries, or even the con. veniencies of life, as upon a total want of ceconomy amoneft the poor, in the management of what they 7 earn; [ 297 j earn; it being too much the cuftom with them (ultimately certain of relief from the parifo) to fquan- der immediately all they get, be it little or much; fo that our manufacturers and labourers, with very few exceptions, are equally poor at the week’s end, whether they have earned in that week a guinea or five fhillings; the ‘furplus in fummer, or a time of plenty, inftead of being laid up againft winter, or a time of fcarcity, is fguandered away in at beft what is unneceflary, and often in acquiring habits of idle- nefs, extravagance, and intemperance, not eafily to be relinquifhed. It is the bufinefs of a wife legifla- ture to correct, if poffible, this extravagant tendency of the people, and, where it cannot hope for a natural and pofitive habit of cecanomy, to fubftitute, if practicable, a negative and artificialone; that fome kind of equilibrium and uniformity may take place between the income and the expenditure of the poor throughout the year; for as matters now ftand, (from this total want of ceconomy) the wants of the labourer are greater in winter, when he has fewer means of fupplying them, than they are in the fum- mer, when he can earn much more; fo likewife in the fingle ftate, and in the vigour of youth, a man’s wants are inconfiderable to what they are in the mar- ried ftate; and in the winter of age, when from the diminution of his ftrength, or the increafe of his family, f ae J family, he is lefs able to fupply them. Yet not- withftanding thefe facts are continually pafling be- fore our eyes, we find that mankind have not of themfelves fuficient refolution to be ceconomical, or to lay up any thing in health and profperity, again{t the attacks of poverty and difeafe. It has been my fortune to be placed in a fituation, which obliges me often to vifit the dreary manfions of the wretched, when the jaundiced eye of difeafe gives additional horror to the meagre countenance of poverty. With a mixture of forrow, indignation, and pity, have I often feen a young man, capable of earning fourteen fhillings a week, with a wife in perfect health, and only one child, reduced by a fingle week’s illnefs to the neceffity of feeking relief from the parifh! whilftthe furniture of his houfe, and the coverings of what was called his bed, were fuficient, from their filth and naftinefs alone, to occafion, difeafe in the moft robuft conftitution. Could this extreme poverty proceed from any other caufe than the moft fhameful mifmanagement ?* As a proof that it could not, I have now within my eye a poor honeft fellow, who earns no more than fix fhillings per week, has five children under nine years of age, and ‘his wife big with the fixth, who held out, notwithftanding, under a ftate of total inattivity, for full four weeks, without applying toa parifh, and without running in debt. y and {f 223 j and is it not the duty of every government to oblige fuch perfons to be ceconomical, whether they will of themfelves or not, and to compel them, if poffi- ble, to lay up fomething in health and youth againft the attacks of a numerous family, ficknefs, or age? It fhall be my bufinefs to examine the poffibility of ' putting an equitable fcheme for this purpofe into execution—let others determine how far it be com- patable with the fpirit of the Britifh conftitution, In matters purely fpeculative, no certain conclu- fion can be drawn a priori of their fuccefs, when reduced to practice; we are obliged, therefore, to reafon from the beft analogies we can find, and to form our conjectures of the probability of their fuc- ceeding, by a comparifon with other plans, which experience has proved tobe fuccefsful. It is known to every body, that there are in this kingdom many affociations under the title of clubs, or friendly focie- _ ties, the object of which is to fecure to the members of them, when incapable of labour, a certain fum weekly, during fuch interruption; of thefe I fhall take for my example one inftituted in this town* about forty years ago, upon the fame principle, I believe, ay moft other affociations of this nature throughout the kingdon: every member pays into the hands of the Treafurer one fhilling every four * Wellingborough, weeks “a [ 224 J weeks, which muft be depofited for one year com- pleat, before he becomes intitled to any relief from the fociety; after that period, when rendered jn- capable of labour, he receives fix fhillings per week for the {pace of fix months; but if his incapability continues longer than that time, his pay is reduced to three fhillings per week, which he receives until he gets well, or otherwife as long as he lives, The fame provifion is made for thofe perfons who are rendered incapable of labour by age; for the firft fix months they receive 6s. per week, afterwards 3s. It alfo provides for burying the dead in a decent manner, and allows for each funeral three pounds. —This flender monthly contribution has been found fo perfectly adequate to the purpofes intended by it, that it has not only proved fufficient to defray every expence, agreeable to the conditions held out, but has alfo enabled the fociety, without rifk, to return a guinea to each member every two or three years (the number 48) retaining many pounds as Bank ftock. The perfon who ties my hair has been in this affociation for the laft feven years; he has £. s. d. paid annually thirteen fhillings, - - 4 11 0 Without having received any thing on account of ficknefs, he has withdrawn at three feveral times one guinea, - 8 >} 20 Balance paid 1 8 © { 225 J] So that in faé&t 1]. 8s. is all that he has difburfed in the {pace of feven years, or 4s. per annum; a tri- fling fum indeed, when compared with the advan- tages he might, if neceffary, have derived from the inftitution; but after all there remains in ftock 361. 11s. one forty-eighth part of which, or 16s. 23d. may be confidered as his property, fo that he has, in reality, in the courfe of feven years, funk no more than 12s. gid. or is. rod. per annum.* That the income of the fund may fuffer no dimi- nution or interruption, every difabled member con- tinues to pay his monthly contribution as at other times, although he is upon the fick lift. Now if fo fmall a contribution as one fhilling in a month, or one twenty-fourth part of a common labourer’s wages, be fufficient, for forty years together, permanently to maintain a fund more than adequate to the purpofe of affording to each member a com- fortable fubfiftence when afflicted with ficknefs, or exhaufted by age, might not a fund be drawn from the people at large upon the fame principle (almoft without their feeling it when in health and profperity) fufficient, or nearly fufficient, to fupport them in * Mot above one-feventh part of the fum originally paid, three- pence per week. Mou. VL Q. time F 336.3 time of ficknefs or in old age? In thort, may fot every parith be induced, or compelled, to form them- felves into one or more friendly affociations, to which each individual above a certain age (fuppofe males 18, females 17)* fhould be obliged to contribute a fmall proportion of their fuppofed income, for the purpofe of fupporting them when unable to get their own livelihood? Let us inquire what would be the probable effeéts when applied to a particular town; I fhall as before take that of Wellingborough. It appears by an actual and exaét enumeration, made under my direction, that_the number of in- habitants refiding in Wellingborough amounts in the whole to 2857; that out of thefe 847 males, and 1100 females, are above the age fpecified; the fum therefore paid by thefe perfons would be 847 fhil- lings, and 1100 four-pences, every four weeks, amounting in the whole to 6ol. 13s. 8d. or 788]. 17s. 8d, per annum. The expence of the poor in Wellingborough, upon the average of three years laft paft, appears to have * About thefe ages, refpectively, a fpirit of independance ufually becomes manifett ; it is this {pirit I wih to catch, and to preferve it unfubdued through life. been { 227 J been 11911. 4s. r1id. from which dedué& 7881. 17s. 8d. there remains 4021. 7s. 3:d. or very little more than one-third of the prefent expences of the parith.’ Let this be applied to the whole kingdom, taking the expence of the poor to be, as in 177 3, three millions,* the faving to the nation will amount to the fum of 1,984,885]. fterling, a fum well worthy the attention of the leciflature; and this might be raifed in a man- ner fo eafy and gentle, and fo perfedtly congenial to the wifhes of the people, as fcarcely to be felt, much lefs complained of, by any individual, efpeci- ally in manufacturing towns, where the poor are always the moft numerous, and always the moft wretched; fince the fum here fpecified would fel- dom amount to one 48th part of the artificer’s wages; yet the return, in the time of his neceffity, would be much greater than it would be poffible for the parifh to afford him, however well, difpofed they might be, and however great his diftrefs. N.B. The computation here made is extremely moderate, fince it allows nothing for the number of contributors prohibited from receiving,t the in- ‘* I flate this on the authority of Lord Kaims. Mr. Gilbert, who has been moft laudably attentive to this fubject, eftimates the total expence at about two millions anda half. + About one-fifth, which, it is fuppofed, will be nearly equal to the fum neceffary for the relief of large families, of widows, and of orphans, Q2 creafed f 226 9 creafed frugality of the poor, which may reafonably be expected, the prevention of impofition on pa- rifhes, (to an aftonifhing amount) by the clamorous and idle; the expence of removing paupers, the litigations concerning fettlements, the number of payable males now abfent in the army and navy,* or the furplus which conftantly takes place in all pri- vate inftitutions of this nature; all which circum- {tances taken together would certainly amount to a fum not far fhort of the 1,015,115]. unprovided for; nay, perhaps this inftitution may hereafter be brought, by proper management, to afford a con- fiderable furplus for the ufe of the ftate; and thus the lower orders of the community, inftead of being 4 burthen, would become, in every fenfe of the word, beneficial to the nation ; whereas the poor laws now in being, however benevolent in their original in- tention, do certainly operate as a fevere sax upon honeft induftry, and as a bounty upon extravagance. ¢ In Doctor Davenant’s time (fays Lord Kaims) * the poor-rates were about 700,00ol. annually; in “ the year §764 they amounted to 2,200,000}. in “the year 1773 they amounted to 3;,000,000l. ‘€ equal to fix fhillings in the pound land-tax.”’+ * This was written in the year 1733, duiriag the American war. + Sketchgs of the Hiftory of Man. Sketch 10. Now [ 229 ] Now if they have increafed in an equal progref- fion fince the year 1773, which there is too much reafon to apprehend; they muft (fuppofing this calculation to be juft) have amounted in the year 1782 to 3,800,000l. fterling; and the faving by the plan here propofed will be increafed in proportion, that is, to the enormous fum: of 2,500,000]. and this, even admitting the whole fum now raifed for the poor to be abfolutely neceffary, and that the de- ficiency of the fums raifed by thefe contributions -muft be made up, how aftonifhingly great then will be the advantages to this nation, fhould the funds alone, as they probably will, prove adequate to the ends propofed by them! Out of this fund every man, who is really incapa- ble of labour, fhall have a right to demand fix* fhillings per week, for the firft fix months, fhould his illnefs laft fo long, and three fhillings per week after that period, until he again becomes capable of labour; every woman fhould have a right to demand two fhillings per week for the firft fix months, and afterwards one fhilling and fix-pence per week, until fhe is again able to work. I would alfo with * I am inclined to believe that thefe proportions are not the be& ° which may be adopted ; but they are fuch as the people have chofen for themfelves, and perhaps it might not be fafe to alter them, at leaft for the prefent. Q 3 to [ 230 ] to extend the advantages of this inftitution, as a matter of right, to thofe induftrious poor /perfons who are opprefied by large families, to the father- lefs, the widow, and the orphan.* — ~ For I find upon enquiry amoneft fome of the moft induftrious of the poor, that it is almoft im- poffible for a man to maintain a wife and three chil- dren, under nine years of age, upon fix fhillings per week, the wife’s time being fo much taken up in the neceffary duties of her family, that fhe can, under fuch circumftances, earn nothing; with two children under that age they acknowledge they can do tole- rably well, and after they are:nine years of age they can, if in health, nearly earn their own maintenance; every common labaurer or manufacturer then, earn- ing no more than fix fhillings per week, having three children under nine years of age, fhall receive from the fund one fhilling and fix-pence per week until the eldeft of thofe children fhall attain the age of nine years, or until one of them fhall happen to * For there is no reafon why. the terrors of poverty fhould damp the inftinétive parental joy, which ever accompanies the birth of a helplefs innocent; why hunger fhould aggravate the affliction of the widow; or why contempt and indigence thould neceflarily embitter the irreparable lofs of affectionate parents: no, let us mitigate thefe ” unavoidable calamities, as far as lies in ouf power, by a frugal, an unhumiliating, and 3 determinate provifion. die; Lan Wy die; and if any one or more of his children thall happen to be idiotic, infane, or any ways fo far dif- abled either in body or mind, as to be utterly in- capable of labour, each of them fhall be confidered as if ftill under the age of nine years, and paid for accordingly. If a mother fhould be left a widow with three children, under feven years of age, fhe fhall receive from the fund five fhillines, if with two children three fhillings, and if with one child one fhilling and fix-pence per week; if with more than three under that age, one fhilling per week for each ‘above-that number, it being confidered that all her time is taken up by three, and allowance made for it, butthat fhe is capable of looking after and taking care of a greater number, which however will very rarely happen. ~ Orphans will be attended with fornewhat more difficulty; the fame proportions, however, fhould be allotted from the fund for their maintenance, and fome receptacle provided for them, where they may be taught to get their own living by the age of nine years; and widows, without children, under the age ‘of 65, may, when in health, be confidered as able to -get their own fubfiftence. _ Providing thus early againft the poffibility of neceflary poverty, will be attended with the moft happy [ 232 J happy effects, (for the politive advantages of this plan, however great, I confider as fcarcely equal to the negative ones) cherifh that {pirit of independency which is natural to the human mind, and in a fhort time there will be found fcarcely a really poor perfon in his Majefty’s dominions.* It is with the poor man as it is with the tradef- man; the latter, as long as the balance at the-year’s end appears in his favour, and he adds fomething annually to his capital ftock, continues unremittingly to exert himfelf to the utmoft of his abilites; but if, notwithftanding his exertions, the balance of trade goes again{t him, and he finds his capital an- nually decreafing, he begins at firft to look into his accounts with reluctance, then neglects them alto- gether, and at length feeks relief in continual dif- fipation, So itis with the poor man; as long as he continues - in perfect health, his earnings are generally fufficient to procure him a comfortable fubfiftence; and if he * The truth of this idea may be inferred from hence, that upon the moft ftriét enquiry I do not find more than one or two inftances where any member of the aflociation became chargeable to the parith; and thefe were under the prefiure of very large families, labouring under general ficknels, both which circumftances would by this Scheme be provided againft, 1s f ag59 3 is in debt to no one on Saturday night, he leys him- felf down contented. Let us fuppofe him now afflicted with a few days illnefs, that his credit is good, and he runs a little in debt; as foon as he re- - covers, he makes fome efforts to pay it, but before he can accomplifh this, a fecond illnefs: overtakes himfelf, his wife, or his family, his debt of neceffity increafes, and at length arrives to fuch a height, that he fees it is impoffible, by any exertions he can make, to recover himfelf; he feels hurt at the idea, his fpirit is broken, and if no one from charity, or good policy, fteps in to relieve him from his prefent dilemma, his defire of independency is loft ror EVER; he applies to the overfeers for relief, and having once furmounted the pride natural to man, and been beholden (as they call it) to the parifh, he is determined to get as much from it as he can; and thus, by an ageregation of fuch cafes, the poor’s rate is extended beyond all bounds. Such is the progrefs of the human mind, in the lower orders of fociety, as I have too frequently had occafion to obferve. Let us now turn our eyes to the {cheme here pro- pofed, the eafy practicability of which may be in- ferred from the general tendency of the people, both male and female, to run into fuch affociations, under many [ 234 J many difficulties, in every part of the kingdom, and its probable effects we have traced at fome length before. It is true thefe aflociations are, at prefent, chiefly compofed of the more induftrious. part of the people, the lower clafs of tradefmen; but we have made ample allowance, as I think, for the moft confiderable difficulties which can poffibly arife, even amoneft the moft neceffitous part of the community, Could fuch a {cheme be carried into execution, many advantages would arife to the kingdom, indepen- dent of the increafe of population, the relief it would afford to the landed intereft, and ftability it would give to public credit. . By it the youthful, the vigo- rous, and the active, would infenfibly become the fupporters of the aged, the infirm, and the difeafed; the fingle man, finding that he muft contribute to the fupport of the married man’s children, would find it his»intereft early to obey the dictates of na- ture, arid marry likewife, from: which he would no longer be deterred, by the fear that himfelf and: his offspring might become beggars, Equally and enviably fecured againft the incon- veniencies of poverty-or riches, fupporting and fup- ported in turn by his fellow parifhioners, the peafant would pafs his days, the father of a numerous and vigorous offspring, in eafe, tranquillity, and peace. As [.ags 4° As all would be interefted in the ftability of the fund, each individual: would become the overfeer of his neighbour; and as all would be provided for upon an equal footing, no difcontent could arife on account of partiality; whilft every one being fecure of a! comfortable and determinate fubfiftence, there could be no temptations to vice from neceffity, and it is.to be hoped fewer than at prefent from example, The indolent man, not contributing his quota, would be equally obnoxious to the fquire and to the peafant; and as from his deficiency he would be immediately detected, fo his idlenefs fhould inevi- tably meet its proper antidotes, confinement and labour, By proper certificates from one affociation to another, the detrimental, expenfive, and often in- human removal of paupers, generally under a ftate of difeafe, and frequently in the agonies of death! would be rendered unneceffary; the amiable long- ings of thofe individuals (who have gained fettle- ments at a diftance) to pafs the evening of their days in their native place, with their earlieft friends, relations, and acquaintance, might be fafely gratified ; the litigations between parifhes concerning the {et- tlements of paupers would be heard of no imoré; ; the [ 236 ] the petty fhufflings and underhand tricks to evade or diminifh the poor-rates, fo common at prefent, would be annihilated, and every human being, with- out fear or moleftation, would be enabled to feek his fubfiftence wherever his genius, his inclination, or his intereft, might lead him; but, above all, the fum of human happinefs would be confiderably aug- mented, by the comfort which every man of mode- rate defires and independent principles mutt feel, when he recollects, that whatever accident can befall him, to deprive him, of the power of getting his fubfiftence, he is certain of a comfortable main- tenance, without any difgrace to himfelf, or any obligation to others. ‘ Inthe days of my profperity ({fays he to the Treafurer of the fund) 1 depofited a fum of money in your hands to fupport me when I fhould fall under the preffure of adverfity ; that period is now arrived, I demand therefore on your part the fulfilment of the contract; pay me the fum I ftipu- jated to receive.” , Such are the advantages which feem naturally to arife from the plan I have ventured to propofe; but perhaps difficulties may occur in the execution, which I, in my zeal, may have overlooked, or which cannot at prefent be forefeen; and which may render the fcheme in fome meafure abortive. Thefe diffi- culties, i my] culties, fo far as they appeared, it was my intention to have pointed out in this place, together with fuch _ regulations as feemed to me, from a confiderable attention to this pleafing fubjet, moft likely to ob- viate them; but I could not render them fo perfect as to fatisfy my own mind, in time for the prefent publication, which I was unwilling any longer to delay, from an apprehenfion that a bill would be brought into the Houfe of Commons by Mr. Gilbert foon after the Chriftmas recefs, which appeared to me lefs adequate to the end propofed. There is a principle in the human mind, which renders it im- patient of controul; mankind in general may be induced almoft to any thing; but he who attempts to compel them, will find it an Herculean labour. By ftrict difcipline and the terrors of martial law, a body of men may be kept in a ftate of mechanical fubjection; but if the commanding officer does not convince them that he has their intereft at heart, and that he harraffes them no more than the fervice neceffarily requires, thefe men will defert him at his utmoft need. To fecure their obedience, he muft gain their affection; perfuade them they are of con- fequence, and they become enthufiafts in your caufe ; in like manner convince the multitude that they can and ought to provide for themfelves, and sdey will provide for themjelves. I thal sad [ 238 J T fhall not lofe fight of this pleafing fubjeét,* but if the foregoing outline meets the public approba- tion, or feems likely to be adopted by the legiflature, I fhall in due time throw out fuch hints as appear to me likely to render it fuccefsful; together with fome obfervations (as a confequence of the former) on a probable mode of paying off fifty millions of the national debt, in the courfe of twenty years, without levying any tax which can be felt as a frefh burthen by the people. * Since writing the above I have read fome Inquiries concerning the Poor, made with equal judgment and humanity by John M‘Farlan, D. D. of Edinburgh; which are well worthy the atten- tion of the publick. So far this ingenious and valuable author. The picture he has drawn of the refources to be found by a provident management of the poor, is pleafing in a high degree. His remarks on human nature, in connexion with his facts, are folid and judicious, His fcheme for a general contribution monthly, in aid of fuch a fund as he contends for, has the moft flattering appearance of fuccefs. Happy would it be for this country, were it voluntarily reduced to trial, in every town or diftrict, where the experiment is moft eafy; from fuch experiments more F. 239. } more real knowledge would be gained, more ge- neral certainty would be eftablifhed, than froma thoufand theoretical fpeculations. Nothing is more eafy than for a few trials to be made in {mall manufacturing towns, and in country diftriéts where agriculture is the chief. employment of the poor. This at leaft muft be allowed to be true, as to the mode of proceeding, the general earnings of the poor coming weekly through the hands of the gentlemen, tradefmen, and farmers, near whom they live. But a ferious doubt has arifen, whether farmers fervants be not worfe paid for labour than any other, and confequently leaft capable of fparing a fmall weekly contribution ? If this. be the cafe, it is a fubjec&t of much re- gret, feeing that of all defcriptions of labourers thefe are the moft ufeful and effential. This fubject is worthy of general confideration; and-a general agreement in. moft counties, to increafe the pay of labourers in hufhandry, feems indeed, from the common fenfe of the publick, to be ne- ceflary. It may be a difficulty to fix the point at which a provident poor man might be unable to fpare three-pence per week out of his income, without oppreffing himfelf or fome of his family ; but undoubtedly, in the common courfe of nature’s wants [ 240 J wants, there is fuch a point; to prevent, however, the knowledge of it, is both more wife and more virtuous, than to wifh to have it afcertained! Give him the power of contribution, and then the ufe of it may be fairly expected. By a cordial agreement of mafters to point out the advantages of fuch a plan, and to employ in preference thofe labourers who fhould confent to it, confent muft become general. From the readinefs which the poor in fome places have fhewn to incorporate themfelves, and the idea they eafily admit, that to provide againft adverfity is advantageous and honourable, we would hope there would feldom be found a murmuring difpofition. And if their mafters and the principal inhabitants were generally, by way of encouragement, to contribute in common with them, the plan would become highly popular and pleafing. Should it be objected againft fuch a plan, that it would go to the making of the fund too large, which might occafion relaxation among the poor contributors; it is anfwered, 1ft. Let the wealthy contribute only fo far as always to keep the fund up to a certain fum, proportioned to the number of contributing labourers; or, 2dly; Let the weala thy contribute at pleafure, and let the amount, over and [ 241 ] and above the affumed ftandard of proportion be conftantly divided once or twice a year among the poor contributors, according to their number of children. Either rule might be adopted, as moft fuitable to the circumftances of the parifh or diftrict ; but the latter may be found the moft ufeful, as being moft liberal in its principle, and as tending to ftrengthen the affection of the poor to their benefactors, which is the fureft bond of good faith in fociety. 7 Laftly; Such a concurring meafure would bid fair to fecure, almoft beyond a poffibility of mif- carriage, the original purpofe of funding; the plan being thus rendered doubly encouraging to the poor, that eafe and energy of mind, which make perfeverance a pleafure, may be expected to re- main undiminifhed:—for an individual to flag, _would be to expofe himfelf to the reproach of all around him, The conftant recollection that the fund is aug- menting by the contribution of thofe not likely to di- minifh it; or if not conftantly augmenting, at leaft attentively aided by fuch perfons; would fill moft of the poor with gratitude, which on the prefent plan Vou, VI. | R of [ 242 ] of intercourfe is not deemed a very common virtue among them. But this animated affection, once excited, will be kept alive without difficulty, by the continued benefits found to refult from the connexion between themfelves and their benevolent fuperiors. Under fuch a patronage the moft worthy among the poor would become improved into ftill better examples to the lefs worthy. Emulation, then, infenfibly flides into the bofom of the flothful, and of confequence their moft obnoxious habits become gradually corrected. All the laborious part of a diftrict, on fuch a plan, would be animated to ftrive as in one common caufe, feeling one common intereft, looking to one common fecurity! The {mall deduétion of three-pence per week would be compenfated by the triumph that the idea of 2 fund of their own would infpire. Their children would naturally catch fomething of the fenfa- tion, and be more prompt and alert in their little ~ exertions. The principle of independence, fo con- genial to the human mind, thus foftered, would crow with their growth, and ftrengthen with their itrensth. The moral effect of this principle, rightly cherifhed, is a wonderful improvement of ~ - the mind itfelf, and would be found not only the moft powerful ftimulus to induftry abroad, but to the beft ceconomy of the family at home. From | a general [43 il a general .courfe of provident attentions, a growing difike to the oppofite habits, fuch as, the frequent- ing of wakes, and other periodical affemblies for idle purpofes, may be expected, till a uniform regu- larity of meritorious and virtuous conduc might be found, where idlenefs, vice, and mifery, had for- -merly dwelt. Where a habit of tippling at the ale-houfe pre- vails in the father of a poor family, it is of fmall confequénce to the comfort of that. family how much or how little he earns, or whether the articles of fubfiftence be dear or cheap; wretchednefs mutt attend his family. All that fuch aman will earn, or filch, is eafily confumed by himfelf, and confumed under a grovelling and ftupid notion that to en- deavour to fave any thing is vain; or if attainable, that there is a greater good in the wafte or indul- gence of the prefent moment. | It may indeed poffibly be objected, that malt liquor is the natural beverage of this country, and that by a rigid difcouragement of drinking {trong beer, the confumption of barley would be leffened, and the landed intereft thereby fuffer. It fhall be readily granted that malt liquor 7s the national be- verage, and that a check to the growth of barley is K..2 not [ 244 -] not to be haftily hazarded; but fuch an evil, if ic be one, may poffibly be guarded againft in a confi- derable degreey by attempting an alteration in the mode of confumption, al 4 - The ftate of malting and brewery, under this fpe- culation, comes naturally into confideration. It is now the policy of the legiflature to lay fo heavy a duty on malt,* as wholly to exclude from poor, and almoft from middling families, in towns efpe- cially, the ancient practice of brewing for them- felves. Thus it comes to pafs that, comparatively, few private families or even publicans brew. I will not fay that in the article of ftrong beer, efpecially now porter is fo generally brewed out of London, the publick is under any material difadvantage from the parliamentary fyftem. Certain it is that a fubftan- tial common brewer of ftrong beer and porter, ona large {cale of bufinefs, can now brew cheaper and better than a fmall one. And confidering the high duries on the ftaple articles of brewery, it is rather a matter of furprize that beers of the various degrees of {trength, fhould be rendered on the whole fo good as they really are, at the prices they are fold for. * Since this was written three-pence per bufhel has been taken of; but the reduction is fo fmall, that little alteration will arife in the line of coniumption, But [j 245: ] . But it is worthy of confideration. whether an equal confumption of malt may not be obtained by a different ufe of breweries from that which pre- vails at prefent, and the nation, including the bulk of the poor, for whofe advantage we are now con- cerned, be better, that is more generally and ufe- fully, fupplied with malt liquor. On the prefent fyftem, in country towns and diftricts efpecially, the alternative is nearly this: {trong beer, or no beer at all; for any thing below the defcription of ftrong beer is with difficulty to be procured. Hence water, for a common beverage, is frequently drunk in poor families, where ftrong beer, on account of the man’s irregularities, cannot be afforded, And perhaps a hankering prevails in him after ftrong beer, beyond what might be the cafe if a fupply of frefh and palatable fmaller beer could be readily ob- tained.. This hankering after a favourite liquor is augmented by the difficulty of procuring it in common. And when a poor man once breaks out ‘of his bufinefs, and gets to the alehoufe, he is fre-. quently ftimulated with a defire of an immoderate quantity, incurs an expence equal to what might. fupply his whole family with good table beer, lofes — his time in drunkennefs, (which lofs of time is alfo a publick lofs to the community) injures his health and morals, and prevents the poffibility of harmony R 3 in [ 246 ] in his family. ‘The landed intereft, then, in this part of the confumption of barley, and that of the revenue in the confumption of malt, are fo far forth fupported by irregularity, mijery, arid a watte againft the wall. To obviate thefe objections, and ferious evils to the poor, (which are alfo connected with evils to manufactures, and confequently to the national in- tereft) would it not be found policy to encourage the fetting up of fmall-beer breweries in country places and manufaéturing towns? As an article of large profit, the brewing of fmall beer for fale in fuch towns and places, may not be held out as creatly inviting; nor is it perhaps of confequence, or at all defirable, that it fhould. In a national and moral point of view, it may be quite as defi- rable that ten or twenty members of the commu- nity fhould get a decent fubfiftence upon an equality of trade, as that one fhould acquire a large for- tune, while many others fhall be his labourers in the manufaéturing of an article. And yet in large towns, and for the fupply of large towns, with a liquor of all others moft pleafant and ufeful to Enelifhmen who can afford to drink it, large and fkilful brewers of {trong beer will always be encou- raged, and it is defirable they fhould be. Neither do ig- 247° 3 do I conceive it would be an evil if fuch men were a little to raife the price of {trong beer, I mean only the finer pale beer of this country, and give the confumer an equivalent in age, ftrength, and ftudied excellence of flavour; which might tend to check the now immederate ufe of a foreign, and frequently fpurious noxious article, under the name of red-port. The confumption of this article of late years, and perhaps we may alfo fay the more unwholefome article of French brandy, is a national difadvantage, as well as amoral one. For they are articles which are againft a favourable balance of trade, and in- duce luxury and difeafe, But though, as was hinted before, the progfr of . merely {mall-beer breweries, efpecially on that con- tracted fcale which iome fituations will require, may not be inviting, yet it fhould be remembered that as things are great or {mall by comparifon, a profit which to large brewers would be unworthy of no- tice, might be ufeful and fufficient to another man of {mall property, fmall views, and in the habits of manual labour. And it is prefumable that by a little encouragement many would be found ready to embark on fuch a fcale of brewery, merely fora {canty livelihood, or to employ a part of their time; the experiment is eafy, and may be worth the trial. It [' 248° -] It may be objected that a man in narrow circurn- {tances cannot purchafe cafks, and the neceffary apparatus for felling beer in barrels, or half or quar- ter barrels, more efpecially as the expence of deli- very would be a ferious one, and the rifque of not being paid more ferious ftill, But if only one per- fon in a fmall compact village, whofe houfe fhould be favourable to the undertaking, or two or more in a large and extenfive parifh, were once eftablifhed, with a fimall ftock of cafks, and to fell the beer to thofe who fhould fetch it by the quart or gallon, it feems probable that fuch a plan would be found very convenient to the poor, who might be fur- nifhed juft as they may happen to want, and ina manner the moft compatible with their circum- ftances. A poor family, which, without fuch a plan, could not confiftently with their income have any beer at all, might on this lay out from one penny to fix-pence without trouble or lofs of time; and having this beverage would be lefs likely to make a common beverage of tec, which, with the expence of refined fugar and butter, is enough ta impoverifh the parents, as well as to enervate their offspring. But fuch an eftablifhment of breweries, if ufeful at all, as it is prefumed they would be, muft fucceed beft under the advice and encourage- ment of principal men in a parifh, who will be the beft i ae beft judges of the qualification, proper ‘difpofition, and fituations, of thofe who fhould be induced to engage. It may not always be neceffary, and cer- tainly would not, for thofe who embark to fpend their whole time in fuch an undertaking; much other ufeful bufinefs may be done, when brewing is fuf- pended, while a fingle individual of the family might draw and ferve out the beer to the perfons who fetch it, Such a plan, in large towns where com- mon breweries are already eftablifhed, feems to be fuperfeded, by the felling of this article at chan- dlers’ fhops; but the abundant convenience and great advantage of that fupply, without the ne- ceffity of going to the alehoufe, is a ftrong recom- mendation for an attempt to be made in a more extenfive manner. Wit ie It may be pleafing to fome gentlemen, to read any additional, and recent fentiments of fo ingenious a writer as Mr. Pew, on his favourite fubje&t; his letter, therefore, refpecting the infertion of his pamphlet, is fubjoined. | TO THE SECRETARY, DEAR SIR, I am much obliged to you for your polite letter, of the 24th inftant, which I juft now received, and Paso: Jj and feel myfelf highly honoured by the approbation which the Bath and Weft of England Agricultural Society are pleafed to exprefs of my {mall pamphlet refpecting a better mode of providing for the Poor, publifhed in 1783; and if my feeble efforts can be of any avail, in feconding the endeavours of fo re- ipectable a Society, to bring about a more equal diftribution of the bounties of Providence among all the fons of men; I can affure you, that as it has been always an object indeed very near my heart, it will give me the moft unfeigned fatisfaétion, In that pamphlet I endeavoured to give, in the matt conden/fed form, the principal advantages, both pofitive and negative, which might reafonably be expected from fuch a regulation; and now, after the lapfe of eight years, I cannot call to mind any addi- tional arguments which are likely to convince thofe whofe underftandings the former ftatement did not reach, If the Society do me the honour, therefore, (which I'much wifh) to infert my paper in their next volume, I fhould wifh only to correct the few errors of the prefs as marked in the copy herewith fent, and to add the two notes, which by fome mif- take of the printer, were formerly omitted; for as (Q entering on the practical part, or framing a bill by which the plan might be carried into execution, IC [25x J it feems to me, upon reflection, not only to be highly prefumptuous in any individual, but might perhaps be confidered as a direct infult to the legif- lative wifdom of this country, without whofe affift- ance, I.am clearly of opinion, no permanent or very effential advantages can accrue from it; but when I fay this, I mean only to exprefs my own private opinion; for no one will be more happy to fee fuch additional arguments as may have fuggefted them- felves to any gentlemen of the Society. Two difficulties feem to have occurred to feveral gentlemen, who I am fure are my friends, and well- wifhers to mankind; the firft, as to the practicabi- lity of the fcheme; the fecond, as to its legality. In anfwer to the firft, I can only fay, that if govern- ment would furnifh me with the neceflary powers, I would forfeit my life, or carry it generally into execution; and with regard to the fecond, I confefs I can fee nothing more illegal or oppreffive in taxing a man for the future contingent fupport of bim/elf and Ais family, than in taxing him directly for the fupport of ofbers. I am, dear Sir, your’s, &c. R. PEW. | Shafton, Dec, 29, 1791. P.S, With [i 252° J P.S. With the pamphlet I will fend a copy of Dean Tucker’s letter to Dr, Stonhoufe, on perufing my plan; not out of oftentation, but to fhew how much that refpectable politician coincides in opinion with the gentlemen of the Society and myéfelf, ———___ - “* Glocefter, Feb. 11, 1783. ' Dear Sir, * ] thank you for the perufal of Mr. Pew’s pam~ phlet;. it is a well written, fenfible performance; and if he can extend the fcheme of frugal and pro- vident clubs, fo as to comprehend the whole, or even aconfiderable part of our national poor, he will, in my efteem, deferve more of his country and of mankind, than all the Marlboroughs, or Chat- hams, or Rodneys, that ever lived. I remember to have had_a good deal of talk with the late Sir One- fiphorus Paul, on this very fubjec&t. Sir Onefiphorus encouraged thefe clubs as much as he could, and continued, I believe, a member of feveral of them till his dying day, in order to countenance them, and fet a good example. But in converfation, we then concluded that they muft be voluntary affociations, and not compulfory affemblies; that they were moft practicable in manufacturing diftricts, far re- mote from the vortex of eleétioneering boroughs, (which [ 253 J {which is the cafe of Stroud in Glocefterfhire) and that‘they might be introduced to good purpofe into towns of 5 or 600 houfes, but could hardly fuit with thofe of 5 or 6000. « The affair of granting certificates to the mem- bers of any of thefe clubs, to remove to other places if they chofe to go, (a liberty that ought never to ~be denied them) is at prefent another difficulty, which I wifh to fee well removed, and the law altered which enables a churchwarden, a conftable, or an overfeer, to prevent a perfon of another pa- rith from fettling among them, /& Therefore, with my beft withes of fuccefs to the author’s laudable endeavours, «* T remain, dear Sir, € moft fincerely yours, « J, TUCKER.” “< Tothe “© Rev. Dr. Stonhoufe, M, D. « Briftol.”’ ARTICLE IC 4254.9] ARTICLE XXV. A Plan for the better Maintenance and Regulation of the Parochial Poor. «¢ The number of indigent perfons being greatly increafed, by «¢ withdrawing the alms of the monatteries, a plan was formed *«* in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, more humane dnd benefi- «¢ cjal than even feeding and clothing of millions; by affording “€€ them the means (with proper induftry) to feed and to Biche «< themfelves. - And the farther any fubfequent plans for main- «¢ taining the poor have departed from this inftitution, the «* more impracticable and even pernicious their vifionary at- «< tempts have proved.” Blackftone’s Com. iv. 432+. 4 TO THE SECRETARY, SIR, OOKING over the lift of premiums of your refpeétable Society, I obferve one is direéted for the improvement of the Poor Laws. This has put me on recollecting fome circumftances, which, in the courfe of near twenty-five years practice as a juftice of the peace in the county of Hants, have occurred to me as likely to conduce much, to the comfort of the poor, by making them more induftrious than they are found to be at pre- fent; and alfo to introduce a laudable emulation and fpirit of good order among that ufeful part of the community. The propofitions are but few in number, but feem to me to be effectual to the point in view. The propofal is as follows: | if. That [ 255] if. That in a bill to be brought into pavliament, claufes may be inferted to authorize the juftices of the peace to order a bounty on work, in certain cafes, with a view to producing better effects than by giving money to the poor. tft. This has been put in practice (by recommenda- tion) for near fifteen or fixteen years paft; and has been found to produce an excellent effed?. So that three Jfoillings per week difpenfed by the averfeers, but thought - infuffcient for the fupport of a family, confifting of fix - people, have, by a different mode of difpofal, in the way of bounty, produced the comfortable income of nine foil- lings per week for the fupport of the fame family. But later experience, introduced by the advice of a ma- _ nufatturer, has atundantly evinced, the greater benefit of proportioning the propofed bounty to each fhilling ecrned, as the latter methods apply to the quality of work as well as the quantity. The former to quantity ouly.* 2dly. That certificates given agreeably to the Act of the 8th and gth of King William the Third, and other fubfequent acts, for the amendment of the * Tiluftration. A.and B. are fet to fpinning, and are promifed a bounty on their work, in the proportion of fixpence bounty to each fhilling earned. “A. draws her work to a finenefs of 1s. 6d. per pound, and B. only to1s. A. of courfe is entitled to nine-pence, while B. deferves only fix-pence. wa fame, [ 256 ] fame, be hereafter limited to fhort terms of years. See Gilbert’s plan, 1781. odly. The ufe of this is fo very obvious, and pro- mifing of improvement, that it is fuppofed eight or ten certificates will be granted under the limitation, inftead of one in the prefent mode. And thereby the number of indufirious people in the nation will be much increafed. fs it is found on obfervation, that the certificated la- bourers are abundantly more aétive and induftrious than the fettled inhabitants. And, further, that if fuch cer- tificate be granted for a year only, the juftices of the divifion may enforce the granting it. 81h and 9th ) 3dly. That a difcriminate and fpe- William WU1.ecial ufe of the badge be applied by Cap. 30. the overfeers, with the confent of the majority of a veftry, (fubject to appeal to the divi- fion or diftrict juftices, at their petty feffions) as-a ceniure and punifhment to the diforderly and lazy poor only. 3dly. It ts fuppofed that a creditable mark or token of diftinétion might alfo be adged with excellent effect. 4s avreward, for infiance, to an induftrious labourer, or an ingenious artift, who has bred up a numerous or coufiderable family in a@ reputable mannér, without affftance [ .%7 ] alfifiance from the parifh in which he is fettled. Some real benefit may alfo be added thereto—fuch as, an ex- emption from highway duty for a certain time, or for ever, as in the cafe of militsa-men enrolled in their own right, and not as fubftitutes. Other ufeful fervices to a neighbourhood may likewife be rewarded in the fame manner; as for infiance, to thofe who profecute or make difcovery of perfons guilty of mifdemeanours, and ithe Several degrees of larcenies and felonious offences. Thefe obfervations are fubmitted to the confider- ation of the publick, as conftituting an expedient for the better management and regulation of the poor of this kingdom. And it is prefumed that, by thefe means, the general body of the poor may be fupported in the proportion of half the expence which has been incurred, on their account, for any given period of time within the laft feven years ; that better order and regularity will be eftablifhed and kept up among them; the national ftock of induftry increafed ; that the plan is eafy, fimple, and fpeedy in its execution ; and Jaftly, that the Jargeft county in the kingdom will not require one hundred pounds to carry the plan into practice, as the meaneft cot- tage will, by the bounty propofed, become a work- houfe for one family, fo long as it will be wanted: a circumftance, it is imagined, of no ordinary con- gion, NI. S | fequence, [ 258 J fequence, at a feafon when the kingdom has been put to large and heavy expences on account of im- proving gaols and publick prifons. This, Sir, is the refult of my obfervation; and, I truft and believe, it contains hints that would be found effectual to the intended purpofe. If it fhould meet with the approbation of the committee, I own I fhall think myfelf honoured by their good opinion ; but if it fhall only be the means of urging fome more experienced perfon to propofe a better plan, the community will receive the greater be- nefit, and I fhall be a partaker of the general good, as an individual. | I am, Sir, your moft humble fervant, THOMAS HALL. Prefton-Candover near Odibam, Hants, May 12, 1792. P.S. Itis fuppofed that this plan will operate peculiarly in manufacturing towns; where there are aged or finking manufacturers; and will enable a mafter to reward merit, or fupport the diftrefs of an individual labourer, without danger of advancing the general price of labour. ARTICLE [ 259 J Articte XXVI. On the Damage of Fir-Plantations; in reply to the enquiry inftituted by this Society, as before alluded to by Mr. Davis of Longleat. TO THE SECRETARY. Sir, PON reading over the minutes of the laft general meeting of the Bath Agriculture Society, as advertifed by you the 14th June laft, I obferved that the fociety had received information from Mr. Horner, that his fir-plantations at Mells park have of late years fuffered in a very alarming manner by fquirrels preying upon the bark, whereby great numbers of his fineft trees have been killed, and a general deftruction threatened; and that the fociety, wifhed to inftitute an enquiry how far other gentlemen’s woods have fuffered from the fame caufe, and would be obliged by any communica- tions on the fubject. Happy in complying with the wifhes of my brother members of the fociety, I take up my pen to inform them, that I have been a fellow-fufferer with Mr, Horner, for near thefe dozen years laft paft, in my fir-plantations at this place, from the fame deftructive animals. | 5 2 Many [ 260 J Many years ago, thinking the fquirrels very harm- le{s creatures, and liking to fee them {pring from tree to tree, I gave orders that none of thent fhould be deftroyed; by which means they increafed exceed- ingly. I found no inconvenience enfue, till about 10 or 12 years ago; when,’ after along and fevere winter, I took notice one day, in going round my walks in the wood about the beginning. of April, ' that feveral of my young Scotch firs, which had then been planted about 15 or 16 years, and were very thriving trees, were ftripped of their bark in feveral places, and the ftrips of the bark five or fix inches long, lying at the feet of the trees. I at firft thought that fome roguifh boys had been playing tricks, but upon further examination I found the trees in many places were ftripped fo high up, that no boys could poffibly have got at them: at laft, after watch- ing feveral times in order to find out what could damage the trees in this manner, I caught the {quirrels in the fact of ftripping and tearing off the bark, and throwing it upon the ground. I never perceived any of my trees thus injured before; but fince they have begun, they have never failed more or lefs to attack my fir-trees every year both {mall and great. Of one whole plantation of Scotch firs, of about 2500, which I planted out in the year 1766, there is fcarcely a tree has efcaped their ravages. Wherever f .2ee 7 Wherever they bark the tree all round, there is a difcontinuance of a due circulation of the fap, and that part of the tree, which is above the injury fuf- tained, dies, and is generallybroken off by the firft high winds in the enfuing winter; and the trees, de- prived of their tops, make a moft unfightly appear- ance and are fpoiled. Befides thefe younger trees that are thus barked, I have many large trees, of at leaft 50 years growth, which are in like manner damaged, by thefe mifchievous animals,+in their upper branches and leading fhoots, I have particularly obferved that thefe animals . attack no other fpecies of the fir or pine kind but the Scotch fir, notwithftanding the Scotch fir has the rougheft and hardeft bark of any. The {pruce, the filver, the Weymouth, the larch, the pinatter, and the cedar of Lebanon, though intermixed oc- cafionally with the Scotch in my woods, remain unattacked and unmolefted by them. I have ob- ferved too that the fquirrels never begin their attacks till about the beginning of April, and generally ceafe from their deftruétive works about the latter end of May. From this circumftance I have been induced to draw this inference; that thefe animals, which are $3 known [ 363 7} known to lay up in the autumn their hoards of nuts, chefnuts, beech mafts, acorns, &c. for their winter confumption, never attack the firs while they can get ripe fruits inthe fummer, or while their hoards remain unconfumed in the winter; but that as foon as their winter ftores are exhaufted, which will fome- times happen in long and hard winters followed by a late fpring, (as was the cafe when they firft attacked my fir-trees 10 or 12 years ago) they are driven by neceffity to feek for food wherever they can find it. This neceffity probably firft prompted them to try what the Scotch fir might produce; and having once tafted the refinous particles, they relifhed it fo well, that they have ever fince reforted to the fame fource of fupply whenever the calls of hunger urged them to it. What further perhaps induces thefe animals to apply to the Scotch fir in preference to the other forts of firs, may be the fimilarity of tafte between the feeds of the Scotch fir cones, (of which the {quirrels are remarkably fond) and the refinous par- ticles which lie beneath the inner rind of the Scotch fir; for it is, I apprehend, thefe refinous particles which they eat, and are in fearch of when they {trip off the bark, and not the bark itfelf,; which they always reject and throw down. After mild winters | thejr ravages are not fo great, their hoards not being fo foon exhapfted; to this reafon I impute it that my [ . 63:9 my trees have efcaped this {pring (after fo mild a winter as the laft) without fuffering much damage. Having thus pointed out the mifchief, and in fome meafure accounted for the caufe of it, I with I could as eafily point out the remedy. The deftruction of the animal of courfe is the firft that offers itfelf; but that is not, in large woods efpecially, fo eafily accomplifhed. There are various ways, by which their numbers may be diminifhed, but in the fhelter and harbour of extenfive planta- tions, their agility and their cautious fhynefs and cunning, will baffle all our endeavours; however, they may be greatly leffened by degrees, and in time perhaps in a great meafure extirpated, » either by taking their nefts and deftroying their young year after year, when they can be got at, which is not always to be done, as they generally build their nefts at the extremities of the branches; or by hunt- ing or fhooting them. But where they are nume- rous, all thefe methods will hardly be fufficient, unlefs purfued by an unremitting perfeverance. If any more effectual method can be thought of for deftroying thefe animals, I fhall be very gald to be made acquainted with it, Thus I have committed to paper fuch particulars as have occurred to my obfervation relative to thefe deftructive [ 264 ] deitructive creatures; which I muft beg you will lay before the fociety at their next meeting, with my moft refpectful compliments. Dam, cits Your moft humble fervant, JAMES BERNARD. Crowcombe-Court, Fuly 6th, 1791. rr as ArticLe XXVII. On the fubjec of the foregoing Article, Planting, Se Salifoury, Odf. 6th, 1791. SIR, Have taken every opportunity of enquiring into the matters ftated in your letter of the 3oth of July. Some injury, as I have been informed, was done by fquirrels to the fir plantations of Lord Arundell, of Wardour, as much as ten or twelve yearsago. The plantations of the Earl of Ailefbury, at Tottenham-park; have alfo been attacked in like manner. The damage complained of is, however, I believe, far from being general; nor have I heard of it in fo great a degree as that which you mention. | Very [ 265 ] Very few plantations, except {mall ornamental - ones, have been made in this neighbourhood. The raifing of oak timber for future navies was, I know, confidered as an object of great national importance by John Pitt, efq; late furveyor-general of the King’s woods and forefts; who directed his attention to planting part of thofe unprofitable lands. Near twenty years ago he felected two thoufand acres for planting in different parts of the Foreft of Dean, and one thoufand acres in the New Foreft. The land was inclofed for‘that purpofe at a very confiderable expence. Since receiving your letter I have feen part of thofe plantations in the New Foreft, and have been well informed refpectine the remainder- J am truly forry to add, that they ap- pear to have been neslected, expofed to damage, and are now in a deplorable flate, The growth of timber in general, and oak timber in particular, is, I fear, much on the decline. Rough uncultivated land is the natural nurfery of a young oak; but every foil is not well adapted to its growth. When fuitable land is farmed out, an induftrious tenant will probably clear, and bring it into cultiva- tion. If left in its uncultivated ftate, cattle are turned in, and deftroy the young plants. It has generally f 266 generally been held that an oak does not remove well. The furveyor-general before mentioned, who paid great attention to his own plantations, informed me that by removing an oak twice or thrice, when very young, and each time cutting off the tap or principal root, it would afterwards profper as well as any other tree. 7 Tt feldom happens that timber is raifed on farms Jet out to tenants to cultivate, except particular attention be paid to it by the landlord or his fteward. Tc is not merely the giving orders for a number of trees to be planted that 1 mean. The man who fucceeds muft plant that which is fuitable to the foil, preferve it from damage, and take pleafure in feeing it flourifh. There are few forts of timber proper for hedge-rows. Perhaps elm generally fucceeds the beft, and does the leaft damage to quick fences. When a hedge is new plafhed, the labourer cuts off many young faplings, which would, if let ftand, make timber. It is good policy to give thefe men a fmall eratuity for every dozen of faplings that they fpare. This is actually practifed on the eftate of the Marquis of Bath, through the good conduct of his fteward, ne of our worthy and very intelligent members. After trees are planted, or led up in this manner, it requires particular attention to preferve them. They arc [267 ] are fometimes deftroyed by cattle biting off the young fhoots, or rubbing againft them; and are frequently fpoiled for timber by being lopped, fhrouded, or headed, by the farmer or his fervants. The timber which is raifed belongs to the landlord, nor is it the intereft of the tenant to encourage its growth, The dropping of trees frequently deftroys his quick fences, and their fhade confiderably injures his land. When a tree is converted to a pollard, by taking off the head, or mutilated by lopping or fhrouding, it does lefs injury, and the farmer has generally the privilege of taking the lops and fhrouds for his own ufe. A ftrict attention, with proper covenants in the leafe, may prevent thefe abufes. On the contrary, tenants who carefully nurfe up young timber fhould be encouraged by rewards, or allowances; or by occafionally affigning them tim- ber for their ufe, As the raifing of timber on farms requires more attention than it generally receives, and the royal forefts have, I fear, been too much neglected, it is to noblemen and gentlemen who hold large tracts of wood-land in demefne that pofterity muft be in- debted for this moft valuable article. In the ma- nagement of this fort of property there are, however, two extremes which ought to be avoided. The firft is r 268 =F is that of leaving no faplings, when the coppice or underwood is cut; or, if left, fhamefully cutting them down with the next fall of underwood, on the fame ground, which in fome places is a common practice. The other extreme is that of leaving too many faplings, and not thinning them in proper time. it is of great confequence that young trees fhould be gradually thinned out, as they increafe in fize; taking away the fmall, ftunted, or unkindly trees, and letting the largeft and moft flourifhing remain, This operation fhould commence time enough to Jet the branches fpread into a good head. When trees ftand thick together, they run up like poles; the branches perifh whilft young, and it is then too Jate to begin thinning: fuch trees never make tim- ber. Whatever be the age or fize of trees, in a coppice, the diftances fhould be fuch as to admit of a free circulation of air between the extreme parts of the branches. Even in hedge-rows, where they have the full benefit of the air on two fides, trees fearcely ever flourtih when they ftand thick together. There are very few eftates where fome fpots of land may not be found that will an{wer better for planting than for any other purpofe. If the owner of fuch land be not in immediate want of its annual produce, he cannot lay out his money more benefi- cially [ 269 |] cially for his family than by planting it with trees fuitable to the foil. Should the eftate be difpofed of, the young timber will, on a valuation, generally be found to pay great intereft for the money fo employed, b The London fociety has meritorioufly held out ‘honorary rewards to thofe who diftinguith themfelves by planting. Noblemen and gentlemen would do well to follow fo good an example, by encouraging farmers and workmen who plant, nurfe up, and pre- ferve young trees; remembering that it is not plant- ing alone, but care and management, that muft enture fuccefs; and thereby prevent that national fearcity, which might'prove a ferious evil to pofterity. I am, Sir, Your obedient humble fervant, BENJAMIN PRYCE. To Mr. Wm. Matthews, Secretary. ARTICLE [ 270 ] Articte XXVIII. The fame Subjeét continued. TO THE SECRETARY. SIRs T has been obferved that fir-trees in Lord Ailefbury’s plantations; particularly Scotch firs, have been barked in the manner defcribed in your circular letter; generally at the bottom of the leader of each branch; the ground under fome of the trees has been covered with the woody parts that have been chewed, in fuch quantities, that a peck or more might be collected under one tree. This mifchief has been found to be more frequent, in feafons when there has been a large breed of fquir- rels, and at a tinié when it may be fuppofed their autumnal collections have been exhaufted; and about four years ago, when fquirrels were uncom- monly numerous about Tottenham-park, upwards of fifty trees, called Hornbeam, were barked in the trunks and branches a confiderable way down, which occafioned moft of them to die. The ins+ jury we at firft fuppofed to have been done by a racoon, which efcaped from a gentleman’s houfe in the neighbourhood, and went towards Tottenham- _ park ; but I do not find there was any good ground for believing fo much execution could have been done by one animal. This [ 278 ] This mifchief, however, in Lord Ailefbury’s neighbourhood, has been inconfiderable, in compa- rifon with that done to the plantations of the gen- tleman alluded to by your letter: Plantations here have fuffered much more material injury, by not having been properly thinned on growing up. Gentlemen, whofe difpofition leads them to make plantations, have feldom refolution enough to make ufe of the ax as they enlarge, and the confequence is, that the trees run each other up into ftriplings, and feldom if ever make fine timber; yet it is ne- ceffary they fhould at firft be planted pretty thick, efpecially in expofed fituations for fhelter; and if horfe chefnut, Scotch fir, fycamore, and other faft- crowing trees of {mall value as timber, are planted with better kinds of trees, they will pay well to be thinned out, and furnifh no temptation to the owner “to keep them growing too long. I am forry to fay, that except on fome parts of the eftate of Lord Ailefbury, who for the laft thirty or forty years has paid unremitting attention to this important article, the ftate of oak and other timber in this neighbourhood is not to be boafted of; and even on his manors, it is fometimes a diffi- cult matter to prevent the lopping and pollarding timber-trees, particularly of afh, which will burn while green, The [ “ae. J The raifing of young timber on eftates has not been fufficiently attended to. Land-owners know- ing they have little chance of living to cut down and fell the tree they are at the expence of planting, do not often confider, that their eftate is notwith- ftanding increafed in value and improved in beauty’ by being well planted, and confequently would at any time fell for abundantly more than would repay them the firft expence of planting with intereft. But tenants for life or years have no great induce- ment to improvements of this fort; on the contrary, they would incumber their lands without any profit; and this generally occafions them to be as backward in raifing timber, as they are induftrious in pollard- ing what does get up. Lord Ailefbury has introduced a covenant in his leafes, whereby his tenants engage to plant and pre- ferve a certain number of trees yearly, in proportion to the fize of their eftates ; but even this is not fully complied with, and he has lately employed a perfon ~ to go over his farms, to feek out the fitteft places in hedge-rows, &c. for planting, and afterwards fent plants from his own nurferies, and had them planted. The fame perfon marks for referves any felf- planted trees he can find in the coppices and hedge- rows that come in courfe for cutting, to fave thern from being cut down with the underwood. : The ae lil. The foil in this part of the country has not in general fufficient depth to produce fine oak timber; where it does grow well, as in Savernake-foreft, it feems peculiarly well adapted for knee-timber; but from the want of water-carriage, and of a purchafer at harid, many a valuable lot of good knee-timber is afed for the moft inferior purpofes of repairs, gate-pofts, &c. As ¥ have no knowledge in naval affairs, I can form‘no judgment in what refpeét Spanifh-chefnut, elm, ot larch, may,be fubftituted to advantage for Oak. Spanifh chefnut, I have underftood to be nearly as good as oak; but it is not a much fafter - growing tree, except while young; I believe it re- quires nearly as good a foil, and it does not do well except in fheltered fituations, and is apt to fhoot out in feveral {tems from the bottom; which muft retard and weaken the growth of the plant, ’till one leader overpowers and deftroys the other fhoots. In Lord Ailefbury’s plaritations the Spanifh chefnut has run up with other trees, and makes a pretty refpectable appearance; but where it grows fingle itis generally ftunted. There are feveral of thefe trees in Brimflade-lawn, near Burbage, the largeft of which meafures 13 feet 2 inches round the ftem, at four feet from the ground, and yet the top makes Vor. VI. T but By ae but a mean appearance for fo large atrunk. I fup- pofe our climate is too cold for this kind of timber, which the above circumftances, as well as that of the fruit feldom or never ripening, feem to evince. Elm, where the foil is fuited to it, isa very pro- fitable tree; it does beft in fandy land; may be planted in hedge-rows with lefs injury to the quick- hedge than any other tree; and when once planted, the fucceffion may without trouble, and with very little care, be continued for ever, by fuffering the ~ fhoots that rife fpontaneoufly from the roots to grow up; and this tree has not the property of burning green—it is however the almoft univerfal practice of farmers to ftrip off its branches, which not only extremely disfigures, but greatly injures it; and fhould not be fuffered. As to larch, from every obfervation I have made and heard, it feems clear, that it is one of the moft profitable trees that grows. In Lord Ailefbury’s plantations, where it has been raifed with other firs, almoft every larch may be feen above the reft of the trees. It grows well, even upon thin, gravelly, or heathy land. The ftem is ftraight and clean, and the deal it cuts into is nearly, if not quite, as good as foreign, This tree, except in gentlemen’s pleafure- [ 275 ] pleafure-grounds, has been very little cultivated in our neighbourhood. I hope, however, that thofe Lord Ailefbury has planted, and intends planting, will attract the notice and attention of his neigh- bours, and occafion their more general cultivation. He has appropriated two hundred and forty-three acres of new inclofed land, near Great-Bedwin, called Wilton-Braile, which is now ftaked out, and is intended to be planted the enfuing winter with all kinds of timber, particularly larch, oak, and Spa- nifh chefnut. The land is peculiarly well adapted to the growth of timber, and I doubt not will in time, with his other improvements in the planting way, become a moft valuable addition to the pro- perty of his Lordfhip’s fucceflors, an ornament to the neighbourhood, and a publick benefit to the country. | I am, Sir, Your moft obedient fervant, . JOHN WARD. Marlborough, Of. 10, 1791. P.S, Lord Ailefbury is purfuing the fame fyftem of planting on his Yorkshire eftate, where oak tim- ber grows in great perfection. — Tt 9 ARTICLE [ 276 ] ArTicLt XXIX. On Shetland or Zetland Sheep and Wool. ' TO THE BATH AGRICULTURE SOCIETY. GENTLEMEN, O a Society fo eminently diftinguifhed for its laudable exertions, and its beneficial confe- quences as yours, every addrefs ought to contain fomething conducive to the good of mankind. If the following come not fo recommended, it deferves at leaft the praife of a good intention. The fubject is the celebrated Zetland Wool, with a fcheme the moft likely to make it advanta- eeous to this kingdom in general, and a fupport to that ifland in particular. Zetland extends from more than 59° to more than 61° N. L. and as it lies in an oblique direc- tion is confiderably longer than a degree; its breadth is variable, from 6 miles to 20. It is compofed of a number of ifles interfected by founds and firths, which are ftored with an abundant variety of fith; and the harbours are the beft in Europe. The fea is very ftormy, efpecially in winter, when the fpray is ry ee is carried over a great part of the ifland, and ren- ders the grafs peculiarly good for feeding; this likewife prevents the {now from lying long on the pafture grounds ; but entirely mars the growth of trees. It is inhabited by about twenty thoufand people, who depend upon the fummer fifhing, and knitting of ftockings, for their fcanty and precarious fubfiftence; the fifh is fent to Barcelona, Leghorn, or Hamburgh; and the ftockings fold to the Dutch fifhermen, or fent to Hamburgh; and the fine ftockings to Edinburgh, where they fell from three fhillings to one guinea and a half a pair. The landholders let their lands from year to years on condition of fome perfonal fervices, and all their produé at a fmall price in the option of the buyers, who are often tackfmen, and rent the people’s fer- vices at about 500]. for forty or fifty boats with fix men each. The people are faid to be indolent; the reafon of which is, that the landholders, by a barbarous policy, and by a variety of means, contrive to bring them into debt, to prevent their leaving their country; {N.B. Few of the people can either write or number ; for the fame policy prevents good {chools being kept:] and they, defpairing of independence, become hopelefs and indolent. m3 The i The theep are fmall, and diftinguifhed from other fheep by marks unneceffary to relate ;—are fubject to few difeafes; and fell at about 5s. a head. Each fheep has about two pounds of wool, one-fourth of which is very fine; the hatters in Edinburgh have offered four or five fhillings per pound for it, but it fells at one fhilling per pound.* The oldeft ewes have the fineft wool, but the coarfeft is thought fine in Scotland. Ihave heard that the fame breed of fheep may be found in Ireland and Herefordhhire; but little diftinguifhed by the finenefs of their wool. The number of fheep may be about ninety thou- fand, but might be increa/ed to four times that num- ber; to point out the means of which was the chief defign of this effay. The caufes of decreafe are many: tft. The landholders fubdivide their lands fo often for the purpofe of getting a number of fithers, . [.V. B. Six acres is a large farm]—that few tenants are rich enough to purchafe fheep, wherefore the matter gives them fome in fteelbow, that is, the te- nant keeps them, and the mafter has the half of all — the product; but as he never claims the dead, the tenants, urged by hunger and. difpirited by oppref- fion, often fd fheep dead by accidents unknown. * This feems unaccountable, 2dly, The ee | ae adly. The mafter receives part of his rent, and the parfon his tithes in lambs; and the people, to prevent a true account, never gather them from the hills, nor tend them, but mark them and let themrun. Some are ftolen. 3dly. Many fall victims to dogs, eagles, and ra- vens, in fpring ; and fome are fmothered or drowned in winter, by almoft a total neglect of them by the owners, 4thly, As tenants feldom receive money from thefe monopolizing mafters, they are forced to fell their ftock privately to purchafe neceffaries. $thly. From a fhort-fightednefs peculiar to this people, they feldom look beyond the enjoyments of the day. Caufe: As foon zs a farmer is thri- ving, he gets a warning to remove, and muft buy his peace by a fum of money proportioned to his circumftances. Indeed, premiums have been offered to encou- rage breeding; but as the landholders diftribute thefe, no fhare is allotted to the farmers, who alone have the power of giving effect to thefe defigns. Now [ 280 ] Now the means propofed, I think, would be effectual and profitable to thofe who fhould under- take the defign. Let any company of clothiers take a ten or twelve year’s leafe of as many fcattalds (pafture-grounds) as poflible, with all the fheep upon them. Let fome fhepherds be got from Scotland, (I would not truft a Zetlander) who know the management of fheep in {nowy hills, and who could be trufted with another’s property. Let there be wool-forters got; and as the Zetlanders are the beft fpinners in Bri- tain, let the wool be fpun, and yarn fent to Eng- land, for veft-pieces, &c. &c, By this their num- bers would increafe, and the overplus would belong to the company; and it would become beneficial to the ifland in giving employment to the poor, many of whom are now ftarving for want. Even other branches of trade might be carried on by the fame company to their own and the country’s mu- tual advantage ;—an account of which I will readily give, if ever it be required. ON THE FINENESS OF WOOL. for the fuperior finenefs of the Zetland wool, there are many conjectures ;—but I am of opinion, | there Ean 4 there are many concurring caufes, and the moft of thefe local. The chief is the peculiar breed of fheep. The next, I humbly conceive, to be the nature of the pafture; which, by its proximity to the fea, is ftrongly impregnated by falt particles, carried up by the winds; becaufe the grafs on head-lands and banks is foft and clofe, different from the inland or meadow grafs, and the fheep are fond of it; and becaufe it is known that a daily fupply of falt is given to the Spanifh fheep at the watering- places ; and it is thought to contribute to the fine- nefs of the wool, Another reafon is, their plucking the wool, or al- lowing it to fall off ;—this may be confirmed by obferving that the oldeft ewes have the fineft wool. Another creat caufe is, their northern fituation ; for all animals have more hair than in Scotland, as horfes, cows, &c. Cats, rabbits, and otters, have finer fur. And however ridiculous it may appear, even {wine have hair on certain parts of the body, Now, as all this is probable, an experiment fi- milar to that in Scotland might be made, by fixing upon [ 282 J upon fome fmall ifle or peninfula, on the fea-coatt of Wales, Devonfhire, or Cornwall, where the fheep could be allowed to feed as in Zetland; and by the increafe confequent on a proper care, they might multiply to a great number. Or, as in Spain, fome flocks might be fed in the mountains during fummer, and in the low-lands in winter; but as this laft feems impracticable, I hall only obferve, that the temperature which the Spa- nifh fheep enjoy, is thought to be the reafon that the hot climate has not the fame effect on the fheep there, as it has in every other hot country. By means of the former experiment, a gradual im- provement, if not a new ftock, might be introduced. N.B. Five or fix fheep of the Zetland breed. may be fed with the food of one Englifh. An account of the current trade and probable fchemes of improvement of Zetland, may be had if neceffary. I am, your’s, &c. J. TOMPSON., - Burford-Scl sal, ARTICLE [ 283°] ARTICLE. XXX. On Mijfcellaneous Topics of Hufbandry. TO THE ,SECRETARY. SIR, I Have a pleafure in communicating to the Bath Society every thing that occurs to me in farm- ing, in hopes that part of it may by them be thought of ufe to the public. I informed you that I found raw potatoes as ‘nourifhing for hogs as boiled; the expence and trouble of boiling would be too much to be fol- lowed on a large fcale. The great uncertainty of having a good crop of turnips, made me laft year plant eight acres with a plough, with which I turned them out of the ground in October, and carted them into one end of a barn rather in a wet bad ftate, as I was in a hurry to fow wheat in the land, and there was no profpeft of dry weather. I think I had 60 or 70 tons, which I could have fent to Briftol for about 16s. per ton, and probably have neated about aos. per ton, if I had fold them; but 1 preferred trying the experiment of feeding my ftock with them, and accordingly .I preferved them with once turning till January, and then began to give them with hay to my fat oxen, working oxen, cows, work- . o ing [ 284 ] ing horfes, faddle horfes, and colts, of all ages, and to my hogs; and they all ate them greedily, and looked much better than ufual; fo that I think thefe potatoes will yield me, in the faving of hay and other food, and in the increafe of manure, about 20s. per tan, and be always in future a good refource in cafe of a dry fummer, a fcarcity of hay, and failure of my turnip crops. But near great cities, where 40s. per ton may be made of them, and manure brought home from thence, the advantage of my practice will be lefs; and I confefs I am difappointed in not being able to get my fheep to eat much of them, which I have endeavoured to force them to do in this way :—I have folded fome fheep and lambs in an old garden where there are fome laurels, lauruftini, box, and yews, but very little poor mofly grafs; and there I have for fome weeks fed them on mangel- wurzel, roota-baga, or Swedifh turnips, cabbages, potatoes, carrots, parfnips, ivy leaves, and a little hay. They prefer each of thofe things to potatoes, and eat all the evergreen fhrubs, except box, which being bitter, they will not tafte it; they eat fome of the potatoes, and would probably eat more, if they were very hungry, and left a day without other food, Doctor Anderfon muft have had wrong feed, or he would not have been prejudiced againft mangel- wurzel, [ 28s: wurzel, which will yield 30 tons an acre (exclufive ‘of the leaves) of good food, which may be houfed like potatoes; and wheat fown in the land, which is certainly a great advantage, to avoid the neceflity of naked or barren fummer fallows. I had laft year about 50 tons an acre of Drumhead cabbages, which will yield great plenty in December, January, and February, and they may be fucceeded by mangel-wurzel and potatoes, and thefe by roota~ baga, and turnip-rooted cabbage, which bear froft much better than common turnips. Sheep are fhy of food they are not ufed to eat, but hunger will bring them to eat moft things fit ferthem. ‘They are remarkably fond of rovta-baga, which are lefs fpungy and more folid and {weet than the common turnip in April. I have this year kept them very good in the ground till I had a good bite of vetches, clover, and rye-grafs; the leaf is fmooth like the cabbage tribe, and the fheep are very fond of them. When I was writing this, I found in your fecond volume, p. 262, a letter from Mr. Wimpey, recom- mending the houfeing of fheep and lambs in winter, to avoid a kind of wind-colic, which kills a great number [ 286 } number of the fatteft lambs when the nights begirt to be cold and frofty. I have for many years faved. my lambs much better than my neighbours, by houfeing them, and giving them hay after drenching them with tar, butter and garlick, which makes thens lax for a day or two. They have a cuftom in Lan- cafhire, of rubbing tar and butter on the fkins of fheep, which they call falving, to thicken the wool, | and preferve them from the fcab. I have not heard of this practice in the fouthern parts of this ifland, After writing the above, I received your favour of the 21ft, for which I thank you, and fhall add a few lines in anfwer to your queries. I had my roota-baga from a principal feedfman in London, very good, and have preferved fome for feed, as I fhall of thofe you have been fo good as to fend me. [ like to try every thing new, and therefore wifh to have fome of the mowing cab- bage, mentioned by Sir T. Beevor in your laft volume. My Carolina grafs all died, and I fear it has no merit. The farming gentlemen in North and South Wales are fo remote from, that they have no inter- courfe with, each other; nor have thofe of different counties much; they are moftly divided by hills; and a ae and the foil varies fo much, that each county fhould have a fociety for promoting agriculture, and other improvements for their local advantages, in which the general good will neceffarily be involved. In Breconfhire there has been one above 30 years; we followed them, and I have long been furprifed that there fhould be a county in the ifland without a fund raifed by the voluntary fubfcriptions of the affluent, to promote fuch objects of public utility as the majority of the fubfcribers approve; but there is a want of public fpirit, fo that improvements go on very flowly, though think much fafter-in this than any former age. The vale of this county, bordering on the Briftol channel, far exceeds any other vale in Wales in extent and fertility. We have a very good breed of horfes, cattle, and fheep, and are improv- ing; but in the north-fide of the county, there are thoufands of acres of heathy hills, where all animals are nearly in a ftate of nature. The people live in very narrow valleys, and are moftly employed in herding their {mall horfes, cattle, and fheep, on the hills; to the breed of which they give no attention, as they pay very little for their pafture. Their great difficulty is to preferve them in winter; «they houfe the catti¢, but the fheep are often buried in fnow f 288 Jj fnow many days, and I have known one fare lofe above 500 lambs in one fpring, and be feverat years breeding a frefh ftock on the fame hills, as thofe brought from other hills would not ftay on his fheep-walks, and moft of his neighbours fuffered by the fame caufe andhad none to fpare. Thefe fheep yield about one pound of wool each, which is made more hairy by being expofed to rain and fnow. I think that fmall fheep, fhort {weet pafture, and fhelter from rain and fnow, are all effential to pro- duce very fine wool; but the fize of the animals mutt fuit the richnefs of land, to yield the farmer profit, and that muft ever be his firft confideration. Tithe, and the indolence and infidelity of fervants, will ever be a great difcouragement to gentlemen in farming, though f believe there never were fo many gentlemen farmers as at this time; and that moft of the modern improvements have been made by them. Let the partial and unjuft iaw of tithe be abolifhed, and an equal pound-rate fubfticuted; and let all owners of eftates have a power to grant the terre tenant a leafe for 21 or even 14 years; and let a general inclofing and road bill be paffled, without facrificing the intereft of the publick to the emolu- ment of the Speaker of the Houfe of Commons, and his officers; and improvements in this ifland would [ 285 J would now go on rapidly, beyond our moft fan- guine expectations, and inftead of encouraging the ruinous practice of gambling, by giving King’s plates under a pretence of improving the breed of horfes, let the government give a certain fum (in proportion to the amount of the Sand-tax in each county) upon condition that double or treble that fum be raifed by:the inhabitants, and applied to improve agriculture, and other objects of pub- lick utility there, and it would then ftimulate the gentlemen to meet and exert themfelves, as it would be a difgrace to lofe the publick bounty, through their own indolence and want of patriotifm. The national advantages of inclofures, inftead of wilds and race-grounds, would then foon be better attended to and underftood. There would always be too much land uninclofed on the tops of hills, and fheep will always be too profitable to be neg- _ lected, if it were poffible to inclofe the more level parts of the whole ifland; fo that the objection to inclofing on account of fheep-walks, and alfo on account of the poor, (who are much more wretched for want of work near commons, than where all the land is inclofed,) is futile and ill-founded, for want of a more general and perfect knowledge of facts. The arable farmer is a very ufeful member of fo- ciety; he employs twenty times as many people:as Vou, VI, U the ' [ 290 ] the grazier, and ten times as many as the dairy man, on a farm of equal value ; furnifhes propor- tionably more of the neceffaries of life; and often lays out from 5 to 8]. per acre in ploughing, liming, and feeding an acre of wheat; and as foon as he has cut it the rector* comes and /weeps away one-tenth of his crop, when the remainder is much too little to repay him his expences. Is there any equity, or fhadow of juftice in this? Why fhould this laborious induftrious man pay five times, and in fome cafes ten times as much as his neighbour, for having a fermon preached to him once a week, by an im- moral curate, who is often hired by the abfent rector for one-eighth or one-tenth of the value of the living? And what is ftill more mortifying to the farmer, and derogatory from the original in- tention is, that ecclefiaftical corporations and lay impropriators live in luxury, vice, and folly, on the labour and induftry of the poor arable farmer. ‘To encourage the plough would be a much more effectual way to reduce the price of corn, and en- rich the country, than to reftrain exportation, and pay a bounty for importing what could be abun- * This is confeffedly a ferious difcouragement to agricultural im- provements, and calls aloud forareformation. ‘The rector, in fuch cafes, is not to be blamed ; he has the law on his fide, and the farmer cannot expect him to forego his legal right. dantly [ 29: J dantly fupplied from the thoufands of acres now lying wafte. I heartily wifh the utmoft fuccefs to your patri- otic fociety, and all other attempts to promote the publick good. I am, Sir, your’s, &c. J. FRANKLEN. Llanmibaugle, April 25, 1791. ARTICLE XXXI. Extract of a letter fram a Gentleman in Scotland concerning the RuTa-BaGa, € I Have introduced into this country the Ruta- Baga, or Swedifh Turnip, conceiving that it might be of great ufe as an article of green food after the month of March, when ufually our com- mon turnips run all to feed, and we find ourfelves at a lofs for food until our grafs grounds are ready; which they feldom are until the firft week of May : hence my experience of this plant is moftly con- fined to the {pring. ** The firft trial I made was in the year 1789; not knowing better, I followed the common method U2 of [ 292 J of fowing the feeds in my garden, upon an hot-bed, fome time about the r2th or 15th of April; about the toth of June 1 tranfplanted them into the field, where J had turnips, carrots, and other drilled crops; the quantity of eround planted was exactly halfa Scotch acre. It had been ploughed and dunged in the ufual manner, the fame as the reft of the field, where the turnips were fown and drilled in the fame way into three feet ridges. About the beginning of July they were horfe-hoed and hand-hoed, and ma- naged exactly the fame as the turnips. I forgot to mention the plants were fet nine inches feparate in the row, and not one of them failed taking root. “¢ In winter I began taking up a few for my table; they feemed in general fmaller than our common turnips, and longer, moftly of the figure and fize of a quart bottle; but fwice as heavy as a turnip of the fame fize. For their ufe for the table, Ican confidently recommend them as of fuperior flavour, fo much fo indeed, that ‘after eating them none of my family would tafte the other turnips. “T tried my cows and my fatting oxen with them, and they ate them as readily as the common turnips. My ftheep uniformly refufed them as long as they could get other turnips; this F did not wonder wonder at, as all my fheep are fix and feven years old, and their want of teeth makes it difficult for | them to eat a root fo much harder than turnips. « To try how the Ruta-Baga would keep after being taken up, J had a few pulled in November ; one half cart-load I put up in fand in a barn, and the reft I laid upon a erafs-walk in my garden, to be fafe from being eaten up; they lay there entirely expofed to the weather until April, when they were juft as good, and the cattle ate them juft as well, as if they had been frefh; thofe in the barn were jutt the fame; we had them both at our own table, and found them quite as good as thofe we had eaten in November. This trial abundantly convinces me of their hardinefs, as we hadin 1789, fromthe 15th _ of March thro’ ail April, very hard and fevere ftorms of froft and fnow with little or no intermiffion, <* In 1790, there was no froft. Imagining this a year that the tranfplanting was troublefome, and that they might grow larger if fown on the place where they were to ftand, I caufed half an acre-to be fown the firft week in June, in drills of three ~ feet, and laid out the plants like common turnips; the event anfwered my expectation; the roots were confiderably larger than laft year, although fown on Ue | much [ 294 J] much worfe ground. Except what was ufed for the table, the whole was pulled up the 20th or 2sth of March, and laid in heaps in the barn yard, entirely uncovered from the weather, and were given to my fatting oxen after all our common turnips were gone. I think they lafted about three weeks, which was of the greateft advantage to me, for the mild- nefs of the weather caufed all our turnips to feed, and having no grafs, our cattle were ftarving. «© On the whole, I am already of opinion that the Ruta-Baga is a moft valuable root ; whether it be ufed by taking up a quantity previous to a ftorm of fnow, when the other turnips cannot be got at, or by pulling up in fpring and laid by, to be ufed after our common turnips are gone.” ARTICLE XXXII. On Butter-Making,—and the Author's Pamphlet on Dairying. TO THE SECRETARY. Sir, BOUT the time I publifhed the fecond edi- tion of Dairying Exemplified, being foon after the death of my good friend Mr. Rack, who was earneft for the fuccefs of it, ashe thought it hada tendency [295 ] tendency to great utility; I wrote aletter, direéted to the Secretary of the Bath Agriculture Society, mentioning how defirous Mr. Rack, with whom I had exchanged feveral letters on the fubject, was, for the publifhing an edition on dairying alone, (my firft having contained a treatife on orchards, and on vegetation) which he thought, as it would come cheaper, would be an inducement to hufbandmen and dairy-women to purchafe, and apply it. I did expect the Society would have ordered fome of them, as Mr, Rack affured me they highly approved of the work, and defired him to fignify the fame ta me; and alfo that they would take care to have them difperfed as much as lay in their power, for publick benefit. I fhould have fent one hundred copies to Mr. Rack, if he had lived till after they were publifhed. He had at different times fome dozens of the former edition, which he diftributed where he thought they would be ufeful. Mefirs. Wilkes, of Leicefterfhire, who I expect many of the Society are acquainted with, ordered one hun- dred of them, and have had feyeral dozens of the fecond edition. Lately reading in the Appendix to the Monthly Review fome remarks from a publication on the phyfical and chemical properties of milk, tranflated from the F rench, I was led to take notice of their experiments [ 296 ] experiments touching fome things related in my fecond edition, concerning butter, as their remarks in many refpects confirm the opinion I ventured to publifh; and this encourages me to give my farther thoughts thereon to the Society, which I with you to communicate to them, as I think all people fhould render every endeavour in their power to promote publick advantage ; and as butter is now become of univerfal confequence, from its very ge- neral ufe, and many juft complaints are made by dealers in it, of an improper management in the making of it, which caufes it very foon to turn rancid, and often become of a very foul nature when cafked up for trade, and is what I could never meet with any body who could give a rational account of. In my fecond edition I mentioned it as my opinion, that the caufe of butter foon becoming rancid and foul, was, in general, from heating the milk when fet up, in order to increafe the quantity of cream; a method which I underftand is. generally ufed in moft counties that make butter for wholefale trade. Thus by heating the oily particles of the cream, it becomes pinguid or greafy; and it is well known that every fat fubftance that is heated will in a fhort time become rancid or reezey; as bacon does, fo far as the heat gets into it. And it is from known caules alone that we can fairly reafon to effects. From L 297 J From the publication before remarked, it appears that there is in milk an acid volatile alkaline, and an unctuous particle, befides other chemical proper- ties; among the reft, a fixed alkali; a muriatic or briny acid; it is alfo remarked, that the volatile fubftance which flies off, and occafions the particular odour, is peculiar to animal bodies ; and although from its volatility it eludes every enquiry into its {pecifick nature, yet there is reafon to imagine that it is a confiftent part of the milk, and confequently not deftitute of utility, This is the firft time I ever met with any account of the volatile part of milk; but from which I ex- pect many ufeful obfervations may be made. It is fuppofed that churning effectuates a chemical change in the cream; and that the particles of butter cannot be produced by any other method;— that heating créam when on the milk, caufes the volatile particles to fly off, and fets the cheefy particles more at liberty; they are apt to rife with the cream and incorporate with it, which caufes the butter in a very little time to become foul and rancid, as I fuppofe the cheefy particles foon fepa- rate from the butter ; which in a fhort time makes it foul, as it acquires more of the nature of butter- milk; that the cream that rifes without the aid of warmth, [ 298 J warmth, while perfeétly frefh, will yield the moft delicate butter, and may be preferved {weet for the longeft time. From the method ufed of heating the milk is produced what is called clouted cream, which I fuppofe fhould be termed clotted cream, as the warmth caufing the cheefy particles to incorpo- rate with the cream, makes it clot and become more mucid or flimy; and if to any confiderable degree, will diffolve into a cheefy or curdy fub- ftance, and appear white and foul, as well as rank and bad tafted, and be affected with a diffolving quality fomewhat like to the nature of flip curd in cheefe, which I have defcribed in my book, as the greateft evil that attends cheefe-making, and what has been the leaft known or confidered by dairy-women, The reafon of offering my opinion to the Society concerning the improvement in making butter, was the hint I mentioned above, concerning the quality of milk; and not having found any thing analagous to it in any author I have met with, regarding butter; and being inclined to urge my opinion that heating cream to make butter is a very improper and hurtful method, and what ought to be difcou- raged as much as poffible, I imagined it cannot be done fo well as through a fociety formed for the improvement of agriculture, Ag [ 299 ] As I publifhed a large edition of my book, the firft having gone off very foon, I have fome quan- tity on hand, and J think it will be of great fervice to dairying to have them difperfed. I fhall not publifh another edition; as I am convinced that dairy-women and farmers are not people to write for. I think twenty or thirty years hence the work will be better known, and more fet by. I am, with due efteem, your’s, &c. JOSIAH TWAMLEY, Warwick, Fuly 16, 179%. ArtictE XXXIH. Remarks on planting Inclofures, Sc. In a Letter toa FRIEND. DEAR SIR, OU {aid the other day, you fhould fhortly be concerned in fome inclofure bills. Will you permit me to fay a word or two refpecting the ge- neral mode of inclofing? The modern inclofures that I have obferved, have univerfally been made with white-thorn, an article pretty and neat, that will thrive in moft foils, and foon make a fence very defireable near a dwelling-houfe, being of all live [ 300 ] live fences moft readily kept within narrow bounds, and in any form moft pleafing to the proprietor ; but like all other live fences, will grow hollow at bottom, and from time to time require new making, when its fuperfluous branches will not repay the labour: moreover it is annually unproductive of any profitable fruit. The motives for inclofing open fields are obvious, utility and profit; therefore, as foon as it is deter- mined to divide the land, the fecond confideration is to divide it with materials that will be both pro- fitable and ufeful. I have not the fmalleft doubt, but that if all the hedges in England had been ori- ginally planted in the moft profitable manner, they would have for centuries paft produced, and would continue to produce, beverage, and materials for a fufficient fupply of fpirits, for the inhabitants of the whole kingdom; and likewife a fufficiency of food for fattening all the hogs,* ard paying the expences of new making, as often as occafion re- quires; and all this without being more injurious to the Jand than the hedges now in ufe. Will you pardon my pointing out a mode, that I am per- fuaded would produce all thefe advantages? To obtain all thefe benefits, plant at the diftamce of every twelve, fixteen, or twenty feet, a Spanifh i * Surely not aif. ‘ chefnut, t 308 7 ‘chefhut, midway plant a crab, midway between the chefnut and crab plant a common plumb-ftock, midway between the feveral chefnuts, plumb, and crab ftocks, plant a white-thorn; when thefe fe- veral plantations have been made three or four years, and are in a thriving ftate, about the end of February or March, cut them off with a fharp knife, about an iach or two from the ground; they will then throw out many fhoots; keep them well weeded, and let them continue growing until the chefnut fhoots are large enough for ftakes and_ binders, which will be in about fix, feven, or eight years, according as the foil fuits the plants; when the plants are formed into a hedge, for which there will be a plentiful fupply of fteepers, ftakes, and ail the re- quifite materials; at the diftance of every hundred, hundred and fifty, or two hundred feet, or at whatever diftance fancy leads you, leave a ftraight handfome fhoot of the chefnut, to grow into a tree; if you prefer timber, let it remain, and it will grow into a good timber tree: if fruit, let it be grafted with grafts from the beft chefnuts you can obtain; it would be défirable if you had an opportunity to procure the grafts from Spain; in like manner leave a ftraight handfome fhoot of the-crab ftock, and graft it with an apple ; in like manner leave a plumb-ftock, and graft it with a damfon, or any good L 302’ J good bearing plumb; likewife leave a handforme fhoot of the white-thorn, and graft it with a medlar; thus will you have a very productive fruit-garden, that will always continue, as you may perpetually renovate by leaving frefh ftocks every time the hedge is new made, without any wafte of ground, and a permanent hedge equalled by few, and by none excelled. It is of confequence, as much as can be, to have the hedge on every fide belonging to the fame field; then, when the hedge is new made, the plough, which is the moft effectual pro- tector, will preferve the whole fence without any expence ; artificial protection is very expenfive, and very uncertain; it is of material confequence to preferve a new-made hedge from the bite of cattle, and perhaps nothing is more deftructive than calves, which will go round a whole field and bite off every freth fhoot; afles are likewife peculiarly deftructive, as they will not only bite off the frefh fhoots, but likewife peel off the rind, and thereby deftroy the fteepers. Howfoever firm and ftrong a hedge may be, it will neverthelefs give way to violence, on which account it is neceffary to have materials at hand to repair any damages that may happen; it is therefore very proper to have in each corner of the field, a ftock or two of chefnuts for an occafional fupply of ftakes, and likewife a ftock or two of white- [ 303 ] white-thorn for a fupply of bufhes; this would be no real lofs of ground, when in tillage, as the plough cannot reach the extremity of the angles; and when in grafs it is beft to have the angles a little rounded off, for a malicious bullock will frequently, when it gets an underling into a corner, feverely gore it, or force it through the hedge; but fhould it happen that thefe fupplies are not wanted, the wood of the chefnut will amply repay the value of the ground. It is neceffary for every pafture field to have a fup- ply of water, therefore if the foil is compact enough to hold water, a pond fhould be dug in the loweft corner of every field, and the fides planted in like manner as the hedges, the roots of which will pre- ferve the banks, and the branches in a great mea- fure the water from the exhaling effects of the fun. The all-bountiful Creator has fupplied the earth with a great variety of very productive vegetables, - many of which require their peculiar- foil ‘and cli- mate; many others will thrive in a variety of foils and climates; many are now growing in the open air in England, that at their firft introduction were confined to the hot or green-houfe. It furely is the duty of man to aim at extending the bleflings of Providence. I know the farmer will cry, ‘no, no, «] want no fruit in my hedges; I don’t want to ** tempt [ 304 J] tempt the idle to break down and defttoy my ~ « fences.” Believe me, my dear Sir, it is ‘the cry of ignorance. Were every field furrounded with fruit, no one would need to trample over hedges for an handful; and no one would grudge his neigh- bour or the thirfty traveller a gratification fo eafily fupplied; the farmer would hardly turn his head to look at a perfon gathering a few apples, or picking a handful of plumbs; it is the fcarcity of the ¢om- modity that fills the mind of the farmer with thefe puerile fears.* I know a very fmall parifh in the eaftern part of England, where the fruit in a fa- vourable year brings into the parifh a thoufand pounds fterling; a fum till lately (if not now) equal to the rent of the land; and much of this fruit grows along the hedge-rows, not in hedges planted in the manner herein defcribed, but from trees planted alongfide the hedges, which are continually extended by frefh plantations every time the hedges - arenew made. A thoufandth part of a thoufand pounds will repay the expence of repairing many fractured hedges; and twenty or thirty bufhels of * A member of the Society whe has perufed this article remarks, that he knows an eftate in Wales, which a few years ago contained a fine fruitful orchard near the farm-hceufe ; but on account of the miferable_fcarcity of orchards, the owner thought himéfelf obliged to deftroy this, to prevent the depredations of his neighbours. , Wretched ftate of a country! where the very fcarcity of.a valuable article muf occafion its total annihilation! fruit tag [ 305 J fruit per acre would amply repay the injury other crops might poffibly receive from the trees. Chefnuts are exceeding fine food for fwine or other cattle; and beyond all doubt much more nutritious than potatoes. For human food, roafted chefnuts are a principal part of the diet of the pea- fantry in Italy. Apples, almoft every one knows how to ufe. If the produce of plumbs and medlars fhould exceed the confumption of the neighbouring towns, they would prove fufficient in all probability for bringing hogs to that degree of fatnefs neceffary for frefh or butcher’s pork; if they exceeded that confumption, the juice might be fermented and dif- tilled, and would probably yield a fpirit fuperior in flavour to malt, and perhaps not inferior to French brandy or Weft-India rum. If you have patience to perfevere thus far in read- ing (I am afraid you -will think) an uninterefting letter, let me requeft you not to charge it to my vanity, but to my zeal in endeavouring to point out fome improvement in the prefent barren mode of planting, fo univerfally practifed in this kingdom. To one productive tree, an hundred, if not a thou- fand, barren trees are planted ; inftead of the fir, the larch, the poplar, &c. why not plant the chefnut, Vou. VI. x the eo | the walnut, or the beech?—all produétive trees. I have known a fingle walnut-tree produce forty bufhels in a year; if no other valuable ufe could be found for them, would not fwine fatten on them? Would mankind but remove the veil of prejudice from before their eyes, and view with a liberal and. expanded mind the wonderful works of the great Creator in the vegetable world, what beauties, what treafures would they behold! Food and raiment for millions of their brethren, now pining in nakednefs, in want and milery ! I am, your’s, &c. Bi ee Bath, Nov. 1791. P.S. I know a gentleman that lives near Afhford — in Kent, who has a grove of Spanifh @hefnut-trees that fupplies him with good fruit fufficient for his family, and prefents to his friends; and frequently yields a furplus that fells for feven or eight pounds; many of the trees contain feven or eight tons of timber,. ARTICLE E 37 jj ARTICLE XXXIV. On the Culture of Rape as Food for Cattle. TO THE SECRETARY. SIR, I Beg to trouble you with an account of an experi- ment on Rape treated as cabbage; to whichI am encouraged by obferving in your publication of premiums for laft year, that your Society wifhed the experiment made. In hopes that my poor mite may not be unacceptable, I truft for your kindly receiving this effort of Your very obedient fervant, THOMAS J. RAWSON. Glafsealy, Athy, May 1, 1790. HAVING from repeated fuccefsful experiments on fowing Rape on wheat, bere, or barley ftubble, (ploughed as foon as poffible after reaping the crop) as a {pring feed for fheep, determined to try its ufes cultivated as cabbage, on the 28th of April* Jaft, I had a plot prepared as for cabbage feed, and * The 28th of April is too early to fow the feed; about the 7th er roth of May will be the beft feafon, X 2 fown L' Ree] fown with rape; the plants came up, were very pro- mifing, and fit to put out the 2oth of June, [| had prepared a feven-acre field, which had borne potatoes two years, after being well manured with the common clay gravel, and had it then in fine tilth for turnips. As I had no conception that the rape would rife to fuch magnitude as to injure the turnips, I marked outfurrows with one furrow of the plough at ten feet afunder; laid the rape plants at eighteen inches apart againft the upright fide of the furrow, and covered the roots by returning the earth which the plough had thrown out with eigh- teen inch hoes; I then fowed the whole field with turnip-feed by a drilling-machine of twelve inches apart, and bufh-harrowed and rolled in the feed without injury to the rape plants. The rape fuc- ceeded beyond any expectation I could have formed, fo as to overfhade and injure the turnips for eigh- teen inches, at either fide, which in the intermediate {paces were avery fine crop; as nearly as I could calculate, two acres of the feven were occupied by rape, and the remaining five by turnips; the rape continued to flourifh until the 1ft of November, at which time it averaged upwards of twenty pounds per head, (feveral came up to forty;) fuch was the amazing luxuriance of the crop, that I dreaded its not ftanding the winter; and on the 1ft day of Noyember [ ‘3a9-.J November put two hundred large wethers into an inclofure of thirteen acres of light land, which had been eaten bare, and began to give them the rape 5 they immediately took to it with eagernefs, and in three days not a fheep of the whole but would attack the carter for his breakfaft; I continued to give it in profufion without hay or any other food, and it not only kept, but very much pufhed for- ward the 200 fheep until the 1ft of January. I then began with the five acres of turnips, which (with the help of a quantity of hay) did not laft the fheep more than feven weeks, which evidently fhews that one acre of rape was equal to three acres of turnips, altho’ they were as good a crop as I ever faw ; and had the rape been planted in three-feet rows (the manner I now purpofe to treat it) and properly earthed, I have no doubt it would have been, if poffible, much greater. I kept in a walled yard twenty porkers from the firft of September to the firft of January on the under leaves; they as well as poultry of all kinds are exceedingly fond of it. I tried fome Scotch cabbage, in the fame fitu- ation of the rape, but they did not average more than feven pounds per head; evidently rape will flourifh where a cabbage would not exift; and drought, which is the bane of cabbage, will not affect it. The numberlefs advantages of introdu- X 3 cing [ gro ] cing rape in addition to turnips and cabbage, (tho” cabbage ought by no means to be haftily excluded) muft be evident to every intelligent hufbandman. Two drills, which I left uncut, ftood the winter re- markably well; fo that my fears were groundlefs, and I have no doubt but rape will on trial be found to be the moft profitable vegetable difcovered, for the fir? and Jaf of a courfe of fpring-feeding fheep. I fhall beg to add one other remark, which is, that inftead of my ufual method of ploughing up the ftubble, and fowing rape-feed as herein firft mentioned, I am determined to fow the feed in a prepared bed the firft of July, and when the ftubble. ground is ploughed and harrowed in September, to put in the plants, which I am convinced muft give a ten-fold crop, and would greatly fupply the far- mer’s wants in April following, or bring an excellent crop of feed in Auguft. Expences of an Acre of RAPE. ye Pe One year’s rent - - - r 5-8 Three ploughings and harrowings - rise Three women fetting the plants - @,: Be ‘Two men returning the earth with fhovels or broad hoes - - - OTS A boy and cart attending the fheep 9 weeks, at 12s. per week - - . 5 te Seed not worth charging > - 0.0336 £-7 18 4 Lig: TF PiR.O)}. Del) Gf toe ~S.218- Supporting ro porkers 4 months at 2s.permonth 4 0 o> Fattening 100 fheep g weeks at 6d. per week, being the loweft joifting price - 2210 O Mucking 62 acres of light land, very well worth three pounds per acre = 2 Ig 10 oF 46 00 Dedu& 7 18 6 Clear profit befides the beft poffible fallow 38 1 6 * It fhould feem on the whole that this gentleman may have made a profitable experiment ; but like moft others in new experiments, he ftretches too far in the eftimate of profit. This article feems to be beyond all moderate bounds. The reader therefore will appre- ciate according to his own judgment. ARTICLE XXXV. On Maple Sugar of America. TO THE SECRETARY. Sir, HE Sugar Maple is a natural tree of the woods in the interior parts of North-America, and is very common in particular fituations, from the latitude of 35 to 45 degrees; it does not grow near the fea-coaft, (at leaft not in the middle or fouthern {tates;) but at the diftance of from 109 to 150 miles directly [ 312 ] directly back from the fea, it is found more or lefs all through the country, as far as the latitudes I have mentioned, and I believe, to a greater extent both to the northward and fouthward, and as far to the weftward as the country has yet been fettled. Sugar has been made from the trees for 30 or 40 years paft; but the country where thofe trees abound being but thinly fettled, until very lately, it has not been attended to farther than for a few fa- milies, to make fufficient for their own ufe, and until within thefe three or four years fcarce any has been made for fale. | Inthe fummer of 1788 I was in America, and made an excurfion into the northweft parts of Penn- fylvania; at the diftance of about 100 miles from Philadelphia I firft met with Maple Sugar, and from that time until within about the fame diftance at my return, the country people made ufe of no other. My curiofity was excited by finding it fo fimilar to the Weft-India fugar, and led me to ' make many enquiries as to the manner. of their making it, the quantity of fap colleted from each tree, the weight of fugar it yielded, and various other particulars refpecting it. The farmers being moftly poor people, new fettlers, and not much ; accuftomed Le. J accuftomed to weights or meafures, differed very materially in their accounts, both as to the quantity of fap, and the fugar it yielded, efpecially as the fap runs much more freely and in greater quantities fome feafons than in others. The refult of my fe- veral enquiries both in thofe and other parts of the country, led me to conclude, that trees from 18 to 30 inches diameter, which were the fizes gene- rally tapped, upon the average yielded about forty gallons of fap, and this quantity about five pounds of fugar; the fugar trees frequently growing on their beft lands, when they wanted the ground cleared, made the farmers indifferent about prefervine them, and the common mode of tapping was by cutting a notch in the tree with an ax, which was enlarged by a frefh cut every year; the fap was collected in wood troughs made on the fpot from folid logs hollowed out, and the fap boiled down in the wood in their common pots and kettles, handy to where it was collected. Where the trees were of value, and intended to be preferved, fome people tapped them by boring a hole with an auger or gimblet; this was requifite to be done afrefh every year, or the hole pared larger. The whole of the fap is col- lected in fix or eight weeks, generally beginning to run early in February, and to ceafe by the laft of March or early in April: this being a feafon of the year C om 7 year when the farmers have little to do, enables them to pay the greater attention to it, and the ex- pence of manufacturing being little more than their labour, at a feafon when time or labour is of lefs value to them than ufual, makes it a profitable undertaking; and it is fuppofed, when the manu- factory of pot-afhes is more generally eftablithed, the afhes arifing from the fuel ufed in boiling the fugar, made into pot-afhes, will, by increafing their profits, tend much to increafe the manufactory of maple fugar. It has been faid in fome of the American newf- ° papers, that there were large tra¢ts of land that produced upon the average fifty fugar-maple trees per acre; my own obfervation makes me think otherwife; though I believe there may be found tracts of 100, perhaps 1000 acres, connected toge- ther, that may produce all through from ten to fif- teen trees per acre; but to take the general face of the country, for ten miles fquare, I do not fuppofe a tract any where could be found to yield more than five trees to the acre of a fize fit to be tapped. On the whole it appears to me that the produce of the fugar-tree is not of fufficient value to make it worth cultivation ; but that in America, where the tree [305 J tree grows fpontaneoufly, and where it is found upon large tracts of land that muft remain for ages before they can be fully cultivated, it is and will be of confiderable advantage to the inhabitants of the country, and that the making of fugar from thofe trees will become more and more an object of con- fequence, and be taken up and carried on by people who will make a trade or bufinefs of it, although I donot expect America ever will make fufficient for their own confumption; it being an article in fo general ufe, the expenditure will moft probably keep pace with the increafe of inhabitants, The fugar-maple tree grows of all fizes as large as from three feet to three and a half or four feet diameter; and in the northweft parts of Pennfylvania, are many of them from 80 to go feethigh. Asa confirmation of my being able to form fome judg- ment of their height, I fhall juft mention, that I had a white pine-tree cut down for the purpofe of mea- furing its height, and although not more than two feet diameter, it meafured 146 feet high, fome others near it were four feet diameter, and appeared to be thirty feet higher. Trees of every fpecies in that country were higher than I ever noticed them any where efe. The oC eae The bark of the fugar-maple is different in ap- pearance from that of the common maple, and not unlike the bark of an Englifh oak ; how far, or whe- ther either of them may be in any refpect fimilar to. the Enelifh maple, I cannot tell. The leaves of the two American maples appear exactly the fame, and I believe there is no material difference in the wood; they are both of a light colour, fplit fair and eafy ; and the common maple 1s _ufed by the fhoemakers for pegs to faften the heels of fhoes together, in pre- ference to any other wood. Some common maple boards have lately been brought to this port from New-England. All trees while young, that grow in a thick wood of large trees, are flow in their growth, and it is dif- ‘ficult to tell their age by the lines that each year’s* growth makes; J fhould think it probable that few are fit to tap until they are fifty years old, and that the large trees are generally from 2 to 300 years old. The fugar maple abounds moft in ftony ground, in hilly countries, and where the ground is full of fprings, or fmall brooks of water; they grow in the greateft plenty on the lower moift grounds, where the foil is moft natural to beech, birch, or afh ; and are mixed with a variety of other trees, though but rarely mixed with oak. In Re ae In the northern parts of Pennfylvania there are ereat quantities of a fpecies of pine called hemlock; which with beech, birch, fugar and other maple, afh, elm, wild cherry, and fome few others, con- ftitute the timber of the country. When at Philadelphia I was feveral times in com- pany with a perfon who had fettled about 150 fa- milies on a tract of land called Offego, at the head waters of the Sufquehannah ; the place was a wil- dernefs in the year 1784, not a fingle family within many miles of it; Iam fince informed that laft feafon he collected from thofe families, his own fettlers, and brought for fale, 30 tierces of maple fugar that weighed from 5 to 6 cwt. each. I have now done with the fubject of the fugar maple; but as I am addreffing myfelf to a gentle- — man who mutt feel himfelf much interefted in the promotion of agriculture, I fhall juft mention an article of manure in great ufe in Pennfylvania, that is {carcely known as fuch here. There are many hundred tons of plaifter of Paris imported yearly into Philadelphia from France and Nova-Scotia ; it has generally been fold by the cargo from fix to eight dollars per ton weight; it is firft broken into {mall pieces by pounding, and then ground between a pair of mill-ftones to a powder, and ufed in this’ {tate E 3s. J ftate unburnt as a manure for grafs and corn land of every kind; it is fuppofed one bufhel will go as far as ten bufhels of lime. The prifoners in the gaol of Philadelphia have lately been fet to work to grind it, in fmall mills, with a pair of ftones the fame as for grinding wheat, but of a fize to be worked by two or four men; a double advantage has axifen to the ftate from this, by putting to hard work fuch men as were deferving of it, and by ren- dering the article cheaper to the farmers, thereby encouraging them to manure their lands, This hint may-be of ufe to the community here. I am, your refpectful friend, THOMAS CLIFFORD. Briftol, Dec. 13, 1791. a rere Lt a ARTICLE XXXVI. Obfervations in a Tour into Suffolk and Surry. TO THE SECRETARY... SIR, CCORDING to my promife I fend youa fketch of my tours into Suffolk and Surrey. In doing which, I fhall be the fhorter, as the Annals of Agriculture contain much of the good and un- common hufbandry in thofe counties, The [oe Ay _ The latter end of March 1788, I vifited Mr. Young at Bradfield-hall, where I faw in a large field before his houfe, about three acres of cab- bages, very clean and well managed; and in the fame field, divided by hurdles, turnips, and fheep feeding on them: one or two cloathed, to im- prove their wool: on that part of the field where the turnips had been eaten off, the ground was turning up for barley, and three ploughings were intended, as well for that part where the horfe- hoed cabbages were, as for that where the hand- hoed turnips grew. Mr. Young’s courfe of crops, on fandy loam or gravel, is, 1. To manure for cabbages or turnips. 2. Plough thrice, after either of them, for barley, 3. Clover. 4. Beans. 5» Wheat. His quantity of manure for an acre of cabbages or turnips, is forty-one horfe-puz loads per acre. He lays out his ground on two-rod ridges. On wet loam, upon clay, gs. per acre, after a moderate {fprinkling of dung, or other manures, he dibbles on one earth on the middle of the flag, nine inches aiunder, two bufhels an acre of the {mall, black, i. Horfe [ 320 ] 1. Horfe-beans; 2. Wheat, with 3. Clover, or other grafles. He pays 3s. per bufhel dibbling beans. Mr. Young carries all his hay and corn in one- horfe puts or carts, with a waggon-like apparatus on the body; and thinks them more commodious than waggons. | His fheep-fold, for winter, for a hundred fheep, is littered with wheat-ftubble daily in rainy weather, or as often as needful. It is partly under cover, where are racks for hay. He feldom gives them turnips there; they are put in late in evenings, and out early in mornings, in dry weather. In wet, they have hay always; and turnips only in very {nowy or ftormy weather; depending moftly on hay in the fold. A farmer would do well to learn of Mr. Young to make more dung than ordinary, andbetter. He lets his dung-heaps lie dry at bottom, daily throw- ing upon them the water of the cattle, having fhoots to carry off the rain from the hanging roofs of his ox-ftalls, entirely out of the court, without carry- ing off any of the richnefs of the dung. He has gutters behind his cattle in the ftalls, which convey their [ gat ] their water into refervoirs made convenient for res ceiving it, to be thrown upon the dung. In April, in warm fhowery weather, he turns over his dung, a boy ftanding by with a bafket of fale, ftrewing at the rate of one pound of falt to a cubical yard of dung. He has alfo a cowl or veffel on wheels, to remove the refufe of the houfe (duft, &c.) to the farm-yard, which affords feveral good loads of manure a years The weight of his {mall weighing coop is 1cwt. $lb. ‘The fteelyard was made on purpofe. The expence of the machine was 26s. It will weigh an animal, or any thing not exceeding 6cwt. When turnips are taken up to clear the ground for Lent-crops, it is ufual about Bury to cut off the tap-roots, and place the turnips on the ground in a dry pafture, fide by fide, tillwanted. The green is left, and put uppermoft. But the green is rarely confiderable in lands well adapted to turnips, as they are in that neighbourhood, in comparifon to what it is in heavy and ftrong lands, not very fuitable to turnips; where they are apt to run more to green, and lefs to apple. Vor, VI, Y I fhall PY gaan] I fhall not readily forget the obliging and agree- able manner in which I was entertained at Bradfield- hall, and its environs. Mr. Youne invited many gentlemen farmers, both of the clergy and laity, to his houfe; fome of whofe vifits we returned. Their mode of vifiting is fingularly pleafant and beneficial to the agriculturift; I with it were introduced into this and every other county in thekingdom, They meet early enough before dinner to walk or ride over each other’s farm, and point out in a friendly way any deficiency of good management. It 1s not difficult to imagine what a fpur this is to good hufbandry, and their farms fhew it: It is of publick as well as private advantage; contributing at the fame time to health, pleafure, and profit. It is well known, that, about Bury, they plough with two horfes or oxen, abreaft, without a driver. Both at Rougham, and on the road to Bury in their harnefs, | faw the Rev. Mr. HeppinctTon’s noble team of oxen, of which, or his turnip or other hufbandry, I fhall fay no more than that he has lately given an account of them in the Annals, well deferving the attention of the farmer. But, being ftruck with the greater novelties in the mode of hufbandry of Mr. Mure, of Great- Saxham, Be eae | Saxham, with whom we paffed the geater part of two days. I cannot refrain from being fomewhat more particular with refpect to it. He fats about 180 black cattle a year; many of them Scotch and Welch, feeding them in ftalls all the fummer, by cutting and carrying to them meadow grafs, vetches, &c. In winter he gives them a peck a day of malted beans. He alfo feeds them with Malted barley ; Potatoes ; Cabbages, and chaff or ftraw cut; Turnips, and ftraw not cut; Bean-meal and water ; Barley-meal and water ; Dry bean-meal, pe then, they are led to Dry barley-meal, ) water, twice a day. Mr. Mure has erected a circular building for feeding 46 head of cattle, tied up at 3: feet afunder, outfide of the circle, with covered refervoirs in the centre for depofiting fodder, in inclement weather more efpecially. The whole was fitted up at a {mall expence, being made of the thinnings of his fir plantations, and covered with thatch; the cribs wattled or wreathed. The pofts, to which the cattle are tied, very little above the crib, A gate Ye leads [ 324 ] leads into the central part, where there is a way for carts or waggons to go round within the circle, be- tween the ftalls and refervoirs for fodder ; he makes the greateft provifion for dung I ever faw, by his’ {tall-feeding all fummer, cutting and carrying tares, grafs, &c. to his cattle, and bedding them on ftraw or ftubble. All the water of his cattle is faved, and daily thrown on his dunghills, as well as Mr. Younc’s. Mr. Mure plants cabbages earlier than ordinary for food for his cattle. He was planting a field when I was there, which was the laft week in March, in rows wide enough for horfe-hoeing, at 20 inches afunder in the rows. } He has a machine for weighing large cattle, which coft him fifteen guineas, befides the building to cover it, &c. Alfo amachine for grinding potatoes, worked generally by hand, but may be worked by a horfe; it is a broad nine-inch wheel, turned in and round a wooden frame, in the manner of grind- ing bark. Shortly before I was at Saxham, a bet of a rump and dozen had been determined between Mr. Mure and Mr. Macro; the bet was made at a farmer’s club, on the queftion, Whether turnips drilled and horfe- [ 3255] horfe-hoed, or fown broadcaft and hand-hoed, would produce the beft crop? Mr. Mure was on the fide of horfe-hoeing, Mr. Macro in favour of hand- hoeing; and the point was tried on a field of Mr. Mure’s prepared for turnips, which was divided for the purpofe, and the crops put in fide by fide, the length of the field, each party taking care of the crop, according to his adopted plan. After the bet was determined, I had the fatisfac- tion to fee the field of experiment, where the broad- caft part appeared to the eye as good as the drilled; but I underftood ; Tons. ‘The produce of the drilled crop per acre was 14% Of the broadcaft - - - 10 Superiority of the drilled per acre ~ 42 Upon which Mr. Macro refolved ever after to drill and horfe-hoe his turnips, and procured the proper apparatus for that purpofe ; but unluckily did not live long to carry his intention into execution. Thefe turnips were weighed in what they call in: that neighbourhood, fkippers, (bafkets rather long in fhape, in which they give tyrmips, &c. to their cattle,) and it was obferved that a fkipper full of Y 3 the L> 936. the horfe-hoed turnips weighed very confiderably more than a fkipper full of the broad-caft, which fhewed that the plant had received great nourifh- ment, and an improved confiftence, from the horfe- hoe, which produced fo much more weight of turnips than the hand-hoe, in the like fpace or compafs, and proved the horfe-hoed crop to be of more value in fact than it appeared to be to the _ eye, in comparifon with the other. But now for the prince of farmers, Mr. Duckitt, of Efber-place. In April 1788, I vifited his farm, in company with Meffrs. Young and Macro; but not having time enough then to make all the obferva- tions I wifhed, I vifited it again in July following, Mr. Duckitt’s farm is the moft complete, and kept in the cleaneft and beit order, of any I ever faw. He ploughs his lands into beds wide enough to contain nine or ten rows of the crop fown in it, at nine inches afunder, for the moft part. His farm at Efher is about 500 acres, of which nearly 400 are arable. The land is moftly fand on a gravel bottom; but fome of it clayey, and moft part of it heavy enough for beans, at leaft for the fmaller fort, tick, or horfe-beans, He Ce ty] He drills, on his beds of nine or ten rows, Wheat, Barley, Oats, at nine inches afunder, Rye, Barley and clover, Tares or vetches, Oats and tares, Rye and tares, Peas and turnips, ) \ at eleven inches afunder. 1 Beans, at eighteen inches afunder. After his ground is well prepared by ploughing, he makes five channels or drills with a drill-plough, ‘with as many fhares and broad-boards; then-his dropping-machine follows, and fheds five rows of feeds, which are covered by an harrow. When the crop is high enough for the purpofe, he has two horfe-hoes, which hoe five alleys or in- tervals apiece, and have each a man to hold and guide them. They work one on each fide of the furrow, which divides the beds, into which the field is thrown; of courfe hoeing at once five rows on each bed, or two half beds. The horfe is led in the furrow by a poy and by the help of a long ~ whipples» Loe 7 whipple-tree draws both the horfe-hoes, which completely hoe the ten alleys. When the land is more than ordinarily dry and hard, two horfes are neceflary for the work. But wet or dry, no in- jury is thereby done to the crop, the horfes always going in the furrow. He has fome horfe-hoes with fix fhares, each of courfe hoeing fix alleys at a time. ' On Mr. Duckitt’s firft invention of his horfe- noes, he thought the work would be more regularly and completely effected, if the men who guided the horfe-hoes drew them going backward, between the hoes and the draught, which was certainly placing the men in a dangerous fituation, in cafe the horfes fhould become refra¢tory, and uncontroulable by the boy who led them. This was obferved by the King, who has feveral times been pleafed to honour this farm with a Royal vifit; and his Majefty very humanely, and with great condefcenfion, having communicated his idea to a fon of Mr. Duckitt’s, the father, in compliance with his Majefty’s bene- volent defign, has made other horfe-hoes, which are held by men, who go fafely behind the machines, But Mr. Duckitt informed me, he did not know which did its work the beft; and he ufes them pro- mifcuoufly, as opportunity offers, never leaving un- done [. 329 ] done or delaying any horfe-hoeing, to wait for the ufe of either. But furely, if thofe on the latter con- ftruction do their work in every refpeét as well as thofe on the firft invention, a preference will be given to them, when new ones are wanted; and the Royal and humane idea be encouraged and recorded by future practice, to the honour of the Sovereign, and fafety of the fubject, It is {earcely to be imagined how completely Mr, Duckitt makes his wheat-mows. They are finely fwollen out to that enormous bulk in the middle, tapered up in fo beautiful a manner to the top, and fo handfomely covered with thatch, that they are perfect pictures. And the largeft of thofe I faw muft have contained many hundred bufhels of corn, I had the fatisfaction to find Mr. Duckitt fowing a field of eleven acres with turnips. It is amazing with what expedition he proceeds ; his field was perfectly ploughed and harrowed; and he carried on his work, according to his ufval method when he works with two drill-ploughs, by beginning in the middle of his field. One drill-plough branched off one way towards one fide-hedge, the other worked oppofite to it, and tended towards the op- polite hedge, The drills foon worked on faft enough E 330 J enough for the after-work, and were followed by two dropping-machines, going in the tracks made by the drill-ploughs, and there dropping the turnip- feeds. After them went a double-zull, or what is there called a ftrike-furrow plough, to ftrike up furrows, to throw the work into the beds of ten rows of turnips each, which were dropped at eleven inches afunder. And then followed two horfes, one on each fide of the bed, in the furrows, which, by means of a long whipple-tree, as long as the width of the beds, drew three light harrows fixed to the whipple-tree, that covered the whole breadth of the bed, and harrowed the whole as it wenton. Each harrow had five rows of tines or teeth, and fix tines in each row, making ninety in the three harrows 3 it being neceffary that the harrows fhould be clofe enough only to cover the feed, and not to fink deep enough to difplace the feed, after it falls from the dropping machine, His drill-plough, after once going, on its return always goes with one fhare, and fometimes two in the fame path it went before, which renders the crops on his whole farm almoft inconceivably pic- turefque to the eye. His barley and all his crops were the beft I had feen; and there are two fubftantial reafons for their being [ 3 ] being fo; his feed is more regularly placed in the ground at a proper depth, and his horfe-hoeings pro- mote the vegetation of the plant. Mr. Duckitt’s farm implements are the moft perfect of any I have feen. I wifh I could do them juftice in defcribing them. ‘I cannot attempt it; but I muft take notice, that his carrot-machine has an iron fhare and clifp both in one; moves ground neatly two feet below the furface; without turning over the foil; aiid would be vaftly ferviceable in preparing ground fot plantations of foreft trees ; for, by means of a trenching-plough, with a fkim- coulter, going before, and the carrot-machine fol- lowing in the fame furrow, the foil may be well ploughed and opened to the depth of more than two feet. Thefe implements are moftly, if not all, . of his own invention. It would be a great im- provement to agriculture, if they were difperfed all over the kingdom. ‘Thofe adapted to preparing the ground, putting in, and cultivating the crop in its growth, would coft about 3ol. I have got what he calls his trenching-plough, with the {kim-coulter, and his bean horfe-hoe with two fhares. T hey coft me on the fpot nine guineas and a half, and home eleven pounds thirteen fhillings. It [ 332 7 It may not be improper to explain the fkim- coulter. It is calculated for lay ground; in its work it precedes the other coulter, turning the flag down, which, by the other coulter following, is fo completely covered, that the edges do not appear » and produce weeds and grafs as in common plough-. ing. Itis fit for turning up lay for a bean crop, for which purpofe I have ufed it to advantage, If a little money from the Exchequer, out of the fame fund which pays the bounty on the growth of flax, &c. could be fpared, to have complete fets of thefe inftruments fent to the farmers in every county who would make the beft ufe of them, it would: be a good thing. Ido not like the gloomy ideas of fome of my brother farmers, and with they were lefs fevere on adminiftration. There is no good in being for ever croaking, If peace fhould continue, I will not defpair of feeing encouragement given, at proper feafons, to the trueft and moft permanent in- tereft of the kingdom, by regulations refpecting tithes, general inclofures, provifions for the poor, and many other encouragements to agriculture, particu- larly to fome fych plan as Mr, Duckitt has formed, His plan, for the improvement of national agri- culture, is, “* For himfelf, or fome one under his “ direction, cE 332. direCtion, to traverfe the kingdom at the publick “ expence; put in crops, on his principle, on all ‘kinds of foil; and for due attention to be given, “‘ at the publick expence, to bring thofe crops to “¢ perfection: after which, the farmers may follow « his plan, or purfue their own at their difcretion.” Mr. Duckitt himfelf may be now too far ad- vanced in years, and fettled in bufinefs, to be dif- pofed for fuch an undertaking in perfon; but has fons brought up under him, who may be very capable of doing the more active part under his direction. I fhall conclude this tedious detail, with an ac- count of a fingular honour which was fhewn Mr. Duckitt by the late Marquis of Rockingham, which I think he richly merited, and continues to merit more, by demonftrating the great benefits that may be given to agriculture, by the horfe-hoe, &c. The favour I allude to, which the Marquis fhewed Mr. Duckitt, was prefenting him with a large filver cup, of confiderable value, with the following in- {cription on it: * To Wittram Duckirtr, farmer, who by me- *¢ chanical fkill, fagacious obfervation, and diligent “¢ purfuit, [ 1334 “¢ purfuit, rendered the principles of Tut practi- «cable and profitable, and thereby perfected the culture of light foils, Cuartes Marquis of Rock- ‘ ingham, as a token of his regard to fuch publick “¢ merit, has prefented this cup, in the year 1774. “© Bonus civis:bona agricola !” I am, refpectfully, Sir, your obedient fervant, R. PROCTER ANDERDON. Henlade, May 16, 1792. -~ ARTICLE XXXVII. Ox the expediency of Sowing Wheat occafionally in the Spring. ‘i TO THE SECRETARY. SIR, HEAT being the grain of which bread is chiefly made in almoft all Europe; it well deferves the moft diligent care and attention of the farmer. From the very high price it has been fold at for many years paft, it fhould feem the produce has not been fo great in proportion to the confump- tion | [ 335 ] tion as formerly. Would it not therefore be pru- _ dent to promote its cultivation by every means confiftent with convenience and general ceconomy ? In the enumeration.of modern improvements, that of fowing wheat occafionally in the {pring fhould not be omitted. By /pring wheat feems to be meant, by writers on this fubject, a fpecies of wheat of a peculiar nature, particularly appropriated to that feafon. Whether there be a real fpecifick difference between this and the wheat that is in common ufe, or whether it is a diftinction without a difference—a manceuvre fabricated by the fingu- lar ingenuity of the times, is more than I am able to fay at prefent; but I never hear of {pring wheat at 12s. a bufhel, but Carolina grafs feed at two guineas a quart immediately pops into my head; nor can I think of fuch fuperlative ingenuity unac- companied by the idea of a suITABLE REWARD. Such is the power of affociation! But whether fpring wheat be a fpecies totally dif- ferent from the forts in common ufe or not, the farmer need not be folicitous about it, for I can affure him, that every fpecies of wheat in common ufe among us, if fown in February, will produce good plump corn, and be ripe and fit to reap in— | good [ 335 J rood feafon, as I have repeatedly experienced fe veral years paft. I have fowed red lammas; white tammas, bearded or cone, and white wheat from America, called by fome Quebeck wheat, all which fucceeded equally well. Oct. 28, 1789, I fowed about nine acres, part of a field of fourteen, with white cone wheat; the remainder of the field was — fo fouland out of tilth, that I determined not to fow it nll fpring; and not with wheat then, unlefs it could be got into proper tilth. I had it ploughed into very narrow ridges, and in that condition it remained till the 9th day of February, when it was fown on four-bout ridges, four rows on each ridge. It cut avery poor figure till the month of May, infomuch that the farmers in the neighbourhood advifed my man to plough it up and fow it with barley. From this time it grew away ata great rate, and was in all refpeéts as good corn as any that grew upon the farm; and though of a fpecies that is later in ripening than moft others, it was ‘not above eight or ten days later than that which was fown in O&tober in the fame field. It is not meant by this to infinuate, that fowing wheat in the {pring is preferable to fowing it in the autumn. The autumn, comimunibus annis, 1s on many accounts to be preferred. But I am thoroughly | convinced - E 133%] convinced, that when from the unfeafonablenefs of the weather, the foulnefs of the ground, and not being in proper tilth, it would be imprudent to fow .it, the giving it three or four months fallow at that feafon would give a manifeft fuperiority to the crop fownin February over what might be fown in November, abftracted from the confideration of all injury corn fown fo late in the feafon is liable to from frofts, &cc. in its young and tender ftate. It is true there can be no certain dependance upon fowing in February. Froft and fnow fo fre- quently happen in that month as to render fowing fometimes impracticable: fhould it fo happen, the foil will be in an improved condition for beans or oats ia March, or fill more, if convenient and fuit- able, for peafe or barley in April. Now, after a winter’s fallow of five or fix months, I am decidedly of opinion, that acrop of either of the articles above-mentioned, even without manure, would be more profitable than a crop of wheat fown in au - tumn in ground that was foul and in imperfect tilth, though manured at an expence of feveral pounds an acre. It fhould never be forgot, that it is the net profit, and not the grofs amount, that is the true and only proper object of the farmer’s purfuit. Vout, VI, . fe To r oe a To thoroughly pulverize the foil, and keep it clean from weeds, is a maxim the farmer fhould never lofe fight of; it is the true fine qua non of fuccefsful hufbandry. If this be duly performed, and the land planted in proper feafon, fcarcely any foil is fo poor as not to bear a profitable crop, nor any fo rich and fertile as to be attended with profit without it. To manure ground that is out of tilth and full of weeds, is to give ftrength and encouragement to its greateft _ enemies, who are perpetually counteracting, and at length defeating the planter’s utmoft endeavours. But let him continue to plough them in till they are in a great meafure overcome, they will then prove the means of increafing the fertility which | otherwife they would have deftroyed. I have often fowed wheat in November, very feldom with tolerable fuccefs, often with bad; I have therefore left off altogether fowing fo late in the year; being convinced, from the experience of fome years, that February is a much better feafon, independent of the benefit accruing from three or four months fallow at that feafon of the year, which indeed I find very great. Wheat fowed, I fuppofe, the middle of Novem- ber, feldom or never comes up fill the latter end of December ; £ 339 J ‘December; then juft as it begins to appear, and is in its very tendereft ftate, it has two of the fevereft months in the year to contend with; when the ri- gour of the climate generally fhews its utmoft fe- verity, and frequently deftroys great quantities of corn in this its infant and moft tender ftate. I am, Sir, your moft obliged fervant, JOSEPH WIMPEY. North-Bockhampton, Feb. 28, 1792. ArTIcLE XXXVIII. On the Culture of Poratogs. HIS root is of vaft importance, whether it be | confidered as a food for man or beaft. Its utility feems to be fo univerfally acknowledged, that every communication refpecting its culture mutt be well received by the publick. If the following experiments on a root which - cleans and enriches land, at the fame time that it affords means of keeping a large ftock of cattle in the winter feafon, fhould tend to the total exclufion Z2 of [ 34° ] of a fummer fallow on Jight lands, I fhall think I have not written in vain, nor will my fpeculation be altogether ufelefs. This root has not till lately been the obje& of general attention; even the improved counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, a few years ago, knew nothing of it, otherwife than as a garden produétion. In the county of Somerfet, I well remember the time when it was an extraordinary thing for a man to have a field of potatoes ; and now, I may fafely fay, there are hundreds of acres every year; and to this, poffibly, the low price of wheat may, iz part, be attributed. In poor families it is almoft the whole fubfiftence of the children; and a failure of - the potatoe is equally alarming with the failure of the wheat crop. Still, there are few counties the inhabitants of which have {piritedly entered into the cultivation of this root, on a large {cale, as a food for neat cattle, bogs, and fheep. The turnip hufbandry has been confidered as the ne plus ultra of good farming; and that moft ufeful animal, the fheep, is almoft folely dependant upon that root for winter provender. Is it not therefore worth while to take their comparative excellence into confideration? I would with to engage the ; attention [ 49g: 2 attention of my reader, whilft I draw a fair compa- rative eftimate of the expences and produce of a turnip.and potatoe crop. I have in neither inftance, charged rent, or any thing for manure, as I con- ceive their demands in that refpect equal. EXPENCES, TURNIPS. per acre. POTATOES. © RA Tae 8 the 5 ploughings - 0150 2ploughings - o 60 4 harrowings - 0 40 1 harrowing - oO 10 weed FPS = 76). 'O- 9 Planting + - I 10 Sowing .- - 0 03. . Seed - =) TZ ONO 2 hoeings aap OG ‘Hoeing - - 0 7 6 Digging up, &c. 2 .0 0 ro 7\9 5 ESO PRODUCE. ake yery aie Geto If a very good, crop . crop, 100 facks a ate at 2s. 6d. per fack*! ° Even on the moft fuperficial view, the fuperiority of potatoes is apparent, but when you take into confideration the certainty of one crop, and the un- certainty of the other, a farmer mutt be an infidel indeed who will not acknowledge it. * Perhaps this might fairly have been put higher. Z-5 It [ 342 °"] Ic is well known that turnips are liable to many accidents. In their infant ftate, the fy, or, perhaps more properly fpeaking, the /lug, demolifhes them, If they efcape this enemy, and get into rough leaf, the black canker attacks them, and leaves, in a few days, a whole field anatomized. Should they furvive all maladies, and come to ever fo great perfection, a fevere froft, or deep {now, debars you from making the moft of them, and after all, it frequently happens, that in the months of February and March, a fevere froft fol- lowing a wet day, deftroys your whole crop, and deprives you of every refource, fave the hay-mow. Not fo potatoes :—when pitted and well fecured, they are fafe from all rifque, (the pilfering hand excepted) and are as good in the months of March and April as in October or November. ‘To recommend the culture of potatoes on a large fcale as a food for man would be abfurd; and few farmers would attend to any recommendation of them as a food for cattle, unlefs their value be fairly aicertained. To determine this point, I began eight years fince a couife of experiments, the refult of which I. ? now E gag 7 now lay before you, hoping that if any error in cal- culation may have crept into the ftatements, your readers will attribute it to haftinefs of writing, and not to a defign to miflead. Many tempting, and I fear exaggerated accounts have been given of the produce and value of po- tatoes; and in this refpect, I muft confefs myfelf to be in fome meafure guilty ;—for, by a reference to vol, iii. of your Papers, you will find that I eftimated their value as a food for hogs, at 4s. per fack, (240]b.) and I at that time verily thought fuch a reprefentation to be the fair, unbiafled refult of an experiment honeftly conducted; but fubfequent trials have made me alter my opinion; and I fee the impropriety of drawing certain conclufions from a folitary experiment. Potatoes fhould not be viewed merely in the — light of profit, but as the means of cleanfing the land, and preparing it moft excellently for a corn crop. ‘There is a great difference between an ex- penfive fallow, and a profitable fallow crop: the farmer, therefore, fhould be contented, if they pay the expences of an ample manuring, and keep the Jand clean, I have [ 344 ] I have been informed that potatoes have been raifed to the amount of 1000 bufhels per acre, but my experiments are not fo flattering; and poffibly, thofe great crops were on a fall feale, and from a gar= den, which might be nearly a mafs of putrid manure, Such experiments are always fallacious. I have never had a greater produce than a fack in a perch, or 160 facks per acre; though I know it is poffible to raife a greater quantity of fome forts ; fuch as the Surinam, the Ox-noble, and the Horf-legs; but are thefe potatoes fo nutritious ? I think not. It may be expected that I fhould fay fomething of the curl difeafe, to which this root is in fome de- gree liable; but I muft confefs, that notwithftand- ing all my attention for twenty years paft, during which time I have been in the conftant habit of planting on a large fcale, I cannot fpeak decifively on this fubject. It feems involved in impenetrable myftery. I have planted from the fame pit of pota- toes.on the fame day, in the fame foil, prepared with the farne manure ; part of the crop has come curled, part not; nay, I have known two fhoots from the fame fet, the one curled, the other not. I have raifed from feed, and been careful to gather the feed, from the fineft and moft' flourifhing plants ; : they ye | they have been in every refpect as fubject to the diforder as the cuttings of old feed. Left the heat of the pits might be injurious, I have covered them in the place where they grew, and left them uadug till the time of planting ;—all the fame! I have planted before they fhoot out, and after;—no difference ! In fhort ; I once planted two tons of potatoes in the month of June, which weré more than half rotten, and purchafed at a trifling fum of a captain of a Dumfries fhip, on Briftol quay, and I never had a much better crop. fions then can be drawn from thefe premifes—but W hat certain conclu- that, with all our wifcom, we are perfeGly ignorant of iome of the moit fimple operations of nature? I forgot to fay, that I have been in the habit of “planting whofe potatoes, /arge cuttings, fmall cut- tings—nay, the mere eye of the. potatoe only; but I never could fee any difference in refpect to the curl. , If the potatoe was di/pofed to be curled, it proved almoit equally fo in all methods; and on the other hand, I never knew a true Dumfries po- tatoe come curled the jirff year; perhaps the fecond year a few would be curled; but beware of the third; for be affured, let your foil or manure be ever fo good, almoft all will be curled the third year, if planted jn the fame foil or neighbourhood. As [ 346 ] As to the land moft favourable to this root, there can be little doubt:—A rich fandy loam is the beft; but potatoes may be grown to advantage on all foils of a /oofe texture. The richer the land, the more abundant the crop, which varies from 50 to 150 facks, (240]b.) per acre; but let not the farmer confide too much in the ftreneth of his foil, to the exclufion of manure; not lefs than twenty cart-loads of which fhould be put on an acre; by cart-load I mean 30 bufhels. Of all manures, horfe-dung, well rotted, is the beft; next to it, hog’s dung; after that, all other forts of animal dung. Lime, marle, chalk, foaper’s afhes, and rags, do but little good; and in fome inftances do harm, by making the potatoes fcabby. Green vetches, or clover, covered in by planting, is good manure. Endeavour, as much as you can, to plant in dry weather, either in the months of April or May, Ute large fets; that is, pick out the largeft and fineft potatoes for feed, and flice them in two pieces, from the crown to the root. Notwithftanding the ' experiments of your learned and indefatigable cor- refpondent Dr, Anpzrson feem to juftify him in recommending L 347 J recommending whole potatoes for feed, my trials have all led to a contrary conclufion; and I much wih, that your regular correfpondents would give their opinion on this fubject; from fuch aggregate of information, fome decided opinion might be formed. Change your feed every wo years, and go as far from home as you canfor afupply. In the vicinity of Briftol, perhaps the Scotch feed, imported from Dumfries, is the beft. Do not cover your fets in planting with more than three inches depth of earth, and be particularly attentive to the rooks, which by their fagacity of {mell will find them out, and would make great de- predation. After the plants have been up about 3 weeks, fet your hoers to work; but by no means let the hoe be ufed after the plants begin to throw out their ftrings, and form their bulbs: fhould any {cat- tered weeds arife, remove them by hand-work. Iflabourers can be got, prefer digging to ploughing up; and when you dig, compel your men to thruft their fpade under the potatoes, and not dig in per- pendicularly; by this means they avoid cutting the roots. Never dig up in wet weather; and as faft as dug, fecure them in the following manner: make a trench [ 348 J a trench in a dry part of the field, eight inches deep and four feet wide; fpread.a thin layer of dry ftraw on the bottom, and againft the fides; then throw in your potatoes, and raife them to the height of four feet, leaving the top fhelving in the form of a roof; on the potatoes thus placed, lay a bed of dry ftraw fix or eight inches thick, and cover the fame with mould, dug from the fides of the pit, and patted on to the thicknefs of a foot; after this, let your thatcher cover it with ftraw, or the haulm of the potatoe, fufficient to keep out the rain, In this way, I have kept many thoufand facks through the moft fevere winters, without injury. There are various methods of planting; but it may be right to divide them under two diftinét heads, viz. the drill and the promifcuous, Both thefe may again be fubdivided; but as it is not my defign to fatigue my reader, by entering into a dif- cuffion on their refpective merits, I fhall only fay, that my experience leads me to prefer the promi/- cuous mode; and to plant in beds five feet wide, intervals or alleys three feet, dug and thrown on to the beds, and the fets one foot apart. In this way let the feafon be ever fo wet, the potatoes lie dry. You alfo, in hoeing, have accefs, without treading on [ og] on them; befides, being planted fo clofe, fucha putrid fermentation is created by the thick fhade of the potatoe, that the foil is more meliorated, and weeds more compleatly deftroyed, than in any other method. Horfe-hoeing cuts the potatoes, and tears the fibres or ftrings on which the bulbs are formed. | : I fhall now proceed to a detail of my experi- ments, which comprehend feven years trial on a pretty large fcale, and in various ways of planting, and though many, who have been fanguine in their ideas refpecting this root, may be difappointed at the collective refult, I can only fay, that perhaps as much benefit may accrue from recording an unfuc- cefsful as from the moft flattering and fuccefsful experiment. 1784. EXPERIMENT NO, I, SEVEN ACRES. Culture, expences, and produce, of a field of feven acres, foil a gravelly loam, on a bed of limeftone rock, value about 8s. per acre. This field was, in 1783, part of the foreft of Mendip, and was in its uninclofed {tate worth about 3s, 6d. per acre. _ EXPENCES, [ 350 ] EXPENCES. Le S$. as Cutting furze and levelling inequalities, ss. per acre - > - 15a 1783, Odfober. Ploughing firft time, 12s. per acre = 4 40 1784, March. Crofs ploughing, 10s. peracre = @ 3100 April, Dragging with heavy and long-tined drag, 6s. 220 140 quarters of lime, 1s. 4d. per quarter ~ 9 68 Carriage of ditto, 6d. per quarter A 3100 May. Spreading lime, gd. per acre - = OC) ae Harrowing in lime, 1s. per acre = - °o 70 Third ploughing, 3s. ~ - 1 8 Harrowing, Is. - e ° 70 Planting in beds 8 feet wide, alleys 4 feet, = 76 iG 49 facks (240lb. each) Scotch feed, 6s. per fack 14 14 0 [N. B. Sets a foot apart?] Cutting fets at 3d. per fack = a 012 3 Fune. Keeping off birds - = = Foe Hoeing, (beer included) 5s. - = 1150 Fuly. Earthing up plants with the loofe earth of the alleys, 5s. - ae ~ 1150 OGtober and November. Digging up and fecuring, 40s. per acre 14 00 Rent (no tithe) - - s - 2164 Intereft of capital, 5s. per acre - I ise Totalcoki f.70 «72 PRODUCE, ae | PRODUCE. : £- S. de Five hundred and five facks, prime coft, 2s. 10d. per fack or thereabouts ~ = {71 10 10 OBSERVATIONS. Many of my readers will, I doubt not, be fur- prized at the heavy expence of this crop, and yet even with my prefent experience, I can fee but one _ extravagant charge, and that is, digging out; ' this amounts to $d. per fack, allowing near-4l. for pit~ ting and fecuring ; perhaps it fhould have coft no more than 4d. per fack. , As tothe quantity of feed, which may furprize fome, I muft notice that planting /arge fets requires a much greater quantity of feed than when /nall fets are ufed. The charge of intereft on capital I have long adopted, and I think it right; as to the quantum, it is fixed on the following principles. One hun- dred acres of land, fuppofing them to be worth on an average 20s. per acre, require 50ol. capital; confequently the intereft at § per cent, amounts to Ss. per acre. After all, however, here is a rough piece of land, which in its uninclofed ftate, was worth only 3s. an . acre, fs 302 ] acre, brought by ove crop wuto fuch a ftate.of pul- verization and amendment, as to be worth 15s, and all the expences paid, fuppoling the potatoes to be worth 2s. 10d. per fack. This field was fown with wheat, but the time of fowing was inevitably protracted to a late feafon, In acold climate, and on a light foil, never fow wheat after potatoes, but ridge up your land, and leave it for a {pring crop, and perhaps on amy foil it is good hufbandry fo to do. 1735. EXPERIMENT NO. IIl.— 8 ACRES. ria gene IvV.—I2 32 acres. NO. 2, EIGHT ACRES, Soil a gravelly loam worth 20s. per acre, had been laid down with fainfoin 3 years before, which did not fucceed. This field was marked out into beds, 8 feet wide, leaving 4 feet interval to cover with. Farm-yard dung, 20 cart-loads to ‘an acre, - was then fpread equally on the beds, and the fets placed thereon at the diftance of one foot. The interval or alley was then dug to cover the fets, turning the grafs downwards, or turf to turf. This is called by fome the lazy-bed method. | EXPENCES. eae | EXPENCES. : fe 5. 1785, April. Setting at 1]. 11s. 6d. per acre - _ - 12 12.0 Liquor - - - ~ 1.11 6 Seed, 7 facks to an acre, 5s. 6d. - - 15 80 Manure at 3s. per load (carriage included) 24. 00 Cutting fets at 3d. per fack 3 = O.a4 6 May. Hoeing, §s.peracre == - - 2 00 Earthing up and fhovelling alleys - 20 0 Fuly. Hand-weeding, 2s. 6d. ~ - 126.0 Offober. Digging and fecuring - - 14°20 Rent and tithe, 25s. > - 10 00 Fences and highway, 6d. per acre > o 40 Intereft - - . - 2 00 85 12 6 PRODUCE. 564 facks, prime coft 3s. per fack. NO. III. TWELVE ACRES, - Same foil as the foregoing ;—was in oats 1784; the ftubble ploughed immediately after harveft. In March 1785, it was crofs-ploughed, and well harrowed ; lines.were then drawn longitudinally, with a double-breafted plough, at the diftance of four feet, and in this furrow farm-yard dung was ftrewed, after the rate of 12 loads per acre; on Vou. VI. Aa this fase, 7 this the fets were put, at the diftance of 9 inches, and then covered with alight plough. After the potatoes were about fix inches high, a fur- row was turned from one fide of the plants, and in a week after, another furrow from the other fide. They were then hand-hoed between the plants, after which the earth on the interval was returned to the plant, by the double-breafted plough. They were after this hand-hoed lightly. Great attention was neceffary to keep off the rooks, both after planting, and after the bulbs were formed; for the wide intervals, and the ele- vation of the foil on which the potatoes grew, gave them an opportunity of free accefs, and I verily believe, had they not been narrowly watched, they would have totally deftroyed the crop. As it was, they did a great deal of damage. Previous to digging out, a furrow was turned in the middle of the interval, fo that the diggers had only a narrow flip of earth to turn over. EXPENCES. 1784, Oéfober. for Sue Firft ploughing oat-ftubble, 3s. - ~ ri6 o@ 1785, March. Crofs ditto, 3s. per acre - - 1160 Harrowing, Is. - - - 0120 April, Marking out furrows - . ame 2 Carried over £.4 9 @ [355-7 . La Sas Brought forward 4 9 0 Manure, 3s. per load - = EEO May. Spreading manure, planting, &c. 15s. per acre g OO Seed and cutting, 5 facks to an acre - 21 12 0 Fune. Horfe-hoeing, 3s. per acre ° = 1160 Two hand-hoeings, 5s. per ditto - = 3°00 Keeping-off birds - = ee OGober. Turning furrow for potatoes o 60 Digging up and fecuring - - 14 II O Rent and tithe, 25s. per acre - 15 00 Fences and highways, 6d. per ditto - °o 60 Intereft, 5s. per ditto . - q-8710 £95 16 6 PRODUCE, 62% facks, prime coft, 3s. 1d. per fack. Part of this field was planted with my own feed, and part with Scotch feed, then imported. The latter, the beft crop by nearly one-third. | NN. B. Should any of my readers think that the “price of ploughing is too low, I would inform him, ‘that my ploughing is all performed with the double- _ furrow plough, with which my man can with eafe turn 24 acres in eight hours with four oxen, I have known him plough 20 acres of land, four Aa2 inches [ 356 1 inches deep, and nine inches wide, in fix days, This may appear incredible to fome, but it is nevertheless true, and can be done again if required. NO. IV. TWELVE ACRES, Soil the fame as the laft. Quality of land the fame, preceding crop and cultivation before planting the fame. A furrow was then turned about 3 inches deep with a light plough, from north to fouth; and the manure being brought, and de- pofited in fmall heaps, at a little diftance, the planters (women) began by putting down the fets at about twelve inches diftance in the furrow, and then covered them with a fprinkling of dung. The men then followed, and, at the diftance of 18 inches from the ploughed furrow, dug a trench of the fame depth, parallel thereunto, and depo- fited the contents thereof on the potatoes planted. {n this dzg trench another woman and man pro- ceeded in the fame way, fo that the potatoes were fet in rows 18 inches apart, and one foot from plant to plant, - ~~ . ‘ The fame feed, and the fame quantity. of manure, 7 were made ufe of in\the preceding experiment. — In the beginning of June, they were carefully hand- 7 [ 357°.) hand-hoed at 6s. per acre. After this no other attention was neceffary, as the plants grew fo thick, and fo entirely covered the land, as to fmother all weeds. When the foil is good, and plenty of manure can be afforded, this is an ex- cellent method; the earth is not poached by tread of horfes, and by digging is depofited fo lightly on the potatoes, that the roots are not checked in their extenfion. .1 do not approve of very wide intervals, either in corn, pulfe, or roots; and perhaps the drilling of corn, which feems to be the rage of the day, will be but a fhort-lived practice. I could ftate many objections to it, arifing from my own experience; but I do not from this infer that it is not an eligible plan on very poor foils, which want fummer hoeings to enable them to bring their crops to perfection. EXPENCES. La Se ae Firft and fecond ploughings and harrowing, as in preceding experiment - ~ 4 40 Manure - - - - 21 120 1785, May. Planting, 18s. per acre - - 10 160 Seed, 96 facks, at 6s. per fack - - 28 160 ‘ Funes Hand-hoeing, 6s. per acre z 3120 Keeping off birds (rooks) - - °o 90 Carried over £.69 9 @ [ 352° 3 Oétober. Ls. de Brought forward 69 9g o Ploughing out, 20s. per acre == vs 12 00 Carriage, pitting and fecuring - - 6 00 Rent, &c.as before - - ‘)e 13 60 £105 15 ® PRODUCE, 968 facks, prime coft 2s. 2d. per fack. OBSERVATIONS. In this experiment, I endeavoured, as much as poffibly I could, to afcertain the comparative pre- ference due to ploughing or digging out, and I found that a plough with two horfes, a man, a boy, eight women to pick up, and two men to carry to the waggons, could clear but little more than hal an acre aday. The expence cannot therefore be calculated at lefs than 20s. per acre. Thefe potatoes I could have had dug and carried to the pits (if in the fame field) at four-pence per fack, or 1]. 6s. 8d. per acre. Now the faving of a few fhillings per acre is no compenfation for the quantity bruifed by the tread of horfes, the number left in the ground, let the pickers be ever fo care- ful—and the want of pulverization, in comparifon- with digeing:—befides, fcarce any mode of planting” could have been feleéted for plough-work fo fa- vourable as this. Had the potatoes been planted on E359. ] on ridges, with intervals, the digging might have been performed at lefs expence than the ploughing. From this and many other trials, I am inclined to give the preference to digging up, and in all cafes where labourers can be procured. 1786. EXPERIMENT NO. V.—FIFTY ACRES, Soil, woodcock loam, 18s. per acre ;—thefe were two fields of a four-years old ley, and mofly ; they were ploughed in November, crofs-plough’d in March, then harrowed and planted in May, in beds five feet wide, alleys 3 feet. EXPENCES, 1785, November. me ear Ploughing at 5s. per acre ae = $2020" O 1786, March. Ditto, 5s. ditto - - - I2 100 Harrowing, 2s. ditto - - Si 30.3 April. 500 quarters of lime, at 1s. rod. delivered - 45 160 600 loads of dung, 3s. per load - 90 00 Seed (part Scotch) 400 facks, 7s. per fack - 140 00 Cutting feed and planting, 19s. ber acter sis 47 18 0 Keeping off rooks - = I 19.0 Hoeing with a fpade, called fpiddling - 27 00 Digging-up and fecuring - - or .-0''a Rent andtithe - ~ - Son: Ore ee eee Carried over £.513 13 Q [ 360 ] £. 5s. de Brought up 513 13 0 Fences and highways - I 50 Intereft of capital . y . 12 100 £527 80 PRODUCE. 3850 facks, prime coft 2s. gd. per fack. OBSERVATIONS. Half of the foregoing s0 acres was fown with wheat in the beginning of November, the other half was ridged up, and left for a fpring crop, and was accordingly fown with white oats in April; the re- fult of which was, that the crop of oats was un- commonly fine, and the wheat very indifferent, having been deftroyed by the grub or earth-worm in the winter. F This refult has been confirmed by many experi- ments; therefore, on a light foil, avoid fowing. wheat; and rely on it, that an oat crop in fuch cafes will turn out of more value than a wheat crop; befides, you proceed in a better courfe of cropping, and this is of effential importance. . ~ 17865. EXPERIMENT NO. VI.— 8 ACRES. Vil. 2 VIIIL—50O eel 60 acres. { 36. J NO. VI. EIGHT ACRES, ‘Of a kind of black earth, approaching to peat, and under it, at the depth of four inches, a ftrong white clay. This kind of foil is as light as chaff, and will not bring any kind of corn (buck-wheat excepted) to perfection. I had limed it, and fown it with oats in 1786, but they all withered away before they came out into ear, though at their firft coming up they looked beautifully flourifhing. After fallowing this field, I planted it in ridges five feet wide, and alleys three feet. In digging the intervals or alleys to cover the fets, I made the men dig deep, and bring up two or three inches of the clay. After hoeing, they were earthed up with two or three inches more of the clay, fo that the beds were elevated at leaft a foot above the alleys. When they were dug out, I gave the men $s. per acre extra to dig the beds down to tlie level of the alleys; by thefe means a large portion of clay was intimately mixed with the light fpungy furface. This entirely remedied the defe& in the foil, and the field produced the fubfequent year a very good { 362 ] good crop of oats, and from that time has been worth 20s, per acre. EXPENCES. 1786, November. fin d Ploughing oat-fiubble, 3s. per acre - 1 40 1787, April. Crofs-ploughing, 3s. peracre - - t 496 Harrowing, 2s. per ditto = ‘4 0160 Lime put on laft year, andnocrop , - 14 80 Planting at 25s. per acre - - 10 00 Seed 64 facks, at 6s, per fack . - - 19 40 Cutting fets, 3d. per fack - - 0160 Fune. Hoeing, 4S. per acre - ~ rizie Fuly. Farthing up, 10s. per acre - - 4.80 Bird keeping - ” - 0 60 November. | Digging out and fecuring, 35s. per acre - 14 OO Rene i - - 4. 00 Fences, &c. ~ = - O46 Intereft of capital - - - 2; OE £:73 14 0 PRODUCE. _—_— 564. facks, prime coft 2s. 8d. per fack. NO. VII. TWO ACRES, This land was part of the foreft of Mendip, and a portion of my allotment on the divifion of the common belonging to the parifh of Shepton- Mallet. EP oestd Mallet. This was valued by the commiffioners at as. 6d. per acre. In the month of March I fee fire to the furze; after which the field was marked out in beds eight feet wide, allowing in- tervals of four feet for the alleys. On thefe beds hog’s-dung was ipread, after the rate of 30 cart- loads per acre. On the dung the fets were de- pofited, i8 inches by g. The rough furface of the intervals or alleys was then fkimm’d of, and placed between the fets; after which a ipit of mouid was dug to cover with, leaving the loofe earth or crumbs to be fhovelled in after the potatoes were up. The produce of this field being well fecured, was kept to the following May, and then all fold at the price of gs. per fack. This exhibits a re- markable inftance of the value of a potatoe crop in fome circumftances, The produce amounted to forty times the value of the land in fee. EXPENCES. 1787, March. Cio law 3 Burning furze - - . "oy Se) April,» Planting, 35s. per acre . - 3100 Dung, 3s. per load ~ - 9 00 Scotch feed and cutting - - 6.00 Carried over {.18 11 0 [ 364 ] May. sa%. d. Brought forward 18 11 o Hoeing ~ - - o 100 June. Shovelling alleys - - . 0100 November. Digging out, 4d. per fack - - 313 4 Securing - - ¥ O58 Rent ~ - - o 50 Fence - - - o 10 Intereft - : c 0100 £25 04 PRODUCE, 220 facks, prime coft, 2s. 3d. per fack. NO. VIII. FIFTY ACRES, Of a three-year’s old ley, planted in the lazy-bed method. EXPENCES. 1787, April. To 1000 loads of dung, at 3s. per load 150 OO Planting 8 feet by 4, 30s. per acre, (or 6d. for every 20 yards in length) Seed and cutting, 400 facks, 5s. per fack May. Hoeing, 5s. per acre - Earthing up, 5s. per ditto - Oétober and November. Digging out, 6d. per {core yards Securing - - a Rent and tithe, 25s, - ~ Carried over 735° O86 100 OO a 1) oO £495 10 0 _- . —_— ~~ , f aes > soe Brought forward 491 10 G Fences and highways - - - L. ‘sre Intereft of capital 4 * acl), E2h2eke £-505 50 PRODUCE, 3680 facks, prime coft, 2s. gd. per fack. OBSERVATIONS. Here is a moft ample and expenfive manuring, and yet the potatoes do not coft more than 2s. gd. per fack. A crop of turnips would, in fimilar circum. ftances, and in point of total expence, be about 200l. lefs; but were they ever fo abundant a crop, they would not be worth more than 140l. fo that a lofs of 150]. would enfue when compared with po- tatoes, fuppofing them worth 2s. gd. per fack. 17388. EXPERIMENTS NO, IX.—— 7 ACRES. x.—-80 X1.—10 KII.——20 117 acres. NO. IX. [ 366 J NO. IX. SEVEN ACRES. Soil, rich loam. This field was drilled barley in the year 1787; the ftubble being very clean, it was plough’d after harveft into 32-feet ridges, that it might be dry in the winter. In the month of March a furrow was turned be- tween the ridges, after which it was crofs- ploughed and well harrowed. Thirty loads per acre of rotten horfe-dung, mixed with brewers hops, were brought. The planting was per- formed by digging into beds about 8 feet wide, leaving a vacancy (not dug) of 2 feet for earthing it. The fets were placed 18 by 12 inches apart. EXPENCES. 1787, October. Lo Ss es Ridging up, 2s. per acre - - o 140 1788, March. Drawing a furrow, Is. 6d. per acre - o 10 6 April, Crofs-ploughing, 3s. peracre = - - L) ae Harrowing, 1s. 6d. per ditto - - o 10 6 Planting, at 6d. per fcore yards - - i400 Seed (Scotch) 56 facks, at 8s. - - 42 BO Manure, 200 loads, at 3s. - - 20.) 0°0 Fune. Hoeing “ ~ - - 1.150 Fuly. Farthing - - - 3 100 Carried over £.74 9 0 [363% 1. Le Se do Brought forward 74 90 Digging out - - - 14140 Pitting and fecuring - > 5 40 Rent and tithe, 35s. per acre - = 2 12.5.4 Fencing and highway - - a) 3'6 Intereft of capital - - I 150 £.108 10 6 PRODUCE. 1110 facks, prime coft 2s. per fack. OBSERVATION. In this inftance the expences are very heavy, but ftill the crop is fo abundant that they coft only 2s. per fack. I confider this a great produce, being one of the beft I ever had. NO. X. EIGHT ACRES. A confiderable part.of which was in the year 1786 part of the foreft of Mendip, and was ploughed in the winter, crofs ploughed in May and June 1787, and between that tine and Oéober, part of it was limed ;—the remaining part was limed in the fpring of 1788. Part was planted in rows with the plough, and part on beds by hand. The beds the beft crop; and as the expence of hand-work does not ex- ceed horfe-work more than 8s. per acre,—the former [ 368 ]- former I think is to be preferred. The part limed in 1787 was better than that limed in 1788, EXPENCES. I 786-7. a S. a Cutting furze and levelling inequalities - 20 00 November and December. Firft ploughing, 12s. per acre =~ € 48 00 March. Crofs-ploughed half, 12s. per acre - . 48 00 Dragging, 6s. per ditto - od 24.00 June to O-tober. Soo quarters of lime, carriage, &c. 2s. per quarter 80 0 o Harrowing 40 acres, Is. per acre - 2 00 Ridging ditto, 3s. per ditto - “ 6 00 1788, March and April. 8x10 quarters of lime, 2s. per quarter - 81 oo Harrowing, Is. per acre - ~ 2 00 Ploughing 40 acres, 3s. per ditto - 6 00 Harrowing down, 2s. per ditto - - 4 00 Planting 40 acres, at 18s. per ditto - 36 oo Seed, 320 facks, 5s. - - Tons et Planting on 40 acres, 10s. - - 20 00 Seed, 240 facks, 6s. - = 60 oo Hoeing the whole, Ss. per acre - - 20 00 Digging out and fecuring —- + \99Jo oo Rent (no tithe) - - - 40 00 Intereft of capital - - - 20 00 £.727 00 PRODUCE. 4700 facks, prime coft, 3s. 1d, per fack. OBSERVATIONS. CE EL oa J OBSERVATIONS. Though in this experiment, the potatoes appear to come high, yet what other crop would have paid expences fo large, and in one year, and at the fame time have left the land in fo good a ftate? Ido not know a better method of bringing rough land into tillage. If corn be fown before the fward and rubbih are a little rotten, the grub generally attacks it, and fre- quently deftroys it. EXP. NO. XI. TEN ACRES. Soil, a gravelly loam. Part of this field was winter vetches, fown on a wheat ftubble, and part fpring vetches. In the beginning of May the winter vetches were hurdled off, and fed with fheep, and as faft as they were confumed, potatoes were planted in beds five feet wide, and intervals three feet, without any ploughing. The fpring vetches were fown the fame, and the planting was not finifhed till the middle of June. As the vetches were put in dear, viz. three bufhels per acre at 6s. per bufhel, (9 gallon meafure) I have debited the potatoes with the whole year’s rent. It isa good way to mow the Vo, 'VI. Bb vetches, [3 J vetches, and give them to the fheep in cribs, after withering a little; this ,will prevent fuffla- tion—provincially called being blafted, EXPENCES. 1788, day and ‘Fune. Le Side Planting, 21s. per acre - - 10 10 0 80 facks of feed, (part Scotch) = . 24.'0 9 Fuly. Hoeing - - - . 2 100 Farthing up - - - 2100 Oéober and November. Digging up and fecuring - - 20 0,0 Rent and tithe - - - 17 10.0 Fences and highways - - Onis) © Intereft of capital ~ - *- 2 100 £:79 15 0 PRODUCE, 940 facks, prime coft 1s. 8d. per fack. Tn this experiment I could plainly perceive that the fheep-fold was an excellent manure for potatoes. Even thofe planted in June produced a good crop. I very ftrongly recommend this plan. It is com- pendious. It enables you to keep a large flock, and it is connected with’a good courfe of hufbandry —following up the potatoes with a {pring crop and grafs feeds. NO, . [ 371-] EXP. NO. XII. TWENTY ACRES. Thefe were taken from the foreft, and the foil for the moft part, black earth, which is. the name given to a fpecies of land occafionally found in the foreft, and which I have before obferved will not in its natural ftate bring corn to perfection. Pared in the winter, and burnt in March, April, and May. O= 0).0-0 EXPENCES, 1788, May. ~ Be 9, Paring and burning, 21s. per acre - BE "On. O -140 facks of feed, 5s. per fack - 35 00 Planting, 21s, per acre - - 21 0°0 ; Fuly. Hoeing, 5s. per acre - - ~ Bin 0 Ploughing, digging out, and fecuring - 20. O Rent - - - - 50 Intereft of capital = - - - © JtI2, 010 PRODUCE. 800 facks, prime coft 2s. gd. per fack. N.B. Allowed 120 facks for rotten ones, 4 OBSERVATION. In confequence of a wet autumn and a Iate ri- pening, many of the potatoes rotted before they were dug, and many rotted after in the pits. \ Be Bb2 careful, C3789 careful, therefore, when you plant land of this de- {cription, to plant early, and take out early. 1789. EXPERIMENTS NO. XIII.— 6 ACRES. 21 acres. NO. XIII. SIX ACRES, AFTER WHEAT. Soil, a gravelly loam. Ploughed the wheat ftubble in October ; crofs-ploughed in March, and har- rowed it well. Drilled the potatoes in rows 2 feet apart, and ma- nured. with four ton of woollen rags, part of which had been foaked in the refervoir of hog’s urine. EXPENCES. 1788, Odober. fo» 5. de Ploughing, 3s. per acre - - o180 1789, March. Crofs-ploughing, 3s. ditto -° - 0 18 0 Harrowing, 2s. ditto - “ 0120 Seed - - - =) 10 .0'8 Forming drills and planting, 15s. per acre 4 100 Rags and fpreading - . 12-00 Hoeing == - pag ae I 100 Ploughing out and fecuring - - 4 50 Rentand tithe « - - 7 100 Carried over £.42 3.0 LBs Ls 5. de Brought forward 42 30 Fences and highway - - o. 2a Intereft of capital - - I 100 43,16 0 PRODUCE, 245 facks, prime coft 3s. gd. per fack. OBSERVATIONS. Thefe potatoes came up very curled, which I could not attribute'to any defect in the feed, as I had fome of the fame potatoes planted in another field, which came up well;—from hence, as well as fome other trials with different crops, fuch as wheat, flax, &c. I am led to conclude, that rags do not fuit my foil, particularly as I cannot fee any effect in the field, at this time, and furely they muft now be rotten. EXP. NO. XIV. FIFTEEN ACRES, Old ley. This field was planted and managed the fame as No, 2 in the year 1785. “ EXPENCES. 1789, May. essa. Planting, 11. 11s. 6d. per acre - 231% 6 Seed, 107 facks, at 5s. per fack - 26 15 0 Cutting ditto - a = r 09 Manure - ~ - 45 00 Carried over £.96 14 3 [ 3% J Fune. Brought up £.96 14 3 _ Hoeing, 5s. per acre - a 3150 Earthing, 5s. per acre = 2 3150 Weeding by hand - 4 ‘s 1 17 6 Digging and fecuring = b 22 100 Rent and tithe - - 13 00 Fences and highways - : 0 76 Intereft of capital - - - 3.15 0 £-150 14 3 PRODUCE. x 1250 facks, prime coft 2s. §d. per fack, 1790. EXPERIMENTS NO. Xv.—6 ACRES. XVI.—8 14 acres. EXP, NO. XV. SIX ACRES, Of black earth, fuch as I have before defcribed;— this was fallowed and limed in the year 178g, in conjunction with 40 acres of red earth which was then fown with wheat. This was left unfown in confequence of its inferti- lity in refpeé to corn. In the beginning of May it was harrowed merely to make the furface a little frefh, and then planted in beds 5 feet by 3 -feet. The produce, at 3s. per fack, amounted to double the value of the wheat crop, though that wes fix facks per acre, Labourers becoming | very L. #3 4 very fcarce in confequence of the tempting offers of the Briftol and Bath builders, I was obliged to hire men, at 2s. per day and beer, from a diftant part of the country todig them out. Thefe men would not dig by the fack, and confequently the expences were enormoufly high. I verily think that my own men, who worked by contract, did as much in one day as the others did in two. In fhort, manual labour is become fo dear, and la- bourers {fo fcarce, that it is now impoffible to cul- tivate this root on a large fcale;—and I muft (though reluctantly) be contented with a limited quantity. EXPENCES, 1789. faa. Ploughing, liming, &c. 4]. per acre - 24.00 Planting, 21s. per acre - - 6°6"0 Seed 46 facks - - - II 100 N. B. No hoeing neceffary. Digging out, hauling, and fecuring - 201 "0 Rent - - - - 20) O Intereft of capital - - ay PL FOO £.66 90 PRODUCE. . 542 facks, prime coft 2s. 6d. per fack. EXPERIMENT NO. XVI.—EIGHT ACRES, Rough wet land. This field was pared at the ex- pence of 12s, per acre; but the {pring being very | wet, Es s76: J wet, it could not be burnt. The potatoes there- fore were dug in without any manure, in beds about 8 feet wide, leaving a deep furrow between the beds to let off the moifture. The pared turf was laid under the fets, and then a fpit dug on them. Inthe greateft part of the field I planted whole potatoes, and of the mag- pie fort, which do better without manure than the white Scotch. Ina fmall part I had the fets cut in two pieces; and at digging, it appeared to me that the potatoes were larger and of greater weight per acre than thofe produced by the whole fets. | EXPENCES,. 1790, March. fe td, Paring, at 12s. per acre - - 416 0 May. Planting - - - 54, Seed, 12 facks per acre, 4s. per fack . 19 4 0 July. Hoeing and earthing == - - 232 8 Keeping birds off — - - - S355 Digging and fecuring - - 1247 28 Rent and tithe - - 6 0 0 Fences, &c. - ce - O14°° Intereft of capital - - 2 One : £.62>- Bin PRODUCE. 365 facks, prime coft 3s, 6d. per fack. L oe RECAPITULATION. pe EXPENCES. PRODUCE, S Acres, Per acre. Total. Sacks. a Hea gy 8 Pen kasiete er Apres Se ay 2 = 1784. zt 7 fallowed 10 10 70 72 505 at 210 71100 1785. ats ley Jo YO 85*r2 6 564—3 0 384 120 3 12 fallow S- oo). .94./36..6 621 —3 1 95 140 4 12 ditto ‘816.0 105 150 968 —2 2 104170 1786. § 50 ditto IOIlO 527 80 3850 —2 g 528170 1787. 6 8 ditto 9 4° 73140 564 —2 8 75 00 ms afore * 32.400 ; 25°04 220 —2 3 24150 8 50 ley 10 20 505 50 3680 —2 9 506 0.0 1788. 9 7 fallow 15 100 108106 1110 —2 0 Ir 00 to 80 ditto 9 2.0-727..00 4700—3-< 724 00 iz 10 vetches 8 a 794450 940 —1 8 78 60 zz 20 burnt 5 iz Oo) 312 O'O 800 —2 9 110 00 1789. 13 6 fallow 7 60 43160 245—=—3 9 45189 14 15 ley 10 © 150143 1250-2 5 151 160 1790. 15 6 fallow 1311 00 66 go 542 —2 6 67150 16 $Srough 7160 62 67 365 —3 6 63176 301 acres. 2839 9 4 20924 facks 2343 18 3 =e ee ee eee Average expences per acre gl. gs. 3d. Average produce per acre about 70 facks. Average value per acre, prime coft about 2s. gd. per fack of 240 ]b, EXPERIMENTS [ 378 J] 1784-5. EXPERIMENTS ON FEEDING HOGS. ' [It may be neceffary to ‘premife that though in the fub- fequent accounts the expences and confumption of the hogs are in fums total; yet the account was taken re- gularly every month, and it is now brought into grofs fums, merely to fhorten the account. ] NO. I. EXPENCES. 1785, ‘fanuary 5. ae To 12 hogs bought at 25s. each - 15. O¢@ April 13. To attendance, boiling food, ferving, &c. 14 weeks - - - I a5 36 To carriage of pot to boiling-houfe - 0.17.6 To coal, 24 bufhels, at 6d. per bufhel - © 12' 0120 P76? 1.0 PRODUCE. 1786, Fanuary 31. By 77 porkers fold at home for - 154 00 [ Three died. ] By g fows to Cottle, average 14 fcore each, at ' §s. 6d, per fcore - - ~ 34 13 0 [One died.] By 7ocart loads of dung, at 2s, per load - 7 00 £.195 13 0 Lofs- - £18 56 EXPERIMENT [ 382 ] EXPERIMENT NO. III. EXPENCES. , 1785, December 27. To 112 hogs bought at Briftol, 40s. prhog 224 090 1786, April 25. To hd le 17 weeks, 12s. per week, fay 10 0@ To hauling potatoes - - 10.00 To potatoes, 1244 facks, at 2s. es per fack, prime coft - 492 00 1789, February 15. Attendance, 17 weeks - - 27.00 Hauling potatoes . - 26. 00 Potatoes, 4032 facks, at 2s. 8d. prime coft 537 12 0 Coal, 672 bufhels, at 6d. per bufhel - 16 160 Barley, buck-wheat, and oatmeal, 160 quarters 186 13 0 Salt - - - - 7°00 Straw, 125 loads_ - - . 62 10 0 Killing 336, at 4d. each - - ‘5 120 Carriage to Bath and Briftol - 22.08 £1558 40 PRODUCE. February 8. 14 fpay’d fows, fold at 5s. 6d. per fcore, each fow 16 {core - - 61 120 Cc2 February i. 988.0%". Brought forward £61 12 0 February 8, 16, 22. 322 hogs, average 14} fcore, 6s. rod. per fcore 1567 Oo N.B. None died. 720 loads of dung, at 2s. per load 3 72 00 £-1700 12 0 Profit f.142 8.0. OBSERVATIONS. The foregoing experiment fhews, that no kind pays more for the food than fpay’d fows. It is true, they are not worth fo much as other fat hogs, by near Is, per {core, particularly if they are heavy,— but then they get fat quicker, and on lefs food. In the courfe of this experiment, I tried grinding the potatoes in an old apple-mill, inftead of boiling, but did not find it anfwer. If room could have been found, to have mixed them with meal, and depo- fited them in a refervoir, fo as to have fermented, it might have fucceeded. Waving near half of my potatoes left, I refolved to fat another lot; but as the {pring was near at hand, I was obliged to pur- chafe fmaller hogs, thinking that large ones would not be faleable. The difpofition of the buyers {eemed to be much changed; for though they did not regard a few years fince how large fat hogs were, yet now 3 ee Na now they declined purchafing in the fpring a higher weight than 10 fcore per hog. 1788-9. EXPERIMENT, NO, VII. EXPENCES. fee Ss ae 1789, March 1. 300 hogs, at 22s. 6d, - - 337 10 0 Fune 3. Attendance 13 weeks —- - 20 10 0 Hauling potatoes - - - 20 0'0 Potatoes, 2600 facks, at 2s. 8d. per fack - 349 130 Coal, 520 bufhels, at 6d. per bufhel - 13° 6.0 Barley, buck-wheat, and oat-meal, 120 qrs. 144 00 Salt - - - > £7 0.0 Straw, 100 loads, 10s. per load - 50 ONG Killing 296, at 4d. each - | - 418 0 Carriage to Bath - ~ 18 00 £-958 11 8 PRODUCE, June. 296, average weight 7% {core, 7s. 6d. per fcore 832 10 0 600 loads of dung, at 2s. per load - 60 00 £.892 10 9 Lofs £.66 1 8. OBSERVATIONSe [ 39° J OBSERVATIONS. The preference to be given to large hogs is again confirmed. ‘Thefe young pigs were always reftlefs; it was very dificult to keep them in the {ties; and had they not been carefully ringed, they would have worked up. with their nofes all the pitching. They were always covered with filth; for though littered very well, we could not keep them clean. They grew inftead of getting fat. 1789-90. EXPERIMENT, NO. VIII. EXPENCES, 1789, Nov. 15. Le $a hs 96 large hogs, at 50s.each = - 240 OO 1790, April. Attendance 20 weeks - - 9 00 Hauling potatoes - - - 8 00 Potatoes, 1220 facks, at 2s. 8d. per fack - 162 130 Coal, 320 bufhels, at 6d. per bufhel - 8 00 Barley and oatmeal, go quarters, 25s, per qr. 112 10 0 Grains, 300 bufhels, 4d. per bufhel - 5 70° Salt - - - - 3.00 Straw, 30 loads, at 10s. per load - 15 00 Killing 96, at 4d. each - - 1120 Carriage - - - 8 00 £572.55 2 PRODUCE. i se. |] PRODUCE. 1790, Apri. | : 96 hogs, average weight 17 fcore each, 7s, afcore 571 40 200 loads of dung, 2s. per load - - 10 00 £58 49 Prost £,8:"9 ©. OBSERVATIONS. This experiment was conducted with particular accuracy; and from the refult of it Ijywas led to conclude, that, unlefs circumftances were particu- larly favourable, 2s. 8d. per fack was the utmoft value of potatoes under the beft management, in this mode of application. The hogs were of the Shropfhire fort, large and fine ; and though bought in dear, they alfo fold out dear. Excepting two or three, they all proved very well. 1790-1. EXPERIMENT, NO, IX, 1790, Odfober. a Se od. Seven fows and pigs, 50s. each - 24 10 2 wy PGI, April. Attendance 6 months - : MON Carried over £.29 10 9 [ 392 J Le bed Brought forward 29 10 0 Potatoes, 300 facks, at 3s. 6d. per fack = - 22 100 Barley and oatmeal, 24. quarters ~ 30 00 Hauling potatoes ~ - 2100 Coal, 70 bufhels, at 6d. per bufhel - I 15:0 Grains, 100 bufhels —- - 1130 Straw, 12 loads ~ - 6 o¢ £-93 18 0 PRODUCE, 1791, April. Seven fows, valued, being with young - 17 100 Forty-two flips, 25s. each - - 52 10 0 [Eight died. ] Dung, 100 loads, at 2s. per load - 10 00 £80 60 Lofs £.13 18 0. OBSERVATIONS. T am difpofed to think that rearing pigs cannot well be effected without the affiftance of the dairy; and if you do attempt to rear without shat affiftance, avoid having any litters at the approach of winter. The cold will pinch the young pigs; and if they are once ftopt in their growth, or as it is vulgarly called knit, the beft keeping afterwards will not re- cover them. RECAPITULATION. {gos J RECAPITULATION. Prortt, 7." sa. | LOSS. Lose, 197655 Exp. © = 8.35.. Sof 19786; Exp. 2 98) 5.6 1786, mS Bo. 2) 8 | 1788, Va B50. 16s 5787, iv. - 1 14 6 || 1789, Wal WO ave 1789, Me 142 ¢ SOc 94, ix. 5, 03038 e 1790, vii. -8 9 O _—— 255 O10 169. 8 Ic | —— Balance loft 85 12 © || By balance loft 85 12 0 ——_—__— || By fundry expences 255: 01 50 in erecting boil- eo SS ing-houfes, fties, &c. 8c... - 100 0 0 | OO £-185 12 0 At 2s. 9d. per fack, this lofs is incurred in feeding hogs for feven years. OBSERVATIONS. It appears by the preceding accounts that 16,778 facks of potatoes have been confumed by hogs in the feven years’ experiments, and confequently (the fum total raifed being 20,924 facks) that 4146 facks have been fold and planted. Eftimating thefe therefore, at an average of -4s. per fack, a profit will remain (after deducting the above_lofs, Miz, 155). 129.); of “731. t0s.6d. ‘Fhe refult, therefore, is, that potatoes are worth, as a food for hogs, fomething more than 2s. 6d. per fack of 240]b. weight. Vou. VI. D Potatoes [ 394 ] Potatoes will fhrink in pit between the months November and March, about one fack in twenty: when pitted, I allow in my calculation of the quan- tity there depofited after that proportion. I am now proceeding in a courfe of experiments to afcertain the value, of potatoes as a food for horfes, cows, fatting oxen, and fheep; which fhall in due time be laid before the Society, fhould they think it worthy their notice. I am, Gentlemen, your’s, &c. J. BILLINGSLEY. AsHwIcK-GROVE, Fuly 1, 1792. END OF VOL VI. ERRATUM. Page 366, for 32-feet, read three-feet. DIRECTIONS FOR PLACING THE PLATES, OAK TREES. Plate I. - - Page 54. | PlateIV. - - Page 5$ II. and Ill. - - 57 V. and VI. - - 59 SWARD-CUTTER - page 72 NEW EDITIONS 2 ORs FIVE PRECEDING VOLUMES OFrMVEHE mere 0 O'CAE 1 ® ss PAP ERS: Wit Bi TH Eye EATS: S, May be had in Boards, price 11. 8s. or either Volume feparately. Alfo, price 1s. 6d. each, i. An ESSAY on the PRESERVATION of the HEALTH of PERSONS employed in AGRICULTURE, and on the NATURE of the DISEASES incident to that Way of Life. By WILLIAM FALCONER, M.D. F.R.S. And Phyfician to the Bath Hofpital. Lik CAUTIONS concerning the POISON of LEAD and of COPPER ; with a Method of detecting thefe Metals in Wines, Cyder, and various other Aliments. By A. FOTHERGILL, M.D. F.R.S. Member of the Royal College of Phyficians, London; and of the Medical Societies of London, Edinburgh, and Paris. A . ofr an & > i. ae Py ee Bore ea Sh ee ee ~ rs pdt) " Cle hip Gene Aes jh tite Om Are ek < s q Y . ‘ ‘ r rad , - “4 a fi 5 ~ A DP, 7 ( . -d St Ee aa Ee Laer pent to hen STS PR ae + y i 2 . 7, - D uit. SETS wees \ Li ~ ioe: , o_ wt | ae * > Ra ect & “an a f $ ; oe”: ; - al ak iatye 4% ame! Be hee ty . Aish hace w Faull alos op ee a | S Bath & West & Southern 5 Counties Society B4 Letters and papers on v.6 agriculture, planting &c. Bioibaical selected from the corres- & Medical pondence of the society Serials PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY